《Dragon Blooded War God》


 Chapter 1 – Dragon Shaped Jade Pendant

    Por Town.


    In a room on the second floor of the Emerald Jade House, a pair of coquettish girls sat on Yang Chen¡¯sp. Yang Chen whipped out a few silver bills pped them on the table andughed delightfully.


    Once the two girls saw the bills, their eyes immediately shone with light, and hurriedly rubbed their breasts on his arm, slylyughing. ¡°Master Yang, you sure are very generous¡­¡±


    Just at this moment, the door suddenly mmed open. A servant rushed to the young man¡¯s side, and in spite of the sweat, stooped low to the youth¡¯s ear and said, ¡°Young Master Chen, Third Aunt¡¯s husband has passed away!¡±


    The servant¡¯s name was Xiao Huang, Yang Chen¡¯s most trusted aide, apanying his side for many years.


    Yang Chen¡¯s face suddenly went expressionless, only recovering after a while, brushed his sleeves, stood up, and left the area. The servant¡¯s expression was sorrowful, but could not keep up with Yang Chen¡¯s footsteps.


    Walking on the street, Yang Chen thought: ¡°Although this devil of a father died in an intoxicated manner, surpassing even me when drinking, but he is barely forty years old, he could still live another ten years, so how did he suddenly kick the bucket today?¡±


    Increasing his pace, he very quickly arrived in the Yang residence.


    Por Town had two families in power, the Bai family and the Yang family. The Yang family was in control of close to half of all of Por Town¡¯s resources, hence achieving the name of the second power.


    Usually a person born to such a family is one¡¯s fortune. However, in Yang Chen¡¯s case it was not so.


    During his younger days, the Yang family founder was known for having a great innate talent, his martial skills were immeasurable, and in Por Town he had built up his foundation. The Yang family quickly expanded and achieved sess, giving birth to countless children.


    Yang Chen¡¯s mother is of the older generation and is the third daughter, with a genius talent, which everybody in Por Town knew. However, Yang Chen¡¯s father became a son-inw living with his wife¡¯s family. Yang Chen did not know how flirtatious his father was during his younger days, but as far back as he could recall, his father was drinking wine all day long, in a muddy daze, abandoned in a crude cottage, wasting his life away.


    As the father was useless, the unlucky son was also implicated. Hence Yang Chen¡¯s position was not essential in the great Yang family. Not only did other people give him the cold shoulder, but even his own mother pretended not to have given birth to him. As such, he led a carefree life and had an unrestrained disposition. With the reputation of the Yang family, he got by with wasting his life away drinking and eating merrily, by dominating men and conquering women, leading a pretty good life.


    Ignoring the cold gazes from the gate guards, Yang Chen entered the Yang residence.


    The Yang family courtyard was filled with pavilions, beautiful flora, disying the elegance and history of the great family.


    Not even a few steps away there were two people who were walking over. The first was a white robed, tall andrgely built, stern young man. It was Yang Chen¡¯s second uncle¡¯s eldest son, his cousin Yang Zhan.


    Behind Yang Zhan, stood a distant cousin called Chen Liu. He had an ugly disposition, hunchbacked, and looked towards Yang Zhan with ttery.


    When he arrived in front of Yang Chen, Yang Zhan suddenly blocked Yang Chen¡¯s path.


    ¡°I hear that your useless father finally kicked the bucket.¡±


    Yang Zhan mocked Yang Chen, his face full of ridicule.


    Yang Zhan had a decent reputation in Por Town, at the age of only 17, he had already broken through and entered the realm of the fourth dragon pulse, his achievement was considered as splendid.


    Yang Chen inparison to the rest of the outstanding youths in the Yang family, was never considered to be even in the same league.


    Ever since they were small, they have had ess to innumerous amounts of resources, and secret intermediate martial techniques, as for Yang Chen he never had any of these.


    His mother did not bother with him, and other people were even less likely to give him anything. When he was younger, he participated in an intra-familypetition and showed off his incredible cultivation speed, stunning the crowd and earning himself a period of fame. However, without ess to martial techniques, coupled with hisck of aptitude to improve, and even not practicing cultivation, he never managed to break through the first Dragon Pulse Vein, not being able even to enter the first level of Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Yang Chen had practiced in secret before, but without martial techniques and guidance, even improving a little was extremely difficult.


    ¡°Why are you keeping quiet? I said that your dad is someone useless, you refuse to ept that fact?¡±


    Standing in front of Yang Chen, Yang Zhan looked down upon him with ridicule in his eyes.


    This kind of bullying, it¡¯s not as if Yang Chen has never encountered it before. Although Yang Chen has quite a reputation outside, but when he returns back to the Yang family he is considered to be equal to a dog. He knows his own ce in the family, so he constantly endures and lets things slide by. But today, perhaps it was because of his father¡¯s death, even though he looked calm on the surface, his heart was extremely vexed.


    ¡°Move out of my way!¡±


    Inhaling deeply, Yang Chen coldly said as he raised his head to look at him.


    ¡°My dear younger brother, how can you speak to your elder brother so rudely, could it be that you are resentful towards me? You did not learn martial cultivation, while tarnishing the Yang family name. As your elder brother, isn¡¯t it a natural thing for me to discipline you a little bit?


    Yang Zhanughed as he said that. Not waiting for Yang Chen to dispute, he threw a punch hitting Yang Chen¡¯s stomach and left, sneering.


    Yang Chen cried out in pain and copsed to the ground.


    With Yang Zhan gone, Chen Liu immediately trotted after him. As he passed Yang Chen, he turned around and spat at him. Yang Chen, who was lying on the floor in agony, hurriedly dodged the spittle.


    ¡°Aiyo, so you managed to dodge? Cousin, your family¡¯s dog is rather nimble¡­¡±


    After ridiculing Yang Chen a while more, Chen Liu then sped up to keep pace with Yang Zhan.


    The maids around who saw the scene, deemed it as an everyday activity, and did not look surprised.


    No one turned a sympathetic eye upon Yang Zhan, but instead they became amused.


    Yang Chen crawled up from the ground, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Watching the departing backs of Yang Zhan and Chen Liu, his intelligent eyes smoldered with anger.


    ¡°I must get revenge! If only I was a Martial cultivator, if only I were to enter the Dragon Pulse Realm!¡±


    Yang Zhan, and thatckey Chen Liu, I will remember today¡¯s humiliation. If I ever get the opportunity, I will make sure you will die horribly!¡±


    Clenching his fist, Yang Chen walked towards his father¡¯s living quarters.


    Over these past several years, he etched in his heart anyone who had humiliated him. If there everes a day that he gets to improve, he will make sure those people who looked down on him will never live in peace again.


    This is him, in Yang Chen¡¯s circle of friends, the ones that were familiar with him allbeled him as a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing.


    Yang Chen¡¯s father was named Long Qinn, a considerably refined name. Word has it that he was unparalleled in his flirtatious ways in his younger days, even the Yang family¡¯s third madam was also enthralled.


    Walking into the crude doorway, Long Qinn was surrounded by a swarm of maidservants, lying on the floor with a pitch-ckplexion. The room stank with a putrid odor, the result of abination of alcohol and urine.


    ¡°He¡¯s here¡­¡±


    Seeing the arrival of Yang Chen, the maidservants hurriedly left, seemingly havingpleted their task.


    Yang Chen¡¯s gaze lingered on Long Qinn. Since a long time, this man had no future. Him having this ending today, Yang Chen had long foreseen it.


    Squatting down, he looked at that pitch-ck face.


    ¡°In the end, what kind of person are you? These sixteen years, I felt like I have never understood you, and you didn¡¯t let me understand you either. The sad thing is, standing here today, I actually feel like we are total strangers. Father, father¡­ it seems I am that unfilial son of the myths, even when you pass away, I cannot even shed a drop of tear.¡±


    Originally he considered himself to be heartless, and yet currently, his heart unexpectedly held a trace of bitterness.


    Lingering for a while longer, upon the sound of footsteps outside, Yang Chen regained hisposure. A woman wearing a faded pink robe with her hair tied up walked over, surrounded by a cluster of people. She nced sideways at Long Qinn¡¯s corpse, and let out a sigh and ndly said: ¡°This ill-fated rtionship has now passed. Yang Chen, he is your father, and because of this connection, you should find a ce to bury him.¡±


    When she finished speaking, she left straight away without giving Yang Chen a second nce.


    Yang Chen smiled, already ustomed to this, and looked at Long Qinn and mockingly said, ¡°Father, your looks can be considered as suave, and during your youth, your flirtatious reputation was spread far and wide, countless beauties fell before the seams in your big pants. Unexpectedly when you died, even your woman has barely nced at your dead body.


    In his heart, he was disheartened, yet he did not disy it in his expression.


    Yang Chen, disregarding everything else carried Long Qinn¡¯s corpse on his back, ignoring the weird ncesing his way, and walked all the way out of the Yang residence. Calling a horse drawn carriage and personally acting as the coachman, he brought Long Qinn¡¯s body out of town, after finding a scenic location in the forest, Yang Chen unmounted and observed the surroundings.


    ¡°The verdant hills and limpid water, with the birdsong and fragrant flowers, is a fitting location for your eternal rest. Also the yin in the air is quite dense; I would imagine there would be many female spirits around. If you ever feel flirtatious in the afterlife, and wish to get me a step-mother or two, then this exquisite location, should be unrivaled for your XXX time.


    ¡°No matter what, I Yang Chen am still your son, and half of my blood and body was spurted out by you. However, since you died so early, and I am not aplished, the best I can do is have you buried here. If you turn into a ghost and gain any magic power, please give me your blessing so that I can continue to live cheerfully.¡±


    Whilst looking at Long Qinn¡¯s dim and lifeless face, he was startled to find a teardrop flow down his face.


    Yang Chen hastily wiped away the tear, and without another word, used his fingers, and dug a grave in the fertile soil with his bare hands.


    Although he no longer practiced martial cultivation, he still had a degree of talent. After all those years, his tempered body up till now has not deteriorated one bit. Digging a big pit was not a problem to him at all.


    Just as he was preparing to bury Long Qinn, Long Qinn suddenly opened his eyes.


    Yang Chen gave a cry as he realized the body wasn¡¯t dead, even if it was his own father; he still pushed him into the muddy pit.


    Looking at the person in the pit, Yang Chen¡¯s mind was in a panicked state, stammering he said: ¡°Fa ¡­ Father, I did not speak ill of you, and today I merely dug this grave for you to let you rest in peace¡­¡±


    Long Qinn flipped his body around, cursing: ¡°I swear to our ancestors, I have notpletely died, and you already want to bury me, you little bastard. The reason why I came back to life was to tell you one thing. In my dantian, there¡¯s a dragon shaped emblem. When I die, dig out that dragon shaped jade pendant from my dantian, and that way it will allow me to be freed from all the suffering¡­¡±

 Chapter 2 – Long Chen

    After investing a considerable amount of energy, Yang Chen finally managed to shift Long Qinn, allowing him to lean against the tree trunk.


    ¡°This old man was faking his death all along!¡±


    After observing for a while, Yang Chen discovered that Long Qinn had no issues at all, he was exasperated to the point that he wanted to deliver a few punches to his father.


    Long Qinn stared at him and said, ¡°Don¡¯t think that I survived. Right now I have resurrected, the main reason is to entrust you with a few things. You better listen to me carefully, if you miss a thing, I will turn into a ghost and make you unable to produce any heirs.¡±


    Yang Chen rolled his eyes, in the past he had never heard this guy speak, but he didn¡¯t think that their manner of speech would be so alike, it must have been hereditary.


    ¡°Alright, I know there¡¯s nothing wrong with you father, look you are turning back to normal, just shoot what you have to say.¡±


    Long Qinnughed heartily and said, ¡°I have seen you a few times in the past, you little bastard, no doubt you have my style from when I was younger, so I will cut this short, after I die, the first thing you have to do is take the dragon shaped jade pendant out from my dantian.¡±


    After hearing about the Dragon Jade again, Yang Chen stared nkly, and said, ¡°Father, do you think that I¡¯m an idiot? If your dantian had a piece of jade pendant squeezed in it, how is it that you are still living so well right now?¡±


    ¡°Bullshit! How can you call this perfectly fine? When I was eighteen and came to Por Town, only your mother was my match in her generation, if not for that reason, then how could I get a beauty like your mother in my bed? However, ever since I acquired this jade, the Qi in the eighth level of my Dragon Pulse Realm, was absorbed entirely in half a year, hence leading to this state of uselessness!¡±


    So there was actually such a story, Yang Chen honestly did not know. Seeing from his old man¡¯s emotional speech, the story shouldn¡¯t be a lie, however what kind of a Dragon Jade could this be, to be able to make Qi disappear?


    And more importantly, this old guy used to be an eighth level super expert of the Dragon Pulse Realm? If his father had such achievements during those younger days, what would his future look like?


    ording to legend, the human race inherited the bloodline of the ancient divine dragon, causing the nine major blood vessels that flowed inside the human body to bebeled as dragon veins, when the physical body was tempered to the maximum, feeling both heaven and earth, absorbing the surrounding essence, then one can umte it into Qi, when Qi rushes through the nine dragon veins, then one can be a top level expert, hence the Dragon Pulse Realm had a total of nine levels.


    [TL: Dragon Pulse Realm is only the first realm, and has a total of nine levels.]


    To Yang Chen¡¯s knowledge, amongst Por Town¡¯s strongest people, his cheap old grandfather, self-proimed a peerless master, but he was actually no more than an expert at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Ignoring Yang Chen¡¯s skeptical expression, Long Qinn continued seriously, ¡°This first thing, I have already clearly exined to you, the second thing is¡­ to change your name. From this day onwards, your name will be changed to Long Chen. Our Long family is the world¡¯s greatest overlord, as their descendants, we definitely cannot use another family¡¯s surname!¡±


    (TL note ¨C Áú = Long = Dragon)


    ¡°Greatest overlord? Bluffing little kids is okay, but don¡¯t use it to coax me¡­¡­oh well, if I only need to change my surname to Long then so be it.¡±


    Yang Chen nked out for a second, he never would have thought this old devil would y this kind of joke on him, however, he had since a long time ago not wanted to have the surname Yang anymore. Although his father was not so aplished, but he could still make do with having the surname Long.


    Long Chen, this is his new name.


    He chanted his name several times, and the feeling was pretty good. Looking at the old devil showing a genuine smile, Long Chen suddenly felt that he was quite happy today.


    He sat down next to Long Qinn, his shoulder leaning against his.


    ¡°You are my son, calling you Chen Er should not be too excessive, I have been stirring up trouble my entire life, traveled unhindered throughout the entire Long Ji Continent, but I did not expect to die in Por Town, this hell of a dog ce, fate is hard to predict, it really makes one feel like sobbing.¡±


    ¡°Did your brain spoil today or something, your entire life¡¯s misdeeds I know at the back of my hand, quit bragging in front of me! Oh right, let¡¯s not return to the Yang family, with my abilities, even in another ce, supporting a drunkard like you shouldn¡¯t be that much of a problem, how about it?¡±


    As Long Chen spoke, he looked at the distant scenery, waiting for his father to reply, but after a long while there was no reaction. He suddenly felt cold, and immediately turned around, only to see Long Qinn¡¯s eyes filling up with tears, but not moving one bit.


    ¡°Old devil, what happened to you¡­¡­¡±


    Being looked at in such a manner by a man, Long Chen did not feel one bit awkward. Even though he has always had a vulgar mouth, but the man in front of him is undeniably his father.¡±


    ¡°Chen Er¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­¡­Yes?¡±


    Long Qinn raised his head, and said: ¡°I am not a good father, and I did not bear any responsibilities that a father should have, hence allowing you to walk down the wrong path. There are many things that you will have to face. Right now I do not want to tell you, but once you reach that level, you will be able to experience it yourself.¡±


    ¡°And thest thing I want to tell you in this life, you had better clean your ears and listen closely, that is: In this cruel world, your strength is everything; a man without strength is the equivalent to a dog!¡±


    ¡°After my death, I wish for you to be strong, to set that as your life¡¯s goal, because that too, ultimately was my aim, but fate yed such a joke on me¡­¡­¡±


    After being entrusted with such a task so solemnly, Long Chen was left in a daze.


    Long Qinn vigorously patted him on the head, and put his hand onto Long Chen¡¯s shoulders and said smilingly: ¡°I have already said what I intended to,stly I wish to entrust to you one more request. Soon, there will be a Yang familypetition; the younger generation of disciples will have apetition. The champion in the end will receive the Yang family¡¯s most advanced tome of martial techniques, the [Seal of the Dragons]. This [Seal of the Dragons] is the key for you to be the Dragon Warrior, so no matter what you do, you must get your hands on it, never forget that, never forget that¡­¡­.¡±


    This familypetition, Long Chen had heard some of it, but it had nothing to do with him.


    ¡°With my ability, I can beat up a few local thugs without a problem, but to enter into thispetition, I will only manage to lose face for you. And also old man, what is this Dragon Warrior you speak of?


    ¡°Dragon Warrior¡­¡­that is a long-lost legend of the Long Ji Continent¡­¡­¡±


    After finishing this sentence, Long Qinn¡¯s face was graced with a smile, his eyes filled with yearning. However, the hand that he rested on Long Chen¡¯s shoulder, had just slowly slumped off, and ceased all breathing.


    Long Chen was about ask more about the Long Ji Continent, but upon seeing Long Qinn¡¯s hand limply fall, his heart entered a state of panic, and quickly held onto Long Qinn.


    Although his eyes were still open, and his face was graced with a smile, Long Chen discovered that his father had already lost all signs of life. This time around, he was truly dead.


    Long Chen was having a mental breakdown.


    Just a day ago, if Long Qinn died, he could have epted it, but now when he had longed to travel with the old devil to a far away ce, and live a happy, unrestrained life, he was suddenly left behind alone¡­¡­


    Long Chen bowed his head in sorrow.


    ¡°You better listen to me carefully, if you miss a thing, I will turn into a ghost and make you unable to produce any heirs.¡±


    ¡°I am not a good father, and I did not bear any responsibilities that a father should have.¡±


    ¡°In this cruel world, your strength is everything; a man without strength is the equivalent to a dog!¡±


    ¡°After my death, I wish for you to be strong, to set that as your life¡¯s goal.¡±


    His words, echoed repeatedly in Long Chen¡¯s ears.


    Long Chen would have never expected that he will one day be able to experience such a painful parting. He formerly thought that he had long lost his conscience, but this painful feeling right now, from where does ite from?


    After waiting until deep into the night, and confirming that he will not wake again, only then did Long Chen lower him into the grave.


    Looking down upon the gaunt face in the grave, Long Chen silently clenched his fists.


    ¡°¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Old man, of all the things you have said to me, I will remember everything clearly, and will act ordingly. The few things you have entrusted to me, even if I be crippled, I will carry them out. As for the changing of my surname, I have already done so, the task of the [Seal of the Dragons], I will slowly aplish, the matter of bing strong, cannot be done in a day either. And¡­¡­¡±


    He recalled the request that Long Qinn asked of him, to remove the jade shaped pendant from his dantian.


    He is already dead, if I desecrate his corpse; this would be a grave sin¡­¡­¡±


    Upon thinking of this, he wanted to give up, but then he immediately changed his mind.


    ¡°No, that¡¯s not right, this old devil said that the Dragon Jade was tormenting him, and he also told me this repeatedly. This jade may have some profound mysteries.¡±


    Long Chen is not a sentimental person, and upon thinking of this, he took out a dagger, nced at Long Qinn once more, took a deep breath, and broke through his dantian.


    Sure enough, there appeared a piece of ck jade pendant.


    Long Chen ced the jade pendant onto the ground, then covered Long Qinn¡¯s body with mud and dirt, erected a gravestone, and after paying his respects, sat off to the side, looking at the strange jade piece that lie on his hand.


    This was the Dragon Jade that Long Qinn mentioned.


    ¡°So it was you that sucked him dry of all his essential Qi and ruined his life?¡±


    The Mysterious Dragon Jade was a dragon shaped piece of jade, with numerous strange lines forming a pattern on it. The entire piece of jade was ck; the material seemed ordinary, if a bit old. Long Chen could not imagine how this thing could torment Long Qinn his entire life.


    At this time it was already dark, the moonlight gently illuminated the scene, and mist gradually permeated through the woods. The Dragon Jade in Long Chen¡¯s hands began to emit a hazy light, and then suddenly disappeared, much to the surprise and shock of Long Chen.


    ¡°What just happened?¡±


    Still not fully recovered, Long Chen felt a roaring sound inside his head, and found that his consciousness appeared in the midst of an expanse of grey fog. The mist unceasingly rolled forward, moving along with the billowing wind. Long Chen lost all sense of orientation, and could only look around in all directions in bewilderment.


    ¡°This was exactly as described in the book, the sea of consciousness houses and hides the soul, but only once one bes a martial warrior, and opens up his mind, can he see this sea, so what exactly is going on?¡±


    He was secretly shocked, Long Chen continuously traveled within this sea of consciousness, but he felt that even if he ran forever, it would be impossible to escape from this endless sea of fog. At this moment, Long Chen saw that ancient ck piece of dragon shaped jade appear, suspended before his eyes and exuding an obscure light.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were filled with surprise and disbelief.


    ¡°For this Dragon Jade to appear in my consciousness, would it be to suck away my vital Qi?¡±


    Long Chen was shocked.


    ¡°No, that couldn¡¯t be it. Fundamentally, I do not possess any vital Qi, it wouldn¡¯t be here to absorb my fart, would it?¡±


    Just at this moment, a potent force surged out from the Dragon Jade, and crossing between the boundaries of flesh and soul, appeared inside of Long Chen¡¯s dantian.


    This vigorous reserve of heat made Long Chen¡¯s body feel entirely refreshed.


    ¡°Qi?¡±

 Chapter 3 – Dragon Pulse

    While Long Chen was standing there dumbfounded, Qi that forcefully broke out from the mysterious jade emblem appeared in his dantian.


    ¡°Where did this Qie from? Could it be that the Dragon Jade absorbed it from my father¡¯s body?!¡±


    Although Long Chen¡¯s physical training was at the pinnacle stage, the huge amount of Qi had exceeded his ability to harness it. The abrupt energy flowed outwards from his limbs, sending the earth flying in all directions!


    A scorching wave surged through his chest, causing Long Chen to cry out in agony. He gritted his teeth, already drenched in sweat!


    The Qi in his dantian thrashed violently within, and seemed ready to explode at any moment. At this rate, it would result in death bybustion. Long Chen¡¯s eyes turned red at the thought of dying without aplete corpse.


    ¡°I¡¯m not someone who dies so easily! Dragon Pulse? Break through it!¡±


    After training the body, at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, a practitioner¡¯s dantian generates Qi. When a sufficient amount of Qi has been gathered, it will transform into the Legendary Dragon, and break through the first Dragon Vein. And the amount of Qi in Long Chen¡¯s dantian at this time far surpassed the requirement!


    ¡°Break!¡±


    Gritting his teeth, sweat dripping onto the ground, he let out a roar. Under his skillful maniption, the Qi in his dantian transformed into a Dragon. Sucking in a deep breath, he resolutely pushed forward towards the Dragon Vein! With a bang, the Dragon Vein was burst open by his forceful Qi. A countless amount of Qi rushed in like a raging flood, thundering into the Dragon Vein. Formerly closed, the Dragon Vein expanded inch by inch under the assault of the Qi. Throughout this entire process, the Dragon Qi also expanded crazily!


    [TL note: Here the author wrote the Qi condensed/transformed into the form of a Dragon, but because ¡°Dragon-like Qi¡± sounds weird we decided to go with Dragon Qi, but the Qi is not really from a Dragon.]


    Pop!


    The first Dragon Vein, in a quarter of an hour, was suddenly pierced through. The Dragon Qi cycled through the Dragon Vein several times, then returning to the dantian. However, the Qi that had just returned to the dantian at this time ceaselessly rampaged around. The powerful Qi had bloated Long Chen, making his entire body feel extremely ufortable!


    ¡°After opening up one Dragon Vein, I actually managed to break through the first level of Dragon Pulse Realm! However, the Qi in my dantian is still growing at an extraordinary pace. This level two Dragon Pulse, I have to give it a try today!¡±


    Inside, he knows that just then, it could be said that he broke through the first Dragon Vein almost effortlessly. With the momentum he had now, he cannot let this opportunity go. As he sat in front of his father¡¯s grave, he gritted his teeth, and rushed towards the path of the second Dragon Vein.


    The difficulty of breaking through the second Dragon Vein and the corresponding amount of Qi needed, inparison to the first, was many times greater. Just from this, it is apparent how difficult it is to train in the Dragon Pulse Realm. In Por Town, even after investing copious amounts of money and a lifetime¡¯s worth of effort, it is extremely difficult to ascend into the realm after the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    He again altered his Qi into a mighty Dragon. Today in front of his father¡¯s grave, he gritted his teeth and made up his mind to keep on going even if it cost him his life, forcing the immense amount of Qi to advance bit by bit in the Dragon Vein. Opening up the second Dragon Vein is much more difficult than the first, if he failed, then he would have to start from the very beginning!


    A quarter of an hourter, Long Chen only managed to open up ten centimeters, and at this time, he was already exhausted. However, when he remembered his old man¡¯s words, and the tears that appeared in his eyes right before his death, Long Chen felt that the pain and suffering he was experiencing right now was insignificant!


    ¡°That devil wanted me to be strong, and I agreed to his request. With my personality, even if I die, I will properly aplish the tasks you have given me. Today I will break through this second Dragon Vein, and make you look at me in a new light!¡±


    At the same time, he also thought of the people that had insulted him behind his back, and those that hadughed at him.


    ¡°Forget it, I am not a cold and ruthless person. Those that have humiliated me, if I ever be stronger than them, then it is only fair for me to return the favor!¡±


    ¡°Pop!¡±


    After two hours, the second Dragon Vein was finally broken through. Two mighty streams of Qi flowed through his two Dragon Veins and through his entire body, strengthening it. Even more Qi was circling his dantian, and settled there.


    When the Qi flowed over his seven orifices, he felt those senses reach an unprecedented rity. Even though it was nighttime, he could see arger area, and when carefully listening, he could hear the birds and the insects around him much more lucidly.


    Upon entering the Dragon Pulse Realm, it was as if he underwent a dramatic transformation. Right now, he felt like he was as light as a swallow, and yet possessed the force of a thousand jin.


    [TL Note: 1000 jin = 604.79 kg]


    Long Chen stood up, feeling reinvigorated and full of strength, his face revealing a smile.


    Right now, he is already at the second level of Dragon Pulse Realm. Using this Qi, even snapping this tree at his side wouldn¡¯t be too difficult if he went at full force.


    And from today onwards, he can finally be considered to have stepped into the ranks of a true practitioner!


    Looking at Long Qinn¡¯s tombstone once more, Long Chen once again kowtowed a few more times.


    ¡°My many achievements tonight all stem from you. Before I hated you for you have given me nothing, but now I acknowledge my mistake. You are a good father.¡±


    Standing up, he drove the wagon back to Por Town.


    ¡°Something¡¯s amiss ¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen frowned.


    ¡°This Dragon Jade was originally in my father¡¯s dantian. I initially had thought that it¡¯s appearance in my consciousness was an anomaly, but now thinking back on it, there¡¯s around an eighty percent chance that my old man already knew about it, and thus urged me to remove it from his dantian. This Dragon Jade is extremely mysterious, and my old man¡¯s words were very cryptic. The way he spoke of the Continent of Dragons and those superpowers were exceedingly mystifying. Could it be that my old man has some sort of background?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right, before father came to Por Town, nobody knew a thing about his past.¡±


    Long Chen frowned and said: ¡°The most important thing is that my old man definitely recognised the origin of this Dragon Jade, but allowed it to extract his Qi until his death, yet now he is letting me inherit it. This twist of a mystery, what could exactly be the reason?¡±


    Turning his mind back into his sea of consciousness, the mysterious Dragon Jade was still floating in tranquility. Even if Long Chen was gifted with ten brains, he would not be able to exin why it would appear here.


    The sea of consciousness is actually a void of emptiness, so if he were to tell others about it, that matter could actually enter the sea of consciousness, it is inevitable that no one would believe him.


    Once again this further exudes the mysterious quality of the Dragon Jade.


    However at this moment, Long Chen unexpectedly discovered that Qi from the Dragon Jade was still flowing into his dantian, albeit not as much as before.


    Long Chen was ted.


    ¡°My Qi is constantly increasing, probably even surpassing the others¡¯ cultivation speed. With this speed, catching up to the others shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to achieve.


    He formerly presumed he would lead a normal mortal life, but now there is finally hope.


    Looking at Por Town which was just ahead, Long Chen thought of Long Qinn¡¯s tasks for him.


    ¡°The gathering of the Yang family with all their outstanding disciples¡­ all of them are experts and geniuses. I cannotpete even against Yang Zhan, let alone the rest. My old man wants me to emerge as the champion and obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], this is even harder than ascending to the heavens¡­ All these Dragon Warriors, are they that important?¡±


    Arriving at Por Town, it was alreadyte night.


    Long Chen did not live together with the Yang family, but bought a room in the East Pavilion, living alone. Since growing up he has picked on many bad people, but none with important identity. Therefore even living alone, he has not met with any encounters.


    Sticking to his usual routine once reaching home, Long Chen went to bathe and then finally stood before his bed. Suddenly, his cold eyes shed.


    ¡°The bed has been messed up, could it be a thief?¡±


    Long Chen maintained his suspicion and inspected for a while, but could not find anything amiss.


    Long Chenughed dryly andy on the bed. Many events had urred today, breaking through two Dragon Veins and entering the second level of Dragon Pulse Realm. Right now his energy is at its peak level, therefore finding it hard for him to fall asleep.


    Right now it was after midnight, the time where people should sleep soundly. The newly made practitioner Long Chen had improved his senses, vaguely aware of someone approaching his room.


    He quickly pressed the mechanism switch near his bed, and entered an underground cell. As for the bed, it maintained the same original shape.


    Through the small crack of the floorboard, Long Chen peeked up and quietly observed.


    Within breaths, two ck suit masked men entered his room, and when they saw the bulging nket that resembled his silhouette, they did not utter a word, and sent a knife sh towards his bed. A sound of bang could be heard as the bed split into two.


    ¡°Eh? This useless bum is actually not here? Didn¡¯t we see him entering earlier?¡±


    ¡°He must have discovered our traces and escaped!¡±


    ¡°Hng, even if he escaped today he won¡¯t escape tomorrow. We¡¯ll juste again tomorrow and with our abilities, handling this useless boy, wouldn¡¯t it be a piece of cake?¡±


    The two men hurriedly left.


    Although he entered the second level of Dragon Pulse Realm, there were still many people who were much stronger than him. Long Chen did not dare to be careless. The two assassins earlier gave off a dangerous vibe, thinking about it the skills they had were not bad. If Long Chen faced them head on, there would not be a good ending.


    ¡°Fortunately I¡¯m quick-witted, installing secret mechanisms on my bed. If not tonight my dead body would be lying here¡±


    His gaze held an icy stare.


    ¡°In Por Town, there actually exist people who will dispatch assassins to kill me? Such a small fry like me, is it worth that kind of attention?¡±


    Thinking about it, Long Chen frowned once again. Even going through the list of probable suspects, he was still unable to figure out the mastermind.


    The Yang family, while they forsaked him, is still not at the stage to hire experts to kill him.¡±


    ¡°Within this, there should exist a conspiracy that I don¡¯t know of. Oh well, I¡¯ll move back into the Yang family residence tomorrow. Firstly, my safety can be guaranteed. Secondly, I am only at level two of the Dragon Pulse Realm, without any fighting techniques, even if I meet someone from the first level I wouldn¡¯t be able to gain any advantages. Yang family has a Martial Techniques Hall, and right now I am still part of the Yang family, I should still be able to enter.¡°


    ¡°With a good technique, it is possible to increase my attack capabilities by several folds¡­..¡±


    Back in the past he has seen Yang family members using fighting techniques, and their might was not to be messed with!


    In the Yang family residence, Long Chen had a designated ce to live in, just that he did not stay there for years. Once the sun had lit the sky, he carried numerous baggages back in the Yang family residence.


    The Yang family mansion was extremely spacious, so whether Long Chen went back or not, it would not arouse any interest.


    When he had finished tidying up his room, Long Chen consolidated his cultivation. After a night, his Qi rose once again, thinking of the near future, he can progress and move towards the 3rd level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Of course, the present was important. He had better go to the martial arts hall and obtain a fighting technique.


    Yang family¡¯s rule was that as long as a member of the Yang family had entered the 1st level of Dragon Pulse Realm, they are qualified to enter the Martial Arts Hall and choose a fighting technique. And right now, Long Chen had satisfied that criteria.


    Along the way, the maids and guards gazed at him coldly. Long Chen had long gotten used to it, these whispers behind his back, he could not care less. His memory aided him well, although he had only seen the Martial Arts Hall once, he was actually able to find the correct route towards it.


    The Martial Arts Hall is a forbidden area of the Yang family. Only a member of the Yang family can enter, not to mention even the maids and guards could not go even close to it. Long Chen saw the stone door far ahead within the grove, and there was a tall pagoda behind those doors. It was the Martial Arts Hall.


    Before he could step near the stone door, his path was already blocked by someone.


    It was none other than Chen Liu who spit on Long Chen previously. Chen Liu¡¯s age was simr towards Long Chen¡¯s, and also had a cultivation in the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Seeing Long Chen had actuallye to the Martial Arts Hall, Chen Liu was taken aback. Shortly after, he ridiculed him and said: ¡° Turns out it is Young Master Chen, why did you have time today toe to the Martial Arts Hall? I heard that a certain trash in the Yang family had gloriously kissed the floor yesterday, but why did Young Master Chene here today instead of mourning? ¡°


    Long Chen naturally understood the sarcasm, but Chen Liu¡¯s speech had brought humiliation to him. Listening to it today, Long Chen felt his rage again. However he was just right in front of the Martial Hall. Before obtaining any techniques, he did not want to create any trouble, so he endured once again and walked around Chen Liu towards the hall.


    However Chen Liu continued his harassment and blocked his path once again. He coldlyughed and said: ¡° Could it be that Young Master Chen is deaf, and couldn¡¯t hear a word I said? ¡°


    ¡°I have already entered the Dragon Pulse Realm. Besides, to enter or not, what has it got to do with an outsider like you?¡±


    Raising his head, he stared at Chen Liu coldly.


    Even without any true strength, Long Chen was able to mix around in Por Town for years, so his might was definitely there. In addition he had already entered the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so this gaze unexpectedly scared Chen Liu into retreating a step back.


    ¡°What? Did I hear wrongly? Entering the Dragon Pulse Realm is not to be entered by iming you did. However I have time today, so I will witness Young Master Chen¡¯s true strength!¡°

 Chapter 4 – [Falling Star Fist]

    Chen Liu retreated a few steps backwards,ughed happily at Chen Long and said: ¡°This is just sparring; we¡¯ll stop once a hitnds, Young Master Chen do not have to worry about losing too badly!¡±


    Long Chen gazed coldly at Chen Liu, and deeply felt the contempt behind that smiling mask. Indeed, if Long Chen did not undergo yesterday¡¯s experience, in the Yang family ranks, perhaps he would not even beat an outsider like Chen Liu.


    However, right now, regardless of whether it isbat ability or tactics, he had undergone a world changing experience. Having just gainedbat strength, deep down he is also raring to have a fight!


    ¡°Chen Liu, I know your true colors, do not put up a front. If you want to fight then go ahead, however if I kill you identally, do not me me!¡±


    Hearing such a resolute tone from Long Chen, Chen Liu was stumped momentarily. At the same moment when he decided to retaliate verbally, he caught Long Chen¡¯s figure moving with surging Qi, throwing a fist at him!


    ¡°Indeed you entered the Dragon Pulse Realm, but you are still not my match! Fine, if you do not know your ce, don¡¯t me me, Chen Liu, for not holding back!


    Chen Liu lingered in the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm for two years and had umted a huge reserve of Qi, right now instead of retreating he went forward with a big shout and threw a punch, opposing Long Chen directly.


    Bam!


    The two opposing fists collided, causing an explosion of Qi, which pushed both parties backwards.


    Feeling the strength of the opponent¡¯s fist that wasparable to his strength, Chen Liu was startled: ¡°Well done, you actually concealed your strength deeply, the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!¡±


    Long Chen had also retreated.


    Chen Liu¡¯s Qi reserves are simr to mine, and he has more experiencepared to me, if this fight is prolonged, I will definitely not be able to match him. Today is my first fight, if this ends with a loss; it will definitely hinder my progress in cultivation greatly, so even if I die I must not lose!¡±


    Thinking of that, Long Chen¡¯s eyes turned bloodshot, his eyes turning quickly he suddenly saw a rock the size of a fist lying nearby.


    He immediately cast his gaze away, stared at Chen Liu and said: ¡°Chen Liu, you definitely carry some weight, but I am stronger than you, try and take another fist of mine!¡±


    Throwing out a punch, Chen Liu was not to be outdone, and drew an explosive burst of Qi directing it to Long Chen!


    Boom!


    This time, Long Chen was sent flying and fell violently towards the floor!


    ¡°The old cripple¡¯s son is indeed a cripple as well, with this pathetic strength of yours, how dare you even unt your strength in front of me, you ought to be beaten up! ¡°


    Seeing Long Chen falling, Chen Liu knew that his strength was definitely stronger than his opponent andughed loudly on the spot.


    However Long Chen had already hopped back on his feet, his bloodshot eyes resting on Chen Liu. What Chen Liu did not see was Long Chen cing his left hand at his back.


    ¡°You have actually not given up yet?¡±


    Chen Liu roared withughter, and charged towards Long Chen again. Seeing how Long Chen desperately got cornered to the nearby wall, Chen Liu once again wanted to hit Long Chen with another fist and defeat him thoroughly. However at this point, Long Chen¡¯s left hand jerked forward, gripping a ck object and struck at Chen Liu¡¯s face.


    ¡°What is this?!¡±


    Chen Liu hurriedly used both hands to shield his face, and the ck object struck his arm, from the pain felt on his arms, he could feel that it was a piece of rock.


    Long Chen used all his strength to hit, but Chen Liu used his Qi to hit it away, thus not causing much damage to his arm.


    Yet at this moment, Long Chen rushed towards Chen Liu, andnded a kick on his stomach. A loud bang sound was heard and Chen Liu gave a blood curdling screech, crashing into a willow tree and spurted blood on the floor,pletely losing hisbative state, only using a frightened gaze to look at Long Chen, with a face filled with disbelief.


    ¡°You¡­¡­Yang Chen, you actually dared to hurt me, my elder cousin brother will definitely im your wretched life!¡±


    Long Chen stood firmly and spit in contempt.


    ¡°What kind of second level Dragon Pulse Realm practitioner are you, in front of my skills you will be killed easily!¡±


    Before Long Chen became a practitioner, he was involved in numerous fights. The move earlier was actually his ultimate move.


    When the two fought he had thrown a heavy object directly at his opponent¡¯s face. The face with the seven orifices and important organs is man¡¯s most important part of the body, and also the most vulnerable part. Chen Liu did not know what Long Chen threw at him, so he will definitely use his hands to block. While he deflected the rock, Long Chen had already simultaneously attacked him below where he had no defense left.


    Thinking of yesterday¡¯s shback where Chen Liu spit at Long Chen, and the loser in front of him that still threatened him, Long Chen walked towards Chen Liu and grabbed his cor tightly, sneering he said: ¡°You once called me a dog, you once spit at me, all these were the misdoings of your mouth, today I will not make things too difficult, I¡¯ll only seal this mouth of yours!¡±


    Chen Liu was frightened, and disyed an extremely horrified expression, even somewhat beggingly pleading with his eyes towards Long Chen. But before he got to speak, Long Chen had already punched him in the mouth, breaking all of his teeth. Chen Liu rolled on the floor crying in pain, full of regrets in his heart that were unfortunately toote.


    Defeating Chen Liu, Long Chen suddenly felt his hair standing on his back. He hurriedly turned around and saw Yang Zhan and Yang Zhan¡¯s father the second elder, Long Chen¡¯s uncle, both standing five meters away.


    They were actually just walking by, but happened to see such a fantastic show disyed in front of the martial arts hall. Chen Liu was Yang Zhan¡¯sckey, and was just beaten like that by Long Chen. Yang Zhan felt his rage rising, and stormed towards Long Chen with an imposing demeanor.


    ¡°Yang Chen¡­¡­Are you courting your own death? ¡°


    Without saying anything else, he sent a p flying towards Long Chen.


    From the palm which was backed with boundless Qi, Long Chen actually discovered that if he was not able to dodge in time, if the p hits him he would without a doubt lose all of his teeth. Yang Zhan¡¯s fury can definitely be seen.


    Helpless Long Chen was inferior in strength, and could only sit around and wait for death.


    He clenched his teeth tightly, the rage in his heart almost consuming him whole. This whole fiasco of being despised upon, living a life like a dog, he had had enough of it.


    He swore that revenge will be exacted.


    ¡°Why is it that he could p me without questioning the truth, if my strength was greater than his, even with his father protecting him, would he dare to p me so easily? If only I was stronger than him, it would already have been my turn to p him! ¡°


    This imminent p was like a fuse, sending waves of pulsating vehemence.


    A sound of pa was heard, and Yang Zhan¡¯s arm was caught, only an inch away from Long Chen¡¯s face. The wind pressure from the palm sted at Long Chen¡¯s face causing him pain.


    The one who caught Yang Zhan¡¯s arm was Yang Yuntian. Yang Yuntian sternly said: ¡°Zhan-Er, have you forgotten my teachings. We all are one big family, how can you easily strike, see if I do not punish you when we get back. ¡°


    Shortly after he looked at Long Chen and said: ¡°Oh, you finally entered the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm? With that said, you should be here for the martials techniques, if you want it then go ahead, but my father is there cultivating quietly, if you bother him, you will be punished severely¡­¡­¡±


    After which, without another look at Long Chen, he grabbed Yang Zhan¡¯s arm and walked away.


    Walking several tens of steps away, Yang Zhan finally could not contain himself and asked: ¡°Father, he injured Chen Liu, why did you not allow me to teach him a lesson? With that little ability of his, ten thousand of him would still be no match for me.¡°


    Yang Yuntian indifferently said: ¡°What do you want to show by constantly bullying a cripple, if you have any ability why don¡¯t you challenge your sister, Ling Yue or Yang Wu? Besides he is your aunt¡¯s son, how can you treat him like a ve!¡±


    Yang Zhan gloomily muttered: ¡°The reason is not because of aunt, but only her eighth level of Dragon Pulse Realm ability. Father, give me more time, won¡¯t I be able to reach it as well? ¡°


    Looking at their leaving shadows, Long Chen forcefully suppressed his rage within. However the debts of this p today, and even the beatings and scoldings from before, he had remembered all of them clearly.


    ¡°It is still the same line, do not give me a chance, if not you will rather wish to die than live.¡±


    After enduring for so many years, he has long since learned to control his emotions.


    Looking at the martial arts hall, Long Chen threw aside any lingering feelings he had, he pushed open the stone door and walked inside.


    As for Chen Liu, who was still lying in the same spot, he was only carried away after a long while at themand of Yang Yuntian.


    Long Chen walked towards the tall pagoda within, raised his head and looked at the steel pagoda, and muttered: ¡°My very first martial technique is right here!¡±


    Casting his gaze to the side, there was a wooden hut. The Yang family¡¯s founder, his grandfather, was inside there cultivating. Outsiders usually did not dare to disturb him, and with the founder acting as a guardian, the martial arts hall was absolutely safe. Long Chen had fulfilled the conditions of looking at martial techniques, hence he was able to enter.


    ¡°This old man, why is he acting so mysterious, when my father was younger he had already been in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, only inferior to you by just a little, if he did not have the Dragon Jade, I¡¯m afraid he would already be someone who you would pin your hopes on.¡°


    With this nderous thought, he stepped into the martial arts hall. After walking through several pathways, Long Chen had arrived at the internal section of the steel tower.


    ¡°With my ability at the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, it seems that I am only able to practice Huang level martial techniques.¡±


    Yang family had a total of thirty three copies of basic Huang level martial techniques. Long Chen walked to this section of bookshelves, and from the first shelf, he chose a book called [Ferocious Tiger Punch].


    Within a minute, Long Chen had ced the book down.


    ¡°How it could be, why is this martial technique so easy?¡°


    After looking through these martial techniques, Long Chen felt that his five senses andprehensive abilities were exceptionally great. He was able to understandpletely the information written in the books.


    If he could practice inside the martial arts hall, he felt that he could immediately cast these techniques out.


    ¡°I am either a martial cultivation genius, or¡­¡­¡±


    The previous him from before had also looked through some simple techniques, but he had felt that it was difficult to understand. However the situation right now was totally different, so it could only be the effects from the mysterious Dragon Jade.


    ¡°This mysterious Dragon Jade is inside my sea of consciousness, allowing my spirit to undergo changes, hence I am able to rx like a newborn baby, reading ten lines at a time, and even have a greater sense of my surroundings¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Father, what exactly is this mysterious Dragon Jade, it can actually have such heaven-defying effects, not only could it transfer your cultivation Qi to me, it can even allow me to be a martial cultivation genius.¡±


    Looking through another several bookshelves containing basic Huang martial techniques, Long Chen felt that there wasn¡¯t any challenge at all. Therefore he went towards the intermediate section of Huang martial techniques, and it only contained five techniques. At a nce Long Chen had his eyes on one of the books titled [Falling Star Fist].


    ¡°¡­¡­Body like a starry night, fist like a meteorite, as heavy as Mt. Tai, as fast as lightning¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°This [Falling Star Fist] attack capabilities are ranked near the top even among intermediate Huang martial techniques, Yang family¡¯s [Falling Star Fist] also had its own reputation, however ording to what I see, it does not have that much difficulty toprehend. I have already remembered the basic Huang martial techniques, so I will just copy this [Falling Star Fist]¡­¡­¡±


    Yang family secret techniques obviously could not be brought out of the martial arts hall, so after choosing a technique, one could only copy it.


    One hourter, Long Chen had finished copying, and returned the martial technique back to its original position.


    ¡°During the process of copying, I have already understood the contents inside, so now I will head out to practice. However, this intermediate Huang martial technique, I do not know if I am able to master it.¡°


    Huang martial techniques, are separated into 3 levels: basic, intermediate and advanced. Every three levels in the Dragon Pulse Realm is usually assigned like this. By choosing an intermediate rank, Long Chen had already crossed the level barriers in cultivation.


    [TL Note: Basically this means that levels 1-3 are Basic Dragon Pulse Realm, levels 4-6 are Intermediate Dragon Pulse Realm, and levels 7-9 are Advanced Dragon Pulse Realm.]


    ¡°With the uniqueness of the Dragon Jade, I should be able to achieve it. ¡°


    Making up his mind, Long Chen walked out of the martial arts hall, and when he neared the stone door, a parched voice rang beside his ears.


    ¡°Yang family martial techniques should be destroyed immediately once finished practicing. If one is discovered to divulge the secrets, they will face immediate execution!¡±


    Yang Chen looked back but did not see anyone behind him. He hurriedly replied: ¡°Yes, grandfather, Yang Chen will take his leave.¡±


    He chose the intermediate Huang martial technique, which can be considered as disregarding the rules. Afraid that the old man would discover something, he answered and quickly left.


    Inside the hut, an old man opened his eyes, and helplessly eximed: ¡°I originally thought that this boy could be a talent that can be groomed, but he seems to bite off more than he can chew, and actually chose an intermediate Huang martial technique¡­¡­what a pity. Long Qinn previously could be said to have the greatest potential to enter the Deity Dan Realm¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 5 – Yang Lingqing

    Three dayster, Long Chen stood in front of a two meter tall rock.


    To his left was a forest, and to his right was a river, alongside the river, rocks of enormous sizes could be seen everywhere.


    Long Chen inhaled deeply, exerting Qi explosively through his whole body, his body moved as fast as a cannonball and rushed towards a huge boulder, he shouted fiercely and then punched. His fist as if a streak of a huge falling star, whistled towards the boulder and then smashed!


    Boom!


    The huge boulder shattered into many pieces, after which they were swept away by the huge wind that apanied the punch. About half of the remaining rocks flew into the water, exploding and sshing everywhere.


    ¡°Body like a starry night, fist like a meteorite, as heavy as Mt. Tai, as fast as lightning¡­¡­This [Falling Star Fist] includes both speed and weight, hence it is able to disy such strength, right now I am in the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so it is still difficult to disy the full effect of the [Falling Star Fist], but¡­¡­¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed coldly, ¡°If I meet Chen Liu the next time, I will definitely kill him with just this blow!¡±


    ¡°Within three days, I, Long Chen willpletely master this [Falling Star Fist], if this were to be exposed to the public, I think they would definitely be stunned.¡±


    Walking along the riverbank, Long Chen washed his face with the river water, and looked at himself through the reflection.


    ¡°These days I have been training crazily, and my body looks like it has gotten more chiseled, skin is also darker by several tones, but still, I am so handsome, surely I won¡¯t have a shortage of chicks in the future.¡±


    Thinking of which, Long Chen smiled shrewdly.


    Suddenly, there came a rustling sound behind his back, which gave Long Chen a shock, he hurriedly bowed down andid t, one leg hooking up, but what surprised him was the feeling of his leg knocking against something soft and bouncy. Afterwards a figure flew over his head, which shouted in surprise and then fell into the river.


    Long Chen stood up and looked, quickly realized that the person who originally wanted to backstab him, had now been kicked into the river and the identity was a teenagedy, this girl did not look like a weakling, so being kicked into the river by Long Chen was only due to a momentary slip-up.


    Her face seethed with fury, and very soon jumped from the river onto the shore, she pursed her lips, angrily looking at Long Chen with a pair of sparkling eyes that seemed to eat Long Chen up.


    This girl¡¯s age seemed simr to Long Chen¡¯s, she had a graceful figure, with bright eyes, white teeth, the face as if it was jade. She was wearing a light azure colored long dress, and she was a rare young beauty. Long Chen had never seen such a beautiful girl, and was momentarily stunned.


    This girl just came out from the river, her clothing soaked, at this point in time the girl¡¯s body, her snowy skin and her alluring body curves could faintly be seen, and even the underwear was embroidered with a small doggy picture. This had all been caught under Long Chen¡¯s gaze, and her prominent chest area, had made Long Chen¡¯s throat go dry.


    From Long Chen¡¯s eyes, the girl knew that he was up to no good, she immediately got angry and scolded: ¡°Pervert!¡±


    Her Qi swelled explosively, a wave of scorching Qi pushed Long Chen several steps backwards, and at once her drenched clothing instantly became dry. Then this girl staring fiercely at Long Chen, gritted her teeth and said: ¡° You¡­¡­What did you see earlier?¡±


    Long Chen hastily replied: ¡°Nothing, miss, I did not see anything¡­¡­¡±


    Looking at the serious expression of Long Chen, only then did she forgive him. However thinking back on it, she resentfully said: ¡°Well done Yang Chen, your elder sister, me, only wanted to scare you, but you actually pushed me down the river, you bastard!¡±


    Elder sister?


    But Long Chen did not recognize this girl so he asked: ¡°Who are you?¡±


    Under such a direct question, the girl became angry and scolded: ¡°Well done you idiot, you don¡¯t even recognize your big sister, I am Yang Ling Qing, your second uncle Yang Yuntian¡¯s second daughter. ¡°


    ¡°Oh, so it was actually you¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen suddenly recalled of thisss, speaking of whom she actually had a certain fate with him, because they were born on the same year, same month and same day. And at the time when Long Chen was born, it was just at the Chen hour; hence the name given to him was Chen.


    Yang Lingqing was usually hiding at home and not going out, and Long Chen only saw her a few times, so he definitely had forgotten. However thinking back on a certain thing, Long Chen smiled smugly: ¡°Girl, you told me to call you big sister? Although we were born on the same year, same month and same day, but I was born in the Chen hour, while you were in the Xi hour, speaking of which I should be your elder brother¡­¡­¡±


    After finishing speaking, he did not even bother with Yang Ling Qing¡¯s angry expression, but just found a rock in the forest to sit down on.


    ¡°You smelly idiot, stay right there!¡±


    ¡°Yang Lingqing walked to the front of Long Chen and coldly said: ¡°Alright, this matter about who¡¯s older, let¡¯s not talk about it first, anyway we were both born on the same day, so let¡¯s take it as we¡¯re the same age. Just now I happened to walk past here and actually saw you using [Falling Star Fist], and you even practiced it with decent form, what actually happened?¡±


    So it was because she saw him.


    Long Chen thought about it, thinking that it did not matter even if she saw him, while thisss was a little arrogant, but she had never bullied Long Chen before. Also she did not have that look of despise, hence Long Chen had some positive feelings towards her, so he is still willing to talk to her.


    He smiled happily at the other party, saying: ¡°Why? I am not allowed to practice the [Falling Star Fist]? I made you jealous and envy me? What a pity, you and I are rted by blood, so it is not a good sign, if you were someone else, maybe I could still teach you.¡±


    Yang Lingqing after being told off by him became angry and nonchntly threw out a punch, and a rock that was even bigger had actually been blown to bits.


    ¡°You see that, I too know about the [Falling Star Fist], besides I am in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, much strongerpared to you!¡±


    Long Chen was a little stunned, who knew that thisss that was the same age as him, had the cultivation level that was actually better than her brother Yang Zhan.


    Looking at her pretending to stare at him angrily, Long Chen chuckled within, he already knew her goal. A girl¡¯s dignity was not good to step on, so he said: ¡°Indeed, you also know the Falling Star Fist, but you have not mastered it, not being able to go into the body at the starry sky, fist like a meteorite stage, if I had your level of Qi, the might of my [Falling Star Fist] would have been twice as powerful as yours. Oh well, today I am feeling great, so I shall be generous and exin to you how to do it.¡±


    Yang Lingqing was shocked, and thought: ¡°This guy is pretty good, I only threw out a punch, but he could actually see that my mastery of the [Falling Star Fist] isn¡¯t there.¡°


    ¡°Okay, seeing how you are so eager, I will grudgingly ept your offer, but all of this is willingly taught by you, do not seek any remuneration from me, let me first tell you, I myself am so poor that I¡¯m almost dying¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°A country bumpkin like you, as your elder brother, teaching you is only right, who would want something from you?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Yang Lingqing was so angry even her mouth became twisted, growing up until now, this is the first time that somebody called her a bumpkin.


    ¡°Right now I¡¯ll let you be cocky, and after you teach me, I will definitely let you suffer before leaving!¡±


    She forcefully suppressed her anger down.


    Of course, her thoughts could not be heard by Long Chen. He was only looking at the delightful sight, and he also did not have many friends; today he did this on a whim, and had enough mastery on the [Falling Star Fist] so he could demonstrate in detail.


    ¡°¡­¡­The [Falling Star Fist] most importantly is about the stance, look at the shooting stars in the sky, they are all always advancing, and nothing is able to stop their path¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°When you use your fist, you cannot have any hesitation, absolutely give no thought to staying alive, your heart only thinking of wanting to destroy and conquer the enemies, advancing forward, only then can you understand the true meaning of the [Falling Star Fist]¡­¡­¡±


    After exining for a long time, Yang Lingqing was finally enlightened, however Yang Ling Qing¡¯s attitude towards Long Chen had changed into adoration.


    She could not imagine, a second level of Dragon Pulse Realm fellow could actually have such deep enlightenment towards the way of martial arts.


    When they separated, Yang Lingqing said: ¡°Hey, today I must still thank you,pletely learning this [Falling Star Fist], I have a higher chance ofpeting against elder sister Lingyue in the familypetition, who knows I might even be able to win our family¡¯s treasured martial technique [Seal of the Dragons].


    Hearing about the [Seal of the Dragons], Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed, and asked: ¡°Girl, when is the familypetition going to be held?¡±


    ¡°It should be about half a monthter, but you don¡¯t need to have any ideas about that anymore, elder sister Lingyue has already cultivated to the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, amongst the younger generation besides elder brother Yang Wu I¡¯m afraid no one can be her match, besides elder brother Yang Wu has long gotten the [Seal of the Dragons], so this round the obvious winner would probably be elder sister Lingyue¡­¡­Alright, I won¡¯t chat with you any longer, I have to rush back and cultivate, gotta work hard to enter the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. ¡°


    Saying her piece, thess ran away. The sight of her azure long dress swaying behind her back, it was rather cute.


    Long Chen watched her leave, swallowing down a mouthful of saliva.


    ¡°Thisss looks and character are both at a very high level, too bad that Heaven is blind, actually making her my cousin. No chance at all to act, what a pity.¡±


    Sitting on the azure rock, Long Chen looked towards the direction of the Yang residence.


    ¡°Sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm¡­¡­Half a monthter, I think it truly is impossible for me after all. But father has warned me repeatedly, how can I not try to obtain the [Seal of the Dragons]. This littless is already striving so hard, I must not be any slower, sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm is after all the sixth level, I will train and cultivate as if my life depends on it, I must definitely have a chance at least!¡±


    ¡°Cultivate! Strive! Persevere!¡±


    Beads of sweat trickled down.


    All the way until the sky turned dark, only then did Long Chen go back to the Yang residence, the Yang family now has already lit up thenterns, making a field of brightness.


    Just as he was entering, a group of people walked out in a grandiose fashion, Long Chen looked up, and was just blocking the middle of the group¡¯s path, so those people, who were chatting cheerfully, immediately noticed him.


    The leader of the group was a pretty and maturedy; she was Yang Xueqing, Long Chen¡¯s mother.


    Behind Yang Xueqing was a coquettish girl, the one Yang Lingqing spoke off that was in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, Yang Lingyue, eighteen years of age, the daughter of the oldest uncle, Yang Xueqing¡¯s elder brother Yang Qingxuan.


    Yang family¡¯s eldest son was named Yang Qingxuan; he was currently representing the household for general affairs, the second son Yang Yuntian was in charge of the household finances, and the third daughter Yang Xueqing was delegated to teach cultivation to the younger generation.


    Yang family¡¯s eldest son Yang Qingxuan had a son and a daughter, named Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue respectively. Yang Wu was the best out of the Yang family¡¯s younger generation, while Yang Lingyue would be the coquettishdy in front of him.


    Yang family¡¯s second son Yang Yuntian had a son and a daughter also, Yang Zhan who was constantly bullying Long Chen, as well as Yang Lingqing whom he met earlier.


    Yang Xueqing is the only woman in the elder generation who had a profound cultivation, so Yang Lingyue who is constantly following Yang Xueqing, can be considered as her half daughter.


    While this side had twodies, on the other side there were two men.


    The one together in the lead with Yang Xueqing chatting happily was a handsome middle aged man, coupled with a long beard and white robes, seeming elegant. And behind him was a young guy, his gaze electrifying, a chiseled build, his mannerism was filled with vigor, very much simr to the middle aged man.


    The two men should share a father and son rtionship.


    As they spotted Long Chen standing in front of them suddenly, Yang Xueqing was stunned a little, and then hurriedly faced the middle aged man andughed: ¡°Big Brother Bai, originally I have wanted you to admire our Yang family¡¯s orchid and lotus pool, but the sky has already turned this dark¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°No worries, Younger Sister Qing, you and me both reside in Por Town, we will always be able to see each other, if there is any spare time, I will naturally once again pay a visit to you here, after all the fame of the Yang family¡¯s orchid and lotus pool is rather resounding¡­¡­¡±


    Both of them continued talking away cheerfully. Under the protection of some guards they walked past Long Chen.


    Only Yang Lingyue turned around and gave Long Chen a stare, then resumed to converse with the younger guy beside her, asionally pouting yfully.


    ¡°Very good, ignoring my existence totally, as if I have no difference from the air.¡±


    Long Chen gradually clenched his fists tightly.


    ¡°Seeing how my father died, yet you are already rushing over to a new me, first let¡¯s not talk about my father¡¯s reputation, but this Bai Zhanxiong fellow, I will definitely not let you marry him! Even if you are heartless towards me, but I Long Chen cannot becking in moral values, after all my blood and flesh was given by you¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Bai Zhanxiong looks like a gentleman on the outside, but truthfully he isn¡¯t any good at all, thest time the courtesans from Emerald Jade House, were all killed by him¡­¡­¡±


    Watching this middle aged man who wasughing with Yang Xueqing, Long Chen recalled a distant memory, and Emerald Jade House¡¯s courtesans were all his friends, selling their art but never their body. But they were secretly kidnapped, if Long Chen did not witness this scene, then nobody would have known about it. From that day on, he knew that this Bai Zhanxiong in fact was a beast.


    ¡°In front of this Bai Zhanxiong, you actually scorned me this much, ignoring my existence, but I Long Chen am not a person who fears loneliness, the more you want me to disappear, the more I want to be in front of you, showing off. If you think both of us father and son are useless, then I will only have to continue to be stronger!¡±


    ¡°There wille a day, where I stand in front of you, and you wouldn¡¯t dare to look down on me, and you¡¯ll be repenting on your knees in front of me! You as a mother have never done any obligations a mother should have done! I hate you! But I can never ignore you the same way as you did to me!¡±


    At this moment, the group of people had already passed him, Long Chen bowed his head, clenched his fist tightly, his fingernails digging so deep into the flesh that blood flowed out.


    His body felt as if surging against a huge wave.


    His heart, as if nurturing a wild beast, fiercely roared with ferocity.


    Returning to his abode, Long Chen started preparing for his shower, as well as preparing to practice cultivating.


    Suddenly, he saw a slip of note under the teacups on the table. Picking it up, he briefly got angry.


    The note wrote: ¡°If you want to keep Xiao Huang alive, thene to the Rising Sun Inn, second floor room number one and hurry up! Do not bete!¡±

 Chapter 6 – Celestial Core Technique

    To Long Chen, although Xiao Huang is only a cowardly manservant, but he had been following him for a good six years, loyal to him, and if Long Chen had any goodwill at all he would not leave him out, Long Chen did not know who wanted to deal with him, but they actually kidnapped Xiao Huang for it, this was absolutely intolerable for him.


    But Long Chen knows, Xiao Huang¡¯s family has a pair of ailing parents which need to be taken care of, if anything were to happen to Xiao Huang, Long Chen will me himself harshly!


    He took the note and tore it to pieces, without saying another word, he rushed out of the Yang family residence, as quickly as a swift passing wind, and headed towards the Rising Sun Inn!


    This Rising Sun Inn was located near the Emerald Jade House, Long Chen hastened his pace, and the people strolling along the streets had all felt a whirlwind passing, leaving no shadow behind!


    Looking up, the brightntern lights that had illuminated the dark night could be seen clearly, Long Chen pressed on one step at a time towards the inn, but many people were walking by, so Long Chen had no choice but to slow down. Looking on, the big wide door was getting closer!


    At this moment, on the left side of the street there appeared a horse drawing a horse carriage that was galloping away, this caused the passers-by to curse and dodge, but the horse carriage had no intention of slowing down. Originally Long Chen could easily dodge it, but at this instant, behind him there was a little child who was looking at the charging carriage nkly and started to wail.


    This horse carriage with its tremendous speed, if it were to charge through the child, it would not leave even a corpse behind, Long Chen being shocked, did not consider anything else, and he who could have dodged long before, had actually turned away and hugged the child tightly, his whole body exerting explosive Qi. At this moment, the horse carriage had already struck Long Chen¡¯s back, sending him flying abruptly.


    Loud gasps could be heard along the street, they were thinking that both Long Chen and the child would perish, but they did not expect Long Chen to change his trajectory in the air, andnd safely. He did not console the child, and before the crowd could see how he looked like, Long Chen had disappeared. Because he still had to save Xiao Huang¡¯s life.


    After passing the scene ofmotion, Long Chen endured the creeping pain on his back muscles, and entered the Rising Sun Inn.


    As he walked through the door, he almost bumped into someone in front of him. Looking up; it was a catchy youngd who had temporarily stunned his eyes.


    This youngd looked only to be fourteen or fifteen years of age, which might even be rtively younger than Long Chen. Long Chen¡¯s looks could be considered to be suave enough, but thed in front of him had a beauty that was a little too bewitching. If not for the protruding Adam¡¯s apple, Long Chen would have almost assumed he was a beautifuldy.


    ¡°Are you male or female?¡± Not being able to control his mouth, Long Chen blurted out the question.


    Listening to his own question made even Long Chen himself embarrassed, but the young man with the delicate features did not get angry, but only looked at Long Chen firmly, and then pointed at his Adam¡¯s apple and said: ¡°I am a male.¡±


    His expression stern, yet the voice was melodious. Long Chen who was reminded of the teasing voices of the Emerald Jade Housedies, after listening to him speak, actually felt a tickling sensation that was difficult to endure.


    He quietly berated himself as a bastard, but thinking that Xiao Huang¡¯s life was not yet saved, he hurriedly walked past thed, and walked into the Rising Sun Inn.


    ¡°Earlier you rescued the child, and narrowly saved a life¡­¡­¡±


    Behind Long Chen, thed spoke, but did not think that Long Chen would hurriedly rush into the inn. He shut his mouth, observed curiously, in fact he was not holding any grudges against Long Chen, he only thought that Long Chen¡¯s rescue earlier was praiseworthy.


    ¡°This guy is simr to elder brother, his body faintly has the essence from the stars, he probably has practiced a kind of martial technique. This [Celestial Core Technique], I haven¡¯t used it for a long time¡­..¡±


    Thed watched Long Chen disappear as he muttered to himself.


    Just arriving, Long Chen saw a scene whichpelled him to stare, turning back he saw, Yang Zhan was sitting at a spot in front of a window, and in front of him, was a beautiful girl.


    ¡°Yang Zhan is unexpectedly here, could it be that the kidnapping of Xiao Huang was arranged by him?¡±


    Once again looking at the girl in front of him, Long Chen shook his head, saying: ¡±If this Yang Zhan wanted to deal with me, he wouldn¡¯t have to resort to this method, so he is surely only here to date chicks¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking of which, Long Chen did not stop any longer and directly walked to the second floor of the inn, where the note said to enter room number one, and at this point, after arriving here, he could no longer hold back his fury, running closer towards the destination he viciously pushed the door open to be greeted with a sight that was pitch ck.


    Just arriving into the room, Long Chen had already felt a swing from a knife that was shing towards him. He hurriedly dodged, and only then could he see the situation inside the room. As of now, the person who struck earlier had already moved in front of the door, and quietly closed it. Then he was coldly looking at Long Chen, while on the opposite side, Long Chen saw Xiao Huang¡¯s body being tied with a rope, his mouth gagged with a cloth with a face of anger and despair which was casted towards Long Chen as he whimpered.


    Yet on his side, there stood another guy, both of them wearing masks, but their killing intent was not to be underestimated.


    It was exactly the same two who attacked him that other night, until now Long Chen could not understand, such a small fry like himself, why would someone send assassins after him.


    ¡°Both of you, what¡¯s your identity, why do you want to deal with me?¡±


    ¡°epting payment, and assisting to eliminate a cumbersome person. You don¡¯t have to ask much, Yang Chen, just die!¡±


    Two swings of the knife came shing towards Long Chen; the knife technique was vicious, creating sound from the eleration of the knife which could make people tremble in fear.


    Both of them have simr abilities to me, but their experiences are bountiful, and probably have amassed enough assassinations. Compared to Chen Liu, that loser, they are more frightening by a hundred times. If today I do not use my full capabilities, I will definitely be killed here!¡±


    ¡°Looking at their movements, they should be used to killing in a team, so I only have to defeat one guy, and then I can definitely ovee their allied strength.¡±


    In the darkness, Long Chen¡¯s eyes stared coldly. As the two knifes came rushing towards him, he used his agility, and rolled to the side, and with this roll, he had skillfully ovee the need to face both people at the same time. Then the two ck robed men attacked again with one standing in front of the other.


    ¡°[Whirlwind de]!¡±


    Shouting out, the person at the front had alreadye close to him with the knife. Looking at theirbination which had failed to hit him, Long Chen gritted his teeth, he generated all his Qi, he didn¡¯t back down but instead advanced forward and rushed towards the ck robed man!


    ¡°[Falling Star Fist]!¡±


    In the pitch ck room, a streak of starlight had exploded. The ck robed man¡¯s eyes turned big, and felt a wave of strong Qi evade his knife technique, and then hit soundly on his body.


    Bang!


    The man in the front spurted out blood, and then was smashed into the other man behind him.


    Long Chen rushed forward, and in an instantly took hold of the opponent¡¯s knife, gave a roar, and pierced through the man¡¯s heart with a thrust. At this point the blood that had flowed out had dyed both his robes and his face blood red.


    The earlier scene might have looked easy, but it was actually a hair-raising experience. Long Chen¡¯s biggest shock was that the [Falling Star Fist] emitted starlight which had blinded the vision of his opponent. [Falling Star Fist] which was an intermediate Huang martial technique, had a might which was equivalent with the strongest attack of the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Therefore he was able to heavily injure the ck robed man, and sessively kill him afterwards.


    The other ck robed man seeing his partner die looked shocked at Long Chen, and without bothering about anything else, hurriedly jumped through the window. Long Chen had intended to give chase, and interrogate the man for his contractor, but right at this moment the door mmed open and Yang Zhan was there standing in the door, watching Long Chen who had a face dyed with blood and right beside himy a corpse.


    He momentarily frowned and then said: ¡°You bastard, you do not know what¡¯s good for you, with just this little aplishment, you already dare to kill people in the Rising Sun Inn, could it be that you don¡¯t know Boss Qing of the inn and me are good friends?¡±


    Long Chen ignored him, he turned around and released the rope on Xiao Huang¡¯s body and said: ¡°Xiao Huang, leave this ce first, we¡¯ll talk about itter.¡±


    Of the two assassins one died and one escaped. Xiao Huang feeling astonished was looking at Long Chen, but Yang Zhan who had just entered the scene had an unkind gaze, so Xiao Huang was scared. Although he was worried about Long Chen¡¯s safety, he understood he would not be of any use, so he quickly ran away, and started to look for a savior.


    Being ignored by Long Chen, Yang Zhan¡¯s face gradually twitched with anger.


    Behind Yang Zhan, avishly dressed fatty looked at the mess of the blood scene, he turned white and then said: ¡°This master seems to have gone a little overboard, creating such a sickening blood scene here, scaring away my customers. This business will surely take a huge loss now.¡±


    Both of them joined together to rebuke, that scene they were making was only just to make things difficult for Long Chen. He who had just killed someone, at this point was filled with killing intent, with a gaze, he scared the Boss Qing into a retreat.


    Right now he still did not wish toe into conflict with Yang Zhan, after all Yang Zhan was a fourth level Dragon Pulse Realm practitioner, and had studied many martial techniques, the him right now is still not Yang Zhan¡¯s match, so he could only endure.


    Even though Long Chen had already backed down, Yang Zhan was still angry.


    He had since long ago thought of Long Chen as a nuisance, in the past he had grown ustomed to stepping on him, yet now this fellow actually had some power. Especially, after all the previous time when Long Chen hurt Chen Liu, he had swallowed down a bad taste afterwards. And now coupled with the old hate and this new anger, he looked at Long Chen and emitted killing intent.


    ¡°¡­¡­ Previously even though you hurt Chen Liu, I had forgiven you, but today you once again ruined the reputation of the Yang family. It looks like I have to discipline you properly so that you start showing some respect, and stop carrying out misdeeds!¡±


    After which, he walked several steps forward, and a huge aura pressed down on Long Chen.


    ¡°This fellow¡­¡­So strong.¡±


    The fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was a might to be reckoned with, Yang Zhan¡¯s both eyes shed and then he pressed his aura on Long Chen, which felt as if a huge mountain. Long Chen was unexpectedly pushed back.


    However the knife from earlier was still in his hand, and with the blood continuously dripping down from the knife, coupled with his ferocious gaze, it looked like he might be a match for Yang Zhan.


    Seeing Long Chen like this, Yang Zhan got even angrier, he grinded his teeth and said: ¡°What an idiot, you actually dare to face me off squarely, today if you do not kneel and beg me, don¡¯t even think of leaving here alive!¡±


    Long Chen did not reply, he was just staring at him coldly.


    He knows, if Yang Zhan really pushes him too far, even at the cost of his life, he will definitely make his opponent pay the price.


    Looking at the two who were about to fight, from Boss Qing¡¯s back appeared a girl; her face turned pale, and then she retreated.


    ¡°Brother Zhan, don¡¯t be like this, let¡¯s leave here, shall we¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Zhan kept his Qi down, looked back at the girl, then back at Long Chen and then he warned: ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll let you live for another day, tomorrow morning, you will know how to write the death word.¡±


    After which, he took the girl and then left.


    Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief, and then the knife dropped onto the floor.


    ¡°Yang Zhan, this debt between us, has yet again increased, right now I almost broke through the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. When I be stronger than you, you will know how to write the death word¡­¡­¡±


    The ones who tried to kill him, had one dying, but he did not know what trouble the other one could still cause him. Since the mastermind had not been revealed, it was all just a mystery, right now this was not a good ce to be, so Long Chen decided to leave.


    Running down the stairs, he saw Xiao Huang¡¯s worriedness from waiting for him.


    After seeing that Long Chen was fine, only then he heaved a sigh of relief, and hurriedly said: ¡°Young Master Chen, earlier when I ran down, there was a beautiful young guy who wanted me to pass this to you, he said you are worthy of his respect, but he had to attend to something so he left.


    Long Chen was stumped, thinking of the guy with such an unfair beauty bestowed on him, and thinking of his melodious voice and stern face, he felt that it was rather amusing. He apprehensively took the martial technique scroll from Xiao Huang¡¯s hands, opened it and looked over it. It actually had four big words on it which said [Celestial Core Technique].


    ¡°The guy said that this item ispatible with your [Falling Star Fist]. Seeing how you saved a child today, the fact that you are a good person, and also the fact that he did not need this item, so he decided to give this to you.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head, scrutinizing the [Celestial Core Technique].


    ¡°This is actually an intermediate Huang martial technique¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°I had only saved a child, and this fellow actually gives me this [Celestial Core Technique], looks like his background isn¡¯t simple. He shouldn¡¯t be from Por Town, he¡¯s probably a disciple from a big faction from another ce.


    ¡°Oh well, today this meeting is because of fate, right now I urgently need these items, and giving me this now, if I ever see him again, I will repay his kindness.¡±


    Long Chen smiled, told Xiao Huang to leave, and then went back to the Yang family residence.


    ¡°¡­¡­Absorbing the celestial essence of the stars, incorporate them into the skin, bones, blood and flesh¡­¡­Temper my body every day, endure it, and then one can achieve the body of a celestial core¡­¡­While moving, be it sand or rocks, with a simple punch, I will be able to draw upon its strength¡­¡­:¡±


    ¡°This [Celestial Core Technique], is actually ssified as a scripture,pared to a martial technique it is much more valuable.¡±


    ¡°The [Celestial Core Technique] has a total of two levels, the first being the Enlightened level and the second being the Mastery level. However, although this scripture is cryptic, I am still able to understand it. Tonight the starlight is resplendent, I have to make use of the starlight tonight, and practice the [Celestial Core Technique], if I will manage to master it, and any hit I unleash will be equivalent to using the power of an offensive martial technique! If I meet Yang Zhan again, I should also be able to evade his hits, and probably even have a fair fight!¡±


    To Long Chen, this [Celestial Core Technique] was not difficult to understand. Under the luster of the starlight, he practiced seamlessly. After some time, it could be seen, that as the starlight from the sky had shone on him, his body, as if a falling star, was glistening with starlight.


    Suddenly, Long Chen opened his eyes.


    ¡°The [Celestial Core Technique] is yet to be mastered, but after tonight¡¯s hair raising fight, along with the nurture given to my body under the stars, adding on the mysterious jade pendant, my Qi has once again risen explosively. And right now, it will let me break through the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!¡±

 Chapter 7 – Revenge

    POP!


    With a dragon¡¯s cry, abundant Qi finally passed through the third Dragon Vein.


    Qi violently thrashed within his four limbs. Long Chen had to spend a great deal of effort, as he first had to suppress the Qi then convert itpletely, and only then could he absorb it for himself.


    At this moment, his eyes shed, apparently his cultivation speed has increased yet againpared to previously!


    The Qi from the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, is actually several times stronger than the Qi from the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. If I happen to meet Yang Zhan again, coupled with my [Falling Star Fist], if he wants to defeat me, it will be difficult for him!


    After entering the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, Long Chen gradually controlled his breathing, right now it was midnight, thinking about it there was still some time before the sunrise.


    Today¡¯s night was cloudless, the Milky Way filled the sky, it¡¯s beauty was magnificent.


    ¡°The 18 Cosmos Paths, the 9 Daylight Roads and the 9 Twilight Roads. Rumor has it that the Cosmos Paths were formed by countless stars. If there everes a day where I can enter the heavens and take a look, it can be said that I have not lived my life in vain.¡±


    ¡°If the Milky Way is made of stars, then I will borrow the strength of the Milky Way and the stars, and continue to cultivate in the [Celestial Core Technique]!¡±


    Originally Long Chen had borrowed the essence of some singr stars, but as he faced now towards the Milky Way, a torrential rush of starlight shone gloriously on his body.


    ¡°The starlight from thisrge amount of stars, is actually infusing into my blood, veins and bones, this speedpared to before must be at least a 100 times faster, those 9 Cosmos Paths as expected are formed by countless stars!¡±


    While starlight was brimming him, Long Chen felt like he was being surrounded by so many stars, and all these miniscule stars¡¯ essence converged onto his skin, and integrated with every inch of his body, Long Chen could feel that under the continuous tempering of the starlight his flesh was constantly bing stronger.


    This happened all the way until the sun had risen and was shining.


    The starlight on his body was vanishing gradually. Long Chen jumped down from the roof, his eyes filled with excitement.


    ¡°After experiencing a night of refinement under the starlight, without taking any roundabout paths, right now I have actually reached the stage of Enlightenment for the [Celestial Core Technique]. This strength and dominance added with my Qi of the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm¡­¡­ I, Long Chenpared to the me from yesterday, must be at least 10 times stronger!¡±


    Long Chen smiled: ¡°I can finally hold my head up high from this day forward. With [Celestial Core Technique] and [Falling Star Fist], I don¡¯t believe I won¡¯t be able to hold my own against Yang Zhan who is at the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm! Also for the rest of the people¡­..Their debts, I¡¯ll make them pay slowly!¡±


    Entering the house, Long Chenid on the bed.


    ¡°A night without sleeping, it¡¯s time for a rest, and when I wake upter, my vigor will be brimming, thus allowing me to take the next step of my cultivation ns.


    ¡°[Celestial Core Technique], if mastered, it should definitely be able to disy a bigger amount of strength, the Qi from father¡¯s Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, which he gave me, was not little. My dantian¡¯s Qi has increased faster than the others who cultivate, but I cannot limit myself to this training speed, I must cultivate, so as to obtain a Spirit Jade at the same time.


    Spirit Jade, this is a kind of jade rock which can contribute to Dragon Pulse Realm cultivators, which contains a monstrous amount of essence from heaven and earth. Normally only the group of younger generations who have had splendid aplishments will be rewarded by the elders with it.


    ¡°There¡¯s still half a month left, I must obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], so I must at least enter the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Breaking through each level in the Dragon Pulse Realm bes at least 10 times more difficult with each passing level. Yang Zhan has already been stagnant at the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm for over a year, if I want to enter the 5th level, I think it will not be easy, not to mention to achieve that in under a month¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care so much anymore. But for my father, for people not to despise me, and for that stinking woman, I will struggle!¡±


    [TL Note: Stinking woman refers to his mother.]


    In the early morning, Long Chen was awakened by some noise.


    After entering the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, his awareness had grew once again. Even if anyone approached him from afar, he would be alerted by that person. Standing up, and getting himself ready by entering his peak condition, Long Chen smiled and walked out of the house.


    Indeed, Yang Zhan had taken the lead, standing in front, and the ones following him, were a few of his, Yang family¡¯s brothers and sisters, ages hovering between 14 and 15. But seeing how all were big and tall, it seemed like there were people who were even older than Long Chen.


    Yang Zhan actually got a great number of people involved, which had surprised Long Chen.


    After seeing how this boy did not show a hint of fear in front of such arge formation of people, Yang Zhanughed coldly and said: ¡±Last night I said I will discipline you, so today surely I cannot eat my words. A little bastard like you has grown a bit stronger the past few days, and now you have be arrogant. Also, our Yang family¡¯s brothers and sisters all do not like you, so they specially entrusted me to discipline you and teach you a few values of being a human.


    Long Chen smiled faintly, saying: ¡±No wonder you have made such a hugemotion. I first thought you had stage fright but now I see that the more people you have the more daring you be!¡±


    Long Chen under these circumstances, could actually still mock Yang Zhan, and shrewdly joke, those Yang family¡¯s brothers and sisters were dumbfounded, not recovering even after a short while.


    Is this still the bowed down, ttering and fawning trash?


    Anger welled up within him, and red up on Yang Zhan¡¯s face in a second, the mes of hatred slowly erupting from him.


    ¡°Very good, you little bastard, you luckily gained some strength, no wonder you are different from theckey you were before. Just after you defeated Chen Liu you naively thought that you are unrivalled under the sky. Today you have sessfully angered me, brothers and sisters, tell me, what should I do?¡±


    ¡°Dispose of him!¡±


    Hands rising in the air continuously.


    Yang Zhan waved his hands, saying: ¡±Sorry, this is their suggestion, your performance today was not appealing to us. We are still better used to that dogckey Yang Chen from before. So, today I will spend some effort, and correct you to your previous form!¡±


    ¡°Before thinking of beating me, stop grumbling nonsense like a little child, your speech is just dog fart to me. Right in the early morning you bring a huge group of people to my doorstep and then release your dog fart, it is somewhat unbelievable!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯sst sentence had pushed the final straw for Yang Zhan¡¯s rage. For him who was always high up on a pedestal, Long Chen in his heart was just like a lice, and today he was actually humiliated by this lice, making him lose his decorum.


    ¡°Bastard, you are courting death! If I don¡¯t dispose of you today, my name is not Yang Zhan!¡±


    After saying this, his Qi exploded, the might of the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm pressured Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°They are getting into a fight!¡±


    The people who were around had suddenly spread apart. On the court there was only Yang Zhan and Long Chen left now.


    ¡°This might, although it¡¯s the same one fromst night, but now it¡¯s not able to make me retreat even half a step back!¡±


    Although the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was strong, Long Chen¡¯s strength currently wasn¡¯t bad either. With his whole body faintly suffused with starlight, and with the powerful Celestial Core which had been tempered by the starlight, he did not even feel the overbearing pressure of the opponent.


    ¡°A mere second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and you dream of wanting to battle against me, you should pay a price for your ignorance!¡±


    Like a whirlwind, Yang Zhan pressed towards Long Chen, continuously shouting. In a short time he had actually unleashed many punches, which Long Chen hurriedly avoided.


    ¡°Cheh, Yang Chen this fellow was acting so strong just now. I thought he had some trump card, but to think that once Brother Yang Zhan has acted, he is being beaten like a whimpering mouse.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s just making a fool of himself.¡±


    The crowd aroundughed loudly, pointing and discussing about the battle that was happening.


    After once again dodging Yang Zhan¡¯s hit, Long Chen eyed them, and cursed them: ¡°What a bunch of donkeys.¡±


    After that he smilingly looked at Yang Zhan, and mockingly said: ¡°Yang Zhan, is this all you¡¯re worth?¡±


    Yang Zhan was in the actual battle, unlike those idiots in the crowd. Although Long Chen was escaping all the time, but his dodging had some real skill, not in the slightest clumsy. Yang Zhan used all his strength, but was still unable to hit his opponent. His mind roared in surprise.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t right, he is only a second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, although his agility to dodge is not bad, but he definitely does not have any offensive techniques!¡±


    ¡°Thinking of this, Yang Zhan smiled coldly, he punched out one fist and shouted: ¡±You cowardly thing, all you know is to dodge like this? If you are a man, then fight me squarely for 1 round!¡±


    Long Chen after a round of fighting, had more or less grasped the extent of Yang Zhan¡¯s strength. In terms of the Qi amount, he is definitely inferior by several times.


    Because of the enlightened stage of the [Celestial Core Technique], his attack & speedpared to the normal third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was stronger by several times. His defense was even better. With these as insurance, Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed cold, then looked at Yang Zhan shouting and punched his fist. Not only did he not retreat, but he also sent a fist flying out.


    ¡°[Ferocious Tiger Punch!]¡±


    ¡°[Ferocious Tiger Punch!]¡±


    The two tigers in the mountain had collided loudly!


    Boom!


    Both parties retreated backwards with heavy steps, imprinting each and every footprint on the stone tiles. Behind Yang Zhan, there even was a stone tile which he had broken!


    ¡°What? How can his strength be this great!?¡±


    ¡°Yang Zhan finally steadied himself, and seeing Long Chen¡¯s retreat to be even less than his, he was momentarily in disbelief. The Yang family¡¯s brothers and sisters had their smiles frozen, as if being given a vicious p!


    ¡°How was it? Did this punch fill your appetite? Yang Zhan, your [Ferocious Tiger Punch] isn¡¯t such a big deal after all.¡±


    Yang Zhan was suspicious in his heart.


    ¡°Only days before, he wasn¡¯t a practitioner, but looking at him now, he was already in the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Being able to defeat Chen Liu showed that he had concealed his strength. This fellow right now has the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm? The fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he had actually concealed it, what was his motive?¡±


    Looking at Long Chen smile heartily at him, Yang Zhan¡¯s anger had almost set his body on fire.


    ¡°Impossible, he cannot have such strength, it was definitely some dirty tricks in order to achieve this ending! He may know [Ferocious Tiger Punch], but for this next skill I¡¯ll use, no matter how much he concealed before, or if he used any shameful methods, I will definitely kill him!¡±


    Thinking of this, Yang Zhan shouted loudly. As if a meteor falling, he rushed towards Long Chen. This enormous might, which had pressured all those Yang family¡¯s brothers and sisters into retreat, making them think: ¡°Brother Yang Zhan is indeed extraordinary, he even learned this intermediate Huang level technique, [Falling Star Fist]. That fellow, under this [Falling Star Fist], will definitely not have a corpse left!¡±

 Chapter 8 – A Gamble

    ¡°[Falling Star Fist] huh¡­¡­¡±


    Looking at this punch which resembled a falling star, Long Chen wasposed andughed.


    ¡°I just don¡¯t know how many conflicts will this cause for me after I take care of this retard. That woman, will she look at me differently? I really look forward to it¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen had to admit, the way Yang Xueqing viewed him, mattered a lot to him.


    ¡°This fellow is obviously trash, under Yang Zhan Elder Brother¡¯s [Falling Star Fist], he was actually scared stupid.¡±


    Listening to such talk, Long Chen dismissed it with augh and then looked at Yang Zhan.


    ¡°[Falling Star Fist], I know it ten thousand times better than you!¡±


    What Long Chen had intended by using [Ferocious Tiger Punch] against [Ferocious Tiger Punch] and then using [Falling Star Fist] against [Falling Star Fist] was topletely subdue Yang Zhan physically and mentally. From this, Long Chen will be a trauma in Yang Zhan¡¯s heart, making him suffer eternally from such a pain.


    An even brighter light explosively ignited, and under the support of the [Celestial Core Technique], the [Falling Star Fist] had a never before seen battle strength, which collided with Yang Zhan¡¯s [Falling Star Fist]. But what made most people breathless was that Yang Zhan, as he retreated, had spurted blood and crashed onto the floor, while Long Chen once again went up and single handedly grabbed onto Yang Zhan¡¯s robes, and picked up his whole body.


    Those, Yang family¡¯s, brothers and sisters, under the stare of Long Chen, were all scared into retreating several steps backwards, and on their faces was a look of disbelief.


    ¡°He used [Falling Star Fist] and defeated Brother Yang Zhan who was in the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Impossible¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Brother Yang Zhan has overflowing battle energy, but this piece of crap¡­.. how is this possible? Earlier we did not see clearly but this fellow definitely used some underhanded means!¡±


    ¡°Not good, he looks like he¡¯s going to kill Yang Zhan Elder Brother!¡±


    The crowd looked breathlessly, only to see Long Chen carry Yang Zhan with one hand, while the other hand had be a clenched fist, and was coldly staring at Yang Zhan.


    Yang Zhan at this point, had blood all over his mouth. His eyes looked spiritless, his injuries were obviously not mild, but at least he still had his consciousness intact.


    ¡°Do you see it now? Now that I am stronger than you, this reputation of being useless, I had better return it to you. However Yang Zhan, the humiliation that you have given me, was not only just this little. What will happen next is that you will pay for the humiliation you have given me for the rest of your life, and each time will be worse than the other, you had better mentally prepare yourself for this¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Bastard¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Zhan spit out some blood, while looking at Long Chen and smiling happily at him. Under the murderous gaze of that fa?ade, he suddenly discovered that the person before him, was no longer the person he could once bully and harass. Right now, he actually was scared deep down, making him shudder in fear.


    ¡°Is this trembling?¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s intended result, but his hatred in his heart, could not be resolved by just a punch of the [Falling Star Fist]. In the past few years the suffering given to him by Yang Zhan was not to be overlooked.


    Heughed loudly, and as he got ready to beat him several more times to vent his hatred, suddenly there came a loud voice scolding him.


    ¡°Stop right this instant!¡±


    Long Chen did not need to see because he already knew who was here, Yang Zhan¡¯s sister, the second strongest in the younger generation, his first uncle¡¯s precious daughter, the arrogant Yang Lingyue.


    At this moment, Yang Lingyue rushed over, and behind her were two guys, one of them was the young man who was with her the other day.


    The other guy had a simr age to Long Chen, his features looking simr to the other young man.


    These two were the sons of Bai Family¡¯s Bai Zhanxiong.


    Long Chen¡¯s attention was slightly drawn towards the younger son of Bai Zhanxiong. This fellow was called Bai Shixun, he frequents the Emerald Jade House, and taking advantage of his cultivation he bullied Long Chen a few times in the past.


    At this point Bai Shixun who saw Long Chen had actually beaten Yang Zhan, had suddenly felt panic and hid behind the other young man, his elder brother.


    ¡°Coward.¡±


    Long Chenughed loudly, and then diverted his gaze back at Yang Lingyue.


    ¡°Using such a loathing gaze to look at me, this Yang Lingyue most likely wants me dead.¡± Long Chen thought, and silently smirked.


    Looking on at Yang Lingyue who was about to rush over, suddenly Long Chen¡¯s right hand moved and all the clothes which Yang Zhan was wearing, had actually been ripped. And at this moment, Yang Zhan who was naked, after a throw by Long Chen, had flown towards Yang Lingyue.


    With this move, Long Chen had made all the girls momentarily scream in session, making them turn around and flee. As Yang Lingyue saw that white body was thrown towards her, her face was drained of its color, and both her legs turned weak. From where would she still have the strength to attack Long Chen?


    Luckily the young man behind her eyes shed and rushed forward, and then grabbed Yang Zhan with a hand. As he tried to give his cloak to Yang Zhan, right at that moment Yang Zhan had realized what had happened, and suddenly gave a loud cry. Seizing this chance he escaped with his two butt-cheeks continuously swaying, this view was magnificent.


    ¡°Yang Zhan is a tall and big man, never thought that his butt would be so soft, this is really worthy of celebration. I think even if he does not practice cultivation in the future, he can easily work for a livelihood.¡±


    Long Chenughed out loudly, and after hearing his words the crowds¡¯ ears had gone red and started scolding him for being so shameless.


    As for Yang Lingyue¡¯s dignified normal demeanor, now it had been shattered by Long Chen without leaving a single speck. She had almost fallen down earlier. At this point of Yang Zhan¡¯s escape, she once again reevaluated Long Chen. Behind her refined gaze, her murderous intent rising constantly.


    ¡°Yang Chen, not only did you disobey the family rules of hitting your brethren, you evenmitted such a shameless act, which is even difficult to exin. On your parent¡¯s behalf, today, I will discipline you thoroughly!¡±


    It was hard to imagine, Yang Lingyue who had always maintained a mysterious elder sister image normally, had actually been angered to such a point that even the two fellows behind her could not stop her.


    ¡°Today was nothing but a sparring match, and already such argemotion has been created, as if I, Long Chen have done something and have harmed the innocent. Usually, all these Yang family¡¯s brothers and sisters bullied and beaten me, not treating me even as a human, I didn¡¯t see anyone who had stepped up for me then!¡±


    Thinking of this, Long Chen¡¯s eyes reflected anger, and not in the least showing signs of fear against Yang Lingyue.


    ¡°What father said was definitely right, a man without any true ability, is equivalent to a dog. Today the reason why she can scold me like this, is also because my strength is still not enough, but today if I could actually beat Yang Zhan, then the next time I will also be able to defeat you.¡±


    He retreated several steps behind, and coldly said: ¡°Yang Lingyue, unless you are blind, it is obvious that Yang Zhan came here early in the morning to find trouble with me, and bully me. All the people had known this, only they did not expect me to have already practiced cultivation sessfully. So instead I have defeated him, but I did not kill him. So when you push all the me onto my shoulders, what does this mean for you as the Big Sister? Is this the only way you punish me for a private grudge by rashly abusing your position as the Big Sister?!¡±


    After being told off by Long Chen, only then did the raging Yang Lingyue calm herself down. She took in a deep breath, and thinking of the guests who were still behind her, she then managed her current emotions. She then walked in front of Long Chen and stared at him coldly.


    Although Long Chen was only sixteen years old, but his height was much taller than Yang Lingyue.


    ¡°Yang Chen, I¡¯ve never seen you in a positive light before, but I did not expect you to conceal your abilities so deeply. You reached all the way into the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm before exposing your true strength. But us, Yang family¡¯s, brothers and sisters, why should we have to do something like this, or was it that you had ulterior motives?¡±


    ¡°Oh well, you have already beaten Yang Zhan, as well as embarrassed him, but Second Uncle and Third Aunt, they will never let you go for this, and even if I don¡¯t punish you today, it will still be difficult for you to escape punishment.¡±


    Long Chenughed and said: ¡°Then I am looking forward to this, let us see. I think you had better scram, the two lovers behind you are still waiting for you.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s speech in front of everyone just now was considered to be malicious.


    The young man behind her had good feelings for Yang Lingyue. Everyone knew this, but the other fellow was his brother. But as they were both behind Yang Lingyue, and Long Chen mentioned two lovers, it made people have fanciful thoughts, and this subtly hinted at Yang Lingyue¡¯s fickle-mindedness.


    No matter how good Yang Lingyue was at managing her temper, at this moment she was absolutely seething in fury. She sent one hand to grab Long Chen¡¯s neck, and then her strength at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had been used. As if a mountain collided against him, Long Chen actually found it difficult to breath, and although he practiced the [Celestial Core Technique], all his muscles were feeling enormous pain.


    ¡°She hasn¡¯t even attacked me yet, but it is already this painful, Yang Lingyue¡¯s strength has exceeded my expectations. Right now I don¡¯t have a single chance in front of her might!¡±


    At this point, one hand reached out and blocked in front of Yang Lingyue, forcing her to let go.


    Long Chen thought that he would be beaten already, never expecting that someone would actually protect him. Looking down, this person who was standing in front of him, was Yang Lingqing? Thatss?


    After injuring her brother, but now she was here to save him, this world is a really strange ce.


    Yang Lingqing had a ponytail, and was wearing an azure martial practitioner¡¯s costume. Her pose valiant and her beauty was not one bit inferiorpared to Yang Lingyue.


    Seeing that it was actually Yang Lingqing, Yang Lingyue hurriedly asked: ¡±Sister Qing what are you doing right now, this fellow has injured your brother, I am right about to punish him.¡±


    Yang Lingqing apologized and said: ¡°Sister Ling, I know, but my father and First Uncle want me to bring him to them, so I can only act first. Sorry.¡±


    Hearing that, Yang Lingyue coldly stared at Long Chen and said coldly: ¡±Your retribution ising soon, I hope you can walk out of it alive, you offending me, I definitely will not let you have a good life!¡±


    Long Chen creased his nose, saying: ¡±Even if you have so much time to willingly spend on me, but I definitely won¡¯t have the time to bother about it. Let me make a suggestion, let¡¯s end this once and for all, what do you say?¡±


    Yang Lingyue frowned and said: ¡°What are you trying to pull off?¡±


    ¡°The intra-familypetition, there is still half a month left; at that time I will also participate. Our feud will then be ended at that point, half a month¡¯s time; do you dare give this time to me?¡±


    Long Chen with this sentence, had aroused everyone¡¯s interest and discussion.


    ¡°What kind of silly joke is this fellow saying? Third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and he wants to beat Big Sister Yang Lingyue in half a month¡¯s time? He is totally daydreaming.¡±


    ¡°Not good, this must be a scheme; this fellow is using a dying tactic. In half a month¡¯s time, I¡¯m afraid we won¡¯t know where he will have gone into hiding!¡±


    Yang Lingyue looked suspiciously at Long Chen, and suddenlyughed, saying: ¡±Maybe it¡¯s because of your recent progress which is very fast, so you arecent, this cultivation thing, is an arduous journey, I Yang Lingyue after 10 years of cultivation, have managed to achieve this current standard I have, and you wish to outdo my level in only half a month¡¯s time? Oh well, I will just let you live your life peacefully for another half a month. And at the time of the intra-familypetition I will crush your foolish dreams in front of everyone!¡±


    After saying this, she took her leave.


    However the matter regarding Long Chen and Yang Lingyue¡¯s match had started spreading through the Yang Family household. Long Chen, with his delusions, had instantly be aughingstock in front of everyone.


    Along the way.


    Yang Lingqing using suspicious nces to look at Long Chen, was finally not able to hold it in anymore and asked: ¡°Hey, how did you managed to do it?¡±


    ¡°Do what?¡±


    Yang Lingqing suspiciously looked at him and said: ¡°Last time I know for certain that you were in the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so how did you actually manage to beat my elder brother?¡±


    About the secret of the Mysterious Dragon Jade, Long Qinn had repeatedly warned Long Chen not to divulge anything, so Long Chen said: ¡°I, all along, was not in the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, it¡¯s just that you have not seen clearly.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Yang Lingqing had only half-believed him. She turned over and saw the indifferent expression on the boy, only to find that he had turned into a mystery, it was very difficult to understand.


    Yang Lingqing feeling that her mental capacity could not handle such thoughts, had decided not to think about it anymore, and unknowingly they reached their destination. Yang Lingqing worriedly said: ¡°My father and First Uncle are both inside; god knows even if they punish you, I cannot help you again, so I will not enter. So you had better know what¡¯s good for you.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head, and said: ¡±Lingqing, thank you for saving me today.¡±


    Yang Lingqing replied: ¡°Who said I was trying to save you, you hurt my brother, however you are really funny, Yang Lingyue sister is in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. With your ability, you are not qualified to even carry her shoes, and still you say you want to defeat her in half a month¡¯s time. Are you not afraid of beingughed at?


    Long Chen smiled, not denying nor agreeing.

 Chapter 9 – Precious Treasure

    In the hall there were only two men. Yang family¡¯s second son Yang Yuntian sat on the side, while in the center sat an immortal-like and dignified middle aged man.


    This was Yang family founder¡¯s eldest son, Long Chen¡¯s first uncle Yang Qingxuan.


    Long Chen stepped into the hall, and his gaze met Yang Qingxuan.


    ¡°This Yang Qingxuan seems to be good natured, but from his eyes there is a mysterious roving light. Obviously he is a very high level cultivation expert, higher by at least a level whenpared to Yang Yuntian who is beside him.¡±


    Long Chen had raised his cultivation level, so his insight had also increased.


    Yang Qingxuan looked towards Long Chen and said:¡±You should be Yang Chen. Since young you have spent your time outside. I myself have only seen you several times, but I never thought that you have grown up so quickly.¡±


    ¡°Yang Qingxuan did not scold me from the moment I stepped in, looks like there is going to be a show.¡±


    Long Chen thought to himself, his motto in life is that a man can submit or stand tall as is required. By keeping a contingency n one will never be afraid of not making aeback. And now he has hit Yang Yuntian¡¯s son, he is definitely in the wrong, so he just followed the rules and bowed towards the both of them, saying: ¡°Your nephew¡­¡­ Yang Chen pays his greetings to First Uncle & Second Uncle.¡±


    He had already promised his father to change his surname, but right now he still did not have the strength to dere it open in front of the Yang Family, so he can only use this n because it¡¯s convenient.


    ¡°Indeed you have reached the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but looking at your vitality, I think you must have learned a school of body enhancing technique. All these years you have been secretly working hard and by doing so you have such an achievement now. Catching up to Ling Qing and Ling Yue in the future is a highly possible thing.


    Long Chen did not dare to disagree.


    ¡°This fellow did not mention anything about beating people up, and chatted with me like it was a normal conversation. But as for this Yang Yuntian, the way he looks at me one can tell that he wants to kill me.¡±


    At this point, Yang Yuntian growled: ¡°Big brother!¡±


    Listening to Yang Yuntian¡¯s reminder, Yang Qingxuan smiled and said: ¡±You are indeed a good seedling, but beating up your own family¡¯s brothers, it just isn¡¯t right. I even heard that you have dealt a critical blow¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly said: ¡°First Uncle, during a fight, punches and kicks have no eyes. With my ability it¡¯s simply impossible to control my attack strength at will. So when I hurt him earlier, it was actually not my intention to do so.¡±


    Being interrupted by Long Chen, Yang Yuntian simply did not speak anymore. At this point Yang Yuntian coldly said: ¡°It was not your intention? Howe I have heard that you wanted to beat Yang Zhan to death? With such a vicious personality at such a young age, in the future it would be even worse. If today I do not give you a reminder, won¡¯t you create an evenrger mess in the future?¡±


    Yang Yuntian stood up immediately and started walking towards Long Chen one step at time. A thickyer of cultivation started pressuring Long Chen¡¯s body, almost crushing him to the floor.


    Long Chen did not say a word, and silently endured.


    He knew, if today Yang Yuntian wanted to kill him, it would only take but a single strike.


    At this point, there came a woman¡¯s voice from outside of the door.


    ¡°Second Brother, let me handle him, I will definitely ount to you.


    Only then did Long Chen heave a sigh of relief, but he still had some lingering fear.


    He knew who the person behind him was, it was Yang Xueqing.


    The way Yang Xueqing has treated him all these years was known to everyone. If Long Chen were tond into her hands, he will definitely not have a good time.


    Yang Yuntian thinking of this point,ughingly said: ¡°Third Sister do not hesitate to take him away. However between the younger generation, a fight is just a small issue so Third Sister can just show him the correct path and that¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    After saying this he left.


    Yang Qingxuan saw that it had nothing much to do with himself anymore, so he also smiled and left. But before he left, he went beside Yang Xueqing¡¯s ear and whispered: ¡±Not even five days, and he has actually skipped levels and learned [Falling Star Fist]. With his talent, father will definitely appreciate him so you had better y it by ear on this matter¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Xueqing was shocked for a few moments. After Yang Qingxuan left, only then did she walk to Long Chen¡¯s side.


    Long Chen had also heard Yang Qingxuan¡¯s whispering from earlier. He was very curious about Yang Xueqing¡¯s stunned expression, but unfortunately this woman was still wearing an icy look on her face.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, today after beating Yang Zhan to this state, it¡¯s still not enough for her to view me differently.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s heart was still filled with determination, so he nonchntly said: ¡°To kill or to ughter is entirely up to you, but if you are not killing me then hurry up and talk, I do not have so much time to stay here with no purpose.¡±


    [TL Note: ¡°To kill or to ughter is entirely up to you¡± (idiom) = whatever you want to do to me just go ahead (even killing)]


    Yang Xueqing frowned and said coldly: ¡°With only such a small achievement, your tone of voice has changed quite a bit. It¡¯s the same as that useless trash, a short lived genius. Only both father and son would think of themselves as an important figure, what aughingstock!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed with a murderous intent.


    He could not endure it any longer.


    ¡°If there is nothing else I will take my leave.¡±


    After saying this, he walked past Yang Xueqing, and as he arrived at the door, Yang Xueqing suddenly said: ¡±In one month¡¯s time, I will marry the Bai Family¡¯s third child Bai Zhanxiong. As for you, I do not wish for you to remain in Por Town for another day. If you remain then don¡¯t me me for not recognising our ties.¡±


    Listening to that, Long Chen was not one bit surprised.


    However no matter how resilient he had made himself to be, at this point in his heart he was in agony. There is no pair of mother and son under the sky, with such a scenario like this one from today.


    Long Chen looked back at her and coldly said:¡±Don¡¯t me me when the timees that I did not tell you, the elegant gentleman Bai Zhanxiong that he appears to be on the surface, is actually a rotten thing. I have once seen him use his own strength to forcefully kidnap a few girls under sixteen years of age, and then sell them to an unknown person¡­¡­¡±


    After saying this secret which he had kept inside him for all this time, Long Chen originally thought that she would appreciate it but he found Yang Xueqing¡¯s gaze to be even colder. Once Long Chen had finished speaking, she immediately retaliated verbally by coldly saying: ¡°Yang Chen, as you now have the ability to defeat Yang Zhan, it did make me look at you in a better light, I still thought from today onwards you can discard your bad habits and turn over a new leaf. I was happy for you from the bottom of my heart but you now have actually disappointed me greatly.¡±


    ¡°I know you do not wish for me to remarry, but you don¡¯t have to resort to ndering Brother Bai¡¯s reputation by creating such aughable offence. Me and Brother Bai are childhood sweethearts. If not for your father, I would have long ago be his woman. Also my understanding of him is stronger than yours by tens of thousands of times. You wish to confuse me with your hrious lie?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned, looking at the woman in front of him who was filled with disappointment and disdain; he gradually clenched his fist and felt a rush of blood to his brain. In his heart a ferocious beast was roaring insanely!


    Long Chen stared at her unwaveringly, and started talking, one word at a time: ¡°Oh, really? Your own son¡¯s advice, has no weight on it¡¯s own?¡±


    Yang Xueqing kept quiet for a while, and then said: ¡±The deeds that you have done over these past few years, not cultivating, bullying men and conquering women, every incident you¡¯ve done I know them like the back of my hand. I¡¯ve been disappointed by you since more than ten years now. Your Long family¡¯s people are unworthy of trust so why should I believe you?¡±


    Long Chen only felt that his chest was about to explode. His eyes turned bloodshot, and stared impassively at Yang Xueqing, suddenly, heughed crazily and said: ¡°Yang Xueqing, saying that is easy, but as a mother, have you ever once taken responsibility for that role? I, without my father and mother, have had no one to teach me, that¡¯s why I only have this dog-like character today, and you me me for it? You say that I am a scum since I was born, a hopeless lecher that no one can save, but I will tell you right now, although I have harmed a few people before, but I¡¯ve never harmed a single good person! But your Brother Bai Zhanxiong is different¡­¡­¡±


    Taking in a deep breath, Long Chen then ndly said: ¡±Your disappointment towards me, has also made me extremely disappointed with you. But if you wish to get married, with me Long Chen around, it will not be easy! Did you hear that right? Long Chen!¡±


    Yang Xueqing¡¯s face was expressionless as ever as she threw a bag with some stuff in it at Long Chen¡¯s feet.


    ¡°In my heart you have never had the surname Yang, take this 50 pieces of spirit jade. Por Town can no longer amodate you anymore.


    Speaking any more is just meaningless. Although Long Chen always liked epting small advantages from others, but this time he did not even look at the spirit jade, he turned around and walked away.


    Dashing out of the Yang family residence, he howled madly and started hitting wildly at some huge rocks until he was too tired and simply sat on the floor.


    He looked towards the direction of the Yang family residence, this grand estate was right now across his eyes. He was feeling as if this colossal mountain was crushing his heart.


    Long Chen gradually tightened his fist, and then murderous aura started emitting strongly from his body.


    ¡°Father, I do not know if she is worth it, I only know that Bai Zhanxiong is not a good guy. No matter how she treats me, I will stop her. Also, I cannot let her look down on me, and all the more I cannot let her look down on you!¡±


    He was tightening his fist all the way until his fingernails started bleeding.


    ¡°Father, no one is going to stand in my way of bing stronger. The words between us, today I have finally understoodpletely. To be above the rest, to want to have everyone respect and tter you, then one needs to get infinitely stronger, all the way until the top of the world!¡±


    ¡°To all the people that have been looking down on me until now, thank you, if not for you I would still foolishly believe that cultivation was the most boring thing ever. Everyone has something they desire, so next let me reward you by showing you a whirlwind of a surprise!¡±


    ¡°The family intrapetition in half a month¡¯s time, and that broken marriage in a month¡¯s time, because of my, Long Chen¡¯s existence, I will definitely give all of you a major major major surprise!¡±


    After a round of venting his anger, the night came shortly.


    Long Chen sat on the roof of his own apartment, looking at the vast light of the night.


    ¡°Yang Xueqing wants me to leave Por Town, but father wants me to get the [Seal of the Dragons] so how can I just leave like that? But with my current strength, if she were to attack me, how could I even block it? Or should I leave Por Town and hide for a period of time, and wait until thepetition starts before I return?¡±


    Long Chen went into deep thought for a moment, and his eyebrows which were frowning then loosened. He thought: ¡°Why stay in Por Town? Why don¡¯t I just go out and y some Demonic Beasts, this way maybe my progress will be fast, and I also have a chance at obtaining earthly treasures!¡±


    Thinking of that, he had already made up his mind to go out for a period of time. But right now his stomach was grumbling, so he jumped off the roof, and went towards the Rising Sun Inn.


    It was almost midnight, but the Rising Sun Inn was still a morous and noisy ce.


    Long Chen quietly neared the inn, and suddenly heard someone say: ¡°Big news, you guys don¡¯t know yet but something big has happened in the Yang family!¡±


    ¡°What big news, hurry up and say it!¡±


    ¡°You guys do not know, but I heard this morning that Yang family¡¯s Yang Zhan and Third Mother¡¯s son Yang Chen had a match and young master Yang Zhan was stripped of his clothes in front of everyone, and when he went back he actuallymitted suicide!¡±


    ¡°Is this true?¡±


    ¡°How can it be fake? The news just broke out; right now Yang family is out searching for Yang Chen!¡±


    After hearing this, Long Chen hurriedly left.


    ¡°I originally thought that at most he would just be unable to look at other people in the eye anymore. But I never thought that this fellow wouldn¡¯t even be able to endure it, and would insteadmit suicide immediately. He¡¯s such trash. However he normally did not even treat me like a human being. And the contrast today was so great that his heart couldn¡¯t take it, so I guess it¡¯s quite logical after all.¡±


    ¡°Now Yang Zhan is dead so all the more I cannot stay in Por Town, right now I must leave immediately!¡±


    In the past he was fraternizing in Por Town, so he was very familiar with it. After travelling through some underground tunnels, he had quickly gotten out of town before the Yang Family could find him.


    After walking for a long time, only then did he turn his head to look at Por Town.


    ¡°Yang Zhan is dead so in the future when I return for the intra-familypetition, I¡¯m afraid that it will be dangerous. However since I already heard that the Yang family¡¯s founder loves talent as much as his life, if I were to disy some extraordinary talent I might still have a chance! Just based on today¡¯s [Falling Star Fist], he would probably have most likely been astonished.


    But after leaving Por Town, where could he go?¡±


    ¡°East of the Por Town is the Big Deste Mountain, it¡¯s a haven for both poisonous insects and demonic beasts. The earthly treasures there are not few either¡­¡­¡±


    Just as he was about to go to the Big Deste Mountain, at this time, suddenly there was someone behind who came chasing after him.


    His face drained of color, and hurriedly hid himself.


    After seeing who got here, only then did he give a sigh of relief. After which he startedughing happily.


    The person who came was the younger man of the two young men who were standing behind Yang Ling Yue earlier in the morning. His name was Bai Shixun; the younger son of that Bai Zhanxiong person.


    His memories of being bullied by Bai Shixun in the Emerald Jade House had alle to surface in Long Chen¡¯s mind.


    ¡°What exactly is this Bai Shixun chasing after?¡±


    Long Chen originally thought that Bai Shixun was chasing after him, but after looking closely, he saw that Bai Shixun was actually chasing after a bright floating object. Since that bright object was hovering in the air, it was obviously a treasure!

 Chapter 10 – Desolate Beast Domain

    ¡°That sh of light, it must be some godly weapon or device. From the expression on Bai Shixun¡¯s face it obviously looks like he has found a treasure.¡±


    Bai Shixun followed that sh of light and ran wildly after it. Long Chen after leaving Por Town, had just followed along from behind. Because of the Enlightenment stage of the [Celestial Core Technique], and him being under this vast sea of starlight, his power was enhanced even more. He wasn¡¯t consuming any Qi and was able to steadily follow Bai Shixun.


    The sh of light was hovering in the air but the more it travelled the dimmer it became. Long Chen could faintly see that it was a sword and that it was slightly swaying. A sword flying on its own, he had never seen or even heard of such a thing before. Therefore, he was all the more sure that it was a treasure.


    Although it started to sway, it still continued to persevere for another hour, to a ce that was arge distance from Por Town. Long Chen at this point, did not have to worry about Yang Yun Tian chasing after him.


    ¡°This fellow¡¯s nerves are really too big, he actually dares to distance himself so far away from Por Town.¡±


    In the process of following behind him, Long Chen had used a ck cloth to cover his appearance. Now it normally would be very hard to realise that he was Long Chen, so his goal was achieved with this.


    ¡°With all his might, he can only have a speed like that, and now he is even panting. This Bai Shixun, simr to me, is at most only at the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. But, unlike him, I have [Falling Star Fist] and the [Celestial Core Technique].¡±


    After rushing into a forest, that sword then started bing unsteady. After a moment it went down at a great speed, piercing the ground.


    Bai Shixun finally rushed into the forest, and seeing that the sword was right in front of his eyes, he finally heaved a sigh of relief. He was squatting there and panting like a dying dog, however after looking at that de, his eyes started shing fiercely.


    ¡°This treasure sword can fly on its own, it is definitely some kind of super treasure. If I am able to obtain it, even if I would have to sacrifice my family, I would still be on the winning side!¡±


    Thinking of his beautiful future, Bai Shixunughed heartily. However he suddenly found a masked man standing across from him. His face turned pale, and said in a frightened voice: ¡°You¡­¡­Who are you? What do you want?¡±


    Since Bai Shixun was just an ordinary third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm practitioner, Long Chen¡¯s speed was faster than his by a few times. In the eyes of Bai Shixun, Long Chen¡¯s body had moved in an instant, disappearing in front of him, and then in a heartbeat,nding a blow on him and smashing him to the floor. That enormous strength had immediately broken a few of his teeth.


    Looking at the masked man standing coldly in front of him, Bai Shixun began to cry.


    ¡°Senior, I¡­¡­I have only identally chanced upon this sword. If you want it, then you can have it¡­¡­But can you not kill me, please do not kill me¡­¡­I¡¯m willing to even be your ve¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chenughed and said: ¡±Is what you say true? Because, after I have obtained this treasure sword, there will inevitably be some rumour that will be leaked out, so killing you is still the best option for me.¡±


    Bai Shixun wailed for a moment and then said: ¡±Do not kill me, se¡­..senior, I have never seen your facial features. And I don¡¯t recognise you, so how can rumours be leaked?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s also true.¡±


    Long Chen smiled, and then lifted Bai Shixun¡¯s neck up. Clicking his tongue while looking at him he said: ¡±You have such fine skin and delicate flesh, looks like your father must also be good looking. However the thing I cannot stand the most is looking at other guys who are more handsome than me, so¡­¡­¡±


    Hearing Long Chen¡¯s speech, Bai Shixun at this point was panicking. He struggled and said: ¡±Senior, please do not disfigure me, if you want anything, my father can give it all to you¡­¡­ My grandfather is Por Town¡¯s Bai Family¡¯s founder, you¡­¡­you recognise him right, so please spare me!¡±


    ¡°Nonsense, why would I disfigure you?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice grew sinister by the moment. He secretly reached for a dagger, and in a breath pierced it into his opponent¡¯s crotch, after which he twisted. Bai Shixun then screamed a wretched howl, gave a look of despair towards Long Chen and then fainted due to the pain.


    Long Chen then threw him on the ground.


    ¡°I did not disfigure you, I only just didn¡¯t let you stay a man. Bai Shixun, if it wasn¡¯t for me being quick witted, I¡¯m afraid I would be the one today who wasn¡¯t a man. A debt for a debt, this is simply karma¡­¡­¡±


    He turned around and then looked at the sword.


    This was a sword which was ck all over. What was different from regr swords is that the sword de was extremely narrow, only about two fingers broad. The length was about 70 centimetres, and the body was made out of a variant of steel. At this point it was stained with spots looking like it could break at any moment.


    Long Chen smiled bitterly: ¡±After chasing for so long, to think that it is only a useless sword.¡±


    He walked over to it and while looking at the sword hilt, he reached out his hand and then gripped it.


    Suddenly there seemed to be a girl¡¯s surprised scream everywhere. That sword started transmitting a strength which Long Chen could not resist against, and it simply pulled him up. He opened his eyes in shock, and then momentarily turned green with fear because this sword had once again flown up in the air, only this time he was being dragged across the sky.


    This time the steel sword¡¯s flying speed was ten times faster than before, it was also much higher. The trees below very soon became small dots. Long Chen was staring tongue tied, and started screaming.


    ¡±If I were to fall down, my body would definitely be broken into pieces!¡±


    Thinking up to this point, he hurriedly used two hands to grip the sword tightly. He was gripping it so much that his whole body clung onto it tightly. He was desperately holding on to the steel sword and not letting it go, but that steel sword was actually carelessly flying around. It seemed like it wanted to fling Long Chen off.


    ¡°This steel sword actually has a consciousness, it is indeed a precious treasure, but if I were to be flung down I would die in a hit, and would have no chance to enjoy this fortune either.¡±


    One human and one sword were speeding across the sky.


    Long Chen desperately clung onto the sword. Although the sword¡¯s attempts to fling him were innumerable, but it still did not seed in throwing him off. And for the sake of his life, Long Chen even used the strength he had when taking milk as a baby.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Using the strength he had when taking milk as a baby¡± means using all the strength he had.]


    Suddenly, from the de once again came an angry voice of a female.


    ¡°You lecher, you actually embraced me and are not letting me go. Hurry up and let me go, if not you will not have a good time!¡±


    Long Chen was shocked for a moment, because this voice obviously came from the sword. He was unexpectedly being scolded as a lecher by a sword. Long Chen had a moment of impulse to vomit blood.


    This sword, is a female?


    ¡°Did you hear that? Hurry and let go, if not I really will not forgive you.¡±


    Once again came the voice, and the swaying of the steel sword had increased.


    Long Chen hurriedly said: ¡°Mi¡­..Miss, I too want to let go, but you are flying so high up, won¡¯t I die horribly once I let go?¡±


    With that said, only then did the sword stop shaking, and she said in a daze: ¡±Is that so? Oh, I am sorry I forgot, I will go down right away, but you must promise to let me go once we go down, that¡­¡­ It¡¯s improper for men and women to touch each other¡¯s hands.¡±


    Long Chen thought to himself: ¡±I know it is improper for men and women to touch each other¡¯s hands, but you girl are just a sword, what kind of advantage can I take from you?¡±


    However he said hurriedly: ¡°That is only natural, ady¡¯s body is worth a thousand taels of gold, I have offended you carelessly, so I am really sorry.¡±


    ¡°No you did not, I did not think of that point earlier, so it can be considered as my fault too, alright let us go down now.¡±


    Long Chen really wanted to vomit blood and die at this point, this girl had flown for half a day. And only at this point thought that if Long Chen were to release his grip he would fall to his death. What kind of realm must one enter to be this muddle headed?


    Afternding safely Long Chen observed his surroundings. He realised that this was a deste mountain range. Rocks and dried up trees could be seen everywhere, it was a wastnd. From afar came the howls of wild beasts, it would make people tremble in fear.


    With a crack, Long Chen had crushed a skull into pieces. Only then did he realise that the surroundings had been littered with beasts and human bones. These remains were not few, and momentarily Long Chen felt a rising fear stirring from the inside.


    ¡°Mi¡­¡­Miss, what do you think, this ce wouldn¡¯t happen to be the¡­¡­Deste Beast Domain right¡­¡­¡±


    The Deste Beast Domain, was the deepest part of the Big Barren Mountain, this was the ce where one lives after nine deaths. Long Chen had heard many myths of people adventuring here. The people who died here, were too many to count. He himself did not know, if he would be one of them soon.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°One lives after nine deaths¡± means out of ten times he would die nine times and live only once. (Basically, 10% chance of living.)]


    He looked towards the sword that was next to him. At this moment, a female voice yet again was sent out from the steel sword.


    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m sorry; I perceive a lot of demonic beasts here with an aura that is much greater than yours. By bringing you here, you will definitely die soon, what should we do? What should we do?¡±


    The missy panicked and twirled around.


    Long Chen was speechless.


    After a moment, he said: ¡±Hey, let¡¯s do the same as earlier, let¡¯s fly back from the path we came from and won¡¯t that be settled?¡±


    This time the steel sword did not reply.


    Long Chen hurriedly said: ¡±Hey, miss, what happened to you? Not saying a word?¡±


    After saying this he grabbed the sword.


    The steel sword hurriedly said: ¡±That¡­¡­I¡¯m really sorry, I¡­¡­I never thought that it would turn out this way. I was hastily trying to fling you earlier, and I didn¡¯t notice that this ce actually had arge restriction. I can fly in here through the sky, but I am unable to fly out now¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Waaa¡­¡­¡±


    After finishing her speech, she began to weep loudly.


    Long Chen took in a deep breath. If not for his supreme effort of controlling his impulse, right now he would have gone to bang his head and die.¡±


    ¡°To think that I Lingxi will actually die in such a damned ce¡­¡­I, if I knew earlier, I would not have touched this sword in the first ce¡­¡­waaaa¡­¡­Mother¡­¡­Father¡­¡­I am scared¡­¡­I don¡¯t wanna die¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°You had better keep quiet!¡±


    Long Chen promptly held the sword, crouched down and then hid under a huge granite rock because he had faintly felt that a danger was approaching.


    Within this Deste Beast Domain, this steel sword had made such a loudmotion, akin to asking for its death.


    Being frightened by Long Chen, she temporarily stopped her tears from flowing. After sensing that dangerous aura, she too did not dare to cry again, behaving well under the grip of Long Chen¡¯s hands, and did not dare to say anything like it is improper for men and women to touch each other¡¯s hands.


    Long Chen¡¯s heart started beating furiously. He was feeling such a fear that he did not dare to emit another sound, and shrunk under the huge granite rock. His ears sticking to the ground while hearing the movements.


    Heavy footsteps, came closer at every second.


    Long Chen¡¯s heart had already jumped into his throat. He realised that he could not control himself from shuddering. It can be clearly seen how dangerous this was.


    Holding his breath and slowing down his heartbeat, he tried his best to remain in the state of near death, but at this moment, cold sweat had already soaked through his robes.


    What he was most afraid of was the silly girl clutched in his arms, making a sudden noise. But he could not give her any warning because if he made any noise he would probably turn into a corpse right after.


    Due to the sound of heavy footsteps, the rough breathing noises, the trace of putrid smell which hung in the air, and the smell of saliva, Long Chen felt goosebumps all over. The strongest expert he had met until today, never gave him such a feeling before.


    ¡°AWOO¡­¡­¡±


    A growling sound, came ringing from the other side of the granite rock. The growling sound made Long Chen¡¯s hair stand on end. At this point if he made the slightest bit of carelessness, he would definitely die.


    Fortunately, he put up a good effort and he heard the footsteps gradually walking away, until the point where they could no longer be heard. Only then did Long Chen dare to breathe. At this point, his cold sweat had already soaked his hair wet, from that it can be seen how frightened he was earlier.


    ¡°The thing that just passed¡­¡­was a Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf. With your strength, in one gulp you would be swallowed¡­¡­¡±


    The steel sword in his arms seemed to be relieved.


    Long Chen stood up and said: ¡±No matter what, I must leave here in half a month¡¯s time. Regarding that you will just go with me, if you have any good ideas or methods, just tell me. Oh right, your name is Lingxi? I am Long Chen!¡±

 Chapter 11 – Lingxi Sword

    Deste Beast Domain; this is the boundary between the Central Granary State and Fiery Southern State.


    Both countries do not even need to put any guards along this border, as it was a haven for demonic beasts.


    At the same time, the earthly treasures in the Deste Beast Domain were so plenty that just by looking down on the ground one might see some. Legend has it that the reason why the Deste Beast Domain was so barren, to the point where flora could not grow there anymore, was because of other spiritual herbs which have absorbed heaven and earth¡¯s essence from the area.


    ¡°Ah¡­¡­Luckily we did not fly in further, I estimate that after several more days, we can leave this decrepit ce.¡±


    Lingxi who was being carried on Long Chen¡¯s back happily rejoiced.


    Both of them had been together for over a day, therefore, this girl who previously said that it was improper for men and women to touch each other¡¯s hands, was nowfortablyying on Long Chen¡¯s back, and was enjoying the feeling of being carried around.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you better shut your smelly mouth. This past day, if not for your chattering, would we have met with so many troubles? I had better say this first, should I die here, I will definitely rape you and kill you before I do, because only then will I rest in peace!¡±


    Long Chen desperately threatened, he was cautiously climbing and leaving the Deste Beast Domain, but the girl on his back was constantly talking, scaring him till cold sweat was formed on his back.


    After encountering the life threatening situation with the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf, Long Chen right now was still in trauma.


    ¡°Hng, you smelly brat, do you think I am an idiot. I have thought through it, now I am a sword, Lingxi Sword, so what can you to do me?¡±


    The grey mountains ahead seemed to be connected with the grey clouds in the sky as if there was no end to them. The air was ever permeating with the stench of skeletons and rotting corpses. Long Chen frowned, and continued on his way.


    ¡°Half a month¡¯s time will soon be gone, I want to leave this ce, at the same time I need to enter the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. The intra-familypetition is right around the corner, if I do not obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], and I do not stop that damned wedding that is following after, then I have no chance in using my ability to confirm my existence.


    Lingxi casually said: ¡°Right now you¡¯re only in the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Wanting to reach the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm in half a month¡¯s time, with your resources in this pathetic town, it will truly be hard to achieve.¡±


    Lingxi spoke the truth, which made Long Chen feel even more disheartened.


    He looked ahead at theserge mountains lined across from him which were his only view, seemingly blocking his path, hence trapping him for an eternity.


    ¡°Not right¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was suddenly enlightened, and thought: ¡±A mountain is meant to be climbed over. The half a month¡¯s time isn¡¯t even over yet, why do I have to be discouraged? Father did not give me any permission to get discouraged!¡±


    In his heart suddenly he was overwhelmed with tens of thousands of grand emotions.


    Feeling that Long Chen¡¯s eyes were suddenly beaming with a fiery gaze, Lingxi muttered: ¡±What a strange fellow¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh right, Xiao Xi, where do you think we¡¯re at now? Our Central Granary State has 17 regions. Each region¡¯snd is very vast, take for example Por Town which is currently situated in Primary Spirit Region; there are already hundreds of towns like this.


    Lingxi rolled her eyes and said: ¡±You are only a toad at the bottom of the well, this ce where you¡¯re located is called the Ten Thousand Nations Domain. This small Central Granary State is but only one of ten thousand. And the Ten Thousand Nations Domain is only a small part of the Long Ji Continent.


    Long Chen was petrified.


    He shook his head and said: ¡±Girl, don¡¯t think you can bluff me. How on earth can this ce be that huge, I only heard that beyond the Central Granary State there are only a few more nations.¡±


    ¡°Hng! It¡¯s your choice if you believe it or not.¡±


    Footsteps were stepping on the dried wood, producing a crisp sound.


    Long Chen did not bother with Lingxi anymore, and fully concentrated on trying to hasten his journey. The Deste Beast Domain had plenty ofrge crevices, and only because of these crevices, was Long Chen able to hide his figure.


    From the front came a wild beast roar.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I sense that there¡¯s danger ahead, if it¡¯s not important then try not to speak loudly.¡±


    Lingxi felt it as well, and quietly behaved after an ¡°En¡± sound.


    [TL Note: En is basically a confirmation, means ¡°Yes.¡±]


    Half a day¡¯s time had passed crossing over mountain ranges. Long Chen raised his head and saw that the clouds far ahead did not look as ominous as before, a trace of sunlight beaming through, he rejoiced.


    ¡°Thankfully this muddle-headed girl did not go in deeper. ording to my speed now, if we don¡¯t encounter any dangerous situation, I estimate that we¡¯ll be able to get out in 2-3 days¡¯ time. However we have wasted a total of about 5 days, so in only 10 days, how can I be a match for Yang Ling Yue?¡±


    The two continued on their journey.


    If there was no danger, then they would bicker and chatter, teasing each other, if there was danger then the both of them would keep quiet out of fear.


    As the days slowly passed, Lingxi too had felt the urgency in Long Chen. This day she suddenly said in a secretive tone: ¡±Hey, I, I have detected the scent of an Enchanted Hill Ginseng. Hehe.¡±


    Long Chen was surprised, and replied quickly, ¡°You detected the smell? Are you a dog? Dog noses are very sensitive indeed.¡±


    Lingxi was furious for a moment: ¡±Bastard, I genuinely want to help you, but you call me a dog, I¡­¡­I don¡¯t wanna help you anymore, this way you will lose face at that intra-familypetition. Hng!¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly pleaded, and after sweet-talking her for a while more, even addressing her as his great aunt, finally she simmered down and said: ¡°This is more like it, this Enchanted Hill Ginseng is an Intermediate Huang Grade and above spirit medicine. Although it doesn¡¯t have not much uses, but it can still help you a little.¡±


    Long Chen silentlyughed: ¡±This fellow¡¯s nose is so sensitive, I had better keep her by my side in the future.¡±


    Thinking of the idea of amassing arge pile of spirit medicine, Long Chen secretly made up his mind. The Lingxi who excitedly went to find the Enchanted Hill Ginseng at this point did not think that because of a moment¡¯s impulse, Long Chen had already imed her as his own.


    ¡°Enchanted Hill Ginseng is a kind of strange spirit animal. Its body is originally the same as a spirit medicine, but after maturing to a hundred years, it is equipped with a spiritual nature and the ability to move around. So it¡¯s extremely difficult to search for it. However it is still unable to escape my, Lingxi¡¯s, grasp!¡±


    ¡°Go this way, go this way, we¡¯re there soon, aiya, hurry and chase, it¡¯s trying to escape, this way¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Under themand of Lingxi, Long Chen chased after it rapidly. Earlier after going across a huge rock, he had already seen the Enchanted Hill Ginseng. This was a one meter tall humanoid, its whole body emitting a pale yellow light. A strong herbal smell was emitting from its body which made Long Chen go restless.


    ¡°This is the crucial item that will allow me to step up in the intra-familypetition. No matter what, I must obtain it.¡±


    Under the enforcement of the [Celestial Core Technique], Long Chen had explosively used an rming speed and rushed towards the Enchanted Hill Ginseng.


    Aggressively rushing into a valley, with the Enchanted Hill Ginseng right before his eyes, at this moment, Lingxi suddenly warned, ¡°Hey hey, stop, hide!¡±


    During the past three days, both of them had already had a mutual understanding. It didn¡¯t matter that the Enchanted Hill Ginseng was right in front, because Long Chen knew the saying of as long as the green mountains are there, one need not worry about firewood. This Deste Beast Domain is not a ce where he can carelessly run around. So before everything else, preservation of life was the most important. So when Lingxi said hide earlier, he had already made a roll, and fiercely dashed into a narrow crack inside the mountain.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°As long as the green mountains are there, one need not worry about firewood.¡± means when there is life there is hope.]


    As he ran into the narrow crack, the Enchanted Hill Ginseng which was engrossed in running away had hurriedly stopped because in the valley¡¯s darkness from around, several beast roars could be heard. In the next instant, a few ck shadows rapidly dashed out, and surrounded the Enchanted Hill Ginseng. Heavy breathing could be heard from these beasts.


    A total of five beasts, their whole body jet ck, their body waspact and small simr to a ck leopard, but their snout was sharper and longer. Their four ws were as if knife des, and as they sprinted, dark red traces came out from their bodies and a smell reeking of blood hung in the air.


    ¡°This actually is¡­¡­Demonic Earth Hounds¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 12 – Phantom Star Wolf

    Long Chen knew, just like the 9 levels of the Dragon Pulse Realm, demonic beasts were also categorized into 9 grades, and these 5 Demonic Earth Hounds, are an existence of the fourth level of the Huang grade, which is to say, each of their strength would perhaps be stronger than Long Chen¡¯s.


    As for the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf demonic beast, ording to Lingxi, that was an existence of a super expert of the ninth level.


    Long Chen coldly looked on at the Enchanted Hill Ginseng which had breached the territory of the five Demonic Earth Hounds and rejoiced.


    ¡°These five Demonic Earth Hounds, their cultivations are higher than mine, but I have the [Celestial Core Technique]. If I catch them off guard and attack them, there is still hope. But these Demonic Earth Hounds will never let me go, and at that time a huge disturbance will be created and I will definitely die in this Deste Beast Domain.


    ¡°But if I don¡¯t take a gamble, in the intra-familypetition, what right do I have to stand up against them?¡±


    ¡°Oh well, dying is better than living like a trash.¡±


    Thinking of that, Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed, and as he was about to rise, Lingxi immediately stopped him. Lingxi growled and said: ¡±Idiot, could it be that you don¡¯t want to live anymore? Spiritual medicine is everywhere, if you waste your life like this, then there will be absolutely nothing gained.¡±


    Seeing Lingxi saying this in such a pressing tone, made Long Chen able to make out the deeply concerned warning behind her words, which made him falter. And after much thinking, he seemed to realize that people who would treat him this well were not many. And even though they only knew each other for a short time, Lingxi had managed to move him.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you are a good person. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t mess around, I still need to protect you.¡±


    ¡°Cheh, I was a good person since growing up, okay?¡±


    One could hear that it was the first time that this girl was being praised by someone, so although her reply wasn¡¯t that courteous but her shy tone had given it away.


    The Demonic Earth Hounds drew closer, and Long Chen did not dare to speak.


    Looking at the Demonic Earth Hounds which were about to bring the Enchanted Hill Ginseng back with them, Lingxi suddenly said softly: ¡±There is another demonic beast approaching¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was startled, and then he actually saw the Demonic Earth Hounds¡¯ hair stand on end. Their eyes shed viciously and growled while looking towards the opening of the valley because at this moment, a huge figure gradually walked out from the darkness.


    Suddenly there was a bright light that had shed across. Long Chen squinted, and under the dimming starlight, the demonic beast showed its form. This was a demonic beast in the shape of a wolf, its body wasn¡¯t as big as the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf¡¯s but it was well built. Silver hair covered its body, and at this moment its hair suddenly reflected the essence of the starlight. Long Chen could even feel that the starlight from the sky was being absorbed by the wolf¡¯s body right at this very moment.


    ¡°This is¡­¡­a Phantom Star Wolf at the fifth level of the Huang grade¡­¡­usually it absorbs starlight for cultivation, hence its body is strongly reinforced.¡± Lingxi¡¯s voice entered Long Chen¡¯s ears.


    It was actually a fifth level of the Huang grade so it was even more difficult for Long Chen to deal with. At this point he did not even dare to breathe.


    The Phantom Star Wolf walked into the valley, faced the five Demonic Earth Hounds and growled loudly.


    As if already provoked, the Phantom Star Wolf had rushed towards the Demonic Earth Hounds. Long Chen and Lingxi did not dare to make another sound and fervently watched.


    The fact that the Phantom Star Wolf was also an expert with a reinforced body did not exceed Long Chen¡¯s expectations. After a pounce and a w scratch, the mountain rocks were grounded to dust. But the Demonic Earth Hounds weren¡¯t weak either so they charged towards it. While letting out a howl, their fangs were showing a horrible scene.


    ¡°These Demonic Earth Hounds¡¯ w technique¡­¡­actually has a kind of martial style, between an attack and retreat. It is not weaker than basic martial techniques. But this Phantom Star Wolf is even more formidable¡­¡­¡±


    Very soon, the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s strength had overwhelmed the Demonic Earth Hounds. Although the pack had a frightening strength, but under the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s sharp ws and fangs, they were all either beaten to death or suffered from injuries quickly. Not even a minute had passed but the five Demonic Earth Hounds had already copsed to the ground.


    The Phantom Star Wolf used its snout and sniffed at the quivering Enchanted Hill Ginseng and let out an excited growl. The starlight in the sky rushed forth, and only then did the Phantom Star Wolf walk away satisfied.


    ¡°This demonic beast took away the Enchanted Hill Ginseng, hurry, we must follow it and take a look.¡±


    This cowardly Lingxi, had actually taken the initiative to follow it. Because Long Chen was convinced she had a great background he trusted in her judgement as well. However at that instant he rushed to the side of the five Demonic Earth Hounds and took out the Demonic Earth Hounds¡¯ energy cores from their bodies.


    ¡°These things can change into quite a few treasures.¡±


    ¡°You greedy brat, hurry up and give chase to the Phantom Star Wolf, but you definitely cannot let him find out, if not you will definitely die.¡±


    Compared to Long Chen, Lingxi was even more anxious.


    The Phantom Star Wolf did not walk away at a fast pace, so after Long Chen had obtained the energy core, he caught up very soon with it, but he only dared to watch it from afar.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you let me follow him so pressingly, what is the purpose for this actually? The Enchanted Hill Ginseng has already been taken, so we are left with nothing.¡±


    Lingxi anxiously said: ¡±It took the Enchanted Hill Ginseng, but normally when demonic beasts find spiritual medicine they take it as a regr meal. This is such a waste since demonic beasts don¡¯t refine it. Anyway this Phantom Star Wolf most likely is the king of this area, so I reckon its cave has a reserve of these spiritual medicines. Normally demonic beasts love to stash objects which can be eaten, the more they stash the happier they get, so let¡¯s follow it, and find its cave, we won¡¯t go wrong with this choice.¡±


    After Lingxi said so much, only then did Long Chen understand, and silently thought: ¡±If it¡¯s just like what Lingxi said, this time if I were to follow, and if there¡¯s any bounty to be taken, it definitely won¡¯t be considered as a waste of my time.¡±


    Before an hour passed, the Phantom Star Wolf had stopped in front of a cave, and went in quickly. Long Chen was observing it from behind a rock outside of the cave.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what should we do now?¡±


    Xiao Xi anxiously said: ¡±Just wait for now, naturally I have a good n.¡±


    This girl was being so mysterious but Long Chen couldn¡¯t care less. He watched concentrated on the cave, and not longter, that Phantom Star Wolf had actuallye out from the cave. It lifted its head and then nced around. Long Chen hurriedly stilled his aura and breath, not daring to move. However in his heart he was starting to panic.


    After observing the surroundings at the entrance of the cave for a while, the Phantom Star Wolf proudly howled. Its four limbs started moving on the ground and momentster it disappeared without a trace in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    Lingxi happily said: ¡±As expected, this was within my calctions. You scoundrel, hurry up and enter the cave, there will definitely be some good stuff inside.¡±


    Even if she did not make this point, Long Chen knew, the Phantom Star Wolf only entered for a little while, so if it had eaten the Enchanted Hill Ginseng he couldn¡¯t have possiblye out so quickly.


    Long Chen aggressively rushed into the cave. The cave was dark as well as deep, and a heavy stench of wolf¡¯s musk invaded the nose.


    ¡°This is definitely a Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s cave.¡±


    Very soon, the four walls began to light up. Long Chen rushed into arge semicircr space inside. This was the real home of the Phantom Star Wolf. Although there was a putrid smell from the demonic beast¡¯s droppings, but the spiritual medicine¡¯s fragrance was filling the nestpletely.


    ¡°Enchanted Hill Ginseng, there¡¯s actually two stalks here¡­¡­Long Chen, your luck is a little too much. Anyway, there¡¯s no time to lose, hurry up and collect these things.¡±


    Lingxi just finished her speech, and Long Chen had already started working on it. Those two stalks of Enchanted Hill Ginseng, very soon were held in his arms. Suddenly, in his heart there was a bad premonition.


    ¡°Ah, I forgot, because the Enchanted Hill Ginseng loves to run about, that Phantom Star Wolf has probably used some methods to put a barrier around it. But now when you took the Enchanted Hill Ginseng, I¡¯m afraid it already knows.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s face turned red with anger, and scolded: ¡±To hell with your mother, why didn¡¯t you say so earlier, I will be done in by you!¡±


    Without any time to lose, the items had already been retrieved and he madly rushed towards the exit. Lingxi because of being in the wrong, had temporarily kept quiet and was dejectedly following Long Chen.


    Faintly sensing the exit, at a ce not too far away from the cave, there came a furious wolf¡¯s howl, which rang loudly in the night sky. Long Chen¡¯s heart had already frozen by half due to fear, and dashed out of the cave.


    ¡°That way.¡± Lingxi pointed to a direction.


    Long Chen hurriedly escaped towards that direction, he could feel that the heavy breathing which wasing from behind was graduallying closer and closer.


    ¡°If I were to die this time, I will definitely first grab you out from this broken sword and rape you!¡±


    ¡°Wu¡­¡­I, I really didn¡¯t do it on purpose, but just forgot for a moment¡­¡­ wuu wuuu¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 13 – Fairy From The Heavens

    Long Chen looked behind, and was so scared that he thought his soul had already left him. Behind him there was a pair of bloodshot eyes, howling and chasing after him. The gap between them was about 20 meters. At this rate under a minute, he will surely die.


    ¡°I have so many tasks that are unfinished, but yet I¡¯m about to die in a ce like this?¡±


    He was extremely unwilling, and let out roars in session, escaping with all his might. But that demonic beast¡¯s speed was too fast, and in the bat of an eye, Long Chen could already smell its scent.


    The scent of a wolf.


    ¡°To hell with your mother, I don¡¯t believe I can¡¯t win against a wild beast like you!¡±


    His blood boiling from within, he knew that at this rate, when the demonic beast will have reached up to him, it will definitely prate his body in a hit. So at the most crucial moment, he suddenly turned his body, and with a loud shout, starlight was sent out explosively from his body as if a meteorite that had fallen from the outer sky. He then sent a punch towards his opponent!


    ¡°Eat this [Falling Star Fist] attack of mine! Now die to me!¡±


    With a loud bang, the Phantom Star Wolf let out a furious cry, and retaliated with a w attack. Coupled with its massive frame it sent the w attack to collide against Long Chen¡¯s [Falling Star Fist]. After breaking the [Falling Star Fist], it hit Long Chen¡¯s body. Long Chen instantly spurted out a mouthful of fresh blood, and was sent flying back where he smashed into the floor.


    ¡°Even the [Falling Star Fist] cannot hold him back!¡±


    The attack earlier had shocked all of the blood in Long Chen¡¯s body. His battle strength temporarily shaved off by half. And at this moment, the Phantom Star Wolf once again let out another angry growl and sent another w flying towards Long Chen¡¯s head. If it hit, his head would definitely be smashed into pieces!


    As he saw the massive iing attack that wasing from the strongest opponent Long Chen had ever met, it seemed like his defenses were nonexistent. As the cold sh gradually closed in on his head, Long Chen suddenlyughed out loudly. He then clenched his fist tightly, and madly snarled: ¡°You want to get rid of me with just your power, I¡¯m not going to be that easy!¡±


    Once again, he ferociously drew out all the energy he had left, and used all his strength and Qi for the [Celestial Core Technique]. As if a meteorite that was unafraid of death, he sent a punch towards the Phantom Star Wolf!


    He had that kind of feeling where his life was in his hands and he could lose it at any point in time. That had already brought forth all his madness and rage!


    Although he was hurt, but in truth, right now the attack that was formed, was the strongest attack he has ever mustered. Using [Falling Star Fist] and practically drawing out all the Qi from his body.


    ¡°Idiot, why are you fighting for your life!¡±


    At this time, a sobbing voice was heard from behind Long Chen. His view went blurry, and suddenly there was a sh of misty light appearing in front of him. In that instant, Long Chen suddenly felt like he was in a dream.


    The Lingxi sword floated in front of him, and at this moment the Lingxi sword suddenly had a white mist rushing forth from it. Momentarily hazing his vision, a figure was formed by the mist that came from the Lingxi sword. Long Chen merely saw her rear view but two words immediately surfaced from his brain.


    ¡°A fairy¡­¡­¡±


    This maiden within the mist had silky and shiny ck hair which was curled around her temples, and her skin was like jade porcin. Light was gently falling onto her. She was wearing a light blue skirt on her petite waist and her beauty was so profound that her sharp features were wless with no signs of imperfections. Her beauty was simply otherworldly.


    Despite catching only a glimpse of her figure, he was strongly convinced that she was very beautiful.


    The injury he had sustained earlier in fact was more serious than he had thought, but it¡¯s just that he was overdoing it because he did not want to die in that ce. And because of that it did not feel that it was too serious. The moment Lingxi emerged from the sword, Long Chen suddenly felt at peace within his heart.


    Then an earth shattering pain filled his whole body. And he, who had already been injured because of drawing all the Qi from his body, at this moment was spent. Suddenly, his consciousness became more and more blurry, and the beautiful figure in front of his eyes was also vanishing gradually.


    A good whileter he woke up and discovered himself to be in the middle of two big rocks. He raised his head and saw that the sky was still grey, which showed that he was still in the Deste Beast Domain.


    Although his body was still in pain, he felt that the injuries were nothing serious anymore. Long Chen thought of the scene before he fainted, and he panicked, hurriedly calling out: ¡°Xiao Xi, where are you?¡±


    ¡°Over here.¡±


    A feeble voice was heard, and only then did Long Chen look at the Lingxi sword which was lying beside him on top of a huge rock. The scene of him fainting was still vivid for Long Chen. And as he saw Lingxi, his heart could not help but make him feel closer to her. The astounding beauty that Lingxi had disyed, he had all remembered in his heart.


    Lingxi¡¯s voice seemed to be feeble, so he was worried and anxiously asked: ¡°Are you still okay?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine¡­¡­But it is really tiring, I don¡¯t even have the strength to speak anymore. Since you have already woken up, I will be going to get a good sleep. If you disturb me, then I will take your life¡­¡­Ugh¡­¡­¡±


    During the part where she was finishing her sentence, she was already in a half conscious state.


    ¡°It hasn¡¯t been that long and you¡¯re already sleeping, you are indeed a pig.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and scolded her at the same time. However he thought about the fact that this maiden not only saved him, but also endured her exhaustion and feebleness and did not sleep while he was in aa.


    ¡°Thispassion, how can I not understand? Oh well, this girl is also all by herself. So I, Long Chen, will properly repay her in the future!¡±


    Long Chen already knew that Lingxi¡¯s physical body had been mysteriously destroyed by this steel sword, after which her soul had been absorbed into it.


    ¡°That Phantom Star Wolf most likely was beaten by Lingxi and it retreated. Right now I have gotten two stalks of Enchanted Hill Ginseng, so this is the right time to bring my level up.¡±


    After thinking of this, he observed his surroundings. And after making sure it was safe, only then did he take the Enchanted Hill Ginseng out and consume one stalk. Very soon, Long Chen could feel that a wave of scorching strength rushed towards his dantian.


    ¡°This hot energy, should be the spiritual medicinal essence. I must take this opportunity to refine this energy and convert it into Qi.¡±


    Time passes by.


    An hourter, the herbal energy from a stalk of Enchanted Hill Ginseng had already beenpletely consumed. Long Chen frowned and then said: ¡°Enchanted Hill Ginseng is a medium grade spiritual medicine. Just one may not be enough for me to have enough Qi to break through the fourth Dragon Vein, so I will consume another stalk. My enlightenment of the [Celestial Core Technique] has made my veins more resilient, so I can definitely endure this huge herbal energy!¡±


    Thinking of this he consumed the other stalk.


    A very dense herbal smell very soon began to diffuse. Long Chen hurriedly refined it and the Qi in his dantian was growing more and more, gradually reaching to a critical point, and even exceeding it.


    ¡°All isplete, this time it will allow me to rush into the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Every three levels in the Dragon Pulse Realm there is a new threshold. Now I have entered the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, this will definitely allow my strength to increase once again. If I were to meet with that Phantom Star Wolf again, I would at least have a chance to resist!


    The vast Qi was as if a torrential flood surged towards the fourth Dragon Vein. The breakthrough to the fourth Dragon Vein was several times more difficult than the third Dragon Vein. On Long Chen¡¯s first attempt he had met with strong resistance immediately.


    ¡°Cultivation in the Dragon Pulse Realm is indeed very challenging. I have acquired my father¡¯s Qi, as well as 2 Enchanted Hill Ginseng. To think that I still cannot break through¡­¡­ However, I haven¡¯t given it my all yet!¡±


    Gritting his teeth, Long Chen mobilised all his Qi and then grandly rumbled and charged towards the fourth Dragon Vein. A momentter the cry of a Dragon resounded from within his body.


    An hourter, there was a loud boom and a surge of strong energy fleeted towards his four limbs. Long Chen stood up and his eyes filled with vigor.


    Clenching his fist, he felt his own formidable strength.


    ¡°So this is the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. It is indeed strong, but Yang Zhan that fellow even with this might had actually lost to me, he really is trash.¡±


    He looked towards the Lingxi sword and said: ¡°Lingxi rashly emerged from the sword, I¡¯m afraid it won¡¯t be that easy for her to wake up. There aren¡¯t many days left before the intra-familypetition, so I mustn¡¯t waste any more time and take the opportunity to cultivate the [Celestial Core Technique] while she is sleeping. And after stabilising my condition in the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, I shall try again to break through the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    As his ability had seen some improvements, Long Chen¡¯s flustered heart by now had calmed down. He sat on the ground, and continued to practice cultivation.

 Chapter 14 – Mastery of [Celestial Core Technique]

    Four days have passed from the time when Long Chen had gotten injured to the time when Lingxi had awakened. Long Chen figured out the current time, and realized that the intra-familypetition will be held in a few days¡¯ time.


    ¡°If I don¡¯t master the [Celestial Core Technique], I will still be in the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm facing against Yang Lingyue who is at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. It¡¯s still not enough¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen frowned, and decided to leave once Lingxi woke up.


    Only after four dayster did Lingxi wake up.


    Looking at the huge progress in Long Chen¡¯s cultivation, she quickly said: ¡°Looking at the fact that you have refined the Enchanted Hill Ginseng, now your true battle ability can stand against the Phantom Star Wolf. Also the intra-familypetition isn¡¯t that many days away so we had better go to its cave.¡±


    Long Chen stared nkly and said: ¡°Do we still need to go there? All the advantages it had were already cleared by us.¡±


    ¡°You do not know, but for you the real treasure is that demonic beast itself.¡± Lingxi whispered.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re trying to pull off by being so mysterious.¡±


    Although he was suspicious, Long Chen still chose to believe in Lingxi. So the both of them headed to the nest of the Phantom Star Wolf.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what exactly is this Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s treasure that you say will benefit me?¡±


    ¡°The Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s fur is very unique. It can automatically absorb starlight on its own. And after absorbing it, the fur will strangely be hardened, that is why it can match a core technique of some cultivators. Usually, capturing the Phantom Star Wolf you can obtain a lot of money because of this fur. Also this fur itself is hugely beneficial for your [Celestial Core Technique]!¡±


    After listening to Lingxi¡¯s exnation, Long Chen was secretly speechless. There are indeed many wonders between heaven and earth.


    Thinking that the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s fur will be beneficial to his [Celestial Core Technique], Long Chen knew that this time he had to take a gamble. And if he wins, then he can fulfill Long Qinn¡¯s wishes.


    Long Chen originally thought that the reason Lingxi cared about the Phantom Star Wolf, was for her self-interest, not for him.


    ¡°Although this girl is muddle-headed and headstrong, but she is a very good person deep down.¡±


    For Lingxi, and also for Long Qinn, this time he had to go all or nothing. And now that he had entered the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he was stronger by several times, so there was still a huge chance of defeating the Phantom Star Wolf.


    ¡°Dragon Warrior, this extremely unknown title that no one knows about, what exactly does it entail. A mysterious guy like my father was holding it in such high esteem¡­¡­¡±


    Very soon, they appeared in front of the cave once again.


    Lingxi nervously said: ¡°The physical body of the Phantom Star Wolf is extremely strong, not inferior to yours, so if you are unable to defeat it, it¡¯s okay to escape. I only wanted to give you a chance for another breakthrough to prepare for the intra-familypetition, but don¡¯t throw your life away for this.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and said: ¡°No problem, I understand your intentions, but I, Long Chen, am not so easily bullied.¡±


    cing the Lingxi sword on the floor, Long Chen said: ¡°Just watch how I trample this little beast.¡±


    That strong confidence had made Lingxi lose her bearings for a little.


    ¡°Bad guy.¡±


    She scolded him in her heart.


    Long Chen walked open and aboveboard towards the entrance of the cave, and drew out his energy from both the Enlightenment level of the [Celestial Core Technique], as well as the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    This way, the Phantom Star Wolf inside the cave will immediately be able to sense Long Chen¡¯s presence.


    The beast¡¯s awareness of its surroundings was extremely high, and Long Chen had trespassed on its territory. So naturally he deserved to die in its eyes.


    Aftering out and realising that it was the person who stole his stash, the Phantom Star Wolf roared and without another word, came charging at Long Chen.


    On the demonic beast¡¯s chest there were still some traces of blood. Long Chen knew that it was Lingxi who had done this, so most likely this was the reason why Lingxi was confident enough to let Long Chen have this battle.


    However, the speed and strength of the Phantom Star Wolf was still making his pupils shrink.


    Looking at the might of the Phantom Star Wolf, Lingxi was also anxious, afraid that she hadmitted a bad deed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move, I won¡¯t lose!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice rang beside her ears, and while looking ahead at the peerless teenager that had


    alreadymenced battle with the opponent, Lingxi decided and in the end she didn¡¯t move.


    ¡°Alright, I believe in you.¡±


    She was cheering silently for Long Chen.


    At this time Long Chen had used all the strength from the Enlightenment level of the [Celestial Core Technique]. Not only had his defenses greatly risen, but there was also a faintly discernable starlight aura that was swirling around his body like countless des. If the aura were to be touched by an ordinary human, they would have been harmed by the sharpness of the aura!


    Also, the physical body at this point connected with his new Qi that had been increased after breaking through. Long Chen¡¯s strength had dramatically risen overall. Before he had no resistance against the Phantom Star Wolf, but now he could actually face it head on.


    With a loud bang the [Ferocious Tiger Punch] and the Phantom Star Wolf had shed. Although the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s physical shape was muchrger than Long Chen¡¯s, both of them were evenly matched so they parted with another bang. The Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s formidable might had made Long Chen¡¯s arms tremble, but Long Chen¡¯s [Celestial Core Technique] had also cut the opponent with its swirling de aura.


    Its four limbs were strewn with cuts from the [Celestial Core Technique]¡¯s de aura, which had angered it even more. The Phantom Star Wolf let out a roar and once again charged rapidly towards Long Chen. Its demonic aura rose to the surface, and it then sent a w attack towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Although the imposing size of a wild beast is frightening, and the attack power is even more terrifying, but my guts are bigger than your body so I am not afraid of you!¡±


    The Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s attack was vicious as each attack was a fatal one. But Long Chen was not to be underestimated, deep inside he also had a very vicious character, only that it was concealed for over ten years, but it was starting to show itself during this battle. Although the Phantom Star Wolf was mighty, but it was actually retreating from Long Chen¡¯s continuous barrage of attacks!


    The [Celestial Core Technique] had allowed Long Chen to have very acute reflexes and dexterity in the battle. The Phantom Star Wolf waspletely attacking like a wild beast, so he used the same method of fighting as a tactic against the beast.


    As if a tornado, Long Chen¡¯s kick had sent the opponent retreating several tens of feet backwards. And with a shout, he gathered energy in his legs and dashed forward, crashing against the Phantom Star Wolf like a meteorite.


    ¡°Only after entering the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, can I use the true might of the [Falling Star Fist]. So I shall let you taste this attack which was unable to withstand a blow of yours before.


    ¡°[Falling Star Fist], destroyer of heaven and earth!¡±


    With a loud boom, an enormous might was sent and the Phantom Star Wolf was sent flying into a wall on the mountain. At that moment, the spot where it had been hit by the [Falling Star Fist] had already turned scarlet red, and the wall behind him even had a spider web crack!


    Afternding another blow on the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s body, Long Chen immediately grabbed a hold of its head.


    At this moment in the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s eyes, it still held the vicious gaze of a demonic beast. However after being hit continuously, it already didn¡¯t have much energy left to resist. So with Long Chen¡¯s final attack ruthlessly smashing onto its lower jaw, its mandible immediately cracked into pieces and the shrapnel had pierced the brains of the Phantom Star Wolf. With a whimper, it copsed softly onto the ground.


    Looking at this scene, only then did Lingxi heave a sigh of relief.


    Earlier when she realised the Phantom Star Wolf had turned stronger, she was so nervous as if on the brink of death. She knew exactly how much ability Long Chen had. This time being able to beat the Phantom Star Wolf, was only because of his battle method which was even more savage than a wild beast¡¯s.


    ¡°This fellow¡­¡­is really a freak. In a battle he is so terrifying. Usually he speaks coarsely which is not pleasant to listen to at all, but when heughs he sure seems to be good-looking¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking of which, Lingxi suddenly had a feeling of warmth.


    At this point, Long Chen had already dragged the enormous body of the Phantom Star Wolf and was walking towards Lingxi¡¯s side. Long Chen smugly asked: ¡°Girl, what¡¯s up with you? Have you been enthralled by the battle scene and my formidable might?¡±


    Lingxi originally thought that this fellow was not bad, but after being spoken to like that, she was grossed out for half a day, and said: ¡°In your dreams! A youngdy like me would never fall for a toad like you!¡±


    Long Chenughed heartily, and changed back to the main topic. Frowning his head and depressingly looking at the Phantom Star Wolf he said: ¡°Hey, why aren¡¯t you speaking? Hurry up and tell me, your big brother, how to use this fur.¡±


    After being asked, Lingxi was excited and suddenly said: ¡°What other way is there, of course it is to pull out all the fur, swallow it and then refine it inside your stomach, this way it will be a great sess!¡±


    Long Chen was stumped. Looking at the Phantom Star Wolf, his face turned bitter, and stuttered: ¡°You¡­¡­You¡¯re asking me to eat this bastard¡¯s fur? I actually have to eat fur?¡±


    ¡°Yes, eat its fur¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen gave a cry of XX, and fell to the ground.


    [TL Note: The author wrote XX, but from the context one can see that he means ¡°Fuck¡±.]


    One hourter.


    Long Chen sat on the ground, and on the surface of his skin, starlight was faintly emerging from it, and was slowly bing more and more concentrated. His eyes went round and looked on. His two eyeballs as if turning into meteorites, were letting out a dazzling ray of light.


    As for whaty behind him, it was the Phantom Star Wolf¡¯s corpse which had been XX.


    [TL Note: Again the author wrote XX, but from the context one can see that he means ¡°fucked over badly¡±.]


    This scene could remind people to think of the saying, to rape first and killter.


    Lingxi stared nkly at Long Chen who was deep in concentration, and gave off a silly smile. After a while, her smile froze suddenly.


    ¡°Really, what am I thinking about, he is just a weak cultivator in a dested area like this. As for me¡­¡­I cannot have such deep dealings with him. If he can really help me recover my physical body, I will just help him again in the future.¡±


    At this moment Long Chen had reached an important point in the cultivation.


    ¡°The fur of this dog thing is soft, but once it enters the body, it is rather like des piercing through. A wave of destructive force is violently thrashing about in my body, damaging it. This energy should be the power of the stars!¡±


    Bearing the intense pain, Long Chen suddenly applied the [Celestial Core Technique], and cultivated the technique with the rebellious energy of the starlight within him. Under this application the goal was tobine both the wild energy and Long Chen¡¯s [Celestial Core Technique]. It seeded and his physical body was bing stronger gradually.


    Thinking of his pathetic state from an hour ago, Long Chen¡¯s gut had turned over a few times. Under the incitement of Lingxi, he had really eaten that disgusting fur. Thinking about it, while this was indeed pathetic, but for the sake of getting stronger he has to make sacrifices.


    The physical body was being tempered under the immeasurable power of the starlight and was continuously bing stronger. After finally reaching a critical point, with a loud bang, Long Chen¡¯s body started emitting out a sh of swirling starlight, at which point an enormous force was sent out in all four directions!


    Long Chen stood up abruptly, and felt the immense strength within him. Looking closely at his skin, faint traces of starlight could be seen, as if des were shing within. His eyes were letting out a dazzling light, as if no different from the stars up in the night sky.


    ¡°The mastery of the [Celestial Core Technique] is actually so powerful?¡±


    He looked towards the direction of Por Town.


    ¡°Yang family, I aming back¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 15 – Intra Family Meet

    On the 25th of July, for the intra-familypetition, the Yang family in Por Town had earnestly invited all the influent factions to the match.


    The east side of the Yang family residence had a huge courtyard to practice martial techniques. The seats for the banquet had already beenid out. Right now it was just past noon, the esteemed guests had long since had their meal, and what followed next was themencement of the Yang family intra-familypetition. To the younger generation of the Yang family who were in the match, it was a kind of test to see if they would sumb to public pressure. On the other hand, as the Yang family was one of the two big families in Por Town, it was also a method to disy its formidable might in front of the other families.


    In front of the many tforms for sparring, there was a taller tform, where the elders of the Yang family were seated. Because the Yang family was a fairly new addition to Por Town¡¯s forces, their numbers weren¡¯t many. Amongst them there was a white haired, tall and sturdy old man with an electrifying gaze. This old man was the Yang family¡¯s founder.


    From amongst the Yang family, Yang Qingxuan, Yang Xueqing and other elders, were seated on the side of the founder.


    On Yang Xueqing¡¯s side, there was a notable figure from the Bai family. Although the founder of the Bai family did note, but instead his third son Bai Zhanxiong and also his fourth son hade. Other than that there was also a highly skilled young man that stood behind Bai Zhanxiong, which was Bai Shiji who was courting Yang Lingyue. Bai Shiji was the elder brother of Bai Shi Xun. He is the eldest son of Bai Zhanxiong, and his might¡­¡­had dominated the younger generation of Por Town.


    The other factions of Por Town had been seated separately. The other members of the Yang family also did not have a seat on the higher tform, so they gathered outside the tform to watch.


    At this moment, the Yang family¡¯s founder faced Bai Zhanxiong andughed, saying: ¡°Brother Bai is my blood brother, so Zhan Er you do not need to be so courteous. I will be busy running the family¡¯s intra-familypetition, so I¡¯m afraid that I will not be able to y host well for you, so I¡¯ll let Qing Er apany you throughout thepetition.


    [TL Note: Adding Er to a name is a form of endearment in the Chinesenguage.]


    Bai Zhanxiong hurriedlyughed and said: ¡°I have oftene to the Yang family, and each time it was Sister Qing who has apanied me. So I am already familiar with this ce, uncle Yang please go ahead with the hosting of the intra-familypetition. I myself also want to admire and see the talent of the Yang family¡¯s younger generation.¡±


    Yang Xueqing who was beside Bai Zhanxiong, looked towards him and smiled with hidden sentiments.


    Above the sparring tform, each battle had been disyed magnificently, and the match was using an elimination format. With the strong challengers crossing through each round, the crowd in attendance was continuously letting out gasps of admiration. Both the Bai and the Yang families were nodding in approval at the Yang family¡¯s younger generation¡¯s ability.


    The first son of the Yang family founder, Yang Qingxuan turned over and looked at a young man behind him, saying: ¡°Wu Er, what do you think of this?¡±


    This young man had simr looks to Yang Qingxuan. He had a hardened face as if chiseled by des, and his waist was like a thick pole. It was a hard toe by talent, and he was ranked first in the youngest generation of the Yang family, he was Yang Wu.


    He had already obtained the [Seal of the Dragons], and cultivated in it for a period of time already.


    ¡°Sister Lingyue is the only one at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, which is extremely good. However Lingqing who has easily won Yang Qiong earlier, did surprise me a little. Looking at Lingqing, it seemed like she hadpletely mastered the [Falling Star Fist], so breaking through the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm is only a matter of time. However this time she still isn¡¯t a match for Lingyue.¡±


    Yang Wu had analyzed clearly, and Yang Qingxuan nodded his head saying: ¡°Howe I do not see Second Brother here? Although Second Brother has lost his son, but his daughter is still outstanding, I think it could console him a little.¡±


    Yang Wu¡¯s eyes shed coldly and said: ¡°Second Uncle has left earlier. I think it was to nurture his sorrow. Father, Third Aunt¡¯s son, I have only seen him a few times. But from what I heard he waspletely ying the role of a servant. I cannot fathom how he could have beaten Zhan Er.¡±


    ¡°Most likely he was enduring humiliation all this time while concealing his strength. If not who could ever raise his cultivation to the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm in such a short period of time. But his innate talent is not bad, just that¡­¡­his fate is no good.¡±


    ¡°So what if his talent is not bad, if his mind is evil, and he¡¯s scheming to kill his own brethren, that reason alone should be enough for him to be chopped into a thousand pieces. Oh yes, father, previously it seems that he wanted to beat Lingyue in the intra-familypetition, do you think he will appear today?¡±


    Yang Qingxuan smiled and said: ¡°It is only but a lie to Lingyue, not even worth mentioning. Second Brother wants his life so unless he was courting his own death, would he still dare toe back?¡±


    Just as Yang Wu was about to reply, suddenly there was an announcement in the courtyard.


    ¡°Everyone, the intra-familypetition of our Yang family¡¯s youngest generation ising to an end. The final two that emerged will be having a final battle, and the winner will be rewarded with the best technique scroll we have, the [Seal of the Dragons].¡±


    ¡°The final battle! On the tform we have: Yang Lingyue, and Yang Lingqing!¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong faintly smiled and said: ¡°Sister Qing, thedies in your Yang family are sure enough not ordinary, that even the final battle is to be conducted between two girls.¡±


    Looking at Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s ttery, Yang Xueqing felt sweetened inside, and replied: ¡°Bai family¡¯s younger generation is even more extraordinary, Bai Shiji is already in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and your elder brother¡¯s son, Bai Shi Chen, has a reputation as the strongest of Por Town¡¯s younger generation. Yang Wupared to him, is still falling short.¡±


    ¡°Chen Er that kid is indeed not bad, almost catching up to me already.¡± said Bai Zhanxiong.


    On the tform, Yang Lingqing batted an eyelid below. The person which had surfaced on her mind was not here.


    ¡°He definitely will not dare toe here, that¡¯s right, who would risk their life for a bet like that.¡±


    Below the tform, the crowd had formed a discussion.


    ¡°What do you guys say, who will exactly emerge as the winner?¡±


    ¡°Bullshit, of course it will be Lingyue sister, there is a difference of one level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.¡±


    ¡°Lingyue obtaining the [Seal of the Dragons] is the crowd¡¯s predicted oue.¡±


    ¡°You guys don¡¯t remember that kid anymore? The one who had bet that he will meet Lingyue in the intra-familypetition? Back then I had said that he had only fabricated a lie to make Lingyue let him go; now you see?¡±


    ¡°Cheh, everyone already knows it was just a joke without you mentioning it.¡±


    On the tform, Yang Lingyue and Yang Lingqing had already begun their battle.


    ¡°[Falling Star Fist]!¡±


    ¡°[Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]!¡±


    An enormous starlight had whistled and enveloped the entire tform. Yang Lingqing had cultivated tirelessly for many years, only for this very moment. So this punch had contained all her might that was at the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Adding Long Chen¡¯s pointers, this [Falling Star Fist] attack, had already closed up to the might of the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    ¡°At the magnitude of the [Falling Star Fist], Yang Lingyue was also shocked a little. Her expression turned cold, thinking: ¡°Xiao Qing¡¯s age is smaller than mine by two years, I¡¯m afraid two yearster she will have long entered the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. At that time her nurturinging from the family will be even greater than mine, this isn¡¯t good.¡±


    Outside the tform, Yang Xueqing frowned and said: ¡°Xiao Qing¡¯s improvement is very fast, earlier Yue Er had felt a threat so she even disyed the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil].¡±


    At the exhibit of the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], it had caused the crowd to apud repeatedly.


    The Yang family founder looked on, his gaze torched.


    ¡°These two from the younger generation, have practiced their martial techniques well. Yue Er¡¯s [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] can continuously send out 7 fingers, but Xiao Qing haspletelyprehended the [Falling Star Fist] and even went beyond that. If the two cultivators¡¯ Qi was the same, Xiao Qing would emerge as the victor.¡±


    The Yang family founder¡¯s strength was mighty, so the battle¡¯s situation was entirely captured in his eyes. He suddenly thought of a person, and looked around.


    ¡°That fellow who had also learnt the [Falling Star Fist], most likely will not appear here anymore. To him the Yang family is a mountain of daggers and a sea of fire¡­¡­¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Mountain of daggers and a sea of fire¡± means extreme danger.]


    Long Chen had calcted well, although he had caused Yang Zhan¡¯s death, but the fact that he learnt the [Falling Star Fist] within 3 days had left the Yang family founder feeling astonished.


    The [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] under Yang Lingyue¡¯s huge Qi, had continuously wore down Yang Lingqing¡¯s [Falling Star Fist]. Yang Lingqing perspired heavily and started to control her Qi once again, but to no avail. In the end, when Yang Lingyue used the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] and sent out the fifth finger, Yang Lingqing finally lost her resistance, and was hit off the stage.


    The battle results were clear, Yang Lingyue was wearing a smiling expression and was standing on the stage receiving the apuse that sounded like a waterfall. Looking up at the Yang family founder and the Yang family members, they also had smiled in appreciation.


    Even more so for Yang Lingyue¡¯s father, the eldest son of the Yang family¡¯s founder, Yang Qingxuan. Yang Qingxuan could not even close his mouth without smiling.


    ¡°And the winner for today¡¯s intra-familypetition is, Yang Lingyue!¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong and Yang Xueqing looked at each other and smiled, saying: ¡°Only the fact that she has been under your guidance, has allowed Lingyue to have such a spirit that isparable even to a man¡¯s might!¡±


    Yang Xueqing smiled lightly and said: ¡°Brother Bai, you are too kind. Guiding the family¡¯s younger generation is Xueqing¡¯s responsibility within the family.¡±


    She looked on at the excited Lingyue, and was happy in her heart too. Long Chen¡¯s bet, she had heard of it too, and she was worried that he woulde running here not knowing what¡¯s good for him. But from the looks of it, he was indeed a coward.


    ¡°The exact same style as his father, a loud thunder, but light rain.¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Loud thunder, but light rain.¡± is the English equivalent of ¡°All bark and no bite.¡±]


    As for the two sons beside Bai Zhanxiong, Yang Xueqing was very satisfied with them. Especially the eldest son Bai Shiji, he had always disyed courtesy towards her. And as for the younger son, thinking of that matter, Yang Xueqing¡¯s eyes shed coldly.


    ¡°If I knew who it was that had used such a cruel underhanded method, I would definitely make even his corpse disappear!¡±


    At this moment, the Yang family founder startedughing loudly and stood up. Walking lightly up to the stage, everyone could see the sheepskin binded scroll held in his hands. This was naturally the [Seal of the Dragons].


    A few small factions could not help but give out an envious look.


    The Yang family¡¯s founder kindly looked at Yang Lingyue and said: ¡°Xiao Yue Er, today you have emerged as the champion. I, your grandfather, will now hand over this [Seal of the Dragons] to you, I hope you can work hard and step into the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm as soon as possible. I hope youprehend it well and increase the glory of our great Yang family!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Yue Er thanks grandfather, as well as the elders present!¡±


    The item that she had been yearning for had finallynded in front of her, naturally Yang Lingyue was fervently excited.


    Outside the tform, Yang Lingqing was looking at this scene and had a tinge of bitterness in her heart because that too was something she had long since yearned for.


    ¡°This time being unable to obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], I can only work harder, and break through the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, that way I may still have a chance.¡±


    Suddenly, she felt a pat on her back. Yang Lingqing thought it was just another sister, but after looking back and seeing the smiling face, she was tongue-tied.


    ¡°You¡­¡­You really came back?!¡±

 Chapter 16 – [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]

    ¡°You¡­¡­You really came back?!¡±


    Long Chen smiled indifferently near the stage, and ridiculed: ¡°Earlier you were making a racket saying you would obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], but in the end, the only result is you ending up being so dejected? You are really an embarrassing fellow. Oh well, let me take your ce and fight for you.¡±


    Yang Lingqing really did not expect Long Chen would actuallye, so at this moment her brain was short circuited. This fellow with the brimming smile, had not allowed her to recover. But when she thought of her brother¡¯s death being caused indirectly because of him, her face turned cold and sternly said: ¡°You traitor, return my brother¡¯s life back to me!¡±


    With this shout, it had momentarily attracted the gazes of everyone to look over.


    Themotion filled the entire stage. Long Chen raised his head up, and while his gaze was falling on quite a number of people, he smirked at them. Under the huge pressure, he straightened his back and walked up to the tform.


    At this point, the Yang family founder was handing over the [Seal of the Dragons] to Yang Lingyue!


    Looking at Long Chen appearing, all the people who were witnessing this scene had their pupils shrinking. And quite a few of those faces did not have good intentions. Amongst them one of the gazes that was also the fiercest belonged to Yang Xueqing. Just as she was about to stand up, Bai Zhanxiong suddenly held her back and softly said: ¡°Sister Qing, this fellow has real guts, I do want to see what kind of havoc he can create here. Also if you scold him with everyone present here, it will not be good for your reputation.¡±


    Only then did Yang Xueqing sit down. However her gaze towards Long Chen had remained detached.


    Long Chen suddenly looked at her, and Yang Xueqing was startled. Because the unwavering gaze held in his eyes was like an ice arrow, and it had actually caused her to lose her bearings.


    ¡°This fellow¡­¡­has actually progressed once again¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Xueqing was secretly astonished.


    Long Chen batted an eyelid at Yang Xueqing, and then coldlyughed. Right now he was standing in front of hundreds of people, but his posture was stable and he was looking on indifferently at the super expert of the family, the Yang family founder!


    The Yang family founder was also bewildered by the fellow in front of him. Under such circumstances, Long Chen¡¯s actions were so daring that he was actually not showing any signs of timidness, his actions seemingly natural.


    Although he was already in histe years, he silently admired Long Chen for these actions alone. Because he knew that right now the Yang family to Long Chen, was a mountain of daggers and a sea of fire.


    ¡°Being able to stand regardless of life or death, unyielding and unbending, either you are an idiot, or you are someone with a strong character.¡±


    This was the view that the Yang family founder thought of when he saw Long Chen. He was in fact anticipating what mess this little fellow could create.


    At this point everyone¡¯s gazes were all concentrated onto Long Chen. Half of them held disdain within their gazes. Other than the Yang family founder that had a different opinion, most of them felt that Long Chen¡¯s brain had spoiled.


    Under the flickering gazes, neither servile nor overbearing, he looked on towards the Yang family founder. Long Chen slowly knelt to the ground, and clearly said: ¡°Your grandson, pays his respects to grandfather. Today¡¯s intra-familypetition, I have actually showed upte, by right I should be punished, only that¡­¡­¡±


    He raised his head, and looked at the skeptical yet jumpy Yang Lingyue and said: ¡°Your grandson as a member of the Yang family, also has a chance at obtaining the [Seal of the Dragons]. I earnestly beseech grandfather, to allow me to have a match with Yang Lingyue sister, a final showdown!¡±


    Long Chen had the [Seal of the Dragons] on his mind, and everyone knew this. But he actually so brazenly dered his intentions in front of the Yang family, which had made many people respect his daringness. But after thinking of the difference in power between him and Yang Lingyue, they all shook their heads in session.


    ¡°What wishful thinking.¡± Yang Xueqing gave a faint smirk.


    Among the crowd, the majority of the people were thinking the same thing.


    Looking at this young man who was unyielding and unbending, the Yang family founder¡¯s interest had slowly grown, and he ndly said: ¡°Chen Er, the family has its own rules. Since you werete, naturally you lost the right to participate. Besides, the champion this time was born through a series of battles. So bying out like this and wanting to be the winner, is indeed not respecting the rules.¡±


    Long Chen saw that the other party had not refused him directly, thus he knew there was still a chance, so he clearly replied: ¡°If grandfather knows that I did not enter the rounds previously, naturally you can arrange a battle for me, the [Seal of the Dragons] is supposed to be handed over to the most outstanding person of the younger generation. Yang Lingyue Sister and I have not fought yet, so how can we know that she is better than me?¡±


    Shortly after he looked at Yang Lingyue. Yang Lingyue¡¯s moment had been overshadowed by Long Chen, so naturally she was in a fit of fury. Adding on Yang Zhan¡¯s death, Yang Lingyue at this point wished she could kill him right on the spot.


    Long Chen looked at her and said: ¡°I don¡¯t know if Lingyue sister still remembers our bet, if Lingyue Sister wishes to admit defeat, then I naturally¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Enough!¡±


    Yang Lingyue¡¯s face turned ice cold. She looked towards the Yang family founder and said: ¡°Grandfather, today I must have a match with this kid to prevent him from embarrassing all of us and also to prevent anyone saying that I am unworthy of the champion¡¯s title. What I hate the most in this life, is this kind of petty and unscrupulous character. Today I will properly teach him a lesson!¡±


    Yang Lingyue had insisted as well, so the Yang family founder smiled mysteriously and said: ¡°Since both of you have requested this, then an old person like me can onlyply. But the match stops once someone is hurt, so both of you had better restrain yourselves. If you are to throw the face of the Yang family away, both of you can stop thinking of ever getting this [Seal of the Dragons]¡±


    After sessfully agitating Yang Lingyue, Long Chen was secretly celebrating inside. He then hurriedly said: ¡°Thank you grandfather. Lingyue sister is the mostpetentdy here, so I will naturally show mercy!¡±


    ¡°You!¡± Yang Lingyue¡¯s rage was not light.


    Outside the stage, Yang Lingqing looked on at this scene, her gaze confused. Long Chen had caused her brother¡¯s death, and her father could not wait to cut him into a thousand pieces. Before all of this, she was friends with Long Chen, but now this fellow had such an imposing aura on stage, which made her admire him secretly.


    ¡°Oh well, the matter about my brother, we can always deal with itter. Right now this fellow is in such a limelight, if he does not have the ability to match it, then today he will die a horrible death¡­¡­Half a month ago he was only in the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, a difference of three levels of the Dragon Pulse Realm. So how can he ever be my, Lingyue Sister¡¯s match? But what can I do?¡±


    Yang Qingxuan and Yang Wu were conversing also.


    Yang Wu held an electrifying gaze, while looking at Long Chen and said: ¡°This fellow is at most at the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. He only managed to learn a body enhancing technique, and is already this crazy, he is just a frog in a well.¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Frog in a well.¡± means someone who has not seen the world. The frog can only see the walls around him but not the world outside the well.]


    Yang Qingxuan also nodded and said: ¡°Indeed, a difference of two levels, cannot be covered with just learning a body enhancing technique. However by daring to stand here in front of us, proves he indeed has incredible guts.¡±


    Yang Wu smiled faintly and said: ¡°All brawn and no brains, he is gonna be just aughingstock.¡±


    Yang Qingxuan smiled lightly, not denying nor agreeing.


    And at this point, the Yang family founder went back to his seat and attended to the guests for a moment. In the next minute the fight between Long Chen and Yang Lingyue was going tomence.


    ¡°Sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°I am not joking with you, today I will use all my might to fight with you. If you identally die, do not me me!¡±


    ¡°After being told off by Long Chen, Yang Lingyue coldlyughed and said: ¡°Go ahead and daydream, you had better remember, you are but a servant in the Yang family. Just because you have a bit of ability doesn¡¯t mean you shouldn¡¯t know where you stand.¡±


    Long Chen did not dispute with her.


    Bracing his body, faint traces of starlight came to the surface from his body. His gaze had momentarily changed into two dazzling meteorites. Yang Lingyue after being dazzled by such a bright light, had been dazed a little.


    ¡°A petty skill! I heard that you know the [Falling Star Fist], which is just perfect since I too know two skills. Today I will let you experience the true might of the [Falling Star Fist]!¡±


    Yang Lingyue gave a cry, and her ability at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had been explosively drawn from her body. Her body was like a fleeting tornado. At this moment her fist had gathered an amount of dazzling starlight and a faint print image of a fist appeared which was sent crashing towards Long Chen!


    Regarding the [Falling Star Fist], Long Chen was already using it to a level of perfection. However the only thingcking about him was the fact that his Qi was inferior to his opponent¡¯s by two levels. This difference in his Qi could be said to be at least twenty times less than hers!


    ¡°Towards the [Falling Star Fist], you Lingyue, don¡¯t even have the capability to carry my shoes around!¡±


    Long Chen startedughing manically. Yang Lingyue¡¯s [Falling Star Fist] charged towards him. His eyes shed with a hint of viciousness and with a shout, he jolted on the stage, and then flew towards his opponent like a cannonball. Suddenly he also threw out a punch covered with dazzling starlight, which strongly collided with Yang Lingyue¡¯s fist!


    ¡°What a good fellow, with his Qi of the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he can actually use the [Falling Star Fist] to such a level. Compared to Qing Er he is even better!¡±


    Looking towards the stage, the Yang family founder¡¯s gaze was concentrated.


    The people who were familiar with the [Falling Star Fist], were all surprised, and they silently praised him in their hearts. Even Yang Xueqing was shocked, and thought to herself: ¡°Earlier when I heard that he used the [Falling Star Fist] to defeat Yang Zhan, I could not believe it. But now looking at this fist, it seems like hisprehension towards the [Falling Star Fist] is actually not that different from myprehension¡­¡±


    However after being shocked, she noticed that Long Chen had been retreating under Yang Lingyue¡¯s attack, and was about to be hurt under the [Falling Star Fist]. Yang Xueqing coldlyughed.


    ¡°So what if he has a little talent inprehensive abilities. If the Qi isn¡¯t enough, there is no chance to change the situation!¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen had already been fully engulfed by the might of the opponent¡¯s enormous [Falling Star Fist].


    ¡°This Qi is at least twenty times more than mine, however if you want me to stop here, dream on!¡±


    Previously his right hand had gathered starlight which had shocked the crowd, but eventually it was unable to best Yang Lingyue. However right at this moment, Long Chen gave a loud cry, and what followed after his right fist, was his left hand that had punched out another [Falling Star Fist]!


    Boom!


    A loud sound was heard, Long Chen¡¯s unexpected fist hadpletely blocked Yang Lingyue off, and also managed to steady his footsteps!


    However the continuous two fists of the [Falling Star Fist], had startled the crowd greatly. The Yang family founder was so startled that he stood up and eximed: ¡°He is really a genius, he can already use the [Falling Star Fist] to such an extent while just being in the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm! It¡¯s extraordinary!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan and the others were also secretly shocked. Earlier Long Chen was not even in his eyes but at this point Yang Wu¡¯s expression was a sight to behold. He too swallowed his saliva and said: ¡°Father¡­¡­this fellow, should only be sixteen years of age? If he did not have that issue with Yang Zhan, I¡¯m afraid in the future our Yang family would have a chance to chase after the Bai Family¡­¡­¡±


    These two consecutive [Falling Star Fist] attacks had cost Long Chen quite a lot of time before being able to sessfully use them.


    The two [Falling Star Fist] attacks had finally broken away from Yang Lingyue. At this point, Long Chen¡¯s blood was still raging violently, and the shocked yet furious Yang Lingyue stared at him.


    ¡°Yang Lingyue is indeed not easy to deal with. After using the two [Falling Star Fist] attacks, my Qi has fallen by half. At this rate no matter how good my [Falling Star Fist] is, I will perish too. If I lose to her, grandfather will surely not protect me, and then Yang Yuntian will definitely kill me!¡±


    Thinking that he couldn¡¯t retreat anymore, Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed wildly. Yang Lingyue who was looking on had also been scared a little, however she gritted her teeth and once again charged towards Long Chen!


    ¡°This time, victory leads to life, defeat leads to death as well as me bing aughingstock. So I can only win, and I must not lose!¡±


    Thinking of this, Long Chen smiled manically. Yang Lingyue seeing his crazed state was scared inside, and suddenly used the strongest skill that she had practiced!


    ¡°[Seal of the Dragons], is not something a fellow like you can own! [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]!¡±


    ¡°The first point!¡±


    ¡°The second pierce!


    ¡°The third revolution!¡±


    ¡°The fourth exterminate!¡±


    From the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], each and every stage came pressing onto Long Chen. Everyone knew that Long Chen besides the [Falling Star Fist], had no other skills left. Yang Lingyue after using the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], will definitely cause Long Chen who was already spent to be defeated!


    Outside the stage, Yang Lingqing¡¯s heart was very nervous.


    ¡°Lingyue Sister¡¯s [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] is not an ordinary attack. If I had to retreat he definitely has no hope anymore. And if he is defeated¡­¡­¡±


    Everyone present wanted to know very much, how exactly would Long Chen deal with the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]. But at this moment, Long Chen did not retreat and instead advanced, charging towards Yang Lingyue. But what made everyone most surprised was the fact that he actually did not have any other movement!


    ¡°He is actually seeking his own death?¡±


    ¡°Good heavens, he wants tomit suicide!¡±

 Chapter 17 – Disdain

    This move of Long Chen¡¯s, had immediately roused the attention of the crowd. Everything had happened in an instant. Yang Lingyue furiously used [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], and each and every hit had alreadynded on Long Chen. Because of that imposing martial finger technique, every time one hitnded it would cause the clothes on his body to be shredded. Fresh blood was constantly spilling out from his mouth!


    Suddenly such a situation happened, so all of the Yang family members had stood up. All their expressions were uneasy, especially Yang Xueqing¡¯s expression. Her face turned pale white and the handle on her chair had been crushed into pieces by her.


    As for Yang Lingqing, her face was even paler, and continued to watch the fight on the stage.


    ¡°Stop! Lingyue Sister!¡±


    As the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] was presented, there wasn¡¯t a reason to hold back. At this point, just when the Yang family founder was about to stop the fight, he noticed Long Chen¡¯s eyes!


    Long Chen firmly stared towards Yang Lingyue, his blood constantly flowing out from his mouth, but his gaze was still intense. The Yang family founder had been deeply stunned!


    This is the most persistent gaze he had ever encountered in his life!


    ¡°Vicious! Unbending! Unyielding! Insane! Cruel!


    These were the things that he could make out from Long Chen¡¯s eyes. And no matter how far his strength was ahead of Long Chen¡¯s, but this gaze of his had actually struck fear into his heart!


    ¡°If this boy were to grow up¡­¡­Just based on this nature alone¡­¡­He would astonish everyone!¡±


    As the Yang family founder did not interfere, the others naturally did not dare to either. And at this point, Yang Xueqing had walked one step forward, but was actually blocked by the Yang family founder!


    No one had noticed this action from Yang Xueqing, even she was not aware.


    When everyone had believed Long Chen to be dead soon, suddenly, Yang Lingyue¡¯s limit, the seventh finger of the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] hit Long Chen¡¯s body. He abruptly let out a crazed howl and then drawing his fist he punched towards her. These actions were natural and unforced, as if he had practiced them countless times!


    Since she had just finished using the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], she was weary, and her emotions were struck with fear and shock. Yang Lingyue after being hit in the stomach by Long Chen¡¯s fist, gave a pitiful scream, and was immediately blown off the sparring stage. With a loud bang she crashed into the wall, she then spit out a mouthful of blood and abruptly fainted.


    Yang Wu seethed with fury, but was held back by Yang Qingxuan who said: ¡°Bring Lingyue to heal her injuries, do not attack.¡±


    Yang Wu coldly looked at Long Chen, and then agreed. But deep in his heart, he had already nned to viciously beat Long Chen up. As one must know, Lingyue is his blood sister, and normally even he himself did not bear to hit or even scold her.


    At this abrupt scene, the courtyard went dead silent. All of the people had astonished faces and were looking towards the young man who was still standing on the stage!


    His robes had already been ripped into rags by the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], and his back was revealed. Blood was spurted out from his mouth, and the injury on his chest caused by the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] was bleeding profusely. He waspletely covered in blood!


    However, he was steadily standing on the stage, and the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] attack that was used earlier on him actually did not make him retreat even half a step! Even after thatst hit of his that had defeated Yang Lingyue he still did not fall down. His face was showing off a faintly cruel smile as if a battle god was sweeping his gaze across the crowd. At this point he looked at Yang Xueqing with his bloodstained eyes and coldly smiled.


    Looking on at the figure which was standing perfectly upright on the stage, Yang Xueqing¡¯s face turned pale, and even backed off a step. Inside her heart there were tumultuousyers of waves!


    She did not dare to even look Long Chen in the eyes, and actually turned around and escaped!


    Long Chen silently watched on as she left.


    ¡°Have you seen this? Are you scared now? Yes, I am a member of the Long Family! I am the son of Long Qinn! We all have an unyielding nature! To all the people who looked down on me, you will realise, I Long Chen, will one day be your nightmare! As for today, it is just the start of this nightmare!¡±


    ¡°Yang! Xueqing! From today onwards, you will see apletely different version of Long Chen! He will be the focus of everyone! You will no longer have any rights to look at Long Chen with disdain anymore! He will be the existence that will shock you and make you revere him!¡±


    Right now in his heart, there was an overflowing wave of emotion that was surging from within.


    This is the first time he had been so heavily injured, but also up till now, this was the first time he was that impressive! And because of today, he had finally stood up for himself! His back was upright, and while standing on the stage, he swept his gaze across everyone!


    As for everyone else, they could only look at the figure that was on the stage, shocked yet unable to say a single word.


    For victory, he had used his own body to block Yang Lingyue¡¯s [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] attack. And once Yang Lingyue¡¯s attack waspleted and this had exhausted her, he dealt a critical hit! Such a crazy method, no one present would dare to do it!


    Yang Lingyue ran towards the stage, and because of the current situation she halted her footsteps. After looking at Long Chen who waspletely blood stained, and at the blood that had not yet stopped dripping from the corner of his mouth, her tears betrayed her and they started flowing out.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze had finallynded on the Yang family founder. He smiled indifferently and said: ¡°Yang Lingyue has already lost her ability to battle, but here I am still standing, so who the grand winner of this intra-familypetition is, I think it¡¯s obvious. Grandfather, please award me with the [Seal of the Dragons]!¡±


    ¡°Please award me with the [Seal of the Dragons]!¡±


    This voice was as loud as thunder, ringing through the ears of the crowd!


    This young man who was covered in blood had not fallen. His fiery gaze also did not let anyone dare to belittle him. From this day onwards, this scene will be etched deeply into the hearts of everyone!


    The Yang family founder¡¯s feelings were obviously struggling. But that gaze from the stage that was on him, was one he could not avoid.


    And at this moment, an azure sh with a brushing sound had headed towards the stage.


    ¡°Bastard, return me my son¡¯s life!¡±


    It was Yang Yuntian that was at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    Long Chen had created such a hugemotion in the intra-familypetition, and Yang Yuntian was still inside the Yang family residence, so how could Yang Yuntian not have known of this?


    Earlier when Long Chen and Yang Lingyue were having a battle, he was holding himself back. But now when Long Chen had won, and had no defenses left, he immediately dashed up the stage and went for Long Chen¡¯s life!


    Yang Yuntian could be said to be much stronger than Yang Lingyue, his cultivation level almost reaching the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. As he attacked, a strength that could topple the mountains and overturn the seas hade rushing towards Long Chen!


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Strength that can topple the mountains and overturn the seas.¡± means spectacr/earth shattering strength.]


    Originally the crowd was still second guessing if Long Chen wouble be able to obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], but now such a scene happened, so it had shocked the crowd and they cried in surprise!


    As for Long Chen who had just escaped death, he was suddenly back at the extremes of danger!


    Earlier Long Chen had already used all his energy to fight against Yang Lingyue, and had temporarily forgotten about Yang Yuntian¡¯s threat. It could be said that he had underestimated the Yang Yuntian¡¯s killing intent, so when Yang Yuntian had attacked, he knew that this time it was game over for him.


    Earlier he had expected the Yang family founder to protect him, but he was careless because the Yang family founder still had a distance before he could reach him and Yang Yuntian¡¯s sneak attack was beyond anyone¡¯s expectations!


    This very moment, Long Chen¡¯s life was jeopardized to the extreme!


    However he had just defeated Yang Lingyue, and he was still in a vicious state. Yang Yuntian¡¯s sudden attack, was fast and furious, he knew that Long Chen was already spent, so he did not use any superb Martial Technique. However, just the Qi from the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had already stifled Long Chen!


    Yang Yuntian¡¯s punch had arrived, Long Chen howled and continuously used two [Falling Star Fist] attacks, but he was still sent flying backwards and then had was forced to spit out a mouthful of blood!


    His whole body was scorching in pain!


    After suffering from the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] and Yang Yuntian¡¯s attack, Long Chen had almost fainted. But at this point, Yang Yuntian did not let him go. After realising that his punch did not actually kill Long Chen, in the next moment he once again appeared in front of Long Chen.


    ¡°You scum! Go die!¡±


    Suddenly, with a dragon¡¯s cry, a powerful attack appeared and had caused all of Long Chen¡¯s body to almost shatter into pieces. Long Chen at this point in time was already in a dazed state; his vision became blurry, and could barely see. It seemed like the mirage of a Dragon was slowly expanding in his vision. That strength was tens of times stronger than the [Falling Star Fist] attack and this strength had instantly arrived!


    ¡°This¡­¡­.This should be the [Seal of the Dragons]¡­¡­¡±


    He never thought that he would actually die so soon. And after thinking about it, he still had some unwilling feelings; however he had at least aplished something, which is to let that woman look at him in a different manner!


    Thinking of Long Qinn, and thinking of Lingxi¡­¡­


    Suddenly at this instant, there was a feeling of warm and soothing energy entering his body. Long Chen had actually found himself to be much more sober. His eyes suddenly opened, but what he saw was the Lingxi sword on his ear had be bigger. And that image which was like a fairy, had once again appeared in his vision!


    Long Chen looked on at her silhouette, however this time, he could see much more clearly¡­¡­


    When they hade out from the Deste Beast Domain, Lingxi suddenly made her Lingxi sword smaller, and changed into a small ear pin. After piercing Long Chen¡¯s ear, she said that this was for concealment, and although Long Chen did not know whether tough or cry, he still allowed her to do as she pleased.


    At this point, Lingxi was worried for Long Chen¡¯s safety, so she made the sword bigger, and then emerged from it.


    Originally, the crowd thought that Long Chen would die under the [Seal of the Dragons], but what made people more astonished was that the ear pin on his ear had actually turned into a sword, and then a fairy likedy had slowly appeared¡­¡­


    ¡°Idiot, why do you always let people worry¡­¡­the next time this happens, I won¡¯t save you anymore¡­¡­¡±


    This voice was Lingxi¡¯s.


    Long Chen while lying on the stage, raised his head but still did not manage to see Lingxi¡¯s face. But from the nk expression of the crowd, he knew that it would have been extremely beautiful¡­¡­


    A few sword shes made by the Lingxi sword had swiftlye out from the mist and smashed Yang Yuntian¡¯s attack into pieces. And at this moment, the Yang family founder finally had the chance to block Yang Yuntian.


    Earlier Yang Yuntian¡¯s movements were too quick. No matter how much stronger the Yang family founder waspared to Yang Yuntian, after chasing after him, he was still a moment toote.


    But because of this brief moment, Long Chen had almost died!


    Lingxi once again turned into mist, and returned into the Lingxi sword. After which she once again became smaller, and attached itself onto Long Chen¡¯s ear. Long Chen once again had heard Lingxi¡¯s feeble voice, and it looked like this strike had extremely worn her out.


    ¡°¡­¡­Wu, I am going to sleep, I can¡¯t deal with what happens next¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Xiao Xi¡­¡­¡±


    After being saved twice by her, Long Chen was extremely grateful.


    After all he has always paid back enmity with revenge, and kindness with kindness. This grace that Lingxi has shown him, he will definitely repay it with a great favour in the future.


    This time many incidents had urred throughout the intra-familypetition. Long Chen¡¯s appearance itself had already been one, and after that he had even beaten Yang Lingyue, and with Yang Yuntian¡¯s attack this was yet another incident, but what made most people startled was ady had walked out from a sword and saved Long Chen.


    In their hearts, Long Chen gradually had draped on a veil of mystery.


    Even with the Yang family founder¡¯s knowledge and experience, he did not know what that was. This grandson of his had given him too many pleasant surprises, evidently he had many secrets.


    However now was not the time for questions. Yang Yuntian originally could have killed Long Chen, but he did not imagine that a girl would appear suddenly and destroy his attack, but when he prepared to attack once again, the Yang family founder was already standing in front of him¡­¡­


    His bloodshot eyes looked at the Yang family founder, and then shouted: ¡°Father, he has caused your grandson, my son, to die! And yet today you want to protect him?! How can you let me down like this?¡±


    The Yang family founder¡¯s gaze turned cold and said: ¡°You are forty today, this is not a young age anymore. I don¡¯t think I have to say much, right now this is the intra-familypetition. All of Por Town¡¯s esteemed guests were gathered here, so I will definitely not allow you to shame yourself in front of everyone! This matter of yours, we shall speak of itter! Xuan Er, bring him away!¡±


    The Yang family founder¡¯s charisma was iparable, so even though Yang Yuntian couldn¡¯t wait to kill Long Chen, he knew that the Yang family founder had already made up his mind. And at this time if he was not tactful enough, his father would get angry and then there would be even less of a chance to kill Long Chen in the future.


    So he viciously looked at Long Chen, suppressed his rage and then left!


    He knew that as long as Long Chen was in the Yang family, he had tens of thousands of ways to kill him!


    Today the Yang family founder was apprehensive about the Yang family¡¯s face so he did not allow him to deal with Long Chen. But in the future there will be many chances for that, so he could just kill first and talkter!


    With Yang Yuntian¡¯s departure, the Yang family founder had finally heaved a sigh a relief. Today¡¯s matter had indeed troubled him. At this moment he looked on at Long Chen who was still lying on the stage, but just as he was about to look into his injuries, he found Long Chen to have sat up abruptly. Looking at that posture, he was actually cultivating!


    Right!


    Before this, he had consumed the Enchanted Hill Ginseng. That enormous herbal energy still had traces that had remained inside his body. So this time even though the battle had left him with heavy injuries, but the herbal energy had been drawn out fully because of it. And also after suffering from the injuries, the mysterious Dragon Jade had released out Qi which was even more colossal than before. Under these two¡¯s infusion, Long Chen had felt that he actually had the strength to break through to the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    Breaking through the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm right in front of the crowd!

 Chapter 18 – [Seal of the Dragons]

    Half a month ago, everyone knew that he was in the third level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. In half a month he had broken through two levels. This kind of talent has never been seen before in the history of Por Town. And if this was the case, if the Yang family founder would not try his best to save Long Chen¡¯s life, then it would be very strange indeed.


    Long Chen absolutely believed that his performance today had shocked the hearts of everyone. So what will happen next is he will be the talk of Por Town!


    This time breaking through to the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had been surprisingly smooth. Everything had progressed naturally and it had been even easier than going through to the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. The herbal energy from the 2 stalks of Enchanted Hill Ginseng had beenpletely absorbed by Long Chen. And after only a short minute, that extremely thick and long fifth Dragon Vein, had been broken through!


    A dragon¡¯s cry that could shake the earth was heard!


    Under the nurturing from the Enchanted Hill Ginseng, his injuries have almost properly been healed. At this point Long Chen stood up abruptly, and everyone had suddenly realised that he right now possessed an intense aura. His eyes were showing an even more lively expression. If he were topete against Yang Lingyue again, victory would be easy!


    ¡°This fellow¡­¡­He really is going against the heavens¡­¡­¡±


    Chen Liu who had bullied Long Chen back in the past, quietly hid behind the crowd. His two legs could not stop quivering¡­¡­


    The people, who had onceughed at Long Chen and had given him the cold shoulder, were all swallowing their saliva now, their faces turning pale.


    Looking at Long Chen who had broken through to the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, the Yang family founder¡¯s face was impassive, but deep down inside he was extremely gratified.


    Among the crowd, Long Chen had noticed that Yang Lingqing¡¯s gaze was extremely confused.


    Long Chen originally thought that the matter was over. He looked at the Yang family founder and just when he was about to obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], at this point, a few members of the Bai family had actually walked up the stage. In their eyes, there was a menacing look.


    The Yang family founder was shocked and said: ¡°Sirs, what is the matter?¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong looked at Long Chen with an obvious killing intent. He walked forward and respectfully said to the Yang family founder: ¡°Uncle Yang, your nephew does not want to disturb the intra-familypetition but there is one issue that we must ask him in order to find out the truth.¡±


    When their gazes fell on Long Chen, he had already known something was wrong.


    ¡°Earlier when Lingxi attacked, the sword was revealed, and Bai Shiji had seen the Lingxi sword before, so naturally the description was the same. These 3 people from the Bai family, probably already know I was the one who castrated Bai Shiji!¡±


    At this moment, the Yang family founder looked over, his eyes filled with suspicion.


    Right now, Bai Zhanxiong looked at Long Chen coldly and said: ¡°Everyone, my younger son half a month ago has met with an ident; I suppose most of you know a little about it. The attacker was so vicious that I cannot wait to cut him into thousands of pieces!¡±


    ¡°ording to Bai Shiji, when he was chasing after a ck steel sword. He had unexpectedly met with a masked man who had snatched it away from him, hence ending up in this state. So what I want to say is, earlier the sword which has saved Long Chen, was exactly the same one that my son had described!¡±


    ¡°You rascal, that masked man, that was you!¡±


    ¡°Such a young age but you are already this vicious, what is your true intention!¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s interrogation had directed everyone¡¯s gaze towards Long Chen.


    The Bai Shiji matter had long since been the talk of Por Town. But because the Bai family was the number one superpower in Por Town, naturally people only dared to discuss behind closed doors not right in the open.


    However they knew that this young man¡¯s, Bai Shiji¡¯s, life had been ruined.


    Long Chen silently eximed: ¡°If I were to be found out, the Yang family founder might not want to have any disputes with the Bai family and who knows, he might even give up on me. Anyway the opposition does not have any proof, so I shall deny till the point that I die!¡±


    So he raised his head and coldly said: ¡°I don¡¯t even know what you are talking about. Whatever has happened to your son, what does it have to do with me? Also, the weapons under the sky do not differ by so much, so how can you judge that this sword of mine is the same as your son¡¯s?¡±


    Looking at Long Chen who was actually not admitting even if he were to die, Bai Zhanxiong was extremely furious, so he coldly said: ¡°While there may be many weapons that look simr, however the number of swords that have the length of 70 cm, are jet ck throughout, have a width of two fingers and have the aspect of a rusted steel sword, is not that many. So do you still want to deny it?¡±


    Long Chen said indifferently: ¡°You have seen that sword earlier, so of course you can describe it so well now. You are a reputable figure in Por Town, yet you want to frame a nobody such as myself, what is exactly happening?¡±


    Looking at their debate which may never end, the Yang family founder stepped in and said: ¡°Chen Er, do you dare to guarantee that you have never done a thing like this?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head saying: ¡°Indeed, I haven¡¯t. Even today I don¡¯t know what has happened to his son. Could it be someone broke his hands and legs, or has pierced his dantian?¡±


    Lying in front of the Yang family founder, that requires some guts too. Earlier his performance wasmendable, and the Yang family founder was a person who loved talent. So although Bai Zhanxiong had stepped forth, the Yang family founder was still hesitant to hand over the juicy meat, that he had just attained, and let the Bai family do whatever they wish with it, hence that question to Long Chen earlier.


    Long Chen too had guessed his intentions, which enabled him to lie tantly.


    After receiving Long Chen¡¯s confirmation, the Yang family founder said to Bai Zhanxiong: ¡°Zhan Er, this matter must be investigated thoroughly. You cannot rashly make a judgment, why don¡¯t you first go back today and tell this to your father. Brother Bai and I are brothers in life and death. Brother Bai will naturally trust me, I will also ount to him. As for anything else, there is not much left to be said.¡±


    Right now it was the Yang family intra-familypetition, so the face of the Yang family founder was the greatest. Por Town¡¯s power was split between both families and the situation wasplicated, and the Bai family was also preparing for a wedding with the Yang family. Each and every event had caused Bai Zhanxiong to frown, so he could only say: ¡°Since Uncle Yang has already said so I, your nephew, will obey. From the rise of the Yang family, my father has always given enough assistance. Uncle Yang and my father are like actual brothers, so with Uncle Yang¡¯s decisional abilities, I am reassured¡­¡­¡±


    Walking away, he gave Long Chen another cold stare, and left while thinking: ¡°Yang family¡­¡­Ha ha, this little scum. Today I will let you off temporarily, but all of you, no matter who, your days are soon to be over. The real overlord of Por Town, can only be us the Bai family!¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong walked down the stage, but Bai Shiji had remained. He sent Long Chen a cruelugh, and then asked the Yang family founder: ¡°Grandfather Yang, in that demonic beast huntingpetition, will he be participating?¡±


    The Yang family founder¡¯s gaze had concentrated, but he did not reply, as he knew this fellow in front of him was giving him a warning. If Long Chen were to join the demonic beast huntingpetition, naturally there won¡¯t be a good ending for him.


    Shortly after, Bai Shiji walked up to Long Chen and coldly said: ¡°A whileter there will be a demonic beast huntingpetition. You had better not participate, if not your little life will most likely be gone.¡±


    Then he exerted the aura of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm fully.


    ¡°Trying to scare me into submission huh¡­¡­¡±


    This Bai Shiji¡¯s eyes were full of provocation. Long Chenughed coldly, because he already knows that his next opponent will most likely have to be him.


    After the Bai family had left, the other factions had also left quickly. This Yang family¡¯s intra-familypetition had finally ended.


    However the events that had happened were a hot topic in town.


    The Yang family founder¡¯s expression was hard to read.


    ¡°Follow me.¡±


    Saying just this, the Yang family founder walked in front and led Long Chen who followed behind quietly. As for the rest of the people, they could be sent away, one of which was Yang Lingqing.


    ¡°Such a hugemotion, and it was all caused by you. What kind of a person are you exactly¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s performance today was like a sweeping tornado. The news travelled even into the ears of the maids and the servants. And all of the people who had mistreated him before, at this moment, were feeling fear in their hearts.


    Along the way, those gazes had actually been filled with fear and respect.


    Long Chenughed, this is exactly the kind of life he wanted.


    Arriving in front of the Yang family founder¡¯s hut, which was beside the Martial Techniques Hall, he saw that the Yang family founder was seated down cross-legged, and was looking at him.


    ¡°First I¡¯ll ask you something. That matter about Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s son, was it done by you?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head.


    This was within the expectations of the Yang family founder. He carefully looked at Long Chen and after a long while he exhaled loudly and said: ¡°You little rascal,st time you did not have any spirit, but your performance today has actually made me very surprised. You wished to borrow my love for talented people, to block off Yuntian and Zhanxiong. It was indeed a clever move, but at the same time it was extremely risky. But still you gambled correctly, so you managed to survive.¡±


    His own thoughts had been seen through by the Yang family founder, but Long Chen was not surprised, he only said: ¡°To protect my own life, I could only have done this. I hope grandfather does not take it to heart.¡±


    In his heart he was deeply aware of the fact that even though he did not have much affection for this old fellow but the other party was the number one of the Yang family, the overlord of the Yang family, so he could offend anyone but not him.


    The Yang family founder fell into silence for a while and then said: ¡°With my temper from before, if you had used me like that, I would¡¯ve definitely not let you lead a good life. However now there is an even more pressing matter, if you were to do well in this, I will naturally not be too nitpicky with you about this previous matter. You must know, there aren¡¯t too many people in Por Town who would dare make use of me.¡±


    ¡°May I know the task which has to bepleted?¡±


    The Yang family founder casted a flickering gaze towards him and sighed. After a while he said: ¡°Let me tell you about the history of Por Town. 30 years ago, Por Town did not have the Yang family, only the Bai family. At that point, I was only a martial cultivator with a decent amount of talent. Also at the time I knew the Bai family¡¯s current owner, we had travelled around the world together, and had established a very strong friendship. In the end when we returned to Por Town, I established the Yang family and continued my bloodline.


    ¡°As for today, my ties with Brother Bai are still very good, not to mention the fact that Qing Er and Zhan Er are about to get married, with us being the matchmaker. But there has still been something which has been troubling me.¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly asked: ¡°May I know what it is? Could it have anything to with the demonic beast huntingpetition?¡±


    The Yang family founder nodded his head and said: ¡°The Bai and Yang families¡¯ ties are close, allied together to fight others. But since that notice from 10 days ago, everything has changed. And you, you little rascal have actually castrated Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s younger son, which has added yet anotheryer of snow on the frost. If I did not protect you it would¡¯ve still been fine, but now that I have done so, the ties have worsened yet again. I¡¯m afraid Qing Er¡¯s marriage will most likely not happen anymore.¡±


    After saying this, the Yang family founder frowned.


    So this marriage was actually arranged by this old fellow. Long Chen was cursing the Yang family founder in his heart a hundred times over. As for the ties between the Bai family and the Yang family, he wasn¡¯t very clear. But from what he could make out from the Yang family founder, the ties seemed to have been pretty good.


    ¡°The marriage may not happen anymore? That is great, I don¡¯t have to waste any more energy. Why don¡¯t I worsen the ties between the two families even more? But I¡¯m afraid the first one the Yang family founder would kill is me if I did this¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen pursed his lips and said: ¡°Grandfather, the demonic beast huntingpetition that you were talking about, what exactly is it?¡±


    The Yang family founder looked at Long Chen with a fiery gaze and said: ¡°Our Por Town is governed under the jurisdiction of the Yuanling City. Ten days ago they have issued a decree that Por Town¡¯s younger generation must enter the Big Barren Mountain and proceed with the demonic beast huntingpetition. From the two families¡¯ younger generation, the side that obtains the most demonic beast energy cores can have the rights to rule Por Town for 20 years. As for the next mandate after these 20 years pass, the ruling over Por Town will once again be determined by the demonic beast huntingpetition where the younger generations of the Yang and Bai families willpete once again.


    ¡°For a long period of time, Por Town has been in a state without a mayor. The towns near us, all of them already have a designated mayor, and now it¡¯s Por Town¡¯s turn to have a decision. The rights to rule Por Town for 20 years has a very important meaning for any family here. So this time, although Brother Bai and I are like brothers, I cannot let this go so easily.


    The Yang family founder sighed once again and said: ¡°The time for the demonic beast huntingpetition is on the tenth of august. Qing Er¡¯s wedding day will be on the evening of the same day, so this time the younger generation may not have much time to attend the wedding dinner. As for the demonic beast huntingpetition itself, Yuanling City will naturally send someone to supervise, so people like us are unable to enter the Big Barren Mountain.¡±


    After listening to so much, Long Chen already knew what he had to do.


    ¡°What grandfather wants me to do is coborate with the Yang family younger generation during the demonic beast huntingpetition and obtain more demonic beast energy cores, right?¡±


    The Yang family founder nodded his head and said: ¡°From the Bai family younger generation, Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen are both in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and they have two cultivators in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm as well, but for my Yang family we only have Ling Yue and Yang Wu who can take on this role. Your performance today was not bad. Being able to learn the [Falling Star Fist] in three days, and you also being able to use it at this stage was a great feat. With your help the demonic beast huntingpetition will have actually have a chance if you are present.¡±


    ¡°Participating in the demonic beast huntingpetition is okay, the Bai family¡¯s and the Yang family¡¯s rtionship has always been well. They wouldn¡¯t try to kill our family. However you yourself have to be wary of the Bai family¡¯s younger generation. When you enter the Big Barren Mountain you will have to hunt the Demonic Beasts on your own, and not sh with any of the Bai family¡¯s younger generation. This way our chances of obtaining more demonic cores will be higher than the Bai family¡¯s.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head and understood the Yang family founder¡¯s meaning, which was to let him work alone, and be the dark horse of the Yang family. It could be considered as a wishing from the Yang family founder.


    However, when the timees will it be the same as the Yang family founder said? Can Long Chen avoid Bai Shiji?


    Long Chen nodded his head and said: ¡°Your grandson will obey grandfather¡¯s wishes.¡±


    The Yang family founderughed loudly and said: ¡°You work hard for the Yang family and I will naturally treat you well. As for the matter concerning Yuntian, I will help you solve it. Also, the [Seal of the Dragons], should belong to you so you had better practice it properly these few days and try to have a breakthrough in the next 14 days.¡±


    He then took the [Seal of the Dragons] that he had been dreaming of from the Yang family founder¡¯s hands.


    Looking at the mboyant calligraphy of the words, Long Chen was extremely moved.


    ¡°With this [Seal of the Dragons], my strength will once again rise explosively! Also, father has told me that this [Seal of the Dragons] scroll was not so simple. I too want to have a look to see exactly what secret there is inside of it, and to see what kind of existence I will be when I be a Dragon Warrior!¡±


    At this point, the Yang family founder took yet another bag of items and said: ¡°This is 500 pieces of spirit jade, take it away. If you are able topletely refine it, I think it will be able to help you achieve the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. However cultivation cannot be rushed, you have just entered the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm so these next few days you must first familiarise yourself with the [Seal of the Dragons]. You can go back and rest now.¡±


    Only then did Long Chen retreat.


    ¡°In half a month¡¯s time, there will be the demonic beast huntingpetition and the marriage. These two¡¯s schedules have ovepped, so what should I do? ¡­¡­Forget it, first I should just practice the [Seal of the Dragons] and see how much I can increase my strength until then!¡±

 Chapter 19 – Mysterious Barrier

    ¡°[Seal of the Ashened Dragon]¡­¡­¡±


    Sitting on his bed at the pavilion, Long Chen flipped the pages of the secret [Seal of the Dragons] scroll till he was sleepy. Only then did he ce the [Seal of the Dragons] beside the bed.


    ¡°Because it is a high level martial technique, many people in the Yang family have not practiced it. Looking at the sheepskin and the withered materials, my [Seal of the Dragons] scroll, should be the original. Father had said that there was some secret on it which is crucial for my development to be a Dragon Warrior. But why can¡¯t I find out what it is?¡±


    Long Chen rolled on the bed, staring out of the window as if in a trance.


    ¡°What broken thing is this, isn¡¯t this just a few pieces of sheepskin manual? What secrets can it even keep? By now so many members of the Yang family have already seen this secret martial technique. If there was a secret it would have been discovered since long ago¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was a little dispirited.


    ¡°That¡¯s not true!¡± Long Chen excitedly sat up on the bed.


    ¡°The secret should not be that easy to be discovered, so that¡¯s why so many of the Yang family members have not discovered it yet. And father has asked me to obtain this secret scroll, so if I were to work a little harder, I will naturally know what is hidden within!¡±


    Picking up the [Seal of the Dragons] again, and looking at each line of cursive yet elegant handwriting, Long Chen looked through each and every single word. He had scrutinised carefully even the corners of each page, but in the end it was all in vain.


    ¡°I am now in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, however with the mastery of the [Celestial Core Technique], an average sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator is no match for me. Together with the [Seal of the Dragons], the battle strength I can exert is even stronger. Such a pity that the [Celestial Core Technique] is only an Intermediate Huang martial technique, if I were to face a cultivator of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, I would not have any advantages at all with this¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°The demonic beast huntingpetition is about to start and that Bai Shiji hates me to the core. If I¡¯m not able to find a solution before then, then I will definitely die, and I definitely won¡¯t be making a name for myself!¡±


    Thinking of Bai Shiji who was already in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, Long Chen frowned deeply.


    He was the most aware of his own abilities. Against a cultivator at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he could most likely win easily. But against a cultivator at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, there was not much hope for him.


    The Dragon Pulse Realm is split into 9 realms, and the first six levels¡¯ Dragon Veins are all named as Small Dragon Veins. The Small Dragon Veins are not that durable in strength nor do they have a long pathway, so the explosion of Qi is limited.


    As for the difference between the sixth and the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, it is a huge gap. The Dragon Veins of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and onwards arebelled as the Human Dragon Vein, the Earth Dragon Vein and respectively the Heaven Dragon Vein. And each length and durability is at least double in size and length as that of a Small Dragon Vein. The Heaven Dragon Vein is even more winding, the length is almost simr to the previous eight Dragon Veins added up!


    So Long Chen knew, that in this Dragon Pulse Realm, the further one goes the harder it bes to break through. This is also the exact reason why cultivators at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm are so rare!


    As for Long Chen, the greatest difference between him and Bai Shiji is the Human Dragon Vein. The Qi required to break through the seventh level, needs to be more than ten times as much as that of the sixth level. So byparison, just Bai Shiji¡¯s Qi alone, is much greater than Long Chen¡¯s by 20 or even 30 times already.


    ¡°However¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes emitted a cold gaze, while he thought: ¡°Bai Shiji is Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s son. If he is his son, I must definitely be stronger than him. That way I can let that woman acknowledge mepletely. And so that she knows exactly who is the trash and who is not fit to practice martial techniques!¡±


    Although he had said this, in his heart there was still a heavy pressure. Because at least right now, he had no idea on what to do with the [Seal of the Dragons] in his hands. And if he spent the next ten plus days being so muddle-headed, then it would be fair to say that he will have to continue like that for the rest of his life!


    ¡°What exactly is this Dragon Warrior thing? Father actually said that it was a long lost legend? I have heard of the ultra-mysterious Beast Warrior and of the Armament Warrior, but I¡¯ve never heard of a Dragon Warrior¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°However, both father and Lingxi said that this vastnd is named as the Long Ji Continent, and that the people here are descendants of the Ancestral Dragons. I think that this Dragon Warrior has something to do with these dragons of the myth, possibly an inextricably linked connection!¡±


    In the intra-familypetition, because of Lingxi¡¯s attack, most likely her energy has diminished. So even though three days have passed, she actually has not woken up yet. Long Chen was quite worried in his heart and thought: ¡°Is this girl just gonna die like this? I think the consumption for her to appear was too great thest time. Even if she was my benefactor, she has already saved me twice. But I said I want to protect her so if anything ever happens in the future, I cannot let her help me again!¡±


    Once again he looked at the [Seal of the Dragons] in his hands.


    ¡°Father had only wanted me to obtain this secret scroll, but he never told me how to discover its secret. So I still have to rely on my own ability. If only Lingxi was here, her identity is so mysterious. She must have a colossal backing behind her, and probably has had many experiences. I think she could solve this problem for me.¡±


    Sighing, Long Chenid on the bed and covered his face with the [Seal of the Dragons].


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Long Chen realised, just as he ced the scroll over his head, that the mysterious Dragon Pendant which had no activity had suddenly moved, but then there were no further actions.


    Suddenly at this moment, there was a thin thread of a voice, and the owner sounded anemic.


    ¡°On this secret scroll, there seems to be a barrier¡­¡­¡±


    The person who said this was Lingxi. Right now the Lingxi sword was changed into the form of an ear pin and was attached to Long Chen¡¯s ear. So even if her voice was very soft, Long Chen could still hear it carefully.


    After hearing Lingxi¡¯s voice, Long Chen¡¯s worries from the past few days had finally lessened a bit. However Lingxi still sounded very feeble and he knew that she had not recovered fully. So he hurriedly asked: ¡°Xiao Xi, how is your condition now? This time it¡¯s all because of my rashness. I swear I will not let such a thing happen again in the future. Each time you havee out it has left you so weak¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright¡­¡­¡± Lingxi interrupted.


    Long Chen was moved a little, but he still bit his lips and said: ¡°What is alright? You had better remember it for me, in the future do not be nosy. If I were to die carelessly under someone¡¯s hands, that is well deserved. But if you die because of me, I Long Chen will me myself for the rest of my life. And I would be better off dead in that case!¡±


    ¡°Tell me, what exactly is your situation right now.¡±


    Long Chen had been infuriated slightly so Lingxi had kept quiet in fear. And then in a gentle tone: ¡°My physical body has already disappeared, right now my surroundings are pitch ck, and my consciousness right now is being preserved only because of my spirit strength. Each time I use it my strength will diminish a little. Last time my mind was in a mess and in fear, so I directed the Lingxi sword to fly for a very far distance. My spirit strength is almost finishing, and adding on to that thest two times I appeared, if I do not have any medicine that could heal and prolong my spirit, I think I will¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen shouted from a bolt out of the blue and said: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so sooner!?¡±


    Lingxi felt like she had been wronged, so she said sobbing: ¡°I just woke up, so why are you so fierce with me? And also if I didn¡¯t appear thisst time you would have been dead already. There was no time to talk about it at all¡­¡­¡±


    Only then did Long Chen calm down, and after keeping his silence for a while, he said: ¡°Xiao Xi, thank you, but as a man, in the future, I do not need you to appear for me anymore. The medicine you mentioned earlier which can nurture your spirit, I will go find it for you right now!¡±


    Lingxi was practically the one who used her life to exchange for his, so while Long Chen did not say how touched he was, but deep in his heart, he had already considered Lingxi¡¯s life as his life. And what¡¯s most important is the fact that he had to be the one responsible for his own life.


    Hence Long Chen kept the [Seal of the Dragons] in his arms and left the house. He wasn¡¯t so familiar with the medicine of cultivators, but Long Chen had one person in the Yang family with which he could somewhat get along with. This person was Yang Lingqing, so he decided to look for her.


    ¡°A medicine which nurtures the spirit cannot be found so easily, and generally they are rather expensive. Long Chen, have I be a burden for you?¡±


    ¡°What bullshit are you saying!? You saved my life, so I am simply spending my time and effort for you in return. How can it be considered as a burden? Has water entered your brain now?¡±


    Although on the way Long Chen spoke very harshly, but in his speech there was a strong concern and urgency detected, which Lingxi appreciated. Looking at this unwavering young man in front of her, her mind started thinking of some stuff. This disaster that has befallen upon her, had let her mature gradually unlike the carefree life she had from before.


    ¡°Oh right, earlier you said there was a barrier ced on the [Seal of the Dragons]? Are you able to remove it?¡±


    Earlier because of Lingxi, he had actually forgotten about the most important thing. And as he thought about it now, Long Chen¡¯s face was eagerly filled with expectations.


    ¡°Right now with my current spirit strength, it¡¯s not enough for me to even look at the barrier closely. However if I were to get the medicine for my spirit, I can definitely give it a try.¡±


    Long Chen was bted and said: ¡°What a good Xiao Xi. As expected you are very capable. If you had a body how good would that be, I could kiss you now to reward you!¡±


    After saying this, Long Chenughed out loudly.


    ¡°Hng! Dream on, such an ugly toad like you wants to eat swan meat!? However if you want to undo the barrier, the medicine cannot be just a little. I am a voracious eater so if you need me to do anything in the future, it¡¯s very simple, I must eat medicine!¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°A toad wanting to eat swan meat.¡± means to crave for someone that you are unworthy of.]


    ¡°Okay okay, you medicinal junkie.¡±


    After the joke, the atmosphere wasn¡¯t that gloomy as before. However Long Chen understood that the responsibilities he carried now will be heavier than before.


    Not only does he have to be stronger, but he also has to amass more treasures, since only medicine with spirit healing properties can prolong Lingxi¡¯s life.


    ¡°Such a small ce like Por Town, will it have Spirit Healing Medicine¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was still deeply concerned.


    Walking towards the courtyard of the Yang family, at the instant that the guards and maids had noticed him, they hurriedly casted a smile towards him. However their smiles were forced, and looked even uglier than their crying faces.


    Long Chen¡¯s performance in the intra-familypetition, had led him to a high position in the Yang family. And adding to that his strong capabilities and his vicious nature, how would these small frys dare to be disrespectful towards him. It would be akin to asking for punishment because they had nothing better to do.


    On the side, Yang Wu was watching silently as a row of guards walked past and greeted Long Chen. His expression gradually turned darker.


    ¡°Originally this item had belonged to Xiao Yue Er, but now it is stolen by thisckey. Look at that arrogant face of a servant of yours. However, I wonder for how long you can be pleased with yourself.¡±


    ¡°Grandfather regards you importantly right now, but it¡¯s just to make use of you. Although Second Uncle¡¯s cultivation is still in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he has been faithful in carrying out his duties for the family business and has sacrificed so much for the Yang family until now. You actually think that a useless yboy such as you, who has tarnished the reputation of the Yang family since you were young, can actually rece him? You¡¯re like a sparrow that thinks that if it flies up the branch it turns into a phoenix.¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Sparrow that thinks that if it flies up the branch it turns into a phoenix¡± means it does not matter how hard amoner tries, because he will always be amoner.]


    Long Chen actually knew that Yang Wu was looking at him, but he couldn¡¯t care less.


    If anyone were to hit his own sister, Long Chen would most likely immediately go up to that person and fight that person with all his might. So whatever Yang Wu was thinking, he understood it.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, do you see the guy who is staring at me like he has a grudge?¡±


    ¡°I see it, but it doesn¡¯t look like he has a grudge on you.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know the truth, but actually he is a pervert, and he has been having a crush on me for a long time already. But s the both of us are guys, so he doesn¡¯t dare to say it out, but the feelings he holds for me are more precious than pearls¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s so gross, I¡¯m going to vomit!¡±

 Chapter 20 – Cultivator’s Marketplace

    After finding Yang Lingqing, Long Chen finally stopped conversing with Lingxi.


    Yang Lingqing had lost to Yang Lingyue in the intra-familypetition, but she was not dismayed and worked even harder instead. While looking at Long Chen who had actuallye to find her, her heart was knotted in a mess, she could only look at Long Chen in a distant manner.


    ¡°What do you want from me?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s feud with her brother; she knew well in her heart that it was only a small fight, and even if Long Chen stripped Yang Zhan¡¯s clothes off in front of everyone, she felt that it wasn¡¯t such a big deal since Yang Zhan was not a maiden. But Yang Zhan was actually not able to endure the humiliation and hemitted suicide, which made things even moreplicated.


    Yang Lingyue thought that Long Chen did not mean it. But it was because of Long Chen that her brother died, so even though she wasn¡¯t that close with her brother, nheless blood is thicker than water.


    Looking at the anger welling in Yang Lingqing¡¯s eyes, Long Chen knew that he had given this girl a kind of suffering. He did not feel so good about it deep down so he said: ¡°Your brother¡¯s incident, I also did not expect that ending, so I can only say I¡¯m sorry. Today I am here merely to ask you about a few things.¡±


    Yang Lingqing detachedly said: ¡°Ask what you want, I still have to hurry and practice my cultivation. The demonic beast huntingpetition is right around the corner and I do not want to lose to the Bai family¡¯s younger generation.¡±


    ¡°I need a medicine that has spirit healing properties. Do you know where I can get some of it? Does our house have any?¡±


    Long Chen had asked with an anticipating look. But Yang Lingqing was a little cold towards him, so he was worried that this girl may not help him.


    However he had still lowered his pride and asked her.


    Yang Lingqing thought for a while, and then said: ¡°In the family there shouldn¡¯t be any of these medicines, but you can go to the medicinal stores in the cultivator¡¯s market to have a look. The herbal medicines there have alle from cultivators; either that or the stores have purchased them directly from arger city, so it¡¯s possible to have the medicine you asked about.¡±


    Long Chen had always been mingling with inns and brothels, so how could he have known where the market was. So he asked: ¡°Where is the location of this ce?¡±


    Yang Lingqing replied to him haughtily: ¡°The cultivator¡¯s market is indeed a bit hidden. Alright then, I will show you the way.¡±


    Long Chen looked at her gratefully. Although this girl did harbour some hate for him, but during the time where Long Chen needed her most, she still tried her best to help. Her character was way better then Yang Lingyue and Yang Wu.


    It was indeed an eye-catching scene for Long Chen and Yang Lingqing to be seen walking together. But the people watching did not dare say anything much since both of them were the young master and the young miss of the Yang family after all.


    Long Chen¡¯s reputation had been spreading in Por Town in the past few days, leading him to be a figure that almost every household knew. Before that, many people did know him, but the only feeling they had for him was disdain. But to think that in such a short period of 1 month, the salted fish had flipped its body. And so he had be a reputable figure among the younger generation in Por Town.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Salted fish has flipped its body.¡± means to make a huge turnaround change.]


    ¡°Oh right, since you have practiced the [Falling Star Fist] so quickly, what about the [Seal of the Dragons]?¡±


    Walking on, Yang Lingqing suddenly posed the question.


    Long Chen smiled nonchntly and said: ¡°Are you envying me now? I could teach you again, but you have to call me Big Brother Long Chen first.¡±


    Yang Lingqing at this moment made an angry expression and said: ¡°Right now I¡¯m only in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, I don¡¯t have the Qi to practice [Seal of the Dragons]. And also I want to be able to obtain the [Seal of the Dragons] with my own strength!¡±


    Looking at the determination of this girl, Long Chen secretly started respecting her.


    After walking for a while longer, Yang Lingqing frowned and said: ¡°You¡¯re also in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. The [Seal of the Dragons] is a high level martial technique, so it doesn¡¯t have much uses for you. So you might as well give it to Elder Sister Lingyue. With her strength who knows, she may have a little hope of getting close to the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm¡­¡­¡±


    After all it was an advanced martial technique, and his true strength was only at the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Long Chen did not feel surprised at all about the fact that Yang Lingqing did not think highly of him. He only smiled inly and stopped speaking.


    ¡°Long Chen, you know about the demonic beast huntingpetition? The Bai family has always been stronger than our Yang family. So if they were to gain the title of mayor of Por Town, our Yang family, I¡¯m afraid will have to lead a difficult life. Now in Por Town, the general consensus is that the Bai family will be the mayor of Por Town after which they will be a faction of the Lingwu family in Yuanling City and exercise the authority of the Lingwu family!¡±


    The Lingwu family was situated in Yuanling City. Long Chen had heard of it before, this was the first family of Yuanling City. They were venerated by the imperial family of the Central Granary State and they had the power to rule over the whole Yuanling City. It could be considered as the overlord of Yuanling City. So the mayor of Por Town will undoubtedly receive the protection of the Yuanling City, and in addition will also reap enormous benefits.


    So even though the masters of the Yang and Bai families are good friends, this time they wanted topete for once.


    Long Chenughed: ¡°That¡¯s because the current Yang family younger generation doesn¡¯t have any real experience!¡±


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s ears had turned red from embarrassment. Her eyes showing a helpless look as she said: ¡°In our Yang family¡¯s younger generation, we have Big Brother Yang Wu, Elder Sister Lingyue. Also including you, this would only be the equivalent of one cultivator at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and two cultivators at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.¡±


    ¡°The Bai family has four cultivators, two are at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and two are at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Among them Bai Shiji is average, his cultivation can be matched by Big Brother Yang Wu¡¯s. But that Bai Shichen, at seventeen years old, had already reached the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Among Por Town¡¯s younger generation he was the first to reach the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and he has a cultivation that is difficult to even imagine. He has always been the strongest among Por Town¡¯s younger generation.


    Long Chen suspiciously asked: ¡°He is only at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, what makes this Bai Shichen so special?¡±


    Yang Lingqing shook her head and said: ¡°You don¡¯t know, but rumor has it that he¡¯s about to break through into the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm already. Also from the Bai family¡¯s advanced Huang martial technique, the [Dark Heavenly Finger], it is said that he has mastered the second finger! The [Dark Heavenly Finger] martial technique, is stronger than our Yang family¡¯s [Seal of the Dragons] by 30 percent. Our [Seal of the Dragons] has two levels, but the [Dark Heavenly Finger] has three and the second finger¡¯s attack power, has long surpassed [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]. Also Big Brother Yang Wu has only learnt up till [Seal of the Ashened Dragon].


    As Yang Lingqing was describing Bai Shichen, her tone was giving off a powerless feeling.


    ¡°Seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and the [Dark Heavenly Finger] huh? Indeed it is terrifying. But I, Long Chen, have only lost to him in terms of Qi.¡±


    At this moment, Yang Lingqing looked over and said: ¡°With Bai Shichen¡¯s help, their Bai family could even y a Huang 8th Grade demonic beast. Now you tell me, how can our Yang family be their match?¡±


    Long Chen did not know how to answer her, so he said: ¡°Right now is not the time to be dismayed. If one were to admit defeat before starting, then that person is no better than a useless trash. Anyway I, Long Chen, am not a useless trash, so whatever that Bai something is, even if he is a white flower, I will still beat him into a ckened colour!¡±


    [TL Note: ¡°white flower¡± Author making a pun from his name in chinese.]


    Yang Lingqing could not stand it when Long Chen was not serious. She rolled her eyes to Long Chen and said: ¡°Your trumpet blowing abilities have not changed, but you and the Bai family have great enmity. Speaking of the demonic beast huntingpetition, the one in the most danger there is you. I think you had better cultivate diligently and also at that time you had better hide yourself far away in order not to embarrass yourself¡­¡­¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Trumpet blowing¡± means self-praise]


    Long Chen hurriedly said: ¡°Okay, Great Grand-Aunt, your servant knows what to do already.¡±


    However deep in his heart he was smirking, he thought: ¡°Hide far away? This isn¡¯t my style.¡±


    Looking at Long Chen who still had a nonchnt look on him, Yang Lingqing didn¡¯t have anything more to say to him.


    In an instant, Long Chen followed Yang Lingqing and walked into a huge pavilion. After a few winding hallways, and entering yet another door, he did not expect toe to a wide and clear open space.


    Looking at each and every street, and at the great numbers of shops and stores, Long Chen was momentarily stunned.


    ¡°This is the cultivator¡¯s market. However this spirit healing medicine I am not too sure about what it is, so you have to ask around yourself. You have been shrewd from a young age, so I don¡¯t think someone can scam you. Right now I am almost entering the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, where I¡¯m onlycking an insight in order to break through. And this time it has finallye. I will go find myself a ce and save myself from being angered by you to death.


    After saying this, she did not wait for Long Chen¡¯s opinion, and turned into a winding alley.


    The number of cultivators in Por Town were not few. Long Chen¡¯s eyes swept across, and had already seen hundreds of people walking about, these were all cultivators. Among them there were even some experts.


    ¡°This cultivator¡¯s market is a ce filled with crouching tigers and hidden dragons.¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Crouching tiger, hidden dragon¡± means a ce where there are talented individuals concealed.]


    ¡°Xiao Xi, can you sense the existence of any medicine with spirit healing properties?¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s feeble voice rang beside his ears: ¡°You have to go a little closer, it¡¯s too far away now so I am unable to sense it. In this small town, such medicinal herbs should be very rare, I have to look carefully¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s voice had weakened yet again, and Long Chen had been anxious in his heart, so he kept praying that he must definitely find that kind of medicine.


    After making up his mind, Long Chen entered the first medicinal store. The cultivator¡¯s market had many stores, there were cksmith shops, pharmacies, and even pawn shops.


    These pawn shops mainly collected materials obtained from demonic beasts, as well as a few other treasures. Of course, if it was pawned, it would be bought, after all these shops had roughly all the items that cultivators would need.


    Entering the first medicinal store, Long Chen had sensed that a strong herbal scent had drifted to his nose. There should even be spirit medicine of the same grade as the Enchanted Hill Ginseng, and there should be quite a few in here. Long Chen had already noticed that the transactions here were all made with pieces of spirit jade. Gold and silver taels were not used. He only had 500 pieces of spirit jade, so he knew he had to use them sparingly.


    These 500 pieces of spirit jade had been given to him by the Yang family founder for cultivation. However for the sake of Lingxi¡¯s life, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t care about using these pieces of spirit jade.


    Long Chen pretended to look around, and made his way around once. But the person that was actually looking was Lingxi. Unfortunately, after going in a circle, she realised there weren¡¯t any.


    Long Chen had started to panic, and started looking for the owner of the shop. Finding a grave and stern looking middle aged man he asked: ¡°Excuse me, does this shop have any medicine that has spirit healing properties?¡±


    That shop owner was startled, but then said: ¡°I¡¯m sorry, we don¡¯t have any.¡±


    Long Chen was disappointed.


    ¡°Young man, in this small Por Town, spirit healing medicine, basically has no demand. So shops like us, normally do not sell it. But if you need it urgently, then you can take a look at the other stores and try your luck.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head, and thanked the shop owner. After that he walked out of the shop and feeling flustered, he asked Lingxi: ¡°ording to him, all of Por Town does not have medicine like this, Xiao Xi¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Then what can we do¡­¡­¡±


    Xiao Xi had sounded flustered too. The extent of Por Town¡¯s remoteness had far exceeded her expectations.


    Long Chen clenched his fist and said: ¡°No way, we haven¡¯t even looked at the other shops. Right now we cannot conclude anything, so I will continue looking. I do not believe that such arge cultivator¡¯s market does not even have one spirit healing medicine!¡±


    After saying this, he then promptly walked into each and every store in the cultivator¡¯s market. There were a bit less than 50 of these medicinal stores. Long Chen had went into each and every one and asked, this consumed a lot of time. However this was fine, but what made him worry the most was the fact that the answer was always negative.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry; we don¡¯t have this type of medicines here.¡±


    ¡°Normally we don¡¯t keep this type of medicine.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not able to sell it out because we don¡¯t have it in stock.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s expression was growing darker by the second, and in his heart he was bing more and more flustered.


    ¡°If you really can¡¯t find it, then forget about it. Ever since my physical body has been broken into pieces, I have already known that the time left for me wouldn¡¯t be much longer. However Long Chen, knowing you, was nice¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes gradually turned bloodshot, he then growled and said: ¡°Don¡¯t say such silly things, aren¡¯t there stores which we still haven¡¯t searched? I don¡¯t believe I can¡¯t even aplish a small task like this. If Por Town doesn¡¯t have it, I will go to another ce. This stupid demonic beast huntingpetition, I will not participate in it anymore!


    ¡°This can¡¯t do, and I still have to open the barrier for you¡­¡­¡±


    Just as the both of them were at their wits¡¯ end, suddenly a few noises rang loudly from afar. The people around all hurriedly looked towards the origin of the noise. Long Chen originally did not care, but very soon someone had actually said: ¡°It looks like a youngdy from the Yang family and some guys from the Bai family have a dispute!¡±


    ¡°Yang Lingqing?¡±

 Chapter 21 – [Five Directional True Devil Fist]

    The youngdy from the Yang family in the cultivator¡¯s market could only be Yang Lingqing.


    Yang Lingqing had treated Long Chen very well, so Long Chen had also treated her as a real younger sister. Thinking of the fact that she may be bullied, Long Chen did not say another word and headed towards the origin of the noise.


    That noise earlier, should have been Yang Lingqing using the [Falling Star Fist]. Usually the Yang family and the Bai family do not have any shes, but this time Yang Lingqing had even used the [Falling Star Fist], which shows that she had been very angry.


    From far away, Long Chen had seen a crowd gathering. Among them were a few experts, but none of them dared to stop the fight. That¡¯s right, even if they had decent abilities, how would they dare to interfere in a fight between the Yang family and the Bai family? How could they not be afraid of the consequences?


    Long Chen did not care for any of these, so he tantly squeezed through, and as he expected Yang Lingqing was fighting with a foxy yet charming lookingdy. However right now Yang Lingqing did not have the upper hand, and it looked like she was about to be defeated.


    Beside Long Chen, two middle aged man were conversing. It looked like they were two of the many shop owners.


    ¡°The talent of this Yang Lingqing from the Yang family is not bad. But even though Bai family¡¯s Bai Zhixing is somewhat older, her cultivation is in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, hence she is stronger.¡±


    ¡°The difference of a level, yet Yang Lingqing has withstood for so long, this is not bad.¡±


    ¡°The Bai and Yang families have had close ties all this time, so why are both of these girls fighting?¡±


    ¡°I also don¡¯t know. When I arrived, both of them had already been fighting.¡±


    ¡°It could be because of the matter concerning the mayor. Looks like Por Town is going to face some major changes soon¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen did not say another word, and rushed into the battle scene. Just as he was about to attack, Lingxi who was beside his ear suddenly said agitatedly: ¡°Hey, you see that young man over there? In his waist pocket, there is a stalk of Dream Spirit Grass. That is an intermediate Huang grade medicine which can nurture a spirit!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze shifted towards the young man as he ran over, because right now that young man was not far behind Bai family¡¯s Bai Zhixing.


    ¡°Is that the other Bai family cultivator that is at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, Bai Shidong?¡±


    It was such a coincidence that the item that he had been dreaming of is unexpectedly on his body.


    Even if it was only for the Dream Spirit Grass, Long Chen must definitely get involved in this fight now.


    Long Chen¡¯s movements, had attracted stunned expressions from all the people around.


    ¡°That should be¡­¡­Yang family¡¯s Third Aunt¡¯s son who has been notorioustely, right? I heard that he has already entered the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. However he¡¯s stillcking a levelpared to these two from the Bai family younger generation.


    ¡°He seemed to have defeated Yang Lingyue before when she was at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.¡±


    ¡°So what, I heard he used underhanded methods to beat Yang Lingyue, and in fact his true ability is not that strong.


    While the two middle aged men were conversing, they fixed their gazes on Long Chen, and were eagerly anticipating what Long Chen would do next.


    After all, the opponents were both in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but he was only in the fifth level and had still dared to rush into the fight.


    At this moment, the [Celestial Core Technique] and the Qi from Long Chen¡¯s fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm were in full effect. So although his Qi was inferior to the Qi of the two opponents¡¯ by several times, this gap could be filled up with the [Celestial Core Technique]!


    A dim starlight slowly came out from his body, and from the familiar feeling of the starlight¡¯s aura, Yang Lingqing knew that Long Chen had finally arrived.


    Her face was filled with fury and indignation, because although the opponents had the strength to defeat her, right now they were only ying around with her.


    Suddenly feeling a strong force being applied on her body, Yang Lingqing was suddenly pulled back by Long Chen. After which Long Chen immediately faced Bai Zhixing who had acent look after ying around with Yang Lingqing. She never thought that a young man would abruptly appear in front of her eyes, so she was startled into retreating a few steps back.


    Both of them then distanced themselves.


    Then Yang Lingqing pouted her lips and looked at Long Chen. Long Chen seeing that she was about to cry, asked: ¡°What happened?¡±


    Yang Lingqing used a loathing gaze to look at Bai Zhixing, then she gritted her teeth and said: ¡°I myself don¡¯t know why either, but as soon as she saw me she started insulting me. In the end I could not endure it, and forgot about grandfather¡¯s warning¡­¡­¡±


    Even a good natured person like Yang Lingqing could not endure it, meaning the stuff that Bai Zhixing had said must have been extremely vicious.


    ¡°She humiliated you? She thinks my younger sister is someone who can be humiliated¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen looked at the other party, and then his expression turned darker quickly.


    ¡°What kind of things is Sister Lingqing saying? I had only exchanged several words with you, and then you attacked me. I myself still want to ask you, why did you say I humiliated you?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze had made the girl on the opposite side feeling scared. But then thinking of Long Chen¡¯s true ability, she became bold and started pretending she was innocent.


    Long Chen despised the girls who dared to act but did not dare to admit. On the outside they appear innocent but deep down they are vicious. When they do bad things they put up a pitiful front and deny.


    Originally both parties had not sustained any injuries. So the matter should have been let go, but because Long Chen wanted the Dream Spirit Grass badly, he now had an excuse. So all the more he wouldn¡¯t let them go.


    He patted Yang Lingqing on the shoulder and said: ¡°Lingqing, I have been your Elder Brother for so many years, but I have actually not stepped up for you until now, so today just watch.¡±


    [TL Note: ¡°Elder Brother¡± when he says here elder brother he doesn¡¯t mean that she is his sister it¡¯s more of an expression to show the fact that they are close.]


    Long Chen¡¯s speech had allowed Yang Lingqing to understand something. The other people also knew what he meant, so they looked at him as if he was an idiot.


    Yang Lingqing quickly held his arms and stopped him. She then said: ¡°Don¡¯t do it, let¡¯s just forget about it today. Not to mention the fact that grandfather has told us not toe into conflict with the Bai family, but also the other party has two people at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, we¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen smiled, and then gently pushed Yang Lingqing¡¯s hands away. The determination in his gaze caused Yang Lingqing to lose her bearing, and at this time, Long Chen had already walked to them.


    Looking at Long Chen who seemed unafraid to die, the crowd began to discuss earnestly, and started ridiculing him.


    Earlier the two middle aged man, were shocked too. Looking at Long Chen they said: ¡°This kid although he¡¯s a little rash, he¡¯s quite bold.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right people that are all brawn but no brains, their demise is always pitiful. Knowing how to endure and then return back from Mt. Dongshan, that is the way of a king.¡±


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Knowing how to endure and then return back from Mt. Dongshan, that is the way of a king.¡± means knowing how to make aeback.]


    As for Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong, after seeing that Long Chen actually had the guts to oppose them, they momentarily let out a smirk. But they never thought that just as they were about to ridicule him, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t even give them a chance. As he walked over, his expression turned dark, and with one leg jolting the floor, he suddenly flew towards the both of them like a whirlwind. Looking at his actions, it seemed like he actually wanted to deal with the both of them at the same time!


    The crowd immediately started to make a racket. Long Chen¡¯s actions had left them confused. Even the two middle aged men who were talking earlier, were now looking at him with dismay and astonishment.


    ¡°This kid¡­¡­Is really strange, his Qi iscking, but his guts are definitely not¡­¡­¡±


    At this point, if you looked at Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong you could notice in their eyes the disdain held for him. Bai Zhixing had always been aggressive, so she stepped forward first, blocking Long Chen¡¯s path.


    At this moment, Long Chen had already dashed right in front of her. An enormous wind energy was condensing in his finger. Suddenly a whirlwind had started rotating around his finger. The Qi¡¯s forceful noise, had made Bai Zhixing frown!


    She coldly smirked, and then her whole body started surging out Qi explosively while her right palm clenched into a fist. Before Long Chen arrived, she had already punched out. Under the support of the strong Qi, a gust of strong Qi went towards Long Chen. Inside that attack, there were a few palm prints that could be faintly made out.


    ¡°[Five Directional True Devil Fist]!¡±


    Instantly, Long Chen had to face these five palm prints. However he only gave a coldugh, and then his finger attack which had been prepared long ago struck too. Suddenly a huge whirlwind which could uproot trees and destroy nt-life hade rushing towards Bai Zhixing!


    ¡°[Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]!¡±


    ¡°The first point!¡±


    ¡°The second pierce!


    ¡°The third revolution!¡±


    ¡°The fourth exterminate!¡±


    What made everyone shocked was that Long Chen¡¯s enormous burst of strength had caused Bai Zhixing to retreat continuously. Long Chen had struck out each finger in session, and that [Five Directional True Devil Fist] had been destroyed, vanishing without a trace!


    Although Bai Zhixing had used all her might to generate the Qi, the force from Long Chen had caused her Qi to be unstable. Her face turned pale and while looking at Long Chen with a deadly stare, she slightly trembled.


    Long Chen had not shown any mercy in any of his blows. That wild disposition of his had made everyone at the scene suck in a mouthful of cold air. This was all the more for Yang Lingqing, because she knew that Long Chen was practising [Falling Star Fist] before.


    ¡°When did he learn [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]? And the way he uses it is much stronger than Yang Lingyue Sister. How many fingers can he actually deal?¡±


    Yang Lingqing closely looked at Long Chen. Earlier it was Long Chen who saved her, so at this point she had already ced Long Chen as her pir of support. At this point while she was looking at Long Chen who was fighting for his life, she then understood what Long Chen meant by the things he had said earlier.


    ¡°Lingqing, I have been your Elder Brother for so many years, but I have actually not stepped up for you until now, so today just watch.¡±


    That sentence had reverberated in her mind endlessly.


    While looking at Long Chen who had used [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] in session and caused Bai Zhixing to lose herplexion, Yang Lingqing felt appeased by that. Her eyes turned red, because she had long ago ced Long Chen as her brother in her heart, since Yang Zhan would never step up for her with all his might.


    However, the main reason why Long Chen was doing his utmost, besides stepping up for her, was because of the Dream Spirit Grass.


    At this point, Long Chen shouted, and yet another whirlwind-like finger came striking!


    ¡°The eighth shatter of the universe!¡±


    Bai Zhixing hurriedly used both arms to block, but that violent energy had struck her arms and caused the robes which were on her arms to shred into pieces immediately. She then gave a piercing scream, and spurted out a mouthful of blood!


    Bai Zhixing copsed in front of Long Chen. At this point Bai Shidong who had processed what happened, looked at this scene with a face of disbelief, which shortly turned into an overflowing rage.


    He was standing only a meter behind Bai Zhixing, and was looking at the situation. Just as he wanted to bring forth his Qi and have a death match with Long Chen he was interrupted because Long Chen¡¯s target had all along been Bai Shidong. So after beating Bai Zhixing, Long Chen did not let up on Bai Shidong. At that instant, a finger that contained whirlwind appeared immediately in front of Bai Shidong and went piercing towards his head. If he was hit, Bai Shidong would definitely rupture into many bits and pieces!


    ¡°The ninth order of Heaven and Earth!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s actions, had made the crowd mor. People who had a discerning eye could tell that after being struck suddenly by Long Chen, Bai Shidong will definitely not be able to avoid it.


    Bai Shidong himself realised this, that because of Long Chen¡¯s sudden attack, even if he drew the Qi with all his might, and tried to retreat he would still not have enough time left!


    That shadow of death had slowly engulfed him right before his eyes. Looking at the finger which looked as sharp as a de on a fine sword, Bai Shidong felt that his whole body turned powerless. Both of his legs turned soft, and below the crotch was a dampened and dark area. As it turns out he had actually peed himself¡­¡­


    Although Bai Shidong had a wet area around his crotch, the crowd did not ridicule him. Because in front of death, anyone has the right to pee themselves¡­¡­


    However killing Bai Shidong, was bound to be a shocking change for Por Town, so after the crowd realised that, their throats turned parched dry.


    ¡°This fellow¡­¡­How is he not even thinking about this?¡±

 Chapter 22 – [Dark Heavenly Finger]

    ¡°Don¡¯t!¡±


    Yang Lingqing started panicking, she was akin to ants in a hot wok. She started crying out as she felt like tearing her heart and breaking open her lungs.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Ants in a hot wok.¡± & ¡°Felt like tearing her heart and breaking open her lungs.¡± both mean the same thing, to be nervous and panicky.]


    If Long Chen were to kill Bai Shidong in this kind of setting, Long Chen would definitely die without the Yang family founder¡¯s protection. And in the case that the Yang family founder does protect him, then the ending would be a bloodbath between the two families, with a lot of people ending up injured or dead!


    Thinking of the consequences Yang Lingqing was scared to the point that she started quivering. When Long Chen had used the ninth strike of the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] technique, she waspletely terrified.


    In the Yang family the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] is the strongest martial technique after the [Seal of the Dragons]. Also even after reaching the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, it¡¯s not guaranteed that one can definitely master the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] technique. Even Yang Wu, has only mastered it up till the eighth strike only.


    And the most important thing is, Yang Lingqing knew that Long Chen had obtained the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] not more than a few days ago.


    In reality, Long Chen had went to the Martial Techniques Hall to practice the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] technique right after the intra-familypetition. Because during the battle with Yang Lingyue, he had discovered that the skill wasn¡¯t bad. So while in the process of learning the [Seal of the Dragons], he conveniently practiced it for a while as well.


    This result was due to the miraculous effects of the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant. Long Chen only had ess to just the tiniest bit of it¡¯s power, but only this minuscule portion, had already allowed him to reap endless benefits.


    The mystery of Long Chen, had already turned Yang Lingqing around.


    However now was not the time to be deeply moved. Looking on at Long Chen who was about to kill Bai Shidong with a finger, and at Bai Shidong who had been so scared that he pissed himself uncontrobly, in the crowd everyone had been startled, and their emotions were surging like huge waves.


    At this point, Long Chen who seemed to be a devil had instantly andpletely retracted all the murderous aura around him.


    The overpowering aura of the ninth finger of the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] technique had been withdrawn by him in an instant. The huge Qi disappeared and nothing remained behind. Long Chen was standing there pretending like nothing had happened. He just walked past Bai Shidong¡¯s side, and turned around to give a kick to thetter¡¯s buttocks. This caused Bai Shidong to fly andnd like a dog who was eating shit.


    [TL Note: ¡°Fly andnd like a dog who was eating shit.¡± means he fell t on his face.]


    This abrupt change had caused all the people surrounding the scene to stare at him nkly. The crows and peacocks were making no sounds.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°The crows and peacocks were making no sounds.¡± means absolute silence.]


    Long Chen walked leisurely back to Yang Lingqing¡¯s side, and looked at her who was staring back nkly at him. He then said: ¡°I know I am very handsome, but do you have to look at me while being so enchanted? You have to know we are cousins, so you had better put away any ideas about me.¡±


    After saying this, heughed, seemingly pleased with himself.


    At this point, Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong had slowly picked themselves off the ground.


    One was bleeding through the corner of the mouth, and the other was crying between the thighs.


    [TL Note: ¡°Crying between the thighs.¡± means pissing himself.]


    Both of them were also looking at Long Chen nkly. Their arrogance from earlier hadpletely changed into terror. This was especially so for Bai Shidong. Although he wasn¡¯t hurt, he had made a visit to death¡¯s door. The gaze he had for Long Chen right now was like a mouse looking at a cat. He wasn¡¯t even considering how pathetic he was looking right now.


    Long Chen smiled at him, because he was very grateful after taking the Dream Spirit Grass out of Bai Shidong¡¯s pocket. Bai Shidong himself did not know that right now the Dream Spirit Grass he had in his pocket, was already in Long Chen¡¯s possession.


    ¡°I hope you won¡¯t be like that retard Yang Zhan whomitted suicide¡­¡­¡±


    At this point, the crowd was looking at Long Chen nkly. His image in their hearts had done a 180 degrees turn, and right now, Long Chen could be truly considered as an expert among the younger generation of Por Town.


    The two middle-aged men¡¯s expressions, at this point were especially serious. They used a respectful gaze to look at Long Chen and said: ¡°In this realm, being able to use the final finger technique of the Yang family¡¯s [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil], and even use it with such ease, just based on this martial prowess alone, you can see that this young man is definitely a genius among geniuses.¡±


    ¡°From the younger generation of Por Town, he should be the strongest after the three that are in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. But his age is smaller than theirs by four to five years, so just based on this, his future is limitless. A pity we only thought of him before as just a useless yboy, and never thought that he would have concealed himself. His talent is extraordinary, and he knows well how to endure¡­¡­:¡±


    Both of the middle-aged men knew that Long Chen will have a grand journey ahead, and they both gave a bitterugh and then one of them said: ¡°If hees to my shop in the future, I will give him a 70% discount on items!¡±


    Long Chen did not know about the conversation between these two men. He had already obtained the Dream Spirit Grass, so naturally he wanted to leave as soon as possible.


    Taking advantage of the fact that the people surrounding him were not yet fully aware, he decided this was the best time to leave. But just as he held Yang Lingqing¡¯s hand to lead her away, there came a cold voice from a man behind him.


    ¡°You¡­¡­want to walk away just like this?¡±


    Long Chen looked back and from among a group of a family¡¯s escorts, a handsome young Bai Shiji had already strolled over. His eyes had a dark expression while staring at Long Chen and the aura of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm waspletely revealed.


    Looking at Bai Shidong¡¯s and Bai Zhixing¡¯s pathetic states, Bai Shiji ndly said: ¡°These two wastes have thrown away my Bai family¡¯s facepletely. Someonee, help me pick away these two wastes.¡±


    Behind him the guards hurriedly agreed, and Bai Shiji and Bai Zhixing did not dare to linger another moment here.


    After getting rid of them, only then did Bai Shiji look towards Long Chen and size him up. He then ndly said: ¡°Because of the restrictions set by our two families, our two younger generations do not have many conflicts. However today you have already started this by publicly humiliating my Bai family. So as a member of the Bai family, I will not let you go for this. Since you dared to treat my Bai family this way, then you had better be prepared to pay a simr price.


    Before Bai Shiji finished talking, Long Chen had alreadyughed and interrupted him saying: ¡°What kind of bullshit are you spouting? I don¡¯t really understand, what is this simr price? Young master, I trouble you to speak anguage for humans, can you?¡±


    By calling him Young Master, Long Chen was mimicking the Emerald Jade House¡¯s courtesans¡¯ manner of speech. His voice was thin, and coupled with some movements, the resemnce was uncanny. At that moment the crowd started erupting intoughter.


    Yang Lingqing had also temporarily forgotten about Bai Shiji¡¯s threat. Her face turning angry and embarrassed, she viciously pinched Long Chen¡¯s arms a few times.


    After being poked fun at by Long Chen, Bai Shiji¡¯s face involuntarily twitched. No matter how much he wanted to maintain the look of a refined young man, at this point his face couldn¡¯t help but turn cold.


    He then coldly said: ¡°You used a finger attack to harm Bai Zhixing, so I shall return to you that harm. I will let you see exactly how a real finger martial technique looks like.¡±


    Listening to Bai Shiji¡¯s speech, Yang Lingqing was temporarily shocked. She then hurriedly held onto Long Chen¡¯s arms and said: ¡°He wants to use the [Dark Heavenly Finger], this is an advanced Huang martial technique, so let¡¯s just run.¡±


    Long Chen looked at Bai Shiji indifferently and said: ¡°You leave first, I will face him.¡±


    Yang Lingqing at this point panicked and started pleading with him by saying: ¡°Chen¡­¡­Big Brother, I¡¯m calling you Big Brother Chen already, won¡¯t this do? Just listen to me this time, if you fight with him and you are not his match, you will damage your internal organs. Your loss will be huge¡­¡­:¡±


    Although Yang Lingqing had pleaded with him, Long Chen did notply. He looked at Bai Shiji, while not moving a muscle.


    ¡°Bai Shiji¡­¡­if you weren¡¯t Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s son, today I might have tried to escape, but unfortunately you are, so even if I were to die, I will never escape in front of your eyes!¡±


    Yang Lingqing did not know Long Chen¡¯s determination in his heart, so she was so anxious till the point of almost crying.


    At this moment, Lingxi too had whispered beside Long Chen¡¯s ear and said: ¡°I think we had better leave, right now you are indeed not his match. After I have refined the Dream Spirit Grass, I will help you undo the barrier. So then you can face him in the demonic beast huntingpetition, that shouldn¡¯t be considered toote.¡±


    Actually Long Chen knew where to draw the line, but his legs were as if they were pinned to the ground. It was impossible to move him even half a step.


    While looking at Long Chen who put on an expression of not being afraid of death, Bai Shiji suddenlyughed. With each step he made he walked slowly towards Long Chen. The people behind Long Chen started to back away, and only Yang Lingqing remained by his side.


    ¡°Bai Shiji is indeed furious. Earlier this kid was in such a great limelight, but since he met a true expert, he will definitely turn into a tragedy.¡±


    ¡°His age is smaller by four years. To be able to have the guts to face Bai Shiji like that, this can already be considered not simple. If he was given another four years, I dare bet that Bai Shiji would definitely not be his match.¡±


    The onlookers¡¯ discussion had made Bai Shiji even more furious. His Qi of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had momentarily pressed on Long Chen¡¯s body. That enormous strength was as if a huge wave was crashing on Long Chen, but Long Chen¡¯s feet were still pinned to the ground, his body not moving even half an inch backwards!


    ¡°The might of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, is definitely over ten times stronger than that of the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm! No wonder back then when I was facing against Yang Yuntian, there was not even the slightest thing I could do to retaliate!¡±


    As for Bai Shiji who saw that Long Chen did not even retreat half a step, in his heart he was in shock. He then coldly said: ¡°You want to maintain this farce? I¡¯ll let you have a taste of the [Dark Heavenly Finger], this way you will know what regret feels like¡­¡­¡±


    He clenched his fingers into a fist, and with the index finger pointing down, his Qi started rising furiously and a wave of faint ck light had slowly began to condense on his index finger. Although it was faint, but the energy that was within this attack, was even stronger than Long Chen¡¯s ninth finger from earlier by at least ten times!


    ¡°This¡­¡­This is the Bai family¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger]? As expected the piercing strength is overwhelming. It¡¯s famous for piercing the heaven and the earth¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing this scene, Yang Lingqing¡¯s tears had started dripping from her eyes. But Long Chen¡¯s stubbornness had already exceeded her expectations. Even Lingxi was not able to persuade him.


    Bai Shiji looked at Long Chen with a grim expression. He had to admit that he admired Long Chen for him to be able to have such a performance today. But since he is now in his, Bai Shiji¡¯s hands, he will definitely not show any mercy.


    The explosive might concentrated on the index finger of the [Dark Heavenly Finger]. He then slowly raised his finger, and got ready to point.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze intensified. He too had generated all his Qi, and got ready to use the strongest attack he had, the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon].


    That is right, the reason he actually had time to learn the [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil] was because he hadpletely mastered the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]. Andpared to his opponent¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger], it wasprehended even better!


    However Long Chen knew that his chances were not that high because his Qi amount was at least 20 times less than his opponent¡¯s. Also the [Celestial Core Technique] which had an advantage before, right now, against a seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, did not have much use.


    What Long Chen had wished to prove with this decision, was only his proud and unyielding spirit.


    The two forces continuously increased, and the onlookers kept their gazes on this intense fight.


    Long Chen, by even daring to face Bai Shiji, had left them very surprised.


    The two middle-aged men from earlier were also looking at Long Chen. Suddenly one of them said: ¡°Did you feel that, his body had actually faintly shown the aura from the [Seal of the Dragons]. If I haven¡¯t guessed wrongly, this fellow has already practiced the [Seal of the Dragons], and it¡¯s possible he is even able to have some aplishments in it.¡±


    ¡°He has only gotten ahold of the [Seal of the Dragons] in the intra-familypetition. Based on him being in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and having such achievements, he will definitely be honored even if this is a loss.


    [TL Note: It says sixth level because the 2 men thought he was in the sixth level after he beat the 2 Bai family members that were in the sixth level.]


    ¡°They are really going to fight¡­¡­¡±


    Against the enormous strength of Bai Shiji, Long Chen gritted his teeth tightly.


    ¡°Father, it is not that I am rash, but this backbone of mine, ispletely out of my control¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°It is pinned here, so I Long Chen, how can I retreat?¡±


    At this moment, a woman¡¯s voice rang.


    ¡°Shiji¡­¡­Why are you fighting in the cultivator¡¯s market?¡±

 Chapter 23 – Killing Intent

    Hearing this voice, Long Chen immediately knew who it came from.


    Yang Xueqing.


    After hearing Yang Xueqing¡¯s voice, Bai Shiji was stumped for a while. He then viciously looked at Long Chen, while the [Dark Heavenly Finger] technique that he was condensing earlier started to diminish.


    As for Long Chen, he also did not use the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon].


    ¡°Aunt, we are here¡­¡­¡±


    After hearing Yang Xueqing¡¯s voice, Yang Lingqing who cried like a little girl earlier, heaved a sigh of relief, and joyfully called out.


    At first Yang Xueqing had only seen Bai Shiji, and had a look of concern for Bai Shiji. But after hearing Yang Lingqing¡¯s voice, she then suddenly saw that the person Bai Shiji was confronting was actually Long Chen. So her gentle gaze was immediately reced by an icy cold one.


    Long Chenughed grimly, he had to prostrate himself in admiration at this woman¡¯s skill in changing her expression. However what was more pitiful was the fact that she had a gentle gaze for another person¡¯s son, while when looking at her own son she used an ice-cold gaze.


    Long Chen did not bother to understand thisplex feeling he had. He also did not wish to look at Yang Xueqing while she was looking at Bai Shiji in a caring way. So when Yang Xueqing had appeared, he pretended that nothing had happened and began to walk away.


    ¡°Stop!¡±


    Yang Xueqing¡¯s icy cold voice rang beside his ears.


    Long Chen turned around and asked: ¡°May I know why is this wife of the Bai family looking for me? Could it be because I have beaten two wastes from the Bai family? Indeed, the two wastes were beaten by me. So may I ask, what are you going to do to me now?


    Long Chen¡¯s speech had made Yang Lingqing, who was somewhat excited at the arrival of Yang Xueqing earlier, get deted like a balloon. She looked at Long Chen nkly, then she looked at Yang Xueqing¡¯s grim expression, because no matter how hard she tried, Lingqing simply could not make out the situation.


    Long Chen¡¯s voice had a hint of insult in it, and this made it hard to breathe for Yang Xueqing. In front of everyone, Long Chen did not give her any face. She had be even angrier, especially because of the nonchnt look he had stered on his face.


    [TL Note: (Idiom) ¡°Give someone face¡± means to show respect to someone.]


    But she knew this; right now her reputation wasn¡¯t that excellent due to the news of her remarrying, so if she would do anything to Long Chen now, it would be difficult to avoid rumours from spreading. And this wasn¡¯t any good news for the Yang family or the Bai family.


    So Yang Xueqing pretended not to hear any of Long Chen¡¯s insults, and just turned around and asked Bai Shiji: ¡°Shiji, today¡¯s matter, I will first apologise to your Bai family. Also about him saying that he had beaten up members of the Bai family, is that true?¡±


    Bai Shiji nodded his head and said: ¡°He did indeed injure Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong. I was just about to resolve this issue with him, so that he won¡¯t stir anymore conflicts in the future, for the good of both of our families, but you had suddenly appeared. Auntie Yang, Shiji trusts you, so you can take him home with you.¡±


    Looking at this sensible child, Yang Xueqing was very satisfied with him. Besides, Bai Shiji¡¯s cultivation was also notcking. Getting into the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm at the age of twenty, this was no ordinary feat.


    So she nodded her head and said: ¡°Please send my regards to your father. Today¡¯s matter, I will personally go over to apologise. Right now I will take my leave first.¡±


    ¡°Auntie Yang please take care.¡±


    Long Chen looking at these two who were showing off this pretense, started feeling disgusted.


    With Yang Xueqing¡¯s sudden appearance, the matter was over just like that. But as for Bai Shiji¡¯s strength and the pressure he had, together with the threat of the [Dark Heavenly Finger], Long Chen hadmitted them all in his heart clearly!


    ¡°If I don¡¯t have a n to counter this [Dark Heavenly Finger] during the demonic beast huntingpetition, and I were to meet him, and at that time there are few people around, I will definitely die!¡±


    Yang Xueqing¡¯s and Bai Shiji¡¯s affectionate attitude towards one another had made Long Chen furious, suddenly he thought of something.


    ¡°The demonic beast huntingpetition and their marriage is on the same day, if I were to kill Bai Shiji, then the Bai family will have to hold a funeral instead. It would be funny if the marriage would continue nheless!¡±


    The two big events; the demonic beast huntingpetition and the marriage, had also caused Long Chen to be at a loss for the past 3 days on how to handle things, since he wanted to create havoc at their wedding and stop them from getting married. But it was obvious that his strength right now was stillcking. Not to mention the Bai family wanting to deal with him, even the Yang family would want to dispose of him for throwing so much face.


    That time, Long Chen had seen Bai Zhanxiong kidnapping the courtesans from the Emerald Jade House with his own eyes. He followed him from behind only to realise that Bai Zhanxiong had used these girls to make a trade with a group of people with a red dot between their eyebrows.


    Last time he had told Yang Xueqing, but Yang Xueqing did not believe him.


    Long Chen had always felt that these Bai family members were a little strange, and if Yang Xueqing were to marry over to them, the result would be unclear.


    But right now, he had finally thought of a n to salvage the situation.


    Looking on coldly at Yang Xueqing and Bai Shiji who were conversing, he thought: ¡°The only way, would be to kill Bai Shiji. After castrating one of his sons and killing the other, would they still have a chance to get married?¡±


    And the best chance to kill Bai Shiji was of course during the demonic beast huntingpetition. However to achieve this goal, Long Chen still needed to have a very huge breakthrough. But he had just obtained the Dream Spirit Grass, which was a crucial ingredient to that end.


    After making ns in his mind, Long Chen did not bother to continue watching. Seeing that Long Chen had actually left first, Yang Lingqing hurriedly followed after him.


    At this point, Yang Xueqing and Bai Shiji had just finished talking.


    Despite her gentle looking nature, she was actually raging deep within. With so many onlookers, she too could not persist. But she knew that because of the way that Long Chen had humiliated her, she would definitely not give Long Chen a good time when she gets back to the Yang family residence.


    ¡°I helped you hold Bai Shiji back, which can be considered as saving your life, but you actually do not know how to repay my kindness, and even make me lose face. You have really disappointed me deeply!¡±


    ¡°Your strength isn¡¯t much but your arrogance is sky high, thinking that you can beat anyone, how can you even think that Bai Shiji is someone you can defeat¡­¡­¡±


    Looking at the icy cold expression of Yang Xueqing, the crowd did not dare go near her. Walking out of the cultivator¡¯s market, she actually saw Yang Lingqing standing there waiting for her, so after giving her another look, she ndly asked: ¡°Where is he?¡±


    Yang Lingqing started to get nervous and said: ¡°Chen¡­¡­Big brother as he walked out earlier, he saw someone so he told me to go back first, and then he chased after him. So I don¡¯t know either¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Chasing someone?¡±


    Yang Xueqing was stunned, and then she sneered: ¡°It was just an excuse. He was just afraid of me scolding him, and actually used this little kiddy method. The Long family trickery is indeed first rate¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Lingqing bit her lips, not saying a word.


    She did actually see Long Chen chasing after someone. When that person had seen them, the man had even escaped immediately, but now ording to Yang Xueqing it had been just a lie¡­¡­


    She wanted to argue back, but thinking of the rtionship between Long Chen and Yang Xueqing, it was more sensible not to say anything.


    After walking for a few steps, Yang Xueqing suddenly asked: ¡°Xiao Qing Er, can you tell me about today¡¯s matter?¡±


    Hearing this Yang Lingqing thought she had a chance to justify Long Chen¡¯s actions so she honestly told Yang Xueqing everything that had just happened. She expected Yang Xueqing who had an icy cold expression before to faintly praise Long Chen now. But instead after Yang Xueqing finished listening, her face was still expressionless as she said: ¡°Oh? Being able to defeat two cultivators in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, huh? Even so, if he had to fight against a seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator, wouldn¡¯t he be powerless to fight back?¡±


    Yang Lingqing watched as Yang Xueqing¡¯s silhouette walked away, she then pouted her lips. Now she suddenly understood why earlier Long Chen in front of Bai Shiji, did not want to retreat even half a step, not even under that immense pressure¡­¡­


    After dashing through a few streets, Long Chen abruptly grabbed the nape of the man who was running in front of him and shattered the knife that the man had tried to use in a sneak attack against him. He then mmed him towards atrine, where a stench had immediately infiltrated the air. Long Chen¡¯s enormous strength had pushed the man to the wall. The man had a face filled with fear, not being able to even move an inch.


    Earlier when Long Chen walked out of the cultivator¡¯s market, he had brushed shoulders with this guy, and saw that he was carrying a knife.


    At first Long Chen did not think much of it, but he suddenly remembered that the people who tried to assassinate him had also used a knife like this, and they were also in the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. The figure in front of him was simr to those people, so he tried to feel out the guy. He never thought that once he would start to chase him, this guy because of his guilty conscience, would turn around and run. Only at this point did Long Chen confirm that this guy was indeed the assassin that escaped.


    After chasing for a short period of time, Long Chen managed to corner the guy in this ce. He growled softly: ¡°I will not speak any rubbish with you, tell me who solicited my murder, if not, die.¡±


    Long Chen suddenly had be so strong, so this murderer had long ago given up hope. But after hearing that he actually had a chance to reverse the situation, he hurriedly said: ¡°If I say it, can you not kill me then?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head saying: ¡°But you must leave Por Town.¡±


    This was in line with the assassin¡¯s thoughts, so he ndly stated: ¡°Very simple, Bai family, Bai Zhanxiong.¡±


    Long Chen had two surprises, one was that this guy had actually inly stated out the truth, and the second was that his answer was Bai Zhanxiong.


    ¡°He only wants to marry my mother, so why would he risk killing me just like that?¡±


    Long Chen could not figure it out no matter how he tried.


    At this point the murderer said: ¡°I have not deceived you, earlier when I told you, it was because I also harbour hatred towards him. He agreed to let my daughter go after I seeded, but now she has already been killed by him! I have merely remained in Por Town until now to find a chance to seek revenge!¡±


    Long Chen looked at this man who had bloodshot eyes while speaking of Bai Zhanxiong. He felt that he wasn¡¯t lying, and right now the actual culprit that solicited his murder was not that important anymore. If it was Bai Zhanxiong, then it¡¯s just right, because Long Chen had wanted to deal with him either way.


    Releasing his hands, Long Chen looked at him andughed: ¡°You wanted to im my life, and today you have ended up in my hands, but I have already promised not to kill you, so just go ahead and eat this pile of shit!¡±


    After saying this, before the murderer could react, Long Chen had already pushed him into the pile of shit. The dirty water sshed around and the sound of plop could be heard. Long Chen hurriedly avoided and thought: ¡°So close, lucky I was fast enough¡­¡­¡±


    The sun had begun to set in the west.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, lets go to the Big Barren Mountain.¡±


    Lingxi was stumped, and asked: ¡°Why? Are you afraid of your mother beating you? You don¡¯t need to be afraid, as long as I have refined this Dream Spirit Grass, I can protect you. I won¡¯t let that woman hurt you any longer.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and said: ¡°What does a girl like you know, I am not afraid of her, but there are many people in the Yang residence. So if you are going to refine the Dream Spirit Grass and check and see what secrets there are in the [Seal of the Dragons], it will be rather inconvenient in the Yang family residence.


    ¡°So this was the case, then let¡¯s go, finally there is something yummy to eat¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s voice although feeble, had a hint of joy and happiness in it.


    ¡°To eat?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°En! You don¡¯t know, but after I became like this, I¡¯ve never had anything to eat since then. Earlier I found myself some spirit medicine, and the vour wasn¡¯t bad¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen after hearing this girl talking about it happily, actually felt bad on the inside. Not being able to eat and only being able to use spirit medicine to recreate the vour of food, to a girl who had been brought up in fortune, he knew how difficult that was.


    ¡°Xiao Xi¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°En?¡±


    ¡°There wille a day, when I will let you be able to eat really well.¡±


    ¡°Really? I am a voracious eater, so if you want to feed me it¡¯s not gonna be easy. I am a big eater, this Dream Spirit Grass is not even enough as a bite for me, so you must work harder!¡±


    ¡°Yes! Your servant epts your orders!¡±

 Chapter 24 – Dragon Warrior

    The night quietly crept in, and Long Chen had already arrived on the Big Barren Mountain.


    Big Barren Mountain. East of Por Town, is a huge group of mountains extending for tens of thousands of miles. Here poisonous bugs can be found everywhere and there you can also find many hidden demonic beasts. It is an area that is famous for being dangerous.


    Long Chen had once entered the Deste Beast Domain, which was in the deepest area of the Big Barren Mountain.


    However the difference between the Deste Beast Domain¡¯s barrenndscape and thendscape of the Big Barren Mountain is that the Big Barren Mountain¡¯sndscape has tall trees with leaves seemingly covering the entire sky.


    Right now there wasn¡¯t a sound to be heard. Long Chen¡¯s purpose for entering the depths of the Big Barren Mountain, was to find a safe and quiet ce.


    The Big Barren Mountain is a deserted area where very few people can be seen. In the mountains there are many naturally-formed caves, and most of them have be the residence of many demonic or wild beasts, however some are still empty.


    In the night, Long Chen had found a very concealed cave. After letting Lingxi probe inside, she found only a bunch of second grade Huang Demonic Beasts, so Long Chen went in to throw them out. After another round of cleaning, he moved a huge rock to block the entrance of the cave.


    ¡°It is very concealed in here and absolutely safe. Alright Xiao Xi, you can now refine this Dream Spirit Grass.¡±


    As he spoke, Long Chen had already taken the Dream Spirit Grass out. It was a kind of purple spirit grass, which emitted a unique kind of sweet smelling scent. As Long Chen smelled it, he felt at peace, it felt extremelyfortable.


    ¡°A medicine with spirit healing properties has a great effect on soothing the nerves. After consuming it, there will be a certain degree of increase inprehensive abilities. This is the reason why that person had brought along the Dream Spirit Grass.¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s voice had lightly sounded out.


    Long Chen flipped through Bai Shidong¡¯s pouch, and sneakily said: ¡°This kid even brought along over 80 spirit jades. This is quite advantageous for me, not only did I not spend money, but instead I actually earned some.¡±


    Long Chen had the air of someone aplishing something great. Lingxi wanted to p him after seeing his behaviour, but she couldn¡¯t do anything about it since she had no hands.


    However the aroma of the Dream Spirit Grass, may induce the attention of some demonic beasts, so without saying another word, she used some methods to refine the Dream Spirit Grass.


    Long Chen saw the Lingxi sword that was previously attached to his eary on the ground. And afterwards a cloud of white mist began to emerge from the sword and started engulfing the Dream Spirit Grass. A sound of ¡°zi zi¡± began to sound, and the mist gradually became smaller, until it was not to be seen.


    Atst when thatst lining of mist had disappeared, Lingxi¡¯s voice sounded out, andpared to before, it was much more distinct.


    ¡°You scoundrel, you want to receive a surprise?¡±


    Being called a scoundrel, Long Chen had felt his whole body go numb, so he cheekily smiled and said: ¡°Such a thing like a surprise, I guess it¡¯s better than nothing.¡±


    ¡°You have no sincerity, hng!¡±


    ¡°Okay, stop trying to keep me from guessing. Hurry up, I, your master, am still waiting to appreciate your surprise.¡±


    However Lingxi didn¡¯t make any movements. Suddenly, the Lingxi sword turned small, into a 1 cm ear pin, and attached itself to Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°You girl, is this your so called surprise?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry¡­¡­¡±


    Suddenly a voice rang beside Long Chen¡¯s ear, and Long Chen was stunned, because there was a gentle breeze that was blown on his face. He turned his head, and was momentarily shocked because as he turned around, he had bumped his nose into a girl who had suddenly appeared in front of him!


    Although a sweet aroma infiltrated his nose, this was not the charming scene he was anticipating, because the one who had bumped into Long Chen¡¯s nose was only a 2 centimetres tiny figure.


    She was surrounded by a mist, however despite only having a 2 cm body, Long Chen had already seen her features which were like beautiful jade. And if the 2 cm were to expand, that fairy would surely be a source of cmity.


    Lingxi was like a little pixie flying around while being surrounded by mist. She became irritated when she was bumped on the nose by Long Chen so she said: ¡°You evil guy, that bump was really painful!¡±


    Seeing this small pocket-sized fairy, Long Chen could no longer bring himself to speak.


    Actually deep down he was fantasizing. If Lingxi were to be bigger with a physical body¡­¡­Wouldn¡¯t that be a wonderful thing?


    Looking at Long Chen who had not spoken yet, Lingxi¡¯s expression had slowly started to change. Her eyes squinting, she shouted angrily: ¡°Hey, at least make a noise, is it okay if I appear like this or not?¡±


    Such a lovable sight, had already made Long Chen¡¯s whole body go limp. Before this he had seen quite a number of beauties, the girls in the Yang family were also very beautiful, but after seeing the level of Lingxi¡¯s beauty¡­.. he realised that her face, her posture, and her manners were all first ss. He had really never seen someone this beautiful before¡­¡­


    However very soon he started toe back to his senses, and exaggeratedly said: ¡°Xiao Xi, you are simply the most beautiful girl I have ever seen, you are practically on the same level as fairies!¡±


    After being praised like that by Long Chen, Lingxi¡¯s face turned red.


    Although she had a spirit body, she looked simr to when she had a physical body. So to Long Chen, although she was in the mist, she already was no different than an actual person.


    ¡°Oh right, can you always maintain this form?¡±


    ¡°Lingxi nodded her head and said: ¡°This is the solution I havee up with earlier. Before because I was appearing with such arge body, my spirit strength would be reduced quickly. However this way, I¡¯m not using even one thousandth of the strength I used before. I¡¯m always speaking to you but you¡¯re not looking at me, so because I didn¡¯t feelfortable, I thought of this idea.¡±


    Long Chen knew that girls hated being ignored, so Lingxi thinking this way, was actually a normal thing to him.


    Lingxi was so happy, flying in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes like a tiny angel. After a while, she then stopped, her face turning grim as she said: ¡°This Dream Spirit Grass, at most it can maintain this life of mine by about a month or two only¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing that she was somewhat dismayed, Long Chen started feeling sorry for her, so he hurriedly said: ¡°You silly girl, what are you worrying for? Today, I can obtain a Dream Spirit Grass for you, and in the future when I be stronger, no matter what kind of spirit nurturing medicine you need, you can have anything you want.¡±


    ¡°What the, you think this medicine is grown like cabbages huh. Because cultivators also have uses for it, even at ces where these medicines are plentiful, it is still pretty much in great demand.¡±


    Lingxi quietly sat on Long Chen¡¯s shoulders.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes filled with determination and said: ¡°Alright, let¡¯s not be indecisive anymore. Earlier you only had a few days left, and I was able to solve it. Not to mention now where you have one to two months. After my demonic beast huntingpetition ends, I will specially hunt these medicines for you and give you as many as you want!¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s eyes shed, and while joyfully looking at Long Chen she said: ¡°Really? Why are you treating me so nicely?¡±


    ¡°Because we are best friends.¡± Long Chen said seriously.


    Long Chen¡¯s words had made Lingxi very satisfied, so she happily flew around again. Long Chen¡¯s mood was excellent too, and as he thought of the [Seal of the Dragons], he asked: ¡°Xiao Xi, do you know what a Dragon Warrior is?¡±


    Lingxi stopped, her eyes blinking at him and asked: ¡°Eh, how would you even know this myth?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s emotions had stirred inside.


    As expected Lingxi was from a better ce, because something that the whole of Por Town did not know, she knew.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask why I would know about this, just tell me what you know.¡±


    ¡°To know about Dragon Warriors, then let me ask you. Do you know about Armament and Beast Warriors? I only know vaguely that Dragon Warriors are a kind of Beast Warriors, but again it¡¯s not the same thing.¡±


    ¡°I know about Beast Warriors.¡± Long Chen thought of what was recorded in the book and then said: ¡°Legends have it that after a practitioner has finished reinforcing their body, and entered the Dragon Pulse Realm, it will give rise to a vein with Qi. By using some secret methods to swallow a demonic beast¡¯s spirit, you can use it as a foundation for the beast spirit. At this point the Qi will turn into beast Qi, andpared to normal Qi, the beast Qi is even more ruthless. The attack power is stronger and they also have the ability to use the fighting skills of the demonic beast spirit.¡±


    ¡°Also a Beast Warrior can even swallow demonic beast energy cores, this way they can break through realms quickly and morph into a demonic beast. The strength of the beasts, will differ based on the talents of the Beast Warrior. However, after being a Beast Warrior, the skills that can be learned are limited. And if a weak cultivator swallows a strong beast spirit, it could lead to the body¡¯s self-destruction and then death!¡±


    Lingxi nodded her head: ¡°En, you have pretty much said it.¡±


    She stopped in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes, and tilted her head as if to recall something.


    ¡°I think you know too, our people are descendants of the Ancestral Dragons. Today, the Ancestral Dragons have already turned into myths. My father told me that this world no longer has any dragons, and that the Dragon Warriors of the myths were a group of people who had been close to bing Ancestral Dragons. Their cultivation technique was different from the Beast Warriors¡¯ cultivation technique, and what they needed was not beast spirits, but the true blood essence of an Ancestral Dragon!¡±


    After talking about the true blood essence, Long Chen had suddenly felt, that the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant had made some movements. Long Chen was extremely startled, so he hurriedly said: ¡°Does this mean that after obtaining the true blood essence, one can be a Dragon Warrior?¡±


    Lingxi rolled her eyes and said: ¡°How would I know? However, ording to legends, in the same level, an Armament Warrior is stronger than a Beast Warrior, and Beast Warriors are much stronger than average cultivators. But a Dragon Warrior is much stronger than an Armament Warrior, because they are the group of people who have drawn forth the bloodline of the Ancestral Dragons. Rumor has it that they have the destructive and cataclysmic powers of the Ancestral Dragons. However today Dragon Warriors are but a myth, so whether or not they are that strong, I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Although Lingxi did not know much, but from her words Long Chen knew that a Dragon Warrior was an extreme existence.


    Since Long Qinn had actually told Long Chen to be a Dragon Warrior, Long Chen realised that Long Qinn¡¯s identity was much greater than Lingxi¡¯s.


    Lingxi had said that the Dragon Warriors were only a myth, but Long Qinn had let Long Chen be a Dragon Warrior. This difference can be understood almost immediately!


    ¡°Father, what kind of person were you? Lingxi knows so much, and her background is extraordinary, but you know even more! Also, this mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, and the Yang family¡¯s [Seal of the Dragons], exactly what kind of connections do they have with the true blood essence?¡±


    Lingxi looked at Long Chen curiously, not knowing what he was thinking about.


    To Long Chen, Long Qinn was like a ball of mystery. Long Chen could not unravel the mystery so afterwards thinking about what Lingxi had said earlier, about her trying to undo the barrier on the [Seal of the Dragons], he took the [Seal of the Dragons] out and ced it on the floor and said: ¡°Xiao Xi, why don¡¯t you try and see if you can undo this barrier.¡±


    Lingxi excitedly andcently said: ¡°Kiddo, you don¡¯t know this, but although I didn¡¯t work hard in my cultivation, I am an expert at breaking barriers. The moreplicated a barrier is, the stronger my fighting spirit is. So today¡¯s matter you can hand it over to me, I will guarantee to you that it will bepleted 100 percent!¡±


    Seeing this girl who seemed to be very able, Long Chen said: ¡°Stop talking big, hurry up and do it. If you manage to break it, I, your master will reward you!¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s face flushed red and gave a sound of ¡°Hng!¡±. But then her cute body slowlynded on the [Seal of the Dragons], and after awhile, that super small eyebrow began to frown, looking extremely lovable.

 Chapter 25 – The Blood Essence Inheritance

    After a while, Lingxi suddenly felt tired, and simply sat on the [Seal of the Dragons]. Her eyes shifted back and forth as she thought of a method to break the barrier.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, how is it?¡± Long Chen asked eagerly.


    An hour had already passed since the time Lingxi had started studying the barrier. Long Chen was also rather anxious; after all, the secret in this [Seal of the Dragons] was connected to what Long Qinn had entrusted to him, and was the key to him bing a Dragon Warrior.


    ¡°You bastard, you interrupted my thoughts!¡±


    Lingxi stared at him, but she was not really angry.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, you can rest for a while. Seeing you tired, I, your Elder Brother, feel sorry for you. Oh right, why don¡¯t you tell me more about this barrier. Thesest few days you have been mentioning it, but you¡¯ve never told me anything.¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s face which was filled with curiosity, Lingxi waited for the moment she could show off, and then smugly said: ¡°This barrier is a kind of unique application of Qi. Someone like you, who only knows how to fight, wouldn¡¯t know about the intricate details of setting up a formation method. The formation of a barrier is like embroidery, so for me, finding the key is like finding the loose end of the thread. I then need to return on the path where the formation was originally set up, one step at a time. However, breaking the barrier is much more difficult than embroidery, since finding the key is extremely difficult. If you make any mistake, you would have to start over again.


    Only then did Long Chen understand how it worked. However, Lingxi, who had been muddle-headed all this time, already knew this. This made him look at her differently.


    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s shocked expression, Lingxi could tell what he was really thinking, and momentarily pouted in anger.


    ¡°You had better not look down on me. I¡¯ve said it already; although I, Lingxi, may not be that hard-working at cultivation, but I am a super expert in regard to barrier formation. And in this area of expertise, I am much better than my father, as well as all my other peers.¡±


    Long Chen believed that deep down, but he put on an air of nonchnce and said: ¡°Really? Then why is the barrier not undone yet?¡±


    Lingxi suddenly felt pressured and said: ¡°Do you think this is like eating rice? Besides, this broken thing¡¯s barrier is rather ancient, I have not heard of it before, much less had experience breaking it before. So I need a little more time. Just wait another hour, I guarantee I will have something to show you!¡±


    After being looked down on by Long Chen, Lingxi had be anxious, and immediately became engrossed in her work. Long Chen secretlyughed at her from a side: ¡°This girl is so easy to trick; in the future I must definitely not let her slip away. With her around, if I encounter any treasures that have barriers next time, won¡¯t she be able to unlock them easily for me?¡±


    Under Lingxi¡¯s effort, after half an hour, Long Chen felt a mysterious, yet faint formation of light slowly emerge from the upper part of the [Seal of the Dragons].


    Lingxi was busy working on the light formation conscientiously. What made Long Chen surprised was that there was actually a threatening and ancientyer of aura, which was gradually being emitted out from the light formation. It even brought about a smell that reeked of blood.


    This mix of aura started getting bigger and bigger, and Long Chen felt his heartbeat speed up greatly. That ancient and detached feeling gave him an urge to fall to his knees. As for that aura that was reeking of blood, it had also turned his eyes bloodshot.


    Although there were no opponents in here, the murderous aura on his body started to increase.


    Long Chen was extremely bbergasted; it was just a faint amount of aura but the secrets in this [Seal of the Dragons] could actually affect his bearing. In addition, this was an item which Long Qinn had deemed as important; with Long Qinn¡¯s mysterious identity, how could something he had regarded as important be simple?


    ¡°Long Chen, you must be careful, almost there now¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s voice sounded out distantly. Hearing her voice, Long Chen became more clear-headed. However, the aura from the light formation had be more and more dense, and that smell of blood had gradually permeated the whole cave.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes had also gradually turned redder, and many illusions started to appear in his field of vision. He tightly clenched his fists together, causing his veins to pop out. His whole body started to quiver. It could be seen that he was trying extremely hard to stay in control.


    As for Lingxi who had reached the crucial moment, she was devoting all her attention and moved on to the final step, so she definitely could not see Long Chen¡¯s abnormality.


    ¡°What exactly is the secret of the [Seal of the Dragons]¡­¡­Why do I have such an uncontroble feeling right now¡­¡­But my father will definitely not harm me¡­¡­ I, Long Chen, must definitely endure it, and not be hypnotised.¡±


    Thinking of his father, Long Chen suddenly had some faith. That ancient and blood stenched auraing from the light formation was continuously rushing forth to his body. But Long Chen bit his lips tightly, to the point of bleeding. Because this pain was making him a little more clear-headed.


    ¡°Get ready now, it¡¯s about to be undone. I too don¡¯t know what will happen¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Faintly, Lingxi¡¯s voice had once again travelled over, but at this time the ancient and blood stenched aura had gradually turned the air inside the cave into a reddish colour.


    Suddenly, with a ding sound, the light formation in front of Lingxi had turned into dust. Lingxi seemingly was exhausted so she returned back into the Lingxi sword, the cave only had Long Chen and that unique [Seal of the Dragons] scroll.


    Under Long Chen¡¯s startled vision, the [Seal of the Dragons] scroll which was originally of sheepskin paper, had at this instant started to be covered by a blood red colour, until itpletely changed colours.


    At this point, that detached and bloody aura had slowly condensed to the extreme point, and under this aura, Long Chen¡¯s face turned pale and his whole body started violently shaking.


    This aura, had only inexplicably concentrated on one point inside the cave. Within the Big Deste Mountain, it was still quiet throughout.


    ¡°Long¡­¡­ Long Chen, what exactly is this? I¡­¡­I am scared, it¡¯s as if I will be eaten anytime¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s quivering voice had rang beside his ears.


    At this point Long Chen was very nervous too, but his only belief was that his father would definitely not harm him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid!¡±


    Thinking of his father, no matter how dangerous of a situation he was in, had made Long Chen be filled with fighting spirit.


    ¡°Come! I don¡¯t care what kind of thing you are!¡±


    As if hearing Long Chen¡¯s words, at this point a mysterious map started toe out of the [Seal of the Dragons] scroll.


    Long Chen only vaguely saw an image of a divine dragon from the ancient legends!


    [Wings of Erya] Cloud: It causes the growth of the Dragon Warrior¡¯s scales. The Sovereign¡¯s Mark is exhibited by 9 particr appearances: Its head is like a bull¡¯s, its horns are like a deer¡¯s, its eyes are like a prawn¡¯s, its ears are like an elephant¡¯s, its neck is like a snake¡¯s, its abdomen is also like a snake¡¯s, its scales are like a fish¡¯s, its ws are like a phoenix¡¯s, and its palm is like a tiger¡¯s. Their backs have 81 scales, a product of 9 by 9 in a Yang configuration, and have the voice of a reverberating copper te. They have whiskers at the side of their mouths, a jewel under the chin, and a reverse scale below their throats. They have a crest on their head, also known as Metre Wood. A dragon without a metre wood is unable to ascend to the heavens. Their breaths form clouds which can transform into both water and fire.


    [TL Note: (ÁúÎÞ³ßľ²»ÄÜÉýÌì) Metre Wood: In Chinese wood can mean earth, so Metre Wood literally means ¡°From earth to heaven.¡± this can be understood as ¡°Ascending to heavens.¡±]


    [TL Note: (Äæ÷[) Reverse Scale: The Chinese Dragons do contain a rough spot, a Reverse Scale below their chins. When it is touched, it causes them to rage and devastate the earth with their rampaging power. This is their weak spot.]


    What Long Chen saw, was a Dragon God such as this!


    However in a sh this Dragon God had faded and the blood red colour on the [Seal of the Dragons] scroll had also begun to disappear. Finally it had condensed into a drop, a drop of deep red blood, which floated before Long Chen¡¯s eyes!


    This drop of blood, had harnessed an aura that was making Long Chen shudder uncontrobly. Earlier, that ancient yet bloodthirsty aura had magnified to several thousand times. Long Chen at this moment could feel that his brains were about to split open. He gave a cry of agony, and his eyes opened wide.


    Looking at this scene, Lingxi was even more horrified and she started screaming.


    Long Chen could faintly see that within this drop of blood, it was as if there was an endless and vast world. And that world was filled with an endless blood red colour; blood red skies, and blood red seas.


    Long Chen knew this; even if all the humans in the world were yed, it still wouldn¡¯t be enough to gather so much blood.


    At this time, Long Chen felt as if he was within these seas!


    He looked on terrified, and in the expanse of these blood seas which seemed endless, there were waves continually surging, as if there was a colossal beast hidden within, so colossal that it could fill these seas.


    Long Chen flew above the vast sky, and shuddered as he looked down into the seas. Under that boundless blood sea, there was a figure so gigantic that he could now see. This figure was coiled around. Looking at its shape, it should be¡­¡­a dragon?


    At this point, the entire blood sea violently shook, and that huge figure within, slowly raised it¡¯s head and gave a cry of dragon¡¯s roar, which crossed over the boundaries of time and space and violently crashed into Long Chen¡¯s ear!


    Long Chen instantly opened his eyes and surprisingly discovered that he was actually still inside the cave. The drop of blood was still floating in front of his eyes.


    Inside this drop, there was actually a dragon that was flipping and roaring with rage, and it was making Long Chen¡¯s emotions surge!


    ¡°Father, what is this? I have only heard of legends of the Red Dragon and the Green Dragon. An even higher rank should be the Five Talons Golden Dragon. But I¡¯ve never heard of an existence of a dragon like this, that is actually blood red!¡±


    ¡°Is this the Murderous Ghost Shadow Blood Dragon? Not right¡­¡­it¡¯s definitely not!¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s voice had also rang beside Long Chen¡¯s ears!


    At this moment of Long Chen¡¯s shock, that drop of blood, had infused between Long Chen¡¯s eyebrows in a sh, and seeped in.


    Long Chen had momentarily felt a rush of dark and cold aura spread throughout his whole body!


    Long Chen had absolutely no way to resist that fearsome aura. His strength was simply too weak while going against this blood drop. If the blood drop had any intentions of killing him, he would have long ago died, ending up without a corpse!


    That blood red droplet, was like a poisonous medicine, quickly spreading throughout his body. Long Chen at this moment had momentarily felt the taste of death!


    He himself knew this; the drop of blood was too extreme of an existence for him, so even if it did not have any intentions to hurt Long Chen, he would still die because of it!


    When the drop of red blood had entered his body it started tearing and devastating everything. Long Chen suddenly thought of a point, Long Qinn had let him obtain the [Seal of the Dragons], but he never asked him to be a Dragon Warrior right now. If Lingxi didn¡¯t appear, Long Chen would definitely not have had the power to break the barrier. Long Qinn felt that when Long Chen could make contact and find someone who could actually break this barrier, Long Chen would at that point have the ability to withstand this red drop of blood. But it so happened that a barrier breaking genius like Lingxi had appeared earlier than Long Qinn expected!


    So right now, this was an extremely dangerous situation for Long Chen to be in.


    Because of the repercussions, Long Chen already knew that his life was gradually fading away, and his consciousness was slowly bing blurry.


    While dying, he started thinking of many things.


    ¡°This¡­¡­is the inheritance of the blood essence¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°The dragons of the legends, actually have such a fearsome existence¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Without me, Lingxi also cannot live. I am all to me for this¡­¡­¡±


    Those few thoughts appeared hazily. Long Chen had a very strong parting regret, so he was not resigned to die like this, he still had many things he had to aplish!


    At this point, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant in his consciousness had started moving. And the originally veined pattern of that greyish and dark figure on the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, had at this point let out a faint ck light. A strong suction force had formed in the air, and the drop of red blood which had entered Long Chen¡¯s body earlier gave a cry of fury!


    This was the roar of a dragon; Long Chen had heard it distinctly!


    Because of the change from this Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, Long Chen who was about to die, had regained some consciousness. At this moment he could sluggishly feel that all the dragon blood which had infiltrated his body, had actually converged to a ce within his body, as if undergoing a suction process.


    The dragon blood had spread all over his body earlier but now it converged back into the red drop of blood. It then vanished from Long Chen¡¯s body. In the next moment, it had actually appeared inside Long Chen¡¯s consciousness, and appeared beneath the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant!


    The Inherited Blood Essence was staying there suspended. Looking at it, it seemed to have been suppressed!


    The Dragon God within that red drop of blood was continuously roaring.


    ¡°Exactly, what kind of existence is the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant that it can suppress something as fearsome as the Inherited Blood Essence!?¡±


    Only then did Long Chen regain his consciousness. After escaping from death, he heaved a sigh of relief. However at this time he could sense that the red drop of blood had not been fully sucked away, there was still a one thousandth of the droplet inside his body!


    As the other Inherited Blood Essence had been absorbed away, this one thousandth of the droplet had started to consume all of Long Chen¡¯s blood, and had expanded, instantly rushing towards his whole body!


    At this point, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant no longer had any movements. A wave of acute pain had started to spread from Long Chen¡¯s skin!

 Chapter 26 – Blood Red Scales

    At this moment, the aura which had caused Lingxi to be paralyzed in fear earlier had finally vanished. Lingxi had thought that Long Chen was already fine. But she hadn¡¯t imagined that Long Chen was now in so much agony that he was rolling about on the ground. Feeling shocked and scared, Lingxi hurriedly emerged from the Lingxi sword, and her tiny body twirled around Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen, Long Chen, what exactly is wrong with you? Don¡¯t scare me¡­¡­¡±


    While saying these words, her eyes gradually turned red. If she still had any tears left, they would have been flowing out by now.


    ¡°My skin, it hurts!¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen felt that every inch of his body had actually been induced with a pain that felt like his heart was wrenching and his organs were rupturing!


    Inside his body, that 1/1000th of the Inheritance Blood Essence had actually spread like poison with a flying speed throughout his entire body. His skin¡¯s current behavior was actually due to that bit of blooding into contact with it.


    ¡°Long Chen, your body¡­¡­has something growing on it!¡±


    Right now, Long Chen was tormented by unimaginable pain, but he could hear Lingxi¡¯s flustered voice. So after hearing Lingxi¡¯s words, he panicked. He abruptly opened his eyes wide and looked at his own arm.


    What he saw was his arm that had now turned blood red. His arm was also separated into a neat and tidy pattern made up of countless small areas, each the shape and size of a nail. And in each area, there was actually something growing out of it. Long Chen was appalled to find that these bits of things were actually pieces of scarlet scales!


    He momentarily had a huge shock. While enduring the intense pain, he looked down at his own body. As expected, his whole body was now covered with these fine and neat pieces of scales. And at the end of his fingers, toes, kneecaps, and elbows, there were actually bones protruding out; they were scarlet and were shaped like knives. Looking at that sharpness, it looked like it had definitely surpassed the sharpness of regr swords!


    Looking at the knife-like bones that were protruding out, Long Chen was stumped: ¡°Are these¡­¡­are these fucking ws? Have I turned into a beast?¡±


    He felt for his back suddenly, and actually found that there was a row of spikes. These blood red spikes could be found all over his body; even his head was surrounded with these intricate scales. His hair had all vanished, and what reced it was a fierce-looking, crimson spike!


    Although Long Chen was not able to see his whole appearance, but judging from his body and his limbs, he was currently in a condition perfect for battle. That scarlet armor of scales had powerful defensive abilities, and those sharp spikes were methods of attack!


    ¡°This appearance¡­¡­and these blood red scales, that is really remarkable to the extremes¡­¡­¡±


    At this point, Long Chen¡¯s pain had slowly disappeared. It seemed like his transformation had almost beenpleted, so he looked at his body nkly, feeling joy among the bitterness.


    After hearing that, Long Chen could speak properly without restraints. Only then did Lingxi heave a sigh of relief. As she was about to speak, Long Chen suddenly asked: ¡°Xiao Xi, look at my body and tell me, am I cool or not?¡±


    Lingxi looked at him for a while. Long Chen¡¯s look right now was fierce-looking and reeked of blood. But the contours of his body, whether it was the scales or the spikes, would let people feel that it was extremely perfect, and indeed it was handsome. But what use could it have?


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡­¡­Right now, how are you feeling?¡±


    Long Chen observed for a while and said: ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡­But I can feel that I have a veryrge power, a very strong feeling!¡±


    He was currently experimenting with his strength, and at this point, the 1/1000th Inherited Blood Essence , which was the quintessence of the dragon that had been infused into his whole body. In the end, it continued on and reached the final region, the dantian.


    At this moment, Long Chen¡¯s body had been fully reconstructed into a grotesque shape.


    Long Chen could even see his every organ, every bone and even every drop of blood. Inside his body there was a blood red Dragon God shadow that was endlessly moving and roaring!


    Every organ and flesh of his were as if they hade to life. His heartbeat had increased by several times, and the blood which had been reconstructed was swallowed alive as it came into contact with the organs and muscles.


    Long Chen could not even dream of such an unfathomable scene!


    ¡°Why did I turn out like this¡­¡­What exactly happened to me?¡±


    Long Chen was still muttering to himself. At this point, the expanded Inheritance Blood Essence had already assimted with his Qi of the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. In an instant, his Qi started transforming steadily, and the original Qi gradually showed hints of a blood red color. As the Qi circted, the blood red Qi in his dantian started to get more and more concentrated!


    This process did not cause him any pain, and Long Chen was astonished to discover that for every 10 portions of his original Qi only one portion of the blood red Qi was produced!


    As he witnessed this moment, Long Chen felt a very extreme hunger taking over his body, and his expression had changed into something very unsightly.


    Lingxi asked worriedly: ¡°You¡­¡­how are you feeling now?¡±


    Long Chen could feel her worry from her eyes. He also felt extreme warmth from her.


    ¡°I¡­¡­I feel like I¡¯m very hungry¡­¡­I can¡¯t take it anymore, so hungry!¡±


    After saying this, Long Chen let out a growl of agony, and both of them had startlingly realised that this growl was that of a dragon¡¯s cry!


    However Long Chen didn¡¯t have time to bother with these matters anymore. The 10:1 ratio of regr Qi being transformed to blood red Qi, had left him feeling hungry because of his real Qi deficiency. Long Chen discovered that right now, he was extremely simr to a demonic beast.


    ¡°I¡¯m starving! So hungry¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen fell onto the ground. That starved feeling had already left his whole body powerless. Today¡¯s incidents had many twists and turns, so Lingxi also felt very flustered in her heart. Long Chen had mentioned hunger, but she did not have anything on her, so she could only say anxiously: ¡°I¡­¡­I will go out and find something for you to eat!¡±


    If she were to go out, she would definitely have to control the Lingxi sword and fly. It was likely that she¡¯d get killed before she had gotten very far, let alone finding something for Long Chen to eat. As Long Chen absent-mindedly heard that she was going somewhere, he immediately stopped her and said: ¡°No way, you can¡¯t go out! I won¡¯t eat that stuff¡­¡­¡±


    These words seemed to be spoken from his subconscious mind. Lingxi hurriedly asked: ¡°Then what do you want to eat?¡±


    Long Chen was stumped, and as he thought of what to consume, he realized his hunger was because of insufficient Qi, so¡­¡­


    Long Chen had kept 500 pieces of spirit jade with him. As he thought of this, he immediately took them out. With their appearance, Long Chen found that the desires of his body were not to refine the natural energy from the pieces of spirit jade, but to wolf them down directly!


    He couldn¡¯t bear to wait at all, so under Lingxi¡¯s shocked gaze, he grabbed a handful of pieces of spirit jade and stuffed them into his mouth. The pieces of spirit jade, which originally contained the natural energy of heaven and earth, were being gnashed into pieces by his sharp teeth. The immense natural energy had beenpletely swallowed into Long Chen¡¯s stomach and was then seeped into his dantian. This quickly replenished and transformed into more blood red Qi!


    At this moment, the feeling that Long Chen received was the same as people who would be starving for days, and then they would suddenly get to eat a delicacy. But if they were to swallow the pieces of spirit jade in huge gulps, they would probably suffocate to death. However, Long Chen was not the same!


    In his current entric shape, his absorption rate of the natural energy was extremely fast. The pieces of spirit jade, which neared 600, were swallowed into his stomach in under a minute, and they had allpletely transformed into new blood red Qi.


    However, Long Chen discovered that his hunger had only been satiated for just a little while!


    The pieces of spirit jade were not very useful for his blood red Qi, so even though they were enough for him to break through to the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm before, they only felt like an appetizer now.


    However, this appetizer had finally put off some of his hunger.


    Long Chen felt that if he did not eat anything else tonight, he might very well die of hunger.


    Seeing that Long Chen had actually eaten the pieces of spirit jade, Lingxi was stunned to the point that she could not speak. No matter how wide her wisdom and experience was, she could not figure out what exactly was going on at the moment. When she saw Long Chen revert back to his normal state after eating the spirit jade, her tightened heart finally rxed a little.


    As Lingxi was just about to speak, Long Chen, who had finished eating the pieces of spirit jade, suddenly said: ¡°Xiao Xi, return back to the Lingxi sword. We are going out for a while, so help me find any groups of demonic beasts that are lying around in groups! Hurry!¡±


    They were currently in a state of emergency. Despite Lingxi having many questions left unanswered, after seeing Long Chen¡¯s urgency, she quietly obeyed and turned back into the Lingxi sword before attaching herself to Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    However, Long Chen¡¯s body had now been reinforced greatly. Despite having a very sharp de, Lingxi had to spend a great deal of effort to pierce the scales.


    Long Chen did not say another word and ran out. It was deep in the night, but he now had an obvious aura that reeked of blood. However, this aura had brought about some detachment that felt very imposing. This had been sensed by a few weaker demonic beasts from a distance, and made them quiver absurdly for some unknown reason.


    Long Chen went towards the depths of the Big Barren Mountain, and after walking for awhile, Lingxi said: ¡°There is a cave right in front. I can sense that there are many presences around; however, they all seem to be Huang grade fifth level demonic beasts. You¡­¡­¡±


    Before Lingxi had finished speaking, Long Chen¡¯s figure had already darted towards that cave. The meal¡¯s scent from ahead had already be very distinct to him.


    This cave was extremely moist, and there was also a very heavy stench of blood. Along the way, there were many faint traces of bones. Soon, Long Chen reached an underground cave.


    The space in this underground tunnel was extremely huge. The ground was a ckened area of mud, and emitted a rotting smell that quickly infiltrated the nose. However, Long Chen did not realise it at all.


    Not far away from his feet was the quagmire. At that moment, a blood red figure gradually rose from the mud and stuck its head out. A pair of scarlet red eyes coldly stared at Long Chen, who had just rushed in.


    ¡°It¡¯s actually an¡­¡­Underground Blood Lizard.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s body odor was extremely obvious. He soon realised that arge patch of area in the cave had suddenly lit up red, like countlessnterns under a night sky. However, thesenterns seemed to scrutinise him and they reeked of blood.


    Taking in a breath, Long Chen sensed that the nearest Underground Blood Lizard was already rushing towards him, and that odor of rot was emitted from its body.


    He realised that these Underground Blood Lizards also had some blood red scales on them. Their spikes were not that small, and were somewhat simr to Long Chen¡¯s in appearance. But their scales were big and rough, unlike the intricate pattern Long Chen¡¯s had. The spikes were also crooked and bent. Compared to Long Chen, at least in regards to aesthetics, it was the difference between heaven and earth!


    However, Long Chen did not think too much about it. As the Underground Blood Lizard came rushing towards him, its huge body seemingly wanted to crush him underneath. If this happened before, Long Chen would definitely have used a martial technique to destroy it, but right now, he did not do so.


    He felt his scorching blood rising. Although the Underground Blood Lizards were dirty, Long Chen had a strange feeling that they were actually a type of delicacy.


    He leapt up and turned into a red shadow. In an instant, his arms had already pierced into the Underground Blood Lizard¡¯s chest, and directly squeezed the heart inside!


    At this point, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant surprisingly moved again!

 Chapter 27 – [Blood Transmuted Qi]

    Inside Long Chen¡¯s consciousness, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, with its dragon-like patterns, had once again begun to emit a faint glow of light while a ck light had shone upon the drop of Inheritance Blood Essence that was below it.


    The Inherited Blood Essence, which was constricted by Long Chen, had given a roar of unwillingness that shook Long Chen¡¯s consciousness violently, but it still could not escape the control of the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant.


    The Inherited Blood Essence slowly moved towards the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant. In the next instant, they merged together and had turned the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendantpletely blood red.


    At this point, Long Chen could see that the ck coloured dragon-like patterns on the Dragon Jade had already turned red. In the midst of these dragon-like patterns, many veins emerged which looked exactly like the Dragon Veins!


    Long Chen had no time to be startled as just then he discovered that the Dragon Vein inside the dragon-like pattern had a blood red energy that was flowing within. Long Chen was already very excited deep down and attentively memorised the trajectory of the energy movements.


    ¡°This movement was simr to martial techniques and was actually a method to draw Qi!¡±


    No matter if it was the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant or the Inherited Blood Essence, both of them still had a very mysterious and immense presence. As a result, the method of drawing Qi shown on the Dragon Jade was naturally not simple.


    Long Chen hurriedly recorded all of the movements down. At this point the blood red colour on the Dragon Jade slowly faded away and that red droplet of blood had once again been separated and suppressed under the Dragon Jade, not being able to move an inch.


    Long Chen did not bother to guess what exactly the Dragon Jade was, so he naturally used the method that was shown in the Dragon Jade to draw the blood red Qi. In that instant he felt himself shake uncontrobly because he had suddenly grasped the name of this technique to draw the blood red Qi as well as its uses.


    ¡°[Blood Transmuted Qi]¡­¡­it can actually refine the blood essence, and then transform it into one¡¯s Qi! This effect,pared to directly eating spirit jades or even learning Beast Warrior techniques to swallow the beast energy cores, is much more effective by many times!¡±


    This technique, although it has no grade, is definitely an overpowered ability!


    Long Chen who had been squeezing the heart of the Underground Blood Lizard¡¯s heart in his hands, applied the newly acquired [Blood Transmuted Qi] technique. Suddenly, there was a strange force being applied on the Underground Blood Lizard¡¯s body.


    Long Chen could feel that the opponent was in extreme agony so he crushed its heart to allow it to die immediately, no longer suffering from this torturous pain.


    After the Underground Blood Lizard died, under the [Blood Transmuted Qi], the blood from it¡¯s body had madly rushed towards Long Chen without leaving a single drop.


    At this time every scale on Long Chen¡¯s body, as if a huge mouth, had swallowed all of this blood.


    With the domineering strength of the [Blood Transmuted Qi], there was a loud bang. Arge number of these blood droplets resoundingly exploded and many of the impurities from Long Chen¡¯s body were forcefully expelled. As for the blood droplets that had remained, they had all transmuted into a blood red Qi and assimted into Long Chen¡¯s dantian!


    This one Underground Blood Lizard¡¯s energy wasparable to that of a 100 spirit jades! As for Long Chen, who had tasted some food after being famished, he turned his gaze to look at the other Underground Blood Lizards.


    Under the method of this [Blood Transmuted Qi], Long Chen had gone on a one-sided killing spree on the Underground Blood Lizards. Although Long Chen was still in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm,pared to these Underground Blood Lizards he was much stronger, especially those spikes of his which had pierced into the Underground Blood Lizards¡¯ body as if it was tofu!


    With the blood red Qi of the Underground Blood Lizards, Long Chen¡¯s hunger had slowly disappeared and the amount of Qi he had was slowly catching up to the amount he had before he touched the [Seal of the Dragons]. However, the quality alone had increased tenfold!


    Seeing Long Chen act in such a savage manner, Lingxi felt unbearable in her heart. However, Demonic Beasts and Humans were of two different races. Normally the humans will y the demonic beasts and vice versa, this was the way of nature.


    As the intelligence of Demonic Beasts are lower she did not say anything much and before Long Chen had absorbed their blood for refining. He had killed them first, so it could be seen that his heart was not corrupted by the Inherited Blood Essence¡¯s murderous aura.


    As Long Chen was about to stop, suddenly Lingxi¡¯s worried voice rang out:


    ¡°Long Chen, under here is a huge demonic beast! The strength is Huang Grade 7th level, should we escape?¡±


    A beast of the Huang Grade 7th level,pared to his strength before, can easily im Long Chen¡¯s cheap life!


    She too could notprehend the true strength of Long Chen after his transformation, so she used a worried tone to ask him. At this point Long Chen was shocked.


    ¡°Huang Grade 7th Level huh, a good time for me to test my true ability¡­¡­¡±


    Huang Grade 7th Level Demonic Beast, in reality they are much stronger than those cultivators of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    As Long Chen thought of this the whole ground shook. At this moment, a cry that was simr to a dragon¡¯s had sounded and the quagmire exploded bringing with it a huge scarlet monster that appeared before Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    This was an erged version of an Underground Blood Lizard. Its body exceeded 20 metres and the whole body was littered with blood red scales. The two scarlet eyes were bigger than a face and it looked extremely terrifying!


    ¡°It is actually an Underground Blood Lizard King! No wonder there are so many Underground Blood Lizards here, it should be because of this leader here!¡±


    Long Chen who was facing the tremendous pressure from the Underground Blood Lizard King, did not retreat even half a step.


    After seeing Long Chen killing so many Underground Blood Lizards, the Underground Blood Lizard King had already been struck with rage. Although it could faintly sense that Long Chen was extremely mysterious and strange, it could not quell the anger from its heart!


    ¡°This big ugly freak! Seems like he wants to kill me, but to me, you are naught but food!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s cold gaze shed and right now his speed was almost ten times faster than before. Whenever he moved his body there seemed to be a blood red shadow formed within the cave. However, Long Chen could see that the Underground Blood Lizard King¡¯s tongue also had a fast speed.


    As Long Chen moved, the huge wad of blood red tongue that had brought such an enormous power appeared above his head. Long Chen shouted, then punched out and exchanged a blow with it once but he found that the strength on the Underground Blood Lizard King¡¯s tongue was almostparable to his own strength. This exchange had immediately sent both of Long Chen¡¯s legs embedded into the ground!


    ¡°Oh well, today I have already eaten my fill and I have no time to waste on you! Since learning the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] I have not used it before. Today, I will let you have the first blow.


    Long Chen bowed his head, and the scarlet red eyes emitted a strong and cold gaze. Although his palm had already turned into ws, it did not seem to stop the palm formation of the seal and the blood red Qi flowed violently between both of his hands very quickly. A huge pressure was sent towards the Underground Blood Lizard King and as for the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], it had also been rapidly formed in Long Chen¡¯s hands!


    ¡°[Seal of the Ashened Dragon]!¡±


    As the blood red Qi transformed into a blood red mini dragon coiling around Long Chen¡¯s palm, the Underground Blood Lizard King had momentarily felt the invitation of death and hurriedly retreated.


    But at this point, the originally dark cave had a blood red sh of light illuminating it and a blood red divine dragon image had darted across and struck the Underground Blood Lizard King¡¯s head. As the deep and low Dragon¡¯s cry had sounded, the Underground Blood Lizard King had already been split into pieces,pletely dead.


    Huang Grade 7th level, dead!


    This had been the strongest opponent Long Chen had ever fought against. He estimated that even if it was Bai Shiji, against this Underground Blood Lizard King, he might not gain any advantage at all!


    After killing this Underground Blood Lizard King and realising the smell of blood permeating the air, Long Chen did not let the opportunity go and he hopped on its back and used [Blood Transmuted Qi] technique. At this moment, an enormous amount of blood from the Underground Blood Lizard King¡¯s body had already welled up.


    The amount of blood had amounted to countless tons, but under the voracious appetite of the technique, he refined and removed about 90% of the impurities after which he transmuted the pure blood essence into Qi and assimted it into his dantian!


    Huang Grade 7th level blood essence was not aughing matter and Long Chen had immediately felt that his Qi had risen very quickly to a critical point.


    Earlier he had a starved feeling but now it was a bloated feeling. The wait Long Chen had for the breakthrough to the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had finally arrived!


    He then sat cross-legged on top of the Underground Blood Lizard King. In that instant all of the Qi had transformed into a blood red dragon and roared, charging towards the sixth Dragon Vein.


    What made Long Chen astonished was that the blood red Qi dragon seemed to have its own intelligence. It was savage and reeked of blood. Long Chen¡¯s Qi had already risen to the peak of the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so when he tried to breakthrough it was rtively easy as that choked Dragon Vein was too weak to resist the rush of the blood red Qi dragon.


    Not even a minuteter, that sixth Dragon Vein had been broken through and an enormous amount of natural energy had entered Long Chen¡¯s body. Right now his strength waspletely of the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    Before the demonic beast huntingpetition he had finally entered the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and feeling that brimming energy, Long Chen had finally smiled.


    After making such a huge disturbance, Long Chen did not dare to stay here any longer and he hurriedly went towards the exit and into the previous cave. What made him feel depressed was that he did not know what to do about his appearance right now.


    Right when he was fretting over this matter, he suddenly felt a strange itching sensation. The scales and spikes on his body had actually withdrawn back into his body gradually and he once again resumed his original appearance.


    However, when he had gotten rid of the transformed shape, he could feel that the Inherited Blood Essence which was spread throughout his body had slowly retreated and finally formed a small red dot between his eyebrows.


    The colour of the blood red Qi, which had the quality of ten times more than normal Qi, had also faded; however, the remaining Qi had fine linings of blood red and as for the quality,pared to normal Qi it is higher by 4 times or so!


    The sharp rise in Long Chen¡¯s strength earlier, had now slowly disappeared.


    However, the him right nowpared to other sixth level Dragon Pulse Realm cultivators is still much stronger than them. Adding on to his practice of using [Seal of the Dragons], Long Chen believed that even if it was Bai Shiji of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he could still deal with him!


    Long Chen had felt a great pity for that transformation leaving his body, because that was where he was at his strongest, however that appearance would not allow him to live on in this world, so there was no choice.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can still transform, but this Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant is so magical, I think it should be possible.¡±


    Even without changing his form, his strength should already be enough for the demonic beast huntingpetition.


    After Long Chen had removed that transformation and everything had returned to normal, only then did Lingxi impatiently question him: ¡°Long Chen, which dragon does your Inherited Blood Essence belongs to?¡±

 Chapter 28 – Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon

    Actually Long Chen himself did not know what kind of situation he was in. As soon as they returned to the cave, Long Chen sat down cross-legged and checked the conditions of his own body while Lingxi flew out from the Lingxi Sword.


    Earlier, that horrific turn of events had actually scared her half to death. Even now, her face was still pale as she looked at Long Chen with concern.


    Long Chen had already broken through the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. His Qi, in terms of quantity, is already matched with Yang Lingyue and the rest but the quality is already 4 times stronger than their Qi.


    Which is to say, just based on Qi alone, Long Chen can draw Qi 4 times stronger than the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. This is almost half of the strength of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Adding on the [Celestial Core Technique], which still proved to be a little useful, and his innate fighting martial technique, Long Chen is confident that he is able to deal with Bai Shiji.


    If he were also to transform into the changed body shape, his Qi¡¯s quality will be 10 times stronger, and his physical body¡¯s strength will also rise dramatically. It may even be possible to fight someone of the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Long Chen was secretly shocked. Based on the [Blood Transmuted Qi] technique alone, the Inherited Blood Essence should also have many secrets and uses that have not been utilised. This was but 1/1000th of the Inherited Blood Essence and it had already let him reach this kind of stage. If he were to fully inherit all of it, what kind of realm would he be in?


    Long Chen thought of so many things that even he himself had be distracted. Only then did he ask Lingxi a question.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, am I considered a Dragon Warrior now?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen, who had been distracted for a while, having a reply, Lingxi was not that anxious anymore. She nodded, saying obediently: ¡°Although I don¡¯t have much understanding of Dragon Warriors, from your appearance earlier, it is likely that you have be one. Oh right, earlier I asked what kind of Blood Essence you inherited. Is it the Ghost Shadow Blood Murderous Dragon? I have read some records previously and this Ghost Shadow Blood Murderous Dragon¡¯s appearance is rather like yours.¡±


    Long Chen had no clue as to what Inherited Blood Essence the blood droplet belonged to. As he was about to say he did not know, a few words mysteriously appeared in his mind and Long Chen subconsciously repeated each word one at a time.


    ¡°Immemorial¡­¡­Blood¡­¡­Spirit¡­¡­Dragon¡­¡­¡±


    As these words were spoken, Long Chen suddenly felt his blood rise excitedly. It was a kind of immense pride which had let Long Chen feel an absurd confidence in himself.


    ¡°Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon?¡±


    Lingxi mouthed these words repeatedly and suddenly her eyes rounded as if in a state of disbelief. She nkly looked at Long Chen, her mouth gaping so wide she looked like an old person.


    No matter how ugly she looked right now, Long Chen felt that it was so cute that he could burst.


    ¡°What¡¯s up, Miss, have you taken a liking to this young master?¡±


    Lingxi did not even hear his words, her voice trembling as she said: ¡°You¡­¡­You are sure that it is Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon?¡±


    Only then did Long Chen felt something was amiss, and he solemnly asked: ¡°Indeed it is, is there a problem?¡±


    Lingxi still had the look of disbelief on her face, shaking her head and saying: ¡°Impossible, Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon. This is a legend of legends¡­¡­ It is definitely impossible¡­¡­¡±


    Although Lingxi was still in disbelief, Long Chen was very sure that the Inherited Blood Essence did belong to the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon, so he said: ¡°Xiao Xi, tell me, are there any problems if it is Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon?¡±


    Lingxi muttered and said: ¡°You don¡¯t understand, legends have it that eons ago the whole of Long Ji Continent was ruled by the Dragon Gods and there were millions and millions of dragon species! Do you even know what kind of magnitude millions and millions of dragons species are? As vast as the Long Ji Continent was, it had already been filled with all kinds of Dragon Gods and the amount of dragons then is several tens of times more than the humans on this earth today. Almost each and every one of them is a peak of all existences!¡±


    ¡°As for the millions and millions of dragon species peak experts, that magnitude has never been reached by humans ever since the humans started forming tribes. In the immemorial past, the most ancient times of Long Ji Continent, there was a myth that there were 10 great lineages of supreme dragons. A total of 10 Dragon Gods. They all had the most overpowering existences and were also known as the 10 Magnificent Ancestral Dragons!¡±


    After talking up to this point, Lingxi raised her head and looked at Long Chen, slowly saying: ¡±Amongst the 10 Magnificent Ancestral Dragons, the Ancestral Dragon that was the most bloodthirsty and destructive was the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon that you have just spoken of!¡±


    At Lingxi¡¯s words, Long Chen was also stunned. In his heart, the expert did not take on any sort of form. He merely felt that the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon was a peak existence on Long Ji Continent. As for how strong it really was, he did not know.


    Lingxi shook her head and said: ¡°That¡¯s why I said it¡¯s impossible. The Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon vanished millions and millions of years ago. How can his Inherited Blood Essence be stored into a regr secret scroll? The barrier on the secret scroll can even be broken by me¡­¡­that¡¯s why it¡¯s impossible¡­¡­¡±


    After listening to what Lingxi had said, Long Chen did not feel that confident anymore.


    ¡°Forget it, who cares what kind of dragon he is, he is still suppressed by the Dragon Jade Pendant. Right now, I will follow my father¡¯s wishes to be a Dragon Warrior and learn the remarkable ability of the [Blood Transmuted Qi] which will madly increase my cultivation speed in the future. As for the Qi that my father left for me from before, it will no longer be as useful as raising my cultivation levelpared to myself!¡±


    ¡°However, the quality of Qi has increased by four times. If I were to breakthrough a realm,pared to people of the same level, it might be more difficult by four times, or maybe even ten times, so I cannot be satisfied with my current state¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen stood up, and held the pixie sized Lingxi in his hands and said: ¡°Miss, anyway I have be stronger again, who cares about any broken dragon. What matters is that I will have the ability to protect you. As for those medicines with spirit healing properties, it won¡¯t be so few in numbers next time. You have saved my life twice. What happens next will be the time that I repay you!¡±


    Only after hearing Long Chen speak did Lingxi recover from the shock regarding the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon. Looking at Long Chen who was so confident, she slowly became perplexed as she could not figure out the mysteries hidden inside the body of this young man beside her.


    ¡°After bing a Dragon Warrior and learning the super ability, indeed he will have a great future ahead. Who knows, he may even be able to find a way for me to recover my physical body¡­¡­¡±


    Their rtionship had been growing closer and closer with the days they spent together. Finally, on this day, she found that she could not leave him.


    After cing her on his shoulder, Long Chen smiled and said: ¡°Alright, today the matter of breaking the barrier on the [Seal of the Dragons] is finally over and the demonic beast huntingpetition is not too far away. These few days I had better cultivate a little more.¡±


    Bai Shiji¡¯s image appeared in front of him, and Long Chen clenched his fists and said coldly: ¡°This time, we won¡¯t know whether your [Dark Heavenly Finger] or my [Seal of the Dragons] attack is stronger! At that time I will definitely give you, who assume that victory is assured, a surprise!¡±


    A total of eight days had passed as Long Chen cultivated meticulously until he was familiar with the strength of the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Only then did he stand up, preparing to return to the Yang Family.


    After finally increasing his strength, Long Chen had more confidence towards the demonic beast huntingpetition.


    ¡°Nine days ago, I publicly injured Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong.. I even ridiculed Yang Xueqing. After returning to the Yang Family there will most likely be people who want to find trouble with me, but I am Long Chen, so how would I be afraid?¡±


    At this time, it was nearing noon and as Long Chen walked into the Yang Family¡¯s residence through the big door, a guard stepped forward and said: ¡°Young Master Chen, Founder Yang has invited Bai Family¡¯s Master and the members over tonight for a feast and now the feast is about to start. Founder Yang had requested for you to go to the Hongwu Hall right after you return home.¡±


    Hongwu Hall was where Founder Yang invited esteemed guests over.


    After hearing that Founder Yang had actually invited the Bai Family¡¯s founder over and had even invited others, Long Chen felt repulsed inside his heart as he knew Bai Zhanxiong and the rest will definitely be there.


    Looking at the demonic beast huntingpetition which was about to start, Long Chen did not know what tricks Founder Yang was ying. However, his rtionship with Bai Family¡¯s Master was indeed close. It had already been known to many in Por Town that both Founder Yang and the Bai Family¡¯s Master were life and death brothers.


    Very soon, Long Chen arrived in the Hongwu Hall and it was extremely boisterous inside. On two long sandalwood tables, therey various exotic delicacies and pretty maids could be seen shuttling back and forth in between.


    On the main table, Founder Yang sat together with his 3 children and as for the other side, the one who sat at the front was a short, fat and naive looking old man. His head was filled with white hair and, coupled with his very red face, it looked like a picture of a white craned red-faced young boy.


    [TL Note: White haired, young boy with a red face: Chinese idiom describing an older person with a very youthfulplexion]


    This was the master of the Bai Family. Although he was rather old, his strength was not weak and his cultivation was at the peak in Por Town.


    Below the master of the Bai Family, there sat two middle aged men: one was the third son of the master, Bai Zhanxiong and the other was the fourth son, Bai Zhanfeng.


    During the intra-familypetition, they had also been to the Yang Family residence. The Bai Shidong who peed in his pants, was this Bai Zhanfeng¡¯s son.


    As for the other table, the younger generation had been seated there. For Yang Family it was Yang Wu, Yang Lingyue and Yang Lingqing. As for Bai Family, it was Bai Shiji, Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong. Beside them sat a cold looking, handsome young man. Long Chen could detect a very dangerous aura by looking at him.


    The person Long Chen was looking at turned out to be the very famous and strongest of the younger generation in Por Town, Bai Shichen.


    And for today, the experts of both the young and elder generations of the two families were present.


    This banquet had already started not long ago, and Founder Yang and Bai Family¡¯s Master had erupted inughter However, thisughter was stifled immediately as Long Chen walked in.


    And at this point, all the gazes were directed towards Long Chen.


    The Bai Family¡¯s Master did not react much, but both of the middle aged men¡¯s expressions in the Bai Family had turned cold. Yang Yuntian and Yang Xueqing¡¯s expressions were sinister. As for Yang Qingxuan, he was faintly smiling, the same expression as his father.


    The younger generation of the Bai Family harboured only hatred for Long Chen and the gaze of Bai Shiji was the most vicious. However Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong were actually a little afraid of Long Chen. However, after seeing Long Chen, Bai Shichen maintained his cold gaze, like the de on a sharp sword.


    Long Chen had indeed not arrived at the best of time, so he was able to create such an effect. At this point Founder Yang had immediately recovered,ughing loudly and saying ¡°Chen Er, you have finally returned. Alright, now everyone is gathered. Chen Er you may sit at that table!¡±


    After the Founder Yang had spoken, the people seated at the table he had pointed to all stared intensely at Long Chen.


    ¡°Hey, your human rtions are really bad. Only that young sister Yang Lingqing acknowledges you¡­¡­¡± Lingxi happily said as she rejoiced in his misfortune.

 Chapter 29 – Bai Shichen

    DBWG ¨C Chapter 29


    Bai Shichen


    Under the beckoning of Yang Lingqing, Longchen sat by her side. However, ever since he had arrived, the Yang Family table could still retain an amiable atmosphere around it, but in Long Chen¡¯s area, this was not possible.


    A group of people were staring, but nobody had actually picked up their chopsticks.


    The situation here could obviously be seen by the other tables but they turned a blind eye and continued to drink and jest.


    Long Chen loathed these kinds of atmospheres the most. In fact, he would rather be drinking with the courtesans from the Emerald Jade House than to stay here for a moment longer.


    Therefore, after a short while he stood up and said: ¡° Everyone, I am full so I will just leave first.¡±


    With the elder generations of both families around, Bai Shiji and the rest could not do anything to Long Chen in public so they could not wait for Long Chen to leave.


    Seeing Long Chen show such disrespectful behaviour in public, they were all secretly rejoicing at his misfortune.


    As expected, at this moment Founder Yang shifted his gaze onto Long Chen and said: ¡°Chen Er. Don¡¯t leave yet,e here.¡±


    Not knowing what tricks Founder Yang was going to y, Long Chen walked to his side. At this time everyone had put their chopsticks down and the Bai Family¡¯s Master smiled jovially at Long Chen.


    Founder Yang patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder and said: ¡°I heard that you have a conflict with Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong?¡±


    Long Chen replied ndly: ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dare.¡±


    As this moment, the Bai Family¡¯s Masterughed and said: ¡°Brother, the young ones are always passionate. Having some conflicts are normal urrences, as long as they don¡¯t harm the life or cause internal injuries, it¡¯s fine. Weren¡¯t we all the same back in the past? How about this, Shidong, Zhixing, both of youe here¡­¡­¡±


    Under the beckoning of the Bai Family¡¯s Master, both of them walked over trembling and shaking.They stood across Long Chen but they did not dare look him in the eyes.


    Both of the middle aged men from Bai Family, seeing their own younger generation members having no backbone, could not help but frown. However the Bai Family¡¯s Master was magnanimous, smiling as he said: ¡°Young ones, don¡¯t be anxious. Having a conflict is verymon, back then I wouldn¡¯t have known Yang Brother if we did not fight. Comee. Both sides apologise, in the future you¡¯ll all be good friends.¡±


    Founder Yang also smiled and said: ¡°That¡¯s right, Long Chen hurt them so he should apologise and then the conflict can be forgotten. The Bai Family and the Yang Family are so close like brothers and having conflicts amongst your own brothers can be forgotten easily, can¡¯t it?¡±


    Founder Yang said these words for Long Chen to hear.


    Founder Yang had given him the [Seal of the Dragons], which in turn, gave him such a great benefit. Long Chen was also not one to forget to repay his benefactors and with the demonic beast huntingpetitioning soon, his resolution to kill Bai Shiji had be stronger. So he could not think of creating any mess at this point now.


    As such he followed both masters andughed saying: ¡°Grandfather¡¯s words are right, a man should not nitpick about such small issues. Come, brother Shidong!¡±


    Before the other party could react, Long Chen gave him a very rough hug and even patted his back.


    Long Chen¡¯s sudden actions had stunned everyone. At this point Long Chen had followed up and gave Bai Zhixing who was beside them a sudden hug too, adopting a posture as if wanting to tell her a secret. Then stealthily moving his hands to her perky butt, giving it a vicious pinch!


    ¡°The other day I have injured this beautiful and moving Miss Bai, I felt regret for my actions and present you this flower as apensation for it!


    Although he had only pinched it tightly for a brief moment, the initial touch did indeed feel better than those courtesans of Emerald Jade House. Long Chen released his grip in due time and then shoved a bunch of wild chrysanthemum flowers, which he had picked up along the road due to boredom when he wasing home.


    Bai Zhixing¡¯s back was facing the elders, so to them, it seemed like Long Chen was only giving a halfhearted hug to Bai Zhixing. But on the other hand it was different for the younger generation of the Bai Family. That pinch from Long Chen had been seen by them clearly. Their eyes grew big and had more understanding towards Long Chen¡¯s guts.


    Murderous intent radiated from both Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen.


    This feeling of being locked on could definitely be felt by Long Chen. However, he didn¡¯t think anything of it and even gave both Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen a provocative stare. He suddenly met Yang Lingqing¡¯s furious gaze, which shocked him into turning his head back immediately.


    At this point Bai Zhixing had also stared nkly at Long Chen, her hands held onto the flowers. She did not expect that Long Chen would actually be this bold; she had even forgotten to scream.


    And at this moment, Long Chen hurriedly said to the masters of both families: ¡°I still have something to do, so I will first take my leave.¡±


    Bai Family¡¯s Masterughed lightly and said: ¡°En, if there¡¯s something you have to do then go ahead.¡±


    Ignoring the gazes of the people sitting in Hongwu Hall, Long Chen walked through the door. Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen exchanged gazes, and seeing Long Chen¡¯s fading figure, they both smirked.


    ¡°Since you are courting death, don¡¯t me us¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen who was seemingly pleased with himself, had just left Hongwu Hall and was about tough when suddenly there was a sharp pain on his ears to the point that his face had convulsed as Lingxi¡¯s cold voice sounded.


    ¡°Scum! That feeling was great wasn¡¯t it?!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s delight had been pushed to the bottom of the valley and he immediately tried to appease her, saying: ¡°Darling Xiao Xi, I¡­¡­Earlier I, yes, I was provoking Bai Shiji, merely a provocation¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°You think I am an idiot, I won¡¯t bother with you anymore!¡±


    Long Chen sweated profusely and as he was about to exin, he saw Yang Lingqing who had followed him from behind. Looking at her grim expression, he knew he was about to meet another tragedy.


    But who knew, the first thing Yang Lingqing said was: ¡°I am in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm now.¡±


    Her aura, given off by the Qi had also thickened, which felt almost the same as Yang Lingyue¡¯s.


    She had an affinity with Long Chen, not only were they born in the same year, same month and the same day but the time both of them entered sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm were around the same.


    After entering the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, Yang Lingqing would now be able to reduce the amount of danger she would face in the demonic beast huntingpetition. Truth be told, she was the only one Long Chen had cared for in the whole of the Yang Family. Now Long Chen could feel at ease and proceed on his own.


    ¡°What good timing, with you around, it¡¯s possible to kill more Demonic Beasts and overtake the Bai Family.¡±


    Yang Lingqing gave him a look that said he was incorrigible. ¡°Can you still joke at a time like this? Could it be that you don¡¯t know that although at the banquet both parties were engaging amiably, Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen will definitely not let you go? I know that recently your strength have increased, but how could you be a match for the both of them?¡±


    Yang Lingqing said anxiously. Looking at this girl who still cared for Long Chen, he too could not bear to show any concern and said: ¡°My strength did indeed improve greatly. Although I can¡¯t say that I can beat them but escaping will not be a problem. Also I don¡¯t exactly have to face off with them. Look at your big brother, I am considered to be rather cunning so how can I die under these two people with an ice cube like expression.


    Yang Lingqing did not thought so; she knew the strength of a seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. That might could totally overwhelm that of a sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, not even mentioning Long Chen, who was only a fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    As she was about to speak, Long Chen¡¯s gaze suddenly turned cold, he patted Yang Lingqing¡¯s shoulder and said: ¡°Go back first, I¡¯ll speak to youter.¡±


    Yang Lingqing turned around and saw that Yang Xueqing was actually behind her. She knew that Long Chen and Yang Xueqing¡¯s rtionship was strange and could not interfere either so she advised Long Chen to be careful and then left.


    Looking at her, Long Chen¡¯s delightful mood had suddenly turned bad.


    Yang Xueqing walked up several steps and measured up Long Chen, although her face wasn¡¯t as stone-cold as before, it was still frosty.


    ¡°Do you know why my father invited the Bai Family for a feast today? Because our family have been preparing for the wedding. Three dayster during the afternoon you guys will enter Big Barren Mountain and I will be married into the Bai Family.¡±


    Long Chen knew it was the case and had expected it long before, so he only looked on at Yang Xueqing, not saying a word.


    ¡°After I kill Bai Shiji and the news travel, let¡¯s see how you can still marry?¡±


    Looking at Long Chen who did not react, Yang Xueqing did not bother with it and continued: ¡°After passing the demonic energy cores to the Lingwu family from the demonic beast huntingpetition, you should leave Por Town. I heard that not only did you obtained the [Seal of the Dragons] but also 500 pieces of spirit jade. Our Yang Family did not treat you badly on this ount so I hope you can stop while you can.


    ¡°The [Seal of the Dragons] have to be passed down within the Yang Family so pass it to me now. After you¡¯re gone, I will return it to my father.¡±


    ording to what Yang Xueqing implied, Long Chen understood that she had never treated him as a member of the Yang Family. However, it was fine as Long Chen never felt any homely feelings towards this family either. In any case the secrets in the [Seal of the Dragons] have been fully extracted by him and this broken item has no uses for him anymore. So he took it out from his pockets and threw it into Yang Xueqing¡¯s hands.


    ¡°What I should have gotten, I have already taken it. You think I want to stay in this broken ce? I still have to look for spiritual medicine for my darling Xiao Xi. However after I dispose of Bai Shiji, I really look forward to seeing your expression, you couldn¡¯t find me even if you wish to kill me by that time.


    Without saying another word Long Chen turned around and walked away.


    Yang Xueqing did not expect Long Chen to hand it over so simply. Looking at the [Seal of the Dragons] in her hands and at the prideful figure of Long Chen leaving, she ridiculed : ¡° What a naive fellow, being unable to gain any advantages, these two skills from the [Seal of the Dragons], how could you have learnt it easily in these few days?¡±


    At this moment her expression darkened, saying: ¡°The things he had done to Bai Shixun, Bai Shiji and the rest will definitely deal with him during the demonic beast huntingpetition. He¡¯s merely in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and only relying on an Intermediate Huang martial technique. How can he be a match for them? Although he didn¡¯t learn any skills, but he is afterall my flesh and blood. Oh well, I will plead mercy for you from Bai Shiji just this once¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°I hope this time; you will know how to repay this favour.¡±


    Turning into a corridor, Lingxi repeated the muttered words of Yang Xueqing to Long Chen. After Long Chen had heard it he kept onughing.


    ¡°Hey, honestly, don¡¯t you honestly care if your mother looks down on you?


    Long Chen simply said: ¡°Being mindful will only make me ufortable, so why would I want to endure such a feeling? If she does not think that I am their match and I really got angry over that, then I am really a retard. What I must do is defeat Bai Shijipletely.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t bother with this anymore, but if it were me, I would definitely cry a big mess¡­¡­¡±


    Looking back at the courtyard of the Yang Family where Long Chen had lived for years, it looked so familiar yet so foreign at the same time.


    Originally this was his house but it never gave him a sense of security. Not even his family members could give him that kind of feeling.


    It was not that he had never been sad before, but now he felt numbed and he wouldn¡¯t be so foolish as to show it on his face.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to plead him for my behalf, but who will plead me on his behalf¡­¡±

 Chapter 30 – Lord Lang

    As both the marriage and demonic beast huntingpetition were approaching, those few youngsters who were participating in thepetition were all feeling nervous. As for the others, with the joyous asion of marriage, they all had smiling expressions on their faces.


    Especially for Founder Yang, who after waiting half his life could finally see his own daughter achieving bliss. His mouth was always smiling these days.


    One early morning, Long Chen followed Yang Lingqing, Yang Lingyue and Yang Wu. Under Yang Qingxuan¡¯s lead, they all headed toward one of the exits of Big Barren Mountain outside Por Town.


    As for the other disciples, both families agreed not to let them participate because of their inadequate strength. They could barely protect themselves, so if they entered Big Barren Mountain, they might end up being burdens.


    This way, each family has sent a total of four people. The Yang Family¡¯s strength may be slightly weaker, but killing Demonic Beasts also requires some luck, so the winner and loser is still undetermined.


    However, both the Bai and Yang Family masters did not follow the hunting party, and this scene of both parties drawing swords only seemed to be an interlude for the marriage. They both were busy preparing for the marriage, so they let the younger generation do as they pleased in the fight for the mayor position in Por Town.


    Along the way, Yang Lingyue and Yang Wu walked together while Long Chen and Yang Lingqing followed behind.


    ¡°Hey, do you really have some methods to protect your life?¡±


    Yang Lingqing asked concernedly.


    ¡°Only a few clowns from the Bai Family. How can they be my match?¡±


    Long Chen mysteriouslyughed.


    Yang Lingqing momentarily showed a helpless expression and haughtily said: ¡°Alright then, I can¡¯t be bothered to talk to you anymore. When it really gets dangerous, just call out loudly. If I hear you, I¡¯ll definitely try my best to help.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head; in fact he did really appreciate this younger sister of his. If it weren¡¯t for the blood ties, he would have made his move by now.


    However, after listening Long Chen¡¯s arrogant words, Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue turned back and looked at him, their eyes filled with ridicule. As they turned back, Yang Lingyue looked at her own elder brother and said softly: ¡°Brother, remember what you promised me.¡±


    Yang Wu nodded his head and said: ¡°If the Bai Family does not attack, I will teach him a lesson.¡±


    Both of their voices were extremely soft, so Long Chen and Yang Lingqing could not hear them clearly.


    Very soon, they reached their destination, and Long Chen realised that the party of five from the Bai Family had already arrived.


    The leader of the Bai Family was the fourth son Bai Zhanfeng, and the other four would naturally be the four participants in the demonic beast huntingpetition. Once they saw Long Chen, Bai Shiji momentarily smirked and pointed a finger at Long Chen.


    Long Chen knew that Bai Shiji had meant the [Dark Heavenly Finger].


    This was obviously a provocation, but Long Chen pretended not to see. Not even giving a nce at Bai Shiji, he instead looked at the person who stood at the forefront. He was the overseer of the demonic beast huntingpetition who hade from the Lingwu Family of the Lingwu City.


    This person was wearing an embroidered ck robe, and there was a mantle on his head. His features were obscured, but his body emitted a faint aura. It was an indescribable feeling for Long Chen.


    ¡°How strong is he?¡±


    ¡°Telling a country bumpkin like you will have no effect. Just understand it like this: Your grandfather cannot withstand even a single stroke of his.¡±


    A casual sentence like this made all the hairs on Long Chen stand up!


    Maybe to Lingxi, killing his grandfather in a stroke is not a huge deal, but, in Long Chen¡¯s world, what kind of fearful existence could finish the strongest person Long Chen knew, his grandfather, in a single stroke?


    He looked at that person with a fixed stare, and the person too looked at Long Chen at this time, seemingly surprised. However, very soon, he never looked at Long Chen again.


    At this point Yang Qingxuan cupped his hands and saluted, saying: ¡°Lord Lang, the young ones of the Yang Family have been brought here.¡±


    ¡°En, then let¡¯s depart for Big Barren Mountain. Both of you go back first. Lingwu Family will give you a fair result.¡±


    Yang Qingxuan and Bai Zhanfeng did not dare to disobey his words. It looked like what Lingxi said was true.


    Listening to his voice, Long Chen thought of him to be extremely young, almost no different from the youngsters here.


    ¡°You must know that there are mountains outside a mountain, and people outside a person. Your so called geniuses in Por Town, after reaching the maind, are only a useless crap in front of the eyes of others.


    [TL Note: Always someone stronger]


    Lingxi¡¯s words had once again let Long Chen know that his experience was limited. However, they had broadened it this time. Long Chen was very impressed with this simrly aged person who actually had such strength.


    Yang Qingxuan and Bai Zhanfeng walked together, and without saying another word, Lord Lang went towards the Big Barren Mountain. The youngsters looked at each other, and then hurriedly followed.


    Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue very soon had walked together with the Bai Family. Yang Lingqing, who saw Long Chen walking alone behind them, wavered, and decided to stay beside him.


    At this point, Yang Lingyue was chatting happily with Bai Shiji, and suddenly, she saw that Yang Lingqing had actually walked together with Long Chen. Her face showed fury momentarily, and she said, ¡°Lingqing,e over here. Bai Shichen Big Brother wants to meet you.¡±


    Beside her was Bai Shichen whose cultivation was even greater than that of Bai Shiji. He smiled at Yang Lingqing amiably, and under the ray of the morning light, it was as if an immortal had descended from the heavens. Even Yang Lingyue was slightly moved.


    However, Yang Lingqing did not fall for this, and,as she was in a difficult situation, said, ¡°Ling Yue Elder Sister, I still want to say some things to Elder Brother Chen ¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Lingyue, who had lost face in front of both the guys from the Bai Family, was momentarily unhappy. Seeing Yang Lingyue whose face had changed colour, Long Chen abruptly said: ¡°Lingqing, go over first, in case they don¡¯t let you follow themter.¡±


    He naturally wanted to move alone. If Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue left her behind, the numerous dangers which were lurking in Big Barren Mountain are not too good for her.


    Yang Lingqing had also thought of this point. She then cast Long Chen an apologetic look, and then walked in front. Only then did Yang Lingyue had smile and introduce Yang Lingqing to both of the Bai Family¡¯s boys.


    Yang Lingqing, in fact, had more vour than Yang Lingyue, so the Bai Shichen, who normally did not speak, told her the bullshit of his past 20 odd years of life when she walked over.


    ¡°Wanting to date my sister,ter I will castrate you.¡± Long Chen cruelly thought.


    Very soon, they reached Big Barren Mountain.


    Lord Lang turned back and said: ¡°Before the sun sets, you guys must hurry back here and hand over the demonic energy cores for me to inspect.¡±


    Suddenly his voice turned cold and said, ¡°I am a member of the Lingwu Family, so don¡¯t try to y any tricks in front of me. All of your movements are under my supervision. Only methods using your own hands to kill the Demonic Beasts will count. For every one energy core that is obtained with alternative methods, I will take one life!¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to guess how exactly I will watch you. If you wish to y tricks, be my guest. But when you die, don¡¯t me me for it. Also, you can snatch the energy cores from the other parties, and you can even kill them. This has all been permitted by the Lingwu Family!¡±


    This Lord Lang¡¯s voice had carried a mysterious magical power to it, and even Bai Shichen, who had the strongest cultivation, had cold sweat forming while listening to those words.


    In fact, the words spoken by Lord Lang had long ago been mentioned and warned by their own family elders. They all had an understanding of the immense background of the Lingwu Family, so they naturally did not dare y any tricks.


    ¡°Last time there were people who buried the energy cores beforehand, but in the end, for each core buried, one person was buried¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t have any questions, let¡¯s go ahead and begin. Seize the day!¡±


    Long Chen understood. Under the watch of this Lord Lang, to obtain an energy core, there were only two ways. One: Kill Demonic Beasts, two: Obtain it from the other party.


    At this point, Bai Shiji and the rest nced at Long Chen coldly and entered the Big Barren Mountain first. As for Yang Wu and the rest, they followed behind hurriedly. Although Yang Lingqing could not put her mind at ease with Long Chen, she had warned him and then left in the end.


    ¡°Eight hours¡¯ time is more than enough for me to kill Bai Shiji. And at this point, I shall just take the energy cores from him.¡±


    Thinking of this point, Long Chen wanted to enter Big Barren Mountain as well. However, at this moment, Lord Lang had actually stood in front of him and sized him up. Then he said, ¡± Not only a month, but you have already broken through 4 Dragon Pulse Realm levels, and even mastered the [Celestial Core Technique] huh?¡±


    Long Chen was really stumped this time.


    This mysterious Lord Lang had actually known his matters so well, even including the [Celestial Core Technique]?


    As Long Chen was about to ask, he suddenly said: ¡±I will not hold back your time, hurry up and enter. I sense that the Bai Family members have enmity towards you. It¡¯s good to be careful.¡±


    After talking, his body made a stealth movement and disappeared without a trace. Even his directions were unknown¡­¡­


    ¡°He knew that I mastered the [Celestial Core Technique], and he was even concerned about my life and death. The voice and figure had some familiarity to it, this person¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen suddenly remembered the young man who had given him the [Celestial Core Technique], and he almost cried out in surprise. He was a hundred percent sure that this so called Lord Lang was the one whose beautiful looks could win over manydies. These bewitching looks even made Long Chen unsure of his gender!


    ¡°At that point, I have already felt that his background was immense. However, I never would have thought that he would actually be a member of the Lingwu family. It¡¯s no wonder that he came to Por Town. Most likely it was to first understand the background of the two big families in Por Town. However, the [Celestial Core Technique] he gave me helped me tremendously, and even now, he still warned me. It looks like I, Long Chen¡¯s, destiny isn¡¯t so bad¡­¡­¡±


    As he thought of this matter delightfully, he rapidly entered Big Barren Mountain and concealed his presence.


    ¡°Those who treat me well, I will return them a hundred times. Lingxi, Lingqing, and that Lord Yang, have all treated me well unconditionally. I will never let them down!¡±


    With his own ability, Long Chen was rapidly progressing in his strength.


    ¡°With Lingxi around, finding Bai Shiji is much easier than him finding me. Oh well, I will first let them and the Demonic Beasts tire themselves out. And after taking a stroll at Big Barren Mountain, I will then go im his life.¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s strong sense of perception, if Long Chen had met any monstrous Demonic Beasts, he could totally go a roundabout way. Gradually, he entered Big Barren Mountain, and the surrounding forests had slowly be taller. That cold atmosphere slowly turned heavier.


    ¡°Big Barren Mountain¡¯s deepest part would have to be Deste Beast Domain. Last time I went in another direction to get into the Deste Beast Domain. That¡¯s why I did not pass by Big Barren Mountain¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°However, this feeling of emptiness is slowly getting stronger. I think we¡¯re almost at the Deste Beast Domain¡­¡­¡±


    At this point, Lingxi suddenly said: ¡°Hey, in front there seems to be a person¡¯s presence inside a rather concealed cave.¡±


    Long Chen was momentarily stunned and said: ¡°Is it that Lord Lang?¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s a fellow of the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and there seems to be a sweet scenting from there. I know, he must be guarding a tree with a spirit medicine that has not yet ripened!

 Chapter 31 – Soul Diffusion Fruit

    Big Barren Mountain was vast; however, the nearest dwelling was Por Town which had only two cultivators in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. They are the Bai Family¡¯s Master and Founder Yang. So, when there appeared another cultivator of the ninth level, Long Chen was rather surprised.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what is this whole thing about unripen spirit medicine?


    ¡°All spirit medicine needs to have a certain period to ripen fully before one can pluck it. This is even truer for higher level spirit medicine grades. Now we¡¯re a little far away but if we get closer, I can most likely recognise the fruit.¡±


    Now, since it was still a little too early to kill Bai Shiji and Long Chen¡¯s nature was of one who liked to take small advantages if there was a real treasure, he would naturally not let go of this chance.


    However, he knew how difficult it was to face a ninth level Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator who had broken through the Heaven Dragon Vein, so it was better to be careful.


    Long Chen sneakily walked amongst the shrubs and after crossing a few hill peaks there appeared a deep valley with flourishing trees. Within the midst of the valley was a pervading, humid, air and just reaching this point, Long Chen felt that he could not breathe smoothly.


    ¡°Stop.¡±


    After hearing Lingxi¡¯s instructions, Long Chen hid behind a tall and unnamed ancient tree. At this point, Lingxi carefully sent her consciousness towards the valley which was filled with many granite caves and a few rare footprints of humans. Lingxi described everything she saw to Long Chen.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what that is, but I can confirm that it¡¯s a Profound grade spirit medicine¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Profound grade?¡±


    ¡°Above the Huang grade, will be the Profound grade. To people like you from Por Town, the Profound grade spirit medicine is much more valuable than life and I reckon that even if you sold all of Por Town, the amassed wealth would not be able to exchange for even a single Profound grade spirit medicine.¡±


    Lingxi said it casually, but the emotions in Long Chen¡¯s heart surged tremendously.


    He knew that in the realm of cultivation there are definitely more levels above the Dragon Pulse Realm and that mysterious Lord Lang should be of that level. He also knew that there are also demonic beasts above the Huang level, for instance the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf.


    Be it divine weapons, spirit medicine, or martial techniques, there are still higher levels.


    Normally, any cultivator in a certain realm willplement themselves with a martial technique of the same level and fight demonic beasts of the same level. Spirit medicine however, naturally the higher grade it was, the better. Profound grade spirit medicine, used by a Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator, would have tremendous benefits.


    For the two big families in Por Town, if one were to get such a spirit medicine, they will definitely soar in strength and reputation.


    With Lingxi¡¯s instructions, Long Chen once again crept a little closer and at this point he had almost arrived at one of the granite caves. He could feel an immense aura emitting from someone who was quietly sitting somewhere not far away and he held his breath, not daring to move recklessly.


    At this point, Lingxi let out a surprised voice which sounded like a mosquito ringing beside his ears.


    ¡°I never thought that will be such a rare item like a Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree and it¡¯s even growing the maximum total of 3 fruits¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°These fruits outer skin are still green, however this Soul Diffusion Fruit ripens quickly and ording to my observations it should be about 8-9 days before these 3 are ready to harvest¡­¡­¡±


    When Lingxi had fully seen the type of spirit medicine and even knew about the maturity period of the fruit, Long Chen knew that he no longer had to wait here anymore.


    Taking a deep breath Long Chen was about to leave but at this moment the mysterious man who was guarding the fruit suddenly stood up and walked towards his direction.


    Long Chen suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.


    In fact, he had not been discovered by that person, but simply his luck was too bad. He just had to encounter the mysterious man when the man had stood up and began stretching his body while taking a look at the surroundings outside.


    If that being the case, with Long Chen¡¯s strength in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, if the man were to walk a little closer, Long Chen might have been discovered.


    If that urred and under such a close distance, he would really be in trouble.


    Long Chen immediately made up his mind and before the other party could discover him, he used his explosive strength and dashed towards the exit of the valley and hid in the shrubbery!


    ¡°Who!?¡±


    That person had a great shock and hurriedly rushed out. The speed of ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was extremely swift and Long Chen immediately felt a strong wind from behind his back.


    The whole shrubbery suddenly exploded and a strong aura came sweeping towards Long Chen. Although Long Chen had constantly changed directions while fleeing, he was still unable to get rid of this fellow.


    ¡°This person is guarding the Soul Diffusion Fruit, he should be afraid of me using the strategy of moving the tiger away from the mountain!¡±


    [TL Note: (µ÷»¢Àëɽ֮¼Æ) ¡°Strategy of moving the tiger away from the mountain¡±: Chinese idiom meaning to lure a person away]


    Long Chen¡¯s brain worked quickly and thinking of this, he immediately ced his fingers into his mouth and blew a resounding whistle.


    As expected, when the whistle had sounded out, the mysterious man momentarily frowned. Seeing that he was still a good distance away from Long Chen, he gave Long Chen an unresigned re and then turned around!


    At this point Long Chen had turned around and looked at the mysterious man. This was a man whose years had almost caught up to Founder Yang and although he was quite elderly, his physique was strong and muscr and the gaze in his eyes was sharp!


    Long Chen being able to act quick-wittedly in this situation had let Lingxi be rather impressed. One must understand that the number of people able to think of a method to protect their life at such a critical juncture was, indeed, not many.


    Long Chen looked at the figure that was moving away and at the same time asked: ¡°Xiao Xi, what uses does that Soul Diffusion Fruit exactly have?¡±


    ¡°If we were to talk about it, it should be extremely useful for you. Soul Diffusion Fruit is a Profound grade spirit medicine and when you consume it at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, you should be able to rely on the medicinal properties of the spirit medicine and condense your Qi into a Human Dan in your dantian and enter the Deity Dan Realm.¡±


    ¡°Deity Dan Realm?¡±


    Since he started on this path Long Chen has had no knowledge of cultivation and now he was learning that as it turned out, there was a realm after the Dragon Pulse Realm called the Deity Dan Realm and the way to breakthrough to it was not by breaking through the nine Dragon Veins,but to condense his Qi to a Human Dan.


    Looking at Long Chen who seemed to both understand and yet not understand, Lingxi helpless said: ¡°The Deity Dan Realm is split into three levels: the Human Dan, the Earth Dan and the Heaven Dan. and each level is split into the initial phase, middle phase and thete phase so you can categorise the Deity Dan Realm into 9 stages., Oh right, that Lord Lang is actually a cultivator of the Heaven Dan Realm.¡±


    Long Chen had a thirsting appetite for this knowledge. He was, in fact, rather clever and realised that there were 9 levels in the Dragon Pulse Realm and the Deity Dan Realm realm was also split into only 9 levels. He realized that the beginning phase of the Human Dan Realm and Mastery Stage of the Heaven Dan Realm difference is actuallyparable to the difference from the first level of the Dragon Pulse Realm to ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Earlier, Lingxi saying that Founder Yang was no match for even a single strike of Lord Lang¡¯s was actually rather reasonable.


    That Lord Lang, who was so young, already had such frightening achievements and once again Long Chen truly understood the saying: ¡°there are always people better than you¡±.


    However, Long Chen was not dismayed. He had a mysterious father, Lingxi, who was rather secretive but was of tremendous help to him, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, and even the Inherited Blood Essence of the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon. All this is proof of him bing stronger!


    With these items, as well as learning the overpowered [Blood Transmuted Qi] technique, he believed that one day he will reach the standard of Lord Lang.


    What Long Chen is really concerned with right now though, are the uses of the Soul Diffusion Fruit.


    ¡°This means that if your Yang Family were to get that Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree, most likely 3 Deity Dan Realm cultivators can be nurtured, which is more than enough for a small family like yours to be the overlord of a 100 li radius.¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s words made Long Chen covet it. After all, these Soul Diffusion Fruit are really a rare item toe by and if Founder Yang were to know he would definitely be extremely excited.


    Long Chen knew that Founder Yang had been stuck in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm for many years and only if he obtained the Soul Diffusion Fruit would his cultivation greatly increase, along with his longevity. Basically, it would already be a step towards heaven!


    ¡°The ripening date of the Soul Diffusion Fruit is actually just a few days away. Right now, however, I am in the demonic beast huntingpetition and my most important task is to kill Bai Shiji. As for whether to tell the news of this Soul Diffusion Fruit to Founder Yang, we¡¯ll decide when the timees.¡±


    Lingxi nodded her head and said: ¡°The Soul Diffusion Fruit ripening will create a phenomenon and explosively emit a strange scent. The few people in Por Town within the higher levels of the Dragon Pulse Realm will be able to sense it and most likely they will fight for it. Even if you say nothing, Founder Yang will also know. However the earliest person who is on a pavilion near the water will first enjoy the moonlight..


    [TL Note: (È˽üˮ¥̨ÏȵÃÔÂ) ¡°Earliest person who is on a pavilion near the water will first enjoy the moonlight¡± : Chinese idiom meaning to obtain benefits first due to proximity.]


    Never imagining that there was even a phenomenon associated with the ripening, Long Chen memorised the location in his heart,and then directed his sight the forest while the gaze in his eyes gradually turned frosty.


    ¡°Since we have dyed for a bit, Bai Shiji has most likely fought with the demonic beasts for a while now. Going over now is the best time to im his life!¡±


    Saying which, Long Chen rapidly headed towards that direction.


    Shortly after leaving, Long Chen suddenly raised his head and actually saw Lord Lang sitting on a branch of a tree.


    ¡°Those Bai Family younger generation are going to kill the 3 members of the Yang Family. I think you had better go over and help them quickly.¡±


    Long Chen eyes grew big and he almost thought that he had heard wrongly.


    ¡°Bai Shichen¡¯s side wants to kill Yang Wu¡¯s side? What exactly happened? When those few bastards came in earlier they were still colluding behind my back, yet now they are killing each other?¡±


    This Lord Lang would definitely not be joking so what he said is definitely true.


    Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue did not matter much to Long Chen, but he had to look after Yang Lingqing.


    ¡°If anything were to happen to Yang Lingqing, I will definitely bury you few bastards of the Bai Family together with her!¡±


    Lord Lang pointed out a direction to Long Chen and said: ¡°They¡¯re over there, you had better hurry.¡±


    Long Chen gratefully looked at him and, only after saying his thanks, did he explosively use his fastest speed and rushed towards that direction.


    After he left, Lord Lang furrowed his brows at his leaving figure and muttered:¡± Strange, why is there a Beast Warrior¡¯s aura on him? This aura should be that of the Underground Blood Lizards¡­¡­No, should be something simr to the Underground Blood Lizard King¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was extremely impatient and as he rushed forward the surroundings constantly shrank in his view.


    It was unclear on what basis the Bai Family wanted to massacre them but Long Chen knew that both families had close ties and if there were no shes it would be fine. But once someone on one side kills the other, the ties would definitely be cut and the result would be war until one side waspletely annihted.


    ¡°¡­¡­Is it because of the position of Mayor that these two Families coveted? But they are hosting a marriage right now¡­¡­¡±


    At this moment, no matter how smart he was, Long Chen could not understand what was going on.


    By this point, the sound of fighting was faintly audible and Long Chen gaze turned cold. As if a leopard, he moved quickly amongst the forest!


    Suddenly, a piece of emptynd appeared before his eyes and the two people that were fighting were actually Yang Lingyue and Bai Shiji who had acted like a lovey dovey pair earlier.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes scanned the scene and saw that Yang Wu was already on the ground, his face pale and blood flowing from the corners of his mouth, staring in rage at Bai Shiji. As for Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong they stood beside the injured Yang Wu to constrain him.


    Bai Shiji, on the other hand, was only messing around with Yang Lingyue. There were a few times when he could have injured her but he never did, only tearing a piece of cloth from her body each time.


    As the fight progressed, the clothes on Yang Lingyue¡¯s body gradually became less and less and nearly the spring sunshine emerged to bring the world alive. At this moment she cried like she was made of tears, her eyes showing extreme despair and helplessness!


    [TL Note: (²»¶à´º¹âÕ§ÁË) ¡°Spring sunshine emerges to bring the world alive¡±: Meaning to have a glimpse of something intimate (in this case underwear)]


    ¡°Bai Shiji, you goddamn bastard!¡±


    Heart wrenched, Yang Lingyue screamed as she red at Bai Shiji who had been tearing off her clothes with one hand.

 Chapter 32 – [Transformed Devil First Finger]

    Yang Lingyue looked at that wanton and evil look on Bai Shiji, and her eyes were filled with despair.


    She knew in her heart what Bai Shiji was trying to do. Originally she had admired Bai Shiji whole-heartedly and also dreamt of a day when this would happen. But this came too suddenly, and it was done in front of others, including her own brother! Only now did she realize how much anguish she was feeling.


    [TL Note: The day; she means *cough* sex *cough*]


    ¡°Bai Shiji, why? Why is your Bai Family doing this to us, the one you wanted to kill shouldn¡¯t have been us? Why are you aiming at us? Let go of my sister!¡±


    Yang Wu was already heavily injured, and at this point, under Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong¡¯s restraint, he could not move an inch.


    ¡°Elder Brother, save me!¡±


    Hearing Yang Lingyue¡¯s voice full of despair had turned Yang Wu¡¯s eyes bloodshot! But his pain, which could be felt to the bone, hadpletely sealed all of his movements!


    Earlier, Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji teamed up against him in an unexpected and backhanded blow, which was why he could be critically injured so easily.


    His eyes were filled with unwillingness as he looked at his younger sister who was about to be shamed. His eyes could almost spew out mes, but at this point all he felt was helplessness!


    As both of them faced despair, the trees nearby rustled as there a gust of wind approached. In the next moment, a shadow stood not too far away from Bai Shiji and sized up the scene, his face filled with shock.


    It was Long Chen.


    Looking at Long Chen that had suddenly appeared, Bai Shiji stopped his assault and viciously red at Long Chen, smirking as he said: ¡°I was just about to look for you after this matter, but never thought that you woulde knocking on the door. I might as well dispose of you first and then enjoy this enchanting beauty without a care.¡±


    When Yang Lingyue and Yang Wu, originally saw someone arriving, they had felt a feeling of salvation, but looking at the person that had actually arrived, their faces turned sluggish and darkened.


    Long Chen¡¯s arrival was as good as not being here.


    On one hand, they had close ties with the Bai Family and ostracised Long Chen. However, now that they had actually fallen into the Bai Family¡¯s vicious scheme, it would be difficult to avoid being mocked by Long Chen. On the other hand, Long Chen was merely at the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm strength-wise, and meeting Bai Shiji who was at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was only adding one more member to the death count.


    With Long Chen blocking the way, they could still dy their humiliation and death. This was the only use for Long Chen¡¯s appearance in their hearts.


    Looking at Long Chen suddenly appearing, Bai Shidong and Bai Zhixing momentarily felt a little nervous, but as they realized Bai Shiji was still here, they calmed down.


    Especially for Bai Shidong, he had been humiliated greatly by Long Chen earlier but did not dare to take revenge. At this point in time with Long Chen¡¯s appearance, he acted like a sheep in wolf¡¯s clothing as he said: ¡°Shiji Brother, after you heavily injure him, could you let me end his life?¡±


    [TL Note: Appearing fierce while cowardly at heart, the opposite of the wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing basically.]


    Bai Shiji did not bother with Yang Lingyue anymore, only looking sinisterly at Long Chen and coldly said: ¡°If I do not identally kill him, then you may go ahead.¡±


    Looking at Yang Wu¡¯s and Yang Lingyue¡¯s disappointed faces after his arrival, Long Chen was suddenly so angry that even his nose could turn crooked.


    These two fellows were not even optimistic about him, so Long Chen couldn¡¯t be bothered to save them. He immediately ignored Bai Shiji¡¯s existence and looking at Yang Lingyue, who did not have her clothes worn on properly, he asked: ¡°Where is Lingqing?¡±


    However, Yang Lingyue did not answer him. She was constantly fiddling with what little clothes that she had on herself, wanting to cover up the skin that had been shown. However, that was only like a cup of water on a burning cart of firewood.


    [TL Note:( ±­Ë®³µÐ½) ¡°A cup of water on a burning cart of firewood.¡± Idiom: an utterly inadequate and useless measure]


    From what she saw, Long Chen¡¯s arrival could not salvage anything, and she was still immersed in sorrow and panic. Unable to free herself while thinking of having to face this bastard after Long Chen¡¯s death, she felt as if her whole body was going to crumble.


    Long Chen was now fuming. He was so furious, not because Yang Lingyue wasn¡¯t optimistic about him, but because he was sincerely concerned about Yang Lingqing!


    ¡°Yang Lingyue, Yang Wu, I¡¯m fucking asking you, where did Yang Lingqing go?!¡±


    Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue could not even utter a sound and allowed Long Chen to make a fool out of himself. However, at this point, Bai Shiji, who had been ignored by Long Chen, was gradually bing angry.


    The expression on his face had slowly darkened as the Qi around his whole body circted explosively!


    Walking slowly towards Long Chen, his icy cold tone could make people think that they were in the freezing cold of winter!


    ¡°Even at the brink of your death, you still want to y a hero and care for others. You have ruined my younger brother and I had long since wanted to kill you. If not for my grandfather who had made me tolerate this until today, you would have been long gone to meet that useless dead father of yours!¡±


    ¡°What did you say?!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s fists slowly clenched. What he disliked to hear the most was someone calling his father trash especially when it came from Bai Shiji¡¯s mouth. This was because Bai Shiji was Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s son and Yang Xueqing had actually treated Bai Zhanxiong dearly!


    ¡°Thatmentable women, if she knew that the Bai Family had done such atrocious deeds to the Yang Family¡¯s younger generation today, I wonder what her expression will be!¡±


    Bai Shiji put on an expression as if he was definitely going to win which made Long Chen very irritated. Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue¡¯s stupid actions had filled Long Chen with a stomach full of anger. Yang Lingqing¡¯s life and death was still unknown and he was extremely furious!


    Once he thought of Bai Shichen, who wasn¡¯t here, and of that time when he showed off to Yang Lingqing¡­¡­


    Looking at Bai Shiji, who had done those things to Yang Lingyue, Long Chen had an ominous premonition. Once he thought that his younger sister Yang Lingqing, that had been usually treating him so well could actuallye to harm, his whole body¡¯s Qi circted wildly! His Qi transformed into a faint red colored dragon, and was surging within his six Dragon Veins!


    The quintessence of the dragon, which had waned due to the transformation back into the normal state, slowly emerged once again from his body. He could faintly feel that the blood red Dragon God image which had vanished before from his organs, bones, blood and muscles, appeared once again and ferociously roared!


    ¡°If anything were to happen to Lingqing, your Bai Family must all be buried with her! All of you go to hell!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes started to be dyed with a deep scarlet red color! That faint red Qi had been stimted and began to overflow from within!


    Right now the situation was this. Bai Shiji will evidently not let him go so easily, as such; the only method to save Yang Lingqing was to kill this Bai Shiji in the shortest amount of time possible. This would also fulfil the purpose of Long Chening to this Big Barren Mountain!


    Seeing that Long Chen¡¯s eyes had emitted such a terrifying aura, Bai Shiji was shocked for a while, and then he smirked and said: ¡°No wonder you dare to stand in front of me, it¡¯s because you have already entered the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm! However, with only this level, you still wish to mess with me? Your progress in breaking through is rather fast, so all the more reason I cannot keep you alive, receive your death!¡±


    As Bai Shiji finished speaking, Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue momentarily nced over nervously, as in their subconscious mind all they had hoped for was for Long Chen to endure for a little longer.


    When they heard that Long Chen was already in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, their hearts happily thought that maybe the descent of helplessness wille a littleter and who knows. Maybe they will be able to hold off until someone saves them!


    Finally with a little hope, but despair still surrounded and loomed over them like a trauma.


    Once Bai Shiji had finished speaking, he instantly sent an attack flying towards Long Chen without warning!


    His aura of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had explosively circted throughout his body as an immense aura swept towards Long Chen, causing the falling leaves to sway and dance in the air!


    However, what made Bai Shiji very surprised was, Long Chen was actually not made to retreat even half a step by this aura!


    ¡°As expected, he is going to persist till death? What a stubborn fellow¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Having this achievement at this age, actually you¡¯re not trash. However from today onwards, after meeting me, I¡¯m afraid you can¡¯t even be trash!¡±


    Within Long Chen¡¯s body, the faint red Qi dragon madly howled.


    Long Chen discovered that the pressure he originally had to use all his strength to block did not actually have such a huge impact on him right now.


    ¡°Really?¡±


    Long Chen coldlyughed and as Bai Shiji charged towards him, his gaze turned dark suddenly, shouting as he charged towards Bai Shiji!


    As both of them met each other, it seemed as if two shooting stars collided, with a huge bang, a resplendent starlight had faded away in a blink of eye and the [Five Directional True Devil Fist] vanished as it exploded. Both of them momentarily retreated in a hurry!


    This attack of Long Chen had temporarily given Bai Shiji an extremely huge shock. Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue revealed expressions showing pleasant surprise. After all, Long Chen could meet one of Bai Shiji¡¯s attack head on which was already considered a pretty good result. One must know that the the longer Long Chen can persist, the higher their chances of escaping will be, so they had looked on nervously and praying that Long Chen could endure for a while longer!


    Bai Shiji¡¯s voice, at this time, had travelled to their ears.


    ¡°I heard that you used the [Falling Star Fist] to a stage of creation after the mastery stage. Indeed it¡¯s not bad, to be able to defend against fifty percent of my [Five Directional True Devil Fist]!¡±


    Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue once again had a face of despair. So what if Long Chen had defended against his strike from earlier? It was only at fifty percent of the [Five Directional True Devil Fist]. If Bai Shiji were to use the [Dark Heavenly Finger] with all his strength, then wouldn¡¯t Long Chen die in one strike?


    Yang Lingyue¡¯s face turned pale and Yang Wu helplessly looked at his own sister, being unable to do anything about the situation.


    Actually Long Chen was smiling deep inside, because he too had only used half of his strength.


    However, he did not have time to waste with Bai Shiji here. At this moment, looking at the arrogant look of self-satisfaction on Bai Shiji he felt nothing but fury in his heart.


    ¡°Bai Shiji, you are really the first person in my life that I must definitely kill!¡±


    Long Chen howled furiously inside his heart!!


    At this point, he had already tested and confirmed Bai Shiji¡¯s strength and being only a few breaths away, Long Chen no longer wasted any time with Bai Shiji as he didn¡¯t have the time to spare. His Qi surged like a dragon, and at this moment, he suddenly charged towards Bai Shiji and the ground trembled beneath his feet.


    In the midst of dashing, his hands swiftly formed a seal motion, and a faint red Qi was rapidly revolving, letting out a whistling noise!


    ¡°Bai Shiji, go to hell for me!¡±


    Currently, Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue were staring, astonished at Long Chen especially Yang Wu. He was extremely familiar with the aura of the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]. Long Chen had, in a short span of ten odd days, already been able to use the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], whereas Yang Wu had to learn it for half a year. From this alone, one could see that the innate talent of Long Chen, in the aspect of martial technique, was such a heaven defying existence!


    ¡°Only a span of ten odd days, the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], impossible, how could he suddenly have turned into such a genius¡­¡­¡±


    These were the thoughts of Yang Lingyue and Yang Wu. Their minds were unable toprehend the situation and discover Long Chen¡¯s faint red aura, much less understand what kind of difference his [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] had from the rest!


    Looking at Long Chen who appeared like a blood red Dragon God and howled as he charged towards him, Bai Shiji was momentarily shocked, but soon it turned into a smirk.


    ¡°[Seal of the Ashened Dragon]? A half assed [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] from the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm? How can it be a match for our Bai Family¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger]!¡±


    ¡°[Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Transformed Devil First Finger]!¡±

 Chapter 33 – A Shocking Conspiracy!

    Long Chen shouted, and suddenly turned into a faint red figure resembling a dragon. He brought on an immense aura and charged towards Bai Shiji!


    At this point, a ck coloured light radiated between Bai Shiji¡¯s fingers. This was the first strike of [Dark Heavenly Finger], the [Transformed Devil First Finger]. It had a piercing effect like an arrow of ck light as it shot towards Long Chen. When both wild energies collided, a huge burst of energy was dispersed in all directions.


    ¡°His half-assed [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] is definitely not a match for Bai Shiji¡¯s well-practiced [Transformed Devil First Finger]¡­¡­¡±


    This thought surfaced on Yang Wu¡¯s mind.


    Bai Shiji felt that the other party¡¯s Qi was not as overwhelming as his, but suddenly, in that instant, Long Chen actually emitted an ancient aura that made Bai Shiji afraid, turning his whole face pale!


    Bai Shiji stared widely at his [Transformed Devil First Finger]. In front of the faint red dragon figure, it was retreating continuously, and before Bai Shiji even had the time to react, the dragon figure shattered the [Transformed Devil First Finger], causing an explosion on him. Bai Shiji cried in anguish and spewed a mouthful of blood, crashing to the floor!


    Both of his eyes widened with an obvious expression of disbelief.


    He simply could not understand. Why did the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon],ing from a mere sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator, have such an immense strength?! And what exactly was that frightening aura?!


    Although the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] was weakened, it still hit Bai Shiji squarely, causing disarray among his organs. A pain that could be felt to the bone made him cringe and ck coloured blood constantly flowed out of his mouth. Wanting to pick himself up, his fingers powerlessly grasped the soil on the floor, but to no avail!


    Originally, Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue had despaired, but at this instant, they became astonished. Yang Wu was so shocked that his mouth gaped open, and he shook his head violently a few times, only to realise that he hadn¡¯t been seeing things. He immediately eximed: ¡°Impossible, this is impossible!¡±


    Yang Lingyue¡¯s eyes widened even further, and the clothes that she clutched tightly in her hands had now dropped onto the floor. Basically, she revealed almost everything, but she was stillpletely unaware as the shock Long Chen had brought them was simply too great!


    ¡°This is impossible¡­¡­definitely impossible!


    Nevermind that he had started to practice cultivation or that he had beaten Yang Zhan suddenly. However, Yang Lingyue could never have imagined that Long Chen who was originally a wastrel in her eyes could defeat her. And yet, here he was, viciously beating the person whom she had once thought talented!


    ¡°What is this worlding to¡­¡­¡±


    As for Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong, both of them were too scared to even move.


    Bai Shidong thought of what he said to Bai Shiji and suddenly felt his legs turn soft. He seemingly became unable to control his dder.


    At this point, Bai Shiji used all of his strength to struggle, but it had only worsened his internal injuries. He already felt his vision start to blur, and the light rays of the sun seemed to be rather piercing to his eyes. Suddenly, a shadow towered over him from above. Bai Shiji gradually discovered that it was Long Chen.


    Suddenly, a hand was choking his throat and feeling the strength of those icy cold fingers, Bai Shiji groggily thought: ¡°Am¡­¡­Am I about to die¡­¡­Is he about to kill me? Why¡­¡­It shouldn¡¯t have ended like this, why?¡±


    But that hand suddenly left his throat.


    Long Chen spat at his face, and coldly said: ¡°You son of a bitch, wait for me to save Yang Lingqing before Ie back to im your dog life!¡±


    He was still looking at Bai Shiji but his body had moved suddenly. Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong, who had been guarding Yang Wu, suddenly let out cries.


    Bai Zhixing was the first to be knocked down unconscious by Long Chen. As for Bai Shidong, a punch from Long Chen came flying at him and he once again fell to the ground. As his face turned pale, a stench of urine suddenly permeated the air¡­¡­


    Long Chen gave him a stomp, and he fainted.


    ¡°Damn it! You actually peed for me again, each time I see you in future, I will stomp on you. Let me see how many times you can pee for me in a day!¡±


    Saying which, he did not even look at Yang Wu who was staring at him in shock and fear. He turned and looked at Yang Lingyue, who was staring at him nkly. He smiled and said: ¡°Yang Lingyue, showing off that slim and graceful young figure of yours to your own cousin, don¡¯t you think it is a little disrespectful?¡±


    Yang Lingyue suddenly realised that she did not have much clothes on her, and suddenly gave out a piercing scream. She becames flustered and picked up the materials on the ground and stared at Long Chen in indignation.


    Long Chen did not even have any interest in her and he did not waste any time. He immediately asked: ¡°I¡¯m going to save Yang Lingqing. I¡¯ll hand this ce over to you. Restrain these three fellows. Tell me right now, where is Yang Lingqing?¡¯


    Yang Lingyue¡¯s face was pale, and at this point Yang Wu actually pointed at a direction and said: ¡°Yang Lingqing headed that way. Bai Shichen was chasing her!¡±


    Long Chen did not waste any time and immediately headed towards the direction Yang Wu had pointed at.


    Yang Wu stared at his disappearing back nkly and once again looked at Bai Shiji, Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong. Bai Shiji was still vomiting blood and struggling on the ground, while Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong had fainted.


    ¡°Xiao Yue, what do you think? Will he able to deal with Bai Shichen?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    At this point, Yang Lingyue had already put on her clothes. However there still wasn¡¯t much clothing material and Bai Shidong¡¯s robes had already been soiled. So right now, she was helping herself to Bai Zhixing¡¯s outer robes.


    Bai Family suddenly did this, and Yang Lingyue hated them to the core already.


    ¡°What do you think; will he be able to deal with Bai Shichen?¡±


    Only then did Yang Lingyue react and scanned the surroundings, saying in a quivering voice: ¡±Lingqing should not be in any danger.¡±


    Hearing her reply, Yang Wu slowly shut his eyes. He knew that from this moment onwards, the first ranking of the Yang Family younger generation would no longer belong to him but to that young man who had a blood-like Qi. From the moment Long Chen used [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] and beat Bai Shiji, he suddenly had a delusion, as if Long Chen was not human anymore but a blood red dragon.


    And dragons had always been the existence of overlords.


    This blood red colour was even a representation of killing.


    ¡°King of ughter.¡± This was what Yang Wu thought of Long Chen.


    Beating Bai Shiji had only required a [Falling Star Fist] and [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] from Long Chen. It was not even half a minute. However, Long Chen was still terribly worried about Yang Lingqing.


    Bai Shichen¡¯s strength was much stronger than Yang Lingqing¡¯s. If he did not have those thoughts of messing around with her, Yang Lingqing might have already fallen into his hands!


    Once he thought of the possibility that Yang Lingqing could be raped, Long Chen¡¯s eyes had almost spewed fire. His whole body¡¯s Qi, instead of decreasing after defeating Bai Shiji, had actually risen explosively!


    ¡°Long Chen, I can sense their aura, that way!¡±


    Lingxi sent a direction from inside the Lingxi sword. With Lingxi around, Long Chen found it convenient to travel around in this Big Barren Mountain. He explosively used his greatest speed and dashed towards the direction Lingxi had pointed at!


    Thinking that he was about to see them, Long Chen was extremely nervous in his heart because he was scared to see the scene that he was the most afraid of!


    However before arriving, Lingxi said: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, your younger sister is still fine. They¡¯re in a discussion right now!¡±


    This sentence allowed Long Chen to temporarily put his worries at ease. However, the killing intent towards Bai Shichen had not lessened.


    Now, a huge conflict between both families had arisen. Long Chen and Bai Shichen were the strongest of the younger generation from both sides. Long Chen had hurt Bai Shiji, and Yang Wu was also heavily injured. If they were not to fight at the first sight of each other, then it would be a strange thing.


    Hearing that they were still talking, Long Chen lowered his pace and concealed his movements as he walked ahead. Very soon, he saw Yang Lingqing being forced into a corner by Bai Shichen.


    At this point, Yang Lingqing¡¯s eyes had turned red and her face already had many traces of tears. She used an icy cold look and stared at Bai Shichen, gritting her teeth tightly, her body slightly quivering!


    As for Bai Shichen, he was speaking ndly: ¡±Lingqing, you must believe my regards for you. Actually I had seen you many times before. It was just that I never had the chance to be acquainted with you. If you are willing to follow me, you¡¯ll definitely be very blissful.¡±


    Yang Lingqing only used a loathing gaze to look at him, not saying a word.


    Seeing that Yang Lingqing was so stubborn, Bai Shichen¡¯s voice started to turn cold.


    ¡°Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue have already been trapped by us. Once the marriage starts, your Yang Family will all be served poisoned wine. At this point, the whole family will definitely die without a single one left. Yang Wu will also die. As for Yang Lingyue, I think she will make the wisest choice and choose Shiji!¡±


    ¡°Even Yang Xueqing had chosen my father and has forsaken the Yang Family. I too like you, so if you would follow me, even without the Yang Family, you three girls from the Yang Family can also get along together happily! You must know, the order that my grandfather had given us was to kill all of you younger generations of the Yang Family in Big Barren Mountain!¡±


    Hearing Bai Shichen¡¯s speech, Long Chen¡¯s expression abruptly changed.


    ¡°No wonder they were attacking the younger generation of the Yang Family in Big Barren Mountain. So it is the n of the Bai Family to exterminate us!¡±


    With so many different kinds of information, it stirred Long Chen¡¯s emotions greatly.


    That Bai Family Master looked to be a nice guy and indeed had close ties with the Yang Family, but Long Chen would have never thought that he woulde up with this sudden move. A person¡¯s heart is indeed sinister.


    ¡°What are the objectives of the Bai Family¡¯s Master for doing all of this? Is it done just for the twenty years of mayor position? ording to the strength of the Bai Family younger generation, it could be easily achieved. There isn¡¯t even a need to create such a huge scheme!¡±


    Allowing the Yang Family to drink poisoned wine during the wedding, this idea was indeed ingenious. Founder Yang, while marrying his daughter off, was on cloud nine. Even if it was a cup of piss, one can¡¯t say for sure that he would not drink it, much less a cup of wine.


    With the elders of the Yang Family dead and the Bai Family massacring the younger generation here, this move of the Bai Family was extremely vicious and cruel, wiping the whole of the Yang Family in a day.


    From the wedding banquet, they have long since set it up. The marriage between Yang Xueqing and Bai Zhanxiong had been an important factor in this whole scheme!


    Thinking of Yang Xueqing, Long Chen¡¯s eyes suddenly turned bloodshot!


    ¡°Although you were cold and distant towards me, I thought that you still had a shred of humanity in you: knowing filial piety, to be amiable to fellow elders and to nurture the younger generation. But I never thought you could be this vicious. You actually helped an outsider to massacre the whole of your family. Yang Xueqing! Is your fucking brain spoilt or something? Do you have an illness?¡±


    No matter how much he thought of this matter, Long Chen just could not figure out why Yang Xueqing acted this way and this was way too far from his threshold ability!


    However, even if Yang Xueqing had abandoned the Yang Family, Long Chen will definitely not. He immediately made up his mind. It was imperative to get rid of Bai Shichen right away, save Yang Lingqing, and then retaliate towards the Bai Family!


    And at this point, seeing that Yang Lingqing was not persuaded, Bai Shichen immediately said solemnly: ¡®Yang Lingqing, since you do not want the easy way out, then I will no longer be courteous towards you. Seeing that this moment is just right, let¡¯s see what you can still do?!¡±

 Chapter 34 – [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]

    Hearing Bai Shichen who had previously put on a noble air, threatening her with a voice filled with menace and lust,Yang Lingqing grimaced and condescendingly looked at Bai Shichen saying: ¡°Originally, I thought you were Por Town¡¯s new generation¡¯s strongest cultivator.The other girls and I had idolised you and had been mesmerised by your noble and elegant air¡­ however,I have realized today, Bai Shichen, that you are actually nothing much. I am not mocking you, but myself, for actually idolising a beast like you in the past.¡±


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s condescending gaze had enraged Bai Shichen from his previous calm state and he gritted his teeth as his true nature emerged.


    That threatening gesture only served to reinforce Yan Lingqing¡¯s condescension as she gazed at him as if looking at a clown.


    Yang Lingqing suddenly said ndly: ¡°Bai Shichen, remember this, even if you were to conquer my body you will never conquer my soul.¡±


    She suddenly thought of a person, her face showing a smile: ¡°However, there¡¯s a person who is much more outstanding than you. Everyone thought of him as a spoilt brat. When he speaks, he sounds like a hooligan, but the depth of his gaze is a thousand times purer than a beast like you.¡±


    Bai Shichen knew who she was referring to and sneered: ¡°You smelly bitch, saying that I am a beast, but you actually harbour feelings for your own cousin, right? Such incestful behaviour, isn¡¯t that worse than a beast?¡±


    Yang Lingqing face turned red and she angrily retorted: ¡°Bastard, only you, would be so dirty-minded. Do you have to harbour feelings for everyone that you approve of? If your mother loves you, does that count as incest?¡±


    At this point, seeing that Yang Lingqing was surprisingly not afraid of him, Bai Shichen¡¯s heart was gradually driven wild and he became aroused. Without saying another word, he pounced on Yang Lingqing. He growled:


    ¡°Who cares who you are? After I have conquered your body, why would I still fear that I wouldn¡¯t be able to enve your soul? Yang Lingqing!¡±


    Yang Lingqing was about to scream but then, her eyes widened at the sight behind Bai Shichen. Bai Shichen was suspicious as to why the person in his arms was not resisting and was still wondering about it when he felt someone standing behind him. He was momentarily frightened as he broke out into a cold sweat and spun around.


    Seeing how he was shocked after seeing Long Chen, Yang Lingqing punched him in the waist and took the chance to run towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Run!¡±


    She wanted to seize the opportunity and began pulling Long Chen along to escape. But what made her exasperated was that Long Chen¡¯s whole body, as if in shock, had stayed rooted to the ground and no matter how hard she tried she couldn¡¯t pull him away.


    At this point, Bai Shichen had already recovered from his shock and the both of them no longer had any chance to escape.


    Yang Lingqing knew that Long Chen¡¯s nature was obstinate and hot tempered and that if they were to stay here he would definitely have a death match with Bai Shichen. Right now, the only option was to stand in front of Long Chen and, while ring at Bai Shichen, she whispered to Long Chen: ¡°Hurry and escape, the Bai Family is going to poison Grandfather and the rest during the wedding banquet. We should hurry back to inform them!¡±


    Saying which, her tears began flowing.


    Today¡¯s events were the greatest torment in her sixteen years of life.


    She and Long Chen were born in the same year, in the same month, and on the same day but had different upbringings. She had been pampered since she was young, but Long Chen had fought and stumbled for the past sixteen years instead.


    Realizing that this girl actually had once again stood in front of him, with the thought to protect him, Long Chen couldn¡¯t help but feel touched. However to him, Yang Lingqing¡¯s request to escape, that was impossible.


    He, Long Chen, had never let a woman stand in front to protect him.


    At this point, Bai Shichen sneered and said: ¡°You are the person that she was referring to? Heaven had given you a path but you chose not to walk on it. You chose instead to break into the gates of Hell. Oh well! Today seeing how both you and my Lingqing have such a fate, I will put up a good performance with her for you.¡±


    Yang Lingqing had already implored Long Chen but looking at him, who actually remainedpletely unconcerned, she became extremely panicked and growled: ¡°Brother Chen, aren¡¯t you a man? Can¡¯t you prioritize the big picture? The lives of grandfather and the rest of the family are in your hands!¡±


    Long Chen lifted his head and gave her a gentle look. He pursed his lips and then pulled her behind him, and his determined voice reached Yang Lingqing¡¯s ears.


    ¡°Lingqing, you have grown so well. I, being the big brother, had only stood up for you only once until now. I am quite embarrassed about that. This brat has actually made you cry today! Since your tears flow, I will let him flow out blood¡­.¡±


    ¡°As for grandfather and the rest, give me another half a minute and I¡¯ll be able to settle this.¡±


    Although his voice was calm, his resolution, confidence and decisiveness had stunned Yang Lingqing.


    She suddenly thought of that time back in the Cultivator¡¯s Market when she got bullied by Bai Zhixing. Long Chen had stood in front of her then and although his back wasn¡¯t majestic, that steely backbone had actually made her feel indescribably calm and collected.


    But what Long Chen faced right now was the number one genius of Por Town!


    ¡°With Elder Brother taking care of things, you should retreat behind and learn how I punish bad guys.¡±


    Yang Lingqing nodded her head and retreated into the forest behind them.


    Seeing that Long Chen had not let Yang Lingqing escape, Bai Shichen was momentarily bbergasted and growled: ¡°Boy, using the conventional scenario, shouldn¡¯t you let her escape first? I was prepared to feel touched but unexpectedly your brains have already be rotten.¡±


    However, Long Chen said: ¡°That is because there is no need for her to escape if it¡¯s you I¡¯m dealing with. I only have half a minute anyway. I¡¯ve heard the propaganda that you, Bai Shichen, is the number one genius of Por Town, so today I will break that myth in front of my younger sister!¡±


    Bai Shichen sized Long Chen up, and then burst outughing: ¡°A delusional person¡­¡­¡±


    As he erupted inughter, Long Chen¡¯s impressive aura had alreadye pressuring towards him and in that moment both of them were ready to strike. As for Yang Lingqing, she hid behind an ancient tree and nervously watched the two.


    Although she was sure that Long Chen would not be a match for Bai Shichen, she had this strange feeling that made her believe Long Chen would emerge victorious.


    ¡°Although you unintentionally caused my brother¡¯s death, you have always been a huge hero in my heart¡­¡­¡±


    This matter had actually been forgotten by Long Chen. It was just Yang Lingqing who had always been remembering that.


    When they were about six years old, Yang Lingqing was extremely yful, often leaving the Yang residence and going to the deep mountains to frolic. One day, she met a few wild wolves and it was then when Long Chen had shielded her and helped her to chase those wild wolves away.


    Long Chen had been bitten full of wounds at that time, and as for Yang Lingqing, she had simply been scared out of her guts.


    The both of them then returned to the Yang Family and Yang Lingqing cried non-stop. It was at this point that Yang Xueqing had assumed that Long Chen had brought Yang Lingqing out, so she furiously berated him.


    Yang Lingqing had always med herself for this matter throughout the years.


    ¡°You have forgotten it but this is actually the third time you have stood in front of me and you have never once fallen¡­¡­¡±


    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s figure, she felt as if she had returned to being six again while a scrawny figure held a sharpened rock and had a strenuous battle with a pack of wild wolves. No matter how many bites he received and while fresh blood was still constantly spilling out, he shed not a single tear!


    As she thought on, Yang Lingqing felt extremely moved.


    At this point Long Chen had given Bai Shichen a death stare. After the exchange of auras earlier between them, he had already probed and discovered that Bai Shichen was indeed much stronger than Bai Shiji. He might have even stepped half a foot into the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    Bai Shichen stopped and looked at Long Chen with a rather shocked expression and said: ¡°They all said you were in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but you had long ago entered the sixth level and have almost broken into the seventh. As expected, you have greatly concealed your strength but it¡¯s just of this level and you still want to deal with me, who is close to eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm?¡±


    Long Chen had to admit that this was indeed the toughest battle he had ever faced. Compared to the Underground Blood Lizard King from before, although its body was extremely huge and many times bigger, it wasn¡¯t as difficult to deal with as Bai Shichen!


    Bai Shichen had already spent over ten years cultivating and his talent had surpassed Bai Shiji. It wouldn¡¯t be so easy for Long Chen to defeat him.


    At this point, Bai Shichen stared lustfully at Yang Lingqing and was momentarily fired up. He too, no longer had any time to fool around with Long Chen and immediately said: ¡°I admit that you are indeed a troublesome opponent and all of my other skills apart from [Dark Heavenly Finger] are not able to deal with you. So¡­¡­You just have to wait for your imminent death!¡±


    The [Dark Heavenly Finger] again?


    Long Chen raised his head and said: ¡°I heard that you have trained your [Dark Heavenly Finger] to the second finger technique? Would you grant me the honor of seeing it?¡±


    Bai Shichen stared nkly for a moment and immediatelyughed: ¡°I understand your intentions! You wish to die a glorious death in front of Yang Lingqing right? On ount that you have some weight, I will make an effort to fulfill this dying wish of yours!¡±


    [ED Note: ¡°you have some weight¡±: You are a worthy opponent]


    Yang Lingqing was also puzzled by Long Chen, not knowing what tricks he had up his sleeves.


    [Dark Heavenly Finger] first finger technique, [Transformed Devil First Finger], was almost simr in strength to [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]. As for this second technique, how could Long Chen block it?


    No matter how much she believed in Long Chen, at this point her heart raced wildly.


    Thinking that soon he would finally have Yang Lingqing, Bai Shichen was indescribably excited.


    He detachedly looked at Long Chen, who seemed to be unafraid of death, and gradually brought up the middle finger of his right hand. A stream of ck color suddenly began revolving around it and an impressive aura was sent towards the surroundings!


    The energy from this stream whistled loudly as it was revolving and rapidly grew more powerful. Almost an instantter, as if a huge spiral had appeared, Bai Shichen eyes turned cold. Looking at Long Chen onest time as he was about to use the second technique of [Dark Heavenly Finger], he actually saw Long Chen rapidly forming hand seals!


    ¡°Within a span of only ten odd days you have actually already learnt the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]? I can¡¯t keep you alive any longer!¡±


    Thinking this, Bai Shichen unleashed the full might of the second technique of [Dark Heavenly Finger] and the ck spiral grew evenrger and a hurricane-like gust of wind had been released into the surroundings!


    The tree branches and leaves all exploded into tiny pieces and the mud flew wildly in the air. With a shout, Bai Shichen sent this surging force charging towards Long Chen!


    ¡°[Dark Heavenly Finger], [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]!¡±


    [TL Note: Yellow Spring = Underworld. Ancient Chinese believed that the Heaven was ck and the earth was yellow. Springs were on the ground, so they were called ¡°yellow springs¡±. In Chinese culture, this term often refers to the underworld, a ce where spirits of the dead live.]


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s face was drained of colour when confronted with such a whistling and devastating strike, but Long Chen¡¯s expression remained unchanged!


    He was not affected by this second finger technique, but just focused onpleting his attack. What was different than before was that currently, his body had erupted with an even more intense aura.


    Between his fingers, a total of nine faint red coloured auras had been traversing and with thepletion of the seal there momentarily appeared to be nine Dragon Gods that were being controlled by Long Chen!


    Originally, Yang Lingqing had wanted Long Chen to quickly dodge but at this point she actually saw the faintly discernible images of nine blood red Dragon Gods. She had seen this attack before. It was back when Yang Qingxuan had fought and used this strongest [Seal of the Dragons] technique of the Yang Family!


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!¡±

 Chapter 35 – Have A Lovely Baby Soon!

    Yang Lingqing knew that Long Chen had only gotten the [Seal of the Dragons] about 15 days ago.


    When they went to the Cultivator¡¯s Market, Yang Lingqing felt that the [Seal of the Dragons] was being wasted in his hands. Long Chen was only in the fifth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm after all.


    With Long Chen¡¯s innate ability for battle, if he had just used the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], Yang Lingqing would not have been too surprised. However Long Chen used the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] instead.


    Amongst the Yang Family, there were only 3 people who could use the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]. Founder Yang, Yang Qingxuan and Yang Xueqing. Long Chen had already learnt how to use the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, two whole levels below that of Yang Xueqing!


    Whenpared to Bai Shichen, who knew the second finger technique of [Dark Heavenly Finger], it was obvious that Long Chen¡¯s talent was much greater.


    With the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] that he used at that moment and even though the pressure surging from his opponent was extremely powerful, the idea of Long Chen preparing to use the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] had never crossed his mind!


    When the hand seals of the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] waspleted, the nine Dragon Gods images were under the control of Long Chen. They rapidly condensed into one singr dragon containing a strong whirling aura with the faint shape of blood red dragon. It immediately shed with [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] and the resulting shockwave was many times greater than thatpared to the one against Bai Shiji earlier!


    Long Chen¡¯s proficiency in using the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], even an amateur like Yang Lingqing, could tell that it was much stronger than Bai Shichen¡¯s [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]. After all, for the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], even the trajectory of the attack could not be controlled well by Bai Shichen. He wasn¡¯t in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm so using the skill still seemed a tad difficult for him!


    However, Long Chen was different. This [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] had seemed even moreplete than Yang Qingxuan¡¯s. That magnificent aura, coupled with that blood reeking murderous dragon and bloodlust from Long Chen¡¯s body, had momentarily turned iparably huge and had an aura that seemed to grow stronger the more it fought on!


    To Bai Shicen¡¯s utter disbelief, a swirling image of a Dragon God had dispersed his half assed condensed [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]. In the aspect of technique, he was inferior whenpared to Bai Shiji!


    That huge dragon aura came whistling as his face turned pale. He tried to escape from the sorry looking situation, however, the huge attack stillnded on his shoulders!


    Bai Shichen spewed out a mouthful of blood as he crashed onto the huge rock behind him. Suddenly the rock was split into pieces and Bai Shichen¡¯s back had been riddled and drilled into by the rock fragments throughout his whole body!


    ¡°Impossible!¡±


    Madness filled Bai Shichen¡¯s eyes as he sank into utter disbelief. All he had to show for this oue were ten thousand words of disbelief!


    He was clearly aware of Long Chen¡¯s ability. It was impossible for him to have such explosive battle strength, but the truth was ced cruelly in front of him. The pain in his chest and left shoulder which bore through his heart had told him that it was not an imagination; he had really been defeated by Long Chen¡¯s earlier attack!


    ¡°That is the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]! Impossible, how could Long Chen learn the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] with his current ability?


    As he was wildly seething he suddenly saw Long Chen sinisterly smiling right in front of him.


    Seeing this smile, Bai Shichen felt goosebumps all over his body. At this moment he finally learned why Bai Shidong and Bai Zhixing were so afraid of Long Chen!


    Despite not having much energy left in his body, Bai Shichen was not someone who would admit defeat easily. He dragged his heavily injured body and was about to turn tail and run, but Long Chen¡¯s indifferent voice had already travelled to his ears.


    ¡°You wished to hurt my younger sister. So I will return the favor. I am sorry for hurting your ¡®little brother¡¯.¡±


    A kick viciouslynded on hisher regions and Bai Shichen¡¯s face suddenly turned into the colour of a pig¡¯s liver. The veins littered across his eyeballs suddenly popped out as he let out a pathetic scream. He crashed onto the floor while his body shrank into the shape of a shrimp, continuously shuddering and rolling about.


    Yang Lingqing walked over at this time and seeing Bai Shichen in such agony, she became startled and asked: ¡°Brother Chen, what have you done to him? Why would he be in this much pain?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe his heart could not ept it when he lost to me. Oh right! Lingqing, let us hurry and leave this Big Barren Mountain right now. Bai Shiji and the rest have already been captured by me. If they want to deal with our Yang Family then we will use their heirs as hostages, and charge back to the Bai Family! If they dared to attack grandfather and the rest, for everyone they kill, we will also kill one!¡±


    Speaking of which, the Bai Family was still inside the Yang residences. Yang Lingqing became extremely flustered, as some time had already passed. The sun was gradually setting and if they did not hurry, it cannot be said for sure if the Yang Family and the rest would be able to escape misfortune!


    Although Long Chen¡¯s strategy was considered to be rather risky right now,it was the only shot they had to save the Yang Family!


    If it was only Yang Lingqing, she definitely would not know what do but with Long Chen acting as the emotional pir of support, her heart felt much more relieved.


    In her heart, Long Chen could even beat Bai Shichen and created such a miraculous ending. What other things could he not do anymore?


    Long Chen having captured Bai Shiji, this matter to Yang Lingqing, had not been surprising anymore.


    With no time to waste, Long Chen did not care about Bai Shichen who was moaning in pain. Grabbing onto his cor, he brought Yang Lingqing towards the direction where Yang Wu and the rest were at. The two ces were in fact not that far away and adding on to the pressing situation, they moved extremely fast.


    Very soon they came to the open area where Yang Wu and the rest were. When Long Chen had thrown Bai Shichen, who had been wailing in pain together with Bai Shichen, both Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue minds were numbed.


    Against Long Chen, they had only felt fear towards him. Thinking of themselves who had been such an embarrassment, they both could not lift up their heads.


    Long Chen took a quick nce around, Bai Zhixing and Bai Shidong had already fainted while Bai Shiji was conscious, however he had been critically injured so he could not move. As for Bai Shichen,it was needless to say what happened to him.


    In the future, Bai Shichen most likely would be unable to cook the rice because it cannot be cooked anymore.


    [TL Note: He might not be able to reproduce anymore.]


    Long Chen raised his head, saw that Yang Wu had already stood up and inquired: ¡°Your injury should most be alright by now, right?¡±


    Whenpared to the two sorry figures on the floor, the wounds on his body could only be considered as light, so he said: ¡°There¡¯s not much problem with me anymore.¡±


    Amongst the younger generation, suddenly Long Chen was the most impressive individual in the forefront of thisrge group.


    Long Chen did not say another word and lifted both Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji up and indifferently said: ¡°We have to rush down the Big Barren Mountain and back to the Yang residence now! We will first seize these two fellows. As to why, Yang Lingqing will exin to you on our way back!¡±


    After Long Chen had consecutively defeated Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen, even saving them in the process, the two siblings, Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue, naturally did not have any objections.


    Bai Shidong reeked of urine and to a youngdy like Yang Lingyue, it was naturally an iparably disgusting matter, so Bai Shidong could only be handed over to Yang Wu¡­¡­


    The whole lot of them rapidly descended the mountain, along the way, Yang Lingqing told them everything that had transpired.


    Yang Wu frowned and said: ¡°How could it turn out this way? The people from the Bai Family are really worse than beasts. However Lingqing, is Third Aunt really that way? It can¡¯t be? I understand the integrity of Third Aunt. I think it is impossible¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Lingyue had been around Yang Xueqing the most so she also curiously said: ¡°I too think that it¡¯s not possible! Third Aunt treats me the best. The spirit jades that I had used previously to break through to the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm were all given to me by her¡­¡­.¡±


    Yang Lingqing agonised and shook her head saying: ¡°I also don¡¯t know, but it was what Bai Shichen said¡­¡­¡±


    As they spoke of Yang Xueqing, they had all unanimously raised their head and looked at Long Chen who was running at the front. They felt the atmosphere surrounding Long Chen¡¯s body was getting heavier. Thus, they momentarily did not dare to speak any more about that¡­¡­


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to say more about this matter. After going to the Bai Family, we will naturally know everything.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen¡±s voice travelled over from the front. Although it seemed nonchnt, but the three people at the back knew how heavy his heart was.


    Today was a big day in Por Town.


    The Por town consisted of two main families that controlled the lifeline of the town. Today, it is a big day for the Bai and Yang families; so naturally, it will be a big day for the Por town as well.


    The thrilling event of demonic beast huntingpetition was only one of the key events, but the most joyous was obviously the marriage between the Yang Family and Bai Family. After all, this was the first alliance marriage between the Bai and Yang family.


    Bai Family Master¡¯s Third Son Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s wife had passed away after bearing his two sons. Bai Zhanxiong, who had been in pain for so many years, had finally waited by Yang Xueqing when she was also widowed and afterwards the marriage seemed like the natural course of events.


    To the outsiders it seem liked smooth sailing for Bai Zhanxiong, in reality, it was actually very difficult for him to achieve this.


    With this huge matter between Bai and Yang family, naturally the guests that attended were a lot. All the prestiged individuals and groups from Por town and its neighbours hade to attend the event. As they all sat together in the same hall, they were all drinking and chatting merrily, the atmosphere was very lively. At this point, the ceremony had already been over and the bride had entered the consummation chamber. As for the groom, he was currently apanying the guests drinking wine.


    ¡°Esteemed guests, I will be the first to drink to salute you all!¡±


    ¡°Bai Brother has a huge drinking capacity like that of a sea!¡±


    ¡°I wish that Bai Brother and Xueqing Sister will grow old together, and forever havemon wishes.¡±


    ¡°Have a lovely baby soon!¡±


    ¡°I will definitely do my best!¡±


    The group of them guffawed, the atmosphere was extremely lively. There was a guard that suddenly whispered a few words to Bai Zhanxiong. Bai Zhanxiong poured himself another cup of wine before facing everyone and said: ¡°My fellow brothers, today is my joyous asion, everyone please drink and chat to your heart¡¯s content. I have to make a toast to my father-inw to pay my respects to him, so I will take my leave first!¡±


    Under the merry farewell from the guests, Bai Zhanxiong walked through the corridors and into a main hall. In the main hall, a banquet was also prepared. However, there were not many people there. It only consisted of the Bai and Yang family members.


    Because a few of their younger generation had already gone to participate in the demonic beast huntingpetition, on numbers alone, it was iparable to the number of people outside the hall. However it was still rather lively in here.


    When Bai Zhanxiong entered, the people from both families had been drinking merrily. He closed the door secretly as he walked in and a few guards suddenly appeared and guarded the exit. Only then did Bai Zhanxiong felt at ease and heartilyughed as he walked towards the founder of the Yang¡¯s family. He loudly projected his voice as he said:¡±Uncle Yang! Oh no, I meant father-inw! Today, your son wishes to drink with you!


    Bai Zhanxiong had finished entertaining the esteemed guests outside and finally had time to enter the room. Founder Yang was extremely happy and he hurriedly pulled Bai Zhanxiong to sit with him. It could be seen that he was on cloud nine tonight. He drank too much and at this point, his face was flushed red. He pulled Bai Zhanxiong and said: ¡°Back then when you were born, your father and I was still guarding outside the door. To be truthful, my heart naturally was not lesser than your father¡¯s nervousness. After all, we had already agreed for our child¡¯s mutual marriage and the two of you just coincidentally were one boy and one girl. However, the heavens had made fun of man and a Long Qinn had appeared. But now today, both of you have finally gone on the prenned path. I am extremely ted for the both of you¡­¡­.¡±


    Saying to that point, Founder Yang suddenly felt a little dizzy and momentarilyughed: ¡°I have really aged and almost obsolete. After only drinking such a small amount of wine, I actually am going to topple over soon¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong patted Founder Yang¡¯s shoulder andughed as he said: ¡°Yes, indeed it is time for you to topple over. It¡¯s also about time your Yang Family topples over. In the end, this Por Town will solely belong to our Bai Family¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 36 – Nightmare Flower

    Founder Yang blinked his eyes and looked dazedly at Bai Zhanxiong.


    He felt that the other party had just said something wrong. However at this time, Bai Zhanxiong had actually reached out and patted his cheek, sneering: ¡°Old fellow, the taste of this Nightmare Flower is not too bad, right? Why don¡¯t you try to circte your Qi now and see if it will give rise to a pain that could be felt right down to the bones?¡±


    After being patted on his aging cheek, Founder Yang finally knew that something was amiss. As expected, he followed Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s suggestion. When he tried to circte his Qi, he immediately felt his entire dantian twitching as if he were to use just a tiny bit of energy, his dantian would bepletely destroyed!


    Founder Yang, who was in a bit of a drunken stupor before, instantly woke up. His eyes shed with a cold gaze and stared with deadly intent at the Bai Zhanxiong who was grinning sinisterly. He had recalled what kind of object the Nightmare Flower was.


    It was a kind of poisonous spirit medicine. Its medicinal properties were potent and if a petal were to be directly consumed, it would immediately destroy the cultivator¡¯s Dragon Vein and dantian. But if one were to dilute the petal¡¯s dew, the properties would be lessened a little. The person being poisoned would be fine as long as they did not circte their Qi. But once they did, then it would cause their dantian to explode.


    However, the Nightmare Flower even if it was diluted, there would definitely still be a fragrant scent emitted. Founder Yang clearly remembered that the wine he drank earlier had a strange scent, but he was in the midst of his happiness, so how could he have had the time to bother about the fragrance in the wine?


    By this time, the faces on all the Yang Family members had changed drastically. They too had discovered that when they used their Qi, their dantian would immediately turn as soft and weak as tofu!


    Now, all of them understood that, the Bai Family had schemed against the Yang Family and that they have all already been poisoned unknowingly. The poison in the petals of the Nightmare Flower was not to be underestimated. It was reputed to strike terror into the hearts of people but one did not expect the Bai Family to actually use it on the Yang Family who had ties as close as brothers to them!


    However, the person who was the most stupefied was Founder Yang. He stared nkly at Bai Zhanxiong then shifted his gaze towards the Bai Family¡¯s Master and vehemently said: ¡°Bai Sheng? Why? Have I, Yang Cangqiong, treated you unkindly?¡±


    The face of the Bai Family¡¯s Master which was flushed previously now had darkened. He coldly smirked and said: ¡°On the contrary though I had wanted to ask you. I had really wondered how you were able to remain soughably innocent after all these years?¡±


    He indicated to Bai Zhanxiong by saying: ¡°Xiong Er, go drink your formal exchange of wine between bride and groom before bringing Yang Xueqing here. Today, we shall let them all die together as a family.¡±


    Hearing that the Bai Family¡¯s Master had actually mentioned the ¡°death¡± word, the Yang Family members¡¯ expressions greatly changed!


    Although they could not circte their Qi, they still quickly gathered together, except for the Founder Yang, Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian who stood at the forefront with ashened faces!


    Behind them were the other sons of Founder Yang and of course the elderly, weak women and children. At this moment, Yang Qingxuan went towards Founder Yang ear¡¯s and mournfully whispered: ¡°Father, those who even have a shred of Qi, have all been poisoned by this Nightmare Flower! The Bai Family are such detestable bastards!¡±


    Right now, Founder Yang¡¯s heart was trembling violently. The words said by the Bai Family¡¯s Master previously had left himpletely speechless.


    He never could have imagined that this brother of his whom he had treated as one his own for his whole life, hadpletely turned into this character that he could no longer recognised. This brother was using a belittling expression to look at him, Yang Cangqiong!


    Momentster, Yang Xueqing whose hair had looked untidy, had already been dragged over by Bai Zhanxiong. They both still had the red wedding costume on and Yang Xueqing who had been dressed up and her makeup on looked really beautifully. However, after seeing her dear father and brothers being surrounded and their pale stricken faces, Yang Xueqing¡¯s heart fell to the bottom of a valley!


    ¡°Bai Zhanxiong! What are you doing?! Have your Bai Family gone nuts?!¡±


    Without being able to use her Qi, Yang Xueqing was basically, a helpless and weak woman in front of Bai Zhanxiong. Bai Zhanxiong shoved away her hand that was reaching for him and viciously pped her before he coldly said: ¡°You better remain quiet!¡±


    Then, he pushed Yang Xueqing towards the group of people where Founder Yang was standing. Yang Xueqing rolled on the ground and her originally beautiful dress and makeup were now all askewed. The red mark on her face was especially unsightly!


    Founder Yang immediately supported the agitated Yang Xueqing up. He did not say of another word as he ced her behind him.


    After being one of the two masters in Por Town for so many years, Founder Yang¡¯s mighty appearance was still not to be belittled, even if he could no longer use his Qi. He raised his head and his gaze from his sunken eyes was sharp and falcon-like as he coldly scanned the people from the Bai Family. Atst, his gazended on the Bai Family¡¯s Master.


    The Bai Family¡¯s Master coldly smirked and said: ¡°Look at your own daughter now! Eighteen years ago, she abandoned my son for a useless trash and now that the trash has died, she now wants to make it up with my son. How can there be such a good thing like this on earth? Is she even still worthy to be with my son?¡±


    Founder Yang still had not said a single word, but hearing these words, Yang Xueqing¡¯s face immediately paled. She had already guessed this would happen but when the other party had said it aloud first, the feeling she felt was unbearable!


    Stupefied, she looked towards Bai Zhanxiong, the man who had made a vow to her. Right now though, Bai Zhanxiong did not even care about her gaze and said: ¡°Today¡¯s marriage was just a method for us to exterminate your Yang Family. I, Bai Zhanxiong, have lived my life so freely. Which woman can I not get? Why would I still want a broken flower like you? Father, we have already achieved our goals, so let us make our move now before the long night bes just a long dream¡­¡±


    The fourth son Bai Zhanfeng alsoughed at that moment before saying: ¡°Let me conveniently tell you something. The demonic beast huntingpetition should be almost over already, however,the amount of demonic energy cores your Yang Family will be handing over should be zero as they wouldn¡¯t have had a chance to y any beasts before Shichen and Shiji im their lives.¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong coldly looked at Yang Xueqing and continued saying: ¡°That bastard child you had given birth to, had castrated my son. If it was not for today that we can wipe all of you in one go, that bastard would have died long ago! How do you think I could even tolerate it until now?¡±


    With these two brothers¡¯ words, it was as if a huge thunderbolt from a clear sky had befallen on the Yang Family members!


    After hearing that their own sons and daughters have died, a few of thedies there immediately fainted tragically. The only ones who were strong enough to withstand the mental blow were Founder Yang and Yang Qingxuan. Thinking that Yang Wu and the rest have already died at the opponent¡¯s¡¯ hands, Founder Yang and the rest suddenly felt as if their hearts had torn into pieces.


    Tenaciously staring at the ugly smirks and sneers of the Bai Family members, the members of the Yang Family had all breathed loudly in rage, including Yang Qingxuan who usually had an excellent temper. His eyes were also bloodshot at that moment! The veins on his necks were popping out. If not for Founder Yang who still had some rationality left and blocked him, he would have long ago charged forward and just stake it all!


    One must know that what he had lost was a son and a daughter! This was all of the hard work that Yang Qingxuan sacrificed for his whole life.


    ¡°Bai Family, all of you will die a horrible death!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan at this moment was akin to a wild beast!


    As for Yang Yuntian who had already lost a son, Yang Lingqing¡¯s performance recently was not bad, and it was also his flesh and blood. Thinking that the kindhearted girl would be gone just like this, Yang Yuntian too had be a ferocious beast as well!


    ¡°Bai Sheng, Bai Zhanxiong, Bai Zhanfeng, and you¡­¡­All of you are all savage creatures!¡±


    As for Yang Xueqing, she was still in a state of disbelief!


    She did not dare to believe everything that had transpired was real. That Bai Zhanxiong had never loved her. The marriage that she had been longing for was actually just a plot to exterminate her family.


    Yang Xueqing had be the sinner of Yang Family because of her foolishness!


    From such a jubnt asion to an extremely sorrowful situation, the change in their feelings was extremely huge that the members of Yang Family had found it difficult for them to breathe!


    At this very moment Yang Xueqing thought of death, for only with death, could she escape this ce. She would not need to me herself and that way, bepletely free from this suffering!


    This was the only route for her today and the only path that she must take!


    After being poisoned with Nightmare Flower, Yang Xueqing naturally knew that using her Qi would lead to the rupture of her dantian but right now, this was in ordance to her wishes!


    Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian had lost both of their sons and daughters. The Founder Yang had only focused only restraining them and had left Yang Xueqing unattended. The Bai Family watched them as if watching a monkey show so they did not notice Yang Xueqing. Her face revealed an expression of salvation at that moment.


    By this time, she had thought of many things regarding her whole life. Her dreams when she was a youngdy, the dazzling aura of Long Qinn when he had first appeared. She too had once received bliss but it came quickly and left thoroughly so she had hated Long Qinn, including the flesh and blood that was from Long Qinn.


    She herself was not sure, why she had loathed him so much. She had only felt that Long Chen was too simr to Long Qinn. His body, no matter if it was the looks, mannerisms, gaze, persistence, thoughts and even his soul, they werepletely identical to that of Long Qinn!


    Although he was her own son, there was nothing on Long Chen¡¯s body that was simr to her,Yang Xueqing. The hatred she had harboured for Long Qinn who had ruined her life was extended onto Long Chen as well.


    Especially when Long Chen¡¯s strength had recently been rising astonishingly and the way he disyed his prowess was the same as Long Qinn back in his days!


    Long Chen¡¯s pride had pricked her self-esteem.


    But now, she knew that she was the one who had been delusioned. It was actually all a farce. When she knew that she had actually brought harm upon the whole of Yang Family, before her imminent death, she suddenly thought of this son and everything of him.


    This son¡¯s pride was too headstrong. When Yang Xueqing did not care about him and Long Qinn did the same, he had never once sought even a sign of their care and concern.


    Although he was born in the Yang Family and didn¡¯t have to worry about food and clothes, he had lived all by himself since he was young as if he was just a stray dog in the Yang Family¡¯s residence.


    No one had cared about him, no one given him any pointers and there were constant appearances of wounds inflicted on his body.


    The first time when she told him that she was going to wed Bai Zhanxiong, his prideful lonely back figure, the unbending gaze in his eyes as he beat Yang Lingyue on the stage, those images had all yed in her eyes in sequences.


    Until it reached the point that she broke down and cried.


    Only at this point when all her dreams shattered, did she realised how much she had let down this headstrong child of hers.


    But now, it was toote, because Long Chen had already died at the hands of the Bai Family¡¯s younger generation.


    ¡°Child, don¡¯t be afraid¡­¡­I will immediately apany you now and who knows, maybe in hell, the three of us could still create a beautiful family together¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°The regrets towards you in this lifetime, if there is a chance, I will definitely repay it back to you!¡±


    ¡°But right now¡­¡­¡±


    She gradually lifted her head, her frosty look fell upon Bai Zhanxiong who was seemingly looking smug and muttered: ¡°I don¡¯t want to die and not have any face when I see you, so I must at least kill this devil¡­¡­¡±


    The crowd had all moured because right now everyone could see that Yang Xueqing had actually charged towards Bai Zhanxiong and looking at the hand gestures, she actually nned to use [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!


    At the same time, therge wooden doors that had definitely been closed suddenly exploded out, smashed into smithereens and flew into the hall. A few guards were sent flying into the hall too, wailing in agony!

 Chapter 37 – Buried Together

    Yang Xueqing¡¯s suicidal attack had also shocked the Bai Family members and Bai Zhanxiong, because of his proximity, had not put up his guard at all as he never thought that Yang Xueqing would actually use such a suicidal attack!


    As for the Yang Family members, they were even more startled!


    Although they knew that today the whole lot of them were going to perish here, looking on helplessly at the death of their own family members, they still felt extremely terrible inside. Especially Founder Yang and the rest, their faces were even more stricken pale!


    ¡°Xueqing! Come back!¡±


    Although there was the stern voice from Founder Yang, Yang Xueqing had already made up her mind, so how could halt in her footsteps?


    In her eyes, the whole world only consisted of her rising Qi and the smug face of Bai Zhanxiong in front of her!


    At this point, the big red and wooden door had been smashed into smithereens and a few guards followed it and crashed into the hall. Under the astonishment of everyone, a few youngsters rapidly charged into the main hall and the leader of the group had given a kick to the guards that were standing in front of them, crashing them into the coiling dragon-patterned pir in the main hall!


    When the faces of these youngsters were recognised, all of the people were astonished!


    Bai Family members were even more in a state of disbelief and even the sly and crafty old Bai Family¡¯s Master, after seeing such a scene, widened his eyes and inhaled a deep breath, his face filled with shock!


    As for the Yang Family members, they had all felt as if they had stepped into a dream, especially Yang Qingxuan and the rest. They originally thought their son and daughter deceased but not one of them had actually died and they were alive and kicking. This revtion had caused them all to be unable to regte their breathing.


    This sudden feeling of havinge back from Death¡¯s door had caused all of their face to stiffen!


    As everyone stared on in shock, Long Chen brought the other three Yang Family members and nonchntly walked into this main hall!


    Yang Wu was holding onto Bai Shidong, whose expression was filled with fear, while Yang Lingqing and Yang Lingyue had Bai Zhixing¡¯s life at their disposal. As for Long Chen, he held onto the cor of Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen with one hand each while dragging them into the main hall!


    Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen had a substantial amount of blood dripping from them and the loss of blood had already drained their faces of all colour. The ground of the main hall had two huge brush paths of blood which was done by Long Chen as he was dragging them!


    As the Bai Family members looked on, this situation was not only beyond their expectations, it was also a ghastly sight to behold!


    Especially for Bai Zhanxiong and the few who were fathers of these children. Seeing that their sons were actually on the brink of death and only with a small sliver of life left in them, almost returning to the West, their hearts had all constricted tightly!


    [TL Note: (¹éÎ÷) ¡°Returning to the West¡±: Chinese idiom signifying dying and going to Paradise]


    Bai Zhanxiong looked at Long Chen with a disbelieving expression but it gradually turned into a fearsome and murderous re!


    When Long Chen walked in, Yang Xueqing looked at him first and made contact with his darkened expression. Only then did she stop her attack, looking on nkly at Long Chen, which enabled Founder Yang to drag her back.


    At this moment, Yang Xueqing still felt as if she was dreaming.


    In her eyes, everyone around her had vanished and there was only this young man with endless pride and arrogant, standing in front of her. In his hands, he held onto the spoils of war as he proudly walked through this main hall belonging to the strongest family in Por Town!


    At this moment, endless remorse and regrets had filled Yang Xueqing eyes!


    Long Chen had seen her previous attacked towards Bai Zhanxiong.


    Before arriving, the most unbelievable thing that Long Chen had heard was that Yang Xueqing had betrayed the Yang Family and Long Chen could not ept that at all but, looking on right now, it was clear that this was all a lie that Bai Shichen told Yang Lingqing in order to get her in his hands.


    Long Chen¡¯s tightly bound heartstrings had only then rxed a little.


    However, seeing the Yang Family members¡¯ faces and the current situation, Long Chen already knew that they had been poisoned.


    Before arriving, Long Chen interrogated Bai Shidong about the various kinds and types of poison and also knew that the antidote for the Nightmare Flower was in the hands of the Bai Family!


    Bai Shidong and Bai Zhixing were still conscious at this point and, seeing that they had actually returned back to their family, they cried out anxiously: ¡°Father, Grandfather, save me! Save me!¡±


    Yang Wu and the rest were extremely nervous right now, especially for Yang Lingqing and these two girls but, seeing that in front of them there still stood an unwavering figure resolutely protecting them, only then did they felt relieved!


    At this point all of the people could see that in the Yang Family¡¯s younger generation the leader was no longer Yang Wu but Long Chen, who had recently risen to fame!


    Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji were both cultivators of the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Moreover, Bai Shichen had even been knowned as the number one genius of Por Town these past 20 years but right now these two, the pride of the Bai Family, were actually held in Long Chen¡¯s hands like beaten dogs! Can this possibly mean that these two fellows had been beaten by Long Chen?!


    This was an extremely preposterous though, so basically no one could have believed it but, at this point, the Bai Family members had been forced to ept this result. During the demonic beast huntingpetition, the Bai Family younger generation had beenpletely defeated.


    A huge wave of aura came pressuring towards Long Chen as Bai Family¡¯s Master rose from his seat and stared frostily at Long Chen at the forefront, and coldly said: ¡°It seems that you, brat, still have some tricks. You were actually able to reverse the situation and harm my Bai Family members instead during this demonic beast huntingpetition! Your nature and schemes are not bad! But, with only using that point, you wish to stand in front of us like this today? You are seeking death!¡±


    Seeing that the most extraordinary young members of his Bai Family had been injured to this extent, the heart of the Bai Family¡¯s Master twitched violently.


    Bai Shiji spat out ckened blood which obviously meant that he had already suffered severe internal injuries and. Even if he could be saved, he would still need at least a year of recuperation. After that period of time, his cultivation would likely have regressed. Bai Shichen¡¯s face was the color of a pig¡¯s liver and at this point he was still covering hisher region that was spasmodically jerking. Those who could analyse better immediately knew that Bai Shichen most likely had met the same fate as Bai Shixun.


    For the Bai Family, being unable to have offsprings was such a horrifying and blood boiling phrase to them.


    It was enough to endure the first humiliation until today, when they would finally be able exact their revenge, but now Long Chen had done it a second time!


    Seeing the pathetic state of the Bai Family¡¯s younger generation, the Bai Family members were seething with fury!


    At this moment, a middle aged man from the Bai Family who was the closest to Long Chen suddenly charged at Long Chen. Although he was unclear of his identity, he could assume that it was probably one of Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s younger brothers. Seeing that the man charging directly at him and used the [Dark Heavenly Finger] attack, Long Chen smirked!


    That sneak attack from the Bai Family had currently caused all of the Yang Family members to exim in shock. Founder Yang and the rest knew the extent of Long Chen¡¯s abilities so they disregarded their lives and fervently tried to save him at that moment!


    For Yang Xueqing especially, whose emotions had been tossed from the highest point down to the lowest by first seeing that her admired Bai Zhanxiong had turned into a devil and then the outstanding youths Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji being turned into mongrels. Long Chen¡¯s position in her heart had risen up quickly!


    Yang Yuntian, who was in the crowd, finally moved his gaze away from his unharmed daughter, who was actually so brave today, and felt extremely proud for that. However, when he looked at Long Chen, his expression suddenly changed.


    Long Chen harming his son and tonight¡¯s matter were of two different things. The agony of the death of his own flesh and blood to the middle aged Yang Yuntian was like a pain that prated through his heart!


    Seeing that the other family members had taken the initiative and attacked while grasping the timing so well, the Bai Family members all had smiles on their faces.


    They were all aware of Long Chen¡¯s ability, and reasoned that he must have employed some form of underhanded mean, in order to have these Bai Family youths wind up in such a state.


    It had not even crossed their minds that their measures today were the real ones that were underhanded!


    Long Chen and the rest were worried that they would have been blocked by the Bai Family members before they could step into the main hall, so they sneakily flipped over the wall. The guests who were still attending the wedding banquet werepletely oblivious that from a ce not far away from the main hall, a spectacr scene was actually unfolding!


    ¡°Be careful!¡±


    Seeing that they could not make it in time, the masses of the Yang Family could only warn and preempt the calm and steadied Long Chen, that, this strike of [Dark Heavenly Finger] was almost as strong as Bai Shiji¡¯s. However¡­¡­


    Long Chen only smirked and lifted both Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji up with ease, cing them in front of him. At the same time, he used one hand and circted a faint red aura, which had rapidly swirled and grew stronger in his palm!


    Seeing that both Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen were actually in front of him the Bai Family member who had used the [Dark Heavenly Finger] was suddenly flustered and hurriedly stopped the cirction of the technique. At this moment the Bai Family members had all fervently warned: ¡°Zhanyun! Be careful!¡±


    Bai Zhanyun was dazed as Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji had been ced on the ground and Long Chen¡¯s smiling face emerged. Bai Zhanyun suddenly felt that how sinister thatughter was and in the next moment, a faint red image of a Dragon God had crashed into his chest! Bai Zhanyun violently coughed out a mouthful of blood and his face became pale stricken in an instant!


    He immediately staggered more than a dozen metres back and crashed into a wall with a loud bang and as he fell, his body was already devoid of life!


    Bai Zhanyun, dead!


    ¡°[Seal of the Ashened Dragon]?!¡±


    These words had suddenly emerged in everyone¡¯s heart, as everyone knew that when Long Chen obtained [Seal of the Dragons]. He was able use the ability single handedly, what kind of amazing control does he has to do that?


    Amongst the Yang Family right now there were only three people who could use [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] with a single hand!


    The one who was most stupefied was Yang Xueqing. As if in a daze, she looked at that young man filled with endless spirit and saw the resolution that was in his eyes as if he could withstand the pressure of facing all of the experts in the Bai Family. Compared to Long Qinn, who also had boundless potential in the past, how simr was that?


    ¡°Could it be that you both, father and child, have been destined to be the bane of my life?¡±


    Thinking of Long Qinn and then seeing that Long Chen had actually single-handedly used the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] topletely kill a seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator from the Bai Family, this was not such a surprising thing anymore.


    To her, no matter if it was Long Chen or Long Qinn, when they had disyed their extraordinary talent, there was basically no one who could cover their brilliance amongst their peers,.


    Like the past where Bai Zhanxiong had been utterly defeated under Long Qinn¡¯s hands.


    Yang Family members were shocked by [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], and Bai Family members looking at Bai Zhanyun who had died so suddenly, their hearts faltered, at the same time fury rose within them!


    Especially Bai Family¡¯s Master, Bai Zhanyun was the youngest son he doted the most upon, and he was almost entering the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but who would have thought he would just die like this!


    The tension in the atmosphere had suddenly increased, and basically the Bai Family members of eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and above, had all explosively drawn their strongest aura, and a wave of pressure which seemed to nket the sky hade pressing towards Long Chen, but he did not lose his bearings, only gripping the throat of Bai Shiji.


    ¡°If you wish to see this young genius of Bai Family die, Bai Zhanxiong, if you wish to see your son die on my hands, then why don¡¯t you try and attack! I guarantee you within a span of a breath; these four will all die without a single one left! Although you can exterminate my Yang Family, but these four youths would have to be buried together with us! Actually I am rather curious, without them, would you still be able to continue the bloodline of Bai Family?!¡±

 Chapter 38 – Opposing Forces Like Water and Fire

    Saying which, Long Chen pressed his fingers tightly onto the throat of Bai Shiji. He even used all of his strength doing so. Bai Shiji, who originally had been severely injured, could not breathe smoothly anymore at this point and his eyes widened. Groggily looking at Long Chen, he suddenly shuddered and another mouthful of ckened blood was expelled. With a frightened expression clearly appearing on his face, his whole body had constantly quivered in terror too.


    Seeing Bai Shiji act like this, and along with the frosty look on Long Chen, the Bai Family were frightened and immediately withdrawn.


    Seeing that his own son was actually in such a miserable state, Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s eyes had almost spewed mes. He gave Long Chen a death stare and demanded: ¡°You had better stop! If Shiji were to die, your Yang Family will all die a horrible death! You too will die miserably, because I will torture you to death!¡±


    Despite this fiery gaze from Bai Zhanxiong, Long Chen waspletely fearless of him and he did not loosen his grip on Bai Shiji at all.


    ¡°No matter what happens, it will only lead to death. Why would I be afraid of you then? In the worst case scenario, I just have to kill myself. What will you be able to do to me then? However, this injury on your son, Bai Shiji, doesn¡¯t seem like it could be dragged on any further. If left unattended, perhaps in less than half an hour time, he will already be dead¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen said all of this nonchntly, but seeing the miserable state that Bai Shiji was in, Bai Family members were all extremely anxious. The two great future hopes of the family had were both in the hands of Long Chen. Even if it was the Bai Family¡¯s Master, he refrained from shooting at the rat for fear of breaking the vase.


    [TL Note: To not act against an evildoer to prevent harm from befalling the innocent, simr to not shooting a criminal because of a hostage.


    What Long Chen said was extremely right, if these four were to die, even if they could exterminate the Yang Family, Bai Family would not have a next generation anymore. The strongest apart from the four of them, was a youth in the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. He would bepletely unable to continue the legacy of the Bai family and rece Bai Zhanxiong and the rest.


    At this point, seeing that the Bai Family members were finally frightened by him, Long Chen smirked as he dragged Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen towards Founder Yang.


    Bai Zhanxiong was blocking the way between then, Long Chen raised his head and coldly red at him saying: ¡°Move!¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong naturally would not move, and seeing Long Chen holding both Bai Shiji and Bai Shichen as hostages, he too wanted to follow suit and capture the Yang Family members. However, as he turned around, the Yang Family members had already knew very well what he was up to!


    Although they had been poisoned with the Nightmare Flower and if they were to greatly circte their Qi, the Yang Family members will surely die. However, they could at least achieve a one-time attack. At this moment, Founder Yang suddenlyughed loudly and gave Long Chen an admiring look as he said: ¡°Boy, nicely done! However we won¡¯t be your burden. If the Bai Family would dare to touch us, I will let them taste the might of the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] from a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator! I want to see how many of these Bai Family members could withstand such a blow!¡±


    Founder Yang had finally awoken from his delusions about the brotherhood and he viciously gave Bai Family¡¯s Master a death re and hissed: ¡°Bai Sheng, I, Yang Cangqiong, might be truly useless. As I have truly understood the word ¡®vicious¡¯ only today with your help. Let me tell you that if you wish to eradicate my Yang Family without paying a price, that will be impossible!¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong could no longer kidnap the Yang Family members and Bai Shiji and the rest was still in Long Chen¡¯s hands. As such, he did not know whether to move forward or retreat, being stuck in an awkward dilemma.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s hands had already left a mark on Bai Shiji¡¯s throat, while Bai Shiji had already started to foam, he sent murderous stare towards Long Chen and then let him pass.


    Only then did Long Chen stand in front of the Yang Family who had gathered together. Currently, the Bai Family members had stood together as well, apart from the Bai Family¡¯s Master standing at the front, the other experts of the Bai Family and the eldest son Bai Zhanlong also gave Long Chen death stares.


    This Bai Shichen was Bai Zhanlong¡¯s son and had always been his pride, but seeing his own son in such a wretched state, and not knowing if there was any cure for him, his murderous intent towards Long Chen had not been one bit inferior to Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s!


    Both families confronted the other, with Long Chen holding the talented youth duo of the Bai Family standing at the forefront. The Yang Family members watched on, thinking that the most insignificant member of the family had gone on and be one of the pirs of support for them. For that instant, they felt like they had stepped into a dream.


    Yang Xueqing too was extremely moved, in fact she did not know what to say as she stared at Long Chen¡¯s back nkly. Although she had very much wanted to step forward and apologise and beg for his forgiveness but the current situation did not allow for this.


    However, at this point, Long Chen turned and nced at her.


    The truth was that Long Chen harboured only hatred for Yang Xueqing. Everything that he had done was only to prove himself to her. At this point Bai Shiji had already been defeated by him and Bai Zhanxiong too had been forced back miserably. Everything Long Chen did was only to show it to this woman!


    When he turned around and gazed at her, he was nning to unt to her and let Yang Xueqing realize who was the real trash. Seeing Yang Xueqing eyes brimming with tears, Long Chen was stumped. Withdrawing his smug expression, he rigidly turned his head away.


    He suddenly felt that, at this moment, that woman was so frail. Although Long Chen had always steeled his heart, at this instant, he unexpectedly felt sorry for her.


    He felt that he would be able to exert a boundless fighting spirit with the woman behind him looking on. Thus, he turned his sharp and icy gaze once again towards the Bai Family¡¯s members.


    At this moment, Yang Yuntian who was beside Yang Xueqing, had also stared nkly at Long Chen. He was conflicted between his son¡¯s death and the fact that Long Chen had just saved the Yang Family members. These conflicting emotions constantly fought within his heart.


    Founder Yang stood by Long Chen¡¯s side and looked at the Bai Family¡¯s Master and said: ¡°Bai Sheng, you are also an intelligent man. Your Bai Family could havepletely wiped out my Yang Family effortlessly today. It¡¯s just too bad that the younger generation from your Bai Family were too disappointing. With this result now, it is impossible for you to annihte my Yang Family. Unless you want to forsake the future of the Bai Family, and watch on as these youngsters die!¡±


    If they were to fight to the death, even if the Yang Family were to perishpletely, the Bai Family would also not be left with much people.


    Although the Bai Family members were all unwilling, the conclusion had already been fixed. No matter how unwilling they were, they still had to give in as they were unable to change this oue.


    Long Chen coldly said: ¡°If you still have brains, you should bring out the antidote! Our Yang Family can afford to wait, but it seems that Bai Shiji isn¡¯t able to wait any longer. From what I see, he shouldn¡¯t be able to hold on for more than a minute¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Shiji was in a precarious situation. If they didn¡¯t start treating him immediately, they wouldn¡¯t be able to save his life.


    Although Bai Zhanxiong was unwilling, especially because of Long Chen¡¯s performance, it made him to recall his indignation back in the past. However, he too could tell that his son¡¯s life was at stake right now. Hence, he became flustered and said: ¡°Father, we had failed today¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Family¡¯s Master coldly looked at Founder Yang. His heart was extremely unsatisfied with this oue.


    After crafting such a long and meticulous n, only to find that it was totally ruined by a nobody! How could he ept this?!


    Bai Zhanxiong also knew that today¡¯s mishap was due to Long Chen. He regretted as he thought, ¡°When I had sent some people to assassinate him, I found his existence was troublesome as I thought he could only affect Yang Xueqing¡¯s feelings for me. But I didn¡¯t know that in the end, my whole n would be ruined by him!¡±


    He whispered to the Bai Family¡¯s Master: ¡°Father after this, second Uncle will be free. After inviting some of his Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s friends to help out, the Yang Family would still be annihted! We just have to bear for ten days after today¡¯s defeat and win over them. However if we continue, we won¡¯t be able to gain Shiji¡¯s life back!¡±


    What was whispered between Bai Zhanxiong and the Bai Family¡¯s master was repeated to Long Chen by Lingxi.


    Long Chen frowned as he knew what they meant from their words. He understood that even after the Yang Family escaped this hurdle, their days won¡¯t be peaceful in the future. Also, he didn¡¯t know how strong the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect that Bai Zhanxiong had mentioned was.


    At this point, the Bai Family¡¯s Master swayed.


    He also understood that he hadpletely lost today so he casually waved his hand before he said dejectedly at the Founder Yang: ¡°I can give you the antidote but you better not y any tricks. If any of my grandsons have any problems, the oue will be a fight to the death!¡±


    The Yang Family was supposed to be the victim today, but they weren¡¯t hurt at all. They got what they wanted to achieve and left safely from the ce. After today¡¯s fight, they naturally would head back and once they recovered, the fight would begin again.


    Founder Yang was unwilling for any other misfortunes so he said, ¡°I will promise that they will be fine after you hand over the antidote.¡±


    The Bai Family¡¯s Master took out a bottle from his sleeve. It was the antidote to the Nightmare Flower. It was made from boiling the stem of the Nightmare Flower.


    The Bai Family wasn¡¯t poisoned today as they had previously taken the antidote already.


    The Nightmare Flower was considered to be a Spirit Medicine. As long as the stem and flower petal was consumed together, it would definitely aid in an increase in their power.


    ¡°How about this? You give the antidote to us and we¡¯ll release two of them. After we have recovered, we will release the other two.¡± Founder Yang said ndly.


    The Bai Family¡¯s Master snorted in disdain at how cautious Founder Yang was. He directly tossed the antidote to the hand of Founder Yang before coldly saying, ¡°Yang Cangqiong, after so many years, you are still such a gutless person. I have lost today but I don¡¯t have any more thoughts to toy with you. However, after today you must be careful when you walk out of the Bai Family¡¯s door, because we will be like water and mes from now on!¡±


    Founder Yang allowed Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue to release Bai Shidong and Bai Zhixing. These two brats immediately ran towards their father as they wept endlessly.


    Founder Yang only cared to open the medicine bottle. After he sniffed the contents inside, he confirmed it was really the scent from the stem portion of the Nightmare Flower.


    ¡°Father, let me try it first!¡± Yang Xueqing suddenly eximed.


    ¡°This Bai Family has a lot of schemes. We shouldn¡¯t believe in them so easily. You are the strongest person on our side, so if you were to fall for their scheme, we will be finished!¡±


    Founder Yong smiled and said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Father has let you down today and humiliated you.¡±


    After he said that, he directly consumed a dose of the antidote and gave the bottle to Yang Qingxuan. He sat down and circted his Qi. His body¡¯s vigorous power burst forth again in less than half a minute¡¯s time, and a pair of eagle¡¯s eyes abruptly opened. When Long Chen saw them, his heart had slightly palpitated.


    ¡°The antidote really works! Use it quickly!¡±


    The rest of the Yang Family quickly took the antidote. After half a minute, they too had recovered their strength. The Yang Family¡¯s overall strength was slowly returning back to the same level as their opponents.


    Founder Yang indicated to Long Chen. ¡°Just let them have these kids back! There are still opportunities to capture them again. I knew that you were stronger than them from the instant you stepped into the room.¡±


    Long Chen had previously wanted to kill Bai Shiji. More importantly, he had wanted to prove himself to Yang Xueqing. However, after such a big incident, he no longer felt the need to prove anything.


    As for Bai Shiji, he was definitely not his match. Now he wasn¡¯t a match, and never will he be, so Long Chen was not interested in his life or death at all.


    He casually tossed the bodies and they flew towards the Bai Family.


    The Bai family immediately caught them. After looking at the current state of the two young talents of the Bai Family, they grieved. The Bai Family looked at Long Chen as though they were staring at a dead person already.


    Bai Zhanxiong handed over his son that was beaten to death to the person behind him. He gazed at Long Chen; his eyes filled with killing intent and said, ¡°You¡­.You¡¯ll definitely not live beyond ten days. You should enjoy as much of yourst days while you can.¡±


    ¡°I can also certainly assure you that your grandson won¡¯t live beyond today.¡±


    Long Chen nonchntly replied.

 Chapter 39 – Devilish Long Chen!

    After today¡¯s battle, this incident should be counted aspletely over.


    The Bai Family had initially wanted to annihte the Yang Family but Long Chen¡¯s appearance had turned the tables around. Not only did he injure the two hopes of the Bai Family, he even allowed the Yang Family toe outpletely unharmed. Everyone present at that moment looked at Long Chen withpletely different views.


    There was respect, appreciation and even fear.


    Founder Yang was schemed against by someone he had treated as a brother, almost bringing down his whole family. He never spoke another word to Bai Family¡¯s Master. His face darkened as he brought the Yang Family away from the Bai Family.


    Yang Xueqing, who was amongst them, was still wearing the red wedding costume.


    After leaving the main hall, Long Chen walked at the side while Yang Xueqing and Yang Yuntian walked in front. Long Chen had ced his attentionpletely on Yang Xueqing and overlooked Yang Yuntian, who was suffering in pain at that moment.


    As he thought about how Long Chen had salvaged the whole situation of the Yang Family, he also thought deeply about his son.


    He had witnessed every moment of joy, anger, sadness and happiness that his son had experienced as he grew. Yang Yuntian was filled with the memories of his son, whose death had been caused by Long Chen¡­¡­


    ¡°Zhan Er, Zhan Er, when will I be able to avenge you? He could even kill a person who is on the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. I had promised Father not to touch him before the demonic beast huntingpetition, but thepetition is over already¡­..¡±


    ¡°After tonight, I would no longer be his opponent and could never be able to kill him, much less seek revenge for you!¡±


    ¡°Zhan Er, what do you think I should do? You hate him, right? I hate him as well. But today he was actually the saviour of our Yang Family¡­¡­¡±


    They were only twenty odd steps away from the big door of the main hall that Long Chen had smashed and during that period, Yang Yuntian was filled with inner conflicts that nobody could see.


    Everyone was immersed in the celebration of surviving the ordeal, including Long Chen. He hadpletely forgotten that Yang Yuntian was someone who had a grudge against him.


    At this moment, Yang Yuntian thought of every scene involving his son and the hatred in his heart gradually grew. Thinking that he would no longer have the chance to deal with Long Chen after tonight, Yang Yuntian¡¯s face momentarily turned pale. He clenched his teeth and his eyes revealed the madness he felt.


    When He was standing only two steps in front of Long Chen, Yang Yuntian unexpectedly turned around and threw a [Falling Star Fist] towards Long Chen. Long Chen could only stretch out his arms to block the close-ranged attack.


    But even if it was like this, that unexpected punch still made the blood in his body churned, immediately sending him flying away from the protection of the Yang Family and directly towards the Bai Family!


    This unexpected turn of events shocked everyone on the scene and made everyone from the Bai Family¡¯s sideugh wildly to their hearts¡¯ content. The Yang Family members all furiously stared at Yang Yuntian who had made that move.


    ¡°Second Brother! You¡¯re insane!¡±


    Yang Xueqing was instantly startled. However, nobody cared to berate Yang Yuntian, as Founder Yang, Yang Qingxuan, and Yang Xueqing had rapidly moved forward to chase after Long Chen.


    Although his arm blocked Yang Yuntian¡¯s attack, Long Chen still suffered some injuries and due to that, he could not control his body from flying backwards.


    In midair, he thought of hisnding point. There most likely would be a bunch of Bai Family members waiting for him there!


    A huge fish like Long Chen was sent flying to the Bai Family who all hated Long Chen to the core, especially Bai Zhanxiong and Bai Zhanlong. They could not wait to swallow him whole. At this moment, having been given the chance to kill Long Chen so easily, how could they ever let go of this chance?!


    Long Chen was in shock as the top three experts from the Yang Family chased after him. However, they were obviously still a tad slower. Long Chen suddenly turned around and saw that Bai Zhanxiong, who was the closest to him, had an excited yet sinister smile on his face.


    On his fingers, a ck energy was swirling and looking at the aura, it was at least ten times greater than that of Bai Shiji who used the [Dark Heavenly Finger] previously!


    Long Chen was appalled. Yang Xueqing and the rest anxiously warned him from behind. Long Chen, who had just been hit into midair by the [Falling Star Fist], immediately made some hand movements to form the [Seal of the Dragons]!


    The most shocking moment that startled everyone was that this time, Long Chen was doing a more abnormal move than the previous [Falling Star Fist] that Long Chen had exhibited previously. He was actually using both hands to individually form the seals of [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]s!


    Yang Xueqing, who saw that Bai Zhanxiong was using [Dark Heavenly Finger], paled. She was feelingpletely hopeless when an immense aura from the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] surged out from Long Chen¡¯s hands. The immense aura incessantly shocked those three members of the Yang Family.


    ¡°Double hand seals? How is this possible? Even if it¡¯s me, I would not be able to so urately control this [Seal of the Ashened Dragon]!¡±


    Shock filled Founder Yang¡¯s heart, as this was just too unbelievable.


    In the past, he had obtained this [Seal of the Dragons] in a mysterious ce and had used this [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] for many years. But he never thought that the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] could actually be used in such a manner.


    And Long Chen knew that all of this was due to the wonders of the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant. Because of it, Long Chen could grasped the technique of [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] so quickly. He even was able to innovate new techniques and achieve a perfect mastery of the spell!


    Even when he was in midair, his speed was extremely fast. When Bai Zhanxiong had struck out using the [Transformed Devil First Finger], a sh of coldness shed across Long Chen¡¯s eyes. He pushed out his hands and a boundless power surged forth. A faint red aura suddenly turned into an image of the Dragon God but this time it was two that were ovepping each other!


    And Bai Zhanxiong, this expert of the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, used the [Transformed Devil First Finger] and shed with him. Arge force field was instantly created.


    Due to Long Chen being in midair, he was immediately repelled and sent flying and he crashed into a wall at the side. Therge wall had unexpectedly copsed from his collision, leaving a cloud of dust in the air.


    Bai Zhanxiong had already charged forward at that moment and very soon he had caught up to Long Chen!


    At this point, Long Chen did not sustain many injuries. However, Bai Zhanxiong had alreadye chasing after him and he was much stronger than Long Chen. But Long Chen was not one to admit defeat easily!


    As for the other side, the three experts from the Yang Family had arrived. Founder Yang held Yang Qingxuan back and immediately gave chase, while Yang Xueqing who was worried for Long Chen, ran after them at an even greater speed than Founder Yang!


    Founder Yang was unable to stop her so he could only follow and charge out! From the other side, the Bai Family¡¯s Master had brought Bai Zhanxiong from the copsed wall to the main hall. They were immediately stopped and faced with Founder Yang and Yang Xueqing. It was obvious that this was going to be a one on one battle.


    Yang Qingxuan stayed behind and protected the other family members but the Bai Family¡¯s side still had Bai Zhanlong who was of the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    The Yang Familycked an eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so at that moment, Long Chen directly faced off with Bai Zhanxiong.


    Bringing the others along, Yang Qingxuan coldly looked at Bai Zhanlong and headed towards the outer area of the main hall. As for Bai Zhanlong, he too brought the experts in the Bai Family, fervently tailing and impeding Yang Qingxuan¡¯s movements. As long as Yang Qingxuan did not interfere with the battle between Long Chen and Bai Zhanxiong, that would be enough!


    The Bai Family¡¯s goal this time around was on Long Chen only.


    Long Chen¡¯s performance today was too overpoweringly domineering. Long Chen¡¯s power had increased at such a fast rate- And the Bai Family clearly knew how terrifying it is to be so gifted. If Long Chen doesn¡¯t die now, after two to three years, the people that would face death would be the members from the Bai Family.


    So to them, Long Chen¡¯s threat had been greater and towards this genius of an enemy, one must definitely eradicate his existencepletely. Only then, they could have peaceful days!


    The few members from the Bai Family were extremely well coordinated. The Bai Family¡¯s Master blocked Founder Yang; Bai Zhanfeng blocked Yang Xueqing and Bai Zhanlong restricted Yang Qingxuan. This was all to gain time for Bai Zhanxiong to kill Long Chen.


    The Yang Family and the Bai Family had shifted the fight outside at this time. For someone like Yang Lingqing, it was impossible for her to be involved so she could only wait impatiently.


    Having caused such a huge scene on the wedding night, the conflicting families had caused all the guests who were not overly drunk toe dashing towards this area. Seeing such a scene, they all had disbelief written across their faces, and they all fervently discussed the situation.


    ¡°This¡­ What is this situation? Didn¡¯t the Bai and Yang Family became a single family? Why are they like this? It looks as though they were were archenemies!¡±


    ¡°The Bai Family¡¯s Master is facing Founder Yang; that is¡­. Yang Xueqing and Bai Zhanfeng; that¡¯s Bai Zhanxiong, who is his opponent?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the Yang Sanniang¡¯s son who is getting rather famous in the Yang Family? He actually dared to fight against Bai Zhanxiong? How is this possible?¡±


    [TL note: Yang Sanniang, thirddy ¨C Yang Xueqing.]


    ¡°Heavens! What on earth is going on?¡±


    ¡°Look carefully! The Bai Family¡¯s Master and Bai Zhanfeng look like they are restricting each of their opponents. It seems that the actual person they want to kill is Yang Sanniang¡¯s son, but why do they want to kill him? I have heard that Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s son had been castrated by him. Is that true?¡±


    ¡°Just because of this matter, the two families have to battle?¡±


    ¡°Under this situation, this fellow will definitely die without a doubt.¡±


    And at the Yang Family¡¯s side, the members all anxiously looked on at the situation and then they looked furiously at Yang Yuntian. The current situation right now had all been caused by Yang Yuntian, a single person.


    Yang Yuntian¡¯s daughter, Yang Lingqing, currently was using an unbelievable look at her own father and said: ¡°Father, I know that he caused Elder Brother Yang Zhan¡¯s death, but he did not do it intentionally. Today, he saved the whole of Yang Family. How could you do this?¡±


    When facing his daughter¡¯s question and also the furious gazes from the family, Yang Yuntian, who was simply ashamed and was unable to show his face, just turned to look away as he didn¡¯t dare return their gazes. Everyone shouted out in shock at that moment as Yang Yuntian had actually looked away.


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]?!¡±


    ¡°How is that possible? That brat should only be at the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. How was he able to use the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]?!¡±


    ¡°What?!¡±


    Even though they were anxious about the battles between the Bai Family Master and Bai Zhanfeng against Founder Yang and Yang Xueqing, they were astonished as they looked at Long Chen at that moment.


    Having used the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] of the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm when he was only in the sixth level, this Long Chen was a little too overpowering!


    Seeing this [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], the Bai Family members knew that tonight, if they did not kill this devil Long Chen, their Bai Family would be exterminated by him in the future.


    ¡°Such an overpowering little devil like him, if I was from the Bai Family, I too would have pledged to eradicate his existence!¡±


    ¡°However, didn¡¯t the Bai and the Yang Families always got along? Could this be because of the mayoral position?¡±


    ¡°It is most likely to be that case.¡±


    When Long Chen unexpectedly used the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], madness clouded Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s eyes.


    The talent disyed by this youth in front of them had already let him reach a stage where his eyes were bloodshot and fearful, as if he was looking at Long Qinn when he was still alive. Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s heart right now was riddled with trauma and at the same time, it had also greatly increased his wild murderous intent!


    ¡°Brat! You will definitely die!¡±


    ¡°[Dark Heavenly Finger]! [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]!¡±

 Chapter 40 – Fury That Burns The Heavens

    ¡°Yang Xueqing, your opponent is me!¡±


    Bai Zhenfeng¡¯s roar instantly made Yang Xueqing snap out of her shock. Even though she was currently facing Bai Zhanfeng, her thoughts were only on Long Chen.


    The current Long Chen had given her too many surprises. As far as the schemes of the Bai Family, she wouldn¡¯t let it happen. Her previously frozen heart for Long Chen was slowly thawing.


    At this moment, the youngster had already taken up the most important position in her heart.


    When Bai Zhanxiong unexpectedly used one of his strongest spells, [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], on Long Chen, Yang Xueqing¡¯s expression momentarily changed.


    Even she, Yang Xueqing, would not necessarily be able to withstand this move from Bai Zhanxiong, let alone Long Chen who was only in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    Yang Xueqing was so anxious that she had reached the limit of her patience, but Bai Zhanfeng was like a housefly: No matter how she shoved him away, he would still be there constantly blocking by standing in front of her. Due to Yang Xueqing always focusing on Long Chen¡¯s situation, there was a couple of times where she was nearly hit by Bai Zhanfeng¡¯s moves.


    The three experts from the Bai Family were at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm so their abilities were about the same. Bai Zhanfeng wasn¡¯t any weaker than Bai Zhanxiong. If Yang Xueqing were to face him without using her full strength, there was a possibility that she would be injured or even killed.


    When Founder Yang saw that Bai Zhanxiong had actually used [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] shamelessly to deal with Long Chen, anxiety filled his eyes. At that moment, the Bai Family¡¯s Master who was blocking him saidughingly: ¡°Yang Cangqiong, you¡¯re so unlucky. Initially, you unexpectedly seeded! You had such a remarkable talent in your younger generation but you had fallen for my Family¡¯s evil scheme to send him into our hands. It is just his luck to die under the hands of Xiong Er, who is at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!¡±


    ¡°Cut your bullshit!¡±


    Founder Yang raged as he fought against the Bai Family¡¯s Master but as they were almost at the same level of abilities, he had absolutely no way to save Long Chen.


    On Yang Qingxuan¡¯s side, he was being simrly restricted by Bai Zhanlong.


    Regardless of what was happening around him, Long Chen had already formed the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]. As everyone saw the steady and powerful attack, they momentarily praised Long Chen because at his age and current level, he was able toplete such a technique. If it was anyone else, such a thing would be impossible.


    The image of nine Dragon Gods had violently swirled into an immense aura and whistled as it crashed into Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] which was many times stronger than Bai Shichen¡¯s. In that battle, the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] had broken through it, but right now it was the reverse!


    Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s Qi was at least ten times stronger than Long Chen¡¯s. Even if it was just fighting techniques, one of the foundations of using them was Qi. Currently, Long Chen¡¯s Qi was too far away from reaching Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s. Thus, even if he used [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], he would eventually be defeated!


    The surge of the power gradually diminished until itpletely overpowered Long Chen¡¯s [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]. The excess power directly collided with Long Chen¡¯s body and he instantly felt like being struck by lightning. As if a mountain had pressed down on him, he vomited out a mouthful of blood and fell just like a kite with a broken string.


    ¡°Chen Er!¡±


    Many cried out in surprise simultaneously. Founder Yang and Yang Xueqing¡¯s expressions had ashened as they fought with their opponents with all they have. It had momentarily caused argermotion than the battle between Long Chen and Bai Zhanxiong!


    Yang Qingxuan,who initially wanted to help Long Chen, had already been blocked by Bai Zhanlong. They were another two eighth level Dragon Pulse Realm experts that began to fight against each other.


    To these two superpowers of Por Town, the other factions could only look helplessly at each other. The strongest expert in their families was, at most, only of the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm so how could they participate in such a high leveled battle like this?


    ¡°Chen Er!¡±


    This particr shout had made Long Chen regain a little of his consciousness. He could make out that it was Yang Xueqing¡¯s voice. Since he was young up until this very moment, he had never heard Yang Xueqing speak to him in a voice that was filled with concern. She even called out to him so lovingly. Currently his bones felt as if they were falling apart and his internal organs were injured though not as severe as Bai Shiji¡¯s, if he wanted to stand, it would be an arduous task.


    However, after hearing those two words, Long Chen felt a boundless amount of power surged within his body. He groaned before he started to stand up from the ground!


    No matter how difficult it was and no matter what the additional injuries he sustained in his attempts which made his whole body convulsed, deep down he still resolutely felt that with so many people watching on and this being the first time she had ever showered care and concern on him, he should pick himself up like a man!


    In front of everyone¡¯s astonished gazes, Long Chen finally picked himself up. With his legs still unsteady and his vision hazy, he could still make out the brokenhearted and worried expression on the face of this woman as she looked at him. Although she had almost sumbed to Bai Zhanfeng¡¯s relentless barrage of attacks, her eyes were still fixed on him.


    Seeing this scene, Long Chen suddenly felt extremely proud of his achievements. He realized that he had finally received the recognition of this woman through his hard work, finally reversing the negative perception of himself as well as for his father!


    Previously, in Yang Xueqing¡¯s heart, she thought about how talented Bai Zhanxiong and his sons and just how useless Long Chen and Long Qinn were. However, after seeing Yang Xueqing¡¯s agonized gaze, he knew that he had finally won.


    Currently, in Yang Xueqing¡¯s heart, Bai Zhanxiong and his sons were the ones that were useless, while Long Chen was an exceptional talent that went against the heavens.


    ¡°Father, why is my mood currently so good? Is it because I have let out some resentment¡­¡­?¡±


    Seeing this woman who was desperately trying to break free to rescue him, Long Chen suddenly found his eyes had moistened and it was at this point that Lingxi¡¯s anxious voice sounded: ¡°Bastard, you are already injured. Do you still not want my help?¡±


    Facing such a strong opponent like Bai Zhanxiong, Lingxi could save him but the cost of saving him would probably lead to her death.


    Long Chen definitely wouldn¡¯t allow that to happen so he coldly said: ¡°Lingxi, it is best for you not to meddle in other people¡¯s business. Don¡¯t make me hate you!¡±


    That sentence from Long Chen was vicious and it had even hurt Lingxi¡¯s heart a little but, but in his heart, he meant well.


    Lingxi originally wanted to help with kind intentions but after hearing Long Chen say those words, she felt wronged and wanted to cry. In her heart, she had already scolded that ¡°idiot Long Chen¡± over a million times.


    At this moment, Bai Zhanxiong had already stood in front of Long Chen and looked at Yang Xueqing who was desperately struggling before looking at Long Chen once again and coldly said: ¡°Your mother and son¡¯s rtionship is really touching. However, I wonder if I were to let her watch on as you die by my hands, just what expressions she would have then?¡±


    Seeing today¡¯s situation, Long Chen had already guessed that he was reaching his end soon.


    He could deal with Bai Shichen but Bai Zhanxiong was older than him by at least twenty years and it was impossible for Long Chen to increase his strength to meet Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s.


    Seeing Yang Xueqing¡¯s desperate looks, Long Chen was already extremely satisfied.


    At the Yang Family¡¯s side, Yang Yuntian was already ming himself while the rest of the Yang Family had worried and respectful gazes as they looked at Long Chen. Being able to arrive at such an exalted stage from being disdained as a spoiled brat had proved that he was a sess as a human being.


    What Long Chen currently regretted the most was regarding Long Qinn. He had not solved any of the riddles regarding Long Qinn and the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant.


    Thinking about Lingxi, Long Chen could only hope that after his death, she would be able to find someone to help her search for medicine with spirit healing properties.


    Giving Bai Zhanxiong a frosty look, Long Chen did not have any fear of death at all. He was still unyielding and unbending as he said: ¡°You being able to defeat me is nothing to unt about. Today, I have already won. Not only did I win against your useless son, I have also won against you. I know that you have previously lost under my father¡¯s hand and today you are also the loser against me, so what is there to show off?¡±


    Hearing about Long Qinn, Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s expression became sinister and coldly said: ¡°You said that I lost to that trash? It looks like you still don¡¯t know how that trash died¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s words made Long Chen¡¯s pupils shrink and, although he was in a groggy state, his eyes seemed to have turned into sharp des as he sent a piercing gaze towards Bai Zhanxiong.


    Bai Zhanxiongughed out loud and whispered: ¡°I had heard that some trash loved wine as much as their life so I simply had someone to put something in his wine and then I could marry his wife without any hups.¡±


    Hearing Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s words made Long Chen feel as if a thunderbolt hade from a clear sky!


    Long Chen had never thought about it in this aspect because he believed that Long Qinn was an extremely intelligent person. Before he died he never mentioned why he was suddenly at his deathbed and Long Chen had naturally also forgotten about it. He just felt that his father¡¯s identity was a mystery. His death was also quite unusual!


    Before Long Qinn died, hisplexion darkened and it was obvious that he had been poisoned. Only Long Chen was foolish enough to not notice that!


    It was only now, with these series of events happening, that Long Chen realised that Long Qinn¡¯s death was actually the doings of Bai Zhanxiong! It¡¯s no wonder that upon Long Qinn¡¯s death, Bai Zhanxiong would appear before the Yang Family and prepared to plot this wedding!


    Giving Bai Zhanxiong a death stare and seeing his smug face, a blood red color had wildy nketed Long Chen¡¯s eyes. This blood red dye never withdrew and even the two pupils of Long Chen had, at this time, turnedpletely blood red too!


    A chilly and bloody aura gradually surged out from Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°Really? So, it was you that had made my father die earlier?¡±


    This truth had caused all of the blood in Long Chen to surge. He felt that his organs were convulsing and those blood red dragon figures that vanished inside his body before had, because of his rage, emerged simultaneously. In an instant, Long Chen¡¯s whole body had turned into a nest for dragons!


    Endless blood red dragons began traversing on his body!


    Bai Zhanxiong had previously felt that there was something wrong about Long Chen but he simply thought that it was due to his rage. What he most enjoyed was seeing Long Chen loathing himself as he looked helplessly at him.


    ¡°Truthfully, he should he should have died earlier and when I finally let him die at that time I was already being very merciful. Initially, you were also supposed to die, but there was a little mishap. I thought that you were just a spoiled brat and it would be simple to just casually send someone after you. I never thought that you were so stubborn and would be able to survive. Regardless, after today, you will be able to unite with your trash father. This is obviously because I am such a kind person!¡±


    Looking at him, Long Chen was speechless.


    ¡°Father, if you have told me earlier, I would have worked harder and not let that grandson live until today!¡±


    ¡°Even though you don¡¯t care about his life or death, I care. Bai Zhanxiong¡­¡­¡±


    The fury that could burn the heavens as if a huge wave was raging in his body and seeing Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s wildughter, the blood Qi in Long Chen¡¯s body gradually grew so dense that it almost made him explode!


    At that moment, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant shook violently and the Inherited Blood Essence that was beneath had once again been absorbed by it!

 Chapter 41 – [Dragon Soul Transformation]

    Seeing that Bai Zhanxiong seemed to have said something in front of her son and that Long Chen¡¯s eyes had turned into a crimson blood red colour, Yang Xueqing¡¯s anxiety reached new heights.


    Bai Zhanfeng was still restraining her shamelessly. Their strengths were equal so when Yang Xueqing had been distracted from worrying about the safety of Long Chen, it was even more impossible for her to breakthrough his impediment.


    Suddenly, there were gasps of astonishments.


    ¡°Everyone, quickly look at what is happening to that boy¡¯s body!¡±


    Momentarily, everyone concentrated their gaze on Long Chen¡¯s body. At that moment, Bai Zhanxiong also felt that something was amiss. His expression changed as he realised that if he did not kill Long Chen, something dreadful might happen!


    It was a [Dark Heavenly Finger] that struck in close proximity this time. Long Chen had beenpletely unprepared and the Yang Family members were all furious yet were helpless as they saw this scene!


    However, in the next instant, there was ayer of red light that appeared beside Long Chen. Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s finger technique had actually been deflected away by the light. Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s entire body staggered back in mortification. His looks of astonishment were rather amusing.


    At that moment, Long Chen had once again delved into his sea of consciousness and from his vision; he could see that the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant and Inherited Blood Essence had once again fused together!


    The Dragon Jadepletely turned blood red at a rapid rate. The blood red blood Qi containing the nine Dragon veins reappeared. And one sliver of the blood red energy once again circted in the dragon patterns of the Dragon Vein!


    Long Chen momentarily let out a jubnt expression. It was just like the previous time when he had learnt the divine ability [Blood Transmuted Qi] which seemed heaven-defying. Right now, it was on a different path of cirction. This means that he would learn a new type of divine ability which would be rather decent!


    While watching the path of cirction, Long Chen had also circted his own faint red Qi. Even though he was still in his sea of consciousness, he could clearly feel that his body was drastically changing. He could also hear the rmed outbursts of the people around him.


    When the Dragon Jade hadpleted the cirction in his body and separated from the Inherited Blood Essence again, Long Chen felt that his newly discovered divine ability was almostplete.


    An ancient thread of information flowed into Long Chen¡¯s mind. By the time Long Chen discovered what the name of this divine ability was, he had already withdrawn from his sea of consciousness and looked at his own body.


    Currently, he had blood colored scales and sharp spikes protruding out from his entire body. His energy had increased tenfold. The Qi which had originally been a faint red, had nowpletely turned blood red.


    Everyone was stunned from watching the massive changes to Long Chen¡¯s body and even the battle of Founder Young, and the rest had graduallye to a stop.


    ¡°These are the same changes as the previous night. The difference is that from now on I can control this transformation¡­.¡±


    ¡°This is¡­..[Dragon Soul Transformation]!¡±


    After feeling that his power had increased boundlessly, Long Chen smirked. He knew that everyone was astonished at the current changes of his body. There was perfect silence for a couple of breaths before someone unexpectedly muttered: ¡°¡­This should be the Beast Warrior¡¯s shapeshifting technique. When did he be the legendary Beast Warrior?¡±


    The three sybles ¡®Beast Warrior¡¯ instantly appeared in numerous people¡¯s mind. They could feel that Long Chen had drastically be more powerful. In the crowd, there was a mix of happiness and sadness.


    Bai Zhanxiong, who had previously been slightly frightened was still standing in front of Long Chen but after seeing that terrifying murderous blood red aura, hisplexion had turned pale white!


    Before everyone snapped out of their shock, Long Chen had already locked his gaze on Bai Zhanxiong. Under the startled gazes of everyone, he turned into a blood red shadow that shot towards Bai Zhanxiong!


    When he was in motion, both of his hands were rapidly forming the seal. There were a total of nine clear, blood red images of Dragon Gods that were violently traversing around his hands. They were giving off frightening dragon roars and the violent energy created from both of his hands made a lot of people feel that it was too sinister and cold!


    When Long Chen used his now matchless strong body and the enormous yet strange Qi to form the most powerful [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], his body¡¯s aura would cause even an expert who was at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm to feel suffocated!


    ¡°This is such a strong move. It will be difficult for even experts who are at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm to use that move!¡±


    An eighth level Dragon Pulse Realm expert from a second rate family in the Por Town eximed in astonishment.


    When the Bai Family¡¯s Master saw that Long Chen had unexpectedly used such a powerful move, with his higher insight, he knew that move was more than just terrifying. His expression instantly changed and he eximed: ¡°Zhan Er! Quickly dodge that attack!¡±


    However, it was already toote. After seeing Long Chen suddenly bing so powerful, Bai Zhanxiong just couldn¡¯t believe it. When he tried to kill Long Chen previously, it was deflected by the blood red light. Now, he clearly felt that light had disappeared, giving him another chance to kill Long Chen, so he did not intend to dodge him!


    ¡°Bastard, your father died by my hands. Today, you will definitely also die under my hands. This is the fate of your family. Your struggles are futile! The previous [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] did not kill you. So, now I will let you taste it again!¡±


    [Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]!¡±


    ¡°Oh really?¡±


    As he charged forward rapidly, the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] had already beenpleted and an immense energy brought an aura that could seemingly pierce the heavens. Long Chen had seemed to turn into a nine blood red Dragon Gods as he howled and advanced towards Bai Zhanxiong. The path he stepped on had sent the stone tiles on the pavement to be smashed into pieces, flying into the air!


    ¡°Father, you must have thought that it was too shameful to have died under a petty creature like Bai Zhanxiong so you didn¡¯t tell me about it. However, I will be able to avenge you today!¡±


    Nine blood red dragons had momentarily caused the ground to tremble. At that point, Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] already reached Long Chen. Previously, the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] was able to hit Long Chen but now the situation was fully reversed. This time, it waspletely shattered into pieces by [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]. The energy from the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], at this point, had squarely hit Bai Zhanxiong, whose face was filled with madness and disbelief. All his clothes and possessions on his body were shredded into pieces immediately!


    ¡°Xiong Er!¡±


    ¡°Third brother!¡±


    ¡°Third younger brother!¡±


    The few experts from the Bai Family wanted to assist Bai Zhanxiong but at this moment, Founder Yang and the rest sneered and obstructed the Bai Family¡¯s advancement in sync.


    However, as the Yang Family saw that Long Chen bing so powerful, they were extremely excited, especially Yang Xueqing. Currently, in her heart, it waspletely filled with the valiant appearance of Long Chen. That bloody yet perfect [Dragon Soul Transformation] had made her feel extremely proud of Long Chen!


    ¡°The me before, had I really been wrong by this much? What was I thinking before? After all, he is my son¡­¡­¡±


    After Long Chen had beaten the eighth level Dragon Pulse Realm Bai Zhanxiong in the open, the smaller factions who were watching on, had at this time kept mum out of fear.


    Producing such a devilish genius with such heaven defying abilities, in the future Por Town¡¯s ranking of Bai Family as the first and Yang Family in second, would most likely be reversed.


    They were all staring at the blood red figure and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    ¡°This, is he still the spoilt and useless brat from before?¡±


    The disparity from the current him to the previous him made every one of them feel like their mouth was parched and tongue scorched.


    At this point, the drama had taken on a whole new direction. Earlier it was the Bai Family members who had constrained the Yang Family but now Long Chen had reversed the unfavourable situation. Long Chen¡¯s [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] had injured Bai Zhanxiong critically and the masses were all now anticipating what Long Chen would do next.


    In the Yang Family, when Yang Yuntian looked at that blood red figure, he crouched on the floor painfully. He knew that in his life, he would never be able to avenge his son anymore.


    The current Long Chen seemed to be like a roc that had flown towards a sky where it was forever impossible for him, Yang Yuntian, to touch him.


    [TL Note: (Expression), Out of his league]


    As for Yang Lingqing, she was also looking at this person who had protected her. Tears had been brimming in her eyes since long ago.


    In her heart, Long Chen right now, had be an omnipotent god.


    ¡°Brat, let go of my son!¡±


    Looking at the critically injured Bai Zhanxiong who was grabbed in Long Chen¡¯s hands, the Bai Family¡¯s Master was greatly appalled and his shrill voice had sounded out.


    Seeing his pained look, Long Chen sneered.


    ¡°Sins by the heaven can be forgiven, but if you sinned, you must die!¡±


    After that, he looked at Bai Zhanxiong who was in his hands. Bai Zhanxiong currently looked just like Bai Shiji in the morning. Hisplexion was devoid of colour and he spat out a mouthful of ckened blood. A pair of frightened eyes looked towards Long Chen, and as disbelief turned into despair, he pleaded.


    ¡°Plea¡­please forgive me! I am begging you. I don¡¯t want to die¡­..¡±


    Seeing that Bai Shanxiong unexpectedly did not have a backbone, Long Chen looked down on him even more. He inly said, ¡°If you knew this would happen, you wouldn¡¯t have said that you were the one that killed my father. However, now that I know the truth, even in death, I won¡¯t let you die easily!¡±


    As his words neared the end, Long Chen¡¯s voice became increasingly louder. Those who were present all heard that Long Qinn was actually murdered by Bai Zhanxiong.


    It was no wonder why Long Chen¡¯s gaze was filled with such hatred!


    ¡°If you want to me it on someone, then me yourself for not killing me immediately and even letting me find out about the truth which made me terribly furious! However, I won¡¯t make the same mistakes as you!¡±


    In front of Long Chen¡¯s frosty look, Bai Zhanxiong already had an ominous premonition. The crimson red in Long Chen¡¯s eyes had caused his whole body to shudder uncontrobly. He began to cry out mournfully as he could already feel as though the blood inside his body had currently all turned into knives and pierced every bit of his flesh and skin. All of the eerie scales from Long Chen had absorbed them into his body!


    This was the first time Long Chen used [Blood Transmuted Qi] on a human, and what¡¯s more, with the subject still alive!


    ¡°Since you were the one who killed my father, I will take special care of you. Bai Zhanxiong, have a great time enjoying the sensation!¡±


    At this moment, Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s shrill screams and pleading had caused everyone¡¯s hearts to feel a chill running down their spine. Seeing that blood red and ice cold figure, they had all retreated several steps behind.


    When he heard his son giving out such a heart piercing scream, the eyes of the Bai Family¡¯s Master turned blood red and he bellowed in rage, ¡°Yang Cangqiong, get out of my way. If you don¡¯t release my son, your Yang Family will be seeking death!¡±


    Founder Yang¡¯s expression remained impassive, he continued to engage him and said: ¡°On the contrary, though, I had wanted to ask you. I had really wondered how you were able to remain soughably innocent after all these years? If it was Bai Zhanxiong who had beaten Long Chen right now, would you have stopped this fight?¡±


    Founder Yang had returned the words that were given to him by the Bai Family¡¯s Master. In his heart, he felt it was extremely invigorating as actually the one that was the most depressed tonight was him. Today, his dreams of the numerous years of brotherhood had shattered. Even though he didn¡¯t mention it verbally, it had greatly impacted him.


    Tonight, Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s piercing scream had been engraved deeply in hearts of everyone and that moment they saw that fresh red blood had actually broken through underneath Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s skin and excitedly rushed into Long Chen¡¯s body. Everyone inhaled a huge breath of air and felt numbed in their heads and towards Long Chen¡¯s methods, they had really been perturbed!


    Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s blood vessels had also contained a huge amount of energy. The Qi had been refined by [Blood Transmuted Qi] was even more immense than the spirit jade or demonic energy cores that he had fed on. At this point, the blood of Bai Zhanxiong, who was at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, had all beenpletely absorbed by Long Chen and a vast amount of energy surged from within his body. Long Chen was momentarily ted!


    ¡°It is the time to breakthrough to the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and into the Human Dragon Vein!¡±

 Chapter 42 – A King Of Slaughter

    When Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s shriveled and wizened body fell powerlessly to the ground, the whole area was in absolute silence.


    Violent roars from the Bai Family¡¯s Master could be heard. However, even if he was filled with hatred, in front of Founder Yang, it was impossible for him to break through that encirclement.


    With Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s death, it could be considered that the Bai Family¡¯s operation hadpletely failed.


    As they fought in front of the crowd, the Yang Family had exposed the Bai Family¡¯s evil schemes. All of the other middle and lower ranked factions in Por Town now understood the reason that led to this situation.


    If the Bai Family had been sessful tonight and became the overlord of Por Town, nobody would have dared to say a single vicious and mercilessment about them. But, it just so happened that the Bai Family¡¯s n had failed. Even the top level experts in the Bai Family such as Bai Zhanxiong had lost their lives, so the reputation of the Bai Family had fallenpletely to the bottom. They had already guessed as to what the rankings would be with the Yang Family coupled with the devilish genius Long Chen!


    Furthermore, when they saw that Long Chen had unexpectedly broken through to his Human Dragon Vein, this further confirmed their thoughts.


    The blood red Qi dragon surged within Long Chen¡¯s body and the amount of Qi that had been refined from Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s body did not pale inparison to Long Chen¡¯s original amount. Under such an immense energy, although the Human Dragon Vein was longer and much thickerpared to average Dragon Veins, there wasn¡¯t any resistance!


    The blood red Qi dragon path was as easy as a hot knife cutting through butter. After a minute, a dragon¡¯s cry resounded immediately as the Human Dragon Vein had been broken through.


    Long Chen was still under the [Dragon Soul Transformation] state. Currently, his Qi was increasing rapidly. Due to his Qi quality which was now ten times stronger than other cultivators, even though he was at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, his Qi¡¯s destructive power was already simr those at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    After including his [Dragon Soul Transformation]¡¯s form, his actual battle strength reached a sky high level. Only Long Chen would be able to deeply understand how powerful he currently was!


    When he was still in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he could already kill Bai Zhanxiong who was at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. His current strength had basically gone up at least ten times! That bloody and murderous aura reeked from head to toe and made everyone sweat in fear.


    Long Chen hadpletely surpassed his generation¡¯s level and reached the supreme level in Por Town. Furthermore, today, even though he was furious, when the Bai Family Leader saw the bloodshot gaze in Long Chen¡¯s eyes when he stood up, he had genuinely resigned to his fate!


    When Long Chen stood up, the battle tonight was meaningless to continue.


    Only then did Founder Yang and the rest throw off their opponents and gathered with Yang Qingxuan and Yang Xueqing as they looked dazedly at the current Long Chen!


    No matter how much they knew that Long Chen would only get stronger and stronger, their emotions still surged in astonishment!


    The Yang Family was unwilling to continue the fight and right now, the Yang Family still had such a devil like Long Chen. If they were to continue fighting, the Bai Family would only increase in casualties and so the Yang Family didn¡¯t continue the fight. Although the Bai Family was currently enraged, under the restraints of the Bai Family¡¯s Master, they too did not dare to continue.


    Since it was unnecessary to stay, Founder Yang looked at Long Chen and said: ¡°Chen Er, let¡¯s head back home.¡±


    Long Chen still had the thought of killing everyone of the Bai Family here today, but seeing that impassive face of the old man, he knew there was no longer the need to do so.


    Founder Yang had a good rtionship with the Bai Family for a long time, so after all the drastic changes today, it was definitely extremely painful for him.


    Bai Family had been heartless towards the Yang Family, but the Yang Family had already killed Bai Zhanxiong and Bai Zhanyun, even critically injuring Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji. There was no more need to continue killing.


    Only then did Long Chen withdraw from his [Dragon Soul Transformation]. The Qi in his body now returned to the faint red colour, but it still had the quality of four times strongerpared to an average cultivator.


    Long Chen¡¯s handsome and refined disposition right now made itpletely impossible for them to rte him to the earlier form of a king of ughter.


    However, the current Long Chen gave off a slightly more familiar feeling to the Yang Family. When Long Chen entered the encirclement of the Yang Family, they were all looking at him with respectful gazes. This special treatment had left him feeling overwhelmed.


    He suddenly found that Yang Xueqing was currently smiling as she watched the group of people mour around Long Chen. When Long Chen looked towards her, she lowered her head in embarrassment. The only emotion she had left in her heart was regret. As for Yang Yuntian who was standing at a side, his face was filled with torment and he did not speak a single word.


    Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue were currently walking beside Long Chen. Yang Lingyue awkwardly said: ¡°I really have to thank you for what you have done today. You not only saved us, but also the entire Yang Family. We are all filled with gratitude towards you. The purpose as to why I am talking to you is that I want to apologise for making things difficult for you and humiliating you previously. I am really sorry. I hope that we will be good cousins just like how you and Lingqing are. Is that alright?¡±


    Yang Wu nodded his head as well and said: ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. Back in the past, we were all short sighted and thought you were the stain on our Yang Family¡¯s name. I would have never imagined that you are actually the real hero. You taught us not to judge a book by its cover. I¡¯m really thankful for that!¡±


    This feeling of being looked up to had honestly made Long Chen feel a little embarrassed. His personality was that if someone treated him well, he would treat them better. However, if they were unkind to him, he would treat them even worse.


    ¡°Alright, you don¡¯t need to say any further. There is nothing to be thankful for as I had only wanted to exact my revenge, and I conveniently gave you guys a helping hand.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s mannerism and expression were both extremely hrious. Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue, as well as a few members from the younger generation, only then loosened their heartstrings and broke intoughter.


    Long Chen raised his head and saw that Yang Qingxuan was smiling gently at him. Long Chen knew that Yang Wu and Yang Lingyue came over under the encouragement from Yang Qingxuan.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t have any prejudices against this uncle of his. Yang Qingxuan had always treated him neither good nor bad. Long Chen¡¯s motto was that if he was not mistreated by that person, he wouldn¡¯t hate that person.


    Sensing the fervent and concerned gazes from the surrounding people, Long Chen suddenly felt the warmth from the Yang Family. His previous performance as a spoilt brat was really rather disappointing.


    After that, he looked at the lonesome figure of Founder Yang who was walking solitarily at the forefront, leading the way. He had been approached several times by Yang Qingxuan but Yang Qingxuan was rejected. Finding his persuasion was useless, Yang Qingxuan then thought of letting Long Chen give it a try. The current Long Chen¡¯s position in the family was soaring. He was not just at the level of the first person in the younger generation anymore.


    As he walked beside Founder Yang, he actually discovered that the old man¡¯s eyes were red. After being betrayed by his brother, whom he had shared many years of brotherhood with, and risking ending his younger generation¡¯s lives, the impact on him was immensely great.


    Seeing Long Chen walk up to him, Founder Yang looked at him before looking at the Yang Family¡¯s house that they were quickly approaching, and he muttered: ¡°There¡¯s no reason for you to try and persuade me, as I know what I have to do in the future. However, kid, let me give you a warning. When you are out creating a name for yourself in the future and have someone you can call your brother, you must definitely be clear of his intentions by checking if his heart is made of poison or blood¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen thought for a moment before he said: ¡°I know. Your heart is filled with blood and that old man Bai¡¯s is just a container of poison.¡±


    After returning to the Yang Family residence, Founder Yang sat at the leader¡¯s position before pulling Long Chen to sit beside him. The rest had also taken their seat. Even though they saw that Long Chen was sitting at such a special position, they didn¡¯t have any objections in their hearts.


    Founder Yang sipped his tea lightly and said: ¡°Today¡¯s matter was mostly my fault, so I want to apologise to all of you. As an elder, I have nearly led all of you to your deaths!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan tightly clenched his fist and said solemnly, : ¡°Father, you do not have to reproach yourself. We all know that we can¡¯t me you for this. If we really want to find faults, it is that Bai Sheng¡¯s heart was too vile, and he has the heart of a wolf and lungs of a dog!


    [TL note: Cruel and unscrupulous.]


    ¡°That¡¯s right, Grandfather. We all understand.¡±


    After seeing that the younger generations understood him, Founder Yang felt slightly better. As he gazed at them, he was ted that even after the Yang Family had experienced such an ordeal, they weren¡¯t hurt at all. Everyone knew that it was only due to one person¡¯s strength and resolute determination to salvage the crisis!


    Founder Yang¡¯s gaze finallynded on Yang Yuntian, whose head was lowered at this point. His gaze turned cold before he said: ¡°Yuntian, stand up.¡±


    Yang Qingxuan knew that after returning home, his father would harshly berate Yang Yuntian. However, after seeing the old man¡¯s ashened face, he was temporarily at a loss for words. Actually, if not for Yang Yuntian¡¯s final stunt, today¡¯s matter could have already been over. It was because of Yang Yuntian that the Yang Family and Bai Family engaged in such a huge battle. They also nearly lost thergest contributor to the Yang Family today.


    ¡°Yuntian, what do you have to say?¡±


    Yang Yuntian raised his head, at this point he was extremely collected, and sighed. He looked at Long Chen and Founder Yang as he said: ¡°Father, I have nothing to say. Today, I just wanted to exact justice on behalf of my son, but I have failedpletely. There will never be a chance in the future.¡±


    ¡°Pa!¡± Founder Yang mmed his hand on the table. The younger generations immediately kept quiet due to fear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you even have a tinge of guilt? Our internal strife should be resolved within our family. Since when did we ever have to borrow an enemy¡¯s hands to get rid of our own family members?¡±


    Yang Yuntian wordlessly bit his lips.


    Seeing his disappointing actions, Founder Yang was so furious that his nose crooked, and he angrily said: ¡°Even though the main cause to Zhan Er¡¯s matter was Chen Er, it was also because Zhan Er¡¯s heart was not firm enough to face that setback. With such a fragile mindset, even if it wasn¡¯t Chen Er, he would still die at someone else¡¯s hands in the future. It is the father¡¯s fault for any mistakes he made. It is your fault, but you shirked and pushed the responsibility onto others. Is this our Yang Family¡¯s style of doing things?¡±


    After hearing Founder Yang¡¯s words, Yang Yuntianpletely woke up. He made a painful expression and clenched his fist. He thought: ¡°What Father said is right. I had spoilt Zhan Er all these years. If I didn¡¯t let him do whatever he liked and stood up for him for every minor matter, his personality wouldn¡¯t be so weak¡­. Yang Yuntian, the person that harmed your son all along was actually yourself¡­¡­¡±


    This led him to fall into an abyss of reproach and agony that he could not free himself from.


    Founder Yang saw the painful expression Yang Yuntian had, and being a father himself, how could he not know of Yang Yuntian¡¯s suffering. He sighed and told Long Chen, ¡°He was the one that got you into trouble. You can decide on how you want to punish him for that.¡±


    When Founder Yang handed over the final decision to Long Chen, everyone was mildly surprised. However, after thinking about it, they thought that it was reasonable. They looked at Long Chen with anticipation. The Yang Family had already experienced such an ordeal, so truthfully, the masses of the Yang Family did not wish for anyone to further be punished. However, Long Chen¡¯s personality was a little unpredictable. Today, Yang Yuntian had almost caused his death so having some resentment was normal.


    Seeing everyone looking at him, especially Yang Lingqing, her pleading expression softened Long Chen. He also knew that if he wanted to continue staying in the Yang Family, he had topletely resolve the matter regarding Yang Yuntian.


    Under the anxious gazes of the masses, Long Chen stood in front of Yang Yuntian.


    ¡°I have indirectly caused your son¡¯s death, so initially I was at fault. However, you nearly caused my death today. Since we¡¯re both in the Yang Family, I also do not wish for our feud to carry on. How about we call it quits?¡±

 Chapter 43 – Dragon Breed

    From what Yang Yuntian understood about Long Chen¡¯s personality, such as how he had dealt with the Bai Family, Yang Yuntian knew that Long Chen was the kind of person who sought vengeance for even the smallest grievances suffered.


    This time, Yang Yuntian had almost caused his death. Afterwards, Founder Yang handed the final decision over to Long Chen and Yang Yuntian knew that his fate would be more or less tragic.


    Yang Yuntian knew that a person like Long Chen would never let someone who wanted to take his life near his side.


    However, Long Chen¡¯s words hadpletely befuddled his expectations.


    The other members of the Yang Family heaved a breath of relief after hearing Long Chen¡¯s words. Yang Xueqing had happily smiled too, and sweetly looked at Long Chen.


    The reason why Long Chen let Yang Yuntian off the hook was simple. Firstly, when Yang Zhan died, even though Long Chen didn¡¯t expect him tomit suicide, he was still the primary cause for it. His actions had led to the death of Yang Yuntian¡¯s son so it was normal for him to seek vengeance.


    So, Long Chen did not think that Yang Yuntian¡¯s behaviour today was that preposterous.


    The second reason was because he was the father of Yang Lingqing. Right now, Long Chen had a good rtionship with Yang Lingqing. He cared dearly for this cousin of his, so naturally he would not humiliate her father at this point in time.


    As for the third and most important reason, it was that from today onwards, Yang Yuntian is no longer his match.


    Raising his head and looking at Long Chen, Yang Yuntian was still in disbelief as he said: ¡°Are you sure? You want to call it quits between us?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head and said: ¡°I only hope that you keep your promise. I do not want to suffer at your hands as I continue living inside the Yang residence. Otherwise, I would be better off killing you.¡±


    Looking at this youth and remembering his rapid and drastic changes, Yang Yuntian was still unable to believe what he saw.


    Long Chen¡¯s superior character had already exceeded his expectations, so he could only absentmindedly nod his head and say: ¡°What I, Yang Yuntian, have agreed to do will definitely be done.¡±


    Founder Yang watched this grandson with appreciation and also nodded in approval from deep within his heart. His heart was relieved, and only then did he say: ¡°Alright, since this has already been settled, our entire Yang Family must stick closely together in the future and join forces to fight against the Bai Family. If someone from our family were to hinder this effort, I will be the first to punish him!¡±


    After surveying his surroundings once more, Founder Yang sighed before he said: ¡°I am a little tired. Today, everyone should head back to rest. For the next few days, no one should go out of the house at their whim without my orders. Do you understand?¡±


    At Founder Yang¡¯s orders, the group all nodded their heads and took their leave. However, Long Chen suddenly said: ¡°Grandfather, wait a moment, I have something to say.¡±


    He looked at Yang Xueqing when he said this, but Yang Xueqing was most likely extremely embarrassed and remorseful tonight, as she had not raised her head at all.


    Founder Yang said solemnly: ¡°Chen Er, if you have something to say, we will all listen to it.¡±


    ¡°Grandfather, before Father died, he told me to change my surname to Long. I wish for everyone to call me Long Chen from now on. I hope Grandfather will let me fulfill Father¡¯sst wishes.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words made everyone a little nervous, especially Yang Xueqing, and her body shuddered a little, but she still did not raise her head.


    Long Chen had no strength nor had power in the past, so he could not dere about what Long Qinn entrusted him. However, his strength had greatly increased after tonight¡¯s matter and he knew it was time.


    Founder Yang looked nervously at him. ¡°Chen Er, are you saying that you want to leave the Yang Family? Are you ming us for mistreating you?¡±


    Long Chen shook his head and said: ¡°I don¡¯t have that idea, half of my blood stilles from the Yang Family and me being in the Yang Family will not change. I only wish to follow my father¡¯s surname.¡±


    On one hand, it was the dying wish of Long Qinn, and there was also Long Chen¡¯s persistence. Founder Yang naturally had no reason to decline as long as Long Chen was not leaving the Yang Family. He nodded his head and said: ¡°If that is the wish of Long Qinn, then please carry it out ordingly.¡±


    After finallypleting Long Qinn¡¯s dying wishes, Long Chen nodded his head tedly. The rest of the family gradually bid their farewells to Founder Yang and trickled out, and Yang Qingxuan was thest person to leave the ce. He turned his head back and said: ¡°Father, you¡¯re also tired today, so you should go and have a rest too. Tomorrow, you will still need to take over the mayoral rights. The Bai Family might cause a disturbance.¡±


    Founder Yang shook his head and said: ¡°Let me have some peace for a while and properly condition the state of my mind. Xuan Er, take your leave first.¡±


    Yang Qingxuan could only grudgingly agree without a choice.


    Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night.


    After Long Chen bade his farewells, he continued walking. But after a while, he discovered that Yang Xueqing had scaled over the wall. Earlier, Founder Yang had instructed that no one was to leave the Yang residences without his permission and he never thought that this fellow, Yang Xueqing, would actually just ignore it.


    The greatest reward that Long Chen had today was that he was able to make that woman look at him in a different light.


    After being separated from her for sixteen years, Long Chen finally felt that blood was truly thicker than water. To him, this was extremely great news. Right now, Yang Xueqing had left the Yang Family. Long Chen was still rather concerned for her safety and followed her.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, where did you say she was going?¡±


    ¡°You scoundrel, I don¡¯t want to speak with you!¡±


    Long Chen suddenly felt cold sweat from his pores. Earlier he was afraid that she would strike and put her own life at risk, so he said some rather spiteful words though he never would have thought that this girl would still bear grudges. Long Chen could only coax her: ¡°Be a good girl, earlier my mouth had spouted some nonsense. You just have to treat me as though I am a foolish donkey. Alright? Woof Woof Woof!¡±


    Ling Xi snorted withughter, and then pointed at him, saying: ¡°That is a dog¡¯s barking, idiot. A donkey makes this sound: Hee-Haw¡±


    ¡°Huh? So you are actually the donkey!¡±


    ¡°You¡­¡­, go and die!¡±


    ¡°Great heroine, please spare my life!¡±


    Finally after having a hard time coaxing Lingxi, Long Chen¡¯s ears did not have to be subjected to her tortures anymore. Lingxi had made the Lingxi Sword turn into an ear pin again and attached to his ear so that she could torture him anytime she liked.


    But at that moment, he saw that Yang Xueqing had already walked out of town. Long Chen hurriedly chased after her.


    After walking for some distance, he suddenly felt that the path was rather familiar. Actually, wasn¡¯t this the route to Long Qinn¡¯s tomb?


    Long Chen did not bring Yang Xueqing here before, but she already knew where it was. With her authority in the Yang Family, finding a tomb outside of the town was a very simple task.


    Soon, Yang Xueqing was standing in front of Long Qinn¡¯s grave. She stood there in a daze, staring limply. Long Chen watched her from a distance.


    He too did not know what this woman was here for.


    However, Yang Xueqing did not say a single word and just sat on the floor. Resting on the gravestone, she stared at the remote stars dotting the sky in an enchanted manner. With the twinkling starlight reflecting in her eyes and pure white cheeks, it made her look extremely mesmerizing.


    Seeing the image of his mother leaning against his father¡¯s grave as she gazed upwards, Long Chen felt a little moved. To him, this sweet and tender moment was a sight he had never seen before.


    ¡°She is muttering to herself,¡± Lingxi said suddenly.


    ¡°What is she saying?¡± Long Chen hurriedly asked.


    Lingxi listened for a while, and then mimicked her intonation and words.


    ¡°¡­¡­If you didn¡¯t treat me badly before, I wouldn¡¯t have loathed you and even hated my own son. Long Qinn, in my eyes, you¡¯re insane¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was startled. So all along in Yang Xueqing¡¯s eyes, Long Qinn had actually been a madman? Why did she think that way? Long Chen had always thought it was because Yang Xueqing had despised Long Qinn for turning into trash that she abandoned both father and son. Was there actually was something else to it?


    Long Chen had a peek at Yang Xueqing¡¯s despondent and suffering expression. At that moment, Lingxi continued to repeat what she heard: ¡°¡­After looking through countless kingdoms and cities, you found such a girl like me that met your requirements just to have an heir. I knew that you were so high up beyond my imaginations, but you still didn¡¯t have the right to trample on my feelings¡­¡±


    ¡°Today, Chen Er finally said that he wants to change his surname to Long. No matter what, I am still not your match. Maybe in your eyes, a mere mortal woman like me, was absolutely ipatible with a superior being like you.¡±


    Yang Xueqing¡¯s words left Long Chenpletely astonished.


    Only today, did Long Chen finally learn the reason for Yang Xueqing¡¯s detachment. It was not that her nature was cold and indifferent, but that Long Qinn had instead brought her so much heartache.


    Long Chen already knew that Long Qinn came from an incredible ce. His status must also have been extremely high. The strength Long Qinn previously had was definitely not what everyone thought it to be, at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. When he was at Por Town, he was merely pretending to be so.


    Long Chen could guess the reason for the matter. Long Qinn¡¯s cultivation was ruined by the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, but he did not wish for it to end like this, so he thought of producing an heir, a descendant who could use the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, and then he found Yang Xueqing.


    What happened next was exactly as how Yang Xueqing described. It¡¯s just that after Yang Xueqing knew the truth, she could not ept the fact that she was only a tool for reproduction.


    Long Chen was of Long Qinn¡¯s flesh and blood, but to Yang Xueqing, he was someone who had robbed her of her happiness and feelings. The harder she fell for Long Qinn, the more hatred she felt towards him.


    That all resulted in today¡¯s situation. Yang Xueqing only discovered that she had still lost to Long Qinn when Long Chen, who had been muddling along without any aim before, finally revealed his brilliance.


    In end, she was merely a pitiful, lovesick woman.


    At this instant, Long Chen¡¯s previous hatred for Yang Xueqing finally abated.


    Long Chen had now reached a stage where he could finally feel rxed. In the Yang Family, his two greatest conflicts, Yang Yuntian and Yang Xueqing, were now resolved. He did not have to live like before, where everyone only gave him cold gazes. Now, with the group of them staying tightly knitted together in order to fend off enemies, this feeling that Long Chen once yearned for resurfaced suddenly.


    ¡°Father, I know of your painstaking efforts, but you also have areas where you did her injustice and let her down.¡±


    ¡°It is alright. I will help you redeem your wrongdoings.¡±


    Reflecting upon the entirety of Yang Xueqing¡¯s life, Long Chen¡¯s eyes became teary. She was indeed a little pitiful. When she fell in love, she didn¡¯t think that she was merely thought of as a tool to rear an heir. The second time, when she thought she had finally obtained happiness, she was tricked and it even resulted in harming her father and brothers.


    After thinking back at how he treated her previously, Long Chen felt that he was also in the wrong.


    ¡°She is crying so pitifully. Long Chen, I, I also feel like crying¡­¡­¡±


    Under the moonlight, Yang Xueqing had lowered her head and was crying. Her soft and pitiful sobs made Lingxi sympathize with her. Long Chen tightly clenched his fist, and sighed.


    ¡°It is about time I lessen my hatred towards her¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 44 – Scarlet Tailed Fox Demon

    Yesterday was the demonic beast huntingpetition, and today was the announcement of results for the mayoral position in Por Town.


    A big ceremony like this should be held in front of the various factions and families. The sun had just shone its first rays of light, but there were already tens of thousands of people gathered in the Por Town Square.


    These people were all well-known people in Por Town, and they included all the influential nobles within the five kilometer radius of Por town.


    The mayoral position of Por Town was determined by the younger generation of Bai Family and Yang Family during the demonic beast huntingpetition, and from this, one could see that the Lingwu Family held the individual abilities of each family in high regard.


    Por Town¡¯s two biggest families had not arrived yet, but those who were present were discussing the hugemotion yesterday.


    This incident had already been spread throughout Por Town.


    The two subjects that greatly astonished everyone were the evil schemes of the Bai Family and the youth from the Yang Family who had such heaven-defying abilities.


    ¡°You guys didn¡¯t see it so you wouldn¡¯t know about the blood red scales armour that had covered his whole body, and those spikes that are even sharper than your saber. Bai Zhanxiong couldn¡¯t even take one blow from him. [Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], had beenpletely crushed by the Yang Family¡¯s [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], and now everyone is saying that this fellow is already ranked as the 3rd expert in Por Town.


    ¡°One of the three top experts at the age of 16? He really is a devil. He is even more astonishing than Long Qinn.¡±


    ¡°The two so-called geniuses of the Bai Family naturally pale inparison against such a talented genius¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Everyone, please stop talking. The Bai Family has arrived.¡±


    At this point, the crowd split and allowed a path between them. The Bai Family¡¯s Master was at the forefront, wearing a dark expression as he walked into this huge field.


    Seeing the Bai Family look so ferocious, the numerous factions kept quiet due to fear. However, they were secretly snitching behind the Bai Family¡¯s back.


    After all, everyone idolises righteous heroes. For someone who nned to kill his own brother, they were destined to be disdained by everyone.


    Once the Bai Family had arrived, the atmosphere of the crowd became extremely gloomy. Then, someone shouted suddenly: ¡°The Yang Family members are here!¡±


    The crowd split and opened a path to wee them, calling out to Founder Yang and the others with pleasantries. Founder Yang and the others returned the courtesies, and at this point, most of the people had cast their gazes on the rumored talented genius. Seeing his appearance, they all had praises and exmations for him.


    ¡°He looks to be sixteen years old, but has such aplishments¡­..¡±


    ¡°My child has only reached the fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. He has been arrogant this couple of days. If I let him see this youth, he will then know that there is always someone stronger no matter how strong he is. A true genius should look like this.¡±


    The Bai Family members noticed that the crowd was silent when they came, but everyone cheered and called out when the Yang Family members arrived.


    Originally, this glory should have belonged to the Bai Family, but they never thought that the Yang Family would have taken it from them. The expressions of the Bai Family members suddenly darkened even further, as if they were turning into cast iron.


    This Bai Family had be such a ¡®ck¡¯ family.


    [TLN: (Wordy) Bai is white, and mentioning ck means total opposite, signifying the drastic changes and perception surrounding the Bai Family]


    Long Chen¡¯s current gaze was focused towards the Bai Family. There weren¡¯t a lot of people from the Bai Family that came today. Only Bai Sheng, Bai Zhanlong and another aged elder who had a sharp featured face, which had startled Long Chen.


    ¡°Huh, isn¡¯t that the old fellow who was guarding the Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree?¡± Lingxi asked suspiciously.


    Long Chen had only caught a glimpse of the features of this old man, but he believed that both he and Lingxi would not recognise the wrong person.


    After sizing up the elder¡¯s appearance, Long Chen realized that there was a red dot between his eyebrows.


    There was also a red dot between Long Chen¡¯s eyebrows, but that was the 1/1000th drop of Inherited Blood Essence that resided between his eyebrows and had formed a faint coloured mark. If one did not scrutinise it closely, it would be hard to notice it. However, the red dot on this old man¡¯s face was painted on with some special ink, and was extremely eye grabbing even under the sunlight!


    Long Chen previously saw that Bai Zhanxiong had used women from Emerald Jade House to make deals with a couple of people who had a red dot between their eyebrows. Those people had a red dot between their eyebrows which was identical to that of the elder¡¯s!


    Yesterday night, Long Chen had heard Bai Zhanxiong mention Second Uncle and Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. This old fellow has pretty simr features to the Bai Family¡¯s Master, so he must be the so-called Second Uncle. Furthermore, he was the one that was guarding the Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree¡­¡­


    After linking up the recent events, Long Chen immediately had a much better understanding.


    ¡°Just before the Soul Diffusion Fruit ripens, it will give rise to a strange phenomenon. At that time, there will be battles to get the fruit held near it. The Soul Diffusion Fruit will be very crucial to both the Yang Family and the Bai Family. The Bai Family was afraid that Grandfather will be able to snatch the Soul Diffusion Fruit or that the news of the Bai Family obtaining the Soul Diffusion Fruit would spread, sost night they carried out their plot to eliminate the Yang Family.¡±


    Previously, Long Chen had still thought that every move of the Bai Family was for the mayoral position, but the exnation had been rather imusible. Today, he finally understood the truth behind this matter.


    At this moment, the old fellow looked at Long Chen after the Bai Family¡¯s Master pointed at his position. The old fellow looked surprised as if he had recalled something, and he frostily gave Long Chen a death stare.


    Long Chen knew that the old fellow was able to recognise him as he was actually the person that discovered the Soul Diffusion Fruit yesterday. After Long Chen knew about the Soul Diffusion Fruit, he would naturally tell the Yang Family so the gaze from the old fellow was instantly filled with killing intent!


    He lowered his voice and whispered some words to Bai Family¡¯s Master, and Bai Sheng¡¯s expression changed abruptly!


    They had never guessed that Long Chen had stumbled across the Soul Diffusion Fruit during the demonic beast huntingpetition. Now, the news regarding it had most likely reached the ears of the Yang Family!


    After discovering the Soul Diffusion Fruit, they had decided to annihte the Yang Family who was an obstacle to them, but they overlooked the possibility of Long Chen unexpectedly finding out and present the Yang Family with news of the Soul Diffusion Fruit!


    This way, the Soul Diffusion Fruit that they would definitely have gotten might now meet with some unexpected hindrances, and this made the Bai Brothers harbour hatred for Long Chen!


    At present, Founder Young had also taken notice of the old man. He immediately frowned before saying: ¡°This is bad. That person is¡­.Bai Sheng¡¯s stepbrother, and is known as Bai Li. He has always been at Yuanling City and had nevermunicated with Bai Sheng much. However, he unexpectedly came to Por Town this time around¡­¡­Two experts who are at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm¡­¡­¡±


    He could still deal with one Bai Sheng but Founder Yang would not have any confidence if Bai Li, who was of simr strength, was included.


    However, he heaved a sigh of relief as he remembered that he still had this devilish genius, Long Chen, by his side.


    He was not sure of Long Chen¡¯s current strength either, but he thought that if Long Chen could even beat Bai Zhanxiong to the death, then he might also be able to endure some time in Bai Li¡¯s hands!


    Founder Yang still did not know about the matter of the Soul Diffusion Fruit and naturally, he did not know the meaning behind Bai Li¡¯s appearance. He did not know why the Bai Family tried to plot against the Yang Family either.


    However, Long Chen¡¯s brow furrowed. Naturally, the Bai Family would not dare to create amotion with Lord Lang here today. But Long Chen knew, they would definitely have to face Bai Sheng and Bai Li on the battlefield as they fought over the Soul Diffusion Fruit!


    Long Chen had the confidence for dealing with those two expects but Bai Zhanxiong mentioned the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, which made him feel uneasy.


    For Lord Lang to have that much power at a young age, it was clear that the average strength of the experts in Yuanling City was much higher than Por Town¡¯s. If Bai Li had any standing in Yuan Lin City, then he would know many experts. If he were to be involved in the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit, then the Yang Family¡­.


    Long Chen, who initially thought that he could take it easy, instantly felt pressured again.


    He knew that, after the ripening of the Soul Diffusion Fruit, there would definitely be a huge battle, and the Bai Family methods were notcking. As for Long Chen who was in the Yang Family, there were already more people who had to be protected, and many consequences to worry about. If they really had to have a death match with Bai Family, Long Chen knew that his current ability was stillcking if he wanted to protect many people.


    As for Yang Xueqing, after what had transpiredst night, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t allow anyone to harm her even though he had notpletely forgiven her.


    However, Long Chen had killed a lot of the Bai Family¡¯s members. The Bai Family definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to forgive the Yang Family easily. Currently, this was the heavy burden Long Chen had in his heart¡­..


    ¡°In approximately eight days, the Soul Diffusion Fruit will be ripening. What can I do in this span of eight days to achieve aplete victory¡­¡­¡±


    The two brothers from the Bai Family were currently ring at Long Chen with gazes filled with murderous intent. While Long Chen remained unyielding, there was suddenly disturbance in the crowd. Long Chen instantly discovered that a person had appeared on the originally empty tform!


    That¡¯s right; it was someone whom the Yuanling Family of Yuanling City had sent, the mysterious Lord Lang.


    Today, he still had the cloak on, concealing his appearance.


    Actually, the masses of Por Town all knew that this Lord Lang¡¯s voice sounded extremely young, and his estimated age was not very old. He could be thought of as an even more talented, heaven-defying genius.


    When he first saw Lord Lang, Long Chen was unable to determine his gender at a nce. At that time, he found that Lord Lang¡¯s personality was rather kind and helpful, albeit being a little shy. It may have been due to official business, but when they met yesterday, Lord Lang intentionally made himself to be cold and detached when he wore the cloak.


    The time hadn¡¯t actually run out when Long Chen had held the youths of Bai Family in captive and they left the Big Barren Mountain afterwards, but Lord Lang had obviously been biased towards Long Chen and had ended the demonic beast huntingpetition before the stipted time.


    Thus, Long Chen was extremely grateful towards this Lord Lang.


    Although Lord Lang might not think the same, Long Chen had already ced him as a very important person in his life. That inexplicable feeling was unlikely to be wrong.


    Currently, everyone was focusing on Lord Lang alone. Lord Lang¡¯s muffled voice sounded out from within his mantle.


    ¡°Bai Family¡¯s Bai Sheng, Yang Family¡¯s Yang Cangqiong. Step forward.¡±


    Bai Sheng and Yang Cangqiong didn¡¯t dare disobey Lord Lang¡¯s order so they obediently walked up to stand in front of Lord Yang. However, they didn¡¯t even nce at one another.


    ¡°Now I will announce both families¡¯ achievements in the demonic beast huntingpetition.¡±


    Lord Lang opened his right palm, and the masses hurriedly looked over, and found a small yellow pea sized demonic energy core, and momentarilyughed loudly.


    ¡°Yang Family¡­¡­ Number of energy cores, one! From the Scarlet Tailed Fox of the first level Huang grade!¡±


    Everyone present was startled. The younger generation was defeated so terribly yesterday. When they looked at that single pitiful energy core, they thought that it was obtained by the Bai Family. They didn¡¯t expect that it would be the Yang Family instead. This immediately made them look at each other as they thought: ¡°Will the control right of Por town be given to the Bai Family? This¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking that the mayoral position would actually go to the vicious and cruel Bai Family, the masses all felt a shudder in their hearts. In the future, they would probably be unable to live out their days in peace.


    At that moment, Lord Lang started to speak. Everyone who was discussing the matter hastily shut their mouths.


    At this point, Lord Lang scanned the surroundings and opened the palm of his left hand. The masses looked over nervously, but found out that there was absolutely nothing in his hand!


    ¡°Bai Family¡­¡­Number of energy cores, zero!¡±


    The expressions of the crowd instantly became iparably bright.


    Everyone actually had a prediction of the fierce battle between the two families this time. They had all thought that the Bai Family would be able to obtain the energy core of an Huang grade demon at the eighth level and that the Yang Family would not fare as well, at most only obtaining a seventh level Huang grade energy core at most. They never imagined that the oue of the battle would be that the Yang Family would obtain a first level Huang grade energy core, while the Bai Family returned empty handed.


    Long Chen chuckled as none of them were hunting the demons during the demonic beast huntingpetition. That Scarlet Tailed Fox¡¯s energy core was just something that he conveniently obtained when he was heading down the mountain.

 Chapter 45 – I am Hot-blooded!

    In the contest for the mayoral position between the Bai and Yang family, the Yang Family had only gotten the one energy core from the Scarlet Tailed Fox and it had granted them victory. To the whole of Por Town, this was a piece of hot news that was fervently discussed during meals.


    Everyone felt as if they were in a dream.


    ¡°If my family¡¯s youths had been granted the opportunity to enter this demonic beast huntingpetition and sessfully dodged the youths from the Bai and Yang Family, then our family might even be holding the mayoral rights now.¡±


    Many people thought that way.


    Although they had already known the results, the Bai Family members¡¯ faces still turned ashen when Lord Lang announced the results for the right to the mayoral position.


    Bai Sheng did not say another word and left the stage to join his group of Bai Family members, coldly looking at Founder Yang who was standing in front of Lord Lang.


    At this point Lord Lang¡¯s crisp voice sounded: ¡°The Yang Family has now obtained the mayoral rights, and hence hold the governmental role in Por Town. Yang Cangqiong will be the first mayor of Por Town. Por Town is a town governed by my Lingwu Family, and the mayoral position represents the authority of the Lingwu Family. If any of you were to challenge the authority of the mayor, it would be akin to challenging the honour of my Lingwu Family!¡±


    With the protection of the Lingwu Family, Founder Yang could be considered the overlord in Por Town right now.


    Although he wore a cloak, the frosty look in Lord Lang¡¯s eyes still sent shivers down Bai Sheng and the others¡¯ spines. They knew that Lord Lang¡¯s words were more or less directed at them.


    ¡°Giving me a warning, huh, but if my Bai Family was to have 3 members in the Deity Dan Realm, wouldn¡¯t these mayoral rights just be meaningless? Also, if I were to kill Yang Cangqiong, would the Lingwu Family even remember this small ce called Por Town?¡±


    ¡°Oh well, you guys already know about the Soul Diffusion Fruit, so let¡¯s just have a battle for it. If you were to die in Big Barren Mountain, how would the Lingwu Family know that we were the ones whomitted the deed?¡±


    Thinking this, Bai Sheng eyes revealed a vicious expression and Bai Li, who was standing beside him, also revealed a smiling face which harboured evil intentions towards Founder Yang.


    At this point, Lord Lang took a dark yellow coloured cloth pouch, which actually had a blood red coloured seal engraved on it and a mysterious spirit energy emitting from it.


    Seeing this strange pouch, both Bai Li and Bai Sheng¡¯s pupils contracted, and the others too let a coveting expression.


    ¡°It¡¯s actually a cosmos pouch!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan, who was beside Long Chen, also let out an excited gaze and seeing Long Chen¡¯s skeptical look, he then said: ¡°The cosmos pouch has a magical effect and can contain things, don¡¯t belittle this small pouch. The space inside is probably as big as a pavilion, it is a cultivator¡¯s necessity when they travel! This cosmos pouch, can more or less fit in all the valuables of our Yang Family inside.¡±


    After hearing Yang Qingxuan words, Long Chen had then finally remembered that there was such an object like this.


    Indeed, if one were to travel outside while carrying so many valuables, it would definitely be more convenient with the cosmos pouch. Long Chen recalled how much of a hassle it was when he had to carry the 500 spirit jades on him that time.


    At this point, all of the gazes were coveting the cosmos pouch. Lord Lang continued announcing: ¡°The Yang Family has be the government in this town, and this is all conferred by my Lingwu Family. If the Yang Family are able to bring forth some achievements and manage the mayoral position well, the Lingwu Family may have more to confer!¡±


    The Lingwu Family¡¯s rewards will naturally not be petty, and although many people have already acknowledged that the Yang Family should hold the mayoral rights in Por Town, they were still rather envious of the Lingwu Family¡¯s conferment, especially the Bai Family members. After seeing that what originally should have been theirsnd into Founder Yang hands, the armrest of the chair Bai Sheng was sitting on was crushed into pieces.


    Right now, the title has been conferred and rewards have been given. Lord Lang then said to Founder Yang: ¡°If you work to your utmost, there will definitely be reciprocation! I will return to this Por Town at ater date.¡±


    Seeing that Lord Lang was about to leave, Founder Yang hurriedly said: ¡°I bid you farewell, Lord Lang!¡±


    However, he never thought Lord Lang would turn his vision towards Long Chen and then say: ¡°You follow me.¡±


    Long Chen was stumped. He then followed Lord Lang behind the za and into a small alley. Over ten thousand people looked nkly at Long Chen as he followed Lord Lang, not knowing what Lord Lang had in mind.


    ¡°Could it be that Lord Lang wants to bring him back to Yuanling City to nurture him after seeing his innate talent?¡±


    This possibility was what everyone had on their minds.


    Even Founder Yang had this thought right now. But deep in his heart, he would be extremely happy if Long Chen was able to receive better nurture.


    As for Bai Sheng and Bai Li, they both looked at each other and furrowed their brows.


    ¡°Second Brother, do you think Lord Lang wants to bring him along?¡±


    Bai Li smirked and then said sarcastically: ¡°You are thinking too much, he is merely at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. In Yuanling City, that is only considered trash, At his age, there are already a ton of cultivators at thete phase of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and Lord Lang is a super genius in the Lingwu Family. That runt only has the role of a clown in his eyes.


    Only after hearing Bai Li¡¯s words, did Bai Sheng heave a sigh of relief. However, when he recalled that the rewards were conferred to Founder Yang and that Yang Cangqiong became the mayor of Por Town, he was extremely unwilling to ept it.


    Because Lord Lang did not say he was leaving yet, these ten thousand people did not dare to leave, and so they waited anxiously.


    Lord Lang only took off his cloak after walking into the alley, revealing a face with beautiful features. And after removing his cloak, the stern and cold demeanour had instantly vanished, and what reced it was a childish aura.


    This change was a little too abrupt, and Long Chen could barely react. His thoughts were rather obscene, and since he considered himself to be slightly familiar with Lord Lang, he did not make do with any formalities, smiling and asking: ¡°Why did Lord Lang look for me? Could it be that you have fallen for me?¡±


    Lord Lang¡¯s expression suddenly turned to stone. After a while, he then smiled bitterly: ¡°Do you always speak so disrespectfully all the time? Don¡¯t call me Lord Lang, after listening to you guys calling me this the past few days, I feel extremely ufortable. I am called Mo Xiang. You can just call me Xiang.¡±


    Mo Xiang?


    Long Chen muttered and repeated this name a few times, and he suddenly felt several hundred times closer to Lord Lang. Thus, he sized up this youth, and seeing that Lord Lang was staring at him nkly, he said: ¡°Why are you looking at me?¡±


    Mo Xiang looked a little embarrassed and said: ¡°Seeing that you have actually turned into a Beast Warrior and that you could actually obtain a method to cultivate in the ways of a Beast Warrior in this small Por Town, I am rather surprised. However, this is your secret, so it is not appropriate for me to ask. Being able to go from the second level of the Dragon Pulse Realm to the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm in a month or so of time, your talent is not ordinary, so I wanted to ask you if you are willing to go back with me to the Lingwu Family. I think you will be able to obtain better fostering.


    Mo Xiang seemed to hold his talent in high regard. Long Chen knew it, and had expected these words just now.


    Long Chen did indeed want to go to a greater haven and cultivate himself, however, there were still things for him to do in Por Town right now so he could only say apologetically: ¡°Honestly speaking, I am extremely appreciative and touched that you recognise my worth, but I still have things to do in Por Town, so¡­¡­¡±


    Mo Xiang pursed his lips and said: ¡°Is it because of the Soul Diffusion Fruits? Indeed, it is rather untimely right now, I have to rush back to Yuanling City to settle some matters, otherwise I could have gotten those Soul Diffusion Fruits for you.¡±


    Long Chen was stumped at this point; he always felt that this youth in front of him was rather nice. Could it just be because he had seen Long Chen saving a little kid¡¯s life before, or did this fellow actually have¡­¡­a weird orientation?


    Long Chen¡¯s hair stood on ends, and his gaze towards Mo Xiang changed a little.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s expression change, Mo Xiang scratched his head in bewilderment and asked: ¡°Are you afraid of me snatching away the Soul Diffusion Fruit? The Soul Diffusion Fruit is already of no value to me, so you don¡¯t have to worry. However, if you want to fight for this Soul Diffusion Fruit, thene to Yuanling City in the future. Obtaining the Soul Diffusion Fruit is indeed greatly beneficial for you.¡±


    Seeing that this fellow¡¯s apprehension was heightened, Long Chen finally knew that he had been too viscious.


    However, this Mo Xiang had good intentions, so Long Chen hurriedly said: ¡°If the matter in Por Town is resolved, I will probably go to Yuanling City.¡±


    Mo Xiang nodded his head and said: ¡°That is fine too.¡± Then he frowned and said: ¡°Those two old geezers from the Bai Family are not weak in strength and it is not appropriate for me to strike, so you had better take more caution. Entering the Human Dan Realm before youe to Yuanling City would be your best bet.¡±


    Then, he actually took out another cosmos pouch and said: ¡°Take this as a gift for meeting you; it will be more convenient for you when you travel next time.¡±


    Seeing that this youth was so serious and meticulous, and that his every tone of speaking had contained care and concern for Long Chen, Long Chen was extremely touched.


    He took the cosmos pouch and then looked at Mo Xiang with eyes filled with sincerity, and he said seriously: ¡°This is not considered a gift for meeting me, if not for the [Celestial Core Technique] that you gave me before, I would not have such aplishments today. Xiang, I really have to thank you for that.


    Mo Xiang was a little embarrassed, but then he smiled and said: ¡°To me, the [Celestial Core Technique] no longer had any use. You being able to use it to the full potential can be considered doing it justice. Since that¡¯s the case, I will first return to Yuanling City. This cosmos pouch has my insignia, if you bring it to Lingwu Family, naturally there will be people who will bring you to see me.


    Long Chen nodded his head.


    Mo Xiang looked at him for another moment and then said: ¡°I still don¡¯t know your name.¡±


    Long Chen was startled and said: ¡°I am Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°Why is your surname Long if you are a member of the Yang Family?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡­My mother is from the Yang Family and my Father¡¯s surname is Long.¡±


    Mo Xiang nodded his head and said: ¡°No wonder.¡±


    Long Chen was still rather confused. Why would this Mo Xiang treat him this well? At this point, seeing that Mo Xiang was about to leave, he then asked uncontrobly: ¡°Giving me the [Celestial Core Technique] and this cosmos pouch, why do you treat me so well?¡±


    As if anticipating Long Chen¡¯s question, Mo Xiang gave a faint smile and then said ndly: ¡°To be honest, I am not sure of it myself either, but sometimes the feeling that you give me is rather simr to my elder brother¡¯s. He was rather rowdy in his mannerisms, and often instigated me to do bad things when I was very young, peeping at the maids of my residence when they were showering, or lying to my father about having been kidnapped by someone¡­¡­¡±


    Mo Xiang¡¯s face had revealed an expression of happiness when he said this; however, speaking of these scandalous things in front of Long Chen seemed rather inappropriate, so he smiled awkwardly.


    So this was the case¡­¡­


    Long Chen smiled and said: ¡°You are already so powerful. I¡¯m sure your elder brother must be stronger than you, right?¡±


    Very soon Mo Xiang face darkened, and then hatred was reced in his eyes. He clenched his fist, and then shook his head, saying: ¡°Originally he was more powerful than me, but he is dead, they are all dead¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was startled, seeing this agonised expression on Mo Xiang, he thought of his own feelings back when Long Qinn died. He bit his lips, sighed and then said: ¡°Sorry, I brought up your tragic past.¡±


    ¡°No worries. It is only that I was useless, and am not able to take revenge for them even now. Right now I still have some matters to settle in Yuanling City, so I have got to go. Remember to look for me when youe to Yuanling City!¡±


    ¡°Definitely!¡±


    Seeing the Mo Xiang¡¯s leaving figure, Long Chen suddenly thought of the words said by Founder Yang.


    ¡°Kid, let me give you a warning. When you are out creating a name for yourself in the future and have someone you can call your brother, you definitely must be clear of his intentions by checking if his heart is made of poison or blood¡­¡­¡±


    Suddenly, Long Chen lips curled at the corners of his mouth.


    ¡°I am hot-blooded. Xiang, what about you?¡±

 Chapter 46 – Phantom Glass Sword

    When Long Chen reappeared again, Founder Yang had a mildly disappointed look on his face. He knew that Lord Lang seemed to only mildly appreciate Long Chen¡¯s talents.


    The Bai Family members heaved a heavy sigh of relief. If Long Chen was to follow Lord Lang back to Yuanling City, even if they were able to get rid of the Yang Family members, they would still be afraid of Long Chen achieving tremendous progress in Yuanling City anding back to seek revenge.


    ¡°When even a talented individual like him is not epted into the Lingwu Family, one can see how high the pedestal is for the requirements to enter the Lingwu Family!


    At this point, Founder Yang had already regrouped with the rest of the Yang Family members. Now that Founder Yang had be the mayor of Por Town, the various factions had all hurriedly gathered around this side, while the Bai Family¡¯s side was rather sparse.


    ¡°Chen Er, where is Lord Lang?¡±


    ¡°He has already returned to Yuanling City.¡±


    Hearing that Lord Lang had already gone, the masses all expressed their congrattions to Founder Yang and left.


    The ten thousand people were prepared to leave this field, but at this moment, the Bai Family members had actually walked to where the Yang Family members were. At the forefront were Bai Sheng and Bai Li. Their cold gazes were on Founder Yang and Long Chen, and their eyes were filled with fury and unwillingness.


    Looking at the Bai Family members who had put up such an overbearing front, it was obvious that they were here to stir trouble.


    At this point, as the Bai Family members got closer, Long Chen could feel it more clearly. The strength of a mighty ninth level Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator.


    When only a short distance was left to the Yang Family, the Bai Family members halted in their footsteps.


    Bai Sheng and Bai Li both had darkened expressions. At this point they faced Founder Yang, who showed no fear despite facing these two experts.


    At this point Bai Sheng sneered and said: ¡°Yang Family? Mayor? What a load of bullshit.¡±


    Founder Yang could not be bothered to speak with him. However, Long Chen was extremely displeased with their appearance, so he smirked and retorted: ¡°You two little Bai dogs were wagging your tails when Lord Lang was here. After he has left, you want to bite?¡±


    The behaviour of these two Bai experts had been described beautifully by Long Chen, and the others all guffawed momentarily. Having actually been publicly shamed by Long Chen, these two Bai experts¡¯ faces immediately turned more unpleasant.


    They looked at each other in the eye and then Bai Li looked towards Long Chen and said: ¡°What an artictive bastard, thinking of yourself as a genius, but never knowing that the difference from a real genius is 180,000 miles away. Lord Lang did not take you in, which is your misfortune. In eight days. I can predict that you will only live for another eight days.¡±


    When he mentioned the number eight, he smirked.


    Long Chen knew he was talking about the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit.


    However he still put on a skeptical look and said: ¡°This little Bai dog¡¯s words, as a human being I naturally don¡¯t understand its words.¡±


    Bai Li¡¯s face momentarily coloured with embarrassment and fury, but Bai Sheng restrained him and whispered: ¡°Second brother, this bastard is very articte. Bickering with him will only anger ourselves, and anyway it won¡¯t be much longer before their whole Yang Family will perish. We don¡¯t have topete like this with them here today.¡±


    Bai Li coldlyughed and said: ¡°Oh well, we¡¯ll let them be smug for another few days, and then¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh right, Second Brother, is your brother from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect dependable? We are not a match for his strength, what if¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Big brother don¡¯t worry, if it¡¯s my brother I can naturally depend on him and with his ability as a Deity Dan Realm, the Yang Family, no matter if its Yang Cangqiong or this so called genius, are just like clowns in his eyes.


    Bai Sheng indifferently gave both Founder Yang and Long Chen another nce, imagining that they both would be corpses in the near future. He sneered in his heart and thought: ¡°Right now you guys are still happy. When the timees and you see each and every member of your Yang Family dying, then you will regret ever being born into this world.¡±


    Seeing that both families were about to fight, the hearts of the masses were extremely nervous. But after seeing that the Bai Family members had only said a few words and then walked away with their tails between their legs, the masses had allughed, because the performance of this Bai Family was just too pathetic.


    But only Long Chen furrowed his brows. He had a premonition that the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit would have huge coteral damage, and if one was not careful, the whole of the Yang Family might be consigned to eternal damnation!


    If it were two months ago, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t be too concerned about the Yang Family if anything happened, but now when he finally had someone he needed to protect here, the life and death of Yang Family had already been closely intertwined with the fate of his life.


    ¡°So¡­¡­ Bai Family. Only when you are eradicatedpletely, can I be at peace.¡±


    Returning to the Yang Family, Founder Yang once again gathered everyone over. One reason was to put in order the procedures as a mayor, and the other was about the reward.


    At this point, Founder Yang had detained Yang Qingxuan, Yang Xueqing, Yang Yuntian, Yang Wu and Long Chen. He took out the cosmos pouch and said: ¡°This is the reward from Lingwu Family. I have already inspected it. It is separated into 20,000 spirit jades, 3 pieces of deity jades, and also an advanced Huang grade spirit sword, plus an advanced Huang grade swordy technique scroll.


    As he said that, Founder Yang revealed an expression of glee.


    Without even mentioning the 20,000 spirit jades, something that was almost equal to all of Yang Family¡¯s wealth, each of the deity jades was the concentrated form of countless spirit jades. Basically each of these deity jade¡¯s spirit energy was equivalent to the energy contained within 100,000 spirit jades! Based on these rewards, it was already akin to 50,000 spirit jades.


    Deity jades, usually only a Deity Dan Realm cultivator would be able to afford one.


    Each deity jade could be exchanged for 10,000 spirit jades, but 10,000 spirit jades may not be able to be exchanged for 1 piece of deity jade. This was because the rarity of deity jades was much higher.


    With these 3 pieces of deity jades, the cultivation of the Yang Family members could be greatly increased. As such, when they all heard of them gaining these 3 pieces of deity jade, they were all shocked, yet ted.


    Furthermore, when they heard that they had gotten an advanced Huang grade spirit sword and an advanced Huang grade swordy technique scroll, their expressions were even more ecstatic.


    One must know, what the Yang Family has in their possession is only an advanced Huang grade [Seal of the Dragons]. Now in the aspect of mary wealth and technique, both have been doubled. Coupled with the advanced Huang grade spirit sword, it was even more amazing.


    There were only a few of these spirit swords in Por Town, not to mention an advanced Huang grade spirit sword. With this spirit sword and the advanced Huang grade swordy technique, their might would definitely be greatly increased!


    At this point, Founder Yang took out the swordy technique scroll, and naturally, he took out the advanced Huang grade spirit sword at the same time. It was as if it was forged with ss, containing a tinge of azure. A grand aura emanated from this spirit sword, which felt extremely sharp!


    The sharpness of this de can definitely cut a strand of hair in two if one dropped onto it.


    ¡°This sword is named Phantom ss Sword!¡±


    The Yang Family members looked at this Phantom ss Sword, and they all eximed in amazement because this spirit sword contained a huge energy wave. If it was used for battle, one¡¯s strength would definitely achieve a higher level!


    ¡°As for this advanced Huang grade swordy technique, its name is [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh]!¡±


    Just based on this name only, one would know that it was not a simple sword. Thinking of this [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] scroll, it would definitely not pale inparison towards the [Dark Heavenly Finger] or [Seal of the Dragons] and if coupled with this Phantom ss Sword, it might even be stronger!


    Founder Yang looked at everyone and said: ¡°Today I have held you guys back, because I want all of you to decide as a whole, who this Phantom ss Sword and [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] scroll should belong to. The swordy technique can definitely be practiced by many, but there is only one Phantom ss Sword, so¡­¡­ Right now I am of old age, and I have already spent a lot of effort to learn the [Seal of the Dragons]. Now, I only wish to concentrate in breaking through the Deity Dan Realm. Therefore this Phantom ss Sword will belong to one of you.¡±


    Then he looked at Long Chen and said to the rest: ¡°Chen Er has done the family a great service this time, so I will hand over this Phantom ss Sword to him, what do all of you say?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen obtain this Phantom ss Sword was naturally what everyone had in mind. Yang Qingxuan and the rest had all nodded their heads in unison. However Long Chen said: ¡°Grandfather, having the [Seal of the Dragons] is enough for me, and I am not nning to learn swordy technique yet. Why don¡¯t you hand over this spirit sword to someone else.¡±


    One reason why Long Chen did not want this Phantom ss Sword was because he already had [Seal of the Dragons] which was of a simr level. The other reason was that Lingxi is the expert with swords and with her around, Long Chen did not n to learn the [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh].


    What he needed was an even stronger technique and the Yang Family would need this [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] more than he did.


    Seeing Long Chen speak determinedly, Founder Yang thought that even if Long Chen had learned the [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] his strength might not be any greater than with the [Seal of the Dragons], so he nodded his head. He looked towards everyone else, and at this point Yang Qingxuan bitterly smiled and said: ¡°Father, I am the same as you, the [Seal of the Dragons] is more than enough, and learning this [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] will only be biting off more than I can chew.¡±


    Yang Xueqing too nodded her head. Right now only Yang Wu and Yang Yuntian had not spoken. Yang Yuntian, seeing both his brother and sister expressing their opinion, also said: ¡°I have not reached the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and my [Seal of the Dragons] is not yet mastered, not to mention this [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh].¡±


    Yang Wu too said: ¡°I am in the same situation as Second Uncle, and we will speak of it when I master [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] in the future.¡±


    At this point Long Chen suggested: ¡°The two people who have not learnt [Seal of the Dragons] are Lingyue and Lingqing, and they are both in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. This [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] scroll, let them practice it first and then see who will first master it sessfully, and then hand over the Phantom ss Sword to one of them, how about it?¡±


    The Yang Family members knew that Long Chen and Yang Lingqing¡¯s rtionship was close, yet Long Chen was not biased towards Yang Lingyue and actually let them earn the ownership of the Phantom ss Sword with their talent. This can be considered beingpletely impartial and fair.


    Founder Yang nodded his head and said: ¡°Then let us do that. As for the spirit jades and deity jades, I will first hold onto them, and distribute them based on merit. Chen Er had some aplishments today, so I will hand over a deity jade to him.


    Naturally the members here did not object.


    Long Chen had not seen any deity jades before, so he did not reject it and directly took the deity jade from Founder Yang¡¯s hands. A secondter, a dense and natural spirit energy assaulted his nostrils, and with a light whiff, Long Chen felt his whole body rx.


    Founder Yangughed and then said to the masses: ¡°Right now the Yang Family has be the government in Por Town. Qingxuan and Yuntian, follow me to handle some trifle procedures, the rest may take their leave now.¡±


    Yang Xueqing and Yang Wu nodded their heads, but as they were about to leave, Long Chen suddenly said: ¡°Wait.¡±


    With bewildered expressions, they all looked at Long Chen who had inhaled deeply and said: ¡°Grandfather, do you know what item the Soul Diffusion Fruit is?¡±


    Hearing the name of the Soul Diffusion Fruit, Founder Yang¡¯s body momentarily shuddered and then he excitedly said: ¡°You know of the Soul Diffusion Fruit¡¯s location?¡±

 Chapter 47 – A Male Prodigy’s Three Pisses

    Only then did Long Chen tell everything he knew about the Soul Diffusion Fruit to the rest of them. Founder Yang¡¯s excited expression changed and he furrowed his brows when he heard that the Bai Family had discovered it too.


    Long Chen did not speak of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, for fear that Founder Yang might panic.


    Atst Founder Yang exhaled loudly and said: ¡°So it was because of this Soul Diffusion Fruit that Bai Sheng wanted to exterminate my Yang Family. It is no wonder. Since ancient times, people can die for wealth, and birds die for food.


    Soon after, his face turned cold and said: ¡°Since the Bai Family has be our Yang Family¡¯s archenemy, if they were to obtain the Soul Diffusion Fruit and allow Bai Sheng to breakthrough into the Deity Dan Realm, then my Yang Family will definitely perish without a doubt. So for this Soul Diffusion Fruit, I, Yang Cangqiong, must definitely fight with him for it!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan too nodded his head and said: ¡°A total of 3 Soul Diffusion Fruits. If the Bai Family obtains even one, our Yang Family will no longer have any standing in Por Town. It seems like this battle cannot be avoided. Right now, the Bai Family has two cultivators in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, as well as in the eight level. As for our Yang Family¡­¡­¡±


    All of the people directed their gazes at Long Chen, and Founder Yang nervously asked: ¡°Long Chen, what exactly is your level of ability now?¡±


    Originally, the Yang Family had a slight edge over the Bai Family, but they never thought that Bai Li would suddenly appear. And Long Chen was the biggest variable in the Yang Family, so they were all extremely concerned with his ability.


    Long Chen thought for a while and said: ¡°Grandfather, if we were to battle, you just have to deal with Bai Sheng. As for the rest, and any unforeseen circumstances, let me deal with them!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words meant that he already had the ability to deal with Bai Li. Founder Yang heaved a sigh of relief and said: ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then we are barely able to match our enemy¡¯s strength. However, the variables in the battle are extremely great, so we had better prepare during the next few days. If the Bai Family is not exterminated, I cannot rest nor eat in peace¡­¡­¡±


    If any of the so called Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were toe, then it would definitely not be an evenly matched fight, but a one-sided match instead. Looking at this old man¡¯s ageing face, Long Chen could not bear to tell him this truth.


    ¡°Oh well. I will just work a little harder, and if there are any unforeseen circumstances, I will ensure that our Yang Family does note to any harm as long as I am alive!


    Long Chenid on his own bed.


    ¡°Hey, are you still thinking of the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit?¡±


    Lingxi emerged from the Lingxi Sword and looked curiously at Long Chen, who was seemingly deep in thought.


    ¡°There isn¡¯t much to think about. Right now, I am in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and after [Dragon Soul Transformation], the reinforced body and tenfold quality of normal Qi, naturally I would not be afraid of Bai Li. However, if that Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were to send even just a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator, then our Yang Family would most likely meet with misfortune.¡±


    Lingxi stood in front of his chest, and after looking at Long Chen for a while, she said grudgingly: ¡°A fellow like you,st time you hated your mother so much, but now you can¡¯t wait to fight to protect her. What a weird person. I have long told you: how could there be a mother in this world who does not love her son. Only you thought cynically.¡±


    Suddenly, Long Chen got up from his bed and said to Lingxi: ¡°Go back in. I am going out.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t easy for Lingxi to appear, so she did notply and pursed her lips, asking: ¡°You should be practicing your cultivation diligently, what are you going out for?¡±


    Long Chen did not reason with her and walked out of the room on his own. Lingxi furiously looked at Long Chen and could only helplessly return back into the Lingxi Sword.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, how much longer will the effects of the Dream Spirit Grassst for?¡±


    Suddenly asked this by Long Chen, Xiao Xi said a little bitterly: ¡°I don¡¯t know. Probably about ten days or so.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head. Right now he had a decent level of strength, and even if he did not use [Dragon Soul Transformation], he was already unbeatable in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Exiting the Yang Family, he immediately headed towards the direction of the Bai Family whilst concealing his tracks. Lingxi momentarily asked nervously: ¡°Hey, what are you going to the Bai Family for?¡±


    ¡°A scamp like you wouldn¡¯t know a thing about what I am about to do!¡±


    Lingxi was momentarily so annoyed that she could not be bothered with him anymore.


    Very soon, they arrived at the Bai Family and Long Chen hid at a covert area and said: ¡°Xiao Xi. Later when I go in, if there are any eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivators from the Bai Family appearing, give me a warning.¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t even care if you die.¡±


    After coaxing for a long while, only then did this little princess change her mind and agree to help. Long Chen had actually regretted it a million times, he decided not to say such spiteful things to Lingxi in the future.


    After sneaking into the Bai Family, Long Chen carefully moved around, and Lingxi was unable to curb her curiosity, asking: ¡°Hey, what are you looking for exactly?¡±


    ¡°Looking for Bai Shidong.¡±


    Lingxi thought of the prodigy that peed twice in his pants, and thinking of it, she found it extremely funny. But he did not know that Long Chen was looking for him. After a while, Lingxi suddenly said: ¡°Found him, he is sleeping in that room.¡±


    It was almost noon now, and Bai Shidong was actually still sleeping, Long Chen was really impressed. Following Lingxi¡¯s guidance, he entered the room, and as expected, Bai Shidong was still sleeping soundly. He had even drooled all over his pillow, and the nket had been kicked onto the floor.


    Without saying another word, Long Chen immediately wrung his neck and forcefully shook him awake. When Bai Shidong opened his drooping eyelids and suddenly saw the devil Long Chen of a nightmare who was wringing his neck at the moment, he was so frightened and scared silly that he wanted to scream. But his neck was grabbed tightly by Long Chen, and a not single sound could be produced.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move, and don¡¯t make any noise. If not, die.¡±


    Bai Shidong quivered and finally woke from his slumber. Not daring to move anymore, he looked at Long Chen, his eyes brimming with tears.


    Seeing this disappointing and unptable expression, Long Chen got furious and said: ¡°Stop weeping like a wimp! I will just ask you a question, and if you obediently answer, I will naturally not im your life. But if you try to do anything funny, Bai Shichen and the rest will be your role model!¡±


    Thinking of the miserable state of Bai Shichen and the rest, Bai Shidong suddenly turned pale. Long Chen knew this fellow did not have any backbone at all, and could not be bothered anymore. He asked: ¡°Tell me, how did you get the Dream Spirit Grass?¡±


    After hearing the three words ¡®Dream Spirit Grass¡¯, Lingxi finally knew of Long Chen¡¯s purpose, and thinking that he had actually ced himself in danger by entering the Bai Family¡¯s residence for her, Lingxi was extremely touched.


    ¡°Bad guy, why didn¡¯t you say so earlier. If you did, I wouldn¡¯t have been angry with you¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi had a very sweet feeling in her heart.


    Long Chen¡¯s question made Bai Shidong speak out urgently: ¡°I¡¯ll tell you, I¡¯ll tell you. It was sold to me by the Liang Family¡¯s Master, Liang Chen. You should know him?¡±


    Liang Chen? Long Chen had some inklings of who he was. He was the master of a small faction in Por Town, and his strength had reached the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Now that he had already found out what he wanted to know, Long Chen prepared to leave the Bai residence. However, if he were to just leave, this Bai Shidong would immediately call for help. That would definitely cause trouble, so making Bai Shidong unconscious was necessary.


    After Bai Shidong finished talking, he thought that Long Chen would not hurt him, but who knew that when he looked at Long Chen¡¯s eyes, there was a vicious gaze. He was so scared that even his soul flew away, and at this point, Long Chen already sent him a punch, knocking him out.


    Turning away, the smell of piss suddenly infiltrated his senses, and Long Chen felt that he could immediately fall onto his knees and prostrate in front of Bai Shidong.


    ¡°I have seen you a total of three times, and each time you have rewarded me with piss. Such an extravagant gift. I feel so pampered¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing this scene from inside the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi also had chuckled to no end.


    Very soon, he left the Bai Family. Only then did Long Chen head towards the Liang Family. The Liang Family was situated at a corner in Por Town, so only after a while, did Long Chen manage to get there.


    The master of the Liang Family was a big-sized man. When Long Chen had killed Bai Zhanxiong, he had been there and had also been thoroughly frightened by Long Chen¡¯s methods. At this point, seeing Long Chen looking for him, he was a little afraid as he weed Long Chen into his residence and received him warmly with wine.


    Long Chen went straight to the point and said: ¡°Liang Family Master, this time I¡¯m looking for you mainly because of the Dream Spirit Grass. I heard that Bai Shidong had bought a Dream Spirit Grass from you, so I was wondering if you still had any left? If it¡¯s about money, I will definitely not treat you unfairly.


    Hearing Long Chen speak of the Dream Spirit Grass, Liang Family Master revealed a bitter expression and said: ¡°My sincere apologies. I have only stumbled across a Dream Spirit Grass once in my life, and I sold it to Bai Shidong. If you want more Dream Spirit Grass, I don¡¯t have any solutions for it.¡±


    Long Chen was not someone to give up that easily, so he continued asking: ¡°Then could you let me know how Liang Family Master came across this Dream Spirit Grass?¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen seemed to want this Dream Spirit Grass rather badly and in the Por Town, the Yang Family was now the overlord, naturally the Liang Family Master wanted to establish some connections so he said: ¡°It was in the Deste Beast Domain. I can roughly point out the location of the Dream Spirit Grass to you on a map. However, Young Master Chen, the dangers in this Deste Beast Domain are aplenty¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen interrupted him and said: ¡°If you were to give the map to me, I will definitely repay you in the future!¡±


    Only then did the Liang Family Master nod his head and allowed his second brother to host Long Chen, while he went to prepare the map.


    After an hour, Long Chen held the map and walked out of the Liang residence, heading back to the Yang Family.


    ¡°Hey, there isn¡¯t much time left till the ripening of the Soul Diffusion Fruit, and right now, the Yang Family needs you the most. And you still want to go to the Deste Beast Domain to find the Dream Spirit Grass for me?¡±


    ¡°The Soul Diffusion Fruit indeed does have around eight more days before it ripens, and I want to take this opportunity to try and get you some spirit healing medicine. During the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit, I don¡¯t know if idents will happen, and if I were to die, at least you can endure a little longer with the spirit medicine¡­¡­And this should give you a little more hope to survive.¡±


    Seeing Long Chen thinking for her, Lingxi suddenly felt like sobbing, and although there were no tears, she still cried to her heart¡¯s content.


    Long Chen felt cold sweat form and said: ¡°Girl, what are you crying for, I am only saying that I might die. It¡¯s not like I have already died!¡±


    The main purpose in returning to the Yang Family now was to bid farewell to the members. However, Yang Xueqing was not in the residence, and Founder Yang was out in town busy handling the matters of the mayor¡¯s role. Only then did Long Chen look for Yang Lingqing, and this girl was studiously reading the [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh].


    Long Chen¡¯s arrival gave her a shock.


    ¡°What are you looking at? Hiding it behind you, could it be some erotic material?¡± Long Chen teased Yang Lingqing.


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s face darkened and she took out the [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] scroll, saying: ¡°Look at it and tell me if this is an erotic picture. How is there an elder brother like you who is always so improper.¡±


    Long Chen casually flipped a few pages and remembering that Lingqing and Yang Lingyue werepeting for the Phantom ss Sword, he wanted to give her some pointers. He never expected Yang Lingqing to snatch the scroll back already and say: ¡°Don¡¯t even think of wanting to help me. This is a fair match between Lingyue Elder Sister and me. If you were to help me, my victory won¡¯t be that splendid, and naturally, I wouldn¡¯t be able to say that I am better suited for the Phantom ss Sword.


    Seeing the stubborn temper of this girl, Long Chen suddenly felt that her attitude was somewhat simr to his.


    ¡°It¡¯s no big deal if I don¡¯t teach you, since I can¡¯t be bothered. Oh right. Lingqing, I am going out for the next few days. When Grandfather and the rest return, do help me convey this message to them and say that I will definitely return at the most crucial moment.¡±


    Yang Lingqing looked at Long Chen suspiciously and said: ¡°What is the most crucial moment? Where are you going? Why so mysterious? It couldn¡¯t be the Emerald Jade House, could it?¡±

 Chapter 48 – Burning Heavens Mountain Plains

    This was first time Long Chen entered the Deste Beast Domain from the Big Barren Mountain. Previously, he ended up here because of Lingxi¡¯s wild flying and they had stumbled in from who knows where.


    Thest time he entered Deste Beast Domain, Long Chen could barely deal with a fourth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator. Now that his strength had risen dramatically, if he used [Dragon Soul Transformation], he could basically catch up and fight evenly with a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator.


    With this strength, as long as Long Chen does not meet an overpowering beast like the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf, he should not be in any danger.


    In the Big Barren Mountain, the strongest demonic beast was only at the eighth level of the Huang grade. But the Deste Beast Domain was a different matter. Although the beasts would naturally get stronger the deeper one enters, one could not eliminate the possibility that some stronger monsters might choose to go for a stroll in the outer area.


    For instance the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf. It did not belong to the area that it had appeared inst time.


    So even now with a certain level of ability, Long Chen was still extremely cautious.


    There was a foggy mist inside the Deste Beast Domain and an endless sight of grey mountains and strange dead trees. An aura of destion permeated the air and the atmosphere reeked of blood. Unknown demonic beast remains littered the ground. Some had decayed longer than others, a few which would disintegrate into fine dust with only a light touch.


    Entering this ce once again had made Lingxi a little afraid. Originally she was resting on Long Chen¡¯s shoulder but after seeing this image of destion she hurriedly returned to the Lingxi Sword.


    ¡°From the map, the location of the Dream Spirit Grass is in the outer area of Deste Beast Domain, unlike the previous time when it was much deeper. That location is called the Burning Heavens Mountain ins. Let¡¯s rush over there now; at the most it will take us just half a day to get there.¡±


    After confirming the location and direction and with an acute perception from Lingxi to lead the way, if they were to encounter any strong demonic beasts, they could hide far away. If it were weak demonic beasts then they would just charge through it. So basically the journey was extremely smooth.


    Half a day¡¯s time gradually passed.


    ¡°The Burning Heavens Mountain ins may be on the outer area of the Deste Beast Domain, but its size is extremely huge too. It¡¯s not certain if there are still any Dream Spirit Grass left. It looks like we have to look for it carefully.¡±


    ¡°If there isn¡¯t any then let us go back first, that Soul Diffusion Fruit¡­¡­¡± Lingxi said worriedly


    ¡°Damn, we haven¡¯t even started looking and you said there isn¡¯t any. You have no will at all.¡±


    Although the sky in Deste Beast Domain was always dark, there were still differences between day and night. Normally during the night, due to visibility issues, it tends to be a little more dangerous.


    Long Chen observed from afar that there was a group of mountains that were ck in colour. However the night was approaching soon, so it was not suitable for them to continue walking.


    ¡°Oh well, it will be very difficult to find the Dream Spirit Grass at night. Let¡¯s carry on our journey tomorrow morning.¡±


    Lingxi used her sensory perception on the surroundings, and this actually drained her spirit energy. She too was extremely tired, so when Long Chen said to rest she heaved a sigh of relief.


    ¡°In Deste Beast Domain, theirs and caves of demonic beasts are littered everywhere. I have to find air and get rid of the demonic beasts inside, so that there will be some safety.¡±


    After making up his mind, Long Chen began his search, and in the vicinity there were many mountain ins, so these caves were easy to find. Once Long Chen got rid of the fifth and sixth level Huang grade monsters inside, he began to clean up a little. Then he started a fire and prepared to barbecue some meat.


    At this point Lingxi had already gone into deep slumber.


    When the me had just started, there came some scratching noises from outside. Long Chen stood up and at this point two robust looking men entered the cave. Upon seeing that there was actually a young man inside, they were startled. One of them who had arge physique, and wore a demonic beast pelt, ridiculed and said: ¡°You young brat, actually dare toe to Deste Beast Domain, your guts aren¡¯t small.¡±


    The other was a skinny and cultured looking man. He sized Long Chen up andughed as he said to the person beside him: ¡°He seems to be already in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. If only he knew his ce, who knows he could have be a respected figure somewhere when he matures, what a pity¡­¡­¡±


    Both of them never give Long Chen another look, treating him like air andpletely ignoring him.Then, as if minding their own business, they entered the cave and sat beside the fire that Long Chen had started.


    Long Chen inwardly sized up these two men and he put a frightened expression on his face. These two people most likely discovered that someone was here, so they entered out of curiosity. Upon seeing that Long Chen¡¯s strength was merely at the seventh level Dragon Pulse Realm, it posed no threats to them at all, so they were at ease, and conveniently stayed in this cave.


    ¡°Both of them are merely in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, which isn¡¯t a match for me. However it seems like they frequently visit this Deste Beast Domain and should be rather familiar with the area. I should use this opportunity to find information about the Dream Spirit Grass and these two people aren¡¯t Bai Shidong. Violence may not be a good solution. Right now they are making light of me, I might as well act like a ¡®grandson¡¯ right now.¡±


    [TL Note: (×°×°Ëï×Ó) To pretend to be a grandson who listens attentively and does things as an elder¡¯s wishes]


    Thinking of which, Long Chen immediately put on his ¡®grandson¡¯ demeanour and eagerly moved to where the two people were and said tteringly: ¡°Long Chen, pays his respect to Big Brothers. Both Big Brothers have such a profound level of strength. I, as your younger brother, am extremely impressed. Since we have met by fate and we seemed to be fated toe across each other¡¯s paths in Deste Beast Domain, it is my extreme honour to meet you. May I know the names of these two Big Brothers?¡±


    Originally these two thought that Long Chen would have been one of those arrogant and solitary kind, like a brat who belittled others based on their small achievements. They never thought that Long Chen was actually like a little manservant, as the proverb says, one does not reach out to hit a smiling person. If Long Chen was furious at these two for invading his cave, they could have just killed him. But Long Chen actually smiled jovially and approached them, which made them feel nonplussed.


    Seeing the gaze filled with respect on Long Chen¡¯s face, they looked at each other in the eye, and then therger man said ndly: ¡°I am Chen Xiongzhou and this is Feng Mingyang. We bothe from Yuanling City.¡±


    So they were actually from Yuanling City! Long Chen always had ced Yuanling City in high esteem, now he could ask about the kind of existence that Yuanling City was.


    ¡°So it is Big Brother Chen and Big Brother Feng! Seeing the appearance of both Big Brothers, it seems like you have frequently visited the Deste Beast Domain. Being able toe to these dangerous ces often, your younger brother is extremely impressed. I loved to explore and take risks since I was young and this time I mustered enough courage toe to Deste Beast Domain. I never expected that this Deste Beast Domain was lurking with so many dangers. If I haven¡¯t met both of you, I wouldn¡¯t know how to survive past this night.¡±


    Long Chen said these words with extreme conviction and sincerity, adding on a few phrases of ttery. These two men felt rather good about themselves and the contempt that they had held for Long Chen, now lessened.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like your Big Brother Chen wants to berate you, but with your age and ability you are simply courting death bying into this Deste Beast Domain.


    After waiting for Chen Xiongzhou to finish speaking, Feng Mingyang stroked his beard, and also used a seniority tone to reproach Long Chen: ¡°This kid is rather quick witted, however to survive in this world that is not enough. If you did not meet your Big Brothers and instead it was someone else, seeing a small kid like you here, they would most likely rob you of your wealth and im your life!¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly agreed, and even scolded himself for having no brains. Saying if he did not meet these two kind hearted Big Brothers, his corpse would definitely be lying in Deste Beast Domain.


    However he was extremely aware that these two people had actually wanted to kill him. If not for his quick witted actions, these two would have already taken his life.


    What happened next was Long Chen hurriedly ttering them, about an hourter, both of them had felt extremely good from his ttery.They only felt that this Younger Brother, Long Chen, was very sensible and knew quite a few things.


    ¡°Oh yes, Younger Brother Long Chen. By camping here did you mean to enter the Burning Heavens Mountain ins?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head saying: ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Feng Mingyang nodded his head saying: ¡°I never thought that even you would be able to sense that there¡¯s something amiss at Burning Heavens Mountain ins. These days Brother Chen and I have been observing the outskirts of these ins. The Burning Heavens Mountain ins¡¯ temperature suddenly increased to such a high degree, which seemed extremely strange. Even for us, we don¡¯t dare enter. As for you with only seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, your guts are a little too much.


    Long Chen was startled, and after a while heughed bitterly : ¡°To tell you the truth, the reason why I came to Burning Heavens Mountain ins wasn¡¯t that I discovered any abnormalities. Actually I just wanted to look for Dream Spirit Grass, do you know where they are in Burning Heavens Mountain ins?


    Hearing that Long Chen did not know about the changes in Burning Heavens Mountain ins, they felt extremely frustrated for divulging this news. However after remembering that Long Chen was only in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, even if there were any treasures appearing in Burning Heavens Mountain ins he wouldn¡¯t be able to obtain it, so they felt a littleforted.


    ¡°These two are obviously here to look for treasures. Seeing a stranger like me here, they were naturally wary of me, and would want to silence me¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s goal was Dream Spirit Grass, so he did not want any unnecessary trouble. As such he hurriedly told them of his main goal.


    Hearing these three words, Dream Spirit Grass, Feng Mingyang nodded his head and said: ¡°The Burning Heavens Mountain ins indeed have plenty of Dream Spirit Grass. We have been here to harvest some before, and roughly know of the location¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen was ted, he never thought that by acting like a ¡®grandson¡¯ he would gain such useful news and hurriedly said: ¡°Could both Big Brothers kindly lead the way for me?¡±


    Both of them exchanged nces. Right now it was only the two of them who knew about the changes in Burning Heavens Mountain ins. With Long Chen¡¯s appearance, they had actually wanted to finish him off when they first entered the cave to prevent any troubles from arising. But after seeing Long Chen¡¯s young age, and already suspecting his grand background, they did not dare to strike first. After listening to Long Chen who had no concern with the changes in Burning Heavens Mountain ins, along with Long Chen¡¯s ttery being extremelyforting to them, they said: ¡°Oh well, originally we wanted to inspect it tomorrow morning, there¡¯s no harm in bringing you along. However dangers lurk at every corner in Burning Heavens Mountain ins. Once the Dream Spirit Grass is found, you had better leave the ce earlier to avoid dying in this ce!¡±


    Hearing this warning, Long Chen pretended not to have discovered that underlying meaning, and said gratefully: ¡°Thank you Big Brothers, if I were to obtain the Dream Spirit Grass, I will definitely repay the both of you.¡±


    He was extremely clear of what these two had in mind. After all, he had been mixing around for 16 years and could be considered as an extremely sly and cunning fellow.


    ¡°As both Big Brothers came from Yuanling City, could you tell me more of the Lingwu Family?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen abruptly asking this question, and also seeing that there was still some time before the sun rises, Feng Mingyang began to say out of boredom: ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you wish to enter the Lingwu Family? With your strength at this age, if after a few years you are in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm you would be able to.¡±


    ¡°Are Big Brothers are also nning to enter the Lingwu Family?¡±


    Chen Xiongzhou nodded his head and then sighed, saying: ¡°One must pass a test if they wish to enter the Lingwu Family. One of the requirements is that the age cannot surpass 30 years old, while the strength has to be at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. Both of us are nearing 30, so this is ourst chance. If we do not reach the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm before then, we will lose the qualifications to enter Lingwu Family.


    Long Chen was inwardly surprised. In Por Town, a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator can be considered as the top expert. But at Lingwu Family the requirement just to enter was already the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, along with their age of under 30. This disparity was extremely huge.


    Seeing this shocked expression on Long Chen¡¯s face, Chen Xiongzhou said: ¡°It seems like you have not been to Yuanling City before and you will definitely not be able to imagine how big Yuanling City is. It is akin to a small country, with the city¡¯s central as the core.A radius of 500 li around it belongs to the city district, and from the east to west city walls, there is approximately a distance of 1000 li. At the center of Yuanling City there are two districts, and each district is 1/5th of Yuanling City. One of these districts is where the Lingwu Family resides, Lingwu City!¡±


    ¡°The numbers of registered members in Lingwu Family amounts to over 20,000 people. Each of them is above the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. It is split into the inner and outer family. When people like us pass the test, we will only be able to join the outer family; the real experts in Lingwu Family are all the inner family members and have various inherited bloodlines of the past hundreds if not thousands of years. Actually only that inner family can be truly considered a real member of the Lingwu Family. As for us joining Lingwu City, is actually just the role of a hired helper, but even if it is a helper, it is really a great honour.¡±


    Speaking of the Lingwu Family, they both had yearning expressions.


    Long Chen was thoroughly in shock.


    ¡°Twenty thousand people¡­¡­All with strength of ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and above? I never thought that this Lingwu Family would actually be this grand, and Yuanling City is only one of the counties within the Central Granary State. If it is already this big, then what about the Ten Thousand Nation Domain that father and Lingxi had mentioned! And that Long Ji Continent, how huge will that be?¡±


    The vast and boundless world momentarily made Long Chen feel helpless.


    Suddenly he remembered that Xiang is also in this Lingwu Family.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if Xiang is an outer or inner family member of Lingwu Family¡­¡­With his talent, most likely he is part of the inner family.¡±


    At this point Chen Xiongzhou growled: ¡°Only by bing an outer family member of Lingwu Family, my family will be protected by them.This is not the type of protection given to their prefectures, but is akin to sending top level experts to get rid of any archenemies you may have! And that is only for getting into the outer family. What¡¯s more, if your performance is great, you¡¯ll immediately rise in prestige!¡±


    Long Chen recorded these words in his mind.


    At this point his feeling of helplessness disappeared, and remembering that he still had the Dragon Jade and that mysterious Inherited Blood Essence, he was once again filled with confidence.


    ¡°That Inherited Blood Essence, if it really belonged to the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon, what have I to be afraid of? One must know that it belongs to one of the ten Magnificent Ancestral Dragons¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 49 – Violet Mirage Spirit Beast

    ¡°Younger Brother Long Chen, although we know the rough location of the Dream Spirit Grass, the Deste Beast Domain has a vast area, and Burning Heavens Mountain ins isn¡¯t small either. Even if we¡¯re in that area, we might not be able to find the Dream Spirit Grass.¡±


    As he walked to the front, Feng Mingyang suddenly turned his head and spoke to Long Chen.


    At this moment, therge Chen Xiongzhou also turned back and said: ¡°However, both of us want to inspect the Burning Heavens Mountain ins, so we can help you look for it along the way. This Burning Heavens Mountain ins has countless dangers, so going along is too dangerous for you. It¡¯s better to follow us.¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly nodded his head, saying: ¡°Both Big Brothers have extraordinary talents; it is really my honor to be able to enter the Burning Heavens Mountain ins with you.¡±


    Actually, Long Chen knew what they were nning to do. They did not wish to kill Long Chen, but if he were to search alone and some treasures appeared in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins, who knew if Long Chen would luck out and find one. Thus, they wanted to keep Long Chen by their side and send him away after finding the Dream Spirit Grass.


    ¡°Long Chen, these two fellows seemed to treat you pretty well.¡±


    Lingxi could not see the underlying meaning behind their actions and spoke excitedly. After all, it was Long Chen who was seeking for spiritual medicine for her.¡±


    ¡°Silly woman, what would you know?¡±


    Long Chen scolded her in his heart and then followed behind the two, stepping on the scorching grounds of what seemed like the Burning Heavens Mountain ins.


    The rocks and mud in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins werepletely ck, and as sturdy as metal. Long Chen was extremely surprised that the Dream Spirit Grass would grow in a ce like this.


    As they approached the Burning Heavens Mountain ins from afar, Long Chen felt that the temperature was indeed very high. As he stepped onto the ins for the first time he discovered that it was several times hotter than the hottest summer day in Por Town and realized that if an ordinary person were toe here, they would definitely be unable to endure for such a long time and would die.


    ¡°ording to our memories, the Dream Spirit Grass should be in that direction. Let us go there first.¡±


    The three carefully tread on the Burning Heavens Mountain ins together and although Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang were keeping a lookout for any Dream Spirit Grass, their main purpose was to inspect the phenomenon in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins. At this point, Feng Mingyang raised some ck mud and sniffed it, and then he furrowed his brows and said: ¡°There is indeed some charred smell in this mud. Although the Burning Heavens Mountain ins is known as ¡®Burning Heavens¡¯, there is no actual fire so how can this charred smelle about?¡±


    Hearing him speak, Chen Xiongzhou was also extremely perplexed.


    However, the both of them were still unable to solve the mystery, so they could only continue walking. To them, they wanted to finish Long Chen¡¯s cumbersome task first.


    Long Chen also wished that they would hurry and help him with finding the Dream Spirit Grass since he had to rush back to Por Town after it was found.


    After several hours, they even met a seventh level Huang grade demonic beast, but it was easily dealt with by Chen Xiongzhou. When Long Chen saw the method, he felt that the people of the outside world were not so simple, as what Chen Xiongzhou used was an extremely strong, advanced Huang grade martial technique!


    ¡°In the past, many people have found Dream Spirit Grass in this area so we should look for it here too. Each of us should try to stay within sight of the others as well, so we can assist each other if there is any danger. Long Chen, you are still young and inexperienced in battle, and do not know the dangers in Deste Beast Domain. If there is any danger, just shouting loudly will do.¡±


    Feng Mingyang instructed Long Chen once again and they finally started searching the area, but it was obvious that these two guys were inspecting the Burning Heavens Mountain ins.


    The Dream Spirit Grass was only needed by Long Chen, so he didn¡¯t n to count on them.


    ¡°Hurry hurry, I want to eat a lot of Dream Spirit Grass!¡± Lingxi kept urging.


    But it was a rare treasure after all, and normally people chanced upon it, unlike Long Chen who was actively seeking it. Although there was indeed Dream Spirit Grass here, one can imagine the chances of stumbling upon it.


    Although they were rather diligent and kept walking deeper, a total of four days passed and they still ended up empty handed. At this point, Long Chen frowned, and began feeling anxious.


    As it was an extremely important matter, if they could not find it within another half a day, he needed to rush back for the battle of the Soul Diffusion Fruit since he was one of the main fighters and without him, the Yang Family would definitely lose badly.


    At this point, he should have already been back at the Yang residence. Coming out to look for the Dream Spirit Grass for Lingxi¡¯s sake was already rather risky. Now, five days had already passed, and because travelling back to Por Town requires a day, it would nearly be time for the ripening of the Soul Diffusion Fruit.


    Seeing that Long Chen was still unable to find any, Lingxi could onlyfort him and say: ¡°Hey, I am really not afraid of death. Anyway, it¡¯s enough now. Since I was able to survive for so much longer, I am very happy.¡±


    Long Chen did not reply to her, and continued looking for it on the charred ins.


    Lingxi¡¯s sensory perception was great and if there were any Dream Spirit Grass, she would be the first to discover it.


    As for the other side, seeing the youth who was at a distance away to the left of them, both Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang nced at each other, and Feng Mingyang said: ¡°It has already been some time. I originally thought we could just find a Dream Spirit Grass and dismiss him, but I never thought things would turn out this way..¡­.¡±


    Chen Xiongzhou looked at the charred earth and said: ¡°These past few days the temperature of the Burning Heavens Mountain ins has been rising, and I seem to have this feeling that something may be approaching. It could be the appearance of a treasure. And with Long Chen still here, I¡¯m worried something unexpected might happen.¡±


    Seeing that his friend¡¯s eyes had let off a vicious light, Feng Mingyang probed and asked: ¡°Why don¡¯t we wipe him out immediately? That way we can have peace of mind. I have always felt that there is an unknown factor of Long Chen¡¯s that makes people feel fearful.¡±


    Chen Xiongzhou looked at Long Chen¡¯s silhouette, and his eyes gradually turned vicious. Atst, he finally nodded his head and asked: ¡°Are you going to strike or should I?¡±


    As Feng Mingyang was about to say that he¡¯ll do it himself, he saw some flickering of a faint purple light from some distance away and licked his lips, saying: ¡°Forget it, I see the Dream Spirit Grass. Let us dismiss him.¡±


    Both of them rapidly headed towards its direction and, as expected, under a crevice in a huge rock was a stalk of Dream Spirit Grass.


    ¡°Long Chen, Oh Long Chen, I never thought that this stalk of Dream Spirit Grass would save your life.¡±


    While Long Chen was in the midst of searching, Lingxi suddenly caught the scent of the Dream Spirit Grass and excitedly rushed towards the direction she had pointed. She never thought that she would be greeted by the two guys holding onto a stalk of Dream Spirit Grass, smiling as they walked over. Feng Mingyang said: ¡°Younger Brother Long Chen, atst we have found a stalk of Dream Spirit Grass! Since you need it so badly, I, your Big Brother, will give it to you. In the future, doe to Yuanling City and look for me!¡±


    Long Chen took the Dream Spirit Grass and although he did not really fancy them, he still but he still thanked them and said: ¡°Thank you Big Brothers Feng and Chen. Long Chen will definitely repay this favour someday!¡±


    Chen Xiongzhou waved his palm and said: ¡°That isn¡¯t necessary. However, Long Chen, do you know the way out of this Burning Heavens Mountain ins?¡±


    This sentence was obviously meant to dismiss Long Chen. Long Chen also understood, and although he still had a little more time to search for the Dream Spirit Grass, both Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang did not seem as if they would allow it, so he said gratefully: ¡°I naturally know. I still have some pressing matters to take care of at home, so I must rush back after obtaining the Dream Spirit Grass. Big Brothers, see you again if fate decrees!¡±


    Saying this, he packed the Dream Spirit Grass and said his farewells to Feng Mingyang and Chen Xiongzhou.


    ¡°On behalf of this Dream Spirit Grass that you two have given me, I will not bother with you, however, this Burning Heavens Mountain ins is so huge, I can look for some on my own too.¡±


    It was only just a stalk of Dream Spirit Grass and was definitely not enough for Lingxi to live much longer. So for this girl Lingxi to live on longer, what Long Chen needs is Dream Spirit Grass, and naturally, the more the better.


    Along the way, Long Chen handed the Dream Spirit Grass over to Lingxi to refine and very soon, a stalk of Dream Spirit Grass entered her stomach. Lingxi emerged from the sword, appearing unsatisfied, and pitifully looked at Long Chen, quietly saying: ¡°I¡­¡­I still want more.¡±


    Suddenly hearing such words would make one think of indecent things, and seeing that exceptional beauty Lingxi, wicked thoughts surfaced on Long Chen¡¯s mind. But just as he thought these things, he remembered that Lingxi was only two centimetres¡­¡­


    ¡°Let¡¯s look for another half a day and if there isn¡¯t any more, we¡¯ll have to return home.¡±


    ¡°En, okay.¡±


    To refrain from meeting both Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang again, Long Chen headed in another direction. It was at this moment, however, that he noticed something beneath his feet.


    ¡°The further I head in this direction, the higher the temperature of the mud¡­¡­.¡±


    Long Chen had known that the two were exploring and inspecting the phenomenon of the Burning Heavens Mountain ins these past few days but his mind had mostly been focused on recovering the Dream Spirit Grass. Now, as he discovered he was moving in the right direction, he continued walking on.


    ¡°Hey hey, wait a minute¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi was originally flying along with him, but she now stood in front of his face blocking him and said in a low voice: ¡°There is something there. Listen to my instructions and let us look at it carefully.¡±


    Normally, what Lingxi sensed were generally good items, for instance, the Enchanted Hill Ginseng that had given Long Chen tremendous help the other time.


    Long Chen held his breath and quietly went in the direction that Lingxi had pointed to. At this point, Lingxi had already returned back to the sword, and a light yet excited tone sounded.


    ¡°It seems to be a Violet Mirage Spirit Beast! This is a little first level Huang grade demonic beast, but it specialises in illusions and has the strongest spiritual force of all the Huang grade demonic beasts. With such a huge spiritual force, it would usually be the result of spiritual medicine.¡±


    ¡°So, this Violet Mirage Spirit Beast can lead us to a ce with more spiritual medicine?¡±


    Following Lingxi¡¯s directions, Long Chen soon saw the full body of the Violet Mirage Spirit Beast. It was a purple rat species that was roughly the size of a kitten and emitted a misty light, as if ayer of mist covered its whole body. This light made people unable to see its appearance properly, apart from the pair of faint purple eyes that kept swiveling, which appeared to be extremely cute.


    ¡°Scare it and let it run home, and then follow it from afar.¡±


    One may just be able to find the location of quite a few spiritual medicines with this method. Although Lingxi was normally a little scatterbrained, her idea was genius.


    Long Chen walked a little closer once again and the Violet Mirage Spirit Beast finally discovered him. Seeing Long Chen¡¯s appearance, it gave a shrill scream and then the mist surrounding it exploded, and it actually turned into a fiendish looking Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf!

 Chapter 50 – Burning Heavens Raging Flames

    ¡°Such petty tricks, you dare to disy it in front of yourdy, me! Long Chen this is a fake!¡±


    Without Lingxi, Long Chen might have been intimidated by this sudden change. After all, the trauma left by the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf in his heart was too great. But right now, he knew that this beast here was the Violet Mirage Spirit Beast. So even if he was staring at the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf, he charged ahead nevertheless!


    As for that Violet Mirage Spirit Beast who saw that Long Chen was not afraid of even the Moon Devouring Demonic Wolf, was momentarily so frightened that it ran with its tail between its legs. After running for awhile it changed back into its original form, that fleshy butt kept swaying before Long Chen¡¯s eyes. If not for Lingxi, who told him to chase it and maintaining a distance, he would have caught up to it in the span of a breath and kicked this Violet Mirage Spirit Beast away.


    With the Violet Mirage Spirit Beast leading the way, after about three odd hours, Lingxi excitedly eximed: ¡°Long Chen, Long Chen! I sensed a very concentrated scent, there are at a lot of Dream Spirit Grasses!¡±


    Lingxi was ted and Long Chen was happy for her, however he had another concern. The deeper he treads, the surrounding temperature got higher and the charred soil on the earth faintly revealed the red glow of fire below.


    ¡°What exactly is happening in this Burning Heavens Mountain ins?¡±


    As he was chasing the Violet Mirage Spirit Beast, Long Chen continued to observe his surroundings. These ckened parts of the ins, seemingly and gradually changed colour.


    ¡°Screw this, I just need to obtain the Dream Spirit Grass. Whatever this phenomenon that the Burning Heavens Mountain ins has going on is none of my business!¡±


    At this point Lingxi gave a startled cry and Long Chen immediately raised his head. In his vision, there was a huge crater on the ground, and this depression seemed to have been formed by a meteorite. At this point the Violet Mirage Spirit Beast suddenly dived into this huge crater!


    More importantly, in the deepest area of this depression, a strong aroma could be detected. Long Chen convulsed from this sweet scent. Staring at it again, the crater was actually filled with Dream Spirit Grass as if a sea of purple grass was formed. Seeing this, there should at least be hundreds of stalks.


    Long Chen had almost turned dizzy from this sight, much less to mention Lingxi.


    ¡°I¡­¡­I want. Hurry hurry, pick them for me!¡±


    Seeing so many Dream Spirit Grasses, even Lingxi did not know what stage her spiritual force would grow into, so she couldn¡¯t even speak clearly at this time.


    Long Chen also wanted several more stalks of the Dream Spirit Grasses, but he never thought that there would actually be hundreds of stalks gathered here. This amount actually exceeded his mental capacity, so his actions weregged. After Lingxi¡¯s anxious reminder, he dashed towards the depths of this depression as quickly as a tornado!


    These hundreds of Dream Spirit Grass made Long Chen momentarily forget about the temperature. It was so high that the air around him already contained sparks. Around the perimeter of the Dream Spirit Grass, a small ck coloured metal te the size of a palm was intensely shaking and mes were emitting from it!


    In the process of going forward, Long Chen had already sensed that something was amiss. At this point he suddenly saw that at the heart of all the Dream Spirit Grass, a pile of mes were set aze, violently burning the surrounding Dream Spirit Grasses. Instantly all of the hundred stalks of Dream Spirit Grass were engulfed by the mes!


    Lingxi was so horrified that she turned pale, and frantically urged: ¡°Long Chen, in the hearth of the me, there is a very strange object. Its destructive nature is immense, quickly escape!¡±


    Even though the fire had already spread towards him, Long Chen had already gotten this far and the Dream Spirit Grass was just before his eyes, how could he just turn back and run now? He clenched his teeth and upon seeing that the fire continued to growrger, almost swallowing all of the Dream Spirit Grass whole, Long Chen suddenly shouted and used the [Dragon Soul Transformation]!


    As he ran, the blood red scales on his body gradually emerged. Under a span of a breath¡¯s time, he was in aplete state of [Dragon Soul Transformation]!


    Right now his speed increased by ten times, and with a shout he had appeared right in front of the Dream Spirit Grass. However in the next instant, the me too increased its speed, and swallowed him whole!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s face was drained of colour within the Lingxi sword.


    As her voice sounded, Long Chen was already swallowed whole by the mes. At this moment she was at the peak of anxiety because she had no idea exactly how strong the me was.


    Right now, in her heart, Long Chen¡¯s actions had already been deeply engraved. She knew, right from the start, Long Chen could have avoided this. Yet he still risked his life and dashed into the fire, just for the sake of the Dream Spirit Grass which could prolong her life!


    Long Chen was no rtive of hers, but there were absolutely no qualms about sacrificing himself for her. This had never happened before in her life! Thinking that Long Chen could suffer from injuries or even die, her heart twitched violently and grief came pouring out from her!


    She suddenly sensed that Long Chen was moving, and although the speed of the fire was fast, it was also spreading in all directions. As Long Chen rushed in and bent his back, the me had already came pouncing on him!


    However, it was the [Dragon Soul Transformation] that saved him. Long Chen rapidly escaped from the encirclement of mes and when he had finally rushed out; he discovered that even with the [Dragon Soul Transformation] in effect, his whole body was still afflicted with pain!


    Thankfully that dazzling body of red scales had not been burnt, however the raging mes behind his back still came chasing after Long Chen with a tremendous speed. He had no choice but to shield his head and run, and as he ran, he finally ced the Dream Spirit Grass that he clenched tightly in his arms into the cosmos pouch.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had used his body to salvage 5 stalks of Dream Spirit Grass before finally escaping, Lingxi felt like crying again. This kind of feeling of being taken care and loved for had let her, who had lost her physical self, feel extreme warmth.


    ¡°Hey, I am really thankful¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Thank my ass; if you were to strike it rich next time, you only have to treat me to a good time!¡±


    Originally she was thinking that this fellow was rather lovable, but with that one sentence, it had once again revealed his scoundrel characteristics.


    At this point the me that was spreading apart had turned into a sea of fire when Long Chen had escaped the depression. As he turned back, the huge mes continued to set everything aze. It was like an epidemic, which headed in all directions!


    ¡°Lingxi, earlier I saw a metal te, and the mes seemed toe out from it. What do you think that metal te could be?¡±


    As they were leaving, Long Chen had already stowed away the Dream Spirit Grasses. With these 5 stalks of Dream Spirit Grasses,bined with Lingxi¡¯s current rate of consumption, there was at least a period of time where Long Chen did not have to worry about Lingxi¡¯s survival, and he could spend his time finishing his other urgent matters.


    However, thinking of all that hundred stalks of Dream Spirit Grasses, Long Chen was extremely unwilling to ept the fact that they¡¯re gone.


    If only his speed had been quicker earlier, who knows if he might¡¯ve been able to obtain more!


    ¡°I too sensed that a very strong Yang energy, at least it was extremely strong against you. But earlier we were in a hurry so I did not examine it carefully¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi also felt extremely regretful as she thought of the enormous amount of Dream Spirit Grass that had been lost. If she could have gotten it, her spirit might be able to recover back to the state when she had just lost her physical body.


    By now Long Chen already created arge distance from the crater, so he turned his head back to look. He saw the sea of fire that was continuously spreading across the Burning Heavens Mountain ins. At this moment, countless demonic beasts were escaping the Burning Heavens Mountain ins, which was a rather pitiful sight.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly what that metal te was; it could actually create such a gigantic me! If this carries on, the whole of Burning Heavens Mountain ins may very well be set aze. Also, the Burning Heavens Mountain ins will really burn right up to the heavens!¡±


    During the moment he halted to take a look at it, the me soon caught up with them. Long Chen had already gotten a few Dream Spirit Grasses, so he knew there was no need to linger on Burning Heavens Mountain ins any longer.


    ¡°The metal te should be a treasure, if one can control it, it could have endless benefits. But this me is simply too big and right now it has already covered a radius of ten li. If this me continues increasing, the whole of Burning Heavens Mountain ins might very well be filled with mes, and I will too be unable to obtain that metal te. So it is only a waste of time.¡±


    Thinking of this point, Long Chen rejected the thought of obtaining the metal te. Today he could have gotten many stalks of Dream Spirit Grass, but coincidentally it was destroyed by the metal te, and this metal te was unable to be obtained by him, so he felt extremely frustrated.


    As he was about to leave, Lingxi suddenly let out a shout.


    ¡°Look, that me is already retreating!¡±


    Long Chen turned his head, and saw that the sea of fire showed some signs of waning. Originally it had rapidly expanded, yet now it shrunk quickly.


    ¡°Anyway there is still time. Long Chen, why don¡¯t you take a look? Who knows, you might be able to find out what that metal te is.¡±


    Lingxi spoke the thoughts that were on Long Chen¡¯s mind, and right now the mes were indeed shrinking. He still had ample to get back to the Yang Family, so Long Chen was not in a hurry and proceeded to turn around.


    As the sea of fire got gradually smaller, it had almost all headed back into the depression earlier. Right now, Long Chen was heading back to the area where the Dream Spirit Grass were, while being concealed.


    The sea of fire had only spread for half an hour or so, and the time it took to shrink was also half an hour. Very soon Long Chen had returned to where he was previously, and he was feeling rather excited now.


    ¡°Quickly, hide! The two Big Brothers from earlier are here.¡±


    At this point Long Chen was still in a state of [Dragon Soul Transformation], and he was very clear who the two Big Brothers were. Earlier this devastating scene had happened in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins, so how could Feng Mingyang and Chen Xiongzhou not know about it?


    They were originally here to look for treasures, and when the sea of fire appeared, they knew that it had to be some sort of treasure.


    Whether or not the metal te had posed any dangers, Long Chen did not know, but right now there were two people to test that danger as guinea pigs, so he was extremely rxed. If it was really some sort of treasure, Long Chen would not hesitate to just snatch it from them.


    The mes grew smaller and very soon Long Chen and the other two arrived at the depression. Although Long Chen had discovered the both of them, it was not true of the other way around. When the mes havepletely vanished, the two immediately headed towards the centre of the depression!


    Long Chen wanted to stick his head out and peek, but never expected that the scene was that both Feng Mingyang and Chen Xiongzhou were having a huge battle. They both stared at each other with bloodshot eyes, as if condemning each other¡¯s death.


    Long Chen was stunned, as he thought of the two earlier, who had still called each other brothers.


    ¡°Is the allure of treasures so great? Bai Sheng can scheme against that old fellow and these two brothers can kill each other for it¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 51 – Mysterious Metal Slate

    At this point, the strange phenomenon in Burning Heavens Mountain ins gradually vanished and Long Chen was able to feel that the temperature of the earth beneath his feet had decreased too.


    As for the two in battle it should have been after seeing the metal te, which was the source of this heaven-defying me, that made them kill each other for greed.


    ¡°Chen Xiongzhou! You don¡¯t want your life anymore! I have told you earlier, let me have it this time, and if I were able to reap its benefits, naturally I will share them with you!¡±


    ¡°You think I am a fool? After obtaining it I¡¯m afraid the first person you¡¯d kill is me huh? This metal te can invoke such a huge fire, so how can it be a simple item?¡±


    ¡°Good! Good! If you are so stubborn in wanting to die then don¡¯t me me, Feng Mingyang, for being vicious!¡±


    ¡°[Forward Fiendish Rising Punch]!¡±


    The two of the eighth level Dragon Pulse Realm experts had, at this point, brought forth all of their skills, and started a death match with each other!


    Seeing their constantly changing expressions, Long Chen thought of what Founder Yang had said before: ¡°The world is governed by martial techniques, and if one ces too much faith in a brother, there wille a day when he will pay the price. However, if it is someone who is hot-blooded, then it is a different story!¡±


    This match was extremely intense and both of the eighth level cultivator, had battle strength that was a little higher than Bai Zhanxiong. Thankfully, it was happening inside the Deste Beast Domain so there was nothing much to be destroyed. Otherwise, their battle would have caused a huge mess!


    Both of them had simr strength and it all boiled down to who had the better reflexes. Feng Mingyang¡¯s body was much more agile than Chen Xiongzhou so in the end Chen Xiongzhou had an extremely unwilling expression as he was killed by a punch. Feng Mingyang was drenched in blood which suggested that he was in a critical state!


    But thinking that he had finally defeated Chen Xiongzhou and managed to obtain the strange metal te, his eyes zed with desire.


    ¡°Chen Xiongzhou, I gave you the option to not fight with me for it, but you don¡¯t know your ce and it serves you right that you¡¯re dead! However don¡¯t worry; after I obtain this mysterious metal te my cultivation will progress rapidly and I will take good care of your wife and son! After all, your wife is much prettier than mine!¡±


    As he spat several times on Chen Xiongzhou¡¯s corpse he never imagined that there would have been some blood mixed in with it. Feng Mingyang was startled by the sight and, after giving another vicious look at Chen Xiongzhou, only then did he slowly limp towards the mysterious metal te.


    Thinking of the metal te which had caused such a huge phenomenon, he became extremely excited!


    ¡°This scum, earlier he had called him brother but then killed him for the treasure, and now he still wants to hit on the dead person¡¯s wife! Long Chen!¡±


    Seeing that Feng Mingyang had this kind of character, Lingxi was extremely furious and the big pair of eyes on her miniature body showing an extremely disgusted expression.


    Seeing that Lingxi hadmanded him to attack, Long Chen did not hesitate. At this point, he was already under [Dragon Soul Transformation] and his strength was much stronger than Feng Mingyang. Suddenly, a red gust of whirlwind appeared in front of Feng Mingyang and the metal te was positioned behind Long Chen. Feng Mingyang had to get past him to get it!


    ¡°Beast Warrior?!¡±


    Feng Mingyang eyes revealed a shocked expression but after seeing Long Chen standing in his path for the metal te, which he had fought and killed for, his expression instantly revealed signs of madness and even though he was critically injured he still wildly charged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°You wish to defeat me in your current state?¡±


    Long Chen smirked and with his formidable [Dragon Soul Transformation] his speed had a huge boost, letting him bing even more agile. At this point, Feng Mingyang who was only several metres in front of him, wanted to drag his heavily injured body and wildly use a martial technique on Long Chen. Instead, his whole body was sent flying by a punch from Long Chen!


    After being hit by Long Chen along with his already severely injured body, he spurted a mouthful of blood and neared hisst breath, never being able to get up ever again.


    Long Chen knew that if he did not save Feng Mingyang, Feng Mingyang would definitely die in this Deste Beast Domain. Also, since he already punched him why would he save him?


    Feng Mingyang struggled to keep his eyes opened and as he saw Long Chen who was approaching closer he unwillingly asked: ¡°You¡­¡­Who are you?¡±


    Seeing the extreme unwillingness in his eyes, Long Chen thought of when he had pretended to be a ¡®grandson¡¯ for so long and he sneered in his heart as he removed the [Dragon Soul Transformation].


    As he saw Long Chen¡¯s true identity, Feng Mingyang face was first filled with utter shock and disbelief, then swiftly turning into extreme unwillingness. Under this shocking revtion he, who had been on the verge of death, finally stopped breathing and went to the Yellow Springs.


    [TL Note: (Chinese): Yellow Springs ¨C The Underworld]


    Seeing his corpse, Long Chen sneered and said: ¡°Earlier both of you wished to kill me and now you can¡¯t me me since Chen Xiongzhou contributed to your death.¡±


    ¡°Hey, he gave us the Dream Spirit Grass before and yet we killed him like this, isn¡¯t this too bad?¡± Lingxi hesitated.


    ¡°Not all good things have to be repaid. For people like them who had only wanted to get rid of me for the benefits for fear of me taking what they had wanted, this is almost like a deal and there is nothing to feel bad about.¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s face darkened and said: ¡°Then, I had saved you twice earlier, and now you are searching the Dream Spirit Grass for me, is this considered a deal too?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned and said in an annoyed manner: ¡°Do you have the brains of a donkey?¡±


    ¡°You then!¡±


    ¡°Alright¡­¡­I won¡¯t argue with you, however, Xiao Xi¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing this glowing miniature figure that was wrapped in mist on his shoulder, Long Chen said indifferently: ¡°If this was a deal, I wish that it would continue forever and never stop.¡±


    Hearing the meaning behind Long Chen¡¯s words Lingxi¡¯s face turned red, either from anger or embarrassment.


    At this point, Long Chen was standing close to the metal te and it had already lost all signs of life, turning into an ordinary metal te. Long Chen picked up a rock from the ground and threw it at the metal te.


    Seeing that there were no signs of activity, he then carefully made contact with the metal te and was surprised to discover that this mysterious metal te was actually rather cold.


    Long Chen knew that the boundless sea of fire earlier had been started by it and, ording to his deduction; this metal te should have been extremely hot.


    At this point he scrutinised the metal te and saw that there was a carving of a sun¡¯s image on it and other than that there was nothing else.


    ¡°Lingxi, are you able to tell what this is? Are there any strange things around it?


    Lingxi frowned as she flew a circle around the metal te and then shook her head and said: ¡°I am not sure, but there is an immense strength locked inside it and I think it seems to be an item from the primordial past. It seems to be some kind of key to an expert¡¯s inheritance¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°The primordial past? Which is to say, the period after immemorial past when various sects were established? The times when there were super experts from various families? I heard that the experts from that time had all left behind many legacies, is this true?¡±


    [TL Note: Currently 3 kinds of past, Ì«¹Å¨C immemorial, ÖйŠ¨C primordial, Ô¶¹Å ¨C ancient. Will differentiate with exnation when more information is gotten]


    ¡°Indeed. However, this is only my guess. What you have is only a key, not the treasure trove; therefore it is of no use temporarily. Therefore, you better stash it first and then return quickly to the Yang Family.¡±


    Long Chen was thinking along the same lines and he nodded his head, while cing the metal te into his cosmos pouch. As he was about to leave, he saw the corpses of Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang who had died not long ago. The atmosphere still reeked of blood and Long Chen was still under [Dragon Soul Transformation]. At this point, his blood was boiling as if getting hold of a delicacy and his originally bloodshot eyes now had a red aura leaking from them.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s dazed state, Lingxi anxiously asked.


    ¡°They are already dead and the blood here is wasted. If I were to use [Blood Transmuted Qi] I might be able to bring my strength up a notch¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s mannerism of speaking now was as if he was holding himself back but he still could not resist and eventually spoke of his desires.


    At this point the blood red Dragon God images on his body were wildly howling and each of them opened their mouths wide, forming an enormous spirit force, encouraging Long Chen to move forward and use [Blood Transmuted Qi] on the corpses¡­¡­


    Sensing that something was amiss, Lingxi violently activated the Lingxi Sword, hurting Long Chen and bringing him back to his senses. She then said sternly: ¡°Hey, I¡¯ll tell you something and you had better listen carefully¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen did not know what had happened earlier and only knew that after he saw the two corpses his whole body had entered a very famished state, as if a delicacy was right in front of him. If not for Lingxi who was with him, most likely he would have used [Blood Transmuted Qi] on both Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang¡¯s corpses!


    Actually, ever since he had gotten this [Blood Transmuted Qi] divine ability Long Chen had always felt that using this technique on a human was rather inappropriate because this is a technique which forcibly seizes their life force to gain strength. It was much too savage and brutal!


    As for why Long Chen had used it on Bai Zhanxiong before, it was because he had loathed the man to the extreme.


    ording to his moral code, seizing someone else¡¯s blood to replenish oneself was not a desired method. It was alright with demonic beasts but if used on humans, it might invoke the wrath of the masses.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of dragon breed your Inherited Blood Essence belonged to but most likely it belonged to an evil dragon. This [Blood Transmuted Qi] method is tainted with too much blood. With a single look, one can infer that it is an ability of an evil dragon. Being in Por Town there won¡¯t be many experts around you. However, if you were to go elsewhere to arger ce, you had better not use this technique in front of the public or else those experts would use these reasons of exterminating evil to dispose of you¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°And if you use it too often it might cause some side effects on your body. This kind of bloody natured Dragon God is normally filled with brutality and intentions of killing and I am afraid that one day you might lose yourself, so you had better take notice of this fact¡­¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s words were like a cudgel (hammer/mallet) that had hit Long Chen¡¯s head repeatedly.


    Back when he had first learned the [Blood Transmuted Qi] he was extremely ted and went on a murderous rampage through the Underground Blood Lizard hoard. However, he had never once thought that this technique would result in any side effects. Now that he reflected on it, he would definitely lose himself if his sole purpose was to be stronger no matter the cost.


    On the path of cultivation, a steady improvement was extremely important. The kind of techniques that can increase the Qi very quickly would cause the foundation in cultivation to be weak. Thinking of these points, Long Chen also thought that he had better use less of [Blood Transmuted Qi]. After all, there were many methods to be stronger, and using [Blood Transmuted Qi] wasn¡¯t the only method.


    ¡°Even if I use less of [Blood Transmuted Qi], my pace of getting stronger will not be lessened!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had already changed his mind, the worry that had clouded Lingxi for a while now had finally dispersed. She smiled and said: ¡°This is for the best, let us return to Por Town right now. Although I had estimated that it would take eight days for the Soul Diffusion Fruit to ripen there still might be some discrepancy in the time¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s curses reverberated in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins¡­¡­

 Chapter 52 – Reverse Scale Of A Dragon

    From the Burning Heavens Mountain ins to Big Barren Mountain, Long Chen had already travelled for a day.


    Very soon he reached Big Barren Mountain and realised that there seemed to be no changes. This showed that the Soul Diffusion Fruits had not ripened yet and the battle between the Bai and the Yang family had not started. Only then did Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Thankfully the Soul Diffusion Fruits have not ripened yet. Lingxi, next time if there is something as important as this, if you aren¡¯t too sure, I beg of you to rify¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°I know already! You¡¯re so long-winded!¡±


    Long Chen then stopped his nagging and thinking of the Soul Diffusion Fruit which was ripening soon, the Yang Family members should be very nervous during this time. It was of vital importance for Long Chen to regroup with Founder Yang and discuss the matter of the Soul Diffusion Fruits.


    Very soon, Long Chen entered Por Town and found that there were much fewer people on the streets. It was not as bustling as before and although everything was rather serene, Long Chen sensed that it was the calm before the storm.


    Even if the Yang Family had be the prefecture of Por Town, the Bai Family still had two experts of the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm which meant that their strength was still a little stronger than the Yang Family.


    And right now, the Lingwu Family people had already left and the Bai Family was unwilling to admit defeat. Many of the people in Por Town knew that the two families, which were originally so close, had now turned into arch enemies and there would most likely be a huge battle for power!


    This was why there were few people on the streets, which turned Por Town into a rather quiet town.


    Soon, Long Chen saw the huge doors of the Yang residence. However, there were about a dozen guards at the door and they all had nervous expressions. Long Chen suddenly had a bad premonition and elerated his footsteps.


    At this point, the guards saw him and one went back to report the news. As for the others, they came forward and said: ¡°Young Master Chen, Founder Yang said to look for him immediately once you returned!¡±


    Their anxious expressions caused Long Chen to feel even more worried so he practically ran into the residence. Soon, Founder Yang and the rest of the family met him and, seeing the steely expression on Founder Yang¡¯s face, Long Chen knew that something was amiss. He scanned everyone¡¯s faces and saw that they all had their brows knitted and saddened expressions on their faces. It was only then he noticed that Yang Xueqing was not amongst them!


    ¡°Grandfather, where¡¯s my mother?!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen¡¯s expression had turned into one of fury, Founder Yang grabbed his arms and then pulled him to take a seat on a stone stool beside him. Founder Yang then said: ¡°Chen Er, I¡¯ll tell you, but you better not act rashly because there is still a method to salvage the situation¡­¡­¡±


    A blood red aura leaked out of Long Chen¡¯s eyes because from Founder Yang¡¯s words, he already 100 percent confirmed that something had happened to Yang Xueqing!


    Although the rtionship between the both of them was stillplicated, Long Chen would still never allow anyone to hurt her!


    Only after hearing that Founder Yang said that there was a way to save her, Long Chen coldly said: ¡°Grandfather, tell me, I am not a rash person. Tell me everything that happened and I will listen to your opinion before taking action!¡±


    Founder Yang nodded his head and there was a mix of sadness and anger in his expression, he said: ¡°It happened yesterday. Yang Xueqing continued to leave Por Town on her own but she was discovered by the two old geezers from the Bai Family. Right now, she has been captured and brought back to the Bai residence! Don¡¯t worry, they haven¡¯t killed her yet so there is still a chance! Chen Er, me me, your grandfather, for being useless. I went to the Bai Family and even fought both of the brothers but I was alone so obviously I wasn¡¯t their match! However, I can assure you that your mother is doing fine!¡±


    So things had actually turned out this way?


    Just recently, he wanted to forgive Yang Xueqing and thought that he would protect this woman in the future, but after leaving for only a little while she was actually kidnapped! To Long Chen, this was a provocation that raised his fury so high that it could burn the heavens!


    Ever since Long Chen killed Bai Zhanxiong, Yang Xueqing frequently visited Long Qinn¡¯s grave. At that time, Long Chen did not think much of it but he would never have thought because of this that Yang Xueqing was kidnapped!


    ¡°Kidnapping my mother, yet not killing her. Bai Family, although I don¡¯t know what you are trying to achieve, but if my motheres to any harm I, Long Chen, will drink your blood and devour your flesh!¡±


    Thinking of Yang Xueqing, his rage slowly built up inside of him and the blood red aura slowly crept up to the top of his head. Seeing Long Chen¡¯s current appearance, the Yang Family members all kept quiet out of fear!


    ¡°This won¡¯t do! My mother is still in their hands and the Bai Family hate me down right to the bones. If I were to waste any more time, who knows what might happen to my mother! If something did, even if I kill all of the Bai Family members, nothing can be salvaged!¡±


    Thinking so, Long Chen viciously raised his head and looked at Founder Yang saying: ¡°Grandfather, I wasn¡¯t around earlier and let misfortune befall my mother. This is all my fault! Now that I¡¯m back¡­¡­I¡¯ll bring the fight to the Bai Family!¡±


    Founder Yang also had this n in mind and, thinking that they would definitely battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit, the fact that his daughter was in their hands made him extremely worried. Although he believed that Long Chen wasn¡¯t Bai Li¡¯s match, he coldly said: ¡°Chen Er, this time let us make a trip there together. I want to see how the Bai Family can handle this grandfather and grandson duo! Qingxuan, you defend the residence of the Yang Family, and while I¡¯m not around and something happens to the Yang Family, I will make you ount for it!¡±


    Founder Yang and Long Chen wanted to go to the Bai residence to fight and if there were no experts to hold the fort in the Yang residence, who knows if something might happen. Although Yang Qingxuan had very much wanted to go with them, for the sake of everyone else he still nodded his head. At this point, Long Chen had already rushed out with Founder Yang.


    All of the Yang Family members clenched their fists tightly and watched their disappearing figures.


    At this point Yang Yuntian, who had been frowning, saw the simrly furrowed brows on Yang Qingxuan and bitterly said: ¡°Big Brother, both of the Bai Brothers are a good sixty years older than Long Chen. With sixty years more of battle experience, how could he be a match for them? Will our Yang Family perish this time?¡±


    Yang Qingxuan shook his head and said: ¡°I too am not sure. Let heaven decide their fate¡­¡­¡±


    Hearing Yang Yuntian saying the word ¡®perish¡¯, the faces of Yang Wu, Yang Lingyue and the rest had all been drained of colour and although the others avidly talked about it, some had even started sobbing.


    At this moment, as Yang Lingqing stared nkly at Long Chen¡¯s back, she saw that Long Chen was so flustered. It was obvious that he cared for Yang Xueqing and seeing that both mother and son were able to recover from their previous rtionship made Yang Lingqing extremely happy.


    She silently waited for Long Chen to bring back Yang Xueqing safely!


    At this point, the blood red aura that was covering Long Chen had increased by several times more and even Founder Yang could feel that Long Chen¡¯s body was exuding a dense and fiendish aura!


    This aura even made Founder Yang mildly afraid!


    ¡°Chen Er, right now your mother should be fine so you must stabilise your mind and not do things rashly. If you identally hurt your mother because of that, you will only be more remorseful!¡±


    Long Chen also understood this point, but how could the anxiety and rage inside him be quelled this easily?


    He could only nod his head, saying: ¡°Grandfather, I am fine. However, I will give the Bai Family a good time today!¡±


    Founder Yang did not know how to respond and very soon the both of them arrived at the Bai residence. Long Chen started to be wary because, at this point, there were no guards stationed at the gates of the Bai residence and as he kicked open the gates right away, he was surprised to find that the whole interior was vacant!


    ¡°Long Chen, there is no need to search anymore. Right now, there isn¡¯t anyone in the Bai Family residence at all¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen had done a check of the entire residence by the time Lingxi¡¯s voice sounded!


    Founder Yang¡¯s face was impassive as he walked over and coldly said: ¡°These Bai Family members had actually all left! Chen Er, what do you think they are trying to do?¡±


    At this point Long Chen forced himself to control his raging fury and made an effort to use logic to handle the problem. However, once he thought of the repulsive faces of the Bai Family members and that Yang Xueqing could be in danger right now and how she was actually a rather pitiable woman, the murderous intent in his heart only grew!


    He had already made a promise in his mind to protect her but now he was unable to keep to it. This feeling made him feel extremely stifled and his animosity towards the Bai Family only increased!


    ¡°I have mentioned it before, never ever provoke me! If you do, you will all die horrible deaths much worse than Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s!¡±


    Seeing the fury in Long Chen¡¯s gaze, Founder Yang did not know whether to feel relieved or angry. He was relieved that there was no more estrangement between both mother and child but angry that the mending rtionship of mother and son had now been broken by the Bai Family!


    Right now, Long Chen had already thought it through saying: ¡°The Bai Family had already sent everyone away. Most likely because they were afraid of us massacring their family members or hold them as hostages! I do not believe the Bai Family could let go of the Soul Diffusion Fruit so I think that their experts are all at Big Barren Mountain! Grandfather, we have to hurry over there!¡±


    Founder Yang thought about it too and he instantly felt that it all made sense. As the both of them prepared to go to the Big Barren Mountain, there was a rainbow coloured light that emitted in that direction. A concentrated aroma dispersed and covered the entire Big Barren Mountain and even spread towards Por Town!


    ¡°Long Chen, Long Chen! It is the time for t the Soul Diffusion Fruit to ripen! Hurry over there now! With this phenomenon happening it won¡¯t be much longer before it ripens!¡±


    ¡°Soul Diffusion Fruit, huh?¡±


    There was a zing gaze in Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°If I have not guessed wrongly, you guys wanted to hold my mother as a hostage and threaten me during the fight for the Soul Diffusion Fruit, huh?¡±


    Long Chen muttered to himself and saw that Founder Yang furrowed his brows, saying: ¡°The Bai Family members hate us to the core, and the reason for capturing Yang Xueqing is to threaten us¡­¡­At that time we will only be concerned about Yang Xueqing¡¯s life¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Using my mother¡¯s life to threaten me?¡±


    Thinking of Yang Xueqing, the blood aura seemingly rushed into Long Chen¡¯s sea of consciousness and Lingxi could feel that concentrated and ruthless aura. She suddenly thought of a saying: ¡°He who touches the reverse scales of a dragon will definitely die!¡±


    [TL Note: (Äæ÷[) Reverse Scale: The Chinese Dragons do contain a rough spot, a Reverse Scale below their chins. When it is touched, it causes them to rage and devastate the earth with their rampaging power. This is their weak spot.]


    Right now, Long Chen was already a Dragon Warrior and he had obtained the Inherited Blood Essence from the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon. He was already branded with the mark of a dragon and now the Bai Family had touched his reverse scale, it resulted in Long Chen having such a blood reeking aura that seemed toe from the heavens!


    He who touches the reverse scales of a dragon will definitely die!


    Looking at the direction of Big Barren Mountain, Long Chen inhaled a deep breath of air and then wildly dashed towards it!


    Behind Long Chen, seeing his aura constantly on the rise and looked as if it was ready to explode at any given moment, Founder Yang let out a gratifying expression. But, once he thought of the Bai Family who might use Yang Xueqing to threaten Long Chen, he frowned and the worry in his heart began to grow¡­¡­


    ¡°All along, Long Chen knew he wasn¡¯t Bai Li¡¯s match and with the constraints of Yang Xueqing, could it be the end for our Yang Family?¡±

 Chapter 53 – Ripening Of The Soul Diffusion Fruits

    Having just returned to Por Town, Long Chen never thought that he would be headed back towards Big Barren Mountain so quickly. This time, however, a heavy murderous intent was brought along with him.


    ¡°Mother, I will definitely rescue you¡­¡­¡±


    By this time, the aroma of the Soul Diffusion Fruit had already nketed the whole of Big Barren Mountain. Even people from Por Town had stepped out of their doors with shocked expressions on their faces. As they smelled the sweet scent lingering in the air, and by simply breathing in, they felt a little more refreshed.


    A regr person would be unable to detect where the aroma wasing from but a few experts gradually discovered the location.


    At this point, in the Yang Family residence, the members were still gathered together awaiting news of both Long Chen and Founder Yang. Suddenly seeing the rainbow light from Big Barren Mountain shining, Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian both knew that the Soul Diffusion Fruit actually chose to ripen at this moment.


    Yang Qingxuan¡¯s face changed.


    The youths of the Yang Family did not know of the Soul Diffusion Fruit so they could only discuss this phenomenon amongst themselves. However, Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian walked towards a corner, and with Yang Yuntian¡¯s face darkening as he said: ¡°With the Soul Diffusion Fruit ripening at this time, the Bai Family¡¯s two old geezers would most likely not be at the Bai residence now. I reckon that when Father and Long Chen get there they would not find anyone.¡±


    Yang Qingxuan did not think of this but after being reminded by Yang Yuntian he suddenly understood, bitterly saying: ¡°So, their purpose all along was not to kill Xueqing but to threaten our Yang Family in the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit? Our Yang Family¡¯s strength was always weaker than theirs, I have no idea how Chen Er is coping now. If this keeps up, my Yang Family will not have much chance of victory¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Yuntian clenched his teeth, saying: ¡°Big Brother, our family right now is going through a great catastrophe, are we just going to wait here? Although my strength is insufficient, I don¡¯t wish to die like this. My guess is that most likely our Yang Family will be finished this time, but our bloodline cannot be broken. Why don¡¯t we brothers gamble on this onest fight and let Wu Er bring the old, the weak, the women, and the children out of Por Town?¡±


    Yang Qingxuan¡¯s thoughts were all tangled up in knots as he looked at Yang Wu, Yang Lingqing, and the rest, saying: ¡°Right, we can die but the Yang Family cannot be without heirs. Even if we are to lose this time, if our younger generation manage to leave Por Town and make aeback, at that time we shall have them avenge us!¡±


    Seeing the usually calm and collected Yang Qingxuan agreeing to this risky idea, Yang Yuntian knew that he approved. He looked at the Yang Family masses and sighed while saying: ¡°I never thought that because of this Soul Diffusion Fruit, our Yang Family would wind up being defeated at the hands of the Bai Family. Luckily, before Father left, he had ced all of the precious belongings into this cosmos pouch. With this, Wu Er and the rest will be able to achieve growth rapidly and ten yearster, who knows, they can avenge us!¡±


    Seeing Yang Yuntian not afraid of death, Yang Qingxuan patted his shoulder as he sighed too: ¡°Second Brother, despite these past few years, I still underestimated you. I never thought that you would have more bloodlust than me. My thoughts before were just to wait for death here. Now that Father has most likely entered the Big Barren Mountain, the battle will notst long, so we better hurry! However¡­¡­What you just said, I will rectify it a little.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Yang Yuntian was startled.


    Yang Qingxuan looked towards Big Barren Mountain and said: ¡°Our Yang Family¡¯s talented genius is not Wu Er but Chen Er, so our main purpose for going to Big Barren Mountain is to fend off Chen Er¡¯s opponent and let him escape. We will then have him regroup with Wu Er and the rest. With Long Chen around, in 5 years¡¯ time we shall punish the Bai Family and have our revenge!¡±


    Hearing that it was Long Chen, Yang Yuntian helplessly sighed and said: ¡°I admit that what you said is right, he is indeed an extraordinary genius. s he is still too young; if not for this our Yang Family might not lose!¡±


    As Yang Yuntian sighed, Yang Qingxuan had already gathered Yang Wu, Yang Lingyue, and Yang Lingqing and prepared to give instructions for them to leave Por Town.


    Seeing his son that was gradually maturing, Yang Qingxuan eyes had a hint of tears and he patted Yang Wu¡¯s shoulder. Choking with emotion, he said: ¡°Wu Er, you have turned 21 in a sh and it is time for you to bear the burdens of this family. Listen to me, your Father, I am going to hand over an important task to you¡­¡­¡±


    Not knowing what Yang Qingxuan meant by this, Yang Wu and the other two youths looked at each other in dismay.


    Seeing the youthful and vigorous spirit on their faces, Yang Yuntian pursed his lips and tears welled up in his eyes too. He knew that the hardships these youths would have to undergo in the future would most likely be plenty¡­¡­


    ¡°Today you three will shoulder an important task and if something goes wrong, you are to bring your heads back to me!¡±


    ¡°And this important task is: To be in charge of transporting our defenseless Yang Family members¡­¡­¡±


    With the rainbow coloured light as a beacon, it was a clear path for Long Chen and Founder Yang to take.


    Very soon they rushed into Big Barren Mountain and headed towards the valley where the Soul Diffusion Fruit was!


    At this point, Founder Yang and Long Chen did not know that Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian had already arranged to transport the elderly, weak, women and children away from Por Town. However, if Founder Yang were to know of the actions of this pair of brothers he would most likely be extremely gratified.


    He appreciated Long Chen¡¯s formidable might butpared to someone much older, he was after all, still too young. What he needed was time to grow, not participate in a bloody battle amongst a few old men.


    Such a dangerous battle as this should have been helmed by the older generation and what Long Chen needed to do was to exhibit his potential and grow quickly into a super expert. Rather than him dying prematurely like this, by that time the Bai Family would copse even without him attacking.


    However, at this point Long Chen¡¯s blood was boiling and Founder Yang knew that he could not be stopped so he helplessly said: ¡°Chen Er,ter we must act ording to circumstances and not rashly. Being rash will not only hurt yourself, but also your mother!¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head and said: ¡°Grandfather, please be at ease, I know my limits.¡±


    As he spoke these words he had already calmed down.


    Founder Yang heaved a sigh of relief as he heard that Long Chen had be much more collected than before,. However, he was unable to detect the coldness present in Long Chen¡¯s words.


    Looking at this unbending yet valiant grandson, Founder Yang was extremely gratified and at the same time extremely impressed. He had decided that if they fell into a trap, he was willing to sacrifice his own life for Long Chen to live on safely.


    Very soon, both of them arrived at the valley. With one look, Long Chen found the granite cave located in the deepest region and the Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree which was emitting a resplendent rainbow light. The rainbow rays came from three different sources, signifying the three Soul Diffusion Fruits.


    ¡°The Soul Diffusion Fruits are, right now, on the verge of ripening. Once they do, the tree will witherpletely and turn into nothingness. The tree has already started to decay and I think it won¡¯t be much longer before they are fully ripe.¡±


    Seeing this scene, Lingxi was also a little nervous and she trembled as she spoke.


    Frankly, Lingxi was extremely angry that Yang Xueqing had been captured by the Bai Family. The Bai Family previously used such a sinister method to plot against the Yang Family and even now used this kind of dirty method of holding a hostage. This made Lingxi despise them and, since her current emotions were basically on the same page as Long Chen¡¯s, she could empathise when Long Chen¡¯s spirit had emitted frostiness and rage.


    ¡°These two bastard old geezers, let Long Chen teach you a lesson and beat you till you piss and crap in your pants!¡±


    Lingxi waved her little fist inside the Lingxi Sword.


    As they entered the valley, Long Chen could see thendscape of the whole cave. It was at this point that the gazes of the people who saw Founder Yang and Long Chen turned cold and they stood up.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes scanned the surroundings and saw that it was Bai Sheng and Bai Li, these two brothers. As for the rest, who knew where the Bai Brothers had hidden them since they weren¡¯t there.


    Actually, it was better this way. If Bai Zhanfeng and Bai Zhanlong were also present here, the opponent would have two more members which would be more troublesome.


    However, a suspicion still struck Long Chen¡¯s heart.


    ¡°These two cowards of the Bai Family, did they invite someone from the so-called Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡±


    It seemed as if that was not the case, so Long Chen estimated that after the Bai Family had captured Yang Xueqing they felt assured of their win against the Yang Family. Therefore, they did not bother to invite the members from Crimson Blood Sacred Sect since they could divide the Soul Diffusion Fruit amongst themselves.


    Each of these Soul Diffusion Fruits was extremely precious and, unless absolutely necessary, the Bai Family would never just give them away like this.


    Long Chen could see Yang Xueqing behind the Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree. At the moment, her hair was ruffled as she leaned against the wall of the granite cave. He could see a unique kind of steel chain that was tied around her and the red scars from the chafing it caused.


    Fortunately, she was still conscious and most likely did not suffer from any injury. When she saw Long Chen and Founder Yang arrive, her eyes moistened.


    Seeing Long Chen and Founder Yanging, the Bai Brothers snickered. The hatred they held for the Yang Family, especially towards Long Chen, was so immense that no matter what price they had to pay, they wanted to kill Long Chen on this day!


    Capturing Yang Xueqing but not killing her was solely to increase the chances of killing Long Chen today!


    Thest time they fought with the Yang Family, their careful and meticulous nning was all ruined by Long Chen. This time, they wanted to exterminate the Yang Family and dominate the whole of Por Town. To obtain the ripened Soul Diffusion Fruits, the Bai Family had made plenty of preparations!


    ¡°If I still do not kill you, with all these preparations, then I Bai Sheng have been living in vain all these years! Although the ripening of the Soul Diffusion Fruits was earlier than expected, this won¡¯t change the fact that I will kill you!¡±


    Seeing the cold gazes of Long Chen and Founder Yang who were approaching, Bai Sheng signalled behind his back and said in a low voice: ¡°Let us brothers first meet these two trash!¡±


    His voice was so low that even Lingxi could not hear it from afar. Then, Bai Sheng and Bai Li gave each other a look and went towards the direction Founder Yang and Long Chen wereing from.


    ¡°With our doubleyered preparations, I don¡¯t believe that I would be unable to kill you! Xiong Er, Yun Er, father will avenge you today! Shichen and Shiji, grandfather will seek revenge for you today too!¡±


    ¡°Originally, there was no need to prepare so much since just us brothers should be able to deal with the both of you. However, this hatred in my heart will never allow me tomit even the slightest of mistakes!¡±


    ¡°Yang Cangqiong, go to hell¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 54 – Claiming A Dog’s Head!

    Right now, it was already noon and although it was autumn in August, the sun was still zing hot.


    In the southeastern side of Por Town, there was a group of people moving along a path under a forest and there were a few huge but simple horse carriages which contained some luggage. In this group of people, most of them were the old, weak, women and children, and their faces were very pale.


    ¡°Mother, why must we leave Por Town?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to go to grandmother¡¯s ce, boo-hoo¡­¡­¡±


    A few of the children made a scene, but being pulled by their parents, they could only advance reluctantly.


    At this point, the group stopped, and at the forefront, two middle aged man with bloodshot eyes turned around. It was Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian.


    Behind them were the trio Yang Wu, Yang Lingyue and Yang Lingqing.


    They had just left Por Town and because they were archenemies with the Bai Family, they did not create a huge scene before leaving.


    Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian looked at the three youths, clenching his teeth Yang Qingxuan said: ¡°The three of you better listen well, if you are unable to protect the bloodline of my Yang Family, even when I turn into a ghost I will not forgive you!¡±


    Yang Wu was still doing fine, but by this time Yang Lingyue and Yang Lingqing were sobbing silently.


    Both of the girls looked at their respective fathers who had bloodshot eyes and, thinking of what they had said, they knew that most likely their fathers were going to die.


    Thinking of the Yang Family¡¯s future and the responsibility on their shoulders, they were all filled with agony and sorrow.


    They had lead worry free lives since young and never thought that they would meet with such a catastrophe where the three youths had to lead the defenseless members away.


    As for the experts of the Yang Family, they all left to deal with the enemy and the ending was that they might never return. How could these two youths bear a grievous life and death parting like this?


    Although Yang Qingxuan did not say it, the wives of the Yang Family men already somewhat heard of the news. After thinking of the unavoidable oue, a few of them started to sob and very soon most of them were crying too.


    ¡°What are you crying for! If you cry anymore I¡¯ll kill you!¡±


    Seeing this gloomy atmosphere, Yang Yuntian used a steely face and scanned the group. Although Yang Yuntian¡¯s strength was not excellent, his might was extremely strong so these women and kids all feared him. As he started to get furious it had scared them enough to stop crying, as though they knew deep down that this time the Yang Family would bepletely finished.


    Compared to Bai Family, who originally was the superpower in Por Town, they were still a little inferior.


    Seeing that the group had turned quiet, Yang Qingxuan then ndly said: ¡°Don¡¯t think too much of it, moving all of you away from Por Town is only to keep you safe. By doing this, we can be more at ease in our battles and it¡¯s not certain that our Yang Family has already lost! When we defeat those madmen and vile thieves, we will return to look for all of you!¡±


    ¡°The movement this time will bepletely in the control of Yang Wu and the two of them, if any of you disobey orders and hinder the movement then do not me me, Yang Qingxuan, for not giving you face! I won¡¯t say much anymore, Second Brother let us go!¡±


    After having entrusted the task, Yang Qingxuan looked towards Yang Wu and the two while nodding his head as he said gently: ¡°Wu Er, Yue Er, Qing Er, the future of Yang Family will depend on you three. I believe that you all will do a great job because you are the younger generation of our Yang Family and there are no cowards amongst the Yang Family younger generation!¡±


    Yang Wu held back his tears as he nodded and said: ¡°Father, don¡¯t worry. Even if I were to give up this life of mine, I will properly handle this matter. But, you must promise me that you wille back safely¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father, I cannot do without you¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Lingyue¡¯s face was drained of colour.


    Yang Lingqing looked at Yang Yuntian, and then looked at Yang Qingxuan. Although she was grieving too, there was still a very strong faith in her gaze. There was a person she believed in, that would absolutely not let the Yang Family perish in this cmity.


    Although it was just a baseless faith, still she held on to it. Long Chen had given her many surprises before, andpleted many tasks that she thought were impossible to have done.


    Before they left, Yang Qingxuan suddenly said to Yang Wu: ¡°If Long Chen is able toe back, everything will be decided by him in the future. However, if he is being rash, even if you were to die, stop him!¡±


    Saying this, without waiting for Yang Wu to react, Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian rapidly vanished from their vision, leaving Yang Wu, Yang Lingyue and Yang Lingqing looking at each other with bitter expressions and feeling extremely terrified and helpless.


    ¡°Let us go. We still have to live on.¡±


    Yang Wu¡¯s eyes trembled; he clenched his teeth and directed the group to advance. As for Yang Lingyue and Yang Lingqing both, no matter how helpless or pained they were, they could only grit their teeth and persevere at this point.


    ¡°Heaven please bless my Yang Family, bless my grandfather, bless my father and first uncle, bless¡­¡­him¡­¡­¡±


    Under the guidance of the 3 youths, the group of people moved along in an orderly manner. However, at this point, two figures in ck leapt from a tree above them, smirking as they looked at each other in the eye.


    ¡°The Yang Family actually let these younger generation escape huh? The Bai Family left several dozens of my brothers guarding at Por Town but never thought that they would be here. Let us go, we have to tell the rest. When the Bai Family, Bai Zhanlong, and the rest are here, won¡¯t these few fellows all be wiped out cleanly?!¡±


    ¡°I heard that the Bai Family¡¯s Master had given the only two high grade medicine in his possession to Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji for consumption, and that the wounds that Bai Shichen suffered from before have fully healed. I¡¯ve heard that he regained his manhood, and his strength is about to break through the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. As for Bai Shiji who had sustained such heavy injuries, he too has recovered from them¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Did you see whether Yang Lingqing is in that group there, or not? Young master Bai Shichen seemed to be interested in Yang Lingqing, andst time his balls were cracked. Now that his balls have fully healed, who knows whether once they get the news he would be immediately able to put his balls to good use¡­¡­?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really know if it can still be used¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing Yang Xueqing, Long Chen had already forcibly contained his extreme fury. This was because it was only then that he would be able to exhibit his greatest fighting strength.


    At this time, both groups drew nearer into this valley and he was squarely facing both the Bai Brothers together with Founder Yang..


    ¡°Chen Er, why do you think that they had captured Yang Xueqing but not hurt her, and even not use her to threaten us?¡±


    Long Chen also thought of this point, but very soon he had some answers in his heart. So he said: ¡°I¡¯m guessing that they are overconfident in their abilities and will only use their trump card, which is my mother, to threaten us when they lose. However in such a close distance, how can I let them have this chance?¡±


    ¡°Chen Er, how confident are you against Bai Li?¡±


    Seeing the bright and clear eyes of the Bai Family¡¯s Master¡¯s younger brother Bai Li, who was gradually approaching, Long Chen knew with one look that he had undergone plenty of fighting and killing. Long Chen¡¯s fury and hatred had slowly found something to vent on and with Founder Yang¡¯s sudden question, Long Chen did not say another word and rushed towards Bai Li!


    Seeing that Long Chen acted first, the originally tense atmosphere had turned explosive and Bai Li was forced away by Long Chen. At this point Founder Yang and Bai Sheng, having transitioned from good brothers to archenemies, once again exchanged blows and fought wildly!


    After the initial exchange of blows with Bai Li, Long Chen was quickly suppressed by his opponent¡¯s immense Qi and his whole body was blown back. When he saw that Long Chen had actually been put in such a miserable state, Bai Li was shocked for a while and then wildlyughed and said: ¡°With just this level you had actually thought of yourself to be in the same level as me? What wishful thinking! To prevent you from bragging and cheating others about how you are such a genius, today I can only im your dog head!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had actually been blown away so easily by Bai Li, Founder Yang confidence had lowered. Long Chen, who was pushed into a corner by Bai Li, surprisingly raised his head and smirked: ¡°You only won the casual exchange of blows, what is there to be so smug about? It looks like the Bai Family is only of this plebeian level. As for the dog head, whoever¡¯s head is cut off today, that will be the dog head!¡±


    In the process of speaking, Long Chen had already used [Dragon Soul Transformation]. When Long Chen had previously used the [Dragon Soul Transformation] at the Yang residence it had shocked both Bai Sheng and Bai Li, not to mention that the distance now was even closer. Seeing the blood red scales and spikes emerging from Long Chen¡¯s body, it reminded the Bai Family Master of his son who had died miserably and he felt his rage rising!


    ¡°Second Brother, remember to avenge for my son this time!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen, who was dded in an armour of blood red scales, shock first came to Bai Li and after that he excitedly licked his lips as he said: ¡°So you are actually a real Beast Warrior! However, even the strongest Beast Warrior is only able to ovee 1 level of strength. I have broken through the Heaven Dragon Vein, how someone like you can understand that realm¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Big Brother; this kid to me is just a piece of cake. Although he has the same shape shifting technique as a Beast Warrior, with one look I can tell that this kid¡¯s transformation is not extremely pure. Plus, the demonic beast that it was refined from is also unclear. If he cannot evenpare to a true Beast Warrior how can I, Bai Li, allow him to escape?¡±


    He had some suspicions towards Long Chen¡¯s appearance, but at this point Founder Yang was already engaged in an intense battle with Bai Sheng. Therefore, Bai Li only coldly sneered and moved his legs. A gust of wind then came heading towards Long Chen along with an enormous whirlpool that seemed to be made of liquid. It was as if a yellow river had instantly appeared in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes!


    ¡°The strength of a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator is not something you canprehend, you little doggy!¡±


    ¡°[Dark Heavenly Finger] ¨C [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]! Spin spin spin!¡±


    Long Chen was far too familiar with this [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]. He had seen Bai Shichen and Bai Zhanxiong use it before and now Bai Li used it too. Although the mightpare to Bai Zhanxiong was stronger by several times, Long Chen was no longer the same Long Chen that dealt with Bai Zhanxiong. Seeing this vicious attack headed towards him, Long Chen was not flustered in the slightest.


    The boundless energy and the blood red Qi that had a tenfold qualitypared to his opponent, gave Long Chen endless assurance and confidence!


    After entering the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, this was the first time Long Chen met an expert such as Bai Li. This match would be able to stimte all of the fighting ability in his body and equipped him for a death match with the opponent!


    ¡°Previously, I used [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] to shatter Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]. This time, let me use the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] and break your [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], otherwise how can it show the progress that I, Long Chen, have made¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 55 – [Heaven Piercing Finger]

    Feeling the aura of [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], Bai Li sneered loudly.


    ¡°It seems like you¡¯re using [Seal of the High Profound Dragon]. I heard that Xiong Er¡¯s [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] was defeated by it. This time, let me reverse the situation and show you what a true [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] looks like!


    ¡°Oh really?¡±


    Very soon, under the rapid hand seals made by Long Chen, there was a whistling red aura formed in his hands and a blood red dragon image coiled on his arms that were faintly simr to the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon. This dragon image, as if alive, had a pair of frosty eyes which stared at the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], holding a look of contempt!


    Upon seeing that Long Chen was actually using the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] against a [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], Founder Yang who was fighting with Bai Sheng widened his eyes instantly. He wanted to prostrate himself in front of Long Chen for being so gutsy. But, guts alone were not enough. Founder Yang, having spent several dozens of years immersing himself in the techniques of the [Seal of the Dragons], knew that the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] would never be able to block the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]! Anxiety clearly showed on his face at this moment!


    But everything happened in just a blink of an eye.


    With a ferocious roar, Long Chen¡¯s whole body tightened and under the immense pressure of the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] momentarily released all of its might.


    With his body emitting an enormous amount of strength, as if Long Chen had turned into a humanoid demonic beast, he charged towards the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring]!


    That red sh of a figure had momentarily turned into an image of a blood red Dragon God, and it seemed like Long Chen had crashed into the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] with his body.


    The [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] contained a huge whirling energy, while the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] was an attack that pressed forward without hesitation. Instantly, as these two forces collided violently, the sand and rocks flew around and the branches of trees were broken, as leaves danced in the air!


    Bang!


    Both of them violently shook and retreated hastily. By using the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] against the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], Long Chen was still at a disadvantage therefore the distance he had retreated was further. Blood was boiling within his body and,pared to Bai Li, he was in a worse state. However, under the support of his reinforced and tempered body, he could easily suppress all of these small injuries!


    As for Bai Li, although he had not suffered much from injuries, because Long Chen had only used the [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] against his [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] and then received it well, he was extremely shocked. At this point he was extremely humiliated as well!


    This just added anotheryer of rage on top of his fury.


    ¡°Brat! You are indeed seeking death¡­¡­¡±


    In the beginning he thought that he could finish off Long Chen easily and then join up with Bai Sheng to kill Yang Cangqiong. This n worked only up to the first exchange of blows because now, he was extremely shocked.


    Although Founder Yang who saw this scene was now less surprised by Long Chen¡¯s heaven-defying talents, he still had a shock. Seeing the indifferent face on this boy, who seemed not in the slightest bit afraid of Bai Li, he suddenly felt that there might be some hope for the Yang Family today!


    Looking at Bai Li, Long Chen¡¯s mind was extremely clear. He did not know how topete further with Bai Li in strength. He knew that the [Dark Heavenly Finger] had a total of three techniques which was why it was so overpowering. If Long Chen wanted to defeat Bai Li, then he must definitely face the third and final technique.


    If he used the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] to fight against the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring], it would definitely create a huge gap as there would still be the third finger technique. By that time Long Chen would be affected psychologically. Right now, though, he had taken a risk and gave that psychological pressure to Bai Li instead!


    At this moment, Bai Li was extremely furious and the aura on his body continuously rose. Long Chen could faintly detect that he was most likely preparing for the final attack!


    ¡°Your broken [Seal of the Dragons] has only two moves while there are three for my Bai Family¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger]. As such, no matter what, your Yang Family is no match for my Bai Family¡­¡­¡±


    At this moment, Bai Li smirked and a sharp concentrated energy like a sword revolved around his fingers. That ck razor sharp aura formed perfectly straight on his fingers and as the aura grewrger Founder Yang could even feel it from afar.


    ¡°This is the aura of the final technique of the Bai Family, this fellow Bai Li, he is actually using it on a younger generation¡­¡­¡±


    Although he was fearful in his heart, but at this moment Bai Sheng was holding him back so he had no methods to save Long Chen at all. He could only pray that Long Chen would be able to endure this final technique!


    Only after he saw Bai Li¡¯s third and final technique, did Long Chen start forming his strongest [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] yet. Last time his strength was not even in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so he was unable to fully demonstrate the might of such an advance martial technique. However it was different now because not only was his Qi fully sufficient, even the quality was tenfold higher than regr Qi!


    This concentration of dense Qi¡¯s might of which was more than 10 times stronger than before, coupled with his reinforced [Dragon Soul Transformation], let off an aura that amazed the other three. Long Chen¡¯s [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] appeared to be not in the slightest bit inferior to Bai Li¡¯s final technique!


    At this moment, within the granite cave, Yang Xueqing looked anxiously at Long Chen. Her eyes were originally indifferent but ever since Long Chen arrived, they slowly regained their vigour. When Long Chen stood in front of her and blocked the [Nine Orbits Yellow Spring] with [Seal of the Ashened Dragon], her face revealed a faint smile.


    This youth who was in the beginning a brat with no good points, had now grown up to be like this. It made her extremely surprised. Now, when all of the shock was gone, only immense and boundless pride remained in her heart.


    ¡°This¡­¡­ is my, Yang Xueqing¡¯s, son. Before, I had cast him aside to Long Qinn but he is indeed my son. He is already this powerful now, surpassing me and bing a focus in the whole of Por Town.¡±


    When she saw that Long Chen had used [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] to go against the final technique of [Dark Heavenly Finger], she knew that it was the strongest technique of both sides and the winner was still undecided!


    Yang Xueqing¡¯s anxiety reached new heights at this moment and her arm, bound by the metal chains, had tightly clenched its fist!


    Bai Li charged towards Long Chen!


    A huge whistling sound made by the wind came rushing over, and Long Chen even felt the earth trembled. The images of nine blood red coloured Dragon Gods appeared like nine individual [Seal of the Ashened Dragon] techniques, and rapidly spiraled around Long Chen¡¯s body, while an immense aura spread out to all directions!


    With Bai Li¡¯s movement, Long Chen shouted as well, circted the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] while lowering his head and charging wildly towards his opponent!


    Right then, the whole area under this valley was riddled with impressions made by Long Chen as mud flew in the air. Bai Li coldly looked at Long Chen, however, because the attack in his hands had already beenpleted!


    Everything happened in a sh!


    ¡°In front of our Bai Family¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger], the [Seal of the Dragons] is just a dog¡¯s fart!¡±


    Howling, a blinding light was projected from Bai Li¡¯s arms. It was as if a razor sharp de hade piercing towards Long Chen!


    ¡°[Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Heaven Piercing Finger]!¡±


    Seeing such a powerful attack, Long Chen did not panic. He wildly circted his Qi and, under the blood red Qi¡¯s cirction, the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] made a faint and mysterious change. It was as if Long Chen¡¯s blood was infused with this [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] and the nine Dragon God images turned scarlet! They roared, one after the other, as if having an intelligence of their own!


    What Long Chen felt right now was basically an energy he could barely control, as his blood started to boil. That whistling final attack of the [Dark Heavenly Finger] no longer seemed so terrifying to him!


    ¡°[Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Heaven Piercing Finger] huh? Under the [Seal of the Dragons], you are destined to be devoid of light!¡±


    With a loud bang, the images of the nine Dragon Gods came whizzing and condensed into a destructive energy that was thrusted out by Long Chen!


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!¡±


    Bang!


    This time, both sides was using their strongest technique. This was the biggest showdown the both of them ever made, so the current battle scene was much more horrifyingpared to before!


    With such a terrifying showdown, it naturally filled the whole air with dust and smoke. Both Founder Yang and Yang Xueqing furrowed their brows deeply since Long Chen¡¯s life and death right now was unclear¡­¡­


    ¡°Yang Cangqiong, in front of my Bai Family¡¯s [Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Heaven Piercing Finger], your Yang Family¡¯s [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] is only bullshit! That little bastard is already dead and you are next!¡±


    Bai Sheng¡¯s wildughter sounded in Yang Cangqiong¡¯s ears and at this moment he did not even look at Bai Li¡¯s battle,unching an all out aggressive attack towards Yang Cangqiong!


    He knew the extraordinary abilities of his younger brother and even he was unsure of being Bai Li¡¯s match. What was there to fear from a little runt like Long Chen?


    This final exchange of blows of Bai Li and Long Chen had made part of the valley copse. Under the nervous gaze of Founder Yang and Yang Xueqing, the dust slowly dissipated. Looking at the scene, the shocked expressions of Founder Yang and Yang Xueqing quickly turned into ones of joy!


    ¡°Chen Er, well done! You are really the pride of my Yang Family¡­¡­¡±


    As Founder Yang spoke these words, Bai Sheng mocked and asked: ¡°Did you think you could divert my attention just by saying this?¡±


    He continued his barrage of attacks on Founder Yang. Actually, Bai Sheng admitted to himself that he and Founder Yang were of equal strength so this time he was simply waiting for Bai Li to finish Long Chen off before joining him to deal with this old geezer!


    After Founder Yang finished speaking, Bai Sheng immediately guessed the intentions behind his words and concluded that Founder Yang was attempting to trick him!


    With a wave of his arm to fend off Founder Yang¡¯s attack, he turned and looked behind, excitedly saying: ¡°Second Brother, after you have dealt with Long Chen, hurry and join me to dispose of this¡­¡­¡±


    As Bai Sheng spoke, he saw the situation on the other side at this moment the smoke and dust cleared. Between the two, only one was left standing, while the other had actually spurted out blood and flew to somewhere near the granite cave. Thistter¡¯s face was extremely pale and his whole body was convulsing on the floor. It was obvious that he suffered from heavy injuries. And for Bai Sheng, how could he not recognise his own brother, Bai Li?


    After Long Chen defeated Bai Li, he did not say another word and directly rushed to where Yang Xueqing was!


    After such an unbelievable thing happened, Bai Sheng did not have time to process his thoughts. As he saw Long Chen¡¯s actions, he hurriedly eximed and said: ¡°Brother Xue Yuanzi hurry, help!¡±

 Chapter 56 – Xue Yuanzi

    The moment Bai Sheng had shouted the name Xue Yuanzi, Long Chen immediately knew that something was amiss!


    He originally thought that after winning the fight with Bai Li he could rescue Yang Xueqing and obtain the Soul Diffusion Fruit. However, at this moment it seemed that something unexpected was about to happen.


    Long Chen had always been suspicious of why the two Bai Brothers would capture Yang Xueqing but not use her against them. Now, it appeared that someone else was hiding inside the granite cave, seemingly of high status and power. It seemed that the Bai Brothers had only invited this expert over on the off-chance that some unexpected events urred and what just happened definitely constitutes an extremely unlikely turn of events!


    The Bai Brothers would have never expected this oue, Bai Li being defeated by Long Chen.


    Bai Li, who was hit by Long Chen¡¯s [Seal of the High Profound Dragon], did not lose his consciousness at this point. His face was extremely pale and he gazed manically at Long Chen and sneered: ¡°Kid, I never thought that you would actually be able to defeat me. However, you would never guess that although my Bai Family did not expect this oue, we still made ample preparations. I believe Xue Yuanzi will let you know the meaning of ¡®suffering¡¯ and ¡®agony¡¯¡­¡­¡±


    As Bai Li said these words, Long Chen already felt an immense auraing from the depths of the granite cave. This super expert went undiscovered by even Lingxi and it appeared that Yang Xueqing, who was close to the Soul Diffusion Fruit Tree, did not know of it either.


    So, when everyone felt that stifling aura, Yang Xueqing, who had been unbelievably ted as Long Chen had beaten Bai Li, turned extremely pale. She panicked and said to Long Chen: ¡°You¡­¡­Hurry and go, you will definitely not be able to beat this person, bring my father and leave!¡±


    She had a panic stricken face, but Long Chen did not move.


    ¡°This Xue Yuanzi is most likely from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. I wonder what his strength is at.¡±


    At this point, Long Chen did not feel very confident.


    In his heart, Xue Yuanzi could be a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator, or even an existence that surpasses the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    ¡°If his strength is over the Dragon Pulse Realm then, with my current strength, I will definitely die! Not to mention saving my mother or obtaining the Soul Diffusion Fruits!¡±


    Long Chen understood the situation clearly but he also knew that there was no backing out at this point. Although Yang Xueqing still put on a frantic expression, the unbending will of Long Chen and his responsibility did not allow him to retreat even half a step back!


    ¡°Don¡¯t say anymore! I am not someone who escapes easily!¡±


    As he growled and spoke to Yang Xueqing, Long Chen coldly looked at the faintly smiling person that walked out from the granite cave.


    Upon seeing the determination in Long Chen¡¯s eyes Yang Xueqing, who was originally panic stricken, suddenly stopped. The reason was that she abruptly felt that this youth had long exceeded her vision and as to what his true character was, she knew nothing at all.


    And by this time, the person named Xue Yuanzi walked out. As he walked past Bai Li, he first looked at him and then at Long Chen. He then frowned and said: ¡°You are able to beat Bai Li. Although it isn¡¯t such a bad feat, many people in Yuanling City are able to achieve the same. However, in such a small ce like this you should be considered as a genius.¡±


    He was extremely honest in his evaluation towards Long Chen. After sizing Long Chen up closely, he clicked his tongue and nodded his head saying: ¡°This body of a Beast Warrior isn¡¯t too bad and if I were to guess, it should belong to the Underground Blood Lizard¡¯s soul. It¡¯s not bad, but today you have hurt my men and even want to fight for the Soul Diffusion Fruits with me. Now that you have already created enmity between us, I don¡¯t think I can let you leave here alive¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen also coldly sized up this person.


    His figure was as skinny as a matchstick and he wore a ck robe. It seemed like his age wasn¡¯t too old, approximately 30 years or so. His eyes, however, were extremely sinister and between his brows was the red dot, the trademark of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Also, another special feature was that his hair and brows had faint signs of red colour.


    At this moment he was clicking his tongue and sizing Long Chen up, showing that he was not worried about Long Chen at all.


    However, Long Chen did not feel stifled by this.


    From this person¡¯s appearance, Long Chen knew that he was much stronger than Bai Li and Bai Sheng. Also, he saw Long Chen¡¯s age and ability to beat Bai Li but he was not in the slightest bit surprised. This showed that he had experience in seeing things like these.


    ¡°Someone who has such experience will definitely be a strong person. At the very least someone who surpasses the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking thus, Long Chen felt helpless.


    However, the disdain in the opponent¡¯s eyes and his disregarding expression made Long Chen feel extremely indignant.


    ¡°My mother is just in front of me along with the Soul Diffusion Fruit. I have even defeated Bai Li! How can I be willing to be defeated here?¡±


    Seeing this strange yet vicious looking Xue Yuanzi, Long Chen clenched his fists tightly and the gaze in his eyes was frosty as he met Xue Yuanzi head on.


    Xue Yuanzi noticed the unwillingness in that gaze and momentarilyughed. He nonchntly ruffled his hair and sneered: ¡°You are really like a newborn calf who does not know fear towards a tiger. Merely beating such a retard like Bai Li and you think you are invincible. Indeed, you are not someone who has seen the outside world and do not know your ce.¡±


    He immediately turned around and looked at Yang Xueqing and his gaze filled with lust. He rubbed both of his hands together and said: ¡°Thisdy here is your mother? There is, indeed, that unbelievable appeal in her which I am extremely fond of¡­¡­¡±


    Turning back, Xue Yuanzi spoke to Long Chen expectantly: ¡°Your mother¡¯s sex appeal is still there and your talent isn¡¯t too bad either. How about this, you and your mother follow me back to Yuanling City and I promise I won¡¯t kill you then. What do you think?¡±


    Everyone understood what that eagerness in Xue Yuanzi¡¯s gaze implied.


    At this moment the most furious were the Bai Brothers. Bai Sheng was still fighting with Founder Yang and Bai Li, who was still conscious, gave a look of disbelief towards Xue Yuanzi. Bai Li furiously shouted: ¡°Xue Yuanzi, you promised us that you will kill them! What do you mean by saying those words?¡±


    Xue Yuanzi smiled happily and looked at Bai Li, saying: ¡°What other meaning can I have? I, Xue Yuanzi, will do whatever I please. Don¡¯t tell me that I have to report everything I do to a trash like you? Bai Li, from the time I entered the Human Dan Realm you and I were no longer equals and yet you still foolishly believed that I would help you?¡±


    Hearing these words, Bai Li instantly sucked in a deep breath and said: ¡°Xue Yuanzi, so many years of friendship and today you actually spouted these words, really¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Heavenly punishment? Divine judgement? Okay now, Bai Li, don¡¯t say such silly things that amuse me. I really wonder how you were able to remain soughably ignorant after all these years?¡±


    What Long Chen did not expect was that this Xue Yuanzi, who looked to be merely 30 years of age, was actually simr in age to Bai Li, which meant he was about 60 odd years old.


    However¡­¡­


    Long Chen eyes squinted.


    ¡°You damned old fellow, actually want to hit on my mother? And even want to adopt me as your son?¡±


    Looking at the frightened expression on Yang Xueqing, Long Chen was heartbroken. He felt that it was because he wasn¡¯t strong enough that she had to be this frightened right now. Maybe it was due to the thoughts of torture in her future but Long Chen had actually seen suicidal thoughts in her mind.


    With her, Yang Xueqing¡¯s, current abilities, naturally no one could stop her frommitting suicide.


    No matter how much pressure Xue Yuanzi had given Long Chen, after seeing that frightened look on Yang Xueqing¡¯s face he knew that it was time for him to straighten his backbone.


    Actually, it should be Long Qinn¡¯s role to protect her right now but seeing as Long Qinn wasn¡¯t there any longer, Long Chen knew he had to shoulder this responsibility.


    ¡°Old man, this damned old geezer wants to vite your woman. You, who are so awe inspiring to me, if you are there watching from the heavens then bless us all and pray that we are able to escape this cmity¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Li¡¯s wild shouts were exchanged with Xue Yuanzi¡¯s smirk and although it had not matured, Long Chen¡¯s frosty voice sounded out with absolute determination beside Xue Yuanzi¡¯s ears.


    ¡°You old fart, you want to be my father? Seeing your appearance, even if youe begging me to ept you as my grandson, I will still feel my status lowering!¡±


    This insult by Long Chen momentarily stunned Xue Yuanzi. Seeing the cold gaze gradually emanating from Long Chen, he felt t Long Chen might as well have been spitting words made of ice.


    ¡°I thought you might have some brains, but never think that you¡¯re just a donkey. Foolish people have no right to live on this earth. Oh well, I will send you to your death. But don¡¯t worry; I will definitely do a great job to rece your father in loving this elegant beautiful mother of yours¡­¡­¡±


    At first, Bai Li thought that Long Chen would take advantage of this opportunity and establish a connection with Xue Yuanzi. He never thought that Long Chen would reply Xue Yuanzi in this manner. He was shocked at first and then he helplesslyughed at himself and said: ¡°Although this brat from Yang Family has a blood feud with me, he still has some backbone. Sadly, no matter how much backbone he has, after meeting a Human Dan Realm cultivator he will still have to die prematurely. After all, Human Dan Realm is an existence with strength surpassing the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm by ten times!


    Although Xue Yuanzi had said he would send Long Chen to hell, he never attacked him. Instead, he walked over to Yang Xueqing¡¯s side. Yang Xueqing, who wore a horrified expression at first, had now changed into an expression of resolution after hearing Long Chen¡¯s words.


    Xue Yuanzi used his finger to lift her porcin white chin and looked at Yang Xueqing whose eyes were filled with fury. He then cackled and said: ¡°What a young and tender woman! I heard that you have been living like a widow for so many years, I imagine that you must be feeling a little itchy? Big Brother, I am really so sorry for appearing thiste!¡±


    He turned around and looked towards Long Chen, shaking his head while saying: ¡°I could have treated both of you, mother and son, well. s, your son wasn¡¯t tactful so I can only destroy him before I can be at peace.¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen walked towards him one step at a time and his surging blood red Qi was constantly boiling within him. One could see the madness and rage within his crimson coloured eyes!


    ¡°You old geezer, release her¡­¡­¡±


    Xue Yuanziughed and said: ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°I said¡­¡­¡±


    Feeling the countless blood dragons that howled within him, Long Chen abruptly raised his head and bellowed: ¡°I want you to release her!¡±

 Chapter 57 – Secret Sword Art – [Dream Returning Fairy]

    Seeing that Long Chen was actually not afraid of death, Xue Yuanzi slowly squinted at him.


    He violently swung his hand and dragged Yang Xueqing with his fingers while mming his palm on the granite wall. Despite Yang Xueqing having the Qi protection of an eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator, blood was faintly streaming down her forehead!


    This sight of crimson blood hadpletely ignited the fury in Long Chen¡¯s heart!


    ¡°Xue Yuanzi, you actually hurt her?!¡±


    Xue Yuanzi sneered: ¡°She¡¯s just an abandoned widow, so what if I did? What can you do to me? Don¡¯t tell me you are going to kill me? Looking at this posture of yours, brat, are you going to take action? Oh well, let me show you the difference in power between the Human Dan and Dragon Pulse Realm!


    After saying this, an extremely enormous Qi on Xue Yuanzi¡¯s body was fully drawn. Right now, Long Chen felt that the person in front of him was no longer human, but a demonic beast with an earth shattering aura that seemed to cover the entire. This aura even made Long Chen unable to breathe!


    ¡°What an aura! Even if I use all my energy, there is absolutely no chance of winning!¡±


    Xue Yuanzi merely disyed his aura and it had already made Long Chen unable to move. In this instant, the aura in his bloodshot eyes surged and constantly reminded him that if he did not wish to die he could only hurry and escape. Despite this, when he thought of Yang Xueqing who was still by his side and the blood that was dripping down from her forehead, Long Chen¡¯s blood boiled!


    ¡°Who cares what fucking ¡®Human Dan Realm¡¯ you are! In front of me, you can only die!¡±


    At the same time, Lingxi was extremely frantic inside the Lingxi Sword on Long Chen¡¯s ear. Seeing that the Human Dan Realm opponent was about to strike, Lingxi could only anxiously remind Long Chen: ¡°Long Chen, I beg of you, don¡¯t put up such a brave front right now! He is not someone that you can fend off with your strength! If you are this stubborn, not only will you die but the rest of us too!¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡±


    Long Chen coldly stared at Xue Yuanzi and said in a frosty voice: ¡°My mother is still there so how can I only persevere for this short while? Lingxi, you better go. I think the energy from the five stalks of Dream Spirit Grass will be enough for you to find a way to continue living!¡±


    Suddenly, Lingxi¡¯s face turned extremely pale. She looked at Long Chen in disbelief, never thinking that Long Chen would actually say these words. She broke down and sobbed: ¡°You¡­¡­You scoundrel! I am not someone who is afraid of death! I¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Then shut up for me!¡±


    Long Chen had no bad intentions towards Lingxi at all. He being this stern to her was because of the current angst that he was feeling.


    Right after Long Chen and Lingxi had exchanged their words Xue Yuanzi, who was holding down Long Chen with his might, noticed that Long Chen was courting death and bbing away even when he was unable to move. Originally, he actually did appreciate Long Chen a little but now it had turned into anger. He viciously looked at Yang Xueqing who red at him in disdain, saying: ¡°After I kill your son, I¡¯ll return and have a good time with you!¡±


    After saying this, his figure vanished before Yang Xueqing¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Chen Er, be careful!¡±


    As Yang Xueqing¡¯s shrill voice sounded out, Long Chen had already realised there was a person standing in front of him. He had prepared an even stronger [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] than the one he created for Bai Li and sent it crashing into Xue Yuanzi!


    Unfortunately, Xue Yuanzi was not even slightly surprised at seeing such a powerful attack from Long Chen. At the same instant, his face darkened and he sent a fist with crimson light flying towards Long Chen!


    This crimson light looked extremely normal, but it¡¯s destructive ability was there. As the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] and Xue Yuanzi¡¯s fist containing the crimson light crashed against each other, Long Chen helplessly realised that, although the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] was a magnificent martial technique, it was still powerless in front of the enormous corrosive ability in the crimson blood! Under an attack powered by a Human Dan Realm cultivator, the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] shattered and that enormous crimson light energy crashed into Long Chen and sent him flying!


    ¡°Chen Er!¡±


    ¡°Chen Er!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    As a few frightened voices had sounded out, Founder Yang¡¯s and Yang Xueqing¡¯s faces abruptly turned pale. Yang Xueqing was unable to move and Founder Yang was being held back by Bai Sheng so he could not rush to Long Chen¡¯s aid either. Both of them were only able to watch as Long Chen flew through the air.


    The other shout was of course by Lingxi. Seeing that Long Chen was actually injured and had even vomitted a mouthful of fresh blood, Lingxi felt rage rising to the extreme in her heart!


    Lingxi, who originally thought she was about to die, had actually managed to spend time together with Long Chen for this period of time and experienced so many things together with him. There wasughter and even tears. Gradually, she had developed a dependent feeling towards this youth!


    She waspletely immersed in Long Chen¡¯s current feelings so when she saw Long Chen, who was critically hurt trying to save this mother of his who once looked down on him, Lingxi¡¯s heart shattered into many pieces.


    Lingxi was extremely panic stricken and did not know what to do at this point. Xue Yuanzi¡¯s coldughter sounded at that moment and he strolled towards Long Chen, his face carrying a look of contempt.


    ¡°With just this small achievement and you already think you are so invincible, people like you who don¡¯t know their ce will always die a horrible death. You, runt, aren¡¯t the first nor thest. However it is still the first time that I, Xue Yuanzi, have had the opportunity to end a little genius life like yours, one which was destined to have some aplishments when it¡¯s just the beginning.¡±


    The blood reeking aura of this person had made Lingxi, whose cultivation had almost dropped to zero, shudder in waves. Thinking of the miserable state Long Chen was in and seeing that smug face of the bad guy, however, gradually intensified her rage!


    ¡°If you bully him¡­¡­Then you deserve to die!¡±


    Seeing Xue Yuanzi, Lingxi gradually lost her sense of identity. In her heart it was as if the person Xue Yuanzi had harmed was not Long Chen, but her.


    At this moment, Long Chen felt a wave of enormous energy rushing into his body and ruining everything inside. This wave of energy had caused him to lose consciousness for a split-second and, seeing the current state of his body, he knew that death was imminent!


    If he were to die here, no matter if it was Yang Xueqing or Founder Yang, and even Lingxi, they would all perish here with him. If they died, the other Yang Family members would most likely be unable to survive as well!


    There was a heavy responsibility on his shoulders but the regretful thing was that right now, he had absolutely no strength to resist and fight back. Although he had gained tremendous improvement recently, it was still not enough!


    ¡°Only by being a true expert can one then protect the people close to them. I, Long Chen, am obviously nowhere close to this stage yet!¡±


    ¡°I am really unwilling to just die like this. There are still many things for me to do, I¡­¡­I have to be stronger!¡±


    Long Chen was madly howling in his heart but at this moment the energy sent from Xue Yuanzi had already entered his internal organs. Suddenly, there was a huge devouring force that emanated within his body that directly consumed Xue Yuanzi¡¯s strange corrosive attack


    Long Chen however, had only gotten paler.


    The reason for this was because in that instance he felt that there was a huge appetite stored somewhere inside of him that was countless of times stronger than his own. At this moment, Long Chen understood that everything he had encountered before was unable to appease its hunger!


    Long Chen knew deep-down that this appetite belongs to him and right now he felt extremely famished. What he needed was an amount of energy so unthinkable it would allow him to be the most extreme of existence: A Dragon of the myths!


    ¡°The quality of this, Xue Yuanzi¡¯s, Qi is somewhat simr to mine, containing a bloody aura. However, his quality is only two fold of the average cultivator¡¯s. It¡¯s not even close to mine, even when I¡¯m not using [Dragon Soul Transformation]!¡±


    Suddenly thinking on the fact that Xue Yuanzi is a member of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, and remembering that he had previously seen Bai Zhanxiong selling the courtesans from Emerald Jade House to these people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, his brows furrowed.


    ¡°It is very likely that this faint red Qi they cultivate in has got something to do with the courtesans from Emerald Jade House!¡±


    Long Chen woke up from his half-conscious state only after fully absorbing Xue Yuanzi¡¯s attack on his body. Just as he was wondering why Xue Yuanzi had not imed his life, he opened his eyes and saw that the Lingxi Sword had once again rapidly grownrger in front of his eyes!


    Amongst the astonished expressions of everyone, a white foggy mist pervaded the air. The elegant body and disposition of Lingxi, her long white dress, the hair that looked like a waterfall, and that fragrance that soothes people, all appeared in front of Long Chen once again!


    Simr to the previous two times, her back was again facing Long Chen. Each and every movement was executed with determination and without a moment of hesitation!


    Long Chen heart¡¯s surged with emotions at this moment. He was well aware that Lingxi only had 5 stalks of the Dream Spirit Grasses as her lifespan. As far as how long it couldst for, he did not know himself. It was extremely disadvantageous for her to use her spiritual force at this time. Also, if Xue Yuanzi was too powerful for her and she ended up using too much energy, she might very well dissipate into thin air!


    Tears brimming in his eyes, Long Chen was moved as he hollered: ¡°Xiao Xi, don¡¯t do this,e back!¡±


    Lingxi fidgeted, however she never turned back. Long Chen was able to see her extreme beauty clearly, and under the astonished gazes of Founder Yang and the rest, her gaze shed coldly within the mist!


    At this moment Xue Yuanzi, who was charging towards Long Chen to finish him off, suddenly saw a strange girl stand in front of him. Although he was surprised, the welling energy in his hands never stopped!


    ¡°[Blood Smearing Revolving Void Punch]!


    Instantly a blood palm print that could split the heavens and tear the earth came charging towards Lingxi, who was defending Long Chen, and Long Chen¡¯s anxiety reached to the heavens. However, everything happened in a sh and when Xue Yuanzi used [Heaven Piercing Finger], a clear and distinct voice rang in everyone¡¯s ears!


    ¡°Secret Sword Art: [Dream Returning Fairy] ¡­¡­[Jolting Heavens Dancing des]¡­¡­¡±


    A sh appeared in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes and the mist surrounding Lingxi started to move. Very soon, the figure of a sword appeared from the mist, as if there were countless girls dancing wildly, and brushed past Xue Yuanzi¡¯s body. Then, everything returned to normal.


    Everyone was astounded.


    Long Chen looked nkly at Lingxi, who had now turned into a tiny ball of mist and entered back into Lingxi Sword. Under her control, she transformed the sword into an ear pin and attached itself onto Long Chen¡¯s ear. As Long Chen began to panic, her frail voice sounded¡­¡­


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry; I¡¯ll be fine after sleeping. However this simple attack used 3 stalks of the Dream Spirit Grasses¡¯ energy so I cannot stand up for you so easily anymore¡­¡­However, you idiot, I am really not someone who is afraid of death¡­¡­Wuuu¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°This silly girl¡­¡­¡±


    To save him, she had even risked her life! How could Long Chen not understand this?


    Long Chen knew that the words he said before had hurt her.


    However¡­¡­


    Long Chen looked nkly at Xue Yuanzi standing in front of him.

 Chapter 58 – Eight Proctors

    Lingxi¡¯s appearance had caused Bai Sheng and Founder Yang¡¯s battle toe to a halt.


    The moment Lingxi disappeared, both of them held Long Chen in a different light than before.


    If one were to say that previously they only approved of Long Chen¡¯s talent, now they were more curious about his mysteries and even somewhat impressed.


    Lingxi had once appeared during the intra-familypetition but Founder Yang never thought that this mysterious item could actually be that powerful. He nkly looked at Long Chen and felt extreme pride and satisfaction.


    ¡°Having such a grandson like this in my life, even if I, Yang Cangqiong, were to die today, I will die without regrets. However, Xueqing and the rest don¡¯t deserve to die at all¡­¡­¡±


    To Bai Sheng, what had happened was obviously not a good thing at all.


    He was not feeling confident right now so he hurriedly looked at Xue Yuanzi and said: ¡°Brother Xue Yuanzi¡­¡­.¡±


    Xue Yuanzi remained motionless and no one knew what he was doing at this moment. However, seeing no signs of injuries on his body, Bai Sheng only thought that he was somewhat curious due to Lingxi¡¯s appearance.


    Therefore, Bai Sheng continued and said: ¡°Brother Xue Yuanzi, I think that we can discuss this. I, Bai Sheng, am willing to still honour our agreement of giving you one Soul Diffusion Fruit. If you have an interest towards beauties, I think our Bai Family women wouldn¡¯t be inferior to those in the Yang Family? Elder Brother, you don¡¯t have to mind about this wilting flower Yang Xueqing. As for the genius Long Chen, he hates you to the core. No matter how you nurture him, he will only backstab you in the end¡­¡­¡±


    At that point, Founder Yang frowned even harder. Seeing that Xue Yuanzi did not refuse his suggestion, Bai Sheng gave another provocative look at Founder Yang.


    ¡°It looks like the heavens want to wipe my Yang Family. What a pity for Long Chen, he is only sixteen¡­¡­¡±


    Founder Yang inhaled deeply.


    He looked at Xue Yuanzi who was not moving and back to Long Chen. Thinking of the power disparity between the both of them he knew that there was not much hope anymore.


    ¡°Earlier, that mysterious girl who appeared in front of Long Chen seemed to have used a very powerful sword technique. Unfortunately, it seems to have no effect against Xue Yuanzi¡­¡­¡±


    Founder Yang was not clear about the current situation.


    Xue Yuanzi looked to be fine and seemed to have been moved by Bai Sheng¡¯s words. Naturally, Bai Sheng turned smug and looked towards Long Chen and Founder Yang, saying: ¡°If Brother Xue Yuanzi agrees to my suggestion, I request of you to kill this kid¡­¡­Huh?¡±


    Right at this moment, Bai Sheng suddenly saw a drop of fresh blood falling from between Xue Yuanzi¡¯s brows. As he looked closer, he noticed an extremely fine wound in between them as well as another drop of blooding from the back of Xue Yuanzi¡¯s head.


    Bai Sheng was so startled that he was momentarily rendered speechless.


    The situation right now was obvious. The reason why Xue Yuanzi did not speak was not because he was unwilling too, but because a hole had already bore through his head. Although the wound was extremely tiny, it clearly could take a person¡¯s life away!


    Xue Yuanzi, dead?


    An unthinkable thought surfaced in Bai Sheng¡¯s mind while Xue Yuanzi¡¯s corpse crashed onto the floor.


    Long Chen had discovered long ago that Xue Yuanzi¡¯s body was devoid of life. Seeing him crashing to the floor, Long Chen was in extreme awe of Lingxi¡¯s strength and mystery and was also grateful.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that Lingxi¡¯s background, including the power behind it, is extremely immense¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen looked at Bai Sheng and saw that he was still in shock from Xue Yuanzi¡¯s death. When he saw Long Chen he shook his head, saying: ¡°This can¡¯t be! Xue Yuanzi is an expert of the Human Dan Realm, how could he been beaten by you guys?! Even if it was that mysterious girl, this is impossible¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing Xue Yuanzi¡¯s corpse, he suddenly thought of something and was extremely ted. Heughed and said to Long Chen and Founder Yang: ¡°Now that Xue Yuanzi is dead, your Yang Family will definitely die. Xue Yuanzi is one of the eight proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!¡±


    Long Chen did not expect Xue Yuanzi to have such a high position inside the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. However, now that things had already turned out this way, he could only ept his fate!


    ¡°Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is a thing of the future, right now the more important task is to kill these two vermin of the Bai Family!¡±


    Right now, Founder Yang had also recovered from the shock over Xue Yuanzi¡¯s death. He knew how horrifying the consequences would be from killing someone from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect but since the deed had already been done, the task at hand was more important. They needed to save Yang Xueqing, kill the Bai Brothers, and obtain the Soul Diffusion Fruits!


    Looking at that youth, Founder Yang once again thought of him from a month ago. He remembered when the enormous improvement in Long Chen¡¯s progress had caught him unprepared.


    ¡°Chen Er, the joy that you bring me is more than just ¡®good¡¯. Each time you have been in a crisis, you have tried your best. You are basically the saviour of our Yang Family! This grace, how can this old geezer ever repay it?¡±


    After Xue Yuanzi died, Founder Yang and Long Chen knew that they had to end this quickly.


    At that moment, Founder Yang held Bai Sheng back while Long Chen prepared to rescue Yang Xueqing. Long Chen did not expect Bai Li to suddenly stand up and rush to Yang Xueqing¡¯s side and ce his hands, which were dyed in blood, on her head!


    ¡°Brat, take another step and I will tear this woman to pieces!¡±


    When Bai Li said these vicious words, Long Chen immediately halted in his steps. The Bai Brothers regrouped and Founder Yang furiously stood alongside Long Chen.


    It was really ¡®one thing after another¡¯.


    Long Chen coldly looked at the two while tightly clenching his fists.


    ¡°As expected the old ginger is spicier than the young ginger. Bai Li was definitely not as injured as you thought he was and only pretended to be in that state. Most likely it was to use my mother as his trump card at the most crucial point. I waspletely unprepared for this cunning thoughts of his!¡±


    [TL Note: (½ª»¹ÊÇÀϵÄÀ±) ¨C Old ginger is still spicier than the young ginger¡±: Idiom meaning that experience counts]


    Thinking so, Long Chen reprimanded himself. He did indeed ce all of his attention on Xue Yuanzi earlier and neglected the threat of Bai Li. He never once expected that this old fellow would pretend to be in a severely injured state!


    ¡°In the future, when I hurt someone, I cannot be merciful. It is better to be sure. Benevolence will only result in such an ending!¡±


    Now, Yang Xueqing was being held hostage by Bai Li. If Long Chen were to strike, Bai Li would definitely be able to end her life in an instant. By then, even if Long Chen killed these two brothers and obtained the Soul Diffusion Fruit, the agony would definitely haunt him throughout his life!


    He would never be able to forgive himself!


    Long Chen was already extremely furious when Xue Yuanzi had hurt Yang Xueqing and it was not easy for Lingxi to kill Xue Yuanzi earlier, but it did allow his rage to subside. Now, though, Bai Li¡¯s actions invoked fury within him again that could burn the heavens!


    Sensing Long Chen¡¯s rage, Founder Yang gripped his arm and said: ¡°Chen Er, don¡¯t move and endure. Let me deal with these sudden foxes!¡±


    He then looked towards the Bai Brothers, saying: ¡°Bai Sheng, Bai Li, don¡¯t attack first. Tell me any conditions you have and if it is not too excessive we will be able to agree!¡±


    Bai Sheng and Bai Li looked in each other¡¯s eyes and, seeing that they held the trump card, began to smugly smile while understanding each other¡¯s intentions.


    At this moment, Bai Li¡¯s palm was circling around Yang Xueqing¡¯s head and the blood on it had already dyed Yang Xueqing¡¯s ck hair to red. Ignoring Long Chen¡¯s venomous stare, Bai Li slowly and casually said: ¡°Very simple: this three Soul Diffusion Fruit will belong to my Bai Family, and this little bastard here must break one of his arms.¡±


    Founder Yang and Long Chen were dumbfounded. Founder Yang would be unwilling to give all three Soul Diffusion Fruits away. And to break one of Long Chen¡¯s arms, that is not even worth mentioning.


    The n of the Bai Family was well thought out. With three Soul Diffusion Fruits, both of them would be able to breakthrough into the Deity Dan Realm. However, they were afraid of this genius Long Chen. For them to be able to sleep peacefully before breaking through they needed to weaken him by breaking one of his arms. Once they had sessfully entered the Deity Dan Realm, the Yang Family would definitely be exterminated!


    Founder Yang coldly said: ¡°It seems like you have no sincerity at all. Such a ridiculous request, there¡¯s no point in it. After knowing me for so many years, Bai Sheng, you know my character best. My condition, at best, is only two Soul Diffusion Fruits. If this does not suffice then today I, Yang Cangqiong, will go through a life and death struggle and have a fight to the death with your Bai Family! You will then see, at that moment, if the members who die the most wille from your Bai Family or my Yang Family!¡±


    With Long Chen¡¯s strength above Bai Li, the Yang Family now could be considered to have surpassed the Bai Family. If they were to have a life and death struggle, the results were clear to both Bai Sheng and Bai Li.


    So they looked again at each other and Bai Sheng solemnly said: ¡°Two Soul Diffusion Fruits, so be it. However, we have another condition. Before we enter the Deity Dan Realm, Yang Xueqing will momentarily reside at my ce. She has married my son anyway so she can be considered to be my Bai Family member.¡±


    This was the final allowance that the Bai Brothers could make since, even with the Soul Diffusion Fruits, they would likely meet a tragic end without a hostage.


    Realizing that she had once again implicated her family members, Yang Xueqing was extremely anxious and angry. Unfortunately, the metal chains that bound her were too tight and she had no chance of escaping Bai Li¡¯s grasp!


    ¡°Father! Don¡¯t listen to them! Don¡¯t worry about me! These two bastards of the Bai Family will not be satisfied with this. If you allow them to enter the Deity Dan Realm, how will there be a chance for survival for our Yang Family!?¡±


    Yang Xueqing said this to Founder Yang with tears brimming in her eyes and then gave another yearning gaze at Long Chen. Theplexity and sadness held in that look made even Founder Yang¡¯s heart ache. He knew clearly the sufferings of his daughter for her whole life.


    ¡°Father, forgive me for being unfilial. I will be unable to take care of you during your old age. The benevolence you have given me, I will repay it in the next life!¡±


    ¡°Chen Er¡­¡­¡±


    Looking at Long Chen, Yang Xueqing could no longer hold back her tears and they streamed down from her porcin white face.


    ¡°I, your mother, must say sorry to you¡­¡­If there is a next life, I promise I will definitely love you tenderly¡­¡­Goodbye!¡±


    After saying this, Yang Xueqing revealed a joyous look of salvation. Bai Sheng¡¯s and Bai Li¡¯s faces instantly changed because they both knew that at this moment she was going tomit suicide!

 Chapter 59 – Eighth Level Dragon Pulse Realm!

    Founder Yang understood the meaning behind Yang Xueqing¡¯s words.


    He had wanted to make a trade off with the Bai Family originally, but it was obvious that both parties would never reach mutually satisfactory terms. As for Yang Xueqing, after seeing that she had led her family into danger again and coupled with the remorse she had for her treatment of Long Chen, she felt terrible inside. Hence, she thought of sacrificing her own life to save them.


    ¡°Xueqing! Stop! I know how to deal with them, don¡¯t do anything rash!¡±


    Founder Yang¡¯s shout made Yang Xueqing halt her movements.


    This made Bai Sheng and Bai Li, who were using her as their lifeline, heaved sighs of relief. At this point, Yang Xueqing smiled miserably.


    ¡°Father, don¡¯t think of lying to me, I clearly know how much the Yang Family can do. Today, these two old dogs of the Bai Family are holding me as hostage and only with my death will everything they have turned to naught¡­¡­¡±


    There was an agonised expression on her face as she looked at Long Chen for onest time. She only wanted to have a closer look at this son of hers before she died but Long Chen¡¯s strange actions made her puzzled and she stopped her movements.


    At this time, Bai Sheng and Bai Li as well as Founder Yang, all stopped to look at Long Chen.


    Long Chen turned around and went to the corpse of Xue Yuanzi.


    He knew that if this continued the Yang Family would undoubtedly meet with a tragic end, so he only had one chance!


    ¡°Xue Yuanzi¡­¡­ Lingxi told me not to use [Blood Transmuted Qi] on anyone easily but this time I am left with no other choice. This old geezer is not anyone good either, so I won¡¯t hold back anymore!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed and, looking at Xue Yuanzi¡¯s corpse, he suddenly felt an iparable hungering from his stomach.


    He clearly understood that as long as he did not make the first move on the Bai Brothers they wouldn¡¯t strike at Yang Xueqing first. After all, Yang Xueqing was their lifeline. If she was hurt, Long Chen would fight with them to death and there would be no good ending for either side!


    During this period of time he might as well absorb the blood of Xue Yuanzi and allow his cultivation to progress!


    After thinking this far, Long Chen moved once again. Although he had decided earlier not to use [Blood Transmuted Qi] easily, this was a crucial moment and he had no other choice.


    Long Chen momentarily emitted a blood reeking, killing aura from using his divine ability [Blood Transmuted Qi]. This strange, yet terrifying presence, made Bai Sheng and Bai Li inhale a deep breath!


    Very soon they noticed that on the surface of Xue Yuanzi¡¯s skin there were countless drops of blood that, as if having their own mind, happily emerged from Xue Yuanzi¡¯s body. Shortly after appearing, they were absorbed into the blood red scales on Long Chen¡¯s body!


    Long Chen gradually absorbed the essence of Xue Yuanzi¡¯s blood with [Blood Transmuted Qi]. Xue Yuanzi was an existence that Long Chen was not a match against and was the strongest opponent that he had ever fought. His cultivation was in the Human Dan Realm, which was much stronger than the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and the energy contained in his blood was several dozen times greater than Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s!


    In the process of using [Blood Transmuted Qi], a huge amount of impurities were expelled from Long Chen¡¯s body. Only the finest essence from the blood was absorbed, turning into blood red Qi as it traveled into the center of his dantian. The Qi in his dantian expanded endlessly! This kind of impressive speed, this overwhelming strength, made Long Chen feel like he was about to explode!


    ¡°The blood essence of a Human Dan Realm cultivator is indeed no small matter!¡±


    That enormous amount of blood red Qi wildly surged inside Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Vein. Once again, he could feel that his body had turned into a nest for countless blood dragons as they howled while devouring this blood red Qi.


    When Xue Yuanzi¡¯s blood essence waspletely absorbed, his corpse became mummified. At this moment, the blood soaked aura emitting from Long Chen was magnified by several times. Now, the energy in his body was akin to arge sea and he barely had any control over it!


    ¡°Such an enormous amount of Qi! It is time to breakthrough to the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!¡±


    Thinking of this, Long Chen immediately started circting the Qi!


    To the Bai Brothers, Long Chen¡¯s actions seemed foolish but at the same time extremely gutsy!


    At this point, Bai Li was already injured. If he wasn¡¯t, Bai Sheng could have held Founder Yang back and let Bai Li kill Long Chen who was in the midst of cultivating. Unfortunately for them, it just so happened that Bai Li was injured and neither of them could figure out if Long Chen had any fighting abilities left. Thus, they just looked at each other without daring to move.


    ¡°Second Brother, this little devil is already so strong! If he is able to enter the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm now¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, Big Brother! As long as this woman is in our hands it doesn¡¯t matter how strong he is. Also, when the news of Xue Yuanzi¡¯s death travel back to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect the Yang Family will definitely be in for a good time! Let us just focus on obtaining the Soul Diffusion Fruits!¡±


    Bai Sheng nodded his head.


    Founder Yang did not expect that Long Chen would attempt his breakthrough to the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm at that moment. Fortunately, the two Bai Brothers did not dare risk attacking Long Chen. Seeing this, his tension eased and, since Long Chen was about to be stronger again, he began to feel a little excited.


    Suddenly, two voices rang out and broke the equilibrium. Everyone present looked and saw that the voices actually belonged to Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian.


    They had just arrived at Big Barren Mountain after sending the youths of the Yang Family away. However, they never thought that scenario would turn out this way in just fifteen minutes after the phenomenon in Big Barren Mountain!


    At this moment, Bai Sheng and the injured Bai Li were holding Yang Xueqing as hostage. Beside them, the Soul Diffusion Fruits glowed with a rainbow coloured radiance. The leaves of the trees were almost withered, indicating that the ripening time was near. At this crucial moment, Founder Yang was facing both the Bai Brothers while Long Chen sat further away from them actually cultivating!


    There was a corpse beside Long Chen that had lost its original look, causing Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian not to be able to tell who it belonged to. The current situation was entirely different from what they had imagined.


    ¡°The battle has already stopped and that Bai Li is actually injured. Could it be that Chen Er injured him and then began attempting to breakthrough to the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm?¡±


    Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian thought of this, but they had made the trip with the resolution to die. Originally, they wanted to have onest fight to the death and couldn¡¯t fathom that the battle already stopped.


    Looking at Long Chen, Yang Yuntian and Yang Qingxuan both shook their heads.


    ¡°Bai Li injuries were most likely caused by Father. It appears that Chen Er is fine though, so at this moment the both of us should fend off the Bai Family and let Chen Er regroup with the other party and escape!¡±


    As they formted their thoughts and walked towards Founder Yang, he immediately gave them a cold stare and asked: ¡°Why did you guyse? Where are the other members?¡±


    Yang Qingxuan panicked and said in a low voice: ¡°I had already let Wu Er and the rest bring the youths, the old, the weak, the women and children away from Por Town. Coming here, we only wish to help Chen Er escape so that he may one day seek revenge for us!¡±


    Founder Yang nodded his head and then shook it quickly, ndly saying: ¡°If I were you I would have done the same thing, but you guys have underestimated Chen Er¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian were shocked and, looking at Long Chen who was in the midst of cultivating, they asked with suspicion: ¡°Father, you mean to say that Bai Li was injured by Long Chen?¡±


    Founder Yang nodded his head saying: ¡°You guys help think of an idea. Yang Xueqing is still in their hands and we want to be able to take the Soul Diffusion Fruits and escape safely, it¡¯s not easy.¡±


    Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian, who were still in shock of Long Chen beating Bai Li, recovered their senses and turned furious at the sight of their younger sister¡¯s paleplexion!


    ¡°Bai geezer, hurry and release my sister! If you have any conditions just state them!¡±


    Hearing that Yang Qingxuan had spoken simr words, Bai Shengughed loudly and said: ¡°Your Yang Family¡¯s love is more solid than gold, which is rather touching. However, if you don¡¯t act ording to my wishes then I will let you suffer the pain that I did!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan¡¯s face darkened while he said: ¡°What is your condition?¡±


    Bai Sheng viciouslyughed, replying: ¡°I mentioned it to your father earlier: Two Soul Diffusion Fruits, and when we enter the Deity Dan Realm, we will return Yang Xueqing back to you.¡±


    If they were to enter the Deity Dan Realm then Yang Family would definitely perish. Hearing these words, Yang Qingxuan¡¯s face darkened even more.


    ¡°Are you guys still undecided? Yang Cangqiong, you might have time, but I don¡¯t really want to stay and waste any more time with you. If you don¡¯t agree, then let us all just die here! I have already lost two sons so today I¡¯m going all out!¡±


    Bai Sheng was being outrageously overbearing but the three men from Yang Family could not do anything about it. As for Long Chen, who was in the midst of cultivating, they had all almost forgotten he was there.


    Only Yang Xueqing¡¯s gaze still remained on him.


    She had wanted to die immediately, at first, but seeing Long Chen attempting to breakthrough, Yang Xueqing harboured a glimmer of hope for him!


    Yang Qingxuan lowered his voice and said to Founder Yang: ¡°Father, carrying on like this is not a solution. This Bai Li is currently injured and if we are to drag it out any longer and let him recover, then no one will be able to stop him. At that point¡­¡­¡±


    Just when Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian were a little shaken and Yang Xueqing had begun to despair, a sudden earth-shattering dragon¡¯s roar sounded!


    A rush of magnificent aura was disyed and Yang Qingxuan, Yang Yuntian and the rest could barely stand firmly on the ground. At this moment, everyone wore shocked expressions on their faces. Long Chen, who had just broken through to the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, stood up!


    The scarlet scales and sharp dragon spikes looked extremely fiendish. What was most oppressive though, was his aura. The moment Long Chen opened his eyes, his pair of scarlet pupils sent a shiver down their spines!


    Feeling this overflowing energy, Long Chen smiled in his heart.


    ¡°If I were to use [Dragon Soul Transformation] in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, I will definitely be much stronger than anyone else at the same level¡­¡­¡±


    A tenfold quality of Qi and the reinforced body of this [Dragon Soul Transformation] were trump cards that Long Chen could count on to be stronger than people of the same level!


    Right now, the strongest method Long Chen had was not [Seal of the Dragons], but rather thebination of his [Blood Transmuted Qi] and [Dragon Soul Transformation]. These methods came from the Inherited Blood Essence and Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, respectively, and from this alone one could see how mysterious they both were!


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze fell upon Bai Li, who was holding Yang Xueqing captive.


    Seeing such a magnificent auraing from Long Chen¡¯s body, Bai Sheng¡¯s and Bai Li¡¯s scalps had begun to go numb¡­¡­


    ¡°Kid, I know you have be stronger but you better not move. If not, I cannot guarantee Yang Xueqing¡¯s life¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing Long Chen, who was gradually approaching them, Bai Li¡¯s voice turned a little shrill.


    As for Bai Sheng, his eyes quivered a bit seeing the [Dragon Soul Transformation]. It was a perfect instrument for ughter.


    ¡°You two old dogs¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen, who was carrying this deep hatred within him, was akin to a super predator at this moment and walked towards them one step at a time. When all of his rage had reached its highest point, Long Chen¡¯s figure suddenly vanished and in the next instance Bai Li was bbergasted as he found his back to be slightly cold¡­¡­


    *Puchi* The sound of a spike piercing a heart.

 Chapter 60 – All Of You, Die!

    Looking at the current Long Chen approaching the two Bai Brothers, even Founder Yang did not dare stop him.


    He had a faint suspicion that Long Chen would give him a pleasant surprise in a moment. As for Yang Yuntian and Yang Qingxuan, they were so shocked when they felt Long Chen¡¯s enormous aura that it was difficult for them to even stand on their feet.


    Only now did they realize that the Yang Family being able to survive until now, making the two Bai Brothers put their status down and resort to kidnapping, was not because of Founder Yang but rather because of this devilish genius Long Chen!


    Although Long Chen was now in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he had a strange shapeshifting ability which let his strength far exceed that of a normal cultivator. Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian also deduced that Long Chen had be a Beast Warrior but as for the specifics, even they were unsure.


    Many things had happened recently and Long Chen was usually not around at Yang residence, so they never had time to ask.


    ¡°Chen Er will most likely exceed any expectations I had of him¡­¡­¡±


    The three men from the Yang Family collectively sighed. This was especially true for Yang Yuntian who had long since been in awe of Long Chen¡¯s rapid progress in cultivation.


    Long Chen¡¯s current appearance made Bai Sheng and Bai Li panic stricken. However, what they had never expected was that Long Chen¡¯s speed could actually be so quick! In the blink of an eye, Bai Li suddenly realised that Long Chen had disappeared!


    In the next moment, he felt a chill at his back and then it had started to hurt. Following this, a wave of overwhelming force rushed into his body. The bone drilling pain in his heart made Bai Li convulse and, as he lowered his head, he noticed a blood red spike withdrawing from his chest. Bai Li¡¯s face turned even paler.


    ¡°This¡­¡­I have¡­¡­Impossible¡­¡­¡±


    Although he was filled with utter disbelief, the piercing pain from the hole bored through his body had let Bai Li realise that he was most likely about to die. His consciousness slowly faded and his world turned darker.


    He suddenly became aware of the shocked expressions of Founder Yang and the rest, who were looking behind him. Although Bai Li was extremely curious and wanted to see who was behind him, he did not have much time left, and his increasingly fuzzy consciousness made him feel extremely weary.


    However, thinking of who could be behind him, his eyes suddenly widened. He realized that the person who had killed him, was actually the runt, Long Chen, who he had never cared about from the start!


    However, it was toote. When he finally recalled this piece of information, his consciousness once again took another hit. In the midst of endless hatred and unwillingness, Bai Li died.


    After being flung off by Long Chen, the corpse fell onto the ground and crashed in front of Founder Yang and the rest!


    At this moment, everyone finally recovered their senses. Founder Yang and the other two looked at the wide eyed corpse, and then looked back at Long Chen who had spat a mouthful of spit on it. They were extremely shocked and could not speak.


    [TL Note: (ËÀ²»î¨Ä¿) Wide Eyed Corpse: Chinese Idiom referring to someone who dies with grievance and regret/shock remaining.]


    In the instant that Long Chen had killed Bai Li, Bai Sheng was extremely shocked. When his brother¡¯s corpse was flung onto the floor, he felt iparable rage, which quickly turned into endless fear.


    He immediately turned tail and attempted to run. He knew that Yang Xueqing was his only lifeline. But, as he turned back, an icy cold grip had already sped onto his neck. That Qi, with an enormous and strong grip that was not a whit inferior to his, let Bai Sheng understand that if he made even the slightest movement, he would definitely die!


    Bai Sheng was slowly lifted off the floor while in Long Chen¡¯s grasp. Looking down at the blood red pupils, he was thinking of how Bai Li died. Bai Sheng, who lived for so many years, was finally afraid and the shadow of death was lingering over his head.


    He was so terrified that his face turned ashen and he hurriedly begged, saying: ¡°Please let me go! I promise that I will bring all of my Bai Family away from Por Town and hand you all of the Bai Family properties!¡±


    Long Chenughed coldly, not agreeing nor denying.


    At this moment, Founder Yang hade to terms with the reality that Long Chen had killed Bai Li. Everyone hurriedly gathered around Long Chen and, looking at the miserable state of Bai Sheng, the three members of the Yang Family all felt extremely satisfied, especially Founder Yang. Seeing that this traitorous brother of his, the one he had acknowledged his whole life had finallynded in his clutches and his emotions surged wildly.


    ¡°Chen Er, you know what to do, right?¡±


    When Bai Sheng had pleaded, Founder Yang coldly looked at him and ndly asked.


    Founder Yang¡¯s intentions were extremely clear: Bai Sheng was not allowed to exist on this earth anymore.


    Bai Sheng furiously stared at Founder Yang, saying: ¡°Brother Yang, we have been brothers our whole lives! Are you going to be this vicious now? On the ount that I have helped you so many times before, how about repaying the grace and letting me go this one time?¡±


    Founder Yang sneered and said: ¡°The very night you ced the Nightmare Flower in my mouth, we were no longer brothers. Chen Er, do not drag this any longer, take action now¡­¡­.¡±


    With Founder Yang¡¯sst three words, Bai Sheng¡¯s tears had begun to fall. He felt the pressure on his neck started to increase, and seeing that Long Chen and the Yang Family members did not n on sparing his life, he knew that it was forfeited.


    He thought of how he had he meticulously nned his attempt to exterminate the Yang Family, twice, but still ended up defeated by their hands. By Long Chen¡¯s hands. Seeing this youth that was destined to have a great future ahead, Bai Sheng was extremely unwilling in his heart. What he regretted most was not killing this genius Long Chen before he made any progress in cultivation.


    ¡°Xiong Er, if only you were more vicious in your methods back then, our Bai Family would not have to meet with such an ending today. Long Qinn was extremely mysterious to us all those years ago. We should have all along realised that his son would not simply be just a useless brat.¡±


    Bai Sheng despaired as he though this..


    However, looking at Yang Xueqing, Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian, Bai Sheng momentarilyughed wildly and said: ¡°Kill me if you want, but the azure sea metal chain binding Yang Xueqing¡¯s body is impossible to be opened without a key or an advance grade spirit sword¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Sheng originally thought he could threaten the Yang Family members by saying this. After all, if Yang Xueqing was forever bound by these chains, she was as good as being dead.


    What made Bai Sheng lose all hope was when the Yang Family members all looked at each other and smiled. Yang Qingxuan then said ndly: ¡°It seems like this Bai dog doesn¡¯t know, the conferment from the Lingwu Family contains an advanced grade spirit sword!¡±


    By now Bai Sheng had given up all hope, how could he not know that he had no more chance to leave this ce anymore.


    However thinking of that thing, Bai Sheng suddenly felt extremely relieved. He looked the Yang Family members with a crazy expression and eximed: ¡°Kill me if you want to, I, Bai Sheng no longer want to live anyway. However I¡¯m afraid the only Yang Family members remaining will be the few of you. Haha¡­¡­ Yang Cangqiong, we still have heirs in our Bai Family, but as for your Yang Family, it seems like the bloodline will be stopped. This time, I haven¡¯t lost to you!


    As Bai Sheng said these words, the expression on Long Chen and the rest all changed abruptly. Founder Yang knew that Yang Qingxuan had instructed the rest to leave Por Town but, after listening to Bai Sheng, it seemed like it was all within the expectations of the Bai Family. After remembering Bai Zhanlong and Bai Zhanfeng weren¡¯t here, the Yang Family members¡¯ brows had all furrowed. As for Yang Qingxuan and Yang Yuntian, the shock was so great that they could not even stand properly!


    Seeing the agonised expression on their faces, Bai Shengughed hysterically and said: ¡°With the speed of Zhanlong and the rest, after so long, who knows if all of the other Yang Family members have died by now! Your Yang Family still lost in the end!¡±


    Yang Qingxuan cast a furious gaze on Bai Sheng and then looked towards Founder Yang and said with sorrow: ¡°Father¡­¡­Wu Er and the rest¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen had never thought that things would end this way. The rage in his heart grew and, seeing that despite his imminent death this old man was still so smug, Long Chen immediately used all of his force and crushed the neck of Bai Sheng while he was still alive!


    To think that one of the experts in Por Town were to die in this manner, under the hands of a 16 years old youth, was something no one could ever expect.


    Long Chen could never have imagined that he would be the super expert in Por Town in just over a month¡¯s time. The credit of this achievement was due to the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant and the mysterious Inherited Blood Essence!


    ¡°Grandfather, I¡¯ll leave the Soul Diffusion Fruits and my mother to you. Lingqing and the rest might be in trouble so I will run with my utmost speed and save them now!¡±


    Looking at this youth, Founder Yang nodded his head solemnly.


    Right now, they believed in Long Chen more than anyone else. He had reced Founder Yang as the pir of support for the Yang Family.


    If it were several months ago and someone prophesied this moment, everyone would have definitely thought that person to be a lunatic. However, the truth was now in front of everyone.


    Tears welled in Yang Lingqing¡¯s eyes.


    All of the old, the weak, the women and children in the Yang Family were all huddled together and trembling. At this point, the only people who barely had the ability to fight back were three: Yang Lingqing, Yang Lingyue and Yang Wu.


    But their opponents right now were the eldest son, Bai Zhanlong, the fourth son Bai Zhanfeng, as well as Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji who had recently recovered.


    At this moment the four of themughed and looked towards Yang Lingqing and the other two. Amongst them, Bai Shiji smirked and said: ¡°How is it? Lingqing, Lingyue, have the both of you made up your minds? Right now, your Yang Family is thoroughly finished. Only by following me and my elder brother will you have a chance to live!¡±


    On the side of the Yang Family, under the attack of the four from Bai Family, Yang Wu had already fallen.


    At this moment he was lying in Yang Lingyue¡¯s arms and his face was extremely pale. The traces of blood at the corners of his mouth had reappeared even though he wiped it away and it was clear that in this exchange he was more severely injured than before!


    Yang Lingyue cried, her tears falling down like petals of blossom flowers. She gave Bai Shiji a look of loathing and said: ¡°What abilities do you two brothers have by ganging up on my brother. All of your Bai Family are bastards! Only being able to resort to underhanded means such as bullying the weak and women!¡±


    Bai Shiji however was not flustered after being told off by Yang Lingyue. He smiled and said: ¡°It looks like your stupidity is not average. In this world, only the results matter not the process. Right now, your grandfather and that little bastard, have definitely ,100 percent, been in by my grandfather and the expert from Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. As for us here, we have to finish exterminating the remaining trash of the Yang Family members before returning to celebrate. It seems like time is running out so I will no longer waste any more of it. As for the both of you girls, we will just resort to violence to bring you away. For the rest, all of you must die!¡±


    Regarding the matter of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and Yang Xueqing being a hostage, Yang Lingqing had already overheard them earlier. Thinking that they would all perish and that the mighty Yang Family was meeting its end, their hearts all shattered.


    If not for Yang Qingxuan, who had instructed them right before he left, these silver spooned children would not be able to endure until this moment.


    At that moment, Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji started walking towards the Yang Family members and suddenly, the women and children screamed. Looking at the rest of the family members behind her, Yang Lingqing gritted her teeth and said to Yang Wu: ¡°Big Brother, hand me the Phantom ss Sword¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 61 – [Seven Hallucinatory Sword Slash]

    ¡°Bai Shichen.¡±


    Yang Lingqing walked a few steps and stood in front of everyone. She coldly looked at the two youths from the Bai Family and gritted her teeth while holding back her tears, boldly saying: ¡°Are you sure that you want me to leave with you?¡±


    Bai Shichen was stumped. He looked at Bai Shichen and then smiled and said: ¡°Lingqing, have you finally thought things through? This is a great decision. You can live together with Lingyue at our Bai residence. You¡¯ll surely have a great time there, don¡¯t you think so?¡±


    Yang Lingqing did not seem to have heard his eager persuasion. She held back her tears and said: ¡°They are very simple, but I have two conditions.¡±


    Bai Shichen¡¯s curiosity was aroused, saying: ¡°What conditions? Let me, Big Brother, hear it?¡±


    Seeing this youngdy standing at the forefront, all of the Yang Family members started crying. At this point Yang Lingqing said decisively: ¡°The first condition is to let them go. All of our Yang Family¡¯s experts have all died at your hands. These people here will never be able to pose a threat to you. Unless¡­ your Bai Family is afraid of this group of women and children?¡±


    Bai Shichen looked at the crying members of the Yang Family. Although he had orders from his grandfather, thinking of Yang Lingqing who would be willing to follow him, he decided to agree to this first condition.


    ¡°I¡¯ll just promise her now and when she is in my hands, won¡¯t it be the same if I kill themter? What a pity. Although Yang Lingqing is such an umon beauty I, Bai Shichen, am not someone who will mind the thoughts and feelings of a woman. After I have yed with you enough, I¡¯ll send you to the Emerald Jade House or maybe even the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!¡±


    Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji were both thinking the same thing as they looked at each other,ughed, and then agreed to Yang Lingqing¡¯s condition.


    ¡°Although I have strict orders from my grandfather I am willing to disobey him just for your sake and I¡¯m sure my father will understand as well!¡±


    Bai Shichen and Bai Shiji were extremely rxed. At that moment they were certain that Bai Sheng and Bai Li have definitely defeated the experts of the Yang Family. Furthermore with the Bai Family¡¯s four experts here of which two were in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and two in the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, these defenseless Yang Family members in front of them could be killed easily. Since they were rather bored they wanted to y with them for a little while.


    Bai Zhanfeng, who was behind Bai Shiji, frowned at this moment asking Bai Zhanlong who was beside him: ¡°Big Brother, if they carry on ying like this and wasting time I wonder if it¡¯ll affect any of Father¡¯s ns?¡±


    Bai Zhanlongughed and said: ¡°Xue Yuanzi is an expert of the Human Dan Realm and is a dozen times stronger than that old geezer Yang. Coupled with Father and Second Uncle, how will the Yang Family have a chance to survive? Shichen and Shiji have just recovered and must have some trauma from it so let them fool around for a while. When they¡¯re tired of it, they will naturally stop. The main reason for this is to let them be rid of their trauma. After all, that little bastard from the Yang Family is a little too overpowering¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking of that youth, Bai Zhanlong frowned and also sighed gently.


    ¡°If our Bai Family were to produce such a genius, how great would that be¡­¡­?¡±


    Under the supervision of Bai Zhanlong and Bai Zhanfeng, Yang Lingqing withstood all the pressure and coldly stared at Bai Shichen with loathing in her eyes. At this moment Bai Shichen asked: ¡°Lingqing, tell me, what your second condition is?¡±


    Yang Lingqing then took a sword from Yang Wu. The sword, which was sheathed, had an emerald like hilt with an immense aura emanating from it. Seeing it, both Bai Zhanlong and Bai Zhanfeng frowned.


    As they were puzzling over the origin of this sword, Yang Lingqing carried it and walked in front of Bai Shichen. She gritted her teeth and finally said: ¡°Bai Shichen, listen carefully, my second condition is for you to defeat me!¡±


    Hearing Yang Lingqing words, all of the Bai Family members were shocked.


    Bai Zhanlong and Bai Zhanfeng recovered quickly and smirked as they looked at each other. As for Bai Shiji, heughed even more heartily. Regarding Bai Shichen, upon hearing the request which did not seem like a request, he chuckled, saying: ¡°I can definitely fulfil this request, don¡¯t be afraid Lingqing, I will definitely not harm you!¡±


    The Bai Family members easily agreed. On the Yang Family members¡¯ side, hearing Yang Lingqing made such a request, all of their faces changed expressions. Yang Lingyue knew that Yang Lingqing wasn¡¯t a match for them so she broke down crying and said: ¡°Lingqing, no!¡±


    However, Lingqing had already made her decision and her eyes were filled with determination. ncing back at the Yang Family members onest time, Yang Lingqing thought of many things, the joy and happiness and all the bits and pieces of the days spent with them. Finally, she thought of Long Chen, the man who had once reversed the situation and saved the entire Yang Family with his own hands.


    ¡°Elder Brother, you are my role model. Today, I will show them what I have learned from you¡­¡­¡±


    As she thought of Long Chen, a very strong resolve ignited in her heart. It was as if he was standing right beside her, giving her encouragement, and her slender body was filled with endless energy.


    She resolutely turned around and grabbed the hilt of the sword. Seeing the determination and tenacity in her eyes, Bai Shichen had a sudden vision and actually visualized Long Chen¡¯s figure from Yang Lingqing¡¯s body!


    One must know that Long Chen was his nightmare.


    ¡°Bai Shichen, you are really crazy¡­¡­¡±


    Bai Shichen mocked himself and then softly pushed Bai Shiji back. He then used a gentle voice and said to Yang Lingqing: ¡°Alright Lingqing,e at me. I¡¯ll y around with you. But don¡¯t worry, I will treat you tenderly.¡±


    Bai Shichen¡¯s smiling expression was like a weing sun that provided warmth but Yang Lingqing felt nothing but utter disgust. Inhaling deeply, her gaze turned cold. Suddenly, she rapidly charged towards Bai Shichen!


    Bai Shichen smiled, since everything was within his control.


    Seeing Bai Shichen getting closer and closer, Yang Lingqing lips slightly curled at the edges and when she was about 10 metres away from him she drew the Phantom ss Sword at an extremely fast speed!


    Bai Shichen still had a gentle and smiling demeanour as he approached Yang Lingqing, having no thoughts of attacking her. Suddenly both Bai Zhanfeng and Bai Zhanlong, who were behind him, frowned. In the same instant Yang Lingqing unsheathed her sword they all felt that something was amiss. Instantly, the resplendent light reflected by the de shone brightly!


    In Bai Shichen¡¯s eyes, Yang Lingqing had already turned into a phantom and she no longer looked real anymore. As the de shed, each strike looked like a gorgeous flower and made one unaware of whether they were real or fake. Each flower was sculpted beautifully and was extremely exquisite.


    In Bai Shichen eyes, this was a performance, not a sword technique!


    ¡°[Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh]¡­¡­[Mirage de Blossom Shadow]!¡±


    When Bai Shichen finally discovered the mortal attack, under Yang Lingqing¡¯s full strength, it had alreadynded on his body. The aesthetic flowers from before had turned into countless razor sharp des, each filled with heavy killing intent, and had all locked on to Bai Shichen.


    ¡°Chen Er, hurry and dodge!¡±


    Bai Zhanfeng¡¯s and Bai Zhanlong¡¯s voices travelled from behind and Bai Shichen realised that things had gone awry. Right now, to him, Yang Lingqing was no flower but a sharp de!


    Yang Lingqing was only in the sixth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm but, when she used the advanced Huang grade Phantom ss Sword coupled with [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh], her mightpletely exceeded the realm of the sixth level, jumping directly into the eight. What was most important was that Bai Shichen did not think highly of Yang Lingqing so it was only when she had almost struck him that he reacted.


    But, it was all toote. Under the extreme panic, Bai Shichen was terrified. This strike from Yang Lingqing had far exceeded his expectations!


    Currently, he felt exactly the same as when he fought with Long Chen. As he thought of Long Chen he felt his stomach flipped and an unfathomable fear. Long Chen was akin to a devil which had crawled right into his heart!


    To him, Yang Lingqing now was no longer Yang Lingqing ,but Long Chen!


    Everything had happened in a sh and Bai Shichen only managed to use half of the [Dark Heavenly Finger ¨C Transformed Devil First Finger] to defend against Yang Lingqing¡¯s [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh]. Unfortunately for him, how could aplete [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] using the Phantom ss Sword be that simple?


    Under the astonished gazes of everyone, each and every light reflected from the de demolished his finger technique. Under Yang Lingqing¡¯s cold and determined look, countless de lights wildly fell onto Bai Shichen¡¯s body, which forced him to let out an ear piercing screams that numbed the scalps of people present!


    Hearing his screams, Bai Zhanlong and Bai Zhanfeng were both heartbroken, they both let out furious roars and madly dashed towards Bai Shichen to rescue him. But by now, Yang Lingqing had already sheathed the Phantom ss Sword and rapidly retreated.


    In her eyes, there were tears, blood and determination, but absolutely no regrets nor fear.


    In the masses of the Yang Family, they were all quiet and looked at Yang Lingqing with shock. As for the opposite side, Bai Zhanlong and Bai Zhanfeng had already arrived in front of Bai Shichen, and at this moment Bai Shichen¡¯s eyes widened and disbelievingly looked at Yang Lingqing.


    On his body, the clothes had been shredded to multiple pieces, and when Bai Zhanlong touched Bai Shichen¡¯s body, he was momentarily stunned.


    Because right now, Bai Shichen¡¯s body was split in many pieces, and fell to the ground with a crashing sound, and blood stained Bai Zhanlong¡¯s clothes and eyes.


    Seeing that Bai Shichen actually died so tragically, as well as the many pieces of his corpse, the Yang Family children all screamed and some even vomited.


    When Yang Lingyue saw the corpse, her mind turned nk. She had absolutely no idea what had happened and never thought that Yang Lingqing would be able to kill Bai Shichen. All she could see was the image of Bai Shichen¡¯s corpse that had imprinted in her mind and caused her stomach to flip!


    Yang Wu was also stunned. He silently raised his head to look at the slender girl standing in front of them and bit his lips tightly.


    ¡°Lingqing, nice one¡­¡­¡±


    Although Yang Wu had whispered, Yang Lingqing had heard it clearly. She never expected that she would one day kill someone. It was her first time and also the most unbelievable killing in her life!


    There was an endless fury and hatred in her heart and only with this did she believe that she had not let down the Yang Family and the mandate Yang Qingxuan gave before he left.


    Bai Zhanlong entered a state of fury as he saw the way his son died. However, Yang Lingqing wasn¡¯t even slightly afraid as she looked at the 3 Bai Family members who suddenly seemed like devils. She simply gripped the Phantom ss Sword tightly while her eyes filled with determination.


    ¡°Elder Brother, my performance would definitely let you be satisfied huh? When I go to the Yellow Springs, I can finally brag to you¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking of that person, Yang Lingqing closed her eyes and her mouth curled up slightly.


    She suddenly recalled the time, back when she was six, when Long Chen stood in front and defended her.


    ¡°Is this my Elder Brother who has protected me since I was young?¡±


    When Yang Lingqing opened her eyes, Bai Zhanlong and the rest had already turned into devils rushing towards her. The aura from the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm hadpletely sealed all of her movements!


    At this moment, Death¡¯s shadow enveloped every one of the Yang Family members.


    Finally, Yang Lingqing could not control herself and cried.


    Because from afar, she saw a blood red figure wildly dashing down Big Barren Mountain!

 Chapter 62 – The Proud Son Of Heavens

    Nobody expected Bai Shichen would actually die under Yang Lingqing¡¯s hands. After he saw his son who waspletely fine, being mutted into pieces, Bai Zhanlong¡¯s mind turned nk. All that remained in his mind was a single word: Kill!


    When he turned around and saw this girl from the Yang Family, her slender figure defending the Yang Family members at the front, Bai Zhanlong did not dare to believe that his super powerful and genius son had actually perished under her hands!


    One reason that contributed greatly to this was that Bai Shichen had underestimated Yang Lingqing. An even bigger reason was the sudden rise in her power!


    With his son¡¯s death, Bai Zhanlong turned insane. Bai Shiji, who was standing not far away from Bai Shichen, also had a paleplexion. As for Bai Zhanfeng, his face turned steely while he used a venomous pair of eyes to look towards the Yang Family members.


    ¡°Not a single one of the Yang Family members will leave this ce alive!¡±


    Bai Zhanfeng gritted his teeth and said these words. Bai Zhanlong was now akin to a wild dragon and madly charged towards Yang Lingqing!


    [TL Note: His name is, °×Õ¹Áú, or Bai Zhanlong, and the Áú, or ¡°long¡±, part of his name means dragon.]


    The strength of the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was like a huge wave surging while Yang Lingqing was only a small raft amidst it. Under this tempest, her only ending was death.


    Since she already knew that it would result to that, Yang Lingqing could only resign herself to her fate. She was not scared of death but rather that her actions would implicate the others. She was extremely heartbroken and as she despaired the sudden red sh of a figure had charged into her sight!


    Instantly, Yang Lingqing¡¯s heart lit up with joy. Her originally tightened heartstrings had nowpletely loosened. Seeing this figure, she felt extremely serene.


    ¡°Chen¡­¡­Elder Brother.¡±


    When she saw the familiar figure, she already knew that it was Long Chen. If Bai Zhanlong¡¯s speed was like a whirlwind then Long Chen would be like a hurricane. He had instantly passed both Bai Zhanfeng and Bai Shiji and headed straight towards Bai Zhanlong!


    As an enormous aura from his back came pressing towards him Bai Zhanlong, who was toying with Yang Lingqing¡¯s life, finally turned around and recovered from his blind rage. This aura made him realise that even if he were to kill Yang Lingqing, the next to die would be him.


    Bai Zhanlong did not know exactly who it was behind him but, naturally, he simply cared for his own life. He hesitated for a while, and during this period Yang Lingqing had managed to retreat backwards. As for Bai Zhanlong, he once again charged forward several steps but suddenly the threat from a fatal attack came enveloping his body!


    He was dumbstruck as he turned around. What made his eyes widen drastically was that a blood red figure had suddenly appeared in his eyesight. Bai Zhanlong only saw a silhouette and the full power of the attack, which was too strong to be blocked, hit directly on his body!


    As the fatal attack struck and hurt his whole body, Bai Zhanlong was in so much pain that he could barely breathe. Although he had only seen the silhouette of a red shadow, Bai Zhanlong already knew who it belonged to.


    Long Chen. Only Long Chen possessed this armour of blood red scales. This realization made Bai Zhanlong feel a sense of helplessness.


    From just one hit by Long Chen, his defenses werepletely shattered. Bai Zhanlong knew that not only he was defeated, but the Bai Family too!


    If the Bai Family was not defeated, there was no way Long Chen would be able to appear here with such enormous strength!


    After throwing out another blow, Long Chen directly hit Bai Zhanlong who was on the ground. As his chest suffered another punch from Long Chen, the spikes on Long Chen¡¯s fist deeply pierced through it and caused his chest to be a gruesome, bloody, and contorted mess!


    A mouthful of blood spurted out, and quickly dyed his whole face red. Bai Zhanlong endured that immense pain and tried his hardest to open his eyes. Unfortunately for him, his whole vision had already turned red and gradually became smaller. He faintly discovered that in the upper region of his sight was a piercing red sun and under the sunlight, a blood red figure lightly swept past his body. The image of a perfect armour of blood red scales was reflected in his dim eyes.


    ¡°You¡­¡­¡±


    Only then did Bai Zhanlong¡¯s world turned pitch ck.


    After beating Bai Zhanlong to death, Long Chen came before Yang Lingqing. Seeing that little girl who was sobbing quietly, Long Chen dotingly embraced her while Yang Lingqing hugged tightly onto him and cried even more vigorously. Her tears soaked Long Chen¡¯s clothing.


    When Yang Lingyue, who was behind them, saw Long Chen appear and use such tyrannical might to kill Bai Zhanlong, she was so moved that she couldn¡¯t breathe.


    The position that Long Chen held in her heart, since the time he had beaten her on the stage, had already risen rapidly. Up till today, Yang Lingqing had long ago ced him as the pir of support in the Yang Family, as well as her own personal support!


    As for Yang Wu, his face that was originally devoid of colour finally had some health back. He breathed in deeply and, after seeing the blood red figure under the sun, bowed his headpletely.


    ¡°Only he will be the true and proud son of the heavens. Before him I, Yang Wu, will simply be a mortal man¡­¡­¡±


    All of the Yang Family members looked at the current Long Chen. They had let go of their feelings of despair instantly. In the past they could have never imagined that one day Long Chen would be their saviour. Whenever Long Chen appeared, they understood that they werepletely out of danger and that the Yang Family would always win.


    There were manyplicated, yet moved, expressions from the masses when looking at Long Chen.


    As Long Chen was caressing Yang Lingqing¡¯s hair, a gentle voice entered her ears.


    ¡°Lingqing, I am sorry that brother came sote this time and made you suffer¡­¡­¡±


    Yang Lingqing, who was originally very tense, now rxed. Her heart waspletely filled with joy and rxation. She felt the need to tell Long Chen of the boundless grievance she held, but just couldn¡¯t bring herself to do it.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to say anything; I know what it is that you want to say. This time you were extremely brave. As expected, you are the sister of me, Long Chen. As for the bad guys, who bullied you, there is only one ending for them and that is death¡­¡­¡±


    When they saw that Bai Zhanlong had only received two attacks from Long Chen yet died miserably from that, Bai Zhanfeng and Bai Shiji no longer felt anger but instead deep fear towards Long Chen.


    They did not have the ability to think of how Long Chen escaped from the Bai Family¡¯s inescapable or why he would be this strong. After Long Chen¡¯s appearance and his forceful killing of Bai Zhanlong, their hearts were allpletely devoured by fear!


    Bai Shiji would never have imagined that the soft and immature brat from before would now cause him to be in such a fearful state. He was the same as Bai Zhanfeng, breaking into a run and running as fast as they could!


    As he ran away, Bai Zhanfeng¡¯s mind finally cleared. However, the clearer he felt, the more fearful he got.


    ¡°How did he appear here? How can he be this strong? Could it be that Father¡¯s extreme preparations cannot finish him off? The Human Dan Realm cultivator was actually not his match? This is impossible, how can this kid be so terrifying?¡±


    The waves of emotion in Bai Zhanfeng¡¯s heart surged and by this point he had already run all the way down Big Barren Mountain. When he finally thought he was safe, a sh of red suddenly appeared in front of him and blocked his path.


    Bai Zhanfeng¡¯splexion instantly changed!


    ¡°Under my hands, you still think of escaping?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s frosty voice entered Bai Zhanxiong¡¯s ears. Just after Bai Zhanfeng heard Long Chen¡¯s words, the figure in front of him disappeared and he felt a power directly enter his body, making his perfect body instantly ravaged into a ruined corpse!


    ¡°Why me?¡±


    After Bai Zhanfeng uttered those words, his internal organs were ruptured by Long Chen¡¯s [Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil]. Very soon, his consciousness faded into nothingness and his eyes widened with a clear look of disbelief in them.


    As the corpse toppled, Long Chen shook his head.


    ¡°There is no reason to ask ¡°why?¡±. As long as you are our enemy, you must meet your demise.¡±


    Once again, he disappeared from that ce and headed towards Bai Shiji who had run quite a distance already. Bai Shiji, who was running with his maximum speed, waspletely unable to outrun Long Chen whose speed was like a violent gust of wind.


    At the time Bai Shiji had entered the Big Barren Mountain, he saw Long Chen was only chasing after Bai Zhanfeng and so he heaved a sigh of relief. His gaze turned sinister as he said: ¡°Yang Family, by letting me escape today, I, Bai Shiji, will definitely train and endure any hardships. The day I seed, will be the day your Yang Family will perish!¡±


    ¡°Is that right?¡±


    When the voice sounded behind Bai Shiji, his face instantly paled and he felt a strong power applied on his body. As he faced such an enormous pressure, he waspletely defenseless against it and was dragged backwards!


    He knew that it was Long Chen who was dragging him.


    Bai Shiji had never tried to move at such a speed and even Bai Sheng had never ran that fast while carrying him. As he ran, he could only feel the wind blowing and only hazily noticed his surroundings.


    At this moment, Long Chen stuck his face right in front of him. Seeing the frightened and despair-filled look on Bai Shiji, heughed and said: ¡°Since you said it like this, all the more reason I cannot spare you.¡±


    Hearing these words from Long Chen scared Bai Shiji into peeing in his pants. He soon realized that he was captured and taken back to where all the Yang Family members were. Seeing so many cold gazes fixed upon him, Bai Shiji¡¯s mighty aura faded away into nothingness. He miserably kneeled on the floor in front of Long Chen and said with tears streaming down this face: ¡°Please spare me! Even if I, Bai Shiji, have to ve my whole life and serve you I am willing to! I beg of you to please spare me, I will never dare do it again¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing such a pathetic figure from Bai Shiji only made Long Chen look down on him even more. Long Chen suddenly remembered Bai Shiji¡¯s previously haughty looks. It was an irony that he was now kneeling before him and begging for mercy. His heart felt deeply rueful.


    ¡°All this was because of power. Father would never ever harm me and his words were all golden nuggets of wisdom. I definitely cannot be satisfied with my current level. Otherwise, one day I will be the one kneeling in front of others.¡±


    Looking at Bai Shiji¡¯s actions, the Yang Family could only feel disgusted.


    Especially Yang Lingyue. Previously, in her eyes, Bai Shiji was an elegant young man and was countless times more outstanding than the ¡°useless brat¡± Long Chen. Yang Lingyue had once pictured Long Chen kneeling in front of Bai Shichen, never the other way around. It was more pathetic than she had ever imagined.


    Thinking back to the previously mighty Bai Shiji and how he had injured her brother Yang Wu, Yang Lingyue only held extreme rage towards him. Especially since she did not know if Founder Yang and the rest were still alive. The killing intent she held for Bai Shiji was the greatest amongst the Yang Family members.


    Suddenly, Long Chen looked at Yang Lingyue and inly said: ¡°Sister Lingyue, you¡¯ll kill him!¡±


    Hearing Long Chen suddenly, Yang Lingyue was initially stunned.


    ¡°Lingyue, you should go and kill Bai Shiji. It is about time that you start to grow up.¡±


    Yang Wu¡¯s voice slowly travelled from her bosom. She looked at her heavily injured brother and then at Long Chen and Yang Lingqing. Thinking that Yang Lingqing had actually killed Bai Shichen by herself, Yang Lingyue was extremely impressed with her. Now, would she be able to kill Bai Shiji by herself?¡±


    After hearing those words, Bai Shiji¡¯s expression changed. As he saw Long Chen¡¯s cold expression, he already knew that he wouldn¡¯t have any hope left. Therefore, he wanted to use Lingyue as his hostage. But, how could Long Chen not anticipate his actions?


    Bai Shiji barely moved before he was given another punch to his chest which made him fall to the ground. He felt that all of the bones in his body had fallen apart as the pain spread and made it impossible for him to move.


    ¡°Lingqing, lend me a sword.¡±


    Yang Lingyue¡¯s icy voice entered Bai Shiji¡¯s ears. Instantly, Bai Shiji was so scared that his face was drained of colour. He hastily said: ¡°Lingyue, please don¡¯t be like this. You mustn¡¯t¡­¡­I really love you. If not, why would I have given you that emerald ne and that pair of earrings previously?¡±


    After Bai Shiji finished speaking, the emerald ne and shiny earrings were thrown in his face. Through the silver glitter of the jewellry, Bai Shiji saw an evenrger glint of the Phantom ss Sword. After exhaling, Bai Shiji felt an icy cold material pierce through his heart.


    In his semi-conscious state, Yang Lingyue¡¯s beauty once again appeared in his vision. Very soon, however, his entire world gradually dissipated.


    Piercing the Phantom ss Sword through Bai Shiji¡¯s heart, Yang Lingyue copsed on the floor and nklyughed: ¡°Bai Shiji, you had said it before: ¡°Only by digging your heart out will I be able to know if you ced me inside your heart.¡± Now that I have finally done it, I see it clearly and the answer was: No¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen patted her head, saying: ¡°Don¡¯t be silly. That kind of person¡¯s heart is filled with only dog¡¯s blood. How could he have the heart of a beauty like you?¡±

 Chapter 63 – Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!

    Almost every important figure of the Yang Family was present in Hongwu Hall and at this moment they all were seated.


    The people, who had just experienced a hair-raising battle, had returned to Por Town. They finally put an end to the fight and all of the Yang Family members got the feeling that they had just been released of a heavy burden.


    This time, the Yang Family had undergone a hell raising experience. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Everyone knew that this was all due to the efforts of one person so, at this moment, while sitting at the Hongwu Hall, all of them asionally nced at the youth that was sitting there quietly.


    The strife with the Bai Family had finally ended and the Yang Family obtained a total victory, crushing the main forces of the Bai Family. As for the other members of the Bai Family, they had all escaped. These children and women posed no threat at all to the Yang Family anymore, so they all knew that the Bai Family could be considered to have perishedpletely this time.


    After Por Town experienced this enormous storm, the other factions faintly heard bits and pieces regarding the battle. After knowing the oue, all of them recalled someone in their heart: Long Chen.


    The Bai Family plotted against them twice but it was due to Long Chen that they could overturn the crisis and obtain victory. One could put it this way: without Long Chen the Yang Family members were, most likely, ghosts and spirits in the Yellow Springs.


    The Yang Family was clearly aware of this point. At present, when they looked upon Long Chen¡¯s face, they found that it had changed drastically from a month ago.


    Those respectful, yet fearful, gazes caused Long Chen to be deeply moved.


    Founder Yang, who was sitting at the head position, recovered from his deep thoughts at this point. His eyes scanned everyone and finallynded on Long Chen, saying: ¡°My Yang Family has met with two cmities. In the end, no one died from them. We can even say that no one was even hurt. All this can be credited to a single person.¡±


    From Founder Yang¡¯s speech, it was a little choked on his emotions. Everyone knew his heartfelt gratitude and excitement.


    ¡°It is him who defeated the Bai Family younger generation in the demonic beast huntingpetition and rescued you. It is also him who then used those youths as hostages to save us who were poisoned. As for today, it is him who defeated Bai Sheng and Bai Li and even the expert of the Human Dan Realm, once again saving everyone¡­¡­¡±


    Being very emotional, every eye in the crowd had moistened with tears. This was especially true for Yang Xueqing. After experiencing so many things, her heart was already very fragile and, looking at that calm and collected youth, her emotions stirred more than anyone else.


    He was, after all, her flesh and blood and she had looked down on him previously.


    However, it was undeniable that her underestimating him was the strong driving force in Long Chen doing his best to be strong.


    Founder Yang nodded towards Long Chen and said: ¡°Chen Er, your performance has rendered me at a loss. I don¡¯t know how to repay you. I am aware that none of us ever treated you or your father well. However, you are able to not bear grudges and even risked your life for us. Honestly speaking, this old man has never been moved before but just saying ¡®thanks¡¯ now will not be enough to convey my feelings. I can only say that the Yang Family is your real family in the present and in the future. We will try to rectify and make it up to you for all of the wrongdoings that we did to you in the past.¡±


    Every word that Founder Yang said was from his heart and all of the Yang Family members were in favor of them.


    Suddenly being so appreciated, Long Chen was at a loss. He hurriedlyughed and said: ¡°Everyone, please don¡¯t look at me like that! Although I am very handsome, I don¡¯t think I deserve such revered gazes from everyone¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s cheeky speech made the girls of the Yang Family break intoughter. Yang Qingxuan and the rest shook their heads but the corner of their mouths expressed their amusement.


    ¡°Why are you socent? If it wasn¡¯t me that gave you a hand to kill that guy, would you be here today?!¡±


    Lingxi, who was in the Lingxi sword, had already woken up and mocked him as she pouted. One could tell though, by looking at her happy face, that she was actually very ted that Long Chen had this day.


    Founder Yang shook his head and smiled, saying: ¡°Chen Er, you are not a calctive person. By saying those words, it seems that I have been unreasonable. Alright, let me talk about something more realistic. Right now, Por Town no longer has the Bai Family so in the future this Yang Family will be the ruler in this town. When we eliminated them, we reaped huge benefits and one of them was to get these 3 Soul Diffusion Fruits. Chen Er, these 3 Soul Diffusion Fruits are all based on your efforts so how you want to distribute them is solely up to you!¡±


    Founder Yang¡¯s gaze looked sincere and Long Chen knew that he was serious. However, he hastily waved his hands and said: ¡°Grandfather, you¡¯re the leader of this family. You should be the one to do this¡­¡±


    ¡°Stop speaking like this. Where will I be able to ce my old face at? If you still treat me as your grandfather, you must take these Soul Diffusion Fruits.¡±


    Saying this, he took out the Soul Diffusion Fruits from the cosmos pouch. Long Chen helplessly said: ¡°Alright then let me distribute them. There are three of them. I am sufficed with only one. The other will be given to you, Grandfather. We need a Deity Dan Realm expert to hold the fort so this Soul Diffusion Fruit is for you. As the head of the family, you cannot reject it no matter what.¡±


    Hearing the resolution in his speech, Founder Young understood what he meant and nodded his head.


    The Yang Family only had him at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm at the moment. He was the only one who could enter the Deity Dan Realm within the shortest period of time and support the family.


    ¡°As for thest fruit¡­.¡±


    Long Chen shifted his gaze to Yang Qingxuan and Yang Xueqing. When he looked at Yang Xueqing, his eyes stopped for a while. He wanted to give it directly to her so that Yang Xueqing could be stronger and be in less danger.


    However, he understood that the stronger one was the stronger adversaries they would face. So he said: ¡°Now, the two in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm is First Uncle and my mother so let¡¯s decide it like this: The Soul Diffusion Fruit will belong to whoever has their breakthrough first.¡±


    The Yang Family definitely wouldn¡¯t have any objections to Long Chen¡¯s decision.


    To them, family safety is the most important. Regarding who was the one bing stronger, it did not matter to them at all. After these two cmities all of the Yang Family members had finally united and stuck together as one.


    Founder Yang¡¯s gaze moved to the entrance. As he looked out, the sky had gradually turned scarlet in colour. The glow of the sunset covered the sky, making it looked exceptionally beautiful.


    ¡°When the sun rises tomorrow, my Yang Family will really be reborn¡­¡±


    Founder Yang envisioned a brand new Family appearing in Por Town. This Family would not only have experts of the Deity Dan Realm, but also a super genius.


    With Founder Young¡¯s support and Long Chen¡¯s enormous potential, all of the Yang Family felt extremely at ease.


    However, as everyone was immersed in their joy and happiness, Long Chen frowned. After distributing the Soul Diffusion Fruits, he knocked on the table, ndly saying: ¡°Everyone, the deceased Xue Yuanzi in the Big Barren Mountain was one of the eight Proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect in Yuanling City¡­¡­¡±


    Thinking of this matter, Yang Qingxuan¡¯s expression changed as well. He probed and asked: ¡°Xue Yuanzi wanted the Soul Diffusion Fruits by sneaking in here. If that¡¯s the case, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect shouldn¡¯t know that it was us who did it right?¡±


    Founder Yang also furrowed his brows while shaking his head and said: ¡°They will definitely investigate someone of the Proctor level dying. Xue Yuanzi and the Bai Family were close and at this moment it will be very easy for them to trace everything to Por Town. Furthermore, many people already know about what happened in this ce.¡­¡­¡±


    With Founder Yang¡¯s words, the rest of the Yang Family¡¯s members turned pale again. The previously rxed atmosphere turned anxious once more.


    Yang Qingxuan bitterly smiled as he shook his head: ¡°It looks like our Yang Family has so many setbacks. Father, do you know what the current situation with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is?¡±


    Founder Yang¡¯s face darkened as he said: ¡°The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect may not have such a huge reputation in the vast Yuanling City, but is definitely of status for us in this area. It is known that the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has a total of eight Proctors and four Grand Elders whose strengths are at least in the Human Dan Realm. As for the four Grand Elders, they are all at least in thete phases of the Human Dan Realm. Moreover, ording to some rumours the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect Patriarch has already entered the super horrifying Earth Dan Realm!¡±


    Founder Yang¡¯s words caused the Yang Family members to inhale a breath of cold air and Long Chen¡¯s expression had be extremely unsightly.


    ¡°To go against a Bai Family and a Xue Yuanzi was already a strenuous effort for us Yang Family. If we are to go against this Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, even if a small family like ours is to die ten thousand times, it will still not be enough. Today I may be able to protect the Yang Family, but who knows for the future?¡±


    ¡°After just entering the Deity Dan Realm, I will still not be able to match up to any of them. Moreover, there are people who are at theter phases of the Human Dan Realm. Those who are more advanced than the Dan Realm¡­ I don¡¯t even want to think about it. Is the Yang Family going tos meet its end already?¡±


    He raised his head to nce at Yang Lingqing and Yang Xueqing. They were the ones that Long Chen had sworn to protect.


    Long Chen would begin to feel confident in himself after looking at them. It could be said that the immense task had resolved him to forcefully carry on.


    ¡°I can¡¯t watch them die under my watch. It will be better if I just die before that happens¡­¡±


    The pressure he felt instantly became much heavier. Hearing ¡°Earth Dan Realm¡±, these three words, Long Chen initially felt hopeless but soon became filled with fighting spirit.


    ¡°Anyways, I will do my best. If they want to annihte the Yang Family, they must walk over my dead body!¡±


    Long Chen understood that he was currently the strongest in the Yang Family so he definitely couldn¡¯t hide from this fight!


    Everyone in the Yang Family, including Yang Qingxuan, was gloomy and worried when thinking about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. To console themselves, they could only hope that the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect would not discover that Xue Yuanzi had died under the Yang Family¡¯s hands.


    Founder Yang was not that naive. He knew the notoriety of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. If that bunch of ruthless people knew that it was the work of the Yang Family, the suffering that the Yang Family would experience wouldn¡¯t be as simple as family extermination.


    ¡°I must hurry and enter the Deity Dan Realm. If the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect discovers it then, even if I were to fight to death, I must send Chen Er and these children away. With Chen Er¡¯s strength, I believe that the Yang Family will flourish in the future and seek revenge for us. It shouldn¡¯t be a difficult thing!¡±


    Thinking to here, Founder Yang¡¯s appearance showed his determination.


    Long Chen, who had remained quiet until then, suddenly spoke. Everyone lifted their heads wondering what he wanted to say.


    Long Chen also thought about the information he got from two people, Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang, while he was in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins.


    ¡°The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is in Yuanling City. If they discover what we have done and take action, it will at least take a period of time. Furthermore, the first expert that they send over should not be that powerful. If Grandfather manages to enter the Deity Dan Realm, I think we might be able to handle it.¡±


    ¡°The most important thing is that the Lingwu Family in the Yuanling City will often recruit new Outer Family disciples. My potential isn¡¯t considered too bad so I should be able to enter the Lingwu Family as one. When I do, I will be considered part of the Lingwu Family and they may give us greater protection. To me, only by going to that ce, I can improve faster. Therefore, I have decided to go to Yuanling City!¡±

 Chapter 64 – Setting Off

    ¡°I previously heard from someone that if you join the Lingwu Family, they will specially arrange to exterminate the enemies of the newly joined members. Although the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is much stronger than us, against such a colossal monster like the Lingwu Family it is not enough to even fill the gaps between its teeth.¡±


    Every member of the Yang Family listened attentively to Long Chen¡¯s words.


    At this moment, Founder Yang raised his head and asked: ¡°Chen Er, are you sure about this?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head solemnly and said: ¡°There is no longer anyone here in Por Town that is our match. One reason for my decision is the expansion of my growth. As for the other, it is to deal with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Therefore, I have already made up my mind.¡±


    Founder Yang knew exactly how great Long Chen¡¯s strength was right now. At least below the Human Dan Realm, there were no opponents for him anymore.


    It was well known that a genius can only grow in a stressful environment. If Long Chen stayed in a small town like Por Town he might only have this small level of achievement throughout his entire life.


    Looking at the other Yang Family members once again, Long Chen could see their touched and unwilling expressions.


    At this moment, Long Chen¡¯s proposal to go to the Lingwu Family was mainly for the Yang Family. He had been thinking of how to save everyone and this time he even decided to travel on a long journey to find the solution. They all felt extremely moved and appreciative of his actions.


    To tell the truth, in the past the Yang Family members treated Long Chen horribly but he was able to let bygones be bygones, which made all of them respect him.


    ¡°Since this is the case, Chen Er when do you n to leave?¡±


    ¡°The threat of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is still imminent, so it cannot be dyed. I wish to leave tomorrow. Grandfather, do try your best to use the Soul Diffusion Fruit and enter the Deity Dan Realm. With that, when the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect sends some of its people toe and investigate, our Yang Family will have some form of resistance. I will make haste and quickly enter the Lingwu Family.¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re leaving tomorrow?¡±


    Both Yang Xueqing and Yang Lingqing felt extreme reluctance.


    After the battle of the Soul Diffusion Fruits Yang Xueqing¡¯s and Long Chen¡¯s rtionship had mended.


    ¡°The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is located in Yuanling City. I think that after I enter Yuanling City it will be easier for me to understand them better. Therefore, I have decided to leave at dawn tomorrow.¡±


    The Yang Family members nodded their heads and, since Long Chen had already decided, they, naturally, did not object.


    Now, with Long Chen taking the vanguard against the threat of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, they were a little more relieved.


    Although they knew that Long Chen was not yet a match for the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, they still found sce in their hearts.


    The night descended quickly.


    Long Chen was in his room packing his belongings and suddenly there was a knock on the door. As he opened it, he noticed Yang Xueqing standing outside and she asked: ¡°Can Ie in?¡±


    Long Chen smiled and said: ¡°Of course you can. What mother is not allowed in her son¡¯s room?¡±


    With Long Chen¡¯s smiling expression the atmosphere around the two turned lively. Yang Xueqing sat on the wooden chair and, as she was about to speak, Long Chen said: ¡°Don¡¯t even think about apologising. It doesn¡¯t matter to me anymore. Currently, I also no longer me you for that. I am leaving tomorrow but you don¡¯t have to miss me too much. Isn¡¯t it just only Yuanling City? I can return home anytime.¡±


    Yang Xueqing looked at this imp and rolled her eyes saying: ¡°What nonsense are you saying? The Lingwu Family is governing the whole of the Yuanling City and the security is extremely tight over there. How could you enter and leave as you please? Chen Er, Ie here only to tell you that when you get there you must do your best to restrain yourself. If you make a huge mess while your strength is not enough, sooner orter you will suffer.¡±


    ¡°The Lingwu Family is such a colossal existence after all. Rumours have it that there are experts who are over the Deity Dan Realm. These experts are existences that can destroy the heaven and earth. Although, right now, you are number one in Por Town, when you get to Lingwu Family you will be at the bottom of thedder. I do not wish you dead, so you must be extremely cautious¡­¡­¡±


    Seeing the worried expression on Yang Xueqing¡¯s face, Long Chen was extremely moved and noted her words in his mind.


    ¡°Experts who are over the Deity Dan Realm? Existences that can destroy the heaven and earth? How terrifying would that be? I admit it; I have been a little arrogant after my quick progress in cultivation. It seems like I have to tone down a little. No matter where I go, there will always be people stronger than me.¡±


    Hence, Long Chen nodded his head while saying: ¡°En, I have already remembered all of your words. Please be at ease. As long as I am around there will be nothing happening to the Yang Family.¡±


    When Long Chen said those words, Yang Xueqing suddenly felt that he was a man with an indomitable spirit.


    Such a feeling caused her to be a little flustered. She thought back to the days when she was pregnant with Long Chen, feeling as if it was just yesterday. In this short span of time, Long Chen had grown up. Though everything else remained the same, her son had changedpletely.


    ¡°Alright, I will say no more. Please sleep early, I am heading back¡­.¡±


    Saying which, Yang Xueqing stood up to leave. She was afraid that if she stayed any longer her heart would be unwilling to leave.


    ¡°Mother¡­¡­¡± Long Chen subconsciously called out to her.


    Yang Xueqing was startled. She smiled sweetly as she promptly replied: ¡°My purpose foring here was because I longed to hear you call me. It has been so long since youst called me that way¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°There will be many more chances in the future. Who knows when you will begin to find it vexing to hear after hearing it so frequently?¡±


    Yang Xueqing lovingly looked at him andughed: ¡°The way you call me, even if I grow old till death, I will never find it bothersome.¡±


    When she finished speaking, she did not linger and headed outside. Suddenly, she turned her body and said: ¡°I saw that girl, Lingqing, sneaking out of the residence a while ago. I don¡¯t know where she went but she said that it is to prepare a gift for you.¡±


    Yang Lingqing?


    This silly girl. She unexpectedly mastered one of the moves of the [Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh] and also killed Bai Shichen today. Long Chen was extremely impressed.


    His rtionship with Yang Lingqing was extremely great and, seeing that he was about to go to Yuanling City, this girl should have been very reluctant.


    ¡°What gift is she getting me?¡±


    Holding on to this thought after Yang Xueqing left, Long Chen started packing the things inside his cosmos pouch.


    With regards to his financial situation, he barely had a deity jade. Although he was still considered wealthy in Por Town, when he goes to Yuanling City he will be as poor as a pauper.


    There were also a few energy cores but they belonged to a few Demonic Earth Hounds and the Phantom Star Wolf and could not be sold for a lot. The only item that was of value was that single Soul Diffusion Fruit that he had.


    ¡°Right now, I¡¯m still in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. I am unable to use this Soul Diffusion Fruit and ampletely unable to deal with the vicious people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. However, if I were to enter the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm I could immediately consume this Soul Diffusion Fruit and enter the Deity Dan Realm. With my Dragon Soul Qi of tenfold quality and [Dragon Soul Transformation], at that moment my battle strength will definitely increase by a substantial level!¡±


    ¡°Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡­¡­¡±


    Founder Yang was thinking of giving a number of deity jades to Long Chen. However he had rejected them as he rationalized that these few pieces of deity jades at Yang family was much more useful than giving them to Long Chen.


    ¡°Hey, how much longer can your Dream Spirit Grassst?¡±


    Lingxi calcted, and said worriedly: ¡°Previously, there were six stalks of Dream Spirit Grasses but three were used up in thest battle. If there is no further mishap we can still manage for another two months or so¡­..¡±


    Long Chen knew about Lingxi¡¯s concern for him. Should there be any attacks that were irresistible, she would definitelye to his rescue. However, these three stalks of Dream Spirit Grass were barely sufficient for Lingxi and perhaps they were only sufficient for one more attack.


    Deep down in his heart, Long Chen was unwilling to allow Lingxi to help.


    ¡°In the next two months, I will try not to get into any dangerous situations and at the same time find more medicine with spirit healing properties.¡±


    Long Chen became distressed thinking about all these things.


    Protecting the Yang Family and the survival of Lingxi¡¯s life had be two of his mission that must be aplished.


    ¡°Lingxi¡¯s current situation is still extremely dangerous. It seems that I will need to invest more time and effort in this matter. This silly girl, how can i bear to let her leave me¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Speaking of which, I, Long Chen, am still very poor¡­¡­¡±


    After understanding this fact, the allotted time gradually passed. Long Chen once again packed some clothes and luggage. He opened his room¡¯s door and saw that the Yang Family members were already outside waiting.


    He quickly scanned through the crowd. Realising Yang Lingqing was not there, Long Chen hurriedly asked: ¡°Where is Lingqing?¡±


    Yang Yuntian forced out a smile, shaking his head, and said: ¡°This silly girl said she was preparing a gift, but has yet to return. If you need to leave now, I¡¯m afraid she will not be able to send you off.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go outside first to continue our talk.¡±


    Long Chen was clueless as to what Yang Lingqing was up to. Under the various questions of worry and concern showered on to him, Long Chen and the rest very quickly left the Yang residence. It was at that moment that the sun began to rise and mild golden sunlight shone down on the earth, extending to Long Chen¡¯s feet.


    The crowd waited for a while, however Yang Lingqing was nowhere in sight. With a heart filled with anxiety, as soon as Founder Yang moved to ask Long Chen to stop waiting, the cry of a horse came sounding from the distant horizon.


    Long Chen looked afar and spotted this silly girl, Yang Lingqing, who was rushing over to the crowd on a two metre tall majestic horse. Very quickly, she arrived in front of everyone.


    The crowd was eagerly looking towards the tall and majestic horse. It waspletely ck from head to tail, had firm muscles, strong and powerful legs, and every breath it made was tough and steady from practice. On the neck there grew a long and ck horse mane, and had a pair of eyes that disyed haughtiness and endurance, along with a tinge of red color.


    On both its head and legs there were a few ck scales. This was seemingly akin to the scales of Long Chen¡¯s [Dragon Soul Transformation].


    ¡°This¡­¡­Isn¡¯t this a demonic beast in the fifth level of the Huang grade: the Ebony Scaled Horse?¡±


    Long Chen never thought that the gift Yang Lingqing would give him was actually this Ebony Scaled Horse.


    This majestic and awe-inspiring presence of the beast was favoured greatly by Long Chen. What especially interested him was the faint murderous and blood-filled aura that it carried. The horse was definitely to Long Chen¡¯s liking.


    Yang Lingqing understood his tastes very well. She even went into Big Barren Mountain during the night to tame this beast for him! When the masses saw Yang Lingqing covered in dirt as she hopped down the horse¡¯s back, it was clear that she definitely suffered a lot in the process.


    The Yang Family had originally prepared a fine horse as Long Chen¡¯s mode of transportation but,pared to the Ebony Scaled Horse, it definitely paled inparison.


    Very soon, Yang Lingqing walked in front of Long Chen. While she excitedly looked towards him she chirped: ¡°Elder Brother Chen, this is a gift that I prepared for you. Do you like it?¡±


    Seeing the pretty face of this girl, which still had some mud that was not yet removed, Long Chen felt extremely moved. Heughed heartily as he embraced Yang Lingqing and furiously pinched her cheeks, saying: ¡°Girl, if only you weren¡¯t my cousin, how great would that be? I would definitely drag you to bed!¡±


    Saying these words in front of the Yang Family members, Long Chen was not embarrassed in the slightest. As for Yang Lingqing, she was extremely shy and angry at the same time. She pushed Long Chen away and hurriedly ran towards her father¡¯s side. When she saw that everyone was looking at her, her whole face flushed red like a ripe apple.


    ¡°Alright now, Chen Er, don¡¯t bully my daughter anymore. If not, I¡¯ll fight with you to the death again.¡± Yang Yuntianughed heartily.


    Looking at the Ebony Scaled Horse Long Chen saw the reluctance in the eyes of everyone. This was including the shy, yet furious, Yang Lingqing, and the gentle gaze radiating from Yang Xueqing. Long Chen did not say another word and mounted the horse.


    That Ebony Scaled Horse was so frightened by his powerful aura that it did not dare move.


    After taking in a deep breath, Long Chen waved towards the Yang Family members before turning around and headed towards Yuanling City.


    At this moment, the sun was scorching in the sky and Long Chen gradually disappeared under the zing sunlight.

 Chapter 65 – The Ten Great Citadels

    With the Ebony Scaled Horse¡¯s speed, it would take Long Chen approximately ten days or so to get from Por Town to Yuanling City.


    He had been travelling half the time while carrying along a sufficient amount of goods with him so he basically never entered the cities that he passed along the way.


    Eight dayster, there stood a gigantic city with towering walls that seemed quite formidable. Originally, Long Chen thought he had arrived at Yuanling City. When he took a closer look, however, he realize that it was merely one of the Ten Great Citadels by the side of Yuanling City, Yuanyang Citadel.


    There were many people with impressive auras and profound eyes walking along the street of Yuanyang Citadel, ncing at the eye-catching merchandise. There were obviously many experts in this area.


    ¡°No matter in terms of goods or cultivation this Yuanyang Citadel is superior to Por Town by at least a hundred times! To think that it is only a small citadel by the side of Yuanling City!¡±


    Long Chen loudly eximed in his thoughts.


    Seeing this disappointing act by Long Chen, Lingxi berated: ¡°You country bumpkin who has not seen the world! Wait till you see an Emperor¡¯s Domain, then you know what huge really is!¡±


    What is an Emperor¡¯s Domain?¡±


    ¡°I am not going to tell you!¡±


    ¡°¡­¡­¡±


    A bustling inn stood right in front of them that was much taller, several times so,pared to the famous ¡°Rising Sun Inn¡± in Por Town. Seeing the beautiful architecture of this building, he couldn¡¯t help but gasp as he walked into the inn.


    ¡°It is rather shameful to be seen with him.¡± Lingxi noted in her heart.


    What she did not realise was that to an outsider it was only Long Chen who had stepped into the inn. As for Lingxi, she was only a soul in an earring.


    A waiter came up to wee him quickly. His eyes were extremely sharp and, looking at Long Chen¡¯s apparel, he gathered that he was some kind of wealthy child from a small town.


    Although he was regarded as a wealthy child, in Yuanyang Citadel he was not well epted and because he had no servants with him, he was disregarded even more. Thus, the waiter spoke with more confidence and a little more brazenly.


    ¡°Guest, are you here for a short break or to stay?¡±


    In Por Town, Long Chen would normally be weed warmly at the inns and greeted with smiling expressions. This waiter¡¯s performance was an unexpected first for him.


    However, Long Chen was aware that his current identity was not of any valued status and that keeping a low profile was the best option. Therefore, he did not bother with these lowly people and simply said: ¡°Take my horse to feed while only using the best grains! After that bring me some good dishes, it iste so I want to stay for the night.¡±


    Upon seeing Long Chen¡¯s Ebony Scaled Horse the waiter was instantly rmed. He thought to himself: ¡°This country bumpkin can even tame this kind of strong horse. It seems he is rather capable. I have to be cautious at the inn and avoid being disrespectful to him. It is wiser to serve him better!¡±


    Thinking about this, he hurriedly portrayed a ttering smile and ordered the stabled to bring Long Chen¡¯s horse to feed. He then brought Long Chen up to the second floor, to a position where he could lean against a window.


    Long Chen nced out of the window and saw the stabled of this inn tying up the Ebony Scaled Horse properly and preparing to feed it.


    This was his Sister Yang Lingqing¡¯s gift to him.


    Every time he looked at this beast, there was a sweet feeling in his heart. At this time, he instructed the waiter saying some things which advised them to treat the Ebony Scaled Horse with the utmost care.


    ¡°You can be rest assured; our stableds are all cultivators. Their cultivation levels are not ordinary and they have many years of experience in rearing horses. When you see your horse tomorrow, your Ebony Scaled Horse will definitely be much stronger!¡±


    After the manservant withdrew he asked:


    ¡°Guest, is there any matter?¡±


    As Long Chen was eating, he asked inly: ¡°Do you know Yuanyang Citadel well? Do you know if there is any medicine with spirit healing properties nearby?¡±


    The manservant was at a loss, stating: ¡°I have been living in the Yuanyang Citadel since young but I don¡¯t really know about medicine with spirit healing properties. You have asked the wrong person for this, my guest.¡±


    Long Chen frowned.


    As Lingxi looked at that fellow from within the Lingxi¡¯s sword, only to find him worrying about her matters, her heart felt warm.


    ¡°Where do you think I would be able to find these medicines?¡±


    After thinking for a while, the waiter said: ¡°Yuanyang Citadel does not have any spirit medicine market but I know that the Daybreak Merchant Union has everything a cultivator needs. From martial techniques to spirit medicines, weapons and other various interesting items, if you have money, you can buy anything. As for those spirit medicines, I would imagine that there are as many as you need, only that¡­¡­¡±


    The manservant sized up Long Chen before emphasizing, ¡°The most important thing to have before heading there is money. If you want to buy something from the Daybreak Merchant Union, if you don¡¯t have a few tens of deity jades you won¡¯t be able to buy anything¡­.¡±


    From his actions, he apparently thought that Long Chen was from a low ss ce that wouldn¡¯t have much money.


    ¡°Daybreak Merchant Union?¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t care about this petty person who looked down on people, so he allowed him to withdraw himself.


    ¡°Anyways, we are heading to Yuanling City. We will make our goal the Daybreak Merchant Union in the future. However, I currently only have a single deity jade. In terms of spirit jades, grandfather has also given me some but it wasn¡¯t much¡­..¡±


    Lingxi used a rare gentle tone: ¡°Hey! Why are you in such a rush? We still have approximately two months¡¯ time. I have always survived under these conditions and what¡¯s more, I have you now.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°Xiao Xi, you are saying such dubious words. Do you by any chance have designs towards me? Tell me honestly: have you been captivated by my handsome look and are prepared to find the opportunity to marry me?¡±


    ¡°Bullshit! I wouldn¡¯t fall for such an ugly person like you! You¡¯re so disgusting!¡±


    While Long Chen and Lingxi were chatting happily, there was a group of people on horses that stopped on the main street in front of the restaurant.


    Their leader was a person wearing luxurious bright-yellow clothes and tall ck battle shoes. He was an awe-inspiring young man.


    He was roughly twenty years old but his expression was very cold and his gaze sharp, like lightning. HIs gestures had the dominance of a mighty noble.


    The waiter that served Long Chen earlier went forward and weed him eagerly, wearing a ttering expression as he greeted the guest. Although the noble youth¡¯s face was extremely condescending, the waiter still continued to smile.


    ¡°Servant, take our horses and feed them. It must be the most experienced stabled, using the best grains. You also have to prepare the best dishes. If your service is good, you will have benefits.¡±


    Beside the noble and extravagantly dressed young master, there was a bony housekeeper that was busy with the preparations for settling in. Only after that was taken care of did he then bring the young master into the inn. At this moment, however, the youth showed an expression of glee and ndly said: ¡°Waiter, bring me to your stable.¡±


    The group of people quickly reached the horse stable which was not far from Long Chen¡¯s window.


    With one look, that young master immediately noticed the spirited ck horse in the stables with scales. This was Long Chen¡¯s Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse.


    Seeing this Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse, the young master¡¯s eyes shed as he said: ¡°You wear out iron shoes in the hunting ground, when all the time it¡¯s easy to be found! The heavens are really good to me, Huang Xiang. Old Liu, isn¡¯t this the rare fifth Huang Grade demonic beast, the Ebony Scaled Horse?¡±


    Housekeeper Liu too sized up the horse and then eximed: ¡°Sure enough! This horse is extremely spirited and the colour of the fur is pure, the scales are also lined properly. It is the most excellent amongst the Ebony Scaled Horse. Congrattions, Young Master, for actually acquiring such a great horse in Yuanyang capital!


    The other servants all praised him.


    Huang Xiang was extremely ted. He walked up to prepare taming this fierce horse.


    At this moment, the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse was being looked at by everyone and was extremely unhappy. The horse coldly looked at the crowd and its eyes gradually began turning blood shot.


    ¡°Be good little horsey, meeting me is your destiny. If you listen to me, Master Huang, obediently, I will definitely treat you well!¡±


    With his face full of excitement, Huang Xiang slowly got closer to the Ebony Scaled horse.


    However, the waiter beside seemed to be at a loss.


    He knew that the owner of this horse was Long Chen. However, this young master Huang Xiang¡¯s background seemed to be much higher than his. Since he deduced that Huang Xiang is the one that shouldn¡¯t be messed with, the waiter knew what he had to do.


    He eagerly ran in front of Huang Xiang and ttered: ¡°Young Master, it seems like you really like this horse. However, it belongs to one of the other guest. Why don¡¯t I persuade him to give it to you now?¡±


    Huang Xiang was startled and was seemingly annoyed as he said: ¡°Did such a good horse already have an owner? Ordinary folks will only sully this good horse. However, my father warned me to exercise restraint in public. Old Liu, take two deity jades and hand it to the owner.¡±


    Hearing ¡°two deity jades¡± the waiter¡¯s eyes shed and he silently eximed that this was indeed a young master with background since he was able to take out two deity jades this easily¡­¡­¡±


    Housekeeper Liu hurriedly agreed and was about to follow the waiter but by now Long Chen had already jumped down from the window. He was able to clearly see the whole scene made by Huang Xiang, who favoured his horse, from the windows vantage point.


    ¡°Even though this Huang Xiang is only slightly older than me, his abilities are actually stronger than Grandfather¡¯s..¡­.¡±


    Even though he was startled, Long Chen wasn¡¯t fearful of him.


    He had always been living in the small ce like the Por town and hadn¡¯t seen the world. As he looked at Huang Xiang, he was even more aware that there would always be someone stronger than him.


    Seeing Long Chen arriving, the waiter hurriedly received him while using a ttery-filled voice as he hinted towards Long Chen and said: ¡°This guest here, our Young Master Huang, wants to use two deity jades and buy your horse. One must know, this Ebony Scaled Horse is merely of the fifth Huang grade and not even worth half a deity jade, but our Young Master Huang¡­¡­¡±


    From the words from the servant, it was as though Long Chen had actually made a profit.


    As for that Young Master Huang, he continued to gaze at the horse in admiration without bothering to look at Long Chen at all. However, Housekeeper Liu nced at Long Chen and then indifferently took out two deity jades from a cosmos pouch and threw it at him.


    In the end, he added another sentence: ¡°Quickly take the deity jades and go away. If our young master were to think that you were riding such a good horse, he might even break your legs.¡±


    After he said that, he no longer looked at Long Chen.


    ¡®Ting! Ting!¡¯ Two pure white deity jades fell on the ground. However, Long Chen didn¡¯t extend his hand to obtain them.


    The servant was instantly startled and snapped out of his shock. He thought of rebuking him as he muttered: ¡°He is really useless. He can¡¯t even hold on to the two deity jades.¡±


    Only after hearing that the deity jades had actually ttered on the floor did Housekeeper Liu turned around and sized up Long Chen carefully. When he saw the ridicule in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, he was first startled then heughed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that the circumstances of not being tactful will lead to a bad ending?¡­¡­ Brat, you don¡¯t even understand this logic?¡±

 Chapter 66 – Wrestling Possession!

    If he had other choices, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have offended Huang Xiang.


    However, Yang Lingqing used an entire night entering the Big Barren Mountain alone to prepare him this gift. Allowing someone else to forcefully buy it away was impossible.


    Yang Xueqing reminded him that if he was not strong enough, he must keep a low profile while travelling.


    Long Chen did not want to get into a conflict with Young Master Huang Xiang but he was not one to be easily bullied. The Housekeeper Liu was already giving him vicious gazes at that moment. Long Chen inly smiled and sincerely said, ¡°To tell you the truth, this Horse is extremely important to me so I can¡¯t sell it. If the Young Master really want one, he can catch another. I doubt that it will be difficult.¡±


    If he was at Por town, if someone were to look at his things and just took it, Long Chen would definitely charge at him without any hesitance.


    However, he was on his own in another town, and shouldered a heavy responsibility. Therefore, his actions reflected his maturity.


    But if he just continued to give in, people would naturally think that he was easy to bully so after they gained an inch, they would want a foot.


    [TL Note: Idiom(µÃ´ç½ø³ß) ¨C ¡°Gain an inch and want a foot¡± means to be insatiable]


    Housekeeper Liu initially thought that he could easily send Long Chen away to prevent disturbing his Young Master¡¯s good mood. He never would have thought that Long Chen would go against him.


    He had already developed murderous intents for Long Chen. At that moment, he indicated to the few guards. Housekeeper Liu said icily, ¡°From what you are wearing, you must be of a low ss status yet you don¡¯t have foresight and knowledge. My Young Master is the direct heir of the Huang Family in one of the Ten Great Citadels of Yuanling City, Huangyun Citadel. I will give you another chance to get lost. If not, not only you, but all of the people rted to you will die a terrible death.¡±


    Long Chen was not one to be intimidated by others, so after sizing up Housekeeper Liu, he formted a n in his mind.


    ¡®The housekeeper and the few guards¡¯ ability were only at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm so they aren¡¯t my match. However, it looks like the fact that they are of the Huang Family in Huangyun City is true. I can¡¯t afford to offend such factions. Furthermore, this Huang Xiang should be at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. But this is a gift from Lingqing so no matter whom it is, they can¡¯t take it away¡­¡­.¡¯


    As a result Long Chen¡¯s mood darkened, he looked coldly at the housekeeper and said: ¡°Everybody, I already said that this Horse matters a lot to me, does anyone still insist in seizing my possession here at Yuanyang City?¡±


    At that moment, many people saw Long Chen and a group of people in a dispute, thus surrounded them to watch.


    The waiter from the inn noticed that this silly donkey Long Chen unexpectedly broke into a fight with the other party, and hurriedly pulled back, smartly distancing himself from Long Chen. He was immediately questioned by people about what was happening.


    The waiter scoffed and pointed at Long Chen: ¡°This little boy is a country bumpkin, that well-dressed Young Master clearlyes from a well-to-do family and wants to buy his Horse but he rejects him. The two pieces of Deity Jade, if it is some other fifth level Huang grade demonic beasts; they will be enough to buy a hundred of them! Tell me, is he not stupid?¡±


    A few bystanders saw Long Chen¡¯s annoyed look, and instantly nodded their heads.


    The innkeeper was a middle-aged man with a long beard, and he was stroking his beard at that moment. He looked at Long Chen and said: ¡°It must be this young man¡¯s first time outside, and does not know his limits, let him suffer this time around so he can understand the ways of the world. However, if the other party were to punish him severely, he may be done for, for the rest of his life.¡±


    Other guest from the inn nodded. ¡°From his dressing, he must be a child from a small town. He doesn¡¯t know how to restrain himself aftering to a big city. If he dies, it can only be med on his parents for not telling him howrge the outside world is.¡±


    Long Chen looked very young and seemed to have some talents. The remorseful thing was that he was too ill tempered. The people looking at the situation anticipated what was going to happen as they shook their head.


    However, Young Master Huang was a noble so they also didn¡¯t dare to stop the fight.


    After hearing Long Chen¡¯s words, Housekeeper Liu was already in a towering rage.


    When he wanted to make his move, Young Master Huang Xiang had already shifted his gaze from the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse to Long Chen. His originally ted face had instantly turned iparably gloomy. He moved away from his guards and was soon standing in front of Long Chen.


    Housekeeper Liu hastily said, ¡°Young Master, you can just continue looking at the Horse. You will not need to deal with a small brat like him. This stupid donkey is a small matter, but to make your mood turn bad is a big matter¡­..¡±


    Huang Xiang stared at Long Chen for a while before he indifferently said, ¡°All of you move out of my way. This small fellow should be a talent from some small town. For him to be arrogant, it is normal. Haven¡¯t I also walked on that path that year? However, he is indeed not your match or your subordinates. Since I am going to enter the Lingwu family, I can use him as a way to train my skills.¡±


    ¡°But¡­.Young Master, this small character needs you to deal with him personally. I¡­.¡±


    ¡°It does not matter. Old Liu, you can just go to the side. I also won¡¯t me you.¡±


    Seeing the master and subordinate chatting among themselves,pletely ignoring him, Long Chen was already in a rage.


    This Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse was his after all. His opponent wanting to seize it was already pushing the limit and now they were also showing a condescending attitude.


    Ever since Long Chen had his Dragon Jade, his power had gradually be stronger. He had never been angered to this state.


    Thus, he coldlyughed.


    After Huang Xiang heard hisughter, he turned to face him. At that moment, a strong power had already gradually surged out of his body!


    Long Chen had originally thought that Huang Xiang was a spoilt brat. He never would have thought that he was pretending to be weak!


    Currently, his power surged out; a pair of cold eyes like a leopard¡¯s was looking at Long Chen. Instantly, a strong pressure was on Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°A plebeian at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm dares to spoil my mood. Your guts aren¡¯t small¡­..¡±


    Long Chen was not afraid at all even after he saw Huang Xiang¡¯s move. He even rebuked him, ¡°My guts are indeed not small. It is at least ten fold of your oval eggs.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s mocking meaning was understood by everyone at the scene.


    Everyone chuckled at first but then again they were afraid of Huang Xiang¡¯s rage falling on them, so they did not dare tough.


    After calming down and thinking back to Long Chen¡¯s guts, everyone shook their heads.


    ¡°That child, with such a personality, he won¡¯t be able to live long.¡±


    Huang Xiang originally wanted to kill Long Chen as Long Chen had excessively dampened his mood. However, Long Chen unexpectedly rebuked him and even dared to mock him indirectly. This made him extremely angry!


    ¡°Brat! You¡¯re seeking death!¡±


    Initially, he didn¡¯t want to kill someone in broad daylight, but after Long Chen¡¯s statement, Huang Xiang¡¯s killing intent for Long Chen was extremely obvious. A power from the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm exploded out. This immediately made the crowd retreat!


    ¡°Young Master Huang¡¯s age shouldn¡¯t be over twenty and actually has such cultivation. He is really a genius!¡±


    ¡°With his family background, how can that bratpare to him?¡±


    The waiter of the restaurant, who saw Long Chen swaying under Huang Xiang¡¯s power, revealed a knowing expression.


    When he had received Long Chen, he had already looked down on him. He had been working at this restaurant for almost ten years. His ability to look at a person¡¯s ability had already been brought to the point of perfection and had never been wrong about it.


    As he looked at Huang Xiang, Long Chen was inwardly astonished. He had already killed two experts of the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, Bai Sheng and Bai Li. He had also effortlessly defeated them. However, Huang Xiang, who was at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, was much stronger than them!


    ¡°This fellow¡¯s family background is better than yours. Inparison with the Bai and Yang families, they are like beggars to his. With such a family, he surely will have limitless skills in his family. He seems to have trained in an advanced Huang grade body reinforcement martial technique. His body is much stronger than your [Celestial Core Technique]. You must also be careful when fightingter. If Bai Sheng and Bai Li were in his hands, they won¡¯t be able to fight back at all!¡±


    Hearing Lingxi¡¯s serious remarks, Long Chen be cautious.


    When everyone moved out of the way and stared unblinkingly at the situation, housekeeper Liu and the other guards can also finally see the Young Master¡¯s moves and were extremely excited about that!


    ¡°How can you, a beggar that came from a small ce, know the extent of arge family¡¯s powers?¡±


    After he said that, Huang Xiang¡¯s figure shed and was heading flying towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen eyes squinted instantly as he felt that he had a little difficulty locking onto Huang Xiang¡¯s figure!


    ¡°This is a body martial technique! Your Por Town doesn¡¯t seem to have techniques like these. However, his motion fighting technique is not exceptional. It is only at the intermediate Huang grade!¡±


    After hearing Lingxi¡¯s exnation, Long Chen got a little nervous.


    He initially thought that Huang Xiang could be easily defeated like Bai Sheng and Bai Li. But when he thought about it now, he had really previously made an extremely wrong judgment!


    ¡°My [Dragon Soul Transformation] with a tenfold quality of Qi made me not ce anybody in my eyes. Even if there are experts two levels above me, I thought that I will be able to defeat them. However, now when I think about it, I am really viewing the sky from the bottom of a well. There are numerous powers much stronger than the Bai Family¡¯s. The resources they hold are much more. If can fight with experts above my grade, they can also do the same!¡±


    Thinking of it now, Long Chen already understood that when he defeated Bai Li, who was at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and he was at the seventh level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, it was not due to him being extremely powerful but rather Bai Li¡¯s actual strength hadn¡¯t reached the real standard of an expert at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    As for Huang Xiang, he was considered to have reached the actual strength of a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, which was higher by a grade than Long Chen!


    As for Huang Xiang, not only did he know body martial technique, he also trained in advanced Huang grade body reinforcement martial technique. Long Chen stood before him without any advantages!


    Thinking about that, Long Chen¡¯s heart sank to the bottom of the valley.


    However, this didn¡¯t mean that he was scared of his opponent¡¯s strength. This only meant that his prey had risen up to a level that he couldpletely use his entire strength against.


    As long as his opponent wasn¡¯t a person that was an overpowering existence, Long Chen should be able to deal with him!


    Huang Xiang used movement to head towards him. His footsteps were unpredictable. This also made it hard for Long Chen to lock on his position. The only solution he could think of was to rapidly retreat. As he retreated, Long Chen had unexpectedly used his [Dragon Soul Transformation] that he initially didn¡¯t think of using.


    When the blood red scales appeared and Long Chen¡¯s aura rose by several times, the crowd that was watching the fight, became a little dazed. The waiter of the restaurant looked left and right before awkwardly saying, ¡°It is just a shape shifting ability. It isn¡¯t worthy to be astonished by that. Haha, it isn¡¯t something to be astonished by¡­¡­.¡±


    Housekeeper Liu was shocked but quickly heaved a sigh of relief as he thought: ¡®Experts who were at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had always been defeated by the Young Master. Moreover, this is a person at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. It will be alright. It will definitely be alright¡­¡­.¡¯

 Chapter 67 – Profound Grade Martial Technique

    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s threatening aura rising, Huang Xiang¡¯s previous calm demeanour turned solemn.


    He suddenly halted his footsteps and looked at Long Chen before he inly said, ¡°I initially thought that I can easily defeat you but now, you have the qualification for me to try out my newly acquired martial techniques on you.¡±


    After Huang Xiang said those words, the people in the restaurant didn¡¯t know what he was referring to but they knew that Young Master Huang Xiang had clearly grasped Long Chen¡¯s abilities. So by testing his newly acquired martial techniques, it indicated that defeating Long Chen could also be done easily.


    When Housekeeper Liu and the few guards heard that, their mood momentarily lit up and said in amazement. ¡°Young Master actually wants to use that skill? That¡¯s also right. That skill is iparably powerful. After the Young Master hadpletely mastered that skill, it seems like he hasn¡¯t had a realbat. This brat came at the right time and it¡¯s also a good opportunity for the Young Master to practice his skills. This way it will be much easier for him to enter the Lingwu Family.¡±


    The other guards hurriedly nodded their heads.


    Although Housekeeper Liu spoke softly, Long Chen still heard it.


    Before this. he had already faintly heard that Huang Xiang was entering the Lingwu Family. However, this time, he had heard it clearly.


    ¡°You want to enter the Lingwu Family too? Who knows if we¡¯ll be rivals next time, so I will take this opportunity to get rid of you!¡±


    However, when he thought about what Huang Xiang just said, Long Chen felt uncertain.


    ¡°With the new martial techniques he learnt, if it was an advanced Huang grade¡¯s martial technique, there was not much point in saying out, but¡­¡­¡±


    This hostile situation could not be stopped at all.


    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s expression, Huang Xiang smiled sinisterly. ¡°You have guessed it correctly. This is a Profound grade martial technique. You, who is a beggar from a small ce, shouldn¡¯t know what a Profound grade martial technique is, and have never even seen one before, right?¡±


    His words were like a hammer that pounded heavily on Long Chen¡¯s head. Long Chen suddenly realised that this was a very serious matter.


    ¡°The heirs from the big families will naturally have many secret scrolls and techniques. As for me, my strongest is only [Seal of the Dragons], how would I have a Profound grade martial technique?¡±


    Long Chen knew his initial thought of advantage in using the [Dragon Soul Transformation] seemed to have no advantages against his opponent¡¯s advanced Huang grade¡¯s body refinement skills.


    The amount of tenfold quality Qi was almost the same as his opponent¡¯s. Furthermore from what he had said, Long Chen was alsocking a Profound grade martial technique!


    Thinking about this, Long Chen¡¯s brows deeply furrowed.


    At this moment, he awakened from his thoughts. However, Huang Xiang didn¡¯t give him a chance to remedy the situation. After speaking, Long Chen felt a pressure on his body that made him feel suffocated!


    Qi on Huang Xiang¡¯s body violently circted. Very soon Long Chen saw that under Huang Xiang¡¯s sinister preparations, an illusionary light appeared in both of his hands and rapidly whirled, and a wave of light rays was sent towards Long Chen!


    Long Chen could not regain his bnce immediately!


    However, he didn¡¯t show any sign of weakness. Although his opponent had an advantage over him, battles weren¡¯t just a simpleparison between numbers!


    At this moment, facing the powerful threat of the disk of light, Long Chen didn¡¯t retreat but advanced instead. His body¡¯s power violently erupted. Long Chen momentarily turned into a blood light and shot towards Huang Xiang!


    Long Chen¡¯s speed was almost the same as Huang Xiang¡¯s maximum speed, so when he saw Long Chen moving towards him, Huang Xiang was greatly rmed.


    ¡°This brat can actually keep up a simr speed with me. It seems like in the Qi aspect, he is not far from me. A Beast Warrior indeed has some unusual abilities. If not for this Profound grade martial technique, most likely he will be able to contend against me!¡±


    His impressions of Long Chen greatly changed. Thinking of it now, although Long Chen¡¯s appearance and disposition did not seem like much, but he had some abilities. After all, not just anyone can be a Beast Warrior.


    ¡°Even if you have some abilities, and you end up dying, it may stir some troubles. However you actually angered me, if I don¡¯t teach you a little lesson, how can it match the style of me, Huang Xiang? With the next skill, you better pray for the best!¡±


    Thinking which, Huang Xiang seemingly did not show mercy, and that radiant disk of light appeared in his hands once again. Momentarily, Huang Xiang also charged towards Long Chen, and the light in his hands emitted an immense aura, and the expressions of the crowd quickly changed!


    That inn¡¯s waiter was astonished by this scene. He became afraid as he said: ¡°This Huang Xiang is so terrifying, if this skill was to hit the inn, the inn may very well copse! This time, the brat will die for sure!¡±


    He instantaneously looked at Long Chen, not expecting to see Long Chen¡¯s body radiating a blood red light.


    Long Chen hurriedly formed seals with his hands. Blood red Qi with the appearance of dragons formed and then suddenly turned into an image of a blood-red Dragon God. Suddenly, the nine Dragon Gods in the image intertwined and roared as they charged towards Huang Xiang!


    Looking at Long Chen, Huang Xiang threw a strike with all his might!


    ¡°[Wheel Of Radiance]!¡±


    The disk of light left his hands and headed towards Long Chen. At this moment, the image of the Dragon Gods let out a terrifying roar, and shed with the disk of light!


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!¡±


    The super powerful energy from both sides dispersed in all directions. Moreover, the horses in the stable all whinnied from fear, and even the Housekeeper and the guards of the Huang Family had pale faces as they were rapidly pushed back!


    For a few people on the other side, they were blown back and convulsed due to their proximity. As for the waiter, his robes were shredded into pieces and his hairy skin was revealed. However, he seemed not realise it and stared at the scene.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? What happened earlier on? How did that kid manage to do such a powerful attack?¡±


    Originally he thought that the brat would be finished this time. After all, an attack of that magnitude could almost destroy the inn. But he never thought that Long Chen¡¯s move earlier couldpletely fend off Master Huang Xiang¡¯s attack?


    It seemed like the heavens were ying a prank on him.


    ¡°Even if he can withstand it, he will probably soon be on his deathbed. I just can¡¯t believe that this bumpkin is able to make any aplishment!¡±


    He watched with a fixated stare at the fight. Long Chen and Huang Xiang had currently carried out a real confrontation. The two of them were forced backwards. There were a couple of footprints on the green stone floor.


    Long Chen retreated ten metres. He managed to suppress his boiling blood with difficulty. However, his arm was still a little numb.


    What made the crowd feel unbelievable was that Huang Xiang also retreated five meters. He also suppressed the boiling blood and looked in astonishment at Long Chen, who was not injured like he thought. He was speechless for a moment.


    ¡°I unexpectedly can¡¯t get rid of him after using a Profound grade technique? How is this possible? Can it be that I still can¡¯t fully use the power of the [Wheel Of Radiance]?¡±


    Thinking about this, Huang Xiang was in a slight disbelief.


    ¡°Father told me that I have 80% mastery of this [Wheel Of Radiance]. As for the remaining 20%, it can be fully mastered after I enter the Deity Dan Realm. But why did this 80% [Wheel Of Radiance] did not finish off Long Chen. Can it be that his background does not differ much from mine?¡±


    Watching Long Chen¡¯s gradual recovery, Huang Xiang started to struggle with his thoughts.


    ¡°Father had instructed me not to create trouble. Moreover, this [Wheel Of Radiance] is unable to kill him. If I were to forcefully use that move, I¡¯m afraid it might hinder my process into the Lingwu Family¡­¡­Oh well, forget it. I will spare him, and even if he got lucky today, he will definitely die if he sees me again in the future!¡±


    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for the fear of consuming a lot of Qi by doing that move, this kid¡¯s blood would definitely be sshed on the spot!¡±


    Originally, the waiter from the inn thought that even if Long Chen was not to die, he would at least be severely injured after that attack. However, he was looking at Long Chen who seemed unscathed and gaped widely, with a shocked expression. The gap was enough to fit a fist in.


    At that point, his clothes were torn and tattered, which looked very awful, but he was the only one who was unaware of it.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe there is actually a day where I am this ignorant. This kid had actuallye prepared?¡±


    Not only the inn¡¯s waiter but even for the crowd, when they saw Long Chen still standing looking fine after the Profound grade martial technique, they were all shocked silly.


    It was especially the case for housekeeper Liu. At this moment, his jaw almost touched the ground. He rubbed his eyes multiple times to confirm that he hadn¡¯t seen wrongly. He looked astonishingly at Long Chen with his face filled with disbelief.


    ¡°This is impossible! The Young Master is a ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm cultivator. Even the old master had said that he was unbeatable among the Dragon Pulse Realm. Why is it that he hasn¡¯t been able to kill a person who is at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s performance had brought a big change to the audience¡¯s perspective.


    At this moment, Long Chen forcibly fended off the most powerful attack of Huang Xiang and remained unscathed, which made the people around him be in shock. They all ced Long Chen in a position not far away from Huang Xiang in their hearts, so they did not dare to speak any more.


    As for Huang Xiang, he gave Long Chen a cold stare. His previous attack did not kill Long Chen, so he deemed it pointless to continue. He no longer had any interest towards the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse after Long Chen spoilt his mood.


    This horse that he fancied was merely out of interest.


    Once again giving Long Chen another look, Huang Xiang shrugged his shoulders, leaving the crowd as he headed back into the inn.


    The Housekeeper¡¯s guards naturally followed behind, however as they looked into the eyes of Long Chen, it was as though looking at a dead person.


    ¡°Young Master is not speaking and this means he is really furious. However why is Young Master not attacking?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure either, but this kid is definitely not going to make it!¡±


    Looking at Huang Xiang who just headed upstairs without any indication after his attack had been blocked; Long Chen was clueless to what he was thinking.


    ¡°I presume he was too embarrassed to stay here any longer after his strongest move was defeated by you.¡± Ling Xi said inly.


    However, Long Chen thought otherwise.


    ¡°He should be participating in the uing Lingwu Family¡¯s outer family selection and was afraid of impairing his chances of entering. This fellow seems to be good at nning and is even able to swallow this down. However how can I, Long Chen, let him bully me like that?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have a choice. You¡¯re not inferior to him in any way. The only difference that you lose out to him was theck of an offensive martial technique. If you also have a Profound grade martial skill, he may possibly be not your match.¡±


    ¡°Profound grade martial technique huh¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes narrowed.

 Chapter 68 – [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist]

    It was gettingte and with Huang Xiang¡¯s sudden departure, the matter was left unsettled.


    Within a room in the inn, Long Chen held up the metal te as he carefully examined it.


    That metal te was the one he had obtained from the Burning Heaven Mountain ins.


    ¡°I have had this thing for a few days, but still haven¡¯t had a chance to carefully analyse it. Xiao Xi, tell me, how do I make use of this thing?¡±


    The fact that even with simr levels of strength, Long Chen still slightly lost to Huang Xiang and that made him feel extremely stifled.


    In previous encounters, his martial techniques were always superior to others. He never thought that someone else woulde out on top of him, especially when the other party was the one who initially provoked.


    Even though he said nothing, Long Chen was in a foul mood.


    Ling Xi had always been interested in the mysterious metal te but never had the time to examine it. Now, she appeared from the Lingxi Sword, her tiny body circling the metal te on the desk. Finally, she sat on the desk with her hands propping up her frowning face.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°This is clearly the key to an inheritance, and you must wait until you find this legacy before you can use it. However, there is a trace of a barrier upon it, and it looks as if it hasn¡¯t¡­¡±


    Ling Xi sped her delicate chin pondering while Long Chen left her to her thoughts. After a while, Ling Xi suddenly became excited as she eximed, ¡°I got it, this is definitely a concealed barrier!¡±


    ¡°What is a concealed barrier?¡±


    ¡°It is a type of barrier that is difficult to detect because it requires concealment. When theyid the barrier only a minute amount of Qi was used. An average person would find it difficult to sense it in a barrier, but I, your Lady, is amazing!¡°


    Ling Xi rolled her eyes at Long Chen.


    Long Chen pretending to tter her entreatingly, ¡°Miss Xixi, you see¡­. ¡±


    ¡°Do you want me to help you undo it? It¡¯s very simple. You just have to get me some spirit healing medicine. ¡°


    Long Chen promptly agreed: ¡°Alright, alright, after I go to Yuanling City, I will immediately go to the Daybreak Merchants Union to buy you some medicines!¡±


    Having gotten Long Chen¡¯s assurance, Ling Xi snorted and focused wholeheartedly on breaking the barrier.


    Originally, she liked to act wilfully and caused scenes. However, once she entered the work-mode, she immediately became iparably serious. Long Chen too dared not disturb her and simply took advantage of this time to practice his cultivation.


    After roughly a quarter of an hour, a tiny light formation appeared atop the metal te.


    Seeing the appearance of this light formation, Long Chen knew that the removal of the barrier was mostly done.


    ¡°Because it is a concealed barrier, only a small amount of Qi was used so it is rtively easy to remove it. Yourdy, I, will be able to finish this in a bit!¡±


    While in the process of carefully removing the barrier, Ling Xi¡¯s lip curled as she smiled smugly at Long Chen, putting on a seemingly spiteful front.


    During the Bai and Yang Family¡¯s wedding reception, Long Chen had spoken to her harshly for the first time. Also in the battle over the Soul Diffusion Fruit, he had made her feel like a coward who was afraid of death. At this moment, she wanted to prove to Long Chen that she is still very useful!


    ¡°Next time, if you dare to say any more nonsense to me, then yourdy, I, will not help you with anything!¡±


    ¡°Yes yes, Great Aunt, I am aware of my mistakes¡­¡­¡±


    Ling Xi was very easy-going and her eyes lit up as she hurriedly returned into the Lingxi Sword.


    Just like the time she broke the barrier on the [Seal of the Dragons], as soon as she was finished she quickly returned to the Lingxi Sword.


    ¡°After opening the barrier, I also don¡¯t know what will happen when it opens. Something may burst out instantaneously at that moment, which could be harmful to my soul so I must return immediately. ¡±


    As for Long Chen, he focused intently on the metal te. Suddenly, the metal te emitted mes and burnt arge hole through the sandalwood desk. Moreover, the mes continued spreading outwards.


    Long Chen¡¯s body tensed; if this metal te spread its mes explosively, much like in the Burning Heavens Mountain ins, Yuanyang city would likely be destroyed.


    Fortunately, the mes only spread out half a metre before stopping. The metal te was engulfed by the ball of me half a meter in diameter, as it floated in midair.


    Long Chen wanted to know what was going on when suddenly the ball of me took the rough shape of a man¡¯s face. An immense yet mysterious aura suddenly surrounded Long Chen¡¯s body.


    The man¡¯s image within this me simply looked at Long Chen and then promptly faded away. However, his voice remained continuously echoing in Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°You could find the concealed barrier¡­ I guess your luck isn¡¯t bad. I hope you will not waste my inheritance¡­.¡±


    This ancient voice gave Long Chen the shivers. Fortunately, it faded quickly, leaving Long Chen filled with doubts.


    ¡°Why would a man¡¯s face appear within the me?¡±


    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s the residual consciousness of the man. He is most likely dead long ago. However, if he were capable of leaving behind a trace of himself on the metal te, he must have been pretty good when he was alive¡­¡±


    Ling Xi said solemnly.


    Just as Ling Xi finished speaking, a change urred in the me. After the man¡¯s face had faded, the me slowly receded along with the raging heat gradually bing wisps of fire. To Long Chen¡¯s amazement, the fire transformed into small characters, etching themselves onto the metal te.


    The characters were like ants, densely etched on the metal te. At the very least there were thousands of characters. Strangely, Long Chen could see each and every character clearly.


    ¡°This¡­is actually a cultivation technique! ¡±


    Ling Xi¡¯s voice sounded pleasantly surprised. Long Chen had long since been desperate for cultivation techniques and resources but he unexpectedly found something like this on the metal te.


    The characters flickered continuously on the metal te, and Long Chen very quicklymitted them to memory.


    ¡°It is an intermediate Xuan grade martial technique, [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist]¡±


    Recalling the name of the skill from his head, Long Chen was shocked, before his face revealed a joyous expression.


    At the moment, the me on the metal te had gradually diminished with the metal te restoring back to its original appearance. Long Chen then ced it inside his cosmos pouch.


    Long Chen slowly opened his eyes andughed.


    ¡°[Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], it came at the right time¡­. ¡±


    ¡°All creatures contain Yin and Yang. Yang as fire, Yin as water. The burning demonic sun and scarlet mes that burn the heavens, and the demon sun that pierces the earth¡­.¡±


    ¡°[Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] is far more powerful than [Seal of the Dragons] and it is even better than the [Wheel Of Radiance] that Huang Xiang practices. If I were to guess, [Wheel Of Radiance] is only a low Profound grade martial technique. It cannotpare with the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] which is an intermediate Profound grade martial technique, which can be regarded as a powerful existence¡­¡­ ¡±


    As Long Chen was carefully pondering the implications of [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], he asked in a faint voice, ¡°Xiao Xi, who is this man who left behind the inheritance? It seems that [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] is only the weakest of his martial techniques. However, it is already very extraordinary. ¡±


    Ling Xi pursed her lips saying, ¡°How would I know about this? [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] is indeed not bad. When you manage to find more traces of his remains, the things you can obtain will be much greater. ¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    Long Chen recalled the martial technique that Huang Xiang relied on to surpass him, and a faint sneer appeared on his face.


    ¡°Wait till I have learnt the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], we¡¯ll see if you still dare covet my Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse!¡±


    Right now, Long Chen clearly knew the state of his own strength. He was at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. However, he still had the Soul Diffusion Fruit. When he reaches the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, he could immediately breakthrough into the Deity Dan Realm. At that time, his strength would multiply by more than a hundred!


    ¡°Coupled with this intermediate Xuan grade [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], my strength will then¡­. ¡±


    Recalled the purpose for which he came to Yuanling City; the Yang family were now living under the shadow of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect had strong experts of the Earth Dan Realm. Once they found out, the Yang Family would probably bepletely eradicated.


    And as far as Long Chen was concerned, Yang Xueqing and Yang Lingqing were the most important to him and he would definitely give up his life to protect them.


    ¡°My current strength is still not sufficient! Starting from now is my only task! Those Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s members are powerful and reputed to be vicious. They would likely not show any mercy to us Yang family¡­.¡±


    As he thought about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, Long Chen felt as if a huge mountain was crushing on his heart and the pressure was suffocating.


    Every part of his body began to feel restless. Like a malignant tumor, the desire to be powerful became deeply rooted in his heart.


    ¡°It is imperative that I participate in the Lingwu Family¡¯s selection and seed! I am at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and if I am able to disy the strength of a person at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, I should be able to enter the Lingwu Family. This son of a bitch Huang Xiang who also wants to enter the Lingwu family, you just keep praying until the day you meet me, your father!¡±


    Long Chen saw that there was still a lot of time till dawn. So, he closed his eyes and began to examine the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist].


    At this moment, the Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant in his sea of consciousness radiated a misty light, where traces of dusky light roved all over it. Long Chen immediately felt that hisprehension became so powerful that he was unhindered even when looking at those cryptic words.


    ¡°With this Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant, is there any martial technique under the sky that can baffle me?¡±


    The night passed very quickly with Long Chen neglecting to eat and sleep. Very soon, the sky brightened with the sun at its zenith. Only then did Long Chen ce the metal te down.


    ¡°So the scarlet mes which burn the heavens appears like this¡­.¡±


    After cultivating, Long Chen was still reluctant to stop.


    ¡°We¡¯re only two days away from Yuanling City, I think you¡¯d better hurry. You haven¡¯t acquired the spirit healing medicines that you promised me, your Great Aunt. Hmph!¡±


    Seeing the adorable Lingxi pouting, Long Chen smiled wryly. ¡°Alright, my Great Aunt, I will serve you right away!¡±


    After walking down from the restaurant, Lingxi suddenly said, ¡°Eh? Those people are looking at you with peculiar gazes. ¡±


    Only after Ling Xi mentioned it, Long Chen began paying attention to the rest of the inn, where everyone present avoided his gaze, especially the waiter that was stark naked yesterday. After seeing Long Chen, he immediately ran away crying for his mother and father.


    Long Chen momentarily grabbed hold of his cor, and as he begun to question him. The waiter sniveled: ¡°Ma¡­Master, it has nothing to do with me, your horse was killed by Young Master Huang, it has nothing to do with me!¡±


    ¡°What?!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s expression turned steely!

 Chapter 69 – Green Faction

    Long Chen ran towards the stable to have a look. As expected, the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse was on the ground, copsed. Blood flowed out from its mouth as it looked helplessly at Long Chen. With but a nce, it was obvious that it had sustained severe internal injuries. At this moment, it was struggling whilst at death¡¯s door.


    Looking at his beloved horse in such pain, Long Chen eyes gradually reddened.


    ¡°Huang Xiang¡­¡­¡±


    His fists were clenched so tightly that the veins on his arms were bulging. When the crowd that followed him out of the restaurant saw his current state, they instantly kept silent out of fear.


    Seeing the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse¡¯s fatal internal injuries and was in its death throes, Long Chen thought back to when Lingqing had given this Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse to him.


    That girl had risked her life to stay a night in the Big Barren Mountain in order to tame this horse. She was covered in dirt when she gave this Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse to him. Long Chen had been taking great care of it in thest couple of days, fearing that it might get hurt, but now¡­¡­


    Thinking back to Huang Xiang¡¯s sneering face, Long Chen was already filled with a murderous intent towards him.


    ¡°This is the first gift that Lingqing has given me and possibly the most important gift of my life, excluding the Dragon Jade my father gave to me, but¡­¡­..¡±


    Thinking about Lingqing, that silly girl, Long Chen was filled with guilt.


    ¡°Lingqing, I didn¡¯t protected your gift properly. I¡¯ve let you down, but I¡¯ll avenge it¡­¡­.¡±


    Raising his head and facing Yuanling City, Long Chen gaze gradually turned icy, an expression that was as cold as the de of a sword.


    ¡°Huang Xiang, initially I didn¡¯t n on killing you, but you just sought out your death. Don¡¯t me me for it!¡±


    Long Chen walked towards the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse, seeing its suffering, Long Chen was extremely reluctant but he gave it a fatal blow, ending its misery.


    Looking at the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse who had apanied him these past few days, Long Chen shook his head and sighed. He turned around seizing the waiter of the inn before he coldly said: ¡°I¡¯ll give you 300 pieces of spirit jades to bury my horse in the outskirts of the citadel. I¡¯ll being back to Yuanyang Citadel and if at that time I find out that my horse didn¡¯t have a good burial, I will end your pathetic dog like existence!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s vicious gaze, the waiter was frightened to the point that his legs started to shake, before he managed to hastily agree. ¡°I..I will definitely give it a grand burial!¡±


    Those 300 pieces of spirit jades were enough to bury the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse a dozen times over.


    After giving him that task, Long Chen didn¡¯t stay at Yuanyang Citadel and headed in the direction that Huang Xiang had left. The ce they were heading to was Yuanling City!


    ¡°Hey, are you thinking of killing them along the way?¡±


    Long Chen smiled coldly and replied: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t be reckless. I won¡¯t make a move when I don¡¯t have confidence in dealing with him. Right now, I don¡¯t know where the Lingwu Family is located, but with Huang Xiang leading the way, I can avoid travelling the wrong route!¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t lose his rationality due to his hatred, so Lingxi heaved a sigh of relief before admonishing: ¡°That fellow is such a bastard. If he can¡¯t get the thing he wants, he will destroy it? After my strength recovers, I¡¯ll chop him up into eight pieces to avenge Xiao Hei. From how I see it, he isn¡¯t worthy to be called Huang Xiang, his name should be Shit instead!¡±


    [TL Note: Xiao Hei means Little ck: referring to the


    Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse]


    Lingxi had taken quite a liking to the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse during this short period of time. Seeing that the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse died in such a terrible manner, she was filled with fury to the point that she spoke profanity.


    Long Chen knew that it was almost noon when he left, but he didn¡¯t know how much earlier Huang Xiang had left. However, Huang Xiang was travelling by horse while Long Chen was moving at his maximum speed, heading towards Yuanling City. Inparison with Huang Xiang¡¯s speed, he was a couple of times faster.


    As time gradually passed, the journey that was supposed to take two days waspleted in only one and a half days. Long Chen could see the figures of Huang Xiang and the rest from a distance.


    Furthermore, the legendary Yuanling City entered his view, which was grand and imposing!


    When he saw the city, Long Chen was utterly stupefied.


    He raised his head and rubbed his eyes, checking to confirm that what he saw wasn¡¯t a mountain range but a city that was so vast that he couldn¡¯t see its edge.


    Yuanling City was covered in clouds so he could just barely make out its edges, but even so, Long Chen was inplete shock over the sheer enormity of Yuanling City!


    Long Chen had heard from Chen Xiongzhou that the distance between the east to the west of Yuanling City was a thousand miles. It could be understood how vast Yuanling City was from that!


    ¡°It is not a surprise that it can amodate 100 million people. So this Yuanling City is actually this huge!¡±


    Even if it was Yuanyang Citadel, in front of Yuanling City, it was as if a small chicken met with oxen and horses, which was not worth mentioning.


    At this moment, Huang Xiang¡¯s party had already left, heading towards the cloud and mist covered city. Long Chen didn¡¯t dare tarry, and hurriedly tried to catch up with them.


    There were a great number of people entering and exiting the city. Long Chen looked from afar at the densely packed crowd. Amongst them, the majority of them were cultivators who were much more powerful than Long Chen. They were experts that made Long Chen felt suffocated, yet they could be seen everywhere!


    Long Chen momentarily felt as though he was a sheep entering a den of tigers.


    ¡°Yuanling City is this horrifying? With my current abilities, I¡¯m one of the top experts in Por Town but aftering to Yuanling City, my abilities are ranked at rock bottom!¡±


    ¡°It seems that when Mother told me to keep a low profile, it wasn¡¯tpletely without reason!¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t feel dejected due to the auras of those experts, as he knew that sooner orter he would also reach that level. Also for those experts, the stronger their ability, the older they were. When Long Chen saw an old man walk past him, he felt a terrifying sensation pass by. That feeling was even more horrifying than when hest met Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Whenparing age to your ability, you can be counted as above average in Yuanling city while Mo Xiang¡¯s abilitypared to his age should be counted as peak talent. You¡¯re still a little far from reaching that level.¡±


    ¡°Since you cultivated for such a short time and at a small ce like Por Town, it¡¯s not bad to be able to reach an above average standard.¡±


    Long Chen also knew that haste would ruin everything, so he wasn¡¯t anxious.


    ¡°My main reason foring to Yuanling City is to deal with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. If the Yang Family is safe in the future, I¡¯lle here to temper myself. This, will probably be my world!¡±


    While following Huang Xiang, his gaze took in the people and buildings around him. When Long Chen entered the Yuanling City, even though this was only the outer area of the city, the buildings here were grand and lofty. The scalepletely exceeded that of the Yuanyang Citadel.


    ¡°Yuanling City is where most elites gather, so it isn¡¯t strange that the overall standard of strength is really high.¡±


    Around 100 million people lived in this city, yet it didn¡¯t feel crowded. It was easy to tell just howrge Yuanling City was.


    It was practically a small kingdom to Long Chen.


    The Lingwu family governed such an enormous piece ofnd and there weren¡¯t any issues. This demonstrated the strength of the Lingwu¡¯s Family.


    ¡°For me, there are only benefits in entering the Lingwu family.¡±


    Long Chen followed Huang Xiang as he familiarized himself with Yuanling City.


    At this moment, Huang Xiang was currently at a restaurant muchrger than the one he visited in Yuanyang Citadel. Even though it was muchrger than the restaurant in Yuanyang Citadel, it was of a low standard in Yuanling City.


    ¡°Old Liu, how do you think the brat will react now?¡±


    Huang Xiang was currently enjoying the delicacies of Yuanling City before turning to talk with Housekeeper Liu, who was standing respectfully at his side.


    Housekeeper Liu immediately replied: ¡°What can he do? That brat shouldn¡¯t have much money on him and also lost a horse. He must be crying now. Haha! Who asked him to be this tactless? Second Young Master was kind enough to give him two deity jades, but he was actually foolish enough to not appreciate your kindness. It was right for the Young Master to give him a lesson!¡±


    When Huang Xiang listened, he felt reallyfortable and kept on nodding his head in agreement before he said: ¡°After I entered the Lingwu Family, you can head back to Huangyun Citadel. You had served me well this ten days. After you head back, my father will reward you handsomely.¡±


    ¡°Yes! Yes!¡± Thinking about being rewarded, Housekeeper Liu¡¯s eyes gleamed. He excitedly said: ¡°When Second Young Master goes to the Lingwu Family, First Young Master Feiyang is there so I¡¯ll feel extremely at ease. That¡¯s right, from what Master had said, the First Young Master had already achieved a high position in the Lingwu Family and had made a lot of progress in his cultivation. He should have already reached the Initial Mastery Human Dan Realm, right?¡±


    Huang Xiang nodded and replied: ¡°My brother¡¯s talent is about the same as mine so when I reach his age, I should also reach the Initial Mastery Human Dan Realm and may even break through to reach the Human Dan¡¯s Perfect Mastery Realm!¡±


    ¡°I can prostrate myself in admiration towards the Second Young Master¡¯s talents!¡±


    Looking at Huang Xiang leisurely hearing those ttering words, Long Chen smiled coldly. ¡°You can smile all you want right now. Just wait until the Lingwu Family selection begins, I¡¯ll make you suffer terribly!¡±


    At this moment, Huang Xiang said: ¡°My brother is an outer n member of the Green Faction. Coincidentally, it is also the Green Faction¡¯s Green Sun Branch that will be selecting their new members so my father sent me over. My elder brother is also in the Green Sun Branch. It will be guaranteed that I will be able to join the Lingwu Family!¡±


    ¡°Every time there is a selection of new disciples for the Green Sun Branch, the number of participants is around fifty. There is a one-tenth chance of person entering. Naturally, it should be easy for Second Young Master.¡±


    ¡°One in ten people?¡±


    Long Chen frowned but very soon rxed.


    ¡°Only a one in ten person chance? Huang Xiang didn¡¯t worry about it. Moreover, it¡¯s the current me! However, Huang Xiang¡¯s brother, of the Initial Mastery Human Dan Realm, is unexpectedly in the Green Faction¡¯s Green Sun Branch. It seems that if I haven¡¯t reached the Human Dan Realm, I can¡¯t thoughtlessly kill Huang Xiang to avenge my Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse!¡±


    Revenge was never toote for a man, even if it took ten years. Long Chen understood that logic.


    Very soon, Huang Xiang finished his meal and said: ¡°In Yuanling City, there are two main inner sections, Lingwu City and Yuandi City. We¡¯ll head towards the Lingwu City as the time for the selection is near. We must also move quickly. If not, my brother will scold me. After so many years apart, I heard that my brother has be much more short-tempered!¡±


    After he said that, they immediately headed towards the legendary Lingwu City.


    Long Chen followed them quickly.


    ¡°The venue for the selection doesn¡¯t seem to be at the Lingwu City. Only if I pass the selection to formally be a Lingwu Family member, will I be able to live in the Lingwu City. How great an honor would that be? But I, Huang Xiang, finally have a chance. The Green Faction!¡±


    ¡°The Green Faction? I heard that the Lingwu Family has four main inner factions and nine main outer factions. The Green Faction should be one of the nine main outer factions!¡±

 Chapter 70 – Daybreak Merchants Union

    ¡°Ahead of us is the base of the Lingwu Family¡¯s Green Sun Branch, which is at the outskirts of the city. We have finally arrived!¡±


    Seeing the imposing green coloured building in front of him, Huang Xiang adopted a rxed smiling posture. Very soon, someone came to receive him before he entered the building.


    As for his servants, they left excitedly after bidding farewell.


    Long Chen looked at the lofty building but did not enter it straight away. Huang Xiang had just arrived so he didn¡¯t want to run into him.


    ¡®I¡¯ll give you a surprise after the selection starts. You killed my horse so it¡¯s impossible for me to just let it go!¡¯


    Long Chen stood outside the building for a while before seeing a couple more people enter. Those people were all at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm and were still young. The youngest of them was about the same age as Long Chen.


    Seeing these people with a degree of talent that wasn¡¯t far from his own and knowing that if they entered the Lingwu Family, they would only be ordinary outer disciples. This proved how powerful the Lingwu Family was.


    Long Chen was currently looking at that building and saw the various figures, making him feel a little overwhelmed.


    ¡®I actually feel as though I¡¯m an ant like existence in front of the Lingwu Family¡­¡­.¡¯


    However, Long Chen¡¯s fighting spirit didn¡¯t dampened, on the contrary in such a powerful environment, it roused his fighting spirit even more.


    Long Chen initially thought that only those at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm could enter but at that moment, he saw a tall man, who was eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, enter simply by shapeshifting!


    ¡°It seems they just required Beast Warriors to be at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. The heavens are helping me indeed!¡±


    After a while, Long Chen went in. The old man at the entrance saw Long Chen approach and narrowed his eyes when he could make out his age.


    ¡°Please report your basic information, ording to this format.¡±


    The white haired old man pointed at a wooden board that had some simple information written on it.


    After Long Chen looked at it, he replied, ¡°I¡¯m Long Chen. I¡¯m sixteen this year. I¡¯m from Yuanling County, Por Town. My strength is currently at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm but I¡¯m a Beast Warrior.¡±


    Long Chen and Lingxi had already discussed him being a Beast Warrior. People here didn¡¯t know what dragons were. Furthermore, Long Chen had been mistaken to be a Beast Warrior repeatedly so he should just say that he was a Beast Warrior.


    ¡°Oh?¡±


    After the white haired old man heard that Long Chen was a Beast Warrior, he thoroughly sized him up before asking, ¡°What is your Beast Spirit in the Dragon Pulse Realm?¡±


    ¡°Underground Blood Lizard.¡±


    The old man nodded. ¡°It¡¯s a level 5 Beast Spirit which isn¡¯t bad. Please let me have a look at your shapeshifting form.¡±


    Long Chen wordlessly circted his divine ability, [Dragon Soul Transformation]. There were instantly densely packed scarlet scales and razor sharp spikes gradually emerged, radically changing his appearance!


    Seeing such a fiendish transformation, the old man was a little startled. His features showing suspicion and said, ¡°How can a lizard bloodline have such a dense aura? You must have gotten the blood of a Beast Spirit that was soon to be an Underground Blood Lizard King. Your luck is quite good!¡±


    Long Chen could only nod before he inquired, ¡°May I ask if I have passed or not?¡±


    The old man smiled gently looking at Long Chen for a while before giving him a green wooden card and replied, ¡°Take this green wooden card. If you pass the selection, you¡¯ll be a member of our Green Faction. The Green Sun Branch is only selecting five people. From how I see it, your chances aren¡¯t great¡­¡­..¡±


    After seeing that Long Chen was a little startled, the old manughed loudly before saying, ¡°So you must work extra hard.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and under the guidance of a youth who was behind the old man, Long Chen toured the building a couple of times before picking one of the many rooms. The guide told Long Chen, ¡°It¡¯s alreadyte today so stay here for a night. Someone wille to escort you to the selection at dawn.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and thanked the person before opening the door and walking into the room. He didn¡¯t expect to find someone already in it. Long Chen was initially startled before he understood.


    ¡°It seems that they require two people per room.¡±


    When Long Chen just entered the room, his roommate immediately raised his head to look at Long Chen.


    It was a young man who looked a little sloppy. He seemed to be about twenty years old. His body was extremely skinny. However, his grey eyes shifted as he broke into a radiant smile.


    He looked at Long Chen beforeing forward and saying enthusiastically, ¡°Are you here to join the Lingwu Family¡¯s selection? Haha! I¡¯m participating as well. I¡¯m called Liu Fengfeng. What¡¯s your name?¡±


    Even though Long Chen saw that he was passionate, judging from his eyes, he knew that he was a person that coveted little things. However, Long Chen was not willing to get into a conflict with him so he replied smiling, ¡°I¡¯m called Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen? Seeing that you¡¯re still so young, have you reached the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a Beast Warrior, but I¡¯m only at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.¡±


    Comparatively, Liu Fengfeng knew that Long Chen wasn¡¯t his opponent and was instantly happy. Long Chen saw that he was preupied, so he exchanged a few more words and stopped.


    ¡°Little Brother Long Chen, not that I want to disparage you, but if I were a Beast Warrior, I would have definitely waited until I was at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm beforeing. You will have a greater advantage by then. At your current level, you¡¯ll just go through the motions in this test. The Lingwu Family¡¯s selection will be exceptionally dangerous this time. If you lose your life, it really isn¡¯t worth it.¡±


    Disying an elder brother¡¯s attitude, Liu Fengfeng began to righteously lecture Long Chen.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to reply so he smiled instead.


    Seeing that Long Chen wasn¡¯t listening to him, Liu Fengfeng momentarily became enraged. Attacking Long Chen wasn¡¯t a good idea so his tone became cold when he said, ¡°I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯re still unaware that during the Lingwu Family¡¯s selection, your life or death will be of no consequence. Someone investigated and discovered that there was a one in five chance of dying and two in of five chance of being seriously injured. In my opinion, most likely you will¡­¡­..Sigh!¡±


    Seeing that guy¡¯s self-righteous attitude, even though Long Chen disagreed with his words, he was getting information out from him so he pretended to be terrified. In his heart, he was already berating him, ¡® What the hell does it got to do with you whether I, your father, want to participate or not?¡¯


    Since he wasn¡¯t in Por Town and was in Yuanling City that had as many experts as trees in a forest, Long Chen felt that even swearing wouldn¡¯t make him feel any better. It also wasn¡¯t his style and he didn¡¯t¡¯ want to live like this¡­¡­


    ¡°Big Brother Liu, since you¡¯re so knowledgeable about this selection, are you from Yuanling City?¡±


    Liu Fengfeng immediately repliedcently, ¡°I grew up in Yuanling City. I have been here for twenty years so anything that happens here, I¡¯ll know about it. From your attire, you should be from a small town. Those ces are really poor. They are all frogs at the bottom of the well. I had once passed by a town where there was a person who thought that the strongest person in the world was at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. It was really hrious.¡±


    As Liu Fengfeng spoke excitedly, his spittle sprayed everywhere. When he saw that Long Chen was a little annoyed, he inwardly sniggered as he thought, ¡°This brat is obviously a country bumpkin but his gaze is filled with arrogance. You will know what it is like to suffer tomorrow. There are mountains beyond mountains and a sky beyond a sky¡­¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Big brother, I came from afar, with you being a local, can you tell me about the Lingwu City?¡±


    Liu Fengfeng¡¯s tone carried a trace of annoyance. He fixed his unkempt hair while taking out a green copper mirror to have a look. After making some postures and confirming that he was indeed handsome, he inly replied, ¡°About Yuanling City, it just what it is. There¡¯s nothing much to talk about. Everyone thinks that it¡¯srge, but I find it merely ordinary.¡±


    ¡°How is Yuanling City divided and what factions does it contain? Long Chen asked while suppressing his urge to vomit.


    He really couldn¡¯t take Liu Fengfeng¡¯s personality. It was already too much to look down at him, but wasn¡¯t he too pretentious?


    ¡°En¡­ Yuanling City is currently split into four big domains, ording to apass, North, South, East and West. The Lingwu Family is located in the eastern domain of Yuanling City. We¡¯re currently in the eastern domain. The other three are the western domain, southern domain and northern domain.¡±


    ¡°As for the powers in Yuanling City, everyone knows that the Lingwu Family has control over Yuanling City. However, the western domain is controlled by the Beast Spirit Pce. It¡¯s powers are on par with the Lingwu Family. If I were a Beast Warrior like you, I would have headed to the Yuandi City. Why have youe to Lingwu City? Yuandi City is heaven for Beast Warriors!¡±


    Long Chen was shocked as he knew that the top faction of Yuanling City was the Lingwu Family. However, unbeknownst to him there was another power that wasparable to it!


    From what Liu Fengfeng had said, he indicated that the Yuandi faction was in opposition to the Lingwu faction in Yuanling City. The city¡¯s name was based on the names Lingwu and Yuandi forming Yuan-Ling. This was to say that the Beast Spirit Pce in the Yuandi City held extraordinary powers simr to that of the Lingwu City!


    ¡°I only knew about the Lingwu Family but not about the Beast Spirit Pce. Since I¡¯m already here, I¡¯m not going to withdraw.¡±


    Seeing that he was still unafraid of death, Liu Fengfeng said indifferently, ¡°Forget it then. I won¡¯t talk any further with you. You must be careful during this selection so as to remain alive until you reach the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. I still rmend that you go to the Beast Spirit Pce since that is the ce that Beast Warriors should go.¡±


    Long Chen wanted to give him some face so he nodded and said, ¡°If I failed to enter the Lingwu Family, I¡¯ll go to the Beast Spirit Pce next.¡±


    Liu Fengfeng nodded and replied, ¡°I can see that you¡¯re still young so I don¡¯t want you to walk astray. If you can understand my painstaking effort, it¡¯ll suffice!¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t think he had made any painstaking efforts, but rather just boasting about his power and knowledge.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, Big Brother Liu, do you know anything about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡±


    Long Chen initially thought of getting some information about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but that guy unexpectedly was baffled. ¡°What sect is that? It should be some small faction. It¡¯s only people from small ces that will be frightened by such small powers. I¡¯ll tell you that Yuanling City has three big powers. They are the Lingwu City, the Beast Spirit Pce and the Daybreak Merchants Union. The Daybreak Merchants Union has power over the northern and southern domains and there are even traces of them in the eastern domain. The Daybreak Merchants Union isn¡¯tparable in terms of military forces to the Lingwu City and Yuandi City but in regards to resources and assets, they are a force to be reckoned with!¡±


    ¡°Daybreak Merchants Union?¡±


    Long Chen really wouldn¡¯t have thought that the Daybreak Merchants Union had such a huge presence!

 Chapter 71 – Steel Golems

    Long Chen acquired some information regarding the Daybreak Merchants Union from Liu Fengfeng. Afterwards, Liu Fengfeng went away impatiently, to cultivate.


    Even though Long Chen disliked Liu Fengfeng from the bottom of his heart, but reaching the ninth level of Dragon Pulse Realm at his age was something he was slightly impressed with.


    While cultivating the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], the night passed swiftly. The Lingwu Family¡¯s selection was soon to begin.


    Early in the morning, all the powerful youths at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm were weed by experts. While they walked out of their rooms, they were sizing each other up.


    These people were most likely all from small to average factions with some degree of power within Yuanling City. Every youth was used to being extremely arrogant, but after entering into Lingwu Family everyone exercised arge amount of restraint.


    With a single nce, Long Chen was able to pinpoint Huang Xiang, who had a rxed and self-assured expression, but Huang Xiang didn¡¯t see Long Chen. Instead, he excitedly searched among the faces of the examiners, after finding a face that resembled his own but with a more matured and cold expression. His face lit up as he headed towards that person.


    ¡°Big Brother¡­¡±


    Closing in on that man, Huang Xiang called out to him softly.


    The man only nodded slightly at him. Looking coldly at the 50 odd people he said: ¡°When participating in the Lingwu Family member selection you are responsible for your own lives. If you have any regrets you can still leave. As for those who don¡¯t want to, follow me to the practice fields.


    After the speech he informed the other members of the Lingwu Family, and led the way. With delight, Huang Xiang followed immediately.


    Long Chen and the others also followed behind. Everyone present was considered apetitor, therefore, only a few people got along. The atmosphere was tense and ready to explode at any moment.


    At the pavilion, Long Chen went along silently with the rest of the people.


    Liu Fengfeng clicked his tongue next to him and spoke while observing Huang Xiang at the front. ¡°It would be tragic if I encountered this Huang Xiang, that examiner Huang Feiyang seems to be his older brother by birth. Within these 50 odd people, his strength is among the absolute top. Heaven certainly is unfair.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    Watching Huang Xiang walking proudly up front, Long Chen¡¯s face revealed nothing. Remembering the Ebony Scaled Dragon Horse that Lingqing gave him, killing intent burst forth from his heart.


    ¡®If I don¡¯t teach you a serious lesson, your father, I, won¡¯t be able to face Lingqing. Who cares about your brother, I don¡¯t believe that he can do anything if I beat you fair and square.¡¯


    How could Liu Fengfeng know what¡¯s on Long Chen¡¯s mind? He only saw that after hearing Huang Xiang¡¯s name Long Chen didn¡¯t utter a single word. Thinking he was scared senseless, he said: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you won¡¯t even pass the first round so there is no chance for you to face him.¡±


    Hearing him mention the first round, Long Chen raised his head and asked, ¡°Do you know of the selection process?¡±


    Liu Fengfeng immediately looked at Long Chen as if he was some kind of retard and said silently: ¡°You really are¡­ everyone in Yuanling City knows that the Lingwu Family¡¯s selection of disciples consists of two major tests, yet you actually didn¡¯t know?


    Long Chen shook his head.


    Liu Fengfeng, with his face full of pity, shook his head. After a while, he sighed ¡°So be it. Since you and I shared a room this could be considered fate. I will tell you of these two trials, first one is to fight steel golems!¡±


    ¡°What are the conditions?¡±


    ¡°In a while we¡¯ll see a ce where there are dozens of dark tunnels, each tunnel is only 3 meters tall and 2 meters wide, but all of them are more than 500 meters deep. They are filled withrge numbers of steel golems and when you enter a tunnel, the steel golems will start to attack you. I bet you have no clue what steel golems are, right?¡±


    Long Chen replied: ¡°I really don¡¯t know, Brother Liu please educate me.¡±


    Arriving at Yuanling City, Long Chen knew that his own strength was still at the lowest rung of thedder, so the bold and audacious behavior he disyed back at Por Town had to be suppressed.


    This was the way Yang Xueqing told him to behave. Right now he needed to endure, but once he was able to amaze the world with his feats, his true disposition would be clear.


    Seeing that Long Chen¡¯s ignorance, Liu Fengfeng said with an anticipatory expression: ¡°You can simply treat these steel golems as creatures that can attack but without any intelligence. Little Brother Long Chen, I will give you a piece of advice. If you find that you can¡¯t handle these steel golems, don¡¯t go too far in. That way you can still escape to the entrance. If you enter a hundred meters in, even if you died inside, nobody would know.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and continued to ask nomittally: ¡°Then tell me, Brother Liu, how can one be considered to have passed?¡±


    Liu Fengfeng smiled smugly and said: ¡°Although we have a total of more than 50 people, there will only be 10 people left after the first test. Do you know why? It¡¯s because once we kill these steel golems we can take the steel hearts from inside their chests. Only those 10 people who have obtained the most steel hearts are allowed to take part in the second test. After years of research, I, your Big Brother Liu, will pass this test with flying colors¡­ By the way, you don¡¯t have a Cosmos Pouch, do you?¡±


    He could easily discern that Long Chen wasn¡¯t from Yuanling City. People from a small town wouldn¡¯t know what a Cosmos Pouch was. Therefore, Liu Fengfeng feigned embarrassment as he said: ¡°You can¡¯t carry many steel hearts without a Cosmos Pouch, but that is also for the best. When you return and break through into the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, go to Yuandi City. Only then will your chances of sess be greater. ¡°


    Long Chen found out everything that he needed to know. While listening to this obnoxious fellow, Long Chen felt resentment welling up from the bottom of his heart. But he didn¡¯t bother to argue and walked on in silence.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s behaviour, Liu Fengfeng assumed it was out of frustration. Shaking his head, Liu Fengfeng shifted his attention to others, sizing up hispetition.


    ¡°Seems like thepetitors, this time, are all of high quality, excluding you, there aren¡¯t any pushovers¡±


    While Liu Fengfeng was babbling away, everyone had arrived swiftly at the ce Liu Fengfeng had mentioned.


    In front of Long Chen, there was a small hill. At its foot, there were several dozen openings. Currently, all the entrances were sealed by steel doors. When the group arrived, people began unsealing the tunnels.


    By that time, there were several representatives of the Lingwu Family standing atop a giant boulder. Amongst them was the elder brother of Huang Xiang, Huang Feiyang.


    Long Chen was finally able to study Huang Feiyang more closely. This man had a grave expression and looked unapproachable. A pair of frightening eyes gave off an impression that he was someone prone to cruelty, anyone, who offended him would have to watch their backs.


    ¡°However, I must exact revenge for Xiao Hei¡­.¡±


    At this point, the gaze of another powerful youth from the Lingwu Family swept across the crowd. Suddenly Long Chen felt a chill in his heart.


    ¡°Gentlemen, I believe everyone more or less knows about the Lingwu Family rules. Our testing for the Green Faction is also modelled on the Lingwu Family standards. There are steel golems within these tunnels. What you all have to do is to enter these tunnels. Whoever passes through these tunnels whilst obtaining the most steel hearts will have the privilege of entering the second round.¡±


    ¡°But I will remind you all once you¡¯ve entered these tunnels it bes a matter of life and death. Every single one of you must be prepared to die. I will cut to the chase since you have alle this far, forfeiting is no longer an option. Get inside everyone, and we will await you on the other side.¡±


    Long Chen coldly observed these representatives and thought to himself: ¡°These youngsters aren¡¯t that old, but I¡¯m afraid they are all existences at the Human Dan Realm. Huang Feiyang is in the Initial Mastery Stage of the Human Dan Realm. Most likely everyone else is also closer to that level¡­ This is only a branch of the Green Faction within Lingwu Family. These kind of geniuses can actually be seen everywhere¡­.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, you have much more talent than them. As long as there is sufficient time, you will quickly surpass them. For example, you only need to raise your level a tiny bit, and then you can use the Soul Diffusion Fruit to catch up to them.¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s words sounded in Long Chen¡¯s ears.


    Soon, Long Chen was led towards one of the tunnels and there were more than 50 people assigned to a tunnel. The nervous tension spread gradually. While standing in front of the tunnels and listening to the grinding of sharp steel, the majority of the participants felt their scalp tingling.


    Currently, the talkative Liu Fengfeng was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, feeling a heated gaze upon him, Long Chen looked up, only to find that Huang Xiang had already spotted him.


    At that moment, Huang Xiang, who was about to disy his skills, suddenly saw Long Chen, who was surprisingly within his proximity. He felt shocked and thought that he was hallucinating.


    But when Long Chen turned around, he could confirm that it was indeed Long Chen. After the initial surprise, he felt his mood brighten, thinking: ¡°It really is that kid. He made me lose face in Yuanyang Citadel. Originally, I was in a hurry due to the Lingwu Family selection and only killed his horse. I never thought that he would enter the selections. I¡¯ll just have to kill him off too. If you want to me anyone, me your bad luck¡­.¡±


    Thinking about the second test, Huang Xiang was rather excited as he felt that he would be able to show Long Cheng who was more powerful between the two.


    ¡°It seems like the opponents for the second test are directly assigned by my brother, and at that time we¡¯ll face each other again. Let¡¯s see how you die!¡±


    Thinking about it made Huang Xiang feel better.


    Previously, the Lingwu Family selection had forced him to let Long Chen off the hook which had made him feel ill at ease for the past few days.


    If he didn¡¯t teach Long Chen a good lesson, he wouldn¡¯t be able to clear his troubled mind. This time, with Long Chen¡¯s appearance, he¡¯d be able to resolve this issue and all would be well again.


    ¡°However I¡¯m not sure if that kid will be able to pass the first test or not. If ites to pass that he loses his life inside these tunnels, then I, Huang Xiang, won¡¯t hold a grudge against a dead man.¡±


    Seeing theplex expressions ying upon on Huang Xiang¡¯s face settle into a malicious smile, Long Chen felt rmed.


    ¡°What is that guy plotting?¡±


    Since he couldn¡¯t figure it out, Long Chen dropped the matter. The most important thing right now was to pass the first test. During the following stages of the selection, if he had to face off against Huang Xiang¡­.


    ¡°I definitely will cripple that fellow.¡±


    At this moment, Huang Feiyang threw Huang Xiang a nce, smiling faintly as he said: ¡°Open the steel doors! The first test has began!¡±

 Chapter 72 – Savage Massacre

    Under the nervous gazes of the crowd, therge entrances to the tunnels, containing the steel golems, gradually opened.


    A pitch-ck opening filled with killing intent, appeared in front of everyone, making everyone inhale a mouthful of cold air.


    Seeing the pale expressions on these newbies¡¯ faces, Huang Feiyang smirked and said in a clear voice, ¡°Remember this well. You can only stay in there for half an hour. After that, if you haven¡¯te out, no matter how many steel hearts you get, they won¡¯t be counted as you already won¡¯t be able toe out!¡±


    ¡°After half an hour, we will lock the steel doors. At that time, no matter if you¡¯re dead or alive, we¡¯ll consider you dead. If you want to leave, you just have to wait for the next Lingwu Family¡¯s selection!¡±


    Huang Feiyang sneered coldly before indicating, ¡°When the next selectiones around, you¡¯ll be a dposed skeleton.¡±


    Long Chen was currently looking inside the tunnel. The interior, in fact, did not have any signs of life, but was filled with killing intent. There was also a barely audible nging of metal. Just from the sound, Long Chen could hear how sturdy the steel golems were.


    ¡°Under normal circumstances, it ispletely sufficient to cover the five hundred meters of the tunnel in half an hour¡¯s time. However, with the hindrance of the steel golems, if you want to kill the greatest amount of golems within the time limit and obtain more of the steel hearts, it seems that it won¡¯t be easy¡­¡­.¡±


    While Long Chen was considering, Huang Feiyang had already announced the start of the selection.


    All fifty people, including Long Chen, strived to be first and feared to best to prevent wasting their precious time.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, do you know anything about these steel golems?¡±


    ¡°Those steel golems were made by using seal arrays, bestowing them life by special martial craftsman. It uses deity jades as an energy source for itsbative features. You don¡¯t have to worry, these steel golems are at the lowest level. Thus, you¡¯re in an extremely advantageous situation for this round of selection.¡±


    Long Chen gaze expressed doubt as he asked, ¡°Why is that the case?¡±


    ¡°Although these simple steel golem¡¯s bodies are tough, they don¡¯t know any martial techniques. However, the most troublesome part is that there is arge number of them. If you use your martial techniques to deal with them, sooner orter, you will use up all of your Qi. However, if you use your body¡¯s strength, you would be able to conserve a greater amount of energy. You have previously trained in the [Celestial Core Technique] and after the tempering of one-thousandth Inherited Blood Essence, the [Dragon Soul Transformation] should be at the level of an advanced Huang grade core technique or even stronger!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze momentarily expressed his surprise. ¡°Xiao Xi, you mean that if I can gather more of the Inherited Blood Essence, my body can continuously be stronger?¡±


    ¡°In theory, that should be that case. When you are able to utilize all of the Inherited Blood Essence ording to your will, your physical abilities will increase. Of course, there are many other immeasurable benefits. They¡¯ll be simr to [Blood Transmuted Qi] and the [Dragon Soul Transformation]!¡±


    In Long Chen¡¯s sea of consciousness, there was still 999/1000 of the Inherited Blood Essence, which was being suppressed by the Dragon Jade. Long Chen knew that in the process of getting stronger, he definitely would be able to uncover portions of the Inherited Blood Essence a step at a time.


    ¡°After obtaining the entire Inherited Blood Essence and training to the peak, I should be able to transform into an Immemorial Dragon God. Will I be one of the 10 Immemorial Ancestral Dragons, the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon?¡±


    As his mind was contemting the notion, Long Chen had already walked about thirty meters in.


    At this point, his field of vision darkened. However, it improved as the tunnel¡¯s diameter increased, making it suitable for battles.


    Long Chen felt a faint killing intent that was approaching him.


    ¡°There are four steel golems about ten meters in front of you since you awakened them by nearing it. They areing, now!¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s warning, there were a few powerful movements in the dark tunnel that came rushing towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen had already prepared for them. At this moment, he was in [Dragon Soul Transformation] state. The dense, yet precise crimson scales acted as protection while the spiked spikes protruded from his elbows, knees, shoulders, and back. Coupled with his razor sharp ws, they were used as his instruments of death


    Right now, there were sharp ws ten centimeters in length on each of Long Chen¡¯s fingers. Each and every one of them was practically blood red daggers. If used on ordinary people, it can pierce through their chests and gouge their hearts out!


    ¡°I will be entering the second round of selections immediately after this. Many people will be fighting the steel golems. In order to obtain extra steel hearts, they will use a majority of their energy. This will result in them being disadvantaged during the second round! However I have Lingxi, I will try my utmost to use only the energy of my physical body. I refuse to believe that, after having my body tempered by the Inherited Blood Essence I won¡¯t be able to deal with a few lumps of steel!¡±


    At that instant, Long Chen came into contact with one of the steel golems!


    During the battle, Long Chen quickly understood the structure of the steel golem. It was a human shaped golem made from steel. Long Chen definitely didn¡¯t know what kind of steel was used but it was exceptionally tough.


    The steel golem was two meters in height, its arms and legs were extremely thick and powerful, containing tremendous strength. On its body, there were a few ck runes. Whenever the golems moved the runes would flicker. Long Chen had discovered that their heart was at the center of these runes!


    * ng! *


    An ear piercing sound of colliding metal echoed loudly in the tunnel. At that moment, Long Chen had already thrown a punch towards the steel golem¡¯s fist, and was secretly astonished!


    ¡°The strength of this steel golem seems to be around the seventh or eighth level of Dragon Pulse Realm. Furthermore, in this tunnel, there are hundreds of these steel golems. No wonder they said that there would be casualties!¡±


    Long Chen roared and thenunched punches at the steel golem without restraint. After it was pushed back, he used his speed, which far exceeded the steel golem, to take advantage of the situation. He collided loudly with the golem, momentarily forcing it to topple over on the ground


    ¡°It is within my expectations. These steel golems have impable defenses and are powerful. However their speed and agility are stillcking!¡±


    After training his body, his agility had greatly improved. When his shoulder hit the steel golem, Long Chen found out that the spikes on his shoulder had pierced his golem¡¯s body leaving manyrge holes. However, it didn¡¯t give the slightest pause to the steel golem¡¯s motion!


    However, that wasn¡¯t Long Chen¡¯s goal. When the steel golem was knocked down by the collision, his ws pierced through the center of the runes. At this moment, he used all of his power to pierce deeply into the steel golem¡¯s heart!


    ¡°That¡¯s right! Grab the object that is radiating heat and pull it out!¡±


    Following Xiao Xi¡¯s instructions, Long Chen pierced the heart of the steel golem with his ws. Very quickly, he felt a hot stone before he unhesitantly pulled it out!


    During the extraction, the previously fiendish steel golem momentarily let out a human-like wail and pleaded.


    Long Chen hit its weak spot, against something that originally didn¡¯t live, he was merciless. He directly extracted it and retreated. At this moment, the steel golem suddenly copsed on the ground helplessly, without any further movements!


    ¡°I have gotten my first steel heart!¡±


    Long Chen nced at the steel heart in his hand and discovered that it was simr to a warm deity jade like of stone, containing nature¡¯s spiritual energy.


    However, other than the natural spiritual energy of the steel heart, there were still other auras!


    Long Chen immediately ced the steel of heart into his cosmos pouch. The three remaining steel golems already started nging as they charged towards Long Chen!


    ¡°With such a formidable power, but terribly rigid movements, how will you be a match for your father, I?¡±


    With the experience of killing one of the steel golems, Long Chen moved towards the others


    ¡°If it is three against one, it will indeed be a little troublesome. I won¡¯t be able to use my full strength, but¡­¡­¡±


    Long Chen had moved behind one of the steel golems in a sh. The golem suddenly turned around and threw a punch but Long Chen moved like a lizard that was stuck to its back. Long Chen used his ws to pierce the heart of the steel golem from behind. After he retrieved the steel heart, the other two steel golems had just started to turn around!


    ¡°What Xiaoxi said was right. I have overwhelming agility and sharp ws that have granted me an extremely great advantage in this round of selection. If it were others who haven¡¯t trained their body, they wouldn¡¯t dare to fight the steel golem head on and only use martial techniques to attack them. However, it would also be extremely difficult to hit the weak spot of the steel golems! Thus, their speed won¡¯t be able to match mine!¡±


    Thinking about Huang Xiang, Long Chen gaze turned icy.


    ¡°Huang Xiang trained in the Huang grade core technique. If he has a sharp knife, it will be extremely easy for him to kill the steel golems. No wonder he had spent time to train in core techniques. The reason being that he had associates in the Lingwu family, so he had some advantages!¡±


    The other two steel golems followed the same pattern copsing under Long Chen¡¯s feet. At this moment, the battle had already rmed the other steel golems.


    ¡°Be careful, the steel golems in the area are charging towards you!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I need to run across to the other side of the tunnel in half an hour¡¯s time. It seems that it will be suitable for me to ughter them over there. By then, the time limit will be almost up and it¡¯s also convenient for me to leave!¡±


    Saying which, Long Chen rapidly moved towards the depths of the tunnel. After killing a couple of the steel golems, Long Chen had gradually found a method to deal with the steel golems quickly. First, he collided with the steel golem and wed them and then, in his second move, he went behind the steel golem and wed them. These were extremely sessful moves to deal with the steel golems!


    Under the continuous barrage of attacks from the ever increasing steel golems, Long Chen was able to deal with them at ease, just by using those two moves!


    Walking into a vast hemispherical area, Long Chen already saw the same big iron door. However, it was densely packed with steel golems!


    At a nce, Long Chen had discovered that there were, at least, hundred of them!


    ¡°The Lingwu Family has really spent a lot in this. They used this many steel golems to test only one person. There¡¯s a total of 50 of us. I wonder just howrge the total number of steel puppets are.¡±


    ¡°28¡±


    ¡°I have already gathered 28 steel hearts along the way. There are still three minutes before the thirty minutes time limit. There¡¯s enough time, so I will destroy these steel golems and also practice my closebat skills!¡±


    During the battle with the steel golems, Long Chen found out that his closebat skills were still somewhatcking.


    During the process of training, it could be said that he had switched to something he wasn¡¯t used to. When he was young, he trained daily. However, he had put that aside for quite sometime, so he had forgotten some basic moves. There were currently many steel golems, so they could be used as perfect training targets!


    Long Chen became like a wolf that entered a flock of sheep. He was like a red phantom who frantically killed the steel golems!


    Long Chen was so engrossed in the killing that he didn¡¯t pay attention to the time. It was only until Xiao Xi suddenly said, ¡°Hey! There isn¡¯t much time to the half an hour limit. Don¡¯t you want to head out already?¡±


    Only then, did Long Chen stop and check his cosmos pouch. He smiled bitterly and said, ¡°With a total of 105 steel hearts, I wonder if it is possible to reach the top ten with that.¡±

 Chapter 73 – Canola Grass

    In one of the nine outer ns of the Lingwu Family, at the Green Sun Branch of the Green Faction¡¯s gathering point outside the city, there was a Mountain of Trials. Both sides of the Mountain of Trials had dozens of steel doors, and outside of the obscured steel doors, there was a vast open field. At that moment, there were a number of people sitting in a row, coolly looking at the Mountain of Trials.


    To begin with, there were no sounds of activity on this side of the Mountain of Trials, but half an hourter, the steel doors were gradually pushed open by people. Each and every one¡¯s clothing was disheveled, there were even people whose body had suffered serious injuries, alling out from inside the tunnel. When they saw the sunshine outside, regardless of how severely injured they were, all of them appeared excited.


    At this moment, Huang Feiyang saw that a dozen or more people had alreadye out. Suddenly, he raised his eyebrows toward a youth who was next to him¡ª a man who was younger than him¡ª andmanded, ¡°You go and give the Can Grass to those who are seriously hurt, and let them recover. ¡±


    At once, the youth agreed and left to do his bidding.


    Only then did Huang Feiyang change his sights to the youth sitting on his other side, andughed, saying, ¡°Brother Wen, half of the time is already over, isn¡¯t it? This round¡¯s participants are not that bad huh, almost 20 people came out. There were more than 10 people who withdrew, that is to say, only a dozen or so died. ¡±


    Wen Ya nced over all the people who had alreadye out and said, ¡°There is only a little time left. When the time is up, immediately lock those doors. At that time, those who did not die will certainly die. The Lingwu Family isn¡¯t to be entered that easily. ¡±


    ¡°Oh! By the way, Brother Huang, that younger brother of yours is pretty good. It looks like he is not at all injured and his achievements should be among the best. Others appear more or less injured. ¡±


    Speaking of Huang Xiang, Huang Feiyang , who was rarely proud, said, ¡°From our childhood, my younger brother¡¯s character has always resembled mine, he is tenacious and hard-working. It is likely that his future aplishments would almost match mine. ¡±


    Wen Ya nodded his head, muttering to himself for a time, then he said, ¡°Time is almost up, can we lock the gates now and then count the steel hearts?¡±


    Huang Feiyang looked at his younger brother. This time, Huang Xiang turned to face him and gave him a reassuring look so he nodded at him with a smile.


    Huang Xiang looked at each and every one of the 20 people who had passed and when he did not find Long Chen¡¯s figure, he frowned and said, ¡°In Yuanyang Citadel, I saw that his physical strength was pretty good, capable of resisting my [Wheel Of Radiance]. It makes no sense that he perished inside without passing the first trial¡­.¡±


    By this time, the Lingwu Family¡¯s men had already begun to seal the steel doors. Huang Xiang grudgingly smiled and said, ¡°Huang Xiang, oh Huang Xiang, you have overestimated others! Your only opponents are the geniuses from the four Inner Factions. A small person from a small area is simply not worthy of you being bothered about him¡­.¡±


    Then Huang Xiang shifted his gaze and kept looking at the experts from Lingwu Family. He did not continue to think about Long Chen.


    Apparently he considered Long Chen¡¯s death inside the mountain to be normal.


    And at that moment Liu Fengfeng looked everywhere including behind him. When he saw that Long Chen still hadn¡¯te out, he immediatelyughed and mocked, ¡°If you had sensibly withdrawn earlier, all would have been well. But if you died in that ce, then you can only me yourself for not listening to this older brother¡¯s advice. You also cannot me others for this, I noticed your temper beforehand and knew that you would die inside!¡±


    Thinking of the steel hearts that he had obtained, Liu Fengfeng was very satisfied.


    ¡°Altogether, I have 23 steel hearts; that should be sufficient for me to enter the top 10, right?¡±


    Thinking of those terrifying steel golems within the passage, Liu Fengfeng took in an involuntary breath of cold air. If he hadn¡¯t sufficiently prepared in advance, he¡¯d have been finished.


    ¡°More than half of my Qi has been used up. In the second trial, I may not have an easy time..¡­. ¡±


    Liu Fengfeng sized up the surrounding peoples, but he saw that each and everyone appeared as miserable as him. He immediately felt at ease and muttered, ¡°These people and I are more or less in the same boat. I still have a chance!¡±


    At this moment, seeing that each and every one of the steel doors has been locked, Huang Feiyang stood up, preparing to announce the end of the first trial, when all of a sudden, a door which was about to be sealed opened with a bang. The people who were about to seal the door were blown back several steps, and with frustrated expressions they looked inside. They hadn¡¯t anticipated someone woulde out at the veryst moment.


    Making such a forceful entrance suddenly drew everyone¡¯s attention towards the door.


    At this moment, a figure became more and more distinct from within the dark tunnel. When they saw that the figure emerging from the tunnel was an unexpected yet unfamiliar young face, they were all stupefied.


    However, for Huang Xiang and Liu Fengfeng, they both suffered from a greater shock.


    Liu Fengfeng was rather speechless. His head rolled back and forth for a while before he finally epted the truth.


    ¡°He actually lucked out, and managed to escape at thest moment? However, with his abilities, I reckon he wouldn¡¯t have many steel hearts, so there¡¯s nothing great about it even if he came out. ¡±


    He thought that way originally, but seeing that Long Chen was unscathed, he was unable to exin why. Therefore, his brows furrowed as he said, ¡°Could it be that the tunnel he was in did not have as many steel golems?¡±


    Seeing Long Chene out, Huang Xiang coldly looked at him, but then he thought, ¡°For a person that could withstand my move, he should have a certain level of talent. Since you did not die in there, that is great. After a while, you will know what death is. I hope the steel hearts in your hands can get you into the top 10!¡±


    Just after he came out, looking at the many people gathered, Long Chen was in shock and promptly joined the group as he thought, ¡°Truly frightening! Actually, I¡¯d been so engrossed in fighting that if I were a little slower, it would have ended tragically!¡±


    Long Chen smirked at Huang Xiang¡¯s gaze which was full of murderous intent.


    Seeing that Long Chen still dared to face him, Huang Xiang scornfully thought ¡°Is this because I killed your horse? Is that something worth being angry about? After I have killed you, then you will know that the matter previously was insignificant¡­.¡±


    As Long Chen merged into the crowd, people could clearly see his appearance. Still, they lost interest to observe him any further. At that moment, Liu Fengfeng ran over to pat Long Chen on his shoulder as heughed and said, ¡°Well doned! Actually, you¡¯ve exceeded my expectations. Coming out alive, is not bad at all. How many steel hearts did you gain?¡±


    Looking at this person, Long Chen could only smile bitterly and shake his head.


    Liu Fengfeng, who looked as if he had expected this reply, cheerfully said, ¡°Never mind, even if you didn¡¯t obtain any steel hearts, it is alright. At least, you sustained no injuries. You¡¯ll still have an opportunity at the next Yuandi City¡¯s selection!¡±


    While Liu Fengfeng was harping on, Huang Xiang and Long Chen looked daggers at each other. However, it was seen by Huang Feiyang. Huang Feiyang frowned while staring at Long Chen and muttered, ¡°Does Ah Xiang[1] and this kid have a conflict? Good brat, you¡¯re clearly aware that I am here, yet you still dare to offend a person from my Huang Family. Your guts aren¡¯t small.¡±


    [TL Note[1]: An endearing term ¨C Refers to Huang Xiang]


    He¡¯d originally thought to announce that, because of Long Chen¡¯s slight dy, he would lose the qualification to enter the second trial. But before he could, Wen Ya who was beside him, announced, ¡°Well done. Now, all of you please get in a row, and each and everyone shall hand over your steel hearts! ¡±


    As Wen Ya spoke, Huang Feiyang didn¡¯t want to contradict him. Instead, thought to himself, ¡°Never mind, even if you can enter the top 10, I will make you suffer soon. ¡±


    He sat down, and on his desk, he flipped through the registration book to read Long Chen¡¯s profile.


    ¡°Long Chen,es from¡­.. Por Town¡¯s Yang Family, a Beast Warrior, in the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. The Beast Spirit Origin is the Underground Blood Lizard of the Dragon Pulse Realm? It¡¯s only at this level, yet Ah Xiang[1] hasn¡¯t eliminated him. It seems like the cultivation Ah Xiang did for all these years is stillcking. ¡±


    At this time, Wen Ya was already registering the number of steel hearts handed in by each warrior.


    ¡°Chen Wenlong, 18 pieces!¡±


    ¡°Qing Xu, 29 pieces!¡±


    ¡°Xiao Yan, 8 pieces!¡±


    About 20 people, one by one, approached Wen Ya and took out the steel hearts within their cosmos pouches. After waiting anxiously for some time, Liu Fengfeng patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°You wait here, I will first go to hand over the steel hearts!¡±


    Very quickly, his oue was announced.


    ¡°Liu Fengfeng, 23 hearts!¡±


    Liu Fengfeng proudly came before Long Chen and said excitedly, ¡°So far, my quantity of steel hearts puts me in 9th ce! I see that the rest of the people, except for Huang Xiang, were all severely injured. I guess, this time, my total of steel hearts has unexpectedly gotten me a position in the top 10, the heavens are indeed smiling upon me!¡±


    While he spoke, Huang Xiang gave Long Chen a provoking stare, as he walked over to Wen Ya. Looking at the younger brother of his good friend, Wen Ya smiled cheerfully and said, ¡°Are you Huang Xiang? Come, take out your steel hearts, and let us see what you¡¯ve got! ¡±


    Huang Feiyang looked at his younger brother with an indulgent expression, and said, ¡°During my selection, I got 58 steel hearts and our Elder Brother Wen Ya did better than me and retrieved 67 steel hearts. Currently, the highest number of steel hearts is 41. Ah Xiang, do you have any chance to get the first position?¡±


    Huang Xiang confidentlyughed and said, ¡°You¡¯ll just have to count them to find out. ¡±


    Whileughing, a huge amount of dazzling steel hearts poured out from his Cosmos Pouch. Seeing the rest of the participants gasp, even Wen Ya and Huang Feiyang disyed their approval of him!


    Liu Fengfeng paled, and said, ¡°I underestimated Huang Xiang¡¯s ability. The number of steel hearts should be more than 60! This means, that Huang Xiang¡¯s ranking would be 1st, and I will be ranked 10th. However, that is not bad, I can still enter the second trial¡­¡­¡±


    While Wen Ya was precisely counting, he suddenlyughed and said, ¡°Not bad kid, certainly not bad. 68 steel hearts. He got one more steel heartpared to what I got in the past.¡±


    Huang Feiyang was gratified as he looked at his brother¡¯s aplishment.


    He looked at Huang Xiang and nodded. Just then Huang Xiang opened his mouth to say something, Huang Feiyang looked and saw Long Chen standing not too far behind Huang Xiang, and he immediately understood Huang Xiang¡¯s intention.


    Therefore, he nodded.


    Then only did Huang Xiang leave. During this time, those who were seriously injured and applied the healing medicines walked over one by one. Not exceeding Liu Fengfeng¡¯s expectations, their achievements seldom exceeded 10 hearts. Looking around, Liu Fengfeng drew back the corners of his mouth in a smile.


    ¡°Great, I¡¯m barely in the tenth ce, but it was really close¡­¡­¡±


    Looking at him rejoicing, Long Chen felt the irony as he was the only one left to hand over his steel hearts.


    Seeing Long Chen approach Wen Ya, Liu Fengfeng was startled and muttered, ¡°Could it be that this boy was able to obtain some steel hearts?¡±

 Chapter 74 – Fiery Battle!

    ¡°State your name.¡±


    ncing at Long Chen, Wen Ya looked down and fiddled with the pen in his hand.


    ¡°Long Chen.¡±


    Wen Ya nodded his head. After finding Long Chen¡¯s name on the list, he spoke inly, ¡°Show us the steel hearts that you have acquired!¡±


    Long Chen gave a slight nod. He could feel Huang Feiyang¡¯s cold gaze on him but he wasn¡¯t bothered by it at all.


    Currently, only Long Chen was left and unless there were some unexpected events, the top ten was already determined.


    Liu Fengfeng managed to ce within the top ten through luck. Right now, he was looking at Long Chen with a mix of excitement and anticipation written on his face, waiting to see if Long Chen could produce a single steel heart out.


    As for Huang Xiang, he had a far more serious gaze as he really wanted Long Chen to enter top ten so he could vent his anger.


    ¡°I hope you have acquired at least 23 hearts!¡±


    Even if it was only 23 pieces, Long Chen was younger than Liu Fengfeng. With that taken into ount, Liu Fengfeng might be knocked out of thepetition due to Long Chen.


    After Wen Ya gave the instructions, he looked even more closely at Long Chen¡¯s cosmos pouch. At this moment, steel hearts after steel hearts began to appear in Long Chen¡¯s hands. Seeing the sheer number of steel hearts, Liu Fengfeng¡¯s jaw dropped.


    ¡°He was really able to acquire some steel hearts, and the number isn¡¯t less than ten. Uh¡­¡±


    He was quite surprised initially but, after seeing the never ending stream of steel hearts appearing from Long Chen¡¯s cosmos pouch, his previously rxed expression turned more serious with each passing second and soon his body began to tremble.


    As the number of steel hearts on the table noticeably surpassed 23 pieces, Liu Fengfeng¡¯splexion turned deathly pale as he red at Long Chen¡¯s back. Before long, his eyes gradually turned bloodshot with rage!


    ¡°Long Chen¡­ How? This can¡¯t be right! He¡¯s just a country bumpkin from some backwater town. How could he surpass me? I was born and raised in Yuanling City.¡±


    Liu Fengfeng¡¯s gaze was filled with disbelief. He even roughly rubbed his eyes but still he wasn¡¯t able to change the cold hard reality in front of him.


    Seeing that Long Chen managed to bring out more than 23 steel hearts, both Wen Ya and Huang Feiyang were surprised, and looked at Long Chen more seriously., Huang Xiang was finally able to heave a sigh of relief. He sniggered inwardly: ¡°Surpassing 23 pieces will qualify you for the second round. You¡¯re the person who is seeking death so don¡¯t me me for it.¡±


    However, the amount of steel hearts Long Chen held kept rising. Everyone¡¯s focus had already shifted over to him while their jaws momentarily dropped in surprise.


    Everyone¡¯s gazes became stunned, especially when the amount of steel hearts Long hen produced was reaching into the fifties. Wen Ya¡¯s and Huang Feiyang¡¯s gazes towards Long Chen had also changed a lot.


    In regards of Huang Xiang, his brows slowly frowned. He originally thought that reaching first ce was an already done deal. But right now it seemed like he might be surpassed!


    The thought that he might lose to Long Chen made his anger soar through the roof.


    He had already let Long Chen off the hook once; if Long Chen still didn¡¯t know better, his murderous intent would only increase further.


    ¡°Not bad kiddo!¡±


    Seeing nearly 60 steel hearts, even Wen Ya was beaming at Long Chen.


    Huang Feiyang seemed indifferent but the amount of steel hearts Long Cheng produced kept rising. The others were already shocked numb by what they saw. Especially Liu Fengfeng, who felt as if his head was spinning.


    On the other hand, Huang Xiang was tightly clenching his fists, because the amount of steel hearts Long Chen had was about to go beyond his!


    In fact, within an instant, the amount had already surpassed his. Huang Xiang¡¯splexion turned scarlet immediately. He red at Long Chen, who stole his first ce away from him. Hatred slowly festered in his heart.


    ¡°This time, you must be eliminated! If I don¡¯t kill you, I will suffer difort for the entire year. Whoever offends me won¡¯t be able to escape the fate of death!¡±


    Everyone looked at Long Chen with a shocked expression. Seeing Long Chen finally put away his cosmos sack, the resulting heap of steel hearts in front of him wasrger than Huang Xiang¡¯s. By now, everyone¡¯s gazes towards him werepletely different!


    Wen Ya burst outughing: ¡°A total of 75 steel hearts, making your results the best this selection. But you are a beast warrior which gives you an advantage. These results aren¡¯t considered extraordinary. In the past, every time a beast warrior entered thepetition, they would always produce great results!¡±


    Long Chen had actually acquired 105 pieces of steel hearts. Since he had already gotten the top position, he held onto some of them.


    As Wen Ya announced Long Chen¡¯s amount of steel hearts, Liu Fengfeng wasn¡¯t able to stand steadily and had already copsed onto the ground.


    Shortly, the top ten for this round of selection was already extremely clear. They all knew that Long Chen was the undisputed number one and Huang Xiang was second while Liu Fengfeng was forced out of the top ten positions.


    Excluding the top ten people, everyone else lost their rights to further participate in the Lingwu Family selection.


    Thus with a cold sweep of his gaze, Wen Ya said with a frosty tone: ¡°Those who failed to make it into top ten shall leave this ce immediately. You will have a chance during the next Lingwu family outer ns¡¯ selection!¡±


    Liu Fengfeng, whose head was spinning, was carried out. Before he left, he was still staring intently at Long Chen, unable to figure out why and how such an event had urred.


    Among the crowd of martial artists that came to partake in the selections, exactly ten people remained.


    ¡°You should all take a rest, we will soon start the second round of the selections, which will be¡­¡±


    Wen Ya looked around and spoke softly: ¡°One versus one battle. Our rules are quite simple. When the timees, we will separate you into five groups. In each group, two people will fight each other. Whoever wins will be a part of my Lingwu Family. Do you understand?¡±


    Long Chen and the others nodded immediately.


    At the moment, Huang Xiang¡¯s line of sight was solely directed on Long Chen. Even Wen Ya could feel the baleful aura that was emitted from Huang Xiang¡¯s body.


    He frowned before looking again at Huang Feiyang¡¯s indifferent look. He decided not to mention it before he said directly: ¡°In fifteen minutes, your opponents will be announced. You should all make your preparations!¡±


    Upon this field, there was arge fighting stage. It appeared to be an arena for battles.


    At this moment, Huang Feiyang and the others were discussing among themselves, while Long Chen and the rest of the top ten people were hastily treating their wounds in preparation for the uing battle.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t need to make any preparations. He nced at Huang Xiang and saw him staring back. The murderous glint in his eyes was obvious.


    ¡°Obnoxious fly, today you will finally meet your end!¡± Huang Xiang said coldly.


    ¡°Wow, this little yellow dog unexpectedly speaks the human tongue. So scary.¡±


    [TL Note: Yellow (»Æ) refers to the Huang in Huang Xiang¡¯s name.]


    Long Chen pretended to sound like a woman, making the surrounding people feel repulsed by him. But for Huang Xiang, it was an enormous p in the face.


    He instantly tightly balled up his fists. If the Lingwu Family people weren¡¯t present, he would¡¯ve already charged up to Long Chen to im his life.


    ¡°You will probably be unable tough after hearing who is your opponent ister. The Lingwu Family is my turf. There is no room for you here.¡±


    While people were resting, fifteen minutes passed swiftly.


    Right now, the pairing for the duels had already been set up by Wen Ya and his peers. Long Chen suddenly felt that both Huang Feiyang and Huang Xiang were giving him looks filled with malice.


    Looking at Huang Feiyang, Long Chen could already guess the result.


    Sure enough, as soon as it was announced. Long Chen found out that his opponent is Huang Xiang, plus it would also be thest battle.


    ¡°This must be Huang Xiang¡¯s doing right? I robbed him of his first ce finish so his current hatred towards me must be bone deep.¡±


    Seeing Huang Xiang¡¯s smug expression, Long Chen sniggered inwardly.


    ¡°When the timees, I will show you who is more powerful!¡±


    Presently, ording to Wen Ya¡¯s arrangement, two youths in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm had entered the stage and started fighting. They were both in the same realm as Founder Yang, but in reality, they were much more powerful.


    ¡°People of Yuanling City are all impressive, even in this tiny part of town.¡±


    From seeing the fight between these two people, Long Chen managed to gain some insight. As they were fighting, time passed gradually. Soon, the 5 spots for entering the Lingwu Family already had four names on it.


    Regarding the qualification for thest spot. It would be decided between Long Chen and Huang Xiang.


    Right now, everyone¡¯s gazes were upon Long Chen and Huang Xiang. Huang Xiang sneered towards Long Chen and headed into the arena first.


    Outside the arena, Wen Ya looked at Huang Xiang and Long Chen ring at each other. He then nced at Huang Feiyang who had a frosty look next to him before he shook his head with self-pity, thinking to himself: ¡®This Long Chen really is a good seedling, but he should never have offended Huang Xiang. It is such a shame that another talent will be ruined. If the deacon finds out that I¡¯ve cheated, I¡¯ll be in serious trouble!¡¯


    Generally speaking, there were rules to pairing these duels. It should be decided by cements during the first selection. It works as follows, first ce against thest ce. Second ce against the ninth ce and so on.


    Normally, during the first selection. whoever acquired the most steel hearts would also have stronger powers so the top five in collecting the steel hearts would be able to enter the Lingwu family. However, due to Huang Feiyang, Long Chen and Huang Xiang would face off against each other instead.


    Initially, both of them were qualified to enter Lingwu Family, but now only one of them could.


    ¡°Although this Long Chen was able to acquire more steel hearts, he still can¡¯t measure up to the Huang Family¡¯s skills. Even if it is just a Profound Grade martial technique, it will be enough to make Long Chen suffer.¡±


    Wen Ya was harbouring these thoughts as he gave Long Chen a nce filled with pity before announcing the start of battle!


    Huang Xiangughed Immediately: ¡°Kiddo, I bet you still remember the taste of my [Wheel Of Radiance] fromst time. So be it, today I will let you experience it again. I don¡¯t believe that, even if you managed to block it once, you can block it the second time!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s current aura kept rising steadily. Soon enough, in front of the shocked expressions from everyone, he once again went through [Dragon Soul Transformation]. His body was soon covered in scales and spikes, making everyone lock their brows.


    Long hen balled up his fist before he sneered: ¡°Since I can block that level of attack once, I most certainly can block it twice!¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    When Huang Xiang sneered, he had alreadyunched [Wheel Of Radiance] again.


    Just likest time, an incredibly powerful force flew from his body and pressed tyrannically against Long Chen.


    ¡°The same attack is meaningless against me!¡±


    Just likest time, Long Chen rapidly dashed towards Huang Xiang. Rays after rays of images of Dragon Gods was released by Long Chen. The roaring attack suddenly charged towards Huang Xiang.


    ¡°[Wheel Of Radiance]!¡±


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!¡±


    The sudden collision had made the expressions of Wen Ya and Huang Feiyang¡¯s face change a little.


    Seeing that the advanced Huang grade [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] was actually able to contest against his Huang family Profound grade martial technique, Huang Feiyang¡¯s face showed his disbelief.


    Wen Ya also bitterly smiled and shook his head. ¡°This Long Chen really gave me a surprise. But seeing this result, he still won¡¯t be able to escape death today¡­¡±

 Chapter 75 – [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]!

    The two figures collided with arge amount of momentum, and everyone was astonished that Long Chen had actually seeded in withstanding a move from Huang Xiang¡¯s Profound grade martial technique with just his Huang grade martial technique!


    The arena was immediately filled with loud mours.


    At that moment, both Long Chen and Huang Xiang had quickly retreated. Both of them were only able to steady their footsteps with great difficulty. Huang Xiang unexpectedly found thatpared to the previous time, he had actually retreated almost the same distance that Long Chen had.


    In other words, within the past few days Long Chen had made significant progress!


    To Huang Xiang, when these kind of people became his enemies, he would be extremely unhappy. His expression immediately turned sinister. He yelled at Long Chen, ¡°You have really pissed me off this time. I swear that you will definitely die this time!¡±


    However, Long Chen did not respond. After Huang Xiang had killed his Ebony Scaled Horse, Long Chen had already handed him a death sentence in his heart.


    Outside the arena, Wen Ya and Huang Feiyang looked at each other when they saw that Long Chen¡¯s unexpected use of the [Seal of the High Profound Dragon] had blocked Huang Xiang¡¯s [Wheel of Radiance], and they seemed to be matched evenly.


    ¡°Brother Huang, that youngster isn¡¯t simple.¡±


    Huang Feiyang coldly sneered and said, ¡°So what if he isn¡¯t simple? If he dares to offend my Huang family, he will still have to die. Ah Xiang told me earlier that he had already mastered that technique. Although he is still not very familiar with it, it is entirely sufficient to deal with this Long Chen!¡±


    ¡°That technique?¡±


    Wen Ya thought for a while and finally recalled what Huang Feiyang had said. With a wry smile, he said, ¡°Indeed, under the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], this kid won¡¯t be able to survive. You had to enter the initial phase of Human Dan Realm before you were able to use the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]. I did not expect Huang Xiang, who is at the 9th level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, would be capable of using it!¡±


    Huang Feiyang nodded, and said, ¡°In order to keep up with me, in these past few days, Ah Xiang has been secretly putting in great effort to achieve such results. I am really happy for him.¡±


    In that arena, the [Wheel of Radiance] was once again ineffective against Long Chen. Huang Xiang initially fumed, but very quickly, he grimly smiled and stood up. While he was attacking Long Chen, he sneered and said, ¡°You are able to deal with the [Wheel of Radiance]. But under this attack of mine, not even your corpse will be left. Boy, after you die, don¡¯t ever me it on me. If you have to me someone, just me it on your bad luck that you ran into me.¡±


    Sensing that the aura on Huang Xiang¡¯s body had changed, Long Chen¡¯s heart was secretly in shock.


    ¡°Will it be a much stronger attack than the [Wheel of Radiance]? ¡±


    After all, the [Wheel of Radiance] was very powerful, and Long Chen clearly knew that. Last time, when he battled with Huang Xiang, he had been defeated by this Profound grade martial technique. However, after he had gotten the Profound grade martial technique, [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] ¡­.


    ¡°You have a more powerful martial technique. However, I also have stronger moves. This time, let us finally see who is stronger. You, or I, Long Chen! ¡±


    At that moment, outside the arena, Huang Feiyang¡¯s gaze froze, and he smiled and said, ¡°Ah Xiang is really going to use the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]!¡±


    Just as Huang Feiyang¡¯s voice sounded, Huang Xiang, who was within the arena, sneered. Suddenly, the Qi inside his body frantically surged outwards. It seemed to have formed a few of whirlwinds, which were rapidly revolving around him.


    Within a split second, a vague, ck and white colored tadpole-like rune formed a wheel of light on Huang Xiang¡¯s body.


    He charged towards Long Chen. It was an earth-shattering power that would make people feel suffocated. Although he sensed his opponent¡¯s extremely powerful aura, Long Chen wasn¡¯t discouraged!


    ¡°This move, whenpared to the [Wheel of Radiance], should be at least 10 times stronger!¡±


    Huang Xiang¡¯s normally impassive face now transformed; his entire person seemed to have be like the overlord of heaven and earth, with both under his control. When the immensely profound attack gradually approached Long Chen, Long Chen momentarily found it difficult to move his body!


    ¡°That illusory wheel of rune and light is unexpectedly so strong¡­..but, if you have a Profound grade martial technique, why can¡¯t I have one?!¡±


    When Long Chen thought so, the blood-red colored Qi suddenly burst forth. It was as though he was burning up!


    A formless Qi wave appeared on Long Chen¡¯s body. It looked as though there was an invisible me that was burning his body!


    All the people present at the scene immediately felt the temperature of the whirlwind rising rapidly. Currently, it was already autumn, but due to Long Chen¡¯s presence, the temperature of the surroundings had even be much hotter than summer.


    ¡°This is¡­.¡± Wen Ya and the others were shocked.


    At this moment, Long Chen¡¯s eyes suddenly opened, and his blood-red pupils resembled a zing fire. There was a tremendous aura that was emitted from his body, giving off a zing aura.


    In everyone¡¯s point of view, Long Chen had be a sturdy statue of Yang element with endless abilities.


    [TL Note: Yin and Yang element. Yang often represents the masculine force; it is strong, warm, forceful, active, bright, and creative.


    A wave of heat rushed indiscriminately towards everyone. This time, everyone was astonished to see that a blood-red colored me was rapidly forming on his right fist.


    This blood-red colored me was faintly quivering, fuelling Long Chen¡¯s body, and causing his body to slightly vibrate. From this, one could see that Long Chen¡¯s control over this attack was not very proficient. However, whenpared to him, Huang Xiang was even worse. That ck and white rune light wheel trembled so greatly that Huang Xiang was unable to even control it!


    ¡°Die! [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]! ¡±


    Being unable topletely control it, Huang Xiang could only barely form the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] before he charged towards Long Chen¡¯s attack. However, Long Chen¡¯s aura was not weaker than Huang Xiang¡¯s!


    By that time, the blood-red colored me hadpletely covered Long Chen¡¯s fist. Looking at Huang Xiang¡¯s rapidly rotating [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed coldly as he immediately rushed forward, howling and throwing out his fist!


    Boom!


    Immediately, the blood-red me exploded with a loud bang, exploding against the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] and engulfing it.


    ¡°[Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist]¡­ [Scarlet mes Burning Heavens]! ¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen¡¯s attack rapidly rose to its peak. Originally, it was still able to withstand [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]. However, when it actually exploded, the tremendous Qi instantly increased by several-fold.


    Initially, the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] that was extremely dazzling had turnedpletely dull andcked any brightness. Immediately after, Long Chen¡¯s strong, berserk punch thoroughly shattered the attack. With his crazed roar, it immediately stunned Huang Xiang!


    The violent attack immediately sent Huang Xiang flying. The turbulent power was constantly damaging his body. Huang Xiang violently spurted out a mouthful of blood, miserably falling down onto the ground while his entire face was covered in ck blood!


    His clothes were also burnt clean due to Long Chen¡¯s attack. Now, Huang Xiang was burnt ck all over his body, and the smell of cooked meat immediately wafted through the air. The source of this smell was naturally Huang Xiang, who was twitching.


    Huang Xiang¡¯s body hunched over in pain. Currently, he was hazily looking at Long Chen. After seeing that Long Chen was not injured in the least and that he himself was in such a tattered state instead, he simply felt as if he was dreaming and was totally unable to believe what had just happened.


    Moreover, due to the acute pain in his body, Huang Xiang¡¯s mouth started to foam before he fainted!


    He simply couldn¡¯t believe that the attack he was most confident in hadpletely lost under Long Chen¡¯s hand. Additionally, it was aplete defeat!


    He had always mocked Long Chen as a person from a small town who did not have any decent martial techniques. However, the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] that Long Chen used just now was like a fierce p to him!


    Seeing Huang Xiang¡¯s present condition, the remaining 8 participatingpetitors panted as if theycked air, keeping quiet out of fear.


    They all were rejoicing that they hadn¡¯t be Long Chen¡¯s opponent. Otherwise, they would have been the one that was copsed on the ground, not knowing if they would be able to survive the attack.


    Upon seeing this scene, Wen Ya¡¯s lips and teeth were both trembling. He was shocked, seeing that Long Chen was still standing in the arena. He shivered uncontrobly and unexpectedly wasn¡¯t able to say a single word.


    ¡°He¡­..defeated Huang Xiang¡¯s [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]? How is it possible? He is only at the 8th level of the Dragon Pulse Realm! Could it be that this Long Chen is unexpectedly that talented? ¡±


    At this time, after he had just used the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], Long Chen currently felt that his body was void of strength. A weary feeling immediately spread all over his body.


    [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] was an intermediate Profound grade martial technique. He was still at the 8th level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but had used martial techniques like those used by an expert of the Human Dan Realm, so it was only natural that it consumed veryrge amounts of his strength!


    At this moment, Long Chen waspletely spent.


    After having just defeated Huang Xiang, if he didn¡¯t have any time to recover, Long Chen knew that he would be in deep trouble.


    As expected, just when he had defeated Huang Xiang, an enormous aura suddenly appeared not far from him!


    At this moment, Long Chen was simply unable to resist this aura. In a twinkle of an eye, it had approached beside Long Chen. Currently, Long Chen had only the tiniest amount of Qi left in his body, which was not at all sufficient to resist this attack!


    Even if he was in peak condition, he still would not have been able topletely block the attacks of this person. Huang Feiyang!


    After seeing that his brother was defeated to such a miserable state, his eyes immediately became red. He immediately seeked revenge, and even Wen Ya wasn¡¯t able to stop him!


    Previously, Xue Yuanzi¡¯s attack had caused Ling Xi to consume 3 stalks of Dream Spirit Grass, so Long Chen¡¯s only reaction now was to use his hand to firmly grasp onto the Lingxi Sword!


    Lingxi, who was within the Lingxi Sword, was already was so anxious that her face paled, but Long Chen was covering his whole ear with his palm. If she were to be released from the Lingxi Sword, it would be at the cost of impaling Long Chen¡¯s palm!


    It was not possible for Lingxi to hurt Long Chen, so with that moment of hesitation, she had already lost the opportunity to help Long Chen!


    By that time, Huang Feiyang¡¯s attack had already arrived in front of Long Chen.


    Within the Lingxi sword, Lingxi was so anxious that she started tearing up!


    ¡°Bastard, take your hands off! Take it off! ¡±


    Despite her heart-rending yells, Long Chen did not respond whatsoever.


    She was aware that Long Chen knew that she could only live for a few months. If Lingxi were to help him again, she most likely wouldn¡¯t be able to live anymore. Long Chen would rather die than to see her sacrifice herself for him!


    Ever since the battle for the Soul Diffusion Fruit where Lingxi had helped him once, Long Chen already calcted in his mind. He knew that in the future without sufficient spirit healing medicines, he absolutely could not allow Lingxi to help him anymore. Thus, he thought of this strategy, to use his palm to cover his ears!


    At this moment, Long Chen was only able to cover his ear before he was struck and sent flying by Huang Feiyang¡¯s attack.


    This was when Long Chen was even in [Dragon Soul Transformation]. The first time he faced off against this attack squarely, he did not doubt that he would die from that attack. However, after forcibly taking Huang Feiyang¡¯s attack head on, he realised that although he was in severe excruciating pain and his body seemed to have fallen apart like a broken kite, he was still some distance away from death¡¯s door!


    ¡°The resistance of these dragon scales are actually so strong?¡±


    This unexpected reward had left Long Chen in glee. However, the punch from Huang Feiyang still made him directly spurt out a mouthful of blood. He obviously had received severe internal injuries!


    He crashed into the floor with a huge bang. Long Chen discovered that his hands and feet were already rigid. Although Huang Feiyang did not kill him with that strike, it had at least caused him to lose all of his fighting powers.


    He would definitely die under another attack!


    At this moment, Huang Feiyang had rapidly charged at him like a whirlwind!

 Chapter 76 – Lady Enforcer!

    ¡°Long Chen has vited the rules for thispetition. I hereby dere that he has lost the right to enter the Lingwu Family.¡±


    Huang Feiyang¡¯s voice echoed faintly.


    Even though he¡¯d received one of Huang Feiyang¡¯s powerful moves and survived, Long Chen couldn¡¯t feel any satisfaction!


    Currently, it was impossible for Huang Feiyang to let him off the hook. Long Chen¡¯s hands had been blown away from his ears due to the impact of his attack, so Lingxi coulde out at any moment now.


    Suddenly Long Chen yelled with great force: ¡°Lingxi,e back here! If not, I will hate you to my death!¡±


    Currently, Lingxi was already in motion. Even though she heard Long Chen¡¯s anxious words, she didn¡¯t listen.


    To her, Long Chen was on the verge of death; this was the only thing on her mind!


    ¡°Lingxi! I beg you. Please listen to me, okay?!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s heart-rending voice wasn¡¯t able to make Lingxi return!


    At the moment, Huang Feiyang has already arrived in front of Long Chen. With rage filled eyes, he immediately attacked Long Chen a second time.


    By now, Lingxi had already prepared to leave Long Chen¡¯s ear to shield him!


    In just the nick of time, a cold female voice suddenly spoke out. Huang Feiyang, who was originally on top of Long Chen, was suddenly blown away. After he retreated a few steps, he looked up with an ashen face towards the new arrival.


    Initially, his face was filled with fury, but after seeing who hade, he trembled with fear and hurriedly said: ¡°Disciple Huang Feiyang, greets the Enforcer.¡±


    Wen Ya who was standing to the side, likewise bowed towards the neer.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know the identity of the new arrival. But, he had already recovered a little and was barely able to stand up. Lingxi, who was originally nning to intervene, saw that Long Chen had received assistance. She sighed in relief and didn¡¯t take any further actions.


    ¡°Just wait and see how I will deal with you when we return!¡±


    After Long Chen gave Lingxi a serious fright, he endured the tremendous pain in his body as he gritted his teeth and tried to stand up.


    Although his body was barely holding up, Long Chen still looked towards the neer.


    Ahead, a group of people walked towards them.


    Each person gave off an extraordinary aura. Their strength eclipsed Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya by arge margin, especially that woman amidst them. She even made Long Chen narrow his eyes.


    The lone woman amongst the young men seemed to attract the most attention. She was wearing a crimson gown framing her delicate features. Her snow white skin, her enchanting smile, her stride entuating the graceful yet well-developed curves of her lush figure, attracted the attention of every man.


    When the 8petitors were suddenly confronted with such a beauty, they immediately swallowed their saliva and stared at her with widened eyes.


    Amongst the beauties Long Chen had seen, Lingxi and Yang Lingqing both seemed immature inparison. This woman embodied apletely different charm; every motion and every quirk of the lips was filled with maturity, intellect, and elegance. It would be extremely difficult for an ordinary man to resist her.


    The phrase ¡®peerless beauty¡¯ came unbidden to Long Chen.


    However, right now, his body was hurting all over, so he was in no mood to flirt with the woman. Moreover, with her abnormal strength, she wasn¡¯t someone he could flirt with, even if he wanted to.


    Therefore, Long Chen put up an innocent wounded teenager front, as he stared coldly at Huang Feiyang while biting his lower lip.


    Long Chen was handsome, and coupled with his innocent yet wild and untamed appearance; he had immediately attracted the attention of the beauty.


    Long Chen was just 16 years old and still had the appearance of a youngster, with blood running from the corners of his mouth. When the woman saw him, it made her heart ache slightly.


    She immediately swept his gaze towards Huang Feiyang. With an expression as if she was holding back a smile on her wless face, she asked him: ¡°Huang Feiyang, exin yourself.¡±


    The woman¡¯s voice was soft yet charming. Long Chen suddenly felt his heart stir. Remembering that Lingxi was still in his ear, he momentarily deted like a balloon and stopped looking at her.


    Her tone seemed to be one of total indifference, but Huang Feiyang knew that this was when the Enforcer was at her most terrifying state. He immediately replied sincerely: ¡± Enforcer, it¡¯s like this. Originally, these two were about tomence thest battle to decide who would enter our Lingwu family. That youth named Long Chen was being ruthless. Even though he was already victorious, but he still pursued and even wanted to kill his opponent. This is against the rules, and that¡¯s why I think he should be disqualified!¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    That woman looked at Long Chen with her beautiful eyes before smiling faintly and said with a nonchnt tone: ¡°Huang Feiyang, you tell me this. Since when did our Lingwu family have a rule against killing their opponents? On the contrary, we encourage killing¡­.¡±


    Hearing her words, Huang Feiyang¡¯splexion changed, and he was about to argue. The woman¡¯s gaze suddenly intensified, staring at him. Immediately he began to feel like he was being suffocated. His face paled and he couldn¡¯t utter a single word.


    Long Chen was startled. This woman could at most be 27 or 28 years old, but her cultivation had already reached a state unattainable by Huang Feiyang. Long Chen was astonished by her charm and beauty, but now her cultivation level had made him even more impressed.


    ¡°That fellow is your younger brother right?¡±


    Her voice was like a poisonous snake that was transmitted into Huang Feiyang¡¯s ears. Huang Feiyang¡¯s forehead immediately broke out in a cold sweat. He didn¡¯t dare breathe a single word. Hisplexion just turned even paler, and his body started to shake.


    That woman¡¯s smile was inviting, with a charm that evoked an extraordinary desire, but to Huang Feiyang, it seemed like a nightmare.


    ¡°Under the jurisdiction of me, Liu Lan, you dare disregard the rules. Are you not afraid to be sent to Star Fiend Prison?¡±


    The almost inaudible voice had frightened Huang Feiyang silly. Seeing Huang Feiyang quivering, Liu Lan straightened her waist and giggled with a charming grace. She waved her hands and said: ¡®I was just kidding. I just wanted to scare you. Don¡¯t do it again, ok? You can all scram now¡­.¡±


    Wen Ya was also angry, but was afraid to voice his opinion. After hearing Liu Lan¡¯s words, he rxed and immediately pulled the stunned Huang Feiyang with him, and said: ¡°Thank you, Enforcer, for your leniency. We will leave immediately!¡±


    Liu Lan didn¡¯t give them a second thought, she spoke to a youth beside her: ¡°Huang Feiyang is useless. You¡¯re to take these five of the faction¡¯s neers, arrange everything, and also impart them somemon knowledge. Most importantly, the Lingwu Family rules, understood?¡±


    That man immediately nodded his head and said: ¡°Yes, Enforcer Liu!¡±


    Liu Lan nodded, then swept her enchanting gaze towards Long Chen. She smiled sweetly and said: ¡°Take special care of that fellow for me. I will visit him aler tonight.¡±


    After giving her orders, she left with her entourage.


    Seeing her departing figure, Long Chen rxed his tense heart, but he wasn¡¯t able to forget the hatred-filled look that Huang Feiyang had given him before he left.


    ¡°I have arrived in Yuanling City and have created such enmity already. I must have been really bored. In the future, when I¡¯m in the Lingwu Family, I must be careful.¡±


    At this time, the man who had remained looked over at Long Chen and the four others. His gaze lingered slightly longer on Long Chen before he said: ¡°My name is Gan Lin. The Lingwu Family isparable to arge sect. We all operate under Enforcer Liu. In the future, you can call me Senior Brother Gan. Do you understand?¡±


    Long Chen and the others nodded.


    As Gan Lin saw that they were obedient, he was extremely satisfied and said: ¡°Why aren¡¯t you all introducing yourselves?¡±


    The five of them immediately reported their names and family background. Long Chen just repeated the information he gave during the enrollment for the Lingwu Family selection.


    Hearing that Long Chen was from a small town in Yuanling County, Gan Lin¡¯s eyes lit up with surprise andplimented: ¡°I saw your previous battle from afar; being this young anding from a small ce, and to have achieved this much, I really admire you!¡±


    The golden rule was to keep a low profile. Senior Brother Gan seemed quite approachable and he might need his help to settle a few problems in the future so Long Chen had decided to improve his rtionship with him and hastily said: ¡°I¡¯ve had a bit of luck but mostly it¡¯s because I¡¯ve practiced diligently since my childhood.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s answer was neither humble nor boastful and didn¡¯t include the clich¨¦s like ¡°You are too kind¡±. Gan Lin was very pleased with him. He patted Long Chen on the shoulders and said while smiling, ¡°Since you¡¯ve entered Lingwu Family, you should work hard. This is the real battlefield. People who have talent and a strong will are destined to shine, while those who arezy and depend on their parents or family background will all die miserably, just like that kid you had defeated.¡±


    After that, he looked at the others and said: ¡°I will now take you all to Lingwu City, at which I will give you jade cards that serve as identity tokens, and also inform you all on many things. If you encounter anything you don¡¯t understand, I will exin it all to you so as to avoid future mistakes that may cost you your lives.¡±


    Long Chen, like the others, nodded his head. Under Gan Lin¡¯s lead, they headed towards Lingwu City. That ce was the true stronghold of the Lingwu Family.


    Looking at Gan Lin¡¯s powerful figure ahead, remembering Xiao Lang, and thinking back to his encounter with Xiao Lang, Long Chen found himself deeply in thought.


    [TL NOTE: Xiao Lang (СÀÇ) ¨C Referring to (ĪСÀÇ) Mo Xiang/Lord Lang]


    ¡°This Lingwu Family is the ce for me. One could surmise from what Liu Lan and Gan Lin said, how intense the internalpetition is within Lingwu Family. The faction I joined is called the Green Sun Branch, and Enforcer Liu seems to be a big shot in the Green Sun Branch. Her strength is really terrifying. However, the Green Sun Branch is only a part of Green Faction. Aside from the Green Faction, there are also the other 8 great outer factions, the true Lingwu Family faction, and 4 great Inner factions¡­.¡°


    Long Chen was momentarily dumbfounded.


    ¡°Back at Yuanyang Citadel, I¡¯d only heard the Lingwu Family name, but didn¡¯t know how terrifying it was. The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is a nobody whenpared to them. The matter regarding the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is rted to the survival of Yang Family. If I don¡¯t improve as soon as possible, the Yang Family will be finished!¡±


    Long Chen felt an immense pressure.


    After following Gan Lin for about an hour, Gan Lin suddenly turned and said: ¡°We have arrived at Lingwu City!¡±

 Chapter 77 – Lingwu City

    Long Chen raised his head and gazed at the vast city without borders before him.


    This city was like white jade, with tall city walls. Within these city walls, there were buildings that seemed to pierce the clouds. The buildings were also wlessly white like jade. Under the radiance of the sun, these buildings shone with a dazzling radiance.


    Fortunately, he had already seen Yuanling City so Long Chen was not too surprised when he saw the enormity of Lingwu City.


    However, this city before him was like a huge white cloud, so Long Chen was amazed by its sheer size and splendor.


    The four others had already seen Lingwu City before. However, today, they could finally enter and live there, so they were filled with excitement.


    Looking at the age of these 5 youngsters, Gan Lin smiled faintly, and said, ¡°Well, now follow me inside. After settling down, I will introduce you to our Lingwu Family members.¡±


    Under Gan Lin¡¯s guidance, Long Chen and the others entered Lingwu City. In Long Chen¡¯s eyes, Yuanling City was already a synonym for wealth, while Lingwu City was its heart. It was no wonder that it was the embodiment of Yuanling City.


    ¡°Lingwu City is also subdivided into the city outskirts and the inner region.The city outskirts are further divided into 9rge regions. These 9 regions are governed separately by the 9 outer factions. We, the Green Faction, are in the Green region. All of you will now be situated in the Green region. The city gate through which we now entered is the city gate used exclusively by our Green Faction.¡±


    While he was walking down the road, Long Chen would, from time to time, see the warriors that walked past him. Some of them were also in the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm while most were usually at the Human Dan Realm, or an even higher level.


    Seeing that the people in this ce were much stronger than him, Long Chenpletely threw away his previous disposition.


    From his previous point of view, the Lingwu Family was not harmonious and tranquil as it seemed on the surface. Underneath this serenity, it was full of sinister secrets and killing intent, making Long Chen a little apprehensive.


    ¡°In this frightening ce, it seems that I must just keep my tail between my legs and act like a grandson¡­.¡±


    [TL Note: (×°Ëï×Ó) To pretend to be a grandson who listens attentively and does things as a senior¡¯s wishes]


    As he thought about that, Long Chen immediately became depressed and wanted to escape.


    However, he had tried so hard to enter the Lingwu Family, and he could now fight to his heart¡¯s content. It would be a pity if he wanted to leave. Moreover, Long Chen was not afraid of others challenging him, so he decided to stay on.


    ¡°Now, I too am considered to have be a member of the Lingwu Family. I am a person of the Lingwu Family. Later, I will ask about the matter regarding the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect to see if there¡¯re any ways to deal with them.¡±


    Along the road, people would frequently greet Gan Lin. After seeing Long Chen and the four others, they would click their tongue and say smiling, ¡°Have the new rookiese again? Your Qinyang Branch will be busy for a long time. I hope that these new calves aren¡¯t too much trouble.¡±


    Long Chen secretlymitted these words to memory.


    Shortly, Gan Lin brought them into a courtyard. The courtyard was very spacious, and after counting the rooms, there appeared to be hundreds of them.


    This time, Gan Lin turned back and said, ¡°This area is our Green Sun Branch¡¯s territory. Thispound is under the jurisdiction of Enforcer Liu and is known as the Green Willow Residence. We are all Enforcer Liu¡¯s disciples. Now, I will arrange residences for all of you, and then I will exin to you the matters concerning Lingwu City. ¡±


    Currently, during the day, one could see that within the courtyard, there were very few signs of human inhabitation. Gan Lin was very familiar with this ce. Very quickly, he moved over to a row of small rooms, and pointing at those small rooms, he said, ¡°Here is the area for Fourth Grade Disciples to live in. From now on, you five will live here. Only after you get promoted and be Third Grade Disciples, can you leave from here. You all can select a room, and register it properly. I will be waiting for you at the Martial Techniques Training Hall.¡±


    Listening to what Gan Lin said, the four others promptly went to pick out a room.


    Long Chen thought that since all of those rooms were not bad, he could simply pick the number of a door te at random and immediately follow Gan Lin to the Martial Techniques Training Hall for the Fourth Grade Disciples.


    Gan Lin already knew that Long Chen had followed him. He walked to the chair at the very front and sat down on it. He sized Long Chen up before he said, ¡°You can sit down first. After everyone elsees, I¡¯ll brief all of you on the matters of the Lingwu Family. If you have any questions, you can ask them.¡±


    Long Chen nodded as there was nothing for him to say. Soon, after he was seated, the other four arrived with excited looks on their faces.


    Seeing that these people all had expressions of longing, Gan Lin shook his head. But looking at Long Chen¡¯s indifference made him feel very satisfied. Seeing that everyone was present, he simply nodded and said, ¡°First, I¡¯ll tell you about the characteristics of the Lingwu Family¡¯s Outer ns, and also about the daily needs. If you have any questions, you can ask me.¡±


    Everyone nodded their heads earnestly.


    Even though it was not deliberate, the rich and powerful Lingwu Family had subconsciously put pressure on them.


    ¡°Lingwu Family is one among the two powers within Yuanling County. The reason for that was due to an advantage over Yuandi City¡¯s Beast Spirit Pce. As a result, Lingwu City became Yuanling City¡¯s Castle. It has already been a hundred years since then.¡±


    Gan Linughed and then continued, ¡°To enter Beast Spirit Pce is to walk an elite route. Our Lingwu Family¡¯s people are at least 10 times more than their numbers. I recall that we all together have more than 20 thousand. Among them, approximately 2000 people are the inner members of the Lingwu Family. We are members of the Outer Faction, a factional division that is split into as red, orange, yellow, green, azure, blue, purple, silver and gold. ¡±


    ¡°Every n has approximately 2000 Outer Faction members. However, the first thing you all should know is that even though the number of people within the Green Faction and the Inner Factions is about the same, only the Inner ns are truly the members of the Lingwu Family. You are Lingwu Family¡¯s Outer Factions¡¯ members. You must first understand that the most important thing is that we are just like the Lingwu Family¡¯s hired thug, their subordinates. Therefore, we must not get into a conflict with them, or else, even if you die, no one will pity you!¡±


    After saying this, Gan Lin¡¯s gaze became gloomy and cold. Long Chen and the rest shuddered. Hearing the word ¡°subordinate¡±, Long Chen¡¯s brows furrowed. He then inquired, ¡°In other words, whatever they say, we have to do that, even if they want us to directly court our death?¡±


    Gan Lin indifferently said, ¡°You must not be too pessimistic. The Lingwu Family¡¯s Outer Faction is capable of growing to this extent while we haven¡¯t rebelled. This can only exin that the Inner Factions treats the Outer Factions well. Of course, you¡¯re still not allowed to get into conflict with the Inner Factions¡¯ members. Think about this, even in an ordinary family, a subordinate would not dare to go against his master, would he?¡±


    Long Chen came to understand that the Inner Factions are all masters and that the Outer Factions, however, are just their subordinates. Originally, Long Chen was not very convinced in his heart. But, once he thought that the Lingwu family was the only tform for him to rapidly improve himself and that his current strength was the lowest¡­


    ¡°The Lingwu Family, having this kind of massive strength, makes me their subordinate. It still will give me some face. Besides, from what Gan Lin has said, so long as I am obedient and make many contributions, the benefits would not becking. I¡¯m ready to give and take so why would I fear this Inner Faction?¡±


    At this time, Gan Lin swept his eyes all over them; within his eyes was a look of veneration. He said, ¡°What I said just now was not to out of any desire to arouse any hostility between you and the Inner Faction. To tell you the truth, although the number of Inner Faction members and the Green Faction members are more or less equal, their total strength is much greater whenpared with the overall strength of the 9 Outer Factions! ¡±


    ¡°In one way, the Inner Faction can be considered as the Outer Factions¡¯ protector. We handle the Inner Factions¡¯ work on their behalf and the Inner Faction gives us sufficient resources and a strong back-up. We are like the vines and they are like a tree trunk; vines without the support of a tree trunk can only copse weakly onto the ground.¡±


    ¡°Of course, if someone disys extraordinary talent, perhaps you will have an opportunity to be directly recruited to the Inner Faction. It has happened in the past.¡±


    When it came to thest point, Gan Lin¡¯s focused on Long Chen.


    In his view, Long Chen is the person with most promising talent among these 5 people. But, the thought of the extremely harsh requirements, Gan Lin could only smile helplessly.


    Long Chen was still very interested in entering the Inner Faction. Promptly, he asked, ¡°Senior Gan, I wonder, what kind of talent can then be considered as an overpowering one?¡±


    With a wry smile, Gan Lin said, ¡°I too, am unclear about this, but¡­there are countless youngsters within the Outer Faction. Every year the number of people who undertake the tests to enter the Inner Faction can be counted on your fingers. Can you imagine, at your age, being on the border of the Earth Dan realm?¡±


    Long Chen was momentarily speechless after hearing it.


    ¡°At my age, Earth Dan Realm¡­.Within the Lingwu Family, how many such monsters exist? Within the Por Town, I was known as an exceptional talent, however, over here, I¡¯m worse than a fart!¡±


    With this immense pressure, he did not feel disheartened by it but rather, it became his motivation and passion. Thinking about himself, being within the Lingwu Family and skyrocketing through the levels, Long Chen was filled with fighting spirit.


    Seeing a slight burning expression on Long Chen, Gan Lin was just about to pour cold water on his dreams, but then he thought, ¡°Let it be, I will not strike him down at this time. In the future, after he has been with the Lingwu Family for a long time, automatically he wille to know that some things simply cannot be aplished only with willpower¡­¡±


    He remembered that, in those days in the past, he too was the same; he did not know how high the heavens were and how deep the earth was. He thought that he could enter the Inner Faction, in the end he repeatedly encountered with setbacks unceasingly. After getting seriously injured, he gathered his focus and concentrated on cultivation.


    ¡°Ah, it really is wonderful being a youth¡­¡±


    Gan Lin¡¯s expression turned rueful. It was not that Long Chen didn¡¯t understand what he meant, but he was not underestimated, peoplee knock him down quickly.


    Gan Lin continued, ¡°For the time being, I will not tell you about the Inner Factions¡¯ power. Among the 9 Great Outer Factions, each faction has a leader, and we address them as Grand Elder. Below the Green Faction¡¯s Grand Elder are the 8 Great Elders, they respectively administer the Green Faction¡¯s 8 branches. Our Green Sun Branch is administered by one such Great Elder and his name is Liu Yuan. Under Great Elder Liu, we have 5 enforcers in our Green Sun Branch. These 5 Enforcers are responsible for approximately 50 people each. We are under the jurisdiction of Enforcer Liu. Do you understand the system I just told you?¡±


    Gan Lin spoke very systematically. How could Long Chen and the rest not understand?


    With such a regimented hierarchy, it made Long Chen¡¯s scalp feel numb. In this intricate system, he had the constant feeling that there were countless people who could oppress him!


    This kind of feeling put him in a bad mood. But, the fact of the matter was that he simply did not have the strength to rebel.


    Before Long Chen and the rest could digest the informationpletely, Gan Lin continued. ¡°Our current identity is known as disciple grades. The warriors in the Dragon Pulse Realm are known as Fourth Grade Disciples. When you enter the Human Dan Realm, you be a Third Grade Disciple. If you achieve the Human Dan Realm¡¯s Initial Mastery Stage, then you will be a Second Grade Disciple. And finally, when you reach the Human Dan Realm Perfect Mastery Stage, you will be a First Grade Disciple, which is my current rank. Once you enter the Earth Dan Realm you are considered to be a formal supervisor with a profound cultivation within the Lingwu Family, which will give you the qualifications to be an Enforcer within the Outer Faction! ¡±


    ¡°Our Green Sun Branch¡¯s strength is much weakerpared to other branches in the Outer Faction. Among Enforcer Liu¡¯s people, there are less than 10 First-Grade Disciples and experts at the Earth Dan Realm. Including Enforcer Liu, there are only four.¡±


    Long Chen asked, ¡°Senior Gan, I would like to know, why is there a differentiation among ranks for disciples?¡±


    Gan Lin sent Long Chen an approving look, and said, ¡°What I am about to tell you is rted to that and is what you are ultimately going to do in the Lingwu Family!¡±

 Chapter 78 – Little Cosmos Dimension

    Regarding this matter, Long Chen was rather confused. He only knew that the Lingwu Family was the supreme power in Yuanling City. Hence, he went straight to Yuanling City and directly joined it.


    In reality, even within Yuanling City, people were only vaguely aware of this fact. That was why when Gan Lin brought it up; Long Chen¡¯s mind drew nk.


    Gan Lin knew that Long Chen wasn¡¯t from Yuanling City, so he exined everything in greater detail.


    ¡°Everyone knows that our Lingwu Family is the governor of the Yuanling County. We have established town halls and vige halls around the Yuanling County¡¯s towns and viges. These are all forces belonging to the subordinates of the Lingwu Family. It¡¯s just like the Yang Family, where you came from. I believe they just established themselves as Por Town¡¯s town hall masters right?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head: ¡°It is indeed as you said.¡±


    Gan Lin continued: ¡°Yuanling Country is massive, many things happen every single day. Robbersmit murders, horse thieves pige and so on. When the local county governor can¡¯t deal with it, they will need the strength of our Lingwu Family¡¯s outer faction¡±


    When Lin Gan exined it, Long Chen finally understood.


    The Lingwu Family is like a government body while its outer faction is like its henchmen. Helping it maintain their stable ruling through force.


    Gan Lin looked out through the door, narrowed his eyes and said: ¡°Our Green Faction is responsible for the peace and wellbeing of Yuanling City area. Within the green district of Lingwu city, there is a huge building. It¡¯s called the Hall of Achievements. Our Lingwu Family has a powerful intelligencework, meaning that we have numerous assignments posted in the Hall of Achievements every day. As long as you are a member of the Lingwu Family outer faction, you will be able to receive assignments from our Hall of Achievements,plete assignments and you can exchange for rewards. Naturally, the family might also issue assignments for you and order thepletion of them. You Fourth-Grade Disciples, in order to not get expelled from the Lingwu Family, must, at least,plete a fourth-grade assignment every month! In simr fashion, a Third-Grade Disciple mustplete a third-grade assignment every month!¡±


    ¡°Some tasks will be mandatory and are unavoidable. However, you shouldn¡¯t hold any resentment. One must know that in Lingwu Family, you will be rewarded for your services and contributions. Our Lingwu Family has innumerable resources, cultivation techniques, divine weapons, and elixirs. But only people who have done great services for the Lingwu Family can acquire these. For people belonging to the Lingwu Family, the values of these goods aren¡¯t measured in deity jades, like outsiders do. One cannot acquire Lingwu Family goods with deity jades. If you want anything, you will have to exchange them with your contributions. Every time youplete an assignment, there will be a specialist who will conduct evaluations and assess your contributions. The most important currency inside Lingwu Family are the resulting contribution points.¡±


    ¡°Every item can be exchanged for contribution points, the more contribution points you have, the more resources you can exchange for. Our Lingwu Family is rich in resources andparable to even the Daybreak Merchants Union. However, the resources you can exchange inside Lingwu Family are much easier to ess and cheaper than what you can get by using deity jades as an outsider.¡±


    Hearing this, Long Chen¡¯s eyes shone. While Long Chen was deeply moved by the vast amount of resources and might of the Lingwu Family, he also thought of medicines with spirit healing properties. An enormous faction like this will definitely own some of it.


    ¡°Is it true that as long as I contribute to the family, I can get these medicines? There won¡¯t be a need to risk my life to earn money?¡±


    This system of contribution points made Long Chen feel pleasantly surprised.


    In reality, even in the Yang Family, if you have contributed to the n you would also receive rewards. But there was no system to it. It was all based on the whims of the ancestor. No one else had the power to intervene. But this was different inside the Lingwu Family. Such arge organization made each and every one work for what they desired the most!


    Long Chen secretly praised: ¡°This Lingwu Family really is extraordinary. Originally, people who just joined the outer faction wouldn¡¯t be loyal enough and wouldn¡¯t work their hardest. But by applying this method, won¡¯t every one of us put our lives on the line to aplish missions?¡±


    After saying this, Gan Lin asked: ¡°The five of you, did you understand the things I¡¯ve said?¡±


    Long Chen and the rest all nodded. Then one amongst them asked: ¡°Senior Brother Gan, in what form, do we receive our contribution points?¡±


    Gan Lin was startled, thenughed shortly thereafter: ¡°Oh, I actually forgot to tell you.¡±


    He took out a badge made of white jade from his cosmos pouch. Suddenly, a surge of Qi radiated. This badge was actually made from deity jade!


    ¡°This is the identity badge that every member of our Lingwu Family must have. Do you see the marks on its back? These record your personal identity, strength, origin and other information. But of course, the most important information it records is your contribution points. That¡¯s why when you receive assignments or want to exchange for resources, you will have to produce your own identity badge. Usually, as long as you calm yourselves, ce the identity badge on your palm and infuse it with some Qi, then the information will be retrieved from within the identity badge.¡±


    Something this amazing forced Long Chen into admitting that Lingxi was right about him being a frog at the bottom of a well.


    TL Note: (¾®µ×Ö®ÍÜ) Frog at the bottom of a well means a frog observing the world through the opening of a well, not knowing what was going outside.


    He was very interested in this identity badge, so he asked: ¡°When will we receive this identity badge?¡±


    Gan Lin smiled and said: ¡°There are already people at work making them. They will arrive shortly and as soon as you receive that identity badge you will officially be a member of the Lingwu Family. Normal factions within Por Town will not dare to challenge you openly.¡±


    The Lingwu Family has a robust background, which isparable to a kingdom!


    Long Chen and the others four felt waves of emotions surging through their hearts.


    Seeing these five people trying to suppress their urges Gan Lin shook his head and didn¡¯t say anymore. After waiting a while, he said: ¡°You should remember a couple of important ces. Firstly, there is the Hall of Achievements; this is where you ept and hand in assignments. Secondly, there is the Treasure Exchange Pavilion; where you exchange for resources. You can all go and get acquainted with these two ces. But the third ce is the training grounds. You must be in Deity Dan Realm before you may enter.¡±


    ¡°Training ground?¡±


    This aroused Long Chen¡¯s curiosity as he quickly asked: ¡°Senior Brother Gan, can you tell me more about this training ground?¡±


    Long Chen strong interest in this matter was a proof of his strong ambitions.


    Seeing the burning gaze of this youth, Gan Lin thought secretly in his heart: ¡°He is just at the 8th level of Dragon Pulse Realm yet he could already use intermediate Xuan grade techniques. Basically, no one within the Green Faction could have pulled off something like that. The Lady Enforcer has also shown personal interest in him, while he is also greatly motivated. Let¡¯s hope that he can maintain this motivation after this first year¡­.¡±


    Because of these factors, Gan Lin smiled slightly and said: ¡°Alright, I will tell you a bit about it. Our Lingwu Family has always had its own little cosmos dimension. All the entrances are within Lingwu City. Our nine big outer factions each has it¡¯s own entrance. The name of this dimension is called the Sky Martial ne!¡±


    Seeing their vacant stares, Gan Lan smiled apologetically: ¡°It seems like you don¡¯t know what a small cosmos dimension is right? Well, it¡¯s simr to the Cosmos pouch you¡¯re holding. Space within them doesn¡¯t belong to our world, so this small cosmos dimension could be imagined as a gigantic Cosmos pouch. It doesn¡¯t belong to our world either but it is simply attached to a small space on our continent. The area of Sky Martial Realm is about the same as Yuanling City. Within it lives all kinds of demon beasts and their reproductive abilities are terrifyingly fast. I guess you can get the general picture right? We of the Lingwu Family, apart from taking assignments, spend all our time cultivating. But simply cultivating doesn¡¯t raise one¡¯s prowess. That¡¯s why one must also train by fighting with demon beasts. The Sky Martial Realm is a piece of training paradise, which belongs exclusively to the Lingwu Family. Alright, there is one thing that I must tell you all¡­¡±


    Seeing their eagerness, Gan Lin finally said: ¡°The reproductive abilities of the demons beasts and their numbers within Sky Martial Realm are all really numerous. There are even 9th ranked demon beasts, therefore with your current prowess; you must strive to kill as many demon beasts within the Sky Martial Realm as you can. After obtaining the demonic beasts energy cores, beast souls and beast corpses, you can go to Treasure Exchange Pavilion and exchange for contribution points. From there, you may then exchange the points for other resources. For example, a couple of days ago I killed a demon beast in the 3rd level of Profound grade. Using its demonic beast¡¯s energy core and beast souls, I exchanged it for contribution points. I then traded it for a Basic Xuan grade elixir!¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the Por Town¡¯s Big Barren Mountain?¡± Long Chen said to himself.


    Long Chen has never heard about little cosmos dimension before, but after Gan Lin¡¯s exnation, Long Chen understood a little bit of it.


    ¡°Lingxi said, this Long Ji Continent is extremelyrge, even if it grew a couple of bumps and gave birth to some little cosmos dimension, nothing will be out of the ordinary.¡±


    At this time, Lingxi¡¯s voice transmitted: ¡°Oh? Even this small ce has a cosmos dimension? It¡¯s rather strange. Long Chen, if you have the opportunity, shall we enter and go for a stroll in it?¡±


    The might of a woman¡¯s curiosity isn¡¯t something a man can understand, therefore, Long Chen could only hurriedly agree.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, have you encountered a lot of these little cosmos dimensions?¡±


    Lingxi blinked and said: ¡°At my ce, these things could be seen everywhere.¡±


    Long Chen felt that his confidence took a hit and didn¡¯t dare ask further.


    Right now, even Lingwu City was a like a gigantic heavenly existence in Long Chen¡¯s eyes. The forces within it areplicated beyond recognition. But Lingxi, where in the world did shee from?


    While Long Chen was contemting the origin of Lingxi, Gan Lin mistook his silence as him being scared witless by the Sky Martial Realm. So he patted Long Chen on the shoulder and smiled: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, once you enter the Human Dan Realm, you will be able to acquire a new Beast Spirit Origin from the Sky Martial Realm. When that timees, we, as the subordinates of Enforcer Liu, will be willing to help you.¡±


    Every time a beast warrior enters a new realm, he can refine a new beast spirit. And it will be his Beast Spirit Origin. Long Chen knew about this but Long Chen isn¡¯t really a beast warrior and Long Chen has never refined any beast spirit. Therefor he wouldn¡¯t know how to exin it once he enters the Human Dan Realm. But right now there is no hurry.


    ¡°I thank Senior Brother Gan in advance; I will do my best to reach the Deity Dan Realm as soon as possible¡±


    With a treasure like the Soul Diffusion Fruit, he only needed to reach the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm before he could enter the Deity Dan Realm.


    Right now, Long Chen felt pressure from two sides, one from Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and one from the Lingwu Family. They both required him to have sufficient strength to persevere.


    ¡°If the Sky Martial Realm is really how Gan Lin described and the number of demon beasts are unlimited, my powers will soar if I enter by myself and use the [Blood Transmuted Qi]! Furthermore, I can exchange the demonic beast energy cores and beast spirits for contribution points. This Lingwu Family really is the ce most suitable for me!¡±


    At this time, a male figure appeared outside the gate.

 Chapter 79 – [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step]

    Seeing this person, Gan Lin¡¯s pupils constricted, and he said indifferently: ¡°Feng Wutian, have the jade identity cards arrived?¡±


    Long Chen also looked at the suddenly arriving male. This man seemed to be in his twenties. He seemed a lot younger than Gan Lin, but inparison, his prowess seemed more profound.


    In front of Long Chen and the others, this handsome male named Feng Wutian entered the Martial Techniques Training Hall. Without speaking, he produced 5 identity badges, then turned to leave. As he was leaving he stared coldly at Long Chen. Long Chen felt a cold shiver in his heart.


    This made him inhale sharply.


    After Feng Wutian¡¯s departure, Gan Lin asked concernedly, ¡°Long Chen, are you ok?¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head and asked: ¡°Senior Brother Gan, I¡¯ve never met Feng Wutian before, but why does it seem like he has such animosity towards me?¡±


    Gan Linughed bitterly and shook his head: ¡°Feng Wutian is the most talented disciple under Enforcer Liu. He¡¯s currently 19 and is already at the peak of the Human Dan Realm. He will most probably break through into Earth Dan Realm soon. You shouldn¡¯t be enemies with people like that. However, I should inform you that Huang Feiyang used to tag along with Feng Wutian, and could be considered his follower. Enforcer Liu punished Huang Feiyang on your behalf today. Towards you, he¡­¡±


    Immediately, Long Chen was at a loss for words.


    Because of Lingqing¡¯s horse, there was enmity between him and Huang Xiang. For injuring Huang Xiang, Huang Feiyang had tried to kill him. For getting Huang Feiyang punished, he had provoked this genius Feng Wutian¡­


    Long Chen really felt at a loss over this matter.


    ¡°I can¡¯t even handle Huang Feiyang, and now this Feng Wutian has popped up¡­¡±


    That cool gaze Feng Wutian gave before he left put Long Chen in a bad mood, but he also knew that his current strength wouldn¡¯t stack up against him. His life was no more important than a weed. The only thing Long Chen could do for now was to endure!


    ¡°Just wait until I be truly formidable. Whoever offended this daddy, this daddy will surely make them pay¡­.¡±


    Thinking this far, an ominous light appeared from within Long Chen¡¯s eyes. Seeing Long Chen¡¯s appearance Gan Lin shook his head and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be this rash. You can¡¯t even match up again Huang Feiyang, much less Feng Wutian. They are all subjects under Enforcer Liu so you better not sh with them. Feng Wutian¡¯s potential is greater than yours, and Enforcer Liu is very fond of him. When the momentes, Enforcer Liu might even cripple you with her own hands. So I advise you to behave and apologize. It¡¯s still doable. A real man knows and when to stand tall, and when to give in.¡±


    Gan Lin¡¯s words felt like a hammer pounding on his head. Biting his lips, he knew that for his Yang Family¡¯s sake, he had to endure.


    Seeing that Long Chen appeared to be alright, Gan Ling didn¡¯t dwell on it. One by one, he gave everyone their identity badges and said, everyone should try their identity badge using the method that I told you about.¡±


    Long Chen received the palm-sized jade badge. There were strange runes on the front of the jade badge. On the backside, the two signs for Long Chen were carved into it. It looked exquisite. Long Chen grasped the jade badge and probed it with his Qi. As expected pieces of information surged into his head.


    ¡°Name: Long Chen. Affiliation: Outer Faction, Green Faction, Green Sun Branch. Strength: 9th level of the Dragon Vein Realm. Category: Beast Warrior. Dragon Vein Realm Beast Spirit Origin: Huang grade fifth level demon beast, Underground Blood Lizard. Origin: Yuanling County, Por Town, Yang Family Prefecture. Contribution points: 0¡±


    ¡°This data will change ording to your own body¡¯s improvements.¡± Gan Lin exined from the side.


    Long Chen stashed away his identity badge into his cosmos pouch.


    With this badge, he officially belonged to the Ling Wu Family¡¯s outer faction.


    Up till now, Gan Lin had told them everything they needed. He smiled faintly, looked over these people, and said, ¡°In five days you will receive your first assignments. This assignment is of uttermost importance to all of you. When that timees, you must give it everything you have!¡±


    ¡°There is such hurry?¡±


    Long Chen thought they would get some time to recuperate. After all, they had just finished the selections and everyone had some degree of injuries. Taking Long Chen as an example, that punch that he had received from Huang Feiyang had made him lose all of his fighting strength. Even standing up required all of his willpower.


    Gan Lin nodded his head and said, ¡°This is your first assignment, and also the time where you will express your devotion to the Lingwu Family. I know you¡¯ve all had a rough time, but I came prepared¡­¡±


    Gan Lin extracted a couple stalks of herbs from his cosmos pouch and said, ¡°This here is a Huang grade high-ss elixir. It has the ability to treat both internal and external injuries. It should be more than enough to make you all return to your highest battle prowess within five days. This should be regarded as your first reward after joining the faction.¡±


    With this Can Grass, Long Chen no longer felt worried. He received the stalk of Can Grass just like everyone else, and put it into his Cosmos pouch. At the same time, Gan Lin reached into his cosmos pouch, produced a piece of sheepskin parchment, and said while smiling, ¡°Every new faction member will receive a gift. Each one gets a basic Profound grade martial technique and ten pieces of deity jade. I will give you the deity jades in a minute, but first look through this list and choose a martial technique. You can ask me about the specifics of each technique¡±


    Gan Lin gave the sheepskin parchment to one of them, then reached into his Cosmos pouch and produced 50 deity jades, sharing it amongst the five people.


    Long Chen¡¯s total wealth finally reached 11 deity jades.


    Normal initial Human Dan Realm cultivators wouldn¡¯t have more than a hundred deity jades.


    ¡°The Lingwu Family sure is generous. Advanced Profound grade Can Grass, ten pieces of deity jade, and most importantly, a basic Profound grade martial technique!¡±


    Long Chen was shocked to his core.


    Very quickly, with Gan Lin¡¯s exnations, the four other people each picked out a martial technique. Finally, it was Long Chen¡¯s turn to pick. Long Chen swept his gaze over the parchment and found out that the names of every martial technique on the list were awe inspiring. Fist Techniques, Finger Techniques, Seal Techniques, w Techniques, Kick Techniques, everything was included They even had Sword Techniques.


    ¡°For offensive techniques, I already have the middle Profound grade [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist]. Even if I receive another Profound grade offensive technique, it won¡¯t do me any good¡­.¡±


    As he thought about that, Long Chen browsed through the titles. It was until he had almost looked through all of them that he found a body martial technique known as [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step]


    Long Chen asked: ¡°I wonder how good this [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] is?¡±


    Long Chen already had a Profound grade martial technique, so when he chose a body martial technique, Gan Lin wasn¡¯t shocked. He showed an expression that felt like he knew that Long Chen would pick such a martial technique as he exined, ¡°The [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] is the most popr one among the Profound grade body martial techniques. When using the [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] in battle, your body will be like a water serpent in water. Your speed and unpredictable moves will make it hard for your opponent to lock on your position. If another strong offensive battle technique was coupled with it, it¡¯ll definitely bring out great effects. The toughness of your body after your bestial transformation will be extremely suited to use the [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] skill!¡±


    Since Gan Lin gave [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] such high praise, Long Chen decided on the spot and said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll pick this one¡±


    Since Long Chen was able to select something that suited himself, Gan Lin also felt happy for him. Every piece of information was ryed and every item was delivered. Therefore, Gan Lin stood up and smoothed out his girdle and said: ¡°I¡¯ve taken enough of your time. Hurry back to your residents and recuperate. While at it, familiarize yourselves with your new martial skills. I live the area designated for the Green Faction¡¯s first rank disciples. If you have any questions, you cane find me!¡±


    Upon saying that, Gan Lu just walked off.


    The remaining people were anxious to head back so they merely get acquainted with each other before heading back to their rooms.


    ¡°No one is able to enter the Lingwu Family¡¯s disciples¡¯ rooms, as the door can only be opened using the jade card with the owner¡¯s identity.¡±


    After opening the door, when Long Chen looked at the delicate decorations, it was an eye-opener for him. Just as expected, the Lingwu City really had good resources. The living ces for the Fourth Grade Disciples were unexpectedly this luxurious.


    After closing the door, Lingxi immediately flew out from the Lingxi Sword. Seeing this jade white living ce, she was beaming with pleasure. She moved all around the room before shefortablyid on the bed. She shouted, ¡°Finally, there¡¯s a ce that I¡¯m a little satisfied with. This¡¯ll be my territory from now on.¡±


    Long Chen teased: ¡°Xiao Xi, you mean my ce right? A single guy and a single girl alone on a one bed doesn¡¯t seem proper right?¡±


    Lingxi leaped up immediately, stared angrily at Long Chen and cursed:¡± You wish, you shameful lecher! I won¡¯t sleep in the same ce as you. From now on, the bed is mine and the floor is yours!¡±


    Long Chenughed for a while before ignoring her. After walking for a few steps, he realized that there was a basement in this room. The arrangement of the basement was actually in the form of a training room. Long Chen sat on a praying mat after entering the room. He yelled to the lively Lingxi, who was still upstairs, ¡°Hey! You can just y up there. I¡¯ll be treating my wounds.¡±


    Frankly speaking, the punch from Huang Feiyang earlier today had shifted his inner organs. If not for his extraordinary will, Long Chen shouldn¡¯t have been able to endure until now. It was also because of his extraordinary willpower that Gan Lin put him in such high regard.


    After taking out the Can Grass, Long Chen closely examined it and found that the medical smell of the Can Grass was more pungent than that of the Enchanted Hill Ginseng.


    ¡°No wonder it¡¯s ranked as a high Huang grade elixir!¡±


    After crushing the Can Grass, Long Chen felt a cool energy flowing in his body, nurturing his body.


    In less than fifteen minutes, Long Chen found that his current recovery rate really was astounding. Normal people would usually need five days to recover this kind of injuries. He would only need one day.


    Opening his eyes, Long Chen¡¯s eyes radiated a golden light¡±


    ¡°Huang Feiyang, this punch from today. I will return it to you!¡±


    Even though there were still disparities between them, that distance in power wasn¡¯t impossible to catch up to.


    ¡°When I enter Human Dan Realm andbine it with the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] and [Dragon Soul Transformation]¡­¡±


    Long Chen knew that Huang Feiyang hated him to his bones. While they lived in this Green Willow Residence, if Long Chen didn¡¯t kill him, there would be a day that Huang Feiyang would kill him.


    Night time arrived quickly. Suddenly there was a sound of someone knocking on the door. Lingxi¡¯s eyes were will with loathing as she said, ¡°That stinky woman is looking for you!¡±


    ¡°Which one?¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t know why Lingxi¡¯s face looked so sour.


    ¡°That Liu thing during the day. She came here sote in the night. She really is shameless!¡±

 Chapter 80 – A Finger’s Warmth

    Only after hearing what Lingxi said, did Long Chen recall the person who had arrived.


    Once Lingxi had shrunk and sealed herself within the Lingxi sword, Long Chen obediently opened the door, to reveal a stunning face on the other side.


    Beneath the moonlight, Liu Lan was wearing a robe made of ck muslin, which faintly revealed her slim and graceful curves. A pair of vivid eyes watched Long Chen attentively. Her enticing eyes were filled with flirting expression; seeing this, Long Chen¡¯s nose and throat became parched.


    He had nned to go and face his opponent posing as a pure and innocent youngster, so, dressed casually and sluggishly, he asked in a dazed manner, ¡°En¡­Enforcer¡±


    Seeing Long Chen in this silly manner, Liu Lan giggled. She said very seductively, ¡°Long Chen, am I not weed here?¡±


    ¡°It is not very convenient.¡± Although Long Chen¡¯s lips said so, he did not actually mean it.


    Liu Lan did not give her answer; rather, she extended her bright and clean arms, and pushed open the door, immediately pushing Long Chen inside the door as well. Then, the sound of the door being closed was heard. With her beautiful eyes, she looked sweetly at Long Chen.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s nk look, Liu Lan was finally amused by him. She sat down on the couch, smiling up at Long Chen. Her revealed curves made Long Chen goggle-eyed.


    ¡°Okay, I won¡¯t tease you. Today, the main reason I came over was to let you be familiar with me. Don¡¯t let your imagination run wild. I have already visited the other 4 guys in their rooms; therefore, at this time, it is your turn.¡±


    On one hand, Long Chen was dressed to look fresh and pure. On the other hand, he was inwardly sizing up this well-rounded beautiful woman.


    ¡°As an Enforcer, this person¡¯s strength is certainly in the Earth Dan Realm ¨C a top-notch existence. For Huang Feiyang to be so scared of her, it is definitely because her methods are very difficult to deal with. I cannot be confused by her appearance now¡­.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s mind inwardly turned in the direction of these thoughts, but what came out of his mouth was, ¡°I wonder, what is the reason that Enforcer is looking for me?¡±


    ¡°Only to get to know you. By the way, do you have any enemies that need to be dealt with?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze trembled.


    This was the purpose of himing to the Lingwu Family. During the day, Long Chen noticed that Gan Lin did not mention it, so he did not rush to ask him as well. It seemed that Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang did not lie, the Lingwu Family really had a lot of influence. They could even get rid of the enemies of the members of the Outer Faction.


    After hesitating for a while, under the charming, foxy eyes of Liu Lan, Long Chen spoke out, ¡°Yes, I do ¨C the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.¡±


    Upon hearing the name ¡®Crimson Blood Sacred Sect,¡¯ Liu Lan frowned, and shaking her head, asked, ¡°How did you and the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect be enemies?¡±


    Upon hearing that Liu Lan knew of the existence of the Crimson Blood Sacred sect, Long Chen secretly exulted, but with great caution, he said, ¡°One of the proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect went to Por Town and allied with the Bai Family to exterminate my Yang Family, so I killed that proctor. Therefore, if the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect learns that I killed him, my Yang Family will bepletely finished.¡±


    ¡°Thus, you came to the Lingwu Family?¡± At once, Liu Lan saw through to his purpose.


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°I wonder, could the Lingwu Family help me regarding this matter?¡±


    Long Chen expectantly looked at Liu Lan. Suddenly, she chuckled, and shook her head, saying, ¡°Currently, you are a Fourth Grade Disciple and getting rid of your enemies requires the help of experts of the Earth Dan Realm, this is beyond the privileges entitled to you. Moreover, your contribution points and the value of potential that I had determined is insufficient to make the Lingwu Family help you to dispose of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Therefore¡­¡±


    Lon Chen¡¯splexion suddenly darkened. Looking at the seductive attitude of this curvy woman, Long Chen wasn¡¯t happy with what she said.


    ¡°Beyond the privileges entitled to me? There is even such a thing like potential value in the Lingwu Family? I have used a middle Profound grade martial technique in front of them, and my potential value is not enough for them to deal with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡±


    The Yang Family¡¯s life or death was the matter that was the most important to Long Chen. At the present time, he was unable to handle the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect by himself and could only request help from the Lingwu Family. However, it was clear that the current he did not have the capabilities to request anything from the Lingwu Family.


    Liu Lan got up from the couch, and slowly approached Long Chen. Suddenly, an enticing body fragrance wafted directly at him. When he lifted his head, he and Liu Lan were only a few metres apart. The snow-white curves of her chest were directly in front of Long Chen. Itpletely seemed to be something that any gentlemen could reach out and touch.


    There was a fire burning in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, but then a pain in his ear made his body turn cold. Long Chen knew that this great aunt was angry and that the consequences of it would be grave. Promptly, he turned his gaze towards another direction, not daring to aim a nce at Liu Lan.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s behavior, Liu Lan giggled.


    ¡°So, this small rookie is still a man of honor. Heh, this is truly interesting. However, such an impassive and cold Lingwu Family is not a ce where silly kids can enter. Now, let me teach you what cruelty is¡­¡±


    Thinking such thoughts, she said in an indifferent manner, ¡°Long Chen, you want the Lingwu Family to assist you. Let me give you a word of advice. Disciple Grade, Contribution Points and Potential Value ¨C these three are very important. For the current you, I can¡¯t see where your potential lies, so I will remind you that if you want to be outstanding, you need to constantly put in a lot of effort. In the Lingwu Family, there is no need for trash¡­¡­ ¡±


    Although Liu Lan¡¯s tone was very indifferent, from what he heard, Long Chen knew that the Lingwu Family was unquestionably decisive; they were even cold-blooded when being decisive. Everything here was a transaction; if you want the Lingwu Family to handle things for you, it¡¯s simple- take out your contribution points or show your potential value.


    ¡°You think my potential is not sufficient? I, your daddy, will let you all take a clear look at me, and find out what my potential is!¡±


    All along Long Chen knew that there wouldn¡¯t be such a wonderful thing in this world, and also that this matter was not easy to settle. As of now, he couldn¡¯t request the Lingwu Family to help him with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but since his rate of progression was very great, he did not believe that he couldn¡¯t seed!


    Patting Long Chen¡¯s shoulder, Liu Lan gazed directly into Long Chen¡¯s eyes, and her voice was like the sound of an ant crawling into his ear.


    ¡°Long Chen, as a part of the Lingwu Family, you need to remember these words ¨C core talent. If you are the embodiment of core talent, then wealth, cultivation techniques, spirit medicine, divine weapons and even women will all be yours! ¡±


    When speaking about women, Liu Lan exhaled a gust of sweet fragrance onto Long Chen¡¯s face. This immediately made little Long Chen stir, but right away, the pain in his ear made Long Chen regain his senses.


    Only Long Chen knew how hard things had been for Lingxi until now.


    However, Long Chen took note of these words about ¡®innate talent¡¯.


    ¡°Please be at ease.¡±


    Seeing that this rookie didn¡¯t have the guts, Lie Lan found it pointless to entice him further, and stepped back. Fixing her hair, she said, ¡°The Lingwu Family has a powerful informationwork. I will pay a little more attention to Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s movements on your behalf. If there is any new information, I will notify you.¡±


    Even though he couldn¡¯t get her to exterminate the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, things still turned out pretty well. Long Chen felt a hint of gratitude and said, ¡°This junior thanks the Lady Enforcer.¡±


    Liu Lan nodded her head before she headed to walk out of the room. Before she stepped out of the room, she turned around and giggled sweetly. ¡°Little Long Chen, you¡¯ll have your first task in five days¡¯ time. You must do your best. The family will give you their judgment ording to your performance!¡±


    Right after Liu Lan left, Lingxi charged out of the Lingxi Sword. She red at Long Chen and curled her lips in anger. She looked as though she wanted to eat Long Chen.


    Long Chen smiled embarrassingly and said, ¡°I wanna go and practice the [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step]¡­.¡±


    Lingxi just red at him angrily but didn¡¯t say anything.


    Long Chen rushed into the cer, patted himself on the chest and said inwardly: ¡°I just nced at her for a couple of times, and this little girl really became angry, so scary¡­.¡±


    As Lingxi saw Long Chen quickly slip away, she snorted as sheid on the bed that was hers. She lowered her head. Her initial anger filled eyes suddenly became iparably vacant. When she stretched out her hand to touch the nket, she didn¡¯t have the other feelings that she had felt previously.


    The sense of physical touch with one¡¯s spirit was really differentpared to the real deal.


    Her heart suddenly filled with a grievance that threatened to burst forth. Lingxi really felt the impulse to cry. She nced at Long Chen¡¯s direction and mumbled, ¡°Just as I thought, he prefers women with real bodies.. but it¡¯s ok. With me being like this, I can¡¯t even be considered a real person. I have nothing to offer him¡­¡±


    Grinding her teeth, Lingxi was frustrated for a long time.


    She sighed after a long period of time. She thought back in details about what she had experienced.


    ¡°I¡¯m already like this. No matter if it is life or death; there won¡¯t be any oue with him. I should stop indulging myself in my fantasy. He has his own life. The feeling of being able to stay by his side to protect him a couple more times is actually not bad¡­¡­..¡±


    Lingxi raised her head to look at the snow-white ceiling. ¡°Father, Mother, you must bless and protect me. I really hope to meet with you all again¡­¡­¡±


    While she thought about her parents, if she could cry, she would definitely be tearing up at this moment.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you look just like a silly spinster. Do you have something on your mind? Can you tell it to your daddy?¡±


    Long Chen suddenly appeared beside the bed and sniggered as he leaned against the wall.


    Seeing his mocking looks, no matter how dejectedly Lingxi felt, her feelings had all disappeared. She felt that she just did something very shameful, and hastily changed her expression. She viciously looked at Long Chen like a fiend in a flurry. ¡°Get out of here! You¡¯re a bad guy! Your missy, I, do not wish to talk to you!¡±


    Long Chen sat on the bed. At this moment, he seemed to have suddenly matured. With a serious face filled with feelings, he extended his finger, as he gently ced his palm in from of Lingxi. He said seriously, ¡°Use your finger to touch my finger.¡±


    ¡°What for?¡±


    Lingxi didn¡¯t know what he was up to and looked at him with doubt.


    ¡°Touch it.¡±


    Seeing Long Chen being so serious, Lingxi snorted, before stretching out her small, but sparkling and translucent finger to lightly touch Long Chen¡¯s index finger. Immediately, she withdrew her finger and looked at Long Chen cautiously with widened eyes.


    Seeing her adorable looks, Long Chen didn¡¯tugh. He immediately asked, ¡°Do you feel the warmth of my body?¡±


    As Long Chen suddenly asked this question, Lingxi was startled, before she nkly nodded her head.


    Long Chen chuckled and withdrew his finger before he said, ¡°I have a wish, and that is to recover your body. Can you tell me how to do that? I also hope that you have this warmth.¡±


    Long Chen current serious expression and words had been engraved into Lingxi¡¯s mind. This made her suddenly felt a sense of loss. She knew that her dejected expression had definitely been seen by him. If not, he wouldn¡¯t have suddenly said those words.


    Lingxi was moved to tears.


    ¡°Quickly tell me! Stop wasting time!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s fierce looks, Lingxi hastily replied, ¡°If I have the Ninth Heaven Fairy Spirit Fruit, I¡¯ll be able to recover.¡±


    Hearing that it was really possible, Long Chen felt extremely ted. He hurriedly asked, ¡°Where can I find this Ninth Heaven Fairy Spirit Fruit?¡±


    Lingxi shook her head agonizingly before replying, ¡°Don¡¯t even think about that. Even if you be the Yuanling city¡¯s top expert, you won¡¯t even be able to touch it¡­¡­.¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s mysterious identity, Long Chen had long expected that the items that Lingxi needed for recovery would be top grade. He remained silent for a while, before he indifferently said, ¡°Lingxi, I¡¯ll go to the Daybreak Merchants Union tomorrow to help you find some spirit nurturing medicine!¡±

 Chapter 81 – Spirit Recovery Fruit

    On the second day, Long Chen asked Gan Lin for the location of Daybreak Merchants Union and then left Lingwu City through the Green Faction gate.


    Long Chen¡¯s arrival and sudden departure from the Lingwu Family puzzled Gan Lin but Long Chen was firm in his decisions so he couldn¡¯t do otherwise.


    ¡°In four days you will receive your first mission, so you¡¯d best leave now and return as soon as possible.¡±


    Long Chen nodded saying: ¡°I¡¯m just going to buy some things, it won¡¯t take long. I will return in half a day.¡±


    The Daybreak Merchants Union was Yuanling City¡¯srgest trading centre. Long Chen didn¡¯t have any contribution points within the Lingwu Family so he couldn¡¯t acquire any items from them. In any case, normal warriors would go to the Daybreak Merchants Union so it didn¡¯t bother Gan Lin. He only felt that since Long Chen was about to receive an important mission, that he should treat it with more seriousness.


    ¡°I had no idea that the Daybreak Merchants Union would be this big and that within Yuanling city they would have over a hundred branches. About one and a half kilometers outside Lingwu City¡¯s Green Faction there was a small branch. But even this small branch was asrge as the Green Willow Residence.¡±


    After Long Chen¡¯s arrival in Yuanling City, every opponent he faced was a whole level higher than what he was used to. The remaining Dream Spirit Grass wasn¡¯t enough for Lingxi to materialize on Long Chen¡¯s behalf and because of this, on the second day upon entering the Lingwu Family, Long Chen went out looking for spirit recovery medicines.


    ¡°This girl always wants to help me out when I¡¯m in danger and won¡¯t listen to my advice. I¡¯d better get some more spirit medicine to prevent her from losing her life!¡±


    Long Chen possessed a very high level ofprehension and with Gan Lin¡¯s instructions .he managed to find his way to Daybreak Merchants Union¡¯s trading post even though he still was a stranger in Yuanling City


    On the busy street market, a cluster of navy buildings appeared to be the Daybreak Merchants Union.


    This was the first time Long Chen has seen such arge ce for trading. Compared the to the cultivator¡¯s market in Por Town it was several times better. There were a lot of people arriving and departing the Daybreak Merchants Union and thus Long Chen did not stick out like a sore thumb. He quickly entered the Daybreak Merchants Union.


    ¡°Wow! There are many useful things here¡­¡±


    Within the Lingxi Sword, Ling Xi made some sounds of admiration. Long Chen also looked closely at the vast number of eye-catching items disyed in different cupboards. Although he couldn¡¯t distinguish what ranks these products belonged to, but based on the quality and the pricing, Long Chen knew that these items must all be great.


    ¡°Twisted Earth Roots, 3 deity jades.¡±


    ¡°Can Grass, 2 deity jades.¡±


    ¡°Blizzard Mushroom, 35 deity jades¡­.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze followed the names of each and every medicine. The name in sight that he halted at was a spirit medicine. Apparently, from here onwards were mentioned all the spirit medicines.


    ¡°That Blizzard Lingzhi is barely a basic Profound grade spirit medicine, yet it actually costs 35 deity jades! This is really expensive! But I only have 11 pieces of deity jade with me.¡±


    Because he was poor, Long Chen could onlyugh disappointedly.


    ¡°Can you sense the existence of any spirit healing medicine?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry!¡± Ling Xi interrupted him and said with a trace of anger, ¡°There are so many spirit medicines here, their scents are all mixed up. So, let me have a good look. ¡±


    Long Chen shrugged, and seeing the other peopleing and going, he thought, ¡°Here, there are many that are not weak, just as I expected when I came to Yuanling City. My* strength is entirely at the bottom; this can¡¯t go on. If I die unexpectedly, then I would go to hell and would sire no descendants to carry on my name¡­.¡±


    [TL Note: * ¡ú He refers to himself in a proud arrogant manner.]


    There were many customers inside the Daybreak Merchants Union, but within the union, there were also numerous people who were in charge of policing and many service personnel. At that moment, a young woman, her outstanding beauty apanied with a sense of arrogance, saw Long Chen looking around and said: ¡°Customer, can I be of any assistance?¡±


    She was merely an attendant but her cultivation was unexpectedly at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm; a level above Long Chen¡¯s. He felt admiration, but seeing the contempt in her eyes, the admiration disappeared without a trace.


    ¡°I am indeed looking for something, but am not sure if you have it in your store.¡±


    Long Chen was merely at the eighth level of Dragon Pulse Realm but spoke with the air of a young noble. These made the young woman feel disdainful, increasing her expression of intolerance. She looked at Long Chen provocatively and said: ¡°What are you looking for? The items within the Daybreak Merchants Union are all of the highest quality but the price is not something ordinary people can afford!¡±


    Long Chen was not inclined to argue with her for the sake of Ling Xi.


    ¡°I require spirit recovery medicines.¡±


    The woman stared for a while, thenughed and said, ¡°Those items are not cheap. Are you certain about wanting to buy them?¡±


    She sized Long Chen up; no matter how she looked, Long Chen didn¡¯t seem like a person with a lot of wealth. One must know that deity jades were a currencymonly used among warriors in Deity Dan Realm. From the way he looked, Long Chen seemed more like someone who should be spending spirit jades.


    ¡°I must warn you, all our goods are listed for deity jades and not spirit jades!¡±


    This woman was overbearing and was going too far. Long Chen cursed her a couple of times in his mind. This put him in a foul mood and he said: ¡°I know, just show the way.¡±


    ¡°This bitch, if it wasn¡¯t for my precious Ling Xi, I, your father would already be dragging you out to strip you bare in public.¡±


    Long Chen cursed in his heart but outwardly, he maintained a calm expression and appeared indifferent.


    That woman looked over Long Chen for a moment. Her duty was to lead the way for Long Chen but in her heart, she thought ¡°I don¡¯t know underneath which rock this country bumpkin crawled out from. Let us see, when you can¡¯t produce any money, how great a fool you¡¯ll make out of yourself.¡±


    Her mood was already rather foul, and with the addition of this country bumpkin noble, she was filled with even more anger.


    While she was leading the way, Ling Xi became excited and transmitted: ¡°Long Chen I¡¯ve already detected a basic Profound grade spirit recovery fruit!¡±


    Hearing this piece of information Long Chen also felt excited. He was originally worried about Ling Xi¡¯s life and death but finally, he could feel at ease.


    Swiftly, that woman brought him to the area where the spirit recovery fruit was and looked at Long Chen with ridicule. Long Chen looked closer and was instantly stunned. The spirit recovery fruit¡¯s price tag listed: 100 deity jades!


    Just a basic Profound grade spirit medicine was already worth a hundred deity jades. This price was indeed high. Long Chen only had ten pieces of deity jade. He couldn¡¯t afford it.


    Long Chen experienced for the first time, the feeling of being unable to pay in front of a woman.


    ¡°When your father, I, was being extravagant at Emerald Jade House and wasting silver notes, I never imagined that I would be this poor!¡±


    When Ling Xi saw the price her heart felt heavy. One could see how much she had looked forward to this spirit recovery fruit. But it¡¯s regrettable that Long Chen didn¡¯t have that much money¡­.


    Long Chen initially thought that the price of a basic Profound grade spirit medicine would be roughly the same as that of the Can Grass.


    ¡°Forget it, Long Chen, we cane back once you have the money. It¡¯s of no rush¡­.¡±


    Unable to get what she wanted Ling Xi began to sulk; then peering at the Spirit Fruit with a pair of tear-filled eyes and spoke a sentence untrue to her heart.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s conflicted expression, the woman already knew it would end like this. She immediately expressed her disdain and said faintly: ¡°I¡¯ve already told you, a bumpkin like you could never afford Spiritual Medicines. Do you still remember the way out? Pardon me for not seeing you off.¡±


    After these words, she didn¡¯t bother to look at Long Chen, instead, she turned her head meaning to leave. Right at this moment Long Chen called out.


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    That woman turned around and looked at Long Chen in disgust. Long Chen blurted out: ¡°These goods, does the Daybreak Merchants Union allow one to exchange with other items?¡±


    Long Chen had always been one who insisted on getting what he wants. Especially when it came to things that Ling Xi wanted. There was no way he would leave without trying ways to obtain what he wanted.


    Even if it¡¯s because he didn¡¯t want to lose face in front of Ling Xi, he would never be anyone¡¯s grandson¡­


    [TL Note: (×öËï×Ó) be anyone¡¯s grandson: Lower one¡¯s head.]


    Hearing Long Chen speak of an exchange, the woman said impatiently: ¡°What could you possibly have that could be exchanged for a spirit recovery fruit? If you have something then take it out and stop wasting my time, I¡¯ve got other customers to see to!¡±


    Long Chen narrowed his eyes; frankly this woman¡¯s attitude and her tone made Long Chen want tomit murder. But being in Yuanling City he had to always remind himself to endure. A real man knows when to bow his head. So, for Ling Xi¡¯s sake, he endured.


    Ling Xi thought that he would trade the Soul Diffusion Fruit and became worried. Only after seeing those steel hearts, did she rx. She pursed her lips as she was incessantly moved upon seeing Long Chen from outside the Lingxi sword.


    She knew that Long Chen was a proud man and that he was now being humble just for her to be alive.


    ¡°This rascal, why is he so good to me?¡±


    Ling Xi tried hard to understand.


    The woman swept a nce over the steel hearts and sneered, saying, ¡°You want to exchange these lousy rocks for spirit recovery fruits? Kid, are you trying to kill me withughter? A country bumpkin will remain a country bumpkin; you really have not seen the world!¡±


    ¡°Ao Xue! How could you say such a thing?¡±


    At this moment, a low, gruff voice sounded. Long Chen and Ao Xue both turned to the side and saw an old man with white hair yet possessing a youthfulplexion. He walked over to them as if he was flying and his robustness surpassed that of many youths¡¯.


    Seeing him, Ao Xue¡¯s expression changed; she immediately said in a humble manner, ¡°I am pleased to see the manager.¡±


    She greeted the elderly manager who had reproached her and then she turned to look at Long Chen, examining the steel hearts in his hand. After watching him for a while, she quickly asked excitedly, ¡°Old sir Zhao Tianfang, if I may ask¡ª are these steel hearts that came from the steel puppets belonging to the Lingwu Family?¡±


    He did not expect that this old man would know of these things. Regardless of his cultivation or his status, he was more important than Ao Xue. Moreover, he was very easy-going and seeing that he spoke pleasurably, Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Indeed. ¡±


    After saying that, Zhao Tianfang asked in a low voice, ¡°Do you still have many of these steel hearts?¡±


    Long Chen did not understand why the other person attached so much importance to these steel hearts, but it was something he could not do much about. As he was in need of money, he simply said, ¡°I still have many of these.¡±


    Hearing this, Zhao Tianfangughed and patted his shoulder, saying, ¡°Young man, could we speak in private?¡±


    Speaking in private ¡ª this meant that there was a chance.


    Long Chen was naturally willing to do so; he gave Ao Xue a provocative stare before leaving with Long Tianfang.


    When Ao Xue saw the manager treating Long Chen with such importance, coupled with that smug appearance of Long Chen, it made her whole face turn scarlet with rage. Her originally fair face now looked as if a blood vessel had burst, and she felt as if she had been pped.


    ¡°This kid is truly looking to be thrashed! Don¡¯t you dare show your face in front of me again!¡±

 Chapter 82 – Appraiser

    ¡°Who is this old man, and why is he so interested in these steel hearts?¡±


    While following Zhao Tianfang, Long Chen was continuously mulling over this question.


    ¡°These steel hearts belong to the Lingwu Family. Since he knows this, he must also know that I am a member of the Lingwu Family. However, with the strength of the Daybreak Merchants Union, it isn¡¯t necessary for him to be so cordial towards me.¡±


    As if sensing Long Chen¡¯s misgivings, Zhao Tianfang felt that he had been too forward this time. Bing all smiles, he said, ¡°Child, I really want to buy these steel hearts of yours, but you need not worry. I really would not tell anyone of our current transaction. Moreover, these steel hearts are of no use to you.¡±


    The steel golems¡¯ strength was not very high and if anyone had a surplus of steel hearts they could easily bring it to the outside. Therefore Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid that he would leak out some Lingwu Family secrets. Even though this old man regarded these steel hearts with importance, Long Chen could tell that this old man¡¯s focus was on him.


    They quickly arrived at a private room.


    ¡°This is our VIP room, please be seated!¡±


    This area was pretty close to the outside so Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid that this old man would be up to some funny business. Going straight to the point, he asked, ¡°Old Zhao, why did you bring this junior to this ce?¡±


    Zhao Tianfangughed: ¡°There is no reason behind that. All of the steel hearts that you have, give them to me. I will give you a satisfactory price. Even though steel hearts contain the spiritual qi found between heaven and earth, warriors cannot absorb it. So it¡¯s of no use to you!¡±


    Ling Xi had already told him this, but Long Chen only mentioned these in order to try his luck. He never imagined he would meet Zhao Tianfang. He was in no hurry to take out his steel hearts and asked: ¡°How much are you paying for each steel heart?¡±


    ¡°I will immediately tell you my highest offer¡ª 3 deity jades!¡±


    Zhao Tianfang boiled a pot of tea, and poured a cup for Long Chen, while having a drink for himself too. He then said, ¡°To be honest, these steel hearts that I¡¯m purchasing have nothing to do with the Daybreak Merchants Union, so I cannot offer you a higher price than this.¡±


    The total number of steel hearts that Long Chen had originally begotten was 105, and he had handed over 75, leaving him with a the remaining 30. ording to Zhao Tianfang¡¯s price for each, it would fetch him a total of 90 deity jades.


    That means, after buying a single spirit recovery fruit, he¡¯d be penniless yet again.


    Long Chen wanted to haggle but the other party was very resolute. Plus this was already beyond his expectations so he said: ¡°Deal.¡±


    ¡°How many more steel hearts do you have left?¡±


    Apparently this matter was of uttermost importance to Zhao Tianfang.


    Long Chen had some misgivings but he said: ¡°A total of 30 pieces.¡±


    Zhao Tianfang¡¯s expression tensed; after watching Long Chen closely, he said, ¡°75 plus 30 equals 105. A person at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm being able to get 105 steel hearts is considered as a top-rate talent even among the Lingwu Family¡¯s Outer Faction members. The one originally at that position also had 102 steel hearts, but he was only 10 years old at that time.¡±


    Hearing the number 75, Long Chen knew that this Zhao Tianfang knew everything about him just like Long Chen knew the lines on his palm.


    ¡°This old fellow asked about my steel hearts because he had an ulterior motive for doing that. He is simply not concerned about the steel hearts but instead about me¡­¡±


    Seeing the expression on Long Chen¡¯s face, Zhao Tianfang knew that Long Chen was aware of his true purpose. He also did not pretend to be coy but, with straightforward appreciation, he said, ¡°Let us be honest with each other. Regarding Lingwu Family¡¯s affairs, I had my own spywork gather information. We also know about your promotion to be a new member of the Outer Faction and we also know which Faction. However, I am shocked that you were able to get 105 steel hearts.¡±


    ¡°Old Zhao means to poach people?¡±


    Long Chen looked at him with an expression that was like a smile and yet not a smile.


    Zhao Tianfang, with a honest smile, said, ¡°It seems you are really a sharp fellow. Let me tell you clearly, if you be a member of the Daybreak Merchants Union, I can guarantee that you will more attention and more training than what you get in Lingwu Family. After all, in Lingwu Family, there are too many talented people, and thus you will only disappear among them.¡±


    Zhao Tianfang¡¯s words, spoken in his capacity as an expert, were meant to intimidate Long Chen, but it had no effect.


    ¡°This Daybreak Merchants Union is certainly not bad. Maybe they could also help me in getting rid of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. However, if I leave Lingwu Family like this¡­.¡±


    Thinking up to this point, Long Chen said, with an indifferent smile, ¡°Old Zhao, what kind of a joke is this? I have just recently be a member of the Lingwu Family. Now if I change to your Daybreak Merchants Union, would you want a man who isn¡¯t firm in his decisions? Are you not worried that someday I will switch to being a member of yet another influence?¡±


    Zhao Tianfang was shocked upon hearing Long Chen¡¯s speech, butter he said confidently, ¡°I believe no one will give you conditions more favorable than what my Daybreak Merchants Union gives.¡±


    Long Chen waved his hand, and determinedly said, ¡°Old Zhao, for your appreciation of me today, I cannot thank you enough. But I would not want to be like the grass on a wall, growing towards where there is sunlight. Therefore, for now, how about you let me return and think over this for a while? If the Daybreak Merchants Union and I really are bound by fate, then I will myselfe here to meet Old Zhao.¡±


    Long Chen spoke firmly and Zhao Tianfang knew about the saying hasty men don¡¯t get to eat hot tofu. Hence, he could only force a smile as he said, ¡°Since you said so, Long Chen, you can alwayse to me here, and we will cross that bridge when the timees. If you feel that the Lingwu Family does not suit you,e here ¡ª the Daybreak Merchants Union¡¯s gates will forever be open to you.¡±


    [TL Note: hasty men don¡¯t get to eat hot tofu ¨C Haste will ruin everything]


    Seeing that Zhao Tianfang¡¯s eyes expressed only sincerity, Long Chen inwardly struggled for a while but he could not renounce his decision, thus, he could only decline the offer.


    ¡°Then this Long Chen will thank Old Zhao!¡±


    Zhao Tianfang nodded his head, saying, ¡°No harm done. Oh by the way, what for did youe to Daybreak Merchants Union and try to exchange your steel hearts?¡±


    ¡°I want a Spirit Recovery Fruit.¡±


    Zhao Tian openly smiled and said, ¡°I asked Ao Xue to get it for you¡±


    Long Chen shook his head, saying, ¡°Old Zhao, currently I am not a member of the Daybreak Merchants Union and because of the so-called don¡¯t be rewarded if you do not deserve it, I would like to buy this Spirit Recovery Fruit myself. I will pay you 30 steel hearts and 10 pieces of deity jade for this.¡±


    With a serious look in his eyes, Zhao Tianfang said, ¡°I am giving it to you because of our friendship and it has nothing to do with Daybreak Merchants Union. Is this also not agreeable with you?¡±


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t swayed by what Zhao Tianfang, and he said in an indifferent manner, ¡°Old Zhao, frankly, I am really grateful that you want to gift this to me. However, the fact is that you are a representative of Daybreak Merchants Union. If you present me with items, can you please wait for my decision to join Daybreak Merchants Union?¡±


    Zhao Tianfang looked at Long Chen for a while, then muttered, ¡°This kid¡¯s innate talent is not bad and he also has many secrets in his body. Moreover, he is level-headed and daring and has a heart of perseverance. He is a rare talent and with such a person, if I am eager and impatient, it would only lead to him disliking me.¡±


    Therefore, he simply took what Long Chen offered him, and with a nod, he said, ¡°Since you insist, I will do as you said.¡±


    ¡°I wonder, does Old Zhao have any other spirit healing medicines?¡±


    ¡°Medicines of this type are ineffective if they are of a low level. And high level medicines can enhance the intelligence and perception of a human, but it would vary from person to person, and in short, it is very rare. I have here only one Spirit recovery Fruit, which is all. But if it¡¯s a requirement of yours, I have some new goods and I will send it to you via someone.¡±


    Long Chen nodded his head, saying, ¡°Thank you for all your trouble, Old Zhao! This junior still has other matters to attend to, so I will be taking my leave first.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. . .I will get Ao Xue to give you that Spirit Recovery Fruit.¡±


    The two men went outside. The female, known as Ao Xue, was waiting for them on the outside. She gave a look filled with loathing towards Long Chen.


    Although she was unwilling to do so, under Zhao Tianfang¡¯smand, she handed over the Spirit Recovery Fruit to Long Chen and under further instructions; she was to lead Long Chen out of Daybreak Merchants Union.


    ¡°Is our Daybreak Merchants Union¡¯s profit slipping away from our hands?¡±


    Ao Xue was talking to herself, but her words had been heard by Long Chen.


    ¡°Who said I pped your butt? You really have no shame, I would dislike my hands getting dirty by touching you.¡±


    Long Chen left without another word. Then, under Ao Xue¡¯s furious re, he quickly fled the Daybreak Merchants Union.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you saw that stinky woman¡¯s angry expression. Her face looks like as if it is caked with cow dung.¡±


    Ling Xi snorted, and then scolded him with a smile, ¡°You are really bad. She just said a few words to you but you still made her so angry.¡±


    ¡°Of course. She deserves that!¡±


    Having got the Spirit Recovery Fruit, both of them were pretty excited. Long Chen had experienced a lot of stuff, but his age wasn¡¯t much and he had a youngster¡¯s temperament. Since he had got this Spirit Recovery Fruit, his face was beaming with joy.


    The two of them quickly returned to the Lingwu City. Around noon time, they hade to the Green Willow Residence in the Green region of Lingwu City.


    He had just returned when he found that Gan Lin was waiting for him in the Martial Techniques Training Hall.


    ¡°Did you or did you not get 105 steel hearts?¡±


    During their meeting, Gan Lin asked eagerly.


    Long Chen immediately calmed down.


    Gan Lin, upon seeing Long Chen looking like this, immediately said ¡°You youngsters really know how to avoid losing face. I would not have known anything if we hadn¡¯t found those 30 steel puppets ¡ª during the final inspection ¡ª missing their steel hearts, in the tunnel you passed through. But those are the achievements of the past, I¡¯m here to tell you about another matter.¡±


    Gan Lin quickly skipped over the matter regarding the steel hearts; he did not care about them. Long Chen only then let loose the breath he had been holding.


    ¡°Fortunately, he did not ask me about anything, otherwise I would have been finished. It seems these steel hearts are not worth any money. Zhao Tianfang paid 3 pieces of deity jade for them and this is because hepletely wants to rope me in.¡±


    Then Long Chen set aside the matter of the steel hearts and asked, ¡°I wonder, what is it that Senior Gan wants to tell me?¡±


    Gan Lin grabbed a chair, sat down and said, ¡°Enforcer Liu told me to tell you that the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has not made any movements towards Por Town. This is to make you feel relieved and go andplete your first mission. However, Long Chen¡­.¡±


    Hearing this, Long Chen felt as if a load had been removed from his shoulders. But the three-sybled word ¡®However¡¯ uttered by Gan Lin, and made his heart race.


    ¡°There are still 4 more days for your first mission to be allotted to you. Although your mission has not yet been finalised, it seems Enforcer Liu intentionally allowed Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya to take you along with them for your first mission, as your examiners. At that time¡­.¡±

 Chapter 83 – Wind Rendering Spirit Roc

    Hearing Huang Feiyang¡¯s name, Long Chen could not help but feel a cold shiver go down his spine.


    ¡°Huang Feiyang hates me to the core. Why has Enforcer Liu put us together? Does she want me to die?¡±


    Long Chen could not understand why that woman, whom he recalled as being enchanting, would treat him in such a manner, and so he frowned.


    ¡°But Long Chen, you need not be so anxious. Examiners do not have the authority to take action against you. Our Lingwu Family¡¯s spywork is very powerful and iparable to any other. As long as you are extremely careful, they would not dare to act against you in public.¡±


    However, Long Chen was not scared of Huang Feiyang. He just was unable to understand. Enforcer Liu¡¯s actions seemed a bit vicious.


    ¡°Senior Gan, if there is nothing else of importance, I¡¯ll go back to make some preparations.¡±


    Gan Lin nodded his head and said with a regrettable expression, ¡°It¡¯s what Enforcer Liu has decided upon, even if I begged it wouldn¡¯t change the matter. Go back and prepare well, and see if you can escape this cmity!¡±


    Long Chen left. As he was observing Long Chen from behind, Gan Lin shook his head and sighed ¡°105 steel hearts, this number even surpassed that of the outer faction¡¯s original number one genius Mo Xiang. What was Enforcer Liu thinking? It¡¯s such a pity!¡±


    Even though Long Chen had left, he wasn¡¯t too far away yet, and could hear Gan Lin¡¯s mumbles.


    Earlier, he already heard the figure 102 from Zhao Tianfang. Now, he could hear himself beingpared to someone. Was that person Mo Xiang??


    The reason that Long Chen hadn¡¯te to the Lingwu Family was partly because of Mo Xiang. At that time, Mo Xiang had actually told him toe to Lingwu Family only when he had reached the Human Dan Realm. However, due to familial troubles, Long Chen hade along at an earlier date. Over the past two days, he had just be familiar with the Lingwu Family but had not been able to seek out Mo Xiang. However, after listening to what Gan Lin said, Long Chen thought that Gan Lin ought to know the whereabouts of Mo Xiang.


    Remembering that youth, Long Chen smiled wickedly. He suddenly turned and walked back to the Martial Techniques Training Hall. Gan Lin looked at him suspiciously.


    ¡°Why are you back?¡±


    ¡°Senior brother Gan, I want to inquire about someone. Do you know the whereabouts of that Mo Xiang you mentioned previously?¡±


    Long Chen went straight to the point, but as he mentioned the name Mo Xiang. Gan Lin¡¯splexion changed, and he said: ¡°Shut it!¡±


    Long Chen was startled, and his gaze gradually turned colder as he asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Seeing his reaction, Gan Lin said in a cold voice, ¡°Long Chen, I don¡¯t care about the rtionship between you two, but inside the Lingwu Family, you should not ask about him. This person doesn¡¯t exist within our Lingwu Family anymore!¡±


    Hearing this from Gan Lin, Long Chen became even more puzzled. However, seeing Gan Lin¡¯s solemn expression, he understood the seriousness of this matter and nodded. ¡°Alright, I got it!¡±


    Afterwards, he left the Martial Techniques Training Hall and returned to his own residence.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what do you think of this current situation?¡±


    Ling Xi was also confused and said, ¡°I also do not know. At that time, didn¡¯t that fellow say that he was a member of the Lingwu Family and that he was doing great in here? But why does it feel like he is considered as a lowly person now? We are not even allowed to mention his name!¡±


    Long Chen frowned and said, ¡°At that time, he told me that he had toplete an important matter and would return to Yuanling City. Could it be that something went wrong?¡±


    ¡°Oh, that is right. . . ¡±, Said Ling Xi, who suddenly realised something as she continued, ¡°I am getting the feeling that he has been spurned by everyone. Since he is recognized as the Outer Faction¡¯s number one talent, could it be that he has betrayed the Lingwu Family?¡±


    Long Chen pondered, then decided that it could be a possibility.


    ¡°With his character, he wouldn¡¯t do such a thing, but if someone was pressuring him, then it might be possible.¡±


    ¡°Right, it sounds just like that stinky woman!¡± Recalling Liu Lan, Ling Xi¡¯s face at once turned a fiery red. ¡°Initially, she pretends to be a good person. Then she makes you and that Huang-what-is-his-stinky-name go on a mission together. It¡¯s clearly a n to have you killed! Long Chen, it would be better for us to go to the Daybreak Merchants Union; perhaps we may be able to meet that Xiang chap. ¡±


    Long Chen shook his head and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be hasty, we are only guessing. Xiang is stronger than me by far. The present me couldn¡¯t help him, even if I wanted to. I think I should cultivate seriously for now. Regarding the first mission¡­¡±


    A cold light shed within Long Chen¡¯s eyes as he said, ¡°They can¡¯t even imagine how patient I can be. I don¡¯t believe I won¡¯t be able to kill him! That Huang Feiyang!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen in this state of such ferocity, Lingxi was startled. At the same time, Long Chen brought out the Spirit Recovery Fruit from his cosmos pouch.


    ¡°You go and refine this. I will take a look at the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] and the [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step]. I must make the most of the few days I have left before the mission!¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Early in the morning of the fourth day, Gan Lin knocked open Long Chen¡¯s door and said, ¡°The mission has been decided. It is a Grade 3 Mission. Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya are to be the main forces in this mission. Just follow them and learn, and try to perform well. They will be your examiners. Your rank and the number of resources you will receive here at the Lingwu Family will be based on their evaluation of your performance.¡±


    Long Chen secretly uttered the words ¨C bullshit.


    Even if that fellow Huang Feiyang couldn¡¯t kill him during this assignment, he would most likely give the worst kind of evaluation.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what that littledy is scheming, but these two punks won¡¯t evaluate a shit! There is an 80% chance that they will try to kill me during the evaluation!¡±


    While thinking thusly, Long Chen followed behind Gan Lin.


    ¡°The location for this assignment is Yanluo Town. The Town Master of Yanluo Town sent information yesterday stating that Yanluo Town has had a lot of young women missing within a couple of days, including the daughter of the Town Master. The culprit didn¡¯t leave any traces, so he should be someone who has reached the Human Dan Realm. The governing body of Yanluo Town couldn¡¯t handle it, so it¡¯s up to you three.¡±


    Just as Long Chen noted down Gan Lin¡¯s words, they arrived at the backyard of the Green Willow Residence, where he heard that many demonic beasts were reared. Just as he arrived, he saw a Roc with an excessive wingspan of 15m that was coolly looking at everyone.


    [TL Note: Roc ¨C Mythical Bird]


    ¡°This is the Huang grade level 7 demonic beast, Wind Rendering Spirit Roc! It¡¯s extremely stealthy. Both its speed and endurance are extraordinary. It is the mostmon mount in our Lingwu Family.¡±


    Upon seeing Long Chen, the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc suddenly shrank back. It had a doubtful expression when looking at Long Chen, but mixed in with the doubt was also some reverence!


    ¡°Did it feel the trace of dragon Qi from my body?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s heart stirred, then he noticed the two people beside the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc. It was that Huang Feiyang, who was beaming at Long Chen, and the stoic-faced Wen Ya.


    Even though Huang Feiyang was smiling, the killing intent within his smile was unmistakable.


    On the contrary, Liu Lan didn¡¯t show up.


    ¡°Finally here?¡±


    Huang Feiyang stepped forward. As if he was a senior of the older generation, he sized up long Chen then clicked his tongue saying, ¡°Not bad kid. This time I and Senior Wen Ya will take charge of you as your examiners. If you perform well and do not make any mistakes, then I will award you with high marks! Isn¡¯t that right, Wen Ya? ¡±


    Wen Ya forced a smile.


    Huang Feiyang looked at Gan Lin and said, ¡°Senior brother Gan, please return. We will take good care of this youngster, and I guarantee that by the time we return, he will be healthy and well.¡±


    ¡°You disgusting fellow, if thisdyship ever gets my hands on you, I¡¯ll beat you until your buttocks face the sky!¡±


    (TL Note: ƨ¹É³¯Ìì ¨C buttocks face the sky, means that she will beat him until he¡¯s crawling)


    Ling Xi had been following Long Chen for a while. Even if she hadn¡¯t learned a lot, she had learnt much about vulgarnguage.


    However, Huang Feiyang¡¯s current appearance made Long Chen feel out of sorts with him. Seeing this situation, Gan Lin warned Long Chen repeatedly, then looked at Huang Feiyang and said coldly, ¡°Junior Disciple Huang, in Yanluo Town our Lingwu Family has eyes and ears everywhere. If this matter is not easily handled, notify the family immediately.¡±


    As Gan Lin mentioned the eyes and ears, it implied that he was clearly warning Huang Feiyang.


    If Huang Feiyang openly bullied Long Chen, the news would surely pass on to the Lingwu Family. At that time, it wouldn¡¯t matter how capable Huang Feiyang was. He would be done for.


    Huang Feiyang understood Gan Lin¡¯s words, but he put on appearance of not having heard him. Heughed and said in a bright voice, ¡°This is only natural. I will promise not to let junior disciple Long Chen get hurt.¡±


    Gan Lin already knew that this was the most he could do to help Long Chen. He once again looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°It is now time for you to set off.¡±


    Huang Feiyang called out to Wen Ya, and Long Chen and went to the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc. Wen Ya took out a dark-green whistle and blew a very strange tune. Immediately that Wind Rendering Spirit Roc became docile and stooped down on its legs and allowed Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya to climb aboard it. Long Chen had a lot of courage. Although he had never ridden on a huge bird before, he still climbed on top without hesitation.


    Under Wen Ya¡¯s control, the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc gave a cry and suddenly pped its wings. With a loud rumble, it rose into the skies with Long Chen tightly clutching onto its plumage. It was only after sinking his Qi downwards to attach himself firmly onto the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc that he had managed to stabilize himself. It was a thrilling moment, but it made his whole body break out in a cold sweat.


    [TL Note Devil82: (ÕæÆøϳÁ) or sinking Qi downwards, is amonly used technique in wuxia in order to make one heavier]


    In the intense wind, Huang Feiyang turned his head to look at Long Chen andughed.


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Gazing after their departure, Gan Lin bit his lips and sighed in dismay, ¡°Another nice youngster. Why is it necessary to end his life in such a manner?¡±


    ¡°Gan Lin, are you dissatisfied with me?¡±


    An indifferent voice was heard from behind him, and Gan Lin turned his head around. Seeing the person who wasing up to him, he bowed his head and said, ¡°Lady Enforcer¡­¡±


    Liu Lan swayed her hips as she walked to his side. Originally her mouth, which looked grave and stern, now gradually rose up. Her cheeks were like peach blossoms as she smiled.


    ¡°Whatever concerns you have, you can share it with me.¡±


    Gan Lin thought a while and then drummed up his courage and said, ¡°Enforcer, I think that to use such an extreme method to bring forth their potential is incorrect. Including Long Chen we¡¯ve already lost 6 people. Is this still not sufficient?¡±


    Liu Lan was still smiling as she lifted her head and looked towards the horizon where Long Chen had disappeared to and said: ¡°Real geniuses only emerge from endless tempering and confronting life-threatening crises. What I will let him experience is infinite killing intent, failures, deaths, and sesses. Only then will he be a dragon amongst men.¡±


    She turned her head, looked at Gan Lin and asked curiously: ¡°Gan Lin, which do you think is more powerful: 6 bugs or one dragon?¡±


    Gan Lin¡¯s body shook. He had eventually understood Liu Lan¡¯s thoughts, but when he recalled those young faces, he still felt uneasy and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know when you will be able to nurture a dragon. . .¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either.¡±


    ¡°What do you think about Long Chen¡¯s chances?¡±


    Recalling Long Chen. Liu Lan smiled indifferently, shook her said and said, ¡°He was born poor, his background is too weak, and has no innate talent. It won¡¯t matter how much he struggles. As of now, only Feng Wutian¡¯s talent can barely meet my expectations. However, Feng Wutian is a blood-rtive of the Inner Faction¡¯s Vermillion Bird n. . .¡±

 Chapter 84 – Wait A Moment

    The speed of the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc was very fast. The distance between Yanluo Town and Yuanling City was much greater than the distance between Por Town and Yuanling City. At the time, Long Chen had put in 10 days¡¯ effort to travel to Yuanling City. If he had this Wind Rendering Spirit Roc, he needed to travel for only a small part of the day, and would have reached Yuanling City in the evening.


    The killing intent between Long Chen and Huang Feiyang became more intense during the entire journey.


    ¡°This Huang Feiyang hasn¡¯t done anything to me aboard this Wind Rendering Spirit Roc. It seems he wants to wait and hinder me while I carry out my mission.¡±


    Before reaching Yanluo Town, Huang Feiyang stopped the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc outside of a small vige in the countryside. There were already some people waiting to greet them. While they were holding onto the Roc, Huang Feiyang was facing the direction of Yanluo Town as if he was waiting for someone from there.


    Only then did Long Chen realize the reason that Huang Feiyang did not attack him on the Roc. He had agreed to have the Roc received here. This was all because the huge body of the bird would have alerted an ordinary person, and thus was not suitable to fly on to Yanluo Town.


    Upon leaving the vige, Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya walked ahead.


    ¡°I wonder what these bastards are up to.¡±


    Long Chen followed closely at their heels in aposed manner.


    Although this time¡¯s mission was beyond his expectations, since he had prepared a Spirit Recovery Fruit for Ling Xi, Long Chen felt much more at ease.


    If he really couldn¡¯t handle them, then he would let Ling Xi give him a helping hand. Long Chen had already discussed with Ling Xi ¨C- She would only be allowed to do something if it really was a life-threatening crisis. She would, however, not be allowed to put her life at risk.


    Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya were presently walking in front of him.


    Seeing hispanion this calm, Wen Ya gave in to his urge and asked, ¡°When do you n to strike?¡±


    Huang Feiyang smiled grimly and said, ¡°Now is not the time. If that Yan Beitian only saw us two, he would know that I got rid of Long Chen on the way. Although he would not dare to go public with the news, the Family would certainly have their own ways of obtaining the information.¡±


    ¡°Then what do you intend to do?¡±


    Huang Feiyang said in aid-back manner, ¡°Didn¡¯t wee here for an investigation and if necessary, to kill people? I have heard that the other side has Human Dan Realm experts. We will hand Long Chen over to them, and that should take care of the matter.¡±


    Wen Ya nodded in agreement, ¡°Even though you are feeling hatred, you haven¡¯t lost your ability to think clearly. Not bad.¡±


    Huang Feiyang gave off such a huge amount pressure, it made Long Chen tightly clench his fist.


    ¡°I am not far away from the 9th level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. As long as I can reach the 9th level, I should be able to enter the Human Dan Realm. At that time, I will still have the strength to handle them without having Ling Xi risk her life for me. This tiny step is crucial for my survival!¡±


    They would soon arrive at Yanluo vige. Long Chen had no idea what was about to happen, but he did know that he still had many heavy responsibilities. He could not lose. If he lost, Ling Xi and everyone in his Yang family would surely all be finished!


    Going into the center of the vige was like the time when Mo Xiang entered Por Town; only a couple of people noticed.


    Returning to a ceparable to Por Town, Long Chen felt a lot more rxed. Very soon, he arrived at the main mansion. This n was quite simr to the Yang family. The head of the family was called Yan Beitian, and he had a cultivation of the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    Knowing that the Lingwu Family woulde today, Yan Beitian had waited in front of the main door since early in the morning. When he saw 3 youngsters with profound cultivations heading this way, he felt immense joy, and greeted them immediately. He knelt on the ground and said excitedly, ¡°Humble Yan Beitian wees the lords of the Lingwu Family!¡±


    Long Chen look over at Yan Beitian carefully. Even though he was middle-aged or more, he still had a robust body. His skin was ck, like that of a ck bear.


    However, this ck bear¡¯s eyes had a tinge of red. It must have been from losing his daughter.


    As Long Chen studied him, he peered back at them. Seeing how Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya, with their tender age, had already exceeded his ability, he was extremely impressed. However when he noticed how young Long Chen was, and that his cultivation was lower than his, he simply ignored him, treating him as amon follower to these two.


    ¡°My lords, please enter, please enter. You grace my humble abode with your presence.¡±


    Under Yan Beitian¡¯s excited request, Long Chen and the rest entered the main hall. Yan Beitian immediately ordered people to steep some tea, then presented some famous fruits and pastries from Yanluo Town as he entertained the three cordially, but his expectant gaze never left Huang Feiyang or Wen Ya.


    ¡°My two lords, have a taste of our Yanluo Town¡¯s White Jade Cake. This White Jade Cake is beautiful like real white jade, sweet but not greasy, and melts in your mouth. It¡¯s the Yanluo Town¡¯s famous delicacy. Hurry up and have a taste!¡±


    Huang Feiyang was all smiles and went for a taste. Indeed, he was filled with praise. Afterwards he said, ¡°Yan Town Master, we did note here to eat, but since we¡¯ve already eaten, let¡¯s get down to business!¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes!¡±


    Finally being able to get down to business, Yan Beitian became extremely excited. As he clenched his fist and started thinking about those bastards, the veins on his neck started pulsating!


    ¡°It had only started during these recent days. Once it¡¯s night, those bastards will appear within the town and abduct young women from the streets. They always operate with secrecy, but the number of missing women keeps increasing. I started organizing people to deal with it, but that¡¯s when I found out what was really happening!¡±


    Huang Feiyang scowled and stated, ¡°The information you provided stated that they have powerful practitioners of the Human Dan Realm.¡±


    Yan Beitian nodded and said furiously, ¡°That son of a bitch is stronger than both myself and the head of Luo nbined. He must be within the Human Dan Realm! Even my daughter was taken by them!¡±


    ¡°Do they have any distinguishable features?¡± Wen Ya asked.


    Yan Beitian recalled carefully, and then answered doubtfully, ¡°There were no significant characteristics, but I do remember that they had a red dot right between their eyebrows!¡±


    This sentence only puzzled Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya a bit, but it made Long Chen¡¯s body tremble.


    ¡°Are they people from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡± Ling Xi asked softly.


    ¡±It should be. Liu Lan knows that the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and I are at odds, so she let me be in charge of this mission. If it is possible, I think that we can get more information on Crimson Blood Sacred Sect! However, with Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya here, things will be moreplicated¡­¡±


    ¡±I thought that maidens disappearing sounded familiar! It seems as though you¡¯ve also told me something simr urring at the Emerald Jade House. It must be those bastards again! What are you going to do about them, Long Chen?¡±


    Long Chenughed indifferently, and said, ¡°That is Huang Feiyang¡¯s problem. I might just as well let them fight until both sides are injured.¡±


    At this time, Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya were already discussing with Yan Beitian about how to capture the people from Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    ¡°They have caught enough people these days. I think that they are about to leave. They must have been hiding within the East Yan Mountain outside the vige, but I don¡¯t know exactly where!¡±


    Thinking about his daughter suffering god knows what, Yan Beitian¡¯s whole face turned purple.


    ¡°Long Chen, poor him! You must help him!¡±


    ¡°I know, I want to quickly dispose of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but I want to let Huang Feiyang and the others fight them! Since Huang Feiyang wants to kill me, I want to see what tricks he uses!¡±


    Secretly gazing at Huang Feiyang, Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned cold.


    Yan Beitian waspletely absorbed in talking to Huang Feiyang, and had forgotten all about Long Chen.


    ¡°East Yan Mountain?¡±


    ¡±Even though the East Yan Mountain are not big, it will still be very hard to find a group of people within them!¡±


    Huang Feiyang scowled and said, ¡°Even if we cannot find them, we still have to climb the mountain and look for them. We cannot find any other solutions if we just stay here!¡±


    Yan Beitian showed signs gratitude and said, ¡°Then there is no time to lose. Shall we climb the mountains now?¡±


    ¡°There is no hurry.¡± Huang Feiyangughed ¡°Yan Beitian, I heard that you obtained a Profound grade beast¡¯s corpse¡ª am I correct?¡±


    This is a crucial moment, yet Huang Feiyang inquired about the corpse of some Profound grade beast. Those words made Long Chen instantly excited.


    ¡°If the Profound grade beast¡¯s corpse is fresh, then the blood essence of that demonic beast is very useful to me. It would certainly make me break through into the ninth level of Dragon Pulse Realm. That, inbination with the Soul Diffusion Fruit¡­¡±


    Thinking this far, Long Chen became extremely excited and contemted in secret about how to get his hands on that Profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse.


    At this moment, Yan Beitian hurriedly said, ¡°Is a Profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse sufficient to exchange for my daughter life?¡±


    There was a custom. After asking for the help of Lingwu Family, the regional powers would offer gifts after the task was done. Yan Beitian was concerned for his daughter¡¯s life. He had stated in the letter delivered to Yuanling City that he would provide them with the corpse of a Profound grade demonic beast ¡ª Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya knew this much.


    Also, this was the first time that these two would receive an extra reward.


    It was because of the corpse of the Profound grade demonic beast that they had both put all their effort into helping Yan Beitian. However,pared to Huang Feiyang, the matter of killing Long Chen was even more important.


    Yan Beitian had clearly indicated that this Profound grade demonic beast had just recently died; its Beast Spirit and demonic core were still intact. Although it was just a Profound grade demonic beast, it was still very precious.


    Seeing the anxious look on Yan Beitian¡¯s face, Huang Feiyang said with a smile, ¡°It is certainly sufficient. Now give us the corpse of the Demonic Beast. Afterwards, we will go straight into the mountains, and if we can¡¯t settle this matter, we will simply return it to you.¡±


    Yan Beitian felt that handing over the corpse of the Profound grade demonic beast was already a bit unreasonable. However, seeing that the life of his daughter was in Huang Feiyang¡¯s hands, he reluctantly nodded his head, saying, ¡°Okay.¡±


    Just as he was about to take out the corpse of the Profound grade demonic beast.


    ¡°Wait a moment,¡± Long Chen interjected.

 Chapter 85 – Corpse Of A Profound Grade Demonic Beast

    ¡°What do you want?¡± Being interrupted by Long Chen, Huang Feiyang, who had almost had the corpse in his hands, felt rather unhappy.


    ¡°This task is being carried out by all three of us, so I should also have the right to a part of this profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse right?¡± Long Chen raised his head and stated with a neither servile nor overbearing expression.


    ¡°You must be kidding!¡± Huang Feiyang¡¯s expression darkened and heughed coldly, ¡°This mission is solely to test you. You want to receive a reward for it? Long Chen, you are not qualified. Besides, it¡¯s the core of a profound grade demonic beast. Can a brat like you have this kind of fortune?¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t let me have it? Haha, Huang Feiyang, you two should depart for the mountain by yourselves. Without any benefits, I, your father, won¡¯t enter the East Yan Mountain.¡±


    This speech from Long Chen left Yan Beitian dumbfounded. In his eyes, Long Chen had been just an attendant standing beside these two, and that was all. However, this attendant had unexpectedly contradicted Huang Feiyang and had also spoken out in such a manner.


    ¡°This. . . .¡±


    Yan Beitian looked at Huang Feiyang. This time, Huang Feiyang got up from the chair, and faced Long Chen with his strong aura engulfing him, and his eyes appearing cold and grim. He was about to attack Long Chen but was held back by Wen Ya.


    Wen Ya nced meaningfully at Huang Feiyang, then, looking coldly at Long Chen, he said, ¡°Long Chen, this time, we havee here as your examiners. You must heed our words. If you don¡¯t go to the East Yan Mountain, we will give you low marks, and when Enforcer Liu asks for an exnation, you cannotin then.¡±


    If Long Chen wasn¡¯t going to go to the mountaintop, how would Huang Feiyang kill him? Therefore, he had to agree, even if Long Chen had no right to the gift of the corpse of a profound grade demonic beast. Even if Long Chen was making a scene here, he couldn¡¯t attack him here. Thinking so, Huang Feiyang frowned.


    ¡°You still think to scare me?¡± Long Chen, with a detached attitude that was neither servile nor overbearing, looked calmly at them both and said resolutely, ¡°If you don¡¯t agree, I won¡¯t carry out this mission!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen being so stubborn, even Wen Ya became angry, not to mention Huang Feiyang, whose eyes turned crimson with rage.


    Seeing Long Chen acting in such a proud manner, he recalled memories of his younger brother, who had been crippled by Long Chen, and had yet to recover. Huang Feiyang¡¯s hidden killing intent leaked out a little.


    ¡°I must restrain myself. I must not kill him under the numerous eyes of the public! I must wait until we go to the Eastern Yan Mountains, and then, I can finally kill him at an isted ce such that even his corpse will not be left behind. Ah! Long Chen, I will make you die a horrible death!


    With that thought, Huang Feiyang brought his emotions under control with great difficulty.


    In a daze, Yan Beitian looked upon this farce, and after seeing that Huang Feiyang had not immediately killed this Long Chen, his opinion of Long Chen immediately rose. He thought to himself, ¡°This young fellow is very resourceful ¡ª he has made Sir Huang very angry, and yet he doesn¡¯t dare to kill him. It seems that he is somewhat capable. If I want to save my daughter, I had better intervene between these two. . . .¡±


    Thinking such, Yan Beitian quickly said, ¡°Young lord, the many lives of the Yanluo town are in your hands. You must have mercy, you can have anything except for the profound grade demonic beast corpse!¡±


    ¡°I only need the profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse.¡±


    Long Chen appeared amused. He was looking fearlessly at the ashen-faced Huang Feiyang.


    ¡°In your dreams!¡±


    Huang Feiyangughed coldly, then looked at Yan Beitian and said, ¡°Town Master Yan, don¡¯t say any more. That fellow just got into the Lingwu Family. I¡¯ll give him a hard time so that he knows his ce. Hopefully, Town Master Yan will put in a few good words for me when the family starts to pry. ¡°


    Yan Beitian looked unnerved by all this and ¡°Lords, this won¡¯t do. You are both lords within the Lingwu family. Please don¡¯t cause any internal strife..¡±


    At this time Long Chen said, ¡°Huang Feiyang, I won¡¯t beat around the bush, and go straight to the point. What I need is the Profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse and not the core. Give me the corpse, and I promise to solve this issue wlessly. What say you?¡±


    The most valuable part of the profound grade demonic beast corpse were the demonic core and Beast Spirit, and the rest were just waste products. Huang Feiyang didn¡¯t imagine that Long Chen had actually wanted this. He furrowed his brows, and doubtfully said, ¡°What does he want with the corpse? What secret does it have?¡±


    Likewise, Wen Ya was clueless about this whole thing. Yan Beitian knew that the corpse itself didn¡¯t have any value, so he had no clue either.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you are afraid that once I get the demonic beast¡¯s corpse, my cultivation will soar and therebypletely surpass yours?¡±


    Seeing the other party hesitate, Long Chen made this statement as he burst out intoughter.


    Huang Feiyang was really incited by this. He nced at Long Chen for a while, and said coldly, ¡°With your insignificant 8th level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, if you are able to advance to Human Dan Realm just by relying on the corpse of the demonic beast, then this Huang has deserved what you have done to me. However, is this even possible?¡±


    Wen Ya and Huang Feiyang started tough too, because this was impossible.


    ¡°Yan town master, give that Profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse to me and I¡¯ll extract the demonic core and beast spirit. If we cannotplete the mission, then I¡¯ll just return the Beast Spirit and demonic core.¡±


    Yan Beitian wavered a moment and then agreed. The Lingwu family¡¯s reputation was still trustworthy.


    Next, while Huang Feiyang waited for the people to do the extraction, Long Chen waited a short while in the main hall. He heard theming.


    ¡°They are so easy to fool; provoke them a little, and they just give you a Profound grade demonic beast corpse. Really stupid, hehe¡­¡± ¡ª this was, of course, said by Ling Xi.


    ¡°That is not the reason for my wisdom. Now that I am at the peak of the 8th level of Dragon Pulse Realm, if I can get that demonic beast¡¯s essence blood, then I can break through!¡±


    Thinking thus far, Huang Feiyang and his people reemerged. Under Huang Feiyang¡¯s cold scrutiny, Long Chen collected the Profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse into his Cosmos Pouch.


    ¡°A first-rate Profound grade demonic beast, the Blue-eyed Snow Lion. Seeing the gash on its body, it should have been bitten by another demonic beast. . .¡±


    After receiving the profound grade demonic beast¡¯s corpse, Long Chen said to Yan Beitian, ¡°Give me half an hour¡¯s time, there is something I need to organize.¡±


    The current time was already sparse, but Long Chen was still stalling for more time. Yan Beitian was agitated, he was like a man stepping on hot coals, and thus could only look at Huang Feiyang with pleading eyes.


    The murderous intent Huang Feiyang extruded towards Long Chen had already reached its peak, but considering that he would be able to take Long Chen¡¯s life once they reached Yan Dong mountain, he once again restrained himself.


    For him, killing Long Chen was the number one priority.


    ¡°You can be content now. Even though I cannot kill you during the day, you definitely won¡¯t live through tonight!¡±


    Huang Feiyang waved his hand with an impatient look on his face.


    Getting his permission, Long Chen smiled slightly and asked Yan Beitian ¡ª whose face had turned pale from the stress ¡ª for a private ce.


    Long Chen knew that time was of the utmost importance, and asked promptly, ¡°Xiaoxi, are you sure that the soul diffusion fruit is easily digested, and that it will help me achieve the deity dan realm.


    ¡°Of course, I have seen many people of the Deity Dan Realm, which is not something a yokel like you could understand!¡±


    Long Chen stopped spouting nonsense, and immediately pulled out the Blue-Eyed Snow Lion¡¯s corpse from his cosmos pouch. Then, looking at the snow-white, supple fur, he silently used [Dragon Soul Transformation]!


    Using his remarkable ability, rows of red scales started to slowly appear on his skin. Scarlet bones that looked like knife des slowly protruded from his joints.


    In merely a moment, Long Chen appearance had undergone a major transformation. Although his scarlet exterior appeared sinister, it had a noble presence as well, which gave one an extremelyplex feeling.


    ¡°Next, it¡¯s time for the [Blood Transmuted Qi]¡­¡±


    Long Chen hadn¡¯t used [Blood Transmuted Qi] since he had killed Xue Yuanzi.


    Its might could simply oppose the heavens. Long Chen¡¯s current aplishments were simply because of this [Blood Transmuted Qi]. This was the testament to what a remarkable ability the [Blood Transmuted Qi] was.


    At least within Por Town, Long Chen had never before heard of anything like this kind of remarkable ability.


    [Blood Transmuted Qi] and [Dragon Soul Transformation] were two powerful and remarkable abilities that Long Chen had. They both came from that Inherited Blood Essence, and Long Chen had only absorbed one thousandth of that Inherited Blood Essence.


    ¡°It might be that the Inherited Blood Essence really was from an Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon, but Ling Xi is not confiding in me whatever she knows about this topic . . . .¡±


    In this secluded corner where no one could see him, drops of blood which were seemingly full of high spirits, seeped from the surface of the body of the Blue-Eyed Snow Lion.


    They fluttered about in a lively fashion, and entered Long Chen¡¯s body, thus being absorbed by him and turned into Qi.


    Although the amount of Profound grade demonic beast¡¯s essence blood was not more than the Underground Blood Lizard King, its quality was much better. The power in its blood vessels surpassed that of the Underground Blood Lizard King by several fold.


    At that time , when Long Chen had swallowed the Blood Qi, he had not felt any feeling that attributed to an increase of a huge amount of Qi .


    The blood red Qi within his body seemed to explode as it bubbled furiously, gathering more Qi constantly. They crashed against the 8th vein of the Dragon Pulse Realm which was already broken. However, the 9th Heaven Dragon Vein seemed to be standing as stiff and steady as a mountain.


    Long Chen knew that this Heaven Dragon Vein was hard to breakthrough. This was the reason why Yang Qingxuan and the others had remained in the 8th level of Dragon Pulse Realm¡­


    The Qi skyrocketed, and the insides of Long Chen¡¯s body surged up a massive, bloody wave. He waited until the sea of blood had reached its climax, and at that point, Long Chen knew that the time was almost ripe for his breakthrough to the ninthyer of the Dragon Pulse Realm.

 Chapter 86 – The Deity Dan Realm!

    Long Chen broke through to the Heaven Dragon Vein and entered the ninth level of Dragon Pulse Realm- the summit of the Dragon Pulse Realm.


    After reaching the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, all of Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Veins werepletely opened. The Qi inside his body could now move entirely unobstructed!


    After entirely absorbing and refining the Blood Essence of the Blue-Eyed Snow Lion, the amount of Qi inside Long Chen¡¯s body increased exponentially. His current amount of qi almost made his body explode. He already possessed the strength needed to break through to the 9th level of Dragon Pulse Realm.


    ¡°Heaven Dragon Vein!¡±


    He was sitting cross-legged on the ground, and with Ling Xi keeping watch, he was not worried about what might happen. He suddenly roared lightly and circted his Qi, directing it towards his ninth Dragon Vein, which was also the longest Dragon Vein, the Heaven Dragon Vein.


    The vast amount of Qi suddenly transformed into a Crimson Dragon God, and after letting forth wave after wave of deep bellowing, the Heaven Dragon Vein shattered open with the sound of a crashing meteorite. Then, endless waves of Qi began to pour into the Heaven Dragon Vein.


    The Heaven Dragon Vein was the longest Dragon Vein, its length being almost equal to that of all the other Dragon Veinsbined. Simrly, the difficulty to open it was like that of all the previous Dragon Veinsbined. However, since Long Chen had already absorbed the blood essence of a powerful Demonic Beast that was in the Human Dan Realm, his Qi experienced a qualitative and quantitative change, reaching its peak. The Heaven Dragon Vein simply could not resist advancing!


    Rich and vigorous Qi kept increasing inside the Heaven Dragon Vein!


    ¡°Come on!¡±


    Inside the Lingxi Sword, Ling Xi was watching Long Chen nervously, her tiny eyes constantly darting around, and her miniature fist was clenched.


    Time was passing slowly. Even though the Heaven Dragon Vein was long, Long Chen¡¯s cirction speed was now several times faster. He was entirely able to break through to the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. As a result, a quarter of an hourter, he hadpletely broken through to the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm!


    The muffled roar of a dragon exploded forth from Long Chen¡¯s body as he broke through the Heaven Dragon Vein. He could feel the tempestuous dance of countless crimson dragons within his body as if they were celebrating his elevation!


    Even with numerous bloody manifestations of the Dragon Gods appearing inside his blood vessels, internal organs, and skeleton, Long Chen wasn¡¯t the least bit afraid.


    ¡°The Ancient Dragon Gods sure are unfathomable beings. Do they have anything inmon with demon beasts?¡±


    As Long Chen was pondering this over, his bones and viscera were emitting a series of popping sounds. A powerful current of pure Qi exploded forth into his surroundings. He suddenly stood up and opened his eyes. Two mysterious beams of light shot out from his eyes!


    Feeling his whole body surging with power, Long Chen said, ¡°Little Xi, I¡¯m already at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, and my Qi has increased greatly. It should be approaching the Deity Dan Realm!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s excited expression Ling Xi¡¯s heart stirred and, she hurriedly said, ¡°Then quickly use the Soul Diffusion Fruit. It¡¯s already been a quarter of an hour. If we dy any longer those two mighte and look for trouble!¡±


    Long Chen sneered and said, ¡°Seeing that I¡¯m cultivating, will they dare to act? The Lingwu Family views individual strength with the highest regard. Advancement of rank is the most important moment in raising one¡¯s strength. If they were to disturb me at this moment and information of that reached back, they would be in a lot of trouble!¡±


    That being said, Long Chen still didn¡¯t tardy.


    He acquired the corpse of a Blue-Eyed Snow Lion from the hands of Yan Beitan. Furthermore, he was cultivating while powerful enemies loomed nearby. It should have been considered as taking a huge risk!


    Long Chen knew he didn¡¯t have any choice but to take this risk. The appearance of a profound rank beast¡¯s corpse was an opportunity. If he didn¡¯t seize this opportunity, then he wouldn¡¯t have a chance against Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya, who were at the Human Dan Realm¡¯s Initial Mastery Stage!


    ¡°Once I reach the Human Dan Realm, will I, a Dragon Warrior, be afraid of the likes of you?¡±


    Long Chen sneered. The Soul Diffusion Fruit that was inside the jade box was already in his hands. Long Chen devoured the fruit without any hesitation, as the aroma from the Soul Diffusion Fruit if leaked out, might attract serious trouble!


    Even though it was only an initial profound grade spirit medicine, the Soul Diffusion Fruit was indeed the best Spirit Medicine Long Chen had ever encountered, but ording to Ling Xi, the value of the Soul Diffusion Fruit was about the same as that of a middle Profound Grade Spirit Medicine. Without a thousand pieces of Deity Jade, it would be impossible to get your hands on a Soul Diffusion Fruit.


    It was because the effect of the Soul Diffusion Fruit was too incredible. Simply put it was a Spirit Medicine that could raise a master from the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm straight into the Deity Dan Realm!


    As the Soul Diffusion Fruit entered his stomach, Long Chen felt a cool breeze pervade every pore of his body. It was as if he jumped into a cool and refreshing pond during the warmest day of summer!


    However, as the coolness passed and gave rise to a slight feeling of warmth, Long Chen felt like he was soaking in a hot spring instead, an extremely pleasurable feeling.


    ¡°Idiot, quickly refine this medicine, and with its help, gather your Qi into your dantian and condense your Deity Dan!¡±


    Ling Xi woke Long Chen from his pleasurable state. He followed Ling Xi¡¯smands, and immediately used his Qi to refine the medicinal effect that permeated through his whole body!


    ¡°This medicinal effect of the Soul Diffusion Fruit unexpectedly is vast like an ocean!¡±


    The originally peaceful medicinal energy quickly expanded, and like a huge ocean, it sifted through Long Chen¡¯s body!


    Long Chen circted his Qi through his entire body, gathering up and assimting all traces of the medicine.


    The medicine was solidifying his Qi, but during this process, as the Qi became more and more solid, the effect of the medicine lessened. As the Qi reentered the nine Dragon Veins, it converged into his Dantian. The amount of Qi remained the same, but it was now more than ten times denser!


    ¡°The medicinal effect of this Soul Diffusion Fruit apparently has a Qi condensing property. No wonder Ling Xi said that this would help me break through into Deity Dan Realm. If I were to solidify my Qi on my own, it would take ages!¡±


    Presently, inside his Dragon Veins, all of the Qi had transformed into nine divine dragons, which simultaneously rushed towards his Dantian!


    Long Chen¡¯s whole body was shaking, and a strong current of Qi engulfed his body. This caused his whole body to swell up, but luckily he was currently within his [Dragon Soul Transformation]. With his normal body, he might not have been able to handle this degree of Qi collisions!


    ¡°The step in which all of my Qi was rushing into my Dantian is also called the Rushing Dantian. If it seeds, all of my Qi should solidify up to ten times more, forming a Human Dan!¡±


    At this stage, Long Chen didn¡¯t care anymore. He mustered up his courage, and willed all of his Qi to rush into his Dantian!


    The Dantian was connected to the nine Dragon Veins. At this time, inside every Dragon Vein, there was a total of nine crimson Qi dragons rushing through the nine different Dragon Veins. Very quickly they all collided inside the Dantian.


    At this moment, Long Chen, who had never experienced anything like this before, was scared beyond belief. ording to his predictions, with this amount of Qi colliding, the obvious result would be an explosion!


    Unexpectedly, this crimson Qi suddenly melted into a sphere of mist. Each crimson dragon first had its head, its body and then its tail dissolved. As all nine dragons were merged into that Qi mist, Long Chen¡¯s dantian waspletely filled with that crimson mist!


    ¡°This ball of mist, it is unexpectedly shrinking!¡±


    Inside this crimson ball of mist, there seemed to be millions upon millions of blood dragons. Long Chen could almost hear the innumerable dragons roaring in his ear. This sound was inaudible to other people, but to Long Chen, it made his blood boil. It was as if he had returned to the chaotic era when dragons dominated the world!


    An innumerable amount of dragons rummaged within the crimson mist. Even though they were illusionary dragon shadows, they still left Long Chen with a sense of wonder!


    As the blood red mist slowly shrank, the illusory dragon shadows also slowly shrank. A quarter of an hour slowly passed. At this moment, Huang Feiyang and the others were already walking towards Long Chen. A light sound was emitted from his Dantian, and the mist was slowly consolidating. In the end, it unexpectedly condensed into a crimson dan ball that was norger than an egg!


    This was a Deity Dan Realm cultivator¡¯s Human Dan. Long Chen had previously read up upon the Human Dan, and he immediately discovered that his Human Dan was unlike others. Most evidently, his Human Dan was crimson in color!


    [Devil82 TLN: Dan in this case is a core/sphere]


    Most importantly, he discovered that there was a mark shaped like a dragon upon his Human Dan. This dragon shaped mark radiated a soft red glow. Even though it wasn¡¯t that distinguishable within the crimson mist, the feeling that it gave off could shake one to their core!


    Unexpectedly, upon his Human Realm Dan, there was a mark of a crimson dragon!


    Upon bing a Dragon Warrior, Long Chen no longer thought that this was peculiar. Reaching this state, he clearly knew that he hadpletely entered the Human Dan Realm.


    Reaching the Human Dan Realm, his Qi was condensed into a crimson colored Human Dan. His body no longer felt inted but gave off a rather reserved feeling. Long Chen even looked much more calm, like a supercilious pretty sunshine boy.


    [Devil82 TLN: (Ñô¹â) meaning sunshine is what people refer to someone outspoken and social]


    However, when exercising his strength, he would still turn back into a king of ughter!


    ¡°Even though I no longer give off a feeling of viciousness, my current strength has risen by more than 100 timespared to the eighth level of Dragon Pulse Realm!¡±


    Only drafting a tiny bit of Qi from his Human Dan, Long Chen could feel a tremendous force. He had more or less gauged his own strength.


    ¡°With my current powerbined with my [Dragon Soul Transformation]. Huang Feiyang¡­¡±


    Thinking about this person, who previously could kill him at any time. Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed with a cold light.


    ¡°You are most likely waiting to take action against me at the East Yan Mountain, but when that timees, I will give you a pleasant surprise. For right now, let¡¯s y¡­¡±


    Upon seeing Long Chen sessfully entering the Human Dan Realm, Ling Xi let out a sigh of relief. She looked with trepidation at the youth in front of her and said, ¡°Luckily, you were smart enough to get your hands on this Profound Grade Demonic Beast corpse, or else, this time, you would have been in serious trouble. This guy, even though he¡¯s character is of poor quality, he sure is lucky all the time. The heavens must be god damn blind.¡±


    Ling Xi had been following Long Chen for a while now, and she no longer held back when speaking to him. Long Chen was speechless. Just as he was about to tease her, his expression suddenly changed. His mouth perked up in a smile and looked out through the door.


    With a dark face, Huang Feiyang gradually entered, with Wen Ya and his men trailing behind!

 Chapter 87 – A Bait

    Long Chen had reached the Human Dan Ream, but unlike Huang Feiyang, who was putting his strength on full disy, he withdrew his own Qi. Since he was more confident in his strength now, Long Chen visibly rxed, and looked at Gan Lin¡¯s party of three with a smile upon his face.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you done preparing?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen without a trace of fear in his bearing, Huang Feiyang secretly jeered.


    However, Long Chen paid no attention to him, and instead turned to Yan Beitian and said, ¡°Town Master Yan, due to some important matters of mine, I have tarried. I¡¯m extremely sorry.¡±


    Being ignored by Long Chen like this made Huang Feiyang feel extremely unhappy. However, he was long past his impetuous days. His eyes narrowed into slits and emitted traces of golden light.


    ¡°This brat, he seems different, but I can¡¯t put my fingers on what the difference is¡­¡±


    Watching Long Chen gloomily, Huang Feiyang¡¯s heart was filled with killing intent.


    ¡°This brat! Before, he was filled with unwillingness but now he is all smiles. It must be fake. Having beenpelled by me, he must be hating me from the bottom of his heart, and wants to cut me to pieces. However, little one, the real torment will soon befall you¡­¡±


    Long Chen could easily guess what Huang Feiyang was thinking about.


    Hearing Long Chen addressing him first, the Yan Town Master felt a bit gloomy.


    He was a wily old fox and knew that Long Chen did it to antagonize Huang Feiyang. Seeing how young Long Chen was, Yan Beitian felt a tinge of regret.


    However, the life of his daughter was hanging by a thread, so he immediately said, ¡°Since all three of you are prepared, let¡¯s hurry towards the East Yan Mountain!¡±


    ¡°Agreed,¡± Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Pretending to be calm and collected in front of me, just see how I will finish you off!¡±


    WIth that thought,bined with seeing the anxious face of Yan Beitian, Huang Feiyang waved his hand impatiently and said, ¡°Then let¡¯s head out to East Yan Mountain. Long Chen, this time, had you better perform well!¡±


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t be bothered to answer.


    Even though he presented a calm exterior, his killing intent towards Huang Feiyang wasn¡¯t any less than Huang Feiyang¡¯s was towards him. He simply hid it better.


    Under Huang Feiyang¡¯smand, Yan Beitian stayed at Yan Luo Town, while Long Chen and the others followed Yan Beitian¡¯s directions and headed towards East Yan Mountain.


    The East Yan Mountain wasn¡¯t far off. Long Chen and the others quickly arrived at this seemingly untouched mountain and its forest.


    ¡°We three should split up and head off in three different directions. Make as much noise as possible, and if someone powerful arrives, one only needs to call out, and the rest will arrive in an instant!¡±


    Huang Feiyang put on the act of a senior brother.


    Long Chen looked back, sneered, and went ahead without a word.


    As Long Chen distanced himself, Wen Ya said with a furrowed brow, ¡°I can¡¯t shake off this weird feeling about this kid. If we don¡¯t kill him now, I fear that we will have a lot of sleepless nights ahead of us!¡±


    ¡°That clown is just pretending to be calm in front of us. In this deste East Yan Mountain, in front of us two masters of the Human Dan Initial Mastery Stage, I bet he is already scared senseless. That little shit, how much will he be able to struggle?¡±


    Huang Feiyang revealed a smile that was full of confidence.


    ¡°What I need to do is let our opponents kill him. Wen Ya, when the timees, let a couple of them run away to spread the word. This will make the Lady Enforcer believe that it wasn¡¯t us who killed him!¡±


    Wen Yan could only nod and agree. ¡°Ok, but the Lady Enforcer puts him in high regard. Wouldn¡¯t we be putting ourselves at risk if we do this?¡±


    ¡°In high regards?¡±


    Huang Feiyang sneered, ¡°Would she put him in higher regards than our boss Feng Wutian? We have our boss Feng Wutian backing us. Thedy Enforcer will give him face, and not me us two just because of a dead man!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had already put quite a distance between them, Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya hurriedly stalked after him.


    Whatever scheme Huang Feiyang was hatching, Long Chen had already seen through it all.


    ¡°It seems like they want to use the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect to get rid of me, and make it untraceable. However, having set up a situation like this, aren¡¯t they afraid that I would use it against them?¡±


    First of all, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect had to be lured out into the open, but that wouldn¡¯t be a simple task. However, Long Chen was a cunning man. Within the East Yan Mountain, there lived plenty of Huang grade demonic beasts of the first and second rank. When Long Chen found the den of some Huang grade second rank demonic beasts that belonged to the canine family, he drove out about a dozen of them into the open.


    These low-level demonic beasts were in a frenzy and caused quite themotion within the East Yan Mountain. As Long Chen kept provoking other demonic beasts, the East Yan Mountain quickly entered a state ofplete chaos.


    Seeing Long Chen running about on the side, Huang Feiyang smiled and said, ¡°If someone powerful appears, let¡¯s not be hasty to act. Let them lead us to their hideout. This will make things easier for us, and this way, we can kill two birds with one stone!¡±


    Wen Ya patted Huang Feiyang¡¯s shoulders in response.


    This East Yan Mountain wasn¡¯t asrge as the Big Barren Mountain, but the amount of demonic beasts was plentiful. Long Chen quickly whipped arge number of lower grade demonic beasts into a frenzy. It wasn¡¯t long before Long Chen noticed that beside Wen Yan and Huang Feiyang, others were observing him.


    ¡°These grandsons from the Crimson Blood Sect are indeed still here!¡±


    Although he couldn¡¯t tell their exact location, Long Chen¡¯s perception was still extremely strong.


    At that moment, a sloppy looking middle-aged man wearing a crimson Chinese-style gown and having a cultivation roughly around the 8th level of the Dragon Pulse Realm was watching Long Chen from afar. His eyes lit up as he praised, ¡°What a beautiful young man. He is just my type. Am I really this lucky? The heavens really treat me kindly!¡±


    ¡°Why is that guy¡¯s expression so disgusting?¡±


    Long Chen was already in a bad mood because he couldn¡¯t take care of Huang Feiyang at the moment. Seeing this vulgar, middle-aged man with eyes filled with lust and a mouthful of drool, he had already transformed into a tornado and charged forth without the opponent even trying to approach!


    Between this middle-aged man¡¯s eyebrows, there was a single red dot.


    ¡±Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, we meet again¡­¡±

 Chapter 88 – Conflict!

    The vulgar middle-aged man chuckled. He thought he was lucky, finally being able to let off some steam upon seeing a handsome youngstering towards him,


    [Devil82 TL Note::Chinese trantion is not letting off steam but it¡¯s as close I can get without involving traditional Chinese medicine.]


    Long Chen could never imagine that this middle-aged man would have such a weird and disgusting preference. He didn¡¯t fancy young women, but young men like Long Chen himself.


    The look he revealed made Long Chen want to hurl.


    ¡°What the hell? What does this person want?¡± Long Chen still didn¡¯t really understand.


    At this time, the wretched middle-aged man chuckled and said, ¡°Good little boy,e! Let this uncle take care of your needs!¡±


    Long Chen almost retched when he heard this. He recalled that there were queer men who weren¡¯t interested in women, but in men. The middle-aged man in front of him was obviously that kind of man.


    Just as his voice trailed off, the weird middle-aged man was going to make his move. However, Long Chen¡¯s body became an afterimage right before his eyes.


    This fleeting afterimage instantly made the man from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect squint.


    ¡°So young, but already knows martial arts. It must be a member of a local n. It¡¯s going to be fun ying with this one!¡±


    He barely registered the thought before the speed of Long Chen¡¯s shadow, increased a hundredfold. The middle-aged man only managed to blink before Long Chen disappeared.


    In the next moment, a blowrge enough to make him throw up hisst meal struck him squarely in his stomach. The vulgar middle-aged man cried out and dropped down, curling up like a boiled shrimp.


    ¡°What is going on? How could that youth¡¯s speed be so fast? Is that a movement rted martial technique? Does this boy have a great background?¡±


    Being a veteran of countless bloody fights, although the man felt great pain in his abdomen but he did not lose consciousness.


    Thinking that Long Chen might be the pampered offspring of some powerful faction, he endured the pain and twirled his eyes. He immediately kneeled and begged for his life, with tears and snot running down his face, ¡°Distinguished young master, this one named Li Yan has never done anything wrong in his life nor offended this young master. I hope this young master has mercy and spares this one¡¯s life!¡±


    [TL Devil¡¯s Note: (ÑÛÉñ¼±×ª) twirling one¡¯s eyes indicates that someone is hatching an idea]


    ¡°Really? Just now, weren¡¯t you speaking about taking care of me, your father?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice, dripping with anger, was transmitted into Li Yan¡¯s ear.


    ¡°How could I dare to say that? Young master¡¯s talent is outstanding and is not something a cretin such as I would ever dare to insult,¡± Li Yan said pitifully.


    ¡°This guy is acting pitiful now, but am I, Long Chen, such a gullible guy? He carries with him a scent of blood, and must have hurt countless people in his lifetime! The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is such a secretive faction. It¡¯s not a ce for benevolent people.¡±


    Long Chen originally wanted to take his life but thought that he could be of some use in the future. Without waiting, he kicked Li Yan squarely in the face. With a loud bang, Li Yan¡¯s head smashed into the ground, as Long Chen viciously stepped on it.


    This additional collision caused Li Yan even more pain. He would never imagine that this harmless looking Long Chen wouldsh out in such a vicious way!


    The scorching pain on his forehead made Li Yan see stars, but he didn¡¯t have time to pass out. The foot that was pressing on the back of his head was akin to a de resting against the back of his head.


    Li Yan had no clue over why he was beaten, but he had no option other than to beg for mercy. His fate was solely in the hands of Long Chen.


    ¡°Your father, I, won¡¯t waste time on you, I¡¯ll give you two choices. Choice one is death. Choice two, also death.¡±


    Li Yan was scared senseless, hisplexion became pale. Thinking that he might die here in this ce, his face, which was pushed down into the mud, showed signs of utter despair!


    Seeing this fellow wailing away endlessly, one could tell that this wasn¡¯t a person with a strong will. Long Chen secretly felt satisfaction.


    ¡°Stop bawling; I, your father, was just kidding. I¡¯m giving you two choices. The first choice is still death, but the second one is to take me to the thiefir of your Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    Li Yan was originally in a state of despair, but after hearing thatst sentence he first felt relief, then rm. Hearing Long Chen saying those words, even if Li Yan was an idiot, he would still know that this time, Long Chen¡¯s objective was the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!


    In a brief moment, many thoughts raced through his head.


    ¡°This kid was causing amotion to lure me out, then inquiring about the others¡¯ whereabouts. Seeing his actions, he must be trying to rescue those girls we captured from Yan Luo Town!


    ¡°This little guy sure is bold to the extreme, barging up the mountain alone at such a tender age. So be it, I will take you there. Let¡¯s see how you will suffer in front of those two protectors! You¡¯ve hit me twice. I Lin Yan will remember this!


    Seeing this guy¡¯s shifty eyes, Long Chen already knew what he was nning.


    He¡¯s the main objective right now was to locate the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s base of operations. As for what would happen afterwards, he would let Huang Feiyang deal with it. He couldn¡¯t care less about Li Yan¡¯s schemes.


    ¡°Well, taking this long, have you decided yet? You must be choosing death, right?¡±


    Li Yan was scared senseless and immediately said, ¡°Lord, this humble one chooses the second, this humble one chooses the second! I¡¯ll take you there at once!¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡±


    Long Chen looked him over quizzically, ¡°You are not nning anything, are you?¡±


    ¡°This humble one wouldn¡¯t dare!¡±


    Long Chen smiled indifferently and said, ¡°As long as you are in my hands, even a tiny hint of disobedience from your side, and I¡¯ll have you regret being born to this world. Anyway, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect doesn¡¯t have a deficit of people like you. I¡¯ll just capture another one, and I will still be able to locate the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s den¡±


    ¡°Indeed, indeed! My lord speaks truthfully!¡±


    Only after Li Yan nodded his head hurriedly did Long Chen release him. Seeing this middle-aged man with a face full of obedience climb up to his feet, Long Chen stared hard. Immediately, Li Yan hurried along to show the way.


    Long Chen threw a provocative gaze towards Huang Feiyang, then followed behind Li Yan.


    In a thicket from afar, Huang Feiyang¡¯s eyes turned ice cold as he caught the mocking gaze Long Chen threw him.


    ¡°What is there to be proud of? In the end, it¡¯s still time for you to die.¡±


    ¡°Brother Huang, isn¡¯t Long Chen a Beast Warrior? He is at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but without even transforming, how could he beat an opponent at the same level that easily?¡±


    Thinking about it, Wen Ya felt that something was amiss.


    Huang Feiyang also scowled and said, ¡°This guy seems to have be a bit strongerpared to when he was at the n selection. He must have broken through again. He¡¯s probably at the ninth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, but it¡¯s still nothing to fuss over!¡±


    ¡°This Long Chen is indeed somewhat gifted. Even though we¡¯ve only seen the tip of the iceberg, that movement technique from earlier was still pretty impressive. However, why does that martial technique seem so familiar?¡±


    ¡°That is the Lingwu Family¡¯s [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step].¡± Even though he could hardly believe it. Huang Feiyang still said with exasperation, ¡°He acquired the [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] only five days ago, even though he was barely able to use it. Within our Green Sun Branch, I guess only boss Feng Wutian could match this kind of talent, but Wen Ya¡­¡±


    Huang Feiyang said with a gloomy face, ¡°This kind of person, we¡¯d better nip it in the bud!¡±


    ¡°Otherwise, give him some time to grow, and he will cause us endless troubles¡±


    Even though he didn¡¯t want to be enemies with Long Chen, but as he was good friends with Huang Feiyang, Wen Ya didn¡¯t have a choice.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s end this troublesome fellow¡¯s life.¡±


    Crossing a couple of peaks on the East Yan Mountain, they arrived at a forest with withering trees. This ce was filled with craggy and misshapen boulders and was an extremely remote ce.


    The Demonic Beasts within this area had already been cleared out by the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. The dens of these Demon Beasts served well as residences, and as prisons for the captured girls.


    ¡°Lo¡­ Lord, just ahead, the captured women are in the depths of the cave where my brothers and I were eating. I promise you, they are unharmed¡­¡±


    Upon arrival, Long Chen could feel the faint trace of people. He could also smell the aroma of liquor and meat. In a thicket afar, a faint trace of smoke could be seen from a bonfire.


    Li Yan was no longer needed here.


    Li Yan nervously looked at Long Chen. This was the moment that would determine his life. He was fully prepared, waiting for the perfect moment to attack Long Chen and then run away.


    He didn¡¯t have to defeat Long Chen, just escape. Afterwards, he could just let the people from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect protect him.


    Seeing the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect being so close, Li Yan thought that Long Chen would charge over, but Long Chen stopped and looking at Li Yan, smiling.


    ¡°Lord, our men are just ahead¡­Lord, you promised to let me go. Are you going back on your word?¡±


    ¡°Nothing of that sort, I¡¯m simply waiting for someone.¡± Long Chen said unhurriedly.


    ¡°Waiting for someone?¡±


    Li Yan was totally clueless, but not for long. Two powerful masters appeared from behind and emerged from the foliage. These two had fierce eyes and bodies filled with explosive energy. This kind of power was much fiercer than Long Chen¡¯s!


    Li Yan was scared to death, and he finally realized that he had underestimated Long Chen. He originally thought that Long Chen was a hothead, charging up the mountain alone to rescue some women and fight arge number of people on his side. He wouldn¡¯t have ever guessed that there were two more people behind Long Chen!


    A total of 3 people had appeared, and they were all youthful experts. A fearful thought appeared in his head!


    ¡°You are¡­from the Lingwu Family?!¡±


    ¡°You guessed right!¡±


    Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya suddenly appeared in front of Li Yan. Huang Feiyangughed coldly and threw a punch towards Li Yan¡¯s chest. Even though it was a simple punch, it was a Human Dan Realm Initial stage expert¡ª if Li Yan got hit, he would die on the spot!


    Huang Feiyang¡¯s expression looked much more sinister than Long Chen¡¯s. When Huang Feiyang appeared, Li Yan knew that he was as good as dead!


    On this border between life and death, he exploded forth with every ounce of energy at his disposal, wanting to escape!


    ¡°You think you can escape from my hand?¡±


    Huang Feiyang has withheld his anger for a long time, but he couldn¡¯t attack Long Chen just yet. Thus, he could only vent his anger on Li Yan, and give Long Chen a good demonstration of the things toe!


    Li Yan and Huang Feiyang¡¯s powers were realms apart. They were within feet of each other, and he certainly didn¡¯t stand a chance of escaping. From the day he chose this life of strife, Li Yan was prepared for death.


    However, he was still opposed to dying at the hands of Huang Feiyang!


    As Li Yan had lost all hope, suddenly, a silhouette was in front of him, and a fist technique that was as bright as a star forced Huang Feiyang back!


    When Li Yan looked, he realized that it was Long Chen!

 Chapter 89 – [Gigantic Meteor Fist]!

    From Li Yan¡¯s point of view, this was extremely unexpected!


    Just as Huang Feiyang was about to kill him, Long Chen who was originally his captor suddenly appeared in front of him and blocked Huang Feiyang. It gave Li Yan a chance to escape. As he ran he struggled to understand the situation.


    Long Chen blocked Huang Feiyang and let Li Yan escape. This caused Huang Feiyang to yell, ¡°Long Chen, what kind of foolishness is this. Is there something wrong with your head?!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve already said that we won¡¯t kill him. I¡¯m just fulfilling my promise, that¡¯s all!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen wasn¡¯t showing any sign of backing down, Huang Feiyang couldn¡¯t endure it anymore and was about to act when he was suddenly stopped by Wen Ya!


    Huang Feiyang recalled that he had endured this long and was just about to sessfully eliminate Long Chen. At this crucial moment, even if he was consumed by rage, he had to endure!


    Starring at Long Chen coldly, Huang Feiyang said, ¡°Since you let him go, you better capture him!¡±


    If Li Yan arrived ahead of them and warned the people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, they might disappear without a trace. If they escaped, this mission would be considered a failure. If Huang Feiyang wanted to kill Long Chen, he must find another way. That¡¯s why he could only order Long Chen to follow as they chased after.


    [Devil82 TN: (Ê÷µ¹â©áøÉ¢) Original idiom was tree has fallen and the monkeys scattered, I used, disappeared without a trace.]


    Long Chen sneered. The trio chased after Li Yan, who wasn¡¯t fast and Huang Feiyang¡¯s party knew the direction. They quickly closed on the gathering point of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!


    Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya were at the head of the pursuing group. As they chased Li Yan they kept looking back to see if Long Chen was following them.


    ¡°The boy¡¯s speed isn¡¯t bad!¡±


    In the blink of an eye, Li Yan¡¯s figure could be seen ahead. In the face of death, one can bring out unlimited potential. Li Yan cried for help as he ran for his life. Suddenly there was amotion. In a sh group of people with red dots between their brows charged into the dried up forest!


    These people numbered about a dozen, each one a blood-soaked fiend. These were indeed the people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    Presently they had a scarletplexion and smelled of liquor. They were obviously celebrating. Li Yan was just an errand boy. That¡¯s why he was wandering outside.


    As these people appeared, Li Yan howled miserably and rushed to meet them. The group of people noticed Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya running in the front.


    ¡°Lord Proctor, they are people from the Lingwu Family!¡±


    Hearing Lingwu Family being mentioned, the ten odd people¡¯s expression changed!


    Amongst these people, two men seemed to be in charge. One was skinny, both his eyebrows and hair carried a crimson tint, and his gaze was like a piercing set of crimson arrows.


    The other one was tall and sturdy with a shiny bald head. From afar it looked just like a round metal ball.


    They must be two of the eight Great Proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. The leader amongst these two seems to be the skinny one!


    Long Chen felt that he was the most powerful one. As the Proctor heard the name Lingwu Family, he¡¯splexion changed and snapped, ¡°Kill every one of them, and let none escape!¡±


    To the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, the Lingwu Family was too great of an existence. So the only thing they could do was to exterminate and remove all traces of them!


    ¡°Affirmative, Proctor Qin!¡±


    On the other side, Huang Feiyang noticed that the opponents had two leaders and was secretly delighted, ¡°Amongst these two, the bald sturdy man is in the Human Dan Realm and that skinny Proctor Qin is at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm and close to my own cultivation. The might of these two people is enough to exterminate Long Chen!¡±


    ¡°Crimson Blood Sacred Sect? You are bold enough that you would even dare to act against us, the people of the Lingwu Family! You dare to perform such heinous acts within the territory governed by us. Today on behalf of the Lingwu Family, I¡¯ll exterminate you all!¡±


    Huang Feiyang was formting ns in his head while still speaking, afterwards, he conveyed them covertly to Wen Ya, ¡°In a moment I¡¯ll engage that Proctor Qin, you will circle around to free the captured women. That bald headed Proctor wouldn¡¯t dare to sh against you so he will go and trouble Long Chen instead!¡±


    Wen Yan understood his meaningpletely. Presently under Proctor Qin¡¯s orders, arge number of Crimson Blood Sacred Sect members charged forward. They were all masters of the Dragon Pulse Realm! Even though these masters haven¡¯t reached the Human Dan Realm but with their numbers they were still a force to be reckoned with!


    From the three people of the Lingwu Family, a single person suddenly circled around them and headed towards the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s rear. At that speed, apart from Proctor Qin, no one was able to block him!


    Proctor Qin and the other Proctor named Shi nced at each other and both knew the opponent¡¯s intentions. Seeing that the Lingwu Family actually brought two people at the Initial Mastery of the Human Dan Realm, they were initially a bit fearful but after seeing that they were youngsters, their battle experience, and their killing intent wasn¡¯t sufficient, so they decided to engage them!


    ¡°These three fledglings can¡¯tpare to us in terms of battle experience. They only have a profound cultivation. Originally I was a bit fearful but these retards actually split up to save those women. They are indeed stupid to the extreme!¡±


    Proctor Qinughed coldly when he thought of this and bellowed: ¡°All apprentices that haven¡¯t reached the Human Dan Realm hunt them and pin them down. When I¡¯m finished with those two I will immediatelye and relieve you!


    Even though there was a total of ten experts in the Dragon Pulse Realm, they still couldn¡¯t handle their counterparts, but they could pin them down for a little while!


    In the meantime, Proctor Qin and Proctor Shi could use this opportunity to kill Huang Feiyang and Long Chen!


    ¡°This slightly older youth, his cultivation is quite frightening. I must pay 100% attention to deal with him. But after old Shi kills off that other youngster we canbine forces to kill this youth!¡±


    ¡°This bout will decide the victor, old Shi let¡¯s go all out!¡±


    Under Proctor Qin¡¯s order, all the others disciples raced out, leaving only Li Yan behind. Since he was previously beaten and then ran for his life, he lost a part of his ability to fight. After only a few steps, hisplexion paled as he sat down on the ground to y possum.


    [Devil82 TLN: (y possum) Raw said ¡°y grandson¡±, but the meaning should be simr. Not that he ys dead but trying to shift focus.]


    Proctor Qin and Proctor Shi didn¡¯t bother with Li Yan.


    It wouldn¡¯t affect their effectiveness either with or without him. Right after the order was given out, Proctor Qin lunged at Huang Feiyang, and the tall Proctor Shi advanced towards Long Chen with a bleak expression!


    Everything went ording to n, Huang Feiyang let out a sigh as he looked over at Long Chen who was being locked down by Proctor Shi and sneered.


    ¡°This baldy probably won¡¯t hold back. Long Chen, now you are really in for it¡­.¡±


    Regarding Proctor Qin, Huang Feiyang gave him his full attention. He was, after all, an expert of the same calibre.


    ¡°Between you and Proctor Qin, it¡¯s enough if one of you dies. I¡¯ll let the other on be the witness, proving that Long Chen died by your hands!¡±


    As for Li Yan who was not far away, he waspletely overlooked.


    Currently, Li Yan was observing the battle with bewilderment. If Proctor Qin couldn¡¯t get there in time, the people facing Wen Ya would be done for. That¡¯s why Li Yan was in no hurry to join the fray.


    But this move by the Lingwu Family certainly made Li Yan puzzled.


    ¡°Just now that youth saved me, he is clearly at strife with the other two. Now these two are tricking Proctor Shi into battling him. They are clearly using our hands to get rid of that youth!¡±


    After he realized what was going on, Li Yan was a bit regretful.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t think these sons of bitches would be this vicious. It seems like the internal strife within the Lingwu Family is really fierce. Those two are clearly jealous of that youngster¡¯s talent and want to have him killed!¡±


    Long Chen was faithful to his word and he even personally blocked Huang Feiyang¡¯s attack. Li Yan felt moved by this.


    He was staring intently at Long Chen as he sighed, ¡°One doesn¡¯te across many righteous youths like this anymore. Him being killed by Proctor Shi, it¡¯s such a shame¡­.¡±


    Proctor Shi was also clicking his tongue in amazement, he looked over Long Chen and smiled coldly, ¡°An intelligent and charming youngster like you, if you were unaffiliated, I would naturally try to convince you to join me. But since you are a member of the Lingwu Family, there is only death!¡±


    Long Chen naturally paid him no heed.


    Wen Ya had already left. Huang Feiyang thought it was the opportune time to kill Long Chen. But wasn¡¯t this also an excellent opportunity for Long Chen?


    Long Chen roared and exploded forth with all his Qi as he used [Dragon Soul Transformation]. Proctor Shi, Proctor Qin, and Li Yan showed shocked expressions as exquisite and orderly crimson scales surfaced upon Long Chen¡¯s skin and sharp bony spikes instantly formed on his body!


    ¡°This youngster is unexpectedly a Beast Warrior?¡±


    Proctor Shi was stunned and then burst outughing, ¡°This appearance¡­ is not bad, nice appeal, good ferocity!¡±


    After that sentence, he didn¡¯t care how powerful Long Chen became and pounced on him. On the other side of the battlefield, Huang Feiyang and Proctor Qin were already shing!


    ¡°In front of a Human Dan Realm practitioner, no matter how powerful you are. As long as you are within the Dragon Pulse Realm, you are nothing but a clown.¡±


    Thinking this Huang Feiyang felt at ease as he tangled with Proctor Qin. From time to time, he would watch Long Chen with the corner of his eyes. Since the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was in a hurry and Proctor Shi was the key element to winning this battle; as soon as Huang Feiyang was engaged inbat, Proctor Shi immediately pounced on Long Chen!


    ¡°Indeed as a practitioner of the Human Dan Realm, his skills are exceptional!¡±


    In the blink of an eye, Proctor Shi appeared before Long Chen. Qi belonging to the Human Dan Realm exploded forth in an instant, a huge stature like a mountain pressed forth towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Within Proctors Shi¡¯s Qi, there is a trace of blood. Compared to mine it¡¯s a bitcking but still makes one wonder how they aplished this!¡±


    Presently, Proctor Shi¡¯s eyes radiated coldness. His whole body exploded with Qi as his aura swept away everything in the surrounding area. As his pupils contracted, his fist seemed to turn into a small boulder and smashed into the ground with a loud bang!


    ¡°[Gigantic Meteor Fist]!¡±


    Being targeted by the [Gigantic Meteor Fist], Long Chen didn¡¯t have the slightest inclination to move. Li Yan¡¯splexion changed and said with a dejected voice. ¡°This youngster, his experience is indeed to shallow¡­.¡±

 Chapter 90 – Killing Proctor Shi!

    ¡°A basic Profound grade Martial Technique right off the bat, this guy seems to be in a hurry to finish me off. But how can I, Long Chen, let you have your way?¡±


    Sneering inwardly as the [Gigantic Meteor Fist] was howling towards him. Long Chen was calm as his movement skills flowed like a graceful yet quick dance. Proctor Shi¡¯s first art had a huge area of effect and the power behind it was also top tier. But its weak point was speed!


    Long Chen used to practice [Falling Star Fist]. The concept behind [Falling Star Fist] was almost the same as the [Gigantic Meteor Fist], but a falling star reaches an incredible speed before impact. Whenparing speed, it far surpasses the [Gigantic Meteor Fist]!


    Long Chen used [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] and immediately it was as if he had be a shadow. Initially, Proctor Shi thought he would be able to instantly kill Long Chen. Just before it was about to hit Long Chen, who he thought was paralyzed due to fear, he suddenly turned into an after image. Like dragon moves in water with its sinuous body, Long Chen evaded this move!


    [Devil82 TLN: Remember that Chinese dragons are strongly associated with bodies of water.]


    Long Chen dodged at thest moment which rmed Proctor Shi greatly. Li Yan was even more shocked as his jaw dropped and thought, ¡°This youngster is indeed talented. Using his movement skills to evade at thest moment, but¡­¡±


    Li Yan shook his head and thought, ¡°Simply knowing some movement skills, is not enough to put up a fight against Proctor Shi who is proficient in attack¡­¡±


    Just as Li Yan reached this conclusion, Long Chen circled behind Proctor Shi. As his eyes radiated coldness, his body exploded into action!


    ¡°I originally thought that only Martial techniques were useful, but now I see that only by using Core Techniques in conjunction with Movement Techniques can one disy true power inbat!¡±


    With the [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step], Long Chen was already able to tire out his enemy to death. Even though he was currently in the Human Dan Realm, the quality of his Qi was better than Proctor Shi by a tenfold!


    Only people with arger amount of Qi than Long Chen could be considered his match. This Proctor Shi was far from being his match!


    To this side, while Huang Feiyang was battling Proctor Qin, he was also observing Long Chen¡¯s battle. When he saw that Long Chen dodged Proctor Shi¡¯s attack with [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step], he was greatly rmed!


    Long Chen had never argued with Huang Feiyang in front of Proctor Qin. That¡¯s why when Proctor Qin saw that Huang Feiyang was observing Long Chen, he thought that it was out of concern!


    This feeling of being disregarded and viewed as unimportant made Proctor Qin ¡ª- who was already resolved to kill Huang Feiyang ¡ª enraged.


    ¡°Kiddo, your opponent is me! Regarding your little brother, he won¡¯t live for long!¡±


    Proctor Qin thought Long Chen was Huang Feiyang¡¯s little brother.


    Due to Huang Feiyang¡¯s neglect, Proctor Qin suddenlyunched a barrage of attacks, which was like a raging hailstorm. Originally they were experts within the same realm but due to Huang Feiyang¡¯s distraction, he was instantly forced into a disadvantage situation!


    Long Chen hadn¡¯t gotten killed yet if he died by another¡¯s hands he would lose a lot of face.


    Therefore, Huang Feiyang could only muster up all his strength to engage Proctor Qin in mortalbat!


    ¡°Going against our Lingwu Family? You are destined to die a most horrible death!¡±


    ¡°What? That was in the past, now just die, you inexperienced kid! That kiddo must be your little brother, right? Haha, after you¡¯ve been killed we will thoroughly vite him!¡±


    Huang Feiyang was currently fighting with Proctor Qin while Long Chen managed to dodge Proctor Shi¡¯s repeated assault. Seeing Proctor Shi¡¯s now rage-filledplexion, his own heart also brimming with fury. A wave of powerful Qi instantly exploded from him!.


    Long Chen being able to dodge once could be considered pure luck but Proctor Shi wasn¡¯t able to hit him at all, which left Li Yan stunned.


    He no longer felt that Long Chen was simply lucky!


    Presently Long Chen felt his anger stir. The next moment, he body appeared behind Proctor Shi and then a Qi belonging to the Human Dan Realm erupted from him. At this moment, everyone was shocked!


    Just when they realized that Long Chen was also a cultivator in the Human Dan Realm, he¡¯d already struck out!


    As he was using [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] to dodge his opponent he was also quickly forming seals. As he managed to dodge his opponent¡¯sst attack, Long Chen roared explosively. Nine images of the Dragon Gods appeared within his hands and as he roared it struck with devastating force towards Proctor Shi who was in very close proximity!


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!¡±


    Long Chen was nowpletely taken with the idea of using movement techniques in conjunction with martial techniques. After using [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step], he could truly disy his offensive martial techniques freely!


    As Proctor Shi missed his attack, he was immediately overwhelmed by Long Chen¡¯s Human Dan Realm pressure. And facing such a fast, tyrannical and unexpected martial technique, Proctor Shi felt greatly rmed, and his face showed a frenzied expression!


    But within this frenzy was also a hint of panic and fear!


    This dragon seal hit Proctor Shi squarely on his body, when he had just turned around and he was unable to defend properly!


    Even though it was only an advanced Huang grade martial technique, but with such tyrannical force behind, it still caused Proctor Shi to spit out a mouthful of blood. Hisrge frame crashed through a couple of dried up trees,nding heavily onto the ground as he drew hisst breath!


    The time between Long Chen revealing his Human Dan Realm cultivation and Proctor Shi¡¯s death was merely two breaths of time!


    Li Yan¡¯s face grew ck. His eyes stared nkly at the youth as his teeth start to chatter.


    It had taken some time before he recovered as he drew a fresh breath and praised, ¡°This youth certainly is an abnormal existence. His previous act, I couldn¡¯t see through it at all¡­¡±


    Proctor Shi¡¯s death was naturally seen by Huang Feiyang and Proctor Qin, who were still battling each other.


    Long Chen¡¯s fight would basically determine the result of their fight as well. These two had been evenly matched until now. They were just waiting for the conclusion of Long Chen¡¯s fight.


    But the strange thing was that both Huang Feiyang and Proctor Qin had hoped that the one to perish would be Long Chen.


    To Proctor Qin, Long Chen¡¯s death meant that Proctor Shi could rush over and help to kill Huang Feiyang.


    To Huang Feiyang, the death of Long Chen was his main objective. Regarding the issue of Proctor Qin and Proctor Shi¡¯sbined assault, Huang Feiyang had ways to deal with it. In the worst case, he would be able tost until Wen Ya returned!


    But no one could imagine that Long Chen would turn the tables on them, using a sudden burst of power to eliminate Proctor Shi in under two breaths time!


    This sudden turn of events caused Huang Feiyang¡¯s face to twitch. His careful n, to borrow a knife to get rid of Long Chen, turned out like this instead. It made him want to vomit blood.


    Currently, Long Chen had disposed of his opponent and nced at him with a smile on his face. Seeing Long Chen¡¯s smiling face, Huang Feiyang was so angry he could explode.


    ¡°I originally intended to use others to dispose of you, but you kept provoking me time and time again! Long Chen, don¡¯t me me for being ruthless, me yourself for courting death!¡±


    ¡°If the Lady Enforcer wants to conduct an investigation I¡¯ll simply deny everything. I don¡¯t believe that my years of service won¡¯t be equal to the worth of a fledgling like you!¡±


    Blood vesselsced Huang Feiyang¡¯s eyes!


    Upon seeing Long Chen eliminating Proctor Shi, Proctor Qin¡¯s face was filled with shock. Proctor Shi was an important part of the original n. He would never have guessed that Proctor Shi, with whom he had roamed the world with for half his life, would fall before a fledgling!


    ¡°Old Shi!¡±


    Looking at Long Chen, Proctor Qin¡¯s eyes also turned red!


    He didn¡¯t know of the previous conflict between Long Chen and Huang Feiyang. If he wanted to take revenge, he must first flee. The most important thing right now was to defeat Huang Feiyang!


    Once Proctor Shi died, Proctor Qin roared fiercely and assaulted Huang Feiyang wildly. He fought without regard for his life!


    Front the beginning Huang Feiyang hadn¡¯t fought seriously and now his n of using Crimson Blood Sacred Sect to get rid of Long Chen was ruined. Adding his rage, he nned to dispose of this annoying Proctor Qin as soon as possible!


    ¡°Old fool, you¡¯re courting death!¡±


    Huang Feiyang¡¯s voice contained a trace of chill.


    Proctor Qin was like a madman and pressed towards Huang Feiyang with a barrage of attacks!


    ¡°The one courting death is you!¡±


    Everything was on course until the Lingwu family butted in, and the bottom line was that Proctor Qin was pissed off by this!


    Huang Feiyang was even more pissed because he had seen Long Chen killing Proctor Shi. His eyes turned serious and said, ¡°What a troublesome fellow, I¡¯ll let you taste our Huang Family strongest secret art, [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]!¡±


    [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] was originally disyed by Huang Xiang against Long Chen, but that [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] waspleted defeated by Long Chen¡¯s [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist]!


    Huang Feiyang was at the Initial Stage of Human Dan Realm, the power of his [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]pared to Huang Xiang¡¯s was ten times more powerful!


    Suddenly a force exploded outwards like a grenade. An ethereal wheel of ck and white covered in runes began to rotate around Huang Feiyang with great speed as it vibrated.


    Immediately the entire forest started to shake!


    Seeing a technique this powerful, Proctor Qin¡¯splexion changed. In Long Chen¡¯s eyes the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect might be a big yer, butpared to Huang Feiyang¡¯s family, it paled inparison!


    Being targeted by such a majestic and violent [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], Proctor Qin realized that he had no way to defend against it!


    ¡°Young talents from the Lingwu Family are indeed nothing the likes of us could hold a candle to.¡±


    Facing this situation where fleeing meant death but fighting might give one a chance, a veteran like Proctor Qin, naturally knew what to do.


    Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was originally a ce filled with bloodshed. Within the sect, everyone was fierce and cruel. Proctor Qin being able to reach this position meant that he wasn¡¯t a pushover!


    ¡°You want me dead? I won¡¯t let you off that easily either! [Hurricane Soaring Eagle Strike]!¡±


    The two tremendous forces collided, but Proctor Qin was still the weaker of them as he was smashed into the ground by Huang Feiyang!


    Huang Feiyang with his face locked in a cold expression and his eyes filled with pride as he charged over and ended Proctor Qin¡¯s life. Then he turned his expression on Long Chen.


    ¡°Did you get impatient from waiting? It¡¯s your turn now!¡±

 Chapter 91 – Battling against Huang Feiyang!

    The fight didn¡¯t go on for very long, as Long Chen unexpectedly defeated Proctor Shi. This was way beyond Li Yan¡¯s expectations!


    Following that, Huang Feiyang had disyed an unbelievable strength to dispose of Proctor Qin. Li Yan was shocked into a daze!


    Their side¡¯s two most powerful leaders were disposed of in an instant by the Lingwu Family. Li Yan knew immediately that they were done for.


    Adding Wen Ya, who was at the initial mastery stage of Human Dan Realm, those Dragon Pulse Realm practitioners could do nothing more than stall for time. Once that time was up, they would all be finished.


    Hence, this time, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect would be destroyed to thest man!


    Li Yan was startled out of his fear-induced stupor, as he remembered that this might be a good time to run away.


    However, it was like Long Chen could guess his train of thought. Under Huang Feiyang¡¯s immense pressure, he turned his head towards Li Yan and said with a sneer, ¡°If you deviate by even half a step, I can promise you won¡¯t live past today. Stay put, and I promise that nothing will happen to you.¡±


    Even though Long Chen¡¯s tone was pleasant, it contained a strength within that couldn¡¯t be resisted. Li Yan wanted to leave but thinking about what Long Chen said, his feet felt like they were nailed to the ground and unable to budge.


    ¡°From their conversation, I can guess that these two will fight to the death. If I were to attempt to leave now, one of them might step out to kill me. I¡¯ll stay right here, and when they have both sustained injuries, there might still be a chance for me!¡±


    However, seeing how strong Huang Feiyang was, Li Yan felt unsure.


    ¡°Even though this youngster¡¯s talent isn¡¯t bad, he¡¯s too young and a lot inferior to that other youth. Doesn¡¯t staking my life on him seem a bit stupid?¡±


    These two were just about to engage inbat. Even though Li Yan felt conflicted in his heart, he still decided to stay and observe.


    At this instance, Huang Feiyang, who just killed Proctor Qin, carried a scent of blood as he charged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Oh? Your true intent is revealed in the end. You want to personally deal with this matter?¡±


    Long Chen carried an expression of nonchnce, as he seemed to smile but yet was not. He wasn¡¯t afraid in the slightest.


    ¡°Just because you managed to defeat a Human Dan Realm practitioner by a stroke of luck, you want to act arrogant in front of me?¡±


    Huang Feiyang¡¯s cold gaze didn¡¯t change at all. In his mind, Li Yan was just a nobody, and since there wasn¡¯t anyone around, he smiled coldly and said, ¡°Long Chen, during this assignment you were killed by the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s Proctor Shi, and I avenged you by killing both Proctor Qin and Proctor Shi. What do you think of this exnation?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s quite bad. If a retard was to havee up with an exnation, it would have been something like that.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Gnashing his teeth in anger, Huang Feiyang¡¯s aura kept increasing. His anger and aura reached their maximum at about eighteen meters from Long Chen.


    ¡°I must confess that in recent years, you have been the only one to be able to anger me to such a degree. Long Chen, dying by my hands should be considered an honor!¡±


    Huang Feiyang would let other people know that he had eliminated Long Chen. That was why he needed to kill Long Chen as soon as possible!


    Previously, it had only taken these two a small amount of time to kill the Protectors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Without much time having passed, Huang Feiyang was not advancing towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Profound grade Martial Technique, [Wheel Of Radiance]!¡±


    Compare to Huang Xiang, even if it was only a [Wheel Of Radiance] Huang Feiyang¡¯s version would have been more proficient and stronger!


    Suddenly, the whole forest was filled with flying debris. Sand and leaves whistled in the air as they sped towards Long Chen. The giant shing wheel under Huang Feiyang¡¯s control was hurled towards Long Chen. The trees in the way were all ground into sawdust!


    ¡°Still this kind of attack, how boring¡­¡±


    Long Chen sneered. Even though Huang Feiyang was a couple of times faster than Proctor Shi,pared to Long Chen, he was still far too slow.


    He used [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step], and suddenly, a crimson silhouette that looked like a real dragon appeared. Moving in an erratic pattern, it instantly appeared under the [Wheel Of Radiance] and brushed past Huang Feiyang!


    When Long Chen dodged Proctor Shi, Huang Feiyang was originally really surprised. Unexpectedly, he had even dodged his attack. This literally meant that Long Chen¡¯s mastery of the Profound grade [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] was infinitely nearing perfection!


    ¡°How could this be? He received this Technique no more than five days ago!¡±


    Huang Feiyang was starting to disy a shocked expression; the haughty youth in front of him was causing him to feel fear.


    The fact that Long Chen had only dodged put him more at ease, but he still couldn¡¯t find peace in his heart.


    ¡°He can only dodge! It seems like he doesn¡¯t have a way to deal with the move that killed Proctor Qin! He won¡¯t be able to dodge that technique, so maybe it¡¯s time for me to escape!¡±


    Li Yan was extremely anxious, like a cat on a hot tin roof.


    ¡°If I escape now, will they take their time to kill me? That youth probably won¡¯t let me leave in one piece, but that other kid probably would!¡±


    As Li Yan was pondering this over, Long Chen was calcting the time. ording to his calctions, Wen Ya should have been returning by now. Whole he was thinking, Huang Feiyang turned around with charged over with a malicious smile!


    ¡°Windy Cloud Skill, [Battle Sprite Finger Technique]!¡±


    ¡°[Seal of the High Profound Dragon]!¡±


    This attack from Long Chen forced Huang Feiyang into a draw. Originally, Huang Feiyang though Long Chen had only possessed the ability to dodge, but this move earned Long Chen some respect!


    ¡°He used to be at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, so why is he now a Human Dan Realm practitioner? Only depending on a corpse from a Profound Grade Demon Beast wouldn¡¯t be enough! Could it be that he hid his true abilities during the Lingwu Family¡¯s member selection?!¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, you¡¯ll still have to die today!¡±


    As he stared at Long Chen with an unwavering gaze, Huang Feiyang knew that time was running short. As he was controlling the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], he thought to himself, ¡°Even though he is in the Human Dan Realm, since he hasn¡¯t captured the soul of that Profound Grade Demonic Beast, he won¡¯t be a threat to me!¡±


    Both of them wanted to finish off their opponent as fast as possible, so the result was clear. As Huang Feiyang used his [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], Long Chen revolved his [Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step] to circle around Huang Feiyang, while preparing an even more powerful attack!


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s body emitting an illusionary me while his two eyes turned into two balls of me. Huang Feiyang¡¯s current [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] no longer held the previous imposing aura.


    ¡°Thinking of using the attack that defeated Little Xiang on me? Hmph! I was just about to settle this score on his behalf. Let¡¯s see if your attack is stronger, or if my Huang Family¡¯s [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] is more tyrannical!


    [Devil82 TLN: °¢Ïè (Ah Xiang) in raw is a title of endearment, ergo I choose ¡°little¡± instead]


    This scene was almost identical to the one between Long Chen and Huang Xiang, but the opponent, this time, was simply much more powerful.


    The cause of thismotion was likewise of a bigger scale than the previous one.


    As Li Yan stupidly watched from the sidelines, he got the feeling that Long Chen wasn¡¯t a bit inferior to Huang Feiyang. This made his mouth dry and unable to speak!


    He could already guess the rtionship between these two to a certain degree. It seemed that Huang Feiyang had nned to murder this genius, but Huang Feiyang had never expected that in this instant, Long Chen had already grown to such a degree that he was his equal!


    As he used the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] for the second time, Long Chen felt like this time, his Qi wasbusting his Human Dan, and the inside of his Dantian was likewise burning with a crimson ze. The Qi that exploded forth carried a scorching heat as it roared from within his body!


    ¡°This is a martial technique that was left behind by that mysterious man in the fire; even though it¡¯s only an intermediate profound grade technique, it must be special!


    Currently, Long Chen looked like an entity made of fire, and the temperature in the surroundings kept rising. On the other side, Huang Feiyang¡¯s [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death] was filled with runes, as it was used once again!


    Huang Feiyang was filled with killing intent, the corners of his mouth hinting a cold sneer. Suddenly, his silhouette shot towards Long Chen like an arrow!


    ¡°Long Chen, die! [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]!¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    Long Chenughed indifferently. All the Qi in his body rises up to an extreme point. He squinted his eyes as all his power converged into a single point. He punched out with an yell!


    ¡°[Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], [Scarlet me Burns the Sky]!¡±


    A fist and wheel collided. The amount of Qi Long Chen currently had at his disposal was about 100 times more thanpared to thest time. Originally, the amount of Qi Long Chen had was his weak point, but now, it was considered his strong point!


    Ten times the amount of his past Qi was already on par with Huang Feiyang!


    Long Chen¡¯s strong point was his [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], an intermediate level Profound grade martial technique. As it was being used right now, the amount of power exploding forth was more powerful than before by a factor of 100!


    Inside the image of that scarlet red fist, a faintly discernible face suddenly appeared. In that instant, the face swallowed the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death]. A tyrannical force audibly mmed into Huang Feiyang!


    Seeing the [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], which he believed to be an unmatchable technique, disabled just like that, Huang Feiyang¡¯s eyes bulged out from shock, threatening to fall out at any moment!


    [Devil82 TLN:Chinese lit one¡¯s eyes bulge from chock. In western lit, one¡¯s jaw hits the floor]


    ¡°Impossible, how could his attack be this powerful! Even if it was an intermediate level Profound grade martial technique, he wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat me!¡±


    Huang Feiyang couldn¡¯t believe his own eyes. In this critical moment, he wanted to dodge, but it was a shame that the [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] was simply too terrifying. In that instant in which Huang Feiyang was stunned from shock, he had already been swallowed by the attack, and burned to crisp!


    Huang Feiyang let out an earthshaking and blood curling scream and died. Even in death his eyes was wide open, with an expression like he couldn¡¯t believe it!


    ¡°Impossible¡­¡±


    This was his only thought, just before he died.


    When both of them faced off, Long Chen was uninjured, yet Huang Feiyang lost his life.


    Li Yan look upon this whole thing with a stupid expression. He thought that he was dreaming, and only after pinching himself did he realize that everything was indeed real.


    ¡°Dear heavens, this kid is really heaven-defying¡­¡±


    Li Yan immediately shut his mouth and didn¡¯t dare to say anything else.


    As Long Chen turned his head around, Li Yan felt his scalp go numb. However, Long Chen only stated simply, ¡°It looks like you are quite tactful¡­¡±


    Afterwards, he didn¡¯t bother with Li Yan, and in an extremely short time span, put Huang Feiyang, Proctor Qin, and Proctor Shi¡¯s bodies into his Cosmos Pouch. As he stashed away Huang Feiyang¡¯s corpse, he took the time to spit on it.


    ¡°Want to kill me? You deserved how you ended up!¡±


    At this moment, a sound broke the silence, and Long Chen knew that the ruckus earlier had alerted Wen Ya!

 Chapter 92 – The Crimson Blood Revelation

    Just as Long Chen collected Huang Feiyang¡¯s and the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect¡¯s two Great Proctors corpses and did a simple cleanup of the site, Wen Ya arrived with a bleak expression.


    Seeing the ce was a mess and only Long Chen was present, Wen Ya immediately felt that something was amiss. He locked gazes with Long Chen, and asked in a cold voice, ¡°Where is Huang Feiyang?¡±


    Long Chen put on an act of pure innocence and said, ¡°Those two old farts couldn¡¯t defeat Huang Feiyang so they left in a hurry. Huang Feiyang just left chasing after them, you seem to be a bitte.¡±


    Wen Ya creased his eyebrows and remained gloomy as he looked at Long Chen.


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t he nning to use others to kill Long Chen? Did it fail? Based on Huang Feiyang¡¯s temperament, since his target is Long Chen, he wouldn¡¯t simply chase after them unless something unexpected happened?¡±


    Wen Ya looked around suspiciously and said in a cold voice, ¡°Why is there such a mess here? There is even the smell of me. I just heard a hugemotion over here but only you are left. What really happened?¡±


    Even if Wen Ya spent the whole day guessing, he would have never thought that Long Chen had killed them all and even stored them inside his Cosmos Pouch.


    At this moment, Wen Ya noticed Li Yan. His gaze turned icy cold as he advanced upon him one step at a time and said in a frigid tone, ¡°Tell me, what really happened here? If you value your life, you better tell the truth!¡±


    Long Chen also looked at Li Yan, with a faint smile. Even though his eyes didn¡¯t carry a hint of a threat, Li Yan knew that if he was angered he will be a true god of massacre.


    Looking at Wen Ya¡¯s icy expression and then over to the nonchnt Long Chen. Li Yan already decided what to do. He immediately put on the appearance of being extremely frightened and said, ¡°Re¡­ Reporting to this Lord. Previously that other Lord was too powerful and our two Proctors couldn¡¯t handle him so they could only run away. That¡¯s when the other Lord pursued them!¡±


    What Li Yan said was the same as Long Chen, this made Wen Ya¡¯s furrow his brows even deeper.


    In the end, he believed their stories but the result made him a bit suspicious.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what that Huang Feiyang is up to, the n was to kill Long Chen but then he chased after them alone. I really can¡¯t figure it out¡­¡±


    ¡°Senior Brother Wen, shouldn¡¯t we chase after them?¡±


    Long Chen suddenly asked.


    Wen Ya looked over Long Chen closely, but no matter how he looked, he couldn¡¯t see a hint of deceit.


    ¡°Huang Feiyang¡¯s goal was Long Chen, I¡¯ll just have to guard him for now. Since he has that powerful martial technique [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], he should be fine.¡±


    With that in mind, Wen Ya shook his head and said, ¡°No need to give chase. You can help me rescue those women, regarding the other people, just kill them¡­¡±


    When Li Yan heard that they were to kill him, he immediately looked over to Long Chen who was the one who saved him from Huang Feiyang. Indeed, Long Chen said fearlessly, ¡°Senior Brother Wen, they are members of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. I have an enmity with them. If we leave one alive we could interrogate him about information regarding the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. I hope Senior Brother Wen will give me this chance!¡±


    ¡°Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡±


    Wen Ya never heard of it before, but since Long Chen put it like that, he wouldn¡¯t bother to make things difficult just because of an insignificant small fry.


    The principal aggressor against Long Chen was Huang Feiyang, and since Huang Feiyang wasn¡¯t present, Wen Ya couldn¡¯t act on Feiyang¡¯s behalf. He could only guard Long Chen and do nothing more.


    ¡°Keep up.¡±


    Speaking tonelessly, Wen Ya headed back towards the inside of the cave. He only had time to take care of those subordinates and didn¡¯t rescue those women. Since Huang Feiyang hasn¡¯t returned he will have to rescue those women andplete the assignment.


    Seeing that Long Chen was following Wen Ya, Li Yan hurried to stand up, looked at Long Chen with dismay and followed obediently behind Long Chen.


    ¡°I¡¯ll ask you some questions and you must answer honestly.¡±


    Li Yan answered immediately, ¡°Yes, understood!¡±


    With his obedience Long Chen felt a relief. Originally Liu Lan had already given him some information on the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but after this assignment, Long Chen no longer trusted Liu Lan.


    One could immediately tell that this Li Yan was a pushover, so Long Chen probed him with a question, ¡°I want to locate a Proctor of your Crimson Blood Sacred Sect named Xue Yuanzi. Do you know his whereabouts?¡±


    This question of Long Chen was extremely cleverly formted. Even if the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect knew that Xue Yuanzi was killed by the Yang Family of the Por Town they still couldn¡¯t link it to Long Chen. If they didn¡¯t know, nothing would be revealed either.


    Indeed, Li Yan answered quickly, ¡°Proctor Xue Yuanzi has been missing for over a month, we have no idea where he is now, and may I know why the Lord asks?¡±


    Long Chen sneered and said, ¡°Of course, it is to kill him¡±


    He followed up with, ¡°I¡¯ll ask you another question, why did the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect catch this many young women, what¡¯s the motive?¡±


    He felt that since this operation was of such arge scale, something must be up.


    Since he could sense traces of blood inside their Qi, Long Chen felt that something weird was going on.


    Being asked this question, Li Yan furrowed his brows. He looked at Long Chen with an awkward expression and stalled without answering the question.


    ¡°You keen on dying?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice was like magic as it entered Li Yan¡¯s ears. Li Yan started to quiver and answered immediately, ¡°I¡¯ll tell, I¡¯ll tell, but you must promise to forgive me!¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Rx, I won¡¯t break my promise to rubbish like you.¡±


    With Long Chen¡¯s promised at hand, Li Yan proceeded and said, ¡°Our Sect Master has an unusual method of cultivation. He likes to use numerous women¡¯s Primordial Yin blood to form a blood basin¡­¡±


    ¡°Our disciples of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect will cultivate inside this basin and would gain blood essence Qi. The nature of this blood essence Qi is twice as good as ordinary Qi. This is a very strong method! Since ourst blood basin was used up, Sect Master decided to hold a blood offering ceremony to refill the blood basin. That¡¯s why we are capturing these women¡­¡±


    After hearing this Long Chen was silent for a long time.


    ¡­¡­


    Primordial Yin Blood is simply the blood of virgin women. If one want to construct a blood basinrge enough for the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect to cultivate within, the number of women they need to kill must exceed a thousand¡­


    Long Chen pursed his lips as he thought of those poor people from the Emerald Jade House.


    Before, he used to have some friends there. They were people forced there due to poverty. They learned some literature and art and barely managed to get by. He didn¡¯t think that they would die so miserably.


    Besides it wasn¡¯t just them who experienced this wretched death.


    After listening to this Long Chen¡¯s breathing became ragged.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s condition Li Yan was scared out of his mind and asked, ¡°Lord, have you finished your interrogations? May I leave now?


    Long Chen finally responded, as he lifted his head Li Yan found to his dismay that Long Chen¡¯s eyes were nowced with crimson blood vessels.


    ¡°You¡¯ve also taken a bath in the blood basin right?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s cold gaze made Li Yan¡¯splexion turn pale. As he was about to dere his innocence Long Chen has already struck with a fist him upon his forehead. That hit burst his head open and sent him face-up through the air. After he struck the ground, he no longer moved!


    ¡°He deserved death! Long Chen, good job killing him. These kind of evildoers are simply heartless and deranged. The heavens will smite them! They will receive punishment by both heaven and earth. They will never enter into the cycle of rebirth again!¡±


    Hearing about the blood offering ceremony, Ling Xi, being a young woman, was even more enraged than Long Chen!


    Long Chen had never seen the kind hearted and cute Ling Xi being this ruthless before!


    ¡°I never imagined that in this world there existed a ce so dark that you sacrificed other people just to gain strength. This so-called Sect Leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and all his followers, must die!¡±


    By the end, Ling Xi started to sob uncontrobly. For someone like her who grew up in bliss and happiness, she could never imagine that there would be such evil people, doing these kinds of heartless things!


    Even though he broke his promised and killed Li Yan, he didn¡¯t feel even an ounce of regret. Seeing Ling Xi this upset also made him feel quite sad.


    ¡°I know. As long as I gain power, I would never allow people and factions like these to exist¡­¡±


    With Long Chen¡¯s guarantee, Ling Xi felt better as she said encouragingly, ¡°I¡¯ll be rooting for you, it¡¯s better to stop them before that blood offering ceremony. If you let that many young women die, I¡¯ll never forgive you!¡±


    ¡°I, this father, knows what to do, and besides if they realise that I¡¯ve killed two of their Proctors, even if I don¡¯t find them, they wille looking for me! Little Xi, the enmity that exists between the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and me is irreconcble!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡±


    Before, when Long Chen asked Li Yan some questions, Wen Ya walked out and only faintly heard Long Chen asking questions, afterwards, he stopped paying attention. He never imagined that within a couple of breaths time Li Yan would be beaten into a pulp and sent flying upside down!


    Turning around to see the miserable state of Li Yan, Wen Ya¡¯s forehead formed a deep crease.


    ¡°As soon as he finished his interrogation and the man lost his value, this Long Chen decided to kill him off? This kind of cruelty, if Huang Feiyang doesn¡¯t kill him, with Long Chen¡¯s talent Huang Feiyang will be in deep trouble. But at this crucial moment, where did he go?¡±


    Inside the deep cavern, Wen Ya rescued a dozen pale and crying maidens. Since the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect only needed their Primordial Yin Blood, they didn¡¯t suffer any indignities.


    The urgent look Li Yan originally gave Long Chen must stem from these girls, which Li Yan could see but not touch which made his desires uncontroble.


    Rescuing these many women, the mission for Yan Luo Town could be consideredpleted. The strange thing was that Huang Feiyang still hasn¡¯t returned. Wen Ya waited until the sky turned dark. They couldn¡¯t stay in this East Yan Mountains any longer. That¡¯s when Wen Ya decided to head down the mountains.


    ¡°When he returns he probably will head directly towards Yan Luo Town, I really can¡¯t figure out what happened that was that unexpected¡­¡±

 Chapter 93 – Wan’er

    Huang Feiyang, the two Great Proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sects, Li Yan, and the rest had already died. The only people left were Long Chen, Wen Ya and the girls from Yan Luo Town.


    Presently, all the women had already started to recover. Every single one of them look upon Wen Ya with reverence and even adoration in their eyes, as it had been Wen Ya who had rescued them from the ws of those devils.


    [Devil82 TLN: Devils is referring to the people of Crimson Blood Sacred Sect]


    As for Long Chen, he had not attacked in front of these young girls, so they naturally did not notice him.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know when Huang Feiyang will be back and it¡¯s gettingte, so let¡¯s return to Yan Luo Town first.¡±


    Presently, Wen Ya¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed. It had been such a long time since Huang Feiyang had gone. Could something have happened to him? However, he could not leave yet, and on top of that, in this boundless mountains, how was he to search for him?


    Arge crowd of people spilled down the mountains.


    Wen Ya walked ahead by himself. The women saw that Long Chen seemed a lot more approachable so they hurried forth and asked, ¡°Lord, are- are you from the Ling Wu Family?¡±


    Long Chen had disposed of Huang Feiyang and managed to fool Wen Ya, which put him in a very good mood. At the sight of so many beautifuldies surrounding him, he said in acent manner, ¡°Of course, only us from the Ling Wu Family would be able to rescue you with such ease!¡±


    ¡°Wow¡­¡±


    Long Chen was young and Wen Ya wasn¡¯t that old either and were exactly what these young maidens fantasized heroes to be like. While there was still fear lingering in their minds after the ordeal, they were able to recover very quickly.


    ¡°That man in front must be your Senior Brother right? Did he rescue us?¡±


    ¡°Your Senior Brother must be a super expert from the Ling Wu Family, right?¡±


    Facing these questions, Long Chen answered with pride, ¡°Of course, Senior Brother Wen Ya is famous amongst the Ling Wu Family. Countless young maidens have a crush on him, so if you¡¯re interested, you¡¯d better make your move now!¡±


    Long Chen made these young women bashful as they blushed and cursed at him jokingly.


    Not even halfway to their destination, Yan Beitian had already brought some experts from Yan Luo Town and were searching anxiously within the Easter Yan Mountain. At the sight of Wen Ya and a bunch of young women, everyone¡¯s faces was filled with joy as they began to cheer.


    Yan Beitian could immediately spot that his daughter was safe and sound. He rushed forward and knelt in front of Wen Ya, shedding tears of gratitude as he spoke,¡±Today, the Ling Wu Family helped Yan Luo Town settle this huge catastrophe. Whether as a Town Master of as a father, I am eternally grateful to you three- two Lords!¡±


    ¡°Yes! Yes! If you have any requests, whether big or small, we will do our utmost to aplish it!¡±


    Yan Beitian didn¡¯t see Huang Feiyang but he saw Long Chen, who was surrounded by a circle of women. He frowned inwardly as Wen Ya coldly signaled him to stand.


    ¡°Lord, we¡¯ve prepared a feast and hope that you will humble us with your presence¡­¡±


    Huang Feiyang was nowhere to be seen and Wen Ya was in no mood to join any feasts. He waved his hand impatiently and replied, ¡°All of you should return first. I still have some matters to deal with, so just cancel this feast.¡±


    Wen Ya¡¯s tone was resolute. This puzzled the experts of Yan Luo Town as they nced amongst themselves. They could not understand Wen Ya¡¯s bad mood. Was this mission not a sess?


    Wen Yan had not realized the seriousness of this matter previously. He only assumed that with Huang Feiyang¡¯s [Heavenly Wheel of Life and Death], it was obvious that he would be able to return safely.


    However, a long time has passed, indicating that Huang Feiyang might actually be in trouble. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with guarding Long Chen now since Huang Feiyang¡¯s life was much more important than killing Long Chen.


    Turning around, Wen Ya said coldly, ¡°Long Chen, wait here at Yan Luo Town. Once Huang Feiyang and I return, we shall return to Yuan Ling City together!¡±


    Long Chen nodded promptly.


    Wen Ya observed this youth for a while, noticing his indifference towards the situation as if Huang Feiyang¡¯s life and death didn¡¯t matter to him. However, that was to be expected, so he could not find fault with him.


    Without further ado, Wen Ya left the crowd behind and ventured deeper into Easter Yan Mountain!


    Meanwhile, everyone including Yan Beitian was looking at Long Chen. Seeing that Long Chen had a rxed and gentle expression, Yan Beitian asked cautiously as they were returning to Yan Luo Town, ¡°My Lord, may I know what¡¯s going on with those other two Lords?¡±


    Long Chen continued with his previous lie and answered, ¡°Senior Brother Wen Ya rescued the women, while Senior Brother Huang and I battled the two Human Dan Realm Proctors. They realised they were not a match for us and fled. Senior Brother Huang chased after them and still has yet to return. Seeing that waiting here is not going to help, Senior Brother Wen Ya must have returned to look for him!¡±


    Yan Beitian and the rest finally understood why they had not seen Huang Feiyang.


    The entire group headed down the mountains. The young women found their families and didn¡¯t linger around Long Chen. Long Chen walked alone in front, relieved that he had gotten rid of Huang Feiyang.


    ¡°Next, I can focus my attention on dealing with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. I¡¯m just unsure if my lie will hold when I get back to the Ling Wu Family.¡±


    Thinking about Liu Lan, the beautiful but crazy woman, Long Chen did not have the confidence that he could fool her.


    Amongst the crowd of people, Yan Beitian was quietly observing this youth. Within his eyes contained a trace of amazement and seriousness.


    Before, at the Town Master¡¯s residence, Yang Beitian had been able to sense Huang Feiyang killing intent towards Long Chen. He had surmised that after arriving at the East Yan Mountains, Huang Feiyang would try to kill Long Chen.


    But the situation right now was that Long Chen had returned without a scratch, while Huang Feiyang was missing.


    Thinking back to what Long Chen had said, Wen Ya waspletely oblivious to what had transpired between Long Chen and Huang Feiyang. That meant that Long Chen was able to fabricate the truth as he liked.


    Even though Yan Beitian looked simple and honest, but he had lived for a long time and had much of experience. He could be said to be a crafty, wily old fox. Wen Ya might not be able to see through lies, but that didn¡¯t mean he was unable to.


    ¡°This youth is indeed beyond my expectations. I¡¯m afraid that Huang Feiyang might already be dead.¡±


    While he had these thoughts, Yan Beitian wasn¡¯t stupid enough to voice it. He clearly knew who he should be wary of, which was why had not done anything to Long Chen.


    ¡°Daddy, why do you keep staring at that guy?¡±


    Beside Yan Beitian, a beautiful girl around 14 years age, asked curiously.


    Yan Beitian looked over at his daugher, who he had recently been reunited with, with a sorrowful look on his face. Suddenly inspired, he eximed, ¡°Wan¡¯er, that guy is an unrivaled genius. Do you believe Dad?¡±


    [TL note: ¡°er¡± is a term of endearment added to a person¡¯s name to express fondness or adoration.]


    This young girl called Wan¡¯er looked at Long Chen with doubt and said, ¡°I think that the other Senior should be stronger. He¡¯s the one who rescued us! Look, he¡¯s so handsome, while this one is just so-so. Seeing him being so agreeable with his Senior Brother, I don¡¯t believe he could be that strong¡­¡±


    Yan Beitian burst outughing.


    ¡°This little guy is extremely talented. His personality is ruthless and knows when to conceal his strength. His future could only be described as unmeasurable¡­¡±


    Of course, Yan Beitian could only utter these words in his heart. Originally, he too had been fooled by Long Chen¡¯s act, but after figuring out the real Long Chen, he started to feel a slight fear in his heart.


    They soon arrived back at the Town Master Residence. Since Wen Ya hadn¡¯t returned, Yan Beitian had no reason to proceed with the feast. After receiving Long Chen with a grand ceremony, Long Chen found some excuse to return.


    Huang Feiyang and the others¡¯ bodies were still inside his Cosmos Pouch. If he did not take care of this immediately, it would forever be a weight bearing upon his mind.


    Long Chen swiftly exited Yan Luo Town and he found a deste ce to burn Huang Feiyang and the others bodies to ashes. He got rid of all evidence.


    ¡°Huang Feiyang¡¯s Cosmos Pouch was destroyed by my [Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist] but the items belonging to the two Great Proctors were left intact. How convenient for me.¡±


    After Long Chen bought the Spirit Recovery Fruit, he was left with only one piece of Deity Jade. What he needed the most right now was Deity Jades.


    Rummaging through the two Great Proctors¡¯ Cosmos Pouches, Long Chen acquired 135 pieces of Deity Jade. This was thergest sum he had ever been in possession of.


    As for the items inside the Cosmos Pouch, such at Huang Grade medicine, skills, and some other junk, Long Chen had no use for them and emptied the pouches.


    They weren¡¯t worth a lot of money to a Deity Dan Realm cultivator, but Long Chen had other uses for them.


    ¡°I think that littless, Ling Qing, will like this. Girls always carry a lot of things around and it would be simply too inconvenient to be without this.¡±


    After returning to Town Master Residence, Long Chen began started to cultivate, and only until it was deep into the night that Wen Ya appeared before Long Chen, his expression filled with anxiety and confusion. He looked coldly at Long Chen and asked, ¡°Long Chen, can you guarantee that what you said before was true?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze turn cold as he answered, ¡°What do you mean by this? Are you suspecting that I lied to you? How funny. Do you think I have the ability to kill Huang Feiyang and the two Great Proctors? You seem to think a little too highly of me.¡±


    Wen Ya knew that this was impossible, but Huang Feiyang had vanished without a trace. He hadbed through the Eastern Yan mountains thoroughly but there were no traces of them. How was that possible?


    ¡°Could it be that he was killed by the Crimson Blood Sacred sect and they burnt the bodies to cover their tracks?¡±


    Wen Ya was on the right tracks about how the bodies had been burnt, but he had not pinpointed the right culprit.


    He was clear about Long Chen¡¯s strength. He was merely at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. It was impossible for him to be able to kill 3 people of the Human Dan Realm.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you speak the truth. Once we return to the Ling Wu Family everything will be clear. There isn¡¯t anyone who could pull a fast one in front of Enforcer Liu. If you tricked me, you¡¯d better prepare for punishments! If Huang Feiyang does not return in three days, we shall leave for the Ling Wu Family!¡±


    After saying these, Wen Ya left.


    The words he spoke had spooked Long Chen. Long Chen knew he was no match for Liu Lan and didn¡¯t know how to deal with her.


    ¡°What¡¯s so scary about that stupid woman? Just give me two more Spirit Recovery Fruits and I¡¯ll be able to unleash all my powers and finish her off. Hmph!!¡±


    Liu Lan had flirted with Long Chen in the past, which had resulted in Ling Xi detesting her.


    ¡°The Deity Jades we have right now is only enough to buy a single Spirit Recovery Fruit¡­¡±


    Three days passed quickly. On this day, Long Chen and Wen Ya were seen off by the people of Yan Luo Town. They left Yan Luo County and headed back for the Ling Wu Family.


    Long Chen still had no idea of the dangers lying in wait for him.

 Chapter 94 – Sky Martial Realm Competition!

    While riding on top of the Wind Rendering Spirit Roc, his mood was simr to when he had first arrived.


    Before, he was much too weak and had no idea how to deal with Huang Feiyang¡¯s thirst for his blood. Now, he still had insufficient strength and had no idea how to deal with Liu Lan.


    Their assignment this time had resulted in an unfortunate ident, causing Wen Ya to feel uneasy. There was little he could do other than let the Lady Enforcer handle everything.


    The Wind Rendering Spirit Roc arrived swiftly at Yuanling City. It hovered over Ling Wu City before descending into the backyard of the Green Willow Residence, which belonged to the Green Sun Branch. Gan Lin was already waiting there.


    News of the incident at Yan Luo Town had already spread back to the Green Willow Residence. That was how Gan Lin knew that amongst the people who returned, there was Long Chen but no Huang Feiyang.


    Seeing this rxed youth, Gan Lin sighted inwardly in admiration but also with concern. He told Long Chen, ¡°This kind of travel must be taxing on you. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re tired, so you¡¯d better return to your residence. If there are any events you are required to attend, I will contact you.¡±


    Long Chen nodded as he thanked Gan Lin, and then turned to leave. He knew that Wen Ya would be brought in front of Enforcer Liu for questioning.


    No matter what, they were still Long Chen¡¯s examiners.


    ¡°That bastard will probably give me the lowest evaluation.¡±


    But this didn¡¯t matter to Long Chen. If he really was talented and proved his worth in future battles, there was no need to worry too much about the evaluation.


    Returning to his residence, Long Chen sorted out his gear and travel goods. He suddenly noticed his identity badge and scanned it, noting with surprise that his contribution points had increased to 30.


    ¡°I simplypleted one assignment and received 30 contribution points. I wonder how the Ling Wu Family price their items with these contribution points! I hope they¡¯re easier to use than Deity Jades¡­¡±


    Time passed swiftly as he bantered with Ling Xi. As night descended, Long Chen prepared to cultivate and Ling Xi began to pout, putting on a face of disapproval as she said, ¡°That stinking woman is looking for you again!¡±


    ¡°Is it Liu Lan?¡±


    Long Chen stood up, ready to face that woman. To him, this was the same as a battle.


    If he was only a tiny bit careless, he might die at this woman¡¯s hands.


    Absorbing Ling Xi back into Lingxi Sword, Long Chen went to open the door. Unexpectedly, just as he opened the door, he felt a threatening aura that headed straight for his throat!


    Long Chen was convinced that if he didn¡¯t use all his might, he would surely die on the spot!


    ¡°This woman is clearly measuring my martial prowess, but I didn¡¯t imagine she would be so ruthless. I¡¯m afraid that if I were still stuck at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm, death by her hands is certain!¡±


    At that instance, Long Chen¡¯splexion changed as he exuded the qi of a Human Dan Realm cultivator. Only then did he barely manage to fend off Liu Lan¡¯s sudden attack, and even then, this had shaken him to the core and cause his blood to boil, forcing him several steps backwards!


    As he was forced to retreat, Liu Lan walked in as if nothing had happened. She fixed her eyes on Long Chen as she smiled flirtatiously and closed the door softly.


    ¡°So you managed to enter the Human Dan Realm¡­¡±


    She stepped forth with rosy cheeks and an alluring body. As she approached Long Chen, a waft of alluring body fragrance assailed his nostrils.


    As she licked her red lips provocatively, she nced at Long Chen in a way that screamed e here and do me!¡¯


    But Long Chen wasn¡¯t enticed since he knew of the ways of this woman. If one fell for her tricks, one might die without even knowing how it had happened.


    Long Chen¡¯s hairs stood at its ends as he backpedaled and looked over Liu Lan indifferently.


    ¡°Is there a reason to why Lady Enforcer is looking for me?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s expression, Liu Yanughed faintly in her heart and said in a flirtatious manner, ¡°What do you think? A man and a woman, alone in the middle of the night with passion in the air. What else could happen¡­¡±


    [TLN: in the raw (¸É²ñÁÒ»ð) literally mean an encounter between dry firewood and a meandes from ¡¶ºìÂ¥ÃΡ·- Dream of the Red Chamber created by Cao Xueqin in the Qing Dynasty. I used passion in the air instead.]


    Her erotic ways stirred a fire within Long Chen, but he knew that this powerful Enforcer Liu was that kind of woman that one could see but never touch.


    ¡°Lady Enforcer, please conduct yourself with dignity.¡±


    Long Chen spoke like a gentleman.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s awkward expression as as he tried to uphold his own righteousness, Liu Lan burst out a giggle. Her smile was like the wild swaying of flower branches, a pair of jade white figures constantly jiggling in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes, thus dazzling him. All of a sudden, Liu Lan had on a half-smile that made it difficult for one to discern whether she was actually smiling or not. She looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°You actually managed to get rid of Huang Feiyang. Not bad.¡±


    Suddenly hearing this statement from Liu Lan, Long Chen was scared into silence. However, seeing that this woman didn¡¯t seem to be angry, he calmed down.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to deny it, I already know that Huang Feiyang died by your hands. Don¡¯t be afraid, I won¡¯t punish you. It¡¯s the exact opposite- I want to encourage you.¡±


    One indeed could not judge this woman by conventional standards. Since he wasn¡¯t clear on what kind of situation this was, Long Chen chose to remain silent.


    ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t tease you anymore.¡±


    Liu Lan rearranged the crape she was wearing and continued, ¡°In a couple of days, the younger generation of the Green Faction is going to have a collectivepetition inside the Sky Martial Realm. The participants are all three star rated cultivators of the Human Dan Realm. You just stepped into the Human Dan Realm and just happen to be rated at three stars, so you can¡¯t escape thispetition¡­¡±


    ¡°Three stars?¡±


    Long Chen was a bit unclear about this ranking. He already knew that the potential of members of outer factions were divided into 5 ranks. Being able to reach 3 stars meant that he was superior to those in Green Willow Residence.


    ¡­¡­


    When Long Chen had just entered the Ling Wu Family, Gan Lin had described this Sky Martial Realm to him. This was a tiny Cosmos Dimension where there were a lot of Demonic Beasts, and was a ce where members of the Ling Wu Family went to train. He had no idea that right after he returned from an assignment, he would be forced to participate in thispetition.


    Luckily for him, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect didn¡¯t know the existence of the Yang Family. Killing Proctor Qin and Proctor Shi had also diverted their attention elsewhere, or else Long Chen would truly be out of ideas of what to do.


    ¡°My current strength is still not enough for me to contend with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Since the Sky Martial Realm has a huge amount of Profound Grade Demonic Beasts within, it¡¯s an excellent ce for me to temper myself and raise my strength!¡±


    With this thought in mind, Long Chen had acquired a purpose. His gaze was much more resolute now.


    Seeing that Long Chen didn¡¯t show any traces of fear, Liu Lan sneered secretly but still spoke sweetly, ¡°Thispetition inside the Sky Martial Realm isn¡¯t a big deal. Gan Lin will tell you about the rules and prizes, but¡­¡±


    Barely saying two sentences, Liu Lan put on a face of indifference.


    ¡°¡­ When Feng Wutian asked me about Huang Feiyang just now, I identally blurted out the matter about you killing Huang Feiyang. Feng Wutian just happens to be our Green Sun Branch¡¯s number one seed in this Sky Martial Realmpetition¡­¡±


    After saying this, she started tough, while Long Chen narrowed his eyes and stared coldly at this woman.


    ¡°What¡¯s the deal with this woman? Earlier, she paired me up with Huang Feiyang and now she¡¯s instigating conflicts between me and Feng Wutian. Feng Wutian is at the apex of the Human Dan Realm, so how could I be his match? Why does it feel like she is trying to force out my hidden potential?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s cold gaze, Liu Lan stoppedughing and said tly, ¡°Feng Wutian is a young expert I¡¯ve single handedly cultivated for the past few years. Though he¡¯s merely three years older than you, he¡¯s already ready to enter the Earth Dan Realm and has another status. He possesses the bloodline of the Vermilion Bird n, one of our four Great Inner ns. Whether in terms of potential or strength, he is far beyond you. That¡¯s why I think there is a 90% chance that you will die within the Sky Martial Realm. Kid, know your ce. Defeating that trash Huang Feiyang, doesn¡¯t count for much¡­¡±


    Before, Liu Lan had been speaking in a teasing manner. However, the tone she carried now that she was speaking seriously showed indifference, her eyes carrying a trace of disdain. Long Chen could clearly sense this.


    ¡°She had been praising me all this while, but I¡¯m afraid her current attitude reflects how she truly views me- with contempt.¡±


    After throwing Long Chen a gaze filled with contempt, Liu Lan turned and left.


    ¡°Along the road of cultivation, a person¡¯s effort is important but bloodline is even more important. Long Chen, you are just amon Beast Warrior and haven¡¯t even refined a Profound Grade Beast Spirit. How can you even contend against the Vermilion Bird bloodline?¡±


    ¡°¡­ I imagine you might be unaware of this, but one¡¯s background is the most important factor that determines whether one will be a strong cultivator. You, Long Chen,ck this major factor, which is why you will never be a powerful cultivator!¡±


    Closing the door, Long Chen was still reflecting on thest words of Liu Lan.


    Soon after, the corners of his mouth turned into a sneer.


    ¡°My background? My old man was an existence that all of you can only look up to with no hopes of getting to his level. How can my background be poor? Besides I¡¯m a Dragon Warrior, so how could I lose to anyone is the talent department? Liu Lan, just you wait¡­¡±


    ¡°Sky Martial realm, huh? In this contest, I¡¯ll let you see who¡¯s got the most potential in the Green Sun Faction!¡±


    Recalling Feng Wutian, who was at the Human Dan apex, Long Chen still felt unsure.


    Liu Lan was really pushing him beyond his limits. If Long Chen wasn¡¯t careful, he would fall into a depthless abyss.


    ¡°I think this woman intends to have you killed. She had found Huang Feiyang, and if it weren¡¯t for your good luck, the one returning wouldn¡¯t have been you. She¡¯s putting out another Feng Wutian. Hmph!! Long Chen, go and buy me a Spirit Recovery Fruit. I¡¯ll kill this stinking woman for you!¡±


    Just thinking about Liu Lan made Ling Xi gnash her teeth in anger. This was partly because this woman had an enticing body that she clearlycked, often trying to seduce Long Chen. The other part was her repeated actions that forced Long Chen into peril!


    ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything to her at all. Why does she keep treating me like this?¡±


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t figure it out. Liu Lan told Feng Wutian about Huang Feiyang, and it was obvious that she wanted Feng Wutian to kill Long Chen!


    ¡°Little Xi, calm yourself. Let¡¯s deal with it once we get into the Sky Martial Realm. I¡¯ve nned on visiting this little Cosmos Dimension anyway. Before we do that, I still need to visit Treasure Exchange Pavilion. It would be a shame not to use the 30 contribution points I just acquired.¡±


    ¡°Okay then! Heehee, let¡¯s see if there¡¯s any good stuff you can buy for me!¡±

 Chapter 95 – Treasure Exchange Pavilion

    Within the nine Treasure Exchange Pavilions in Lingwu City, each was located in one of the nine Great Outer Factions. As for the Green faction¡¯s Treasure Exchange Pavilion, it wasn¡¯t located that far from the Green Sun Hall.


    Even though there were quite a few members of the Ling Wu Family, since it was early in the morning, Long Chen didn¡¯t encounter many people.


    Experts were everywhere in the Ling Wu Family, and just inside the Green Willow Residence, Long Chen had already encountered such fierce rivalry, not to mention outside.


    Presently, Long Chen kept a low profile so that he fit in with Dragon Pulse Realm cultivators as he headed towards the Treasure Exchange Pavilion.


    The closer he got to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, the more people he met. There were nock of young experts amongst them.


    Within the Green Faction, Human Dan Realm practitioners were numerous, Earth Dan Realm practitioners were rarely seen. As for Heaven Dan Realm practitioners, Long Chen hadn¡¯t seen a single one, which implied that the strongest person he had seen so far was Liu Lan from the Green Faction.


    The Green Faction¡¯s Treasure Exchange Pavilion was much bigger than the branch auction house of the Daybreak Merchants Union at Eastern Ling Region. It was three levels high and immensely vast.


    Long Chen knew that the two topmost levels, weren¡¯t ces someone like him could enter with his current status, or strength.


    But even if it was only the first floor, Long Chen would most likely find everything that he needed at the moment.


    In this ce of grand splendor where everything was iid with precious pearls, Long Chen finally found the area for spirit medicine.


    Even though the spirit medicines were categorised, there wasn¡¯t a designated spot for godly-level spirit medicine. Long Chen could only look around the ¡®Other¡¯ section and, after asking someone, he managed to buy a single Spirit Recovery Fruit.


    Looking over the price tag, Long Chen let out a sigh. The price for Spirit Recovery Fruit was 9 contribution points.


    After the exchange, he put away the Spirit Recovery Fruit into his Cosmos Pouch and asked the clerk, ¡°May I ask if there are other Spirit medicines, like the Spirit Recovery Fruit?¡±


    ¡°Treasure Exchange Pavilion only prepared one of this sort of medicine. You¡¯ve bought this fruit today and must waiting two to three days before new Spirit Recovery Fruits will arrive.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. There was nothing he could do except wait for two to three days beforeing back and exchange his points for it.


    ¡°Outside, each Spirit Recovery Fruit costs 100 Deity Jades while here, it only costs 9 contribution points. This one assignment earned me over 300 Deity Jades. But I¡¯m merely a newbie and onlypleted a third rate assignment. I shouldn¡¯t be able to make this much. It must be Liu Lan who gave me a little extra¡­¡±


    As Long Chen was pondering over this issue, Ling Xi was immersed in the joy of acquiring another Spirit Recovery Fruit. As she heard Long Chen¡¯s question, she knew that Long Chen would most likely trade all his 30 contribution points for Spirit Recovery Fruits. She was moved but still felt bad as she yelled. ¡°Hey, one is enough for me. Save some points to exchange something for yourself. I¡¯ll help you look, let¡¯s see if there¡¯s anything good around here!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright, I don¡¯t need anything else. This kind of Spirit Medicine can save your life, so I need stock up¡­¡±


    Ling Xi protested, ¡°No! Even if you give it to me, I won¡¯t ept it. I¡¯ll start looking for something nice for you. This Lady¡¯s eyesight is extraordinary!¡±


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t do anything about it so he simply roamed about aimlessly inside the Treasure Exchange Pavilion. The one who was really looking for things was Ling Xi.


    ¡°Release the bloodhound, hahaha¡­¡±


    ¡°Bastard! Ungrateful fool, this Lady is doing this for you¡­¡±


    At this moment, Ling Xi startled, then got excited as she whispered, ¡°Hey, you see that Initial Returning Fruit over there?¡±


    ¡°This littless really seems to have found something good.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t expect this and quickly looked in the direction Ling Xi indicated. There was indeed a piece of starch ck fruit, about the size of a fist. It was packaged securely and didn¡¯t reveal anything extraordinary.


    ¡°Initial Returning Fruit, Profound middle grade spirit medicine, has healing properties. For experts below the Earth Dan Realm, it can be used to cure wounds. Pricing: 20 contribution points¡­¡±


    Seeing the exnation next to the Initial Returning Fruit, Long Chen scanned through and read out the important parts. He then asked with some doubt, ¡°Little Xi, these kinds of middle Profound middle grade Spirit Medicines with healing qualities can be seen everywhere within the Treasure Exchange Pavilion. And it¡¯s also clear that its healing effects aren¡¯t that good. Other middle Profound Grade Spirit Medicines are priced over 50 contribution points¡­¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because you are all inexperienced and don¡¯t know wonderful this Initial Returning Fruit is! Listen to me, hurry up and buy it, else you will miss this opportunity!¡±


    ¡°But I only have 21 contribution points left¡­¡±


    ¡°So annoying, if you don¡¯t buy it, I will ignore you!¡±


    Long Chen was helpless. He could only spend 20 contribution points to receive this beyond ordinary looking Initial Returning Fruit.


    Seeing a person that clearly wasn¡¯t a Earth Dan Practitioner buy something like the Initial Returning Fruit. The staff member said puzzledly, ¡°If it¡¯s for private use, I can rmend you some Initial Profound Grade Spirit Medicines, like the Can Grass. For a single Contribution point you can purchase a couple of them.¡±


    Long Chen immediately refused politely.


    The clerk immediately looked upon him as he was looking at a retard, then proceeded to ignore him.


    Long Chen was also inwardly depressed.


    ¡°Little Xi, if you made me waste these contribution points for nothing, just see if I don¡¯t thrash you once we get back!¡±


    ¡°Whatever! You useless fool, without me you would never figure out the miraculous use of this Initial Returning Fruit. This Initial Returning Fruit isn¡¯t a healing medicine to begin with, and is actually being used as a healing medicine. How amusing!¡±


    Ling Xi expressed indignation, seemingly in a hurry to show off her knowledge as she told Long Chen to leave immediately.


    ¡°This littless is so secretive, but she seems to be able to give me benefits every time. If I believe her, I can¡¯t go wrong!¡±


    Though Long Chen¡¯s words were harsh, he actually put a lot of trust in Ling Xi. Now that he had used up his contribution points, there was no point in lingering. On top of that, he was anxious to know the uses of the Initial Returning Fruit, Long Chen prepared to leave.


    Dawn had passed and more and more people gathered at the Treasure Exchange Pavilion. Long Chen was but another person in the sea of people.


    ¡°The Lingwu Family is very strict on status, and even within the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, there are different rankings for each floor. As I am only of the lowest status, I can only gain ess to the first level of the Treasure Exchange Pavilion. There are only initial Profound Grade and some middle-grade items. I¡¯m guessing that I can only get better items at the second and third level, but when will I be strong enough to go up there¡­¡±


    Just as Long Chen was about to leave the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, he suddenly sensed a heated re at him. He looked up quickly, and who else could it be but Feng Wutian, who had given him his identity badge?


    Seeing the grave young man, Long Chen thought back to all that Liu Lan had told him the night before. Just as expected, after seeing Long Chen, ice-cold bloodlust radiated from Feng Wutian.


    Feng Wutian was in robes that were a light orange. He looked poised and elegant, a faint orange glinting in his eyes. Besides Long Chen delicate, handsome looks, there were no areas in which he couldpare with Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Brother Wutian, Feng Lingye is right over there. I¡¯ll bring you¡­¡±


    Beside Feng Wutian, there was a young girl in a dull red skirt. She had a dainty appearance with her cherry-red lips, thin willowy waist, and tall stature which brought about lustful gazes from countless men. Even her sweet voice was difficult to resist.


    If she grew up a little more, Long Chen estimated she would turn out to be an exceptional jewel in the world just like Liu Lan. The more Long Chen looked at this girl, the more simr she seemed to be to Liu Lan.


    ¡°Brother Wutian?¡±


    Seeing Feng Wutian stop in her tracks, she was startled and looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction. Seeing he was just an ordinary outer faction member, she looked at Feng Wutian in confusion.


    ¡°Brother Wutian, what are you looking at him for?¡±


    Feng Wutian ignored him and coldly shared a gaze with Long Chen.


    Seeing Long Chen stealing Feng Wutian¡¯s attention, she immediately got angry and nced at Long Chen, expression icy.


    At this point, Feng Wutian had walked to two metres before Long Chen, and stopped. Bystanders were surprised, and discovering there seemed to be some enmity between the two, they immediately crowded around and gesticting at them.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that Green Sun Hall¡¯s Feng Wutian? Why is he bothering with that nameless fellow?¡±


    ¡°How would we know?¡±


    Seeing this fellow who was neither servile nor overbearing, Feng Wutian had an apathetic look on his face.


    Long Chen could sense that ice cold bloodthirstiness from him. The strength of a peak Human Dan Realm Practitioner was not simple, as was expected, and even though Long Chen had been able to kill Huang Feiyang who had that level of strength, there seemed to be no way to win against Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Is this Long Chen?¡±


    Indifferent words travelled from Feng Wutian¡¯s mouth.


    The youngdy beside him, however, had never heard the name ¡°Long Chen¡± before. However, seeing Feng Wutian so hostile towards Long Chen, she got in a bad mood and spoke, ¡°Young man, Brother Wutian¡¯s talking to you. Answer him quickly or I¡¯ll make your life difficult!¡±


    Having said this, she gazed at Feng Wutian trying to win favour from him, but seeing Feng Wutian as cold as ever, she seemed to have hit a wall. All she could do was vent her anger on Long Chen, ring wide-eyed at him with eyes flickering with killing intent!


    After hearing Long Chen¡¯s name, a Green Sun Hall cultivator suddenly remembered something and whispered to his friend, ¡°That Long Chen has the most potential out of the newest batch of Green Sun Hall recruits. A few days, he left with Huang Feiyang and Wen Ya toplete a mission. It¡¯s said that Huang Feiyang disappeared, and seeing that Feng Wutian is looking for Long Chen, could it be that the disappearance of Huang Feiyang has something to do with Long Chen?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s possible! I heard that from the selection to enter the family, Long Chen seems to have injured Huang Feiyang¡¯s little brother!¡±


    Yet another cultivator from Green Sun Hall spoke. Word quickly spread, and soon enough, everyone present knew about the existence of their newest member, Long Chen!


    ¡°When he entered the family, he was merely at the eighth level of the Dragon Pulse Realm. How can he actuallypare with someone who¡¯s already at the Human Dan Realm? That¡¯s just an unfounded rumour.¡±


    ¡°How else can you exin why Feng Wutian is looking for trouble with Long Chen?¡±


    ¡°Just watch and we¡¯ll find out.¡±

 Chapter 96 – Origin Reverting Fruit[1]

    ¡°I really have the worst luck. It¡¯s my first time to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion and the first thing I see is an intolerably smelly face¡­¡±


    Under the dazed expressions of bystanders, Long Chen pinched his nose as he turned his back on Feng Wutian and bypassed him, heading straight for the entrance.


    ¡°Stop in your tracks, you little thief!¡±


    Before Feng Wutian made any move, the girl behind him was already fuming mad and obstructed Long Chen¡¯s way. She red at Long Chen fiercely, expression icy as she spoke, ¡°What did you just say?¡±


    Upon seeing this girl, the two Green Sun Hall disciples couldn¡¯t help but shrink back.


    ¡°This Long Chen won¡¯t be able to live peacefully having provoked Liu Ling. The elder of our Green Sun Hall is Lord Liu Yuan, who is Liu Ling¡¯s father. She also has a sister who¡¯s an enforcer!¡±


    Long Chen, however knew nothing of this girl¡¯s identity. From his perspective, she was just another adoring fan of Feng Wutian, and even though was rather pretty, she could not hold a candle to Lingxi.


    Long Chen held no interest for her and said sarcastically, ¡°I¡¯m saying both of you are smelly. So? Are you going to bite me?¡±


    ¡°You!¡±


    Liu Ling was seething with rage. It was the first time that someone with such a lowly status had spoken to her in such a manner. She was so frustrated that she was on the verge of crying as she prepared tounch an attack at Long Chen!


    However, Feng Wutian made his move and held onto her arm and stood between her and Long Chen.


    Though he had been humiliated by Long Chen, Feng Wutian¡¯s face remained unchanged and he nced at Long Chen indifferently as he shook his head, ¡°I originally had some respect for you, but upon meeting you, it¡¯s a surprise that you¡¯re just a vile person who¡¯s all talk.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled, ¡°Right, I¡¯m a person that¡¯s all talk. So what? Are you going to make a move against me right here in the Treasure Exchange Pavilion?¡±


    Seeing him act in such an uncivilised manner, the desire to murder him sizzled in Liu Ling¡¯s heart. If not for her status as a disciple of the Lingwu Family and not being able to have private fights in public areas, she would have long since attacked!


    Long Chen was well aware of this fact, which was why he was acting so brazenly. However, this was his style and perhaps also a show meant for Liu Lan.


    Just thinking of Liu Lan caused Long Chen to feel suffocated in his annoyance. He could feel she was treating him like a pet, confining and raising him.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Feng Wutian was not so easily bullied and watched Long Chen. ¡°Since you¡¯re silver tongued, how about I pull out that tongue of yours and we¡¯ll go to the tform of Life and Death. Do you have the guts for that?¡±


    Upon hearing the words ¡°tform of Life and Death¡±, the bystanders immediately burst out in conversation.


    Though people of the Lingwu Family were not allowed to settle private disputes in public, if there really was some grievances and both parties agreed, they could go to the tform of Life and Death. There would be no need to argue further.


    ¡°Seems like this Feng Wutian is preparing to eliminate Long Chen. Will he agree?¡±


    ¡°Of course not, unless he¡¯s an impulsive blockhead. Battling against Feng Wutian on the tform of Life and Death is just looking for death!¡±


    Long Chen had heard of this ¡°tform of Life and Death¡± before. Feng Wutian¡¯s current gaze was like a sharp de piercing towards Long Chen!


    Long Chen sneered and went round Feng Wutian as if trying to provoke him, and then pulled a face at Liu Ling before leaving elegantly.


    ¡°Does his silence mean consent then?¡±


    That was the consensus amongst the public now.


    Long Chen¡¯s words were a little too much, and he had even insulted Liu Ling¡¯s knight in shining armour. For her, this was an unforgivable sin. While Long Chen was leaving, she eximed coldly, ¡°Remember. At dawn tomorrow,e to the tform of Life and Death. If you don¡¯t dare toe, then you, Long Chen, are the most cowardly person to ever exist! You¡¯re not a man!¡±


    At herst words, Long Chen turned back and snickered, ¡°If I¡¯m not a man, are you thinking of personally experiencing what I am for yourself? I wonder if that person beside you is willing to let you do so.¡±


    At Long Chen¡¯s words, Liu Ling¡¯s face immediately flushed a deep red, but in the blink of an eye, Long Chen was gone and she had nowhere to vent her anger.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, having a grudge against this type of person is just a waste of your strength. You don¡¯t have to get angry over a small character like him! I¡¯ll speak to Feng Lingye on your behalf.¡±


    In response to Long Chen¡¯s humiliating words, Liu Ling was thoroughly red and gritted her teeth, itching to murder Long Chen. Feng Wutian, however, had no reaction and looked as if the person Long Chen was aiming at was not him.


    ¡°Fine. Brother Wutian, do you think that scoundrel wille tomorrow?¡±


    Feng Wutian pondered over it for a moment and replied, ¡°With his arrogance and pride, it¡¯s likely that he¡¯lle. When that happens, I¡¯ll pull his tongue out in front of you.¡±


    ¡°Ugh, no, I don¡¯t want to see that. It¡¯s too disgusting! Let¡¯s just find Feng Lingye instead.¡±


    Though she was spewing fire inside, Liu Ling eventually returned to her coquettish ways with her crush pacifying her. She held onto Feng Wutian¡¯s arm as they entered the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, acting as if nothing had happened. Seeing that the show was over, the crowd dispersed while still whispering amongst themselves.


    ¡°Tomorrow at dawn? Seems like there¡¯ll be a show tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Do you think Long Chen will really go there? How¡¯s that possible? Is he an idiot? He doesn¡¯t seem to be a very courageous person. I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯ll just be a waste of time if you go tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°I think so too. Besides, with his current power, he doesn¡¯t even possess a tenth of Feng Wutian¡¯s strength. It would be better to endure and be ridiculed than to lose his own life right?¡±


    Feng Wutian¡¯s matter was just an interlude for Long Chen, but he still took it to heart.


    ¡°That Feng Wutian was humiliated so badly by me and did not even blink. He¡¯s a rather difficult character who he surpasses me in multiple areas. The Sky Martial Realmpetition is going to be difficult¡­¡±


    The trial for the Sky Martial Realmpetition was right around the corner and Long Chen was well aware hecked power. Hence, he quietened his mind and began to cultivate, not bothering to deal with his bet with Feng Wutian.


    Though Long Chen was impulsive at times, he wasn¡¯t brainless. It was his principle to pretend to be weak and then devour the strong.


    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re not actually thinking of going, are you?¡±


    ¡°Only stubborn idiots would go.¡±


    ¡°But¡­¡±


    Lingxi hovered before Long Chen, furrowing her brows as she gazed at Long Chen, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that you¡¯ll be looked down upon and viewed to be lesser than a man?¡±


    ¡°What do you know? You¡¯ll know whether I¡¯m a man once we get going in bed.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words were so direct that even Lingxi found it a little intolerable. She red at Long Chen and then spoke, ¡°Quick, quick, you idiot! Give me that Spirit Recovery Fruit. I¡¯m hungry!¡±


    Long Chen produced the Spirit Recovery Fruit, as well as the Origin Reverting Fruit that was worth about 200 Spirit Jades. Just seeing this Origin Reverting Fruit made his balls hurt.


    He had spent much effort to kill Proctor Shi and Huang Feiyang and obtained a total of over a hundred Spirit Jades. This stupid fruit alone cost 200 Spirit Jades.


    He waited until Lingxi got all excited andpletely refined the Spirit Recovery Fruit, before pushing the Origin Reverting Fruit to Lingxi. Impatiently, he asked, ¡°Tell me now. What¡¯s the use of this stupid fruit?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the stupid one here!¡±


    Lingxi rolled her eyes at him and her little bodynded on the fruit, pretending to be a stern little master as she exined, ¡°The Origin Reverting Fruit is no healing fruit, but a rare item that grew from the heavens and earth. Basically, it cannot be priced.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s that amazing?¡±


    Looking at this jet-ck fruit, it was a huge disparity from what Long Chen had expected.


    ¡°What is it actually? Spill everything, don¡¯t keep me waiting.¡±


    ¡°What are you so impatient for? Hasty people don¡¯t get to eat hot tofu.¡± [2]


    Now that Long Chen needed something from her, Lingxi wascent and deliberately slowed the speed at which she spoke.


    Long Chen was dazed for a moment as he looked at this little girl, and then clicked his tongue as heughed, ¡°If you¡¯re not going to let me eat hot tofu, then I¡¯m going to eat your soft tofu¡­¡±


    His words resulted in a healthy blush on Lingxi¡¯s face as she scolded him amidst smiles. She then shook the Origin Reverting Fruit, ¡°The flesh of this fruit is indeed useful in healing wounds, but the most important thing is its core. The Origin Reverting Fruit is a rare item, and since it¡¯s rare, it must have something special about it. Within the core of this fruit, there is a battle technique hidden inside!¡±


    ¡°A battle technique? A hidden battle technique in the core? Goodness, Xiao Xi, how is your imagination so wild?¡±


    Long Chen was tongue-tied and could do little but widen his eyes in shock.


    Seeing that Long Chen didn¡¯t believe her at all, Lingxi inwardly cursed at him, ¡°Just you wait, and you¡¯ll know how amazing I am!¡±


    At this thought, she spoke with a professional tone, ¡°Whether you believe it or not, I believe it. Remove the flesh of the Origin Reverting Fruit first.¡±


    ¡°Remove it?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s heart twitched at that. The flesh was worth 20 contribution points, and if Lingxi was wrong and there was nothing inside there¡­


    ¡°Quick!¡±


    ¡°Understood, your humble servant will do so now¡­¡±


    Splitting open the Origin Reverting Fruit, a surprisingly soft and white flesh was revealed as a sweet smell wafted through the area. Just as Lingxi instructed, Long Chen removed the flesh and left behind a ck core.


    This core was only the size of a thumb and looked to be nothing special. Long Chen was right about to ask how it was used, and Lingxi was already answering, ¡°Swallow the core and use your real qi to refine it as best as you can. After refining for a day and a night, you¡¯ll probably be able to refine it into powder form. Once that happens, all information about that battle technique will naturally appear in your body.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡±


    Long Chen attempted to pinch at the core in his hands, only to find it was as hard as steel. Only fools would bother trying to refine this piece of metal.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, are you sure?¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s brows furrowed as she gathered that Long Chen still did not believe her and said indifferently, ¡°Swallow it if you want to. It doesn¡¯t matter to me. After all, your 20 contribution points are now wasted!¡±


    Long Chen had no choice but to swallow that piece of metal into his stomach. It was extremely hard and made it quite ufortable on his stomach. Long Chen immediately circted real Qi and worked at wearing down this core!


    ¡°Then again, if it¡¯s too simple, everyone would know that the Origin Reverting Fruit is a great item and I wouldn¡¯t even have the chance to obtain it.¡±


    Making his decision, Long Chen then submerged his mind into his dantian and began to refine the steel-like core in his stomach.


    This core was abnormally hard and with Long Chen¡¯s current real Qi, at least a full day was required to fully refine it.


    With his great efforts, an entire day passed and on the second morning, the core had been refined and whittled down to the size of a pinky, using his real Qi. There were even cracks on the surface.


    At that moment, the cracks split with a loud bang!


    [1] The Initial Returning Fruit from the previous chapter has been changed to the ¡°Origin Reverting Fruit¡±, and will be referred as such in the following chapters.


    [2] One should be more patient.


    [3] Reference to previous note. ¡°Eating tofu¡± here means to take advantage of someone.

 Chapter 97 – Constitution Battle Technique

    After a full day and night, he finally seeded at refining the steel-like core.


    As the fruit corey within light red real Qi, the cracks slowly increased until it split open. Just like medicine, a dense force followed a specific track and began to travel through Long Chen¡¯s veins.


    ¡°Remember the pathways through which that force travels!¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s reminder made Long Chen recall that he had learned two skills, Blood Transmuted Qi and Dragon Soul Transformation, by remembering the pathway real Qi had passed through. Now, following what he had done in the past, he memorised the course of this new force that passed through his body.


    This forcepletely disappeared not long after, and Long Chen could feel that his body became extremely rxed. This probably had to do with the medicinal effects that the Origin Reverting Fruit also possessed.


    However, that new battle technique¡­


    Lingxi looked please as she sized up Long Chen, and spoke with pride, ¡°How are you going to thank me? This battle technique is otherwise known as the Constitution battle technique. It¡¯s extremely rare and I highly doubt you don¡¯t even have it in this ce!¡±


    ¡°Constitution battle technique?¡±


    Long Chen had not heard this name before.


    Seeing Long Chen in a daze, Lingxi started giggling.


    ¡°The Constitution battle technique, otherwise known as the healing technique, is extremely rare out of all the battle techniques avable. Out of a thousand battle techniques, there might be only one healing technique. Do you see how valuable it is?¡±


    Upon hearing this, Long Chen became excited, ¡°Xiao Xi, is it possible for this healing technique to rece spirit medicines such that I can heal myself? Even in battle?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not quite true. When you use this type of battle technique, it¡¯s best for you not to move your body. It¡¯s a very effective treatment that¡¯s free of charge, and you can use it anywhere and at any time. Even if it¡¯s not a Constitution battle technique that¡¯s of a high grade, it¡¯s still something that people would fight each other for!¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡±


    After obtaining this Constitution battle technique, his own life would pretty much be guaranteed. From the depths of his heart, Long Chen thanked Lingxi.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you¡¯re very capable! Haha, quick, tell this old man here the name of this battle technique and what grade it is!¡±


    ¡°The battle technique hidden within the Origin Reverting core is naturally called ¡°Origin Reversion¡±. It¡¯s probably a Profound middle-grade technique. In other words, even when you¡¯re in the Deity Dan Realm, you¡¯re still able to use this Constitution battle technique to heal yourself.¡± Lingxi rolled her eyes and answered grudgingly.


    ¡°I exchanged 20 contribution points for this Profound middle-grade technique. This is totally worth it. Xiao Xi, you really are my darling¡­¡±


    ¡°Cut your bullshit and get stronger soon. You¡¯d better give me the spirit healing medicine you promised me as soon as possible!¡±


    Lingxi cared little for his attempts at bootlicking, though she was quite happy within that she was of help to Long Chen.


    ¡°Try out this battle technique then. You¡¯ve acquired quite a few injuries in the past, and it¡¯s better to heal all of those in case there¡¯s some unknown sickness lying dormant in your body.¡±


    ¡°Understood!¡±


    In the room above his dwellings, Long Chen sat cross-legged with his eyes tightly shut, activating his Constitution battle technique- Origin Reversion.


    Faint white rays of light spread throughout his body, ripples circting throughout his body. Again and again, the force scanned through Long Chen¡¯s body and restored his injuries¡­


    ¡°This Origin Reversion technique is actually quite effective!¡±


    Long Chen was filled with excitement. While he hadn¡¯t known it before, testing it out now caused the force in Long Chen¡¯s body to appear once again, following a specific path and circting within his body. Under the nourishment given by the force, a few small wounds were quickly healed.


    ¡°With Origin Reversion, as long as I¡¯m not beaten to death, I still have a chance at turning the tables on my opponent!¡±


    At this thought and then recalling the uing Sky Martial Realm Competition, Long Chen was filled with confidence!


    ¡°Do you think I¡¯m so stupid that I¡¯d go to the tform of Life and Death with you at this time? The real contest has to be inside the mountains. Only that will be exciting enough!¡±


    While refining his usage of Origin Reversion, time passed slowly and Long Chen gradually became increasingly familiar with this technique. After half a day went by, the sounds of somebody knocking the door was heard, and Long Chen opened it to the sight of Gan Lin.


    While following Gan Lin to the Martial Arts Hall, Gan Lin stared at him with a strange look in his eyes, eventually breaking out into a sigh, ¡°Have you really reached the Deity Dan Realm? In such a short period of time, you continuously broke through two realms. I don¡¯t understand how you were able to do that.¡±


    Long Chen could only shake his head helplessly and smile, ¡°It¡¯s pure luck. If this happens again, I might not being back here.¡±


    Gan Lin could tell Long Chen was hinting at something. He naturally knew about Liu Lan wanting Long Chen to enter the Sky Martial Realm, and also how she had informed Feng Wutian about him killing Huang Feiyang.


    ¡°By the way, Long Chen, I heard you¡¯d made a promise with Feng Wutian to fight to the death on the tform of Life and Death, but you left him hanging?¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about? I didn¡¯t agree to anything.¡±


    Long Chen was startled.


    Gan Lin could only smile wryly, ¡°All the rumours out there are saying that you¡¯d agreed, but didn¡¯t have the guts to keep to your promise. Your reputation right now in the Green faction really isn¡¯t all that good¡­ Especially that Enforcer¡¯s sister! She¡¯s going around broadcasting that you¡¯re a cowardly man.¡±


    A deep crease appeared on Long Chen¡¯s forehead, but he stayed silent.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to go out there and refute those rumours?¡±


    ¡°Refute them? What¡¯s the point? I know my own strength the best, so why should I prove it to people who don¡¯t matter?¡±


    Long Chen was indifferent.


    A glint of admiration appeared in Gan Lin¡¯s gaze. He nodded, and then spoke, ¡°My purpose foring here today is to tell you about the Sky Martial Realmpetition between the outstanding young talents at the Human Dan Realm, within the Green faction.¡±


    ¡°Is it seven dayster? And the people participating are just the young talents at the Human Dan Realm in the Green faction?¡±


    Gan Lin nodded, giving a wry grin, ¡°This involves the cultivators who have potentials that are rated to be at least three stars. As for me, though I am at the Perfect Mastery Stage of the Human Dan Realm, I¡¯m much too old and do not have much potential. Hence, I don¡¯t have a chance to participate¡­¡±


    At this point, Gan Lin seemed a little bitter. After all, his fate was fixed at this point. Even if he wanted to go further, it was not possible.


    ¡°Within the Green faction, there are eight branches, or in this case, apetition between the eight branches. All of the disciples from the Green Sun Branch will be a team and be led by Feng Wutian. Under the five enforcers, there will be a total of ten people, with three people from the Green Willow Residence. One is you, the other being Feng Wutian and then Liu Ling.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s the leader? Doesn¡¯t that mean I have to listen to his orders?¡±


    At the very thought of Feng Wutian, Long Chen began to feel ufortable. After all, his opponent was very strong and they considered each other enemies. On top of that, if he had to listen to his orders, it would be simply terrible.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s ice-cold re, Gan Lin gave a wry smile, ¡°For the others, I¡¯d say they definitely have to listen to Feng Wutian. For you, however¡­ Actually, the reason for my visit today is to give you a suggestion. When the timees, don¡¯t mind the orders. After you enter the Sky Martial Realm, find a way to leave and hide. Feng Wutian would be too busy trying to contest over the Zenith Crystal Sword and won¡¯t have the time to cause you trouble.¡±


    What Long Chen wanted to know was whether he could work solo. Based on what Gan Lin had said, it was possible.


    Since it was possible to work alone, everything worked more smoothly. However, the real question was, would Feng Wutian allow him to do that?


    Gan Lin¡¯s suggestion wasn¡¯t entirely unreasonable. Long Chen was definitely no match for Feng Wutian, and it was not worthwhile to sh with him in the Sky Martial Realm. If there actually was a possibility of them fighting, it would have to wait until he caught up to Feng Wutian and then settle this matter, once and for all.


    ¡°Senior Brother Gan, is the Zenith Crystal Sword the reward for thepetition?¡±


    Gan Lin nodded, eyes revealing a heated look, ¡°This Zenith Crystal Sword is a Profound middle-grade spirit sword. Within the Zenith Crystal Sword, there is also a sword battle technique, known as the ¡°Way of the Zenith Crystal¡±. Even amongst Profound middle-grade treasures, the Zenith Crystal Sword and the ¡°Way of the Zenith Crystal¡± are exceptional and quite valuable. Even I want it too.¡±


    Long Chen silently sighed in admiration at the generosity of the Lingwu Family. Not only did they give out a spirit sword, they even gave out one that contained a battle technique.


    ¡°How do I obtain this Zenith Crystal Sword?¡±


    Gan Lin answered weakly, ¡°Before thepetition, the grand elders from the Green faction will keep the Zenith Crystal Sword in a cosmos pouch, and then hide it within the Sky Martial Realm. It will be in the stomach of a heart corroding demonic beast in the Human Dan Realm, of the fourth level of the Profound grade. Your task is to find the Scarlet ming Suan Ni, kill it, and then steal the Zenith Crystal Sword from its stomach. The person who obtains it first will be the victor of thispetition.¡±


    So that was how it went. Long Chen nodded.


    A demonic beast of the fourth level of the Profound grade was almost as strong as a cultivator who had just stepped into the Earth Dan Realm. However, with outstanding Human Dan disciples from eight branches surrounding and attacking it, this did not seem to be too impossible.


    Long Chen counted in his head. He had skipped a grade and killed off Huang Feiyang, and the evaluation of his potential had been rated to be just three stars. In other words, just within the Green faction, there were about a hundred people who had the same level of talent as him?


    The stress was immense¡­


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯d better not go out these few days. Stay in your residence and cultivate well. When the timees for the Sky Martial Competition, try to minimise contact with others. After blowing off that battle to the death, you would be ridiculed by anyone who sees you. With your personality, just an impulsive move from you would not mean well for you. If you trust your Senior Brother Gan, listen to me, alright?¡±


    Long Chen actually quite liked this Gan Lin. He was easy-going, not too arrogant, and able to answer clearly whenever Long Chen had any queries. Even now, he was still very worried for Long Chen.


    Long Chen was much toozy to leave his residence anyway, and nodded. ¡°Alright then, I won¡¯t go out.¡±


    However, at the mention of the battle to the death, Long Chen felt a little wronged. He hadn¡¯t even bothered to answer that day, and yet, he was now said to be too cowardly to take up the challenge.


    ¡°It¡¯s definitely the work of that crafty brat. Though she¡¯s young, she has quite a few tricks up her sleeves. For the Sky Martial Realm Competition, I¡¯ll have to be especially careful of her, especially since she has powerful people backing her!¡±


    Liu Lan and that expert from the Green Sun Branch, Elder Liu Yuan, were much too strong for Long Chen to handle.


    After giving more instructions, Gan Lin left. Not long after Long Chen returned, Gan Lin brought another person over, and after a look, Long Chen realised it was Ao Xue from the Daybreak Merchants Union.


    ¡°If the Daybreak Merchants Union is looking for me, could it have to be news about a Spirit Recovery Fruit?¡±


    For Long Chen, it was better to obtain more of these fruits.

 Chapter 98 – Thunder Flame Crystal

    Only after sending Ao Xue here did Gan Lin leave. Daybreak Merchants Union¡¯s wish to meet with Long Chen was something that he had the freedom to deal with himself, and it was not Gan Lin¡¯s ce to interfere.


    It was evident that Ao Xue was annoyed at being sent here. The more she looked at Long Chen¡¯s smiley face, the fury in her heart burnt stronger.


    ¡°Manager Zhao said that our Daybreak Merchants Union has acquired a new Spirit Recovery Fruit, and asks if you need it.¡±


    She gazed at Long Chen indifferently, speaking in a low voice.


    She had been working well in Daybreak Merchant Unions, but for some reason had been ordered toe all the way here just to tell Long Chen this information. This was a little difficult for her to stomach.


    She could not understand why Manager Zhao would go so far just for Long Chen.


    ¡°I need it, of course I need it!¡±


    Long Chen had always been a spoilt child, and he had no second thoughts about saving up the hundred or so Spirit Jades he had in his possession for future use.


    ¡°When I get stronger, obtaining these things isn¡¯t going to be a problem. It¡¯s better to buy more items while I can and get spirit medicines for my darling so that she can live longer.¡±


    While thinking all this, Long Chen noticed that Ao Xue was ring at him with all the hatred she could muster. He was a fearless person and paid no mind to her, arrogantly ordering her, ¡°Miss Ao Xue, show me the way.¡±


    Beforeing here, Manager Zhao had repeatedly reminded her not to be rude to Long Chen. Ao Xue was in no position to disregard the order, and no matter how difficult Long Chen got, she could only grit her teeth and endure it.


    ¡°Youngster, the moment I get an opportunity, I¡¯ll definitely skin you! You only obtained a few more Metal Hearts, and for some reason, Manager Zhao thinks you¡¯re a treasure! I¡¯ll definitely find a chance to prove that this Long Chen or whatever can¡¯t even bepared to me!¡±


    Heart full of hatred, Ao Xue was silent as she walked ahead, expression dark.


    ¡°This doll doesn¡¯t look half bad, though she¡¯s horribly gloomy. I guess my Lingxi is the prettiest after all¡­¡±


    Behind Ao Xue, Long Chen made gestures at her while speaking in a low voice. This was all to Lingxi¡¯s pleasure, and she giggled and could not stopughing.


    If Ao Xue heard Long Chen¡¯s words, she would definitely have tried to kill Long Chen right there and then.


    However, that gloomy look on Ao Xue really had Long Chen on his guard.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what Manager Zhao is trying to do. If it¡¯s just a Spirit Recovery Fruit, he could have just gotten Ao Xue to bring it to me rather than go to the trouble of bringing me here. Could he still be trying to rope me in?¡±


    Right behind Ao Xue, Long Chen admired her slim and delicate body and lilting steps as he pondered inwardly about how he should handle Manager Zhaoter.


    It was now noon, and there were fewer customers at Daybreak Merchants Union than usual. When Long Chen arrived, Manager Zhao was already there to give him a warm wee, hugging Long Chen and then patting his back, ¡°Long Chen, my boy, you¡¯re finally here!¡±


    ¡°To be so eager for no reason, he must have some evil intentions.¡±


    Within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi¡¯s curled her lips, annoyed at Manager Zhao¡¯s behaviour.


    Long Chen enthusiastically answered Manager Zhao, who then brought him into the VIP room. He gestured to Long Chen to have a seat, and let Ao Xue, whose expression was dark, to pour them some tea. He was all smiles while he gazed at Long Chen.


    ¡°I heard that you managed to kill an expert of the Human Dan Realm at the Initial Mastery Stage. Have you already reached the Human Dan Realm?¡±


    The moment she heard Manager Zhao get straight to the point and spout such earth-shattering words, Ao Xue poured the tea outside the cup in her surprise.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Manager, I was much too careless¡­¡±


    Manager Zhao wasn¡¯t in a good position to get angry in front of Long Chen and was about to send her outside, but Long Chen waved his hand and arrogantly nced at Ao Xue, ¡°Don¡¯t go yet. You dirtied this ce, so isn¡¯t it your duty to clean it up?¡±


    ¡°You-!¡±


    Ao Xue was right about to storm away, but Manager Zhao quickly spoke up, ¡°Ao Xue, clean it up.¡±


    Upon hearing Manager Zhao¡¯s calm voice, Ao Xue did not dare disobey and could only re at Long Chen, gritting her teeth and doing as asked.


    Seeing her trying to suppress how wronged she was feeling, Long Chen felt exceptionally smug.


    The previous time he hade to Daybreak Merchants Union, this person had had her nose in the air, which had made him quite annoyed. Now, he was finally able to make her feel the same way.


    After all this, Long Chen began to speak with Manager Zhao.


    ¡°Manager Zhao, it¡¯s true that I¡¯ve already reached the Deity Dan Realm. However, whatever you¡¯ve heard about me killing Huang Feiyang are just lies that someone spread to nder me. If I really did kill Senior Brother Huang, I wouldn¡¯t be free of injuries and be able to speak with you like this.¡±


    Manager Zhao himself was disbelieving of the news of Long Chen killing Huang Feiyang. After all, Long Chen had only just entered the Human Dan Realm.


    However, even if he had not killed Huang Feiyang, this did not affect how highly he regarded Long Chen. He took out arge wooden box with red silk fabric inside, within which were actually two Spirit Recovery Fruits.


    Seeing these two Spirit Recovery Fruits, Lingxi¡¯s eyes glistened, but Long Chen looked unhappy.


    ¡°Long Chen, my boy, here are the Spirit Recovery Fruits you wanted.¡±


    The Spirit Jades in Long Chen¡¯s cosmos pouch were hardly enough to pay for two Spirit Recovery Fruits, and he could only sigh in regret, ¡°Manager Zhao, with my finances right now, I can only buy a single Soul Diffusion Fruit, and definitely not two Spirit Recovery Fruits.¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so pitifully poor, Ao Xue at the side peeked at him in contempt. She had originally been a little afraid of him after hearing that he had killed an expert who was at the Initial Mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm, only to find out it was just an unfounded rumour.


    ¡°This stinking little kid only entered the Human Dan Realm. What¡¯s there to be proud of? In just a few days, I¡¯ll be able to enter the Human Dan Realm too. When that happens, let¡¯s see whether you or I will be stronger!¡±


    Manager Zhao¡¯s high regard of Long Chen made Ao Xue feel quite jealous.


    Upon seeing the suffering look on Long Chen¡¯s face, Manager Zhao burst out inughter, ¡°Didn¡¯t I say this before? We¡¯ve met twice already, so we can be considered friends. How about this, you can buy one from me, and I¡¯ll give you the other one for free?¡±


    Manager Zhao only admired Long Chen talents, and he was giving Long Chen way too many benefits.


    Long Chen was well aware that it was impossible for him to leave the Lingwu Family as of yet, so he contemted rejecting Manager Zhao¡¯s offer.


    Seeing Long Chen still hesitating, Manager Zhao¡¯s eyes twinkled and he stared straight at Long Chen, ¡°Let¡¯s do this instead. If you do something for me, I¡¯ll gift you these Spirit Recovery Fruits, and this won¡¯t be counted as a favour from me to you. How about it?¡±


    ¡°What can I do for you, Manager Zhao?¡±


    While saying this, Zhao Tianfang¡¯s expression was serious. Long Chen guessed that this was his real intentions for inviting him here. If not, he wouldn¡¯t go to the trouble of getting Ao Xue to guide him here.


    Zhao Tianfang gave a slight smile and instructed Ao Xue, who was at the side, to leave the room. After which, he took out a cosmos pouch and retrieved a crystal that was about the size of an infant¡¯s fist.


    Long Chen stared and found that this crystal waspletely blue. It was a rhombus with two sides that were impossibly sharp, and on the surface of this blue crystal, there were even traces of lightning flickering. Blue mes were also emitted from this crystal.


    ¡°Thunder me Crystal?¡±


    Within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi¡¯s excited voice could be heard.


    Long Chen was now physically very close to Manager Zhao, and after hearing Lingxi shout ¡®Thunder me Crystal¡¯, he did not dare say much. However, he could tell that this crystal was definitely something good.


    ¡°Do you know what this?¡± Manager Zhao questioned.


    Long Chen shook his head, ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°This item is called¡­ the Thunder me Crystal.¡±


    He spun the Thunder me Crystal in his palm, eyes fixed on it. His next words were full of emotion as he spoke, ¡°This Thunder me Crystal is a precious treasure of the heavens and the earth. It has no grade, and as long as one merges one¡¯s body with it, our body will then have the power to control thunder and fire. This power is used to temper the body and is considerably effective. Once you fuse with over ten Thunder me Crystals, you will then possess the Thunder me Physique!¡±


    Long Chen looked at the Thunder me Crystal in shock, ¡°I just have to fuse with it? Don¡¯t I need to cultivate at all?¡±


    Didn¡¯t this mean this item was even more convenient than Origin Reversion, which he had recently obtained?


    The Constitution battle technique, Origin Reversion, had been refined only after a whole day and night.


    ¡°Of course not,¡± Manager Zhao shook his head. ¡°The number of Thunder me Crystals you can fuse with depends on your talent and body. As long as you can fuse with over ten crystals, you will obtain the Thunder me Physique. Those who have the added bonus of power using thunder and mes are then called Thunder me Cultivators!¡±


    Thunder me Cultivator?


    That didn¡¯t sound half bad.


    Only now did Long Chene to the realisation that the world he knew was much too small. He had just obtained the Origin Reverting Fruit, and now there was this Thunder me Crystal, which were all incredible items.


    Zhao Tianfang had mentioned that he needed Long Chen to do something, and yet had taken out this Thunder me Crystal. What was it for?


    Long Chen suspiciously asked, ¡°Manager Zhao, what does this Thunder me Crystal have to do with me?¡±


    Now that they were back to the main question, Manager Zhaoughed and looked closely at Long Chen. ¡°To be honest, I really think highly of you. I would like to test your talent and have you try and see how many Thunder me Crystals you can fuse into your body!¡±


    Long Chen suddenly felt like he had struck gold, disbelief apparent on his face.


    This Manager Zhao had first said that he wanted Long Chen to do something for him. Long Chen had wondered how difficult it could be, but it turned out to be a huge opportunity for him.


    Manager Zhao merely wanted to rope Long Chen into Daybreak Merchants Union, and yet had repeatedly given Long Chen immense benefits. Long Chen hesitated and wondered if he should ept it, taking into ount the restraints that would be put on him if he agreed. Upon seeing him hesitating, Manager Zhao exined seriously, ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t think it¡¯ll be an easy task to fuse with the Thunder me Crystal. It has a violent force that will cause one¡¯s body to explode if one cannot take it. If your body can¡¯t withstand even one Thunder me Crystal, there is a high possibility of you dying. This is why it won¡¯t be an easy task for you to obtain these two Spirit Recovery Fruits. Think this through carefully.¡±


    While Long Chen was still pondering, Lingxi suddenly eximed, ¡°Quick, say yes.¡±


    Lingxi was experienced and was extremely clear about Long Chen¡¯s condition. Hence, upon hearing her say this, Long Chen hesitated no longer and nodded resolutely, ¡°One can only find treasures in dangerous ces. Since Manager Zhao thinks so highly of me, I definitely have to try this Thunder me Crystal no matter what!¡±

 Chapter 99 – Fusing!

    After receiving Long Chen¡¯s approval, Manager Zhaoughed heartily.


    ¡°Fusing with the Thunder me Crystal here is a little inconvenient. Long Chen, I¡¯ll bring you to a quiet ce!¡±


    Long Chen nodded, and then left through the backdoor of the Daybreak Merchants Union and came to a courtyard. Manager Zhao found an unbelievablyrge and quiet room for him.


    There wasn¡¯t anyone here, yet Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried that Manager Zhao would attempt to harm him in any way. On one hand, he was dirt poor and nobody would bother with him. Secondly, Lingxi had refined two Spirit Recovery Fruits, and had two more on the way. Lingxi would be able to exhibit her power, and there was little chance of him encountering any life-threatening danger.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to put five Thunder me Crystals here. I hope you can tell for yourself how many you can fuse with, and if you know you can¡¯t take on another, do not force yourself, understand?¡±


    Manager Zhao spoke and produced five Thunder me Crystals from his cosmos pouch and ced it on the floor of the room.


    Seeing these five beautiful crystals that were emitting traces of lightning and mes, Long Chen nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Old Zhao. I¡¯m not an idiot and have no reason to be so greedy that I wouldpromise my own life.¡±


    Manager Zhao gazed at Long Chen in admiration, ¡°Then I won¡¯t bother you in fusing with the crystals. I¡¯ll wait for you in the courtyard outside, so if anything happens, just shout for me!¡±


    After Manager Zhao had left, Long Chen couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and asked Lingxi, ¡°Little Xi, since you wanted me to fuse with this Thunder me Crystal, does it mean it¡¯s something amazing?¡±


    Ling Xi had had to stay quiet for a long time, and now that she could speak, she was very emotional, ¡°Of course it¡¯s amazing! It¡¯s better than amazing! Long Chen, you¡¯re a dragon cultivator and your body is a lot sturdier than the usual human. I estimate you should be stronger than a regr human, and after you fuse with a Thunder me Crystal, you¡¯ll probably know what your limits are.¡±


    Long Chen did not immediately try to fuse with the crystal, but picked it up and held it in his hand. The tiny streaks of lightning and mes gave off a numbing feeling when it swept by his skin.


    ¡°The good thing about the Thunder me Crystal is that the more powerful you are and the stronger your body is, the more crystals you can fuse with. There isn¡¯t a limit to the number of crystals you can fuse with either, and it¡¯s a lot stronger than the regr technique meant to refine the body!¡±


    Everything that Lingxi said definitely got Long Chen interested, but he was not impulsive by nature. He thought through it carefully, and asked, ¡°Little Xi, I¡¯m unrted to Manager Zhao, and yet he¡¯s getting me to try this Thunder me Crystal. Do you think he¡¯s trying to test my talent? If I fuse with a lot of crystals, he¡¯ll try his utmost to rope me into Daybreak Merchants Union, and perhaps even use the backing behind the organisation to convince me. If I reject, they might kill me¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Lingxi was startled and became a little frightened, before quickly tapping her little chest and sticking out her tongue, ¡°You¡¯re a dragon cultivator. The brand in your body naturally has the power to subdue the Thunder me Crystal. The number of crystals you can fuse with safely will be a lot more than a regr person, so what you said might actually happen.¡±


    There was all this good stuff in front of his eyes, but Long Chen did not dare fuse with all of them. Such tempting yet terrifying thoughts made Long Chen want to vomit blood.


    ¡°By the way!¡± Lingxi suddenly became excited, ¡°Hey, did you see that? He took out the five Thunder me Crystals from his cosmos pouch without batting an eyelid and actually gave it to you to test you. That implies that there¡¯s a lot of this stuff at the Daybreak Merchants Union, and they might even have a mining site for this crystal! You can just fuse with one or two, and after you leave, I can turn back and steal his cosmos pouch!¡±


    Long Chen was bbergasted by Lingxi¡¯s brazen thoughts, and quickly answered, ¡°Don¡¯t do this. I finally managed to get four Spirit Recovery Fruits and have been serving you well. If youe back to me half-dead, how am I supposed to continue living?¡±


    Lingxi pouted, ¡°You idiot, am I so useless in your heart? I have the strength from four Spirit Recovery Fruits. Stealing the cosmos pouch of someone at the initial mastery stage of the Earth Dan Realm is just child¡¯s y to me.¡±


    Lingxi, who was usually cowardly, was now brimming with confidence. At the thought that the Thunder me Crystal could make him much stronger, Long Chen¡¯s resolve began to waver and he suspiciously asked, ¡°Little Xi, are you sure you¡¯re able to steal that cosmos pouch without anyone noticing?¡±


    Lingxi red at him angrily, ¡°Of course! Though I¡¯ve never cultivated that seriously before, I¡¯m number one when ites to this kind of thing! Even my father couldn¡¯t stop praising me. How dare an idiot like you belittle me!¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s words, Long Chen felt a lot more relieved. Without further ado, he looked at the five Thunder me Crystals on the ground and spoke, ¡°There¡¯s not much time left. I¡¯ll try this Thunder me Crystal and see what¡¯s so special about it!¡±


    The five crystals on the ground spread out, and Long Chen picked up one of them, ced it in his palm, and then sat cross-legged. He sucked in a deep breath, and nced at the crystal.


    ¡°Manager Zhao said that as long as I manipte real Qi and guide the Thunder me Crystal into my body, I can fuse with it!¡±


    At this thought, light red real Qi spilled over from Long Chen¡¯s palm and twisted around, eventually surrounding the Thunder me Crystal. The crystal, which had been lying dormant all this while, suddenly seemed to awaken, and ferociously turned into blue ming electric currents, and from Long Chen¡¯s palm, entered Long Chen¡¯s body!


    ¡°This Thunder me Crystal is not simple at all!¡±


    This ming electric current entered Long Chen¡¯s body and rapidly extended to every corner. Long Chen¡¯s body was bathed in the liquid-form of the electric current that was still ming. Streams of blue light overflowed from his body, and Long Chen could gradually feel the numbing pain beginning to appear at every part of his body.


    It was first a numbing feeling that attacked Long Chen in waves. Next was the pain, pulsing and even more intense than before, and it turned into acute pain at every part of his body. Whether it was his blood, internal organs, muscles, bones or flesh, he could feel himself burning and being ripped apart from the inside by the electric currents and mes.


    How could this feeling not cause one to fall apart?


    It could be seen that blue streaks of lightning and mes had surfaced on Long Chen¡¯s body, flowing all over his body rapidly. In his dull red eyeballs, one could even see mes and electric currents contained within, and electricity suddenly surged up and shot out!


    ¡°Under the tempering of the lightning and the burning of mes, my body is gradually bing stronger despite the unbearable pain I¡¯m feeling. This is even more terrifying than when I had been trying to cultivate in the Celestial Core Technique!¡±


    ¡°No wonder Little Xi made me fuse with it. So this Thunder me Crystal is actually something so great!¡±


    The effects from a Thunder me Crystal finally passed in about an hour. Long Chen heaved a sigh and exercised his limbs, and discovered that his body¡¯s sturdiness had increased. Within his real Qi, there was a blue force hidden within. With the help from the lightning and mes, this blue force had be extremely powerful!


    ¡°Manager Zhao said that after fusing with the Thunder me Crystal, the power of fire and lightning in my real Qi will vary in its nature. He wasn¡¯t lying!¡±


    However,pared to the light red real Qi, this blue force was just too meagre. This thread of blue had not even entered the Human Dan Realm, and could only exist within the blood-red mist at the Human Dan Realm.


    ¡°Like she said, one Thunder me Crystal is not my limit!¡±


    Though that feeling just now had been terrifying, he would need to experience a lot of pain and suffering if he wanted to be stronger. Long Chen had long sincee to terms with this fact.


    ¡°How do you feel?¡±


    After Long Chen had fused with the first Thunder me Crystal, Lingxi enquired nervously.


    Long Chen grinned, ¡°Good, very good! Little Xi, when I get back, I¡¯ll reward you handsomely. You¡¯re just too amazing!¡±


    He turned his gaze to the other crystals andughed, ¡°I¡¯ll leave the four crystals here. Little Xi, I¡¯ll leave the rest to you. Just remember, the crystals are not as important as your safety. Don¡¯t strain yourself too much!¡±


    Hearing Long Chen caring for her so much, Ling Xi felt warmth in her heart, but his next words caused her expression to darken.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t seed, I¡¯ll have to do a lot to deal with it and be exhausted. You definitely can¡¯t let that happen.¡±


    ¡°You scoundrel, you huge scoundrel!¡±


    Thinking of Long Chen¡¯s repulsive face, Ling Xi grinded her teeth. At this pointed, Long Chen had already decided to leave the room to find Manager Zhao.


    Upon opening the door, he could see Manager Zhao in a pavilion far away. Long Chen quickly walked over, during which Manager Zhao saw him as well. Seeing that he hade out in less than an hour, Manager Zhao had a bad feeling about this.


    ¡°How did it go, Long Chen? How many did you fuse with?¡±


    With a helpless look in his eyes, he answered, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being so useless. I only managed to fuse with one.¡±


    ¡°One?¡±


    Manager Zhao couldn¡¯t quite believe it. He knew that Long Chen¡¯s physical body was very sturdy, and based on his estimations, it was entirely possible for him to fuse with two or even three, but Long Chen had only fused with one. Manager Zhao couldn¡¯t help but feel disappointed.


    He had originally thought that Long Chen was a rare talent, and if he managed to steal him away from the Lingwu Family and Long Chen managed to prove himself in the future, he would also reap benefits. It looked like he had gone through all this trouble for nothing, and Manager Zhao was a little discouraged as he waved at Long Chen impatiently, ¡°In that case, you should leave.¡±


    From the enthusiasm at the beginning till the cold indifference after finding out he had not met his expectations, Long Chen truly admired Manager Zhao¡¯s abilities in changing his facial expressions so quickly.


    This was not a bad reaction. He had initially felt guilty about stealing Thunder me Crystals from Manager Zhao, as he had treated him well and viewed him highly. Now, however, there was nothing holding him back.


    ¡°In that case, I shall take my leave!¡±


    Long Chen gave a sarcastic smile and calmly left.


    ¡°There¡¯s probably a lot of Thunder me Crystals in the Daybreak Merchants Union. It wouldn¡¯t be too mean of me if I let Lingxi steal a few¡­¡±

 Chapter 100 – Thunder Flame Physique

    After sending Long Chen to the Daybreak Merchants Union, Zhao Tianfang got busy with his own work. Upon seeing the cold look in his eyes, Ao Xueughed, expecting this result.


    ¡°Please leave!¡±


    He looked ready to chase Long Chen out.


    Reading Zhao Tianfang¡¯s face, she knew that Long Chen had, at most, fused with one Thunder me Crystal. She herself could also fuse with one, and if she tried a little harder, she might even be able to do two!


    This meant that the enthusiasm he had towards Long Chen was all for nothing.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t he just trash disguising himself to be a talent? Howughable!¡± Behind Long Chen, Ao Xue giggled to herself.


    ¡°If she knew that the number you can fuse with is far more than this, I wonder what kind of expression she¡¯ll have.¡±


    ¡°Little Xi, let¡¯s take a stroll outside. It¡¯s already dusk, so you should wait till night falls before you act. Otherwise, it¡¯ll be much too suspicious if he loses something the moment we leave.¡±


    As for Ao Xue, Long Chen merelyughed.


    He didn¡¯t have the energy to be petty with people like this. Under Ao Xue¡¯s watchful gaze, Long Chen walked out of Daybreak Merchants Union and strolled through a few streets. He found a quiet tea house and and sampled some tea, taking the time to try out his body.


    ¡°Fusing with just ten Thunder me Crystals can model my body into the Thunder me Physique, and turn me into a Thunder me cultivator?¡±


    Long Chen could feel a numbing force flowing through his body.


    Thunder, lightning and mes were some of the most violent powers in the heavens and earth.


    ¡°Exactly. Also, there are different grades in the Thunder me Physique as well. If you manage to fuse with ten Thunder me Crystals, you¡¯ll have a rank 1 Thunder me Physique. Next up is rank 2, andstly, rank 3! I¡¯m not exactly sure how many Thunder me Crystals you¡¯ll need, but it¡¯s definitely not less than ten!¡±


    ¡°What should I do to fuse with even more crystals?¡± Long Chen asked, excited.


    ¡°Firstly, the fusing with Thunder me Crystals is rted to your body. Fundamentally, you are a dragon cultivator, and most of the power in your real Qi is that of the dragon. Your body is almost equal to the fledgling stage of a dragon, and in terms of your physique, you are definitely capable of overwhelming the Thunder me Crystals.¡±


    ¡°The other thing has to do with your real Qi. The more real Qi you have, the dragon aura in the real Qi in your body- let¡¯s call it Dragon Soul Qi- will be even more powerful. The number of crystals, thunder, as well as mes in the crystal will be able to be controlled by you. As long as you ensure that the Dragon Soul Qi in your body is stronger than the power of thunder and mes, all will be fine.¡±


    ¡°After saying all these, we still don¡¯t know if we¡¯re able to obtain those Thunder me Crystals.¡± At this thought, Long Chen couldn¡¯t help butugh.


    Not only could these crystals refine the body, they could also increase the power of thunder and mes in one¡¯s real Qi. This was extremely tempting for Long Chen.


    In the beginning when he had used Dragon Soul Transformation, the sturdiness of his body had rapidly increased, to the point that it could be said to be a high-grade Huang ranking physique, a level that he had yet to reach.


    This was just the effects from activating a thousandth of the essence that he had inherited. Seeing his opponents bing increasingly stronger as they got ahold of powerful battle techniques, such as those that could refine the body, Long Chen was made aware of how much he wascking.


    It would take an extended period of time to be able to make use of that inherited essence. Hence, Long Chen set himself a goal, focusing his attention on these Thunder me Crystals.


    ¡°You bastard, you still don¡¯t believe in me, do you? Just stay hereter. I¡¯ll do it myself, and I guarantee I¡¯ll do it perfectly.¡±


    Within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi was even more annoyed that Long Chen did not believe her words.


    If not for the fact that it was not yet time, she would have rushed to the Daybreak Merchants Union right away.


    ¡°You won¡¯t be able to believe what I¡¯m capable of. No matter what you say, I¡¯ll definitely obtain those Thunder me Crystals for you!¡±


    Lingxi was suddenly extremely resolute,pletely unlike herself. However, Long Chen knew what this little girl was thinking.


    For this period of time, Long Chen had treated her extremely well. The moment he had a little wealth, he would exchange it for spirit medicine. Even when his family was facing a huge crisis, Long Chen had even entered the Deste Beast Domain, risking his life to find Dream Spirit Grass for her. This made Lingxi extremely touched.


    Hence, she wanted to do something for him.


    ¡°With this girl, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll even need to fool around anymore¡­¡±


    Long Chen began to think wickedly, and immediately shook his head. On one hand, his rtionship with Lingxi had not reached that stage, and Lingxi¡¯s background was still extremely mysterious. Long Chen sometimes felt like he and Lingxi were from two different worlds, and on the other hand¡­


    ¡°A Dragon young master like me has always flitted across the flowers, with no leaves sticking to my body. How could I die by hanging on a tree, and what¡¯s more, it¡¯s a tree that still hasn¡¯t fully grown¡­¡±


    Some things in the world were just that mysterious. They would be unexpected, but yet somehow entirely logical.


    ¡°However, Lingxi is just too beautiful. In just a few years, her feminine vour wille out, and I can only do little but fall before her knees in awe of her beauty. If a goddess like her were to fall to any beast, it would simply be a tragedy!¡±


    At the thought that Lingxi would get together with other men in the future, Long Chen had the urge to die.


    ¡°Could this be¡­ the legendary thing called ¡®love¡¯?¡± Long Chen could not help butugh.


    In this period of time, Lingxi and he had experienced a lot. It felt like they had gone through thick and thin amidstughter and anger. Every time Long Chen recalled this, his lips would curve up in a grin.


    ¡°Sister Yu from the Emerald Jade Chambers once said that love at first sight is just bullshit. True love is when two people have a journey together, cry together,ugh together, and thus develop feelings. At this rate, might we be in this situation soon?¡±


    Long Chen was exceptionally confused by this. From young, he had had fantasies of taking multiple wives and concubines, and this situation was nothing like what he had wanted.


    ¡°Hey, stupid! You¡¯re grinning so disgustingly. What in the world are you thinking about?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so deep in thought all of a sudden with his expression showing such ecstasy, Lingxi knitted her brows and questioned.


    Long Chen simplyughed in embarrassment. It had already gotten dark, and Long Chen nced in the direction of the Daybreak Merchants Union, suddenly beaming, ¡°Little Xi, did you notice that the name ¡®Daybreak Merchants Union¡¯¡­¡±


    ¡°Is there anything strange about it?¡±


    Long Chen lightly smiled, ¡°Daybreak (Chen Xi), is made up of my ¡®Chen¡¯ and your ¡®Xi¡¯. Together, won¡¯t we be Chen Xi?¡±


    Feeling Long Chen¡¯s passionate gaze on her, Lingxi turned bright red, flustered, and made threatening gestures as she scolded, ¡°If you dare take advantage of me, just see if I smack your bottom!¡±


    Though this was admonishment, there was still sweetness and gentleness in her tone.


    Suddenly realising what she was doing, Lingxi was stunned for a moment and then changed the topic, ¡°It¡¯s about time, isn¡¯t it? I want to leave now.¡±


    Long Chen had no desire to stop her. If she did not disy her usefulness, she might cause some trouble for him in the future.


    The danger of this mission was rtively low, so Long Chen agreed to it.


    ¡°Remember, your safety is more important than anything else.¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    The little Lingxi Sword slid out from the side of Long Chen¡¯s ear, and then disappeared into the night.


    Without the Lingxi Sword by his ear, Long Chen felt a little empty and unsettled.


    When Lingxi was not by his side, he suddenly felt extremely lonely.


    ¡°Am I actually afraid of loneliness?¡±


    It was difficult to imagine how he would have survived this journey, and how he would fare in the future if Lingxi was not around.


    ¡°¡®Chen Xi¡¯ talks about the beginning of a day. We¡¯re always going to be like the crisp morning, signifying a new life that will eternally exist!¡±


    At this point, Long Chen closed his eyes, ced his hands on the armrest of the chair he was sitting on and leant back, feeling his own heartbeat.


    Long Chen listened closely, finding that it was very loud.


    This sound was extremely loud in his ears. There was a vague sense of the omnipresence of a crimson, godlike dragon in his heart, roaring and snarling.


    ¡°The Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon¡­ Is my fate only blood and ughter?¡±


    Time slowly passed, and in a little more than a quarter of an hour, Long Chen¡¯s eyes opened. At this moment, a cosmos pouch fell into his palm, and a satisfying feeling reappeared by his ear.


    ¡°You idiot, get back to Lingwu City as soon as you can!¡±


    Without a word, Long Chen strode forward and headed for Lingwu City.


    Noticing that there was no sign of weariness in Lingxi¡¯s voice, Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief. While rushing back, Long Chen asked worriedly, ¡°How was it? Did you get hurt?¡±


    ¡°How¡¯s that possible?¡± Lingxi was rather proud of herself, ¡°That stinking guy got his cosmos pouch stolen even before he noticed me. I even helped you teach that Ao Xue a lesson! Who told her to be so hateful!¡±


    Upon hearing that Lingxi had done something mischievous, Long Chen was rather interested, ¡°What did you do to her?¡±


    Being asked this, Lingxi turned red and became a little embarrassed. The feeling of being a bad child was amazing, though it did not fit with her style.


    ¡°I¡­ I cut her hair¡­¡±


    ¡°Pu!¡±


    Long Chen was rather unsure about this, but he couldn¡¯t help but feel that this little girl was simply too adorable.


    ¡°Oh right, there¡¯s something else. While stealing this cosmos pouch, I exchanged some moves with Manager Zhao. I also used a secret method to conceal myself, which consumed quite a bit of energy. Out of the medicinal power from the four Spirit Recovery Fruits, I¡¯ve used up about two¡­¡±


    Long Chen was quite speechless at this spoilt child, but he waved his arms and spoke grandly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry and consume as much as you like. Once it¡¯s not enough, I can go steal more!¡±


    ¡°Yay!¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Once we¡¯re back, let¡¯s see how many Thunder me Crystals you obtained!¡±

 Chapter 101 – Large Harvest!

    After entering the Human Dan Realm, Long Chen was promoted from being a fourth grade disciple to a third grade disciple. From his previous residence in the area where the fourth grade disciples lived, he had now moved to where the third grade disciples were.


    The whole time he was in the Lingwu Family, he had spent most of his time cultivating or going on excursions, rarely socializing with others. Hence, he did not recognise most of the third grade disciples.


    His new residence was bigger than the previous one, and there was even an independent courtyard. With birdsong and fragrant flowers, how could it not be beautiful?


    After returning, Long Chen quickly entered the basement and sat in a lotus position, tightly holding the cosmos pouch that Lingxi had stolen.


    ¡°Quick, look at what¡¯s inside! I remember this is the pouch from which he took out the Thunder me Crystals! That fellow also has another cosmos pouch that I wasn¡¯t able to obtain. I imagine it¡¯s where all his other valuables are!¡±


    The moment Long Chen opened the cosmos pouch, a very concentrated sense of the power of lightning and mes attacked him. Though all this power was contained within the Thunder me Crystals, it was already quite formidable.


    He spread out the Thunder me Crystals, and excitement appeared in Long Chen and Lingxi¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°There are 47 of them here!¡±


    After counting them, Lingxi was extremely excited.


    Long Chen knew that with 10 Thunder me Crystals, he would be able to attain the Thunder me Physique and be a Thunder me cultivator! These 47 crystals were definitely enough for his use.


    ¡°I think the headquarters of the Daybreak Merchants Union gave him 50 crystals. He gave me one to fuse with, and two to other people, leaving him with 47.¡±


    After leaving the quiet room in the Daybreak Merchants Union, Long Chen had returned the remaining four crystals to Zhao Tianfang.


    However, it was now back in his possession.


    If Zhao Tianfang knew the truth of what had happened, he would definitely be coughing blood.


    ¡°Through the steel hearts, he found out how durable my body is and that my potential was out of the ordinary. He wanted to use the Thunder me Crystals to test me and so, treated me very well. If the results showed that I was suited to the Thunder me Crystals, he would probably make use of the crystals and get me to join the Daybreak Merchants Union¡­¡±


    Long Chen had seen through Zhao Tianfang¡¯s intentions, and no longer had any inhibitions towards him.


    ¡°Long Chen, there are only a few days left to the Sky Martial Realm Competition. You¡¯d better fuse with the crystals and see what your limit is!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. In the individual rooms of the Lingwu Family, doors could only be opened with jade identity cards, so there was a certain level of privacy. In the basement where he could cultivate, Long Chen kept the Thunder me Crystals and left one in his hands.


    ¡°When I fused with one crystal, I could endure it despite it being very ufortable. It shouldn¡¯t be a problem for me to fuse with another one.¡±


    With a deep breath, Long Chen immediately fused with the crystal. At that moment, the pain simr to what he had experienced the previous time rushed into his body. During this entire process, Long Chen was in pain, yet still happy.


    The attack of the second Thunder me Crystal was even more powerful than before. It was basically twice the power of the first crystal, and with the destructive force of lightning and fire, Long Chen could do little but grit his teeth in pain.


    Lingxi had initially been a little worried, but upon seeing that Long Chen could handle it, she joyfully danced in circles and giggled at the suffering look on his face.


    At this point, the power of lightning and fire was circting throughout and destroying his body. At the same time, it was also reconstructing his body, and with every step, his body became even more solid and durable.


    Long Chen had spent less than an hour fusing with the first Thunder me Crystal. The second crystal was essentially the same as the first, but the Thunder me Crystal was a strange thing where the difficulty in fusing with the second was more than two times more challenging than the first.


    If he fused with three crystals, it might even be twice as difficult as the second crystal.


    The difficulty multiplied every time he fused with another crystal. One could imagine the difficulty that came with fusing with numerous Thunder me Crystals.


    The second crystal took Long Chen a total of around two hours. By then, it was already deep into the night.


    Long Chen stood up and happily stretched his body.


    ¡°Compared to before, the strength of my body has increased a lot, as expected. Of course, the power of lightning and mes in the real Qi in my dantian has also increased.¡±


    ¡°How is it? Want to try another one?¡± Lingxi waited by Long Chen¡¯s side and asked in anticipation.


    She could sense that this was not Long Chen¡¯s limit.


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    All the pain from fusing with the Thunder me Crystal vanished after the process was sessful. All that was left was a numb feeling in his muscles.


    Though this feeling made Long Chen a little worried, this was not enough to scare him.


    The third Thunder me Crystal was absorbed into his body. As expected, the difficulty in fusing had increased by a lot.


    This time, Long Chen took about four hours to finish fusing with the third crystal.


    Whether it was his physical body or real Qi, both had increased in power by a certain amount. However, the pain this time was much more terrifying than before. Long Chen had gritted his teeth and, after much difficulty, pulled through and endured the process of fusing with this crystal. This experience was rather scary.


    ¡°You¡¯ve managed to fuse with three, which is already past what Manager Zhao expected you to be able to do. Long Chen, let¡¯s leave it at this. It looks like you can¡¯t endure for much longer.¡±


    Seeing Long Chen catching his breath, Lingxi was rather worried.


    ¡°That was just three Thunder me Crystals! It¡¯s not my limit yet. There are still about four hours till daybreak. I want to try again!¡±


    Long Chen was stubborn and his gaze showed his resolution. Lingxi could not persuade him against this and could only let him be. In addition, though the fusion with the third crystal was quite terrifying, Long Chen evidently still had the strength to challenge another one.


    He began the fusion with the fourth Thunder me Crystal immediately. Unsurprisingly, this was even more terrifying than the third crystal. Long Chen felt as if there were swords hidden in his body, constantly being swung around and shing his body to pieces.


    The pain this time made Long Chen turn green. Lingxi noted the electricity and mes emitted out of his body, his pained expression and tightly clenched fists, and gazed at Long Chen nervously.


    Time flew by. Long Chen endured the intense pain and, as expected, it was difficult to make the power of the crystal submit to him. The force from the crystal entered Long Chen¡¯s body, and it was as if the force wasbining with the power from the previous three crystals and fighting against Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Soul Qi.


    ¡°Struggle! Persevere! Only then will I have a chance at seeding!¡±


    Within Long Chen, his conviction was as solid as ever.


    The Yang family needed him to save them, and Lingxi, too, needed him to save her. He knew he needed to be stronger for them.


    ¡°Does this tiny Thunder me Crystal think it can stump me, Long Chen?¡±


    To make himself stronger, Long Chen was going to throw caution to the wind. For a regr person, this pain could tear his heart and wreak his lungs, but Long Chen gritted his teeth, steeled his expression and pressed on!


    ¡°At this rate, I can only fuse with a maximum of four Thunder me Crystals. This seems to be quite a distance from the Thunder me Physique, and bing a Thunder me cultivator¡­¡±


    Long Chen was dissatisfied, but what he did not know was that in the Daybreak Merchants Union, the number of young cultivators who had just entered the Human Dan Realm and were able to fuse with four Thunder me Crystals, was few and far between.


    Those were all the top geniuses of the Yuan Ling City!


    ¡°By the way, Long Chen, how did we forget about Dragon Soul Transformation? You¡¯re a true dragon cultivator only when you¡¯re in that form.¡± Lingxi¡¯s voice sounded.


    Only after Lingxi brought up this, did Long Chen remember this. There were many brands rted to dragons on his body while he was in his Dragon Soul Transformation form. The real Qi in his body increased by 4 to 10 times the usual! This meant that he could take advantage of this fact and fuse with the Thunder me Crystals in that form!


    At this thought, Long Chen brightened up and in an instant,pleted the transformation. Perfect, orderly red scales and sharp bony spikes surfaced upon his skin.


    In a moment, Long Chen had transformed into a very shy appearance.


    After transforming, Long Chen could feel as if multiple dragon auras were surrounding himself.


    The suffering that the fourth Thunder me Crystal was giving him actually vanished after his transformation!


    Long Chen realised that whether it was his Dragon Soul Qi or current dragon body, theypletely overpowered the crystal!


    The power of the fourth Thunder me Crystal was nothing at all, and Long Chen easily absorbed it into his body, causing an enormous change in his body.


    ¡°The rate of fusion seems to be a lot faster than when I fused with the first crystal?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned at this Dragon Soul Transformation.


    After turning into this form, even the number of Thunder me Crystals he could fuse with had multiplied. This could be said to be opposing the heavens!


    ¡°It¡¯s effective!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had taken just a bit of time to fuse with the crystal that he had already spent four hours trying to absorb, Lingxi was astonished by the mysteriousness and strength of dragon cultivators.


    ¡°Hey, how many Thunder me Crystals do you think you can fuse with in this form?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll know if I continue trying!¡±


    Long Chenughed brightly. He had first thought he would not be able to fuse with the fifth crystal, but the fact was that he had already done it. From the looks of it, it had been effortless.


    ¡°This freak¡­¡±


    Seeing Long Chen enjoying himself, Lingxi was a little speechless. Her beautiful eyes were fixed on Long Chen, pride obvious in her expression.


    After all, without Lingxi, Long Chen would have never been able to obtain so many Thunder me Crystals.


    In less than an hour, he fused with the fifth crystal. Long Chen opened his eyes, looking satisfied.


    ¡°The fifth Thunder me Crystal seemed to be even easier than fusing with the first. Girl, just see how I¡¯ll do tonight. I promise I¡¯ll be so cool and charming that you wouldn¡¯t know what to do with yourself!¡±


    ¡°Tsk, by the time you get to the seventh or eighth, the difficulty will be a hundred times that of the first. How do you think you¡¯re going to deal with that? Can you stay so arrogant?¡±

 Chapter 102 – Liu Yuan

    It was now dawn. There were six more days till the Sky Martial Realm Competition.


    During this time, most people would be cultivating intensely in their rooms, so nobody would bother with disturbing Long Chen.


    ¡°Though the sixth Thunder me Crystal did not really cause me much pain, it actually took four hours topletely fuse into my body!¡±


    Long Chen thought to himself as he tested out his body, feeling the tyrannical strength within.


    ¡°One can imagine that if I did not have my Dragon Soul Transformation, I would¡¯ve long been dead when I tried to fuse with the sixth crystal. The more crystals I fuse with, the higher the difficulty in fusion. I wonder what is the limit for my dragon body?¡±


    In thest few days, Long Chen tried his hand at these crystals.


    The Sky Martial Realm Competition was imminent, and it was no use for him to cultivate. It was much better to use these Thunder me Crystals and increase the sturdiness of his body and strength of his real Qi.


    ¡°With my current strength, it¡¯s alright for me to deal with opponents who are at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm. If it¡¯s someone at the perfect mastery stage, then there¡¯s definitely no chance for me. It¡¯s even more impossible for me to deal with Feng Wutian, who has all sorts of amazing battle techniques and a great bloodline.¡±


    The peak of the Human Dan realm, which was the perfect mastery stage, was a small distance away from the Earth Dan Realm. If he had many resources, it was not a problem for him to have a battle powerparable to someone at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm.


    ¡°With your current strength, you¡¯ll be killed in one strike if he really attacks you.¡± Lingxi furrowed her brows and eximed.


    At the thought of Feng Wutian, Long Chen wrinkled his brows. He knew that the key to seeding at the Sky Martial Realm Competitiony with the seventh Thunder me Crystal he now held in his hands.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care anymore! Whatever Tian his name is, when the timees, I¡¯m going to bash him up with one strike!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so agitated, Lingxi shook her head inside. The difference between him and Feng Wutian wasn¡¯t something that could bepensated with a little emotional outburst from Long Chen.


    However, she couldn¡¯t bear to emphasise this gap to him.


    The fusion with the seventh Thunder me Crystal had caused Long Chen, who had undergone the Dragon Soul Transformation, to feel some stress. However, this was not as bad as when he had fused with the fourth crystal. In terms of the amount of time spent, however, it took much longer for this process toplete.


    By the time Long Chen was done, half the day was already gone, and only then was the seventh crystal finally absorbed into his body!


    ¡°Next is the eighth crystal!¡±


    The day of the Sky Martial Realmpetition was approaching. Long Chen did not dare neglect his training. When it came to fusing with the eighth Thunder me Crystal, the suffering he had to go through was alreadyparable to when he had fused with the fourth crystal.


    However, at the thought of the pressure that Feng Wutian ced on him, Long Chen knew he definitely could not back down at this point!


    ¡°Only people who can endure will be able to seed. If I can¡¯t even get through this, then I am nothing!¡±


    He gritted his teeth, and Long Chen put in so much effort that Lingxi¡¯s voice was beginning to get hoarse in her worry.


    Seeing this diligent and intelligent young man, Lingxi did not know what to say.


    This time, it took an unexpectedly long time for the fusion toplete. Long Chen spent a total of two days fusing with the eighth Thunder me Crystal!


    At the beginning, it was indeed unbearably painful. However, nearing the end, he was pretty much numb to the feeling. His resolution had spurred him on to endure up till this point.


    ¡°Long Chen, let¡¯s not fuse with the ninth crystal, alright?¡± Lingxi asked worriedly.


    Long Chen¡¯s stubbornness and toughness had reached a level where she now held admiration for him.


    ¡°What are you talking about? This bit of pain is nowhere near my limit!¡±


    Long Chen chuckled, and then retrieved the ninth Thunder me Crystal from the cosmos pouch.


    Now, he had already fused with eight Thunder me Crystals. Under the tempering from the crystals, his body was now several times stronger than before.


    Within his dantian, the power of lightning and mes had already begun to seep into his dantian. This power twined along the surface of the Human Dan, and they soon began to merge!


    ¡°As long as they mergepletely, I can be a Thunder me cultivator!¡±


    Long Chen was very clear about this fact. Without further ado, he quickly began to fuse with the ninth Thunder me Crystal. This time, the difficulty was several times higher than fusing with the eighth, and was that much more painful. In general, Long Chen had already turned green.


    Long Chen was now bathed in blue mes and electricity, looking extremely sinister.


    A powerful aura gradually exploded forth from his body. mes covered his entire body, and within the mes was lightning that rapidly traversed!


    Luckily, after so many days of this torture, Long Chen had somewhat adapted to the pain from the Thunder me Crystals. Though it was challenging, he gritted his teeth and endured till the end.


    ¡°I actually took almost three days to fuse with the ninth crystal. Seems like it¡¯s impossible for me to attempt fusing with the tenth, since the Sky Martial Realm Competition is tomorrow.¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen was a little disappointed. He was on the verge of bing a Thunder me cultivator, but there was not enough time left.


    ¡°Though I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll be able to fuse with the tenth crystal, the chances of me surviving the Sky Martial Realm Competition will bergely increased if I manage to do so.¡±


    However, Long Chen was not discouraged.


    ¡°I now have Profound, middle-grade techniques- Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, and the constitution battle technique- Origin Reversion. I also have the Profound, low-grade technique- Nine Heavens Dragon Roving Step. With the Thunder me Crystals, whether in terms of my body or the nature of my real Qi, both have been strengthened byrge amounts. With my Dragon Soul Transformation and my Blood Transmuted Qi, I would even be able to contend with someone at the perfect mastery level at the Human Dan Realm.¡±


    Long Chen was confident.


    After fusing with so many Thunder me Crystals, he spent another day trying to get used to his body. The second day arrived quickly, and when dawn came, Gan Lin brought him to the the Green Willow Residence.


    ¡°The enforcer has already brought Liu Ling and Feng Wutian in. Within the Green Sun Hall, we have our elites as well as Lord Liu Yuan, an expert at the Heaven Dan Realm. You must remember to be respectful towards Lord Liu Yuan, the chief elder of our Green Sun Hall.¡±


    Long Chen silently took these words to heart.


    There were countless experts in the Lingwu family. Long Chen was now but a tiny ant in their midst who had yet to catch the eye of anyone. Now that he was going to meet yet another powerful person, he could not help but feel excited.


    Come to think of it, Mo Xiang and this Liu Yuan were the strongest people Long Chen had ever met.


    Liu Lan had already brought Feng Wutian and Liu Ling over, causing Long Chen to feel a little gloomy.


    ¡°Is she looking down on me?¡±


    That seemed to be the only exnation.


    This Sky Martial Realmpetition, as well as the conflict between Long Chen and Feng Wutian had been stirred up by this beautiful Liu Lan. Long Chen had no idea what she was trying to achieve, but it was definitely not because she had nothing better to do.


    In the Green Sun Hall, there were a total of five enforcers who were in charge of five residences each, amongst which included the Green Willow Residence. As one of the eight halls in the Green faction, the Green Sun Hall was obviously even more developed and luxuriouspared to the Green Willow Residence.


    If one wanted to talk about the Green Willow Residence which was taken care of by young disciples, the Green Sun Hall was home to experts. The moment Long Chen entered, he could see a few middle-aged or elderly people who were obviously past the Human Dan Realm.


    Within the hall of the Green Sun Hall, there were only people with huge potential.


    In each hall, the chief elder was the strongest. Next was the enforcers who took care of disciples at the Human Dan Realm. Besides the enforcers, if one was at a specific age and had a huge potential, they could gain the name of an elder. Besides the five enforcers in the Green Sun Hall, there were four other elders.


    At this moment, a middle-aged, sage-like schr was seated in a chair at the centre of the room. On his left were four old men who had suppressed their spirit, while on the right were five males and females who were a little younger. The exquisite and charming Liu Lan was one of them.


    In front of them were the outstanding disciples at the Human Dan Realm, who would represent Green Sun Hall in the Sky Martial Realm Competition by the Green Faction.


    When they first arrived at this hall, Gan Lin had greeted the people within and then sent Long Chen in, before respectfully leaving and returning to the Green Willow Residence.


    As Long Chen had arrived a littleter and there were also rumours regarding him and Feng Wutian, he now had a poor reputation. From the moment he entered, everyone was staring right at him.


    ¡°What the hell are you looking at? I¡¯m not some beautiful maiden. Do you have to stare so hard at the area below my garments?¡±


    He scolded inwardly, but did not actually dare to be so rude. Long Chen quickly raised his head and bowed towards the people sitting in front, ¡°Disciple Long Chen greets Chief Elder, the four elders and the five enforcers!¡±


    The four elders were probably so old that they could not move their facial muscles, staring at Long Chen indifferently. The four enforcers smiled at Long Chen, and Liu Lan¡¯s behaviour was the same as the others, as if she had just met him for the first time.


    ¡°I wonder what this stupid woman is thinking¡­¡±


    Only now did Long Chen pay attention to Liu Yuan.


    Liu Yuan sized Long Chen up for a while, and then remembered what his little daughter had spoken to him about. He nced at his older daughter, Liu Lan.


    That gaze evidently spoke volumes. Liu Lan had determined Long Chen to be three stars, despite his unremarkable condition, which was not really eptable.


    ¡°He¡¯s only just entered the Lingwu Family, doesn¡¯t have any bloodlines, and did not turn up after agreeing to a duel. This young man called Long Chen only has the power of someone who just entered the Human Dan Realm. Why did Little Lan rate him as three stars?¡±


    Though he was not very pleased with Long Chen, the name list had already been sent forth, and Liu Yuan could not be bothered to change it. He simply spoke, ¡°You¡¯re Long Chen, yes? Though you only just entered the family, you¡¯ve already received the great opportunity of entering the Sky Martial Realm Competition. I hope you can grasp this chance and not humiliate the Green Sun Hall.¡±


    ¡°This is a battle amongst the various halls in the Green Faction. It has to do with the pride of every single person here, so the ten of you here must do your best. Is that understood?¡±

 Chapter 103 – Sky Martial Hall

    Eyes staying on Long Chen for a brief moment, Liu Yuan scanned the young faces of the ten other powerful cultivators.


    Long Chen made sure he looked well behaved on the surface. From the depths of his heart, however, he really did not like this sort of environment. Under Liu Yuan¡¯s stern words, the ten youngsters did not dare make a sound.


    Long Chen, however, was not in the mood to listen. He had originally been looking forward to meeting this powerful man, but Liu Yuan had considered him someone invited to join in just to make up numbers. Long Chen, too, did not have a good impression of him.


    ¡°Looks like not participating in the match with Feng Wutian at the tform of Life and Death earned me quite a reputation in the Green Sun Hall.¡±


    Taking in the gazes of the elders and enforcers that hinted at contempt, Long Chen could guess that it had to do with that matter.


    ¡°Feng Wutian, Liu Ling¡­Your actions caused me to be looked down upon¡­¡±


    While Liu Yuan continued to speak, Long Chen secretly turned and discovered that little beauty, Liu Ling, speaking with her father.


    As if noticing someone was looking at her, Liu Ling turned and sneered at Long Chen.


    ¡°If I ever get a chance, just see if I punish you!¡±


    While Long Chen was still thinking about ways to deal with them, Liu Yuan had already nodded towards his audience, ¡°There¡¯s not much time left. You are to proceed to the Sky Martial Hall at the Green Faction. In thispetition, Feng Wutian will be the leader. All of you are to listen and execute tasks based on hismands. Always prioritise the reputation of the Green Sun Hall.¡±


    He turned to look at Liu Lan, ¡°Lan¡¯er, bring them to the Sky Martial Hall now.¡±


    Liu Lan nodded and got up, showing off her slim and graceful body. She nodded towards Liu Yuan and then brought the eleven of them out of the Green Sun Hall, and proceeded towards the Sky Martial Hall.


    Liu Yuan watched them leave and then turned to the four elders, ¡°What do you think of our chances this time?¡±


    One of the elders quickly spoke up, ¡°The contest over the Zenith Crystal Sword is a fight between the best of the best. The others are just there to make up the numbers. In general, even though our Green Sun Hall isn¡¯t very strong, we have an absolute talent like Feng Wutian who has both a bloodline and talent at the Human Dan Realm. In my opinion, this should not be a problem!¡±


    Another elder, shook his head, ¡°If we talk about the best of the best, those from other halls are not half bad either, especially the Green Emperor Hall. The leader they¡¯re sending out this time should be elder Chu Fengqing¡¯s sixteen year old daughter by the name of Chu Yunyao. Wutian might be under some pressure when dealing with this little genius.¡±


    Liu Yuan furrowed his brows and nodded, ¡°Chu Yunyao¡¯s might will surely give Feng Wutian some pressure. However, she¡¯s still young and and is at a disadvantage in terms of her sex. Our chances of winning are not that meagre!¡±


    ¡°If the Green Sun Hall is able to clinch the champion this time, we will definitely gain a better reputation. When that happens, the Head Elder will surely take care of us. It¡¯s a chance for us to rise to power¡­¡±


    At this thought, everyone present was stirred up and chatted for a while longer before dispersing.


    ¡°By the way, Chief Elder, there seems to be some conflict between Long Chen and Liu Ling. Do you think he¡¯ll cause trouble for Ling¡¯er during the Sky Martial Realmpetition?¡±


    Liu Ling was the princess of the Green Sun Hall, and everyone loved her dearly.


    Liu Yuanughed coldly, ¡°It¡¯s just an outsider who recently entered the family. If he really has some strange intentions, Wutian will definitely dispose of him on my behalf. Besides, Ling¡¯er herself is at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and can hold her own against that fellow!¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    After leaving the Green Sun Hall, Long Chen could sense that out of the ten of them, nine were pressed close to Feng Wutian, who was in front. There were even three young cultivators at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm.


    Liu Lan did not speak a word and merely guided them. The other nine cast their nces at Long Chen and smiled slightly. They seemed to be teasing him, contempt and despise apparent in their eyes.


    ¡°He promised to the battle but didn¡¯t even have the guts to keep to his promise. This Long Chen really sucks.¡±


    One of them shook his head and then whispered to the person beside him.


    Cowardliness is a trait built into the very being of those thate from small areas. We might even be burdened by him since he¡¯speting with us in the Sky Martial Realm Competition.¡±


    ¡°I think it¡¯s better if he dies as soon as possible. What if he flees just before a battle? Our Green Sun Hall will definitely be humiliated and Chief Elder will probably punish all of us. If that happens, we¡¯re done for.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even talk about it. I¡¯m sure Feng Wutian wouldn¡¯t let him leave this ce alive. I heard rumours that Huang Feiyang, who used to follow Feng Wutian, was killed by Long Chen using dirty tricks.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not a man since he has no power and only knows to attack from the shadows.¡±


    The group of them walked and whispered amongst themselves.


    Listening to their conversation, Liu Ling was secretly delighted. At the thought of Long Chen¡¯s repulsive face, she was even more pleased.


    Their discussion not too far away from Long Chen, and Liu Ling knew he could definitely hear all of this. She turned, wanting to see him stewing in rage, but unexpectedly, he was strolling along with his head down, looking indifferent.


    ¡°Is he trying to pretend that he¡¯s unperturbed, or does he not have the guts to fight back?¡±


    Liu Ling wondered, and then turned her attention to Feng Wutian who was walking beside her and looking into the distance. That high nose bridge and determined expression charmed her further.


    ¡°Brother Feng Wutian really is the most perfect man of all time. Even if there were ten thousand Long Chens, none of them couldpare to one Brother Wutian¡­¡±


    Imagining that she would get married to such a man, Liu Ling was full of joy.


    At this moment, Feng Wutian looked at her with gentle eyes, and her heart palpitated like a baby deer ramming into its surroundings.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, were you the one that leaked the news that Long Chen had agreed to the battle but did not have the guts to appear?¡±


    Feng Wutian¡¯s voice showed a trace of displeasure, and Liu Ling panicked, ¡°Whose fault is it that he¡¯s so annoying? He even dared to humiliate you like that! Just that wretched appearance of his makes me angry!¡±


    Feng Wutian shook his head and patted her head, ¡°Be good. Don¡¯t do this in the future. The weak will always pay for their actions, so don¡¯t waste your energy dealing with him. He¡¯s courting death anyway. Why bother with this kind of person?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± Liu Ling obediently nodded and then happily said, ¡°Thank you Brother Wutian, I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡±


    Liu Lan had also heard Feng Wutian¡¯s words. She turned and smiled at him, and then hastened her footsteps.


    ¡°Feng Wutian has matured quite a bit in these two years. Ling¡¯er won¡¯t suffer when she follows him in the future. What about me? Father actually made me marry him. What should I do?¡±


    Flustered, Liu Lan looked back and found Long Chen who was walking alone. The eleven of them were extremely close to each other, and in other words, Long Chen would have been able to hear everything Feng Wutian had said.


    However, from the looks of it, his expression was calm despite being alone.


    ¡°He has a very strong spirit, but he loses out in terms of his background.¡±


    Liu Lan evaluated and then focused on the journey.


    Outside the Green Sun Hall, there were quite a number of people. After about half an hour, they finally arrived at the entrance to the Sky Martial Realm- the Sky Martial Hall.


    In the Green Faction, besides the Treasure Exchange Pavilions and Hall of Achievements, this was the most lively ce.


    The members of the Lingwu family¡¯s daily life consisted of cultivation, tests, andpleting missions. One of the tests was to enter the Sky Martial Realm and battle with beasts to hone their battle techniques. At the same time, they could also obtain items from these beasts and then exchange them for contribution points.


    Long Chen knew that in the Sky Martial Realm, there were threerge regions, namely the Human Dan Region, Earth Dan Region and the Heaven Dan Region.


    In the Human Dan Region, the most powerful beast was merely a Profound level beast at the fourth grade. In the Earth Region, the most powerful beast was at around the sixth or seventh grade, and those that were even more powerful were in the Heaven Dan Region.


    The ce where disciples of the Green Faction at the Human Dan Realm trained was in the Human Dan Region. Usually, it was the most crowded ce in the entire Sky Martial Realm.


    However, this was the day when apetition between people of the Green Faction at the Human Dan Realm took ce. The other eightrge factions knew this and withdrew their disciples from the Sky Martial Realm, leaving a space for them topete.


    ¡°The timespan of thispetition is eight days. Within eight days, you have to find the Heart Corroding demonic beast and then steal the Zenith Crystal Sword in its stomach. If nobody is able to obtain the Zenith Crystal Sword, thepetition will end. After all, those from other factions still need to enter the Sky Martial Realm!¡±


    After entering the Sky Martial Hall, Liu Lan repeated this point once more.


    ¡°Eight days?¡±


    Long Chen calcted, ¡°I would need seven to eight days to fuse with the tenth Thunder me Crystal. Anyway, the Zenith Crystal Sword doesn¡¯t really suit me. I should just find a ce somewhere and fuse with the tenth, and after that happens¡­¡±


    Long Chen murmured to himself in a low voice. Within the sword, Lingxi heard his words and spoke up worriedly, ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t be too optimistic. Let¡¯s not talk about that tenth crystal. Whether you¡¯ll be able to leave on your own after entering the Sky Martial Realm is still a question. I¡¯ve seen the look in their eyes, and they don¡¯t seem to have good intentions¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s observations were even more meticulous than his.


    Long Chen lifted his head and looked at the other nine, realising there seemed to be bloodlust in their expressions.


    The person who looked the most indifferent was Feng Wutian.


    Out of all of them, he had the biggest issue with Long Chen. However, he did not appear to even be bothered by Long Chen.


    With Lingxi¡¯s reminder, Long Chen knew he had to be careful with his actions.


    At this moment, everyone had followed Liu Lan into the Sky Martial Hall. In the vast Sky Martial Hall, it was empty save for a few groups of people. There were around ten people in each group.


    ¡°These must be the outstanding disciples at the Human Dan Realm of the other halls in the Green Faction. Altogether, there should be about a hundred people¡­¡±


    ¡£


    All of these people had an intimidating aura, and were evident not easily dealt with. There were quite a number of people who were around Long Chen¡¯s age and already experts at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    The Sky Martial Realm Competition officially began!

 Chapter 104 – Chu Yunyao

    The teams from the other halls arrived one after another. Soon, eight teams assembled in the Sky Martial Hall.


    From the corner where Long Chen¡¯s team from the Green Sun Hall was, he began to size up the people from the other groups.


    Long Chen knew that in the variousrge halls of the Green Faction, thebined power of Green Sun Hall was in thest ce. However, with Feng Wutian, they had a hint of a chance at winning.


    Unfortunately, it wasn¡¯t as if there were no experts at the peak of the Human Dan Realm in the other halls. The young girl from the Green Emperor Hall attracted the attention of everyone present just by her entrance.


    The Green Emperor Hall was the most powerful branch of the Green Faction. Whether in terms of its strength or potential, it was an absolute power ranked number 1.


    ¡°Is that girl Chu Yunyao of the Green Emperor Hall?¡±


    Liu Ling wondered while gritting her teeth. The girl was in a long yellow skirt, face exquisite despite the cold expression on her face, and there was an indescribable elegance to this youngdy.


    Jealousy was evident in her tone.


    Despite being the daughter of a Chief Elder as well, the difference between the two of them was huge.


    Liu Ling was at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm, but Chu Yunyao was already on the verge of breaking through to the Earth Dan Realm.


    In addition, all eyes were on Chu Yunyao, while Liu Ling merely hung around Feng Wutian¡¯s side and asionally received somepliments.


    Even Feng Wutian was now sizing up Chu Yunyao. Liu Ling gritted her teeth while she fumed, wishing she could forcefully turn her Brother Wutian¡¯s head back in her direction.


    Long Chen also curiously nced at the girl. Her strength was at the same level as Feng Wutian, despite being younger than him.


    Most importantly, her looks were out of the ordinary. Though she did not have the mature charm that Liu Lan possessed, she was on a whole other levelpared to Liu Ling.


    At this point, Liu Lan and the leaders of the other seven halls hade together.


    Though the Green Sun Hall was just average, Liu Lan¡¯s beauty was known throughout the Green Faction.


    As the leaders spoke, their eyes asionally rested on her sexy, delicate frame.


    ¡°Since everyone¡¯s here, shall wemence the Sky Martial Realm Competition?¡±


    ¡°Let us not waste time. Guide them into the pathway to the Sky Martial Realm. Beforeing here, all of you have already spoken to your juniors about things to take note of, yes?¡±


    ¡°Naturally.¡±


    After some discussion, Liu Lan returned to where people from the Green Sun Hall stood.


    There were already people calling the juniors in their hall, heading towards the pathway not far from Long Chen.


    The pathway was about ten metres wide, and at the end was a membrane of light. This membrane rippled like water and produced glimmering reflections. It was a thing of beauty.


    A mysterious aura was being emitted by these reflections.


    ¡°This is the entrance to a Small Cosmos World, which appears to have been left behind by some expert!¡±


    Within the sword, Lingxi eximed in surprise.


    ¡°Does that mean there¡¯s something amazing in there?¡±


    ¡°I doubt it. The Lingwu family has been here for so many years, and this ce isn¡¯t all that big either. It¡¯d long since have be their personal assets. All the good things are probably gone by now.¡±


    Long Chen then gave up on his intentions in this area.


    The Sky Martial Realm Competition was something he was forced to participate in. All he wanted was to train and get stronger.


    Team after team passed by Long Chen and headed into the entrance to the Sky Martial Realm.


    After a while, the Green Emperor Hall which had about twenty people approached them. The leader¡¯s status was not as high as Chu Yunyao¡¯s, and hence, she walked in front.


    When they got nearer, Chu Yunyao suddenly advanced towards Liu Lan, ¡°Yunyao greets Sister Lan. My brother wanted me to pass the message that he has something on and cannot get away from it this time, which is why he isn¡¯t here. He says he misses you.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Liu Lan¡¯s expression became unnatural, ¡°Alright, I understand. Yunyao, be careful in the Sky Martial Realm Competition.¡±


    Yunyao nodded and left.


    This young girl was extremely cold to everyone. Only when she spoke to Liu Lan was there a hint of respect in her eyes.


    ¡°Brother? Does that mean this woman and her brother are together?¡±


    At the thought that this charming woman already had someone, Long Chen had a feeling like all the good things in the world belonged to those who didn¡¯t deserve it.


    Liu Lan suddenly turned and spoke indifferently, ¡°You must always think of the big picture in thepetition. I¡¯ll wait for you here. I wish you luck.¡±


    Feng Wutian and the othersplied, and he then brought everyone towards the entrance.


    As Long Chen walked past Liu Lan, he kept staring at her. She had a smile about her face as she looked straight back at Long Chen, seemingly not the least bit guilty about arranging Long Chen¡¯s participation in this dangerouspetition.


    After Long Chen left, Liu Lan shook her head and thought to herself, ¡°He¡¯s only just entered the Human Dan Realm. Under the pressure from cultivators at the perfect mastery stage of the Heaven Dan Realm, how could he survive? Is my training method too harsh?¡±


    At the thought of that person, Liu Lan frowned, ¡°If nobody can hinder it, my fate does not seem to be able to be changed. Could this be karma?¡±


    While she was deep in thought, Long Chen followed the others and entered the membrane of light.


    A refreshing feeling surrounded him, and Long Chen felt as if he had fallen into a pool, rapidly descending. In a few moments, his body stopped and he suddenly found himself standing on yellow soil.


    He looked around. On this hugend, all he could see was solid yellow soil. Short, sturdy trees and shrubs dotted thend, and while it could not be said to be a pretty sight, it wasn¡¯t exactly ugly either.


    He looked up at the sky, finding that it was yellow. There were dense yellow clouds that crowded the sky.


    A deste feeling was produced from this area, and Long Chen knew that he was now in another world.


    ¡°Is this¡­ the Sky Martial Realm?¡±


    The only person who was at a loss in this situation was Long Chen, aspared to others who had already entered the Sky Martial Realm before.


    Seeing him looking like a bumpkin, the others sneered and mocked him.


    In the Green Faction, all the other teams who had already arrived at the Sky Martial Realm had left. Feng Wutian first brought them all to a ce with short shrubbery.


    The search for the Heart Corroding demonic beast really depended on luck.


    Feng Wutian looked around and pointed in a direction. ¡°Follow me. None of you are allowed to wander off.¡±


    Having said this, he gave Long Chen a long look, as if giving him a warning.


    ¡±


    However, Long Chen had no ns on staying with them. At this moment, he spoke, ¡°I¡¯m relying on you guys to find the Zenith Crystal Sword! I¡¯ll make a move first.¡±


    He wasn¡¯t on good terms with Feng Wutian nor the rest of the team, and there was no point in staying here. He wasn¡¯t going to bother with wasting time.


    Long Chen already knew that while Feng Wutian looked calm, he had long since wanted to take care of Long Chen. Of course, after hearing his words, the expression on Feng Wutian¡¯s face became icier.


    ¡°Chief Elder has already said that everyone has to listen to my orders in this operation. Are you going to disobey me?¡±


    ¡°Disobey? I wouldn¡¯t dare do that. However, myck of strength will only tie down all of you geniuses. In my opinion, you should let me leave on my own and focus on obtaining the Zenith Crystal Sword. That would be more worth it.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s tone was a little sarcastic.


    From the very beginning, the others did not think well of Long Chen. Now, he had suddenly be so firm and resolute! This made everyone quite interested and ready to ridicule him, as they all viewed Long Chen to be a clown.


    Liu Ling hated Long Chen the most. Now that there were no seniors around and Long Chen actually dared to challenge the situation, she sneered, ¡°Brother Wutian is our leader. His words arew, and if he wanted you to die, you¡¯ll have no choice but to die. Do you still want to contradict him?¡±


    Long Chen analysed the situation while ncing at them.


    ¡°If Feng Wutian is prioritising the Zenith Crystal Sword, he wouldn¡¯t bother with me and would let me leave. If he says something to stop me, it means he¡¯s already thought up a way to deal with me. Then again, if it were me, I wouldn¡¯t allow a thorn in my side to continue existing in this world.¡±


    As expected, Feng Wutian spoke, ¡°Chief Elder has given me authority. In the expedition in the Sky Martial Realm, I am in charge. Long Chen, if you don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for you and cause me trouble, I have permission to kill you!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that if I follow you, I might die by your hand, Feng Wutian.¡± Long Chen smirked as he said something that caused Feng Wutian¡¯s expression to change. Even Liu Ling could not help herself but shout, ¡°Are you courting death!¡±


    Seeing that she was on the verge of attacking, Feng Wutian held her back. The bloodlust in his eyes was finally apparent, and his voice be iparably icy.


    ¡°Everyone, Long Chen refuses to listen to orders and is a hindrance to our operation. On behalf of the elders, I shall punish him with death. Does anyone have any objections?¡±


    The other eight were extremely respectful to Feng Wutian. In their eyes, Long Chen was but a dispensable character anyway.


    They allughed, ¡°Please make your move, Senior Brother. If anyone asks, we will also take the me!¡±


    They were haughty, and yet Long Chen was not the least bit afraid.


    ¡°Feng Wutian usually pretends to be magnanimous. Has he finally revealed his cunning side?¡±


    Feng Wutian, who had gained approval from the elders, advanced from within the crowd and made his way towards Long Chen, step by step.

 Chapter 105 – A Lesson!

    The moment Feng Wutian bloodlust was apparent, that powerful aura put pressure on Long Chen¡¯s body. The imposing aura of one at the peak of the Human Dan Realm was something that really could not be ignored!


    In Long Chen¡¯s eyes, Feng Wutian was now like a huge mountain peak that was pushing him down. Long Chen tensed his body and was able to resist the pressure being ced on him.


    Long Chen was rather annoyed to be pushed around by Feng Wutian like this, but he was well aware that he was not a match.


    ¡°This Feng Wutian really is looking down on me. Though I¡¯m not a match for you, it¡¯s a simple task for me to escape. However, if I just escape like this, you¡¯ll justin a lot in front of that old man!¡±


    Though Long Chen wasn¡¯t an opponent for Feng Wutian, the gap between them was not that big. Feng Wutian also had to take into consideration the Green Sun Hall team, and he could not simply abandon the rest and try to take Long Chen¡¯s life alone.


    Long Chen was confident about this and rxed.


    At this point, Feng Wutian was already behind him, less than ten metres away.


    ¡°You killed Huang Feiyang. Today, I guess I¡¯m seeking revenge on his behalf¡­¡±


    ¡£


    At these words, Feng Wutian clenched his fist and a powerful undtion formed around his fist.


    ¡°I don¡¯t even need to use any battle techniques to deal with a little brat like you who just entered the Human Dan Realm,!¡±


    Feng Wutian looked at him disdainfully, and like a tornado, headed towards Long Chen. That surging force seemed to possess an earth-shattering strength!


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    With just a look, Long Chen could tell that to withstand this attack, not only would he need to do the Dragon Soul Transformation, he would also need to use the Seal of the High Profound Dragon. This consumed a lot of mental and physical power, and with a step back, Long Chen used the fastest speed he could muster and exhibited the Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step. While Feng Wutian was moving, he ¡®roamed¡¯ away from the attack through Feng Wutian¡¯s side!


    Long Chen did not transform and was able to aplish this. The main reasons were that Feng Wutian believed that he had only just entered the Human Dan Realm, so he used lesser strength. On top of that, Long Chen had almost gained the Thunder me Physique. The rise in the sturdiness of his body resulted in a bonus in his speed and agility. Hence, though Feng Wutian was strong, Long Chen was still able to dodge the attack!


    Seeing Feng Wutian about to kill off that distasteful guy, Long Chen, everyone from the Green Sun Hall was filled with feelings of anticipation.


    This was especially so for Liu Ling. Just as she was about to see her hero, Feng Wutian, elegantly eliminating Long Chen, Long Chen slipped away from the side in a sh and rushed towards her!


    ¡°How is this possible? His speed is even faster than mine!¡±


    At this thought, a look of incredulity appeared on her face.


    As for the others, they were simr stunned at Long Chen being able to dodge Feng Wutian¡¯s attack.


    However, what they did not expect was at the moment Long Chen avoided the attack, he charged towards Liu Ling at an even faster speed!


    The distance between the two were originally not that far apart, and Long Chen¡¯s actions were a huge surprise.


    Liu Ling was not able to react in time and, in a short moment, Long Chen appeared before her, slightly red eyes seeming to be teasing as he looked at her!


    ¡°You bastard!¡±


    Liu Ling cursed, aiming to attack Long Chen. In her eyes, though Long Chen¡¯s speed was faster than the average person at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, his attacks must becking in might!


    In her hurry, she shouted loudly in a feminine way and clenched her fist nervously, aiming for Long Chen!


    The attack from someone at the initial mastery stage would have beaten him half to bad if Long Chen encountered this. However, after fusing with 9 Thunder me Crystals, he was not the least bit afraid of this level of attack from Liu Ling!


    Besides, Liu Ling was a young girl and had not gained any life or death experiences. In terms of battle experience, she was definitelycking. At least, from what Long Chen could see, she basically had none!


    Hence, in that short amount of time, Long Chen struck out with his fist, the faint red real Qi at his dantian gushing, apanying it the power of mes and lightning, jolting Liu Ling¡¯s fist!


    The two fists mmed to each other, and what was shocking was how Long Chen, who was supposed to be defeated, was entirely fine. Liu Ling, however, yelled in pain and on the verge of tears.


    In Long Chen¡¯s real Qi, the force from the lightning and mes smashed into her fist, causing her tender little fist to be slightly charred!


    Where would she ever have experienced such pain? She immediately began to wail, tears covering her face.


    At this moment, Long Chen suddenly leapt behind her, hands turning into ws as he gripped the back of Liu Ling¡¯s pale throat, throwing her backwards!


    ¡°You bastard! Are you looking to die?¡±


    Feng Wutian turned back, face turning crimson in his anger at the sight. A spectacr attack was aimed at Long Chen!


    The other seven were also furious as they attacked Long Chen from all sides!


    ¡°This brat only just entered the Human Dan Realm and was actually able to evade Feng Wutian¡¯s attack. He even managed to sneak an attack on Miss Liu Ling?¡±


    In the hearts of everyone present, they all felt unbelievably shocked. They had originally believed that Long Chen was a coward who hade from the countryside, but now, they all had a different perception of him!


    ¡°He even dared to sneak an attack on the Chief Elder¡¯s daughter! This Long Chen is really looking to die!¡±


    Everyone had gone all out to attack Long Chen, but unexpectedly, he was not the least bit afraid. Amidst Liu Ling¡¯s shrieks, he picked her up and lifted her high, blocking the attacks.


    Feng Wutian was momentarily shocked and quickly stopped his attack. Taking advantage of this, Long Chen quickly retreated and coldly spoke, ¡°If you want her dead, then attack me! Stand right there! If anyone moves, I¡¯ll kill this little doll in front of you!¡±


    Hearing Long Chen¡¯s vicious words, feeling his firm grip on her neck and the pain on several parts of her body, Liu Ling was so terrified that she began to tremble.


    She had never met with such a terrifying situation before, face as pale as could be while she wailed, ¡°No! No, don¡¯t kill me! Brother Wutian, quick, save me! Wah¡­¡±


    The Feng Wutian who she thought was invincible was now spitting fire. He red at Long Chen and yet did not dare move, and could only roar, ¡°Long Chen! Liu Ling is the daughter of the Chief Elder. If you touch even a hair on her head, he will definitely chop you into a million pieces! If you still have somemon sense, let her go! You¡¯re looking to die like this!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Long Chenughed coldly. ¡°Do you think I¡¯m an idiot? Weren¡¯t you already nning on killing me? I¡¯m going to die either way, so why shouldn¡¯t I find someone else to go down with me?¡±


    Seeing the little girl trembling in fear, Feng Wutian could do nothing. Only then did Long Chen heave a sigh of relief.


    In this time, he had seized Liu Ling and retreated around 30 metres!


    ¡°This little girl has quite a strong backing. I should not go too far.¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen did not joke around any longer and, under the gazes of everyone present, Long Chen suddenly pressed Liu Ling to his knee, spreading his palm and raising it high!


    ¡°You little bitch! You actually dared to spread rumours and nder me! I¡¯ll make sure you get it today!¡±


    In front of Feng Wutian, Long Chen¡¯s palm mercilesslynded on Liu Ling¡¯s buttocks. A clear ¡®pak¡¯ sound resounded in the air, and Liu Ling gave a miserable shriek that was enough to shake the heavens. Her originally dainty and pale features were now full of blood¡­


    On such pale buttocks, a handprint would probably stay there for a long period of time!


    At this point, Feng Wutian eyes were huge in his anger.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er! Long Chen, die!¡±


    Long Chen ruthlessly continued the beating until he was content, provoking Feng Wutian as he smiled. ¡°I¡¯m beating your girl. I¡¯m pretty sure you don¡¯t feel good about this, do you?¡±


    He did not care for Feng Wutian¡¯s expression that had turned ck, and threw Liu Ling with all his strength towards Feng Wutian!


    Feng Wutian had nned to kill Long Chen, but seeing Liu Ling¡¯s body flying towards him, how could he not try to be careful and catch her?


    At the moment he caught her, Long Chenughed brightly, and with explosive speed, fled into the distance!


    By the time Feng Wutian put down Liu Ling, Long Chen was long gone!


    As for the others, they chased him for a period of time. However, since Feng Wutian had not moved from where he was standing, they could only return. His gloomy face kept them quiet out of fear.


    At this moment, Liu Ling who felt her buttocks burning had begun to wail loudly. Feng Wutian tried to console her to no avail, flustered at the situation.


    ¡°What are you still standing there for? Brother Wutian, aren¡¯t you going to kill him?!¡±


    Facing the questions from the little beauty whose face was filled with tears, Feng Wutian revealed a bitter expression. ¡°Ling¡¯er, that bastard runs too quickly, and we still need to find the Zenith Crystal Sword¡­¡±


    ¡°You scoundrel! You- go away! All you think about is the Zenith Crystal Sword and not me! I was bullied by him so much and you still aren¡¯t killing him. Feng Wutian, you- you¡¯re not a man!¡±


    ¡°Enough!¡± Feng Wutian¡¯s face was ashen as he eximed, ¡°Ling¡¯er, I promise the next time I see him, I¡¯ll capture and let you chop him up! Don¡¯t make a fuss now!¡±


    ¡°Woo woo¡­ But it hurts, it hurts!¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Having fled far out of sight till they could not follow him, Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief and hurriedly spoke, ¡°Little Xi, find some concealed area. I want to try fusing with the tenth Thunder me Crystal!¡±


    ¡°You bastard, did you only just remember that I¡¯m here? Weren¡¯t you very impressive just now?¡± Lingxi spoke behind gritted teeth, voice transmitting from the Lingxi Sword.


    Long Chen immediately realised that the method he had bullied Liu Ling was what had made her angry. He quickly tried to tter her, ¡°Darling, don¡¯t get it wrong! I was merely teaching her lesson. Don¡¯t you find her behaviour irksome? That¡¯s why I was so ruthless!¡±


    ¡°What does that have to do with me? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m rted to you in any way!¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±

 Chapter 106 – Highly Effective Origin Reversion

    In the Sky Martial Realm, it wasn¡¯t a boundless in. There were many hills and mountainous regions.


    The terrain in the external world was very simr to this ce.


    ¡°The Sky Martial Realm actually looks the same as the external world! It¡¯s hard to tell that it¡¯s a small cosmos world. It¡¯s amazing!¡±


    Seeing this world, Long Chen could not help but be in awe. The immense size as well as mysteriousness of this world far exceeded his expectations.


    ¡°That¡¯s true. However, when you get to the extreme ends of this small cosmos world, you¡¯ll be able to feel the walls of this world, while in the outside world, nobody truly knows where the walls are.¡±


    Long Chen was aware that this ¡®wall¡¯ was too far for him to consider.


    At this point, he had entered a valley, made from strange rocks. Long Chen carefully advanced forward, and finally found a ce where he could hide.


    This was a naturally formed crevice. After shifting a fewrge rocks away, Long Chen entered the crevice and covered it up with arge rock.


    ¡°I¡¯ve turned into a gopher, hiding inside like this!¡±


    Long Chen was a little gloomy that he had to conceal himself like this, but the people outside were searching for some Zenith Crystal Sword. It was obvious that they would be searching everywhere, and if Long Chen wanted to absorb the tenth Thunder me Crystal, he would definitely need a quiet environment.


    If anyone interrupted him or if he were found by Feng Wutian, his life would be over.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you certain you¡¯re going to fuse with the tenth Thunder me Crystal?¡± At the thought that Long Chen might not be able to take it, Lingxi was extremely worried.


    However, while she was still speaking, Long Chen had already undergone Dragon Soul Transformation and was now in his most powerful state. He then sat cross-legged, retrieving the tenth Thunder me Crystal from his cosmos pouch.


    While looking at this Thunder me Crystal, Long Chen¡¯s eyes showed his determination.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about this. I know what my limits are, and if I can¡¯t even deal with this, would I still be Long Chen? Besides, I behaved in such an unpleasant manner just now and they¡¯re definitely more keen on killing me now. If I don¡¯t have a breakthrough, it¡¯s obvious I will die tragically.¡±


    Seeing she was unable to persuade him, Lingxi merely sighed, ¡°Be careful.¡±


    If Long Chen was unable to hold on, she¡¯d have to think up some ways to help him.


    Long Chen looked at the Thunder me Crystal in his palm, smiled slightly, and quickly drew it into his body without any hesitation.


    The moment it entered his body, the crystal transformed into a streak of fire and electricity, fusing with the force of mes and lightning at his dantian. Theybined, creating a huge, explosive reaction!


    ¡°The tenth Thunder me Crystal is indeed terrifying!¡±


    It was just the start, but Long Chen was shocked to find that he could already feel short bursts of pain periodically. From a small to arge area, it engulfed his body. Even after having transformed, Long Chen still found this hard to withstand!


    He could feel that this force was constantly destroying theposition of his body. This level of destruction exceeded the rate at which he could regenerate, and in no time, Long Chen felt a pain that was even more intense than he had felt from the ninth crystal. The pain tore at every corner of his body, and it was if there were countless little des hidden at every corner of his body, violently twisting into him.


    This twisting was enough to make anyone want to go crazy. At this moment, Lingxi suddenly saw blood flowing from the corner of Long Chen¡¯s mouth.


    However, he was still gritting his teeth and persevering.


    The lightning and mes constantly twisted in his body, wave after wave, and even his dragon scales were damaged to a certain extent.


    ¡°At this rate, no matter how much he perseveres, he won¡¯t be able to escape his fate of death. What should I do?¡±


    Lingxi was frantic in her worry.


    Aware of his current situation, Long Chen endured the pain and the destructive power of the crystal and tried to think up a n.


    ¡°My body has been badly damaged. With the tempering and burning from lightning and mes, it¡¯s probably more than my body can take!¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen suddenly brightened up.


    ¡°Origin Reversion has a great regenerative effect on every minuscule injury in the body. I can test its effects here!¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen immediately began to put Origin Reversion to use. This was a profound, middle-grade constitution battle technique. Even if he had received a grievous injury, Long Chen would be able to heal from it using Origin Reversion.


    Streams of warmth began to move around in between the mes and lightning in Long Chen¡¯s body. Wherever it went, muscles and flesh seemed to have been nourished and slowly restored themselves.


    ¡°It¡¯s actually effective!¡±


    Long Chen was exhrated at this and quickly increased the power of this technique. Immediately, a hot rush travelled inside him. The areas that were damaged by the lightning and mes but were unable to be regenerated by his own body were nourished with the help of Origin Reversion.


    This allowed the newly regenerated flesh that had been burnt and tempered to be even more durable and tough.


    After taking in the tenth Thunder me Crystal, Long Chen looked to be in a pitiful state. However, after just a short moment, Lingxi could see that Long Chen was gradually bing less pale.


    ¡°This is¡­ the aura of Origin Reversion.¡±


    Lingxi suddenly remembered that Origin Reversion might be useful in reducing the pain for Long Chen.


    If he were to take Spirit Medicine, he would first need to refine the medicine before he could make use of the power within. Long Chen¡¯s real Qi was now all focused on withstanding the force of lightning and me. How possible would it be for him to put half his attention on refining the medicine?


    However, Origin Reversion itself was within Long Chen¡¯s body. With just a thought, he could use it.


    This was the amazing part about constitution techniques. They were quick, convenient and very effective. Most importantly, they were limitless and free of charge.


    ¡°This fellow is really lucky.¡±


    If not for Origin Reversion, Lingxi had no idea if Long Chen would be able to get through this stage. The situation was slightly better now, and Lingxi felt a little more relieved.


    With Origin Reversion, Long Chen was somewhat able to hold on. However, keeping this up for five to six days was an extremely arduous task. With his situation, this did not bode well for him.


    After all, using Origin Reversion would consume real Dragon Qi. However, the moment it diminished, it was a chance for the mes and lightning to gain the upper hand.


    Long Chen was sharp and anticipated this issue. By the time his real Qi was diminished, around two days had passed.


    In these two days, Long Chen¡¯s body rapidly increased in sturdiness. He was on the verge of obtaining the legendary Thunder me Physique.


    With the exhausting of real dragon Qi, the force of mes and lightning began its counterattack. Originally quite obedient, it suddenly became wild and, like a swarm of bees, spread throughout Long Chen¡¯s body.


    Lingxi had noticed that it was considerably quiet around Long Chen¡¯s body, lightning and mes peacefully tempering Long Chen¡¯s body. However, all of a sudden, this force suddenly seemed to rebel, invading his body and charging towards his red Human Dan!


    ¡°This is bad! This is the precursor to the body exploding!¡±


    Long Chen was now in cold sweat. The might of the lightning and mes was now on top of his Human Dan at his dantian. All the real Qi he had left was insufficient for him to resist it.


    If this force entered his dantian, with Long Chen unable to withstand without his real Qi, his Human Dan would be destroyed. Those who had fused and had their bodies explode while fusing with the Thunder me Crystal had been in the exact same situation as Long Chen was in now.


    ¡°Am I just that little bit too far away from being able to fuse with the tenth crystal? I¡­ I¡¯m not willing to ept this!¡±


    Thinking about all the things he had yet to do, Long Chen was filled with reluctance. The Yang family was still waiting for him to rescue them, and Lingxi, too, required his assistance.


    When he had chosen to fuse with the tenth crystal, Long Chen had already thought of this situation. Anything with risk meant there was a possibility of failing. Long Chen had somewhat underestimated the might of the tenth Thunder Crystal me, so it would not be unexpected if he were to die here.


    ¡°No! I won¡¯t die here!¡±


    A cold glint exploded from Long Chen¡¯s eyes! The stubbornness he had was iparably strong. If he were to die just like this because of the Thunder me Crystals, it would be too much of a waste!


    ¡°How can I, Long Chen, die!¡±


    Long Chen practically roared his sentence, his voice resounding in the little valley!


    At this moment, the might of mes and lightning turned into blue streaks of mes and lightning, aiming to destroy his dantian.


    Within his dantian, only a dim Human Dan existed. As he had used too much real Qi, his Human Dan was not very useful.


    Within the blood-red Human Dan, the dark veined pattern of a dragon finally made itself known.


    Seeing that the force was about to enter his dantian, Long Chen gritted his teeth and prepared to block the attack with everything he had. Suddenly, at his dantian, the pattern seemed toe to life, emitting a piercing light.


    A pair of blood-red rays were shot out from the eyes of the dragon-shaped pattern, aimed towards the force.


    Bloody mist permeated the force of lightning and mes, and under the control of this immense power, Long Chen felt as if this the force of lightning and mes was undergoing a huge change.


    Not long after, Long Chen actually saw that the blue force of lightning and me stuffed full in his dantian had nowpletely turned red, lightning and mes existing in his dantian.

 Chapter 107 – Thunder Flame Physique

    This sudden change startled Long Chen.


    He could never imagine that the red, dragon imprint on the Human Dan was able to turn the power of the ten Thunder me Crystals crimson, with just a ray of light.


    Long Chen felt that he seemed to be able to control this force of lightning and mes, which was crimson in colour!


    ¡°Has the might of the Thunder me Crystal fused into my real Qi?¡±


    Currently, this lightning and fire was attached above Long Chen¡¯s Human Dan. The Human Dan, which was originally red, was now burning with crimson mes, at the same time having crimson lightning winding around it.


    The force of mes and lightning from the Thunder me Crystal hadpletely mixed with Long Chen¡¯s real Dragon Qi.


    This real Qi was now ten times- no, even more than that whenpared to before, in terms of its nature and offensive abilities!


    At the same time, under the gentle tempering of the crimson mes and lightning as well as nourishment from Origin Reversion, time flowed slowly. Long Chen¡¯s flesh body became increasingly stronger, and in one or two days, Long Chen believed he would reach the critical boundary.


    Before this, Lingxi suddenly felt the rebellion within Long Chen¡¯s body and that had scared her half to death. However, in the blink of an eye, Long Chen had tamed this power, and Lingxi could only gaze at this young man in surprise.


    ¡°What kind of secret does Long Chen have? When he had first obtained the inheritance of the ancient dragon, he was on the verge of death but was miraculously able to survive and get the inheritance. Now, he¡¯s not supposed to be able to withstand the force from the Thunder me Crystal, but miraculously survived it again. From the looks of it, he must be sessful in fusing with the tenth Thunder me Crystal¡­¡±


    Though Lingxi was very knowledgeable, she still knew nothing about whatever secrets there were on Long Chen¡¯s body.


    Long Chen could feel himself reaching the boundary, and as long as he could break through, he could gain the Thunder me Physique and be a Thunder me Cultivator!


    If this was in the past and the force of lightning and mes rebelled in his body, it would be extremely difficult for Long Chen to break through.


    However, things were different now. Long Chen was now capable of manipting the force of lightning and mes, and able to slowly temper and forge his body. Time slowly passed, and with all his energy spent on controlling this force, he was naturally able to break through.


    ¡°A Thunder me Cultivator¡­¡±


    He could feel the power rapidly increasing within his body.


    Long Chenughed, stood up and opened his palm. He found that the image of a Thunder me Crystal had appeared at the centre of his palm, though there was a small difference- it was crimson.


    Long Chen knew that this was the symbol of a Thunder me Cultivator. He now had another identity on top of being a dragon cultivator; he was a Thunder me Cultivator!


    A Thunder me Cultivator had arge quantity of real Qi, and had very resilient flesh. Long Chen only had a level 1 Thunder me Physique, but the effects could be even better than Profound, middle-grade Body Refining battle techniques!


    It must be noted that Profound, middle-grade Body Refining battle techniques were quite rare. Long Chen¡¯s Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist hade from that mysterious metallic tile, and his profound middle-grade constitution battle technique hade from the Origin Reverting fruit.


    In the entire green faction, the reward given to the most outstanding cultivator at the Human Dan Realm was only a profound, middle-grade spirit sword and battle technique. This implied the preciousness of profound middle-grade objects!


    Long Chen had only just entered the Human Dan Realm, and he now basically possessed three types of battle techniques, mainly offensive, refining and constitution type techniques, and all of them were extraordinary!


    ¡°Long Chen, have you be a Thunder me Cultivator?¡±


    Lingxi was overjoyed and quickly went in circles around Long Chen, constantly prodding at his body.


    Long Chen had now dispelled his Dragon Soul Transformation, and was in his most harmless state.


    Come to think of it, Long Chen still had some concerns regarding his Dragon Soul Transformation. He was thought to be a Beast Warrior, and now that he was in the Human Dan Realm, he obviously needed to refine a new beast spirit.


    Long Chen¡¯s transformation gave people the feeling that he was still using the spirit of a huang-grade beast, which implied that Long Chen had yet to kill a profound-grade beast!


    However, Long Chen was not going to think about this for now. Now that he was a Thunder me Cultivator, he could rx.


    With this amount of strength, he might not be able to contend against Feng Wutian, but surviving was something that was extremely easy!


    ¡°Hm, aren¡¯t I great now that I have the Thunder me Physique, Little Xi?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so proud of himself, Lingxi spoke with disdain, ¡°Tsk, back in the day, I was more powerful than you by ten thousand times! Only an idiot like you would be so proud despite achieving so little. Don¡¯t celebrate too soon!¡±


    In her heart, she actually understood that with the environment Long Chen was in and possessing so little resources, it was amazing to be able to reach this stage in such a short period of time.


    At the very least, it was much more difficult than it had been for her to reach this level of strength.


    Inside her heart, she was in awe of Long Chen, but she was definitely unable to say this aloud.


    ¡°If I praise him just a little, he¡¯s going to be so proud that his nose is going to point so high in the air.¡±


    Lingxi thought to herself.


    Long Chen calcted and found that only four days had passed since he had entered the Sky Martial Realm.


    ¡°I wonder if that bunch of idiots have found the heart-corrosive beast yet. There¡¯s still a lot of time, and I haven¡¯t used my Blood Transmuted Qi in a long time. It¡¯s a good opportunity for me to go out there and take a look, and maybe even kill a few beasts!¡±


    After leaving his hiding spot, Long Chen came to a valley. This valley was narrow and long, and there were dark forests everywhere. There was a very massive aura hidden in the deepest part of the forest.


    While strolling in the Sky Martial Realm, Long Chen met numerous beasts, and the least powerful one was at the first level of the Profound grade. There was not even a single huang-grade beast here.


    ¡°If utilised properly, this Sky Martial Realm is basically heaven for me¡­¡±


    Long Chen sighed to himself, and gradually entered the deeper parts of the forest. With Lingxi guiding him, Long Chen quickly met a few beasts that were in a group.


    ¡°This is the Large Devil Ape and is at the first level of the Profound grade. Its advantage is in its amazing strength and is a very good match for you.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Long Chen looked at the few Large Devil Apes that were roaring and chasing after him.


    They were almost three metres tall and had dark furs all over their bodies. Their flesh was as hard as rock.


    ¡°You pass! You¡¯ll be my food for today!¡±


    Having said this, Long Chen roared towards the apes and charged.


    After the increase in his strength, his power was iparably strongerpared to the Large Devil Ape despite being in the same realm. They were not his match and in less than fifteen minutes, they had all turned into corpses.


    Long Chen used his Blood Transmuted Qi and refined them, but immediately after, he furrowed his brows.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, did you make a breakthrough?¡± Lingxi asked in concern.


    Long Chen shook his head.


    ¡°No. I think it¡¯s only a first level profound grade beast, and its blood essence is useless to me. I need to find a beast of a higher level. I believe no matter how many first level beasts I find, there won¡¯t be any effect.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true. While you were at the fifth Dragon Vein, you swallowed a seventh level Huang grade Underground Blood Lizard king. When you were at the eighth Dragon Vein, you swallowed a first level profound grade beast, the Blue-Eyed Snow Lion.¡±


    At this point, Long Chen had retrieved the demonic cores of the Large Devil Apes and taken out four transparent beads.


    ¡°Their demonic cores and beast spirits can be exchanged for contribution points. I can¡¯t waste them.¡±


    Seeing the transparent beads in Long Chen¡¯s hands, Lingxi asked, ¡°When did you bring the Spirit Congealing Beads? Why didn¡¯t I see it?¡±


    ¡°When I want to bring something, do I have to report everything to you?¡±


    Heughed, and used the Spirit Congealing Bead and extracted the beast spirits.


    This Spirit Congealing Bead had a powerful suction force that was used on dead beast spirits. These spirits had to exist in the beads, or else they would dissipate.


    ¡°Long Chen, tell me this. Do I seem like these beast spirits trapped in the Spirit Congealing Beads?¡±


    At this, Lingxi voice was fuelled with sorrow.


    Long Chen was startled, ¡°You fool! What are you saying? You¡¯re ten thousand times cuter than these beasts. Don¡¯tpare yourself to them. It¡¯s not as if you¡¯ll be stuck in that sword forever.¡±


    In actuality, the Lingxi sword was an item that was mysterious to the extreme. Long Chen knew that Lingxi must have been extremely powerful then, but even she had been unable to withstand this sword. It was definitely treasure, just that whether it was Lingxi or Long Chen, neither of them had found the secret to the sword yet.


    As for the name, the ¡°Lingxi sword¡±, this was purely something she had made up for fun.


    After congealing the beast spirits, Long Chen began to find his next target. In a day, he killed quite a few level 2 profound grade beasts and gained many useful items.


    ¡°I¡¯m really going to strike it rich! Little Xi, calcte this for me. How many contribution points can I get from this?¡±


    ¡°Demonic cores and beast spirits can be sold to Martial Families. The level one profound grade beasts can be exchanged for around two to three contribution points, while level 2 beasts can be exchanged for around 10 points.¡±


    While at the Lingwu Family, Lingxi would asionally poke around Long Chen¡¯s room and look at some books regarding the Lingwu Family. She probably knew more than Long Chen did about the Lingwu Family.


    ¡°Does that mean my contribution points total more than 50?¡±


    He was rich again! Like a newly rich person, Long Chen was overjoyed.


    However, though he had used the Blood Transmuted Qi on a few level 2 profound grade beasts, it was a pity that they were not much use to Long Chen. Though there were quite a few of them, it was not enough for Long Chen to enter the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm.


    ¡°I wonder if the search for the Zenith Crystal Sword is over yet. Lingqing learnt the Seven Hallucinatory Sword sh, and if possible, once she¡¯s at the Deity Dan Realm, I can probably give her the ¡°Way of the Zenith Crystal Sword¡±. As a brother, I really must work harder.¡±


    ¡°However, before that, I need to find a level 3 profound grade beast. I don¡¯t believe a level 3 profound grade beast more powerful than a beast at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm isn¡¯t enough for me to rank up!¡±

 Chapter 108 – Scarlet Flamed Suan Beast

    In the Human Dan Realm, level 1 Profound grade beasts were everywhere. There was the asional level 2 Profound grade beast, but when it came to level 3 Profound grade beasts, they were nowhere to be found.


    These beasts were situated at different zones. Long Chen was now in an area where there were few beasts, and he thus had no choice but to change his location and head in the direction that Lingxi pointed.


    While moving, Long Chen did not see any teams.


    ¡°The Sky Martial Realm is now being held by the Green Faction. Within the Human Dan Realm, there shouldn¡¯t be anyone from other factions. This is a veryrge area where there are only eight teams around, so it¡¯s not unusual not to see any of them.¡±


    ¡°This implies that the Heart-Corrosive Beast hasn¡¯t been found yet. If not, the Sky Martial Realm Competition would have concluded earlier, allowing those from other factions to enter this realm. When that happens, I¡¯ll see more people from other factions.¡±


    The Sky Martial Realm was about the size of the Lingwu City, and Long Chen resided in a small area within the Lingwu City.


    After walking for about half a day, Long Chen arrived at a barren sand dune. Here, forests and nts were sparse, and there were only a few cacti growing in this area where water was scarce.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a Sky Martial Realm but it has forests and even a desert.¡±


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t help but praise.


    After exploring this desert for a period of time, Long Chen felt his surroundings growing increasingly hotter, and he asked, ¡°Little Xi, there shouldn¡¯t be beasts here, right? Even if there are, they wouldn¡¯t be level 3 Profound-grade beasts.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s walk further and see how things go.¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s request in mind, Long Chen had no choice but to proceed further. Not long after, the sandy area ahead suddenly caved in, and Lingxi quickly had him stop.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    There was a hint of excitement in Lingxi¡¯s voice as she whispered, ¡°Deep in the sand there, there¡¯s a beast crawling. It¡¯s probably sunbathing and cultivating at the same time.¡±


    Long Chen advanced, and after walking for a long while,id on the ground, and nced at the area where the sand had caved in. Immediately after, a sh of excitement glinted in his eyes.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this¡­ the level 3 Profound-grade Scarlet med Suan Beast?¡±


    The beast at the bottom looked like arge lion. This Scarlet med Suan Beast was about ten metres long. If it were to actually stand up, it would be about as tall as a house.


    Its fur was a gold colour, and the fur at its neck was even more dense, causing it to look majestic. The one thing that could make anyone get scared witless was the dim red mes on its fur, and its two eyes which were like two bundles of mes the size of antern.


    ¡°It really is the Scarlet med Suan Beast! Even amongst the third level Profound grade beasts, this Suan Beast is a very powerful existence.¡±


    Long Chen guessed.


    ¡°This beast is probably at the same level as Feng Wutian. Looks like I can use you to measure the durability of my Thunder me Physique!¡±


    After making his mind, a boundless fighting spirit exploded forth.


    While dealing with the level 2 Profound grade beast, he hadn¡¯t needed to use Dragon Soul Transformation. However, with this strong enemy, the Scarlet med Suan Beast, he really had to be in his most powerful form.


    Perfect dragon scales and spurs appeared on his body. Now that he was a Thunder me Cultivator, crimson lightning and mes winked in and out of existence around his body, a frightening power erupting.


    The pattern of the crimson Thunder me Crystal was the opening where the force of lightning and mes in his body connected with his own might.


    ¡°The strength I have now is now a lot more powerful than before. With just the durability of my body, I should be able to take care of someone at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. On top of that, my Dragon Qi has the force of lightning and mes¡­¡±


    Long Chen was confident that he could deal with this Scarlet med Suan Beast.


    After Long Chenpleted his Dragon Soul Transformation and appeared a distance away from the Suan Beast, it finally noticed him!


    It had been getting some rest, but upon noticing this little fellow brazenly entering its territory, it was instantly enraged.


    In this region, it was basically a king. To think there was a nameless little thing that dared to offend it! It quickly got up, towering above Long Chen and staring hard at him, mes of ire soaring from its body.


    Though Long Chen was small, there was a strange quality about his body that caused the Suan Beast to feel a sense of fear.


    Lions were usually the rulers, the kings, but Long Chen seemed to possess more of this aura and quality.


    *Roar!*


    With arge bellow of rage, the Scarlet med Suan Beast crawled on the ground, speed suddenly increasing. Tremendous bloodthirstiness was aimed at Long Chen, who was charging forth, and these two bodies, one a human and one a beast with arge difference in size, collided mid-air. That enormous power from mes was like a hurricane as it whirled towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Now that I have the Thunder me Physique, do you think I¡¯m afraid of these mes?¡±


    With a sneer, Long Chen rushed into the sea of mes, and an attack that was like a storm flew towards the Scarlet med Suan Beast!


    With the Thunder me Physique and the added bonus from Dragon Qi, Long Chen suddenly released an attack.


    ¡°Seal of the High Profound Dragon!¡±


    All of a sudden, the phantom of an ancient dragon surged up violently and attacked the Suan Beast. Upon seeing Long Chen actually charging into its mes, the Suan Beast was astonished, but it was not enough to cause it fear. However, Long Chen¡¯s attack, the Seal of the High Profound Dragon, caused its heart to sink.


    The Seal of the High Profound Dragon actually had intense crimson lightning breaking out within, and crimson mes zed on the phantom of the crimson ancient dragon. Even the Scarlet med Suan Beast did not dare let its guard down in the face of such a terrifying attack!


    *Roar!*


    It snarled loudly, and the Suan Beast opened its huge mouth. A scarlet fireball with a diameter of more than a metre long was like a hurricane as it approached Long Chen¡¯s Seal of the High Profound Dragon!


    *Rumble!*


    The Seal of the High Profound Dragon collided with therge fireball, and this sh caused tremors to form, sand and rocks flying, and smoke and dust filling the sky!


    ¡°This is merely a scarlet fireball and it can actually wipe out my Seal of the High Profound Dragon? As expected, it isn¡¯t so easy to deal with!¡±


    In terms of quantity, Long Chen possessed lesser real Qi than the demonic power the Scarlet med Suan Beast had. However, he had the upper hand in terms of abilities, which was how their battle power was simr!


    Long Chen had realised that this Scarlet med Suan Beast was the most powerful opponent he had ever seen.


    ¡°These demonic beasts have trained and developed techniques through generations of battles. Just a simple attack has the might of a battle technique, and that huge scarlet fireball by the Scarlet med Suan Beast must be one of the unique techniques it is proficient in!¡±


    The Seal of the High Profound Dragon actually had a bonus of the force from lightning and mes, and yet it had been wiped out just like that. Long Chen was not discouraged and, like a red tornado, charged towards the Suan Beast!


    In terms of agility, this little thing seemed to be several times quicker than the Suan Beast itself, and it was rmed at this thought. It immediately snarled, scarlet fireballs rising one after another, and at least ten bundles of fire flew in Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    Long Chen was shocked and quickly used the Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, his nimble body turning into afterimages as he dodged from the sides of the fireballs. The heat from the mes did cause him some harm, but this was not enough to affect him!


    Long Chen was unable to avoid the veryst scarlet fireball, and he had no choice but to use the Seal of the High Profound Dragon here!


    *Rumble!*


    The scarlet fireball burst, and Long Chen waved off the smoke and pierced towards the Scarlet med Suan Beast like an arrow.


    Demonic beasts had bodies that were typically quite powerful. Compared to cultivators who had trained and tempered their bodies, these beasts¡¯ bodies were even more durable. The Suan Beast was furious that Long Chen had actually gotten so close to its body, and it pped its ws that were stronger than steel towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen was not to be outdone. However, immediately after shing with the scarlet fireball, he was met with the attack from the ws, which made him feel a little suffocated.


    ¡°My Thunder me Physique isn¡¯t afraid of something like you!¡±


    A fist and a w collided with a rumble, and the tremors were so strong that the human and beast were both pushed backwards. What surprised the Suan Beast was that Long Chen, who was but a small thing, had actually been able to block its ws with just the power of his body.


    This enraged the Scarlet med Suan Beast further!


    *Roar!*


    Its huge body pounced towards Long Chen!


    ¡°You¡¯re so heavy and clumsy, and you still want to do a close-ranged battle with me?¡±


    Long Chenughed sarcastically, disying his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, leaping away from under his opponent¡¯s body. The Suan Beast¡¯s body of mes was really making him feel quite ufortable.


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist has a fire attribute, and my real Qi also has the power of mes. I wonder how powerful this attack will be if I use it?¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen dodged the furious attacks from his opponent and made preparations to attack using the Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist.


    ¡°I¡¯m creating quite a ruckus while battling with it. Looks like it¡¯s time tond the final attack!¡±


    Only after battling with the Scarlet med Suan Beast could Long Chen tell how powerful the Thunder me Physique was. Of course, this also included the power of lightning and mes in his real Qi. It must be noted that the body and demonic power of the Scarlet med Suan Beast was extremely tyrannical, even amongst third level Profound grade demonic beasts.


    In terms of his body and real Qi, it was extremely difficult to be at the same level as the Suan Beast, considering he had only just entered the Human Dan Realm.


    The scarlet fireballs seemed to be inexhaustible, and the aftereffects of the attacks caused ashes to fly everywhere, almost affecting Long Chen¡¯s sight. Long Chen stayed close to the body of the Scarlet med Suan Beast, preventing it fromunching more attacks.


    ¡°This ends now, Scarlet med Suan Beast!¡±


    This time, Long Chen jumped away from under its body, and the Scarlet med Suan Beast focused its attention on his figure. Immediately after, seven to eight scarlet fireballs appeared.


    At this moment, Long Chen¡¯s figure was burning with crimson mes, and on his fist, a crimson bundle of fire was rapidly taking shape. When the Suan Beast released its scarlet fireballs, Long Chen punched forward with a shout.


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, crimson mes that burn the heavens!¡±


    A crimson imprint of a fist made of fire wasunched, and there seemed to be a human face in the middle of the fist.


    Therge fiery fist smashed the scarlet fireballs of the Scarlet med Suan Beast to smithereens, and struck the entire head of the Suan Beast.


    *Rumble!*

 Chapter 109 – Initial Mastery Stage at the Human Dan Realm!

    Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist struck the Scarlet ming Suan Beast head on, and that tumultuous strength smashed its skull!


    The Scarlet med Suan Beast gave an earth-shattering howl, and itsrge body copsed to the ground. The whole ruckus here thus ended.


    Long Chen was extremely emotional having killed this Suan Beast. He quickly retrieved a scarlet demonic core the size of a fist from its brain, and then collected its beast spirit using a Spirit Congealing Bead.


    ¡°I must really have struck gold having these two items.¡±


    The Scarlet med Suan Beast was a demonic beast at the third level of the Profound grade. The demonic core and beast spirit would be able to be exchanged for arge amount of contribution points.


    Long Chen was now afraid to go to the Daybreak Merchants¡¯ Union. With his current Thunder me Physique, things would be troublesome if he were to be discovered. He could only go to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion and exchange for items there, and what he needed was contribution points!


    While refining the beast spirit, Long Chen was nning to use Blood Transmuted Qi on the Suan Beast, but at this moment, a group of people appeared in his line of sight, charging in Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    Long Chen knew that his battle with the Scarlet med Suan Beast had caused argemotion, which resulted in all these people rushing here. They were all the cream of the crop, and their speed was naturally very fast. Just after Long Chen had refined the beast spirit, there were already three young men who were almost twenty years old surrounding him.


    The others rushed over in quick session.


    Upon seeing Long Chen, they were stunned. They all had no idea which hall Long Chen hade from.


    The three young men who had first arrived were actually experts at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    They were so young, and yet already had such a high ranking, which proved they were truly geniuses. Long Chen ced the Spirit Congealing Bead into his cosmos pouch, a half-smile on his face, ¡°From the way you¡¯re looking at me, could it be that all of you think I¡¯m extremely charming and are now bewitched by me?¡±


    The three young men were stunned, and one of them coldly spoke, ¡°Which hall are you from? Why have I never seen you before?¡±


    ¡°That should be my question. Who are all of you, and why have I never seen you before?¡±


    While in the Sky Martial Hall, Long Chen had actually seen them before, but did not know which hall they were from.


    ¡°We are from the Green Piercing Hall. Kid, tell me, did you kill this Scarlet med Suan Beast?¡±


    Long Chen was now in his Dragon Soul Transformation state and now had the aura of a king. Of course, he also had a malicious aura, but in their eyes, Long Chen did not seem to be powerful enough to kill the Suan Beast.


    ¡°What are you saying?¡± Long Chen teased them, ¡°How could I have killed such arge beast? Finder keepers okay, the beast spirit and demonic core are all mine. Are you trying to rob me?¡±


    The three experts from the Green Piercing Hall nced at each other, and the desire was apparent in their eyes. Though they were a little suspicious of Long Chen¡¯sck of fear towards them, this did nothing to extinguish the greed in their hearts.


    ¡°Go!¡±


    The three of them acted immediately, attacking Long Chen from all sides.


    ¡°So they really want to rob me?¡±


    From the moment they appeared, Long Chen knew that they coveted the corpse of the Scarlet med Suan Beast. In their eyes, Long Chen was just a disciple who hade across this treasure by chance and would be easily taken care of.


    The three of them were experts who were at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm. Though none of them were a match for the Suan Beast, theirbined battle power when they worked together was even stronger than that of the Scarlet med Suan Beast.


    However, Long Chen had no ns to sh with them. All of a sudden, Long Chen made a hole in the chest of the Suan Beast and escaped!


    That heavy Suan Beast actually began to move at a high speed!


    ¡°Escaping?¡±


    The faces of these three young experts changed, and they began to chase after Long Chen. The movement of the corpse of the Suan Beast was not as fast as them, but while they were chasing, they seemed to be able to see the corpse slowly decaying¡­?


    In the blink of an eye, the Suan Beast began to dry up, and the three were shocked.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why did this happen?¡±


    They dashed forward, grabbing towards the dried up body of the Suan Beast. At this moment, the body suddenly exploded, blood and flesh flying everywhere, and out of all this, thergest piece of meat smashed into the three young experts!


    The seemingly harmless piece of flesh still possessed a lot of force, and the three were forced to halt.


    At this moment, crimson light filled the sky and Long Chen, who had disappeared just now, appeared in front of them. However, his eyes were now even redder and his gaze was firmer. It seemed like he was even more powerful.


    ¡°Kid, you¡¯re finally showing your face? Hand over the Scarlet med Suan Beast¡¯s demonic core and beast spirit, and I¡¯ll reward you by not killing you!¡±


    Long Chen paid no heed to his words,ughing slightly.


    At this point, the blood that was boiling in his body had been suppressed. The Human Dan at his dantian had shrunk in size, bing more solid.


    If the Human Dan from before was a size of 9, it was currently 8. Long Chen knew that as long as he persevered on, it would decrease in size and, by the time he was at the perfect mastery stage of the Heaven Dan Realm, it would be the size of a bean.


    The cultivation at the Human Dan Realm would result in there being more real Qi, meant to attack the Human, Earth or Heaven Dan at the dantian. The Human Dan would then be tempered and be more solid, and when there was enough real Qi to attack it, Long Chen could go up a rank.


    Previously, he had been stuck at the entrance of the Human Dan Realm. After refining countless level 2 Profound grade demonic beasts, he had umted enough Qi such that he was not far from the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. After refining the essence of the Scarlet med Suan Beast, he had gained arge amount of crimson real Qi which charged at his dantian, causing his Human Dan to be even more solid. This allowed him to advance to the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Long Chen¡¯s real Qi had thus increased in quantity by many times!


    ¡°Is this the power at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm?¡±


    Previously, when he had just entered the Human Dan Realm, he was already able to kill a level 3 Profound grade Scarlet med Suan Beast. Now, with an increase in his power, Long Chen could now disregard the people in front of him.


    ¡°I wonder what kind of surprise I¡¯ll give Feng Wutian when I fight him next!¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen was very excited.


    He had entered the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm, and had sessfully be a Thunder me cultivator. His goal ining to the Sky Martial Realm had been reached. Next was to see if he was able to obtain the Zenith Crystal Sword for Yang Lingqing, and that battle technique, ¡®Way of the Zenith Crystal Sword¡¯.


    In the eyes of the three young men at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, Long Chen seemed to have suddenly gotten stronger, but he was still merely at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    Any one of them could easily kill Long Chen. However, during thispetition, rtives and elders had warned that they were not to create arge conflict, and it was best not to kill anyone.


    Hence, one of the experts spoke coldly, ¡°Kid, I¡¯ll give you onest chance. If you still don¡¯t listen, you can¡¯t me us if you die!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll count to three. After three, we won¡¯t care about how we¡¯re all part of the Lingwu Family. We won¡¯t be lenient if you don¡¯t hand over the demonic core and Spirit Congealing Bead!¡±


    Feeling the surge of power in his body that had reached the limits, to the point that it did not feel like his own, Long Chen had the urge to try it out.


    ¡°Just see if I don¡¯t beat you three fools until you¡¯re crawling and looking for your teeth!¡±


    Long Chen eximed unhurriedly, and the three of them were hopping mad in answer. They were about to make their move, but all of a sudden, fireworks bloomed in the air, and a loud rumble was heard. The three experts were stunned, but immediately nced at each other, ¡°The Heart Corrosive demonic beast has appeared!¡±


    ¡°What should we do?¡±


    They should rush there with the fastest speed they could muster, but Long Chen¡­


    They knew their priorities. Long Chen had offended them, but as long as they were all in the Lingwu Family, there were definitely opportunities to seek revenge. Hence, they quickly made their choice to lead the disciples in their hall and rushed in the direction where the fireworks had been set off.


    ¡°Everyone, follow me!¡±


    After ring at Long Chen, the three from the Green Piercing Hall ran ahead.


    Everyone else from the Green Piercing Hall was mostly at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm and rushed to follow them at the fastest speed they could. There was one youngster who had just entered the Human Dan Realm and was merely around thirteen years old. Unfortunately, he was left behind by the others.


    He restrained his tears and tried to match the pace of therge group, but with the appearance of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, who would bother with him? He was thus left far behind.


    ¡°Is the Heart Corrosive demonic beast appearing now? I guess I should go there and have a look.¡±


    At this thought, Long Chenughed and quickly ran alongside the youngster from the Green Piercing Hall. The youngster was shocked to see Long Chen, and tried to intimidate him, ¡°Don¡¯t even think about attacking me. My Senior Brother Li, Senior Brother Zhang and Senior Brother Wang will take care of you!¡±


    ¡°Do you mean those three who wanted to steal my stuff?¡± Long Chenughed, not feeling the least bit intimidated.


    ¡°What rubbish! They want what you have because you¡¯re not strong enough and aren¡¯t qualified to have it!¡± This youngster spoke righteously.


    ¡°Really? Then do you believe that I can keep your three senior brothers here such that they won¡¯t be able to see the Heart Corrosive demonic beast?¡±


    The youngster was dazed at that, and then sneered, ¡°Are you dreaming? My three senior brothers are experts of the Green Piercing Hall at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm. With just your pitiful skills, you actually dare brag like that?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not bragging. You¡¯ll see¡­¡±


    Long Chenughed, and under the stunned gaze of the youngster, his speed increased by over a hundred times, overtaking an expert at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm. Like a gust of wind, he charged to the front of the group!

 Chapter 110 – Heart Corrosive Demonic Beast!

    ¡°How- How is he so fast!¡±


    The boy at the back of the group was stunned.


    He hurriedly rubbed his eyes, and what he really did see was Long Chen, who had already dashed to the frontmost of the group.


    The experts at the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm that had been surpassed by Long Chen had the same expression as the boy. Senior Brother Li, Senior Brother Wang and Senior Brother Zhang had also noticed Long Chen.


    Just like the others, they were extremely shocked. As the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was now their top priority, they were at their fastest speed. How had Long Chen been able to catch up to them?


    ¡°Kid, you¡¯re looking to die bying here!¡±


    Senior Brother Zhang, who was the furthest back, sneered at Long Chen while still hastening ahead. He had thought that this would scare Long Chen off, but unexpectedly, Long Chen still had an evil grin and pounced towards him!


    This speed cause Senior Brother Zhang¡¯s expression to change!


    Real Qi surged in Long Chen¡¯s body, turning into crimson mes that zed about his body. mes had already formed at Long Chen¡¯s fist.


    With Long Chen¡¯s Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, he seemed like a phantom as he charged to Senior Brother Zhang¡¯s side. That explosive aura from Long Chen¡¯s fist caused Senior Brother Zhang much fear. He couldn¡¯t be bothered to think anymore, gritted his teeth and used his most powerful technique to counter Long Chen¡¯s attack!


    ¡°Surging Tide of the Angered Sea!¡±


    ¡°¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Crimson mes zing Heavens!¡±


    *Rumble!*


    The two who were advancing at a rapid pace mmed into each other with a loud rumble, causing an explosion in the air. Everyone behind them was stunned. Senior Brother Zhang, who had been running in front, had been overtaken by Long Chen and sent flying with a punch. His clothes were now burning fiercely, a mouthful of blood shooting into the clouds.


    ¡°Senior Brother Zhang!¡±


    ¡°Old Zhang!¡±


    To everyone trying their best to keep up, this scene was spectacr. This was especially so for that boy whose legs were still moving subconsciously despite his bewilderment.


    ¡°Was- Was he for real when he said he was going to teach our three Senior Brothers a lesson?¡±


    ¡°That can¡¯t be. They¡¯ve never lost before¡­¡±


    Even though he could not believe it at all, the truth was right in front of him. At the sight of the crimson figure in front, the boy lost all hope.


    Senior Brother Zhang was beaten up, and nobody knew if he was still alive or dead. Those who were dashing forward quickly went to help Senior Brother Zhang, who had copsed. Meanwhile, Long Chen¡¯s first attack was sessful and he decided to use it again. While using the same ¡®Crimson mes zing Heavens¡¯ move of the Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, he pounced towards Senior Brother Wang.


    ¡°Senior Brother Wang, be careful!¡±


    Just after this had been shouted, the enraged Senior Brother Wang used his most powerful attack and shed with Long Chen. Time seemed to turn back and, yet again, another figure was sent flying while spitting out blood. Everyone took a closer look, finding that the person in this terrible situation was their Senior Brother Wang.


    ¡°It can¡¯t be!¡±


    At this moment, Senior Brother Li who was running at the very front could not believe this. The others were now numb to the sight, having seen this scene twice already. Senior Brother Li was the leader of their team and also the strongest. Hence, everyone nced at him, pinning theirst hopes on him.


    Senior Brother Li was still heading in the direction of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, and upon turning back, he was met with the sight of Zhang and Wang in a terrible state. Long Chen was now advancing in his direction, and that malicious grin caused shivers to go down Senior Brother Li¡¯s spine.


    ¡°Goodness, what kind of freak is he? What bad luck I have today. What did I do to provoke him?¡±


    Senior Brother Li hadpletely lost his will to fight. Seeing Long Chen approaching, he quickly stretched his feet and broke out his fastest speed, fleeing!


    Seeing that even their strongest Senior Brother Li was escaping, everyone stopped and exchanged nces, astonishment apparent in their eyes. That boy at the back had his eyes so wide they were on the verge of falling out at the sight of Senior Brother Wang and Zhang¡¯s injuries.


    ¡°Just- Just who is he?¡±


    Theirst hope, Senior Brother Li, was escaping like his life depended on it, yelling desperately as he ran, ¡°Who exactly are you? Which hall are you from? There is no enmity between us and you¡¯ve already harmed two of my people. Are you still not satisfied?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean there¡¯s no enmity between us? You wanted to steal something from me just now.¡±


    ¡°I just said that in passing. Could you- Could you forgive me? Our Green Piercing Hall will withdraw from the contest for the Zenith Crystal Sword. Is that enough?¡±


    While saying this, he could feel Long Chen¡¯s deadly aura approaching himself step by step. Senior Brother Li was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.


    ¡°What does it matter to me whether you withdraw or not?¡±


    Senior Brother Li was now merely two to three metres away from Long Chen. Seeing the perky butt Senior Brother Li had moving from side to side, the gears in Long Chen¡¯s mind began to turn, and he quickly flitted past Li¡¯s body and disappeared.


    Senior Brother Li was now bewildered. In the time he had been in a daze, Long Chen had disappeared.


    ¡°Why? Why didn¡¯t he hurt me?¡±


    Senior Brother Li¡¯s expression disyed his confusion, and he slowly turned back to face the front, his mind drawing a nk. No matter how much he wondered, he couldn¡¯t understand the reason why Long Chen had let him off.


    ¡°Is he afraid of Green Piercing Hall?¡±


    At this thought, Senior Brother Li finally had an exnation and quickly walked to the front of the other disciples. However, they were all staring at him in shock, and he was startled, ¡°What¡¯s with that look on your faces?¡±


    ¡°Senior- Senior Brother Li, you, you don¡¯t have¡­ any clothes on.¡±


    Senior Brother Li looked down, and then produced an ear-piercing shriek.


    Apparently, while Long Chen had flitted past him, Long Chen had pulled off his clothes in a practised manner¡­


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­


    ¡°The Heart Corrosive demonic beast is a Profound grade level 4 beast. Though it doesn¡¯t specialise in offensive attacks, it has this skill called ¡°Heart Corrosion¡±. It can affect a person¡¯s willpower, and is not any ordinary technique.¡±


    Long Chen recalled memories regarding the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.


    ¡°Long Chen, you actually did that to Senior Brother Li. Do you- do you like men¡­?¡±


    Lingxi asked in a low voice from the Lingxi Sword, at a loss.


    Long Chen was now in cold sweat, twitching his lip as he spoke nonchntly, ¡°Girl, when I peel the clothes off your skin and push you down onto the bed, you¡¯ll know whether I like men or women.¡±


    ¡°You- You hoodlum!¡±


    Amidst theughter and curses, Long Chen could feel the auras of multiple people in the forest ahead.


    This region waspletely different from the sand dune.


    The earth here was ck and more fertile. Hence, there were many tall trees that formed a forest, little hills and rocks in a disarray, all of this creating aplicated terrain. Long Chen entered this forest, along with many others.


    Long Chen could hide his footprints, and thus, not many people saw him. Soon enough, Long Chen sensed a very dignified and mysterious aura lying in wait deep within the forest.


    ¡°This forest is very dark and wet, and the Heart Corrosive demonic beast is one of the dark element. It will naturally hide itself here, and is the direct opposite of the Scarlet med Suan Beast.¡±


    Following the aura, Long Chen quickly advanced and an open space appeared in front of him. Long Chen concealed himself behind a tall tree, observing the situation.


    At this moment, there were many people entering from all sides and were surrounding the pure ck demonic beast.


    ¡°Is this the Heart Corrosive demonic beast?¡±


    This demonic beast was a little smaller than the Scarlet med Suan Beast. It was four-legged and ck from head to toe. There were strange crimson patterns on its fur, forming a symbol that looked like a rune. What stood out the most were its blood-red eyes that were like a fog. If they were stared into closely, one would be lost in those eyes, unable to extricate oneself from them.


    This demonic beast was somewhat like a wolf or a dog, with a long snout and four sharp ws. Its tail was like a ponytail filled with thorns and held up high, and seemed to hold within a very powerful attack.


    ¡°As expected, this Heart Corrosive demonic beast is much stronger than the Scarlet med Suan Beast.¡±


    Meanwhile, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was being surrounded by so many people and was gradually bing enraged. However, amongst all these people, there were a few that struck fear in its heart, which was why it had yet to make its move.


    This Heart Corrosive demonic beast¡¯s intellect was a lot higher than that of the Suan Beast.


    At the back of the crowd, there were a few experts. By this time, the experts of all the other seven halls had arrived.


    The only hall that was not here was the Green Piercing Hall. There were some who wondered why the Green Piercing Hall had not arrived, but nobody really cared.


    Not counting the Green Piercing Hall, the people who were going to be useful in battle were only people at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Out of the hundred or so people around, there were only around ten who met this requirement. As for the cultivators who were at the peak of the Human Dan Realm like Feng Wutian, only Chu Yunyao was his equal.


    The others who were at the perfect mastery stage were almost as powerful, butpared to these two people, there was still arge gap between them. Currently, Feng Wutian and Chu Yunyao were standing in front and behind the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, deterring it.


    Long Chen chanced a nce at Feng Wutian who was extremely high-spirited, and a sneer raised on his lips.


    ¡°You can be all impressive now, but when I make my move, you¡¯re gonna be in trouble.¡±


    He found Liu Ling in the crowd. Quite a few days had passed, and Liu Ling still looked the same, her beautiful eyes nervously fixed on Feng Wutian.


    ¡°I wonder if that huge bloodied handprint on her buttocks has disappeared yet¡­¡±


    Long Chen wondered tedly, before turning his focus to Chu Yunyao.


    ¡°Though this girl is still young, she has a very mature temperament and is very charming. If not for Lingxi watching, I¡¯d definitely put my hands on her!¡±


    Just as he was fantasizing, Lingxi suddenly asked, ¡°What kind of evil n are you hatching up?¡±


    Long Chen was startled and immediately sighed, ¡°I was just thinking. Why is it that they¡¯re also females, yet my Lingxi is so pretty and they¡¯re so ugly?¡±


    At this moment, the Heart Corrosive Monster finally could not hold it anymore and decided to attack.

 Chapter 111 – Vermillion Bird Law

    ¡°In the past, I usually charge straight to the frontlines. This time, I¡¯ll let you all go first, and when you¡¯ve almost seeded, I¡¯ll stick in, finish this off and infuriate you!¡±


    Long Chen had this n in mind and concealed himself, preparing to watch the show.


    Nobody here would think that there was an expert lying within their midst.


    Under the orders of their leaders, these cultivators at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm were retreating to the sides, leaving about a dozen behind. These were all experts at the perfect mastery stage.


    This number was more than enough to deal with the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.


    For them, killing the demonic beast was just one portion of the battle. After its death, there was the most important part- the contest over the Zenith Crystal Sword.


    After the death of the demonic beast, known, outstanding experts at the Human Dan Realm in the Green faction would then mercilessly ughter each other.


    This would be the start of a fierce battle!


    Even before Feng Wutian and Chu Yunyao made their move, a young cultivator at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm punched towards the Heart Corrosive demonic beast!


    This was evidently a basic profound-grade battle technique. In the hands of this expert, it was made use of in a very matured manner. The immense offensive power caused the demonic beast to let out a low roar.


    All of a sudden, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast turned into a ck afterimage and sped towards this cultivator at a speed ten times that which he had showed off.


    The speed caused Long Chen some shock.


    ¡°This is really a level 4 Profound grade demonic beast. With the speed it can go at, that fellow¡¯s done for¡­¡±


    Just as this thought shed through his mind, everyone present saw the person from earlier being run into by the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. He was extremely pale, and it was obvious that the collision had been extremely strong.


    This was merely an average charge from the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.


    At this scene, everyone¡¯s brows furrowed. All of a sudden, Chu Yunyao¡¯s clear voice suddenly sounded, ¡°Everyone, let us attack it from all sides. I doubt this beast can cope with our attacks!¡±


    Long Chen found that this young girl was adept at fanning the mes. The moment her voice rang out, all the experts at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm exchanged nces and then roared, sending out powerful attacks towards the demonic beast!


    Those ten or so magnificent attacks were extremely powerful. If Long Chen himself were to meet with this situation, he would definitely be injured. However, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was calm and unhurried.


    It coldly nced at this group of people. All of a sudden, a strange aura was emitted from its body, and with a long ferocious whistle, dense ck smoke was spat out from its mouth.


    This ck smoke was like a long snake, sweeping towards the people who were attacking it. Chu Yunyao¡¯s face changed, and she immediately eximed, ¡°Get away, it¡¯s the ¡®Heart Corrosive Demon¡¯!¡±


    Those who hade here were extremely knowledgeable regarding the Heart Corrosive Demon. They definitely knew about this signature attack and what it entailed.


    Everyone quickly retreated.


    Chu Yunyao¡¯s words, as well as the strength she possessed, had turned the Heart Corrosive demonic beast¡¯s attention her.


    Its scarlet eyes were trained on her, and in the next second, its body was like an arrow that had been released from a bow, pouncing towards her!


    In the face of this powerful iing attack, Chu Yunyao was calm. It was apparent that her mental strength was something Liu Ling could not bepared to.


    At this moment, the demonic beast used its ws. As these sharp ws were brandished, boundless ck rays attached to the ws. It was obviously an attackparable to a battle technique, and it did not seem to be weak at all.


    ¡°These must be the legendary Demonic ws of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.¡±


    Chu Yunyao¡¯s expression remained unchanged. Long Chen saw a pure-white item that was like white jade appearing in her hands. She lifted it, and shes from a sword closed in on the demonic beast!


    ¡°Pure Hearted Sword Shadow!¡±


    These glints were like a wave that hindered the Heart Corrosive demonic beast from moving. Upon seeing this attack, Long Chen¡¯s brows furrowed, ¡°This sword is probably a Spirit Sword that is at the basic profound-grade. I can¡¯t tell if I can deal with her attacks¡­¡±


    Long Chen had thought that he was the only one watching the battle from afar, but little did he know that on his left not too far away, eight people were watching while chatting andughing.


    ¡°Ms Yunyao¡¯s Pure Hearted Sword Shadow is already so practised to the point that it¡¯s almost perfect. In the Human Dan Realm, she¡¯s practically invincible.¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s bountiful chest bounced while she spoke, her beautiful eyes watching the battle.


    They were the leaders of the eight halls. They had not appeared at all in thepetition, and only when the Heart Corrosive demonic beast show up did they watch on from a distance. The other reason why they were there was so that they could deal with any idents.


    ¡°No, no, Enforcer Liu is off the mark. Feng Wutian of Green Sun Hall has the Vermillion Bird bloodline, which is something quite remarkable. He¡¯s also a little older than Ms Yunyao and holds even more battle experience. The champion almost certainly belongs to the Green Sun Hall.¡±


    ncing at the person who was speaking, she found that he was staring at her body passionately. Liu Lan gave a slight smile and did not bother with this person who was drooling at her body, and turned her attention to someone else, ¡°I wonder why nobody from the Green Piercing Hall is here yet?¡±


    That person looked around, and upon realising Liu Lan was speaking to him, pretended to be unperturbed. ¡°Those brats are probably a distance away. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll be here soon enough.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? I thought their n would be to wait till the battle ended and then arrive, reaping all the benefits after everyone here gets tired out from fighting.¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s words were an obvious provocation, causing the other to be stunned. However, if Chu Yunyao could be said to be the strongest at the Human Dan Realm, Liu Lan would definitely be the strongest at the Earth Dan Realm.


    He wasn¡¯t a match for Liu Lan and could only hold back the resentment and annoyance he was feeling.


    Meanwhile, everyone turned their focus to the field where the situation had slightly changed.


    Chu Yunyao¡¯s Pure Hearted Sword Shadow shed with the Demonic ws of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, causing a powerful explosion and prevented the beast from advancing forward.


    Chu Yunyao had already retreated, yelling to the rest, ¡°Everyone, let¡¯s do this together!¡±


    The Green Emperor Hall was the most powerful in the Green faction. In addition, Chu Yunyao was also the main force here, which was why everyone heeded her words.


    There were a few people here who were hoping that she would gain more injuries, such that when they vied for the Zenith Crystal Sword, they could take advantage of the situation. However, if she sustained too many injuries, they might just all lose their lives here, which defeated the whole purpose ofing here.


    Hence, everyone, including Feng Wutian, chose to go on the offensive.


    Long Chen knew that Feng Wutian was rather arrogant. When Chu Yunyao had stolen the limelight just now, Feng Wutian, who was another expert, was slightly annoyed.


    His power burst out, and red fiery phantom wings appeared on his back!


    Feng Wutian lightly pped his wings, bursting out in a speed that was iparable and overtook everyone. He punched the head of the demonic beast, creating a loud rumble.


    *Boom!*


    ¡°Awoo¡­¡±


    The Heart Corrosive demonic beast howled in pain and moved back, bloodstains on its forehead. Its fur had also been scorched by Feng Wutian¡¯s attack.


    This was the first time that the Heart Corrosive demonic beast had gotten hurt, thus evoking its anger. It had originally been focusing on Chu Yunyao, but when Feng Wutian had attacked it, its scarlet eyes had been trained on him.


    Feng Wutian knew the situation wasn¡¯t in his favour.


    Liu Ling, who was behind him, jumped for joy upon seeing Feng Wutian disying his prowess, being the first one to hurt the demonic beast, ¡°Brother Wutian, you¡¯re amazing!¡±


    At this point, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast had no eyes for anyone else. It was dying to make mincemeat out of the person who had injured it.


    Feng Wutian had also realised this and couldn¡¯t help but regret his actions. However, it was already toote. Hence, he gritted his teeth and charged towards the Heart Corrosive demonic beast!


    The ming wings at his back had be more prominent, and with the pping of the wings, Feng Wutian began to elerate at a low altitude, and while flying, his real Qi turned into a gush of mes that hissed beside him. Soon enough, it turned into a fiery bird in the palm of his hands!


    ¡°Vermillion Bird Law! Amassing Spirit Feathers!¡±


    Under his maniption, the fiery bird flew towards the Heart Corrosive demonic beast and exploded, turning into ming feathers that fell like raindrops towards the demonic beast.


    Seeing this attack that affected such arge area, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast howled, and its speed rapidly increased. It was actually able to zoom past most of the spirit feathers, and while running, it suddenly spat out a cloud of ck smoke, hurtling towards Feng Wutian!


    The surge of ck smoke definitely did not mean well for anything it made contact with. Seeing that the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was specifically targeting him, Feng Wutian couldn¡¯t help but feel a little gloomy. However, he had been the one to cause things to turn out this way, and all he could do now was to block against this attack!


    ¡°Everyone, please lend me some of your power!¡±


    While the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was focused on dealing with Feng Wutian, this was a great opportunity for everyone else!


    The Heart Corrosive demonic beast did not pay attention to attacks from everyone else, which meant that meanwhile, they could take this opportunity to kill the beast!


    After exchanging nces and recognising a simr fire in their eyes, Chu Yunyao led everyone and frantically rushed towards the Heart Corrosive demonic beast!


    What nobody noticed was the callousness in Chu Yunyao¡¯s gaze.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you can block against my intermediate profound-grade sword technique!¡±


    While the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was using its Heart Corrosive Toxic Smoke to deal with Feng Wutian, everyone had released their most powerful attacks against the beast, of which, Chu Yunyao¡¯s was the most terrifying!

 Chapter 112 – Way of the Zenith Crystal Sword

    Feng Wutian¡¯s attack had provoked the ire of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, causing it to disregard all other attacks and focus all its attention on him.


    Of course, this also had to do with the demonic beast underestimating everyone else. In its eyes, only two people were dangerous enough for its attention. One was Chu Yunyao, and the other was Feng Wutian, which it was now attacking. As long as it took care of these two people, the rest would then be minced meat in a second!


    Seeing the ck smoke of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast that was like a powerful current headed towards him, Feng Wutian did not dare linger. The ming wings on his back became even more intense, and reddish mes zed in his eyes.


    ¡°You bastard. Do you think I won¡¯t kill you?¡±


    Feng Wutian quickly formed a seal, and it was astonishingly much moreplex than Long Chen¡¯s own dragon seal. Hissing mes rapidly twisted around Feng Wutian, and there was even the cry of a godly bird being produced from within.


    ¡°Vermillion Bird Law. Fire Spirit Seal!¡±


    Having formed the seal, what pounced towards the Heart Corrosive Beast¡¯s demonic beast¡¯s ck smoke was a surge of mes!


    These mes transformed into a zing godly bird and then crashed into the ck smoke with a rumble, and even more concentrated ck smoke was ignited, soaring towards the sky.


    Not far away, one of the experts sighed in admiration, ¡°This spirit seal of Feng Wutian¡¯s was utilised quite aptly. It can even somewhat block this attack of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. Look, the beast is done for!¡±


    Liu Lan was also looking at Feng Wutian with excitement. Her beautiful eyes were sparkling, full of pride.


    ¡°Oh right, what about that kid, Long Chen¡­¡±


    She scanned the crowd, but Liu Lan did not see Long Chen. Her expression, which had initially been that of pride, instantly became cold.


    ¡°As expected, he¡¯s disappointed me. He was probably killed by Feng Wutian the moment they entered the Sky Martial Realm¡­ I guess I wasted my effort on him.¡±


    Nobody could hear what Liu Lan was thinking.


    At this point, the attack of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast had been somewhat blocked by Feng Wutian, and all the experts of the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm struck at the demonic beast with powerful attacks.


    Numerous wounds appeared on the body of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, but this was not enough to truly injure it. At most, all it did was cause it to be even more furious.


    As expected, besides Feng Wutian and Chu Yunyao, nobody present was able to deal with the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. The beast had just attacked Feng Wutian and also endured the attacks of others, yet it did not turn back. However, the fury it was feeling had reached the limit!


    Though Feng Wutian had withstood the attack of the demonic beast, it knew that if it were to do it again, Feng Wutian would surely die.


    As long as Feng Wutian died, it could then focus on Chu Yunyao. Hence, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast steeled itself and endured the pain from its injuries and charged madly towards Feng Wutian!


    It vented all its anger on Feng Wutian, but all of a sudden, there was a mighty bloodlust aimed at it from behind it.


    The Heart Corrosive demonic beast finally realised that it had underestimated Chu Yunyao!


    Even Long Chen¡¯s eyes widened at the attack.


    ¡°This is definitely an intermediate profound grade battle technique.¡±


    Not everyone was able to use a technique that was one rank higher. In addition, the higher the grade of the battle technique, the more difficult it was to use. There were only a few freaks, such as Long Chen, who were able to do so.


    Somewhere else, Liu Lan¡¯s eyebrows were deeply furrowed.


    ¡°The Great Elder used to be part of the Green Emperor Hall. It looks like Chu Yunyao has already learnt the first move of the Way of the Zenith Crystal Sword. Seems like thispetition was especially created for Chu Yunyao, since the Zenith Crystal Sword is practically made just for her¡­ But I¡¯m sure Wutian will shock all of you!¡±


    At this point, Chu Yunyao had run behind the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, shimmering with mist around her. She looked like the white jade sword in her hands, sparkling and indescribably beautiful.


    However, if one were to deny her formidability because of this, you were dead wrong!


    Meanwhile, a whirlwind was crazily surrounding her sword, and within this whirlwind concealed multiple tiny des. All of these were virtual images, but their sharpness did not lose out to any real des. They might even be countless times sharper than real des!


    The hundreds, or even thousands of des rapidly revolved around the white jaded sword, and while Chu Yunyao chased up to the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, she yelled delicately and raised her sword with a rumble. Numerous des turned into light glinting of these des and charged straight for the beast!


    At this moment, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast was preparing to kill Feng Wutian.


    Chu Yunyao had grasped this timing well. Even Long Chen, who was looking on from a distance, sighed in admiration.


    ¡°This girl really is really quite amazing.¡±


    ¡°Tsk, that¡¯s nothing much. Back then, when I disyed those moves, you¡¯d have been so scared you¡¯d have pissed your pants in terror!¡±


    Lingxi pursed her lips after seeing Long Chen praise Chu Yunyao, unhappy.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were now fixated on the battlefield and did not bother with her. When Chu Yunyao sent out that move, even the weather seemed to be affected!


    The glints off des headed straight for the Heart Corrosive Demonic Beast.


    ¡°Way of the Zenith Crystal Sword! Jade Crystal Sword!¡±


    The Heart Corrosive demonic beast let out an earth-shattering howl as it was shed into by these des. Its efforts were all on destroying Feng Wutian, and once more, it opened its mouth and ck smoke that was even darker and denser than before, heading towards Feng Wutian!


    At this moment, Chu Yunyao took this chance and suddenlynded a fatal strike!


    Numerous wounds appeared on the body of the demonic beast, while the deepest cut had pierced through its skull!


    Such a bad injury caused the Heart Corrosive demonic beast to let out a whine, and its huge body copsed to the ground.


    Though this did not immediately kill it, but the Heart Corrosive demonic beast had now lost its ability to fight. It could only wait to be ughtered.


    As long as Chu Yunyao dealt one more blow, no matter how light, it would definitely die.


    Meanwhile, Chu Yunyao was preparing for her next move, but the direction was towards Feng Wutian!


    At this scene, everyone cried out in rm.


    Previously, while trying to deal with Feng Wutian, the Heart Corrosive demonic beast had been killed by Chu Yunyao, but thatst ¡°Heart Corrosion¡± attack had been meant for Feng Wutian.


    Feng Wutian was now busy dealing with ¡°Heart Corrosive Demon¡±, but never did he expect that Chu Yunyao would be so sly as to attack him at this critical moment!


    Feng Wutian, who had been dealing with ¡°Heart Corrosive Demon¡±, found it difficult to withstand the attack of the Pure Hearted Sword Shadow and paled. The ck smoke, which was named the Heart Corrosive Demon, pounced onto Feng Wutian at this moment!


    ¡°Brother Wutian!¡±


    Feng Wutian had been awe-inspiring just moments before, but he had been struck head on by the smoke, and it did not look to be good. Liu Ling was instantly scared witless and she red at Chu Yunyao with hatred, eyes filling with tears as she struck towards Chu Yunyao.


    ¡°Evil woman, you deserve to die!¡±


    Everyone in the Green Sun Hall held her back. Without Feng Wutian around, nobody had the guts to deal with Chu Yunyao!


    Chu Yunyao looked indifferent as she stood by the side of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, sweeping her gaze towards everyone present. Her icy gaze and her looks, with the visual effect of her being beside a beast, caused everyone to fall silent out of fear.


    Other cultivators who were at the Perfect Mastery Stage at the Human Dan Realm knew that this was the time to vie for the Zenith Crystal Sword, but seeing Feng Wutian in this state, nobody dared to make a move.


    Long Chen was also very surprised by this oue, and he took the time to measure up this young girl. ¡°She¡¯s such a beautiful girl, yet her methods and her heart are a little too much. Just as expected, she¡¯s not my type.¡±


    At Liu Lan¡¯s side, everyone was ncing at each other, silent.


    Liu Lan¡¯s eyes were fixed on this young girl, and could only sigh in resignation.


    ¡°The people that the Green Emperor Hall groom are truly first ss in both their temperament and strength. Guess it was impossible for us to get the Zenith Crystal Sword after all.¡±


    She nced towards Feng Wutian, who was still surrounded by the ck smoke, and her brows furrowed. ¡°Now that he¡¯s affected by the Heart Corrosive Demon, he won¡¯t receive any injuries but might temporarily lose his consciousness. I hope nothing bades out of this¡­¡±


    Just as she thought this, Chu Yunyao was right about to retrieve the Zenith Crystal Sword, but the smoke around Feng Wutian suddenly dissipated, a thinyer around him. Long Chen found that Feng Wutian¡¯s eyes were slightly smoky and there was a fiendish aura emanating from his body!


    ¡°Has he been possessed?¡±


    Long Chen had been nning to show himself, but upon seeing Feng Wutian in this state, he decided to wait a little longer and see what would happen.


    ¡°After being possessed, Feng Wutian¡¯s seems to have gotten much stronger.¡±


    Everyone here could see that.


    Chu Yunyao was no different. She had been nning to retrieve the Zenith Crystal Sword but noticed Feng Wutian¡¯s cold gaze on her.


    ¡°This guy has been affected by Heart Corrosive Demon and is difficult to deal with. If I fight with him like this, someone else will definitely benefit, but if I retreat first, he¡¯ll make a move against others, which would have nothing to do with me. Now that he¡¯s possessed, he wouldn¡¯t take the sword, so I don¡¯t have to worry.¡±


    At this thought, Chu Yunyao tactfully looked innocent and harmless and slowly backed away from the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.


    Feng Wutian¡¯s eyes were not on her. Rather, it was on the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.


    Seeing the pitiful state of the demonic beast, the ckness in Feng Wutian¡¯s eyes became even more concentrated, as if the person who was injured was he himself. He roared, and as if he had turned into the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, he bellowed and pounced towards everyone, bloodlust evident in his eyes!

 Chapter 113 – Scheming

    ¡°This is what¡¯s so remarkable about the Heart Corrosive Demon. It can even affect the spirit! Feng Wutian only exists as a Heart Corrosive demonic beast in his mind. Now, seeing another demonic beast on the verge of dying, he¡¯s enraged.¡±


    Seeing Feng Wutian scanning his surroundings fiercely, Lingxi stuck out her tongue and spoke.


    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder that girl quickly moved away from the demonic beast. Though Chu Yunyao¡¯s looks are enough to cause cmities, it¡¯s apparent that she is quite sly.¡±


    Long Chen did not really like girls like this. What he liked were people like Yang Lingqing, tenacious and pure, or someone like Lingxi, who was innocent and cute.


    Meanwhile, everyone was silent as they watched Feng Wutian hovering around the demonic beast and growling once in a while. Even Chu Yunyao had retreated to the back, while everyone else did not dare move.


    ¡°How about we all work together to take care of Feng Wutian?¡±


    Somebody suggested.


    ¡°That¡¯s not right. If we do that, we might even kill him. Feng Wutian is the treasure of Green Sun Hall. If any of us kill him by ident, it¡¯ll be hard to answer to the hall.¡±


    This was what the experts at the Perfect Mastery Stage at the Human Dan Realm were worried about.


    Chu Yunyao, who was supposed to go up, did not move at all. Her icy gaze was fixed on Feng Wutian as she thought to herself, ¡°Any of you who want to deal with him can go up there. If you don¡¯t do it, once time is up for the possession, he¡¯ll faint and the Zenith Crystal Sword will still be mine.¡±


    With this thought in mind, Chu Yunyao led the people of Green Emperor Hall and retreated backwards, looking on from afar but not leaving the area.


    Feng Wutian¡¯s eyes full of bloodlust finally turned towards everyone else.


    ¡°Retreat!¡±


    The leaders of the halls quickly brought their teams to the back after seeing Chu Yunyao herself retreat, afraid to be involved.


    Those who did not retreat were the group of Green Sun Hall. Without Feng Wutian, Liu Ling was unwilling to leave and kept making a fuss, causing everyone to be agitated.


    ¡°Miss Ling¡¯er, we need to go. After the time of Brother Wutian¡¯s possession is up, he will naturally return to normal!¡±


    However, Liu Ling was unwilling to leave no matter what was said. Her eyes were wet as she nced at Feng Wutian. On one hand, her heart ached, but on the other hand, she never knew that the man who had always been a god-like existence to her would ever be in such a pathetic state.


    ¡°Why did this happen¡­ Right, it¡¯s all because of the wretched woman!¡±


    At the thought of Chu Yunyao, icy bloodlust exploded from Liu Ling¡¯s eyes.


    Meanwhile, besides people from Green Sun Hall, everyone retreated to the back. In Feng Wutian¡¯s eyes, the people of the Green Sun Hall stood out to him, which meant those eyes clouded with ck mistiness were fixated on them.


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    In an instant, he exploded forth with astonishing speed, like an arrow that had been released from a bow, and charged towards people of the Green Sun Hall!


    Seeing the bloodlust in Feng Wutian¡¯s eyes, everyone was surprised. To counter Feng Wutian, who was rushing over, one expert at the Perfect Mastery Stage at the Human Dan Realm dashed out.


    ¡°Get Liu Ling and leave!¡±


    No matter what, Liu Ling was the daughter of the elder of Green Sun Hall, Liu Yuan. Hence, it was their duty to protect her.


    While saying this, the expert met with Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Feng Wutian, you¡¯d better wake up!¡±


    With a rumbling fist out, he punched towards Feng Wutian. In that moment, a powerful wave swept towards Feng Wutian!


    Seeing that this person actually dared make a move against him, Feng Wutian let out a roar and the scarlet phantom ming wings once again appeared behind his back. With just a p, Feng Wutian¡¯s speed increased by several times.


    At this moment, a ming god-like bird appeared in Feng Wutian¡¯s hands, and an immense pressure exploded!


    This was clearly one of the moves of the Vermillion Bird Law that Feng Wutian had used while dealing with the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. It was named Spirit Congealing Feathers and was extremely terrifying. Currently, these ming feathers were akin to countless arrows, flying towards the Human Dan expert at the Perfect Mastery Stage who was trying to intercept Feng Wutian.


    It was clear who was on the upper hand here. Everyone in the Green Sun Hall was full of shock and grief, because they could see that this cultivator had now been burnt till he was skinless, and without being able to make a sound, his charred body fell to the ground.


    ¡°Senior Brother Liu!¡±


    Everyone yelled in sorrow, but they did not have much time left. After Feng Wutian had killed that person, he did not stop moving and dashed towards Liu Ling and the rest!


    ¡°Run!¡±


    At this point, nobody bothered with Liu Ling. They pulled her a few times, and upon seeing her motionless, they could only give up on her and run for their lives.


    Running in the face of death was only human nature. However, this meant there was only Liu Ling left facing Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Brother Wutian¡­¡±


    Liu Ling was currently immeasurably pale, standing in a daze while looking at Feng Wutian, whose eyes were filled with bloodlust and coldness. Unfortunately, Feng Wutian couldn¡¯t recognise her and only saw Liu Ling alone standing there, since everyone had fled. Hence, his thirst for blood was fixed on Liu Ling!


    Feeling that cold bloodlust of Feng Wutian, Liu Ling felt real terror.


    At this point, she realised that in this empty area, only she and Feng Wutian were left. Feng Wutian, who had given her a sense of security had now turned into a devil, trying to take her life!


    The icy bloodlust aimed at her caused her body to tremble violently, and meanwhile, Feng Wutian had already let out a furious growl and lunged towards her.


    Liu Ling let out a pitiful sound, and in her surprise, she could only raise her arms to block her face, shivering¡­


    At this scene, Liu Lan shook her head and prepared to make her move and save Liu Ling, and then announce that the Green Sun Hall was going to leave thepetition for the Zenith Crystal Sword. However, at this moment, a blood-red figure rushed in front of Liu Ling at a speed that was difficult for even cultivators at the Perfect Mastery Stage at the Human Dan Realm to achieve. In that instant, he jolted Feng Wutian out of the way!


    Only then did Liu Lan halt her footsteps, staring at this blood-red figure in confusion. Upon seeing who it was, Liu Lan gaped, expression filled with shock.


    ¡°How can it be Long Chen?¡±


    Liu Lan knew how strong a person needed to be in order to achieve that speed, and this was something Long Chen was able to do. This astonished her.


    ¡°He hasn¡¯t been killed and has been hiding in the shadows till now? Then again, it¡¯s always been his character to hide around and thene out at thest minute and harm others. However, that little bit of power you possess is far from enough to defeat Feng Wutian and seize my sister¡¯s heart.¡±


    Liu Lan had misunderstood, thinking that Long Chen¡¯s intentions in saving Liu Ling was because he liked her, and wanted to gain her affections.


    This ¡®saving a damsel in distress¡¯ thing was definitely quite effective, but it was not his intentions.


    ¡°Enforcer Liu, which Hall is that beast cultivator from?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a disciple of my Green Sun Hall.¡±


    They had seen Long Chen before, but not when he used his Dragon Soul Transformation. They were only asking to confirm their suspicions.


    ¡°It¡¯s the Green Sun Hall again. Haha, didn¡¯t that kid see a cultivator at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm die by Feng Wutian¡¯s hands just now?¡±


    Besides the people around Liu Lan was, everyone else had also noticed Long Chen¡¯s appearance. Those who were not familiar with him were naturally confused.


    Chu Yunyao was also bewildered at the sudden sight of this beast cultivator. Confused, she asked quite a few people before one seemed to remember something, ¡°I remember there¡¯s a beast cultivator who recently entered the Green Sun Hall. His name is Long Chen, and there seems to be some conflict between him and Feng Wutian. The first day he entered the Sky Martial Realm, he was chased away by Feng Wutian. I didn¡¯t expect him to appear now.¡±


    Long Chen?


    Chu Yunyao had never heard this name before, but she didn¡¯t think too much of it. She only gazed at Long Chen with interest, hoping he had some talent.


    The person who was the most baffled by Long Chen¡¯s appearance was Liu Ling, who was behind him.


    Trembling, she gazed at Long Chen, perplexed.


    Some time ago, Long Chen had escaped from the team of the Green Sun Hall, causing a ruckus and mercilessly teaching Liu Ling a lesson. Liu Ling fervently wished to sh Long Chen into thousands of pieces, but now, with the way he was appearing and saving her from death¡¯s door¡­


    Liu Ling had believed that if this situation were to ever happen, it would be Long Chen killing her, and Feng Wutian would ruthlessly teach Long Chen a lesson. That was supposed to be the correct course of action. However, their roles were now reversed, and this made it hard for her to adjust.


    At this moment, Long Chen suddenly turned back and revealed an evil grin, ¡°Hey, doll, were those psfortable? How do you feel about me doing it again? Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t make the fees too expensive for you¡­¡±


    Seeing this despicable teenager watch her with a teasing grin, Liu Ling realised that she could not even bring herself to get angry.


    She stared nkly at Long Chen, unsure of what she should do.


    At this moment, she saw Feng Wutian rushing towards Long Chen with fury in his expression from the corner of her eyes and shouted, ¡°Be careful!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡±


    Long Chen replied, turned back, and watched as Feng Wutian¡¯s figure closed in¡­


    ¡°Feng Wutian, I never expected to battle you again under such circumstances. Now that I¡¯m at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, I wonder what amazing expressions that lunatic Liu Lan would make if she sees me defeating you right under her nose¡­¡±

 Chapter 114 – Vermillion Bird Imprint

    What Long Chen did not know was that Liu Lan was currently watching him.


    ¡°His aura has gotten considerably thicker. He¡¯s probably reached the Initial Mastery Stage of the Human Dan Realm.¡±


    It had taken less than a month for Long Chen to advance from the eighth Dragon Vein to the initial mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm. Hence, no matter the results of Long Chen¡¯s battle, Liu Lan would still think highly of him.


    ¡°If I groom him well and stimte his potential, it¡¯s not impossible for him to surpass Feng Wutian.¡±


    Liu Lan nodded while looking at Long Chen.


    Meanwhile, Long Chen had collided with Feng Wutian in the battlefield.


    What shocked everyone was that with just Long Chen¡¯s bodily strength, he had withstood Feng Wutian¡¯s attack, simultaneously pushing Feng Wutian backwards. This way, the battle was a slight distance away from Liu Ling, and they would thus not identally hurt her.


    Liu Ling was aware of this. Suddenly, she found her eyes getting wet. Somehow, Long Chen didn¡¯t seem that terrible anymore. The only reason why she had hated him so much at the start was for Feng Wutian.


    ¡°The peak at the Human Dan Realm¡­¡±


    Through that attack, Long Chen somewhat knew Feng Wutian¡¯s strength.


    Just the amount of real Qi that Feng Wutian possessed was near that of a person at the Earth Dan Realm, which was over ten times what Long Chen possessed. Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Qi was purer than real Qi by ten times. With the added bonus from his power of lightning and mes, he did not lose out to his opponent in terms of real Qi.


    At this moment, ayer of dull red mes was travelling along Long Chen¡¯s dragon body, with faint electricity currents flowing.


    ¡°I have an intermediate Profound grade battle technique as well as this Thunder me Physique. These are all to my advantage, but Chu Yunyao also has a sword technique of the same grade. I wonder what Feng Wutian has¡­¡±


    While thinking all these, Long Chen had already broken out the Seal of the High Profound Dragon, creating a biggermotion with Feng Wutian.


    Feng Wutian was now aware of Long Chen¡¯s might, and he used the attack that had been disyed previously- the Fire Spirit Seal!


    Two powerful seals crashed together with a rumble in mid-air. The Seal of the High Profound Dragon was an advanced Huang grade battle technique, while the Fire Spirit Seal was a basic Profound grade battle technique, and they were only a level apart. However, Long Chen¡¯s body was more durable, and in this collision, the explosion merely pushed them backwards.


    ¡°How is this possible?¡±


    Long Chen actually using an advanced Huang grade battle technique to evenly match and block Feng Wutian¡¯s attack. Even Chu Yunyao did not dare take this attack head on, and she was hence thoroughly shocked at this sight. Only then did she begin to take Long Chen seriously.


    ¡°This guy¡­ has he been hiding elsewhere, preparing to wait for an opportunity and take advantage of the situation in the end?¡±


    At this thought, Chu Yunyao¡¯s gaze that was now directed on Long Chen was glimmering with hostility.


    ¡°Luckily for me, I was quick witted in the face of this situation and let Feng Wutian turn out like this. If not, after I battle Feng Wutian till I¡¯m drained, you might really just benefit if you appear at the end.¡±


    At this point, everyone knew that besides Feng Wutian and Chu Yunyao, the third strongest person in the Sky Martial Realm Competition was Long Chen.


    However, it was apparent that Long Chen had yet to reach the peak of the Human Dan Realm, which was why they were not so optimistic towards him.


    This included Liu Ling. Previously, Long Chen had fled from Feng Wutian in a pitiful state. Now, though he had somewhat blocked Feng Wutian¡¯s attack, the huge disparity between their cultivation realms was not something luck couldpensate.


    ¡°Brother Wutian¡­¡±


    Now, Liu Ling was still hoping for Feng Wutian to wake up and be his usual wise, formidable self.


    As for Long Chen, she now found that she no longer hated him that much, but it wasn¡¯t to the point of liking him.


    However, just Long Chen¡¯s Seal of the High Profound Dragon was enough to block Feng Wutian¡¯s Fire Spirit Seal. This caused Liu Lan to be shocked as she blinked, trying to ensure she had not seen things wrongly.


    ¡°He improved so much¡­¡±


    The others were speechless.


    ¡°Green Sun Hall has these two young juniors. One is Feng Wutian marked as four stars and having immense potential. Long Chen should also be judged to have four stars as his potential.¡±


    Long Chen was definitely oblivious to their conversation.


    Now, he was currently mulling over what was actually special about Feng Wutian. At this moment, Feng Wutian hade out of his daze, his cold gaze on Long Chen.


    At this moment, Long Chen suddenly saw a light red imprint appearing on Feng Wutian¡¯s forehead. This tiny imprint looked like a firebird.


    ¡°Is this the imprint of the Vermillion Bird¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s auditory abilities were great, and he heard what others were saying.


    ¡°This imprint is probably Feng Wutian¡¯s bloodline, which Liu Lan mentioned before.¡±


    Long Chen knew little about things like bloodlines. However, after the Vermillion Bird Imprint appeared, Feng Wutian¡¯s aura rapidly grew, which meant he was bing increasingly stronger!


    A fearsome me burnt around Feng Wutian¡¯s body, turning him into a man of fire.


    ¡°Fire Bath of the Vermillion Bird is an attack using his bloodline that can double the amount of real Qi he possesses. The quality of this real Qi is also more than three times than before. Feng Wutian is now immeasurably close to the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Chu Yunyao furrowed her brows. The Fire Bath of the Vermillion Bird was an ability from Feng Wutian¡¯s bloodline that caused her to fear him. Otherwise, how could a mere Feng Wutian from the Green Sun Hall be an opponent for her, the ultimate expert at the Human Dan Realm groomed by the Green Emperor Hall?


    Though Long Chen did not know what this power of Feng Wutian¡¯s bloodline was called nor where it originated from, what he knew was that Feng Wutian¡¯s real Qi had increased and had be much more powerful than Long Chen¡¯s own.


    ¡°Is the power of bloodlines so amazing?¡±


    Long Chen was confused, but suddenly, he recalled his Blood Transmutation and Dragon Soul Transformation. These two were techniques that he had inherited from the blood essence of the Ancient Dragon. Didn¡¯t it mean that these two techniques were the power of his bloodline?


    Blood Transmutation and Dragon Soul Transformation were truly heaven-defying techniques.


    Long Chen no longer had the luxury to care further. Since Feng Wutian had even used the Fire Bath of the Vermillion Bird, everyone was extremely nervous. If Long Chen could not block Feng Wutian, the mes of fury of Feng Wutian could very well reach them.


    Though Long Chen¡¯s appearance was surprising, Chu Yunyao was still quite happy.


    ¡°If that kid called Long Chen can block Feng Wutian and use up more of his stamina, I can make my move with more easeter. Long Chen really knows how to pick when to show up.¡±


    Long Chen did not dare underestimate Feng Wutian. He had already used Fire Bath of the Vermillion Bird and he was surrounded by mes, letting out an agitated growl as he rushed madly towards Long Chen!


    Feng Wutian¡¯s aura had now risen to the extreme. The mes revolved around him madly, bingrger andrger, and an intense heat rushed towards everyone.


    Long Chen could already feel the power hidden within these mes!


    All the mes had now converged together, forming arge zing god-like bird in front of Feng Wutian. An ear-piercing bird cry resounded, and Long Chen suddenly felt a rumble by his ear.


    ¡°Law of the Vermillion Bird, Sole ming Deity Bird!¡±


    Feng Wutian¡¯s body had vanished, leaving behind a huge ming bird pping itsrge wings. It whistled towards Long Chen, and no matter where it went, whether it be soil or rocks, everything was charred ck, and all the foliage was burnt to nothingness.


    ¡°Does Feng Wutian also have an intermediate Profound grade battle technique? He also has a remarkable bloodline. It¡¯s no wonder Liu Lan thinks so highly of him.¡±


    With such an attack from Feng Wutian, Liu Ling was terrified and deathly pale as she shrieked. Everyone else thought that Long Chen was dead meat. Even Chu Yunyao was not confident that she could face such an attack, so she shook her head, ¡°It¡¯s going to end¡­¡±


    However, Long Chen actuallyughed after seeing this attack.


    ¡°Heaven Burning Crimson mes of the Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist is probably not enough to defend against this. Feng Wutian is not too powerful than me in many areas, and I still haven¡¯t had the opportunity to use that move after I learnt it.¡±


    While Feng Wutian was preparing his Sole ming Deity Bird, strong ck rays exploded from Long Chen¡¯s eyes. It was as if there were two mysterious ck suns in his eyes!


    An immense forcebining red and ck colours coiled around Long Chen. He was now like a dazzling jet-ck sun.


    A zing force burst out from Long Chen¡¯s body. That formidable aura was iparably bright and many shifted their gazes away, not daring to look at him.


    ¡°What does he n to do to face up to the Sole ming Deity Bird?¡±


    Nobody understood, but Long Chen was already exining with his actions. Under the appalled gazes of everyone present, a powerful aura that did not lose out to his opponent exploded. It was as if a ck sun had burst out from his body, fiercely burning and producing a charred smell in the air.


    If it was said that Feng Wutian¡¯s mes were fierce and powerful, then Long Chen¡¯s ck sun was ten times more so than Feng Wutian¡¯s mes!


    Long Chen faced up to Feng Wutian, jumping up high and fitting his two fists together. A ck ball formed of real Qi whizzed as it took form, and like a meteor hitting the earth, Long Chen aimed it at Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Earth Piercing¡­ Demonic Sun!¡±

 Chapter 115 – Piercing Earth Demonic Sun

    ¡°What? An intermediate Profound grade battle technique?¡±


    Chu Yunyao covered her mouth, shocked at the scene. Liu Ling could only stare on in awe.


    She knew how strong Feng Wutian was, but when did Long Chen get so powerful?


    In general, everything that had happened today was akin to a dream for her.


    To the astonished gazes of everyone present, Long Chen¡¯s even more formidable attack of Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist- Piercing Earth Demonic Sun shed with Feng Wutian¡¯s Sole ming Deity Bird. These were the two most powerful attacks that these two people had, which they had both used under their most formidable conditions. The resulting scene was stunning.


    There were a total of two attacks in Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist; Heaven Burning Crimson mes and Piercing Earth Demonic Sun. Compared to Heaven Burning Crimson mes, Piercing Earth Demonic Sun was much stronger.


    It was even more powerful than Feng Wutian¡¯s Sole ming Deity Bird, even after he had released it after the Fire Bath of the Vermillion Bird!


    This time, Long Chen did not hold back, exhibiting his most powerful move. He had recently attained the Thunder me Physique, his Dragon Qi storing this force of lightning and mes. Even his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step was used in this Piercing Earth Demonic Sun, which was an added bonus to what was already a terrifying attack. At the beginning, the strength of Piercing Earth Demonic Sun could somewhat match Sole ming Deity Bird. However, the moment it made contact with this technique, that destructive power it held within finally exploded.


    It was as if the sun had smashed into the ground with a crash. The Sole ming Deity Bird exploded into pieces after crashing into Piercing Earth Demonic Sun just like that.


    Tremendous explosions sounded repeatedly, and the harsh rays of light formed made it impossible for everyone to open the eyes. However, they had witnessed Piercing Earth Demonic Sun win against Sole ming Deity Bird.


    Long Chen¡¯s attack had destroyed Feng Wutian¡¯s attack with a loud bang. The ferocious ripples from the attack struck his opponent, and this powerful attack caused Feng Wutian to spit out a mouthful of fresh blood, flying backwards and falling to the ground. His body was now charredpletely ck, and he was delirious.


    Meanwhile, Long Chennded on the ground steadily.


    Now that everything was over, everyone could only stare at this young man in a daze,pletely silent.


    Chu Yunyao¡¯s expression was rather interesting. She had originally wanted Long Chen to expend Feng Wutian¡¯s energy in battle, but Long Chen actually had the advantage and defeated Feng Wutian without using any tricks, despite Feng Wutian using his ultimate technique¡­


    ¡°This is no joke.¡±


    Chu Yunyao stared at Long Chen nkly, astonished.


    On the other hand, Liu Lan¡¯s expression was even more marvellous than Chu Yunyao¡¯s.


    She had always been a goddess-like existence to everyone. Her every move, every expression was full of grace, and yet at this moment, she was stunned and her mouth was slightly open. Her eyes were now filled with shock.


    Long Chen¡¯s looks were now etched in her heart.


    When she had first seen him, she had thought him interesting and looked down on him. That was until now, where Long Chen¡¯s disy had struck her right in the heart!


    ¡°What kind of person is he?¡±


    Liu Lan took a deep breath, her plump chest bouncing. She then shook her head, and could not help butugh.


    This time, she had entirely lost face in front of Long Chen. Beforeing to the Sky Martial Realm Competition, she had constantly repeated that there was a 90% chance that Long Chen would die in the Sky Martial Realm Competition. Unexpectedly, Long Chen had defeated Feng Wutian, who she had been grooming for years for and had always been proud of.


    If this was let out, absolutely nobody would believe what had transpired.


    ¡°Brother Wutian¡­¡±


    Liu Ling hade back to herself after the endless tremors. She noticed Feng Wutian¡¯s injuries and could not tell if he was alive or death. Broken-hearted, she began to sprint madly towards Feng Wutian.


    The other members of the Green Sun Hall snapped out of their shock and chased after her.


    Feng Wutian had nowpletely lost consciousness. Liu Ling could do little but hold him, and it was someone else who took out some Spirit Medicine and gave it to Feng Wutian to consume.


    However, Feng Wutian was currently in tattered clothing, face ck and hair burnt till he was unbelievably ugly. He had long since lost his image as a pretty boy.


    This was the first time Liu Ling had seen Feng Wutian in such a pitiful state. This was all thanks to Long Chen, and yet, she found herself still unable to hate Long Chen.


    Now, Long Chen¡¯s name had thoroughly spread far and wide in the Green Faction.


    After news of what had happened here travelled out, Long Chen would instantly be famous in the Green Faction, and could possibly be known by even people of other factions!


    ¡°Enforcer Liu, if we were to spare no effort and groom Long Chen further, he might even be able to take part in the selection to enter the inner faction.¡±


    Someone suddenly spoke by Liu Lan¡¯s ear. She did have some thoughts about this, but upon recalling something, she could only shake her head with a wry smile, ¡°The selection requirements for the inner faction is extremely stringent. It¡¯s practically impossible for Long Chen to pass.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true. I believe Yunxi, Yunyao¡¯s brother is going to take part in the selection this time. This time, it¡¯s the Eastern Green Dragon Family¡¯s turn, right?¡±


    Liu Lan nodded, feeling a headacheing on at the mention of this name.


    Chu Yunxi was Chu Yunyao¡¯s brother. He was merely eighteen years old, but had already entered the Earth Dan Realm over a year ago. Now, he had already achieved even more power and was at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm.


    One year ago, when he had just entered the Earth Dan Realm, he was said to be the number one genius of the Green Faction. It was best to have good rtions with this kind of person. However, what caused Liu Lan a headache was that that kid was actually fond of her, and had imed that he would not marry anyone but her in his lifetime.


    ¡°Father is already preparing to agree to the marriage nned by the Green Emperor Hall. Am I really going to marry that guy and live the life of a wife?¡±


    Liu Lan was extremely against this idea. Since young, she had been in charge of matters regarding the Green Sun Hall, which had formed her decisive and sure personality. She was unwilling to let go of what she currently had. However, she was not a sprightly young woman anymore, and that meant she might just have to resign herself to this fate.


    The development in the battle caused Liu Lan to focus on something other than her headache.


    Long Chen had defeated Feng Wutian, but had ultimately lightened his hand and not killed him. With the medical treatment from the others from the Green Sun Hall, he was able to preserve his life. However, it was impossible for him to regain consciousness for now.


    Now that the issue with Feng Wutian was over, what was more important was getting possession of the Zenith Crystal Sword. The terrifying abilities of Long Chen had caused all the experts at the Perfect Mastery Stage at the Human Dan Realm to exchange nces, none daring to make their move.


    Everyone, except Chu Yunyao.


    This Zenith Crystal Sword was something she definitely needed to obtain. She was not going to give up just because of the appearance of the dark horse, Long Chen.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure that attack must have used up a lot of that kid¡¯s energy. I¡¯m stronger than Feng Wutian. Looks like this Zenith Crystal Sword is going to be mine after all.¡±


    At this thought, Chu Yunyao did not say anything further and calmly walked towards Long Chen.


    That Heart Corrosive Demonic Beast that was still fighting for its life was still between them.


    Aware that there was a good show about to start, everyone¡¯s eyes were fixed on them.


    Chu Yunyao spoke while looking at Long Chen, ¡°I am in admiration of you for being able to defeat Feng Wutian. However, I do hope you would be so kind as to leave the Zenith Crystal Sword to me. I see that you don¡¯t use a sword, and I imagine this Zenith Crystal Sword would not be of much use to you.¡±


    Long Chenughed, ¡°You really say such funny things. Even if I don¡¯t use swords, does it mean I can¡¯t take it away? It¡¯s going to fetch a good price if I exchange it for some money.¡±


    Despite being so courteous, Chu Yunyao found that Long Chen had no intentions of ceding, and she felt a slight burst of anger.


    However, she had seen how formidable Long Chen was. She would not make a move unless it was absolutely necessary.


    She now looked at Long Chen, who was solemn. The gears in her brain began to turn hurriedly, hoping to find a way to deal with Long Chen. Soon enough, a figure rose in her mind and she smiled sweetly, ¡°Have you heard of Dongfang Tianyu? I¡¯m on good terms with him. If you let me have the Zenith Crystal Sword, he might even be willing to guide you in your cultivation.¡±


    ¡°Dongfang Tianyu? I¡¯ve never heard of him before. Girl, stop talking. Isn¡¯t the Zenith Crystal Sword something we get based on ourbat abilities? Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be less hard on you¡­¡±


    While he said this, though, a trace of worry rose in his mind.


    There were nine great outer factions in the Lingwu Family, and four inner factions. The outer factions were separated into Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, Silver and Gold, while the fourrge inner factionsprised of Eastern Green Dragon, Southern Vermillion Bird, Western White Tiger and Northern ck Tortoise.


    The members of the Green Dragon faction had the surname Dongfang, and the Dongfang Tianyu that Chu Yunyao spoke of was obviously of this faction.


    Seeing Long Chen still not getting the point, Chu Yunyao did not get angry but rather,ughed.


    ¡°I don¡¯t dare to attack for fear of harming the peace we now have. Do you think I¡¯m afraid of you? Then again, since you aren¡¯t willing to give up, I¡¯ll let you know howrge the gap is between Green Emperor Hall and your Green Sun Hall, which is ranked at the bottom!¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡±


    Long Chen exhibited a look of surprise and even looked a little lecherous as heughed out loud, ¡°Looks like you¡¯re pretty nimble with your lips. I¡¯m quite sure your mouth must be rather skilful. How about we find a time and you show me your skills?¡±


    Chu Yunyao did not seem to understand what he was implying, looking confused before turning cold and looking ready to murder someone.


    However, those who understood flushed a deep red. They could only bow down and admire Long Chen¡¯s guts from the deepest part of their hearts.


    Even Liu Lan gritted her teeth at Long Chen¡¯s words, cheeks red as she thought, ¡°That kid even dares make fun of the woman Dongfang Tianyu fancies. I wonder how long he can live for with that personality?¡±


    While thinking this, a gust of wind blew past, and a young man donning white robes with a green dragon embroidered onto it appeared by Chu Yunyao¡¯s side.


    This man¡¯s face was unbelievably clear and fair. He had an impressive appearance and was a rarely seen beauty.


    He was now smiling at Chu Yunyao, ¡°Yao¡¯er, what¡¯s with that expression? Did someone bully you? Tell your Brother Tianyu, and I¡¯ll take care of it for you¡­¡±

 Chapter 116 – Dongfang Tianyu

    The appearance of this young man caused Long Chen to be wide-eyed.


    Though they were the same age, his status and power were both things Long Chen aspired to achieve.


    In terms of strength, the only group of people that could cause Long Chen fear was those at the Earth Dan Realm and above. He was definitely the genius of geniuses to be at the Earth Dan Realm at such an age.


    He had also called himself Brother Tianyu. There was no doubt about it; he was Dongfang Tianyu, whom Chu Yunyao had recently mentioned. He was one of the members of the Dongfang faction, which was part of the four inner factions.


    Long Chen knew that with someone of such a status in front of him, all he could do was endure. Endure!


    It was like how he had been when facing Huang Feiyang and Feng Wutian. Only by enduring could he preserve his life.


    Chu Yunyao was obviously someone that Dongfang Tianyu fancied. Long Chen suddenly felt a chill down his spine- if Dongfang Tianyu had heard his words, he would definitely not even have a skeleton now.


    When he had just entered the Lingwu Family, Gan Lin had once told him that the four inner factions were the true faction members. The owner of the outer factions was an existence that one did not dare provoke.


    Though Long Chen resisted the idea, he had to admit that the Lingwu Family was much toorge. In front of such an organisation, he was a mere ant, and he could do little about it.


    That was why he had removed Dragon Soul Transformation and returned to his youthful, lively appearance.


    After transforming, he was indeed strong, but also very intimidating. If Dongfang Tianyu loathed his looks, he was done for.


    ¡°The timing isn¡¯t right. I need to temporarily pretend to be an obedient kid.¡±


    Seeing Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s appearance, Chu Yunyao was pleasantly surprised and eximed in high spirits, ¡°Brother Tianyu, how did you know I was here?¡±


    ¡°I heard from your father that you¡¯re participating in the Sky Martial Realm Competition, so I came over. What¡¯s wrong with the outer faction? Why is there a need to hold somepetition? It wouldn¡¯t be good if you got injured. Oh, right, you seemed pretty upset just now. What happened?¡±


    Dongfang Tianyu looked at Chu Yunyao worriedly.


    Chu Yunyao thought of Long Chen, evilness glinting in her eyes for a split second. She shot a nce at Long Chen and cutely answered, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. We¡¯re just fighting over the Zenith Crystal Sword in the body of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast¡¯s body. It isn¡¯t that surprising.¡±


    Dongfang Tianyu furrowed his brows, sounding cold. He turned to look at Long Chen while he spoke, ¡°He actually dares vie over something with you? Doesn¡¯t he know the existence of I, Dongfang Tianyu?¡±


    He contemted Long Chen, eyes already glinting with icy cold bloodlust.


    Long Chen hurriedly answered, ¡°Ms Yunyao wants this to be a realpetition and requested that we go all out. We only dared to make our move when she said that. If not, with you around, how would we dare fight over this with Ms Yunyao?¡±


    If he kept a good image, he had lesser to worry about in the future. If he pretended to be a good person and kept his life, he might still have the chance to take revenge, so Long Chen didn¡¯t mind that much.


    Even if he might be looked down upon.


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Dongfang Tianyu nodded, Long Chen¡¯s words sounding favourable to him.


    Meanwhile, everyone was bbergasted at therge change in Long Chen¡¯s attitude. Chu Yunyao had wanted to use Dongfang Tianyu to tactfully eliminate Long Chen, but those words made it impossible for her to do anything.


    If she were to pester him continuously and try to prove Long Chen was lying, Dongfang Tianyu might think her less pure and have a vengeful heart. She could only grit her teeth and let Long Chen off for now.


    ¡°Kid, as long as you¡¯re still part of the Lingwu Family, I¡¯ll still have the chance to take your life! Nobody who crosses me survives!¡±


    At this point, Dongfang Tianyu had already made quick work of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast and retrieved a cosmos pouch from its body. He grabbed a light green sword and passed it to Chu Yunyao, mumbling, ¡°This Zenith Crystal Sword isn¡¯t half bad. Take it. Once you¡¯re at the Earth Dan Realm, I¡¯ll get my father to give you something else.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Brother Tianyu!¡±


    Chu Yunyao was overjoyed as she took the Zenith Crystal Sword that she had been yearning for and ced it within her cosmos pouch. She secretly took a glimpse of that cowardly Long Chen, and the sight of his expression used to tter Dongfang Tianyu made her feel like vomiting. She focused on Dongfang Tianyu, ¡°Brother Tianyu, I¡¯ve already obtained the Zenith Crystal Sword. Thepetition is already over too. Shall we leave?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I nned. Yuanling City isn¡¯t too far away, and there¡¯s an absolutely stunning stream. The surroundings are beautiful and there are flowers everywhere. I was going to bring you there and admire it!¡±


    The two were absorbed in conversation, not even bothering to take a look at anyone else. With Dongfang Tianyu taking the lead, they left the ce to look at some ¡®stunning stream¡¯.


    Long Chen then heaved a sigh of relief, though everyone was looking at him strangely.


    At the beginning, they had truly been in awe of Long Chen. However, he turned into a weakling the moment he met somebody strong, and that worsened their impression of him.


    ¡°He¡¯s just a lowly person with no pride. It¡¯ll be difficult for him to be anything great. I¡¯d be embarrassed to even associate with him.¡±


    Now that the Sky Martial Realm Competition had ended, Chu Yunyao had easily gained the Zenith Crystal Sword and won.


    Everyone had epted the oue and dispersed.


    Seeing it was over, Liu Ling and the rest quickly left with Feng Wutian, who was injured and unconscious. Only by bringing him back to the Green Sun Hall would he be able to be treated properly.


    Soon enough, only Long Chen was left here. Beside him was the carcass of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.


    Long Chen was currently quite depressed.


    ¡°I spent so much effort on this, and the Zenith Crystal Sword was taken by that girl. Chu Yunyao, it¡¯s not that easy to kill me. There¡¯ll be a day where I¡¯ll make you regret everything, and as for Dongfang Tianyu¡­¡±


    The real person giving Long Chen pressure was Dongfang Tianyu.


    The horrors of the four inner factions of the Lingwu Family had, for the first time, been made obvious to Long Chen. Long Chen now knew that he while might have defeated Feng Wutian, but he was still far too weak.


    ¡°The good thing is that there¡¯s still the carcass of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, so I still have some rewards.¡±


    Chu Yunyao had not taken the carcass of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. With Long Chen still around, the others did not dare retrieve it.


    Long Chen had recently refined the Scarlet ming Suan Beast and achieved the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. He wasn¡¯t in a hurry now anyway and took out his cosmos pouch, cing the carcass within.


    Just as he was about to leave the Sky Martial Realm, he realised the presence of a woman with outstandingly charming good looks enough to make anyone go crazy over her. Was it not the great Enforcer Liu?


    Liu Ling had rushed out to find her, but Liu Lan was actually here.


    Her being here so quickly meant that Liu Lan had been watching thepetition. Long Chen could tell that Liu Lan had seen his performance just now, which was why there was no seduction in her eyes, nor any contempt for him. She looked calm.


    ¡°So? Are you finding it difficult to restrain yourself after seeing my exceptionally good looks?¡±


    Long Chen approached Liu Lan, speaking shamelessly as he nced at her delicate body.


    He had pretended to be an upright gentleman previously and been teased by Liu Lan in the past. This time, he finally had the chance to strike back.


    Liu Lan did not get mad. Instead, she smiled and stalked towards the entrance of the Sky Martial Realm, speaking at the same time, ¡°I knew you weren¡¯t any gentleman from the start so I tried to make you reveal your true colours. Guess it didn¡¯t work then, but you¡¯re exposing yourself right now.¡±


    Liu Lan had initially believed that Long Chen was definitely not a match for Feng Wutian. However, he had proven himself to her. Long Chen knew that this woman was probably quite surprised but was pretending to be calm, not showing her emotions.


    However, there was no longer that feeling where she was threatening him. Long Chen knew that he had somewhat subdued this woman.


    The two of them walked together, conversing like old friends.


    ¡°To be honest, I did underestimate you, but you can¡¯t overestimate yourself either. I believe you¡¯re more than aware of that when you saw Dongfang Tianyu just now.¡±


    Long Chen was clear of how powerful Dongfang Tianyu was. The memory of having to lower his head in front of Dongfan Tianyu was deeply etched into his mind.


    ¡°By the way, based on your performance, I should give you a new rating for your potential.¡±


    Liu Lan looked at Long Chen coquettishly, a half-smile on her face.


    ¡°How much?¡±


    ¡°Four stars.¡±


    Long Chen nodded, ¡°This isn¡¯t even five stars? How many people are there in the Green Faction with five stars as their potential?¡±


    Liu Lan smiled wryly, ¡°Just one, but you don¡¯t need to know who it is. Long Chen, you now have four stars as your potential. Initially, the Lingwu Family could have done something for you and taken care of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but unfortunately, this idea was turned down by the chief elder. I now know the identity of the leader of the sect.¡±


    Long Chen furrowed his brows deeply, ¡°Who is he?¡±


    Liu Lan could only shake her head, ¡°I didn¡¯t know before, since his identity is a secret. Most people wouldn¡¯t know. By the way, do you know the Beast Spirit Hall in the Yuandi City?¡±


    Was there a rtionship between the leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and the Yuandi City? Long Chen had a bad feeling about this.


    ¡°Yuandi City is on about the same scale as Lingwu City.¡±


    Liu Lan continued, ¡°The most powerful person in the Beast Spirit Hall there is called the Yuan Emperor. The Yuan Emperor in this generation has a lot of sons, and the leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is one of the grandsons of the current Yuan Emperor!¡±

 Chapter 117 – Profound Grade Beast Spirit

    Upon hearing this news, Long Chen suddenly shuddered. He shot Liu Lan a disbelieving look, stuttering, ¡°Are you for real? The leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is the grandson of the Yuan Emperor?¡±


    Liu Lan shook her head, her peach-like face holding a rueful expression.


    ¡°There are many coincidences in this world. Yes, the leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is the grandson of the Yuan Emperor. Though the Yuan Emperor has over a hundred grandsons and this particr one isn¡¯t favoured, it isn¡¯t to our advantage to do anything to the Sacred Sect and make things difficult between us Lingwu City and Yuandi City, just for your sake¡­¡±


    Liu Lan nced at Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m sure you understand that Lingwu City and Yuandi City are two powerful organisations like water and fire. Both went through tumultuous journeys to achieve the peace we currently have. Any small matter might be a spark that blows up the situation.¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s meaning was obvious.


    If the Lingwu Family were to touch the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, this could result in a bacsh from Yuandi City, which was arge cost. The Lingwu Family ced emphasis on their inner factions, so with Long Chen as he was right now, he was not important enough for the family to do this for him.


    This was the reality.


    However, Long Chen had no expectations for the Lingwu Family. He pondered over this for a moment, a smile about his lips.


    Long Chen¡¯s indifferent attitude caused Liu Lan to furrow her brows, ¡°Hey, are you actually thinking of dealing with them yourself?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a huge grudge between me and the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. If I don¡¯t kill them, they¡¯ll definitely kill me. In such a situation, why would I not deal with them?¡±


    Long Chen raised his head, eyes flickering as he watched Liu Lan¡¯s pale face.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze was full of resolution that could not be tamed, and Liu Lan, who was used to controlling others, felt slightly ufortable.


    She breathed in deeply, eximing, ¡°Long Chen, when the timees, don¡¯t me me for not warning you. If the Yuan Emperor does not pursue the matter, it¡¯s your luck, but if he does, we will send you to him the moment we can.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me that. I know.¡±


    Long Chen pursed his lips, indifferent.


    He had always been fearless in whatever he did. This was his style, but being fearless did not mean he was stupid.


    ¡°Besides, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has a thousand followers, eight great protectors and five sect elders. These five sect elders are at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and the leader himself is an expert at the Earth Dan Realm. With your current strength, you might be matchless against anyone in the Human Dan Realm, but you¡¯re definitely going to die against anyone of the Earth Dan Realm!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen seemingly unafraid to die, Liu Lan could only warn him once more. If this was in the past, she wouldn¡¯t even have bothered to say this, but Long Chen had now disyed a formidable potential. In the green faction, there were less than ten people who could be rated as four stars. Even Liu Lan herself was rated at four stars.


    ¡°Is the Earth Dan Realm really so strong?¡±


    Long Chen was slightly surprised. In his opinion, since he could defeat Feng Wutian who was immeasurably close to the Earth Dan Realm, that should mean he was able to deal with someone of the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°Do you know why the Deity Dan Realm is separated into the Human, Earth and Heaven Dan? That is because there¡¯s an immense disparity between the beginning, middle andter parts in the Deity Dan Realm, which are each separated into three portions. (*tl note: entrance into x Dan Realm, initial mastery stage, perfect mastery stage) There¡¯s arge divide between the Human and Earth Dan Realm, and yet another between the Earth and Heaven Dan Realm. Your current strength isn¡¯t enough against someone at the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Long Chen was unsettled by Liu Lan¡¯s narration.


    However, this did not mean he was afraid. It simply meant he felt more stressed.


    ¡°The matter with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has been dragging on for too long. With the Sky Martial Realm Competition over, I need to deal with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect as soon as possible so that I can be free from this.


    While thinking this, Long Chen followed Liu Lan back to the Green Sun Hall.


    Seeing this teenager so silent and still fearless, Liu Lan shook her head, ¡°This kid is a really good seedling, but he¡¯s much too arrogant and petty. It might cause some trouble for the family¡­¡±


    With the alluring Liu Lan walking with Long Chen, it was obvious that passers-by would stare.


    In the outer factions, Liu Lan had an immense reputation, while Long Chen¡¯s name was being spread from this day on. It couldn¡¯t be helped that others would have fantasies while seeing these two people together.


    Soon enough, Long Chen returned to the Green Sun Hall with Liu Lan. There was the same number of people in there as when Long Chen had left from this ce, though there was no one of the younger generation there except for Long Chen.


    Liu Yuan and the others sighed ruefully while looking at Long Chen. When he had left, none of them had taken notice of this kid. They had mostly remembered theughable situation where Long Chen had not turned up for the match he had agreed to.


    However, news of what had transpired in the Sky Martial Realm had now spread within the Green Faction. Liu Yuan and the others even knew of the tragedy regarding the three cultivators of the Green Piercing Hall, who were at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    ¡°Long Chen, is it? Come here, take a seat.¡±


    Though Long Chen had wounded Feng Wutian, it was an easy task for Feng Wutian to be treated given the resources the Green Sun Hall had at their disposal.


    With Long Chen and Feng Wutian around, they would definitely be able to support geniuses in the Green Sun Hall in a few years, like what Liu Lan was doing. Their reputations would also rise in the Green Faction.


    Liu Yuan watched Long Chen, finding him extremely pleasing to the eye.


    What particrly stood out was Long Chen¡¯s age. He was three years younger than Feng Wutian, and he could be moulded better than Feng Wutian.


    Long Chen was already snickering in his mind as he nced at this old guy. However, he was intelligent and obediently sat down, gleefully looking at Liu Yuan. With that expression of ttery, it was almost surprising that he did not call and recognise this man as his father.


    ¡°Youngster Long Chen greets the Chief Elder!¡±


    Liu Yuan had initially thought that Long Chen was slightly arrogant, but he seemed to be quite humble now. Liu Yuan¡¯s smile widened, ¡°You¡¯re not too bad. To be honest, I did underestimate you in the past. Though you did not obtain the Zenith Crystal Sword in the Sky Martial Realm Competition, you still helped me regain some reputation.¡±


    ¡°Aftering to the Lingwu Family, uh, Sister Liu really helped me a lot. It¡¯s my duty to contribute to the family¡­¡±


    Long Chen was very thick-skinned, not even blushing while he spoke.


    At the words ¡®Sister Liu¡¯, Liu Lan¡¯s facial muscles twitched. When they had returned, Long Chen was all indifferent, but at the sight of Liu Yuan, his expression hadpletely changed.


    Liu Yuan had only met Long Chen once. Long Chen had had nothing to say then, and Liu Yuan had automatically assumed that he was an introverted, cowardly disciple. His opinion had now changed, and he realised he had underestimated Long Chen. Long Chen respected his elders, was neither servile nor overbearing, and was the picture of an obedient child.


    Liu Yuan now thought very highly of Long Chen, but Long Chen thought nothing of it. Even knowing his potential, Liu Yuan had not decided to aid him in the matter with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, implying he wasn¡¯t so easily won over.


    ¡°Long Chen, I actually want to give you a reward.¡±


    After discussing some issues, Liu Yuan suddenly stroked his beard and beamed at Long Chen.


    ¡°Many thanks, Chief Elder!¡±


    Who wouldn¡¯t want rewards? Long Chen didn¡¯t know what it was yet, and simply prepared to ept it.


    ¡°I was nning to give you an intermediate Profound grade battle technique, but I¡¯ve changed my mind.¡±


    While he said this, the four elders and five enforcers were shocked. Liu Yuan had already decided on the reward for Long Chen beforehand but had suddenly changed his mind. This could only mean Liu Yuan loved Long Chen¡¯s likeable disy.


    ¡°I wonder what Chief Elder ns to give me?¡± Long Chen anticipated.


    If it was a profound grade battle technique, Long Chen already had Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, and no longer had a need for another.


    Liu Yuan gave him a once over, ¡°The first beast spirit you used at the dragon vein realm was the Blood Lizard at the fifth level of the huang grade. After entering the Deity Dan Realm, I doubt you¡¯ve found any profound grade beast spirits. Coincidentally, I have one here, but it¡¯s much too precious for you. I can¡¯t give it to you just like this, so you¡¯ll still need to fulfil some conditions to get it.¡±


    Long Chen was stunned, before remembering that he was a beast cultivator in everyone else¡¯s eyes.


    In actuality, he didn¡¯t need beast spirits. The beast spirit from before was used to exchange for contribution points.


    Liu Yuan¡¯s next words were what truly stunned him.


    ¡°This is the beast spirit of a level 6 demonic beast at the profound grade- the Enchanting Purple Dragon. It¡¯s the most powerful existence of all level 6 demonic beasts at the profound grade. In the Daybreak Merchants Union, this beast spirit can be sold for a hundred thousand deity jades!¡±


    The words ¡°a hundred thousand deity jades¡± caused Long Chen to find it hard to breathe. He was used to a life of poverty, and when he was at his wealthiest, there were at most a hundred deity jades in his pocket. How many things could be bought with a hundred thousand deity jades¡­


    ¡°Even in our Lingwu Family, you can¡¯t even dream of obtaining this beast spirit without a hundred thousand contribution points, but you performed so well this time. Besides, this beast spirit is my own, so I just need five hundred contribution points from you in exchange for it. This is a test for you!¡±


    Liu Yuan watched Long Chen sternly, ¡°You haven¡¯t done anything for the Green Sun Hall. If I were to just give this to you, others might gossip, so you¡¯ll need to work hard for it!¡±


    At these words, Liu Yuan swept his gaze over the other elders and enforcers, his meaning obvious. The people who might gossip would be them. When Liu Yuan had mentioned the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon, a few of them looked ufortable.


    Liu Lan looked at Liu Yuan, ¡°Father is really throwing everything into this. He¡¯s even willing to give up the beast spirit of a demonic beast at the sixth level of the profound grade. Even I would find it difficult to deal with that Enchanted Purple Dragon.¡±


    She turned to Long Chen and thought, ¡°The Enchanted Purple Dragon really does suit that kid. The only problem is that he¡¯s nning to go to his death at the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Where would he get the chance to get five hundred contribution points? Is it even that easy to get five hundred contribution points?¡±


    Meanwhile, Long Chen¡¯s thoughts revolved around how to obtain this beast spirit, and then sell it to get a hundred thousand deity jades¡­

 Chapter 118 – Inner Faction Selection!

    After exining about the Enchanted Purple Dragon, Liu Yuanughed as he watched the look of excitement on Long Chen¡¯s Face. He¡¯d assumed that Long Chen was very passionate about this beast spirit and felt reassured.


    Long Chen was an unexpected, pleasant surprise to him, and it had been far too long since he had felt so joyful.


    He was also very pleased with his daughter. Liu Yuan knew that Liu Lan, who surely had pressured Long Chen all this while, had had arge role in Long Chen achieving the level he was currently at.


    ¡°Lan¡¯er has already spoken to him about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, so I don¡¯t have to mention it anymore. I need to talk to him about that other matter though.¡±


    Liu Lan spoke, ¡°Long Chen, do you know about the uing Inner Faction Selection?¡±


    Inner Faction Selection?


    Long Chen had heard Gan Lin saying that the inner faction would take in outstanding disciples from the outer faction to groom. However, he had mentioned that Long Chen needed to at least be at the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°Is he hinting that I can take part in the selection?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Now, the various outer factions have already elected their members. I have the right to nominate someone, so I¡¯ll pass on the information about you in these few days. As long as you pass the review, you¡¯ll have the chance to participate in the inner faction selection!¡±


    Long Chen suddenly felt that he had performed too well in front of Liu Yuan. Seeing this old geezer treating him so well, Long Chen quickly expressed his thanks.


    ¡°I, Long Chen, will definitely do all I can to repay Chief Elder!¡±


    ¡°Hehe¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan stroked his long beard. He had previously underestimated Long Chen and even reprimanded him. His attitude had now undergone a 180-degree change, treating Long Chen so well that he himself was a little embarrassed.


    ¡°But don¡¯t get too excited yet. You¡¯re still at the Human Dan Realm and have yet to meet the requirements to enter the inner faction. You have to work harder, and you¡¯ll only have a chance if you receive the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon and increase your strength before the selection begins.¡±


    ¡°Is this selection process so stringent?¡± Long Chen tried to probe.


    Liu Yuan nodded, ¡°It is quite difficult. There will be ten to twenty people who pass the review, but only two will ultimately get in. The intention this time is for you to make yourself known amongst the other factions. To actually enter the inner faction? I have a word for you. Difficult!¡±


    Though he knew that he would definitely receive more supplies, be taken care of and, thus, improve at a quicker rate, Long Chen was in no hurry to be part of the inner faction. Seeing Liu Yuan get so agitated, it was probably rather difficult to get in.


    Liu Yuan sighed ruefully, ¡°The only young person in our faction with a five star rating for his potential is Chu Yunxi of the Green Emperor Hall. Chu Yunxi is currently eighteen years old and is already at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. He¡¯s already been chosen to enter the selection process.¡±


    At the very mention of Chu Yunxi, Liu Yuan became excited, but he soon turned silent after noticing Liu Lan ring at him.


    ¡°Chu Yunxi? Eighteen? The initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm?¡±


    Long Chen held his tongue. Only now did he realise that whether it was Huang Feiyang or Feng Wutian, they were nothing muchpared to others. Chu Yunxi was a true genius, and Long Chen now realised how small his world was.


    After defeating Feng Wutian, he had assumed that this meant he had joined the rank of geniuses. However, he realised he still had ways to go.


    ¡°There¡¯s still a long way to go¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan spoke, ¡°That¡¯s it for today. Long Chen, you were in the Sky Martial Realm Competition, so you should be a little tired. You may return first.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and bade farewell to everyone before turning. They watched his back as he left, finding it tall and straight, and sighed.


    ¡°Lan¡¯er,e with me.¡±


    Liu Yuan eximed, left the hall and entered a garden at the back. He turned around and told Liu Lan, ¡°When you were in the Sky Martial Realm, the chief elder of Green Emperor Hall, Chu Fengqing looked for me. He hinted at your marriage.¡±


    rmed, Liu Lan replied, ¡°Father, did you agree to it?¡±


    ¡°How could I agree without your approval? But Lan¡¯er, he said that he would personally bring Chu Yunxi here in twenty days and propose your marriage. I didn¡¯t say no then, so¡­¡±


    ¡°So in order not to destroy the rtionship between our two families, I have to agree to his proposal, right?¡±


    Liu Lan was deste after having thought it through.


    Liu Yuan¡¯s heart ached at seeing his daughter like this, ¡°Lan¡¯er, don¡¯t think too much of it. Chu Yunxi is an exceptional genius, and it¡¯s very likely he¡¯ll enter the inner faction this time. He has a very great future ahead, and I¡¯d be reassured if you be with him.¡±


    ¡°Father¡­¡±


    Liu Lan raised her head and could only say, ¡°You don¡¯t understand. He¡¯s too overbearing and arrogant. No matter how much of a genius he is, I can¡¯t ept him.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Long Chen left the Green Sun Hall and walked towards the Green Willow Residence alone. Along the way, those who saw him halted their footsteps, their gazes curious and respectful towards him.


    News of Long Chen¡¯s disy in the Sky Martial Realm had spread.


    ¡°Stop right there!¡±


    A shout sounded, and he realised there was a cute little beauty behind him- Liu Ling.


    Her eyes were still a little red, and she must have been crying for Feng Wutian. Long Chen couldn¡¯t help but find it hrious. Feng Wutian had been the one who wanted to fight against Long Chen, but had ultimately been injured by him. Nobody could be med for this.


    ¡°Oh, you cried so much for your lover? How touching, the tears are almost streaming all over my face.¡±


    Liu Ling had seen this despicable person by chance and had called out to him in her anger. To her surprise, she had been teased by him instead. If not for remembering that he had saved her, she would definitely have gone forward to fight him.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re really arge jerk inside and outside!¡±


    Uncaring of her image, Liu Ling gnashed her teeth while pointing at him.


    Long Chen seemed to be indifferent to her insults, ¡°Huh? What did you want from me?¡±


    Liu Ling really had the urge to go up to him and rip off his face.


    ¡°Kid, I called you to tell you not to be too happy about defeating Brother Wutian when he got possessed. That¡¯s nothing much. He¡¯s already awake!¡±


    ¡°Oh? He¡¯s awake?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Are you afraid yet? In addition, he profited from this incident and is about to enter the Earth Dan Realm, so just wait till he teaches you a lesson!¡±


    ¡°Again about the Earth Dan Realm?¡±


    Feng Wutian had been beaten up so badly by him, and his reputation had thus fallen. Now that he was awake, he was sure to look Long Chen up. Long Chen was currently in terrible shape worrying about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, and now with a conscious Feng Wutian¡­ His brows furrowed.


    ¡°Ha, you¡¯re scared, aren¡¯t you? What a coward. You only dare attack Brother Wutian when he¡¯s not conscious!¡±


    Having said this, Liu Ling snickered and left.


    Long Chen shook his head and returned to his residence.


    ¡°Little Xi, I¡¯ve been raising my power rather quickly, and it¡¯s probably at the limit now. Can I still raise it further?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Lingxi could finallye out from the sword and stretch her body, rejoicing as she spun around the room and flew around. Only after that did she fly to Long Chen and wrinkled her nose cutely, ¡°Your current strength is merely rated to be at the bottommost level at the Dragon Sacrificial Continent. Though you¡¯re still a little slow in cultivation, you¡¯re still much stronger than others.¡±


    ¡°How much stronger am I?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. There¡¯s no issue if you want to increase your strength quickly.¡±


    Lingxi hade from a good family and had much more knowledge than the people around Long Chen. Long Chen trusted her words wholeheartedly.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll just work hard and get rid of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect that¡¯s been a thorn in my side. Only then will I n how I¡¯m going to progress.¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡±


    Lingxi nodded and then extended her hand, sneakily looking at Long Chen, ¡°I want it!¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Long Chen was rmed.


    ¡°Food!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen not getting the message, Lingxi made threatening gestures as she seethed at Long Chen.


    ¡°Oh.¡±


    Long Chen could only answer, ¡°I¡¯ll refine all those beast spirits and demonic cores, and then go to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion and find you something.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s better.¡±


    Lingxi smiled in satisfaction, her eyes narrowing into little bent moons. It was very charming.


    Long Chen had a wry smile, ¡°You used up a lot of energy when you helped me get those Thunder me Crystals. I was nning to help you get some stuff after I got out from the Sky Martial Realm, so it¡¯s probably time to do so.¡±


    ¡°Thunder me Crystals?¡±


    At the mention of this, Lingxi was in high spirits, ¡°Right, now that you¡¯re at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, your real Qi has probably increased by about ten times. You should be able to suppress even more Thunder me Crystals.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean I can absorb more Thunder me Crystals?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice exhibited his excitement.


    ¡°Of course! If you don¡¯t believe me, you can give it a try.¡±


    Long Chen obviously believed everything Lingxi said, but he was not in any hurry now.


    He went to the basement where he usually cultivated and tidied up his harvest from thepetition.


    ¡°I have six profound grade level 2 demonic cores and beast spirits, but these aren¡¯t that valuable. The most valuable ones are those of the Scarlet ming Suan Beast and the Heart Corrosive demonic beast.¡±


    ¡°How much can they be exchanged for? Lingxi was starry-eyed.


    ¡°With the two things from the Scarlet ming Suan Beast, it can fetch about 20 contribution points, while the beast spirit and demonic core of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast can fetch over 200 contribution points.¡±


    ¡°How much is that?¡± Lingxi couldn¡¯t be bothered to calcte and asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s about two thousand deity jades.¡±


    Long Chen suddenly recalled what Liu Yuan had said regarding the five hundred contribution points. That level 6 beast spirit at the profound grade was a hundred times more valuable than one at level 4, but he only needed five hundred contribution points to get it. That was practically a gift to Long Chen.


    ¡°In other words, to get that beast spirit and exchange it for a hundred thousand deity jades, I need to kill countless level 4 profound grade beasts who are practically experts at the Earth Dan Realm?¡±


    Long Chen was shocked after calcting it this way. He¡¯d assumed that it was easy to get 500 contribution points, but now that he actually thought about it, it was very difficult.


    ¡°The Heart Corrosive demonic beast appeared in the Human Dan region and is probably the weakest of level 4 profound grade beasts. That¡¯s how we were able to kill it.¡±


    Hearing Long Chen mention a hundred thousand deity jades, Lingxi reminded him, ¡°Stop dreaming. Where are you going to exchange the beast spirit for a hundred thousand deity jades from? If you go to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, you¡¯ll definitely anger that geezer to death.¡±


    Only then did Long Chen realise that the beast spirit was a tricky matter. If someone gave it to Long Chen and saw that he did not refine it, he would definitely be suspicious. When that happened, Long Chen would not know how to exin this.


    ¡°Whatever. I won¡¯t think about it now. I¡¯ll first refine the beast spirit of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast and then we¡¯ll go to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion.¡±

 Chapter 119 – Bad News

    Long Chen arrived at the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, no longer as silent as he had been the previous time. All the members of the Green Faction had been especially attentive to the Sky Martial Realm Competition this time around and therefore knew of him.


    However, Long Chen was still unfamiliar with the crowd and hence, nobody took the initiative to greet him. The mutters and discussion around him was to be expected though.


    ¡°He could even defeat Feng Wutian who had used the Fire Bath of the Vermillion Bird. He¡¯s incredibly young as well. Long Chen is truly astonishing.¡±


    ¡°Indeed. Though he¡¯s a little young and inexperienced, with some training and time, he¡¯s sure to y an important role in the Green Sun Hall.¡±


    ¡°I heard the chief elder of Green Sun Hall, Liu Yuan, has already submitted his name for the inner faction selection. Though it¡¯s impossible for him to pass, to even have the qualifications to be nominated means he has a rating of at least four stars.¡±


    ¡°But of course. The reason why Long Chen didn¡¯t get the Zenith Crystal Sword is because of Dongfang¡­¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about the inner faction!¡±


    Long Chen passed by these two middle-aged men. When one of them mentioned the Zenith Crystal Sword, the other immediately stopped him.


    Long Chen knew what they were implying. From their point of view, the fight over the Zenith Crystal Sword should have between Long Chen and Chu Yunyao. The appearance of someone of the inner faction had broken the rules set by the outer factions. However, everyone could onlyin about this, since the main body of the Lingwu Family was the inner faction.


    ¡°Is the inner faction so influential? If I don¡¯t enter the inner faction, I¡¯d probably be at the bottom for my entire life.¡±


    Long Chen shivered at the thought.


    Soon enough, he reached the Treasure Exchange Pavilion where he could exchange beast spirits and demonic cores. There was a wall here and a small, sealed channel the size of a te. It was items were presented, and Long Chen was unable to see who was at the other side.


    ¡°ce your demonic cores and beast spirits here. Oh, and your identification jade te too.¡±


    A low voice resounded from the other side of the wall.


    Long Chen did not waste time and ced everything on a there. A pale arm then reached out, collecting everything.


    Upon seizing the beast spirit and demonic core from the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, the person paused and suddenly asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to refine this level 4 profound grade beast spirit?¡±


    Long Chen now knew that even people of the Treasure Exchange Pavilion knew of him.


    Long Chen was definitely a beast cultivator in everyone¡¯s eyes. He was at the Deity Dan Realm and ought to have refined beast spirits, yet had not done so.


    Others had thought that he had not found a suitable beast spirit, but upon finding out he had gained that of the Heart Corrosive demonic spirit, they all assumed Long Chen would refine it.


    ¡°I¡¯m not in a hurry to do that.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡±


    That person answered with an ¡®oh¡¯ but did not say more. However, from that tone of his, Long Chen could tell that that person felt that he was not satisfied with even the beast spirit of a level 4 profound grade being, and must be extremely arrogant.


    ¡°Here¡¯s your identification jade te. You will gain 250 contribution points in this exchange.¡±


    It was more than he had expected. Long Chen was in a great mood and thanked that person, before arriving at the area where the Spirit Recovery Fruits were. There, a Spirit Recovery Fruit could be seen put on disy.


    ¡°I want this Spirit Recovery Fruit.¡±


    Long Chen told the staff in charge of this area, who was an elegant woman.


    When Long Chen hade the previous time, this woman had seen him once. She did not remember much about him other than that he needed Spirit Recovery Fruits.


    This time, Long Chen had a reputation and her attitude became much better. Sheughed sweetly, ¡°That¡¯s 9 contribution points. You did mention you needed Spirit Recovery Fruits thest time.¡±


    Noticing this beautiful woman and her engaging manners, his nature as an arrogant son of a great background revealed itself as he teased, ¡°I dide here to buy Spirit Recovery Fruits, but I¡¯m also here to visit you.¡±


    ¡°How talkative. You¡¯re asking for a beating.¡±


    She grinned, covering her mouth.


    Long Chen knew when to stop and enquired, ¡°Sister, may I know if there are other spirit medicines in the Treasure Exchange Pavilion that can improve one¡¯s spirit?¡±


    She thought for a moment, ¡°If you¡¯re talking about Spirit Recovery Fruits, there aren¡¯t that many. Headquarters will only order to replenish their supply of spirit medicine, but not increase the numbers. But I do seem to recall there being a Spirit Grass on the second level in the Treasure Exchange Pavilion. It¡¯s a profound middle grade spirit medicine.¡±


    ¡°Spirit Grass?¡±


    Lingxi became quite emotional as she whispered in Long Chen¡¯s ear, ¡°Hey, the Spirit Grass is a lot more potent than the Spirit Recovery Fruit. It¡¯s almost a profound high grade spirit medicine. A Spirit Grass isparable to a hundred Spirit Recovery Fruits. If I have a Spirit Grass, I¡¯ll be able to take on someone at the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Upon hearing Lingxi mention she did need it, Long Chen asked, ¡°Sister, may I know how much this Spirit Grass costs?¡±


    The woman shook her head after hearing this question, ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about the price just yet. Only cultivators at the Earth Dan Realm are allowed to go up to the second floor.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Long Chen paled. The rigid and strict hierarchy in the Lingwu Family was really making him feel quite depressed.


    ¡°But if you really need it, on ount of you calling me ¡®sister¡¯, I might be able to do something about this.¡±


    ¡°Then thank you so much, Sister!¡± Long Chen was excited.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get too excited.¡±


    She knitted her brows, ¡°Spirit Grass is a profound middle grade medicine, and is considered to be quite precious. It is very helpful in increasing one¡¯sprehension, and without 300 contribution points, it¡¯s impossible to obtain it.¡±


    Upon hearing the number 300, Long Chen was about to keel over.


    ¡°I only have around 240 contributions now. To get 300, I¡¯ll need to enter the Sky Martial Realm again, but Liu Yuan, that old geezer wants me to give him 500 contribution points. What should I do?¡±


    Long Chen furrowed his brows.


    ¡°If you aren¡¯t in urgent need of it, you cane purchase it after you have sufficient contribution points.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and thanked her before bidding her farewell, heading in the direction of the Green Willow Residence.


    ¡°Oh well. I¡¯m not going to care about that old geezer. It¡¯ll be hard to sell that level six profound grade beast spirit anyway, so I might as well make sure Lingxi gets stronger and keep her safe. My opponents are going to be too strong, and if she tries to show off, she might even lose her life just like this.¡±


    He returned to the residence and got Lingxi to refine the Spirit Recovery Fruit, and then produced a Thunder me Crystal.


    ¡°The Thunder me Crystals really helped me a lot in this battle. I still have 38. What will happen if I fuse with all of them? If a rank 1 Thunder me Physique is equivalent to a profound middle grade body tempering battle technique, how about a rank 2 Thunder me Physique?¡±


    Since his real Qi had expanded by much, Long Chen tried to fuse with more Thunder me Crystals. Unexpectedly, the eleventh was much easier than it had been when he had fused with the tenth.


    With the suppression from his Qi, Long Chen spent about an hour in pain but no real danger, and fused with the eleventh Thunder me Crystal.


    ¡°Next is the twelfth¡­¡±


    While fusing with the crystals, Long Chen found himself unable to tell the passing of time, and after goodness knew how long, he had already fused with the fifteenth crystal.


    Here onwards, Long Chen found it difficult. He had no choice but to undergo Dragon Soul Transformation.


    ¡°After I fuse with these Thunder me Crystals, I¡¯ll enter the Sky Martial Realm and then help Lingxi get the Spirit Grass. I¡¯ll then leave the Lingwu Family and look for the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.¡±


    Long Chen had a clear goal.


    However, while he was preparing to fuse with the sixteenth Thunder me Crystal, there was an urgent rapping on his door. Long Chen opened it and was met with the sight of an anxious Gan Lin.


    Gan Lin had always given Long Chen the impression that he was not easily rattled. However, with that anxious look on his face, Long Chen was rmed and asked, ¡°Senior Brother Gan Lin, what happened?¡±


    Gan Lin quickly answered, ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s someone from your family looking for you. Quick, go to the Martial Arts Hall.¡±


    ¡°Family?¡±


    Long Chen was surprised. That would mean the people of the Yang family. For people of that family toe all the way to the Lingwu Family, this meant that something terrible had happened!


    Long Chen had a bad feeling about this and rushed towards the Martial Arts Hall. In moments, he saw the man who was beginning to look old- Yang Yuntian.


    ¡°Second Uncle, what happened?¡±


    Yang Yuntian grieved as he looked at Long Chen, ¡°Chen¡¯er, Lingqing has been taken by people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!¡±

 Chapter 120 – A Bolt From the Blue

    ¡°What?!¡±


    Long Chen was stunned. His breath elerated and became rough, and his eyes gradually became bloodshot.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, don¡¯t get so agitated yet. Wait for me to tell you everything!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen like this, Yang Yuntian knew that he had to calm Long Chen down despite his own anxiety.


    Long Chen and Yang Lingqing were akin to real siblings. Now that Yang Lingqing was in trouble, how could he stay calm?


    He was just one step away from rushing to the sect.


    Long Chen suppressed the killing intent in his heart, berating himself for this. He Chen knew that he had to be cool-headed about this.


    However, as he recalled all the memories he had with Yang Lingqing and then the bastards of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, Long Chen clenched his fists tightly.


    ¡°Is it for the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony?¡±


    Blood rushed forth in Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    Seeing that Long Chen had somewhat calmed down, Yang Yuntian felt more at ease. A deep sorrow appeared in his gaze, ¡°It¡¯s all because of my uselessness as a father. I couldn¡¯t even protect my own daughter¡­¡±


    Yang Yuntian had already lost a son. At the thought that he might also lose his daughter, his mind went nk.


    ¡°Second Uncle, don¡¯t me yourself too much. Tell me exactly what happened.¡±


    Long Chen bit his lower lip and eximed.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, have you participated in the killings of the two great proctors in Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡±


    Yang Yuntian raised his head and asked.


    Long Chen was startled as he recalled Proctor Qin and Proctor Shi and was puzzled, ¡°How do you know about this?¡±


    Yang Yuntian shook his head, ¡°It¡¯s what that bastard said. Two proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect died at Yanluo town and he found that it was the doing of people of the Lingwu Family. Of the three names he had, yours was included in it. He then investigated your background and found out that you were part of the Yang family. For revenge, one of the proctors came to Por Town and found out that Xue Yuanzi had died by your hands, so he attacked us!¡±


    Long Chen did not expect that the fact that he had killed Xue Yuanzi would be exposed. Of the eight proctors in the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, the death of three had some rtion to Long Chen. It was no wonder that they had made their move against him.


    Long Chen only med himself more after hearing this. All he wanted was to rush to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but he knew that it was not yet time to do so.


    ¡°Why did he want to kidnap Lingqing?¡±


    Yang Yuntian answered in a pained voice, ¡°My father had originally attained the Deity Dan Realm by using Soul Diffusion Fruits, and could somewhat match up to that person. However, in that battle, Lingqing was injured by mistake. Upon seeing the colour of Lingqing¡¯s blood, which held traces of green, he eximed that Lingqing had a rare body that was seen only once in every hundred years- the Abstruse Shadow Body and took her away. Your grandfather only just entered the Deity Dan Realm and couldn¡¯t do much about it¡­¡±


    ¡°The Abstruse Shadow Body?!¡±


    Upon hearing these three words, Gan Lin jolted.


    Long Chen immediately asked, ¡°That person returned to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, right?¡±


    Yang Yuntian nodded, paling, ¡°Based on what that person said, Lingqing¡¯s Abstruse Shadow Body is very important in some Blood Sacrificial Ceremony. My father has been in the South Ling Region and found out that this ceremony will take ce in two days!¡±


    This was basically arge bolt from the blue for Long Chen!


    ¡°Two days¡¯ time? The Blood Sacrificial Ceremony¡­¡±


    Fury and hatred rushed up in Long Chen¡¯s heart. With an icy re, his fists were clenched and he gritted his teeth, ¡°If anything happens to Lingqing¡­ Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, I want everyone in your sect to be buried with her!¡±


    Seeing that ruthless aura from Long Chen, Yang Yuntian knew this was no good and hurriedly spoke, ¡°Chen¡¯er, I¡¯m not here to get you to seek your death in the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. You are a member of the Lingwu Family, so I was wondering if it was possible to borrow the strength of the Lingwu Family.¡±


    The sect leader was the grandson of the Yuan Emperor. Long Chen wasn¡¯t even a member of the inner faction of the Lingwu Family. Who would take this risk to help him?


    Liu Lan, much less Liu Yuan would not do so!


    ¡°Second Uncle, you don¡¯t have to say more. Get Grandfather toe and stay here. I¡¯ll go to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect right now. I promise you that I¡¯ll bring Lingqing back safe and sound in a day!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice was icy but full of resolution.


    ¡°Abstruse Shadow Body¡­ The Blood Sacrificial Ceremony of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect requires the blood of a young girl. If Lingqing has this Abstruse Shadow Body, her blood will be drained¡­¡±


    If this were to happen, Long Chen would literally go crazy!


    Even now, he found it difficult to control the fury he was feeling.


    Yang Yuntian knew that Long Chen had always been reckless and impulsive. He nervously looked at Long Chen and sternly said, ¡°Chen¡¯er, I¡¯m not letting you go and put your life on the line! You have a bright future ahead and you¡¯ve entered the Lingwu Family. It¡¯s the time for you to rapidly develop and advance. I don¡¯t want you to harm yourself for Lingqing¡¯s sake. The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is practically hell there. Is that really a ce for a young man like you to go to?¡±


    In Yang Yuntian¡¯s eyes, Long Chen had not even reached the Human Dan Realm, while the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was filled with experts at the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°Long Chen, listen to me. Go and ask a favour of your Lingwu Family, and we might even have a chance!¡±


    At this point, Liu Lan had just walked in through the door, looking stern. Gan Lin immediately bowed, ¡°Lord Enforcer!¡±


    Upon hearing the words ¡®lord enforcer¡¯, Yang Yuntian was momentarily startled.


    He knew that this Lord Enforcer was the owner of thisrge Green Willow Residence, and must be at or above the Earth Dan Realm. He immediately suppressed the excitement in his heart and respectfully said, ¡°Commoner Yang Yuntian greets the Lord Enforcer!¡±


    Liu Lan merely nodded at him and looked towards Long Chen. At this point, his gaze was filled with immense viciousness.


    Seeing the rudeness apparent in his gaze, Yang Yuntian was shocked and went forward to warn him, but unexpectedly, Long Chen¡¯s voice was cold as he spoke, ¡°Enforcer Liu, didn¡¯t you say you would pay attention to the actions of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and report their every move to me?¡±


    Even an outsider like Yang Yuntian could hear the dissatisfaction in Long Chen¡¯s tone. He immediately pulled at Long Chen, looking apologetic, ¡°Lord Enforcer, my nephew is young and insensible. Please don¡¯t fault him for this!¡±


    Liu Lan looked indifferent and did not even spare Yang Yuntian a nce. Instead, she stared straight at Long Chen. Liu Lan herself was slightly surprised at the turn of events.


    She then answered, ¡°It¡¯s just a proctor from Crimson Blood Sacred Sect going to Por Town. I¡¯ve been busy with the Sky Martial Realm these past few days and haven¡¯t paid much attention to this. Besides, Long Chen, didn¡¯t I tell you to give up on dealing with the sect? Are you unaware that this could be fatal for you? If you don¡¯t handle this properly, your entire Yang family might die without a proper burial!¡±


    Long Chen was not the least bit scared and sneered, ¡°Fine, I won¡¯t me you. I just want to ask you this. Now that my sister has been taken, I want to take on the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. Will you or will you not help?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s tone was in disrespectful.


    From Yang Yuntian¡¯s understanding, Long Chen would be made quick work of by Enforcer Liu after saying something like this. Unexpectedly enough, Enforcer Liu seemed to think highly of Long Chen¡­?


    Yang Yuntian watched the two oppose each other, neither of them backing down. A sudden question shed in his mind. Just how powerful was Long Chen?


    Had he, in just one month, entered the Human Dan Realm?


    Recalling that Long Chen had a Soul Diffusion Fruit, Yang Yuntian felt that this was a real possibility.


    Liu Lan hesitated and shook her head. ¡°Even my father wouldn¡¯t agree to the Green Sun Hall taking such a huge risk on your behalf for your personal matters. Besides, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is not a power you can fight against. I won¡¯t allow you to go there!¡±


    ¡°What right do you have to stop me?¡±


    Upon hearing her words, Long Chen had mostly given up on the Lingwu Family. He wasughing sarcastically inside while she talked about not allowing him to go.


    ¡°You-!¡±


    Despite her staunch resolve, she was truly angry after being rebutted by Long Chen like this. Her curvy, delicate body trembled, and her eyes were fierce.


    Yang Yuntian knew this was a bad situation. Long Chen had now angered Enforcer Liu, and Long Chen might just die here even before getting to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect or saving Yang Lingqing.


    He gestured to Long Chen quickly and tried to appease Enforcer Liu, ¡°Lord Enforcer, Chen¡¯er isn¡¯t sensible and doesn¡¯t think things through before speaking. Please don¡¯t hold it against him. We¡¯ll deal with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect ourselves and take our leave first, alright?¡±


    Yang Yuntian¡¯s words made Long Chen displeased and he pulled Yang Yuntian behind him, ¡°You don¡¯t have to tter her. How amazing or capable is she to enjoy such treatment?¡±


    ring at Enforcer Liu and ignoring Yang Yuntian¡¯s shock, Long Chen answered in a low voice, ¡°My precious younger sister is now in the hands of someone else, and yet you want to keep me here. Let me ask you, how am I different from an animal if I don¡¯t do anything at all? How are you different from an animal if you don¡¯t do anything at all?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t go too far!¡±


    At the word ¡®animal¡¯, Liu Lan was flushed red in her anger, but Long Chen¡¯s words were not without logic. She could not refute it.


    ¡°How am I going too far?¡±


    Long Chen sneered and then gestured to Yang Yuntian, ¡°If the Lingwu Family will expel me if I save my sister, then I¡¯m not going to stay in the Lingwu Family. Second Uncle, let¡¯s go!¡±


    Having said this, he detoured around Liu Lan who was ring at him, and headed towards the door.


    ¡°Long Chen, if you die this time, don¡¯t me me for not warning you!¡±


    ¡°What does my life or death have to do with oh, Great Beauty Liu?¡±


    Hearing these words, Yang Yuntian was bewildered¡­


    ¡°Just how powerful is Chen¡¯er for him to be able to speak to the enforcer like this¡­¡±

 Chapter 121 – To Be Punished by The Heavens

    Yang Yuntian was still stunned at Long Chen¡¯s disy. Even after leaving Lingwu City, he was in a daze while looking at the young man in front of him.


    ¡°Do you know where the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is?¡±


    Long Chen turned back. After leaving the Lingwu City, he was no longer as agitated as before. However, all the murderous intent he had was all hidden inside him.


    ¡°Your grandfather knows. He¡¯s in the South Ling City, and I know where he is!¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s meet up with Grandfather first.¡±


    Long Chen did not raise any objections and made haste.


    Yang Yuntian tried to catch up from behind, eyes shining while looking at Long Chen. While hastening the journey, he inquired in a low voice, ¡°Chen¡¯er, can you tell me how strong you are now?¡±


    If not, whether it was Yang Yuntian or Yang Cangqiong, none of them would let Long Chen enter the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    ¡°I¡¯m currently at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, but I¡¯m confident that nobody in the Human Dan Realm is my match. During the Sky Martial Realm Competition by the Lingwu Family, I defeated a cultivator who was one step away from entering the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Yang Yuntian¡¯s eyes widened, unable to believe what he had just heard, ¡°Are you serious? It¡¯s only been a month since you left¡­¡±


    Long Chen nodded, ¡°I¡¯m still quite confident in handling this matter with the sect. I¡¯m not stupid enough to just rush in recklessly.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s decide on what to do after meeting your grandfather.¡±


    No matter how powerful Long Chen was, he was still a distance away from the Earth Dan Realm. Yang Yuntian did not dare think too much into this. Though Long Chen was their only hope for now, he wasn¡¯t sure that Yang Cangqiong would allow Long Chen to make a move, since it was best that Long Chen continue to cultivate peacefully.


    It was quite a distance between East Ling Region and South Ling Region. Long Chen and Yang Yuntian moved as quickly as they could and spent more than half a day before they arrived at the South Ling Region.


    ¡°Your grandfather stays in a small inn here.¡±


    Compared to the East Ling Region, the South Ling Region was a more backward society. However, it was not something Por Town or even the Yuanyang City couldpare to.


    Soon enough, the two of them reached a simple and crude inn.


    ¡°The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is at the edges of the South Ling Region in Yuanling City. There is very littlend there, so the sect is an independent power there.¡±


    Compared to the Lingwu Family, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was an unremarkable speck of dust, but this speck of dust was already a huge obstacle for Long Chen. Behind this obstacle was a more powerful backing.


    ¡°There¡¯s amotion in the inn!¡±


    After reaching here, Long Chen continued to ask about the sect. All of a sudden, Lingxi, who had always been silent, suddenly spoke.


    ¡°Seems like your grandfather is about to get into a fight with someone at the Human Dan Realm.¡±


    Long Chen was rmed.


    In one of the rooms in the inn, Yang Cangqiong was bewildered at the sight of a middle-aged man in crimson robes in front of him. This man was now sneering at Yang Cangqiong, ¡°Here I was wondering who was asking around about the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. I never expected this from an old man like you who just entered the Deity Dan Realm. That¡¯s pretty impressive of you, to be so active ande all the way from Por Town.¡±


    Yang Cangqiong had been around for a long time and was naturally not scared off by his words. However, after realising he had been discovered, his hope dissipated.


    Now, with Yang Lingqing still in their hands, he, the most powerful person in the family, had been discovered by the opponent. Even if he could defeat this man and escaped, it was impossible for him to stay in this area.


    The Blood Sacrificial Ceremony was going to be held after a day. By then, Yang Lingqing might lose her life.


    He had just entered the Human Dan Realm and basically had little to no chance against such a powerful existence as the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    At this thought, he could only despair, though this did not show on his face.


    ¡°When it alles down to it, I really do have to thank you for this. If not for you, I wouldn¡¯t have discovered that Abstruse Shadow Body. I¡¯m sure you know it as well, but the blood from the Abstruse Shadow Body is equal to the Yuanyin blood of thousands of young girls. The sect leader has given me a reward that even the five sect elders are jealous of!¡±


    ¡°You are creating a blood pool using young girls¡¯ blood and cultivating within it. Aren¡¯t you afraid of being struck by lightning and being punished by the heavens for this?¡±


    ¡°Heavens? What heaven? With power, we are the gods. We are the heavens!¡± The man eximed indifferently.


    ¡°It¡¯s just like how I¡¯m more powerful than you now, so the person being punished by the heavens will be you!¡±


    ring at the man who wasughing maniacally, Yang Cangqiong felt powerless.


    ¡°Is Lingqing really going to suffer like this?¡±


    At the thought of his beloved granddaughter dying like this, Yang Cangqiong¡¯s heart squeezed. He would rather die on behalf of the graceful, intelligent Yang Lingqing.


    ¡°With one more Blood Sacrificial Ceremony, the might of our Crimson Blood Sacred Sect will rise once more. By then, we can take in more disciples and grow stronger. One day, we will reach the level of the Lingwu Family and Beast Spirit Hall!¡±


    ¡°Dream on!¡±


    Yang Cangqiong snickered at the man¡¯s words. He had already thought up a n to escape.


    ¡°Oh? If I take your old life right now, you¡¯ll know whether I¡¯m dreaming!¡±


    Having said this, a powerful aura exploded and all the guests in the inn were startled. They were about toe upstairs and take a look, but the man¡¯s cold voice sounded, ¡°The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is handling some matters. All who are unrted are to leave!¡±


    People ran out of the inn one after another, looking flustered.


    In a small area as the edge of Yuanling City, these people had gotten used to living under the fear of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    Yang Cangqiong was mournful, but he knew he was the backbone of the Yang Family. He could not topple over just like this.


    ¡°When we battled the previous time, I didn¡¯t let you experience a profound grade battle technique. This time, I¡¯ll let you see how formidable it is, you bumpkin!¡±


    The man spoke, and Yang Cangqiong immediately paled. He could not beat this person, mostly because he had only just entered the Human Dan Realm and had no battle technique that could rival this man¡¯s!


    ¡°If you want me to die, you need to pay a huge price!¡±


    Yang Cangqiong¡¯s eyes were nowpletely red and full of bloodlust. The man was startled, and immediately sneered, ¡°An old fart like you is actually threatening me? You¡¯re quite gutsy, but unfortunately, today is the day you die!¡±


    Yang Cangqiong felt immense pressure on himself as real Qi exploded in the hands of the man in red robes, forming a phantom mark of a fist. This was a pressure that only belonged to a profound grade battle technique, and Yang Cangqiong was truly at a loss.


    ¡°Am I really going to die here?¡±


    Recalling all that had happened in his life, hemented that the older he became, the worse experiences he had to endure.


    ¡°Hopefully when Yuntianes back, he¡¯ll still be able to find my corpse and bury me in Por Town. But even if you want me to die, you shouldn¡¯t even considering living on as well!¡±


    Seeing him using a profound grade battle technique, Yang Cangqiong let out an enraged roar and began using the Seal of the High Profound Dragon.


    These two powerful auras rapidly increased, and the two shouted loudly, darting towards each other.


    A cold grin was about the lips of the man in red robes.


    ¡°Die! Shattered Jade Fist!¡±


    ¡°Seal of the High Profound Dragon!¡±


    These two auras were on the verge of mming into each other, and the Shattered Jade Fist that had already covered the Seal of the High Profound Dragon was about to im Yang Cangqiong¡¯s life. At this moment, the window was suddenly smashed through and a shadow situated itself in front of the man, extending its arm and grabbing the Shattered Jade Fist.


    The man¡¯s ferocious attack suddenly disappeared.


    He was momentarily stunned and looked towards this new figure. Yang Cangqiong, on the other hand, withdrew his own attack after seeing that familiar figure while also shocked.


    This young man had thoroughly stunned him. How could he not remember him?


    However, Long Chen¡¯s sudden appearance and his being able to stop the powerful profound grade battle technique with just a stretch of his arm, without even a change of expression, caused Yang Cangqiong to be thoroughly stupefied.


    The look of surprise on Yang Cangqiong¡¯s face wasparable to that on the red-robed man¡¯s face.


    The man in the red robes stared at Long Chen, appalled, and immediately kneeled, ¡°M-My lord, may I know why you stopped my attack?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Long Chenughed, reaching out and patting his opponent¡¯s cheeks. These pats were more like ps with the sounds produced, but his opponent did not dare retaliate.


    ¡°You want to kill my grandfather, and you¡¯re actually asking what this is about?¡±


    Upon hearing Long Chen¡¯s words, the man¡¯s eyes widened and he was stunned, ¡°Are you Long Chen, who entered the Lingwu Family? How are you so powerful?¡±


    He was about to struggle free, but Long Chen held onto his arm and twisted. The man yelled, but that arm had already been twisted to a scary angle.


    ¡°I urge you not to move, or else I¡¯ll break your other arm.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s cold words made him give up. He understood the current situation and began to speak in a tearful voice, hoping to get Long Chen¡¯s forgiveness.


    ¡°It¡¯s not impossible for me to forgive you. As long as you answer me truthfully, I won¡¯t kill you.¡±


    Having said this, Long Chen turned back and looked at Yang Cangqiong, who was still in a daze, and spoke apologetically, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, grandfather. Chen¡¯er has returned a littlete¡­¡±


    Yang Cangqiong came back to himself, ¡°No, it¡¯s notte at all. But Chen¡¯er, is it really you?¡±


    ¡°How can it not be me?¡±


    ¡°How are you so strong?¡±


    While asking this, Yang Cangqiong still could not believe his eyes. Long Chen had only entered the Lingwu Family a month ago. It was impossible for him to be able to deal with someone who had just entered the Human Dan Realm.


    Yang Cangqiong had personally experienced the formidable strength of this man. He himself could do little about it, so how had Long Chen taken care of him so easily?


    Yang Yuntian walked in at this moment, simrly astonished at the scene.


    ¡°Grandfather, if you have any questions, just ask Second Uncle. Let me interrogate this fellow!¡±

 Chapter 122 – Crimson Tablet!

    Yang Yuntian had heard of Long Chen¡¯s strength before but had never actually seen it for himself. Now, after seeing Long Chen easily taking care of the man in the red robes, he finally believed in Long Chen¡¯s skills.


    ¡°Father¡­¡±


    Seeing the astonishment and excitement on this old man¡¯s face, Yang Yuntian felt the same way inside.


    He silently stood by Grandfather Yang¡¯s side, watching how Long Chen was going to deal with this red robed man.


    Grandfather Yang had a lot of questions, but he did not say anything. All he wanted to see was how powerful his grandson had gotten.


    This was the territory of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. This red-robed man had caused a huge ruckus, and Long Chen knew that he could not stay for long. Hence, he had to finish this as soon as possible and obtain all the information he required.


    The red-robed man was now under his control, and he had no way of escaping. He knew that Long Chen was part of the Lingwu Family, and his actions might cause a lot of trouble to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, and that was what the man feared the most.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to beat around the bush with you. You are to answer whatever I ask you truthfully. If you lie, I¡¯ll break a limb of yours. How many limbs do you have, hmm?¡±


    Long Chen stood before the red-robed man and asked coldly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you, I¡¯ll tell you! Just ask.¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen was quite young yet his words and gaze was filled with viciousness, the man was distressed.


    ¡°Good.¡±


    Long Chen nodded in satisfaction. ¡°The first question. When will the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony be held?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s main purpose here was to attend the ceremony. Hence, the red-robed man was not the least bit surprised at this question.


    However, this information was not something only people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were privy to, and he promptly answered.


    ¡°The Blood Sacrificial Ceremony will be held tomorrow!¡±


    ¡°At what time will it be?¡±


    That was what Long Chen wanted to know.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s icy re, the red-robed man quivered in fear. ¡°Tomorrow at midnight, which is when there is the most Yin Qi. It is also the most appropriate time to hold the ceremony.¡±


    Midnight? It looked like there wasn¡¯t much time left.


    Seeing Long Chen not answering immediately. The red-robed man tried asking miserably, ¡°My lord, will you let me off if I tell you everything?¡±


    ¡°That depends on whether your answers can satisfy me. If I find that you hem and haw and try to cover up anything, you¡¯ll die a pitiful death.¡±


    Though Long Chen sounded calm, these words were extremely terrifying to the man.


    Grandfather Yang and Yang Yuntian watched Long Chen, who was maturing day by day. They exchanged a nce and nodded.


    ¡°Looks like after Chen¡¯er went to the Lingwu Family, both his strength and his personality have matured a lot.¡±


    This helped them gain some confidence in Long Chen in wanting to save Yang Lingqing.


    ¡°He might actually seed¡­¡±


    Meanwhile, Long Chen asked the second question.


    ¡°In which part of your Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Castle will the ceremony be held?¡±


    The Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Castle was the base of operations of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    Recalling Long Chen saying that he would be let off as long as he answered honestly, the red-robed man saw the righteous air around Long Chen and concluded that he must be someone trustworthy. He honestly answered, ¡°Our Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Castle has an underground city, and the Crimson Blood Ceremony will be held there. The underground city is usually closed off, and only when it¡¯s time for the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony will followers be allowed to enter the city.¡±


    For the red-robed man, the questions that Long Chen asked could be easily answered by any follower of the sect. Hence, he was not afraid to be punished by the sect leader.


    The underground city?


    If it was still in Yuanling City, it was still possible to get there in time.


    ¡°One more question for you. You must give me an honest answer.


    Long Chen looked at the red dot between the red-robed man¡¯s eyebrows. ¡°What does your Crimson Blood Sacred Sect use to differentiate your followers?¡±


    ¡°You want to infiltrate the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡± The red-robed man was appalled.


    ¡°Do you not want this arm of yours anymore?¡± Long Chen eximed coldly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you!¡±


    The red-robed man knew he should not waste more time and thought, ¡°Even if this kid wants to enter the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, the sect leader and five sect elders will definitely take care of him. By telling him this, I¡¯ll be able to get rid of him!¡±


    Having thought this through, he immediately answered, ¡°The followers of our sect all have a vermillion mark between their eyebrows, known as the Crimson Mark. I see you have a red dot between your eyebrows, so you don¡¯t need the Crimson Mark to enter. We also have a Crimson Tablet used to identify ourselves.¡±


    ¡°Crimson Tablet? Show me.¡±


    The red-robed man produced two crimson tablets from his cosmos pouch, passing one to Long Chen. He took it and found there was a strange pattern on the front, while there was a name at the back- Proctor Zhoutai.


    ¡°Your name is Zhoutai?¡±


    He quickly nodded and passed another tablet to Long Chen, ¡°My lord, there are over a thousand followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. There are around a hundred people I have jurisdiction over. The owner of this tablet infuriated me and I¡¯ve already killed him on the sly. Nobody knows about this. If you would like to enter the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, you can use his identity. Nobody will find out.¡±


    After taking the tablet, he saw the words written at the back- Follower Huangtian.


    Seeing Long Chen not saying anything, the man was anxious and spoke carefully, ¡°My lord, I¡¯ve told you everything that I need to. I¡¯ve even given you a tablet and arranged for you to have an identity. I wonder if you are satisfied? I guarantee that as long as I get to leave this room, I¡¯ll immediately leave Yuanling City and never return nor have any dealings with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Leylinughed gently and kept the Crimson Tablet. Beaming at the red-robed man, he spoke, ¡°Don¡¯t be in such a hurry. I¡¯ll let you go when the timees, but I have one more question. Where are the young girls that the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has been kidnapping during this period of time? Describe the area and the way there, and then you can leave.¡±


    ¡°My lord, this¡­ I really do not know. In order to prevent the n from falling through, our sect leader has been extremely careful about this. I¡¯m afraid only he knows this information!¡±


    After hearing the question, the man paled and answered anxiously.


    ¡°Do you mean you don¡¯t want this arm anymore?¡± Long Chen¡¯s expression darkened.


    ¡°No, I really don¡¯t know! All I know is it¡¯s somewhere in the underground city, but it¡¯s sorge. How would I know where it is?¡±


    Seeing the unfriendly gaze in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, he was now ill at ease.


    Long Chen merelyughed coldly, acting without any warning. However, his goal was not the arm of the man. Rather, it was his skull. With a strike from his palm, Long Chen subdued the man and killed him.


    Till his death, the red-robed man would never know why Long Chen had killed him.


    Firstly, Long Chen had said that as long as he did not give the right answer, Long Chen would break his limbs, but did not say that he would take his life. Next, from the perspective of the red-robed man, a young rash fellow like Long Chen would usually honour his promises.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, why did you kill him?¡±


    Grandfather Yang and Yang Yuntian were both shocked.


    Long Chen kept the corpse of the red-robed man in his cosmos pouch and then cleaned up the area, concealing all traces. ¡°Someone ising in this direction. We can¡¯t stay here for long. Grandfather, let¡¯s find a safe ce and then continue discussing our ns.¡±


    Under Long Chen¡¯s lead, the three of them arrived at a forest at the outskirts of Yuanling City. This was an area not too far away from the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, and was a ce where they could easily take cover.


    ¡°Grandfather, Second Uncle, you¡¯ve heard everything that I asked about. Stay here. I¡¯ll go and grab a few people from the sect and ascertain the information we obtained is correct. Then, I¡¯ll infiltrate the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce and save Lingqing!¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Yang Yuntian was agitated, ¡°Chen¡¯er, the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce is extremely dangerous. How can you go in alone? Lingqing is my daughter; let me apany you!¡±


    Long Chen shook his head, ¡°Forget it, Second Uncle. With my current strength, I can definitely retreat even if I¡¯m against the sect leader, but if you enter, you¡¯ll only inconvenience me. I hope you can believe in me. I will do whatever I have to even if I might die from it!¡±


    Yang Yuntian wanted to say more but was stopped by Grandfather Yang.


    Grandfather Yang¡¯s gaze was full of affection while he looked at Long Chen, ¡°Chen¡¯er, do as you wish. We can¡¯t do much anyway, but you are the hope and future of our Yang family. Grandfather can only warn you to be more careful. Also, your life is the priority. Don¡¯t give it up so easily. It¡¯s not worth it.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and left, his back disappearing into Yuanling City at a flying speed, leaving Grandfather Yang and Yang Yuntian ncing at each other in dismay.


    ¡°Father, do you think he will seed?¡±


    Grandfather Yang gave a long sigh, ¡°I don¡¯t know, but now, our Yang family can only resign ourselves to what fate has in store for us.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    After tossing away the fourth corpse, Long Chen nced in the direction of Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce.


    ¡°With the affirmation from these four regr followers, there shouldn¡¯t be any issues with what the red-robed man said. However, I still don¡¯t know where Lingqing is being held captive. Looks like I¡¯ll have to enter the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce to know.¡±


    Looking at the Crimson Tablet in his hands, Long Chen beamed.


    ¡°To save himself, this guy has even prepared an identity for me. That¡¯s a very intelligent choice. One, that¡¯ll give me a reason to let him off. Two, even if I don¡¯t let him off, he believes that I¡¯ll be dead anyway even if I sessfully infiltrate the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.¡±


    Long Chen had also asked the four followers about the original owner of his tablet, Huangtian, and found that there were few who were good friends within the sect. If he was careful enough not to bump into anyone that Huangtian was close to, he would be able to enter Crimson Blood Sacred Sect sessfully.


    ¡°Lingxi, your senses are very powerful. When the timees, help me find her.¡±


    ¡°I know. Lingqing is also my sister, so if anything happens to her, I won¡¯t let you off!¡± Lingxi was also very worried after finding out Yang Lingqing had gotten into trouble. The closer they got to Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce, the more keyed up she got.


    ¡°That¡¯s good, but you have to promise me something.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°As you used a lot of your spiritual force to steal those Thunder me Crystals, there isn¡¯t much left. That¡¯s why you are not to do anything this time!¡±


    Though Long Chen¡¯s words were cold, they were filled with warmth and care, and Lingxi obediently nodded.


    ¡°Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, here Ie¡­¡±


    Long Chen advanced towards the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.

 Chapter 123 – Crimson Blood Devil’s Palace

    The construction in front of him was several timesrger than the Green Willow Residence. Though it was called the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce, it was extremely beautiful. There were multiple buildings and foliage everywhere. It was very much simr to the ces whererge families or elegant schrs resided.


    Long Chen observed at the entrance for a long while. With Lingxi¡¯s sensing abilities, he quickly found a way to enter the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce. It was very simple. All he needed to do was to show his Crimson Tablet and then report the name of the proctor he was under.


    ¡°Huangtian, under Proctor Zhoutai.¡±


    The four guards at the door were at the peak of the ninth dragon vein. Though Long Chen was multiple times more powerful than them, he did not dare let down his guard.


    Nodding, he took his Crimson Tablet from one of them and entered the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce.


    ¡°There are probably shifts for those guards at the door, so they don¡¯t know Huangtian. However, there might be someone who knows him, so I have to be careful.¡±


    Having this in mind, Long Chen strolled around the gigantic Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Sect. Of course, he tried his best to feign and keep with his identity as someone of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.


    As the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were preparing for the major Blood Sacrificial Ceremony, followers would all return to the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce in order to witness this significant moment. Hence, it was very lively within the pce.


    It was evident that those who entered the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were generally ruthless and introverted. Hence, while it was lively, there weren¡¯t people linking arms or throwing their arms around others¡¯ shoulders, which actually made things easier for Long Chen.


    Long Chen calmly meandered around the pce, hoping to find out more information regarding the underground city but to no avail.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯ll have to be more daring.¡±


    While the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce was big, Long Chen went through the area in a short period of time, finally halting in the hall of the Devil¡¯s Pce. At this moment, a burly man walked to his side and gazed upon him with suspicion for a while, ¡°Kid, you look very unfamiliar. Are you new to the sect?¡±


    Long Chen had already prepared himself for such a situation. Huangtian had only entered the sect not too long ago, so Long Chen did not hesitate, ¡°It hasn¡¯t even been a month since I entered.¡±


    The man chuckled, ¡°I imagine you haven¡¯t experienced the blood bath yet, right? The feeling when cultivating in the blood bath really brings up fond memories for me. Honestly though, kid, you¡¯re really lucky to be able to enjoy the blood bath when you¡¯ve only just entered the sect!¡±


    Giving Long Chen a few heavy pats on the back and seeing the resulting grimace on Long Chen¡¯s face, the burly manughed brightly and left.


    However, the moment he left, Long Chen¡¯s expression of misery dissipated.


    ¡°There¡¯s no use in my wandering around here. There are lesser people at night, so I should wait till then to investigate, which is probably more effective. If I wander about like this, they might get a hold on me.¡±


    In the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce, everyone had a residence. However, Long Chen could not go to where Huangtian stayed. The sky was gradually darkening, and he found a corner to conceal himself. As night fell, lesser people were out and about.


    ¡°The sect leader stays in the Blood Pavilion here. I imagine I¡¯d need to enter the Blood Pavilion to find out information regarding the underground city. If I¡¯m not wrong, the entrance to the underground city should be in the pavilion!¡±


    Having made his mind, Long Chen proceeded towards Blood Pavilion.


    Blood Pavilion was right smack in the centre of the Devil¡¯s Pce and was a sealed courtyard. Usually, only important people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were allowed entry, so the closer he got to the pavilion, Long Chen found that there were lesser people passing by.


    Soon enough, Long Chen saw a building that waspletely red. From afar, a malicious aura emanated from the Blood Pavilion.


    ¡°The sect leader is at the Earth Dan Realm. If I rashly charge in, not only would I find it difficult to retreat, I might even harm Lingqing as well! I¡¯ll need a n.¡±


    Long Chen furrowed his brows and gazed at the crimson building from the corner he was hiding in, silent.


    ¡°There is indeed an Earth Dan Realm cultivator in there, as well as five cultivators at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.¡±


    Lingxi warned him worriedly.


    This situation was very troublesome, with a cultivator at the Earth Dan Realm and five at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Long Chen was merely at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm and still had a mission to save Yang Lingqing.


    ¡°Damn it! If those people approach me, I¡¯ll make sure they get it from me!¡± Long Chen¡¯s expression darkened as he gritted out.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s here¡­¡± With Lingxi¡¯s whispered warning, Long Chen quickly hid himself. Soon after, three shadows sneakily crept towards the Blood Pavilion. From their physique, it seemed like there was one woman and two men.


    ¡°Long Chen, they must have snuck in as well.¡±


    Long Chen knew this without Lingxi having to point it out. After all, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect had caused a huge ruckus after kidnapping arge number of young girls. There were sure to be many who harboured a hatred for them.


    Out of those three, the two men were at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, while the sole woman was at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    They stopped at a ce not far from Long Chen, secretly gazing at Blood Pavilion. The woman spoke, ¡°The entrance to the underground city is in the Blood Pavilion, but that devil, the sect leader is also inside. I¡¯m not his match. What are your ns?¡±


    One of the men spoke, ¡°How about us brothers go in to attract the attention of the sect leader, while Elder Sister Li enters the underground city and save your sister?¡±


    Elder Sister Li shook her head, ¡°No. If that happens, you¡¯ll definitely die. In addition, there are five sect elders in there, and there are thus a total of six people who are stronger than us. How many do you think you can lead away?¡±


    At this point, their brows were deeply furrowed.


    ¡°Elder Sister Li, I really don¡¯t care anymore. I¡¯ve seen how many people the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has harmed. They¡¯ve even extended their ws to your sister! Even if I have to pay with my life, I¡¯ll make it so that they wish they were dead!¡±


    ¡°Shut up! We¡¯re still not powerful enough, so we have toe up with a n. Don¡¯t just go in recklessly, because that¡¯ll just do harm to all of us!¡±


    The two men quieted down after being reprimanded.


    ¡°These three do have some power. It might be helpful if I make contact with them.¡±


    While the three were at their wits¡¯ end, Long Chen appeared. In order to avoid misunderstandings, he presented his identity as soon as he appeared.


    ¡°I¡¯m not of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and have the same goal as you do. Would you mind giving me some of your time?¡±


    Initially, the three of them had been startled at Long Chen¡¯s appearance and were prepared to fight. However, after Long Chen introduced himself, they heaved a sigh of relief and looked him up and down. They were a little speechless at Long Chen¡¯s young age.


    ¡°This kid is young but has some guts to dare intrude the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect alone. Well, it¡¯s not like we¡¯ll have any ideas just standing around here. We might as well find a ce and discuss this properly!¡±


    At this thought, the woman called Elder Sister Li nodded, ¡°Then let us talk.¡±


    Following the woman, Long Chen went a few rounds around the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce and finally arrived at a small room. These three were actually able to possess rooms of their own here without being suspected, which was rather surprising to Long Chen.


    ¡°No need to be too surprised. The three of us had the intention of getting rid of the sect a few years ago. How can we eliminate them without going into the lion¡¯s den? About a month ago, we entered the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect and have been moving around here in order to prevent suspicion.¡±


    So that was the case. It was no wonder that the three of them were so familiar with the area.


    The four of them enthusiastically sat at a square table. Long Chen nced at this tall, valiant looking woman and the two middle-aged men who looked simr and introduced himself, ¡°My name is Long Chen. How should I address you?¡±


    The woman cut to the chase, ¡°I¡¯m Li Jing, while these two are Li Peng and Li Cheng respectively. For what reason have you snuck into the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect?¡±


    ¡°The same as yours. My sister has been taken by the sect, and my goal is naturally to save her.¡±


    The three exchanged nces, and Li Jing spoke, ¡°My sister was also caught in their evil scheme. Young brother, you¡¯re incredibly gutsy despite your young age, and I really do admire you for that. However, it¡¯s extremely dangerous here, and we¡¯re treading on thin ice¡­¡±


    ¡°Everyone, do you have any information regarding the underground city?¡± Not minding Li Jing¡¯smenting, he went straight to the point.


    Li Jing was startled, and then answered, ¡°There are a total of ten paths into the underground city, scattered around the Blood Pavilion. However, it¡¯s difficult to enter, and even more difficult to exit. The sect leader and sect elders all reside in the Blood Pavilion, and even if we were able to enter the underground city, it would be hard to leave.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen furrowed his brows deeply.


    Li Peng and Li Cheng kept sighing, speaking ruefully while looking at Long Chen¡¯s young face, ¡°You¡¯re young but already value your family so much. However, the might of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect far exceeds your imagination.¡±


    ¡°Exactly. I think it¡¯s best for you to return and, after bing more powerful,e back and seek revenge. You shouldn¡¯t just give up your life here! Us brothers and Elder Sister Li are already prepared for death, hoping to make those demons pay even if we can¡¯t save Elder Sister Li¡¯s sister!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so young and with boundless prospects, they tried to convince him out of goodwill.


    Long Chen understood where they wereing from, but this did not mean he was convinced.


    ¡°My sister is extremely important to me. No matter what happens, I will save her even at the cost of my life!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so stubborn, the three of them looked at each other and sighed, and were about to speak. At this moment, there was suddenly an explosion outside.


    ¡°There are spies!¡±

 Chapter 124 – Crimson Blood Sacred Sect Leader

    Upon hearing the chaos outside as well as someone yelling ¡®spies¡¯, Long Chen and the other three were shocked. However, nothing was happening to them, and only then did they realise that the person who had been exposed was not them. They could thus rx.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go and take a look!¡±


    Li Jing, whose name implied quietness(1) yet was actually very forthright and tenacious took the lead and rushed out of the room. Long Chen and the others had no choice but to follow.


    ¡°In the Crimson Blood Hall, you need to be careful in everything you do. No matter what happens, you can¡¯t let anything slip or harm anyone else!¡±


    Li Jing¡¯s words were mainly for Long Chen. After all, he was young and had experienced very little, and could easily be scared off by others. If they revealed anything now, this mission was done for.


    Soon enough, everyone reached the Crimson Blood Hall. There were already many people crowded around, with most at the banister of the second floor. Looking down, one could see that out of over a thousand followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, hundreds were gathered here!


    Most of them were watching the scene.


    Following their gaze, Long Chen looked downwards and saw a great many people, at the centre of which was a tall, burly man. Looking frantic, he was currently battling against two red-robed men.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the man who spoke to me just now? He actually snuck in too?¡±


    This burly man was the one who had patted Long Chen on the back at the Crimson Blood Hall.


    ¡°That fiendish aura really convinced me that he was actually of the sect. I didn¡¯t expect him to be found out.¡±


    The people battling the man were naturally two proctors of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. The burly man was merely at the ninth dragon vein and was naturally not a match for experts at the Human Dan Realm. Hence, through the battle with the two proctors, he was soon heavily injured and at death¡¯s door.


    ¡°Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, or rather, Crimson Blood Demonic Sect! You devils do such utterly heartless things. Heaven will punish you sooner orter!¡±


    The burly man¡¯s eyes and upper body were stained red with blood. A fiendish aura emanated from his body, and he continued to fight madly despite his injuries. Hence, while the two proctors were stronger than he was, they had yet to kill him.


    ¡°Heaven? Punishment? This is a dog eat dog world. Humans and beasts are all alike. What is this talk about being punished by the heavens?¡± One of the proctors sneered.


    ¡°You actually dare cause trouble before the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony at our sect! Youngster, you¡¯re pretty gutsy. I think I¡¯ll dig out your guts today and see how big they really are!¡±


    ¡°If you want to kill me, then I¡¯ll make sure you go down with me!¡±


    Fresh blood spilt in the Crimson Blood Hall.


    ¡°Sect leader is here!¡±


    All of a sudden, someone eximed. A path was opened up within the masses, and a young person dressed in luxurious, embroidered clothing in red and white, with a faint red on his featuresughed demonically. He did not look past twenty years of age. Escorted by the masses, he approached the three people who were fighting.


    ¡°We pay our respects to the sect leader!¡±


    Besides the proctors who were in battle, everyone else bowed deeply.


    When the sect leader arrived, Li Jing¡¯s expression changed. While everyone was kneeling, she immediately pulled at Long Chen.


    In her mind, a young kid like Long Chen was probably rash and would not bow down. Unexpectedly, Long Chen was even more quick to go down, looking like a devout follower gazing upon the sect leader the way he would his father.


    While putting on an act, Long Chen stared at the sect leader.


    ¡°He¡¯s not that old but his aura is very dense. His eyes are exquisitely evil. Someone like this evidently has a powerful background. Liu Lan mentioned that he is the grandson of the Yuan Emperor, and it looks like she isn¡¯t wrong.¡±


    Sensing the frightfulness of the sect leader, Long Chen knew that it really wasn¡¯t going to be easy to deal with someone at the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°I have a fourth level profound grade demonic beast and the blood essence of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s enough for me to reach the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, but as long as I reach that level, it will be possible for me to handle him.¡±


    After figuring this out, Long Chen calmed himself down.


    Now, the sect leader¡¯s expression remained unchanging as he scanned the area, finally halting his gaze on the three people fighting. In his eyes, Long Chen could see a hint of impatience.


    ¡°Two pieces of trash.¡±


    The sect leader¡¯s cold voice sounded in the hall, and everyone could only see a red phantom image floating past and suddenly, two figures flew backwards while spitting out blood, falling to the ground with a loud thud.


    At the battle area, all that was left was the sect leader, who was still smiling gently, as well as the burly man. He was now stained with blood all over, his aura weak while being sped at the throat by the sect leader, unable to move at all.


    His eyes still exhibited his hatred, but he was not far from death.


    At this scene, nobody dared make a sound, especially Li Jing and the others who gasped, fearful. Long Chen also squinted his eyes.


    ¡°This guy is really difficult to handle. How should I save Lingqing¡­¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen was now under more pressure.


    Those who had been sent flying were the two proctors of the sect. Now, disregarding their injuries, they were terrified as they knelt towards the sect leader, begging for forgiveness.


    ¡°Your subordinate is useless for not being able to handle someone at the Dragon Vein Realm. Please do take into ount your subordinate¡¯s loyalty towards the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect for numerous years, and spare our lives!¡±


    The sect leader shot a nce at them, and merely said two words- ¡®get lost¡¯. The two hurriedly got up and disappeared into the crowd.


    The might of the sect leader was enough to reduce his proctors to this state. It was evident that he was a terrifying person.


    ¡°Elder Sister Li, since the sect leader is here, should we take the opportunity to get into the Blood Pavilion?¡± At this important moment, Long Chen suddenly asked.


    Li Jing was shocked and immediately whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t speak. There are five sect elders in the Blood Pavilion, and it¡¯s impossible for us to go now.¡±


    While she was speaking, the scene ahead changed again.


    The sect leader was now dragging the burly man and lifting him. Though the leader was not as tall, the man¡¯s legs were hanging down and trailing on the ground, unable to support his body any longer.


    ¡°You actually dare sneak into our sect¡­¡±


    The sect leader eximed while smiling, seemingly ruminating on the situation.


    ¡°You devil, you¡¯ll eventually have a tragic end!¡±


    Gritting his teeth, the dying man answered.


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    The sect leader spoke indifferently, ¡°In this world, power is king. If there¡¯s anyone here more powerful and can win against me, I have nothing to say. However, it seems like there are none, which means that in this area, I am free to do as I like.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll die a dog¡¯s death!¡± The burly man spat out a mouthful of blood and eximed coldly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll die a dog¡¯s death? You even have the guts to curse me. Well then, I¡¯ll make sure you die a dog¡¯s death.¡±


    Even before he finished speaking, the sect leader suddenly grabbed the burly man¡¯s arm and, under the astonished gazes of everyone present, suddenly pulled hard. Fresh blood gushed out, unable to stop.


    He had forcefully torn off the man¡¯s entire arm!


    One hand on the burly man who was giving a blood-curdling scream of pain, the other on the man¡¯s torn-off arm, the sect leader allowed the blood to spurt onto his body and face while his expression remained unchanging.


    *Hss!*


    Tossing the arm he held, the sect leader then tore off the man¡¯s other arm. His face was now sprayed with blood, and everyone was now scared stupid by the shrieks of the man.


    Long Chen and the others clenched their fists while watching on.


    The burly man was already heavily injured. With another huge blow, the intense pain affected his internal injuries and finally imed his life. If not, he would die only after immense torment.


    Throwing the burly man¡¯s corpse to the side, the sect leader licked the blood at the corner of his lips and muttered, ¡°The blood of a man is not as delicious as that of a woman, especially that of a girl¡­¡±


    That sentence that was thought aloud scared everyone into silence, and it was as quiet as a cicada was in the winter.


    ¡°That annoying f***!¡±


    If not for Long Chen¡¯s previous warning, Lingxi, feeling incredibly indignant at the injustice, would long since have charged forth and had it out with the sect leader!


    ¡°In the long period of time I¡¯ve been alive, it¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen someone so revolting! Long Chen, promise me this. No matter what, you have to kill him and prevent him from harming anyone else!¡±


    ¡°I know.¡±


    Long Chen was not any less determined to kill the sect leader than Lingxi was. However, before finding Yang Lingqing, they still had a handle on him. For that reason, Long Chen did not dare do anything.


    Scanning the area, the sect leader gave a hollowugh, and a malicious voice sounded.


    ¡°We¡¯re about to begin the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony. Just as well, since everyone is here. I¡¯m going to tell you something.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sect leader!¡±


    While watching his followers, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect leader was bathed with blood but seemed not to be aware of it as he continued, ¡°Due to the existence of a special someone, the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony will be of a higher grade and even grander than before. Hence, all of you have to make the extra effort to ensure the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony will be held without a hitch, even at the cost of your lives.¡±


    ¡°We will do our best!¡±


    ¡°We aren¡¯t afraid of difficulties and will do everything we can!¡±


    ¡°Good, good!¡± Surrounded by the agitated gazes of the masses, the sect leader pped his hands. His gaze turned cold as he looked around, ¡°I know there still are spies amongst you, but know this. The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is my territory, and this person right here could very well be you in an hour, or in a day.¡±


    ¡°The girls are currently kept in my Blood Pavilion. If you¡¯re interested, all spies can enter the Blood Pavilion. I¡¯ll be there waiting for you.¡±


    His gaze seemed to pierce into everyone¡¯s heart. Even the followers who were loyal to him were fearful.


    ¡°That¡¯s all I¡¯m going to say. You may all go. Let us anticipate the arrival of tomorrow. Crimson Blood is invincible!¡±


    ¡°Crimson Blood is invincible!¡±


    Under the yells of the masses, the sect leader bathed in blood left, leaving behind a corpse in the Crimson Blood Hall. Long Chen and the others left as well and returned to that small room. All of their expressions were dark.


    ¡°With the sect leader around, it¡¯s impossible for us to enter the underground city beforehand.¡±


    ¡°Looks like we can only make our move while the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony is being held.¡±


    (1) The second character of Li Jing(Àè¾²)¡¯s name means ¡®silence¡¯, or ¡®quietness¡¯.

 Chapter 125 – Underground City

    ¡°Long Chen, what are your ns?¡±


    The three of them eventually decided on making their move during the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony.


    ¡°If you want my advice, I think it¡¯s best not to do anything for now. While someone is alive, there¡¯ll still be hope. The three of us have reached the apex of what we can ever achieve, but it¡¯s different for you. If possible, we would like you to avenge us.¡±


    ¡°Elder Sister Li¡­¡± Long Chen was a little troubled.


    ¡°Look, you¡¯re already addressing me as your elder sister. You¡¯ll help, won¡¯t you? I¡¯m not going to be a stranger either, so I¡¯ll call you Little Chen. Little Chen, the three of us will risk our lives here. If it doesn¡¯t work out, avenge us!¡±


    Seeing Li Jing insisting, Long Chen couldn¡¯t do anything but reply, ¡°I¡¯ll definitely kill the sect leader. I promise you not to do anything before the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony. Unless there is some life or death situation, I definitely won¡¯t reveal my identity. Is that alright?¡±


    If they were to die, someone would take revenge on their behalf. That was more than enough for them.


    At this age, Long Chen was already at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Compared to the sect leader, he might be less exceptional, but if he persisted on, he had the chance to get stronger.


    ¡°Come, let us discuss the ceremony. Little Chen, you don¡¯t know anything about it, do you?¡± Li Peng asked.


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Li Peng, exin it to him.¡± Li Jing was the leader here, and with her instructions, Li Peng and the three sat while he began to speak.


    ¡°There are three parts to the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony. First, all the followers go to the underground city and worship the sect leader, and then offer incense to the gods. The second part is to massacre young girls and lead their blood into the blood pool till it is full. The third is the blood bath. The sect leader will first bathe in the pool, followed by the five sect elders and the other proctors, and then the followers. Only then will the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony be considered over.¡±


    ¡°In other words, we have to make our move while they are offering incense. If not, when they start killing people, hundreds of lives will be lost. All of them would also be young beautiful girls¡­ My sister is within their midst as well!¡±


    At this point, Li Jing¡¯s voice was iparably cold.


    ¡°Those beasts!¡± Li Peng and Li Cheng sighed.


    ¡°They¡¯re even worse than beasts.¡±


    Long Chen was full of killing intent. He had used blood transmutation before, but this was only for beasts. The times he had used it on Bai Zhanxiong and Xue Yuanzi had been because of his hatred for them. They were all Long Chen¡¯s opponents. As for the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, there were hundreds and thousands of innocent, powerless girls who had been caught!


    ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be any good soul who would enter the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. This time, I¡¯m not going to have any inhibitions and kill as I wish.¡±


    At the thought of a mad massacre, countless crimson dragon shadows roared in Long Chen¡¯s body, the aura of bloodthirstiness slowly erupting from his body.


    The second day would arrive soon, and with the four patiently waiting, the curtain of night descended upon them soon enough. Long before the sky turned dark, Long Chen and the others assembled with the thousand followers and headed towards the Blood Pavilion.


    The followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect were typically at or above the fifth dragon vein. A thousand people were gathered together, a strength that could not beparable to Por Town.


    Under the influence of the sect leader, a bloody and vicious aura spread in the sect. Long Chen looked around and found that there were few who did not look fiendish.


    ¡°I wonder how many innocent people died at the hands of these beasts¡­¡±


    Following therge group of people and, being guided by the proctors, Long Chen and the others entered the Blood Pavilion. He saw the tunnel to the underground city, which was a narrow pathway with a descending staircase. Only two people could pass through at a time.


    Long Chen was at the end of the line. Only after he walked for a long period of time through the tunnel to the underground city did the path open up.


    This was a huge area that was dug out using manpower. It was the underground city, and was basically modelled after a city. The only difference was that the walls here were all red, with all sorts of strange drawings on them that made them seem terrifying.


    ¡°It¡¯s better to be careful.¡±


    Li Jing warned him, and the three of them separated from Long Chen. They were going to fight the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect openly, and Long Chen was merely here to watch.


    Of course, that was what Li Jing and the other two believed.


    After walking around the underground city for a long period of time, everyone moved in a specific direction. Finally, Long Chen saw the heart of the city a distance away. In front, there was arge pool that could allow over a thousand people to enter. The pool was now empty, but from the blood stains, it could be inferred that this was the blood pool.


    The followers of the sect formed organised lines at one side at the blood pool, while at the other end, there was a giant crimson altar. Threerge sticks of incense burned, spirals of smoke rising to the top of the underground city.


    Under the altar stood the sect elder, as well as five elderly of different genders. They all wore golden-red robes and were the legendary sect elders of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. All of them were formidable.


    Long Chen¡¯s gazended on them.


    ¡°I can tell that none of these five are good people. The sect leader is devoid of conscience, and I imagine they aren¡¯t any better. From the vigour bursting out of their bodies, they must have killed many people.¡±


    Sensing the strength in his body, Long Chen furrowed his eyebrows.


    ¡°A fourth level profound grade demonic beast, as well as the blood essence of the Heart Corrosive demonic beast still isn¡¯t enough for me to enter the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Before I battle the sect leader, I¡¯ll need to do some blood transmutation to break through to the perfect mastery stage¡­¡±


    Long Chen was a little unwilling to use blood transmutation on humans.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much. If you don¡¯t do this and something happens to Lingqing, you¡¯ll regret it for a lifetime.¡± Lingxi sensibly consoled him.


    At the thought of that girl, Long Chen had no choice but to nod. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I can make an exception for her!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, blood transmutation is a heaven-defying ability. I¡¯ve never seen anything more amazing than it. It represents an inexhaustible strength, and people go crazy over it. To be able to control yourself at this age isudable.¡±


    Long Chen revelled in Lingxi¡¯s heartfelt praise.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve always been an extraordinary existence¡­¡±


    ¡°How shameless!¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s cheerful banter, Long Chen¡¯s stifling emotions eased. The sect leader from before had caused him too much stress.


    ¡°The Blood Sacrificial Ceremony begins now. Everyone, kneel!¡±


    Out of the five sect elders, there were four males and one female. An ugly old woman screeched, her voice piercing the ears of everyone around. Long Chen, too, felt difort in his ears as he followed the masses and knelt.


    The old witch roared and turned back, speaking to the sect leader for a while before standing aside.


    Long Chen timidly knelt and, while everyone was in trepidation, looked everywhere.


    ¡°Little Xi, do you sense Lingqing?¡±


    Lingxi turned her head sideways in the Lingxi Sword and furrowed her brows, ¡°At the left of the blood pool, there are a fewrge doors. They are about a hundred metres away from the pool, and there are hundreds of young girls behind. Lingxi doesn¡¯t seem to be there. I¡¯ll continue searching¡­¡±


    Unsure of Yang Lingqing¡¯s whereabouts, Long Chen did not dare do anything.


    By this time, the sect leader had already announced themencement of the ceremony. He first ascended to the altar and offered incense. Shortly after, the five sect elders devoutly did the same.


    Above the blood pool was a bridge that led to the altar. Everyone passed the stone bridge and offered incense, and then drew a bowl of red liquid from the side of the altar. It was fresh blood.


    After offering incense, everyone returned to their original positions, but now with a bowl of blood in their hands. Even the sect leader was no different.


    ¡°Everyone, this is a very important time for us all. Now, hold the bowl of fresh blood firmly. Sect leader!¡±


    The old witch¡¯s piercing voice rang out, and she sternly nced towards the sect leader. Heughed heartily for a while and then eximed, ¡°Brothers, cheers!¡±


    ¡°Cheers!¡±


    ¡°Good!¡±


    Taking the initiative, the sect leader drank the bowl of blood and with a crash, flung the porcin in the blood pool, and it broke into smithereens. Right after that, bowls fell into the blood pond one after the another, filling it with fragments.


    As they had made contact with blood, the fragments were all red.


    ¡°Open the door and bring in the blood sources!¡±


    The sect leadermanded, and on the left of the blood pool,rge doors rumbled as they opened. There were four heavy doors, each even more thick than the other, and even with Long Chen¡¯s current strength, it would be difficult to destroy these stone doors in a short period of time.


    The sect leader had made ample preparations to ensure the ceremony proceeded smoothly without a hitch.


    The stone doors opened one after another, and shrieks, as well as wails could be heard. The sounds of people about to break down caused the followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect tough maniacally.


    ¡°Cry on, cry on! These are thest few minutes you have in this world. Cry as much as you like. You should be honoured to be able to make us stronger with your blood.¡±


    The sect leader¡¯s crazedughter boomed in the underground city.


    Long Chen tightly clenched his fists from within the masses.


    ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯ve found Lingqing! She¡¯s under the altar!¡±

 Chapter 126 – Abstruse Shadow Body

    ¡°Altar?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes had been focused on those girls who were crying behind the doors. Seeing the doors open, they were even more afraid, their legs going weak.


    They did know who was gathered outside, and hence were too afraid toe out. However, from just the cries, Long Chen could tell there were around 500 people in there.


    Killing off five hundred beautiful young girls was something that Long Chen could only admire the sect leader for his methods and callousness.


    ¡°How is she under the altar?¡± Long Chen quickly asked.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect it either and thought she¡¯d be with those young girls downstairs. Apparently, there¡¯s some mechanism under the altar and Lingqing is tied to a metal pir. Looks like she¡¯s already fainted, though her body is fine.¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s words, Long Chen could finally heave a sigh of relief.


    Looking at the sect leader¡¯s proud smile, the wrath and killing intent in him rose.


    At this moment, the sect leader was paying no attention to the weeping girls and spoke to the masses, ¡°There might still be many who don¡¯t know this. What¡¯s so special about the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony this time? Let me tell you!¡±


    As he spoke, the sect leader faced the altar and pressed down on a protruding rock. All of a sudden, a stone brick in front of the altar shifted away, and a metal pir slowly rose from underneath. Everyone could see there was a charming young girl who was tied to the pir with chains.


    Feeling the tremors of the pir, Yang Lingqing who had gone pale regained consciousness. Upon seeing the unfamiliar surroundings around her, as well as the thousand followers who were staring at her like a bunch of starving wolves, she sucked in a cold breath.


    ¡°She is the greatest surprise for me, and do you know why? Because¡­¡±


    With a gaze full of appreciation as if for an artwork, the sect leader strolled towards Yang Lingqing and seemed to go crazy, ¡°Because she has the Abstruse Shadow Body!¡±


    ¡°The Abstruse Shadow Body?¡±


    ¡°What is this Abstruse Shadow Body? What can it do?¡±


    The followers were mostly at the Dragon Pulse Realm and knew very little. It was expected that they did not know about this ¡®abstruse shadow body¡¯.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to know what it is. All you need to know is that within this beautiful girl lies blood equal to that of a thousand young girls, or perhaps more than that¡­¡±


    Having said this, the sect leader chuckled heartily, and upon hearing this, all the followers felt a fire in their hearts as they looked towards Yang Lingqing, extremely excited.


    ¡°With her around, most people will be able to raise their strength by a level just with this blood bath and with a little more effort. It is very possible for cultivators at the ninth dragon vein to solidify their Deity Dan through this process. When that happens, our Crimson Blood Sacred Sect will have at least thirty Human Dan Realm cultivators! This is therefore a significant time for us where we will rise to the top. Everyone, look forward to it!¡±


    Hearing the words of the sect leader, the followers all began to cheer.


    This was especially important to cultivators at the ninth dragon vein. As long as they could solidify their Human Dan, they could instantly achieve sess!


    The sect leader then turned towards the five sect elders and clicked his tongue, ¡°Sect elders, I want to find out as well. Who amongst you will reach the Earth Dan Realm?¡±


    The five sect elders were so emotional that they sank to their knees, grateful, ¡°We owe everything to the sect leader. If we gain more power, we will follow the sect leader until our deaths, going through fire and water and any adversity for you. Our lives are yours, sect elder!¡±


    With the sect elders leading, the followers agitatedly knelt and were insanely happy.


    Yang Lingqing quietly watched on.


    She had thought that after the dispersal of the Bai family, she would be able to live a peaceful life. Never did she expect that she would get into such a dangerous situation again. Long Chen was physically not too far away and could save her thest time, but this was different.


    She was trapped here alone, and every single person around her was a powerful existence she could notpare to. Any of the people here could easily take care of Grandfather Yang. With all these formidable people around, not even a god could save her.


    Hence, Yang Lingqing had now entirely given up hope.


    It was impossible for her to say she was not afraid, but since she was facing death already, many figures shed before her eyes. At the thought of thest person in her mind, she suddenly felt like things weren¡¯t so scary anymore. Her delicate body was filled with immense strength.


    ¡°I hope that with my death, the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect can let the Yang family off. Brother, please train peacefully. Once you truly be strong, avenge your sister. I know you will¡­¡±


    ¡°With you around, nobody can bully me, but the reality is ruthless. No matter how strong you are, there¡¯s always someone in this world who can best you.¡±


    Biting her lips, Yang Lingqing forced herself to be strong. She raised her head, gazing at the beasts around her disdainfully.


    ¡°Only by doing this will I not humiliate you, brother¡­¡±


    The underground city was now sealed off. Yang Lingqing scanned the crowd and thenughed helplessly, speechless at her own actions.


    With the emotional words of the sect leader, all the followers were stirred up. The fear andints they had towards their sect leader vanished.


    Long Chen coldly looked on. Yang Lingqing was right in front of him, but the sect leader was right beside her. He did not act rashly.


    Upon seeing Yang Lingqing, Long Chen¡¯s could feel his killing intent spreading throughout his body.


    ¡°Long Chen, endure it for a while longer. It¡¯s still not yet time!¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s warnings, Long Chen kept hisposure.


    While the followers were still cheering, a sudden explosion sounded. A blood-curdling screech rang, and blood sttered everywhere!


    Yang Lingqing raised her head, pleasantly surprised as she shouted, ¡°Brother¡­¡±


    However, her expression was soon frozen stiff. What she saw was not a familiar figure, but three people she had never seen before. Though they were grappling with their enemies, Yang Lingqing could not bring herself to be happy.


    In that moment, she had assumed that Long Chen had arrived. However, as she had not seen him, she could not help but be hit with a wave of disappointment.


    ¡°What am I thinking? Coming here to save me would only cause himself trouble¡­¡±


    At this thought, Yang Lingqing could only shake her head and force a smile.


    The sect leader watched the scene beside Yang Lingqing, expression unchanging. A cold expression appeared on his face as he indifferently spoke, ¡°Elder Yan, if they can¡¯t take care of it, then you will do it.¡±


    The elder beside him nodded and headed towards the bridge over the blood pool.


    Long Chen had anticipated that those three who were prepared for death would act at this moment. Right before this, everyone in the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was rejoicing. Who would have thought that anyone would do anything here? Hence, when Li Jing and the other two put their n into action, the tens of people around them were instantly ughtered.


    Previously, when Long Chen still did not know what was happening, Li Jing had used a flying dagger filled with real Qi to attack. Each flying dagger held within it the power of arge rock, and was entirely capable of piercing through bodies. With Li Peng and Li Cheng¡¯s efforts at hiding all these happenings, a massacre started all of a sudden on the sly!


    ¡°The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect must die!


    With Li Jing¡¯s resolute tone and rapid movements, the followers who were still at the Dragon Pulse Realm were cut through like vegetables being chopped through, with numerous people dying all at once. Only then did everyone suddenly react and try to escape. All that was left were a few proctors who, with a loud cry, shed towards the three people.


    All these proctors had strength at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm and could not be underestimated. Li Jing and the other two exchanged nces and immediately headed in the direction where more people were. Not only could this help conceal them, but also allow them to kill more people!


    ¡°Elder Sister Li, I¡¯ll take care of the proctors. Use the opportunity to save those people!¡±


    ¡°No! You aren¡¯t strong enough to take care of them! I¡¯m going to go all out. If we¡¯re going to die anyway, everyone is going down with us!¡±


    With the killing spree of the three, the people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect wailed and cried in despair. One of them was at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, while the other two were at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and were far too strong. The only one able to rival them were the few proctors.


    Focusing on Li Jing from within the masses, the sect leader smirked, ¡°So there¡¯s still someone at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Elder Yan, Elder Chen, take care of it lest it bes more troublesome.


    After ordering this, the sect leader clicked his tongue at Yang Lingqing, judging her smooth skin and sighing in even more appreciation after witnessing her icy re. He apuded, ¡°Yes, those are the eyes. I love girls that are durable like you, but it¡¯s a pity that your Abstruse Shadow Body is my sustenance. I won¡¯t hold back then.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so pleased with yourself. I wish a bastard like you an early death. It¡¯s even better if the king of hell takes away your life!¡± Yang Lingqing spoke calmly.


    The sect leader burst out intoughter till he could not straighten his back. After that, he pointed in Li Jing¡¯s direction, while his eyes were on Yang Lingqing, ¡°Do you mean those three clowns jumping around there want to take my life? My two sect elders are more than enough to y them alive!¡±


    Yang Lingqing sneered and closed her eyes, not answering him. The sect leader was about to fly into a rage out of humiliation, but all of a sudden, a racket sounded from the other side of the blood pool.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    The sect leader turned in that direction, shocked.


    Previously, when they had seen the two sect elders of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect heading in their direction, Li Jing and the other two knew they were done for. At this moment, Li Jing could no longer care for her sister. In this situation, it was basically impossible for her to rescue her sister, and all she could do before her death was to kill even more followers and disrupt their Blood Sacrificial Ceremony!


    ¡°Brothers! Kill them!¡±


    The three of them seemingly transformed into wild beasts, with Li Jing charging forward alone to take on the two sect elders while Li Peng and Li Cheng darted towards the other proctors!


    ¡°If I kill one, it¡¯ll be worth it. If I kill two, I¡¯ve made a profit!¡±


    The two sect elders were calm while they met the desperate attacks of their opponent. ¡°A tiny little existence like you dares to show off in front of us?!¡±


    The moment they acted, an attack that was like howling winds and torrential rains sent Li Jing flying while coughing out blood. With two at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm against one Li Jing, she lost out in terms of quantity.


    ¡°This won¡¯t do. Even if I die, one of them needs to go too!¡±


    At this thought, Li Jing did not care for her injuries and continued her attacks while gritting her teeth. At this moment, however, a burning force pulled her backwards!


    Suddenly seeing a streak of red flying in front of her, Li Jing¡¯s eyes widened.


    ¡°Who is it?¡±

 Chapter 127 – This is Long Chen?

    ¡°Who is it?¡±


    Li jing shouted, as the mysterious person behind her pulled her backwards.


    This caught her in a daze. All of a sudden, she saw zing mes exploding forth and turning into fiery handprints heading towards the two sect elders in front. What surprised Li Jing was under the assault of this mysterious person, the two sect elders were actually pushed backwards. In less than two breaths, they were rendered corpses!


    ¡°How can this be? He¡¯s a beast cultivator!¡±


    Li Jing and the two brothers of the Li family stopped whatever was at hand and watched the fight with the sect elders, and how this beast cultivator was able to take care of them in such a short period of time.


    This beast cultivator was Long Chen.


    Long Chen hadid low just now, waiting for the five sect elders to leave the side of the sect leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. He had finally waited for this moment, so why would he not make his move?


    Long Chen was at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and had already attained the Thunder me Physique that was at the same level as a middle-ranking profound grade battle technique! He could also use the middle-ranking profound grade battle technique, Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, and an attack like that was not something even Feng Wutian, who was at the peak of the Human Dan Realm could deal with. This was even more impossible for the two sect elders.


    After taking care of these two sect elders, Long Chen continued with his next technique.


    Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, begin!


    Making use of Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, Long Chen quickly grabbed these two corpses and quickly dove into the crowd. He had already undergone Dragon Soul Transformation, and in this state, he could absorb these two experts at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm using Blood Transmutation in merely two breaths¡¯ time!


    For Long Chen right now, the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm was merely somewhat simr to a profound grade level 3 demonic beast. To absorb and refine them was a very simple task.


    ¡°I can¡¯t deal with the sect leader right now. At most, I can attract the attention of the sect elders and take in their blood essence, which will hopefully be enough to make me reach the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm!¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s strategy. Using Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, he quickly moved about within the masses. The only person who would be able to trace him was the sect leader, but he was now preupied with speaking to Yang Lingqing.


    Two dried up corpses were flung in front of everyone, and they all gasped.


    By the time they had made sense of the situation, Long Chen had already disappeared.


    Or rather, he had already snuck into their midst.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Li Jing and the other two searched quickly from within the masses, but that person seemed to have disappeared.


    ¡°Senior! All of the people of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect should be killed. Please do it!¡±


    Li Peng and Li Cheng exchanged nces, both thinking that being able to kill two people at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm meant he was at the Earth Dan Realm and therefore, could deal with the sect leader!


    However, there was no reaction to their words. Everyone looked for the beast cultivator in confusion but to no avail. Li Jing saw Long Chen still staying at the same spot obediently and was relieved.


    ¡°Who was that expert just now?¡±


    While everyone was puzzling over this, the sect leader had gathered what had happened through the words of the three sect elders.


    ¡°You two, go take care of those three clowns. If anyone else appears, I¡¯ll take care of them personally!¡±


    The sect leader did not dare let down his guard now. This person must be somewhat powerful to be able to kill two sect elders.


    ¡°However, he¡¯s doing all this on the sly and not out in the open, which means he¡¯s scared of me. It seems like he¡¯s still not a match for me, and only won because heunched a sneak attack.¡±


    By this time, the sect leader had already gone to the bridge, staring tenaciously at the other side.


    He did not cross, and instead killed anyone who passed. He was deathly afraid that Yang Lingqing, who was the star of the show, would be rescued.


    ¡°Grandmother Huang, guard this girl well. I¡¯m going to meet this person who¡¯s been causing trouble!¡±


    After making himself clear, the sect leader red at Yang Lingqing threateningly, and then stood right in the middle of the blood pool while scanning the masses. He knew this person was definitely in there.


    Meanwhile, Yang Lingqing was staring at the two corpses in a daze.


    She knew a little about what was going on with Long Chen, and much more importantly, this was how Bai Zhanxiong had died.


    ¡°Brother, did youe¡­¡±


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s originally deathly pale face gradually brightened. However, at the thought that these two sect elders were powerful and how, when Long Chen left Por Town, was only at the eighth dragon vein and therefore far below that red figure, Yang Lingqing was not that hopeful.


    ¡°Though I didn¡¯t see clearly, that red figure should be him. But how can he be so powerful?¡±


    Yang Lingqing shook her head.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯m thinking too much to the point that I¡¯m hallucinating.¡±


    Sheughed wryly inside and bit her lip, and continued watching the sect leader.


    It could be seen from how Long Chen had saved Li Jing that one time, that by getting the other two sect elders to attack them, the sect leader could definitely force Long Chen out. This was a very smart move.


    ¡°If you¡¯re really a man, then have a one-on-one fight with me out in the open. Why are you so afraid? What kind of man, what kind of hero are you?¡±


    The sect leader¡¯s cold gaze scanned the area but found there was no response. He then made eye contact with the other two sect leaders, who then attacked Li Jing and the others. Li Jing could still deal with one person, but the two brothers, Li Peng and Li Cheng were caught in danger.


    Long Chen, who was hidden, was instantly furious at seeing Li Peng and Li Cheng in this situation.


    ¡°It feels like I¡¯m about to break through to the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Looks like I need thisst fight!¡±


    At this thought, when Li Peng and Li Cheng were almost at death¡¯s door, Long Chen suddenly did his Dragon Soul Transformation, and like a bloody arrow, charged towards the two sect elders!


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Scarlet mes Burning Heavens!¡±


    Long Chen employed these two techniques, one on each hand!


    Such a powerful attack caused the two sect elders at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm to go deathly pale and immediately set up their strongest defensive techniques to save themselves. Meanwhile, upon sensing where Long Chen was, the sect leader charged towards Long Chen with the fastest speed he could muster!


    ¡°You wily traitor! Die!¡±


    However, he had underestimated Long Chen. Long Chen was much closer to the two sect elders, and a zing whirlwind brushed passed by. By the time the whirlwind was gone, all that was left were two corpses.


    The sect leader¡¯s eyes bulged!


    On top of that, while killing the two sect elders, he had obviously not let their blood essence leak out of their bodies.


    ¡°These two old geezers took the side of evil, and even death cannot wipe out the crimes they havemitted. By transmuting their blood, I¡¯ll have the chance to reach the perfect mastery stage. Whatever it is, I have seeded!¡±


    Lugging the two corpses away, Long Chen disyed his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step once again and charged into the crowd. By using blood transmutation, blood that could be seen with the naked eye entered Long Chen¡¯s body and was forcefully transmuted to crimson real Qi, flowing into the Human Dan in his dantian!


    ¡°Who are you! How dare you kill my sect elders!¡±


    The sect leader did not even blink when his followers died, but these five sect elders had followed him for several years and were extremely loyal to him. For Long Chen to kill four of them in the blink of an eye, the sect elder was now about to go crazy!


    ¡°The sect leader really is at the Earth Dan Realm after all. His speed is incredibly fast!¡±


    Sensing his opponent rapidly approaching despite him being hidden in the crowd, Long Chen wrinkled his forehead.


    ¡°But there¡¯s still enough time for me to refine this blood essence!¡±


    After absorbing all the blood essence, Long Chen ruthlessly tossed the corpses towards the sect leader, who was very close by. The sect leader was currently furious, a killing intent constantly bursting out from him.


    Long Chen did not waste any time and refined the blood into real Qi, but unfortunately, while his Human Dan did quiver a little, it was not enough for him to reach the perfect mastery stage.


    ¡°I¡¯m right on the verge of breaking through though. It looks like I have no choice but to deal with him now!¡±


    There was no doubt that the sect leader was powerful, and Long Chen had no idea how he would fare against this person. He was initially not prepared to do anything he was not confident in, but for Yang Lingqing¡¯s sake, he could not avoid this battle.


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s eyes were nowpletely wet.


    When Long Chen had paused and pulled out his Dragon Soul Transformation, how could Yang Lingqing not tell who it was?


    She didn¡¯t bother wondering about how Long Chen was this strong. All she knew was that Long Chen hade to save her, and no matter what, it was already enough for her.


    ¡°Brother¡­¡±


    Yang Lingqing subconsciously called out, her tears involuntarily falling in a rush, wetting her face.


    Her words were heard by Grandmother Huang, who was beside her. After pondering it over, she was suddenly startled and immediately shouted at the sect leader, ¡°Sect leader, this guy is Long Chen of the Lingwu Family! He¡¯s the one who killed Proctors Xue Yuanzi, Qin and Shi. He¡¯s the one of the Yang Family!¡±


    This shout caused the sect leader to pause. He had now forced Long Chen out from the crowd and was already preparing to attack. The words of the old woman had shocked him, and he immediately started to recall information about this person. If that was the truth, then everything made sense, but this strength was not how it had been described to be.


    ¡°You¡¯re Long Chen?¡± The sect leader was entirely capable of winning over him, and was hence able topose himself and ask.


    ¡°This is Long Chen?¡± Li Jing and the other two looked in this direction, eyes wide and mouth gaping, their chins about to drop to the ground.

 Chapter 128 – Blood Shadow Step

    Now that he had been recognised, Long Chen had nothing more to hide.


    For followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, Long Chen was like a gue. Everywhere he went, people died.


    When Long Chen had finally been caught by the sect leader, the followers all drew back in terror and hid away. All their eyes were focused on Long Chen and the sect leader at the centre.


    The most shocked amongst them were Li Jing, Li Peng and Li Cheng.


    ¡°Elder Sister Li, didn¡¯t you say that Long Chen was merely at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm? How can he have such immense battle power?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either.


    There was, however, a huge change in Li Jing¡¯s mood. ¡°We underestimated him. Long Chen has immense talent and far surpasses us. All those things we said to him were really uncalled for.¡±


    Initially, they had not wanted Long Chen to do anything.


    ¡°Oh right, I heard something about Long Chen being part of the Lingwu Family?¡±


    Li Jing nodded, ¡°That¡¯s true. Only people of the Lingwu Family can have such heaven-defying talent and aptitude. However, judging by his surname, he should be part of the outer faction.¡±


    ¡°People of the outer faction don¡¯t seem to have a high standing in the Lingwu Family. It¡¯s no wonder that he came here alone.¡±


    They were full of praise for Long Chen. Previously, they had thought that Long Chen was the weakest of them all, but in actuality, it was the exact opposite.


    ¡°To even be able to kill someone at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm so easily, Long Chen¡¯s battle power might not be at the Earth Dan Realm, but he¡¯s definitely near there.¡±


    Li Jing could hardly believe that someone at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm could possess such strength.


    The sect leader was also quite interested in Long Chen. Clicking his tongue in astonishment while measuring Long Chen up and down, he sighed ruefully, ¡°I heard that when you left your family, you were still at the eighth dragon vein. In just a month or so, you reached the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and you even have the battle might of one at the peak of the Human Dan Realm. Kid, I didn¡¯t expect you to be a genius.¡±


    At this point, the only way to deal with this matter was to put his life on the line and fight. The sect leader had to kill Long Chen no matter what.


    ¡°Sect leader is young, and yet already has such great achievements. Inparison, you are more of a genius than I am!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    The sect leader broke out into a smile, ¡°You¡¯re of the Lingwu Family and yet came alone. Looks like you know my real identity. You¡¯ve disrupted my Blood Sacrificial Ceremony and ruined my mood. I want your life for this!¡±


    ¡°Bring it on!¡±


    In this intense atmosphere, the two¡¯s auras constantly rose, bing the focal point here.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    The sect leader yelled, and under his prowess, Long Chen did not yield. This incurred the wrath of the sect leader, and his aura at the Earth Dan Realm pressed down on Long Chen, while he himself turned into an afterimage.


    ¡°Experts at the Earth Dan Realm are truly much stronger than those at the Human Dan Realm!¡±


    Long Chen furrowed his brows and exhibited his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step. Though this was an elementary profound grade battle technique, it was enough to sidestep his opponent if used aptly.


    ¡°He even has a battle technique for his movements! However, I have what you possess as well, and it¡¯s even better!¡±


    ¡°Blood Shadow Step, begin!¡±


    The moment the sect leader put this technique to use, he turned into crimson afterimages and was evidently much faster than Long Chen. Long Chen suddenly felt a great amount of pressure!


    ¡°Is the sect leader that strong?¡±


    Then again, he was the grandson of the Yuan Emperor. Though he wasn¡¯t favoured, the materials he was given since birth was not something Long Chen, who hade from a small ce, could ever have.


    Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step was an entire level lower than Blood Shadow Step. No matter how one saw it, this was a middle profound grade movement technique!


    ¡°In terms of attack, the durability of my body as well as constitution, my techniques are all at the middle profound grade. I should bring out the best of these techniques to increase my battle power!¡±


    Offensive attacks as well as durability of the body could bebined. A powerful body gave arge bonus to one¡¯s attacks, defence and speed.Long Chen now knew what he had to do.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t half bad, but you are far from my match!¡±


    This Blood Shadow Step had already forced Long Chen into a corner. In this battle, despite both sides not having actually attacked, the sect leader had already grasped the flow of the battle.


    ¡°The Blood Sacrificial Ceremony cannot be interrupted for too long. Long Chen, I guess I¡¯ll finish you off in one move. It would be an honour for you to die by this attack.¡±


    A teasing voice sounded by Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Dream on!¡±


    Yang Lingqing was now watching on closely. At the beginning, she had been very confident in Long Chen¡¯s abilities since he was able to kill cultivators at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. However, it was a fact that Long Chen was still not a match for the sect leader.


    Seeing Long Chen forced into a corner by the sect leader, Yang Lingqing was full of worry and fear. When they hade to the Crimson Blood Devil¡¯s Pce, she had already known that this meant a certain death for herself. However, if Long Chen might lose his life as well, she was unwilling to ept this oue.


    ¡°Brother Chen, leave! Don¡¯t bother with me!¡±


    There came a heartbreaking yell, but Long Chen pretended he heard nothing.


    At the next moment, Yang Lingqing saw the sect leader unleash a torrential attack on Long Chen.


    ¡°In this one attack, that kid will definitely die!¡±


    Yang Lingqing watched on at a side, the woman guarding her, Grandmother Huang, smirking. Grandmother Huang¡¯s wrinkles were bunched up together, like a demon that had strolled out of hell.


    Spiritual Qi from the heavens and the earth gathered at the hands of the sect leader at a crazy pace, while his fingers quickly formed seals. Dim red real Qi spiralled around on top of his palms.


    ¡°Do you know why the red dot between my eyebrows is called the Crimson Seal?¡±


    Facing this powerful attack from his opponent, Long Chen sucked in a deep breath and disyed his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, quickly pouncing towards his opponent. On the other hand, his opponent had alsounched his most powerful attack!


    Not hearing Long Chen¡¯s answer, the sect leader continued on anyway, ¡°That¡¯s because this attack is called¡­¡±


    ¡°Crimson! Seal!¡±


    With a rumbling echo, real Qi exploded under the maniption of the sect leader, forming arge crimson handprint, and was thrown in Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    Meanwhile, on Long Chen¡¯s end, a zing energy had been formed. It looked to be a ck sun, colliding with the crimson handprint!


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Piercing Earth Demonic Sun!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a middle profound grade battle technique. Kid, not bad!¡±


    Amidst theughter of the sect leader, Long Chen shed with him!


    Such a grand and fierce fight caused Li Jing and everyone watch on, eyes wide.


    ¡°Elder Sister Li, do you think he can win?¡± Li Cheng muttered in question.


    ¡°Long Chen is already spent from the earlier battles, and to win against someone at the Earth Dan Realm? Difficult! Very difficult!¡±


    While saying all these, Long Chen and the sect leader fought each other head on.


    Using Piercing Earth Demonic Sun, which was Long Chen¡¯s most powerful attack here, had caused Feng Wutian grievous injuries.


    However, the sect leader was evidently much more powerful than Feng Wutian. That mysterious crimson seal had a power that even Piercing Earth Demonic Sun could notpare to. Or rather, Long Chen¡¯s real Qi was still unable to pull off Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist at its full strength.


    It was the first time he was seeing Piercing Earth Demonic Sun of the Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist be broken through by his opponent¡¯s attack. That tumultuous wave of his opponent¡¯s attack was like a wave of the sea, crashing into Long Chen loudly.


    Though he had done his utmost to dodge it, the formidable attack of the Crimson Seal still caused Long Chen to spit out blood.


    It had been a long time since he hadst gotten hurt. That scorching pain was extremely ufortable for Long Chen. In that instant, his battle power was reduced by arge amount.


    ¡°If I get hit by this once more, I¡¯ll definitely die here!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, Origin Reversion!¡±


    With Lingxi¡¯s reminder, Long Chen used the shortest amount of time possible and regained his bnce, using the middle profound grade constitution technique, Origin Reversion!


    A white light surged through his body, restoring the damage done to his organs, muscles and flesh.


    Though the sect leader¡¯s attack was strong, Long Chen¡¯s Thunder me Physique, and his dragon scales had increased his defence. On top of his dodging, the injuries he had sustained were therefore not that severe.


    However, the sect leader, as well as everyone present, believed that this one attack was enough to end Long Chen¡¯s life. Yang Lingqing was so worried that a cry escaped from her lips. Li Jing and the other two were also furious, prepared to impulsively rush forward and fight it out with the sect leader.


    ¡°Such a pity that a fine talent like him opposed me. Serve you right!¡±


    With this thought in mind, the sect leader prepared to eliminate Li Jing and the other two.


    ¡°You¡¯re too imaginative. Do you think an attack to this extent is enough to kill me?¡±


    His injuries were not too serious, and on top of that, with the regenerative powers of Origin Reversion, Long Chen had already almostpletely recovered.


    ¡°How is this possible?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen unharmed, the sect leader¡¯s eyes widened, shocked.


    He knew how powerful his Crimson Seal was. He had even killed an Earth Dan cultivator with it before. How could it have lost its powers against a mere cultivator at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm?


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. Long Chen, here¡¯s one more for you!¡±


    Noticing Long Chen was fine, Yang Lingqing regained her colour. However, the sect leader¡¯s next attack caused her heart rate to rapidly increase, feeling like there was a heavy rock weighing down on her.


    ¡°Brother, you need to pull through¡­¡±


    Now that he had escaped with his life, Long Chen was calm.


    ¡°Using my Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, and coupled with my Thunder me Physique and Origin Reversion, it¡¯ll be difficult for the sect leader to kill me!¡±


    He shot a nce at Yang Lingqing and found that girl watching him with her eyes glimmering with tears. His heart broke, and he thought, ¡°But all I can do is stall for time. It¡¯s not enough for me to save Lingqing!¡±


    Long Chen was now in a tough situation, but there was no time for him to think this through. The sect leader attacked once more, with the very same Crimson Seal.


    Long Chen was terrified of this move.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that easy to kill me. Piercing Earth Demonic Sun!¡±


    Relying on the previous method, Long Chen dodged this attack once more, and the sect leader had finally lost his patience.


    ¡°Everyone, listen up. Kill the blood source. Grandmother Huang, I¡¯ll leave that Abstruse Shadow Body to you!¡±

 Chapter 129 – Blood Engulfing Zone!

    Long Chen was immediately stunned at the sect leader¡¯s words.


    All he could do was stall for time. However, it was evident that the sect leader was no saint. Though four sect elders had died, the Blood Sacrificial Ceremony was not to be stopped.


    ¡°As long as the blood bath ispleted, I can enter the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. With such talent, even back in the Yuandi City, my strength will definitely be recognised!¡±


    At this thought, the sect leader began tough maniacally.


    ¡°Kill all of them. Proctors, stop those three clowns.¡±


    Out of the eight proctors there were in Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, four had died, leaving four at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. Two of them hindered Li Peng and Li Cheng, while the other two temporarily pinned Li Jing down. The rest of the followers were in an uproar as they made to kill the harmless and defenceless girls.


    For a bunch of wolves like them, all they needed was a short period of time to kill hundreds of girls. When that happened, even if Li Jing and the other two broke out, there was little they could do.


    For Long Chen, what was the most dangerous was that sect elder called Grandmother Huang. She had already produced a dagger that was glimmering in the light, about to sh across Yang Lingqing¡¯s pale neck that was as white as a goose feather.


    ¡°You must be anxious and furious, yes? But Long Chen, do you think you can escape from the palm of my hand?¡±


    Blocking in front of Long Chen, the sect leader chuckled.


    Though his stance was casual, he couldunch an attack at any time. No matter how powerful Long Chen was, it was impossible for him to rescue Yang Lingqing at this point. The rest of the followers had also dashed towards the young girls.


    ¡°Brothers, kill them! Only by killing these maidens can we be more formidable!¡±


    ¡°Kill them! Haha, after tonight, we¡¯ll be living in thep of luxury! After killing them, won¡¯t there be more than enough girls for us outside?¡±


    Amidst howls and wails, these girls began crying harder after hearing that their lives were about to end. A few of them turned pale and even fainted.


    ¡°Bastards!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were nowpletely red. His fists were tightly clenched while he trembled.


    ¡°I promised grandfather and second uncle to bring Lingqing back safe and sound, but there is little I can do now!¡±


    ¡°Strength! Strength! I need more strength!¡±


    Long Chen ducked his head, his entire body trembling violently. An ancient and bloody aura suddenly erupted from his body, and the sect leader who had initially beenughing hard suddenly froze.


    ¡°What is this?¡±


    While he was still puzzled, Long Chen let out a huge roar, and that was enough for the entire underground city to shake!


    The sect leader, who was standing in front of Long Chen, saw two crimson rays of light shooting out of his eyes, lines of scarlet dragon patterns spreading on his dragon scales from his face to his feet.


    *Roar!*


    This roar of the dragon was enough to shock the heavens, causing everyone eager to attack to pause their motions, staring at Long Chen while in a daze.


    Within Long Chen¡¯s body, countless crimson dragons roared and soared, a formidable spiritual force sweeping towards Long Chen¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Is this¡­ Blood Transmutation?¡±


    When Yang Lingqing had gotten into danger, Lingxi had prepared to save her despite not knowing her chances of sess.


    At this moment, Long Chen, who was furious yet powerless, gathered an inexhaustible desire for strength, and his body seemed to transform to grant his wish.


    Long Chen¡¯s body was now like a red whirlpool. When that power exploded, everyone in the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was shocked.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Even the sect leader could feel the blood in his body expanding, not to say everyone else. Under the formidable absorption ability of this crimson whirlpool, numerous people cried out pitifully immediately.


    These people were the weakest, with their strength not even reaching the fifth dragon vein. The situation that had happened to Bai Zhanxiong now appeared on everyone here. The first to be affected were those at the fifth dragon vein, and then those above this level of strength.


    As long as they were of the sect, all were affected.


    An inexhaustible amount of fresh blood spurted out of their bodies, excitedly gushing towards Long Chen. Under the immense absorption and filtering abilities of the whirlpool, the blood was forcefully transmuted into crimson real Qi that Long Chen took in.


    ¡°The very foundation of any soules from the bloodline. It is what continues life and can be inherited.¡±


    This was why blood transmutation was such a remarkable ability. The strength hidden within a bloodline was much too powerful.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡±


    The followers who were weaker copsed to the ground with blood spurting out, while the others were not any better. Even Grandmother Huang at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm grimaced in misery, the dagger in her hands ttering to the ground.


    Li Jing and the other two were utterly stunned.


    Even their opponents, who were at the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, could not control their bodies while their facial muscles contorted.


    Li Jing¡¯s gaze turned cold, and she pierced three flying daggers into four people¡¯s hearts. Right after that, the fresh blood in their bodies flew towards Long Chen.


    Though stunned and unsure of what had happened, Li Jing, Li Peng and Li Cheng exchanged nces and came to a mutual understanding. They then shouted and crazily shed at all who had yet to fall, while Li Jing charged towards Grandmother Huang!


    ¡°What kind of freak are you?¡±


    Though his followers were being massacred, the sect leader remained motionless.


    He was also resisting that immense absorption force from Long Chen¡¯s body, which was making the blood in him boil. He even guessed that if he, too, were tounch an attack and moved too much, he might end up like the others, with blood exploding out of his body.


    The absorption force from Long Chen¡¯s body had now reached the peak. With the help from Li Jing and the other two, the followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect soon turned into dried out corpses.


    The maidens did not faint in fear after seeing this terrifying scene. In their eyes, what were being killed were beasts, and no matter how they died, it was a release for them.


    Everyone¡¯s eyes shifted to the source that was swallowing all the blood. Those who had never seen Long Chen before were now guessing what was going on.


    ¡°These bastards wanted to use our blood to cultivate, but instead, he absorbed their blood. This must be the judgment given by the heavens!¡±


    Yang Lingqing stared at the scene, and then at the man.


    It was not the first time that his might had be uncontroble. There were multiple secrets in Long Chen¡¯s body, and these were what helped him to get stronger.


    Seeing his followers dying one by one and he himself almost turning into a leader of none, the sect leader was ready to spit out mes.


    ¡°Grandmother Huang, kill that Abstruse Shadow Body!¡±


    The sect leader yelled, but with a turn of his head, realised that Li Jing was already battling Grandmother Huang. Both of them were initially at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, but Grandmother Huang was now restricted by Long Chen¡¯s Blood Transmutation. In no time, she was stabbed by Li Jing¡¯s flying dagger, and the fresh blood within her body gushed out and gathered towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Ah!¡±


    She produced a miserable shriek, and her originally wizened body shrivelled. Soon enough, she, like other followers of the sect, turned into a dried up corpse.


    The people of the sect copsed one after another and turned into corpses. This scene was extremely spectacr, and after Grandmother Huang died, the followers at the dragon pulse realm could not hold on any longer and copsed.


    The sect leader was stunned, because he now had nobody tomand. Crazily enough, none of the people of the sect had survived!


    As long as they were at the dragon pulse realm, they had been killed by Long Chen¡¯s Blood Transmutation. Those who weren¡¯t at the dragon pulse realm were, with the aid of Li Jing and the other two, killed. Long Chen had killed over a thousand people!


    He had never imagined that he would turn into a homicidal maniac, but this was not the time to worry about this. The moment the blood of Grandmother Huang, an expert at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm entered his body and transmuted into crimson real Qi, the boundary between the initial and perfect mastery stage shook.


    Boundless crimson real Qi surged around his dantian, and the Human Dan there began to revolve intensely, bearing the inexhaustible real Qi as it entered. While revolving, it rapidly shrunk.


    ¡°Is this the might of the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm? Only this level of strength can be considered the Human Dan Realm¡­¡±


    Dissipating the ability of Blood Transmutation, this underground city finally regained its original appearance.


    However, the situation now was that besides the sect leader, everyone in the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was dead.


    Dried up corpses lined the area and presented a terrifying sight.


    Long Chen and the sect leader stood by the blood pool, while on the other end, Li Peng and Li Cheng went to save those girls. Li Jing, meanwhile, had assisted Yang Lingqing off the metal pirs and met up with Li Peng.


    Though such a huge change had transpired, everyone was still feeling heavy at heart. This was because the most powerful sect leader was still unharmed.


    Blood Transmutation was only effective towards cultivators at the dragon pulse realm. Cultivators at the Human Dan Realm, such as Grandmother Huang, would be able to hold on if not for Li Jing¡¯s attacks.


    For the sect leader, though this could hinder his movements, it was not enough to hurt him.


    This Blood Transmutation was varied from before. Long Chen had used it while he was in a very tight spot, and the difference was that it was arge-scaled attack.


    This move was essentially blood transmutation, but it had another name, which was ¡®Blood Engulfing Zone¡¯!


    The sect leader¡¯s reddened eyes now shifted towards Long Chen.


    ¡°This time, all of you will die!¡±

 Chapter 130 – Killing the Sect Leader

    Everyone belonging to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect was dead, but nobody could let down their guard yet, because the sect leader was still alive. He was the root of the sect, and only with his death could the sect be considered destroyed.


    However, it was a fact that killing the sect leader was a very difficult task.


    After Li Jing handed Yang Lingqing over to Li Cheng and Li Peng, she headed towards Long Chen, who was currently facing the sect leader and definitely under immense pressure.


    ¡°Long Chen, let me help!¡±


    Seeing Li Jing about to intervene in Long Chen and the sect leader¡¯s fight, Long Chen suddenly eximed, ¡°Elder Sister Li, just go back. I¡¯ll take care of this bastard alone.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Li Jing was in a daze, but Long Chen¡¯s resolute gaze was hard to defy and Li Jing halted in her footsteps.


    ¡°He¡¯s an expert at the Earth Dan Realm. You¡¯re not a match for him!¡±


    Li Jing¡¯s concern for him still did not change his mind.


    Seeing Long Chen waving her away, Li Jing could do little but withdraw. At this moment, the sect leader turned to shoot her nce, ¡°What are you so anxious about? When it¡¯s your turn, I¡¯ll kill you myself!¡±


    His icy, bloodthirsty gazended on Long Chen.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what demonic move that was, but you destroyed the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect that I painstakingly established. In that case, I¡¯m going to drink your blood!¡±


    Long Chen was now in his strongest condition. He was in the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, which meant he was truly at the Human Dan Realm. The power he now held was more than ten times of what he previously had.


    He had only been able to barely contend with his opponent before. Now, he was now filled with confidence.


    Turning to an emotional Yang Lingqing, he gave her a look of confidence before facing the sect leader.


    ¡°Enough with the bullshit. From hereon, you¡¯ll see the real stuff.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re still unrepentant and fearless¡­¡±


    Ferocious glints of red could be seen in the sect leader, Yan Chixue¡¯s pupils, now giving him a more savage aura. It was evident that he was much more furious than before, charging towards Long Chen with his most powerful killing technique!


    ¡°I told you. None of you will be able to leave this ce alive today!¡±


    With a shout, Yan Chixue transformed into a bloody arrow, piercing towards Long Chen.


    ¡°The only person dying will be yourself!¡±


    Feeling his own formidable strength, Long Chen increased his speed by ten times instantly.


    Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, begin!


    ¡°A movement battle technique? It¡¯s just an elementary profound grade movement technique. How can itpare to my Blood Shadow Step that is at the middle profound grade?¡±


    The twounched their techniques and soared in the air, giving a feast for the eyes of their audience. The two figures were like a whirlwind, whizzing about fiercely and creating whooshing sounds.


    ¡°Huh? How are you so fast?¡±


    Yan Chixue¡¯s astonished voice travelled over, and the two suddenly shed at this moment, both knocked backwards.


    The immense force from Long Chen¡¯s fist caused Yan Chixue¡¯s expression to change.


    ¡°So you¡¯re already at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm? However, there¡¯s still arge disparity between the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm and the Earth Dan Realm!¡±


    Long Chen could already make someparisons between his and Yan Chixue¡¯s strength through this battle.


    ¡°After attaining the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, things are really quite different.¡±


    Long Chen knew that besides Yan Chixue, everyone was staring at him anxiously. If Long Chen were to lose, that meant all of them could not escape the fate of death!


    This was an incredibly crucial battle.


    ¡°So what if your speed increased? If you have the guts, don¡¯t run!¡±


    At this point, Yan Chixue felt like he could not catch up to Long Chen when he was using Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, which made him want to vomit blood. Long Chen was now like a mud fish, slippery and difficult to grasp hold of, and all his attacks were in vain, causing him to be even more furious.


    He had developed his somewhat calm temperament in these ten or so years, and this was nowpletely wrecked by Long Chen today.


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll give you what you desire!¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen suddenly turned back.


    Seeing Long Chen no longer dodging, Yan Chixue snickered and released his Crimson Seal once more, but this time, it was much more powerful than before. The wrath in Yan Chixue¡¯s heart was now enough for him to unleash his most formidable attack.


    ¡°Long Chen, die! Crimson Seal!¡±


    The second he turned, Long Chen had also unleashed his most powerful move.


    After reaching the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, his methods in using this middle profound grade battle technique had matured, and he could basically bring out the full power of Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist!


    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is! Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Piercing Earth Demonic Sun!¡±


    At the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, there was ten times more real Qi within. Just in terms of real Qi, Long Chen was on about the same level as an Earth Dan Realm cultivator. With his Thunder me Physique, Long Chen knew that Yan Chixue was probably not a match for him.


    The Piercing Earth Demonic Sun that he used once more was stronger than before, and Yan Chixue, who was using his Crimson Seal, suddenly noticed the ck demonic sun that was about ten times bigger than before above him. In that moment, his expression changed.


    ¡°How is that possible? He¡¯s still at the Human Dan Realm!¡±


    While Yan Chixue was still in shock, the two of them shed powerfully, but the situation was now the exact opposite.


    Before this, Long Chen had not been able to rival Yan Chixue, but this time, under Long Chen¡¯s Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Crimson Seal had beenpletely exhausted, while arge part of the attack engulfed Yan Chixue. Under his stunned, despairing gaze, he was engulfed and turned into charcoal.


    Yan Chixue, who had initially been in good condition, suddenly turned into charcoal in a second, still standing at the same spot. Meanwhile, Long Chen waspletely fine and dispelled his Dragon Soul Transformation, chuckling as he nced in Yang Lingqing¡¯s direction.


    ¡°All done. My good sister, aren¡¯t you going to say anything?¡±


    Nobody made a sound. It was dead silent.


    Only when Yan Chixue¡¯s corpse turned into flying ashes and piled on the ground did peoplee back to themselves.


    Those girls obviously had no idea of how powerful Long Chen was. All they knew was that he had won and they were safe, and naturally began to cheer.


    Li Jing and the other two were aware of Long Chen¡¯s strength, but Long Chen had somehow killed the sect leader and resolved their crisis. The very idea of it was inconceivable to them.


    ¡°Long Chen really killed the sect leader?¡±


    Li Jing¡¯s teeth chattered as she asked the two brothers for confirmation.


    Li Peng looked at the pile of ck powder and nodded with difficulty, ¡°I think so.¡±


    She then looked at Long Chen who was looking indifferent andughing mischievously, and finally believed it.


    ¡°This guy should be quite highly regarded in the Lingwu Family. If he works a little harder, he might even be epted into the inner faction!¡±


    She sighed ruefully, and brought Yang Lingqing to Long Chen.


    From the moment Long Chen used Blood Engulfing Zone, Yang Lingqing knew that the situation had changed.


    She had guessed that Long Chen would pull through despite the massive disadvantage. This was not the first time this had happened, but it was also because this was not the first time that Yang Lingqing was particrly touched.


    ¡°Brother¡­¡±


    Limping a little, Yang Lingqing approached Long Chen.


    ¡°Give me a hug. You¡¯re my sister; there¡¯s no need to be shy.¡±


    Long Chen spread his arms, looking like a gentleman.


    ¡°No!¡±


    Yang Lingqing initially was a little ufortable, but was quickly teased intoughter by Long Chen.


    ¡°I saved you, and you can¡¯t even give me a hug? Sigh, this isn¡¯t worth it. If I¡¯d known, I would have let that guy drain your blood and let you end up like those people.¡±


    As he spoke, Long Chen pointed towards the dried up bodies.


    Upon seeing them, Yang Lingqing furrowed her brows and doubtfully asked, ¡°Is it alright to kill so many people?¡±


    Long Chen was also stunned, and only then did he realise that he had taken the lives of numerous people. The thought suddenly made him ufortable.


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t think too much of it. The people who deserve to be killed will have to be killed anyway.¡± Lingxi suddenly spoke up.


    Long Chen was not one to take things too hard, and he could only keep this thought deep inside. He then eyed Yang Lingqing with a roguish expression, ¡°Grandfather and your father are both waiting for you. Let¡¯s go home now.¡±


    At the word ¡®home¡¯, Yang Lingqing was suddenly in tears. Without the young man in front of her, she would never be able to return home, nor see the people she missed the most.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go home.¡±


    She silently walked by Long Chen¡¯s side, wiping her tears and suddenly mischievously looping her arm around Long Chen¡¯s.


    Feeling the warmth from her body, Long Chen was rather surprised and looked quite satisfied.


    ¡°That expression of yours is disgusting.¡± From within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi got jealous.


    Long Chen pretended not to have heard it and brought Yang Lingqing out of the underground city. En route, he turned back and yelled brightly, ¡°Elder Sister Li, I still have some things to do so I¡¯m leaving first. The Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is no more, so help me send each and every one of these youngdies home. If there¡¯s any trouble,e find me in the Green Sun Hall in the Lingwu family¡¯s Green faction!¡±


    Long Chen had alreadypleted the most difficult part of this mission, and Li Jing as well as the other two were very willing to take care of everything else.


    ¡°Goodbye, little Long Chen!¡±


    All the beautiful youngdies remembered Long Chen¡¯s name well.


    They had only just regained hope from their initial despair, and were still slightly confused. However, the young man by the name of Long Chen was someone they would remember for the rest of their lives.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope we can meet again.¡± Watching them leave, Li Jing shook her head andughed wryly.


    Long Chen still remembered the exit out of the underground city, and just as he was about to leave, two people arrived through the entrance. The formidable strength they possessed caused Long Chen to stiffen.

 Chapter 131 – Beitang Mo

    Long Chen was rmed, but upon noticing one of them was an acquaintance, he heaved a sigh of relief.


    Of the two people, one was the charming Liu Lan.


    Liu Lan was now walking behind the man, looking deferential. Thenguid and seductive ways she previously had disappeared, and in ce of it was solemness and graveness.


    Liu Lan¡¯s behaviour gave Long Chen a clue¨C the person that was walking with her must have a substantial amount of power and status.


    Long Chen nced over and found that this man was around twenty years old, and his features were quite in. However, his eyes were like two deep abysses, like ancient wells with no ripples, giving off a very profound aura.


    Of the young experts Long Chen had seen who were weaker than Mo Xiang, there was Dongfang Tianyu at the Heaven Martial Realm. However, while Dongfang Tianyu seemed more impressive than this young man, Long Chen could tell that he was far from this person¡¯s match.


    ¡°Long Chen, this person is a cultivator at the Heaven Dan Realm. He¡¯s just one rank weaker than Mo Xiang.¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s weak voice sounded by Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    Such an expert had even gathered Liu Lan¡¯s respect, which meant he was probably a member of the inner faction of the Lingwu Family.


    Long Chen concluded.


    The young man entered the underground city with Liu Lan, and even they were stunned at the sight that met them.


    From their line of sight, none of the girls who had been kidnapped had died, and the thousand followers of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect had somehow turned into withered corpses.


    This was far from what they had expected to see.


    The scene in front of them was far too spectacr.


    Long Chen brought Yang Lingqing and stood before Liu Lan, who turned her attention to him, looking appalled.


    ¡°Long Chen, you did this?¡±


    Feeling the man¡¯s profound, abyssal gaze on himself, Long Chen had no choice but to nod.


    Liu Lan was stunned, and sighed after a long while. From the situation here, it was obvious that Long Chen had solved the issue. Liu Lan exchanged a nce with the man, and then spoke to Long Chen, ¡°Where¡¯s the sect leader?¡±


    Long Chen honestly pointed to the ck ashes on the ground, ¡°That¡¯s him. He looks quite good, doesn¡¯t he?¡±


    While asking this, Liu Lan already had some expectations, but she still found it hard to ept the truth even after seeing Yan Chixue at the Earth Dan Realm burnt to ashes.


    When she had first seen Long Chen, he was merely at the eighth dragon vein, and Liu Lan had hence not paid much attention to him. Unexpectedly, Long Chen then killed Huang Feiyang and defeated Feng Wutian, and even killed Yan Chixue who was at the Earth Dan Realm!


    ¡°Not bad for someone at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm to be able to kill a person at the Earth Dan Realm, .¡±


    The young man spoke matter-of-factly.


    Whether it was the tone of his voice or his movements, everything seemed quite calm, but it was precisely this calmness that Long Chen feared. It felt as if all his thoughts could not escape this person.


    Even Liu Lan had to believe what this young man had said. She then introduced him, ¡°Young master Mo, he is Long Chen from my Green Sun Hall. Yang Lingqing is his sister.¡±


    She then turned to Long Chen, ¡°Long Chen, this is Young Master Mo of the Northern ck Tortoise* in the Lingwu Family. Quick, greet him.¡±


    (TL note: Northern ck Tortoise is written as Beitang, which is his surname.)


    ¡°Long Chen greets Young Master Mo.¡±


    Though he had no idea why this person was here, Long Chen was more than aware that hecked strength and therefore needed to behave well. If Liu Lan could easily put him in order, then so could this Beitang Mo, which was why he bowed hastily.


    He shot a nce at Long Chen, and then shifted his gaze over to Yang Lingqing, who had been holding onto Long Chen. His calm voice sounded.


    ¡°Yang Lingqing, are you willing to join my Northern ck Tortoise in the Lingwu Family?¡±


    These sudden words stunned both Long Chen and Yang Lingqing. Li Jing and the other two who were behind them were simrly confused.


    Seeing Long Chen and his sister bewildered, Liu Lan immediately gave him a meaningful look and added, ¡°The Beitang martial n uses Yin and water type battle techniques as their foundation. Long Chen, your sister has the Abstruse Shadow Body, and as long as she enters the Beitang Family, the techniques there will definitely help her improve leap and bounds. It would be easy for her to even surpass you.¡±


    Ever since Long Chen had entered the Lingwu Family, Yang Lingqing knew how power was divided in the Lingwu Family. She also knew that Long Chen had merely joined the outer faction, while the inner faction was where the truly strong were.


    Someone was now inviting her to just enter the inner faction of the Lingwu Family like this?


    Yang Lingqing had just escaped death, and the people she wished to see the most was her parents and family. The appearance of Beitang Mo caused her some worry, and she did not dare speak and hid beside Long Chen.


    Seeing this young girl so flustered, Liu Lan really felt like she was going crazy. This was a great opportunity that many could only wish for.


    ¡°Long Chen, you can make the decision. Your sister hasn¡¯t been able to obtain a suitable cultivation method, which is why she¡¯s still at the Dragon Pulse Realm. If she enters the Northern ck Tortoise, she¡¯ll definitely soar to the skies. If not for Gan Lin having heard your conversation, I wouldn¡¯t have known about your sister having the Abstruse Shadow Body. Honestly speaking, the reason why we¡¯re here is to help you take care of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect, but I guess we werete.¡±


    The gears in Long Chen¡¯s mind were now turning quickly.


    ¡°If it¡¯s the Abstruse Shadow Body, then she does need apatible cultivation method to blossom. In a year or two, she¡¯ll definitely be able to reach the Heaven Dan Realm. Long Chen, it¡¯s not bad if your sister enters this Northern ck Tortoise.¡±


    Lingxi had much knowledge, and her opinions helped clear Long Chen¡¯s doubts.


    Beitang Mo, who had been silent all this while, eximed, ¡°Think about it. Your life will bepletely different if you choose to enter. If you don¡¯t want to be a nobody for your entire life, leave with me. You don¡¯t need to worry at all. Your brother will gain ess to even more resources in the Lingwu Family, and your own family can be secretly protected by Earth Dan Realm cultivators. All the people around you will benefit because of you.¡±


    Though Beitang Mo¡¯s words were concise, they cut right to Yang Lingqing¡¯s concerns. She raised her heads, eyes sparkling as she watched him, speaking clearly, ¡°Do you mean my brother will be nurtured even more than he is now, and nobody will be able bully my family?¡±


    ¡°Unless the enemy is more powerful than the Lingwu Family.¡±


    Beitang Mo smiled slightly, a boundless self-confidence held within.


    Everyone knew that in the Yuanling County, there was no power stronger than the Lingwu Family. In other words, as long as the Yang Family was still in Yangling County, they had nothing to worry about.


    ¡°Brother¡­¡±


    Just by looking at her eyes, Long Chen could tell Yang Lingqing had made her choice.


    ¡°It¡¯s your life, so decide by yourself. No matter what, I¡¯ll stand by your side and protect you.¡±


    Long Chenughed wryly. He was really quite happy for Yang Lingqing, since it was very difficult to enter the inner faction even from the outer faction.


    ¡°No.¡±


    Yang Lingqing giggled craftily, ¡°It¡¯ll be my turn to protect you, as well as our family!¡±


    Hearing her words, Liu Lan heaved a sigh of relief. Yang Lingqing had agreed.


    Seeing this girl not going crazy with excitement at being invited to the Lingwu Family, only wanting to protect her family, Beitang Mo nodded.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll join you.¡±


    Yang Lingqing answered formally.


    Beitang Mo smiled, ¡°Many yearster, you¡¯ll definitely be grateful for the decision you made today. Northern ck Tortoise is the most suitable ce for you to be.¡±


    Long Chen could guess the uniqueness of the Abstruse Shadow Body. After all, how could blood that was equal to over a thousand young girls¡¯ blood be anything simple? Hence, Northern ck Tortoise needed new blood like this to cultivate, which might one day even be its trump card.


    Since Yang Lingqing had already agreed, Long Chen had nothing to say. He spoke to Beitang Mo, ¡°Young Master Mo, my sister just escaped death, and her grandfather and father are both waiting outside worriedly. I was thinking we could go back home for a while and take care of matters there before returning to the Lingwu Family. What do you think?¡±


    Beitang Mo nodded, ¡°That¡¯s not an issue. Lingqing, I¡¯ll wait for you at Northern ck Tortoise. The Earth Dan Realm cultivators that I told you about will be dispatched to Por Town by today. That¡¯s all for now. Till we meet again.¡±


    Having said this, Beitang Mo did not hang around and headed outside. Liu Lan looked towards Long Chen, ¡°Leave this ce as soon as possible. I¡¯ll help to send those girls back.¡±


    Liu Lan was slightlyte in getting Beitang Mo here, but it was easy to tell her intentions were true. She now spoke to him amiably, and Long Chen did not bicker with her. He thanked her and, with Yang Lingqing in tow, left the underground city.


    ¡°Long Chen, remember to return to the Green Sun Hall. You still have a chance for the Inner Faction Selection.¡±


    Before Long Chen left, Liu Lan eximed. When Long Chen¡¯s figure disappeared from the underground city, Liu Lan shifted her gaze, looking emotional.


    ¡°If he can get a ce in the inner faction, he might be of help to me. But this doesn¡¯t seem to be fair to him¡­¡±


    Long Chen, of course knew nothing of what Liu Lan was thinking. When Long Chen brought Yang Lingqing before Grandfather Yang and Yang Yuntian, their eyes filled with tears.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, Qing¡¯er¡­¡±


    Seeing Yang Lingqing crying in Yang Yuntian¡¯s arms, Grandfather Yang was filled with pride and was pleasantly surprised. While looking towards Long Chen, he wiped his tears, ¡°Chen¡¯er, you are what I am most proud of in my life¡­¡±


    Long Chenughed, ¡°You¡¯re wrong. You should be most proud of your precious granddaughter, because she¡¯s been invited to enter the inner faction of the Lingwu Family.¡±

 Chapter 132 – Eccentric Man

    It had been a long since he had returned to Por Town. Now that he was back and realised how backwards it was, Long Chen had an indescribable sense of superiority.


    Here, he was the only powerful person here. Nobody was on the same level as him.


    ¡°I can¡¯t stay here for my whole life, or else this will be my limit. Now that the matter with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect has been dealt with, I¡¯ll focus on staying in the Lingwu Family. Lingqing is going there as well; that is the ce that I should stay in.¡±


    ¡°In the Lingwu Family, Liu Yuan did not dare offend the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect on my behalf. Unexpectedly, Beitang Mo paid no heed to all considerations and came to the headquarters of the sect with the intentions of killing people. Beitang Mo is really something. He¡¯s even sending Earth Dan Realm cultivators to protect the Yang Family. This way, the Yang Family will definitely note to any harm.¡±


    The Yang Family had no worries for the future now that the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect had disappeared. From hereon, Long Chen just needed to put all his focus on the Lingwu Family.


    The people of the Yang Family had heard the news that Yang Lingqing was going to enter the inner faction of the Lingwu Family. Everyone in the family, or really everyone in Por Town celebrated for a whole day.


    Long Chen and Yang Lingqing were celebrities of Por Town and even of quite a few towns surrounding them.


    Long Chen had initially been a no-good hedonistic son born to rich parents who had slept his life away. Now, however, things had taken ta 180-degree turn. He now had the image of a shining hero, which he was extremely proud about.


    Two dayster, under the eyes of the numerous people in Por Town, Long Chen brought Yang Lingqing away from Por Town and headed in the direction of the Lingwu Family.


    ¡°Lingqing, we¡¯ll walk for awhile more before I introduce you to someone very important to me.¡±


    The two of them each rode a good horse and were jolted along the way.


    Long Chen had already told Yang Lingqing about the Ebony Scaled Horse she had gifted him. Yang Lingqing did not me him, and instead reproached herself for the trouble it had caused Long Chen.


    ¡°Very important?¡±


    ncing at this young man who had been born on the same year, month and day as she had, Yang Lingqing was quite curious about how important this could be.


    Riding into the forest after passing through the town, Long Chen turned back, looking like he had some secret. Yang Lingqing now nced around and asked, puzzled, ¡°Is the important person you talked about here? Why can¡¯t I see anyone?¡±


    Long Chenughed and snapped his fingers, ¡°Little Xi,e out!¡±


    Under Yang Lingqing¡¯s startled gaze, Long Chen¡¯s stud earring suddenly emanated bright white light. A figure that was about two metres tall and was shrouded in white mist floated out. Soon, she appeared before Yang Lingqing and it was evident that her looks were the type enough for the masses to go crazy


    Yang Lingqing was immediately stunned.


    ¡°Wha- What is this?¡±


    ¡°How rude. This is your sister-inw.¡± Long Chen made a weird sound.


    ¡°Sister-inw?¡±


    Yang Lingqing was even more puzzled.


    Lingxi was humiliated at being called Long Chen¡¯s sister-inw and spat at Long Chen, and then skilfully smiled at Yang Lingqing, trying to act like a senior to her, ¡°Sister Lingqing, my name is Lingxi. Don¡¯t listen to his rubbish; I¡¯m not your sister-inw.¡±


    When Lingxi began to speak, Yang Lingqing stared at the two of them in shock and gloomily asked, ¡°You two¡­ Exin this to me! What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Long Chen spent much energy and told Yang Lingqing some information regarding Lingxi, and also spoke about what they had gone through together.


    After hearing that Lingxi had rescued Long Chen countless times, Yang Lingqing quickly epted this girl. Lingxi was in a rather pitiful situation now, and Yang Lingqing couldn¡¯t help but take pity on her. The two of them got on good terms with each other soon enough,pletely forgetting about their middleman, Long Chen.


    Seeing them ying together and treating him as a third party, Long Chen had a sour expression on his face.


    It was Lingxi that had suggested to meet Yang Lingqing. Long Chen was the closest to Yang Lingqing and agreed cheerfully. Unexpectedly, this was how the situation had turned out. Long Chen could onlyin deep inside as they became more familiar with each other.


    ¡°It¡¯s all karma¡­¡±


    While Lingxi and Yang Lingqi were having fierce conversations, they soon arrived at Yuanling City. Once they were there, there were already people waiting at the gates to the city to receive Yang Lingqing. When this happened, Lingxi had no choice but to return to Long Chen¡¯s earring.


    The person receiving Yang Lingqing was Beitang Mo.


    Due to Yang Lingqing¡¯s connection to Long Chen, Liu Lan had apanied Beitang Mo out. Two famous people of the Lingwu Family had gathered here, which attracted much attention.


    ¡°Looks like they¡¯re weing someone.¡±


    After a while, Long Chen and Yang Lingqing appeared before them, and everyone then knew who Beitang Mo was looking for.


    ¡°Where is this girl from, for even Beitang Mo and Liu Lan to be waiting here?¡±


    ¡°Who knows? There¡¯s one just at the Human Dan Realm, while the other is at the Dragon Pulse Realm. In Yuanling City, they¡¯re like needles thrown into an ocean. They aren¡¯t enough to cause any ruckus.¡±


    ¡°Exactly. Don¡¯t consider how bright and beautiful Yuanling City looks. How many geniuses have been buried here?¡±


    Under envious and jealous gazes, Long Chen and his sister went to Beitang Mo¡¯s side. Without another word, he brought them into a luxurious carriage and headed towards the Lingwu City.


    On the way, Beitang Mo did not speak a word. Only after they were almost there did he speak to Yang Lingqing, ¡°Once we¡¯re at the Beitang Family*, listen to everything I tell you to do, though I¡¯m not worried since you seem obedient and not the type to cause trouble. If you have any questions, ask me.¡±


    (TL note: Beitang Family = Northern ck Tortoise)


    ¡°Alright, I understand.¡± Yang Lingqing nodded.


    Yang Lingqing¡¯s mind was nk, but Long Chen was very worried.


    Yang Lingqing was merely at the Dragon Pulse Realm, but an exception had been made for her to enter the inner faction. There were sure to be many who were jealous of her, and even if she did not provoke anyone, there were definitely people finding excuses to provoke her. If she was not careful, she might even die without knowing what happened.


    Holding Yang Lingqing¡¯s hand, Long Chen could tell that she was actually nervous, but was not disying it.


    ¡°Qing¡¯er, remember this well. If there¡¯s anyone who bullies you, tell me, no matter how strong they are. I¡¯ll take care of them for you.¡±


    While separating, Long Chen leant his head towards Yang Lingqing¡¯s ear and eximed in a tone that could not be declined.


    ¡°I understand, but if I don¡¯t do anything, nobody will bully me.¡±


    Though Yang Lingqing was afraid, she tried her best to squeeze out a smile and waved her little fist at Long Chen, threatening him, ¡°You need to take care of Sister Lingxi, or else I¡¯ll hurt you.¡±


    Long Chen had no choice but to nod, smiling wryly.


    The two of them then truly separated. However, Beitang Mo seemed to have heard what Long Chen said to Yang Lingqing. He looked at Long Chen closely, ¡°Seems like you¡¯ve already submitted the application for the inner faction selection?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    Beitang Mo suddenly snickered, ¡°Don¡¯t be so naive. The enemies Lingqing will be taking on are going to be far from what you can handle. All you need to do is try harder so that it doesn¡¯t reflect badly on Lingqing.¡±


    Having said this, he flung his robes and left.


    As Yang Lingqing left as well, she kept turning back to look at him asionally. He suddenly realised that she would have to face a lot of matters alone in the future, and Long Chen couldn¡¯t help but be concerned.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if it was the right decision for her to enter the Lingwu Family¡­¡±


    Long Chen pondered over this matter. In order for Yang Lingqing not to be bullied in the Lingwu Family, he would need to get stronger.


    ¡°He said that I don¡¯t have any qualifications to deal with the opponents that Lingqing will face? Hehe, just watch and see¡­¡±


    Anyone who had intentions of causing trouble for Yang Lingqing had to be within the inner faction. Long Chen knew that in order to protect her, he first had to enter the inner faction.


    ¡°I wonder if I¡¯ll have a chance in this inner faction selection¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze was filled with an unyielding stubbornness as he watched Yang Lingqing leave. Liu Lan took all this in and smiled sweetly, ¡°So? Are you unconvinced?¡±


    She was naturally referring to what Beitang Mo had said before he left.


    ¡°I won¡¯t ept it for now. I¡¯ll convince you in the future.¡±


    Long Chen raised his head and stared straight at Liu Lan, spouting very big words.


    ¡°You¡¯ve turned gutsy.¡±


    Liu Lan shook her head, seeming to exim coquettishly.


    Looking at this resolute young man, she felt slightly dazzled.


    Noticing her eyes that had turned a little strange while staring at him, Long Chen was startled andughed, ¡°Why are you looking at me with such emotion? Are you nning to prey on young men?¡±


    Having said this, Long Chen suddenly felt an icy-cold gaze on himself and turned. At a pavilion far away, a young man was staring at him without moving. Long Chen couldn¡¯t tell who it was, nor did he care.


    Liu Lan did not get mad at Long Chen¡¯s teasing and instead, yed along with him and ced her fair fingers that were like cogongrass on his shoulder, ¡°Of course I¡¯m nning to eat you up. Would you let me?¡±


    Long Chen suddenly went limp. He still found it difficult to tolerate such spicy words and immediately drew back,ughing in embarrassment.


    ¡°Coward¡­¡±


    She rolled her eyes at him and got serious, ¡°What are your ns?¡±


    ¡°Of course, it¡¯s to obtain the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon. Time is of essence; I won¡¯t talk to you anymore. Bye.¡±


    Without saying anything more, Long Chen went past her and, uncaring of Liu Lan¡¯s fury, proceeded forth.


    ¡°Liu Lan seems to be too enthusiastic towards me, especially in such a public area. What does she want?¡±


    Recalling the man who had been staring at him from the pavilion, Long Chen felt something was off.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t even take his girl. What¡¯s his problem?¡±

 Chapter 133 – Not Closing the Door When Bathing

    Back to the Green Willow Residence, Long Chen headed towards his home.


    He was already at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and by the request and arrangement of the Lingwu Family, he was now moved to where First Grade Disciples resided in. It was the first time Long Chen was going there, which was why he was unfamiliar with the route.


    ¡°There are 240 contribution points left, and it costs 300 points to get the Spirit Grass. However, old geezer Yang wants me to use 500 contribution points to exchange for the level 6 profound grade beast spirit because he thinks highly of me.¡¯


    ¡°Then just go into the Sky Martial Realm!¡±


    ¡°Hm, I¡¯ll first take a look and see what my new residence is like.¡±


    While in Por Town, Long Chen had gotten more than enough rest, and it was a good time for him to use all that energy.


    The Lingwu Family was unbelievably rich. All the buildings were very luxurious, and even Third Grade Disciples resided in rather elegant ces, not to mention the First Grade Disciples.


    Using his identity jade, Long Chen quickly found the doorway to arge courtyard. It seemed to be tiled with white jade and was a splendid mansion.


    ¡°Is this where I¡¯m going to live? The Lingwu Family truly is generous.¡±


    Just as Long Chen was nning to use the jade to open the door, Lingxi suddenly eximed, ¡°Look at the house over there. The door isn¡¯t closed properly, and the person inside seems to be the enforcer¡¯s sister.¡±


    ¡°Liu Ling? Has she reached the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm too?¡±


    Liu Ling was actually a neighbour to him, and she didn¡¯t even close her door properly. Would it make sense for Long Chen not to pay her a visit?¡±


    ¡°After entering the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, she must have her nose high up in the air. I¡¯ll go tease her for a bit!¡±


    At this point, Long Chen opened the door to her courtyard and entered.


    ¡°The ces where Grade One Disciples live in must be simr to where immortals must reside in.¡±


    ¡°She seems to be in that room. I wonder what she¡¯s doing.¡±


    Lingxi could only sense where people were, but she had no idea what they were doing.


    Long Chen stealthily pressed himself close to the door and pushed in. Just as he was about to y around and scare Liu Ling, he was suddenly stunned at the sight in front of him.


    Liu Ling was nowfortably lying in a bathtub with her eyes closed.


    Long Chen took a look and had pretty much seen everything.


    ¡°In a year or two, this girl is going to be like her sister¡­¡±


    Long Chen felt his mouth go dry and turned to escape. At this moment, Liu Ling had also seen him and she covered her vital areas, giving a loud shriek.


    ¡°I¡¯m doomed.¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly returned to his own residence and closed the door properly. Without his identity jade, Liu Ling would not be able to enter.


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t even close her door while she¡¯s bathing¡­¡±


    Remembering her alluring body and fair skin, Long Chen regretted not seeing more, but he did not dare go over again.


    ¡°I think you¡¯re ted!¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s furious voice travelled from the Lingxi Sword, and Long Chen felt a sharp pain in his ear.


    ¡°Little Xi, forgive me! It definitely wasn¡¯t on purpose!¡±


    Long Chen kept trying to exin himself and he was pure. Only after that did Lingxi forgive him and said ruthlessly, ¡°If you dare look again next time, I¡¯ll want your worthless life. Hmph!¡±


    Even Long Chen had not expected this to happen. However, he knew that Liu Ling had once hated him, and with what had just happened, she would harbour even more hatred towards him and perhaps even cause him trouble.


    ¡°Whatever. She¡¯s definitely outside waiting. I¡¯ll leave after I fuse with more Thunder me Crystals.¡±


    The real Qi he had at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm was much more firm than before, and could suppress even more Thunder me Crystals. While Long Chen was in Por Town, he had already fused with 21.


    ¡°Based on my calctions, my limit should be 30 now.¡±


    Though he still had a level 1 Thunder me Physique, Long Chen¡¯s body was able to be strengthened through fusion with the Thunder me Crystals.


    The crystals were extremely effective. With each one, he could feel his strength increase.


    ¡°Three days have passed, and I¡¯ve fused with the 25th. The Spirit Grass is a guarantee for Lingxi¡¯s life, so I can¡¯t waste anymore time. Looks like I¡¯ll have to go to the Sky Martial Realm.¡±


    Long Chen did not believe that Liu Ling would still be lying in wait outside. When he opened the door, he heaved a sigh of relief. As expected, there was nobody there, and he quickly headed towards the Sky Martial Realm.


    Long Chen¡¯s name was beginning to be known in the Green Faction, and most people knew him. However, Long Chen had yet to have any good friends in the Lingwu Family.


    ¡°The matter with the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect is finally dealt with. It¡¯s time to live my own life.¡±


    Long Chen was very confident in himself. This confidence came from the mysterious dragon jade that Long Qinn had given him, as well as that mysterious drop of blood essence.


    Dragon Soul Transformation, Blood Transmutation, and the other version of Blood Transmutation, Blood Engulfing Zone.


    ¡°Blood Engulfing Zone is even more bloody and cruel. Unless I¡¯m in a dire situation, I can¡¯t use it.¡±


    This was simr to a domain. The domain could affect everyone within, and it could even suppress the boiling blood Qi in them and cause their battle might to be reduced. If they were weak, basically all of them could be devoured by Long Chen.


    ¡°If used well, Blood Engulfing Zone would be an even more heaven-defying ability.¡±


    Long Chen knew that as long as it was rted to blood, everything had to do with that mysterious droplet of blood essence.


    ¡°With such a powerful blood-rted ability, that blood essence is probably that of the ancient ruler of blood and ughter- the immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon!¡±


    Lingxi furrowed her brows and spoke.


    ¡°But Long Chen, the immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon is very powerful. You need to hold fast to your principals in order not to be lost in the pursuit of strength. Use it as little as you can.¡±


    Long Chen kept Lingxi¡¯s warnings in mind.


    Soon enough, Long Chen arrived at the Sky Martial Realm.


    Compared to the Green Faction¡¯spetition before, the Sky Martial Realm was now bustling with life. There were around two thousand people in the Green Faction, and about a thousand were frequent visitors to the Sky Martial Realm. There were now two hundred or so people leaving and entering the Sky Martial Realm.


    Within the Sky Martial Realm, there was one route through the Heaven Dan region, five through the Earth Dan region, and ten through the Human Dan region.


    Long Chen was right about to enter the Sky Martial Realm and was looking around, when he felt a look of hatred focusing on himself. Long Chen turned, and who else could it be than Liu Ling, who was quivering in anger while ring at him?


    ¡°Crap!¡±


    Without even having the opportunity to escape, Liu Ling had already appeared before him. Long Chen noticed there was a middle-aged man wearing skintight clothing meant for cultivators, which had red and white alternating on it.


    ¡°He¡¯s an Earth Dan Realm cultivator, but thankfully, he¡¯s only just entered this realm.¡±


    Now that he knew the strength of this middle-aged man, Long Chen was calm.


    ¡°You lewd bastard!¡±


    Approaching Long Chen, Liu Ling could only grit her teeth and scolded, knowing she could not attack him here.


    ¡°Hm? What are you saying? I didn¡¯t do anything to you, so why are you calling me that?¡±


    Long Chen was fearless as he spoke with a thick skin.


    ¡°You¡¯re still not admitting it. Three days earlier, didn¡¯t you¡­¡±


    At this point, someone made a loud shushing noise, and only then did Liu Ling realise that people were crowded around and watching her. Recalling her words, it might cause some misunderstandings and she went pale, fervently hoping for a hole to hide inside.


    Previously, Liu Ling and Feng Wutian had been on good terms. Now that Feng Wutian had been defeated by Long Chen¡­


    ¡°Long Chen is pretty amazing. He dealt with Feng Wutian and even took care of Liu Ling.¡±


    ¡°Such a love-hate scene only appears in novels. I didn¡¯t expect it to happen in real life.¡±


    ¡°Damn it, all the good stuff have been taken by pigs. I¡¯m so talented, so why aren¡¯t any of these happening to me?¡±


    Amidst these discussions, Long Chen looked extremely proud, while Liu Ling felt like killing herself. All she wanted to do was to have it out with Long Chen, but just when she was about to act, the middle-aged man behind stopped her.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, follow me into the Sky Martial Realm.¡±


    ¡°No! Uncle Yan, I want to kill him!¡±


    The middle-aged man stared at Long Chen coldly, ¡°Are you going to enter the Sky Martial Realm?¡±


    Seeing the provocation in his eyes, Long Chen did not back down, ¡°Of course. Are you going to entertain me?¡±


    Anyone could see that this expert at the Earth Dan Realm was preparing to teach Long Chen a lesson in the Sky Martial Realm. However, Long Chen, who was still at the Human Dan Realm, had taken on the challenge. He was truly fearless and unafraid of death.


    ¡°I told you, all the pigs that get the good stuff will be ughtered sooner orter.¡±


    ¡°Looks like after defeating Feng Wutian, Long Chen¡¯s bing too cocky.¡±


    Amidst thements, Uncle Yan¡¯s expression did not change as he held Liu Ling¡¯s hand and spoke to Long Chen, ¡°Well then, let¡¯s meet in the Sky Martial Realm.¡±


    Long Chen was about to reply, but Liu Ling suddenly began tough. ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s something else you don¡¯t know yet, right?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned and answered, ¡°Could it be that you¡¯re nning to give me your heart after what happened?¡±


    There was a roar ofughter from their audience, and Liu Ling really wanted to explode from her anger. Her voice trembled as she spoke, ¡°My Brother Wutian entered the Earth Dan Realm, and he¡¯s been recruited into the Southern Vermillion Bird Family. Long Chen, just wait to die!¡±


    She then entered the Sky Martial Realm with Uncle Yan.


    Long Chen reacted after a while andughed bitterly, ¡°Southern Vermillion Bird? Has the inner faction be so easy to entertely?¡±


    ¡°It must be because he has the bloodline of the Vermillion Bird. Long Chen, that girl hates you to the bone, and she also has Feng Wutian backing her. She¡¯s definitely going to cause trouble for you again.¡±


    Lingxi exined with a sour expression on her face.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s see who¡¯s even more powerful! After being defeated by me once, they won¡¯t be able to win against me ever again!¡±


    At the mention of Feng Wutian, everyone knew that Long Chen was in deep trouble. Feng Wutian had lost to Long Chen while not having a clear mind. How could he take this lying down?


    ¡°He¡¯s been doing well, but he¡¯s much too haughty. Looks like he¡¯s dead meat.¡±


    Listening to thements, Long Chen who had seemed impressive now had the opposite image.


    ¡°Just watch me!¡±


    Long Chen did not bother defending himself and, entered through Human Dan into the Sky Martial Realm.

 Chapter 134 – Gold Faction!

    The Human Dan region in the Sky Martial Realm.


    Long Chen wanted to kill the level 4 profound grade demonic beast. The reason he had entered through the Human Dan region was for insurance.


    If he had entered directly through the Earth Dan region, there would be level 4 profound grade demonic beasts everywhere, and it would be a surprise if Long Chen was not killed there. On the other hand, if he entered the Earth Dan region through the Human Dan region, the demonic beasts were ced such that it was a gradual progression. The Heart Corrosive demonic beast previously, for instance, had been at the boundary between the Human Dan and Earth Dan region.


    Within the Sky Martial Realm, there was a clear and boundless sky as per normal.


    If one could kill quite a few level 3 profound grade demonic beasts, it would be possible to obtain around 300 contribution points. However, these beasts were not much of a challenge for Long Chen. Only level 4 profound grade demonic beasts were difficult enough for him.


    The Sky Martial Realm belonged to the Lingwu Family. All those who entered were of various factions, and there might even be some from the inner faction.


    However, because of howrge the Sky Martial Realm was, Long Chen went deep into the Earth Dan region and had yet to see anyone else despite staying in there for more than half a day.


    He did, however, meet with quite a few demonic beasts.


    It was evident that there were more demonic beasts in the Sky Martial Realm than there were people in the Lingwu Family.


    ¡°The Sky Martial Realm really is a little Cosmos World used to raise demonic beasts. The Heavenly Spirit Qi in the air here is mixed with some Demonic Qi, which is very suitable for demonic beasts to grow and mature in. The Lingwu Family truly is rather lucky to be able to find a ce like this.¡±


    Seeing there was nobody around, Lingxi stayed on Long Chen¡¯s shoulders.


    ¡°I guess the Lingwu Family was established by relying on this Sky Martial Realm. Didn¡¯t you say this was a small-scaled ruin?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s correct, but too much time has passed and everything here has been excavated.¡±


    ¡°What a bunch of idiots. They should have left a few things behind for me¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m going inside. There¡¯s someone in front.¡±


    Lingxi was about to speak, but suddenly eximed and disappeared into the Lingxi Sword. Long Chen quickly became vignt and raised his head while taking a few steps and going through the forest. He suddenly saw a group of people gathered together, and they seemed to be roasting meat.


    With Long Chen¡¯s appearance, they all turned back to nce at him. These youngsters were actually around fourteen to fifteen years of age, but there were two who were already at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    Amongst these young men and women, there was a sloppy looking man who was drinking. He seemed to be almost thirty years old, and though he looked this way, it was evident that he was an expert.


    ¡°Another expert who just entered the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Yan Chixue, Uncle Yan from just now and this slipshod man had about the same level of strength.


    ¡°Little brother, are you in the mood for some drinks?¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen was alone, his eyes brightened and he beckoned to Long Chen.


    This was the first time Long Chen had met anyone so cordial in the Lingwu Family. Though his smile looked slightly nauseating, it was definitely from the bottom of his heart. Long Chen went over andughed, ¡°Of course I¡¯m in the mood for drinks, but are you going to give me the good stuff?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t give me that rubbish, everything that I, Ma Tianyang drink, is the good stuff. Quick, take a seat, and eat and drink something. These little kids are eating the meat, but none of them can drink with me. It¡¯s terrible!¡±


    Ma Tianyang did not hesitate and pulled Long Chen down beside him. He then grabbed a bit of meat that a youngster had just roasted and passed it to Long Chen, giving him a pot of wine and then eximing brightly, ¡°Kid, are you going to give me face?¡±


    ¡°Of course! Since you¡¯re a few years older than me, I, Long Chen, shall call you Brother Ma!¡±


    After taking the good wine, Long Chen finished it with relish and showed the shining bottom of the pot to Ma Tianyang.


    ¡°Good, good! I¡¯ve finally found a little guy that suits my tastes!¡±


    Ma Tianyang became increasingly satisfied the more he looked at Long Chen.


    The youngsters he was leading all wore beautiful garments, and every movement was graceful. Not to mention drinking, they even ate so slowly that Ma Tianyang was getting anxious.


    At this moment, all of these youngsters stared at Long Chen coldly, especially the one who had had his meat stolen. His expression disyed his fury and he wanted to act upon his desires, but did not dare do so.


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother with these brats. They¡¯re all little geniuses and very arrogant. Come, Long Chen. Let us go somewhere else to drink heartily and have a great talk!¡±


    Ma Tianyang ignored the unhappy looks from those youngsters and pulled Long Chen deep into the forest, finding a thick branch. They then sat facing each other and began to chat.


    ¡°I wonder which faction Brother Ma is from, and why are you bringing these young men and women into the Sky Martial Realm?¡±


    Brother Ma smiled helplessly, ¡°Well, I¡¯m just an errand boy in the Gold Faction, and I¡¯ve been given the task by the great elder to bring these little geniuses at the Human Dan Realm to see some level 4 profound grade demonic beasts. To be honest, this is really a very boring task. All of them are umunicative and always suspicious of each other. They¡¯re great atpeting with each other, but when ites to drinking, all of them are useless!¡±


    So that¡¯s what was happening. Long Chen ran his eyes over the youngsters who were quietly having their meal, and somewhat understood Ma Tianyang¡¯s feelings. Ma Tianyang was an irritable and very direct man, and what he could not stand the most were people like these. It really was difficult for him to have to stay with these youngsters, which was why it seemed he really regretted not having met Long Chen earlier.


    ¡°Ie from the Green Faction, and the reason why I¡¯m in the Sky Martial Realm is also to take a look at a few level 4 profound grade demonic beasts.¡±


    Long Chen drank and silently praised the vour of this wine, and then spoke.


    ¡°This is high quality Monkey Wine. It took me a lot of effort to get it, so take it easy.¡± He first took care of his own wine before looking Long Chen up and down, ¡°Kid, you¡¯re not half bad. You¡¯re young, and yet you¡¯ve already reached this level, and you¡¯re even much stronger than those youngsters. Others might think you¡¯re looking to die bying in here alone and even heading towards the Earth Dan region, but I think you have guts. You¡¯re a real man!¡±


    Ma Tianyang was a very honest man, and Long Chen found him very likeable.


    ¡°This meat was roasted well.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s because that kid roasted it well that I dared give it to you. It looks like he wants to teach you a lesson though.¡±


    Ma Tianyang nced in the direction of the kids andughed indifferently.


    ¡°My task this time is really very boring. Long Chen, if you really want to meet level 4 profound grade demonic beasts, how about youe with me?¡±


    Long Chen initially wanted to reject Ma Tianyang¡¯s kind invitation, but it was fate that he had met someone he truly liked, so he nodded, ¡°How can I reject Brother Ma¡¯s invitation? Besides, I haven¡¯t had enough of Brother Ma¡¯s wine yet.¡±


    Ma Tianyang patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder roughly, ¡°You really suit my tastes. If there¡¯s anything in the future, just find me in the Gold Faction. I¡¯ll make sure you get everything you need!¡±


    The two chatted for awhile more, and by then, the youngsters were done with their meal. Ma Tianyang brought Long Chen back, packed up, and they then set off together.


    Those youngsters all red at Long Chen, and the person whose meat had been stolen eximed unhappily, ¡°Mentor Ma, is heing with us?¡±


    ¡°Yes, he¡¯s an amazing guy called Long Chen. Get along with him!¡± Ma Tianyang grinned.


    ¡°But Mentor Ma, isn¡¯t this experience meant for just us four-starred geniuses of the Gold Faction? Why is someone who has nothing to do with this here?¡±


    ¡°Exactly, I don¡¯t want anyone from another faction here to pull us down. Kid, which outer faction are you from?¡±


    Ma Tianyang looked at Long Chen, feeling a little awkward at how Long Chen was being interrogated, but he merelyughed, ¡°I¡¯m from the Green Faction. Any problems with that?¡±


    ¡°Green Faction?¡±


    That youngster sneered, ¡°In the nine great outer factions, the Green Faction is ranked second fromst. How can it bepared with our Gold Faction, which is first?¡±


    This youngster¡¯s obvious taunt really made Ma Tianyang feel humiliated. At first, he was full of smiles, but in the next second, his expression turned cold, and a powerful aura exploded forth. This caused everyone to get caught in a daze, not daring to move.


    ¡°The great elder has already said that I will be the one leading you. If you have any objections, tell the great elder. If you give me this rubbish now, I¡¯m not going show mercy.¡±


    Startled by Ma Tianyang, they did not dare speak in their embarrassment, but their gazes towards Long Chen were filled with poison.


    The group of them continued their journey.


    ¡°Long Chen, you won¡¯t be so petty as to bother with them, will you?¡±


    ¡°Of course not.¡±


    Long Chenughed, not minding at all. Long Chen and Ma Tianyang walked at the front, and on the way, Long Chen suddenly asked, ¡°Brother Ma, in the nine great outer factions, is there such a thing as ranking?¡±


    ¡°Only idiots would care about that sted thing. As long as we¡¯re part of the outer faction, we all need to answer to the orders of the inner factions. Is there a point in a short person and a dwarfparing heights?¡± Ma Tianyang asked matter-of-factly.


    ¡°In the nine outer factions, the Gold and Silver Factions are probably a little stronger, but it¡¯s not to the point that their strength is that exceptional.¡±


    Long Chen understood a little better.


    ¡°By the way, your potential rating should be around four stars, right? Did you sign up for the inner faction selection that¡¯sing up?¡±


    Ma Tianyang began to talk about the contest, and Long Chen nodded, ¡°The elder of my hall has already put up my name, and I¡¯m on the waiting list.¡±


    Ma Tianyang¡¯s eyes brightened, ¡°Not bad, kid! To be able to get the rmendation of the elder, you must be the top genius in one of the halls in the Green Faction!¡±


    Long Chenughed but did not deny this.


    ¡°I heard that in this struggle to enter the inner faction, there¡¯s someone called Chu Yunxi in the Green Faction who¡¯s already got a ce. There¡¯s also a genius like that in the Gold Faction, as well as tens of people on the waiting list.¡±


    ¡°Tens of people? That¡¯s quite scary. Oh right, how strong is that genius you spoke of?¡±


    ¡°Him? He¡¯s quite something. Since young, he¡¯s always been famous and has been nicknamed the little prince of the Gold Faction. He¡¯s eighteen and already a cultivator at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm, and is much stronger than me. He¡¯s known as the second genius of the outer faction.¡±


    ¡°Second?¡± Long Chen was stunned, ¡°Then who¡¯s the first?¡±


    ¡°The first?¡±


    Ma Tianyang¡¯s expression darkened, and he spoke in a low voice, ¡°The first, ah, he¡¯s a legend. His name is Mo Xiang¡­¡±

 Chapter 135 – Five Great Divine Weapons

    At this name, Long Chen¡¯s heart faltered and his expression changed.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Ma Tianyang was bewildered at the change in Long Chen.


    When Long Chen had asked Gan Lin about Mo Xiang, Gan Lin had been unwilling to give him information. Now, he had finally heard something about Mo Xiang from Ma Tianyang.


    ¡°Brother Ma, do you treat me, Long Chen, as a brother?¡±


    He raised his head, eyes shining as he looked at Ma Tianyang.


    Seeing Long Chen suddenly so serious, Ma Tianyang¡¯s expression turned sober as he nodded, ¡°Though it hasn¡¯t been long since we met, I like your personality, so you can be considered half a brother of mine. If we experience a battle where we fight together and undergo a life and death experience, we will truly be brothers.¡±


    ¡°Half a brother is enough. Honestly speaking, it¡¯s been less than a month since I entered the Lingwu Family. I would like to know more about Mo Xiang. Please tell me more!¡±


    Ma Tianyang was startled and turned back to look at the elites of the Gold Faction, and then told Long Chen gravely, ¡°The faction has orders for us not to spread more information about him. If you really want to know, though, I¡¯m willing to take this risk. It¡¯s nothing much, but first, you¡¯ll need to tell me your rtionship with him.¡±


    They didn¡¯t have much of a close rtionship. Long Chen was basically grateful towards Mo Xiang, and he told Ma Tianyang everything.


    Ma Tianyang nodded. Since Long Chen was concerned over Mo Xiang due to his gratitude towards him, it was evident that Long Chen was one to ce importance on these ties and spoke in a low voice, ¡°Just don¡¯t spread whatever I say. Mo Xiang¡¯s aptitude is really up there. Even the geniuses of the inner faction would be envious of him. At fourteen, he was already at the initial mastery stage at the Heaven Dan Realm. Isn¡¯t that terrifying?¡±


    Fourteen years old, and already at the initial mastery stage at the Heaven Dan Realm?


    This basically meant that he was even stronger than old monsters like Liu Yuan, and was near the strength of the nine great elders of the outer factions. In Por Town, Long Chen was seen to be a monster, but in the Lingwu Family, Mo Xiang was the devil.


    ¡°When he was ten, Mo Xiang entered the Silver Faction and his cultivation improved by leaps and bounds, resulting in amotion over him. If not for his own persistence, he would long since have entered the inner faction, instead of hisnding himself in his current state.¡±


    Long Chen was puzzled. If Mo Xiang had such an aptitude, why had he not entered the inner faction?


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t he enter the inner faction?¡±


    Ma Tianyang shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Do you know about the five great divine weapons of our Lingwu Family?¡±


    ¡°Divine weapons?¡±


    Long Chen had never heard of it before.


    ¡°Of the five great divine weapons, four have been distributed to the four great inner factions. They are the Azure Dragon¡¯s Battle Halberd, Vermillion Bird¡¯s Devil Crest, White Tiger Sacred Sword and the ck Tortoise Deity Hatchet. Thest is shared among the nine great outer factions and is named the Sky Wolf Phantom de. I think Mo Xiang might have wanted this de, which was why he decided to stay in the outer faction. He did acquire it, and what is more terrifying is that not only did he gain the acknowledgement from the Sky Wolf Phantom de, he also trained in the ¡®Ways of the Sky Wolf Phantom¡¯, and can thus control it!¡±


    Long Chen knew nothing about these five great divine weapons, but what he was most concerned about was Mo Xiaolong¡¯s whereabouts.


    ¡°Brother Ma, what happened to him after that?¡±


    Ma Tianyang shook his head and sighed, ¡°About this¡­ I heard he killed a few experts in the inner faction and even some young geniuses. He¡¯s been locked in the Infernal Celestial Jails.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned. He had assumed that Mo Xiang had fled after that, but he had been taken prisoner. He was grateful towards Mo Xiang, and at the thought that he was in this state, Long Chen did not feel good about this.


    ¡°How did this happen?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but that¡¯s what I heard. I don¡¯t think they made public who died, but he can only me himself for not entering the inner faction. Isn¡¯t it out of the norm for someone of the outer faction to kill the higher levels in the inner faction?¡±


    At the thought of Mo Xiang, Ma Tianyang sounded a little regretful.


    ¡°Brother Ma, where is the Infernal Celestial Jail?¡±


    Long Chen calmed himself and asked.


    Ma Tianyang turned back and said grimly, ¡°The Infernal Celestial Jail is where our Lingwu Family locks up all sorts of criminals. It¡¯s iparably dangerous, and is located right in the centre of the Sky Martial Realm. There are high levelled profound great demonic beasts guarding, so it¡¯s best if you give up all thoughts of saving him. Though your aptitude is quite something, it¡¯ll be hard for you to pass through the Earth Dan region, much less the Heaven Dan region and the Infernal Celestial Jail.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s deep inside the Heaven Dan region?¡±


    Long Chen hung his head, crestfallen.


    Patting Long Chen¡¯s shoulder, Ma Tianyang sighed ruefully, ¡°There is much to the Lingwu Family. The two of us are like two little ants in the eyes of this great family. If you want to do anything to make others acknowledge you, you should wait till you be a lion.¡±


    Hearing Ma Tianyang¡¯s words, Long Chen then decided to suppress thoughts of rescuing Mo Xiang deep within his heart.


    Having discussed Mo Xiang, Long Chen felt even more solemn, and Ma Tianyang did not bother him. Instead, he slowed his footsteps and spoke to the youngsters who were gesturing at the two of them, ¡°Little rabbits, we¡¯re almost at the Earth Dan region. When we¡¯re there, you need to focus 100%. If anyone dies, I¡¯m not going to be responsible for you!¡±


    Upon hearing that they were almost at the Earth Dan region, all of them shivered in fear and looked around worriedly. In order to protect them, Ma Tianyang joined them, together with Long Chen.


    Seeing Long Chen settled here, one of the youngsters muttered, ¡°Cramming yourself here so that we can protect you? How naive.¡±


    Long Chen merely dismissed this with augh.


    ¡°Stay with them. I¡¯ll probably be fighting in a while and I can¡¯t take care of you. Just don¡¯t run all over the ce.¡±


    Ma Tianyang arranged for Long Chen to be there.


    However, the moment Long Chen went closer, these young people quickly avoided him and formed a group, staring at Long Chen hostilely, as if he had a strange smell on him.


    ¡°Damn it, those little bastards!¡±


    Ma Tianyang was about to get cross, but Long Chen stopped him, ¡°Brother Ma, it¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t worry. I promise I¡¯ll be safe even if they aren¡¯t around.¡±


    Only then did Ma Tianyang nod. In his eyes, for Long Chen to obtain a rmendation from an elder, he had to be stronger than these little elites.


    ¡°What a coward. He only knows how to fawn on others.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s been sweet-talking Mentor Ma. What if he¡¯s nning to get his hands on the beast spirit and demonic core? We can¡¯t let him have his way!¡±


    Long Chen could not be bothered with them and strolled to the back.


    If not for Ma Tianyang, he wouldn¡¯t even want to walk with them.


    He had heard about news regarding Mo Xiang from Ma Tianyang, which meant he had made the right choice.


    ¡°If the information they gave me is right, there¡¯s a level 4 profound grade Giant Demonic Vicious Bear in a cave not far away. This guy is quite violent and very powerful. Even cultivators who¡¯ve just entered the Earth Dan Realm would find it hard to deal with, excluding me.¡±


    At the name ¡®Giant Demonic Vicious Bear¡¯, the youngsters all quivered in fear, and one spoke, ¡°Mentor Ma, is our training with this Giant Demonic Vicious Bear?¡±


    Ma Tianyang impatiently turned back, ¡°Kid, you¡¯ve asked this more than ten times already. Are you afraid? If you are, get lost. You¡¯re only watching the battle, and I¡¯m not even getting you to do anything. What are you so scared of?¡±


    Only then did this child duck his head, not daring to speak.


    ¡°The information says that there is a Giant Demonic Vicious Bear there, which is why I was asked to lead them. I¡¯m a speed-type Earth Dan Realm cultivator, and I¡¯ve killed three of these bears. In other words, I am somewhat experienced. These little kids are all treasures of the faction, so I hope nothing goes wrong!¡±


    Ma Tianyang arranged for them to be in a hidden area from which they could view the battle. He gave Long Chen a meaningful nce, and then elegantly walked towards the cave.


    This was a secluded, peaceful mountain stream, with a bluish green natural pond opposite it. Beside it was a cave full of moss, but it was evident there were signs of the moss being stepped over. The rocks that were nearby also had giant w marks, which sent a chill down the spine.


    ¡°Look at how high the cave is. Looks like this Giant Demonic Vicious Bear is really huge¡­¡±


    Long Chen estimated.


    Walking into the nest of the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear, Ma Tianyang¡¯s expression was grim as he picked up a rock and threw it into the cave with a whooshing sound.


    ¡°Stupid little bear,e out!¡±


    The deafening cry of Ma Tianyang travelled into the cave, along with the rock. Right after, the snarl of a bear sounded in the cave, causing the cave to tremor!


    ¡°What?¡±


    Ma Tianyang, as well as Long Chen and the others, turned pale. What they heard were two different tones!


    ¡°There are two demonic beasts? To be able to stay in the same cave as the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear, it must also be a level 4 profound grade creature!¡±


    At this thought, Ma Tianyang¡¯s expression changed. Even he had not foreseen this.


    He only had some time to tell everyone ¡®run¡¯, when two demonic beasts able to cover the skies pounced out, causing the earth to quake.


    Long Chen raised his head and saw a giant bear that was already four metres tall while only on all fours, trembling with fear.


    The two demonic beasts that had appeared were both Giant Demonic Vicious Bears. They had pitch-ck fur all over, with thick and solid flesh that were like metal. Their teeth were like steel drills, eyes revealing their thirst for blood.


    The two bears were roaring, and it was evident that Ma Tianyang had infuriated them. Those roars were so loud that they caused a girl to start crying in fear.


    Seeing how furious these two bears were, Long Chen was slightly annoyed and looked towards their crotches. Then, all was clear.


    ¡°I was wondering why a single Giant Demonic Vicious Beast turned into two. So one of them found a lover and was trying its best to reproduce, but Brother Ma interrupted them. The result¡­ is rather obvious¡­¡±

 Chapter 136 – Giant Demonic Vicious Bear

    Life often yed tricks like this. The information given by the Lingwu Family had stated there would only be one Giant Demonic Vicious Bear here, but suddenly, the bear had lost its single status and was trying its best to create more young. This time, Ma Tianyang was in trouble.


    Amongst level 4 profound grade demonic beasts, the Giant Demonic Vicious Beast was an elite existence in terms of strength and offensive power.


    Ma Tianyang trained in a profound middle grade technique and could skilfully take care of one bear. Two, however, were more than he could handle.


    There was one male and one female bear who had just charged out from the cave, pouncing towards Ma Tianyang. Ma Tianyang only had the chance to get the rest to escape first, before the bears had reached him. The bear¡¯s arm that was even thicker than his body grabbed towards his waist.


    If he was caught, Ma Tianyang¡¯s slender waist would definitely be sliced into two.


    Ma Tianyang got the youngsters of the Gold Faction to leave first. As long as they left, these Giant Demonic Vicious Bears would definitely not be able to catch him, and he would be able to flee. However, the issue was that these youngsters¡¯ hearts were far too weak.


    The Giant Demonic Vicious Bears looked much too terrifying, which was why when they heard Ma Tianyang¡¯s flustered voice, most of them were intimidated. One of the girls cried, while the others began to quiver, their legs shaking. There were few who left obediently.


    With such a loud sounding from their side, how could the bears not have noticed with their hearing abilities?


    This was their territory, and with the interruption, their wrath could not be calmed by anything other than Ma Tianyang being smashed into meat patty.


    Noticing there were still people who were frail and weak around, one of them huffed roughly, and with a great roar, darted in Long Chen¡¯s direction. In the blink of an eye, it had appeared before everyone.


    ¡°No!¡±


    Ma Tianyang yelled, breaking away from his opponent and, with his greatest speed, chased that bear.


    However, as he had been held back for that short moment, he was toote. Even if he hurried there, all that would be left were corpses.


    With the strength of this bear, it would be impossible for the youngsters to even survive one strike from it.


    Knowing they could not escape, Ma Tianyang¡¯s eyes widened and he yelled, ¡°Don¡¯t flee, attack!¡±


    As long as somebody stepped up to block that attack, Ma Tianyang would be able to get there in time.


    Though Ma Tianyang was not exactly fond of these guys, they had statuses. Since young, they had grown in the outer faction of the Lingwu Family, and their parents were enforcers or even higher-ranking members in the family. If they were to die, not only the Gold Faction would lose value, but Ma Tianyang would also die.


    As long as that one attack could be blocked, Ma Tianyang could get there in time. However, what made him speechless was that all the youngsters at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm who had the ability to block the attack had escaped far away in terror. All that was left were the weakest amongst them.


    With just a palm strike, these guys would be ttened!


    At the thought of this scene, Ma Tianyang¡¯s heart went cold. Squeezing out all his potential, he tried to increase his speed further.


    Seeing the figure of a bear reaching them from above, the thick smell of blood already in their nostrils, the little geniuses were on the verge of crying. They kept trembling and copsed to the ground, and it was impossible for them to attack anyone.


    ¡°I¡¯m doomed, I¡¯m doomed¡­¡±


    Ma Tianyang had lost all hope.


    At the moment everyone had given up, a human figure suddenly collided with the body of the bear, and caused it to take several steps back. The human figure, too, retreated tens of metres before he could steady himself.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had blocked the bear, Ma Tianyang, who had despaired, was now pleasantly surprised. He had forgotten about Long Chen, but unexpectedly enough, it was Long Chen who hade out at thest second and saved those guys.


    ¡°How is he unhurt?¡±


    Though Long Chen had some dust and grime on his face, everyone could tell that he was unharmed, and could be said to be in perfect condition.


    However, Long Chen was cursing inside.


    ¡°That lousy bastard. Since I haven¡¯t undergone Dragon Soul Transformation, I really am not a match for it. Using the Seal of the High Profound Dragon, it was pushed just a few steps back.¡±


    Those few steps of the bear amounted to ten or so metres. Now, Ma Tianyang could finally stand in front of Long Chen, blocking everyone from the two bears.


    Those few guys had originally been prepared for their deaths, but at thest second, they could only gape at how Long Chen had rescued them. Recalling how they had scorned and taunted him before, a flush rose onto their faces.


    With Ma Tianyang and Long Chen shielding them, they finally fled after recovering from their fear, meeting up with the rest who had already escaped.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Weren¡¯t you about to be killed?¡±


    The people who had first escaped had not seen Long Chen¡¯s act.


    ¡°It¡¯s that guy from the Green Faction who rescued us¡­¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. He¡¯s only at the Human Dan Realm. How can he contend with a level 4 profound grade Giant Demonic Vicious Bear?¡±


    ¡°I think I saw it too, but I think that bear isn¡¯t strong at all. Brother Bei, Brother Dong, you¡¯re all cultivators at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm. You can go take care of it as well. Don¡¯t let that kid from the Green Faction take all the limelight!¡±


    Hearing one of the girls say this, two young men who were slightly taller were filled with heroism. However, turning and seeing the frightful body of the bear, all that spirit was drained from them as they waved their arms, ¡°That kid¡¯s too eager to show off. Let¡¯s leave this chance to him. The Gold Faction is a great faction, and should thus maintain the generosity that all great factions should possess.¡±


    ¡°Wow, Brother Dong makes so much sense!¡±


    A few of them immediately began to tter him,pletely unaware of how pitiful they had looked while fleeing just moments before.


    On the other hand, Ma Tianyang had finally pinned down the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear. Though he was shocked at Long Chen¡¯s strength, it was still impossible to take care of two of these bears.


    He then eximed, ¡°Long Chen, help me bring those brats back to the Human Dan region. I¡¯ll shake off these two beasts and then meet you guys.¡±


    He had expected Long Chen obediently leave, but Long Chen stayed where he was and hurriedly spoke, ¡°Brother Ma, aren¡¯t we here to see level 4 profound grade demonic beasts? Your Giant Demonic Vicious Beast seems to be able to give a good price.¡±


    Long Chen, who had initially been reliable, suddenly said something so ridiculous that Ma Tianyang was stunned. At this moment, the bear¡¯s attack approached once more.


    ¡°Quick, Long Chen! I can¡¯t hold on for much longer!¡±


    However, what he now saw were dense crimson scales and sharp bone spurs emerging from Long Chen¡¯s body. In a second, Long Chen¡¯s body was covered and he lookedpletely different.


    This appearance was extremely stylish.


    ¡°You¡¯re a beast cultivator?¡± Ma Tianyang was amazed.


    ¡°Let¡¯s have apetition and see who takes care of their opponent faster. How¡¯s that?¡±


    Long Chen quirked his lips in a grin.


    Ma Tianyang was confused.


    Upon seeing Long Chen¡¯s cool equipment, these youngsters were all stunned. One of the girl¡¯s eyes became starry-eyed as she supported her chin with her palm, ¡°How cool¡­¡±


    ¡°What cool? Those scales can withstand at most one pat from the bear before it shatters.¡±


    The young man called Brother Bei spoke confidently.


    ¡°He¡¯s a beast cultivator, which means he wasn¡¯t at his peak condition just now. Brother Bei, do you think he¡¯s stronger than you?¡±


    Brother Bei pondered over it for a while and then shook his head, ¡°Though he¡¯s extraordinary and can be considered a great genius in the Lingwu Family, he¡¯s still weaker than me.¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen and Ma Tianyang were already engaged in battle.


    When Long Chen had said that, Ma Tianyang did not have the time to react before Long Chen charged forward, mming head-on into a Giant Demonic Vicious Bear.


    ¡°Seal of the High Profound Dragon!¡±


    A crimson dragon crashed into the thick arm of a bear that was pouncing over. The two forces collided, and the bear let out a long roar and withdrew. There were already traces of the Seal of the High Profound Dragon on its arm.


    ¡°Is it even more furious now?¡±


    Long Chen snickered and disyed his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, quickly circling to the bear¡¯s back. Meanwhile, the boundless demonic force from its body exploded out. Just its offensive power was much more formidable than the average cultivator who had just entered the Earth Dan Realm.


    This bear was led away by Long Chen just like this.


    ¡°Trained in Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step? Looks like he can contend with that bear for a while more. I need to take advantage of this and take care of this bear as quickly as I can, and then aid him!¡±


    Having made his mind, Ma Tianyang then fought with the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear!


    Seeing these two battles, many of the young men and women widened their eyes. This was indeed what they had nned to see, though there was one more Long Chen and one more bear.


    ¡°Why do I feel like the kid from the Green Faction has a more entertaining fight?¡± The females murmured.


    Though they had no idea how long Long Chen could hold on for, they now no longer looked down on him. Instead, they were filled with gratitude. If not for him, a few of them would have died just now.


    However, at the thought of how they had teased Long Chen, it felt like they were pping themselves as they watched him.


    Long Chen was very skilled at dealing with the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear.


    ¡°The physical body of this bear is extraordinary. I have the Thunder me Physique as well, so it¡¯s just as well that I can fight it out with you topare who¡¯s stronger!¡±

 Chapter 137 – This Beast is Crazy

    On Long Chen¡¯s body, crimson electricity shed. Upon closer inspection, crimson mes could be seen on the surface.


    After fusing with the Thunder me Crystals, the force from the lightning and mes constantly tempered his body, and had even fused with his real Qi.


    After taking in 25 crystals, Long Chen¡¯s body had be extremely durable. Even whenpared with medium profound-grade constitution techniques, his body would still be considered amazing.


    With this powerful Thunder me Physique, Long Chen began an astounding battle against the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear.


    At Ma Tianyang¡¯s side, he used exquisite footsteps to evade the bear, before finding opportunities to attack. However, it was different with Long Chen. He used his entire body and, with brute force, battled it out with the bear.


    If anyone heard Long Chen was attacking a Giant Demonic Vicious Bear with brute force, they would think he was crazy. However, whether Ma Tianyang or anyone else present, they all knew he was not crazy, as he was not on the losing end Instead, the bear roared miserably and with anguish, causing the surrounding trees to shake.


    The two youngsters who had been bragging now did not dare speak.


    Long Chen¡¯s battle was really quite terrifying. If either of them were in his position, they would be smashed into meat patty in a few seconds.


    ¡°Good luck!¡±


    A few girls prayed. Long Chen¡¯s cing in their hearts was constantly rising. He now seemed not much weaker than Ma Tianyang, and even seemed to be more rxed.


    Ma Tianyang found a chance to nce at Long Chen and was astonished.


    ¡°I really am too unfortunate to have met with two Giant Demonic Vicious Bears, but I managed to have the fortune of making friends with Long Chen. In general, my good luck outweighed the bad, and so I¡¯ve made a profit here!¡±


    He had initially been very tense, but could now rx and focus on his opponent.


    ¡°This is really an interesting fight, but I can¡¯t lose to Brother Ma.¡±


    After battling with the bear for a while till it was full of injuries, Long Chen began to lose interest.


    All of a sudden, he drew back. The bear had the impression he was going to escape and immediately snarled. Unexpectedly, the moment Long Chen took several steps back, the real Qi in his body began to emerge with a rumble. He shouted, aimed his fist forward, and the world began to shake!


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Piercing Earth Demonic Sun!¡±


    This image of a fist was like a ck sun, striking the body of the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear and causing it to howl while its body sent flying. It began to fall in the direction of where the youngsters were.


    Fresh blood sprayed all over.


    The youngsters shrieked and immediately dispersed, before the bearnded on the ground with a thud.


    When everyone looked over in fright, they realised there was a huge hole in its stomach. All its organs had been destroyed under Long Chen¡¯s attack, and the originally terrifying Giant Demonic Vicious Bear was now dead.


    Long Chen rushed over and, with a wave of his arms, kept the corpse in his cosmos pouch, looking elegant while going about this. The youngsters stared at him in a daze, unsure of what to do.


    ¡°What? You want to steal my spoils of battle?¡± Long Chen fiercely questioned.


    ¡°Of course not, of course not¡­¡±


    They quickly took several steps back, their footsteps uneven in their fear. Even Brother Bei and Brother Dong who had been bragging could only wish for a ce to hide, after realising Long Chen was several times stronger than they were.


    ¡°That¡¯s better.¡±


    Long Chen smiled slightly and then headed towards Ma Tianyang¡¯s battle.


    Ma Tianyang and the other Giant Demonic Vicious Bear had seen Long Chen¡¯s victory, and Ma Tianyang in shock. The bear, on the other hand, noticed the carcass of the female that had just been under him, and broke out in furious howls as the body was kept.


    ¡°That beast has gone crazy.¡±


    Ma Tianyang knew this was his chance.


    ¡°Brother Ma, I won this bet. Bring out whatever good wine you have and don¡¯t hide it, or else I¡¯ll look down on you.¡±


    While Ma Tianyang was battling, Long Chen teased him from a distance away.


    Ma Tianyang instantly forced a smile in answer. Previously, Long Chen was younger than him, and he could thus reject his requests. However, Long Chen and he were now more familiar with each other, and with Long Chen¡¯s strength, they were at a simr level. Ma Tianyang knew that all of his precious treasures would probably be taken by Long Chen.


    He could only vent his annoyance on the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear.


    Ma Tianyang was proficient at speed and sneak attacks. He was naturally the nemesis of these bears, and it was rather effortless for him to deal with one Giant Demonic Vicious Bear. Besides, it has lost its will to fight, and momentster, all that was left under Ma Tianyang¡¯s feet was a carcass.


    ¡°Damn this guy. Why did you choose now of all times to get a girl? You almost cost me my life!¡±


    He kicked at the bear a few times and was prepared to keep the body. Like Long Chen, he was about to ce it in his cosmos pouch, but Long Chen suddenly asked.


    ¡°Brother Ma, besides its beast spirit and demonic core, do you have a need for anything else?¡±


    ¡°No. The flesh, muscles, bones and fur aren¡¯t worth much.¡± Ma Tianyang answered.


    ¡°Then give them to me. I have a use for them.¡±


    Ma Tianyang nodded. Though he had no idea what Long Chen needed them for, he did not ask and instead, extracted the beast spirit and retrieved the core. Long Chen then kept the body.


    ¡°The body of the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear has more blood than the Heart Corrosive demonic beast. Two demonic beasts at the fourth level of the profound grade should be enough for me to advance.¡±


    The higher the realm, the more real Qi required. Long Chen was now only at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, but to break through to the Earth Dan Realm, level four profound grade demonic beasts were insufficient. Two of these vicious bears could probably only fill his stomach.


    ¡°I wonder how powerful the beasts have to be when I reach the Heaven Dan realm or even beyond that¡­¡±


    Ma Tianyang and Long Chen each took care of a demonic beast. Only then did the youngsters dare approach them, not daring to look Long Chen right in the eye. At most, they would nce at him and immediately turn away, feeling awkward.


    ¡°After this dangerous experience, it¡¯s good for you all to make some friends. Come on, this is your Brother Long. Try saying his name.¡±


    Ma Tianyang was not an idiot. How could he not have noticed their disdain for Long Chen? Now, Long Chen had basically pped them hard, and he could use this opportunity to make a dig at them.


    ¡°If I don¡¯t give it to them, they will always think too highly of themselves.¡± Ma Tianyang thought to himself.


    Though they were unwilling, they could only call ¡®Brother Long¡¯ a few times under Ma Tianyang¡¯s instructions. It was the first time Long Chen was being called like this, and he felt rather superior.


    Having taken care of the bears, this experience was over. Ma Tianyang was prepared to return, and Long Che nodded in agreement. He suddenly looked into the distance and spoke, ¡°You¡¯re being so suspicious there. Aren¡¯t you going toe out?¡±


    Ma Tianyang and the rest were stunned, unsure of what Long Chen was talking about. However, when they realised there were two people walking over from a hill, they realised there had been people watching them.


    These people were Liu Ling and Uncle Yan.


    While Long Chen had been fighting with the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear, it had caused a huge ruckus. The two of them had been nearby and rushed over, right in time to see Long Chen making quick work of a bear.


    Liu Ling had originally nned for Uncle Yan to teach Long Chen a lesson, or even kill him in the Sky Martial Realm. However, that scene was like a huge tide that gave her a huge blow.


    On the way there, Uncle Yan could only say, ¡°Ling¡¯er, Long Chen could deal with that bear with such ease. I doubt I am a match for him.¡±


    For even Uncle Yan to say this, Liu Ling felt powerless towards Long Chen. However, at the thought that Feng Wutian was at the Earth Dan Realm and in the inner faction, she regained her confidence.


    ¡°Uncle Yan may not be able to win against you, but Brother Feng Wutian will definitely beat you up. The moment I leave the Sky Martial Realm today, I¡¯ll go look for him!¡±


    When Long Chen shouted for them, that was what Liu Ling was thinking inside.


    ¡°What were your ns when you spied on us? Do you want to steal our gains?¡± Long Chen scolded her without hesitation.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a level four profound grade demonic beast. Why would I need that?¡±


    Upon noticing Long Chen¡¯s intense gaze, she felt extremely ufortable.


    ¡°Then what would you need? My Brother Ma? Brother Ma is so handsome and wouldn¡¯t even want to see an ugly person like you. You¡¯d better give up. Brother Ma, let us go, or else this ugly person here will start pestering you!¡±


    Long Chen sneered, pulling at Ma Tianyang and immediately leaving.


    The youngsters noticed Liu Ling, who was on the verge of exploding from her anger, and left after looking at each other.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re the ugly one! I wish you a painful death!¡±


    Liu Ling was so enraged that she felt the urge to cry. This was the first time she was feeling so wronged.


    ¡°Uncle Yan, I want to look for Brother Wutian. We must find him!¡±


    On the other end, Long Chen walked a distance before Ma Tianyang patted his head, half-joking as he scolded, ¡°Kid, you can pick up girls however you like, but don¡¯t drag your Brother Ma into this and humiliate me!¡±


    ¡°Bah, I wasn¡¯t picking her up. You wouldn¡¯t understand anyway. Let¡¯s go drink some alcohol!¡±


    ¡°What did you say? I know much more about women than you do. Have you heard the phrase that fighting is a way to show love? Isn¡¯t whatever you have with her love?¡±


    Long Chenughed but did not deny this.


    The person he was fighting and having fun with, was Lingxi.

 Chapter 138 – Spirit Grass

    After bidding Ma Tianyang farewell, Long Chen headed towards the Treasure Exchange Pavilion.


    ¡°Hey, are you sure you don¡¯t want that Enchanted Purple Dragon¡¯s beast spirit? It can exchange for a lot of deity jades!¡± Lingxi was conflicted.


    ¡°Come on, you¡¯ve asked that so many times. I¡¯m going to first get the Spirit Grass. Besides, with my level of strength, getting 500 contribution points shouldn¡¯t be that difficult.¡±


    Only then did Lingxi pout and back down.


    She knew that Long Chen was someone who was insecure. He was worried that something might happen to Lingxi, which was why he wanted to ensure she was safe before he could focus on doing other things.


    This was very touching to her.


    After entering the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, Long Chen found that beautiful girl from before.


    ¡°Little brother, why are you here again? Are you going to buy the Spirit Recovery Fruit?¡±


    She had a very deep impression of this young man who only wanted Spirit Recovery Fruits.


    ¡°Would you believe me if I told you that I want the Spirit Grass this time?¡±


    ¡°You already have 300 contribution points?¡± The girl gaped, shocked.


    ¡°No.¡± Long Chen spoke confidently.


    ¡°You brat!¡± She giggled and waved her arms, ¡°Stop joking with your sister. If there¡¯s anything you need, tell me.¡±


    ¡°Wait, I did say I don¡¯t have it now, but I¡¯ll have it soon enough.¡±


    Long Chen immediately ran away smugly, and the beautiful woman shook her head, ¡°That guy seems to have a lot of secrets¡­¡±


    Upon reaching the area collecting beast spirits and demonic cores, Long Chen handed over those of the Giant Demonic Vicious Bear.


    ¡°Level 4, profound grade Giant Demonic Vicious Bear?¡± The person inside was slightly surprised and looked up at Long Chen.


    ¡°Who gave you this?¡±


    ¡°I found it in the Sky Martial Realm.¡± Long Chenughed and eximed.


    If this was so easily picked up, then everyone would be striking the jackpot. The person did not believe him so easily.


    If Long Chen was unwilling to answer, he did not ask further. He took the beast spirit and demonic core, ¡°Based on the price list, you should get 400 contribution points. Give me your identity jade.¡±


    Long Chen handed his identity jade over, and in a while, the number of contribution points changed to 641.


    ¡°Buying a Spirit Grass will cost me 300 contribution points and leave me with 341. It¡¯s definitely not enough for me to exchange for the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon.¡±


    Long Chen was a little gloomy. He knew that if he really wanted the beast spirit of the Purple Enchanted Dragon, he would need to enter the Sky Martial Realm once more. This trip was actually very smooth-sailing, where he obtained 400 contribution points, befriended someone like Ma Tianyang and gained information regarding Mo Xiang.


    After returning to the region selling spirit medicine, Long Chen showed his identity jade to the beautiful woman, and she was stunned.


    ¡°641 contribution points? What did you sell?¡±


    ¡°The demonic core and beast spirit of the Giant Demonic Vicious Beast. Do you believe me?¡± Long Chenughed.


    ¡°The Giant Demonic Vicious Beast? That¡¯s a level 4 profound grade demonic beast! How would I believe you? I think you must have killed quite a few level 3 profound grade demonic beasts in the Sky Martial Realm, yes?¡±


    ¡°Ha, you actually got it right! I would like a Spirit Grass. Could you get it for me?¡±


    The beautiful woman¡¯s eyes that were like peaches nced at Long Chen softly and chuckled as she nodded.


    ¡°You must have killed at least ten or so level 3 profound grade demonic beasts. You¡¯re quite tough, and based on this alone, your sister here would have to help you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, sister!¡±


    Long Chen was now bing increasingly likeable. She took Long Chen¡¯s identity jade and went up to the second floor.


    ¡°I still don¡¯t know sister¡¯s name¡­?¡±


    ¡°Hm? My name is Qingya. You can just call me Sister Ya.¡±


    To be able to enter the second level of the Treasure Exchange Pavilion, one had to be at least at the Earth Dan Realm.


    After a while, she came downstairs and ced the identity jade, as well as a box, in Long Chen¡¯s hands. ¡°This is the Spirit Grass. You¡¯d better use it with care and not waste it.¡±


    ¡°I promise I¡¯ll eat every bit of it.¡±


    Long Chen was overjoyed and carefully kept the Spirit Grass. From within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi felt the presence of the Spirit Grass and was immediately stirred up.


    ¡°Little guy, you can¡¯t eat the Spirit Grass. You have to refine it.¡±


    Long Chen nodded, ¡°Thank you, Sister Ya. Once I have enough contribution points, I¡¯lle over again. Goodbye!¡±


    He then hastily left. Watching his back, Qingya couldn¡¯t help butugh, ¡°I heard that this guy even signed up for the inner faction selection, but he hasn¡¯t reached the Earth Dan Realm yet. Looks like he doesn¡¯t stand a chance.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Having returned to his residence, Long Chen closed the door.


    ¡°Quick, quick, the Spirit Grass!¡±


    Lingxi was very impatient. The moment his foot went through the door, she came out from the sword and fluttered around Long Chen.


    After they went to the basement, Long Chen produced the box with the Spirit Grass from within his cosmos pouch. As he opened it, what he saw was a little grass that was like white jade that gave off a very refreshing scent. Just a sniff of it made Long Chen feel intoxicated.


    ¡°A medium profound-grade medicine is truly extraordinary. Compared to the Initial Returning Fruit, this Spirit Grass is several times more expensive.¡±


    The Lingxi Sword began to dance and floated before Long Chen. A white fog then swept past, and the Spirit Grass in the box disappeared.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to refine it!¡±


    After finding a corner, Lingxi quickly began the process. Seeing how hurried she was, Long Chen had a sense of aplishment.


    ¡°The blood of two level 4 profound grade demonic beasts and Thunder me Crystals. I¡¯ll deal with them now.¡±


    Everything quietened down. As he had just entered the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm, Long Chen was in no hurry to use the blood of the demonic beasts. Instead, he used the Thunder me Crystals and fused with up till the 25th. Any more than that, and he would need to use Dragon Soul Transformation.


    Time slowly passed. By the time a day went by, Long Chen had fused with the 26th. At this moment, Lingxi had finished with her refining and was anxiously waiting for Long Chen.


    After refining the Spirit Grass, Lingxi¡¯s body looked clearer, and her aura became more dense. It was evident that she had be much stronger and looked prettier. In the following battles, she would definitely be able to offer Long Chen some assistance.


    ¡°Little Xi, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Seeing the anxiety in her expression, Long Chen quickly asked.


    ¡°Liu Ling found that guy called Feng Wutian. They¡¯re already outside waiting for you, and they say if you don¡¯t open the door, they¡¯re going to force their way in!¡±


    ¡°Feng Wutian?¡±


    Long Chen suddenly recalled that he had angered Liu Ling, which was probably why she had entered the inner faction and pulled Feng Wutian out. It seemed like Long Chen was going to be skinned this time.


    ¡°He lost to me once. Is he back for it again?¡±


    Fearless, Long Chen stood up.


    ¡°Be careful. He¡¯s probably stronger than Yan Chixue and Ma Tianyang.¡±


    Feng Wutian had the bloodline of the Southern Vermillion Bird, and was now part of that family. Long Chen naturally knew that Mo Xiang was imprisoned because he had killed someone of the inner faction, and thus knew he should avoid this.


    He opened the door and found Liu Ling pulling Feng Wutian¡¯s hand while giving Long Chen a poisonous re. Long Chenughed involuntarily at that. It seemed like being seen bathing had driven her mad.


    ¡°What¡¯s there to be so angry about? I only saw it once. At most, I can just let you see me if you want.¡± Long Chen teased her and looked towards Feng Wutian.


    ¡°This guy has really changed. Looks like this trip to the Sky Martial Realm has benefited him.¡±


    Feng Wutian now looked much more energetic, his eyes shining with spirit. Though he did not intentionally show it off, the aura of an expert that leaked out caused Long Chen to narrow his eyes.


    ¡°Feng Wutian truly is arge enemy.¡±


    Seeing Long Chene out, Liu Ling sneered at him, ¡°Does the terrified tortoise finally dare show its head? I thought you¡¯d stay in there for a few days. I¡¯m sure you must have wet your pants a few times inside there, no?¡±


    In the face of Feng Wutian¡¯s suppression and Liu Ling¡¯s taunting, as well as passers-by ready to watch a good show, Long Chen chuckled, ¡°Senior sister Liu even knows that I wet my pants. Perhaps your mind and mine are connected?¡±


    Liu Ling did not want to seem too fierce in front of Feng Wutian and calmed herself, suppressing the fury she had towards Long Chen andughed coldly, ¡°I won¡¯t try to talk you around. Today, Brother Wutian is here as a member of the inner faction and wants a battle with you on the tform of Life and Death. You must go.¡±


    Inner faction. It was always about the inner faction.


    Feng Wutian spoke matter-of-factly, ¡°It¡¯s Long Chen, right? I heard that when I was possessed by the Heart Corrosive demonic beast, I lost to you. I, Feng Wutian, have never lost to anyone in my life, and you are the first. However, that battle doesn¡¯t really count. Do you have the guts to fight me on the tform of Life and Death?¡±


    Though Feng Wutian sounded calm, his words made it hard for Long Chen to reject him. The image that Long Chen had constructed for himself was now on the verge of crumbling, and he would be made theughing stock of the Green Faction once again.


    Anyone could tell that Long Chen was not a match for Feng Wutian.


    ¡°After entering the inner faction, he¡¯s be more crafty and ruthless.¡±


    Long Chen knew that there was no way for him to avoid this. Then again, he had no wish to avoid it.


    ¡°Feng Wutian has entered the Earth Dan Realm and has gotten many rewards from the Southern Vermillion Bird. However, I¡¯ve defeated Yan Chixue and a Giant Demonic Vicious Bear, so it¡¯s not certain that I will lose to you.¡±


    Long Chen had once defeated Feng Wutian and was also a genius. Feng Wutian was an arrogant person and definitely would not take this lying down. If this was in any other situation where Long Chen injured him slightly despite his status as a member of the inner faction, Long Chen would be in trouble. Today, Feng Wutian had invited Long Chen to the tform of Life and Death, and even if Feng Wutian were to get injured, there was nothing he would be able to say about it. This was actually a great opportunity for Long Chen.


    ¡°I know that youck the guts. Long Chen, even if you agree, you wouldn¡¯t dare go to the tform of Life and Death like what happened thest time!¡± Liu Ling snickered, holding onto Feng Wutian tightly and staring at Long Chen proudly.


    At the thought of what had happened previously, everyone began to whisper amongst themselves and point at Long Chen.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen smiled slightly and raised his voice, ¡°What happened has already happened. This time, I¡¯m agreeing to this. What¡¯s it to you?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Now that Long Chen had actually agreed, everyone was bewildered.


    ¡°Are you going to agree and then not show up?¡± Liu Ling nced at Long Chen with contempt, ¡°You know that my Brother Wutian is several times stronger than Uncle Yan. You¡¯re not even a match for one attack from him.¡±


    ¡°Since you¡¯re afraid I won¡¯t go, how about we go to the tform right now?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s bright voice rang in the Green Willow Residence, and this news began to spread amongst the Green Faction.

 Chapter 139 – Between Long and Feng!

    News of Long Chen and Feng Wutian going to the tform of Life and Death quickly spread throughout Green Sun Hall, and even the entire Green faction.


    By the time Long Chen and the others reached the tform, Liu Yuan, the four grand elders and five enforcers were already there.


    Feng Wutian was now a member of the inner faction, and Liu Yuan as well as Liu Lan no longer had any hold over him. However, they had been on good terms, and it was thus possible to negotiate with him.


    ¡°Wutian, what are you doing?¡±


    Honestly speaking, Feng Wutian had reached the Earth Dan Realm and left for the inner faction. Now, Long Chen had taken over his position and was now the genius within the Human Dan Realm in the Green Sun Hall.


    Feng Wutian now seemed very imposing and fierce, and it would be extremely troublesome if Long Chen were to be heavily injured or killed here.


    Once they were on the tform of Life and Death, the result would only be life or death.


    ¡°Elder, he has already agreed to go up to the tform of Life and Death with me. Please don¡¯t try to say more.¡±


    Feng Wutian used to be extremely respectful to Liu Yuan, but his tone right now had be indifferent.


    This battle was not just for Liu Ling, but also for himself, and his intention was to teach Long Chen an unforgettable lesson. Liu Yuan¡¯s status was not higher than his own, and thus, could not stop him.


    ¡°Long Chen, you really agreed to this?¡±


    Looking towards Long Chen, Liu Yuan seemed slightly grim and anxiously eximed, ¡°Stop causing trouble! Wutian is part of the inner faction, and it will be your own doing if you get injured or killed. However, if you wound him¡­¡±


    At this thought, he recalled that Feng Wutian had already entered the Earth Dan Realm, and it was basically impossible for Long Chen to win. Liu Yuan¡¯s speech thus ended here.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Elder. Once we¡¯re on the tform, nothing will matter but who lives and who dies.¡±


    While Feng Wutian was Long Chen¡¯s arch-enemy, he was still a very candid and frank person.


    Meanwhile, Liu Lan pulled Long Chen aside and asked in a low voice, ¡°Are you confident?¡±


    Long Chen smiled wryly and shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Then why did you agree to this?¡±


    Long Chen rolled his eyes at her, ¡°You¡¯ve been alive for so long already. Don¡¯t you know that once an arrow is on the bow string, it has to be released?¡±


    By mentioning her age and unwittingly lowering his gaze towards Liu Lan¡¯s pale breasts, he was basically mocking Liu Lan and saying that she had arge chest and no brains. Exasperated, Liu Lan scolded, ¡°You bastard, you can¡¯t me us if you want to die so badly! Feng Wutian entered the inner faction, and I actually wanted to advise you not to create conflict with him. To think you¡¯re already seeking your death before I could say anything!¡±


    Long Chenughed, not expressing his opinion.


    At this point, more and more people had gathered. Having heard this, everyone began to gesticte at Long Chen.


    The inner faction meant power and terror to everyone else. For Long Chen to dare fight with a person who had recently entered the inner faction, he was truly much too gutsy for his own good.


    The five grand elders and the other four enforcers, besides Liu Lan, found that this situation had nothing to do with themselves and retreated to a corner. Exchanging nces, one of the elders whose surname was Chen asked, ¡°What do you think the oue of the battle will be?¡±


    Out of the four enforcers, the oldest one whose surname was Zhang, was about the same age as an elder. He was now looking Long Chen and Feng Wutian up and down, ¡°Feng Wutian entered the Earth Dan Realm and has been nurtured by the Southern Vermillion Bird Family. His cultivation must be far from someone who has only just entered the Earth Dan Realm. Long Chen is at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm and is still far from Feng Wutian¡¯s strength. However, Liu Lan did say that he¡¯s killed the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect leader, which means he might be able to put up a fight with Feng Wutian.¡±


    Another elder whose surname was Liu pursed his lips, ¡°That depends. Liu Lan did not personally see Long Chen killing the sect leader. There is arge gap between the Earth and Human Dan Realm. Long Chen might have been able to defeat Feng Wutian then, but there must be arge difference between them now.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense.¡±


    Enforcer Zhang nodded, ¡°Have you seen any instances in battles between youths of the inner and outer factions, where the inner faction has been defeated before?¡±


    Everyone shook their heads, the answer and oue obvious to them.


    Seeing that Liu Yuan¡¯s words fell on deaf ears, he could only head to the side with Liu Lan. Liu Yuan was now beginning to look anxious, ¡°Lan¡¯er, did Long Chen really kill the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect leader?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s for sure. I even heard that a few days ago, he killed a Giant Demonic Vicious Bear. Uncle Yan saw this for himself, and even said that he would not be a match for Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°Oh? For even old Yan to say that, it seems Long Chen does have a chance¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan had achieved his goal of getting Long Chen to stay here.


    ¡°I hope you can be shrewd and don¡¯t overdo it by infuriating Feng Wutian.¡±


    Watching Long Chen calmly walking with Feng Wutian to the tform of Life and Death, Liu Lan shook her head, sighed and eximed.


    It was not as if she did not know Long Chen¡¯s nature. This time, he would probably be in trouble.


    ¡°The moment Long Chen dies, my n is done for.¡±


    While still thinking about this n of hers, everyone¡¯s eyes were fixed on Long Chen and Feng Wutian, facing each other on the spacious, firm tform.


    ¡°Based on their surnames, this is a battle between Long and Feng*. However, the phoenix seems to be at an advantage now.¡±


    (*Long = Dragon, Feng = Phoenix)


    Long Chen seemed to hear thesements in the background.


    It was expected that nobody would think well of him. After all, Feng Wutian was an expert at the Earth Dan Realm, while Long Chen was still at the Human Dan Realm. On top of that, there was arge difference between their statuses.


    ¡°The previous fight with you was a disgraceful moment in my life. However, that was in a situation where I had lost my consciousness, so I¡¯m going to erase that humiliation with this battle.¡±


    ¡°Erase it? Don¡¯t shame yourself more by turning into a huge-lipped handsome young man¡­¡±


    Long Chen yawned and thenughed indifferently.


    ¡°How stupid.¡±


    Rather than getting angry, Feng Wutian gathered his real Qi at the Earth Dan Realm, which began to surge crazily and formed a tornado in front of him.


    Such earth-shattering power began to suppress Long Chen like a huge mountain.


    ¡°He¡¯s much stronger than the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect leader¡­¡±


    Long Chen was apprehensive but not afraid. His real Qi that was at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm was not to be underestimated either!


    ¡°Dragon Soul Transformation!¡±


    Under this technique, his real Qi increased its quality by ten times, allowing it to rise to the Earth Dan Realm, and he could somewhat be on equal grounds with Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Feng Wutian just entered the inner faction. Even if he managed to obtained a good battle technique, he probably hasn¡¯t had time to cultivate in it yet.¡±


    After using Dragon Soul Transformation, crimson real Qi surged within his body, the force of electricity and mes crackling around Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°Long Chen¡¯s beast transformation seems to be able to amplify his strength by a huge degree. I reckon that beast from when he was at the Dragon Pulse Realm should not be the Underground Blood Lizard, but the level 7 huang grade Underground Blood Lizard King.¡±


    Liu Yuan mumbled, and then looked regretful, ¡°If Long Chen can get through this and then obtain the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon, his strength will definitely increase by a huge amount. It¡¯s a shame¡­¡±


    Liu Lan nned to tell Liu Yuan about how Long Chen had used 300 contribution points and exchanged them for a Spirit Grass. However, Long Chen and Feng Wutian were now beginning their battle and she shut her mouth, watching them closely.


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Scarlet me Burning Heavens!¡±


    ¡°Vermillion Bird Law, Fire Spirit Seal!¡±


    Feng Wutian utilised his Fire Spirit Seal, which was now at least ten times stronger than before. A giant fiery bird collided with Long Chen¡¯s zing fist imprint. Two fire-based attacks struck each other, and with a loud explosion, the spiritual force of the heavens and earth surged violently in all directions. The tform of Life and Death even began to shake!


    ¡°These attacks are both just as powerful!¡±


    Noticing that Long Chen was able to take on this attack of Feng Wutian¡¯s, everyone was astonished. It must be noted that Feng Wutian¡¯s Fire Spirit Seal was something that even cultivators who had just entered the Earth Dan Realm found difficult to withstand.


    ¡°Looks like Long Chen isn¡¯t all talk. He might really have killed the leader of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect.¡±


    Enforcer Zhang nodded, a rare look of approval on his face.


    ¡°The result will still be the same. Long Chen will definitely be unable to withstand Feng Wutian¡¯s most powerful attack, Sole ming Deity Bird.¡± Elder Chen shook his head.


    On the tform, Long Chen disyed his Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, and was rapidly exchanging attacks with Feng Wutian.


    ¡°Looks like you aren¡¯t half bad. You¡¯re merely at the Human Dan Realm and can take on my Fire Spirit Seal. I guess I underestimated you.¡±


    Feng Wutian¡¯s dull voice rang by Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be in such a hurry. The surprise is yet toe.¡±


    Long Chen acknowledged the power of the Fire Spirit Seal, which had shaken Long Chen so much that he had sustained injuries. However, Long Chen¡¯s miraculous constitution technique, Origin Reversion, was able to take care of these wounds.


    ¡°I heard my Sole ming Deity Bird lost to you before. This time¡­¡±


    While Feng Wutian was speaking, his aura was rapidly increasing. What could be seen was a Vermillion Bird Imprint shing on his forehead, and his aura as well as real Qi increased by a twofold.


    ¡°Long Chen, stop wasting time. Try my most powerful attack- Sole ming Deity Bird!¡±


    At the moment, a sharp whistling sound hurtled towards Long Chen, sending him flying.


    What he could see was intense mes in front of him, and the image of a deity bird that pounced towards Long Chen fiercely. Everyone watching could also feel this mighty aura, their legs turning weak in their fear.


    ¡°Feng Wutian is truly powerful¡­¡±


    ¡°Even if he doesn¡¯t die, Long Chen is going to be badly injured.¡±


    ¡°That can¡¯t be. Doesn¡¯t Long Chen also have another offensive technique?¡±


    The moment this person spoke, Long Chen had decided he was in a tough spot and needed to use Piercing Earth Demonic Sun!


    After reaching the initial mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, the might of Piercing Heavens Demonic Sun Fist had increased tenfold. The ck demonic sun fist imprint appeared with a rumble and smashed into Feng Wutian¡¯s Sole ming Deity Bird.


    ¡°They¡¯re actually evenly matched?¡±


    Everyone¡¯s expressions were marvellous, especially that of the four elders and enforcers, who quickly exchanged nces and looked extremely embarrassed.


    ¡°My previous words were truly embarrassing¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan was delighted that Long Chen possessed this level of strength, while Liu Lan¡¯s beautiful eyes were fixated on Long Chen.


    Suddenly, Feng Wutian¡¯s icy voice was heard.


    ¡°You really aren¡¯t half bad, but if you¡¯re forcing me to use this move, you definitely won¡¯t be able to survive!¡±

 Chapter 140 – The Prowess of the Blood Engulfing Zone!

    ¡°An attack that¡¯s even more powerful?¡±


    Everyone had been admiring Long Chen¡¯s might, but when Feng Wutian threw out this icy sentence, everyone was stunned.


    ¡°Long Chen has even used his ultimate technique to contend with Sole ming Deity Bird, but to think Feng Wutian has another one! This¡­¡±


    The higher-ups of the Green Sun Hall had now acknowledged Long Chen¡¯s skills, but upon hearing Feng Wutian¡¯s words, they could tell what the oue would be. Their expressions were that of regret.


    Liu Ling, who had be extremely gloomy upon seeing Feng Wutian and Long Chen on equal grounds, immediately rejoiced after hearing he had a more formidable technique. She yelled, ¡°Brother Wutian, defeat him and teach him a lesson. Don¡¯t hold back!¡±


    Liu Yuan and Liu Lan shot each other a nce, having a bad feeling about this.


    ¡°Father¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. When the time¡¯s right, I will make my move. After all, Feng Wutian is of the inner faction, and Green Sun Hall can only pin our hopes on Long Chen.¡±


    With Liu Yuan¡¯s word, Liu Lan rxed. No matter what, Long Chen had now fulfilled all her requirements. Even if Long Chen were to lose to Feng Wutian here, it did not matter.


    ¡°There¡¯s still another technique, huh.¡±


    Long Chen narrowed his eyes.


    Honestly speaking, in order to withstand Feng Wutian¡¯s Sole ming Deity Bird, Long Chen had already expended all his effort. He had expected that he and Feng Wutian would not be able to win against each other, but unexpectedly, Feng Wutian still had another card up his sleeve!


    When Feng Wutian said that, a powerful aura locked on Long Chen, and he could immediately feel his movements being restricted.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. This technique will be a unique experience for you, Long Chen! I didn¡¯t want to kill you at first, but you¡¯re making me feel threatened¡­¡±


    Feng Wutian¡¯s cold voice continuously sounded.


    ¡°You talk too much.¡±


    Using Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, Long Chen was already forced to the edge of the tform of Life and Death. At this moment, Feng Wutian began preparing his following technique. Just the energy and aura it possessed was several times more powerful than the Sole ming Deity Bird technique!


    ¡°A year ago, the Southern Vermillion Bird family gifted me this technique in secret. I have only recently managed to perfect it. Long Chen, you¡¯re going to be the first person to die under this technique. You should be honoured!¡±


    Feng Wutian now had a sinister expression.


    Though Liu Ling supported Feng Wutian, that devilish grin of his was something she could not get used to. Liu Yuan and Liu Lan furrowed their brows.


    ¡°Feng Wutian was defeated by Long Chen the previous time. Though he does not mention it, that must have been very traumatic for him, which is why he must kill Long Chen now.¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s voice disyed her concern.


    At this moment, Feng Wutian suddenly produced a shrill bird call, and real Qi that turned into mes emanated out of his body. A pair of giant ming wings suddenly formed, giving off a menacing aura.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Feng Wutian charged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens!¡±


    This great technique immediately left everyone trembling in fear. Even the enforcers, who were at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm could not confidently say they could take on this attack.


    What was even more surprising was that instead of escaping, Long Chen was dashing towards Feng Wutian!


    ¡°He¡¯s gone crazy!¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t he seeking death?¡±


    ¡°Father!¡±


    Liu Lan reminded, and Liu Yuan realised that he should be saving Long Chen. No matter what, he was an elder and had helped Feng Wutian in the past few years. Feng Wutian would not attempt to take his life just because he had saved Long Chen.


    At this moment, blood-red spirals that numbered thousands appeared and began to rotate above Long Chen¡¯s crimson dragon scales.


    In that moment, a bloody mist shrouded the tform. All within the range of the mist was under Long Chen¡¯s control!


    Blood Engulfing Zone. Activate!


    This was the second time Long Chen was using Blood Engulfing Zone. Compared to the first time, he found it much easier to manipte, and the range it covered was now smaller.


    Blood Engulfing Zone was a heaven-defying technique of the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon. As its user, he could take control of everything within the scope of the technique. Based on the previous usage of the technique, it had covered almost half the underground city. That was Long Chen¡¯s limit.


    Blood Engulfing Zone was something like a domain, and of all his enemies, the weakest would have their blood devoured by him, while those at a higher level than Long Chen like Feng Wutian would feel their blood boiling, and their movements restricted.


    If it was someone Long Chen had no issues with, such as Yang Lingqing and the hundreds of girls from before, they were entirely unharmed despite not having cultivated before.


    This technique would grow along with Long Chen, which was why Long Chen had no clue how powerful it would be. When he reached the apex in the continent, he would probably be able to decide the life and death of all living things which a mere thought!


    This was the might of the Immemorial Blood Spirit Dragon.


    Blood Engulfing Zone was not an offensive ability, but for Feng Wutian who was about to disy his Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens, it would have arge effect on him.


    This was the first time Feng Wutian was employing this attack, and he could not control it skilfully yet. By making use of the absorption abilities of the Blood Engulfing Zone, there would be chaos in Feng Wutian¡¯s body.


    Long Chen¡¯s attack was used at a very opportune time.


    If he had used Blood Engulfing Zone while Feng Wutian disyed his Fire Spirit Seal or Sole ming Deity Bird, it would not be as effective as it was now.


    At this moment, the blood in Feng Wutian¡¯s body seemed to have been summoned by some master and was now incredibly excited. It turned into little fine daggers and, within Feng Wutian¡¯s veins, began to attack the channels.


    Feng Wutian, who had ced all his attention on Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens, couldn¡¯t have expected this situation where his blood acted against him. Though it did not injure him and would at most restrict his movement in normal situations, this situation now caused his energy to stray away.


    Under his bewildered gaze, Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens abruptly exploded, sending himself flying!


    Coughing out a mouthful of blood, he copsed from the acute pain.


    This unforeseen circumstance happened so quickly that even when Feng Wutian fell, everyone still had stiff expressions and had yet to react to the situation.


    Long Chen never expected Blood Engulfing Zone, that he had employed in a hurry, had such a marvellous effect. He did know that Feng Wutian could not fully control Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens, which was how Long Chen was able to find this loophole.


    If this was a very proficient technique, Long Chen might only be able to stop one attack and perhaps somewhat hinder his opponent¡¯s movements. It wouldn¡¯t be to the extent of causing someone to have their move backfire on themselves.


    However, now that he had defeated Feng Wutian, Long Chen could finally heave a sigh of relief.


    Feng Wutian had beenpletely defeated under the eyes of the public. The issue was finally resolved.


    Since Feng Wutian was now unconscious, the battle was over. Long Chen removed his Dragon Soul Transformation and smirked at the audience.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Didn¡¯t Feng Wutian use his most powerful attack? Why did he hurt himself?¡±


    ¡°¡±He must have been unable to control such a powerful move, which resulted in it backfiring on him. Long Chen truly is fortunate to be able to survive.¡±


    These low-ranked disciples could not tell what had happened, but the four elders knew this was definitely not the case.


    ¡°Did you see that? In that instant, many tiny crimson spirals appeared around Long Chen, before Feng Wutian¡¯s attack backfired on him!¡±


    ¡°It must have been Long Chen. If Feng Wutian dared to use it, he must have been somewhat confident in his abilities. Say, what mysterious battle technique do you think Long Chen used?¡±


    The four elders and enforcers¡¯ gazes werepletely different than before. In the past, they might have been condescending towards Long Chen, but now, all they had for him was reverence.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t obvious before, but Long Chen seems very mysterious.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s yful grin gave rise to embarrassment in these elders. They turned away, and Enforcer Zhang as well as two elders who had thought little of Long Chen wished they could find a hole to hide in.


    Out of everyone present, the person who found this the most unbelievable was Liu Ling.


    Her attention was not on Feng Wutian, but Long Chen on the tform with his mischievous smirk.


    Before, Feng Wutian had been defeated by Long Chen under unexpected circumstances.


    This man was fated to be her nemesis.


    Liu Ling suddenly felt like breaking down. When Feng Wutian had been defeated by Long Chen the first time, she had given up all hope. However, because Feng Wutianter proved himself capable, she believed that she could take on Long Chen without any issues. Unexpectedly, the more formidable Feng Wutian had actually lost against Long Chen.


    Face turning deathly pale, Liu Ling shook her head in disbelief before darting away.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er!¡±


    Liu Lan shouted, but Liu Ling did not turn back.


    Liu Lan found it imusible for Long Chen to be able to turn the tables at thest minute. This was not the first time something like this had happened, but this was the first time that she was fully convinced.


    In her eyes, Long Chen could truly fit the title of the ultimate genius!


    ¡°Wutian!¡±


    This was the first time Liu Yuan had personally seen Long Chen¡¯s heaven-defying disy, and torrential waves rose in his heart. The image of the young man, Long Chen, was carved in his mind.


    However, Feng Wutian¡¯s terrible state was also extremely worrying. He couldn¡¯t be bothered to speak to Long Chen just yet. If anything were to happen to Feng Wutian, Liu Yuan would definitely be in deep trouble. For this reason, he quickly called out to everyone and told them to help Feng Wutian.


    Most of them gathered at Feng Wutian¡¯s side, and under shocked gazes, Long Chen strolled away alone.

 Chapter 141 – A Great Surprise!

    News of Long Chen defeating Feng Wutian spread like the wind throughout the Green faction and even to other factions. Even those in the inner factions caught wind of this.


    His reputation skyrocketed. At least, in the outer factions, he was just like a celebrity.


    In terms of his poprity in the Green Faction, he had already surpassed Chu Yunyao and the others. He was already almost at the same level of poprity as Chu Yunxi.


    Liu Lan was not yet thirty and already at the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. Out of everyone at her age, she was the trump card in the Green Sun Hall, while for Long Chen¡¯s age group, he was their trump card.


    After this duel at the tform of Life and Death, Liu Yuan used all sorts of spirit medicine on Feng Wutian, and he recovered after a day. He did not say much but left the Green faction silently, and it was only then that Liu Yuan and everyone else could heave a sigh of relief.


    Long Chen could finally be at ease and continue to cultivate. The number of Thunder me Crystals he could fuse with had yet to reach the limit, and he continued with this task. After fusing with the 28th, Liu Yuan suddenly summoned him.


    ¡°What does that old geezer want me for?¡±


    He finally had the chance to get some rest, and Long Chen had been nning to visit the Sky Martial Realm again to obtain more contribution points. Unexpectedly enough, Liu Yuan picked this moment to summon him.


    After entering the main hall in the Green Sun Hall, he found only Liu Yuan seated there. Upon seeing Long Chen, he was all smiles as he weed Long Chen.


    ¡°Could the reason for Elder Yuan¡¯s cheerful mood be a new addition to the family despite your old age?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s status was now different, and he made use of it to tease Liu Yuan.


    Liu Yuan did not get mad and nced at this brat helplessly, before heughed, ¡°Let me tell you some amazing news.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    He had not expected there to be some surprise, and Long Chen¡¯s ears immediately perked up.


    Liu Yuan intentionally tried to be secretive, ¡°Do you know the importance of the first day of the eleventh month is?¡±


    (Eleventh Month = November)


    ¡°How would I know? Stop keeping me in suspense and tell me!¡± Long Chen was filled with anticipation.


    ¡°The first day of the eleventh month is the day that the Eastern Green Dragon, which in other words implies the inner faction, begins its selection.¡±


    ¡°What does that have to do with me?¡± Long Chen brightened up and blurted out, ¡°Old man, are you going to tell me that I passed the verification process? I can take part in the selection?¡±


    The term ¡®old man¡¯ had been something Long Chen coined and used only in his thoughts. As he was much too emotional, it had slipped out.


    Honestly speaking, Long Chen really did want to enter the inner faction. For one, he would be able to obtain a lot of resources and two, the recent spate of events made it clear the importance of status. From what he knew of Dongfang Tianyu, Feng Wutian, Beitang Mo, as well as the terrible state Mo Xiang was in, Long Chen knew that he needed to enter the inner faction in order to be able to raise his head in the Lingwu Family.


    More importantly, Yang Lingqing was in the Northern ck Tortoise. Long Chen was most concerned that Yang Lingqing might be bullied, which was why he was so fixated on the inner faction selection.


    ¡°No matter what, I have to get into the inner faction¡­¡±


    However, he had heard that he needed to be at least at the Earth Dan Realm to participate in the selection. Long Chen was now only at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, which was why he held little hope for himself. However, from Liu Yuan¡¯s words, it seemed¡­


    ¡°You¡¯re really in luck, brat. Yes, the information has confirmed that you have passed the verification process. This is really out of my expectations¡­¡±


    For young Long Chen to have such luck, Liu Yuan was deeply moved.


    After obtaining Liu Yuan¡¯s confirmation, Long Chen was overjoyed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely grasp this opportunity, but¡­¡± Long Chen nced at Liu Yuan, ¡°Elder Yuan, I¡¯m still at the Human Dan Realm though. How could I have passed the verification process? Did they make a mistake?¡±


    Liu Yuan shook his head. ¡°I think news of you defeating Feng Wutian has spread. Though you¡¯re at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, you were able to defeat an Earth Dan in the inner faction. The person in charge must have realised this and acknowledged your potential.¡±


    Long Chen pondered over this and found this to be the only answer.


    ¡®Looks like watching Liu Ling bathing wasn¡¯t all for nothing. It¡¯s because I saw her that she got Feng Wutian to beat me up, which ended up with him losing to me, allowing me to even have the qualifications to take part in the selection for the inner faction. The development of matters in the world really takes me by surprise.¡±


    A look of satisfaction appeared on Long Chen¡¯s expression as he thought.


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t be too happy just yet.¡± Liu Yuan¡¯s words were like a bucket of cold water being sshed all over Long Chen.


    ¡°Why?¡± He could not understand why this old man was suddenly so stern.


    Watching this kid who thought too highly of himself, Liu Yuan shook his head, ¡°The name list for the selection has alreadye down. A total of 20 people are qualified to participate in the selection. The Gold and Silver factions each have three ces, while the other seven each have two ces. For our Green Faction, there¡¯s only you and Chu Yunxi.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem? Chu Yunxi seems to be at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. I¡¯m not a match for him.¡± Long Chen knew this very well.


    Liu Yuan nodded. ¡°Out of the 20 people, 5 obtained their ces directly, of which Chu Yunxi is included. Those at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm able to gain these ces are the cream of the crop, their strength even nearing Lan¡¯er. The weakest of all who have passed the verification process has just entered the Earth Dan Realm, and even then, is considered a peak existence who is slightly stronger than Feng Wutian. I¡¯m going to be blunt- in all areas, you are the weakest person in this selection.¡±


    Liu Yuan analysed the situation for Long Chen, and he now knew why Liu Yuan told him not to be too overjoyed so early.


    ¡°Elder Yuan, out of the 20 people, how many can pass?¡± Long Chen wanted to enter the inner faction, which was why he needed to know the answer to this question.


    ¡°Two.¡±


    Liu Yuan could only answer, ¡°That¡¯s why I said not to celebrate too early. Even if you get a ce, the difficulty in getting into the inner faction is beyond your imagination. Even the famous young expert, Chu Yunxi, isn¡¯t that confident, let alone you.¡±


    ¡°In that case, what¡¯s the point of this selection process? Am I going there just to have fun?¡± At the thought of this level of difficulty, Long Chen was speechless.


    Liu Yuan could onlyugh bitterly, ¡°You¡¯re absolutely right. This is just for you to broaden your horizons and know how powerful the other experts in the outer faction are. This is also very important for you. However, Long Chen, there is a chance of death in the selection, so you¡¯d better prepare yourself. I don¡¯t want my Green Faction to lose a genius.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a chance of death?¡±


    Long Chen could feel the pressure bearing down on him. After all, he had already done all he could to deal with Feng Wutian. In the face of 20 geniuses who were even more formidable than Feng Wutian, it was basically impossible to be one of the two to enter the inner faction.


    ¡°All opportunities are apanied with a certain risk, and the inner faction selection is no different. If you¡¯re afraid, you¡¯re fated to be held back forever. Only the brave can move on in the path of cultivation.¡±


    Liu Yuan stroked his beard, sighing ruefully.


    Long Chen was unafraid, but he did feel a lot of pressure on him.


    ¡°Whatever it is, there¡¯s still some time before the first day of the eleventh month. If I work hard now, I might be a whole level stronger. Even if I don¡¯t enter the inner faction, I need to keep my own life.¡±


    Long Chen was going topete against the best talents in all nine great outer factions.


    His opponents had ranged from Huang Xiang to Huang Feiyang, and even to someone who was about the same level as Chu Yunxi, who was the number one genius in the Green faction. It was apparent how fast his progress was.


    However, at the thought of Lingqing, whose strength was far too weak in the inner faction, Long Chen knew he needed to go all out for her sake.


    Seeing the fighting spirit in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, Liu Yuan nodded in satisfaction. However, another matter came to mind, and his brows furrowed, ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s something you did that¡¯s really too much.¡±


    There were far too many things that Long Chen should not have done. Liu Yuan¡¯s sudden words gave him a shock, ¡°Could it be that the old man found out about me seeing Liu Ling while she was bathing? If he makes me marry her, I¡¯m done for!¡±


    He was right about to look for an excuse, but Liu Yuan was actually referring to something else.


    ¡°I told you to get 500 contribution points, and I¡¯ll give you the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon. What¡¯s this about you using 300 contribution points to exchange for Spirit Grass?¡±


    So it was about this matter. Long Chen sighed in relief and immediately answered, ¡°Elder Yuan, the Spirit Grass is very important to me, but it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t want the beast spirit either. I¡¯ll go to the Sky Martial Realm right now and get some contribution points.¡±


    At the mention of this, Liu Yuan was really quite annoyed. He had bestowed it to Long Chen because he thought it would be very important to him, but Long Chen did not seem to want it. What was with this situation?


    ¡°Forget it.¡± Liu Yuan waved his hands, ¡°There¡¯s not much time left till the selection. For the remaining time you have, just train hard. Treat the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon as a gift from me.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Long Chen was ted, because this was worth a hundred thousand deity jades.


    In general, this old man treated him quite well. Long Chen had had some misgivings about him, but Long Chen was now truly grateful towards him.


    Liu Yuan treated him as the trump card of the Green Sun Hall, and his reputation rose along with Long Chen¡¯s own. However, something like the beast spirit of a level 6 profound-grade was not something that could be gifted so easily.


    He produced a spirit congealing bead from his cosmos pouch. The bead had already been dyed purple from the beast spirit of the Enchanted Purple Dragon, and Long Chen could somewhat see a purple demonic dragon roaring within it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t waste any time and make this dragon your life beast spirit at the Deity Dan Realm. When the timees, your strength will definitely be pulled up!¡±


    At the mention of this, Long Chen paled. He could not refine beast spirits at all.


    However, all he could do now was to take it.


    ¡°Go back and cultivate. Oh, right, there¡¯s something else¡­¡± Liu Yuan suddenly remembered something and reminded him, ¡°Five dayster, Chu Yunxi wille and propose to Lan¡¯er. When that happens, I¡¯ll arrange for you two to meet, since you¡¯re going to be a team.¡±

 Chapter 142 – Number 1 Genius of the Green Faction

    Chu Yunxi? A proposal?


    Long Chen was stunned. ¡°Isn¡¯t Chu Yunxi the 18-year-old genius? He¡¯s proposing to Liu Lan, instead of Liu Ling?¡±


    Longchen thought Liu Yuan had misspoken.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s Liu Lan. Everyone knows Yunxi has been harbouring a crush on Liu Lan for awhile now, but it¡¯s normal for you not to know since you¡¯ve only just joined the Lingwu family.¡±


    ¡°An 18-year-old crushing on Liu Lan¡­ Interesting.¡±


    Long Chen snickered, but at the thought of Liu Lan¡¯s alluring beauty and her thrilling, mature aura, it was no wonder that anyone would be captivated by her. If Long Chen did not have Lingxi around, he might even be tempted.


    ¡°Sigh. Lan¡¯er is probably going to marry into the Green Emperor Hall, but if Chu Yunxi enters the inner faction, Lan¡¯er will definitely have a higher status as well.¡±


    Liu Yuan sighed ruefully.


    ¡°This exceedingly alluring delicate flower is going to be offered up to a pig?¡± Long Chen scolded inside.


    Seeing Long Chen so silent as if he had no interest in this, Liu Yuan immediately eximed, ¡°Anyway, you should leave and refine that beast spirit.¡±


    ¡°Elder Yuan, what was it about teaming up with Chu Yunxi?¡± Long Chen did not forget about this.


    ¡°The inner faction selection is simr to that of the outer faction selection. There are two rounds, and the first is apetition between teams of two. You and Chu Yunxi are members of the Green Faction and can be made into a team. As for more concrete details regarding the selection, I¡¯ll tell you in detail sometimeter. If I were to tell you now, I¡¯m not certain if there are any changes to the rules.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and bid Liu Yuan farewell, returning to his residence.


    After reaching, Lingxi came out from the sword and seemed to be ted, wandering around everywhere, wrinkling her nose and humming little tunes.


    ¡°Little Xi, what¡¯s got you so happy?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to tell you! Hmph!¡±


    Long Chen teased, ¡°Could it be because beautiful Liu Lan is going to get married?¡±


    Lingxi was astonished. ¡°How did you know? Hmph, I¡¯ve seen that stinking woman trying to get fresh with you. It¡¯s about time she got married!¡±


    ¡°Hm¡­¡± Long Chen had long since made sense of Lingxi¡¯s thought processes.


    ¡°Do you think I have a chance in the inner faction selection?¡± Long Chen sat in the basement.


    ¡°Of course. Isn¡¯t there still some time? You¡¯re still at the Human Dan Realm, and merely at the bottom-most level in terms of cultivation. Cultivation works very quickly. By merely training a little here and there, I mentioned to break through to the Heaven Dan Realm.¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s tone of difference as she said this surprised Long Chen.


    ¡°When she was younger, she must definitely have been high above everyone else. How would she know how hard peasants like us have to work to achieve the same results¡­¡±


    After refining the Spirit Grass, Lingxi¡¯s energy was at its peak. She spent the day running everywhere in the residence, and Long Chen let her do as she liked.


    As long as he had a bit of time, it would be used for cultivation.


    ¡°It¡¯s about time to refine the blood of those two Giant Demonic Vicious Bears. If it¡¯s in in my cosmos pouch for too long, its effects might decrease.¡±


    There were still five days until that proposal thing Chu Yunxi was going to do. In those five days, nobody would bother Long Chen either, and he decided topletely refine the blood of these two beasts.


    ¡°Two level 4 profound grade demonic beasts filled with blood only allowed me to improve by a little. There¡¯s still a huge distance to the Earth Dan Realm¡­¡±


    Long Chen picked out the Spirit Congealing Bead with the Enchanted Purple Dragon inside. This was a treasure to all beast cultivators, but it was useless to Long Chen. He was a dragon cultivator, not a beast cultivator.


    What he needed was the blood essence inheritance of an ancient dragon, and not a beast spirit¡­


    ¡°Regr beast cultivators probably would havepletely refined this beast spirit by the start of the selection. If Old Liu doesn¡¯t see that I¡¯ve refined it, I wonder how he¡¯s going to kill me. Ugh, I need to find a way to exchange it for a hundred thousand deity jades secretly.¡±


    However, Long Chen could not think up anything in a short period, and so kept the beast spirit well and took out the Thunder me Crystals.


    ¡°I¡¯ve used up almost all the Thunder me Crystals. My limit right now should be 30 of them, so in these five days, I¡¯ll fuse with another 3 such that my Thunder me Physique can reach a higher level!¡±


    A rank 1 Thunder me Physique would require fusion with 10 Thunder me Crystals, while for rank 2, he believed he was almost there. As long as he broke through a certain limit, he would definitely be able to obtain the rank 2 Thunder me Physique.


    A rank 2 Thunder me Physique wasparable to a profound high-grade body tempering technique, and would definitely be very formidable!


    Four days slowly passed, and on the morning of the fifth day, Long Chen finally escaped from pain and suffering. While using Origin Reversion to heal himself, he was excited, ¡°I¡¯ve fused with a total of 30 Thunder me Crystals, and my body is now three times as powerful as when I had just fused with the first. However, it still has yet to be rank 2.¡±


    Only after his bodypletely recovered under Origin Reversion did Long Chen stand up and wriggle his limbs.


    ¡°As my body bes stronger, the effects of Origin Reversion decrease. If my body reaches the level of a high-grade profound technique, Origin Reversion will definitely weaken further.¡±


    It was now morning, and the day that Liu Yuan had spoken of had just begun. Right at this moment, Long Chen had finished his fusion with the Thunder me Crystals, and the timing was impable.


    ¡°Proposal? I don¡¯t need to be involved in that. After they¡¯re done with that, we¡¯ll meet with that Chu Yunxi and see how powerful the number 1 genius of the Green Faction is!¡±


    After tidying everything up, Long Cheny on his bad rxedly, teasing Lingxi and waiting for someone to summon him.


    ¡°Hey, that gorgeousdy is going to get married. Aren¡¯t you sad?¡± Leaning against the edge of the bed, Lingxi pursed her lips, her jealousy evident.


    ¡°I¡¯m obviously so sad that I want to die. Little Xi, shall we go steal the bride?¡± Long Chen suddenly sat up and said excitedly.


    Only after Lingxi¡¯s expression turnedpletely unhappy did Long Chen burst out inughter, spreading his arms and ready to pinch her little cheeks. With a shout, Lingxi pushed him away and red at him.


    ¡°You bastard, don¡¯t even think about touching me.¡±


    Long Chen immediately apologised, ¡°Don¡¯t get mad, I was just messing around. She¡¯s old and ugly; who would want her? Besides, our Lingxi is young, pretty, and so very lovable.¡±


    ¡°Tch, who wants to be lovable.¡±


    Hearing the praise, Lingxi was in a better mood, though her she still retained her expression of nonchnce.


    Their time together passed quickly, and before it was even afternoon, someone was already outside knocking the door.


    ¡°Long Chen, Enforcer Liu wants you to go to her residence for a while.¡±


    ¡°To her residence? Am I not supposed to go to the Green Sun Hall to meet with Chu Yunxi?¡±


    Gan Lin had no idea either and shook his head, ¡°Just go to Enforcer Liu¡¯s ce and see what¡¯s going on. I still have some things to take care of, so I¡¯ll take my leave now.¡±


    Long Chen was baffled, and could only tell Lingxi, ¡°Lingxi, let¡¯s visit her.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s strange. What does that stupid woman want you there for?¡± Lingxi tilted her head, annoyed.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Let¡¯s talk about itter.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not going.¡± Lingxi controlled the Lingxi Sword and left Long Chen¡¯s ear. ¡°I don¡¯t want to see her. Go alone. I¡¯ll be at home, so juste back once you¡¯re done with everything.¡±


    With a huff, Lingxi disappeared. Long Chen could do little but close the door and head towards Liu Lan¡¯s residence, which was also the core of the Green Willow Residence.


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    In the Green Sun Hall, Liu Yuan was seated on the left, while there were the other four elders and four enforcers, with Liu Lan not around.


    Beside Liu Yuan was a burly middle-aged man, eyes profound and looking extremely powerful. There was also a handsome young man who looked quiet.


    The middle-aged man, Chu Fengqing, was the current elder of the strongest hall in the Green faction, the Green Emperor Hall. Beside him was naturally his son, who was proimed the number 1 genius in the Green Faction, Chu Yunxi. Chu Yunxi¡¯s outer appearance seemed quite different from Chu Fengqing, and rather, looked more simr to his sister, Chu Yunyao.


    The two of them hade here especially to do a marriage proposal.


    ¡°Yunxi has always been very diligent and unwilling to lose to anyone else, which is why he¡¯s been so far ahead of everyone else, to the point that he¡¯s even directly gotten the qualification to enter the inner faction selection. If you think about it, he¡¯s probably some boy wonder.¡±


    Chu Fengqing did not hold back at all. At the mention of his son, he was full of praise.


    ¡°For the inner faction selection, how confident is Yunxi?¡±


    Liu Yuan chuckled, and then ced his attention on Chu Yunxi.


    Chu Yunxi thought for a moment and respectfully answered, ¡°Uncle Liu, I believe I have about a 50% chance. I know how powerful the otherpetitors are. One spot will definitely belong to Jin Ensheng, while I have some hope of getting the other ce.¡±


    At the mention of Jin Ensheng, Chu Fengqing sighed ruefully, ¡°That kid from the Gold faction is truly amazing. Amongst the younger generation in the outer faction, he¡¯s probably at the top.¡±


    Liu Yuan could only nod helplessly, ¡°He really is not half bad.¡±


    ¡°By the way, when Liu Lan participated in the inner faction selection back in the day, was she not on the verge of entry?¡±


    ¡°Brother Chu thinks too highly of Lan¡¯er. She had been at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Real, but she was not all that powerful. In the first round, she was already kicked out. How could that be considered ¡®on the verge of entry¡¯?¡±


    Hearing their conversation, Chu Yunxi furrowed his brows, ¡°Uncle Liu, I¡¯ll definitely help Sister Lan fulfil her dreams!¡±


    Liu Yuan admired this young man from the depths of his heart. He was actually rather pleased that Liu Lan would be able to marry him, but Liu Lan¡¯s was slightly too stubborn about this.


    ¡°My Xi¡¯er has been thinking of your Lan¡¯er day and night. Brother Liu, seeing how in love he is, let¡¯s just consider this matter done. What do you think?¡±


    Liu Yuan could only smile wryly, ¡°Of course, I want to agree, since I have high hopes for Yunxi. However, Lan¡¯er isn¡¯t here yet. Let¡¯s wait for her before we decide on anything, alright?¡±


    At this moment, a young cultivator knocked the door and entered, respectfully reporting, ¡°Elder Yuan, Enforcer Liu requests that Young Master Yunxi goes to the Green Willow Residence.¡±


    Chu Yunxi got up from his seat.

 Chapter 143 – Storm Seizing Finger!

    ¡°This girl is being so mysterious. What does she want from me?¡±


    Lingxi did not follow him, leaving Long Chen feeling empty.


    At the heart of the Green Willow Residence was a beautiful little courtyard within which Liu Lan resided. Upon arrival, Long Chen realised the door was open and knocked cautiously. He called out a few times but was met with no response and decided to walk right in while wondering about this situation.


    ¡°This wretched woman actually lives in a great ce, with such enchanting scenery, birdsong and the fragrance of flowers.¡±


    There were dark green bamboos everywhere, and while it was slightly cold, the bamboos were growing extremely well.


    After passing through the bamboo forest, there were a few fine wooden houses. He searched around but was not met with the sight of Liu Lan, and was immediately annoyed, ¡°Damn it, how dare you make a fool of me.¡±


    He searched for a while longer and found that there was some sound from within one of the wooden houses. The door was concealed.


    ¡°It can¡¯t be that she¡¯s bathing, just like Liu Ling had been, right?¡±


    Long Chen had some unhealthy thoughts, but he knew it was impossible to meet with the same lucky situation twice. It was still manageable with Liu Ling, but if it was Liu Lan and her steaming-hot body, Long Chen might find this all difficult to stomach.


    ¡°That woman is really just the devil, tsk tsk¡­¡±


    Long Chen walked over and, as expected, felt someone¡¯s presence. Having had dealings with her for such a long period of time, he could tell that this was Liu Lan¡¯s aura.


    ¡°Great Beauty Liu, what did you want from me when you summoned me here?¡±


    Long Chen spoke loudly and opened the door, only to be caught in a daze, eyes opened as widely as they could be.


    This was obviously a bathroom. White steam rose and shrouded the room, revealing a pale white figure. Her lithe bodyynguidly within the water, the vague beauty of this scene leaving Long Chen on the verge of a nosebleed.


    ¡°Damn it, why is she actually bathing?¡±


    Long Chen had no idea what Liu Lan was nning. This waspletely different from that time with Liu Ling. Then, she had forgotten to close the door, and Long Chen had unwittingly entered. This time, Liu Lan was intentionally luring him inside!


    ¡°Could it be that she thinks I¡¯m so handsome that, at this critical juncture, she wants to give up her body to me? It¡¯s a good thing Lingxi isn¡¯t around¡­¡±


    Long Chen wondered vulgarly, eyes fixated on the curves within the mist, a heat rising in his belly.


    However, Long Chen knew very well that there was no free lunch in the world. Now that Long Chen had had the lunch, it was time to be tormented by her!


    Guessing that Liu Lan must have some crafty n in ce, Long Chen red at Liu Lan¡¯s pale figure once more and prepared to leave. However, at this moment, a powerful aura burst forth from Liu Lan¡¯s body, and a white piece of cloth hooked on to Long Chen¡¯s left ankle and dragged him inside.


    ¡°My precious, you¡¯re already here. How could you just walk out like that?¡±


    A voice that made Long Chen¡¯s body go numb entered his ears. Before he could even react to it, he had already fallen into the water with a plonk.


    He ferociously struggled free of the white cloth and pulled it up from within the water. Opening his eyes, he found Liu Lan in front of him, her tender red lips inches away from him, and unfocused eyes filled with desire ncing at him. Those sexy curves and soft skin were all within Long Chen¡¯s reach.


    The one thing that was rather disappointing, however, was that the more vital areas were covered by white cloth. In all honesty, it made this all the more exciting.


    ¡°Does this look nice?¡±


    Liu Lan seemed to be breathing out flowers, charmingly looking at Long Chen, eyes seemed to be hinting at something.


    ¡°What nice, you¡¯re not even as sexy as I am!¡±


    Though the scene before him was full of temptations that might be difficult for the average person to hold back from, Long Chen was not one to lose his mind over the charms of a woman. He threw off Liu Lan¡¯s bindings and jumped out of the water. Holding on to his wet clothes, he darted out of the room without looking back.


    Behind him, Liu Lan giggled.


    ¡°What the hell is that woman doing? Why is she letting this happen?¡±


    Though he had gotten quite an eyeful, Long Chen knew something was off. Just as expected, the moment he darted out of her bathing area, he was met with a handsome, impressive young man. When he saw Long Chen, his expression immediately turned cold as he spoke coldly, ¡°You again! Why are you here?¡±


    This young man seemed to recognise himself, but no matter how Long Chen pondered over this, he had no idea who the other party was.


    ¡°You know me?¡±


    Long Chen was nowpletely covered in water from head to toe, and there was even the fragrance that came from women and flowers. It was truly quite a spectacle.


    ¡°I¡¯ve seen you before. You were talking to Sister Lan the other day!¡±


    Long Chen was stunned, and only then did he remember. So this was the young man who had been staring at him from afar. It was the day he had been separated from Yang Lingqing, and he had only spoken to Liu Lan for a short while.


    ¡°Kid, I¡¯m speaking to you. Why are you here at Sister Lan¡¯s? Where is Sister Lan?!¡±


    At this moment, a sweet female voice travelled from the bathroom.


    ¡°Long Lang*, why aren¡¯t youing in?¡±


    (* In olden times, ngng jun¡¯ was a way for females to address their husbands/lovers.)


    The moment her words fell, Liu Lan walked out while wrapped in a towel. Upon noticing the young man not far away, her face changed, ¡°Yunxi, why are you here?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s with this situation?¡±


    Long Chen had beenpletely bewildered at being called Long Lang. However, after hearing the name ¡®Yunxi¡¯ and thinking back to Chu Yunxi¡¯s intentions of proposing to Liu Lan, he immediately understood. He was now being used as a shield.


    Meanwhile, Chu Yunxi looked on in grief and despair.


    From his point of view, Long Chen had exited his goddess¡¯ bathroom dripping wet, with even a few little flowers in his hair. Liu Lan had even called him ¡®Long Lang¡¯ and, while wrapped in a towel and hair damp, followed him outside¡­


    What could they have been doing inside there?


    Chu Yunxi, who hade to see Liu Lan in an excellent mood, immediately saw red. Long Chen could feel rage and a murderous spirit exploding from Chu Yunxi¡¯s body. The power that could only belong to the number 1 genius of the Green Faction at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm almost threw Long Chen over!


    ¡°You- you! Why? Why?!¡±


    Chu Yunxi, who had initially been all gentlemanly, found his sweetheart doing something with someone he could not even bring himself to say, and instantly turned into a beast.


    Uncaring of Liu Lan, his eyes focused on Long Chen.


    ¡°That son of a bitch! He wants to kill me!¡±


    Long Chen seemed to be able to understand Chu Yunxi¡¯s intentions from his gaze. Liu Lan, too, was aware of what this meant, and immediately called out, ¡°Yunxi, stop. Listen to me!¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯ll listen to you!¡±


    Long Chen scolded inside, furious. Chu Yunxi hadpletely lost his rationality and was now focusing on killing Long Chen. That sentence from before was obviously just a pretence.


    Upon seeing this scene, Liu Lan hastily rushed back into the bathroom. Long Chen guessed that since her evil n had already worked out, and she was probably going in there to change.


    ¡°That damned woman! If I ever get my hands on you, see if I whip your ass until it blooms like a sunflower!¡±


    Known as the number 1 genius of the Green Faction, how could Chu Yunxi be anyone simple? Just his aura alone was enough to overpower Long Chen. In order to save himself, Long Chen instantly underwent his Dragon Soul Transformation and, with the fastest speed possible, fled backwards.


    ¡°Chu Yunxi, don¡¯t do anything yet. Don¡¯t be taken in by Liu Lan¡¯s evil n! She evidently doesn¡¯t want to get married to you, which is why she¡¯s using me as a shield!¡±


    Long Chen exined while escaping.


    ¡°How dare youe up with excuses when I¡¯ve already seen everything! Whoever you are, you must die for touching my girl!¡±


    Long Chen was momentarily stunned into silence. It was no wonder that Chu Yunxi liked a woman like Liu Lan who was years older than him. He was basically an inflexible guy with a one-track mind. If he set his mind to something, nothing could change his mind. Sly old Liu Lan had taken this into ount and tricked Long Chen here. With a little acting, Chu Yunxi was thoroughly duped!


    ¡°Storm Seizing Finger!¡±


    In that moment, Chu Yunxi used this powerful move, and a grand storm emerged. Dust and sand flew everywhere, and an inexhaustible hurricane holding within a powerful force headed in Long Chen¡¯s direction with the intent to kill!


    In the face of such a ferocious move, Long Chen no longer had time to convince anyone. All he could do was grit his teeth and release a fist and struck out with the Demonic Sun Fist!


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Piercing Earth Demonic Sun!¡±


    The two forces collided, but what made Long Chen want to break down was that the Storm Seizing Finger that Chu Yunxi had casually used was even more powerful than Feng Wutian¡¯s Sole ming Deity Bird. Long Chen¡¯s Piercing Earth Demonic Sun instantly crumbled, and a formidable force struck Long Chen, causing him to fly backwards, fresh blood spurting out.


    This injury was even worse than anything he had experienced, to the point that his body continued to convulse while hey on the ground. After experiencing this move, he had now lost all ability to battle.


    He hurriedly got up, enduring the pain in his body. There was no choice but to use Origin Reversion, albeit with some difficulty, and healed his wounds.


    There was no way to express the fury Long Chen had from being used by Liu Lan as a pawn out of nowhere, and now gaining these injuries.


    Though Chu Yunxi looked to be refined, he was used to considering everyone beneath him. Since he had determined Liu Lan to be his, Long Chen would have to die for touching what belonged to him.


    Long Chen had initially believed that all grudges against him was all due to Liu Lan, and this was a huge misunderstanding. However, the moment Chu Yunxi did not bother with making clear the situation, aiming to take Long Chen¡¯s life with one move, Long Chen knew there was no way to make peace.


    ¡°Chu Yunxi, I tried to exin this to you, but you did not listen at all and wanted my life. I¡¯ll remember this move of yours. I¡¯ll make sure you regret it if I don¡¯t die today!¡±


    Though this was a misunderstanding, Long Chen was definitely infuriated to be injured so badly.


    Seeing Long Chen sitting cross-legged to heal his injuries, the anger on Chu Yunxi¡¯s face did not diminish at all. Sneering at Long Chen, he roared, ¡°That move didn¡¯t take your life? Well then, here¡¯s another. Die!¡±

 Chapter 144 – Hostility

    That life-threatening attack instantly closed in on Long Chen.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t see to reason at all and wants my life?¡±


    There were no ripples in Long Chen¡¯s heart. Instead, all was calm.


    He knew that he was still valuable to Liu Lan, and she would not let him die by Chu Yunxi¡¯s hands.


    Thus, he sat cross-legged at ease, using the profound-grade healing battle technique- Origin Reversion healing.


    As expected, full of rage, Chu Yunxi was about to dash towards Long Chen, but a lithe body flew out of the room and quickly stood in front of Long Chen, pping towards Chu Yunxi. This move held within a huge momentum and sent Chu Yunxi flying.


    It was his first time seeing Liu Lan attacking, and the strength of someone at the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm truly could not be concealed. Just a casual move could send the so-called number 1 genius of the Green Faction flying!


    ¡°Sister Lan, you¡¯re actually attacking me for him?¡±


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes were bloodshot, looking grim.


    ¡°Yunxi, don¡¯t think too much into this.¡±


    Liu Lan turned, looking as if her heart was breaking at Long Chen¡¯s plight. Putting on a look of misery, she spoke to Chu Yunxi, ¡°Since you¡¯ve seen this, I¡¯m not going to hide this from you anymore. I never agreed in the past, only because I already have someone in my heart¡­¡±


    Long Chen was on the brink of coughing blood at her shameless words.


    He was about to scold Liu Lan, but unexpectedly, Liu Lan seemed to know what he was going to do. With a turn of her head, her hand steadilynded on Long Chen¡¯s shoulder at an angle where Chu Yunxi could not see, and all the words Long Chen wanted to say disappeared into his throat.


    ¡°Are you talking about him?¡±


    Chu Yunxi now looked ready to eat Long Chen. Long Chen had suddenly obtained an enemy out of the blue and was almost killed, and the fury in his heart was not lesser than Chu Yunxi¡¯s. However, Liu Lan was stronger than him, and under her control, he could not utter a word.


    ¡°I know about him. I heard that he¡¯s going to participate in the inner faction selection as well, yes? Good, good, good!¡±


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s heart clenched as he recalled the scene from before, repeating ¡®good¡¯ thrice. He red at Long Chen and sneered, ¡°I¡¯m not a match for you now. However, since you¡¯re willing to go against me for his sake, let it be known that the day of the inner faction selection shall be the day this kid dies!¡¯


    The fiery gaze like that of a ferocious beasty on Long Chen for a while. He then gazed at Liu Lan, seemingly heartbroken, bit his lips vigorously and left.


    The happenings of the day was driving him crazy.


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­


    After Chu Yunxi left for the Green Willow Residence, Liu Yuan and Chu Fengqing had nothing to do and began to joke around while drinking.


    ¡°Brother Liu, I heard that your daughter wanted my son to meet her alone. Why is that?¡±


    Liu Yuan was just as baffled andughed in embarrassment, ¡°That girl has never done anything that I expected. How would I know?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps she wants my son to see her room?¡± Chu Fengqing clicked his tongue in jest.


    At this age, Chu Fengxing knew his words were not quite right, and Liu Yuan was rendered speechless. He continued joking around with Chu Fengqing for a while longer when Chu Yunxi entered, expression dark.


    Liu Yuan was startled, ¡°Yunxi, where¡¯s Lan¡¯er?¡±


    ¡°You still have the gall to ask me?¡± Chu Yunxi sneered and turned towards Chu Fengqing, ¡°Father, let¡¯s go. We¡¯re nevering back to this damned Green Sun Hall!¡±


    The upants of the room were instantly stunned. Liu Yuan immediately guessed that something must have gone wrong with Liu Lan and quickly asked, ¡°Yunxi, did Lan¡¯er say something?¡±


    Chu Yunxi red at him, ¡°You dare say you know nothing about what your daughter has done?¡±


    Before he could respond, Chu Yunxi had already left. Seeing this, Chu Fengqing knew something was off.


    In actuality, if not for his son being so persistent, he would definitely not agree to this marriage, much less go through all that bullshit with the weakest of the eight great elders, Liu Yuan.


    Hearing his son¡¯s words, he could tell that Liu Lan had made Chu Yunxipletely give up.


    ¡°This is even better. Liu Lan doesn¡¯t have a good reputation anyway. If she actually marries into the family, she¡¯ll even be an embarrassment to us!¡±


    With this thought, Chu Fengqing¡¯s attitude had a 180-degree change. Snickering, he followed Chu Yunxi and left the Green Sun Hall, not even turning back.


    ¡°Time to see what Liu Lan has been up to!¡±


    He was also an elder, but Liu Yuan had been scorned on. Expression stony, he mmed the table and stood up!


    Seeing Liu Yuan angered, the surrounding elders and enforcers were silent in their fear.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with Enforcer Liu? Even if she doesn¡¯t agree to the proposal from the Green Emperor Hall, there¡¯s no need to make the situation so stiff, is there? The Green Emperor Hall is the number one hall in the Green Faction and has a great reputation in the outer faction. Why doesn¡¯t Liu Lan know how serious this is?¡±


    The elders were all confused.


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Though gravely injured, Long Chen had used Origin Reversion in time, and Liu Lan had produced a few profound middle-grade healing items from her cosmos pouch. After refining them, Long Chen gradually recuperated.


    He raised his head to see Liu Lan looking indifferent and chuckled darkly, ¡°Looks like the enmity between us is huge.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Liu Lan eximed without care, ¡°It¡¯s just a slight injury. Didn¡¯t I let you see more than enough?¡±


    ¡°Is your body that valuable?¡± Long Chen struggled to stand.


    ¡°Come into the room. You can leave after your injuries are healed.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think anything you do will appease me. Whether it¡¯s you or Chu Yunxi, I¡¯ll definitely take revenge. If you have the guts, kill me now. Don¡¯t wait till the time I can crush you¡­¡±


    Long Chen took several steps forward, looked back and sneered, ¡°I will crush you.¡±


    Liu Lan was startled but immediatelyughed, as if provoking him, ¡°Don¡¯t mention anything yet. If you can defeat Chu Yunxi and enter the Inner faction, you can do whatever you wish to me.¡±


    Long Chen clenched his fists tightly, but eventually loosened them. He was definitely not a match for Liu Lan now, so even if she had made use of him, there was nothing he could do as of yet.


    ¡°You think I want you?¡± Long Chen snickered, ¡°I have more girls than you know. Why would I work hard to get an olddy like you?¡±


    ¡°Olddy?¡±


    Liu Lan almost fainted in her anger. She was about to flip out, but Long Chen had already gone far.


    She watched Long Chen as he left. While injured, he still stood tall and straight.


    ¡°Was it too much for me to make use of him like this? When he gets stronger, it¡¯ll definitely bite me in the ass someday¡­¡±


    At the thought of how Huang Feiyang and the sect leader had ended up, Liu Lan felt a shiver run down her spine.


    ¡°Whatever it is, I managed to get Chu Yunxi topletely give up. Though he seems refined, he¡¯s intense, haughty and arrogant. If I do go with him, my future is destroyed. How can I, Liu Lan, depend on someone for my whole life?¡±


    Those were her true thoughts. In actuality, she was extremely against Chu Yunxi, which was why she had thought up this n to make him give up.


    ¡°This way, all connections between the Green Sun and Green Emperor Hall are destroyed. However, that was fated to happen the moment Chu Yunxi set his eyes on me.¡±


    There was no way around it.


    At the thought of Long Chen and the progress he had made in this time, Liu Lan nodded, ¡°I can only gamble everything on him. He was already a person full of miracles, and with more pressure on him, he¡¯ll develop even more quickly. Chu Yunxi tried to kill him today, and with his nature, he¡¯ll definitely plot to take revenge during the inner faction selection!¡±


    Liu Lan knew Long Chen¡¯s temperament inside and out.


    All that had happened today might seem sudden, but all were within Liu Lan¡¯s ns. She knew Chu Yunxi and Long Chen well enough that they could not do anything about her. It was obvious how high-handed her methods were.


    ¡°But what if he really bes so lucky and enters the inner faction? Wouldn¡¯t I have to¡­¡±


    At this thought, as well as how Long Chen had been stunned into a daze at her body, Liu Lan suddenly felt her face burning¡­


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    He had been made a fool of for no reason and almost lost his life. It was impossible for Long Chen not to be furious.


    ¡°That wretched woman is really terrifying. She must have nned this for a long time, and I was stupid enough to head straight-on into the hole she dug and jump in. I¡¯ve made enemies with Chu Yunxi, and gotten myself injured at that¡­¡±


    The thought of Chu Yunxi increased his desire for blood.


    Liu Lan had made a fool of him once and used him as a shield. However, Chu Yunxi had truly wanted his life, and almost seeded.


    ¡°Since his strength and status are both higher than mine, he didn¡¯t treat me equally and thought my life to be like grass¡­¡±


    Long Chen had now guessed at Chu Yunxi¡¯s character. Even if he knew what really had happened, he still wouldn¡¯t let Long Chen off.


    ¡°By the way, old Liu also mentioned that I¡¯m going to be in the same team as him during the inner faction selection. How am I going to team up with him in this situation? He¡¯ll probably want my life the moment the selection starts.¡±


    Long Chen frowned.


    ¡°Liu Lan keeps arousing hostility in people around me and was especially vicious this time. However, aren¡¯t you afraid of burning yourself when ying with fire? I, Long Chen, am not some sheep that¡¯s so easily manipted!¡±


    Long Chen did not dare let Lingxi see all his injuries. For one, he had no idea how to exin the happenings of the day, and Lingxi¡¯s distaste towards Liu Lan might result in her charging out and wanting a fight.


    Hidden in a corner in the Green Willow Residence, Long Chen used Origin Reversion once more and absorbed the profound middle-grade spirit medicine that Liu Lan had given him as well. Only then did about half his injuries get better. If Long Chen tried a little harder, nobody would be able to tell.


    Long Chen headed towards the area where grade 1 disciples resided, but when he was about to approach it, he met Gan Lin.


    The moment he saw Long Chen, Gan Lin had a strange expression on his face as he shook his head, ¡°Long Chen, I never expected that you¡¯d get together with Lord Enforcer. However, the pressure you¡¯ll face is more than you expected. I¡¯m sure Chu Yunxi won¡¯t let you off¡­¡±


    ¡°What are you saying?¡± Long Chen widened his eyes in surprise.

 Chapter 145 – Liu Lan’s Love Life

    ¡°What do you mean, Senior Gan?¡± Long Chen asked, shocked.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to hide it. Everyone knows already.¡±


    Gan Lin smiled wryly. ¡°We all know what just happened. The two of you admitted your rtionship in front of Chu Yunxi, and I believe in no time, this will spread throughout the Green Faction. Before the fight in the inner faction selection begins, I think this will be the biggest piece of gossip¡­¡±


    ¡°Damn it!¡±


    Long Chen scolded inside. He knew that this was definitely Liu Lan¡¯s work.


    He absolutely could not reveal that she had plotted for him to watch her bathing. He could only continue on with this ridiculous lie, but it was this type of gossip that gathered everyone¡¯s interest¡­


    ¡°Looks like my reputation will spread to the nine great outer factions, since I¡¯ve stolen Chu Yunxi¡¯s love from him and thoroughly disregarded him. Damn it, Liu Lan, I¡¯mpletely done for in the inner faction selection!¡±


    Long Chen really had the impulse to catch her alive and skin her.


    After bidding Gan Lin farewell, Long Chen returned to his residence. Unexpectedly, Liu Ling, who was staying next door, was watching him coldly from the entrance to her residence.


    ¡°You bastard, I won¡¯t let you touch a single hair on my sister!¡±


    Having said this, the door closed with a bang.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    There was no way to describe how Long Chen was feeling.


    ¡°Oh well, just do whatever you want. I¡¯ll cultivate diligently, not just for Liu Qing but also for myself. I must definitely pass the inner faction selection!¡±


    ¡°But fighting against the top talents of all the nine great outer factions is incredibly stressful¡­¡±


    After he opened the door, Lingxi was already awaiting his presence.


    When he saw Lingxi¡¯s worried expression, Long Chen suddenly felt a feeling of peacee over him.


    It was as if he had been wandering and risking his life outside for ten years, and was only now returning to his anchor, his home.


    ¡°You¡¯re back?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­


    The next ten days were spent on cultivation.


    In these ten days, he spent two on killing demonic beasts at the Sky Martial Realm. He was still unable to deal with level 5 profound-grade demonic beasts, and could only settle for hunting level 4 beasts.


    In two days, he killed a total of four level 4 profound-grade demonic beasts.


    What had happened with Liu Lan had already spread in the outer faction, and the Green Emperor Hall quickly became theughing stock of the outer faction. All jokes were made at their expense. While in the Sky Martial Realm, Long Chen kept a low profile, and hence, no problems arose.


    For those few days, he was truly like a mouse, concealing himself as best as possible to prevent disputes. He did not take the demonic cores and beast spirits to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion to be converted into contribution points.


    At this point, Lingxi had already found out what had happened to Long Chen. However, this version had been modified, and she only held more contempt towards Liu Lan.


    However, the inner faction selection was right around the corner.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not even consider if Chu Yunxi will attack me during the inner faction selection. Many of the other geniuses have the same level of strength as Chu Yunxi. My goal is the inner faction, and the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm is definitely not enough.¡±


    Sitting in the spacious basement, Long Chen devoured the blood of level 4 profound-grade demonic beasts. However, they had little effect. After using Blood Transmutation, he was only able to get infinitely nearer to the Earth Dan Realm.


    The inner faction was definitely holding high expectations for the selection.


    Those who could distinguish themselves in each selection were absolute geniuses. Even after entering the inner faction, they would definitely be able to shine. On top of that, this was a tform forpetition within the nine outer factions. Though they were generally united,petition was not scarce amongst them. The outer factions had restrained themselves, all so they could show off in the selection and secure their status amongst the outer factions.


    Those who were particrly expectant towards the selection were definitely of the Green Faction.


    All of the participants from the other factions were on good terms and were exceptional partners. However, on the Green Faction¡¯s end, there was Long Chen, who had been chosen despite being at the Human Dan Realm, and had a huge feud with Chu Yunxi.


    Everyone loved gossip, and nobody was unaware of Long Chen and Chu Yunxi being at odds over a woman.


    The most mysterious character here was Long Chen. He had only just entered the outer faction two months ago, and he had already risen at an insane pace, from the eighth Dragon Vein till the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm.


    His sess at his cultivation and love life were both shocking. Everyone had assumed that Chu Yunxi would definitely get together with Liu Lan, and yet Long Chen had stolen his superior¡¯s heart. It was akin to a great cabbage being provided to swine, or a beautiful flower stuck in cow dung.


    These rivals in love would both represent the Green Faction and fight together, and would definitely put on a good show. For this reason, there was boundless anticipation towards this selection.


    There were ten more days till the first day of the eleventh month, and everyone felt as if time was crawling.


    Though Long Chen might have been on the upper hand in love, he was probably going to have a tragic end on the battlefield.


    As he was the only one at the Human Dan Realm, Long Chen caught much attention. His information was read through time and again. While he had defeated Feng Wutian, Long Chen was still undoubtedly the weakest in the selection.


    Every time Long Chen went out, he could see everyone discussing the inner faction selection in Lingwu City. Long Chen was one of the most-talked-about topics, but it was clear that nobody expected him to do well. When they spoke of him, what they wanted to see was what would happen between him and his rival in love, Chu Yunxi.


    ¡°Chu Yunxi is an exceptional talent, and the Chu family is quite amazing too. I wonder if Liu Lan has a screw loose to choose a pig like Long Chen!¡±


    Every time he heard this, Long Chen had the urge to vomit blood. This was the reason he did not dare go to the Treasure Exchange Pavilion. If he were to be surrounded, he¡¯d probably be drowned by all the saliva they would spit out.


    ¡°What a shameless woman.¡± Lingxi puffed her cheeks in annoyance.


    ¡°Long Chen, with your current strength, it really will be difficult to deal with them. Don¡¯t worry though. I¡¯ve taken the Spirit Grass, and can take on an attack that even someone at the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm cannot block. If that Chu whatever dares touch you, I¡¯ll take his wretched life!¡±


    At the thought that he had harmed Long Chen, Lingxi felt indignant.


    Long Chen could do little at that.


    ¡°Oh well. I can only hope to have some sort of breakthrough during the selection. If not, it¡¯s not quite possible¡­¡±


    Ever since he had entered the Lingwu Family, Long Chen had raised his status step by step. Never had he experienced fear or terror, but now that he would have topete against geniuses of the outer faction, he was powerless.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be able to take revenge against Chu Yunxi¡¯s attack in the near future.¡±


    Just as he was thinking this, Long Chen was annoyed to find that Liu Lan hade looking for him.


    Long Chen had no intentions of seeing her, but she was lingering outside.


    ¡°Little Xi, I¡¯m going to see what shit she¡¯s going to spout. Don¡¯t get impulsive. She¡¯s very powerful. Once I get stronger, you can attack her. What do you think?¡±


    Before heading out, Long Chen saw Lingxi¡¯s dark expression that hinted at violence, and quickly advised.


    ¡°Hmph. Once I regain my strength, she¡¯ll definitely be in for it.¡±


    After opening the door, he found Liu Lan in that ck dress that she had worn when she had entered his room for the first time. It presented her curves well, but today, she also had on a ck cloak, concealing her charming appearance.


    ¡°The inner faction selection is about to start, and you don¡¯t have any trump cards. The Yuanling City¡¯s Daybreak Merchants Union is organising arge-scaled auction today. How about we go take a look?¡±


    Long Chen had nned on sending her away to avoid being unable to hold himself back and responding with violence. However, upon hearing her mention an auction, he hesitated for a moment and decided to go with her.


    After getting a cloak from Liu Lan, Long Chen followed behind her and headed towards the outskirts of the Lingwu City.


    Amongst cultivators, there were many who had offended others ormitted unspeakable sins. They were unwilling to reveal their identities, and this was especially so at auctions, where it had almost be an unspoken rule to wear cloaks to participate.


    With this, Long Chen could walk alongside Liu Lan without causing a ruckus.


    ¡°These ten days have been very lively. Your love life has already be the topic of everyone¡¯s discussion enjoyed before and after meals.¡± Long Chenmented.


    ¡°Are youining or taking pleasure in it?¡± Liu Lan seemed to smile.


    ¡°Are you teasing me?¡±


    Liu Lan did not deny this.


    ¡°Just ignore this. Long Chen¡­¡± Her brows furrowed slightly, ¡°The danger of the inner faction selection is something you can¡¯t even begin to imagine. Whether you believe it or not, I don¡¯t want you to die.¡±


    ¡°Are you really an old cow trying to eat young grass*?¡±


    (tln: someone who is much older getting together with someone significantly younger)


    Being called an old cow multiple times brought Liu Lan closer to the brink of getting violent, no matter how well-mannered she was. However, as she had been in the wrong, it wouldn¡¯t do her good to get mad.


    Rolling her eyes, Liu Lan continued, ¡°I can only apologise to you for what happened. Chu Yunxi was even more extreme than I expected. If there¡¯s any opportunity at all, I believe he¡¯ll find a way to kill you regardless of the repercussions.¡±


    ¡°What is that supposed to mean? Schadenfreude?¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice had turned cold.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that.¡± Liu Lan was anxious, ¡°I¡¯m just telling you that it¡¯s best to exercise restraint this time. You need to keep your life. Besides, you¡¯re a few years younger than Chu Yunxi and only just entered the Lingwu family, It¡¯s not like you won¡¯t have any chances at surpassing him.¡±


    ¡°Stop it. I won¡¯t hold back when ites to people I need to kill.¡±


    Long Chen spat out these words and walked ahead.

 Chapter 146 – Jin Sheng’en

    The Daybreak Merchant Union¡¯s auction this time was held at the East Ling Region. It was a joint operation by all the branches.


    Manager Zhao Tianfang¡¯s branch was also included.


    Due to the matter regarding the Thunder me Physique, Long Chen was slightly fearful towards them. However, with Liu Lan beside him, he had nothing to fear.


    Even if the sky were to copse, the Lingwu Family would be there to take the brunt of it in his stead.


    The auction grounds was huge. In the giant public square, ten thousands of people gathered. In the middle was a tform wherebyrge amounts of light was gathered. The floor of the tform was made entirely out of deity jades, and it was apparent that the Daybreak Merchant Union was spending extravagantly for this event.


    Above the square were almost two hundredpartments. Long Chen and Liu Lan were now in one of them. Though it was notrge, it was exquisite.


    With Liu Lan¡¯s status, it was no big deal to get apartment like this.


    Seated in such a narrow area next to someone rumoured to be his woman, Long Chen felt rather ufortable as he constantly breathed in a tempting aroma from her.


    If not for what had just happened, he might even take enjoyment in this. However, much of him held hatred and anger towards Liu Lan, which diminished his interest in the beautiful woman beside him.


    His indifferent attitude gave Liu Lan impression that he was stirring restlessly inside.


    ¡°What are you so anxious about¡­¡±


    Liu Lan watched him with interest. She then stretched out her body, revealing bits of skin underneath the thin ck clothing, looking very enticing.


    ¡°If you can fulfil the goals I¡¯ve set for you, everything of mine shall be yours. Hehe¡­¡±


    She chuckled in a charming manner, while Long Chen ignored her and turned his head towards the tform at the centre of the za. It was the most dazzling ce in the entire square, and also the focal point of this auction.


    A gorgeous woman was now walking to the centre of the tform, her beautiful eyes sweeping the area. Only after that did an elegant voice sound.


    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, wee to the Daybreak Merchant Union¡¯s auction. We have made preparations for almost two months for this event. We are sure that the precious items we have will satisfy all of you. Let me now announce themencement of the auction!¡±


    ¡°The rules of this auction are obviously that the person with the highest price obtains it. However, if you could supply an item of equivalent value, our Daybreak Merchant Union wees that as well. However, the value of the item shall be determined by us.¡±


    Though she was not powerful, she had a very strong mind. Her voice was sweet and she was very tactful, leaving people feelingfortable. Hostingrge events such as auctions like this were very suitable for her.


    Liu Lan had nned to tease Long Chen further to brighten the atmosphere, but Long Chen had no reaction at all. She then looked downwards as well and spoke, ¡°The reason why we¡¯re here is to look for something you can use during the inner faction selection. If there¡¯s anything you want, tell me.¡±


    ¡°I have my own money. Don¡¯t worry about me.¡±


    If he were to take something more from her, he would owe her a favour. Long Chen had ns to teach Liu Lan an unforgettable lesson. If he were to use her money now, it would not make sense to attack her afterwards.


    He and Liu Lan might be sitting together and even exchanging a few words, but that was only because he was no match for her. Liu Lan had made use of him, and once he had enough strength, the first person he would deal with was her.


    Hearing such unyielding words from Long Chen, Liu Lan was slightly surprised. However, she knew how little Long Chen had received from his family. It was almostughable hearing Long Chen¡¯s words.


    ¡°I¡¯m not in the mood to argue with you. I¡¯m here at the auction for your sake. Don¡¯t think too much of it. At most, everyone else would think that you¡¯re my man. If you lose too badly, I¡¯ll lose face, so paying for you is my attempt at saving face,¡± Liu Lan said.


    ¡°I told you already. I¡¯ll get what I want with my own means.¡± Long Chen answered calmly.


    Seeing Long Chen so untactful, Liu Lan was already slightly unhappy. However, she was the one in the wrong and could only ridicule him, ¡°You¡¯re pretty good at bragging, huh. I wonder how you¡¯re going to do that in an auction of this level.¡±


    She knew how much Long Chen had in his pockets. This auction was one of the highest grade in the Eastern Ling Region, and everything being auctioned off here had a starting price of over a thousand spirit jades.


    If Long Chen had this amount of wealth, the sun must probably have risen from the west.


    While they were conversing, time slipped away. In no time, two items had been auctioned off. The first was a profound middle-grade divine weapon, and had been bought at the high price of fifty thousand deity jades. The second had been sold for thirty thousand deity jades.


    The first few items of the auctions were generally more precious. Long Chen knew of this practice.


    The entirety of the wealth of one at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm was generally at a hundred thousand. Any random item at the auction was enough for cultivators at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm to go broke.


    This was why Liu Lan was sure that Long Chen was just bragging.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get the price wrong. If you can¡¯t produce the money, you¡¯ll be unable to leave the Daybreak Merchant Union. Though this is just a branch, there are many experts here at the Heaven Dan Realm. I won¡¯t be able to save you.¡±


    Seeing Long Chen still so stubborn and unwilling to admit defeat, Liu Lan warned him.


    Long Chen continued gazing at the auction, not replying her at all.


    Liu Lan shook her head at his response and silently thought, ¡°This guy is really too immature. He¡¯s already so old and is still sulking. The reason why I¡¯m here is to help him, but if this goes on, it¡¯ll be useless for me to be here. I need to do something about this.¡±


    After a while, Liu Lan¡¯s eyes brightened, ¡°Long Chen, how many contribution points do you have now?¡±


    ¡°361. Why?¡±


    Long Chen had no idea why she was suddenly asking this.


    ¡°If you want to purchase something with your own abilities, I won¡¯t force you to do otherwise. However, I know full well how many deity jades you have. How about this; for every contribution point you have, you can exchange it for ten deity jades with me. I¡¯ll give you a total of four thousand deity jades. How about that?¡±


    If that was the case, Long Chen wasn¡¯t exactly relying on her. He could somewhat ept her suggestion and nodded.


    When it came down to it, Long Chen knew there were definitely going to be some treasures, judging by what had already been auctioned off. They would be the key in his battles in the inner faction selection. It would be for the best if he could obtain them.


    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, the next item is the Seven-coloured ss Metal. This metal is ten times of a better quality than regr ss metal. If there is a craftsman to work on it, it can basically create two or more profound middle-grade divine weapons. If the craftsman is sufficiently skilful, it is not impossible to create a profound high-grade divine weapon! Starting price at ten thousand deity jades! Each increase in price must be by more than five hundred deity jades!¡±


    With the incitement from the beautiful girl, a wave surged in the auction.


    ¡°12 000 deity jades!¡±


    ¡°13 000 deity jades!¡±


    ¡°15 000!¡±


    ¡°20 000!¡±


    As this Seven-coloured ss Metal was extremely precious and a profound high-grade divine weapon could potentially be forged from it, the atmosphere was heated, and the price constantly increased. Soon enough, it had almost reached 60 000.


    Long Chen had no interest in this sort of thing. However, in this bidding, Liu Lan did notice a familiar person in thepartment nearby. This person had also participated in the bidding and seemed rather wealthy. Each time, he would increase the price by thousands, and finally, the Seven-coloured ss Metal was sold off to him for 70 000 deity jades.


    ¡°It¡¯s actually him? I didn¡¯t expect him toe to this auction as well.¡± Hearing his voice, Liu Lan was slightly surprised.


    ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°The number one seed at the inner faction selection. He¡¯s said to be the current number one genius of the outer faction¡ª Jin Sheng¡¯en of the Gold Faction. I¡¯ve seen him in battle before, and he¡¯s definitely not ordinary. He¡¯s battle might should probably have reached the realm of the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en, at the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm?¡±


    Long Chen was speechless. This guy was truly heaven-defying. Long Chen had constantly been progressing, but he did understand there would always be someone who surpassed him.


    In his eyes, Chu Yunxi was already a genius difficult topare to. Jin Sheng¡¯en was even more terrifying, with his battle might at the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°Do you know what¡¯s so outstanding about him?¡± Long Chen was very curious about this.


    It was only because he had his Dragon Soul Transformation, Thunder me Physique and other methods that he could kill people despite the difference in levels.


    ¡°The most genius part about Jin Sheng¡¯en is the profound high-grade tempering battle technique that he trains in¡ª Gilding Physique! The Gilding Physique is the top-grade tempering battle technique belonging to the Gold Faction. Within the Gold Faction, there are few who seed at it, and yet Jin Sheng¡¯en had actually seeded in cultivation while merely at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. Isn¡¯t he amazing?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s trump card was his body that was stronger than that of average people. Jin Sheng¡¯en trained in a profound high-grade tempering battle technique and had one up over Long Chen, even lording over Long Chen in terms of real Qi.


    Hearing Liu Lan¡¯s narration and realising the proximity of this monster to him right now, Long Chenpletely gave up.


    ¡°What, do you finally know how cruel the inner faction selection is now?¡±


    Liu Lan watched him, her eyes glinting with pride.


    ¡°It¡¯s still too early to say who will emerge the champion.¡±


    Long Chen knew that no matter what, he could not fear anyone for Yang Lingqing and his own sake. Even if his enemies were powerful, he had to endure and give it his all!


    ¡°Hehe¡­¡± Liu Lan covered her mouth as she chuckled, ¡°Go on, keep bragging. Let me tell you something else. Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi are good friends, so if you do meet him, you¡¯d probably be skinned if you¡¯re not already dead¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s mind went nk.


    ¡°What is up with the world? Why are all the geniuses huddled up together? If I offend one, that means I¡¯m offending a few others as well? On top of that, each of them is stronger than the other?¡±


    There was little Long Chen could say in response.


    Liu Lan¡¯s intentions in pointing this out was to get Long Chen to recognise the dangers and difficulty of the selection, all so he would let her pay. Now that he was convinced, she was obviously ted.


    ¡°Now, I¡¯m going to announce the next item to be auctioned off¡ª Thunder me Crystals!¡±

 Chapter 147 – Demonic Blood Soul Essence

    ¡°Thunder me Crystals?¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s cherry lips opened slightly in her surprise.


    ¡°How did the Daybreak Merchants Union get them? Thunder me Crystals are extremely rare in the Yuanling region. They probably obtained them through other means.¡±


    Long Chen never expected the Daybreak Merchants Union to auction off the Thunder me Crystals.


    He had gathered forty or so crystals from Zhao Tianfang¡¯s pockets. It was evident that they probably had quite a number of them.


    No matter how powerful a cultivator was, a hundred Thunder me Crystals were more than enough. However, if one could be in possession of great amounts, the strength of an organisation would rise greatly, and there would naturally be multiple benefits.


    Lingxi did mention that the Daybreak Merchants Union likely had a mine of Thunder me Crystals.


    If that was truly the case, the strength of the Daybreak Merchants Union now was probably even more formidable, and thus put pressure on the Lingwu Family and Beast Spirit Pce. If there really was a mine, the Lingwu Family would definitely covet it.


    ¡°There are a total of ten Thunder me Crystals. If all ten are fused with, one will be a Thunder me cultivator and form the Thunder me Physique. That would be equivalent to a profound middle-grade body-tempering battle technique or even more than that. Everyone should understand the effects. I won¡¯t say more at this point. The starting price of these ten crystals is 20 000 deity jades! Each increase in price cannot be less than a thousand deity jades!¡±


    Ever since the Thunder me Crystals appeared, all the guests had begun chattering. Thunder me Crystals may not be any top-rated treasure, but it was still a rarity.


    The Thunder me Crystals caused a burning desire amongst the audience.


    ¡°Long Chen, what do you think of these crystals?¡±


    Liu Lan turned her head and nced at Long Chen through hershes.


    From her perspective, Long Chen was a beast cultivator. If he cultivated in another profound middle-grade body-tempering battle technique, his battle might would definitely increase in this time and give him better chances in the uing inner faction selection.


    Thunder me Crystals differed from other tempering battle techniques. Others required time to hammer the technique in, but this just required fusion.


    If she knew that Long Chen had already fused with 30 crystals, her expression would be marvellous.


    Long Chen had always been in need of Thunder me Crystals. His goal was to reach level 2, or even level 3 of the Thunder me Physique.


    However, the issue now was that with the contribution points Long Chen had on hand, he could only exchange for 4000 deity jades. The wealth he had on him was negligible. Just the starting price alone for these ten Thunder me Crystals far exceeded 4000.


    Long Chen had had around fifty Thunder me Crystals, which was equal to more than a hundred thousand deity jades.


    Unexpectedly, the items that Lingxi had spent two Spirit Recovery Fruits to rob was so valuable. He had used up almost a hundred thousand deity jades so easily, and his heart was bleeding at the mere thought of it.


    Long Chen was too poor to purchase the crystals, which was why he did not bother replying.


    Liu Lan had now hit a snag, but she did not get mad. The price was already increasing outside, and without hesitation, she yelled a price based on what was already being shouted.


    ¡°35 000 deity jades.¡±


    Her cold voice resounded in the spacious square.


    The number of deity jades had only reached 31 000 deity jades till then, and Liu Lan had shouted 35 000 all of a sudden. Nobody tried to increase the price.


    Ten Thunder me Crystals were bought with 35 000 deity jades, which was a rather unreasonable price. Regr body-tempering battle techniques usually cost 100 000 deity jades, and they alsocked the risks that came with Thunder me Crystals.


    Liu Lan got the crystals and then sent a smile Long Chen¡¯s way, her beam provocative.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to say this upfront. This is something you wanted to buy, so don¡¯t me it on me.¡±


    When it came to this woman, she was rather irresistible, but Long Chen knew she was simr to a rose. While the aroma was strong and it was beautiful, attracting men toe closer, they might get pricked by her thorns if they stood too close.


    While Long Chen had wanted the Thunder me Crystals, he wanted to avoid this situation.


    ¡°Did you think I was begging for your forgiveness?¡±


    Seeing Long Chen so standoffish with her, Liu Lan was slightly infuriated. She got serious and, with a grim tone, spoke, ¡°I¡¯m here to get you things because I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll lose your life to Chu Yunxi in the inner faction selection. There isn¡¯t much time till the first of the eleventh month. If you¡¯re sulking and won¡¯t ept what I¡¯ve gotten you, then you¡¯re an idiot. An incredible idiot.¡±


    It was true that Long Chen was not very confident regarding the inner faction selection.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take the Thunder me Crystals. I¡¯ll return you the 35 000 deity jades after the auction is over.¡±


    The moment Liu Lan finished talking, he spoke matter-of-factly.


    ¡°Oh?¡±


    He did not have money now, but he would have it after the auction ended. What logic was this?


    Liu Lan was at her wit¡¯s end when it came to this guy. She was rather curious of how Long Chen would get the money at the end of the auction, and nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting then. When the timees, don¡¯t me me if Iugh at you if you don¡¯t have the money.¡±


    ¡°Whatever.¡±


    After the Thunder me Crystals were auctioned off, someone sent them to theirpartment. Long Chen took the crystals while the crazy bitch, Liu Lan, produced the money. The deliverer, who was of the Daybreak Merchants Union, had a strange expression on his face.


    After he left, Liu Lan had on a charming, gentle grin.


    ¡°Do you know what kind of expression he had on?¡±


    ¡°He probably thinks you¡¯re a wealthy woman, while I¡¯m a pretty boy you take care of, all so to fill the void in your heart. Am I right?¡±


    Liu Lan smiled sweetly, her beauty iparable.


    After the two brief climaxes from the Seven-coloured ss Metal and the Thunder me Crystals, the auction gradually reached its end.


    After two hours, the items that were saved forst began to appear. There were a total of three. The first was a profound high-grade offensive battle technique that was sold off for 80 000 deity jades.


    Usually, 80 000 deity jades were far from enough to obtain the high-grade battle technique on the table. The truly remarkable battle techniques could be sold for a million or even millions, and it was thus obvious that while they could be of the same rank, battle techniques differed in preciousness.


    The profound high-grade battle technique that was sold for 80 000 deity jades was probably slightly stronger or possibly weaker than regr profound-grade battle techniques.


    There were few experts in Yuanling City who were at the Heaven Dan Realm, and each and every one of them had great status. In an auction like this held by the branches of the Daybreak Merchants Union, Earth Dan Realm cultivators were considered distinguished guests, while those of the Human Dan Realm were the bottommost level.


    Thest item was a profound high-grade spirit medicine with a starting price of 200 000 deity jades. However, it was useless to Long Chen. His eyes were fixated on the secondst item.


    ¡°Demonic Blood Soul Essence. It is the demonic blood essence of a profound level 8 demonic beast. As long as you are powerful enough to refine it, your real Qi will definitely increase by arge amount. However, as much time has already passed, the power left within this essence can only allow cultivators at the beginning of the Human Dan Realm to reach the initial mastery stage, or those at the initial mastery stage to reach the perfect mastery stage!¡±


    The elegant female voice resounded in the square.


    ¡°Demonic Blood Soul Essence?¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s voice portrayed her surprise as she whispered, ¡°Long Chen, it¡¯s best to get that soul essence.¡±


    ¡°What can it do? Though it might be useful for others at the Human Dan Realm, it should be useless to me.¡±


    ¡°Demonic Blood Soul Essence is a demonic core that has been soaked in blood for over a hundred years after the demonic beast has died. Sometimes, it does not disappear but forms a soul essence. The demonic core¡¯s strength and that of the blood mix together, forming a strange spirit force. As long as one is a cultivator, all can absorb this strength. To be honest, the Demonic Blood Soul Essence is rather simr to the Soul Diffusion Fruit.¡±


    ¡°How so?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°The Soul Diffusion Fruit allows one to raise one¡¯s level in a very short period of time and reach the Human Dan Realm. There aren¡¯t any negative effects either. The Demonic Blood Soul Essence has the same effect. This piece in front of us has a strengthparable to the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, so even if those who have just entered the Human Dan Realm were to consume it, they might very well reach the perfect mastery stage if they have good luck.¡±


    As Lingxi was speaking, Long Chen shifted his body such that he faced the edge of thepartment.


    Lingxi¡¯s voice was sounded using her soul and reached Long Chen¡¯s own soul. Though soft, Long Chen heard everything clearly. Long Chen¡¯s question was able to be heard by Liu Lan, but it happened to be noisy from the auction, and his voice was thus unheard.


    ¡°The heaven-defying part of blood transmutation is how the aura of fresh blood is transformed into your real Qi. For this reason, Blood Transmutation is amazing, and this soul essence is even more useful to you. Others who take in the Demonic Blood Soul Essence will absorb the strength from the demonic core, but what you¡¯re doing is to absorb the force of the blood. With it, I reckon you can break through to the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Long Chen heard the words ¡°Earth Dan Realm¡± loud and clear, which was exactly what he was hoping to achieve.


    He was definitely unable to win against a level 5 profound grade demonic beast, and he needed to hunt a certain number of level 4 beasts such that he could enter the Earth Dan Realm.


    The inner faction selection was right around the corner, but because of Liu Lan, it was inconvenient to move around. Entering the Earth Dan Realm was definitely a problem.


    ¡°Looks like even with Blood Transmutation, it¡¯s difficult to gain strength. On top of that, it doesn¡¯t do me good to use it too often.¡±


    Long Chen thought inside.


    Right after Lingxi exined everything thoroughly, Long Chen knew that this Demonic Blood Soul Essence was something that would determine his life. For that reason, he had to have it.

 Chapter 148 – I’m Disappointed In You

    While hearing Lingxi introduce the Demonic Blood Soul Essence, the beautiful woman of the Daybreak Merchants Union had announced the starting price of the product.


    That was 35 000 deity jades, which was the price the Thunder me Crystals had been auctioned off at.


    Amongst spirit medicine, there was a type where its price far exceeded its grade.


    For instance, this Demonic Blood Soul Essence could actually be considered a spirit medicine, and a profound elementary-grade spirit medicine at that. However, due to its instantaneous abilities of increasing a cultivator¡¯s strength with no side effects, it was considered very precious.


    Many of high statuses were very willing to buy this and pass it to the younger generation in the family as a reward, allowing them to advance further.


    Neither Xue Yuanzi nor Bai Yangzhen and the others knew the value of the Soul Diffusion Fruit from before. It was actually a profound elementary-grade spirit medicine that was able to help one condense the Deity Dan. A Soul Diffusion Fruit was priced around 10 000 deity jades.


    The sole harvest from the auction were the ten Thunder me Crystals, which left Liu Lan unsatisfied. However, with the auction about to end and the rest of the items unsuitable for Long Chen, Liu Lan was prepared to bring Long Chen back.


    Within the square, there was arge number of people who had gathered an interest in the Demonic Blood Soul Essence, and many had already begun bidding.


    What gained Liu Lan¡¯s interest was that Jin Sheng¡¯en, who was in thepartment beside them, was participating.


    ¡°40 000 deity jades.¡±


    A cold voice sounded from thepartment beside them. The owner sounded careless, and his tone was somewhat simr to the Long Chen of the past while he had still been in Por Town.


    ¡°41 000!¡±


    ¡°42 000!¡±


    ¡°45 000!¡±


    The price constantly went up.


    One of the previous items had started with a price of 50 000 deity jades and been sold for 80 000. This Demonic Blood Soul Essence was the secondst item, and its price and value were all iparable.


    Keeping the Demonic Blood Soul Essence and arranging it secondst was to attract powerful, wealthy people to purchase and give it to the younger generation. At the same time, it would calm the hearts of the honoured guests before they went on with the final item of the day.


    However, the final item was of no use to Long Chen, while the Demonic Blood Soul Essence was very important.


    When the price of the Demonic Blood Soul Essence reached 50 000, it was evident there were lesser people bidding. After all, it was only valued at around 50 000 deity jades.


    ¡°55 000 deity jades.¡±


    Jing Sheng¡¯enughed gently in the room beside them, firmly calling a price. Everyone pondered over it for a moment, and began to consider giving up.


    ¡°55 000 deity jades. Is there a higher price?¡±


    That sweet and agreeable voice resounded in the square.


    ¡°No. Just countdown. I, Jin Sheng¡¯en, want the Demonic Blood Soul Essence.¡±


    That arrogant voice gave rise to feelings of dissatisfaction amongst the crowd.


    By announcing his identity, it was apparent that he wanted to make use of his status and force those of lesser backgrounds to back down. Even if one had money and wanted the essence, they could only give up.


    ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en has arge reputation in Yuanling City. On one hand, he is very proud and likes to stir up trouble, but he¡¯s strong and said to be the number 1 genius of the outer faction. Most importantly, his father is the youngest and strongest great elder in the outer faction!¡±


    Liu Lan, who had heard Jin Sheng¡¯en name the price, was speechless. From her tone, it seemed she held dislike towards him.


    After speaking, she nced towards Long Chen, who was more sombre than usual. Just as her words sounded, the beautiful woman in the square was about to announce the results while looking unhappy, when a low voice rang.


    ¡°I¡¯ll give 60 000 deity jades.¡± Long Chen spoke.


    ¡°Who is this?¡±


    The sudden unfamiliar voice of a person actually daring to go against the prince of the Gold n caused everyone to be startled, and also filled with curiosity.


    The beauty looked in this direction, puzzled, ¡°Thepartment next to the little prince of the Gold n should be the area where Liu Lan of the Green Faction is. There¡¯s a man inside there¡­? He must have some great background for daring to snatch something from Jin Sheng¡¯en.¡±


    She did not like the way Jin Sheng¡¯en worked, which was why when someone bid with arge increase of 5000 deity jades, she was stunned for a moment and immediately announced loudly, ¡°60 000 deity jades. Is there anyone bidding higher than this? If not, the Demonic Blood Soul Essence shall belong to this brother!¡±


    Liu Lan was shocked at Long Chen actions. ¡°Long Chen, what are you doing? You¡¯re already at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, and that essence ispletely useless to you.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze exhibited his stubbornness. He did not change his expression because of Liu Lan¡¯s words and let her worry on, not saying a word.


    Since the essence could help him reach the Earth Dan Realm, he needed to obtain it at all costs.


    ¡°Which brother out there is not giving me face?¡±


    That enraged voice that was right beside them sounded.


    The voice was icy-cold, and Long Chen could definitely feel it.


    Jin Sheng¡¯en began to threaten him,pletely disregarding the Daybreak Merchants Union.


    At this moment, an old man with white hair and twinkling eyes, who was of the internal board of the Daybreak Merchants Union stood up, ¡°Young master Jin, please don¡¯t break the rules of our Daybreak Merchants Union¡¯s auction. If not, I can only ask that your father bring you back. Every trade has its rules, and while young master Jin may have a high status, please don¡¯t ruin our way of making a living!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en was definitely in the wrong this time, and had been sternly warned by the Daybreak Merchants Union. Jin Sheng¡¯en hadpletely lost face.


    He had originally nned to gift the Demonic Blood Soul Essence to a younger brother in the family, and did not actually need it. He had even caused some awkwardness between him and the organisation, which was something he had not nned for.


    Though he might be unbridled, he was not brainless.


    ¡°This person obviously does not fear me, and it seems like he must get ahold of the essence. If I try to raise the price, I might be unable to control myself and make a huge loss. I might as well just give it to him. However, do you think you¡¯ll live well after offending me, Jin Sheng¡¯en?¡±


    Thinking this, he spoke aloud, ¡°Please refrain from babbling nonsense. I merely wanted to have a conversation with this brother. How did I break your rules? You are taking this much too seriously. I shall give up the Demonic Blood Soul Essence to this brother.¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s words meant that he wanted to give Daybreak Merchants Union some face. He would not cause a ruckus, and they did not want to do so either, and so, replied respectfully, ¡°Looks like I, Chen Mou, have thought too much of this matter. I present to you my sincerest apology. After the auction, I, Chen Mou, shall personally visit and apologise to Young Master Jin.¡±


    Now that both sides had taken a step back, the situation was solved. The beautiful girl immediately eximed, ¡°In that case, I shall announce that the Demonic Blood Soul Essence has been auctioned off to the brother in the rosepartment at a price of 60 000 deity jades!¡±


    Liu Lan watched the scene unfold. Long Chen¡¯s indifferent attitude towards her was already making her feel annoyed. The Daybreak Merchants Union prepared to auction off thest item after a small intermission, and Liu Lan¡¯s eyes were fixed coldly on Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you truly unafraid of death?¡±


    ¡°Why do you say that?¡±


    After obtaining the Demonic Blood Soul Essence, Long Chen saw the unhappy expression she had on and was afraid she might flip out. Only then did he answer her.


    Seeing Long Chen acting so recklessly, Liu Lan was disappointed.


    Though everyone thought Long Chen to be a joke, Liu Lan still held a trace of hope for Long Chen, since he had constantly created miracles in front of her.


    However, upon seeing Long Chen¡¯s immature and reckless actions, she found that she had overestimated him.


    ¡°You know you have to face Chu Yunxi, but Jin Sheng¡¯en is an expert even more terrifying than Chu Yunxi. Aren¡¯t you seeking death by provoking him?¡±


    Long Chen knew this very well. However, he had his priorities.


    If he participated in the inner faction selection at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, Long Chen was sure to die. However, once he reached the Earth Dan Realm, he would at least have a chance when fighting Chu Yunxi or even Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    However, Long Chen could not discuss blood transmutation with Liu Lan, which was why he chose to remain silent.


    Seeing Long Chen acting this way, Liu Lan was even more furious, to the point that she began to tremble in her anger. Her breasts constantly moved up and down, eyes full of disappointment towards Long Chen.


    ¡°You truly disappoint me too much, Long Chen. I¡¯d believed you were an amazing person, but it looks like you were only lucky.¡±


    Liu Lan just could notprehend why Long Chen would provoke Jin Sheng¡¯en for no reason.


    Long Chen merely smirked at being scorned by her. ¡°What do you mean by that? I don¡¯t have anything to do with you. I am not your pawn, so why are you disappointed in me?¡±


    ¡°Enforcer Liu, remember this well¡­¡± Long Chen raised his head and said icily, ¡°I, Long Chen, will always be Long Chen. I¡¯ll do what I want, and I¡¯ll take responsibility for my own life. Don¡¯t bother with me. If I have any achievements, don¡¯t speak, don¡¯t criticise, don¡¯t mock me. Just watch. You just have to watch.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s cold gaze and firm tone left Liu Lan stunned.


    She had initially been infuriated, but after hearing Long Chen¡¯s confident words, she suddenly felt as if the Long Chen who had killed Huang Feiyang, defeated Feng Wutian and ensured the death of the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect leader was now standing before her again.


    ¡°From the time you made use of me as a shield against Chu Yunxi, you already owe me. Though you¡¯re my superior, you have no jurisdiction over me.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s cold voice had an irresistible strength.


    By this time, the person delivering the essence had arrived.


    Liu Lan kept his words at heart and watched him. ¡°You have 60 000 deity jades?¡±

 Chapter 149 – Arrogant Man

    In the hands of the man of the Daybreak Merchants Union was a ck tray, with a red oval crystal the size of a chicken egg.


    There were a few ck threads within the red crystal, a pure aura emanating from the Demonic Blood Soul Essence.


    ¡°It¡¯s not bad, and the power is rather pure. It should have been a level 9 profound-grade demonic beast that left this soul essence behind, and not level 8.¡±


    Lingxi exined.


    A level 9 profound-grade demonic beast was a great expert even more powerful than a cultivator at the perfect mastery stage at the Heaven Dan Realm. In the entire Yuanling region, it was a very rare existence. The great elder of the Green Faction was merely at this level of strength.


    However, the mighty level 9 demonic beast left behind just this pure force.


    ¡°Here is your Demonic Blood Soul Essence, and it amounts to 60 000 deity jades.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Liu Lan still retained her anger towards Long Chen. Knowing someone wasing to ask for money, she pretended she knew nothing of what was going on and waited to watch Long Chen make a fool of himself.


    Since Long Chen had made everything very clear, it would be extremely humiliating if he didn¡¯t have enough money.


    All Liu Lan wanted was to watch him humiliate himselfpletely. Only then would she feel better.


    This person had alreadye around once, and Liu Lan had been the one to pay up, which was why he had determined that Liu Lan was providing for Long Chen. He shifted his gaze to Liu Lan, but her arms were in front of her chest, looking as if this was of no concern to her.


    ¡°What¡¯s with this situation?¡±


    The man then shifted his gaze to Long Chen. Liu Lan watched Long Chen from the corner of her eyes, wanting to see how he would get embarrassed.


    ¡°Unless you beg me for it, don¡¯t even think about me paying for you!¡±


    Liu Lan had known she could ever get so petty, but Long Chen¡¯s words were too haughty that even she had been overwhelmed.


    Meeting their gazes, Long Chen did not hesitate in the slightest and calmly produced a purple bead from his cosmos pouch. ¡°The Daybreak Merchants Union said that they had a rule of using items to exchange for deity jades, right? Please appraise this and tell me how many deity jades it¡¯s worth. It¡¯s a level 6 profound-grade demonic beast¡ª the beast spirit of the Purple Enchanted Dragon.¡±


    This person had initially not thought Long Chen to be someone able to produce 60 000 deity jades, but Leylin actually had a level 6 profound-grade demonic beasts, and his eyes were immediately filled with astonishment.


    ¡°Long Chen, that beast spirit-!¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s expression changed.


    She knew that Long Chen¡¯s level 6 profound-grade beast spirit was something her father, Liu Yuan, had given to Long Chen out of the kindness of his heart. It was a beast spirit for him to use as the source of his Deity Dan!


    Because of this, Liu Yuan had even argued with the five other elders. However, since Long Chen had defeated Feng Wutian of the Earth Dan Realm, they had no other objections.


    However, Long Chen wanted to sell off this level 6 profound-grade demonic beast?


    How much of a failure could he be?


    Liu Lan felt things start to go ck in front of her, almost fainting in her anger.


    She was about to stop him, but Long Chen¡¯s movements were quick as he stuffed the beast spirit into the hands of the person from the Union.


    ¡°Long Chen, have you lost your mind?¡±


    Besides the Thunder me Crystals, Liu Lan believed the level 6 profound-grade beast spirit were what Long Chen could depend on in the inner faction selection. As long as Long Chen refined the beast spirit, his strength would definitely increase by leaps and bounds, and with the miracles that Long Chen had created, she believed he had a chance.


    However, not only had Long Chen offended Jin Sheng¡¯en over a useless Demonic Blood Soul Essence, he had even sold off the most important Purple Enchanted demonic beast!


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with it? It¡¯s mine. Can¡¯t I use it as I wish?¡±


    Long Chen raised his head, speaking roguishly.


    He had long since wanted to get the beast spirit out of his hands, and had initially been hesitant to do so. However, after that one time Liu Lan had made use of him, there was no trace of unwillingness left his body.


    ¡°What are you saying? Is your brain all mush now?¡±


    Liu Lan was speechless.


    She found she could not understand what this idiot was thinking at all.


    Since things had reached this stage, she no longer wanted to ponder over Long Chen¡¯s intentions. ¡°Don¡¯t mess around with things that will affect your life. It is my fault that you¡¯ll be facing Chu Yunxi head on, but you can¡¯t just give up yourself and rebel this way. Long Chen, it¡¯s not like you to run away!¡±


    ¡°How am I running away?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°You sold off the most important beast spirit of the Purple Enchanted Dragon and offended Jin Sheng¡¯en for it. Aren¡¯t you trying to get back at me? Whatever. I¡¯m not going to waste my breath on you. When hees backter, I¡¯ll just give him 60 000 deity jades. If you don¡¯t want to owe me, just return it in the future.¡±


    ¡°What are you thinking?¡±


    Long Chen had nothing to say in response to this woman¡¯s imagination. ¡°Let me make it clear. I¡¯ve never been afraid of Chu Yunxi or Jin Sheng¡¯en before. There¡¯s a reason for whatever I do, and an ignorant woman like you has no business in this!¡±


    ¡°Ignorant woman?¡± Liu Lan wanted to vomit blood.


    ¡°That¡¯s all I¡¯m going to say. If you have any questions, wait till the battlefield of the inner faction selection and watch my performance. You¡¯ll understand then. No matter what it is, I¡¯m selling that beast spirit. You can¡¯t stop me even if you kill me.¡±


    Honestly speaking, this was the first time that Liu Lan was driven so mad that she wanted to leave.


    She gazed at Long Chen with all the disappointment she could muster, and Long Chen stared right back without fear. Noticing how this kid wasn¡¯t even lowering his head, Liu Lan held back the urge to smack him to death, albeit with some difficulty, and gradually calmed down.


    Coldly ring at him, she clenched her teeth as she ground out, ¡°What¡¯s the point of dreaming in front of me? I dare say there¡¯ll be a day you¡¯ll regret your actions, and I reckon it won¡¯t be long now!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen sneered. ¡°Let¡¯s wait and see then, Enforcer Liu.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s opponents this time were much stronger than before, and there were twenty people. Nobody thought he had any chance at all, and the only one holding any hope for him was Liu Lan. Now, however, she waspletely disappointed.


    ¡°Let¡¯s wait and see then.¡±


    Liu Lan shook her head helplessly, no longer looking at him. She sat on a chair and sat with her back to the entrance to theirpartment, and it was obvious that she was still so angry to the point that her shoulders were shaking.


    If this was in the past, Liu Lan would long since have killed Long Chen with a single move. However, since Long Chen had qualifications to enter the inner faction selection, things would get messy if she did kill him. Liu Yuan might not even be able to protect her, and since she did owe Long Chen for what had happened, she could only ept this.


    Meanwhile, Long Chen was feeling great.


    Since he had been plotted against by Liu Lan the previous time, Lingxi and he were both very annoyed about it. However, not only had he obtained what would turn the tables for the selection, he had evenpletely frustrated Liu Lan. The pleasure of this was something he couldn¡¯t describe with words.


    ¡°Good job, you rascal. Excellent job, hehe¡­¡±


    From within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi¡¯s little body danced around as she giggled.


    With Liu Lan around, Long Chen did not dare speak to Lingxi, but couldn¡¯t help but begin to chuckle.


    At this moment, the person from the Daybreak Merchants Union had returned. The beast spirit and soul essence were all on the tray, as well as a cosmos pouch. His gaze was no longer that of contempt towards Long Chen, and in its ce was respect. ¡°Hello. The appraisal from our Daybreak Merchants Union has determined the beast spirit to be worth 95 000 deity jades. Deducting the 60 000 deity jades from the soul essence, there are a total of 35 000 deity jades here. Please check it!¡±


    Long Chen kept the Demonic Blood Soul Essence well and took a look at the cosmos pouch, which indeed held 35 000 deity jades.


    Having taken care of everything, Long Chen smashed the 35 000 deity jades on the wooden table in front of Liu Lan, speaking unenthusiastically. ¡°35 000 deity jades, which is the exact price of the Thunder me Crystals. How about it? Didn¡¯t I tell you that I¡¯d return you the money before the end of the auction? I didn¡¯t go back on my words, did I?¡±


    These 35 000 deity jades had been exchanged for with the beast spirit of the level 6 profound-grade Purple Enchanted Dragon. At the thought of this, she could feel a fireing up in her stomach and red at Long Chen. ¡°You¡¯re really taking it easy, huh. Now that you¡¯re without the beast spirit, I¡¯ll watch how you die in the inner faction selection with pleasure!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s my problem whether or not I die. Chu Yunxi isn¡¯t bothering you anymore anyway. Haven¡¯t you already met your goal?¡±


    In Long Chen¡¯s eyes, if Liu Lan truly was a vicious and merciless woman, she could just leave Long Chen in the ditch. There wasn¡¯t a need to bring him to the auction a few days before the selection, which was why his intent to kill her had lessened slightly.


    Long Chen¡¯s words were very polite. Liu Lan was the one at fault and had nothing to say in return. She watched Long Chen coldly, ¡°You¡¯ve sold the beast spirit away. What am I going to tell my father?¡±


    Long Chenughed, ¡°I need to trouble Enforcer Liu not to leak details of what happened today.¡±


    ¡°You-!¡±


    Liu Lan finally realised that Long Chen, who had once seemed to be a pure teenager, was actually such an evil person.


    Taking a glimpse of Long Chen¡¯s chest that was bobbing up and down in her anger, Long Chen mocked, ¡°Stop moving. Aren¡¯t you afraid they¡¯ll jiggle out?¡±


    How could Liu Lan not know what he was referring to with where his eyes were aimed at?


    Though she might seem sleazy, she was still an old virgin maid. Hearing Long Chen say that, she immediately flushed in her embarrassment and anger, wanting to tear Long Chen apart.


    At this moment, the door to thepartment was kicked open with a loud bang. An arrogant man in a robe alternating between white and gold came in, expression dark.

 Chapter 150 – Lingqing’s Crisis

    The young man who kicked the door down was looking unbelievably arrogant. This was obviously the little prince of the Gold Faction, Jin Sheng¡¯en. Even ¡®the little prince of the Gold Faction¡¯ was a self-conferred title.


    ¡°You two have quite the nerve to not even care about the reputation of I, Jin Sheng¡¯en, huh?¡±


    Upon seeing the unfamiliar face that belonged to Long Chen and faced with Liu Lan¡¯s back, Jin Sheng¡¯en had no idea who he was but could guess that Long Chen was nobody special. He was already holding a grudge.


    Just as he finished speaking, a sharp, prating re was fixed on Long Chen.


    Long Chen could feel a very pointed aura. It was as if Jin Sheng¡¯en was a very sharp sword, and while the two of them were not physically close, the edged tip from Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s aura had stabbed at him.


    Feeling little beads of blood already seeping from the surface of his skin, Long Chen was certain that this was no ident.


    If Long Chen had some status and damaged his reputation, Jin Sheng¡¯en had nothing to say. However, it was merely a kid at the Human Dan Realm who had done challenged him. The nerve of this kid!


    Hence, he had not been the least bit apprehensive while kicking down the door. Letting the power of his Gilding Physique explode, he advanced towards Long Chen.


    ¡°He¡¯s able to injure me just by standing in front of me. Is this the power of the high profound-grade battle technique, the Gilding Physique?¡±


    Long Chen was surprised but unafraid. If he hade here alone, he might have had some reservations about challenging Jin Sheng¡¯en like he had just then. However, he had Liu Lan around.


    As expected, Liu Lan had already stood up and turned, her sweet face and devilish figure facing Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    At the sight of such a beauty, the handsome Jin Sheng¡¯en visibly gulped and was about to say something, but suddenly found her incredibly familiar. Taking a closer look, he found that it was the woman Chu Yunxi liked.


    ¡°This kid is the Long Chen that Chu Yunxi spoke of?¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en immediately realised who they were. He had nned on teaching Long Chen a lesson and take the Demonic Blood Soul Essence. However, with Liu Lan around, this n was not viable.


    Even if he ignored the issue regarding the essence, Jin Sheng¡¯en could not let the matter rting to Chu Yunxi go like this.


    ¡°And here I was wondering who it was¡­ so it¡¯s the shameless couple. What¡¯s your purpose ining out here today? Finding a ce to embarrass yourselves?¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en might look cultured, but his words were difficult to bear. Hearing this, Liu Lan immediately revealed an expression of disgust as she spat out, ¡°I¡¯ve long since heard rumours of the little prince¡¯s uncultured speech, which is very unbing of someone of your status. What I¡¯m seeing is truly an eye-opener.¡±


    In terms of bickering, she might not be able to win against Long Chen, but Jin Sheng¡¯en had been the first to humiliate them. She was not so easily bullied.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en was beginning to get angry, but he knew that he had no chances of winning against her. If they were to fight here, the Daybreak Merchants Union might flip out, which was why he could only swallow his anger and mocked Long Chen while looking away from Liu Lan, ¡°I¡¯ve long since heard of Liu Lan¡¯s flirtatious ways. It¡¯s quite hrious that someone would like a loose woman like her¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t back down, ¡°Why does it sound like a case of a fox saying grapes are sour when it couldn¡¯t reach them? Chu Yunxi seems to be that fox.¡±


    (TLN: There¡¯s a story about how a fox wanted to get some delicious grapes and couldn¡¯t reach it no matter what it did, so it gave up and said the grapes were sour to make itself feel better about not obtaining them.)


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    He¡¯d thought Long Chen to be a lucky gigolo with Liu Lan providing for him. However, knowing Long Chen had had the nerve to go against him, Jin Sheng¡¯en immediately revealed his murderous intentions.


    His previous words had been a huge blow to Liu Lan. She knew she didn¡¯t have a very good reputation, but no matter how strong her heart was, she was still affected by his biting words. However, with Long Chen¡¯s reply, all feelings of hurt dissipated, and she was able tough.


    She shot Long Chen a look of gratitude, eyes still holding bewilderment.


    ¡°I¡¯ve made myself extremely clear. I believe Young Master Jin should, by right, be able to understand something so simple, yes? I think even swine should be able to understand.¡±


    Long Chen spoke nonchntly while smiling.


    ¡°Pfft!¡± Liu Lan covered her mouth andughed femininely.


    Their reactions were the ultimate insult to the little prince of the Gold Faction. His fists were now tightly clenched, eyes turning blood-red.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you wishing for death?¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en spat out. Long Chen had expected him to make a move, but in the end, Jin Sheng¡¯en had restrained himself.


    This level of endurance worried Long Chen. The little prince wasn¡¯t as impulsive or stupid as he appeared. On the contrary, he was very intelligent and did notck patience.


    An opponent like this and of such strength was extremely terrifying.


    ¡°If there¡¯s nothing else, please leave. I doubt you don¡¯t know how impolite it is to disturb a couple when they¡¯re enjoying each other¡¯spany.¡±


    Long Chen did not yield.


    ¡°Good, good!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en snickered and watched Liu Lan, and then Long Chen. ¡°What a great shameless couple. You¡¯re definitely despicable enough! Long Chen, was it? I heard that you¡¯re going to participate in the inner faction selection. I hope you¡¯ll be able to return to the Green Faction alive, or else this woman might fool around when she starts feeling lonely¡­¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that, I¡¯m definitely able to satisfy her.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s expression was very natural here, but Lingxi couldn¡¯t take it anymore. He suddenly felt a piercing pain at his ear, and could only grit his teeth and bear it.


    ¡°How could I forget this little devil was still around!¡±


    Meanwhile, Jing Sheng¡¯en, who had noticed that Long Chen was still unperturbed by the threats, could feel his thirst for blood rising.


    He could only suppress the anger he felt and sneered, ¡°Since you aren¡¯t afraid of death, let me tell you something else. For the first part of the inner faction selection, I am Chu Yunxi¡¯s teammate. I¡¯m pretty sure nobody¡¯s willing to be yours, right? Haha¡­¡±


    Whileughing, he spoke to Liu Lan after a quick nce at Long Chen, ¡°Bitch, I¡¯ll make sure you see him kneeling before me, begging for mercy in front of everyone. I might even let him off he does that¡­¡±


    Snickering, Jin Sheng¡¯en turned and left thepartment elegantly.


    The powerful aura that had been pressurising Long Chen disappeared.


    Long Chen found that from Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s powerful Gilded Physique, there were already tens of fine injuries on his body, as if he had been pricked by needles.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    Seeing the traces of blood on Long Chen¡¯s face, Liu Lan asked worriedly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    Lightly rubbing the blood away, these tiny injuries disappeared under Origin Reversion in moments.


    ¡°Are you satisfied now?¡±


    Rolling her eyes at Long Chen, Liu Lan took a seat bonelessly, eyes full of despair.


    ¡°Initially, you had the beast spirit and crystals. If you didn¡¯t offend Jin Sheng¡¯en, you might just have a chance, but things are different now. You have nothing left. How can youpare with Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en, whose battle strength is nearlyparable to the perfect mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm?¡±


    Long Chenughed but made no exnation. There were some things that needed no exnation, and only required actions.


    ¡°Looks like you aren¡¯t feeling the pressure yet¡­¡±


    Liu Lan shook her head helplessly.


    ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s something I didn¡¯t tell you because I¡¯d thought it would stress you out.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Liu Lan¡¯s grim expression was making Long Chen nervous.


    Liu Lan pursed her lips and looked at Long Chen, ¡°It¡¯s about your sister entering the inner faction.¡±


    At the mention of Yang Lingqing, Long Chen had a very bad feeling about this. He questioned closely, ¡°What can happen to Lingqing?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand how things are in the inner faction. Most of the people there were originally of the inner faction, with their surnames of Dongfang, Ximen, Nangong and Beitang. For the past few years, the Lingwu inner faction has been taking in new blood from the outer faction, and from what I know, all of the girls who enter, and have eptable appearances be targets for the young and talented in the inner faction to fight over. Male cultivators are usually sent straight to the Lingwu inner faction. Do you understand what I mean?¡±


    Long Chen furrowed his brows, ¡°You¡¯re saying that in order to prevent the members of the outer faction who have entered the inner faction from differing from the inner faction, they have found a way to make these outer faction memberspletely theirs. This is through making the outer faction members family and therefore tying them firmly to the inner faction,pletely bing one of them. Is that right?¡±


    ¡°Exactly. Basically, as long as you enter the inner faction, you must marry someone in there.¡±


    In other words, if Long Chen entered the inner faction, his future wife would be someone of the inner faction. Of course, men were allowed to take on multiple wives, and if Long Chen was truly powerful, it was possible to take other wives.


    Liu Yuan initially did have such ns. If Chu Yunxi entered the inner faction, he would allow Liu Lan to be Chu Yunxi¡¯s wife, but she would definitely not be his main wife.


    This was the reason why Liu Lan had not chosen Chu Yunxi.


    It was impossible for a prideful woman like her to share her husband with someone else.


    Meanwhile, Long Chen was not thinking about himself, but Yang Lingqing.


    ¡°In other words, Lingqing will marry into the Beitang Family even if she isn¡¯t willing to do so?¡±


    At this thought, he frowned deeper.


    Liu Lan nodded. ¡°Exactly. You still remember Beitang Mo, right? After hearing that Yang Lingqing had the Abstruse Shadow Body, he immediately rushed to the Crimson Blood Sacred Sect. His intentions were actually very clear. He will groom Yang Lingqing as quickly as he can and marry her¡­¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s expression turned iparably dark.

 Chapter 151 – Earth Dan Realm

    ¡°Beitang Mo?¡±


    The figure of that cold, stern young man rose in Long Chen¡¯s mind.


    In the past, Long Chen had actually revered Beitang Mo¡¯s terrifying strength, but with Liu Lan¡¯s words, he was now desiring the man¡¯s life.


    ¡°If Lingqing isn¡¯t keen, nobody can force her. Not even if you¡¯re Beitang Mo.¡±


    Though that was what he was thinking, Yang Lingqing waspletely powerless aspared to Beitang Mo, an expert who was even above everyone else. She had no right to choose, and if the other party used force, she could only endure silently.


    Honestly speaking, when Liu Lan had said this, Long Chen had been very anxious. He even had the urge to charge into the inner faction and take Yang Lingqing away from that ce and let her have a good life elsewhere. Now, however, he had yet to reach that level of strength.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re panicking. If it were my sister, I¡¯d be just as anxious, but Long Chen, you need to understand that power is everything. With the way you are now, you can¡¯t be of any help to your sister, and might even pull her down¡­¡±


    Liu Lan sighed and spoke helplessly.


    ¡°¡­ I¡¯d thought that with the beast spirit and crystals, you¡¯d have a chance to enter the inner faction. Once you get in, you¡¯ll have the opportunity to gain strength rapidly, and only then will you have a say in what happens to your sister. It¡¯s a pity that you¡¯ve wasted this chance, so I don¡¯t know what to do either. I¡¯ve already done the best I could, so you¡¯ll have to make a choice about what you¡¯re going to do¡­¡±


    At this point, Liu Lan had given up.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Go back and prepare well. Five dayster, it will be the first day of the eleventh month. The battle of the inner faction selection.¡±


    ¡°When the timees, you can only pray that Beitang Mo will treat your sister sincerely, and that she falls in love with him.¡±


    Long Chen took a deep breath and raised his head.


    Of course, when he did so, Liu Lan was able to see the sharp glint in his eyes.


    She was slightly dazed and wondered, ¡°Under such pressure, is he still so confident?¡±


    Puzzled, she walked ahead of him.


    Long Chen clenched his fists and watched Liu Lan leaving, gracefully moving her body. However, his thoughts were not on her at all.


    ¡°Lingqing, I¡¯ve said this before. As long as I¡¯m around, nobody can force you to do anything.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    Back to the Green Willow Residence, Long Chen spoke to Liu Lan nonchntly, ¡°In the next five days, nobody is allowed to disturb me unless Ie out.¡±


    In Liu Lan¡¯s eyes, Long Chen, who had abandoned the beast spirit, had little hope. She did not have any reaction when Long Chen spoke, taking it as Long Chen¡¯sst attempt at a struggle.


    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll tell the rest not to bother you.¡±


    Having said this, Liu Lan left to deal with her own matters.


    Initially, having obtained the Demonic Blood Soul Essence, Long Chen had been extremely excited, but Yang Lingqing¡¯s issues had increased his stress levels.


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m still here. I won¡¯t let Sister Lingqing get bullied¡­¡±


    Seeing the stern look on Long Chen¡¯s face, Lingxi immediately consoled him once they returned to the residence.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, Lingxi. Just enjoy yourself. I¡¯m going to use blood transmutation and refine the blood, and then try to reach the Earth Dan Realm.¡±


    Seeing him in a bad mood, Lingxi was very anxious, her little face tight and full of concern.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I want to do something so that they can¡¯t look down on me.¡±


    Seeing the young man¡¯s expression so calm as he headed to the basement, it was evident from his tone that he was feeling unresigned. He was clearly nning to make a stand and fight, which left Lingxi in a daze.


    At this point, Long Chen was already seated on a mat and took the Demonic Blood Soul Essence out.


    ¡°There¡¯s still some blood inside the essence, and it¡¯s even purer than fresh blood. That makes it even more suitable to perform blood transmutation with.¡±


    After refining quite a few level 4 profound-grade demonic beasts, Long Chen was now slightly nearer to the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°It should be now¡­¡±


    Opening his mouth wide, he swallowed the soul essence whole into his stomach, the solid quickly melting into a clear liquid that flowed into Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°Blood Transmutation!¡±


    Under the heaven-defying technique of blood transmutation, this pure energy was quickly absorbed by Long Chen, filling the gaps in his dantian with real Qi within.


    Shrouded by crimson lightning and mes, the Human Dan that had condensed with boundless real Qi gradually expanded and strengthened.


    ¡°There still lies a huge gap between the Human and Earth Dan Realm. Even if the next stage might seem close, there¡¯s still arge difference.¡±


    Long Chen wanted to step across this huge gulf, but it was obviously not so simple. However, with the Demonic Blood Soul Essence, things became easier.


    Under the powerful devouring of blood transmutation, the strength in the soul essence rapidly revolved towards the crimson Dragon Soul Qi, and continued for a period of time.


    The Demonic Blood Soul Essence might not seem big, but the energy held within was not little. While devouring it, Long Chen gradually reached the limit.


    ¡°I¡¯m about to break through.¡±


    Currently, within Long Chen¡¯s dantian, outside the Human Dan was Dragon Soul Qi that had beenpressed till it was almost a liquid form. The Dragon Soul Qi was like the Yellow River, constantly rushing and orbiting the Human Dan at the middle.


    ¡°The records have stated that when a Human Dan advances to the Earth Dan Realm, it will first be smashed. All real Qi will circle through the dragon veins, and then converge in the dantian again, forming an even more resilient Earth Dan!¡±


    Now, under the pressure from real Qi, the Human Dan, that had already been formed, shattered with a bang. Real Qi gushed out and advanced in the nine great dragon veins, as well as the countless fine channels in the body!


    In that moment, Long Chen¡¯s skin turnedpletely red, causing Lingxi to get a huge shock. She was about to make a move, but recalling how she had attained the Deity Dan Realm long ago and how it had been a simr situation, she knew Long Chen was fine.


    While this was happening, Long Chen used Dragon Soul Transformation and turned into his dragon form.


    Whether it was his scalic armour, flesh, muscles, organs or veins, all of them were much more powerful than before. Long Chen¡¯s body was now full of real Qi colliding with each other. Now that he was in his dragon form, it made the process to attain his Earth Dan simpler.


    ¡°This dragon form is truly powerful. What¡¯s inside my body is real Qi from the Earth Dan Realm, and its quality is ten times better than before. However, I¡¯m actually able to control it!¡±


    Long Chen was delighted. Trying to attain the Earth Dan was the most important part, which was why he was nowpletely focused.


    ¡°That¡¯s about it. All the real Qi will now enter the dantian!¡±


    At this moment, real Qi divided into countless channels, making a round in Long Chen¡¯s body, nourishing his flesh and muscles. After which, they unified and charged straight towards his dantian!


    This was probably how it looked when a hundred rivers gushed into the ocean.


    The dust where Long Chen was sitting, flew in all directions from the ground as crimson real Qi spilled out of his frame like a giant bloody cocoon, wrapping Long Chen inside.


    ¡°The crucial moment!¡±


    With a rumble, real Qi flowed into his dantian and began to move in all directions violently.


    While this happened, the real Qi was beginning to fuse at a lightning-quick rate, and for practically every hundred gaseous particles of real Qi collided, they would form a portion of solidified real Qi!


    First, a crimson core appeared in Long Chen¡¯s dantian. Following that, real Qi revolved around the core until all the real Qi finished with their haphazard movements, andpletely turned into solidified real Qi!


    In Long Chen¡¯s dantian, within the crimson fog, an Earth Dan the size of a thumb could vaguely be seen.


    ¡°I¡¯ve finally reached the Earth Dan Realm!¡±


    The blood cocoon broke open and Long Chen stood up. He, who had broken through, had experienced a ground-breaking change in his aura. Each movement, each gaze, was filled with something only the powerful possessed.


    ¡°The Earth Dan Realm. Aspared to before, I¡¯ve gotten ten or so times stronger than before. With this quantity of real Qi, my Thunder me Physique and the Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, do I still have to fear Chu Yunxi?¡±


    After estimating andparing their strengths, Long Chenughed.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll give you a surprise in the inner faction selection¡­¡±


    Long Chen had found much difficulty in breaking through to the Earth Dan Realm. Recently, he had been soaring through his cultivation, and only now did he realise the difficulty in this process.


    ¡°While cultivating, the heart must be resolute and patient, but I have been in too much of a hurry. Looks like steadying myself is the only way to achieve victory at the end.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Lingxi hovered around Long Chen and circled him as she sized him up and down. Excitedly, she eximed, ¡°You¡¯ve already reached the Earth Dan Realm. I wasn¡¯t wrong, was I? That Demonic Blood Soul Essence was useful!¡±


    Since he had broken through to the Earth Dan Realm, Long Chen was feeling lighter and rxed. From Lingxi¡¯s excited expression, he knew that she must have been standing by him, watching on anxiously. She must have been especially worried, and he felt his heart ache at the knowledge. Watching her dotingly, he spoke, ¡°Little Xi, you¡¯ve been amazing. Looks like I¡¯ll have to reward you well!¡±


    ¡°How are you going to reward me? You¡¯re so naughty, hehe.¡±


    ¡°How about I give up my body to you. Look at all this skin and tender flesh. Are you keen?¡± Long Chen teased.


    ¡°Of course not. You¡¯re so ugly and not my cup of tea!¡± Lingxi¡¯s eyes went wide, not going along with Long Chen.


    He chuckled in answer, full of anticipation at the thought of the inner faction selection that would take ce five dayster.


    ¡°This time, I must seed, no matter the price! I can wait, but Lingqing can¡¯t wait¡­¡±


    ¡°But before that, there¡¯s something else I need to do.¡±


    Long Chen sat down once more in the basement.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Lingxi asked.


    Long Chen took out all the Thunder me Crystals. Lingxi had stolen 47 from Zhao Tianfang, and with the one Long Chen had fused with, it came up to 48 crystals. He had fused with 30 and was left with 18, and with the 10 from the auction, he now had 28 Thunder me Crystals.


    ¡°Little Xi, do you think I¡¯ll be able to attain the level 2 Thunder me Physique with this number of crystals?¡±


    Would a level 2 Thunder me Physique lose out to the Gilded Physique?

 Chapter 152 – Level 2 Thunder Flame Physique

    From the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm to the Earth Dan Realm, Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Soul Qi had increased in strength by tenfold. The Dragon Soul Qi before had been enough to suppress 30 Thunder me Crystals and, now that the quantity of his Qi had increased, Leylin was sure he could fuse with the rest of the crystals and reach the second level of the Thunder me Physique!


    Honestly speaking, he could somewhat tell he was about to break through.


    ¡°Fusion with Thunder me Crystals would mean bearing arge amount of pain. If not for my dragon form and Origin Reversion, it would be impossible for me to bear the pain whenever I reached my limit.¡±


    Long Chen knew he was extremely lucky. He had blood transmutation and many heaven-defying techniques, and yet still found the path of cultivation difficult.


    ¡°If nothing goes wrong, these Thunder me Crystals can help you form the level 2 Thunder me Physique, but Long Chen, you can¡¯t force yourself too much. That¡¯s risky.¡±


    Lingxi was concerned.


    In this period of time, she had actually matured a lot.


    ¡°The 31st¡­¡±


    Using his real Qi, he could naturally fuse Thunder me Crystals into his body. Blue mes and lightning entered Long Chen¡¯s body, and immediately induced the force from the rest of the Thunder me Crystals he had already fused with to attack, resulting in a wild destruction going on inside. After being destroyed, his body would be ¡®reborn¡¯.


    With the effects of Origin Reversion, Long Chen¡¯s ¡®rebirth¡¯ was much faster than others.


    He found that real Qi of the Earth Dan Realm made it easier to deal with the crystals. With practically no effort, he had fused with this crystal.


    Feeling the obvious progress, Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Next.¡±


    After fusing with 30 or so crystals, Long Chen¡¯s body had begun to develop a certain resistance to them. In other words, the harm they caused him was not like before, and yet still had its body-tempering effects.


    ¡°Fusing with Thunder me Crystals has be much easier than before¡­¡±


    Long Chen was surprised.


    Time slowly passed. One crystal another was fused into Long Chen¡¯s body. The crystals in front of him slowly decreased in quantity, and nearing the end, the time needed for Long Chen to fuse with the crystals increased. However, the longest time was still nothing like before.


    ¡°The 49th crystal took me a whole day. Though a day isn¡¯t a long time, it really was rather scary just now!¡±


    Recalling the fusion process, Long Chen was scared witless.


    There were still 9 more crystals.


    ¡°Luckily, Liu Lan got me 10 more. If not, I still wouldn¡¯t be able to attain the next level of the Thunder me Physique, but now¡­¡±


    Long Chen could feel that he was just a short distance away from level 2.


    ¡°The 50th Thunder me Crystal should be the key.¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen was feeling abnormally calm. The more crucial the moment, the more he needed such a state of mind.


    ¡°That crystal was slightly dangerous for you. Long Chen, are you sure you want to fuse with another?¡±


    Lingxi stood amidst the other crystals. Though her body was smaller than the crystals, she could obviously increase her size, but that would consume much soul force.


    Taking a deep breath, Long Chen nodded. ¡°Sess or failure depends on the next crystal. How can I give up at this point?¡±


    Hearing him speak so calmly, Lingxi began to pity him. She knew that he was shouldering far too much weight on his shoulders.


    On one end, there were her issues, and then Lingqing. On top of that, Mo Xiang. Many people were not allowing him to lively peacefully, and if he was not sessful in the inner faction selection, Long Chen was finished.


    With no power, whether it was Chu Yunxi or Jin Sheng¡¯en, they could eliminate him easily.


    ¡°Little Xi, move away.¡±


    Long Chen picked up the 50th crystal and kept the other 8.


    In these three days or so, he had fused with a total of 19 crystals, and the efficiency was much higher than before.


    ¡°I hope I can take care of this crystal before the selection. If even this isn¡¯t enough to reach the next level, I won¡¯t need the rest for now.¡±


    Long Chen thought mournfully.


    Lingxi obediently hid at the side of the room, furrowing her brows. All of a sudden, she suddenly beamed, ted, ¡°By the way, how could I have forgotten this move? It¡¯s a high profound-grade technique, and Long Chen can definitely train in it!¡±


    Long Chen obviously could not hear what she was saying in her mind, and was prepared to try thisst crystal.


    Raising the crystal, he used his real Qi and began the fusion process.


    The Thunder me Crystal with lightning and mes twining around it transformed into a liquid after making contact with the real Qi. It mixed into Long Chen¡¯s body, but all of a sudden, his brows furrowed!


    ¡°As expected, it¡¯s ten times more intense than before. If I can take it, it¡¯s sure to end quickly!¡±


    When the 50th crystal entered his body, it was as if wind and lightning were rapidly whistling in his body, quickly swirling all the crystals he had already fused with like hurricanes in his body. They spun quickly, and no matter where they went, muscle and bone were churned into powder.


    This was just the start, and this was already a level of pain Long Chen had never experienced. His expression immediately began to distort, and it was obvious how much pain he was in.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen in this state, Lingxi was suddenly anxious. Just as she was about to approach him, a web of lightning fluttered towards her, fire zing around it.


    Lingxi hastily dodged.


    This lightning web of fire had exploded from Long Chen¡¯s body, and apanying it was Long Chen¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯te close!¡±


    Long Chen definitely had to be suffering from the inhuman torture, but he was stubbornly not letting her get close. Lingxi was on the verge of tears.


    On one end, she was concerned about Long Chen, but on the other, she had no idea if her actions would interrupt the process.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you alright¡­¡±


    Lingxi¡¯s little face was slightly pale, and it was obvious that Long Chen was not in a very good state.


    At this moment, the force of lightning and thunder suddenly exploded from Long Chen¡¯s body!


    *Rumble!*


    Crimson mes rose on his body, and the red lightning wound around his body as it leapt. Soon enough, two forces wrapped around him and formed a bundle of crimson lightning with mes. It was then that Lingxipletely lost contact with Long Chen.


    How could she not be worried?


    She anxiously went to and fro in the room, unsure of whether she should do anything. If she did not act, Long Chen might very well die because of herck of action. If she did, she still had no idea of what to do, and was afraid it might affect Long Chen¡¯s concentration.


    ¡°Trust me. I¡¯m fine.¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen¡¯s calm voice sounded by Lingxi¡¯s ear. If Lingxi had tears, they would be streaming down her face by now after hearing that.


    ¡°You bastard, all you know is to make others worry. If you do this again, just see if I care about your life or death!¡±


    Lingxi was at a loss while watching this young man doing his utmost.


    There had been such a huge change in her life, and if not for Long Chen¡¯s appearance, she might have died long ago, her traces wiped out from this world.


    When it came down to it, Long Chen was her saviour, and having been with him all the time, it was impossible for there not be any strange feelings between them, a male and a female.


    ¡°What should I do? Mother¡­ Where is my future¡­¡±


    Watching Long Chen, Lingxi suddenly felt an emptiness in her heart.


    This feeling left her frightened.


    All of a sudden, a bundle of lightning and mes exploded, and it seemed that the room would be destroyed soon!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Under Lingxi¡¯s panicked cries, the mes and lightning withdrew and were swallowed by a figure. Long Chen¡¯s figure gradually became clearer before Lingxi¡¯s eyes.


    Long Chen had now undergone arge transformation,pared to when he had just broken through to the Earth Dan Realm. He was still in his dragon form, though, and it was impossible to see his original appearance.


    However, just from the mes and lightning that seemed to flow in his eyes, as well as the glint of his body that now had an aura simr to a sharp de, Lingxi knew that he had seeded!


    The fusion with the 50th crystal had taken a short period of time, but this had almost taken Long Chen¡¯s life.


    The fusion this time was iparably dangerous, but Long Chen had pulled through.


    It was because of the faith in his heart.


    In front of Long Chen, Lingxi was crying andughing at the same time while sizing him up and down.


    ¡°Girl, after seeing my level 2 Thunder me Physique, how many times is your heart beating per minute?¡±


    Long Chen burst outughing.


    ¡°You scoundrel!¡±


    Lingxi red at him resentfully and hit him a few times. When she herself was in pain, she grumbled for a while more before asking craftily, ¡°Hey, I have a high profound-grade battle technique. Do you want to learn it?¡±


    ¡°Huh? When have you ever had a high profound-grade battle technique?¡±


    Lingxi was beginning to get embarrassed. ¡°It¡¯s from when I was young. My daddy had let me learn it for fun, and I¡¯d thought I¡¯d forgotten about it. Somehow, I identally remembered it just now¡­¡±


    identally remembering it?


    Long Chen rolled his eyes, ¡°Cut the bullshit. Give it to your big brother.¡±


    ¡°What big brother?¡± Lingxi rolled her eyes at him, pleased with herself, ¡°I¡¯ll only give it to you if you call me big sister. Hmph!¡±

 Chapter 153 – Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit!

    There were two more days till the inner faction selection.


    With Long Chen¡¯s usual speed, merely two days was not enough for him topletely learn a high profound-grade battle technique. However, since Lingxi was the owner of this technique and had some experience from training in it before, he somehow managed toplete it with his natural aptitude, and her step-by-step guidance.


    ¡°The high profound-grade battle technique, Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit¡­¡±


    The power of this move definitely surpassed that of Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, and was now Long Chen¡¯s strongest attack.


    This was a finger technique, as well as a sword technique. Long Chen had once cultivated in the Nine Fingers of the Wind Devil, and also seen the Dark Heavenly Finger of the Bai family. However, these two finger techniques were definitely inferior to Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit.


    It required fusing a powerful sword technique with a finger technique, and was employed with a finger. Though this would somewhat lower its strength, the force it had was definitely powerful.


    Though he had not actually used it before, just the activity of his real Qi while he had been cultivating told Long Chen that the Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit was a first-ss technique. It was no wonder that it was a high profound-grade battle technique.


    This was also Long Chen¡¯s first high profound-grade battle technique!


    After he understood Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit, Lingxi returned to the Lingxi Sword to continue her cultivation. Meanwhile, Long Chen went outside and enjoyed the resplendent starlight alone.


    ¡°Now that I¡¯m at the Earth Dan Realm, my real Qi isparable to that in the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm after Dragon Soul Transformation. Even the most powerful person in the inner faction selection, Jin Sheng¡¯en, is merely at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. In terms of real Qi, there isn¡¯t arge gap.¡±


    While deep in thought and watching the starry skies, Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°A level 2 Thunder me Physique isparable to a high profound-grade constitution technique. Would it lose to the Gilding Physique? On top of that, I have my high profound-grade Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit. Chu Yunxi, Jin Sheng¡¯en, if you want me to kneel before you or kill me in the inner faction selection, then just wait.¡±


    Stretching his body while the night air blew, Long Chen felt more rxed.


    ¡°My strength has increased by arge margin. I¡¯ll make sure those of you who look down on me will be taken aback. And then¡­¡±


    Recalling Liu Lan¡¯s slim body, Long Chen burst out intoughter. ¡°I wonder if she remembers what she said? As long as I pass the inner faction selection¡­¡±


    In the night breeze, Long Chen was in high spirits.


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    The first day of the eleventh month.


    It was a day bustling with noise and excitement, and the day of a rare event.


    The Lingwu Family was split into the two inner and outer factions. The inner faction had jurisdiction over the outer faction, with the outer faction depending on them for their existence.


    Everyone knew that the true core of the Lingwu Family was the inner faction.


    The geniuses of the outer faction would do all they could to make their way into the inner faction. The only means of doing so was through the inner faction selection, and this day, the first day of the eleventh month, was when it would take ce.


    Out of the twenty seeded participants, only two talented disciples would be able to pass the selection and enter the influential ns of the Lingwu Family.


    On this day, Long Chen left his residence early.


    There were already many people waiting outside. They were all well-known in the Green Sun Hall, and the person at the front was naturally Liu Yuan, who was at the Heaven Dan Realm. Beside him were the enforcers and elders at the Earth Dan Realm, as well as many other Earth Dan Realm disciples.


    These were the peak forces of the Green Sun Hall.


    When he had just entered the Lingwu Family, Long Chen might have been fearful of this level of strength, but now, being weed by so many people, he felt no pressure. It was obvious how fast his progress was.


    Though it was difficult for Long Chen to enter the inner faction, he was the Green Sun Hall¡¯s pride for being able to obtain qualifications to participate in the selection.


    Honestly speaking, not considering Feng Wutian, who had been the illegitimate child of someone in the inner faction, Long Chen was the second talent who had obtained the qualifications, the first being Liu Lan.


    This was more than enough to prove Long Chen¡¯s talent.


    He might have no prospects of entering the inner faction, but Liu Yuan was extremely content. He watched Long Chen, who seemed full of vigour, andughed brightly, ¡°Long Chen, it¡¯s your big day today. In the outer factions, only 20 out of thousands of young talents obtain the qualification to participate in the inner faction selection!¡±


    Seeing this old man not furious with him, Long Chen knew that Liu Lan had not told him about the matter of him selling the Purple Enchanted Dragon beast spirit.


    For this reason, he nced at Liu Lan. She was now standing beside Liu Yuan silently, and being an eye-catching, elegant beauty.


    Feeling Long Chen¡¯s eyes on her, she turned. It was obvious that she still held intense feelings of dissatisfaction and disappointment towards Long Chen. It seemed that she was still keeping the matter about selling the beast spirit at heart.


    ¡°Go. You shouldn¡¯t bete. I¡¯ll bring you to see the grand elder of the Green Faction in the Green Emperor Hall!¡±


    It was the big day of the Green Sun Hall. Liu Yuan now had some face in front of the other great elders, and he was practically glowing.


    ¡°Escorting the Great Elder!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, good luck! Bring glory to our Green Sun Hall! Even if you don¡¯t enter the inner faction, you have to persevere and get through the first stage!¡±


    ¡°Yes. As long as you¡¯re more shrewd and evade your opponent as much as you can, you still have a chance at the Divergent Road.¡±


    Those following Long Chen to the inner faction selection battle were only Liu Yuan and Liu Lan.


    It made sense that the father and daughter pair were in rich attire. Liu Lan had put effort into her looks, with her skirt fluttering in the wind, hair done up, eyes clear and passionate.


    ¡°She¡¯s put so much effort into her looks. Is she trying to send me a signal?¡±


    Long Chen ndered and bid the others of the Green Sun Hall goodbye. With Liu Yuan¡¯s enthusiastic lead, they left the Green Sun Hall.


    After Long Chen had left, the other elders and enforcers stopped waving their arms and exchanged gazes.


    ¡°Everyone, do you think Long Chen will be able to create a miracle?¡±


    At the thought of the strength of the other participants, they shook their heads. ¡°It¡¯s glorious enough that he¡¯s obtained an opportunity to participate. I just hope he can preserve this glory and not be defeated too miserably. Only then would Great Elder¡¯s attempts at nurturing him not be in vain.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­


    ¡°By the way, Long Chen, have you already refined the beast spirit?¡±


    Not long after leaving the Green Sun Hall, Liu Yuan, whose long beard was flowing in the wind couldn¡¯t hold himself back and asked.


    Long Chen was surprised and took a look at the cold Liu Lan. Confidently, he answered, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Great Elder. How could I let you down?¡±


    From Long Chen¡¯s words, it meant he¡¯d already refined the beast spirit. In that case, Long Chen might not have a good chance at the selection, but as long as he could disy an extraordinary performance and give Liu Yuan a better reputation, Liu Yuan was satisfied.


    Long Chen was brazenly lying to Liu Yuan, and Liu Lan found this behaviour shameless.


    ¡°What¡¯s the point of lying to my father now? When you¡¯re under attack and can¡¯t even use your beast transformation, how embarrassing would it be for you, Long Chen?¡±


    Liu Lan could notprehend why Long Chen, who had once stunned her, needed to lie in order to maintain his reputation as a genius.


    At this thought, Liu Lan stood ahead of Long Chen, a cold smile on her face.


    ¡°Is that so? Does that mean you¡¯re done with it? Long Chen, why don¡¯t you try transforming now? Let me admire the beast transformation of the Purple Enchanted Dragon and see how it is.¡±


    Long Chenughed in embarrassment, ¡°Grand Elder, there¡¯s no need for that. You bestowed the beast spirit to me, and if I use it in the inner faction selection and defeat my opponent, you¡¯ll feel more aplished!¡±


    Long Chen was now practically a treasure in Liu Yuan¡¯s heart. Since Long Chen had spoken, he did not want to lose his demeanour as a grand elder despite his curiosity, and waved his arms elegantly, ¡°Do as you like!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Grand Elder!¡±


    Upon hearing this, Liu Lan, who was walking ahead, could only remain silent.


    While she wanted to turn back and scold Long Chen, she pondered over it and realised there was no need to.


    ¡°Since this is the type of person he is, let him die on his own. What¡¯s the point of caring about him?¡±


    Shaking her head, Liu Lan maintained her cool look.


    Behind her, Long Chen watched her as she swung her hips while walking. How could he not know what she was thinking?


    ¡°When the timees, let me give this idiotic woman a surprise. How dare you use me as a shield. It¡¯s not my style if I don¡¯t teach you a lesson!¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen smirked inside and asked Liu Yuan, who was beside him, ¡°Grand Elder, what is this Divergent Road?¡±


    ¡°I was going to speak to you about the inner faction selection, and you ended up asking first. Don¡¯t worry and let me exin it to you slowly.¡±


    Liu Yuan cleared his throat, ¡°The inner faction selection is no different from before. There are a total of two stages, and they are the Divergent Road, and Nest of Life and Death.¡±


    ¡°Divergent Road and Nest of Life and Death?¡±


    ¡°Yes. The inner faction selection will not be held in the Lingwu City nor in the Sky Martial Realm. It will be held to the west of the Yuanling City, and at the border of the Yuanling Region, in the mountains of the Nine Devil Mountain. More specifically, the Devil Mountain of Life and Death within the Nine Devil Mountain.¡±


    ¡°So it¡¯s not in Yuanling City?¡±


    Long Chen was surprised. The scale of the inner faction selection was so enormous, that the location was even at the borders of the Yuanling Region, within the Nine Devil Mountain.


    ¡°The Devil Mountain of Life and Death reaches as high as over ten thousand metres and is vast, reaching the heavens and is unusually tall. At the peak, there exists countless devil nests, and are known as the Nests of Life and Death. This is a ruthless training area for life and death experiences. Not only are there vicious demonic beasts there, the terrain is also very treacherous. That¡¯s why the inner faction selection is held there.¡±


    A peak of over ten thousand metres! Long Chen had never heard of it before. This showed how powerful the Lingwu Family was.


    Just an inner faction selection required one to head to a ce with a name that would inspire terror.


    ¡°Now, I shall exin the two stages, the Divergent Road and Nest of Life and Death. First, the Divergent Road!¡±


    Liu Yuan looked solemn, and this serious attitude was probably so that Long Chen would take this inner faction selection more seriously.

 Chapter 154 – Divergent Road

    If he¡¯d known there were so many rules in the inner faction selection, Long Chen would have asked Liu Yuan earlier, which would leave him more prepared.


    The reason why Liu Yuan had not searched for him and told him these rules was probably because he had told Liu Lan not to let anyone disturb him, right before he shut himself in seclusion.


    However, as long as he had strength, he could take on any sudden changes. Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯ve taken part in the outer faction selection before. There¡¯s not much difference between the inner and outer faction selection, though the format has been reinforced.¡±


    ¡°The Divergent Road is a pathway up the Devil Mountain of Life and Death. In a way, it¡¯s a pathway to the heavens. On the Divergent Road, not only is the terrain treacherous, with demonic beasts wandering around and poisonous bugs spanning across the area, there¡¯s also the obstruction from opponents. It¡¯s extremely dangerous. On top of that, the weather is terrible on the Nine Devil Mountain, and there are hurricanes, storms, lightning and thunder from time to time. That¡¯s why you need to be especially cautious on the path.¡±


    Having said all these, Liu Yuan took a slight rest and continued, ¡°After getting to the Divergent Road, you¡¯ll be divided into ten groups of two. Before embarking on the path, you will be given two items.¡±


    ¡°The first is a firework signal. I¡¯m sure you can understand what that is. If you meet any danger that you can¡¯t handle, or you¡¯re being forced in a situation where there¡¯s no way out, you can use it. There are people of the inner faction stationed nearby, so as long as you set it off, you can basically save yourself.¡±


    ¡°However, so long as you set it off, you¡¯re basically forfeiting yourself out of the selection. Use it only as ast resort. If you really can¡¯t handle it though, then set it off. That way, you can ensure your safety.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going to happen if the other party doesn¡¯t let me off even after I set off the signal? What happens if they try their utmost to kill me?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible.¡±


    Liu Yuan chuckled, ¡°The others know the rules better than you do. If the firework signal is released and the other party still acts, they will be killed on the spot if the inner faction finds out. Don¡¯t ever try to push your luck, because there is nothing that the inner faction doesn¡¯t know.¡±


    At the thought of how powerful the inner faction was, Liu Yuan could only sigh ruefully.


    Remembering the firework signal, Long Chen asked on, ¡°Great Elder, what was the second item you spoke of?¡±


    ¡°The second item is a jade bangle. It¡¯s a rather unusual item, and it¡¯s so solid that even I can¡¯t damage it. Once you wear it, it will be able to detect how whole your body is. If you¡¯re seriously injured, it will automatically drop off, and others will be free to take it.¡±


    ¡°The battle on the Divergent Road is actually a battle for the jade bangles. Everyone will have one, which means there¡¯s a total of 20 bangles. The one who obtains more bangles will have a higher chance of passing through the first stage¡ª Divergent Road.¡±


    ¡°There are two objectives that must be fulfilled on Divergent Road. One, passing through the Divergent Road and reaching the Nest of Life and Death in a day. Two, whilepleting the first objective, the four pairs which have more jade bangles, which make up eight people, will have the qualifications to participate in the second stage. Of course, there¡¯s another crucial requirement. If one person in a pair does not reach the Nest of Life and Death, then that pair will lose their chance of continuing in thepetition.¡±


    Long Chen understood the rules easily.


    To obtain the qualifications to participate in the next stage, one had to pass through the Divergent Road within a day, and be in one of the four pairs to obtain the most jade bangles. The other six pairs would be disqualified.


    There was another requirement. If a person had obtained the most jade bangles but their partner had gotten lost, died or withdrawn, then they, too, would lose the qualification to participate in the second stage.


    The first stage of the inner faction selection tested not just individual battle power, but also adaptability to terrain, getting along with others, fighting side by side, the ability to work in a team, one¡¯s temperament, and many others.


    Long Chen really admired the inner faction for being able toe up with such a testing method.


    ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s something else I need to make clear to you.¡±


    At this point, Liu Yuan looked stern, though hidden within was some helplessness.


    ¡°Great Elder, please speak.¡±


    ¡°For the Divergent Road, you can choose any partner you want. Besides the Gold and Silver factions, the rest all have two people who can form pairs within their faction. However, the Gold faction has three people, two of which are twins who will be paired together. That leaves the most powerful Jin Sheng¡¯en, and he¡¯s likely to pair with Chu Yunxi, who he has a good rtionship with. Your fallout with Chu Yunxi is really¡­¡±


    It was Liu Lan¡¯s fault for causing hostility between Long Chen and Chu Yunxi. Liu Yuan knew full well that Long Chen was the innocent party, which was why he felt apologetic.


    ¡°In general, I believe the person you¡¯ll be paired with is some talent of the Silver faction. There are a total of threeing from the Silver faction, one of which has directly obtained the qualifications to participate. Her name is Yin Mengyao. The other two are a couple, which means that if nothing goes wrong, you and her will be a team. Long Chen, you need to understand this. For Yin Mengyao to have directly gotten the qualification to participate, she must be extremely arrogant, and a weak partner would pull her down¡­¡±


    ¡°Great Elder, you mean she¡¯ll look down on me?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure, but she¡¯ll probably protest. Long Chen, if she doesn¡¯t give you any face at all, you need to endure. If you can do it until the Divergent Road, she¡¯ll definitely think of ways to protect you. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t be able to pass this stage either!¡±


    Long Chen understood everything Liu Yuan was saying.


    ¡°In other words, even if others ridicule me to my face, I should just take it until I enter the Divergent Road and shamelessly get her to protect me?¡±


    Long Chen wondered inside.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of person Yin Mengyao would be, but if she is that sort, I¡¯ll make sure she suffers for it. Ha, for me to be ridiculed¡­ If Little Xi were to see this, wouldn¡¯t sheugh at me?¡±


    Long Chen knew pretty much everything about the Divergent Road. In general, he was quite excited for it.


    ¡°Great Elder, I understand the Divergent Road already. What will the format be like for the Nest of Life and Death?¡±


    ¡°Do you remember the second part of the outer faction selection?¡±


    Long Chen nodded, ¡°Of course I do. It was the duel.¡±


    ¡°The Nest of Life and Death is actually a more powerful version of the duel, and is held at the peak of the Devil Mountain of Life and Death. There are nests of various sizes, and the environment within is vile and exceptionally treacherous, especially with the unknown dangers within. I don¡¯t know very much in detail, so I think the Grand Elder shall tell you.¡±


    ¡°For the battle in the Nest of Life and Death, the pairs will all be disassembled from the eight who havee from the Divergent Road. Everyone will then be split into two groups, with four in each. There are a total of two ces for those sessful in the selection, which means there will be four people vying for that one ce. They will fight to be number one. If you are lucky to be one of the eight, you will need to go through two life and death battles in session. Only if you achieve victory in both, will you be able to enter the inner faction.¡±


    ¡°Two rounds of life and death battles. For these, you will have to enter a nest with your opponent and, under these dangerous circumstances, strive for victory. During the battle, you will need to deal with both your opponent, as well as unknown dangers. It¡¯s basically impossible to seed¡­¡±


    The difficulty in being the most impressive two out of twenty people was obvious.


    After hearing these frightening rules, Long Chen could tell that they did not have very high expectations of him. It was to be expected.


    ¡°Firstly, I have to make haste on the dangerous terrain of the Divergent Road while fighting with enemies, seizing enough jade bangles and ensuring the safety of my partner. That means it¡¯s difficult to obtain the qualifications unless a team has more than four bangles.¡±


    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll have to enter the Nest of Life and Death with my opponent and go through with two back-to-back battles. Only if I achieve victory will I have the qualifications to enter the inner faction selection. If it were me of five days ago, I would have no chance at all, but now¡­¡±


    This time, Long Chen¡¯s strength had improved by leaps and bounds. Whether in terms of the realm he was at or his offensive and constitution battle techniques, he was much stronger than before.


    ¡°I, Long Chen, will give you a huge shock!¡±


    Long Chen clenched his fists and smiled faintly.


    Seeing his look of confidence, Liu Yuan was startled, thinking Long Chen was trying to console himself. He could do little but shake his head, ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t feel down. You grew up in a small ce like Por Town. Now that you¡¯vee to the Lingwu Family, you¡¯ve only just started unearthing your potential, and you still have ways to go. Even if you can¡¯t enter the inner faction, it doesn¡¯t matter. With your talent, you can still shine in the outer faction, and it¡¯s not as if there aren¡¯t anymore chances for you to enter the inner faction¡­¡±


    While listening, Long Chen continued walking without saying anything.


    Liu Lan was constantly ahead and had not turned back at all. Watching her back, Long Chen knew that he would make her do so. Just like before, she would watch him with disbelief in her eyes.


    The grand elder of the Green Faction was the previous great elder of the Green Emperor Hall. He was born of the Green Emperor Hall, and naturally took care of the Green Emperor Hall. Even his residence was in the Green Emperor Hall.


    Long Chen recently found out from Liu Yuan that the grand elder¡¯s name was Chu Tianxiong, and was one of the uncles of Chu Fengqing, and therefore somewhat rted to Chu Yunxi and Chu Yunyao. It was likely that Chu Tianxiong thought of them as his blood grandchildren.


    A little more than an hourter, Long Chen arrived outside the Green Emperor Hall, at one of the independent residences of the grand elder. When they were about to get closer, a guard asked in a stern voice, ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    Liu Yuan was the head of a hall, and he was obviously humiliated at being berated by a guard. Coldly, he eximed, ¡°I am the great elder of the Green Sun Hall, Liu Yuan, here to bring my disciple Long Chen to participate in the inner faction selection!¡±


    ¡°So it¡¯s you?¡±


    The guard snickered, ¡°The grand elder stated that you werete, and being tardy is against the rules. They¡¯ve already left!¡±


    Upon hearing this, Long Chen was instantly enraged as he scolded, ¡°Those bastards. I came here bright and early in the morning, and he¡¯s already left? And he said I was tardy? Did he leave in the middle of the night?¡±

 Chapter 155 – Nine Devil Mountain

    Never did Long Chen expect he would be treated like this.


    He¡¯d known that it the selection would be during noon, and Long Chen had rushed here early in the morning. It was still a long time away from noon, and the grand elder, Chu Yunxi and the others had long since left. What did that mean?


    It meant they thought nothing of Liu Yuan and Long Chen. It meant they wanted to y tricks on them.


    Being so evidently scorned, Long Chen actuallyughed instead, in his anger.


    Liu Yuan was also feeling very ufortable. Though the other party was the grand elder, he was a great elder of a hall. If word got out that he had been belittled, Liu Yuan would be utterly humiliated.


    He had now turned ashen, and did not stop Long Chen while he scolded. Instead, he was rather pleased. All the fury he was feeling dissipated with Long Chen¡¯s words.


    When it came down to it, Long Chen was the first person to dare curse at Chu Tianxiong.


    Upon hearing, the two guards¡¯ turned red and scolded, ¡°How dare you shame the grand elder! For being so rude, you deserve the death sentence. We¡¯ll take you down and wait for the grand elder to return and deal with you himself!¡±


    Having said this, they actually made their move and advanced towards Long Chen!


    ¡°You¡¯re just dogs guarding the door who¡¯ve only just entered the Earth Dan Realm. You dare touch me?¡±


    Long Chen sneered, and rather, darted forward to meet their attack!


    When those guards had made their move, Liu Yuan and Liu Lan was stunned.


    Long Chen was about to participate in the inner faction selection, and he could not get injured by the hands of these guard dogs. Just as they were about to stop these guards, Long Chen darted from their side.


    ¡°You¡¯re seeking death!¡±


    Seeing Long Chen moving so quickly and doing thepletely opposite of what they expected, they struck with their fist, enraged. The punch from the Earth Dan Realm was on a whole different level. These two consecutive punches would also prevent Long Chen from being able to escape.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard this kid¡¯s only at the Human Dan Realm, and he wants to participate in the inner faction selection? What a joke! If we brothers defeat him today, our reputation will surely spread!¡±


    At this thought, the two guards mustered all their strength.


    ¡°Trying to kill me?¡±


    Long Chen smirked, raised his arms and dashed forward, creating afterimages.


    ¡°Huh? So fast?¡±


    The two were momentarily shocked, because even they could not handle Long Chen¡¯s speed.


    At the next moment, two palms pped onto their faces, and they immediately screamed, blood and teeth flying. The two fell to the ground with a loud thud, yelling in pain.


    Long Chen did not stop just there. He dashed forward and, with a person under each foot, he stepped on their faces, leaving behind arge footprint on top of the bloody mark of his palm from before.


    Suffering from such a vicious attack from Long Chen, the two¡¯s facial features were destroyed. At this point, they were vulnerable to all attacks, faces full of blood as they cried out in pain and rolled on the ground, full of regret.


    ¡°Who said Long Chen was a pushover? He¡¯s methods are so ruthless. The two of us are done for¡­¡±


    While groaning, they were inwardly cursing the people who had given them this information.


    ¡°Long Chen, you- ?¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen had sessfully taught them a lesson, Liu Yuan was obviously astonished. After all, these two were experts at the Earth Dan Realm, and while their potentials were meagre and had thus been appointed to be guards. However, they were considered at a higher level than Long Chen.


    Liu Yuan was slightly surprised at how easily Long Chen had defeated them.


    Simrly, Liu Lan was amazed at how Long Chen had had the upper hand so easily.


    ¡°Looks like he really did progress in these few days of cultivation¡­¡±


    Long Chen had been merciless and beaten them up until they could not retaliate. Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were slightly hesitant, because these two were the grand elder¡¯s subordinates, and being too vicious was excessive.


    ¡°Long Chen, stop.¡±


    Liu Lan spoke unenthusiastically.


    Long Chen kicked the two of them away and eximed in a bright voice, ¡°Watchdogs, don¡¯t forget your status. No matter where you go, you¡¯d just be dogs guarding the door. The person standing in front of you is the great elder of the Green Sun Hall. How dare you treat him with disrespect? Today, I¡¯ve taught you a lesson on behalf of the great elder. I hope you remember this and know what to do!¡±


    Using Liu Yuan as a shield, Long Chen pushed the responsibility away.


    Having beat these two up, Long Chen was feeling much better.


    When he looked towards Liu Yuan and Liu Lan, he noticed the helplessness in their gazes.


    ¡°Long Chen, you were really too impulsive¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan was about to guide Long Chen and apologise to those two, but Long Chen interrupted him, ¡°Great elder, they¡¯ve alreadyte. What should we do? We can¡¯t just not go, can we?¡±


    That was the most pressing issue. Liu Yuan shifted his attention from Long Chen beating others up for a moment, and frowned, ¡°The grand elder was really going too far, but Long Chen, you are the pride of our Green Sun Hall. You managed to qualify for the inner faction selection, and it makes no sense for you not to go. I know where the Nine Devil Mountain is, so we¡¯ll return to the Green Sun Hall and ride the Wind-Splitting Deity Roc and head there!¡±


    ¡°In that case, we can¡¯t waste more time. Let¡¯s go!¡±


    Honestly speaking, Long Chen was rather gloomy at being made fun of in this way. Heughed coldly, ¡°No matter who it is, I¡¯ll make sure you pay the price for doing this to me!¡±


    The grand elder of his own faction had left him behind in the Green Faction, stating the reason for it as him beingte. If word of this spread, Long Chen would be considered a joke.


    If he did not do well in the inner faction selection, his name would go down in history.


    Deciding to return, the three wasted no time and left. Liu Yuan was still worried about Long Chen injuring the grand elder¡¯s subordinates, but they were in a hurry, and there was little he could do.


    ¡°Long Chen, I don¡¯t want to say this, but being so impulsive won¡¯t do you good in the future¡­¡±


    ¡°I know, great elder. I won¡¯t do this again!¡± Long Chen pretended to be like an obedient child.


    In actuality, he hadn¡¯t been impulsive. He wanted to have an astonishing beginning now.


    ¡°It feels weird hearing you call me great elder. If you don¡¯t mind, then just call me Uncle Liu.¡±


    Liu Yuan stroked his beard, sighing ruefully.


    ¡°Why would I mind? How could Long Chen not know how well Uncle Liu treats him?¡±


    While this old man had some power, he was still a good man. Since he was willing to disregard his status and let Long Chen call him ¡®uncle¡¯, Long Chen was not going to let him lose face.


    ¡°Calling him Uncle, and getting a level 6 profound-grade beast spirit in return. This deal is quite profitable.¡±


    Long Chen was feeling good.


    Liu Yuan and Long Chen were now hastening on in front, while Liu Lan was behind. This time, she was no longer lowering her head while walking, and instead, asionally looked up at Long Chen¡¯s figure, eyes full of doubt.


    ¡°He¡¯d sold off that beast spirit, but from the looks of what had just happened, he seemed to have gotten much stronger?¡±


    Long Chen was just full of wonders. This situation was the most pressurising one that Long Chen had ever been met with. Would he be able to create a miracle once again?


    Though Liu Lan knew how difficult this was, she still held some anticipation towards the inner faction selection.


    Soon enough, the three of them had returned to the Green Sun Hall. Uncaring of the looks of confusion from others, Liu Yuan summoned the most majestic Wind-Splitting Deity Roc, and they got on. The deity roc began to p its wings and headed towards the west!


    This marked a new beginning and left behind people of the Green Sun Hall, looking at each other.


    ¡°Even with the Wind-Splitting Deity Roc, it¡¯ll take a day to reach the Nine Devil Mountain from Yuanling City. It¡¯s morning now, and I think we¡¯ll reach before it gets dark!¡±


    Sitting at the head of the roc, Long Yuan used his real Qi and separated the winds while covering his own body, allowing him to sit securely on the back of the Wind-Splitting Deity Roc.


    ¡°Actually, from the grand elder¡¯s ce, it¡¯d take only half a day to get to the Nine Devil Mountain by using a profound-grade demonic beast as a means of transformation, but¡­ Sigh, the grand elder was too biased this time, which is unbing of him. If he wanted us to bete though, there¡¯s nothing we can do¡­¡±


    At this thought, Liu Yuan¡¯s expression turned dark.


    Seeing the expression on her father¡¯s face, Liu Lan was slightly upset. Liu Yuan was the weakest out of all the eight great elders, and the reason why he was still in the Lingwu Family after so long was mainly because he had no desire for power.


    However, that meant he would be bullied, and from Liu Lan¡¯s earliest memories, Liu Yuan had been bullied countless times already.


    ¡°Uncle Liu.¡± Long Chen suddenly spoke up.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    Long Chenughed, ¡°Don¡¯t think too much of this matter. Once we¡¯re at the Nine Devil Mountain, I won¡¯t let you down. Honour and respect are obtained with one¡¯s own actions. What is the grand elder to me? Who knows, he might be grovelling at my feet in the future.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, shut up!¡± Liu Yuan was slightly enraged. ¡°Remember, once we¡¯re at the Nine Devil Mountain, you can¡¯t say things like that. I won¡¯t be able to protect you!¡±


    Long Chen chuckled, not answering, and closed his eyes to get some rest.


    Liu Yuan shook his head at Long Chen¡¯s arrogance, unsure if it was the right decision to let Long Chen participate in the inner faction selection.


    Liu Lan had been watching their conversation, and upon hearing his egotistical words, she began tough sarcastically, ridiculing him. However, seeing Long Chen not arguing at only calmly resting, she was gradually shaken.


    ¡°Judging from his confidence, does he have something that will decide the oue?¡±


    In the midst of her suspicions, the sun shifted from the east to the west. At the west of the Yuanling region, the sky was filled with dark clouds, and the rumoured Nine Devil Mountain looked gloomy¡­

 Chapter 156 – Gu Batian

    ¡°Long Chen, looks like we have bad luck during the selection. The Nine Devil Mountain is having bad weather today.¡±


    Watching the deste mountains shrouded by dark clouds, Liu Yuan wrinkled his brows, looking worried.


    Long Chen nced in the direction of the legendary Nine Devil Mountain, seeing the dark clouds ahead and traces of lightning shing in the clouds. asionally, the dull rumbling of thunder could be heard, simr to the low growl of a beast.


    Within the dark clouds, nine mountain peaks that were like ws thrust into the clouds, a gloomy, cold, aura pouncing towards them.


    ¡°Is this Nine Devil Mountain, which mean nine devilish mountains?¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s going to rain. The rain of the Nine Devil Mountain is boundless and is always apanied by crazed lightning. The difficulty in your selection is probably going to amplify¡­¡±


    In terms of his strength, Long Chen could not match up to anyone. In such terrible weather, Liu Yuan was certain that the odds of a good oue were low.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Uncle Liu. With such bad weather, I¡¯m not the only one in trouble. Perhaps this sort of environment is the most suitable for me.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t seem to mind at all as heughed.


    Seeing Long Chen so optimistic, Liu Yuan could only shake his head helplessly.


    Upon reaching the Nine Devil Mountain, the Wind-Splitting Deity Roc did not dare move forward. When it went nearer to the Devil Mountain, itnded on the ground automatically, pulling back its head and not daring to move.


    Long Chen and the other two jumped off the roc.


    ¡°The Nine Devil Mountain is gloomy and dark, and the Wind-Splitting Deity Roc isn¡¯t used to such an environment. It¡¯s not too far from the Nine Devil Mountain Manor, so we can just walk over there. It¡¯s getting dark now, and it¡¯s best we get to the manor before it gets dark.¡±


    The Nine Devil Mountain Manor was a base set up by the Lingwu Family at the mountain. At basically every inner faction selection, it would be held in the Life and Death Mountain in the Nine Devil Mountain, and they found it convenient to just set up a base here.


    ¡°The inner faction selection is tomorrow. I think they¡¯re about to split up the groups already. Long Chen, Lan¡¯er, let¡¯s hurry up!¡±


    After taking care of the Wind-Splitting Deity Roc, Liu Yuan brought Long Chen and Liu Lan towards the manor.


    This devil mountain was an expansive mountain range, and the Nine Devil Mountain was made up of the nine tallest mountain peaks. Long Chen and the rest were now already in the range of the devil mountains.


    The ground and trees were dyed a dark colour, dead trees set up in strange shapes and looked very strange.


    Long Chen strolled around here and found it very quiet.


    ¡°Ignore those dead trees here. The Nine Devil Mountain is covered with dense forests. While hastening forward, all the roots under you make it impossible for you to set your feet on firm ground, and fighting in such terrain will definitely affect you.¡±


    Every time he thought of this, Liu Yuan got worried.


    On one hand, up to this point, he could tell the worth of young Long Chen. On the other hand, the Green Sun Hall had spent a lot of effort on him, and if Long Chen were to die young here, Liu Yuan would definitely feel extremely ufortable.


    ¡°Remember, Long Chen. Once there¡¯s danger, don¡¯t bother with whether your teammate will lose the qualifications. Just use your firework signal and that will keep you alive!¡±


    Liu Yuan was very serious, and Long Chen could do little but nod in answer.


    On the road towards the Nine Devil Mountain, Long Chen turned to the side to take a look at Liu Lan. She was particrly alluring today, with her pinkish, tender skin and devilish curves, giving people the urge to go forward and give her a bite.


    Seeing theck of worry in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, Liu Lan felt he was hopeless and spoke indifferently, ¡°Don¡¯t be so hard-headed. Listen to my father. You can¡¯t treat the inner faction selection as a game. If you die, our Green Sun Hall is going to suffer a loss.¡±


    ¡°Just watch.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t seem to mind as he peeked at Liu Lan¡¯s body, ¡°You look pretty good today, huh. Are you already preparing yourself?¡±


    ¡°What preparations?¡±


    Liu Lan had her suspicions, especially after noticing the strange look in the kid¡¯s eyes. She had always been intelligent, and quickly recalled her previous words that as long as Long Chen entered the inner faction, she would let Long Chen do as he liked.


    ¡°With just your current strength, you want to enter the inner faction and possess me?¡±


    Liu Lan snickered. This side of Long Chen really made her despise him.


    ¡°The most important thing as a person is humbleness and honesty. I suddenly have a feeling that you¡¯ve never had any of these two qualities, which is why you¡¯ll forever be a loser.¡±


    Liu Lan spoke coldly, passing by Long Chen and going in front.


    A smile quirked at Long Chen¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Is that so? But why do I have to be humble?¡±


    Liu Yuan had no idea what Long Chen and Liu Lan were saying, but seeing these two at odds, he wondered, ¡°Lan¡¯er seems to have something against Long Chen. They¡¯re already so old, and yet they¡¯re still saying these things out of their anger? Could she really like Long Chen?¡±


    Liu Yuan had had much experience, and immediately had an inkling.


    However, he merely buried this in the back of his mind. This matter was rather difficult to handle, and if they really had feeling towards the other, it was a good thing, but only if Long Chen could return alive.


    With Long Chen¡¯s temper, even surviving would be an issue.


    At this moment, they reached the Nine Devil Mountain Manor.


    ¡°Ahead is the manor. Remember, don¡¯t speak a word about what happened at the grand elder¡¯s entrance. Don¡¯t refute him, especially you, Long Chen¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan watched Long Chen sternly, ¡°Though they¡¯ve gone too far, they have high statuses and are powerful. After all, they¡¯re at the perfect mastery stage at the Heaven Dan Realm, which is why we can only endure. We can only ept whatever they say, and if you spout nonsense out of dissatisfaction, then dying is probably your just desserts!¡±


    Long Chen nodded at Liu Yuan¡¯s stern warning.


    ¡°That old man? It seems like he¡¯s humiliating me. Though Liu Yuan has already emphasised this, anything can happen.¡±


    Pushing aside some trees, a gigantic building appeared in a valley, on arger scale than the Green Willow Residence by several times.


    There were only around 40 or so peopleing to participate in the inner faction selection, and yet, they took such a huge ce as a transferring point. It was evident that the Lingwu was rich.


    The Nine Devil Mountain was extremely dark. In order not to stand out, its main hue was also ck.


    Night was gradually approaching, and quite a fewmps had been lighted. In the dark pavilion, rednterns were like countless ferocious beasts lying in wait in the night, thenterns as their eyes.


    ¡°Enter.¡±


    Based on the situation, all who were supposed to be there had already arrived. Liu Yuan took in deep breaths and, bringing Long Chen and Liu Lan along, headed towards the manor. Not long after, there were quite a few cultivators in ck armour surrounding them.


    These cultivators were all at the Earth Dan Realm and were powerful. Each and every one had a dense bloody aura that indicated their experience.


    ¡°At this moment, this is the base of the Lingwu Family from the Yuanling Region at the Nine Devil Mountain. Who are you? Report your names, or you will die!¡±


    Cold voices were sounded from these people¡¯s mouths.


    ¡°I am a great elder of the Green Faction¡¯s Green Sun Hall, Liu Yuan. I am here to bring my disciple here to take part in the inner faction selection!¡±


    Liu Yuan spoke clearly, intentionally speaking louder and hoping to attract the attention of those in the manor. As long as they had an audience, things would be easier.


    ¡°The inner faction selection? What rubbish! Those participating in the inner faction selection are brought in by the grand elder. Even if you¡¯re a great elder, so what? All I see is you trying to create trouble. Brothers, take him down!¡±


    These ck armoured guards did not see to reason. No matter how Liu Yuan tried to exin, they just wouldn¡¯t listen. In that moment, ten or so Earth Dan Realm cultivators at the initial mastery stage made their moves!


    ¡°Damn it!¡±


    Eyes narrowing, Liu Yuan was truly angered. In this situation, even the most amiable person would be enraged!


    Though he was a cultivator merely at the initial mastery stage at the Heaven Dan Realm, there was arge disparity between the Heaven and Earth Dan Realm. Even ten Earth Dan Realm cultivators at the initial mastery stage were not his match!


    The reason he had not attacked was because once he did so, things would getplicated. There were people of the inner faction here, and if he did not deal with this matter aptly, he could easily lose his life if anyone took the opportunity to frame him.


    Liu Yuan speaking so loudly before finally had an effect.


    ¡°Stop!¡±


    A hoarse yet powerful voice transmitted over. The few Earth Dan cultivators at the initial mastery stage were about to attack, but found that they were trembling so much and had lost power in their legs as they fell to the ground.


    An old man who was almost two metres long in a purple robe appeared at the entrance to the manor. With the ck armoured guards taken care of, he took a look at Liu Yuan and spoke loudly, ¡°So it¡¯s Liu Yuan. I can vouch for them. Let them in.¡±


    Upon hearing that, the ck armoured guards no longer dared to speak and withdrew quietly, and then disappeared into the forests.


    Seeing the tall old man, Liu Yuan was ted as he spoke respectfully, ¡°So it¡¯s the grand elder of the Purple Faction, Senior Gu Batian! I never thought senior would remember me!¡±


    ¡°I have a great memory! Come to think of it, it¡¯s been four or five years since I¡¯vest seen you, and it¡¯s a surprise that you¡¯re still looking as pitiful as always, for even these young things to bully you.¡±


    The grand elder of the Purple Faction did not hold back while speaking, his voice resonant.


    ¡°Senior Gu Batian has seen the worst in me¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan sweated nervously, and then introduced to Gu Batian.


    ¡°Senior, this is my daughter, Liu Lan. She¡¯s participated in the inner faction selection before, but her skills weren¡¯t enough. Here¡¯s Long Chen, a disciple at my Green Sun Hall. He¡¯s here to participate in the inner faction selection. The two of you¡­¡±


    With Liu Yuan¡¯s reminder, Long Chen and Liu Lan exchanged a gaze and immediately bowed.


    The grand elder of the Purple Faction might look boorish, but he was very easy-going. If Chu Tianxiong ignored them or even bullied them, having Gu Batian being the judge of the matter was a very good thing.

 Chapter 157 – Chu Tianxiong

    ¡°I saw your daughter then. She was cute and small and as tender as ever. Looks like she¡¯s just as alluring as beautiful as before and is a good doll. Long Chen¡­¡±


    Gu Batian¡¯s eyes scanned Long Chen, taking a few looks and thenughing, ¡°Mm, he¡¯s not bad. I¡¯ve heard that you¡¯ve defeated an inner faction disciple at the Earth Dan Realm. I¡¯m looking forward to your performance¡­¡±


    Long Chen knew that Gu Batian had probably guessed that Long Chen had already reached the Earth Dan Realm.


    Gu Batian seemed to be quite confident in Long Chen, which had Liu Yuan and Liu Lan scratching their heads in bewilderment.


    They merely took this as a politepliment from Gu Batian and did not think too much into it.


    ¡°Since you¡¯re here, then go in.¡±


    Gu Batian waved his arms, and Liu Yuan quickly followed. Though he was not young, he was at least twenty years younger than Gu Batian, and did not dare put on airs in front of Gu Batian.


    Following him, they headed to the discussion hall in the manor.


    ¡°Everyone is now waiting for the people from the inner faction to appear. I was wondering why only one person came from the Green Faction and came out to get some air, and then heard you shouting outside. Tell me, what¡¯s going on?¡± Gu Batian spoke matter-of-factly.


    Liu Yuan looked agonised as he spoke, ¡°It¡¯s all my fault. I¡¯d initially wanted to take Long Chen to the grand elder¡¯s ce, but we were somehowte, and they had left first. The three of us could onlye by ourselves, which is why we¡¯rete.¡±


    Gu Batian chuckled after hearing this.


    ¡°What rubbish. With that old man, Chu Tianxiong¡¯s pettiness, he must have definitely noticed the conflict between his genius grandson and Long Chen, and so, tried to make things difficult for you. When I reached in the afternoon, that old man had long since reached. I imagine he must have left even before the sky had brightened. He¡¯s doing something like that even at his age. How disgusting!¡±


    Gu Batian criticised Chu Tianxiong from beginning to end, and Long Chen felt better than ever inside. Liu Yuan and Liu Lan exchanged nces.


    Gu Batian was no fool. Noticing one person less had arrived from the Green Faction, he immediately thought of the gossip of the little genius from the Human Dan Realm in the Green Faction, which was spreading like fire. He could pretty much guess what had happened.


    The discussion hall was thergest building in the Nine Devil Mountain Manor, which was also where the meetings for the inner faction selection took ce. The nine great factions were already seated ordingly, and were only waiting for the people from the inner faction to appear. Then, they could begin to discuss the rted arrangements.


    In front of each seat, delicacies were spread all around.


    A group of people were conversing joyously, but never did they expect Gu Batian, who had left earlier, to bring three others back.


    Most of the people here did not recognise the three.


    In this group, the older ones were considered the elites of the previous generation, while the younger ones were the elites of the current generation. This was quite arge group, and despite standing like this and attracting the gazes of everyone, Long Chen had no fear.


    He nced through the area once, knowing who the younger talents were at a single nce.


    As expected, all of them were at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm, ages all not more than twenty.


    A lot of them were not any weakerpared to Chu Yunxi. Jin Sheng¡¯en was here as well.


    The seats were allocated ording to Gold, Silver, Red, Orange, Yellow, Jade, Green, Blue, and Purple, and Long Chen quickly found where the Green Faction was seated. There were now four people looking over, startled, and their expressions immediately turned cold.


    These four people naturally included Chu Fengqing, his son and daughter, Chu Yunxi and Chu Yunyao, as well as one with the smallest stature. Those eyes were filled with a piercing intelligence, and he donned a green robe. He was simr to a sharp de, and Long Chen did not dare meet his gaze.


    ¡°Is that the grand elder of the Green Faction, Chu Tianxiong? As expected, he¡¯s terrifying!¡±


    Long Chen was slightly afraid, but that did not mean that he was afraid of the man. Though he had never seen Chu Tianxiong, the man had already humiliated him once.


    Beside Chu Tianxiong, Chu Yunxi saw the appearance of Long Chen and Liu Lan, and he looked practically murderous. His sister, Chu Yunyao, was the same.


    Now that he had brought Long Chen and the rest along, Gu Batianughed, ¡°Old Chu, I just went to relieve myself, and found myself bringing the other genius from your faction here. Come here, Long Chen, and sit with your faction. Let your grand elder take care of a genius like you!¡±


    Gu Batian spoke, and practically chased them to the Green Faction. There were enough chairs prepared, and they were thus able to sitfortably.


    Seeing Long Chen and Liu Lan about to sit beside them, Chu Yunxi and Chu Yunyao looked ashen as they made way.


    ¡°What are you shifting away for? Do you think an old man like me is gross? Old Chu, your grandchildren are simply outrageous. Sit there. Don¡¯t move.¡±


    Gu Batian acted as if he were furious, and Chu Yunxi and Chu Yunyao were so frightened that they did not dare move, ncing towards Chu Tianxiong for his help. Chu Tianxiong merely looked at Gu Batian and said, ¡°Sit down. Stop fidgeting and moving around.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the way. Alright, I won¡¯t bother you anymore.¡±


    Having taken care of this matter and settling Long Chen and the others, Gu Batian smiled at Chu Tianxiong proudly and returned to where the Purple Faction was seated.


    It looked like Gu Batian and Chu Tianxiong were the type who were eternal rivals.


    They were probably trying topete, even in this inner faction selection.


    At the Green Faction, besides those like Chu Fengqing, there were two other young men. One gave around the same aura as Chu Yunxi. The two were probably the genius cultivators from the Purple Faction participating in the inner faction selection, and were both staring at the newly-arrived Long Chen with interest.


    When Gu Batian headed in the direction of the Purple Faction and the discussion hall had returned to the quiet from before, everyone¡¯s eyes went straight to Long Chen as they began to gossip. What they were discussing was the love triangle between Long Chen, Liu Lan and Chu Yunxi, and some even began to evaluate Long Chen¡¯s past battle achievements.


    The way Long Chen had arrived was also being discussed.


    Long Chen hid as much as he could and began to size up everyone, especially the grand elders of the nine outer factions, as well as the other genius cultivators who were participating in the selection.


    There were too many people, and it was difficult to remember so many of them within such a short period of time. However, the Gold Faction, which was seated the closest to them, garnered Long Chen¡¯s huge interest.


    The one seated right in front should be the grand elder. However,pared to the others, he was much younger, and was probably around the same age as Chu Fengqing.


    This person looked quite simr to Jin Sheng¡¯en, butpared to Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s boastful ways, this person looked mature and cold, gaze like a sharp de. Compared to Chu Tianxiong, he induced much more fear, and seemed like a huge tyrant.


    ¡°This should be the rumoured grand elder of the Gold Faction.¡±


    Long Chen put up his guard, finding that while this man was lowering his head and drinking tea, his gaze was on Long Chen.


    Honestly speaking, Long Chen was supposedly the genius cultivator of the Green Faction, but had only just arrived. There had to be something off, and someone began to ask soon enough, ¡°Brother Chu, why¡¯s this little guy sote? Did he fall off the roc?¡±


    This was another grand elder.


    In the Yuanling Region, rocs were demonic beast with a high endurance andrge body that was suitable for long-distance travels. Hence, mostrge organisations would raise or domesticate roc-type demonic beasts. The Green Sun Hall¡¯s Wind-Splitting Deity Roc was one kind.


    This person made a little joke and livened up the atmosphere. However, Chu Tianxiong¡¯s expression turned grim as he turned towards Liu Yuan, ¡°I told you to reach at dawn, but you were a whole hourte. Do you not have any respect for me?¡±


    Chu Tianxiong was making all of this up, and was now ming Long Chen¡¯steness on Liu Yuan. Liu Yuan could only hold back his anger and answer, ¡°No, I would not dare do that. It¡¯s all my fault, grand elder. Once we¡¯re back at the Green Faction, please punish me!¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s not bother with punishment.¡±


    Chu Tianxiong spoke indifferently, ¡°But in so many years, you haven¡¯t made any contributions. If you make another fundamental mistake like this again, don¡¯t even think about keeping your status as an elder.


    Though Chu Tianxiong did not speak loudly, the words were heard in every person¡¯s ears. Everyone had various expressions.


    Gu Batian, who knew what had actually happened, sneered at Chu Tianxiong and made a few shapes with his lips, which meant: Chu Tianxiong, the longer you live, the more backward in your thinking you get, for you to even bully those younger than you.


    Of course, only Chu Tianxiong alone understood what Gu Batian was saying.


    Chu Tianxiong clenched his fists, and then calmly rxed.


    ¡°Grand elder, I wouldn¡¯t dare do something like this again. Thank you for not punishing me!¡±


    Finally getting through this, Liu Yuan heaved a sigh of relief and answered agreeably.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing better than being aware of your mistakes and wanting to make amends. There¡¯s nothing more for you to say here, unless you want to be ridiculed by the experts from the other factions.¡±


    Chu Tianxiong lowered his head and drank his tea as he spoke nonchntly.


    Long Chen noticed all of this.


    Quirking his lips in a slight smile, he suddenly noticed a few figures were shing deep within the discussion hall with Lingxi¡¯s reminder. Noticing there were people about to enter, he suddenly had an idea and stood up suddenly.


    *Thud!*


    Long Chen¡¯s sudden actions immediately resulted in confusion, and Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were even more startled as they pulled at him trying to get him to sit. Who knew, Long Chen could not be moved as his eyes were coldly on Chu Tianxiong, unwilling to concede, ¡°Long Chen has, from long ago, heard that the grand elder of the Green Faction is a man of noble character who can distinguish right and wrong. Today, what I see is only a biased, nasty character who cares nothing for right or wrong and only knows to bully the weak. I have truly expanded my horizons today!¡±

 Chapter 158 – Lord Xuanxiao

    When Long Chen spoke up, it became deathly quiet. Everyone stared at him in shock, and even the grand elders of the eight outer factions were startled.


    Here, those with the most entertaining expressions belonged to none other than the two siblings, Chu Yunxi and Chu Yunyao.


    In their eyes, this expert was practically a godly existence, and yet, their god had been disrespected in this manner. In their opinion, Long Chen had to die, and he had to die right now!


    Liu Yuan and Liu Lan merely drew a nk at this point. Liu Yuan knew that Long Chen did not have a high tolerance, which was why before they had entered, he had warned Long Chen not to act recklessly. He¡¯d assumed that Long Chen had remembered his words, and yet, Long Chen had done this.


    After speaking, Long Chen did not lower his head and continued to watch Chu Tianxiong, who had a mild expression.


    He was out to make things difficult for Chu Tianxiong. Now, within the sights of the grand elders of the eight outer factions, Chu Tianxiong¡¯s great reputation might crumble as he became theughingstock if he did not handle this well.


    Hence, everyone was watching Chu Tianxiong closely on how he would deal with this.


    ¡°You little bastard, you¡¯re looking for death! A mere Human Dan wants to participate in the inner faction selection, huh. Just see how I defeat you!¡±


    Chu Yunyao shouted in a piercing voice, charging towards Long Chen.


    Out of everyone around, the one who was most disapproving of Long Chen participating in the selection was Chu Yunyao. He was obviously at the perfect mastery stage at the Human Dan Realm, so why did Long Chen get the qualifications to participate, and yet she could had to make use of her connections just to be able toe and watch?


    On top of that, Long Chen had humiliated Chu Tianxiong in front of everyone. That was unforgivable.


    She had even taken the initiative ahead of Chu Yunxi and made to attack Long Chen.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Withdrawing the Zenith Crystal de, she pierced in Long Chen¡¯s direction!


    Most people watched on nervously.


    They wanted to see how capable Long Chen was and whether he could defeat Chu Yunyao. At this time, however, Chu Tianxiong had personally made his move, disappearing from his seat and reappearing, holding Chu Yunyao¡¯s sword.


    ¡°Third Grandfather, I want to kill him! He should be punished with death for his unfounded ravings about you!¡±


    ¡°Stand down.¡±


    While Chu Yunyao seemed fierce, Chu Tianxiong¡¯s tone and expression did not change at all as he gently pushed her behind him, and then red sharply at Long Chen expressionlessly. It was as though Long Chen was not a person but a tree, or rather, a mere rock.


    ¡°This old guy¡¯s mentality has long since be unfathomable. Just a verbal attack for me isn¡¯t enough to enrage him, but I¡¯m curious to see where his bottom line is¡­ I, Long Chen, and old Liu aren¡¯t to be trifled with!¡±


    Long Chen was already furious to the extreme from being left behind at the Green Faction and seeing Chu Tianxiong spouting a whole bunch of nonsense and bullying Liu Yuan here.


    His anger aside, he was no fool. To dare say such things in public, he was still somewhat confident.


    Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t take such a big risk and humiliate Chu Tianxiong!


    He observed Chu Tianxiong closely once more and spoke coldly, ¡°Everyone is aware that I¡¯m not on good terms with Chu Yunxi, and as his third grandfather, you left ahead even though the three of us reached your residence bright and early in the morning. Even after we arrived, you continued to humiliate Elder Liu and spouted nonse. Grand elder, such petty methods seem unbing of someone of your status, hm?¡±


    These words had everyone more shocked.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯ve gone crazy. Stop saying all this nonsense!¡±


    Liu Yuan finally managed to react and pulled Long Chen to him.


    ¡°You- You¡¯re talking rubbish! Bastard, how dare you tarnish my third grandfather¡¯s name? What are your intentions?¡±


    Chu Yunyao could not wait to skin Long Chen.


    ¡°You¡¯re really seeking death!¡±


    Chu Yunxi stood up.


    Most were focused on Chu Tianxiong¡¯s next actions.


    To be honest, most knew about Chu Tianxiong. With his status, it was no big deal for him to tease another elder, but it was a little too embarrassing for the man for Long Chen to say this in front of so many people.


    Many now had amused grins on their faces, especially Gu Batian. Chu Tianxiong¡¯s eyes twitched slightly, and his expression turned darker, revealing a hint of killing intent. Long Chen reckoned he was already affected.


    Long Chen knew the importance of knowing when to stop. He had humiliated Chu Tianxiong, though it was to speak up for himself and for Liu Yuan. Now that it was done, Chu Tianxiong was in a difficult position.


    Long Chen knew the turmoil that was currently in Chu Tianxiong¡¯s mind. Long Chen was appointed by the inner faction to participate in the inner faction selection, and no matter the reason, it was difficult to give a good reason if he were to kill Long Chen in this situation.


    However, how could Chu Tianxiong take this embarrassment of being teased by an ant?


    He red at Long Chen icily, lips moving slightly as he spoke with a hoarse voice.


    ¡°Everyone, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll let loose today. I hope that, on ount of our acquaintance all these years, as well as our statuses as leaders of the outer faction, you can speak well of I, Chu Tianxiong, to Lord Xuanxiao.¡±


    Everyone could tell Chu Tianxiong¡¯s underlying intent of killing Long Chen.


    It was no surprise. If any grand elder were to be shamed in such a manner by a little child, they would probably kill Long Chen as well, not to mention Chu Tianxiong, who had always possessed a strange temperament.


    ¡°This guy is rather talented, but he¡¯s an airhead.¡±


    ¡°If he could endure for a while longer, he could even be the pir of the outer faction. What a pity.¡±


    Two of the grand elders exchanged a nce and sighed while shaking their heads. Hearing Chu Tianxiong wanted to do this personally, Chu Yunxi and Chu Yunyao¡¯s anger dissipated, transforming into excitement and satisfaction. Smirking at Long Chen, Chu Yunyao spoke, ¡°After obtaining the qualifications to participate in the inner faction selection, you don¡¯t know your limits and even dare offend my third grandfather. You deserve to be killed!¡±


    Just as she spoke, Chu Tianxiong red coldly, and an ell-epassing pressure pressed on Long Chen. In that moment, he felt as if the sky itself was falling.


    ¡°This old guy is really powerful. With this level, he can beat me into minced meat with just a casual punch!¡±


    At this thought, Long Chen was rather depressed. As expected of the perfect mastery stage of the Heaven Dan Realm, considered to be the top experts in Yuanling City. Long Chen facing up to Chu Tianxiong was like how he had been with his grandfather of the Yang family while he was at the fourth dragon vein. This disparity here was evenrger.


    ¡°It¡¯s about time those inner faction people arrive.¡±


    Long Chen was rxed.


    Previously, Lingxi had told Long Chen that in the depths of the discussion hall, two people were walking in slowly. One had an auraparable to the grand elders, and might be even stronger. He was definitely of the inner faction, and was the host who would be in charge of this inner faction selection.


    With the host around, would Long Chen be killed?


    Even the grand elders could do little against the inner faction, which was why just as Chu Tianxiong was about to make his move and impose a life-threatening pressure on Long Chen, a low, hoarse and charming voice was sounded from the depths of the hall, ¡°Chu Tianxiong, stop.¡±


    Chu Tianxiong¡¯s expression immediately changed after hearing this. He obediently withdrew his hand and, without looking at Long Chen, turned to the other side.


    Now, everyone¡¯s eyes were focused on the depths of the discussion hall and standing up respectfully, including all the grand elders.


    Long Chen had just walked out from the brink of death and was still slightly afraid. Liu Yuan and Liu Lan hadplicated expressions, but just when they were about to ask why Long Chen was acting this way, they could only stand respectfully at the thought of this person¡¯s identity.


    Under the audience¡¯s gazes, two walked out. One looked imposing, handsome and emanating a threatening aura. This was Dongfang Tianyu, who Long Chen had met at the Sky Martial Realm.


    Dongfang Tianyu was evidently here to cheer for others. THe other person was the main host.


    Long Chen narrowed his eyes. This was a man in his thirties, with a fair face with no facial hair. He looked slender, his hair like a waterfall as it draped over his shoulders, all the way to his waist. He wore a white, loose robe, eyes unfathomable and profound, and people could easily get lost in his eyes with a single look.


    ¡°This guy is pretty handsome¡­¡±


    Seeing someone even more good looking than himself, Long Chen was speechless. He usually did not praise others this way, but if he ever did, then the other party must be iparably handsome.


    Mo Xiang was handsome too, but seemed to tender.


    Even the grand elders had to lower their heads in front of this man, cupping their fists deferentially, ¡°We greet Lord Xuanxiao!¡±


    Xuanxiao?


    The Eastern Green Dragons should be in charge of this selection. Dongfang Tianyu was part of the Dongfang n, and if Long Chen was right, this man¡¯s name should be Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Honestly speaking, even these grand elders and Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s father did not give Long Chen this feeling. This man did not have the aura of the strong and seemed rather dull, but that was what made him terrifying and difficult to get close to.


    ¡°Alright, take a seat.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s expression did not change as he waved his arms. With his instructions, everyone sat obediently, and even Chu Tianxiong was the same. After the arrival of Dongfang Xuanxiao, he seemed to have forgotten about Long Chen, and it was proof of how capable Dongfang Xuanxiao was.


    ¡°This Dongfang Xuanxiao seems awesome.¡±


    Long Chen sighed ruefully as he quickly took a seat.


    Usually, with the conflict between him and Chu Tianxiong, the other party would take a look at Long Chen, even if it was all a farce. However, his eyes were only forward, and he did not look at anyone.


    After everyone was seated, they began to wait for Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s directions.


    ¡°All disciples of the inner faction selection are toe out. Team up in pairs. I¡¯ll hand the jade bracelets and firework signals to you.¡±

 Chapter 159 – Yin Mengyao

    ¡°What a cold person.¡±


    Long Chen thought inside.


    He stood up and, with the other neen, stood in the middle of the hall. It wasrge enough, and they were thinly spread out.


    Long Chen swept his eyes over the other neen, and found that they were about the same age as he was. However, from what Lingxi told him, they were all at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm except for Long Chen, at the Human Dan Realm. Long Chen had no idea why this was the situation, when he had been at the peak of the Human Dan Realm when he had obtained the qualifications.


    ¡°These genius cultivators are all amazing.¡±


    Long Chen sighed ruefully.


    Just from their clothing and appearances, Long Chen could not tell which faction these geniuses were from. At this moment, based on Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s directions, they were all beginning to stand in pairs.


    Long Chen clearly saw Chu Yunxi smirking at him and then standing together with Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    Behind Jin Sheng¡¯en was a pair of tall and sturdy twin brothers, who were probably from the Gold Faction.


    Chu Yunxi was from the Green Faction, and after standing with the Gold Faction, he was leaving Long Chen high and dry. There were only 20 people, and soon enough, all were in their groups, forming an orderly line in front of Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Everyone¡¯s eyes were fixed on the hot-headed young man who mentioned to escape death, Long Chen. Chu Yunxi had gone to the Green Faction, leaving Long Chen alone. On the other side, there was also a girl isted.


    ¡°As I was saying, Mengyao really has the worst luck!¡±


    In the Silver Faction, a beautiful woman shook her head. Beside her was an old woman, who looked extremely youthful and rosy cheeks. She was also an expert, and the grand elder of the Silver Faction.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know Mengyao¡¯s strength. As long as she endures through the first round, she¡¯ll definitely be able to shine in the second round. I just hope that Long Chen won¡¯t pull her down.¡±


    ¡°How could he not?¡±


    The beautiful woman rolled her eyes. ¡°If this kid¡¯s cowardly, he might use the firework signal at the first encounter of danger. That would cause Mengyao to lose the qualification to participate, and her hard work throughout so many years would only be wasted!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say more. Luck is a huge part of power, and if she can¡¯t seed because of that, there¡¯s no one she can me.¡±


    Though they were not speaking very loudly, everyone in the hall heard their words clearly, including Long Chen.


    ¡°Pull her down?¡±


    Long Chen had nothing to say when he was being thought of in this manner.


    From everyone¡¯s eyes, it was evident that anyone who teamed up with Long Chen would be extremely unlucky in the stage of Divergent Road.


    The rule not only tested one¡¯s strength. No matter how powerful one was, a teammate who was like swine meant a huge tragedy.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s see who will be the one dragging down the other.¡± Long Chen¡¯s expression was indifferent, able to withstand the mocking and contempt.


    At this moment, Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s eyes were trained on Long Chen.


    ¡°Go.¡± He pointed in Yin Mengyao¡¯s direction and spoke.


    Long Chen could only carry out this guy¡¯s order dejectedly, walking to the Silver Faction¡¯s Yin Mengyao¡¯s side.


    Yin Mengyao had directly gained the qualifications to participate in thepetition. She was probably not any weaker than Jin Sheng¡¯en or Chu Yunxi.


    When Long Chen had first entered the discussion hall, he saw that there were two females and a male at the Silver Faction. A male and a female had been huddled together, while he had guessed that the other was Yin Mengyao.


    Whether it was her appearance or temperament, both were exceptional and very simr to Dongfang Xuanxiao. Her good looks were peerless, and should be around twenty years old, any childish nature like Lingxi¡¯s long gone, and was very lovely.


    In terms of her beauty, she was on about the same level as Liu Lan, though her cordialness was rather different from Liu Lan. Though Yin Mengyao could not be said to be cold as ice, her indifference and apathetic temperament made her hard toprehend.


    Long Chen had initially worried that she would chase him away after he approached her, but her expression was the same as Dongfang Xuanxiao, unchanging and unwilling to look at Long Chen. It was as if she was not the one in the same team as him.


    Now, ten groups had been perfectly formed. The round of the Divergent Road would leave four teams remaining, before the final battle.


    ¡°These two are a match made in heaven.¡±


    Long Chen wondered depressedly.


    His gloominess must be contributing to this thoughts, because Dongfang Xuanxiao looked to be around thirty, but his real age must be around forty, making him old enough to be Yin Mengyao¡¯s father.


    After the teams had been divided, Dongfang Xuanxiao did not say more and instead, took out firework signals from his cosmos pouch and getting Dongfang Tianyu to hand them down.


    ¡°As long as you infuse real Qi into the firework signal, it will work.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao narrated the usage of the firework signal.


    At this point, Dongfang Tianyu finally winded around and came to Long Chen¡¯s front. He suddenly realised that Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s eyes were full of malicious intent towards him.


    ¡°Kid, when I saw you in the Sky Martial Realm, you seemed to pretend to be harmless. For you to dare touch Chu Tianxiong and make my Yunyao angry, could it be that you don¡¯t care for my existence at all?¡±


    Having said this, he ced the firework signal in Long Chen¡¯s hands and continued on to the next person. In the meantime, he turned back and sneered at Long Chen.


    Taking care of the Chu family would result in Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s hostility towards him. Long Chen had long since considered that. However, he was now at risk, and there was no other choice but to do this. Because of Liu Lan, the enmity between the Chu Family and him was already at the limit.


    After Dongfang Tianyu handed out all the firework signals, Dongfang Xuanxiao produced twenty glistening jade bangles. This should be the mystical jade bangle and, with a wave of his arm, they automatically flew out and winded around Long Chen and the others¡¯ wrists.


    Gazing at this bangle, Long Chen was astonished.


    ¡°This is the jade bangle. With your strength, it¡¯s impossible to destroy. Once your injuries exceed a limit, the bangle will automatically drop, and others can then retrieve it.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was expressionless as he continued, ¡°You must know the rules of the Divergent Road well. I won¡¯t say more nonsense. It¡¯s alreadyte, and you¡¯ll need to return and prepare. Early in the morning tomorrow, we will head to the Divergent Road.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Lord Xuanxiao!¡±


    Following the others, Long Chen spoke deferentially towards Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    After speaking, Dongfang Xuanxiao had little to say and left.


    From start to end, he had not said anything about Long Chen and Chu Tianxiong, but Long Chen knew that by handing the identity jade piece to Long Chen and securing it, that in itself was a soundless warning to Chu Tianxiong. In this situation, Chu Tianxiong would not dare do anything to him.


    Once Dongfang Xuanxiao left, Gu Batian patted his thigh and stood up, smiling at Long Chen, ¡°Young man, looks like you¡¯re Green Faction isn¡¯t all that safe. How about youe to our Purple Faction and rest? Let me receive you properly!¡±


    Long Chen had not wanted to be together with the Chu Family, and Gu Batian had helped him out of this issue. This was the best situation for him, and he quickly thanked the man, ¡°Many thanks, Senior Gu!¡±


    Seeing Gu Batian and Long Chen colluding together, a cold glint shed in Chu Tianxiong¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Third Grandpa, don¡¯t be in such a hurry. At the Divergent Road tomorrow, Jin Sheng¡¯en and I have already nned it all out. Long Chen won¡¯t be able to survive.¡±


    At this moment, Chu Yunxi leaned over Chu Tianxiong¡¯s shoulder and spoke.


    ¡°Mm. Xi¡¯er, it¡¯s all up to you now. Do as Grandpa told you,¡± Chu Tianxiong¡¯s voice was icy.


    ¡°I know. Before he takes out his firework signal, will smash his body to smithereens.¡±


    Their quiet conversation could only be heard by Lingxi, who was unbelievably bored. She repeated the words for Long Chen to hear, her tone full of fury.


    ¡°What¡¯s the hurry? I¡¯m not going to lose to him.¡± Long Chenughed as he spoke softly.


    At this point, he had dragged Liu Yuan and Liu Lan along. The rest slowly left the hall, and Gu Batian was preparing to bring Long Chen and the other two away.


    All of a sudden, Yin Mengyao, who had not spoken at all, said, ¡°Long Chen, right? Can I have a word?¡±


    This icy beauty was actually looking to speak to him voluntarily. Long Chen was surprised.


    Gu Batian wasn¡¯t young anymore, yet very energetic. After hearing her words, he teased, ¡°Girl, could you really have taken a liking for this kid?¡±


    Yin Mengyao did not have any change in expression even after hearing these words. She answered calmly, ¡°Senior Gu, I would like to discuss the arrangements tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡± There was no fun in messing with this girl, and Gu Batian stopped speaking.


    Long Chen nodded and headed to a corner of the all with her. The closer he got to Yin Mengyao, the more he felt that she was mind-blowingly beautiful. That cold feeling she gave off was something regr girls could not even learn.


    Watching Long Chen, she spoke, ¡°My grand elder of the Silver Faction has told me that you¡¯ve reached the Earth Dan Realm, so I¡¯m at ease. For the battle tomorrow, try to hide as much as you can, and I¡¯ll take care of the opponents. You¡¯ll just have to take care of your jade bangle. Is that alright?¡±


    In actuality, Yin Mengyao was not despising him. Long Chen did not have much of an impression of her, and even if she did seem to be looking down on him a little, that would not affect Long Chen¡¯s good impression of her.


    ¡°She¡¯s just worried that if I¡¯m not powerful enough, I¡¯d lose the jade bangle, which would make thingsplicated. That¡¯s why she said that.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t mind at all and nodded. ¡°Alright, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll do what I can.¡±


    From what Long Chen had said to Chu Tianxiong, he was very hot-headed, but never did Yin Mengyao expect that Long Chen would agree so easily, and seemed rather sincere.


    That was better and required lesser effort on her part at convincing him. She nodded, bid him farewell, and left.


    Long Chen followed Gu Batian and trained at the Nine Devil Mountain Manor for a night. On the morning of the second day, everyone followed Dongfang Xuanxiao and arrived at the bottom of the Devil Mountain of Life and Death.

 Chapter 160 – Toxic Beast

    Though they had mentioned they would leave when the skies brightened the next day, the sky did not brighten.


    Nine Devil Mountain¡¯s reputation with terrible weather was not mere talk. When Long Chen estimated the time and headed out of his room, he found that the skies outside werepletely ck. Though it wasn¡¯t to the point that it was pitch-dark, it was almost to that extent.


    Dark clouds loomed over the area, and they were all situated very low and halfway up the Nine Devil Mountain. There, lightning shed continuously.


    *Rumble!*


    asionally, these gloomy sounds of thunder could be heard, and the piercing nature of it had chills running down everyone¡¯s spines.


    This was the darkest daytime Long Chen had ever experienced.


    ¡°It¡¯s already morning, but it¡¯s still so dark. Seems like the weather today will change.¡±


    When Gu Batian arrived, he frowned.


    That night, Long Chen had been together with Gu Batian and the others, and thus met with the two young talents. Both were at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm, and one was Gu Cheng, Gu Batian¡¯s blood grandson, who had directly obtained the qualifications to take part in the selection. The other paled slightly inparison, and was called Liu Gui.


    ¡°If any of the three of you really meet with danger, remember to take care of each other. Such weather today means there¡¯s a higher level of difficulty for Divergent Road, inparison to a day with clear skies.¡±


    Before leaving, Gu Batian reminded.


    ¡°Grandpa, we know. If Brother Long Chen meets with danger, we¡¯ll help him.¡±


    Here, Long Chen was the youngest, and Gu Batian was clearly trying to get the two of them to look after Long Chen. They naturally agreed.


    ¡°Then I shall thank all of you ahead of time.¡±


    Knowing of their good intentions, Long Chen immediately thanked them.


    After all, they were all strangersing together by chance, and yet, Gu Batian had kept taking care of Long Chen. He was immensely grateful.


    Though it was because Gu Batian and Chu Tianxiong were at odds that he had a favourable impression of Long Chen, this was still help, and Long Chen appreciated it.


    Behind him were Liu Yuan and Liu Lan.


    They did not know what to say in response to his actions. After all, there was no point crying over spoilt milk. Long Chen had already started a feud with Chu Tianxiong, and if Long Chen could not pass the inner faction selection, he was done for once he returned to the Green Faction.


    Thankfully, Gu Batian seemed to think well of Long Chen. With his help, Long Chen probably had a way out of this predicament.


    Liu Lan was as radiant as always and a wonderful sight in the darkness. With the inner faction selection right ahead of him, Long Chen recalled what Liu Lan had agreed to before and admired her, heart stirring restlessly.


    ¡°What are you looking at?¡±


    Liu Lan could feel the tips of her ears go warm from the heated gaze Long Chen had on her.


    ¡°I¡¯m just wondering if you¡¯re prepared. Let me think¡­ it¡¯s regarding what will happen tomorrow night¡­?¡±


    Others naturally had no idea of what Long Chen was talking about. Liu Yuan himself was puzzled.


    Within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi had no idea what Long Chen kept bringing up, but with experts around him, she did not dare ask.


    He was already at death¡¯s door, and yet still did not realise it. Instead, he was thinking of all sorts of strange things. Liu Lan was humiliated, but at the same time, disappointed.


    ¡°Impulsive, no regard for the results, reckless¡­ When did Long Chen end up like this¡­¡±


    Thinking of his future, Liu Lan could not help but begin to worry on his behalf.


    The inner faction selection would affect Long Chen the most. His sess or failure was his own matter and had nothing to do with Liu Lan.


    After teasing Liu Lan, Long Chen followed the rest and began the journey.


    In the discussion hall, Long Chen and the other neen participants met up. Under Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s lead, they came under the Nine Devil Mountain.


    The rest seemed to have followed the Heaven Dan Realm grand elders who were at the final mastery stage and gone through the Divergent Road, and arrived at the Nest of Life and Death. The Lingwu Family had set up a base there already.


    Though Chu Tianxiong was around, there was Gu Batian around to take care of Liu Yuan and Liu Lan, and Long Chen was therefore at ease. At the base of the Nine Devil Mountain, with the dim line of sight, he raised his head and looked at the peak of the precipitous mountain that reached the heavens.


    ¡°This is the Mountain of Life and Death?¡±


    Long Chen was full of reverence. Currently, the mountain had been cut into two parts by the clouds.


    The peak above the clouds could not be seen at all. Below the clouds, there were dark forests everywhere, fog twining around the woods. Long Chen could not see anything clearly. On the Mountain of Life and Death, there seemed to berge beasts hidden in sight everywhere, frightening mouths wide open in wait for them.


    ¡°Once we¡¯re on the Divergent Road, there¡¯s a fine line between life and death. Young people, begin your journey.¡±


    After reaching the base of the mountain, Dongfang Xuanxiao did not utter more nonsense and announced the official start of the first stage of the inner faction selection, the Nest of Life and Death.


    With Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s arrangements, teams began to head in varying directions, entering the Devil Mountain of Life and Death from different angles. This was to prevent them from meeting too early and killing each other.


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were ced at the very end. As soon as he arranged for the teenagers from the Red Faction to go up the mountain, they were quickly brought to another area.


    ¡°From here, go 500m straight ahead. What happens next is in your control.¡±


    Listening to his directions, Long Chen and Yin Mengyao shared a gaze and stepped forth on the dark Devil Mountain of Life and Death.


    ¡°Those kids from the Red Faction seem to have their eyes on you.¡±


    Just as Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were hurrying forward, Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s voice resounded in their ears. Everything was still around them though.


    ¡°The Red Faction?¡± Yin Mengyao¡¯s expression was indifferent. ¡°They¡¯re not hard to deal with.¡±


    What Long Chen found strange was that Dongfang Xuanxiao seemed to be taking care of them.


    They had now gone a distance into the Devil Mountain of Life and Death. There were dark flourishing foliage around them, the branches and leaves weaving in and out. They were extremely thick, and Long Chen had even seen a leaf that was akin to a little boat.


    ¡°The trees in the mountain should be ¡®devil trees¡¯. Their bark is extremely firm, and the sturdiness isparable to steel.¡±


    Long Chen was astonished by these thick devil trees.


    They were everywhere, and tree roots were crisscrossing on the ground. It was difficult to find arge area with just soil to stand on.


    The devil trees were a specialty of the devil mountain, but Long Chen knew that there was something else that was especially terrifying here¡ª toxic beasts.


    ¡°Toxic beasts are a mutated version of demonic beasts. They¡¯re under the category of demonic beasts, but inparison to them, the toxic beasts are even more terrifying, because they release toxins. If unlucky, even an expert at the perfect mastery stage at the Heaven Dan Realm could be poisoned to death in an instant!¡±


    The night before, Liu Yuan and the others had passed on this information to Long Chen.


    Long Chen knew that the reason why the test of the Divergent Road was so terrifying was because of the toxic beasts. Now, they were still at the base, and there were naturally few of them. However, once they really got onto the Mountain of Life and Death, it would probably be filled with toxic beasts and bugs. That would be a terrifying sight!


    ¡°When faced with the attack of toxic beasts, I still have to prevent people from stealing my jade bracelet. The difficulty of this is like heading to my death¡­¡±


    It was extremely humid in the mountain, and there was water on the leaves and grass. Soon enough, Long Chen was full of grime.


    However, because Yin Mengyao was female, she deliberately tried to maintain cleanliness and looked better.


    Ever since they had entered the Divergent Road, Yin Mengyao stayed ahead of Long Chen. She wore tight clothing that was suitable for battle, and showed off her alluring lines.


    ¡°Long Chen, do you remember what I told you before?¡±


    At this moment, Yin Mengyao, who was walking ahead, spoke while hurrying on.


    ¡°Yes. If there are any opponents, I¡¯ll try my best to hide and not try too hard.¡± Long Chen spoke without strength. She did not have any ill intentions, and couldn¡¯t be bothered to bicker over it.


    ¡°Of course, that¡¯s only if I can save my own life. It¡¯s best not to stray too far from me.¡±


    ¡°Mm.¡±


    Long Chen seemed to know himself well. After Yin Mengyao mentioned this once, she did not say more.


    The higher up they got, the more humid it became. The sounds of thunder could be heard closing in, and the surroundings were pitch-ck. Only when there were shes of lightning could he see the distressing scene ahead.


    ¡°The toxic beasts should be about to appear.¡±


    Noticing some traces left behind by toxic bugs or wild animals on the tree bark and leaves, Long Chen was more vignt.


    ¡°Toxic bugs and beasts are all a type of demonic beast, but they¡¯re even more difficult to handle than beasts of the same level. Once poisoned, it¡¯s difficult to survive this Divergent Road.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s someone heading in your direction.¡± After entering the Devil Mountain of Life and Death, Lingxi had also be more attentive. With her immense spirit sensing abilities, Long Chen¡¯s was slightly safer.


    ¡°Hey, stop. Someone¡¯s heading over.¡± Long Chen halted his footsteps, ring at the direction Lingxi had pointed out.


    Yin Mengyao froze. She had not found anything strange in that direction, but Long Chen had found out someone was iing? Just when she was about to ask, she suddenly frowned and, with a quick movement, stood in front of Long Chen.


    She had heard the sounds of leaves crinkling, as well as the sound from stepping on tree bark.


    Not long after, two teenagers appeared in the darkness. Once closer, they could see their opponents.


    ¡°Looks like they only know which direction we came from and guessed their way here.¡±


    Long Chen knew who these two were. They were the two talented cultivators from the Red Faction that Dongfang Xuanxiao had warned them against. They had entered the mountain before Long Chen, and had been able to estimate Long Chen and Yin Mengyao¡¯s position.


    The moment they appeared, they exchanged nces and, without another word, charged towards Yin Mengyao!

 Chapter 161 – Flaming Tempered Fist

    The two did not waste any effort on uttering nonsense and attacked right away. They were evidently intelligent, and weren¡¯t the sort of idiots who threatened opponents before battle.


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful!¡±


    Seeing that the opponents were about to act, all heading straight for Yin Mengyao, she could tell that something was off.


    ¡°I¡¯m with Long Chen, and he¡¯s the weaker one. They should have assigned one person to hold me back, while the other deals with Long Chen!¡±


    Yi Mengyao had already guessed that others would choose to use this method to take her down.


    ¡°They n to suppress me with one move!¡±


    With the two heading in her direction, Yin Mengyao instantly came up with this idea.


    In the pitch-ck Devil Mountain of Life and Death, the two talented cultivators of the Red Faction were like a gust that pierced through the silence, whizzing through and arriving before Yin Mengyao in an instant. The two used the same techniques and attacked her!


    ¡°ming Tempered Fist!¡±


    This was a technique that was at the middle profound-grade, like Long Chen¡¯s Scarlet mes Burning Heavens from his Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, and had a simr explosive power. With the both of them at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm, the might of this fist when used together created an astounding effect.


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s expression changed, and she realised she had underestimated them. All those who had been selected to participate in the inner faction selection were talents among talents.


    These two ming Tempered Fists could only be blocked with her going all out. However, that meant she could not take care of Long Chen.


    At this point, Yin Mengyao decisively chose to attack. Long Chen shouldn¡¯t be defeated so easily, right¡­?


    After all, Long Chen was a Human Dan who had defeated an Earth Dan cultivator. Besides, he had already entered the Earth Dan Realm.


    ¡°This woman is pretty good!¡±


    Seeing Yin Mengyao immediately engaging them in battle, with one against two and not showing any signs of being at a disadvantage, none of the people of the Red Faction darede closer, especially after streaks of icy palm techniques were used.


    ¡°Ice Mountain Seal!¡±


    Under Yin Mengyao¡¯s powerful attack, the two young men exchanged a nce and exploded forth with the ming Tempered Fist once more, charging towards her!


    With nobody backing down, the attacks from both sides collided with a rumble, leaves lifting off the ground and gusts of wind roaring.


    *Crack!*


    A few thick and solid trees broke into two!


    ¡°It¡¯s time!¡±


    One of the males from the Red Faction yelled, and, right after the other young man evaded Yin Mengyao, headed straight for Long Chen!


    ¡°It¡¯s a trap!¡±


    Yin Mengyao was anxious.


    She had been focused on the fight to the death before, but had never expected that she had been led by the two males, in the direction where Long Chen was. That Ice Mountain Seal that she had employed had sent the opponent flying tens of metres, and brought them even closer to Long Chen!


    At this moment, the more powerful young man from the Red Faction stood in front of Yin Mengyao, while the other had an icy glint in his eyes as he darted towards Long Chen like a gust of wind.


    ¡°At the Initial Mastery Stage at the Earth Dan Realm, he¡¯s definitely several times more powerful than Feng Wutian even while iparable to Chu Yunxi and the others.¡±


    This young man¡¯s arrival gave Long Chen a tremendous pressure.


    Knowing that she had fallen into the trap, Yin Mengyao was slightly angered, because Long Chen was now in danger. Unhesitatingly, she came to his rescue!


    ¡°You two are rather intelligent, but did you think that one person was enough to hold me, Yin Mengyao, back?¡±


    ¡°Mo Xiang isn¡¯t around, and as the number one genius of the Silver Faction, you¡¯re probably one of the top 3 in the inner faction. I¡¯m obviously not a match for you, but you won¡¯t be able to kill me before my brother eliminates that kid!¡±


    What was most important here was time!


    As long as they sessfully suppressed Yin Mengyao, they were the winners!


    Knowing that Yin Mengyao¡¯s teammate was Long Chen, many had their eyes on this pair. It was just that the Red Faction had headed up the Devil Mountain of Life and Death right before them, which was why they could guess at Long Chen and Yin Mengyao¡¯s location.


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful!¡±


    At this point, all she could do was defeat this annoying housefly or shake him off!


    Watching the young man rushing towards him, a slight smile appeared about Long Chen¡¯s lips.


    ¡°It¡¯s your honour that you could be my first opponent after I reached the Earth Dan Realm. Well then, let me see if I can defeat you without my Dragon Soul Transformation.¡±


    Even if he did not use Dragon Soul Transformation, Long Chen¡¯s real Qi right now was qualitatively four times as powerful as others¡¯ real Qi. That was about half of the amount someone at the initial mastery stage of the Earth Dan Realm.


    On top of that, he had the level 2 Thunder me Physique, which should be enough against this young man!


    However, probably nobody thought the same way.


    Seeing that his opponent was quickly closing in, Long Chen had a thought and suddenly turned and fled!


    ¡°Rascal, don¡¯t run!¡±


    Noticing that Long Chen was so spineless, he was instantly anxious. If he could not catch up to Long Chen, his brother would be taken care of by Yin Mengyao sooner orter!


    Thankfully, Long Chen wasn¡¯t that fast. Using his quickest speed, he was able to catch up to Long Chen.


    This meant that the two of them were far from Yin Mengyao¡¯s line of sight.


    ¡°What is he trying to do? Is he so cowardly?¡±


    Yin Mengyao was rather speechless. If Long Chen was in her line of sight, she could probably help out, but now that he was out of the way and she was held up, she could do nothing even if Long Chen were about to be killed.


    ¡°Looks like your teammate is unusually cowardly¡­¡±


    The young man sneered.


    ¡°Do you have the time to be ridiculing others? There¡¯s only you here. How long do you think you¡¯ll be able tost by my hands?¡±


    Yin Mengyao spoke coldly while beginning a fierce attack.


    For this, it was best to take care of the person in front of her as soon as possible.


    Meanwhile, Long Chen had sessfully, escaped from Yin Mengyao¡¯s sight and allowed himself to be caught up to by the other male.


    The reason he hade here and hide from Yin Mengyao was because Long Chen was in a yful mood, and also because he wanted to disguise himself as a weakling. He was powerful, but he didn¡¯t want to expose himself in front of Yin Mengyao too early!


    ¡°You¡¯re not running anymore?¡±


    Noticing that Long Chen had turned back and was smiling at himself, he was confused.


    ¡°Young man, what¡¯s your name?¡± Long Chen asked, full of sincerity.


    ¡°Chen Xin.¡±


    Having announced his name, Chen Xin suddenly found the situation odd. His brother was risking his life right now, but here he was, answering his opponent¡¯s questions. Was that right of him?


    At this thought, Chen Xin was furious.


    ¡°You rascal, die!¡±


    As he spoke, his knees bent and he was like a sharp arrow, piercing towards Long Chen!


    ¡°I asked for your name so we could be on better terms. Is there a need to be so angry?¡±


    Knowing he was in a hurry, Long Chen intentionally wasted his time andughed. Long Chen had increased his speed and even used Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step, and Chen Xin¡¯s attacks were unable to hit him.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Even if he used a motion technique, his speed couldn¡¯t have increased by so much?¡±


    While astonished, he did not halt his movements.


    ¡°Kid, if you have any guts at all, don¡¯t run!¡±


    Chen Xin was about to go insane in his anger.


    ¡°Come on, handsome, is there something wrong with your orientation? I¡¯m obviously male, but you keep chasing after me. I¡¯m quite scared¡­¡±


    Long Chen burst out inughter while speaking in a strange tone.


    Chen Xin almost spat out blood, face flushing.


    ¡°You scoundrel. How dare you nder my reputation. Die!¡±


    ¡°ming Tempering Fist! Raging Inferno City!¡±


    He used profound middle-grade battle techniques proficiently!


    ¡°Without Dragon Soul Transformation, my Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist isn¡¯t going to match up to his attack. I should try that move.¡±


    At this point, there was no more teasing that could be done. The enraged Yin Mengyao was probably almost done with the other young man from the Red Faction, who was probably in a terrible state. Long Chen halted his footsteps, looking towards the terrifying attacks that were heading his way.


    ¡°I¡¯ll let you see how powerful a profound high-grade battle technique is like!¡±


    Seeing that Long Chen was no longer running, Chen Xin heaved a sigh of relief.


    ¡°It should still be possible if I rush back to help him. Long Chen really runs rather quickly!¡±


    With this thought in mind, his attacks became even more violent as it spread across the area and pushed towards Long Chen!


    At this moment, a bit of starlight appeared at the tip of Long Chen¡¯s right index finger.


    The starlight seemed rather weak, but that was just the start. Long Chen¡¯s arms continuously trembled, seemingly unable to grab hold of this force.


    Seeing the ming Tempered Fist about to swallow Long Chen whole, he opened his eyes widely, right hand waving, and a streak of starlight turned into the most resplendent sword Qi, piercing through Chen Xin¡¯s attack!


    ¡°Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit!¡±


    *Hss!*


    With a hiss, Chen Xin felt the scene in front of him go blurry, and immense pain bloomed on his arm. Though his arm had been hit, that powerful attack had shaken his whole body and caused him to cough up fresh blood!


    ¡°What kind of attack is this?¡±


    Under the acute pain, Chen Xin looked deathly pale. His ming Tempered Fist hadpletely failed and been crushed. That sword Qi had gone through Chen Xin¡¯s arm, pulling him backwards and pinning him to a tree trunk!


    His arm was basically crippled, and the pain caused Chen Xin to cry out miserably. In the next instant, an elbow struck his forehead and caused him to faint.


    ¡°One jade bangle obtained!¡±

 Chapter 162 – Advancing into the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes

    Long Chen was not too far away from Yin Mengyao, and after hearing a male sound of anguish, her expression changed and immediately turned into one of anxiety.


    If Long Chen lost his jade bangle, that wasn¡¯t a huge issue, but if Long Chen died or used his firework signal, then she would be losing this massive opportunity.


    This inner faction selection was very important to her.


    ¡°You¡¯re forcing me to go all out.¡±


    With a cold re, Yin Mengyaounched her most powerful attack.


    Meanwhile, Long Chen had let go of Chen Xin¡¯s weakened body, and the jade bangle around his wrist fell. When Long Chen reached out to grab it, the jade bangle suddenly wound around his own wrist.


    Now, there were two jade bangles around his wrist.


    ¡°If I were to get injured, both would fall.¡±


    Long Chen was in an exceptionally good mood, since he had easily obtained a jade bangle.


    He had reached the Earth Dan Realm and also gained the level 2 Thunder me Physique. With a profound high-grade battle technique, Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit, it was an easy task for him to deal with Chen Xin without transforming into his Dragon Soul Form.


    With the jade bangle, Long Chen was one step closer to his goal.


    ¡°I wonder if that frosty beauty¡¯s done with her opponent yet. I should go over and ease the worry in her delicate little heart.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled, ambling over to Yin Mengyao in a rxed manner.


    ¡°Who¡¯s going to worry about you? How thick-skinned and shameless!¡±


    Lingxi rolled her eyes and eximed, fuming.


    ¡°Honestly speaking, Little Xi, this Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit is really quite useless. I didn¡¯t even have to use my Dragon Soul Transformation and easily dealt with that guy.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s nothing much! It¡¯s just a trick I used while ying around when I was young.¡±


    At the mention of the past, Lingxi was arrogant beyond belief.


    ¡°Save it. You keep exaggerating your skills, but look at you now. Aren¡¯t you just my personal servant here now?¡±


    ¡°What are you saying? Who¡¯s your servant? You rascal!¡±


    The two of themughed and bantered while hurrying on. They weren¡¯t that far either. In order to prevent Lingxi from torturing his ears, Long Chen quickly arrived at where Yin Mengyao was.


    To avoid exposing herself, Lingxi shut her mouth but sounded indignant.


    Right now, Long Chen saw that the poor youth of the Red Faction had been sent flying while spitting blood by Yin Mengyao¡¯s attack, mming into a tree with a huge rumble.


    Till now, he still could not understand why Chen Xin had taken such a long time to deal with Long Chen.


    He¡¯d heard that miserable cry just now, which meant Chen Xin had already taken care of Long Chen. That had allowed him to heave a sigh of relief, but why was it that no matter how long he waited, Chen Xin did not return to assist him?


    The longer he waited, the more he wanted to break down.


    Not long after, Yin Mengyao, who was anxious, finally went all out and got rid of this youth.


    Under her single attack, frost was everywhere, and he turned deathly pale. The jade bangle fell quickly, and Yin Mengyao took it.


    Long Chen¡¯s group now had four jade bangles already. Sess was imminent.


    Out of the 20 jade bangles, there were, they had already obtained 4. In other words, as long as they did not lose what they possessed, they would be able to enter the second stage.


    This might seem easy, but it was extremely difficult. In the inner faction selection, each team¡¯s strength was at about the same level. If any two teams were to fight at close quarters, this might be a life and death battle, and victory could not be so easily attained.


    A powerful team like Long Chen and Yin Mengyao that couldpletely beat down their opponents were rare.


    Having taken care of the teenagers of the Red Faction, Yin Mengyao did not waste time and began to head in Long Chen¡¯s direction to support him. However, she suddenly saw a young man who was standing atop a branch, all smiles. Who else could it be but Long Chen?


    Though there were some stains on Long Chen¡¯s clothes, there were no signs of battle or him being injured. This waspletely different from what she had imagined.


    ¡°How¡¯s that possible? Could that yell just now have been made by his opponent?¡±


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s stiff expression finally softened.


    Long Chen lookedpletely at ease, as if he had not realised that this was the Divergent Road of the rumoured treacherous Nine Devil Mountains. However, it was for this reason that Yin Mengyao suddenly found him mysterious.


    She shook her head, finding this notion to be ridiculous.


    ¡°Chen Xin¡¯s strength is practically at the bottom in the selection. Since Long Chen could defeat him, it means that the rumours of him defeating an Earth Dan while at the Human Dan are real. He¡¯s a true genius.¡±


    After evaluating him, Yin Mengyao regained her senses from the shock of Long Chen¡¯s appearance.


    ¡°You dealt with Chen Xin?¡±


    Noticing there were two jade bangles on Long Chen¡¯s arm, she asked indifferently.


    Though her tone was calm, there was acknowledgement and praise within, and it obviously made Long Chen feel good.


    ¡°But of course! That was just a little kid. How could he be a match for me?¡±


    Long Chen was in high spirits as heughed, looking like a kind of viin.


    Hearing that Chen Xin had really lost to Long Chen, the young man from the Red Faction lying on the ground could no longer hold on and fainted.


    Before he lost consciousness, he forced himself to look at Long Chen, and noticing that he waspletely fine, the young man finally believed Long Chen.


    Since Long Chen had really defeated Chen Xin, Yin Mengyao could only ept this as the truth. They now had four jade bangles, and in other words, they could get to the next stage.


    Because of Long Chen, this had happened earlier than expected.


    ¡°Shall we make a move?¡±


    Noticing that Long Chen was probably not any weak cultivator, Yin Mengyao found herself feeling relieved. Now, she no longer hurried forward as she liked, but asked for Long Chen¡¯s opinion.


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    Long Chen turned and quickly dragged the unconscious Chen Xin, till he was together with the other young man from the Red Faction. He then took out a firework signal from their cosmos pouch.


    After inputting real Qi within, the firework signal shook violently and abruptly rose into the skies.


    *Rumble!*


    The fireworks exploded, and in the dark night sky, the image of a deity dragon roared into existence, creating a resplendent scene!


    The dragon seemingly formed out of starlight was imprinted deep in Long Chen¡¯s mind, causing him to freeze. Watching the primordial life form that seemed to look down on all living beings, he thought of the morous era when dragons had taken over the world. Even that had been like the fireworks, emitting dazzling lights and then disappearingpletely.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    At the thought of the extinction of dragons, Long Chen was stirred up. His gleeful expression had turned into one of sombreness.


    While hurrying on, Yin Mengyao turned to observe this strange youth.


    They could have just left, especially since the lives of the two youths of the Red Faction had nothing to do with them. This was the inner faction selection after all, and it was a long battle that decided life or death, and not some mild experience.


    Long Chen might have defeated them, but still cared for their lives.


    In the Devil Mountain of Life and Death, there were poisonous bugs and beasts everywhere, and if left here, they might turn into a bunch of bones.


    It was evident that while he possessed the desire to fight, as was in the genes of all cultivators, he was still kind at the core. This was what set him apart from others.


    On top of that, there was the cheeky expression that had turned into a grim look. What was he thinking about?


    Yin Mengyao was rather curious about this, and had tried to muster her courage to ask, her long eyshes trembling and beautiful lips opening slightly. However, she managed to hold it in.


    Yin Mengyao had never been one to be interested in someone else¡¯s thoughts.


    The two of them were silent as they moved forward.


    ¡°Long Chen, did you know there¡¯s a ce called the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes in the Devil Mountain of Life and Death?¡±


    The thought suddenly came to mind, and she abruptly asked.


    Long Chen turned to look at her. In the dark night, her intelligent eyes were exceptionally bright like beautiful stars.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t. What about it?¡±


    Yin Mengyao hesitated, but still spoke, ¡°I did underestimate you in the past, so I¡¯ll apologise to you for that. I hope you don¡¯t mind?¡±


    ¡°Of course not,¡± Long Chen could not hold in augh.


    ¡°Mm,¡± Yin Mengyao nodded, and continued, ¡°I guess it¡¯s destiny that the both of us are in a team. However, there¡¯s something that I must do along the Divergent Road. I¡¯ll tell you what it is now, but it¡¯s your choice whether you want to stay or leave.¡±


    ¡°Go on.¡± Long Chen halted his footsteps.


    Yin Mengyao had never been one to beat around the bush and cut straight to the point, ¡°There are three people from the Silver Faction participating in the inner faction selection. I have a deep enmity with the other two, and while in the Silver Faction, I never got the chance to sort it out with them. Hence, we¡¯ve agreed to meet up in the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes on the Divergent Road and go through with a battle to the death.¡±


    There was enmity between them?


    They were all in the same faction, but were hostile to each other. That was rather surprising to Long Chen. He asked, ¡°So you want my help in defeating them?¡±


    Yin Mengyao hastily shook her head, ¡°No, it¡¯s a very deep grudge, and it¡¯s better if I deal with it myself. If you wish to continue on this path with me, then you can be an observer. I can tell that you¡¯re quite strong, and you should be able to go to the Caves of Life and Death yourself. If you¡¯re unwilling to do this, we can part ways here. What do you think?¡±


    Long Chen thought it over for a moment but did not speak.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll do my utmost to preserve my life such that you¡¯ll be able to pass the stage of the Divergent Road!¡±


    Yin Mengyao spoke in a hurry, since this was of immense importance to her. If Long Chen were to lose his chance at being selected into the inner faction, that was slightly unfair to him.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Long Chenughed and answered.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°To the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes.¡±

 Chapter 163 – Abyssal Poison Scorpion

    Yin Mengyao was slightly surprised that Long Chen had agreed to go to the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes.


    ¡°Alright then. I know where the cave is located. Be careful while we¡¯re on the way there, so that we can avoid most of the dangers around.¡±


    With Yin Mengyao taking the lead, Long Chen climbed up the high and steep Devil Mountain of Life and Death, heading towards the peak.


    After walking around halfway there, the clouds in the sky seemed to have shrouded over this area. There was fog everywhere, and the skies were dark and gloomy. Even with the good vision of Long Chen and other cultivators, it was still difficult to move about freely on the mountain.


    Thunder sounded every once in a while, and lightning kept shing.


    ¡°Looks like it¡¯s going to rain.¡±


    A trace of worry appeared on Yin Mengyao¡¯s expression.


    ¡°How far is the cave?¡±


    Raising his hand and pushing away the trees and leaves in front of him, Long Chen furrowed his brows and asked. The Devil Mountain of Life and Death was nasty to travel in.


    It was hard to imagine how terrifying this ce would be if it began to rain.


    *Whoosh!*


    Long Chen flicked his hand, and held a snake that had pounced over as thick as a thumb and squeezed it to death. Till its death, this small snake had its tail tightly wound around Long Chen¡¯s body, but how could his level 2 Thunder me Physique be so easily destroyed?


    This little snake waspletely ck in colour with a red line on its back that spanned from its head to the tail. While seemingly normal, it was extremely toxic.


    Such poisonous beasts were found all over the mountain.


    Of those that Long Chen and Yin Mengyao had seen on the way, there were many more powerful than this snake. Amongst which was a level 4 profound grade Poison Scorpion that was asrge as a horse, and its tail extended up to around 3 metres long. Such a sharp sting could probably pierce into Long Chen¡¯s level 2 Thunder me Physique.


    Yin Mengyao had dealt with the Poison Scorpion then, and even she found it slightly tiresome to deal with it. The main issue was that the toxins from the scorpion was too scary, and an expert at the Earth Dan Realm would be caught in a very dangerous situation if targeted.


    After walking on for some time, Lingxi, who had not spoken much, suddenly began to move.


    Long Chen hurriedly took several steps backwards.


    ¡°What¡¯s up, doll?¡±


    ¡°There are people up ahead, and quite a few Abyssal Poison Scorpions! There are two people of the Purple Faction up ahead, and someone seems to be injured!¡±


    The two people of the Purple Faction were probably Gu Cheng and Liu Gui. Gu Cheng was Gu Batian¡¯s grandchild, and seeing how well Gu Batian had treated Long Chen, he found it his responsibility to help them.


    ¡°Long Chen, what¡¯s up?¡±


    Noticing that Long Chen had halted his footsteps, Yin Mengyao turned and asked in concern.


    From the beginning, she had not shown any interest in Long Chen, but hister performance had been enough to earn her respect.


    ¡°There are people up ahead. I¡¯m going to head over.¡± Long Chen did not hesitate and advanced in the direction Lingxi had pointed out.


    ¡°What? This timing isn¡¯t good¡­¡± They had already obtained enough jade bangles, and it was because of Yin Mengyao¡¯s issue that they were going to the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes. It was better not to meet with any other people.


    ¡°Four jade bangles should already be enough, shouldn¡¯t it?¡± She¡¯d assumed that Long Chen wanted to obtain more jade bangles.


    Long Chen did not answer. Gu Cheng and his partner were in imminent peril, and he didn¡¯t have time to think further, charging in the direction Lingxi had pointed out.


    ¡°You¨C!¡± Seeing Long Chen paying no heed to her words and not paying her any mind, Yin Mengyao was finally annoyed, no matter how well she usually kept her temper.


    However, Long Chen had been very resolute as he left, and she could only sigh and speak coldly, ¡°Oh well, the thing about the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes has inconvenienced you. Since you¡¯re doing this, I guess we¡¯re even.¡±


    She obviously would not let Long Chen go alone and used her movement techniques, chasing up to him.


    With one person ahead and one behind, they quickly reached the destination. From a long distance away, Long Chen could already smell those scorpions.


    ¡°There are tens of Abyssal Poison Scorpions!¡±


    Just when they¡¯d arrived, Long Chen and Yin Mengyao saw the scorpions crowded everywhere, on tree trunks, branches, and roots, and also arge number surrounding two people.


    ¡°Gu Cheng! Liu Gui!¡±


    Two shouts allowed the two people in the middle to see hope. They listened closely and found that it was Long Chen¡¯s voice.


    If he was here, that meant Yin Mengyao was also here. In that case, they¡¯d have a chance of survival!


    At this thought, they were ted. Though they had no idea if she would save them, there was at least a chance.


    ¡°Long Chen, quick, get Lady Mengyao to save us!¡±


    When Long Chen arrived, he found Gu Cheng lying on the ground, his initially pale skin now already ck. It was obvious that he had been poisoned.


    Beside him, Liu Gui was doing her best and contending with the poisonous scorpions. She also had to protect Gu Cheng as well, and looked like she couldn¡¯t hold on for long.


    ¡°Big Brother Gu Cheng has already been poisoned from trying to protect me. Long Chen, find a way to save him!¡±


    Liu Gui no longer had the time to care about how powerful Long Chen was and yelled anxiously.


    Around them, there were the carcases of some Abyssal Poison Scorpions.


    Noticing that it was Gu Cheng and Liu Gui who seemed to be Long Chen¡¯s acquaintances, Yin Mengyao¡¯sints towards Long Chen disappeared.


    ¡°But how did he know that these two were injured?¡±


    Yin Mengyao was rather curious about this.


    While she was still pondering over this, Long Chen had already charged towards the Abyssal Poison Scorpions.


    While rushing in, he used his Dragon Soul Transformation and turned into a crimson dragon body, scarlet scales and bone spurs making him look somewhat simr to poisonous bugs like the scorpion. However, he was an even more terrifying version!


    The reason he had used his transformation was because on one hand, the Abyssal Poison Scorpions were powerful, and also because the scaly armour would make his body even firmer. This would make it difficult for the scorpions to pierce into his body.


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful!¡±


    Noticing that it was Long Chen who charged forward to save them, Gu Cheng and Liu Gui were very touched, but how powerful was he? They knew this very well. If even Gu Cheng had been attacked and poisoned by the scorpions, how would Long Chen fare?


    Though it was their first time witnessing Long Chen¡¯s beast transformation, they did not think well of him, since he was only at the Earth Dan Realm.


    With the gossiping of the grand elders, news of him having entered the Earth Dan Realm had spread far.


    They were worried about Long Chen, but what surprised was that Long Chen, who had darted into the groups of scorpions, was like a wolf that had entered a herd of sheep, ughtering everything as he liked. From this situation, it seemed that he would not need Yin Mengyao¡¯s help!


    ¡°How is this possible?¡±


    Gu Cheng¡¯s now-ck face showed his astonishment, while it was the same with Liu Gui.


    ¡°Seal of the High Profound Dragon!¡±


    While running in, Long Chen used one hand and proficiently employed the Seal of the High Profound Dragon, and a roaring deity dragon image caused the gigantic Abyssal Poison Scorpions that were rushing over to vibrate, therefore crushing their innards into powder!


    However, they had very high vitality. Knowing how powerful Long Chen was, they let out strange shrieks, tens of them huddled together and, at high speeds, darted towards Long Chen!


    Tens of three-metre-tall solid scorpion stings were raised high in the sky, preparing to puncture a body at lightning speed. For anybody, this scene would make anybody feel terrified.


    ¡°The speeds at which the scorpion stings strike out is amazing. With its demonic force and poison attack, it¡¯s over if any regr level 4 profound grade demonic beasts were to meet with it.¡±


    Thankfully, such demonic beasts only existed in a humid area like the Nine Devil Mountain. If they were found everywhere, the human race would be in trouble.


    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder that even Gu Cheng was poisoned. So they¡¯re this hard to deal with!¡±


    After dodging quite a few attacks, Long Chen felt a headacheing on.


    He found his disy rather embarrassing, and could not understand Gu Cheng and Liu Gui¡¯s shock. Long Chen had clearly just entered the Earth Dan Realm, and yet, he was able to move around so freely amongst the scorpions and even killed quite a few in quick session. Even they were not capable of such achievements!


    While letting Gu Cheng consume a Spirit Medicine that would ease the venom, Liu Gui asked Gu Cheng quietly, ¡°Brother Cheng, didn¡¯t grand elder say that Long Chen¡¯s just entered the Earth Dan Realm? Why does he seem more powerful than I am?¡±


    Gu Cheng, who was still in immense pain, shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ Luckily, this medicine can keep the scorpion poison in check. With Long Chen and Yin Mengyao around, we should be fine. Protect me while I circte my real Qi and expel the toxins!¡±


    Though he did not know why Long Chen was this strong, the expelling of the toxins was an even more urgent task. If more time was allowed to pass, Gu Cheng would really be a cripple.


    ¡°Alright!¡±


    Liu Gui nodded, watching Long Chen nervously.


    ¡°Oh well. Since you beasts are of the dark and chilly attribute, I¡¯ll let you see this move!¡±


    ¡°Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Burning Heavens Scarlet mes!¡±


    Long Chen employed the fiery fist imprint, which immediately resulted in the piercing shrieks from the Abyssal Poison Scorpions. They hurriedly tried to escape, but no matter how powerful a scorpion was, they would be burnt to death as long as they were struck by Long Chen¡¯s attack!


    ¡°An attack with such powerful fire energy!¡±


    Watching this attack, Yin Mengyao narrowed her eyes. She had initially wanted to aid Long Chen, but after seeing him use this attack, she knew there was no longer any issue.


    This Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist was much more powerful than before, and while it was a middle profound-grade battle technique, it could even surpass the might of Yin Mengyao¡¯s Icy Mountain Seal!¡±


    ¡°Is Long Chen really a dark house hoping to keep his strength a secret?¡±


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s beautiful eyes were fixed on Long Chen as she wondered inside.


    With the Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Long Chen had now incinerated all of the Abyssal Poison Scorpions.


    Having eliminated them, Long Chen stood before Gu Cheng and Liu Gui, whose expressions now reflected their disbelief.


    Not long after, Liu Gui finally reacted and eximed anxiously, ¡°Long Chen, it¡¯s best that you guys leave first. Chu Yunxi has teamed up with the three from the Gold Faction and they¡¯re sweeping the area. They¡¯ve pretty much obtained all the jade bangles!¡±

 Chapter 164 – Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes

    ¡°You can do that?¡±


    Long Chen was speechless. Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi were already rather powerful, and with the two geniuses of the Gold Faction, there was no group that could win when there were two people against one.


    ¡°I saw it with my own eyes. If not for us escaping in time, we might have been defeated. However, we had bad luck and only focused on escaping, and didn¡¯t expect to identally enter the nest of the Abyssal Poison Scorpions. By the way, Long Chen, they seem to be looking for you!¡±


    Liu Gui helped Gu Cheng to the side and ensured that he was safe, before Gu Cheng began to focus on expelling the toxins.


    ¡°Looking for me? They probably want to kill me.¡±


    Long Chen snickered.


    At this point, Yin Mengyao had walked to his side. Since Long Chen could kill so many Abyssal Poison Scorpions so efficiently, she now had a deeper understanding of how much strength he held.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t they going against the rules of the game?¡± Long Chen enquired.


    ¡°Probably not. There¡¯s no such rule, so they¡¯re making use of the loopholes. However, this means that any team that meets them will be in trouble.¡± Yin Mengyao frowned.


    With a four-person team, they were could go on a rampage with no risk at all.


    ¡°But the Devil Mountain of Life and Death is sorge. It isn¡¯t going to be so easy for us to meet.¡±


    Seeing that Gu Cheng and Liu Gui still had their bangles, and Gu Cheng was gradually recovering with the Spirit Medicine, Yin Mengyao was beginning to get anxious. About an hour had already passed.


    ¡°Since you¡¯ve recovered, we still have some matters to deal with. Shall we go?¡± Long Chen asked.


    Yin Mengyao had to make another round through the Mountain to get to the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes, while the best course of action for Gu Cheng and Liu Gui was to reach the peak of the mountain as soon as possible.


    In their state, they were in no shape topete with other teams. Keeping possession of their own jade bangles might perhaps allow them to pass this stage.


    Gu Cheng hadpletely recovered by this time. He stood up and nodded, ¡°Since you¡¯re busy, you should hurry on. Liu Gui and I are going to rush up to the peak.¡±


    The four of them bade farewell and, after Long Chen left, Gu Cheng and Liu Gui exchanged a gaze.


    ¡°Brother Cheng, what kind of person do you think Long Chen is? He seemed to be at ease while dealing with tens of Abyssal Poison Scorpions!¡±


    ¡°I noticed that as well. If I¡¯m not wrong, he should be one of the top five in the inner faction selection, and even more powerful than I am.¡±


    Gu Cheng sighed ruefully as he nced in the direction Long Chen had left.


    ¡°He¡¯s so strong?¡± Liu Gui was slightly surprised.


    ¡°Mm, it seems like he only just entered the outer faction two month ago, and he¡¯s already so powerful. How could he beparable to his peers?¡±


    ¡°Oh, but he and Yin Mengyao seem to be on good terms. What are they going to do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about that.¡±


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­


    ¡°I¡¯m rather curious. What could be the reason for the enmity between you and those in the Silver Faction?¡±


    Judging by her personality, Yin Mengyao did not seem to be one who would quarrel with others.


    Yin Mengyao had no idea of how to reply.


    ¡°The male is called Li Feng, while the female is Wang Tong. It¡¯s inappropriate for me to tell you about the enmity¡­¡±


    There¡¯s some secret?


    Though Long Chen was rather curious about this secret, he couldn¡¯t be bothered to ask on if she was not willing to exin.


    They had walked about halfway through the Divergent Road. Dense fog was everywhere, and the low visibility was now a huge obstacle for their movements.


    ¡°The number of toxic snakes here have increased by arge quantity.¡±


    Long Chen killed a few toxic snakes that flew over in quick session and eximed grimly.


    ¡°Seems like we¡¯re close to the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes. It¡¯s the nest of all toxic snake-like demonic beasts here in the Devil Mountain of Life and Death, and there¡¯s definitely a lot of them around. However, that¡¯s not the most terrifying part,¡± Yin Mengyao spoke seriously.


    ¡°What¡¯s the most terrifying then?¡±


    ¡°In the cave, there seem to be a few level 5 profound-grade dismal serpent spirits in there which are extremely toxic and powerful. They¡¯re perhaps ten times more powerful than Abyssal Toxic Scorpions, and when they team up to attack, they¡¯re very difficult to handle.¡±


    ¡°In that case, why did you choose to meet in that cave?¡± Long Chen could not understand.


    ¡°We only know the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes in the Devil Mountain of Life and Death. Where else can we go? Besides, we¡¯re only meeting outside the cave, and the fighting should take ce elsewhere.¡±


    That made sense. Long Chen did not probe further.


    ¡°Li Feng and Wang Tong reached the initial mastery stage of the Earth Dan Realm not long ago, and should be at about the same level as the two youths from the Red Faction if they work together. I should be enough to take care of them, so you¡¯ll just need to watch from the sidelines. It won¡¯t be dangerous.¡±


    Yin Mengyao was slightly apologetic that Long Chen had toe here with her and quickly exined.


    Long Chen nodded. It wasn¡¯t the time to argue with her over this, and if Yin Mengyao really couldn¡¯t handle the fight, it wasn¡¯t as if he couldn¡¯t attack.


    After all, it was destiny that they had met, and besides, they got along well.


    ¡°We¡¯re almost there.¡±


    A strange smell permeated through the air, and there were the shadows of snakes everywhere. The two of them headed uphill for some time and pushed aside branches, and everything opened out. A rather level ground appeared before them, with a giant cave behind this area. The cave was eerie and frightening, like arge gaping mouth that showed only darkness within.


    Countless toxic snakes were entering and leaving the cave, looking like a river.


    ¡°There¡¯s someone here.¡±


    Lingxi lightly reminded Long Chen.


    As expected, Long Chen saw a male and a female sitting and leaning into each other at the edges of the level area. When they noticed Yin Mengyao and Long Chen¡¯s arrival, they got up. The male, Li Fengughed coldly, ¡°Yin Mengyao, I thought you weren¡¯ting!¡±


    ¡°How can I note when I need to deal with you people who know nothing about gratitude and only know to bite the hand that feeds you?¡± Yin Mengyao did not bother speaking to them amicably.


    Both sides sized each other up. Seeing their faces full of dirt and grime, it was apparent that they had gone through several battles. On the contrary, Long Chen and Yin Mengyao looked rxed.


    It was expected for Yin Mengyao to be this way, but how was it that Long Chen was fine?


    ¡°You aren¡¯t injured even though you have a burden like that bastard following you. Seems like you have pretty good luck,¡± Wang Tong seemed to imply something, ¡°I hope you haven¡¯t fallen in love with him and therefore tried your best to protect this pretty little thing, hm?¡±


    Long Chen was speechless at being called a pretty little thing.


    (Trantor note: ¡®pretty little thing¡¯ here refers to a gigolo)


    ¡°You can act all smug now, but if I were to ever catch you, I¡¯ll smack your butt in front of your man!¡±


    He scolded inside.


    This Wang Tong looked delicate and small. He imagined it that smacking her would feel pretty good.


    ¡°You¡¯re looking to die!¡± Yin Mengyao was enraged at such an insult.


    ¡°Oh my, you¡¯re even getting angry. I¡¯m so scared. Yin Mengyao, I¡¯m feeling bitterly disappointed on Mo Xiang¡¯s behalf. He was just imprisoned, and you¡¯re already looking for a new lover?¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± Yin Mengyao was now truly furious, her whole body shaking in fury, ¡°Let me make this clear. Mo Xiang is like my little brother.¡±


    ¡°Little brother. You even call him your little brother. Who¡¯s going to believe that?¡± Long Chen had the urge to p that pleased look on Wang Tong¡¯s face.


    Mo Xiang?


    At the mention of his name, Long Chen suddenly remembered that Mo Xiang was of the Silver Faction, and seemed to be on very good terms with Yin Mengyao. In this case, he could find out more about Mo Xiang through her.


    At the thought of Mo Xiang imprisoned in the Infernal Celestial Jail, Long Chen felt a sense of unease.


    Yin Mengyao and Wang Tong had quarrelled for a while more, and were beginning to attack in front of the cave.


    Seeing her attack, Wang Tongughed, looking as if some n of hers had seeded. With Li Feng, they attacked her from all sides.


    ¡°What¡¯s their intentions in forcing Yin Mengyao to attack in front of the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes?¡±


    Long Chen could not understand and could only stare hard ahead, ensuring that she was not on the losing end.


    No matter what, she was his teammate. If she died, Long Chen¡¯s dream of entering the inner faction was done for.


    ¡°Yin Mengyao seems to be even powerful than when she¡¯d dealt with those youths from the Red Faction! Looks like she¡¯s going all out now!¡±


    ¡°Icy Mountain Seal!¡±


    ¡°Sole Hurricane w!¡±


    With the attacks from two people, Yin Mengyao began to fight with even more intensity, and did not seem to be at any disadvantage.


    Under Yin Mengyao¡¯s powerful ice attack, Li Feng and Wang Tong began to find more difficulty fighting back. However, they persevered on, employing profound middle-grade attacks one after another, going on the offensive!


    Li Feng seemed to be well-versed in some profound middle-grade movement techniques, and was like a gust of wind, extremely agile. None of Yin Mengyao¡¯s attack hit him.


    However, Yin Mengyao was very smart. Since she could not get Li Feng, she focused on Wang Tong. While Wang Tong¡¯s had a silver tongue, she wasn¡¯t that good at fighting. With Yin Mengyao targeting her, she kept being pushed backwards.


    ¡°Bitch, die! Brother Feng, save me!¡±


    Wang Tong was forced towards the entrance into the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes and panicked, yelling and insulting Yin Mengyao.


    Li Feng was now beginning to get anxious. He could not show off his foot techniques anymore, and quickly stood between the two females, preparing to kill Yin Mengyao!


    ¡°Berserk Gale Disk!¡±


    ¡°Icy Palm Seal!¡±


    This attack affected both Li Feng and Wang Tong. At this point, Yin Mengyaoughed coldly.


    ¡°You knew that I was training in a profound high-grade battle technique, and you¡¯re trying topete with me? This is suicide for you!¡±


    ¡°Profound high-grade?¡±


    Long Chen was shocked. His most powerful technique was the profound high-grade Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit, and he didn¡¯t expect her to also possess one. However, recalling that she was a well-known genius in the outer faction, he was relieved.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯ve been ignorant. How can others not do what I can as well?¡±


    Hearing about a profound high-grade battle technique, Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s expression changed.


    ¡°You really know one?¡±


    Li Feng looked grim as he shot a nce at Wang Tong. They instantly understood each other. That meant they would use their most powerful attack to deal with Yin Mengyao¡¯s profound high-grade battle technique!¡±


    ¡°What could her profound high-grade technique be?¡±

 Chapter 165 – Obliterating Ocean Seal

    With Yin Mengyao¡¯s strength, she was not at any advantage against these two people. Hence, Long Chen knew there was nothing he would have to do.


    He had initially nned to act, but it looked like there was now no need for that, especially since Yin Mengyao was going to use her profound high-grade battle technique.


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s battle with the other two had transformed into one that was dazzling and akin to daylight. Aware of Yin Mengyao¡¯s uing attack, Li Feng and Wang Tong were extremely nervous.


    ¡°Sister Tong, even if it¡¯s a profound high-grade technique, there shouldn¡¯t be a problem if we work together!¡±


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s eyes were now cold, a chilly aura emanating from her body and scaring the toxic snakes that were wandering around to retreat in their fear. That violent strength was like a wave from the sea, surging forward powerfully!


    Real Qi quickly swept around Yin Mengyao, and hurricanes began to form and be agitated.


    With Yin Mengyao forming seals quickly, real Qi turned into blue streams that began to whirl frantically, simr to a dragon in the depths of the ocean, letting out furious cries!


    ¡°Brother Feng, let¡¯s do this together!¡±


    ¡°Alright! Way of the Ten True Demonic Paths!¡±


    ¡°Silver Moon Swordlight!¡±


    Two powerful profound middle-grade attacks headed in Yin Mengyao¡¯s direction!


    These were Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s most powerful attacks, and even amongst profound middle-grade techniques, they were extremely powerful! Battle techniques of this level was of about the same level of strength as Long Chen¡¯s final attack from Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist, Piercing Earth Demonic Sun.


    At this moment, Yin Mengyao let loose an even more powerful attack!


    ¡°Destroying the heavens and earth, Obliterating Ocean Seal!¡±


    The moment this seal was used, the sky changed its colour! ¡®Obliterating Ocean Seal¡¯ had been named aptly, with gushing blue mes simr to the tides of the ocean, about to collide with the opponents¡¯ own attack.


    There was a gigantic blue fist imprint that held within an earth shattering strength. Li Feng¡¯s Way of the Ten True Demonic Paths and Wang Tong¡¯s Silver Moon Swordlight were shattered under the seal, and that mighty blue imprint crashed into Li Feng and Wang Tong!


    ¡°This is bad. Dodge!¡±


    They knew Yin Mengyao was formidable, but they had still underestimated her.


    Even if they wanted to dodge and not being hit straight on by the Obliterating Ocean Seal, the stray undtions caused them to cough out fresh blood as they were sent flying.


    At this crucial moment, Li Feng¡¯s movements were nimble and was somewhat able to avoid the attack and gained lesser injuries, but things were different for Wang Tong. Though these were merely stray undtions, these had caused her to be shaken with so much force that she was grievously injured, her face turning deathly pale.


    Li Feng quickly grabbed hold of her in mid-air and tried to flee, and barely avoided falling into the Cave of Ten Thousand Serpents.


    Noticing this scene, Long Chen knew Yin Mengyao was about to achieve victory. She was his teammate after all, and Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief.


    Having used the Obliterating Ocean Seal and injuring Wang Tong to this extent, Yin Mengyao was delighted.


    The two of them had done something she could never tolerate, and most people would not be able toprehend her hatred towards them.


    Wang Tong now hadpletely lost the ability to fight, and Li Feng was in a weaker state. On top of that, he had to take care of Wang Tong. Hence, Yin Mengyao bit her lip and pursued these enemies, following up on her victory.


    They were here to end things, and life and death always apanied victory and loss. Yin Mengyao¡¯s original intention was to kill them, which was why she did not hesitate for long.


    Seeing Yin Mengyao approaching, the gravely injured Wang Tong¡¯s expression changed as she urgently eximed, ¡°Brother Feng, she¡¯sing. Let¡¯s just go ording to our n!¡±


    If they were to go ording to n, Li Feng had no idea how things would turn out, but in this situation, they could only use their trump card.


    While they knew how powerful Yin Mengyao¡¯s profound high-grade battle technique was, they never expected it to be to this extent! Even theirbined most powerful attacks could do little against it!


    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s gamble on this. If we can¡¯t eliminate her, we won¡¯t be at peace for the rest of our lives!¡±


    Li Feng was now staring coldly at Yin Mengyao who was approaching, and began tough callously.


    His hands were now drawing closer to his cosmos pouch. With Yin Mengyao ten metres away, his movements were quick as he drew out an item and, with the fastest speed he could muster, threw it towards her!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    Because of the speed at which it was flying, Long Chen couldn¡¯t tell what was being flung.


    However, after throwing it, Li Feng hastily held Wang Tong and escaped!


    Yin Mengyao saw that blog object as well, but she, too, could not tell what it was.


    ¡°What¡¯s that? Some secret weapon?¡±


    With a cold glint in her eyes, Yin Mengyao ferociouslyunched an attack, shattering the item Li Feng had thrown.


    ¡°It¡¯s an egg?¡±


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were thoroughly stunned. A ck item that was about the size of a human head was an egg, and Yin Mengyao had destroyed it with a light attack. Egg yolk and egg white sprayed out and all over the ground, and some even got onto Yin Mengyao¡¯s clothes.


    At this moment, she had no time to remove the disgusting things on her clothes.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    Yin Mengyao looked solemn and made to chase them, but at this moment, a piercing hissing sound was emitted from within the Cave of Ten Thousand snakes, and the entire cave seemed to be causing a ruckus.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Long Chen was just as confused about the huge change in the cave.


    This had happened after Li Feng threw the egg towards Yin Mengyao.


    ¡°Could that be a snake egg?¡±


    Long Chen wittily wondered, but that immediately caused his expression to changed.


    ¡°Crap! Yin Mengyao destroyed it, which means that the toxic snakes inside the cave have already smelled the broken egg. There¡¯s no question about it; the only thing that can cause such a huge disturbance in there can only be the terrifying dismal serpent spirits!¡±


    That was a level 5 profound-grade demonic beast, and just its demonic power wasparable to a cultivator at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm. That wasn¡¯t even taking into consideration its poison!


    ¡°Yin Mengyao has the smell of the egg on her, which means the dismal serpent spirits would definitely know that Yin Mengyao was the one to destroy the egg. They¡¯ll definitely attack her in a berserk state. Li Feng and Wang Tong must have first snuck into the cave and stole an egg. Once Yin Mengyao arrived, this egg would be theirst resort, and the moment they can¡¯t win against her, they used it!¡±


    After throwing it towards her, Li Feng fled with Wang Tong without any hesitation, but just when Yin Mengyao was about to chase them, the dismal serpent spirits began to make a disturbance. In the next instant, ck gas was puffed out of the cave, the nasty smell making Long Chen, who was not too far away, want to puke.


    ¡°You¡¯re evil!¡±


    At this point, how could Yin Mengyao not know that she had been tricked?


    Seeing the ck that was moving in her direction, she could only evade it.


    The sounds from within the cave were bing more intense, and a massive ck serpent head poked out. In the dark Devil Mountain of Life and Death, Long Chen could only see its scarlet eyes that were likenterns in the night!


    The hissing had Long Chen¡¯s scalp turning numb. There was more than one dismal serpent spirit, and when the first vicious head appeared, the others shot out from the cave one after another.


    Not only were they powerful, they were also intelligent. When they exited, they were not in a hurry to kill Yin Mengyao, but instead, went around her and blocking off all exit routes.


    Six dismal serpent spirits encircled her, scarlet eyes focused on her. Long blood-red serpents breathed in and out, bloodlust emanating from it.


    These serpent spirits were even thicker than a regr bucket, and were over ten metres long. They were not smooth, and instead, had numerous swellings, with dark green fog surrounding them.


    Finding herself trapped, Yin Mengyao¡¯s expression changed, her initially icy expression now showing some fear.


    Most girls were afraid of things like snakes, much less the terrifying demonic beast, the dismal serpent spirits. Every one of them was at about the same level of strength as Yin Mengyao, and were poisonous. Everything pointed to disaster for her.


    Li Feng and Wang Tong were vicious in their methods, because Yin Mengyao would be bitten or poisoned to death by these serpent spirits, and a body might not even remain.


    Her hatred towards Li Feng and Wang Tong was growing.


    The dismal serpent spirits that had sessfully surrounded Yin Mengyao emitted terrifying hissing sounds, heads down and bodies coiled, eyes filled with bloodlust.


    ¡°Yin Mengyao, be careful!¡± Long Chen knew they were about to attack.


    Now that Yin Mengyao was in a predicament, Long Chen would lose the qualifications to enter the inner faction selection if she died. Besides, she was on good terms with Mo Xiang, and no matter what, he had to save her!


    With no hesitation, Long Chen used his Dragon Soul Transformation and transformed into his dragon form. The crimson and orderly scales, sharp bone spurs and amazing visual ability would not lose out to the serpent spirits!


    This was the second time she was seeing Long Chen¡¯s transformation, but there was no time to care about how he looked.


    ¡°Obliterating Ocean Seal!¡±


    The best thing to do now was to attack, which was why after she was surrounded, she quickly used her most powerful attack.


    The Obliterating Ocean Seal was directed at the dismal serpent spirits behind her with a quick twist to the back!

 Chapter 166 – Crisis

    The situation was now at its worst.


    Yin Mengyao used Obliterating Ocean Seal once more that was like the crashing of the sea, and directed it towards the dismal serpent spirit that was aiming for her!


    *Rumble!*


    Sound exploded, and the dismal serpent spirit about to pounce on Yin Mengyao was struck by her, letting out a sharp hiss.


    That durable serpent body actually exploded, blood and flesh flying in all directions, with ck poison mixed within!


    This serpent spirit did not die, as it had dodged in time, but there was a huge hole in its neck. It fell with a loud sound and began to roll on the ground frantically, breaking all the branches and trunks nearby.


    *Boom!*


    A pitch-ck giant rock waspletely shattered to pieces by the injured dismal serpent spirit.


    Seeing theirpanion in this state, the other serpent spirits were even more aggravated as they hissed furiously, rolling their massive bodies and, like a poisonous arrow,unched themselves towards Yin Mengyao!


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s most powerful attack, the Obliterating Ocean Seal, had only harmed one of the serpent spirits, and aware that all of the other poisonous beasts were going to make their move now, her bright eyes revealed traces of despair and sorrow.


    At this point, she could only use thest of her real Qi and pounce towards a dismal serpent spirit nearby, attempting at finding a pathway to escape by using all the strength she could muster.


    However, Long Chen would not let such a dainty little beauty die in front of his eyes.


    ¡°Obliterating Ocean Seal!¡±


    Meeting this attack was a concentrated ck gas that had been spat out from the dismal serpent spirit. It was clearly poison, and just a small sniff had Yin Mengyao feeling her head spin.


    ¡°Don¡¯t breathe!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s sudden yell could be heard. It was only then that Yin Mengyao she had apanion by her side.


    ¡°Is he here to save me?¡±


    While this thought surged in her mind, Yin Mengyao had already used her most powerful technique and collided with the dismal serpent spirit.


    *Rumble!*


    With continuous explosions, the vigorous motion sent Yin Mengyao flying backwards!


    She had not been able to open up a path like she had imagined, and instead, had been shocked backwards by the powerful might of the dismal serpent spirit.


    However, the serpent spirit wasn¡¯t in a very good state either, and perhaps had worse injuries than the dismal serpent spirit from before. On its forehead, fresh blood was everywhere, and its eyes were sunken in. That meant Yin Mengyao had blinded it!


    Yin Mengyao had not broken away from danger, and instead, was in an even worse situation.


    Behind her were the rest of the dismal serpent spirits, and they were now opening their vicious mouths wide, preparing to sink their teeth into her!


    Yin Mengyao, whosest attack had failed, lost all hope.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­¡±


    At the thought of him, Yin Mengyao felt helpless. She had drawn him into this situation and lost him the qualifications to enter the inner faction selection.


    Smelling the stinking near her, Yin Mengyao closed her eyes, giving uppletely.


    It was at this moment that a powerful force charged to her back.


    *Rumble!*


    Following after was the sounds of explosions, as well as the miserable cries of the dismal serpent spirits.


    Yin Mengyao only regained her senses at this point, realising she was being rescued. She quickly turned, and when she saw the red figure, she was frozen.


    ¡°Long Chen, it¡¯s you?¡±


    ¡°Who else could it be? Is there anyone as handsome as me around?¡±


    Leylin used the full might of his level 2 Thunder me Physique, ruthlessly punching and hitting one of the dismal serpent spirits. His ws were iparably sharp, and this attack created a huge hole!


    With the force from Piercing Earth Demonic Sun, it was able to achieve this effect.


    Hearing Long Chen¡¯s answer, she was not disgusted, but rather, full of gratitude.


    Yin Mengyao knew how powerful these dismal serpent spirits were, and yet, here Long Chen was, risking his life to save her. While she would not verbalise it, she would remember this friendship in her heart.


    ¡°He seems quite powerful?¡±


    From each and every attack, Yin Mengyao was stunned to realise that Long Chen was very aggressive in dealing with the dismal serpent spirits she had had trouble with. While he could not handle all of them, his safety was guaranteed, and he was even capable of forcing the serpent spirits backwards.


    ¡°He¡¯s only just entered the Earth Dan Realm and is already so aplished. Amongst the outer faction, he¡¯s definitely in the top ten or even top five!¡±


    The reason why Long Chen could deal with the dismal serpent spirits with such ease was mostly due to his level 2 Thunder me Physique, which gave him a huge advantage. However, it was a fact that they were all profound-grade beasts, and Long Chen could at most deal them grievous injuries.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    There was no point in fighting with them for longer, which was why once these serpent spirits were forced backwards, Long Chen abruptly pulled at Yin Mengyao and, without any hesitation, headed in the direction of the Caves of Life and Death.


    Tender, soft fingers were currently being held in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    However, he did not let his mind wonder. Yin Mengyao might have some rtionship with Mo Xiang, and he wasn¡¯t one to take advantage of his brother¡¯s wife. Besides, he had the great Lingxi beside him.


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao broke into a run, and the rest of the dismal serpent spirits that were not wounded chased them down. Behind them, thousands of poisonous snakes from the Cave of Ten Thousand Serpents followed, and they were like a flood heading towards the two of them. It was quite a spectacr scene.


    On the way, whether it was trunks, branches or leaves, snakes were everywhere!


    Scarlet tongues glinted coldly in the dark night.


    However, Long Chen was in no hurry. Their speed was still faster than those serpent spirits, and in around four hours, Long Chen finally shook them off!


    ¡°Hah, hah!¡±


    Long Chen copsed to the ground, panting pathetically.


    It had been a long time since he was this tired.


    Loosening his hold on the arm that he had held onto for four hours, Long Chen¡¯s hand had gone numb. As the dismal serpent spirits were too terrifying, he had only been focused on hurrying on.


    ¡°Long Chen, I think I¡¯m poisoned.¡±


    Yin Mengyao sat on a branch with her head down.


    After running for such a long time, her long hair that had been bundled up had scattered and seemed rather messy. However, she still looked as beautiful and cool as before.


    Long Chen¡¯s expression changed and he quickly lifted her head, noticing that she looked ashen. Her eyes looked lost, and her initially red lips had turned pitch-ck, to the point that it looked to be about to bleed.


    Yin Mengyao raised her left arm, and Long Chen lifted her sleeves. There was now a ck mark on her pale arm, and was evidently the ce through which the serpent poison had entered.


    ¡°How did this happen?¡± Long Chen¡¯s brows furrowed.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. This is the arm I used to execute the Obliterating Ocean Seal, and maybe while I was fighting with the dismal serpent spirits, I got injured, which was how the toxins went in¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve also heard that some toxic beasts can spurt poison into the air¡­¡±


    Yin Mengyao had only fought against them for a short period of time, and she¡¯d already been poisoned. While Long Chen had been saving her, he had beaten up pretty much all of the dismal serpent spirits, and yet, he was fine.


    Then again, hearing what she had sad, Long Chen recalled some piercing pain at certain parts of his body while fighting, but that had quickly vanished. That was why he had ignored that.


    ¡°Could I have been poisoned?¡±


    If that was the case, things were going to be troublesome. Long Chen was shocked, and just when he was about to check his body, Lingxi eximed, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Though you did get hit by the poison of the dismal serpent spirit, you¡¯re fine.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± Lingxi was very knowledgeable, and Long Chen sighed in relief after hearing her words.


    ¡°It should be because of the dragon blood flowing in your body, which had a natural resistance to these toxins. They¡¯ve beenpletely refined.¡±


    ¡°What about Yin Mengyao?¡±


    ¡°Due to too much consumption of her energy and running quickly, her blood flowed at a faster rate and the poison spread. In a normal situation, the poison wouldn¡¯t result in her current state.¡±


    Just as Long Chen was about to find a way to solve the issue, Yin Mengyao had already produced a healing spirit medicine from his cosmos pouch. Seeing that the toxins were bing even more intense, she could only hastily use the spirit medicine and save herself.¡±


    ¡°The poison is more potent than that of the Abyssal Poison Scorpion. That spirit medicine won¡¯t work,¡± Lingxi looked concerned as she spoke.


    ¡°What?¡± Long Chen was bewildered.


    ¡°Long Chen, the serpent poison is too potent. By using my real Qi and spirit medicine, I can somewhat suppress it, but I won¡¯t be able to hold on for long.¡±


    Yin Mengyao knew the state of her body.


    Her beautiful eyes trembled, expression disying her sorrow.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t think I would trouble you in this inner faction selection. I¡¯m sorry, Long Chen¡­¡±


    Raising her head, Yin Mengyao took in a deep breath and apologised.


    ¡°What are you saying? It¡¯s not like I don¡¯t have any way to save you,¡± Long Chen consoled her. Just as he was about to ask Lingxi if she had any methods to solve this problem, Lingxi suddenly had a change of expression and spoke anxiously, ¡°Long Chen, run! Jin Sheng¡¯en, Chu Yunxi and the rest are heading over!¡±


    Hearing this, Long Chen¡¯s expression changed as well. He had nned on bringing Yin Mengyao and fleeing, but they were just too fast. In less than a few breaths, they arrived in Long Chen¡¯s line of sight!


    Noticing him from the distance, Jin Sheng¡¯en began to chuckle wildly.


    ¡°So it¡¯s you, Yin Mengyao and Long Chen! Here I was wondering who could cause such a disturbance amongst the toxic serpents. So it¡¯s you¡­ Looks like the heavens are helping us!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± A crazed glint was in Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes, ¡°This time, nobody will be able to protect you. I want your insignificant life!¡±


    Along with their voices, Jin Sheng¡¯en, Chu Yunxi and the two other geniuses of the Gold Faction instantly appeared by Long Chen¡¯s side.


    They exchanged a nce and separated into two teams, with one in front and the other, surrounding Long Chen and Yin Mengyao.


    ¡°I wonder where you can escape to this time?¡±


    Knowing he would definitely be able to achieve victory over Long Chen, that torrential hatred in his heart was now making Chu Yunxi go insane.


    ¡°Brother Chu, just do as you like this time. I¡¯ll help you restrain Yin Mengyao, so just give us a visual feast! Wait, Yin Mengyao¡¯s poisoned?¡±


    Following Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s gaze, everyone directed their focus elsewhere. Yin Mengyao now looked dispirited, her lips pitch-ck. What else could this be, other than her being poisoned?


    Chu Yunxi couldpletely rx now.


    ¡°Long Chen, die¡­¡±

 Chapter 167 – I Want To Save You

    A friend in need is a friend indeed.


    When Jin Sheng¡¯en and the others were hunting them down, Long Chen had not left Yin Mengyao behind and fled. He had even just saved her from the jaws of those poisonous snakes. Such behaviour made Yin Mengyao feel very touched.


    At the beginning, she had looked down on Long Chen a little, but now, he had be her pir of support.


    In such a dangerous situation, she saw that Long Chen looked as calm as ever, with not a trace of fear in his expression.


    Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi were both in the top five of the inner faction selection. Jin Sheng¡¯en, especially, was said to be the number one genius of the outer faction, and his current battle might was near to the perfect mastery stage of the Earth Dan Realm!


    ¡°You want to kill me?¡± Long Chenughed,pletely at ease.


    ¡°You¡¯re one step away from death, and you still dare speak to me in this tone? With us as your opponent, how would you even have the chance to use your firework signal?¡± Chu Yunxi bit his lip and spoke fiercely.


    Long Chen chuckled, a hand swung over Yin Mengyao¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Little Xi, if it¡¯s necessary, help me a little. Remember, you can¡¯t use more than half of your soul force.¡± While eyeing his opponents coldly, he whispered.


    In this situation, he knew that if he did not put all of his attention in this, he might very well die.


    ¡°Alright, I understand,¡± Lingxi answered nervously.


    At the other end, Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi exchanged a nce, preparing to strike.


    ¡°You snatch me of my woman and even dare tarnish the reputation of the elder in public. Long Chen, you¡¯re aware that this warrants a death sentence, yes?¡± Chu Yunxi licked his lips as he stroke forward, each step bringing him closer to Long Chen.


    ¡°Haha¡­¡± Long Chenughed his head off as he eximed, ¡°Can you stop being so funny? It takes skills to get a woman. Besides, when has Liu Lan ever been yours? She¡¯s mine now¨C oh, wait, I forgot to tell you about my experience with her. It keeps lingering in my mind¡­¡±


    As he spoke, his eyes seemed to reveal the yearning in his heart as he began to lick his lips thoroughly.


    ¡°What did you say? You did¨C?!¡±


    After hearing his words, Chu Yunxi was on the verge of exploding from his anger.


    Long Chen¡¯s words had made it clear that he and Liu Lan had done it. At the thought of the woman he had been yearning day and night lying by Long Chen¡¯s thighs, his breathing became rough, and traces of blood began to appear in his eyes.


    ¡°Long Chen, you must die!¡±


    As he spoke, he abruptly turned into what seemed like a crazed tornado as he hurtled towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Storm Seizing Finger!¡±


    This vast attack that involved a storm had Long Chen recalling what had happened in Liu Lan¡¯s residence within the Green Willow Residence. Long Chen had been grievously injured by this attack of Chu Yunxi¡¯s!


    No matter how Long Chen tried to exin himself, he just would not listen and was bent on killing Long Chen. It was the same today, with his desire to kill Long Chen!


    ¡°Would I let the result of this fight be the same as the previous one?¡± The corner of Long Chen¡¯s lips quirked up in a smirk.


    ¡°This kid really has a screw loose. I managed to rile him up so easily!¡±


    Long Chen could rx at the knowledge he was dealing with a human with such powerful limbs but a simple mind.


    Though Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s strength were so powerful it was unbelievable, they still weren¡¯t Long Chen¡¯s match when it came to a battle of wits.


    At the moment Chu Yunxi used Storm Seizing Finger, Long Chen made his move.


    A cold glint in his eyes shed, and Long Chen held Yin Mengyao by the waist. At such a time, he could not be bothered with social norms about how there should not be direct contact between females and males.


    ¡°This beauty is really soft and fragment!¡± Long Chen suddenly had a wretched thought.


    He forced himself to think of something else: Mo Xiang was just fourteen, and probably still had no clue what women were. Yin Mengyao and he were probably just friends. In this case, this wasn¡¯t about him taking his friend¡¯s wife, and he didn¡¯t need to hold back¡­


    However, at the thought of Lingxi, Long Chen was stunned, and his expression immediately changed to a sacred one.


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s Storm Seizing Finger was now closing in.


    Though it wasn¡¯t a profound high-grade battle technique, it was rated quite high amongst techniques of this grade. Of all the attacks Long Chen had seen used in the inner faction selection, this move was the strongest aside from Yin Mengyao¡¯s Obliterating Ocean Seal.


    Nine Heavens Roving Dragon Step!


    What surprised Chu Yunxi was that Long Chen did not go head to head with him. While Chu Yunxi was attacking, he had used a movement technique and, while holding Yin Mengyao, escaped to the back!


    ¡°He¡¯s thinking of fleeing at this moment?¡±


    Chu Yunxiughed coldly, his footwork increasing in speed by countless times. The Storm Seizing Finger was still used, drawing closer to Long Chen with a whistling sound.


    However, he had not seen that the direction in which Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were heading in was towards the other youths of the Gold Faction!


    Seeing Long Chening their way, the youths were stunned. They had been thinking of letting Chu Yunxi and Long Chen fight it out, but Jin Sheng¡¯en suddenly called out, ¡°Stop them!¡±


    In that case, they could not dodge.


    From their point of view, wasn¡¯t it much too easy for them to join hands and stop a newbie who¡¯d just entered the Earth Dan realm?


    Now, Long Chen was in his Dragon Form.


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s powerful Storm Seizing Finger was now very close to Long Chen, and when it was on the verge of hitting him, Long Chen¡¯s speed suddenly increased, reaching the youths in an instant.


    A cold streak of starlight formed at Long Chen¡¯s fingertip.


    In that moment, Long Chenpleted something that would shock everyone. He merely reached out and, with a finger that had some starlight, eliminated thebined attack of the two youths from the Gold Faction. After that, he darted to one of them and pped him, whipping him in Chu Yunxi¡¯s direction!


    ¡°What?!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi were shocked.


    Long Chen¡¯s initial speed was normal, when judging it by the standards of one who had just entered the Earth Dan Realm. However, with that fluid motion just now, it meant that he was even faster than someone at the initial mastery stage at the Earth Dan Realm!


    The two genius cultivators from the Gold Faction had assumed Long Chen to have only just entered the Earth Dan Realm and used a profound elementary-grade battle technique, nning to force Long Chen backwards.


    Never did they expect Long Chen¡¯s speed to increase this much. On top of that, he had that streak of starlight travelling at an incredible speed that instantly disintegrated theirbined attack, and even struck one of them so easily!


    ¡°Since when was Long Chen so powerful?¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en could not understand. When Long Chen was still at the perfect mastery stage of the Human Dan Realm, he could not even take on one blow from Chu Yunxi. Even though he was said to have reached Earth Dan, the gap between him and Jin Sheng¡¯en was vast.


    Now, however, Long Chen had done something miraculous!


    ¡°He must have used some special method. I won¡¯t let him escape!¡±


    When Long Chen¡¯s speed had rapidly increased, many thoughts shed through Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s mind. Using the quickest speed he could muster, he wound around Chu Yunxi and charged towards Log Chen.


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s Storm Seizing Finger was meant for Long Chen, but with the youth pping the youth from the Gold Faction in this direction, it was apparent that he was going to meet Chu Yunxi¡¯s attack head on!


    If that happened, he would most certainly lose his life.


    Thankfully, Chu Yunxi had excellent control over his attack, which was why at crucial moments, he had hurriedly shifted his aim, and the attack struck a majestic demonic tree.


    *Rumble!*


    The tree exploded, leaving behind a huge hole. Unable to take the weight of the branches, it fell to the ground with a tremendous thud.


    Meanwhile, Chu Yunxi had bounced back from the impact.


    In that very moment, Long Chen had carried Yin Mengyao and dashed off.


    ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en is so fast?¡± When Long Chen turned back, he was slightly surprised.


    His speed now surpassed that of a regr Earth Dan at the initial mastery stage, but unexpectedly, his opponent had chased up to them!


    ¡°Then again, he¡¯s at about the same level as me, but I¡¯m carrying Yin Mengyao. That puts me at a slight disadvantage!¡±


    The only person who had darted off after that had been Jin Sheng¡¯en. The rest had fallen behind.


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t even think of escaping. Once I get you, you¡¯re dead meat!¡±


    Long Chen beamed as he turned back and spoke with disdain, ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en, the question is if trash like you can overtake me? Little Xi, do it!¡±


    Honestly speaking, in this situation, Jin Sheng¡¯en would reach them sooner orter. Hence, Long Chen had no use but to employ Lingxi¡¯s help.


    ¡°You scoundrel, die!¡±


    With Long Chen¡¯s order, the Lingxi Sword on his stud earring suddenly increased in size, and fog surrounded Lingxi¡¯s entire body. She stood forward and, using her finger as a sword, sword Qi swept through the area.


    ¡°Dream Reversion Immortal Sword Technique¡ª Dance of the Surging des!¡±


    In that moment, countless fine shadows of des wereunched from the fog surrounding the Lingxi Sword like heavy rain, whistling as they pierced towards Jin Sheng¡¯en!


    These sword shadows that covered the skies had Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s eyes wide, and he immediately halted his footsteps.


    ¡°What is that?¡±


    Those sword shadows that filled the skies might not seem powerful, but if he were to dash forward, he would probably turn into a porcupine!


    ¡°Long Chen, you scoundrel. You¡¯re dead!¡±


    Obstructed, Jin Sheng¡¯en could only let out an enraged howl. At this point, he could only employ his movement techniques and use a battle technique to deal with Lingxi¡¯s attack. Meanwhile, Lingxi had long since returned into the Lingxi Sword, making a clean getaway with Long Chen.


    The furious snarls merely resulted in a slight smile on Long Chen¡¯s face.


    ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en, Chu Yunxi, let it be known that it¡¯s not that I¡¯m afraid of you. I¡¯m just nning to defeat you in front of everyone in the Cave of Life and Death. That¡¯ll make this more interesting!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s chuckles travelled into Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi¡¯s ears.


    ¡°Cave of Life and Death?¡± The two were already exasperated at letting Long Chen flee, but remembering a chance at eliminating Long Chen in the cave, they felt a bit better.


    ¡°We¡¯ll let you live a little longer then. For the battle in the cave, with four people in each team, Jin Sheng¡¯en and I shall enter either team such that no matter which group you enter, you can¡¯t escape the fate of death!¡±


    Chu Yunxi watched the direction in which Long Chen had left and spat out ruthlessly.


    Finally having broken away from them, Long Chen ran for a while longer, getting morefortable with his hold on Yin Mengyao¡¯s body, and then found a ce to put her down.


    She was now extremely pale, lipspletely ck. The spirit medicine she had taken had no effect.


    Beads of sweat had already appeared on Long Chen¡¯s forehead, and Yin Mengyao pursed her lips, feeling touched.


    ¡°Long Chen, hang on for a while longer. If you send me to the caves while I can still hold on, you¡¯ll qualify for the second stage.¡±


    ¡°No, I want to save you.¡±


    Long Chen said decisively.

 Chapter 168 – You’re Funny

    ¡°Save me?¡±


    Yin Mengyao was puzzled. The spirit medicines she had brought weren¡¯t enough to remove the poison. What methods could Long Chen have?


    ¡°Forget it, Long Chen. Normal spirit medicines do nothing for the pain, and if I weren¡¯t using my real Qi to suppress it, the poison would probably have spread to my whole body already.¡±


    Long Chen did not answer her and he walked to the side to ask Lingxi, ¡°You said that my blood is dragon blood and has the ability to subdue the serpent poison?¡±


    Within the Lingxi Sword, Lingxi nodded stiffly, and then answered cutely, ¡°Mm, yes!¡±


    ¡°Do you think it¡¯ll work if I let her drink my blood?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Lingxi thought it over, feeling unsure, ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    ¡°Then that¡¯s enough. We should at least give it a try.¡± Things seemed to be turning for the better, and Long Chen could rx a little. They had managed to shake off Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi with much difficulty, and their crisis for the moment had been averted. The one problem they had to deal with was Yin Mengyao¡¯s issue.


    Seeing him being so secretive, Yin Mengyao endured the suffering and asked, ¡°Do you have a way?¡±


    Long Chen pulled his sleeve up, ¡°What do you think of drinking some of my blood?¡±


    Yin Mengyao was floored that Long Chen could make a joke like this at such a time. However, they were now good friends, and she wouldn¡¯t get mad at him for this.


    ¡°You¡¯re really funny.¡± Though deathly pale, Yin Mengyao managed to reveal a smile.


    ¡°I mean it.¡± He produced a sharp dagger from his cosmos pouch and, without wasting any time, shed at the thicker part of his arm. A gash about 3cm long appeared, with flesh blood shining atop and quickly flowing.


    ¡°Long Chen, have you lost your mind?¡±


    Yin Mengyao was stunned.


    Long Chen held the back of her head and got her to move her lips close to the wound and spoke indifferently, ¡°Quick, don¡¯t waste it. This is top-grade treatment that even my Lingxi has yet to enjoy.¡±


    Yin Mengyao had no ability to fight back, and her lips touched Long Chen¡¯s blood.


    ¡°Believe me. I won¡¯t harm you.¡± Yin Mengyao initially had some reservations about drinking someone else¡¯s blood. After hearing his words that were filled with concern, she hesitated slightly and opened her mouth, revealing the tip of her pretty tongue that began to lick at Long Chen¡¯s arm.


    ¡°Damn it.¡± This scene had Long Chen¡¯s blood boiling, but thankfully, this was his arm. If it were another area, Long Chen would want to break down.


    Sucking in a few mouthfuls of his blood, she moved backwards, watching him while feeling somewhat flustered. There were still traces of blood on the corner of her lips, and she quickly wiped it away.


    In all the years she had been alive for, this was the first time she was doing something so strange. If not for Long Chen having saved her life, she wouldn¡¯t have listened to him so readily.


    ¡°Long Chen, this should be enough. Staunch the bleeding!¡± Yin Mengyao looked as if she could not bear to see his wound.


    ¡°Beauties are amazing. They¡¯re good looking even while poisoned,¡± Long Chen thought inside. He pulled his arm back and used Origin Reversion to heal the little wound, and then asked seriously, ¡°How do you feel now?¡±


    Yin Mengyao had been focused on Long Chen¡¯s injury and was wondering about why he had done something so strange, thus momentarily forgetting about the state of her body.


    After hearing the question, she checked and was stunned to realise that the blood she had swallowed had turned into a red mist that was spreading through her body.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Yin Mengyao was shocked and was right about to channel Qi to expel this red fog, but she abruptly came to the realisation that this fog had the function of breaking up poison.


    ¡°How is that possible? Why is his blood so amazing?¡± Yin Mengyao was bewildered. She could not understand and decided to ept Long Chen¡¯s goodwill for now and direct the fog throughout her body so that it could clear the poison.


    With Yin Mengyao focused, Long Chen could not go far either.


    ¡°You scoundrel. Did you do that because she¡¯s pretty?¡± Lingxi¡¯s words were full of jealousy.


    ¡°Hmm? I wonder who¡¯s knocked over a jar of vinegar?* It¡¯s so pungent,¡± Long Chen answered roguishly.


    ¡°You¨C! I¡¯m not jealous. I was just made aware of how you¡¯re particrly attentive towards beautiful girls. Hmph!¡±


    ¡°Who said that?¡± Long Chen looked all righteous, ¡°I helped her because Mo Xiang gave me the Celestial Core Technique which was immensely helpful. Yin Mengyao should be on very good terms with him, and I do have to return the favour eventually, don¡¯t I?¡±


    Lingxi still had her doubts.


    After a while, Yin Mengyao gradually regained colour in her cheeks, though the cold look on her face still remained.


    Such a cool and elegant aura was something Lingxi would never possess¨C or rather, would temporarily not have.


    Who knew what kind of earth-shattering beauty that could devastate cities Lingxi could grow to be¡­


    ¡°What happened? I¡¯ve recovered?¡± While opening her eyes, Yin Mengyao stared up at Long Chen in her confusion, eyes full of disbelief.


    Long Chen had now turned into a very mysterious person in her point of view.


    ¡°Why is your blood able to dispel poison?¡± Yin Mengyao got up and asked, pleasantly surprised.


    ¡°It¡¯s my secret. Don¡¯t ask me, and don¡¯t mention this, or you¡¯re in trouble.¡± Long Chen looked all cocky.


    ¡°Fine¡­¡± She nodded. She would obviously not let word of this spread since she was indebted to him.


    ¡°I¡¯ve recovered. What should we do next?¡± Yin Mengyao asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re obviously going to the Caves of Life and Death.¡± In the blink of an eye, a long time had passed since they first stepped foot on the Devil Mountain of Life and Death. On the Nine Devil Mountains, it was hard to distinguish between day and night, and it was now probably evening or perhaps already night. However, the scenery around them had not changed at all.


    ¡°The dark clouds are really low, and I can hear thunder. Thankfully, it didn¡¯t rain today, or else things would have gottenplicated. Let¡¯s head to the peak of the Devil Mountain of Life and Death. It should be about time anyway.¡±


    Before going up the mountain, Yin Mengyao had been the one making the decisions, but with all they had gone through, the situation had reversed.


    They headed upwards for about fifteen minutes, and just when Long Chen was about to inquire about Mo Xiang, Lingxi said something that made the corner of his lips quirk in an evil smirk.


    ¡°The male-female pair of the Silver Faction seem to be over there.¡±


    Lingxi was naturally talking about Li Feng and Wang Tong.


    ¡°Seems like it¡¯s an inevitable sh between us,¡± Long Chen chuckled, and then asked Yin Mengyao who was beside him, ¡°Are you interested in beating two people up with me?¡±


    ¡°Who is it?¡± Yin Mengyao was confused.


    ¡°Just follow me.¡± Long Chen seemed all secretive and went ahead. He suddenly increased his speed, charging ahead.


    ¡°What a strange person.¡± Yin Mengyao was speechless at his actions but still followed.


    Not long after, Yin Mengyao saw two people in front. They were Li Feng and Wang Tong.


    While Wang Tong was grievously injured, it wasn¡¯t as serious as being poisoned by the serpents. With the nourishment of spirit medicines, her injuries had almost recovered.


    ¡°It¡¯s them?¡± Hatred immediately surged up in Mengyao¡¯s gentle heart. Not considering the fury amassed from their time in the Silver Faction, just that attack outside the Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes was incredibly ruthless.


    Though all¡¯s fair in war, they had mentioned settling this issue fair and square, and yet had employed such despicable methods. That was just shameless. If not for Long Chen, she would definitely have died in front of the cave.


    Feeling the whistling wind behind them, Li Feng and Wang Tong turned. Upon seeing Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, they were stunned, expressions changing, ¡°Yin Mengyao, you didn¡¯t die?!¡±


    ¡°How can I die before you die?¡± Yin Mengyao and Long Chen approached the two of them with an icy tone.


    ¡°You were in the hands of the dismal serpent spirits, and yet you were so lucky to be able to escape?¡± Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s eyes narrowed as theypared the fighting strength on both sides.


    ¡°Though Yin Mengyao escaped, she looks rather pale. She must have gotten seriously injured before and didn¡¯t have the chance to heal herself. Meanwhile, Brother Feng and I are both still able to battle. Brother Feng is in his best condition now, and he could still be a match for her!¡±


    With this thought, the two of them were now less fearful.


    Long Chen, the person who had just entered the Earth Dan Realm and rumoured to be the weakest participant in the inner faction selection, was overlooked.


    ¡°Cut the bullshit. Since we¡¯ve met you, one of us must die.¡± Though Yin Mengyao was a girl, she was tenacious and very bold.


    ¡°Looks like she has some deep enmity with them. Could it be because of Mo Xiang?¡± Long Chen guessed.


    Yin Mengyao had just expelled all the poison and wasn¡¯t in the best condition to attack. Long Chen gently pulled her behind him, ¡°I¡¯ll take care of those two on your behalf. Your satisfaction is guaranteed.¡±


    Hearing his words, Li Feng and Wang Tong were frozen to the spot, before Wang Tong ridiculed him, ¡°You were attracted by her beauty and want to risk your life to gain her favour? You really don¡¯t know your standing. It¡¯s best if you scram, because if you¡¯re still around while we kill this bitch, you shouldn¡¯t me us for being merciless for killing you.¡±


    ¡°The ignorant are fated to die,¡± Li Feng sneered.


    There was no change in expression in response to their provocation.


    ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯ll thank you for now. However, I should be the one doing this, because that would mean something to a person that¡¯s important to me.¡±


    ¡°You mean Mo Xiang?¡± Long Chen suddenly eximed.


    ¡°You¨C?!¡±


    Yin Mengyao and the other two were stunned.


    ¡°How do you know him?¡± Yin Mengyao was confused.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind that. I can fight on your behalf. We can talk once I¡¯ve dealt with these two.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s haughty words caused Li Feng and Wang Tong to burst outughing.


    ¡°Alright then, kid. Though I don¡¯t know how you know Mo Xiang, you being so arrogant in front of us means a certain death for yourself.¡± Li Feng chuckled.


    Long Chen smiled, ¡°You idiot. I¡¯ll be epting your girl, by the way.¡±

 Chapter 169

    <h4>Chapter 169</h4>


    [The Great Divine Weapons of Earth Grade!]


    Tranted by: Hui Li


    Edited by:


    TLCed by:


    As Yin Mengyao just recovered from the state of intoxication and was in need of good rest, she finally nodded after knowing that Long Chen had gotten acquainted with Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Just be careful.¡± In the meantime, she went backwards.


    Seeing that Yin Mengyao really allowed Long Chen to be his rival, Li Feng became so mncholy. He pushed Wang Tong behind him, saying: ¡°Well, we will have a battle between men. Tong, look at us carefully.¡±


    ¡°Sure. My dear Feng, you¡¯re the best in my eyes!¡± Wang Tong spoke to him with a prettily voice. However, when she turned around and looked at Long Chen, her eyes became sombre in a sh.


    ¡°If you want to kill yourselves to revenge for her, we won¡¯t be guilty of this. You seem to have defeated a team and each of you got two jade crystal bracelets, but if we kill you, we could get six. What a good deal!¡±


    ¡°You wish!¡± At the moment, Long Chen started using Dragon Soul Transformation again. Beside the changes on his appearance, his breath were enhancing along with the Dragon Soul Transformation. In an instant, he was surrounded by a killing and bloody power.


    By taking a careful look, anyone could even discover the power of thunder and me from his dragon scales. Since he had achieved the second-level of Thunder me Physique, Long Chen¡¯s power had already reached an astounding extent.


    After all, he had merged 50 Thunder me Crystals in total.


    ¡°Is that Beast Soul Transformation of a Beast Warrior? Well, it seems to be nothing more than this!¡± At that point, Li Feng was only ten meters away from Long Chen.


    ¡°One move decides.¡± Long Chen spoke inly.


    ¡°What?¡± Seeing how confident Long Chen was, Li Feng was a bit confused. He guffawed for a while and said: ¡°Do you know how powerful my best move is?¡±


    ¡°Well, Yin Mengyao had already defeated you easily!¡± Long Chen was teasing him.


    ¡°You! Fine, fine! You hothead are going to get yourself killed! Well, I can make your dreame true!¡±


    Let¡¯s cut the crap, go!¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to waste time on bullshitting with such an ipetent rival. His figure rushed to him abruptly. The speedy movement of his anguine figure truly startled Li Feng!


    ¡°So fast?! But still, you can¡¯t escape from your fate of death!¡±


    He clenched his fists and turned his powerful Qi into ten Qi auras, which were surrounding his hands.


    ¡°Go to hell! Ten Directional True Devil Way!¡±


    All of a sudden, ten attacks merged into one abruptly. Li Feng stroke out ten fists constantly and merged them into one fist, of which the power was more than an aggregation. It was ten times, even twenty times stronger than his ordinary punches!


    Long Chen put up a light smile on his mouth corner. He gave a whoop and stroke out a punch!


    ¡°Burning Heaven Demonic Sun Fist! Demonic Sun through the earth!¡±


    Such a punch turned Long Chen¡¯s avatar into a giant ck demonic sun. The majestic manner and the scorching hot energy almost burned the surrounding air and tree branches.


    ¡°What a massive impetus!¡± Wang Tong frowned while standing aside.


    ¡°He¡¯s just bluffing, looking good but of no use.¡± Sheforted herself. However, after seeing Long Chen¡¯s attack, she lost some confidence.


    ¡°It seems that this guy has something on the ball. After all, he got into the inner faction selection with his Human Dan Realm.¡±


    While she was holding this idea, Long Chen and Li Feng had already engaged in a fierce fight!


    The oue became evident in an instant.


    Encountering the Burning Heaven Demonic Sun Fist, the Ten Directional True Devil Way was as fragile as a ss, being broken into piece in a trice. Within an extreme short moment, the remaining power of the Burning Heaven Demonic Sun Fist appeared in front of Li Feng.


    ¡°What?¡± Li Feng couldn¡¯t believe this. At the moment, he had been severely hit by Long Chen to a great extent, his Qi and blood were tumbling and boiling. If he got hit by the remaining power, he would die on the spot!


    Though feeling incredible in the dark, Li Feng, however, still used his familiar skill, the Profound Grade Intermediate Martial Technique, to dodge him as fast as he could.


    It seemed that he was doing well in martial technique. He was only hit by less than a half of the remaining power of the Burning Heaven Demonic Sun Fist, which was still strong enough to cause severe injury. He was forced to outrush towards Wang Tong, with hemathesis and a pale face!


    ¡°Feng!¡± Wang Tong screamed out with a dreary voice, and reached out to protect Li Feng, while sliding backwards for quite a while. When she stabilized herself, she saw that Li Feng was already holding hisst gasp.


    She waspleted stunned by Long Chen. However, she was dying to know why Long Chen could possess such power to defeat Li Feng while he was just a rookie in the Earth Dan Realm.


    Seeing Li Feng¡¯s miserable condition, she began to worry. In the end, she made up her mind ¨C throwing Li Feng towards Long Chen without saying anything and made a getaway.


    ¡°Yin Mengyao, it was Li Feng who came up with the idea to kill Mo Xiang. I have nothing to do with that. He is the one to me. Kill him if you like!¡±


    Wang Tong spoke nervously while running away.


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s face turned sullen. She yelled promptly: ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t expect to see such a woman who would leave her man alone and run away, and even tried to keep her own life by killing Li Feng. Long Chen despised such selfish person in the dark.


    ¡°This is not a kind-hearted girl, not like our Xiaoxi.¡± Long Chen was very proud at the moment. He dropped Li Feng down, moved his feet swiftly, turning into a blood arrow in a sh and rushing towards Wang Tong!


    Facing such speed of attack, Wang Tong waspletely unable topete with him. Within a few breaths, Wang Tong found that Long Chen was staring at herself with smile, while she was gasping harshly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill me!¡± Wang Tong¡¯s face nched.


    Without saying anything, Long Chen gave a punch on her belly, hurting her so bad that she curled up. Long Chen picked her neck up, and dropped her and Li Feng in front of Yin Mengyao.


    ¡°What do you think? Should we kill them both?¡± Long Chen looked up and asked her tly.


    It was just a in sentence, yet for Li Feng and Wang Tong it was like a devil¡¯snguage. They were shivering with dread, looking at Long Chen yet being unable to spit out a word.


    In their impression, though Long Chen always had a smiling face, he was even creepier than Ying Mengyao.


    Facing such problem, Yin Mengyao fell into a contradiction. On one hand, she went to Life and Death Devil Mountain to revenge for Mo Xiang; On the other hand, it was very difficult for her to kill two people in this way, as she was a kind-hearted person.


    ¡°Who is behind the scheme to hurt Mo Xiang?¡± Long Chen asked.


    Yin Mengyao nodded.


    ¡°Then we need no more hesitation.¡± Long Chen seemed to be a nice and gentle person, yet in fact he was even more ruthless than Yin Mengyao. These two viins were extremely sinister, if Yin Mengyao didn¡¯t have help from Long Chen, her fragile body might have already be the excrement of level 5 Profound-Grade Dismal Serpent Spirit.


    He spoke fast and stroke fast. Before Yin Mengyao, Li Feng and Wang Tong could react, he gave two punches on Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s heads, taking their lives with his fist power while they were unguarded.


    Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s bodies were softened and fell down onto the ground. Long Chen reached out and grabbed their jade crystal bracelets and cosmos pouches, putting them into his pocket. He didn¡¯t even feel shame or guilty while doing this.


    ¡°This is yours.¡± Long Chen put one of the jade crystal bracelets on Yin Mengyao¡¯s arm while speaking.


    ¡°You¡­¡± Looking at Long Chen, and watching Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s corpses, Yin Mengyao became speechless. She didn¡¯t hate Long Chen at all, it was just she would never have the heart to make such decision.


    Nevertheless, she was deeply shocked by Long Chen¡¯s determination and cruelness.


    At the moment, she stared at the Juvenile in a trance, feeling that Long Chen was a very creepy person in the dark.


    Since he entered the Life and Death Devil Mountain, miracles had been patronizing him all the time. He had tremendous strength evenpared with Yin Mengyao, but he had been forbearing his true color, striking out at the crucial moment and taking someone else¡¯s life.


    Such strong strength and character only appeared on the first-ss figures, which was extremely terrifying.


    ¡°If we forgive those people who are threatening us, we will die in their hands sooner orter.¡± Long Chen exined for a bit, and then he continued without turning around: ¡°Let¡¯s go. We have been held up for a while again. They are waiting for us in the Life and Death Cave.¡±


    Yin Mengyao took a deep breath, nced at Li Feng and Wang Tong for thest time and went with Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen, how did you meet Mo Xiang?¡±


    On the way, Yin Mengyao couldn¡¯t wait for long to ask this question.


    Long Chen told her about what happened to Mo Xiang in the White Por Town.


    ¡°It seems that you two have some connections.¡± Yin Mengyao gave a sigh after hearing his words.


    ¡°What about you? What¡¯s your rtionship?¡±


    Thinking of him, Yin Mengyao showed a trace of fondness. She recalled: ¡°Xiang and I joined the inner faction at the same time. He was only ten years old but already naughty enough. I have lived with him for four years. As for rtionship, we¡¯re supposed to be sister and brother, he is younger than me, I have always treating him as my own younger brother.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a very good rtionship.¡± Long Chen smiled. In this way, he felt less guilty for holding Yin Mengyao for so long before.


    ¡°What do you mean a good rtionship?¡± Yin Mengyao stared at Long Chen with her charming eyes, being confused.


    ¡°Nothing. By the way, why don¡¯t you tell me why Xiang went into the Star Fiend Prison? And what about Li Feng and those people?¡±


    Thinking of what happened to Mo Xiang, Yin Mengyao put up a sullen face. After a while, she spitted out: ¡°Xiang is an unparalleled genius. He is only 14 years old, but he has already made some achievement on Heaven Dan Realm. Even someone from the inner faction could not possess such talent. However, he¡¯s just an outsider. What kind of result will it cause, you tell me?¡±


    ¡°I will kill him if he can¡¯t serve me, in that case.¡±


    Long Chen was well aware of the rules. The Lingwu family belonged to the inner faction, if Mo Xiang couldn¡¯t contribute to the Lingwu family, then they would not allow such talent as him to exist in this world.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Long Chen. Do you know the Five Great Divine Weapons in the Lingwu Family?¡±


    ¡°The Five Great Divine Weapons, do you mean the Azure Dragon¡¯s Battle Halberd and something like that? I heard about them.¡± When he heard of the Five Great Divine Weapons for the first time, it was Ma Tianyang from the Gold Faction that told him. Long Chen didn¡¯t pay too much attention at that time but became interested when Yin Mengyao mentioned them again.


    ¡°The Five Great Divine Weapons are the most precious treasure of the Lingwu Family. the Azure Dragon¡¯s Battle Halberd, Vermillion Bird¡¯s Devil Crest, White Tiger Sacred Sword, the ck Tortoise Deity Hatchet and the Sky Wolf Phantom de. Do you know what grade these divine weapons are at?¡±


    Hearing Yin Mengyao¡¯s words, Long Chen was surprised: ¡°Are they above the Profound Advanced Grade?¡±


    Yin Mengyao nodded: ¡°Exactly, these Five Great Divine Weapons are from the Earth Grade. They are higher than the Profound Grade and much stronger.¡±

 Chapter 170

    Chapter 170 ¨C [Arrival at the Life and Death Cave!]


    Tranted by: Hui Li


    Edited by:


    TLCed by:


    ¡°The Earth Grade Divine Weapon?¡± Long Chen drew in his breath. The Earth Grade was right above the Profound Grade. He didn¡¯t expect the presence of the Earth Grade Divine Weapons in Yuanling City.


    ¡°Well, it makes sense anyway. We have the super experts more powerful than the Heaven Dan Realm, so we should have the Earth Grade Divine Weapons for a match.¡±


    ¡°These Five Great Divine Weapons are of utmost valiance. Each of them possesses one cross grade martial technique. I heard that each martial technique includes one Earth Grade Martial Technique!¡±


    Long Chen had already seen the inherited martial technique of the Divine Weapons. He even had experience in the martial technique within the Origin Reverting Fruit. For him it was just normal enough.


    ¡°However, it¡¯s murder to acquire such Divine Weapons. Toprehend the martial techniques contained in the Divine Weapons is even tougher. To obtain the acknowledgement of the Divine Weapons and to truly be the master of the Divine Weapons are of extreme difficulty. But Long Chen, you know, Mo Xiang happens to have achieved all these three steps!¡±


    ¡°And then?¡± Long Chen had a vague feeling that the problem lied in the third step. The Sky Wolf Phantom de belonged to the Lingwu Family, yet Mo Xiang took it over. How would the Lingwu Family let him go?


    Indeed, Yin Mengyao gave a sigh, saying: ¡°When the inner faction learned that Mo Xiang has already be the master of Sky Wolf Phantom de, the leaders of four factions all made a move to draw Xiang to their sides. Xiang also ostensibly agreed to stay in the Lingwu Family. However, I know that Xianges from Cangyang Imperial City, that he is bearing a deep grudge and determined to revenge. Someday he will leave here and take the Sky Wolf Phantom de away.¡±


    Long Chen thought about it and said: ¡°Do you mean that the inner faction simply made up the story that Mo Xiang is put into the Star Fiend Prison for killing some inner faction member?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Yin Mengyao nodded and said: ¡°These are just excuses. They put Mo Xiang into the Star Fiend Prison because they knew that he will leave the Lingwu Family one day. They did this to imprison him. But Xiang is genius, it¡¯s such a pity to kill him anyway.¡±


    ¡°In fact, Xiang is very smart. He only wants to agree with them ostensibly while nning to slip away in the dark, however, he was framed by the few people he trusted the most. To be honest, I, Xiang, Li Feng and Wang Tong used to be good friends before, but I didn¡¯t expect that they would have told Xiang¡¯s n to the inner faction in order to help Wang Tong get the elixir for achieving the initial stage of Earth Dan Realm. Otherwise, Xiang would have already left here, instead of being caged in the Star Fiend Prison.¡±


    Long Chen finally understood why Yin Mengyao hated their guts. Indeed, such selfish people who sold their friend out for their own interest didn¡¯t deserve to be forgiven.


    Long Chen finallyprehended the whole story about Mo Xiang.


    However, he couldn¡¯t do anything about that at the moment. He could never reach the Star Fiend Prison. Even he wanted to return the favor to Mo Xiang, his hands were tied.


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s sighing, Yin Mengyao asked him abruptly: ¡°Do you know why I¡¯m so eager to get into the inner faction?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Because the disciples of the inner faction are eligible to practice martial art in the Star Fiend Prison. If I can join the inner faction, I will have the right to enter the Star Fiend Prison and save Xiang.¡±


    After going through somemon trials and tribtions together, Yin Mengyao had figured out Long Chen¡¯s personality, knowing that he was a good person in nature. That was why she told him everything without any reservation.


    ¡°Save him?¡± Hearing these words, Long Chen felt a bit refreshed.


    ¡°That sounds like a good idea, but is the Star Fiend Prison a ce to lock up the prisoners? How can anyone practice there?¡±


    ¡°Well, it seems that you don¡¯t know too much about the Star Fiend Prison.¡± Yin Mengyao crossed over a sturdy tree root, speaking while walking: ¡°The Star Fiend Prison is not only a prison, but also a great ce for practicing martial technique.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Long Chen was a bit surprised.


    ¡°Although I haven¡¯t been into the Star Fiend Prison before, I heard some rumors that some locations in the Star Fiend Prison have strong gravity. If the gravity reaches at some point, it¡¯s difficult to escape from there, which makes it an ideal ce for imprisonment. But proper gravity would be beneficial to the Martial Warriors.¡±


    Gravity? Long Chen understood that any movement would be hindered under great gravity, as if bearing a great amount of burden, which was good for practicing. With enough gravity, the practice effect would be enhanced.


    ¡°The gravity in the Star Fiend Prison is not only good for practicing martial technique, but also beneficial for practicing your Qi. Under strong gravity, it¡¯s much more difficult to use your Qi to practice. In the long term, you can foster a more solid Qi inside your body. Especially for some Martial Warriors who grew too fast in practicing, it¡¯s of great help.¡±


    Long Chen was that kind of person who grew too fast in practicing martial techniques.


    At the moment, Ling Xi Sword had some movement. Long Chen understood the indication immediately though Ling Xi didn¡¯t speak. He knew that going to the Star Fiend Prison would be beneficial for him at this stage.


    ¡°Joining the inner faction, getting into the Star Fiend Prison and saving Xiang, these are my goals. Long Chen, you will not tell anyone else, will you?¡± Yin Mengyao tentatively asked.


    ¡°These are my goals, too.¡± Long Chen smiled.


    ¡°Really?¡± Yin Mengyao was somewhat a bit surprised, ¡°Well, if that is the case, let¡¯s make a deal: whoever gets into the inner faction will go to the Star Fiend Prison, how about that?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Long Chen was also determined to see how Mo Xiang was doing there.


    To be honest, he came to the Lingwu Family partially because Mo Xiang was here.


    ¡­


    On the Life and Death Devil Mountain, the higher they reached, the gloomier and ghastlier it got. The temperature around had reached an icy point, yet the water didn¡¯t freeze at all. Furthermore, it looked odd that no snow appeared on such a high mountain as the Life and Death Devil Mountain.


    ¡°This is ghastly cold, not icy cold.¡±


    The air already got fairly thin here. Long Chen climbed from mountain foot to the mountain top, crossing through the dark clouds, the thunders and the lightnings, as if they just took ce near him.


    ¡°Here we are.¡±


    Yin Mengyao looked up and spoke with a little excitement.


    After crossing the dense jungle, they saw a great piece of bold ck earth, which indicated that they had already passed the Qi Tian Road.


    On the barren, ck and tough rocks, they kept moving up. Soon afterwards, they saw a fortified point set by the Lingwu Family in front of them.


    When Long Chen¡¯s team walked out of the Qi Tian Road, he saw that Chu Yunxi and his team also went out of Qi Tian Road from another direction.


    The two teams had their eyes to eyes, which generated some sparkles in an instant.


    Meanwhile, at the fortified point of the Lingwu Family, there was a big yard where the Nine Seniors were sitting in a circle, while the other members were standing behind them. The Lord Xuanxiao, who had a stern face was sitting in the middle, resting with his eyes closed.


    On the opposite of the yard, twelve young men with pale faces were standing there.


    Among the nine outer families, everyone had already gone through Qi Tian Road before them, except for the talented warriors in the Gold Faction, the Silver Faction and the Green Faction. Or, some people knew that they were hopeless to advance, so they just broke the firework signal and asked to be brought to the top of the Life and Death Devil Mountain.


    However, everyone was confused that only two Juveniles of the Purple Faction out of the twelve people still had their jade crystal bracelets, while the ones for the others were gone for no reasons.


    The seniors asked them for a reason yet got a surprising one. Except for the jade crystal bracelet from the Scarlet Faction that had been taken by Yin Mengyao, all other jade crystal bracelets were snatched by Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s team.


    After learning this news, other seniors all red angrily at the senior of the Gold Faction, Jin Luan and the senior of the Green Faction, Chu Tianxiong.


    ¡°Well, well, well! How shameless are you two old men! Lord Xuanxiao, obviously they have taken advantage of our rules! It¡¯s unfair!¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? The juniors made their own decision, we have nothing to do with that! Besides, it only proves that your Blue Faction Juniors are ipetent!¡±


    Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong smiled at each other. They argued with the others without any guilt.


    ¡°Stop it, we still have the Life and Death Cave.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao spoke with a stern voice.


    Since someone from the inner faction gave his words, the others stopped moaning. Even the seniors all shut their mouths up.


    Xuanxiao was right. What the inner faction needed was two powerful fighters. The mostpetent ones would never be defeated easily even when all the other four rivals unite together and go against them. No matter how awesome the Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s team were performing, they would still have to face the Life and Death Cave.


    Among all those seniors, Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong were the most content. For Jin Luan, the three Juveniles of the Gold Faction would surely pass to Level 2, and Chu Yunxi would go along with him as well.


    Everyone was pondering in the dark. There were only eight people still absent.


    The other two members of the Silver Faction were equallypetent with the present ones. If they got lucky, they might be able to keep their jade crystal bracelets. If not, they might juste back with bare hands.


    As for Yin Mengyao, with such a cumbrance as Long Chen, if she met Jin Sheng¡¯en, she basically would have to fight against four people on her own, not to mention that she could still keep the jade crystal on her hand!


    On the Silver Faction¡¯s position, a beautiful youngdy was full of concern: ¡°How unlucky my Mengyao is! She met such a big trouble! I assume that her jade bracelet is gone too.¡±


    The senior of the Silver Faction also put up a mncholy face: ¡°Well, Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong should be the ones to me. They are so shameless.¡±


    Liu Lan and Liu Yuan behind Chu Tianxiong were seriously worried too, because Long Chen hadn¡¯t showed up yet.


    ¡°Father, Chu Yunxi hates Long Chen¡¯s guts. Maybe Long Chen is already killed by him on the Qi Tian Road, maybe he didn¡¯t even have the chance to release the firework signal¡­¡±


    Liu Yuan forced a smile and shook his head: ¡°I have no idea. We can only sit here and wait for a miracle¡­¡±


    When everybody was waiting in silence, two teams were approaching from far, staring at each other with murderous looks.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Seeing that Long Chen was still alive, Liu Lan and Liu Yuan stroke their chests and felt relieved.


    ¡°He finally survived, I¡¯m so proud of him.¡± Liu Yuan was surprised.


    While Liu Lan was watching the confident smile on that Juvenile¡¯s face.


    It seemed that everything was under his control.


    ¡­

 Chapter 171

    Chapter 171 ¨C 400 Thousand Deity Jades!


    Tranted by: Hui Li


    Edited by:


    TLCed by:


    Only six of the eight members showed up in the end.


    Everyone was on tenterhooks. Although two people were still missing, obviously the result woulde out soon.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao, who was sitting in the middle, also opened his eyes. He looked at Long Chen¡¯s team with a calm face, seeing that they entered the yard. In the meantime, everyone around turned to look at their arms.


    ¡°Three, three, and three!¡±


    The seniors were a bit surprised when looking at the Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s four-man team.


    Apparently, Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi had three jade crystal bracelets on their arms respectively, while the other Juvenile from the Gold Faction also had three jade crystal bracelets.


    Combining the two teams, the total number of jade crystal bracelets had reached 12. It indicated that they basically had robbed everyone else in the Qi Tian Road.


    ¡°Twelve bracelets?¡±


    Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong were a bit dissatisfied. ording to their estimation, they should have obtained more.


    ¡°Is it¡­?¡± When they looked at Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, they were greatly abashed, with their eyes wide open.


    ¡°Three, three! They both have three jade crystal bracelets. Plus the other 14 ones, they have 20 jade crystal bracelets in total, which means¡­¡±


    Everyone was staring at Long Chen and Yin Mengyao in an astonishment. Without a doubt, Yin Mengyao¡¯spetence could at least rank the Top Five. Many people thought that she couldn¡¯t go too far because Long Chen was dragging her behind. However, it was Long Chen who created a turning point for her!


    Long Chen had three jade crystal bracelets, which meant that the rest two Silver Faction members would get zero point.


    In this case, the four winning teams stood out.


    Gu Batian¡¯s face was full of amazement. Gu Cheng and Liu Gui from the Purple Faction alsopleted the mission as they had kept their jade crystal bracelets safe!


    When Gu Cheng came back, he had heard of the story about Long Chen saving them. As a result, he was not surprised for Long Chen¡¯s outstanding performance at all.


    Seeing the three shining jade crystal bracelets on Long Chen¡¯s arms, Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were stunned. They looked at each other, feeling extremely incredible.


    ¡°Three, three¡­¡±


    It meant that they had already taken down two teams. That was the best performance in this Qi Tian Road examination.


    ¡°Long Chen is such a remarkable boy.¡± Liu Yuan came to himself, touching his long beard and giving hispliment with a smile. He looked so proud on his face.


    ¡°Perhaps Yin Mengyao is more powerful.¡±


    Liu Lan was feeling difficult to ept the oue. After all, Long Chen¡¯s rivals were the most horrible people in the outside families. How could Long Chen have acquired such amazing result when he just reached the initial stage of the Earth Dan Realm?


    She fell into a trance when seeing Long Chen¡¯s smile, feeling unreal.


    ¡°The final battle will take ce at the Cave of Life and Death. We will see their truepetence there. I hope that he would perform well too.¡± Liu Lan also prayed for Long Chen in the dark.


    In the meantime, Dongfang Xuanxiao took a nce at the 20 participants one by one: ¡°Now we have the winners for the Qi Tian Road battle. It¡¯s obvious to see the four teams that stood out. I won¡¯t mention them again. Now I will announce the second grouping n.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had always been a stern and resolute person. He had already began the grouping for the next challenge while everyone else was still feeling astonished by Long Chen¡¯s performance. The winning participants including Long Chen, got concentrated immediately.


    ¡°We will regroup the two-person teams. You will be arranged in different teams. The first group: Jin Sheng¡¯en, Liu Qiong, Liu Gui, Yin Mengyao! And the rest will be the second group.¡±


    Yin Mengyao was ced into the first group, which meant that Long Chen was in the second group. His rivals would be: another Juvenil from the Gold Faction, Gu Cheng from the Purple Faction, and of course, Chu Yunxi from the Green Faction!


    After confirming the regrouping, Chu Yunxi and Long Chen took a look at each other. Seeing Chu Yunxi¡¯s excited but grim eyes, Long Chen merely smiled lightly.


    He expected this result as well. He still remembered that Chu Yunxi had finger-attacked him before, and he was still holding the grudge.


    ¡°Come on, either you or I must get into the inner faction.¡± Yin Mengyao turned around and looked at Long Chen. On her charming face appeared an attractive and confident smile.


    ¡°Deal.¡± Long Chen confirmed.


    In the meantime, Dongfang Yunxiao continued: ¡°Now the regrouping ispleted. You can take a short break. When youe back at tomorrow noon, we will officially begin the battle at the Cave of Life and Death.¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Everyone must follow Dongfang Yunxiao¡¯s order, including the seniors.


    ¡°Wait.¡± The Silver Faction senior interrupted him, looking at Yin Mengyao calmly and spoke: ¡°Yao, where are Li Feng and Wang Tong?¡±


    Long Chen had already known that they would ask such question. Since he was the one who killed them, he would never hesitate to admit it. However, before he confessed, Yin Mengyao was one step ahead and spoke tly: ¡°I killed them¡±.


    Hearing such indifferent tone, everyone was shocked and silenced, while the the Silver Faction senior tightened her face, appearing to be sullen and grim.


    The new generation of Silver Faction used to be the most dashing group among the nine outside families, but now, Yin Mengyao alone became their only hope. What was wrong?


    As for the grudges between Ying Mengyao and Li Feng and Wang Tong, the Silver Faction senior was well aware and had always been interfering their fights. However, she didn¡¯t expect that they still had a decisive battle in the Qi Tian Road.


    ¡°Well, let it go.¡± The Silver Faction senior let out a long sigh. She looked much older with that frustrated face in a moment.


    Realizing that she didn¡¯t look into the fact, Long Chen felt relieved. If he admitted that he killed Li Feng, this olddy must not spare him. Luckily, Yin Mengyao took the bullet for him by risking great danger.


    That was just a small incident. Soon enough, everyone gradually went away under Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s arrangement. Before leaving, Chu Yunxi even threw a provoking expression towards Long Chen, making a throat-cutting mimic.


    ¡°Stupid.¡± Long Chen despised him in the dark.


    At that moment, the seniors of nine outside families were going to leave with their members. Dongfang Xuanxiao took the lead. Seeing that Dongfang Yunxiao left, Long Chen said to Yin Mengyao standing by his side: ¡°Mengyao, is this Lord Xuanxiao very powerful? It seems that all the seniors are afraid of him.¡±


    A sign of admiration appeared on Yin Mengyao¡¯s face: ¡°In the Eastern Azure Dragon Faction, there are four powerful members under the supreme leader, they are Feng, Yu, Yun and Xiao. Amongst them, Lord Xuanxiao is the strongest one. He is the master regarded as the Most Powerful Figure under the Heaven River. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Under the Heaven River?¡± Long Chen suddenly realized that the Heaven River Realm might rank right above the Heaven Dan Realm.


    The Heaven River, known as the river for 18 zodiacs in the sky. The Heaven River Realm possesses the heavenly power of stars, which was a terrifying existence! As Xuanxiao was considered as the most powerful figure under the Heaven River, he must have mastered extremely profound techniques.


    ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m going now, see you tomorrow noon.¡±


    After finishing her words, Yin Mengyao left together with the Silver Faction senior. Perhaps she would detail the story about Li Feng and Wang Tong. Besides, she was intoxified by viper venom, she needed a good rest for two hours for the next battle.


    As for the Green Faction, the Chu¡¯s family had already left, but Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were still standing there in a trance. At the moment, Gu Batian walked over withughter, greeting with Liu Yuan and patting Long Chen¡¯s shoulder: ¡°Good guy, you¡¯re doing quite well! I appreciate your performance!¡±


    Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were all confused.


    ¡°Mr. Gu, what do you mean?¡± Liu Yuan asked with some doubts.


    ¡°He save Gu Cheng and Liu Gui¡¯s life under the attack of a pack of Abyssal Poison Scorpions. How awesome is that!¡±


    Gu Batian also showed a trace of gratitude on his face. After all, Gu Cheng was his grandson who almost lost his life!


    Abyssal Poison Scorpion was a Level 4 Profound Grade toxic beast. Under the attack of a pack of Abyssal Poison Scorpions, Long Chen still saved two people, which meant that he must have achieved an equal martial level of Gu Cheng?


    ¡°Senior Gu, you told me before, that we should look after each other. This is what I¡¯m supposed to do, it¡¯s nothing. If I got into danger, they would help me too.¡±


    Long Chen responded him with sincerity.


    Indeed, speaking of personality, Gu Cheng and Liu Gui were simr with Gu Batian. They were good people, zealous and earnest.


    After the battle in the Qi Tian Road, Long Chen¡¯s team was in need of good preparation. Instead of bothering him, Gu Batian took them to the resting ce, providing one room for each of them.


    The peak of the Cave of Life and Death was freezing cold and gloomy. Only when they entered the solid house built by Lingwu Family could they feel warmer.


    ¡°Come and see these two little guys, let¡¯s check what¡¯s inside.¡±


    After closing the door, Long Chen showed his true color and took out Li Feng and Wang Tong¡¯s Cosmos Pouches. That was the first time he killed someone and got the treasure, so he was a bit excited.


    ¡°So many deity jades!¡± Long Chen got exhrated when seeing so much property.


    They sorted out these jades and finally got the statistics. Long Chen¡¯s face was full of smile.


    ¡°We have 400 thousand deity jades. How rich are these two guys¡­¡±


    After killing someone and taking treasure from them for the first time, Long Chen tasted the blood. He couldn¡¯t help fantasizing how rich he could get if he made money in such speed.


    ¡°How many spirit grasses can I trade with these deity jades?¡± Ling Xi turned her head sideway, supporting her chin with her arms, blinking her big eyes and pondering.


    ¡°Let¡¯s check if there¡¯s anything else!¡± Indeed, they saw assortment bit of everything beside the deity jades. In Wang Tong¡¯s Cosmos Pouch, there were even some girly stuffs like underwears. However, with the presence of Ling Xi, Long Chen must act like a decent man and refrain himself from looking at them.


    ¡°Profound Elementary-Grade Martial Technique, Profound Intermediate-Grade Martial Technique, numerous spirit medicines, and a Profound Intermediate-Grade Weapon.¡±


    Among the other items, many were Profound Elementary-Grade spirit medicines and some Profound Intermediate-Grade ones. The most precious item was the Profound Intermediate-Grade Battle Halberd!


    The battle halberd had a brilliant ck body, of which the edge was sharp and shining, constantly giving off a trace of algidity.


    Long Chen flipovered the battle halberd and took a closer look, discovering a tattoo of deity dragon on it. A deity dragon was puffing clouds and smokes, which appeared to be very intimidating.


    ¡°Is it the Azure Dragon¡¯s Battle Halberd, isn¡¯t it?¡± Ling Xi was a bit surprised though.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not.¡± Long Chen flipovered the battle halberd for a few times and said: ¡°I guess it¡¯s a replica. But anyway battle halberds are great weapons, I like them.¡±


    ¡°Since Mo Xiang has obtained the Sky Wolf Phantom de, why don¡¯t you try to fight for the Azure Dragon¡¯s Battle Halberd?¡± Ling Xi spitted out such words abruptly.

 Chapter 172

    Chapter 172 ¨C At the Life and Death Cave


    Tranted by: Hui Li


    Edited by:


    TLCed by:


    ¡°The Azure Dragon¡¯s Battle Halberd?¡±


    Indeed, Long Chen had some expectation of this item. However, at the moment, he was still a gxy away from being qualified topete for the legendary divine weapon.


    Although the battle halberd was a good stuff, and Long Chen liked it too, he couldn¡¯t use it temporarily. He had no choice but to put it away.


    After they stayed there and took a rest for a while, the noon was arriving soon.


    When the time came, Long Chen followed others to the big yard that they saw before.


    The weather was gloomy and thundery to the utmost. It became so deste and sombre between the heaven and earth, even in the afternoon .


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to the Cave of Life and Death.¡±


    Under the lead of Dongfang Xuanxiao, the members of outside families marched towards the Cave of Life and Death.


    Long Chen was hanging with Gu Batian¡¯s group and almost bing a Purple Faction member.


    Liu Yuan was the deacon of Green Faction, yet he got dumped by Chu Tianxiong, which extremely upsetted him. At that moment, he could only count on Long Chen¡¯s final performance. If something bad happened to Long Chen, Liu Yuan would possibly be the next tragedy.


    Liu Lan was also well aware of that. It was mainly her fault to break up with Chu Tianxiong¡¯s family. She was guilty about that.


    However, she saw that Long Chen was acting so casual, without any nervousness.


    ¡°How exactly is his true capability?¡± Liu Lan felt a bit headache.


    Even with so many people around, Long Chen could spot whoever he wanted. At the moment, Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en and so on were gathering together and whispering, while Yin Mengyao came to Long Chen¡¯s side.


    Except for the Green Faction, the Purple Faction, the Gold Faction and the Silver Faction, all the seniors of other outside families were just watching them for fun for this time.


    Feeling that some people¡¯s rage were being thrown onto his face, Long Chen had easily figured out that it was definitely Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    These two guys were tricked by Long Chen once in the Qi Tian Road. In thebat at the Cave of Life and Death, they might reach a final resolution.


    ¡°Brother Chu, are you sure about that?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en asked.


    ¡°After he reached the peak of Human Dan Realm, I defeated him once. He waspletely vulnerable. Now he entered the Earth Dan Realm and became more powerful, but still he will die for sure under my Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique.¡±


    Chu Yunxi spoke with confidence.


    Jin Sheng¡¯en nodded and said: ¡°We have twobats in total. You still have one more powerful rival, Gu Cheng. But Gu Cheng was poisoned before, you can defeat him as long as you perform normally!¡±


    Chu Yunxi nodded and said: ¡°Brother Jin, now you only have one powerful rival left, which is Yin Mengyao. It seems that you have a great possibility of getting into the inner faction!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en nodded and spoke with confidence: ¡°Yin Mengyao isn¡¯t an ordinary person. She has achieved advance martial technique, Obliterating Ocean Seal, but she can neverpete with me, unless she has another Profound Grade Advance Physique Martial Technique that I¡¯m not capable of. Brother Chu, just hold on and fight for it, and then we will be the two disciples of Lord Xuanxiao in the end!¡±


    ¡°Lord Xuanxiao is absolutely the best and most powerful figure under the Heaven River Realm.¡± Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes were filled with admiration.


    Soon afterwards, Long Chen¡¯s group arrived a valley on the top of the mountain. After their arrival, the yin energy around aggravated even more. The nearbynd became more dested, making it difficult for even the toughest nt to grow.


    ¡°What arge valley!¡± Gu Cheng lifted up his head, deeply frowning his forehead.


    In the air there was a rotten smell.


    ¡°The Caves of Life and Death are on the mountain wall on both sides of the valley. This is a natural battlefield where we can not only fight, but also watch thebats.¡±


    Gu Batian exined.


    Soon, Long Chen saw some caves of small sizes.


    ¡°In the Caves of Life and Death there are all sorts of toxic beasts. You can also see the Abyssal Poison Scorpion and the Dismal Serpent Spirit here as well, which you have met before. But Lord Xuanxiao might not choose a too difficult environment, I think.¡±


    Soon afterwards, Dongfang Xuanxiao, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped, turned around and said: ¡°Well, I¡¯ll stop here now. The first group, Jin Sheng¡¯en versus Liu Gui! The battlefield will be the Everde in the Cave of Life and Death.¡±


    Hearing that his rival was Jin Sheng¡¯en, Liu Gui somewhat changed his face.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, if you can¡¯t beat him, you can just surrender to him. I will be watching you here, and I won¡¯t allow him to hurt you!¡± Gu Batian patted Liu Gui¡¯s shoulder andughed.


    ¡°Besides, the Everde isn¡¯t too bad anyway. You should be fine as long as you are aware of the toxic crocodiles under the marsh.¡±


    Gu Batian exined to Liu Gui while following Xuanxiao into the first Cave of Life and Death.


    It was a huge cave of 100 square meters. Within less than 20 meters of walking, they were suddenly enlightened. A giant hemispherical space appeared.


    Walking to the front, Long Chen discovered a founderous marsh under the hemispherical space, which was full of rotten smell. Numerous bubbles of different sizes were sting on the surface of this marsh.


    ¡°Battling on this Everde requires to use true Qi to control one¡¯s body and to keep oneself from falling. Such abat is indeed a bit tricky. I might sink into the bottom of marsh if I get distracted even for a little. I assume that some toxic beasts are also hiding under the marsh.¡±


    Long Chen said to himself in secret while looking from the edge of marsh.


    At the edge, all people deployed in a line. At the moment, Dongfang Xuanxiao spoke at the front: ¡°The firstbat of the first group, now begins! ording to the rules, there are only two ways to determine the winners and the losers. First, you surrender. Second, you lose yourbat power and lose your consciousness.¡±


    There was a special and resolute power in Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s voice, making others difficult to resist him.


    ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en, Liu Gui, go ahead.¡±


    Under his order, Jin Sheng¡¯en showed a hearty smile, his toe tip slightly touching the ground and flying to the marsh. He used his toe tip to touched the mud very gently, and his pose looked extremely dashing, which won the apuse from the audiences.


    ¡°What the hell.¡± Long Chen reviled in the dark.


    At the moment, Jin Sheng¡¯en looked at the Dragon Faction, joining his hands together: ¡°Mr. Liu, after you.¡±


    On the surface he was asking Liu Gui to start thebat, but in fact he was provoking Long Chen.


    However, Liu Gui wasn¡¯t a coward either. The selection held by the inner faction was vital, abd who didn¡¯t want to give it a try? Therefore, he reached the marsh in the same way without saying a word, staring at Jin Sheng¡¯en coldly.


    ¡°Let¡¯s begin.¡±


    Though his rival was known to be the legendary first genius of the outside families, Liu Gui wasn¡¯t afraid of him. After all, he was also a talent who had reached the Earth Dan Realm, which was more or less the same as Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    ¡°Gilding Physique?¡± Seeing the vaguely floating, light golden and wave-shape radiance on Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s body, Long Chen somewhat changed his face.


    ¡°They are both Profound Grade Advance Physiquess. Is the Thunder me Physique or Gliding Physique more powerful?¡±


    Thebat between Jin Sheng¡¯en and Liu Gui began soon.


    Liu Gui¡¯sbat power was quite amazing, proving that he deserved the title of genius. However, Jin Sheng¡¯en was better. With his Gliding Physique, he hit Liu Gui and made him fall into the marsh, basically without casting too many martial techniques.


    When Liu Gui crawled out from the marsh, Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s hands have already clutched his neck. If he made any moves, his neck might be broken straightly by Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    ¡°I surrender.¡±


    Finding that he could neverpete with Jin Sheng¡¯en no matter how hard he tried, Liu Gui could only give in to him dejectedly.


    ¡°You¡¯re tactful.¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en smiled, looked at Long Chen¡¯s side with pride, and then returned to the Gold Faction¡¯s team in a stylish manner.


    ¡°Gliding Physique, what a doughty technique, I¡­¡±


    Seeing such situation, Yin Mengyao was a bit concerned. She mastered the Profound Grade Advance Battle Halberd, so did Jin Sheng¡¯en. However, she didn¡¯t grasp the Profound Grade Advance Physique Martial Technique, while Jin Sheng¡¯en did.


    Her odds to win weren¡¯t big.


    Long Chen also saw how powerful Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s Gliding Physique was. Even he himself wasn¡¯t sure about defeating Jin Sheng¡¯en without getting hurt.


    ¡°The first round, Jin Sheng¡¯en wins. Next, Yin Mengyao and Liu Qiong.¡±


    Liu Qiong was the guy who had been pped by Long Chen for looking down at him. At the moment, his face was still carrying a palm print, giving a hrious look.


    ¡°What are youughing at?!¡± The senior of the Gold Faction, Jin Luan yelled in anger.


    He was the most awe-inspiring senior for this time. Three talens in the Gold Faction all entered the finals at the Cave of Life and Death. With Jin Sheng¡¯en, he felt certain about getting at least one Gold Faction member into the inner faction.


    Soon enough, Yin Mengyao and Liu Qiong began thebat. Without no doubt, Yin Mengyao casted the Obliterating Ocean Seal, just as thest fight, and vanquished her rival easily.


    ¡°Well, now you and Jin Sheng¡¯en must fight for one quota to get into the inner faction.¡± Long Chen smiled to her.


    ¡°I¡¯m no rival to Jin Sheng¡¯en. Long Chen, I need to rely on you for Xiang¡¯s matter.¡± Yin Mengyao said to him abruptly.


    Long Chen paused for a bit and remained silent.


    At the moment, the first round of the first group was finished. Liu Qiong and Liu Gui were out, Jin Sheng¡¯en and Yin Mengyao were in. Then the firstbat of the second group began.


    As Dongfang Xuanxiao was the person to arrange the grouping, Long Chen had no idea who his rival would be.


    In fact, even his rival wasn¡¯t Chu Yunxi, if they both won this round, they would fight each other in the end.


    ¡°The firstbat of the second group, let¡¯s wee Jiang Liu and Gu Cheng!¡±


    Long Chen shuddered. It meant that he would be the rival of Chu Yunxi in the firstbat.


    In the meantime, Chu Yunxi happened to look at him as well. In Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes, Long Chen still saw madness and malignity.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re dead.¡± Chu Yunxi was moving his lips without making a sound.


    As long as he could attack him fast enough, he could finish Long Chen even before he surrenders. After all, Dongfang Xuanxiao didn¡¯t make it clear that no rivals could be killed in such life and deathbat.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t give a damn about him at all. Turning around, he saw that Liu Lan was staring at him in a trance, her eyes brimming with concern and worry.


    ¡°Hey, if I defeat him, can you allow me to touch your big rabbits?¡± (Note: it¡¯s a symbolic joke among the guys to indicate girls¡¯ big boobs)


    Long Chen moved his head towards Liu Lan and leered at her.

 Chapter 173

    Chapter 173 ¨C A Fierce Combat with Chu Yunxi!


    Tranted by: Hui


    In the inner faction review and validation, only 5 people could directly acquire the qualification for the selective trial, including Yin Mengyao, Chu Yunxi, Gu Cheng and Jin Sheng¡¯en, whose initial mastery stage of Earth Dan Realm was somewhat more powerful than others.


    That was why Yin Mengyao and Jin Sheng¡¯en could seed in their previousbats.


    Gu Cheng was in a simr situation. However, as he was injured before, it took him great strength to defeat the other geniuses from the Gold Faction.


    Three talents from the Gold Faction had entered the Level 2 Challenge taking ce at the Cave of Life and Death, yet two of them were eliminated in the first round ofbat.


    After Gu Cheng obtained the victory, the most exciting battle that everyone had been looking forward to would soon begin ¨C Long Chen versus Chu Yunxi.


    Since the drama about Liu Lan¡¯s happened, rumours about Long Chen and Chu Yunxi¡¯s conflicts had been spread through the entire city.


    Gossips were always exhrating. That was why everyone had a boiling passion when seeing Long Chen and Chu Yunxi confronting each other for a decisive battle.


    ¡°Next, Chu Yunxi versus Long Chen. Go ahead!¡±


    In a dusky environment, Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s eyes looked like amp, throwing onto Long Chen and Chu Yunxi.


    Finally it was Long Chen¡¯s turn. He remained calm andposed, touching the ground softly with his toe tip and flying to the marsh.


    From the other side, Chu Yunxi also jumped into the marsh. The two rivals stood still in a distance of 15 meters, confronting each other from far.


    They had been holding too many grudges until then. They could already skip the provoking part.


    ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal, what do you think?¡± Chu Yunxi spoke tly before making the first move.


    ¡°If you want to fart, do it quickly. Show me how loud was your farting before I respond to you.¡± Long Chen put up a poker face.


    The remainingdies burst intoughter immediately for his words. Long Chen was so hrious.


    That was not the first time he saw him showing of his eloquence. Though ring up in the dark, Chu Yunxi still held back his temper when thinking that he could take care of Long Chen soon.


    ¡°Before one of us dies, whoever surrenders will be the grandson of his rival. He must kowtow to and call the other ¡°Grandpa¡± for three times. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Long Chen looked at him with great interest and said: ¡° Do you want me to take you as a grandson for nothing? But you, you don¡¯t get my favor in my eyes.¡±


    ¡°Just cut the craps. Say yes or no, be blunt if you¡¯re a man.¡±


    ¡°Of course I¡¯ll say yes.¡± Surrender was never Long Chen¡¯s style.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s begin.¡±


    Chu Yunxi felt much relieved after sessfully tricking Long Chen.


    He knew that Long Chen was a straightforward person. At the moment, he felt much confident about killing Long Chen.


    Naturally, Long Chen would like to use [Dragon Soul Transformation] to ¡°wee¡± Chu Yunxi.


    Each kind of mastery of techniquesing from the mysterious essence blood was a great backup for Long Chen. Any sort of Beast Soul Transformation could never outweigh the jumbo aggregation of Long Chen¡¯s [Dragon Soul Transformation].


    ¡°This is your best Beast Soul Transformation?¡±


    Seeing that perfect scarlet scales and ferocious spurs on Long Chen¡¯s body, Chu Yunxi was a bit surprised, because Long Chen appeared to be exceedingly powerful with such look.


    Liu Yuan also witnessed Long Chen¡¯s transformation, getting suspicious: ¡°Lan, why didn¡¯t Long Chen use the Beast Soul Transformation of the Enchanted Purple Dragon?¡±


    However, Liu Lan had been well aware that Long Chen already sold the Beast Soul of Enchanted Purple Dragon to someone else. How could he possible to use such transformation?


    As she had already promised Long Chen not to tell it out, she lied: ¡°I don¡¯t know, perhaps he wants to use it as thest straw.¡±


    She had never thought about one day she would lie to her own father for this youngster.


    As Liu Yuan couldn¡¯t find any other exnations, plus it wasn¡¯t convenient to bother Long Chen at that moment, he could only give up seeking for the truth.


    Meanwhile, the much-anticipated battle between Long Chen and Chu Yunxi finally began!


    The air surrounding Chu Yunxi started scrolling. Soon enough, he shoot off himself towards Long Chen as a whirlwind. Under a great shock, the marsh sludge under his feet caved in, creating a huge hole!


    ¡°[Storm Seizing Finger]!¡±


    That whizzing manner suddenly gave off a suffocating power!


    ¡°[Storm Seizing Finger]?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid at all. At that moment, that sanguine power of thunder and me was insanely circting in his body. Soon afterwards, everybody could see that he was basically bathing in the me, while the pulsing thunder was congested on the surface of his whole body!


    ¡°What is that?¡± Even the seniors of the nine outside families couldn¡¯t understand what it was about.


    At the moment, Jin Luan from the Gold Faction got suspicious for a while, and then spoke to Chu Tianxiong who was standing beside him: ¡°It seems that he has merged the Thunder-me Crystals and obtained the [Thunder me Physique]. I have seen it before, but it wasn¡¯t as powerful as this one. From what I see, it is supposed to be Level 2 [Thunder me Physique]!¡±


    ¡°Level 2 [Thunder me Physique], is that equal to a Profound Grade Advance Physique Martial Technique?¡± In Chu Tianxiong¡¯s voice, there was a trace of shock.


    Though he wasn¡¯t speaking loud, as the people surround him were all experts, it was to easily overhear him.


    Even Dongfang Xuanxiao, who was sitting in the middle, somewhat showed his appreciation for Long Chen.


    ¡°Uncle Four, is the Level 2 [Thunder me Physique] very powerful?¡± The way Dongfang Tianyu looked at Long Chen wasn¡¯t quite friendly. Beside him was Chu Yunyao, who was staring at Long Chen, with a resentful face.


    ¡°Not bad, it is more or less equal to your physique martial technique.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao spoke inly.


    ¡°More or less equal to mine?¡± Dongfang Tianyu was a bit surprised. ¡°What a lucky Bastard, Long Chen! How could he achieve the Level 2 Thunder me Physique?¡±


    Hearing his words, Dongfang Xuanxiao turned around and looked at him with calm eyes, speaking word by word: ¡°Well, then what a lucky bastard you are, Dongfang Tianyu being born in the Dongfang Family?¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao wasn¡¯t very polite to him. Dongfang Tianyu was shocked in the dark, lowering his head and shutting his mouth.


    He knew about his uncle¡¯s temper all too well. If he pissed him off, even his father couldn¡¯t save him.


    As everyone was discussing about the Level 2 [Thunder me Physique], they missed a lot of wonderfulbat scenes. At the moment, Long Chen and Chu Yunxi were engaging in a fierce battle!


    Long Chen¡¯s blood was boiling with indignation!


    After he reached the Earth Dan Realm, they finally confronted each other. Facing someone to whom he could use his crazy martial techniques, he finally broke outpletely after repressing for so long!


    ¡°[Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], [Scarlet me Burning Heavens!]¡±


    That ming fist and the power of Storm Seizing Finer fully collided. Suddenly, a huge air st rose from the marsh, with its majestic force, sweeping the surroundings! In an instant, the me¡¯s virtual shadows and the storm changes were spreading everywhere!


    ¡°Good boy, he made a progress!¡±


    For this time, Long Chen withstood Chu Yunxi¡¯a attack of [Storm Seizing Finger] merely by using [Scarlet me Burning Heavens]. Such a breakthrough really scared Chu Yunxi, because he used to hurt Long Chen by the same technique before.


    ¡°He is really making speedy progress. Today I must kill him in case of further troubles!¡±


    Thinking of that, Chu Yunxi burst out all his Qi. The frontal collision created a rebound power, making him and Long Chen flying backwards and almost falling into the marsh!


    Though Chu Yunxi Stabilized his body, he still got much sludge on his clothes, which made him really angry!


    ¡°How dare you stain my clothes!¡±


    After bncing his body, he stroke out an attack towards Long Chen again!


    At the moment, Long Chen¡¯s eyes were full of zing glow!


    ¡°Chu Yunxi, eventually I possess the power to confront with for the first time. Now I will make you understand, that you are no rival to me at all!¡±


    Two young talented warriors crossed their swords with each other, once again!


    In the past, Chu Yunxi was using the finger attack, [Storm Seizing Finger]. For this time, he was using the same technique, but much more powerful than before.


    ¡°Liu Lan, just watch us carefully, see how Long Chen die in my hands.¡±


    Hepletely couldn¡¯t understand why Liu Lan had her eyes on Long Chen. He didn¡¯t know in which aspect he couldn¡¯tpete with Long Chen.


    The whizzing Qi was surging around him. Chu Yunxi¡¯s fingers were changing all the time. The de-like finger phantom kept appearing constantly!


    Under his attack, even the air was howling and screaming!


    At the moment, Long Chen¡¯s full body was covered by mes. Such scarlet me appeared to be extremely bossy and destructive!


    ¡°It is indeed inconvenient to fight in the marsh.¡±


    Though with such obstacle, Long Chen didn¡¯t flinch. At the moment when Chu Yunxi was using a more powerful move, he suddenly rose up and stroke out a crit towards Chu Yunxi!


    ¡°[Burning Heavens Demonic Sun Fist], [Piercing Earth Demonic Sun]!¡±


    Just like a brilliant ck sun sliding down from the sky, leaving a bright scratch trace, rushing towards Chu Yunxi with a killing momentum!


    ¡°A petty craft. Go to die, Long Chen!¡±


    Chu yunxi was grinning ,while all of his finger phantoms were rushing towards Long Chen wildly. Momentarily, finger phantoms were all over the sky.


    ¡°[Vault Phantom Finger]!¡±


    Two energies were crashing and colliding with each other!


    The air was rumbling!


    The sludge in the marsh was sshing under the strike and then falling from the sky. That rotten smell assailed the nostrils. In the eyes of the audiences, two shadows in the mud were still engaging in a fierce fight!


    ¡°What?¡± Sensing Long Chen¡¯s powerful strength, Chu Yunxi was dumbfounded.


    Not only his [Earth Piercing Demonic Sun] broke his [Vault Phantom Finger], the repercussion even gave him a huge shock, kicking him out of the field and making his Qi and blood surge up!


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible, my [Vault Phantom Finger] is an advance martial technique of the Profound Grade Intermediate Martial Technique, why can¡¯t I withstand his move? Why am I failing?¡±


    With such an unbelievable feeling, Chu Yunxi was hit into the marsh. For this time, his image waspletely overturned. Carrying all the sludge on his body, he felt extremely violent rage in his heart!


    ¡°No way!¡±


    Chu Yunxi burst out a howl, shaking off all his muds on his body all of a sudden and rushing out from the marsh. Yet in the meantime, several attacks from the marsh were flushing towards him!


    ¡°It¡¯s the toxic crocodiles! Go to die!¡±


    Chu Yunxi was at the peak of fury. As a result, these toxic crocodiles were so stupid to bother him. In an instant, five toxic crocodiles were smashed into pieces by Chu Yunxi¡¯s [Storm Seizing Finger].


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Staring at Long Chen still intact, Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes were full of madness!


    ¡°It seems that you will choose to die under my move! Let me show you the Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique of Green Faction!¡±

 Chapter 174

    Chapter 174 ¨C The [Wind Puffing Cloud Finger]


    Tranted by: Hui


    Well, Long Chen wasn¡¯t surprised at all that Chu Yunxi used the Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique!


    ¡°Now it¡¯s time to see the oue!¡± Long Chen smiled coldly, speeding up his movement in a second.


    After seeing the collision for the whole time, everyone had learned the fact that Long Chen¡¯s strength waspletely equal to Chu Yunxi¡¯s!


    At the moment, two people were watching Long Chen with struggling and hesitation.


    One of them was Chu Yunxi¡¯s younger sister, Chu Yunyao. Almost a month ago, she was Long Chen¡¯s rival. Though they only had a draw, everyone could have seen that Long Chen and she were well matched in terms of capability. However, after one month, Long Chen could even withstand her elder brother, the person she adored, the first genius of Green Faction!


    She couldn¡¯t believe such a truth.


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible, impossible. It must be my illusion.¡± Chu Yunyao shook her head again and again, anxiously looking at Dongfang Tianyu who was standing aside. While Dongfang Tianyu, was watching thebat with indifferent eyes.


    After a while, he became breathless, saying: ¡°We¡¯re going to have an oue soon.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to have an oue now?¡± Beside Chu Yunyao, Liu Lan was pertubed as well.


    After Long Chen sold the Soul Beast of Enchanted Purple Dragon, she ascertained that Long Chen would definitely suffer a devastating defeat in the selective trial of inner faction, but things werepletely out of the blue!


    Again and again, Long Chen had created miracles. Today, he even yielded a brilliant performance on the stage of the inner faction¡¯s selective trial, which entirely conquered Liu Lan¡¯s heart.


    In the meantime, Liu Lan was watching the vigorous and daring Long Chen, being attracted by his tall and straight figure, and suddenly thinking of the deal she made with Long Chen when she was impulsive. A trace of winy flush appeared on Liu Lan¡¯s icy but morous face.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re such a man of marvels¡­¡±


    At the moment, this man of marvels was confronting Chu Yunxi within a very short distance!


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to see that you reach this realm today. However, you can never use the Profound Grade Advance physique martial technique as a Profound Grade Advance attack martial technique. Go to die!¡±


    For this time, Chu Yunxi casted his most powerful move. That vast momentum even exceeded Yin Mengyao¡¯s Obliterating Ocean Seal.


    The fierce wind was howling, the clouds were whirling. The screams of wind were whizzing around Chu Yunxi. A whirlwind was circling around Chu Yunxi, of which the majestic momentum was trying to overwhelm Long Chen.


    ¡°Well, you have your Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique, I do too!¡± Long Chen smirked coldly. At the same time, he was extremely calm, yet his Qi madly burst out!


    ¡°For this time, I must fully cast the [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit] under my best state!¡±


    Previously, Long Chen had used two times of [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit] while dealing with the Juvenile of the Red Faction, without casting the [Dragon Soul Transformation]. His power was just ordinary. In the breakout of the encirclement, he also tried to use it on Liu Qiong who was from the Gold Faction, yet he didn¡¯t seed.


    But for this time, his [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit] burst out all itsbat power!


    ¡°Chu Yunxi is using a Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique.¡± The onlooking seniors were showing their consternation.


    ¡°I guess the Green Faction¡¯s Long Chen might have a tough time now.¡±


    Hearing these words, Liu Lan felt highly nervous, her fists clenching tightly.


    ¡°Look, Long Chen¡¯s finger!¡±


    In the midst of one exim, everyone looked at Long Chen. At the moment, the index finger of Long Chen¡¯s right hand had already turned into a starlight gaze, which appeared to be a brilliant gem. In the meantime, the sharp auraing from there was also intimidating.


    ¡°He¡¯s even capable of confronting with Yunxi! It is supposed to be a Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique.¡± Chu Tianxiong frowned and said.


    ¡°What?¡± Chu Fengqing and Chu Yunyao were both taken aback. Chu Yunyao asked anxiously: ¡°Then can my brother defeat him?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see!¡± Chu Tianxiong¡¯s eyes were full of sombre. He moved his head aside and took a look at Dongfang Xuanxiao, seeing that he was watching thebat without blinking his eyes.


    Chu Tianxiong was preparing a way of escape for Chu Yunxi. If Chu Yunxi failed and he wanted to help, Dongfang Xuanxiao could be the biggest obstacle here.


    Meanwhile, Long Chen and Chu Yunxi began the most-anticipated peak duel.


    The whirlwind clouds around Chu Yunxi had reach the ultimate level. In a blink, the whirlwind startedpressing insanely into an arm-size one, surrounding Chu Yunxi¡¯s finger!


    That kind of explosive power somewhat terrorized Long Chen.


    In the meantime, Chu Yunxi sneered at him coldly, bursting out his most powerful technique!


    The air was rumbling!


    One finger was piercing out, overturning state of heaven and earth!


    ¡°[Wind Puffing Cloud Finger]!¡±


    Indeed, it deserved to be called as a Profound Grade Advance Martial Technique. Its outburst even surpassed the attack of the Obliterating Ocean Seal, which arrived the front of Long Chen, sting out a giant deep groove on the sludge after along the way!


    ¡°Finger attack again?¡±


    Under such attack, Long Chen still remainedposed. Right after Chu Yunxi¡¯s move, his finger stabbed forward all of a sudden!


    ¡°[Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit!¡±


    In a blink, a glittering aura of sword exploded on Long Chen¡¯s finger, lighting up the entire Cave of Life and Death. Almost everyone was startled by the suddenly appearing aura of sword!


    ¡°What a strong power of sword!¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and the nine seniors of outside families were amazed.


    Soon enough, the sword aura of [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit] had a frontal engagement with the [Wind Puffing Cloud Finger]!


    Phew!


    It sounded like the collision of sword and shield. First it was a sharp whizz, and then a noise of explosion came out. When everyone was watching this with an unbelievable feeling, the shield, named as the [Wind Puffing Cloud] was pierced by the sword, named as the [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit], and sted suddenly in the end!


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible!¡±


    At the moment, Chu Yunxi¡¯s face turned miserably pale. After a concussion on his Qi, the counter effect caused his severe injury. Meanwhile, the aura of swording from the [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit] suddenly stabbed on his body, with a lightning speed and before he could even react!


    ¡°No!¡±


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes were almost splitting open. At thest moment, what he could do was to tremor his entire body with his Qi. However, under the doughty and sharp aura of the [Sword Finger of the Demonic Spirit], his Qi was quickly shattered by the raving power. The sharp aura of sword surged into his body, turning into countless fine des, wrecking Chu Yunxi¡¯s body.


    Puff!


    Chu Yunxi squirted a strand of blood, and then fell into the sludge all of a sudden, being swallowed by the sludge of the marsh. In the meantime, his blood contaminated arge piece of slush!


    ¡°Xi¡¯er!¡±


    ¡°Brother!¡±


    At the moment, exmations came from the Green Faction. Wearing a cold face, Chu Tianxiong suddenly flew towards the ce where Chu Yunxi fell into the slush, with a speed even 100 times more than Long Chen!


    ¡°If Xi¡¯er is dead, Long Chen, I will cut you into pieces!¡± At the moment, Chu Tianxiong was roaring madly in the dark. A trace of sanguine color gradually appeared in his eyes.


    ¡°What are you doing, Chu Tianxiong?¡± In the meantime, a figure was blocking Chu Tianxiong ¨C Dongfang Xuanxiao, the indifferent-faced leader.


    ¡°Yunxi is already injured. He has already lost.¡± Being stopped by Dongfang Xuanxiao, Chu Tian xiong just came back to himself. He spoke to Dongfang Yunxiao while staring at Long Chen with sullen eyes.


    ¡°First, he didn¡¯t surrender, second, he isn¡¯t severely injured and lost his consciousness. Imand you to go back.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao looked at him inly. Though his tone was t, yet was full of unresistable awe.


    Although Chu Tianxiong couldn¡¯t ept the truth, under Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s cold eyes, he could only swallow the insult, took an insidious look at Long Chen and went back to where he stood before.


    Meanwhile, everyone had his eyes on Long Chen.


    For Chu Yunxiao and the like, it was unbelievable. At the moment, their eyes were brimming with confusion and nkness, which also contained grudges.


    ¡°Brother Tianyu, I want Long Chen die.¡± Chu Yunyao burst into tears, lying on Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s shoulder and sobbing.


    Seeing how sad and poor the little beauty was, Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s heart was almost broken. Putting up a sullen face, he looked at Long Chen coldly, lowering his voice: ¡°Yao¡¯er, rest assure. Long Chen cannot live more than ten days from now on. This is my promise for you.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Chu Yunyao was a bit surprised by his words.


    Dongfang Tianyu was a true inner faction member, the son of Dongfang Xuanyun who was among the Feng, Yu, Yun and Xiao in the Eastern Azure Dragon Faction. He was extremely high-regarded in the inner faction. Long Chen was doomed if he interfered this matter.


    Even Long Chen entered into the inner faction by luck in the end, he must live under Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s oppression. Dongfang Tianyu could just kill him at will by any chances.


    ¡°He defeated Chu Yunxi?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en and Jin Luan¡¯s faces were brimming with astonishment. They looked at each other in nk, and eventually realized the truth.


    ¡°Long Chen¡¯s talent was really heaven-defying! In the past, I didn¡¯t understand why Lord Xuanxiao allowed him into the selective trial of the inner faction, but now I see that Lord Xuanxiao is indeed insightful. Luckily Long Chen didn¡¯t be your rival, otherwise you two could have a difficultbat!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en possessed the Profound Grade Advance Physique Martial Technique, so did Long Chen who also excelled at it. It meant that theirbat abilities were even better than anyone else.


    ¡°Sheng¡¯en, Long Chen and you are roughly at the same level.¡± Even Jin Luan started appreciating Long Chen¡¯s performance.


    ¡°How¡¯s that possible?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s face looked so awkward. He had already breeded enmity with Long Chen, and how dare Long Chene to challenge his position as the First Talent in the outside families! Was he digging his own grave?


    Since Jin Sheng¡¯en saw that his good friend was defeated by Long Chen in this way, his eyes were suddenly brimming with murderous aggressiveness.


    ¡°Long Chen, it would be great if you were my rival. I will definitely show you who the most talented evildoer in the outside family is!¡±


    As for Liu Yuan, he fell into a trance after seeing that Long Chen defeated his rival, not knowing how to react.


    As for Liu Lan, her sexy and curvy body trembled abruptly, her little mouth slightly open, while she was watching Long Chen in a nk.


    Meanwhile, Chu Yunxi eventually crawled out from the marsh with embarrassment, being covered with muds.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s time to let him call me grandpa.¡± Long Chen thought.

 Chapter 175

    Chapter 175 ¨C Call me Grandpa for Three Times


    Long Chen defeated Chu Yunxi, and Chu Tianxiong was forced to go back by Dongfang Xuanxiao. All these were truly dramatic. Everyone was watching in astonishment.


    ¡°It isn¡¯t over yet?¡± Dongfang Yunxiao said. Everyone was a bit confused at the moment. Chu Yunxi was already holding thest breath, being no rival to Long Chen at all. Did they really have to wait for him to surrender?


    Suddenly, they thought of the betting between Chu Yunxi and Long Chen. Whoever surrenders would be the grandson of the other person. Now that Chu Yunxi didn¡¯t pass out, he didn¡¯t lose yet.


    Long Chen had a sudden inspiration. He seemed to know what Dongfang Xuanxiao asked him to do.


    From the beginning, Dongfang Xuanxiao had always defending for Long Chen, although he had never mentioned that. Long Chen must be a fool if he ignored that.


    ¡°Well, with the protection from this guru, I will challenge the heaven for this time.¡± Long Chen rejoiced in his heart. He didn¡¯t care about how Chu Tianxiong felt at all, because Dongfang Xuanxiao was protecting him, and he could do whatever he wanted.


    Meanwhile, other seniors also discovered such subtle preference.


    ¡°Lord Xuanxiao is in favor of Long Chen?¡± Such idea popped up in many people¡¯s minds, especially Jin Luan and Chu Tian Xiong, who had a strong feeling that Lord Xuanxiao wasn¡¯t very in favor of Sheng¡¯en or Chu Yunxi, instead, he defended for Long Chen for several times in the dark.


    Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan took a look at each other, bearing an ominous premonition.


    In the meantime, Gu Batian had always been happy for Long Chen. At the moment he even cared for nothing andughed out loud: ¡°Good boy, do you remember your deal? Come and surrender now, so that your Grandpa Three could have one more brother!¡±


    Hearing Gu Batian¡¯s words, Chu Tianxiong turned his face sombre. He spoke with sullen eyes: ¡°Gu Batian, what are you talking about?¡±


    Gu Batian pouted, having no interest to care about him at all. Instead, he looked at Long Chen so much expectation. In the meantime, Long Chen had already stand beside Chu Yunxi.


    Chu Yunxi had just crawled up from the muds, being covered by dark sludge and rotten smell. On his face, his blood was mixed with the slurry. At the moment, hepletely lost his previous image of a magnificent beau and became an ugly person.


    ¡°Grandson, just surrender quickly. It really stinks here, your grandpa wants to leave now.¡± Long Chen tapped Chu Yunxi¡¯s shoulder for a few times and spoke to him with a smirk.


    At the moment, Chu Yunxi could merely keep himself from falling into the marsh, how could he even have the strength to fight with Long Chen?


    How miserable was he! His seniors and friends were all watching him! Chu Yunxi just wanted to kill himself on the spot!


    Lifting up his head, he saw Long Chen¡¯s teasing smile and victory gesture of a petty man. Chu Yunxi was angry at the beginning, but then he turned into fear.


    Long Chen¡¯s smile was no doubt a nightmare for him at the moment.


    ¡°Please spare me, Long Chen. Please do me a favor¡­¡± Chu Yunxi spoke with a hoarse and trembling voice.


    ¡°Being ruthless and sparing no one, this is your grandpa¡¯s style, don¡¯t you understand?¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t seem like to stop.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    Long Chen smiled and waved his hands: ¡°What do I want? Now it¡¯s time for you to fulfill our promise. Kneel down and call me grandpa for three times, that¡¯s all.¡±


    Hearing Long Chen¡¯s words, Chu Tianxiong and the like in the Green Faction had reached the edge of fury. Long Chen was insulting Chu Yunxi and the Chu¡¯s family, obviously! If what happened here went around, the reputation of the Chu¡¯s family would bepletely ruined.


    ¡°Long Chen, please do not unt for the temporary pleasure! Today you spare Yunxi¡¯s life, so that I will spare your life in the future.¡± Though being unable to save Chu Yunxi, Chu Tianxiong still tried to threaten him bynguage, while standing from afar.


    He was an expert who had achieved the advance mastery stage of Heaven Dan Realm, and leading an entire outside family with countless aces. Therefore, on the spot, anyone except for Dongfang Xuanxiao would show some respect for him.


    But Long Chen didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Is our senior threatening me? But such threat is a bit too weak to bring me down. I, Long Chen merely follow our rules and our deal, I didn¡¯t step over the line. If I lost to him, I would surrender and call him grandpa for three times, too! How could he eat his words? Is this a habit of the Chu¡¯s family?¡±


    Long Chen was neither humble nor pushy, even turning a blind eye to Chu Tianxiong. At the moment, everyone had aplicated feeling.


    On one hand, they were amazed by Long Chen¡¯s boldness, on the other hand, they were worried that Long Chen might not be able to escape from the cunning fox, Chu Tianxiong¡¯s palms!


    ¡°Lord Xuanxiao! Please do me a favor, Lord Xuanxiao, show some respect to our Green Faction!¡± At the moment, Chu Tianxiong¡¯s blue veins were all standing out. He stopped talking to Long Chen, instead, he imposed some pressure directly on Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    After all, the Green Faction was one of the nine outside families of the Lingwu Family and had contributed a lot to the Lingwu family. Chu Tianxiong hoped that Dongfang Xuanxiao could show due respect to them.


    For this time, anyone from the inner faction would help Chu Tianxiong.


    ¡°Uncle Four, just let it go. Now we¡¯re just wasting our time for nothing.¡± Dongfang Tianyu also took his courage to speak with Dongfang Xuanxiao, under Chu Yunyao¡¯s instigation.


    ¡°Stop.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao remained a calm face, yet turned to Chu Tianxiong and spoke word by word: ¡°Are you giving me some pressure?¡±


    ¡°I dare not!¡± Chu Tianxiong said.


    ¡°Listen, this is the selective trial of the inner faction. I, Dongfang Xuanxiao am in charge of this. I do whatever I want. Since they had made the rules, we should follow them. If you say one more word, please get out from here.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s wordspletely shut Chu Tianxiong¡¯s mouth up.


    ¡°You!¡±


    On the edge of bursting into anger, Chu Tianxiong thought of Xuanxiao¡¯s powerful background and abundant capability, so he could merely hold it back and swallowed his words.


    By this token, Dongfang Xuanxiao had showed evident preference towards Long Chen. Everyone was specting in the dark, how Long Chen could earn Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s favor.


    ¡°Lord Xuanxiao has always had an unpredictable character, so different from other inner faction members. We can never see through his mind¡­¡±


    With the backup from Xuanxiao, Long Chen became fearless.


    ¡°But why does he value me so much?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t a fool, of course he could sense Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s preference on him ¨C at this moment, he even got angry at a senior of an outside family for Long Chen¡¯s sake.


    Turning around and looking at this somewhat horrible but majestic man, Long Chen couldn¡¯t see a clue.


    ¡°For this time, I need to find out a super powerful star here and hold him tight. Xuanxiao? Well, then it¡¯s you!¡±


    Long Chen felt extremely rxed when thinking of this.


    He reached out and dragged up Chu Yunxi¡¯s cor, picking him up and putting up an amiable smile, saying: ¡°Little grandson, are you going to surrender now?¡±


    Chu Yunxi was trembling all the time. He just wanted to escape from Long Chen¡¯s demonic talons. However, his self-dignity kept telling him that he could never surrender.


    ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m wrong¡­ I¡¯m no rival to you, please spare me¡­¡± That was already the limit for Chu Yunxi at the moment.


    ¡°Exactly, I¡¯ve been waiting for the chance to spare your life. Call me grandpa now. If you surrender to me, all this will end now.¡± Long Chen spoke to him in an enigmatical manner. At this moment, he became the focus of the audiences.


    ¡°No!¡± Chu Yunxi shook his head forthrightly. He turned to look at Chu Tianxiong, begging for help with his eyes, however, his head was moved back by Long Chen immediately.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at Grandpa Three. He¡¯s old and useless now. You can ask me to be your good grandpa, I will protect you in the future and beat whoever dares to touch you. What do you think?¡±


    Seeing how presumptuous Long Chen was, the Chu¡¯s family was utterly flustered and exasperated. However, they couldn¡¯t do anything because Dongfang Xuanxiao was supporting Long Chen.


    Chu Yunxi stopped talking, while Long Chen clicked his tongue: ¡°Well, it seems that you have a stubborn temper, little boy. How about that, I¡¯m going to strip your clothes off now, one by one. I think you will surrender to me before you get naked, right?¡±


    ¡°Son of bitch!¡± Chu Yunyao burst into tears out of anger. How dare Long Chen strip Chu Yunxi¡¯s clothes off! If that was the case, how could Chu Yunxi face the crowd anymore?


    ¡°What a ruthless guy!¡± Gu Batian gave him a thumb.


    As for other females whoever standing for Long Chen, like Yin Mengyao and Liu Lan were secretly calling him a rogue, but worrying about him at the same time. After all, he was insulting the family of a Green Faction senior.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­¡± Chu Tianxiong¡¯s fists were clenched tightly. If Jin Luan who was standing aside hadn¡¯t stopped him, he might have already taken an action.


    At the moment, Long Chen really put his hands on Chu Yunxi¡¯s clothes, smiling: ¡°You better be hurry. I don¡¯t want to be misunderstood that I have a different sexual orientation. But you truly have a white skin and a handsome look!¡±


    Though Long Chen was smiling while speaking, the magic power in his words were still shocking Chu Yunxi.


    Imagining that he might show up his naked body in front of so many people, Chu Yunxi eventually couldn¡¯t hold his mental line of defense anymore. As Chu Tianxiong wasn¡¯t able to save him, he could only save himself. It was embarrassing, but it was better than being stripped off.


    ¡°Long Chen, Long Chen, I surrender, I surrender!¡±


    Chu Yunxi fell into panic, even making a posture of kneeling down in the slush.


    ¡°Well, I can forgive your not being convenient to kneel down. My good grandson, could you call me grandpa for three times?¡±


    ¡°Grandpa! Grandpa! Grandpa!¡±


    Chu Yunxi quickly finished the three words while suppressing his emotions. He was almost bursting into tears, because he could feel that Chu Tianxion was already utterly disappointed by him.


    ¡°Good boy.¡± Long Chen suddenly spitted out such words before everyone could react. He reached out and threw Chu Yunxi towards Chu Tianxiong¡¯s direction.


    For Chu Yunxi, his misfortune had been more than enough for the day.


    Chu Yunxi was caught by Chu Tianxiong. However, he was seriously injured and in need of a good rest.


    Chu Tianxiong also lost all his faces and couldn¡¯t stay here anymore. They both took a malicious nce at Long Chen, and then left the Cave of Life and Death without looking back.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao didn¡¯t even pay attention to them. He looked at Long Chen for a few times, suggesting that he shoulde back, and then said: ¡°Long Chen versus Chu Yunxi, Long Chen wins. Now we have only 4 people left for the selective trial of the inner faction. They are Jin Sheng¡¯en, Yin Mengyao, Gu Cheng and Long Chen. Now we¡¯ll change to another ce for the second round ofbat.¡±


    Two contestants of the final selective trial of the inner faction would be decided among these four people.


    ording to the rules, Yin Mengyao was supposed to battle with Jin Sheng¡¯en, while Long Chen would confront with Gu Cheng.

 Chapter 176: Gu Cheng Vs Yin Mengyao

    Chapter 176: Gu Cheng Vs Yin Mengyao


    Long Chen had overshadowed the rest of the participants to be the brightest presence there.


    The other outer family members asionally shot him a nce, especially Liu Yuan, Gu Batian, and the others next to him.


    Long Chen¡¯s performance had fully convinced them.


    Gu Batian and the others were congrattory towards him entering the second round. After all, the pressure he had faced previously was thergest, at leastrger than Gu Cheng and Yin Mengyao. Now that he had beaten Chu Yunxi, he was a dark horse.


    Liu Lan was walking in front of him, but he did not dare tease her again even as he looked at her beautiful figure.


    Ling Xi, the little pixie in his ear, was right there. She was usually taking a nap, but she would appear and administer immediate punishment the moment he teased another girl.


    Long Chen had considered pursuing Liu Lan before. While he initially felt like it was not right, he still flirted with her anyway. However, he never went any further than that.


    Long Chen, Gu Cheng, and Yin Mengyao gathered together. The three of them were friendly, leaving Jin Sheng¡¯en standing alone on the other side.


    Gu Cheng smiled bitterly. ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m unlucky to be fighting a madman like you. But I am satisfied to lose to you.¡±


    ¡°We haven¡¯t even fought; why are you so worried?¡± Long Chen smiled, then he looked at Yin Mengyao and asked, ¡°How are you feeling? Stressed?¡±


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    ¡°Very,¡± sulked Yin Mengyao. She¡¯d watched the fight between Long Chen and Chu Yunxi and could roughly guess that her fight against Jin Sheng¡¯en would also be like that.


    Long Chen thought for a moment, then he said, ¡°I¡¯ll help you figure something out.¡±


    ¡°Do you have any ideas?¡± Yin Mengyao was surprised. ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯ll be satisfied if just one of us enters the inner family.¡±


    ¡°Keep this to yourself for now,¡± Long Chen said mysteriously.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao led them to a new Mortal Cave. Here, Long Chen smelled a familiar scent.


    ¡°Abyssal Scorpions?¡± The crowd gasped. They walked to the edge of a huge crater and looked down. There was a group of Abyssal Scorpions resting on the muddy ground below.


    There were at least twenty of them, and their sizes varied. The smaller ones were adolescent, some only one meter long, while therger ones were more than two meters long.


    The twenty-plus scorpions could cover the whole cave if they scattered.


    Gu Cheng and Yin Mengyao were startled when they saw the scorpions, turning as white as a sheet.


    ¡°This cave is terrifying.¡± Gu Cheng was previously injured by an Abyssal Scorpion, so the trauma was fresh in his mind.


    Even Long Chen felt like this round would be difficult.


    Not only would the participants have to deal with the Abyssal Scorpions, they would also have to fight their opponents. How could a regr person seed?


    This fight would not be easy.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao wasted no time. He said straightforwardly, ¡°Round two shall be held in the nest of the Abyssal Scorpions, and it shall start now! First up, Yin Mengyao, Jin Sheng¡¯en. The winner between the two shall be awarded the right to join the inner family!¡±


    The final fight was here. Most of them were excited, but also very curious. Who would be the two lucky ones this time?


    Jin Sheng¡¯en and Yin Mengyao jumped when they heard their names called. Theirst battle was truly about to begin.


    Yin Mengyao was standing next to Long Chen. When Jin Sheng¡¯en looked over, he was more focused on Long Chen.


    He didn¡¯t see Yin Mengyao as his equal at all; Long Chen was his true nemesis.


    This was rted to his reputation as the number one prodigy of the outer families.


    Long Chen posed enough of a threat to him. If he didn¡¯t fight Long Chen today to prove himself, there would always be a boulder sitting on his chest. He also wanted to avenge Chu Yunxi, so he had multiple reasons to kill Long Chen.


    But he couldn¡¯t do anything, because they were in different groups. With Dongfang Xuanxiao watching, he had to hold himself back even though he wanted to attack Long Chen.


    <em>Once I get into the inner family, it doesn¡¯t matter if you do too¡ªI just have to fight you once. That is the only way to resolve the hatred in me! </em>Jin Sheng¡¯en calcted in his mind.


    It was time for his match against Yin Mengyao.


    Under the watchful gazes of the crowd, Yin Mengyao and Jin Sheng¡¯en each took a deep breath, preparing to enter the Abyssal Scorpion¡¯s nest.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice startled everyone.


    He was very bold to interrupt such an important moment.


    As all eyes fell on him, Long Chen looked at Dongfang Xuanxiao and said, without a hint of submission, ¡°Lord Xuanxiao, I request to switch opponents. I want to fight Jin Sheng¡¯en!¡±


    The crowd was speechless.


    Jin Sheng¡¯en was much stronger than Gu Cheng. If he changed his opponent to Jin Sheng¡¯en, wasn¡¯t he looking for death?


    If he could beat Chu Yunxi, he stood a chance against Gu Cheng. However, this request meant he was wasting his chance to enter the inner family for nothing.


    Liu Lan and Liu Yuan knew that there were problems between Jin Sheng¡¯en and Long Chen, but they still didn¡¯t understand his request.


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    ¡°Long Chen, the road ahead is long ¡­ Do not be rash ¡­¡± said Liu Yuan in a low voice.


    But he held no influence over Long Chen, who looked at Dongfang Xuanxiao as he said, ¡°Jin Sheng¡¯en is known as the number one prodigy of the outer families. I want to challenge this legend today, and I think he will agree to this arrangement too. Gu Cheng and Yin Mengyao will also agree.¡±


    Indeed, Jin Sheng¡¯en did want to meet Long Chen in battle. If Long Chen voluntarily came looking for death, he would obviously oblige. Therefore, he said hurriedly, ¡°Lord Xuanxiao, I also want to change my opponent to Long Chen!¡±


    As for Yin Mengyao, she might stand a chance against Gu Cheng, while Gu Cheng also felt like he had a chance against Yin Mengyao. All four people agreed with this change.


    Right now, the crowd saw Jin Sheng¡¯en as the strongest. Since Long Chen had beaten Chu Yunxi, he was ranked below Jin Sheng¡¯en, while Gu Cheng and Yin Mengyao were equal. However, Yin Mengyao wasn¡¯t injured, so she stood a better chance.


    From Xuanxiao¡¯s perspective, he naturally should pick the two strongest people, who were Jin Sheng¡¯en and Long Chen. That was why the Grand Elders thought that despite the youths¡¯ insistence, the strange-tempered Dongfang Xuanxiao would not agree.


    But for some reason, Dongfang Xuanxiao did not even hesitate to say, ¡°Request epted.¡±


    This meant that he would abandon either Long Chen or Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    The Grand Elders looked at each other, unable to figure him out. If he really favored Long Chen, the best solution would have been to let him fight Gu Cheng, the weakest opponent.


    They could not understand the number one master beneath the Heavenly River Realm.


    So who would fight first?


    Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s gaze swept across the group and he said tly, ¡°Since you all have switched opponents, then the first pair to fight shall be Yin Mengyao and Gu Cheng. This battle shall produce one winner, who shall join the inner family.¡±


    Yin Mengyao and Gu Cheng both heaved sighs of relief. Both of them saw their new opponent as easier than Long Chen and Jin Sheng''en.


    They were also considered acquaintances due to knowing Long Chen, so they were on good terms.


    Under everyone¡¯s expectant gazes, Yin Mengyao and Gu Chengnded gracefully in the Abyssal Scorpion nest.


    When the scorpions saw them, their red-brown eyes widened and they hissed, waving their ws about, and shed the venomous stingers on their tails at them!


    ¡°We¡¯ll kill the scorpions first, then we can focus on the battle after. What do you think?¡± suggested Gu Cheng.


    ¡°I was thinking the same.¡± Yin Mengyao grinned.


    That was the good thing about having two people on good terms in the Mortal Caves.


    If this were Long Chen and Jin Sheng¡¯en, even if they promised to kill the Abyssal Scorpions first, no one could guarantee the other wouldn¡¯t ambush their opponent while they were killing the scorpions.


    And killing off the scorpions first wasn¡¯t a vition of the rules at all.


    The Abyssal Scorpions were Category Four ck-tier demonic beasts. Gu Cheng was previously poisoned only because he was not careful. This time, both of them were cautious, sticking together and covering for each other to massacre the Abyssal Scorpions.


    Due to differing maturity levels, not all the scorpions had the strength of a Category Four ck-tier beast. The two mid Earthly Core Realm cultivators moved carefully, and the number of scorpions slowly decreased.


    After about an hour, the cave was cleaned of scorpions. The two of them were a little tired by now.


    Both of them decided to sit directly on the ground, recovering their strength. After a while, they finally agreed to truly engage in battle.


    That was the benefit of fighting an acquaintance.


    Yin Mengyao and Gu Cheng were both open and straightforward people, which was why Long Chen had good rtionships with them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s fight with all we have; our futures are in our own hands,¡± said Gu Cheng mildly.


    Yin Mengyao nodded. Although Gu Cheng had previously been poisoned, she had also been poisoned. Both sides stood equal chances in this battle. However, the most interesting battle was still going to be Long Chen vs Jin Sheng¡¯en, also the most anticipated battle of the qualifiers!


    Very soon, without any external threats, they embarked on an exciting battle. The battlested considerably long and both of them fought hard to defeat their opponent.


    <em>Both of them are as strong as Chu Yunxi, </em>Long Chen thought to himself.


    After a while, Yin Mengyao finally won by a slight margin. This meant that she would join the inner family.


    Long Chen was genuinely happy for her. Now she would have the right to enter the Star Devil Prison and find out more about Mo Xiang.


    The battle required great exertion from Yin Mengyao, so her face looked pale. However, one could imagine the excitement in her heart now that she had a chance to fulfill her dreams.


    ¡°Thank you, Long Chen.¡± If Long Chen hadn¡¯t switched opponents, she wouldn¡¯t have had this chance.


    ¡°We¡¯re friends, haha! No need to thank me! Just cheer me on!¡±


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    Then Dongfang Xuanxiao announced the start of the next battle. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 177: Fighting Jin Sheng’en

    Chapter 177: Fighting Jin Sheng¡¯en


    The final battle of the inner family qualifiers finally arrived.


    Before the qualifiers, Jin Sheng¡¯en had been recognized as the number one prodigy of the outer families. However, Long Chen turned out to be the dark horse of the qualifiers, and his strength was recognized after he beat Chu Yunxi.


    With the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body and an advanced ck-tier martial technique, he was adequately equipped to fight Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    The only w was that he was at the initial Earthly Core Realm, so there was a gap whenparing their cultivation levels.


    Yin Mengyao and Gu Cheng¡¯s battle was held in the nest of the Abyssal Scorpions, but the scorpions had been killed off already, so Dongfang Xuanxiao changed to another cave.


    ¡°Yin Snake Demons?¡± Long Chen was speechless. This Mortal Cave was clearly another Myriad Snake Cave. The only difference was that the Yin Snake Demons were the only type of beast here, and there were no other types of snakes


    There were more than ten Yin Snake Demons present, hissing and slithering at the bottom of the deep crater.


    This cave was muchrger than the one before, and much deeper too. It would be very difficult for the snakes to rush up the walls due to the height, which was why the audience could watch with peace of mind.


    The blood flowing in Long Chen¡¯s veins had strong immunity against the venom, so he actually had an advantage in this battle. This was something only Yin Mengyao knew.


    The other Grand Elders were speechless when they saw that Dongfang Xuanxiao chose a Yin Snake Demon nest as the battle location. Even Jin Luan¡¯s expression changed. The Yin Snake Demons were Category Five ck-tier demonic beasts, and even Jin Sheng¡¯en might not be able to fight these beasts directly, let alone while dealing with Long Chen!


    But if it was difficult for Jin Sheng¡¯en, then it was worse for Long Chen. Therefore, Jin Luan didn¡¯t dare say anything.


    ¡°The final battle: Jin Sheng¡¯en versus ¡­ Long Chen!¡±


    When he said this, Dongfang Xuanxiao turned to look at Long Chen, and to his surprise, Long Chen saw the corner of his lips curl upwards.


    This was the first time he¡¯d seen this handsome, mature man smile.


    The two people whose names were called looked at each other.


    ¡°Sheng¡¯en, be careful of Long Chen, and be even more careful of the Yin Snake Demons. Being careful will win you this battle. You have an advantage over Long Chen, so you mustn¡¯t be careless,¡± reminded Jin Luan, his brows knitted.


    Seeing how solemn Jin Luan was, Jin Sheng¡¯en didn¡¯t dare let him down and said hurriedly, ¡°Father, I know the importance of this battle. I will fight with all I have!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Jin Luan nodded.


    On Long Chen¡¯s side, Liu Yuan and Liu Lan didn¡¯t have much to say.


    Long Chen looked at Liu Lan, eying her curvy figure greedily for a while and whispered, ¡°There¡¯s only one battle left! Prepare well for tonight. Hehe ¡­¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll talk when you¡¯ve won. Be careful.¡± Liu Lan wasn¡¯t angry at all despite being teased again. She was only worried for his safety.


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    With Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s instruction, Long Chen looked down at the deep crater. There was a long path at the bottom¡ªthat would be his battlefield. The path was only ten meters wide with more than ten Yin Snake Demons preparing to pounce. Having smelled the scent of humans, they all looked up at the people above with their bright, red eyes, hissing and flicking out their long, red tongues.


    When they saw two people jump down from above, the snakes were bubbling with excitement.


    They were naturally Long Chen and Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    When Long Chennded, he activated his Dragon Soul Transformation. He flexed his muscles slightly, and the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body manifested. Ayer of fiery and electrical energy covered his body. At the same time, the zing Thunder Power boosted his Qi with the destructive force of lightning and fire.


    The zing Thunder Crystals hadn¡¯t just provided him with the zing Thunder Combat Body, there was also the zing Thunder Power.


    Jin Sheng¡¯ennded nearby with golden light flowing on his body, signaling that he had activated the Molten Gold Combat Body. asionally, bright, golden light shot out of it, making him look very intimidating.


    He finally had the chance to experience Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s legendary Molten Gold Combat Body. Passion surged through Long Chen¡¯s heart and his excitement rose!


    ¡°The number one prodigy of the outer family?¡± Long Chen grinned.


    ¡°What? Do you also want the nickname?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en smirked darkly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t; I want to join the inner family! But you, Jin Sheng¡¯en, you should just continue being the number one prodigy of the outer family!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en roared and then stepped hard off the stone wall!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The wall exploded, and he shot out like an arrow directly at Long Chen. The momentum and power he brought with him were as powerful as an asteroid falling from outer space!


    ¡°How can your subparbat body techniquepare with mine?!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en smirked, then he punched Long Chen!


    ¡°ming Gold Fist!¡±


    Although Jin Sheng¡¯en was not muscr, his cultivation specialty was in power-type attacks, so even a simple, direct attack was peerless in terms of strength!


    ¡°Are you underestimating me?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes darkened and he also leapt off the wall, twisting his body as he did so. The air whistled as he turned into a red dragon image, charging at Jin Sheng¡¯en!


    ¡°Primordial Dragon Seal!¡±


    Long Chen wielded two seals, one on each hand!


    <em>Boom! Boom!!</em>


    This was their first contact, which caused the ground and the mountain to shake. Dust and soil were shaken off the walls, falling on the Yin Snake Demons who hissed and quickly dodged!


    ¡°Not bad, you brat!¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en was filled with hatred for such a powerful opponent. Even though he was forced back by the impact, he only took a moment to recover and pounced on Long Chen once more!


    <em>I heard that Jin Sheng¡¯en is as strong as someone at thete Earthly Core Realm, and now I see that the rumors were true. That punch just now was very powerful!</em>


    Long Chen was feeling much more passionate about this battle than the one against Chu Yunxi. At the time, Chu Yunxi had been suppressed from the beginning, but he and his current opponent were on the same level!


    After one exchange in midair, they bothnded. This time, the Yin Snake Demons could no longer hold back. Half of them chomped at Long Chen, while the other half swarmed Jin Sheng¡¯en!


    ¡°Get away!¡±


    Long Chen charged forward once more the moment his foot touched the ground. A Yin Snake Demon blocking in front of him was met with a fist to its head, and its huge skull crashed into the ground!


    He then stepped on another snake¡¯s head, lifted a fist, and the ming fist formed a bright arc as he swung it through the air!


    ¡°Burning Devil Sun Fist, zing me!¡±


    <em>Boom! Boom!</em>


    The fiery fist seal wasunched at Jin Sheng¡¯en, who had also just killed two Yin Snake Demons. His eyes darkened and he charged at Long Chen too!


    ¡°Destructive Mountain Kick!¡±


    Unexpectedly, Jin Sheng¡¯en had also mastered a kick technique. The winds howled as heunched his Destructive Mountain Kick, pushing Long Chen¡¯s zing me back!


    ¡°Devil Sun Collision!¡±


    The ck Devil Sun fist seal finally pushed Jin Sheng¡¯en back too. It was currently a draw, no one taking the upper hand for the moment. However, the battle spirit between them intensified.


    The snakes took the opportunity to attack once more. This time, there were about seven or eight of them surrounding Long Chen. It wasn¡¯t going to be easy to break free!


    ¡°Damn animals!¡±


    Long Chen released several consecutive Burning Devil Sun Fists. The searing mes and power of lightning were extremely terrifying to the snakes, who were Yin-type demons. Two Yin Snake Demons were immediately killed!


    However, the other Yin Snake Demons were not afraid. Instead, they grew fiercer!


    ¡°Long Chen, die!¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en had long finished the snakes surrounding him, so he raised his fist and punched Long Chen while thetter was still dealing with snakes!


    ¡°Iron Wheel Fist!¡±


    This was also an extremely destructive attack. Long Chen had just killed the snakes off and couldn¡¯t protect himself in time, so he could only use his Nine Heavens Dragon Step to dodge it.


    ¡°Do you think you can dodge my Iron Wheel Fist with an elementary ck-tier body technique?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯enughed, attacking him using his Iron Wheel Fist and simultaneously speeding up his footwork. He was now using an intermediate ck-tier body technique!


    This boosted Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s attack!


    ¡°Your body technique is nothing.¡± Long Chen remained calm. There were two more snakes trying to bite him, but he did not panic at this critical moment. One snake was already right in front of his face!


    ¡°Here are two presents for you!¡±


    Long Chen punched twice, one for each snake. The two snakes were thrown back towards Jin Sheng¡¯en, colliding with his Iron Wheel Fist!


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en had been fully confident in his attack, but all it ended up aplishing was causing two snakes to explode in bits of blood and flesh. Dissatisfied with this oue, he charged at Long Chen once more!


    ¡°You brat, I¡¯ll give you a taste of the finger technique you used against Chu Yunxi!¡±


    After a few exchanges, Jin Sheng¡¯en had confirmed that Long Chen was almost on his level, and that the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body was almost on par with his Molten Gold Combat Body.


    ¡°Is that all you got?¡±


    The two of them engaged in closebat once more. The snakes were terrifying to others, but they were only minor inconveniences to the powerful Jin Sheng¡¯en and Long Chen. As long as they were a little careful, they wouldn¡¯t be bitten!


    <em>This brat Jin Sheng¡¯en is the same level as me when he uses his advanced ck-tier martial technique.</em>


    Long Chen had no choice but to admit this.


    That was why he had to think of a way to beat Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    <em>The only way is to use that technique, </em>Long Chen thought to himself. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    One more person to get pped in the face


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 178: Shocking Everyone

    Chapter 178: Shocking Everyone


    Surrounded by Yin Snake Demons, the battle between Long Chen and Jin Sheng¡¯en had turned white-hot.


    Before this, Long Chen had already been pushed back several steps by Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s Iron Wheel Fist and could only use the snakes to protect himself in the end.


    The people watching above had seen this move.


    The fact that Long Chen couldst so long against Jin Sheng¡¯en had already proven his strength.


    ¡°But judging from that move just now, Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s attacks seem more vicious, and he seems a little more powerful,¡± said Gu Batian, frowning.


    Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were anxious after listening to the Violet Grand Elder¡¯s analysis.


    They didn¡¯t have any hope for Long Chen to join the inner family initially, but his performance had been outstanding so far, and he had even instigated deep enmity between himself and the Chu family. If Long Chen didn¡¯t join the inner family, there would be trouble ahead, and he might not even live.


    This meant that this was a critical battle for his livelihood!


    <em>You must win.</em> Liu Lan had forgotten about the strange promise between herself and Long Chen as she watched him worriedly, hoping the teenager would create another miracle and win the fight.


    Yin Mengyao, who was next to her, was also praying.


    Right now, she was an inner family member, but this position had been given to her by Long Chen. Would she have gotten this spot if he hadn¡¯t shielded her from Jin Sheng¡¯en?


    <em>Let¡¯s get into the inner family together.</em>


    They were all cheering Long Chen on, the most anxious female audience member being Ling Xi. Being in the sword on his ear, she felt like she was fighting the intense battle herself. It was very exciting.


    She had already assisted him once on Heaven¡¯s Path to block Jin Sheng¡¯en, which had exhausted arge portion of her soul power. That was why Long Chen had banned her from assisting him anymore. Despite being anxious, she had no choice.


    However, without letting Long Chen know, she had been sneakily sending out tiny des of sword Qi towards vulnerable parts of Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s body, inconveniencing him several times.


    Although the main characters of the fierce battle were Long Chen and Jin Sheng¡¯en, the Yin Snake Demons faced the highest death count. Both of them had powerful Body Tempering techniques, so no one had been poisoned thus far!


    ¡°Are you still dying your inevitable death?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en smirked, using his Destructive Mountain Kick, whose sheer force felt like multiple mountains crashing down on Long Chen!


    ¡°You¡¯re the one dying your inevitable death!¡±


    Long Chen sted Jin Sheng¡¯en back once more with the Devil Sun Collision.


    ¡°This is meaningless. Let me show you my advanced ck-tier technique, then ¡­¡± As he spoke, Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s aura grew much more powerful, and des of Qi orbited around his body. More specifically, they were orbiting around his fist.


    His entire fist turnedpletely gold and rays of golden light shot out. A terrifying force exploded from his fist and then, amidst Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s madughter, he punched!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    The gigantic, golden fist seal flew at Long Chen! It brought with it immense power, even stronger than the advanced ck-tier technique Chu Yunxi had used!


    ¡°Warring ss Fist!¡±


    An explosion shook the earth!


    This move was equivalent to an attack from someone at thete Earthly Core Realm. The audience were privately stunned by Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s strength.


    The most anxious one was Liu Lan, because she was at thete Earthly Core Realm, yet even she wasn¡¯t sure if she could withstand this attack!


    Let alone Long Chen!


    ¡°Long Chen, what now?¡± Ling Xi asked in a panic.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t I said this before? I¡¯ll kill him with that move!¡± Long Chen cried, quickly using the Sword Devil Finger!


    The Sword Devil Finger was actually a sword technique. Although its destructive potential was reduced after modifying it to be a finger technique, the process of using it was much quicker!


    In the blink of an eye, Long Chen flung out a bright ray of sword light that flew at Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s Warring ss Fist. The two shining attacks collided immediately!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Echoing booms sounded across the deep rift in the ground!


    ¡°Is that the best your advanced ck-tier technique can do?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en let out a hystericalugh in the middle of their intense sh.


    In reality, while Long Chen couldn¡¯t do anything to him, he couldn¡¯t do anything to Long Chen either. If he said that the Sword Devil Finger was nothing, then the Warring ss Fist was nothing too.


    ¡°The timing is just right.¡± Long Chen ignored him, and at this critical moment, while everyone was most focused on the battle, he did the same thing he had done to Feng Wutian!


    This was Long Chen¡¯s most formidable attack!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    Long Chen had long thought of using the Blood Devouring Domain to boost the Sword Devil Finger.


    Shadows of blood-colored des suddenly appeared around the both of them, and a red mist materialized out of thin air. The mist covered the entire arena they were fighting in!


    ¡°What is that?¡± The audience above suddenly saw the red mist forming a domain and were left puzzled.


    ¡°Lord Xuanxiao?¡± Everyone turned to Dongfang Xuanxiao, who had the highest cultivation level there. The inner family had extremely deep pockets, so he was sure to be more experienced and knowledgeable than them.


    Yet the calm Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s eyes only widened as he watched Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain in shock. Even he didn¡¯t understand what it was.


    <em>It seems to be a battle technique to seal off the surrounding space, forming a fixed domain ¡­</em>


    Dongfang Xuanxiao spected privately, but he didn¡¯t speak.


    Seeing as he didn¡¯t answer them, the others turned to watch the battle below anxiously. There were many sounds ofbat below, but it was difficult to see what was happening!


    Once he used the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen quickly gained the upper hand.


    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en was shaken. He felt like he was suddenly in a blood-colored space. More importantly, what the hell was this terrifying gravity weighing down his body?


    Under the influence of the increased gravity, he found that his blood had started to boil. He was losing control of it, as if it was gaining sentience and attempting to break free from his body.


    He had no choice but to circte his Qi in an effort to keep the blood and Qi from exiting his body. But this then decreased the Qi he could use externally to face Long Chen¡¯s trump card. The two of them had been equal in terms of strength thus far, but this huge distraction caused the Sword Devil Finger to pierce through his Warring ss Fist. The sharp sword Qi instantly hit his body!


    The de of sword Qi exploded into countless tiny sword Qi des when it hit Jin Sheng¡¯en, merging into his body. The pitiful Jin Sheng¡¯en was busy suppressing his blood and Qi, so Long Chen¡¯s Sword Devil Finger dealt significant damage, ultimately causing him to end up almost like Chu Yunxi!


    ¡°Enjoy the taste of death with my Blood Devouring Domain and Sword Devil Finger!¡± Long Chen dissolved the Blood Devouring Domain and raised his right arm. A simple Meteor Fistnded squarely on Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s jaw!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Jin Sheng¡¯en shrieked in pain. He was already barely conscious from the severe injuries, wishing he was dead. The impact from the punch instantly rendered the shocked Jin Sheng¡¯en unconscious!


    The Meteor Fist sent Jin Sheng¡¯en flying up and out of the deep rift, leaving a trail of blood in the air as he flew in a perfect arc!


    ¡°What is that?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s body was flying so fast that the crowd couldn¡¯t see what it was. The Blood Devouring Domain had just disappeared, so they only just had the opportunity to see what was happening below!


    ¡°It¡¯s Jin Sheng¡¯en! What is he doing up there? Has he won already?¡± Even Gu Batian was puzzled. He was still wondering why Jin Sheng¡¯en hade out when the observant Yin Mengyao noticed Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s condition.


    ¡°He has vomited blood and fainted!¡± Yin Mengyao eximed with joy.


    That was when everyone else noticed Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s condition too.


    Vomiting blood and unconsciousness were two symptoms that proved that Jin Sheng¡¯en had lost. It was a tragic loss indeed, for he did not even have the chance to yield.


    In the next moment, they watched a nonchnt Long Chen leaping off the walls to travel upwards.


    The twist of events left everyone in a daze, their minds nk.


    When Jin Luan caught Jin Sheng¡¯en and Long Chen arrived in front of them, everyone finally forced themselves to ept reality when theypared the conditions of the two prodigies!


    Long Chen had beaten the number one prodigy of the outer families, Jin Sheng¡¯en, and won the final slot to enter the inner family! From today onwards, he would be an inner family member!


    Liu Yuan, Yin Mengyao, Gu Batian, and the rest were undeniably excited for him. Even Gu Cheng, who had lost to Yin Mengyao, was happy for him. However, this was a huge hit to the egos of Jin Luan and some others!


    Jin Luan was the one who couldn¡¯t stop smiling when three Gold family members sessfully entered the second round of the qualifiers. However, he didn¡¯t expect all of them to be disqualified. Even Jin Sheng¡¯en, who had the highest chance, had been disqualified because of Long Chen, the dark horse!


    Even though Jin Luan was an old fox, he could not calm himself while looking at Long Chen.


    If Long Chen was a normal person, Jin Luan would never have allowed him to leave unscathed after hurting Jin Sheng¡¯en. However, the problem was that he was now an inner family member and a disciple of Dongfang Xuanxiao. He clearly understood that the outer families were only mercenaries to the inner families, and he should never instigate conflict against the inner families!


    ¡°The two participants who have won the right to enter the inner family are Yin Mengyao and ¡­¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao gave a smile of satisfaction and looked at Long Chen, ¡°Long Chen!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 179: Entering The Inner Family

    Chapter 179: Entering The Inner Family


    As most people were congratting the winner, one person was staring at Long Chen from the corner, dazed and with a strange expression. She was the beautiful Liu Lan.


    On this day, her makeup was intricate and she was d in a red dress that half-covered the skin below her pale neck. Her dress was cinched at her waist, but there was a long slit that revealed half of her long, silky leg.


    Her outfit may have been stunning, but it was nothingpared to her features. Her huge eyes were half-smiling and half-seductive like a misty pool tempting whoever looked at her. The corners of her small lips were slightly curved upwards, inviting the onlooker for a kiss.


    <em>What do I do? </em>Her thoughts scrambled the longer she looked at Long Chen.


    She had promised Long Chen that she would give her body to him if he entered the inner family. That was just something she had said in a moment of rage; she hadn¡¯t expected him to actually enter the inner family.


    Long Chen had shocked her many times, from his grinning,ckadaisical attitude to his viciousness, repeatedly shaking her to her core. Frankly speaking, when he miraculously defeated Jin Sheng¡¯en to be the true number one prodigy of the outer family, her heart was swayed.


    The arrogant Liu Lan found it a little embarrassing to be attracted to someone who was ten years younger than herself. She just treated it as a momentary bout of confusion.


    <em>But it was a promise I made! How can I not keep my promises? </em>Liu Lan was panicking hard. On the one hand, she had made the promise. On the other hand, she was not mentally prepared to give herself to Long Chen. Plus, now that Long Chen had entered the inner family, what would be of her?


    Finally, reason defeated her promise. Liu Lan took a deep breath, which attracted Long Chen¡¯s attention.


    ¡°What do you think? Was I cool?¡± he smirked.


    ¡°You were.¡± Liu Lan was a little exasperated. His performance had been terrifying, but his words were childish. But that was exactly why Liu Lan had the urge to pull him into her arms and care for him.


    <em>What the heck am I thinking now? It¡¯s like I¡¯m maturing backwards. </em>Liu Lan scolded herself as she blushed lightly.


    All eyes in the Mortal Caves were on Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, though Long Chen shone brighter.


    The Chu family had left, so the only people who had conflict with Long Chen were the Gold family members. Jin Luan was still treating Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s injuries, but everyone else surrounded Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, with Dongfang Xuanxiao standing in front of them.


    Dongfang Tianyu walked up to Jin Luan.


    ¡°Elder Jin, how is he?¡± Due to his conflict with Long Chen, Dongfang Tianyu was also upset that Jin Sheng¡¯en had lost.


    ¡°His internal organs are severely injured. If I don¡¯t give him a good spiritual herb, it¡¯ll take him a full month or two to recover.¡± An ice-cold mist filled Jin Luan¡¯s eyes when he saw Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s pitiful state.


    ¡°I have an advanced ck-tier Cloud Fruit. Let him have it once we get out of the Mortal Caves. With it, Brother Jin Sheng¡¯en will recover by tonight.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Jin Luan was pleasantly surprised to find that Dongfang Tianyu cared about Jin Sheng¡¯en this much.


    On the other side, Dongfang Xuanxiao was eyeing Long Chen and Yin Mengyao from head to toe, then he asked softly, ¡°How old are you two?¡±


    Long Chen was sixteen, while Yin Mengyao was neen. Since she was three years older, he started calling her ¡°Sister Mengyao.¡±


    One Dongfang Xuanxiao knew their ages, he nodded and said mildly, ¡°You still need one more ceremony before truly entering the inner family, though it will be conducted only when we return to the Lingwu family. The inner family qualifiers have ended, so you two may follow me back to the inner family. Everyone else, you may return.¡±


    That was Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s style. Everything he did was direct and efficient.


    When he finished, he led them to the outside of the cave.


    <em>We¡¯re going back to the Lingwu family now?</em> Liu Lan was happy to hear this. If they were heading back, Long Chen would directly go to the inner family and wouldn''t have time to visit her.


    The Mortal Cave containing Yin Snake Demons was considered quite long, so when they finally made their way out, they suddenly heard many bouts of thunder and the sound of heavy rain.


    ¡°It¡¯s raining in the Nine Devil Mountains?¡±


    Everyone¡¯s mood was soured.


    Rain in the Nine Devil Mountains usually fell in the form of extremely heavy storms. Those below the Divine Core Realm wouldn¡¯t even be able to stand in the rain.


    The terrain here was treacherous, and lightning struck close at random times. Traveling during the rain would be extremely inconvenient.


    Indeed, when they were about to walk out, everyone saw that the outside world was nothing but a blur of mist, and the gushing sound of rain pouring rang continuously.


    The Nine Devil Mountains werepletely enveloped in dark clouds that swallowed the mountains from the middle to the peak. The rain was terrifyingly heavy.


    The whole world seemed to be covered in rain. The curtain of rain obscured their vision and the shing lightning danced before their eyes.


    Thunder was frequent in the Nine Devil Mountains, so they hadn¡¯t paid it much attention when they were in the Mortal Caves. They didn¡¯t expect the storm to have intensified to this level until they stepped out.


    If one was unlucky, they could get struck by lightning while traveling down the Nine Devil Mountains!


    The power of nature was infinite; even if a figure like a Grand Elder was struck by lightning, he would either die or be crippled.


    ¡°It¡¯s raining? Fourth Uncle, it¡¯s alreadyte. Let¡¯s stay a night in the Nine Devils Mountain Vige, then continue tomorrow. What do you think?¡± suggested Dongfang Tianyu.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao nodded.


    They started to descend the mountain in the heavy storm.


    Heaven¡¯s Path was one trail on the mountain, but there was a more convenient path they could take. They traveled along this path and quickly arrived back at the vige.


    Descending the mountain was much easier than trekking upwards. It took them considerably less time to descend.


    If it wasn¡¯t for their Qi protecting them, they would¡¯ve been soaked through. However, the rain was heavy and the lightning was terrifying, enough to make them nervous.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was a man of few words. Despite Long Chen and Yin Mengyao having entered the inner family, he still hadn¡¯t talked to them. He had merely told everyone to not worry, then he left.


    Everyone was arranged to have their own quarters, and they wereplete with all the necessities. The Nine Devils Mountain Vige was an excellent location and was built with solid architecture, so they weren¡¯t worried about floods or lightning strikes.


    Now that the qualifiers had ended and Long Chen and Yin Mengyao had proved that they were favored by Lady Luck, the Silver family members were happy, along with Liu Yuan and Gu Batian. The rest quickly retreated to their rooms, seeing as there was nothing else to do. It had been a fruitless event for them, and the storm was keeping them here, so their moods were terrible.


    Long Chen looked at Liu Lan next to him.


    Although she wasn¡¯t wet from the rain, the humidity in the air made her skin and hair look as if they had been soaked in water. Her soft, silk clothing clung tightly to her body, revealing her perfect curves.


    ¡°Wait for me tonight in your room?¡± Long Chen licked his lips, then heughed and left. But after a few steps, his face contorted and his ear started twitching in pain.


    ¡°Ah! Xiao Xi, be gentle,¡± begged Long Chen.


    ¡°Tell me, why are you going to her room?¡± She had been hearing Long Chen say strange things to Liu Lantely, so Ling Xi had her own suspicions. She started to question him furiously, ring at him with her bright eyes.


    Long Chen tried to exin as he rushed to his room.


    Liu Lan¡¯s mind went nk as she watched him leave. When he mentioned their promise just now, her body had gone weak, which scared her.


    <em>It¡¯s all my fault! Why did I ever agree to this? He is now part of the inner family! What am I going to do?</em> Liu Lan bit her lip, which made her beautiful face even more attractive.


    <em>It¡¯s all the rain¡¯s fault, or I would be back at the Lingwu family already. If hees tonight ¡­</em>


    She recalled the time she entered Long Chen¡¯s room to tease him. She couldn¡¯t believe the tables had turned, and this time, Long Chen wasing for the real thing. She was going to give her body to him.


    Karma had yed itself perfectly.


    Suddenly, her eyes brightened. <em>Right! Although it¡¯s a little inconvenient, I can leave early. If I go back to the Lingwu family, he won¡¯t be able to find me. So what will he do then?</em>


    With a solution at hand, she finally heaved a sigh of relief.


    ***


    ¡°Are you really only teasing her for revenge?¡± Within the room, Ling Xi was standing with her fair arms akimbo[1], like an auntie scolding him. She looked adorable.


    ¡°I swear over my dead father¡¯s body. If I am lying, let his grave be robbed!¡± Long Chen said righteously.


    <em>I¡¯m so sorry, Father. Your future daughter-inw is just too scary ¡­ </em>Long Chen said in his heart.


    Ling Xi finally let him go, though she was still in a bad mood.


    ¡°You are banned from leaving this room until tomorrow!¡± ordered the little princess.


    ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am!¡± Long Chen said, trying to win her over.


    <em>This is it! I can¡¯t believe my n is gone just like that. </em>Long Chen was indeed tempted whenever he thought about Liu Lan. He¡¯d met many beautiful girls in Baiyang Town, but he¡¯d never seen one who radiated beauty from her core like Liu Lan.


    But ever since his father died and he found a romantic interest, he never walked the streets again and his life had been on the bright path so far.


    As for Liu Lan, he was annoyed because she had teased him in the beginning. However, he started to tease her after that because he was furious that she had used him as a shield.


    However, without her, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have been put under so much pressure to improve. All of the danger had led him to where he was today. He would soon join the inner family, which would enable him to protect Lingqing and at the same time receive more information about Mo Xiang. That was why his hatred towards her had lessened, though he would not live well without teasing her and teaching her a good lesson.


    That was why he kept scaring her throughout the qualifiers.


    Even tonight, he nned to only teach her a few lessons when he went to her room. He wouldn¡¯t go as far as hooking up with her.


    <em>I¡¯m a gentleman now. </em>Long Chen was extremely pleased with his current form.


    Time passed quickly and it was nowte at night. Long Chen was focused on his cultivation, asionally joking around with Ling Xi, having a carefree moment.


    Then came a knock on the door ¡­


    1. Arms on her hips with elbows facing outwards. We learn a new word everyday. ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Is this it?! Is Long Chen gonna sneak out and find Liu Lanter?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 180: Dilapidated Temple

    Chapter 180: Dpidated Temple


    Long Chen was startled when he heard the knocking. Liu Lan had done the samest time, appearing before him as a seductress, teasing him at his quarters.


    ¡°Get your mind out of the gutter, it¡¯s just that old geezer,¡± huffed Ling Xi, getting back into the Ling Xi Sword.


    When Long Chen heard her, he instantly knew who it was. He opened the door and indeed, it was Liu Yuan. Long Chen wanted to joke around with him, but he saw that Liu Yuan looked very worried.


    ¡°Long Chen, have you seen Lan¡¯er? I realized that she¡¯s not in her room.¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen her. Maybe she¡¯s taking a walk?¡± He couldn¡¯t let Liu Yuan know about the matter between him and Liu Lan, so he merely gave him a nonchnt response.


    <em>Liu Lan isn¡¯t in her room?</em>


    Long Chen thought to himself, <em>Did she get too afraid of me and run away? That woman pretended to be some experienced lover, I see now that she¡¯s just a shy virgin.</em>


    Seeing as Long Chen hadn¡¯t seen Liu Lan either, Liu Yuan left. Nothing much could happen in the Nine Devils Mountain Vige, though as a father, he was just worried about her.


    ¡°Where would she go?¡± Ling Xi was curious.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe she went back to the Lingwu family.¡± This was just a minor interruption to Long Chen. He took out the halberd he had gotten from Li Feng and practiced waving it around. He realized that it suited him well, and it was much better than any other sword, knife, ornce.


    ¡°I think it¡¯ll be fun to get a halberd technique.¡± Long Chen couldn¡¯t help but feel attracted to the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd was a legendary Earth-tier Divine Weapon whose qualities exceeded its tier. It was probably the most formidable weapon in Yuanling County, and it came with a legendary Earth-tier martial technique.


    If Long Chen could get a divine weapon like that, he would be a formidable presence. He could do whatever he wanted in Yuanling County and within the Lingwu family, rather than be a small pawn used by the Lingwu family.


    <em>Ling Xi is right. Mo Xiang has the extremely cool Heavenly Wolf Dagger; if I don¡¯t get an extraordinary weapon, then I¡¯ll look a little sad. But how will I ever get my hands on the Dongfang family¡¯s Azure Dragon Halberd?</em>


    Long Chen was mulling over this question when Ling Xi eximed, ¡°Someone ising!¡±


    ¡°Who is it!¡±


    The door was suddenly flung open and a ck figure was seen running away. Long Chen was about to give chase when a paper note flew towards him. He reached out to catch it but was sted a few steps back.


    ¡°That was strong. Who was that?¡±


    When he caught the paper, the ck-clothed figure was already gone. That person had an average stature, so it was difficult to identify them. However, Long Che knew that the only people who could move so freely in the Nine Devils Mountain Vige were Lingwu family members.


    ¡°Ling Xi, do you know who that was?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. They ran too fast, so I couldn¡¯t tell.¡± Ling Xi was frustrated. She looked at the paper in his hand and said, ¡°There are words on it. What does it say?¡±


    Long Chen looked closer and realized that it read: <em>If you want Liu Lan alive,e alone to the dpidated temte twelve and a half kilometers</em> [1] <em>west of the Nine Devils Mountain Vige! If we find anyone with you, we will kill Liu Lan immediately!</em>


    ¡°What is this?¡± Long Chen¡¯s face changed.


    ¡°Did that woman get kidnapped? Who would kidnap her?¡± Although Ling Xi resented her, she was too kind-hearted not to worry when she thought about how a fellow sister was in danger.


    ¡°Although they caught Liu Lan, it¡¯s obvious that their target is me.¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes were filled with killing intent.


    He knew that Liu Lan had decided to leave because of himself, and she had unfortunately been targeted by someone else.


    ¡°Long Chen, what do we do?¡± Ling Xi was panicking a little. She was too used to being carefree, so she was at a loss when faced with a problem like this.


    ¡°What else can we do? We¡¯ll go check it out.¡± Long Chen was already out the door.


    ¡°Looks like there¡¯s another huge battleing.¡± In truth, he had strong suspicions of the culprit. There were only a few people in the vige, so who else could it be?


    However, he still had to make sure, so he went to the quarters of the Turquoise and Gold families. He snuck around the area nearby when a sudden, cold voice called out, ¡°Long Chen, what are you doing here?¡±


    Long Chen turned around. It was Chu Tianxiong with Jin Luan by his side. Chu Fengqing and the others were behind him.


    They were obviously in the middle of ate-night chat. However, Long Chen noticed that Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi were missing.


    Jin Luan and the others were high-level cultivators, so it was easy for them to notice Long Chen sneaking around suspiciously. That was why they hade out to question him. Long Chen¡¯s objective was just to find out where they were.


    <em>It looks like Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan aren¡¯t brave enough to touch me now that I¡¯m a member of the inner family. Only the younger ones would do something this rash ¡­</em>


    Having obtained the information he needed, Long Chen left without a word. Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan looked at each other after he left.


    Chu Tianxiong sighed. ¡°If we don¡¯t kill this brat today, he¡¯ll definitely be a major problem for us in the future.¡± Although he hadn¡¯t personally seen him defeating Jin Sheng¡¯en, he had gotten the information from the others.


    At the time, the Chu family had left early after being humiliated by Long Chen, so they were not present during the announcement of the final results. It was still raining hard then, so they had stayed back at the Nine Devils Mountain Vige and had not returned to the Lingwu family.


    ¡°But he¡¯s an inner family member now, and Lord Xuanxiao knows of the conflict between him and us. If anything happens to him, he¡¯ll definitely me it on us. So what can we do?¡±


    Jin Luan looked helpless.


    ¡°Thank goodness Young Master Tianyu gave Sheng¡¯en a Cloud Fruit. His injuries have almostpletely healed. It would¡¯ve been bad if it turned into a chronic condition.¡±


    ¡°What? He also gave Xi¡¯er a Cloud Fruit ¡­¡±


    ***


    <em>Aren¡¯t they injured? Where do they get the strength to do this nonsense?</em> Long Chen rxed a little<em></em>after confirming that this wasn¡¯t nned by Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to the dpidated temple they mentioned.¡± Long Chen headed towards the west side of the Nine Devil Mountain Vige.


    ¡°Long Chen, you seem to care a lot about her.¡± Ling Xi pursed her lips, a little unhappy.


    ¡°Silly girl, she¡¯s only a friend. And when my friends are in trouble, I save them. But Ling Xi, you¡¯re different. You¡¯re basically my other half! If you die, I die,¡± said Long Chen romantically.


    ¡°Tsk, no one¡¯s buying that, you idiot!¡± Although she looked like she didn¡¯t care, her heart was filled with sweetness after hearing the sly fox¡¯s words.


    The storm was fearsomely intense; even the ck-armored guards that were guarding the Nine Devil Mountain Vige on his arrival were nowhere to be found.


    Long Chen walked out and was greeted with pouring rain hitting his body. If it wasn¡¯t for the invisible shield of Qi around him, he would have been soaked.


    A ck-clothed person was standing quietly in a dark corner. When Long Chen left thepound, this person sneered.


    ¡°He actually went to confirm if the Grand Elders were behind this. The brat¡¯s quite smart, but Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en are a little different from what you expect, different enough to be a threat to your life ¡­¡±


    <em>Rumble, rumble!</em>


    The pouring rain drowned out his voice.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were fixed on the rain as he traveled westward.


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    Thunder boomed frequently across the skies, its piercing rumbling sounded again and again in his ears. Frightening lightning turned the dark night into day every time it shed.


    ¡°Long Chen, I feel like something is wrong. They lost to you earlier today and know that they are no match for you, so why are they still doing this?¡± Ling Xi asked anxiously.


    ¡°Also, most importantly, that bitch is at thete Earthly Core Realm, so even though they¡¯re both strong, they¡¯re not strong enough to capture her without getting hurt themselves, right?¡±


    Long Chen had thought about this too.


    ¡°This means that there are other people helping them. Who was that ck-clothed person?¡± The events of tonight had gotten convoluted.


    However, despite these worries, he couldn¡¯t abandon Liu Lan. If he didn¡¯t go, who knew what tragedies would befall her?


    Long Chen knew that Chu Yunxi previously drooled over Liu Lan¡¯s beauty. Long Chen himself hadn¡¯t even touched her, so how could he let Chu Yunxi get her instead? How would his pride take this?


    He sped up, sprinting through the Nine Devil Mountains, heading towards the dpidated temple.


    Twelve and a half kilometers wasn¡¯t far to him, so he soon found a dpidated temple in the dark of the night, shakily standing in the rain as if it would copse anytime.


    ¡°This is it.¡± Long Chen held his breath when he arrived.


    ¡°Hey, if something serious happens, I¡¯ll be using my power,¡± said Ling Xi.


    ¡°How much power do you have from the Soul Grass?¡±


    ¡°Uh ¡­ After thest time, there¡¯s two-thirds left,¡± said Ling Xi, sticking her tongue out cutely.


    ¡°Usually, I wouldn¡¯t need your help. But if there is an emergency, for example, if I¡¯m about to die, you can help me. Though you must promise me to never let your soul power diminish to below one-third. Or I¡¯ll never forgive you, even if I live!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s expression was solemn when he spoke.


    ¡°Alright, alright. You look like an old man when you furrow your brows, hehe.¡±


    Long Chenughed with Ling Xi, but when he looked at the temple, his mood was somber.


    <em>I see that you n to kill me. We¡¯ll see who gets killed in the end! This time, it¡¯s either me or you!</em>


    Long Chen sped up and rushed towards the temple.


    There were holes in all four walls of the temple, but the ceiling wasplete, so it blocked out most of the wind and rain.


    As soon as he entered, he spotted Jin Sheng¡¯en, who was chuckling while Chu Yunxi was tearing at Liu Lan¡¯s clothes like a wild animal. A huge patch of fair skin was revealed while a very pale Liu Lany there in despair, her delicate body trembling as tears welled in her eyes ¡­


    1. 12.5 km was converted from the unit 25 li ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Oh they are gonna die alright. I thought the author was gonna let them live


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 181: Combined Attack!

    Chapter 181: Combined Attack!


    Looking at Chu Yunxi¡¯s perverted face and sensing theck of strength in her body, Liu Lan felt like the sky was falling.


    When she thought about what was going to happen, being a person who knew the nature of people very well, she truly regretted her actions now.


    If she could go back in time, she would¡¯ve stayed in the Nine Devils Mountain Vige to save herself for Long Chen, not have Chu Yunxi force himself unto her, with Jin Sheng¡¯en watching.


    When she had lost all hope, there was a strong gust of wind and a person unexpectedly stepped in.


    When she saw him, she cried.


    It was Long Chen, the one she was thinking of. When she saw him, she found hope amidst her despair.


    Like a drowning victim grasping at a piece of straw, she used her remaining strength to push Chu Yunxi, who was lying on her chest!


    ¡°About time you get here.¡± When they saw that it was Long Chen, Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en looked at each other and stood up in front of Liu Lan with a sneer.


    Liu Lan¡¯s breathing was ragged, and she hurriedly wrapped herself in the clothes he had stripped off. Fortunately, she had worn tightly securedyers and Long Chen wasn¡¯t toote, so nothing had been exposed.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Her eyes grew misty when she saw him. She suddenly realized that she was just a fragile girl ¡­


    Long Chen was furious when he saw how pitiful Liu Lan looked. Although she wasn¡¯t his woman, she was a woman he¡¯d fantasized about, so no one else was allowed to touch her, even if he didn¡¯t!


    ¡°Looks like you still aren¡¯t afraid after the beating you received earlier today, are you? Is that why you guys are here looking for death?!¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t notice anything suspicious about Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en. His fists were tightly clenched, his eyes dark.


    <em>Both of them endured a Sword Devil Finger from me this afternoon, so their blood vessels and internal organs must have been injured. But how did they recover so quickly? Did they consume some sort of medicine?</em>


    Long Chen frowned to himself.


    ¡°Looking for death?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯enughed loudly. ¡°You are the one looking for death. We kidnapped this beautiful woman to lure you out here, but Brother Chu seems to have other ns.¡±


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes were bloodshot as he nced at Liu Lan¡¯s seductive figure and gulped, saying impatiently, ¡°Since this is your woman, I shall put on a good show for you! You shall watch as she enjoys herself beneath me!¡±


    He thought Long Chen would rage when he said such a disgusting line, but Long Chen remained very calm. He looked at Liu Lan, then at Chu Yunxi and scolded, ¡°You idiot.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Chu Yunxi was angrier when he saw Long Chen¡¯s nonchnt attitude.


    Never in Chu Yunxi¡¯s entire life had he hated someone as much as he hated Long Chen. The only thing that could cure the hatred in his heart was to torture him.


    As for Jin Sheng¡¯en, his hatred towards Long Chen wasn¡¯t as strong, but Long Chen had robbed him of the right to join the inner family, something he had been confident he would get. This had humiliated him, and how could Jin Sheng¡¯en swallow this humiliation so easily?


    ¡°Brother Jin, he only defeated you because he took advantage of the terrain. Today, let¡¯s work together to catch this bastard! And teach him a lesson!¡±


    Jin Sheng¡¯en nodded, his hawk-like re fixed on Long Chen. ¡°Now!¡± he shouted, and both of them charged at Long Chen at the same time!


    Both of them were extremely talented prodigies, and both could easily give Long Chen a difficult fight. Especially Jin Sheng¡¯en, whom Long Chen had only defeated after a massive effort. In the face of such huge killing intent, Long Chen couldn¡¯t help but take a few steps back when both charged at the same time!


    ¡°Die!¡± Long Chen had no choice but to activate his Dragon Soul Transformation in the face of such threats. Red dragon scales quickly covered his entire body. He was covered in dense, uniform, red scales, each one the size of a baby¡¯s palm. Sharp, bony spines emerged on his spine, knees, and elbows, along with ws as sharp as des!


    The light-red mist in his dantian was transforming quickly, and soon, a blood-red Earthly Core appeared, spinning with mes and lightning on its surface!


    ¡°Your Beast Soul Transformation is nothing to us!¡± Chu Yunxi sneered and moved faster than Jin Sheng¡¯en, arriving in front of Long Chen instantly. What seemed like a constant string of asteroids hit Long Chen!


    ¡°Destructive Mountain Kick!¡±


    He kicked over and over, each fiercer than thest. This was paired with Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s powerful Qi and advanced ck-tier Molten Gold Combat Body, causing Long Chen to be pushed back by the sheer force!


    Chu Yunxi then charged from the left, shooting a howling tornado from his finger!


    ¡°Heavenly Illusory Finger! Illusory Divine Strike!¡±


    Thousands of finger seals enveloped Long Chen. Paired with Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s attack, they were in control of the fight.


    Liu Lan watched this unfold, and panicked when she recalled what Chu Yunxi previously said. It looked like Long Chen was no match for them, and if he was defeated, maybe killed, the consequences would be unimaginable.


    She paled once more.


    Long Chen had taken an irreceable spot in her heart. If anything happened to him, she would never live it down!


    ¡°You think you can kill me with this? You guys underestimate me!¡±


    There was an explosion, and Chu Yunxi was knocked away with a Burning Devil Fist seal. Long Chen shook Jin Sheng¡¯en off and rushed forward with another punch!


    ¡°Burning Devil Sun Fist, Devil Sun Collision!¡±


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The powerful punch sent Chu Yunxi to the ground, throwing a huge plume of dust in the air!


    If Jin Sheng¡¯en hadn¡¯t attacked him again, all Long Chen would¡¯ve had to do was rush forward and finish Chu Yunxi. That was the disadvantage of a group-attack¡ªhe could never focus on one person!


    <em>The brat is strong! It¡¯s possible that we won¡¯t be able to beat him even together. But with the object that person gave me, I¡¯m confident we will prevail!</em>


    With this thought, and seeing that Liu Lan¡¯s beautiful body was almost his to y with, Chu Yunxi was filled with excitement. He exploded and charged at Long Chen once more!


    ¡°Long Chen, careful!¡± shouted Liu Lan in a panic when she saw Chu Yunxi attack once more.


    It was a stormy night,yet she was sweating from fear. Beads of sweat covered her delicate features and pale skin, making her look suffocatingly beautiful and inviting. When Chu Yunxi realized he could soon do whatever he wanted to her, he turned mad.


    Chu Yunxi quickly approached Long Chen, and with a cold glint in his eye, a gust of wind swirled on his finger. A howling wind blew, and the powerful gust charged at Long Chen when he pointed with his finger!


    It was only wind and clouds, but there was infinite killing intent hidden within!


    ¡°Cataclysmic Wind Finger!¡±


    This was the most powerful attack Chu Yunxi had used against Long Chen in their previous fight, and also his trump card. The world darkened as the powerful attack charged towards Long Chen. It was almost going to hit him!


    ¡°Dealing with two people is so troublesome!¡± Long Chen¡¯s brows were furrowed as he dodged using the Nine Heavens Dragon Step, a skill he was effortlessly masterful in. Chu Yunxiunched the Cataclysmic Wind Finger several times, but Long Chen dodged most of them by the skin of his teeth!


    <em>If this goes on, I will surely die! </em>Long Chen knew that he could dy no longer. He had to kill one of them if he wanted to win, or they would join forces to exhaust him!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    The terrifying Blood Devouring Domain expanded, and the whole dpidated temte was soon shrouded in red mist, creating a swirling domain. There was a red light membrane that formed the border of the domain, blocking the space from view!


    ¡°What is this?!¡± Chu Yunxi gasped when he sensed the changes in his surroundings.


    Jin Sheng¡¯en was more familiar with the Blood Devouring Domain, but he couldn¡¯t figure out what was going onst time it was used. When Long Chen used it again, he felt the strange increase in gravity once more!


    ¡°Brother Chu, kill him now, quick! We will die if we stay in this state for too long!¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en let out a roar, having no time to worry about anything else, and unleashed his most powerful attack towards Long Chen!


    The blood in his veins had begun to boil, as if it was breaking free from his control. Thanks to the peculiar, powerful gravity, any enemy of Long Chen would find it extremely difficult to move!


    All weaker cultivators in his domain would immediately be killed by Blood Transmutation!


    Long Chen still couldn¡¯t use Blood Transmutation in battle, but he could use the Blood Devouring Domain. It was like a disciple exceeding their master!


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t it feel good?¡± Long Chenughed. When he saw the panic on Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s face, he knew that he needed to use his Qi to suppress his blood!


    ¡°What is this strange force?¡± Chu Yunxi was shaken too. At this moment, his movements were severely restricted.


    <em>I might be no match for him when he uses this strange attack. But with that thing, you¡¯re definitely going to die, Long Chen!</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Now this is a fair fight! Better than a fight where MC dominated against another


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 182: Thunder Talisman!

    Chapter 182: Thunder Talisman!


    Liu Lan was watching the strange, red space. She could feel a strange gravity acting on the blood in her body, and the source of that gravity was Long Chen.


    However, the gravity was very weak, so Liu Lan only felt slightly ufortable.


    But Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en were grimacing and forcing themselves to stay still.


    <em>How did this brat Long Chen get such a strange technique? What the hell is this?</em> Liu Lan was in shock. She saw this red space when he defeated Jin Sheng¡¯en, but couldn¡¯t see it clearly at the time.


    <em>How can Long Chen hold so many secrets?</em> She stared at his magnificent scales in a daze, and her gaze unconsciouslynded on Long Chen¡¯s eyes, which were filled with ice-cold killing intent.


    She then suddenly saw something in the swirling, red mist. There were hints of a legendary presence appearing within.


    <em>These images¡­ I can¡¯t see them clearly, but why do they look like the legendary ancient dragons?</em> Her jaw dropped. She hadn¡¯t been paying much attention, but the harder she looked, the more they resembled dragons.


    She then looked at Long Chen¡¯s scales and recalled that dragons were also covered in scales. She thought in surprise, <em>Unless ¡­ Is there a link between Long Chen and the ancient dragons?</em>


    The illusory dragon images in the red mist were what led to her making this connection.


    She smiled bitterly. The legendary dragons had disappeared a long time ago, and they were legendary figures that only existed in ancient times. It had been hundreds of thousands of years since the Middle Ages, let alone the Ancient Ages. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that dragons were such formidable presences, their legend would not have been preserved until the current age.


    As Liu Lan¡¯s thoughts ran wild, Long Chen was fighting for his life against Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi!


    There was still a nagging worry in Long Chen¡¯s heart¡ªthe ck-clothed person. That was why he had to finish Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi as soon as possible!


    After using the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen managed to suppress them!


    ¡°Brother Jin, kill him off! This brat is very strange!¡±


    Chu Yunxi was already feeling the difort that came from the massive pressure. He forcefully suppressed the blood churning in his body and let out a roar. Another bout of Cataclysmic Wind Finger rushed at Long Chen!


    ¡°That move again?¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly. Although it was the same move, Chu Yunxi¡¯s advanced ck-tier martial technique was greatly weakened under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain!


    On the other side, Jin Sheng¡¯en was unwilling to look weak. He sprung powerfully off the ground and shot at Long Chen like a cannonball!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The whole dpidated temple trembled from the powerful impact!


    ¡°Long Chen! How dare you rob me of my chance of joining the inner family! Die! Warring ss Fist!¡±


    Despite being surrounded by the Cataclysmic Wind Finger and Warring ss Fist, Long Chen¡¯s expression did not change, though there was intense killing intent in his eyes!


    <em>Using the Blood Devouring Domain decreased my Qi and weakened my physical body. I need to finish this quickly! </em>After realizing this, Long Chen understood that there was no technique that did not obey the rules of the universe. Although the Blood Devouring Domain was strangely powerful, it still worked within thews of nature!


    Even the Dragon Soul Transformation and Blood Transmutation obeyed thews of nature, though the Dragon Soul Transformation couldst much longer than the Blood Devouring Domain.


    ¡°Now!¡±


    The Cataclysmic Wind Finger and the Warring ss Fist had arrived in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes. That was when Qi erupted from his body!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    A dragon¡¯s roar shook the whole space. With the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body pushed to its limit, Long Chen¡¯s right hand shone with starlight. A split secondter, Long Chen abandoned Jin Sheng¡¯en and charged at Chu Yunxi with all he had!


    ¡°<em>Sword Devil Finger</em>!¡±


    A shining ray of sword light burst for a second like fireworks, and a powerful force sent Chu Yunxi flying into a wall!


    ¡°Long Chen, die! Haha!¡± When he saw that Long Chen was ignoring him, Jin Sheng¡¯en was overjoyed and charged at Long Chen¡¯s back with his Warring ss Fist!


    ¡°No, you die!¡± With a cold snicker, Long Chen turned around, simultaneously wielding another bright ray of silver sword light! The sword Qi appeared only for a second, colliding with Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s Warring ss Fist!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was an explosion of Qi, and a plume of dust flew in all directions within the temple!


    ¡°What? You can use an advanced ck-tier martial technique twice in a row?¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s blood churned from the aftershock of the collision. If he hadn¡¯t used a technique to dodge the sword light, it would¡¯ve killed him!


    He didn¡¯t expect Long Chen to be able tounch another attack so quickly!


    ¡°My target is you, Jin Sheng¡¯en!¡±


    The moment he turned around, he had already prepared the <em>Sword Devil Finger</em> on his left hand, which shattered Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s Warring ss Fist and sent him flying back!


    ¡°Not only have I mastered the <em>Sword Devil Finger</em>, I can even use it three times in a row!¡±


    There was an explosion!


    After Long Chen used the second finger attack to st Jin Sheng¡¯en back, Jin Sheng¡¯en had lost his defenses. There was a cold glint in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, and he shot out like an arrow. After unleashing the <em>Sword Devil Finger</em> from his left hand, another sharp ray of starlight appeared in his right hand!


    ¡°This is thest time! <em>Sword Devil Finger</em>!¡±


    This ray of light was twice as powerful as thest two!


    This was Long Chen¡¯s final move, the one that he had been saving his energy for. The whole temple was brightly lit with the sword light, leaving Jin Sheng¡¯en, Chu Yunxi, and Liu Lan stunned!


    ¡°Die!¡± roared Long Chen!


    ¡°No!¡± Jin Sheng¡¯en retreated. Shock, regret, fear, and madness were written on his face.


    ¡°My father is the Grand Elder of the Gold family, you cannot kill me!¡± When he said this, Jin Sheng¡¯en was already starting to beg for mercy.


    ¡°You idiot.¡±


    Long Chen maintained a mild expression, but his finger did not stop. He thrust a finger out, and the sword light stabbed into the frightened Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s chest, piercing right through his body!


    ¡°No ¡­¡±


    The shout of his final struggle grew weaker and weaker, and his eyes were as wide as saucers. Finally, his voice disappeared when he died.


    The body with a hole in the chest crashed to the ground!


    <em>Thud!</em>


    It sounded like a hammer striking Liu Lan¡¯s and Chu Yunxi¡¯s hearts. They were momentarily stunned, watching Long Chen, who was slowly turning around. There was a yielding softness in Liu Lan¡¯s eyes, while Chu Yunxi¡¯s face was first filled with panic, then hysteria!


    ¡°Tell me who is instructing you, and I will let you die with your body intact.¡± Long Chen¡¯s expression was cold. Liu Lan watched him approach Chu Yunxi.


    ¡°Are you sure you can beat me?¡± Chu Yunxi suddenly smiled. ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re too arrogant. You think I¡¯m afraid of you just because you killed Jin Sheng¡¯en?¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± The brat looked like he had some trick up his sleeve, and this piqued Long Chen¡¯s interest. ¡°Show me whatever trump card you have, then.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the one looking for death, so don¡¯t me me.¡± Chu Yunxi slowly reached into his Universe Pouch, his eyes darting at Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s body. ¡°It looks like I underestimated you. I thought we wouldn¡¯t have to rely on this to kill you, but we did end up needing to use it ¡­¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen put his guard up, taking a few steps back.


    Based on Chu Yunxi¡¯s confidence, he might have something powerful.


    ¡°Long Chen, I will celebrate the anniversary of your death on this day next year! I initially wanted you to watch as I enjoyed your woman, but now you¡¯ll die a corpseless death, and you¡¯re the only one to me!¡±


    Not saying another word, Chu Yunxi charged at Long Chen!


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful ¡­¡± Liu Lan was also terrified when she heard to their conversation.


    ¡°Die!¡± When Chu Yunxi shouted, an object appeared in his hand!


    ¡°What is that?¡± Long Chen noticed a dark-blue piece of paper in Chu Yunxi¡¯s hand, and it was made of a special material. Then Chu Yunxi flung it!


    ¡°No! Hide! That¡¯s a Thunder Talisman!¡±


    When Chu Yunxi took out the talisman, Ling Xi warned Long Chen in a panic. Long Chen was startled and quickly used the Nine Heavens Dragon Step to back away as fast as he could!


    When he retreated, the lightly floating Thunder Talisman suddenly erupted with countless bolts of blue lightning that shot at him like flinging rocks!


    Long Chen felt hugely intimidated by the lightning-surrounded talisman!


    ¡°This is bad!¡± He sensed that the Thunder Talisman was strong enough to threaten his life!


    ¡°Haha! This Thunder Talisman is worth more than a million divine jades; do you really think you can survive it?¡± Chu Yunxi backed away andughed like a maniac, sneering viciously.


    Long Chen had forced the dark side of his soul to show.


    ¡°I cannot let a vige hillbilly take my woman away and step on my head! I must take back everything that once belonged to me today!¡±


    Long Chen had no time to worry about Chu Yunxi¡¯s arrogance. While doing his best to dodge the lightning, he used all his Qi to protect himself. Despite escaping at a very high speed, the Thunder Talisman still caught up and exploded right next to him!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Tens of thousands of bolts of lightning shot out at the same time, swallowing Long Chen whole!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Tears of despair flowed from Liu Lan¡¯s eyes! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hey no items!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 183: Mist Fairy

    Chapter 183: Mist Fairy


    Liu Lan had watched the Thunder Talisman explode with her own eyes, but she couldn¡¯t do anything about it.


    When the talisman exploded, tens of thousands of lightning bolts congregated to form a lightning ball ten meters wide, and it enveloped Long Chen.


    Consecutive explosions could be heard as the powerful lightning attacked him.


    That amount of force would definitely break Long Chen into pieces. It would be impossible for him to survive!


    And Long Chen¡¯s tragic fate was all because of herself.


    She wasn¡¯t stupid. When Long Chen arrived, she knew that he was their main target, not her.


    The objective of Chu Yunxi, Jin Sheng¡¯en, and the mysterious, ck-clothed person was to kill Long Chen. The ck-clothed person was the one who had given Chu Yunxi the Thunder Talisman!


    Long Chen had rushed here to save her because he cared about her, but he had died trying. Liu Lan¡¯s heart clenched in pain. ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m sorry ¡­¡± She felt like her heart had been torn apart. If it wasn¡¯t for the metal chainspletely trapping her, she would¡¯ve jumped in with Long Chen.


    Seeing Liu Lan despair made Chu Yunxi feel endless excitement. ¡°You bitch! Let¡¯s see how you¡¯re going to fight back now that Long Chen is dead!¡± Chu Yunxi was instantly energized when he saw how pitiful she looked. He couldn¡¯t hold himself back now.


    He sneered and then pounced on Liu Lan¡¯s body. When he touched her mature flesh, he turned into a wild beast, his breath quickening.


    But Liu Lan was not afraid, even when he wrapped her in his arms. She gave a pitiful smile, thinking of rupturing her own Earthly Core to kill Chu Yunxi immediately. But that was when she realized that he had stopped moving.


    Liu Lan froze, then she looked up to see Chu Yunxi¡¯s eyes wide from disbelief!


    There was a ck sword tip protruding from between his eyebrows, and it started retracting slowly.


    Drops of warm blood dripped on Liu Lan¡¯s face like beautiful flowers blooming on her pretty skin.


    Liu Lan knew that the sword had pierced through his head from the back. The attack had ended his life instantly.


    Chu Yunxi didn¡¯t know who had killed him, even on hisst breath.


    Liu Lan really wanted to know too. She did her best to push Chu Yunxi¡¯s body away, but then she froze.


    Standing in front of her was a teenage girl shrouded in mist.


    This girl had dark, long, silky hair that fell on her shoulders, making her look gracefully beautiful. Her skin was translucent with a faint redness like delicate jade, and herrge eyes twinkled like they could talk. Her small, red lips contrasted her fair face, with two dimples on her cheeks. When she smiled, the dimples appeared, making her as cute as a fairy from the heavens.


    The sudden appearance of a girl whose beauty could make a kingdom fall, who was prettier than herself, left Liu Lan in a daze.


    She¡¯d met beautiful girls before, and she herself was an outstanding specimen too. But when she sensed the ethereal, elegant, and fairy-like aura, even she was humbled.


    Out of her peripheral vision, she noticed that the girl was holding a ck sword that looked like it was scrap metal, its de still dripping with blood ¡­


    Liu Lan suddenly had difficulty breathing.


    The girl standing in front of her had undeniably killed Chu Yunxi and saved her.


    Under normal circumstances, Liu Lan would¡¯ve been very grateful. But the girl was unbelievably beautiful, and what confounded her was that although the girl in the mist was realistic, she sensed that she didn¡¯t have a physical body.


    <em>No body? Is she a ghost?</em>


    Recalling that she was in the Nine Devil Mountains, Liu Lan was a little frightened.


    That was when the girl in the mist looked at her with her beautiful eyes. Liu Lan¡¯s chest tightened when she saw the coldness in her eyes.


    She slowly raised the scrap metal sword up in front of Liu Lan and touched her chin, tipping her face up.


    ¡°What ¡­ What are you doing?¡± Liu Lan was still injured and bound by chains, so she was defenseless.


    To her shock, the girl opened her mouth to speak. Her voice was cold and melodious like an oriole¡¯s song, and though pleasing to the ears, the words frightened Liu Lan.


    Eyes fixed on Liu Lan, she said slowly, ¡°I¡¯m warning you! From today onwards, do not pester Long Chen again, or I will chop you into pieces!¡±


    Then she waved the Ling Xi Sword sternly!


    Liu Lan squinted, thinking she was about to die. But when she felt the pressure on her body ease, she realized that the girl hadn¡¯t killed her but shed her chains.


    When she opened her eyes, she was shocked to see the girl turn into a cloud of mist that slowly entered the metal sword again. The sword then slowly shrank until it was the size of an ear stud.


    <em>Did she just tell me not to pester Long Chen? </em>Liu Lan was initially terrified, but she very quickly drew another conclusion from her words. Long Chen wasn¡¯t dead!


    She looked over, overjoyed. The site of the Thunder Talisman¡¯s explosion was a mess, and indeed, there was a person covered in soot sitting on the ground at the center. Although he was burnt ck all over, it was clearly Long Chen!


    ¡°Long Chen! You didn¡¯t die!¡± Liu Lan was beside herself with joy when she sensed life force in Long Chen. She struggled to stand up, about to approach him when the ear-stud-sword flew with a whistle and blocked her way.


    She hurriedly stopped and forced herself to calm down.


    Staring at the tiny sword, she finally recalled that Long Chen always had an ear stud in his ear.


    That was obviously this sword. And that beautiful girl in the mist had returned to this sword ¡­


    <em>This means that the girl has always been with Long Chen from the beginning, and we just never knew about her. Long Chen¡¯s mysteriousness must be because of this mysterious girl ¡­</em>


    When she recalled the threat, she felt exasperated.


    To be honest, Long Chen indeed had an important ce in her heart by now. But when she recalled the sourness and killing intent in the girl¡¯s tone, she knew that they were already a pair. That was why she didn¡¯t dare overthink it.


    Long Chen was still alive, and that was already amazing news to her. ¡°Thank you for saving my life, miss.¡± Liu Lan stabilized her emotions and returned to her previous state of an ice-cold beauty. She saw that Long Chen was healing himself, so she took a few steps back.


    <em>Who is the girl in the sword? I¡¯ve never heard of anyone existing in this state. With her by his side, Long Chen¡¯s future is immeasurable, </em>Liu Lan thought wistfully.


    <em>But this isn¡¯t any of my business. I¡¯m ten years older than he is; we were never in the same league anyway.</em>


    Ling Xi¡¯s threat paired with her resilient personality made Liu Lan toss away her teenage girl thoughts.


    But when she thought about the teenage boy who had risked his life to save her, she was a little unwilling to let him go ¡­


    Liu Lan took out spiritual medicine from her Universe Pouch and started to treat herself too.


    The matter of the day hade to an end. Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en were dead, and Liu Lan didn¡¯t know how to deal with them. She could only wait for Long Chen to recover.


    Long Chen had survived the Thunder Talisman mainly due to two reasons: first, the dragon scales post-Dragon Soul Transformation offered heavy duty protection; second, his body had been battered and toughened up during the absorption of the zing Thunder Crystals. On top of that, the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body had strong defenses against lightning attacks.


    These were the main reasons why Long Chen was fortunate enough to survive.


    He had mostly sustained surface-level injuries, but he wasn¡¯t able to attack Chu Yunxi right after the explosion. If Chu Yunxi had been able to hold his urges just a little longer and attacked Long Chen, there was a high chance that Long Chen would¡¯ve died.


    However, Chu Yunxi was highly emotional and only wanted to hurt Liu Lan, therefore forgetting all reason. That was why Ling Xi could kill him the moment she appeared.


    The moral of the story was: if one was impatient, they would not aplish big things ¡­


    Long Chen was using Recovery to heal the surface-level injuries.


    Recovery was an intermediate ck-tierbat technique. When used for a certain period of time, its effects would be equivalent to an intermediate ck-tier spiritual medicine. Paired with the resilient quality of his body and its strong recovery abilities, most of his injuries healed in about an hour.


    He returned to his human form and straightened his clothes, so he no longer looked like he had fought a battle.


    When Ling Xi saw that he had sessfully recovered, she happily returned to his ear. ¡°You¡¯re so naughty! You scared me!¡± Ling Xi knitted her brows and pouted, traumatized by the incident.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect him to have that stupid thing either. But thank goodness I survived.¡±


    When he saw that Liu Lan was sitting cross-legged and unscathed, he heaved a sigh of relief and snickered, saying, ¡°Xiao Xi, your acting just now was quite realistic.¡±


    He was referring to how Ling Xi had threatened Liu Lan¡ªshe was stern and cold. ¡°Who said I was acting? I¡¯ve always been this fierce!¡± Her face reddened instantly when she realized that her sneaky threat had been noticed.


    Long Chen looked at the corpses and ced them together. After searching them, he found two Universe Pouches. He put them in his pocket without a hint of guilt. ¡°More loot for me,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°I see you¡¯re getting more evil by the day.¡± Ling Xi giggled. She admittedly liked doing things like that, being a mischievous girl since young.


    After putting the Universe Pouches away, he looked at the two bodies. ¡°You two were the ones who forced me to do this. I would be dead if I hadn¡¯t killed you. That is why you cannot me me for your deaths.¡±


    Long Chen then used his zing Thunder power to create a small me and held it over their bodies. After a short time, the bodies of Long Chen¡¯s most powerful enemies were slowly engulfed in mes.


    Liu Lan slowly opened her eyes. When she saw the mes shooting up at the sky, and the calm-looking teenager standing in the firelight, she realized she was swooning ¡­ <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    ooo she be swooning


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 184: Plan Foiled!

    Chapter 184: n Foiled!


    Long Chen and Liu Lan stared at each other amidst the roaring mes.


    When they first met, Liu Lan was his Administrator and was much stronger than him, while Long Chen was just someone who had just joined the Lingwu family. At the time, she teased him many times and he couldn¡¯t do anything about it.


    But now Long Chen was almost as strong as her and his position in the Lingwu family was much higher than hers. Liu Lan felt her breath rapidly increasing when she saw Long Chen¡¯s bright eyes in the flickering mes.


    <em>I guess this is what they mean when they say nothing in this world is permanent.</em> Liu Lan shook her head and smiled bitterly.


    She had matured a bit more after tonight¡¯s events and Ling Xi¡¯s warning.


    ¡°If you¡¯ve recovered, you should go back now.¡± This wasn¡¯t a good ce to linger in for too long. And Long Chen wasn¡¯t in the mood to tease Liu Lan, not with Ling Xi staring at him.


    ¡°Okay.¡± Liu Lan nodded obediently.


    While walking back from the broken temple to the base, Long Chen kept thinking about the identity of the man in ck.


    ¡°Who do you think the man in ck that helped Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi was?¡±


    Liu Lan smiled bitterly and shook her head. ¡°He came so suddenly. He didn''t look strong, but I was not his match.¡±


    They soon arrived back at the vige, but they didn¡¯t know that someone was waiting for them.


    Long Chen could sense that the atmosphere at the vige was different. As soon as it came into view, he noticed that the Gold family and the Chu family were waiting for them at the entrance, and Liu Yuan was with them.


    ¡°Brother has returned!¡± Chu Yunyao excitedly shouted, and everyone looked out from the entrance.


    The skies were dark and it was raining, so both of them ran quickly in.


    Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan were smiling as they had thought that Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en had returned, but their smiles soon froze.


    ¡°It¡¯s Long Chen and Liu Lan!¡± Chu Tianxiong was shocked!


    They had been searching for the missing Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en in the vige and the vicinity ever since they went missing. They also knew that Long Chen and Liu Lan were missing as well.


    But they had no choice but to wait here.


    Chu Tianxiong and everyone had mistaken Long Chen and Liu Lan for Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en due to the bad visibility, but they were shocked when they saw who it was.


    Everyone stared at them gloomily, but Long Chen was not afraid. Dongfang Xuanxiao was guarding this ce, so no one would dare to touch him.


    Liu Yuan sighed in relief when he saw that Long Chen and Liu Lan had returned. ¡°Long Chen, Lan¡¯er,e here, quick!¡±


    As he spoke, he nced cautiously at Chu Tianxiong.


    The four of them had gone missing at the same time, and everyone had guessed that they had gone out to fight. Liu Yuan was also thinking that that was the case, so he was worried too.


    ¡°Stop!¡± Chu Tianxiong shouted and blocked Long Chen. The old man was so angry that he almost spat out ck blood.


    Everyone had a bad feeling upon seeing how agitated Chu Tianxiong was.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the Grand Elder of the Turquoise family? Why are you calling for me?¡± Long Chen answered calmly.


    ¡°What did you all do out there?¡±


    Long Chenughed. ¡°You old geezer, has your brain gone rusty? We are interested in each other, and we left dead in the night ¡­ Naturally, we went to a ce to get to know each other better! Do you think we were so bored that we would go out to hunt wild boars?¡±


    Long Chen had announced something so taboo without reservation, even calling Chu Tianxiong an old geezer. Everyone¡¯s faces darkened, finding it difficult to ept.


    When they saw Liu Lan¡¯s face redden without even refuting his words, everyone privately called him shameless.


    But Chu Tianxiong did not buy it. Long Chen was shocked to see Chu Tianxiong staring at him with hatred. <em>Maybe he figured out I killed Chu Yunxi?</em>


    Long Chen thought about it and came to a conclusion.


    <em>The Universe Pouch!</em>


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s Universe Pouch was in his clothes!


    Long Chen knew that the rune in a Universe Pouch could be personalized. Two cultivators might have simr Qi, but every single person had something inherently unique about their Qi that differed from everyone else. Mo Xiang had given Long Chen his personal Universe Pouch in the past because it could act as an endorsement within the Lingwu family!


    Seeing how Chu Tianxiong was acting, Long Chen was sure that Chu Yunxi¡¯s Universe Pouch was something Chu Tianxiong had given him!


    Chu Tianxiong smiled coldly. ¡°Getting to know each other better? Then I¡¯ll ask you, Long Chen, what¡¯s going on with that Universe Pouch in your pocket? That¡¯s the Universe Pouch I gave Yunxi! Why would it be with you?!¡±


    Everyone was shocked to hear this.


    If Chu Yunxi¡¯s Universe Pouch was with Long Chen, that meant it was likely that Long Chen had killed both Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en!


    Long Chen had forgotten about the Universe Pouch!


    <em>Damn. Looks like I messed up. But this is something I would¡¯ve had to face sooner orter anyway.</em>


    It was reasonable to make mistakes from time to time.


    But he managed to react in time and shamelessly answered, ¡°The Universe Pouch? I picked it up.¡±


    Since he had been discovered, all he needed to do was deny it. He wanted to see if Chu Tianxiong would do anything even with Dongfang Xuanxiao present. Would Chu Tianxiong ever dare to hurt someone from the inner family?


    Long Chen was very clear about the power dynamics of the outer and inner families. He had already observed that even Chu Tianxiong was very polite to Dongfang Xuanxiao. That meant that the Grand Elder¡¯s rank was below everyone in the inner family!


    And the Eastern Azure Dragon family was waiting to see who would be joining them. If Long Chen were killed by Chu Tianxiong, that would be a slight against the Eastern Azure Dragon family, and they would never allow such a disgrace to exist. Chu Tianxiong could do nothing here!


    ¡°Picked it up?¡± Both Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan had a good idea of what had happened.


    Jin Luan¡¯s eyes were cold from anger. The overwhelming pressure covered Long Chen, and his icy words prated everyone¡¯s hearts.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯ve killed Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi! Is that true?!¡±


    No one knew how to react.


    Chu Yunxi¡¯s and Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s families were in despair.


    Every single one of them was crying, especially Chu Fengqing and Chu Yunyao. If it wasn¡¯t for Chu Tianxiong, they would¡¯ve already attacked Long Chen!


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of being struck by lightning when you make such usations?¡±[1] Even under the intense pressure, Long Chen remained calm. ¡°I won¡¯t spout bullshit with you. I picked it up, and I don¡¯t know where they went. This doesn¡¯t concern me.¡±


    After he spoke, he pulled Liu Lan into his arms and gave her a peck on the cheek. ¡°My darling Lan¡¯er and I were busy having fun, so why would we concern ourselves with what Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en are doing? But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m guessing they are interested in each other and probably ran off to have their own fun too, haha! Those two are always shooting each other intense looks, so I¡¯ve always thought that something was off. The night is dark and the breeze is strong tonight; maybe they¡¯ve finally gotten together?¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± Both the Chu family and the Gold family wanted to kill Long Chen now!


    ¡°Everyone, it¡¯s a beautiful night tonight, and I still have many more rounds to go with Lan¡¯er. You guys wouldn¡¯t ruin our fun, right? Please move aside and let Master Long walk through.¡±


    Since he had decided to be haughty, he was going to push it all the way. That was Long Chen¡¯s style.


    Both the Chu family and the Gold family¡¯s eyes were red. They were willing to risk their entire families just to kill Long Chen!


    Especially Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan. They knew Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s temper better than anyone. If they killed Long Chen now, every single member of their families would be wiped out!


    Also, they weren¡¯t a match for Dongfang Xuanxiao even if they worked together. This was their biggest worry.


    But Long Chen was rxed. Liu Lan was blushing furiously at his words. She wanted to hide herself in a hole!


    She had previously tricked Long Chen and made him face a simr situation. Long Chen wanted to punish her tonight, but he had saved her instead. So now he was punishing her by returning the favor.


    Liu Yuan, however, did not know how to react. His face was contorted in conflict.


    Any father would probably react the same.


    Chu Tianxiong suppressed his killing intent and tried to speak as calmly as possible. ¡°Long Chen, let me ask you this onest time. Where are Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en?¡±


    Long Chen squinted. ¡°I said I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°You have the guts to kill them, but not to admit it?¡± Jin Luan came up from beside him to surround Long Chen.


    Long Chen wanted to answer him when Dongfang Tianyu appeared again. He had seen Long Chen from afar and smiled, but he managed to suppress his smile up close.


    ¡°Grand Elder Chu and Grand Elder Jin, what is going on? Why are you gathered here?¡± Dongfang Tianyu asked.


    When Chu Tianxiong saw Dongfang Tianyu, his eyes brightened and he said reverently, ¡°Young Master Tianyu, Yunxi and Sheng¡¯en, as well as Long Chen and Liu Lan, went missing together this evening. However, when these two returned, they had Yunxi¡¯s Universe Pouch with them! I dare conclude that Long Chen killed Yunxi and Sheng¡¯en. They are evil-hearted; they killed and robbed Yunxi and Sheng¡¯en!¡±


    Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s face was grim when he looked at Long Chen. ¡°Did you kill them?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Long Chen answered mildly.


    ¡°You¡¯ve only just joined the inner family, yet you¡¯ve already be so arrogant, thinking you¡¯re above thew?¡± Dongfang Tianyu demanded coldly. ¡°Long Chen, although you are decently talented, you have a terrible attitude. How dare you kill the innocent just because you are an inner family member! And they are the family members of the two Grand Elders too! Your behavior is disgraceful, and you are not fit to be an inner family member! That is why I hereby sentence you to death!¡±


    1. A cultural belief that one would get struck by lightning when they lied after swearing otherwise ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Tianyu that shitty bastard


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 185: Spank

    Chapter 185: Spank


    Although neither Chu Tianxiong nor Jin Luan had the authority to punish Long Chen, Dongfang Tianyu certainly did. He was a member of the inner family after all.


    Long Chen had merely entered the inner family through the outer family, while Dongfang Tianyu was born in the inner family. Thetter was someone with the Eastern Azure Dragon family¡¯s blood within him.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Long Chen squinted angrily.


    He thought about a lot of things when he saw Dongfang Tianyu acting like this.


    ¡°Enough nonsense! Grand Elders, you will follow my order and execute Long Chen!¡± Dongfang Tianyu did not give Long Chen a chance to speak.


    Liu Lan and Liu Yuan were shocked to see that Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan had the support of Dongfang Tianyu. The two Grand Elders were ecstatic to be able to kill Long Chen!


    This was an amazing chance! If they missed it, they might not be able to kill him again.


    Long Chen was young, but he was a big threat to both of them.


    ¡°Die, Long Chen!¡± Chu Tianxiong moved first and ran towards Long Chen. His strength as a Heavenly Core Realm cultivator was overwhelming, causing the very skies to change from his attack. Even though he was using the Billowing Cloud Finger, the power behind it was much stronger than Chu Yunxi¡¯s. Even Liu Yuan and Liu Lan would be affected by it!


    Chu Tianxiong wanted to kill all three of them so nothing would ever happen to him in the future!


    Long Chen had not expected Dongfang Tianyu toe out of nowhere and make that sort of statement. Chu Tianxiong was about to kill all three of them, plunging Liu Yuan and Liu Lan into despair.


    Liu Yuan stood in front of Long Chen. As an initial Heavenly Core Realm cultivator himself, he intended to use his strongest attack to block Chu Tianxiong¡¯s attack, and he hoped that he would be able to attract Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s attention in the process!


    But there was no need for him to do so.


    When everyone thought Long Chen was as good as dead, a figure suddenly appeared in front of Liu Yuan. They easily caught Chu Tianxiong¡¯s Billowing Cloud Finger with just his bare hand.


    Long Chen smiled. The vige was not veryrge, so Dongfang Xuanxiao had long detected the drama unfolding at the entrance.


    When Dongfang Xuanxiao appeared, everyone nervously wondered what would happen next. Since he had saved Long Chen, Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan had lost their chance to finish the teenager off.


    Everyone remained silent, unsure of what to do.


    Chu Tianxiong suddenly remembered that he was afraid of Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    <em>He used his palm to block my Billowing Cloud Finger ¡­ </em>Even though he had heard that Dongfang Xuanxiao was strong, he thought that there wouldn¡¯t be a big gap in power, considering he was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, but the difference was indeed massive.


    ¡°Greetings, Lord Xuanxiao!¡±


    ¡°Greetings, Lord Xuanxiao!¡±


    Jin Luan was very afraid and dared not utter any words after seeing Dongfang Xuanxiao block Chu Tianxiong¡¯s attack with utmost ease.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s gaze was cold when he looked at the anxious Dongfang Tianyu. ¡°Tianyu, who gave you permission to kill my people?¡±


    Dongfang Tianyu took a few steps back. ¡°Fourth Uncle, he has just joined the inner family, yet he has killed innocent people! He killed the grandsons of the Grand Elders. Doesn¡¯t he deserve to be punished?¡±


    ¡°Hmph! You have such a pretty way with words. I won¡¯t punish you now, but I will ry this to your father. He will decide your punishment.¡±


    He then ignored Dongfang Tianyu and asked Long Chen, ¡°What happened?¡±


    Knowing he had Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s support, Long Chen was not afraid and told the truth, including the ck figure.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao frowned when he heard the story, while both Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan¡¯s faces paled. If it was true, that meant that Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en¡¯s deaths were justified.


    They had tried to kill someone from the inner family but were killed instead. To the Lingwu family, this was a crime that would affect even their family members. If Dongfang Xuanxiao got angry now, it was possible that he would kill both Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong!


    ¡°Do you still want to kill Long Chen?¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao asked inly.


    Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan lowered their heads. Even though they were still angry at Long Chen, they dared not say otherwise. ¡°We do not!¡±


    They had to ept that Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en had been killed by Long Chen.


    As for their family members, all of them were sad and angry when they heard that the two youths had died, but there was nothing they could do.


    Long Chen was not someone they could bully. From today onwards, he was a member of the inner family. Even the Grand Elders could not kill him.


    Liu Yuan and Liu Lan knew that Long Chen was now out of their control. He was far above them.


    ¡°You are dismissed. We will head back to Lingwu City tomorrow whether it rains or not!¡±


    Following Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s order, everyone dispersed. Before Dongfang Tianyu left, he red at Long Chen. His eyes were filled with murderous intent.


    ¡°You go back too,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao told Long Chen.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Long Chen dared not say more and nodded.


    ¡°I know that Tianyu has a Thunder Talisman,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly said.


    Long Chen was shocked. That meant that Dongfang Tianyu was the man in ck! But he was even more shocked that Dongfang Xuanxiao would tell him this.


    Technically, Dongfang Xuanxiao should¡¯ve favored his nephew more, but to think he favored Long Chen instead!


    Dongfang Tianyu was the one who had suggested that they stay one more night at the base. He might¡¯ve hated Long Chen due to Chu Yunxi¡¯s influence.


    And he coincidentally saw Liu Lan exiting the base, so he thought of the n to help Chu Yunxi find justice.


    ¡°I know he¡¯s the person in ck.¡± Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°What do you think about joining the inner family?¡±


    ¡°There ispetition everywhere, including the inner family. My rule is to never offend someone if they don¡¯t offend me. But if someone does, I will return it a hundred fold.¡± Long Chen did not need to hold back in front of Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    ¡°I like you. Your behavior is the same as mine, pride that yields to no one.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao revealed a rare smile. It was clear that he was very satisfied with Long Chen.


    ¡°Go back for now. There are many things to do once you enter the inner family.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said goodbye.


    The qualifiers finally ended. The results: Long Chen and Yin Mengyao came out victorious while Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi died in the mountains, their corpses forever scattered to the wind.


    ***


    ¡°That bastard Dongfang Tianyu tried to kill me!¡± Long Chen huffed.


    ¡°That¡¯s because you are too boastful. Haha, that¡¯s what you get for offending someone!¡± Ling Xi appeared from the sword andnded on the tea table. Her body was small, but her face was exquisite. Whoever looked at her would be stunned by her beauty.


    ¡°I¡¯m not that boastful, but Ling Xi, how much power do you have left from the Soul Grass?¡± Long Chen asked worryingly.


    Ling Xi had to reveal herself once more to kill Chu Yunxi.


    And she hadn¡¯t merely used a simple attack, but an entire martial technique. She wouldn¡¯t have been able to kill Chu Yunxi otherwise.


    ¡°I still have half of it left. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t die.¡± Ling Xi was afraid he would be worried, so she feigned that she was fine.


    Thinking about how she could die at any time, she was bitter in her heart. She was envious of Liu Lan sometimes for being able to disy the charms of a woman while she was only a sword spirit. She could die at any time and needed a lot of money to survive.


    ¡°Half? Looks like I have to find you something else once we enter the inner family,¡± Long Chen stated.


    ¡°Long Chen, won¡¯t you feel burdened because of me? Am I being annoying?¡± Ling Xi¡¯s voice trembled.


    She was happy that Long Chen kept prioritizing her, but she was also sad.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be stupid.¡± Long Chen tapped his finger on her head. ¡°I¡¯m investing in you. I¡¯m feeding you spiritual herbs so you can save me from danger. Why would I not be happy?¡±


    ¡°Ouch!¡± Ling Xi covered her head and red at Long Chen with her big eyes. ¡°I knew it! You are just using me for profit!¡±


    Long Chenughed.


    Long Chen then took out the Universe Pouches he had taken from Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure they were richer than Li Feng and Wang Dan. Xiao Xi, do you think their money will be enough to sustain a money-burning machine like you?¡±


    Ling Xi was indeed someone who needed a lot of money. Ever since Long Chen had left Baiyang Town, all of his money had been spent on purchasing spiritual herbs for her.


    ¡°You are the money-burning machine! You spent a hundred thousand divine jades on the Demonic Blood Essence and the zing Thunder Crystals! Thebined cost of my spiritual herbs don¡¯t evene close to it!¡± Ling Xi remembered the cost of each spiritual herb clearly. She had been doing so in case Long Chen used it as an excuse against her so she could counterattack!


    ¡°Fine, fine.¡± Long Chen could never win against her, so he checked the Universe Pouches.


    ¡°In total, they had a total of two million divine jades! With the four hundred thousand that I got earlier, we now have more than two and a half million divine jades! Ling Xi, we¡¯re rich!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were glimmering.


    ¡°Two and a half million?¡± Ling Xi counted with her fingers, but she didn¡¯t know how much it was. ¡°How much delicious food can you get for me?¡±


    ¡°Not only that, they have numerous spiritual herbs and martial techniques, but they don¡¯t have a lot of advanced ck-tier techniques ¡­ Wait, what is this?¡±


    Long Chen took out a martial technique book that he liked. It was the method to cultivate the Mountain Shattering Kick technique.


    ¡°Oh, I do need a technique that uses the legs. I can learn it tonight ¡­¡±


    Long Chen managed to almost master the technique. It was really by the time he was done; even Ling Xi was asleep. She needed to sleep to heal herself.


    <em>It¡¯ste at night. Now¡¯s the perfect time to do something evil! </em>Long Chen¡¯s eyes shone with excitement. After checking that Ling Xi was indeed asleep, he carefully made his way to Liu Lan¡¯s room. At the same time, Liu Lan was looking out her window.


    The door to her room suddenly opened, leaving her shocked. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡±


    But when she saw it was Long Chen, her heart started beating rapidly. She recalled that was going to take a step further and didn¡¯t know what to do,


    ¡°Long Chen, what do you want?!¡± Liu Lan¡¯s chest heaved.


    ¡°Revenge!¡± Long Chenughed obscenely. He pushed her onto the bed while she was stunned and raised her butt up high.


    <em>p, p, p, p, p!</em>


    As soon as he pushed her down, the sound of skin pping skin echoed in her room.


    Long Chen spanked her almost fifty times, stopping only when his palm was red.


    Liu Lan initially assumed that he wanted to do naughty things with her and was flustered, but to think he would do something even crueler than that. He had spanked her butt so many times that it was bright red! Liu Lan dared not fight back and covered her face in the nket. She cried and moaned during the spanking session. She had never thought Long Chen would be so evil. She was sure that she would not be able to get out of bed tomorrow, and the others would definitely assume that they had intense sex all night!


    Liu Lany down on the bed limply when she thought about how despicable Long Chen was.


    ¡°Sob ¡­¡±


    But it didn¡¯t end there.


    The noises continued, and the scene was definitely simr.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe how psychotic you are! I¡¯ve just joined the Lingwu family, yet I almost lost my life numerous times because of you. But I suppose it¡¯s thanks to you that I got to where I am today. I¡¯ve defeated Chu Yunxi and entered the inner family, so I¡¯m here to honor my bet. But ¡­ I had spank you fifty times as punishment! Goodbye!¡±


    He then threw Liu Lan back onto her bed and ran away.


    <em>Fuck, if Ling Xi wasn¡¯t around, I would¡¯ve slept with her! </em>Long Chen sighed regrettably.


    He remembered the sensation of his palm on her butt and felt his heart beating fast too.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Not sure how to react to this


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 186: Stepfather

    Chapter 186: Stepfather


    Category Five ck-tier beast, Savage Wind Peng.


    A Savage Wing Peng was twice asrge as a Divine Gale Peng and much tamer. It was also faster, requiring only half a day to reach Lingwu City from the Nine Devil Mountains.


    All the Grand Elders and even Dongfang Xuanxiao used the Savage Wind Peng as transportation.


    Tens of Savage Wind Peng were flying high in the sky, castingrge shadows on the ground. The people walking down below thought that the sun was being blocked, but when they looked up, all they saw were the massive birds.


    Only those with a higher status had the privilege to ride Savage Wing Pengs.


    Long Chen was currently sitting on the back of the Savage Wind Peng at the forefront. Apanying him were Dongfang XUanxiao and Yin Mengyao. As for Dongfang Tianyu, he was currently riding the same one as Chu Yunyao.


    Liu Yuan and Liu Lan were riding the one that Gu Batian was on.


    Now that Long Chen had entered the inner family, he would be supporting Liu Yuan and Liu Lan so at the very least he wouldn¡¯t get chased out.


    No one had expected such massive events to take ce when they first left for the Nine Devil Mountains.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was currently sitting silently at the front, while Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were talking at the back.


    ¡°Long Chen, did you know that once we conclude the ceremony to join the inner family, we have to refer to Dongfang Xuanxiao as ¡®stepfather?¡¯¡± Yin Mengyao suddenly asked.


    ¡°What?¡± Long Chen was shocked. No one had told him about this.


    Long Chen was ufortable with calling someone his stepfather because he already had a father in his heart, Long Qinn.


    ¡°You really didn¡¯t know?¡± Yin Mengyao was surprised too.


    ¡°Is that a rule?¡± Long Chen was confused. Dongfang Xuanxiao had indeed treated him well, and if it was the rule, then he would indeed have to follow it when he joined the inner family.


    ¡°It is the rule. But there are benefits too.¡± Yin Mengyao was more than happy to ept it. Her parents had died when she was young, so she was excited to have someone this strong as her stepfather.


    ¡°Those that enter the inner family through the qualifiers must first be added to the family register of the Lingwu family. There are no disciples and masters in the inner family, only fathers and sons or fathers and daughters. Since we are joining the inner family, we are naturally being epted as the stepson and stepdaughter of Dongfang Xuanxiao. You must never reject it. This will allow us to obtain protection from Dongfang Xuanxiao like a real father. We will also be able to obtain a lot of resources.¡±


    Long Chen understood now. With Dongfang Xuanxiao as his stepfather, he would be under his protection.


    ¡°I am more than happy to be his stepson if he¡¯s that strong.¡± Long Chen was fine with it. He had seen how strong Dongfang Xuanxiao was.


    ¡°You really don¡¯t know how lucky you are. Almost everyone from the outer family wants to be Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s stepchildren.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve seen his temperament, right? He¡¯s cold to outsiders but kind to the people close to him. Didn¡¯t you see how he saved you even after you killed Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en?¡±


    Long Chen was indeed satisfied with Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s character. But for some reason, no matter how brave he was, he would still be suppressed by Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    ¡°More importantly, he doesn¡¯t have a wife and children. Now that we¡¯ve be his stepchildren, our positions will be very high!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not married?¡± Long Chen couldn''t believe it. Even though Dongfang Xuanxiao looked young, he was actually in his forties. Not being married at his age meant that his romantic life was tumultuous in the past!


    Just as Yin Mengyao had said, since Dongfang Xuanxiao didn¡¯t have children of his own, his stepchildren would be able to monopolize all his love. Their position and ranking would be the same as the other inner family youths!


    ¡°Does that mean we can do anything we want?¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes were glimmering.


    ¡°Lord Xuanxiao¡¯s generation should be second only to the Patriarch and some of the Elders. There are four people in his generation, with the codenames Wind, Rain, Cloud, and Mist. I¡¯ve heard that Lord Xuanxiao has not been given any responsibilities, but he is the strongest among all of them. If the Patriarch and the Elders are not at the scene, then the four of them are the strongest fighters.¡±


    ¡°The strongest ¡­¡± Long Chen was receptive to the idea of bing Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s stepson. It was not like he was recognizing someone else as his true father, plus he admired Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s strength and character. Long Chen felt like his luck had finally turned for the better with Dongfang Xuanxiao taking care of him.


    ¡°Long Chen, do you remember the Star Devil Prison?¡± Yin Mengyao suddenly asked.


    ¡°Of course, once we settle down in the inner family, let¡¯s tell him about it.¡±


    Yin Mengyao was grateful that Long Chen still remembered it.


    ¡°Oh, and we are siblings now,¡± she suddenly said.


    ¡°Erm ¡­¡± Since Dongfang Xuanxiao was going to be their stepfather, that meant they would be step-siblings.


    Yin Mengyao raised her fist and threatened Long Chen when she saw him in a daze. ¡°You don¡¯t want to be my brother?¡±


    ¡°I do, of course I do. Please ept my apologies.¡±


    ¡°I also have a younger brother. So he would be your younger brother too.¡± Yin Mengyao suddenly smiled.


    ¡°You mean Mo Xiang, that monster?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°He¡¯s not the only monster, you are one too. Both of you are monsters. But I¡¯m happy to have both of you in my life.¡±


    Yin Mengyao smiled at the skies.


    ¡°We just need Mo Xiang to be with us too.¡±


    ***


    Long Chen was going to enter the inner city of Lingwu City for the first time.


    After bidding Liu Yuan, Liu Lan, and Gu Batian goodbye, he followed Dongfang Xuanxiao into the inner city.


    It was not an extravagant ce, but the architecture was timeless. Each brick and tile wasid in such a way that they were beautiful but not gaudy.


    There weren¡¯t a lot of people in the inner city, but it was not a small ce. Besides the few buildings, there were a lot of trees, flowers, hills, and forests. It was a breathtaking ce to be in.


    Long Chen felt much better after he took a deep breath of the fresh air. It felt especially good after spending so much time in the Nine Devil Mountains.


    He and Yin Mengyao followed Dongfang Xuanxiao, and they soon arrived at the residence of the Eastern Azure Dragon family. It was not morous, but it was exquisite. Each of the boards used to build the ce came from ancient wood that released a weak yet fragrant scent.


    The inner city was very quiet. Even though the residence was massive, there were only a hundred or so people living there. Long Chen had walked for a long time but hadn¡¯t run into anyone.


    ¡°We in the Lingwu family favor our own survival skills, so we do not have servants and guards. You have to do everything yourself. If you want to eat delicious food, you have to either ask someone to bring it here or go out on your own,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao exined to them.


    It was because of this particr rule that the entire ce was quiet and peaceful, a perfect environment for cultivation.


    ¡°I will first take you to my ce before meeting the person responsible for the daily activities of the Eastern Azure Dragon family, my brother Dongfang Xuanfeng. I will then take you to the ancestral mausoleum.¡±


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao soon arrived at a courtyard. There was a small stream and a lot of nts here.


    ¡°From here onwards, this is where you will live. It¡¯s up to you how to decorate or live here. Prepare yourselves. I will be back in an hour.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Yin Mengyao dared not say much and nodded in front of Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao looked at Long Chen before he left.


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao smiled at each other. ¡°How do you feel about living with me from now on?¡±


    ¡°Stop it. I¡¯m your sister. Don¡¯t you dare get any funny ideas.¡± Yin Mengyao chuckled. ¡°Call me ¡®sister¡¯ from now on, and as a reward, I will clean your room and the courtyard.¡±


    Long Chen would never turn down such a good deal.


    ¡°Man, people with sisters have it good.¡±


    They stayed in their room for a moment before unpacking. An hour soon passed, and Dongfang Xuanxiao returned.


    ¡°I live just five hundred meters away from here at the Xuanxiao Pavilion. You cane find me if you need anything.¡± Even though Dongfang Xuanxiao was a man of few words, he was good with details.


    He liked Yin Mengyao for being calm, strong, and kind. As for Long Chen, he was even more surprised by his talent and character.


    Although he did not say it out loud, Dongfang Xuanxiao was more than happy to have children their age.


    He then took them to the next ce.


    Yin Mengyao was not very vocal and neither was Dongfang Xuanxiao. Long Chen was the only talkative one out of the trio, but he dared not say anything to Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Hence, their travel was silent.


    ¡°There is stillpetition amongst the members of the family. Tianyu is my elder brother¡¯s son, so you need to be careful,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly warned Long Chen when they were almost at their destination.


    Long Chen had seen a lot of it and was already expectingpetition where people would do everything in their power to strike at theirpetitors.


    But since Dongfang Xuanxiao had taken the initiative to mention, it meant that he now considered them his own children. It was clear that he was on Long Chen¡¯s side.


    They reached their destination and saw a que at the top of the building. It read: Xuanfeng Pavillion.


    ¡°Enter.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao told them.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    It''s like having Keanu Reeves as your stepfather


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 187: Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant’s Reaction

    Chapter 187: Mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant¡¯s Reaction


    Once the qualifiers were over, the news about Long Chen and Yin Mengyao entering the inner family quickly spread all over.


    Everyone at the Turquoise Sun Hall felt like their faces had been pped.


    Information regarding Long Chen and Yin Mengyao¡¯s performance had been given out to everyone to read, including Dongfang Xuanfeng.


    The current generation had four strong cultivators: Wind, Rain, Cloud, and Mist. All of them were at thete Heavenly Core Realm. There are several others at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, but only six of them were present today. The others were busy with work.


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao followed Dongfang Xuanxiao into the Xuanfeng Pavilion. Soon, they arrived at a hall where they saw a lot of people, all of whom were sitting. At the center of the people were four seats. There were already three people sitting on them.


    One of them looked simr to Dongfang Xuanxiao, but he was clearly older. The middle-aged man had white strands of hair sprinkled among his ck hair, but his face was kind and all smiles.


    Long Chen guessed that he was Dongfang Xuanfeng, the one in charge of managing the family.


    Behind Dongfang Xuanfeng was his son, Dongfang Tianyu.


    To the left of Dongfang Xuanfeng was a middle-aged woman. She was already old, but her beauty still remained. She looked like she was in her thirties.


    But unlike Dongfang Xuanfeng, her gaze was cruel and it was clear that she was strict.


    She had to be Dongfang Xuanyu.


    To the right of Dongfang Xuanfeng was a skinny man. He wasn¡¯t as formal as the other two, but his smile was radiant and he didn¡¯t look as old as them. That was probably Dongfang Xuanyun.


    Today, all four of them were present for the ceremony.


    There are others present as well, though they are not as famous nor as strong as the main four.


    The moment Long Chen and Yin Mengyao entered the Xuanfeng Pavilion, everyone started staring at them, especially at Long Chen.


    All of them knew about Long Chen¡¯s performance and how he had killed both Chu Yunxi and Jin Sheng¡¯en.


    ¡°Brother, and the two talented youths, please sit down.¡± Dongfang Xuanfeng smiled warmly.


    Doing as they were told, Long Chen and Yin Mengyao sat down, and Dongfang Xuanxiao sat beside them instead of taking his seat above.


    ¡°Long Chen, Mengyao, introduce yourselves to them,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao said.


    It was the rule. Long Chen and Yin Mengyao introduced themselves and said some words of courtesy.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng smiled and introduced them to their step uncles and step aunts. Long Chen memorized all of their names.


    Dongfang Xuanyu stared at Long Chen inly. ¡°You must be Long Chen. To think you managed to defeat the strongest young genius of the outer family. Not bad.¡±


    Yin Mengyao was too in and rule-abiding, so they all ignored her. Instead, they were more interested in Long Chen joining the Eastern Azure Dragon family. Even Dongfang Xuanyun was looking at Long Chen with admiration.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that I¡¯m strong, it¡¯s just that Jin Sheng¡¯en was falsely given the title of the strongest. Those of us from the outer family must look like jokers to the people of the inner family.¡± None of them knew if Long Chen was being humble or happy.


    All of them were also fascinated by the fact that Long Chen remained calm even though he was talking with the strongest cultivators. Dongfang Xuanyu¡¯s mouth twitched. ¡°Brother, ording to the rules, I should be training them now that they are members of the inner family. But I¡¯m not so sure about their strength, so how about a demonstration?¡±


    Long Chen realized that Dongfang Xuanyu was somehow targeting him. He suddenly saw Dongfang Tianyu smiling with delight behind Dongfang Xuanfeng.


    <em>It seems that the woman adores Dongfang Tianyu ¡­</em>


    Dongfang Tianyu did not miss a beat after Dongfang Xuanyu stopped talking. ¡°Since Second Aunt wants to check their strength, let me spar with junior Long Chen. It will be helpful for his cultivation.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanyu nodded. ¡°Tianyu is at thete Earthly Core Realm, so he should be able to help him improve.¡±


    Everyone then eagerly waited for them to start. They wanted to see how the rumored genius would fight.


    Long Chen looked at Dongfang Xuanxiao. As he expected, Dongfang Xuanxiao raised his head. ¡°Long Chen and Yin Mengyao¡¯s cultivation will be supervised by me. You don¡¯t have to worry about it.¡±


    ¡°Brother, are you trying to break the rules?¡± Dongfang Xuanyu¡¯s voice turned cold.


    Seeing that they were about to fight, Dongfang Xuanfeng immediately stopped both of them. ¡°No need to fight here. Sister, you are in the wrong too. They have just joined and haven¡¯t even had the chance to settle down yet. How could you ask them to fight? Now that everyone is here, we should head to the ancestral mausoleum. We need to let them pray to our ancestors first.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Under Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s guidance, Long Chen and Yin Mengyao followed everyone towards the ancestral mausoleum.


    Long Chen suddenly felt pressured by his surroundings.


    <em>Ignoring the old monsters, there are four cultivators at thete Heavenly Core Realm and tens of cultivators at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. All of them could kill me easily. The Lingwu family is indeed strong and thepetition is fierce. I thought I would be able to act however I wanted, but I suppose I need to keep a low profile to not offend anyone. Dongfang Xuanyu is already not fond of me.</em>


    Yin Mengyao asked him, ¡°Long Chen, why aren¡¯t the rest of the youths of the Eastern Azure Dragon family here? Dongfang Tianyu is the only one. I haven¡¯t seen Dongfang Tianchen, Dongfang Tianxing, or Dongfang Tianxuan yet.¡±


    Long Chen had never heard of those names before.


    ¡°Are they strong?¡± Long Chen estimated that the youths of the Dongfang family would be roughly as strong as Beitang Mo, so although Dongfang Tianyu could be considered a genius in the outer family, he was most likely one of the weaker ones here.


    ¡°They are indeed strong. Dongfang Tianxing and Dongfang Tianxuan are at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, while Dongfang Tianchen is the strongest youth in the Eastern Azure Dragon family. He¡¯s young, but he is already at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. One more step and he will be as as strong as Dongfang Xuanxiao and the Grand Elders.¡±


    Long Chen was shocked at what he heard.


    <em>Mid Heavenly Core Realm?</em>


    Long Chen and Dongfang Tianchen both had the character ¡°Chen¡± in their names, but the gap between them was huge.


    Being merely at the initial Earthly Core Realm, Long Chen felt very small and insignificant. Although he could walk with pride in the outer family, he was at the very bottom in the inner family.


    But instead of feeling defeated, he was motivated.


    <em>I¡¯vee this far from Baiyang Town. I will be able to surpass them as long as I work hard. Dongfang Tianchen might be strong, but Mo Xiang is even more of a monster. As his brother, I cannot be weak.</em>


    Dongfang Xuanxiao heard their conversation and exined, ¡°The other youths are training, and Tianchen and the rest are away with my father for their own training. They will return after some time.¡±


    Long Chen sighed. He was thankful that those monsters weren¡¯t present, or he would¡¯ve felt even more pressured.


    He was already under a lot of pressure without them here.


    ¡°Dongfang Tianchen is Lord Xuanfeng¡¯s eldest son and Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s brother,¡± Yin Mengyao said to Long Chen, her concern obvious.


    ¡°I see.¡± Long Chen was shocked and told himself to never show off to them while he was still weak. He didn¡¯t mind acting meek if it meant he could be stronger.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry and work hard. I will set a goal for you. You will be facing a big trial soon, and as long as you pass, everything will be possible,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao assured them.


    ¡°Trial?¡± Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were surprised.


    ¡°We¡¯ve arrived at the ancestral mausoleum.¡±


    They raised their heads and saw a majestic mountain, then they noticed that a building was embedded inside it. The building was made of dark gold and exuded an air of authority.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Long Chen suddenly felt a reaction from the Dragon Jade Pendant when they got close to the ancestral mausoleum.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant had not reacted to anything in a long time.


    <em>Maybe there¡¯s something good in there, </em>Long Chen secretly noted.


    Long Chen only realized how massive the mausoleum was when they got close. Dongfang Xuanfeng pressed a button, and the gates opened.


    <em>Creak ¡­</em>


    The gates were huge and the sound of metallic screeching was intense.


    The interior was brightly lit.


    Long Chen saw that there was a que at the top of the door. It depicted an Azure Dragon flying through the skies with its ws outstretched. It was a magnificent decoration.


    <em>Is this the mausoleum of the Eastern Azure Dragon family?</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 188: Azure Dragon Halberd tournament

    Chapter 188: Azure Dragon Halberd tournament


    <em>There¡¯s indeed something attracting me to the depths of the mausoleum.</em>


    Long Chen was sure once he walked inside.


    The corridor was long and was roughly five meters tall and wide and was illuminated bynterns hanging on the wall. The walls were made from iron-like bricks.


    After walking past the fiftiethntern, Long Chen came out in an open space.


    It was a massive, barren, underground room. There was nothing in it except for a few items here and there, but the atmosphere was serious and formal.


    Long Chen was not attracted to the memorial tablets, but what was beyond them. There was another dark, golden door behind them.


    <em>The Dragon Jade Pendant is reacting to something behind the door, </em>Long Chen noted.


    There were many engravings of flying dragons within the mausoleum. All of them were very realistic and beautiful.


    This was the ancestral mausoleum of the Eastern Azure Dragon family.


    Everyone then started approaching the memorial tablets. Long Chen then realized that the walls had thousands of little doors. At the top of each door was an engraving of a small dragon.


    ¡°Don¡¯t stare too much. Behind those doors are where the ancestors wereid to rest.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s voice startled Long Chen and forced him to look forward.


    In front of them were numerous memorial tablets. Some wererge, while others were small. A massive tablet around two meters tall was in the middle of them all.


    <em>That must be the memorial tablet of the Eastern Azure Dragon family¡¯s ancestor, </em>Long Chen deduced.


    Behind the stone tablet was a door, and beyond that door was what the Dragon Jade Pendant was reacting to.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng and the others approached the memorial tablets of their ancestors silently and solemnly.


    Everyone bowed to their ancestors once before informing Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, ¡°After you pray to the ancestors, you will be members of the Eastern Azure Dragon family, as well as the children of Dongfang Xuanxiao. Now do the three kowtows and nine bows.¡±


    <em>I hope my father doesn¡¯t crawl out of the grave. He might kill me if he finds I recognized others as my ancestors. </em>Long Chen and Yin Mengyao obediently did what they were told.


    ¡°ce the incense.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanfeng took out a bunch of incense from his Universe Pouch. There were hundreds of memorial tablets, so Long Chen and Yin Mengyao took quite a bit of time to ce an incense stick on each of the incense burners.


    Long Chen was cursing in his heart when he was done, but he didn¡¯t show it.


    ¡°Kneel,¡± Dongfang Xuanfeng said.


    Long Chen hesitated before he kneeled. <em>Being strong is the only way to do what I want, so I can¡¯t do anything stupid now. Plus, Dongfang Xuanxiao is a good person.</em>


    Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly held both of them to prevent them from kneeling. ¡°No need to do that. As the saying goes, men have gold beneath their knees[1]. We don¡¯t have to do this part. Long Chen, Yin Mengyao, do you know what to call me from now on?¡±


    Long Chen was even more satisfied to be with Dongfang Xuanxiao. He was not bound by tradition and rules, a trait Long Chen admired.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng merely scolded his brother under his breath before choosing to say nothing. ¡°Nonsense.¡± He knew he could do nothing with how stubborn his brother was.


    Even though the four of them referred to each other as brothers and sisters, they were merely cousins.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s parents had passed away early on. while Dongfang Xuanfeng and Dongfang Xuanyu were the children of the current patriarch.


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao knew what to say. ¡°Stepfather.¡±


    Long Chen was a prideful man, but he knew when to admire others. The stronger the opponent, the more in awe he would be. But it was not from fear, he was just being humble and careful so he wouldn¡¯t die.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was happy in his heart, but he did not disy it on his face. He merely smiled inly.


    ¡°From this moment onwards, you are official members of the Eastern Azure Dragon family. There won¡¯t be any difference between you and me, but more importantly, you are my stepson and stepdaughter.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Alright, now that we¡¯ve prayed to the ancestors, we should leave and stop disturbing their rest.¡± Dongfang Xuanfengughed. From the way he spoke and acted, it didn¡¯t seem like he rejected Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, but Dongfang Xuanyu was not in a good mood, especially after Dongfang Xuanxiao skipped the part where Long Chen and Yin Mengyao should kneel.


    ¡°One more thing.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao turned around and looked at Dongfang Xuanfeng. ¡°Brother, about the decision of who will obtain the Azure Dragon Halberd ¡­ If I remember correctly, the results should be out soon. Since they are my children and are already at the Earthly Core Realm, they¡¯re qualified to participate in the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament, right?¡±


    Before Dongfang Xuanfeng could answer, Dongfang Xuanyu interjected, ¡°Are you joking? They¡¯re from the outer family and they just joined us. Don¡¯t even think about it.¡±


    Her words immediately caused the atmosphere to tense up. Dongfang Xuanxiao gave her a cold look. ¡°They¡¯ve prayed to the ancestors, so they are my children now. What do you mean by ¡®outer family?¡¯¡±


    He then started ring at her, and even Dongfang Xuanyu started to waver. She was afraid of him.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng immediately stepped in to stop them. ¡°Sister, please mind your words. You are in the wrong here. All youths at the Earthly Core Realm qualify for the tournament. Long Chen and Yin Mengyao will naturally be able to participate in it.¡±


    After getting his answer, Dongfang Xuanxiao led Long Chen and Yin Mengyao out of the ce.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Dongfang Xuanfeng didn¡¯t even bat an eye before preparing to leave the ce.


    ¡°Brother,¡± Dongfang Xuanyu whispered to him, ¡°how could you approve of this?¡±


    ¡°They are from the outer family. Do you think they have the strength to touch the Azure Dragon Halberd? Do you think Tianyu is weak? Whether I approve or not, the result will not change.¡± Dongfang Xuanfeng¡¯s expression became gloomy.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think any of that.¡± Dongfang Xuanyu fell silent when she considered Long Chen¡¯s chances.


    ¡°Sister, did Tianyuin about something to you?¡± Dongfang Xuanfeng asked inly.


    He knew about everything that had taken ce in the Nine Devil Mountains.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t give him too much love, or he will end up spoiled. A flower in a greenhouse could never defeat the wolves of the mountains.¡±


    ***


    When the newly formed family returned to their home, Xuanxiao did not enter immediately. He asked Long Chen and Yin Mengyao to sit with him in the courtyard. Yin Mengyao poured a cup of tea for all of them as if she was the daughter of the family.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was relishing in the feeling of finally having children on his own.


    ¡°Stepfather, what¡¯s on your mind?¡± Yin Mengyao brushed her hair in the beautiful courtyard.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao snapped back and smiled sheepishly. ¡°Nothing. I was thinking that if I had married in my twenties, my children would probably be the same age as you.¡±


    ¡°Then doesn¡¯t that mean it¡¯s fine not to get married? Your two children here are even better.¡± Long Chenughed to lighten up the atmosphere.


    He was initially very awkward around Dongfang Xuanxiao, but he had be much morefortable after spending some time together.


    ¡°You sure boast a lot.¡± Yin Mengyao rolled her eyes.


    The atmosphere was great. Even though the three of them weren¡¯t rted by blood, none of them were thinking about hurting each other. Yin Mengyao and Long Chen had even fought side by side mere days ago!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao smiled at Long Chen¡¯s crudement. He had been keeping tabs on Long Chen for a long time, ever since he defeated Feng Wutian, so he hand some understanding of his new stepson.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯ve just entered the inner family. Have you heard about the Azure Dragon Halberd?¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao wanted to exin the main reason he had gathered them here.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of it. It¡¯s one of the five Earth-tier Divine Weapons of the Lingwu family,¡± Long Chen said.


    He was more than happy to qualify for the tournament. There were indeed a lot of benefits to joining the inner family. To think he would be able to get into contact with the Azure Dragon Halberd so soon!


    Xuanxiao nodded. ¡°The Azure Dragon Halberd contains a martial technique called the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. It¡¯s an advanced ck-tier martial technique, but there is also an Earth-tier martial technique hidden within it. If you master it, you are guaranteed to have a bright future. But there are two main obstacles you must ovee if you want to get your hands on the weapon.¡±


    ¡°Two obstacles?¡± Long Chen was interested.


    He was very excited when he learned about the Azure Dragon Combat Technique and the Earth-tier martial technique.


    If he could obtain it, he wouldn¡¯t need to be afraid of Dongfang Tianyu and Dongfang Tianchen.


    ¡°The first is to obtain the right to even touch the Azure Dragon Halberd. Only one person can have it, and there are numerous youths aged fourteen to fifteen who are at the mid Earthly Core Realm. They might be young, but they are not weak. Long Chen, your biggest threat would be Tianyu.¡±


    <em>Mid Earthly Core Realm at fourteen or fifteen years old? What kind of monsters are they?</em>


    Jin Sheng¡¯en was considered a genius for being at the mid Earthly Core Realm at his age. To think youths more talented than him were abundant in the inner family.


    ¡°I know he¡¯s at thete Earthly Core Realm, and I assume his martial techniques are better than mine.¡± Long Chen had to admit that he was not Dongfang Tianyu¡¯s match.


    Dongfang Tianyu had been raised in the inner family, so he had ess to far more resources than Long Chen.


    He had already demonstrated this as well as his strength when he changed into the man with ck robes to kill Long Chen through Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi.


    ¡°Not only that, Tianyu is favored by my sister. I know that she has given him a lot of things, such as the Thunder Talisman. He also has an advanced ck-tier Divine Weapon. His martial techniques, Body Combat techniques, and Body Tempering techniques are all at the advanced ck-tier too.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had exined everything nonchntly, but Long Chen was stunned.


    <em>Mother fucker. </em>Long Chen cursed inside him.


    1. ancient saying: A man should have dignity and not grovel or bow down. ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Dongfang Xuanxiao is a badass


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 189: Nine Dragon Flashes

    Chapter 189: Nine Dragon shes


    Long Chen realized that the outer family was living in povertypared to the inner family.


    For example, Dongfang Tianyu had the best martial techniques, Body Combat techniques, and Body Tempering techniques. More importantly, on top of the Thunder Talisman, he also had an extremely powerful advanced ck-tier Divine Weapon. How could Long Chen possibly defeat him?


    ¡°Tianyu has been at thete Earthly Core Realm for a year and a half. I estimate that he will enter the Heavenly Core Realm in another two months.¡±


    ¡°Will I even stand a chance against him at that point?¡± Long Chen was speechless. Tianyu was far superior to him in all aspects. He would lose even if he used the Blood Devouring Domain.


    ¡°What¡¯s the second obstacle?¡± Yin Mengyao asked.


    ¡°If you can ovee the first one and receive permission to touch the Azure Dragon Halberd, the second obstacle will be to obtain the weapon¡¯s approval. You will only be able to learn its techniques if it deems you worthy. But that won¡¯t be easy. If I recall correctly, three people in Tianyu''s generation have touched the Azure Dragon Halberd, but only Tianchen was approved by it.¡±


    <em>Dongfang Tianchen again?</em>


    ¡°Is it that difficult?¡± Long Chen was surprised.


    He had heard that Mo Xiang had passed the third stage and made his Divine Weapon recognize him as its owner, so Long Chen assumed it would be easy.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao looked at him inly. ¡°Are you feeling afraid? Long Chen, that¡¯s not how you face things.¡±


    ¡°If you don''t want me to be afraid, you should give me something to make my time easier,¡± Long Chen said with a chuckle. This was his true motive.


    Yin Mengyaoughed when Long Chen finally revealed his true nature. Even Dongfang Xuanxiao shook his head. ¡°You were so obedient before this. I didn¡¯t think you would show your true self so soon.¡±


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t embarrassed at all.


    ¡°You two have to call me ¡®stepfather,¡¯ so how could I not help you? Here, this is a wee gift.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao pulled two martial technique books out of his Universe Pouch. He gave the first one to Yin Mengyao. ¡°Yin Mengyao, you already have the advanced ck-tier marital technique Churning Sea Seal. It¡¯s a good offensive move, but your Body Tempering technique iscking. This is an advanced ck-tier Body Tempering technique, the Flowing Water Body. It will allow your body to be as fluid yet as resilient as water, making it so that any opponent you face will have a hard timending an attack on you. While it won¡¯t increase your offensive capabilities, it¡¯s an excellent defensive Body Tempering technique. You need to master it before the tournament.¡±


    The Flowing Water Body was a technique more suitable for girls. It was clear Dongfang Xuanxiao had put a lot of thought into nurturing his stepson and stepdaughter.


    ¡°Thank you, Stepfather!¡± Yin Mengyao loved it and hurriedly read through it.


    She had always wanted an advanced ck-tier Body Tempering technique!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao then looked at Long Chen. ¡°You already have the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body, and it suits you. It''s a straightforward and strong technique, so you don¡¯t need the Flowing Water Body. But I do have something else for you.¡±


    Long Chen took the book and read the words on the cover: Nine Dragon shes.


    ¡°Nine Dragon shes, an advanced ck-tier Body Combat technique. It¡¯s the best one in my possession. The Nine Heavens Dragon Step is only an elementary ck-tier. Even though you are good at using it, its quality is low, so you might end up having a hard time dealing with an opponent with a stronger technique.¡±


    Long Chen knew how strong it was the instant he saw the name of the technique.


    ¡°Nine Dragon shes ¡­ As its name implies, this Body Combat technique allows you to quickly shift your location inbat. Blink, and the enemy will lose track of you. If youbine it with your martial technique, you will be able tounch devastating strikes. If you could do nine shes in a row, that means that you¡¯ve mastered it.¡±


    ¡°This is amazing.¡± Long Chen looked at the technique, barely able to contain his excitement. It was the technique that Dongfang Xuanxiao himself was using, so Long Chen knew it was amazing!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had given each of them something valuable without any reservations, and he had even given consideration to what they werecking. Long Chen was more than happy to call him stepfather.


    ¡°Stepfather, how many shes can you do?¡± Long Chen asked hesitantly.


    ¡°Nine, of course.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao smiled. ¡°There¡¯s no need to be discouraged, and don¡¯tpare yourself to others. If you can use four shes before the tournament, you will be considered a genius.¡±


    <em>Looks like I have to work hard.</em>


    ¡°Get to work and start practicing. I will leave now.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao stood up. Long Chen and Yin Mengyao put the books away before she gave him a signal.


    ¡°Stepfather, wait.¡± Long Chen called for him.


    ¡°Hm?¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao was curious to see why Long Chen was so serious.


    Long Chen took another look at Yin Mengyao and said, ¡°I¡¯ve heard that there is a ce called the Star Devil Prison in the Heavenly Martial Realm, and that disciples from the inner family are allowed to go there to cultivate. May I ask if we can cultivate there before the tournament?¡±


    When Dongfang Xuanxiao heard the Star Devil Prison being brought up, his eyes shook a little and bitterness arose in them, but he quickly hid those feelings away. ¡°You know the purpose of the Star Devil Prison?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Yin Mengyao nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve heard of it before.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao thought about it. ¡°There are ces in there with increased gravity. It could assist those who have advanced too fast in consolidating their Qi. It does have its benefits, and I think it will be another month or so before the tournament ¡­¡±


    Staring at the nervous Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, Dongfang Xuanxiao told them, ¡°Mengyao, you¡¯ve trained for four to five years in the outer family, and your cultivation level has increased steadily. The benefits of the Star Devil Prison would be minor, so I would rmend that you cultivate here.¡±


    Yin Mengyao was nervous because she had been rejected.


    ¡°As for Long Chen, I¡¯ve seen your information before. You were only at the Eighth Draconic Stage when you joined the outer family two months ago. You have advanced too fast, so the increased gravitational force would indeed help you consolidate your Qi. It would also be the ideal ce to cultivate the Nine Dragon shes. Therefore, it¡¯s a good idea to let you go there.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s final decision was to let Long Chen go, while Yin Mengyao would stay behind.


    Long Chen and Yin Mengyao were surprised by his decision. Yin Mengyao wanted to appeal, but Long Chen held her back. ¡°I will go alone, then. When can we go?¡± he asked.


    ¡°There are a few things I must do over the next few days. I will take you there once I¡¯m done. You can just stay here for now.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    Yin Mengyao understood what Long Chen wanted to say to her: <em>let me be the one to investigate first.</em>


    ¡°Is there anything else?¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao asked.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Mo Xiang wasn¡¯t the only person Long Chen was worried about¡ªhe needed to take care of Ling Xi as well.


    The power of the Soul Grass had diminished by half, and Long Chen did not want Ling Xi to die if they found themselves in another dangerous situation.


    ¡°Where can I obtain spiritual herbs in the inner family?¡±


    ¡°Spiritual herbs?¡± Everyone had their own secrets, so Dongfang Xuanxiao did not inquire as to why Long Chen wanted spiritual herbs. ¡°The resources of the family are handled by my third brother, Dongfang Xuanyun. You can find him at the Xuanyun Pavilion. It¡¯s not only his home, but also where the resources of our family are concentrated. If you need anything, you can just go there to apply for it. As long as it¡¯s not excessive, he will probably approve your request.¡±


    ¡°Immediate approval?¡± The Eastern Azure Dragon family was amazing! He wouldn¡¯t need to pay or use contribution points. The welfare of the inner family was so much better.


    ¡°My rtionship with my third brother is not bad. As long as what you need is not too scarce, he will be able to give it to you,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao said.


    After giving them directions to the Xuanyun Pavilion, Dongfang Xuanxiao left.


    Long Chen now understood that there were four pavilions.


    Xuanfeng Pavilion was where Dongfang Xuanfeng lived. Since he handled all of the matters rting to the family, the meeting hall for the family and the reception hall were constructed at his ce.


    Xuanyu Pavilion was where Dongfang Xuanyu lived. It was where she trained the youths of the family, so the martial hall and the training halls were constructed at her home.


    Xuanyun Pavilion was where Dongfang Xuanyun lived. It was also dubbed the Treasure Pavilion because that was where all of the resources of the family were kept.


    As for the Xuanxiao Pavilion, there was nothing here because he didn¡¯t have any responsibilities.


    ¡°Long Chen, will you be okay going to the Star Devil Prison yourself?¡± Yin Mengyao asked after Dongfang Xuanxiao left.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we can help Mo Xiang as we are right now. I will first investigate the area and see where he has been locked up. Only then we can save him. You can¡¯t do anything if you go now, so I will just check it out first.¡±


    Long Chen was right, so Yin Mengyao nodded. She then went ahead and started her cultivation.


    <em>My first trial as a member of the inner family is to touch the Azure Dragon Halberd? </em>Long Chen never thought he would be given the chance so soon.


    <em>I¡¯m in a dangerous position even with Xuanxiao protecting me. If Dongfang Tianyu has no qualms with fighting me in public, there is no doubt that he is willing to strike me from the shadows. If I fail the Azure Dragon Halberd Tournament, it will be hard for me to survive here. And I need to be much stronger to rescue Mo Xiang. There¡¯s also Yang Lingqing. I wonder how she¡¯s doing in the Northern ck Tortoise family. I will need the strength to help her if someone bullies her! I must fight! I have entered the inner family, there''s no turning back now!</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC''s rise to the top of the Divine Core Realm starts now!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 190: Sky Soul Fruit

    Chapter 190: Sky Soul Fruit


    Long Chen was cultivating his newly acquired advanced ck-tier Body Combat technique, Nine Dragon shes, in his home.


    <em>No wonder Dongfang Xuanxiao uses it. It¡¯s amazing. </em>He was engrossed with the book as he studied it.


    <em>If I do this, can I do the first sh? </em>Long Chen picked up the book and waltzed around the room.


    He immersed himself in the technique, and his legs suddenly moved on their own before his vision abruptly shifted.


    Long Chen had cultivated the Sword Devil Finger in no time at all, so he didn¡¯t know his limit when it came to learning new techniques.


    The main culprit behind this was the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant. Due to its presence within his sea of consciousness, Long Chen felt that hisprehension skills had been forcibly increased to the maximum.


    His overwhelmingprehension skills allowed him to master martial techniques considerably faster than others.


    ¡°I¡¯ve only been studying it for a day and a night; it seems the Nine Dragon shes is not that hard ¡­¡± Long Chen ced the book in his Universe Pouch and smiled.


    If the other cultivators who were trying to learn the same technique heard what he had said, they would probably copse from shock and vomit blood. Most people had to wait until they were at the Heavenly Core Realm to start cultivating advanced ck-tier techniques, yet Long Chen had said that the Nine Dragon shes wasn¡¯t hard.


    He did indeed find it easy.


    <em>It¡¯s time to go get the spiritual herbs for Ling Xi</em>. Long Chen exited his room.


    It was actually the first thing he wanted to do, but the Nine Dragon shes was too interesting to him. This is why he had waited a full day before heading out. But since Ling Xi still had half of the Soul Grass¡¯ power left, it wasn¡¯t all that urgent.


    Long Chen made his way over to the Xuanyun Pavilion.


    The buildings of the Eastern Azure Dragon family were quite a distance apart from each other, but the four pavilions were very conspicuous, each one sitting in a corner of the garden. It took him half an hour to arrive at his destination.


    The Xuanyun Pavilion was simr to the Xuanfeng Pavilion, but while thetter was serious and solemn, the former was enshrouded in a mist of fragrance and Qi, as if it was a pavilion for the gods.


    Just as Long Chen was about to enter, several kids walked out. They were roughly thirteen or fourteen years old. When they saw Long Chen, they started whispering amongst themselves.


    ¡°Who is he? Why is he in the inner family?¡±


    The youths of the inner family were snobbish and hostile to strangers like Long Chen.


    ¡°He should be the stepson that Fourth Uncle just brought back. I¡¯ve heard that his name is Long Chen. He¡¯s already sixteen, but he¡¯s only at the initial Earthly Core Realm,¡± one of the youths said inly.


    ¡°He¡¯s that weak? Let¡¯s y a trick on him.¡±


    ¡°Never mind that. Brother Tianyu is still waiting for us.¡±


    Long Chen ignored their whispering. To him, they were just a bunch of brats.


    But some of those brats were already at the mid Earthly Core Realm, so he also thought that they were a bit too talented.


    There weren¡¯t a lot of ces or people in the Xuanyun Pavilion, and a lot of the rooms and corridors were sealed off. Long Chen walked through the whole building before finding that only one of the doors was open. He entered and found himself in a barren room containing nothing but a chair, and there was a skinny man sitting on it.


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± The skinny man sensed that someone was there and opened his eyes slightly. He immediately recognized Long Chen.


    ¡°Greetings, Third Uncle.¡± It was indeed Xuanxiao¡¯s third brother, Dongfang Xuanyun.


    Just as Xuanxiao had said, Dongfang Xuanyun was on good terms with him, so he stood up when Long Chen entered. ¡°Do you need something from the Xuanyun Pavilion?¡±


    ¡°I need to find spiritual herbs that nourish the Divine Soul. Do you have anything like that?¡± Since Xuanyun had gone straight for business, Long Chen did not start any small talk.


    ¡°Of course.¡± Dongfang Xuanyun didn¡¯t know why Long Chen needed spiritual herbs, but he didn¡¯t ask. He took a small, golden book from the table at the back and gave it to Long Chen.


    ¡°These are the spiritual herbs that we have in stock. Just tell me what you need and I can approve it for you if it''s something basic.¡±


    Long Chen had only joined the inner family a day ago, so there weren¡¯t a lot of people he could trust. Dongfang Xuanxiao was the only one so far, but Xuanyun seemed promising. As for Dongfang Xuanyu, Long Chen felt revolted when he thought about her.


    Long Chen took the book. He saw there were roughly twenty different kinds of spiritual herbs in stock. Even their effects and price were listed.


    ¡°Dream Lingzhi Mushroom, Soul Nourishing Fruit ¡­ There¡¯s even Soul Grass. There are many more others ¡­¡± Long Chen was shocked.


    The inner family was not as lively or busy as the outer family, and the Xuanyun Pavilion was not asvishly decorated as the Treasure Pavilion of the outer family. But the Xuanyun Pavilion easily had ten times more items than the Treasure Pavilion of the outer family.


    ¡°Third Uncle, can I have two Soul Grasses?¡± It was his first time asking for resources, so Long Chen didn¡¯t dare to be too greedy.


    ¡°Two Soul Grasses?¡± Dongfang Xuanyun thought about it and nodded. ¡°Sure, but you need to register first. As you know, if everyone could simply walk in and take whatever they wanted, the pavilion would be empty in no time. Everyone has to register so that we can prevent this.¡±


    ¡°Then when can Ie back here to get more resources?¡± Even though the resources were free, Long Chen knew that there were limits to how much people could take. It was natural that the Xuanyun Pavilion didn¡¯t allow everyone to constantly take resources.


    Dongfang Xuanyun patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder and said happily, ¡°Hehe, don¡¯t worry about that. You¡¯re already calling me ¡®Third Uncle¡¯ even though you just joined the Eastern Azure Dragon family. Consider the Soul Grasses my gift to you. These areing out of my own pocket.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Third Uncle.¡± Long Chen smiled inly. Dongfang Xuanyun seemed like a good person, so it made sense that he got along well with Xuanxiao.


    ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll go grab it for you.¡± Dongfang Xuanyun walked out.


    Long Chen got bored of waiting, so he decided to take a closer look at the golden book.


    ¡°The list is sorted ording to price, with the most expensive item at the bottom. I wonder what thest herb is called?¡± He flipped through the pages until he saw the herb listed on the final page, the Sky Soul Fruit.


    ¡°Sky Soul Fruit? An advanced ck-tier spiritual herb. Its effect is very close to an Earth-tier spiritual herb, and the Lingwu family only has ¡­ one?¡±


    The Sky Soul Fruit was sure to be terrifying. When Long Chen looked at its market price, he almost copsed from shock.


    ¡°A single fruit costs ten million divine jades?!¡± He was stupefied. He had only ended up with two and a half million divine jades after killing Jin Sheng¡¯en and Chu Yunxi, but the fruit was worth ten million!


    ¡°Ten million. How long would it take me to get that much?¡± Even though Long Chen was the embodiment of confidence, he felt powerless when he saw the price.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Ling Xi suddenly shouted.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    She had been asleep the whole time, but hearing Long Chen mention the fruit had jolted her awake. In fact, she seemed very eager.


    ¡°I need the Sky Soul Fruit. It¡¯s very important ¡­¡± Ling Xi widened her eyes pitifully.


    ¡°How important?¡± Long Chen''s expression was bitter. Apparently, his Universe Pouch would bleed this time ¡­


    ¡°I can live for five years if I eat it.¡±


    ¡°Five years?!¡± Long Chen was surprised. Even though he was living a dangerous life where he could die at any time, at least Ling Xi would still be able to survive without him for a period of time if she had the fruit.


    Long Chen made his decision.


    Just then, Dongfang Xuanyun returned with two Soul Grasses in hand. ¡°Go home and continue cultivating. The tournament will probably take ce in a month. I can¡¯t wait to see your performance.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and then passed the book to him. ¡°Third Uncle, I have a question.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± Dongfang Xuanyun looked at Long Chen with uncertainty.


    ¡°What is the price that I need to pay if I want the Sky Soul Fruit?¡±


    Ling Xi was worried because Long Chen had not said anything after she told him she wanted the fruit. She was worried that he would not get it for her, but he had inquired about it instantly. She bit her lip, and tears of gratitude flowed from her eyes.


    ¡°The Sky Soul Fruit?¡± Dongfang Xuanyun gave Long Chen an uneasy look. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you need it, but it¡¯s very expensive ¡­¡±


    ¡°What do I need to do?¡± Long Chen asked again, his eyes resolute.


    Seeing how adamant Long Chen was, Dongfang Xuanyun knew that the Sky Soul Fruit was very important to him, so he just cut to the chase. ¡°I need the approval of several elders before I can give it to you. But if my calctions are correct, you won¡¯t be able to take any resources from the family for an entire year.¡±


    Unable to obtain any resources for a year in exchange for adding five years to Ling Xi¡¯s life? Long Chen knew it was worth it, so he did not hesitate at all.


    ¡°Third Uncle, I want it. Can you help me register and then send it out for approval?¡±


    Ling Xi instantly started shedding tears in the sword.


    <em>He¡¯s treating me so well, but will it be worth it for him?</em>


    She couldn¡¯t answer her own question.


    All she knew was that even if she recovered her body, she would never be able to stay with Long Chen.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I want MC''s ability toprehend stuff that rapidly. I can trade a bucket of fried chicken for it


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 191: Power of the Nine Dragon Flashes

    Chapter 191: Power of the Nine Dragon shes


    ¡°Alright, I will do my best. I will submit it, but whether or not it gets approved is beyond me.¡± Xuanyun didn¡¯t know what else he could say since Long Chen wanted the Sky Soul Fruit so badly.


    ¡°Long Chen, you just entered the family, so you might not know how important a year¡¯s worth of resources is. Are you sure? Are you willing to bear the risk of being left behind?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve already made my decision.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanyun couldn¡¯t do much since Long Chen had made up his mind.


    After registration, Long Chen left the Xuanyun Pavilion, but he only got his left foot out when Ling Xi broke the silence.


    ¡°Ling Xi, you don¡¯t have to say anything. I¡¯ve already made my decision and there¡¯s nothing you can do to change it.¡±


    She didn¡¯t know what to do about Long Chen¡¯s behavior. All she did was keep the sense of gratitude in her heart.


    ¡°Stop!¡± Long Chen had just walked out of the Xuanyun Pavilion when he was stopped by a group of teenagers on a small path surrounded by a beautiful forest.


    He recognized them immediately¡ªthey were the ones he had bumped into when he first entered the Xuanyun Pavilion. There were seven of them, and all of them were looking at Long Chen with a prideful look in their eyes.


    The leader of the group was a youth roughly the same age as Mo Xiang but was already at the mid Earthly Core Realm, a stage higherpared to Long Chen.


    The youth looked handsome too, with sharp eyebrows and a tall nose. Even though he was still young, his body was fairly toned. The only thing that showed his true age was his naive-looking eyes.


    ¡°You! Are you Long Chen, the one who came in from the outer family?¡± Dongfang Tianya felt very cool when he surrounded Long Chen with his friends. All of them were ring at Long Chen to intimidate him.


    ¡°Hoho, you brats. Shouldn¡¯t you be calling me ¡®big brother?¡¯ We just met and you are already picking on me. What¡¯s going on? Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know how to respect your elders even though you¡¯re a grown up?¡± Long Chen did not want to show them even a hint of respect.


    He remembered hearing them say that Dongfang Tianyu was waiting for them earlier. It was very likely that Dongfang Tianyu was trying to inconvenience Long Chen by asking them to block him.


    ¡°What?!¡± Seeing how Long Chen had not stuttered and was even more of a jerk than him, Dongfang Tianya felt his nose ring from anger. He stepped forward and exuded his aura to suppress Long Chen.


    ¡°Do you really think you¡¯re one of us when you just joined the inner family? How dare you try to act mighty in front of me, Dongfang Tianya? I will teach you a lesson now! Rather than me calling you ¡®big brother,¡¯ you are better off kneeling and calling me ¡®big brother¡¯ instead!¡±


    Dongfang Tianya, not wanting to waste another breath, threw a punch towards Long Chen amidst the cheers.


    <em>He just tried to punch me without any warning? He¡¯s too prideful. They must¡¯ve been tricked by Dongfang Tianyu. </em>Long Chen knew that Dongfang Tianyu was behind this, but he didn¡¯t want to lose to a bunch of brats.


    ¡°Sure, let me give you idiots a lesson.¡± Long Chen smiled and didn¡¯t retreat. Instead, he punched as well and smashed his fist into Dongfang Tianya¡¯s fist. Both of them staggered from the impact.


    Dongfang Tianya took several steps back from the attack before he steadied himself.


    <em>Wasn¡¯t he at the initial Earthly Core Realm?</em> Dongfang Tianya was in disbelief. He thought he could show off to his friends today, but he was already embarrassed on the first attack.


    Long Chen took a few steps back too, simr to Dongfang Tianya.


    ¡°Not bad, you brat. No wonder you managed to pass the qualifiers. But a country bumpkin like you can¡¯t handle a member of the inner family!¡±


    Dongfang Tianya circted his Qi in anger and ran towards Long Chen. Rather than using only physical strength, he was using a martial technique!


    ¡°Heaven Rending Dragon!¡±


    A massive fist wasunched towards Long Chen. The fist also contained a faint silhouette of a dragon, marking it as a special attack.


    <em>Looks like an intermediate ck-tier technique. </em>Long Chen was toying with the boy. He didn¡¯t even need to transform to win.


    <em>I might as well put the Nine Dragon shes to the test. </em>Long Chen smiled evilly.


    Nine Dragon shes!


    Long Chen¡¯s body flickered, and he disappeared like the light. Dongfang Tianya was astounded by Long Chen¡¯s speed, but his reaction was far too slow¡ªthetter was already right in front of him!


    ¡°Ah!¡± Seeing how Long Chen was seeking death by approaching Dongfang Tianya¡¯s attack, everyone shouted in shock.


    ¡°Die!¡± Dongfang Tianya didn¡¯t hold back even though Long Chen was just in front of his technique. How could the youth swallow the embarrassment he had shown to his friends just now?


    ¡°Die? Are you kidding me?¡± Long Chen suddenly disappeared just as the attack was about to touch him. Dongfang Tianya wasn¡¯t sure what had happened.


    His move was strong, but it didn¡¯t hit!


    ¡°How could this be?¡± Dongfang Tianya was surprised before he suddenly felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.


    ¡°Careful!¡±


    Dongfang Tianya¡¯s face paled when he heard them warning him. He had a bad feeling and was about to turn around and punch, but he was toote.


    Dongfang Tianya had failed to react to Long Chen¡¯s Nine Dragon shes. Long Chen hit him with a heavy kick from the back andunched him away!


    When hended, all he saw was Long Chen smiling evilly, causing him to feel fear for the first time.


    ¡°Are you really trying to piss me off when you¡¯re this weak?¡± Long Chen grasped Dongfang Tianya¡¯s neck and smashed his face onto the ground.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Dongfang Tianya shouted in pain. His face was red from the impact and his body was limp.


    It was not a serious wound, but Dongfang Tianya had never been this heavily injured before. Everyone else was shocked when they heard him screaming.


    ¡°You dare hurt Brother Tianya?!¡±


    Some of the girls wanted to attack Long Chen together, but he shot them a re. ¡°You want to end up like him too?¡±


    He had killed far more people than them, so the killing intent in his voice was more than enough to shut them up. Even though they were angry, they didn¡¯t dare to move. The strongest member of their group, Dongfang Tianya, had already lost, so what chance did they have?


    Long Chen squatted beside Dongfang Tianya andughed at the youth, who was on the verge of tears.


    ¡°Hey, didn¡¯t you just say that I have to kneel and call you ¡®big brother?¡¯¡±


    Dongfang Tianya was startled and shifted his body to the side in fear. ¡°No ¡­ I ¡­ I said nothing ¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s method had scared the youth.


    This boy was only at the mid Earthly Core Realm, slightly better than the youths from the Red family. Long Chen had an advanced ck-tier Body Combat technique and morebat experience, so it had been an easy victory for him.


    ¡°What should you call me?¡± Long Chen said cheekily.


    ¡°Brother! You are my big brother!¡± Dongfang Tianya hated Long Chen, but he knew that he would get beaten again if he didn¡¯t do this now.


    ¡°Not bad.¡± Long Chen stood up and decided to forgive Dongfang Tianya.


    ¡°Let Dongfang Tianyu know not to pull this kind of trick again, or I will hate him. We have the tournamenting up, so I will show him how strong I am then.¡±


    Long Chen left right after saying that, leaving the teenagers to look at each other.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go find Aunty Xuanyu! Let here and deal with him!¡± Dongfang Tianya stood up shakily, his eyes red.


    ***


    Back in his room, Long Chen gave Ling Xi the two Soul Grasses to be refined. They would extend her life again.


    Long Chen continued to cultivate the Nine Dragon shes. The little battle earlier had given him someprehension on how the technique worked.


    ¡°It seems that I have to use it in a real battle to be able to cultivate the technique to a higher realm.¡±


    Long Chen continued to work hard.


    <em>Xuanxiao set a goal for me¡ªI have to be able to do four shes in one month, but will that be my limit?</em>


    Long Chen cultivated for an hour before he heard someone approaching outside.


    ¡°Long Chen,e out.¡±


    Long Chen knew who the voice belonged to. He walked out and saw the youthful-looking Dongfang Xuanyu.


    Dongfang Xuanyu¡¯s face was solemn. When she saw Long Chen walking out as if nothing had happened, she was even more angry. She released the aura of a Heavenly Core Realm cultivator and closed in on Long Chen. ¡°You got guts. You just joined the inner family, yet already started beating up the juniors? You are incorrigible! If I don¡¯t punish you today, I won¡¯t be able to show my face here again!¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I was not expecting people to fight him so fast


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 192: Black Whirlpool

    Chapter 192: ck Whirlpool


    Long Chen knew that the youths from earlier hadined to her.


    If anything, Dongfang Tianya was the one at fault. He was the one who had instigated, so no matter how badly Long Chen beat him up, the me shouldn¡¯t have been on him. All he had done was teach Dongfang Tianya a little lesson.


    ¡°Beat them up?¡± Long Chen was not afraid. ¡°I¡¯m afraid you¡¯re overestimating me. He¡¯s at the mid Earthly Core Realm at such a young age. How could I possibly beat him up?¡±


    ¡°Do you refuse to admit it?¡± Seeing Long Chen¡¯s nonchnt attitude made Dongfang Xuanyu even angrier. She would¡¯ve struck him as soon as she saw him if she didn¡¯t have her reservations.


    Long Chen looked her in the eye and slowly exined, ¡°I don¡¯t have much to say about what happened today. Dongfang Tianya and the others blocked my path and tried to beat me up, so I did my best to defend myself. I have no idea what they told you, nor do I care.¡±


    ¡°You still dare to lie?¡± The more she looked at him, the more she hated him. The younger members of the family had always treated her with respect, but Long Chen somehow always pushed back against her.


    No matter what the results were, Dongfang Xuanyu would not let him go.


    <em>He just entered the inner family, yet he dares to talk back to me just because Dongfang Xuanxiao loves him? I cannot let him get away with this behavior!</em>


    Dongfang Xuanyu¡¯s aura locked onto Long Chen as she stated clearly, ¡°Long Chen, not only did you beat up your juniors, you even dared to talk back to me. You¡¯ve gone overboard, so I will punish you by having you kneel in front of the ancestor mausoleum for ten days and ten nights, starting now!¡±


    ¡°Ten days and ten nights?¡± Long Chen squinted.


    ¡°Why? Do you want me to drag you there?¡± Dongfang Xuanyu¡¯s voice was cold.


    Long Chen was speechless. She was beyond reasoning, but that didn¡¯t mean he was afraid of her. If he showed weakness now, she would be even more unreasonable. He could not stand to live beneath her!


    ¡°I will not take a single step out of here even if you kill me. I have done nothing wrong, so why should I be punished?¡± Long Chen was adamant.


    ¡°You! I will kill you!¡± Dongfang Xuanyu was about to attack when she heard a cold grunt from behind her.


    ¡°Enough.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanyu knew who the owner of the voice was. She turned around and came face to face with Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    ¡°You want to stop me?¡± When she said this, she was actually very uncertain. Dongfang Xuanxiao was not her real brother, but he was much stronger than her. His temper was also very unpredictable.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be seeing you out,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao said coldly when he walked past her.


    His words were too overbearing. Long Chen thought that he was the hardcore one, but he was just a tiny fishpared to Dongfang Xuanxiao!


    ¡°You!¡± Dongfang Xuanyu¡¯s face was a mixture of bitterness, anger, and shock.


    She didn¡¯t know what to do. She was not his opponent and she had lost the battle of words, so she had no choice but to leave in a hurry.


    ¡°Xuanxiao, just you wait! I will have Big Brother punish you for defaming me today!¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao couldn¡¯t be bothered with her and asked Long Chen, ¡°Why did that stupid bitche looking for you?¡±


    Even though she was his cousin, Dongfang Xuanxiao had referred to her as ¡°bitch¡± with zero hesitation. It was clear he didn¡¯t like her.


    ¡°I went out today and some kids tried to block me. I punched one of them and then she came running over ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled bitterly.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao didn¡¯t really care about any of that. He merely looked at Long Chen and shook his head. ¡°What¡¯s going on with the Sky Soul Fruit? You wanted to get it in exchange for an entire year¡¯s worth of resources? I¡¯m not sure if I should call you an idiot or not.¡±


    Long Chen knew that Dongfang Xuanyun would tell Dongfang Xuanxiao about the Sky Soul Fruit. Looking from Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s viewpoint, Long Chen was a rash idiot. This was why he hade here to ask him about it.


    ¡°Stepfather, this is very important to me. Much more important than any rewards. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m confident in my decision.¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao gave him a good, long look before deciding to trust him. ¡°Alright, then it¡¯s all up to the elders to see whether they approve it or not.¡±


    He had not only helped Long Chen one more time, he had also chosen to trust Long Chen¡¯s rash decision. Long Chen was very thankful for all he had done.


    Long Chen was the kind of person who would repay others in kindness if they treated him right.


    Just like how he was increasing his strength to save Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Can I go to the Star Devil Prison now?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°I came here to take you there. There¡¯s only a month left before the tournament, and you only need to stay at the Star Devil Prison for roughly half a month.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Long Chen nodded. He was excited to go to the famed Star Devil Prison and investigate Mo Xiang¡¯s whereabouts.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao was not the type to linger on matters for too long.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon family could enter the Heavenly Martial Realm directly. Long Chen entered the legendary Heavenly Core Realm area for the first time.


    There were Category Seven ck-tier beasts here. Some of them could even fight head-to-head with Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had been to the Star Devil Prison numerous times, so he knew the safest path. They soon arrived at their destination without encountering any beasts.


    ¡°Is this the Star Devil Prison?¡± Long Chen was stunned. There was a massive crater in front of him. There was nothing in it except for some bare rocks.


    ¡°Look at the middle.¡±


    Long Chen looked at where Dongfang Xuanxiao was pointing and saw a ck whirlpool in the middle of the crater. It was spinning and twisting the space around it. There were even hints of light being sucked inside.


    ¡°A realm within a realm?¡± Long Chen said nothing, but Ling Xi was surprised.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to see another realm within a Miniverse in this backwater ce. Incredible.¡±


    Long Chen dared not ask her about it with Dongfang Xuanxiao so close. He could only do so when they were alone.


    ¡°We will reach a Transit Hall once we go through the ck whirlpool, then we can go to the Star Devil Prison from there,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao exined while approaching the area.


    After observing it for a while longer, Long Chen realized that there were four people guarding the whirlpool.


    They were heaving heavy armor of different colors, namely azure, vermillion, white, and ck. Long Chen deduced that they each belonged to the four families, Azure Dragon, Vermillion Bird, White Tiger, and ck Tortoise.


    Seeing Dongfang Xuanxiao approaching, the four guards walked towards them. They seemed to be in their twenties and were all at the initial Heavenly Core Realm.


    Even though they were still far away, Dongfang Xuanxiao exined calmly, ¡°These are the guards trained personally by the inner family. They are as strong and talented as the geniuses of our family.¡±


    <em>The inner family is indeed strong! </em>Long Chen was surprised but said nothing.


    The four of the guards came up to them and got down on one knee when they saw Dongfang Xuanxiao. ¡°We greet Lord Xuanxiao!¡±


    ¡°Stand up.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao wasted no time and pointed at Long Chen. ¡°This is Long Chen, the one who passed the qualifiers. He is now my stepson. We are here to go to the Star Devil Prison. Yan Honghai, I will leave him in your care. Take him to the asteroid area to cultivate and exin the Star Devil Prison to him.


    The guard wearing the azure armor nodded. ¡°Understood!¡±


    ¡°Alright, I will be on my way. Long Chen, if you want to leave earlier, you can just ask him.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    After giving instructions, Dongfang Xuanxiao headed out. At the same time, the four guards crowded around Long Chen with interest. ¡°Young Master Long Chen, are you really entering the Star Devil Prison so soon after joining the inner family?¡±


    ¡°You must be working very hard,¡± the guard wearing vermillion armor said.


    Long Chen addressed them politely. ¡°One must be diligent if they want to improve. I felt a lot of pressure After I joined the inner family, so I dare not ck off. I hope everyone here will help me in the Star Devil Prison.¡±


    Long Chen was already a part of the inner family, but he wasn¡¯t snobbish like the others. This made Yan Honghai and the other guards more than happy to be friends with him. They stood guard over the Star Devil Prison every day and were always bored out of their minds. With Long Chen around, they would be able to talk and pass the time.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s not waste Young Master Long Chen¡¯s time. Come, let me take you into the Star Devil Prison!¡± Honghai smiled and showed the way.


    The Heavenly Martial Realm was a Miniverse. Since the Star Devil Prison was contained within it, it was called a realm within the realm. But Long Chen knew that there were a lot of interesting things in the world, so he didn¡¯t pay a lot of attention to it.


    ¡°We will be able to reach the Transit Hall after passing through the ck whirlpool. You might feel ufortable when you first enter the Star Devil Prison, but don¡¯t be afraid. Nothing will happen to you.¡± Following Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s instructions, Yan Honghai exined everything clearly. He was also doing so because he liked Long Chen.


    ¡°No worries. I will be able to endure it.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and followed Yan Honghai towards the ck whirlpool. He felt a strong force sucking his body towards it even though he was fairly far away.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, just let it go.¡± Yan Honghai turned around and then disappeared into the ck whirlpool.


    To be more precise, he sank into it.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and followed him into the Star Devil Prison.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yeah Dongfang Xuanxiao''s position in my heart is getting higher and higher


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 193: Asteroid Area

    Chapter 193: Asteroid Area


    Long Chen felt his vision go dark and then fall downwards. A strong force was pulling his body, causing him to feel some tingling and pain.


    But it didn¡¯tst long, and Long Chen soon found himself returning to normal.


    He opened his eyes and found himself in a dark hall. The hall was empty and was made of metal.


    ¡°Senior Yan, is this the Transit Hall?¡± Long Chen realized that Yan Honghai was standing right beside him.


    ¡°Yes, this is the Transit Hall. We can reach the two main areas of the Star Devil Prison from here. We will ignore therge star area for now. Our destination is the asteroid area. It¡¯s closer, and we can reach it from the Transit Hall.¡±


    ¡°What are the asteroid andrge star areas?¡± Long Chen knew next to nothing about the ce.


    ¡°Therge star area is where we keep prisoners. It¡¯s not where we¡¯re going. The asteroid area is where the inner family sends their people to cultivate. Young Master Long Chen, you must know very little about this ce, correct? Follow me.¡±


    With Yan Honghai guiding the way, Long Chen followed him with curiosity. The further they walked out of the hall, the more Long Chen was mystified by the void.


    When they exited the main door and entered a za, Long Chen was shocked.


    He realized that the Transit Hall was the only building embedded in a cliff. It was also the only ce that gave him a view of the cliff itself. All he could see in the opposite direction was a dark void.


    ¡°Is this ¡­ space?¡± Long Chen tried to calm down because the scene in front of him was too preposterous.


    Based on how the Transit Hall looked, he had assumed that the Star Devil Prison was located in a deep, underground cave, but to think he was seeing the night sky itself! No wonder it was called the Star Devil Prison.


    ¡°Do you see those glittering stars within the darkness? Those are asteroids.¡± Yan Honghai pointed at some of them.


    ¡°You mean I will be heading there?¡± Long Chen knew that the space he was seeing was not infinite. The distance between him and the stars wasn¡¯trge, roughly a hundred to a thousand meters or so.


    ¡°Yeah, but don¡¯t worry, I will take you there. Do you see those chains?¡± Yan Honghai nodded and pointed at the edge of the za. Long Chen then saw two massive, metal chains that originated from the void and connected to the Transit Hall.


    They were thergest chains he had ever seen, and their toughness seemed extraordinary too. Even though they were rusty, there was a trace of ancient energy on them.


    Each link of the chain was oval and was roughly half a meter in thickness. A single link was almost several bedsrge. How could chains this thick ever be weak?


    ¡°Are the chains connected to the stars?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Yes, the left one goes to therge star area, while the right one goes to the asteroid area. Long Chen, do you see the five brightest shining stars in therge star area? Those are the stars belonging to the Azure Dragon, Vermillion Bird, White Tiger, ck Tortoise, and Heavenly Wolf.¡± Looking at the beautiful scene, Yan Honghai felt pride as a member of the Lingwu family.


    <em>Azure Dragon? Is that where they are keeping the prisoners? I wonder which star Mo Xiang is being kept in?</em>


    Yan Honghai became serious and exined, ¡°Young Master Long Chen, ording to Lord Xuanxiao¡¯s instruction, I will now take you to one of the stars within the asteroid area, but there is something important I must tell you.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen was curious as to why he had gotten so serious.


    ¡°Do you see the void? That is not space itself. When you walk on the chains, you must be careful not to fall into it, or no one will be able to save you. No one in the Lingwu family knows what happens to the people that fall off.¡±


    ¡°Fall?¡± Long Chen was speechless. The Star Devil Prison was not as safe as it seemed, but as cultivators, they would easily be able to traverse the chains without difficulty as long as they were not fighting.


    ¡°Of course, something like that wouldn¡¯t happen since we are cultivators. I¡¯m just giving you a warning.¡± Yan Honghaiughed. ¡°Come, follow me. Watch your step. I will show you to one of the weaker ones to see if it works for you.¡±


    Yan Honghai jumped on the chain leading to the asteroid area, and Long Chen followed him closely.


    <em>Mo Xiang should be on one of the stars in therge star area. Should I ask Yan Honghai for information? Would I expose myself? But Yan Honghai is someone Xuanxiao trusts. </em>Long Chen kept thinking while walking.


    It was indeed frightening to see the darkness beneath them. Long Chen felt his heart skip a beat when he looked down, as if the void was a beast waiting to devour him.


    Yan Honghai turned around and smiled. ¡°Be careful now. We should be able to reach it in an hour.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your help.¡±


    ¡°No worries. I heard that you beat the genius of the outer family, Jin Sheng¡¯en, correct?¡± The journey was boring, so Yan Honghai was happy to have someone to talk to.


    ¡°Yeah, but he¡¯s not really a genius. The true genius is the one from the Silver family.¡± Since Long Chen didn¡¯t know how to ask, and Yan Honghai was coincidentally talking about the qualifiers, Long Chen managed to shift the topic to Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Indeed. Mo Xiang was highly talented even whenpared to members of the inner family. The geniuses from the inner family were very jealous of him. But there¡¯s nothing much we could say.¡± Yan Honghai shook his head when it came to Mo Xiang. This topic was taboo for them.


    ¡°I heard that he was imprisoned in the Star Devil Prison. He must be in one of those stars, right?¡± Long Chen probed.


    ¡°Yeah, I saw with my own eyes when he was led to the Azure Dragon star ¡­ Long Chen, are you interested in him? I advise you not to bring him up, because the four patriarchs barred us from discussing him.¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m just curious. We all admire strong geniuses, don¡¯t we?¡± Long Chen smiled.


    Yan Honghai failed to see that Long Chen was tricking him and smiled while they continued walking.


    There was nothing in front or behind them, only darkness. This made Long Chen feel afraid for some reason.


    <em>Is he stuck on the Azure Dragon Star? I thought he would be kept on the Heavenly Wolf Star. </em>Long Chen slowly formted a n to rescue him. Even though they weren¡¯t far apart, Long Chen didn¡¯t understand the secrets of the Star Devil Prison. How could he save Mo Xiang without information?


    ¡°We will arrive soon.¡± The light from the asteroids[1] wasn¡¯t bright, but they were considerablyrger now, meaning they were close.


    Soon, the chains broke off into tens of different chains, each heading to a different asteroid. Yan Honghai identified the chain they needed to walk on.


    ¡°Here at the crossroads, every single chain is marked with the name and gravitational strength of the asteroid. Look here, you can see that the chain we chose is connected to an asteroid with five times the gravitational force.¡± Yan Honghai pointed at the marker on the chain.


    ¡°If the gravitational force of a particr asteroid is too weak for you, you cane back here and choose another. I would suggest that you take it methodologically and don¡¯t jump to an asteroid with a much stronger gravitational force. You might die from it!¡± Yan Honghai exined.


    ¡°I understand, I won¡¯t be rash.¡± Long Chen chuckled and remembered the warning.


    ¡°I can¡¯t keep apanying you. I will leave once I bring you in. You can just enter and exit on your ownter on.¡±


    Under Yan Honghai¡¯s guidance, Long Chen approached one of the smaller asteroids. At the end of the chain was a yellow asteroid around two hundred meters in diameter.


    Its surface was far from t, and it had numerous ridges. Long Chen felt like he was a bug walking on a brain when he stepped on it.


    There was nothing other than the ridges though, just yellow dirt and soil[2].


    ¡°Is the gravitational force here five times stronger?¡± After walking off the chain and stepping onto the asteroid, Long Chen felt like he had be heavier, as if a massive boulder was weighing him down, but the pain was not overbearing and he soon adapted to it.


    ¡°This is indeed good.¡± His body wouldn¡¯t move as he wished, and it was hard to circte his Qi.


    ¡°Looks like you do have an advanced ck-tier Body Tempering technique, so the gravitational force is not deadly to you. But I would still suggest that you take it slow and gradually increase the gravitational force rather than going all out and choosing the one with the strongest gravitational force. I have to go now. Be careful.¡±


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t possibly stop Yan Honghai from leaving, so he said goodbye.


    He had two objectives in the Star Devil Prison. One was to find out where Mo Xiang was, while the second was to cultivate. Now that he was here, Long Chen would never give up a chance to increase his strength, especially after he realized how beneficial the increased gravitational force would be to his cultivation.


    <em>Now that I know Mo Xiang is on the Azure Dragon Star, I will have to find other details to formte a n, but I will just train for now!</em>


    1. Don¡¯t ask us why the asteroids can glow in this novel. ?


    2. Again, I have no idea why there is soil on asteroids ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Oh its like training with weights on. You get to float like a butterfly and sting like a bee once you are done with it. A ssic in all cultivation novels


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 194: Martial Maniac Nangong Cheng

    Chapter 194: Martial Maniac Nangong Cheng


    When Yan Honghai was gone, Long Chen wandered around the asteroid while getting used to the increased gravitational force. There was indeed nothing but yellow soil.


    ¡°This ce is so barren.¡±


    Long Chen calmed down and started cultivating.


    This was something he had to do every night.


    He had to endlessly circte his Qi in order to absorb nature¡¯s spiritual energy to increase his strength. It also served as training to control his Qi.


    ¡°It¡¯s definitely five times harder to circte my Qi, but this is not my limit.¡±


    The blood-red Qi surged out of his Earthly Core under hismand and circted through his veins. It was not faster than before.


    The more he did it, the more refined his Qi became. Because of Blood Transmutation, Long Chen didn¡¯t really have any issue with his Qi being unstable, but he could further increase its quality.


    He believed that once his Qi had been refined to a certain point, it would give him unexpected benefits.


    Long Chen settled down for the next several days. His most important task was to refine his Qi on the asteroids. After some time, his Earthly Core Qi was much more refined, which enabled him to exert more strength.


    He also spent time cultivating the Nine Dragon shes. Even though it was an advanced ck-tier technique simr to the Sword Devil Finger, it was much moreplicated. With the help of the increased gravitational force, Long Chen¡¯s progress was very noticeable and significant. He managed to surpass Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s expectations bypleting the fifth sh.


    Ten dayster, he was already cultivating on an asteroid five hundred meters in diameter with a gravitational force twenty times stronger than normal. He was cultivating the Nine Dragon shes here due to the immense pressure. It took a lot of his strength to use it, and when he moved, his footwork was slow and deliberate, as if he were ying with a child.


    But if the gravitational force returned to normal, Long Chen¡¯s speed would¡¯ve been ten times faster than before.


    ¡°sh! Again! And again!¡±


    He kept cultivating and slowly shifted his feet. While he did so, his body slowly started transforming in a mysterious way.


    After shing five times, Long Chen felt tired. He had been cultivating for a whole day and needed to rest.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant was helping him increase hisprehension skills. Long Chen had firmly grasped the essence of the Nine Dragon shes, and all he needed to do was cultivate it under the pressure.


    Because his foundation was strong, his progress was not led astray.


    He had to channel a lot of Qi into his legs while training the Nine Dragon shes, so he was also refining his Qi at the same time.


    <em>My strength is slowly increasing, but the fifteen day period Xuanxiao gave me is almost over. I will train for two more days and then head out.</em>


    After resting, Long Chen resumed his cultivation.


    Some timeter, he felt like something was weird. He opened his eyes and saw that someone else had arrived on the asteroid he was training on.


    It was a youth with tanned skin and a muscr body. He was wearing a beast¡¯s fur and had a radiant smile.


    When he saw Long Chen, he walked over and happily introduced himself. ¡°I see that you can cultivate in an environment with twenty times the gravitational force. Not bad! My name is Nangong Cheng. Can we be friends?¡±


    Long Chen saw that the youth was around fifteen years old even though he was very muscr. He was also at the mid Earthly Core Realm.


    That meant that he was considered one of the geniuses within the inner family.


    The youth¡¯s face was also tanned, but his teeth were bright white. He smiled at Long Chen sheepishly.


    Long Chen knew that people like him who didn''t plot tricks were good candidates for friendship. Networking with his peers was important, so he stood up.


    ¡°My name is Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°Oh, then you must be the one who came in through the qualifiers.¡± Rather than being snobbish, Nangong Cheng was more curious after learning that Long Chen was not born into the inner family. ¡°It must be difficult to be the highest achiever among thousands of people. No wonder you can cultivate in this gravity. Which family are you from?¡±


    ¡°The Eastern Azure Dragon family.¡± Seeing how easy it was to talk to him, Long Chen was more than happy to be friends.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m Nangong Cheng from the Southern Vermillion Bird family.¡± Nangong Cheng scratched his head and smiled.


    ¡°The Southern Vermillion Bird family? I¡¯m acquainted with Feng Wutian.¡±


    ¡°Feng Wutian? He¡¯s not an important person. He¡¯s still at the initial Earthly Core Realm even now. I fought against him back when he just entered the inner family. Long Chen, the fact that you were able to enter the inner family means you must be strong. Can we spar? I¡¯m just a battle junkie that loves sparring against others. Even my brothers and sisters call me a martial maniac.¡±


    Nangong Cheng was surprisingly happy with the title.


    <em>Is he just an idiot? </em>Long Chen rolled his eyes. Usually, people who asked for a spar with another person that they just met were rude, but seeing how Nangong Cheng somehow had a few screws loose, Long Chen did not dislike him. Rather, he appreciated his honesty.


    ¡°Do you agree?¡± Nangong Cheng waited for his reply eagerly.


    ¡°I agree, but there is one condition.¡± Long Chen smiled.


    ¡°Sure, if I can fulfill it, I will do it!¡± Nangong Cheng was excited about having a new sparring partner.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that difficult, just answer my question. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t ask about anything secret, nor will it affect your life.¡±


    ¡°A question?¡± Nangong Cheng tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Sure, you can ask me, but I don¡¯t really know a lot of things.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know how to react to someone as simple as him. But at least he would be able to learn more about the Star Devil Prison.


    ¡°Are you familiar with the Star Devil Prison? Have you gone to therge star area before?¡±


    ¡°Therge star area? Nope. That¡¯s where they keep the prisoners. Only the patriarchs can go there. My father said that if we got close to it, we would get stuck due to the immense gravitational force. And then we would not be able to get out unless the patriarch saved us.¡±


    Long Chen was shocked. ¡°Then why can the patriarchs enter therge stars? Is it because they are strong?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I¡¯ve heard that the five Divine Weapons can mitigate the gravitational force of therge star, but they can only ess their corresponding star.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean that I can enter the Azure Dragon Star if I hold the Azure Dragon Halberd?¡± Long Chen was surprised. That meant that he had a chance to save Mo Xiang thanks to Dongfang Xuanxiao arranging for him to join the tournament.


    ¡°I think so, hehe.¡± Nangong Cheng didn¡¯t know what Long Chen was nning to do with all this information, but he didn¡¯t care. He just wanted to spar, so he was worried the answers would be unsatisfactory.


    The information he had provided was crucial for Long Chen. He had wanted to ask where Mo Xiang was imprisoned on the Azure Dragon Star, but he knew that Nangong Cheng would not know either. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve finished my questions. Nangong Cheng, you must not tell anyone about what I asked you here.¡±


    ¡°Of course. I¡¯m a man that keeps my word. I will tell no one.¡± Nangong Cheng patted his chest with pride and then asked carefully, ¡°So ¡­ Can we spar now?¡±


    ¡°Here?¡± Long Chen was taken aback, but then he realized that it was indeed a good idea. He would improve dramatically by sparring in a ce with twenty times the gravitational force. It was exciting, even.


    ¡°Yes, and I¡¯m ready!¡±


    Nangong Cheng took a few steps back and clenched his fists. He was ready to fight.


    <em>This guy ¡­ </em>Long Chen was speechless, but the title of martial maniac did suit Nangong Cheng, seeing how rearing for a spar he was.


    <em>He must have even more battle experience than Dongfang Tianya, and he has definitely fought in a ce with increased gravitational force before. I must be careful not to lose to him.</em>


    ¡°Let¡¯s start,¡± Long Chen said inly.


    ¡°Take this!¡± Nangong Cheng immediately ran over and punched Long Chen, his fist covered in mes. The mes burst forth and solidified into a fist that trapped Long Chen¡¯s escape route.


    ¡°Vermillion Bird Technique, Heavenly me Fist!¡±


    Even though Nangong Cheng¡¯s speed was drastically reduced thanks to the intense gravity, it did not affect his attack strength!


    <em>Shit! He¡¯s several times stronger than Dongfang Tianya.</em>


    Long Chen was silently surprised, and he got serious. To Nangong Cheng¡¯s surprise, Long Chen¡¯s footwork became faster.


    <em>Nine Dragon shes!</em>


    Nangong Cheng was shocked to see that his opponent could still move that fast despite the increased gravity. But he was not affected andunched punch after punch.


    But at the crucial moment, Long Chen disappeared.


    <em>He¡¯s over there!</em>


    Nangong Cheng managed to locate Long Chen when hepleted the first sh.


    This made him very excited.


    But Long Chen did not stop, causing Nangong Cheng to stare in disbelief. Long Chen shed a few more times and then disappearedpletely.


    ¡°I¡¯m over here.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Is he the sidekick that brute force through everything without a thought?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 195: Return of the Genius

    Chapter 195: Return of the Genius


    Primordial Dragon Seal!


    Long Chen attacked from point-nk range and hit Nangong Chengs unguarded back. He had controlled his strength and merely sent Nangong Cheng flying from the attack.


    You lost.


    Impossible! Nangong Chen steadied himself and turned around. I lost before I even got to use my stronger martial techniques?


    If this was a real battle you would be dead. Is this not considered a loss? Long Chen smiled.


    Can you tell me how you defeated me? Nangong Cheng was sad about losing.


    I used an advanced ck-tier Body Combat technique to beat you in terms of speed. If we were topete in Qi, I would lose to you, Long Chen slowly exined to the dejected youth.


    An advanced ck-tier technique? Could it be the infamous Nine Dragon shes?! Nangong Cheng was surprised. Youve just entered the inner family, yet you already managed to obtain it? You even cultivated it to this stage?


    He thought Long Chen was slightly weaker than himself and was surprised he could move under the increased gravity, but to think the youth from the outer family was a genius!


    Its indeed the Nine Dragon shes. Long Chen never thought he would recognize it.


    Alright, I acknowledge that I lost to you and the Nine Dragon shes. Long Chen, you are amazing. We can be best friends, but I wont lose to you again. This is my first loss to you, so you will be the goal of my cultivation! I will surpass you soon.


    Nangong Chengs eyes were filled with determination.


    He was destined to be powerful with that mindset.


    Is that so? Then you have to put in a lot of effort, haha  Long Chenughed at how funny Nangong Cheng was.


    His strength had increased and he had learned a lot about Mo Xiangs circumstances. His objectives have beenpleted.


    For the next two days, Long Chen continued to cultivate on the asteroid with Nangong Cheng. Thetter was very happy and would challenge Long Chen from time to time. Even though he lost every time, Nangong Cheng was very excited.


    Combat on the asteroid had helped Long Chenprehend the Nine Dragon shes. He couldplete seven shes when the fifteenth day arrived.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao would be ecstatic when he found out.


    Long Chen, are you leaving now? Nangong Cheng was disappointed.


    Dont worry, I wille back when I have the time. This ce is a treasure! Long Chen smiled.


    Ive heard that the Eastern Azure Dragon family will be holding the tournament for the Azure Dragon Halberd soon. Are you joining it? Nangong Cheng asked.


    Yes.


    Then it might be hard. Ive fought against Dongfang Tianyu before, and he was stronger than me. I cant even take a single attack from him. You might not be his match.


    That might not be true. Long Chen was confident on the outside, but he was still hesitating deep within. <em>Were fifteen days enough? </em>Long Chen felt like he had crossed a bottleneck after cultivating at the Star Devil Prison. He was on the verge of bing stronger again.


    After bidding him goodbye, Long Chen walked back to the Transit Hall and exited through the ck whirlpool. He found himself in the Heavenly Martial Realm once more.


    Yan Honghai sighed in relief when he saw Long Chene out. He wouldve entered to find Long Chen if he didnte out soon. The Star Devil Prison was a dangerous ce, and they wouldnt be able to find his corpse if Long Chen fell off.


    How is your progress? Yan Honghai smiled.


    Not too bad. Long Chen faked being humble.


    Lord Xuanxiao came by, but he left when he saw that you were concentrating on cultivating. Ive heard that you will be joining the tournament? When he brought up the Earth-tier Divine Weapon, Yan Honghai became very excited.


    Long Chen nodded and joked, Yeah, thats why I entered the Star Devil Prison on such short notice.


    Thats good, but it seems that the results of the tournament have been silently decided. I heard that Dongfang Tianyu, the son of Dongfang Xuanfeng, will be handed first ce. Long Chen, you need to do your best and bring honor to Lord Xuanxiao. He doesnt have children, and his parents died when he was young, so the elders dont really think highly of him, Yan Honghai whispered when Long Chen was leaving.


    In the previous tournaments, the children of Dongfang Xuanfeng, Dongfang Xuanyu, and Dongfang Xuanyun were given the chance to touch the Azure Dragon Halberd. Only Dongfang Xuanxiao was excluded, because he didnt have any descendants. Except for Dongfang Tianchen and the other two, the strongestpetitor will be Dongfang Tianyu. Hes already at thete Earthly Core Realm. Even those at the initial Heavenly Core Realm might lose to him. If he werent targeting you, you mightve been able to do better and bring honor to Lord Xuanxiao. But I heard you have a grudge with Dongfang Tianyu?


    I do, and its not a small one. I think he will do everything to target me. Long Chen smiled bitterly.


    That is troublesome indeed. Yan Honghai frowned. He was worried about Long Chen.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly appeared from afar.


    I have to go now. Thank you, Long Chen said to Yan Honghai before he followed Dongfang Xuanxiao into the Heavenly Core area.


    How did your cultivation go? Dongfang Xuanxiao asked.


    Ive refined most of my Qi and my foundation is very solid now. I should be able to advance in the near future. Long Chen felt like he was very close.


    And the Nine Dragon shes? Dongfang Xuanxiao was silently pleased that Long Chen was about to advance, though he didnt disy any emotion because he wasnt used to it.


    Not bad. Ivepleted the goal you set for me. Long Chen did not say he could do seven shes, or Dongfang Xuanxiao would think he was some kind of monster in terms of cultivating martial techniques. He didnt want Dongfang Xuanxiao to question him, so he said it as such.


    Good. Dongfang Xuanxiao smiled inly. He thought Long Chen hadpleted the four shes only.


    The Nine Dragon shes willpliment your Beast Soul Transformation and Sword Devil Finger very well. You should be able to showcase your battle prowess now. If you can rise to the next cultivation level, you will have a thirty percent chance of winning. Keep it up!


    The tournament wouldnt only affect his future, but also Mo Xiangs life. Long Chen had to put his life on the line to win against Dongfang Tianyu and obtain victory.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had helped him immensely, so it was the least he could do.


    And his new stepfather hadnt merely given him a hand once or twice, he had also saved him during the qualifiers. He had even taken the time to visit Long Chen at the asteroid area, though he had not disturbed him. Long Chen would definitely repay him!


    I have some good news, Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly said.


    What is it? The good news would naturally be excellent news if it wasing from someone like Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    The elders discussed and approved your application to get the Sky Soul Fruit, but you will not be able to take anything else for a year. I discussed it with them and managed to shorten the time period to nine months. Thats the limit of my power. Dongfang Xuanxiao sighed.


    Long Chen looked at him, not knowing how to thank him.


    Stepfather, all I can say is that I am eternally grateful to you. I will do my best to win the tournament!


    Thats all that matters. Dongfang Xuanxiao was happy to hear Long Chens confident deration. He took out a dark-blue box made of jade from his Universe Pouch. The box itself was covered in dense Qi. It was made of Divine Jade!


    This is the Sky Soul Fruit. Dongfang Xuanxiao handed it to Long Chen.


    It was an item that could extend Ling Xis life by five years! Long Chen was very excited, much less Ling Xi. If Dongfang Xuanxiao wasnt here, she wouldve leaped out in joy and started refining it.


    Long Chen carefully put it in his Universe Pouch and saw Dongfang Xuanxiao staring at him. Whats wrong? Is there anything on my face?


    I just noticed that your face was filled with happiness and bliss when I gave you the Sky Soul Fruit. Long Chen, do you have a girl you like? Are you giving it to her? Dongfang Xuanxiaos voice was hoarse.


    Long Chen didnt know what to say. To think that someone as serious as Dongfang Xuanxiao would be interested in gossip like this. Long Chen denied it. No, definitely not.


    What about Liu Lan?


    Shes not


    Fine. Dongfang Xuanxiao shook his head. He was aware that Long Chen was just teasing Liu Lan and didnt have any feelings for her.


    They continued walking.


    Long Chen, let me tell you something.


    What is it?


    Dongfang Xuanxiaos gaze was bitter and he forced a smile. A minor piece of advice. If you have a woman you like, you need to work ten times harder to protect her.


    He walked ahead and said nothing after that.


    Huh? Long Chen didnt know why Dongfang Xuanxiao would say something like that at this particr time. He was indeed smart, but he had no idea what was happening.


    Soon after, they exited the Heavenly Martial Realm and returned to their quarters. After sending Long Chen back, Dongfang Xuanxiao headed off to do something. Before he did, he gave Long Chen another piece of advice. Tianchen, Tianxing, and Tianxuan have returned from their training. All of them are at the Heavenly Martial Realm, so it''s best if you dont offend them. They are adored by the elders and the patriarch, so I cant be too obvious in helping you if they beat you up.


    I understand. Long Chen nodded. He was smart, so he knew when to not do stupid things. Without strength, he needed to be humble.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I think Dongfang Xuanxiao might''ve lost his lover in his past due to his weakness


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 196: Yin and Yang Heavenly Rivers

    Chapter 196: Yin and Yang Heavenly Rivers


    Yin Mengyao came out to greet Long Chen when he arrived. He hadnt seen her in many days, and it looked like her cultivation had improved.


    Her personality had always been cold, but she was much warmer around Long Chen and Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    After Dongfang Xuanxiao left, she asked anxiously, Long Chen, how was it? Any news?


    Long Chen told her all the information he had received in the Star Devil Prison.


    Her brows furrowed when he was done, her cold features tightly scrunched together. So we need to get the Azure Dragon Halberd in order to free him?


    Thats right. The Azure Dragon Halberd tournament will begin in about ten days. I will do my best, said Long Chen.


    Looking at his determined gaze, Yin Mengyao said, I will work hard too. Ive spent the past few days sparring with the wooden puppets in the Martial Hall and practicing my Flowing Water Body. Actually, Ive made some decent progress.


    Martial Hall? Wooden puppets? Long Chen had never heard these terms.


    The Martial Hall is located in the Xuanyu Pavilion, and the younger disciples usually cultivate there. Stepfather was the one who took me. Theres an area in the Martial Hall where there are ny-nine wooden puppets in total. When you enter, all the puppets will swarm you. Even Yin Mengyao found the wooden puppets strange.


    Wooden puppets? How do theypare to the steel puppets? Based on the name, the steel puppets sounded stronger.


    Youve participated in the outer family qualifiers, so you must think the steel puppets are stronger. But thats not the case. She shook her head. The steel puppets are predictable and stiff, but the wooden puppets are agile and unpredictable. Also, they are made of quality wood that is even tougher than steel. They can even use simple martial techniques. When ny-nine wooden puppets form an array, theyre not easy to defeat.


    Long Chen realized that the Lingwu inner family spent a lot of effort on nurturing the next generation.


    After chatting with her for a while, she started on her cultivation task for the day. On the other hand, Ling Xi had been urging Long Chen many times in the Ling Xi Sword.


    Now that they had the Sky Soul Fruit, she intended to cultivate it immediately, but she couldnt because Yin Mengyao was still around.


    Once Long Chen returned to his quarters, the tiny Ling Xi flew out of the Ling Xi Sword. She was over the moon, grinning like a blooming flower. She looked adorable. Long Chen, time to give me the Sky Soul Fruit, she quickly begged, seeing as Long Chen hadnt given it to her.


    Youre younger than me. What do you think you should call me? teased Long Chen with a stern face.


    Brother Chen, Brother Chen! Ling Xi didnt care about anything else when there was a delicious fruit in front of her.


    Good girl. When he saw the girl acting as if to please him, he took out the fruit and said, Seeing as I have sacrificed one years quota of rewards for you, you may call me Brother Chen from today onwards. It makes me happy when I hear it.


    Ling Xi was so moved by his gift that she felt a little guilty. She nodded like a chick pecking at some rice and called him Brother Chen sweetly a few times.


    Long Chen felt chills when he heard her call him that. Xiao Xi, its scary when youre so gentle! said Long Chen, pursing his lips.


    You! Hmmph! Taking the green jade box from his hand, Ling Xi didnt bother to argue. But when she thought about how he had sacrificed a year of rewards to get her this, his position in her heart had skyrocketed to a very, very high status.


    <em>He calls me Xiao Xi, but I still call him Long Chen. It does seem a little distant. He is indeed older than I am, and he treats me so well. Ill just call him Brother Chen from now on; its worth it, </em>Ling Xi thought to herself.


    There was also an underground room provided for cultivation purposes within his quarters here. Long Chen brought Ling Xi into the room, then he closed the door and said, Xiao Xi, you can start cultivating already. Ill cover for you.


    Alright. She nodded obediently. The tiny girl dragged therge jade box over and ced it on the ground. Then she opened it excitedly.


    Long Chen was greeted with a soul-shaking fragrance. He took only one gentle inhale, and it made him feel a few times more awake. <em>It looks like the Sky Soul Fruit is very useful for cultivation too. Its no wonder its worth ten million divine jades. If I were to sell it </em>


    There was a green, translucent fruit inside the jade box, shaped almost like an apple. It sparkled in the light, and countless vessels could be seen within its translucent body. A green liquid flowed through the vessels like blood.


    It really is the Sky Soul Fruit  Ling Xipletely lost her cool when she saw the fruit. Even her voice trembled.


    Xiao Xi, hurry up and cultivate. Dying will only lead to more problems, reminded Long Chen, looking at the fruit.


    Ling Xi nodded and looked at him with gratitude in her eyes. Thank you, Brother Chen! Then, she used a secret technique to refine the fruit.


    The Sky Soul Fruit was quickly enveloped by her soul power.


    Long Chen was bored, so he started to study thest two shes of the Nine Dragon shes. He only had a small portion left to master before he would achieve thete stage of mastery and also Dongfang Xuanxiaos level.


    Time passed slowly. Long Chen could sense Ling Xi slowly getting stronger. He guessed that the life force of her soul was the one that was strengthening.


    The Soul Grass was an intermediate ck-tier spirit herb and the Sky Soul Fruit was ssified as an advanced ck-tier, but it was closer to the Earth-tier and it was on a whole new level.


    How could a spirit herb worth ten million divine jades be that simple?


    That was why Long Chen estimated that once she refined this Sky Soul Fruit, he wouldnt have to worry about her mortality for a long time. At the same time, if his life was ever in danger, Ling Xi could provide some assistance.


    Six hours had passed, and it was already evening. Long Chen had long stopped cultivating and was sitting at the side, watching over Ling Xi. She waspletely wrapped in white mist, so he couldnt see her clearly.


    That was when the mist started to clear, revealing the tiny girl. Her eyes were still closed, but he noticed that she was a little different.


    Ling Xis skin was almost the same as delicate, white jade. It wasnt a physical body; her soul power was just more condensed. However, this level of solidification made her not much different from a physical body.


    I think the girl became prettier. Long Chen felt tempted when he saw her. It was a tragedy that such a beautiful girl could be destroyed by a broken sword.


    Ling Xis eyes sprang open and a ray of divine light, bright enough to shake Long Chens soul, shot out from her eyes, startling him.


    Shed just woken up when she saw that he was startled by her and burst into giggles. Brother Chen, youre so timid.


    Who said that? Long Chen asked sternly. He eyed her up and down, then he asked, How do you feel?


    I havepletely absorbed the medicinal power of the Sky Soul Fruit. If I dont use any power, I can live for at least five years. If I do, I think I can withstand a hit from a First River Stage cultivator. She stretched. Although she was tiny, she had beautiful curves.


    First River Stage? Long Chen wasnt familiar with the Heavenly River Stage. All he knew was that the Heavenly River Realm was above the Divine Core Realm, and there were only a few people beyond the Divine Core Realm in Yuanling City.


    The legendary four patriarchs of the Lingwu family were masters at the Heavenly River Realm. As for the Beast Soul Pce and Ling Xis faction, Long Chen knew nothing about them. At the very least, Emperor Yuan of the Beast Soul Pce was probably at the Heavenly River Realm. There are eighteen heavenly rivers in the sky of the Dragon Continent. They are all made of countless stars. Nine of them appear during the day, and the other nine at night. Every Yang river matches with a Yin river. Heavenly River Realm masters absorb the star power from the heavenly rivers until a starry sky manifests inside them, forming eighteen heavenly rivers within their bodies. When a Yin and a Yang river merge and start flowing together in tandem, one River Stage is formed. The Heavenly River Realm has nine stages, and once nine Yin-Yang heavenly rivers are opened within the body, the cultivator reaches the Ninth River Stage.


    Knowing that Long Chen wasnt familiar with the Heavenly River Realm, Ling Xi exined the concept to him. Heavenly River  Star power  Yin and Yang heavenly rivers  The Heavenly River Realm also has nine stages? Xiao Xi, which stage do you think the four old geezers of the Lingwu family are at?


    Long Chen was in awe. Being only in the initial Earthly Core Realm now, he was very far away.


    Yuanling City doesnt have any experts, so I think theyre at the First River Stage. Ling Xi shrugged.


    Long Chen was speechless.


    The four patriarchs were on an untouchable level to Long Chen, yet Ling Xi had said that there werent any experts. Dont give up, Brother Chen. I believe youll surpass them very soon, cheered Ling Xi, shaking her fist.


    Mhm. Right, where would we find the Ninth River Stage experts you speak of? asked Long Chen.


    Yuanling City is a county within the Cangyang Kingdom, whose masters are concentrated in Cangyang Imperial City. The imperial city should have masters of that level. Its the capital of the kingdom, so its definitely muchrger than Yuanling City.


    Imperial city? Long Chen had heard of it before. The gigantic Yuanling City was a county city under the jurisdiction of the imperial city. Right now, Yuanling Citys ruling faction was just a branch of the imperial citys administrative power. Just like how the rulers of Baiyang Town, the Yang family, was a branch of the Lingwu family.


    You shouldnt be thinking about a ce like the imperial city right now, Brother Chen. You should be thinking about getting the Azure Dragon Halberd, said Ling Xi.


    He nodded. The Sky Soul Fruit had been sessfully absorbed, so both of them emerged from the underground room. Long Chen saw that Yin Mengyao still wasnt back. Sister Mengyao said shed be back at dusk, but its already nightfall. Unless  is she in trouble?


    Frowning, Long Chen walked towards the Xuanyu Pavilion. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Them flirting and exining power levels?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 197: Dongfang Tianxuan

    Chapter 197: Dongfang Tianxuan


    The Eastern Azure Dragonpound had four main pavilions arranged in a rhombus. Long Chen had been to the other three pavilions, so he quickly figured out the Xuanyu Pavilions location.


    He hurried along quickly, worried for Yin Mengyaos safety, and soon spotted the Xuanyu Pavilion from afar. Compared to the other three, this pavilion was more sophisticated in design.


    He entered without a word and immediately saw a crowd gathered in a circle and heard the sounds of cheering, so he rushed over.


    Long Chen could faintly make out two people engaged in an intense battle at the center of the group. He could tell that there were two girls. One was obviously Yin Mengyao, but he couldnt recognize the other.


    The other teenage girl was almost the same age as Yin Mengyao, and she was just as pretty. This girl was wearing a long, light-yellow dress that fluttered gracefully around her as they fought.


    Yin Mengyao was cold, but her opponent was ice-cold and had deep arrogance in her eyes.


    Upon closer inspection, Long Chen realized that the girl was at a much higher cultivation level than Yin Mengyao. This was more bullying than sparring.


    Outer family members are useless. Sister Tianxuan is barely trying, yet shes already struggling.


    Of course. The outer families work for us, so how good could they be?


    The crowd discussed loudly with no reservations, pointing and critiquing the struggling Yin Mengyao.


    Yin Mengyao was already tiring out under the pressure from her opponent, but her opponent had no intention of ending the duel, instead treating her as a practice target for all sorts of martial techniques.


    Yin Mengyao was drenched in sweat, panting and exhausted. However, she was not the kind of person who would admit defeat so easily, so she held on. Youve been able to hold on for this long; looks like your Flowing Water Body has started to take shape. Not bad. Let me try this move instead. The girl raised her fist and punched Yin Mengyaos head effortlessly. If her pretty face was hit, she wouldve been disfigured.


    Now that Long Chen was here, how could he let this happen?


    He was about to move when there was a bout of heartyughter. A person leaped at Yin Mengyao, grabbed her waist at lightning speed, and then retreated so she was out of range and away from danger.


    It was a young man. He was handsome with fair skin and a tall nose, though the mischievous look in his eyes that made him look evil. Dongfang Tianxing, could you not be so nosey? The girl named Dongfang Tianxuan smirked coldly.


    Alright, my dear cousin. Could you not make me look bad in front of this beautiful girl? Dongfang Tianxing quickly responded.


    Judging by the excited look on his face, his target really suited his tastes. Dongfang Tianxuan knew what her cousin was like. Since Yin Mengyao was irrelevant to her and her opponent had been snatched away, she lost interest and turned to leave.


    Yin Mengyao was suddenly in a strangers arms, and Dongfang Tianxings words made her very ufortable. Her face turned cold and she shoved him away! Let me go, jerk!


    Are you calling me a jerk? Girl, youre so beautiful, and youve joined Eastern Azure Dragondoesnt it seem like we are fated to be together? Dongfang Tianxing was quick to react and grabbed Yin Mengyaos fair hand. He looked down arrogantly, staring at her in amusement.


    Long Chen knew he was powerful, but it was uneptable for him to tease Yin Mengyao under his watch. She was his stepsister, and he would never let anyone bully her! Fuck off! A sudden boom startled everyone, then they saw a teenager charging at Dongfang Tianxing, his fist flying at Dongfang Tianxings face!


    Who are you?!


    Dongfang Tianxings expression changed; he hadnt expected anyone to attack him here. He momentarily lost his gentlemanly demeanor and hurriedly let go of Yin Mengyao to move a few steps back and dodge Long Chens attack.


    Long Chen caught Yin Mengyao and pulled her behind him. The others finally focused and regarded Long Chen with surprise.


    Who is this dog? Dongfang Tianxing, whose gentlemanly image had been ruined, looked at Long Chen. The look of mischief in his eyes turned cold.


    Whos the dog speaking to? shouted Long Chen fearlessly.


    Dongfang Tianxings face darkened when he saw that the brat dared shout at himself. He eximed, To you!


    Oh, the dog is speaking to me? Hehe, I see. Long Chen suddenly startedughing. This was a prank hed pulled many times since he was young, and it was equally fun each time.


    The crowd didnt quite understand why he wasughing, but they soon figured it out. Their faces twitched.


    Dongfang Tianxing had called him a dog, and when Long Chen had asked who the dog was speaking to, Dongfang Tianxing was angered and fell into his trap, his reply implying that he himself was the dog.


    Die!


    Dongfang Tianxings face darkened when he was yed by Long Chen. He was about to attack when Long Chen warned coldly, Dongfang Tianxing, if I tell my stepfather that you bullied my sister  You know my stepfathers temper. You touched his stepdaughter, which is equivalent to a p to his face. Try it, if you dare!


    When he heard Long Chens warning, Dongfang Tianxing thought of Dongfang Xuanxiao and frowned. Dongfang Xuanxiaos personality was hard to grasp. If he found out that he had bullied Long Chen and Yin Mengyao, his Fourth Uncle would pay him a visit to beat him up!


    Dongfang Tianxings mother was Dongfang Xuanyu. He knew that even his mother couldnt control Dongfang Xuanxiao, having to rely on his Eldest Uncles status instead. That was why he stopped, even though he initially wanted to teach Long Chen a lesson.


    Youre <em>that </em>Long Chen? he spat at Long Chen coldly.


    In the flesh, said Long Chen.


    When the crowd learned that he was the person who had performed the best in the inner family qualifiers, they eyed Long Chen. He was very bold to fight Dongfang Tianxing.


    The teenage girl, Dongfang Tianxuan, was also looking at him.


    She hadnt initially paid him any attention, but he dared confront Dongfang Tianxing directly, even intimidating him so he wouldnt attack. His boldness impressed her.


    But how would Dongfang Tianxing vent the anger in his heart?


    He would never swallow his anger just like that. He had an idea. You must be quite powerful If youre brave enough to humiliate me like this. I wonder, do you daree to the Mortal Arena with me? He smirked coldly.


    Just like the outer family, the inner family also had a Mortal Arena. As long as both sides agreed to fight there, they could fight a true duel there and no one would be responsible for any deaths!


    Despite that rule, most duels did not end in death. Everyone was part of the Lingwu family after all, and it was unnecessary to bear such deep enmity.


    The Mortal Arena? Im not interested. Ive only just attained the Earthly Core Realm, and youre at the Heavenly Core Realm. Dont you think its embarrassing for you to challenge me to a duel? mused Long Chen.


    Are you talking back? The corner of Dongfang Tianxings lips curved up in contempt. Youre too scared to ept a challenge. Long Chen, are you even a man? I dont think you are. Why dont you have the guts for it?


    The crowdughed at Dongfang Tianxings questions. It was indeed embarrassing that Long Chen dared insult him but didnt dare ept his challenge.


    When Dongfang Tianxuan saw Long Chens aggressive behavior, she initially thought he was a macho man, and he had piqued her interest. But when she saw that he didnt dare ept the challenge, she lost interest.


    Long Chens expression did not change. Instead of raging, he smiled. If I agreed, not only would I be cowardly, Id also be brainless. As for whether I am a man, we can only prove that in bed. Why? Do you know any good maiden youd rmend for me to test out? As long as she looks decent, I will not refuse. Haha!


    You! Dongfang Tianxing lost once again in a battle of wit. Youre a coward because you dare not take the challenge, finding excuses to get out of it. Long Chen, youre the coward of the cowards!


    Long Chen didnt want to continue wasting time. Without a word, he grabbed Yin Mengyaos hand and left the Xuanyu Pavilion before the gazes of the crowd.


    Yin Mengyao was startled by Long Chens behavior, and terrified because she thought he would be beaten up by Dongfang Tianxing. Yet he had miraculously neutralized the situation by borrowing Xuanxiaos name.


    She was quite impressed by her little stepbrother. <em>Although Long Chen isnt as talented as Xiang in terms of cultivation, hes much better in terms of determination and wisdom.</em>


    Yin Mengyao was left in a daze. Long Chen seemed to have be much more powerful than when they first met.


    When they arrived at the entrance of the Xuanyu Pavilion, they coincidentally ran into Dongfang Tianyu, who was making his way in. Long Chen and him locked eyes, and the mes of violence burned.


    But Long Chen dared not linger, and he left hurriedly.


    After Long Chen left, Dongfang Tianyu noticed that something was wrong in the atmosphere and quickly approached Dongfang Tianxing to ask, Brother Tianxing? How was she? The girl I rmended, Yin Mengyao, suits your taste, right?


    Dongfang Tianxings eyes were dark. Shes delicious! But shes Fourth Uncles stepdaughter, so I can''t do anything.


    Dongfang Tianyu had an idea and pulled Tianxing aside. Fourth Uncle is indeed difficult to deal with, but you cant act openly. Now that both of them are in the inner family, we will have many opportunities to make a move!


    Dongfang Tianxing perked up and said, Brother Yu, you alwayse up with good ideas. I want to kill Long Chen; do you have a way?


    Long Chen? Dongfang Tianyu grinned. I will kill him during the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    All of these youngsters born in a wealthy family gets taunted so easily ngl


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 198: Good News, Bad News

    Chapter 198: Good News, Bad News


    Once Long Chen returned to his quarters, he started cultivating again until dawn. The Azure Dragon Halberd tournament was approaching, and he dared not ck off. Xiangs fate depended on his performance at the tournament.


    At the break of dawn, Long Chen was still cultivating when Yin Mengyao knocked on the door and said excitedly, Long Chen, I have good news!


    Long Chen opened the door and asked, looking confused, What is it?


    Its a secret. Youll find outter, said Yin Mengyao teasingly.


    After Long Chen saved her yesterday, theyd gotten even closer.


    Alright, dont y games with me! Spill! Long Chen threatened her.


    Alright. It was rare for Yin Mengyao to be this mischievous, but Long Chen wasnt buying it. She returned to normal and smiled. Your cousin in the Northern ck Tortoise family, Yang Lingqing, ising to meet you. Shes on her way now.


    Huh? Long Chen gasped in joy. It was an amazing surprise.


    He had been feeling guilty because he should have gone to see her the moment he arrived. But his visit to the Star Devil Prison had taken up more than ten days. When Yang Lingqing heard that he had entered the inner family, she came over first.


    After a while, he saw Dongfang Xuanxiao leading Yang Lingqing over. He knew that the two cousins hadnt met for a long time, so he and Yin Mengyao left them alone.


    Yang Lingqing was wearing a long, light-green dress, and she had be prettier. There was even a hint of deep green in her beautiful eyes that made them look very lively. Brother  Yang Lingqing was overwhelmed with emotion upon seeing Long Chen.


    Lets talk inside. He pulled her in and made her sit down. Long Chen looked her up and down and grinned. Hey, girl, we havent met in a long time, and youve gotten so much prettier!


    You jerk, youre just lying to make me happy! Knowing Long Chen, she wasnt going to fall for his lies.


    But he was being genuine this time.


    They hadnt seen each other in so long, and they both had a lot to say. Once they started talking, they didnt stop from morning until noon. Long Chen mainly told her about his experiences during their time apart. Yang Lingqing did the same, though her life was more boring. After receiving a few good cultivation methods and a wealth of resources, she had been spending all her time cultivating. Within less than a month, she had condensed her Human Core, therefore reaching the Human Core Realm.


    Indeed, with the Dark Yin Body, her progress was extraordinary with the right cultivation methods.


    Right, wheres Sister Ling Xi? she asked.


    Shes sleeping. She sleeps deeply for many hours every day, said Long Chen.


    Oh. Yang Lingqing nodded and looked around, saying wistfully, When you said that you wanted to join the inner family qualifiers, I knew it would be very difficult. But I also knew that you would seed! I was right!


    Hehe, of course. Your brother is an amazing guy! Money, power, and girls are easy to get for someone like me!


    All you do is brag.


    Yang Lingqing was much happier now that she could talk to Long Chen. She covered her mouth,ughing so hard that her stomach hurt.


    But Long Chen was observant enough to notice the hint of worry and frustration hiding deep in her eyes. Xiao Qinger, tell your big brother, is there anyone bullying you in the Northern ck Tortoise family? If anyone dares to touch you, Ill spank his bottom. Long Chen knew that she was the kind that would suffer in silence, so she wouldnt say anything if he asked her in a serious tone. That was why he had spoken in a joking manner.


    She froze, but when she saw the grin on his face, she sighed in relief and said, How could someone as likable as me have problems? Look at you, making enemies everywhere you go! You worry me to death.


    Hehe, theyre just jealous because Im too handsome. Theyre insignificant, nothing to be feared, joked Long Chen.


    He privately made a mental note. <em>Dongfang Tianxing targeted Sister Mengyao as soon as he came back home. Lingqing went to the Northern ck Tortoise family alone and is vulnerable to Beitang Mos whims. If Beitang Mo isnt a good person, then Lingqing is in trouble </em>


    A huge boulder sat on Long Chens chest.


    Are you sure theres no one bullying you? Long Chen thought of what Liu Lan had said. People who entered the inner family were often kept inside through marriage. Yang Lingqing was getting more beautiful by the day, and she even had the rare Dark Yin Body. How could she not catch anyones attention?


    Im sure. Dont overthink it. Just focus on your cultivation; Im waiting to brag about you to other people. Yang Lingqing reached out and swatted his chest, as if he was overthinking things.


    Alright, I believe you. Although that was what Long Chen said, he didnt think so. <em>Based on Lingqings peculiar behavior, she must be in great trouble. She must be worried about me and thinks Im not strong enough, afraid that shell drag me into the problem. Thats probably why she wont tell me about it  </em>Long Chen made a mental note.


    He didnt bring this topic up again. Instead, they discussed cultivation. Another two hours passed, and it was past noon. Ling Xi woke up and instantly saw Yang Lingqing, making her very excited.


    The girls chattered nonstop, leaving Long Chen aside.


    He watched them in silence. <em>Are these the two girls I must protect?</em>


    Long Chen was frustrated. Ling Xi had insurance now that she had the Sky Soul Fruit, but he still couldnt feel at peace, because Yang Lingqing was alone in the Northern ck Tortoise family.


    Yang Lingqing only left in the evening.


    He noticed her unwillingness to leave, but he knew that she had to go. The Northern ck Tortoise family was going through great lengths to nurture her, so as a trainee, she had no autonomy.


    I feel like Lingqing is worried about something, said Ling Xu solemnly after she left.


    I know. If Ling Xi noticed the same thing, then it had to be true. Emotions could affect a persons entire demeanor, so it was obvious no matter how hard she tried to cover it up.


    Lets go look for Xuanxiao.


    All he could do was ask for help. The ck Tortoise family was an immense presence, and he couldnt fight it alone.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was sitting in the Xuanxiao Pavilion. Has your cousin left already? he asked.


    Long Chen nodded. He didnt hide what he was thinking from Dongfang Xuanxiao and said directly, Stepfather, could you help me investigate if anyone is forcing my cousin to do something in the ck Tortoise family? For example, forcing her into marriage.


    Hm. Dongfang Xuanxiao fell silent for a while, then he nodded and called for a guard. Very quickly, an armored guard entered and Dongfang Xuanxiao told him of Long Chens request. The guard nodded, then he quickly disappeared. You may return. Ill tell you once I receive any news.


    Thank you, Stepfather! Long Chen trusted him, so he turned to leave.


    Long Chen, Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly called out.


    What is it? Long Chen looked back.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao looked at him and said mildly, Dont worry, itll be fine.


    He wanted Long Chen not to worry, but Long Chen couldnt rx. He initially wanted to focus on preparing for the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament, but Yang Lingqings matter frustrated him.


    <em>No one is allowed to touch the people I protect, or Ill chop them to pieces, even if I must risk my life!</em>


    Long Chens eyes darkened as he sat down in a pavilion in the courtyard.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao finally came to Long Chen when it was almost midnight. He must havee to ry what he had learned as soon as he could, further proving his love for his stepson.


    Stepfather, whats the situation? he asked worriedly.


    You guessed right. Beitang Mo has already sent her a marriage proposal, and he has sent the dowry to Baiyang Town. But your cousin is impressive too, because shes dying her reply. But the marriage is being arranged by the Northern ck Tortoise familys head, Beitang Ming, who is Beitang Mos father. So your cousin wont be able to dy any longer and will soon relent. If they use your family in Baiyang Town to threaten her, shell definitely do as they say!


    <em>Snap!</em>


    Long Chen squeezed the wooden railing so hard, it splintered!


    A fierce, red glint appeared in his eyes!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao stared ahead and asked mildly, Are you nning to storm the Northern ck Tortoise family?


    I was the one who encouraged her to join the Northern ck Tortoise family, but I never expected it toe to this! I dont want Lingqing to do anything she doesnt want to do; I dont want her to force herself. She is my cousin, so I must stop this, even if I die! eximed Long Chen through gritted teeth.


    Youre a brat who doesnt know when to stop, said Dongfang Xuanxiao in exasperation. Im guessing that she came to see you today because she was too stressed out. And Im guessing she will surrender as soon as she returns. Although she has a Dark Yin Body, she started toote and is only at the initial Human Core Realm. She is as weak as an ant in the eyes of a giant like the Northern ck Tortoise family! So, tell me, what do you n to do?


    What else? I was the one who made her lose her freedom, so I must trade my life for her freedom! He felt extremely guilty when he thought about how he had been stupid enough to push Yang Lingqing into that ce alone.


    Dont be so pessimistic. Maybe theyll like each other? Beitang Mo is an excellent young man, and hes as strong as Tianchen in terms of cultivation. Hes number one in the Northern ck Tortoise family.


    No. Long Chen shook his head. If Lingqing liked him, she wouldve told me today. Plus, if she liked him, why would she dy her reply? Stepfather, it looks like I wont be able to participate in the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament


    Long Chen was prepared to take Yang Lingqing back to Baiyang Town, running away from this ce.


    Are you saying you want to leave the Lingwu family? Dongfang Xuanxiao turned to look at him calmly.


    Im sorry! Youve done so much for me, but I couldnt repay you! Long Chen really had no way to repay him for everything he had done.


    Silly child. Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly smiled and patted his shoulder. Prepare yourself, well storm the Northern ck Tortoise family tomorrow!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Fucking hell Dongfang Xuanxiao is a true man. I guess we gotta see what''s gonna happen


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 199: Storming Northern Black Tortoise

    Chapter 199: Storming Northern ck Tortoise


    On the next day, at dawn, Long Chen was ready to leave with Dongfang Xuanxiao for the Northern ck Tortoise family.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had clearly told Long Chen that he would back him no matter how over-the-line he wanted to be.


    Long Chen also understood in his heart that Dongfang Xuanxiao was being far too kind to him. This even made him feel bad, but he was not one to decline help. This was a major life event for Yang Lingqing. If he didnt deal with this appropriately, it could destroy Yang Lingqings whole life. That was why he had to go to the Northern ck Tortoise family and take a more aggressive stance against them even if it created a huge problem for Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Being also part of the inner family, the Eastern Azure Dragon family was not far from Northern ck Tortoise, so they arrived quickly.


    The Northern ck Tortoise members near the entrance hurried off to inform their leaders when they saw them both.


    After a while, a middle-aged man almost the same age as Dongfang Xuanfeng emerged, passionately greeting them. Brother Xuanxiao, its rare for you to visit the Northern ck Tortoise family! A rare guest, a rare guest indeed! Come inside!


    Long Chen squinted. The mans features were simr to Beitang Mos, so he was probably his father, as well as the head of the Northern ck Tortoise family, Beitang Ming.


    The fact that he was the head of the Northern ck Tortoise naturally meant that he was ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator. Just like Dongfang Xuanxiao, he was much more powerful than the nine Grand Elders of the outer families.


    Beitang Ming led them to arge building with mainly ink-green as its color theme.


    They sat down in sequence, ording to their rank, with Long Chen next to Dongfang Xuanxiao. He looked at his surroundings and then at Beitang Ming, feeling anxious. The people around him were much stronger than he was. Any one of them could kill him easily, but Long Chen needed to settle Yang Lingqings problem today, and it was going to be extremely difficult.


    After noticing Long Chens gaze, Beitang Ming instructed his people to serve some tea, then he asked smilingly, Who is this little prodigy?


    This is my stepson, Long Chen. He only recently joined the inner family. Im sure youve heard of him, Brother Beitang, replied Dongfang Xuanxiao mildly.


    Of course. The name Long Chen has been as loud as thunder these days. The youth of my family have been talking about him. I heard that he defeated the boy who was called the number one prodigy of the outer family, at only the initial Earthly Core Realm?


    Thats true. But on that note, Long Chen and you are actually indirectly rted, said Dongfang Xuanxiao. He stared straight at Beitang Ming without expression, and Beitang Ming couldnt figure out what he was thinking.


    I know about this. I took in a stepdaughter recently. Her name is Yang Lingqing, and she has the rare Dark Yin Body. I heard shes Long Chens cousin! Ill get someone to bring Yang Lingqing here so you guys can meet.


    Beitang Ming was all smiles, though when he saw that Long Chen and Dongfang Xuanxiao didnt look happy, he had a bad feeling. But he rxed when he thought about how Dongfang Xuanxiao couldnt interfere with Yang Lingqings matters.


    Someone went to call for Yang Lingqing, while Beitang Ming took great interest in Long Chen. When he and Dongfang Xuanxiao chatted, he pulled the conversation topic back to Long Chen multiple times. In the end, he even asked him questions, showing him great care.


    <em>This old fox isnt easy to deal with. </em>Although Long Chen was chatting with Beitang Ming, his heart was cold. <em>Xiao Qing is just a weak girl. How could she fight back when shes living under the control of this old fox?</em>


    That was why he had to settle this problem.


    The youthful Yang Lingqing spotted Long Chen immediately, and was initially pleasantly surprised, but then that feeling turned into confusion and worry. Shed only just met Long Chen yesterday, so why was he here today?


    Qinger, Moer,e sit here.


    Beitang Ming smiled and called the two of them over.


    Behind Yang Lingqing was the cold Beitang Mo, whose gazended on Long Chen when he entered. There was surprise in his eyes.


    The first time he met Long Chen was in the Blood Saints underground city. At the time, Long Chen was at thete Human Core Realm, but he could kill an opponent at the initial Earthly Core Realm. Now, Long Chen had entered the Earthly Core Realm, and he heard that Long Chen had defeated the very strong Jin Shengen, a mid-Earthly Core Realm cultivator, which resulted in him joining the inner family.


    This brat was initially insignificant to him, but now he was shocked.


    Following Beitang Mings instruction, both Yang Lingqing and Beitang Mo sat down obediently, despite their racing thoughts.


    Another wave of anger surged in Long Chens heart, because he saw that her eyes were red and swollen. She had been crying.


    He felt like he had been stabbed in the heart when he thought about how much psychological suffering his cousin had to endure here. At the same time, his viciousness was slowly growing. You two are cousins! Why so awkward? Haha, ignore us seniors, you guys go ahead and chat! said Beitang Ming with a smile. He picked up a cup of tea and took a small sip.


    While he sipped his tea, Long Chen suddenly looked at him and asked a little coldly, Senior Beitang, I heard that Beitang Mo intends to wed Lingqing, and has already sent the dowry to my family?


    Although Beitang Ming and Beitang Mo didnt think it was anything major, the question made Yang Lingqing shudder. She looked at Long Chen in a panic, as if a painful problem of hers had suddenly been exposed.


    Haha, Long Chen, I was just about to tell you about that. My son and Qinger are interested in each other, and they agreed to wedst night. Well be holding a grand wedding ceremony on the seventh day of next month!


    As he spoke, he looked at Yang Lingqing pointedly. Qinger, how could you forget to tell your cousin? You cant just tell your family at home.


    I I forgot  She was panicking internally, especially after seeing Long Chens eyes turn colder.


    That was when, much to everyones shock, except Dongfang Xuanxiao, Long Chen mmed the side table so hard that it broke. Then he shot up and red at Beitang Ming coldly.


    Long Chen, what are you doing? Beitang Mo asked coldly with a frown.


    He wasnt targeting Beitang Mo, but Beitang Ming. To Beitang Mings surprise, Long Chen eximed sternly, Interested? Is this what you call interested? Senior Beitang, by interested, do you mean using your power and status to bully my cousin into marrying your son?


    Long Chens sudden move was very out-of-the-norm, so Beitang Ming and Beitang Mo were too shocked to react. Yang Lingqing was stunned. The longer she stayed in the inner family, the more she learned about their power. Long Chens behavior was undeniably the same as digging his own grave!


    Nonsense! Beitang Mings re darkened. He looked at Dongfang Xuanxiao immediately. If it wasnt for Dongfang Xuanxiao, Long Chen would be an ant he could kill with just one p, an ant who had no right to yell at him.


    But when he saw Dongfang Xuanxiaos neutral expression, and how he was still drinking his tea with his head lowered, he knew that this was all silently permitted by Dongfang Xuanxiao! <em>Is there a problem with Xuanxiaos brain? How could he let me get embarrassed like this? This is infuriating! </em>Fury slowly crept through Beitang Ming!


    From his perspective, a brat questioning him like this in the great hall was a great humiliation, and the fact that Dongfang Xuanxiao silently allowed this  Beitang Ming red at Long Chen, killing intent evident in his eyes!


    Why do you say its nonsense? Lingqing,e here! Long Chen showed no intention of backing down, still staring coldly at Beitang Ming.


    Yang Lingqings brain had gone nk. All she knew was that Long Chens behavior was too shocking. When he called her name, she went towards him subconsciously!


    Lingqing, what are you doing? asked Beitang Mo in a cold voice, startling her into halting.


    Trust me. Come here, and I guarantee you will be safe. When she was faced with this extreme dilemma, Long Chen looked at her solemnly, saying the words that made her feel safe.


    He had saved her a few times before, so she had formed a blind trust in him. That was why she gritted her teeth and, under Beitang Mos cold re, stood next to Long Chen!


    Brother  What do I do? Hot tears welled up in her eyes.


    I have confidence. Dont underestimate me; just do as I say. Itll be fine. He reached out and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, only to realize that she had gotten thinner. She was a weak girl entering a stressful ce like the Lingwu family; how could she not lose weight?


    An older brother would never let anyone bully their younger sister! Long Chen should have realized earlier that Lingqing was suffering here, but he had been kept away by other matters since entering the inner family, and couldnte to her care immediately. He knew in his heart that this was his mistake.


    Mhm  Yang Lingqing nodded tearfully. If it wasnt for the fact that Long Chen had her trust and she was confident in him, she wouldnt have stood with him at such a critical moment. This was a wild decision to make!


    Qinger, what are you doing? Have you forgotten what Ive said to you? There was killing intent in Beitang Mings voice as he spoke darkly.


    Dont try to intimidate my cousin! Senior Beitang, havent you heard the saying, The melon that was forcefully plucked will not be sweet? Lingqing is unwilling, and putting the fact that you didnt care for her well as her stepfather aside, what right do you have to force her into marrying your son? Long Chen confronted Beitang Ming directly without backing down.


    In reality, the Lingwu family had long made a habit of forcing outsiders who entered the inner family to marry their youth, but Long Chen refused to believe that he was restricted to tradition! Would that mean he would be left with no choice but to marry a Dongfang girl? He would be against this arrangement.


    Beitang Ming waspletely embarrassed to be questioned by Long Chen like this. No longer able to suppress his anger, powerful Qi erupted from him, and he red at Dongfang Xuanxiao and eximed, Dongfang Xuanxiao, what is the meaning of this?! Just speak directly to me! If you dont like me, dont use a junior to start trouble with me! Say it to my face, if you have the guts!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    update 2/2/24: hey guys. so. we were having uploading issues for our memes across c101 to 200, and somehow, they all disappeared overnight. WE ARE IN SHAMBLES. so sorry for not noticing sooner.


    we''ll try to re-upload whatever disappeared, but we still need to keep up with the current uploads in the c200s first. PLS BEAR WITH US FOR A SEC. THANKS.


    for future issues like that, feel free to tell us on discord! THANK YOU!


    -doge


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 200: Yin Poison Strike

    Chapter 200: Yin Poison Strike


    Beitang Ming had lost face when a junior like Long Chen yelled at him. If it wasnt for Dongfang Xuanxiao sitting there, he would''ve killed Long Chen already.


    What Long Chen wants is what I want. Brother Ming, you grew up with me. I think you know me well too. If the girl is unwilling, why force her?


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was calm in the face of Beitang Mings anger.


    He put his teacup on the table, then he looked at Beitang Ming mildly, though there was a hard determination in his eyes.


    Long Chen was privately grateful to Dongfang Xuanxiao. Senior Beitang, what I said before was over the line, but I am just acting for the good of my cousin. I hope you can forgive me. But I dont want my cousin to relent just because she was pressured. Even if you guys get her in the end, I think Brother Beitang Mo over here wont be willing to ept her too, right?


    Long Chen understood where to stop. He had acted arrogantly to grab their attention, and now he softened his tone, so it was more ptable to Beitang Ming.


    Beitang Mo forcing Yang Lingqing to marry him was a very ungentlemanly act, and Long Chen hadid it all bare. Beitang Mo saw himself as a gentleman, and although he knew that Long Chen was trying to provoke him, he couldnt stop himself from tuning red in anger and embarrassment.


    Isnt it toote for you to realize that youve stepped over the line? Long Chen, you have made terrible usations to humiliate me, and as the head of the Northern ck Tortoise, how will I live if this gets out? Beitang Ming could tell that Dongfang Xuanxiao was giving Long Chen free rein to make usations.


    You may do whatever you want, Senior Beitang, but I dont think Lingqings engagement has spread to the other people. As long as you cancel the wedding right now, I will be willing to kowtow a few times to you!


    Long Chen pulled Yang Lingqing behind him, holding her shaking hand tightly. He could feel that her palm was sweating.


    The past Long Chen would never have kowtowed to another person, but now he was willing to do anything in order to help Lingqing survive this.


    Although Dongfang Xuanxiao could help him, Long Chen knew that it was not so simple.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Beitang Ming were major figures in the Lingwu family, and they still worked under the four patriarchs. They couldnt get into a conflict so easily. All Dongfang Xuanxiao could do was guarantee that Long Chen would be safe, but Long Chen still had to rely on his wits to help Lingqing.


    Dont do it! Yang Lingqings voice was hoarse. She knew how arrogant he was, and getting him to kowtow was harder than flying. But today, he was willing to do it for her without hesitation.


    Yang Lingqing was d she had an elder brother like him.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao took another nce at Long Chen, then he nodded. The teenagers attitude proved that he hadnt wasted his time helping him regardless of the consequences.


    Kowtow? Beitang Ming chuckled coldly. You were disrespectful, and you think kowtowing can solve the problem? If you want your wish granted, Long Chen, you must withstand a strike from me. If you survive, Ill let you go! And your cousins matter will be open to discussion!


    One strike? Long Chens brows were knitted. He knew that one strike from Beitang Ming was enough to kill him instantly. That meant he wanted Long Chens life in exchange for it.


    Beitang Ming. When Dongfang Xuanxiao heard the request, he stood up and walked over to Long Chen, saying, Dont make such an unreasonable request. Ill say it how it is: Long Chen is my stepson. As for todays matter, I will help him to the end. You know me well, and I will stop this marriage even if I have to face pressure from the four patriarchs. Why not just take a step back for apromise, and well all live well?


    Beitang Ming knew that Dongfang Xuanxiao had always been a rebel, and he had achieved the impossible several times. Hed always been able to do anything he set out to do. Based on his personality, it was very much possible that hed mess up the Northern ck Tortoise family over Yang Lingqings matter!


    A huge wave of anger surged through Beitang Mo. He red coldly at Long Chen, killing intent radiating from him. He thought this marriage was finally going to happen, yet an obstacle had appeared unexpectedly. This brat had trampled all over his name!


    But Beitang Mo was already past twenty, so he understood that he had to suppress his anger. He had heard of Dongfang Xuanxiao, and he was indeed powerful. He pulled at Beitang Mings arm and said gently, Father, let me deal with this. As for the reason, Ill tell youter!


    Beitang Ming froze when he saw how confident his son was. Knowing his sons personality, he chose to trust him. Beitang Mo took a few steps forward, eyes on Long Chen, and said, There are no outsiders here, so I am alright with saying this directly. I can agree to calling off the wedding, but on one condition.


    What is it? Tell me, said Long Chen mildly, looking at this young man he once admired.


    Simple. You take one strike from me, and youre not allowed to fight back. If you survive, I will not mention the marriage again! said Beitang Mo.


    You were the one who said it! Long Chen knew that he was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, which was countless times stronger than himself. But at least he was weaker than Beitang Ming. Many people already knew of their n to let Beitang Mo wed Yang Lingqing, so asking them to stop all of a sudden would result in a huge blow to their reputation.


    Long Chen knew that the father and son duo would not stop without him paying a price that was high enough! You cant do this! Yang Lingqing was horrified when Long Chen agreed without hesitation. She knew their cultivation levels, and letting Long Chen withstand a hit from Beitang Mo was like hitting an egg with a rock. Hed shatter to pieces!


    Lingqing, this is none of your business. Yang Lingqing was only at the initial Human Core Realm, so how would she resist Long Chen? Therefore, she was pushed back to Dongfang Xuanxiaos side. Long Chen knew that hed help hold Yang Lingqing back.


    As expected, Dongfang Xuanxiao reached out and grabbed her tightly. She was fearfully pale, struggling as hard as she could, but she could not move. Big Brother, dont do it! I dont want you to die! I am willing to marry him! Isnt that enough?! Hot tears flowed from her eyes. Her heart was broken when she saw how willing he was to risk his life for her. The figure standing in front of herself suddenly looked so dignified!


    Lord Xuanxiao! You cant let him get killed, hes your stepson! Are you going to let him die like that? When she noticed Xuanxiao, she begged tearfully, as if she had found the piece of straw that would save his life.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao took a deep breath. He was also torn internally. Finally, he ignored her tears, gritted his teeth and asked Long Chen, Kid, are you confident?


    Yes! Long Chen answered without hesitation.


    Remember, you owe me a lot. Im still waiting for you to repay me, said Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    I remember. Long Chen forced a smile, then he looked at her. Dont you know that you look so ugly when you cry? Be a good girl and dont cry. Watch me perform a miracle.


    Yang Lingqings eyes were filled with tears, crying so hard that she couldnt speak. Infinite regret filled her heart. She regretted going to see Long Chen yesterday, causing him to sniff her out. She regretted unconsciously walking to Long Chens side just now, proving that she was unwilling to marry Beitang Mo.


    She was the one to me for her cousins death.


    Miracle? Enough of that nonsense. If you agree, then lets begin! Im so touched by the sibling love you two share, said Beitang Mo with a chuckle.


    Do it. Before Yang Lingqings broken-hearted gaze, Long Chen walked to the center of the hall and stood tall in front of the number one prodigy of the Northern ck Tortoise family without even furrowing his brows!


    As he walked, he activated his Dragon Soul Transformation. The blood-red armor of scales covered his whole body.


    Beast Soul Transformation? What demonic beast is that? Beitang Ming was puzzled. Since Long Chen was currently at the Divine Core Realm, he instinctively thought that it was a ck-tier beast soul. But there were no beasts simr to the Underground Blood Lizard in the ck tier, so he couldnt figure it out. Nheless, it was all irrelevant to him killing Long Chen.


    Long Chen had already prepared himself, so his Qi and zing Thunder Power were at their peak forms, and the power of lightning and fire encircled his body.


    <em>zing Thunder Combat Body? Its too bad its only Level Two. If it were in its Level Threeplete form, my attack wouldnt even be able to hurt one hair on his body! </em>Beitang Mo was a knowledgeable person too.


    Seeing as Long Chen was prepared, he chuckled coldly. Then, without hesitation, the Qi level of a mid Heavenly Core Realm cultivator erupted from his body. A cold, ink-green Yin aura radiated in all directions!


    Are you ready for death? He smirked. As his Qi grew, he strode forward and then leaped, thrusting his palm out!


    Yin Poison Strike!


    A gust of Yin wind howled at Long Chen. Long Chen did not block the attack, letting his palmnd squarely on his chest!


    Lets see if you can survive this!


    Long Chen was thrown back into the air, while Beitang Moughed.


    Big Brother! Yang Lingqing screamed, her face even paler because she saw that when Long Chen flew backwards, he spat out ck blood mid-air and his face was ckened!


    She was a member of the Northern ck Tortoise family, so she knew the power of their martial techniques. The Yin Poison Strike targeted his insides and specifically destroyed the tendons, blood vessels, bones, and organs. It was difficult for someone like Long Chen to survive a strike. Even if he did, his meridians would break and clot, and his cultivation would regress!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Long Chen: Trust me


    Dongfang Xuanxiao:


    (hey guys! memes are back! we were having uploading issues but now it should be fixed!!)


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 201: Resilient Cockroach

    Chapter 201: Resilient Cockroach


    The moment Long Chen flew out, Dongfang Xuanxiao caught him in his arms and ced him t on the ground. There was a stalk of spiritual herb in his hand, radiating spiritual Qi. He crumbled it and then stuffed it into Long Chens mouth, guiding his Qi to help Long Chens body refine it.


    Long Chens eyes were shut, and ck blood was flowing from the corner of his mouth. His body was cold and ck smoke was rising from it. He looked almost like a dead person.


    Big Brother! When she saw how he had ended up, Yang Lingqing felt like her world had crumbled. She knew that he likely wasnt going to survive, and even if he was lucky enough to live, he would be crippled!


    There were four levels between the initial Earthly Core Realm and the mid Heavenly Core realm. Long Chen had taken one strike from Beitang Mo for her despite the massive gap. How would he survive this unscathed?


    Even Dongfang Xuanxiao wasnt very confident, but his many years of experience told him that this was no time to admit defeat. If he took action in time, Long Chen might be saved!


    Big Brother, you must hold on! Aunt and the rest of the family are still waiting for you at home


    Yang Lingqing slid to the ground weakly. There was no strength left in her body. All she could do was stare at him for a long time, as if her whole world had copsed.


    She wrapped her arms around herself, her shoulders twitching, her expression full of helplessness and self-me.


    When Beitang Mo saw Long Chen in this state, he turned to give his father a small smile. Beitang Ming was proud. <em>Moer has matured.</em>


    Beitang Ming knew that when he suggested striking Long Chen, Long Chen would not agree to it because he knew he would die. But if Beitang Mo suggested it, someone as arrogant as Long Chen was sure to agree, as they were part of the same generation!


    And that was how they had achieved this result!


    Father, I heard that this brat was going to participate in the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament too. Dongfang Tianxing and I are good friends, and we met up a few days ago. I think he said that his younger brother, Tianyu, was going to kill Long Chen there. So if Long Chen manages to survive today, he will be left with broken meridians and weakened cultivation, so he will surely be killed by Dongfang Tianyuter on. Once Long Chen dies, Lingqing will definitely be mine. Dont you agree, Father? said Beitang Mo in a low voice, standing next to Beitang Ming.


    Youre right. Youve done a good job today. Beitang Mings praise waspletely genuine.


    Then they looked at Long Chen. He is probably dead. Beitang Ming smirked to himself.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao, who was treating Long Chen using an advanced ck-tier spiritual medicine, wasnt confident either when he saw his stepsons state. He was regretful too. <em>He might not wake up. Have I done the wrong thing? I only felt that men should be brave enough to take responsibility during critical moments, facing the world fearlessly even at the risk of death  Or was I wrong?</em>


    When Dongfang Xuanxiao saw the helpless, despairing Yang Lingqing, some memories resurfaced, and he felt like he had been stabbed in the heart. <em>Long Chen, I have wronged you. </em>He, too, was filled with self-me.


    While Dongfang Xuanxiaos face darkened, he suddenly sensed a healing energy within Long Chens body. The energy was moving through every part of him, as if sentient. Although it was faint, it was able to heal corners that couldnt be treated by spiritual medicine. <em>This is  the legendary Life Combat Technique! </em>A wave of shock crashed through him. He was overjoyed that Long Chen possessed the legendary Life Combat Technique. Most importantly, if it was flowing in an intelligent manner, it meant Long Chen wasnt dead! He was still conscious enough to heal himself!


    With that realization, Dongfang Xuanxiao was ecstatic and took out another advanced ck-tier spiritual medicine. He crumbled it and then inserted it into Long Chens mouth. He used his Qi to carefully treat Long Chens injury.


    Xuanxiao, he took my sons Yin Poison Strike. Dont waste good advanced ck-tier spiritual medicine, said Beitang Ming with an insincere smile. He was irritated that Dongfang Xuanxiao had threatened him just now, and now he was happy to mock him.


    When Yang Lingqing heard that there was no hope for Long Chen, her mind went nk. That was when she saw Long Chens finger move! Big Brother, you didnt die! She immediately got to her feet and rushed to Long Chens side.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao knew that it was time, so he quickly helped him up into a sitting position, legs crossed and palms facing up. Although Long Chens eyes were still closed, he was able to use his Qi to refine the medicinal power, simultaneously using the Recovery technique!


    Long Chen was extremely familiar with the injuries in his own body, so letting him do it himself would be most effective!


    He didnt die? Beitang Mo and Beitang Ming looked at each other, slightly shocked. <em>Is this guy a cockroach? He just wont quit! Hes only at the initial Earthly Core Realm, yet he survived after I used my Yin Poison Strike on him as a mid-Heavenly Core Realm cultivator! </em>Beitang Mo thought to himself. <em>But even though hes alive, hell be crippled for the rest of his life.</em>


    Under Yang Lingqings expectant gaze, the darkness in Long Chens face slowly dissipated. After a long time, he finally opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Yang Lingqing, who was smiling through her tears.


    Where did this crybabye from? he uttered slowly, smirking. It was a simple sentence, but it took him great effort to form those words.


    Long Chens joke made her suddenly recall the times he used tough at her when they were young. The joy in those memories made her freeze. She only snapped back to reality after a long time, and then she asked the young man who was like a god to her anxiously, Big Brother, are you alright?


    My hips are fine, my kidneys are fine, everything is fine. And my abilities in bed remain great, as always, said Long Chen, forcing a smile because he was afraid the girl would worry.


    Youre a jerk! Yang Lingqing both cried andughed.


    He wanted to touch her face, but he was frustrated that his current state did not allow him to do so.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao looked at him and asked, How do you feel?


    Im fine. Lets finish this matter before we talk. Long Chen then turned to Beitang Mo and said, I have withstood one strike from you, and I did not retaliate. Beitang Mo, remember what you said


    Beitang Mo was surprised that Long Chen had survived, but he knew that thetter would surely die if he went to the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament in this state. And once he was dead, Yang Lingqing wouldnt leave the Northern ck Tortoise family. So, wouldnt she still be his? Therefore, he said coldly, I, Beitang Mo, always keep my word.


    Really? Dongfang Xuanxiao nced coldly at Beitang Ming and said mildly, I have nothing else to say. Long Chen has withstood one strike. If one day I discover that he took that strike for nothing, then someone will have to take one strike from me, Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Since the matter is settled, Brother Xuanxiao, you may leave. Beitang Ming did not want to talk to him, so he started to chase him out.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had no intention of staying. Let me carry you on my back.


    Mhm. Long Chen nodded. He was too weak to walk. But he did feel very embarrassed that he was being carried by another man at this age.


    Before they left, while he was on Xuanxiaos back, he turned to look at Beitang Mo. Beitang Mo, I will return the strike you gave me ten thousand times over! Or may my soul never reincarnate again! Long Chen had made a poison oath!


    Lingqing,e outside with me for a moment. He still had something to say to her before he left.


    Beitang Mo wanted to stop them, but his father blocked him. Why stop them? Hes a dead man. Let them see each other one more time. We Northern ck Tortoise members arepassionate people


    ***


    Once they left thepound, Long Chen turned to say to Lingqing, I initially wanted to scold you today, but its fine. Lingqing, if you dont tell me when youre bullied, it means youre looking down on me. And if I find out youre hiding it from me, I wont punish you, but the bully will be chopped to pieces! And I dont care about the consequences!


    I understand. Big Brother, are you alright? Yang Lingqing was frightened by the days events. Long Chen had managed to pull off a miracle in the end, sessfully saving her. Right now, she was most concerned about his injuries.


    Even if one survives the Yin Poison Strike, it usually results in broken meridians and clotting in the meridian vessels, causing their cultivation to weaken, added Dongfang Xuanxiao with great concern.


    Dont worry, you two. Im a cockroach that cant be killed, Long Chen responded with a chuckle. Although my injuries arent minor, they didnt cause my cultivation to worsen. I can guarantee that I will recover fully before the Azure Dragon Halberd Tournament!


    His bodys toughness was on par with the Level Two zing Thunder Body, but it was fundamentally a dragon body with the blood essence of a primordial dragon. Therefore, it was peerless when it came to resilience and immunity. Beitang Mo might have nned to cripple him with one strike, but it wasnt so easy!


    Of course, that was also because Beitang Mo hadnt used his most powerful technique.


    When they heard Long Chens promise, they sighed in relief. Long Chen had survived yet another crisis. Lingqing, you have pledged your loyalty to the Northern ck Tortoise family, so I have no way to take you out of here. This is all I can do for you, but Beitang Mo should be more reserved from now on. You must still be careful, and tell me if you face any trouble!


    Mhm, I understand. After today, she knew that as long as she had Long Chen, the man who could carry the sky on his shoulders, she didnt have to be afraid!


    Big Brother, if youre going to participate in the Azure Dragon Halberd Tournament, you must focus on healing and cultivation. Do your best, I have high hopes for you! She squeezed a smile.


    Long Chen nodded. As he stared at her beautiful face, he suddenly recalled a serious question and whispered, Xiao Qing, Beitang Mo didnt force himself on you, did he?


    What are you talking about?! Yang Lingqing was embarrassed, but she knew that it was logical for him to worry about this. Big Brother, dont worry about that. I heard from someone else that with my Dark Yin Body, uh  If the other person isnt at least at thete Heavenly Core Realm, they  will not end up well. So, you dont have to worry about that at all!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Cockroach:


    Lingqing to Long Chen:


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 202: Mid Earthly Core Realm

    Chapter 202: Mid Earthly Core Realm


    I see.


    Yang Lingqing was still an innocent girl, so she could only mumble incoherently when she spoke about the taboo topic. Once Long Chen understood what she meant, he sighed in relief. Thats interesting. He was so happy that he burst intoughter, but doing so strained his wounds, so he grimaced in pain.


    After giving her a few reminders, he knew it was time to go. He had to make adequate preparations for the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament.


    Beitang Mos attack was deeply etched into his memory. One day, he would get revenge. But first, the most pressing matter was defeating Dongfang Tianyu for the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Yin Mengyao had been cultivating very hard these few days, so he didnt tell her about Yang Lingqing.


    After consuming two consecutive stalks of advanced ck-tier spiritual medicine from Dongfang Xuanxiao, Long Chens injuries were mostly healed after three days.


    Yin Mengyao had shut herself away to focus on cultivating, so she didnt know that he had been injured.


    But this was much less trouble for him.


    His Recovery technique allowed him to treat his injuries at every moment, so he healed much faster than other people. Although Dongfang Xuanxiao knew that he had a Life Combat Technique, he didnt ask questions.


    On the fourth morning, Long Chen went to see Dongfang Xuanxiao and said, Stepfather, I have reached a bottleneck in my cultivation. I want to go to the Star Devil Prison again; I have a feeling that I can break through to the mid Earthly Core Realm this time!


    Oh? This was good news for Dongfang Xuanxiao. He knew that the Life Combat Technique had contributed greatly to Long Chens rapid recovery.


    He had great expectations for Long Chen, so he was overjoyed to hear that he was nearing a breakthrough. He quickly took him to the Heavenly Martial Realm, and they arrived at the Star Devil Prisons entrance once more.


    After greeting Yan Honghai, Long Chen entered alone, no longer needing a guide. He soon arrived in front of the two thick chains. Mo Xiang is in that direction. Long Chen looked at the chain on the left, then he looked up far away. There were fiverge stars in that direction. He knew that the faint green one was the Azure Dragon Star, where Mo Xiang was trapped.


    I need to hurry up and start cultivating. I need to break through as quickly as possible. Long Chen stepped on the chain on the right and hurried along within the empty space. After an hour, he arrived at a fork amidst the infinite vastness of space. Five times gravity  Ten times gravity  Twenty  Thirty  Fifty  Long Chen mulled over which asteroid to pick as he read thebels.


    Last time, I could move easily under twenty times gravity. Thergest number here is one hundred times, and I think only Heavenly Core Realm cultivators can enter. Lets enter the second asteroid with fifty times gravity!


    Fifty times gravity meant that Long Chens bones and muscles would have to withstand seven tons of force. A regr person would be squashed to death immediately. This is still eptable to me. The stronger the gravity, the better it suits me. There arent many days left. I must achieve a breakthrough, or I wont have another chance.


    Long Chen stopped hesitating and decided to go towards the fifty times gravity asteroid.


    When he approached the seven-hundred-meter diameter asteroid, he was sucked in by its gravity, crashing onto it.


    <em>m!</em>


    Long Chen felt his wind get knocked out. Having only just recovered from his injuries, it was extremely painful, and he felt his muscles go taut and his blood flow obstructed. Hey on his stomach on the ground, unable to move. Very good, this is powerful. Long Chen was very satisfied with the gravitational pull. He let out a roar, then he gritted his teeth and pressed his palms on the ground made of yellow soil, doing his best to push himself up. Green veins popped from his arms like tiny, green snakes circling his arms and neck.


    Fuck me! he cursed. The gravitational pull was too strong. He was already drenched in sweat. After working hard for about fifteen minutes, all he managed to do was push himself up. However, his body was being greatly trained in the process. My next target: to sit up! As long as he could sit up, he could control his Qi flow!


    Under the influence of the terrifying gravitational pull, he clenched his teeth to do something he had aplished not long after he was born: sit up!


    An hourter, he was soaked in sweat, panting heavily. But he had seeded in sitting up and got into position. Next, I should control my Qi flow to train it.


    Under the influence of the fifty times gravity, controlling his Qi flow was extremely difficult. He exhausted a hundred times more strength than usual to barely move his Qi. It felt like dragging an elephant without the strength of a cultivator.


    It was that difficult.


    However, he knew that he had to hold on so he could break through to the mid Earthly Core Realm within a short time. The growth process would be even moreplete than using Blood Transmutation. Although Ling Xi had said that he was still weak and didnt have to worry about his foundation, Long Chen knew that he had to be cautious about using Blood Transmutation too often. Growth earned through tough training like this was definitely the best to progress!


    Time passed slowly through his bitter cultivation. The time taken for him to move his Qi one cycle through his body slowly shortened, and five dayster, the time taken went from one day to one hour. After five days of training, my Qi has condensed, and it merges much better with the zing Thunder Power. This has made my Qi tougher. The breakthrough is close!


    I must hold on!


    During these few days, whenever Long Chen thought about Yang Lingqing, then about Ling Xi, who still needed his help, a powerful force would fill his heart. He knew that a true man had to constantly improve to protect his loved ones, and defeat those who wanted to kill him!


    Another half a day passed. When he controlled his Qi, the difficulty was the same as when he was on the twenty times gravity asteroid! Its time! When his Qi poured into his dantian for thest time, they merged at lightning speed! The blood-red mist slowly solidified into a blood-red Earthly Core!


    This process took a very short time. Soon, he let out a roar, and the surging Qi in him shot out of his mouth, turning into a plume of blood-red mist around his mouth!


    The Earthly Core within his dantian shrank greatly, bing much more condensed than before, even much stronger! Mid Earthly Core Realm, sess! Sensing the surging Qi within him, Long Chen knew that he was now almost on the same level as Dongfang Tianyu in terms of Qi!


    With the precondition that he used his Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Power was flowing through his entire body. He tried to stand on the fifty times gravity asteroid and realized that it wasnt that difficult. It felt just like how he previously felt in twenty times gravity. If Nangong Cheng coulde here, he would be able to fight him and use the Nine Dragon shes once more! It feels good to be stronger! He was now more confident about winning the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament. This was rted to Mo Xiang, so he absolutely had to seed!


    There should be three more days until the tournament. Ill spend the next two dayspleting the Nine Dragon shes in fifty times gravity! Xuanxiao can achieve the ninth sh, so why cant I?


    In the face of such huge pressure, he did not ck off even for a little. He started cultivating the Nine Dragon shes immediately after his breakthrough. To his surprise, hisprehension of the Nine Dragon shes deepened thanks to the influence of fifty times gravity. If I continue progressing like this, the ninth sh will not be a problem!


    Long Chen had learned that martial techniques werent so easily cultivated. Even he was considered quite talented already, and his progress with cultivating the Nine Dragon shes was much faster than when Dongfang Xuanxiao first started.


    Two dayster, hepleted the ninth sh, fully mastering the Nine Dragon shes. He would now be able to incorporate it into every battle with ease. Its time to go back and give them a surprise. Long Chen straightened himself, then he made his way back. When he returned to the Transit Hall, he looked in the direction of the Azure Dragon Star and said, The next time Im here, I should be rescuing you.


    For some reason, Long Chen felt like Mo Xiang was the kind of person who would fight alongside him for the rest of his life, being his right hand.


    Once he emerged from Star Devil Prison, Yan Honghai approached and said, Young Master Long Chen, Lord Xuanxiao has been here for two days. Hes waiting for you there.


    Long Chen nodded and went towards Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Why does Young Master Long Chen seem different? asked Yan Honghai in surprise, watching him leave.


    He has undergone a metamorphosis, mumbled another guard.


    Stepfather, Long Chen greeted when he arrived at Dongfang Xuanxiaos side. Dongfang Xuanxiao was currently meditating with his eyes closed.


    Have you seeded? His eyes sprang open.


    Mhm.


    Lets go back and see how you perform. Standing up, Dongfang Xuanxiao eyed him for a while. He knew that Long Chen had undergone a metamorphosis after experiencing Yang Lingqings incident. He looked more like a man with responsibilities, not a green teenager.


    And just like that, they started heading back.


    <em>Xiang, wait for me, </em>thought Long Chen, looking back.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was also staring in the direction of the Star Devil Prison, silently deep in thought.


    Long Chen didnt know why. <em>Unless  Does he also have a friend imprisoned inside?</em>


    His imagination ran wild.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    strong gravity wouldve ttened me


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 203: Azure Dragon Patriarch

    Chapter 203: Azure Dragon Patriarch


    After returning to the Eastern Azure Dragonpound, Long Chen didnt leave again. The Azure Dragon Halberd tournament would take ce tomorrow, and he had achieved breakthroughs in many aspects. This one day was a rare chance for him to rest, spending his time chatting with Ling Xi and Yin Mengyao.


    I cant believe you made a breakthrough right before the tournament. Long Chen, youre doing much better than I am. So far, Ive only been able to cultivate the rudimentary form of the Flowing Water Body. There was a hint of resignation in Yin Mengyaos tone. She felt pressured spending time with him.


    Long Chen smiled. Looking at her, he suddenly thought of Yang Lingqing and asked, Sister Mengyao, did that Dongfang Tianxing guy pester you again?


    That bastard  She furrowed her eyebrows thinking about him andined angrily, He has teased me many times, just because he is stronger than I am. If I hadnt used Stepfathers name like you did, it would have been...


    Is that so? His eyes glinted coldly. Dongfang Tianyu, Dongfang Tianxing, and Beitang Mo were all his enemies. Whatever, Ill deal with them one by one. Tomorrow, itll be Dongfang Tianyus turn!


    At dawn the next day, Long Chen followed Dongfang Xuanxiao and Yin Mengyao to the Xuanfeng Pavilion. It was already filled with people.


    Everyone present was powerful, many being above the Heavenly Core Realm. The most attention-grabbing individual was an old man with white hair but a youthful face and a thin figure. His gaze was hawk-like, and his aura felt like a sharp, unsheathed sword. His white hair shone like silver needles and evoked fear any the onlooker.


    Looking at this man, Long Chen felt like arge mountain was standing in front of him, making him feel suffocated.


    He knew that this was the Eastern Azure Dragon familys Patriarch, the legendary Heavenly River Realm master who had surpassed the Divine Core Realm. He was the Azure Dragon Patriarch! There was a flying, coiled Azure Dragon embroidered on his clothes. Patriarch! Even Dongfang Xuanxiao bowed slightly to the old man upon arriving.


    Since everyone is here, lets go to the ancestral mausoleum. The Patriarchs voice was much hoarser than Long Chen expected. His expression was cold, obviously a person who should not be angered.


    The Azure Dragon tournament was going to be held in the ancestral mausoleum. Dongfang Xuanxiao had told Long Chen this yesterday, and the rules were simple: all of the youths of the younger generation would participate, other than Dongfang Tianchen, Dongfang Tianxuan, and Dongfang Tianxing, who had already received the right to the Azure Dragon Halberd. Of course, the strongest participant was Dongfang Tianyu!


    The mausoleum was where the ultimate divine weapon, the Earth-tier Azure Dragon Halberd, was located. Along the way to it, there was arge, underground space where the n had ced more than a thousand molten gold puppets. As long as the participants collected a hundred molten gold cores, they could rush towards the Azure Dragon Halberd. Of course, they could also fight each other during the process!


    The molten gold puppets were the newest, strongest puppets within the Lingwu family, much stronger than the wooden and steel ones. When Long Chen heard the name, it reminded him of Jin Shengens Molten Gold Combat Body. Since they had the same name, he surmised that they wouldnt be too far from the advanced ck-tier Body Tempering technique in terms of hardiness.


    While the molten gold puppets had very tough bodies and powerful attacks, they had no Qi. If they had Qi and martial techniques, and were a little more agile, then they would be almost the same as true cultivators.


    Long Chen was a little speechless when he heard the rules. <em>In that case, Sister Mengyao and I will definitely be ostracized. And if Dongfang Tianyu encourages everyone else to group together, itll be much more difficult for us.</em>


    With that thought in mind, Long Chen followed the group until they arrived in front of the mausoleum. The youths who were about to participate in the tournament were anxious, especially those who had only just attained the Earthly Core Realm, grimacing tightly.


    No talking in the ancestral mausoleum! warned the Azure Dragon Patriarch in a low voice, and the crowd quietened down.


    He then opened the mausoleum and let them in.


    The people who wanted to speak only dared to discuss in hushed voices. Do you see him? Long Chen was injured so severely that Fourth Uncle had to carry him back. Hes probably not faring well now. Brother Tianyus ns might not even be of use.


    Thats none of your business. All we need to do is listen to their instructions. Once everything is done, Brother Tianyu will reward us generously, hehe


    I really dont understand. Isnt he only at the initial Earthly Core Realm? Im already at the mid Earthly Core Realm! Is it necessary for such big ns? I think I can defeat him alone.


    The teenagers didnt know that their hushed discussions were clearly heard by Dongfang Xuanxiao and Ling Xi. She was worried when she heard their conversations, but when Long Chen learned about them, he only gave a small smile. The person who would prevail in the end would undoubtedly be the most powerful participant. Petty tricks like this were useless.


    Very soon, they all entered the ancestral mausoleum and stood before the ancestral tablets.


    Long Chen remembered that thest time he came here, there was something hiding behind the door thaty behind the ancestral tablets, and that thing had triggered the mysterious dragon jade. Although it wasnt triggered this time, Long Chen had a strange feeling, knowing that the thing that had attracted him was still there. The Azure Dragon Halberd is inside, whispered Dongfang Xuanxiao, pointing at therge, golden, metal door behind the ancestral tablets.


    <em>I think the Azure Dragon Halberd is the one triggering the mysterious dragon jade. It lives up to its Earth-tier divine weapon ssification; I cant believe it can excite the dragon jade. Its clearly something special. I must do my best to get my hands on it. This will be my only chance to turn the tides, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Members of Dongfang Xuanxiaos generation had started praying to the ancestors, led by the Azure Dragon Patriarch and a few other elders. Long Chen and Mengyao stood together with the other youths of the family.


    The most attention-grabbing person in the lineup was not the ice beauty, Dongfang Tianxuan, nor was it Dongfang Tianxing, the mischievous and handsome boy, but rather a stern, masculine young man with chiseled features. This young man hadnt spoken since entering, nor shown any changes in his expression, simr to Dongfang Xuanxiao. Long Chen sensed from his aura that he was definitely as strong as Beitang Mo.


    Thats the number one prodigy of the Eastern Azure Dragon family. He is at the mid Heavenly Core Realm and has studied the Azure Dragon Martial Technique. Rumors say that hes very strong! whispered Yin Mengyao, leaning close to Long Chens ear.


    Dongfang Tianchen? Long Chen and him both had the character Chen in their names, yet they were separated by a whole realm in cultivation.


    It looks like the pinnacle of the Lingwu youths is the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Mo Xiang must have also been at this level at the time, though with the Heavenly Wolf Dagger, perhaps he was stronger! Long Chen only now understood that Mo Xiang, whom he had first met in Baiyang Town, was much more non-humanly talented than himself. But today, Long Chen was very close to that level too.


    Hey, isnt that Long Chen? The guy who was crippled? I cant believe youre here to participate in the tournament. Im impressed, said an amused voice. Long Chen turned around and saw Dongfang Tianyu leading his group of younger siblings and cousins, looking at him in contempt.


    Dongfang Tianyu wasnt the oldest among them, but he was the strongest. Quite a few of them were at the mid Earthly Core Realm, and more than ten at the initial Earthly Core Realm. These were all the people who would participate in the tournament.


    Therell be many more things that will impress you, said Long Chen mildly before proceeding to ignore him.


    Then I shall look forward to your performance! Dont you dare pee yourself and start crying for mommy because of the puppets! At least wait until I get to you! Dongfang Tianyuughed, and the teenagers behind himughed as well.


    Silence! The prayer had just ended, and the second child, Dongfang Xuanyu, walked over and gently reprimanded them. Dongfang Tianyu and the rest quickly stoppedughing and greeted her obediently. Aunt Xuanyu!


    Dongfang Xuanyu nodded, then she walked up to Dongfang Tianyu and looked at him lovingly. Yuer, youve grown so quickly! Youre a man now. Perform well for your Second Aunt today; make me proud after caring for you all these years.


    Thank you, Second Aunt. I will never forget all that youve done for me. Today, I will perform well and get the Azure Dragon Halberd, then I will learn the Azure Dragon martial technique and beat someone out of the Eastern Azure Dragon family!


    How could you say that? Dongfang Xuanyu merely red at him reproachfully after he said such rude things, but she did not reprimand him. Though her expression seemed to indicate that she agreed strongly with him. Then she looked at Long Chen, eyeing him up and down, and said mildly, Youre healed already?


    I cant die as long as youre still here. Long Chen didnt care to be polite to her.


    You! Dongfang Xuanyu was furious that Long Chen was still being so rude, even at the brink of death. The more she looked at the brat, the more she hated him. I really dont know whats so special about you. Youre still at the initial Earthly Core Realm at this age; there are already so many like you in the Lingwu family. Today, Xuanxiao will see howughable his choice was. I cant believe he went up to the Northern ck Tortoise family to cause trouble just for you, even arguing with my father when he came back. And it became physical too! If it wasnt for him being a capable person himself, do you think hed be standing here today?


    <em>What? Xuanxiao got into a fight with him? </em>Long Chen didnt know about this at all. He was just wondering why Dongfang Xuanxiao seemed so fatigued recently. Now he knew that it was because he had fought the Azure Dragon Patriarch because of him.


    Long Chen thought about it and felt like it wasnt too unbelievable. It was already very difficult for the four inner families to maintain a united and peaceful front, and Dongfang Xuanxiao had broken the rules to threaten Beitang Ming in hispound. Wasnt this overstepping the Azure Dragon Patriarchs power?


    <em>I, Long Chen, must repay him for his kindness no matter what. </em>Long Chenmitted this to memory.


    The Azure Dragon patriarch turned around and said coldly, The tournament shall begin soon. Are you all ready?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    they be gossiping about long chen


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 204: Molten Gold Puppets

    Chapter 204: Molten Gold Puppets


    The most important moment had finallye.


    The Azure Dragon Patriarch led all of them around the ancestral tablets and to therge door.


    Approximately twenty teenage cultivators fanned out into a row. Long Chen was standing next to Dongfang Xuanxiao. There was nothing to say, so Dongfang Xuanxiao merely patted his shoulder and said, Do your best. Based on your current condition, you have great odds of winning!


    I know. Long Chen nodded, then he looked at Dongfang Tianyu, who was also ring coldly at himself. He thought about how Long Chen was just an ant to him when they first met, having to act reverently around him with his back bent. He didnt expect him to be his greatestpetitor today!


    <em>How dare you threaten my position? Long Chen, I will kill you today! This is also to avenge Yunyaos older brother! There are no rules against killing in this tournament! But I wont act unless necessary. I doubt youll live with seventeen Earthly Core Realm cultivators and countless molten gold puppets surrounding you!</em>


    These were the thoughts racing through Dongfang Tianyus mind, killing intent clearly visible in his eyes.


    Long Chen was nonchnt, but Yin Mengyao was a little worried.


    The old Azure Dragon Patriarchs gaze swept across every cultivator, and it finally rested on Long Chen. <em>I heard that his teenager is a Beast Warrior, but why is his aura so strange? What beast could have such a powerful aura, and why does it also feel ancient? Why is it simr to the Azure Dragon Halberds aura?</em>


    It didnt matter how much the Patriarch thought about it, as he didnt know that there were Dragon Warriors in this world.


    Long Chen was a Dragon Warrior, but because his cultivation level was low and his body had only absorbed a thousandth of the Inherited Blood Essence, most of the strength usually disyed by a Dragon Warrior hadnt shown. If that happened, his aura would be even more terrifying. The Primordial Dragons were entities that ruled over the Dragon Continent in the Ancient Ages after all.


    It was time. The Patriarch did not dwell on this. Under his control, the golden door opened!


    <em>Rumble, rumble!</em>


    Probably to protect the Azure Dragon Halberd, the giant door was reinforced to be extremely thick. The whole ancestral mausoleum shook as it moved. Very soon, it waspletely open. The space behind was pitch-ck, so no one could see anything, but they could sense a killing intent radiating from within.


    <em>One thousand molten gold puppets, and every person must collect one hundred molten gold cores. This means that only ten people at most will get to do the final sprint, and the person who gets the Azure Dragon Halberd should be the first person whopleted the task, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Xuanfeng, well go to the ce with the Azure Dragon Halberd. You take the lead here! instructed the Azure Dragon Patriarch. He then led the elders and members of Xuanxiaos generation to hurry towards the Azure Dragon Halberd. They were going to wait for Long Chen and the rest there.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao nced at Long Chen and Yin Mengyao once more and said, Ill be waiting to see you two on the other side. This showed his unwavering confidence in them. However, he was also the only one who supported and had hope for Long Chen.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng waited for the Patriarch and the rest to almost reach their destination before he looked around and said loudly, Are you all ready? You all may enter the moment I say so!


    Ready! A passionate fire burned in Dongfang Tianyus eyes! It was finally his turn to get the Azure Dragon Halberd. He had participated in thest few tournaments, but he wasnt the strongest in those. He always felt jealous when his three older siblings had the chance!


    <em>Once I get the Azure Dragon Halberd and master the Azure Dragon martial technique, Ill be like my older brother! Grandfather, the elders, and my father will respect me!</em>


    Dongfang Tianyu was filled with battle spirit!


    Begin! Under Dongfang Xuanfengsmand, the youths rushed inside, scrambling after each other. Long Chen and Yin Mengyao locked eyes, then they rushed in too!


    Sister Mengyao, follow me closely! Yin Mengyao was his only ally in this tournament, and she was also his stepsister. They were close, so he had decided to protect her throughout thepetition!


    There was a wide and long tunnel ahead. Although it was dimly lit, it was bright enough for Long Chen and the rest.


    Having just entered, Long Chen sprinted at a shocking speed, following tightly behind Dongfang Tianyu. They made it through the tunnel and entered a gigantic, underground space. It was a square room, its ceiling and walls lined with light green bricks that had all sorts of realistic Azure Dragons carved on them. A strange warmth suddenly grew in Long Chens heart when he was suddenly surrounded by so many dragons.


    <em>The Primordial Dragons are extinct. The Inherited Blood Essence is probably reacting this way after sensing the presence of these carvings, </em>thought Long Chen. His eyes followed the walls down and saw that they opened up to various rooms that were filled with humanoid figures.


    They were golden puppets covered in green runes. Unlike the slow and heavy steel puppets, they were shiny and looked strangely tough with slim figures. It was very likely that they were faster and more agile too.


    The moment the participants entered the room, the eyes of the molten gold puppets suddenly shone with a blinding, white light, radiating violence! Careful! Long Chens guard went up, and he immediately led Yin Mengyao, thinking of moving to the side.


    But it was at that moment that all the youths around them, except for Dongfang Tianyu, suddenly swarmed towards Long Chen!


    Tire him out, haha! Long Chen, just wait for your inevitable death! Ill be away collecting my molten gold cores! Ille for you once I get a hundred! Dongfang Tianyu said.


    This was his airtight n. More than ten Earthly Core Realm cultivators, all inner family prodigies who had received generous resources. Although they were not experienced in real battle, they were excellent in all other aspects. Long Chen would need to fight them while fending off the molten gold puppets, so he would be much slower than Dongfang Tianyu!


    Dongfang Tianyu had spent a lot of effort on this n in order to get everyone to work for him!


    The rest of them had charged towards Long Chen before the molten gold puppets arrived. The power of more than ten Earthly Core Realm cultivators was no joke, and the moment they attacked, the world seemed to shake.


    Long Chen was calm, but Yin Mengyao was very worried about the situation. She knew that this fight would not be easy, but she hadnt expected it to be this difficult from the beginning!


    This is it? And you think its enough to trap me? Long Chen smirked coldly. He had no choice but to use his Dragon Soul Transformation. A momentter, his powerful Dragon Body appeared.


    Your Beast Soul Transformation is nothing in front of my siblings! Dongfang Tianyu was already starting to fight the molten gold puppets. He had mastered an advanced ck-tier martial technique along with others, so he was very effective inbat. Although the puppets were agile and fast with bodies as tough as his own, theycked Qi and ultimately were no match for Dongfang Tianyu. Even with more than ten puppets surrounding him, he remained calm, massacring them with a cold smirk!


    Long Chen, Ill help you hold them off! Its more urgent for you to kill molten gold puppets! Yin Mengyao gritted her teeth and stepped up. To her surprise, the moment she moved, Long Chen pulled her back with a grin.


    My dear silly sister, do you really think them surrounding us will work here?


    Not a single one of them was stronger than Long Chen, so with Yin Mengyaos assistance, they easily picked the weak link and charged!


    Dongfang Tianya, do you still remember the taste of this? One of the teenagers faces changed when he heard Long Chens coldughter. Long Chen charged at him, turning into a shadow!


    Hes so fast! His speed startled them!


    Quick, surround him! But it was toote, because Long Chen was already next to Dongfang Tianya. He used his Burning Devil Sun Fist to break through Dongfang Tianyas attack, then he roared, Mountain Shattering Kick! This was what he had learned from Jin Shengen, now used on Dongfang Tianya. The storm-like force sent Dongfang Tianya stumbling back pathetically!


    Save me! Dongfang Tianya shouted miserably, but then his mouth was struck by Long Chens foot! A few bloody teeth flew out and he fell backwards on the ground. Long Chen stepped on his face and broke free of their ring!


    <em>Long Chen is strong!</em> Yin Mengyao was very impressed that he could defeat ate-Earthly Core Realm expert so quickly and hurried after him to break free of the encirclement.


    What? The crowd was shocked that he could break free so quickly. Two people went to help the tragic Dongfang Tianya, while the rest charged after him. However, he was too fast, and both him and Yin Mengyao had already rushed into the swarm of molten gold puppets. They wanted to follow him, but he was already in the middle of the puppet swarm. The thousand puppets far outnumbered them!


    Motherfucker! Dongfang Tianyu killed the puppets in his vicinity, furious at the oue. Hed nned for so long, and he couldnt believe that Long Chen had broken free so easily. <em>Whatever. Even if you catch up to me, Ill still kill you in the end!</em>


    Dongfang Tianyu started to kill molten gold puppets as quickly as he could. While Long Chen was facing off the other prodigies, he had already obtained more than ten cores, cing him far ahead in the lead.


    <em>How could you possibly get cores as quickly as me?</em>


    Although he hated Long Chen deeply, he had no choice but to admit that Long Chen was almost qualified topete against him!


    Long Chen finally began his massacre of molten gold puppets! Its the same as fighting the steel puppets. Ill kill them in close-range! Reaching out his sharp ws, Long Chen rushed to the side of a puppet!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    the gold puppets:


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 205: Azure Dragon Halberd Tournament

    Chapter 205: Azure Dragon Halberd Tournament


    The molten gold puppets, each with a body toughness corresponding to the advanced ck-tier, were more difficult to kill than the steel puppets. However, Long Chens ws were extraordinarily sharp, and their hardness was almost on par with a divine weapon.


    <em>ng!</em>


    There was a deafening ng. Long Chen then used his shoulder to knock a molten gold puppet off bnce. He braced his core, then twisted his waist and reached out, his sharp ws piercing into its body! Its hard body was butter in the face of Long Chens powerful attack, forming a hole! Thank goodness I can puncture its body! He then twisted his hand, and his fingers touched a boiling-hot crystal inside.


    Long Chen immediately pulled the crystal out of its body, then he tossed it into his Universe Pouch without even looking!


    Dongfang Tianyu was far ahead in the lead, so there was no time for Long Chen to look. The other puppets swarmed him, blocking his front, right, and left!


    They threw punches with their hard fists, every attack powerful enough to injure Long Chen if he was hit directly, even with Recovery. More importantly, it would slow him down.


    That was why he had no choice but to focus!


    He nced out of the corner of his eye and saw that Yin Mengyao was just starting to fight her first puppet. As for the other teenagers, although they were already surrounded, they were still fighting to approach Long Chen and surround him once more, so Dongfang Tianyu could get to a hundred molten gold cores! <em>Sister Mengyao has cultivated the Flowing Water Body and has trained with wooden puppets, so she should be fine! I only need to collect the cores as fast as possible!</em>


    With that thought in mind, Long Chen ignored everything else and charged towards an area with more puppets. He attacked with his whole body, engaging in meleebat. He looked like a madman, but his mad frenzy gave the others the feeling of a wolf entering a herd of goats. Of course, Long Chen was the wolf, and the puppets were the goats!


    <em>ng! ng! ng!</em>


    Long Chens ws and the spines on his knees and elbows repeatedly pierced the puppets, causing shrill screeches from the friction. Pieces of puppets started to fall to the ground all around him, forming a small hill!


    What?!


    When they spotted Long Chens performance, the teenagers were astonished. When did he get so strong? He alone has killed as many puppets as the rest of usbined!


    Thats impossible. I know he has an advanced ck-tier Body Tempering technique, but I do too!


    Look, his ws and spines are extremely sharp and can easily puncture the puppets bodies. Theyre much more convenient than our techniques.


    I see! I thought he was actually that strong!


    My brothers! Hes almost caught up to Brother Tianyu, and weve made our brother a promise! Wont we look bad if we let him umte one hundred cores? Lets stop him!


    They moved towards Long Chen, simultaneously discussing loudly among themselves. When Dongfang Tianyu heard their discussion, he quickly looked over and was startled to see Long Chen fighting like a madman. So fast?! My brothers, stop the brat! When Im done collecting cores, I will kill him immediately!


    Dongfang Tianyu nned to finish collecting a hundred molten gold cores before attacking Long Chen to prevent any unexpected circumstances. Doing so would be risky, as there was a possibility that he coulde out injured, and collecting cores while injured would be much more difficult.


    Understood!


    Thirty-eight! When Long Chen put the thirty-eighth core into his Universe Pouch, he saw more people approaching out of the corner of his eye. He smirked. Can you even trap me?


    Then he moved at lightning speed. After a few shes, he sessfully broke free of the ring they had formed, which they had put great effort into preparing. He arrived at another spot with many puppets. <em>The Nine Dragon shes are indeed extraordinary. It provides me with a huge advantage in a situation like this.</em>


    With the Nine Dragon shes and the extraordinary strength of the Dragon Soul Transformation, Long Chen could very likelyplete the task before Dongfang Tianyu.


    What? He escaped? The crowd was speechless when they saw that he had broken free once more.


    That technique he used just nowwhy did it look like the Nine Dragon shes? one of them suddenly said.


    How could that be possible? He only just joined the Eastern Azure Dragon, so theres no chance he could have mastered it already. Thats Fourth Uncle Xuanxiaos unique technique!


    Theres no time to think! We need to catch him!


    How will we catch him when he can use the Nine Dragon shes? Everyone, I have an idea. Yin Mengyao is working with him. He mighte to us if we attack her, right?


    Everyone agreed and immediately charged at her.


    Yin Mengyao was at the mid-Earthly Core Realm, and while she was considered talented in the outer family, she was weaker than these kids. How would she win against so many people? No one had ever shined so brightly the moment they entered the inner family like Long Chen; he was the exception.


    There were more than ten of them, so if they surrounded Yin Mengyao, she wouldnt be able to defend herself.


    I didnt initially n to attack you, but since you have decided toe looking for death yourselves, dont me me. When Long Chen saw that they were nning to target Yin Mengyao, he was furious. He stopped the puppet massacre and wove through the swarm of puppets like a tornado. The crowd sensed a gust of killing intent heading their way!


    Hes so agile, weaving through the puppets so easily. But there are more than ten of us, so he doesn''t stand a chance. When they saw that Long Chen rushed towards them idiotically, they were overjoyed and quickly charged at him!


    <em>This is a critical moment; I should not suppress my power any longer. I must defeat these brats in the shortest time possible so I can focus on getting molten gold cores!</em>


    Long Chen then made a decision. Blood Devouring Domain! A cloud of blood-colored mist poured towards the teenagers, and they were enveloped by it before they knew what was happening. Looking at the red mist around them, their expressions changed and they asked in puzzlement, What is this?


    The moment the question left their lips, they felt their blood boiling and moving around,pletely out of their control. The kids who had only just attained the Earthly Core Realm were even more miserable, screaming in agony. A young boy even copsed!


    <em>Nows the time, </em>thought Long Chen. Without another word, he arrived by their sides and started attacking. Most of them were using all their energy to counteract the Blood Devouring Domain, so it was as easy as chopping melons to him, striking them down one by one!


    They each screamed in pain. Yin Mengyao, who was watching it all nearby, stared at him in utter disbelief. When Dongfang Tianyu saw this scene, his hands trembled, almost letting the puppet before him strike him.


    As Dongfang Tianyu watched, Long Chen struck the Eastern Azure Dragon teenagers unconscious one by one. They would not cause trouble again. Yin Mengyao focused on fighting molten gold puppets once again, feeling like she was safe.


    Hows that possible? Many of the people present were almost on the same level as Long Chen. Dongfang Tianyu himself didnt expect Long Chen to be this good, defeating same-level opponents so easily.


    <em>I must not let Long Chen continue. He must die. </em>Dongfang Tianyu made a poisonous oath to himself. He had no time to worry about those useless idiots. Instead, he exploded with all the strength in his body and attacked the puppets. He had already collected more than fifty cores.


    <em>Lets see if any of you will dare to bother me again!</em>


    Under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain, the prodigies were all beaten and incapacitated. Long Chen intended to stop them from moving, so he had struck hard.


    Long Chen, theres not much time left. Hurry up and collect the cores! Yin Mengyao cared about Long Chen, but this tournaments results were also rted to Mo Xiang, so she felt the need to remind him as he was the only one who couldpete with Dongfang Tianyu.


    The final champion would be determined from the final fight between these two!


    <em>Dongfang Tianyu didnt have any external distractions, so hes in the lead!</em>


    Without another word, Long Chen entered the group of puppets and started killing them.


    Initially, he was worried that the molten gold puppets would go kill the unconscious teenagers and was wondering what he would do if that happened. However, he realized that the puppets werent touching the unconscious people.


    Since he wasgging far behind Dongfang Tianyu, he had no choice but to use martial techniques and even the Nine Dragon shes to kill the puppets. The Nine Dragon shes allowed him to move wherever he wanted even while surrounded by enemies, making him much more efficient. He was able to collect one core with almost every strike.


    Both of them eyed each other out of the corner of their eyes while killing violently. What threatened Dongfang Tianyu was that despite the gap between their numbers, Long Chen was collecting cores faster than he was. If this continued, Long Chen would catch up eventually!


    You brat, my preparations will be pointless if you catch up to me. Dongfang Tianyu chuckled coldly, then he sped up.


    Time passed as they killed the puppets, and when Long Chen reached ny, Dongfang Tianyuughed loudly. Long Chen, Im going to get the Azure Dragon Halberd now! Ive got no time to y with you! Take your time! Goodbye!


    Dongfang Tianyu initially nned to kill him here, but he knew that doing so would be difficult. If he was injured, it would be difficult for him toprehend the martial technique of the Azure Dragon Halberd. That was why he swallowed his anger and headed straight for the Azure Dragon Halberd.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    the puppets ttering and falling and getting dismantled


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 206: Azure Dragon Halberd

    Chapter 206: Azure Dragon Halberd


    After Dongfang Tianyu bade Long Chen farewell, he headed deeper into the ancestral mausoleum, to where the Azure Dragon Halberd was kept!


    He saw that Long Chen was still killing puppets so he knew that Long Chen hadntpleted his task yet. Hed been worried, but he had managed to obtain one hundred cores before Long Chen could.


    Long Chen, hurry! Yin Mengyao grew anxious when she saw that Dongfang Tianyu had left. She had only collected a bit over thirty cores so far and knew that she waspletely hopeless. Long Chen was her only hope.


    Long Chen remained calm as if he hadnt heard her. Fighting like a machine, he continued collecting cores as Dongfang Tianyu ran further and further away.


    ***


    In the deepest part of the ancestral mausoleum, there was another wide space that resembled a cave. Shadows were elongated by the torches that lit up the whole space.


    The people waiting within were the Azure Dragon Patriarch and the few elders. Dongfang Xuanxiao was also there, waiting for the first person who had collected a hundred molten gold cores to appear.


    Dongfang Xuanyu went up to the Patriarch and said cautiously, Father, its almost time.


    Mhm. The Patriarch nodded.


    Dongfang Xuanyu smiled to herself. This meant that if Dongfang Tianyu had indeed been nning to kill Long Chen, Long Chen was likely dead by now.


    That brat had disrespected her repeatedly, even talking back to her. He had irritated her greatly. <em>This is a good thing. Once Yuer removes this thorn from his heart, he will be able to focus on his cultivation. </em>Although Dongfang Tianyu wasnt her son, she cared for him very much.


    Dont worry, Mother. That brat Long Chen is no match for Xiao Yu, said Dongfang Tianxing, grinning as he crossed his arms. But when he met Dongfang Xuanxiaos gaze, he coughed and lowered his head.


    Someones here! The Azure Dragon Patriarch was the strongest cultivator in the room, so he was the first to sense the ier.


    Everyone grew anxious and followed his gaze. They looked towards the dark tunnel in front and soon enough, they heard hurried footsteps. Its Xiao Yu! When they saw the persons face, Dongfang Xuanyu and the rest were overjoyed.


    Their tightened nerves finally rxed.


    To them, Long Chen was clearly no match for him, but they felt ufortable whenever they thought of Long Chen. He had created many miracles in the outer family after all.


    When Dongfang Xuanxiao saw that it was Dongfang Tianyu, he froze, as if in disbelief. Out of all the people present, he was the one who knew Long Chen the best. He lowered his head and mumbled to himself, Could he have fallen for Tianyus tricks? Is that why he was dyed?


    Xiao Yu, not bad! Did you finish off someone? Dongfang Tianxing was smug and startedughing like a maniac, ignoring the other seniors. His mother and Dongfang Xuanxiao were enemies, so he didnt give Dongfang Xuanxiao any face.


    But Dongfang Tianyu did not reply, sprinting hurriedly towards the Azure Dragon Halberd!


    What? Everyone was stunned because Dongfang Tianyu had clearly won, but not only did he not look happy, he was also in a rush. Was it because


    Theres someone else! They looked at the tunnel and heard another bout of footsteps. To their shock, a red silhouette was flying towards Dongfang Tianyu. That person caught up a few secondster, and they started running side by side!


    Thats Long Chen! Hes so fast! He actually caught up to Tianyu from the back! Dongfang Xuanyu and Dongfang Tianxing gasped, shaken to their core.


    Since when did Long Chen possess such speed?


    The people who had sighed in relief previously now held their breaths once more. No one had touched the Azure Dragon Halberd, so the victor was not confirmed yet!


    This meant that Long Chen had a chance to win!


    After Dongfang Tianyu collected a hundred cores, Long Chen spent a few breaths timepleting the task before rushing towards him. The tunnel was long, so he had to sprint faster than Dongfang Tianyu to catch up at thest segment!


    Dongfang Tianyu looked anxious because Long Chen was catching up.


    When Dongfang Xuanxiao saw Long Chen, he finally rxed a little. He knew that he was about to watch a good show.


    Whats there to be smug about? So what if he caught up? Hes nothingpared to Xiaoyu, who is at thete Earthly Core Realm. It looks like Xiao Yu was going easy on him just now, said Dongfang Xuanyu, rolling her eyes.


    Yeah, and Xiao Yu has the advanced ck-tier Sun Halberd. Long Chen can cultivate for ten more years, but he will never be his match, Dongfang Tianxing said with a grin, supporting his mother.


    They were mocking Long Chen, but Dongfang Xuanxiao remained calm. He watched his stepson without a word.


    The Azure Dragon Patriarch was watching their conflict. All of this was because of the teenager named Long Chen. He looked at the boy in question, then at Dongfang Xuanxiao. None of them saw the slightest smirk that had crept up on the Patriarchs face.


    <em>Xuanxiao, its been eighteen years. Do you think I dont know what youre thinking? </em>No one could hear the Patriarchs thoughts, and even if they did, not many would know what he meant.


    Long Chen, who was racing alongside Dongfang Tianyu, had be the focal point of attention. His eyes were fixed on the object ahead, which was triggering something inside him!


    It was a magical sensation that made him feel like his entire being was boiling with excitement like a wanderer returning home after many years. When he saw it, he had the urge to cry.


    He knew that the object belonged to him and that no one could take it away.


    There were steps at the back of the cave, and at the top was a ck altar. On the altar was a multi-colored cauldron that looked like a crystal. It had three legs and two handles, its design exquisite. But that was not important, as it was just a container. What truly attracted Long Chen was the object inside.


    There was a halberd, about two meters long, ced inside the cauldron. Its shaft was light blue and forged with an unknown metal, and a faint, dark blue light flowed on its surface[1]. Upon closer inspection, the handle was covered in dense, uniform dragon scales, simr to the scales on Long Chens body.


    There was a realistic dragon head at the end of the halberd with a de protruding from its mouth, its sharp edge glinting coldly. There were three pointed tips and two des, extremely sharp and resembling dragon teeth. Any onlooker would feel a chill in their heart when they saw it.


    <em>It has such an immense aura. It doesnt feel like its at the Divine Core Realm. That must be the Azure Dragon Halberd! </em>Long Chen thought excitedly.


    That halberd was infinitely better than the one he had in his Universe Pouch. Most importantly, it radiated a sense of regalness that made a peasant like Long Chen have the urge to kneel.


    Long Chen was ovee with the same feeling he had when he merged with the Inherited Blood Essence. This was a dragon! <em>Is the Azure Dragon Halberd rted to the primordial dragons? </em>Long Chen was shocked. He knew that the Lingwu family was so powerful because of the Heavenly Martial Realm, or more specifically, the Star Devil Prison. Ling Xi had said that the Heavenly Martial Realm was a relic, so the Azure Dragon Halberd had to be from the Heavenly Martial Realm!


    Brother Chen, I can sense a very faint primordial dragon soul in the Azure Dragon Halberd. If you get your hands on it, itll be greatly beneficial to you! You can do it! Ling Xi was pleasantly surprised when she saw the halberd. This was a critical moment, so she didnt dare speak too much, or she might distract Long Chen.


    Primordial dragon soul? Although he didnt know what that was, it solidified his determination to get it.


    Bothpetitors ran side by side towards the Azure Dragon Halberd. Everyone was fixated on the race. Who would prevail in the end?


    Long Chen, no more running! Lets begin the final fight! Dongfang Tianyu was filled with anger, and he threw a punch directly at Long Chen!


    It was meaningless to race like this, so he chose to fight instead!


    Alright, youre the one who asked for it! If you go after the Azure Dragon Halberd while we fight, then you will be my grandson, Dongfang Tianyu! warned Long Chen coldly, dodging his punch.


    If Dongfang Tianyu wanted a final duel, then he was happy to oblige. But the halberd was a sentient divine weapon, and Long Chen did not know how it would react if they fought over it.


    But Long Chens insult was indeed a little over the top. Dongfang Tianyus grandfather was the Azure Dragon Patriarch, so wasnt that also an insult to the Patriarch himself? Although it was just something he had just said in passing, the Patriarchs face darkened. The elders shook their heads.


    They thought that Dongfang Xuanxiao should not have taken him in as a stepson.


    Long Chen was faster, so Dongfang Tianyu was initially worried that he would just go for the halberd first. Seeing that Long Chen was willing to stop and fight him, he grew more confident. It was exactly what he wanted. <em>You were merely faster than me! Youre delusional if you think youre going to defeat me in front of all our seniors. Long Chen, die!</em>


    They prepared for the final duel in front of the Azure Dragon Halberd!


    Dont worry, Dongfang Tianyu! After training in the fifty times gravity of the Star Devil Prison, I will surely surprise you! Long Chen was not afraid at all, and his eyes glinted coldly.


    Enough talk, take this! Dongfang Tianyu exploded with histe Earthly Core Realm Qi and pounced on Long Chen!


    Ill show you the difference between the people from the inner and outer families!


    1. We used blue here because light azure and dark azure don''t flow well, but technically almost the same color <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 207: Fighting Dongfang Tianyu

    Chapter 207: Fighting Dongfang Tianyu


    Long Chen and Dongfang Tianyu had been at each others throats since the start of the event, but no victor had been determined yet. Therefore, their duel greatly piqued the crowds interest.


    Dongfang Tianyu was an almost peerless individual in his generation. While Long Chens performance was shocking, he had not reached thete Earthly Core Realm, so no one other than Dongfang Xuanxiao had any hope for him.


    Dongfang Tianyu red at him like a panther, then he pounced. Long Chens expression did not change. Blood-red Qi swirled within his body, ready to erupt at any time tounch a powerful attack!


    Heavenly Dragon Seal! Dongfang Tianyu quickly formed a seal, his hands leaving behind afterimages. A gust of wind along with a faint dragon image wasunched forward from his hands, whistling as it flew towards Long Chen!


    Haargh! eximed Dongfang Tianyu. The dragon roared as it flew at Long Chen. It was a seal that contained Qi!


    <em>Is that a dragon-rted seal technique? Its stronger than the Yang familys Primordial Dragon Seal, but  </em>Long Chens eyes glinted coldly. He kicked off the ground and shot towards Dongfang Tianyu like a blood arrow!


    He was now at the mid Earthly Core Realm, and his strength was multiplied by ten times due to the Dragon Soul Transformation. In terms of Qi levels, he was almost simr to Dongfang Tianyu.


    Now they would bepeting against each other through martial techniques, experience, and wits. In terms of martial techniques, they both had advanced ck-tier skills, but they were vastly different in nature. Long Chen had learned the Sword Devil Finger from Ling Xi, so it was unlikely to be inferior. As for the Nine Dragon shes, it was definitely better than whatever Dongfang Tianyu was using.


    Since youre using a dragon seal, then I shall use one too!


    While he shot forward, Long Chen unleashed the Primordial Dragon Seal. Nine blood-colored dragons merged together and formed a powerful force, colliding with Dongfang Tianyus Heavenly Dragon Seal!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    Two huge dragons collided, causing the underground room to shake. A violent energy spread in all directions, causing everyones clothes to p in the wind!


    It was the first time they had exchanged attacks, and both of them were sent flying backwards, though Long Chen was sent further back. He stumbled several times, almost falling!


    Haha! Like I said, Long Chen is no match for Xiao Yu! Now Ive been proven right, havent I? Dongfang Tianxing was so smug that he startedughing when he saw the result, as if everything was as expected.


    Thats not right. Xiao Yu used an intermediate ck-tier martial technique. While Long Chen also attacked with some type of dragon seal, that was at most an advanced Yellow-tier technique. He used an advanced Yellow-tier technique to deal with Xiao Yu, which is  quite difficult to achieve


    Dongfang Xuanyu was shocked, staring at Long Chen in a daze. Although he was stumbling, he wasnt hurt.


    The others present were wondering the same thing. Long Chen had disyed abat ability beyond his level right at the beginning of the fight, much to their disbelief.


    Although the technique was merely an advanced Yellow-tier, he hasplete mastery of it and has excellent chemistry with it. It looks like despite Long Chens low cultivation level, hes a prodigy in the cultivation of martial techniques, said the Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    I see. The rest of them realized the significance of his statement. The Azure Dragon Patriarch rarely spoke words of praise, so if he said that Long Chen was a prodigy at cultivating martial techniques, that meant that his talent was definitely nonhuman.


    This was all thanks to the mysterious dragon jade.


    Long Chen and Dongfang Tianyu were locked in battle once more! Dongfang Tianyu, looks like this is the best you can do. Long Chen smirked andbined his Mountain Shattering Kick with the Burning Devil Sun Fist, forcing Dongfang Tianyu to stumble back. He proved to everyone once more that he definitely had the capability to fight Dongfang Tianyu head-to-head!


    Looks like you wont admit defeat until youre dead! Dongfang Tianyu said coldly while stepping back, then he reached into his Universe Pouch.


    To be honest, you are indeed capable of causing me problems. But what youre experiencing is just a small fraction of my capabilities; its nothing to be excited about. Now I will show you that I am on a level untouchable to you!


    Dongfang Tianyuughed and grabbed, pulling a long halberd from his Universe Pouch. It was an extraordinary halberd, being entirely fire-red with a fire-like light flowing on it. Faint sparks flew from the tip, which glinted coldly in the light. It was an eye-catching weapon.


    This is the Sun Halberd, an advanced ck-tier divine weapon. Youve never seen anything like this before, have you? The Sun Halberd may not be the Azure Dragon Halberd, but its powerful enough to defeat you.


    When he saw Dongfang Tianyu taking out the Sun Halberd, he knew that it would spell trouble. He had already known that Dongfang Tianyu owned an advanced ck-tier weapon, so he was prepared. <em>Divine weapons are very useful in battle, so the Sun Halberd will definitely boost Dongfang Tianyus strength. If I canpletely master the Azure Dragon Halberd like how Xiang mastered the Heavenly Wolf Dagger, mybat abilities will skyrocket!</em>


    Long Chen eyed the Azure Dragon Halberd greedily.


    What are you looking at? The Azure Dragon Halberd belongs to me. You can get it in hell! Dongfang Tianyu felt like he should be a bit more decisive, seeing as the elders were watching. Without another word, he swung the Sun Halberd and charged at Long Chen!


    This was Long Chens first time fighting against an opponent with a weapon. The weapon emitted a sharp aura that made him feel like it was constantly shing his body, causing his scalp to go numb!


    Dongfang Tianyu was now two times more intimidating! Die! Sun Halberd, Eight Golden shes!


    When he released the attack, it locked straight on to its targetLong Chen. The fiery-red Sun Halberd released eight shadows that charged at Long Chen from the top, bottom, front, back, left, and right at astonishing speeds. Every shadow attacked with force that was equivalent to an Earthly Core Realm cultivator attacking at maximum capacity!


    <em>This is bad!</em>


    Long Chen was irked when he saw the attacks. He had no choice but to reveal his trump card now!


    Long Chens finished. When the crowd saw Dongfang Tianyu pull out the Sun Halberd, and how Long Chen had practically no way to retaliate, they were slightly resigned. Dongfang Xuanyu and the others grinned with schadenfreude. But when they saw Long Chens response, they froze.


    He used the Nine Dragon shes!


    Is that a body technique? But can you dodge eight times in the face of the Eight Golden shes? Dongfang Tianyu increased the force of the attack. Long Chen did not dare touch even one of them, because he knew that they were simply too powerful. Facing them directly would not bear any positive results.


    Who said I couldnt dodge eight times? Long Chen grinned. He charged forward, moving so fast that afterimages appeared as if he was passing through the Eight Golden shes!


    Nine Dragon shes? How is that possible? Thats the fifth consecutive sh already! Dongfang Tianyu was shaken. Five of his attacks had beenpletely dodged; they hadnt even harmed one hair on his foes body!


    <em>I dont care how talented you are! Theres no way you can perform all nine shes! The next three shes will be enough to take your life! </em>Dongfang Tianyu was enraged, and Qi erupted from his body. More des of Qi shot out from the Sun Halberd, flying towards Long Chen!


    Nine Dragon shes? The audience eyed Dongfang Xuanxiao out of the corner of their eyes. The Nine Dragon shes had definitely been passed down to Long Chen by Dongfang Xuanxiao, and obviously not long ago. But Long Chen had already achieved such a level?


    How talented was he to be able to master it so quickly?


    Seven! At this point, Long Chen had effortlessly dodged seven attacks of the Eight Golden shes.


    He made it look effortless. Meanwhile, Dongfang Tianyu despaired.


    Every sh had missed its target, and now the crowd was praising Long Chen. These unconscious praises were extremely humiliating to Dongfang Tianyu! You animal! I refuse to believe that you can dodge the eighth sh! Eight Golden shes, Tyrant sh! This was thest attack of the Eight Golden shes. The halberd turned into arge mountain that charged at Long Chen!


    Tianyus attack is definitely on the level of the Heavenly Core Realm! Long Chen has already used the seventh sh of his Nine Dragon shes; I dont believe he can continue to dodge! Dongfang Xuanyu, despite always looking down on Long Chen, had begrudgingly admitted that he was indeed a little talented to achieve seven shes in such a short time.


    The most astonished person present was Dongfang Xuanxiao. He had cultivated the Nine Dragon shes himself, so he naturally knew how difficult it was. Long Chens effortless and seamless use of the technique was almost on his level.


    Will he be able to dodge the Tyrant sh?


    The final sh was almost as strong as an attack from someone at the Heavenly Core Realm. If Long Chen dodged it, it would definitely cause a shockwave!


    A tsunami surged through their hearts as they watched the final scene. Even the Azure Dragon Patriarchs eyes were fixed on the duo, though mostly Long Chen!


    The attack seemed to swallow the world around Long Chen, causing all his hair to stand on end. He had to admit that Dongfang Tianyu was powerful, but he, Long Chen, was no weakling either!


    <em>When a body technique is used to its maximum, its as good as a martial technique! </em>This was what Long Chen thought. In the face of the Tyrant sh, he moved his legs once more and turned into a blur! After the seventh sh, he used the eighth and then the ninth immediately after!


    Using two consecutive shes, the Tyrant sh brushed past his shoulder and sted a crater on the ground of the ancestral mausoleum. Soil flew in the air, clouding their vision!


    And everyones faces changed. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    long chen shing around with his dragon sh


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 208: Final Victory

    Chapter 208: Final Victory


    Nine  Nine shes? Even Dongfang Xuanyus jaw dropped,pletely shocked. When she recalled the times she mocked Long Chen, they felt like a tight p across her face


    Dongfang Tianxing was also in a daze after hearing his mother.


    The rest of the Eastern Azure Dragon family were almost as shocked as Dongfang Xuanyu. They previously looked down on Long Chen, and now they saw that he had mastered the entirety of the Nine Dragon shes. It looks like Xuanxiao has found a true martial technique prodigy. How can Long Chen be this special


    In contrast, Dongfang Xuanxiao was filled with pride. He knew that Long Chen would surprise him, but the surprise wasrger than expected.


    He had many things he wanted to say, but he was speechless after he saw Long Chen use his final sh to sessfully dodge Dongfang Tianyus Tyrant sh.


    However, would Long Chen stop creating miracles after dodging the Tyrant sh?


    <em>Its down to the deciding moment</em>, Long Chen thought to himself. As the cloud of dust flew in the air, Long Chens finger suddenly shone with starlight. The shining light suddenly charged towards Dongfang Tianyu, who had just exhausted a lot of energy from the attack and was in a state of shock!


    Sword Devil Finger!


    The advantage of this technique was its speed. Long Chen had only just lifted his finger when the sword light hit Dongfang Tianyus body!


    No!


    At the veryst moment, Dongfang Tianyu had no choice but to throw the Sun Halberd away and block instinctively. The sharp sword light sted his sleeves, and the Sword Devil Finger turned into countless sword shadows that stabbed into his body, shing his internal organs!


    Dense patches of cuts were carved into his body, all gushing out blood as Dongfang Tianyu was thrown backwards. He looked terrifying, or more specifically, pitiful!


    With a shriek, Dongfang Tianyu was thrown back into the air. <em>m! </em>He hit the ground hard, throwing another cloud of dust into the air! His blood formed a pool beneath him!


    Long Chen caught his Sun Halberd and tossed it, so it stabbed on the ground right between his legs, just five centimeters from his crotch. That was enough to make the rest of his family draw in a sharp breath!


    <em>If we werent in the Eastern Azure Dragon family, I wouldve broken your balls, </em>thought Long Chen.


    The dust around him finally settled, and Long Chen returned to his original form. The battle had ended. He stood tall with a hint of pride in his eyes as they watched him.


    Not far from his feet, the bleeding Dongfang Tianyu was already unconscious. The scene that had just unfolded kept reying in all of their minds. They realized that no matter how hard they tried, they couldnt forget the look of arrogance and refusal to submit in his eyes!


    He was like a wild wolf after killing its prey, baring its teeth in front of the people who wanted to kill him but couldnt!


    Tianyu  lost? Dongfang Xuanyu, who had watched Dongfang Tianyu grow up, felt her heart clench in pain when she saw him in this state. She red at Long Chen with violence in her eyes.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng was stationed outside for the event. If he saw Dongfang Tianyus tragic state, the killing intent in his heart would be no less intense than Dongfang Xuanyus.


    There was one other person who caught Long Chens eyeDongfang Tianchen. While everyone was still in shock, he walked silently to Dongfang Tianyu and treated his wounds. The proliferation of cuts on his body were just external injuries, so the bleeding was easily stopped. However, his internal organs, which were hurt by the sword Qi, would likely take a long time to heal.


    Long Chen saw danger in Dongfang Tianchens cool eyes.


    The only eyes that were different from the rest, that contained warmth, were Dongfang Xuanxiaos. There were many emotions within thempraise, pride, warmth, arrogance. They Long Chen had turned the tides today in such a dramatic manner was beyond his expectations.


    Everyone had no choice but to ept the reality that Long Chen had beaten Dongfang Tianyu and had won the right to study the Azure Dragon Combat Technique!


    They felt like they were dreaming. Was an outsider really going to study the Azure Dragon Combat Technique?


    Although the inner family did recruit from the outer families, in reality, who would truly ept someone without the Azure Dragon blood to truly be one of them, even getting to study the highest-level secret scripture?


    After a brief silence, everyone started to think about this question. Dongfang Xuanyu was the first to wake up, saying righteously, Father, Elders, I feel like it is inappropriate for Long Chen to study the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. Long Chen is not truly a member of our n, so how could he study our most secret scripture? What if he is traitorous? What if he leaks it? What will we do?


    Dongfang Xuanyu had hit the nail on the head. Everyone started to chime in, wanting the Patriarch to change his mind.


    Tianchen, take Tianyu back to rest. They couldnt tell what the Patriarch was thinking, as all he did was instruct Tianchen in a mild tone. After Dongfang Tianchen brought Dongfang Tianyu away, he finally dealt with Long Chens matter.


    Long Chen and Xuanxiao stood on one side, while the rest were on the other. Dongfang Xuanyun, who had a good rtionship with Dongfang Xuanxiao, hesitated, then he chose to stay next to the Patriarch.


    Father, please reconsider this. That brat Long Chen is vicious, violent, and evil-hearted to have attacked Xiao Yu so violently! He has injured a member of our family, yet he gets the right to study the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. I think our whole n would be upset by this too, right? Dongfang Xuanyu was almost crying by now.


    Xuanxiao, why arent you saying anything? The Azure Dragon Patriarch didnt listen to Dongfang Xuanyu, but rather stared at Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    The rules have long been set, and Long Chen has pledged his loyalty to us and entered our n. I hope youll deal with the matter ording to the rules, and not be swayed by the shallow views of women, said Dongfang Xuanxiao mildly.


    What did you say? Dongfang Xuanxiaos words were obviously targeted at Dongfang Xuanyu, who raged in response. But there were elders present, and it was inappropriate for her to yell at him, so she said coldly, Xuanxiao, dont you think that youre being disrespectful? I have done my best to contribute to our family all these years, how could you say theyre just views of women?


    Dongfang Xuanxiao pursed his lips and ignored her.


    Long Chen was standing next to his stepfather, observing the situation. He thought the Azure Dragon Halberd would be his after defeating Dongfang Tianyu. He hadnt expected conflict to arise within the family. It looked like the Azure Dragon Halberd was hanging in limbo.


    <em>The situation doesnt look good. </em>Long Chen was worried when he saw them strongly discriminate against him as an outsider.


    The few elders discussed for a while and then leaned towards the Patriarchs ear and said, Big Brother, why dont we forget about the Azure Dragon Halberd and reward Long Chen with an excellent advanced ck-tier martial technique? And throw in another advanced ck-tier divine weapon? What do you think?


    The elder had whispered, but everyone could hear him.


    <em>This is hopeless. </em>Long Chen had worked so hard for this, yet it was all for nothing. It was impossible for him to not be mad. But these were all masters, so as a weak mid Earthly Core Realm cultivator, how could he have the right to speak here?


    Even Dongfang Xuanxiaos brows were deeply furrowed.


    What are you talking about? Under everyones anxious gazes, the Patriarch suddenly smiled. The Eastern Azure Dragon family is a huge n in Yuanling County. Huge ns naturally operate ording to set rules. After what you all said just now, arent you afraid that well be a joke to other ns if this gets out? Were the Eastern Azure Dragon family! How could we be so petty?


    When the Patriarch said this, Long Chen was stunned. What was going on? He knew that although the Patriarchs decision was appropriate, he was definitely favoring Long Chen.


    But Long Chen was willing to believe that it was due to Dongfang Xuanxiao, because thats who the Azure Dragon Patriarchs eyes were on when he gave his verdict.


    Patriarch, please reconsider this!


    Thats enough! scolded the Patriarch sternly, and they trembled, not daring to speak. Even the few elders did not dare disobey him. Long Chen could now see that the Patriarch was the sole leader of the gigantic Eastern Azure Dragon family. He was the only Heavenly River Realm master here after all, so it made sense that he held this amount of power.


    I have made my decision. I hereby announce that the winner of the Azure Dragon Halberd tournament is Long Chen! He shall receive the right to use the Azure Dragon Halberd for ten days, and the right to study the Azure Dragon Combat Technique! Long Chen,e here!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao once told Long Chen that the current owner of the Azure Dragon Halberd was the Patriarch. If he won, the Patriarch would condense a de of his Qi into a seed and nt it in Long Chens body. With the Qi seed, Long Chen would get to use the halberd for ten days and it would treat him as its owner. After ten days, the Qi seed would disappear and the halberd would return to the multicolored cauldron within the ancestral mausoleum.


    The Patriarch was about to nt the Qi seed. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    long chen after winning:


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 209: Primordial Dragon Soul

    Chapter 209: Primordial Dragon Soul


    Long Chen was a little surprised about getting the Azure Dragon Halberd even under such circumstances, though he still had a bad feeling. Unlike Dongfang Xuanxiao, the Patriarch disyed no warmth in his eyes when he looked at him. So why would he ignore his familys opinions to give Long Chen the Azure Dragon Halberd?


    <em>This is a cunning old man indeed; no one can guess what hes thinking. Like they say, the older the ginger, the spicier it is. This old geezer is very spicy indeed. </em>Privately musing, Long Chen epted the Qi seed and carefully merged it into his own Qi, so his own Qi now contained a sliver of the Patriarchs Qi.


    The crowd felt an array of emotions well up within themselves as they watched him ept the seed. There was jealousy, frustration, hatred, and unwillingness. Child, go take what belongs to you. You have ten days. After that, the Azure Dragon Halberd will return here. As for whether youre able toprehend the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, that will depend on your talent, the Patriarch said with a smile.


    I will do my best. I wont disappoint you! said Long Chen. He felt like there was a hint of malicious intent in the Patriarchs smile.


    <em>What is this old geezer nning? </em>Long Chen was suspicious.


    Under everyones watchful gazes, he strode towards the halberd. When he saw the Earth-tier divine weapon up close, he grew emotional. The Azure Dragon Halberd had a piece of a primordial dragon soul as its weapon spirit. It was clear that it was a very powerful presence amongst the Earth-tier weapons, as weapons of that level usually did not possess a weapon spirit.


    It was a beautiful weapon with green dragon scales, tough curves, and sharp tips. <em>How nice itd be if I could keep it as my own. Its too bad I only have ten days. Let me try to pick it up.</em>


    When he arrived next to the halberd, he did not hesitate to reach out and grab it. Very quickly, his fingers touched it.


    He suddenly felt the halberd let out a cry and tremble slightly in fear. Long Chen guessed that the primordial dragon soul within it sensed the dragon blood in him, and his intimidating blood lineage had frightened it.


    The Azure Dragon was one of the lowest ranked primordial dragons. Long Chen, however, had Inherited Blood Essence in him that was likely from the Ancient Blood Soul Dragon, the most powerful dragon.


    Brother Chen, the primordial dragon soul in the Azure Dragon Halberd senses your presence, which is both familiar and frightening to it. Thats why its like a child right now, hiding far away. Take the Azure Dragon Halberd with you and soothe it slowly when you get back home, Ling Xi said.


    Anyone else would have felt a violent resistance the moment they touched the halberd. But when Long Chen came into contact with it, it hid fearfully.


    <em>Youre afraid of me? Is the primordial dragon soul inside you a little girl? </em>Long Chen grinned, then he grabbed the halberd. He felt a chill. Weapons normally felt cold to the touch, but the halberd was warm, as if it was a living being. Long Chen wasnt holding a halberd, he was holding a dragon.


    This primordial dragon soul died millions of years ago. Whats left is just a sliver of memory that turned into a strange dragon soul after a long, long time. Brother Chen, put it in your Universe Pouch. Its afraid of you now, so it will not resist, Ling Xi exined.


    Whether a person could store the Azure Dragon halberd in their Universe Pouch was the first test of whether they could master it. He put it inside his pouch, preparing to study it when he got back.


    The events of the day came to a close after he took the halberd. He could actually put the Azure Dragon Halberd away. He wont actually master the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, will he? said one of the elders.


    Thats impossible. Very few of our generation managed toprehend it, and not even Xuanfeng and Tianxuan were able to. So how could Long Chen? another elder said decisively.


    That makes sense.


    Everyone had the same thought when they saw him put the weapon in his pouch. <em>You may be smug now, but youll get nothing after ten days. How could Father do this? He should have given Tianyu a chance. He wouldnt be rejected by the halberd, and he would have a higher chance of mastering the technique since he has Azure Dragon blood in him.</em>


    Dongfang Xuanyu shot Long Chen a cold re.


    Long Chen, use these ten days well. After the Patriarch spoke, the tournament was officially over.


    ***


    Long Chen, focus on your cultivation. I myself haveprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, so I have some experience. Come ask me if you have any questions, said Dongfang Xuanxiao after they returned to their quarters.


    Ill try to figure it out on my own first, then Ill ask you if I dont understand anything. What do you think? asked Long Chen.


    Thats good. You have great talent in cultivating martial techniques, so I have great expectations for you, said Dongfang Xuanxiao with a smile. He was proud that Long Chen had won the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    <em>He has ten days  Ill give him eight days to cultivate. As for the remaining two, itll be time to fulfill my final wish. Long Chen, you wont me me, right? If I dont do it, I will regret it for the rest of my life.</em>


    This was what Dongfang Xuanxiao thought. If Long Chen could hear his thoughts, he would be confused.


    <em>Ten days will be enough to save Xiang, but I must be extremely careful. Before that, I must familiarize myself with the Azure Dragon Halberd. I mustnt lose such a great opportunity, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Their thoughts seemed to be simr, but what were Dongfang Xuanxiaos ns?


    Still deep in thought, Dongfang Xuanxiao left. Yin Mengyao asked him anxiously, Xiao Chen, what is your n?


    Yin Mengyao was shocked that Long Chen had won the Azure Dragon Halberd and couldplete her objective. She was greatly emotional when she thought about how she could save Mo Xiang.


    So far, there is only one solution. I will first find an excuse to enter the Star Devil Prison to train, then Ill go to the Azure Dragon alone to rescue Xiang. He is at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, and there are four mid Heavenly Core experts at the entrance. If he has the Heavenly Wolf Dagger with him, he might be able to escape!


    Its still possible even without the Heavenly Wolf Dagger. Xiang has a bodybat technique called the Illusory Divine Step, making him extremely fast. Even the average mid Heavenly Core Realm cultivator will find it difficult to see him clearly.


    Thats good. Ive gotten close to the four armored guards, so it will be best to let Xiang escape without endangering myself or killing them. Sister Mengyao, is the Illusory Divine Step really that impressive?


    Long Chen was previously worried about one thingafter he rescued Mo Xiang, what would he do if other people found out what he had done?


    If Long Chen was alone, he could run wherever he wanted. But Yang Lingqing was still in the Lingwu family, and he also had roots in Baiyang Town. If they knew he was behind the jailbreak, the consequences would be disastrous.


    But if Yan Honghai and the rest didnt know who was behind it all, it would be better.


    The Illusory Divine Step is indeed impressive. I have seen Xiang use it before, and as long as he has some sort of disguise, I guarantee the four armored guards will not recognize him. But Long Chen, if the Azure Dragon Patriarch goes to the Azure Dragon Star, he will naturally know who is missing. Plus, you have the Azure Dragon Halberd, so wont it be easy to figure out that youre the one behind it if you go to the Star Devil Prison?


    She frowned. On the one hand, she wanted Mo Xiang to be freed. On the other hand, she didnt want Long Chen to get into trouble.


    After her analysis, he felt like it was tooplex. Why dont we get Stepfather to help? I see that hes quite good to us. As long as he can use some excuse to lead the guards away, wouldnt Xiang be able to exit without being noticed? Yin Mengyao suddenly suggested.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao? This was a great idea, but he was an Azure Dragon family member. Would he really agree to help them, and not reprimand them?


    Lets do it this way. Long Chen, you goprehend the Azure Dragon Combat Technique for now while I think of a way. If we have no choice, then we will take a risk and tell Stepfather. Hes really good to us, and he is against the other family members. Even if he doesnt agree, maybe he wont stop us, said Yin Mengyao.


    Thats the only thing we can do. Long Chen felt like they could try involving Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    After bidding her farewell, he returned to his room, where Ling Xi emerged excitedly. She had be even more beautiful thanks to the Sky Soul Fruit.


    Xiao Xi, how do you think I should deal with the Azure Dragon Halberd?


    Long Chen knew that she had a powerful background and was very knowledgeable, so she would have great tips.


    Other people would need to have a standoff with the primordial dragon soul and forcefully make it submit. Dongfang Tianxuan and the rest couldntprehend the Azure Dragon Combat Technique because their minds were not strong enough to subdue the dragon''s soul. But youre different. The primordial dragon soul has fled to the deepest parts of the Azure Dragon Halberd, proving that it''s afraid of you. You only need to try tomunicate with it and coax it out and then you should seed easily. You might even gain absolute control over it and remove the old geezers seal on the halberd, bing its true master! Just like what Mo Xiang did.


    What? Long Chen was overjoyed. Ling Xi, are you saying that the old geezer still isnt the Azure Dragon Halberds master?


    Of course not. She wrinkled her cute nose and said, He doesnt have the ability for that! But his ancestor once mastered it and passed down this ability, thats why he somewhat has the right to use it.


    So, you mean I have a high chance?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    what the patriarch doin


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 210: Comprehending The Azure Dragon Combat Technique

    Chapter 210: Comprehending The Azure Dragon Combat Technique


    Neither high nor low, answered Ling Xi.


    As long as I have a sliver of a chance, I will work hard. I only have ten days, so I shall study it for a day. If I can produce results, then I can start thinking about rescuing Xiang in a few days. The Azure Dragon Halberd wont stay in my hands for long after all.


    He shut the door tight and went to the underground cultivation room.


    Ling Xi was afraid of disturbing him, so she returned to her sword while Long Chen sat on the ground, crossing his legs. Then he pulled the warm Azure Dragon Halberd out of his Universe Pouch. He studied the weapon in detail, and the more he did, the more perfect he thought it was.


    After caressing the green dragon scales and feeling its patterns, Long Chen had a sudden feeling that their blood lineages were rted.


    Primordial Dragon Soul  How should I get closer to it? Long Chen didnt know how, so all he could do was close his eyes and sink his mind into the halberd, feeling it with his heart.


    I should imagine the Azure Dragon Halberd as a living being. The warm weapon in his hand made him feel like he was holding a beating heart. Although the heartbeat was faint, it was definitely there.


    This should be right. Long Chen sat deep in thought. Ling Xi had told him to get close to it, but she hadnt given any other hints. He thought about how two beings of the same species could easily form a bond. The Azure Dragon Halberd seemed to have its own intelligence, almost on par with a humans. He found that he could imagine it as a living being andmunicate with it as such.


    In the beginning, he was doing it blindly. After connecting with the weapon in his hand, he suddenly found himself in a world full of white mist, directionless and clueless as to where the other being was.


    <em>I need to call for it</em>. Long Chen couldnt use his real voice, but he could call with his heart, which was not difficult. He thought about finding it, and at the same time, used his soul to get closer to it.


    That was when the mysterious dragon jade in his sea of consciousness vibrated once. He sensed a wave of energy flow into his eyes, then the white mist suddenly disappeared. Now that nothing was blocking his eyes, all he saw was a huge mountain range spanning across his field of vision!


    The mountain range was sorge that Long Chen could only see a small portion of it. The rest of it was hidden in the infinite, illusory space.


    <em>This is not a mountain, this is the primordial dragon soul. </em>With that guess, Long Chen started to walk. Indeed, he realized that this was a portion of the primordial dragon souls dragon body. Its body was asrge as a mountain range, and every single dragon scale was over ten square meters in size. <em>Were the dragons of ancient times really that gigantic? </em>Long Chen was filled with awe. That was when the whole world shook, and the mountain-like dragon moved. Dust and clouds flew in all directions, then a gigantic dragon head appeared in front of him. It looked at Long Chen with both anxiety and confusion, along with a hint of fear in its eyes.


    If anyone else confronted the primordial dragon soul directly, it would have attacked with all its might. But this was Long Chen, and the dragon soul was afraid. <em>This is all thanks to the mysterious dragon jade. </em>Without it, Long Chen might not even have found this piece of primordial dragon soul.


    <em>I can tell that the primordial dragon soul is extremely weak. But in terms of consciousness, it is still a little stronger than you. Long Chen, trymunicating with it like youre coaxing a child.</em>


    Coaxing a child? Long Chen was puzzled, but he was willing to do anything for the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    How would he coax it?


    He had no idea, so he tried his best to look at the humongous dragon head that wasrge enough to block out the sun and the sky above him with all the friendliness he could muster.


    Its dragon beard fell like a waterfall, almost drowning Long Chen in it.


    If this was the lowest-ranked dragon, then how terrifying were the other dragons?


    Be a good boy ande here. Big Brothers got some candy for you, Long Chen said shamelessly, as if speaking to a child.


    Brother Chen, I cant stand you anymore, said Ling Xi, rolling her eyes. She still looked pretty while doing so.


    Just as she was trying to think of a way to help Long Chen deal with the primordial dragon soul, it suddenly let out a sorrowful cry, and a ray of green divine light shot out of its huge eyes and pierced through the clouds, pouring into Long Chens body.


    A huge quantity of data appeared in his mind. Azure Dragon Combat Technique? Long Chen was stunned. Ling Xi had said that he needed to get to know it better, and he hadnt even started. But the dragon soul had already given him the technique?


    The primordial dragon soul slowly disappeared, and his consciousness exited the Azure Dragon Halberd and returned to the underground room. He was still in a daze. Xiao  Xiao Xi, have I  seeded?


    I know youve gotten a good deal, but dont be shameless about it. Ling Xi chuckled, covering her mouth. She was genuinely happy for him. I dont know why either. Maybe the primordial dragon soul sensed your Dragon Warrior aura and treated you better.


    I see. Does that mean that it took me less than fifteen minutes to aplish something that Dongfang Tianxuan and the rest couldnt do in ten days? As he silently flipped through the information in his brain, he looked ecstatic.


    How is it? What did you get? asked Ling Xi curiously, leaning in and staring at him with her huge eyes.


    The Azure Dragon Combat Technique, including a general ybook. Cultivating the general ybook will allow my Qi to carry the Azure Dragons Qi, forming Azure Dragon Qi. I think this is the same concept as the zing Thunder Power, but the Azure Dragon Qi is stronger.


    This was Long Chens first encounter with abat technique that had a general ybook. The Azure Dragon Qi would greatly boost the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    Just the general ybook? What about the Earth-tierbat technique? she asked expectantly.


    We can take our time. The Azure Dragon Combat Technique has a total of three attacks, and the legendary Earth-tierbat technique is thest attack, which is already inside. Since I haveprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique so quickly, Ill spend five days cultivating the general ybook first. At the same time, Ill work on the first attackSplit Yellow River!


    Three attacks? What are the other two called?


    Azure Dragon Halberd, Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies  and the Earth-tier technique called Starsweep Dragon!


    After making his decision, Long Chen started cultivating the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. Under his peerless power ofprehension, he easily cultivated the general ybook. But something unexpected happened when the Azure Dragon Qi was formed. When the newly generated Azure Dragon Qi encountered his original dragon soul Qi, it all turned blood-red. Long Chen now understood that the Inherited Blood Essence definitely belonged to a primordial dragon that was far higher ranked than the Azure Dragon.


    Split the Yellow River in one sh with the power of the heavens and earth! The first two attacks, when used with the Azure Dragon Halberd and Azure Dragon Qi, are more powerful than my Sword Devil Finger. Theyre considered the best advanced ck-tier martial techniques. I can even fight a master at the Heavenly Core Realm!


    Long Chen was filled with battle spirit. Its too bad that I will have to return the Azure Dragon Halberd soon. He stood up, looking at the halberd that seemed to have a connection to his own blood. He couldnt do anything about it.


    He had beenmunicating with it for the past few days, and there were no signs of it recognizing him as its master. But Long Chen had grown more and more attached to it. Especially when he used it to practice the first attack, Split Yellow River. This powerful weapon couldn''t even bepared to the intermediate ck-tier halberd he had.


    Any signs of it recognizing you as its master? There are only five days left. Long Chen, when will you leave to rescue Mo Xiang? Ling Xi asked.


    I have alreadyprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique and thereforepleted my task. Although the Azure Dragon halberd is important, Xiang only has this one chance to escape. I cant leave him there because of the Azure Dragon Halberd. Whatever, Ill just leave this up to fate. Let me go discuss this with Sister Mengyao!


    Long Chen had always been decisive and quick to react. After saying that, he immediately exited his room.


    Hed been thinking about Mo Xiangs situation. Disregarding the consequences wasnt an option, because he had people like Lingqing to worry about. After thinking about it for the past five days, he had decided to ask for Dongfang Xuanxiaos help. <em>Stepfather has helped me so much since the beginning of the inner family qualifiers, especially the time with Lingqing. Without him, Lingqing wouldve been someones wife by now. He sees me as an important person, and with Sister Mengyao begging him on the side, we might have a chance.</em>


    He had contemted Dongfang Xuanxiaos personality in detail and came to the conclusion that the n could work.


    Yin Mengyao hadnte by for a few days. He knocked on her door but realized that she wasnt there.


    <em>Its only been five days. She was so worried about Xiang, so she shouldve been waiting for me here. Where has she gone?</em>


    Long Chen was puzzled. They didnt have much time, so he left in search of Yin Mengyao. There were not many buildings in the Eastern Azure Dragon familypound, but it was still a vast area. Long Chen went to the Xuanyun and Xuanyu Pavilions but still didnt see her.


    <em>Why cant I find her? Whatever, let me ask someone.</em>


    After walking around, he saw two teenagers approaching. He wanted to ask them, but to his surprise, they ran off as soon as they spotted him!


    Somethings wrong!


    Long Chen rushed forward and caught them, one in each hand. He asked sternly, Do you two know where Sister Mengyao is?


    As if their secret had been discovered, both of them were startled and one of them blurted, Brother Tianxing was the one who lured her into the Cloud Forest, its got nothing to do with me!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Don''t tell me she became a hostage


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 211: Worse Than An Animal

    Chapter 211: Worse Than An Animal


    Cloud Forest was a dense forest located not far from the Eastern District. It was beautiful there, and Lingwu family members asionally went there to cultivate or rest.


    It was deep winter now. Although the winter of the Cangyang Kingdom was not cold, trees still shed their leaves. Without the beautiful scenery to enjoy, few people went to the forest during winter.


    Although Long Chen hadnt been there before, he had heard Yin Mengyao mention it a few times. When he heard that Dongfang Tianxing had touched his stepsister, his eyes turned blood-red and he started radiating the aura of violence and murder. The two teenagers, despite being almost his age, grew even more terrified.


    Experiencing Long Chens Blood Devouring Domain at the Azure Dragon tournament had taught them a very memorable lesson that had been burned deep in their minds. They had lost to him personally, and he had defeated Dongfang Tianyu. It made sense that they were terrified of him, especially when they were guilty.


    Lead the way. We will arrive there in half a minute, or I wont mind giving you another taste of that day, said Long Chen coldly, putting them down.


    He initially thought he was going to discuss rescuing Mo Xiang with Yin Mengyao. This was truly an unexpected turn of events. If he hadnt emerged from his room in time, he wouldve never lived this down for the rest of his life.


    Yin Mengyao was now his older sister, and she treated him very well. He refused to let anyone touch her, including Dongfang Tianxing, even though he was at the Heavenly Core Realm.


    The two teenagers naturally did not want a taste of the strange horror that was the Blood Devouring Domain, so after Long Chens threat, they locked eyes and chose to take him to the Cloud Forest.


    Do you want to die? Hurry up! roared Long Chen when he felt like this was not the fastest they could travel.


    Indeed, they moved much faster afterwards.


    Long Chen was panicking inside, but he was cool on the surface. After many experiences, he had long learned the importance of staying calm during emergencies.


    Dongfang Tianxing had had his eyes on Yin Mengyao. He thought it would be easier to get her after Dongfang Tianyu killed Long Chen. But Long Chen had defeated Dongfang Tianyu and even gotten the Azure Dragon Halberd, and the impatient Dongfang Tianxing couldnt wait any longer.


    <em>Ill test the powers of the Azure Dragon Halberd on you, then. </em>There was a manic rage in Long Chens eyes.


    ***


    There was a tranquil, emeraldke in Cloud Forest, and two people were standing on its edge.


    Mengyao, do you see these flowers? This is a gift I prepared for you. Its deep in winter, yet I still got them to bloom. I spent a lot of money on this! What do you think? Arent they beautiful? asked Dongfang Tianxing, staring greedily at the beautiful girl before him.


    Yin Mengyao was wearing a long, white dress adorned with stars. There was a cold winter breeze, so it fluttered slightly in the wind, revealing her delicate, feminine curves. Dongfang Tianxing swooned over her fair and sophisticated features.


    There were many beautiful girls in the world, and while Yin Mengyao stood out amongst them and had her own unique quality, that was not the main reason why he liked her. The main reason was her identity and capabilities. It was extremely rare to find a female prodigy cultivator who did not have Eastern Azure Dragon blood and was not from a rival faction.


    Looking at the patch of flowers that bloomed fully despite the season, she admitted that they were beautiful. Unfortunately, the person who had created this beauty repulsed her.


    Thats the reason why you asked me toe here? You said you wanted to tell me your experience inprehending the Azure Dragon Halberd; was that just an excuse to lure me here? Yin Mengyao was too intelligent to swoon over this idiotic tactic.


    Of course not, but dont you think itll be much more pleasant if we talk and get to know each other better in this beautiful scenery? said Dongfang Tianxing with a smile.


    In reality, he was an extremely impatient person. As he spoke, his voice trembled because he could no longer suppress his excitement when he thought about what was toe, and he kept ncing greedily at Yin Mengyaos full chest.


    Im sorry, Im no longer interested in hearing about your experience. I think my younger brother canprehend it on his own. Goodbye. After she spoke, she turned to leave, sensing that something was wrong because of the strange look in his eyes. Two teenagers stumbled upon the area at that very moment, and they were silently turned away by his re. Yin Mengyao had noticed this subtle move.


    The fragrance of flowers filled the air, and it was indeed pleasant. But Yin Mengyao had a strange feeling, as though something was slowly seeping into her body, but she couldnt describe it. She treated it as nothing at first, but the moment she decided to leave, she was sharp enough to realize that her face was feeling warm and her breathing quickened.


    She had only hatred towards Dongfang Tianxing, so this reaction shouldve been impossible.


    Is there something wrong with the flowers?! Dongfang Tianxing! What the hell did you do? Sensing the source of the problem, Yin Mengyao quickly turned around, ring at him with fierceness in her eyes.


    Haha, have you finally felt it? But its toote. Dongfang Tianxings expression cooled all of a sudden. He shrugged and then said nonchntly, Dont worry, its just a small trick. But adding this liquid aphrodisiac to the flowers cost me a whole hundred thousand divine jades. Are you feeling your whole body heating up? And a growing yearning you cant suppress?


    Dongfang Tianxing was right. Yin Mengyao had sensed the strange reactions in her body. Her breathing quickened and her body was fiery hot. When her cheeks reddened, she grew even more attractive, instilling a primitive instinct in him.


    The ice queen had changed into such a tempting state. The moment he saw her face, he gulped loudly and his whole body also grew hotter.


    I forgot to tell you. I also added some herbs into the aphrodisiac thatll make your body rx. But dont worry, I will treat you very well! Then a perverted look appeared in his eyes as he slowly approached Yin Mengyao, who was gradually losing strength.


    You lecher! Bastard! Yin Mengyao was utterly stunned by this. She had never imagined that Dongfang Tianxing would dare to do such a thing within the Lingwu family!


    Dongfang Tianxing! How bold are you? How dare you touch me? Arent you afraid that my stepfather will kill you? The heat in her body and her weakening muscles filled her with endless terror. But she knew that she had to remain calm to scare this madman!


    But Dongfang Tianxing had prepared well. How could he be scared off at a moment like this? His greedy eyes were fixated on her chest, which was rising and falling. Just from the fair skin on her neck, he could imagine how beautiful the rest of her body would be! And this beauty would be right in the palm of his hand in mere moments!


    With that thought, he gulped hard.


    Darling, when the rice is fully cooked[1], will you still be brave enough to tell Dongfang Xuanxiao about this? Be good and be my girl! Itll be infinitely better than being some stepdaughter, haha!


    He looked insane as he reveled in her terror. Without another word, he pounced on her body!


    At this point, all she could do was do her best to break free and shout, trying to escape his clutches. She regretted this very much. If she hadnt been trying to do something good for Long Chen, she wouldnt have been stupid enough to believe Dongfang Tianxing.


    Dont run! Very soon, you will understand that bing my woman is the most enjoyable thing in the world! Dongfang Tianxing eximed.


    Suddenly, there was amotion in the forest ahead, then a figure rushed past Yin Mengyao. A bright sword light erupted and stabbed directly at Dongfang Tianxings chest!


    Who is it?! Dongfang Tianxing gasped.


    Amidst the chaos, he could only move backwards to dodge the attack. Dongfang Tianxing used an advanced ck-tier bodybat technique, though it was not the Nine Dragon shes. The Nine Dragon shes was the highest-ranked bodybat technique in the Eastern Azure Dragon family, but few chose it due to its high difficulty.


    Both Yin Mengyao and Dongfang Tianxing knew who the ier was the moment they saw the shining sword light. The only person in the whole Eastern Azure Dragon family who used the Sword Devil Finger was Long Chen.


    After sessfully using the Sword Devil Finger to force Dongfang Tianxing back, Long Chen wasnt sure how Yin Mengyao was faring but knew that she was not doing well if Dongfang Tianxing was so boldly pouncing on her.


    Long Chen, why are you here? Dongfang Tianxing was in disbelief. He had her right in the palm of his hand, and now it was all ruined! How could he stand to take this insult? Dongfang Tianxing didnt know what to do right now, but his anger for Long Chen was steadily rising to an unprecedented level.


    Why am I here? Haha, Dongfang Tianxing, look at how low you have to go to get what you want. How do you deserve to be considered an elite disciple of the Eastern Azure Dragon family? Youre even worse than an animal.


    Although Long Chen didnt witness it, he could roughly guess what had happened. Dongfang Tianxing mustve decided to make a move on Yin Mengyao because he couldnt wait any longer.


    Long Chen had a bad feeling about the strange scent in the air too, and he knew that it was time to leave. That was when he felt a gush of warmth from behind, and a pair of delicate arms wrapped around his waist, hugging him tight.


    That was when he understood that Yin Mengyao had been poisoned by Dongfang Tianxing. He quickly held his breath and spotted ake not far away. Although he was enjoying it, this was his older sister, so it was not appropriate. He could never cross the line with her!


    Long Chens killing intent did not wane!


    1. When whats done is done. In this case, after they have done the deed. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    "mengyao, do u see the flowers?"


    mengyao: pls stop i want to go home


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 212: Challenge on the Mortal Arena

    Chapter 212: Challenge on the Mortal Arena


    How are you feeling? Long Chen asked with concern while he used his Qi to dry her clothes.


    He dried her as soon as she could because her wet clothes had been clinging to her body, revealing her curvy figure. Even though Long Chen would noty a hand on her, the others would!


    Dongfang Tianxing and the other two youths who had guided Long Chen here would not hesitate.


    Im much better now. Yin Mengyao lowered her head and blushed.


    It was different from the blush she had when she was under the influence just now. She was just embarrassed.


    Yin Mengyao, dont worry about it too much. This is not embarrassing. Its that bastards fault.


    Who are you calling a bastard? Dongfang Tianxing was angry. He was a cultivator at the Heavenly Core Realm. It was one thing for Long Chen to save her, but it was another to insult him. Dongfang Tianxing had nned to let them go, but he was angered now.


    His ns were destroyed the moment Long Chen stepped in. If he killed Long Chen and obtained Yin Mengyao, he would be in deep trouble. Long Chen was now famous in the family, so Dongfang Tianxing would lose his life if he didnt take care of things tactfully.


    He was about to give up when Long Chen insulted him, making him want to hit the brat.


    <em>I cant kill him, but I can hit him! I will kill him one of these days if theres an opportunity to do so!</em>


    Dongfang Tianxing was just about to hit Long Chen when he saw thetter ring at him. Who else here could be called a bastard? Youre the only one who would attempt such an underhanded method. Dongfang Tianxing, do you remember asking me to fight on the Mortal Arena?


    The Mortal Arena? Dongfang Tianxing was confused. You want to fight me on the Mortal Arena?


    This was unexpected. Dongfang Tianxing was very frustrated and wanted to vent his anger somewhere. He had thought Long Chen would not agree to it, but to think he would suggest it himself.


    I will ask again. Do you dare to fight me on the Mortal Arena? Long Chen red at him coldly.


    Haha! Of course! Lets go now! Dongfang Tianxing was excited when he thought about beating up Long Chen in public. He could also show off his strength to Yin Mengyao. He was more than happy to do it.


    But he still had some slight reservations as to why Long Chen would propose it. He was only at the mid Earthly Core Realm and yet he dared to request a fight?


    <em>Is it because of the Azure Dragon Halberd? Its only been five days, so he couldnt have learned how to use it. </em>Dongfang Tianxing thought there was no problem with the suggestion. His lecherous gaze was still fixated on Yin Mengyao.


    The more she hated him, the more he wanted her. He was in love with her cold appearance.


    She knew the difference in strength between them, so she asked after she recovered from the drugs effects, Long Chen, what are you doing?


    Would you believe me if I told you Ive already finished cultivating the Azure Dragonbat technique? Long Chen whispered to the surprised Yin Mengyao.


    Wait, does that mean  She was overjoyed.


    Shh  Dont let him know. I will take revenge for you. Long Chen chuckled.


    ***


    Before they could fight on the Mortal Arena, they had to contact the elders. They could only duel if the elders approved and oversaw the entire fight. While Long Chen and Dongfang Tianxing went off to find the elders, the news of their fight was spread to everyone else by the two youths. Everyone who was interested in their match gathered near the arena.


    The Mortal Arena was essentially a stage located within the Xuanyu Pavillion. It was made of dense, grayish-white steelstone that had been polished until it was as smooth as a mirror. Long Chen and Dongfang Tianxing stood on opposite ends of it.


    There were tens of seats surrounding the Mortal Arena, and all of them were full. Everyone was in attendance except for the Patriarch and several elders, who didnt attend such trivial matters. All four of the strongest cultivators of the Eastern Azure Dragon family were present though.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng stared at Long Chen. Although he looked calm on the outside, he actually despised the teenager. His son would have obtained the Azure Dragon Halberd, but Long Chen had not only taken it away from him, he had even beaten him. Therefore, Dongfang Xuanfengs eyes had a hint of killing intent behind them.


    Yin Mengyao was standing behind Dongfang Xuanxiao, while Dongfang Tianxuan, who had once bullied her, was standing beside her. Dongfang Tianxuan was Dongfang Xuanyuns daughter. By logic, she shouldve been on friendly terms with Long Chen. However, she had been prideful and arrogant ever since she was young, so she didnt really see eye-to-eye with her father, much less Long Chen and Yin Mengyao.


    Dongfang Tianxuan was the second strongest fighter amongst the youths. Even though she was at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, her fighting strength was above Dongfang Tianxings. If she had learned the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, she would be just as strong as Dongfang Tianchen.


    Still, Dongfang Tianxuan had managed to cultivate the only Earth-tier martial technique, making her the second strongest youth of the family. Even though she had only learned the bare minimum of the technique, Long Chen would still lose to her.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao didnt know what Long Chen was doing. Yin Mengyao whispered something to him, and Dongfang Xuanxiao was surprised to learn that Long Chen hadprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. He smiled bitterly in response. Its only been five days. It took me nine days toprehend it, while Tianchen took eight days!


    Stepfather, Long Chen said that heprehended it in one day. He has been cultivating it for the past few days.


    This was beyond Dongfang Xuanxiaos expectations. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down.


    Lets see his performance, then.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had just finished speaking when Dongfang Xuanyu decided to taunt him. Some people are just weak yet brave. A mere initial Earthly Core Realm brat dares to request a fight with a Heavenly Core Realm cultivator on the Mortal Arena. I suppose he will only learn his lesson through death.


    She had gone overboard and Yin Mengyao wanted to talk back. Seeing how Dongfang Xuanyu was an elder, however, she could say nothing. Dongfang Xuanxiao ignored her and focused on the two people on the stage.


    Dongfang Xuanyu got angry at him for not acknowledging her. Her gaze was dripping with poison when she red at Dongfang Xuanxiao. <em>How dare this bastard ignore me! Im at the Heavenly Core Realm too! I deserve respect, yet hes so aloof. I cant wait to see your face once Tianxing defeats Long Chen!</em>


    Dongfang Xuanyun smiled bitterly between the two of them.


    Brother, your stepson sure is rash. I thought he was reckless when he asked for the Sky Soul Fruit. I suppose a little bit of a setback will help him grow.


    Lets just watch. Maybe there will be a miracle. Dongfang Xuanxiaoughed.


    Just then, the emcee stood up and started announcing the start of the match. Everyone stopped discussing and watched what was happening on the stage. The crowd was sure that Long Chen would lose to Dongfang Tianxing. Even though Dongfang Tianxing didnt know any Earth-tier martial techniques, his Comet Dragon Seal was one of the strongest martial techniques in the family, barring the Earthly-tier technique or the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    Do you think Long Chen can use the Azure Dragon Halberd? If he can, his battle strength will skyrocket!


    Dont be stupid. Its only been five days. How could he haveprehended it? Even Tianxuan didnt manage to learn it!


    Tianxuan was really unfortunate. She was just a step away.


    The people discussing it were the siblings and cousins of Dongfang Xuanfeng, Dongfang Xuanyu, Dongfang Xuanyun, and Dongfang Xuanxiao. Most of them were at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Some of them who were less talented were still at the initial Heavenly Core Realm.


    Everyone was looking at Dongfang Tianxing. He was standing on the stage while his clothes billowed in the wind. Thinking about how he could soon beat up Long Chen, his heart was itching for it to start. Hey, brat, didnt you obtain the Azure Dragon Halberd? How about showing me the Azure Dragon Combat Technique?


    It was a taunt, and everyoneughed at it. Five days was not enough toprehend it, much less cultivate it. Only a god could do it in such a short period.


    But to everyone''s surprise, Long Chen actually brought it out. The sun reflected off the sharp de, its azure dragon scales shimmering from the light. It contained an unbounded power. This was the first time many in the crowd had seen it.


    Haha! Dongfang Tianxingughed out loud. Long Chen, what are you doing? Are you crazy or stupid?


    Everyone had the same thought.


    Crazy? No, Im just listening to your suggestion, to use the halberd against you. Long Chen twirled it around, producing strong shockwaves around him. Everyone was surprised by the power contained within the halberd.


    But rather than fear, all of themughed. Dongfang Xuanyuughed the loudest. Even Dongfang Xuanyun smiled. Dongfang Tianxuan, however, was very amused by the farce.


    Not even she hadprehended it after ten whole days, and yet Long Chen had already cultivated it? Was that even possible?


    While everyone wasughing at Long Chen, he actually pointed the Azure Dragon Halberd towards Dongfang Tianxing. He was still calm, as if he was not affected by the crowd. Just then, an enormous pressure exuded from the halberd and engulfed everything surrounding him.


    What?! The teacup in Dongfang Xuanfengs hand fell onto the ground and broke.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Whack him silly!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 213: Comet Dragon Seal

    Chapter 213: Comet Dragon Seal


    A broken teacup wouldve garnered everyones attention under normal circumstances, but no one paid attention to it. Everyone was in disbelief when they saw the ancient energy radiating from Long Chens hands.


    Dongfang Xuanyu, who had beenughing the loudest, froze in shock. Her mouth was wide open, and she didnt know how ugly she looked. But that was not importantpared to what was happening to Long Chen.


    Was it an illusion?


    Everyone rubbed their eyes in disbelief, but that didnt change the reality before them. Long Chen was using the Azure Dragon Halberds Azure Dragon Combat Technique to fight against Dongfang Tianxing!


    This  This is impossible! Dongfang Xuanyu was not crying, but her face looked worse than that. Everyone else was feeling the same too. Was Long Chen some kind of god? How had he mastered it in just five days?


    Dongfang Tianxuan, who had been standing behind Dongfang Xuanyun, was in disbelief too. She had twisted her brain inside and out for ten days just to try toprehend the Azure Dragon Halberd, yet she had failed. Long Chen didnt have the Eastern Azure Family bloodline and yet he had seeded in such a short amount of time?


    <em>Maybe hes a genius beyond our understanding, but his cultivation level is still low </em> Even the calm Dongfang Tianxuan was shocked, much less the others.


    The spectators who had been cheering were suddenly quiet when Long Chen used the power of the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Dongfang Tianxing was currently the one facing the brunt of its ancient power. He had been joking and taunting his opponent. He had never expected Long Chen to haveprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique!


    Dongfang Tianxing was confused and his mind in shambles, but he had no more time to think when he sensed the immense aura emanating from Long Chen. It was clear Long Chen wanted to decide the winner in a single blow. Dongfang Tianxing gathered all of his Qi and even pushed his limits to condense it in his body. He was about to unleash his strongest technique, the Comet Dragon Seal.


    Long Chen was gripping the Azure Dragon tightly and felt the pulsesing from it. He felt like the weapon was part of his body when he twirled it around. The dragon soul within the halberd was connected to his soul and bloodline, so the weapon had turned into another source of power in addition to his own dantian.


    <em>My strength skyrockets when I use the halberd. It makes me as strong as when I use the Dragon Soul Transformation. What can I do to not return this? </em>Long Chen was bitter about having to give it back, because he really loved the halberd. But the priority right now was to defeat Dongfang Tianxing. Dongfang Tianxing was one of the weakest in his age group, but he was still at the Heavenly Core Realm, meaning he was at least several times stronger than Long Chen. If Long Chen didnt have the Azure Dragon Halberd, he wouldve never fought against him.


    Long Chen had just assumed his dragon form. His blood-red scales and the azure scales on the halberd were simr, making everyone think that the Azure Dragon Halberd was made for Long Chen and was part of him!


    <em>I need to use all of my strength! </em>Long Chen did not want to waste his time with Dongfang Tianxing. Since Dongfang Tianxing tried toy his hands on Yin Mengyao, he wanted to teach him a serious lesson and also test out the waters with the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    The Comet Dragon Seal was the Eastern Azure Dragon familys strongest ck-tier martial technique, second only to the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. Long Chen leaped up, and the Azure Dragon Halberd shimmered like an illusion before crashing down.


    Everyone was shocked to the core when they saw the tip of the halberd turn into an illusion of a massive, azure dragon. The dragon looked extremely realistic and covered the heavens. It roared and crashed down on Dongfang Tianxing like a massive de.


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Split Yellow River!


    The massive pressure exuded from the attack made Dongfang Tianxing realize that he was in danger. He felt an insurmountable pressure pushing him downwards like a mountain. His instincts told him that if he didnt move, he would die.


    <em>Getting killed by Long Chen? </em>This was not something he would ever think of even if he was dreaming.


    He circted his Qi even faster. When Long Chens attack approached him, he channeled all of his strength to his feet and leaped towards Long Chen.


    He quickly formed the necessary hand seals, and a hazy dragon illusion appeared on his fingers. A small Azure Dragon mark appeared on his forehead, simr to the Vermillion Bird mark. With it, he could squeeze out even more power!


    Die! Comet Dragon Seal!


    Dongfang Tianxing released his attack the moment his seal waspleted. A dragon-shaped seal made of starlight flew towards Long Chens attack. Everyone held their breath when they saw that the attacks were about to collide.


    <em>Boom! Crack!</em>


    The shockwave from the sh exploded everywhere, kicking up a massive gust and blowing up a dust storm.


    Is that it? Long Chen smiled coldly. <em>No wonder the Azure Dragon Halberd and the Azure Dragon Combat Technique became the keystone that dictated the survival of the Eastern Azure Dragon family. The Comet Dragon Seal is not its match!</em>


    The strength of the Azure Dragon Halberd is not something you can win against! Long Chen howled, and the mighty energy transformed into a sharpness the rended the skies. Another illusion of an Azure Dragon appeared on the tip of the halberd and shrouded the Comet Dragon Seal before ripping it in half.


    The remaining energy fell downwards onto Dongfang Tianxing. If he was hit by that attack, he would be split in half!


    Amongst the crowd, only Dongfang Xuanxiao was in a state of mind to understand what was going on. Even Dongfang Xuanyu hadnt snapped out of it. She had failed to recognize that her son had lost and was on the verge of death.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao disappeared from his chair and reappeared on the stage. Dongfang Tianxing caught the Azure Dragon Halberd and redirected the attack, but he was curious as to why the attack was weaker than he thought.


    Wait, can you use Split Yellow River at will? The reason why he felt like the attack was weak was because Long Chen had already stopped attacking. Dongfang Xuanxiaos interference had been unnecessary, because Long Chen never nned on killing Dongfang Tianxing.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was beyond surprised. Not only had Long Chen cultivated the Azure Dragon Combat Technique and was capable of wlessly executing Split Yellow River, he could even control it as he wished. How was this possible?


    Even Dongfang Tianchen, who could barely use the Earth-tier martial technique Starsweep Dragon, could not control Split Yellow River as he wished.


    Somewhat, Long Chen answered casually. He had expected to win, so he was very rxed. The Azure Dragon Halberd was beyond his expectationsit had allowed him to defeat someone at the initial Heavenly Core Realm with ease.


    But that was also because Dongfang Tianxing was the weaker one. It might not have been the same if the one he was fighting had been Dongfang Tianxuan.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao almost fell down when he heard Long Chen say somewhat.


    As for the others, they gradually recovered from the shock when they saw what had happened. They realized painfully that they were inadequate. There was never a shortage of geniuses in the Eastern Azure Dragon family, but seeing a genius of Long Chens caliber made them feel uneasy. They realized that Dongfang Xuanxiao was not only good at cultivation, but his eyes were so urate that he could choose Long Chen out of the tens of thousands of people in the outer family. What kind of insight did he possess to be able to do so?


    Even Dongfang Xuanfeng and Dongfang Xuanyun were somewhat jealous of Long Chens ridiculous talent. As for Dongfang Xuanyu, she was stuck in the defeat of her son. She was both angry and sad at the same time.


    Tianxing! Dongfang Xuanyu ignored everyone and ran towards the stage. Her sons face was pale and his hands were trembling when she held him.


    Seeing how bad her son looked, Dongfang Xuanyu felt pain in her heart. Everything was Long Chens fault. She turned around and red at Long Chen. Long Chen, you damned bastard. You ruined everything! How dare you show up out of nowhere and stir up trouble in the Eastern Azure Dragon family! I will-


    You will what? Dongfang Xuanxiao shouted, interrupting her. His aura enveloped her, and his tone was ice-cold as he said, Let me remind you again. Long Chen has prayed to our ancestors and is now a part of our family! Hes not an outsider! As for the duel today, both of them agreed to it. Long Chen also didnt harm your son! If you tarnish our reputation again, I will not hold back!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao did not care about preserving Dongfang Xuanyus dignity in public, causing her eyes to twitch in anger. Her beautiful face was red from fury, and she didnt know how to respond to him. Dongfang Xuanfeng appeared beside her and said inly, Shut up and dont embarrass us. Todays issue ends here and now. Everyone, return!


    Dongfang Xuanfengs face was gloomy when he said that. Dongfang Xuanxiao said nothing and left with Long Chen and Yin Mengyao.


    Xuanxiao, you will die soon! Dongfang Xuanyu shouted behind their backs.


    <em>Die? </em>Long Chen had a bad feeling.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    "you will die soon"


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 214: News About Ancient Ruins

    Chapter 214: News About Ancient Ruins


    The family of three gathered in a gazebo in the courtyard. Dongfang Xuanxiao was looking at Long Chen while Yin Mengyao was standing beside Dongfang Xuanxiao. They had just left the Mortal Arena, and Xuanxiao had stayed with them instead of going off to deal with his own matters. This was good as Long Chen needed his help with Mo Xiang. If Dongfang Xuanxiao helped him, it would make his life very easy.


    Youprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique in a single day and then spent five days cultivating Split Yellow River. Long Chen, you are the single most talented individual Ive ever seen when ites to cultivating martial techniques. I shouldve known based on how fast you cultivated the Nine Dragon shes. Dongfang Xuanxiao sighed.


    Long Chen nodded and did not deny it. Ever since the Dragon Jade Pendant entered his sea of consciousness, he had a feeling that hisprehension skills had increased rapidly, as if both his soul and mind had be much more clear. He couldprehend martial techniques much more quickly than anyone else, as if he knew them since he was born. But his hard work was definitely a factor as well.


    Yin Mengyao looked at Long Chen with admiration. She thought back to how she had leaned on his broad back when she was poisoned, causing her to blush. He was her brother, and she didnt know why she had done that.


    But Dongfang Tianxing only entered the Heavenly Core Realm a few months back. Hes also very arrogant and prideful, just like his mother, and so hes destined to be useless for the rest of his life. Chener, I need to tell you something else. Originally, this matter didn''t concern you, but I need to tell you now.


    Do tell, Stepfather.


    When you first entered the inner family, I remember telling you that the Patriarch brought Tianchen and the rest for training. The reason why he did so was because of something else thatsing up. Do you know the Beast Soul Pce of Yuan Ling City?


    I know about them. Its one of the factions that live in Yuandi City. Their strength is equal to the Yuanling family.


    Yes. And do you remember how the Yang family had to fight another family to obtain the rights to rule Baiyang Town? Just like them, we have to fight against each other every twenty years for the right to rule the city. The twenty year period is almost up. Two months from now, the youths from the Lingwu family and the Beast Soul Pce will fight against each other. The team who wins will be allowed to rule Yuanling County for twenty years. This concerns a massive amount of profits


    Wait, we need to fight for it too? Will the one overseeing it be the royal family? Long Chen was shocked.


    We are indeed forces whove sworn loyalty to the royal family, so we naturally must listen to them. The difference between us and them was just like the difference between Baiyang Town and the Lingwu family. Do you understand now?


    I understand. That means that the Patriarch took them away to train to increase their strength so that they could fight for the right to rule Yuanling County. Long Chen was secretly surprised by the strength of the royal family. To him, the Lingwu family was already a massive force, so how much stronger did the royal family have to be to be able to control them? How strong were they?


    Theres also a very special rule this time. Ive heard that the royal family has found an ancient ruin in Yuanling County. It contains the inheritance of a strong cultivator from the middle ages. The youths from the Lingwu family and the Beast Soul family will enter the ruins. Only one person will be able to obtain the inheritance, so whichever factiones out with it will be dered the winner, Dongfang Xuanxiao exined.


    Ancient ruins? Long Chen looked forward to it, but his strength was far from ideal. The strongest youths of the Lingwu family were on the level of Dongfang Tianchen, Mo Xiang, and Beitang Mo. All of them were at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, so there was no reason for Long Chen to be able to even participate.


    Stepfather, how do the youths from the Lingwu family and the Beast Soul Pcepare?


    We have four people at the mid Heavenly Core Realm and ten at the initial Heavenly Core Realm. The Eastern Azure Dragon family can send two people. Tianchen will most definitely be chosen. The elders and the Patriarch were ruminating between sending Tianxing or Tianxuan. But somehow you defeated Tianxing today. Judging by how fast youre growing, you might even be able to win against Tianxuan if you work hard for the next two months.


    Tianxuan? Is she that strong? Dongfang Xuanxiao made it look like Tianxuan was miles ahead of Tianxing.


    Tianxuan is hardworking and has a tenacious spirit. She has already cultivated an Earth-tier martial technique, albeit barely. Still, shes amazing. Long Chen, if you can cultivate Starsweep Dragon, an Earth-tier martial technique, she will not be your opponent.


    Stepfather, do we have arge chance of winning this? Yin Mengyao asked quietly.


    I dont know. The strength of the youths from the four inner families are roughly the same. None of us have someone with ungodly talent. The Beast Soul Pce has fewer talented youths, but we arepeting in terms of which faction has the strongest individual. Ive heard rumors that one of Emperor Yuans grandsons has incredible talent. He should be at thete Heavenly Core Realm, but these are only rumors.


    Late Heavenly Core Realm?! Long Chen heaved a sigh. <em>Hes even stronger than Mo Xiang! There are geniuses everywhere.</em>


    Dongfang Xuanxiao shook his head and smiled bitterly. The four Patriarchs are having a headache over this. If they lose the right to rule, then the resources andwork of the Lingwu family will be pushed to a very dangerous situation. Also, the one who obtains the inheritance will be allowed to be an Immortal Guard. This is quite a lucrative reward.


    Whats an Immortal Guard? Long Chen was confused.


    You dont know? I suppose thats normal. Long Chen came from a small town, so it was natural he didnt know. Dongfang Xuanxiao provided him with a full rundown of the Immortal Realm and the Immortal Guards. There is a massive Miniverse in the Cangyang Royal Capital. Its hundreds of timesrger than the Heavenly Martial Realm,rge enough to fit ten Royal Capitals. Its called the Counter Essence Realm.


    The Counter Essence Realm? Ive been told that the spiritual energy in the Counter Essence Realm is ten times denser than in the outside world. Though Ive also heard rumors saying that it''s a thousand times denser in some ces. Thats why numerous spiritual herbs grow inside it, and there are even rumors of a secret treasure left behind from the middle ages! Yin Mengyao chattered happily when she heard about the Counter Essence Realm.


    Ten times? A thousand times? Spiritual herbs? This was the first time Long Chen had heard of it. Yuanling City was the most prosperous ce he had ever seen, but the Royal Capital and the Counter Essence Realm were even richer. But he knew that the stronger he grew, the more ces he would visit. He was sure he would eventually stumble across ces with riches beyond his imagination. The Counter Essence Realm would be trivial by then.


    But its not a piece of heaven. Even though there are numerous treasures in the Counter Essence Realm, there are dangerous beings too. Long Chen, youve seen one of the variants of the demonic beasts, the Poison Beasts, right? Dongfang Xuanxiao asked.


    The Poison Beasts of the Nine Devil Mountains. How could I forget? Long Chen smiled.


    The Poison Beasts are one of the variants. Due to the density and purity of natures spiritual energy as well as the spiritual herbs in the Counter Essence Realm, a different variant of demonic beasts can be found there. We call them the Immortal Beasts. They are terrifying and numerous. They have excellent reproduction rates and, more importantly, are smarter than regr demonic beasts. Some of them are so strong and cunning that their intelligence isparable to us humans.


    The demonic beasts could be as smart as us? Long Chen had learned so many new things today that he really felt like he came from some backwater ce.


    There are two main forces in the Counter Essence Realm. One of them is the Immortal Beasts, while the other is the royal family of the Cangyang Kingdom. The entrance to the Counter Essence Realm is controlled by the royal family. They have to deal with the Immortal Beasts in order to gather spiritual herbs. The only ones who are allowed to enter the Counter Essence Realm to partake in missions issued by the royal family are called Immortal Guards. Because the mortality rate is high amongst the Immortal Guards, the royal family has a hard time finding recements, so they are constantly searching for talented youths from various regions. But those who work as Immortal Guards also obtain excellent benefits from the royal family! Dongfang Xuanxiao exined in detail.


    So the Immortal Guards are all prodigies from the Cangyang Kingdom, and maybe even members of the royal family? Long Chen asked excitedly.


    You are half right. Dongfang Xuanxiao was not afraid of knocking Long Chen down a peg. To the royal family, a prodigy is someone who has reached the Heavenly River Realm before the age of twenty-five. Tianchen is already twenty-three, so its very likely he won''t make it. So far, no one in Yuanling County has satisfied the requirements set by the royal family. Long Chen, this was what I needed to tell you. There is no end to cultivation. You are indeed growing very quickly, but you must not restrict yourself based on what you see around yourself! Everyone around you might be mediocre, but there could be geniuses more fearsome than you somewhere else! Dongfang Xuanxiao said in a serious tone.


    His advice came like a lightning strike, and it made Long Chen realize his hubris. Thank you, Stepfather. I will never be content with my situation here in Yuanling City.


    Good, as long as you understand. Ive told you all you need to know, but I have another request for you. Dongfang Xuanxiao suddenly turned serious and looked at Long Chen. His eyes were filled with hesitation, but he made his decision very quickly as if it was the only chance he would get.


    Long Chen was taken aback. He also needed to request help from Dongfang Xuanxiao regarding Mo Xiang.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    finally! is dongfang xuanxiao finally gonna spill the beans?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 215: Storming Azure Dragon Star

    Chapter 215: Storming Azure Dragon Star


    Once Dongfang Xuanxiao finished talking about the battle that would decide who would rule the city, Long Chen felt like it was time to ask him for help, but his stepfathersst sentence left him stumped. He locked eyes with Yin Mengyao, and after understanding her intention, he told Dongfang Xuanxiao, If its something I can do, I will do my best to fulfill your request.


    Long Chen had always been a person who repaid kindness with kindness and evil with revenge. Mo Xiang had given him the Constetion Body and helped him during the Demon Hunting Tournament. Those were acts of kindness to be repaid; therefore, he would do his best to rescue him.


    On the other hand, Dongfang Xuanxiao had helped him even more in his development ever since they first met in the inner family qualifiers. Long Chen had lost track of how much assistance his stepfather had provided. He often wondered why Dongfang Xuanxiao was so good to him. Was it only because he liked him?


    First, let me tell you two about my past. There was a hint of sadness in the depths of Dongfang Xuanxiaos eyes, which was caught by both of them.


    Go on, Stepfather. Were listening, Yin Mengyao said gently.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao calmed himself down and said, You guys might think that the royal family is the Cangyang Kingdoms most powerful faction. However, they have a major rival faction called the Heavenly Demon Pce. Based on what the royal family told us, they are vicious when they operate, and they have caused much pain and terror in the kingdom.


    The Heavenly Demon Pce? Ive heard of them, but they mainly operate close to the royal capital and not here. I hear theyre indeed a powerful organization that is almost on the royal familys level, Yin Mengyao said.


    I did something stupid twenty years ago, Dongfang Xuanxiao said suddenly.


    This was the beginning of Dongfang Xuanxiaos story.


    It was a tale as old as time. Years ago, Dongfang Xuanxiao, who was one of the most well-known members of the Lingwu family, started a rtionship with an outsider. It was only muchter that he learned the teenage girls identity. She held a high position in the Heavenly Demon Pce, and they had met when she was traveling around for fun. However, Dongfang Xuanxiao, with his rebellious streak, did not care about this. They continued to spend time together without hiding it, and he didnt expect to ever cause her harm.


    When the four patriarchs found out who she was, they were worried about being punished by the royal family, so they sent her straight to the Star Devil Prison and wiped this embarrassing story out of the familys history. It had been twenty years since then.


    This was why Dongfang Xuanxiao had never found himself a wife.


    When the man spoke of his past, his tone was calm. But judging by the zed look in his eyes, Long Chen knew that he had been suffering for twenty years. Long Chen recalled what his stepfather had told him regarding women, and his chest tightened. Mengyao was a girl, and despite looking cold on the outside, she had always been emotional and was already tearing up. She had always admired stories of rebellious love.


    After he told his story, Dongfang Xuanxiao looked up at Long Chen wistfully. Long Chen, be honest. I have done a lot for you in recent times, even fighting the Patriarch because of your cousin. You mustve been suspicious of my motives, right?


    I did suspect something. I knew that you had some kind of goal, and you participated in the inner family qualifiers maybe because you were looking for someone to do something for you. I still believe that you saw something in me though, haha! Long Chenughed. He understood everything now. Dongfang Xuanxiao had picked him and Yin Mengyao at the qualifiers because he hoped one of them could get the Azure Dragon Halberd, and then use it to rescue the woman he loved from Azure Dragon Star.


    And just like that, your impression of me will fall quickly. I was nice to you only because I had hidden intentions. You must be repulsed by me, right? Dongfang Xuanxiao was visibly anxious when he said this.


    Dont overthink it. Im not a fool; I can still see how you genuinely cared for us. Right, Stepfather, I need to tell you something  Long Chen was initially worried that Dongfang Xuanxiao might disagree or even stop them if he asked him for help with rescuing Mo Xiang. But now, it looked like their ns matched serendipitously. It was going well.


    What is it? Dongfang Xuanxiao was stunned.


    You must know about Mo Xiang from the outer families, right? Hes my good friend, and to be honest, the reason I worked so hard to get the Azure Dragon Halberd was to rescue him. This time, we want to ask you for your help, said Long Chen. He did not beat around the bush.


    Although it was revealed that Dongfang Xuanxiao had hidden intentions since the beginning, revealing the truth did not affect their rtionship. Dongfang Xuanxiao had only decided to tell him about his goal after he saw that Long Chen hadprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    Mo Xiang received the Heavenly Wolf Dagger  Dongfang Xuanxiaos brows were furrowed.


    What has that got to do with this? Out of the five divine weapons, only the Heavenly Wolf Dagger has never been tamed. If he was lucky enough to get something out of it that the Lingwu family couldnt, why hide it? Long Chen tried to convince him.


    Alright. Dongfang Xuanxiao nodded. Since we have made the decision, then lets not waste any more time. We will move tonight.


    Everything was decided. Long Chen and Yin Mengyao locked eyes and smiled.


    The operation they had nned for such a long time was finally going to happen tonight.


    After a discussion between Long Chen and Dongfang Xuanxiao, they both unanimously decided to let Yin Mengyao stay home. First, she had no function in the rescue operation. Second, she was not powerful enough. Yin Mengyao knew that she would only be a burden to them, so she gritted her teeth and said, Stepfather, Long Chen, I will await the good news!


    Naturally. Long Chen grinned, and then he left with Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    This was not Dongfang Xuanxiaos first time bringing Long Chen into the Star Devil Prison. Long Chen was a hard worker who spent a lot of time cultivating, so it waspletely normal for him to enter once again. The same four guards, including Yan Honghai, were still guarding the entrance. They quickly bowed when they saw Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Greetings, Lord Xuanxiao! And Young Master Long Chen! Although they were posted here, they were quick to receive information. They knew that Long Chen had surpassed their expectations and won the Azure Dragon Halberd. More importantly, he hadprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, used the Split Yellow River, and defeated Dongfang Tianxing, who was at the Heavenly Core Realm!


    They all looked at him with admiration. Young Master Long Chen is only sixteen, but he has achieved so much. It just makes us feel guilty! All I can say is that I, Yan Honghai, am thoroughly impressed, said Yan Honghai, smiling bitterly.


    Yeah, thinking back to when I was sixteen, I dont even know if I could defeat another Earthly Core Realm cultivator on my level, let alone a Heavenly Core Realm cultivator, said a guard in red armor. He was the guard from the Vermilion Bird family.


    Most importantly, Young Master Long Chenprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique in one day and could use it in battle after five days. I dont think anyone in the four inner families has ever achieved something like this, right? The White Tiger guard sighed.


    They were all thoroughly impressed by Long Chens inhuman talent.


    Im taking him to the asteroid where gravity is a hundred times stronger. Im afraid he might not be able to withstand it, so Im apanying him there. Honghai, you guys carry on with your work. When Dongfang Xuanxiao finished speaking, his face remained neutral, and he led Long Chen into the Star Devil Prison.


    Looking at their disappearing figures, the four of them looked at each other. The red-armored guard said, Brother Yan, didnt the Azure Dragon Patriarch tell you about this? To immediately inform him if they enter the Star Devil Prison?


    Alright, though why would the old Patriarch want information like that? Isnt it normal to enter the Star Devil Prison? Yan Honghai was puzzled.


    Whatever. You just need to listen to what the Patriarch says.


    ***


    When he entered the Star Devil Prison, Long Chen felt nervous when he looked at the other thick chain. Fortunately, Dongfang Xuanxiao was with him. We cannot afford to waste time, so we must travel as fast as we can. Long Chen, let me take you.


    Then Dongfang Xuanxiao grabbed his arm, stepped on the metal chain, and sprinted toward the Azure Dragon Star. He was indeed much faster than Long Chen.


    The gravity on the Azure Dragon Star is a thousand times stronger than normal, as its meant to trap criminals. An initial Heavenly Core Realm cultivator would be squashed after spending half a day there. Mid Heavenly Core Realm cultivators can barely move, whilete Heavenly Core Realm Cultivators can move wherever they please, though theres no way they can leave. That is why once you enter, you must be very careful ofte Heavenly Core Realm cultivators. If you meet anyone who can move easily, run as fast as you can. You have the Azure Dragon Halberd, so they cant catch up to you!


    Long Chen nodded.


    As for Xuan Mings appearance, Ive already exined it to you. If you see someone that almost fits the description, just a few questions and youll be able to confirm it. I just dont know if shes managed to survive after all these years  She was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm when she was imprisoned.


    Xuan Ming was the woman that Dongfang Xuanxiao loved. Long Chen had two people to search forMo Xiang and Xuan Ming.


    Once youvepleted the mission, I will lure Yan Honghai and the rest away, then Xuan Ming and Mo Xiang will go to the Human Core Territory and leave via the outer familys tunnel. They just need to change their appearance a bit as they wont be easily recognized in the outer family! instructed Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    The n was perfect, and there were no holes, yet Long Chen was still strangely anxious. He felt like they had missed something, but he couldnt think of what it was.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was much faster than he was. After about an hour, Long Chen started to sense the force of gravity acting on his body. There were fives in front of him, each one a kilometer in diameter. They were green, red, white, ck, and silver, all sitting neatly in a row. They looked the same as five stars in the sky to him, beautiful and magnificent to the eyes.


    Long Chen arrived at a fork in the chain road. There were five paths, one leading to each of the fives. Though they were still far from their destination, gravity was twenty times stronger.


    Go ahead. I will wait for you here. Hope filled Dongfang Xuanxiaos eyes.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    A Romeo and Juliet story, but make it wuxia


    dongfang xuanxiao deserves a good ending


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 216: Xuan Ming

    Chapter 216: Xuan Ming


    Under Dongfang Xuanxiaos watch, Long Chen stepped on the metal chain that led to the Azure Dragon Star. The deeper he ventured, the stronger the gravity he experienced. He could see that there was still a way to go before reaching his destination, but he was already experiencing fifty times gravity. Time to take out the Azure Dragon Halberd. Long Chen took it out of his Universe Pouch and held it in his hand. A green light flowed on the surface of the halberd, as if there was fluid moving on it.


    A ring of light emerged from it soon after, which turned into a transparent dome that encased Long Chen. The light dome was impossible to see, and Long Chen only knew about it because the weight of the gravity disappeared instantly. <em>The Azure Dragon Halberd and the Azure Dragon Star must be rted somehow, though I dont know how.</em>


    With the Azure Dragon Halberd in hand, he traveled towards the Azure Dragon Star, which was fast approaching. The grew bigger and bigger until he finally entered it after fifteen minutes. Due to its size, the ground did not appear to be curved to him.


    <em>How is this possible? </em>Long Chen was stunned as he stood on the Azure Dragon Stars ground. The bareness of this ce had surpassed his imagination. The asteroids in the asteroid area had yellow soil, but here, it was all gray rock and nothing else. Long Chen had no idea how the people imprisoned here could survive.


    <em>Theres no time to waste. I need to find Xiang and Xuan Ming as soon as possible. </em>He knew that they were short of time and couldnt afford any dys, so he quickly hurried along with the halberd in hand. If it wasnt for the Azure Dragon Halberd, he would be a meat patty ttened on the ground by now.


    There were likely extremely evil but powerful masters trapped on the Azure Dragon Star, so he kept a low profile and crept around carefully. Thankfully, he had Ling Xis help, so everything was much simpler. Ling Xi was best at sensing other souls, and this ability was strengthened after she refined the Sky Soul Fruit. With her, Long Chen could avoid danger and search for his targets.


    Xiao Xi, any updates? asked Long Chen as he walked.


    Theres no one around here. Due to the immense gravity, the people trapped here are mostly dead. Lets walk further ahead and see, said Ling Xi.


    Long Chen nodded, though there was worry in his eyes. Mo Xiang was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, so he could barely move on the. The chances of his survival seemed to be slim.


    Brother Chen, have you forgotten that he has the Heavenly Wolf Dagger? I dont think hell die, said Ling Xi.


    Mhm, I know. After Ling Xis remark, he was much more rxed. They walked ahead for a while, and along the way, he encountered twote Heavenly Core Realm cultivators. Their clothes were tattered and they no longer looked human. They were clearly vicious, and if they found out that Long Chen had the Azure Dragon Halberd, he would be in deep trouble.


    That was why he had no choice but to carefully avoid them. Brother Chen, I feel like theyre very pitiful. Theyve been trapped in this ce for so long  This torture is scarier than death. If it were me, Id rather kill myself, said Ling Xi bitterly. She was thinking about how she was still trapped in the Ling Xi sword, and if it wasnt for Long Chen giving her the will to live, she wouldve been dead by now.


    Silly girl, dont talk like that. I wont let you be in that state forever. Very soon, youll be able to live a good life like other girls. His heart ached when he saw her so sad.


    Your promise is enough. I know you care about me the most, hehe  The worry on her face disappeared, and she chuckled.


    Long Chen chuckled too, though there was a huge weight on his chest.


    Brother Chen! Ling Xi suddenly eximed in surprise. About two kilometers to your left, there is a woman sitting cross-legged. She is wearing ck clothes, and should be in her thirties. Shes very pretty, and is at thete Heavenly Core Realm. She is simr to your stepfathers descriptionshe must be Xuan Ming!


    Really? Long Chen was filled with surprise. Usually,te Heavenly Core Realm cultivators survived on the Azure Dragon Star, and there seemed to be only one female cultivator of her age here.


    <em>Finally, I can do something for him. With Xuanxiaos personality, he wouldve stormed this ce long ago if he hadnt already used up his time with the Azure Dragon Halberd. Hecked the Qi seed, so he couldnt use the halberd. If he had all that, he wouldnt have waited twenty years. </em>Long Chen was feeling emotional. Xuan Ming was alive, and that was the greatest news to Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    He rushed over, though he remembered to be cautious. Soon, he arrived near her andy on his stomach on a gray boulder. He regarded her carefully. She was different from the otherter Heavenly Core Realm cultivators because despite being imprisoned for twenty years, she was still very clean. It was clear that she had sufficient resources.


    The ck-clothed woman had lost all the childishness in her looks. Although her true age was almost forty, she looked like she was just older than Liu Lan at about thirty years old, radiating a mature elegance and sophistication.


    Looking at her beauty, he confirmed that she was Xuan Ming.


    There was no one around, so he stood up and walked over to her with the Azure Dragon Halberd in hand.


    Sensing Long Chen approaching, her eyes sprung open, and a ck ray of light shot out, so blinding that Long Chen struggled to keep his eyes open.


    Who are you? A clear, cold voice rang. She stood up and looked at him coldly. When she gauged his cultivation level and saw the Azure Dragon Halberd in his hand, she waspletely stunned. I am Xuanxiaos stepson, and Im here to break you out.


    To prevent any misunderstandings, Long Chens first sentence clearly stated his identity and purpose. Indeed, the ck-clothed woman shuddered after hearing him. Her bright eyes instantly welled up. He says hes sorry that heste. This was what Dongfang Xuanxiao had reminded him to say as soon as he met her. Long Chen felt all sorts of emotions looking at this woman, who was so emotional that she couldnt speak.


    Twenty years. What was twenty years like? A woman shone the most between her teens and her thirties. And due to the rashness of youth, she had wasted her best years on this barrennd with nothing but gray rock aspany.


    Long Chen knew that Dongfang Xuanxiao was extremely sorry for this, but he also knew that he had his own struggles. He was born to a family that had no freedom, and a powerful Heavenly River cultivator sat atop his head. Although he wasckadaisical in mannerism, he had never been able to escape the palms of the four patriarchs.


    Xuan  Xuanxiao  Biting her lip, Xuan Ming wiped her tears away. She looked at Long Chen in a daze. The teenager that had suddenly appeared in front of her felt like something she had been dreaming of for twenty years. She didnt know if this was a dream or reality.


    Life slowly returned to her dead eyes. Ling Xi, whose heart ached for her, was watching it all unfold. Long Chen could sense that she was secretly crying in the sword. Girls were easily moved, and Ling Xi was no exception. Teenage girls were at the age of budding love, and such a tragic love story was like a tsunami of emotion washing over her.


    Lets go. Long Chen realized he didnt know what else to say.


    Alright, Xuan Ming said woodenly. She knew that if this was a dream, she might as well go along with it. Perhaps she could see the person she thought about night and day at the end.


    Right, I still need to rescue a good friend. His name is Mo Xiang, do you know where he is? asked Long Chen.


    When he mentioned Mo Xiang, Xuan Ming knew that this was not a dream, but reality. To her, Mo Xiang was an irrelevant figure, and a person like that would not appear in her dream. His presence had gone against thew of her dreams.


    This is not a dream, get yourself together. Do you know Mo Xiang? Hes a teenager, fourteen years old, and he has very feminine features. Long Chen knew what she was thinking.


    Ill take you to him, she said gently. She hadnt spoken in a very long time, and she realized that she wasnt used to talking.


    Along the way, they didnt speak because Long Chen didnt know what to say. In the end, he blurted, Do you hate him? Twenty years  He really iste.


    Xuan Ming fell silent. After a long pause, she said, I dont know. I hated him for a long time; I even wanted to kill him. But now I want to leave with him, leave this ce, and go somewhere far, far away so he can spend the rest of his life making it up to me. The price I paid was far too hefty. He is a jerk.


    Long Chen was a little shaken. She wanted to kill him, but she also wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. Was this love? He had always been toeing the edge and didnt know what love was. But ever since he met Ling Xi, that strange feeling was getting stronger.


    The silence continued, and they traveled ahead. Not long after, Ling Xi whispered, Brother Chen, I sense Xiangs aura. But he seems to be fighting.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Someone kill the patriarchster. Xuan Ming did not deserve this


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 217: Heavenly Wolf Dagger

    Chapter 217: Heavenly Wolf Dagger


    Long Chen pushed all thoughts about Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming to the back of his mind when he thought he was about to meet Mo Xiang, but Ling Xi suddenly said that Mo Xiang was about to fight someone.


    Long Chen was shocked.


    There were very few people on the Azure Dragon Star at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. If someone had picked a fight with Mo Xiang, they would probably be at thete Heavenly Core Realm. Mo Xiang could barely move on the star and would easily be a victim!


    Long Chen told Xuan Ming he was going to find Mo Xiang before running ahead. Since he had the Azure Dragon Halberd, he could move freely without being impeded by gravity. Xuan Ming could not catch up to him, but since they were close to where Mo Xiang was, she didnt get lost.


    Long Chen soon came across two people. One of them was a disheveled man. His hair covered his eyes, but Long Chen saw the bloodthirsty look between the gaps of the hair. Every time that man attacked, he did it with the intention to kill.


    His opponent was a young boy who looked to be around fourteen years old. His eyes were bright like the stars, his skin was milky white, and his body was skinny. It was the very same boy Long Chen had met in Baiyang Town.


    Long Chen thought he was dreaming when he saw him. Mo Xiang was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm when he first came to Baiyang Town, while Long Chen was only at the Second Draconic Stage. Long Chen had closed the gap between them in just half a year. Mo Xiang would be surprised to learn that.


    The gravity of the Azure Dragon Star was strong enough to severely hinder someone at thete Heavenly Core Realm. With the assistance of the Azure Dragon Halberd, Long Chen was confident that he could deal with a cultivator at thete Heavenly Core Realm to save Mo Xiang. However, Ling Xi stopped him before he could do anything.   Long Chen, hes already at thete Heavenly Core Realm.


    What? Long Chen almost choked on his saliva. <em>Late Heavenly Core Realm? Isnt that the same cultivation level as Dongfang Xuanxiao? Dongfang Xuanxiao is one of the strongest in Yuanling County. Hes only fourteen, yet hes already made it that far? He even got the Heavenly Wolf Dagger </em>


    Long Chen felt defeated for the first time. He thought he had caught up, but the other person was already long gone.


    Still, Long Chen was happy for him. Since Mo Xiang was at thete Heavenly Core Realm, his strength would flourish once more when he left the Azure Dragon Star. A true genius would never be smothered.


    Since Mo Xiang was on the same level as his opponent, Long Chen decided to wait and observe the situation for now. He hid himself and watched them fight.


    Both Mo Xiang and the man were fighting to the death. They said nothing while exchanging explosive blows. Long Chen thought he was watching a silent film.


    After some time, Mo Xiang took out a dagger. Long Chen''s eyes lit up when he saw it. The dagger resembled the fang of a beast, and its pommel was a silver wolf head with two ck gemstones as the eyes. The gemstones were radiating power as strong as the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    <em>Is that the Heavenly Wolf Dagger? It looks strong. </em>Long Chen silently admired the dagger while Xuan Ming arrived beside him. She was observing the fight too.


    So you finally brought out the Heavenly Wolf Dagger. Its mine now! The mans eyes exploded with a red sh and then he charged towards Mo Xiang with his heightened aura.


    Mo Xiangs demeanor became colder when he pulled out the dagger. The dagger flew around his hand before it disappeared. At the same time, he swung his right arm, and a silver wolf flew past the mans body. Not even a momentter, blood sprayed everywhere.


    <em>Pah!</em>


    The mans body fell to the ground.


    Hes a prodigy, Xuan Ming whispered. The reason why she had kept tabs on Mo Xiangs location was because he was far too strong.


    Long Chen stood up when he saw Mo Xiang killing the man. He felt excited.


    They hadnt met for half a year, and now both of them were on the Azure Dragon Star with a gravity a thousand times stronger than normal. Their gazes met, and one put the dagger away while the other showed off the halberd.


    Mo Xiangs eyes were wide with shock when he saw Long Chen. The Heavenly Wolf Dagger fell onto the ground and stabbed into the gray rock.


    Long Chen? The man he had met only once by chance, the man that was simr to the brother he respected, the man he had not expected to meet in such extreme conditions, appeared once more in front of Mo Xiang.


    You are right. I am Long Chen indeed. We met once in Baiyang Town. Long Chen smiled gleefully upon seeing Mo Xiangs look of disbelief. It was as if all his efforts from the past six months had paid off.


    Impossible. I must be dreaming. Mo Xiang rubbed his eyes just to make sure Long Chen was real. He swallowed his saliva and said with difficulty, Then you must be imprisoned  Wait, you have the Azure Dragon Halberd


    Its a long story. Im here to save you. Time is running out, so we must leave now. We need to go to where the chains are, and you have to stay beside me so we can escape together. We need to escape the Azure Dragon Star and leave the Star Devil Prison. We can talk while we run!


    Mo Xiang nodded, and the three of them instantly escaped. With Ling Xis strong sense, they ran towards the chains and avoided the other prisoners. If they ran out together with them, themotion would be too big and they would attract the guards. Long Chen couldnt care less about them.


    While escaping, Long Chen recounted everything that had happened since he departed from Baiyang Town and joined the Lingwu family. After the story was over, Mo Xiang was in disbelief. Still, he was very grateful to Long Chen.


    Thank you, Long Chen.The reason I gave you the Constetion Body was because I saw that you were kind, which made me want to help you. But to think you would repay me like this. If you ever encounter any sort of difficulty, you need to tell me. I will run through a sea of fire to help you! Mo Xiang was not an expressive person, so even though he swore that he would help Long Chen, it sounded very in.


    But Long Chen knew Mo Xiang had a passionate heart. It was easy enough to discern when he saw Mo Xiangs eyes when he killed the other man.


    Now that I call Yin Mengyao my sister, what should you call me? Long Chen teased the young Mo Xiang.


    I might as well call you my brother. My older brothers name is Mo Xiaolong. Since your name is simr to his, and you saved me today, Im more than happy to call you my older brother.


    Long Chen chuckled when he thought about having a genius of Mo Xiangs caliber calling him brother. Once Mo Xiang got stronger, he could even protect Long Chen. Still, it was embarrassing for the younger brother to protect the older brother.


    Brother, you managed to rise up to your current level from the Second Draconic Stage in just half a year. You are five times faster than me, so you should be able to surpass me soon. If I call you my brother now, I will definitely benefit in the future. Mo Xiang smiled, revealing his white teeth. Mo Xiang was clearly a wolf, simr to Long Chen, but for some reason, his mannerisms and speech reminded others of a sheep.


    Long Chen noticed Xuan Ming smiling at them.


    What are you smiling at, Stepmother? Long Chen thought everyone could soon lead a happy life and feel good. He was very happy to be able to save everyone like this.


    Xuan Ming was stunned when he called her stepmother. She then mumbled to herself, You little rascal  I was jealous of the two of you


    Im also jealous that someone will soon be able to meet their lover and live a happy life. Long Chen smiled.


    Since my brother calls you Stepmother, I will do the same too. Mo Xiang smiled. His smile was much purer than Long Chens.


    Xuan Ming smiled out of embarrassment for the first time in twenty years.


    Can  Can I ask you a question? Xuan Ming was worried about something.


    What is it?


    Do you think  Do I look old? Xuan Ming touched her own face, feeling insecure. Twenty years ago, she was a beautiful girl that everyone swooned over. But she wasnt sure if she looked the same after she had been imprisoned for two decades. Would Xuanxiao still love her?


    She felt insecure because she cared for Xuanxiao.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang exchanged nces before Long Chen responded, Im sure Stepfather will go unconscious when he sees how beautiful you are. Im very jealous that a beautiful woman like you will still love him. Hes already in his forties but has yet to get married.


    I know. I already knew when you called me stepmother, Xuan Ming said lightly.


    They saw the chains soon enough. Long Chen told Xuan Ming and Mo Xiang to stay close to him, and they ran up the chains like an arrow. They didnt look back as they ran into the starry void, the two ex-prisoners seeing hope for the first time.


    They could finally bid that horrible ce farewell.


    Thanks to the Azure Dragon Halberd, the three of them were no longer affected by the gravity. Soon, they ran out of the Azure Dragon Star and were sprinting at full speed towards the crossroad. The Azure Dragon Star, the ce where Xuan Ming had lived for twenty years, grew smaller behind them. Long Chen was ecstatic about sessfully aplishing his mission.


    Both Xuan Ming and Mo Xiang were extremely grateful for Long Chen.


    We are almost there. Hes just up ahead. Xuan Ming started crying when she heard Long Chens words. She had waited for twenty years, and her dream would soone true. Her heart could not hold on any longer.


    When they reached the crossroad, they heard an ancient and hoarseugh. Long Chen panicked. The voice belonged to the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Uh oh. RUN!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 218: We Shall Die Together

    Chapter 218: We Shall Die Together


    <em>The Patriarch of the Eastern Azure Dragon family is in the Star Devil Prison! </em>Long Chen was shocked by that thought. If it was true, their n had been leaked. Their n was going to be ruined right when it was on the verge of sess. Mo Xiang and Xuan Ming might not be able to escape, and Long Chen and Dongfang Xuanxiao might undergo a terrible punishment.


    Even Mo Xiang and Xuan Ming were horrified at what they heard.


    We need to run out now! Long Chen did not hesitate. If he was right, Dongfang Xuanxiao was fighting the Patriarch alone. Although Long Chen would be of no help, Xuan Ming and Mo Xiang might be able to tip the scales!


    Once out of the Azure Dragon Star, they could run far faster than Long Chen, especially Mo Xiang. He grabbed Long Chen and ran like the wind towards Dongfang Xuanxiaos location. Soon, they arrived at the crossroad and saw Dongfang Xuanxiao kneeling on the chains. He had suffered an injury and his face was pale. Even so, he had not given up while he snarled at the Patriarch. The Eastern Azure Dragon family Patriarch was standing in front of him with a smirk!


    Long Chens arrival caught their attention. Dongfang Xuanxiao turned around and saw the woman he had been longing for. His eyes widened with shock before he started crying. He had not cried in twenty years, but he failed to control himself when he saw her again. Both of them had aged, and she was no longer the young girl he remembered.


    Brother Xuanxiao. Xuan Ming couldnt control her body, feeling as if she had been struck by lightning. If it wasnt for Long Chen holding her, she mightve identally fallen off the chains. If she did, she would die down in the abyss.


    Minger! Dongfang Xuanxiao shouted. He had always been serious and calm, but now he was very agitated. He ran towards Xuan Ming and hugged her tightly. He held her so tight that his veins showed on his hands. She hugged him back as if she was afraid she would lose him.


    It was clear that their love for each other was very deep. Twenty years had passed, yet they still loved each other. Long Chen felt sourness in his heart. He pitied them because there was one more obstacle in front of them, one that was most likely insurmountable.


    Ling Xi was already bawling in the sword.


    <em>If I were to be separated from him for twenty years, would he still think of me? </em>Ling Xi could not shake off the thought.


    What should we do? Mo Xiang pulled at Long Chen while his voice trembled. It was the Patriarch himself that had sent Mo Xiang onto the Azure Dragon Star, and now he was standing in front of them.


    We react ording to the situation. Long Chen felt powerless. He was the weakest one among them, so he could do nothing to help. His thirst for power had just grown a bit stronger. If he was strong enough, he could easily take over the situation now.


    Their dream hade true after twenty years of enduring, but it was already on the verge of copsing. Long Chen felt like the heavens had yed a cruel trick on them. He only had one real father, Long Qinn, the man who had given him the Dragon Jade Pendant and turned him into a Dragon Warrior. Therefore, Long Chen was reluctant to ept his stepfather as a true father figure. But it was undeniable that Dongfang Xuanxiao had helped him enough to at least be seen as a respected elder.


    And now one of the men he respected the most would be facing the most painful moment in his life.


    To every man, being unable to protect their loved ones was the most painful thought.


    But the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch would never understand this. He smiled coldly and scoffed. Xuanxiao, did you think you could beat me in a battle of wits? I thought you would have forgotten her after twenty years, but to think you endured it. Unfortunately, you forgot one crucial thing, and that is how deeply I understand you. I understand you even better than your father did. Ever since you were young, your stubbornness and endurance were beyond your peers. You would never give up, and the behavior you exhibited back then has sold you out. I already knew what you were doing when you chose to have your stepchildrenpete in the tournament to obtain the Azure Dragon Halberd. Did you think I would forget?


    Dongfang Xuanxiao never even turned back as he caressed Xuan Mings long hair. Im sorry, Minger. I failed again. But dont worry, even if I die today, I wont let him send you back.


    Brother Xuanxiao, we will die here together. Xuan Ming made her decision.


    Taking one more look at her, Dongfang Xuanxiao nodded and turned around. He was not afraid of the Patriarch.


    The Patriarchughed at what they said. He was disgusted by their naivety, then he looked at Mo Xiang. To think that youve arrived at thete Heavenly Core Realm. You are full of surprises. Mo Xiang, if you agree to my condition, I will let you go. But first, I will have to deal with this disgusting couple.


    The Patriarchs eyes grew serious.


    Little devil girl, I heard that your father is one of the strongest people in the Cangyang Kingdom. I didnt dare to kill you twenty years ago out of fear, but I think your father has forgotten you after so long. As for you, Xuanxiao, I had expectations for you and hoped that you could be as strong as your father. But to think you would still be distracted with her even after twenty years. You havent even managed to enter the Heavenly River Realm. But even if you did, you would still lose to me. I will send both of you down to hell so you will not struggle anymore. I hate people that plot against me.


    His words were like a death sentence to them. Long Chen clenched his fists tightly.


    Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch  Long Chens killing intent for the Patriarch intensified. There was always someone he really wanted to kill ever since he got here. First, there was the Grand Priest of the Blood Saints, and now the Patriarch of the Eastern Azure Dragon family.


    Brother Chen  I dont want them to die  They shouldnt die  Ling Xi was moved to tears by their rtionship. Dongfang Xuanxiao was a kind man who had earned her approval.


    But I dont have a n, Xiao Xi  Long Chens voice was filled with powerlessness.


    <em>Strength. Its always an issue with strength. Ive improved so much, but Im still so weak. How could I be content with myself? If I were to meet the same fate as Dongfang Xuanxiao one day, what could I do? </em>Long Chen struggled with his powerlessness.


    The Heavenly River Realm poised an immense threat to him.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao red at the Patriarch, his voice filled with despair as he said, Minger, Im so sorry Ive made you suffer. I regret it. If I hadnt fallen in love with you, you wouldnt have had to suffer so much.


    Ive never regretted it. My instincts were never wrong. Brother Xuanxiao, if we have to suffer together, so be it. I dont care. I dont care even if I die. Their hands were firmly sped together.


    The Patriarch got angrier after seeing them ignore him. Dont waste my time! Fight me together!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming prepared themselves. Dongfang Xuanxiao turned around and told Long Chen, Im sorry for dragging you down. When we fight, find a chance to escape and nevere back to the Lingwu family. Long Chen, if you grow strong enough one day,e back and kill this fucker!


    Without waiting for Long Chens response, he led the attack with Xuan Ming to fight against the Patriarch at the Heavenly River Realm. Soon, their massive energy shook the entire chain. The three of them jumped and weaved on the chain without falling down.


    It was extremely difficult to fight on the chain hanging over the abyss!


    Brother, wait here! I will go and help. Mo Xiang brandished the Heavenly Wolf Dagger and ran towards the Patriarch.


    With him joining the fray, Dongfang Xuanxiaos situation became slightly better.


    You think the three of you at thete Heavenly Core Realm could escape from me? Dream on! The power of the Heavenly River Realm is beyond your understanding! Ive absorbed the power of the stars to dig out the river of Yin and Yang within my body! I will show you my true strength!


    The Patriarchunched blow after blow, each of them containing the deadly power of the stars. The power behind them was several times stronger than Long Chens Meteor Fist!


    Every time he punched, the chains shook violently! The destructive power of the stars melded with his Qi,unching an attack several times stronger than what someone at the Divine Core Realm could muster. Even the strongest fighter on their side, Dongfang Xuanxiao, spat blood twice after receiving the Patriarchs attack.


    This was not the first time Dongfang Xuanxiao had fought against the Patriarch, but the power of the stars was still his nemesis. Xuanxiao was currently using an advanced ck-tier halberd!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Starsweep Dragon! he shouted.


    His move caused the chains to rattle violently. Long Chen saw several beams of light shoot out of the tip of the halberd, forming a rain of illusions of miniature dragons. All of the dragons crashed into the Patriarch, their roars containing immense power.


    Your Starsweep Dragon is impressive! Its almost as strong as an attack from someone at the Heavenly River Realm! But its weak without the power of the stars! The Patriarchughed.


    Long Chen stared in disbelief.


    Is that Starsweep Dragon? Xiao Xi, do you think I should do something?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Noooo they must live! I can''t take it if both Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming died here


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 219: Heaven Bearing Sword Prison

    Chapter 219: Heaven Bearing Sword Prison


    The Earth-tier Starsweep Dragon was truly a powerful martial technique. The dragon illusions that covered the skies pushed back even someone of the caliber of the Patriarch. But soon, the Patriarchs punches infused with the power of the stars tore the martial technique to pieces.


    Im much more familiar with the Azure Dragon Combat Technique than you! If I were to use the Azure Dragon Halberd, I could defeat you even if you were at the Second River Stage, much less now!


    The Patriarchs hoarseughter made everyones scalps numb. They knew what he meant. He was just toying with them. If he wanted to kill them, he could just take back the Azure Dragon Halberd and do so in a matter of seconds.


    Xuanxiao, do you see the difference between you and me? Haha! The Patriarch had used only his punches to push everyone back.


    Comet Dragon Seal!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was hit by the advanced ck-tier martial technique, causing him to vomit blood once more. Even though his face was pale, he stood defiantly and refused to fall down.


    Brother Xuanxiao  Xuan Mings face was pale while she held him up. She knew his organs were injured when she saw the ck blood spilling from his mouth.


    Im fine. Dongfang Xuanxiao took out some spiritual herbs and ced them into his mouth. He refined them immediately and then took his stance.


    Minger, I fear we will die today. Even so, we have to send Long Chen and Mo Xiang out of this ce, Dongfang Xuanxiao said as he rushed towards the Patriarch.


    I know.


    The Patriarch was currently fighting against Mo Xiang, but he was pulling his punches for some reason. Even so, Mo Xiangs situation was bad and he could die at any time.


    The Heavenly Wolf Dagger  It seems as if it was made just for you  the Patriarch said in a mocking tone.


    You seek death!


    At the same time, Xuan Ming arrived beside Long Chen. She was here on Xuanxiaos order. Long Chen knew what it meantshe was here to take him away.


    Xuan Ming grabbed his hand, and Long Chen did not reject it. With Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiang fighting to theirst breath, as well as howrge the chains were, Xuan Ming managed to carry Long Chen away from the fight.


    Run now! Xuan Ming ced Long Chen a distance away and told him to run. Having said that, she ran back to help. She was worried that Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiang would be unable to endure the onught of the Patriarch without her.


    At the same time, Dongfang Xuanxiao stood in front of Mo Xiang and took the brunt of the attack.


    Xiang, take Long Chen and run away. We dont stand a chance right now. You guys are still young, so you must survive and take revenge some other day!


    Mo Xiang felt his heart waver. He was not an unreasonable person, and he knew that everyone would die if they dragged this on for too long. This was the best opportunity. If he could get Long Chen out of here, they would be able to get strong enough to take revenge rather than dying here pointlessly.


    I will be back. Mo Xiang steeled his heart when he saw Xuan Ming return. This was his only chance to escape with Long Chen. He turned around but was shocked to see Long Chens blood-red eyes.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming had sustained heavy injuries under the Patriarchs fierce attacks. They had also lost a lot of blood, but they remained standing through sheer force of will.


    The strength of someone at the Heavenly River Realm could not be matched by several people at the Heavenly Core Realm.


    Long Chen, run! Dongfang Xuanxiao howled.


    An intense pain blossomed in Long Chens heart. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming were giving up their lives to save him, but Long Chen could do nothing. He hated himself, and when the hatred appeared on his face, Ling Xi felt pain in her heart too.


    She had never seen Long Chen look so defeated before.


    This was a massive blow to Long Chen.


    Brother Chen  Are they really that important to you? Ling Xi stared at Long Chen, her voice trembling weakly.


    Of course! I would rather die so they can live, but theres nothing I could do! Im too weak. All I can do is watch from afar! I have no choice but to let them sacrifice themselves to give me a chance to escape! Im just a weakling that can only run!


    No! Brother Chen, you are not a weakling! Ling Xi was crying, but her voice suddenly grew resolute in the end.


    Brother Chen, I will do something for you, but you must promise me that you will remember me your entire life. Never forget me!


    Ling Xi, what are you saying? Long Chen was shocked, but he realized toote that the Ling Xi Sword had detached from his ear after she said that.


    He felt his heart grow cold when he touched his ear and felt nothing there.


    Xiao Xi,e back! Long Chen knew that she mustve felt the pain in his heart and was about to do something stupid! He cared much more about her than his stepfather. Even though he didnt want Dongfang Xuanxiao to die, he couldnt bear to see anything happen to Ling Xi!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming were fighting a bitter battle against the Patriarch while Mo Xiang was about to take Long Chen out of the Star Devil Prison. Suddenly, all of them saw a rusted sword bingrger above Long Chens head.


    What is that? The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch was shocked to see white fog billowing out of the sword. And then an extraordinarily beautiful girl emerged from the fog. Even though the Patriarch was very old, Ling Xis beauty made him catch his breath. She looked too pure to partake in the matters of mortals.


    But her overwhelming killing intent snapped him out of it.


    The Patriarch retreated, giving Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming some breathing room. Ling Xis appearance was out of their expectations, and she left them stunned as well. They had heard Long Chen calling out for someone named Xiao Xi" and assumed it was the girl that had appeared from the sword.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao recalled seeing that sword before. It was the ear stud Long Chen was always wearing.


    <em>Is that girl the reason why Long Chen wanted the Sky Soul Fruit? </em>Dongfang Xuanxiao had a daring thought.


    The Sky Soul Fruit had given Ling Xi the power to fight right now. After she refined it, she had told Long Chen that she could block an attack from someone at the Heavenly River Realm.


    Brother Chen, run! I will stop him! I can stop him for fifteen minutes! Do not waste my efforts! Ling Xi shouted, and an enormous aura gathered around her. The aura exploded from her body and transformed into Sword Qi. The Sword Qi engulfed the space around them, causing everyones hearts to throb from the massive amount of energy.


    But to Long Chen, this was his nightmare.


    Ling Xi! What are you doing?! Long Chens heart was throbbing too. He knew he couldnt stop what was going to happen next and started crying.


    Im very happy I was able to spend myst six months with you. I still remember all of the promises you made, but it seems you will have to fulfill them in your next life. I hope that we can meet each other again in our next lives, and maybe  Maybe I can be your wife


    Long Chens heart almost shattered when he heard that.


    Ling Xis body became the sole source of light within the void. She did not hesitate to use all of her strength, and numerous illusory swords appeared beside her.


    Such an immense Sword Qi  Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming looked at each other. They didnt know what was going to happen next.


    Ling Xis body was covered by the light. Long Chen felt intense paining from his gut. If he didnt know what love was before, he knew now. It was a pain that made him want to die.


    Wife  Ling Xis words were like a sword that pierced through his heart.


    All of the indecision and hesitation were destroyed by that one word. Under any other circumstances, it wouldve been great to find out that Ling Xi liked him, but now he wasnt sure if she could return to him.


    A clear voice rang in the void.


    Return to dreams  Heaven Bearing Sword Prison!


    Shrieking sounds could be heard as the swords rotated wildly in the void before forming a prison that trapped the Patriarch. The prison was made entirely out of swords! Soon, only the silent prison was left in the void.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao, Xuan Ming, and Mo Xiang stared at the miracle they had witnessed, but Long Chen was now trapped in a nightmare.


    Everything had disappeared. The Patriarch was trapped for fifteen minutes. That amount of time was more than enough for them to escape the Lingwu family, but this was not what Long Chen wished for.


    He looked around and finally saw a ck metal sword falling off into the abyss to his left. If he did nothing, he would be separated from her forever.


    Numerous scenes shed through his mind. It was all the time he had spent with Ling Xi. There were so many memories that he felt like his brain was going to explode. When they met, when they bickered, when theyughed, cried, got angry, and flirtedhe felt like things were just getting started, and now was it going to be over?


    Long Chen smiled.


    Without saying a word, without caring for Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiang, he jumped down the abyss. He only shouted one thing to them as he fell.


    Stepfather! If you waste even one minute, I will not forgive you even after I be a ghost! You only have fifteen minutes to run! His words hammered everyones brains. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiang did not cry easily, but they couldnt control themselves now.


    Long Chen!


    Brother!


    Ling Xis sudden appearance, the trapped Patriarch, and Long Chen suddenly jumping into the abyss. All of these developments were beyond their control. Dongfang Xuanxiaos heart was in pain too. He could only release the pain if he jumped down with Long Chen, but Long Chens word and Xuan Ming at his side stopped him from doing so.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao endured the immense pressure in his heart and uttered only one word. Run. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Things escted way too fast here - chacha


    NOOOOO AAAAAAAA - doge


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 220: Ancient Coffin in the Abyss

    Chapter 220: Ancient Coffin in the Abyss


    Cold.


    A bitter cold that pierced the bone.


    Long Chen slowly woke up when he felt the cold seeping into his body.


    <em>Am I dead? </em>He remembered how fast his body was falling when he jumped into the abyss. It was so fast that he knew his body would outright disintegrate if he collided with a solid object rather than bing meat paste.


    He saw nothing but darkness surrounding him. It was so dark that he was unable to spot the Ling Xi Sword or even catch a glimpse of his own fingers. He didnt know if diving down into the abyss to find Ling Xi was the correct choice. Xuan Ming had said she did not regret being with Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    And Long Chen did not regret jumping down into the abyss.


    All he thought about was how dark it was. <em>What if shes afraid of the dark? What if she died? What would I do?</em>


    Long Chen still couldnt fully open his eyes. He felt like he was floating in water. He tried struggling and found out that he was not dead, or at least he probably wasnt, since he could still feel the coldness.


    He slowly collected his thoughts and remembered being told that the abyss had an end and was not a limitless void. He knew he wouldve been dead if he continued to fall at that speed and crashed into the ground. At that time, he only remembered gripping the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    He remembered a warm feeling emanating from the halberd that enveloped his body, causing his falling speed to reduce drastically before a massive impact made him faint. All he could remember was crashing into what felt like extremely frigid water.


    <em>The Azure Dragon Halberd saved me while I was falling into the abyss of the Star Devil Prison  But  Did I fall into a deep pool of water? </em>Long Chen slowly collected himself. Now that he was coherent, he used Recovery.


    He woke up after using Recovery for fifteen minutes.


    Ling Xi! Long Chen shouted as he opened his eyes. Unexpectedly, his surroundings were bright. He wasying in a deep pool of emerald water. The pool was deep and frigid. Even though Long Chens Qi was slowly gathering in his body, he still trembled from the cold.


    The pool was massive, so much so that he couldnt see the border. The skies werepletely dark, although he faintly saw five bright stars in the distance.


    <em>Are those the five stars? Is that the Azure Dragon Star?</em>


    But what attracted his attention werent the stars in the distance, but what was directly in front of him. It was the dragon soul that lived inside the Azure Dragon Halberd. He had seen it when heprehended the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. At the moment, the dragon was very small but much more solid. It was thanks to the dragon illuminating their surroundings that he could see in the darkness. The dragon was emanating a pale, azure light that lit up a small area around them.


    The warmth given off by the dragon soul was protecting Long Chen from the frigid chill.


    The dragon soul had half of its body submerged in the deep pool. Long Chen saw that it was staring at him with gentle eyes.


    Long Chen examined the dragon soul and realized that it was exactly as the books had described them. It had the head of an ox, the horns of a deer, the eyes of a shrimp, the ears of an elephant, the abdomen and neck of a snake, the scales of a fish, the ws of a phoenix, and the paws of a tiger. It had eighty-one scales on its back, and its roar was like a gong. Two whiskers grew beside its mouth, with a prominent chin. There was a reverse scale on its throat, and the top of its head was bulbous.


    You saved me  Long Chen knew that the ancient dragon soul in the Azure Dragon Halberd had saved him. Without it, Long Chens body wouldve disintegrated from hitting the water at such high speed.


    The ancient dragon soul nodded as if it understood him. It then touched the top of its head to Long Chen, spreading the warmth and dispersing the cold.


    Just then, the dragon soul merged into Long Chens body, and an azure dragon brand appeared on his palm. A stream of information entered Long Chens mind.


    Ive been recognized as the owner? Long Chen was surprised. That meant that unless he died, the halberd would always be his. It was different from the inheritance process initiated by the ancestors of the Eastern Azure Dragon family.


    You are the first important weapon in my journey of cultivation, the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd was not far away from Long Chen. He put it in his Universe Pouch and deciphered the information in his mind.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd is an intermediate Earth-tier Divine Weapon, and its even stronger than regr intermediate Earth-tier Divine Weapons. It also has an intermediate Earth-rank martial technique!


    Long Chen realized that Split Yellow River and Shattered Skies were the basics of the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. The true strength of the halberd would only be unlocked when the intermediate Earth-tier martial technique was used. Starsweep Dragon was considered an elementary Earth-tier martial technique. Now Long Chen was sorting out the information about the intermediate Earth-tier martial technique in his mind. It was even stronger than Starsweep Dragon!


    <em>To think that there was an intermediate Earth-tier Divine Weapon in Yuanling City, and it even contains an intermediate Earth-tier martial technique! The Eastern Azure Dragon family mustve never known about it because no one has ever managed to obtain the true acknowledgment from the halberd itself, not even the Patriarch!</em>


    However, Long Chen was not eager to cultivate it.


    After putting the halberd away, the surroundings got darker again. He couldnt see anything at all. epting the acknowledgement from the Azure Dragon Halberd hadnt taken much time, but he was still very anxious about Ling Xis condition.


    <em>Ling Xi used the Heaven Bearing Sword Prison to trap the Patriarch. She mustve returned back into the sword and fallen into the deep pool. She must be still alive, so I must find her!</em>


    Ling Xis name had been carved deep into Long Chens heart.


    The pool was cold, so Long Chen enveloped himself with Qi, but he was still freezing. <em>If it means saving Ling Xi, this cold is nothing! </em>He had jumped down with no hesitation just for Ling Xi, so the cold was nothing to him.


    <em>She must have fallen close to where I am. Even though the pool is big, she should be around my vicinity. </em>Long Chen dove down into the water. It was even colder and his vision was worse, but he did not give up.


    Ling Xi had used a lot of power when she used the Heaven Bearing Sword Prison, and she had fallen from such a great height. Her chances of survival were slim even if he found the Ling Xi Sword. Long Chen was on the verge of crying when he thought about that.


    The deeper he sunk into the water, the colder it got. Normally, the water shouldve frozen from that temperature, but Long Chen was surprised to see the absence of even a single speck of ice.


    Thankfully, he managed to detect the bottom of the pool. He was close to his limit and could barely endure it. At his current depth, his body was trembling and his lips were blue.


    <em>Xiao Xi  Where are you </em> Long Chen gritted his teeth and dove down deeper. If Ling Xi had indeed fallen into the water, she would most likely be at the bottom of the pool.


    He braced himself and soon reached the bottom, but when touched it, he was stunned.


    Wait  Why is it metallic? Long Chen could tell that the bottom of the pool was not muddy, it was made of metal. The metal was harder than anything he had touched before.


    <em>Why is the bottom metallic?</em>


    Long Chen knew he couldntst long at the bottom, so he continued his search for Ling Xi even though he hade across something bizarre. Still, he kept his guard up as he wondered why it was metallic. He circled around and was even more confused.


    <em>The bottom of the pool is a metallic coffin? And the coffin is massive! Its two hundred meters wide! I wonder how long it is?</em>


    Long Chen surfaced due to the cold. He had to take a rest before continuing.


    His eyes were still wide with shock as he processed what he had just witnessed. When he was in the water just now, part of his attention had been directed to the bottom of the pool while he was searching for the Ling Xi Sword. He walked on the metallic bottom until he saw an opening. He then swam into the opening and found out that the bottom was muddy. Then he turned around and saw that what he once thought was the bottom of the pool was the surface of a metallic coffin!


    He managed to identify it after taking a look at the shape.<em> But where did the coffine from? Why is it so big? What did it contain? What is this ce?</em>


    Long Chen was confused.


    <em>Whatever. My priority should be Ling Xi. Thankfully, we fell directly on top of the coffin. If the Ling Xi Sword had fallen deeper and into the mud, it wouldve pierced deep into the soil thanks to its sharpness. Since the bottom is metallic, I should be able to find it on the surface of the metallic coffin But would the Ling Xi Sword break on impact?</em>


    The Ling Xi Swords origin was mysterious, but the metallic coffin was equally mysterious.


    Long Chen was worried and dove into the pool again. He limited his search area to the surface of the coffin, making it much more systematic for him to search the area.


    He surfaced nine more times before he finally found the Ling Xi Sword. He found it embedded on the coffin, leaving just the hilt on the surface. He took one look and knew it was what he was looking for.


    The Ling Xi Sword was stronger. It had pierced the coffin, creating a dent and a crack.


    Xiao Xi! Long Chen ran over and touched the familiar hilt. He was so happy that he could barely speak.


    But another problemy ahead of him. <em>Is Ling Xi alive?</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Something tells me the thing in the coffin ain''t human


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 221: Thousand Meter Ancient Corpse

    Chapter 221: Thousand Meter Ancient Corpse


    Long Chen swam to the Ling Xi Sword and called for her, but no reply came. He had a bad feeling all along, and now his worst fears seemed to being true.


    <em>Wait, Xiao Xi always falls asleep for a short period of time after she uses her powers. Maybe shes fine, </em>Long Chen thought in an attempt to console himself. He was happy that he had managed to hold the Ling Xi Sword. When he jumped into the abyss, he thought he would never be able to find her again.


    He was certain she would get better.


    The water was far too cold at that depth for him to linger for too long, so he surfaced to catch his breath.


    Once he was on the surface, he decided that his top priority was to confirm whether Ling Xi was alive or not before trying to figure a way out.


    Soon after, he dove back down to the metal coffin and bent over to get a better grip on the Ling Xi Swords hilt. That was when he noticed the giant crack the Ling Xi Sword had left behind.


    <em>What could be inside it?</em> Long Chen released his grip for a moment and looked into the crack. He looked around until he saw something white. Suddenly, his eyes widened with shock.


    <em>What the fuck? </em>He felt his scalp go numb.


    The interior of the coffin was murky, but he could make out something white inside it. When he was trying to work out what it was, he saw dark-green lighte out of two massive slits that quickly grew into two holes. Each hole was the size of ake, and the green light illuminated the whole interior of the coffin, allowing Long Chen to see everything.


    Fear gripped his heart at that moment, and he escaped. He barely remembered to grab the Ling Xi Sword at thest second.


    Long Chen thought he knew what he had just seen, but he didnt know if he was right!


    The two dark-green lights were eyes!


    When the lights illuminated the coffin, Long Chen saw that there was a corpse within it!


    No, it was not a corpse, because it had just awakened.


    The corpse was two hundred meters wide and a thousand meters long, but rather than being the corpse of a monster or beast, it was a girl!


    He wasnt able to get a good look at the face, he only vaguely remembered that it was a girl.


    In his panic, he grabbed the hilt of the Ling Xi Sword just as the green light exploded within the coffin. A massive force surged out andunched Long Chen upwards, forcing the Ling Xi Sword out of the coffin too.


    He had thought that it would take some time to remove the Ling Xi Sword, but it had been done in one go thanks to the force.


    Long Chen was thrown outwards above the surface. He flew up thirty meters into the air, and he was sure his body would break if hended on the water. To his surprise, he stopped in midair, as if someone was controlling him.


    Whats happening? Who are you? Long Chen instinctively knew that the thousand-meter-tall girl in the coffin was a scary being. She was someone who could only be found in the ces where Ling Xi or Long Qinn came from, where cultivators with strength beyond Long Chens imagination reigned.


    Such a strong cultivator couldn''t appear in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    But Long Chen couldnt figure out why was she so massive. Was she human?


    She was stronger than the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, so much so that Long Chen didnt even have thoughts of fighting back. Since he was suspended in the air, he thought the girl wouldnt kill him. If she wanted to, she wouldve killed him with that explosion earlier.


    <em>She mustve been sealed at the bottom of the pool of the Star Devil Prison by someone. She got out thanks to the Ling Xi Sword breaking the seal on the coffin! </em>Long Chen felt slightly rxed knowing that. Perhaps the girl was grateful for their help in unsealing the coffin.


    Thanks to Long Qinn and Ling Xi expanding his worldview, Long Chen could brace himself to face someone this strong. If not, he wouldve been crying and pissing from fear.


    Long Chen looked down.


    The pool of water was receding, as if a massive monster was drinking the water. The water level lowered at a very fast rate until the metallic coffin was exposed to the air.


    Long Chen watched anxiously.


    At the top of the coffin was the hole that the Ling Xi Sword had made. There was lighting from the hole, illuminating the dark space.


    Suddenly, the crack started to widen, and soon, a hole around ten meters in diameter was formed. The perimeter of the hole was somehow melted off. Once the hole was formed, the light disappeared, plunging everything into darkness.


    Wait, thats it? Long Chen was hoping for something more.


    While he was waiting, a hint of starlight came out of the hole before a humanoid shadow shot out of it and appeared in front of Long Chen. It was a girl roughly his size rather than a thousand meters tall. Still, he knew it was the very same corpse he had seen.


    Long Chen didnt know how to describe what he was seeing.


    The girl seemed to be around Ling Xis age, but her eyes were a deep, dark green, just like the pool of water. Somehow, he felt like his soul was being sucked into those eyes. Her face was immacte, beautiful enough to rival Ling Xi. Her eyes were cute yet cold, as if they could see through everything. Her nose was cute, and her lips were as red as cherries. She was a cold beauty.


    This was the first time Long Chen had seen someone as beautiful as Ling Xi. But she waspletely different. Ling Xi''s eyes were pure and untainted, but the girls eyes were cold and filled with killing intent just like a devil.


    But Long Chen was more concerned that the devilish girl wasnt wearing anything.


    She was stark naked before him. He realized that the white stuff he had seen in the coffin was her skin. And now he was seeing it all.


    Her snow-white breasts, slender waist, thick thighs, and jade-like feet were exposed to him without anything in between.


    If it had been any other situation, Long Chen wouldve stared at her lustfully. But it was different now. He needed to hold himself back, or he would die. The girl looked youthful, but she mightve been thousands of years old. If Long Chen didnt control himself, the girl might get annoyed and kill him in one blow.


    Long Chen dared not look for more than a single moment and quickly turned his head sideways.


    He was thinking about Ling Xi. Even though the girl was as beautiful as Ling Xi, Long Chen dared not get attracted to her.


    Give me your clothes. A clear voice rang in his ears. It was soothing yet deadly, sending chills down his body.


    He didnt take his own clothes off but rather took a new set from his Universe Pouch. Even when he threw the clothes to her, he dared not take a single peek in that direction.


    Long Chen suddenly felt himself being lowered by a mysterious force. The force dissipated once he touched the metallic surface.


    You can turn around now.


    He obeyed and saw that even though she was wearing a guys clothing, her beauty was impossible to hide. Ling Xis beauty was one that swayed the souls, but the girls beauty was one that affected the physical flesh. Long Chen feared her, so he dared not think of anything.


    <em>Shes an old monster! </em>Long Chen kept telling himself that to maintain his sense of reverence in order to survive another day.


    This was something he had learned the hard way. He needed to be polite to others so that he wouldnt get killed.


    Therefore, he dared not say anything.


    Give me the sword. The girl looked at the Ling Xi Sword, the same one that had broken her seal.


    You want it? Long Chen asked back.


    Normally, Long Chen was indeed afraid of her, but his calmness made the girl slightly irritated. I know theres a soul in there. She must be someone you care a lot about, but I wont harm her. I just want to see the sword.


    Long Chen thought about it.<em> Someone this strong has no reason to lie.</em> He handed her the sword. When she touched it, a vibration burst forth from the Ling Xi Sword, causing the girl to fly backwards from the impact.


    Long Chen was shocked.


    Thankfully, the girl was not hurt.


    <em>The Ling Xi Sword is indeed extraordinary. To think it would send this mysterious girl flying. </em>


    Indeed. I cant touch it. The sword is very weird. To think it could pierce through the Demon Sealing Coffin but still doesnt allow me to hold it. The girl approached Long Chen and ignored himpletely.


    She then raised her head and looked at him. I wanted to kill you, but I will let you go since you hold the sword. However, you need to help me.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    what happened to ''thank you''?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 222: Soul Swallowing Gaze

    Chapter 222: Soul Swallowing Gaze


    Long Chen wasnt in a hurry to ask her what she needed help with. There was something more urgent that he needed to know, so he asked, Before doing anything, let me ask you a question. The sword spirit inside that you mentioned, is she alive?


    Only a sliver of spirit aura is left. But she has a strong attachment in her heart, so she should be able to survive. As for when shell wake, I dont know. Perhaps because Long Chens arrival had resulted in her removing the seal, she didnt seem too hostile towards him. At least she had answered his question.


    <em>Alright. At least she isn''t dead </em>


    When he heard her answer, he finally felt some relief. The teenage girl noticed the relief in his eyes. She eyed him once more and asked, Is she important to you?


    Long Chen smiled but didnt answer. Instead, he asked, Didnt you want me to help you do something?


    There was a cold glint in her bright eyes when she gently said, Not many people have dared refuse to answer a question I ask. But I was able to break the seal all because of you, so you have the right to do so.


    Long Chen could tell that this girl was once a devil-like character with unpredictable mood swings and that she would kill without hesitation. Despite the seal, the coldness in her aura was still present. More coldness radiated from her pale cheeks and sharp chin. In general, her attitude towards Long Chen was considered gentle by her standards.


    Long Chen didnt speak, waiting for her to continue. She was too powerful, and she was visually attractive. Just like a peak tall enough to touch the heavens, she evoked the desire to conquer, but everyone whoid eyes on hercked the courage to climb.


    My soul is very weak right now, so I need souls. The souls of young girls. Virgins, she said coldly, enunciating every word.


    You want me to kill people for you? Long Chen shuddered. This sounded simr to the Blood Saints motives. One wanted fresh blood, the other wanted souls.


    Youre reluctant to do that. Is it because of yourughable sense of righteousness? The girl suddenly giggled. Her icy face suddenly became much more beautiful when sheughed. But her words sent chills through Long Chen. When she saw the disgust in his eyes, shepromised. Whatever. No matter what, I owe you, so I should do it your way. One hundred young girls. You will take a hundredth of their souls from each of them. This wont affect them much. Theyll only feel a slight headache, and will recover in a month.


    Long Chen knew that despite the creepiness in her words, she was probably not as evil as he imagined. If she truly was evil, she wouldve killed him already, even though he had saved her.


    What should I do? asked Long Chen.


    To be honest, you should feel honored. I will give you a technique that will give you the ability to read and consume souls. This ability will grow as you be stronger. If you be much stronger in the future, itll definitely be very useful to you, she said tly.


    Read and consume souls? Long Chen could feel that she was not talking about abat technique. It was probably a divine-type ability, simr to Blood Transmutation and the Blood Devouring Domain. And if she was willing to speak so highly of it, then it had to be an impressive technique.


    Why are you giving it to me? Isnt it more efficient for you to go consume the souls yourself? he asked cautiously.


    After the question, he felt an immense killing intent rushing at him, instantly crashing into his soul. Long Chen was startled, cold sweat sprouting from his back.


    But the killing intent quickly disappeared. She was a little despondent, and shebed her white-jade-like fingers through her ck hair, saying wistfully, If I could do it myself, why would I be wasting my time here with you? If I use this skill, itll attract their attention and Ill be sealed up again. Wont you miss me if that happens?


    When she spoke thest sentence, a strange light flickered in her ink-green eyes, and Long Chen fell deeply into her gaze. He instantly felt like he was in a daze, even losing his ability to think. All he could think about was how the girl before him was the most attractive thing at the moment. She wasnt wearing a shred of clothing and was in a seductive pose, as if making herself fully avable to him. He felt a fatal attraction to her delicate, white-jade-like, feminine body.


    He lost control of his body and reached out to touch her. That was when everything disappeared, and the girl stared coldly at him. Did you see that? Thats the Soul Swallowing Gaze you need to learn.


    Long Chens chest tightened.


    When he woke up, he thought the girl had used a seductive technique, but it was actually an eye technique.


    It felt like all she had done was use her eyes to trap his eyes, even extending her influence on all of his senses, enveloping his soul.


    Soul Swallowing Gaze?


    Mhm. Many people want to learn this but dont get the chance. I dont like to owe anyone anything, so if you learn this trick, you shall forget you ever saved me. If you arent careful with your words and make me unhappy, Ill kill you, she said, an ink-green light twinkling in her eyes teasingly.


    She was giving him a good gift, so obviously, he would take it. He nodded and said, In that case, you may give it to me.


    Ill give you the Soul Swallowing Gaze, then Ill need to cultivate to recover my strength. You sit here to cultivate too. Once I seed, Ill get you out of this damn ce, she said coldly.


    How long do you need to cultivate? There were many things Long Chen had to do.


    It could range from one or two days to one or two months. The girl walked up to him, until the gap between them was less than half a meter. He looked down and saw a startling patch of snow-white skin on her chest, and he could smell a sweet fragrance. A fire ignited within him.


    Do I look good? A low, demonic voice rang in his ears, and he felt numb.


    Good enough to bring down kingdoms and city walls, he said instinctively.


    A satisfactory answer. Then Long Chen felt a sting in his head, like a needle had pierced through him. It was so painful that his entire body twitched and he almost passed out.


    Thankfully, the suffering onlysted for a few moments before it disappeared fully. When he snapped back to reality, drenched in cold sweat, he realized that there was additional information in his brain. It was the cultivation method of the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    If you still havent mastered it when I wake up, I will dig your eyes out, she said, staring into his eyes.


    Judging from the fact that she was a thousand-meter-long corpse and how she had been sealed in the gigantic coffin beneath his feet, he knew that the girl was an extremely powerful master. She might even be an ancient witch, probably the senior of his seniors. It was only appropriate for him to be demure and respectful towards his seniors, so he nodded.


    Right, what is your name? the girl asked mildly, sitting on the old coffin.


    Long Chen. What about you? he asked after gathering his courage.


    Li Xuanji.


    ***


    Long Chen was deeply shaken when he truly started to cultivate the Soul Swallowing Gaze. From this, he deduced that Li Xuanji was definitely not as heartless and vicious as she made herself out to be. Hed obtained the Soul Swallowing Gaze in exchange for breaking the seal to save her. And it was an extremely worthwhile trade.


    His special abilities were all from the Inherited Blood Essence, so his Dragon Soul Transformation, Blood Transmutation, and its extension, the Blood Devouring Domain, were all formidable presences. Towards the end of his cultivation of the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he felt like it might be on their level.


    The technique wasyered, and he had only touched upon its firstyer. Li Xuanji had told him to aim for the secondyer before she finished her cultivation. Once the firstyer wasplete, the secret technique of the secondyer would appear in his mind, and so on until he fully mastered the technique.


    Long Chens other techniques, like Blood Transmutation, didnt require cultivation. His otherbat techniques, while they were powerful to him, were menial to someone like Li Xuanji. That was why the Soul Swallowing Gaze was Long Chens first secret technique of a higher cultivation difficulty. Completing the secondyer before she finished her cultivation would not be simple.


    However, there was a deeper concern in his mind.


    He worried about the people he cared most about. Ling Xi was in a deep sleep, but Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiang should have been able to escape after Ling Xi used Heaven Bearing Sword Prison on the Patriarch. Yin Mengyao hadnt participated in Xiangs rescue, but she was also in danger. The one Long Chen was most concerned about was Yang Lingqing. He and Dongfang Xuanxiao had forced Beitang Ming to cancel the wedding, but Dongfang Xuanxiao was on the run and Long Chen was dead to them. So why wouldnt Beitang Mo make a move now?


    Long Chen knew that panicking now was meaningless. All he could do now was attain the secondyer of the Soul Swallowing Gaze before Li Xuanji finished cultivating.


    The firstyer was called Seduction. It was the move that Li Xuanji had used on Long Chen. In battle, it could make the opponent momentarily lose focus. It seemed like a simple move, but if used well, it could turn the tides of a battle. Once cultivated to mastery, if Long Chen would be able to use Seduction to control a weaker individuals thoughts and actions.


    Of course, Li Xuanji had used sex to seduce him before. There were many ways to seduce a person, and Long Chen wouldnt use this type of seduction against a manly man.


    Next, he had to cultivate the secondyer, called Soul Snatching. If he could master its initial stage, he would be able to use it on non-cultivators or people with little cultivation. He could then take pieces of their souls to nourish his own. The soul was tied to energy,prehension, reaction speed, and more.


    Quieting his mind, he began cultivating. It was a good technique, and if he could master it, it would be an amazing trump card.


    Also, it had manyyers. Who knew what amazing tricks awaited him if he cultivated it to the end? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    An eye technique? Waiting for the Sharingan orser eyes in the future


    here''s a seductive banana:


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 223: Ascending To Heavenly Core Realm

    Chapter 223: Ascending To Heavenly Core Realm


    Seduction.


    Long Chen had a hard time grasping it. After studying it for two days, he realized it needed mastery of ones Qi. The information that had been passed to him had taught him that there were countless meridians in the eyeball, which were extremely tiny and moreplicated than the rest of the meridians in the body. If he could control the flow of Qi perfectly through these meridians, he would be able to unleash unfathomable power.


    This was the core concept of an eye technique.


    The Soul Swallowing Gaze was undeniably a top-tier technique, so it required mastery of Qi on a level beyond the average eye technique. Long Chen could understand its texts, but he needed to cultivate it over and over again. Five days passed, and he had made more than a hundred mistakes. Every time he did something wrong, he was met with fatal pain, and his eyes even bled a few times. Thankfully, he had Recovery, which could heal such small and delicate wounds. Plus, he carried responsibilities on his shoulders, so he gritted his teeth and continued to cultivate.


    On the sixth day, hepleted Seduction for the first time. His progress was smooth after that, and he quickly learned how to use thete stage. However, his eyes had bled more than two hundred times in the process, and he endured the grueling pain each time.


    When Long Chen opened his eyes, an ink-green light was flowing in them. An ancient andplex image appeared in his pupils, though without close inspection, it was hard to tell what it was. But he knew that it was the ancient form of the confusion character. Although it was a long-lost, ancient character that Long Chen didnt recognize, he learned it from the information he had received in his brain.


    Soul Snatching.


    Soul Snatching, which formed the secondyer, wasnt as difficult as he envisioned. It was perhaps because he had experience cultivating the firstyer, and he had made huge progress in his ability to control his Qi through minute spaces. Soul Snatching required the ability to generate a huge force with his Qi.


    Long Chen took seven days toplete the cultivation of Soul Snatching. He had spent twelve days cultivating the Soul Swallowing Gaze so far, but Li Xuanji was not awake yet.


    He couldnt cultivate any deeper, and Li Xuanji had said that he could only reach the secondyer at his current cultivation level. If he cultivated the thirdyer, he would suffer greatly. However, he needed to spend more effort deepening his cultivation of Seduction and Soul Snatching.


    After gaining a deeper understanding, the ancient character for snatch appeared in his pupils when he used Soul Snatching.


    Although Yang Lingqings safety was still on his mind, he had matured greatly after the Star Devil Prison incident and knew that no matter how worried he was, he had to stabilize his emotions. Li Xuanji was greatly concerned about recovering her strength, so he would definitely be killed if he disturbed her. Therefore, once he finished cultivating the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he turned to cultivating the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    The techniques he had to learn were Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies, and Starsweep Dragon, but he could only use one of them.


    Therefore, he took out the Azure Dragon Halberd and started practicing Shattered Skies and Starsweep Dragon. Shattered Skies was a continuation of Split Yellow River, and using both consecutively would unleash an even stronger power. However, those were the Azure Dragon Halberds foundation techniques, while Starsweep Dragon was just the simplest technique in the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    Time slipped by. Long Chens trump card was slowly strengthening. During this time, he truly felt what it meant to be alone, because the cultivating Li Xuanji was like a rock, losing all signs of life. Ling Xi was still in her unconscious state, and he didnt know how to wake her up.


    The sense of emptiness in his heart was filled with fervent cultivation.


    He cultivated like a madman without regard to night and day. Afraid that he might disturb Li Xuanji, he ran to a spot on the coffin that was farther away from her. There was only darkness around him, and other than the expanse of soil, he could only see five stars in the sky.


    Long Chen cultivated vigorously, dragging deep gutters in the soil with his halberd, which led to-like cracks.


    In the blink of an eye, twenty-seven days had passed since Li Xuanji started cultivating. On this day, he sessfully mastered Starsweep Dragon. No one in the history of Yuanling County had ever, as a mid Earthly Core Realm cultivator, jumped six levels ahead to cultivate an Earth-tier technique.


    Beitang Mo! If I get back and notice that you touched even one hair on Xiao Qingers head, Ill use the Azure Dragon Halberd to chop you to pieces! Long Chen roared.


    Xiao Qinger? Is she a girl you like? a cold voice said from behind him. He turned around and saw Li Xuanji. She had finally ended her cultivation, which also meant that they could finally leave.


    She initially thought he liked the strange sword spirit, but now that he had mentioned another name, she was disgusted.


    Shes my younger cousin. He put the Azure Dragon Halberd away and said, I have sessfully cultivated the first two levels. As long as we leave this ce, Ill help you collect the souls. However, I have a request. Id like to confirm my cousins safety before leaving. Shes up there, not far away. It wont cause any dys.


    When she heard that she was his cousin, Li Xuanjis expression rxed. She wasnt in that much of a hurry, so she said, Alright. Seeing as you care for her, Ill allow it.


    She waved her hand, and a powerful force rushed towards him, as if going to envelop him. Startled, he readied to fight back but realized that it was gentle. When it entered his body, he realized that the energy was extremely pure, and its gentle fluidity resembled the medicinal power that entered him when he ate the Ascension Fruit.


    Li Xuanjis voice rang faintly in his ear. Refine this power and turn it into your own Qi.


    He hurriedly started refining it, turning the non-elemental power into his own Dragon Soul Qi. The power she had provided was stable and plentiful, so his Qi grew quickly. Half a dayter, he found himself at thete Earthly Core Realm, the same level as Dongfang Tianyu!


    But he continued to grow stronger!


    Li Xuanji continued to send power into his body, and he felt like he was about to explode. All he could do was refine it continuously. Time flowed, and in the blink of an eye, one day and one night had passed. The power in his body surged until it reached a boundary. <em>Boom! </em>His Earthly Core shattered and surged angrily along with the blood-red Qi inside him.


    The Qi aggregated and finally condensed into a Heavenly Core, which was the size of a little finger. While absorbing the Qi of heaven and earth, he continuouslypressed his core. As he progressed from the Human Core to the Heavenly Core Realm, it had shrunk several times. However, the Qi it contained, and its explosive energy, were more than a hundred times greater than when he was at the Human Core Realm.


    Have I really reached the Heavenly Core Realm? Long Chen momentarily couldntprehend that this was reality. In the inner family, the Heavenly Core Realm was considered the level of an ultimate prodigy, only two levels away from Mo Xiang. He was already on Dongfang Tianxuans level. Out of all the youths in the Lingwu family, only Mo Xiang and four others were ahead of him.


    Most importantly, he hadpletely mastered the Azure Dragon Halberd and learned the Earth-tier Starsweep Dragon, as well as the Nine Dragon shes and Recovery. With the Inherited Blood Essences Dragon Soul Transformation and the Blood Devouring Domain, as well as Li Xuanjis Soul Swallowing Gaze, his overall strength had soared to a lofty level.


    <em>Just taking Dongfang Tianchen into consideration, hes at the mid Heavenly Core Realm and his Qi is simr to mine when I use the Dragon Soul Transformation. Although he has practiced the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, hes definitely not as strong as me with the Azure Dragon Halberd!</em>


    He grew emotional. If he could defeat Dongfang Tianchen, that meant he could kill Beitang Mo if Beitang Mo pushed him too hard.


    Lingqing, wait for me. Determination filled his eyes. At the same time, he was grateful towards Li Xuanji. The Ling Xi Sword had broken the ancient coffin, but that was just a coincidence. Not only had Li Xuanji not killed him, she had given him the Soul Swallowing Gaze and let him level up twice.


    Entering the Heavenly Core Realm meant that he had truly be one of the ultimate prodigies of Yuanling County, even approaching the masters of the older generation, like thete Heavenly Core Realm Dongfang Xuanyu, who was one of the less talented ones.


    Lets go. Li Xuanjis power wrapped him, and he ascended in a straight line, his clothes pping loudly.


    The fact that Li Xuanji could fly was no longer an astonishing thing to him. She was already a magical and mysterious person, so flying him out of the Star Devil Prison didnt seem like a difficult task for her.


    Now that he was fully conscious, he realized that he had fallen very deep, basically like falling from the sky to the ground. Now he was flying from the ground back to the sky.


    She flew extremely quickly, but it still took them half a day to finally arrive at the Transit Hall. Standing at the Transit Hall, he turned to look at the infinite abyss. He thought about how he had survived under such circumstances, even though he found it hard to believe.


    Next, Ill go see Lingqing  Long Chen didnt know what was next, but he was now most worried about Yang Lingqing. However, he had a sneaky thought. As long as Li Xuanji was with him, no one in the Cangyang Kingdom could kill him. Not even the four Patriarchs.


    That was the reason why Long Chen wanted to see Yang Lingqing before collecting the souls.


    After focusing himself, he left via the ck hole. When he arrived at the Heavenly Martial Realm, he first saw the armored guards, though there were only three of them. The missing guard was the Beitang guard who wore the ck Tortoise armor.


    Long Chen! Yang Honghai and the others were so shocked that they yelled when they saw him appear abruptly.


    Long Chen was deadthat was a fact. He had fallen into the Star Devil Prison, and no one was nave enough to think he would return alive.


    Yet he was here, alive.


    And not only had he be stronger, there was also a fierce-looking girl behind him.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Thats like taking two rare candies in pokemon


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 224: Chaos At Black Tortoise Pavilion

    Chapter 224: Chaos At ck Tortoise Pavilion


    How are you alive? Yan Honghai was in utter disbelief. His eyes were wide with shock as he stared at Long Chen. Even the beautiful girl next to him was ignored.


    Although the other two guards didnt speak, they were also filled with questions. It was a huge shock to them that Long Chen had appeared before them. How am I alive? Thats not important. Whats important is that I am alive now! Long Chen grinned, then he looked at Yan Honghai and asked, Brother Yan, I need to ask you something.


    Me? Yan Honghai jumped in surprise, looked at the other two, and then said hesitantly, Young Master Long Chen, do you know? The Lingwu family has sent out wanted notices across the entire Yuanling County for Lord Xuanxiao. Youre his stepson, and you were involved in that incident. So  So I need to capture you


    He was torn. Dongfang Xuanxiao had treated him well all these years, yet Dongfang Xuanxiao and Long Chen had ended up in their current situation because he had informed the Patriarch that they had entered the prison. Of course, if Yan Honghai hadnt done it, someone else would surely have reported to the Azure Dragon Patriarch. But he still felt guilty about it.


    Yet there was his duty. And he had to act now. Brother Yan, you dont have to do anything. Well do it. The other two guards locked eyes, then they approached Long Chen. They were both mid Heavenly Core Realm masters, and the past Long Chen would never have been able to defeat them.


    You think you can touch me? Long Chen smiled without a hint of fear. From their words, he had learned a piece of information, which was the fact that Dongfang Xuanxiao wasnt dead. That was enough.


    Long Chen was about to move when the beautiful Li Xuanji grew impatient. She waved casually, and the three guards turned pale. Then they were thrown back with blood spraying out of their mouths.


    She shrugged. Lets not waste any more time. Ask what you need to ask.


    Long Chen knew that they were pressed for time, so he had to ignore the severity of Yan Honghais injury and question him. Meeting Yan Honghais shocked gaze, he asked, Brother Yan, do you know anything about my cousin, Yang Lingqing? Ill only ask once. Look. If you dont answer me, she can kill you easily.


    Yan Honghai couldnt understand at all how the beautiful teenage girl could injure him so severely with just a simple wave of her hand. But he was smart, so once Long Chen asked him the question, he replied immediately, Beitang Mo wants to marry Yang Lingqing today! Youll know when you reach the Northern ck Tortoise family!


    <em>Marry?</em>


    <em>Heh, he must be looking for death.</em>


    ***


    Today was a big day for the Northern ck Tortoise family, one that was hard toe by. Of course, this was also a huge event for the whole Lingwu family. That was because the most outstanding son of the Northern ck Tortoise head, Beitang Mo, was about to marry his own stepsister, Yang Lingqing.


    Of course, after the wedding, she would no longer be his stepsister but his wife.


    Yang Lingqing had the Dark Yin Body. After receiving the right cultivation methods, she had reached thete Human Core Realm. One day in the future, she would surpass Beitang Mo and be the Northern ck Tortoises trump card. That was why Beitang Ming was willing to trap her in the Northern ck Tortoise family no matter the cost. This was something that the other three inner families had agreed on. Unfortunately, Dongfang Xuanxiao had messed up their ns and caused a dy. But now he wasbeled as a traitor and was on the run from the Lingwu family, so it was a good time. Beitang Ming worked through the night to set an auspicious date for the wedding, which was this day. The Northern ck Tortoise family had been preparing for this grand ceremony for a month now.


    The wedding was extremelyvish. Not only had the Northern ck Tortoise invited the important figures of the other three inner families, the nine Grand Elders of the outer families and other factions from Yuanling City also had representatives present.


    The Northern ck Tortoisepound was decorated withnterns and streamers with all types of people present. It was a bustling day, and various kitchen staff, odd-jobbers, and handmaidens wove through the crowd, busy with their tasks. The usually quiet Lingwu familypound was suddenly crowded, and it took everyone some time to adjust.


    Shouts,ughter, sounds of assent, and ass-kissing rang across the ce. The wedding prayer to the ancestors had not begun yet, but thergest pavilion of the Northern ck Tortoise family, the ck Tortoise Pavilion, was already filled with guests.


    These guests came from all over the county. Many knew each other but had not met in years, so they were busy catching up. Rednterns were hung everywhere, along with beautiful, red paper-cutouts, which could be seen everywhere. Above the main entrance of the pavilion was a  character carved from fire crystals so every guest who arrived would see the ming symbol and praise it in awe. [1]


    All the important figures had already gathered in the ck Tortoise Pavilion. All nine Grand Elders of the outer families were sitting together. On the other side, the three important figures of the Eastern Azure Dragon family, Dongfang Xuanfeng, Xuanyu, and Xuanyun, were present. The head of the Vermilion Bird and White Tiger families were also there, sitting to the left of Dongfang Xuanfeng.


    The auspicious hour was soon approaching. The families of the bride and groom were already sitting at the head of the room. On the left was Beitang Ming, wearing a very festive, red robe. He was smiling and greeting the guests as they arrived, joking and chatting away happily, exactly like how the head of a huge n should act. On the other hand, Yang Yuntians end of the room looked much more depressing. The clothes he wore signified that he was from a small town, and his forced smile and awkward, fearful gaze proved that he was weak and helpless.


    The guests present simultaneously praised how youthful Beitang Ming was, while also gossiping about Yang Yuntian. I heard the girl Beitang Ming found has a Dark Yin Body. But the girls father is just too embarrassing.


    I think youre just jealous. The man has a great daughter, and his status will skyrocket from today onwards now that hes connected to the Northern ck Tortoise. You can only dream of having an honor like this.


    Nonsense! Although my daughter doesnt have the Dark Yin Body, shes decent-looking. If Young Master Beitang Mo had chosen my daughter, at least the brides father wouldnt look as tragic as this and embarrass the family here


    Old Zhao, be careful with your words. Keep your voice down when youre saying things like that.


    Oh, oh. Right, right.


    Yang Yuntian could faintly hear conversations like these.


    Inw, ignore those shallow-minded morons. With Lingqing marrying my son, I guarantee that the Yang family shall be arge n of the region. The Yang name shall be famous in the future.


    Yang Yuntian nodded in agreement, thanking him hurriedly. This should have been the greatest news, yet there was a hint of worry in his eyes. Yang Lingqing had told him about Long Chen. He knew Lingqing wasnt a willing participant in this wedding, and knew that thergest hope of the family, Long Chen, had died a corpseless death.


    After hearing this news, the entire Yang family broke down in grief. Even the Yang Patriarch could not hold himself together, much less the rest. Yang Lingqing cried all day and only recovered after a month. But Beitang Mo and the others noticed that she spoke very little since then, and the iciness in her eyes sometimes even frightened Beitang Mo.


    The Yang family was the brides family, yet only Yang Yuntian hade as a representative. This showed the dissatisfaction of the Yangs, and a dark cloud of sorrow hung over the whole family.


    The master of ceremonies standing at the entrance bellowed, The auspicious hour has arrived! Time for the ancestral prayers!


    When he spoke, the bride and groom came in through the side entrance. Beitang Mo was dressed handsomely on this day. His red clothing was embroidered with a golden dragon, which symbolized masculinity. His ckbat boots added a hint of arrogance and killing intent to the sophisticated elegance of his outfit.


    A man like him, along with the golden halo of his family name, was destined to make countless teenage girls swoon.


    Yang Lingqings face was hidden under the red veil that blocked her increasingly beautiful features from sight. However, the curves that showed beneath her clothes proved that she was an attractive woman.


    Yet the trembling of her body showed.


    Qinger, youre nervous, arent you? Dont be scared, Im here. Every girl will face a moment like this in their lives. After marriage, you will mature and be a true woman, whispered Beitang Mo with a smile, leaning close to her ear.


    Her body trembled slightly, but she didnt speak.


    Let me give you some good news. My father got me a Dragon Fruit, which contains a powerful fire energy that can make me strong for a short while and not get hurt by your Dark Yin Body. Thats why tonight, we can finally consummate our marriage


    Beitang Ming chuckled softly.


    Yang Lingqing squinted and tears flowed from her eyes. <em>He is dead. No one can protect me anymore. That is why I must remain strong. </em>She subtly gripped the ends of her clothes.


    The auspicious hour had begun, so it was time for the ceremony. After three bows, they would be official husband and wife. Yang Lingqing held traditional values tightly, so she would ept her fate after the ceremony.


    She didnt like this ce, and she didnt like the person next to her. Yet when fate flexed its muscles, no one could withstand it.


    Watching Yang Lingqing and Beitang Mo standing in front of him, Beitang Ming stroked his long beard and smiled happily. Yang Yuntian forced a smile, though it only made him look creepy.


    This smile triggered a wave ofughter.


    Beneath her veil, Yang Lingqing knew that they wereughing at her father. She didnt feel humiliated, only rage. She gripped the bottom of her red clothes, her fingers turning purple from gripping too tightly.


    <em>Father, I will make them pay what they owe you. And avenge my cousin </em>


    The fire of hatred slowly ignited in her heart, burning with rage.


    Everyone was ready, so the master of ceremonies smiled and bellowed in his shrill voice.


    The first bow to the heavens and earth!


    Beitang Mo and Yang Lingqing turned to face the main entrance.


    The crowd watched them smilingly.


    That was when a loud boom pulverized the gigantic  symbol above the door, its crumbs ttering across the ground. The smiling master of ceremonies was sted backwards, and a person walked into the ck Tortoise Pavilion, attracting everyones attention!


    1.  - Double happiness, also known as the shuangxi character, is a symbol used during weddings <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    That''s the second wedding MC had to crash


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 225: Fighting Beitang Mo

    Chapter 225: Fighting Beitang Mo


    This was a celebratory day for the Northern ck Tortoise family, so many outsiders were walking around the outside of the ck Tortoise Pavilion. That was why no one was suspicious when a teenager quietly made his way to the entrance. Everyone jumped in shock when the symbol made of fire crystals above the entrance was pulverized to dust. All eyes turned to the source of themotion.


    Someone was here to cause trouble. Even the three inner families, aside from the Northern ck Tortoise family, frowned. Causing trouble at the wedding of the number one prodigy of the Northern ck Tortoise was the equivalent of pping the whole Lingwu family across the face!


    Who are you?! You must be looking for death! <em>Whoosh! </em>Beitang Ming shot out of his seat, and his hawk-like gaze swept towards the neer. When he saw the teenagers face, shock filled his eyes for a moment.


    His son, Beitang Mo, hadnt heard the Azure Dragon Patriarchs personal recount of Long Chens ending, so he wasnt as shocked. However, Dongfang Xuanfeng and the rest, who knew that Long Chen could never survive, were filled with disbelief when they saw him.


    Beitang Ming cried, Long Chen, how are you still alive?


    The mention of his name woke everyone from their shock!


    When Long Chen took the Azure Dragon Halberd into the Star Devil Prison, the Eastern Azure Dragon family was very worried. When the Qi seed within Long Chens body lost its effect or he died, the halberd should have returned to the ancestral mausoleum automatically.


    But one month had passed, yet the halberd had not returned.


    It was impossible for Long Chen to survive the fall from the Star Devil Prison, so the Azure Dragon Patriarch concluded that the oue was due to the special property of the Star Devil Prison. Losing the Azure Dragon Halberd was a huge blow to the Eastern Azure Dragon family. The Azure Dragon Patriarch had been panicking over hunting down Dongfang Xuanxiao as well as worrying about the Azure Dragon Halberds location. As for Dongfang Xuanfeng and Dongfang Xuanyu, when they heard that the Azure Dragon Halberd was lost, they cried for several days.


    To them, Long Chens sudden appearance was extremely shocking, but also the greatest news. Long Chen wasnt dead, which meant that the Azure Dragon Halberd was still present. This was no doubt good news.


    The joy from this news made them forget to wonder why Long Chen hadnt died and why the Azure Dragon Halberd hadnt returned to the ancient mausoleum even though the Qi seed in Long Chen had long disappeared.


    When they heard his name, everyone who had heard of him was shocked by his actions. They started to point and gossip about him.


    Two people present were in a daze.


    They were Yang Yuntian and Yang Lingqing.


    They had been told that Long Chen was dead. Yet Beitang Mo had yelled out his name, and Yang Yuntian had seen him with his own eyes. He was alive and well, and seemed to be even stronger than before. Why had everyone said that he was dead?


    Yang Lingqing teared up instantly. She didnt care if it could be a trick. When she lifted her red veil, she saw the person walking in with his chest out and shoulders back. Wasnt that Long Chen?


    When she saw that it was him, warmth filled her heart. Under his gaze, her heart, which was like a dried and barrennd, instantly turned into a lush, green oasis. An invisible willpower surged within her.


    Strength. This was something that Long Chen had taught her countless times, and also a quality that every girl had to possess. Only strength would allow a person to live a good life with dignity.


    Is that really you? Big Brother  She choked and hurriedly wiped her red eyes.


    Long Chen saw her tears.


    Just as he expected, the girl could not deal with all of her problems on her own. The Northern ck Tortoise family had been using the Yang family to threaten her, adding on to her stress.


    Rage and killing intent grew slowly in his chest.


    Long Chen, youre not dead? Beitang Mo, who was standing next to Yang Lingqing, red at him coldly. He didnt know what had gone wrong with the Azure Dragon Patriarchs deration, but Long Chen wasnt dead and that was the truth. Now he had to ept this truth. He would investigateter! Here to cause trouble again?


    Long Chen was obviously here to cause trouble. Last time, Beitang Mos long-time fantasy had been interrupted due to his interference. Although he had gotten a chance to p Long Chen once, it didn''t seem to have any effect. The brat was, to his surprise, still lively as ever. Now Dongfang Xuanxiao was the equivalent of a rat in the streets, so Long Chen had no one to back him. So, how dare hee wreak havoc here?!


    When Beitang Mo saw that Yang Lingqing had broken tradition and lifted her red veil prematurely, embarrassing the Northern ck Tortoise family, killing intent burned in his chest. Without a word, he strode heavily towards Long Chen!


    Long Chens eyes were fixed on him. Beitang Mo! Ive said this before. If you want to forcefully marry my cousin, youll do it over my dead body! The Northern ck Tortoise is a prominent n. I cant believe you would dare to do something so shameless! You are forcing this marriage by holding the Yang family hostagewhat a shameless tactic! Long Chen smirked as he slowly approached Beitang Mo.


    Those words were like a huge p to the entire Northern ck Tortoise familys face. Everyones faces turned green. Beitang Ming and Beitang Mos faces were so dark, they almost bled!


    Few outsiders knew that Yang Lingqing had been forced into this marriage. However, they saw how Yang Lingqing had lifted her veil to reveal a teary face, plus her cousin had just stormed the wedding. Everyone knew what this clearly meant.


    Indeed, the Northern ck Tortoise family looked bad in this scenario. The crowd was privately snickering at this, wanting to see how they would end this entertaining show.


    Before he made a move, Beitang Ming gave Dongfang Xuanfeng a look. Nonsense! You spout nonsense! Brother Xuanfeng, tell me! How should I deal with this rebellious child?


    Long Cheng is the rebellious stepson of that traitor. He is no longer a member of the Eastern Azure Dragon family! He is spouting nonsense and telling lies; he should be executed! Brother Beitang, do what you need to and protect Lingwus dignity! Dongfang Xuanfeng bellowed immediately.


    Now that he had obtained Dongfang Xuanfengs permission, Beitang Mo smirked coldly. Long Chen was less than twenty meters away from him. This meant that he was close enough to kill.


    The show was going to end soon, and the audience felt like it was too short.


    Two of the nine Grand Elders shot malicious res when they saw that Long Chen had survived. However, he was as good as dead now, so they sighed in relief. Despite not killing him personally, his death could be considered a form of closure after what had happened to Chu Yunxi and Jin Shengen.


    The Grand Elders in question were Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan.


    I didnt expect this at all. This brat was only at the initial Earthly Core Realm at the time. Its been less than two months, and hes already grown to this level after joining the inner family. Chu Tianxiong was a little surprised.


    It doesnt matter how talented he is, he is going to die here and now. Beitang Mo is at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. With the Northern ck Tortoise familys wealth, a fight between him and I would probably end in a draw, so he can kill Long Chen in one strike! I dont know where that brat gets his courage from. How dare he cause trouble here, said Jin Luan coldly.


    In truth, Yang Lingqing was thinking the same. Her heart was filled with joy and love when he first arrived, but when she recalled his cultivation level and realized that he was not strong enough to fight the Northern ck Tortoise, her face paled instantly! She panicked and screamed with all her might, Big Brother! Leave now! Her tears were previously flowing from shock, but now they flowed from fear and worry!


    Leave? He approached Beitang Mo menacingly while his aura strengthened. How could I, Long Chen, ever leave? Haha! The Qi of a Heavenly Core Realm cultivator surged within his body. Although he hadnt undergone the Dragon Soul Transformation or taken out the Azure Dragon Halberd, he was scary enough.


    The Yin Poison Strike didnt kill youst time only because I hadnt used all my strength! You brat! You are no longer a member of the Lingwu family; how dare you embarrass the Northern ck Tortoise by interfering with my wedding! I will kill you today! Beitang Mos voice was as cold as ever. His footsteps quickened, and the twenty-meter gap closed in one second.


    A cold Yin Qi swirled quickly in his hand, generating gusts of wind that invoked fear in others. His palm was already moving towards Long Chens chest! Yin Poison Strike! he roared.


    The crowd was startled by it, privately praising the Lingwu familys power. At the same time, they were looking forward to seeing how Long Chen would die.


    Do you really think you can kill me with just that? Long Chen chuckled coldly. Bits of starlight appeared on his finger, and the air trembled around it. When he elerated and charged at Beitang Mo, the starlight instantly turned into a shining arc of Sword Qi, colliding with the Yin Poison Strike!


    Several deafening booms and powerful shockwaves shook even the pirs of the great hall!


    What? What shocked everyone was that Long Chen hadnt been killed in one strike like they expected. After the impact, both of them were sted backwards by their opponents attack, unable to stabilize themselves!


    As they stumbled backwards, several deep craters were formed beneath their feet!


    The depth of the craters allowed them to gauge how powerful the two young men were! It was not surprising that Beitang Mo could do this, but how was Long Chens attack equal to his?


    <em>Thats impossible! What just happened? </em>Beitang Mo was shocked. He could sense that Long Chen was not at all weaker than himself.


    <em>Did he make another breakthrough  </em>With that thought, his determination to kill Long Chen intensified.


    On the other side, Yang Lingqing had clearly witnessed the collision. While she was familiar with Beitang Mos strength, she was shocked by Long Chen. How had Long Chen go from being a weakling to being equal to Beitang Mo within just half a year?


    When she looked at the person who had created so many miracles, she called out, Big Brother


    Her tone was filled with admiration and respect. And, of course, great pride too. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Never underestimate MC''s luck for convenient power ups


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 226: Supreme Yin Devil Body

    Chapter 226: Supreme Yin Devil Body


    The singr exchange between Long Chen and Beitang Mo had ended with a draw. This sent a huge shockwave across the whole ck Tortoise Pavilion.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng and Dongfang Xuanyu looked at each other. Xuanfeng frowned and said, Not only did the brat not die, he seems to have reached the Heavenly Core Realm. He has ascended two levels consecutively! This is unbelievable. The Azure Dragon Halberd must be with him.


    Brother, its time to end this drama. Ill kill him now, and the Azure Dragon Halberd will return to our family! With a <em>whoosh, </em>Dongfang Xuanyu shot up, attracting the gazes of the crowd.


    Beitang Mo was about to erupt with his true capabilities to kill Long Chen, but when he saw that the Eastern Azure Dragon members wanted to kill him, he thought about it for a moment and took a few steps back.


    Long Chen was previously a member of their family, so letting them kill him was more appropriate. You brat, youve been lucky to have survived. But the events of today must end here. Ill see you off myself. Dongfang Xuanyu was at thete Heavenly Core Realm, the same cultivation level as the nine Grand Elders. When she passed Beitang Mo and approached, Long Chen could feel immense pressure.


    But he was not afraid, because he had a trump card. You should be honored to die by an Earth-tier technique. Dongfang Xuanyus Qi erupted, and her clothes pped in the wind. The powerful aura of ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator rolled off her!


    Other than the Azure Dragon Halberds technique, the Eastern Azure Dragon family had another Earth-tierbat technique, which was the one she was using.


    When they heard her, the crowd drew in a sharp breath. There were very few people in Yuanling City who possessed an Earth-tier technique and even mastered it.


    An Earth-tierbat technique, you say? Long Chen was prepared to use the Dragon Soul Transformation and pull out the Azure Dragon Halberd. His objectives today were to stop the wedding and test his strength. Either Dongfang Xuanyu or Beitang Mo would be suitable for testing his capabilities, though Xuanyu was stronger!


    Die! A dragons roar erupted, and a strong gust of wind howled around Dongfang Xuanyu. She stared at him coldly, as if she was looking at a dead person.


    An immense force locked onto Long Chen. Without a change in expression, she punched hard! Earth-tierbat technique, Piercing Wind Dragon!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    When she thrust her fist out, a gigantic dragon image appeared within the howling wind and charged at Long Chen. The people in the ck Tortoise Pavilion gawked at the powerful attack.


    Most of them admitted that they could not withstand this attack.


    Beitang Mo and Beitang Ming looked at each other. They knew that Long Chen was finished. Next to him, Yang Lingqing was heartbroken. Anyone who wasnt blind could see that Long Chen was no match for Dongfang Xuanyu!


    That would be true if Long Chen did not have the Dragon Soul Transformation or the Azure Dragon Halberd. He indeed would not be her match if all he had was his red Qi. However, with those additions, everything would be different. <em>Think you can kill me? Looks like youre worried about the Azure Dragon Halberd, </em>he thought to himself. In the face of this immense attack, he was about to use his Dragon Soul Transformation to shock the crowd thoroughly when a person stood in front of Long Chen. She waved her hand gently, and Dongfang Xuanyus Piercing Wind Dragon was broken through. Dongfang Xuanyu was thrown back, spraying blood from her mouth!


    Who is that?! Everyone was shocked by the abrupt event! Especially Dongfang Xuanfeng. After catching the injured Dongfang Xuanyu, his re was filled with killing intent!


    To be honest, even he was shocked that someone could defeat Dongfang Xuanyu just like that.


    When he saw that the person standing in front of Long Chen was a beautiful teenage girl, Dongfang Xuanfeng wasnt the only one who was stunnedthe whole crowd had been caught by surprise. They admitted that this was the most beautiful girl theyd ever seen. Not only were her looks and figure perfect, most importantly, she seemed to possess extraordinary strength.


    Who was she? Everyone had the same question.


    All Long Chen could do was smile bitterly. Initially, he thought Li Xuanji would only act if his life was truly in danger. He didnt expect her to appear so soon. Unless  Did she really care about him?


    Then he realized he was overthinking it.


    Who are you, may I ask? Why did you hurt my younger sister? asked Dongfang Xuanfeng with furrowed brows.


    When Dongfang Xuanfeng spoke, Beitang Mo had already secretly slipped away while his father, Beitang Ming, walked forward to stand with Dongfang Xuanfeng. It was difficult to estimate this girls strength, so they did not dare act.


    When he saw that Li Xuanji wasnt answering, he probed cautiously again. May I ask who you are, miss?


    Li Xuanjis gaze moved to Yang Lingqing. Her beautiful, red lips moved as she mildly said, You. Come here.


    Yang Lingqing was also in a daze, but she knew that the beautiful teenage girl was here with Long Chen. Seeing Long Chens eyes signaling her, she approached.


    Dont you dare move! Beitang Ming would never let her go that easily.


    Get out! Li Xuanji waved casually. What made everyone almost wet their pants was that the two heads of the Lingwu family were thrown back just like Dongfang Xuanyu, crashing clumsily into a mess of tables and chairs.


    A Heavenly River master! Dongfang Xuanfeng and Beitang Ming locked eyes. They knew they were thinking the same thing. Heavenly River Realm cultivators were the apex of Yuanling City. Seeing as this girl could easily defeat them, she had to be at the Heavenly River Realm!


    Both of them swallowed their anger and climbed to their feet, not showing any anger. They could only continue watching like they were bystanders, which wasical to see. Everyone else also looked at each other and dared not make a sound. The term Heavenly River Realm appeared in their minds.


    Such a young Heavenly River Realm cultivator! How was that possible?


    Everyone was shocked.


    The fact that a prodigy like her would protect Long Chen  What did that mean? It showed that Long Chen was here because he had a trump card! He wasnt a reckless hero wannabe; he was truly a terrifying person!


    When Yang Lingqing walked over, Long Chen grabbed her hand. Her tears flowed uncontrobly when she felt his warmth.


    Long Chens heart ached upon seeing the girl look so fragile. He wanted to kill the Northern ck Tortoise family even more now.


    When he saw Li Xuanji eyeing Yang Lingqing closely, Long Chen was confused and asked, Is there any problem with her?


    Im guessing that the Dark Yin Body is the fetal form of the Supreme Yin Devil Body  The legendary Supreme Yin Devil Body with a cold Yin quality, whose namees from the Nine Yin Meridians mumbled Li Xuanji. It was obvious that she was in a daze due to overwhelming emotion.


    Supreme Yin Devil Body? Nine Yin Meridians? Long Chen had never heard those terms before, but anything that could shock Li Xuanji had to be extraordinary! He now knew that Li Xuanji acted sooner than he expected because she had noticed that there was something special about Yang Lingqing.


    Li Xuanji was about to speak but then frowned. That was when two old men rushed from the outside into the pavilion. One of them was a thin but energetic old man, the Azure Dragon Patriarch. The other was a tall and muscr old manhe had to be the ck Tortoise Patriarch!


    Beitang Mo had slipped away earlier to look for the two ultimate masters of the Lingwu family! They were Heavenly River Realm masters, and only they could hold Li Xuanji down and let them kill Long Chen!


    When they saw the two Patriarchs make their entrance, Beitang Ming and Dongfang Xuanfeng locked eyes and sighed in relief. They could finally turn the tides with the two Patriarchs present.


    The Patriarchs first saw Long Chen. The Azure Dragon Patriarch was thoroughly shocked to see that Long Chen survived, but that also meant that he had a chance to get back the lost Azure Dragon Halberd. Though he had heard that there was a young Heavenly River Realm master here too?


    Both of them quickly eyed Li Xuanji.


    What confused the two of them was that they couldnt sense star power on her body. Conversely, her body seemed to be a ck hole, absorbing their gazes. Both of them even felt like Li Xuanji didnt seem to belong to this world! <em>How is that possible? </em>They locked eyes with each other, not confident in this encounter.


    Li Xuanji then turned to them.


    How dare you act so boldly before me when youre mere Heavenly River Realm cultivators. Li Xuanji chuckled coldly. She hadnt spoken loudly, so the only ones who heard her were Long Chen, Yang Lingqing, and the two Patriarchs.


    Her words were like a mountain crashing into their heads. They both halted in their tracks, as if they were struck by lightning. Upon closer inspection, a little blood trickled from their ears!


    One simple sentence had been enough to hurt the two Patriarchs with its vibrations!


    The Patriarchs werepletely defeated. They knew that she was not at the Heavenly River Realm, she had to be at an even higher level! <em>Why would such a powerful master appear in a ce like Yuanling City? </em>They couldnt figure it out, but they didnt dare ck off.


    Everyone was watching to see the Patriarchs finish her off. What shocked them was that they suddenly paled and walked up to her nervously, greeting her with utmost reverence. Greet  Greetings, Senior! Please  forgive us for not giving you a warm wee on your visit to the Lingwu family! We shall immediately prepare a grand feast to wee you, Senior!


    Senior?


    Jaws dropped when they saw how low the two Patriarchs bowed. Everyone grew even more shocked when they thought about it, because


    They all turned to look at Long Chen. The fact that Long Chen could make a person like that stand up for him meant that he had absolute power. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Li Xuanji standing behind Long Chen


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 227: Nine Absolute Yin Veins

    Chapter 227: Nine Absolute Yin Veins


    <strong>Chapter 227 - Nine Absolute Yin Veins</strong>


    Li Xuanjis sudden appearance caused a stir at the wedding. Everyone was shocked when the two Patriarchs lost to her.


    Both the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch were wary of Li Xuanjis absolute strength. They bowed before her, waiting for Li Xuanji to speak. Both of them were too scared to do anything.


    <em>Why is Long Chen still alive? Who is she? Did Long Chen save her from the bottom of the abyss? That should be it. Theres no one this strong even in the capital. Only someone of her caliber is capable of saving Long Chen. What is her rtionship with him? </em>The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch was shaken.


    Long Chen had gone from the Draconic Realm to the Heavenly Core Realm in just half a year. As much of a prodigy as he was, even Mo Xiang hadn''t progressed that fast. Being trapped by Ling Xi and the appearance of Li Xuanji made the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch feel that Long Chens background was a mystery.


    No one uttered a single noise as they waited for Li Xuanjis response.


    Li Xuanji was still looking at Yang Lingqing,pletely ignoring the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. She then waved her hand after some time, Ive been in a good mood for the past few days, so I dont want to kill anyone. Dont bother me, just do whatever you want.


    This was the Lingwu familys territory, but Li Xuanji had the strength and confidence to shoo them away. It was clear she was leagues above them.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and the others dared not utter a single sentence. They knew that legendary cultivators past a certain cultivation level would be able to retain their youth even though they were old. Seeing that Li Xuanji was young and yet still epted them when they called her an elder, she was definitely very old.


    Lets get out of here. Its time for me to do my part, Long Chen suggested. He had realized that Li Xuanji was so excited to find out about Yang Lingqings body that she hadpletely forgotten about the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    Li Xuanji nodded. Long Chen called for Yang Yuntian and Yang Lingqing before leaving the ce. The crowd didnt know what to do.


    All of them knew that Long Chen was not someone they could offendeven the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch could not do anything to him!


    The Lingwu family was left feeling miserable for the very first time!


    This was especially true for the people who once tried to get rid of Long Chen such as Dongfang Tianyu, Dongfang Tianxing, and Chu Tianxiong. All of them stood quietly in the ck Tortoise Pavilion while Long Chen humiliated them by taking Yang Lingqing away from Beitang Mo with the aid of Li Xuanji.


    After Beitang Mo called for the two Patriarchs, he had been waiting at the gate to see Long Chen and Li Xuanji die, but it was out of his expectations when even both of the Patriarchs lost to her. Beitang Mo felt his pride break to pieces. The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch was his role model, and the man he looked up to had not only lost, he had even conceded to the enemy.


    When he saw Yang Lingqing smiling happily when she was being escorted out by Long Chen, Beitang Mo felt like his chest had been engulfed by a raging fire.


    Long Chen  Beitang Mo had never thought that the insignificant brat before him would be the person who had humiliated him the most!


    <em>I will kill you! I will kill you no matter who the woman protecting you is! </em>Beitang Mo had shed with Long Chen earlier, so he had a good grasp of thetter''s strength despite having held back


    When Long Chen left, everyone sighed in relief. They looked at each other, their faces filled with defeat. Everyone had been holding their breath unconsciously ever since the mysterious girl appeared, so they didnt even think aboutughing at the Northern ck Tortoise family.


    The wedding had been turned into a massive joke. No one had any reason to stay, so they left promptly.


    ***


    Once out of the Northern ck Tortoise family, Long Chen found a random patch of shade and stood there.


    Yang Yuntian and Yang Lingqing were still reeling from the shock, unable to believe that they had managed to escape such a terrible fate. They dared not say anything since the god-like Li Xuanji was still here.


    Whats the Supreme Yin Devil Body? Long Chen could tell that she was very interested in it.


    As Ive said, the Supreme Yin Devil Body and the Nine Absolute Yin Veins are the two strongest Yin-based body constitutions in the world. Even though their initial growth rate is slow, they can unleash their full potential as long as their owner has the necessary resources and cultivation methods. Your cousin  I detected a hint of the Supreme Yin Devil Body underneath her Dark Yin Body. I think she has the potential to grow into having the Supreme Yin Devil Body.


    Li Xuanji came from an extraordinary ce. Since she admired the Supreme Yin Devil Body and called it one of the two strongest Yin-based body constitutions, it meant that the situation was not that simple. Long Chen had a feeling that Li Xuanji somehow wanted to take Yang Lingqing as her disciple.


    It seems that you dont have any idea how strong those body constitutions are, Li Xuanji said inly as she stared at Long Chen. I have the Nine Absolute Yin Veins and I have yet to find another with the same body constitution as me. How strong do you think I am?


    Li Xuanjis strength was naturally beyond his imagination.


    I know you are strong, so strong that no one in this country could rival you. Long Chen nodded.


    Hehe  Li Xuanji smiled and acknowledged it. Since youve cultivated my Soul Swallowing Gaze, go and do what you promised. I will wait for you here.


    Long Chen had seen how strong Li Xuanji was just now. Even though he wanted to kill the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, he dared not go against Li Xuanjis order. He was also afraid of her and wanted to fulfill his promise as soon as possible before running away. Long Chen had a feeling that if he said something wrong and angered her, he would be killed instantly.


    Xiao Qing, wait here. I will be back soon, Long Chen told Yang Lingqing. He then exited Yuanling City and headed towards the Eastern Ling District.


    <em>The second stage of the Soul Swallowing Gaze is Soul Snatching. Let me try it now. </em>Long Chen weaved around the crowd and found a residential area. He had a higher chance of finding a target here.


    Li Xuanji needed the souls of virgin women. Long Chen did his best to find two hundred young women. He was afraid of harming them, so he increased the number from a hundred to two hundred so the strain on their souls would be lessened.


    It was clear that the Soul Swallowing Gaze was a unique technique. Long Chen found his first target washing clothes beside a river. He approached and gently tapped her back. She looked back and blushed out of shyness when she saw the handsome Long Chen.


    Look into my eyes. Long Chens pupils lit up with a dark-green light. The first stage was Seduction, and he was already using it. Seduction allowed him to see a blob of gray mist within the womans body, and he had a feeling that the gray mist had lowered its hostility towards him, as if it could be coaxed out.


    Soul Snatching  The ancient character for the word snatch appeared in his pupils. With his strong control, he saw a part of the gray mist detach from her body, and it was then sucked into his eyes.


    Sess. Long Chen was surprised that he had seeded on the first try.


    But he then saw the womans face be pale. This made him feel slightly ashamed of his actions, but he had no choice. He needed to do it to survive.


    He then proceeded to find more women to do the same to. It took him an hour to finish his mission. This was the first time he had gotten a good grasp on the two useful tricks of the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He had a feeling that he would unlock stronger techniques when he got stronger.


    He returned to Yuanling City and found that everyone was still at the same ce.


    You are slow. Li Xuanjis gaze was cold and fearsome.


    Sorry, it was my first time using it, so I wasn''t very familiar with it. Long Chen lied. If he had taken a hundred whole souls, he could have done it in half an hour.


    Li Xuanji forgave him when she heard his excuse. No matter what, Long Chen was still the one who had freed her.


    She used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and took all of the souls from Long Chen, making them her own.


    After absorbing the souls, Li Xuanji sat cross-legged and started refining them. Just then, Yang Lingqing and Yang Yuntian signaled for Long Chen toe to them. They were seated slightly further away. Yang Lingqing had a serious look in her eyes when she said, Brother, I want to follow her.


    What? Long Chens eyes widened, but he soon realized what had happened. Li Xuanji had most likely proposed to have Yang Lingqing follow her.


    Did she threaten you? Long Chen whispered.


    Li Xuanji had the Nine Absolute Yin Veins while Yang Lingqing had the potential to grow her Dark Yin Body into the Supreme Yin Devil Body. It was clear that Li Xuanji wanted her.


    No, she just asked if I wanted to ept her as my master. She said shes stronger than you by at least ten thousand times. Even though she looks fierce, I know shes a good person! Yang Lingqing looked at Li Xuanji.


    A good person? We all thought Beitang Mo was good at first. Long Chen was still worried. He would rather have Yang Lingqing go back to Baiyang Town and live a peaceful life rather than risk it.


    Its not the same. Yang Lingqing was adamant. She told him seriously, Brother, Ive thought about it. I need to live my own life and cannot be protected by you all the time. This is the opportunity of my life. If I pass on it, I will remain a nobody until the day I die. I want to see the world and the wonders of it. Brother, you have the right to do it, so I should too, right?


    Erm  Long Chen didnt know what to say as he looked at her passionate eyes.


    When you were doing your mission, she told me about the world, about the Dragon Continent, the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and the Three Emperor Territory. This is the first time Ive learned how big the world is  Yang Lingqing had a dreamy look on her face.


    Let her go. Out of Long Chens expectations, her father agreed to it.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Why are the body constitution names always so long?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 228: Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus

    Chapter 228: Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus


    Long Chen noticed Yang Yuntian looking at his daughter with love.


    Ive learned that the weak have no rights at all in this world after going through that. If it wasnt for you and thedy, Xiao Qings life wouldve been ruined. No matter what, I want my daughter to make an attempt to take control of her life. Lingqing, you are my biggest pride!


    Yang Yuntian was on the verge of tears when he said that. He realized that his second uncle had aged so much.


    The man who had once tried to kill him had changed.


    Rx. Even though I am harsh, that doesnt mean I''m always plotting something. If I said I will take care of her, I will. Li Xuanji had finished refining the souls and approached them. Long Chen could visibly tell that she had recovered slightly.


    After spending a bit of time together, Long Chen had an inkling of Li Xuanjis character.


    How will I find you in the future? Long Chen asked. He had silently agreed to let Yang Lingqing go and respect her decision.


    You? Li Xuanji was taken back. Normally, Long Chen would never be able to go to where Yang Lingqing was going, so she would be the one who had to visit him. But Li Xuanji didnt want to hurt Long Chens feelings. If you ever want toe to visit us, you need to find a ce called the Three Emperor Territory. Once there, ask for Li Xuanji from the Nine Yin Absolute Devil Realm. You should be able to locate us.


    Three Emperor Territory, Nine Yin Absolute Devil Realm? Long Chen etched those words into his memories.


    When will you be departing?


    Brother, I want to go back to Baiyang Town to prepare before leaving with my master, Yang Lingqing said.


    Alright.


    Long Chen said nothing else. He had decided to send her off since she was leaving.


    Back in Baiyang Town, Long Chen and Yang Lingqing visited various familiar ces. Yang Lingqing cried a few times when she thought that she would be leaving her hometown and going somewhere far away to chase her dream. She cried in Long Chens arms.


    Long Chen was sad too, but he was happier that she had the chance to go explore the world under the tutge of someone this strong. Three dayster, they gathered at the entrance of the town. It was time for them to leave.


    Last time, everyone was sending off Long Chen to the Lingwu family. This time, they were sending off Yang Lingqing. Once she bade everyone farewell, she approached Long Chen.


    Brother, do you remember that we were born in the same year, same month, and same day? Her eyes were red from crying.


    Sigh  You silly girl. Long Chen felt his heart ache as he looked at the strong girl in front of him. He hugged her beforeughing. Alright, stop crying now. I will make you a promise.


    A promise?


    Long Chen smiled and patted her shoulder. I promise you that one day, I will appear in front of you and I will still be stronger than you. I will protect you once more! All you need to do is call me your brother!


    Alright  Yang Lingqing cried gratefully. She held his hands tightly. I will believe you. I know you can do it. I will wait for you!


    Everyone was touched by what they had heard. Even Li Xuanji felt a ripple in her heart.


    <em>Does he know how hard it will be to keep that promise  Or rather, it would be more urate to say he will never be able to do it. I dont even know if he will be able to leave this country, much less reach the Three Emperor Territory. Too bad I cant use that mysterious Ling Xi Sword </em>


    She suddenly recalled something and looked at Long Chen. Come here, Long Chen.


    Long Chen went over to her.


    The soul within the sword  I think it''s a human soul. Are you looking for a way to restore her physical body? Li Xuanji wasted no time and got to the point.


    Long Chen never expected Li Xuanji to know about Ling Xi. Seeing that she might have a n, he got very excited. You have a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?


    Ling Xi had once said that the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit could restore her physical body.


    You even know about the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit? Li Xuanji was surprised, but she shook her head. I dont have one, but I know where one is located.


    Where? Long Chen was very excited to find out that there was a chance for Ling Xi to restore her physical body.


    There is a Miniverse within your small country. Ive gone in there before and found a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. I think it''s called the Counter Essence Realm.


    The Counter Essence Realm? Long Chen had heard of it before. He tried recalling and suddenly realized where that ce was. He was ecstatic! I know where the Counter Essence Realm is! If I can be an Immortal Guard by winning the Mayors Battle thats soon to be held in Yuanling City, I will get a chance to obtain the fruit!


    He had spilled everything in his moment of excitement.


    Before this, he didnt know how to help Ling Xi. Now he had a clear goal: bing an Immortal Guard!


    <em>I need to go back to the Lingwu family! Plus, they have no way of knowing that Li Xuanji is leaving. They would be wary of her and will never harm me.</em>


    Thank you. Long Chen was grateful for her help.


    Is she that important to you? Li Xuanji had a hint of displeasure in her tone.


    Yes, shes extremely important to me! Long Chen failed to detect her tone and was surprised by Li Xuanjis cold gaze.


    Dont forget that you saw my naked body in the abyss of the Star Devil Prison! Li Xuanjis voice was cold and murderous intent emanated from her body.


    No man had ever seen my body before, and Ive thought about killing you once youd collected the souls, but I will refrain from doing that on behalf of your sister. Li Xuanji returned to normal.


    Long Chen was sweating bullets. If it wasnt for the fact that Yang Lingqing had a chance to cultivate the Absolute Yin Devil Body, he wouldve lost his life due to that incident.


    But he found it somewhatforting to know that even though he mightve died, at least he had seen her beautiful body.


    Time for me to leave. I will give you onest thing. Li Xuanji took out an item. When she did, an intense aroma spread around the area. Long Chen took one sniff and felt his entire body rx, as if he was about to float into the air.


    The aroma attracted everyones attention.


    Long Chen was puzzled. Li Xuanji was just about to kill him but was now giving him something. <em>A womans heart is very hard to read, especially for someone like Li Xuanji.</em>


    This is a Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus.


    Long Chen inspected it. Even though it was glowing white and looked like jade, it was actually a lotus root around half a meter long.


    How should I use it?


    Li Xuanji rolled her eyes. Wandering souls can possess the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus and control it. They can change their appearance into that of a human. This means that it could be used as a vessel for the soul within your sword. But there are two downsides. The first is that it''s a single-use item. Once the soul leaves the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, the item will rot and disappear. The second downside is that the body formed with the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus will not have anybat capabilities. They would be a regr human. She would just be extra luggage for you. Decide for yourself whether you want to use it or not.


    Long Chen received it. His heart started beating rapidly.


    The Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus would allow Ling Xi to be a human again, but she would lose all of her power. If the lotus was damaged, she would be forced back into the Ling Xi Sword.


    Still, it was better than nothing. Worst case scenario, he would use it temporarily before finding the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Thank you! Long Chen was grateful to Li Xuanji.


    The reason I gave you the lotus is because I dont have the confidence that you could obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Long Chen, listen to my advice. If you really love her, let her use the lotus and be a normal person. Find another ce and live your life with her peacefully. The world is massive, and people like you at the corner of the world never have the chance to be at the center of it. Its better if you live a peaceful life in a remote ce instead.


    She was actually looking out for Long Chen.


    She thought Long Chen would heed her advice and give up, but he had the Dragon Jade Pendant. He was the Dragon Warrior. How could he be discouraged so easily?


    Dont you worry. I have my own ns. Long Chen didnt want to ignore her advice openly. He swore that he would fulfill his promise to one day visit Yang Lingqing and Li Xuanji, and he would be stronger than them.


    Then lets never meet again! Li Xuanji couldnt kill him even though he had seen her naked body, but then she thought that they would never meet again, so there was no difference.


    With that, Yang Lingqing left Baiyang Town and set off on a new journey with everyones blessing.


    Long Chen felt a wave of passion in his heart as he watched them leave.


    <em>Once Ling Xi wakes up, I will let her use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, then I can finally  Hehehe  </em>Long Chens smile was obscene. This was his true goal.


    <em>Eastern Azure Dragon family! Wait for me! I will be the one who shall obtain the qualifications to be an Immortal Guard! Counter Essence Realm and Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, wait for me!</em>


    The sun rose, and Long Chen bade farewell to everyone in Baiyang Town four hourster. He rode the Divine Gale Peng and returned to Yuanling City.


    What kind of fate awaited him there?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ooo a vessel for Ling Xi to have a physical body. We all know what''s going to happen then


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 229: Fierce Battle on the Mortal Arena

    Chapter 229: Fierce Battle on the Mortal Arena


    A Divine Gale Peng was much faster than a ck Scaled Dragon Horse. Long Chen soon arrived at Yuanling City. This time, returned as one of the elites of the county.


    He wasnt even at the Divine Core Realm the first time he set foot here. He was nothing but a speck of sand.


    In just an hour, he was back at the Eastern Azure Dragon family.


    Officially, Long Chen had been exiled from the family.


    <em>I want to enter the ruins and yet you want to exile me? Ha, lets see what you can do if I dont budge. </em>


    Long Chen was very brave to do so. Although Li Xuanji was gone, he was still using her presence and name to threaten the Lingwu family. He wanted to be allowed to fight in the ancient ruins. Long Chen would be killed if the Lingwu family found out that Li Xuanji was gone, but he knew that wouldnt happen, as Li Xuanji had made the Patriarchpletely terrified of her.


    Back in the family, several youths were surprised to see him. None of them dared to block Long Chen, they just ran inside while shouting. Soon, everyone within the Eastern Azure Dragon family knew that Long Chen had returned. When he reached the Xuanfeng Pavillion on his own, the others were just behind him. The gloomy Patriarch was at the front of the crowd.


    When he saw that the scary woman beside Long Chen was not there, the Eastern Azure Dragon family Patriarch felt the pressure in his heart loosen up a bit.


    The Patriarch went straight to the main point. Long Chen, where is the senior that came with you that day?


    You mean my master? Shes an insanely strong cultivator who appears and disappears as she wants. How would I know where she is now? Long Chen said in a serious tone. None of them saw through his bluff.


    Master? Everyone took a deep breath. They had suspected that it was a possibility, and now it was confirmed that she was indeed his master.


    The Patriarch, who had once injured Long Chen, was not looking good. Him and the elders kept wondering why the Azure Dragon Halberd had disappeared without any reason, but it seemed that Long Chens Master mightve used a secret technique to achieve that.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd was just a toy for her.


    Youve been exiled from the family, so why are you back? Dongfang Xuanyus tone was harsh and cold.


    She wasnt young, but her brain was still dull. She was the one with the slowest uptake amongst the four of her generation.


    Who said I was exiled? Long Chenughed, and the Azure Dragon Halberd appeared in his hand. In front of everyones shocked gazes, Long Chen twirled it around. To be fair, my master helped me make the Azure Dragon Halberd mine. It belongs to me now and it has recognized me as the owner. The Azure Dragon Halberd is the treasure of the Eastern Azure Dragon family, and now I have it. How am I an outsider?


    Long Chens words spread a huge shockwave amidst the family.


    The Patriarch had a gloomy look on his face. The worst-case scenario hade true for him.


    When the Azure Dragon Halberd did not return, the Patriarch had a feeling that it might be simr to Mo Xiangs case, where the Divine Weapon recognized him as the owner. And now the truth was in front of his very eyes. Even though they did not want to recognize it, they had no choice but to believe it.


    Some of the high ranked family members felt like their assumptions had been confirmed after Long Chen told them Li Xuanji had helped him control the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    A cultivator would not take care of a strangers needs if they werent master and disciple.


    Now the only way to take the Azure Dragon Halberd back was to kill Long Chen, but since he was under Li Xuanjis protection, the entire Lingwu family might be wiped out if they did.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon family had no choice but to look at the bigger picture.


    Long Chen wasughing internally. If they knew the truth, they wouldve died from shock. The reason his trick had worked was because he was bold enough and smart enough to make the lie believable, to the point that all of the elders believed him.


    They were ring at Long Chen when they saw him put the Azure Dragon Halberd back in Universe Pouch, especially Dongfang Tianchen. Thetter clenched his fists but dared not move, his eyes filled with killing intent.


    The treasure of the Azure Dragon family was now in Long Chens hands.


    Long Chen, just get straight to the point. Why are you here? the Patriarch suddenly asked. He already knew that Long Chen had an ulterior motive foring here.


    I want to represent the family to go to the ruins.


    Impossible! Dongfang Xuanyu cried out, her face anxious.


    There were only two spots given to the Azure Dragon family. One would belong to Dongfang Tianchen, while the other would either belong to Dongfang Tianxing or Dongfang Tianxuan. Even though Long Chen had the Azure Dragon Halberd, he was powerless against the geniuses from Yuandi City and the Dawn Trading Alliance. He would be wasting their chances!


    The only reason they hadnt killed Long Chen was not because he was strong, but because he had Li Xuanji protecting him.


    Why not? Long Chen chuckled.


    Thinking that Li Xuanji coulde back at any moment, Dongfang Xuanyu had no choice but to lower her voice and persuade Long Chen. The one remaining spot will belong to either Tianxuan or Tianxing. The battle in the ancient ruins will determine who gets to rule for the next twenty years, and this concerns the entire Lingwu family. We cannot make such a change just because of your whims. Long Chen, this concerns the lives of the twenty-thousand Lingwu family members!


    I dont think you understand. Do you mean that as long as Im strong enough, I will be allowed to go? I can just defeat both Dongfang Tianxuan and Dongfang Tianxing.


    You? Dongfang Tianyu didnt know what to say and looked at her father. The Patriarch contemted it. If you are stronger than Tianxuan and Tianxing, then you will pass. But you have to give it your all to help the Lingwu family obtain the inheritance.


    To be fair, Dongfang Tianxing had been defeated by Long Chen before. Even though he had improved a lot in a month, he was still not Long Chens opponent. On the other hand, Dongfang Tianxuan, who had cultivated an Earth-tier martial technique, was likely stronger than Long Chen.


    If thats the case, then lets go to the Mortal Arena. Old man, you were the one who said that I could represent the family to enter the ancient ruins as long as I defeated them! Long Chen smiled and looked at both Dongfang TIanxuan and Dongfang Tianxing. Both of them clenched their fists while ring at Long Chen. They were just one step away from losing their rationality.


    Long Chen remembered how Dongfang Xuanxiao, Xuan Ming, himself, and Mo Xiang had struggled bitterly against the Patriarch. But now Long Chen was capable of not only trespassing into Lingwu family territory, he could even ckmail them with just a few words. He felt liberated. One couldnt treat another poorly, as that person might end up bing stronger.


    Fine, the Mortal Arena it is! Grandfather, let me see how strong he is. To think that he would dare to talk shit about our family! Dongfang Tianxuan thought Long Chen was targeting her and felt angry.


    Dongfang Tianxing was indeed weaker than her, so she was the most likely candidate to be chosen to fight in the ancient ruins. And Long Chen was messing up her n, so it was natural that she would get angry.


    Since the conditions had been set, everyone made their way towards the Mortal Arena.


    Tianxuan, fight with all your strength, but dont kill him. We cannot kill him now. The Patriarchs voice was hoarse and his face was filled with resignation.


    Dongfang Tianxuan swore to herself that she would beat up Long Chen after seeing how her grandfather, whom she idolized a lot, was resigned to this.


    <em>Long Chen is a disgrace for using a womans strength to show off. Hes a useless man!</em>


    Everyone arrived at the Mortal Arena. Long Chen said nothing and went up on stage before taunting both Dongfang Tianxing and Dongfang Tianxuan. Both of you cane up together so that we dont waste time.


    What did you say? Dongfang Tianxuans face flushed red with anger. She took Long Chen lightly, but she had never thought he would do the same.


    Tianxuan, agree to it. Dont let this chance slip by. The Patriarchs voice came from beside her. Dongfang Tianxuan knew that the Patriarch was asking both of them to fight Long Chen together as insurance. Long Chen was the one who had proposed it, not the family, so there was nothing he could do if he lost.


    Dongfang Tianxing and Dongfang Tianxuan looked at each other before walking up the stage under the hopeful gazes of the family.


    Dongfang Tianxing, do you remember how you lost to mest time we were here?


    Dongfang Tianxings face was red with anger. It was indeed thergest regret of his life.


    Dont get too happy. I will take revenge for that day! Dongfang TIanxing snarled.


    Idiot, Long Chen responded.


    Dongfang Tianxing and Dongfang Tianxuan separated and got on either side of Long Chen.


    Brat, use your Beast Soul Transformation! Dongfang Tianxing knew that Long Chen needed to transform to reach the peak of his strength.


    Transform? Dont make meugh. I dont have to transform to beat you!


    He was at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, the same as them, so there was no need to transform.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC''s bluffing ability is top-notch


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 230: Shattered Skies

    Chapter 230: Shattered Skies


    What? Both Dongfang Tianxing and Dongfang Tianxuan were offended when Long Chen underestimated them. However, they knew that it was important for them to work together; their pride was not the priority here. If Long Chen was stupid enough to antagonize them, they were more than happy to fall for his taunt.


    You asked for it! We wont take responsibility if you lose! Dongfang Tianxing turned serious, while Dongfang Tianxuan felt nothing but disgust when she looked at Long Chen.


    Go! she roared, and Dongfang Tianxing followed her order. Both of them moved at the same time, each using an advanced ck-tier martial technique.


    I dont have time to waste on you guys. Long Chen smiled before his feet moved rapidly.


    Nine Dragon shes!


    Long Chen easily escaped their encirclement, causing their attacks to miss himpletely.


    How can Long Chen move so fast? Is he really at the Heavenly Core Realm? They were just as surprised as the onlookers when they saw how fast Long Chen had moved. Long Chen had advanced two cultivation levels in just one month, putting him at the Heavenly Core Realm. What kind of a genius was he?


    But he was toozy to be bothered by their reactions. After escaping the encirclement, he ran towards Dongfang Tianxing and brandished the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Dongfang Tianxing, time for you to taste this technique again! Long Chen was extremely fast. He left afterimages as he charged towards Dongfang Tianxing. Even Dongfang Tianxuan could not keep up!


    <em>Hes too fast! </em>Dongfang Tianxing felt chills run up his spine. Long Chen was like an arrow shot out of a bow, aimed directly at him. Dongfang Tianxing had a feeling that he could not dodge the attack.


    Tianxuan, save me! At the critical moment, he called for help before making seals with his hands. His Qi condensed and swirled around him, his hair billowing in the wind. If Dongfang Tianxing hadnt been so scared, he wouldve looked cool.


    Comet Dragon Seal! Dongfang Tianxingunched his attack at Long Chen. When he did, an illusory dragon charged towards Long Chen, the force hidden within it surprising everyone. It seemed Dongfang Tianxing had improved as well.


    But to Long Chen, the dragon was like a passing fart.


    Long Chen swung the Azure Dragon Halberd around his body, and an illusion slowly formed. Split Yellow River was a simple swing of the halberd, while Shattered Skies was numerous thrusts that perforated the heavens!


    Azure Dragon Technique, Shattered Skies!


    The wind howled and a horrible screeching sound exploded in the air. Numerous sparks flew out as Long Chen thrust the Azure Dragon Halberd forward numerous times. His stabs were so fast that they coalesced into a solid, azure dragon. The dragons sharp horn contained immense energy that was concentrated at the tip. It was an unbreakable thrust aimed straight at Dongfang Tianxing.


    Long Chen had not used his Dragon Soul Transformation, so this was not Shattered Skies'' true strength, but it was more than enough to deal with Dongfang Tianxing.


    Plus, Long Chen had more Qi than him and was even using an intermediate Earth-tier Divine Weapon.


    In front of everyones shocked gazes, the Comet Dragon Seal was shattered into oblivion. If Long Chens powerful strike hit Dongfang Tianxing, he would die instantly.


    Everyone was certain that Dongfang Tianxing would die, including Dongfang Tianxuan.


    Dongfang Tianxuans ultimate technique was slowly closing in on Long Chen. If Long Chen hit Dongfang Tianxing, he would get hit by Dongfang Tianxuans attack.


    Tianxing! Dongfang Xuanyu shouted and cried when she saw that her son was going to die! She could not suppress her killing intent and ran towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen had no intention of killing Dongfang Tianxing.


    <em>Li Xuanji is gone, and while I can ckmail them, they will retaliate if I overdo it. I need to enter the ancient ruins, so I must not antagonize them too much. </em>Long Chen steered his attack sideways to avoid Dongfang Tianxing, but in the process, he used his Destructive Mountain Kick to pulverize Dongfang Tianxings skull, caving in his face in the process.


    When Dongfang Tianxing flew backwards from the impact andnded in Dongfang Xuanyus embrace, his face was burning and his vision was swimming. He cried from the pain.


    It was too painful.


    No one managed to react to what had happened.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch released his clenched fists when he saw that Dongfang Tianxing was safe. If Long Chen had not held back, he wouldve intercepted the attack and saved Dongfang Tianxing. He was the Patriarchs grandson after all.


    Only Dongfang Tianxuan was left. All of them looked at her anxiously while Dongfang Xuanyu was busy consoling and treating her son. Dongfang Tianxings face was heavily bruised, and Dongfang Xuanyus heart was shattered upon seeing her son so heavily injured. She hated Long Chen even more now.


    <em>Long Chen, that bastard! Fucking mongrel! Once your master is gone, I will tear you apart! Only then will I be satisfied! </em>Dongfang Xuanyus heart was filled with the mes of vengeance.


    But only Dongfang Tianxuan could beat up Long Chen at this point.


    Still, they had some confidence in Dongfang Tianxuan. That was because she had made some progress with her cultivation a few days ago, much to the Eastern Azure Dragon familys delight.


    Dongfang Tianxuan and Long Chen were the only ones left.


    After defeating Dongfang Tianxing and using the Nine Dragon shes to avoid Dongfang Tianxuans attack, he was now ready to face her head-on.


    Long Chen still remembered how Dongfang Tianxuan had bullied Yin Mengyao due to her strength.


    Youngdy, I see that youve reached the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Long Chen chuckled without a hint of fear.


    Dongfang Tianxuan scoffed and retorted, You know that, yet you still dare to talk shit in front of me? Do you think youre some kind of hotshot after defeating Tianxing?


    She had indeed reached the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Excluding Mo Xiang, there were only five people in their age group who had reached the mid Heavenly Core Realm, and she was one of them now. She was indeed very excellent.


    In terms of Qi, she was stronger than Long Chen if he did not use the Dragon Soul Transformation. Still, Long Chens advantage was the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd contained immense power thanks to the azure dragon within it. He could use the Qi from the halberd to increase his fighting power explosively, making his attacks numerous times more powerful. The multiplier from the attack was almost as strong as Long Chens Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Mid Heavenly Core realm? Dongfang Tianxuan, no matter how strong you are, you are just a weakdy in my eyes. Your wrists and legs are too frail. How could you ever beat me? Sure, you have a bigger chest and a fatter butt than me, but that wont help you. Long Chen taunted her while using the Nine Dragon shes.


    His crude remarks made everyone flushed from anger. All of them were cursing Long Chen, while Dongfang Tianxuans face was red from anger. Killing intent spilled forth from her.


    Die, Long Chen! Earth-tier martial technique, Piercing Wind Dragon!


    She used her strongest technique after falling for his taunt. She was so talented that the power of her Piercing Wind Dragon could match Dongfang Xuanyu when she used the same technique.


    The powerful attack lit everyones hope up! An Earth-tier martial technique from someone at the mid Heavenly Core Realm was probably enough to defeat Long Chen at the initial Heavenly Core Realm.


    Within the wild winds, the immense dragon illusion made Long Chen squint.


    Not bad, but its not as strong as my Earth-tier martial technique  Long Chen sighed and waved the Azure Dragon Halberd again, spinning it wildly around his body before he jumped into the air. Facing the Piercing Wind Dragon, he soared downwards like a meteor, and the Azure Dragon Halberd transformed into a divine dragon in his arms.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Split Yellow River and Shattered Skies!


    A sh and a thrust. The techniques were meant to be used consecutively. When used as they were intended, their resulting destructive force was much stronger than when using them individually.


    Long Chen used Split Yellow River to chop the Piercing Wind Dragon in half, much to everyones dismay. Shattered Skies then stabbed towards the pale Dongfang Tianxuan, who dodged as best as she could.


    Even though she was on the verge of death, Dongfang Tianxuan didnt know she had lost. If Long Chen had not held back, she would''ve been dead already.


    Tianxuan! Dongfang Xuanyun, the only one who had a friendly rtionship with Dongfang Xuanxiao, cried out anxiously.


    Long Chen would never kill Dongfang Tianxuan. His grudge with her was not very deep, and it was thanks to Dongfang Xuanyuns help that he had gotten his hands on the Sky Soul Fruit.


    Dongfang Tianxuan was worn out and gave up on fighting. She felt her spine tingle when she was locked in a battle where her life was on the line.


    At the same time, the deadly presence disappeared. She knew Long Chen had shown her mercy. She sighed in relief before feeling a peculiar sensation on her chest.


    The strange sensation made her body tingle. When she opened her eyes, she saw Long Chen smiling mischievously in front of her.


    Long Chen was fondling her breasts! He fondled her and then patted them before saying with satisfaction, Not bad, but theres still room to grow.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Exquisite fight, but ngl that was a bit weird


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 231: Fate

    Chapter 231: Fate


    Dongfang Tianxuan was surprised. She had never experienced such a sensation before.


    The other members of the Eastern Azure Dragon family had no idea what Long Chen had done to her. Long Chen had intentionally blocked the view with his own body and was swift with his actions, so none of them realized what had happened.


    No one in their right mind would ever expect that he would do something so shameful in public.


    All Long Chen wanted to do was to punish the haughty girl in Yin Mengyaos stead. Since Dongfang Tianxuan had tried to shame Yin Mengyao in the past, he was doing it to take revenge for Yin Mengyao.


    Pervert  Dongfang Tianxuan pointed at him, her face flushed red from embarrassment. She didnt know what to do to Long Chen. Her heart was filled with murderous intent when he did that to her, but she couldnt do anything.


    Long Chen chuckled and turned around, ignoring herpletely. He looked at the Patriarch. Ive defeated both of them. Im sure you agree that Im strong enough to enter the ruins, right?


    The family members looked at the Patriarch. Even though they didnt want it, a promise was a promise. Long Chen had won, and they could not go back on their word.


    The Patriarch gritted his teeth. Will you promise me that you will cooperate with everyone else within the ancient ruins to obtain the inheritance?


    Of course. I would be an idiot to not go all out to obtain such a treasure. Long Chen smiled.


    Dont forget what youve promised! In one month, the Ninth Prince from the Biyang Imperial Capital wille to Yuanling City. The ancient ruins will be opened up then!


    Thank you, Patriarch. Long Chenughed and was about to return when he suddenly saw Dongfang Tianxuan staring at him.


    <em>Did she fall for me? </em>Long Chen was secretly surprised.


    Long Chen, you will die for your actions today  Dongfang Tianxuan whispered.


    Long Chen realized he was just thinking too much.


    He approached her without a care. Whether I die or not, we have yet to find out, but your body has been branded by me. You cant get into another rtionship until I say so.


    Despicable. Dongfang Tianxuan knew Long Chen was just taunting her, but she did not have the power to fight back.


    Oh, where is Yin Mengyao? How is she doing? Part of the reason Long Chen had returned to the Eastern Azure Dragon family was to check on her.


    Her? Mo Xiang probably took her back to the Silver family, Dongfang Tianxuan answered truthfully.


    Mo Xiang returned to the Lingwu family? Long Chen was under the assumption that Mo Xiang had escaped.


    He wanted to enter the ancient ruins, just like you.


    Based on what Dongfang Tianxuan said, Long Chen knew that both Mo Xiang and Yin Mengyao were fine, so he sighed in relief.


    <em>Baiyang Town should be fine. With the threat of Li Xuanji lurking around, the Lingwu family will still protect the town. Yin Mengyao has returned to the Silver family, so she would be safe. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming should be starting their lives all over again somewhere, this time together.</em>


    The only problem he had now was Xiao Xi.


    <em>Xiao Xi, I will make sure you survive. </em>Long Chen swore to himself and then made his way over to the Silver family. He had never thought that Mo Xiang would greet him the moment he arrived.


    Brother, you are alive! Mo Xiang was excited.


    I heard that you brought a mysterious girl to the ck Tortoise Pavilion and shook things up before disappearing. I never thought you would survive after falling down into the abyss of the Star Devil Prison! Mo Xiang was extremely joyous to see Long Chen alive.


    As your elder brother, I have to be much more monstrous than you. An insignificant ce like the Star Devil Prison could never kill me! Long Chen chuckled.


    Other than Ling Xi, everything else had more or less been settled.


    Mo XIang was happy from the bottom of his heart to see that Long Chen was alive and had be much stronger. Mo Xiang had decided to treat Long Chen as his brother the moment Long Chen risked his life to enter the Azure Dragon Star to rescue him from that deste ce.


    If their meeting in Baiyang Town was a coincidence, then their current situation was nothing less of fate.


    I just caught wind that you returned to the Lingwu family and was about to go greet you. Did the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch try to kill you? Mo Xiang was worried.


    You think he would dare to do so?


    He didn''t? Mo Xiang was shocked. He recalled how their group had almost died at the Star Devil Prison due to the Patriarch. How had Long Chen entered the Eastern Azure Dragon family on his own and emerged unscathed?


    Do you remember the mysterious woman that followed me to the ck Tortoise Pavilion? The Patriarch fears her, so he will not do anything to me. Also, I defeated Dongfang Tianxuan to enter the ancient ruins. Xiang, I heard that you wanted to enter the ancient ruins too?


    Dongfang Tianxuan? I heard that she was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Brother, did you really defeat someone at the mid Heavenly Core Realm? And you are going to the ancient ruins too? Mo Xiang was shocked at the news.


    Ive reached the Heavenly Core Realm.


    Even Mo Xiang was taken aback by what he had just heard. It took him a long time to react and sigh at the news. You are much more of a monstrous genius than me. It took me half a year to advance from the initial Heavenly Core Realm to the mid Heavenly Core Realm, and now youve caught up to me. Looks like you will surpass me soon.


    Nonsense. The path of cultivation gets increasingly difficult in thetter stages. Theres no way I will breeze through it, Long Chen said inly.


    Mo Xiang was a little bit surprised to see how mature Long Chen was.


    When they met for the first time in Baiyang Town, Long Chen was nothing but a useless bum. But now he had be his sworn brother, someone who was mature and rational, who would kill people without hesitation to protect his family.


    Xiang, you are my brother now. We will enter the ruins in a month and fight together. I want to see if theres anyone who can beat us when we work together that day. Long Chen patted Mo Xiangs shoulder and looked at the passionate youth. Long Chen suddenly felt like his future was grand.


    Mo Xiang scratched his head and said in an unnatural way, Yes! We are sworn brothers!


    Mo Xiang had thought that things were progressing too fast. The time between meeting each other and bing sworn brothers was too short, but he still felt like it was natural. He swore to himself that he would fight to the death with Long Chen the moment he remembered how Long Chen had risked everything to rescue him.


    Lets go grab something to eat. We should also have some wine together, shouldnt we? Long Chen had familiarized himself with the streets at a young age, so he knew what he had to do to call himself a sworn brother to Mo Xiang.


    It was the real deal this time.


    Mo Xiang was a bit bashful, so he just listened to Long Chens suggestion despite being much more powerful.


    Long Chen was very happy about taking Mo Xiang as his sworn brother. Even though Mo Xiang was a genius, he was not snobbish. In fact, Long Chen looked more like the bad guypared to Mo Xiang.


    <em>Shit, why is his smile so innocent? It feels like Im kidnapping a child rather than taking him for a drink.</em>


    While walking on the streets, Long Chen asked Mo Xiang about Yin Mengyao. Once he knew that Yin Mengyao was living happily with the Silver family, he let go of the stone in his heart. All he needed to do was cultivate and be an Immortal Guard after obtaining the inheritance.


    But Long Chen had new worries after learning that Mo Xiang was entering the ruins too. Still, he had a bit of time to think about it.


    Once out of Lingwu City, they headed to the Eastern Ling District and found a restaurant to eat in. He entered with Mo Xiang, and everyone recognized them as the prodigies of the Lingwu family. The restaurant treated them with utmost respect and found them a spot near the window. The establishment was decorated with a timeless yet elegant theme.


    Both of them needed a bit of time before they could talkfortably, as the time they had spent together before this was quite short.


    Once they ordered, Long Chens behavior returned back to when he was a bum drinking in different bars. Even though there were only two of them, the atmosphere was lively. Mo Xiang keptughing and Long Chen kept talking. They finally got close after eating and drinking together.


    Wait, Xiang, why do you want to go to the ancient ruins? Long Chen asked after finally remembering the question.


    I actually wanted to escape after you gave us the chance to do so, but the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch promised me that I could keep the Heavenly Wolf Dagger if I did one thing for him. Mo Xiang was a bit tipsy after drinking, his pale face flushed.


    You mean he wants you to enter the ruins too?


    Yeah. He probably wouldnt have asked me to do so if I had not reached thete Heavenly Core Realm. Ive heard rumors that the Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce will be sending geniuses at thete Heavenly Core Realm. The Lingwu family doesnt have any youths at thete Heavenly Core Realm, so the Patriarchs have been anxious. To be honest, it was out of their expectations for the Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce to have youths at thete Heavenly Core Realm. Before this, they only had youths at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, so none of them couldpete against the Lingwu family.


    Oh. I see. Long Chen nodded. He needed to obtain the inheritance and be an Immortal Guard, so the ruins had been upying his thoughts. He had been feeling slightly anxious ever since he heard that Mo Xiang would enter the ruins, but it seemed there was no need to. As long as one of them obtained the inheritance, they wouldplete the mission given to them by the Lingwu family.


    Brother, do you want the inheritance? Mo Xiang was tipsy but not stupid.


    Yes, I need it. Its important to me.


    Oh, in that case, I will just give it to you. Im stronger than you after all.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Mc is a pervert


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 232: Deep Enmity

    Chapter 232: Deep Enmity


    To be honest, Long Chen was moved when he heard that Mo Xiang would let him have the ancient ruins'' inheritance without hesitation.


    He wasnt wrong in his judgment of this guy.


    Long Chen remembered what his grandfather had once said, to be certain of whether his friends heart was filled with passion or poison. What Long Chen saw beneath Mo Xiangs calm exterior was passion! Xiang, youre so nice to me, but I cannot take everything. If we seed in the end, everything other than the inheritance is yours! he said generously.


    Hehe, alright. Well see when we arrive. If I need it, I will be honest. However, its not going to be easy to win even if we work together, Mo Xiang said in a serious tone.


    Why? Long Chen asked.


    The strongest contender from the Beast Soul Pce is Yan Danqing. Ive met him once. Hes like me, a Beast Warrior. His ck-tier Primary Beast Soul is the Category Nine ck-tier Peak Essence Beast, which makes him a formidable cultivator. The head of the Beast Soul Pce, whom they call Emperor Yuan, possesses the same Beast Soul. Plus, hes at thete Heavenly Core Realm, so hell be a tough opponent to beat.


    Youre a Beast Warrior? Long Chen almost sprayed the good wine in his mouth. He was Mo Xiangs big brother, yet he didnt even know this.


    Long Chen realized that Mo Xiang had never used the Beast Soul Transformation in front of him, and he had not brought up the topic before.


    You didnt know? Mo Xiang was surprised, but he quickly figured it out. The only time Ive fought in front of you was the time your stepfather and I fought the Azure Dragon Patriarch. But because no one has helped me, I only had a Category Two ck-tier beast, the Moon Devouring Wolf, as my Primary Beast Soul.


    At my current cultivation level, the Beast Soul Transformation no longer boosts my strength. That is why Im the same as a regr warrior now. Only when I reach the Heavenly River Realm can I find a higher level Beast Soul.


    This was a huge discovery for Long Chen. It was no wonder no one had said anything about Mo Xiang being a Beast Warrior, and it exined why he never used his Beast Warrior abilities.


    Long Chen had encountered a Moon Devouring Wolf when he first met Ling Xi, but he was no match for it at the time. Big Brother, to be honest, I feel like I am almost at the Heavenly River Realm. There arent any powerful demonic beasts near Yuanling City, so I decided to try my luck at the ancient ruins, said Mo Xiang solemnly.


    What? Long Chen was shocked once again. This time, he was truly speechless because Mo Xiang was a wicked talent. He was only fifteen, and he was already close to the Heavenly River Realm?


    When would he ever catch up and be a true big brother?


    Thats a great idea. Lets search for one when we arrive at the ancient ruins. With such a powerful cultivator by his side, Long Chens confidence was boosted.


    Actually, my strength is nothing in Biyang Imperial City, Mo Xiang suddenly said with some despair in his eyes.


    Long Chen caught on that he might have a worry guing him. He recalled how Mo Xiang once told him that his family had been killed.


    This area of the restaurant was quite noisy with several tables of rich youths having fun and ying drinking games. It was a busy ce, but there werent any masters in the building.


    Long Chen looked around. When he felt safe, he leaned over to Mo Xiangs ear and asked seriously, Xiang, you seem familiar with the Biyang Imperial Capital. You havent lived there, have you?


    Mo Xiang didnt feel the need to hide it from Long Chen. He gritted his teeth, and a hint of killing intent shed in his clear eyes. Big Brother, Ill tell you the truth. The Mo family used to be one of the four great families of the Biyang Imperial Capital, but the whole family has died. I was the only one who escaped. I was only six at the time.


    Mo Xiang spoke calmly, but Long Chen could sense the years of blood, sweat, and tears hidden underneath his facade.


    His family had been annihted, and he was only a six-year-old child left all alone to survive in the world. Although Mo Xiang was still very innocent, Long Chen knew that his brother had suffered through more hardship than himself.


    For the first time, Long Chens heart ached for his little brother. Who did it? Long Chen had nothing to say tofort him, but even if he didnt say it aloud, he privately promised himself that if Mo Xiang decided to avenge his family one day, he would be by his side.


    Lets not talk about that. I am no match for them. If I want revenge, I need at least forty years. Mo Xiang looked helpless, bitterness welling up in his eyes.


    Nonsense. Just tell me who did it, that is all. Long Chen stared straight at him coldly.


    The royal family, Mo Xiang answered helplessly.


    Long Chenughed and returned to his seat, looking at him teasingly. So, its just the royal family? Thats no problem. Lighten up for your big brother. Its just forty years, you say? Dont we have forty years to spare? Theyll die sooner orter.


    If anyone heard him, they wouldugh until their teeth fell out, but Mo Xiang didnt think that way. He stared at Long Chen in a daze, touched. He guessed that his unwillingness to admit defeat was why Long Chen had grown so much in just half a year! Thank you for the lesson, Big Brother! I will remember it! Come, cheers to you!


    Mo Xiang blushed, and they bumped their bowls of wine together.


    After Mo Xiangs confession, they grew even closer.


    That reminds me. The Ninth Prince of the royal family will be here in a month. Will that be dangerous? Long Chen said suddenly.


    I dont think so. The Ninth Prince doesnt usually appear in public, and I was very young at the time. Not many people knew me. Plus, the Mo family has been wiped out, so who would expect me to be a survivor? he said.


    Long Chen was relieved.


    Then they discussed the specifics of the ancient ruins, but Long Chen suddenly felt a few burning res directed at himself. He turned and saw that the res wereing from the Lingwu prodigies.


    He spotted Beitang Mo, Dongfang Tianxuan, and Dongfang Tianchen, along with a few young prodigies that he didnt recognize. This is the Lingwu family contingent for the ancient ruins event, Mo Xiang said mildly. It was clear that he didnt care about them very much.


    There were eight of them, so with Long Chen and Mo Xiang, there were ten representatives in total.


    What surprised Long Chen was that Dongfang Tianxuan, whom he had disqualified, was with the group. He guessed that one of the slots had been given to her because she had attained the mid Heavenly Core Realm.


    That tall, muscr guy is the Southern Vermilion Bird familys Nangong Huang, while that smaller girl is the Western White Tiger familys Ximen Xiaodie. Adding Dongfang Tianxuan, Beitang Mo, and Dongfang Tianchen, the five of them are considered the Lingwu familys most powerful youths, exined Mo Xiang.


    But its possible that the Dawn Trading Alliance and Yuandi City havete Heavenly Core Realm cultivators, right? remarked Long Chen.


    For the Dawn Trading Alliance, its only rumors, but Yuandi City definitely has them. And its definitely Yan Danqing, the guy with the Peak Essence Beast Soul. He is a true Beast Warrior, and no one in the four inner families is a match for him. Its been a long time since Yuandi City has had a prodigy like him. That was why when the Azure Dragon Patriarch saw that I attained thete Heavenly Core Realm, he wanted me in exchange for the Heavenly Wolf Dagger.


    If I hadnt taken the offer, I think Sister Mengyao and my other friends in the Silver family wouldve been in trouble because of me. Anyway, the ancient ruins will be a good ce to find an Earth-tier Beast Soul, said Mo Xiang.


    When Long Chen looked at them, they were also eyeing himself and Mo Xiang, the two legendary prodigies.


    The Lingwu family used to be their territory, but for the past few days, the duo had be more well-known than them.


    Mo Xiang was at thete Heavenly Core Realm and was definitely the Lingwu familys most powerful youth. As for Long Chen, he had only just attained the Heavenly Core Realm, but the Azure Dragon Halberd had recognized him as its master, and he was strong enough to defeat Dongfang Tianxuan in battle. This meant that he was at least as strong as Beitang Mo.


    There was nothing but hostility between them. Plus, Long Chen had embarrassed Beitang Mo greatly. When he saw Long Chen, Beitang Mo was about to attack, but Nangong Huang pulled him back and whispered, Mo, do not be rash. This is not the time to fight. There will be many chances when we enter the ancient ruins.


    The muscr guy was aposed person and held a high status among them. After he stopped Beitang Mo, he led the group upstairs. From there, they could see Long Chen through the barrier.


    There was one person who was privately even more emotional when she saw him, and that was Dongfang Tianxuan. Till now, she refused to believe that what had happened was real.


    Had he really defeated her?


    Every time she thought about it, Dongfang Tianxuan had a strange feeling. On the one hand, she couldnt wait to kill him. On the other hand, she felt a little helpless. Third Sister. Dongfang Tianchen called her name gently, and she turned towards him. Looking at her usually quiet brother, she asked, Big Brother, what is it?


    You must hate him, right? Ill kill him. What do you think? In the ancient ruins.


    Why? Doesnt Grandfather want him to help fight for the inheritance? she asked, puzzled. She suddenly felt like her eldest brother, who was usually calm and cautious, was acting strangely.


    I can get the inheritance myself, Dongfang Tianchen said confidently.


    Then his eyes shone coldly. Do you know? Because of the fight over the right to rule, the Vermilion Bird Patriarch and the others have exhausted half a years worth of Qi to nt Qi seeds in Nangong Huang and the others. Thats why they can use the Vermilion Bird Fan, the White Tiger de, and the ck Tortoise Axe. And for me, all I can do is watch. So, dont you think I should kill him to take back the Azure Dragon Halberd that rightfully belongs to me?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I knew they wouldn''t just let it go.


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 233: Madness in the Heart

    Chapter 233: Madness in the Heart


    Dongfang Tianxuan saw madness in the depths of the mans calm gaze.


    She could understand the feeling of seeing something belonging to you in someone elses hands. Dongfang Tianchen wasnt just ufortablehe was embarrassed to not have an Earth-tier Divine Weapon in the presence of Beitang Mo and the rest.


    That was why he had spoken little throughout the journey.


    After they sat down, they started to discuss the ancient ruins. The ones who hated Long Chen asionally nced at him. One of them was Beitang Mo.


    The hatred he felt was even more intense than Dongfang Tianchens. Long Chen had made him lose face and caused him to lose Yang Lingqing. It was like he had stolen something right out of the palm of his hand. Beitang Mo had never experienced bullying and humiliation of this level in his life!


    Beitang Mo and the others shot Long Chen venomous res, but the subject of their hatred felt nothing. He continued chatting away with Mo Xiang, and they slowly grew much more familiar with each other. I think they hate you to bone, remarked Mo Xiang.


    How am I to me if Im just too handsome? Is that why I stole away the people they liked? Long Chen said shamelessly.


    That was when they suddenly heard an argument nearby. Long Chen frowned and saw that the youths sitting at the two tables next to him had erupted in a fight after they had too much to drink. They were even starting to get physical inside the restaurant. Chaos erupted instantly with bowls and tes flying everywhere, some even flying in Long Chens direction.


    It was an unlucky incident for them, and Long Chen didnt want to intervene, intending to leave immediately. Unexpectedly, Beitang Mo had also seen the fight break out downstairs and cocked an eyebrow. Then he threw the wine jug down at the source of the noise!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a loud crash, and the jug shattered at the center of the crowd. Due to the strength of the throw, the broken pieces of the jug and good wine flew in all directions. A few people were hurt by this and screamed. Shut up! This ce is under the jurisdiction of the Lingwu family, everyone get the fuck out! Beitang Mo red daggers at everyone, scaring the fighting folk into cowards who dared not make a sound. The entire county belonged to the Lingwu family, so who would dare anger them?


    Long Chen knew that Beitang Mo was flexing his authority in an attempt to intimidate him. Under Beitang Mos deliberate control, some of the flying fragments had flown in Long Chens direction. If he hadnt defended himself, he could have been injured by the fast-flying shards!


    Beitang Mo was chuckling coldly to himself. He had done this extremely subtly, and if other people started questioning him, he could definitely say it wasnt on purpose.


    However, he had forgotten how emboldened Long Chen had been in recent times.


    Think you can use such lowly tactics on me? Long Chen smirked. He did not let this matter slide. Under everyones watch, he gripped the wooden table next to him, which was covered with tes of food, and flexed his muscles. Therge, heavy table immediately flew upwards, crashing directly in Beitang Mos direction!


    <em>ng! ng! ng!</em>


    Countless tes, bowls, and food fell on the ground. Bits of food were sent flying towards Beitang Mo and his group.


    The moment food left its te, it could be considered garbage. Therefore, a whole pile of garbagended on their heads, and despite their talent, they ended up looking pathetic. This was especially so for a person like Dongfang Tianxuan, who screamed even though only a little sauce hadnded on her clothes.


    The aristocratic gentlemen anddies scattered like a chaotic nest of ants. After dodging the garbage with great difficulty, they red at Long Chen angrily. With Beitang Mo at the lead, a few of them were already rushing downstairs. Long Chen, what the hell are you doing? Are you looking for death? Beitang Mo seemed to be the angriest of them all, but in reality, the stone-faced Dongfang Tianchen was burning with killing intent inside. There was a piece of bok choy stuck to his neck, but unfortunately, he didnt notice it.


    Whos looking for death? Long Chen gestured nonchntly, then he looked at Beitang Mo. Are you trying to y your childish games with me? That jug you threw just nowthat was undoubtedly directed at me. You served me wine, so I served you some dishes. Isnt that how its meant to be? And whats up with your face? Its so red! Is it a monkeys butt? Long Chen let out a guffaw with no reservations.


    Long Chen, dont you dare overstep the boundaries now. Do you really think we wouldnt dare to touch you? Dongfang Tianxuan red at him angrily.


    If you want to touch my big brother, youll have to go through me first! Mo Xiang spoke for the first time, now standing by Long Chens side. Although he looked calm, he would not hold back if he fought.


    Even though Beitang Mo had the ck Tortoise Axe, he wasnt confident that he could defeat Mo Xiang. The rest were not either. They knew that Mo Xiang and Long Chen shared some history, and Long Chen even rescued him from the Star Devil Prison. It made sense that Mo Xiang was so close to him.


    <em>Does this mean that we truly cant kill this bastard? </em>Dongfang Tianxuan despaired. She had never expected that these two brothers could step on their heads when they were some of the most powerful people in Yuanling County!


    Tianxuan, I intend to act now  Dongfang Tianchen took one step forward and stood with Beitang Mo. Long Chens reckless words and stupid smirk had made him lose his patience. He wanted to teach him a lesson right now.


    Big Brother, you must wait. Dongfang Tianxuan was worried.


    Long Chen is only at the initial Heavenly Core Realm and he barely managed to defeat you. If it wasnt for his master, or Mo Xiang, could he have survived until today? Hes just a brat relying on other peoples reputation to live. How can we live with pride if were getting stepped on by lowly scum like this? If we dont do anything, what will happen to the pride of the Lingwu family?


    Towards the end, Dongfang Tianchen was almost shouting.


    All the rage in his chest had been unleashed with his rally cry. Everyone realized that the quietest one, Dongfang Tianchen, was actually the one who hated him most!


    Thest question gave a ton of motivation to every Lingwu teenager.


    Even Nangong Huang and Ximen Xiaodie locked eyes, then they stood at the very front, preparing to attack.


    There were five mid-Heavenly Core Realm cultivators and three initial Heavenly Core Realm cultivators. Wasnt that enough to defeat Long Chen and Mo Xiang?


    My brothers and sisters! Tianchen is right. We are the proud Lingwu family, also the leaders of Yuanling County. We must not let two dogs climb on top of our heads and act so arrogantly! Beitang Mo also became emotional when he saw how passionate Dongfang Tianchen was.


    Long Chen was speechless watching their silly, youthful rage. He was truly only afraid of the people above thete Heavenly Core Realm, not them.


    Big Brother, shall we? asked Mo Xiang, stepping next to him.


    If the enemy moves, we will beat them up. If they dont move, we wont move. Theres a long journey ahead; there will be many more opportunities to beat them up if we are patient, said Long Chen.


    With such arge conflict taking ce, everyone in the restaurant had retreated to the walls. Especially the people who had first started fightingthey were now trembling with fear.


    The more knowledgeable bystanders guessed the identities of both sides. Dongfang Tianchen and his group were famous in Yuanling City, but Long Chen and Mo Xiang werent as famous. However, after today, their names would spread!


    Who would dare challenge the prodigies of the Lingwu family when there were only two people on their side?


    Which faction are these two teenagers from? Based on their boldness, they must be quite strong!


    Who knows? Well see. They might just be two stupid youths. Theyre obviously not from the Dawn Trading Alliance or the Beast Soul Pce, so they might be from one of those small ns no one cares about.


    Simr conversations could be heard all around.


    Long Chen was fully prepared. If the group could no longer hold themselves back, he didnt mind having a warm up here before the fight at the ancient ruins.


    The furious Lingwu youths looked at each other, about to make a move, when a shrill shout came from the door. Stop it!


    Everyone turned to look. It was that woman, Dongfang Xuanyu.


    She entered the restaurant icily, staring at both parties. She hated Long Chen, so she naturally stood next to the Lingwu youths.


    When the woman arrived, Long Chen knew that the fight would not happen today.


    Whats going on? she asked.


    Aunt Xuanyu, Long Chen insulted us! What he said was over the line, so  Dongfang Tianxuan, who had always held a lofty position, found Long Chens words hard to swallow. When she thought of Dongfang Tianchens internal suffering, she couldnt wait to p Long Chen hard. After all, she had always looked up to her eldest brother.


    Insult? Dongfang Xuanyu was furious, her heart aching as she looked at the youths. To be honest, she really wanted to attack Long Chen herself. However, she was the only senior here, so she had to have some sense. She couldnt ruin her fathers ns, so she gritted her teeth and prepared to stop the fight.


    But that didnt mean she would let him go easily!


    She woke from her thoughts and red coldly at Long Chen. You dirtbag, youre getting more and more arrogant. Dont you know that there should be limits to your arrogance? With that attitude, youre going to die a tragic death!


    And whats that got to do with you, Miss Dongfang? Long Chen was toozy to argue with her. Under everyones furious gazes, he told Mo Xiang, Lets go. Then they left without looking back.


    Long Chen! You! Dongfang Xuanyu raged when she was ignored. She turned to see that the Lingwu youths were almost vomiting blood from rage and privately made a decision. You must die even if I die as well!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Then just die already. I had enough of Dongfang Xuanyu booooo


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 234: Killing

    Chapter 234: Killing


    Once they left the restaurant, Long Chen and Mo Xiang returned to the Lingwu family. He didnt want to return to the Eastern Azure Dragon quarters, so he followed Mo Xiang back to the Silver family. Other than when they were cultivating, they never left each others side.


    Mo Xiang was very experienced in cultivation and real battle, so he was a great person to learn from. That was why Long Chen spoke to him often during his stay with the Silver family. They discussed the ws in his cultivation, and his practical experience increased.


    Long Chen mainly focused on studying the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. It was an Earth-tierbat technique that was difficult to master. Even with his talent, he was forced to put in effort to slowly learn the technique. While the text was easy to understand, it was not easy to truly wield it effortlessly.


    So far, when they sparred in their peak forms, Long Chen was no match for Mo Xiang, though he was close. Based on Mo Xiangs estimations, Long Chen was currently more powerful than people such as Beitang Mo, even though they had Earth-tier Divine Weapons.


    The Dragon Soul Transformation and the Azure Dragon Halberd both offered the greatest boosts to his strength.


    During this time, Mo Xiang had been long puzzled over Long Chens Beast Soul Transformation.


    Long Chens Beast Soul Transformation was clearly the Underground Blood Lizard, which was the same as what he used when he was at the Draconic Realm. How could a Category Five Yellow-tier demonic beast boost Long Chens strength by ten times? Mo Xiang wouldnt believe any exnations, but he knew that this was thergest secret that Long Chen held. <em>My Moon Devouring Wolf transformation only boosts my original Qi by two times. Even the Peak Essence Beast offers a boost of five times, yet Big Brother is only using a Yellow-tier beast? How is he so terrifyingly strong, then? </em>Mo Xiang kept wondering about this.


    He didnt know that Dragon Warriors existed, nor that it was normal for the Primordial Dragons Inherited Blood Essence to boost Long Chens Qi by ten times.


    In fact, when he absorbed the rest of the essence, he would gain even more peculiar powers, ones even more powerful than the Blood Transmutation.


    Although Mo Xiang was puzzled, he didnt ask. It was best not to talk about secrets that were rted to ones life and death.


    Long Chen knew that while he and Mo Xiang were getting close, it was still not the time to reveal his trump card.


    All the previous drama hade to an end. Other than the approaching fight at the ancient ruins, there were no other events on the horizon. When he was not cultivating, Long Chens favorite thing to do was to have fun in Yuanling City with Mo Xiang, doing things like pulling pranks on unscrupulous businessmen, teasing housewives, and more. Sometimes, if Mo Xiang couldnte out, hed go alone. <em>How nice itd be if Ling Xi was with me. </em>Long Chens heart sank whenever he felt the emptiness in his ear.


    To be honest, he was still very worried about the girl who had apanied him for half a year. If he was alone and not cultivating, he would be miserable with longing and self-me. That was why he had to take walks outside. Plus, he was testing the pulse of Yuanling City.


    There was going to be a huge event in the city, which was the fight for the right to rule. The youths of Yuanling City had be much more famous, attracting a lot of attention. People also gradually got to know Long Chens name.


    In fact, those who had excellent information channels even developed a Potential Ranking Board based on the prodigies capabilities.


    The Potential Ranking Board was a ranking of Yuanling Citys young prodigies. It also represented the opinions of the outside world towards the three major factions younger generation.


    Three people topped the Potential Ranking Board, all of them beingte Heavenly Core Realm cultivators. In third ce was a girl named Li Ziling from the Dawn Trading Alliance, but Long Chen didnt read much about her. Second was Mo Xiang, who had the Heavenly Wolf Dagger. In first ce was Yan Danqing of the Beast Soul Pce. Yan Danqing possessed the Category Nine ck-tier Peak Essence Beast soul. The public opined that he was stronger than the disappeared-and-reappeared Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen was ranked tenth, just on top of Dongfang Tianxuan.


    Beating Dongfang Tianxuan was his most glorious achievement so far. As the only initial Heavenly Core Realm cultivator in the top ten, he also attracted a lot of attention. And because he had a good rtionship with Mo Xiang, this boosted the publics confidence in him.


    As he traveled within Yuanling City, conversations about the Mayors Battle could be heard everywhere, including discussions about the people on the Potential Ranking Board. It was clear that the Mayors Battle was the hot topic of the city.


    Long Chen, do you have the guts toe with me? On this day, Long Chen was strolling around aimlessly and was preparing to head back when a voluptuous woman stood in front of him, ring coldly.


    It was Dongfang Xuanyu.


    Long Chen remembered how he had angered her just a few days ago. Nothing good was going toe out of this if she was looking for him. However, he wasnt afraid of her and wanted to see what trick she had up her sleeve. So he said, My guts are bigger than your donkey brain. Just bring me to wherever you want to go. But youre old enough to be my aunt, alright? Unless youre interested in men far younger than yourself?


    Long Chens words were extremely insulting, and he thought Dongfang Xuanyu would immediately explode. Yet she swallowed her anger and led him on to a small alley with fewer people. Soon, they arrived at an abandoned area with not a single soul to be found.


    This ce was dirty and messy, with dpidated houses everywhere. Long Chen looked up and asked when they arrived, So? You want to kill me?


    She turned around and said coldly, You are a bold one. Ill tell you, regretfully, that you are right. If I do it here, no one will know that I was the one who killed you. ept your fate, Long Chen.


    Long Chen froze. He didnt expect Dongfang Xuanyu to do this. It looked like he had put too much pressure on her, pushing her past her limits. If I die, it doesnt matter who killed me. My master will annihte the entire Lingwu family! Long Chen shrugged.


    Dont worry about that. I have nned for this. You killed Yan Chixue of the Blood Saints. So after you die, I will pin the me on the Beast Soul Pce. Ive been working on this n for the past few days. I have ounted for everything. So, die!


    As she spoke, she was already preparing her Qi. She raised her hand with a <em>whoosh</em>.


    Damn, did you really do that? Long Chen was a little speechless. He had always thought that she was a dumb pig-brain, but she was actually quite smart. If she really had a way to pin the me on the Beast Soul Pce, then the Lingwu family would be able to avoid tragedy.


    Next, considering Long Chens arrogance, she was sure that she could lead him to this quiet ce. At that point, there was a zero percent failure rate.


    Of course, while there were no problems with the n, Dongfang Xuanyu had overlooked one thing: Long Chens capabilities.


    Late Heavenly Core Realm? To Long Chen, she was an amazing opponent. He guessed that Dongfang Xuanyu was as strong as Beitang Mo and the others with Earth-tier Divine Weapons. It was great to have a sparring partner before he fought them.


    She and Mo Xiang were indeed on the same level, thete Heavenly Core Realm, but shecked actual battle experiencepared to Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen! Ever since you entered the n, I have never had a good nights sleep! Youre a cancerous tumor! You terrorize the youths of my n, and if I dont stand up for them, how can I call myself their senior? You should be honored to die by my hand! When she attacked, she vented all the anger in her heart!


    There was too much resentment towards Long Chen umted over time.


    Comet Dragon Seal! Supported by ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivators powerful Qi, the Comet Dragon Seal she produced was ten times stronger than what Dongfang Tianxings. Instantly, a roaring dragon soared and charged at Long Chen, leaving a trail of pulverized waste in its wake!


    Not bad. Long Chen snickered. He didnt dare ck off while facing Dongfang Xuanyu. The moment she attacked, he used the Dragon Soul Transformation, and his Qi was boosted to its peak form. His body, now covered in blood-red dragon scales, was filled with explosivebat power!


    Long Chen was not in a hurry to take the Azure Dragon Halberd out. When the Comet Dragon Seal came hurling towards him, a ray of starlight shot out of the fingers on both his hands. <em>Ling Xi, if only you could see me use the Sword Devil Finger you gave me </em> When he thought about her, infinite rage rose in his heart.


    Sword Devil Finger!


    With a roar, two shining des of Sword Qi shot out consecutively from his fingers!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Sword Qi and dragon image collided, leading to several explosions. The surrounding broken walls and scattered roof tiles were instantly pulverized from the shockwaves. Sword Qi shot in all directions!


    How is that possible? Dongfang Xuanyu was shocked. She had clearly seen that Long Chen had only used the Sword Devil Finger, yet its strength was equal to her attack!


    Do you still think you can beat me now? Long Chenughed. His body flickered and he charged at her. Now that he had used two des of Sword Qi from the Sword Devil Finger to sessfully defeat Dongfang Xuanyus attack, he had a rough guess of her strength.


    In terms ofbat technique and real battle experience, she was almost equal to Dongfang Tianxuan. The only difference was that her Qi was ten times stronger, and therefore her attacks were ten times stronger.


    Youve merely withstood one strike; whats there to be so smug about? Dongfang Xuanyu knew that she had to finish this battle as soon as possible so that she could appropriately clean up the crime scene. After realizing that the brat had withstood her Comet Dragon Seal, she decided to use the attack that she had once used on him at the ck Tortoise Pavilion.


    At the time, Long Chen looked so scared that he stumbled backwards. If it wasnt for Li Xuanji, he would have died.


    But was that really what had happened? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    She actually attacked him? Kill her!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 235: Opportunity For Level Three Blazing Thunder Body

    Chapter 235: Opportunity For Level Three zing Thunder Body


    While Dongfang Xuanyu was preparing to unleash the death blow, Long Chen was already charging at her.


    In truth, from his perspective, it was meaningless to fight this stupid woman. She was a beauty but no brains!


    She was probably about forty years old, yet she was still gorgeous. If she were at a brothel, she could be the queen of the ce based on her mature sophistication. The Jade Pce Brothel had a prettydy simr to her, and Long Chen practically worshiped her.


    A powerful aura exploded from her body, and in a sh, she turned into a tornado and whirled towards him!


    My Earth-tierbat technique is ten times stronger than Tianxuans. Long Chen, do you think youll survive this? she cried sternly. There was a saying that women were like wolves at thirty, but tigers at forty. Dongfang Xuanyu pounced on him like a tigress!


    Earth-tierbat technique, Piercing Wind Dragon!


    Long Chen had witnessed this Earth-tierbat technique twice now. It was true that hers was ten times stronger than Dongfang Tianxuans. The problem was that Long Chen was also ten times stronger when he used the Dragon Soul Transformation!


    That was why when she attacked, Long Chen used the same method of retaliation that he had used in his fight against Dongfang Tianxuan!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies!


    Two consecutive attacks were unleashed, charging powerfully at Dongfang Xuanyus Piercing Wind Dragon. The cold glint of the Azure Dragon Halberd made her face change.


    <em>How are you this strong</em>? She gasped. Fear crept into her heart. The halberds aura made her feel as if a mountain was sitting on her. It was as if it could split her attack in half!


    <em>That was only my imagination. I must kill him! I must! </em>She gritted her teeth, steadied her mind, and used all her might to kill him!


    Its all for nothing. Long Chen smiled faintly. Carrying the Azure Dragon Halberd, he sted the Piercing Wind Dragon away and turned around. He then swung the halberd down while using Shattered Skies, piercing it into the Piercing Wind Dragon. He pushed it as hard as he could, and it shattered to pieces. The shockwaves from the halberd mmed into her body and blood sprayed out of her mouth as she flew backwards, ghostly pale!


    When she was severely injured, Long Chen put the Azure Dragon Halberd away and caught up to her while she was midair. He drummed his fingers quickly on her body. The previous impact had left her incapacitated, but what he did next caused her body to rx midair, and she felt the strength sapped from her whole body!


    Long Chen! What  what did you do to me? Initially, she refused to ept that she had been defeated, and her mind had already gone nk. However, he then did something strange to her that caused her whole body to go limp, and this terrified her.


    What did I do? Hehe. This is a little trick Xiang taught me a few days ago. Its called the Meridian Breaking Technique. I thought I could use this for flower-picking  So today, I used it on you. What do you think? Do you feel weak all over? Like I can do anything to you? Long Chen sneered creepily.


    Lecher! You lecher! You deserve to die! When she thought about what would happen next, she would have bit her tongue and killed herself if she hadnt lost all her strength.


    The Meridian Breaking Technique wasnt actually as simple as he had described.


    This strange technique worked when the opponent was severely injured and had lost allbat capabilities, though still alive. Then the cultivator could quickly inject his own Qi into the other persons meridians. If the Qi was condensed and powerful enough, the other person would not be able to make it dissipate for the moment and would therefore be at the users mercy. This was a magical trick from Mo Xiangs family, though Long Chen was now using it on her.


    When theynded, he carried her by her waist. He admittedly found it attractive as he sensed the warmth and softness of her body.


    However, ever since he met Ling Xi, hed gradually forgotten his past ways. He was only trying to tease and scare the brainless woman just now.


    I wonder whats going to happen next  Spring is here! I think I should bring a breath of spring to this ce too, he said with a snicker.


    You  Dongfang Xuanyu was truly terrified of this monster. She trembled with terror, and her harsh attitude turned pitiful as she begged for mercy. Long Chen, Im begging you to let me go. I wont trouble you ever again after today. How about that?


    Long Chen felt amazing seeing her break down like this. He had always wanted to teach this arrogant woman a lesson.


    Long Chen! Let me go! I am willing to tell you a secret! Under such dire circumstances, she had an idea when she recalled something.


    Oh? Long Chen was only teasing her and never actually wanted to do anything to this forty-year-old woman. However, he was pleasantly surprised to hear her say that and feigned nonchnce. But well have to see if your secret is as tempting as your body to me


    Looking at his perverted smirk, Dongfang Xuanyu was suddenly blushing because what he had said was just too spicy. She had always felt like she had gotten old, but ording to him, she was still attractive?


    However, she could never let him know what she was thinking, or she would lose face. She refused to believe that she would have such peculiar thoughts, so she chided herself and then said coldly, It is indeed a huge secret that will benefit you greatly.


    Just tell me. Dont waste anymore time. I can hold myself back, but my hands cant, he threatened.


    He was very curious.


    Alright, Ill tell you! You have the Level Two zing Thunder Body, right? Did you get your zing Thunder Crystals from the Dawn Trading Alliance? Do you want to achieve its full form, which is the Level Three zing Thunder Body? Thats a Body Tempering technique equivalent to the initial Earth tier!


    Long Chen was convinced. To be honest, that was much more attractive to him than the incapacitated Dongfang Xuanyu.


    Just spit it out. Dont you make me guess, he said coldly.


    Alright, alright. You must know that no amount of zing Thunder Crystals can help you achieve Level Three. You must merge with a zing Thunder Crystal Soul first. This year, the Dawn Trading Alliance found a zing Thunder Crystal vein and has nurtured many experts thanks to it. There are a few top cultivators among them, and they all have the same thingthe Level Two zing Thunder Combat Bodies. One of them evenpleted Level Three, and her name is Li Ziling. She merged with a zing Thunder Crystal Soul! Although they have a mine, they have only found one soul so far. ording to the information I have, they discovered another soul just two days ago! That is why their best youths have all rushed to the headquarters!


    Dongfang Xuanyu was terrified of him, so she immediately threw all the useful information she had at him. He was recently worried about this because he had powerfulbat techniques and the amazing Nine Dragon shes, yet his Body Tempering Technique was falling behind. A zing Thunder Crystal Soul was undoubtedly exactly what he needed.


    However, he had seen the name Li Ziling before. She was the most powerful young prodigy of the Dawn Trading Alliance, and she was ranked second on the Potential Ranking Board. The crystal soul was probably the reason why she was so powerful, because she had the Level Three zing Thunder Body.


    Where is it? asked Long Chen.


    When she saw that he was very interested, she sighed in relief and broke free from his arms with all her might. Ill tell you after you undo whatever you did to me!


    If Long Chen still touched her after giving him the information he needed, then she would rather die.


    The zing Thunder Crystal Soul was much more important than teasing this dumb donkey. Long Chen was in no mood for revenge, so he undid the Meridian Breaking Technique, allowing her to recover her strength. However, she was still injured and felt a burning pain in her chest.


    Dont pull any tricks on me. If you anger me, I will make you regret you were ever born! Im serious! he said mildly.


    Although his tone was t, it was extremely effective in scaring her. She took a few steps back, treated her injuries with some spiritual medicine, and then said, The Dawn Trading Alliances zing Thunder Crystal mine is located in the Fire Thunder Mountain Range. At its base is a ce called Fire Thunder Town. If you go there, you should be able to obtain information easily, she said honestly.


    Mhm, alright. Ill remember this and confirm this with another person. If I find out that you are lying, I will kill you! he threatened.


    Itspletely true! she responded. Then, she said hurriedly, Ive said what I wanted to say, so goodbye!


    Then she turned to leave.


    Dont go! he shouted.


    What do you want? Dongfang Xuanyu asked anxiously, arms wrapped around her chest.


    If I go fight for the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, I will definitely encounter powerful enemies. Then youll use them to kill me off, right? Long Chen had obviously guessed her train of thought. The information regarding the zing Thunder Crystal Soul seemed to be true, but to obtain it, he would definitely encounter powerful enemies. If he was not strong enough and died at the hands of the Dawn Trading Alliance, she would be overjoyed. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time to collect another Power up! Also, take that Dongfang Xuanyu! Hopefully she don''t pull off another stupid stunt like that


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 236: Fire Thunder Town

    Chapter 236: Fire Thunder Town


    Long Chen had guessed Dongfang Xuanyus objective correctly. Her hatred for him had not diminished. While using this piece of secret information to save herself, she was alsoying a trap for Long Chen.


    Seeing as this thing is indeed important to me, I wont be petty about it. Just tell me the power structure of the Dawn Trading Alliance at Fire Thunder Town. I dont have much patience. If you dont answer me well, I dont mind taking you right here in the wild, he said mildly.


    Her n had been exposed and she was truly terrified of this teenager who was perverted both in the mind and in strength, so she said hurriedly, The Dawn Trading Alliance ces great importance on the zing Thunder Crystal mine and usually sends fivete Heavenly Core Realm emissaries to guard the ce. Also, in order to suppress and collect the crystal soul, Li Ziling will likely be there.


    Why do they need to suppress the zing Thunder Crystal Soul? he asked.


    The soul has a violent, manic energy. Any cultivator below the Divine Core Realm will die if theye within a hundred meters of it. Even Heavenly Core Realm cultivators can barely withstand it. Only a suppressed crystal soul can be merged with. When Li Ziling got the soul, it was because it had been suppressed by a Heavenly River Realm cultivator. Now she has a Level Three zing Thunder Body, and due to it being elementally the same, she will have a much easier time suppressing the soul. Im guessing she will be there!


    Due to Long Chens threat, she did not dare hide more information from him.


    <em>Li Ziling? Level Three zing Thunder Body? Shes just a girl. If she trains her muscles until theyre too firm, theres no way itll feel good to touch her. </em>In his mind, he automatically thought that she was one of those extremely muscr women.


    That was a total of six Heavenly Core Realm cultivators. It would not be easy to snatch the zing Thunder Crystal Soul from them. However, he knew that he didnt need to fight them directly. Plus, with Mo Xiangs help, he might stand a chance.


    Get out. Long Chen ignored her and headed to the Silver family. When he found Mo Xiang, he told him about the information he had received from Dongfang Xuanyu.


    Sixte Heavenly Core Realm cultivators? Big Brother, Ill go with you. Mo Xiang agreed without hesitation.


    Youre definitely a good brother to me! Long Chenughed and patted his shoulder. Go get your Grand Elder to help me verify if this information is true. If it is, we will leave immediately. There are still twenty more days before the Ninth Prince arrives, so its enough for me to try my luck here.


    Mo Xiang nodded. After he managed to verify the information with the Silver familys Grand Elder, both of them packed their necessities, borrowed a Savage Wind Peng from the Grand Elder, and flew towards Fire Thunder Mountain Range!


    ***


    In the outer familiespound, Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong were ying chess in the yard. Long Chens quick rise had made thempletely unable to remain calm.


    Brother Chu, if this goes on, we will never be able to avenge Shengen and Yunxi. Long Chen now has his master backing him, and even the inner families are afraid to touch him. We  Ji Luan put down his chess piece and sighed.


    I am unable to do anything either. My only regret is that I didnt kill him while he was still weak. Now hes gotten arrogant and can even defeat Miss Tianxuan, who is at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Hes almost caught up to us already. Theres no chance we can take revenge.


    My son Shengen originally had a bright future ahead of him, yet he died because of Long Chen. If I can avenge him, it will be worth it even if it costs me my life, said Jin Luan through gritted teeth.


    That was when a plump woman entered the yard.


    Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong were startled and hurriedly bowed. Madam Xuanyu, may I ask why you are here?


    They were worried because their conversation had been a little loud and she must have heard them.


    Dongfang Xuanyus expression was dark. The moment she walked over, she said directly, I will not waste any time. All I have is one questionif you could kill Long Chen in a way where no one would find out, would you two do it?


    They both looked at each other and quickly understood what she was implying. They answered hurriedly, Madam Xuanyu, what instructions do you have for us?


    Long Chen has left Yuanling City to go to the Fire Thunder Mountain Range to fight the Dawn Trading Alliance for a zing Thunder Crystal Soul. You two, go there and see if you can find a chance to kill him! When Dongfang Xuanyu recalled how Long Chen had almost raped her, a chill went through her body.


    She would never live in peace if he was not dead.


    Well go! The Grand Elders were overjoyed.


    Remember! Even if you manage to kill him, you are not to reveal your identities! It will be best if you can pin the me on the Dawn Trading Alliance. That way, his master wonte to the Lingwu family looking for trouble!


    We understand, Madam Xuanyu!


    She then lowered her voice and said confidently, Ill give you two something. With it, Im sure youll be able to kill him easily!


    Then she started to exin to the two shocked men.


    After everything was settled, she left with a grin on her face.


    The Ninth Prince visited Yuanling City once when he was young. Many people know that Jin Luan had a sudden growth in strength, even catching up to the sixty-year-old Chu Tianxiong at only fifty years of age, mainly because of the Ninth Princes reward to him. Unfortunately, he was naturally not talented enough, so he never progressed further within the Lingwu family.


    Dongfang Xuanyus n was this: even if they couldnt kill Long Chen, and he ended up killing Jin Luan instead, then he would still die once the Ninth Prince arrived.


    This was a wless n. It didnt matter if Long Chen lost or won, he would still end up dead!


    ***


    Despite having defeated Dongfang Xuanyu, Long Chen was well aware that he wasnt as strong as the top cultivator of Yuanling Citys younger generation. But if he could get the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, the gap would be closed.


    The Fire Thunder Mountain Range was not far, so it only took a quarter of the time it had taken to get to the Nine Devil Mountains. After about two hours, Long Chen and Mo Xiang could see a huge town beneath them. They left the Savage Wind Peng outside town, where there was a shop that had people who specialized in taking care of carrier animals.


    Then they both walked into Fire Thunder Town.


    Its still early spring, but I cant believe that the temperature is already so high in Fire Thunder Town, remarked Long Chen as he eyed the people in the crowd while he walked.


    The zing Thunder Crystal is indeed peculiar. It doesnt just strengthen the body, it also boosts your Qi, said Mo Xiang, nodding.


    Xiang, what level is your Body Tempering technique? asked Long Chen.


    I have an Earth-tier Body Tempering Technique left behind by my family, but I havent used it. Im not strong enough right now, and Im worried that the people of the Imperial Capital will recognize it. That is why I havent cultivated any Body Tempering techniques, Mo Xiang replied with sorrow.


    Mo Xiang didnt have a Body Tempering Technique, yet he had managed to achieve such heights. Long Chen was speechless.


    Dont worry. Once you cultivate an Earth-tier beasts Beast Soul, your post-Beast Soul Transformation form will be equivalent to a formidablebat body, Long Chenforted.


    To Beast Warriors, Beast Soul Transformations and Body Tempering techniques were not in conflict because the first strengthened the outer body, while thetter strengthened the internal organs and muscles.


    The duo continued walking ahead.


    Although Fire Thunder Town was just a town, it was a busy one, and their people were the violent type. There were many brawls at street corners, but there were not many powerful cultivators.


    Walking around blindly wont gain us any information on the Dawn Trading Alliance. Theres a ce called Fire Thunder Restaurant in front, and it should be thergest one here. We can go there to ask someone and also get some rest, said Long Chen when he saw arge, bright building up ahead.


    Whatever you say, Big Brother. Mo Xiang grinned.


    They entered the restaurant.


    They were both aristocratic men at first nce,pletely different from the people of Fire Thunder Town. That was why they attracted a lot of looks when they walked in.


    One of the sharper waiters hurried over to wee them, warmly leading them to the elegant seats of the second floor. Soon after, delicate dishes and good wine were served.


    Dont go yet. I need to ask you something. Long Chen waved him over after the food was served.


    Me? The waiter was a little nervous and hurried over. There had been many foreign, powerful cultivators like Long Chen in town for the past few days. This led to many bad things happening where stupid people died.


    Thats right, you. Long Chen grinned.


    Young Master  What would you like to know? he asked nervously.


    Has there been anything different these past few days? Long Chen asked.


    Anything different? The waiter froze, then he said, There have been many more visitors to Fire Thunder Town. However, the town is controlled by the big shots of the Dawn Trading Alliance, so the troublemakers have been cleaned up.


    Indeed, the whole town was already under the control of the Dawn Trading Alliance.


    Where are the Dawn Trading Alliance people now? This was Long Chens objective. He could only learn more if he knew where they were. Right now, he didnt even know where the zing Thunder Crystals were mined in the Fire Thunder Mountain Range, and he didnt even know where the zing Thunder Crystal Soul had been found.


    There have been rules set about information rted to the Dawn Trading Alliance. Please forgive me, because I cant answer you! The waiter took a few steps back fearfully when he heard the question.


    Long Chen took out fifty spirit jades and said, These are all yours. What do you think?


    The waiter looked at the fifty spirit jades. It was equal to half a year of pay, so it was tempting. In the end, he gritted his teeth and walked up to Long Chens side. He said, The Dawn Trading Alliance acts mysteriously, but I know they have a base in town. The zing Thunder Crystals they mine are aggregated there before being sent to Yuanling City.


    Leaning close to Long Chens ear, the waiter told him an address.


    This is yours. Long Chen pushed all the jades to the waiter, who put them away hurriedly, excused himself, and left excitedly.


    Big Brother, do you know the location now? Mo Xiang asked.


    Yes. Based on this situation, it looks like news of the zing Thunder Crystal Soul hasnt circted yet. Dont waste the food here. Once both of us are full of this good wine and good food, well storm the Dawn Trading Alliance.


    This would be his second time stealing from the Dawn Trading Alliance. Last time, it was with Ling Xi, but it would be with Mo Xiang this time.


    Alright. Mo Xiang nodded, forever looking like an obedient child. However, Long Chen knew that he was also filled with passion, hatred, violence, and insanity.


    They had just picked up their chopsticks when a hugemotion came from downstairs.


    Long Chen turned to peer downstairs, only to see a group of blue-armored cultivators walk into the restaurant. The crowd parted for them. These people were at least at thete Human Core Realm, each of them ring coldly. They were obviously experienced in killing.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    What the fuck she still haven''t learned her lesson


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 237: This Girl Is Spicy

    Chapter 237: This Girl Is Spicy


    With such power, they could do whatever they wanted in a ce like Thunder Fire Town.


    However, Long Chen noticed a young man at the center of the group, protected by them. The young man was d in luxurious, green, brocade clothing, and he had a fair, hairless face. He seemed to be about Mo Xiangs age, but he radiated arrogance. He was clearly an aristocratic young man who was used to living a life above others.


    Long Chen picked up on a familiar aura from him. After some thought, he recalled that it was the Level Two zing Thunder Combat Body. This teenager also had a zing Thunder Body. He was undeniably one of the Dawn Trading Alliances young prodigies. Long Chen guessed that he was at least at the mid Heavenly Core Realm.


    That guy is great in all aspects, but he is no match for you. Mo Xiang had a keen eye. With just one nce, he could analyze this person in great detail.


    You know him? asked Long Chen.


    I think he is Li Qingling, Li Zilings younger brother. The amount of attention he gets from the Dawn Trading Alliance is only second to Li Ziling. He is three years younger than her, and it is estimated that he will achieve thete Heavenly Core Realm by the time he is her age, said Mo Xiang.


    It looks like the resources provided by the Dawn Trading Alliance are definitely not lesser than the Lingwu family, perhaps even more. If the Lingwu family didnt have you, they wouldnt be able to keep their mayor title, mused Long Chen.


    They continued chatting and drinking wine when the arrogant Li Qingling took a look around and announced in a shrill voice, The Dawn Trading Alliance will be reserving the whole restaurant. Everyone must leave within fifteen minutes! Cashier, put it all on my tab! My older sister ising from Yuanling City, give her the grandest wee you can. She is one of the top three prodigies of Yuanling City! You will be rewarded generously for this. If you ck off, dont think you can continue running this restaurant!


    Long Chen put down his chopsticks and smirked.


    To be honest, with the power that the Dawn Trading Alliance held in Fire Thunder Town, Li Qingling was not being too unreasonable. At least he had offered to pay for everyone. The other cultivators from smaller factions, despite having eaten half their meals, had no right to say anything when the Dawn Trading Alliances name was used, so they left on their own.


    The group of blue-armored guards were not just there for disy. If they were obedient, the guards were friendly, but anyone who disobeyed them would suffer.


    Li Qingling was pleased when he saw the ce emptying. Most patrons had left, and Li Qingling gestured and said, Boss! Quickly clean this whole ce up. Dont let me see a smidge of dirt here! If my sister isnt satisfied, Ill kill your whole family!


    The boss of the Fire Thunder Restaurant was terrified after Li Qinglings threat and quickly called all his staff over to clean up the mess left behind by the other patrons. Li Qingling smiled, very satisfied.


    Young Master, theres someone on the second floor who hasnt left, reported one of the guards in his ear.


    What? Li Qingling jumped up. He had not expected anyone to refuse to leave. This was tant disrespect! Furious, he led his group of guards to storm the second floor, arriving in front of Long Chen and Mo Xiang.


    Big Brother, should we leave? asked Mo Xiang.


    Theres no need. Long Chen poured more wine for Mo Xiang. This brat has gotten used to his arrogant ways. I need to teach him a lesson.


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    When he said that, Li Qingling had already rushed upstairs. When he saw the duo ignoring him, he wasted no time in instructing the guard next to him, Chop these two up and feed them to the fishes in the river!


    Yes, Young Master! The group of blue-armored guards rushed towards Long Chen and Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen was toozy to talk to them. The best way to deal with people like that, specifically the arrogant type that treated other peoples lives like des of straw, was with action.


    With his current strength, he needed to use his Dragon Soul Transformation to deal with the brat. But that would be too dramatic, so he turned to Mo Xiang and said, Give that brat two ps. Turn him into a pighead!


    Then he rushed to the center of the guards and pped everyone once. When everyone had turned red and green from the ps, he threw them downstairs, one by one. When he had thrown half of them, Mo Xiang pped Li Qingling until his head swelled like a pigs head and also tossed him downstairs.


    Cries of agony rang through the restaurant.


    Long Chen sped up, and very soon, all the guards had been thrown down the stairs. He pped his hands and smiled with satisfaction. How dare you threaten me! That was stupid of you. This is just a small lesson for you all. Next time, Ill throw them into the river to feed the fish. Xiang, lets go!


    Li Qingling had been taught a lesson. Once Li Ziling arrived, she would likely be apanied by many masters too. Inciting conflict would not be a wise choice then, so after Long Chen beat them up, he decided to leave.


    The ground floor of the restaurant echoed with cries of agony. Under the shocked gazes of the waiters and the boss, they both sprinted out of the restaurant. Long Chen then picked a spot to hide, a ce where he could see the restaurant but wouldnt need to worry about being spotted.


    Long Chen turned to ask Mo Xiang, Li Ziling is likelying here to suppress the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. Xiang, do you think we stand a chance with the two of us fighting together?


    The emissaries of the Dawn Trading Alliance are not their core members. Although they are at thete Heavenly Core Realm, they are around the same level as the nine outer Grand Elders. It will be hard for me to kill five of them, but its definitely alright if I only need to keep them upied so they cant leave to disturb you, said Mo Xiang.


    So that means I will need to snatch the zing Thunder Crystal Soul from that muscr woman? Long Chen was filled with battle spirit when he thought about this opponent who was almost as strong as Mo Xiang.


    Muscr? Li Ziling? I heard Li Ziling is as beautiful as a fairy. Looking at Li Qinglings face, his sister must look quite good too, said Mo Xiang, puzzled.


    Long Chen didnt know what she looked like. However, he instinctively thought that a girl who couldplete the Level Three zing Thunder Body was one of those muscr, vicious types. But reality proved him wrong.


    Although she didnt possess soul-shaking beauty like Ling Xi did, she was on the level of an immortal fairy. She wore a long, purple dress and had a delicate figuretall and thin with skin as white as snow. She was definitely in the top ranks of Yuanling City in terms of beauty.


    However, like her younger brother, she radiated arrogance. Although it was hidden well, it was very clear in Long Chens eyes.


    Being escorted by even more guards, Li Ziling entered the Fire Thunder Restaurant with the five older emissaries by her side.


    Say, what do you think shell do when she sees her brother screaming on the ground, his head looking like a pig? Long Chen was curious.


    The moment he asked the question, a portion of the restaurant copsed along with a chorus of cries. A huge plume of dust rose to the sky. Long Chen could faintly see the iciness and rage on her face.


    This girl is spicy, said Long Chen in shock.


    She was so angry that she caused part of the restaurant to copse, so she naturally had no intention of resting there. Her group left for the mountain range outside town, along with the pig-headed Li Qingling.


    Theyre going to the Fire Thunder Mountain Range. There arent other mid Heavenly Core Realm cultivators amongst them, so the zing Thunder Crystal Soul must have been prepared for Li Qingling. Lets follow them now. Long Chen waved Mo Xiang over and followed them sneakily.


    If Ling Xi were here, she would have noticed that Long Chen and Mo Xiang had picked up two pursuers.


    Two ck-clothed people were hidden in a dark corner, their eyes filled with bloodlust.


    ***


    Very quickly, the people of the Dawn Trading Alliance exited Fire Thunder Town and entered the Fire Thunder Mountain Range. Long Chen and Mo Xiang followed from afar, strategizing.


    Big Brother, the crystal soul is extremely violent. Although Li Ziling and the crystal soul are elementally the same, she will still exhaust a lot of power to suppress it. Since she will be exhausted moments after the suppression isplete, youll have a high chance of seeding if you attack then. Ill help you keep the five emissaries upied. What do you think? said Mo Xiang.


    Thats perfect. Haha, when your big brother gets the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, youll be rewarded generously, said Long Chen with a grin.


    Big Brother, rescuing me out of the Azure Dragon Star was already the greatest gift ever. A zing Thunder Crystal Soul is nothing. Mo Xiang smiled innocently.


    The more Long Chen talked to him, the more he felt like he was the evil one. Or rather, no matter how he hid it, the evilness in him would be revealed whenever he was faced with Mo Xiangs innocence.


    <em>Whatever. Ill let him help me get the crystal soul. Next time, Ill help him hunt the Earth-tier beast and deal with the people who murdered his family. Perhaps this is what Grandfather called brotherhood. We take care of each other, share each others joy and tears, risk our lives together, and bask in glory together! </em>Long Chen thought to himself.


    The deeper they trekked into the Fire Thunder Mountain Range, the higher the temperature. Long Chen could faintly sense the auras of zing Thunder Crystals. After an hour, they arrived at a mine that wasntrge but was well kept. There were at least a thousand blue-armored cultivators present, and all of them were at least thete Human Core Realm. They were guarding the mine tightly.


    There was a hole in the wall of the mountain, which was the entrance. Miners entered and exited the mine belonging to the Dawn Trading Alliance. Those who exited were usually transporting zing Thunder Crystals that had not been processed yet. Those crystals were still covered in rock, dust, and soil, so they looked like in rocks.


    Attention, everyone! Stop all mining now! Let Miss Ziling enter to suppress the zing Thunder Crystal Soul! bellowed one of the emissaries.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yeah I feel like its not a good idea to piss her off.


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 238: Blazing Thunder Crystal Soul

    Chapter 238: zing Thunder Crystal Soul


    Once they heard his bellow, the miners in the cave poured out.


    To be honest, it was difficult to mine zing Thunder Crystals. Although it was known as a zing Thunder Crystal vein, there was still a lot of normal rock in the region. Only one crystal appeared amidst countless rocks, and only one zing Thunder Crystal Soul would appear amidst countless crystals, so the crystal soul was extremely precious. Only two souls had been found in such a gigantic mine.


    The legendary prodigy from Yuanling City had arrived. The miners finally had a chance to rest, so they looked happy. Their eyes were filled with reverence when they saw the fairy-like Li Ziling, though there was also a hint of greed.


    The people of the lower levels of society dreamt of having a girl like her.


    Is that Miss Ziling of the Dawn Trading Alliance? Shes as pretty as a fairy.


    Dont speak like that! Be careful, or your head will be gone. Do you think you have the right to talk about Miss Ziling?


    Li Zilings face did not change despite hearing conversations like this. She had be sick of praises like that after so many years.


    She looked at the dirty miners coldly. The iciness in her eyes made their scalps go numb.


    After a while, the mines were basically empty, though before that, one of the emissaries gave her a map of the mines. She studied it for a while, memorizing the location of the crystal soul.


    This zing Thunder Crystal Soul is much deeper than the one I used. It was only three hundred meters deepst time, I think? This time, well have to walk six hundred meters into the mines, she said mildly.


    The zing Thunder Crystal Soul is extremely rare; it is impossible for two to appear in the same location. The zing Thunder Crystals and the crystal soul are closely rted. It is the energy radiating from the crystal soul that turns regr stone into zing Thunder Crystals  exined one of the emissaries.


    Long Chen listened to every word they uttered.


    Six hundred meters deep  He made some calctions privately, now with a rough idea of its location.


    After chatting with the emissaries for a little, Li Ziling pursed her pink lips and called Li Qingling over before entering the cave.


    Long Chens guess was correct. The zing Thunder Crystal Soul had indeed been prepared for Li Qingling.


    His head still resembled a pigs head as he had just been beaten up by Mo Xiang, so he lookedical. Many people kept pointing and talking about him along the way. Being an arrogant person, he obviously could not swallow his anger. As he followed Li Ziling into the mines, all he thought about was finding Long Chen and Mo Xiang in Fire Thunder Town after he merged with the crystal soul. At the very least, he had to kill them.


    <em>Never in my life has anyone dared to p me in the face! You two have a death wish! </em>Li Qingling thought to himself as he walked.


    Qingling, you said just now that it was two teenagers that beat you up? And they looked like they were roughly your age? asked Li Qingling, who was walking ahead.


    Yeah! I dont know where those two brats came from. Their cultivation is decent, though they only got a chance to hit me because I was careless, answered Li Qingling.


    You''re almost as strong as Dongfang Tianchen and the rest from the Lingwu family. However, they have Earth-tier weapons, so you are no match for them. The two attackers arent from the four inner families, so Im guessing theyre Long Chen and Mo Xiang. They have been the recent hot topic of Yuanling City. There was a cold sh in her eyes when she mentioned their names.


    It was them? How could they be so strong? Li Qingling had also heard their names a few times. Long Chen was ranked lower than himself on the Potential Ranking Board.


    Mo Xiang is indeed a strong opponent. However, the representatives of the Lingwu family arent that strong. Our main enemy is Yan Danqing of the Beast Soul Pce. Once you have merged with the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, you will be strong enough to help me face him. That is why we must seed, said Li Ziling with furrowed brows.


    I understand. His older sister went on ahead, her beautiful figure swaying as she walked. Li Qinglings eyes were fixed on her bottom, and he took a few gulps.


    <em>Once I merge with the zing Thunder Crystal Soul and attain thete Heavenly Core Realm, I shall be the number one prodigy of Yuanling City. Once that happens, pretty girls on my sisters level will all jump into my arms!</em>


    Six hundred meters.


    Based on their speed when they entered the mine, Li Ziling and Li Qingling would need about fifteen minutes to arrive. Seven minutes after they disappeared inside, Long Chen smirked and patted Mo Xiang, saying, The five emissaries did not follow them. That is a good thing. The two siblings are probably halfway there already, so they wont be able to hear the fighting outside. I will rush in, and youll help me block off the entrance. Dont let anyone in, and at the same time, do your best to suppress the noise level. Is that alright?


    I understand. Big Brother, go get the zing Thunder Crystal Soul and leave the rest to me. With me here, I guarantee the duo wont hear anything from outside. This was Mo Xiangs first time doing such an exciting thing, so he was clearly thrilled.


    Thats good, but be careful. The fivete Heavenly Core Realm emissaries also have a thousand blue-armored guards with them. And theyre all decent fighters! reminded Long Chen.


    The mouth of the cave isntrge. If I stand there, it will be very effective in blocking them out. Dont worry. If I cant take it anymore, I can call for you, right? Mo Xiang said solemnly.


    Long Chen thought for a moment and agreed. Mo Xiangs true capabilities were far from what he could see right now. That was why he nodded and gave him a look for them to act now.


    At this moment, the five emissaries were sitting in a pavilion, drinking tea and chatting away. The blue-armored guards were guarding the mine tightly.


    Everyone, do you think the Dawn Trading Alliance stands a huge chance in the Mayors Battle?


    Thats difficult to say. The Dawn Trading Alliance will rely on Ziling and Qingling. The Beast Soul Pce only has one person, Yan Danqing, while the Lingwu family doesnt have anyone outstanding other than Mo Xiang from one of the outer families. Everything is unpredictable right now.


    I heard that Mo Xiang has just stepped into thete Heavenly Core Realm, and also recently got the Heavenly Wolf Dagger. He isnt as strong as Miss Ziling, who merged with the zing Thunder Crystal Soul a long time ago. Im speechless that he is ranked above her on the Potential Ranking Board.


    I agree. The only person stronger than her in Yuanling City is Yan Danqing, who has the Peak Essence Beasts Beast Soul. That brat has been at thete Heavenly Core Realm for a while. I think he will be herrgest obstacle at the ancient ruins.


    While they were chatting casually, they suddenly heard a few cries. Several blue-armored guards flew in the air, and when theynded, half of their faces were swollen and they rolled on the ground in agony.


    Whats going on? The five emissaries were shocked and jumped from their seats. When they looked up, they saw two teenagers sprinting towards the mouth of the cave. By then, they had already beaten up many guards and were approaching the mines.


    Brats! This is the Dawn Trading Alliances territory! This is trespassing; do you have a death wish? one of them yelled sternly. While they tried to scare the duo, they were sprinting madly towards them.


    Idiots. My brother shall greet you all well. Long Chenughed, then he elerated and rushed into the cave. Mo Xiang, to everyones surprise, stood at the mouth of the cave and turned around, staring at the emissaries mildly.


    These two teenagers seem to be the brats that Young Master Li Qingling described. How bold of them to attack the Dawn Trading Alliance! They must have a death wish. Brothers, lets kill the brat!


    Yes! We must kill them! Dont let them disturb Miss Ziling and dy her efforts!


    The five of them formed a row and closed in on Long Chen and Mo Xiang, though only Mo Xiang greeted them. He stood at the mouth of the cave without a hint of fear on his face, as if the five emissaries were just five dogs.


    <em>Ill y with you while my Big Brother gets the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. I havent sparred to my hearts content for a very long time, so you guys will be my punching bags for now. </em>The Qi of ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator exploded from his body as he blocked the path of the five people so Long Chen could pull arger distance between them.


    Long Chen trusted Mo Xiang to keep them upied.


    <em>Xiang said that the girl will be temporarily weak after she suppresses the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. Shell only have Li Qingling with her, so it wont be impossible for me to snatch the crystal soul from them. If I really want to shine at the ancient ruins and win the Immortal Guard position, I must take this risk.</em>


    Risks had to be taken in order to achieve great things. This was a concept as old as time.


    Li Qingling and Li Ziling walked six hundred meters, but Long Chen ran. After about ten breaths, he had already covered three hundred meters and could no longer hear themotion outside. He could faintly feel the temperature increasing with hints of lightning appearing in the air. Faint mes covered the caves walls.


    When he could faintly hear the duos conversation and sense their auras, he slowed down. Wrapping the bottom of his feet with Qi, he slowly crept nearer. Li Zilings fragrance lingered in the air, so Long Chen easily found his way through the caves.


    At that point, he could clearly hear their conversation.


    After a while, the chatter ended, but he heard what sounded like low exhales. Lightning crackled in the air, and Long Chen guessed that they had reached the crystal soul. He crept up carefully and indeed, he found himself in a circr cave. Li Qingling was watching anxiously while Li Ziling suppressed the legendary zing Thunder Crystal Soul in the center. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    We know what''s going to happen next


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 239: Crystal Soul Robbery

    Chapter 239: Crystal Soul Robbery


    The zing Thunder Crystal Soul instantly attracted Long Chens gaze.


    It was a rhombic, blue, translucent crystal about three timesrger than a zing Thunder Crystal. It looked like a bigger version of it, but the lightning and mes enveloping it were countless times stronger. Even the air surrounding it trembled, as countless bolts of lightning and blue mes flickered within the small room. Even Li Qingling only dared to hide in a spot outside the room, which was not far from Long Chen.


    The zing Thunder Crystal Soul was indeed terrifying.


    Anyone below the Divine Core Realm could die easily from the mes and lightning. Long Chen could sense the prickling sensation on his skin caused by tiny mes and lightning bolts.


    <em>That is a magical crystal indeed. The crystal soul is definitely as strong as an Earth-tier Body Temperingbat technique. Its effects are countless times stronger than the zing Thunder Crystals. If that brat gets his hands on the crystal soul, I might be no match for him. </em>Long Chen was privately shocked.


    <em>Thank goodness that stupid Dongfang Xuanyu told me about this, so now I have the chance to get my hands on it. Plus, I have Xiang blocking everyone off in front of the cave. I must not disappoint him.</em>


    Long Chen kept himself hidden as these thoughts raced through his mind.


    As Li Ziling had already merged with a zing Thunder Crystal Soul, she had the power of a Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body. She started to force the zing Thunder Crystal Soul into submission. If she suppressed it sessfully, the crystal soul would turn into a normal crystal that could be merged with fairly easily.


    Suppressing the crystal soul involved using arge amount of Qi to squash the zing Thunder Crystal Souls power into itself so it was contained inside.


    This process did not require a long time, but it required powerful Qi.


    Although her cultivation level wasnt high, the zing Thunder Power within her Qi, which was more intense than Long Chens, gave her the ability to suppress it.


    Despite that, it was still a daunting task. Merely seven minutes in, Li Ziling was already drenched in sweat. Sweat soaked through her clothes, faintly revealing her fair skin and delicate curves. Long Chens mouth went dry.


    <em>It looks like suppressing that thing is indeed an exhausting task  </em>Long Chen smirked to himself. The more Li Ziling exhausted herself, the better it was for him.


    Fifteen minutes passed. With great effort from Li Ziling, the rate at which the zing Thunder Crystal Souls destructive power receded was detectable by the naked eye.


    At this point, not much energy was flowing out of the crystal. Only a thickyer of fire and lightning was wrapped around the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. Although it was small now, if the power it contained was unleashed, its effect would be even more terrifying.


    He would get his chance soon. Long Chen tried his best to quiet his mind. His eyes darted at Li Qingling, who was nearby, and he had an idea.


    Li Ziling was using all the Qi she had to suppress the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. When the suppression was almostplete, she was already panting, though there was unconceble excitement in her beautiful eyes.


    <em>Grandfather was right. Suppressing the crystal soul will help condense my Qi and increase my ability to control my own Qi. Im almost there </em> As she watched the lightning and fire outside the zing Thunder Crystal Soul shrink, she held her breath, waiting for the moment of sess.


    Its done. A beautiful smile appeared on her delicate face.


    She had finally suppressed the crystal soul. She was so tired that her face was pale, and she was on the verge of copsing. But she was excited.


    This act had helped her be stronger, and it would boost her younger brothers strength. He would definitely be extraordinary once he merged with the crystal soul.


    Big Sister, is it done? Li Qingling was overjoyed.


    The surrounding mes and lightning had disappeared. The previously violent zing Thunder Crystal Soul was now quietly lying in her thin palm.


    Mhm. My effort paid off. Weve finally seeded! Qingling  Despite her exhaustion, she was looking at him smilingly. That was when a red shadow shot out from a spot nearby and pounced on Li Qingling!


    This took them by surprise.


    There were five powerful representatives guarding the mines, so they never would have imagined that someone could have slipped inside. Also, they had just suppressed the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, so their guards were down because of their excitement. Long Chens sudden ambush hadpletely taken them by surprise.


    Li Qingling had no time to react at all, because it waspletely unexpected. He could only throw one punch, which led to a tsunami-like fist seal charging at Long Chen!


    But this was a haphazard attackhow could it beat the well-prepared Long Chen?


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Split Yellow River!


    Power erupted from him, and the Azure Dragon Halberd turned into a dragon, shattering the fist seal. It then struck Li Qinglings shoulder. Li Qingling screamed at the impact and blood sprayed out of his mouth. He was about to copse.


    Who are you?! You have a death wish! Li Ziling had only just noticed Long Chen, but he had already neutralized Li Qingling. When Li Ziling was about to attack, Long Chen had already put the Azure Dragon Halberd away, using his post-Dragon Soul Transformation ws to strangle Li Qingling. If he wanted to, he could kill Li Qingling any time with his long, sharp ws.


    Girl, if you want him to live, youd better rx  Long Chen smiled shamelessly as he used Li Qingling to block her. His sneer was even more chilling in his post-transformation form.


    Who are you? asked Li Qingling. Li Ziling was shocked that Li Qingling had fallen into the enemys hands in just the blink of an eye. Due to Long Chens sharp ws, she had no choice but to stand down and calm her nerves.


    I dont care who you are! You threatened a member of the Dawn Trading Alliance, so you are fated to die. You brat, let him go and disappear from my sight! Then I might let you live! eximed Li Ziling as she stared at him coldly.


    Youre spicy. Not bad, thats the type I like. Long Chenughed, not afraid of her at all. He continued, Alright, Im sure a girl your age isnt that nave. Since Im willing to do something as risky as this, I wont leave without getting something out of it. I only have one small requestgive me the zing Thunder Crystal Soul in your hand, and I will leave immediately. Plus, I guarantee not to hurt even a hair on this brats body.


    And if I refuse? The enemy was indeed after the crystal soul. This was not surprising to Li Ziling. She saw her younger brother trembling in the enemys hands, severely injured with blood flowing from the corner of his lips. Li Zilings face twitched. She had always looked out for her little brother.


    If you refuse, he will die. I will give you ten breaths time to think. Ill start counting soon, and with every count, I will dig a piece of flesh from his body. Id like to see who gives up first, you or me. Haha  Where should I pick for my first count? Alright, Ill pick the part hell use to carry on his lineage. He can still live well without that piece.


    You bastard! Dont you threaten me! Do you think the Dawn Trading Alliance is easy to bully? cried Li Ziling through gritted teeth, startled.


    Its best you dont waste your time with me. And dont use the Dawn Trading Alliance to threaten me either. I am bold enough to be here today, and I am bold enough to cut off his private parts. This means I am not afraid. If you want to test me, and see if Im telling the truth, thats alright. This brat wont be able to have a taste of women for the rest of his life, haha


    Big Sister! Save me, save me! I dont want the zing Thunder Crystal Soul! Save me! This was a terrifying ordeal for Li Qingling, and he was more afraid of losing <em>that</em> than having his arm chopped off. When Long Chens ws moved to his crotch, his features contorted and hot tears flowed, almost making him cry for his parents.


    Given the violence that was mixed with his cold aura, Li Qingling did not dare question Long Chens words.


    You! Li Zilings face turned purple with rage. The zing Thunder Crystal Soul was a present she had prepared for her brother, and she had spent so much effort to suppress it, exhausting almost all her energy. How could she willingly give it to another person?


    However, she had no choice. Her father only had one son. If her little brothers little brother was gone, her family could no longer carry its name on. Then she would be a criminal to them.


    Alright, Ill agree to your terms! Li Ziling said, clenching her teeth.


    What a good kid! You should have said so earlier. I treat good girls well! Toss it over, said Long Chen creepily.


    Li Ziling didnt do as he said. She tossed the zing Thunder Crystal Soul towards the outside of the cave, so it flew past him and hit the wall behind him.


    Long Chen would have to leave to get it.


    I told you to toss it to me, why did you have to pull a trick like that? Long Chen grinned and let Li Qingling go. He used the Nine Dragon shes and instantly arrived at the spot where itnded. He picked it up quickly and stored it in his Universe Pouch. After he put it away, Li Ziling was already pouncing on him!


    This was the reason why she had thrown it far away!


    Die, you bastard! Using the little Qi left in her body and her Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, she threw a hard punch. Although she was already at her limit, this punch was no ordinary punch.


    This is nothing. The Azure Dragon Halberd appeared instantly in Long Chens hand, and he swung it around, sending a powerful attack at her!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies!


    The two consecutive attacks sent the already fatigued Li Ziling flying. Long Chenughed and ran out of the cave, out of sight.


    Bastard! Thief! Its only because Ive exhausted my power! In my usual state, even ten of you wouldnt be able to defeat me! Li Ziling had never been this furious in her life.


    Then she recalled something.


    Was that the Azure Dragon Halberd? Was that Long Chen?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Bahahahahaha!!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 240: Attempted Murder

    Chapter 240: Attempted Murder


    Long Chen knew that Li Ziling would not have much strength left after suppressing the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. If the conflict had escted, Long Chen might have been able to kill her. However, killing her before the battle at the ancient ruins would definitely trigger retaliation from the Dawn Trading Alliance, so he didnt touch her.


    Plus, she was beautiful, so he couldnt bear to kill her.


    Long Chen was satisfied, as his objective of obtaining the zing Thunder Crystal Soul had beenpleted. He did not care if Li Ziling recognized him. So what if she did? Putting Li Xuanjis reputation aside, Long Chen was now part of the Lingwu family, so they would protect him.


    However, there was half a month left, and he was not going to return to the Lingwu family. There was a more suitable ce for him to merge with the zing Thunder Crystal Soul and increase hisbat capabilities.


    Right now, the most important thing was to escape. He didnt know how Mo Xiang was faring outside. The duo could not catch up to him at all at this speed, and he elerated even more.


    When he was about to emerge from the cave, Long Chen could hear cries of pain from the outside. When he rushed out, he saw arge mass of copsed blue-armored guards, while the rest stared at an insane-looking teenager at the center of the crowd.


    Two of the five representatives have copsed! Long Chen gasped because he saw that Xiang was locked in an intense battle against threete Heavenly Core Realm cultivators while two were being treated by their guards.


    Long Chen had taken about half an hour to obtain the crystal soul. This meant that Mo Xiang had been fighting for that long, which was very impressive.


    Xiang! Lets get out of here! Long Chenughed as he shot out of the cave.


    When Mo Xiang heard Long Chens voice, he was overjoyed. Being quicker than his opponents, he disappeared in a sh, sprinting towards Long Chen at a speed that made him almost invisible to the naked eye. This was the Illusory Divine Step that Yin Mengyao had once mentioned!


    Rushing to Long Chens side, he asked excitedly, Big Brother! Did you get it?


    Long Chen could sense that he was a little fatigued from such a long fight. He was fighting against five equal-level masters after all, which was difficult to achieve.


    I went in there myself, so of course I was sessful! Xiang, I really want to thank you for your help. Without you, I never would have gotten the zing Thunder Crystal Soul! Long Chen thanked him genuinely.


    Big Brother, dont say that! We are brothers! Of course we should fight alongside each other! Mo Xiang chuckled, looking both innocent and shy.


    You put it so fucking well! Lets not waste any time! Run!


    At this moment, Li Ziling and Li Qingling had already run out, and the five representatives had learned that Long Chen had taken the crystal soul. Now arge horde of people was running madly after them.


    Unfortunately, Long Chen and Mo Xiang were just too fast. The strongest of them all, Li Ziling, was currently in a fatigued state, so they were left in the dust.


    Damn it! Li Ziling punched the boulder next to her, causing it to shatter!


    Give chase! I want them yed!


    ***


    Big Brother, that was so exciting! Mo Xiang chuckled when they were out of danger.


    If youre with me, excitement is guaranteed. Long Chen was happy. He thought back to when they met at Baiyang Town. At the time, due to the gap in strength, Long Chen looked up to him. Now that the gap wasnt so wide, he felt much better.


    At this point, they were out of the Fire Thunder Mountain Range and were heading towards Fire Thunder Town, so Long Chen was somewhat rxed.


    The mouth of a valley was up ahead, and once they passed it, they would arrive at Fire Thunder Town.


    Long Chen was about to run past it when a giant boulder suddenly rolled down, bringing with it a huge power that caused the ground to shake.


    Xiang, run! At this critical moment, they had no choice but to separate and run to the side. The boulder brushed past them andnded on the ground, throwing pebbles and dust in all directions!


    Long Chens chest tightened. He knew someone had ambushed them, but there was no time to guess who it was. Amidst the chaos, he activated the Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Perfect, blood-red scales covered his whole body, and sharp, red spines emerged from his joints!


    Whos there? Long Chen sensed a ck figure charging at himself amidst the cloud of dust. He hurriedly stumbled backwards to dodge that persons attack.


    When the dust settled, Long Chens vision cleared.


    Two ck-clothed people had stopped them. After they used the boulder to separate him and Mo Xiang, one of them attacked Mo Xiang fiercely while the other charged at Long Chen!


    <em>Is this an assassination attempt? </em>Long Chen squinted, his mind racing. The Dawn Trading Alliance was the only enemy in Fire Thunder Town, and it was impossible for them to have sent someone else so quickly. This meant that these two were from Yuanling City. There was only one person in Yuanling City who knew that he was hereDongfang Xuanyu!


    Dongfang Xuanyu sent you two here, right? Long Chen didnt counter his enemys attacks immediately, but first dodged them.


    When he spoke, his opponent was startled, but they continued attacking without a word. But their response was enough of an answer for Long Chen.


    Based on their attacks, Long Chen guessed that they were at thete Heavenly Core Realm. There was only a limited number of cultivators of this level in the Lingwu family, so when Long Chen looked at their body shapes, he had his guesses.


    Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan! Did you think I wouldnt recognize you just because youre d in armor? Isnt that too nave of you? Long Chen suddenlyughed while they fought.


    Long Chen, I must admit that you are indeed very smart. But smart people are usually the first to die! The ck-clothed person fighting Long Chen finally spoke up. As expected, it was Chu Tianxiong. Jin Luan was the one fighting Mo Xiang.


    Chu Tianxiong did not panic or hold back despite Long Chen exposing him. Instead, his attacks grew more fervent. He used the Chu familybat techniques paired with histe Heavenly Core Realm Qi, which were countless times stronger than Chu Yunxis attacks!


    Brother Chu, kill Long Chen quickly! Jin Luan yelled pathetically. He had underestimated Mo Xiangs strength, so he had been fighting a losing battle since the beginning. The only way for him to escape was if Chu Tianxiong followed their n, which was to kill Long Chen immediately ande help him!


    The n was perfect, but could Chu Tianxiong kill Long Chen in time?


    Long Chen instantly guessed their n. The Azure Dragon Halberd instantly appeared in his hand, and he swung it at his foe. The image of a dragon appeared, bringing with it a powerful momentum. Before the halberdnded, dust was already flying from the vibrations!


    The Azure Dragon Halberd? Its impressive indeed! However, Long Chen, you killed my grandson. No matter what happens, you will pay for it today! Although their faces were covered, Long Chen knew that Chu Tianxiongs face had turned green.


    Cataclysmic Wind Finger! The wind howled as he sent a finger seal at Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd!


    Chu Tianxiong was the Grand Elder of an outer family after all, and he had clearly mastered the Cataclysmic Wind Finger. It withstood Long Chens Split Yellow River.


    You think you can kill me with such a weak attack? Long Chen chuckled coldly. If he could defeat Dongfang Xuanyu, who had cultivated an Earth-tierbat technique, Chu Tianxiong would be easy!


    He turned his halberd, and a dragon image appeared, shooting right at Chu Tianxiong!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Shattered Skies!


    The Shattered Skies attack was more vicious than Split Yellow River. The Cataclysmic Wind Finger was Chu Tianxiongs most powerful technique, so he had no answer for Shattered Skies. Chu Tianxiong squinted as he looked at Long Chens attack flying towards himself.


    <em>Its no wonder Madam Xuanyu said I am no longer a match for him. Its indeed true. It looks like I must use the thing she gave me!</em>


    When Long Chen used Shattered Skies, Chu Tianxiong did not panic. He retreated as fast as he could and pulled out an object.


    There were several yellow talisman papers in his hand. They were covered in fire-red characters, and upon closer inspection, the characters were emitting mes!


    Firestorm Talisman? Long Chen knew what they were since he had been in the Lingwu family for some time. They were worth much more than Thunder Talismans, as they were one level higher.


    Chu Tianxiong had several Firestorm Talismans in hand. When they were used together, their effects would not increase proportionally, but exponentially. That was why Long Chen was startled when he saw Chu Tianxiong take them out!


    He had almost been reduced to ck charcoal due to Chu Yunxis Thunder Talisman a while back. Long Chen remembered that Chu Yunxi had received it from Dongfang Tianyu. Therefore, it was clear that Dongfang Xuanyu was the one who had provided the Firestorm Talismans!


    Long Chen was speechless. The same thing had happened to him twice, yet he still had no defenses. Dongfang Xuanyu knew that he was stronger, yet she had sent Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan here to their deaths. How was it possible that they wouldnt have a final trick up their sleeves?


    Also, when Long Chen defeated Dongfang Xuanyu, she never used any talismans. This meant that she had prepared them specifically to kill Long Chen!


    Die! Chu Tianxiong roared.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    No, you die instead!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 241: Firestorm Talisman

    Chapter 241: Firestorm Talisman


    These five Firestorm Talismans are worth more than ten million divine jades. Evente Heavenly Core Realm cultivators have been killed by them. Long Chen, lets see how youll escape this! Chu Tianxiongughed like a madman, his heartpletely filled with hatred. He used all five Firestorm Talismans on Long Chen at the same time.


    When Long Chen was up against the Thunder Talisman, he remained calm despite the emergency situation because he knew he would survive it. However, he didnt know if he could survive the sheer force of five Firestorm Talismans! If he survived and was left severely injured, it would greatly affect his chances in the uingpetition.


    Big Brother! Mo Xiangs eyes were bloodshot when he saw Long Chen''s situation.


    Long Chen had defeated Dongfang Xuanyu, so Mo Xiang was confident in his brother. However, he hadnt expected this. Even though he could easily shake Jin Luan off, he might not make it in time to save Long Chen!


    <em>Am I going to die in this old geezers hands? </em>Long Chen was speechless. He had only just taken the zing Thunder Crystal Soul from Li Ziling and hadnt had the chance to enjoy it yet. When the five talismans flew at him and exploded, the look on his face was one of extreme unwillingness!


    All five Firestorm Talismans exploded at the same time, every single one turning into a giant fireball. They looked like five suns hanging above Long Chen, shooting out roaring mes. The heatwaves almost threw Long Chen back!


    <em>This is bad! </em>Long Chens expression turned gloomy. The fireballs had started to expand. If they all exploded at the same time, they would probably tten an area of twenty meters. Being at the center of it all, there was no chance he coulde out unscathed.


    Chu Tianxiong had said that they could kill ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator, and that was not just him bragging. Dongfang Xuanyu intended to kill Long Chen, so she had made great preparations to ensure that he would die.


    <em>That bitch! I let her live out of kindness, yet she sent these two to kill me, even resorting to such lowly tactics. Dongfang Xuanyu, youd better hope I dont get another chance to kill you! </em>As the talismans started to explode in front of his eyes, all he could do was use the Nine Dragon shes to the best of his abilities to exit the twenty-meter radius within one second.


    However, Long Chen knew that he could only travel ten meters within that time.


    <em>Am I really going to die here? </em>He was furious. When he was in despair, he suddenly felt something in his Universe Pouch vibrating strongly. He had no time to think. He knew there wasnt anything special in his pouch, but if something gave such a strange reaction, he had hope!


    While Long Chen ran using the Nine Dragon shes, he took out the vibrating object. He then screamed and tossed it away immediately because it was too hot. His hand was burnt red from just touching it for a second, even turning a little ck.


    Long Chens eyes darted at the vibrating object, and he recognized it as the mysterious steel token from the Burning Heaven Mountain Range in the Deste Beasnds. It was the item that had given him the Burning Devil Sun Fist.


    When he threw the steel token, he saw something that surprised him. The fireballs suddenly stopped moving and melted into rivers of fire. The mysterious steel token swallowed the rivers of fire until the energy of the talismans waspletely gone! No trace of them remained!


    Looking at the empty skies, Long Chen knew he had been saved.


    What is that? How is that possible? Chu Tianxiong was so close to killing Long Chen and taking revenge, but then the token had suddenly appeared and, to his disbelief, absorbed the power of the talismans. Chu Tianxiong was in shock! He felt like he had just stepped into heaven and then tumbled straight down to hell!


    Die! Long Chen reacted quickly. This time, he did not hold back, and the Azure Dragon Halberd turned into a gust of wind in his hands, then into a roaring dragon as he struck it down on Chu Tianxiong!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies!


    Two consecutive attacks sent the numb Chu Tianxiong stumbling back, his face pale. Long Chen did not give him a chance to recover. The Shattered Skies attack had pierced cleanly through Chu Tianxiongs chest!


    Fresh blood flowed.


    Long Chen, what was that  asked Chu Tianxiong unwillingly with blood in his mouth, his face ghostly pale.


    Just a random steel token I picked up. I dont know what it is either, haha. Long Chen knew that although Chu Tianxiong could still speak, he was not far from death.


    Indeed, you are one of those legendary people who are always lucky  Pulling the halberd out of his own chest, Chu Tianxiong fell to the ground, face up. His eyes remained wide, staring straight at the sky, but his body never moved again.


    He died without closing his eyes?[1] Long Chen did not pity him. It was a dog-eat-dog world, and if he hadnt killed Chu Tianxiong, he would be the one who was killed.


    There was a cry from Mo Xiangs side too. Long Chen looked over and saw that he had killed Jin Luan. Mo Xiang had always been much stronger than him. Dongfang Xuanyu had basically sent the duo to their deaths.


    Big Brother, what just happened? Mo Xiang saw that a huge tragedy was about to befall Long Chen, but a steel token had suddenly saved him.


    Mo Xiang was drenched in cold sweat.


    I dont know either. Its very mysterious. I picked it up a while ago in a ce called the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. It started vibrating when the Firestorm Talismans appeared, so I took it out. I didnt know it would save me. The mysterious steel token had fallen on the ground, returning to its normal state. Long Chen walked over. Upon closer inspection, he knew that it wasnt hot and would not burn him.


    Burning Heaven Mountain Range? Isnt that a section of the Deste Beasnds? Mo Xiang cocked his head.


    Yeah. Long Chen studied the token in his hand and said, I dont know what secrets it holds, and I couldnt figure it out. Let me put it away.


    After doing so, Long Chen looked at Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luans bodies.


    Were they really sent by Dongfang Xuanyu? Mo Xiang was furious. That woman had almost killed Long Chen.


    It was definitely her, he said mildly.


    Should we storm the Lingwu family to demand an exnation from her? suggested Mo Xiang.


    Were not in a hurry for that. The battle in the ancient ruins will begin soon. Well let her go for the moment. Theres a ce even more suitable for me to improve my strength. Itll be great for you too, Long Chen said mysteriously.


    Where?


    Deste Beasnds, Burning Heaven Mountain Range, he said.


    He had a few reasons for going. First, there were few people in the Deste Beasnds, so they would not be disturbed and could focus on cultivation. Second, there were many beasts there, and Long Chen could improve his cultivation.


    Whatever you say, Big Brother. Mo Xiang grinned.


    Once decided, they hurriedly left for their destination.


    Long after they were gone, the Dawn Trading Alliance members, who were tired from the chase, finally arrived. Long Chens battle against Chu Tianxiong had not taken much time.


    Everyone froze when they saw the two ck-clothed bodies. Li Ziling, who had recovered by now, pulled the ck clothes off their faces and tried to remember who these people were.


    Theyre the two Grand Elders of the Lingwu outer families, Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luan. Why would they be here, dead? Li Ziling was puzzled.


    Miss, I have a guess, said one of the representatives.


    Go ahead, Li Ziling said, trying to suppress her anger towards Long Chen.


    I heard that Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong have grudges against Long Chen and have been waiting for a chance to take revenge. I think they dressed up in ck to tail Long Chen to Fire Thunder Town. After he obtained the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, they attacked him and Mo Xiang but ended up being killed instead.


    Yeah, that is probably what happened. The other representatives came to the same conclusion.


    Long Chen killed two Grand Elders? Li Zilings brows were furrowed, taking a mental note. Long Chen was long gone at this point, so there was no hope for her to get the zing Thunder Crystal Soul back.


    <em>Long Chen, one day, you will pay a heavy price for your actions, </em>she swore angrily to herself.


    ***


    Sitting on the Savage Wind Peng, it did not take long for the duo to arrive in Baiyang Town from the Fire Thunder Mountain Range.


    He did not enter Baiyang Town, but looked at it from afar. When he realized that everything looked peaceful, they both entered the Deste Mountains and headed straight towards the Deste Beasnds.


    Thest time I was here, it was your ns hunting tournament. I cant believe time passed so quickly. You have achieved so much since then, remarked Mo Xiang.


    Youre still young. Dont act so old in front of me. Its nothing huge, progressing from the Draconic Realm to the Heavenly Core Realm. There are many people stronger than me in this world  Long Chen thought about Li Xuanji, which made him sulk.


    Of course. I am known as a prodigy in Yuanling City, but there are many above me in the Biyang Imperial Capital. Mo Xiang felt helpless.


    What are you worried about? Well cross that bridge when we reach it. If you cant do it alone, Ill help you when the timees, Long Chen said.


    The heart of a master. That was what Mo Xiang concluded from Long Chens advice.


    Very soon, they entered the Deste Beasnds. There were countless caves, so they quickly found a ce to camp on the outskirts of the Burning Heaven Mountain Range.


    Ill spend the next few days merging with the zing Thunder Crystal Soul!


    1. In Chinese culture, dying without closing ones eyes is a sign that the person still has strong attachments and did not die willingly/peacefully. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ipletely forgot about the steel token. To think it would appear here.


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 242: Level Three Blazing Thunder Combat Body

    Chapter 242: Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body


    Without Ling Xi around, Long Chen felt a strange emptiness in his heart when he took out the zing Thunder Crystal Soul.


    In the past, Ling Xi would be by his side every time he cultivated. She was the one who had helped him get his first batch of zing Thunder Crystals. Now he had obtained the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, but there was no one there to guide him.


    Merging with zing Thunder Crystals requires enduring some terrible suffering. Im sure the zing Thunder Crystal Soul will be even more terrifying. Long Chen looked at the suppressed crystal soul in his hand, a little nervous.


    I think the zing Thunder Crystal Soul will be quite scary. Big Brother, its best youre mentally prepared, reminded Mo Xiang a little worriedly.


    Even that girl Li Ziling could do it, so whats there to be worried about? When he thought of this, he was filled with confidence again.


    When she merged with the crystal soul, she must have had Heavenly River Realm masters guiding her. This is different, said Mo Xiang.


    Itll be fine. Ive put so much effort into getting this thing. How could I not merge with it? Long Chen held the zing Thunder Crystal Soul up in front of him, taking a deep breath. He was already prepared for this.


    He had two treasures that assisted him in merging with zing Thunder Crystals. One was the Dragon Soul Transformation, the other was the Recovery technique. Long Chen activated the Dragon Soul Transformation.


    Be careful. Ill keep watch. Mo Xiang nodded, then leaned on the wall of the cave.


    Long Chen examined the zing Thunder Crystal Soul, trying to make himself calm. Then, taking a deep breath, the blood-red Qi in his dantian swirled and crept towards the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. The crystal soul, as if it had turned into a clear fluid, poured into his body like a tide.


    <em>The zing Thunder Crystal Souls power is indeed much stronger than the crystals! The electricity and fire alone are countless times more intense!</em>


    He had only just started, but Long Chen was startled because he felt waves of pain crashing through his body, from small torge. Although he had undergone the Dragon Soul Transformation, it was still unbearable!


    The zing Thunder Power methodically destroyed his bodys structure. This destruction far exceeded the speed at which it could rebuild itself. The pain was much more severe than before, reaching every corner of his body and tearing him apart. It felt as if countless tiny des were hidden in every corner, shing wildly.


    Very soon, a small trickle of blood flowed from the corner of his lips.


    However, he clenched his jaw hard, fighting the pain.


    Lightning and fire thrashed his body. Wave upon wave passed over Long Chen, until even his dragon scales sustained damage!


    <em>My body has sustained a lot of damage from the fire and lightning. It might be beyond its limits already!</em>


    This was only the beginning, but there was not a single patch of uninjured skin on his body. He had no choice but to activate Recovery.


    Trickles of warmth started to weave through his body between the lightning and mes. Every muscle and tendon it touched healed slowly as it nourished them.


    However, the destructive force of the zing Thunder Crystal Soul was beyond Long Chens imagination. Even after using the Dragon Soul Transformation and Recovery, it was still wreaking havoc in his body, even triggering the power that remained from the zing Thunder Crystals he had previously absorbed.


    He thought he would not survive, but upon closer inspection, tiny lightning and fire symbols were left on his tendons and muscles when they were rebuilt. These symbols made up of lightning and fire quickly spread across his whole body.


    Mo Xiang could also see that every scale on his body now had a symbol. Absorbing the zing Thunder Crystal Soul was merely one step toplete this array.


    Is this theplete form of the zing Thunder Combat Technique? Big Brother didnt look like he could make it, but now he looks better. It seems that the zing Thunder Crystal Souls function is to create this array after the zing Thunder Crystals strengthened the physical body by destroying and rebuilding it, Mo Xiang mumbled to himself. He was previously anxious too, but now he was feeling much better.


    Long Chen noticed that when the symbols started to appear, the agony he felt started to subside substantially. Under the healing effects of Recovery, his condition was improving. Now that the array on his body was formed, his muscles gradually strengthened, approaching the Level Three zing Thunder Body.


    <em>The Level Two zing Thunder Combat Technique is indeed a far cry from Level Three. Its no wonder Li Ziling took this so seriously. She must hate me so much; it took her great effort to suppress it, yet in the end it benefited me! </em>Long Chen was feeling smug.


    The zing Thunder Combat Techniques symbols and array required a long time to form andplete. The pain was not as intense as before, and this made Long Chen much calmer. He patiently waited for the moment of sess.


    When Mo Xiang saw that Long Chens life was no longer in danger, he started cultivating. He was not far away from the Heavenly River Realm now. If he could break through within a short time, he would not need to worry about the battle at the ancient ruins.


    Five days passed in the blink of an eye.


    There was a glowing from within the cave, and Long Chens body was the source. The symbols of lightning and fire glowed on his scales, their dense arrangements creating aplex but beautiful array. Every symbol connected to each other, boosting him with additional hardiness and strength.


    This was the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Technique, also the zing Thunder Combat Technique in itsplete form.


    Its finally done  It had taken him five whole days. Long Chen could not suppress his excitement. After the zing Thunder Crystal Soul had fulfilled its purpose, it disappeared within his body.


    Long Chen stood up and felt the explosive power in his body. The zing Thunder Combat Technique, which was equivalent to an Earth-tier Body Tempering Combat Technique, had brought about indescribable benefits. At the very least, he sensed that he was several times faster than before.


    Body Tempering techniques strengthened the physical flesh, and when the leg muscles were strengthened, ones speed would increase. One could say that a Body Tempering technique boosted ones attacks, speed, and defenses. Very often, a Body Tempering technique was the deciding factor between two equally capable people.


    Long Chen could feel the explosive energy within him and even felt like he had the ability to fight Mo Xiang. Although he was two levels below him, Long Chens Dragon Soul Transformation could fill in the gap of one level, while his Level Three zing Thunder Combat Technique could fill in half a levels gap. As a result, he really was not far away from Mo Xiangs level.


    Mo Xiang, lets spar! said Long Chen excitedly after his recent sess.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang always had a straightforward and direct rtionship, and Long Chen always said whatever was on his mind. Mo Xiang liked this straightforwardness very much.


    Youve only justpleted your cultivation and you want to show it off to me so soon? Mo Xiang was speechless. At the same time, he stood up, which meant that he was agreeing to Long Chens request.


    Of course. I want to show you how strong I am now! Long Chen headed for the space outside the cave. The Deste Beasnds were t and wide, making it an awesome ce for a fight.


    Big Brother, youre bragging again. Mo Xiang chuckled, looking around. There was a ck patch of emptynd in front of the cave.


    Nonsense. Lets fight. Long Chen was filled with battle spirit despite Mo Xiang looking down on him. He was still in his Dragon Soul Transformation form and had also pulled out the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Mo Xiang did not dare take him lightly in his current form. He took out his Heavenly Wolf Dagger, the gemstone that resembled a wolfs eye on its hilt glinting beautifully in the dark of the night. Mo Xiang shed it across the air, forming arcs of light in the night.


    Long Chen knew that the Heavenly Wolf Dagger was not at all weaker than the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Be careful! Illusory Divine Step! Mo Xiang had just spoken when he turned into an illusion and appeared in front of Long Chen in a sh. He had spent his life mastering this Body Tempering technique, and it differed from Long Chens Nine Dragon shes because its main focus was speed, while the Nine Dragon shes focused on agility.


    Using his sharp dagger and superspeed, Mo Xiangs strength was in close-range meleebat, while Long Chens expertise was more rounded in different areas. However, he knew that if he let the dagger-wielding Mo Xiang near him, he would be dead.


    Think you can get close to me? Dream on! Long Chenughed and used the Nine Dragon shes. He brushed past Mo Xiangs shoulder, causing him to miss.


    Xiang, Ill give you a taste of pure power from my zing Thunder Combat Technique! Long Chen roared and turned around, sweeping his Azure Dragon Halberd at Mo Xiangs waist!


    When he used all his strength, the previously hidden symbols appeared on his body. The power of lightning and fire flowed out into the Azure Dragon Halberd!


    It was just one sweep without even using his Qi, but it was as powerful as a mid Heavenly Core Realm cultivators most powerful attack. Mo Xiang hurriedly blocked with the Heavenly Wolf Dagger!


    <em>ng!</em>


    There was an ear-piercing ng when two Earth-tier Divine Weapons collided. However, Mo Xiang was thrown back by the force. Shocked, he stuttered, T-that was powerful! Big Brother, the zing Thunder Combat Technique is indeed strong! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Mc and his plot armor


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 243: Surprise Appearance of Heavenly River Pill

    Chapter 243: Surprise Appearance of Heavenly River Pill


    Despite Mo Xiangs shock at the strength of Long Chens zing Thunder Combat Technique, he was no idiot. After he was thrown into the air, he spun and, like a spry wolf, pounced on Long Chen once more.


    Demonic Wolf Combat Technique, Deathly Shadow!


    Mo Xiang turned into a blurry shadow and disappeared. All Long Chen could see was a cold glint from the Heavenly Wolf Dagger.


    <em>Mo Xiang is a natural killer when he is wielding the Heavenly Wolf Dagger. </em>Long Chen was impressed. Mo Xiang was just too fast, much faster than him with the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Technique, so he had no choice but to ce all his focus on the fight.


    <em>Where is he? </em>Once he pinpointed Mo Xiangs position, his eyes shed coldly and he shed the Azure Dragon Halberd at him!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Split Yellow River!


    Two attacks of the same level collided violently, supported by Qi from both ends. What shocked Mo Xiang was that this was almost an equal-level fight. The waves of strength from the Azure Dragon Halberd caused vibrations that numbed his arms.


    Demonic Wolf Combat Technique, Bloody Killing!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Shattered Skies!


    Mo Xiang grew more nervous with every strike. He admitted that Long Chen now had the ability to fight him directly. Of course, they were just sparring now. If this was a true battle to the death, Mo Xiang was confident he could kill Long Chen. However, he knew that although he was at thete Heavenly Core realm and had the Heavenly Wolf Dagger, he would still have to pay a hefty price!


    Big Brother, havent you learned an Earth-tierbat technique? Dont waste time! Use it! Mo Xiang suddenly said.


    You even know about that? Long Chen was sour.


    Of course I do. No one in Yuanling City is as talented as you are in cultivation. You mustve mastered Starsweep Dragon a long time ago. Are you not going to use it today? Mo Xiangughed.


    I initially wanted to debut it during the battle at the ancient ruins. But if you request it, I will dly oblige. Xiang, be careful!


    Long Chen grew solemn. This was his first time using the Earth-tierbat technique, so he was afraid he couldnt use it well.


    Dont worry, Im not weak! Mo Xiang retreated quickly, then when they collided once again, both of them used their Earth-tier techniques!


    Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd swung madly, so fast he couldnt see it. All he could see was countless azure dragons spinning in the air, and a strong pressure pressed on Mo Xiang.


    Indeed, this is an Earth-tier technique! Mo Xiang did not back down. With the Heavenly Wolf Dagger in hand, he elerated. The dagger seemed to slowly melt and merge with his arm until his whole arm turned into a scary, thin, and sharp wolf fang!


    Demonic Wolf Combat Technique, Heavenly Wolf Fang!


    The air whistled when he used this attack, as if even space had been pierced through.


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Starsweep Dragon!


    Long Chen unleashed the Earth-tier Starsweep Dragon attack, one that Dongfang Xuanxiao had used before, against Mo Xiangs Heavenly Wolf Fang. Countless azure dragons swarmed at Mo Xiang. Every dragon was actually the tip of Long Chens fast-moving halberd!


    Two Earth-tier techniques were engaged in meleebat!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Dust flew all around them from the vibrations, even leaving cracks on the ground. The battleground was thrown into chaos!


    Both Long Chen and Mo Xiang wereunched backwards!


    This was the most powerful collision of the battle. Long Chen admitted that he had used his zing Thunder Power to its maximum. He believed that he could kill manyte Heavenly Core Realm cultivators with just one strike using this attack. However, it was not powerful enough to beat Mo Xiang.


    Mo Xiang was also thrown back into the air, his expression showing that he was not happy. However, he couldnd on his feet, unlike Long Chen, who lost control. Based on this, Long Chen still lost. However, the gap between them was minute, and in a true battle, there was absolutely the possibility of oveing it.


    This time, Long Chen could say that he had once again lost to Mo Xiang, but he was not depressed and insteadughed. What an impressive fight that was.


    Are you alright? Mo Xiang walked over to Long Chen worriedly, though what shocked him was that although Long Chen was a little pale, he waspletely fine.


    Big Brother, look, you could withstand my attack as an equal. Youre improving so quickly. In just a few days, Ill be left far behind


    None of that ass-kissing! With my ego, Im going to fly if you keepplimenting me, haha, said Long Chen.


    Mo Xiang smiled shyly. He knew he wasnt ass-kissing; they were genuine words.


    Big Brother, youre almost as strong as Li Ziling already. When when work together in the ancient ruins, no one will pose a threat to us unless Yan Danqing and Li Ziling fight together, said Mo Xiang.


    Thats true. However, we must still be careful. We still have time. Ill familiarize myself with the zing Thunder Combat Technique, and when the timees, well return to Yuanling City.


    After making ns, they chatted for a while and then prepared to cultivate. However, that was when they saw a beautiful, multi-colored ray shooting out into the sky, in the direction of the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. It lit up the night sky of the Deste Beasnds.


    The ray quickly vanished. There was no sound, and if they were not here, they would not have noticed it at all.


    What just happened? Mo Xiang looked at Long Chen.


    That type of phenomenon must be rted to a treasure. I think theres something good in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. Xiang, lets go check it out. If were lucky, haha, wont we be rich?


    Since Long Chen had suggested it and Mo Xiang did not want to miss this rare chance either, he nodded.


    The mountain range is huge, but I remember the direction of the ray. Lets head there in a straight line. Well start searching when were almost there, Long Chen said, walking ahead.


    Big Brother, do you think itll be dangerous? Im worried itll affect the battle of the ancient ruins. Mo Xiang frowned.


    We can only achieve great things if we take risks. Well be careful and itll be alright, said Long Chen with a grin.


    Mo Xiang nodded. To be honest, he was also an adventurous person.


    Very soon, they entered the pitch-ck Burning Heaven Mountain Range. Compared to thest time they were here, the temperature was much lower, almost simr to other ces.


    There was an air of creepiness in the area, so Long Chen did not dare let his guard down.


    They traveled quickly and soon, they were almost at the spot where the colorful ray had appeared. Long Chen could only confirm that it came from this area, but they needed to search for it.


    After a little searching, Long Chen detected a hint of medicinal scent.


    Big Brother, I think I know what it is  Mo Xiang looked emotional.


    Here. His nose was more sensitive. Long Chen followed him. After walking quickly, he saw a patch of white light ahead. There were two pills on the ground, each about the size of the tip of a pinky finger. They were glowing white, like gemstones.


    The pills radiated a familiar energy. Long Chen thought for a moment and recalled that this was star power.


    Indeed! Those are Heavenly River Pills! Mo Xiang was surprised.


    What is a Heavenly River Pill? Long Chen asked.


    Heavenly River Pills are condensed and refined by Heavenly River Realm masters after absorbing star power. Big Brother, you dont know a Heavenly River Realm cultivators cultivation process, do you? They absorb star power, condense it into a soothing pill, then consume it. This is how they increase the amount of tame star power in their bodies. Heavenly River Pills are not only important to Heavenly River Realm cultivators, they are even more important to us cultivators who are close to the Heavenly River Realm. Breaking into the Heavenly River Realm is much easier if we consume one!


    Theres such a thing? Long Chen did not know anything about the cultivation process of the Heavenly River Realm.


    Yep. Cultivators at the First River Stage take one month to refine one Heavenly River Pill; and there are two pills here! Also, the Heavenly River Pill is amon currency in the Biyang Imperial Capital. Divine jades are mostly used for low-quality, cheap goods. So, do you know how important Heavenly River Pills are now?


    They could be used as money! How could he not understand their importance?


    Xiang, youre almost at the Heavenly River Realm. Take both of them and well leave this ce immediately, Long Chen said decisively.


    No way, we share both good things and bad things. I only want one. Big Brother, you cultivate fast and will also soon reach the Heavenly River Realm. The Heavenly River Pill will be useful to you too, insisted Mo Xiang.


    Alright, well take them now and talkter. Long Chen knew that Mo Xiang was a little stubborn, and if he didnt agree, Mo Xiang wouldnt touch the pills. The Burning Heaven Mountain Range was a strange ce, so hanging around for too long was a bad idea.


    Mo Xiang sighed in relief when Long Chen agreed, then he took the pills. Long Chen examined their surroundings and noticed a small crack on the ground. It was very tiny, and if he hadnt searched deliberately, he would not have found it.


    <em>Did these pills fly out of this crack? The light from just now also came from it. And now the crack has closed? </em>Long Chen was in deep thought.


    He stomped his foot gently and realized that the ground was very hard, even as hard as steel. There could not be an empty space beneath.


    Big Brother, what is it? asked Mo Xiang when he saw Long Chens strange behavior. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Oooh money! Though I think its a trap


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 244: The Return of Royalty

    Chapter 244: The Return of Royalty


    Im guessing that the Heavenly River Pills and that colorful ray came out of this crack. But the crack isnt doing anything now. As Long Chen spoke, he took out his Azure Dragon Halberd. It contained a lot of energy and was made of an extraordinarily sharp material.


    <em>ng</em>! Long Chen stabbed it into the crack. The ground was indeed as hard as steel, so despite his great strength, the halberd only prated about centimeters into the ground.


    A crack? Mo Xiang leaned over.


    Based on the sound, there should be a hardyer of soil at least a hundred meters thick. I dont think we will get anything if I just dig using the Azure Dragon Halberd. But I dont know if that strange phenomenon will happen again. Lets wait here for a while and see if we get anything else, said Long Chen.


    Alright. Mo Xiang nodded.


    They had initially decided to hurry off after taking the pills, but there might be more Heavenly River Pills. Even though it was a little dangerous, the duo decided to stay.


    After about an hour, Mo Xiang suddenly eximed in a low voice and Long Chen hurried over. What happened?


    That crack! It haspletely disappeared! said Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen examined the ground closely and indeed, it had disappeared. This meant that the surface of the ground was moving with time.


    Should we leave? asked Mo Xiang.


    Well wait a little longer, Long Chen responded after some thought.


    They stayed for a while longer. At that point, Long Chen was prepared to leave. The Heavenly River Pills were already a great surprise.


    However, another colorful ray appeared in the sky and disappeared in a second.


    That ray had appeared in another spot, though it was still in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. They looked at each other and elerated, rushing towards its source. This time, they arrived much quicker than before and found three glowing Heavenly River Pills.


    They approached, took the pills, and then rushed to a crack. The crack was next to the pills, and when Long Chen first saw it, it was the width of a palm. When he looked down into it, it was pitch-ck and he could not see anything.


    However, the crack was narrowing at a rate detectable by the naked eye. It was decelerating though, and when it was a fingers width wide, he could no longer visibly see the ground moving.


    The three pills were all they got from it.


    Big Brother, do you think there are more Heavenly River Pills in the crack? Mo Xiang asked.


    Probably a lot more, but we cant do anything. The crack has disappeared. Lets wait here and see if another ray appears, said Long Chen.


    The Heavenly River Pills must havee from the ground. Two pills had appeared earlier, and now three. This meant that there might be an infinite supply! As long as they had enough Heavenly River Pills, both of them would be able to cultivate at the Heavenly River Realm with no obstacles.


    This was a huge opportunity, so Long Chen dared not ck off.


    And just like that, they stayed in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range for ten days. They obtained a total of thirty-four Heavenly River Pills during that time. Splitting them in half, both of them ended up with seventeen. Heavenly River Pills were worth much more than divine jades, so even though Long Chen only had seventeen, very few people in Yuanling City were richer than him.


    Even the Azure Dragon Patriarch would take one and a half years to refine seventeen pills, plus he would need to use them to cultivate. That was why he would not have seventeen pills on hand.


    They knew that there were more treasures waiting in the strange cracks of the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. But no matter what Long Chen tried, he had no way to retrieve more pills from within the cracks. So he had no choice but to leave it be.


    During the first few days, the rays appeared fairly frequently. However, the gap between appearance rose to two to three dayster on. The number of pills decreased too. On the tenth day, Long Chen decided to leave this ce for the moment.


    The battle of the ancient ruins would begin soon, and they had spent a lot of time on the Heavenly River Pills. If they did not return now, it could affect their participation. To Long Chen, bing an Immortal Guard and thus obtaining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was more important than everything else.


    We can only investigate the Burning Heaven Mountain Ranges secrets after the ancient ruins battle ends. I hope it hasnt ended by then. Xiang, lets go, said Long Chen.


    They traveled back to the Deste Mountains, where the Savage Wind Peng they had borrowed was.


    Right, do you know where the ancient ruins are? he asked when they walked out of the Deste Beasnds.


    I dont. The ancient ruins were discovered by the royal family, so it is being kept a secret. Theyre worried people will go there to scout for information, said Mo Xiang.


    The Savage Wind Peng ascended into the air with Long Chen and Mo Xiang, and they headed in the direction of Yuanling City.


    Long Chen had received two main things from this trip: first were the Heavenly River Pills, which would greatly help him enter the Heavenly River Realm. Second was the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Technique.


    <em>That bitch Dongfang Xuanyu better not let me catch her. Or Ill make her wish she was never born. </em>He had almost died because of her, so he kept this grudge in his heart.


    Right, Xiang, how strong is the Ninth Prince? Long Chen suddenly asked.


    The princes of the royal family are usually at the Heavenly River Realm and above. Although the Ninth Prince is not very famous, no one in Yuanling City is a match for him. Hes here to recruit an Immortal Guard, but thats not actually his task. His real purpose is to scare border factions like the Lingwu family by flexing the royal familys power.


    Mo Xiang analyzed their motives clearly.


    Long Chen looked at the white jade-like city on the horizon in a daze. It was such a beautiful ce. What storm awaited him there?


    ***


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang arrived at the Silver familyspound on the Savage Wind Pengs back. When they had just arrived, an elegant girl looked at them smilingly with concern in her eyes.


    Xiang, Long Chen, youre finally back! The Patriarchs havee here so many times in the past few days. I think theyre so worried, their mustaches have curled upwards! said Yin Mengyao with a small smile.


    Sister Mengyao, any recent updates on Yuanling City? asked Long Chen after sitting in a pavilion.


    This morning, the old Patriarch and a few elders, along with some outstanding disciples, went to wee the Ninth Prince. The rest of them will return after escorting the Ninth Prince to the Jade Royal Pce. I heard there will be a grand feast tonight, and the Azure Dragon Patriarch said to go meet him immediately after you arrive. You guys must join this feast.


    Jade Royal Pce? Neither of them knew where that was.


    It is a pce that the three main factions of Yuanling City contributed resources to build a month ago. It was specifically built for the Ninth Prince. I hear that theres divine jade and precious treasures everywhere inside, much grander than the Lingwu familys buildings. The three factions have spent a lot of resources just to please the Ninth Prince. But I hear that the Ninth Prince really likes the pce and even promised to stay there often.


    The Ninth Princes visit to Yuanling City would be one month long at most, yet the three main factions had built a pce just for him. This meant that despite Yuanling City being considerably far from the Biyang Imperial Capital, they were still afraid of the royal family.


    <em>It looks like the royal family is quite scary. Itll be difficult to take revenge for Xiang</em>, thought Long Chen.


    Itll be evening soon. You two should go see the Azure Dragon Patriarch. Your disappearance made him very anxious, so his mood is very unstable, said Yin Mengyao worriedly.


    Long Chen smirked to himself. That old geezer definitely didnt know that his daughter had sent people to assassinate Long Chen. If she had seeded, Long Chen would never have returned and Mo Xiang would probably have ughtered his way back here.


    Xiang, lets go. Lets see how powerful the Ninth Prince is. He must have three heads and six arms if he can make the three factions bend their knees like they saw their fathers, Long Chen mused.


    Long Chen, be careful with your words in front of them. Yin Mengyao furrowed her brows.


    Dont worry, I know my limits.


    Then they both went to the Eastern Azure Dragon family. Long Chen didnt go to the main administrative area, the Xuanfeng Pavilion, but rather went straight to the Xuanyu Pavilion. It waspletely empty. The ancient ruins were about to be opened, so the other youths had stopped cultivating.


    Here, Long Chen sensed Dongfang Xuanyus aura. When they stepped in, Dongfang Xuanyu rushed out. Her face changed when she saw Long Chen.


    Why are you scared? Unless  you did something that made you feel guilty? Long Chen said darkly, taking a few steps forward.


    What do you mean by that? Dongfang Xuanyu replied. She had secretly investigated and learned of Chu Tianxiong and Jin Luans deaths. She also knew that Long Chen had snatched away the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. In the past, she was no match for him, but now she was helpless.


    However, this was the Lingwu family, so she had people protecting her. That was why she boldly refused to admit it.


    Dont you dare act dumb in front of me, Dongfang Xuanyu! I showed you mercy once, yet you tried to kill me. This is your fault! I am not killing you now because I have more important things to do, but dont you let me get a chance, because Ill make you regret being born.


    Then Long Chen left.


    Dongfang Xuanyu trembled greatly, feeling as if she had fallen into an icy pool. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Just kill her already


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 245: Emperor Yuan and the Dawn Trading Alliance Chairman

    Chapter 245: Emperor Yuan and the Dawn Trading Alliance Chairman


    The Azure Dragon Patriarch was quickly notified of Long Chen and Mo Xiangs arrival. When Long Chen had just exited the Xuanyu Pavilion, the Patriarch appeared in front of him with a <em>whoosh</em> and red coldly. What did you do to Xuanyu?


    Shes your daughter, would I dare do anything to her? Long Chen replied with a question. If he touched Dongfang Xuanyu, it would be a gesture of great disrespect to the Azure Dragon Patriarch. For the sake of his future ns, he held it in.


    Good. I heard you took Li Zilings zing Thunder Crystal Soul? Long Chen, you have ruined the Lingwu familys big ns for your own selfish benefit! The Azure Dragon Patriarch was extremely displeased with Long Chens actions.


    Did the Lingwu family intend to coborate with the Dawn Trading Alliance? But the rtionship turned sour because of me? Long Chen instantly guessed what he was about to say.


    Youve guessed correctly. The other Patriarchs and myself have made extensive preparations to coborate with them, yet it was all for nothing because of you! he said.


    Youll have to me your daughter for this. She was the one who told me about the zing Thunder Crystal Soul at the Fire Thunder Mountain Range, and she even sent people to murder me! If I wasnt smart, I wouldnt be standing in front of you right now. You old geezer, let me tell you this: if anything happens to me, my master will annihte your whole family immediately!


    When he mentioned Li Xuanji, the Azure Dragon Patriarchs face changed. He did not even rage when Long Chen called him an old geezer.


    After a long pause, he changed the topic and said, Tonight, we will have a grand feast at the Jade Pce to wee the Ninth Prince. All the youth disciples who will enter the ancient ruins must go. You two stay here for the time being, and I wille get you when the timees. The Ninth Prince holds a high status. You two should know how to handle this.


    Then the Azure Dragon Patriarch left.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang looked at each other and nodded.


    I havent met a person from the Imperial Capital in so long. Mo Xiang sighed.


    Night fell quickly.


    The busiest ce in Yuanling City tonight was the newly erected Jade Royal Pce. It was the mostvish and extravagant ce in the entire city, and the cost of building it was astronomical. However, the three factions had not even furrowed their brows when spending all that money.


    Yuanling City was a minor faction after all, and it was very rare for people from the Imperial Capital to visit. This was the best opportunity to leave a good impression.


    Colorfulnterns and streamers hung everywhere in the Jade Royal Pce, though most of the light came from shining divine jades and precious gemstones. They emitted a soft glow, making the ce look beautiful.


    Within thergest building of the Jade Royal Pce, also called the Jade Royal Hall, the three main factions were present. Long Chen and Mo Xiang were sitting in a corner in the designated Lingwu area, keeping a low profile. There was no reason for them to attend this event other than to get to know many legendary characters.


    Long Chen knew most of the people from the Lingwu family, though two elders he hadnt seen before attracted his attention. They were in the seats meant for people of the same rank as the Azure Dragon Patriarch, so they were the legendary Vermilion Bird Matriarch and the White Tiger Patriarch. The Vermilion Bird familys head was ady, and although she was of simr age to the other Patriarchs, she cared for her appearance well. That was why with her ck hair and sophisticated features, she looked like she was in her forties.


    The leaders of the Dawn Trading Alliance were headed by a plump old man. His face glowed red and he was very fat, as if he could be knocked over by a kick. However, Long Chen knew that he was a cultivator at the Heavenly River Realm. Plus, he was the head of his powerful faction. There were two Heavenly River Realm cultivators in the Dawn Trading Alliance, and the other was the alliances head emissary, who had been the old mans good friend for many years.


    Li Ziling and Li Qingling were with the Dawn Trading Alliances group.


    But Long Chen paid more attention to the Beast Soul Pces side. This was his first time truly meeting a group of Beast Warriors. They radiated killing intent and brutality, qualities that were unique to demonic beasts. Upon closer inspection, he could see blood in the depths of their eyes. They looked like normal people, but they gave off the feeling of demonic beastsying low for their next kill, making peoples scalps go numb and attracting attention.


    Long Chen knew that the legendary number one master of Yuanling City was not one of Lingwus four Patriarchs, nor was it the Dawn Trading Alliances fat old man and head emissary. It was the only Heavenly River Realm cultivator in Yuandi City, Emperor Yuan. This was what every head of the Beast Soul Pce was called.


    The old man in question was easy to spot. If the members of the Beast Soul Pce were like demonic beasts, then he was the leader of the pack, attracting gazes instantly. The incumbent Emperor Yuans age was simr to that of the Azure Dragon Patriarch and the others, but from the outside, he looked more like the Azure Dragon Patriarchs son, Dongfang Xuanfeng. With ck hair, dark eyes, and a wrinkle-less face, he still possessed a vibrant life force.


    That person is indeed powerful. Even the Azure Dragon Patriarchs aura is weaker than his. When Long Chen saw Emperor Yuan, he felt a sudden stinging pain in his eyes and quickly turned away, not daring to look again.


    There are three generations living in the Beast Soul Pce. The strongest of each generation has their own title, namely Emperor Yuan, King Yuan, and Prince Yuan. The one who will participate in the ancient ruins battle is Prince Yuan, Yan Danqing. He is also ranked first on the Potential Ranking Board, exined Mo Xiang by Long Chens ear.


    Long Chen finally noticed the teenage boy sitting one step below Emperor Yuan. He was basically a younger version of Emperor Yuan, and with some time, he should be able to be just as powerful. However, he was terrifying enough now. At least he was ahead of every other youth in Yuanling City.


    When Long Chen looked at Prince Yuan, the other party also looked in his direction, though his gazended on Mo Xiang. After they both eyed each other for a while, Prince Yuan red coldly. When his elders started to chat with him, he turned and no longer looked around.


    Xiang, it looks like youre the only one he considers an opponent. Long Chen chuckled.


    Thats because he doesnt know how strong my brother is, said Mo Xiang.


    This is bad. Youve only been with me for a short time, yet youve already learned how to kiss ass? mused Long Chen.


    Mo Xiang felt awkward, not knowing what to say.


    At this moment, the head of the four Lingwu Patriarchs, the Azure Dragon Patriarch, was engaged in an indirect battle against the Dawn Trading Alliances fat old man, Li Wudi, and Emperor Yuan. They targeted each other with words, making implicit insults.


    Brother Dongfang, I hear that your n produced a disciple called Long Chen  Hes something! He snatched the zing Thunder Crystal Soul right out of my Lingziers hands and even injured Qingling! The fat old man squinted, targeting the Azure Dragon Patriarch immediately.


    Not many people knew of this, so when Li Wudi mentioned it, everyone searched and found Long Chen in the corner, giving him shocked gazes. When the masters discovered that Long Chen was merely at the initial Heaven Core Realm, they were shocked and speechless. Even Emperor Yuan regarded Long Chen for a long while.


    Long Chen had made a huge mess, and it would be difficult for the Azure Dragon Patriarch to pick up the pieces. Long Chen did not feel any pressure at all and answered in his ce. It is only natural that treasures should be given to the strongest cultivators so as to not insult its value. Alliance Chairman, Im sure you understand this simple concept. Even the battle over the ancient ruins'' inheritanceis that not a battle of strength?


    Long Chen was too brave. He did not actually have a right to speak there, but not only had he spoken, he had done so in such an arrogant tone that Li Wudi did not even know how to respond. Li Wudiughed, his flesh trembling, then he said, What a witty brat! He has a quick mind too. I just wonder, how is your cultivation going?


    Its fine, said Long Chen humbly.


    Such a quick answer made everyone almost vomit blood.


    Li Ziling could stand it no longer. <em>Whoosh! </em>She shot up from her seat and pointed at him, eximing, You bastard! You took the chance to attack when I was exhausted after I suppressed the zing Thunder Crystal Soul! You even ambushed my younger brother to threaten me! Youmitted such a lowly crime, yet you dare act so arrogantly here today! Fight me here and now if you have the balls to! Lets see who is truly the superior one!


    Li Ziling had always been a direct person. Everyone looked at Long Chen, wondering how he would respond. It was embarrassing when a woman said that a man had no balls.


    But Long Chen was not afraid at all. Heughed and said, Thats a strange thing to say, Miss Ziling! We cant prove whether I have balls or not herewed have to prove it in bed! Miss, is this all because you think Im handsome? Are you asking for a chance to bed me?


    Long Chens shameless response allowed him to dodge her question easily; he could even tease her at the same time. Everyone waspletely impressed. However, the people from the Dawn Trading Alliance were furious.


    Shut your mouth, Long Chen! bellowed the Azure Dragon Patriarch before the alliance members exploded. Long Chen smiled nonchntly and sat down. Other than Li Wudi, many alliance members stood up and red coldly in the direction of the Lingwu family. Everyone knew that the rtionship between the Lingwu family and the Dawn Trading Alliance, which had taken massive effort to build, waspletely broken.


    Long Chen   Li Zilings face was green with rage and she trembled all over. She red at him and said through gritted teeth, You have humiliated me today, so I will kill you in the future. I will use your blood and flesh to wash away the humiliation you made me feel!


    The killing intent in her eyes scared everyone into silence.


    Is it that serious? Its not like I sexually harassed you in public, Long Chen mumbled softly, rolling his eyes. The girl thought too highly of herself.


    Mo Xiang saw that the conflict was going to continue, so he tugged at Long Chen and whispered, Stop talking. The Ninth Prince is here. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    "it''s fine"


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 246: The Ninth Prince

    Chapter 246: The Ninth Prince


    When Long Chen heard that the Ninth Prince wasing, he shut his mouth even though he was having a great time insulting Li Ziling. He was smart, so he knew who he could and could not afford to offend. With the Lingwu family behind him, he could anger Li Ziling. However, an important figure from the Biyang Imperial Capital like the Ninth Prince was not someone he would dare to offend.


    Also hearing the news, Li Ziling, whose face was green with rage, was also tugged down to her seat by Li Wudi next to her. When he saw that Li Ziling was still furious, he said in a low voice, Zilinger, you must learn to contain your anger. Youll be going to the ancient ruins the day after tomorrow. Instead of arguing here, you should n how to vent your anger there.


    Grandfather, I understand. I want to kill him there. If I had not been exhausted, even a hundred Long Chens wouldve been no match for me, said Li Ziling, calming herself down.


    Youre one of the top three cultivators of Yuanling Citys younger generation, why would you get angry over a small character like that? Remember, Yan Danqing and Mo Xiang are your true opponents. Dont lose sight of the prize over a small distraction, said Li Wudi.


    Yes, I have learned my lesson.


    When Li Wudi heard her, he smiled with pride. Then his gaze turned along with everyone else towards the depths of the Jade Royal Pce. There were two figures walking out, and they could quickly make out their faces in the bright lights of the pce.


    Long Chen eyed the two of them carefully. The person walking behind was wearing all ck. His hair was ck with streaks of white,bed back tightly into a bun so not even a strand was out of ce. His back was bent, so clearly his position was beneath the person walking in front. Long Chen guessed that the ck-clothed old man was something like a butler.


    The young man in front surprised Long Chen. He was about twenty years of age, wearing luxurious, ck and white brocade clothing. He had a tall nose with clearly defined brows, his skin as fair as white jade, radiating sophistication. He was handsome and confident, his beauty on par with Dongfang Xuanxiaos. Compared to Dongfang Xuanxiao, however, he had an aura that shook the onlooker to their core.


    Long Chen found it difficult to describe his aura. From his eyes to his fingers, all Long Chen could see was one thinga sword. This man was like a sharp sword. Although he did not put his strength on disy, hints of Sword Qi radiated in all directions. Everyone felt a prickling sensation on their skin.


    <em>Sword Qi. Its as if hes a human being made out of Sword Qi. </em>Long Chen was shaken. It was clear that the Ninth Prince was a Heavenly River Realm master, and he definitely was no weaker than the most powerful cultivator present, Emperor Yuan.


    <em>Indeed, hes from the Biyang Imperial Capital. That ce is one tier higher than Yuanling City, </em>thought Long Chen. The feeling he had was the same as when he was in Baiyang Town looking at masters from Yuanling City. His heart was filled with reverence, and before he had the capability of seeing this person as an equal, he chose toy low.


    When the Ninth Prince arrived, he sat down in his seat with a smile on his face and his gaze swept across the crowd. He hadpletely recalled all of the Sword Qi on his body, so his gaze looked as warm and friendly as spring. His eyes resembled the prettiest stars in the sky, and some of the girls swooned when they met his gentle gaze.


    Everyone stood up and quickly left their seats, bowing their heads in respect.


    Greetings, Your Highness the Ninth Prince!


    Long Chen imitated everyone else and looked practiced. However, he noticed that Mo Xiang was a bit stiff. It seemed that he held a grudge against everyone in the royal family. Even though the Ninth Prince had nothing to do with the annihtion of his family, he still had royal blood running through his veins.


    Please take your seats, everyone. Theres no need for formalities, said the Ninth Prince with a smile, looking around. His smile was like a spring breeze, making people feel close to him.


    As Long Chen sat down, he eyed the Ninth Prince secretly.


    <em>When he made his entrance, he deliberately showed a little of his power to scare us. Now hes treating us with gentle friendliness. He controls the carrot and the stick well, making everyone both respect and fear him. It seems he has many tricks up his sleeves, though he does have the signs of a royal family member. Both his status and capabilities make him powerful, so if I want to be an Immortal Guard, it will be most dependent on him. No matter what happens, I must act humble and build a good rtionship with him. </em>Long Chen thought.


    He wasnt even this careful when he first met Mo Xiang. Right now, he felt like an ant in front of the Ninth Prince.


    <em>At the time, Xiang was also much stronger than I was, but now hes my best friend. If the Ninth Prince isnt some evil-hearted guy, I can try climbing this very tall mountain.</em>


    While Long Chen was privately nning, the Azure Dragon Patriarch and the rest were already starting to greet the Ninth Prince. The grand feast had officially started, and countless precious, rare foods were served. However, most people did not eat, only watching the three faction leaders wine and dine the Ninth Prince, chatting away happily.


    Time passed slowly as everyone watched the Ninth Prince with forced smiles. The Azure Dragon Patriarch and the Ninth Prince were chatting away happily. It did not matter if it was the Azure Dragon Patriarch, Li Wudi, or Emperor Yuan, they all called him Your Highness. The Ninth Prince looked displeased and said, You three are all my elders, and this is not the Biyang Imperial Capital. Im just here to rx and enjoy myself, so theres no need to be so formal. My name is Lin Cangtian, so you can call me Cangtian.


    No, no! Ninth Prince, we cant toss away formalities! If the Sword Emperor found out that we called you by your name, our heads would be on the ground, said the Azure Dragon Patriarch hurriedly.


    What Brother Dongfang says is true. It would be very inappropriate, said Li Wudi hurriedly.


    Since you both think so, then I shall not insist. Hehe, its gettingte. Its time for the feast to end. Im very satisfied with the wee Ive received, said Lin Cangtian with a faint smile.


    Yuanling City is a poor ce, so it doesnt have anything good. Our wee wasnt good enough, said Li Wudi of the Dawn Trading Alliance with a smile.


    Youre being too humble, Chairman Li. The Ninth Prince chuckled. Then he recalled something and asked the Azure Dragon Patriarch, Patriarch Dongfang, I once came to Yuanling City when I was young. At the time, there was a guy named Jin something, and I really liked him. May I know where he is?


    Thest time he came to Yuanling City, the Ninth Prince was here to hide from some trouble. At the time, he was one of the less-weed princes. Now, everything was different because while he was not the strongest, he had some power in the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    When he first came to Yuanling City, the cunning Jin Luan had offered Lin Cangtian his daughter, nning to skyrocket his status from this. That was Lin Cangtians first taste of a woman, so naturally there was some emotion tied to it. However, he returned to the Biyang Imperial Capitalter and soon forgot about this minor matter. Now that he was in Yuanling City, he suddenly remembered and decided to ask about the man.


    Many people in the Eastern Azure Dragon family knew about this, but they didnt think much of it. Dongfang Xuanyu had remembered this incident when Long Chen left for the Fire Thunder Mountain Range, which was why she had recruited Jin Luan and Chu Tianxiong. If the Firestorm Talisman could not kill Long Chen, then she thought the Ninth Prince would finish him off. Wouldnt that guarantee Long Chens death?


    Not many people knew of the full story, but almost everyone present knew that Long Chen had killed Jin Luan.


    The Ninth Prince had only asked the question casually, but when everyone fell silent and they looked at each other, he lost interest and said, You guys dont know him? I might have remembered wrongly. Perhaps hes dead. Then he shrugged it off.


    However, Long Chen grew cautious because he sensed that something was off. Because the Azure Dragon Patriarch and the others all nced at him. That was when Li Ziling, who was sitting opposite them, suddenly spoke with excitement in her eyes. Your Highness, I know who youre talking about. Its Jin Luan, the Grand Elder of the Lingwu familys Golden family! However, he was killed by Long Chen just a few weeks ago!


    Everyone drew in a sharp breath when she spoke. They then looked at Long Chen pitifully. From their perspective, a person whom the Ninth Prince remembered had been killed by Long Chen, meaning Long Chen was going to die.


    Long Chen was initially confused, but he very quickly realized the Ninth Prince was talking about Jin Luan. This waspletely beyond his expectation. He didnt know that Jin Luan and the Ninth Prince once had a rtionship. In that case, this was terrible news


    Seeing everyones strange looks, Mo Xiang sensed that the situation had turned south. He grabbed Long Chens arm, clearly very nervous. If the Ninth Prince made a move, then it would be a duel to the death for them tonight.


    And they would likely die.


    When Li Ziling finished speaking, she smiled coldly at Long Chen, gloating.


    Everyone was staring at Long Chen. The Ninth Prince didnt even have to ask and already knew who Long Chen was.


    Long Chens heart was in his throat, waiting for the final judgment made by the young man, who was eyeing him with interest. He thought he had dealt with the assassins Dongfang Xuanyu had sent him, but he hadnt expected that bitch to make such a powerful move. This trump card had been hidden from sight, and from this, he could see that she was evil.


    Haha  The Ninth Prince suddenlyughed and patted the armrests of his chair. Youre only at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, yet you killed ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator. Not bad, kid! Im looking forward to your performance at the Burning Heaven Secret Realm.


    Then he stood up and turned around nonchntly. He moved his foot and then disappeared.


    Everyone looked at each other, all of them impressed by Long Chens luck. Not many people were happy with his brush with death, but many hung their heads in sorrow, or rage. Li Ziling initially thought hed die for sure, but was frustrated that he had survived.


    After surviving the ordeal with ease, Long Chen was left with countless questions. Based on logic, he should just be an ant to the prince, so why hadnt the prince killed him?


    Also, was the Burning Heaven Secret Realm the name of the ancient ruins?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    the prince has arrived!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 247: Burning Heaven Secret Realm

    Chapter 247: Burning Heaven Secret Realm


    The Ninth Princes wee feast hade to an end, seeing as the prince had left. Long Chen returned to the Lingwu family nervously. He had figured out why the Ninth Prince hadnt touched him. Perhaps he was trying to appear friendly, as he had just arrived in Yuanling City and it was not a good time to kill anyone. That was why he had survived.


    Long Chen had decided how he would deal with Dongfang Xuanyu, the one who had schemed to kill him. However, the Burning Heaven Secret Realm would open the day after tomorrow, and he knew his priorities, so he decided to let this grudge go for the moment and focus on winning the inheritance.


    However, he was puzzled over the name of the Burning Heaven Secret Realm.


    Do you know where the Burning Heaven Secret Realm is? Long Chen asked the Azure Dragon Patriarch on the way back.


    That was the first time the name of the ancient ruins was announced. How would I know where it is? said the Azure Dragon Patriarch. Looking at Long Chen, he recalled the incident with Dongfang Xuanyu and said with furrowed brows, Long Chen, I know that what Xuanyu did was over the line, but youre fine now. Seeing as the Lingwu family has treated you decently, let her go, alright?


    Why would a man hold such a small grudge? Long Chenughed and called for Mo Xiang, running after him and leaving the rest of the Lingwu members behind.


    The others were surprised at Long Chens nonchnt assent to cooperate. The ck Tortoise Patriarch frowned and said, Big Brother, the kid doesnt look as generous as that. I think hell look for a chance to make a move.


    What can I do? He has that mysteriousdy protecting him, and Mo Xiang looks like he treats Long Chen as his leader. How could we touch him? The Azure Dragon Patriarch was exasperated.


    Everyone felt helpless when he mentioned that mysterious woman.


    That was when Beitang Mo said, Whatdy? She hasnt appeared in a long time. Long Chen said that she was his master, but is it true? Grandfather, could he be tricking us again?


    When Beitang Mo questioned it, everyone thought for a moment and realized that it was possible. However, they did not dare to test if it was true before the Burning Heaven Secret Realm was opened.


    Lets not deal with that brat Long Chen yet. Let him sell his life for our family in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm first. If we want to kill him, let the Beast Soul Pce and the Dawn Trade Alliance do it. Borrowing a knife for a murder is the best way to go, mused the Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen looked at each other, exasperated at how cautious their elders were.


    The Burning Heaven Secret Realm will be opened the day after tomorrow. Therell be many intense battles then. Go back and rest well, then make the Lingwu family proud!


    ***


    Big Brother, I feel like the name Burning Heaven Secret Realm is a little familiar, said Mo Xiang in puzzlement in the Silver family quarters, scratching his head.


    Not just a little. I think its super familiar. I have an intermediate ck-tierbat technique called the Burning Devil Sun Fist, which I retrieved in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. Both of them have simr names. Plus, both of us noticed the strange phenomena at the Burning Heaven Mountain Range a few days ago, so Im guessing the Burning Heaven Secret Realm is rted to the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. Maybe its underneath it! said Long Chen solemnly.


    Long Chen had made the connection when he first heard the name.


    After hearing your exnation, I think the Burning Heaven Secret Realm is very special. We have not even entered it yet, yet weve retrieved thirty-four Heavenly River Pills. There must be a lot more stuff inside. Mo Xiang grew excited.


    He was like Long Chen, also yearning to be stronger.


    Mhm, thats right. Xiang, youve been using the Heavenly River Pills. How were they? asked Long Chen.


    I used one pill. The star power inside is very powerful, but I still cannot open the starry sky within my body.[1] Im guessing that I need many pills to seed, he replied with a frown.


    Thats fine. Well collect as many pills as possible for you to break through! said Long Chen with a grin.


    What about you? asked Mo Xiang.


    You fool, who will be able to take the Heavenly River Pills from you when you reach the Heavenly River Realm? Itll be easy to get pills from then on. When that happens, Ill get however many I need,ughed Long Chen.


    Then he turned his gaze towards the direction of the Deste Mountains of Baiyang Town.


    A true war was about to begin.


    ***


    Two days passed quickly. Early in the morning, Long Chen and the rest of the candidates selected to enter the Burning Heaven Secret Realm were already gathered outside the Jade Royal Pce. Leading the group were the four Patriarchs. As for the Dawn Trading Alliance, Li Wudi and the head emissary brought five teenagers with them, while Emperor Yuan brought eight teenagers.


    There were twenty-three people in total. The Lingwu family had ten participants, the Beast Soul Pce eight, and the Dawn Trade Alliance five. This also reflected the ratio of power the three factions held.


    The battle was about to begin. Everyone looked solemn.


    Long Chen could faintly sense intense hatreding from two sources, one being the Lingwu familys Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen, while the other was the five people of the Dawn Trading Alliance.


    <em>It looks like a huge battle against them will be unavoidable in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, </em>thought Long Chen. His strength had improved greatly after merging with the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. Very soon, it would be evident who the strongest cultivator truly was.


    Suddenly, a shrill beasts cry came from within the Jade Royal Pce. Some of them felt a piercing pain in their ears from its shrillness, furrowing their brows. If its cry could make them feel miserable, then the beast was sure to be quite powerful.


    A momentter, a gigantic demonic beast flew out of the pce, its fleshy wings spread wide. It was not an avian-type beast, though its size was simr to the Savage Wind Peng. It had sharp ws and teeth, along with green scales covering its whole body. All these characteristics proved that it was a fierce beast several times stronger than a tame Savage Wind Peng.


    This is the Category Nine ck-tier Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon, a beast that is extremely hard to defeat. Even I find it very difficult to kill, said Mo Xiang, frowning.


    Is that the Ninth Princes mount? asked Long Chen.


    Probably.


    The fact that the Ninth Prince could tame a Category Nine ck-tier beast to be his mount showed just how awesome he was. Long Chen could only admire a person of this status.


    As they spoke, the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon was already flying above them. It let out several deafening cries, causing the Savage Wind Peng birds on the ground below to tremble in fear, unable to move.


    The Ninth Princes clear voice came above. Our destination is the Deste Beasnds. Everyone, follow me.


    Understood! Everyone from the three factions replied hurriedly, then they quickly got on the backs of Savage Wind Pengs. Unfortunately, with the Dragon Falcon above, they did not dare move at all.


    Useless idiots. The Azure Dragon Patriarch was furious and panicked.


    When the Ninth Prince saw this, he merely gave a small smile and urged his Dragon Falcon to speed up. Then the Savage Wind Pengs at the bottom were finally willing to tail it from far behind.


    Amidst the howling wind, Long Chen patted Mo Xiangs shoulder and said, It looks like we guessed it right. The Burning Heaven Secret Realm is indeed in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range.


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    This battle is an opportunity for us to be much more powerful. Lets do our best and fight alongside each other! Long Chen was filled with confidence.


    Yes, Big Brother.


    As the strong wind howled, time passed slowly and the people could not calm themselves down.


    Hate, ambition, and anxiety were some of the emotions that filled their hearts.


    Following the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon, they entered the Deste Beasnds. Thisrge piece ofnd was no longer a dangerous threat to Long Chen with his current strength.


    The Deste Beasnds sit on the Cangyang Kingdons soil. There are beasts ranging from Category One Yellow-tier to Category Nine ck-tier in here. My Moon Devouring Wolf beast soul from years ago was actually collected here. I was alone at the time and could only kill beasts one level above myself. If I had seniors present, I too could have used a Category Nine ck-tier demonic beast as my Primary Beast Soul. Then I would be like Yan Danqing, truly unleashing the potential of a Beast Warrior, unlike my current state. I may be a Beast Warrior now, but Im fighting just like a normal cultivator, said Mo Xiang with a bitter smile.


    Long Chen recalled his first time entering the Deste Beasnds. He was terrified then. Just one Moon Devouring Wolf was enough to terrify him. But now he was not even afraid of demonic beasts countless times stronger than the Moon Devouring Wolf.


    You have two goals in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. One, collect enough Heavenly River Pills and break through to the Heavenly River Realm. Second, condense and cultivate an Earth-tier beasts beast soul. Am I right? asked Long Chen.


    Yes. Mo Xiang nodded.


    But we have no ess to higher-level Earth-tier beasts. Even if you make a breakthrough, you will only get a Category One Earth-tier demonic beast if you risk your life for it. In that case, wouldnt you end up in the same situation as right now? asked Long Chen with a frown.


    I dont have a choice. Who would let me kill a Category Seven or Eight Earth-tier demonic beast? But I know that there is a Category One Earth-tier beast in the deepest part of the Deste Beasnds, though it does not suit me. Mo Xiang was frustrated.


    Then lets try our luck in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Maybe a high-level Earth-tier beast will suddenly die and benefit us, said Long Chen.


    Looks like thats the only way. Mo Xiang bitterly smiled.


    They arrived at the Burning Heaven Mountain Range.


    Everyone dismounted and looked at the ck, barren mountain range.


    Is this the Burning Heaven Secret Realm? The group was puzzled.


    This is only the entrance. The Ninth Prince turned and swept his gaze across the group. The Burning Heaven Secret Realm is the tomb of a master from the Middle Ages, called the Burning Heaven Emperor. His inheritance remains inside. Whoever gets his inheritance will be the victor, and also the Immortal Guard. Therefore, you must do your best


    Yes, Your Highness! everyone replied in unison.


    <em>Burning Heaven Emperor? </em>Long Chen wondered if there was a connection between the Burning Heaven Secret Realm and the mysterious steel token. A human face had appeared in the mes when he learned the Burning Devil Sun Fist. Was that the Burning Heaven Emperor?


    Long Chen faintly felt like the steel token would give him an advantageter.


    1. In case you guys have forgotten, in this novel, the cultivator needs to open the starry sky and then absorb star power into their body in order to progress to the Heavenly River Realm. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    new adventure in a new realm!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 248: Confidante

    Chapter 248: Confidante


    Long Chen had already done everything he could during his previous search for Heavenly River Pills at the Burning Heavens Mountain Range to uncover the secret held within its depths, but to no avail. Now, under everyones expectant gazes, the Ninth Prince was finally going to open the portal to the Burning Heaven Secret Realm.


    The Burning Heaven Secret Realm is a Miniverse, and its entrance is located in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. A powerful force is required to st the entrance open, so everyone should stand back, Lin Cangtian said with a cold voice.


    Everyone stepped back, directly leaving the Burning Heaven Mountain Range altogether. Long Chen was with the group. He initially thought the Ninth Prince was going to do it himself, but the only person who stayed behind was actually the ck-clothed old man who had followed him. This showed that the ck-clothed old man was also a master at a high cultivation level, at least at the Heavenly River Realm.


    After everyone was a distance away, their eyes were fixed on the old man. Although there was a huge distance between them, Long Chen could still feel powerful energy ripplesing from the old mans body. Long Chen was convinced that if he approached the ripple, he would be ttened by its force.


    Suddenly, a ck light appeared in his fist. It flickered lightly in the beginning, but when he moved, it suddenly erupted into a gigantic image of a fist and sted into the ground at lightning speed.


    <em>Rumble, rumble!</em>


    The ground shook violently. The earth and mountains shook and boulders rolled everywhere. Long Chen and the others almost fell. In front, a huge mass of soil had been sted into the air and instantly blocked their field of vision, swallowing the old man. However, his fist attack was still causing the surface of the ground to shake.


    He made the ground shake with just one punch! Long Chen and Mo Xiang looked at each other, shaken. From that move, Long Chen truly appreciated the strength of the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    Xiang, what do you think that old mans cultivation level is? whispered Long Chen.


    Im guessing at least the Fourth River Stage, said Mo Xiang weakly.


    It was clear that taking revenge against the most powerful faction in the Biyang Imperial Capital, the royal family, would be extremely difficult.


    The dust settled, and the ck-clothed elder appeared in front of Lin Cangtian with a bow. Your Highness, the portal to the Burning Heaven Secret Realm has been opened.


    Well done. Lin Cangtian nodded and turned to look at the heads of the three factions, as well as the twenty-three teenagers who were about to enter, with a smile. The time hase, and I will not waste time talking nonsense! Treat this battle as a training opportunity, and the rules are  There are no rules! Kill all you want! This is a battle of both wit and courage! I will only look at the final result, which is the person who receives the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance!


    Understood!


    Under Lin Cangtians lead, they all entered the Burning Heaven Mountain Range once more and headed to the spot where the ck-clothed elder had punched. To their shock, there was a two-meter wide spiral in the ground. It looked like ck water, though there were red mes burning on the surface.


    No one could have imagined that the entrance would look like this.


    The three factions shall enter the Burning Heaven Secret Realm in three batches, and the realm will deliver you all to different ces. Then the entrance will close. You have ten days in total. After that, I will open this entrance again and you all will sense the exit. If no one gets the inheritance in ten days, then unfortunately, no one will be recruited as an Immortal Guard. As for the right to rule, I will think of another way to decide it.


    Long Chen privately memorized his words.


    The first batch to enter was the Dawn Trading Alliance participants, also the smallest batch. Under the watch of the alliance chairman, Li Ziling and the others leaped into the ming whirlpool. Li Ziling had not looked at Long Chen once from beginning to the end, though her expression remained cold.


    The second batch was naturally the people of the Beast Soul Pce. The eight disciples were Beast Warriors, but other than Yan Danqing, the cultivation levels of the others were average. Including Yan Danqing, there were only four people at the Human Core Realm. However, due to their beast souls, they had violent auras, making it clear that they were strong inbat.


    The Lingwu family had the most participants and were thest to enter. The ten of them were divided into two groups. Long Chen and Mo Xiang stood together, while the others also stood together with no intentions of operating with the duo.


    Long Chen, Mo Xiang. Dont forget what you need to do there. After entering the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, you must cooperate with Tianchen and the others! reminded the Azure Dragon Patriarch coldly before they entered.


    Im willing, but your grandsons hate us, Long Chen mused.


    Dont worry about that. Ive already talked to them. Work together and look out for each other, said the Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    Long Chen could choose to believe him, but when he nced at Dongfang Tianchen, Beitang Mo, and the rest, they all looked at him coldly. Long Chen smirked to himself and did not say anything else. He and Mo Xiang entered the whirlpool. Under the elders encouragement, Dongfang Tianchen and the rest also jumped into the Burning Heaven Secret Realm.


    Once the youths had all entered the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, the ce was much emptier than before. Lin Cangtian wrung his hands and said, You may all return. In ten days time, we shall witness a miracle.


    Then he called his Category Nine Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon and lifted off into the skies.


    On the Dragon Falcon, the ck-clothed old man sitting next to Lin Cangtian said, Your Highness, is this all not too grand for what we need? The Imperial Capital has nevercked Immortal Guards, so recruiting guards from a small ce like this is just meant to increase the local youths motivation to cultivate. Theres no need for you to personally attend the selection, right?


    You dont understand. The Imperial Capital has been chaotic recently, so its a good thing for me to get some rest here and avoid the chaos for a while. Then again, although the Burning Heaven Secret Realm is a small ancient ruin, there is something Im interested in inside. Im resting here, and theyre helping me get it out. Isnt this amazing? Lin Cangtian smiled.


    What is it?


    During a training session, I found a map that marked this Burning Heaven Secret Realm. The map stated that this ce contains the inheritance left behind by a cultivator called the Burning Heaven Emperor from the Middle Ages. However, I estimate that the guy was only at most a Category Seven or Eight Earth-tier, yet he dared call himself an emperor. Howughable. But, he did possess something remarkable.


    Lin Cangtian paused before he continued, The map states that the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance includes a gigantic sum of Heavenly River Pills and an intermediate Earth-tier defensivebat technique called the Nine Spinning Fire Shield.


    Those two things arent enough to make you interested enough toe to Yuanling City, are they? I wonder, what is the remarkable thing you spoke of? asked the ck-clothed elder.


    Its an advanced Earth-tierbat technique, considered a divine technique called Divine Fire Clones. Cultivating this technique allows the user to condense his Qi outside his body to create a fire clone, whosebat abilities depend on the cultivators strength. The stronger the cultivator, the more clones produced and the stronger they are. If I get the Divine Fire Clones technique, my strength will improve greatly, said Lin Cangtian with reverence.


    If that is the case, why dont you enter the Burning Heaven Secret Realm yourself? You would have better assurance, questioned the ck-clothed elder.


    I want to, but the Burning Heaven Emperor was probably a master who came from a small ce like Yuanling City, and he left the inheritance possibly to nurture the younger generation. When he nned the tomb, he ced a seal from the Middle Ages. I am at the Heavenly River Realm right now, and the tomb would definitely break down if I entered, ruining my ns.


    I see. In that case, you dont even need to break a sweat for it. This is a smart n, Your Highness. The ck-clothed elder was genuinely pleased with his master.


    He had been puzzled over this event for a long time, and now Lin Cangtian had answered his doubts.


    Old Yan, have you noticed something? Lin Cangtian suddenly asked.


    What is it? The old man froze.


    Ick a close confidante. A true confidante who would risk his life for me, he said mildly.


    Your Highness, I am willing to walk through fire for you. Am I not considered a confidante? asked the old man in a panic.


    I dont mean that. You are my right hand, and you are extremely capable. Im referring to someone my age. There are so many young talents working alongside Eldest Brother and Fourth Brother, and all of them are stronger than me, he remarked.


    Thats true. Your Highness, you are still young and inexperienced. You only started to grow stronger in recent times, unlike the other two princes, who have deep roots in the Imperial Capital. Thats how they developed huge factions, said the old man.


    Old Yan, you must have read Long Chens details. In just half a year, he grew from having no cultivation to entering the Heavenly Core Realm. That guy must be an extraordinary prodigy that shines brightly when he needs to. The corner of his lips curled upwards.


    Long Chen? The elder froze and said, Is that why you forgave him, Your Highness?


    He was talking about Jin Luans death.


    Old Yan, you underestimate me. Jin Luan is such a minor character; is it really necessary for me to avenge him? As for Long Chen, well have to see how he performs in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. If he can get the inheritance, I dont mind giving him a boost!


    As Lin Cangtian spoke, he turned to look in the direction of the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Far away, several Savage Wind Pengs flew, keeping their distance from the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon.


    Ill also give him a one-way ticket, haha! Lin Cangtian added. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    does he actually want a friend, or does he want someone to use?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 249: Killing Inner Family Disciples

    Chapter 249: Killing Inner Family Disciples


    It was boiling hot.


    This was the only thing Long Chen felt. After he entered the ck whirlpool, he felt a gush of fire grabbing him tightly. The mes at the entrance were hot too, and if he had not protected himself using Qi in time, he could have been burnt.


    He felt himself swimming through the sea of fire, and it was a miserable feeling. Fortunately, the intense heat disappeared soon after, though the surrounding temperature was still high.


    When his eyes sprang open, he was surprised to find himself standing on some ck soil. The ground was ck like burnt charcoal, simr to the soil in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range, but much harder. Long Chen stepped on it, and it felt the same as stepping on steel, despite it being soil.


    What differed from the Burning Heaven Mountain Range was that the temperature here was several times higher. A regr person would find it hard to survive for more than fifteen minutes.


    He noticed mes all around him when he opened his eyes. The mes were in random shapes and sizes, even presenting different colors. The mostmon color was red, and the mes looked like flowers blooming in the ck soil. Some mes even melded into each other to form walls, blocking one''s vision and pathway.


    With the mes nearly covering the groundpletely, they couldnt even find three square meters of open space, and some mes rose to heights of above two meters. Everyone had no choice but to tread very carefully. This was the Burning Heaven Secret Realm after all.


    Long Chen first saw the fire, then he saw Mo Xiang next to him, who was equally shocked. Next, he spotted the other eight people of the Lingwu family not far away. As for the Beast Soul Pce and the Dawn Trading Alliance members, their whereabouts were unknown.


    No one could orient themselves here, so for a moment, Long Chen did not know which direction he should go towards.


    Big Brother, should we be traveling with them? Mo Xiang asked.


    Dont we have enough problems already? Lets go. Long Chen had zero intentions of fighting alongside the Lingwu people. After answering Mo Xiang, he picked a direction and walked ahead.


    Stop right there! He had just taken a few steps when the eight Lingwu youths started to surround him. Very quickly, theypletely encircled Long Chen and Mo Xiang so they could not leave.


    Out of the eight, the three people with Earth-tier Divine Weapons were the strongest, while Dongfang Tianchen and Tianxuan were at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, which was not weak. As for the ones who were at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, they were merely ceholders.


    What is the meaning of this? Long Chen was a little taken aback that these brats dared block his way. He peered at them with interest, only to notice their cold expressions. It seemed that they had nned to surround him before they even entered the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, likely without permission from the Azure Dragon Patriarch and the rest.


    Youre asking for the meaning of this? Long Chen, dont people call you a genius? Cant you figure it out yourself? said Dongfang Tianchen coldly, taking a step forward.


    I really have no clue. Unless  Are you guys thinking of attacking me? Youve got some guts, said Long Chen. To be honest, he truly had not expected these brats to attack as soon as they entered the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Thebat abilities of him and Mo Xiang were already well-known, and evente Heavenly Core Realm cultivators were no match for him, not to mention Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen, other people might be able to withstand the humiliation youve made us endure, but we cannot. The Lingwu family is the number one n of Yuanling City, yet a stray dog like you has stepped on our heads. We have been bearing it all because we were waiting for today, said Dongfang Tianchen coldly.


    Thats right. Beitang Mo also took a step forward. The Azure Dragon Halberd belongs to the Lingwu family. Only when we have killed you will Tianchen get it. Once all four of us with the four great Divine Weapons work together, Yan Danqing and Li Ziling will be no match for us. We still get the inheritance regardless, so we dont need trash like you!


    Even if you get the Azure Dragon Halberd, you guys wont be able to use it. Long Chen could not understand these idiots at all.


    Youre wrong. We can use it, and its all thanks to you for letting the Azure Dragon Halberd recognize you as its master, said Dongfang Tianchen with a smirk. I coincidentally learned that if I take the Qi belonging to the dead master of the Azure Dragon Halberd and then condense it into a Qi seed and nt it in my body, I can use the Azure Dragon Halberd for at least ten days!


    Long Chen realized that these brats had attacked without permission because they were eying the Azure Dragon Halberd. That was indeed a great idea, because if they killed Long Chen, not only could they resolve the hatred in their hearts, they could also use thebined power of the four Divine Weapons to deal with Yan Danqing and Li Ziling. Although the elders forbade them from doing this, and this was also a very risky move, they were willing to risk it all to wash away their humiliation and get the respect of their elders!


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang locked eyes. They knew that their first battle in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm would be against the Lingwu familys youths. Long Chen hated Beitang Mo to the bone, and he had not taken revenge for that one p yet, so this was his chance!


    Xiang, well go for it! Lets show them how powerful we are! Long Chen took a few steps back andughed. The crowd felt goosebumps when they heard hisugh.


    Thats right, Big Brother! Well fight together! Mo Xiang was excited.


    When they saw that the duo was not afraid of death, Dongfang Tianchen and Beitang Mo looked at each other andmanded, Everyone else, block Mo Xiang off! We only need fifteen minutes to kill Long Chen!


    Then the two of them charged furiously at Long Chen while everyone else rushed at Mo Xiang.


    Xiang, dont kill them. Give them some leeway, Long Chen instructed secretly.


    He had to kill Beitang Mo. On the other hand, due to the conflict over the Azure Dragon Halberd, the fight with Dongfang Tianchen would clearly not end until one of them died. As for the others, Long Chen had less hatred towards them.


    He had already faced Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen alone. His attention was attracted by Beitang Mos weapon. It was a huge, ck ax. The handle was more than two meters long and covered with a very hard, ck turtle shell. The axs de looked evil, and it was as sharp as the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    This was the Earth-tier Divine Weapon belonging to the Northern ck Tortoise family, the ck Tortoise Axe. All five great Divine Weapons of the Lingwu family were equal in strength, so when the ax was used, it provided the user with a boost that was simr to the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Since you guys want the Azure Dragon Halberd so badly, Ill let you all watch me use it. With a sh, the Azure Dragon Halberd appeared in his hand.


    The rest of the people had already surrounded Mo Xiang. Obeying Long Chens instructions, he merely toyed with them, though at superspeed. If he fought with full force, the three initial Heavenly Core Realm brats would die instantly!


    Thanks to that, Long Chen could ce his full focus on the two people in front of him.


    Beitang Mo, you pped me once, so I shall give you a taste of my halberd. You may defend yourself, and if you survive it, I will show you mercy and let you live. As for you, Dongfang Tianchen, its alright if you want the Azure Dragon Halberd. If you survive one hit from it, Ill give it to you! Long Chen shed the halberd in the air and charged at them.


    Arrogant!


    Hes just bragging!


    Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen did not care about what he had said. Long Chen wanted to determine the victor in one move, and they did not want to waste time, so they used their most powerful attacks immediately.


    Holding the ck Tortoise Axe with both hands, Beitang Mo leaped into the air and swung the ax down. It was as if a huge mountain was falling, and even the air trembled. A ck glint from the ax formed an arc, and a monster with a snake head and tortoise body charged at Long Chen!


    ck Tortoise Combat Techniqueck Tortoise Reveal!


    A huge surge of power exploded, one that an averagete Heavenly Core Realm cultivator would find hard to achieve. Beitang Mo with the ck Tortoise Axe could definitely defeat a cultivator like Dongfang Xuanyu.


    Although Dongfang Tianchen did not have the Azure Dragon Halberd, the halberd in his hand was an extraordinary one. At least it was much more powerful than the Sun Halberd that Dongfang Tianyu once used. He leaped at Long Chen, shing his halberd. His move created countless tiny dragon images that swirled around him. With a roar, the tiny dragons, which were shaped like halberd tips, all thrust towards Long Chen!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Starsweep Dragon!


    This move made Long Chens lips curl up into a small smile.


    Is that Starsweep Dragon? Let me show you what the true Starsweep Dragon is. Long Chens tone was very calm, but when he swung his halberd in the air, the wind and clouds seemed to swirl and howl. He charged forward, and even more azure dragon images appeared around him. From an outsiders perspective, this Starsweep Dragon was of much higher quality than Dongfang Tianchens rendition.


    How is that possible? Not much time had passed since Long Chen had received the Azure Dragon Halberd, yet he was already able to use Starsweep Dragon. From this, they could see just how extraordinarily talented he was at cultivating techniques..


    The immensely powerful Starsweep Dragonunched countless halberd tips at Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen. The wind howled manically, and the red mes around them were extinguished by the shockwaves!


    Everyones faces changed when they saw how powerful the attack was. The surprised Dongfang Tianchen and Beitang Mo, and they did their best to drum up all the Qi they could before the suffocating attack arrived!


    <em>Were two mid Heavenly Core Realm cultivators! How could we be weaker than Long Chen, who is merely at the initial Heavenly Core Realm? The results of this duel are not set yet! Perhaps this brat only looks impressive, but actually has no substance! </em>With that thought, despite the massive difort in their hearts, the duo held out hope.


    However, when they truly collided with Long Chen, they realized that they were too nave. Long Chens Starsweep Dragon held power that they could not imagine. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    these people are so annoying


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 250: The Legend of the Moon Devouring Wolf

    Chapter 250: The Legend of the Moon Devouring Wolf


    Brother!


    Mo!


    Tianchen!


    The six people blocking Mo Xiang let out gut-wrenching screams. Their hearts turned cold and they no longer cared about Mo Xiang, the opponent who was toying with them. They rushed to the duos rescue.


    To them, Long Chen looked like a powerful tornado as he manipted the Azure Dragon Halberd wildly, shing Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchens attacks to pieces. Then the two ghostly-pale men were swallowed into the attack range of the halberd, the tornado spinning around them. Although there was no bloodshed yet, everyone knew it wasing.


    Indeed, Long Chen had stopped attacking and took a few steps back, keeping away from them.


    He had not even used his most powerful form, the Dragon Soul Transformation, for this fight.


    When they saw Long Chens cold gaze, the Lingwu members knew that it was likely a tragedy. Dongfang Tianchen and Beitang Mo stood on the spot, in a daze. Their eyes were wide, their faces filled with disbelief.


    <em>ng!</em>


    The ck Tortoise Axe fell on the ground, bounced up, and then disappeared from sight. Due to the vibration from the bounce, they saw growing patches of blood painting Dongfang Tianchen and Beitang Mos chests. They each had a piercing wound on the location of their hearts. Therge wounds were enough to kill them.


    Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen were dead!


    Beitang Mo had received his death sentence when he almost killed Long Chen with his Yin Poison Palm Strike. As for Dongfang Tianchen, due to the fight over the Azure Dragon Halberd, Long Chen could only live in peace if he was dead.


    The remaining six people stared in shock, drowning in grief and regret.


    Long Chen was the devil to them. They would have never thought that the idiotic-looking newbie who had just joined would grow to this terrifying level within such a short time.


    They had known for a long time that Long Chen was not someone they could bully. With his capabilities, he had the right to step on their heads!


    Even the ck Tortoise Axe was no longer in Beitang Mos control. This meant the two were very dead.


    Remember this. Do not provoke me, or you will end up like them, Long Chen said mildly, then he gestured for Mo Xiang to leave with him.


    The Lingwu contingent had lost Beitang Mo and Dongfang Tianchen, which also meant that they had lost the ability to fight for the inheritance. Of course, if Long Chen or Mo Xiang won, the right to rule would still be given to the Lingwu family.


    They watched Long Chen leave with pain, struggle, and mostly fear in their eyes.


    Big Brother, arent you afraid of the Patriarching after you since you killed them? asked Mo Xiang.


    What else could I have done? If I hadnt scared them enough, they wouldve continued harassing us. Plus, I have a huge grudge against Beitang Mo. I had to kill him! said Long Chen with a bitter smile.


    But its fine. As long as you get the inheritance, you will be someone the Ninth Prince protects. No one in Yuanling City will touch you, said Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen understood this too. That was why he knew that getting the inheritance was of utmost importance.


    Theres no sense of direction in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Where should we go? Looking at the barren, endless expanse, Long Chen felt frustrated. It was only ck soil and continuously burning mes. There was no inheritance to be seen.


    Mo Xiang had no ideas.


    Lets do it this way. There seems to be some difference in the denseness of the mes. We will head towards the ce with the densest mes. Long Chen finally found some difference after observing for a long time.


    Mo Xiang agreed, as he had no other opinions.


    They walked for about an hour. During this time, the only thing they gained was the realization that the mes densities were irregr. Some ces had more mes, some less. That was a normal phenomenon.


    Looks like I guessed wrongly. Long Chen didnt know what to say.


    Big Brother, I sense the aura of a Moon Devouring Wolf, Mo Xiang suddenly said. Then, following the aura, he traveled ahead across the ck soil.


    Moon Devouring Wolf? There are Moon Devouring Wolves here? If there were clues of live beasts, they might find something there. Long Chen hurried after him.


    It was a mountainous region nearby. Both of them treaded lightly and very soon, they found a valley below. They stretched their necks to peer down and coincidentally saw about six beasts running past!


    They wererge, wolf-type beasts with silver fur. They looked beautiful beneath the moonlight, and a dreamy light flowed within their faint, silver eyes, shrouding them in an air of mystery. However, the sharp fangs protruding from their lips and powerful limbs hinted that they were fierce animals.


    Indeed, they are Moon Devouring Wolves. Long Chen and Mo Xiang had encountered them before.


    The Moon Devouring Wolf is a strange animal because its a devouring-type beast; therefore, it has the ability to ascend levels. These wolves have devoured something strange though, mumbled Mo Xiang.


    Strange? Can you tell me more? Long Chen was interested. In their fundamental forms, Blood Transmutation and the Blood Devouring Domain were also devouring-type skills.


    The Moon Devouring Wolf. Based on the name, you might assume that they devour the moon, though that would obviously be too dramatic. In reality, Moon Devouring Wolves can absorb moonlight, which is simr to how humans cultivate. An average wolf is a Category One ck-tier when it matures, but as it increases in age, reaching Categories Two, Three, or even Five is possible. This is how they differ from other beasts. As for the wolves that passed us just now, three of them are Category Two ck-tiers, exined Mo Xiang.


    While that is impressive, if Category Five ck-tier is their maximum, then they are nothing to be afraid of. Its a pity that moonlight is a weak resource. If they could absorb other things, then they could be a truly powerful presence, said Long Chen. Devouring-type beasts had always been rare. It was likely that the Moon Devouring Wolves were the only ones with that ability in the whole Cangyang Kingdom.


    When Long Chen was in the Deste Beasnds, he killed a Constetion Demon Wolf, which could also absorb starlight. But it was different from a Moon Devouring Wolf. The Moon Devouring Wolf consumed moonlight and turned it into demonic power, while the Constetion Demon Wolf absorbed starlight to increase the hardness of its fur.


    There is a beast that fits that description. Ive only seen them in books though, and they have probably been extinct for a long time, said Mo Xiang.


    What beast is that? Long Chen froze.


    Its closely rted to the Moon Devouring Wolf, called the Sun Devouring Wolf. It is a fire-type demonic beast through and through, and true to its name, it can consume sunlight. Not just that, it can consume anything rted to fire and turn it into demonic power for itself. ording to legends, Sun Devouring Wolves can grow to be apex predators and still continue their boundless growth, though they cant be found in any records. Mo Xiang was truly impressed by the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Boundless growth? Long Chen drew in a sharp breath. Boundless growth meant that as long as it had enough resources, it could be truly extraordinary. Fortunately, there werews of nature that would never let such a powerful being exist.


    Right, if the Moon Devouring Wolf starts as a Category One ck-tier, what does the Sun Devouring Wolf start with? asked Long Chen.


    ording to the books, a matured Sun Devouring Wolf should be at Category One Earth-tier. However, apparently, bing a Category Nine Earth-tier is also possible.


    Long Chen nodded.


    Big Brother, the Moon Devouring Wolves we saw just now looked like they were in a hurry. If we follow them, maybe well make a discovery, said Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen thought about it and agreed. Instead of walking around blindly, they should try their luck. So they headed in the direction that the wolves had run towards, traveling cautiously.


    They ran faster than the Moon Devouring Wolves, so less than fifteen minutester, they saw the butts of the wolves. The duo tailed them from far behind, but after a while, they were shocked to find more and more wolves gathering, also traveling in the same direction.


    To avoid attracting the wolves attention, Long Chen and Mo Xiang had no choice but to hide themselves and sneak up carefully.


    Big Brother, why do you think there are so many Moon Devouring Wolves heading in the same direction? asked Mo Xiang, puzzled.


    Look at their gazes. Long Chen thought of a possibility and was excited.


    What? Mo Xiang couldnt figure it out.


    Theres only one thing in their eyesworship, Long Chen answered. Then continued with excitement, Xiang, I have a feeling that something shocking will be revealed ahead of us. What do you think these wolves worship?


    Mo Xiangs eyes brightened.


    They moved forward carefully as the pack of Moon Devouring Wolves grewrger andrger. There were now more than a thousand wolves ahead, densely packed together. They ran through fire, howling without reservations like a wave crashing ahead unobstructed. It was a terrifying sight.


    About half an hourter, Long Chen sensed a suffocating aura ahead.


    All the Moon Devouring Wolves leaped high up and into a gigantic crater. Long Chen and Mo Xiang quickly hid themselves, carefully peeking out from behind a boulder.


    They saw tens of thousands of Moon Devouring Wolves gathered in the crater. They crouched with their front limbs bent,ying on the ground with reverence and loyalty in their eyes as they gazed at the center of the crater.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang looked at the center. That was the source of the immense pressure they were feeling. When they saw the gigantic, ck figure, Mo Xiang eximed in shock. Thankfully, he covered his mouth in time and did not attract attention.


    Big Brother, its a Sun  Sun Devouring Wolf! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    wolf!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 251: An Otherworldly Beast

    Chapter 251: An Otherworldly Beast


    Therge depression, or rather,rge hole, was a rare patch of ground without mes. However, the temperature inside it was even higher, caused solely by the one all the wolves were worshiping, which was a ck beast standing proudly at the center.


    It was a gigantic demonic beast, several timesrger than a Moon Devouring Wolf. It was simr to the Moon Devouring Wolf in its proportions. Other than the size, there were two main differences: first, its fur was a deep ck; second, there was a golden circle mark on its forehead.


    A bright light shone from the golden mark, as if there was a miniature sun inside it.


    It had sharp ws, sharp teeth, and ck eyes that were cold and filled with bloodlust. The thick and heavy aura it radiated invoked true fear in Long Chens heart. The Sun Devouring Wolf was just too terrifying.


    Long Chen felt as if its ck fur was a ck whirlpool, absorbing light and heat into its body.


    It was a Heavenly River Realm beast, but it was rtively weakpared to Li Xuanji. Yet Long Chen had a peculiar feeling that due to its devouring abilities, it was a formidable existence.


    He wondered if would eventually swallow the sun itself if it continued to grow.


    Upon closer inspection, he saw ck mes rising from its ck fur. The mes swirled like tornados on the surface of its body, making it look like the beast was covered in a ck sea of fire.


    Xiang, are you sure this is the Sun Devouring Wolf? Long Chen whispered.


    ck fur with a golden sun mark at the center of its forehead. This is undeniably the legendary Sun Devouring Wolf. And I can sense that its not just a Category One Earth-tier, whispered Mo Xiang, his voice trembling.


    Not just Category One Earth-tier? Thats going to be difficult to deal with. Be honest, if youre going to cultivate an Earth-tier beasts Beast Soul, is the Sun Devouring Wolfs soul the most suitable for you? When Mo Xiang mentioned the Sun Devouring Wolf, he had a rough guess that he really liked this animal.


    Mhm. I dont have any seniors who can help me get high-level Earth-tier Beast Souls. Since I have to hunt them myself, I can only kill Categories One or Two Earth-tier beasts. Those souls arent very useful to me though. Just like the Moon Devouring Wolf, I can use them to boost my strength when I am at the First and Second River Stage, but once I reach the Eighth or Ninth River Stage, they will no longer be effective.


    But the Sun Devouring Wolf is different. On the one hand, its devouring abilities are extraordinary, and on the other, I once used the Moon Devouring Wolf as my ck-tier Beast Soul, so the Sun Devouring Wolfs Beast Soul has highpatibility with me and can even boost mybat potential by two hundred percent. Unfortunately, this Sun Devouring Wolf is at least a Category Three Earth-tier. Thats even more powerful than Emperor Yuan from Yuandi City. Were no match for it, even if we fight to our deaths.


    Above Category Three Earth-tier? Long Chen felt weak. Even a Category One would be difficult to kill, let alone Category Three.


    Big Brother, what now? Mo Xiang asked.


    There are so many Moon Devouring Wolves here, as well as the powerful Sun Devouring Wolf. Theres no way we can do anything here. Plus, a Category Three Earth-tier is not something we can deal with right now. This is only the beginning of our journey in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Well leave and search for the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance. Once we find it, maybe the tides will turn, Long Chen said calmly.


    Looks like thats the only way. Mo Xiang was sulking. It was clear that he really liked the Sun Devouring Wolfs Beast Soul.


    It was an extremely rare chance. If he missed this, it would be difficult to find suitable Beast Souls.


    A Beast Warriors cultivation journey wasrgely assisted by their elders. With powerful elders, they could easily take in a high-tier Beast Soul. As long as they merged sessfully, then it was the same as receiving extraordinary talent out of thin air. Without good seniors, it was difficult to be a powerful Beast Warrior.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf let out a chilling howl. As if receiving a signal, all the wolves stood up and howled at the sky. Ten thousand wolves howling at the same time was a magnificent sight. Long Chen felt the ground shake.


    Thats terrifying, said Mo Xiang weakly.


    Well talk when were out of here. Were dead if they find us, then we wont even get to talk about the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance, said Long Chen.


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    They left, moving cautiously until they could not hear the howls anymore. That was when Long Chen started to worry about where they should go. The Burning Heaven Secret Realm seemed too big.


    Whatever. Looks like well just have to rely on luck. They searched everywhere, and half a dayter, Long Chen finally noticed amotion ahead. He quickly rushed forward and found six people hiding at the base of a mountain to treat their injuries. They were the six from the Lingwu family.


    <em>Are they injured?!</em>


    Long Chen walked up to them.


    When they saw him, they were startled and immediately huddled together, ring at him with hostility.


    They had all sustained injuries of different severities. The strongest of them, Ximen Xiaodie and Nangong Huang, had sustained the most severe injuries. They were as pale as a sheet, treating their injuries with their legs crossed on the ground, ignoring Long Chen.


    Whats the matter? Who hurt you? Long Chen asked coldly.


    Are you here to gloat? Dongfang Tianxuan was now the strongest of them all. She stood in front of Long Chen so he could not get any closer to the rest.


    If you do not want the Lingwu family to lose its position, then you should tell me exactly what happened, Long Chen stated mildly, toozy to argue.


    He had mentioned bing the ruler of the county and she saw that he had no intention of mocking them, so Dongfang Tianxuan clenched her jaw and said, Ill give you some bad news. The Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce have be allies and are searching for you. But they have already gone towards the center of the ruins.


    How do they know the way? Long Chen had been walking for half a day and still had no idea where to go.


    We previously found a map and were heading towards the center. We didnt expect to meet them, and they took our map! said Dongfang Tianxuan awkwardly.


    They were thergest n in Yuanling County, yet the Lingwu family had lost face several times just after arriving in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. She felt extremely embarrassed and humiliated.


    Do you still remember where the center is? Long Chen was getting antsy. It was crucial that he got the inheritance. He must not let them get to it first.


    Dongfang Tianxuan thought for a moment and told Long Chen, I still remember the direction.


    They had lost all hope, so the Lingwu familys future now depended on Long Chen and Mo Xiang. This was something they had never expected, so despite being unwilling, they had to surrender to fate.


    Admittedly, Long Chen and Mo Xiang were much stronger than they were.


    After learning the direction, Long Chen had no time to waste. He bade them farewell and ran like a madman towards the center of the Burning Heaven Secret Realm.


    Afraid of messing up their trajectory, they wrapped themselves with Qi and sprinted right through the mes so they could run in a straight line.


    Long Chen now had the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, which contained the fire attribute. That was why the mes scattered throughout the Burning Heaven Secret Realm did not hurt him much. In general, Long Chen could travel normally, as if walking on a piece of tnd.


    Time was of the essence. Both of them elerated without a word, and in an hours time, something different from everything else appeared up ahead.


    It was a gigantic tomb covered in mes. Long Chen first rushed into a light screen, then he arrived at the entrance of the tomb, which led them to a gigantic za. There were no mes scattered within the za, but there was a huge sea of fire to its right.


    The sea of fire was not the most important thing here. The most crucial thing was the huge door leading to the inside of the tomb, but there was a group of people standing outside. These people had just arrived, and they were undeniably the groups from the Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce.


    At this moment, both parties were eyeing each other cautiously, standing at least ten meters apart. They were finally going to enter the huge door! Burning passion filled every heart there.


    This meant that they had not gotten the inheritance yet. Long Chen sighed in relief.


    He saw a multi-colored translucent light membrane at the entrance, containing a strange but strong power. Long Chen knew that it was going to be difficult to enter the tomb.


    It was likely that the one who could make it through the light membrane would be the person who received the inheritance.


    The allyship between the Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce was solely built on fighting Long Chen and Mo Xiang. Now, since the duo were not lucky enough to find the tomb, there was no longer a need for them to work together.


    Both parties stared at each other silently without moving, but the tension in the air was thick.


    As they were eyeing each other with hostility, Long Chen and Mo Xiang rushed into the za, instantly attracting everyones attention. When they saw the duos faces, Li Ziling and Yan Danqing smiled. This meant they could still work together.


    The most excited one was Li Ziling, because she could finally take her revenge.


    Wow! I am ttered to have so many people weing me. Long Chen was not even anxious, running straight through the two groups.


    I thought you couldnt find this ce! Looks like you made it after all, Li Ziling said with a sneer. She then turned to Yan Danqing and said, You deal with Mo Xiang, and I will kill Long Chen. What do you think?


    Wow, this girl is sneaky! I look weaker than Xiang, so you think you can kill me easily and enter the tomb yourself. As for Xiang and Yan Danqing, it will take longer for a victor to emerge. And if Yan Danqing beats Xiang, he will be fatigued and will no longer be a match for you. This is what youre thinking, right? Long Chen tried to instigate conflict between them.


    Li Ziling indeed had these intentions, but she had not expected Long Chen to sniff them out immediately.


    I must kill you no matter what! Then she rushed at Long Chen! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    even more fighting! lezgoo


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 252: Mysterious Steel Token Appears Again

    Chapter 252: Mysterious Steel Token Appears Again


    Li Ziling was ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator with powerful Qi that was a level higher than Long Chens when he used the Dragon Soul Transformation. She also had the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, so she was on the same level as Long Chen in that regard. However, Long Chen possessed the Azure Dragon Halberd, which boosted hisbat abilities.


    Long Chen had robbed her of the zing Thunder Crystal Soul and even humiliated her in public. Li Ziling, who had been treated like a princess all her life, would never live this down.


    That was why she did not care about any schemes and immediately charged at Long Chen.


    Big Brother? Do you need me to do something? Mo Xiang whispered.


    Its fine. I need this bitch to give uppletely. Watch Yan Danqing, dont let him get to the inheritance first, Long Chen said tly. Then he stepped towards the left side of the za. Roaring mes rose from the right side, so it was more convenient to fight on the left.


    Youre looking for death! Li Ziling gave chase.


    Their battle attracted everyones attention.


    Mo Xiang and Yan Danqing did not, as Li Ziling hoped, engage in battle. Yan Danqing was no idiot; this was the time to save up his energy. He would not attack unless necessary.


    He led the rest of the Beast Soul Pce to watch the situation unfold quietly with no intention of fighting, nor did he rush to get the inheritance immediately. He knew that Mo Xiang would fight him the moment he moved.


    Also, a strong force was flowing through the light membrane. Yan Danqing was not sure how to pass through it at the moment.


    That was why everyone watched Long Chen and Li Zilings fight.


    Brother Qingling, do you think Miss Ziling will win? asked a teenager from the Dawn Trading Alliance.


    My elder sister is at thete Heavenly Core Realm, and she has the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body. Long Chen is merely at the initial Heavenly Core Realm and his Qi is several times weaker. How could he beat her? Li Qingling said smugly.


    When he finished speaking, Long Chen was thrown up into the air by Li Ziling.


    Just as I said. Li Qingling watched Long Chen coldly. He remembered the two times Long Chen had humiliated him in the Fire Thunder Mountain Range.


    Sister Ziling and Brother Qiling are so awesome.


    There was a simr conversation taking ce in the Beast Soul Pce contingent, though Yan Danqing had a different opinion. He said, I heard that Long Chen has a powerful Beast Soul Transformation. And theyve only just begun. Well see.


    As they fought, Long Chen was thrown back into the air with one punch from Li Ziling. She huffed, then caught up to him.


    Long Chen, arent you a Beast Warrior? Show me your Beast Soul Transformation, then! Your current form is no match for me! Li Ziling punched again!


    As you wish. It was true that he had far less Qi than her. This gap could only be filled if his Qi was more condensed.


    Long Chens Dragon Soul Transformation waspleted quickly, and he was now in his most powerful form. The blood-red scales covering his whole body and the sharp, bony spines were a magnificent sight.


    Your Beast Soul Transformation is special indeed, Li Ziling said, though she did not mean it as apliment. She attacked with all her strength the moment he transformed.


    Really? Long Chen smiled. With the Azure Dragon Halberd in hand, he collided with Li Ziling.


    Admittedly, she was a powerful opponent. He used Split Yellow River and Shattered Skies consecutively, even weaving in the Spirit Devil Sword Finger to ambush her, but it was too difficult to injure her!


    Li Ziling unleashed a seal technique that was very impressive. The technique brought with it a heavy attack that felt like mountain peaks getting in Long Chens way, so he could not fully use the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Since ck-tierbat techniques arent working, Ill let you try out the Earth-tier one. Long Chen used the Nine Dragon shes and quickly rushed behind Li Ziling.


    In reality, Li Ziling was getting more shocked as she fought. In the beginning, she thought it would be easy to defeat Long Chen, but she hadnt expected him to be this difficult to deal with. All the attacks she had used were difficult even forte Heavenly Core realm cultivators to withstand. But not only could Long Chen block them, he could also retaliate!


    Seal of Mountain and Ocean, Magpie Mountain Seal!


    When the seal technique was unleashed, a gust of wind blew. It was undeniably an Earth-tierbat technique. Li Ziling did not hold back at allwhen Long Chen was about to use his Earth-tier technique, she also expertly unleashed one of her own!


    Her arms turned into mountain peaks, sting heavily towards Long Chen!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Starsweep Dragon! Long Chen mmed her with this attack without hesitation, and countless halberd tips turned into a dense mass of tiny dragons. The two forces collided instantly.


    This was a critical moment. Everyones eyes were locked on the fight, anxiety running through them.


    It was notmon to witness a battle as intense as this.


    Those who previously looked down on Long Chen were privately impressed when they saw him use an Earth-tier technique so well.


    Li Qinglings smug smirk was long gone. He was full of fear and anxiety as he watched the teenager fight his prodigy sister.


    The collision led to an explosion. This was Long Chens first time using Starsweep Dragon on such a powerful opponent. He felt like it had not done much damage to Li Ziling because the Magpie Mountain Seal was equally powerful.


    Long Chen did a flip in the air, then hended gracefully on his toes. As agile as a swallow, he sprinted at Li Ziling once more with the Azure Dragon Halberd in hand!


    Li Ziling had stumbled backwards from the collision just now, causing some of her hair to fall from its updo. It made her look crazy and more desperate than the graceful Long Chen.


    You Youre looking for death! Li Ziling was beside herself with rage, which filled her entire body. ring at his shameless grin, she wanted to tear him apart.


    Then she charged once more.


    Has the tigress gone mad? Long Chen teased her, then he retreated slightly to wee her storm of attacks.


    Everyone looked at each other quizzically. They resembled a married couple fighting.


    When Li Qingling saw his sister get humiliated by a lowly lecher, his whole face turned purple, and he almost wanted to beat him up himself.


    At this moment, Long Chen had a sense of his opponents capabilities and knew that it was time to end it all.


    He was prepared to end the fight, but the whole tomb suddenly started to shake. A ck pir suddenly rose from the ground at the center of the za, throwing up dust in the air.


    What the hell is going on with that pir? Everyone was puzzled.


    The pir itself was nothing special, but there was something on top of it that attracted their attention, which was a mysterious, ck steel token. At this moment, the steel token was burning with bright red mes.


    When he saw the token, Long Chen was startled because it was exactly like the steel token he had found in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range.


    Long Chen had no time to think, because everyone knew it was time to fight for the steel token.


    Mo Xiang and Yan Danqing, who were closest to it, turned into two shadows as they shot towards the ck pir. Because they were in a fight, Li Ziling and Long Chen were a bit slower, but it did not matter!


    Mo Xiang and Yan Danqing were very close to the ck pir. There was a glint in Mo Xiangs eyes, and he turned to throw a punch at Yan Danqing!


    Mo Xiang decided to do this because he felt like he might not be as strong as Yan Danqing, but he knew that Long Chen was stronger than Li Ziling. Instead of having himself and Yan Danqing fighting over the token, he wanted to have Long Chen and Li Ziling fight over it instead.


    Just as he expected, Yan Danqing had no choice but to block the sudden punch. This small dy allowed Long Chen to overtake them. While he ran, he put away the Azure Dragon Halberd and unleashed the Spirit Devil Sword Finger twice while approaching Li Ziling! She had no choice but to block his fast-paced attack!


    Long Chen was now closest to the pir.


    <em>Im so close! </em>He was rxed because Yan Danqing was upied with Mo Xiang, while Li Ziling was biting dust at the back. The rest were just bystanders.


    Everyone went crazy with rage when they saw that Long Chen was about to get the mysterious steel token.


    That was when Long Chen faintly heard a wolfs howl.


    He thought he had imagined it at first, but a huge pressure locked onto him. It was a killing intent that sent chills through his body. Connecting this to the wolfs howl, an image of ten thousand wolves worshiping a figure appeared in his mind. Ignoring the mysterious steel token, he retreated and yelled towards Mo Xiang, Fall back!


    Mo Xiang had also heard the howl, and since Long Chen was backing away, he ignored Yan Danqing and reunited with his brother.


    At that moment, a ck shadow sprinted forward and stopped in front of the ck pir. Long Chen looked closer and indeed, it was the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Following closely behind it were tens of thousands of Moon Devouring Wolves, all charging into the za. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    wolves!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 253: Breaking Free

    Chapter 253: Breaking Free


    The appearance of the Sun Devouring Wolf had been a surprise to Long Chen. That was why he had no choice but to abandon the mysterious steel token he was about to reach and retreat to the edge of the za.


    Yan Danqing and Li Ziling were not stupid either. They saw that even Long Chen was running away, and the demonic wolf was obviously an Earth-tier beast. Ignoring the steel token, they led their groups and hurriedly hid in a corner, watching the Sun Devouring Wolf anxiously.


    The beast stood there. It was like a ck hole, swallowing the surrounding light and heat. Yan Danqing, Li Ziling, and the rest were shocked by the peculiar beast.


    Big Brother, what now? whispered Mo Xiang.


    We are no match for the wolf, so all we can do is watch. Lets see what it wants to do. Long Chen watched it solemnly.


    Thousands of Moon Devouring Wolves gathered in the za. Without amand from the Sun Devouring Wolf, they crouched obediently on the spot, not attacking Long Chen and the other humans.


    As for the Sun Devouring Wolf, its pitch-ck eyes were fixated on the mysterious steel token on the ck pir. Then it picked the token up with its mouth.


    <em>Why does it want the steel token? Maybe it wants to enter the tomb? How could a demonic beast receive an inheritance left by a human? </em>Thoughts raced through Long Chens mind. In the end, he decided that something must have piqued the wolfs interest in the tomb.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf had retrieved the token, and no one dared to fight it.


    Everyone stared as the wolf carried the steel token and rushed towards the entrance of the tomb like a ck shadow. It moved countless times faster than Long Chen and the rest.


    The crowd smiled bitterly. They couldnt believe that a wolf that had appeared out of nowhere was going to take the inheritance in the end. While it clearly could not receive a human inheritance, the token was clearly the key to enter the tomb. If it brought the key inside, then what could they do? Might as well go home.


    However, there was a twist.


    When the Sun Devouring Wolf neared the light membrane, ayer of ck mes burst from it, radiating intense heat. The ck mes aggregated into an old mans face, whose eyes were fixed on the wolf.


    Long Chen shuddered. He had seen that face before. The same old man had appeared when he learned the Burning Devil Sun Fist from the steel token! He saw that face within the mes again.


    You animal! Dont you dare think you can get my inheritance! bellowed the old man hoarsely. Then a ray of light shot out of his mouth and struck the wolf at lightning speed!


    The Sun Devouring Wolf bled profusely from the strike. With a cry of agony, its gigantic body flew backwards! Then itnded in the sea of fire on the right side of the za, instantly swallowed by the mes!


    The appearance of the Sun Devouring Wolf was a twist, but the wolf getting severely injured was also a twist. The mysterious token was still in its mouth, so when the group saw that it was hurt, and the old mans face had disappeared, they snapped back to reality and quickly charged into the sea of fire.


    The countless Moon Devouring Wolves howled when they saw their leader being injured, rushing into the sea of fire at a speed that surpassed the humans. However, they had underestimated its temperature, and the tens of wolves that entered the mes were reduced to ashes instantly!


    Long Chen gasped. Upon closer inspection, he saw wisps of ck fire within the red mes. The ck mes were the cause of the fires high temperatures. Even Category One and Two ck-tier wolves had been burnt to crisps. Although Long Chen and the rest were powerful, they could not stay inside for long.


    Plus, although the Sun Devouring Wolf was injured, it was unknown exactly how severe its injury was!


    Everyone halted in their tracks. The wolves, after seeing tens of theirrades dying, learned of the fires danger and stopped too, crouching on the ground and howling in grief.


    Long Chen and the group looked at each other. Even Yan Danqing and Li Ziling did not dare take the risk of running into the sea of fire.


    Big Brother! Mo Xiang called anxiously.


    What is it?


    Im going in! This is a one-in-a-million chance! That man in the mes clearly wanted to kill the wolf, thats why he threw it into the sea of fire! The Sun Devouring Wolf was severely injured, so it probably cannot move easily. It will be burned to death very quickly in there, so this is my only chance to get its Beast Soul! Also, I can help you find the steel token! Mo Xiang eximed ardently.


    How long can youst in the mes? Long Chen asked with furrowed brows.


    I dont know, but at least fifteen minutes, Id say, he replied anxiously. Then he stopped talking, condensed his Qi outside his body to protect himself, and charged into the sea of fire.


    This was Mo Xiangs first time making a voluntary decision without Long Chens agreement, and it was all for the Beast Soul of the Sun Devouring Wolf. Long Chen could tell that he was greatly attracted to its Beast Soul, and it was the key for him to take revenge in the future. That was why he did not refuse.


    When he saw Mo Xiang rushing into the mes, he was ready to rush in too when Li Ziling blocked his way with a smirk. You bastard! The battle between us has not ended. Where do you think youre going?


    Fuck off! Long Chen had no time to argue with her. He was worried about Mo Xiangs safety and did not want him to go in alone.


    Li Ziling was even more smug when she saw that he was anxious. She had no intention to let him go and turned to Yan Danqing. This is the best time to kill Long Chen. Lets work together. What do you think?


    Mo Xiang had entered the sea of fire, leaving Long Chen alone. He had not expected Li Ziling and Yan Danqing to surround Long Chen.


    To be honest, Yan Danqing also felt hugely threatened by Long Chen and Mo Xiang, so he took Li Ziling up on her offer with zero hesitation and positioned himself behind Long Chen.


    Long Chen had angered Li Ziling before, but this time, he was the one who was furious.


    Standing on the edge of the sea of fire, Li Ziling didnt say another word. She instantly unleashed the Earth-tier Magpie Mountain Seal towards Long Chen!


    The immense attack forced Long Chen away from the sea of fire! Behind him, Yan Danqing alsounched an attack!


    Yan Danqing was only assisting Li ZIling, so he did not use his Beast Soul Transformation. Even without it, he was very powerful! Just one random punch brought with it a powerful gust of wind that hit Long Chens body!


    Youre looking for death! Long Chen used the Nine Dragon shes and engaged in a death duel against the duo. This dy had caused him to lose track of Mo Xiang in the sea of fire. If he rushed inside now, he might not find him immediately!


    The life of his best friend was on the line! Li Zilings actions had sessfully triggered Long Chens rage!


    Yan Danqing was not using all his strength, but with such a powerful opponent watching, Long Chen did not dare lose focus. With the Azure Dragon Halberd in hand, he ced his focus on Li Ziling, the one who hated him.


    Li Ziling unleashed attacks with full insanity. This would be her only chance to defeat him and wash herself of the humiliation he had caused.


    Long Chen was speechless in the face of such a crazy, furious woman.


    Fucking hell! Since you want to die, Ill dly oblige! Long Chen cursed loudly, swinging the Azure Dragon Halberd madly. It turned into a blurry illusion, and a powerful aura erupted from his body.


    Starsweep Dragon again! Yan Danqing and Li Ziling could see that the Magpie Mountain Seal could definitely withstand Long Chens Starsweep Dragon.


    Yan Danqing stopped trying so hard when he saw this. He wanted to save his energy to fight Mo Xiang, who might exit the sea of fire alive.


    All youre using is Starsweep Dragon, and you think you can defeat me? Li Ziling was not afraid at all, unleashing the Magpie Mountain Seal once more! Mountain peaks flew at Long Chen!


    Its not as simple as you think  Long Chen used the Nine Dragon shes to escape Yan Danqing and then leaped at Li Ziling, unleashing the Azure Dragon Combat Technique and sending sharp glints of the halberds tip towards Li Ziling!


    Starsweep Dragon!


    Countless tiny dragons attacked Li Ziling in a flurry.


    Cheap tricks. Li Ziling remained calm, keeping her eyes on him. She knew that Starsweep Dragon could not kill her.


    That was when she saw something strange in his eyes that shocked her. She suddenly feltpletely attracted to those immensely beautiful eyes, and his silhouette turned dreamy. She felt as if she was sleeping in a soft bed, with a strong, muscr arm as a pillow under her head


    What just happened? Li Ziling woke up in shock.


    Losing focus in battle was a huge mistake. Li Ziling hadmitted this huge sin at such a critical moment, and due to that momentary loss of focus, Long Chens Starsweep Dragon broke through her attack and the sharp halberd-tips immediatelynded on her body!


    At the veryst moment, Li Ziling tried to dodge them, but she failed to escape.


    Fortunately, due to the powerful faction backing her, Long Chen did not intend to kill her. He mmed the halberd hard on her chest, causing her to fly backwards. As she traveled through the air, blood sprayed out of her mouth.


    When shended, she was incapacitated.


    So, the Soul Swallowing Gaze is very useful  mumbled Long Chen.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    he gave her seduction eyes


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 254: The Death of Xiaolang

    Chapter 254: The Death of Xiang


    Long Chen had suddenly grown stronger and defeated Li Ziling at lightning speed. The crowd was momentarily shocked when they saw Li Ziling flying with blood spraying out of her mouth, her face pale. Even Li Qingling was in a daze, forgetting that he shouldve been saving her.


    After Long Chen had escaped from Yan Danqing, thetter had stopped attacking. Long Chen had then proceeded to defeat Li Ziling a momentter. Yan Danqing could not even react.


    After defeating Li Ziling, he red at Yan Danqing as a warning and rushed into the sea of fire, leaving everyone to look at each other. Li Qingling finally realized that his older sister was severely injured, shrieked, and then rushed over.


    Did you just try to intimidate me? Yan Danqing smiled. He had remained calm since the beginning, only feeling slightly shocked that he could defeat Li Ziling.


    Whatever. Ill let you guys fight for your lives there. I will wait for you all toe out. Long Chen, youll see what it means to be number one on the Potential Ranking Board.


    ***


    The temperature was high due to the red mes with wisps of ck in them. Due to his Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, Long Chen had higher resistance towards fire, and with his Qi as protection, he thought he could stay there for about an hour, which was a little longer than Mo Xiang.


    His eyes were useless in the sea of fire. Long Chen could only rely on his memory and run towards the direction where the Sun Devouring Wolf had fallen


    He felt ufortable because it was just too quiet around him. The only sounds were the explosions of fire. There was no sign of the wolf or Mo Xiang.


    <em>Did something happen to Xiang? </em>Long Chen felt his heart turn cold.


    Mo Xiang had charged inside on his own, and Long Chen couldnt stop him in time. His intention was to follow him inside to be safe, but that idiot Li Ziling had recruited Yan Danqing to stop him, dying his entry.


    Long Chen quickened his footsteps, dredging ahead. At the same time, he took out the Azure Dragon Halberd to guard against any dangers that could pop up.


    This was a fiery hell. He still felt miserable in the roaring mes even with the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body.


    After quickly moving across about a hundred meters, Long Chen suddenly heard the sound of haggard breathing ahead. It sounded like the Sun Devouring Wolf. His chest tightened, gripping the Azure Dragon Halberd tightly and preparing to attack.


    <em>Xiang, you must live  </em>This was his only wish.


    When he rushed forward, he realized that the mes around him had disappeared. Gasping in shock, he looked around and realized he was in a twenty-meter-wide circr space without fire.


    Killing intent exploded from his body the moment he arrived because he saw the gigantic Sun Devouring Wolf standing in front of him. The wolf was covered in small cuts, bleeding everywhere, though it had a weak gaze. It was clearly severely injured, but it was not dead.


    Long Chen sensed that it had formed this no-me zone.


    Xiang! Long Chen screamed. When he rushed into the circr zone, he first saw the severely injured wolf, then Mo Xiang, who was lying on the ground. The Sun Devouring Wolf was walking in circles around him, licking his body with itsrge, red tongue.


    Long Chen halted, as if he was struck by lightning.


    <em>Is Xiang dead?! </em>That was his first thought. When he was sure that there was no movement from Mo Xiang, grief and rage crashed through his body and drowned him. His eyes turned blood-red and green veins popped from his skin. Gripping the Azure Dragon Halberd tightly, his breathing grew haggard!


    Long Chen really liked that guy. To be honest, other than his family and Ling Xi, Mo Xiang had be the most important person in Long Chens life, the only one he could call a brother. But now his only brother was on the ground, dead.


    All the insanity and violence hidden in his body were unleashed the instant he saw him!


    You animal! You killed Xiang! Long Chen roared, his red-scaled face turning terrifyingly vicious.


    He had lost all sense of logic, ignoring how powerful the Sun Devouring Wolf was!


    After his shout, Long Chen swung the Azure Dragon Halberd and charged at the wolf!


    The injured wolf had spotted him the moment he arrived. It did note to kill him immediately, but rather took a few steps back and ced Xiangs body in front of Long Chen.


    Within its eyes, Long Chen saw many emotions: confusion, pain, griefas if it had many things it wanted to tell him.


    Long Chen did not care about this strange scene. His only concern was whether Mo Xiang was alive!


    Holding his brothers ice-cold hand, he realized that his body was devoid of warmth and his heart was not beating. Qi was slowly disappearing from his body as well. At this point, he was probably not even at the Draconic Realm level.


    Undeniably, Mo Xiang was dead!


    This was devastating to Long Chen. Every moment he had spent with Mo Xiang over the past month reyed in his mind. The shy, kind, and resilient teenager who held a bloody grudge on his shoulders was Long Chens only brother. But now he was dead!


    Long Chen felt his blood boil, and his chest was going to explode.


    You animal! You must pay for taking Xiangs life! He quietly put Mo Xiangs body in his Universe Pouch. He then hung his head solemnly and stood up. This time, even if he died in the process, he absolutely had to kill the injured Sun Devouring Wolf to avenge Mo Xiang!


    He initially thought that the wolf would fight him to the death in the sea of fire, but unexpectedly, the wolf picked up the mysterious steel token on the ground with its mouth and then quickly turned around and ran off. It was running out of the sea of fire!


    When the wolf left, fire engulfed Long Chen once more.


    Think you can run? Without another word, he ran after the wolf!


    He initially came to the Burning Heaven Secret Realm to retrieve the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance, but the only thing he wanted to do now was chop the wolf up into a thousand pieces to give Mo Xiangs spirit closure!


    The man and the beast ran madly through the sea of fire. The wolf was huge, so when it approached the boundary, the people outside knew that the terrifying beast wasing out. When he saw that it was bloody and its gaze was dimming, limping as it ran, Yan Danqings eyes shed coldly.


    When he saw the wolf leave the sea of fire, Yan Danqing was surprised to see the token still in its mouth. He clenched his teeth and appeared by its mouth in a sh. Then he threw a punch straight at its jaw!


    This time, he had made the right bet. The Sun Devouring Wolf was very heavily injured, and it had just rushed out of the fire and could not see the outside clearly. When the fist struck its mouth, the steel token flew out!


    The heavens are helping me! Yan Danqingughed, and with the token in hand, he ran towards the entrance of the tomb!


    What? Long Chen had just exited the fire when he saw the Sun Devouring Wolf lying in a corner from the punch. The punch from ate Heavenly Core Realm Beast Warrior had aggravated its injuries, making its gaze even dimmer.


    Yan Danqing was holding the token and already arrived in front of the tomb.


    Long Chen watched Yan Danqing run into the light membrane and enter the tomb. Previously, he would have given chase, but his mind was set on avenging Mo Xiang, so he had tossed the matter of the inheritance aside. That was why he did not care that Yan Danqing had gotten the mysterious token.


    Locking on the wolfs position, he roared, swinging his halberd and unleashing Starsweep Dragon!


    Everyone was still watching. The sudden turn of events made it difficult to react!


    Long Chen defeated Li Ziling, ran into the sea of fire, then the beast ran out and Brother Yan Danqing retrieved the steel token. Brother Yan Danqing sessfully got the inheritance, yet Long Chen doesnt care and is bent on killing the beast?


    They did not know that Mo Xiang was dead, so they did not understand.


    Starsweep Dragon approached the wolf, and a pained expression shed in its eyes. It finally moved, barely lifting its head as it waved its huge paw. Its ws and the Azure Dragon Halberd collided, resulting in the sound of metal shing with metal!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a boom, and Long Chen was thrown back in the air by the powerful explosion! He crashed into the ground!


    An Earth-tier beast is indeed extraordinary! Long Chen leaped out and exchanged a few moves with it. He felt his arm starting to go numb.


    When the thousands of wolves saw that Long Chen dared touch their leader, they charged at him the moment hended, and he was instantly swallowed by countless wolves.


    <em>I havent used that move in a long time </em> Violence shed in his eyes. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Xiang?!!!!!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 255: Mid Heavenly Core Realm

    Chapter 255: Mid Heavenly Core Realm


    Blood Devouring Domain!


    A blood-red shadow engulfed the whole pack of wolves, and tens of thousands of Moon Devouring Wolves were covered by a blood-red wall. Tiny blood-colored dragons swam through the faintly red space.


    It was a peculiar space indeed.


    <em>Hiss!</em>


    <em>Awooo!</em>


    The Moon Devouring Wolves let out cries of agony under the immense vacuum. The wolves nearest to Long Chen were immediately covered in blood, then giant globules of blood flew towards him! They hit his body like cannonballs, then turned into gas and spread in the air after he had absorbed the essence within them!


    The Moon Devouring Wolves are not weak, so the rate of absorption is too slow! Long Chens eyes shed coldly, then he swung the Azure Dragon Halberd, running through the pack of wolves like a madman. As long as the halberd slightly pierced the wolves, endless amounts of blood would pour out of them, and Long Chen would then proceed to absorb it all. He left behind a three-meter-wide globule of blood, and his body constantly absorbed and refined it. At the same time, more blood was created from shing with his halberd!


    All his hatred towards the Sun Devouring Wolf was vented on the Moon Devouring Wolves. Like a harvesting machine, the wolves cried and were killed by the Azure Dragon Halberd and Blood Devouring Domain one by one!


    Under the powerful gravity of Long Chens technique, the wolves couldnt put up any resistance at all since they were far weaker than him. They could not even run. Everywhere he went, a mass of dried, bloodless carcasses was left behind!


    Long Chen was confused about why the Sun Devouring Wolfs eyes had a dazed look to them, not reacting to him.


    The rest of the people felt chills all over as they watched the bloody scene. They had never seen such a bloody massacre technique. Long Chen had be death itself, collecting lives as the wolves died one by one in his hands. This should have formed a river of blood, but that did not happen because he was absorbing it all.


    The rest of the people started to tremble, especially the severely injured Li Ziling. She had been unwilling to admit defeat, but all her resentment had turnedpletely into terror. She had never seen such a scary person in her life. When she thought of how she had made an enemy out of him, her legs shook.


    What kind of monster is Long Chen? This question echoed endlessly through their hearts.


    While he massacred the wolves, he thought the Sun Devouring Wolf would attack him since no one would let their minions get killed like that. However, what made him suspicious was that the wolf continued standing there in a daze, not moving.


    <em>Is the wolfs brain broken or something? </em>He cursed to himself, though his hands did not stop. He had to avenge Mo Xiang while the Sun Devouring Wolf was hurt, or he would not get another chance.


    Being at the initial Heavenly Core Realm, he was no match for it. Therefore, he had to be much stronger, and his ticket up was the wolves. As he continued to use the Blood Transmutation technique, he sensed that his Qi was quickly ballooning. After killing about half of the wolves, his Qi had expanded to its maximum!


    <em>Just one more step and I will attain the mid Heavenly Core Realm.</em>


    His dantian could no longer store any more of the blood-red Qi he was umting from the blood of the wolves. After reaching its peak, the Qi in his body exploded and surged through his four limbs before it quickly flowed back. When all of his Qi returned to his dantian once more, it shuddered, and the Qi was condensed into an even smaller Heavenly Core, this time the size of a soybean.


    Powerful fluctuations of Qi radiated from his Heavenly Core, containingte stage zing Thunder Power and also Azure Dragon Qi formed via the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, while next to it was a faint, blood-red mist.


    Thanks to his Dragon Soul Transformation, which boosted his Qi by ten times, Long Chens Qi was equal to that of ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator, even surpassing many of them!


    He had finally reached the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Long Chen deactivated the Blood Devouring Domain and appeared in front of everyone. He was still in his dragon form, but the blood Qi and killing intenting from his body were much thicker. His cold, blood-red eyes made everyone take a few steps back, faces pale and shaking in fear.


    Li Qingling, who was supporting Li Ziling, badly wanted to beat Long Chen up. But after seeing his gaze, he lost all courage.


    This was his first time seeing such a terrifying human being!


    Sun Devouring Wolf  Long Chen had a dark expression. His cultivation level had risen. With the halberd in his hand, he took one firm step forward and shot furiously at the Sun Devouring Wolf!


    Die! Xiang, I am going to take this animals life as offering to your soul in heaven! The Azure Dragon Halberd turned into a gust of strong wind, and countless dragons charged at the wolf! His attack was now several times stronger than before! Long Chen refused to believe that this was not enough to kill the wolf!


    Another bout of Starsweep Dragon flew at the Sun Devouring Wolf, appearing before its eyes.


    Long Chen was very careful. He had exchanged one strike with the Sun Devouring Wolf already, so he was carefully thinking of a strategy to use against it. However, what puzzled him was that the wolf did not move. Instead, it stood up from its crouching position, supporting its own weight with great difficulty, then it looked at Long Chen with a dazed expression, as though there was pain and confusion in its ck eyes.


    That gaze  Long Chen was startled. When he looked into its eyes, he suddenly felt like he had known this wolf once. He carefully looked through his memories, and when the Azure Dragon Halberd was about to stab into the Sun Devouring Wolf, he suddenly remembered. <em>That look in its eyes  Isnt that Mo Xiang?</em>


    Long Chen felt like it was a wild thought, but it was this very thought that made him retract his attack.


    He believed that if he had not retracted his attack, the wolf, which had no intention of fighting back, wouldve been killed in just one strike. Now that Long Chen was at the mid Heavenly Core Realm, even Mo Xiang might not be a match for him, much less a Sun Devouring Wolf who could not defend itself.


    Long Chen peered at the wolf, puzzled. When the wolf saw that he had stopped attacking, its eyes lit up with joy and it twisted its body. Its gigantic figure was starting to shrink, stopping only when it was the size of a small dog.


    In this state, the Sun Devouring Wolf was covered in fuzzy, ck fur with a round sun image on its forehead. Its teeth and ws were no longer sharp, now looking dainty. It stared at Long Chen with its watery, ck eyes. It looked adorable.


    Long Chen stared back in shock.


    From its gaze, Long Chen could tell that it had human intelligence. To be honest, if he only looked at its eyes, he wouldve thought the wolf was a human being. A whole, live person. In fact, he knew this person well.


    Long Chen squatted and reached out to pet its head. The wolf did not fight back but enjoyed itfortably, its canine teeth peeking out of its mouth cutely.


    Due to its previous injuries, the shrunken Sun Devouring Wolf still had some blood on its body. The wolf reached out with a paw and traced a nted character on the ground.


    Mo.


    Long Chen froze, then he blurted, Youre Mo Xiang?


    The wolf nodded hurriedly. Perhaps because Long Chen recognized it, the pain and confusion in its eyes finally lessened.


    Long Chen gulped and eyed it carefully.


    <em>Isnt Xiang dead? Why would the Sun Devouring Wolf im to be Mo Xiang? The wolf''s current state ispletely different from its fierce, previous form. Could it really be the truth? </em>Long Chens mind was a mess.


    The only thing that made him happy was that he had initially thought Mo Xiang was dead, and his brothers body was even in his Universe Pouch. However, based on this strange twist with the wolf, could Mo Xiang really be alive?


    The only exnation was that Mo Xiangs soul had entered the Sun Devouring Wolfs body and could even control it!


    Long Chen did not know how this had happened. All he knew was that Mo Xiang had chased after the Sun Devouring Wolf to hunt its Beast Soul. Perhaps when he cultivated it as his Primary Beast Soul, an unexpected ident happened that left Mo Xiang no choice but to give up on his own body for the wolfs body.


    There were no injuries on Mo Xiangs body. This was something that Long Chen could confirm. That was why he thought it was likely that his guess was right, that Mo Xiang was currently possessing the wolfs body. In other words, Mo Xiang had be the Sun Devouring Wolf!


    Long Chen did not know how to react to such an unexpected twist.


    He focused his mind and decided to do onest test.


    When we were in Baiyang Town, you gave me the Constetion Body, right? Long Chen asked. If the Sun Devouring Wolf could understand his words, then this would undeniably be Mo Xiang.


    Indeed, it nodded.


    Tears of joy flowed out of Long Chens eyes.


    He embraced Mo Xiang in his arms, sobbing and unable to speak.


    Xiang, now in his Sun Devouring Wolf form, could not bear to see Long Chen suffering so much. Tears started to well up in his eyes, but because of the tears, the pain and confusion in its eyes disappearedpletely.


    Although he had turned into a demonic beast, he knew that at least in front of Long Chen, he was still his best friend. And that was enough. This meant that he was not alone.


    Xiang, no one could have expected this to happen. However, I promise that you will be my best friend in every lifetime. Your grudges are my grudges; your wishes are my wishes. Although you have be like this, I will make sure you have a human body again one day! This is my promise to you!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    gf: would u still love me if i was a worm a Sun Devouring Wolf?


    but fr tho, im happy long chen recognized xiang


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 256: Burning Heaven Emperor

    Chapter 256: Burning Heaven Emperor


    Long Chen knew that he could not reveal to the others that Xiang had turned into a Sun Devouring Wolf. That was why he did not announce anything when he recognized him.


    Everyone was still watching anxiously for the victor to emerge from the battle between Long Chen and the Sun Devouring Wolf. However, Long Chen stopped his attack and, to their shock, the wolf shrank into a cute cub that resembled a small dog. And now Long Chen was carrying it in his arms.


    The events of today had really challenged their sense of imagination.


    They all watched in a daze, unable to speak.


    Long Chen had just recovered from the shock of Xiangs change, feeling very bitter as he looked at his best friend in his arms. Xiang was probably feeling very miserable to have turned from human to beast.


    <em>There are so many strange things in this world! If Ling Xi, who only has a soul remaining, can recover her body using spiritual herbs, then Xiang can too! Ive heard that the strongest beasts possess divine abilities that allow them to take human form. Now Xiang is a Sun Devouring Wolf, a wolf that, ording to legends, has devouring-type abilities! I refuse to believe that he cant return to his human form! </em>Long Chen thought to himself.


    Being able to devour heat and light made the Sun Devouring Wolf an extremely impressive beast.


    Xiang could not speak in his current state, but Long Chen could roughly guess his thoughts by looking into his eyes. The confusion and pain in his eyes had turned into eptance of reality. This had be his reality, and the only thing they could do was find a way to fix it, not wallow in grief.


    Long Chen finally recalled that he had to obtain the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance.


    As if Xiang could guess his thoughts, he touched Long Chens hand with his delicate, ck paw and then leaped out of his arms and towards the sea of fire.


    <em>Where is Xiang leading me? </em>Long Chen knew that Xiang would not hurt him, so he followed him inside without hesitation. He initially wanted to envelop Mo Xiang in Qi, but he was not afraid of the mes at all. The mes around Mo Xiang retreated and left a space that was just big enough for Long Chen to squeeze through.


    Mo Xiang had once thought that the mes would burn the wolf to death, but in fact, the only thing it was not afraid of was fire.


    Ignoring the looks from everyone, he followed Mo Xiang through the sea of fire. There was no path there, and he could tell that Xiang was only feeling his way around.


    <em>Perhaps Xiang saw something special thest time he came in here, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Indeed, a strange ripple appeared ahead. Long Chen thought the ripple was familiar. Xiang stopped walking, turned to Long Chen, and nodded, intending for Long Chen to walk ahead.


    Is this  the entrance to the tomb? Long Chen gasped. Standing in front of him was the wall of the tomb. There was a small door built in the same fashion as therge door outside. Simrly, there was a translucent light membrane stopping trespassers.


    Xiang, could this also be a door to the tomb? Plus, this little door looks special. Maybe theres something special inside whispered Long Chen.


    Based on his experience, the most important things were always hidden.


    Although Mo Xiang could not speak, he could still nod and shake his head. He nodded, though it looked like he was struggling to exin something.


    But how can I enter? Long Chen grew worried. The mysterious steel token was meant for therge door, but that had been taken by Yan Danqing. And whatever was inside must have been taken by Yan Danqing already.


    At this point, Mo Xiang was spinning in circles frantically. He wanted to tell Long Chen something, but he could not seem to exin it. He cocked his head and used two paws to form a t shape.


    Youre referring to the steel token I got in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range! Long Chen was pleasantly surprised. He should have thought of it earlier, but the incident with Mo Xiang was still muddling his brain.


    <em>That steel token appeared in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range, so it must be hugely rted to the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Plus, it is the same as the token Yan Danqing got, so its likely I can pass through the light membrane using it.</em>


    Long Chen grew awfully excited with that thought. He carefully carried Xiang in his arms, then he took out the mysterious steel token from his Universe Pouch. When it appeared, it vibrated slightly. Long Chen leaned towards the light membrane, and a ray of light shone on him. He then felt a strong force pulling his body, and a momentter, he was swallowed by the light.


    After a moment of darkness, Long Chen realized that he was standing in a long tunnel. This hallway was built using yellow mud bricks, arranged neatly to give the ce an air of solemnity and regalness.


    There was antern hanging every ten meters or so. Small, red mes, the type that burned for eternity, burned within thenterns. It was due to these mes that the tunnel was lit very brightly.


    This should be the inside of the tomb. I cant believe Im really inside the Burning Heaven Emperors tomb. With Xiang in his arms, he trekked ahead. The Sun Devouring Wolfs body was severely injured, so Long Chen had to carry him to avoid aggravating his injuries.


    Although it was odd for a man to carry another man, this was a different situation, and Xiang needed care.


    <em>The meridians of the Sun Devouring Wolf should be different from those of humans. Xiang will need some time to understand this body</em>, thought Long Chen.


    Not understanding his body meant that Xiang could not absorb spiritual medicines effectively. Without that, his healing process would greatly slow down.


    Thankfully, the Sun Devouring Wolf was above the Earth-tier. Long Chen just wondered whatbat abilities he would possess after he recovered.


    Mo Xiang was currently the equivalent of a domesticated Category One Earth-tier demonic beast. That was equal to a Heavenly River Realm cultivator. This meant that with Mo Xiang supporting him, as long as he did not provoke a person like the Ninth Prince, Long Chen could do whatever he wanted in Yuanling City.


    The top priority right now was to find the most important thing in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. He had a feeling that he might get something different from Yan Danqing.


    Long Chen ventured deeper into the tunnel. After walking for about fifteen minutes, he came across two small, golden doors.


    He grew excited. If there was treasure within this tomb, then it would be behind these doors.


    Long Chen walked up to one of the doors and gently ced a hand on it, barely containing his excitement. He felt a metallic coldness and a gentle swaying, meaning that it was closed but not locked.


    Then he pushed the door open without hesitation and entered a room that was notrge. The walls were made of the same material as the tunnel, though the ground was ck.


    His gaze was immediately attracted by a table at the center of the room. He walked up to it and noticed two secret scriptures ced on the rotting desk.


    They were twobat techniques. Looking at the yellowed material, he could tell that they had existed for a long time.


    Ive got to say, Im very lucky indeed  Long Chen sighed. They had all entered the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, and Xiang had started off stronger than him. But now Xiang had turned into a Sun Devouring Wolf and Long Chen was the one who had received the Burning Heaven Emperors treasure.


    <em>I wonder if this is considered the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance? Or did Yan Danqing get something better? </em>Long Chen wondered as he carefully reached out to grab the two scriptures. Just as he was about to touch them, they burst into mes and a familiar, old face appeared in the mes.


    My child, how lucky you are that you made it here! The face in the mes seemed ancient.


    Are you the Burning Heaven Emperor? Long Chen asked respectfully.


    It is I. The old man, whom they called the Burning Heaven Emperor, eyed Long Chen up and down, impressed. When he saw the Sun Devouring Wolf in his arms, he gasped and eximed, How is it possible that the Sun Devouring Wolf would make peace with you?


    I dont know. He just likes me, Long Chen responded. It was not on purpose; it was just that Mo Xiangs incident was so unbelievable that it was not convenient to tell anyone.


    I dont have much time. Your arrival here proves that you and I have a karmic connection. These are twobat techniques. One book is the Nine Spinning Fire Shield, and the other is my most famous technique, Divine Fire Clone. All of it is for you, and I hope you can inherit my techniques and allow them to live on! And make them shine bright with glory! There are Heavenly River Pills I left behind in the room opposite. Those are for you too, the face in the mes said mildly.


    Just based on their names, the Nine Spinning Fire Shield and Divine Fire Clone sounded extraordinary. Long Chen was overjoyed to receive them and hurriedly expressed his appreciation. Thank you for your generosity! I will never forget this! I will use these two techniques to their full potential, and their names will rock the world!


    Not bad, child. A person of ambition, remarked the Burning Heaven Emperor.


    Sir, I have one more question. There is a main door within the tomb. May I ask what the guy who entered from that main door will get? Long Chen was still puzzled over the inheritance. What constituted as truly receiving the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance, leading to being recruited as an Immortal Guard?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    a secret entrance?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 257: Nine Devils Ancestral Fire

    Chapter 257: Nine Devils Ancestral Fire


    Hehe. Thats just a distraction I set. He will get theplete Nine Spinning Fire Shield and an iplete Divine Fire Clone technique. And he will receive one-tenth of the Heavenly River Pills you will get. That is why the person who has truly received my inheritance is you. I dont have much time left. This is merely a remnant of my soul that has survived for countless years. Now that my only wish has been fulfilled, I am very content


    The Burning Heaven Emperor fell into a state of nostalgia. From the look in his eyes, Long Chen could tell that he had a glorious past.


    Then his gaze fell on the Sun Devouring Wolf and he said, puzzled, Thats strange. This Sun Devouring Wolf has stayed here for countless years to get the legendary ancestral fire. Why is it so obedient now that it''s here?


    Ancestral fire? Long Chen froze. Previously, the Sun Devouring Wolf was impatient to rush into the tomb, obviously desperate for something. Could it have been the ancestral fire?


    May I ask what the ancestral fire is? Long Chen asked respectfully.


    I am not very sure either. I have guarded the ancestral fire for countless years but have never dared to go near it. I only know that it is a super divine object that came to be when the heavens and earth were first formed, ording to legends. It holds mysterious powers. There are not many ancestral fires in the world, and encountering one was a huge honor brought about after three lifetimes of umting karma. Throughout the ages, I have seen countless masters attempt to tame the ancestral fire, yet no one has had any sess.


    <em>A divine object formed from the formation of heaven and earth? Could it be simr to the ancestral dragons inherited blood essence? Both of them have the word ancestral, so they could be simr</em>, thought Long Chen.


    He could sense Xiang acting a little unnatural in his arms when he heard the words ancestral fire. Xiang probably didnt know what an ancestral fire was, so this was probably due to the remaining willpower of the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    When the Burning Heaven Emperor finished speaking, he paused and continued, Child, you dont know this, but the Sun Devouring Wolf in your arms was a terrifying presence countless years ago, during my era. Perhaps its weak when its young, but when it grows up and is released into the vast world out there, it will grow quickly. It can consume any me, fire crystal,va, or other fire-element treasure. It then turns them into energy for itself. In terms of growth, its number one across all demonic beasts!


    Just as its name suggests, the sun is this worldsrgest source of fire. Theoretically, it can even swallow the sun! That is why whenever a Sun Devouring Wolf appeared, the masters of my era were sure to kill it immediately! The Dragon Continent no longer has Sun Devouring Wolves. The one in your arms is probably the only one. The humans of the current era have long forgotten the terror they brought, which is why I sincerely request that you kill it. If you let it grow, it will definitely bring chaos and harm to the world!


    When I found that an extinct Sun Devouring Wolf was born from that pack of Moon Devouring Wolves, I was worried, though at least it could not go to the Dragon Continent. But this is different. It has formed a bond with you, and youre definitely going to take it outside. When that happens, it will bring terror upon the world!


    The Burning Heaven Emperor grew more and more emotional as he spoke.


    Long Chen was stunned. The ancestral fire the Burning Heaven Emperor spoke of sounded extremely awesome. Then, based on what he had just heard, Long Chen finally understood how powerful the Sun Devouring Wolf was. It could even swallow the sun. How powerful was that? This meant that the Sun Devouring Wolf had the ability to destroy the world.


    That was terrifying


    But the Burning Heaven Emperor had notmanded him directly. Instead, he had told him the truth of what happened, wanting Long Chen to be fully convinced to kill the Sun Devouring Wolf. That was why he had said so much. He felt like Long Chen could not bear to kill such an awesome pet, but after learning of the harm it could bring and receiving the inheritance, he was likely to agree.


    Long Chen did not look like an idiot.


    Yet he did not agree. He shook his head and said, Sorry for disappointing you, Sir, but I cannot kill him, because he is my best friend.


    What? The Burning Heaven Emperor was angry now. He could not understand Long Chen at all and eximed in an using tone, Why would you bring terror upon the world because of your selfish desires?!


    Since the Burning Heaven Emperor was going to die soon, Long Chen was direct. To tell you the truth, theres another reason why this Sun Devouring Wolf has bonded with me. Sir, I entered the Burning Heaven Secret Realm with my best friend, Mo Xiang. During the fight outside the tomb, the Sun Devouring Wolf was severely injured, and Mo Xiang wanted to take the opportunity to cultivate its Beast Soul. Unfortunately, there was an ident and now his soul has possessed the Sun Devouring Wolfs body. It doesnt matter how terrifying the Sun Devouring Wolf is, hes still human in his core. You can just treat him as an extremely talented person. Wont that do?


    The Burning Heaven Emperor was shaken by Long Chens exnation, unable to reply for a long time. Then he looked at the Sun Devouring Wolf in disbelief and said, You mean to say that the ferocious Sun Devouring Wolf is dead and what Im looking at is a human in its body?


    Yes, said Long Chen.


    Good heavens! How is it that I could witness such a peculiar thing right before I die? I wonder what interesting thing will happen when human consciousness enters such a powerful beasts body? Will the whole Dragon Continent be changed because of this? The Burning Heaven Emperors voice was already starting to fade.


    When I was small, which was during the end of the Middle Ages to you guys, the Dragon Continent was not divided into a few pieces like right now. Information flowed throughout thend easily. I once heard that the most talented warriors were the Dragon Warriors, who had the Inherited Blood Essence of the ten great ancestral dragons. But they had never appeared before! Never! I dare confirm that this child in the Sun Devouring Wolfs body has a talent simr to the ancestral Dragon Warriors! If he can control the ancestral fire, which is as ancient as the ancestral dragons, I wonder if something even more interesting will happen? The Burning Heaven Emperor was so excited that he fumbled his words. He stared at Xiang with fire in his eyes. Based on his words, it seemed he had no intention to kill Xiang anymore.


    Long Chen was relieved.


    <em>Xiang identally possessed the Sun Devouring Wolfs body, but he received powerful abilities in return. I guess thats considered a silver lining. And me  the Burning Heaven Emperor said that warriors with the ancestral dragons Inherited Blood Essence had never appeared before, so I dont think Im one.</em>


    Long Chen was a little disappointed that he was not a Dragon Warrior of the most powerful type, but Mo Xiangs future looked hopeful again, and Long Chen was genuinely happy for him as he stared at the brats dazed eyes.


    My two children, I dont have much time. Im incredibly excited to meet the future strongest cultivator of the Dragon Continent before I die. Finally, let me tell you about the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire beneath this tomb


    Nine Devils Ancestral Fire? Sir, please do tell. Long Chen nodded. He knew that it was the ancient me from the beginning of the worlds formation, which was as magical as the ancestral dragons.


    Of course. The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire isntplete; its just a small portion of it. If theplete form were present here, the Burning Heaven Secret Realm would have copsed a long time ago. However, even this small piece has caused countless cultivators who wanted to tame it to die. Among them, there were cultivators who were thousands of times stronger than I was. You guys might not understand what that means, but I have existed for a huge part of history and know more than you. The eastern portion of the Dragon Continent, where we are right now, is called the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Ten thousand countries of all sizes exist in this area. The Cangyang Kingdom is but a drop in the ocean! There are ten great factions in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Ten super empires, each ruling over a thousand smaller kingdoms. They are known as the ten great empires. What Im trying to say is that the strongest warriors of the ten empires were killed by the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    Thats terrifying! Long Chen drew a sharp breath. He felt scared when he remembered that such a terrifying entity was just underneath him. If even those warriors had died, then he was terrified he might die from just approaching it.


    Thats right. I am the only one in the world who knows that the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire has escaped to this ce. It is sentient, though right now it is in deep sleep. It wont wake up if no one disturbs it, so dont worry. But, my children, do you want to try to change the world?! he eximed excitedly.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf can swallow all fire. Before this child possessed its body, the wolf hade several times. I think it was attracted to the scent of the ancestral fire. Do you think the Sun Devouring Wolf will seed in swallowing the ancestral fire?


    Long Chen knew that this old man, who clearly had some madness in his bones, would have this thought.


    But the ancestral fire is so powerful. Would Xiang survive it? said Long Chen worriedly.


    What are you afraid of? Right now, he possesses the best evolutionary abilities of any beast in the world, said the Burning Heaven Emperor.


    It was such a risky and exciting idea. If it was Long Chen, he would definitely do it, though now he had to ask Mo Xiang if he was willing. But when he saw Mo Xiangs burning eyes, he knew that he had made a firm decision.


    Mo Xiang was indeed as crazy as he was.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    xiang do be as crazy as MC


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 258: Divine Fire Clone

    Chapter 258: Divine Fire Clone


    Has he agreed to it? asked the Burning Heaven Emperor excitedly.


    Mo Xiang could not speak, so he only nodded.


    Long Chen could only shake his head with a bitter smile. This was Mo Xiangs decision for his own life, so he could not stop him.


    Its a pity I dont have enough time left to witness the result. After such a long chat with you guys, the soul power I have saved up for countless years has been all used up, and I shall return to the cycle of reincarnation. The Burning Heaven Emperors heart was filled with bitterness.


    Sir, do you have any unfulfilled wishes youd like us to help you with? This was all Long Chen could say.


    Wishes? Its been so many years. What wishes could I have? The Burning Heaven Emperors gaze swept from Long Chen to Xiang. Then his eyes brightened as he said, It is tremendously lucky that we have met here at this time. Both of you possess extraordinary talent, and I can tell you have a close bond. I have no unfulfilled wishes, but I wish nothing but the best for you. I never had a brother like that in my life, so I admire the brotherhood between the two of you. May you two look out for each other for the rest of your lives!


    Thank you, Sir! Long Chen and Mo Xiang looked at each other and smiled. The Burning Heaven Emperor seemed to also be a person who took friendship seriously.


    I should be the one thanking you two for apanying me on thest leg of my lifes journey so calmly. The Burning Heaven Emperor gave a small smile.


    As they waited, Long Chen felt at a loss for what to do, because he was witnessing the end of a life. However, the Burning Heaven Emperor maintained a faint smile on his lips right until his spiritpletely disappeared. Perhaps dying so happily was the most beautiful release.


    Xiang, lets go. Long Chen put the two books on the rotting table in his Universe Pouch, then he called for the little ck wolf on the ground. Mo Xiang still wasnt able to control the Sun Devouring Wolfs body well, so when he trotted along, he was awkward and wobbly, making him lookical.


    Of course, girls would find this adorable.


    No one would expect such a cute wolf to be an apex predator as described by the Burning Heaven Emperor.


    Closing the door gently, Long Chen did not hurry deeper into the room but rather opened the other door. Xiang was now a demonic beast, so he could not utilize the Heavenly River Pills. This meant that all the pills in the room belonged to Long Chen alone.


    When he opened the door, a huge amount of star power flowed out, almost knocking Long Chen over. Fortunately, the Heavenly River Pills star power was gentle in nature.


    Stabilizing himself, Long Chen looked closer and saw dozens upon dozens of Heavenly River Pills in the room. The countless pills transformed the room into a starry night sky, each pill sparkling like a star.


    Im going to be rich! Long Chen broke into the widest grin. This was, without a question, the most assets he had ever owned. The divine jades he previously had were nothingpared to these Heavenly River Pills. All his divine jades might not even be worth the price of two pills.


    Long Chen knew that even the Azure Dragon Patriarch owned no more than ten Heavenly River Pills himself. Yet there were piles and piles of them in this room


    <em>If Ling Xi were here, she would have given me several hard kisses! Its a pity. I dont know when that girl will wake up. Im going to show her my fortune the moment she does! Haha </em> Long Chen was delighted. He counted the pills as he gathered them up. Half an hourter, the room was empty and all the Heavenly River Pills were in his pouch.


    <em>There are about two thousand Heavenly River Pills in total! Xiang once said an average Fourth River Stage cultivator has a worth of about a thousand Heavenly River Pills. So, does that mean Im richer than an average Fourth River Stage cultivator? When I enter thete Heavenly River Core Realm, I will be able to ascend to the Heavenly River Realm within a very short time thanks to all these pills!</em>


    This was an opportunity for him to be stronger,id before his very eyes. Long Chen was extremely excited.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang were the greatest winners of the trip to the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Although Mo Xiang had lost his body and turned into a beast, he had received extraordinary abilities, so it was difficult to say if it was a good or bad thing. However, Long Chen had received therger part of the Burning Heaven Emperors inheritance, so rtively speaking, reaching the mid Heavenly Core Realm was a minor win. He had received three separate things in total.


    First, the Nine Spinning Fire Shield, which was an intermediate Earth-tier defensivebat technique. Defensivebat techniques were rare, rarer than bodybat techniques, in fact. This was the equivalent to thest two attacks of the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    Second, two thousand Heavenly River Pills, of course. Even the average Fourth River Stage cultivator did not have wealth like this. With these pills, not only would he be able to enter the Heavenly River Stage confidently, he would also not need to worry about money for a very long time.


    Third, the Divine Fire Clone technique. To Long Chens shock, it was an even rarerbat technique, even rarer than lifebat techniques. Many people had not even heard of techniques like this. Divine Fire Clone should more aptly be called a divine technique, specifically an advanced Earth-tier divine technique!


    This was Long Chens highest-tieredbat technique so far, ranking above the Azure Dragon Combat Technique.


    Long Chen nced through the instructions for Divine Fire Clone. He would have to condense his Qi into a True Fire Seed and store it in his meridian point during his usual cultivation process. When facing an opponent, he could then release the True Fire Seed to form a clone made of fire!


    The clone would bepletely controlled by Long Chen''s mind and could assist in attacks. It would have about one-fifth of Long Chens strength, though of course, its stamina would be vastly different from that of a true cultivator. The number of clones one could create was rted to the cultivators Qi and cultivation level.


    Divine Fire Clone had four stages. After mastering the first stage, he would be able to produce one clone. At the second stage, up to five clones; at the third stage, up to twenty-five clones. As for thest stage, he would be able to produce a hundred and twenty-five Divine Fire Clones!


    Long Chen guessed that the Divine Fire Clone that Yan Danqing had received could only reach the third stage at maximum. Twenty-five Divine Fire Clones who had a fifth of hisbat abilities. Although it was powerful, it sounded realistic. But a hundred and twenty-five? That would be vastly different.


    As Long Chen skimmed through the Divine Fire Clone scripture, Xiangy on his chest, also reading intently.


    Xiang, can you cultivate this too? Long Chen asked casually.


    To his surprise, Mo Xiang nodded, though then shook his head sourly.


    You mean youre not sure? But its possible? he asked excitedly.


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    Now thats interesting! Well see who cultivates it first, he said with a guffaw.


    The Divine Fire Clone technique was indeed a good technique. Long Chen believed that if he could unleash it to its maximum, he would be extra terrifying! Terrifying enough for people to fear his name!


    When a hundred and twenty-five clones of himself attacked at the same time, who could stop him?


    All in all, Long Chen had a bountiful trip!


    There was only one thing left to do.


    Now that he had collected the pills, he nced through the Divine Fire Clone scripture once more, then put it into his pouch and looked at Mo Xiang solemnly. He asked, Xiang, are you sure you want to try your luck with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire? You must know that it might kill you.


    Xiang hesitated for a while but still nodded. He knew that it was a huge opportunity, though whether he could take it or not would depend on his capabilities.


    Xiang was currently controlling the Sun Devouring Wolfs body, and he wanted to familiarize himself with its abilities. When Long Chen saw that he insisted, he did not ask again. He pushed the small golden door open and walked deeper into the tunnel.


    The Burning Heaven Emperor had said that the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was in the deepest part of the tunnel.


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was an extraordinary presence amongst the other ancestral fires. It was also called Hellfire! Hell was extremely cold, so when observed visually, it seemed extremely cold. However, judging it by its looks would be a huge mistake because the fire was so cold that it had turned into extreme heat! In terms ofbustive abilities, it was one of the best amongst all the ancestral fires!


    Of course, the fire that Xiang was going to absorb was just a part of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The tunnel led downwards, likely going underground. The deeper he walked, the colder Long Chen felt. This might make one think that the ancestral fire emitted cold, but in truth, the low temperature was because the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire had absorbed all the heat in the air.


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was likely still in deep slumber now. Long Chen could only get this deep because of his Level Three zing Thunder Body. The duo went on for a while until the tunnel disappeared and revealed a cave ahead. Long Chen focused his sight and found that the cave was covered in hard, thick, ck ice. It was a dim ce, and everything around him was covered in ayer of ck ice.


    A gust of cold wind greeted Long Chen, instantly causing him to shiver. He had no choice but to activate his Qi. Once Qi was surging through his whole body, he felt a bit better.


    Fuck me! What is going on with the ancestral fire? How is it so cold?!


    Although he knew that the fire itself was not cold, Long Chen stillined.


    ck ice? He stepped on the ck ice, and coldness rushed through his body. Long Chen stomped gently and discovered that it was extremely hard and likely very thick. It must have existed for a long time.


    Is that the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    it''s cold!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 259: Absorbing the Ancestral Fire

    Chapter 259: Absorbing the Ancestral Fire


    Long Chen could not help Mo Xiang absorb the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire; it was all up to Xiang himself. Even though this was Xiangs business, Long Chen was anxious too, seeing as this was a matter of life and death.


    The Burning Heaven Emperor had mentioned that even the best of the ten great empires had died from the reactionary response of the ancestral fire while trying to absorb it. Xiang was only at the Earth-tier now, and if not for the extraordinary capabilities of the Sun Devouring Wolf, he would never even be able to dream of absorbing the ancestral fire.


    Xiang leaped from Long Chens arms to the ground. He turned to give Long Chen a determined look, then he quietly stepped on the hard ice and went towards the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Long Chen followed him. Even though he couldnt help, he wanted to watch the absorption process to feel more reassured.


    The temperature dropped deep into the cave. After walking for about a hundred meters, Long Chen sensed ayer of frost forming on his body. If not for Qi beneath the surface of his body, pumping heat on overdrive, he would have been frozen to death.


    And this was with Long Chens body being much hardier than that of the average person. Other people would have felt worse. This was a clear disy of the wrath of the ancestral fire.


    <em>Ancestral fire, ancestral dragon. These are the oldest, most terrifying things. That sliver of inherited blood essence I haveif that is the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons blood  </em>


    Long Chen recalled how his growth had been sped up by the Inherited Blood Essence. It had given him Blood Transmutation, the Dragon Soul Transformation, and extraordinary talent, plus that strong feeling he had in his mind. He believed that the Inherited Blood Essence in his sea of consciousness was from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, which was the ancestral dragon of blood and massacre!


    <em>I hope that happens. If Xiang seeds with the ancestral fire, then I should have the Inherited Blood Essence of the ancestral dragon to keep up with him. Will I be able to get more blood essence in the future? </em>Long Chen thought with great excitement. In reality, he knew that despite the power of the inherited blood essence, he had something else that was even more powerfulthe mysterious jade pendant, because it suppressed the ancestral dragons inherited blood essence.


    As he thought over the matter, the space ahead suddenly opened up to reveal a one-hundred-meter-wide underground room surrounded by thick, ck ice. Long Chens gaze was instantly attracted to the center of the space. There was an altar-like tform that was pitch-ck with dense, strange symbols carved on it. The symbols radiated a faint, ck glow.


    About two meters in the air above the altar was a palm-sized me floating in the air. It was a ck me that burned calmly, as tranquil as a me in an oilmp, flickering very slowly.


    Long Chen had seen many simr ck mes outside, but none of them gave them the same feeling as this. Just like the first time he encountered the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons blood essence, a thick, ancient aura sted in his face, and his eyes were fixated on the ck me. For a brief moment, he felt like he could see the world in its first few moments in the fire. All he saw was gray mist, so visibility was low. Air currents rose and fell, but the world remainedpletely blurry.


    Then came countless screams and wails. Long Chen felt as if he was looking at hell itself. Pieces of corpses were scattered across the ground with blood everywhere. This was a hell-like ce with an eerie, ck fire burning violently in the sky. The me was gigantic, and it suddenly spread across the entire sky in a second, turning it into an upside-down ck me. Countless tiny mes fell like rain, covering the earth. Then the fire destroyed the world.


    Is  is this the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire? Long Chen suddenly woke up, gawking at the ck me above the altar. The me did indeed look very normal, but it was not.


    When Long Chen saw the me, he was merely impressed, but Xiang felt much different. His breathing grew heavy and his body slowly expanded. Very soon, he returned to the Sun Devouring Wolfsbat state. With four limbs on the ground, standing next to the ancestral fire, Xiangs back almost touched the ceiling.


    When they first entered, Long Chen could guess that the ancestral fire was in a deep slumber from the speed of its flickers. The approaching Xiang must have startled it awake, because the speed of the flickering slowly increased, and Long Chen felt the air getting colder.


    Xiang, hurry. Long Chen knew that his chances of sess would be higher if the fire was still asleep.


    Xiang growled deeply at the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire and then opened his mouth without hesitation. Long Chen felt an eerie but familiar sensation. His enemies felt this whenever he used the Blood Devouring Domain and Soul Swallowing Gaze techniques.


    A ck whirpool the size of a human head appeared in the Sun Devouring Wolfs mouth, generating a strange gravitational pull. This was the wolfs powerful absorption ability. It was a devouring technique that was different from Long Chens technique. Long Chen devoured blood via the Blood Transmutation technique, but Mo Xiang could devour fireas well as anything rted to fireand turn it into energy for himself.


    When the ck whirlpool appeared, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire shuddered and moved towards the wolf. As it moved, its ck mes flickered faster. When it was almost inside Xiangs mouth, it seemed to wake uppletely!


    Instantly, a soul-piercing shriek rang through Long Chens sea of consciousness, directly acting on his soul. He felt a piercing pain inside his head. He had not expected the ancestral fire to hold soul-affecting power like a real human.


    The temperature of their surroundings fell even more.


    Left with no choice, Long Chen could only retreat. He was worried for Xiangs safety but could not do anything about it. All he could do was shout, Do not force yourself!


    He knew that Xiang would not back down, but this was a matter rted to Xiangs destiny, so Long Chen could not interfere. He ran back the way they came for a while, and the bone-chilling sensation lessened. He knew that if he had not escaped in time, he would have died from the cold.


    It was only a piece of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, but it was beyond terrifying. Extremes of anything created the opposite effect. This ce was extremely cold, so anyone who entered would assume the fire was cold. However, they would be burned to death instantly if they touched it!


    <em>Xiang, all I can do is ask the damn heavens to watch over you.</em>


    Long Chen sighed, controlling the Qi flow in his body with great difficulty as he waited far away. If Mo Xiang seeded, he would be overjoyed.


    Since the Burning Heaven Emperor had supported him, Long Chen felt like Xiang had a high chance of sess, seeing as the Burning Heaven Emperor thought the Sun Devouring Wolf to be a terrifying being.


    Time passed slowly. He could constantly hear sounds of shuffling and panting from the depths of the cave, as well as the sound of airflow. Long Chen was very anxious at the start, but after two hours, he realized that the temperature of his surroundings was starting to rise. This was an amazing sign.


    He quickly sprinted into the depths of the cave and peered inside. The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire had disappeared and Xiang was lying on the ck ice with his eyes closed. Long Chen could see roaring, ck mes covering his whole body. The mes looked cold and radiated cold. That was undeniably the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    <em>Has Xiang seeded? </em>Long Chen was excited. He was not sure yet, so he continued waiting.


    Another two hourster, the temperature of the surroundings had risen to almost normal room temperature. At this point, the ck mes on Xiangs body hadpletely disappeared. Long Chen noticed that the injuries on his body had disappeared too. He seemed to have returned to his usual form, or rather, an even stronger form.


    Finally, Xiang opened his eyes. For a brief moment, Long Chen saw a cold, ck me burning in his eyes, and the sight made his soul shudder.


    When Xiang saw Long Chen, he looked ecstatic. Probably because he felt like hisbat form was toorge, he turned back into his previous, adorable form and ran cutely up to Long Chen, lifting his head to stare at him.


    Long Chen was knocked out by how cute his expression and actions were. Xiang was not deliberately trying to look cute, he was merely not very familiar with his new body, which was why his butt swayed so much when he ran.


    Well talk while we walk. When Long Chen saw that his injuries had healed, he did not waste time on small talk. Grabbing him by the scruff, he lifted Xiang up and sprinted out because he could tell that due to the absence of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, the temperature was rising and the ancient ice around them was starting to melt.


    Xiang, have you fully absorbed the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire? Long Chen asked excitedly.


    Xiang gave a dazed look, nodded, then shook his head.


    This inability to converse was an inconvenient problem. Long Chen did not understand him at all and did not even know what to say. At this point, he could only do his best to guess and let Xiang nod if he somehow made a correct guess.


    Xiang opened his jaw, and Long Chen saw a cold me dancing on his tongue. It looked like a small version of the ancestral fire. The awakened Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was violent and destructive, while the me on his tongue danced with child-like mischief. Under Xiangs control, it moved from left to right.


    Xiang closed his mouth, and the me disappeared.


    I understand now. You didnt absorb it to turn it into your own power, you took control of the ancestral fire and made it recognize you as its master. That way, despite not receiving the benefit of an instant increase in strength, you still receive many other benefits, Long Chen guessed.


    Xiang nodded, his eyes squinting so they looked like crescent moons.


    Fuck, dont act cute in front of me! Long Chen scolded him jokingly.


    Mo Xiang sulked. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    what xiang looked like:


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 260: Loser

    Chapter 260: Loser


    Long Chen was so happy that words alone could not describe how he felt.


    After spending some time with Mo Xiang, he could guess what his intentions were by looking at his gestures. Even though it was difficult, Long Chen was happy that he could at leastmunicate with Mo Xiang.


    After turning into the Sun Devouring Wolf, Mo Xiang had lost everything he had worked for as a human as well as his human identity andnguage. To the others, he was as good as dead. But he had obtained the body of the Sun Devouring Wolf, a beast with monstrous talent; he had even devoured one of the ancestral fires, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. It was up to him to decide which form was better.


    While walking through the long corridor, Long Chen managed to get a grasp on Mo Xiang''s current strength. The Sun Devouring Wolf was a Category Three Earth-tier or so, but after Mo Xiang refined the Beast Soul, an ident urred. Due to the injury, some of the Qi of the Sun Devouring Wolf was lost. Mo Xiang was roughly at Category Two Earth-tier, equal to a cultivator at the Second River Stage. If Long Chen were to fight Mo Xiang right now, he would be instantly obliterated even without Mo Xiang using the deadly Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The ability of the Sun Devouring Wolf allowed Mo Xiang to control the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire as he wished. Long Chen knew that Mo Xiangs future opponents would meet a terrible demise.


    Unfortunately, Mo Xiang still had a lot of growing to do. While he could control the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he didnt have full mastery of it. Most of the fire was contained within his body and limbs. Though as he got stronger, he would be able to control more. The amount of fire he could control now was just a small part of it. Even then, the diluted fire was extremely deadly.


    Mo Xiangs condition was not as hopeless as they had thought. At least he had fun controlling the Sun Devouring Wolfs body. But Long Chen was still sensitive enough to notice that Mo Xiang had a hint of pain and confusion in his eyes. Long Chen didnt know how much pain he was feeling in his heart without personally experiencing turning into a beast himself.


    Xiang, lets go. Lets see how many items Yan Danqing has obtained. Hahaha


    Disregarding Mo Xiangs condition, Long Chen was the biggest winner. Unfortunately, he could not show everyone what he had obtained. To the others, Long Chen had lost a sworn brother and Yan Danqing had taken the time to snatch the mysterious steel te, bing the most promising individual amongst all of them.


    Since he had recovered, Mo Xiang didnt want Long Chen to carry him any further. Mo Xiang jumped down with his lithe body and matched Long Chens pace. He wasnt used to using four limbs yet, so it took him a lot of energy to do so. Long Chenughed at how uncoordinated Mo Xiang was.


    Mo Xiang rolled his eyes and continued wobbling around.


    Long Chen chuckled when he saw Mo Xiang ignore him. They eventually exited the corridor and found themselves in the sea of fire once again. Mo Xiang frowned and opened his mouth. The fire shuddered before flowing into his mouth like water. In just a few breaths, all the fire within hundreds of meters was almostpletely swallowed by him.


    Mo Xiang, save some fire to block this entrance, Long Chen told him cautiously.


    Xiang stopped devouring the mes and left some fire near the entrance. He knew that Long Chen didnt want others to know that they had obtained a bunch of treasures.


    Mo Xiang burped after consuming all that fire, but his cultivation barely progressed. Long Chen was initially curious as to why the Sun Devouring Wolf had not eaten the mes here. It seemed that despite it looking like arge concentration of particrly hot fire, it was an insignificant amount for the wolf


    <em>It seems that it might not be as easy as I thought to increase the strength of the Sun Devouring Wolf. The quality of the mes must be quite high to have a significant effect on his cultivation.</em>


    Everyone was shocked to see the sea of mes beside them reducing drastically.


    Near the center of the za were three groups of people. Two of the groups appeared to be sad and lost. They were the six people from the Lingwu family and the five people from the Dawn Trading Alliance. The youths from the Lingwu family seemed to be in the worst condition, while the people from the Beast Soul Pce wereughing arrogantly. They surrounded Yan Danqing and were showering him with praise.


    From now onwards, Yuanling Citys most powerful faction will be the Beast Soul Pce and not the Lingwu family! Prince Yuan, its all thanks to your courage and wisdom that weve obtained the inheritance of the Burning Heaven Emperor!


    All of them praised non-stop, much to the dismay of the youths from the Lingwu family.


    Just then, Dongfang Tianxuan and Ximen Xiaodie huddled together. They were the strongest ones in their team, at the mid Heavenly Core Realm. Ximen Xiaodie was especially strong with the White Tiger de, putting her on par with someone at thete Heavenly Core Realm.


    Tianxuan, they are too arrogant! I cant stand it anymore! Ximen Xiaodie was almost crying.


    Endure it. There are a few more days before the gates of the ancient ruins open again. Now that Yan Danqing has obtained the inheritance, they have every right to be arrogant, while we can only be shamed as losers  Dongfang Tianxuan answered weakly.


    Why? Isnt the Lingwu family the strongest? Why did we lose to them? Ximen Xiaodie could not let it go.


    Thats just how fate is. Just like how Long Chen was weaker than us previously but is stronger than us now. If we stop improving, we will be surpassed by others. The Lingwu family mightve been toocent all this time.


    Dont talk to me about Long Chen and Mo Xiang again. They promised that they would get the inheritance, but they lost to Yan Danqing. They even went missing! To think that the Patriarchs would trust those two worthless idiots! Look at our situation now! We lost! We lost everything! Ximen Xiaodie no longer had the face to return to the Lingwu family.


    Dongfang Tianxuan was taken aback when she mentioned Long Chen. I heard that Mo Xiang was killed by an Earth-tier wolf-type demonic beast and Yan Danqing managed to use that opportunity to slip past. Also, it seems Long Chen defeated Li Ziling. They are indeed strong, but they arent ruthless like Yan Danqing, so they ended up losing. Now Long Chen is missing and we dont even know if hes alive


    In Dongfang Tianxuans eyes, Long Chen was a monstrous genius that would never lose. To think he had lost to Yan Danqing.


    I thought he would continue to show us miracles  Dongfang Tianxuan sighed.


    Just then, the sea of mes beside them grew smaller. All of them were alerted to the change and quickly got into battle positions.


    Whos there? Yan Danqing pushed away his underlings and looked at the shrinking sea of fire.


    In front of everyones eyes, a man and a beast walked out of the mes. When they saw that it was Long Chen and the Sun Devouring Wolf, all of them took a few steps back, their faces pale from the shock.


    They were only slightly shocked at Long Chens appearance, but why was the Sun Devouring Wolf by his side?


    Everyone knew the strength of the Sun Devouring Wolf, so all of them were afraid when they saw it. Even the strongest person present, Yan Danqing, took a few steps back, his fighting spirit soaring.


    Looking at his fearful stance, Long Chen chuckled secretly. Xiang, step away. Dont let them know that Im with you.


    Xiang understood his intention. Long Chen would never let Yan Danqing take the inheritance just like that. Mo Xiang stopped and fell to the ground near the tomb, then he closed his eyes to sleep. He needed some time to digest some of the Nine Devils Ancient Fire that he had just obtained.


    Everyone knew that the Sun Devouring Wolf had been injured by the Lingwu family. They now assumed that the wolf could not continue to fight and had transformed into its miniature version. Everyone sighed in relief, thinking that the Sun Devouring Wolf had been weakened.


    It was rare for a demonic beast to be able to change its body size, but it was not impossible. Therefore, none of them were surprised to see that the Sun Devouring Wolf had be smaller.


    Everyone finally looked to Long Chen after seeing that the Sun Devouring Wolf was no longer a threat to them. They were curious as to why Long Chen was fine even after spending so much time with the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    They felt like Long Chen was shrouded in mystery.


    As far as Yan Danqing knew, Mo Xiang was dead and Long Chen had defeated Li Ziling, so Long Chen was the strongest fighter here. Yan Danqing was naturally hostile to the person that could threaten him.


    Long Chen walked over to the Lingwu family group. Dongfang Tianxuan and everyone else looked at him with unfriendly gazes because he had not obtained the inheritance.


    You boasted so much in the past, but you are nothing but a loser, Ximen Xiaodie grumbled, but no one else dared to say anything. All of them still remembered how he had killed Dongfang Tianchen.


    Who said Im a loser? Long Chen chuckled. The real fight hasnt even begun.


    He then brandished the Azure Dragon Halberd and pointed at Yan Danqing. Do you have the guts to fight me? So we can finally have the closure we need here in the ancient ruins?


    Yuanling City''s strongest youth smiled inly at Long Chens taunt.


    You arrogant brat.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    "who said im a loser?"


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 261: Peak Essence Beast

    Chapter 261: Peak Essence Beast


    Everyone was speechless at Long Chens behavior. Everyone thought he had died when he entered the fire, but not only had he survived, he was now looking to die again.


    Are you looking down on me just because you managed to defeat Li Ziling? Yan Danqing smiled inly. He was the biggest winner today and he was the strongest youth in Yuanling City. To think Long Chen would dare to point the Azure Dragon Halberd at him.


    But Long Chen ignored his taunt and walked to the center of the za. He taunted Yan Danqing again. Yan Danqing,e here! I wont let you take what belongs to me!


    What belongs to you? Yan Danqing knew if he didnt use his strongest technique to defeat Long Chen after his taunts, he would lose face.


    He slowly approached Long Chen and chuckled. Brat, you think the steel te and the inheritance belong to you?


    The mysterious steel te was taken from the mouth of the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Of course. The mysterious steel te was what Mo Xiang had prepared for Long Chen, but Yan Danqing had taken advantage of the situation and grabbed it.


    Long Chens answer made everyoneugh. Only the youths from the Lingwu family were left feeling ashamed by Long Chens words. Dongfang Tianxuan and Ximen Xiaodie looked at each other and sighed. Ximen Xiaodie even spat at Long Chen.


    Is Long Chens brain fried? Yan Danqing has be the inheritor of the Burning Heaven Emperor. We are just waiting for the Ninth Prince to open up the gate, and Long Chen still thinks he has a chance?


    All of the youths from the Lingwu family were thinking the same thing.


    As for the Beast Soul Pce, the youths wanted Yan Danqing to pulverize Long Chen.


    Yan Danqings Qi surged, and he shouted, See, they want me to beat you to a pulp. I suppose I have no choice!


    He became a whirlwind and ran at Long Chen, his body nothing but a blur.


    First Stage Heavy Blow!


    A strong punch rapidly approached Long Chen. Even though it looked in, the attack was exceedingly destructive.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Split Yellow River and Shattered Skies!


    Long Chen waved the Azure Dragon Halberd around. Not only did he block Yan Danqings attack, he even managed tond a hit, sending Yan Danqing flying backwards. Yan Danqing wasnt injured, but he felt embarrassed from being sent flying.


    Ive heard that you are strong but stupid. Since you want to die, I will fulfill your wish! Long Chen, let me show you the strength of a Peak Essence Beast before you die. Consider it an honor.


    Yan Danqing realized that Long Chen would not be simple to defeat, so he decided to use his strongest form.


    Peak Essence Beast, Beast Soul Transformation!


    When Yan Danqing said that, his body expanded and his muscles grewrger. White fur sprouted all over his body and sharp ws grew from his four limbs.


    Long Chen was slightly stunned at the appearance of the three-meter-tall humanoid beast. Yan Danqing looked like a white, ape-like demonic beast. Judging from how terrifying he looked, it was clear that the Peak Essence Beast was at the apex of its food chain. Its attack, speed, and defense were clearly very exceptional.


    After transforming, Yan Danqing stared at Long Chen with his jade-green eyes, not moving an inch. His breathing was ragged, exhausting white mist from his nostrils. Yan Danqings prince-like appearance had changed into a barbaric-looking white ape. Long Chen could not hold it in and burst outughing.


    Is this your Beast Soul Transformation? The Peak Essence Beast? You became a giant gori? I think you look fucking ugly.


    Long Chens shrillugh made Yan Danqings eyes go bloodshot. This was the first time someone had told him he was ugly. Everyone else thought Long Chen was stupid for making fun of Yan Danqings appearance.


    Die! Yan Danqing roared, stomping the ground. The entire za shook. It was clear that the Peak Essence Beast was very strong.


    Even though he looked ugly, he was a frightening foe! Yan Danqing ran towards Long Chen, the ground shaking under his feet. His ragged and hot breath soon reached Long Chen. Yan Danqings three-meter-tall body and arms thicker than Long Chens waist were incredible!


    Beast Soul Transformation? Do you think you''re the only one who can transform?


    Long Chen chuckled, then he changed into his dragon form. Blood-red scales covered his body, and the sharp bone spikes made him look much better than Yan Danqings transformation.


    This was why Long Chen had insulted Yan Danqings appearance.


    You dare use an inferior beast to transform before me? Do you think you can hold a candle to a Peak Essence Beast? Incredulous! Yan Danqingughed and punched again. Even though it was the same First Stage Heavy Blow, it was much stronger due to his transformation. The ground shook and the wind howled.


    <em>Inferior? You will soon learn that a Peak Essence Beast is an antpared to a dragon! </em>


    Long Chen smiled and used the Nine Dragon shes. He quickly shed across the za and used Yellow River Split and Shattered Skies again. The Azure Dragon Halberd became a sharp drill that thrusted at Yan Danqings head!


    Second Stage Heavy Kick! Yan Danqings first attack had missed, but he did not panic. He used his legs and kicked Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd. In the next instant, the Azure Dragon Halberd was deflected, and Yan Danqingunched another attack at Long Chens chest!


    Long Chen did not panic; he merely moved his finger. Sword Devil Finger!


    The twinkling starlight gathered and shot towards Yan Danqings eyes. If Yan Danqing continued his attack, he would hit Long Chen, but he would be blinded too.


    Yan Danqing was shocked at Long Chens reckless fighting style. He didnt want to lose his eyes just to defeat Long Chen, so he recalled his attack.


    Long Chen, is trading blows all you can do? Are you that weak? Yan Danqingughed.


    To be fair, everyone was currently unsure if Yan Danqing would be able to keep the inheritance after exchanging blows with Long Chen so many times. Dongfang Tianxuan thought about how Long Chen had managed to create so many miracles, and a daring thought crossed her mind.


    <em>Could Long Chen be the strongest genius of Yuanling City? How did he get to this position when he was just an insignificant ant?</em>


    Dongfang Tianxuan thought Long Chen would lose to Yan Danqing, but he should still be respected. Long Chens story was a legendary one, one where someone had started from the bottom and slowly rose to the top.


    Her hatred towards him slightly lessened.


    Long Chen and Yan Danqing shed again.


    <em>His speed, strength, and defense are almost on the level of a demonic beast. But his skin could never withstand the attacks from the Azure Dragon Halberd. </em>Long Chen smiled coldly and steeled his heart.


    He didnt want to y with Yan Danqing anymore, so his body blurred. He ran towards Yan Danqing, and the Azure Dragon Halberd swung around his body, leaving afterimages in its wake. Numerous dragon roars could be heard as he stabbed wildly at Yan Danqing, forming a tsunami of attacks.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Starsweep Dragon!


    Even Yan Danqing had to take Long Chens strongest technique seriously. He roared and used all of his Qi tounch a single attack.


    Ninth Stage Shattered Void!


    The technique was clearly an Earth-tier martial technique. First Stage Heavy Blow was strong already, and Ninth Stage Shattered Void was abination of nine First Stage Heavy Blows. The power from the nine punches fused together and multiplied its strength. Even though the technique looked in, it was considerably strong, and it shed directly with Long Chens Starsweep Dragon.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The air surrounding them exploded, and the shockwave spread throughout the za. Everyone heard the sound of the halberd and fist colliding nine times before both Long Chen and Yan Danqing were knocked backwards by the impact.


    This time, they were using all of their strength.


    <em>In terms of pure strength, Long Chen is weaker than Yan Danqing after he transformed into the Peak Essence Beast. </em>Dongfang Tianxuan frowned as she watched the big sh.


    But when she saw the result, her lips opened slightly from shock. <em>How is this possible? </em>


    Everyone else took a bit more time to react after seeing who had emerged victorious. Long Chennded gracefully, while Yan Danqing fell onto the ground and rolled several times. His face was dusty and his blood was boiling.


    How could this be? Had the strength-orientated Peak Essence Beast lost to Long Chens inferior beast?


    Even Yan Danqing refused to believe it. He was deeply ashamed.


    He suddenly stood up and charged at Long Chen.


    Long Chen, how dare you fight dirty!


    Fight dirty? Long Chen chuckled. Since I didnt kill you with that attack, I have no choice but to use this one <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    A gori vs a Dragon


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 262: Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension

    Chapter 262: Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension


    Another technique? Yan Danqings face paled. Yan Danqing was actually preparing another technique to kill Long Chen, but to think Long Chen had another technique too.


    <em>Hmph! His meager attack will never be able to beat the secret technique of the Beast Soul Pce! </em>


    Yan Danqing rxed and smiled as he ran towards Long Chen. Yan Danqings Qi was still pulsating, forming arge ball of Qi that enveloped him.


    Long Chen, lets decide this once and for all. We shall see whos the strongest! Yan Danqing howled. He was initially only afraid of Mo Xiang and not Long Chen, and he had never thought Long Chen would force him to use all of his strength!


    Yan Danqing was anything but calm, while Long Chen was the opposite. He slowly ced the Azure Dragon Halberds tip on the ground while looking at Yan Danqing calmly.


    Peak Essence Shredding Punch!


    He was very close to Long Chen when he shouted, raising his massive fist up into the air. The swirling Qi enveloped Yan Danqings body, and he shot towards Long Chen on all fours.


    The entire ground shook. It was clear that even a mountain would be destroyed by that attack, much less Long Chen.


    Everyone felt their guts go cold when they saw Yan Danqing punch Long Chen. They thought Long Chen would be able to defeat Yan Danqing after sending him flying backwards, but it was clear Long Chen would lose to Yan Danqings strongest attack. Long Chen was still rooted to the ground.


    But was that really the case?


    Long Chen raised his head and saw the beast towering above him. He smiled and moved in a flurry.


    <em>I wonder how strong an intermediate Earth-tier martial technique is.</em>


    Long Chen swung the Azure Dragon Halberd upwards from the ground, and a burst of light exploded. Numerous light particles were attracted towards the Azure Dragon Halberd in the air.


    Long Chen was essentially swinging the Azure Dragon Halberd upwards, but it was not a simple swing. The massive azure dragon soul flew upwards from the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    The halberd had transformed into the shy soul of the azure dragon!


    Azure Dragon Martial Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    The illusion of a massive dragon flew skywards, bearing its ws and fangs towards Yan Danqing. The techniques collided mid-air and caused an impressive explosion.


    The explosion made everyone cusp their ears. Some of them even fell backwards in pain from the shock wave.


    Even though the zas ground was very strong, the stones were currently being sucked upwards before being ground to dust. The dust covered everyones vision. All they could hear was a dragons roar and a beasts howl.


    The colliding energy exploded and then there were no more sounds. Someone flew outwards from the dust cloud with blood spraying everywhere. The person crashed onto the ground, his breath ragged and his face pale. The look of pain on his face made it clear that he had suffered internal injuries. On top of that, his right arm was missing. Everyone saw his right arm fly up in the air before falling onto the tomb and rolling in front of Mo Xiang. Mo Xiang sneezed and the arm flew away.


    It was Yan Danqing who was injured!


    Everyones minds went nk when they saw his pale face. Once the dust settled, Long Chen dispelled his transformation and put the Azure Dragon Halberd away. He smiled and looked at everyone, causing all of them to retreat instinctively.


    The youths from the Beast Soul Pce almost went crazy after seeing that Yan Danqings right arm was severed by Long Chen. Fear and worry flooded their hearts. They knew Yan Danqing was the treasure of Emperor Yuan, and now Long Chen had severed his arm. An angry Emperor Yuan was exceedingly terrifying.


    They looked at each other before rushing to Yan Danqing. Some of them treated his injuries while others went to find his severed arm to preserve it. If Yan Danqing died, not a single one of them would be allowed to live.


    Thankfully, Yan Danqing was not dead. He was still conscious, but he couldnt feel his right arm. The burning pain caused his entire body to tremble and spasm. He gritted his teeth and endured the pain to look at Long Chen only to find that thetter was grinning at him,


    Yan Danqings ego had suffered a serious blow. To think that he, the strongest youth in Yuanling City, had lost to the unknown Long Chen in their first fight! He could not ept it. His hatred towards Long Chen was immense, and he swore he would kill Long Chen for severing his arm!


    But then fear gripped his heart when he saw Long Chens devilish smile. He felt his heart quivering before blood surged into it, causing him to spit blood.


    I remember seeing you use your right hand to grab the steel te, so I chopped your whole arm off. Next time, you better remember that you cant touch anything without my permission. Long Chens voice was calm but dangerous.


    Long Chen  Do you know who I am? My grandfather is the strongest person in Yuanling City. I will also be an Immortal Guard soon. You will die! Yan Danqing yelled.


    Is that so? I should just kill you, then. Then I can just take the inheritance from you and I will be the Immortal Guard. Your grandfather would not be able toy a finger on me then. Long Chen chuckled.


    You cant kill me! Ive obtained the inheritance, so the Ninth Prince will kill you! Yan Danqing howled.


    Long Chen, you cant do this. Yan Danqing obtained the inheritance first. If you take it now, you will break the Ninth Prince''s rules. If that happens  Li Ziling quickly advised Long Chen otherwise.


    Long Chen knew that the Ninth Prince had stated that they could use any tactic they wanted before the inheritance was found. But now that the inheritance was in Yan Danqings hands and everyone was waiting for the Ninth Price to open the gate, that meant that Long Chen would indeed be in the wrong if he killed Yan Danqing now.


    But only Long Chen knew that the inheritance Yan Danqing had found was iplete.


    Long Chen was the one who had obtained theplete inheritance, so he didnt need Yan Danqings iplete one. Also, he had a feeling that the Ninth Princes intention was to have them find the inheritance in his stead. Long Chen decided not to tell anyone about how he had gotten theplete Divine Fire Clone technique as well as the two thousand Heavenly River Pills.


    Long Chen smiled and approached Mo Xiang.


    Lets go find a quiet ce to stay.


    They would have to wait for the Ninth Prince to open the gate, so Long Chen decided to go somewhere else to see what theyd obtained.


    Mo Xiang stood up and followed Long Chen to leave the za.


    Everyone just stared at him while they left, especially the Lingwu family youths. Words could no longer describe their shock. Long Chen had defeated Yan Danqing and be the strongest youth in Yuanling City. To them, this was the most shocking news.


    More importantly, why was the Sun Devouring Wolf listening to Long Chen?


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was an Earth-tier demonic beast, yet Long Chen had turned it into his pet? This meant that even though Long Chen could not be an Immortal Guard, he could still dominate Yuanling City!


    How many more secrets does he have? Dongfang Tianxuan mumbled.


    After separating from the rest, Long Chen found a quiet location and assessed what he had gained.


    If even Yan Danqing isnt my match, that means no one at the Heavenly Core Realm can beat me. But I must not getcent yet. As long as Im not at the Heavenly River Realm, I will still get bullied by others, especially the Ninth Prince and the others at the Biyang Imperial Capital. All of them are at the Heavenly River Realm and above.


    He was only at the mid Heavenly Core Realm at the moment, and he needed to reach thete Heavenly Core Realm as soon as possible. Blood Transmutation was a good way to progress, but ck-tier demonic beasts were no longer useful to him. He needed beasts at the Earth-tier and above.


    Theres still a few days. I need to learn how to use the Nine Spinning Fire Shield and Divine Fire Clone. Mo Xiang, didnt you say that you wanted to try and learn it? Lets learn it together.


    Rather than talking to Mo Xiang, it was more like he was talking to himself. He still didnt have a method to change Mo Xiang back to a human, so he had no choice but to get ustomed to learning Mo Xiang''s gestures. Long Chen knew that he would spend a long time with Mo Xiang after this was over.


    The Nine Spinning Fire Shield was an intermediate Earth-tier martial technique, and it was stupidly strong. After learning its basics, Long Chen realized that the technique could easily block his amateur Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension numerous times. The Nine Spinning Fire Shield was easily the strongest martial technique in Yuanling City.


    As for Divine Fire Clone, it was even more of a monstrous martial technique.


    Its such an interesting technique. Theres no way the Ninth Prince wouldnt covet this. I shouldy low once I get out of here.


    Long Chen would never let the technique leave his side.


    Time slowly passed, and Long Chen felt the ancient ruins open up once more.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Who cares who your grandfather is?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 263: Reopening

    Chapter 263: Reopening


    Once out of the ruins, they had to decide who would be the Immortal Guard. This was important to Long Chen, but there was a problem now.


    Long Chen had indeed obtained the true inheritance, but to the others, Yan Danqing was the one who had obtained it. If Long Chen revealed the truth, he would definitely be able to obtain the post of Immortal Guard, but that was a bad choice. The Ninth Prince would be interested in the Divine Fire Clone technique, and there was no way Long Chen would part ways with it.


    Long Chen was trying to figure out how to be an Immortal Guard through other means. His strongest value was being stronger than Yan Danqing. Since the Ninth Prince wanted to choose someone to be an Immortal Guard, he would naturally choose the strongest. Long Chen refused to believe he had no chance at all.


    After deciding on a course of action, Long Chen made the decision not to reveal that he had obtained theplete inheritance. He could exin it some other time if he used those techniques in publicter on. After all, he would be much stronger by then and would not be easy to bully.


    Everyone also sensed that the gates were being opened. None of them wanted to stay here any longer, so they ran towards the exit. They were still separated into three groups, with Long Chen and Mo Xiang walking leisurely at the back.


    Yan Danqing was leading the first group. He did not look back, because he knew Long Chen was just behind them. His eyes were filled with hatred and his right arm was safely secured in his Universe Pouch. He would only be able to restore it once he was back in Yuandi City. Before that, he was just a cripple.


    Every time he thought about how Long Chen had cut off his arm, anger would bubble in his heart.


    None of them spoke as they ran out of the ruins and returned to their original location. When they exited, two shes of light flew out. The Patriarchs from the Lingwu family recognized what they werethe ck Tortoise Axe and the Heavenly Wolf Dagger. That meant that their owners had perished.


    They knew that a few people would lose their lives in the ruins. Even though the Lingwu family felt a sense of loss with Beitang Mos death, they were more shocked that Mo Xiang was dead too. Still, Mo Xiang was essentially an outsider, while Beitang Mos grandfather was standing there with them.


    When the youths were back in the Burning Heaven Mountain Range, they each sought their own factions.


    Long Chen came out with Mo Xiang in his arms, and he saw that everyone was waiting for them outside. The Ninth Prince, Lin Cangtian, and the ck butler were on one side, while the Dawn Trading Alliance, Emperor Yuan, and the two strongest fighters under him were waiting anxiously on the other. The four Patriarchs as well as some elders were also waiting at the Lingwu familys corner. People like Dongfang Xuanfeng and Beitang Ming, who were busy handling the family, had note here. Only Dongfang Xuanyu was standing beside the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    When Long Chen and the others walked out, the Lingwu family checked on them to see who was injured and who had died. With the appearance of the ck Tortoise Axe, everyone knew that Beitang Mo was dead, and they quickly noticed that Dongfang Tianchen was missing.


    Li Ziling from the Dawn Trading Alliance looked very fatigued too, and Yan Danqing was missing an arm!


    The only one who didnt have any injuries was Long Chen. Everyone looked at him and assumed that he had obtained the inheritance.


    All of them quickly ushered the youths back to their factions, leaving Long Chen standing alone.


    What happened? the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch asked everyone.


    Brother Tianchen and Beitang Mo were killed by Long Chen! Dongfang Tianxuan said while gritting her teeth.


    What?! All of the Patriarchs were angry. They red at Long Chen with hatred.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch red at Long Chen. Long Chen, didnt you promise me that you would fight alongside them?


    I did, but some people are just too stubborn to understand. They tried to take the Azure Dragon Halberd from me and ended up losing their lives. I me myself for not holding back.


    You! The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch had a rough idea of what had happened, but that didnt mean that he wouldnt get angry about losing the familys strongest fighters. Still, Lin Cangtian was around, so he could do nothing to Long Chen. Unfortunately, however, someone else was blinded by hatred.


    When Dongfang Xuanyu saw Long Chens despicable smile and thought about Dongfang Tianchen, the hatred in her heart exploded. She ran at Long Chen to kill him!


    You want to die that badly? Long Chen wanted to kill Dongfang Xuanyu for setting him up. She had almost taken his life before, and now she was underestimating him by charging wildly. Long Chen''s eyes turned cold, then he used the Sword Devil Finger numerous times on her. The energy shot out of his finger and stabbed into her.


    He hadunched five attacks. Not only had he neutralized her attack, but Long Chens final Devil Sword Finger exploded just in front of her, the razor-sharp energy tearing her clothes to pieces. Everyone saw her naked body for just a split second before numerous wounds appeared on her skin and covered her in blood.


    Dongfang Xuanyu cried out. She was covered in wounds, feeling more pain than she had ever felt before. She wanted to faint, but the pain kept her awake. She knew that her clothes were torn off and her entire body was exposed to the world, causing her heart to crumble.


    She only realized then that she was not special and that there were people she should not offend.


    Xuanyu! the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch shouted.


    He quickly took out a robe to cover her body before pushing her to the Southern Vermillion Bird Patriarch for treatment. The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch gave Long Chen a furious look before unleashing his Heavenly River Realm aura. He wanted to kill Long Chen right now!


    Stop, said a soft voice. It was Lin Cangtian.


    No matter how much the Patriarch hated Long Chen, he had no choice but to stop himself and endure.


    Long Chen knew that the Ninth Prince would stop them, so he had held back from killing Dongfang Xuanyu. Allowing her to live was an act of mercy, though Long Chen had inflicted so much emotional damage that she would likely end up with the same fate as Yang Zan.


    Even if the Patriarch had attacked him, Long Chen still had Mo Xiang by his side, so he was not afraid.


    Everyone looked at the prince. You dare attack in front of me? Have you forgotten Im here?


    I admit my mistake, Ninth Prince. The Patriarch bowed down. He knew now was not the time to be rash.


    As long as you know youve made a mistake. All of you better behave.


    Lin Cangtian looked around and asked the youths the most pressing question. Who obtained the inheritance?


    <em>Damn. </em>The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch felt his heart tighten. It was very clear that Long Chen had obtained the inheritance since he was unharmed. If that was the case, he would be an Immortal Guard and the Lingwu family could no longer kill him. But at least the Lingwu family would continue to rule over the city, so it was not that bad.


    Unfortunately, he was wrong.


    All the youths immediately looked at Yan Danqing. He raised his courage and replied, Ninth Prince, I was the one who obtained the inheritance!


    His voice was hoarse while he looked at Long Chen. It was sufficient to say that he was afraid of Long Chen.


    A mor arose when they heard that. Everyone assumed it was Long Chen, but Yan Danqing was the one who had won. That meant that the Beast Soul Pce would be able to rule Yuanling City for the next twenty years.


    I knew that he was not that strong. Big Brother, since he didnt obtain the inheritance, killed Moer and Chener, and even injured Xuanyu  The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch looked at the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, his intentions clear. They needed to kill Long Chen!


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch nodded.


    Everyone was still perplexed. Yan Danqing had lost an arm, yet he hade out with the inheritance.


    Lin Cangtian was surprised too before he chuckled. Then who severed your arm?


    It was embarrassing, but Yan Danqing dared not dy his answer. He lowered his head and muttered, Long Chen.


    Long Chen.


    His name was etched deeply into everyones hearts.


    You fought him head-on? Lin Cangtian was interested.


    Everyone would look down on him if he didnt admit it, so Yan Danqing nodded.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Its their fault for trying to kill MC first


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 264: Battle in Ten Days

    Chapter 264: Battle in Ten Days


    Long Chen had defeated a Category Nine ck-tier Peak Essence Beast and even severed one of Yan Danqings arms? Everyone thought that was impossible, but that was not the case. Long Chen had improved too fast. Since he had defeated Yan Danqing, that meant he was the strongest youth in Yuanling County. He was now more famous than Mo Xiang!


    No one had expected that the nameless Long Chen would be so strong in such a short amount of time.


    Long Chen smiled. He was still trying toe up with a way to escape the Lingwu familys encirclement and obtain the approval of the Ninth Prince to be an Immortal Guard.


    Long Chen was a smart man. Judging from Lin Cangtians behavior and the look in his eyes, he could guess what the Ninth Prince wanted. When he stopped their fight just now, Long Chen already had a feeling that the Ninth Prince was protecting him, though that didnt necessarily mean the Ninth Prince wanted to bring him to the capital. At most, the Ninth Prince was just interested in him.


    Just mere interest.


    Seeing that Yan Danqing had obtained the inheritance, Lin Cangtian nodded in approval. Since youve obtained the inheritance, I wont say much anymore. Return to Yuanling City, and I will announce the result to the whole city tomorrow.


    He then called over the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon, and the butler mounted it. The Ninth Prince gestured at Yan Danqing. Follow me.


    Everyone thought it was an honor to ride with the Ninth Prince, but Long Chen knew that the Ninth Princes intention was to find out what Yan Danqing had obtained in the ruins.


    But the others didnt know that.


    Yan Danqings grandfather, Emperor Yuan, was smiling happily as he watched his grandson climb onto the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon. He then told everyone from the Beast Soul Pce to ride their Savage Wind Peng.


    The Dawn Trading Alliance had gained nothing, so they headed out quietly.


    The Lingwu family, however, didnt leave. They knew what was going to happen next. All of them wanted Long Chen to die.


    Once the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon was ready to fly, Lin Cangtian turned around and smiled at Long Chen evilly. An Earth-tier demonic beast recognized you as its owner? Long Chen, I await your return to Yuanling City.


    Only Long Chen heard that.


    <em>He did indeed find out. Thankfully, he didnt realize that its a Sun Devouring Wolf. I guess the aura of an Earth-tier beast cannot be hiddenpletely. </em>


    Lin Cangtian took off. Everyone thought Long Che would surely perish today, but Lin Cangtian actually didnt want him to die. Since Long Chen had an Earth-tier beast protecting him, he would probably be fine and should be able to make it back to the city.


    <em>Wait for me in Yuanling City? What is his goal? They are going to announce the results tomorrow, and I need to seize the opportunity.</em>


    Once the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon and the Savage Wind Peng flew away, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch looked at Long Chen. Dont you find it strange that youve been abandoned? You think we wont hurt you because were afraid of what your master might do?


    Im curious as to why you are being so bold, Long Chen responded. They had been afraid of Li Xuanji this whole time, but why were they so bold today?


    Pitiful! Did you think I would believe your lie? Long Chen, while you were in the ancient ruins, I investigated and determined that she is not your master. She left with your cousin quite some time ago. Everyone in Baiyang Town bade them farewell!


    Oh, so you found out. I thought you had grown some balls. Long Chen was not afraid, however.


    Arent you afraid of dying?


    You think the four of you can kill me?


    Hm? The four Patriarchs were confused. They thought Long Chen still had some kind of trick up his sleeve, but they knew he didnt have anyone else to rely on anymore.


    You think you can threaten us with empty lies? Long Chen, you have offended the Lingwu family one too many times. You even killed Tianchen and Beitang Mo! Our hatred for you will not disappear even after we kill you! We will torture you for a very long time. Fourth Brother, do you want to attack first?


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch had each lost a grandson, so they hated Long Chen the most.


    "Brother, I''ll do it! I promise I won''t take his life immediately!" The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch took a few steps forward. His body was much stouter than that of the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. His aura was imposing, and the ck Tortoise Axe that had flown out of the ruins was already in his hands.


    Long Chen smiled when he saw the murderous Lingwu family.


    Looks like we cant resolve thispletely. I have a suggestion. In ten days, both me and my wolf will fight the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch at the city gates to determine the winner once and for all. How about that?


    Are you stupid? We will make sure to kill you today! The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch moved. Even though he was stout, his speed was anything but slow. He was ten times faster than Long Chen!


    Xiang. The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch was just about to reach him, and the wind prickled Long Chens skin.


    Hearing him, Mo Xiang jumped from his arms and spat a peculiar me towards the Patriarch. When the me appeared, the temperature surrounding them plummeted.


    Sensing the danger, the Patriarch dodged it hastily and stopped. He fell backwards and looked disheveled, but he managed to dodge the attack.


    When he raised his head, he saw that the small wolf in Long Chens arms had be iparably huge. The Sun Devouring Wolf was so magnificent that all of them were shocked.


    An Earth-tier beast!


    No one could believe their eyes. Dongfang Tianxuan and the other youths had forgotten about the beast and were now reeling from the shock once more, their faces pale with fright.


    Haha, Im d you know what it is. Long Chen sat on the wolf and looked at them. Since our grudge can no longer be resolved peacefully, we shall fight at the city gates in ten days. I want to see if you have the balls to fight me then.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf transformed into a ck shadow and quickly disappeared. The Lingwu family looked at each other when Long Chen was gone.


    Big Brother, can we beat Long Chen now that hes this strong? The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch trembled. The fire was too horrifying, and he had a feeling that he wouldve died horribly if he hade into contact with it.


    Wrong! He must die in ten days! the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch snarled.


    ***


    Long Chen rode on Mo Xiangs back as he chased after the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon. The Sun Devouring Wolf was much stronger than the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon, so it could travel much faster even though it was running on the ground.


    The dy caused by the Lingwu family was easily recovered thanks to Mo Xiangs speed. Long Chen looked up and saw the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon. He then told Mo Xiang to slow down.


    Xiang, I think Yan Danqing gave the prince the method to cultivate Divine Fire Clone, though I dont think the prince would want the Heavenly River Pills.


    Mo Xiang couldnt speak, so he merely nodded. He felt depressed by his inability tomunicate.


    I can finally settle my grudge with the Lingwu family in ten days. Long Chen was not rash; this was part of his strategy. But there was something else he needed to do, and that was to obtain the Immortal Guard position from Yan Danqing. Based on Lin Cangtians attitude, Long Chen had a feeling that all was not lost.


    Emperor Yuan was just an ant to the Ninth Prince. The Ninth Prince could give the Immortal Guard position to whoever he wanted, and there was nothing anyone in the city could do.


    With the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon''s speed, it arrived at Yuanling City within half a day.


    The Ninth Prince had long noticed Long Chens presence when he was up in the sky. Before reaching the city, the Ninth Prince ordered the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon tond at the clearing in front of the city. Long Chen stopped there as well and jumped down from Mo Xiangs back, looking at the happy Ninth Prince and the somewhat embarrassed Yan Danqing.


    Long Chen, why did you chase after us? the Ninth Prince asked inly.


    Both the Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce were also looking at Long Chen and the Sun Devouring Wolf. They knew that the wolf was an Earth-tier beast.


    Ninth Prince, you said that you would make the strongest youth an Immortal Guard. Ive defeated Yan Danqing, which should be more than enough to prove my strength. I implore you to give me the position of Immortal Guard so I can serve you, Ninth Prince!


    He needed to be an Immortal Guard to enter the Counter Essence Realm. Only then could he find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Long Chen had to do it for Ling Xi. If this plea failed, he might need to reveal theplete Divine Fire Clone technique to the Ninth Prince.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yeeeesss, time to get rid of the patriarchs once and for all. Justice for Dongfang Xuanxiao


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 265: Killing the Peak Essence Beast

    Chapter 265: Killing the Peak Essence Beast


    When Long Chen said that, everyone present became angry at him, especially the Beast Soul Pce. He had severed Yan Danqings arm and they still hadnt taken revenge. And now Long Chen was stirring up trouble again? Even though Long Chen had an Earth-tier beast at his side, he shouldnt be that arrogant.


    The people from Yuandi City were extremely arrogant because Emperor Yuan was the strongest fighter in Yuanling County at the Second River Stage.


    Dream on! The Ninth Price said that the person who found the inheritance would be an Immortal Guard. You mightve defeated Yan Danqing, but you did not obtain the inheritance! Plus, no one knows if you used an underhanded tactic to win.


    Yeah! You are too arrogant! Ninth Prince, that man is traitorous and ruthless! If you bring him back, he will only bring shame to you. Just kill him!


    Everyone from Yuandi City shouted left and right.


    Enough. Emperor Yuan noticed that the Ninth Prince was frowning and immediately silenced his people.


    The Ninth Prince was still looking at Long Chen with interest. Do you think youre strong? I dont. You dont have the strength to impress me, and I should just do what I said I would do.


    I wonder, would you be impressed if I defeated the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch?


    Everyoneughed at his words, but none of them dared to taunt Long Chen in the Ninth Princes presence. Long Chen was too arrogant. He had be the strongest youth after defeating Yan Danqing, but defeating the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch would make him one of the strongest cultivators in Yuanling City.


    Only if you dont use the Earth-tier beast. I would be impressed if you had the strength to defeat the patriarchs in this small city, but its clear that you dont, the Ninth Prince answered. He was even more interested in Long Chen.


    I made a promise with the Lingwu family to fight the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch here in ten days. We will decide the winner in one go!


    Everyone was speechless at his announcement. They werent sure if it was a prank or not.


    The news of them fighting in ten days would soon spread throughout the city.


    The people didnt know how else to insult the youth who was so arrogant.


    In that case, I will dy the announcement of who will rule Yuanling City and who will be the Immortal Guard by ten days. Long Chen, I await your performance. The Ninth Prince epted it, which surprised everyone. After saying that, he left with the butler and headed towards the pce.


    Long Chen was standing in front of the strongest cultivator in Yuanling County, Emperor Yuan, as well as his grandson Yan Danqing. Yan Danqing was ring at Long Chen, and Emperor Yuans gaze was chilly.


    Sorry, it seems you wont be an Immortal Guard. Long Chen was happy that things had gone his way.


    Long Chen, stop dreaming. I cant wait to watch the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch kill you! Yan Danqing said through gritted teeth.


    Is that so? Then Ill stop wasting my time on you. You should hurry home to fix your right arm.


    You bastard  Losing his right arm was the biggest embarrassment Yan Danqing had ever faced.


    At this time, Emperor Yuan looked at Long Chen and said, Long Chen, you killed my other grandson, Yan Cixue, right?"


    Yan Cixue was the Grand Priest of the Blood Saints. Long Chen did not think that the old man would still remember him.


    "You killed one of my grandsons and severed the arm of my other grandson. No one from Yuanling City has ever dared to mess with me like this before." Emperor Yuans gaze was calm yet cold. Remember, don''t make me angry. I''m indeed weakpared to the people of the Imperial Capital City, but even if the Ninth Prince chooses you, I''ll make sure your life would be worse than dying. Don''t underestimate me."


    After saying that, Emperor Yuan bade farewell to the others and slowly walked off.


    What Emperor Yuan had said caused Long Chen to fall into deep thought.


    "It seems Emperor Yuan is going to be even harder to deal with than the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and the others. I''d better be careful."


    After everyone had left, Long Chen took Mo Xiang, who had shrunk, and entered Yuanling City. He didn''t want to stay there, so he wrote a letter and then snuck into the Lingwu family. He stealthily made his way to the Silver family and ced the letter in Yin Mengyaos room.


    The letters purpose was to exin that Mo Xiaolong hadn''t died but had to go to a faraway ce. <em>Dont believe it if you hear the news of Mo Xiaolong''s death, and don''t spread the news that he didn''t die.</em>


    Yin Mengyao considered Mo Xiang her only friend in Yuanling City. When that was done, Long Chen and Mo Xiang left the city and headed in the direction of Baiyang Town.


    "Mo Xiang, are you sure that there is an Earth-tier beast in the Deste Beasnds? Long Chen asked.


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    When they were in the ruins, Mo Xiang had mentioned that there was a Category One Earth-tier demonic beast in the depths of the Deste Beasnds. Mo Xiang had decided not to use it as his Primary Beast Soul because it didnt suit him.


    There was a reason why Long Chen was interested in the Earth-tier demonic beast: only beasts above the ck-tier could improve his strength significantly in ten days. There were very few beasts that met his requirements in Yuanling County, so he had to aim for the Earth-tier demonic beast in the Deste Beasnds.


    He was going to settle his grudge with the Lingwu family in ten days. Moreover, Long Chen had to take revenge on Dongfang Xuanxiaos behalf. He also needed to kill the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch for making Ling Xi enter aa. The Patriarch was the reason why Ling Xi was currently sleeping, and he wasnt sure if she would ever wake up or not.


    The Sun Devouring Wolfs speed was unmatched despite being unable to fly. After just half a day''s time, Long Chen passed the peaceful Baiyang Town and rushed into the Deste Beasnds. This time, he headed directly towards the deepest part. The ce that once terrified him was nothing to him now.


    Mo Xiang had been to the depths of the Deste Beasnds before and had seen the Earth-tier demonic beast, so it was easy for him to find its tracks. They found themselves surrounded by gray mist, and a suffocating presence filled the air. The ce was deste, but Long Chen suddenly felt a powerful aura in front of him.


    Mo Xiang rushed towards the demonic beast.


    Long Chen wouldnt be hunting the demonic beast. After all, he was still no match for an Earth-tier demonic beast. Mo Xiang would be the one killing it since he was much stronger.


    A massive beast appeared in front of them, roughly the same size as the Sun Devouring Wolf. But then it stood up and became much taller than Mo Xiang.


    A Peak Essence Beast? Long Chen was shocked. To think that the Earth-tier demonic beast was a Peak Essence Beast. It was a strong beast where even the regr adults were at the Category Nine ck-tier. There are a few exceptions where an individual Peak Essence Beast would be strong enough to advance into the Earth-tier.


    Long Chen knew that Emperor Yuans Primary Beast Soul was a Category One Earth-tier Peak Essence Beast. A Category Nine Earth-tier demonic beast was a being that was impossible to exist in the vicinity of Yuanling City. That was why Emperor Yuan was capable of finding a Category Nine ck-tier Peak Essence Beast while he himself used a Category One Earth-tier Peak Essence Beast instead.


    Even though that was the case, Emperor Yuans previous Primary Beast Soul was a ck-tier Peak Essence Beast so he was very familiar with the beast. His mastery in using the beast soul was why he was stronger than the Patriarchs of the Lingwu family.


    Long Chen saw the massive white ape in front of it. When it saw the Sun Devouring Wolf, it suddenly stood up and howled before charging at Mo Xiang.


    Xiang, its up to you now. Long Chenughed and jumped down.


    Mo Xiang smiled at the Peak Essence Beast, as if his opponent was nothing.


    He was a Category Two Earth-tier demonic beast and he could utilize the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. His goal in this fight was to experiment with it.


    The Peak Essence Beast swiped its ws at Mo Xiang, who responded by spitting out an ember of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The beast caught on fire the moment it came into contact with the ember. The mes quickly spread to its head, burning away its skin and bones until its brain was exposed. Long Chen heard the sound of ice cracking before the Peak Essence Beast crumpled onto the ground.


    Mo Xiang stood proudly.


    That fast? Long Chen was shocked that it was over so soon. To think Mo Xiang could kill a Category One Earth-tier beast so easily. Still, Long Chen knew that it was thanks to the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, or the battle wouldvested longer.


    Long Chen walked up and saw that the Peak Essence Beasts head was covered in ck ice. He touched the ice and it shattered, causing the Peak Essence Beasts head to disappear into a cloud of ice. The beast was now headless.


    The demonic core! Long Chen shouted. Since the Peak Essence Beasts head was destroyed, the Earth-tier demonic core was gone too <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Naaaur the demonic core!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 266: Late Heavenly Core Realm

    Chapter 266: Late Heavenly Core Realm


    Long Chen had two thousand Heavenly River Pills in his possession, and the demonic core of the Peak Essence Beast could only be sold for so much. Still, he hated not being able to earn some extra money.


    After killing the beast, Mo Xiang stepped aside to learn how to use Divine Fire Clone.


    <em>I wonder if Mo Xiang can cultivate it with his new body. </em>Long Chen activated the Dragon Soul Transformation while thinking that.


    He needed to use Blood Transmutation as soon as possible. The blood of an Earth-tier demonic beast was rare.


    Still, there was a huge amount of energy contained within the beast, so he could not be hasty. There was also the issue of the beast having several tons of blood. Long Chen deliberately had to slow down while transmuting it.


    He felt his Qi slowly increase in the slow process of using Blood Transmutation. As time went on, more and more blood was consumed as Long Chen transformed it into Qi before pouring it into his Dantian.


    It took him half a day toplete the process. The beasts corpse was dry and Long Chen felt like his Dantian was about to burst. He now needed to use therge amount of Qi to make a breakthrough.


    The process was smooth as he had a lot of Qi. He sessfully broke through the barrier and found that the Heavenly Core in the center of his dantian had be smaller, roughly the size of a green bean.


    It was incredible to think that such a small object was the source of his power.


    <em>When I was at the Human Core Realm, my core was the size of a chicken egg. But now it''s only the size of a green bean, and yet its many times more powerful. So strange.</em>


    <em>Still, Ivepleted the Divine Core Realm. All I need to do now is break into the Heavenly River Realm. Since I have two thousand Heavenly River Pills, I should be able to do so fairly quickly. Stepfather was the strongest cultivator under the Heavenly River Realm, but he could not break through because hecked the pills.</em>


    Long Chen was well aware of the importance of Heavenly River Pills.


    There were nine more days until the battle, and Mo Xiang was still learning how to use Divine Fire Clone. Even though Long Chen was confident that he could win at his current cultivation level, he didnt dare to stop cultivating.


    He spent this time not only consolidating his cultivation; he also cultivated the Nine Spinning Fire Shields and Divine Fire Clone. Thanks to his incredibleprehension, it was easy for him to learn the Nine Spinning Fire Shields, but Divine Fire Clone was much more difficult. It took him some discussions with Mo Xiang before they saw results.


    There are four stages to Divine Fire Clone. I wonder when I can learn the fourth stage? Long Chen knew that the fourth stage of the technique would allow him to split himself into one hundred and twenty-five clones. It was a stupidly powerful technique, but it would require arge amount of Qi. At Long Chens current cultivation level, it was already an excellent result if he could use even one clone.


    On the night before the fight, Long Chen rode on Mo Xiangs back and returned to the city. It was a crucial fight for him because he not only had multiple grudges to settle, he also had to be an Immortal Guard. The Ninth Prince couldnt find out that he had received thepleted version of Divine Fire Clone, so he would have to utilize other techniques.


    The reason he had challenged the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch at the same time was to settle all of his grudges with the Lingwu family in one go.


    He initially thought it would be difficult for Xiang to travel so much, but Long Chens worries had gone away after seeing how he had killed the Peak Essence Beast in just one move.


    Long Chen thought about how he was only at the Eighth Draconic Stage when he entered the Lingwu family. Now, less than a yearter, he was almost at the peak of the entire county.


    ***


    Thanks to the Dawn Trading Alliance and the Beast Soul Pce spreading the news, everyone flocked to the city walls early in the morning to spectate the fight.


    Everyone squeezed together at the top of the walls, yelling and bumping into each other.


    In the eyes of the civilians, the Lingwu family was a massive organization that had controlled their city for numerous generations. Meanwhile, theyd only heard of Long Chen a few times before. Howe someone so low in the rankings was going to fight against the Lingwu family?


    Who is Long Chen? To think he would be brave enough to oppose the massive Lingwu family. I heard that only the Beast Soul Pce has the power to stand up to them. Is Long Chen stronger? But Emperor Yuan should be the strongest in Yuanling City!


    I was told that Long Chen challenged the Patriarch of the Eastern Azure Dragon family. The Patriarch is one of the strongest fighters in the city, while Long Chen is barely twenty. Is he some kind of monster in disguise?


    Hes only twenty years old and hes already challenging the Patriarch. Even if he loses, his name will be spread around forever.


    No, I heard that Long Chen has a powerful demonic beast and that the Lingwu family is wary of it. Thats why they agreed to Long Chens terms. I think if it wasnt for the beast, Long Chen would be nothing to the Lingwu family.


    I dont think thats true. Rumors say that he severed Yan Danqings arm. If that''s true, Long Chen is the strongest youth in Lingwu County. We can only imagine what it''s like to be that strong.


    Yuanling City had never been buzzing with so much activity as the rumors flew everywhere. It was a miracle that the sky did not blow up from their voices.


    On one of the towers overlooking the city walls, the Ninth Prince as well as the people from all therge factions, including the Lingwu family, were looking down at the city gates while discussing the days event.


    Guys, I dont think you know about this, a middle-aged man said.


    What is it?


    Hurry and tell us!


    Dont be in such a hurry, I only just heard it myself. The Lingwu family wanted to seal the news away, but I managed to catch wind of it!


    Are you trying to tell us about Dongfang Xuanyumitting suicide?


    Wait, how did you know!? The middle-aged man was shocked.


    Idiot. I found out about it a few days ago. Only a few people in Yuanling City are still oblivious to it. And you thought it was a secret?


    I heard that Long Chen tore away Dongfang Xuanyus clothes near the entrance of the ruins. She felt humiliated and killed herself because of that.


    Long Chen is despicable! I fear that their grudge is too deep. I think there are several people from the Lingwu family who died because of him.


    Wasnt he part of the family before? Why did he kill them?


    All I know is that they are going to settle it once and for all with a single battle. We just need to watch. We will know if Long Chen is strong or weak after the battle.


    Everyone looked at the t in in front of the city. They knew Long Chen would appear there.


    Or maybe he wouldnt even show up?


    In the tower, the Ninth Prince was sitting on a chair made of white jade. The chair was so high that even if heid down, he could still see the ins.


    The threergest factions of Yuanling City surrounded the Ninth Prince. Since the Beast Soul Pce and the Dawn Trading Alliance werent the main characters here, they were quiet. The Lingwu family, however, spoke amongst each other. Almost every high-ranking member of the family was presentthe four Patriarchs, the several elders, and even the four people who ran the families.


    All of them were solemn.


    This was the most embarrassing moment for them, especially after the death of Dongfang Xuanyu. There was no way to resolve this amicably anymore.


    Dongfang Xuanfeng looked at the ins and whispered to the Patriarch, Father, do you think he wille?


    He wants to be an Immortal Guard, so he wille. The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch stared at the ins. His eyes were calm, but a strong killing intent hid behind them.


    Its either his death or ours this time. If he survives, the reputation of the Lingwu family will plummet. Plus, we just lost the right to rule the county, so I wonder, when will we be able to rise again? Dongfang Xuanfeng sighed.


    His most cherished son was dead, so he was very resentful.


    He wille. And he will die. We are the Lingwu family, and we will never lose! the Patriarch solemnly said.


    Its all our fault for underestimating him and not building a friendly rtionship with him. To think I would be this careless at my age. I suppose we can only erase him and restore our familys honor at this point in time, Dongfang Xuanfeng said.


    Hes here, the Patriarch said with a sigh.


    Everyone perked up when they saw a man and a wolf running in the distance.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Oh, she''s gone


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 267: Before The Final Fight

    Chapter 267: Before The Final Fight


    "He came?"


    When the man and the wolf finally came into view, the crowd couldn''t help but sincerely admire Long Chen''s courage. He was about to fight to the death against the topmost superpower of Yuanling City in front of the public!


    Was this something a youth under twenty could do?


    Everyone stared at the now-famous Long Chen.


    He doesnt look special. To think he could be this famous His legacy willst a long time even after he dies at the hands of the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    When Long Chen appeared, the eyes of everyone in the Lingwu family started shimmering with hatred.


    He actually came? Hes got guts. The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch stood beside the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, staring at the oing Long Chen and Mo Xiang.


    Fourth Brother, that is not a simple beast. It came from the ancient ruins, so its probably special in some way. Just distract it while you battle, and I will finish off Long Chen as soon as I can so we can join forces and kill the beast, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch said.


    I understand, Brother.


    The path was dusty.


    Long Chen saw that there were many spectators up on the walls of Yuanling City, and he knew that they were there because of him. He was once just a powerless whelp, but now he possessed enough strength to attract all these people. He had endured numerous difficulties and survived countless life-or-death situations to get to where he was. He got goosebumps every time he thought about how close he hade to dying.


    There was one final obstacle left: kill the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and win the Ninth Princes favor to be an Immortal Guard.


    Xiang, lets fight with all our strength and begin our journey as brothers. Long Chen was feeling inspired.


    Mo Xiang howled in response. His howl pierced and shook Yuanling City. The demonic beasts within the city trembled from fear when they sensed the strength of the Earth-tier demonic beast.


    Both of them stood outside the gates.


    Long Chen raised his head and shouted at the tower, Ninth Prince, I am here to honor the challenge!


    Good. The Ninth Prince smiled. He was somewhat happy to find Long Chen in this backwater ce. It was not every day that he ran into someone so extraordinary.


    After getting his reply, Long Chen jumped down from Mo Xiangs back. His gaze reflected his strong will to battle and killing intent.


    He then shouted, Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch! Get down here!


    His shout was powered by the Qi of ate Heavenly Core Realm cultivator. The walls shook and everyone felt their heads spinning from the sound. They thought Long Chen was weak due to his age, but now they knew he wasnt.


    Long Chen was indeed rude. To think he would shout at the two Patriarchs in such a crude manner! But he had guts; not many people would dare to speak to the Patriarchs of the Lingwu family like that.


    You shitty brat! Dongfang Xuanfeng and the others were angered by Long Chens rudeness and were about to jump down the wall when the Patriarch stopped them. This is a fight to the death. I dont care about his taunts. I will hurt him as much as he humiliated me.


    Yes, Father! Dongfang Xuanfeng had always looked up to his father.


    The two Patriarchs looked at each other, then they nodded at the Ninth Prince and jumped down. They stood just thirty meters from Long Chen.


    Brat, if you have nothing else to say,e and die. The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch was solemn.


    Of course I have something to say! Long Chen smiled and shouted, I want to rify that the fight today is to settle all of the grudges I have with the Lingwu family. After today, neither party will harm the losers side. My friends, family, and town will never seek revenge on the Lingwu family, and the Lingwu family should do the same. Do you agree?


    This was not important to the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. He was absolutely certain he would win, and he knew Long Chens family could never hope to harm the Lingwu family.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch knew that Long Chen was worried that the Lingwu family would harm the Yang family after the fight, so he had mentioned them in advance. The Patriarchs grudge was with Long Chen, not his useless family, so there was no harm in agreeing.


    I agree. Regardless of who wins, our families will not harm each other. But this is a fight to the death. Both parties agree that they can die during the fight, so the losers family must not seek revenge! the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch shouted.


    Since the Patriarch has agreed, may the Ninth Prince be our witness! Long Chen looked at the tower.


    Ive noted this down. If anyone secretly takes revenge, I will kill them personally. Go ahead and fight, the Ninth Prince said


    Long Chen rxed after he saw that the Ninth Prince and numerous others had be his witnesses.


    Xiang, be careful. Dont underestimate them. The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire is yourst resort, so make sure not to use it if you dont have to. Im afraid some people will get jealous.


    Xiang nodded in understanding.


    Long Chen raised his head and shouted at the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, Since we havee to an agreement, lets fight, you old dog! Come here!


    He left Mo Xiang and ran to the left, giving each other space to fight.


    The Patriarch was angered after being called a dog by Long Chen. He ran towards the youth without a word, fully utilizing the speed of a Heavenly River Realm cultivator. Everyone gasped when they saw how fast he was.


    Meanwhile, Mo Xiang had the attention of the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch.


    You look simr to the Moon Devouring Wolf, but you are much stronger. I admit that I havent read much and dont know what kind of beast you are.


    The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch naturally didnt know about the extinct Sun Devouring Wolf. On the contrary, Mo Xiang was very interested in wolf-type demonic beasts, so he had read a lot about them. It was a coincidence that he had learned about the Sun Devouring Wolf in an ancient book. Even the Ninth Prince didnt know about the Sun Devouring Wolf; he just assumed it was a mutated Moon Devouring Wolf.


    Mo Xiang could not speak, so he red at the Patriarch. He then howled and ran towards his opponent like a ck whirlwind.


    You are indeed an Earth-tier demonic beast, but you cannot win without the intelligence of a human! The Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch brandished the ck Tortoise Axe and attacked.


    He was stronger than the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, but he and Mo Xiang were not the main characters in todays event. Everyone was looking at Long Chen and the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    When Mo Xiang and the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch started their battle, Long Chen transformed, his Qi reaching the level of the Heavenly River Realm.


    But without the power of the stars, his strength wascking.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd was the weapon the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch had used for dozens of years, but now it was in Long Chens hands. When the Patriarch saw Long Chen using his own weapon against him, his eyes filled with murderous intent.


    His substitute weapon merely contained an advanced ck-tier technique. As one of the heads of the Lingwu family, it was humiliating to be using such a shabby weapon.


    <em>I heard that Long Chen has cultivated Starsweep Dragon, but thats nothing against my secret technique!</em>


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch could tell that Long Chen was already close to the Heavenly River Realm. The red scales also made him look terrifying.


    <em>No wonder this brat managed to beat Yan Danqing and became the strongest youth.</em>


    The blood-red Long Chen rushed towards the Patriarch. In that instant, the Patriarch thought he was seeing a world-ending red dragon.


    <em>Impossible! Its an illusion!</em>


    Dragons existed only in legends, and the Patriarch shook his head to get rid of that thought. He focused on deflecting Long Chens attack.


    The sun was extremely strong todayring, in fact. With Long Chens back facing the sun, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch had to squint to look at his opponent.


    Sword Devil Finger!


    While running, Long Chenunched two Sword Devil Fingers towards the Patriarch. At the same time, he swept the Azure Dragon Halberd across the sky andunched another set of attacks.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies!


    The Sword Devil Fingers were merely serving as distractions; Long Chens main attack was the Azure Dragon Technique. The Patriarch would have to fight off an unrelenting attack.


    Everyone on the walls was excited. They had thought Long Chen was weak and cowardly, but he was fighting like a true warrior!


    On the other hand, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch smiled coldly.


    Do you think youre the only one who knows how to use the Azure Dragon Technique?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    This fight was a long timeing. Time to end it!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 268: Nine Spinning Fire Shields

    Chapter 268: Nine Spinning Fire Shields


    When Long Chen used the Azure Dragon Technique to attack the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, thetter swung his halberd wildly and his Heavenly River Realm Qi exploded. The power belonging to the constetions washed over Long Chen and almost tossed him away.


    <em>Shit! Ive underestimated how strong someone at the Heavenly River Realm is! </em>The Patriarchs Qi had the strength to move worlds. It was both sharp and mighty, and a single shockwave from it made Long Chen lose his footing; even his attacks were affected.


    Fighting someone one realm above waspletely different from fighting someone one stage above. Even though Long Chen and the Patriarch had an equal amount of Qi, the difference between them was immense.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Split Yellow River, Shattered Skies! The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch used the same techniques, and the power of the stars filled his halberd before the attacks wereunched at Long Chen.


    Die!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Their weapons collided, creating an explosion from the sheer force of the impact. A dust storm kicked up outside of Yuanling city. The people on the city walls could hear the sound of fighting, but none of them could see what was happening.


    Did someone die? Is Long Chen dead?


    No! Stop squeezing, you bastard! Hey, who stole my Universe Pouch?!


    What? Long Chen is dead? Thats too fast!


    The sounds on the walls were much more intense than the battle.


    Long Chen was facing the Patriarchs unrelenting attacks, and he had to admit that it was a hard battle. Even though Long Chen was using the Azure Dragon Technique, he was being pushed back instead of defeating the Patriarch.


    You brat. You think you understand how strong the Heavenly River Realm is?


    Everyone chuckled in the tower. Even Dongfang Xuanfeng was smiling. This was within his expectations.


    Even though Long Chen was being pushed back, he was not afraid. This was just the beginning.


    He kept using the Nine Dragon shes, though he had actually used it twice in a row, so it was actually eighteen shes. Being able to use it that skillfully was proof of his talent!


    With a final sh, Long Chen redirected the Patriarchs attack and attacked from the side. He was once again seizing the initiative.


    Useless tricks! The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarchs martial technique was simple, but the power of the stars that his Qi carried made his weapon slightly stronger than the Azure Dragon Halberd. Every time their weapons shed, the Patriarch knocked away the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    The victor has yet to be decided! Stop bullshitting! Long Chen roared as the Azure Dragon Halberd danced in his hands. He kept using the Nine Dragon shes to change his location, so even the Patriarch had to fight seriously.


    Time slowly passed, and everyone was shocked to see Long Chen hold his ground for so long. They thought everything wouldve ended in a sh.


    Long Chen was merely seventeen, yet he had endured every single blow from the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch! He could even fight back too. That was enough to show how much of a monster Long Chen was. Yan Danqing was indeed a genius, but he was nothing to Long Chen.


    Long Chen is amazing! How long has it been since Yuanling City saw this kind of genius? From today onwards, Long Chens name would spread throughout the county. He would rece Yan Danqing as the strongest youth and would be remembered by everyone.


    Everyone had a small doubt in their mind. Would Long Chen be able to defeat the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch? Things werent looking great, as the ck demonic wolf had almost been killed by the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch and his ck Tortoise Axe.


    But that was because Mo Xiang had allowed it to happen. He hadnt used the powerful Nine Devils Ancestral Fire yet; he was merely using his demonic energy and the battle sense of the Sun Devouring Wolf. He had been chipping away at the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarchs stamina. He was one stage higher than his opponent, so it was easy for him to do so.


    Long Chens fight was much more interesting.


    Starsweep Dragon! Long Chen swung the Azure Dragon Halberd, aiming the Earth-tier martial technique at the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. An instantter, the halberds tip became thousands of dragon illusions that enveloped the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    Ive been using Starsweep Dragon for more than ten years, and you dare to use it half-heartedly in front of me? The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarchughed and used the same technique. Everyone could see that the Patriarchs Starsweep Dragon was much more deadly!


    The weapons shed, resulting in horrible screeching sounds. Everyone closed their ears and frowned as they spectated the battle.


    Long Chen is losing! someone shouted when they saw Long Chen get blown backwards. Everyone on the city walls cheered.


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch smiled when he heard the crowds reaction. He lifted his halberd and ran towards Long Chen. Brat, time to die!


    The Patriarch gathered all of his Qi. His body was like a glowing torch.


    His body was a blur as he stabbed his halberd onto the ground. Then he dragged it across the ground, sending sparks flying as his Heavenly River Realm Qi coursed through the halberd.


    Let me show you the strongest technique contained within the Azure Dragon Halberd, and also the secret technique known only to the Patriarchs of each generation.


    He swung the halberd upwards, and the sound of dragon roaring was heard. A massive Azure Dragon illusion soared skyward andunched itself at Long Chen.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension.


    Long Chen was familiar with the technique and had used it once himself, but the Patriarchs version was several times stronger than his. It was just like the difference between their Starsweep Dragon.


    When the Patriarch used the technique, everyone shouted and felt sad, assuming that Long Chen would be killed.


    The strength of the technique made everyone on the walls feel their scalps go numb.


    <em>You think the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension is the strongest technique? </em>Long Chen knew there was one more technique, but he wasnt sure if he could use it. That particr technique was the true strongest technique of the Azure Dragon Technique.


    But the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension of the Patriarch was right in front of him. Would he die from that?


    When the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch used that technique, those who had gone into the ruins knew that Long Chen had cultivated it too. They thought Long Chen would use the same technique to counter it, but he chose to retreat instead!


    Long Chen knew that if he took it head-on, he would be blown back and would probably get his internal organs crushed. Instead, he let go of the Azure Dragon Halberd when the attack closed in.


    Hesmitting suicide!


    Everyone was shocked. Even though he could not fight back, he should at least try, right?


    But the spectators knew something was wrong when they saw the Ninth Prince sit up and look at the fight in puzzlement. The Ninth Prince knew that Long Chen had one more trick up his sleeve by looking at Long Chens fierce eyes.


    When everyone thought Long Chen was seeking death, Long Chen ced both hands in front of his chest and started spinning it in a circle. It was initially slow, but Long Chens arms sped up and were soon a blur. Qi poured out of his hands, and under his control, the Qi spun and slowly formed a whirlpool.


    Nine Spinning Fire Shields, first rotation! Long Chen whispered, his eyes lighting up.


    The whirlpool made from Qi waspleted and then exploded, forming a zing shield two meters in diameter,pletely blocking his front.


    Second rotation!


    It spun rapidly, and once itpleted another rotation, the color of the mes became darker! When the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension was just in front of him, Long Chen poured all the power he could into it.


    Nine Spinning Fire Shields, sixth rotation!


    Long Chen had only managed to cultivate up to the sixth rotation within ten days, but since it was an intermediate Earth-tier martial techniqueand an excellent one at thatit was more than enough to defend against the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension.


    But his technique caught the Ninth Princes eyes, and thetter stood up. When he saw that it was clearly the Nine Spinning Fire Shields, he squinted and thought about something. At the same time, Yan Danqing was also shocked and looked at the Ninth Prince. But the Ninth Princepletely ignored him, and there was nothing he could do. Even though he had reattached his arm, his trauma was still there.


    <em>How did Long Chen cultivate the Nine Spinning Fire Shields? </em>Both the Ninth Prince and Yan Danqing had the same question, but Yan Danqing was the one who was concerned the most. His eyes were bloodshot.


    <em>The Ninth Prince said that if Long Chend defeated the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, he would give him the position of Immortal Guard. It seems that the Ninth Prince is indeed protecting him and even gifted him the Nine Spinning Fire Shield! Its clear that the Prince doesn''t want me to be an Immortal Guard. Why did Long Chen get the inheritance I fought so hard for?</em>


    Yan Danqing was resentful and was close to copsing from jealousy. He felt like everything he had worked so hard for had been given to someone else. He wanted to kill everyone!


    But he couldnt. The Ninth Princes status and power were leagues above him, so he could do nothing. All he could do was hate Long Chen even more.


    The crowd cheered wildly outside.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    All ording to n


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 269: Killing the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch

    Chapter 269: Killing the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch


    The crowd was cheering because the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension and the Nine Spinning Fire Shields were shing for the first time! Everyone thought Long Chen was dead, but now they saw that there was hope.


    The Nine Heavens Dragon Ascensionnded on the Nine Spinning Fire Shields.


    Explosions rang out continuously and the yellow soil was sted away, kicking up another dust cloud and obstructing the view once more.


    The spectators could barely see that the Nine Spinning Fire Shields was still rotating and dispersing the power of the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension. The scattered power sted out holes everywhere on the surrounding soil.


    Long Chen was facing immense pressure; he felt like he was blocking a mountain. It was heavy, but Long Chen was very happy that the Nine Spinning Fire Shields was able to block the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension! The purpose of the Nine Spinning Fire Shields was not to block attacks head-on. Through rotation, it could disperse the power to its surroundings!


    How is this possible?! Sensing that his attack was useless, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch was stunned, and his eyes grew red from killing intent. Long Chen, do you think you can stop me like that? Die!


    The Patriarch used even more of his Qi to empower his attack. The huge amount of energy made Long Chen take a few steps back.


    Die? Long Chen gritted his teeth and blocked it vehemently. He would not allow the Patriarch to get any sort of advantage! When he felt that it was time, Long Chen suddenly lowered one of his arms and retrieved the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    You shitty bastard! Do you still not understand who will die here today? Long Chen roared.


    When the Nine Spinning Fire Shields first blocked the Patriachs attack, Long Chen knew that there was hope. His eyes were cold when the mysterious red whirlpools appeared on his scales, and a strong devouring energy filled the air.


    Blood Devouring Domain!


    Long Chen finally used his unique martial technique! The blood-red mist covered the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. This time, Long Chen focused on just the Patriarch, causing the effects to be magnified by several times!


    What is this? While using all of his Qi to empower his attack, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarchs face paled when he felt his blood going berserk after he was engulfed by the red mist. His blood was ignoring him as it thrashed wildly in his body. The internal organs were the softest part of the human body, and with them getting damaged, the Patriarch could not focus on attacking!


    In fact, he felt like he lost a portion of his control over his technique and felt the bacsh damaging his organs!


    What is this? Long Chen! What kind of monster are you?! The calm Patriarch instantly panicked when he sensed what was happening. His woeful shout made the spectators who heard him go numb from fear.


    They could only barely see the Patriarch inside the red mist.


    I wont say much, but I promised myself I would kill you the moment you made my baby Ling Xi fall asleep. And now I will fulfill it!


    Long Chen scoffed and deactivated the Nine Fire Spinning Shields. He used his body to block whatever the Patriarch threw at him and lifted his halberd. The Azure Dragon Halberd roared as Long Chen dragged it across the ground andunched another Azure Dragon at the Patriarch.


    Die to your most cherished technique! Azure Dragon Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch had spent all of his Qi and was almost locked down by the Blood Devouring Domain. When he saw the Azure Dragon illusion approaching him, he finally felt despair.


    Impossible! How could I be killed by you?! This cant be! I wont allow it! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!


    Everyone felt their heart drop when they heard the Patriarchs final cry before his death. They saw the Patriarch get swallowed by the Azure Dragon illusion before being carried into the sky and crashing back down onto the ground.


    After being struck by the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension, the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarchs skeleton was shattered, his veins were severed, and his organs were ruptured. He was dead before he even hit the ground.


    Long Chen put the halberd away and deactivated his transformation. He stood in front of the Patriarchs corpse and stared listlessly.


    Everyone was silent when they saw what had happened, then an eruption of noise deafened the entire city.


    Everyones minds were nk on the city walls. They had just witnessed a miracle, and no one could believe it. Even their voices trembled.


    Hey  Did I see that right? Did Long Chen just defeat the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch?


    I think so  I dont think my eyesight is going bad  I saw it too!


    Dont be stupid! This is reality! Long Chen is a fucking monster of a genius! Hes not even twenty and he killed the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch!


    Shit. Hes a monster


    Long Chens status in Yuanling City had just been elevated to that of a leader of the city.


    Some were happy, while others were sad.


    The Dawn Trading Alliance was the only one who stood to gain something from this. Both of the Dawn Trading Alliances opposing factions were being weakened.


    The Beast Soul Pce was most likely going to lose the Immortal Guard position and the right to rule the county, so they were worried.


    The Lingwu family, however, was left with nothing but anger and hatred.


    All of them had watched Long Chen kill the Patriarch with their own eyes. They didnt want to believe it, but it was real.


    Even though the Patriarch and Long Chen had agreed that the battle was to end all of their grudges and they could noty a hand on Long Chen or his family again, most of the Lingwu family forgot that and ran down the wall.


    But the ck-clothed butler blocked them. Lingwu family, do you want your entire family to be eradicated?


    The Lingwu family froze when they heard the threat. They stopped, forced to suppress their anger.


    Dont forget your promise to Long Chen. You are the strongest family in Yuanling City and yet you cant honor such a simple promise? the Ninth Prince asked in a calm voice.


    The members of the Lingwu family felt their hair stand on end.


    Even though their hearts were on the verge of bursting from hate and anger, they had no choice but to swallow it. The death of the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch was a severe blow to them.


    They still could not believe it.


    Even those not rted to them couldnt believe it.


    When the Lingwu family was blocked by the Ninth Prince, the crowd shouted something again. They saw the ck wolf howling into the air. The mangled body of the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch was under Mo Xiangs feet. A ck sh of light flew back to the Northern ck Tortoise familys mausoleumthe ck Tortoise Axe.


    Our fourth brother is also dead!


    The Lingwu family didnt know how to react to that. All of them lost hope, and many of them copsed from the shock.


    The Lingwu family had lost two of their Patriarchs. Their glory as the strongest family in Yuanling City was now gone. Everyone knew that the unknown Long Chen was the one responsible for their downfall.


    Long Chen. His name would now be forever chanted in the city!


    No one had ever single-handedly defeated a superpower in Yuanling City, but Long Chen had managed to do it!


    My Lord, please allow us to take our elder brother and fourth brother home, the Western White Tiger Patriarch said, his voice hoarse and wizened.


    Go ahead, the Ninth Prince responded calmly.


    The Lingwu family had lost, and they needed to leave now. They would only embarrass themselves more if they stayed.


    Everyone watched the Lingwu family carefully collect the corpses of the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and the Northern ck Tortoise Patriarch before leaving. Long Chen and Mo Xiang took a step back to give them space.


    There was no right or wrong. Long Chen and the Lingwu family had be enemies long ago, and it was either his life or theirs. It was only natural that someone would die today. If Long Chen had not worked hard, he wouldve been the one on the ground.


    So he felt no pity. The winner taking everything was a verymon urrence.


    No one from the Lingwu family dared to even take a nce at Long Chen. All of them were afraid of him.


    Yin Mengyao was also hiding within the crowd. She had watched the entire fight as she tightly held onto the letter Long Chen had given her. It was the letter exining that Mo Xiang was still alive.


    She was not sad after hearing the news of Mo Xiangs death, because she had read the letter first. She was here to ask Long Chen about Mo Xiang, but she realized that she could not approach him, as Long Chen was far too radiant.


    <em>Is this the same kid that I teamed up with just a few months ago to enter the inner family? </em>Yin Mengyao thought she was dreaming.


    Just then, she looked at the Sun Devouring Wolf beside Long Chen.


    <em>Why are the eyes of the beast so pure? Have I seen them somewhere before?</em> Yin Mengyao stared at the beast for a while, lost in thought.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    They are dead! Good riddance


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 270: Immortal Guard

    Chapter 270: Immortal Guard


    Yin Mengyao saw Long Chen, but Long Chen did not see her. After defeating and killing the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, his next urgent business was about the Immortal Guard.


    When the Lingwu family left, it signified the decline of one of the strongest families in Yuanling City, while Long Chen became the rising star. Of course, Long Chen had outgrown this ce, so there was no chance he would stay. He needed to go somewhere else, a ce where he could face more challenges and grow.


    The Biyang Imperial Capital was one such ce. The countries around the Cangyang Kingdom were roughly the same size and not as massive and dangerous as the Ten Great Empires. Unfortunately, the Cangyang Kingdom didnt have mountains with strong demonic beasts, so the Counter Essence Realm was the only ce suitable for him to continue growing now.


    Regardless of whether he became an Immortal Guard or not, Long Chen would find a way to enter the Biyang Imperial Capital. Immortal Guard was just an official title that would allow him to enter the ce.


    The spectators were still trying toe to terms with the fact that Long Chen had defeated the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. All of them were admiring the silent youth.


    No one in Yuanling City had ever done something like this.


    After the Lingwu family left, the Beast Soul Pce started to feel nervous. Emperor Yuan and his group approached the Ninth Prince, their eyes filled with anticipation. It was time for the Ninth Prince to decide. Yan Danqing was the most anxious one in the group, as he had worked hard to obtain the Immortal Guard post. How could he just relinquish it to Long Chen?


    Why did he have to give something that was rightfully his to Long Chen?


    Long Chen raised his head and looked at the Ninth Prince on the tower, saying, My Lord, Ive defeated the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. As per the agreement, the post of Immortal Guard is mine, correct?


    Before the Ninth Prince could answer, Yan Danqing yelled, Bullshit! I obtained the inheritance, not you! Who do you think you are?


    Im nothing, yet you lost to me, so you are worse than nothing. You have no right to be an Immortal Guard! Youll just make Yuanling City look bad if you be one. Everyone, am I right? Long Chen retorted, smiling towards the end.


    Long Chen had earned the respect of the people after defeating the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch, so everyone who had seen him fight agreed.


    Let Long Chen be an Immortal Guard!


    Long Chen was far stronger than Yan Danqing. If he went to the Biyang Imperial Capital, his talent would definitely flourish. On the other hand, Yan Danqing would just embarrass Yuanling City.


    Everyone cheered and showed support for Long Chen. Yan Danqing trembled from anger while Emperor Yuan frowned at what was happening.


    Emperor Yuan made an attempt to persuade the Ninth Prince. Ninth Prince, you made the rules yourself, so I hope you wont break them. As per the rules, the one who found the inheritance was Danqing


    Who said Yan Danqing obtained the inheritance? the Ninth Prince interrupted, turning his head. He was interested in Long Chen. Long Chen just used the Nine Spinning Fire Shields, one of the martial techniques belonging to the Burning Heaven Emperor. That means Long Chen has also obtained the inheritance. Since he is stronger than Yan Danqing, I hereby announce that Long Chen will be an Immortal Guard!


    Everyone cheered at the Ninth Princes announcement. Both the Beast Soul Pce and the Lingwu family were extremely powerful factions that sometimes bullied the weak. Therefore, the civilians naturally supported Long Chen since he was much more rtable.


    Long Chen sighed when he obtained the post, but he was worried that the Ninth Prince said Long Chen also obtained the inheritance.


    Impossible. Long Chen never obtained the inheritance nor the Nine Spinning Fire Shields! Yan Danqing was grasping at straws.


    Then where did his techniquee from?


    You  Yan Danqing wanted to say that the Ninth Prince had given it to Long Chen after receiving it from himself. Yan Danqing was also suspicious that the Ninth Prince and Long Chen hade to an agreement beforehand.


    Emperor Yuan knew what his grandson was thinking, so he quickly pulled Yan Danqing away and looked at the Ninth Prince. My Lord, I fear that the reasoning is too forceful.


    Yan Zhibai, it seems that you dont want to be the mayor, the Ninth Prince said inly before looking at Long Chen. Come up here. Why are you still down there?


    Emperor Yuan shut his mouth after hearing what the Ninth Prince said. He knew that there was no room for negotiation when it came to the Immortal Guard position, but at the very least he would rule the city and found a bit of relief in that.


    Emperor Yuan had lived for many years, so he knew when to lower his head.


    But Yan Danqing didnt know how to hold back. When he heard that there was no room for negotiation, his breathing became ragged and his eyes became bloodshot. If Emperor Yuan hadnt held him back, he mightve gone crazy.


    Danqing, lets go. Emperor Yuan then looked at the Ninth Prince. My Lord, since the matter has been finalized, we will be on our way.


    Alright. The Ninth Prince nodded, not even sparing him another nce. As far as the Ninth Prince was concerned, Emperor Yuan was not even worth a tenth of Long Chen.


    It was only when the people from the Beast Soul Pce left the ce did Emperor Yuan look back. His face was calm, but his eyes were filled with killing intent. Today was the most humiliating day of his life, and it was all because of Long Chen.


    Yan Danqing and Emperor Yuan recovered slightly after they left the tower. Emperor Yuan sighed, saying, Danqing, Im sorry for being so useless. I couldnt even protect your honor.


    Im fine, Grandfather, Yan Danqing said inly. Despite his calm demeanor, there was a raging fire in his heart.


    All is well as long as you are fine. I just hope that you can endure the pain from today. At least we have wrested the right to rule Yuanling City from the Lingwu family. From today onwards, the Beast Soul Pce will grow and you will be able to obtain more resources! You will be able to exceed Long Chen!


    I know. Grandfather, let me just take a walk alone so I can calm down. You can go back without me.


    Emperor Yuan nodded. Seeing his grandson, his pride and joy, look so disappointed made him sad too. Go ande back soon. From today onward, I will be teaching you personally. Ive prepared enough Heavenly River Pills to help you break into the Heavenly River Realm!


    Alright


    Yan Danqing left. He wanted to find a quiet ce to rest for a bit so his heart would be prepared for training. Thankfully, not many people recognized him in the city, or they would have talked directly behind his back.


    He suddenly saw someone familiar amidst the crowd.


    <em>I remember checking the information we had on Long Chen and Mo Xiang before I entered the ruins. It seems that that woman is their stepsister, Yin Mengyao of the Silver family. </em>Yan Danqings hatred towards Long Chen started to boil when he saw Yin Mengyao alone.


    <em>Grandfather gave me the Mother & Son me Crystal, but I didnt use it in the ruins. I can use it now! Long Chen, dont me me for being ruthless!</em>


    ***


    Once the people from the Beast Soul Pce left, the group from the Dawn Trading Alliance knew it was rude to overstay their wee, so they left.


    Seeing that the show was over, the people on the walls slowly left as well, but their hearts were still racing. All of them were discussing Long Chens incredible feats. The result of the fight spread like wildfire, and the merchants leaving the city started spreading it to other ces too.


    Long Chen stood in front of the Ninth Prince with Mo Xiang.


    The Ninth Princes status, strength, and intelligence were very high, and Long Chen knew he could not fight him yet. While Long Chen was humble, he was not afraid nor defeated.


    <em>Since he chose to make me an Immortal Guard, he mustve recognized my potential. But the Imperial Pce is a ce where people constantly plot against each other. Those who grew up there are very vicious and their way of thinking is veryplicated. Thankfully, the Ninth Prince is not hostile to me.</em>


    Long Chen, where did you learn the Nine Fire Spinning Shields? The Ninth Prince was direct and wasted no time.


    Long Chen hesitated before answering, I learned it from an inscription on the tombs wall in the ancient ruins. It was just beyond the sea of fire.


    He had already thought of the excuse before he even decided to use the Nine Fire Spinning Shields during battle. Would the Ninth Prince forcefully check his Universe Pouch to verify it?


    Is that so  The Ninth Prince chuckled as if he believed Long Chen. He looked at Long Chen and stated matter-of-factly, You have various good martial techniques, and your talent in learning them is excellent too. Your weapon is good and you have an Earth-tier demonic beast as your pet. Too bad your cultivation level is a bit too low. If you were at the Heavenly River Realm, you would be a good candidate.


    Long Chen silently noted down that this was the Ninth Prince''s impression of him.


    Let me give it to you straight. Theres a reason why Im letting you be an Immortal Guard. Im recognizing your potential here. The Immortal Guards belong to the entire royal family, so basically my father. But dont you think its a good idea to have some of my men in the Immortal Guard to feed me information? The Ninth Prince chuckled.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Why are they always taking hostages


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 271: Mother & Son Flame Crystal

    Chapter 271: Mother & Son me Crystal


    The Ninth Princes words were vague, but Long Chen knew what he meant. He didnt want to recruit Long Chen into his fold; all he wanted was a loyal subordinate.


    How could someone as prideful as Long Chen submit to someone else? Even though the Ninth Prince was powerful, Long Chen would never truly be his underling. Still, that didnt mean that he didnt know how to hide his talons.


    <em>Fine. I will just follow him for now. Once I be stronger, I will ignore himpletely.</em>


    Long Chen waited till the Ninth Prince finished talking before pledging, I, Long Chen, swear that I will be of service to you. I would personally run into a sea of fire to thank you for your generosity


    Good, good. Seeing that Long Chen was on the same page made the Ninth Prince happy. He took out a Universe Pouch and gave it to Long Chen. Since you are working for me, I will have to give you a wee gift. There are a hundred Heavenly River Pills inside the pouch. It will be enough for you to enter the Heavenly River Realm. Also, I will give you an advanced Earth-tier martial technique to cultivate! Its called Divine Fire Clone.


    Long Chen had to act very surprised and grateful when he saw what the Ninth Prince had given him. It was clear that the Ninth Prince had his own way of rewarding his subordinates. If Long Chen wasnt smart, he wouldve fallen for it. A hundred Heavenly River Pills was an extraordinary amount of wealth; not even a typical cultivator at the Second River Stage would have that much. The Divine Fire Clone technique was even rarer.


    But thankfully, both of the rewards were nothing to Long Chen.


    <em>If you want me to be indebted to you, at least bring out half of your assets, </em>Long Chen silently thought, but he maintained his act. The Ninth Prince was convinced that Long Chen would actually run into a sea of fire for him.


    Divine Fire Clone is a marvelous martial technique, and there are two stages to it. Cultivate it well; I hope to see you use five clones at the same time one day. At that time, your strength will improve drastically!


    The Ninth Prince was satisfied with Long Chen.


    Thank you, my Lord!


    Long Chen knew that the version in the Ninth Princes hands had three stages, but he had only given him two


    <em>It seems that this bastards generosity is nothing but a facade. He would never give me the important stuff. I wonder how he would feel if he knew I had the real Divine Fire Clone with four stages.</em>


    Long Chen had been worried abouting up with a convincing exnation if he used Divine Fire Clone in the future, but that issue had solved itself. He could even exin where he got the Heavenly River Pills from. Now he could cultivate in peace for a while.


    No need to thank me. Since youve agreed to work for me, I have to give you a reward. As long as I am satisfied with your performance, you will get numerous other rewards, but that will depend on how well you do in the future. Long Chen, you wille to the imperial capital with me in three days. Make sure to bid farewell to your family before then.


    Three days? That soon? Alright. Long Chen nodded. My Lord, do you have any other instructions? If not, I will leave now. I will return in three days.


    I have nothing else. Go. The Ninth Prince nodded with satisfaction.


    Long Chen finally left.


    Once he did, the silent butler in ck said, My Lord, I think Long Chen is weird.


    Weird? How? The Ninth Prince was confused.


    He did not announce that he obtained the Nine Spinning Fire Shields until he used it today. I think that if he truly wanted to be an Immortal Guard, he wouldve used it earlier.


    Do you mean Long Chen mightve obtained some other treasure in the ruins but is keeping it a secret? The Ninth Prince chuckled.


    Its just a guess.


    No need to think about it too much. ording to the map I obtained, that old man Chutian didnt leave any other inheritance. Plus, Long Chen is now working under me. If he has other treasures, I will find them eventually.


    As you say  The butler in ck smiled.


    ***


    Long Chen kept to the alleys when he came down from the wall. If not, he wouldve been easily recognized and would be surrounded by people.


    <em>Im leaving in three days. Who should I say farewell to? </em>Long Chen was actually a bit sad to leave the ce he had been living in for some time.


    <em>I need to go back to Baiyang Town, as well as the Turquoise family. I also need to find Sister Mengyao. I guess thats about it? </em>Long Chen thought back and realized that the only people he had good rtionships with were Yin Mengyao and Mo Xiang.


    He was thinking about how to attract as little attention as possible when he remembered he had a hat with a veil to cover his face. Liu Lan had given it to him when she took him to the auction a long time ago. He took it out and put it on, then he carried Mo Xiang near his chest, under the veil. Only then did he dare to walk on the main street.


    Lets go find Sister Mengyao first, Long Chen said to Mo Xiang.


    No one recognized him while he wore the veil. He was very happy with it.


    <em>Hehe, luckily, no one recognizes me now.</em>


    Just as he thought about it, a child suddenly ran up to him. Are you brother Long Chen?


    Long Chen almost fainted and shook his head rapidly. Im not!


    But the child ignored him and ced a letter in his hand. Brother, this is for you. Someone told me to give it to you.


    The child then ran away.


    Long Chen frowned, his instincts telling him that there was trouble. He opened the letter and saw there was only a single sentence and a hastily drawn map.


    <em>Long Chen,e to this location if you want to save Yin Mengyao.</em>


    The map was crude, but the majorndmarks were easy to distinguish. Long Chen assumed that it would lead him to an abandoned street in the Northern Ling District. He would be able to find the ce as long as he followed the map.


    But


    He clenched his fist, his eyes filled with killing intent.


    Long Chen hated weaklings that held his family and friends hostage. He had dealt with this exact issue numerous times. Many of his friends and family had been used as hostages before.


    His hatred for this tactic was deep.


    Never had he thought that someone woulde and cause him trouble just as he was about to leave Yuanling City.


    This time, Yin Mengyao was the hostage. She was a stepsister to both Long Chen and Mo Xiang, so not only did Long Chen care for her, even Mo Xiang treated her as if she was his real sister. In just a single move, the enemy had provoked both of them!


    Mo Xiangs dark eyes slowly became bloodshot when he read the letter, and his body gradually grew colder. It was most likely the effect of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Xiang, lets go kill them.


    There were only two factions who would dare to provoke Long Chen after what had happened earlier. He wanted to see whether it was the Lingwu family or the Beast Soul Pce!


    Mo Xiang could run faster, especially over long distances. He transformed into arge wolf, and Long Chen sat on his back before he started running. Mo Xiang was a blur of shadow that zipped past the roofs and approached the Northern Ling District rapidly!


    With his speed, the people below felt a gust of wind but saw nothing. Mo Xiang ran on the rooftops, so he didnt crash into people; his speed was extraordinary!


    Mo Xiang had alreadymitted the location indicated on the map to memory.


    <em>As long as they are sane, neither the Lingwu family nor the Beast Soul Pce would try to provoke me now. This means that the perpetrator is someone who let their emotions get a hold of them. I dont think theres anyone who would do that in the Lingwu family, though the Beast Soul Pce  I think Yan Danqing would actually be crazy enough to do that!</em>


    Long Chen had a feeling that Yan Danqing was behind this!


    He knew how much Yan Danqing hated him from when he saw the look in his eyes before he left the tower.


    Both Long Chen and Mo Xiang were fueled by the fire of hatred and revenge. No matter who it was, they had to kill them!


    With Mo Xiangs speed, they arrived at the Northern Ling District within minutes. They found the exact location in just ten minutes. When they arrived at the silent, abandoned street, Long Chen saw Yin Mengyao tied to a stone chair. Thankfully, she was not injured. Long Chen had just left the wall, so the perpetrator had probably just finished setting everything up.


    Yin Mengyao, however, was not d to see them. Instead, she panicked and tried to shout, but she was gagged. All she could do was look at Long Chen, her eyes tearing up.


    Long Chen knew she wanted them to leave.


    But it was impossible.


    He then saw why Yin Mengyao was so anxious for them to leave. On Yin Mengyaosp was a green crystal the size of a fist. It was half-translucent, but Long Chen saw that there was a fire trapped within the crystal!


    You guys must be wondering what that is. Yan Danqing smiled menacingly as he appeared twenty meters behind Yin Mengyao. His face was vicious and heughed maniacally. This is the Mother & Son me Crystal!


    He was holding another crystal roughly the size of a thumb. It was identical to the crystal on Yin Mengyaosp.


    If the smaller crystal breaks, the main crystal will break too. If it does, the explosion will kill anyone below the Heavenly River Realm! Long Chen, I wonder how much anguish you will be in if I break the smaller crystal right now?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Getting real tired of this


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 272: Soul Token

    Chapter 272: Soul Token


    Yan Danqing had lost all rationality from the moment he decided to use the Mother & Son me Crystal. He was now a crazy bastard who was hellbent on making Long Chen pay.


    Yan Danqing smiled maniacally as he held the smaller crystal, pinching it lightly with his index finger and thumb. All he had to do was to crush it, and therger crystal on Yin Mengyaosp would explode, blowing her into oblivion.


    At that critical moment, both Long Chen and Mo Xiang did not hesitate to run towards Yin Mengyao. It was what Yan Danqing had hoped for! He wanted Long Chen to die, and Yin Mengyao was just a means to achieve that. Long Chen was going to try to save Yin Mengyao, but he would die in the explosion.


    Seeing Yin Mengyaos panicked face, Long Chen felt his heart rate increase. He was angry because if the situation didnt change, he would not be able to rescue her.


    Just then, Mo Xiang, who had been slightly ahead of him, exuded a strange aura. Long Chen recalled that he had felt it once when Mo Xiang was consuming the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    <em>Is Mo Xiang using the Sun Devouring Wolfs unique technique? </em>Long Chen realized what Mo Xiang was doing and was ecstatic!


    The Mother & Son me Crystal was technically a type of fire, so Mo Xiang could consume it!


    Long Chen sighed in relief, but his anger did not dissipate. Yin Mengyao wouldve died today without Mo Xiangs technique. Both Long Chen and Mo Xiang wouldve regretted this forever if that happened.


    Yan Danqing  Long Chen took out the Azure Dragon Halberd. While Mo Xiang was saving Yin Mengyao, Long Chen ran towards Yan Danqing, his halberd pointed directly at him!


    You want to kill me? Die!


    Yan Danqingughed and crushed the smaller crystal between his fingers. A wave of energy spread towards therger crystal, and everyone tensed up.


    When Yan Danqing crushed the smaller crystal, therger crystal was already being sucked into Mo Xiangs maw. Long Chen was happy to see that therger crystal had not exploded. It was clear that the Sun Devouring Wolfs technique was extremely powerful.


    Yan Danqing, this time you touched my bottom line  Long Chen exploded with strength. He swung his halberd up, and an Azure Dragon illusion roared before lunging at Yan Danqing.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    It was clear that Long Chen was very pissed off at Yan Danqing for using such a despicable method to get back at him.


    Yan Danqing was bracing for the explosion and seeing Long Chen getting blown up, but what he saw was instead therger crystal being sucked into the maw of the wolf. To him, it was an impossible scenario. That was why he was still stunned when Long Chenunched a technique at him.


    Sensing the razor-sharp energy reaching him, Yan Danqing finally reacted, but it was toote. He was weaker than Long Chen, so after being hit by the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension, Yan Danqing shouted in despair before falling. His eyes were zed over when he hit the ground.


    Yan Danqing was dead.


    Long Chen sighed after killing Yan Danqing in one blow, but he was wary of Emperor Yuan. Thetters threat to him was still fresh in his mind.


    Still, Long Chen did not regret killing Yan Danqing for taking Yin Mengyao hostage. If he hadnt killed Yan Danqing himself, Mo Xiang would have.


    Long Chen was checking on Yin Mengyao when a white light flew up from Yan Danqings corpse towards Yuandi City.


    Oh no! Mo Xiang had just torn off Yin Mengyaos restraints when she saw the light. Thats a soul token! With Yan Danqing dead, the soul token will fly back to its owner with information about the ce where he died, including the people who were in the vicinity! Emperor Yuan will be here soon! We need to run now!


    Long Chen didnt even get to speak to Yin Mengyao before another crisis fell upon them. It was possible that Emperor Yuan would hold himself back due to Long Chens status as an Immortal Guard, but Long Chen wasnt sure if Emperor Yuan would be rational after learning that he had killed both of his grandsons.


    Mengyao, go back to the Lingwu family. Im an Immortal Guard now, so I can take refuge at the Jade Royal Pce. I wille find you once everything is over! Long Chen put the Azure Dragon Halberd away and started running.


    Alright, be careful! Yin Mengyao knew that this was serious and didnt hesitate to run. They separated immediately.


    Riding Mo Xiangsrge back, Long Chen carefully thought about his n. <em>Emperor Yuan is at the Second River Stage and has the Peak Essence Beast as his Primary Beast Soul. I cannot fight him. Mo Xiang is still learning to control the Sun Devouring Wolfs body, and his only technique that can hurt Emperor Yuan is the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire. If we fight for real, we might not be able to beat him. Hes much more difficult to deal with than the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch. Will he really risk his life to take mine?</em>


    Mo Xiang and Long Chen were still in the Northern Ling District, though the Jade Royal Pce was closer to the Eastern Ling District. They had to travel a long distance, but they would be safe if they managed to reach the pce.


    But at the same time, a roar exploded from the west. Long Chen, stop right there!


    The hoarse and ancient voice belonged to Emperor Yuan.


    <em>He actually is chasing after us! </em>Long Chen felt his heart beat rapidly when he turned around. Emperor Yuans strong aura explosion meant that he was about to attack!


    Xiang, careful! Long Chen transformed into his strongest form. He could not be killed by Emperor Yuan when he was so close to leaving Yuanling City!


    Why are you looking for me?


    Emperor Yuans speed was not to be scoffed at. Even though Mo Xiang was fast and could run long distances, he could not shake off Emperor Yuan.


    Why? Long Chen, you killed two of my grandsons. Yan Cixue and Yan Danqing! I dont care if youre an Immortal GuardI will take revenge for my grandsons! Emperor Yuans body flickered before instantly appearing in front of Long Chen.


    In terms of strength, he was almost as strong as all four patriarchs of the Lingwu family with their Earth-tier Divine Weapons. Even Mo Xiang, with the power of the Sun Devouring Wolfs body, wasnt his match!


    Arent you afraid that the Ninth Prince will take your life? Long Chen asked.


    My life? You think I care? Long Chen, I warned you not to underestimate an old mans method, and yet you still killed my grandson? If I let you off today, how could I face my disciples in the Beast Soul Pce? The Ninth Prince is only interested in your potential, not your current strength. There are plenty of people with as much talent as you in the capital. Do you really think the Ninth Prince would destroy my Beast Soul Pce just because I killed you? You are delusional!


    Long Chen frowned at his words. He knew that Emperor Yuan had lost all rationality. The old mans breathing was ragged and veins bulged all over his body, both being clear signs. There was no way Emperor Yuan would be calm after Long Chen stole the position of Immortal Guard and killed Yan Danqing!


    Yan Danqing was an extremely talented individual that Emperor Yuan had spent a lot of effort raising. He had reached thete Heavenly Core Realm at such a young age, would likely enter the Heavenly River Realm in the next few years, and even had the potential to surpass Emperor Yuan! Such a talented individual had been killed by Long Chen!


    Even if Emperor Yuan needed to put his life at stake today, he had to kill Long Chen at all costs! As long as Long Chen died, he could think about how to deal with the Ninth Princeter. But Emperor Yuan had underestimated how much faith the Ninth Prince had ced in Long Chen, to not only give him the Divine Fire Clone technique but also the hundreds of Heavenly River Pills.


    No, the only things in Emperor Yuans heart were rage and killing intent.


    Long Chen understood that he had to fight here. He thought the fight with the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch would be thest battle at Yuanling City, but to think it would be with Emperor Yuan instead. Long Chen was facing the man he once aspired to be when he first entered Yuanling City.


    But he was not on Emperor Yuans level, so he had no choice but to rely on Mo Xiang.


    Xiang, careful. I will assist you. Long Chen and Mo Xiang had an unbreakable bond as sworn brothers. Mo Xiang did not think killing Yan Danqing was wrong, but now they were about to fight against the strongest cultivator in Yuanling City.


    Mo Xiang was ready.


    A Category Two Earth-tier demonic beast. Hmph! Transform! Emperor Yuan shouted.


    He swiftly transformed into a half-human and half-white-haired ape, simr to Yan Danqing. But Emperor Yuan was now four meters tall! Even his arm was as thick as Long Chens torso!


    The sharp fangs, the ws, as well as the bulging muscles made Emperor Yuan look intimidating. His strong and agile look was a stark difference from his normal form.


    The aura emanating from him was extremely vicious too!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    The soul token would solve so many cases if we had them in real life


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 273: Fight Against Emperor Yuan

    Chapter 273: Fight Against Emperor Yuan


    This was the first time Long Chen and Mo Xiang had to team up. Emperor Yuan was a fearsome opponent that required both of them to fight together!


    Emperor Yuans gaze was cold and he said nothing. Heunched himself with his powerful legs, bing a mountain that moved with unbelievable speed.


    Long Chen was at a loss for what to do when he felt the incredible pressure.


    He knew that he could not fight Emperor Yuan directly; only Mo Xiang could do so. Long Chens role was to harass Emperor Yuan from the side.


    Long Chen immediately dodged sideways while Mo Xiang crashed into Emperor Yuan head-on. A demonic beasts body was very strong even whenpared with cultivators with Body Tempering Techniques, especially a demonic beast with a legendary bloodline like the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    As for Emperor Yuan, he could only use half the power of a demonic beast. He was inferior to Mo Xiang in terms of physical strength and size. Thanks to that, he was blown back by Mo Xiang in the first sh.


    Blood Devouring Domain! Long Chen used his strongest technique instantly. Thankfully, it was not a technique that attacked indiscriminately; he could target specific people with it. Even though Mo Xiang was inside the range of the Blood Devouring Domain, it did not affect him at all. But it was different for Emperor Yuan. Facing the strong suction power, he felt his blood running wild in his body.


    <em>Is this the technique that killed the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch?! </em>Emperor Yuan was shocked. Still, Long Chens Qi was inferior to Emperor Yuans, so the Blood Devouring Domain wasnt that effective.


    Still, it was not a pleasant feeling to have countless des cutting up his body during battle.


    Mo Xiang used the chance to pounce at Emperor Yuan. At the same time, ck mes sprouted from Mo Xiangs mouth. The ck mes took on the shape of a wolf that ran towards Emperor Yuan! The temperature around the mes plummeted drastically.


    What is that? Emperor Yuan was shocked. The fire gave him a bone-chilling sensation. Under the effect of Long Chens Blood Devouring Domain, he felt like his Body Combat Technique was somewhat affected, so he had no choice but to use a martial technique!


    Clear Water Shield!


    A shield made of water appeared in front of Emperor Yuan. The shield flowed in a rhythm as faint runes flickered on its surface.


    When the technique wasplete, Emperor Yuan threw the shield forward while stepping back. The shield exploded the moment it came into contact with the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire. Some of the fire fell to the ground.


    The sound of explosions could be heard as ck ice appeared on the ground. When Emperor Yuannded on the ice, he was shocked to see the ice disintegrate into dust. The mud and debris on the ground was gone!


    <em>What kind of fire is that?! </em>Emperor Yuan was shocked and felt relieved that he had made the right decision. If he had taken that attack head-on, he would be nothing but dust!


    Long Chens Blood Devouring Domain and Mo Xiangs Nine Devils Ancestral Fire were clear indications that they were unique. If they had time to improve, Emperor Yuan knew that they would be absolute beings that could dominate others. Therefore, he couldt let them live knowing that they had a grudge now.


    Seeing that they had failed to kill Emperor Yuan with their strongest techniques, the sworn brothers felt the pressure intensify. It would be even more difficult to kill Emperor Yuan with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire now that he was wary of it.


    Long Chen knew that even though Mo Xiang had consumed the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he had not refined it yet. Unlike the Mother & Son me Crystal, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire hadnt been fully absorbed, so he could only control a part of it. However, as his demonic energy became stronger, Mo Xiang could potentially control all of it in the future.


    Once they revealed the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Emperor Yuan was even more determined to kill Long Chen. If he let Long Chen live, thetter would get stronger one day and woulde back for revenge in the future!


    Ninth Stage Shattered Void! Emperor Yuan roared and punched.


    He positioned himself between Long Chen and Mo Xiang before swinging his fist.


    Mo Xiang had to focus on fighting a foe at the Second River Stage. Since he could only control a small portion of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he couldnt attack with it as he pleased. He had missed once already, so he had to be certain that the next shot would hit.


    Thankfully, the Sun Devouring Wolfs body was strong enough to face off against Emperor Yuan. At the very least, he could avoid getting injured!


    Emperor Yuans fist and Mo Xiangs ws crashed into each other, resulting in both of them being blown back by the impact. Mo Xiang realized toote what Emperor Yuans true goal was.


    Emperor Yuan had positioned himself between the brothers! When he was blown back, he used the momentum to quicklyunch himself towards Long Chen! He turned at thest moment and quicklyunched an attack!


    His real target was Long Chen all along!


    Long Chen had failed to realize it too. He had underestimated Emperor Yuans hatred towards him. Even though Long Chen was weaker, he was the owner of the wolf! Emperor Yuan thought that as long as Long Chen died, he wouldnt need to worry about the wolf.


    Did you never think that you would be my main target, you brat? Lets see how you escape this! Emperor Yuan snarled. His attack was even stronger than his previous one. It was also the strongest attack that Yan Danqing had shown before!


    Die! Peak Essence Shredding Punch!


    The Earth-tier martial technique was simple but unbelievably powerful! The attack was like an electric drill that closed in on Long Chen!


    Long Chen could do nothing when he saw Emperor Yuan cutting him off from Mo Xiang. Thankfully, he had been prepared and used the Nine Fire Spinning Shields when Emperor Yuan used the Peak Essence Shredding Punch.


    Hepleted the sixth rotation when Emperor Yuans attack was nearing him. Long Chen thought he could block the attack, but he realized something at thest moment.


    He had defeated the Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch and killed Yan Danqing in just a single day. That meant that he had used up a lot of his Qi. When he used the Nine Fire Spinning Shields, he realized his Qi was close to depleting!


    He could not stop the attack!


    Xiang, save me!


    The Nine Fire Spinning Shields was destroyed by Emperor Yuan. He only had to use two Peak Essence Shredding Punches to break the shield and expose Long Chen!


    You will die this time! Emperor Yuanughed as heunched a palm attack at Long Chen. He was more than strong enough to tear Long Chen apart with physical strength alone!


    Heaven Shaking Palm!


    Emperor Yuans w became a palm that came from above! Long Chen felt like the sky was crashing down on him, causing him to kneel. Emperor Yuans technique was undoubtedly an intermediate Earth-tier martial technique!


    It was his strongest attack!


    <em>Shit! </em>Long Chen saw his life shing! But experience told him that he had to remain calm no matter how dangerous the situation was. Mo Xiang was already at Emperor Yuans back, but he dared not use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, because Long Chen was just in front of Emperor Yuan.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    Long Chen used his strongest technique, the one that had killed the Eastern Azure Dragon family patriarch! Even though his Qi wascking, it was almost as strong as Emperor Yuans attack!


    When the two opposing forces collided, a massive shockwave burst forth.


    Emperor Yuanughed maniacally. Long Chen felt like he was hitting arge mountain, the impact causing his palms to bleed. The Azure Dragon Halberd was knocked away by intense force, and Long Chens legs sunk into the ground from the impact.


    This was the most serious injury he had taken thus far. But to his dismay, Emperor Yuans attack did not stop even though Mo Xiang was about to hit him in the back. Emperor Yuan gritted his teeth and smacked Long Chen away with onest attack.


    Emperor Yuan was knocked away by Mo Xiang at the same time. He spat out blood, his face pale. There were numerous gashes on his back, each one deep enough to reveal bone and bleeding profusely.


    If Long Chen were to use the Blood Devouring Domain now, he would be able to absorb all of the blood, but he was severely injured!


    Seeing Long Chen getting injured and beingunched into the air, Mo Xiang howled angrily. He did not attack Emperor Yuan a second time, because he was more worried about Long Chen. He managed to catch Long Chen on his back beforending gracefully.


    Long Chen was in a much more precarious state than he had thought. He finally understood what Emperor Yuan meant about not underestimating an old mans methods.


    To think that Emperor Yuan would take the attack from Mo Xiang in order to cripple Long Chen!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ooooo he''s finally met his match


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 274: Carving Out The Space Within The Body

    Chapter 274: Carving Out The Space Within The Body


    It seemed like Emperor Yuan had taken serious damage, but it was a superficial wound. Even though it looked horrendous, it could be healed easily with spiritual herbs and a bit of time. Long Chens injury was different.


    Emperor Yuans final hit had struck Long Chens abdomen, right on his dantian. Even though the damage to Long Chens body wasnt serious, the sharp Heavenly River Qi had pierced his dark-red Heavenly Core like a sword.


    Emperor Yuan wanted to pierce Long Chens Heavenly Core and cripple him! If Long Chen lost his Heavenly Core, all of his Qi would leak out. Emperor Yuans goal was never to kill Long Chen!


    <em>The Ninth Prince is betting on Long Chens potential? He will never ept Long Chen if Long Chen is crippled!</em>


    Mo Xiang didnt know what to do after seeing how bad Long Chen looked. Emperor Yuan used this time to start healing himself as heughed maniacally. As the strongest cultivator in Yuandi City, he carried numerous spiritual herbs and treasures at all times. He was using Earth-tier spiritual herbs, so his injuries were mending themselves at a fast speed.


    Long Chen was very shocked too. All he could do was watch as the sharp Heavenly River Qi prated his Heavenly Core and saw that it was slowly cracking. The Qi he had been cultivating painstakingly was starting to leak out and permeate throughout his body before dissipating. If this went on, he would be a cripple in less than an hour!


    Emperor Yuansughter made him mad!


    <em>Shit! That damn old bastard is crazy! I underestimated him! I will be a cripple soon since my Heavenly Core is slowly shattering. What should I do?</em>


    Mo Xiang was circling Long Chen. He had sensed what had happened and was distraught too. If Long Chen hadnt been injured, Xiang wouldve continued attacking Emperor Yuan, making it much harder for him to heal.


    Long Chen had a daring thought.


    <em>When I ascend to the Heavenly River Realm, I will have to shatter my own Heavenly Core as part of the process. Only then can I carve out the space within my body and expand it. Even though I was only at thete Heavenly Core Realm for a short period of time, I have an abundant supply of Heavenly River Pills to supplement the small amount of Qi that I have umted. This is my only chance at saving myself!</em>


    Long Chen struggled to stand up. His eyes were filled with conviction. Im going to try to break into the Heavenly River Realm! Go and distract him!


    Mo Xiangs eyes lit up. This was the only solution. Mo Xiang didnt hesitate to attack Emperor Yuan.


    However, Emperor Yuans injuries had healed substantially. He smiled when he saw the Sun Devouring Wolf trying to attack him recklessly.<em></em>


    <em>It knows that Long Chen is doomed and wants to fight me to the death now? But a beast is a mere animal. This is my territory; how can you beat me here?</em>


    Although he didnt think highly of Mo Xiang, he didnt underestimate him. Emperor Yuan was certain that if he touched the fire that the wolf had spat out previously, he would die.


    Thanks to the variousbat techniques in the memories of the Sun Devouring Wolf, as well as the threat of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Mo Xiang could fight against Emperor Yuan on equal ground.


    Long Chen used this opportunity to sit down and started carving out the space inside his body with the shattered Qi.


    Emperor Yuan chuckled when he saw what Long Chen was doing. What a naive fool. Shattering your Heavenly Core to carve out the space inside your body is an extremely difficult and dangerous thing to do. And you even need eighteen Heavenly River Pills! You just entered thete Heavenly Core Realm. What right do you have to try and enter the Heavenly River Realm?


    If Long Chen shattered his Heavenly Core, his Qi would dissipate even faster.


    But it was his only choice. In this dire situation, Long Chen calmed himself and elerated the shattering of his Heavenly Core.


    Under his control, the Heavenly Core shattered, and arge amount of blood-red Qi exploded outwards and filled his body. It circted through his veins and capiries.


    But it was too much Qi for his body to contain. Numerous wisps of blood-red Qi leaked out of his skin and orifices, enveloping him in a blood-red mist.


    Long Chen was in pain. If it wasnt for his Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, his body mightve exploded from the sheer amount of Qi. This was the most dangerous step of advancing into the Heavenly River Realm!


    <em>Now I need to guide all of the Qi to converge through my capiries. This way, I can carve out the eighteen Star Veins. The Star Veins are the basis of the space inside my body. I will then need to absorb the power of the constetions and merge their energy into my Qi. Once my Qi bes a liquid, I can then use it to form the heavenly river inside the space of my body. If I seed, I will advance into the Heavenly River Realm!</em>


    There were eighteen Star Veins in the body, corresponding with the eighteen heavenly rivers in the sky. Nine of them appeared during the day and nine appeared at night. A pair of Yang heavenly rivers and Yin heavenly rivers form the Yin and Yang heavenly rivers. It was only when the first pair was formed that a cultivator would be recognized as reaching the First River Stage.


    Now that it was daytime, Long Chens only option was to form the first Yang heavenly river.


    The enormous amount of blood-red Qi pulsed in Long Chens body. He controlled the Qi while sensing where the first Yang heavenly river was located. The sun made it difficult to spot, but Long Chen had already memorized where it was located.


    The Dubhe Starry River.


    This was the name of the first heavenly river. There were Yin and Yang versions of it. The Yin Dubhe Starry River and the Yang Dubhe Starry River ran parallel to each other in the sky, never intersecting. Long Chen had to carve out the space inside his body before absorbing the power of the heavenly river to merge with his Qi. Only then could he form the first Yang heavenly river inside his body.


    The method to carve out the space was called the Star Consolidation Method. When he obtained the huge pile of Heavenly River Pills, Long Chen knew he would advance into the Heavenly River Realm in the near future. That was why he had sought out the Star Consolidation Method in advance. It was not a rare method, but there were very few people who needed it. With it, Long Chen could use his Qi to carve out the space inside his body. But an important ingredient was required to use the method: Heavenly River Pills!


    In order to carve out the eighteen Star Veins, a normal person would need eighteen Heavenly River Pills. However, Long Chen had heard that some talented cultivators with special bodies required even more. Some of them even used up hundreds of Heavenly River Pills! A Heavenly River Pill was a rare resource. Usually, those at the First River Stage only had ten or so to their name at most. Long Chen having two thousand of them was down to pure luck. He was extremely lucky to have found the true inheritance of the Burning Heaven Emperor.


    Long Chen was currently using the Star Consolidation Method, but he was surprised to see that everything was going smoothly. The only issue he had was the amount of Qi flowing through him, which prevented him from carving out all eighteen Star Veins at the same time.


    Using the Star Consolidation Method, Long Chen nted eighteen Star Veins seeds into his body. The seeds spanned throughout his entire body, and there was no issue while he did so. Next, he needed to use Heavenly River Pills to carve out the true Star Veins inside his body.


    When he nted the seeds into his body, Long Chen realized that his body had features belonging to dragons! He was currently in his transformed state, so he saw many inhuman features inside his body. Long Chen suddenly had a feeling that it would be extremely difficult to carve out the space inside his body.


    <em>But I have to do it, or I will be crippled!</em>


    Long Chen focused and started showing signs absorbing the power of the constetions.


    He took out eighteen Heavenly River Pills and ced them on his palm. Once the Star Consolidation Method was ready, Long Chen guided his Qi towards where the seed of the Dubhe Star Vein was. He then consumed one pill.


    The Heavenly River Pills energy was soft and tame. Since the energy had been refined before, Long Chen didnt feel any difort, but rather a cool and powerful force inside his body. It flowed like liquid and merged into his Qi.


    <em>Time to start carving!</em>


    Using the power of the Heavenly River Pill as the primer and his Qi as the main force, Long Chen started carving out a specific path inside his body. Even though his Qi was not sufficient, the superior quality of his unique Dragon Soul Qi made up for it. Long Chen was happy to find that it might not be a hard thing to do at all.


    But he suddenly met his first obstacle. Halfway through the process, the energy that came from the Heavenly River Pill met an obstacle in his body and started being consumed rapidly. Thankfully, the consumption of his Dragon Soul Qi was eptable. After just a moment, the energy from a single pill was depleted.


    Theoretically, the energy from a single Heavenly River Pill was enough to carve out the first Star Vein. But Long Chen had barely carved out a tenth of it when the energy was depleted, so he had no choice but to consume the next pill. Thankfully, he had enough pills, or he would be dead.


    If the process was interrupted in any way, his body would explode and he would die.


    <em>But this is good! That means my bodys potential and quality is superior!</em>


    With the support of the Heavenly River Pills, Long Chen swiftly carved out the first Star Vein. When he was finished, he saw that he had consumed more than ten pills! There were very few left in his palm.


    <em>Wait, does that mean I need to consume almost two hundred pills just to carve out the eighteen Star Veins?</em>


    Long Chen grumbled.


    [1]


    The process of advancing into the Heavenly River Realm is like this:


    1. Shatter Heavenly Core and carve out the space in the body.


    2. nt the eighteen seeds inside the body which acts as a primer and the channel of where he should carve out the Star Veins.


    3. Use Heavenly River Pills energy as the primer and your own Qi as the main strength to carve out the eighteen Star Veins.


    4. Fill the first pair of Star Veins with your Qi and the power of the constetions to advance into the First River Stage. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    This chapter was stupidly hard to trante


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 275: Advancing Into the Heavenly River Realm

    Chapter 275: Advancing Into the Heavenly River Realm


    <em>Two hundred Heavenly River Pills? Why do I need to use so many? </em>Long Chen wasmenting this even though his life was in danger. He only had two thousand Heavenly River Pills, and he would need two hundred of them just to carve out the space inside his body. He had a feeling that two thousand pills would not be enough for him to go past the Heavenly River Realm.


    But his life was in danger and he had no choice but to consume them. He took out two hundred Heavenly River Pills and carved out the eighteen Star Veins.


    The eighteen dark-blue Star Veins covered his body, from his chest to his arms, from his head to his bottom, and even down to his legs. The strong Star Veins were everywhere.


    The Star Veins could be seen faintly from the outside. When all eighteen of them intertwined throughout his body, it appeared like the starry night sky. But currently, the Star Veins were empty; theycked the power of the constetions.


    There were two important steps to enter the Heavenly River Realm sessfully. One could either do both of them at the same time orplete them separately. It was only when both of the steps werepleted that one would be recognized as an official Heavenly River Realm cultivator. Now that Long Chen had carved out the space in his body, he hadpleted the first step. For the second step, he needed to draw in the power of the constetions and merge it with his Dragon Soul Qi to form a liquid. He would then need to ce the liquid inside his Star Veins.


    Now that it was daytime, Long Chen could onlyplete the first Yang heavenly river found within the Dubhe Starry River. As for the other, he could only do it at night. He was preparing to fill in the first Star Vein in his body, the Dubhe Star Vein!


    The Star Consolidation Method was used to carve out the space, but to draw in the power of the constetion, he needed another method. It was time to use the Star Attraction Method! It was a formless technique that could attract the power of the constetions just by looking at them. Long Chen was preparing to use it!


    <em>This is </em>


    With a silent boom, Long Chen found himself in the void of space. In front of him were the grand constetions. They were boundless, and Long Chen was deeply shocked by the magnitude of the universe. He had a feeling that the constetions were calling him, and his spirit was connected to them, allowing him to hear them.


    Long Chen snapped back to reality and found himself back in his original location. The only difference was that he felt a new power inside his body. It was a wild yet cohesive energy that slowly filled his first Star Vein.


    This was the basis of true strength.


    As the formless energy poured into his first Star Vein, Long Chen guided his Qi and merged it into the Star Vein. When his Dragon Soul Qi and the energy of the constetions met, they slowly merged. Long Chen saw that there was starlight inside the blood-red Qi, making it look like a glittery river of blood flowing in his Dubhe Star Vein.


    He zoomed out and saw that his Dubhe Star Vein looked identical to the Dubhe Starry River in the sky. Compared to the pale blue Dubhe Starry River, his blood-red Dubhe Star Vein was even more morous with its glittering red color.


    When Long Chen finished merging his Dragon Soul Qi with the power of the constetions, a beautiful, red river appeared in his body. This was only one of the Star Veins of the Dubhe Star Vein. It could be said that he had taken half a step into the First River Stage, but even so, his strength had multiplied!


    Long Chen opened his eyes.


    A beam of blood-red starlight pierced into the skies and parted the clouds. Long Chen stood up in his transformed state. His aura waspletely different now that he was at the Heavenly River Realm.


    Long Chen, having barely survived the ordeal, was now stronger than before. Mo Xiang was very happy to see that, but Emperor Yuan despaired. When Long Chen was carving out the space in his body, Emperor Yuan had a feeling that he might seed. He had tried to pull away from the wolf to kill Long Chen, but he had failed to do so.


    When Long Chen stood up, Emperor Yuan was already covered in wounds. If he did not run now, he would die by Long Chens hand.


    Emperor Yuans face paled from fright when he saw that Long Chen had sessfully entered the Heavenly River Realm.


    Long Chens eyes were filled with blood-red starlight. If he could kill the First River Stage Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch even before he entered the Heavenly River Realm, then he would most definitely be able to kill Emperor Yuan now after entering the Heavenly River Realm. Emperor Yuan could not even take down the wolf, much less Long Chen.


    Having to pick between dignity and life, Emperor Yuan chose thetter. He tossed away his ego and arrogance and was left with nothing but despair.


    <em>This brat  I cant believe he survived! How lucky is he? If I fight him now, I will most certainly die. Unfortunately, it''s toote to turn the situation around.</em>


    Emperor Yuan was covered in wounds, but he fled with all his might. Long Chen was going to leave Yuanling City soon, so if could escape and bide his time, he would be safe.


    But Long Chen would never let him escape.


    Even though he was only half a step into the First River Stage, his speed surpassed those at the Second River Stage when his transformation was active. Since Emperor Yuan was wounded, Long Chen could slowly catch up to him.


    Mo Xiang was also chasing Emperor Yuan from another direction.


    Blood Devouring Domain!


    A blood-red mist consumed Emperor Yuan. Long Chen designated Emperor Yuan as the sole target, and the entire force of the techniquepletely focused on him. Thanks to Long Chen power-up, the Blood Devouring Domains strength had also increased. It could only limit Emperor Yuans movementst time, but now Emperor Yuan waspletely trapped!


    Blood flowed out of his wounds and flew towards Long Chen.


    NOOOOO! Guttural cries came from Emperor Yuan. Under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain, he inched forward slowly. He looked back and used all of his Qi to control his bloodhe couldnt let Long Chen consume it!


    Long Chen, what kind of monster


    Emperor Yuan felt a sharp de sh past his neck. He didnt even finish his sentence when his world turned around. Thest thing he saw was a youth smiling at him cruelly.


    He then lost consciousness.


    After Emperor Yuan died, Long Chen dispelled the Blood Devouring Domain. Emperor Yuan was only one stage higher than him, so his blood was not very useful. Also, thanks to the loud noises from their fight, the Ninth Prince would soon learn of what had happened. Long Chen did not want the Ninth Prince to know that he could absorb the blood of his opponents to increase his strength.


    Emperor Yuans headless body fell to the ground.


    And his head wasying underneath Long Chens foot.


    When Emperor Yuan turned around, Long Chen had cut off his head with the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Long Chen felt relieved after dealing with Emperor Yuan, but the fight had been anything but easy. His life had been on thin ice from start to finish. Long Chen felt cold sweat cover his body when everything was over.


    He looked back at Mo Xiang. Mo Xiang was already beside him and was very happy to see that Long Chen had be stronger again. As long as Long Chenpleted the first Yin Star Vein, he would be roughly as strong as Mo Xiang.


    Long Chens strength had once againe closer to Mo Xiangs after thetter became the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Mo Xiang was somewhat pitying the dead Emperor Yuan. The strongest man in Yuanling City was now dead, thanks to Long Chen and Mo Xiang.


    Lets go. Now everything is truly over. Let''s say goodbye to everyone before we head to the capital. We should go to Sister Mengyaos ce to say goodbye to her first.


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    As for Emperor Yuans corpse, Long Chen was certain that someone woulde and fetch it soon.


    In reality, a lot of people had watched their fight from the sidelines. The news of Long Chen killing Emperor Yuan soon spread across Yuanling City. They werent exactly fighting in a secret location, so people naturally found out very fast.


    <em>The Ninth Prince mustve heard of the fight, but he didnt show up. Maybe he came but didnt want to help me?</em> Long Chen thought about the problem. The Ninth Prince must have been told about their fight almost as soon as they started. If the Ninth Prince wanted to save him, he wouldve done so, but he had not appeared at all.


    <em>Or maybe he saw that I was about to enter the Heavenly River Realm and decided to stay put </em>


    They soon left the scene.


    Once they were gone, more and more people gathered around the corpse of Emperor Yuan. None of them dared to approach Long Chen, the strongest person in Yuanling City.


    In a dark corner, the Ninth Prince had seen everything that had happened. He gave his butler a confused look. Elder Yan, Long Chen used almost two hundred Heavenly River Pills to carve out the space in his body. He also has the ability to devour blood.


    My Lord, you only gave him a hundred Heavenly River Pills. That means he encountered a treasure trove. Its likely that he obtained something else in the ruins. Also, consuming almost two hundred Heavenly River Pills means that the quality of his body far exceeds that of everyone in the Cangyang Kingdom. Ive never heard of someone of that caliber before. The butler sighed.


    But that doesnt mean his body is guaranteed to be superior. There was once someone who used more than a hundred Heavenly River Pill to carve out the space in their body, but after that, their achievements were close to nil. They were extremely weak. The reason why they needed so many Heavenly River Pills was because their body was extremely poor and required a lot more resources than other people to catch up. But Im more curious about his technique that devours blood. He must''ve encountered something extraordinary before. I wonder if he has anything on him that would shock me? the Ninth Prince said calmly.


    My Lord, are you nning to do something?


    No, we cant rush this. I can do it slowly once we are back in the capital. I dont want to spook him. The Ninth Prince smiled.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Power up lets goooo


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 276: Farewell

    Chapter 276: Farewell


    Not wanting to cause amotion, Long Chen snuck into the Silver familypound. Yin Mengyao was currently in the courtyard of her quarters, looking miserable. Long Chen and Mo Xiang leaped into the yard.


    Sister Mengyao, Long Chen called gently, cing Xiang down.


    When she heard his voice, Yin Mengyao looked up hurriedly. When she saw him, she broke into a grin and asked, Long Chen, is Emperor Yuan not trying to kill you right now?


    He tried, but we killed him already, said Long Chen with a smug grin.


    Nonsense! Dont lie to me. Come sit here. It should be safe enough; Emperor Yuan cante in here.


    Like a true older sister, Yin Mengyao pulled Long Chen over to sit on a stone bench in the pavilion, then she served him some fruits and pastries.


    With a <em>whoosh</em>, Xiang leaped onto the stone table and crouched, watching her with a nave, innocent gaze.


    Long Chen, did you get this powerful little wolf from the Burning Heaven Secret Realm? Yin Mengyao peered at Mo Xiang curiously with love in her eyes.


    I did. You can pet him; he wont bite. Long Chen still felt guilty whenever Mo Xiangs situation was brought up. Xiang was his younger stepbrother, so Long Chen should have protected him. Yet he had ended up like this.


    Really? Yin Mengyao was tempted to try. After observing Mo Xiang for a long time, she only dared to reach out with her hand but not touch him. In the end, Xiang stood up and stuck out his pink tongue, then licked the back of her hand once.


    Then he turned to eat the pastries on the stone table with utmost focus.


    Hes cute! And he seems to like pastries too. This pine flower cake is Xiangs favorite. Right, Long Chen, can I ask you about him? Did he actually die? Or did he merely leave to start his path of revenge? Yin Mengyao looked up expectantly.


    I  Long Chen hesitated. If Yin Mengyao also knew about his intentions for revenge, that meant she was very important to him. Long Chen wanted to tell her that Mo Xiang was standing in front of her, but when he was about to speak, Xiang stopped him with a look.


    He told me that he had to go off alone to take revenge, but he will definitelye back to see you, said Long Chen, changing his mind.


    He felt a little bitter. Xiang must not have wanted Yin Mengyao to see him in this state, and that was why he had stopped Long Chen. He had always been a good kid who did not want people to worry.


    Alright  Yin Mengyao could not do anything about it. Her gaze was fixed on Mo Xiang, who was eating the pine flower cake.


    Right, Long Chen, now that you have be an Immortal Guard, when are you going to leave? she asked.


    In three days. I came here today to bid you farewell, said Long Chen.


    Three days? She pursed her lips andmented, Both you and Xiang are outstanding. Im your older sister, yet my cultivation level is embarrassingly low. But having you two as my younger brothers is my proudest aplishment. You two are my biggest heroes!


    Of course! But were only here because of you. You see, its definitely not a coincidence that two prodigies ended up bing your younger brothers. This was all because of your efforts, said Long Chen with a chuckle.


    Stop buttering me up. Yin Mengyao was growing shy from hispliments.


    In three days, youll also be leaving me  Sigh. I wont say too much. As your stepsister, I wish you all the best in bing the strongest person in the world as soon as possible, then marry a pretty wife and bring her to me!


    Sister Mengyao, youre not ambitious enough, Long Chen said with a grin. As for wives, the more the merrier. In the future, Ill bring you an army of sister-inws.


    Youre a jerk with no sense of loyalty! One day, one day  Yin Mengyao blushed with rage.


    Time passed slowly, and the sorrow of farewell filled their conversations towards the end. Thankfully, Long Chen kept cracking jokes, so the mood was not too somber.


    When it was time to go, he did not drag it out; he merely said goodbye and leaped over the wall to leave.


    Xiang was about to follow him, but after Long Chen leaped over the wall, he backtracked and jumped into Yin Mengyaos arms. He gazed at her with his bright, intelligent eyes, which were already shining with tears.


    Yin Mengyao was speechless. She knew that this little guy had killed the ck Tortoise Patriarch and that he was extremely powerful. Long  Long Chen


    When Yin Mengyao started shouting in fear, Xiang quickly licked her forehead once, then leaped out of her arms and disappeared into the sunset. Yin Mengyao stood there in a daze, staring in the direction they had gone towards.


    That little ck wolf  Why does it give me such a familiar feeling? Its eyes  Why does it feel like Ive seen them countless times?


    Yin Mengyao sat in ce for a long time but still had no answers.


    When night fell, someone suddenly knocked on the wooden door of her courtyard. Yin Mengyao woke up from her daze with a start and hurried to open the door. A young girl with bright eyes and a brighter smile skipped into the yard and said happily, Sister Mengyao, I have gigantic news!


    What is it?


    Ill tell you if you promise to go out with me tonight! teased the young girl.


    Alright, alright. You give me a headache.


    Hehe, really? Dont you break your promise!


    When have I ever broken a promise?


    Thats true. The young girl cocked her head and eximed excitedly, I just learned that the head of Yuandi City, Emperor Yuan, was defeated and killed by my idol, Brother Long Chen! His head was even chopped off! Yay, yay, yay!


    The girl skipped happily in the yard.


    Yin Mengyaos smile froze. She recalled what Long Chen had said earlier. At the time, he had casually mentioned that he had killed Emperor Yuan, but she thought he was joking.


    <em>So it was true </em>


    <em>Has Long Chen grown to that level already?</em>


    ***


    When night fell, Long Chen visited the Yang family in Baiyang Town. He had not been home for a long time, so the Yang family was very emotional. Yang Lingqing had left with Li Xuanji, and no one knew where she was. Though Long Chen, the Yang familys most terrifying prodigy, was still in Yuanling City.


    At the dinner feast, Long Chen told them about the recent events and his future ns. When they heard him, they were left in a daze, not moving the chopsticks in their hands.


    Grandfather, Uncle, Mother, I am going because I want to achieve greater heights, so that I have a chance at finding Lingqing in the future. As for you guys, I will make arrangements ordingly. I will never let our enemies affect the development of the Yang family, he said.


    After a long pause, the Yang patriarch finally said, Good! Good! Good!


    Although they were sad to see him go, it was clear that they were extremely proud that such a prodigy came from their family.


    Yang Xueqings eyes were filled with tears.


    She had imagined that Long Chen would soar high, ording to Long Qinns prediction, but she had not expected the day to arrive so quickly. She and Long Chen were distant when he was growing up, but Long Chen was the one who mattered most to her now.


    Before he left, Long Chen left them many things, many of which would allow the Yang family to prosper easily in the future.


    After the feast, when the Yang family was asleep, Long Chen left Baiyang Town and made his way to a vast field. The sky was filled with stars, with nine heavenly rivers crossing through the sky. Long Chen easily spotted the Dubhe Starry River, which was a Yin river.


    He had condensed the Yang heavenly river during the day, but now that night had fallen, it was time to condense the Yin heavenly river.


    The Yin and Yang heavenly rivers could usually bepleted within a short time of each other. Since Long Chen hadpleted the Yang heavenly river, the Yin heavenly river was much easier. At this point, he needed to use Heavenly River Pills to generate more Qi.


    He cultivated until dawn.


    There were still two days left, so he decided to spend his remaining time with his family. After all, if he didnt die in the

 Chapter 277: Rebirth of Ling Xi

    Chapter 277: Rebirth of Ling Xi


    Li Ziling felt like she was dreaming as she stared at the calm-looking teenager. The first time they met was in the Fire Thunder Mountain Range. At the time, Long Chen had attacked her after she had exhausted her Qi suppressing the zing Thunder Crystal Soul. It was a shameless move, and his cultivation level at the time was nothing impressive. But Long Chen was now as powerful as her grandfather, at a position that she could only look up to


    There was just too big of a gap between them.


    Li Ziling had always based her self-esteem on her beauty and strength. She opined that there were extremely few people who were fit for her. However, Long Chen did not even take one look at her, and it made her feel resentful. Her confidence took a great hit. <em>You jerk! Do you think youre the shit now that youre stronger? </em>


    Li Ziling had the urge to kill him, but she did not dare do anything, because she would be the dead one in the end.


    Long Chen was considered an extraordinarily powerful presence in Yuanling City, and the tworgest factions had been crippled by him. The Dawn Trading Alliance was celebrating because this was their opportunity to rise. But when Long Chen, also the harbinger of death, came knocking on their door, would they dare not treat him well?


    Everyone made their way to the grand guest hall of the Dawn Trading Alliance, and Long Chen sat at the head of the room. Li Ziling resented this seating arrangement, but when she recalled his current capabilities and position, she had no choice but to shut her mouth and stand obediently behind him.


    Chairman Li, I came here today for only one reason. I would like to make a trade, Long Chen said right after he sat down.


    Trade? Li Wudi sighed in relief. Thank goodness it was a trade. If Long Chen had decided to make a ridiculous demand, he wouldve been put in a difficult position.


    May I ask what you would like to trade? Chairman Li asked smilingly.


    This is what I intend to pay you for it. Long Chen took out a Universe Pouch from his clothes and ced it on the table.


    Li Ziling rolled her eyes. Long Chen was a poor man from a small town; he would not be able to show them anything good. That was why she did not care about what he had.


    What is this ? asked Chairman Li in confusion.


    Twenty Heavenly River Pills. Its enough for the Dawn Trading Alliance to produce one Heavenly River Realm cultivator. When he spoke, Long Chen looked at Li Ziling. He guessed that the twenty pills would be used on her.


    What? Li Wudi and the rest gasped. Li Ziling was the most surprised of them all. She was already at the Heavenly Core Realm and would likely reach the Heavenly River Realm in a few years to be one of the strongest in Yuanling City. However, shecked Heavenly River Pills right now, and her problem would be solved if she received twenty of them.


    She stared at him in shock and gratitude.


    Are there really twenty Heavenly River Pills inside? Li Wudi almost dared not believe him. Although Long Chen had be an Immortal Guard, he knew it would still be difficult for him to pay so much.


    You may open it and check, Chairman Li, Long Chen responded.


    Li Wudi picked up the Universe Pouch and opened it. Lo and behold, there were twenty Heavenly River Pills inside. He was in a daze as he stared at the teenager who had grown so powerful so quickly. Without them noticing, he had amassed wealth and strength exceeding the whole Dawn Trading Alliance.


    There are indeed twenty Heavenly River Pills in here. May I ask what you would like to trade them for? Chairman Li asked solemnly. Twenty Heavenly River Pills. It looked like Long Chens request would not be simple.


    Li Ziling was also staring at him, unsure of how to react.


    Its actually very simple. Im about to leave for the Biyang Imperial Capital, but I have many enemies in Yuanling City. However, my family in Baiyang Town does not have the power to fend off my enemies at all. I was hoping the Dawn Trading Alliance could send at least two cultivators at least at thete Heavenly Core Realm to guard Baiyang Town. And if any Heavenly River Realm cultivator tries to harm my family, you two must help fend them off. What do you think? But Chairman Li, you dont actually have to worry. Now that Emperor Yuan is dead, there arent any Heavenly River Realm cultivators in the Beast Soul Pce. The Lingwu family is restricted due to the promise, so they are being watched by the Ninth Prince. They wont stoop so low as to harm my family. That is why you only need to sendte Heavenly Core Realm cultivators to Baiyang Town, and these twenty Heavenly River Pills will belong to the Dawn Trading Alliance!


    The Dawn Trading Alliance was set to profit greatly from this trade. With Long Chen''s reputation, basically no one would want to touch Baiyang Town after he left for the Biyang Imperial Capital. All the Dawn Trading Alliance had to do was send twote Heavenly Core Realm cultivators to vacation in Baiyang Town.


    To summarize, as long as you can ensure my familys safety in Baiyang Town, these twenty Heavenly River Pills will be yours, he reiterated.


    Li Wudi and Old Eagle looked at each other. Long Chen was currently the ultimate master, but family was the weakness of even the strongest people. Long Chen was about to embark on a journey to a ce far away, so it would be very inconvenient if someone decided to target his family. That was why he hade to the Dawn Trading Alliance.


    First of all, Long Chen was merely being filial. He had no other hidden intentions. Secondly, this was extremely easy for the Dawn Trading Alliance to do. Third, the Dawn Trading Alliance could stand to gain a lot from this. Fourth, they could forge a rtionship with Long Chen, who was bound to be an even more powerful prodigy in the future.


    This was an amazing deal delivered right to their doorstep, so the Dawn Trading Alliance had no reason to decline. Li Wudi was all smiles when he said, I understand, Long Chen. I will ensure that this matter will be dealt with perfectly so you will not need to worry while youre away.


    He paused to think for a while and then said, We will send threete Heavenly Core Realm, ten mid Heavenly Core Realm, and a few Earthly Core and Human Core Realm cultivators to be stationed in Baiyang Town. They will ensure that Baiyang Town ispletely protected and treat the Yang family as VIPs. If anyone more powerful appears, Old Eagle and I will assist too!


    Thank you, Chairman Li. Long Chen was extremely pleased with Li Wudis arrangement.


    His lingering worries about Baiyang Town had been resolved, so now he could leave in peace. His next task was to bring Xiang to the Biyang Imperial Capital, then go to the Counter Essence Realm with the Ling Xi Sword to search for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    <em>I wonder when Xiao Xi will wake up. When she does, she will be able to use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. And if that happens, hehe  </em>If Ling Xi had a physical body, she would definitely be beautiful enough to make entire kingdoms fall, like Li Xuanji. And with their rtionship, it should be normal for him to take a little advantage of her, right?


    While he thought about Ling Xi, Li Wudi and the rest walked him out of the Dawn Trading Alliance, and he left.


    The sky was darkening. Tomorrow morning, he would need to leave for Biyang Imperial Capital with the Ninth Prince.


    Everything is in order. Lets go, Xiang. Lets go to the Jade Royal Pce, Long Chen said mildly.


    Xiang gave a low growl. Since he was in the puppy form of the wolf, any noise he made sounded squeaky. His row of white teeth made him look very cute.


    This would be Long Chensst night in Yuanling City. Tomorrow, he would set out for the central region of the Cangyang Kingdom, the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    That was where the almighty royal family was located. He would also be near the mysterious but richly abundant Counter Essence Realm as well as Xiangs enemies. It was also where he would find what needed to help Ling Xi recover. Of course, all the masters of the Cangyang Kingdom were aggregated there too. It would be a stepping stone for Long Chen to grow to greater heights!


    When he arrived at the Jade Royal Pce, a handmaiden who served the Ninth Prince said to him, His Highness instructed me to take you to your quarters to rest when you arrived. You will be leaving early tomorrow morning.


    Long Chen nodded.


    The pretty handmaiden led him to avish bedroom. Sir, His Highness said that I am a present for you. After he entered the room, she undid the ties of her dress to reveal a huge patch of fair skin.


    Get out. Long Chen was about to leave the city and to be honest, his thoughts were a mess.


    Yes, Sir. The handmaiden looked as if a huge weight had been lifted. She left respectfully, leaving Long Chen to lie on therge, circr bed. He burrowed into the soft, pink cotton sheets and stared at the ceiling in a daze.


    He waspletely immersed in his memories when he heard a crisp, melodious voice by his ear. I didnt know Brother Chen, youre actually quite a good guy.


    Long Chen would even recognize this voice in his dreams, because it belonged to Ling Xi.


    Im starting to hallucinate. Long Chen sulked and changed his position, though he remained frustrated because he realized that he missed Ling Xi very much. He wondered how she was doing.


    Brother Chen, let me out! Quick! Long Chen, who was in a daze, heard her voice again. This time, he jumped out of bed in shock, startling Xiang, who was crouching at the bottom of the bed.


    Xiao Xi, youre awake?!


    This news was enough to make all the blood in his body boil. He did not care if it was a hallucination and immediately opened his Universe Pouch. A ck ray of sword light instantly flew out of the pouch. He rubbed his eyes hard and, to his surprise, he saw the two-centimeter-tall Ling Xi standing on the Ling Xi sword.


    Xiang stared at the tiny person in shock and curiosity. Although Long Chen hadnt mentioned it, he knew that there had always been a girl more important than himself by Long Chens side.


    Brother Chen  Ling Xis eyes welled up with tears when she saw him.


    Both of them had thought that they would die in the battle at the Star Devil Prison. Ling Xi had been willing to die for him, but Long Chen had chased after her into the abyss of the Star Devil Prison without hesitation, despite the fact that it seemed like certain death. Only the two of them knew how precious their reunion was, and how it was against all odds.


    Long Chen could tell that Ling Xi had matured greatly after everything they had been through. She was no longer that odd-tempered girl who was a little spoiled. From her aura and her gaze, he slowly discovered tranquility and eptance, as well as dignity and resilience.


    Xiao Xi  Staring at the silly girl, Long Chen realized that he was getting choked up too. He had thought about so many things to say to her, but he felt as if there was a boulder in his throat right now, stopping him from making a sound.


    They had left each other to face death. No words could have described what they felt. All they could do was cry.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    SHES AWAKE!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 278: Forever In A Moment

    Chapter 278: Forever In A Moment


    Ling Xis awakening was a huge surprise. Long Chen had been waiting for this moment for a long, long time. A lot of time had passed since the battle at the Star Devil Prison; he had be much stronger since then, and fortunately he had Xiang forpany in her absence, or he would have been very lonely.


    But when she appeared, Long Chen tossed Xiang far out of his mind. He was very tantly prioritizing his romantic rtionship over his friendship.


    Ling Xi clearly wanted to know what had happened during her absence, why he had jumped into the abyss but had not died, and how they had ended up here. Plus, she could tell that he had attained the Heavenly River Realm.


    But Long Chen did not want to talk to her about any of that. All he wanted to do was tell her about the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus.


    Xiao Xi, I will tell you everything you want to knowter. Right now, I want to give you a present, he said mysteriously, carrying her in his palms when he recovered from his shock.


    What is it?


    Its a secret, but Ill show it to you now. After he spoke, he took the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus out of his pouch. Ling Xi was knowledgeable, so she recognized it immediately.


    A Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus? Ling Xi gasped. Overrun by emotion, she stuttered, Brother Chen, how is it possible that you have something like that? It should be impossible to find a Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus in a ce like this.


    Ill tell you how I got itter. Hehe, Xiao Xi, do you know how this works? I hear youll get a temporary body  Long Chen grew anxious.


    Thats right. Where Im from, the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus is fairlymon. When a powerful master is in and their soul is notpletely dead but rather in a state like I am right now, they can turn into a normal mortal by using a Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. And if they get the rare and precious Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, they can regain their body


    Ling Xi was very emotional when she saw the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, sobbing a little because she knew that it was surely the fruit of Long Chens efforts. It was a warm feeling to know that he had been working hard for her sake when she was in a deep slumber.


    I hear that if you use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, it will be the same as having a mortals body. Youll be able to feel everything a person feelsyou can eat, drink, poop, pee, and sleep! But you wont be able to cultivate. You can only be a normal human. Xiao Xi, what do you think? he asked.


    Being a normal human came with many inconveniences. Long Chen would need to care for her while he traveled, including preparing food and clothing for her.


    I dont want it, she said bitterly, looking at the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus.


    Why? Long Chen thought she would be overjoyed and excited to use it. He did not expect her to decline after an internal debate.


    Brother Chen, do you know how burdensome it would be to have a normal person without anybat abilities following you around? I would be a burden and slow your growth. You might even die because of this


    There was a lot of sorrow in her voice towards the end. He could tell that she really wanted to feel like a live human being again but chose to give that up to avoid bringing him harm.


    This was all in spite of the joy and surprise she felt when she saw the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus.


    Thank you for the present, but I really cant ept this, she said, crestfallen, with her head low.


    You idiot! Youre imagining me to be a weak and useless person! If I cant even protect a woman, how can you call me Long Chen? I might as well be Dog Chen or Pig Chen! eximed Long Chen, annoyed.


    He could see that she actually yearned for the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, so ignoring everything else, he ced it in front of her and chided, Use it now. Dont me me for making this threat, but if you dont use it, Ill chase you away and not let you follow me.


    Brother Chen  Ling Xi knew that his threat was harmless and he was actually doing it for her own good. She was very touched by it.


    Listen. Please trust me. I will protect you, he said sincerely.


    But I will bring you lots and lots of inconveniences. She was still torn.


    There will be inconveniences, but I will gain many benefits too. See, if my little Ling Xi gets a body, shell be able to do something to repay me, right? Long Chen peered at her drunkenly.


    You jerk! Even if I use it, you are not to touch me! Ling Xi blushed instantly, understanding what he meant.


    This indirectly implied that she had agreed.


    I wont, I promise! Haha. Lets not waste time. Use it now! Xiao Xi, Im looking forward to it.


    Long Chen was deeply emotional inside, knowing that the spirit who had been by his side could finally have her own body and he could care for her as a human being. It would be amazing to have such a beautiful girl by his side, listening to him, spending time with him


    Ling Xi had be much more obedient after their various experiences, and much more adorable.


    Alright


    After Long Chens strong insistence, she buried her worries in her heart. She would cross that bridge when she reached it, and everything would be fine.


    When she was prepared to use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, Long Chen finally looked at Xiang, who was staring at them from below the bed.


    Ling Xi also noticed him and eximed, Why is there a human soul in this beasts body!?


    Xiao Xi, this is Mo Xiang. Due to an ident, he left his body and entered this beasts body. Ill tell you the detailster, Long Chen exined.


    Indeed, Ling Xi was smart enough to spot a human soul inside the Sun Devouring Wolfs body instantly.


    I  I canmunicate with his spirit, although its a little difficult Ling Xi suddenly said.


    What? Both Long Chen and Mo Xiangs eyes brightened. Ever since Xiang became a wolf,munication had been a huge obstacle. If she really couldmunicate with Mo Xiang, then Long Chen would understand him in the future.


    Let me try. Ling Xi put the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus aside for the moment. She focused her attention and stared into Xiangs eyes. After a while, she eximed happily, He said hi, my name is Mo Xiang and that he saw me help you guys in the Star Devil Prison to stop the Azure Dragon Patriarch.


    Amazing! cried Long Chen. Although this was slow and exhausting, it was better than nothing.


    This is great news! Xiao Xi, its time for you to use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, he said with a grin.


    With Ling Xi and Mo Xiang by his side, Long Chen sensed that the road ahead would be very interesting.


    To be honest, after being trapped in the sword for so long, Ling Xi had yearned for a Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus for a very long time. She was incredibly emotional now that she was abou to fulfill this dream, though recovering her body was her biggest dream.


    Xiang howled, stood up, opened the door, and left the room. He closed the door on the way out.


    He said he would keep watch so no one wille near us, exined Ling Xi.


    With Mo Xiang keeping watch, it was much safer for Ling Xi to use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. Long Chen was also more assured that way.


    He ced it on the ground. At this moment, the tiny Ling Xi was fluttering above the lotus.


    Ill begin now! Its a quick process  Great emotion was hidden in her birdsong-like, melodious voice.


    Long Chens eyes were glued to her.


    The Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus was actually just a pure white lotus root as thick as an arm. Ling Xis spirit glowed white as she slowly merged into the lotus root and soon, she disappeared. The lotus root levitated, emitting a pure, white glow as if it was made of the highest quality white jade.


    Lotus fragrance filled the air.


    <em>Is it working? </em>Long Chen was excited to see Ling Xi in front of him as a live human being instead of her spirit form.


    The lotus root glowed brighter and brighter, soon lighting up the entire room. Long Chen was bathed in the white light, feeling refreshed as he inhaled the fragrance.


    The lotus root expanded and, right before his eyes, slowly morphed into an extremely beautiful girl. Long Chen was sopletely mesmerized by her beauty that he could not breathe.


    Her skin was delicate like jade, and she was so fair and soft that he had the urge to bite her. She had a small, red mouth that shimmered like there was ayer of honey on it; her eyebrows were like crescent moons; and her ck, silky hair cascaded gracefully like a waterfall down to her waist. She had a pair of intelligent, lively eyes with wisdom and a hint of mischief in them.


    Ling Xi radiated the aura of a fairy who had ascended beyond the mortal realm.


    The body formed by the lotus root naturally did not have any clothes on it. This was something Long Chen and Ling Xi had not thought of.


    Standing in front of him was a fairy-like naked girl, bathed in white light. Long Chen stared at her in a daze, eyeing her up and down <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    No way MC gonna hold back


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 279: Sincerity

    Chapter 279: Sincerity


    Fifteen minutester, Long Chen was standing in front of the bed. Ling Xi was wearing his clothes and had rolled herself in the thick, heavy cotton nket. She blushed a deep red and peered out cautiously, looking at him pitifully. Amidst her cautiousness, there was some panic, embarrassment, and other emotions mixed in.


    She had not done anything with anyone before, yet she had just appeared fully naked in front of Long Chenand it hadsted seven minutes! Ling Xi wished she could dig a hole and hide in it. Waves of emotion crashed through her, and her heart was pounding in her chest as she stared at the teenage boy.


    Long Chen was shameless though. He was looking at Ling Xi with amusement in his eyes, though the fire in them made Ling Xi both afraid and embarrassed, panicking inside. She had not expected to experience so many emotions the moment she finally had a human body again after such a long time without one.


    Brother Chen, w-what do you want  Ling Xi clutched the pink nket tightly, eyeing him with panic. She had none of her powers right now, so she would not be able to defend herself if Long Chen wanted to do anything.


    Me? Hehe. I want to eat you up! Youre just so tender  Long Chens gaze was filled with burning desire.


    No! No! My mother said I am not of age yet, so she forbade me from  Brother Chen, Im begging you not to, please? Ling Xi said fearfully.


    Long Chen was merely joking. If he started to bully her the moment she returned to a human body, it might traumatize her, which would be bad.


    Im kidding, Xiao Xi. How do you feel now? Long Chen sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the silly girl lovingly. Long Chen was still in a daze due to her beauty.


    Ling Xis fearfulness slowly faded after the burning desire in his eyes disappeared and was reced with gentle warmth. She thought about how he had found her some clothes and still had not touched her even though fifteen minutes had passed. As a result, she rxed.


    I feel like Im dreaming. I dont have any strength in my body; I guess its like when I was a newborn baby. This body made by the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus will surely break down if I attempt to cultivate though. But I feel good. It feels so good to be human


    All her senses had returnedher sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Ling Xi savored them slowly. She had previously dreamed of this moment, and because of Long Chen, her dreams had been fulfilled.


    Although she was still embarrassed, she mainly felt grateful towards Long Chen.


    But  Brother Chen, Im so cold


    It was spring. Ling Xis body was more susceptible to the cold, so although she was wrapped in a thick bundle of nkets, she was still shivering.


    <em>This is my chance  </em>Long Chen thought greedily. Without a word, he lifted the nket and slipped into bed. Ling Xi eximed, but to her surprise, he did not do anything. All he did wasy next to her, then he looked at her and said, If you trust me, use me to warm yourself up.


    Really? Ling Xis eyes brightened. She hesitated for a while, leaning closer to Long Chen. She peered at him timidly, her cheeks turning red again. Her heart rate was increasing.


    Seeing as she was still so hesitant, Long Chen reached out and pulled her in, so shey by his side with her head on his arm. She squeaked in surprise and curled up into his chest like a small shrimp. Long Chens warm body and strong arm radiated a thick, masculine aura, making her little heart beat faster. Blushing, she shut her eyes tightly, hershes trembling


    An intoxicating lotus fragrance emanated from Ling Xis body, and her soft skin made Long Chens thoughts run wild. However, he loved Ling Xi very much, so despite having seen her extremely attractive and tempting body, he controlled himself.


    Impatience would get him nowhere. Long Chen would bide his time. If Ling Xi was notpletely willing, and he acted without her consent, he would definitely leave an unerasable shadow on her young heart


    He pulled the pink covers up to wrap around Ling Xi, then he moved his head downwards and rested his chin on her soft and fragrant hair. This bodily contact made the shrimp-like Ling Xi shudder once, and her breathing quickened.


    Just hug me. Dont overthink it. Im not a jerk, he said gently in her ear.


    Ling Xi had an especially sensitive body since it was brand new. She felt his hot breath on her ear, which in turn warmed her whole body and made her tightened muscles rx. She leaned on Long Chen, and her mind melted even more when her body touched his.


    Because she was only wearing Long Chens clothes and nothing underneath, Long Chen could easily look down her clothes to see skin. Plus, this shockingly soft girl was lying on his arm. He was like every man after all, and his body naturally burned, and little Long Chen was starting to stand up.


    <em>No way. I must not traumatize her. Plus, shes still young. </em>Long Chen controlled himself. In truth, after experiencing such a tragic separation, being able to hold her in his arms, protect her, and warm her with his body heat was already enough to make him content.


    Xiao Xi, dont be afraid. Were going to the Biyang Imperial Capital tomorrow! If Brother Chen says he wont touch you, he wont, Long Chen promised.


    Really? Ling Xi gazed at him with herrge eyes, twinkling in the dark of the night.


    Ling Xi was touched by the determination and righteousness in his eyes. Tears started to well up in her eyes and she choked, Brother Chen, youre so good to me


    When he saw how touched she was, he knew that he had made a smart choice. Holding himself back today would be good for the long term; one day he would get what he wanted, and he would not be a prude about it.


    Be good and get some sleep. It will be a busy day tomorrow, Long Chen said mildly, patting her head.


    I dont want to sleep; I want to talk to you! Brother Chen, what are we going to do at the Biyang Imperial Capital?


    Ling Xi snuggledfortably in his arms. With Long Chen here, she slowly let go of her worries. She did not want to leave such a warm embrace.


    I heard from someone that there is a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in the Biyang Imperial Capitals Counter Essence Realm. Now that I have be an Immortal Guard, I will be able to enter it. That is why were going there, he answered with a grin.


    Huh? This was a huge surprise to Ling Xi. Although the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus was magical, it was nothingpared to the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. With that fruit, Ling Xi would be able to recover her cultivation and gain a real human body. That was a true rebirth. Right now, she was merely borrowing the lotus root for her body.


    Ling Xi had only just woken from her endless sleep, yet she discovered that Long Chen had been working hard for her all along. She was so grateful that tears fell, and she sobbed, pouting at Long Chen. She cried harder and harder, and soon, his clothes were soaked through.


    Why are you crying? Silly girl, you should be happy, he said while patting her fair cheek.


    Ling Xi did not stop crying.


    I wont want you anymore if you keep crying, he said, feigning anger.


    No! Ling Xi waved her arms and reached out to hug his waist tightly, her soft chest pressed tightly on his body. Blood rushed to his head


    No, I definitely want you! Breathing heavily, he moved her arms away because if they continued embracing this tightly, he might actually turn into a wild beast.


    Oh! Ling Xi also realized that she was being too aggressive. Her face reddened and she buried her face into his shoulder


    Brother Chen, what are we? she asked after a pause.


    This was a question she struggled with. They had shared near-death experiences since the day they met. At the Star Devil Prison, Ling Xi had sacrificed her life for him, but Long Chen was determined to jump into the abyss with her. Even Xiang could tell that something was different about their rtionship and left the room to keep watch without a word. Yet they had not had a direct conversation about this.


    Long Chen had long wanted to talk about it, but he merely had not gotten the chance. He held her face in his hands and stared at the beautiful girl. Then, as quick as lightning, he kissed her soft lips.


    She froze as if struck by lightning, her eyes wide as she stared at him in shock. It was just one kiss, but her entire body stiffened.


    He stopped kissing her after a lingering moment, then patted her shocked face. His burning gaze met hers. He then lowered his voice and said, enunciating every word slowly, Ling Xi, I will protect you. No one can hurt you, and no one will take you away from me! You may wonder why I treat you so well, but Im telling you thisits because you are my woman! The love of my life, the love of every lifetime of mine! Ling Xi, you are Long Chens woman!


    Ling Xis chest tightened at such passionate words. Her heart melted as she gazed into his burning eyes.


    The memory of this man was etched deeply into her soul. A memory that would never fade away.


    She was filled with sweetness, warmth, and joy, and everything else faded away. Neither of them could have imagined how difficult the road ahead would be, despite such noble promises. They did not know how many farewells they would have to bid before earning a lifetime of being by each others sides.


    These two people who should not have met in the first ce had found each other. If they wanted to be together, they were destined to face far more opposition than regr people.


    But did Long Chen fear anything in the world?


    He did not think too much. All he did was pull Ling Xis body tighter into his arms. He stared out at the starry sky outside the window, then started to tell her stories about his time in her absence, starting from how he woke up in the abyss of the Star Devil Prison, until he killed Emperor Yuan to be the most powerful person in Yuanling City. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Surprisingly wholesome


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 280: Biyang Imperial Capital

    Chapter 280: Biyang Imperial Capital


    Luck had yed a part in Long Chens growth since the Star Devil Prison incident. The special qualities of a Dragon Warrior yed an evenrger role, while his own resilience and intelligence were other reasons.


    Ling Xi was enamored by the stories he told of his recent experiences. She said she was not going to sleep, but she had a mortals body, so it was impossible for her to not rest. As she listened to his stories, she fell into a deep sleep.


    Before dawn the next day, Long Chen ran to the Jade Royal Pces handmaiden quarters to find sets of female clothing. He did not care how much Ling Xi actually needed; he took a huge pile so she could pick from them.


    No girl would be able to resist pretty clothing. Ling Xi was excited because she no longer had to wear his loose male clothes. She mustered up her courage and gave him a peck on his cheek, like a dragonfly touching the water surface.


    Long Chen and Xiang waited outside.


    After a while, the door opened gently. Long Chens eyes brightened when he saw the well-dressed Ling Xi. The clothes belonged to the handmaidens, so they were not very luxurious, but it was different because they were now on Ling Xi. She wore a long, pale pink and white silk dress with yellow flowers embroidered around the edges of the skirt and sleeves. Large hydrangeas covered the beautiful dress; there was a white ribbon densely embroidered with strange patterns tied around her waist, entuating her bnced proportions. Her shoes were embroidered with lilies and lined with soft fox fur, with a jade essory hanging on each shoe.


    She wore two silver bangles on her jade-like wrists, which clinked melodiously whenever she lifted her hand, and tassel earrings hung from her ears. Her silk-like, ink-ck hair floated gracefully at waist height with only a few milk-white pearl hair essories in it that contrasted with her shiny hair.


    Long Chen felt like she was a fairy who had mistakenly entered the mortal realm and was absolutely mesmerized, falling for her all over again.


    Brother Chen  This was her first time dressing up for him, so she was not confident. She walked up to him and looked at him. How do I look?


    As beautiful as a fairy from the heavens, Long Chen answered instinctively.


    Really? Ling Xi was as happy as a butterfly, spinning and letting her dress flutter. So, this is sunlight  She looked up and squinted at the sky.


    Dont be silly. Also, keep the clothes; theyre all yours now. Lets go meet the Ninth Prince. Long Chen smiled and grabbed her hand to head to the Ninth Princes pavilion while she peered around her. She looked like a little princess under Long Chens protection.


    Xiang followed them a little miserably. From today onwards, he would officially be forgotten. Ling Xi observed the wolf behind them. From Long Chens exnation, she understood that the Sun Devouring Wolf was indeed terrifying, and Mo Xiangs spirit was currently in its body. She had seen Mo Xiang in Baiyang Town previously, and when she heard that he had been through near-death experiences with Long Chen, she already saw him as a little brother.


    Brother Chen, he called me sister-inw, Ling Xi said with a giggle, blushing slightly.


    Long Chen looked at Ling Xi and Xiang. After Yang Lingqing left with Li Xuanji, these two were the most important people in his life. He privately swore to protect them well for the rest of his life. Naturally, with the Sun Devouring Wolfs body, Xiang was likely to go far in the future too.


    From an outsiders perspective, it looked like there were only two people present. Mo Xiang now yed the role of a pet, walking by Long Chens side. It was likely that he would remain in this state for a while.


    When they were walking, the Ninth Prince had already sent someone to greet him. The guard was startled when he saw Ling Xi next to Long Chen, because she looked like a fairy from the legendsinnocent but sophisticated, invoking an onlookers shame when theyid their eyes on her. No impure thoughts would be roused by such an innocent presence.


    Very soon, Long Chen arrived at the Jade Royal Pces main building and saw the Ninth Princes mount, the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon. When the Category Nine beast smelled Mo Xiangs dark and terrifying aura, it quickly stumbled a few steps back and whined, showing that it was submissive.


    Tamed beasts were usually not as fierce as wild ones, so how would it dare rebel in the face of a wickedly powerful beast like the Sun Devouring Wolf?


    The Ninth Prince was already waiting in the pce. His arrival in Yuanling City had previously required all the human and wealth resources of the three factions, but his departure only involved himself and Old Yan.


    When the Ninth Prince was about to dere their departure, he spotted the extremely beautiful girl next to Long Chen and froze, his eyes fixed on her.


    Shes one of my people, Ling Xi. She wants to go with me to the Biyang Imperial Capital; thats not a problem, right? asked Long Chen. Ling Xi was just too beautiful, and he had an odd feeling about the Ninth Princes gaze, so he had no choice but to speak up.


    Shes the beauty of the century, the kind of beauty that can crumble a kingdom. Youre lucky! I was mesmerized, said the Ninth Prince with a smile after Long Chens words woke him up.


    The Ninth Princes gaze made Ling Xi ufortable. Grabbing Long Chens arm, she hid behind him.


    Youll be settling down in the Biyang Imperial Capital from now on, so of course you need to bring her. Theres no time to waste; lets go now. The Ninth Prince nodded and no longer looked at them, walking in front. Long Chen grabbed Ling Xis hand and mounted the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcons wide back.


    There were many tall mountains and deep valleys along the journey to the Biyang Imperial Capital. Since the Dragon Falcon could fly, it was not affected by the terrain. However, it would greatly affect Xiang, so even though he could run faster than the Dragon Falcon could fly, he had no choice but to ride the Dragon Falcon together with Long Chen.


    The Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon was terrified of Xiang, and its whole body trembled. Old Yanforted it for a while, and the beast eventually realized that the Sun Devouring Wolf was not going to hurt it. It finally unfolded its gigantic wings and they departed.


    There was a gust of wind, and in the blink of an eye, Long Chen was up in the sky above Yuanling City. Because Ling Xi was afraid of the cold, he had to take a nket from his Universe Pouch to wrap her tightly, then he used his body to block the wind with her in his arms.


    Ling Xi felt much better in this state. Long Chen looked down and whispered, Hold on for a little longer. Well reach the Biyang Imperial Capital very soon.


    Im fine, Brother Chen. Im very warm with your arms around me, she said with a smile.


    Xiang was a boundless heat source, so Long Chen grabbed him and thrust him into Ling Xis arms to keep her warm, outside the thick cotton nket.


    Poor Mo Xiang stared at Long Chen innocently, causing Ling Xi to burst into giggles.


    As the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon flew ahead, the Ninth Prince turned, saw them talking, then turned back around silently. He stared straight ahead, his gaze cold and quiet.


    Your Highness? Old Yan could guess his thoughts.


    Theres no need to hurry. Anything that is mine will always be mine. No one can take anything from me, said the Ninth Prince maliciously.


    Time passed slowly. Although Ling Xis body was weak, she did not fall sick under Long Chens meticulous care. Xiangs body heat was extremely useful too. The Sun Devouring Wolf was a fire elemental beast, so if he did not release the peculiar Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, his body was hot.


    Sunlight constantly poured in Xiangs direction.


    Brother Chen, I have a feeling that our trip to the Biyang Imperial Capital will be treacherous. It will be difficult to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in the Counter Essence Realm, Ling Xi said worriedly.


    Powerful cultivators were asmon as clouds there. Long Chen was nothingpared to them, so of course it would be dangerous for him.


    Dont worry. Pressure also means growth. When I first went to Yuanling City, my cultivation was not even stabilized yet. However, in the capital, although my cultivation level is lower than theirs, I am as good as they are in all other aspects, he said with determination.


    Indeed, in terms of Earth-tier techniques, he already had the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, the intermediate Earth-tier Azure Dragon Combat Technique, the intermediate Earth-tier defensive technique Nine Spinning Fire Shields, as well as the advanced Earth-tier Divine Fire Clone. Furthermore, he had skills unique to a Dragon Warrior such as Blood Transmutation, which strengthened as he did. Even the Soul Swallowing Gaze, the technique he received from Li Xuanji, was starting to be useful to him.


    Long Chen also had Xiang with him now, who was the ultimate demonic beast, as his sidekick.


    It doesnt matter how deep the waters are in the Biyang Imperial Capital; we will do our best! Lets take risks while were young! said Long Chen with a chuckle.


    There were super powerful factions in the Biyang Imperial Capital. Long Chen could peer at the tip of this iceberg based on the Ninth Princes strength. He estimated that he was no match for the Ninth Prince, even if he fought him together with Xiang.


    Ling Xi suddenly looked up and said nervously, Brother Chen, Xiang told me just now that he noticed malicious intent in the Ninth Princes gaze.


    She knew that Long Chen was still too weak to fight the Ninth Prince, and this made her anxious.


    Long Chen had noticed it too. One simple look was enough for a person to reveal their true intentions. The Ninth Prince, Lin Cangtian, treated their rtionship more like a business exchange, and he intended to use Long Chen. It was not friendship.


    Dont worry, I have my methods, Long Chen said, patting her head.


    The Ninth Prince had mentioned that with the Dragon Falcons speed, their journey would be five days long. After almost five whole days, the Piercing Wind Dragon Falcon started to slow down and started its slow descent. Long Chen could now see thendscape below clearly, which was a patch of lush, green forest. Rivers criss-crossed through the forest, and he saw a mirror-likeke.


    Were arriving soon, said the Ninth Prince.


    That was when a ck ray of light shot up into the air from their nk, heading straight for the Dragon Falcon!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yeah the prince definitely gonna kill MC to take Ling Xi


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 281: Goldfish Island

    Chapter 281: Goldfish Ind


    The ambush was unexpected. Sensing a scarily powerful aura, Long Chen grabbed Ling Xis waist with one arm and stood up, his feet nted firmly on the Dragon Falcons back.


    The ck light had stopped in front of the Dragon Falcon. It was a ck eagle that was notrge, but it was especially aggressive. It was smaller than the Piercing Wind Divine Peng and could only carry one person, but Long Chen was sure that the ck eagle was an Earth-tier demonic beast. It was even more powerful than the Sun Devouring Wolf in its current state!


    Ninth Prince! I didnt expect to see you here! I didnt have to spend any effort in searching for you after all!


    There was a man d in a fitted all-ck outfit standing on the ck eagles back. His cunning re was fixed dead on Lin Cangtian, and the moment he finished speaking, he suddenly threw a punch at the Dragon Falcon!


    Hes from the Heavenly Demon Pce! Old Yan, protect them!


    The Ninth Princes face darkened and he was immediately embroiled in battle. The Heavenly Demon Pce member was surprisingly powerful; Long Chen could not even see his attack clearly, and all he felt was a shudder beneath his feet, but the flying Dragon Falcons internal organs had already been shattered by the punch. The Dragon Falcon was dead, and they were free-falling!


    Old Yan knew that he had no time to save them. Since he was worried about the Ninth Princes safety, he abandoned the free-falling Long Chen, Ling Xi, and Mo Xiang and rushed towards the Ninth Prince!


    Long Chen did not know how the Ninth Prince and Old Yan would save themselves. After the Dragon Falcon died, he held Ling Xi tightly in his arms and they fell from the sky! The wind howled in their ears as they elerated. Long Chen felt like his bones were separating from their joints.


    If he felt that way, Ling Xi, who was now a normal human, was sure to be feeling even worse. Under such dire circumstances, he hugged her tightly.


    Due to differences in air resistance, the Dragon Falcons carcass fell towards a different direction!


    Fortunately, the Dragon Falcon had been flying at a rtively low speed and altitude because they had been approaching the Biyang Imperial Capital. Soon after they fell, Long Chen could already see the ground. He and Ling Xi were carrying powerful momentum from the fall; if Long Chen were alone, he was confident he could divert this momentum and survive, but Ling Xi was present too. She was very fragile, and her bones could break even from a short fall!


    <em>What do I do? </em>Long Chen was panicking. Ling Xi had only just gotten to experience owning a body! Was this it?


    Xiang, who was also falling, suddenly expanded in size so he would reach the ground much sooner than them. The gigantic Sun Devouring Wolf crashed into the ground first!


    He had a hardy body that was much stronger than Long Chens. Xiangnded without injury, then he jumped up to meet Long Chen, who was still midair!


    Long Chen sighed in relief, using his Qi to put Ling Xi on Xiangs back. The momentum she carried was absorbed by Xiang as hended, while Long Chen took out the Azure Dragon Halberd. When he touched the ground, he mmed the halberd down. The bounceback from the impact sent him back up into the air, then hended firmly once more!


    Not far away, the Dragon Falcons carcass crashed, throwing a plume of dust into the air.


    After Long Chennded, Xiang alsonded with Ling Xi on his back. He rushed over and found that Ling Xi had sessfully survived thending unscathed, only startled and a little pale from shock. He sighed in relief and pulled her hard into his embrace.


    Ling Xi had only just gotten this body, but she had to endure such a huge scare before even reaching the Biyang Imperial Capital. It was rotten luck, but thankfully, she was fine.


    That Heavenly Demon Pce guy was obviously aiming to kill the Ninth Prince. We are now considered part of the Ninth Princes faction, and Im sure they saw usnd. Its best if we leave quickly.


    Long Chen looked up at the sky and realized that he did not know where the Ninth Prince and the Heavenly Demon Pce guy had ended up. He made the decision to lead Ling Xi and Xiang away from this ce.


    Holding Ling Xi, he used the Azure Dragon Halberd to clear a path. To avoid attracting attention, Xiang shrank his body once more and hurried after Long Chen.


    The Biyang Imperial Capital is in that direction. The Ninth Prince was ambushed and had to abandon us for the moment. Its unlikely hell turn around to search for us, so I think we should go to the Biyang Imperial Capital on our own. When the decision was made, Long Chen headed straight towards the Biyang Imperial Capital through the lush, green forest.


    It was a beautiful patch of forest with rivers everywhere. There were alsokes of all sizes. Along the way, Long Chen stopped to hunt a few wild rabbits. They started a fire and roasted the rabbits for a good meal. Ling Xi had been eating dry food these past few days, and she was starving, so she drooled when she saw the juicy rabbits.


    After the girl was fed, the trio departed once more. Ling Xi clearly could not keep up with Long Chens speed, so he carried her on his back.


    Long Chens mind raced when he felt the warmthing from her soft body on his back, while Ling Xi also blushed as she inhaled his scent.


    Xiang followed them, sulking and pretending he had not seen anything.


    Although he had just rescued Ling Xi, he couldnt help feeling like a third wheel


    A vastke appeared ahead. Theke was blue and its surface was tranquil, and they could faintly make out a small ind ahead. There was smoke rising from the ind, so there had to be people staying there.


    Its gettingte. Lets rest for the night on that little ind and continue our journey tomorrow. Im sure well arrive at the Biyang Imperial Capital very soon, Long Chen said.


    Xiang had been trying tomunicate something to Ling Xi for a long time, and she finally understood. Brother Chen, Xiang says he recognizes this ind. He was there when he was young; its called Goldfish Ind.


    Goldfish Ind? Thats perfect if youre still familiar with the ce.


    Mo Xiang had spent his childhood in the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    Long Chen walked on the surface of theke with Ling Xi on his back. At the same time, he conversed with Xiang through Ling Xi, the trantor. So the regions outside the Biyang Imperial Capital are controlled by the four main families of the imperial capital. Goldfish Ind and therge t piece ofnd nearby all belonged to the Mo family? But you dont know what the current situation is with the ind after the Mo family was destroyed?


    Xiang nodded, gazing at the fast-approaching ind with nostalgia in his eyes.


    His whole family had been killed when he was only six years old, and he had fled with deep enmity in his heart. It was tough for Long Chen to imagine such a tragedy. He was about tofort his stepbrother when he and Xiang heard a fervent cry.


    Help! Die, you dwarf bastard!


    The cry for help rang along with a mans maliciousughter.


    Lets go check it out. Long Chen could not leave a person in distress behind. They followed the source of the voice and quickly arrived. There was a small boat floating on theke, and two people were fighting in it. It was a male and a female; the man was making animalistic sounds, pinning the girl down as he tore manically at her clothes.


    Without a word, Long Chen ran up to them and kicked the man away, making him fall into the water. He did not know the full story, so he hadnt put much strength into his kick so as not to kill the man. The man was at the Earthly Core Realm, so he would not drown.


    Then Long Chen turned to look at the girl on the boat. Fury rose in his heart when he saw her clearly, because she was thin and looked very young, clearly only starting to develop. She was probably only twelve or thirteen years old. That man, who was much older than her, was clearly going to rape this young girl!


    Hes a fucking animal, cursed Ling Xi, gritting her teeth.


    The man had already floated up to the surface, cursing at Long Chen in anguage he did not understand. His eyes were red and his re was fierce. He leaped out of the water, and the aura of an Earthly Core Realm cultivator exploded from his body as he charged at Long Chen.


    The man looked very ugly and creepy, his figure stocky and stout. In fact, he was only around Long Chens chest level. However, the violence and insanity in his eyes showed that he was not someone to be messed with.


    You brat! How dare you touch a noble dwarf! Youre looking for death! Finally, the guy spoke in anguage Long Chen could understand, though he had a strange ent. Long Chen only understood him with great effort.


    Dwarf? Whats that? But by now, how could he not see that the bastard was an animal? When he leaped out of the water to kill Long Chen, Long Chen punctured his chest using his Sword Devil Finger!


    The stout mans eyes widened, and he fell backwards into the water. His eyes did not close upon death. Blood poured out of his chest and very quickly dyed the surrounding water red.


    The young girl saw clearly that Long Chen had killed the dwarf. She stood up, smoothened her clothes, then thanked him politely. Thank you, Big Brother and Big Sister, for saving my life. Im Xiao Yu.


    The young girl was strong-hearted. She did not cry even after such a harrowing experience.


    What happened here, Xiao Yu? Long Chen guessed that she was from the small ind.


    That man is a dwarf. I thought they would note today, thats why I came out to y. I didnt expect to meet him! If you hadnt saved me, I would have died, she said fearfully.


    What is a dwarf? he asked, sitting down on the boat with Ling Xi. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Dwarf?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 282: Dwarf

    Chapter 282: Dwarf


    Xiang nudged Long Chens leg. After Ling Xis trantion, Long Chen understood his exnation.


    The dwarf tribe is a human tribe that originated in the east of the Cangyang Kingdom. However, due to terrible environmental conditions, they migrated to a ce near the Biyang Imperial Capital. One of the more elite branches of the tribe, whose people were quite capable, formed the Harmony family in the Biyang Imperial Capital. They are now one of the three main factions of the capital, having the same power as what the Mo family previously held.


    That was Xiangs exnation.


    When Long Chen heard the exnation, he realized that the dwarf tribe was not a simple tribe at all.


    With Ling Xi as his trantor, Xiang said, The dwarf tribe usually lives on the outskirts of the imperial capital. They have their ownnguage and look different from the people of the Cangyang Kingdom. They are usually very ugly and stout; they are violent, aggressive, and unreasonable by nature. Both the men and women of the tribe tend to be immoral, even inhumane. However, because they have the Harmony family in the imperial capital backing them, they live well and not many people dare to cross them.


    Thats right! They cannot even be called humans; they are animals with human skin! Xiao Yu added angrily.


    Xiao Yu, can you tell us why you think that? Long Chen asked with concern. Although he wanted to head to the Biyang Imperial Capital as soon as possible, it seemed like there was something he could help with here. Furthermore, Xiang seemed to be sentimental over Goldfish Ind. If the people of Goldfish Ind were having trouble, Long Chen thought that he could perhaps lend a hand.


    Thats because Goldfish Ind is almost done for! Xiao Yu answered darkly.


    What happened? he asked.


    Thend around the capital used to be controlled by the four main factions, but since the Mo family disappeared, the other factions started to fight over the unattendednd. Goldfish Ind doesnt have anything worth fighting over, and its far from the city, which is why it has been peaceful here so far


    Xiao Yu paused, then continued,  But recently, the dwarf tribe has been conqueringnd like crazy, and theyre going to reach Goldfish Ind soon. Our chief said that the dwarf tribe is violent and beast-like, that everywhere they go, they burn, rob, and kill. Theymit every crime possible, and he said they always get their gnarly ws on pretty girls. We wanted to move, but most of the people on the ind are not willing to leave. This isnd left behind by our ancestors; we cant hand it over to such beasts!


    Our chief said we have five days at most. Right now, all the cultivators on our ind are cultivating like mad. We have sworn to fight until our deaths once the dwarf tribe arrives! We will not surrender our ancestorsnd, even if it costs us every drop of blood! And we will not let these beasts step on our heads!


    Although Xiao Yu was young, she was very knowledgeable and told them about the inds situation. She clenched her small fist with great passion, and refusal to surrender filled her eyes!


    That animal was probably a scout sent by the dwarf tribe, but he died here. If the dwarf tribe finds out about this, they will definitely speed up their attack! When that happens


    Xiao Yu felt helpless when she thought about the dwarf tribes strength. Although she was afraid, she refused to give up.


    Brother Chen, Xiang wants to help them. He said these are the people of the Mo family and he will not let other people harm them, Ling Xi whispered.


    Long Chen looked down and met Xiangs burning eyes, then he nodded.


    Xiao Yu, we will stay behind to help you all, he said with a smile.


    Even without Xiangs input, Long Chen wouldve been unwilling to let a peaceful little ind be destroyed by violent people. He was also touched by Xiao Yus battle spirit, as if she was willing to sacrifice herself for this.


    Long Chen knew that she was proud of her people.


    Really? Xiao Yu was overjoyed. She had watched him kill an Earthly Core Realm cultivator. If Long Chen could help them, Goldfish Ind might stand a chance! At the very least, fewer people would die!


    There would be a small dy to his visit to the Biyang Imperial Capital, but he assumed it would be fine.


    Big Brother, could you tell me your cultivation level? Mid Heavenly Core? Late Heavenly Core? Or are you one of those terrifying Heavenly River Realm masters? she asked excitedly. She was currently at the Eighth Draconic Stage herself.


    Since this ce was close to the imperial capital and cultivation was popr here, Long Chen was not surprised that she was knowledgeable about cultivation.


    Heavenly River, he answered directly, not hiding his capabilities. Goldfish Ind currently needed help, and he was not going to be stingy.


    Really? eximed Xiao Yu. She eyed him up and down, and when she surmised that Long Chen would not lie to her, she jumped for joy on the little boat. Without the weight of her tribes annihtion weighing on her mind, she was still a child.


    Big Brother, and the beautiful Big Sister, Ill take you to Goldfish Ind now to see our chief!


    Then Xiao Yu rowed her oars. Their boat passed the dwarfs body and they headed towards Goldfish Ind. They reached it quickly and found that the ind was small; it was even a little smaller than Baiyang Town.


    The only special part of the ind was its center. There was a small mountain there, and Long Chen sensed some heating from it.


    <em>Theres a volcano on this small ind? </em>Long Chen was surprised. Perhaps this whole ce was the top of a volcano, but due to the movement of the terrain, the volcanos mouth had sunk and ended up bing this small.


    Xiang also seemed to have noticed the peculiarities of the mountain. He sniffed the air carefully, then he shook his head in confusion.


    Xiang says he can sense the aura of demonic beasts  Ling Xi whispered into Long Chens ear.


    Demonic beasts? Probably not. If there are beasts here, Goldfish Ind would have long been destroyed. They wouldnt have been able tost this long, said Long Chen, shaking his head.


    Big Brother, follow me! Xiao Yu waved at him cheekily, standing in front of the group.


    Long Chen and Xiang put this matter aside and focused on following her. It was clear that life was peaceful on Goldfish Ind. There were not many people here; most people fished for a living and lived simple lives. Long Chen felt veryfortable on the ind.


    However, he was puzzled because he passed a few houses but did not see many men. He only saw women doing chores and children ying freely. Everything looked peaceful.


    Everyone else is with the chief, who is guiding them in cultivation. Theyre working hard to prepare for the battle! They have already dug a cave at the back of the mountain, and tomorrow, the old, the young, and the women will start to move to the caves while the rest will stay and fight to their deaths! Im twelve this year, but Im already at the Eighth Draconic Stage! Though the chief wont let me fight, he says I must protect the rest! He says its an even more important job! Xiao Yu was very proud of herself.


    Long Chen was solemn.


    She was only twelve, yet she had to face such huge pressure. If this went south, she would die. Based on their descriptions, Long Chen learned that their enemies, the dwarves, were violent and aggressive like beasts. If they lost, they would suffer greatly.


    The ind chief lives beyond this bamboo forest. But Im guessing that theyre at the training grounds, so I will take you there! The chief will surely praise me for bringing him a Heavenly River Realm cultivator, hehe! she said with glee.


    Xiao Yu, do you know how both sidespare in terms of strength? How many strong cultivators does Goldfish Ind have? And how many do the dwarves have? asked Long Chen.


    About that  We have two Heavenly River Realm masters, the chief and his son. We have many Heavenly Core Realm cultivators too. As for the dwarves, all I know is that only one of the families of the dwarves is attacking us. I dont know their specificposition though. But seeing as the chief is so anxious, they must be very strong!


    Long Chen nodded.


    A few bamboo houses appeared in front. They were all built in a neat row and looked extremely sophisticated. Passing through the bamboo houses, the bamboo forest opened up into a clearing. They were far away, but Long Chen could already hear the noises from the training grounds.


    Haargh!


    Long Chen could clearly hear loud cries and the sounds of weapons shing.


    Very soon, he spotted a group of about two hundred people up ahead. They were mostly topless, strong men, all drenched in sweat and fighting fiercely. Some of them were using divine jades to cultivate in the bamboo forest nearby.


    Chief, Chief! Xiao Yu did not dare approach, so she yelled from the side.


    Everyone turned and saw Xiao Yu. They did not care much about her, but Long Chen and Ling Xi attracted their attention. Long Chen because of his strength, and Ling Xi because of her beauty.


    Carry on with your cultivation! bellowed an old man coldly. He had white hair and a hawk-like re. Then he turned to approach Long Chen and Ling Xi.


    Chief, Chief! I found a huge helper! Big Brother is a Heavenly River Realm cultivator! He promised to help us defeat the dwarves! she yelled excitedly.


    Xiao Yus words made everyone stop fighting. They all looked at Long Chen, puzzled.


    Long Chen was so young, and he was already at the Heavenly River Realm?


    A prodigy like that could be found in the Biyang Imperial Capital, but not in a small ce like Goldfish Ind.


    Everyone stopped cultivating and looked at each other, discussing Long Chen and the beautiful Ling Xi.


    Heavenly River Realm? When the ind chief heard Xiao Yu, he gasped in surprise. He could tell with just one look that Long Chen was an impressive prodigy, though he did not expect him to be at the Heavenly River Realm. Even the chief, at his ripe old age, was only at the First River Stage.


    The chief of Goldfish Ind walked up to Long Chen and asked seriously, Hey kid, is what Xiao Yu said true? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Definitely different than the dwarves we know about...


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 283: Sky Lake

    Chapter 283: Sky Lake


    A true man had to know what to do and what not to do. Saving Goldfish Ind was something he had to do.


    I am Long Chen. Miss Xiao Yu told me about the problem on Goldfish Ind, and I decided to contribute, said Long Chen, nodding.


    The ind chief eyed Long Chen and realized he could not sense the depth of Long Chens cultivation. He was in dire need of an expert like that.


    Little Long Chen! My name is Chen Feng. If you dont mind, you can call me Old Chen! Im very grateful that you would like to help protect Goldfish Ind! Gratitude filled Chen Fengs eyes.


    Come,e here! Chen Feng was naturally receptive towards Long Chen and hurriedly led him into an elegant bamboo house. He instructed someone to serve them tea and brought out local pastries to serve Long Chen.


    Long Chen did not have much need for food himself, but Ling xi, as a normal human, was very interested in the delicious delicacies. Long Chen did not hold back and passed the food to her so she could enjoy them while he spoke with Chen Feng.


    May I ask where youre from? Seeing as Long Chen had reached the Heavenly River Realm at such a young age, he guessed that he was from the imperial capital.


    I cant say, Long Chen answered apologetically, shaking his head with a smile. It would be inconvenient, and he did not want to tell him.


    My apologies for intruding! Chen Feng said.


    Old Chen, I wont waste time on small talk. When I passed Goldfish Ind just now, I saw a man harming Xiao Yu and saved her. She told me about Goldfish Ind and what the dwarves are doing, and its infuriating. That is why I decided to help. However, I dont know anything about the dwarves at all, so I hope you can tell me more, said Long Chen.


    I see. So thats why the girl brought you here. Chen Feng raised his eyebrows slightly. Its one of the dwarf families that set their eyes on Goldfish Ind. That family has always been living near Goldfish Ind, and were afraid of them. There is a couple in that family, husband and wife, who are both Second River Stage cultivators. They also have a few First River Stage cultivators, so


    Long Chen was shocked. There were only two First River Stage cultivators on the ind.


    Sir, forgive me, but the enemy is much stronger than you guys. You guys have almost no chance of winning, so why arent you moving away? Why would you stay here and die for nothing? he asked solemnly.


    Migrate the whole tribe? I wanted that too, but only a few people agreed. Thisnd was left to us by our ancestors; how could we give it away just like that? My people have said that it does not matter how strong the enemy iswe will fight until we have shed ourst drop of blood! And we refuse to allow the enemy to take it without paying a great price! We will die, but our spirit will live on forever! Towards the end, Chen Feng was as emotional as Xiao Yu.


    When Long Chen saw the old mans face redden with passion, he was affected too, and he felt his blood boil. Previously, he mainly wanted to help because of Xiang, but now we was willing to give it his all.


    Little Long Chen, you have decided to help us and for that, I thank you sincerely. However, the odds of Goldfish Ind winning are just too small. Youre still young; you shouldnt waste your life like that.


    Dont worry, Old Chen. Even if I am no match for them, staying alive is not a problem. I will do my very best to minimize the casualties on Goldfish Ind.


    Chen Feng had told him about the dwarves military strength, but Long Chen was still fearless, which moved Chen Feng.


    I think hes just bullshitting us. A tall middle-aged man walked into the bamboo house and nced at Long Chen mildly.


    This mans aura indicated that he was no weaker than Chen Feng. He had to be the other Heavenly River Realm cultivator on Goldfish Ind.


    Nonsense! Chen Feng reprimanded, then he smiled at Long Chen. This is my son, Chen Lei! Leier, this is little Long Chen, who has agreed to help Goldfish Ind! You must have heard about this already. Hes young, but he has already reached Heavenly River Realm! Hes much stronger than you!


    Chen Lei had indeed heard about this. He eyed Long Chen up and down but was still suspicious. He asked, You dont have any hidden intentions, do you? I refuse to believe that some idiot woulde to Goldfish Ind to get himself killed!


    Chen Lei! What are you talking about? Get the hell out of here! Chen Feng shot up from his bamboo chair with a whoosh, ring sternly at him.


    Alright, alright! Chen Lei was furious that his father had yelled at him. He remarked with a mocking tone, Father, look at how slick this brat looks. He doesnt look like a good person to me. Maybe hes a spy sent by the dwarves.


    You donkey-brained idiot! Get out! Have you seen such a tall spy from the dwarf tribe? Based on Long Chens age, current cultivation level, facial features, and height, it was impossible for him to be a dwarf spy.


    Recalling the dwarves heights, Chen Lei did not know how to rebut his father. All he knew was that something was not right with Long Chen, but he could not put a finger on it. So he left in a rage.


    Long Chen, I hope you wont take that to heart. Its just one of his silly antics. Hes just gotten a bit sensitive because his wife, whom he loved for many years, was killed by the dwarves, said Chen Feng apologetically as he sat down.


    Its fine. I understand, Long Chen responded with a nod.


    Dongfang Yunxiao had once said that the most terrifying thing in the world was being unable to protect ones own woman. Long Chen was understanding, given Chen Leis past.


    That is all, then. Its gettingte, and I humbly request a ce to stay, Old Chen. I will stay on Goldfish Ind for the next few days. When the dwarves arrive, I promise I will fight with all I have! Long Chen stood up, tugging on Ling Xi, who was still eating pastries.


    Good, good! This way, please! Right, Long Chen, I have already sent someone to prepare a feast for you


    Theres no need for that. Old Chen, this is an emergency situation after all. If you have any food, you can send it directly to my room. You only need to send enough to fill Ling Xis belly, Long Chen said with a smile, pinching Ling Xis cheek.


    Since Ling Xi had turned into a normal person thanks to the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, Long Chen had started stockpiling food in his Universe Pouch.


    Chen Feng had prepared an elegant bamboo house for Long Chen. After showing him to his quarters, Chen Feng left. Dinner was delivered two hourster, and the host left after Long Chen and the others finished their meal.


    The trio remained in the tiny house. Xiang howled, then he left the room knowingly. He did not forget to close the door for Long Chen when he walked out.


    Brother Chen, is it inconvenient to have me around? Ling Xi asked anxiously, tugging at the corner of his sleeve.


    When cultivators started to cultivate, their main energy source was the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth, and their reliance on food would decrease. Long Chen only ate when he wanted to taste delicious food. However, right now, food provided Ling Xi with energy to live. That was why she had asked him this question, because Long Chen had been preparing food for her daily.


    Silly girl, dont you feel loved like this? Long Chen grinned and patted her pink cheek.


    Ever since the Star Devil Prison incident, Ling Xis personality had started to change. She seemed to be more reserved, and Long Chen could see a hint of worry in her gaze.


    Xiao Xi, are you worried about something? he asked.


    Me? No.


    Then why are you sulking? You look like a miserable auntie! Long Chenughed.


    <em>Youre </em>the miserable auntie! Im not! huffed Ling Xi.


    ***


    It was a cool night.


    I cant sleep, said Ling Xi, who was lying in Long Chens arms.


    Really?


    Mhm.


    I have this nagging feeling that theres something strange with that mountain. Xiang also felt it, I think. But I didnt want to leave you here. Since you cant sleep, Ill take you with me, said Long Chen, sitting up.


    Once Ling Xi put on some thick clothes and tidied herself, Long Chen took her out and called for Xiang, who was some distance away from their quarters. The trio then headed towards the center of Goldfish Ind.


    Indeed, its the aura of a demonic beast. But it is in a deep slumber. Long Chen noticed this when he approached the mountain. He believed that Chen Feng and the rest were aware that a beast was hiding within Goldfish Ind.


    When they hiked to the peak, there was a smallke filled with emerald-green water.


    Long Chen dipped his hand into theke and took some out. The water is warm. This beast should be a fire-type beast. A fire-type beasts beast core will be useful for you, Xiang. Protect Ling Xi while I enter theke to check it out.


    Xiang gave an <em>a-woo </em>and nodded.


    Ling Xi was currently very weak, so Long Chen had no choice but to be meticulous about keeping her safe. He set Ling Xi aside, gave her a few reminders, then dove into the warmke and disappeared beneath the emerald waters.


    What surprised him was that despite it being a smallke, it was very deep. It took him a long time to reach the bottom. The temperature was very high here, but a strange type of grass grew at the bottom.


    Long Chen looked around the bottom of theke. The heat wasing from underneath. He wanted to check it out, but there was no opening that would allow him to descend directly.


    Of course, he could use brute force to break thekebed, but that would startle the beast, whose strength level was currently unknown. That was why Long Chen would not dare take the risk.


    He scoured thekebed and finally found a small gap between two boulders in a corner next to a wall. Long Chen entered the gap and found that it was a small underwater pool. It was not a deep pool, so he easily floated to the surface and arrived in an underground cave.


    The cave led him downwards.


    <em>Its very likely that this cave will lead to the beast. </em>With that thought, he had no choice but to be extra cautious and not make a single sound. He descended through the cave; the deeper he went, the hotter it became. About fifty meterster, he realized that the rocks around him had turned fire-red.


    <em>The beast must be just up ahead </em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Something ain''t right in the cave


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 284: Eight Clawed Fire Chi

    Chapter 284: Eight wed Fire Chi


    The deeper he went, the wider the cave grew. Very quickly, he arrived at a vast underground space. The rocks here were so hot that they glowed red, and a fiery aura filled the air.


    There must have been a lot of magma here once. But now the properties of the rock have changed and only the shell is left.


    Long Chen peered down at the depths of the cave. There was a giant hole at the bottom. It could have been filled with magma a long time ago, but now it was only filled with red rocks and a small magma pool less than fifty meters wide.


    The magma pool itself was not what caught his attention though. There was a beast a few timesrger than the Sun Devouring Wolf sleeping inside it! It was a beast that resembled a dragonsharp ws and teeth, and muscr limbs. It had fiery-red skin like a dragon, but it did not have horns.


    The peculiar thing was that it did not only have one pair of upper limbs, but four! It had eight feet lined with fire-red ws in total, each one resembling a steel sword glowing during the forging process. They were terrifying!


    <em>What kind of beast is this? </em>Long Chen had never seen anything like it before.


    Although it was in a deep slumber, its aura was very thick and stronger than that of the Sun Devouring Wolf. Long Chen dared not poke around, so after he memorized its features, he turned back via the same route and swam out of theke, back to Ling Xi.


    He described the beast to Ling Xi. When she heard about its eight feet, she said without hesitation, Thats the Category Three Earth-tier Eight wed Fire Chi![1] It survives by absorbing the fire power from magma. Since there isnt much magma left here, it has gone into a deep slumber to decrease energy expenditure. Eight wed Fire Chis are quitezy; it will probably only move when the magma is used up.


    Category Three Earth-tier? Long Chen did a mentalparison and found that it was one level above Xiang. They might stand a chance if they both fought it together. However, Long Chen did not dare engage before fighting the dwarves.


    Its fine. We will think about this after we help Goldfish Ind through their crisis, Long Chen dered.


    The Eight wed Fire Chi brought two benefits. First, its inner core contained fire essence umted over many years of absorbing magma. That would be a great source of nourishment for Xiang. On top of that, its nutritious blood was food for Long Chen.


    With his arm around Ling Xi, they turned to go back via the route they came from. Aftering out for a walk, you should be able to sleep now, right? Long Chen whispered into her ear.


    I want you to hold me, but youre not allowed to touch me anywhere else! Ling Xi said, blushing. It was cold these days, and she felt especially calm and warm with Long Chen holding her.


    Alright.


    Long Chen smiled bitterly. This was like having mouth-watering food ced right in front of him when he was starving! Yet at most, he could only have the asional taste. Every day, he was so attracted to her that he burned inside, yet had no outlet for these feelings. It was absolute torture


    When they were nearing the ce that Chen Feng had arranged for them to stay, a figure suddenly stepped in front of Long Chen. It was Chen Lei, who was smirking coldly.


    Long Chen! Indeed, you bear ill intentions! Itste at night, and instead of staying in your quarters, youre sneaking around suspiciously on Goldfish Ind! Why? he questioned coldly, towering over Long Chen with his huge figure.


    These legs are mine, so I will walk where I want! I promised to help Goldfish Ind fight the dwarves, but that doesnt mean I cant walk around the ind, right?


    Long Chen pitied Chen Lei, but if he kept acting like this, he would not mind teaching thetter a lesson.


    Still trying to argue? Youre clearly a thief! What did you steal? Chen Lei demanded.


    Steal? What do you guys have here thats worth stealing? Long Chen was toozy to talk to him.


    Chen Lei eyed him suspiciously. Long Chen was right. Chen Lei and Chen Feng had the most wealth on the ind, and there was nothing else that could have attracted Long Chen. Chen Lei found Long Chen suspicious because he couldnt understand his intentions. In terms of cultivation level, Long Chen was indeed at the Heavenly River Realm. But how much real battle experience could he have at such a young age?


    Chen Lei saw Long Chen as an aristocratic progeny of somerge faction, the kind who had been sheltered and raised by their family to achieve such results. Fragile flowers like that would be no match for him if they truly fought.


    That was why he surmised that it was not very likely that Long Chen had been stealing.


    He looked behind Long Chen, then he gasped. Did you go to Sky Lake? Long Chen, it looks like youre targeting the Eight wed Fire Chi! Youre looking for death! The Eight wed Fire Chi is a Category Three Earth-tier beast. If you wake it up, not only will you die, but you will bring harm to all of Goldfish Ind too! You say youre here to save Goldfish Ind, but I think youll be our downfall instead!


    Green veins popped out of his head as he made the usations. Indeed, he had guessed correctly because Long Chen was indeed interested in the Eight wed Fire Chi, though not at the moment.


    Long Chen did not want to argue too much, so he suppressed his annoyance and slowly exined, Chen Lei, calm down. Ill be honest. I dide here to help you guys, but I noticed something strange with Sky Lake when I arrived on the ind. That was why I went there to investigate, and I found that indeed there were signs of a demonic beast there. Tell me, if your assumptions were correct, wouldnt I be fighting the Eight wed Fire Chi right now? Would I be here talking to you?


    You might not be targeting it today, but you will tomorrow! With your cultivation level, it will be suicide! No way, I must make you give up on thispletely!


    Chen Leis Qi started to surge.


    Move! Since his exnations werent working, Long Chen did not want to exin further.


    Never! roared Chen Lei.


    Long Chen had lost all patience. He was about to pass Ling Xi to Xiang to teach this idiot a lesson when Xiang suddenly erged and took on the Sun Devouring Wolfs full-sized form. With his Category Two Earth-tier strength level, it only took a few attacks for him to pin the terrified Chen Lei to the ground.


    The Sun Devouring Wolfs thick aura and the ck mes burning in his eyes sent chills through Chen Lei. He did not expect Long Chens pet wolf cub to be an Earth-tier beast. And it was clearly above Category One Earth-tier too.


    Listen. There is a limit to my patience. I am here to help Goldfish Ind, not to get bullied by you. If you provoke me, I dont mind killing you! Long Chen warned as he passed Chen Lei.


    Then he left with Ling Xi. Xiang mmed Chen Lei hard into the ground with his muscr paw, mes curling in his mouth. Chen Lei shuddered at the icy temperatures brought about by the ck mes, almost unable to breathe.


    Then, fortunately, Xiang retracted the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    However, his warning was enough to make Chen Lei unable to move for a while. He only stood up after fifteen minutes, staring in the direction that Long Chen had left with terror in his eyes.


    <em>Where did Long Chene from? How did he get such a terrifying beast to be so loyal to him? </em>Chen Lei could not figure it out. He shook his head and sighed. It doesnt matter how hard I work. Its impossible to catch up to people fromrge factions. Their elders can just give them a random beast and theyll be able to bully me. If Long Chen genuinely wants to help, having that beast on our side means Goldfish Ind still has some hope. Looks like I shouldnt target him anymore, or Father will definitely yell at me


    ***


    When will this misery end  Long Chen rolled his eyes, staring at the ceiling in exasperation.


    He did not know whether it was the right decision to let Ling Xi use the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus to be a normal human. At least she was happy so far, and that was enough.


    Long Chen spent a total of five days on Goldfish Ind. During these five days, he asionally walked around the ind, sometimes watching the inders cultivator and other times helping the old and young move. Other than Chen Lei, the inders really liked the legendary young couple.


    News of Long Chen being a Heavenly River Realm cultivator had spread to the rest of the ind thanks to Xiao Yu. When they learned that Long Chen was here to help them fight the dwarves, everyone was very grateful and often gave him presents. Ling Xi also received many clothes, beautiful essories, and all types of delicacies, so she was very happy every day.


    As for the problem with the Eight wed Fire Chi, Long Chen had already discussed it with Chen Feng. He nned to see if he could deal with it some time after the dwarves attacked. Chen Feng had noment because his full attention was on defeating the dwarves. To be honest, while he knew that Long Chen had an Earth-tier beast that could easily defeat Chen Lei, making it likely a Category Two Earth-tier, there were still two Second River Stage masters on the dwarves side


    In the face of mortal danger, the men of Goldfish Ind were not afraid. Their blood boiled with passion, waiting for the dwarves with their weapons sharpenedthey were going to fight to their deaths!


    They were guarding the old, the weak, and the young of their ind, as well as thend left behind by their ancestors. That was why the alternative to victory was death; there was no backing down!


    Amidst their preparations, the dwarves finally arrived


    1. a Chi is a Chinese mythological animal, considered a hornless dragon. Traditionally, Chi statues are used to decorate pce rooftops. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    To be honest Chen Lei is one of the few sane people I met. He was right to be suspicious with strangers


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 285: Arrival of the Dwarves

    Chapter 285: Arrival of the Dwarves


    The people of Goldfish Ind had set up many lookouts around the ind so they would be aware of when the dwarves arrived.


    The old and the young had already been moved to the cave they had dug a few days ago. Even if the dwarves searched the entire ind, they would have difficulty finding the entrance to the cave.


    Though they did not dare take this lightly, as they were in mortal danger.


    The able men of the tribe were prepared for war. After many days of cultivation and training, they were filled with battle spirit.


    Goldfish Ind was notrge, so when the lookouts rushed back to confirm the dwarf armys location, the warriors rushed over. They set up a full defensive formation, so no matter which direction the enemy came from, they had great geographical advantage.


    Long Chen followed the crowd. Because he was worried about Ling Xi, he let her follow him and did not put her with the rest of the inders in the cave.


    He only trusted himself and Xiang to protect her.


    There were about three hundred warriors on Goldfish Indying in the hills. Theke was just ahead. They could see the dwarvesrge boats heading for their ind. Vulgar, violentughter rang across theke, piercing through the misty air. The inders chests tightened.


    Long Chen and Xiang stood in front, their expressions not as anxious as those of the other warriors. The chief, Chen Feng, and his son, Chen Lei, were also with them.


    Chen Lei had disliked Long Chen from the moment they met and still felt like Chen Feng was too nice to him. However, Long Chen had not caused any trouble so far, so Chen Lei, while remaining suspicious, could not say anything.


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    Well see who kills more enemiester. Some people seem good but are not actually capable. Do you really think you canpete against a Heavenly River Realm cultivator with more than twenty years experience like me? Chen Lei said when he saw the calm Long Chen.


    Of course youll have a higher kill count, Brother Chen Lei. Im so young; how could Ipare to you? said Long Chen with a smile.


    He couldnt care less about arguing with this stupid donkey.


    Long Chen saw the battle spirit and violence in every inders eyes. Although they knew that the enemy was strong, they did not show a single hint of fear. He was truly amongst people with absolutely no fear of death.


    Men, the words surrender and holding back do not exist in our vocabries. The dwarves are vicious. If Goldfish Ind is conquered by them, we, along with our children and grandchildren, will live under their tyranny and suffer, living lives like dogs


    Chen Fengs brows were deeply furrowed. He paused, then he continued in a sorrowful but heroic tone, To prevent our children and women from enduring such humiliation, no one shall back down from this battle! Thisnd is the most precious gift from our ancestors. We have lived on Goldfish Ind for generations, and today she is in danger! The sess of this battle depends on whether you men are afraid of death!


    Remember this: if you kill one, its worth it! If you kill two, youre making a profit! If you kill ten, youre making a fucking fortune!


    The usually stern and reserved Chen Feng let out a rare cuss word to lighten the anxious mood. The crowd grew even more motivated.


    This was the battle for the livelihood of their tribe. The winner would be king, and the loser would be conquered. Long Chen saw bloodlust in their eyes that made him respect them.


    Old Chen, dont be too worried. Look at the dwarves! Their heads barely even reach our chests. How can a group of short people be any match for us? Long Chen said with a smile.


    The inders all knew that the dwarves were short and ugly.


    Long Chen, I truly thank you for this. If it looks like were losingter, run away and bring as many people with you as possible. Even saving one is worth it to keep the Goldfish Ind bloodline going. Help me watch the ones in the cave too, Chen Feng said mildly. From the look in his eyes, they could tell that he was prepared to die today!


    Alright. Although Long Chen did not think they would lose, he made the promise so the old man would be assured.


    Therge boats were slowly approaching. The crowd in the hills could see the shouting and celebrating dwarves standing on the decks. From their perspectives, they were merely here to take the ind as their own. They did not take the tiny army on the ind seriously.


    The group of more than a hundred dwarves grew more and more excited as they thought about the wealth and women on Goldfish Ind.


    Although on paper they were representing the Harmony family to manage Goldfish Ind, in reality, they were a horde of robbers whomitted every crime possible, bringing carnage everywhere they went.


    They would reachnd soon. Seeing as they had only brought about a hundred dwarves, they clearly did not take Goldfish Inds military power seriously. However, each of the hundred dwarves was much stronger than the inders. There were only thirty-plus inders at the Divine Core Realm, but most of the dwarves were well into it.


    That was how big the gap between the inders and the dwarves was.


    Chen Feng paled after witnessing the power of his enemies, clenching his fists tight.


    Long Chen heard shocked gasps and anxious heavy breathing from all around him.


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    A middle-aged dwarf took several steps forward with a smug grin, letting out a passionate roar. Despite his small stature and ugly looks, he was decently powerful, a First River Stage like Chen Feng.


    Goldfish Ind! You must have received the notice already. From today onwards, thisnd belongs to the Harmony family, and Goldfish Ind will be managed by us. Haha! As a gesture of gratitude and joy from you guys, as usual, hurry up and give us three quarters of your fortune. Then give us a hundred teenage girls to serve my dwarf brothers!


    The bastard was at the Heavenly River Realm, so his booming voice easily reached every corner of the ind. Even the inders hiding in the cave could faintly hear him. When they heard a hundred teenage girls, the girls panicked and fell into a terrified silence when they thought of the possibility of rape.


    And a hundred of them? The teenage girls and young women of Goldfish Ind barely made up this number. Where would they get a hundred teenage girls? ording to the dwarves rules, one man was to be killed for every girl they could not provide.


    Of course, young women are also fine! They taste even better! The dwarf let out an evilugh.


    They would get to enjoy themselves beneath the open sky! They had raped women openly together as a group of hundred before, so they were looking forward to enjoying this. The hundred dwarves started to breathe heavily when they imagined the beauty of the Goldfish Ind women.


    One, two, three, four? Long Chen counted four First River Stage dwarves in total, but the two Second River Stage cultivators that Chen Feng had mentioned were not there.


    Old Chen, didnt you say there would be Second River Stage cultivators? Long Chen asked.


    Yes  Maybe they didnte today? But thats impossible; they operate together! Chen Feng was puzzled too.


    Father, lets not worry about that. Its good that theyre not here. With four Heavenly River Realm cultivators, us three plus the demon wolf are just enough to deal with them! As long as we kill these four, everything else will be much easier. Even if the two Second River Stage cultivators arrive, we can all fight them together, right? Chen Lei said decisively.


    He had weighed the strengths of both sides and decided that the best solution was to shorten the time spent fighting as much as possible.


    Chen Lei is right. Lets move. Based on the dwarves words and expressions, Long Chen could tell that there was not a single good person there. Only death was punishment enough for these evil scum.


    Lets move!manded Chen Feng.


    Wait. Only we move. Everyone else stays. When Long Chen saw that Chen Feng was about tomand everyone to attack, he hurriedly intervened.


    Why? Chen Feng asked, puzzled.


    Old Chen, the oue of a battle mostly depends on the fight between the strongest figures of the army. If we let everyone attack, it will only increase the number of casualties. Why dont we just make them send their leaders? Long Chen gave a small smile.


    That is easy to say, but tough to execute, said Chen Lei, pursing his lips, as if unimpressed by Long Chen.


    Long Chen couldnt be bothered with his opinion though.


    The dwarves had been waiting for a long time. When they realized that the inders werent going to hand them any pretty girls or riches, they looked at each other and burst intoughter, chattering in their strangenguage. The only thing an onlooker could confirm was that their expressions had gotten more insane.


    Well, let the killing begin, then! said one of the Heavenly River Realm cultivators.


    That was when three figures shot out towards them, quickly arriving in front of the dwarves. The dwarves were surprised to see three Heavenly River Realm cultivators, but when they thought of how they outnumbered the inders, their confidence returned and one of them demanded haughtily, You three! Are you here to deliver us your riches and girls? Give us the riches. Where are the girls?


    My apologies. Were not here to give you pretty girls; were here to send you to hell! I wonder, do the Heavenly River Realm cultivators of the dwarf tribe have the guts to fight the Heavenly River Realm cultivators of Goldfish Ind alone? Long Chen said without a hint of reverence.


    Oh, you guys are here looking for death. When the dwarves understood Long Chens intention, they burst intoughter once more. Very soon, four dwarf Heavenly River Realm cultivators stepped forward. One of them said darkly, It looks like youre challenging us to a fight, brat. But there are only three of you and four of us. How is that enough?


    Who said there are only three of us? Long Chen dropped Xiang from his arms. When hended, his body slowly expanded and the killing aura from his body intensified.


    Earth-tier demonic beast? The dwarves were pleasantly surprised and grinned. Haha! With the carcass of an Earth-tier beast, well get to live good for many days!


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    Even with the presence of an Earth-tier beast, the dwarves clearly did not take Long Chen and his group seriously.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time to kill the dwarves


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 286: Dwarf Massacre

    Chapter 286: Dwarf Massacre


    You are as stupid as pigs! And you think you can challenge the mighty Harmony family? There must be something wrong with your brains to risk destroying your tribe by disobeying us! Let me tell you this: many people have disobeyed us, and none of them have had good ends! Goldfish Ind isnt the only one, and it wont be thest one either!


    We must treat animals like animals. Goldfish Ind is home to men, so how could we bend our knees to a herd of animals? Long Chen remarked, gazing darkly at them. The boldness of his words impressed Chen Lei, who previously did not like him.


    What? Did you just call us animals? Youre looking for death! My three brothers! Leave this rude little brat to me; what do you say? said one of the Heavenly River Realm dwarves, who looked younger than the others.


    This meant that they had epted Long Chens challenge.


    Be careful, Chen Feng said to Long Chen. Then Chen Feng and his opponent moved aside to put some distance between them and the others.


    Its been a long time since Ive fought a beast. Ill take this strange demon wolf! one of the Heavenly River Realm cultivators eximed.


    Long Chen could not help but silently grieve that dwarfs death.


    Just like that, Long Chen was left with the final dwarf. The four battles were about to begin soon.


    Goldfish Ind had more experts than the dwarves expected, but this was still nothing to them. They were very confident in theirbat capabilities. Someone like Long Chen did not make their confidence waver in the least.


    Long Chen gripped the Azure Dragon Halberd, staring at his opponent, who was mocking him.


    His gaze darkened even more after listening to their vulgar propositions.


    <em>Fuck! Not only are they vulgar and violent, theyre extremely perverted too! They do things only animals do!</em>


    This was uneptable<em></em>to a righteous person like Long Chen.


    After hearing the dwarf, the rest of the dwarves erupted in cheers as they knew he was about to give them a good show in his fight with Long Chen. Long Chen already had a deep hatred for them, and now he was angered even more. Without another word, he shot out and swung at his opponent!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    Long Chen used his most powerful technique on his first strike, though he had not activated the Dragon Soul Transformation yet. However, hisbat strength was still formidable. Before the middle-aged dwarf could react, a huge Azure Dragon soul was charging towards him!


    <em>What a terrifying attack! How is this possible? </em>The dwarfs initial contempt turned intoplete shock when he saw Long Chens Azure Dragon Combat Technique. At the veryst moment, he hurriedly sent out a punch. A gigantic fist seal turned into a tiger, colliding with Long Chens dragon!


    One side had prepared a sudden attack; the other side had reacted defensively. Furthermore, Long Chen was stronger than his opponent because his Qi was four times stronger than normal despite not activating his Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Cries and gasps of shock came from the audience. Due to such arge gap in power, one move from Long Chen was enough to send the middle-aged dwarf flying in the air, blood spraying out of his mouth.


    Long Chen gave chase immediately, waving his halberd without any emotion on his face. He aimed for his severely injured opponents neck, then a head flew towards the crowd of dwarves. Blood sprayed out of the headless corpse, and it crashed into the ground!


    Only a few breaths had passed between the start of the fight and the dwarfs death!


    Both the dwarves and the Goldfish Inders hiding in the hills werepletely shocked after they saw the teenager fight. They knew he was strong, but they didnt know he was this strong.


    Chen Lei and Chen Feng experienced particrly strong emotions. They were fighting for their lives against their opponents, and their battles were even at the moment. Long Chen, however, had killed his opponent before Xiang did. Didnt that mean Long Chen was a little stronger than Xiang?


    This was extra shocking to Chen Lei. He had just mocked Long Chen for having nothing but good looks. Now he was the useless one.


    However, this was not the only thing that shocked them. Killing his opponent quickly had indeed showcased his capabilities, but the viciousness and decisiveness he possessed had beenpletely disyed too!


    The people of Goldfish Ind hated the dwarves to their bones. Long Chen himself was also furious at the evil dwarves after hearing about their animalistic crimes. That was why hended together with the Heavenly River Realm cultivators head in the middle of the crowd of dwarves.


    They were mostly Heavenly Core Realm cultivators, some at thete Heavenly Core Realm. However, this was nothing to Long Chen.


    How dare Long Chen kill an important leader of their tribe! The dwarves eyes reddened, and they charged at him without holding back.


    Its great that youre alling to me! Now I wont need to chase you down! Long Chens bloodlust reached its peak!


    As he waved the Azure Dragon Halberd around, he did not even need to use his Qi because his Level Three Complete zing Thunder Combat Body was enough to make these animals suffer.


    Every time he waved the halberd, sshes of blood followed, along with shrieks of despair. Long Chen was like a wolf in a herd of sheep, killing to his hearts content. The number of people around him decreased with time, and the pile of bodies grew. There was soon a river of blood on the small patch ofnd on Goldfish Ind.


    Long Chen, who ced great importance on fresh blood, was not even slightly interested in the dwarves blood because he thought them dirty and smelly.


    The dwarves were furious at first, but when they noticed the bodies strewn around them, their rage turned into panic and terror. Some of them started to run away, but Long Chen rushed up onto the boat, waving his halberd around so the boat shattered instantly, despite being covered with ayer of metal. The dwarves who were hiding on the boat died from the vibrations of hisbat technique!


    You scum! No one gets to leave. Long Chen utilized the Nine Dragon shes, so the dwarves, despite scattering in all directions, couldnt escape. When the hundred dwarves turned into a hundred bodies, everyone was left in shock.


    At this point, Chen Feng and Chen Lei, with Xiangs help, had already killed their opponents. Or more urately, Xiang had killed three First River Stage cultivators.


    Goldfish Ind had not lost even one soldier, but Long Chen and Xiang had killed almost all the dwarves. The crowd stared at the piles of bodies next to Long Chen and then at the magnificent ck ming demon wolf and gulped. They looked at each other in shock.


    Especially Chen Lei. He had previously thought Long Chen to be useless. Now he was the useless one. His cheeks burned, and he did not dare look directly at Long Chen. He wished the ground would swallow him whole.


    Chen Feng was in shock too. This crisis had worried him endlessly for a long time, causing his hair to turn all white. Yet Long Chen had solved the problem so easily!


    The soldiers hiding in the hills all stood up, looking at Long Chen with great respect.


    Previously, they were grateful for his kindness. Now he had left a deep impression on their souls. His magnificent performance today would be verbally passed down for generations so their children and grandchildren would know of the master who had saved Goldfish Ind.


    The inders experienced a surge of emotions, but Long Chen did not think much of it. The hundred corpses were an eyesore, so he turned to say to Chen Feng, Old Chen, you guys need to think of a way to deal with these bodies. Its best you dont leave any traces behind. You mentioned two Second River Stage cultivators on their side, but they havent shown themselves yet. We must not celebrate too early.


    Chen Feng understood this too. ording to rumors, a small n under the Harmony family had two Second River Stage cultivators. If it wasnt for the fact that they were not present, Long Chen would never have won this easily.


    Alright, I will instruct someone to deal with the bodies. Chen Feng nodded and immediately called for the rest.


    Long Chen came to Ling Xis side with a grin. Xiao Xi, wasnt I cool just now?


    Of course, youre the best! But it was a bit scary when you were killing them. Ling Xi was a little pale from witnessing all the blood.


    The dwarves are animals, not humans, Long Chen said with a grin.


    That was when Chen Feng rushed over and said, It looks like we cannot rx yet. I will send scouts in all directions to keep a lookout. If they notice the two Second River Stage cultivators, they will report to us immediately.


    They assumed sending four strong fighters would be enough to conquer Goldfish Ind because we only have two Heavenly River Realm cultivators. So, there are two possibilitieseither they are still at home, or they are here but doing something else


    Long Chen thought about it. He had a sudden thought and blurted, Old Chen, do you think theyd target the Eight wed Fire Chi?


    Could that be possible? Chen Fengs brows were furrowed. The only valuable thing on Goldfish Ind was the Eight wed Fire Chi in deep slumber beneath the mountain.


    Right after he spoke, the whole ind trembled. Long Chen looked and saw an explosion at the mountain. Smoke and dust filled the skies, and a fire-red beast crawled out of the mountain!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ling Xi you literally saw him killing people before. No need to get queasy about it


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 287: Battle Against Dwarf Experts

    Chapter 287: Battle Against Dwarf Experts


    Therge fire-red beast that crawled out of the mountain was the Category Three Earth-tier beast who had been slumbering within, the Eight wed Fire Chi!


    The Fire Chi unleashed one angry roar after another, causing all of Goldfish Ind to shake. It was clearly furious!


    Long Chen could faintly see two tiny human figures nearby attacking it.


    Those two must be the Second River Stage dwarves. I cant believe they were actually targeting the Eight wed Fire Chi! Two Second River Stage cultivators attacking a Category Three Earth-tier beast  They really are going to get themselves killed, said Long Chen, squinting in their direction.


    Chen Feng was already drenched in sweat from his panic. After Long Chen defeated so many dwarves with his powerfulbat technique, Chen Feng now saw him as his anchor.


    Long Chen, what should we do? Although the vulnerable inders are hidden, at the rate the battle is going, it will likely affect them. And its possible the whole ind will be destroyed by the Eight wed Fire Chi!


    Long Chen, just give themand and Ill do it! Chen Lei was alsopletely impressed by him.


    Long Chen looked at them hurriedly and said, Chen Lei, I will give you a task, then Xiang and I will head there. I promise not to let them hurt Goldfish Ind and the other inders.


    What is the task? Chen Lei asked hurriedly.


    Help me protect her, Long Chen said, pointing at Ling Xi. We dont have much time. All you need to do is protect her. Although there shouldnt be much danger, you mustnt let your guard down. Ill help you resolve your other problems. Xiang, lets go!


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    Long Chen did not waste any time and charged towards the mountain at the center of the ind with Xiang.


    Dont worry! I will protect thisdy even if I die! yelled Chen Lei.


    He was a true man. He was previously contemptuous towards Long Chen purely due to a misunderstanding. Now that Long Chen had disyed his true capabilities, he was inwardly feeling guilty.


    Chen Feng watched Long Chen leave and sighed. Miss Ling Xi, it looks like you guyse from a powerful faction. Although Long Chen is at the First River Stage, hisbat abilities are terrifying.


    Brother Chen doesnt have much of a background. He slowly climbed the ranks on his own, exined Ling Xi. She felt a surge of pride when she heard Long Chen being praised.


    No wonder, no wonder. Chen Feng sighed. Only someone who had climbed the ranks on his own and experienced many fights to the death could fight on Long Chens level, not to mention his decisiveness.


    ***


    Xiang, let them fight for now. Its fine as long as they dont affect the ind and the underground cave. Itll be even better if both sides get very hurt, Long Chen whispered as they approached.


    Xiang nodded.


    They hid themselves among the trees. The Eight wed Fire Chis many roars came from beyond the trees, where it was fighting the two Second River Stage dwarf cultivators. It was a huge beast covered in red mes and it had eight powerful feet full of sharp ws. The two cultivators did their best to avoid being struck by the ws, moving very quickly using bodybat techniques. They spun around the beast at high speed, asionallyunching an attack, provoking it into furious roars!


    Long Chen finally saw their faces clearly. Both of them were short and thin wearing skin-tight leather armor, dressed to kill. Their speed and techniques were also extraordinary.


    Based on their body shapes, he could tell that it was a man and a woman; and based on their figures and her chest, he could tell that these two had better looks than the average dwarf.


    They spun like irritating flies around the Eight wed Fire Chi. It was difficult for it to strike them. Indeed, if this continued, there was a possibility for them to tire it to death.


    Their weapons arent bad at all. Long Chen looked closer and saw that they were each holding a dark green dagger, shing them around. asionally, they were able to make cuts on the beasts body.


    Those daggers were at least elementary Earth-tier weapons.


    They relied on speed, bodybat techniques, and elementary Earth-tier weapons to kill the Eight wed Fire Chi. It was indeed a decent arsenal, but Long Chen opined that since it was a Category Three Earth-tier beast, it would not be easy to defeat.


    Indeed, the shes made on its body hadpletely angered the beast. It opened its jaws, and bright red mes shot out at the dwarves. There was even moltenva mixed with the mes!


    Since the Eight wed Fire Chi lived amidstva, usingva in its attacks was expected.


    This Eight wed Fire Chi didnt look young. After so many years, its core must have absorbed a lot of fire essence. The Sun Devouring Wolf had been injured at the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, which caused its strength to be lowered by one category. The Fire Chis demonic core would likely help Xiang increase his strength.


    Long Chen had set his sights on the Eight wed Fire Chi the moment heid eyes on it. He refused to let someone else kill it.


    The battle intensified the moment the beast started unleashing all sorts of attacks, including the mes from before. Thankfully, the battle remained in the same location, so it was not a threat to the people in the underground cave.


    <em>Old Chen was worrying too much. Ill just wait until a victor emerges, then I will swoop in and take everything,</em> Long Chen thought to himself.


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    This battle on the scale of the Heavenly River Realm caused the earth and mountain to shake. Although he was not personally involved in the battle, he could feel the extraordinary strength of both sides. The Eight wed Fire Chi was a Category Three Earth-tier beast, so its strength was obvious. On the other hand, the two dwarves had speed and excellent bodybat techniques, coupled with the weapons in their hands. Thisbination made them dangerous to the beast.


    The beast let out multiple roars, furious that it could not hit the dwarves at all!


    Then it gave up on attacking them. Bearing the brunt of the womans attacks, it pounced and struck the middle-aged man with all of its ws. This strategy meant risking its life, but it was effective. It was impossible for the man to dodge so many ws after all. After he was struck by one w, blood sprayed out of his mouth and he flew backwards into the air!


    The woman shouted in her strangenguage, leaving several deep cuts on the beasts back with her dagger. That was when the Eight wed Fire Chi turned its full attention to her. She was now in mortal danger.


    These two are done for. Long Chen could see the end when the man was injured. They had the upper hand only because they were fast and worked together. Unfortunately, the Eight wed Fire Chi was no idiot and stopped them from working together.


    The ground trembled greatly from its manic movements.


    Long Chen suddenly heard a high-pitched scream. Shocked, he hurriedly turned to look and saw a young girl crawling out of the bushes not far away. She was pale with terror after seeing the beast roaring with fury.


    The girl was Xiao Yu.


    Damn it! Long Chen knew that Xiao Yu, who was in the cave, must havee up to investigate due to the hugemotion outside. But when she saw the gigantic beast, she waspletely ovee with fear.


    The Eight wed Fire Chi had sharp hearing, so it noticed Xiao Yu while it was fighting the dwarf. From its perspective, tiny organisms like her were the most terrifying. That was why it instantly shot a mouthful of mes at her. If she was struck, she would die!


    Long Chen could no longer remain in hiding. He shot out of the trees and sprinted after Xiao Yu. Before the mes arrived, he held her in his arms and leaped into the air, dodging the mes.


    Go back now! And stay there! Or I will give you a beating! Long Chens fierce re almost scared her to tears, but she knew that he had just saved her. With such a terrifying beast present, she did not dare stay and quickly hurried back.


    But Long Chen and Xiang were now exposed.


    The Eight wed Fire Chi had noticed Long Chen and Xiang.


    It realized that they posed arger threat to it than the two dwarves.


    All humans looked the same to the beast, and all humans were on the same side. Therefore, the moment the duo appeared, it abandoned its dwarf opponents and lunged towards Long Chen with heavy breathing and waving its ws!


    The dwarfdy heaved a sigh of relief and hurried over to the severely injured man. Now that it was Long Chens turn to face the Eight wed Fire Chi, the tables would turn, and they would be the ones to swoop in for the forter.


    Of course, Long Chen would not let this happen.


    Xiang, how long can youst against this Eight wed Fire Chi? he asked.


    Xiang gave a look of dissatisfaction, and Long Chen understood. Xiang opined that he and the beast were simr in strength.


    Since Xiang was not one to brag, Long Chen trusted his judgment.


    Ill let you handle the Fire Chi. Ill kill the woman first, then focus on helping you.


    After telling him the n, Long Chen shot off to stop the dwarfdy while Mo Xiang transformed to hisbat state. Although the Sun Devouring Wolf was not asrge as the Eight wed Fire Chi, it was definitely not weaker!


    When the dwarfdy saw that Long Chen wasing to her instead of fighting the beast, she cautiously asked, Who are you?


    The person who will kill you, replied Long Chen tly, taking out the Azure Dragon Halberd and activating the Dragon Soul Transformation. Dense, elegant, red scales quickly enveloped his whole body, turning him into a blood-colored fighting machine.


    Youre merely at the First River Stage, and you think you can kill me? She smiled.


    Ive already killed the rest of the dwarves. What do you think will happen to you? Long Chen responded with a grin.


    When she heard the news, thedys gaze darkened. Youre looking for death!


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    She lunged towards Long Chen!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    There are female dwarves? Not sure how good looking they would be or whether there''s a dwarf waifu for MC in the future


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 288: Sending You To Hell

    Chapter 288: Sending You To Hell


    Long Chen possessed the advanced ck-tier Nine Dragon shes as his bodybat technique of choice while the dwarfdy, he guessed, had an elementary Earth-tier bodybat technique.


    However, Long Chen hadpletely mastered the Nine Dragon shes, so he was as fast as her. In fact, he could even move faster than her.


    When she saw this, she gasped. Youre only at the First River Stage, yet you have mastered a bodybat technique to this level? How is that possible? Arent us dwarves the only people who possess such talent?


    The dwarves are nothing! Long Chen grinned.


    Xiang was already engaged in battle against the Eight wed Fire Chi, and Long Chen wanted to join him as soon as possible, so he did not want to waste time talking. Halberd in hand, he charged at the dwarf!


    With the Dragon Soul Transformation and Azure Dragon Halberd, Long Chens attacks were almost more powerful than hers.


    Your halberd  that must be an intermediate Earth-tier divine weapon! When she saw that her dagger was forced away by him, her eyes were fixed greedily on his halberd.


    Long Chen knew that this couple had to die, or they would bring Goldfish Ind more trouble in the future.


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Starsweep Dragon!


    The elementary Earth-tier technique was unleashed. Countless rays of light shot at the woman. After seeing such a powerful attack despite him being merely at the First River Stage, she started treating him as an equal.


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    Secret Technique, Piercing Sun! The dark green dagger in her hand spun quickly, and a blinding ray of light flew towards Long Chens forehead. At the same time, her footsteps quickened!


    She was using a delicate technique against hisrge attack. Indeed, she was smart, but Long Chen would not let her get her way.


    From the womans perspective, Long Chen was using the halberd, which was a long weapon, while she was using a short weapon. As long as she closed the distance between them, Long Chen would be done for.


    The manic energy from Starsweep Dragon brushed past her. Since both sides were using bodybat techniques, neither attack injured their target. However, she used this opportunity to arrive by his side. With a cold smirk, she thrust her dagger towards his waist!


    Long Chen felt the sharp aura of the dagger. He immediately released one hand from the halberd, and the bright Sword Devil Finger appeared. The shining sword light not only blocked her dagger but also forced her back!


    He showed no mercy, unleashing several quick consecutive Sword Devil Fingers so she was forced backwards. When she finally retaliated by breaking one of the attacks, his cold chuckle rang in her ear!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    He was using an intermediate Earth-tierbat technique despite only being at the First River Stage, yet he managed to utilize it to its full potential. In that moment, the world seemed to darken as a furious Azure Dragon soul charged at her!


    The woman had almost lost all hope in the face of such a sudden powerful attack. She did her best to flee using a bodybat technique while simultaneouslyunching various attacks to defend herself!


    Then she suddenly had an idea. She tugged at her clothes so that they came undone, and a pair of huge breasts were freed. Long Chen was almost blinded by them.


    After undoing her clothes, she hurriedly made a pitiful expression, signaling that she was begging him for mercy.


    What the fuck. Long Chen was speechless. Although this was the biggest, most tempting thing ever, this was nothingpared to Ling Xis beauty. Long Chens stomach turned, and his hands did not stop. He continued to drive his halberd into her chest, and the gigantic force from the Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension killed her immediately.


    <em>Is he not a man?</em> That was the dwarfdys only thought before she died.


    From her perspective, no man shouldve been able to deal the killing blow in the face of such temptation.


    Indeed, there were not many people who could proceed after seeing the best thing in the world. Long Chen was unfortunately the minority. After being by Ling Xis side day and night, and witnessing her pure innocence, every other woman might as well be a pile of poop.


    Long Chen did not pause for even a moment after killing the dwarfdy. He spun his halberd around and ran towards the Eight wed Fire Chi. The battle between it and the Sun Devouring Wolf had reached its peak!


    Although that woman was at the Second River Stage, her actualbat abilities had not even reached Emperor Yuans level. If Long Chen could kill Emperor Yuan, then he could kill her.


    Unbeknownst to Long Chen and Xiang, the dwarf man who had been injured by the beast was able to crawl on his feet. Looking at the womans body, hatred filled his eyes. After ring at Long Chen venomously, he prepared to flee Goldfish Ind.


    The direction he had chosen to run towards was coincidentally where Ling Xi was. He had heard what Long Chen said to the woman and learned that Long Chen had killed his n members. His objective now was to head over to see if he could kill someone in order to take revenge!


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    Long Chen and Xiang were focused on the Eight wed Fire Chi, which was nearing its limit after taking countless hits.


    Blood Devouring Domain! Xiang covered for Long Chen, who unleashed his formidable killing technique!


    When he joined forces with Xiang, the divine technique became extremely effective because Xiang was not affected and now possessed a greater advantage!


    The Eight wed Fire Chi was a Category Three Earth-tier beast. Long Chens Blood Devouring Domain should not have had much of an effect on it, only slowing its movements at most. However, it had sustained topical injuries from fighting the dwarves, plus the Sun Devouring Wolf had injured its feet!


    Its body was covered in cuts. Under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain, blood flowed from the cuts to Long Chen. Although it was not much, it would die fromck of blood if this continued!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The Eight wed Fire Chi let out a furious roar. It went insane when it noticed that the amount of blood in its body was decreasing, and bloodlust filled its eyes. It waved its ws hysterically, and while they did not strike its opponents, they caused the ground and mountain to break!


    Xiang, nows your chance! Long Chen yelled.


    Xiang immediately rushed to a direction where the beast could not see him and opened his mouth. A pir of ck mes shot towards its back!


    The Nine Devil Ancestral Fire left a giant crater in its back. Its blood and flesh turned into ck ice and shattered!


    The Eight wed Fire Chi lost a huge chunk of its body, including internal organs. At this point, it clearly could not survive any longer. Very soon, its eyes dimmed and it crashed to the ground, throwing a cloud of dust into the air!


    In reality, targeting the head wouldve been the most fatal attack strategy, but Xiang had spat the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire at its back because he wanted the demonic core in its head.


    That attack also meant that one-tenth of the beasts blood was lost. Long Chens heart ached. He was now a First River Stage cultivator, and this Category Three Earth-tier beast far exceeded his Qis level. It would likely help him ascend to the next level!


    Damn! The Eight wed Fire Chi was tough to beat. But now, all the good stuff on its body belongs to us. Long Chen was ready to give Xiang the demonic core and use Blood Transmutation. That was when he noticed amotioning from the east.


    That was the direction leading to Ling Xi.


    Long Chens nerves tightened. His gaze swept across the area and lo and behold, the dwarf man who had been hurt by the beast was no longer there. Long Chen had a bad feeling. <em>That dwarf must have headed towards Ling Xi!</em>


    The dwarf was a Second River Stage cultivator, so Chen Feng and Chen Lei were likely no match for him. Terrified, Long Chen abandoned his n for Blood Transmutation and ran as fast as he could towards Ling Xi without even calling for Xiang!


    Xiao Xi


    Violence filled his eyes. This was an oversight on his end! If anything happened to Ling Xi, he would never forgive himself!


    The wind howled in his ears as rage coursed through him. However, he felt slightly better when he noticed Xiang catching up.


    Xiang didnt know what had happened, but he had abandoned the Eight wed Fire Chis carcass. This showed how important Long Chen was to him.


    It took less than thirty breaths for Long Chen to arrive. To his horror, he saw that Chen Feng was already wounded, barely standing with help from a few Goldfish Ind warriors. Chen Lei was stubbornly standing in front of Ling Xi, facing attacks from the Second River Stage cultivator. Due to what Long Chen had said, retreat had never even crossed his mind!


    The dwarf stared at the beautiful Ling Xi with fire in his eyes. Her beauty had made himpletely forget his initial objective. As long as he could take Ling Xi away, he would leave this ce.


    That was when Long Chen and Xiang rushed over.


    <!--


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    You idiot! You think you can stop me? This is my final strike! Im sending you to hell! The dwarf swung his dagger at Chen Leis neck.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Save Ling Xi!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 289: Merak Heavenly River

    Chapter 289: Merak Heavenly River


    Chen Lei could not dodge the strike. He had no choiceall he could do was close his eyes and await death.


    He could not describe the way he was feeling if he tried. He had realized that he had been treating Long Chen badly due to his own close-mindedness and was feeling guilty.


    He wanted to do something for Long Chen to prove that he was a good man. That was why he had fought to the end to protect Ling Xi. However, he had found that he could not defeat the dwarf, although the dwarf was an injured Second River Stage cultivator.


    After he died, Ling Xi would be taken away by the evil dwarf. After observing them for the past few days, Chen Lei knew that Long Chen and Ling Xi shared a deep bond. If Ling Xi were kidnapped by this animalistic tribe, forget about Long Chen, even he would not ept it.


    But


    Chen Lei sighed internally. He knew that if he died, that oue would be inevitable.


    He could already feel his enemys dagger approaching his neck. Deaths shadow loomed over him and his scalp went numb.


    <em>Whoosh.</em>


    Time seemed to stop. Chen Lei gasped and realized that he was not dead. When he opened his eyes, there was a headless body standing in front of him, and the body was holding a dagger up against his throat. Just a little more and it would have cut through, killing Chen Lei.


    Chen Lei spotted the dwarfs head and stared at its wide eyes. This bastard likely did not know how he had died.


    In reality, the dwarf had been very close to getting his hands on Ling Xi and his emotions were running high. That paired with the enraged Long Chen would only lead to the same oue. Long Chen had chopped off his head with his halberd from behind.


    <em>Who killed him? </em>Chen Lei was puzzled. He noticed there was somemotion behind him and turned around hurriedly. He saw Ling Xi in a young mans arms. The young man was holding a long, green halberd, and its tip was currently resting on the ground, blood dripping from it.


    Long Chen  Chen Leis mouth went dry.


    Long Chen put his halberd away and patted Ling Xis shoulder tofort her, then he turned to Chen Lei. Brother Chen Lei, thank you so much. If it wasnt for you, we would be in huge trouble. Ive got to say, youre a true man!


    A man? Of course. Chen Lei scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.


    The dwarfs body finally fell over.


    It was not good to let Ling Xi see such a gory scene.


    Everything had been resolved, and Long Chens war spoil, the Eight wed Fire Chis carcass, was still at the center of the ind. He picked Ling Xi up, turned to Chen Lei and Chen Feng, and said, You two are injured; get some rest. Everyone else can deal with the bodies. Also, Xiang and I have in the Eight wed Fire Chi. We are now going to collect our spoils.


    Then, with Ling Xi in his arms and Xiang by his side, he headed back to the center of the ind.


    Chen Feng and Chen Lei looked at one another, finding shock in each others faces.


    To them, Long Chen was like a miracle. If it was not for him, Goldfish Ind would definitely have fallen. If the dwarves had not destroyed it first, the Eight wed Fire Chi would have.


    Long Chen had killed both the Eight wed Fire Chi and the dwarves.


    That was a Category Three Earth-tier beast, yet it had died in the hands of Long Chen and Xiang. How powerful was that teenager to have been able to do such things


    Leier, I have learned what a true prodigy is. Talent, intellect, attitude, and luckLong Chen has all of them. He is clearly a true prodigy.


    Chen Feng was genuinely impressed.


    ***


    Brother Chen, to be honest, I was terrified just now  Ling Xi curled up in his arms.


    Youve gotten a lot more timid ever since you used the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, Long Chen said.


    Yeah. I had some power when I was in my spirit form. Also, no one could touch me when I was in the Ling Xi Sword. But its all different now. This powerless feeling makes me feel very insecure  Ling Xi exined worriedly.


    Itll be fine. Ill be more vignt next time. I will protect you until we get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. I promise to keep youpletely safe even if I have to risk my life, said Long Chen with resolve.


    Why are you so good to me? Tears welled up in her eyes.


    Because youre my Ling Xi, he said, grinning mischievously.


    Ling Xi, who was being carried like a princess, wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his chest. Unbeknownst to Long Chen, worry filled her eyes. She was worried about the future.


    <em>How much longer will I be able to hug you like this, Brother Chen </em> Ling Xi<em></em>thought, biting her lip.


    When they finally arrived at the center of the ind, the carcass was still present. Xiang was walking back, already holding its demonic core in his mouth. Long Chen saw the red, fist-sized ball with mes on it. Xiang swallowed it whole and let out an <em>a-woo</em> towards Long Chen, then he went off to cultivate it.


    Due to the dy, more blood had flowed from the Eight wed Fire Chis carcass. Long Chens heart ached at the wastage. The blood of a Category Three Earth-tier beast was a good resource to raise his cultivation level.


    Not daring to dy any longer, he put Ling Xi aside and said, I will cultivate and refine the beasts blood. I will only be able to protect you by bing stronger.


    Blood Transmutation was a gory and terrifying technique. Ling Xi could not bear to watch it, so she found a ce to sit down.


    Long Chen quickly absorbed the beasts blood and, to his surprise, it was especially nourishing. The blood that had been lost was mostly regr blood; the true essence still remained in its body.


    Therge quantity of blood sped up the process of condensing the heavenly river in his body, specifically the second star vein. The First River Stage involved condensing the Dubhe Heavenly River, so it was also known as the Dubhe Realm. The Second River Stage was called the Merak Realm, or the Tianxuan Realm. Dongfang Tianxuan was named after this heavenly river.


    The massive amount of Blood Qi was converted into Long Chens own Qi, aggregating in the Merak Star Vein, though it was not enough Qi to form a heavenly river. He started to use the Star Attraction Method to link himself with the power in the Merak Heavenly River in the sky above.


    One part of the Merak Heavenly River appeared during the day and the other at night. Since it was daytime, Long Chen was condensing the Yang heavenly river.


    Starlight was faint due to the sunlight, but it poured into Long Chens body. The Merak Heavenly Rivers power was only the precursor. The true tool that could help him break through to the Second River Stage was the Heavenly River Pills.


    Long Chen had no choice but to pay a great price to progress his cultivation. He had more than two thousand pills in total, and he had already used two hundred when condensing the eighteen star veins.


    In his opinion, money was meant to be spent. That was why he did not hesitate to take out ten pills. He popped them in his mouth.


    Other people would be cautious because they had a limited number of Heavenly River Pills. However, Long Chen had an abundance of them, so he popped them into his mouth like beans. Usually, cultivators would slowly cultivate and improve as the star power within them grew. Long Chen, however, received power directly from the pills.


    The Inherited Blood Essence in his body had a property that themon person could not imagine. Long Chen felt as if his body was a bottomless pit, like he had a gigantic stomach that would not be full no matter how much he ate.


    Whatever he ate was just way too little for it.


    Time passed slowly. Long Chen gradually grew stronger with the assistance of the Blood Qi and the Heavenly River Pills. The Qi in his body slowly condensed along with the new energy, forming a liquid-form Star River Qi. It slowly flowed into his Merak Star Vein, forming the shining Merak Starry River in his body.


    One hourter, Long Chen sessfully condensed the third star vein. He had one foot in the Second River Stage. As long as hepleted the other Merak Star Vein, he would truly enter the Second River Stage.


    However, he had already exhausted the Eight wed Fire Chis Blood Qi and consumed about a hundred Heavenly River Pills. If he wanted to condense the other Merak Starry River, he would need more time.


    However, although he had only partially entered the Second River Stage, his strength had grown immensely.


    After his sess, he saw Xiang sitting next to him, radiating a thicker and heavier aura.


    Are you finally a Category Three Earth-tier again? Long Chen asked, pleasantly surprised.


    Xiang nodded. He was happy with the feeling of being stronger.


    The two brothers had leveled up thanks to Eight wed Fire Chi.


    Since weve already been here for a while, we might as well stay for a few more days. Well leave when I truly hit the Second River Stage. That will also give me some time to study the Divine Fire Clone technique, Long Chen said.


    Xiang was very interested in Divine Fire Clone. Due to Ling Xi, he would be able to discuss his thoughts with Long Chen.


    The days passed peacefully, and the citizens of Goldfish Ind returned to their tranquil lives. Xiao Yu often yed with them.


    On the tenth night after Long Chen condensed the Yang heavenly river, after consuming many Heavenly River Pills and ten straight days of brutal cultivation, he finally condensed the Merak Heavenly River in his Fourth Star Vein and officially reached the Second River Stage.


    The next day, Long Chen and Xiang prepared to leave.


    They still had to go to the Counter Essence Realm at the Biyang Imperial Capital after all.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Aww so cute when he said she belong to him


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 290: Incident At the City Gate

    Chapter 290: Incident At the City Gate


    After bidding farewell to the people on Goldfish Ind, Long Chen, Ling Xi, and Xiang continued their journey to the capital.


    Both Long Chen and Ling Xi rode Mo Xiang while traveling. Thanks to his speed, they soon saw the massive walls of the capital.


    It was tens of timesrger than Yuanling City, and the emerald-colored walls were very impressive even from a distance away. Long Chen felt like an ant in front of the massive city, akin to a pebble being dropped into the ocean that would cause nothing but a tiny ripple.


    The walls were so tall that they separated the heavens and earth.


    The closer they got, the taller the walls looked. Long Chen had not expected them to be so massive, and he felt insignificant next to them.


    There were many people riding demonic beasts outside the capitals wall. However, Long Chen still ordered Mo Xiang to be small again in order to not attract unwanted attention. The Sun Devouring Wolf was too unique.


    Long Chen then gave Ling Xi his veil and hat to prevent anyone from seeing her beauty.


    We will be fine once we enter the city and find the Ninth Prince, Long Chen whispered.


    Since the Ninth Prince was not around, Long Chen was essentially considered a nobody in the city. Even though he couldnt get a clear grasp on the Ninth Princes personality, he was sure that the Ninth Prince was not someone who would befriend him earnestly. Unfortunately, he had to rely on the Ninth Prince to enter the Counter Essence Realm.


    They made their final preparations before they approached the entrance to the city.


    They were at the southern gate of the capital. Even though it was not thergest one, it wasrger than Yuanling Citys gates. Countless people were constantly entering and exiting the city. Long Chen lined up with the rest, and there were more than ten lines of people waiting to enter. The closer they got, the more people with money and demonic beasts they spotted.


    Long Chen held Ling Xis hand and followed the crowd. They would be safe once they passed through the gates. All they would need to do then was find the Ninth Prince.


    Both of you, halt!


    One of the guards stopped Long Chen and Ling Xi.


    There were thousands of guards standing outside the gates. All of them were standing in an orderly line, had bulging muscles, and beards covering half of their faces.


    Is there a problem, Sir? Long Chen pulled Ling Xi to his side. His face was calm when he said that.


    Why is that woman wearing a veil? I need to check what is wrong with her before allowing her entry! The guard saw that Long Chen was just a brat and didnt wait for a reply before approaching Ling Xi. He had intended to tear off Ling Xis veil with or without consent.


    Long Chen stood between him and Ling Xi, ring at the guard. He didnt want to fight, but the guard was being too aggressive.


    Seeing that Long Chen dared to disobey him, the guard scoffed at Long Chen and his voice grew cold. What do you think youre doing? Are you trying to fight?


    Your words are too harsh. There are many people who did not reveal their faces when they entered the city. Why are you targeting us? Long Chen did not back down.


    The guards were at least at the Divine Core Realm. Even though their ranks werent high, they were all likely at the Heavenly Core Realm at least. Also, they had the backing of the Biyang Imperial Capital military. Therefore, it was not wise to fight them, but Long Chen would not allow a guard to walk all over him.


    Many people saw the conflict and some of them started discussing it themselves.


    There was indeed a reason the guard had stopped Ling Xi. Even though she was wearing a veil, the outline of her figure was still visible. The guard determined that she would be a beauty and wanted to stop her. His intention was to take her away from Long Chen.


    It was not the first time they had done this.


    Those who had been to the city numerous times had seen this happen before. All of them gave Long Chen looks of pity, already imagining what would happen to him. He would be killed and buried while Ling Xi would be the guards ything. If she was extremely beautiful, she would be offered to the higher-ups and the guards would either be rewarded or maybe even get promoted.


    Everyone knew that the ruling faction of the imperial capital was the imperial family. It was also the strongest faction. The three noble families were nothing but their underlings. The military was under the directmand of the imperial family, so no one would go against the unruly guards if they didnt have sufficient power.


    Long Chen was not an idiot, so he understood the rules. The military belonged to the imperial family, but Long Chen was an Immortal Guard that the Ninth Prince had personally recruited. There was no reason for him to be afraid.


    The guard thought Long Chen was an idiot andughed. He was originally going to let Long Chen live, but now there was no reason to.


    Men,e and catch him! Hes a disciple of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Hes trying to infiltrate the city!


    Yes, Sir!


    The other guards leaped into action the moment he said that. All of them attacked Long Chen. Obeying their captain was always the best decision, as they would be rewarded for it.


    A captain usuallymanded a squad of a hundred guards. At the present moment, a hundred guards surrounded Long Chen. It was a strong squad, with all of them at the Divine Core Realm, but they were nothing to Long Chen.


    Long Chen said nothing as he let Xiang protect Ling Xi while he himself rushed into the group of guards like a de.


    You dare fight back? The captainughed, but his smile froze when he saw his men falling down left and right.


    In just several minutes, all of the guards were lying on the ground. Both the captain and the spectators were shocked as they re-evaluated Long Chen.


    The young man has guts and strength. He probably has a good background too. Too bad he has offended the guards and will most likely get punished. No one can go against the guards with the military backing them.


    Thats true. There was once a Heavenly River Realm cultivator who fought the guards and was killed in one strike by themander.


    Long Chen knew that Heavenly River Realm cultivators were the apex in the capital. Although it was possible that there were people who had gone past it, there were still many at the Divine Core Realm and the Draconic Realm.


    The capitals poption was immense, almost ten times that of Yuanling City, so naturally a lot of strong cultivators were gathered here.


    The captain was shocked to see Long Chen defeating so many guards. He instinctively knew that Long Chen was stronger than himself, but he was not afraid. There had been many others stronger than him, but they had died in the end. The captain took out a horn and blew into it, sending a solemn sound into the clouds.


    <em>Is he calling for his superior?</em> But this was what Long Chen needed. He had chosen to fight in the beginning so that someone with a higher rank woulde out. <em>But the captain gave me so much trouble as well as killed many innocents before </em>


    Long Chen steeled himself. While the captain was blowing the horn, Long Chen used the Sword Devil Finger and pierced the captains chest. An instantter, the captain was dead.


    The horn fell to the ground.


    The captain stared at Long Chen. He wanted to know if Long Chen was the one who had killed him, but he would never find out. He didnt even see Long Chens face before he fell over.


    The captain never thought Long Chen would actually kill him. He had done this multiple times in the past and had mostly seeded, and his superior had protected him whenever he failed. But this time he had been killed before his superior even showed up.


    The spectators had thought that Long Chen was sensible in injuring the guards without killing them. But all of them were stunned when he killed the captain.


    To them, killing the captain in front of the entrance to the city was tantamount to rebellion. No matter how strong Long Chens background was, it would be uselesshe was effectively dead.


    Almost everyone who wanted to enter the city was watching the young boy, who was still calm after killing someone.


    The other captains recognized the direness of the situation and immediately called for their men. They surrounded Long Chen and Ling Xi but did nothing; they were waiting for their superior.


    Thousands of guards were staring at Long Chen.


    Just then, someone fell from the top of the walls. The personnded feet first without any injuries.


    It was a middle-aged cultivator wearing a thick suit of armor. The man was handsome and seemed charismatic.


    We greet the Seventh Commander!


    Thousands of guards kneeled in front of him.


    What happened? The Seventh Commander looked around, his eyesnding on Long Chen and the dead captain. The issue here had affected the flow of people entering and exiting the city, so he needed to fix it now.


    Seventh Commander, Liu Heng found out that that man is a disciple of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Liu Heng wanted to capture him but was killed instead. Please take revenge for Liu Heng!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    He''s doing great getting rid of the corrupted officers


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 291: Yuqin Palace

    Chapter 291: Yuqin Pce


    Everyone thought Long Chen was as good as dead.


    The Seventh Commander was famous for being quick to kill. There was once a cultivator at the Heavenly River Realm who made a ruckus after being blocked outside of the gates. The Seventh Commander killed that cultivator in one strike.


    Long Chen had done something even worse than that cultivator, so he was most certainly dead.


    The Seventh Commander took one look and knew what had happened. He didnt need his underlings to recount what had transpired. He approached Long Chen and carefully inspected him, just five meters away.


    Long Chen felt a strong pressure from the Seventh Commander; it wasparable to Elder Yans aura. Long Chen knew that the Seventh Commander was at least as strong as Elder Yan, which was roughly around the Fifth River Stage, so he knew he couldnt beat him.


    Anyst words before you die? The Seventh Commanders voice was solemn.


    Long Chen was fearless and stated his reasoning. My name is Long Chen, the Immortal Guard that the Ninth Prince recruited in Yuanling City. I was separated from the Ninth Prince due to special circumstances a few days ago. I am here to find him.


    Long Chen was sure that the Seventh Commander would do nothing as long as he brought the Ninth Prince into the picture.


    The Ninth Prince? The Seventh Commander was stunned. He had indeed heard the news that the Ninth Prince had been ambushed near the capital a few days ago. What Long Chen meant by special reasons was most definitely this.


    How do I know if you are telling the truth? the Seventh Commander whispered. He couldnt do anything to Long Chen if Long Chen was telling the truth.


    The Ninth Prince had indeed gone out to recruit an Immortal Guard. The Immortal Guards were the direct troops underneath the imperial family. In terms of hierarchy, they were above the guards of the capital. If Long Chen was telling the truth, the Seventh Commander would not dare to do anything to him.


    Let me follow you into the city and you can send someone to notify the Ninth Prince. The person the Ninth Prince sends over can verify my identity.


    The Seventh Commander gave Long Chen an uneasy look. He wanted to kill the kid immediately, but he didnt dare risk it.


    Fine, follow me. All of you! Go back to your positions! Sun Qin, clear this mess up!


    The spectators had been trying to listen to what the Seventh Commander and Long Chen were talking about. They had barely heard a few sentences when everything was over.


    Everyone understood what that order meant. Long Chen was saved! The guards were in shock. They were a tight-knit group, so they felt extremely unhappy to see Long Chen get off scot-free. How could they endure that?


    But they could not disobey the Seventh Commander. They red at Long Chen, itching to tear him to pieces.


    The normal spectators were even more shocked.


    That young man must have a special background. Even the guards had to suffer that humiliation. At the very least, the young man must have connections to the nobles.


    No shit. Hes so young and is already at the Heavenly River Realm. Even though hes not as talented as the princes, hes already on par with some of the disciples of the threerge families.


    Long Chen ignored their discussions. He had aplished two things here: killing the guard that nned to take Ling Xi and using the Seventh Commander to notify the Ninth Prince. He had saved himself a lot of trouble.


    Wait here. The person from the Ninth Princes faction should arrive in two hours or so. If I find out youre lying, I will kill you, the Seventh Commander said coldly as he led Long Chen to a courtyard.


    Long Chen ignored his threatpletely.


    The Seventh Commander left to do his job.


    In the courtyard, Long Chen and Ling Xi talked to each other to pass the time. Ling Xi got hungry halfway, and Long Chen gave her a meal prepared by the people on the Goldfish Ind.


    He suddenly felt like being able to live peacefully like that was a good choice. No wonder Li Xuanji had told him to hide somewhere remote with Ling Xi and just live a good life. They wouldve been able to live peacefully for their entire lives.


    But this was not what Long Chen wanted.


    He was anxious. There were too many people above him that could crush him easily, and he needed to be stronger than all of them.


    <em>If I have to face these challenges, so be it.</em>


    <em>Lingqing, Ling Xi and I will find you one day, </em>Long Chen swore to himself.


    Two hours passed, and Long Chen stood up. He sensed someone approaching.


    The doors to the courtyard opened and two people walked in. One of them was an old man wearing a ck robe. It was Elder Yan! The other person was the Seventh Commander.


    Long Chen, I cant believe you actually survived. It has been more than twenty days since you disappeared, so we thought you were dead since you didnt show up in the capital. Elder Yan was part shocked and part reprimanding.


    Sorry, Elder Yan. I had to dy my arrival by several days due to my cultivation.


    Elder Yan inspected Long Chen when he heard his exnation.


    So youve progressed to the Second River Stage. Your advancement speed far exceeds the geniuses in the capital. Our Lord thinks highly of you, so dont disappoint him. Hes waiting at Yuqin Pce for you, so lets go.


    Thank you, Elder Yan.


    It seems that Ling Xi is fine too. Good, good. Our Lord will be happy to see both of you.


    We apologize for making the Ninth Prince worry about us. We will seek his forgiveness once we get back, Long Chen said in a serious tone, but he picked up on Elder Yans change of tone. Long Chen was an Immortal Guard, while Ling Xi had no connection with the Ninth Prince at all. Why was the Ninth Prince worried about her?


    Long Chen raised his guard.


    <em>I cant catch a tigers cub if I dont enter its den. I have to face these challenges to obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. </em>


    The Seventh Commander took note of the conversation between Long Chen and Elder Yan. He now confirmed that Long Chen had told the truth. He also learned that the Ninth Prince was taking special care of Long Chen. To be fair, someone at the Second River Stage was considered weak in the Ninth Prince faction, but Long Chens potential was very high. It was that aspect of Long Chen that attracted the Ninth Prince.


    The Seventh Commander was secretly very shocked to find that there was someone with that much potential in Yuanling City. He silently noted down who Long Chen was.


    Long Chen hopped onto a fancy carriage with Elder Yan. The carriage was being pulled by demonic beasts, both of which were fast and smart, making their trip nice and smooth.


    When our Lord was fifteen, his achievements in both the written exam andbat exam were highly regarded by the Emperor and he was given a separate pce and a title: King Yuqin. Thats why our Lord is not living in the pce. Yuqin Pce is situated outside of the imperial pce. Its evenrger than the actual imperial pce and is where our Lord works every day. Our Lord is very knowledgeable and socially connected; his cultivation level is also very high. The Emperor has relied on our Lord many times in the past two years, so more and more people are joining our faction! Thanks to his rising reputation, the Heavenly Demon Pce sent someone to kill him! Elder Yan said proudly.


    Long Chen noted down what he had heard and asked, Elder Yan, what happened to the assassin?


    That assassin was at the Seventh River Stage. Cultivators at his level are rare even in the imperial pce. Neither me nor our Lord were not his match, so we had to flee. Severalmanders surrounded the assassin and killed him when we approached the city.


    Elder Yan, what is the Heavenly Demon Pce? Why would they dare to attack the imperial family? Long Chen seized his chance to ask this too.


    The Heavenly Demon Pce? They are thergest enemy of the imperial family. They are hungry for the position of the imperial family and they have experts scattered throughout the Cangyang Kingdom. Its the only enemy faction that the imperial family is wary of. Their headquarters is situated west of the imperial capital, at the top of Demon Emperor Mountain. The mountain is a treacherous ce to even climb. The imperial family has sent expert fighters numerous times to destroy the headquarters of the Heavenly Demon Pce, but they failed every time. Its not that they are strong, but the Heavenly Demon Pce has the geological advantage while being holed up there.


    Since Elder Yan belonged to the imperial family faction, he needed to maintain the honor of the imperial family. That was why he had been boasting so much. Long Chen filtered out the fluff and understood that the Heavenly Demon Pce was a faction that rivaled the imperial family.


    If you meet someone from the Heavenly Demon Pce, you have to be careful. They are vicious people that would do anything to aplish their goal. You are certainly dead if you meet them.


    Long Chen nodded.


    <em>Is the imperial capital another den of wolves? One day, I will make sure to step on all these wolves. </em>Long Chen clenched his fists.


    They soon arrived at Yuqin Pce.


    Long Chen raised his head and was shocked to see the scale of the pce. The imperial family was indeed on a whole different level. Yuqin Pce made the Jade Royal Pce look like a small house. There were two massive stone lions at the entrance that radiated a sharp aura. They deterred any would-be intruders from entering.


    These stone lions are carved out of Heavenly River Stones. Those below the Divine Core Realm get carved up by the sharp aura. I suggest that you protect Miss Ling Xi, Elder Yan advised calmly.


    It was unbelievable that the two stone lions at the entrance was enough to deter those below the Divine Core Realm. The authority of the imperial family was not to be trifled with.


    Follow me. Our Lord is already waiting for you.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Even though its a pce, its more like an entire estate where instead of rooms they had an entire building. They probably have an entire building for the toilet too


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 292: Fire Essence

    Chapter 292: Fire Essence


    After entering Yuqin Pce, Long Chen finally understood the difference between the imperial family and normal nobles. The scale and grandness of the buildings were too different; they were far fancier than the ones he had seen in Yuanling City.


    Elder Yan held a high position in Yuqin Pce. Therefore, the servants and guards took notice when they saw him walking alongside Long Chen. They only discussed amongst themselves once Long Chen was gone. Many people visited the pce each day, but it was rare to see Elder Yan escort someone personally.


    Our Lord is waiting for you in the study. Elder Yan was emotionless as he pointed in a direction before leading Long Chen over there. Elder Yan didnt talk much, but he did look at Ling Xi a few times, his eyes revealing a suspicious intent.


    While walking through the pce, Long Chen felt that the temperature was higher than outside. A sense of warmth circted around him,pletely dispelling the chill from the spring wind. He felt his body be lighter whenever he breathed in.


    What is this? A normal human would be able to extend their lifespan by just being in this environment. Long Chen carefully inspected his surroundings.


    Ling Xi would benefit greatly from the warmth since she was a normal human now, though she retained her knowledge as a cultivator.


    This must be an effect from a treasure that releases a lot of Yang energy. It can dispel the chill while increasing the efficiency of cultivation.


    I see. I wonder if that treasure would help Xiang, Long Chen whispered.


    Elder Yan looked back when he sensed that Long Chen was examining the surroundings. Do you feel something different here?


    Long Chen nodded.


    All those who enter Yuqin Pce have the same sensation. Just wait a bit and you will see the item that causes it. Elder Yan was filled with pride.


    I wonder what that item is. Long Chen probed further.


    Its not exactly a secret. When our Lord became an adult, the Sword Emperor gifted him ten Fire Essences, a rare item that can only be found deep inside undergroundva. It is very difficult to evene across one, much less ten of them. Its no surprise, considering how much the Sword Emperor adores the Ninth Prince. Elder Yan smiled at the thought.


    The Sword Emperor was the current emperor of the Cangyang Kingdom. He had received the title due to his achievements in swordsmanship.


    Long Chen knew the reason why the imperial family could control the entire Cangyang Kingdom was because of their cultivation.


    There were three main types of cultivators in the Cangyang Kingdom. The first was the normal cultivators, the second was the Beast Warriors. In the Beast Soul Pce of Yuanling City, most cultivators were Beast Warriors. The final type was the Armament Warrior.


    Long Chen had heard of them before but had never seen one. It was said that a Beast Warrior was stronger than a normal cultivator at the same cultivation level, while an Armament Warrior was stronger than a Beast Warrior! Still, Armament Warriors were only the strongest among normal cultivators. They were nowhere close to someone like Long Chen, who was a Dragon Warrior.


    Bing a Beast Warrior required quite a bit of talent, and bing an Armament Warrior required even more. They needed to be born with something special. Usually, the souls of humans could be separated into ten equal pieces. Armament Warriors were born with one extra piece in their dantian, and that extra piece was called the Armament Soul.


    Those with an Armament Soul could merge it with their weapon. Doing so would make their weapon a part of their body, allowing them to utilize stronger techniques. There were also other benefits that Long Chen was unaware of.


    Some Armament Warriors used only a single weapon throughout their entire lives, but their weapons were able to grow stronger as they themselves improved in their cultivation. If the host grew extremely strong, even a normal weapon could transform into a Divine Arm.


    Most Divine Arms were born directly in the Armament Souls of Armament Warriors.


    Long Chen knew that the imperial family of the Cangyang Kingdom was a traditional Armament Warrior family. Everyone in their family used a sword, and they most likely had aplete set of sword techniques in their archives. Swords were the main weapons of most Armament Warriors, and the Emperor was even called the Sword Emperor to honor his aplishments.


    Ten Fire Essences  Our Lord used nine of them to forge an advanced Earth-tier Divine Arm. Its thanks to that sword that our Lord managed to hold out against the Seventh River Stage assassin, Elder Yan exined with a sigh.


    Long Chen had gathered some useful information from their conversation. Such as the fact that the Ninth Prince was at the Sixth River Stage, and he had an advanced Earth-tier Divine Arm.


    Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd was only at the intermediate Earth-tier. He could only be the Ninth Princes errand boy at best now that he knew how strong the Ninth Prince was.


    But so what?


    Long Chen had no fear.


    Elder Yan, does that mean I get to see the final Fire Essenceter on? Long Chen probed further.


    You can see it if you raise your head now.


    Long Chen looked up. There was a massive building in front of him. The entire building was most likely the Ninth Princes study. At the apex of the study was a shining object. Long Chen closed his eyes instinctively from the blinding light, but he managed to catch a glimpse of it.


    It was close to what he had imagineda palm-sized orb that shot out a blinding light. It was hard for people to look at directly. Even though Long Chen did not manage to get a clear look, he was confident that he would be able to identify it the next time he spotted one.


    With the Fire Essence embedded at the top of the study, Yuqin Pce is impervious to ghosts and spirits alike. The Yang energy radiating from it also dispels the chill from the cold wind. The servants and guards alike dont need to fear the cold. In fact, the Fire Essence even agitates the fire energy in the air and allows us to cultivate more efficiently.


    Mo Xiangs eyes were bursting with greed when he saw the Fire Essence. Long Chen looked at him while listening to Elder Yan. He knew that the Fire Essence would most likely benefit Mo Xiang as much as the Eight wed Fire Chi.


    Long Chen finally understood why the Sun Devouring Wolf was considered such a monstrous beast. He was also d to be able to find two different items that could help Mo Xiang improve drastically, the demonic core of the Eight wed Fire Chi and the Fire Essence. As long as they get more treasures of the same nature and let Mo Xiang consume them, his strength would grow exponentially. This would also benefit Long Chen.


    Xiang, nows not the time. Lets wait for now, Long Chen whispered.


    Mo Xiang understood that it was not the time.


    They could only bide their time since Long Chen was still too weak to plunder it.


    Weve arrived.


    Elder Yan was at the front of the door and was about to knock when they heard the Ninth Princes voice.


    Come in.


    Elder Yan said nothing and nodded as he pushed the door open. He then escorted Long Chen and Ling Xi inside. Mo Xiang followed suit.


    Once inside, Long Chen gasped when he saw howvish the interior was. Since it was the study, there was naturally an ungodly amount of books. There was also arge amount of writing utensils and decorations that lent the ce a distinguished aura.


    Long Chen saw the Ninth Prince sitting on a chair in the middle of the room. The Ninth Prince was drinking tea while reading a book, surrounded by a lot of servants. When he saw Long Chen and Ling Xi enter, he waved his hand at the servants. The beautiful servants nodded and carefully left the ce before closing the door.


    Long Chen and Miss Ling Xi, please sit. The Ninth Prince straightened up as he looked at Long Chen and stole several nces at Ling Xi without betraying any emotion.


    Thank you, my Lord.


    In order to enter the Counter Essence Realm to obtain a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit so Ling Xi couldpletely recover, Long Chen was more than ready to enter the imperial capital even though it might be an abyss of no return, much less the Ninth Princes pce.


    Long Chen took Ling Xis hand and sat at the side. Even though Ling Xi was strong as a spirit, she was now a normal human. She had learned how to be docile since she could do nothing now. She usually didnt speak in front of strangers, but her senses were sharp enough to tell that someone was staring at her greedily.


    <em>Is it the Ninth Prince? </em>Ling Xi looked at the Ninth Prince but saw that he was speaking to Long Chen. He had not once looked at her.


    Ling Xi thought she was overthinking it.


    Long Chen, its been seventeen days since we separated. I tried to search for you, but you were not at your original location. I kept trying to listen to news of your appearance for the past few days. You sure made me work. The Ninth Princes tone contained a hint of impatience.


    Sorry. I was worried that there were other assassins, so I went and hid myself.


    Despite apologizing, he was not sorry at all. He did not care about the Ninth Prince, as the only thing he wanted was the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Tell me everything that happened while we were separated, the Ninth Prince said distractedly.


    Long Chen decided to not say anything about Goldfish Ind, as he didnt trust the Ninth Prince enough.


    I felt that I was on the verge of advancing, so I found a ce to cultivate and entered the Second River Stage beforeing to the capital.


    Even though he had lied, there was a kernel of truth in his story. He had indeed reached the Second River Stage.


    Youve broken into the Second River Stage so soon after reaching the First River Stage?


    The Ninth Prince was shocked. Long Chen was only at thete Heavenly Core Realm when he earned his position as an Immortal Guard. To think he had reached the Second River Stage in such a short amount of time.


    The Ninth Prince had no choice but to reevaluate Long Chens potential.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Wish I had that Fire Essence. Would work wonders for my joints


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 293: Heavenly Wolf Gang

    Chapter 293: Heavenly Wolf Gang


    After the Ninth Prince finished his questioning, Long Chen immediately asked about his main objective.


    My Lord, when will I depart for the Counter Essence Realm?


    You are very lucky. If you had arrived tomorrow, you mightve needed to wait another month. The shift for the Immortal Guards changes every month. Today is the end of the month, so the other Immortal Guards directly underneath me should be returning soon.


    The Ninth Prince smiled, his gaze shing past Ling Xis beautiful face as his eyes glinted with greed.


    Ling Xi sat still and looked at Long Chen, her eyes radiating happiness. The Ninth Prince saw that too.


    Long Chen smiled at her and asked the Ninth Prince, Does that mean I will officially start my work as an Immortal Guard tomorrow and enter the Counter Essence Realm?


    The Ninth Prince had been looking at Ling Xi before he got interrupted by Long Chen. He quickly shifted his gaze and answered, Yes. Tomorrow is the start of a new month. Some of my other Immortal Guards will be entering the Counter Essence Realm too, and you will follow them. I will arrange for someone to take you to my uncle to register.


    Long Chen did not mind that he was being rushed. The earlier he could enter the Counter Essence Realm, the faster he could start searching for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. He needed to leave this ce as soon as possible.


    Looks like Miss Ling Xi loves you a lot, but unfortunately, you will have to be separated for an entire month. The Ninth Prince looked at Ling Xi again.


    Separated? Long Chen was stunned before he realized that it was natural.


    The Counter Essence Realm was the imperial familys treasure trove. Even as an Immortal Guard, Long Chen still had to register to enter. Ling Xi and Mo Xiang would naturally not be able to go with him.


    Brother Chen? Ling Xi had anticipated this, but she was still nervous. Long Chen was her only safe ce. If he left, she would feel very exposed to danger.


    Dont worry, this is not a life-or-death situation. Long Chen, let Ling Xi stay with me here at Yuqin Pce while you are inside the Counter Essence Realm. I will ensure her safety, the Ninth Prince said solemnly.


    Long Chen did not answer immediately. Even though the Ninth Princes gaze was sincere, Long Chen knew his instincts didnt lie.


    The Ninth Prince was definitely not doing this out of kindness.


    Ling Xi held onto Long Chens sleeve.


    He needed to make a choice. In order to enter the Counter Essence Realm and find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, he had to leave Ling Xi in Yuqin Pce.


    He didnt trust the Ninth Prince, so he hesitated.


    Brother Chen, its okay. Mo Xiang said he would protect me, Ling Xi whispered to him.


    Long Chen was painfully aware of that too. He needed to leave Mo Xiang as well if he wanted to enter the Counter Essence Realm. At least he trusted Mo Xiang.


    But now it was time for him to make a choice. This was a gamble, and he would regret his decision if anything went wrong.


    Laughter suddenly came from outside, breaking the silence. Long Chen was temporarily saved from making a decision.


    The Ninth Prince was not offended even though Long Chen had not given him an answer. When he heard theughter outside, he told Long Chen, Long Chen, my Immortal Guards are back. Most of them are from the Heavenly Wolf Gang, a group that has pledged their loyalty to me. They arent exactly refined, but they are fairly easy-going people. You will be mingling with them for the next month.


    The Ninth Prince had just finished talking when a group of tall men entered the room with his permission. Long Chen looked at them and noted that they were around twenty to thirty years old. All of them had something inmon, which was their bodies. All of them were roughly two meters tall and had bulging muscles. It was clear that they were plenty strong.


    Additionally, each of them was bald and had a wolf tattoo. The tattoos were horrifying and blood-red. Even though the men werentughing, their smiles were extremely sinister.


    What are youughing at? The Ninth Prince smiled inly. It seemed that he was quitex to his underlings.


    We were discussing which women in the brothel would be strong enough to endure everyones onught throughout the night. Let me tell you, the star prostitute of the brothel was so pretty


    The one who answered the Ninth Prince was an older man. He had the same bald head and bulging muscles with a tattoo. His eyes were bloodshot and he radiated killing intent even though he was just chatting. This was a man who had killed plenty.


    Long Chen instinctively knew that this person was the leader of the Heavenly Wolf Gang; he was also the strongest among them.


    While the man was speaking about the prostitute, he saw there were people in the study. He wanted to say that the prostitute was so beautiful that she could bring entire cities to their knees, but he stuffed those words back into his throat when he saw Ling Xi.


    One look at her was more than enough to make him think that the prostitute looked like shit.


    The Heavenly Wolf Gang consisted of seven men. All of them were staring at Ling Xi with nk expressions.


    Anyone else wouldve reacted the same if a goddess were to descend onto the mortal realm without any warning.


    Let me introduce you to them. This is the Immortal Guard I recruited in Yuanling City, Long Chen. And this is Miss Ling Xi.


    The Ninth Princes words made them realize what was going on. The leader of the Heavenly Wolf Gang looked at the gaze of the Ninth Prince and then at Ling Xi before realizing what was going on.


    You idiots! Stop looking! Do you think youre worthy of looking at someone that pretty?


    The rest of them werent angry at all even after being scolded. All of them looked at Long Chen instead.


    Long Chen was also looking at them.


    He was not an idiot.


    <em>Damn, it seems that the Ninth Prince is indeed trying to get Ling Xi. The bald leader is basically telling the others that Ling Xi is the Ninth Princes goal and that they must not touch her. You guys are smart, but Im not an idiot either.</em>


    Long Chen had already noticed that something was off with the Ninth Prince when he first saw Ling Xi. Everyone loved beautiful girls, especially ones who were beautiful enough to bring a kingdom to ruin.


    The Ninth Princes strength and status were many times higher than Long Chens, so there was no way he would let Long Chen get Ling Xi.


    The Ninth Prince had indeed highly regarded Long Chens potential in the beginning, but everything changed when Ling Xi appeared.


    Long Chen started to feel the pressure. He tried to think of numerous ways to get out of this. Luckily, he had managed to confirm what was going on early, so he had time to think about how to solve it.


    He pretended that he did not understand what they were talking about.


    The Heavenly Wolf Gang was also looking at Long Chen. All of them knew that Long Chen was very unlucky to have the Ninth Prince notice Ling Xi.


    Especially when they saw that Long Chen was only at the First or Second Heavenly River Stage.


    Go ahead and introduce yourselves. Long Chen will be joining you next time. I wont forgive you if you teach him bad things. The Ninth Prince chuckled.


    All of them started introducing themselves to Long Chen. He learned that the leader of the Heavenly Wolf Gang was called Yu Tao, who was at the Fifth River Stage. The others were at the Third or Fourth River Stages. Only one of them was roughly at the same age as Long Chen.


    Long Chen pretended to be very meek and didnt say much. He only nodded when they mentioned him in their conversation.


    The Ninth Prince was strangely very friendly with them andughed at their crude jokes.


    Yu Tao, before you head to the Counter Essence Realm tomorrow, remember to let Long Chen know about the rules and take him to my uncle for registration, the Ninth Prince reminded.


    Dont worry, I will remember your orders clearly. I will ensure that there wont be any problems at all. But with his strength, it seems that the elementary zone will be quite dangerous for him. My Lord, are you sure you want to let him enter the Counter Essence Realm? Yu Taos eyes were filled with contempt.


    Thats why I want you to be extra careful with him, the Ninth Prince responded.


    They were conversing amongst themselves andpletely ignoring Long Chen. To them, Long Chen was just a sad man waiting for an unfortunate ident.


    Hmm? This wolf looks interesting. It seems that it''s a demonic beast, and it''s quite strong! the youngest of the Heavenly Wolf Gang eximed. He was roughly at the Third River Stage.


    Even though he was young, his body was twice asrge as Long Chens.


    Of course it''s strong. Its a Category Two Earth-tier demonic beast. Im not sure what kind of wolf demonic beast it is, but its definitely a mutated one, the Ninth Prince said simply.


    Is that true? the young man shouted with glee. We are so lucky to find one! Big Brother, our third brother is going to enter the Heavenly River Realm soon. Since we are good friends with wolves, the beast soul of this wolf demonic beast should be a great gift for him.


    He was talking to Yu Tao.


    The eldest and youngest of the group were siblings. <em>No wonder they look simr.</em>


    Long Chen, my third brother needs the beast soul of an Earth-tier wolf-type demonic beast. Would you be kind enough to give us yours? Yu Tao was greedily eyeing Mo Xiang.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Don''t even think about touching Xiang


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 294: Bet

    Chapter 294: Bet


    Killing Mo Xiang and then giving them the beast soul? To Long Chen, this was nothing more than bullshit.


    Long Chen was already irritated when they ignored him while thinking that he was an idiot. He knew that he needed to hold back, but he didnt mind showing them that it was a bad idea to piss him off.


    His voice was ice cold when he rebuked Yu Taos absurd request. Impossible. Xiang is my sworn brother who has gone through life-and-death situations with me. I cant let him be your third brothers Primary Beast Soul.


    Long Chen''s refusal caused the smiles on their faces to freeze. They thought Long Chen was just a pitiful man, but now that same man was being arrogant towards them. How could they let that slide?


    Before being taken in by the Ninth Prince, they were bandits that killed innocent people for fun. It was because they had to take the Ninth Princes reputation into consideration that they stopped doing all those things. But that didnt mean they would allow Long Chen to insult them just like that.


    The beast soul is very important to my third brother. Long Chen, are you sure you dont want to give it to us? Yu Tao asked in a threatening tone.


    If it wasnt for the Ninth Prince being present, he wouldve pped Long Chen silly with his Fifth River Stage strength.


    Long Chen was not afraid of him. He pointed at Yu Taos second brother, the youth at the Third River Stage. If I asked for his life, would you give it to me?


    He had made his meaning clear: Xiang was his sworn brother!


    You seek death! Do you want to fight me? The youth stood up from his chair when he saw that Long Chen was underestimating him. He wanted to kill Long Chen badly.


    Yu Chong, sit down! The Ninth Prince scoffed.


    Yu Chong had to obey the Ninth Prince, so he sat down begrudgingly. Even though he dared not move again, the killing intent in his eyes was growing.


    You have just met and are already fighting over a small issue. Yu Tao, you need an Earth-tier wolf-type demonic beast, correct? I will just ask someone to go find one tomorrow. This matter has been resolved, so neither party should seek the other out for revenge. Understood? All of you are working under me as Immortal Guards. My reputation will fall if you cant cooperate! The Ninth Princes voice grew colder as he spoke.


    Even though the Heavenly Wolf Gang was still angry, none of them dared to mention it again after seeing how angry the Ninth Prince was.


    They assumed Long Chens status was low, but it seemed that he had a little. But they only understood why the Ninth Prince was so angry after looking at Ling Xi. Their altercation had made Ling Xi upset.


    <em>Looks like the Ninth Prince is going all out for thisdy. Ling Xi is clearly in love with Long Chen, and the Ninth Prince is different from us. Not only does he want her body, he wants her heart too. If we cause trouble for Long Chen, it will only make Ling Xi hate the Ninth Prince even more. Its a good thing we stopped ourselves! </em>Yu Tao understood after looking at the situation.


    In that case, we will be going. We wille and guide Long Chen tomorrow. Yu Tao was worried that his underlings, who were all very aggressive, would seek trouble with Long Chen, so he had to leave with them now.


    The Ninth Prince was about to nod when Long Chen called out, Wait.


    The Heavenly Wolf Gang was confused. They were about to stand up when Long Chen stopped them. The Ninth Prince gestured for them to sit back down.


    What do you want from them? The Ninth Prince was confused.


    I thought it through. We will be brothers in the future since we are going to cooperate in the Counter Essence Realm. Naturally, I cannot be selfish if my brothers need a beast soul urgently. But I dont think I can just hand Xiang over to you after having it for so long. I will agree to it under one condition. Long Chen smiled mischievously when he looked at the Heavenly Wolf Gang.


    What condition? Yu Tao was confused too. Long Chen was such a weird individual to him. He had been as prickly as a porcupine, and now he wanted to give up the beast soul?


    <em>Is Long Chen afraid?</em>


    Long Chens eyes were sharp, and he pointed at Yu Chong, Yu Taos brother. Its simple. If you can defeat me, I will give you the wolf.


    Everyone froze beforeughing. Yu Chongughed the hardest.


    Yu Tao stifled hisughter and patted Yu Chongs shoulder. Second Brother, stopughing. Come, show him the strength of the Heavenly Wolf Gang! Let this bumpkin see how strong we are.


    Of course, Big Brother. I will put on a satisfactory show.


    Yu Chong had to hold in hisughter. Long Chens suggestion hade as aplete surprise. They thought Long Chen was a prickly idiot, one that was too difficult to deal with. But now they realized that he was aplete moron.


    The Heavenly Wolf Gang was a group who recruited strong people, ones who could fight opponents above their levels. Long Chen was just a country bumpkin at the Second River Stage, and now he wanted to challenge them?


    It was the biggest joke they had heard today. Even the mature Yu Tao had to force himself not tough.


    Bastard, we are all Immortal Guards working under the Ninth Prince. Just hold yourself back and dont injure him! We need to be able to cooperate peacefully in the future, Yu Tao fake-warned his brother.


    Of course. Yu Chong stoppedughing and looked at Long Chen excitedly. He had no idea how Long Chen could be so stupid.


    Both the Ninth Prince and Elder Yan looked at each other. They werentughing.


    They knew how Long Chen washe would never do something stupid out of anger. The Ninth Prince had also checked Long Chens history. He was an unknown boy who had worked his way into Yuanling City and then ended up killing Yuanling Citys strongest cultivator, Emperor Yuan.


    The Ninth Prince didnt believe that Long Chen would make such a offer without an ulterior motive.


    As he had expected, Long Chen continued, Since this is a duel, its only natural that you need to state your reward if I defeat you. Ive already stated mine. This is fair and square. You guys are my seniors, so there''s no way you would put up something trivial as a reward, right?


    The Heavenly Wolf Gang thought about it and found the suggestion to be reasonable.


    Of course, they never thought that Yu Chong would lose, so Yu Tao said in azy tone, Sure, what do you want? Heavenly River Pills? Earth-tier Divine Arms? Martial techniques or spiritual herbs? Name it and we can give it to you!


    They had thought Long Chen was just a country bumpkin that wouldnt even know what an Earth-tier martial technique was. That was why they had spoken so rashly.


    Long Chen was not interested in what they offered. He turned towards the Ninth Prince instead. I am interested in the Fire Essence at the top of the study room. I wonder, would the Ninth Prince be kind enough to set it up as a reward?


    Long Chen looked at the Ninth Prince with anticipation.


    This was his true goal.


    The Heavenly Wolf Gang wasnt sure what to do after they had heard what Long Chen wanted.


    The Fire Essence was the Ninth Princes possession, and there was no way they could even touch it, much less give it to Long Chen. They never thought Long Chen woulde up with such a request.


    No, that is the possession of our Lord. Long Chen, ask for something else, Yu Tao said, irritated.


    Long Chen did not answer him and continued to look at the Ninth Prince.


    Sure. The Ninth Prince smiled peacefully. Since Long Chen wants it, then I will just set it up as the reward. This is my territory after all. All of you are my Immortal Guards, so there is no harm in me using it as a reward. I will also be your judge. If Yu Chong wins, Long Chen will have to give up the demonic beast. If Long Chen wins, the Fire Essence will be his.


    Long Chen smiled.


    He knew the Ninth Prince would agree.


    Most battles were fought intellectually. He knew that the Ninth Prince would want to see him spar with Yu Chong. That was why Long Chen had gotten greedy and asked for the Fire Essence.


    Thank you, my Lord! Yu Tao nodded fervently at the Ninth Prince before looking at Yu Chong. Second Brother, you know what to do. If you lose, the Ninth Prince will have to give up on the Fire Essence. I will beat you up if you do!


    Dont worry. Have I ever let you down? Yu Chong rubbed his fists. He was very eager to fight Long Chen.


    Brother Chen  Ling Xi was worried.


    Sit down. I will show you how I bully the bad bastards. Long Chen stood up, lowered his head, and gave Ling Xi a peck on her jade-like cheek.


    Ling Xi blushed, the redness spreading from her neck to her ears. She lowered her head, wanting to bury herself in a hole out of embarrassment from being kissed in public.


    The Ninth Princes killing intent shed across his eyes after seeing what Long Chen was doing.


    Yu Tao saw what Long Chen had done and whispered to Yu Chong, Our Lord is angry. Just fight seriously.


    I understand. Yu Chong licked his lips with his blood-red tongue while still rubbing his fists.


    Long Chen, follow me outside. Yu Chong walked out first.


    There was a big empty space in front of the study room, one big enough for them to fight.


    Long Chen held Ling Xis hand as they walked out. The others follow suit with the Ninth Prince at the lead. All of them wanted to see Long Chen and Yu Chong fight.


    Xiang saw everything and he raised his head. He nced at the Fire Essence at the top of the study room, his eyes revealing gratitude and contentment.


    He knew that the Fire Essence would be his soon. Ling Xi was the only other person who knew how strong Long Chen was.


    The Third River Stage? Yu Chong was stronger than Emperor Yuan, and younger too. Yu Chongs cultivation level and age were roughly the same as Long Chens, and he was considered as a genius. But Long Chen was not afraid.


    Lets start, Yu Chong said excitedly.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Make them regret it!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 295: Divine Fire Clone Activate!

    Chapter 295: Divine Fire Clone Activate!


    Even though he was certain of his victory, Long Chen dared not be careless. The Biyang Imperial Capital wasrger than Yuanling City, so even though Long Chen was considered a genius in Yuanling City, he was just a regr cultivator here in the imperial capital. There was an abundance of people at the same cultivation level as him.


    Long Chen was wagering Xiangs life, so he had to win. Naturally, he only dared to suggest that because he was certain he could win.


    The battle that everyone had been anticipating started.


    Yu Chong and Long Chen both transformed at the start of the battle. Long Chen dared not let his guard down, especially since he was fighting against someone at a higher cultivation level. He needed to transform into his strongest form right now.


    Yu Chong hadpleted his transformation too.


    It was clear that Yu Chong was using an Earth-tier wolf-type demonic beast as his Primary Beast Soul. He had grown into a three-meter-tall beast and silver fur had sprouted on his skin. His sharp ws revealed a bloody glint.


    Yu Chong was visually stronger than Long Chen.


    This is a Category Four Earth-tier Silver Moon Wolf. What is your Primary Beast Soul? What category is it? You look like a lizard. Yu Chongughed after he taunted Long Chen. To him, a country bumpkin would always be a bumpkin. He thought there was no way Long Chens primary beast soul couldpete with his.


    The Heavenly Wolf Gangughed too.


    The Ninth Prince didnt. He was fixated on what type of beast soul Long Chen was using.


    He knew Long Chen had been using the same beast soul since the Draconic Realm, but what was surprising was that it appeared to have grown in strength as Long Chen became stronger. It was one of the reasons why the Ninth Prince thought Long Chen was mysterious.


    Long Chen decided to end it as fast as possible to prevent any unforeseen circumstances from happening.


    Be careful, Long Chen said before rushing towards the massive beast. His speed caused wind to blow in every direction.


    Yu Chong was stillughing, but he became serious after seeing Long Chens speed.


    While running, Long Chen brandished the Azure Dragon Halberd. Without saying anything, he waved it around and pointed the tip at Yu Chong. Afterimages of the halberd circled around him.


    <em>What an idiot to fight the Ninth Prince for a woman. </em>Yu Chong licked his lips, and his Qi exploded outwards. A wolf tattoo appeared on his body and killing intent spilled forth.


    He clenched his feet and jumped, his body turning into a cannon ball that barrelled towards Long Chen before he extended his ws.


    The ground shook from the impact.


    Die! Tear through the heavens and earth! Heaven Rending w!


    His hand flew towards Long Chen. Long Chen knew that the technique was at least as strong as an elementary Earth-tier martial technique.


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Starsweep Dragon!


    The afterimages of the halberd filled the air as they crashed into Yu Chongs ws. The sound of shing metals and scraping nails could be heard countless times. Yu Chongs ws were stronger than Long Chen had expected. After shing with each other numerous times, both of them remained unscathed. In the end, both flew backwards from the impact.


    <em>Bam! Boom!</em>


    They each took several steps back before stopping. It appeared that they were evenly matched. Everyone had expected for Long Chen to be blown back, so they were surprised when they saw Yu Chong look equally disheveled. The Heavenly Wolf Gang was perplexed at what they were seeing.


    Bastard! Did you not eat lunch or did you waste all of your energy on the woman yesterday? If you dare humiliate our Lord, I will skin you alive! Yu Tao shouted.


    Yu Chong was dejected. He had used his full strength, yet he had failed to defeat Long Chen. He was confused too. Long Chen was only at the Second River Stage but already had the strength of a Third River Stage cultivator. Yu Chong was considered an elite in terms of raw strength, so how could he get pushed back by Long Chen?


    Shit! I dont believe this! I will defeat you in one technique!


    Yu Chongs eyes were cold and his body became a blur as he ran towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen had also shaken off the pain from the previous sh.


    Demonic Wolf Secret Technique, Silver Moon sh!


    Yu Chongs massive frame became a giant de of moonlight that flew towards Long Chen. The martial technique was immensely powerful. Long Chen saw numerous wolf faces hidden within the de. The faint faces seemed to make the attack stronger.


    Nine Spinning Fire Shields!


    Long Chen did not attack head-on with another technique, instead opting to block. He was now capable of using the Nine Spinning Fire Shields much more naturallypared to when he fought Emperor Yuan. After training and cultivating it, he could now use theplete Nine Spinning Fire Shields rather than his previous record of six rotations.


    There were a lot of martial techniques that focused on attacking, but few of them were defensive ones. All defensive martial techniques were considered superior techniques, and the Nine Spinning Fire Shields was one of them. It was an intermediate Earth-tier martial technique that used spinning fire to disperse the energy from iing attacks.


    Everyone saw the Silver Moon sh and the Nine Spinning Fire Shields shing into each other. The rotation from the fire expunged gusts of hot air everywhere, forming dust clouds around Long Chen.


    <em>The time is now! </em>Long Chens eyes glinted.


    Even though the Nine Spinning Fire Shields was facing strong pressure, Long Chen was confident that it would not break. But it would not be easy for him to injure Yu Chong from behind the shield. Still, he was not out of options.


    <em>Lets try this method instead. </em>Long Chen smiled when he felt that Yu Chong was desperately trying to break the shield.


    <em>Divine Fire Clone, activate! </em>A zing me engulfed Long Chen before detaching from his body, forming a fiery clone! This was a Divine Fire Clone.


    Long Chen had made the first True Fire Seed and nted it in his body back at Goldfish Ind. He could finally use it today.


    Only Yu Chong failed to notice the clone. Yu Tao and everyone else didnt know what the Divine Fire Clone was, so they were looking at it in confusion. But the Ninth Prince knew. Long Chen had only obtained the Nine Spinning Fire Shields and Divine Fire Clone recently, yet he could already use them! It was a testament to his talent.


    The Ninth Prince had only barely made the first True Fire Seed recently, and he didnt even know if he could use it in battle.


    Elder Yan saw the Ninth Princes face. My Lord, should I snuff him out?


    Stop your nonsense. Do not talk about this ever again. Focus on the battle, the Ninth Prince whispered.


    Boss, what is that thing? Is that a Divine Technique? How could a country bumpkin have so many things? Not only does he have an intermediate Earth-tier martial technique and a defensive technique, he even has an intermediate Earth-tier Divine Arm! All of them were looking at Long Chen greedily.


    He belongs to the Ninth Prince now. If our Lord didnt say anything, we must not do anything. Remember this! Yu Tao said with a frown.


    Long Chens DIvine Fire Clone was ready and immediately jumped into the Nine Spinning Fire Shields. It then merged with it!


    <em>The Divine Fire Clone has one fifth of my strength. This is already stronger than a regr First River Stage cultivator. I wonder if he could take on a surprise attack on that level? </em>Long Chen smiled coldly.


    He slowly stepped back the Silver Moon shs strength.


    <em>Hes retreating?</em> Yu Chong was desperate to win and was ted to see that his attack was working. He was about to press on when a fiery person suddenly jumped out of the Nine Spinning Fire Shields and punched him in the face. Yu Chong didnt have time to prepare for it!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The fire engulfed Yu Chongs body, burning off a lot of his fur.


    Yu Chong flew backwards from the attack, and Long Chen dispersed his Nine Spinning Fire Shields. He then mmed the Azure Dragon Halberd down onto Yu Chongs abdomen and pinned him down!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Yu Chong crashed into the ground and howled painfully. He had barely managed to put out the fire on his body when he felt something cold and metallic on his throat. When he could finally see properly, Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd was already on his neck.


    You lose, Long Chen said inly.


    Yu Chong could not believe what he was seeing, but the pain all over his body reminded him of the harsh truth. Long Chen was not lyinghe had indeed lost.


    Impossible! Yu Chong tried to struggle.


    Not epting defeat? Do you think I wont chop your head off?


    Everyone saw what had happened. Yu Tao and the others were as shocked as Yu Chong, and that feeling was followed by anger, regret, and self-me. They had caused the Ninth Prince to lose the Fire Essence.


    The Ninth Prince looked at Long Chen inly, but his hands were clenching hard behind his back. Only Elder Yan noticed this.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Shadow Clone Jutsu!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 296: When Will We Consummate Our Relationship

    Chapter 296: When Will We Consummate Our Rtionship


    In truth, that Fire Essence was an extra to the Ninth Prince. That was why he put it in his study.


    The killing intent that rose within him was not due to losing the Fire Essence, but because Long Chen was putting pressure on him.


    Long Chen had grown from a nameless minor character, one that he could squash at any time, to a person who was quickly catching up to him.


    The group felt all sorts of different emotions when they saw Long Chen defeat Yu Chong. The members of the Heavenly Wolf Gang were initially still mocking Long Chen, but now they had received an invisible p across their faces.


    <em>The weak and the cowardly will only receive endless bullying and humiliation. If I had not taken the risk to fight the brat, Im afraid I would not even have been able to lift my head around these people. But now it will be different </em> Long Chen<em></em>thought to himself.


    He deactivated his Dragon Soul Transformation, put away the Azure Dragon Halberd, and no longer looked at his defeated opponent. He turned to the Ninth Prince and said, Your Highness, you were the witness. I believe the oue of the duel is clear?


    Mhm. You have defeated Yu Chong. ording to the promise, the Fire Essence belongs to you. Old Yan, go up and get it, said the Ninth Prince with a small smile, hiding the emotions in his heart.


    Old Yan nodded, taking a nce at Long Chen. Then he went up to the ceiling to retrieve it. He handed the Fire Refining Essence to Long Chen before the guilty eyes of the Heavenly Wolf Gang.


    There was a lot of heat radiating from the Fire Essence, as well as powerful light. Long Chen hurriedly put it in his Universe Pouch before it brought harm to Ling Xis eyes.


    Thank you, Your Highness. Also, Ling Xi and Xiang will be staying at Yuqin Pce during my time at the Counter Essence Realm, Long Chen suddenly said.


    Oh? The Ninth Prince thought Long Chen had already declined the offer since he did not truly trust him. So why was he willing to hand over the people dearest to him?


    Thats good. You dont have to worry. I promise you that Miss Ling Xi will bepletely safe in my pce, said the Ninth Prince with a smile, though there was an unidentifiable twinkle in his eyes.


    Seeing as there was nothing else for them to do, the Heavenly Wolf Gang red hard at Long Chen, then prepared to excuse themselves.


    Itste. Ill send someone to arrange for your quarters. After the gang left, the Ninth Prince made arrangements for Ling Xi and Long Chen, then he left as well.


    Within a luxurious but cozy room, Long Chen stood with his back leaning against the wall, hugging Ling Xi.


    Xiao Xi, are you sure you want to stay in Yuqin Pce? he asked worriedly. He was under no illusions about the Ninth Princes intentions. Allowing Ling Xi to stay here was the same as putting a goat in a tigers jaws. He had only agreed because Ling Xi was silently hinting for him to do it.


    Brother Chen, do you not have any confidence in me? How can a weakling at the Sixth River Stage do anything to me? Plus, wont Xiang be here? If I cant stay alive, Ill abandon this body and return to the Ling Xi Sword. Youre going to get me the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit anyway. This body has many inconveniences, so its fine if I abandon it, Ling Xi said mischievously.


    Youre right. But getting our hands on the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus wasnt easy. Plus, weve barely gotten to spend any time with each other; it would be a pity to abandon this body.


    Long Chen finally understood her n. The Ninth Prince was interested in Ling Xi, but he would not use an extreme method like killing Long Chen directly to get Ling Xi by force. This meant that he was a proud person who saw actions like that as beneath him. What he wanted was Ling Xis heart. But Ling Xis heart was with Long Chen, so how could he ever get it?


    And if he went crazy in the end, Ling Xi could abandon the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus and return to the Ling Xi Sword. No one here could harm the sword.


    We dont have a choice. We didnt expect the Ninth Prince to be a bad person before this. He only identally revealed his intentions today. If we knew earlier, Xiang and I would have stayed at Goldfish Ind and note here. Now that he has targeted me, someone as powerful as him will be able to find me wherever I go. I might as well stay here and await the good news from you, Ling Xi exined patiently, worried that Long Chen would feel too stressed out.


    Their rtionship had grown to an unbreakable level.


    After hearing her out, Long Chens mind opened up. He no longer dwelled on his worries. Since the Ninth Prince could not get what he wanted no matter what he did, what was there to be afraid of?


    As long as he obtained the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, he would be able to run far away. He would be stronger by then, and if the Ninth Prince tried to stop him, he would stab him with his halberd.


    Ninth Prince, O Ninth Prince. You let me be an Immortal Guard and gave me a chance to go to the Counter Essence Realm. If you had been a good person, I would have been willing to be friends and return the favor in the future. However, now that you have set your eyes on my darling, dont you me me for being vicious.


    Long Chen had always refused to be bullied by anyone. Right now, he was a subordinate in a foreign faction, so he had no choice but to hold it in. If he ever had the chance, Long Chen would get his revenge, no matter who they were!


    Harming Ling Xi was a huge taboo to Long Chen. He would kill any man who had the slightest intention of hurting her. Since the Ninth Prince dared to cross the line, he had received a sentence.


    Xiao Xi, you and Xiang stay here and be good. Ill get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit very soon and take you two away from here. With my current cultivation speed, perhaps no one will be able to stop me then.


    Ever since obtaining the Inherited Blood Essence, he possessed great confidence.


    Brother Chen, I know! Youre so long-winded! Like a woman! Ling Xi made a face.


    Ling Xi, youre the woman! Wait, dont I need to make you into one? Long Chen chuckled, his mood lifting.


    How? Ling Xi asked naively.


    Youll see! Long Chen chuckled strangely and picked her delicate body up. With a whoosh, he moved to the side of the bed and put her down. He stretched his arms outwards, then pulled her into them.


    What are you doing? Brother Chen, youre so heavy! Ling Xi panicked a little, sensing his burning aura. Her face reddened and she hurriedly tried to push him away. Unfortunately, she was a normal person right now and could not move him at all.


    The fragrance of lotus wafted from her body, which ignited a fire in Long Chen. The startled and embarrassed Ling Xi in his arms looked so cute, with her watery, swooning eyes and gentle panting. All of this made Long Chens blood surge.


    Ling Xi, can I ask you something? Long Chen knew that Ling Xi was a very traditional person. He would not dare to do anything that would traumatize her. After all, it didnt seem like she knew anything at this point.


    What is it? Ling Xi felt her own body temperature increase as she felt the warmth from his body. This feeling made her yearn for him but also miserable. It felt as if her heart had risen into the air but could not go up ore back down.


    Have you decided when we will consummate our rtionship? Long Chen asked shamelessly.


    Ling Xi had heard about consummating a rtionship before. It seemed that through this process, she would transform from a girl to a woman. Ling Xi faintly guessed what he was referring to.


    You jerk! You bastard! Only after you die! Long Chens question terrified her, and she pushed even harder.


    Indeed, she was still averse to the idea


    Then Ill die now! Long Chen let out a guffaw, ready to scare Ling Xi. That was when Xiang entered the room. Startled, Long Chen jumped off the bed at lightning speed, staring at Xiang awkwardly with a reddened face.


    Xiang froze and his eyes widened. Then, as if startled, he quickly turned and ran out of the room.


    Brother Chen! Get out!


    Long Chen himself was embarrassed after being seen by Xiang, so one could only imagine how Ling Xi was feeling. Seeing as her embarrassment had turned to anger, he hurriedlyforted her a little, then he ran out.


    Although Ling Xi had be more mature, when she raged, it was still scary.


    When he found Xiang outside, he pretended as if nothing had happened and regarded Xiang for a while. He asked, Have you swallowed and absorbed the Fire Essence? And have you be a Category Four Earth-tier already?


    Xiang nodded.


    After the confirmation, Long Chen was stunned. It was no wonder the Burning Heaven Emperor praised Xiangs talent so much. As long as the Sun Devouring Wolf received enough fire elemental treasures, it would grow miraculously fast.


    Usually, it was difficult for demonic beasts to level up, but Xiang was leveling up at a speed faster than humans.


    Sitting down on a boulder, Long Chen looked up at the starry sky and said, Im heading to the Counter Essence Realm tomorrow. You must always stay by Ling Xis side and protect her. Once I get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, well find a ce to hide and cultivate. When we be stronger, well return to take your revenge. What do you think?


    Xiang nodded, looking at him gratefully.


    His enemy was the imperial family, yet Long Chen had volunteered to help him take revenge without hesitation.


    Were both cultivating Divine Fire Clone. Since I seeded first, let me tell you about my cultivation experience. In the future, lets cultivate together again if we find something good.


    Xiang possessed talent in cultivatingbat techniques too. Although a wolfs meridians differed from human meridians, it was still a sentient being from the same world. Since Xiang was still human, he might actually seed through exploration.


    While conversing with Xiang, Long Chen continued to condense his fire seed. He found that the most difficult thing about Divine Fire Clone was condensing the first clone. Afterwards, he would only need to replicate the process.


    After spending the whole night with Xiang, Long Chen left for the Counter Essence Realm the next day. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Xiang knows what''s up


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 297: Counter Essence City

    Chapter 297: Counter Essence City


    Long Chen had already said what he wanted to say to Ling Xi and Xiang. Early the next morning, he did not let them send him off and left Yuqin Pce on his own. Since no one else had arrived, he stood outside for a while until the Heavenly Wolf Gang appeared at the end of the street.


    This brat! Why do we need to go to him? Who does he think he is? Let me show him what were made of, said one of the bald men viciously.


    Dont be rash! If you want to do something, do it in the Immortal Realm, where there are no witnesses. You may not care about your reputation, but His Highness does. Dont you dare cause more problems for him, Yu Tao reprimanded.


    When they neared Long Chen, Yu Tao yelled, You brat! Follow me! Were going out of the city!


    <em>Is the Counter Essence Realm outside the imperial capital? </em>Long Chen guessed this from their words. He joined up with the group.


    They ignored him, and he ignored them as well.


    Walking next to Yu Tao, Yu Chongs desire to kill Long Chen grew stronger with Long Chens nonchnt attitude.


    Brother! Promise me youll kill Long Chen in the Immortal Realm! Yu Chong said in a low voice.


    Why are you so impatient? I spoke to His Highnessst night. His n is first to get to know Ling Xi for a month and see how it goes. If we kill Long Chen now, His Highness is worried that Miss Ling Xi will guess the truth and hate him. That is why its best we hold it in. As for whether we kill him or not, we must wait a month, Yu Tao answered sternly.


    I dont understand. Did he bring Long Chen from Yuanling City because of Miss Ling Xi? Why didnt he kill Long Chen before? Yu Chong asked.


    In the beginning, His Highness took notice of him due to his potential. However, Im guessing that due to Miss Ling Xi, he knew that Long Chen would never bepletely loyal to him. Thats why he decided to give up on Long Chen.


    Why go through all the trouble? I think he might as well kill Long Chen directly. Shes just a woman! He could just take her if he wanted to, right? Yu Chong asked.


    Nonsense. Hes a prince, so he has a lot of pride. How could you equate him and us? However, if Miss Ling Xi is stubborn, sooner orter, His Highness will go mad and Long Chen will die. So, what are you worried about? whispered Yu Tao darkly.


    Yu Chong understood now.


    They exited the Biyang Imperial Capital. Yu Tao led everyone, including Long Chen, towards the east. Along the way, the Heavenly Wolf Gang stuck together, conversing and joking loudly. Theypletely forgot about Long Chen, who was happy to ignore them and get some peace.


    After walking over twenty kilometers, a lush green forest appeared ahead. Yu Tao walked by Long Chens side and talked down to him, We''ll be arriving in Counter Essence City soon. There, I will take you to meet the legendary Lord Sword Devil. Hold your tongue and stay still. Otherwise, dont me me if you die.


    You cant wait for me to die, can you? Long Chen asked nonchntly with a smile.


    What do you mean by that? Yu Tao asked darkly.


    Long Chen shrugged and did not reply, focusing on walking.


    You brat, youre so smug now. Youre just a vige boy and you think you can go against His Highness! Youre going to get yourself killed. Yu Tao chuckled darkly behind him.


    They soon arrived at Counter Essence City. It waspletely different from the Biyang Imperial CapitalCounter Essence City waspletely ck and looked like a fort. It looked evil yet magnificent, with sharp corners and silhouettes that radiated a terrifying aura.


    There was only one wall that circled the whole city, but countless houses were densely packed within the wall. Long Chen looked from far away and knew that at least tens of thousands of soldiers were staying there.


    Dont underestimate the Counter Essence Army! Even a hundred and fifty thousand Biyang Capital city guards are no match for fifty thousand Counter Essence soldiers! The minimum requirement to join the Counter Essence Army is the Earthly Core Realm. There are five main leaders of the Counter Essence Army, plus the lofty Royal Uncle, the Sword Devil. How could the sevenmanders of the Imperial Capital Guardpare?


    Long Chen could faintly hear the Heavenly Wolf Gang discussing this topic.


    The city guards guarded the outside of the Imperial Capital, while fifty thousand Counter Essence soldiers were based within Counter Essence City. All of them were above the Earthly Core Realm, and there were great experts such as the five leaders and the Sword Devil based here. From this, it was clear that the imperial family was extremely strict in recruiting for the Counter Essence Realms guards.


    <em>It looks like its going to be difficult for me to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in the Counter Essence Realm. </em>Long Chen started to have worries about obtaining the fruit.


    He soon followed Yu Tao into Counter Essence City. Very strict guards were stationed at the gates. Only Immortal Guards who were able to produce a white identity token would be able to enter. Long Chen should not have been able to enter, but Yu Tao told the guard that Long Chen was a recruit with the Ninth Princes rmendation. The guard agreed to let him in, but a small team of Counter Essence soldiers had to personally escort him to the Sword Devil.


    After confirming their identities, they all registered.


    Long Chen felt dejected in the face of such a strict system.


    Looking towards the inside of the city, he could see that Counter Essence City was built surrounding a giantke. Theke was clean and transparent, its surface like a tranquil mirror. It was only when people entered that faint ripples would appear, though they too vanished immediately.


    All Counter Essence soldiers in the city wore ck armor; even their heads were covered by thick and heavy helmets. Only the Immortal Guards wore all sorts of clothing.


    The people who entered theke did not wear ck armor, so Long Chen assumed that they were Immortal Guards. This meant that the entrance to the Immortal Realm was likely inside theke.


    This is Sorrow Moon Lake. The entrance to the Counter Essence Realm is within theke. Im so jealous that you get to be an Immortal Guard and enter the Counter Essence Realm, a ck-armored Counter Essence soldier said to Long Chen.


    Despite the fact that they had entered as a group, he could tell that the Heavenly Wolf Gang and Long Chen were not together.


    How many years have you been here? The soldier looked like a teenager and seemed to be the same age as Long Chen.


    Three years. My childhood dream was to be an Immortal Guard, but due to myck of talent, Im only at the mid Heavenly Core realm right now. That is why I can only be a Counter Essence soldier. But this job has its advantages, like the fact that its not all that dangerous. No one has dared to attack Counter Essence City so far to conquer the Counter Essence Realm. You, on the other hand, will face threats from immortal beasts in the Immortal Realm, plus maniption and betrayal from your own people. I think you need to be careful.


    As he spoke, the ck-armored teenager nced at the hostile-looking Heavenly Wolf Gang and continued, I know these people. They used to be bandits, and they have taken many lives. It was only after they pledged their loyalty to the Ninth Prince that they reined in their violence. But its difficult to change old habits


    Thank you! Long Chen nodded after listening to his advice. He could tell that the young man was a kind person. It was rare to meet such someone so genuine.


    Im talking too much. Hehe, were approaching Lord Sword Devils pce soon. Then again, Ive never seen him with my own eyes during my three years here. Youre lucky to be able to see his face the day you arrive.


    <em>Sword Devil? </em>Long Chen had some inkling about this person. Before Xiang turned into the Sun Devouring Wolf, Long Chen had asked who his enemies were. The name Sword Devil was part of the list as one of the main culprits.


    Lord Sword Devil is the incumbent Sword Emperors younger brother. He is at the Ninth River Stage, making him one of the top three cultivators in the entire Cangyang Kingdom. With him guarding Counter Essence City, the city is bound to win all battles. The two brothers are the pirs of the Cangyang Kingdom; Ive worshiped them since I was young! gushed the ck-armored teenager.


    The teenager clearly had not had someone to talk to in a long time, because just a short chat was enough tounch him off on a tangent. The Heavenly Wolf Gang had not told Long Chen anything about the rules of the Counter Essence Realm, so Long Chen could only probe him for more information.


    Soon, they finally arrived at the Sword Devils pce.


    Although he was known as the Sword Devil and a great master, he lived a simple life.


    A simple ck tower appeared in front of them. The steel tower was old, but it radiated a sharpness that could not be concealed. Long Chen even felt stinging pain prickle his skin from the sharp aura.


    <em>This is just where he lives, and it already radiates such a sharp sword Qi. If this person is called the Sword Devil, he is likely a formidable figure. Great masters should deserve my respect, but youre Xiangs enemy, so this is different </em>


    After escorting Long Chen here, the teenager had no choice but to excuse himself.


    Today was the beginning of a new month, so there were many other new Immortal Guard recruits who had gathered over the past month. Many were already waiting outside the gates.


    Stay here. When everyone has arrived, every one of you will have to pass an inspection conducted by Lord Sword Devil himself! Yu Tao warned Long Chen softly. Yu Tao dared not act recklessly while standing in front of the Sword Devils pce.


    Long Chen looked up. In front of him was an iron door that was shut tight. <em>How grand.</em>


    He truly felt how powerful the imperial family was after arriving in Counter Essence City. This was only a corner of the imperial familys power, but it was already terrifying.


    Long Chen had a lot of patience. Time passed and the morning hours ticked by. At noon, the door finally opened to reveal cold darkness within.


    A gust of wind blew from inside. Since Long Chen was standing at the very front and was hit by the gust first, he quickly activated his Qi to withstand it.


    After the gust of wind passed, he realized that the wind had made dozens of tiny cuts on his clothing.


    This was merely a natural gust of wind caused by the presence of the sword master inside, which had naturally flowed out after the door was opened.


    Long Chen was privately startled.


    New recruits of the Immortal Guard, step inside.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Pretty sure the Heavenly Wolf Gang would be dead soon


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 298: Sword Devil

    Chapter 298: Sword Devil


    Long Chen and the other eight new Immortal Guards entered the steel tower, while Yu Tao and the rest could only wait outside.


    <em>It looks like the Sword Devil has quite the reputation. Those bastards did not even protest. </em>Long Chen walked through the ck walkway while eyeing the people next to him. Two of them attracted his attention. One was wearing a full suit of ck armor, which was the ssic Counter Essence soldier outfit. He guessed that this person was initially from the Counter Essence Army, and due to his ster performance and quick improvement in cultivation, he had been promoted to an Immortal Guard.


    The other was a thin and short man only reaching up to Long Chens chest. He was a little pale with clean features, so he was decent-looking. However, he had an arrogant look on his face, walking with his nose in the air. He could not even hide his arrogant personality in front of the Sword Devil.


    <em>He must be a dwarf. </em>


    This person had caught his eye when they were outside because quite a few Immortal Guards had escorted him, and all of them were obsequious towards him.


    After listening to the stories told by the Goldfish Inders, Long Chen felt enmity towards the dwarves.


    They were all silent while walking. Soon, they arrived in a vast hall. The walls were ck with giant burning torches at four corners to light up the ck hall. At the front of the hall was a main seat apanied by five other seats. At this moment, all six seats were filled.


    The Sword Devil and five leaders mentioned by the ck-armored teenager came to mind. These seemed to be the six strongest experts of Counter Essence City. The person sitting at the very top drew Long Chens attention.


    He had white hair but the face of a young man. Time had not left a single trace on his skin. Although he was merely sitting in his seat, Long Chen sensed an intimidating aura rushing towards himself. He even felt a slight prickling pain on his skin when the mans gaze swept past him.


    That was the Sword Devil.


    He was likely in his forties, yet he maintained a youthful face. This was a rare sight, and Long Chen could tell that he was no ordinary person from this alone.


    Sitting beneath the Sword Devil were five middle-aged people. Long Chen sensed that while they were weaker than the Sword Devil, they were much stronger than himself.


    Sit. The white-haired young man, the Sword Devil, spoke gently. Long Chen instantly felt an invisible force wrap around his body, forcing him down on a seat nearby. All nine of them had their own seats. Long Chen looked around and noticed that he was sitting at the very back. Next to him was the ck-armored warrior.


    The Sword Devil looked around the room, then his gaze rested on the short man.


    Song Yuefeng,e here.


    When the short man was walking into the tower, he had been arrogant. However, after he entered, he waspletely suppressed by the Sword Devil and did nothing but obey the Sword Devilsmands reverently, his head hung low.


    Yes.


    The short man, Song Yuefeng, stood up and walked up to the Sword Devil shakily. He was pale from fear.


    That was when a short and fat middle-aged man sitting beneath the Sword Devil hurriedly turned to the Sword Devil with all smiles and said, My Lord, this is my son, Song Yuefeng. He is sixteen today and is already at the Fifth River Stage.


    Your son? The Sword Devil eyed Song Yuefeng up and down, then he nodded and said, Reaching the Fifth River Stage at sixteen is almost on par with the people of the imperial family. Not bad. Since he is your son, there is no need for inspection. Song Yuefeng, return to your seat.


    Yes, thank you, my Lord! Finally, he no longer had to face the terrifying, suffocating forceing from the Sword Devil. Song Yuefeng nodded and bowed hurriedly, then he rushed back to his seat.


    Long Chen watched it all calmly.


    He was surprised that there was a dwarf amongst the five leaders. However, it was not very odd that they had a seat here, seeing as the Harmony family was one of the threergest factions in the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    The next person had already gone up to be inspected by the Sword Devil. The Sword Devil merely ced his palm on the persons body and rubbed a circle, feeling his star veins, and that was it.


    Brother, do you know what he is checking? the ck-armored soldier next to Long Chen suddenly asked.


    Since he is touching the star vein, Im guessing that he is checking the quality of the persons Qi. But we are all here through rmendations, so there should not be a problem, Long Chen answered after some thought.


    Then, he regarded the soldier. Perhaps due to the ck-armored teenager from before, Long Chen felt friendly towards him. This soldiers gaze was determined yet pure, unlike Song Yuefeng, who looked like a person he should not interact with. Long Chencked friends now, so he would never let a chance to make a new friend slip by.


    Since it was not yet their turn, Long Chen asked, How should I address you?


    Zhang Yuanteng. You?


    Im Long Chen. Youre from the Counter Essence Army, right? he asked.


    I am. I wasnt always strong, but I recently experienced some improvements and reached the Second River Stage. Since I have some knowledge on the Counter Essence Realm, I was promoted to an Immortal Guard, Zhang Yuanteng answered, sounding grateful.


    Are you familiar with the Counter Essence Realm? I followed the Ninth Prince here from Yuanling City, so everything here is foreign to me. Since you know more, tell me more, whispered Long Chen with a grin.


    Followed the Ninth Prince? If you were able to gain his favor, you must be very talented. As for your request, I am happy to oblige. Out here in the world, we can only rely on our friends. Serving you would be my honor, haha  Although Zhang Yuanteng had not spoken before this, the moment he did, it was clear that he was a straightforward and simple person.


    Long Chen started to chat with him, asking him questions ranging from the Biyang Imperial Capital to the Counter Essence Realm. In the end, they talked about the five leaders.


    The five leaders are all at the Eighth River Stage. The two on the left are from the imperial family, while the three on the right are people from the three great ns. That guy, Song Yuefengs father, is the patriarch of the Harmony family, whispered Zhang Yuanteng.


    The Sword Devil and the rest were at the end of the great hall, so they did not dare to speak too loudly.


    Very quickly, it was Zhang Yuantengs turn. Since he hade from the Counter Essence Army, naturally, there were no problems with him. He very quickly returned, and it was Long Chens turn next.


    Long Chen walked on the shiny ck floor under the gazes of a Ninth River Stage and five Eight River Stage cultivators. He stopped when he came up to the Sword Devil.


    Different from the servile Song Yuefeng, Long Chen felt no fear despite standing in front of the ultimate master. There were many people he respected, but the Ninth River Stage master in front of him was not one of them.


    The Sword Devil noted Long Chens eyes, then, without a word, reached out and rubbed his palm in a circle on Long Chens chest over his shirt. Long Chen sensed a surge of heat from the Sword Devils palm that flowed into his body, quickly circted once in his star vein, and finally returned to the palm.


    Youre Long Chen, the one rmended by Little Nine? The Sword Devil looked slightly puzzled as he gazed at Long Chen. He was indeed inspecting the quality of his Qi, checking if it was Demon Qi, and subsequently determining if he was a disciple of the Heavenly Demon Pce. While he did not find any Demon Qi, Long Chens Qi was four times stronger than that of other people. That was why the Sword Devil felt a different sensationpared to when inspecting the others.


    Long Chen nodded. Yes, Lord Sword Devil. Is there an issue?


    No. Return to your seat. The Sword Devil shook his head, though he was just a little puzzled.


    Long Chen descended and returned to his seat.


    He had been able to feel the strength of Xiangs enemy at close range. The Sword Devils sword Qi seemed to seep into every pore on Long Chens skin, entering his body. Just being near him made Long Chen feel terrible.


    After Long Chen returned, the inspection of the nine recruits was over. The Sword Devil did not dere the process over, whoever. Instead, he walked up to Long Chen and the others and said, There are no problems with your backgrounds. However, what the Counter Essence Realm needs most isbat capabilities, which is not necessarily the same as cultivation level. Now, I shall inspect yourbat abilities. The minimum requirement of being an Immortal Guard may be the First River Stage, but if a person of the Second River Stage has poorbat skills, he will have to get the hell out of here.


    His eyes swept across the nine of them. The coldness in his gaze made them instinctively lower their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.


    The rules are simple. I will not do anything; you all may attack me with your most powerful moves. I will be able to spot anyone whose attack is too weak or has no battle experience immediately. Everyone, stand up!


    Since he was called the Sword Devil, he was sure to be more bloodthirsty than other people. He had been calm up until now, but his voice had be icy and he seemed like an extremely sharp, unsheathed sword. Just his presence alone radiated a suffocating sharpness.


    Long Chen was the first to stand up. He was mentally stronger than the rest of them, plus Xiang held a grudge against the Sword Devil. Therefore, Long Chen was not afraid of him at all. As for the others, even the Fifth River Stage Song Yuefengs legs trembled as he stood up.


    The Sword Devil stomped on the ground, and the vibrations caused the luxurious chairs to pulverize. The great hall now seemed empty.


    Being Immortal Guards not only requiresbat skills but also cooperation. From now on, all nine of you are a team. Attack me with all you have! Anyone who is not passionate enough, or cooperative enough, will be eliminated!


    The nine of them looked at each other. Just like cornered dogs jumping over a wall, theyunched their attacks to avoid elimination.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I have a feeling MC and his newfound friend gonna pulverize the Sword Devil


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 299: Clan Death Sentence

    Chapter 299: n Death Sentence


    After the Sword Devils instruction, everyone abandoned their reservations about ranks because it was impossible for them to hurt someone as powerful as him. That was why everyone could attack without worry.


    Heh! Once Song Yuefeng understood this, he was the first to attack. He was the only Fifth River Stage cultivator present, and he held the highest status. His father was watching as well! Recalling what his father had said, he knew that he had to put on his best performance. It would be best if he could get Lord Sword Devils praise.


    Despite his elegant features, once the violence in his genes was triggered, he was actually the craziest. With a dagger in hand, Song Yuefeng charged the fastest, surpassing the rest of the people as he ran towards the Sword Devil!


    Indeed, in the face of immense pressure, everyone was able to unleash their madness. However, the situation was chaotic, and no cooperation was to be seen. Only Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng stood side by side and locked eyes, preparing to cover for each other.


    Secret Technique, Piercing Tornado!


    Once he was ahead of everyone else, there was a cold sh in Song Yuefengs eyes and Qi exploded from his body. He twisted the dagger in his hand, then he spun it like a tornado. Amidst the spinning tornado, there were constant shes of a sharp de directed at the Sword Devil!


    Long Chen was privately startled when he saw the attack. It was definitely an intermediate Earth-tierbat technique. Paired with Song Yuefengs Fifth River Stage cultivation, Long Chen guessed that even if he used his Nine Spinning Fire Shields to the maximum, it would be difficult to withstand this attack.


    From this alone, it was clear that there were countless true prodigies in the Imperial Capital.


    <em>How will the Sword Devil neutralize this attack? </em>


    Long Chens eyes were glued to the scene. Song Yuefengs Piercing Tornado was about to hit the Sword Devils body, but thetters expression remained calm. When he was just about to be injured, he casually reached out. It looked casual, but in reality, it was unbelievably fast, and he plunged his arm into the tornado without the utilization of any Qi!


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    <em>How is that possible? </em>Long Chen gasped because the Sword Devil had so casually neutralized an attack he never would have been able to withstand. After reaching out into the tornado, he grabbed Song Yuefengs wrist and flung him out.


    <em>Hes so powerful! </em>Long Chens eyes darkened when he saw the oue.


    If Song Yuefeng had been thrown out, then everyone else would fare no better. Attacks came one after another, but they were all easily thrown out before they could approach the Sword Devil.


    The Sword Devils brows remained furrowed, as if no one had managed to satisfy him. Not even Song Yuefeng.


    After being tossed away, Song Yuefeng panicked. He quickly climbed onto his feet and attacked the Sword Devil again. There had been nothing impressive about his previous performance, so now he had to do better to impress the master.


    At this point, six of the nine recruits had been thrown out. While Long Chen was charging ahead, he had already taken out his Azure Dragon Halberd. It was unnecessary to boost his strength with the Dragon Soul Transformation right now.


    Brother Long Chen, shall I cover you while you attack? Zhang Yuanteng suddenly asked at this crucial moment.


    Alright! Long Chen agreed decisively and took a step back. They both knew that since the Sword Devil wanted to see cooperation, they should cooperate. With two people working together, they should fare better than the others who had been immediately thrown out.


    Zhang Yuanteng took a step forward so he stood in front of Long Chen. At the same time, he leaped and threw a punch, unleashing a pitch-ck fist seal at the Sword Devil. Long Chen followed closely behind. When Zhang Yuanteng punched, Long Chen thrust the Azure Dragon Halberd from the side!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension! Long Chens attack flew from a direction out of the Sword Devils field of vision, upwards at the Sword Devil!


    Although this was their first time meeting each other, the duo had decent chemistry together. At least when the Sword Devil had blocked Zhang Yuantengs punch and thrown him out, he did not have enough time to block Long Chens Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension. There was a sh of approval in his eyes.


    Not bad. He turned and used a bodybat technique, easily dodging Long Chens attack. At the same time, he reached out to grab Long Chen at lightning speed! All the other people had already been thrown. Although there was some distance between them after the Sword Devil dodged, he did not intend to let Long Chen escape the fate of being tossed away.


    <em>Think you can throw me? </em>Long Chenughed internally. While he unleashed Nine Soaring Dragons, he quickly stepped back. Red mes erupted from his body and a fiery figure burst from his body towards the Sword Devil, blocking him!


    Divine Fire Clone!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Only one move from the Sword Devil was needed to break the Divine Fire Clone.


    However, Long Chen had sessfully escaped before the clone broke. After rolling on the ground a few times, he had escaped the Sword Devils attack range. He looked up and saw that the Sword Devil had no intention of attacking again. He gazed at Long Chen approvingly and said, Kid, its been more than a year since someone was able to avoid being thrown by me. You did it at just the Second River Stage. Not bad, not bad.


    Saying not bad twice was basically the highest form of praise he would ever utter.


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    <em>That guy is strong! I lost a fire seed after such a simple attack from him. It takes me half a day to condense a fire seed  </em>Long Chen was privately resentful, not really caring about the Sword Devils praise.


    He did not know what this meant, but everyone else did. All five leaders were looking at this person who had previously not caught their attention. Everyone had great expectations for Song Yuefeng, but to their surprise, Song Yuefengs performance was only average, while Long Chen had avoided being tossed out and even received praise from the Sword Devil.


    The Sword Devil remained still, implying that the inspection wasplete. Long Chen had garnered attention for a brief moment, which was no big deal to Long Chen himself, but one teenager already held a grudge.


    Song Yuefeng had previously sworn to put on his best performance in front of the Sword Devil to gain his attention and praise. But all of it had gone to Long Chen, a minor figure no one knew. Song Yuefeng red venomously at Long Chen, privately memorizing his face.


    <em>If I ever get my hands on you in the Immortal Realm, I am going to kill you. How dare you show off when youre just a measly Second River Stage cultivator?</em>


    All of them stood obediently in a row in front of the Sword Devil. Zhang Yuanteng patted Long Chens shoulder with a grin. That was not bad at all.


    Actually, its all because you covered for me, Long Chen said honestly.


    Thats a small matter; its not worth mentioning. Right, when we get out of here, dont leave just yet. I want to talk to you about something, Zhang Yuanteng whispered by his ear.


    Long Chen nodded.


    The Sword Devils gaze swept across the room, and he said, I have observed all of your abilities. In terms of cultivation levels, of course, you all qualify to be Immortal Guards. However, your practical skills are not up to par; go back and work on your cultivation. Now, I will announce the names of those who have not passed the inspection.


    Their chests tightened, listening intently.


    Bing an Immortal Guard was extremely important to Long Chen. Although he knew that he had probably passed, he still felt nervous.


    The Sword Devil announced the names, which did not include Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng. Although Zhang Yuanteng was not considered strongpared to the others, he received the Sword Devils approval because he had cooperated with Long Chen. Ultimately, three people were eliminated from the nine. Out of the remaining six, four of them were put in a group, while Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng were stuck together in another group.


    From the Sword Devils exnation, Long Chen had learned that the Counter Essence Realm was divided into threerge zones, namely the Elementary Zone, the Intermediate Zone, and the Advanced Zone. These zones were divided based on the immortal beasts strengths, as well as the rarity of the spiritual herbs and treasures within. Although Song Yuefeng was at the Fifth River Stage, he had to remain in the Elementary Zone and undergo training before entering the Intermediate Zone. Long Chen, being weaker, was obviously allocated to the Elementary Zone as well.


    The Elementary Zone was divided into twenty areas. Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng were assigned to Area Eighteen, same as the Heavenly Wolf Gang. Song Yuefeng and the other three were assigned to Area Seventeen.


    Take your identity jade tokens and go. Areas Seventeen and Eighteen are waiting. They will exin your responsibilities as Immortal Guards to you, said the Sword Devil, taking his seat once more.


    The identity jade tokens were the tokens that Yu Tao and the rest had shown the guards when they first entered Counter Essence City. Every token had a unique mark, so no one else could use them.


    Song Yunfengs father was holding the tokens, so the six of them lined up to take their tokens from him.


    The short and fat Eighth River Stage middle-aged man was one of the five leaders and also the patriarch of the Harmony family; he was named Song Zhongcheng. When it was Long Chens turn, he looked up at Long Chen with a sh of hatred in his eyes.


    <em>Does this fat bastard hate me? </em>Long Chen was puzzled.


    After receiving their identity jade tokens, they prepared to leave. That was when the Sword Devil suddenly said, Now that you have taken your identity jade tokens, you belong to the imperial family. You shall be loyal to the imperial family for the rest of your lives! If we find that you have stolen spiritual herbs from the Immortal Realm, you will be killed immediately! If we find that you have betrayed us, your whole n shall be killed!


    The stern warning made them feel like they were being stabbed. Long Chen felt miserable because he felt a faint stinging pain like there was an actual de cutting his body.


    <em>Killing the whole n? The Mo family was likely killed due to this harsh punishment. It looks like the members of the imperial family arent good people.</em>


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    With that thought running through his mind, he walked out of the steel tower. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I have a bad feeling that Song Yuefeng will do something


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 300: Counter Essence Immortal Beast

    Chapter 300: Counter Essence Immortal Beast


    Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng walked at the back of the group as they exited the tower. He remembered that Zhang Yuanteng had something to tell him.


    As they exited, Song Yuefeng, who was walking at the very front, turned to nce over. There was hatred in his eyes. Although it was a quick nce, Long Chen was sure of what he had seen.


    Brother Zhang, are you going to tell me that the short guy  Long Chen said, speechless at what he just saw.


    Thats right. You outdid him, so now he will hold a grudge. Dont be surprised though. Youre not a local, so you dont know about the dwarves being vengeful people. They are used to bullying the weak, but when they meet strong people, they walk with their tails between their legs and act obsequiously. If they meet someone weaker than themselves, however, they are arrogant and vicious. Its ridiculous how violent they can be. There was unconceble disgust in his tone.


    Factions like that really should be annihted, Long Chen said tly.


    His performance had triggered hate from Song Yuefeng, but he did not regret it. He had already killed dwarves once on Goldfish Ind; a hundred of them had arrived on the ind, but not a single one left alive. If Song Yuefeng provoked him, he would not mind doing it again.


    Of course, he first had to enter the Immortal Realm, increase his cultivation level, and find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    I too want them to die off, but there are many masters in the Harmony family. On top of Song Zhongcheng at the Eighth River Stage, they have more than ten Seventh River Stage cultivators. The dwarves are as loyal as dogs to the imperial family, and the imperial family is the only faction in the entire Cangyang Kingdom that has enough power to kill them, whispered Zhang Yuanteng when they were about to walk out.


    Since they got along well, he spoke frankly.


    But, Long Chen, you must be careful. The dwarves love to stab people in the back. Dont fall into their traps, Zhang Yuanteng reminded.


    Thank you, Brother Zhang. I will remember what you told me. They had already exited the steel tower by now. With Yu Tao and the others in front, Long Chen did not dare say much.


    Did you pass? Yu Tao asked nonchntly, looking down at him.


    Is it possible for me to fail? Long Chen said mildly.


    Yu Tao was not surprised that Long Chen could pass the inspection, seeing as he had defeated Yu Chong. If Yu Chong could be an Immortal Guard, Long Chen could too.


    However, Long Chens tone was not polite at all. Since they were in public, Yu Tao had to swallow his anger. He turned to Zhang Yuanteng and asked, Are you also a new Immortal Guard for Area Eighteen?


    I am. Are you the Area Leader of Area Eighteen, Yu Tao? Brother Yu? Zhang Yuanteng asked.


    Yu Tao nodded, then he nced at Long Chen and said, Lets go. I will take you guys to Counter Essence City first, where our quarters are. Early tomorrow morning, we will go to the Counter Essence Realm andplete the previous teams task.


    Yu Tao led them to the guards quarters. Every Immortal Guard was allocated a ce to stay within Counter Essence City so they could stay here when they were not on duty. After that, Yu Tao and the rest, who did not get along with Long Chen, disappeared. They did not even exin the rules of the Counter Essence Realm to Long Chen like the Sword Devil had said they would.


    Fortunately, Zhang Yuanteng had been in the Counter Essence Army for about six or seven years and knew a few Immortal Guards. That was why he was familiar with the ce.


    The spiritual Qi in the Counter Essence Realm is thick, so spiritual herbs and treasures are abundant. It is basically a sea of herbs. The mostmon are Yellow-tier spiritual herbs, which can be found everywhere in the Elementary Zone. Youll step on quite a few just by walking around. There are also many ck-tier spiritual herbs. Whenever you stand, there will be ck-tier herbs in your field of vision. The most precious ones are the Earth-tier spiritual herbs, and they grow in the Elementary Zone as well. As Immortal Guards, our task is to protect the Earth-tier spiritual herbs so they are not taken by immortal beasts before they ripen.


    Immortal beasts? Brother Zhang, what are the immortal beasts like in the Immortal Realm? Long Chen asked with a frown.


    Immortal beasts are a type of demonic beast. They are found everywhere in the Counter Essence Realm, though their strengths vary ording to the zone. The Counter Essence Realm is covered in a thick mist madepletely out of spiritual Qi; even a Sixth or Seventh River Stage cultivator will find it hard to see through it. However, immortal beasts can easily travel through the mist, and ces where the mist is thickest are especially concentrated with them. If you encounter a ce with particrly thick mist, do not enter, because it will be very dangerous. Do you know why the Elementary Zone requires Fifth River Stage Area Leaders? Its because even high-level immortal beasts are likely to appear there.


    The longer Long Chen listened to Zhang Yuanteng, the more his interest in the Counter Essence Realm grew. If that was true, then it was a ce full of treasures for him. Any ce with many immortal beasts would be ideal for him to use Blood Transmutation and level up, right?


    I have one more question. The Sword Devil previously said that stealing spiritual herbs from the Immortal Realm will result in a death sentence. Since there are so many herbs in there, how would anyone know? Long Chen asked.


    Zhang Yuanteng grinned. I knew youd ask. Ill tell you. Why are there so many people interested in bing Immortal Guards? Its because of the benefits. As long as you dont take all of it, you can take some Yellow and ck-tier spiritual herbs, and no one will say anything. Although they are useless to you at your current stage, the other ces in the Cangyang Kingdom treat ck-tier herbs as treasures!


    The imperial family isnt interested in Yellow or ck-tier herbs. However, the moment an Earth-tier one sprouts, someone will record its information. Harvesting herbs before they mature renders them useless, but if they disappear for no reason, its absence will be easily noticed. That is why stealing Earth-tier spiritual herbs is basically suicide. Brother Long, you arent nning to do it, are you? Zhang Yuanteng joked.


    Im only here to be an Immortal Guard, not to die, Long Chen responded with a smile.


    He made a mental note to himself. <em>If there truly is a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in the Immortal Realm, the imperial family must have already recorded its location. If I can get my hands on the records, it will save me a lot of time searching for it.</em>


    The question was: where would the records be?


    Long Chen asked Zhang Yuanteng this question casually.


    The records are naturally with the guardian of Counter Essence Realm, Lord Sword Devil. With his strength, no one other than the Sword Emperor can infiltrate the Counter Essence Realm.


    Zhang Yuanteng admired the Sword Devil.


    <em>That guy? </em>Long Chen sighed inwardly. At his current level, getting the records from the Sword Devil would be even more difficult than flying. And so, he gave up on that idea and decided to rely on himself to find the fruit.


    Right, theres one more thing. Whenever you kill an immortal beast in the Immortal Realm, bring its immortal core back as you can turn it in for points at Counter Essence City. The points can be used to buy all kinds of things. Time to work hard, kid! Zhang Yuanteng patted Long Chens shoulder andughed.


    After being a soldier for such a long time, I am finally able to make something out of myself. Now I can unleash a massacre in the Immortal Realm and earn more money, and my cultivation will grow! The Second River Stage will definitely not be my peak. In the future, even the Seventh River Stage will be possible! As he spoke, his eyes lit up with excitement. After six years of hard work, he had finally be an Immortal Guard. It was the beginning of the rest of his life.


    Zhang Yuanteng was a decent person, so he waspatible with Long Chen, even giving him a lot of essential information. Long Chen was happy to see him so happy.


    Actually, there isnt much to be happy about. We usually only encounter Category Three Earth-tier beasts or below in the Elementary Zone, and we will be guarding elementary Earth-tier spiritual herbs. The true core of the Immortal Realm is the Advanced Zone. That area is the main focus of the imperial family. The Immortal Guards there are the true elites. As long as I attain the Seventh River Stage, I can join the core team of the Immortal Guards! Then, I can truly soar high!


    <em>How passionate </em>


    When Long Chen first met Zhang Yuanteng, he thought he would be a quiet person. He did not expect to find a heart that burned so brightly beneath the quiet exterior.


    <em>I hope he seeds.</em>


    This was his dream, and Long Chen wished him well. As for himself, he knew that his goal was not as simple as attaining the Seventh River Stage and joining the core team of the Immortal Guards.


    Long Chen only had one objective here at the Counter Essence Realm, which was to obtain a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Time passed. The next morning, there was a loud knock on the door. Long Chen was cultivating but had to stop because he knew that it was time to enter the Counter Essence Realm.


    When he opened the door, he was met with Yu Chongs re. There was hostility in his eyes.


    Lets go, Yu Chong said tly, then he turned to knock loudly on Zhang Yuantengs door. When Zhang Yuanteng was out, he walked away with a darkened expression, muttering, Im so unlucky; I cant believe I had toe get you two.


    Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng looked at each other and grinned.


    Following Yu Tao and the others, Long Chen arrived at the calm-lookingke. It was the entrance to the Counter Essence Realm. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Kill beast, get core, exchange for items. Life good


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 301: Sorrow Moon Lake

    Chapter 301: Sorrow Moon Lake


    There are fifty tunnels leading to the Counter Essence Realm at the bottom of Sorrow Moon Lake. Twenty of them lead to the Elementary Zone. From today onwards, we will be guarding Area Eighteen, so we will be taking the eighteenth tunnel, Zhang Yuanteng exined to Long Chen.


    Yu Tao and the other Area Eighteen guards ignored him, so Long Chen was grateful that Zhang Yuanteng was here to exin. It would have been dangerous to enter the Counter Essence Realm knowing nothing.


    Long Chen started to walk into Sorrow Moon Lake. The water was cool with thick spiritual Qi mixed in it.


    The water was very clear, and he could clearly see the bottom of theke. It looked like a giant piece of emerald, emanating a deep green glow that turned the wholeke into green jade.


    Fifty white crystals that were one meter wide were embedded inside the emerald crystal. A faint mist surrounded them, making them look like they were surrounded by clouds. Although they looked like crystals, they were tunnels.


    Long Chen knew that they were the entrances to Counter Essence Realm.


    He noticed that the nearer the crystals were to the center of theke, therger they were. The giant white crystal at the center was several timesrger than the rest. Several elderly people sat cross-legged around therge crystals, guarding them, or more specifically, they were guarding the doors to the Counter Essence Realm.


    The nearer the crystals are to the center, the higher the zones they lead to. The one at the center leads directly to the Advanced Zone. There are not many people who are permitted to enter. As for the elderly people, they used to be Immortal Guards but have retired due to old age. But do not underestimate them! With them guarding the realm, anyone with no authorization and with low cultivation level will find it difficult to enter, Zhang Yuanteng exined when he saw the confusion in Long Chens eyes.


    Long Chen sensed that there was no freedom in the Immortal Realm


    So far, he could only enter Area Eighteen ording to the Sword Devils assignment.


    Yu Tao turned around. Everyone, follow me into tunnel number eighteen. We will brief you on the specific details of this months tasks, he announced loudly. Then he stepped on a white crystal and disappeared. Everyone else imitated him and entered the Counter Essence Realm. Because Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng were new, they werest.


    When they were about to enter, another group of people arrived at Sorrow Moon Lake and walked up to the crystal next to crystal number eighteen. That was likely crystal number seventeen. Long Chen spotted the dwarf Song Yuefeng among them, and Song Yuefeng also noticed him immediately.


    Walking in front, Song Yuefeng asked Long Chen arrogantly with his nose pointed up, You, whats your name?


    Although he looked a little creepy, he was considered one of the most talented among the dwarves. However, Long Chen found it hard to show any respect when the dwarf walked around with his nose in the air.


    Long Chen ignored him and followed Zhang Yuanteng. Without even ncing at Song Yuefeng, he stepped on crystal number eighteen.


    His actions made Song Yuefengs face darken.


    <em>How dare he ignore me? You went to Area Eighteen, I see? Good! Lets see when I get to kill you!</em>


    ***


    Long Chen instantly sensed a current of cold water enveloping his body, quickly transporting him to somewhere far away. It was a pleasant sensation, and there was a gust of thick spiritual Qi blowing in his face.


    This did notst long; Long Chen quickly found himself standing on a wide expanse. The Counter Essence Realm was indeed an Immortal Realm, because Yellow-tier spiritual herbs were everywhere. They were not just rumors after all, as they were right beneath Long Chens feet. Herbal fragrances wafted from the fertile soil below.


    Looking up, he saw a sapphire sky with white clouds floating by. Beneath the white clouds, the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth had condensed to form white mist. It made everything far away look blurry.


    So, this is Counter Essence Realm? The two neers could not help but admire the beauty around them. To be honest, this was indeed the most beautiful ce Long Chen had ever seen.


    After studying his surroundings, Zhang Yuanteng sighed. Ive dreamed ofing to this ce. Its amazing.


    I wonder how a Miniverse like this was formed. Its a miracle, Long Chenmented.


    Right, Long Chen, your attitude towards Song Yuefeng just now was probably too disrespectful. You dont understand what dwarves are like. If you are weak, you must be servile towards them, or they will see you as their archnemesis who must be killed. Before you can defeat them, I suggest you oblige them a little, to avoid problems


    Oblige? Servile? Long Chen smiled.


    Its only out of necessity. Thats just how the dwarves are; they have no humanity in them. To save yourself, why not be servile for a while? Zhang Yuanteng said, exasperated.


    Brother Zhang, if a dog wants to bite you, will you be servile towards it? Its the same concept. I refuse to believe I cant ughter a barking dog, Long Chen said with augh.


    Zhang Yuanteng could not do anything about Long Chens blind confidence, so he neither agreed nor disagreed with him.


    After entering the Counter Essence Realm, Yu Tao led them to the base in Area Eighteen. Due to the presence of neers, Yu Tao begrudgingly pointed at the map on the wall and gave them a brief introduction of Area Eighteen.


    You two are new and know nothing, so listen up. There are a total of eight elementary Earth-tier spiritual herbs currently yet to mature in Area Eighteen. We shall followst months schedule. Long Chen, Zhang Yuanteng, you two are new, so you need to also join the patrol team with one senior leading you. Yu Chong, you and Long Chen will form one team. Jiang Shuai, you will be with Zhang Yuanteng.


    The locations of the eight elementary Earth-tier herbs were marked on the map. However, guarding the herbs was not Long Chens current task.


    <em>Patrol? </em>Long Chen was privately pleased. If he were in a fixed location, it would be difficult for him to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Patrol meant he could move freely, so it would be easier. However, with Yu Chong, an opponent he once defeated, present, Long Chen guessed that he would likely cause him trouble.


    Can I team up with Zhang Yuanteng? Long Chen asked.


    What nonsense is that? You two are new. Without anyone leading you guys, do you know how to patrol? Yu Tao red at them angrily and a st of fierce Qi hit them.


    With someone to lead or not, it will be the same<em>. </em>Long Chen clearly understood that everything he had learned since he came to the Counter Essence Realm had been exined by Zhang Yuanteng. Yu Tao had once said he would tell Long Chen the rules, but in reality, that was an empty promise.


    What did you say? Long Chen, as long as you are in Area Eighteen, you must listen to the Area Leaders orders. If youin again, I will kill you. Do you think Im joking? Yu Taos gaze darkened.


    Can you even kill me? There was a cold glint in Long Chens eyes.


    Are you really looking for death? Yu Tao used to be a horse thief, so he never had a good temper. Long Chen was publicly embarrassing him, so he was thoroughly angered.


    Long Chen was merely at the Second River Stage with enough strength to beat someone at the Third River Stage at most. Yu Tao, on the other hand, was a Fifth River Stage cultivator.


    Area Leader, I dont think you have the right to kill Long Chen, do you? Plus, Long Chen was only asking a question. He did not do anything wrong. What right do you have to kill him? Arent you afraid of Lord Sword Devil killing you? Zhang Yuanteng said hurriedly when he saw Yu Tao fuming.


    Indeed, as an Immortal Guard, Long Chen was part of the imperial familys military power. If he did not do anything wrong, Yu Tao, who was also an Immortal Guard, did not have the right to harm Long Chen in broad daylight.


    Alright, alright! Yu Tao chuckled coldly twice, then he swallowed his anger and ignored them to continue assigning tasks. Fifteen minutester, the tasks were assigned, and all the people tasked with guarding herbs left. Long Chen memorized the patrol route and bade Zhang Yuanteng farewell.


    Be careful. These people dont like you. Be careful of their traps, whispered Zhang Yuanteng.


    Understood. Im not oblivious. Zhang Yuanteng treated him as one of his own, so Long Chen naturally did the same.


    Long Chen understood that due to conflict over Ling Xi, it was only a matter of time before he and the Ninth Prince fought. On the other hand, Yu Tao and the rest were the ws and teeth of the Ninth Prince. Feuding with them was indirectly the same as feuding with the Ninth Prince. And in this feud, Long Chen would never surrender.


    <em>It looks like I need to quickly grow stronger in the Immortal Realm. Lets see if I can hunt immortal beasts!</em>


    Long Chens teammate was Yu Chong. Both were already seething when they met, so working together was worse. Following the patrol route, Long Chen walked in front while Yu Chong red darkly at his back.


    <em>This brat doesnt know how pitiful he is  I only lost to you that day because you were lucky If it wasnt for His Highness telling us not to attack yet, Id make you wish you were dead!</em>


    Neither spoke as they patrolled. Long Chen saw many new things as he walked through the Immortal Realm. asionally, he plucked a ripened ck-tier spiritual herbs to put in his Universe Pouch. After some time, while he had obtained a lot of herbs, they still had not encountered an immortal beast.


    <em>Weve alreadypleted half the route. But we need toplete several rounds. </em>Long Chen looked around him. Suddenly, the mist not far away started to thicken. In the blink of an eye, a pure white plume of mist was formed.


    When Yu Chong saw the mist, his face changed. Without a word, he immediately turned and ran!


    What was that?


    Long Chen gasped!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yeah no one likes to work with a coworker like that.


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 302: Cloud Canine

    Chapter 302: Cloud Canine


    After the sudden appearance of thick mist, Yu Chong ran off without a word.


    <em>What did that coward see? </em>Long Chen was not an idiot. Since Yu Chong had fled, he was prepared to run too. That was when two beasts charged out of the mist. They were canine-type beasts that were notrgebarely half the size of the Sun Devouring Wolf. Long, white fur covered their bodies with ck patterns that looked like runes. Their eyes were ck, and they had manes like lions, making them look strangely regal.


    Immortal beasts? Long Chen halted because he sensed that the two canine-type beasts were around Category Three Earth-tier. It was rare for Earth-tier Category Four beasts to appear in the Elementary Zone.


    What a useless bastard. He ran because of only two Category Three Earth-tier beasts  But I dont think Yu Chong feared the beasts. He was only trying to use them to kill me. Hes maniptive but clearly only average at it.


    Despite knowing Yu Chongs intentions, Long Chen did not flee. To him, both immortal and demonic beasts were sources of nourishment.


    The damp environment of the Nine Devil Mountains bred venomous beasts that possessed strong venom. Here at the Counter Essence Realm, the spiritual Qi was abundant and even condensed to a liquid state. Being constantly immersed in spiritual Qi turned demonic beasts into beautiful and intelligent beings, and their violent tendencies were subdued with the nourishment of the spiritual Qi.


    These two beasts matched the descriptions of Category Three Earth-tier Cloud Canines. They had only evolved to this current look after countless generations within the immortal realm.


    Long Chen had no choice but to use maximum strength to defeat them. He quickly activated his Dragon Soul Transformation, so neat and uniform red dragon scales instantly protected his body. He radiated power, even when he was standing still.


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The two Cloud Canines were initially heading towards the center of Area Eighteen. When they saw Long Chen, they turned and roared, then they charged at him. Ever since the imperial family took control of the Counter Essence Realm countless years ago, they had been at constant war with the immortal beasts. This hatred had long seeped into their bones, so when they spotted Long Chen, they attacked.


    <em>This speed is simr to Xiang when he was at the Category Three Earth-tier. </em>It was no wonder Yu Chong would run. Cloud Canines were considered one of the stronger species among the Category Three Earth-tier beasts; even Yu Chong was not sure if he could defeat one.


    <em>Yu Chong isnt here, so I can test out my Divine Fire Clone. </em>With that thought, Long Chen released the fire seed he had recently condensed. Five human-shaped fire clones appeared, standing behind him. After some practice, he had sessfully mastered the second stage of Divine Fire Clone!


    When the Cloud Canines saw the five fire clones, they were momentarily stunned, though they did not falter. One canine broke off to fight the clones.


    The five clones surrounded the canine and started to attack it. Fire flew in all directions,pletely restricting the canine. Long Chen used his Azure Dragon Halberd to m it away, then pounced on it. He swung his halberd as hard as he could, attacking it again and again!


    The Cloud Canines advantage was that it was fast and agile. It could dodge Long Chens quick attacks to a limited extent, and it forced him back with the help of its powerful ws and teeth.


    Nine Spinning Fire Shields!


    Halting his halberd attacks, Long Chen had an idea and activated the Nine Spinning Fire Shields. He used it as a weapon, pressing down on the canine. The Cloud Canine could not react in time to the giant fire spiral that had appeared out of nowhere. Plus, this was an intermediate Earth-tierbat technique, so how could it be simple?


    The fire from the Nine Spinning Fire Shields caused the Cloud Canines white fur to start erupting in mes. It let out a painful howl and wanted to run away to seek help from its friend. That was when Long Chen removed the shield and shed it with his halberd!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    The Azure Dragon soul soared ahead, then it sted the canine that was about to flee up into the air. The canine crashed into the ground, eyes wide and ck blood flowing out of its eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. It was dead!


    When the other canine witnessed the tragic death of its friend, it went mad and destroyed two of the five clones instantly!


    Long Chen did not stop. Right after killing one Cloud Canine, he pounced on the other. His Qi was definitely not weaker than the Cloud Canines demonic power, plus he had an intermediate Earth-tier weapon and three fire clones restricting it. Using the same method, he killed the other canine too.


    Blood Transmutation!


    Long Chenpletely absorbed the blood of two Cloud Canines using the divine technique from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, turning it into his own Qi. When the star Qi in his body increased, his cultivation improved a little.


    Its a pity that I''m still a distance away from the Third River Stage. It looks like only Category Four Earth-tier immortal beasts are enough for me. But I cant beat them


    This was indeed a dilemma to him.


    After digesting the blood of the two beasts, he cremated their carcasses, which were already burnt ck. Checking the time, he looked in the direction that Yu Chong had run towards, knowing he would return soon. Enough time had passed for him to return to base, report to Yu Tao, ande back to collect Long Chens body.


    As expected, Yu Tao and Yu Chong, along with several patrolling guards, rushed over soon after. From far away, they saw Long Chen standing there unscathed and were shocked. Yu Chong was in disbelief; he rubbed his eyes to check if it really was Long Chen.


    Long Chen, where are the two Cloud Canines? Yu Tao quickly looked around. Other than traces of fire being burnt in his surroundings, there was nothing else.


    What Cloud Canines? Long Chen looked at him with a half-smile.


    Yu Chong, didnt you say there were two Category Three Earth-tier Cloud Canines here? Yu Tao asked sourly.


    Its true! It wasnt a mistake! They were definitely two Cloud Canines! Why are they gone now? Even if Long Chen had killed them, where were the carcasses? had he burned them? Was he that powerful? Could he kill two Category Three Earth-tier beasts despite only being at the Second River Stage?


    Since when was there a Cloud Canine? We arrived here during our patrol, but then Yu Chong rushed off. I thought you were looking for a ce to poop. Haha  Long Chenughed, though with some glee directed at Yu Chong.


    Long Chen, what did you say? Yu Chong had an icy expression.


    Whatever. Yu Tao shook his head and pressed Yu Chong down. Looking at Long Chen in puzzlement, he said, Since there are no Cloud Canines, everyone get on with your tasks! Continue patrolling!


    Yes! Although everyone was confused, they did not dare believe that a country boy from a small town could kill two powerful immortal beasts in such a short time without getting hurt.


    Long Chen was still mulling over the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, so he ignored these unimportant figures. Although they were stronger than him, as a Dragon Warrior, he would soon surpass them.


    The days passed. During his patrols, Long Chen killed many beasts ranging from Category One to Three. At this point, he was extremely close to reaching the Third River Stage. However, he still had no information on the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, and he knew that he could not go on like this. One day, while he was resting in between patrols, he couldnt help but ask Zhang Yuanteng about it.


    Brother Zhang, do you know of any famous treasures in the Counter Essence Realm? he asked in a low voice.


    Treasures? I dont know about that. The Advanced Zone is a ce directly controlled by the imperial family, so everything inside is strictly confidential. But I know about a rumor of a talisman in the Advanced Zone. It is a strange talisman because it can be seen but not touched, so no one can do anything with it.


    A talisman? This had nothing to do with Long Chen, so he asked anxiously, Have you heard of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?


    No, I havent. What level is that spiritual herb? Zhan Yuanteng asked, stunned.


    Long Chen had not asked Li Xuanji what level it was. That was his mistake. However, he guessed that an herb that could help recover Ling Xis physical body could only be found in the Advanced Zone.


    If Zhang Yuanteng did not know of it, it meant that it was a precious treasure.


    Can we enter the Advanced Zone? Long Chen asked cautiously.


    Of course not. Zhang Yuanteng grinned. The Advanced Zone is directly owned by the imperial family and holds countless treasures. If we trespass, we will definitely be killed instantly. Long Chen, youre not thinking of going, are you? Its not a joke! Youre likely going to die!


    No! That would be looking for death, Long Chen said with a grin, though his heart sank. It looked like obtaining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit would be more difficult than he anticipated


    There are many very powerful cultivators in the Advanced Zone who can kill you. Even if we put that aside, Category Seven Earth-tier beasts are verymon there too. If you go there, a random encounter will get you killed, Zhang Yuanteng borated, worried about him.


    Category Seven Earth-tier beasts? Do they live in the Advanced Zone? he suddenly asked.


    They typically only show up in the Advanced Zone, but there have been several immortal beast stampedes before, which consists of immortal beasts moving together. During these stampedes, many powerful immortal beasts from the Advance Zone run over to the Elementary Zone. Many people die every time theres a stampede.


    Immortal beast stampede?


    If it was called a stampede, then it consisted of many beasts, and that would be absolutely terrifying. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Cloud Canine?! Why friend shape if not friend. I wanna pet one!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 303: Immortal Beast Stampede

    Chapter 303: Immortal Beast Stampede


    When do stampedes usually happen? asked Long Chen.


    I dont know about that either. But dont worry. During a stampede, a protected area is activated in the Elementary Zone where more powerful cultivators would remain. As long as you rush over as soon as possible, you will be protected, Zhang Yuanteng exined with a grin, patting Long Chens shoulder.


    The protected area in Area Eighteen should be at the boundary between Areas Seventeen and Eighteen. If there is a stampede, all we need to do is rush there. However, you dont have to worry. Stampedes are very rare and have only happened a few times. Immortal Guards are usually very safe.


    Long Chen was only asking casually, so he did not think much of the stampedes.


    Subsequently, Long Chen tried obtaining information on the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit from different sources, but to no avail. He slowly sensed that if he wanted to climb the ranks in the Counter Essence Realm to gain ess to the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, his current cultivation level was far from sufficient. He needed to be at least at the Seventh River Stage.


    If I had known, I would have cultivated until that level before entering this ce. But fortunately, there are endless immortal beasts in the Counter Essence Realm. I am very close to reaching the Third River Stage already.


    He had made tremendous progress with the Divine Fire Clone technique, condensing more and more fire seeds to be nted in his meridian points. Long Chen had also mastered thest attack of the Azure Dragon Combat Technique, which was several times stronger than Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension and was the essence of thebat technique.


    There was more important progressLong Chen realized that he could cultivate the third level of the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He was already adept at using Seduction and Soul Snatching, which were the first two levels. As for the third level, it did not have any true attacking power, but it would boost Long Chens strength greatly.


    The third level of the Soul Swallowing Gaze was called Sight.


    Long Chen discovered that when he used Sight, the room, mountains, and rocks around him would disappear, or rather, seem like they had disappeared. What remained clearest in his sight would be humans. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he would see people as strange gray clouds of mist, which seemed to be their souls.


    This applied not just to people, but to all life forms. Even a flying insect would be clear as day when the Soul Swallowing Gaze was active. Even if he was in the darkest ce, he would be able to detect the movements and locations of life forms. It was the equivalent of being able to see souls.


    During a routine patrol, Long Chen got a clear look at a few beasts in the mist, and he could tell how strong they were.


    <em>With the Soul Swallowing Gaze, I will be at an advantage if I fight someone in the dark. I can prevent ambushes too. No living creature can escape my eyes </em>


    Long Chen was impressed that the mere third level of the Soul Swallowing Gaze was already so awesome. He wondered how much better it could get. It came from Li Xuanji, so there was no way it would be simple.


    <em>The end of the month will arrive soon. I cant rest well knowing Xiao Xi is at Yuqin Pce. Theres not much time left. I must seize this chance to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. But if Im stuck patrolling this ce every day, when will I get a chance to check out the Advanced Zone?</em>


    Long Chen thought long and hard about this problem for a few days.


    On the eighteenth day after his arrival, Yu Tao arranged for Long Chen to continue patrolling with Yu Chong, a task reserved for the lowest-ranked Immortal Guards. Although he had seen many ck-tier herbs so far, he had not seen a single Earth-tier herb. All Earth-tier herbs were guarded by Yu Tao and the rest with their lives.


    In the face of Yu Chongs increasingly frequent provocations and betrayals, Long Chen would have killed him if they were not in the Counter Essence Realm.


    Yu Chong, who was walking behind him, asked usingly, Long Chen, this is clearly the path. Where are you going?


    Is where Im going any of your business? Long Chen ignored him. He had suddenly noticed some movement within the mist in that direction, and he wanted to check it out. However, when Yu Chong saw that Long Chen was being rude, he immediately argued back.


    What did you just say, punk? Are you looking for death? Dont think you can be so smug just because you beat me one time. Let me tell you this: you are no match for me in a real battle, Yu Chong yelled, stepping in front of Long Chen as he red at him.


    Idiot. Long Chen ignored him. He knew that he could not kill Yu Chong here, so he did not want to waste his efforts. He needed to be able to kill malicious people like him in one strike.


    When he was about to walk around Yu Chong, he suddenly felt a vibration in the ground.


    <em>Did I imagine that? </em>He thought he had imagined it at first, but even Yu Chongs face changed. Yu Chong quicklyy on the ground and listened. Then he paled.


    Long Chen heard many beast roars that seemed to shred through space, shaking the entire Counter Essence Realm!


    The ground trembled violently, and the sound of countless beings running came from all directions.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Only tens of thousands of horses charging together could create this sound.


    When he looked up, Long Chen realized that the mist around him had be much thicker than before. He calmly activated his Soul Swallowing Gaze and looked far out into the mist. To his shock, a dense crowd of powerful souls were running from the depths of the mist in his direction.


    <em>Immortal beast stampede? </em>The term Zhang Yuanteng had recently mentioned to Long Chen popped into his mind.


    Immortal beast stampede! Yu Chong shouted in terror. He had heard of the terrifying stampedes before, and now one was unfolding right before him. Seeing as the horde of beasts would arrive soon, he did not care about arguing with Long Chen. Everyone had likely sensed the hordeing, and the weaker Immortal Guards were already heading towards the protected area.


    Without a word, Yu Chong ran. Since Yu Tao hadnt exined anything to Long Chen, he assumed Long Chen had no idea how scary an immortal beast stampede was.


    <em>That punk doesnt know a thing and is standing there like an idiot. Ill let him die. </em>Yu Chong felt great relief thinking that Long Chen would die beneath the ws of immortal beasts.


    When he saw Yu Chong running away, there was a cold sh in Long Chens eyes.


    I cant believe an immortal beast stampede really happened. Its a good thing thoughI can take advantage of the chaos and risk my life to enter the Advanced Zone. Ill try to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit there. If I dont do it now, I might not get another chance. I can wait, but Xiao Xi cannot.


    With that thought, Long Chen immediately ran with Yu Chong.


    When he saw Yu Chong running, he grinned. He did not dare kill Yu Chong before, but now? The rumbling of running beasts was right behind them, and perhaps the beasts would arrive in a few breaths time. Long Chen could use the beasts to kill Yu Chong.


    To be honest, Long Chen had been holding back his anger for a very long time. Now, it was time for him to explode!


    As he chased after Yu Chong, Long Chen activated his Dragon Soul Transformation and took out the Azure Dragon Halberd. It glinted coldly.


    <em>Ill let him have a taste of the Azure Dragon Combat Techniques final move. </em>Long Chen quietly but quickly caught up to him.


    Yu Chong. A soft voice rang in the panicked Yu Chongs ear. He had been initially focused on fleeing, but he was startled to hear Long Chens voice behind him. His shock turned to rage because Long Chen should have been waiting at the spot for the immortal beast stampede. Why was he chasing after him spouting nonsense?


    Get the fuck away! Yu Chong yelled, turning around!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique


    When Yu Chong turned around, a powerful aura suddenly pressed on him, making it hard to breathe. Amidst his confusion, he saw a white thread flying towards his head. Before he could react, he felt an agonizing, sharp pain between his brows. Then the world went dark.


    Dragon King Burial


    This was thest attack of the Azure Dragon Combat Technique. It was clean and simple, yet it brought unparalleled destruction. When Long Chen closed in on Yu Chongs back, he released the attack. Yu Chong did not even have a chance to retaliate before he died.


    He had never expected Long Chen to be this bold. Although Long Chen was not a wolf, he had a personality like onehe had the ability to bide his time, and viciousness. Yu Chong had died at the hands of his wolf-like nature.


    After killing Yu Chong, Long Chen threw the body behind him. There was an endless sea of immortal beasts chasing him. Since they hated Immortal Guards to the bone, nothing would be left of Yu Chongs body in seven minutes. There would be no evidence of his death.


    There was no reason for this other than to make you understand that anyone who angers me will meet their end. Its the same for you, your older brother Yu Tao, and even the Ninth Prince. The corners of his lips curled up as he looked at Yu Chongs body.


    He stood in the same spot for a while. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could already see the approaching beasts. If he returned to the base too quickly, Yu Tao would definitely be suspicious. Now that the immortal beasts were in sight, he could say that Yu Chong had run off on his own first, but the beasts caught up and killed him. That way, Yu Tao would not have any evidence to refute his im.


    There are so many beasts. This is definitely the immortal beast stampede that Zhang Yuanteng mentioned.


    Long Chen headed towards the protected area. The horde of beasts had caused a hugemotion, and the sounds of beast roars shook the heavens and the earth. Many other Immortal Guards were running towards the protected area as well. Since Long Chen was fast, he spotted Zhang Yuanteng just before he arrived. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yu Chong is dead!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 304: Nine Heavens True Fire Beast

    Chapter 304: Nine Heavens True Fire Beast


    When Zhang Yuanteng saw Long Chen unscathed, he sighed in relief and said, Long Chen, I jinxed it! I had only mentioned the immortal beast stampede in passing, and it actually happened. But dont worry, we can head to the protected area now.


    Long Chen did not head directly towards the Advanced Zone, because he wanted to see Zhang Yuanteng. This was a very rare friend to him. After guaranteeing his safety, Long Chen shook his head and said, I wont. I need to leave because I have some matters to attend to. Brother Zhang, if you see me as a brother, dont ask me any questions. I know my limits. This is extremely important to me, so I hope you wont intervene. Goodbye!


    Then Long Chen did not borate and ran past Zhang Yuanteng, soon disappearing from sight. Zhang Yuanteng was startled by what he had said, because he seemed to be very determined. Before he could think of a way to advise against it, Long Chen had already run off.


    Since he had no choice, Zhang Yuanteng went towards the protected area despite being worried. The immortal beast stampede was approaching and they were surrounded by deafening beast roars, so no one would notice Long Chen missing.


    This was the boundary between Areas Seventeen and Eighteen, so the people of both areas had gathered here. When Long Chen and Zhang Yuanteng were speaking, a teenager being escorted by a group of Immortal Guards had spotted them from far away. Hatred shed in his eyes when he identified Long Chen.


    Isnt that teenager Long Chen, the guy who out did me in front of the Sword Devil? And that former Counter Essence soldier too! Damn it!


    When he thought about how Long Chen had stolen what was supposed to be his, jealousy and hatred rose within him. Since Long Chen had run off and disappeared, Zhang Yuanteng was hurrying towards the protected area.


    <em>You may be fast, but this Counter Essence soldier is rted to him. I hate him!</em> Watching Zhang Yuanteng leave, Song Yuefeng sneered and followed.


    <em>Ill kill one more as an appetizer. Long Chen will definitely go to the protected area, so that will be my main course, </em>thought Song Yuefeng with relish.


    ***


    Long Chen struck and killed another Category Three Earth-tier Cloud Canine. He looked around and saw that the thick and heavy mist had already covered the entire Counter Essence Realm. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could see many immortal beast souls approaching. There were cultivators who could not run in time fighting them.


    Immortal beast stampedes were destructive events where immortal beasts from the Advanced or Intermediate Zones entered the Intermediate or Elementary Zones. The Immortal Guards from the Elementary and Intermediate Zones were no match for them at all, so they could only hide and save their strength. As long as the Advanced Zones Immortal Guards came to help, they would be able to suppress the stampede.


    Long Chen had already passed the protected area and he soon entered the Intermediate Zone directly. There, he found that the spiritual Qi was much thicker and that the herbs were higher in level.


    The Intermediate Zone was mostly upied by guards between the Fourth and Sixth River Stages. Categories Four to Six Earth-tier beasts weremon here. He wouldve run the risk of running straight into a beast or a man if he had not cultivated the third stage of the Soul Swallowing Gaze, which wouldve been a tragedy.


    With the help of his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he stayed far away from beasts and cultivators. There were many Category Three Earth-tier Cloud Canines here. Avoiding high-level beasts, he killed them and hurried on quickly, at the same time using Blood Transmutation to increase his strength.


    <em>Whats going on? Ive been using Blood Transmutation more frequently; I think its making me feel a little dizzy. The killing intent in me is also very intense </em>


    Long Chen noted the sensation of being poisoned every time he used Blood Transmutation. Although his strength was increasing and he felt more energetic, there was an icy, murderous energy in his chest that was growing gradually.


    However, this was a time when Long Chen needed strength the most. Ling Xis life depended on him, so he dared not ck off despite all the violence and killing intent upying his mind.


    He continued traveling through the Intermediate Zone.


    Only the extremely important herbs were being guarded. Yellow and ck-tier herbs were abundant in the Counter Essence Realm and would grow back if they were lost, so they did not matter.


    However, every Immortal Guard was talented at their job, and if the casualties were too high, they would have to recruit more. It was difficult to recruitrge numbers of trustworthy cultivators.


    That was why protecting the Immortal Guards was of utmost importance during every stampede.


    During this time, Long Chen saw many intermediate-Earth tier spiritual herbs, but they had not ripened. Even if he plucked them, they would be useless, so he merely looked.


    The immortal beasts had conquered almost the entire Intermediate and Elementary Zones. If didnt have the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chens journey would not have been so simple. He had seen Categories Six and Seven immortal beasts along the way, which would bring him massive improvement in cultivation, but only if he could kill them.


    However, killing a Category Six Earth-tier was currently a faraway dream to him.


    By now, the hunting of immortal beasts by the more powerful Immortal Guards had officially begun. Long Chen secretly snuck around them, taking secluded paths, and quickly approached the Advanced Zone. Although there were no clear boundaries between the Advanced and Intermediate Zones, Long Chen could make a guess based on the changes in spiritual Qi and herbs in his surroundings.


    This ce is quiet, like there are no threats from immortal beasts. Why is that? Long Chen walked through a vast field and realized that there were few beasts here. There was a scent in the air that made him feel suffocated.


    He had a bad feeling and quickly observed the souls in his surroundings using the Soul Swallowing Gaze. But there didnt seem to be anything, not even an ant.


    There was not a single animal within a five-hundred-meter radius.


    Whats going on? Is this the Advanced Zone? Long Chen looked in all directions.


    That was when his Soul Swallowing Gaze caught a ripple so powerful that even his soul trembled, and it was quickly approaching. Long Chen looked up and, to his terror, there was a huge beast floating in the sky above!


    This gigantic beast was burning with red mes. It had arge pair of wings like those of a bat, but they looked much scarier and were filled with great power. The beast had the body of a lion with fangs and long, sharp ws. Its eyes were burning with mes. When it gazed coldly at Long Chen, the suffocating pressure made Long Chen felt like he had seen a deity!


    Forget about fightingthe huge, intimidating aura had almost forced him to his knees!


    Nine Heavens True Fire Beast  Long Chen remembered this immortal beasts name clearly. After Xiang had received the Sun Devouring Wolfs body, Long Chen had tried hard to find fire elemental treasures for him. He got to know about demonic cores from demonic beasts and learned that within the Earth-tier, the most powerful fire beast was the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast. Long Chen initially thought the Cangyang Kingdom would not have beasts of that level, so he never imagined that there would be one here.


    Nine Heavens True Fire Beast, Category Nine, Earth-tier!


    A beast of this scale could kill Long Chen with a sneeze!


    Long Chen now knew why there were no other life forms in this area. It was the beasts territory.


    Since it was a Category Nine Earth-tier beast, its sensing abilities far exceeded Long Chens Soul Swallowing Gaze. Before he noticed it, it had long noticed him.


    All the nerves in his body tightened.


    <em>How could I get so unlucky? If it really wants to kill me, I wont be able to defend myself at all  </em>Long Chen paled. Ling Xi and Xiang were waiting at Yuqing Pce! If he died here, what would happen to them?


    Without Long Chen, Ling Xi would not have a future. This put a huge weight on his shoulders. This was the responsibility of a man!


    Long Chen realized that due to his impatience for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, he had been too reckless. He had trespassed on the Nine Heavens True Fire Beasts territory, and it was all his fault


    The only thing that brought him relief was that after the beast noticed him, it did not attack immediately but rather looked at him, a bit puzzled.


    mes came out of its nostrils as it breathed.


    <em>What does it want? </em>Long Chen dared not look up, so he could only guess.


    Then, as if it had lost all patience, it flew around Long Chen in circles several times, then it let out a furious roar.


    The thunder-like roar that came out of its gigantic body made the ground tremble. Long Chen knew that the beast was about to attack and activated his Dragon Soul Transformation. Then, he shot off at maximum speed towards where he came from!


    He didnt have the luxury of being worried about being discovered by someone in the Intermediate Zone!


    When he used the Dragon Soul Transformation, the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast froze for a moment, stopping midair. Taking advantage of that sliver of time, Long Chen widened the distance between them by a hundred meters!


    <em>Maybe it sensed my Inherited Blood Essence? And the Dragon Soul Transformation? No, I dont think it sensed them. It must have noticed something it feared in my body, or it would have rushed over to kill me instantly, </em>he thought as he fled.


    The Dragon Soul Transformation had only stopped the beast for a slight moment. With a p of its fleshy wings, it arrived behind Long Chen and let out a furious roar. Angry mes shot out at him!


    The beast was gigantic. The mes it spat were a sea of fire to Long Chen. He was about to be swallowed by fire  <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Uh oh, MC is in trouble


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 305: Blood Warp

    Chapter 305: Blood Warp


    Long Chen could already smell the fire. The temperature of the fire spat out by the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast was extremely high. Even though it was still far away, Long Chen could feel burning pain on his back, and steam rose from his body due to the heat!


    <em>Im done for! </em>Long Chen despaired. He couldve fought it if it was a Category Six or Seven beast, but this was a true Category Nine Earth-tier beast. It was likely on par with the ultimate masters of the Cangyang Kingdom like the Sword Devil. This was likely the most powerful beast in the Counter Essence Realm. How could he live in the face of such a powerful beast?


    Xiao Xi! When he felt the insane heat on his back, a fire also burned in his heart. He had difficulty breathing and several explosions were set off inside his chest. That was when blood rushed through his entire body. If he had not activated the Dragon Soul Transformation, green veins would be popping from his skin all over his body!


    How can I possibly die here?! I wont allow that!


    The fire would swallow him at any moment now. Long Chen was already at his limit. He looked up in fury and let out an angry roar!


    Die!


    Long Chen felt as if his entire body had exploded. His blood was initially flowing quickly, but now it was at its limit! His blood seemed to morph into small blood dragons, charging ahead in his blood vessels and unleashing earth-shaking roars!


    The Primordial Dragons were the most powerful beings in the world, and one was hiding in his body. However, when threatened by the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast, plus Long Chens unwillingness to die, he felt as if something was about to break free from his body to shatter the beast!


    It was the blood of the dragon!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    A sonorous dragons roar was unleashed from Long Chens human mouth. He realized that the long-slumbering mysterious dragon pendant was active once more!


    Within his sea of consciousness, the mysterious jade pendant let out a ck ray of light, shining on the drop of Inherited Blood Essence. Nine hundred and ny-ninths of the Inherited Blood Essence still remained within it.[1] A familiar scene yed out once more. Under the suppression and control of the mysterious dragon jade, the drop of Inherited Blood Essence moved towards the dragon jade!


    The Inherited Blood Essence seemed to be displeased about being controlled like that, but it had no choice. Long Chen faintly sensed a blood-colored divine dragon asrge as the sky in the tiny blood droplet. It was currently roaring in fury, fighting back against the mysterious jade pendants power.


    But to no avail.


    Just like the times when Long Chenprehended Blood Transmutation and the Dragon Soul Transformation, a flowing line of blood appeared on the jade pendant. The blood shimmered as it flowed in the lines, just like before.


    Blood Warp


    Two words appeared in Long Chens mind. When heprehended Blood Transmutation, the name of the technique had also appeared in his mind, which was how he knew its name.


    The mysterious jade pendant had been activated due to the mortal threat imposed by the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast, and it had allowed him toprehend Blood Warp. Since he had not used it yet, he did not know what it was.


    A mere moment had passed from the activation of the pendant to Long Chensprehension of Blood Warp. Seeing as the beast was about to burn him to a crisp, he took a risk and used Blood Warp!


    He trusted the mysterious dragon jade pendant. This was hisst chance to stay alive. If Blood Warp was useless, then certain death awaited him.


    Blood Warp, activate


    His whole body turned into a ray of blood-colored light, then he disappeared right before the beasts eyes. The light looked like an animal that resembled a long snake to the beast, but it noticed that Long Chen was gone.


    In reality, that was not a snake but the legendary Primordial Dragon. When he used Blood Warp, his body had turned into a fluid state and then into a blood-colored ray of light before disappearing. The ray of light merely looked like a dragon.


    Even Long Chen could not describe how fast he was traveling. All he could confirm was that the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast could not catch up to him because he was faster than it! The beast did not expect him to possess such speed, so when the ant disappeared, it finally reacted and let out an earth-shattering roar and gave chase!


    All the herbs on the ground were burned to crisps beneath its ming body. They were useless now


    Long Chen was not worried because in just a short moment, he had shaken off the beast behind him. He quickly made a turn, knowing that it was going to be impossible for it to find him after this.


    He was relieved to still be alive. A wave of fatigue rushed over him, and he realized that Blood Warp exhausted a huge amount of Qi. He had only run about five kilometers, but doing so had cost him almost all his Qi. If he had not stopped in time, he wouldve been squeezed dry by Blood Warp!


    The ray of blood light suddenly turned into a human standing on the ground. He hurriedly turned around. Roars of fury came from behind, but he could no longer see the beast.


    He sighed in relief.


    <em>Looks like I will need to avoid being so rash and reckless in the future, or it will one day ruin everything. If I had not suddenlyprehended Blood Warp, I would have died for sure </em>


    <em>And if I die, Xiao Xi  Sigh. Shes the only reason Id act so rashly in search of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. </em>Long Chen was exasperated.


    His focus turned to Blood Warp.


    <em>Blood Transmutation, Dragon Soul Transformation, Blood Devouring Domain, and Blood Warp. Theyre all awesome divine techniques, plus they strengthen as I level up. Blood Warp lets me spend my Qi to move at a speed faster than the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast. However, I can only run up to five kilometers, but five kilometers is enough to save my life. Blood Warp is amazing for fleeing life-and-death situations!</em>


    Long Chen would be safer with Blood Warp in his arsenal. Although it was not as attention-grabbing as Blood Transmutation, it was a great technique to save ones life. If he used it well, he would survive near-death scenarios that could have resulted in death if he did not have it.


    <em>The blood essence of an ancestral dragon like the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon</em><em>would not go </em>wrong. <em>Am I like what the Burning Heaven Emperor said? The Dragon Warrior who will surpass the Sun Devouring Wolf to be number one in the world?</em>


    Long Chen grew emotional with that thought.


    However, his Qi had been exhausted and he had no choice but to consume a Heavenly River Pill and cultivate. After an hour, his Qi finally recovered. He was more cautious now and hid in a secluded ce. Regr immortal beasts would not find him easily.


    After recovering his strength, he stood up and observed his surroundings. He found that themotion outside had mostly died down and only a few beast roars could be heard. The immortal beast stampede wasing to an end.


    <em>It looks like its not going to be easy to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Ive learned my lesson. I must not be blinded by impatience,</em> Long Chen<em></em>thought to himself.


    He was preparing to return, but he suddenly heard the furious roar of the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast.


    <em>It hasnt given up yet? How clingy. </em>Long Chen nned to ignore it and leave. That was when he realized that it was fighting someone. The only ones who could fight that beast were the highest ranked individuals in the Counter Essence Realm. Since he had Blood Warp now to protect himself, he did not hesitate to run towards the beasts roars!


    <em>Who could be fighting the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast? </em>Hiding himself, Long Chen approached cautiously. After crossing several short hills, hey on his stomach and finally spotted the beast fighting for its life, roaring angrily. He could see wounds on its body.


    <em>That sword </em>


    There was a young man fighting the beast. Long Chen could not see his face, but based on his tall, muscr physique and the smoothness of his swordsmanship, the young man was a great master.


    What caught Long Chens attention was his sword. The golden sword looked like it was madepletely of gold, glinting blindingly as it was swung in battle. The material used to make the sword was surely more precious than real gold if it was strong enough to withstand the insane strength of the young man.


    <em>This guy is strong enough to face the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast and uses a golden divine sword. I know who you are</em>


    After arriving in the Biyang Imperial Capital and talking to Xiang, Long Chen had some understanding of the young masters of the capital. Almost all of the youths from the royal family were extremely talented. Some of them were average at cultivation but had made ster military and administrative contributions. Some of them strictly focused on cultivation and achieved extraordinary results. One of the best among them was this young man.


    Long Chen remembered his nameLin Zichen. He was the Fourth Prince, and his weapon was the number one divine weapon in the Cangyang Kingdom: the Imperial Sword! He was at the formidable Ninth River Stage!


    1. Remember that thest time the pendant was activated, one-thousandth of the blood drop was used. Therefore, there is still nine-hundred and ny-ninths of the droplet left. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hmm Instant movement but burns up all his Qi? Wondering if he could control it in short bursts so he doesn''t run out of gas and be vulnerableWould be great to teleport around during battles


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 306: Fourth River Stage

    Chapter 306: Fourth River Stage


    The highest-ranked person in the entire Cangyang Kingdom was the Sword Emperor. Fourth Prince Lin Zichen hadnt spent much time or effort on politics, but he had received the Sword Emperors acknowledgment and was referred to as the Young Sword Emperor.


    As a Ninth River Stage cultivator, he was the most terrifying prodigy Long Chen had everid eyes on. Lin Zichen had been a legend in the Cangyang Kingdom since he was young. There wasnt even an Eighth River Stage cultivator among the imperial youths, so the next strongest prince was only at the Seventh River Stage, and there was no guarantee that any of them would reach the Ninth River Stage in their lifetimes.


    That was why Li Zichen was a peerless prodigy in the Biyang Imperial Capital. He was just like Long Chen when he left the Burning Heaven Secret Realm in Yuanling City without an equal in his generation. Many older masters were also no match for him.


    Even the strongest cultivator in the Harmony family, one of the three noble families, was only at the Eighth River Stage, Song Zhongcheng!


    There were even rumors that Lin Zichen, having received the Imperial Sword passed down in the imperial family, had already caught up to his uncle, the Sword Devil, who had been at the Ninth River Stage for more than twenty years. He was one of the top three masters of the imperial family!


    That prodigy was right in front of Long Chen!


    Long Chen had to admit that even just watching the sword-bearing teenager made him feel immense pressure. Every sh of the Imperial Sword released a huge ripple as it glinted with light that prated the heavens. The Nine Heavens True Fire Beast let out furious roars, fighting with its fire, sharp ws, and all sorts of divine abilities. Although it was powerful, it could not hit the agile Lin Zichen!


    Lin Zichen was an Armament Warrior. His Armament Soul had been injected into the Imperial Sword, so they were intimately connected to each other. This allowed him to use a hundred and twenty percent of hisbat abilities. An Armament Soul offered arger boost than a Beast Warriors Beast Soul. Since the Imperial Sword was a formidable divine weapon that was the most well-known across the Cangyang Kingdom, paired with all the powerful techniques he possessed, even the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast was no match for Lin Zichen.


    Long Chen was left in a daze as he watched him. Lin Zichen was just too powerful! The beast could easily kill Long Chen, but Lin Zichen could kill it so casually!


    Every time he swung the Imperial Sword, a shower of blood would spray from the beasts body and fall on the ground. The clean ground was slowly dyed red from its blood.


    Long Chen was initially captivated by the battle, immersed in the immense pressure. But when he saw the rain of blood, his eyes lit up.


    <em>The blood of a Category Nine Earth-tier beast? Even just a little bit would be enough for me to get stronger, right? </em>Long Chens excitement grew. He desperately needed to grow stronger, but was frustrated because he could not kill stronger beasts. But if he consumed the blood now


    Long Chen wanted to leave so he wouldnt run into troubleter, but when he saw the blood, he decided to stay.


    Time passed as they fought. Lin Zichens impressivebat abilities and vicious techniques expanded Long Chens horizons. It was no wonder he was the number one prodigy in the Cangyang Kingdom. He knew that the beast was powerful, so he did not let it touch him. Instead, he kept weaving between attacks. In the end, the beast died from exhaustion!


    The gigantic carcass crashed into the ground, throwing dust up into the air.


    To be honest, Long Chen was drooling over the carcass. If this Category Nine Earth-tier beast could be his, his cultivation level would increase by several tiers. Of course, that was impossible because it was also very important to Lin Zichen, who quickly stored it in his Universe Pouch. He cleaned up the ce a little, then he left contentedly.


    He had no idea that a teenager had been lying on his stomach on a faraway hill, observing his battle against the beast.


    <em>I must admit that he is powerful. Compared to the Ninth Prince, he is much stronger in terms of mind and strength. </em>Long Chen waited until Lin Zichen disappeared. Hemented, not because he admired Lin Zichen, but because Lin Zichen was too hard to defeat.


    <em>I must not provoke that psycho before I be strong enough. </em>Long Chen was currently at the Second River Stage, so he knew how to act.


    With Lin Zichen gone, Long Chen sprinted as fast as he could to the battlefield. The ce was a mess due to the fire. There was ck, burnt soil everywhere, and the Nine Heavens True Fire Beasts blood covering the soil. Because some time had passed, a lot of blood had dried up and be useless. However, there were still some that could be salvaged.


    Long Chen wasted no time. He quickly activated the Blood Devouring Domain, and all the blood that could still move flowed towards him and was absorbed by his ck hole-like body. Finally, it turned into blood-red Qi flowing swiftly through his star veins.


    The blood was a great source of nourishment. Although there was not much, it was of great quality. Long Chen had just absorbed blood from a beast seven tiers above himself. Each small drop of blood, after being condensed and filtered by Blood Transmutation, had been turned into huge quantities of blood-red Qi!


    <em>Its time to work towards the Third River Stage </em>


    Long Chen suddenly noticed that the sky of Counter Essence Realm did not have stars. Without stars, he would not be able to connect to the power of the stars. And without star power and only relying on Heavenly River Pills, the star river he condensed would be unstable and could break down at any time.


    But perhaps that was not such a bad thing.


    Long Chen had no time to think about it. He slowly refined the beasts blood; if he did not use this Qi to condense a star river within his body, the sheer volume of it would soon make him explode!


    <em>I can condense a star river even without stars in the sky!</em>


    Long Chen gritted his teeth and sat down cross-legged, vigorously steering the Qi to move through his body. The volume of Qi he had absorbed was especiallyrge, so it was a little hard to control. However, this was not his limit. His excellent dragon body was not particrly hardy, but it had great abilities.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    He sensed that if he did not condense a star vein right now, his body could not hold on any longer. He quickly took out a hundred Heavenly River Pills and stuffed them into his mouth. Although his heart ached, he would not be able to enter the Third River Stage without them!


    The hundred pills turned into star power and helped him condense a star river. Because there were no Heavenly Rivers in the Counter Essence Realms sky, Long Chen decided to condense both Yin and Yang Rivers for the third stage. He would figure out the restter!


    He had enough Heavenly River Pills and a giant amount of Qi, so he easily finished condensing the Yin and Yang Rivers and reached the Third River Stage, bing considerably stronger. The only unexpected thing was that a hundred pills was not enoughhe had to consume more than three hundred pills to finally condense the Yin and Yang Rivers!


    It was because there was just too much Qi in the Nine Heavens True Fire Beasts blood. Even after attaining the Third River Stage, there was still a lot of Qi umted in his body. Although he was still unstable, he had no choice but to start working towards the Fourth River Stage!


    <em>Blood? Killing? </em>Long Chen sensed a cold aura spreading in his mind. He suddenly felt like blood would make him excited. Of course, killing too.


    <em>Ive probably used Blood Transmutation too much. My mind has started to be influenced by the Inherited Blood Essence. </em>Long Chen had no choice, and this tiny influence would not be a huge problem.


    He started to work towards the Fourth River Stage. It was much more difficult than the previous stage and used up more pills. He only had about two thousand Heavenly River Pills to begin with, and they were being spent very quickly. When he condensed the star river, he had to consume more than a thousand Heavenly River Pills to truly seed. By the time he had used up all his Qi to condense the fourth pair of star rivers, only about one to two hundred pills remained.


    Due to the Nine Heavens True Fire Beasts blood, Long Chen had consecutively leveled up from the Second to the Fourth River Stage, two levels in total. He believed that with his current strength, the Dragon Soul Transformation, and Divine Fire Clone, he could defeat the people who had been targeting him like Yu Tao and Song Yuefeng!


    <em>What a powerful feeling. My body is filled with power  </em>Long Chen smirked as he felt the power in his body. His eyes were faintly glowing red.


    <em>Whats the matter? </em>Although he felt powerful, he felt as if he could not control his body, like there was a force inside himmanding him. Long Chen thought about what it wasmanding him to do and realized that it was to kill.


    <em>My body is hot. Why do I yearn for someone toe fight me? </em>Long Chen was puzzled. He guessed that it was a symptom of Blood Transmutation overuse. It would not be a problem if he waited a while, so he controlled himself a little until he felt okay again.


    <em>Next, I should return to the Elementary Zone and see if there are any other opportunities I can take advantage of. </em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    He''s bing a berserker I see


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 307: Dragon King Burial

    Chapter 307: Dragon King Burial


    A long time had passed, so the immortal beast stampede waspletely over. The Immortal Guards from the Intermediate Zone had left the protected area to deal with the mess the beasts had left behind. Relying on the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen avoided many of them. After about two hours, he finally returned to Area Eighteen.


    The ce was a mess. Over ten Earth-tier herbs that required protection had gone missing. They had likely been uprooted by the immortal beasts.


    After reaching the Fourth River Stage, Long Chens gaze grew more reserved despite being stronger. Although there were no heavenly rivers in the Counter Essence Realm, he had managed to make two breakthroughs by force. And the condensed star rivers within his star vein did not show any signs of instability.


    Long Chen had killed Yu Chong as soon as the immortal beast stampede arrived. At the time, they were both on the same team. Now that he was back, he was afraid of having conflict with Yu Tao. Long Chen had made a solid decision, and he believed that as long as he stubbornly denied it, Yu Tao could not do anything to him in public.


    Long Chen returned to base in broad daylight. Some people were shocked to see that he was still alive and quickly called more people over. Most of the guards in Area Eighteen were tall, muscr men from the Heavenly Wolf Gang. They gathered around and stared at him watchfully. When Yu Tao arrived, they moved aside to let him enter.


    Yu Taos face was extremely dark. He stood in front of Long Chen, a st of killing intent hitting Long Chen in the face. Looking at the fearless teenager, he was about to question him when Long Chen beat him to it. Why dont I see Zhang Yuanteng? Where is Zhang Yuanteng?


    Previously, Zhang Yuanteng had returned to the protected area and Long Chen had only left for the Advanced Zone after ensuring his safety. Now that he was back here, he noticed that everyone was present except Zhang Yuanteng.


    Yu Tao smirked and did not reply to him. He merely asked coldly, Long Chen, forget about Zhang Yuanteng. Im asking you now: where is my brother Yu Chong?


    Yu Chong? Long Chen smiled. When the immortal stampede came, he ran off and disappeared. He hasnt returned? Maybe he was eaten by the beasts because he was too weak?


    What did you say?! Yu Tao raised his eyebrows, killing intent radiating from him. He approached Long Chen and asked coldly, Long Chen, dont you dare act stupid! Yu Chong was with you when the stampede began. Why did you return but not him?


    Long Chens grin widened when he heard this. His fearless grin made Yu Taos gaze darken.


    Yu Tao, its not like you dont know your younger brother. When we encountered merely two Cloud Canines, he was so afraid that he immediately ran off to you. This was a whole stampede! Id absolutely believe it if someone said that a weak coward like him was eaten by the beasts along the way! Long Chen refused to budge.


    Nonsense! You killed him and put the me on the beasts, didnt you? Yu Tao asked with a cold sh in his eyes.


    Long Chen had long known that he would make this usation. If his mind were a mess right now, Yu Tao would have spotted his lie immediately. That was why he had already nned his performance.


    With an icy expression, he asked, Following your logic, where is Zhang Yuanteng? Did you kill him?


    He had not seen Zhang Yuanteng yet and was getting worried. Although their bond was not that deep, Zhang Yuanteng had helped him greatly, and Long Chen had always repaid those who showed him kindness. When he thought that Zhang Yuanteng could be in danger, blood Qi rushed into his brain, his blood boiled, and his eyes slowly became red.


    When Yu Tao saw the vicious look in Long Chens eyes without a hint of guilt, he started to believe that Yu Chongs disappearance was unrted to Long Chen. He was naturally concerned about the safety of his younger brother, and now that the stampede had just passed, they could finally go search for Yu Chong. He instructed the others, Search Area Eighteen and see if you can find Yu Chong. As for Long Chen, youd better stay here. If I find out that you were the one who harmed Yu Chong, I will make you wish you were dead!


    Under Yu Taos instructions, the people who had just returned from the chaos left to search for Yu Chong once more. Only Yu Tao and Long Chen remained in the base.


    Now, can you tell me where the hell Zhang Yuanteng is? When he was rushing back to the protected area, you went there too. I refuse to believe that you dont know what happened!


    Long Chen clenched his fists tightly. He realized that ever since he reached the Fourth River Stage, his desire to kill had gotten oddly strong. Just as Ling Xi had said, the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was the legendary dragon of ughter and massacre, and his personality would gradually be influenced since he had inherited its blood. Furthermore, since he had used Blood Transmutation a few consecutive times, it became more obvious that his personality had be violent and difficult to control.


    Zhang Yuanteng? Hes a nobody; I have no time to pay him any attention. Long Chen, tell me honestly. What the hell happened to my brother? Yu Tao refused to yield.


    From Yu Taos words, Long Chen sensed that something had indeed happened to Zhang Yuanteng. It was likely because of Long Chen that Yu Tao hated Zhang Yuanteng, bringing him harm.


    With that thought, Long Chen felt anger rush into his brain, slowly muddling his mind.


    Yu Tao, Im asking you again! Did you kill Zhang Yuanteng?! Taking three steps toward Yu Tao, Long Chens eyes turned blood-red and the vein on his neck popped out.


    Yu Chong had gone missing, but Yu Tao had not threatened Long Chen yet. Now that Long Chen had threatened him instead, how could a former bandit swallow his anger? How dare Long Chen make such rude usations in front of him? It did not matter whathe was looking for death!


    Get the fuck out! Yu Tao bellowed and mmed his palm at Long Chen! If Long Chen had not leveled up, he would not have been able to dodge the p that contained Fifth River Stage Qi. And if he were struck, half of his face would have been swollen!


    Wanna hit me? Long Chen was now a hundred percent sure that Zhang Yuanteng had been harmed because of himself. He still clearly remembered Zhang Yuanteng telling him about his dreams, saying he wanted to kiss the boring army life goodbye and truly start living. He had said that his goal was to reach the Seventh River Stage and be one of the core Immortal Guards! But all his dreams had turned to dust!


    How could Long Chen not me himself? How could he not rage?


    After using Blood Transmutation to attain the Fourth River Stage, the violence in him had grown. Blood rushing to his brain, he red at Yu Tao, hostility filling his body!


    With a simple sh, Long Chen dodged Yu Taos p. Blood Qi erupted from his body, and his eyes were fully red!


    So what if I want to hit you? As an Area Leader, although I cant kill you, Long Chen, I can at least cripple you! I was not going to hurt you today, but you decided to point a finger at me! Thats a death wish! Even if I disobey His Highness, I must teach you a lesson!


    You think you have the right to teach me a lesson when youre so weak? After Long Chen dodged his p, he looked up. Even though he had not activated the Dragon Soul Transformation, there were countless blood-red dragons roaring inside his red eyes.


    <em>Kill him!</em>


    <em>How dare he provoke you when you are so high up above him? Kill him!</em>


    <em>Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill!</em>


    Voices echoed continuously in his mind. Without another word, he pounced on Yu Tao. He had already taken out the Azure Dragon Halberd, and he elerated and turned into a blood arrow shooting toward Yu Tao!


    This time, he did not even use the Dragon Soul Transformation!


    The Dragon Soul Transformation was Long Chens biggest insurance when fighting against people above his level. He had not used it because he believed he could kill Yu Tao without it!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Dragon King Burial!


    A blood-colored line shot towards the nearby Yu Tao!


    Yu Tao was shocked that Long Chen dared to attack him. He remembered that Long Chen was only at the Second River Stage. How could a measly Second River Stage cultivator dare to attack him, someone at the Fifth River Stage? Wasnt that suicide?


    Long Chen was the first to act, so it would be much easier for Yu Tao. This way, if Long Chen was heavily injured or even died, the me would not fall on Yu Tao. After all, insubordination was a serious crime among the Immortal Guards.


    A ce with strict ranks had no space for stubborn subordinates.


    Yu Tao did not take the sudden red line seriously. From his perspective, a Second River Stage cultivators attack was at most an elementary Earth-tier technique. He punched, thinking of throwing Long Chen in the air!


    Any Second River Stage cultivator, even if they were using an intermediate Earth-tier technique, would be thrown back in the air by this punch, but Long Chen was different! He was at the Fourth River Stage, not the Second! Also, Dragon King Burial was the strongest attack of the Azure Dragon Combat Technique! It was no simple technique!


    Clean, simple, straightforwardthat was Dragon King Burial.


    One explosive attack. One careless victim. Due to the close distance, the winner was quickly determined. Although Yu Tao did his best to block it, Long Chens weapon cut deep into half of his neck!


    Fresh blood sprayed out of his wound!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hell yeah lets gooo!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 308: Killing Yu Tao

    Chapter 308: Killing Yu Tao


    Experts at the Heavenly River Realm were incredibly resilient. Although the halberd had cut into half of his neck, Yu Tao was not dead. His eyes widened, filled with infinite despair and fear. Humans feared death after all, and in this state, Yu Tao was not far from it.


    His mind went ck at this sudden death. The teenager standing in front of him with violence in his eyes forced Yu Tao to believe that it was reality.


    He was going to die by Long Chens hand.


    Was this a dream? He had not even attacked yet, but his head had been chopped off by Long Chen! Long Chens move was fast and precise, meant to kill in one move. He had spent massive effort building all his skills over the decades, yet he had been eliminated so quickly!


    That was Dragon King Burial.


    Since youre notpletely dead yet, tell me about Zhang Yuanteng. Is he dead or alive? Long Chen had not taken the halberd awayit was still lodged in Yu Taos neck. He knew that if he took it out, Yu Taos head would fall on the ground.


    Then he would bepletely dead.


    Yu Taos provocation, the self-me due to Zhang Yuantengs death, and the growing killing intent in his mind all made Long Chen realize that he had started to lose control of his body.


    <em>The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon is terrifying </em>


    After a momentary rush of blood to his brain, he had ended Yu Taos life. Now that Long Chen had calmed down to think, chills ran down his spine.


    Yu Tao moved his lips with great difficulty. He clearly had something to say. Long Chen listened carefully and finally understood that the dying Yu Tao said two things. First: you will die. Second: Song Yuefeng.


    Then his head slumped over, and when Long Chen pulled his halberd away, Yu Taos head fell on the ground.


    He looked at Yu Taos eyes. Even in death, his eyes were wide open, staring at Long Chen unwillingly. But there was also some anticipation in them after he had said Song Yuefengs name. Song Yuefeng was a treasured child of the Harmony family. If Long Chen had a conflict with him, he would definitely die, and Yu Tao would be avenged.


    This was why Yu Tao had uttered Song Yuefengs name in the end.


    Long Chen did not care about the problems that woulde after killing Yu Tao. The Ninth Prince would definitely make him suffer. Right now, his heart was filled with self-me for Zhang Yuantengs death and enmity towards Song Yuefeng.


    Of course, it was possible that what Yu Tao had said was a lie, though Long Chen could easily find out if he went to Area Seventeen to ask around. Yu Tao was not likely to lie just before he died. If it was true, then Song Yuefeng deserved to be killed.


    Long Chen had no idea what to make of that guys personality. He had merely outdone him a little in front of the Sword Devil, and he had killed Zhang Yuanteng over that? Violent, unreasonable and arrogant. These were the traits of the dwarves. Song Yuefeng was an example.


    <em>Dwarves  Dwarves again </em>


    Long Chen recovered from his violent state after killing Yu Tao, but the killing intent rose again when he thought of Song Yuefeng. And the guilt within him made him feel torn.


    <em>I refuse to let you die for nothing! He might be part of the three noble families, but so what? Its impossible to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit with my current strength anyway! Why dont I just take Ling Xi far from here? When I reach the Ninth River Stage and no one in the Counter Essence Realm can beat me, I cane take the fruit again! </em>he roared in his heart.


    Long Chen had felt suffocated during his days in the Counter Essence Realm! More importantly, Ling Xi was still in Yuqin Pce, and this made him constantly worried. Killing both Yu Chong and Yu Tao was a sign of explosive growth in his strength, and the growing killing intent in him was rted to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon and himself!


    After killing Yu Tao, Long Chen made his decision.


    <em>Im not staying in this damn ce anymore! Fuck this! </em>Zhang Yuantengs death made it difficult for Long Chen to calm his violence-filled heart. Without a word, he left Yu Taos body there and went straight for Area Seventeen. If Song Yuefeng had truly done something, he did not mind avenging Zhang Yuanteng!


    After advancing to the Fourth River Stage, Long Chen traveled like a gust of wind, quickly arriving at Area Seventeen and heading towards the base. Due to the stampede, most of the Immortal Guards were outside cleaning up the mess. Song Yuefeng, being a young master of the great Harmony family, was sure to be in the base enjoying himself!


    <em>Song Yuefeng  </em>The thought of the arrogant young man provoked the anger in him. The closer he got to the base, the redder his eyes became and the heavier he breathed. Faint, blood-colored dragon patterns appeared in his eyes.


    Other people soon saw Long Chen. Due to his fierceness, they quickly ran to inform their superiors.


    Every area had one Fifth River Stage Area Leader to deal with matters of magnitude like stampedes. It was the same with Area Eighteen. Since Song Yuefeng had only just be an Immortal Guard, he had been sent to the Elementary Zone to gain experience despite being at the Fifth River Stage.


    That was why there were two Fifth River Stage cultivators in Area Seventeen right now. Due to his wealthy background, Song Yuefeng was expected to be much stronger than Yu Tao.


    As he approached the base, Long Chen felt the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons calls to kill start again.


    <em>Kill him! Avenge Zhang Yuanteng!</em>


    <em>Zhang Yuanteng was innocent, but he killed him! He deserves to die!</em>


    <em>Im going to take Ling Xi and leave anyway! So what if I kill him? Now that I haveprehended Blood Warp, I can rush out of Counter Essence City even if I kill Song Yuefeng!</em>


    These thoughts gradually invaded Long Chens mind.


    Thick blood Qi radiated from his body, and the power of a Fourth River Stage cultivator erupted from him. There were many cultivators of the same level here, but no ones aura was as strong.


    Who are you?! A shrill yell came from inside, then the dwarf rushed over angrily along with a group of Third and Fourth River Stage cultivators. When he saw that it was Long Chen, Song Yuefengs eyes turned cold and he smirked. What? Did you just hear the news? And came here to take revenge? You guessed right! I killed that pitiful little bug! But I did not kill him personally. If you tell the Sword Devil, my father will stop him!


    The moment they met, Song Yuefeng blurted out the truth without reservation, that he had killed Zhang Yuanteng. It was clear how arrogant he was.


    How did he die? Long Chen halted, forcing his voice to be t. If not, he might not have been able to control himself and would''ve attacked instantly.


    How did he die? Is that important? Haha  Seeing as you came such a long way to ask, Ill tell you. Werent the immortal beastsing? Wasnt he going to enter the protected area? If I broke both his legs, wouldnt he justy there? Wouldnt he get torn to pieces? Surrounded by a group of people, Song Yuefengughed hysterically. He relished this feeling, to be able to bully Long Chen like this, making him furious but not daring to attack. The frustration Long Chen had caused him at the steel tower finally disappeared.


    When the rest saw himugh, theyughed too.


    Dwarves really are animals through and through. And you bunch of traitors, why are youughing with him? said Long Chen, trying to calm his emotions.


    Zhang Yuantengs legs had been broken and he had been torn to pieces. These words stabbed into Long Chens heart like knives. What other people could not see was that drastic changes were happening inside his body. His blood was boiling and countless blood dragons were roaring within.


    Even after Long Chens usations, the people who wereughing did not intend to stop, as if they were proud of it. Long Chen had sentenced this bunch of spineless people to death.


    You say we are traitors? Sir Song Yuefeng is the number one young master of the Harmony family, which is one of the three noble families of the Cangyang Kingdom. The dwarves are one of us! What did you mean by that, you punk?


    Yeah, why are you so rude? Did your parents raise you that way?


    Everyone started to lecture him.


    You said you broke his legs and let him get ripped apart alive by the beasts? Long Chens gaze finally fell on Song Yuefeng. He lowered his head, startling violence hidden in his eyes.


    Yeah, thats right. But what will you do to me, punk? Do you dare to fight the Harmony family? You are a lowly peasant! Haha  Song Yuefeng was bent overughing.


    Long Chen no longer spoke. He took out the Azure Dragon Halberd. Words were useless at this point. Pointing the halberd at his target, he said with contempt, Do you have the guts to duel me?


    Everyone was stunned for a moment, then theyughed hysterically.


    Alright, alright. If I dont teach the brat a lesson, he will keep crying. Ill show him whats what, chase him off, and well drink the night away. Everyone, what do you say?


    Of course, Young Master. Once you hit him, this idiot will be an idiotic pig. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    They deserve to die


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 309: Twenty Five Divine Fire Clones

    Chapter 309: Twenty Five Divine Fire Clones


    Come out if you dare, Long Chen said tly, then he turned to leave. They had more space to fight outside!


    In reality, Long Chen was not oblivious to the Harmony familys power. Song Zhongcheng was at the Eighth River Stage, and Long Chen was no match for him. However, sometimes, he would not back down even though his opponent was stronger. To him, there were more important things like dignity, loyalty, and brotherhood!


    Although he had not known Zhang Yuanteng for long, he would never forgive anyone for hurting him! Especially not animals like dwarves!


    Although killing Song Yuefeng meant that he would be pursued and killed tragically, humans were meant to live with self-respect. Death was nothing. Death without dignity was a tragedy!


    He had thought about this before he came here. <em>Broken legs? Torn to pieces? Song Yuefeng, I want you to end up worse than him  </em>


    Long Chen slowly turned and looked back with tears welling up in his eyes. He felt like a bomb that would explode at any moment, killing all the people around him!


    A group of people, with Song Yuefeng at the center, came out. They were acting like this would be a good show. Therefore, they did not think much of it and were all smiles. Young Master, you must beat the teeth out of that arrogant brat. Some people are just too stupid these days; they think they can insult just anyone they like!


    Youre right. He thinks he is a peerless expert despite being so weak. When he loses, hell run home crying to his parents.


    Yeah. Young Master Song is number one among the youths of the Harmony family. Do you think hes some average Joe?


    Thats enough, everyone. If you say any more, hes going to be scared to death. If he bes too scared to fight and doesnt let me scratch this itch, Im fighting you guys instead, Song Yuefeng said with a smile.


    Young Master Song is a prodigy from the heavens; we wouldnt dare! The traitors hurriedly refused obsequiously.


    Then they all retreated to let Song Yuefeng face Long Chen directly. The stout Song Yuefeng looked up, his nostrils pointing towards Long Chen.


    Have you said yourst words? Long Chen asked mildly.


    Last words? Youre looking for death! Song Yuefeng was furious that Long Chen hade to his doorstep with such demands; he just had not shown it.


    <em>Youre nothing but a dog, and yet you dare outdo me, the number one prodigy of the Harmony family! If it was not for you, I would have received Lord Sword Devils recognition and I would have be his disciple! Long Chen, you deserve to die ten thousand times, but out of generosity, I will let you die only once!</em>


    The aura of a Fifth River Stage cultivator erupted from his body. Song Yuefeng was now stronger than Long Chen since thetter had not activated the Dragon Soul Transformation yet. He then took out one long and one short dagger, holding one in each hand!


    The long dagger was about half a meter long, which was almost like a regr shortsword. The shorter dagger was not even twenty centimeters long. They were gold and ck respectively, radiating powerful energy. They were definitely not weaker than the Azure Dragon Halberd!


    Long Chen, Im going to cut you into pieces with my intermediate Earth-tier divine weapons, the Sun and Moon Divine Daggers!


    Song Yuefeng let out a roar before they started, then he took one step forward and turned into a gust of wind, charging at Long Chen!


    <em>Song Yuefeng is just like the other dwarves. They are short, so they are more agile, but their weaknesses are in strength and defense. But hes excellent in speed and agility! Hes so fast!</em>


    Long Chen took a few steps back, simultaneously activating his Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Song Yuefeng was clearly much stronger than Yu Tao, plus he loved fighting and was vicious. Long Chen had no choice but to use the Dragon Soul Transformation so he could kill the dwarf quickly!


    <em>Brother Zhang! It was my fault that you died! Ill avenge you right now! If I dont kill this animal, I, Long Chen, cannot be called a man! </em>Long Chen screamed in his heart. With a stomp, he turned into a furious dragon. His halberd brought with it an earth-trembling power as he swung it at Song Yuefeng!


    This exchange of strikes allowed both sides to witness their opponents strength. Song Yuefeng was indeed as strong as Long Chen expected, while Long Chens performance was out of Song Yuefengs expectations. Based on his memory, Long Chen was only at the Second River Stage at the steel tower. When he was up against the Sword Devil, he had only received praise because of a lucky coincidence!


    But the moment Long Chen attacked, he disyedbat abilities no weaker than himself! <em>Thats impossible! It must be my imagination! </em>Song Yuefeng roared in his heart in great disbelief! He elerated, turning into a tornado as he charged towards Long Chen. He shed the Sun and Moon Divine Daggers about,unching wave after wave of attacks. The beautiful glowing halo that formed was actually from the daggers extremely sharp des!


    Sun and Moon Dance, Wind Shadow Strike!


    The tornado within the halo approached Long Chen in the blink of an eye! The fervent attack threw the surrounding soil into the air. Chunks of ck soil flew at Long Chen, who shattered them with his halberd!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    Long Chen made another attempt to test how he fared against Song Yuefeng in terms of pure strength. That was why he chose a direct attack!


    Soil and pebbles flew in all directions.


    <em>Cling, ng!</em>


    Long Chen felt that when his halberd entered Song Yuefengs attack range, it was met with a huge opposing force. Song Yuefengs Sun and Moon Divine Daggers hit the Azure Dragon more than a hundred times to defend against the halberds force!


    Long Chen knew what his n was. He was nning to force the halberd out of Long Chens hands through the vibrations, but he had underestimated Long Chen. Although he was fast, he was not as strong as Long Chen!


    Break! He swung his halberd and mmed Song Yuefeng into the air! The crowd gasped as they witnessed Song Yuefeng flying backwards. Startled, they rushed to catch him!


    Get the fuck away! Song Yuefeng roared in midair, then hended clumsily. He had gone from looking like a proud peacock to a pathetic, soaked chicken. Although he was not hurt, it felt like he had just taken a p on the face. He felt miserable!


    He had even said that he wanted to teach Long Chen a lesson, but even though he was fighting as hard as he could, he had been sent flying. Even with his thick skin, he still felt his face burn!


    Damn it!


    Blood rushed to his face. His previously decent-looking features twisted grotesquely! Looks like youre really asking for death! Long Chen, you were the one who came here asking for a fight. Dont me me when you die! he roared hysterically. Then, like a wild beast, he charged even faster at Long Chen!


    This time, he hadpletely lost his cool. The pride and dignity dwarves imed to have were actually disguised insanity and wildness. At this moment, he was basically the same as an animal. Long Chen, who was a weakling in his eyes, had just offended him, and he saw this as a crime that deserved the death sentence!


    <em>Is it time to fight for our lives?</em> Long Chen smirked to himself. After the Nine Dragons Heaven Ascension, he had figured out his opponents strengths. Song Yuefeng had cultivated an intermediate Earth-tier body tempering technique. He also had an excellent bodybat technique that was close to the advanced Earth-tier. However, his attacks were still no match for Long Chen!


    <em>This time, I will avenge you for real! Dwarf  Animal  Die ! </em>He saw that Song Yuefeng was about to unleash an even more powerful attack, but that was when Long Chens entire body burst into roaring mes!


    What? Song Yuefengs eyes widened in astonishment as fire clones emerged from Long Chens body. Every fire clone unleashed powerful attacksthey were almost at the Third River Stage!


    More than twenty Third River Stage fire clones emerged, each as powerful as a bomb, and surrounded Song Yuefeng in the blink of an eye. Since this all happened quickly, he could only wave his daggers around in terror, trying to destroy the fire clones!


    And he seeded. The first fire clone that pounced on him was shed to pieces, but more clones started to charge at him!


    Heavens! What are they?! Aaah! Song Yuefeng let out chilling shouts. He shed hysterically at the seemingly endless fire clones. asionally, the mes would touch his body, burning him, and he would scream!


    The crowd was stunned to see that he had ended up in such a tragic state. Immediately, they looked at the icy Long Chen with shocked and trembling gazes. They gulped, forcing themselves to rush to Song Yuefengs rescue. Long Chen then blocked their way. You all had the chance to be humans, but you instead chose to be dogs belonging to the dwarves. You are all an embarrassment; its time for a cleanup!


    Long Chens mind was already immersed in rage and hatred. These people treated the dwarves as gods and must have bullied their own kin. They had even verbally insulted Long Chen just now. He was a man with dignity; he would not stand for humiliation like that. He knew that the kinder he was, the more he swallowed his anger, the more his enemies would take advantage of him!


    When he pointed his halberd at the remaining people, the fire clones had already broken through Song Yuefengs attacks. His weapons fell on the ground and endless mes pounced on his body, causing it to burn up in mes. Song Yuefeng turned into a torch, curled up as he wailed in pain. Everyone peed their pants when they heard him.


    Long Chen put the Azure Dragon Halberd to work and sent them to hell one by one.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hell yeah that''s what I wanted to see!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 310: Murderer

    Chapter 310: Murderer


    A total of twenty-five Divine Fire Clones, each as strong as a Third River Stage cultivator, had seeded in burning Song Yuefeng to death. Naturally, he did not die instantly;he burned alive for half an hour before finally sumbing to his injuries.


    Long Chen used that time to kill the others with the Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Your parents went through the trouble of raising you, but you dared to rub shoulders with the dwarves! All of you have lost your souls and honor. You might as well as be dead at that point. I will send all of you down to hell!


    Long Chen continued his ughter. All of them stared at him with fear before dying on the ground, their blood seeping into the earth.


    <em>I must kill them. Theyve humiliated me. All of them are pieces of shit that worked with the dwarves. They mustve killed many others </em>


    These thoughts gripped Long Chens mind. The death of Zhang Yuanteng and the influence of the Inherited Blood Essence slowly nurtured the cruelty inside of him. He realized that only through killing those that stood in his way could he finally have freedom. He refused to bow down to anyone!


    Honor was found throughbat!


    LET ME TEACH ALL OF YOU WHAT HONOR IS!


    Everytime he swung the halberd, another person bit the dust. It was only when Long Chen finally realized that everyone around him was dead that Song Yuefeng finally stopped crying out in pain. Song Yuefengs body continued to burn and was reduced to ashes.


    Long Chen put the Azure Dragon Halberd away and looked around him, his mind wandering.


    <em>Song Yuefeng deserved to die, and so did the rest. But when did I be so cruel? Did I go overboard? </em>


    Long Chen snapped out of it when he saw that all of them were dead. He didnt regret his actions after killing so many people since they deserved to die, but he was worried that the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons Inherited Blood Essence was affecting him.


    <em>Nevermind. All poweres with a price. Since the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragonmanded over massacres, its natural for me to be affected by its power. I hope I dont be a crazed murderer in the future though.</em>


    Long Chen knew he couldnt stay in the Counter Essence Realm any longer after killing Song Yuefeng.


    Brother Zhang, Im sorry. I was the reason why you died. Even though Ive avenged you, I still feel deeply regretful. Long Chen couldnt get over Zhang Yuantengs death. If he hadnt entered the Counter Essence Realm, Zhang Yuanteng would still be alive. With his talent, he would have reached the Seventh River Stage with no issue.


    But now the others would soon realize what had happened, like Yu Taos death. All of them would know that Long Chen was the killer, so he quickly ran towards the exit. Most of the Immortal Guards were busy cleaning up the aftermath of the stampede, so none of them had paid attention to Long Chen. They certainly hadnt assumed that he would kill two cultivators at the Fifth River Stage, including Song Yuefeng, who belonged to one of the three noble families and was the favorite child of the Harmony family.


    Long Chen decided what to do next after locating the exit.


    Since his Blood Warp would allow him to escape easily thanks to its incredible speed, all he needed to do was find a quiet ce after exiting Sorrow Moon Lake and use it. Only the overwhelmingly powerful cultivators would detect his escape, so he hoped that no one of that caliber would be nearby.


    Long Chen soon returned to Sorrow Moon Lake. Even though the shifts of the Immortal Guards rotated every month, they didnt have to stay inside the Counter Essence Realm throughout the duration. Their days were divided into shifts so they could have their own time to cultivate. Some of them even used their free time to sell Immortal Beasts for points and then use those to buy cultivation resources.


    That was why no one found it weird for Long Chen toe out at this point. Others were entering and exiting too.


    Long Chen kept a low profile and returned to Counter Essence City. The buildings were built along the side of the wall. Long Chen used Blood Warp and jumped up to the roofs before somersaulting over the walls. He ran for two to three Li in one go, and no one discovered him.


    He could even escape from the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast, so how could the Immortal Guards detect him?


    Long Chen sighed after he exited the Counter Essence Realm. There were too many strong individuals inside the ce. It was a very oppressive ce.


    <em>Counter Essence Realm  I will be back one day. When that dayes, no one will be able to stop me! Li Xuanji would never liethe Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit must be inside! The patriarch of the Harmony family would soon discover the death of Song Yuefeng. I need to escape the capital with Ling Xi immediately! I wille back once Im stronger.</em>


    Long Chen ran back to the capital as fast as he could. Since the capital was not that far from Counter Essence City, he soon saw its silhouette on the horizon.


    This time nothing happened when he entered the city. The guards had changed, so no one recognized him. Long Chen entered the city peacefully and ran as fast as he could towards Yuqin Pce.


    He had been gone for more than twenty days, and he didnt know what had happened to Ling Xi. He was worried, so he ran as fast as he could. He soon arrived and ran into the corridor. Long Chen was the newly appointed Immortal Guard, so the workers in Yuqin Pce recognized him. None of them dared to approach him, because they knew that the Ninth Prince was paying special attention to Long Chen.


    But all of them were puzzled that Long Chen woulde back from the Counter Essence Realm so soon.


    There were butlers other than Elder Yan inside Yuqin Pce. However, Long Chen did not know how strong Elder Yan was, so he went ahead and found another butler. He stopped the butler and asked, I have urgent news for my lord and Miss Ling Xi. Are they in the pce?


    He would roughly find out Ling Xis condition just by asking that.


    Our lord? You came back at the wrong time. Our lord went to Goldfish Ind to settle something. Miss Ling Xi followed him there. Do you want to wait for them? They might return soon.


    Goldfish Ind? Long Chen was confused. Why would the Ninth Prince want to go there?


    Why did our lord go to Goldfish Ind?


    It appears that a branch of the Harmony family was killed by the people at Goldfish Ind a month ago. The Harmony family found out and went there to deal with it. That ce is not under the jurisdiction of our lord, but he went there to oversee the issue due to Miss Ling Xis pleas. Let me tell you this: Ive never seen a girl as beautiful as Ling Xiits as if she descended from heaven! Even our lord took extra special care of her. That said, I heard that you and Miss LIng Xi were close. You are in luck; once our Lord marries her, your position will rise too!


    Marry? There was no way Long Chen would stand for that. The Ninth Prince couldve touched anyone, but he had decided to go after Ling Xi. She was Long Chens woman! No matter how high the Ninth Princes status was, Long Chen would kill him!


    Yes. Marry. The butler smiled.


    Marry my ass! Long Chen punched the butler and sent him flying into ake. Water sshed everywhere, and Long Chen ran towards Goldfish Ind without hesitation. Everyone who saw it didnt know what to do.


    Ninth Prince, its time for you to learn how dangerous I can be. How dare you try toy your hands on my Ling Xi. I will skin you alive! Ive already encountered a lot of problems here in the capital, so whats one more?


    Long Chen ran like the wind towards Goldfish Ind.


    ***


    The people at Goldfish Ind were trembling while staring at the rows of dwarf cultivators in front of them. This attack hade without any warning, and it was toote when they spotted the dwarvesnding on their ind. The dwarves immediately surrounded and brought everyone at Goldfish Ind to an empty field.


    Chen Ping, Chen Lei, and Xiao Yu were still alive, but now all of them were in despair. Chen Feng and Chen Lei knew that these dwarves were the true Harmony family. The normal soldiers were at least at thete Heavenly Core Realm, while there were tens of Heavenly River Realm cultivators.


    It was a force that Goldfish Ind could not fight against.


    The inders gave up after learning of their enemies strength. All of them knew how ruthless the dwarves could be and were certain that everyone would die today.


    The sounds of crying came from the crowd as some of them broke down. Some of them even crumpled to the ground, their bodies trembling and their faces pale from staring at the wicked dwarves.


    Even Chen Feng and Chen Lei knew it was hopeless as they looked at each other. The confidence fromst time waspletely gone. They would all die today.


    And before they did, they would be humiliated!


    The dwarves always killed the men cruelly and then yed with the women. There were many cases where the women would die from being yed with even before the dwarves got sick of them.


    I will show you that the stupidest thing you can do is kill a dwarf


    A dwarf was sitting on a chair as he looked at the trembling vigers of Goldfish Ind.


    Men, go and capture all of the girls from ages ten to age fifty. The others will dig a hole. Bury the vigers alive. Make sure to break the limbs of the cultivators before doing so!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hoo boy MC gonna be busy with so many people to kill


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 311: Perfect Pair

    Chapter 311: Perfect Pair


    The dwarves had ordered their execution. Dark clouds covered the hearts of the vigers as they saw the dwarves smiling viciously. The beast-like invaders ran towards the vigers, and some of them were at the Heavenly River Realm, so the vigers could do nothing but wait for their demise.


    They didnt want things to end like this!


    Even though they knew that the dwarves were strong, Chen Feng did not give up. Rather than being buried alive, he would rather fight back. The only sliver of hope for them was to fight back. They also had a small chance of killing some of the dwarves in the process.


    Chen Fengs breathing was heavy and he steeled himself. He shouted with all his heart when he saw the dwarves closing in, Vigers of Goldfish Ind! The dwarves are no different from beasts! Rather than surrendering, we will fight back! Our deaths are guaranteed today! Despite that, our spirit and honor will never die!


    Yeah! Sensing that his father was boosting everyones morale, Chen Lei shouted too. The dwarves are a group of rabid dogs! They are strong, but we can fight back! We will die, but we will take them down with us! We will fight now! Show them our strength! Show them that we will not lose our honor even if we die!


    Chen Feng and Chen Leis words inspired the vigers to stand up. They had already prepared themselves for a bitter fight. They pushed the women, elderly, and children towards the back while the men prepared themselves at the front. All of the warriors circted their Qi while they prepared their weapons.


    After just a few moments, hundreds of cultivators stood at the frontline to protect Goldfish Ind. They red at the dwarves as they prepared themselves to fight to the death.


    We will not let you sully our wives and children!


    Yes! This is thend that our ancestors left for us! If we let a group of animals take it, we will be ashamed when we meet them in the afterlife! Goldfish Ind belongs to us, not this bunch of dogs!


    Dontpare them to dogs as an insult! The dwarves are below animals!


    Come! Lets see whos stronger today! I will die today, but I will take some of them with me!


    Kill them!


    Hundreds of cultivators grouped up and charged towards the dwarves with Chen Lei and Chen Feng at the lead. Their spirit managed to make some of the cultivators at the Heavenly River Realm stop in their tracks.


    There were four Fifth River Stage dwarves and one Sixth River Stage dwarf representing the Harmony family. The strongest dwarf was seated in the middle; he was the one who had given the order just now. He looked roughly thirty years old, skinny, and had an obscene face. He was looking at the women of the ind with a smile on his face. Everyone around him could hear him swallowing his saliva.


    The cultivators of Goldfish Ind had suddenly blocked his view and started spouting bullshit. Song Zhongzhen was angered, so he shouted, Idiots! Do it now! If you waste my time, I will kill you! I need to sleep with ten virgins today! As for the rest, I will give them to those who have killed the most!


    His words motivated the dwarves, and they all shouted with glee. Like beasts, they ran towards the cultivators of Goldfish Ind.


    Under Chen Fengs leadership, the cultivators did not fear death. Their strength wascking, but the amount of Qi exploding from their dantians was higher than usual as they prepared for theirst fight.


    No fear of death.


    Those four words aptly described them.


    The groups were about to sh when an explosion rang out. Someone flew between the two groups, causing both groups to take a few steps back out of surprise. The person was so fast that neither group could see who it was; they only knew that it was someone strong.


    Stop! Everyone, get back!


    The man red at the dwarves, his eyes fierce with authority. The dwarves took a step back unconsciously.


    The ce became silent.


    An old man and an extremely beautifuldy followed suit and stood beside him. There was also a small, ck wolf following thedy. The people from Goldfish Ind recognized Ling Xi and Xiang. Long Chen and Ling Xi had previously saved them, and they had never expected to be saved by them again! All of them cried tears of joy.


    Its Sister Ling Xi! That must be Brother Long Chen! Xiao Yu was happy to see them again. She ran forward but realized that the man who had frightened the dwarves was not Long Chen, but another man.


    Why is Brother Long Chen not standing beside Sister Ling Xi? Unless  Xiao Yu scratched her head out of confusion. No one else knew why. All of them looked at the man in the middle, some thanking him while the others were wondering where Long Chen was.


    They never wouldve guessed what had happened while looking at Ling Xis sour face.


    Long Chen and Ling Xi had a good rtionship. There was no way she would betray him, so why was she with another man? What was going on?


    Ninth Prince Lin Cangtian turned around and smiled. The vigers felt rxed when they saw him. The Ninth Prince was stronger than Long Chen, so it was natural that Ling Xi would follow him


    The Ninth Princes smile calmed the vigers. He then turned around and red at Song Zhongzhen.


    Which bastard is trying to stop us? Take him  AH! Its the Ninth Prince! Song Zhongzhen finally saw the Ninth Princes face, and the shock caused him to fall off his chair. He was covered in dirt, but he didnt dare daly. He quickly approached the Ninth Prince along with all of the dwarves and bowed down immediately. I am blind to not have recognized the Ninth Prince! I am Song Zhongzhen of the Harmony family, and also the cousin of the Patriarch. I hope you remember me, my Lord.


    Even though he was at the same cultivation level as the Ninth Prince, their statuses were very far apart. Song Zhongzhen had identally insulted the Ninth Prince out of carelessness, and his heart was beating rapidly. He looked at the Ninth Prince and hoped that he would spare him!


    Song Zhongzhen, what did you say just now? The Ninth Prince red at him, and the dwarf lowered his head even more. I will remember what you said to me today. Normally, I wouldve crippled you, but I will forgive you since Im in a good mood today. Take your men and leave now! Goldfish Ind is now under my protection. The dwarves must never take a single step here for as long as I live!


    Yikes! Song Zhongzhen was surprised. Thankfully, the Ninth Prince wasnt going to kill him today. He didnt know why the Ninth Prince wanted to keep Goldfish Ind, but he realized what the reason was after he saw Ling Xi. He was deceptively smart and knew that now was not the time and that the best thing to do was to scram.


    He nodded and bowed numerous times. Yes, yes, my Lord! I will leave with my men right now! We will never return! Everyone, return now! Scram!


    Under Song Zhongzhens hurried orders, all of the dwarves ran away. None of them dared to say anything in front of the Ninth Prince as they escaped. Once they left Goldfish Ind and theke, the other dwarves finally mustered the courage to ask Song Zhongzhen, Boss, why does the Ninth Prince want to protect Goldfish Ind?


    Dont you know that the three idiots who came to take Goldfish Ind were killed by an Immortal Guard serving the Ninth Prince? Ive seen the report saying that the Immortal Guard was apanied by a beautiful girl and a wolf. The girl would never allow us to take over Goldfish Ind. More importantly, there has been a rumor circting in the capital that the Ninth Prince has been taking that woman to numerous ces for sightseeing. The Ninth Prince is obviously in love with that woman! Or do you think the Ninth Prince is in love with you? Song Zhongzhen was visibly shaken.


    But  The people at Goldfish Ind dared to touch us, the great dwarves! Should we just swallow our anger like that?


    I dont know, but lets go back and report it. The Ninth Prince is obviously trying to show off to court thatdy. We dont want to get on his bad side, do we? Lets get out of here for now.


    ***


    Once the dwarves were gone, the Ninth Prince finally stopped frowning and turned towards the people of Goldfish Ind. It was the first time the vigers had seen someone as strong and approachable as him.


    Chen Feng had heard the dwarf referring to the man as Ninth Prince.


    He was undeniably the youth with the highest status in the Cangyang Kingdom. It wasnt surprising that Ling Xi was by his side, but where was Long Chen?


    Chen Feng somewhat understood Ling Xi and knew that she would never betray him, so why was she with the Ninth Prince instead?


    When the Ninth Prince saw that Ling Xi was approaching the vigers, he followed suit. He stood beside her, and the vigers felt like they were the perfect couple.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ling Xi, get away from him!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 312: Don’t Call Me Xiao Xi!

    Chapter 312: Don¡¯t Call Me Xiao Xi!


    Ling Xi frowned slightly when she saw what the Ninth Prince was doing. She took a side step, and Xiang stepped in between them, pushing the Ninth Prince to the side.


    The others didnt notice what was happening, but the Ninth Prince was angry. His anger shed momentarily before he put on a dazzling smile.


    Hello, everyone. I am Miss Ling Xis friend, and also the Ninth Prince of the Cangyang Kingdom. Please rest assured, for as long as Im alive, the Harmony family will nevere here again.


    This was excellent news to the people of Goldfish Ind. They didnt care who the Ninth Prince was and thanked him for his help. Some of them even kneeled on the ground, but the Ninth Prince helped them up. No need to thank me. I am part of the imperial family, and protecting the masses is simply my duty. You should thank Miss Ling Xi instead; if it wasnt for her, I wouldnt have known what was happening here.


    The vigers didnt know why Long Chen wasnt here, but they thought the Ninth Prince was a good guy too. They had a good impression of him, but they were even more thankful for Ling Xi.


    Seeing that the vigers would not be harmed anymore, Ling Xi was genuinely happy for them. She looked at their smiling faces, but she was still worried deep down inside since the Ninth Prince wouldnt leave her alone.


    <em>I wonder what Brother Chen is doing. I had no choice but to plead with the Ninth Prince today. But I think Brother Chen will be happy to learn that the people of Goldfish Ind were saved. </em>Ling Xi was still satisfied with the oue.


    Miss Ling XI, where is Long Chen? After thanking her, Chen Feng asked the question that had been on everyones minds. Even though the Ninth Prince had sessfully prevented the dwarves from attacking again, they still preferred Long Chen for some reason. Long Chen was much more sincerepared to the Ninth Prince, who appeared  fake.


    Brother Chen has gone into the Counter Essence Realm as an Immortal Guard. He will return soon. Ling Xi was excited when they asked about Long Chen.


    Wow, the Counter Essence Realm. The vigers sighed in admiration. The Counter Essence Realm was not a ce where normal people could enter. They were naturally happy that Long Chen could be an Immortal Guard. Of course, they didnt know that the Immortal Guards were nothingpared to the Ninth Prince.


    The Ninth Prince was like a ticking bomb when he saw that he had been cast aside. He saw Ling Xis face brimming with happiness when she talked about Long Chen and swallowed his anger. Xiao Xi, lets go back now. Should I take you to the most famous restaurant in the capital? They serve many foreign dishes there.


    Ling Xis face turned cold. She red at the Ninth Prince when she heard him call her Xiao Xi. She didnt mince her words even knowing he was royalty. Didnt I tell you before to not call me Xiao Xi? Only Brother Chen can call me that.


    The coldness of her tone startled the vigers. They looked at each other, and some of the smarter ones instantly figured out what was happening. The Ninth Prince wanted to take Ling Xi as his own! That meant that whatever the Ninth Prince had said about it being his duty to protect Goldfish Ind was bullshit. He just wanted to show off his good side to her!


    The admiration and gratefulness they had towards the Ninth Prince evaporated. Some of them shook their heads in disappointment after seeing what kind of man he was. They preferred the simple and hot-blooded Long Chen over him.


    They whispered and discussed amongst themselves.


    I thought the Ninth Prince was a good guy. The Harmony family works for the imperial family and is their fang. There is no reason he wouldnt know about Goldfish Ind.


    Enough. If the Ninth Prince gets angry, all of us will be fucked. He didnt save us out of generosity, and he could kill us very easily.


    The Ninth Prince almost exploded with anger after he heard the discussions and how Ling Xi hadnt shown any regard for his honor. His breathing got heavier and he red at her, his eyes seething with anger. Ling Xi was not afraid and continued to stand her ground.


    So? Are you angry? Its useless to be mad at me. The worst you can do is kill me, and I do not fear death.


    Ling Xi was adamant, and the Ninth Prince could do nothing as he stared at the beauty in front of him. He waved his arm at the vigers. Just go on with your day. Theres nothing to see here.


    Miss Ling Xi  Chen Feng didnt know what to do. The Ninth Prince was visibly chasing them away.


    Uncle Chen, take the vigers and leave. Goldfish Ind is safe. I will ask Brother Chen to bring me here to y some other time. Ling Xi smiled at them. She was visibly friendlier towards them.


    Alright, but be careful. Goldfish Ind wees you always. Chen Feng sighed and took the vigers back.


    Once everyone was gone, the Ninth Prince stared at Ling Xi with longing eyes. Ling Xi, Ive thought about many ways to make you like me. Cant you see how sincere Ive been towards you?


    Whats sincerity? Can I eat it? Im hungry and I want to eat now. Ling Xi red at him and didnt back down.


    Stop changing the subject. Im being serious here. What part of me is inferior to Long Chen? I look better, Im stronger, and I have the highest status! Why cant you think? The Ninth Prince panicked, his voice choking. Normal women wouldve fallen for his sullen look out of heartbreak.


    You want topare yourself with Brother Chen? What a joke. Let me ask you this: would you die for me? Brother Chen would, Ling Xi said in a cold voice.


    Stop joking with me. Why would I die? The Ninth Prince didnt understand.


    Thats why I said you dont know what love is. The reason why you love me is because of my beauty. Brother Chen still took good care of me even when I was a nobody, Ling Xi said happily as she thought back to their time together.


    Nonsense. Dont misunderstand me! Fine, I promise that I will do whatever Long Chen would. Dying for you is nothing! The Ninth Prince was going all out just to make Ling Xi his. Naturally, he would not do something that stupid.


    Then do it. Die for me. Ling Xi took a few steps back and stared at him nkly.


    Ling Xis coldness shattered his heart. Staring at the beauty who thought his life was worthless, the Ninth Prince realized that his efforts for the past month had amounted to nothing.


    Fine, let me ask you onest question. Will you be with me or not? You have two choices. One, agree to it. Two, I force you to be with me and Long Chen dies! The Ninth Prince revealed his true intention.


    So youre finally revealing your true self. Ling Xi was not surprised. She had expected this day toe when the Ninth Prince realized that all of his efforts were in vain; she knew that he would reveal his true colors eventually.


    The Ninth Prince had always used his status and power to make others submit to him. He would never use his heart to win someone over.


    Ling Xi was not an idiot. She knew that he would one day go crazy once Long Chen entered the Counter Essence Realm. She never told Long Chen about it because she wanted him to focus on finding the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit and not worry about her.


    Naturally, Ling Xi was prepared for this; she had not exposed the Ninth Prince recklessly. She had been practicing her technique tomunicate with Mo Xiang and could now talk freely. She was doing so at this very moment.


    Xiang, run. Itll be bad if he uses you to threaten me. Brother Chen will find the Nine Heavens Immortal Gruit for me. My physical body is the root of all problems, so I can just discard it. No one can harm me again once Im back in the Ling Xi Sword.


    Ling Xi and Xiang had discussed that this would be the final option. The Ninth Prince was arrogant, so they knew that this day woulde eventually. It was a miracle that Ling Xi had managed to dy it for this long.


    How could she ever agree to letting the Ninth Prince take her out on a date around the capital?


    Sister Ling Xi, Im still worried about you. Im a Category four Earth-tier, so he wont have an easy time beating me  Xiang didnt run away but stood between her and the Ninth Prince.


    The Ninth Prince clenched his teeth as he snarled, Ling Xi, you are forcing me to do this


    Ling Xi took a few steps back and stared at him coldly. She was using her spirit to urge Xiang to run away, but he didnt. He was not afraid of deathhe acted as a barrier for her.


    My brother told me to protect you, so I will not take even a single step back before he appears!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hoho he''s dead


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 313: Long Chen’s Return

    Chapter 313: Long Chen¡¯s Return


    Fine! Since thats the case, I wont say it again. Dont me me for doing this! Ive wanted to treat you kindly, but youve left me with no choicewe will do it the hard way! You forced me to do this! Ling Xi, this is your fault! The Ninth Princes eyes were bloodshot. Ling Xis adamant gaze made him explode in anger. He had destroyed his facade in just a single moment.


    What do you mean I forced you to do this? This is your problem, not mine. Stop ming it on others! Dont you know that being magnanimous is the best quality a man can have? Even though Brother Chen can be a pervert from time to time, hes so much more reliable than you! Ling Xi did not back down at all.


    She hated the Ninth Prince! She was born in a much richer environment than him, and she had seen numerous geniuses beyond the Ninth Princes level. Ling Xi herself was also akin to royalty, and now the Ninth Prince was using his inferior status to force her to be his woman? It was nothing but foolishness!


    Ling Xi loved Long Chen without taking his status and background into consideration.


    Brother Chen? Long Chen, right? Hes merely at the Second River Stage. I can just ask one of my men to kill him! I will just send a signal, and he will die in the Counter Essence Realm. Do you think I wont? The Ninth Princes eyes were obscene.


    There are no factions stronger than the imperial family! And there are no women that cannot be mine! Ling Xi, you are a bitch! Since you wont let me take your heart, I will just take your body! The Ninth Prince lost control and slowly approached her. Killing intent slowly seeped out of his body.


    Elder Yan dared not do anything. The Ninth Prince wanted to take Ling Xi, and as his subordinate, he could only stand and watch. Mo Xiang was blocking the Ninth Prince, and Elder Yan knew that dealing with the wolf was his job.


    How dare you call me a bitch! Ling Xi was angry. She had never met someone as despicable as the Ninth Prince. She didnt even want to talk to him any further after seeing how disgusting he was.


    She recalled Long Chen and how they first met. She recalled her life after meeting him, and all of the adventures they had been through, especially when he jumped into the abyss of the Star Devil Prison just to save her.


    From there onwards, Ling Xi swore that her heart would belong to Long Chen. She truly believed that no one else would do something like that for someone like her, who was technically not a living person anymore.


    <em>Brother Chen, Im not sure if we will ever meet again. I miss you so much, and I know you are working hard for me  Ive used up all of my luck on meeting you and going on a few more adventures before I truly die. I kept thinking that having my body destroyed by that sword was the biggest tragedy of my life, while meeting you was my biggest fortune. Im not sure if I should be happy or sad, but at least I dont have any regrets </em>


    As she longed for Long Chen more and more, tears welled up in her pure eyes.


    <em>I kept thinking that I would be able to marry you one day and live a happy life. But now I see that that''s just a dream. We have been jumping from one disaster to another. Ever since we met in Baiyang Town, we kept running into problems one after another. Youve always stood in front of me and never backed down. You are a true man, and my father said that a true man would never be defeated  Maybe my luck has truly run out  I think I no longer have any way to stay by your side </em>


    The future was unpredictable. Even though Ling Xi had a strong heart, she was afraid of uncertainty, especially since Long Chen was not here.


    When the Ninth Prince approached them, Xiang got close to Ling Xi and suggested, Sister Ling Xi, I have one more idea. I can use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to make a cage and trap them!


    Ling Xi stopped crying. She hadnt thought of this before.


    But that means that you will have to make a sacrifice, right? The drawback from using so much power should be quite intense.


    I wont be able to use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire for ten days  Xiang sighed.


    He would lose almost half of his battle strength if he used the cage. Currently, the strongest aspect of the Sun Devouring Wolf was its potential. Itcked offensive power, and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was currently his strongest attack.


    Ling Xi shook her head. Xiang, leave me. Dont worry about me.


    Xiang was close to tears from being pushed to desperation. He turned around and red at the Ninth Prince while growling. Both he and Ling XI were very stubborn, and neither of them would back down.


    Ling Xi, you must feel very powerless right now. Unfortunately, Long Chen is not here to save you! The Ninth Prince chuckled. He had decided to use force to subdue her, so he unleashed his strength as a Sixth River Stage cultivator. His strength was like a mountain to the powerless Ling Xi.


    Her face paled when the immense pressure hit her.


    Ling Xi had been pushed into a corner and had long given up. She kept telling Xiang to run, but he ignored her. Xiang increased his body size and prepared himself for battle.


    The massive Sun Devouring Wolf growled at the Ninth Prince.


    My Lord, let me deal with this beast. Please enjoy your time. Elder Yan stood by the Ninth Prince.


    Good. I will leave it to you. We will both take on one person. You handle the beast while I handle the beauty. Lets see whos better, shall we? The Ninth Princeughed.


    With your strength, you will be able tost three days and three nights, Elder Yan said shamelessly.


    The situation became even more tense when Elder Yan said that. Ling Xi could not chase Xiang away, making her feel very anxious. She didnt know how she would face Long Chen If something happened to Xiang.


    Have you finally tasted despair? Ling Xi,e here and let me make love to you! The Ninth Princes eyes were lustful as he extended his arm towards her.


    At the most critical moment, Ling Xi saw a shadow running towards them from across theke. The shadow split thekes water as it ran towards the ind.


    With a boom, the wave crashed onto Goldfish Ind and sprayed water everywhere. A crimson humanoid holding a halberd appeared. The man jumped and positioned himself in between Ling Xi and the Ninth Prince.


    The impact of hisnding caused the entire ind to shake.


    Ling Xi started shedding tears when she saw the blood-red back covered in scales and spikes. That familiar back belonged to none other than Long Chen! Ling Xi thought she was dreaming, but the pain from her arm was real when she pinched it. This was reality!


    Long Chen stood in front of her once more without hesitation. Ling Xi knew she would be safe no matter what he was facing, be it the mountains, oceans, or even weapons.


    He ran over as fast as he could the moment he heard that Ling Xi had been brought here by the Ninth Prince. Afraid that he was not fast enough, he had transformed along the way to arrive faster! He was ready to fight the Ninth Prince the moment he appeared!


    Xiang stared in disbelief before feeling delighted by Long Chens arrival! Long Chen was their leader, and Xiang didnt know what to do without him. Since he was here now, there was bound to be a battle to the death.


    Xiang sensed that Long Chen waspletely clouded in killing intent. He had even detected that Long Chen had reached the Fourth River Stage, possessing strength beyond the Fifth River Stage after transforming.


    Both Ling Xi and Xiang felt the pressure dissipate after seeing Long Chens back in front of them.


    Long Chen extended his blood-red arm and slowly pushed Ling Xi backwards.


    Xiao Xi, wait here. Let me show you what a real man is. Long Chens voice was calm, but the sense of authority behind it was undeniable. The killing intenting off him made the Ninth Prince anxious.


    Ling Xi didnt know what to say, nor did she know how strong Long Chen was. But she knew that all she needed to do was to listen to him. She slowly backed away while crying and looking at his back.


    Long Chen? The Ninth Prince was confused. <em>It hasnt even been a month since he entered the Counter Essence Realm, so why is he here? </em>


    Why did youe out of the Counter Essence Realm?


    It was stupid for the Ninth Prince to still be discussing the Counter Essence Realm at this point.


    Do you really want to know? I will tell you for the price of your head. Ive killed quite a few people recently, and today I will add you to that list. How does that sound? Long Chen pointed his halberd at the Ninth Prince.


    His killing intent radiated outwards.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    He''s back!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 314: Crimson Devil Sword Technique

    Chapter 314: Crimson Devil Sword Technique


    Most of the vigers of Goldfish Ind had gone back to their houses, but two of them had decided to return to where Ling Xi and the Ninth Prince were. The duo were Chen Feng and Chen Lei. They knew that the Ninth Prince was trying toy a hand on Ling Xi, but thetter had chosen topletely disregard him. Chen Feng was worried, so he and his son had snuck back to where Ling Xi was. They were hiding nearby when they saw Long Chen arrive.


    Long Chen? I thought he went to the capital to be an Immortal Guard. Why is he back? Chen Feng was surprised.


    Father, I wouldnt worry about that right now. Long Chen and the Ninth Prince are going to fight because of Ling Xi. The Ninth Prince is part of the imperial family, and all of them are talented individuals. What will we do if Long Chen dies? Chen Lei was anxious. He had been suspicious of Long Chens kindness when Long Chen first arrived on Goldfish Ind, but he had officially recognized Long Chen as a friend after thetter saved the ind. Chen Lei was even regretting his actions back then.


    We are only at the First River Stage. Lets watch and see if theres anything we can do to help them, though I doubt we can do much.


    Understood. Wait, they are fighting now!


    Once Ling Xi retreated to a safe distance, Long Chen and Xiang worked together. Xiang chose to fight Elder Yan while Long Chen chose the Ninth Prince.


    Xiang, Elder Yan is at the Sixth River Stage. You are only at Category Four; are you sure you can do it? Long Chen whispered hurriedly to Xiang.


    Xiang nodded, his eyes exuding an intense murderous intent. Demonic beasts were famed for their killing intent, and Xiangs killing intent was almost as intense as Long Chens.


    The Ninth Prince smiled at the insignificant Long Chen and Xiang.


    Elder Yan, go and distract that beast. I want to show Ling Xi how useless Long Chen is, and how much better I am!


    Elder Yan nodded and said nothing before giving Xiang a taunting look. He sidestepped, and Xiang growled before tensing all four of his legs and barreling towards Elder Yan.


    Even though Xiang was only a Category Four, he still had a chance to win against Elder Yan thanks to two very special techniques, the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire and Divine Fire Clone!


    Long Chen had shared his knowledge on Divine Fire Clone before entering the Counter Essence Realm. He took a nce at Xiang and saw that there were traces of Divine Fire Seeds in him. That meant that Xiang had learned how to use Divine Fire Clone.


    Long Chen also saw that the Ninth Prince had traces of Divine Fire Seeds, and there were twenty-five of them! That meant that the Ninth Prince had cultivated Divine Fire Clone to the third stage!


    Elder Yan and Xiang started their battle while Long Chen was still ring at the Ninth Prince. Their auras rose rapidly, but the Ninth Prince was surprised that Long Chen was matching his!


    Long Chen was an insignificant insect back in Yuanling City, but he had be so much stronger in less than two months! Long Chen could even fight the Ninth Prince today! Long Chen was a monstrous genius that brought him great fear. He had thought that he could use Long Chen, but he had decided that Long Chen would forever be his enemy once the beautiful Ling Xi appeared.


    But the Ninth Prince had never expected that the day woulde so soon.


    You are the second most talented genius that Ive ever seen, except for my fourth brother, Lin Zichen. But you will die today. The imperial family is not an entity you can fight against!


    Are all the people from the imperial family as talkative as you? Long Chen taunted back. Xiang was already fighting, and Goldfish Ind was near the capital. He had just killed Song Yuefeng as well, so he didnt dare to drag this on for too long. He tightened his grip on the Azure Dragon Halberd and ran at the Ninth Prince.


    Are you trying to fight me with that weapon? You dare to unt a mere intermediate Earth-tier Divine Arm in front of me? The Ninth Prince smiled and pulled a sword out of his Universe Pouch without even frowning.


    This was the first time Long Chen had fought against a sword user.


    Ling Xi was naturally the most anxious of them all. She knew Long Chen had less Qi than the Ninth Prince even after he transformed. Long Chens biggest advantage was the Azure Dragon Halberd, and if his Divine Arm was inferior to the Ninth Princes weapon, then his chances of winning would plummet!


    Brother Chen  Ling Xi watched the fight fearfully.


    Long Chen took a closer look at the sword in the Ninth Princes hand. It was a ming red sword that was somehow made from a jade-like material, but the edge of the sword was still sharp! The biggest feature of the sword was the nine Fire Essences embedded on it. The temperature around them rose dramatically!


    Im sure Elder Yan has exined this to you. This is an advanced Earth-tier Divine Arm, the Fire Essence Sword. It enables me to fight those at the Seventh River Stage even though Im only at the Sixth River Stage, much less a piece of trash at the Fourth River Stage like you.


    Long Chen was clearly not his opponent, which was why the Ninth Prince was not worried at all. He shot a happy look at the anxious Ling Xi.


    We will soon know whos trash! Long Chen waved his halberd, and a massive attack wasunched at the Ninth Prince. Starsweep Dragon erupted with starlight and surrounded him!


    This was the strongest Starsweep Dragon that Long Chen could muster with his strength at the Fifth River Stage. The Ninth Princes robes pped wildly in the wind.


    Crimson Devil Sword Technique, Heavenly Rend. The Ninth Prince chuckled and waved his sword in front of him. A crimson sh shot forward and shed with Long Chens Starsweep Dragon. The sound of shing metal caused difort to Long Chen.


    <em>ng!</em>


    Long Chen was blown back by the attack. He realized that if he fought head-on, he would lose. The Ninth Princes Divine Arm was better, and the Sword Soul residing in his sword attuned it to his body. The Ninth Prince was capable of using twice his normal battle power.


    This was the strength of an Armament Warrior! A Sword Warrior belonged to this category, and was naturally good with swords!


    But Long Chen was unharmed from the sh!


    So this is all that the Ninth Prince is capable of  Long Chens eyes gradually grew red. The dragon illusions in his body started howling and his mind was clouded by killing intent and the will to battle. Long Chens body was close to exploding from it all!


    He felt like he could explode at any time and kill the Ninth Prince in a single moment.


    Ling Xi is my woman. You are looking to die if you try to touch her, you toad! You have forced me to kill you!


    A blood mist slowly enveloped Long Chen.


    Are you calling me a toad? Youre the toad! Long Chen, youck the strength and background that I have. Do you think you are a good match for the beautiful Ling Xi? The Ninth Prince chuckled andunched another attack.


    The Ninth Prince was secretly shocked at the first sh. Long Chen was only at the Fourth River Stage, yet he was capable ofunching an attack almost as powerful as his own.


    Azure Dragon Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension!


    Crimson Devil Sword Technique, Crimson Land!


    Their techniques shed again and again. The horrid sound of metal hitting metal made Ling Xi feel difort in her ears. Her face paled from feeling the impact of their techniques, and she retreated further. Even though she was retreating, she never once looked away from Long Chen.


    Long Chen was slowly being pushed back by the Ninth Prince. It was only a matter of time before he lost!


    The Ninth Prince was very powerful with the advanced Earth-tier Divine Arm and his Sixth River Stage strength. Crimson Land was also a powerful technique thatunched consecutive attacks that pushed Long Chen back like an unstoppable wave!


    Ling Xi failed to notice it, but the Ninth Prince did not. He knew he was pushing Long Chen into a corner, but the killing intenting from Long Chen had not dissipated at all. The Ninth Prince was worried because a desperate man was the worst foe to fight against. He knew that Long Chen was very desperate from his bloodshot eyes.


    You are indeed a tough opponent. That makes me want to kill you more! Long Chen, I wonder, how much further have you cultivated your Divine Fire Clone? How would you like to be killed by a Divine Fire Clone? the Ninth Prince asked, sounding ominous.


    Divine Fire Clone  Long Chen finally managed to deflect the Ninth Princes attack. He saw that the Ninth Prince wanted to end things quickly, and Long Chen had no reason to keep his Divine Fire Clone a secret.


    Let me show you what the true Divine Fire Clone is


    When Long Chen said this, an intense heat wave exploded from where Xiang was. With Xiang at the center, a ck me radiated outward, and numerous wolves made of ck mes appeared!


    A hundred and twenty-five clones?!


    The Ninth Prince was shocked!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Say sike! MC smarter than the prince!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 315: Ultimate Divine Fire Clone

    Chapter 315: Ultimate Divine Fire Clone


    The dwarves left Goldfish Ind dejectedly. They felt unlucky as their beautiful dream had been popped like a bubble.


    One of the dwarves at the Fifth River Stage was dissatisfied. Zhongzhen, are we just going to slip away like this? There are so many prettydies there. Moreover, the vigers have killed members of our family!


    Idiot! We cant afford to provoke the Ninth Prince! Dont mention this again, or youll regret it! Understand!? Zhongzhen scolded.


    Yes, yes! The dwarf shut his mouth, but he was still dissatisfied. Zhongzhen was right, their family could not afford to provoke the Ninth Prince. The imperial family members were not to be trifled with.


    A gust of leaves suddenly appeared in front of them along with a person. The massive auraing off from that person pushed back everyone except for Song Zhongzhen.


    Patriarch!


    After seeing who it was, everyone immediately kneeled down except for Song Zhongzhen, who was the Patriarchs brother. Still, he dared not act haughty and asked timidly, Brother, what are you doing here? I followed your order to destroy Goldfish Ind, but the Ninth Prince prevented us from doing so. We were just about to head back  Brother, why are you making that face?


    Song Zhongzhen was halfway through his exnation when he noticed that his brother looked extremely gloomy. The murderous intent emanating from his eyes was terrifying.


    Brother, what happened? Song Zhongzhen felt uneasy.


    Yuefeng was killed in the Counter Essence Realm! Song Zhongcheng spat out before running past them towards Goldfish Ind. Song Zhongzhen failed to process what his brother had said until thetterpletely disappeared.


    What?! Yuefeng was killed?! Song Zhongzhen was surprised. Song Yuefeng was his brothers most beloved son, and he was handsome too. To think a pure-blooded dwarf had been killed!


    Shit! Whos the culprit?! Song Zhongzhen howled and punched a tree to his side, obliterating it the next instant. The tree fell and crushed some of the dwarves.


    But Song Zhongzhen did not care.


    Brother must be chasing the culprit. Everyone, follow me to take revenge for Song Yuefeng! I will dismember the person who dared to kill our young master!


    The dwarves ran back to Goldfish Ind like a group of ravenous beasts.


    ***


    The Ninth Prince stopped attacking out of shock when Xiang released all 125 Divine Fire Clones. Each of them was only slightly weaker than the original, and theypletely filled up the area!


    Be careful! The Ninth Prince couldnt react in time. He knew that Divine Fire Clone only had three stages, but the beast was clearly using a fourth stage. But more importantly, how had a beast learned a divine technique that only humans couldprehend?


    If someone told him about this, he wouldve thought they were crazy, but he had no choice but to believe his own eyes.


    The 125 clones appeared so suddenly that Elder Yan failed to react too.


    All of them howled, causing the heavens to shake. Theyunched themselves at Elder Yan without any reservations. Since Xiang was a Category Four, each of the clones was equal to a Third River Stage cultivator!


    Even someone at the Sixth River Stage would die if they were ambushed by 125 Third River Stage cultivators. The Ninth Prince tried to save Elder Yan, but Long Chen blocked him.


    Why are you in a rush? Your opponent is me. Elder Yan will die, and so will you! Long Chen had been preparing his technique ever since Xiang used the fourth stage of Divine Fire Clone.


    Go away! The Ninth Prince was short on words as he shed at Long Chen. A whip of me made from the Fire Essence flew at him.


    It was a technique stronger than the intermediate Earth-tier technique Crimson Land!


    Nine Spinning Fire Shields! Long Chen extended both hands and revealed a fire shield rotating at great speeds. He dispersed the Ninth Princes attack and used his body to block his foe again. He then thrust the Azure Dragon Halberd at the Ninth Princes head!


    If the Ninth Prince did not stop, the halberd would pierce through his skull!


    Die, Long Chen! Elder Yans life was at stake, but Long Chen was preventing the Ninth Prince from assisting him! This made the Ninth Prince truly angry! He said nothing as mes exploded from his body, forming twenty-five fiery clones. It was the same technique as Long Chens!


    He wanted to stop Long Chen with the clones, or maybe even kill him. Elder Yan was the Ninth Princes most loyal subordinate, and he couldnt allow him to die at the hands of someone like Long Chen. His reputation would be in shambles if word got back to the city.


    The Ninth Princes clones surrounded Long Chen.


    But the Ninth Prince failed to notice something. Where had the 125 fire clones of Xiange from? Had the beast learned the technique on its own in the ruins?


    Did you think that the reason I cultivated Divine Fire Clone was to serve you? Long Chenughed, and mes exploded from his body too. The Divine Fire Seed expanded and surrounded Long Chen.


    Numerous fire clones, equal in number to Xiangs clones, revealed themselves around Long Chen. That meant Long Chen was equally or even stronger than Mo Xiang in terms of mastery over Divine Fire Clone.


    Long Chen had cultivated the fourth stage while he was patrolling the Counter Essence Realm. It was his trump card and the reason why he dared to face the Ninth Prince. When Long Chen saw that Mo Xiang had used Divine Fire Clone to kill Elder Yan, he knew it was time to reveal his own clones too.


    The true Divine Fire Clone has four stages, and the person who obtained the real inheritance was me! Your version with only three stages was a defective one! Long Chenughed as he directed all 125 clones to run towards the Ninth Prince.


    Even though the Ninth Princes clones were stronger, they could not fight against the sheer number of Long Chens clones.


    The Ninth Prince finally learned the truth and realized that he had been tricked by Long Chen in Yuanling City. He thought he had pushed Long Chen into a corner, but now he was being pushed back instead! Feeling embarrassed because he had boasted to Ling Xi and called Long Chen useless, he let out a furious roar.


    No one has ever angered me as much as you! Long Chen, I will never stop hating you even after you die! The 125 fire clones had surrounded him, so the Ninth Prince could no longer afford to help Elder Yan. He controlled his clones and fought against Long Chens clones.


    mes flew everywhere. Chen Feng and Chen Lei were stunned. They thought Long Chen and Xiang would be defeated; they never expected a battle of this scale to break out.


    Ling Xi was surprised too.


    The youth who had created miracle after miracle was currently hiding amongst the clones as he ran towards the Ninth Prince. His eyes were filled with unyielding strength, showing no hint of fear or retreat.


    Long Chens 125 clones shed with the Ninth Princes clones. The exploding mes hurt everyones eyes.


    Xiang finally managed to use his clones to suppress Elder Yan. Although they could not kill him, suppressing him was good enough. Xiang instantly ran towards Elder Yan and exhaled a breath of the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire, engulfing thetter as he stared in shock.


    <em>Crackle!</em>


    The sound of ice cracking sounded ceaselessly. When the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire stopped burning, Elder Yan was nothing but an ice statue. Xiangs clones touched it gently, and Elder Yan disintegrated into ck dust.


    The Ninth Prince saw that Elder Yan was dead!


    His most trusted subordinate, one that was at the Sixth River Stage, was dead because of Xiang. The Ninth Prince finally felt fear. His scalp went numb when he saw Long Chens cold re and the 125 fire clones.


    Impossible! the Ninth Prince shouted in fear and desperation. He refused to believe that Long Chen could oppose him!


    Both you and the beast must die! Ling Xi is mine!


    Take your delusions down to hell! Long Chens voice came from beside the Ninth Prince. The clones had sessfully brought down the defense of the Ninth Princes clones andunched suicidal attacks at the Ninth Prince.


    You think these things can kill me?! The Ninth Prince waved his sword around, destroying a few clones in a single sh.


    But the time to kill the Ninth Prince was now!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Now kill him!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 316: Killing the Ninth Prince

    Chapter 316: Killing the Ninth Prince


    The clones were slowly being destroyed by the Ninth Prince, but Long Chen was like a wolf. While the Ninth Prince was attacking relentlessly like a tiger, Long Chen was slowly circling him while using therge number of clones to hide himself.


    The Ninth Prince had been venting all of his anger and frustration after the death of Elder Yan on Long Chens clones. He had failed to realize that Long Chen was already behind him, and it was toote when he noticed.


    Long Chen directed all of his clones to start suicide bombing the Ninth Prince. The Ninth Princes attacks were swift, but even he could not fend off so many clones at the Third River Stage. Many of the attacks slipped past his sword andnded on his body, leaving burn marks and bruises.


    The elegant Ninth Prince was soon beaten bloody; his face had swelled up from the impact. He looked exactly like a toad, which was what Long Chen had called him just moments ago.


    The Ninth Prince was in a hurry to quickly destroy all of the clones before killing Long Chen and Xiang. He would then take Ling Xi back to Yuqin Pce. Just then, he felt a deadly threating from behind him!


    It came at the very same moment that the clones were concentrating their attacks to the fullest. The Ninth Prince had been so focused on the clones that he failed to realize Long Chen was just behind him!


    Azure Dragon Technique, Dragon King Burial!


    A thin, red line flew towards the Ninth Prince from just meters away!


    Long Chen was a patient man; he had kept his strongest technique hidden until the most crucial moment. He had already used Starsweep Dragon and Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension in front of the Ninth Prince, and thetter had deflected them easily. The Ninth Prince assumed that Long Chen only knew those two techniques. The fourth stage of Divine Fire Clone had been a surprise to him, while Dragon King Burial was most definitely the biggest surprise. Long Chen had waited for the Ninth Prince to be surrounded by the clones before using it at thest possible moment!


    It was hard toprehend how deadly Dragon King Burial was, but the Ninth Prince felt it when it was directed at him. His surroundings faded into nothingness, reced with a blood-red color, and a howling ancient dragon charged towards him!


    The dragon was so big that the Ninth Prince knew that he could not possibly block the attack. He tried to retreat and dodge it, but it was uselessthere was no escaping it!


    <em>Soul Swallowing Gaze!</em>


    Dragon King Burial was an attack that could intimidate its opponent and was considered part of a dragons authority. Long Chen used Soul Swallowing Gaze and magnified the illusion using Seduction. That was why the Ninth Prince was looking at somethingpletely different.


    Die! Long Chen roared. He stabbed the Ninth Princes chest with the Azure Dragon Halberd and punched a hole through it. His blood and organs were blown out from his back due to Long Chens strength. The Ninth Princes torso was hollow with a hole in it even though he was fine moments ago.


    Long Chen pulled out his halberd and swung it to shake off the blood as if it was nothing special.


    The Ninth Prince was still alive even though his organs had been destroyed. He stared at Long Chen with pain, regret, despair, and fear with bloodshot eyes.


    All I will say is that theres nobody I cant kill. Its just a matter of time. Ninth Prince, your time is today.


    Those were the final words Long Chen said to the dying prince.


    The Ninth Prince understood that the youth he was facing was not a country bumpkin that came from nowhere, but a genius that defied all logic. What made Long Chen fearsome was not his talent in cultivation, but his character.


    The Ninth Prince copsed to the ground. Everything was silent afterward.


    Xiang had just killed Elder Yan. Ling Xi was staring at Long Chen with awe while Chen Lei and Chen Feng were both stunned.


    Xiang didnt think much of it; he had always known that he would have a hard time catching up with Long Chen. He was confident that Long Chen could defeat the Ninth Prince since he himself could defeat Elder Yan. Ling Xi clearly knew that there was a big gap between Long Chen and the Ninth Prince, but she had witnessed firsthand how Long Chen had managed to kill the Ninth Prince with wless execution. She started crying from the feeling of absolute safety that he had given her.


    Ling Xi looked very pitiful when she cried, but she was still as beautiful as an angel.


    Long Chen felt fulfilled when he met Ling Xi again after so long. There was a pure aura radiating from her that made him calm down. All he had to do was stare at her eyes to feel calm.


    He snapped out of his trance and smiled. He used the Azure Dragon Halberd to dislodge the Fire Essence Sword from the Ninth Princes dead hands. There were nine Fire Essences embedded in the sword, and they would help Xiang to grow further.


    Long Chen realized that his stash of Heavenly River Pills was almost exhausted too; he had used the majority of them in the Counter Essence Realm. So, he took the Ninth Princes Universe Pouch. Since the pouches usually had a marking of the owner, Long Chen dared not take it. Instead, he emptied the contents and poured everything into his own pouch. He did a rough count and realized that the Ninth Prince had tens of thousands of Heavenly River Pills.


    This was thergest sum of money Long Chen had ever seen!


    But this was nothingpared to being able to elope with Ling Xi after killing the Ninth Prince. With a hop, he appeared in front of her. He stared at the beautiful girl in front of him, and she looked at him back with tearful eyes. Long Chen felt his heart ache a little and quickly hugged her. He was enveloped in her warmth and softness as he whispered, Ling Xi, Im so sorry for cing you in danger. I will never leave you from today onwards. No one can touch you as long as Im here!


    Ling Xi was so happy that she could not form words. She cried as she hugged Long Chen tightly, her face buried in his chest. When Long Chen wasnt around, she realized that she was more helpless than she had thought, and her worst fear had almoste true. She wouldnt havested so long if she hadnt done everything she could to dy the Ninth Prince.


    To think that that bastard dared to touch my woman. I will kill toads like him no matter how many of them pop up. If there are two of them, I will kill them both! If there are thousands of them, I will ughter them all! Long Chen jokingly said to lighten up the mood when he saw her crying.


    Hehe. Ling Xi felt safe and warm when she was loved like this. She raised her head and saw the conviction in Long Chens eyes. She didnt know when her heart was filled with him. All she knew was that no one could rece him.


    Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince for Ling Xis sake.


    This was hisrgest victory yet. He had killed someone from the strongest faction in the Cangyang Kingdom, the Sword Emperors ninth son. The Sword Emperor was the strongest person in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    This meant that Long Chen had to flee the Cangyang Kingdom with Ling Xi and Xiang as quickly as possible, or they would be hunted down!


    Long Chen had decided that he was not strong enough to obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit yet. He would return once he became strong enough.


    Xiao Xi, Im so sorry for not being able to bring back the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. It was much more difficult to find than I expected. I need to be at the Eighth River Stage at the very least to obtain it, Long Chen said regretfully.


    Its alright. I know youve done your best, and I think I still like the way I am. I can hug you  Ling Xi blushed and hugged him again.


    The softness of the embrace was tempting, but Long Chen knew that now was not the time. He held her face gently in his palm. Dont worry. I will make sure to get you the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Its just a matter of time. I will return to the capital one day, and no one, not the Sword Devil, or the Sword Emperor, or Lin Zichen will ever stop me.


    Brother Chen, are we leaving now? Ling Xi raised her head.


    Yes, we must leave the Cangyang Kingdom now. Ive killed the young master of the Harmony family. The patriarch of the Harmony family is at the Eighth River Stage. If hees after us, were dead


    Song Zhongcheng was indeed at the Eighth River Stage. Long Chen could never hope to defeat him even if he had more limbs.


    When they prepared to leave, Xiang suddenly froze and became anxious. Long Chen realized that something was wrong and quickly looked back. He used the third stage of the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Sight, to quickly scan the area. Everything around him faded away, and Long Chen saw an incredible soul running towards them at great speed.


    Song Zhongcheng! Long Chen hissed.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Job''s done, time to run!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 317: Black Fire Lotus

    Chapter 317: ck Fire Lotus


    Song Zhongcheng was approaching rapidly. Long Chen was caught off guard; he had not anticipated he would appear so soon.


    Song Zhongcheng was at the Eighth River Stage. His arrival meant the deaths of Long Chen, Ling Xi, and Xiang. Long Chen had barely managed to kill the Ninth Prince, but the gap between him and Song Zhongcheng was toorge. Song Zhongcheng was considered one of the strongest cultivators in the city, just below the three strongest individuals of the imperial family.


    Long Chen had killed Song Zhongchengs most beloved son, so there was zero chance he would be forgiven.


    Long Chen decided what to do in an instant. He pushed Ling Xi away and held her hands tightly. Xiang, this is your mission. Take Ling Xi and run away! Make sure she survives, or we wont be brothers anymore!


    His order was irrefutable. He wanted Xiang to take Ling Xi to safety while he himself would stop Song Zhongcheng. He would do anything as long as Xiang could escape with Ling Xi.


    Did you hear me? Run away with Ling Xi right now! Long Chen snarled, startling Xiang. Xiang looked at him but didnt move.


    Long Chen was going to shout again when Ling Xi held him back. Wait, Xiang said that he could trap the people chasing us with a technique, but he wouldnt be able to use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire for ten days afterward.


    Wait, what did you say? Long Chen calmed down. If there was a technique that could resolve their predicament, he wouldnt need to sacrifice himself. It was a perfect n.


    How long can he trap them? Xiang, are you sure? Long Chen needed to confirm this.


    Xiang said that he can incorporate the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire into a technique that he has used before. The Nine Devil Ancestral Fire can trap an Eighth River Stage cultivator for six hours at least due to its unique properties. Its very durable! Ling Xi exined.


    Xiang wouldnt lie, and Long Chen was relieved when he learned of that. There had been too many dangers and close calls today


    With Xiangs guarantee that it would work, Long Chen felt the pressure alleviate slightly. He was still using Sight and knew that Song Zhongcheng would arrive very soon. He also saw a group of people following him. He deduced that they were most likely dwarves too.


    Long Chens grudge with the dwarves was too deep. His hatred for them was deep after learning what they were doing in the vicinity of the capital. Long Chen would only feel calm after eradicating their entire race!


    Xiang was already in his battle form when Long Chen whispered to him, Xiang, get ready. I will find a chance to stop Song Zhongcheng. We will escape as soon as we finish our business.


    Xiang nodded just as Song Zhongcheng ran across theke and arrived at Goldfish Ind. Behind him was a group of dwarves, the same ones that had threatened to eradicate the vigers earlier. They were part of the main force of the Harmony family.


    The dwarves saw the two people and the wolf on the ind. Most of them were staring lustfully at Ling Xi, but some of them noticed that there was a corpse not too far away. The corpse was covered in blood, making it hard to determine that it was the Ninth Prince. But they knew that the Ninth Prince was here just minutes ago, so they immediately assumed that the corpse belonged to him.


    Song Zhongchengs killing intent was about to explode when he saw Long Chen, but he stared at the Ninth Princes corpse in shock and yelled, Are you Long Chen? Did you kill the Ninth Prince?


    The death of Song Yuefeng was enough to rattle the entire Harmony family, and the death of the Ninth Prince would be a bombshell to the capital. The other dwarves instantly ignored Ling Xis beauty and stared at Long Chen in shock.


    Even people with high status like them had to respect the Ninth Prince, so how had someone as weak and insignificant as Long Chen killed him? The conflict of beliefs brought about by this matter was so jarring that they found it hard to believe.


    You are right. Not only did I kill that idiot Song Yuefeng, Ive also killed Lin Cangtian, the despicable toad. What are you going to do about it? Long Chen smiled.


    Song Zhongcheng was speechless.


    He looked at Long Chen and reevaluated him.


    Long Chen was only at the Second River Stage when he first entered the Counter Essence Realm, but he had grown much stronger in merely half a month. As soon as he came outside, do something unbelievable that no one in the capital had ever heard of before.


    The Ninth Prince had not been killed by the Heavenly Demon Pce faction, but by his own subordinate! If this news got out, everyone wouldugh at the Ninth Prince.


    Song Zhongcheng was thinking about how the imperial family would react once they received the news.


    I actually came here to kill you, but I fear that I cant do that now. Since youve killed the Ninth Prince, I will have to hand you over to the imperial family to be sentenced. You should be d that you can live for another half a day. Song Zhogncheng approached Long Chen.


    He didnt give Long Chen time to speak. He assumed restraining and bringing Long Chen to the imperial city would be a simple thing to do.


    I think the dwarves are lower than livestock. Long Chen was not afraid even while facing death. He kept taunting Song Zhongcheng. Look at you, you are so short that you dont even reach my chest. And look at how obscene your face is. Your legs are no different than a boars. Such a disgusting creature. I cant believe there is such an ugly race in this world.


    Long Chen looked at the other dwarves in contempt.


    None of you are worth looking at.


    You mother fucker! Shut your mouth or I will tear it apart!


    Yeah, everyone in the Harmony family is handsome, and not as bad as you are describing  The voice of the dwarf who said this became quieter from theck of confidence.


    Are you trying to make me angry so I kill you myself? Are you afraid of being captured by the imperial family? Song Zhongcheng was shameless and would not fall for such a weak taunt.


    You think too much. Youre just so ugly that I had to say it out loud. I dont think you would mind hearing someone like me calling you guys are ugly and short. Dwarves are subhuman, and I dont think youll ever be anything more than animals. Your kind must have been born from the marriage between a gori and a baboon. Long Chenughed after he said that.


    Do you want to die, you fucking brat?


    Youre the gori!


    Long Chens taunt was so vile that many of the dwarves were itching to kill him. All of them were about to pounce on him.


    Even Song Zhongcheng frowned from the taunt. He didnt want to give Long Chen another chance to speak, so he ran forward. He was so fast that there was barely a shadow.


    Long Chen could never hope to outrun him.


    He stoppedughing and shouted, Xiang, now!


    Xiang had started preparing his technique the moment Song Zhongcheng was about to run at them. When he did, Xiang howled and released the technique. A frigid air enveloped them, and the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire took the form of a lotus as it shot out of Xiangs maw. The lotus quickly enveloped Song Zhongcheng!


    What is this? Song Zhongcheng felt the dangerous aura of the fire lotus. He now knew why Long Chen was not afraid of him. But he was so close to Long Chen, and the fire lotus had a wide range of effect. Song Zhongcheng barely managed to attack with his fist when the fire lotus trapped him!


    Shit! That was his final shout from within the fire lotus.


    It was frightening, but thankfully, no one was hurt.


    Long Chen sighed in relief when he verified that the threat was temporarily neutralized. He knew that he had to run now, but he was more than happy to sacrifice some of the precious time to kill the other dwarves.


    Xiao Xi, close your eyes. Wait for me a little bit and I will take you away. Xiang, I know you are tired. Control your clones and coordinate with me. Long Chen transformed and red at the dwarves as he brandished the Azure Dragon Halberd. He had been rxed when he taunted the dwarves, but now that Song Zhongcheng was trapped, killing intent started to radiate from his body.


    Brother Chen


    Dont worry. I will hold back. He consoled Ling Xi and she closed her eyes. Both Long Chen and Xiang ran towards the dwarves without hesitation.


    The dwarves were still in shock from seeing Song Zhongcheng being trapped in the mysterious fire lotus. They didnt know what to do, but they were fearless since they had the numerical advantage against Long Chen and Xiang.


    Capture that brat! Song Zhongzhen ordered.


    Long Chen was already prepared.


    Blood Devouring Domain!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time to kill some dwarves with his Domain Expansion and Shadow Clone Jutsu


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 318: Risky Journey

    Chapter 318: Risky Journey


    A blood-red mist enveloped all of the dwarves once the Blood Devouring Domain was activated. Everything around them was dyed in a blood-red color.


    As Long Chens cultivation level increased, so did the power of the Blood Devouring Domain. No one beneath his cultivation level could resist the power exerted on them!


    The strongest person in the battle was Song Zhongzhen at the Sixth River Stage. Even though he was not as strong as Elder Yan and the Ninth Prince, he was still barely able to fight in the domain. Still, the blood going wild inside of his body was new to him. The dwarves below the Heavenly River Realm exploded into clouds of bloody mist the moment they were trapped in the domain.


    I cant absorb their blood


    Blood was an irresistible resource to Long Chen. Ever since he used the Nine Heavens True Fire Beasts blood to advance into the Fourth River Stage, the killing instinct of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon had slowly gripped his heart. There were times where he even lost control of himself. He had told himself that he wouldnt use Blood Transmutation for the time being, especially on humans.


    Long Chen did not use Blood Transmutation, but the dwarves were still terrified. Not only had he incapacitated most of them, he had even caused many of the dwarves to outright explode into nothing. To them, Long Chen was a demon!


    Impossible! This is the technique of a god! Song Zhongzhen was surprised too. He saw that the dwarves around him were pale as their blood thrashed wildly in their bodies. Once he determined that there was no hope, he shouted as loud as he could, Everyone, retreat! Retreat now!


    He kept shouting while trying to escape from the effect of the Blood Devouring Domain.


    But Long Chen would never let them go.


    Xiang, use your clones to stop him. Kill him if you can. I will kill the others first. We need to kill all of them as quickly as possible!


    Long Chen howled and became a shadow of blood. He appeared amidst the dwarves and started his ughter. Painful shrieks filled the air.


    None of them could fight back, especially under the effect of Blood Devouring Domain. Long Chens hatred for them was so intense that he showed no mercy. If he didnt kill them now, they would extend their disgusting arms towards even more innocent people. The dwarves were creatures that harmed others for the sake of fun!


    Xiang did not hesitate. He had only used up a few clones to defeat Elder Yan. There were still more than a hundred left, and all of them were currently chasing Song Zhongzhen! They leaped through the dwarves and focused on their prey.


    The clones were not affected by the domain, while Song Zhongzhen was heavily suppressed. He couldnt circte his Qi without resistance, and he had a feeling that his attacks would be interrupted halfway due to his berserking blood.


    Nooo! NOOOOO! Song Zhongzhen shouted in despair. As long as the domain was in effect, he could not use his full strength. Long Chen wanted this to end soon, so he told Xiang to use any means necessary to subdue Song Zhongzhen. Soon, the numerous clones engulfed their target.


    Within the fiery lotus that Xiang had created, the Eighth River Stage Song Zhongcheng was still capable of listening to what was happening outside. He became desperate when he heard the dwarves crying out in pain.


    Long Chen, what are you doing?! Are you killing the dwarves?! You will die today!


    Ive already killed so many. Do you think Ill just let them run? Oh, this one looks as ugly as you. Must be your brother. He has probably killed even more than me, so Im doing the heavens a favor by killing him. Now that hes dead, I will do the rest to the others too.


    Long Chen taunted Song Zhongcheng while thetter was jumping up and down inside the fire lotus out of anger. Song Zhongcheng almost broke down in tears when he saw the dwarves outside dying left and right. He could do nothing while he was trapped in the fire lotus. He tried breaking it apart from the inside, but his efforts were futile.


    The only thing he could do was wait until the fire lotus disappeared. He saw that the fire lotuss strength was diminishing very slowly.


    Long Chen, you will die! Not only you, but all the people around you! I will skin all of them! They will never reincarnate again! Song Zhongchen shouted like a madman from inside the fire lotus.


    Really? Long Chen chuckled as he waved the Azure Dragon Halberd wildly. Every time he did, he killed another dwarf. With the help of Xiangs clones, the number of dwarves was quickly diminishing. The painful cries never stopped. The vigers of Goldfish Ind heard the shout, but none of them stopped him. They knew that Long Chen was ughtering the despicable dwarves, and all of them were secretly happy.


    The sinful dwarves were culled by Long Chen like a farmer harvesting the fields. None of them managed to escape with the domain suppressing them. Even those at the Fourth River Stage could not escape.


    Long Chen ignored Song Zhongchengs threat and continued killing the dwarves. When all of the dwarves were finally dead, Long Chens body and weapon were covered in fresh blood.


    Song Zhongcheng was the only living dwarf in the vicinity. The rest had been killed.


    Long Chen jumped into theke and washed the blood off his body. He then approached Ling Xi and Xiang in a hurry. We need to run now.


    He was still cloaked in a murderous and gloomy aura, and it frightened Ling Xi. She held his arm carefully. Brother Chen, are you alright?


    Long Chen was slowly breaking free of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons influence and bing more rational. Seeing the care and worry in Ling Xis eyes helped him calm down. For some reason, looking into her eyes made him calm down very fast.


    Time to go. He ced Ling Xi on Xiangs back. Since he was in his battle form, carrying Ling Xi on his massive body was not an issue. Long Chen sat behind Ling Xi to make sure she wouldnt fall off.


    Xiang howled excitedly.


    Even though he had used the fire lotus and lost his ability to use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire for ten days, the bacsh on his body was not as terrible as he had thought. He was more than capable of carrying both Long Chen and Ling Xi.


    All three of them were excited to leave the capital behind.


    Hope was in front of them.


    You think you can leave peacefully? You are too naive, Long Chen. Youve underestimated the power of the imperial family. As long as you are in the Cangyang Kingdom, you will always be under the surveince of the imperial family. You are an idiot if you think you can leave the kingdom after killing the Ninth Prince! Even I couldnt do it!


    Song Zhongcheng howled angrily from inside the lotus.


    Long Chen was well aware that it would be very difficult to escape the kingdom after killing the Ninth Prince, especially since Ling Xi was just a normal human now. She was weak and vulnerable and would require more time to rest than normal cultivators. As a result, they would only be able to travel at a third of their potential speed.


    This is a risky journey, but we will be safe as long as we can escape. I can live peacefully with Ling Xi as long as were careful!


    Long Chen carefully hugged Ling Xi and whispered to XIang, Lets go. Run as fast as you can.


    XIang howled and shot forward like an arrow. He was soon a dot on the horizon.


    Once Xiangpletely disappeared, Chen Feng and Chen Lei stared at each other in shock.


    Leier, if Im not mistaken, the death of the Ninth Prince will shake the entire Cangyang Kingdom! The Patriarch of the Harmony family will definitely seek us out to vent his anger after so many dwarves died. We need to leave Goldfish Ind now!


    But Goldfish Ind is thend our ancestors left for us. How could we run away just like that? Chen Lei was uncertain.


    And what other choice do we have? The ancestors would rather us protect our lives and not get eradicated. We have to run now so we can live to see another day. The situation has changed now. Before this, the dwarves wanted to take over Goldfish Ind. But now that Long Chen has killed so many of them, they will be focusing their resources on Long Chen instead of taking over a small ce like Goldfish Ind. We need to escape while we can!


    Chen Lei agreed with his father after listening to his exnation. Both of them ran as fast as they could back to the vige to inform the others.


    Ever since the dwarves first came to the vige, everyone had made preparations to escape at a moments notice. As soon as Chen Feng told them to leave, the vigers immediately took their belongings and escaped their ancestral home.


    Song Zhongcheng was howling like a beast inside the lotus, his voice reverberating in the skies.


    Even though Long Chen had escaped, the news of him killing the Ninth Prince would soon reach the capital. Once it did, there would be many people hunting him down. Numerous life-or-death battles awaited Long Chen.


    Could Long Chen at the Fourth River Stage defeat so many enemies?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time for the escape arc


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 319: Journey To The West

    Chapter 319: Journey To The West


    Are you cold? The wind howled past them, but Long Chen blocked it with his back. He was sitting backwards on Xiang to shield Ling Xi from the cold wind. She was huddled inside his embrace, her face pale. She was indeed cold.


    Emm  Ling Xi nodded listlessly, staring at Long Chen tearfully.


    Xiang, is there a way to raise your body temperature? Long Chen shouted at Xiang.


    He soon felt Xiangs body temperature rise. Ling Xi felt much better, but the cold wind was still biting into her body. All Long Chen could do was use his body to block as much of the wind as he could.


    It had been half a day since they started fleeing, so the imperial pce must have learned of the Ninth Princes death. He was certain that there would soon be people chasing after them. Long Chen dared not slow down and asked Xiang to continue running!


    But if he ran any faster than this, Ling Xi would not be able to hold on with her mortal body.


    Brother Chen, where are we going?


    To Yuanling City. We need to go back. Since the Biyang Imperial Capital is at the center of the Cangyang Kingdom, it doesn''t matter which direction we run towards. We need to head west for now. Long Chen patted her head lovingly.


    Why west? Ling Xi was confused. Her inquisitive nature and cute face were nothing short of breathtaking.


    If it wasnt for her beauty, Long Chen wouldnt have had to risk his life along with Xiang to escape. Thankfully, Xiang was more than happy to do so since the imperial family were the people he wanted to kill the most. Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince, a member of the imperial family, and Xiang was more than happy about it. He hadnt even gotten a chance to thank Long Chen yet.


    The only faction capable of fighting against the imperial family is the Heavenly Demon Pce. Their headquarters is located towards the west, at Demon Emperor Mountain. The closer we get to them, the weaker the influence of the imperial family. If we can get past Demon Emperor Mountain and enter the Western Sea Kingdom, we will be safe, Long Chen exined calmly to Ling Xi.


    Can we really escape? Ling Xi wasnt sure. She saw the Biyang Imperial Capital bing smaller in the horizon as she doubted their fate.


    Fate worked in mysterious ways. They had just arrived at the capital no more than a month ago, and Long Chen had already killed the Ninth Prince because of Ling Xis beauty. Now they were on a path of no return. They would either survive or die.


    Of course! Dont worry about it. You can sleep for now. I fear that the journey ahead will be arduous to you. I cant let you fall sick and be ugly because of that. Long Chen pinched her nose and chuckled.


    Brother Chen, you are so mischievous. Ling Xi gently pushed away Long Chens mischievous hand. Even though he had assured her that nothing would happen, her doubt wasnt dispelled at all.


    Sorry. This is my fault. If it wasnt for me, you wouldve obtained a lot of resources for your cultivation. And you wouldnt have had to suffer so much because of me. Our lives are so uncertain now. Ling Xi was sad.


    Stupid girl. What are you saying? Long Chen huffed and raised her head gently with his hands. He looked at her with conviction, and Ling Xi felt for the first time that everything would be alright.


    Ling Xi, never say those words again. You did not make me suffer. Your troubles are mine too. Im a man, and I will protect my woman. If you say anything like that again, I will just treat them like the fart of a dog[1], understood?


    Youre the dog fart! Hmph! Long Chen was uncouth to use such vulgar words to describe ady. She extended her arm to pinch his cheeks, but she didnt have the strength.


    Im so useless. Ling Xi sighed.


    You are thinking too much. The skin on my face is thick, so you cant do anything to it, Long Chen said with augh.


    Even though they were running for their lives, Ling Xi felt better after Long Chen cracked a few jokes. She soon smiled from his antics. She was like a blossoming lily that radiated a pure and sacred energy in Long Chens eyes. He swore to himself that he would never let her get injured.


    He wanted to spend all his life protecting the most important person to him. She was the sanctuary for his soul, and his other life. Anyone who dared toy a hand on her was crossing his bottom line.


    Long Chen did not regret killing the Ninth Prince and escaping.


    Now that Ling Xi was feeling better, Long Chen felt the weight of the future on his shoulders. He just didnt show her that.


    The imperial family, the strongest faction in the Cangyang Kingdom  Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince and essentially dered war on the entire kingdom. There were so many strong cultivators in the capital that served the imperial family. How could Long Chen fight all of them?


    What would he do if they chased after him?


    Many of the smaller demonic beasts that excelled in passing information and speed could easily catch up to Xiang. Long Chen was certain that his warrant had already started spreading to many of the cities. All of the cities were now like beasts waiting for Long Chen to enter their trap.


    That was he did not enter any city while they were running. He was worried that his tracks would be discovered. He and Xiang chose the quiet roads and tried their best to stick to ces where they couldnt be seen. They even took numerous wrong turns that dyed their escape.


    There were many issues thatplicated their escape. For example, Ling Xi needed to eat now that she was a normal human. Her frail body could not ept the intensity of their escape. She needed to eat, drink, sleep, and stave off the wind, or she would fall ill. All of the issues were like maggots that stuck to Long Chens body and increased his ever-growing list of worries.


    Three days and nights had passed. They could not run as fast as they could due to Ling Xis body. Without her, their escape progress wouldve been three times faster.


    Even so, Ling Xis body could no longer withstand the tiresome journey. Her face was growing paler and her body weaker; even her voice was bing softer. She said that she was fine, but Long Chen definitely noticed the changes in her body.


    Long Chen could not find a proper meal in the wilderness, so he could only feed her the beasts that he had caught. She had been eating roasted meat for more than three days, and she had even vomited once. Long Chen felt like his heart was being cut up when he saw her vomiting. He wanted to stop and let her rest, but he knew that if the people from the capital caught up, they would be dead.


    Brother Chen, dont worry, Im fine. Lets continue, Ling Xi said powerlessly.


    Long Chen hesitated before he finally chose to continue their journey. Riding on Xiangs broad back, the wind howled around them. It was nighttime, and Nine Heavenly Rivers covered the night sky and showered thend in faint starlight.


    Xiang ran tirelessly across the wilderness under the starlight.


    ugh. Ling Xi had a nightmare and woke up in shock. She saw that Long Chen was still beside her and sighed. Cold sweat covered her pale face.


    Whats wrong? Long Chen was worried when he saw Ling Xi like this. He tried his best to make her even morefortable in his embrace.


    Brother Chen  I saw you dying in my dream. She cried in his embrace. Her sobs were like ants crawling into his ears.


    Im afraid of being alone after you die. There are enemies everywhere, and I dont know what to do  I dont want you to die! Uuuuu  Ling Xi was helpless.


    Xiao Xi! Long Chen hugged her tightly. His eyes were resolute and filled with starlight, and there was not a single hint of fear in them.


    You need to trust me. No one can kill me, and I cannot die! I will not die! You can sleep in peace and rest now. I will hold you while you sleep until you are tired of me. I wont let you go.


    Long Chens words showed how much conviction he had. Of course, he wasnt sure of it himself, but he would continue to shield Ling Xi no matter what dangers they would have to face.


    Okay  Ling Xis eyes were wide and she nodded.


    Go to sleep. I wont die, Long Chen said once more while wiping off her tears and smiling.


    The sky lit up when Ling Xi finally fell asleep. Long Chen looked at the wilderness around him with uncertainty.


    Xiang, we need to find a smaller city. Lets see if we can find a map of the Cangyang Kingdom, as well as some daily necessities for Ling Xi.


    1. Insinuating that her words were like the noises of a farting dog, like in a cute yet cheeky way <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    The title caught me off guard. I thought we would have a monkey, a pig, a demon, and a monk traveling with the MC


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 320: Crescent City

    Chapter 320: Crescent City


    After dawn, Xiang started to head towards a ce with signs of civilization, and soon, a small city appeared ahead. It was almost the same size as Yuanling City and its satellite city, Yuanyang City. It was considered smaller than Yuanling, so the strongest cultivators there were at the Heavenly Core Realm.


    Since they did not know if there were informants of the royal family within this city, Long Chen did not n to let Ling Xi and Xiang enter. He hid them in a secluded area of the forest outside the city gates, gave them a few reminders, and then went up to the gates himself. There were characters carved above the city gates, and from them, he learned that the city was named Crescent City.


    However, this was not important to him. When he saw that the guards at the gates were much stricter, he was privately shocked. He did not enter immediately, but focused on listening to their conversation from far. Since he had super hearing, he could faintly hear what they were talking about despite the distance.


    There is such a hugemotion! Where in the world has Long Chen run to? Theyve already mobilized people throughout the whole Cangyang Kingdom looking for him. I heard that he has a woman without any cultivation with him, so he cant travel very fast. So why hasnt anyone heard anything yet?


    Maybe he escaped? Long Chens famous now. Hemitted a serious crime; he was bold enough to kill the Ninth Prince! Thats ridiculous.


    Escaped? Thats impossible. Themander said that the imperial capital has mobilized many people, and most of them are heading west, which is our way. Long Chen is a tiny brat that no one had heard about before; how could he escape their tight web?


    I hope he gets caught soon. We''ll have to stare at nothing all day long until that happens. And they scold us whenever we lose focus for even a moment.


    Long Chens heart sank. Indeed, the royals wereing.


    His strength had recovered over the past few days, and he hadpleted his Divine Fire Clone preparations. Although Xiang could not use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire for the moment, he had reached Category Five Earth-tier and gained extraordinary strength due to the nine Fire Essences. However, fighting against the imperial masters was the same as striking a rock with an egg.


    His heart was heavy. However, Long Chen would not give up so easily. Now that he knew they wereing, he had to think about his retaliation n. He could not enter Crescent City through the entrance right now, but how could a small city, whose strongest cultivator was only at the Heavenly Core Realm, stop him? He moved towards the city wall and slipped inside.


    It was early morning, so the main streets were silent. Long Chen took out his hooded cloak and covered his face. There were many people unwilling to reveal their faces in this era, so he did not stand out.


    At Crescent City, Long Chen used the divine jades left from his time at Yuanling City to buy daily necessities used by most normal people, preparing for allmon scenarios. The basic necessities were clothing, food, shelter, and transport. He knew that while he could not provide shelter and transport, at least he could make the necessary preparations for Ling Xis food and clothing.


    Boss, do you have a map of the Cangyang Kingdom for sale? he asked casually after making a payment and putting his goods in his Universe Pouch.


    The shopkeeper was a rich-looking middle-aged man. His figure was simr to that of Li Wudi of Yuanling Citys Dawn Trading Alliance, but he was only at the Draconic Realm.


    Since he could tell that Long Chen was likely an expert, the man was a little terrified. Worried that he could not serve Long Chen well, and Long Chen clearly needed it, he thought for a moment and quickly said apologetically, Im sorry, we do not sell maps here. But


    But what? Long Chen blurted.


    I personally have one. If youd like, Sir, I can give you mine. You did buy a lot of stuff after all. The fat boss smiled widely.


    Thank you so much.


    After receiving the map from the shopkeeper, Long Chen left. He was already drenched in sweat when Long Chen walked out. He trembled as he looked in the direction Long Chen had gone in, then stuttered, W-w-will I really receive one million divine jades


    ***


    After he left Crescent City, Long Chen dashed straight for the forest. He had an excellent memory and also the Soul Swallowing Gaze, which allowed him to see souls, so finding Ling Xi and Xiang was easy. However, his killing intent rose when he noticed that there were bandits surrounding them. Since they had not attacked, it was clear that they had just arrived.


    Xiang had not transformed into hisbat state. The bandits were only at the Earthly Core Realm at most, so they were nothing to him. He was waiting for them to talk a bit more, thus revealing more information, then he would attack.


    This woman is beautiful! Ive gone through many women in my lifetime, but Ive never seen one this pretty!


    Most of the bandits had the samement. However, when they saw Xiang, they recalled the shocking one-million-divine-jade bounty.


    Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince and fled. The imperial family had stated that whoever found them would immediately receive a million divine jades. That was more than what the most powerful person in Crescent City had! And that was enough for the bandits to enjoy the rest of their lives without worry.


    Big Brother, the beautiful girl and the young ck wolf are here. Arent these the people who killed the Ninth Prince? But the main culprit, Long Chen, still hasnt appeared yet.


    Everyone was naturally excited with this realization. Only the leader suddenly frowned and shouted, Scatter now! Run!


    His mind was racing. This person was an expert who could kill the Ninth Prince, so he was definitely powerful! They were mere bandits from a weak region, so they would be no match for him at all.


    The moment he gave themand, shrieks of pain came from behind him. He turned around and saw a blurry silhouette moving at speeds barely visible to the naked eye! The bandits died everywhere he went. No one survived one punch from him!


    In just a few breaths time, more than a hundred bandits copsed and died. This person was very fast. The leaders mind went nk. All the hard work he had put in throughout the years had beenpletely destroyed! All turned to nothing!


    But that was not all. In front of Long Chen, he was no different than the rest of the bandits. Long Chen punched his abdomen, and he could not defend himself at all. The clothes on his back were torn to pieces from the force, and that was the end of his life.


    Gently pushing the corpse away, Long Chen arrived in front of Ling Xi. He had made the purchases and received some information, so there was no reason to stay here.


    I was worried they would leak our location, so I killed them all. The whole Cangyang Kingdom is searching for us, so we must be extra careful. Xiang, maintain this state. I will carry Ling Xi on my back and rush to the wilderness for now. Youll attract attention if youre toorge!


    After giving instructions, Long Chen crouched and said to Ling Xi, Xiao Xi, get up here, Ill carry you.


    Huh? Although she was often in his arms, this was her first time on his back, so it was a little unnatural.


    What are you waiting for? Come here, Long Chen said with a frown as he looked back.


    Alright  Ling Xi was hesitant. Before she was ready, he grabbed her legs and supported her on his back.


    Lets go. He then dashed towards the wilderness. Based on the map, there was a vast forest to the left of Crescent City. If they could make it there, they would be safer.


    Although Xiang was in his small form, it did not affect his speed. As they quickly disappeared into the forest, the sun rose.


    Despite having Ling Xi on his back, Long Chen did not feel burdened. Instead, he feltfortable. She was soft, and she was leaning on his back with arms around his neck. Feeling her soft chest on his back, he relished this almost skin-to-skin contact. Even when danger was looming, he would not forget to take advantage of her whenever he could.


    What he was most affected by was the lotus fragranceing from her body due to the Heavenly Profound Jade Lotus. It was refreshing and elegant.


    As for Ling Xi, she could hardly move since he was holding her tightly. She could only hug him tightly, and his muscr back made her swoon. Color finally returned to her pale face because of this strange feeling.


    You jerk. After he grabbed her, she shyly stuck out her neck and gently bit his ear. Then she quickly retracted back onto his back.


    Whats the matter, Ling Xi? he asked, pretending nothing had happened.


    I want to bite your ear off so youll remember me forever. And then youll carry me forever, she whispered.


    Ill remember you for the rest of my life regardless. You dont need to bite my ear, he said, feigning fear.


    Perhaps  Ling Xi was not so sure about the future.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Aww so sweet even though they are running. Though technically I guess they are eloping?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 321: Divine Thunder Bird

    Chapter 321: Divine Thunder Bird


    The sun rose and sank. A day had passed, and Long Chen finally arrived at the patch of forest marked on the map. After four days and four nights of traveling at top speed, they still had two-thirds of the journey left to reach the Western Sea Kingdom in the west.


    The trees were tall and densely packed in this forest. Long Chen could run even faster here, so he continued to carry Ling Xi. However, after being carried for a whole day, Ling Xis body was feeling very sore. Long Chens heart ached when she refused to tell him that she was not feeling well.


    There were many demonic beasts lurking in the wild forests, so caves with beast nests weremon. However, the beasts all ran for their lives the moment Xiang appeared. Therefore, Long Chen was able to take over a cave, and after cleaning the ce up, he took out his nket and cooking utensils.


    Its gettingte. We will rest here tonight, then continue tomorrow morning. Long Chen held Ling Xi in his arms, wrapping her in nkets. It was spring, so the nights were very cold. This was the only way she would feel better.


    Xiang had already collected firewood from outside. He lit them with his mes and soon, they had a fire within the cave, providing them with light and heat.


    Long Chen moved a huge boulder to prevent the firelight from leaving the cave, though he left some space for air venttion. The forest was so huge, it was almost borderless; he refused to believe that the imperial family could find him here after such careful preparation.


    After all the preparations were done, Xiangy at the entrance and cultivated while simultaneously being the lookout. Long Chen set up a mini kitchen using the wok, basin, bowls, and other utensils he had bought that morning. He had prepared everything a kitchen had to have.


    It had been a long time since he had cooked.


    The fire was lit, the vegetables were cut and stir-fried, and the meat was barbecued. After an hour, tes of delicious-smelling food were served.


    While Long Chen was busy, Ling Xi was bundled up in nkets, only revealing her small head as she watched him cook. Her heart was warm as she watched him focus intently on food preparation. Every girl had dreamed at least once that they would be cared for like this, and Ling Xi was no exception.


    Although they were running for their lives, the atmosphere he carefully created made Ling Xi wish that time would stop here forever. It was a warm and beautiful moment without worry for the future, and without their enemies after them.


    But that was impossible. All beautiful moments would eventually pass.


    Calling Xiang over to eat, the trio ate their dinner in silence. Since Long Chen had not cooked in a long time and this was a makeshift kitchen, the food was only mediocre. However, Ling Xi was very satisfied.


    Although nothing dramatic happened, this was the happiest meal she ever had.


    After dinner, it was time to sleep. Xiang did not want to disturb them, and he was very bored, so he went out of the cave to keep a lookout for the night. Most beasts would not dare approach with him guarding the cave.


    It had been an exhausting day for Ling Xi, as they had been running nonstop. Soon after dinner, she gradually fell into a deep sleep in Long Chens arms. The extremely beautiful girls eyebrows were still slightly furrowed even in sleep; one could tell that she was very anxious for what the future held, yet she dared not show it in front of Long Chen. She was worried that he would worry about her.


    Hershes trembled in her sleep.


    Long Chen sighed. This would be the most memorable time of his life, fleeing to avoid death. It was memorable not because the enemy was too powerful, but because he had Ling Xi by his side, as well as Xiang, his loyal brother who silently stood by him.


    Xiang was a man of few words, and ever since he became a Sun Devouring Wolf, he had notmunicated much with Long Chen. However, they did not need to converse, because Xiang would automatically do anything that required his help withoutint.


    They shared this burden even during such devastating times. Long Chen knew that this was the sign of a true brother.


    With his beloved and a brother who supported him by his side, he was content.


    Night soon fell.


    She had fair skin and delicate curves, and he could faintly see more skin peeking out of her cor. All of this made Long Chen very tempted, but he knew that Ling Xi was exhausted and severely sleep-deprived, so she could not be disturbed.


    At midnight, she woke up in a daze. Her eyes half-open, she looked at him shyly and stuttered, B-brother Chen, I-I want to go outside


    Outside? Long Chen naturally had not slept. He asked, confused, Its cold outside. Why do you want to go out?


    She didnt speak. After hesitating for a long time, she said, I  I need to pee


    Oh. Long Chen grinned. Silly girl, what is there to be shy about? Ill take you outside.


    It was the wilderness, so Long Chen obviously would never let her out alone. After carrying her out of the cave, they found a random spot and he said to her, Here is fine.


    Ling Xi didnt move. Her neck was about to retractpletely into her body.


    What is it? Long Chen asked.


    Go away, she said, blushing. She was embarrassed with Long Chen standing there. After bing a normal person, Ling Xi could not avoid all these human problems.


    Oh, alright. Long Chen walked ten-plus steps away and stood with his back to her. Smirking, he said, Xiao Xi, are you still shy in front of me? I saw everything when you used the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus.


    Shut up! Shut up! Ling Xis face and ears turned red when she recalled the awkwardness and embarrassment from that moment. If he ever talked about it again, she would get angry.


    It was cold outside. It was better for them to quickly finish this business and return, so Long Chen shut his mouth. Soon, he heard water trickling. He recalled the time Ling Xi was reborn through the lotus. Picturing her body made his heartbeat quicken.


    Im done. Soon, Ling Xi came up to him. It was difficult for her to do this so close to a guy, so even now, her ears were red. Brother Chen, why are you staring at me? She panicked a little when she saw his intense stare. She could guess the intention in his burning gaze. It was as if he wanted to eat her up. Blushing, eyes swooning, she whispered, Brother Chen  No


    By this point, Long Chen was not able to hear her.


    That was when a shrill bird call echoed across the skies, shaking the whole forest!


    Long Chen, initially immersed in a drunken haze, woke uppletely. He stopped touching her and held her to his chest.


    He looked up.


    Streaks of lightning appeared in the sky not far away, and a made of lightning shot towards their direction. His eyes widened, and when he activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze, to his shock, he saw several cores within the lightning web. The bolts seemed to originate from the cores.


    The cores looked like Divine Thunder Birds!


    This is bad! Those are Category Three Earth-tier Thunder Birds! If anyone could tame those birds as steeds, its the imperial family! Theyre the only ones rich enough! Long Chen said solemnly.


    The enemy had finally caught up.


    Xiang rushed over; his panicked look confirmed Long Chens suspicions!


    The army sent by the imperial family was here, and Ling Xi too was fully awake now. Xiang says that if the Thunder Birds are out, then they must be themanders of the imperial guards! The imperial guards have sevenmanders in total, and only the seventhmander cant ride Thunder Birds. Since there are five in the sky right now, that means at least fivemanders are here! Ling Xi said in a panic.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Themanders in question


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 322: First Round of Pursuit

    Chapter 322: First Round of Pursuit


    The Thunder Birds were lightning-type avian beasts. They were best at speed, and despite their levels not being as high as Xiangs, they flew as quick as lightning in the sky. They were definitely as fast as him.


    It only took them a few moments to fly from the horizon to right above Long Chen. If they ran now, they might attract the attention of the people in the sky above, so Long Chen scooped Ling Xi up and quickly rushed into the cave!


    When they had just entered the cave, the five birds released a huge lightning web that swooped past Long Chens head. The crackle of electricity was loud wherever the web touched!


    The birds flew low in the air. When they swooped by, small fires were set off in the forest. If not for the high humidity and damp wood, the whole forest would have been set aze.


    As they flew past, Long Chen kept looking at Ling Xi in his arms, who was also staring at him. Just as they were having a romantic moment, the enemy had unexpectedly caught up. Ling Xi felt awkward, but mostly worried.


    Brother Chen


    The imperialmanders were here. Long Chen did not know how they knew the direction he had been traveling in, but that was no longer important. The most important thing was figuring out a way to escape.


    Xiang, what are the cultivation levels of themanders? whispered Long Chen when the Thunder Birds had just passed them.


    Ling Xi passed the information on to Long Chen. He learned that the royal guards had sevenmanders. One was at the Eighth River Stage, the second and third were at the Seventh River Stage, and the other four were at the Sixth River Stage. This included the Seventh Commander, who had brought Long Chen into the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    They were not opponents he could defeat at all. He could not even defeat an opponent at the Seventh River Stage, let alone the Eighth.


    Dont worry. The First Commander is actually an imperial family member, so he holds aristocratic status. Hes responsible for guarding the imperial capital, so he should not be here. The five Thunder Birds must be from the other fivemanders, Ling Xi said, passing Xiangs message to Long Chen.


    Long Chen sighed in relief and nodded.


    Brother Chen, do we stay here? Ling Xi asked anxiously. Since it was midnight and she was not wearing much, she was already shivering from the cold.


    Since they already know that we are nearby, then there is only one thing to do: run. Xiao Xi, put on moreyers. Ill pack up!


    At such a critical moment, Ling Xi did not dare slow down. She quickly wrapped herself up warm. Once Long Chen had packed up, he put her on his back, gave Xiang a look, then hurried outside and started to hurry through the vast, hilly terrain.


    Long Chen and Xiang managed not to make a sound.


    They had not run for long when Long Chen heard a thunderous sound, like countless war horses running together. It did not sound like they were low-tier horses either. Based on the dense sound, it meant that there were many chasing after them.


    No! The horses are surrounding us! The Thunder Birds were currently patrolling the skies. They had excellent eyesight, so if they fought now, the slightest movement would lead to the birds swooping over immediately with their riders.


    If that happened, Long Chen would be dead.


    Long Chen quickly instructed, Xiang, they havent found us yet. If they do, Ill pass Xiao Xi to you, and I will clear a path! Xiao Xi, youre unwell, but please hold on! Well take care of you when weve escaped!


    Since they had not been found, they ran as fast as they could through darker regions, choosing ces with the densest tree cover.


    The wind blew relentlessly as he dashed through the trees as fast as he could. The Thunder Birds were still flying everywhere, swooping above their heads several times. Long Chen had to stop and hold his breath to avoid being discovered!


    Thankfully, with the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could quickly notice when the enemy was nearby!


    While they fled, he realized that the Sight function of this technique was very useful.


    This situation continued for about an hour. The Thunder Birds were still in the skies, and the sound of ten thousand horses charging at them was still constant.


    By now, Long Chen knew what they were. They were a powerful branch of the imperial capitals military, known as the Ghost Horse Riders! The Ghost Horse Riders consisted of two thousand Heavenly River Realm cultivators riding Crimson Ghost Horses, which were Category Nine ck-tier demonic beasts. Based on their names, it was obvious that these riders werevishly equipped. They did not know how many Ghost Horse Riders had been mobilized to catch them!


    Man and beast worked as a team here, and with such arge crowd of them, the Ghost Horse Riders were formidable. Themander of the Ghost Horse Riders was the Seventh Commander, while the rest of themanders were on the Thunder Birds!


    <em>There are at least two hundred Ghost Horse Riders and many more royal guards behind them  This is bad! On top of the riders, there seem to be many guards behind. They seem to know Im in this forest, thats why they sent so many people! </em>Long Chens face changed.


    The imperial military was surrounding him, so they definitely knew his approximate location. But how did they know? His mind raced, and he finally recalled a person!


    Long Chen had bought many goods at Crescent City and even took a map from the shop owner. That middle-aged fat man!


    Long Chen did not expect the imperial capital tounch such an impressive operation. Even a random shop owner in a small city could guess his identity when he was cloaked!


    <em>It looks like the imperial family is determined to catch and kill me! </em>Long Chens heart was heavy at the vicious determination of his enemies. As he was responsible for protecting someone, he did not show a panicked expression.


    <em>Well cross that bridge when we get to it. It looks like Ill have to kill my way through this! </em>At the depths of Long Chens personality, the viciousness and violence belonging to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon were triggered once more. Very soon, a faint killing intent radiated from his body and his eyes turned a faint blood-red.


    Brother Chen, are you alright? Ling Xi was worried when she saw him in this state.


    Im fine. Dont worry. Ill get you out of here. All you need to do is listen to me, he said in a low voice. His voice had turned hoarse, and his thick killing intent showed even when speaking to Ling Xi.


    Why dont I  abandon this body now? Then I wont slow you down. Without me slowing you down, you can run away with Xiang  Tears welled up in her eyes. She did not want to return to the Ling Xi Sword, but if she didnt, Long Chen and Xiang could possibly die here today.


    Shut your mouth! Dont ever mention that again, or I wont forgive you! Long Chen naturally forbade her. Since it was a critical moment, he had done it with a threat. After the reprimand, Ling Xi bit her lip innocently, tears about to flow from her eyes.


    <em>Brother Chen, Im useless and Im even slowing you down. I feel miserable.</em>


    Long Chen halted. After rushing to this ce, he realized there was a valley ahead with two tall mountains by its side. The only way was to go through the valley, but there were already many guards there. There were even many Ghost Horse Riders!


    Turning back was impossible. There were more soldiers behind, so if he turned around, he would likely have to fight!


    He had only one minute to analyze the pros and cons of each path. Turning around was impossible and hiding meant imminent discovery. The only way was to kill his way out!


    Xiang, Ill pass Xiao Xi to you! Long Chen did not let Ling Xi argue and ced her on Xiang. With Xiangs demonic power, he could fix Ling Xi on his back while fighting. Long Chen and Xiang had already cultivated Divine Fire Clone to the highest level, so with suchrge numbers of clones, they were not worried that someone would attack her amidst the chaos!


    After putting her on Xiangs back, Long Chen shot off like an arrow towards the front. Xiang followed behind him, knowing that Long Chen was trying to break free at top speed. All he had to do was protect Ling Xi and catch up. Hed leave the attacking to Long Chen!


    In the blink of an eye, he arrived at the valley!


    Since he was too quick and his arrival was too sudden, most of the guards in the valley could not even react to therge cloud of blood-colored mist that covered their surroundings. The mist expanded throughout their field of vision, and a terrifying increase in gravity acted on their bodies!


    Blood Devouring Domain!


    The Blood Devouring Domain covered the whole army!


    Who are you?! one of the guards bellowed! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    As exciting as it was, I had been hoping to see him living a better life eloping with her, minus the part where he teased her for going to the toilet


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 323: Ghost Horse Riders

    Chapter 323: Ghost Horse Riders


    The trees in the valley trembled from the bellow. The imperial guards in the red Blood Devouring Domain forced themselves to remain calm. However, the guards at lower cultivation levels exploded under its influence. The moment it spread, one-tenth of the people died. Blood mist was everywhere, and everyones minds went nk at the gory sight!


    The Blood Devouring Domain was undeniably the bloodiest way tomit massacre. It also proved that the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon truly was the dragon of massacre and violence. Since Long Chen had received the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons Inherited Blood Essence, he was fated to step on the path of killing. This was unrted to good and evil; in his mind, there was only one metric: his values. Anyone who threatened him and his loved ones would face his wrath, no matter how kind they were!


    The guards who could barely survive the terrifying domain were mostly paralyzed with fear. They controlled their Qi with great difficulty, suppressing the blood boiling in their bodies. Only the Heavenly River Realm experts could withstand the force, though also with great difficulty!


    A path was slowly cleared through the crowd, and a thunderous boom came from far away, then something arrived in the blink of an eye. Ten-plusrge, ck stallions appeared. They were muscr and powerful, their eyes fully red, and even the thick air they exhaled was blood-colored!


    They were Crimson Ghost Horses, Category Nine Earth-tier!


    The horses were covered in thick ck armor, making them look regal and dangerous. A tall warrior in simr ck armor sat on top of every horse, radiating cold violence. Every warrior held a vicious-looking weapon!


    When the riders rushed over, a thick scent of blood emanated from them. They were undeniably the famous Ghost Horse Riders! The Category Nine Earth-tier horses paired with Heavenly River Realm warriors gave them the ability to annihte most military forces! Even at a ratio of one to one hundred!


    However, their enemy was Long Chen, who was even more vicious than they were! The nearer the horses got to Long Chen, the more anxious they felt due to the Blood Devouring Domain. When they were twenty meters away from him, all the horses lifted their front legs, let out earth-shattering neighs, and then turned around in terror!


    Long Chen, like a gust of wind, dashed at the Ghost Horse Riders! There were many obstacles in this valley, and he would only be able to truly scare everyone enough after he killed the riders. Then he would be able to dash through the valley as fast as possible!


    Damn it! When the horses became disobedient, the riders cursed angrily. They quickly turned around and charged at him with blood-red eyes!


    Long Chen, it is indeed you! It took no effort at all to find you when you came to us! You killed an imperial family member, so even if you grow wings, youll find it difficult to escape!


    The warrior at the very front was the Seventh Commander, who was at the Sixth River Stage! Leading the group of Ghost Horse Riders, they roared as they charged at him. All of them were tall and muscr, so even the guards were stunned by the fierceness of the charging horde!


    Long Chen was alone. Waving his Azure Dragon Halberd, he lowered his head. There was a glint in his eye, then he elerated and appeared in front of the Seventh Commander in an instant!


    Die! The Seventh Commander charged at him furiously! He was confident he could tten Long Chen with just one punch. However, he underestimated Long Chen too much. And underestimating Long Chen, who was in his almost-insane state, was a terrifying thing to do!


    A red line flew out of the Azure Dragon Halberd, and at that moment, the Seventh Commander saw the coldness in his blood-red eyes, as if he was ready to swallow his soul!


    In that brief pause, Long Chen used his most powerful attack, Dragon King Burial, to neutralize his attack, then mmed his halberd on themanders arm so it shattered. Blood, flesh, and bone exploded, flying in all directions!


    The Seventh Commander let out a scream that shook the skies, and it made everyones scalps go numb, instinctively stepping back!


    <em>Did Long Chen just defeat the Seventh Commander with just one strike? </em>Everyone was shaken by this question!


    But that was not all. After shattering his arm, Long Chen rushed up to him and, before his opponents terrified gaze, punched themanders head, which exploded, scattering red and white goo on the ground!


    Ah!


    Everyones hearts sank when they saw the violent scene, hurriedly retreating. The most powerful amongst them, the Seventh Commander, had been killed in a second; who else would be a match for him? Who would risk facing Long Chen, who seemed to be massacring everyone around him?


    Long Chen did not stop there. Only the remaining Ghost Horse Riders dared stand in front of him. They were all Heavenly River Realm warriors, but their hearts were trembling after seeing Long Chens devil-like killing!


    Not even one breath after killing themander, his halberd had already pierced through a warriors chest. And in the next breath, the halberd sliced another persons head off. The head flew very far, and the other guards who dared not move all screamed, avoiding the head. Even more people started to retreat!


    Long Chen was now drenched in blood, and like a meat-grinding machine, he rushed into the crowd and killed one person with every move. Themander was the only one who couldve withstood a strike from him, so they all died instantly!


    Ten-plus Heavenly River Realm masters were killed by him in a tragic manner. Long Chen cleared a bloody path while Xiang rushed out behind him!


    Other than the Ghost Horse Riders, the rest of the people watched as Long Chen ran off. It was not that they did not want to stop him, it was that the Blood Devouring Domain and Long Chens terrifying violence had made them lose the ability to move!


    When he was long gone, everyone stared at the dead Heavenly River Realm cultivators in shock, and some of the ones who were new to battle started to vomit!


    Indeed  Only a vicious character like that would dare to kill the Ninth Prince


    There was only silence in the valley!


    Of course, the Thunder Birds in the sky noticed themotion, including their riders, who were at the Seventh River Stage! Long Chen had sessfully broken free extremely quickly, but it had attracted the birds attention. They screeched furiously as a gigantic web of electricity shot towards Long Chen!


    While they fled, Long Chen sat on Xiangs back. Since he had full control over blood, there was not even a drop of blood on him even after the bloody massacre.


    Right now, he was covered in shining, red dragon scales, along with awesome bony spines. Ling Xi felt genuine awe when she saw him like this. Faint images of ancient dragons appeared on his dragon scales, roaring and twisting. The hysterical violence that radiated from him came from the images!


    Ling Xi had witnessed the extremely gory killing, which Long Chen had done to truly shock the enemy, but also due to the killing instinct from his Inherited Blood Essence. That was why Ling Xi did not me him for the violence. With tears in her eyes, she looked at the teenager who was risking his life for her and touched his perfect, uniform scales. She sobbed.


    The proud teenager who refused to surrender would be the man she gave her heart to for the rest of her life.


    However, with so many obstacles ahead, would she be able to stay with him forever?


    This was Ling Xis most tragic memory, but it was also one of the most memorable events of her life.


    Ling Xi, Im so sorry. I cant control myself when Im ughtering anymore. My body can only achieve its most satisfied state after shattering my enemies to pieces  After the killing, Long Chen was briefly awake once more. However, he knew that due the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons influence, he would turn into a killing monster!


    I wont me you. Brother Chen, Im just worried  Will you forget everyone in the future? Will you turn into a killing machine who cant differentiate between good and evil? Who only kills  Ling Xi asked sadly, biting her lip.


    Dont worry. Long Chen stood up on Xiangs back, looking at the web of electricity quickly approaching them, and a sudden surge of battle spirit rose through him!


    Xiao Xi, I promise that even if I destroy the whole world, I will never harm you! Of course, I wont destroy the world either! Because I am Long Chen, and no one decides my fate! Even they cannot!


    He pointed at the Thunder Birds and themanders on them! The Seventh Commander was the weakest of them, so these five were Long Chensrgest obstacles. Two were at the Seventh River Stage, and one at the Sixth River Stage. They were a huge threat!


    The insane web of electricity, along with the shrill calls of the Thunder Birds approached!


    The light from the electricity slowly covered his vision!


    Long Chen did not feel the slightest hint of fear despite the fact that there were powerful enemies approaching. He was the manifestation of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, the apex predator of countless beings. Not a single living being could make him feel fear! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ghost Horse Riders = Ghost Riders????


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 324: Misty Valley

    Chapter 324: Misty Valley


    Because there were no obstacles in the skies, the Thunder Birds flew effortlessly and covered a lot of ground in no time. If Xiang continued to run on the open ins, they would get caught and Long Chen would undoubtedly die if there were that many experts surrounding him.


    So he needed to adapt.


    Long Chen looked around. He was trying to get his bearings and remember the terrain he had seen on the map. They had just exited the wilderness and were currently in the ins. He remembered that there was a valley covered in mist towards the left of the ins! Since the mist was so thick there, normal cultivators would have a hard time navigating the area, much less the Thunder Birds soaring in the sky. There was a sliver of hope to escape from the people chasing after him!


    Go to the left! Long Chen shouted to Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen was busy thinking about what to do, and Xiang was ying his role perfectly. It was just that he hadn''t managed toe up with a n yet. If Long Chen wanted him to go left, there was no reason not to do so. The Sun Devouring Wolf''s massive frame suddenly turned and ran towards the left. Dust trailed behind him as he ran as fast as he could. A normal person wouldve just seen a blur running past them.


    The Thunder Birds in the skies changed direction too and followed Long Chen. The made of lightning crackled ominously in the sky.


    Xiang was running at max speed!


    A grand chase urred on the endless ins.


    Long Chen hugged Ling Xi tightly and felt how anxious she was. He knew what she wanted to say, but he covered her mouth.


    Dont say anything until the victor has been decided.


    He was calm, but the sense of authority he was exuding was absolute. Ling Xi knew that Long Chen was like a volcano waiting to erupt. The influence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was slowly turning him into a killing machine! There was only a single word in his mind: kill!


    The Thunder Birds chased after Xiang for more than an hour. They almost caught up a few times, but Xiang managed to shake them off when he increased his speed at thest moment. Long Chen smiled when he saw the valley shrouded in mist in front of them.


    The Thunder Birds cannot fly in the mist, so their speed will be drastically slower! Xiang, however, can navigate it easily!


    XIang realized what Long Chen was nning and agreed that the Misty Valley was their best chance to escape.


    Themanders knew what Long Chen was nning when they saw the Misty Valley, but they never once thought that he would be able to escape. There were five of them, and two of them were extremely strong. The two of them, one male and the other female, had starlight twinkling in their eyes.


    Is he nning to run into the Misty Valley? What a naive brat. Does he think we wont be able to chase with the Thunder Birds if he runs inside?


    The other strong cultivator, the woman, said, Haha, Second Brother, hes not just a brat, he killed Song Yuefeng, the Ninth Prince, and even our Seventh Brother. I dont think a brat can do all that.


    The two of them were stronger than the othermanders. It was unbelievable that the imperial family had dispatched the Second Commander all the way down to the Seventh Commander to capture Long Chen. It was clear that they really wanted Long Chens head.


    Xiang managed to enter the Misty Valley! But themanders were confused as to why Long Chen had jumped down from the Sun Devouring Wolf. He was ring at themanders descending with the Thunder Birds.


    With their speed, they would be able to catch up to him with ease. There was no need for them to use the Thunder Birds anymore.


    Why is he staying back?


    Everyone was wondering the same.


    They couldnt see through Long Chens thoughts.


    But it was a good thing to be able to capture him sooner. Theyughed at his bravado as they expanded the lightning to capture Long Chen.


    Long Chen moved at that exact moment. He had told Xiang to enter the valley while he would distract the enemies. The moment some of the Thunder Birds descended, he shouted and threw his Azure Dragon Halberd upwards. It shot up like an arrow.


    What the fuck!? None of them had expected Long Chen to be targeting the Thunder Birds of all things. Because they werending, the Thunder Birds were not as swift as before. The Azure Dragon Halberd pierced into one of their chests.


    The Thunder Bird cried out in pain from having its heart punctured. It then fell onto the ground, dead.


    Seeing that his objective had beenpleted, immediately ran into the Misty Valley with Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen had another advantage when it came to navigating the Misty Valley, and that was his Soul Swallowing Gaze! The third stage, Sight, granted him the ability to see through the mist and look at living creatures. Even though Xiang was ahead of him, he managed to find them easily.


    Long Chen only wanted to dy themanders by killing one of the Thunder Birds, but he never thought it would work that well.


    The five Thunder Birds used the lightning to increase their speed. While descending, Long Chen had killed the one that carried the Sixth Commander. Even though he wouldn''t die even after falling a hundred meters or so, his bones would be fractured from the impact.


    The remaining five Thunder Birds could not maintain their formation and lost control of their lightning. They hovered around for a while more beforending.


    Even then, the amount of time bought by Long Chen was enough for him to shake them off.


    Sixth Brother,mand the others to surround the Misty Valley! I will lead the others inside to find Long Chen! the Second Commander grumbled after realizing they had been tricked by Long Chen. He took the othermanders and ran into the Misty Valley.


    Long Chen led the way using Sight, and Xiang followed him. There were many beasts in the valley, and some of them were very strong. Long Chen did his best to avoid all of the stronger beasts.


    There were various stone formations in the valley, but not a single strand of grass grew here. It was very deste.


    Even though they didnt notice anyone chasing after them, Long Chen dared not slow down. He was still trying toe up with a n. The Misty Valley was not a huge ce, so if the fivemanders mobilized an army of ten thousand people to surround the area, they would not be able to escape undetected. Even if he broke through the encirclement, they would not be able to shake off themanders. He needed to use the terrain here to kill themanders one by one!


    I have to risk my life again for a chance to survive! Long Chen searched for a ce to hide Ling Xi amidst the rocks.


    As long as she could be hidden away, Xiang could guard her while Long Chen fought the fivemanders in gueri warfare. He had three big advantages here: the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Blood Warp, and Divine Fire Clone.


    No one could stop him as long as he used Blood Warp!


    This was Long Chens n!


    He suddenly saw the ground sinking lower and heard the sound of water. It sounded like a waterfall! Long Chen was going in that direction already, so he went ahead and investigated.


    He soon saw the waterfall. It was notrge, but it looked magnificent. The water fell thirty meters before sshing into a deep pool. Water sprayed everywhere from the impact.


    Long Chen wanted to go past the waterfall to find a ce to hide when he suddenly saw a massive beast hiding inside it. More urately, there was a cave behind the waterfall, and he saw that the beast was resting inside of it.


    The beast was roughly a Category Seven Earth-tier based on the pressure it exuded.


    Long Chen spected that it used to be a normal cave until a river diverted and covered it with the waterfall. It wouldve been a perfect ce to hide, but the beast was upying it!


    He suddenly saw that the beasts aura was slowly weakening. The auras strength didnt match that of a Category Seven demonic beast.


    <em>Is it injured?</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Keep running!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 325: Devil Earth Dragon

    Chapter 325: Devil Earth Dragon


    Long Chen sighed. He knew that for a genius to grow, the resources and background of their family was very important. The other important factor was luck. He had to admit that his luck has been great ever since he obtained the Dragon Jade Pendant. He had sessfully managed to survive all the perilous situations so far.


    For example, the Misty Valley was somehow tailored for him since he had the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He could navigate the ce easily without worries. Other people wouldve had a hard time walking around here.


    And now there was an injured Category Seven Earth-tier beast hiding inside the cave behind the waterfall. He didnt know how strong it was originally, but he knew that this was his only chance.


    Once he told her about the cave, Long Chen decided to risk it. Xiang, I will enter the cave first and attract the beast. You bring Ling Xi in and donte out unless it''s an emergency!


    But  Brother Chen, wont you be in danger? Ling Xi was worried.


    No. This is an injured Category Seven Earth-tier beast. If Im lucky, I will be able to kill it and be stronger. Even if I cant win against it, I can run with Blood Warp. Xiao Xi, dont worry.


    Im so sorry, Brother Chen  Im just dragging you down. Tears sprung up in her eyes and her body trembled. Ive decided that Im just luggage at this point. I should just give up on my body so you and Xiang can escape.


    No! Long Chen said to her. Dont say anything like that again, or I wont forgive you.


    Why? Ling Xi was puzzled. If you manage to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit for me, I will still get a physical body.


    Thats if I manage to get it. I cant guarantee it right now. Long Chen sighed. Ling Xi, no one knows what the future holds. The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit is still just a possibility for now. I cant bet your future on a possibility. Dont do anything stupid before I get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Theres a chance I might not be able to get it at all.


    His words calmed Ling Xi down.


    Xiao Xi, someone told me that the world is big and Im only a genius in a small corner of it. My efforts amount to nothing to that person. They rmended that I restore your body and find a ce to live our lives peacefully somewhere


    Those were Li Xuanjis words. Long Chen remembered them, but he had never thought about giving up.


    So I cant let you disrespect your body like that. If you waste your chance, you might lose the chance to live with me. Calm down and listen to me, alright?


    Ling Xi cried as she looked at the man in front of her. Her feelings for him could no longer be described with the word like. The exciting and strong feeling blossoming inside of her was something she had never experienced before. She had a feeling that she wouldnt regret dying with Long Chen.


    Brother Chen


    Hm? Long Chen listened to what she had to say.


    Ive decided.


    What did you decide?


    Ling Xis pale face gradually became pink from blushing. She contemted for a bit before she finally said, I will never marry anyone  but you.[ref]LETS GOOOO[/REF]


    Huh?! Long Chen never thought she would say something like that and was stunned. He was touched that she would say that to him.


    Ling Xi, I will never forget what you just said! I hope you remember it too! You already know how I feel about you, so I won''t say anything more. I will chase the beast away, and you just need to do as I say!


    Okay! Ling Xi nodded.


    Long Chen wasted no time; he pulled out the Azure Dragon Halberd and ran into the waterfall. Water sshed everywhere as he entered the cave. The beast roared when it sensed him and almost knocked him out.


    <em>Blood!</em>


    He noticed the stench of blood as soon as he entered the cave. There was a beastying inside ring at him! It was covered in ck scales simr to a pangolin. There were rows of ck spikes on its back, and its powerful limbs were covered in scales too. The only part of the beast that didnt resemble a pangolin was its dragon-like head. It had a single horn growing out of its forehead, and the sharpness of the horn exceeded Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd!


    A Category Seven Earth-tier Devil Earth Dragon? Long Chen was shocked to encounter this beast in the valley. It was called a dragon, and many thought that the remaining Devil Earth Dragons were descendants of the true dragons. Of course, these were just rumors. If it really had the blood of the ancient dragons, it wouldnt be this weak.


    Long Chenughed when he saw the condition of the beast.


    There were various wounds on it. Some of them were so deep that he could see bone. The Earth Devil Dragon was doing its best to suppress the blood flowing outwards, but it was futile. One of its forelimbs was even missing after being chopped off. It was bleeding profusely, and the Earth Devil Dragon was doing its best to stop it.


    But what if Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain?


    Long Chen knew that someone had been hunting it. That was why the beast was so angry when it saw him. He did not hesitate to throw the Azure Dragon Halberd at it. It was embedded into the beast''s other forearm like the Thunder Bird. But unlike the Thunder Bird, the halberd only inflicted a small wound. Still, the beast was sufficiently angered!


    Long Chen put the halberd away and ran outside. The beast, unable to contain its anger anymore, ran after him. As its name suggested, it was definitely fierce.


    Long Chen did the right thing to lure it away.


    Once out of the cave, he hinted at Mo Xiang before running away. The massive beast shot out and chased Long Chen. Ling Xi was frightened by the sudden appearance of the beast and hid behind some boulders. She was worried about Long Chen.


    She saw that the beast was strong, but it was heavily injured and missing a limb. She sighed in relief knowing that it couldnt kill him.


    Brother Chen, you will be fine!


    Ling Xi looked at Long Chen one more time before entering the cave with Xiang.


    ***


    If I make this much noise here, it will definitely attract themanders! Long Chen decided to run away from the waterfall. After he decided that he was far enough, he stopped and got ready to fight the beast.


    Luckily, I didnt waste the blood  Long Chen had been absorbing the blood that the beast was shedding. He had activated the Blood Devouring Domain but at its weakest strength, so the beast hadnt realized its blood was being absorbed by Long Chen.


    <em>Its bleeding so much that it wouldve left a trail of blood to the waterfall. Themanders would be able to find the waterfall if they followed the blood, and Ling Xi would be in danger.</em>


    This was why Long Chen had been absorbing all the blood while running.


    He looked back, already in his transformed state. He didnt even frown when he looked at the Devil Earth Dragon and pulled out his halberd.


    You want to fight me when youre bleeding that badly? What an idiot. Blood Devouring Domain! The Devil Earth Dragon was enveloped in red mist. The entire area was covered by the technique, and the illusions of a blood-red dragon flickered in its range. This was a true dragon! Long Chen never expected the Blood Devouring Domain to scare the Devil Earth Dragon so badly.


    The Category Seven Earth-tier beast started howling in fear. Its blood was continuously being sucked and it couldnt control it any longer. Anytime Long Chen attacked him, it would lose control of itself and more blood would surge out of its body.


    Long Chen decided to end things swiftly when he saw that the beast was no longer a threat. All it took was an attack to the neck!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Get rekt and be MC''s powerup


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 326: Fifth River Stage

    Chapter 326: Fifth River Stage


    Long Chen had made argemotion by fighting the Devil Earth Dragon. He was certain that the fivemanders had noticed their fight, so he used Blood Transmutation immediately after absorbing the blood.


    The blood of a Category Seven Earth-tier beast was still very useful for him since he was only at the Fourth River Stage. He had noticed that the blood of a beast one stage higher than him was practically useless, while two stages above was decent. The blood of beasts three stages higher than his was the best! The blood of the Devil Earth Dragon was enough to let him advance into the next stage!


    But if the beast had not been injured that heavily, Long Chen would never have been able to defeat it. Long Chen couldnt use Blood Transmutation to advance quickly without someone helping him. Blood Transmutation was also a dangerous technique that couldnt be used too frequently. He had used it so much that the tendency for ughtering others had been engraved in his body due to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. He realized that it was harder for him to stop himself from killing enemies during battles. This was bad news, as he didnt want to be a ughtering machine that killed everyone he saw.


    But there was no time to slowly cultivate while trying to escape from the Cangyang Kingdom. If he didnt use Blood Transmutation right now, he would die! He was forced to use it to survive!


    The Category Seven Earth-tier beast blood flowed into his body as he used Blood Transmutation. He discarded the waste and expelled it in a spray of blood.


    <em>The blood of the Devil Earth Dragon is strong! </em>Long Chen quickly circted his Qi and attempted to advance into the next stage.


    He needed a lot of Heavenly River Pills to do so. He finished most of the pills that he had obtained from the Burning Heaven Emperor just to get to the Fourth River Stage. Thankfully, he obtained more pills from the Ninth Prince. At the very least, he wouldnt have to worry about getting more any time soon.


    He used the pills to continue carving out the Heavenly River inside his body while using Blood Transmutation to obtain more Qi. Time slowly passed, and the fifth pair of Heavenly Rivers soon formed inside him. Long Chen didnt have time to absorb the power of the constetions when he formed the fourth pair of Heavenly Rivers, but they were oddly durable, so he decided to skip the process and form the fifth pair immediately!


    He was now at the Fifth River Stage!


    Starlight exploded from his body. He was now halfway through the Heavenly River Realm. Ten out of the eighteen Heavenly Rivers had beenpleted inside of him, and his Qi flowed through them like starlight.


    <em>I have to thank the Devil Earth Dragon and the person who injured it  Im finally at the Fifth River Stage. </em>Long Chen was now stronger, and he was now capable of killing those at the Seventh River Stage. Unfortunately, the murderous tendency from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was bing stronger too.


    <em>I need to find a way to reduce it once Ive sessfully escaped, </em>he thought with a frown.


    Thankfully, not much time had passed after he killed the beast, and he knew that themanders were closing in on him. Now that Ling Xi was not beside him, they would never be able to catch him since he had Blood Warp.


    Long Chen consolidated his Qi and started smashing some rocks. The sound of rocks being broken reverberated through the valley. One of themanders was attracted by the sound and soon found Long Chen. Themander was arge middle-aged man with bulging muscles. His eyes were bloodshot when he saw Long Chen, his beard and muscles quivering from anger.


    It was the samemander that Long Chen had caused to fall down from the sky after killing the Thunder Bird. He felt embarrassed by that and wanted to kill Long Chen very badly!


    Why are you alone? Long Chen was confused, but then he understood why. The fivemanders had spread out so they could find him more easily. As expected, Long Chen saw the Sixth Commander shoot a re into the air. He knew the othermanders would be here soon!


    I want to ask you the same question. Where is the prettydy and the wolf? the Sixth Commander growled before slowly approaching Long Chen. He had heard that Long Chen had killed the Seventh Commander in one blow. He was only slightly stronger than the Seventh Commander, so he wasnt confident that he could bring down Long Chen, so his goal was to dy him until the others arrived.


    But Long Chen would never let that happen! He now had enough strength and he had even more techniques to kill themander!


    He ran towards the Sixth Commander without uttering another word. Everymander was a threat to him, and he needed to kill as many as he could.


    Do you think Im afraid of you? The Sixth Commanders muscles bulged and he charged towards Long Chen too. He was clearly a melee fighter, and he used an intermediate Earth-tier Body Tempering technique that gave his skin a dull, gray color and made him look as tough as a boulder.


    Long Chen, you think you can block a punch reinforced by my Meteorite Body? Haha! I heard that you killed the Ninth Prince and my Seventh Brother. You mustve hit them with a cowardly attack to aplish that! How could a Fourth River Stage cultivator like you kill them?


    Themanders confident voice echoed around him.


    Idiot. Long Chen used Dragon King Burial and closed in on the Sixth Commander instantly like a crimson phantom. He realized that the ultimate technique of the Azure Dragon Combat Techniqueplemented Li Xuanjis Soul Swallowing Gaze well. He was able tounch a deadly attack every time!


    The Sixth Commander was stunned by the crimson line on the halberd. Rather than recognizing it as the tip of the halberd, the Sixth Commander saw a massive crimson dragon that blocked out the sun. The incredible pressure stopped him from moving even though his body was very tough.


    Whats happening? That was his only thought when he saw the incredible scene in front of him. When the dragon was inches away from him, he thought that he would die.


    The dragon disappeared at that moment, and the Azure Dragon Halberd pierced into his abdomen, punching a hole through his body!


    The Sixth Commander looked at the youth in front of him in disbelief. He never thought he would die so fast!


    How did a Fourth River Stage cultivator have so much strength? Where was he hiding it, and where did ite from?


    Before dying, the Sixth Commander knew that the chase would not be as smooth as the others had thought. The Sixth and Seventh Commanders had been eliminated!


    His corpse fell to the ground.


    It seems my strength has increased tenfold again. I killed him in one blow, though the Soul Swallowing Gaze is a very handy technique. To think that I can cast illusions on others with it. I can then exploit the moment they let their guard down.


    Long Chen did not rx even though he had killed the Sixth Commander.


    There are four more, and they will be here soon.


    Of the four remainingmanders, two of them were at the Seventh River Stage. Those two would probably arrive faster than the two weakermanders, but Long Chen was wrongthe two weakermanders appeared first. It was the Fourth and Fifth Commander. They attacked Long Chen the moment they saw the Sixth Commanders corpse.


    <em>Wait, where did the other twomanders go? They are at the Seventh River Stage, so they shouldve arrived first! Why didnt theye when the re was sent up? </em>Long Chen realized that something was wrong.


    But he had to deal with the twomanders in front of him first. He didnt dy the fight and immediately ran towards the twomanders with his Azure Dragon Halberd.


    Divine Fire Clone! Long Chen released all 125 of his clones and quickly took out the Fourth and Fifth Commanders with their help. Each of his clones was roughly at the Fourth River Stage, and themanders could not keep up with their suicidal attacks, so Long Chen exploited the gap between the attacks to quickly kill them!


    But he was toote to realize that something was wrong.


    <em>Did they find out where Ling Xi is hiding and I got tricked by them?! </em>Long Chen panicked.


    Mo Xiang howled in anger at the same moment, confirming that he was right.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ling Xi and Xiang is in danger!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 327: Second Commander

    Chapter 327: Second Commander


    The uncontroble urge to ughtering from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon made Long Chen lose his reasoning the moment he heard Xiangs howl. The killing intent exploded from his body at that very instant.


    Mo Xiang was a Category Five Earth-tier beast, so he would be able to hold off someone at the Seventh River Stage With the help of Divine Fire Clone, albeit barely. But there was no way he could fight against two of them!


    Their situation was extremely dangerous.


    Long Chen howled and burned his Qi to use Blood Warp. His speed exploded and surpassed even that of a Category Nine Earth-tier beast. In just ten breaths, he reached the waterfall again.


    <em>How did they manage to find them?</em> Long Chen was confused. His n had been perfect. Lure the beast, kill it, advance to the next stage, and lure the othermanders with the loud sound. That way, Ling Xi would be safe inside the cave. He thought everything was going smoothly, so what had gone wrong?


    Long Chen stopped thinking about it. He wouldnt know until he entered the cave.


    This was an unforgettable lesson for him. Not everything, and everyone, would work as he intended.


    Ling Xi  Long Chen stopped Blood Warp. Even though he had only covered a short distance, he had burned through a tenth of his Qi. He needed to conserve his Qi to fight the two Seventh River Stagemanders!


    <em>What happened to Ling Xi? How is she? It took me some time to get here. Did they kill her? </em>Long Chens eyes were bloodshot and his mind was clouded.


    He would never forgive himself if anything happened to Ling Xi.


    He prepared himself as he approached the waterfall, where he saw Xiangs clones in a fierce struggle.


    Long Chen saw Ling Xi being held up by a man surrounded by Xiangs clones while Xiang was fighting fiercely against a woman on his own!


    Long Chens appearance attracted their attention. The twomanders smiled.


    You finally returned. Had you been a few more momentster, she would be dead. The femalemander chuckled when she saw how angry Long Chen was. Even though she was a woman, the fact that she had managed to reach the rank of Third Commander proved that she was not weak.


    The othermander was a middle-aged man that had a dangerous look in his eyes. He was staring at Long Chen, and he noticed the killing intent leaking out from him.


    Looks like you killed the othermanders. The mans voice was cold. He was the Second Commander.


    Ling Xi was in his hand. Long Chen had to calm down even though his anger was on the verge of exploding. He had no choice if he wanted to save Ling Xi! He suppressed himself as much as he could!


    Only then could he ensure her safety!


    Xiang conveyed a sense of defeat through his eyes when he saw Long Chen. Long Chen had asked him to protect her, but he had failed to do so, so he was ashamed to see him. That was why he was recklessly attacking the Third Commander, though even the Seventh River Stagemander could do nothing against Xiang.


    Xiang, stop. Both of them are at the Seventh River Stage. I dont me you. Focus on your fight and dont be reckless.


    Long Chen looked at Ling Xi after consoling Xiang. He looked at her pale face and hinted at her to calm down before he looked at the twomanders in front of him. Im curious. How did you find this ce? Shouldnt you have headed to the re instead?


    We have to admit that you are smart and bold, but its too bad you are facing us. Do you know what this is? Thedy smiled and pulled a small beast from her sleeve. It took one look at Long Chen with itsrge eyes before retreating back into the sleeve.


    This is a Lotus Weasel. Its only a Category One Yellow-tier beast, and it can barely qualify as a demonic beast. But it has a very special ability: it is very sensitive to the scent of the lotus. It can sniff out where lotus flowers are within a radius of several Li. Your little girlfriend is exuding such a dense smell of lotus that even I envy her. Unfortunately, shes going to lose her life because of it


    Long Chen finally understood why. He admitted that this was an oversight. Despite how much he had nned for it, he had no way of knowing that there was a beast capable of doing that.


    So, what do you want? Long Chen knew that they would not kill Ling Xi immediately. They were nning to use her as a hostage. Now that she was in their hands, Long Chen could do nothing as he didn''t know how the situation would change. Even if he could kill both of them, Ling Xi would die in the process.


    What do we want? The Second Commander chuckled. You killed four of my brothers. I want you to feel the same way. The people around you will die, both her and the beast. We will then capture you and bring you back to be executed by the imperial family, Long Chen!


    Long Chen was angry, but he had to calm down. Only then could he find a way to survive today.


    You two have really opened my eyes. To think that the Second and Third Commanders would need a hostage to capture a cultivator at the Fourth River Stage. You couldve killed me easily, yet youre using a hostage. Looks like you dont have the confidence to fight me head-on  Long Chen taunted.


    The Third Commander looked at Long Chen before slowly saying, Hehe. Long Chen, there''s no point in taunting us. We wont fall for it. This is such a pretty girl; why dont we keep her alive and give her to the Emperor? Maybe we can get promoted and get a lot of treasures. But this beast is so distasteful. It must die today! Second Brother, I will kill the beast, so you deal with Long Chen.


    Everyone wouldve mistaken that voice for that of a regrdy, but Long Chen felt his scalp go numb. Those two would most definitely die if Long Chen failed to kill themanders right now!


    The Third Commander was about to fight Xiang seriously! But he was ready.


    Xiang, are you confident in winning? Long Chen frowned. It would be easier if Xiang could distract the Third Commander so Long Chen could focus on the Second Commander.


    Xiang nodded without hesitation. His eyes were bloodshot and he was ready to fight. He would hate himself if he couldnt do that at the very least, and he swore to himself that he would kill her even if it meant he would die!


    Go. I trust you! Long Chen saw him as his brother, so there was no need for sappy words.


    Xiang nodded and gave the woman a taunting look. He snarled at her before jumping away andnding in a field of stone a hundred meters away. He could fight as he pleased over there!


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was a beast with immense potential, so how could he lose to her?


    The Third Commanderughed even louder when she saw Xiang taunt her. This was the first time she had seen such a smart beast.


    Looks like you are smart. Its just that your gaze is so displeasing to look at. Fine, I will kill you first. Second Brother, kill Long Chen and show him how strong your techniques are.


    I wont show him mercy. The Second Commander shed a rare smile. His grin was cruel.


    The woman said nothing more and ran after Xiang. She was ready to kill him.


    Hmph! You are just a beast and you dare look at me like that? You will die today.


    Their battle started immediately. Long Chen was worried about Xiang, but he knew his opponent was in front of him. Ling Xi was still in the Second Commanders hands.


    Ling Xi was worried about Long Chen. Her body trembled when the killing intent leaked out of the Second Commander.


    Long Chen silently analyzed the Second Commander. <em>Looks like the Second Commander has a Body Tempering technique too. His body looks stronger than the Meteorite Body of the Sixth Commander. It must be an advanced Earth-tier Body Tempering technique! </em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    That''s a convenient beast to have. I wonder how did she know Ling Xi had a lotus scent?


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 328: Five Deadly Fists

    Chapter 328: Five Deadly Fists


    It was a tense situation.


    Both Xiang and the Third Commander were fighting intensely, and Long Chen still had to remain calm. He looked at the Second Commander calmly, but the anger was seething out of his heart.


    The Second Commander guessed what Long Chen was thinking and told him, You are right. I do have an advanced Earth-tier Body Tempering technique. To be honest, you are indeed a monstrous brat. My intuition has always been right, and I know that if I let the girl go, you have the power to fight me. Ive always been careful, so I will now cripple you while I continue to hold her hostage. The Emperor told me to bring you back alive, but I can cripple you. Youve killed many of my brothers, so I cant let you go just like that.


    Long Chen stared at him, trying toe up with a n.


    The Second Commander looked at Ling Xi. Shes indeed a beautifuldy. No wonder you would kill the Ninth Prince for her. But your luck ends here. From now on, I will hold her while I attack you. If you retaliate, I will attack her too. You can try, but you should know I keep my promises.


    Despicable! Long Chen was not anxious, but Ling Xi was. How could Long Chen survive a fight against someone as powerful as the Second Commander?


    Fine! Long Chen answered. The Second Commander had not expected him to agree.


    You are bold. Hahaha. The Second Commander chuckled. He pulled on Ling Xis arm and ran towards Long Chen. With his speed, he instantly appeared in front of him.


    Lets try something simple first!


    He punched Long Chens abdomen.


    Dodge it! Ling Xi shouted, but her arm was in pain from being pulled by the Second Commander. She felt like her body was going to break, but she didnt care; she was more worried about Long Chen. The Second Commanders threat made Long Chen stand still. He red at him without moving an inch.


    With a dull thud, Long Chen wasunched backwards and hit the wall. Numerous rocks fell from above due to the impact.


    Long Chen started bleeding because of the punch, but he wiped it off. He continued to re at the Second Commander and taunted him. You old fart, have you not eaten yet? Or did you waste your energy on a sow in bed yesterday? Your punch was so weak, I felt nothing.


    No need to act tough in front of me. The Second Commander did not fall for the taunt. My punches will increase in strength. They will break your body until you are crippled. That was the first punch. In five punches, you will be crippled!


    If I endure your five punches and don''t get crippled, you better stop acting like a coward and fight me head-on! Long Chens eyes were clouded in red. Even though he was hurt, he refused to lower his head. His voice made the Second Commander ufortable.


    If you can endure the five punches and can still fight, I will give you a fair chance, the Second Commander said nonchntly.


    He was actually very family with his technique. Even if Long Chen survived the fifth punch and was not crippled, his body would be so heavily wounded that the Second Commander could easily defeat him.


    The promise is set. Dont take it back like a coward. I know the dogs of the Emperor are all spineless, but you seem different. You better not be the biggest coward of them all!


    Long Chen used Recovery as he continued his taunts, but it no longer had an effect on his body.


    He also didnt have time to use spiritual herbs, so he could only endure it.


    Its a deal. Dont worry about me not honoring it. You just need to endure my punches.


    Ling Xi cried when she saw Long Chen refusing to back down. Long Chen had moved her heart so much, and she hated how useless she was. She was even harming him!


    <em>Its because Im useless </em>


    This was the first time Ling Xi had yearned for strength in her life. No one dared to touch her back when she was with her family, so she never thought strength and power were that important to her. But she knew she had made the wrong choice when she saw the person that she loved agree to such a stupid gamble because of her. She felt like her heart was shattering.


    She swore that if she had the chance again, she would cultivate properly. She would happily protect Long Chen for his entire life if she could.


    But now Long Chen was going to be crippled because of her, so Ling Xi had one choice. As long as she died, she could ditch the body and Long Chen could win! They would then survive the ordeal together.


    Ling Xi, dont do anything stupid. Long Chen looked at her.


    The cold words stopped her. Long Chen needed only one look to know what she was thinking. Ling Xi saw his eyes and knew what he wanted to say: he was a man, and he needed her to trust him.


    Ling Xi decided not to kill herself.


    Stop talking nonsense. You two wont be able to live for long anyway. The Second Commander smiled at Long Chen. That was the first punch. Are you ready for the second?


    Stop trying to scratch my itch ande at me seriously. Long Chen raised his head fearlessly.


    What a stubborn brat. The Second Commanderughed and elerated. He punched Long Chen in the abdomen again.


    <em>Crack! </em>


    This time, everyone heard the sound of bones cracking. Blood sprayed out of Long Chens mouth, and he rolled on the ground several times before he stood up without even wincing from the pain.


    Brother Chen! Ling Xi shouted in shock. She thought Long Chen was dead this time, but she sighed when she saw him stand up again. Her heart ached when she saw his face covered in blood.


    He stood up quickly, and they saw that Long Chens abdomen was slightly caved in. He didnt even wince as he forced himself to stand up. You really are weak, you old fart. How did the sow feel? I guess she was pretty good if you woke up this weak.


    This time, the Second Commander was quiet. He knew that Long Chen was injured, but he was surprised to see that he could still stand up. Long Chen had not frowned even though he was bleeding and his abdomen was caved in with broken ribs. Long Chens mental strength was his strongest advantage, and the Second Commander knew that if Long Chen lived today, he would pose a threat to the imperial family!


    <em>I must capture him! </em>The Second Commander punched a third time. He needed to deal with Long Chen as soon as possible. He saw that his sister was having some trouble in her fight against the beast. The wolf was not as easy to deal with as he had thought. He wanted to help her after dealing with Long Chen.


    The third punchnded squarely on Long Chens abdomen again. This time, it was even stronger and Long Chen was injured further. Qi prated into his body and injured his organs. He coughed up blood whileying on the ground before he stood up shakily. He didnt even wince and chuckled. How did you thrust into the sow? Up and down? Left and right? Or front to back?


    You stubborn brat. I will make sure you cant stand up again after the next punch. The Second Commanders mouth twitched. Long Chens taunts were surprisingly deadly, and even he was getting angry.


    What are you crying for? the Second Commander said to the crying Ling Xi. I have to say, the person you love really has guts. But reality is always very disappointing. You are beautiful, but you are weak, so you will face many dangers in the future, and you dont have time to cry. Just consider this brat a memory for the future.


    Even though the Second Commander was his enemy, he had to admit that Long Chens mental strength was one in a million. His gaze, his behavior, and even his intent to battle were very rare to find in a normal person.


    Xiao Xi  Long Chen grit his teeth when he saw her crying. His heart was aching for her. Themander was still standing in front of him, so there was nothing he could do yet. He endured the pain and looked at the Second Commander. Two more punches. If you dont think you can do it, we can just fight now.


    No  Brother Chen  Dont die. I dont want you to die  Having the body of a normal person had brought Ling Xi so much pain. She wanted to block the Second Commander with her body, but she couldnt move an inch!


    Stop dying. I dont have time to waste. Come and scratch my back for me again! Long Chen decided not to look at Ling Xi again. He was afraid that his heart wouldnt be able to handle her crying for him.


    Idiot. I will honor your wish, then. The Second Commanderughed and punched Long Chen again. This time, Long Chen fell into the deep pool at the bottom of the waterfall.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Will MC have get some defensive skills from the Inherited Blood Essence after this? I need answers!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 329: Origin Fist

    Chapter 329: Origin Fist


    <em>Ssh! </em>


    The water sshed upwards, and Long Chen sank into the pool. His blood dyed the water red, and the scent of blood came from the surface.


    Is he dead? The Second Commander frowned. The Emperor had told him to bring Long Chen back alive. If Long Chen died, he would probably be punished for it.


    Ling Xi felt her mind go nk when she saw Long Chen sinking into the pool. She kneeled on the ground and looked at the red water.


    She couldnt control her tears.


    Panic, powerlessness, fear, and despair forced her to almost lose her will to live. She never realized that she had secretly dedicated her life to Long Chen ever since he jumped down into the abyss for her. They were linked together by an invisible thread. If Long Chen died, she would lose the will to live too.


    It was an easy matter for Ling Xi to die; she could just jump into the pool and choose not to enter the sword. As long as she didnt enter the sword, her spiritual powers would diminish rapidly and her life would be snuffed out in a few days.


    Ling Xi prepared herself to jump into the pool.


    The Second Commander thought Long Chen was dead and had already let go of her. He had never thought she would want to jump down and chase after Long Chen even in death.


    He was shocked and was about to pull her back when Long Chens head appeared on the surface of the water. He also saw Ling Xis head poking out from the cave.


    Go back, Long Chen told her.


    Ling Xi cried harder. She felt like she had gone down to hell before ascending to heaven. Even though he was scolding her, she felt blissful.


    Long Chen swam to the bank of the pond. When he touchednd, he wobbled several times before he steadied himself. He didnt look as terrible as before because the water had washed off his blood, but his face was pale. He knew how heavily injured he was after the four punches.


    He gritted his teeth and endured it. His organs had been rearranged and his bones were broken, but he remained standing. Anyone who saw him could tell that his body was twisted.


    Stop it! Ling Xi cried. Even though there was only one punch left, she knew the Second Commander would muster all his strength to cripple Long Chen with the final punch, and maybe even kill him!


    Brother Chen, I beg you, stop it, please. I will die anyway, so just do as I say. I will be able to stay youter anyway, Ling Xi begged.


    Stop whining. Theres only one punch left. You think he can cripple me? Long Chen pointed at the Second Commander. The Second Commander of the imperial family, a Seventh River Stage cultivator, could not even kill me with four punches. Looks like themander is so busy fucking the sows in his house that he didnt have the time to practice his punches.


    Enough! I will kill you this time! the Second Commander roared. He was finally angered by Long Chens taunts. He grabbed Ling Xi and looked at Long Chen. The Revolving Punch gets stronger with each attack. My fifth punch can kill a cultivator at the Seventh River Stage! If you can take it, I will call you father!


    The Second Commander gave Long Chen no chance and increased his Qi. Ling Xi cried when she saw the Second Commander punch Long Chen with all his strength once more!


    The Second Commander had to admit that Long Chen was the scariest youth he had ever seen. He had a feeling that he might not be able to win against Long Chen in a fight. Using Ling Xi as a hostage was the correct method!


    Revolving Punch, Origin Fist!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen was blown into the wall. The massive impact sent his body flying into the stone wall and embedded him in it, creating a human-shaped crater!


    Blood spilled out of the hole.


    The fifth punch was numerous times stronger than the fourth! The Second Commander had used all of his strength to attack Long Chen, and he knew Long Chen was dead the moment his fist made contact with him. He didnt believe that Long Chen would survive having his bones broken and veins torn apart.


    It seems that the youths of today are too rash. To think he would give up his life for a pretty girl. The Second Commander shook his head and looked at Ling Xi, who appeared lifeless. There was a sliver of hope when the fourth punch was unleashed, but that hope waspletely gone after the fifth punch. She sank into despair.


    Her heart had died the moment Long Chen died. She didnt have tears anymore, only resignation. Ling Xi was satisfied with her life knowing that she had found someone who would sacrifice his life for her sake, so she was happy enough.


    It wasnt a long life, but it was an eventful one. She had experienced many things that normal people would never think of. It was enough.


    Her only regret was that she was the one responsible for Long Chens death.


    No matter how muchughter and help Long Chen had given her, she believed that he would be living peacefully right now if she had never flown over his head. Long Chen wouldnt have had to die so young, and he would have a great future ahead of him


    Xiangs howl of anger and despair cut into Ling Xis heart like a de.


    Think carefully. The Emperor wanted me to bring you back to see what kind of woman caused the death of his son. Your life wont be easy from here onwards. Today will just be another insignificant day for you in the future.


    He had wanted to cripple Long Chen, but he was so afraid of Long Chen that he had killed him instead.


    The Second Commander shook his head and released her before walking towards where Long Chen was. Brat, I cant take you back alive, so I will just retrieve your corpse. You killed four of my brothers, and I cant give their parents an exnation without your body.


    It would be a miracle if Long Chen survived the strongest attack from a Seventh River Stage Cultivator that had an advanced Earth-tier Body Tempering technique. The Second Commander was an incredible cultivator who was confident in his technique, so he extended his arm into the cavity to pull Long Chens body out without putting much thought into it.


    Long Chen was motionless.


    The Second Commander smiled. Everything is over. The dwarves sent out more people than us, but they are not as smart as Third Sister, or we wouldve had a hard time tracking the girl down


    He was happy that he had aplished the mission before the dwarves.


    He touched Long Chens clothes, which were sticky with blood.


    Xiang wasunching reckless attacks again and again. At the moment, he managed to burn off the Third Commanders hair. Her hair was like her life, so she shrieked when she realized that it had been singed off!


    Whats happening? The Second Commander frowned. He looked away while trying to pull Long Che out.


    <em>Splurt!</em>


    All of a sudden, the Azure Dragon Halberd pierced through his chest and rotated wildly, instantly drilling a hole in his chest.


    Ack! The Second Commander was shocked to see the hole in his chest. He looked up and saw a blood-covered person slowly walking out of the cavity in the wall. It was Long Chen with the Azure Dragon Halberd!


    Am I dreaming? The Second Commanders consciousness started to fade when he saw Long Chen standing in front of him. Long Chens eyes were blood-red, and dragon illusions howled inside of them.


    Long Chen was battered; not a single part of his body was free of damage. But he managed to stand up straight even with the wounds. He looked at the Second Commander and scoffed.


    The Second Commander realized he was not dreaming.


    Long Chen  You are a demon  His voice trailed off. He shivered uncontrobly out of fear when he looked at Long Chen. Long Chens unyielding will made him the scariest person the Second Commander had ever seen!


    It made Long Chen unstoppable!


    Too bad youre just a piece of trash that fucks sows! Long Chen smiled and pulled the halberd out of the Second Commanders chest. He then looked at Ling Xi.


    Xiao Xi, close your eyes, he said in a soft and gentle voice.


    LIng Xi looked at the bloody youth. She didnt know how to react to the rollercoaster of emotions in her heart. The only thing she could do was listen to him.


    Okay! She nodded. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Third Commander is bald now


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 330: White Lotus Core

    Chapter 330: White Lotus Core


    Good girl.


    When Ling Xi closed her eyes, Long Chen raised the halberd and pointed it at the Second Commander. The Second Commander was already close to dying and could barely stand. He looked at Long Chen with fear in his eyes. He knew Long Chen was going to kill him, but he didnt know how.


    You punched me five times.


    Long Chen spoke softly as he approached the man. I dont like to get treated badly. You punched me five times, so I will cut you six times. Youve already received the first one on your chest. Now it''s time for the second one.


    He swung the Azure Dragon Halberd at the Second Commander and cut off his arm. The arm flew towards where Xiang was fighting, and the Third Commander cried out in shock when she saw the twitching limb.


    She wanted to save the Second Commander, but Xian stopped her.


    Long Chens revival gave Xiang a boost of energy to continue the fight. Xiang knew that if he couldn''t even dy the woman, he would be so ashamed that he would never be able to face Long Chen again.


    Awoooo!


    The Third Commander was pushed back by his attacks.


    Now it''s your turn to tell me that Im weak, you old fart. Go ahead. Long Chen chuckled.


    The Second Commander was just inches away from death. The paining from his chest was so intense that losing an arm meant nothing to him.


    Unable to form any words, he slowly slid onto the ground and looked at the sky in despair.


    Long Chen swung his halberd at themander again and cut off his other arm.


    The Second Commanders body twitched.


    The fourth and the fifth. Long Chen cut off themanders legs, whose eyes rolled upwards and he slowly lost consciousness.


    Fine, I will just send you off. Long Chen cut off the head and looked at the dismembered body of the Second Commander, smiling weakly.


    No one can belittle and defeat me.


    His voice was faint, but it was nothing short of domineering.


    The Third Commander cried out in pain. She waspletely surrounded by Xiangs clones. She was never his opponent to begin with, and she cried out in despair after getting surrounded. She soon burned from the clones engulfing her and became a lump of charcoal.


    Xiang panted and turned smaller. Hey on the ground, exhausted. Long Chen took a few steps and approached Ling Xi. The three of them looked at each other and smiled. They had survived!


    Long Chen fell to the ground.


    Brother Chen! Ling Xi was scared and quickly propped him up. She looked at his bloody body and almost cried when she saw his wounds. The blood covered her and made her look like she was wounded too.


    Xiang quickly came over. He knew that Long Chen was heavily injured after the Second Commanders attacks.


    Im fine. Long Chen rested his head on Ling Xis soft thighs and smiled. He was worried that both of them would do something stupid because of him. But in reality, he hade very close to death. He had only survived thanks to his unique body. Even without Recovery, his body was slowly mending the wounds with the help of the blood. Long Chen knew that the Inherited Blood Essence was the reason he had survived today.


    You bastard. You are almost dead, yet you say you are fine  Ling Xi wiped her tears and snot away before wiping the blood off Long Chens face. His face would forever be imprinted in her soul. She knew Long Chen had been aiming for something by enduring those attacks.


    It was only when the opponent let his guard down after the fifth punch that he had a chance tounch a deadly attack.


    It was an insane gamble, but he had won. Now he was alive and the sixmanders were dead. The strongest people who were chasing after them were dead!


    There was no doubt that Long Chens name would spread far and wide after today.


    Spiritual herb  Their situation was still dire though, and this was not a safe ce. Long Chen needed to recover as quickly as possible.


    He had taken arge number of spiritual herbs from the Ninth Princes Universe Pouch, many of them being intermediate Earth-tier spiritual herbs. Long Chen took one and refined it immediately. The medicinal properties entered his body and helped him recover.


    Even though the wounds were too severe to be healed by a single herb, it brought him back from the edge of death.


    We need to leave now. There are still many people looking for us. We need to run even further to escape, and we shouldnt dy this any longer.


    But Brother Chen  Your wounds  Ling Xi was worried.


    No worries. I can refine the spiritual herbs while sitting on Xiang  Long Chen patted her head and forced a smile.


    He gradually stood up with Ling Xis help.


    Just then, Xiang detected something and raised his head. He stared at a boulder. Long Chen looked in that direction and saw a person walking out from behind it. The person was dressedpletely in ck and wore a heavy veil. They couldnt see who it was, but her figure was clearly that of ady.


    Dont worry. Im not an enemy, the girl said cautiously. Judging from her voice, Long Chen thought that she was roughly his age. But the girl sounded a bit more mature.


    What''s going on? Long Chen guessed that she had been waiting behind the boulder for a long time. The reason why he had never noticed her was because he had been focused on the Second Commander. Still, he didnt know why she was here.


    I know you are suspicious of me, but theres no reason to be wary. I was the one who injured the Devil Earth Dragon. I chased after it, though you were the one who benefited from it. The girl stopped ten meters away from Long Chen.


    Long Chen was surprised. She looked young, yet she had emerged unscathed from fighting the Devil Earth Dragon! Didnt that mean that she was at least at the Eighth River Stage? Only Lin Zichen of the imperial family was at that level!


    I know who you are. You are Long Chen, correct? News of you has been spreading throughout the Cangyang Kingdom. I dont want to meddle into your affairs, but I need to tell you that a hidden wound will remain in your body if you dont have an advanced Earth-tier spiritual herb. It will affect your cultivationter on. I have one, but I want to trade it for the Beast Soul of the Devil Earth Dragon.


    Long Chen sighed.


    The trade favored him a lot. She couldve just taken it from him, and he wouldnt have been able to fight back. The Beast Soul belonged to her originally too, since Long Chen had stolen her prey.


    He took out the Soul Collecting Bead from his Universe Pouch and threw it to her.


    The girl took it and passed Long Chen a jade box. Refine it as soon as possible. The dwarves are already preparing to move against you. They swore that they will capture you before the army does. I remember there being an Eighth River Stage cultivator amongst them. You better prepare yourself.


    The girl left afterwards.


    Thank you.


    It was clear that the girl was helping them. Not only had she given him the spiritual herb, she had even given him important information. Her identity was not important for now, because they had a bigger problem.


    Brother Chen, what should we do? Ling Xi shivered in the night wind.


    Lets continue our escape. Xiang, we still have to rely on you. Long Chen eyes were unyielding. He never feared the dwarves.


    Xiang was somewhat ashamed because he had failed to protect Ling Xi properly, resulting in Long Chen being injured. Now that he saw he could be useful, he transformed back into his battle form and allowed both Long Chen and Ling Xi onto his back.


    Long Chen recalled the map in his mind and pointed in a direction. Xiang started to run again.


    While they were escaping, Long Chen opened the jade box and saw what spiritual herb it was.


    Advanced Earth-tier, White Lotus Core. The faint scent of lotus surrounded them.


    Xiao Xi, the spiritual herb smells just like you. Long Chen chuckled.


    Ling Xi lowered her head sadly.


    Its because of this stupid scent that we were attacked by them today. Ling Xi bit her lips, hating herself.


    What are you thinking, you idiot? Long Chen patted her head and looked up at the sky. After fighting throughout the night, the sun was slowly rising, painting the sky red. He looked back and saw the golden sunlight covering thend.


    Xiao Xi, remember this  Long Chen smiled. His face was illuminated by the sunlight, making him look radiant.


    All of the enemies and difficulties I will face in the future will be my driving forces to be stronger. One day, I will step on everyone and destroy all obstacles. You will then see that the person you love is the strongest person in the world!


    Ling Xi looked at him with adoration and awe.


    She took care of his wounds while they escaped.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC is a monster to survive that without any defensive skills


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 331: The Second Pursuer

    Chapter 331: The Second Pursuer


    They hadpleted one-third of their journey, but the dwarves were hot on their heels! Long Chen had to take many detours to head westward. Even though the journey was longer, it gave them a lot of safety.


    Long Chens body was also abnormally tough. Thanks to the White Lotus Core, his bodypletely recovered in three days. The effect of the advanced Earth-tier spiritual herb was amazing!


    Unfortunately, he had used Blood Transmutation so much that the tendency for ughter was affecting him heavily. He kept thirsting for battle and massacre. If it wasnt for the fact that Ling Xi was by his side, he wouldve let himself loose and killed everyone.


    Three days passed. Both Long Chen and Xiang hadpletely recovered, but Ling Xi fell ill. Her illness worsened as time went by. Long Chen did everything he could, but nothing changed. He had a lot of spiritual herbs, but Ling Xi didn''t have Qi to refine them!


    Ling Xis body slowly weakened, and Long Chen panicked. Ling Xi needed a doctor that treated normal people, but how could they find one? They were wanted criminals!


    Brother Chen, dont worry. I will be fine  Ling Xi held his hands and pretended to be strong.


    You are suffering because of me. Im sorry. If he had never killed the Ninth Prince and just defeated him, they wouldnt have had to run for their lives.


    Brother Chen  Cough, cough  Ling Xi coughed and looked at him. I dont know how to exin this, but it feels so blissful to be able to spend time with you like this despite what we are doing. I feel so blessed to be able to lie in your embrace like this. These few days have been the most lovely days of my life  I wont have any regrets if I die now


    Bullshit.


    Long Chen held her pale face. Dont talk nonsense like that. I worked so hard to protect you. How can I protect you if you dont treasure your life?


    I know  Cough, cough  Long Chens words had moved her, though she coughed again when she spoke too fast.


    This time, Long Chen felt his heart hurt when he heard her coughing so badly. Ling Xi was his darling, and she resembled a white lotus. Some of the petals were wilting and yellowing, so he was naturally worried.


    Your fever has gotten worse. Long Chen frowned when he touched her forehead.


    Dont worry. It will be fine soon. I refuse to be baggage, so I will recover soon. Ling Xi weakly clenched her fists and cheered herself up.


    Long Chen looked at her.


    Xiang, find a small town nearby. We can disguise ourselves and take Xiao Xi to a doctor.


    If they kept running like this, Ling Xis body would not be able to tolerate the cold wind. If she ended up dying, there would be no meaning to their struggle.


    No! We will get caught! Ling Xi said hurriedly, but then she coughed even louder.


    No. Ive made up my mind. I will kill whoeveres to catch us.


    ***


    There was a river cutting through arge bamboo forest. Near the river was a city called Clear Water City. It wasnt big, roughly the same size as Crescent City. But Clear Water City was famous for producing divine jades as well as their rich reserves of resources.


    Long Chen was just outside the city.


    But he would never enter through the gatesthat was suicide. He carried Ling Xi and scaled the wall. He was so fast that no one noticed him.


    Long Chen had gone inside once already. He had scouted out an alley and found a deserted home on the first trip. He now took Ling Xi into the deserted home. Even though it was simple and ugly, it had everything they needed. It was also warmer and remote enough that no one usually passed by. It was a good ce for her to recover.


    Long Chen tidied up the ce a bit and told Xiang to protect her. Wait here. I will go find a doctor.


    Okay. Ling Xi nodded.


    Long Chen exited the house. After the incident in Crescent City, he now stuck to the shadows and ran around with the speed of a Fifth River Stage Cultivator. No one noticed him because the strongest person in the city was only at the First or Second River Stage.


    He looked around the city for half a day before he found a middle-aged doctor. The doctor had dozens of years of experience, so he would be able to cure Ling Xi easily. Ling Xis body had been steadily getting weaker, and she wouldnt be able to recover while they were traveling due to fatigue and the cold.


    Long Chen followed the doctor back to his office. It was only when there was no one around that Long Chen made his presence known. Doctor, treat someone for me and I will give you a thousand divine jades.


    The doctor had never received more than a single divine jade as payment, so he was stunned by Long Chens offer. Long Chen was worried that the doctor wouldnt believe him and paid him upfront, pouring out a thousand divine jades onto the table.


    These are all yours. I just need you to cure someone. Grab your medicine and equipment and follow me.


    The doctor had met many people throughout the years, so he knew that Long Chen was a powerful individual. When Long Chen poured out the divine jades in front of him, he epted them reluctantly. He knew that Long Chen was the kind of person that would give a huge reward but would kill others if they didnt follow his orders.


    The doctor epted the divine jades and said, Lead the way.


    Long Chen said nothing and grabbed the doctors arms. He ran as fast as he could while shielding the doctor from the wind. A normal person would be able to feel the wind rushing past them, but they wouldnt be able to see them.


    Soon, they arrived at the deserted house.


    Long Chen stopped, and the doctor had to steady himself after moving at high speed. He didnt know where he was as he didn''t recognize the houses.


    Ask questions only when it''s necessary and cure the person inside. You can leave peacefully afterwards. If not, both the divine jades and your life will be forfeited.


    The doctor, afraid of Long Chens threat, walked inside without a word.


    When Long Chen returned, Ling Xis face brightened up.


    The doctor had never seen someone so beautiful before. To him, Long Chen was the demon while the girl was like a pure white lotus. She was pure and kind, and the doctor was much happier to see her.


    Hmm  Shes infected with the flu. Theres not really an effective cure, and it only became this bad because she hasnt had time to rest. Dont worry. Ive been a doctor for twenty years, so I can easily cure it.


    The doctor gave them medicine after inspecting her. Long Chen had told the doctor to bring the medicine with him so he could make it on the spot. Before Universe Pouches weremon, doctors had to rent a space to store their medicines. Nowadays, though, they just carry all of their medicine in their Universe Pouch.


    Long Chen requested that the doctor not only prepare the medicine, but also cook it so that Ling Xi could get cured as soon as possible. Long Chen sat beside her and looked at her with pain in his heart. Are you feeling better after resting a bit?


    Mhm! Much better! Ling Xi nodded. She then looked at the doctor who was preparing the medicine and whispered to Long Chen worriedly, Brother Chen, are you going to kill him?


    Long Chen didnt know if the doctor had recognized him, but for Ling Xis sake, he could not risk it. He had already prepared to kill the doctor after Ling Xi was cured.


    Yes, Long Chen whispered.


    No. Brother Chen, hes a kind doctor. You mustn''t kill him. Ling Xi didnt want the man to die because of her.


    Fine. I will let him stay here for a few days. I will release him once we leave the city.


    Thanks to the medicine and the doctor taking care of her around the clock, Ling Xi managed to recover. In just one day, her fever was almost gone and her face was looking much better.


    She will recover in two more days, the doctor said in fear as he looked at Long Chen.


    You can leave afterwards, Long Chen said.


    The doctor sighed in relief. He felt like he had been dancing on the edge of a de today.


    The second day came, and Long Chen carefully hugged Ling Xi. They were lying on the bed and resting when Long Chen sensed something that made him get up.


    He carefully covered Ling Xi with the nket and kissed her forehead. Ling Xi mumbled in her sleep and gently pushed him away.


    Long Chen smiled and opened the door before walking out of the house.


    There was a group of dwarves waiting outside for him. It was the Harmony family!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    What. They barely escaped the first round of persuit!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 332: Birth of a Legend

    Chapter 332: Birth of a Legend


    Long Chen felt numerous strong presences nearby. Some of them were so strong that even he was unsure if he could defeat them. They were undoubtedly the experts of the dwarves.


    He was surrounded by ten experts at the Seventh River Stage and hundreds of cultivators at the Fifth and Sixth River Stages. They were being led by the Eighth River Stage Song Zhongcheng. This was the entirety of the strength of the Harmony family.


    Long Chen had not only killed Song Zhongchengs beloved son, he had also killed the Ninth Prince. If they took out Long Chen, not only could they take revenge for Song Yuefeng, they could also earn merits from the Emperor himself. This was an excellent mission, and the dwarves were more than happy to do it.


    That was why the dwarves and the pce guards have beenpeting against each other to find Long Chen. But they were shocked to learn that the pce guards had ended up being defeated. They also learned new information, including how they could track Long Chen using the Lotus Weasel. That was why many of the dwarves had Lotus Weasels in their possession right now.


    Its thanks to the numerous Lotus Weasels that they managed to find him and Ling Xi in the rural Clear Water City. It was impossible for Ling Xi to scrub off the scent of the lotus, so the dwarves had found them the moment Long Chen stopped.


    Long Chen had been extra careful throughout their escape, but he had lost to the Lotus Weasel, which was barely a Category One Yellow-tier.


    Xiang was ready to fight while he stood beside Long Chen. The doctor, on the other hand, was cowering in the face of all the fearsome warriors surrounding them. He knew that the people were here for Long Chen and not for Clear Water City.


    You can leave. Long Chen didnt want to drag the doctor into his mess. Not only had the doctor helped Ling Xi recover, the dwarves had also found their location, so there was no reason to kill the doctor to keep it a secret anymore. Even if Long Chen hadnt let the doctor go, the others would have been able to find Ling Xi using the Lotus Weasel.


    The doctor sighed in relief and slowly approached a side where there were fewer dwarves. Just then, one of the youths killed the doctor in one blow.


    Idiot. How dare you walk away in front of the patriarch of the Harmony family, you piece of trash.


    The youth was arrogant and did not even think Long Chen was worth his time.


    Long Chen clenched his fists tightly behind his back.


    Song Zhongcheng looked at Long Chen and chuckled dryly. Long Chen, your name has shocked the entire nation. I had to remind myself not to underestimate you, but it seems I actually did in the end. Itsmendable that you managed to kill the sixmanders, but we are the Harmony family! We have sacred blood in our veins! Everything is useless in front of us, including you! Hahaha! The Lotus Weasel is indeed a useful creature. We used it to track you down!


    The dwarvesughed in unison. The Third Commander was the one who had thought to use a Lotus Weasel to track down Long Chen, but now the dwarves had taken advantage of it. That was how they had located him.


    How could a Fifth River Stage cultivator fight against such arge force? Song Zhongcheng and the others knew this, so they were very rxed. Even though Long Chen could make miracles, Song Zhongcheng was at the Eighth River Stage and was very close to the peak of martial arts. It was impossible for him to lose.


    If he did, Long Chen would be a living legend!


    But legends were not real.


    Ling Xi was sleeping soundly in the room. Long Chen wanted to protect her peace, and he would need to pay a terrible price to do so. His heart was heavy. While the dwarves were taunting him, he was silently gauging the battle strength between them and him. But all of his ns would end in failure. He and Xiang could fight against two Seventh River Stage cultivators at most, so how could they possibly ovee this?


    The answer was through intelligence.


    Because the dwarves were short, Long Chen looked down on them and snorted. So what if you''ve found me? What can you do? I was afraid of the pce guards, but I was never afraid of you. You are all ants that fight in numbers. You dont have the guts to fight me one-on-one.


    Long Chens taunt set off waves among the dwarves. Even though Song Zhongcheng knew that this was a mere taunt, he could not turn it down because of how the other dwarves were looking at him. Who says the dwarves rely on numbers to win? Long Chen, let me fight you one-on-one. I want to see what kind of person managed to kill the Second Commander!


    What a fair fight. An Eighth River Stage fighting against a Fifth River Stage? Arent you afraid of being humiliated? Long Chen taunted.


    Idiot! The Patriarch is doing you a favor!


    Its an honor to die in the hands of the Harmony family!


    Stop talking! Song Zhongcheng waved his hands. He had a lot of strong men with him now, and he knew that if he were to fight Long Chen head-on, the others mightugh at him once they were back in the pce. He ordered one of the stronger-looking dwarves that looked like a beast, Bendao, you fight him. Kill him!


    A stout-looking dwarf revealed a devilish grin saw when Song Zhongcheng called on him. Yes! I will take his head!


    The man then walked out from the crowd and stood in front of Long Chen.


    You are the first one! Long Chen was not afraid. This was the best-case scenario for himhe could fight the dwarves one at a time. He knew the dwarves had massive egos, so he only needed to taunt them slightly.


    Still, the situation was grim.


    Those at the Seventh River Stage usually used advanced Earth-tier techniques, and Long Chencked the tools to fight someone on that level. His strongest attack, Dragon King Burial, was only an intermediate Earth-tier technique. The only thing he had was Divine Fire Clone.


    Long Chen jumped onto a roof and looked down at the dwarves. I will stand here and the trash cane up one by one. Lets see how many of you it will take to defeat me. Or maybe none of you can?


    Shit! The dwarves were angered by his words and wanted to rush him together to tear him apart.


    Hes cocky! But no matter how cocky he is, he will die in the hands of the Harmony family!


    Every dwarf warrior in the Harmony family has the power to change the heavens and earth! Song Bendao, go and take his head! If you do, you can have my wife for a night! Song Zhongchengs eyes were cold.


    Song Bendao, the dwarf who looked like a beast, was immediately enticed by the reward. He recalled how voluptuous the Patriarchs wife was, and blood started converging on one spot of his body. He wanted to defeat Long Chen as soon as possible to sleep with the Patriarchs wife!


    What a bunch of savages. Long Chen shook his head. <em>They even give each other their wives. </em>Long Chen could never understand the savages.


    While the dwarves were cheering, Song Bendao rushed up the roof and roared. There were very few people around the area in the first ce, and the remaining few had run away when they saw the dwarves, so the area was now empty.


    Long Chen sighed when he looked at the beast-like dwarves. He didnt know the name of the doctor, but he felt that it was a shame for him to die at the hands of dwarves.


    Nevermind. I will kill as many dwarves as possible to avenge you. Long Chens eyes were resolute. He looked at the house where Ling Xi was in, and Xiang was guarding the entrance. Xiang looked at Long Chen with readiness in his eyes.


    Protect Ling Xi  Long Chen whispered. Xiang understood, so he nodded! To him, this was an important mission that he absolutely could not fail!


    Xiangs heart was beating rapidly as he swore to himself, <em>I must not let Ling Xi get captured again! I must protect her even if it costs my life! </em>


    <em>I will just burn the mes of life if I need to fight. I dont believe Ill lose if I use it to fight them!</em>


    Long Chen naturally didnt know what Xiang was thinking, but he knew that Xiang would do his best. Long Chen only needed to taunt them one by one to kill them!


    So your name is Song Bendao? Good. You will be the first animal to die by my hand today.


    What? You idiot! Did you bang your head against a door? I heard that you have the prettiestdy in the Cangyang Kingdom by your side. Once Ive defeated you, I will ask the Patriarch to let me sleep with her for a night!


    Long Chen was angered.


    You savages!


    In that instant, the Blood Devouring Domain and Divine Fire Clones engulfed Song Bendao.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Go Long Chen go!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 333: You Are All Trash

    Chapter 333: You Are All Trash


    The Blood Devouring Domain and Divine Fire Clone were two of Long Chens most powerful techniques. Song Bendao, looking furious, was very close to him, so when more than a hundred Fourth River Stage fire clones appeared, he drowned in them instantly!


    Damn it! What are these stupid things? Song Bendao thought he would win for sure, but the fire clones had a big advantage in numbers. And what was that red mist that seemed to control his blood and decrease hisbat abilities?


    Dragon King Burial! In between the crowd of clones, a red line shot towards Song Bendaos back at lightning speed. He was busy fighting the clones, so he couldnt put up any sort of defense against the sudden attack behind him!


    Furthermore, under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain, he had to use a third of his Qi to suppress his boiling blood, which caused hisbat abilities to weaken and senses to dull!


    After shattering a clone with a punch, he finally sensed the threat closing in behind him. He went pale with terror. All he could do was use his Body Combat Technique to dodge it, but the fire clones had surrounded him, limiting his movement!


    The Azure Dragon Halberd pierced through his shoulder armor!


    AHHH! Song Bendao let out an earth-shattering scream. Although he had dodged, his whole shoulder had been shed off by Long Chen. Fresh blood sprayed out and flew towards Long Chen due to the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain!


    Fuck! Although Song Bendao was hurt, he was still vicious. He grabbed Long Chens halberd and then turned around, ready to punch him. With an icy expression, Long Chen thrust out a finger. A bright sword light appeared and shone right into Song Bendaos eye, piercing through his head!


    Sword Devil Finger.


    Although it was only an advanced ck-tierbat technique, it had been used at point-nk range, so it pierced right through his eye and was enough to kill him!


    The fire clones returned to his body, and he stopped the Blood Devouring Domain. Due to the fire clones surrounding them, very few people could see the battle. Now that the clones were gone, Long Chen kicked Song Bendaos body at the dwarves!


    Long Chen had absorbed all the blood from his opponents body with Blood Transmutation. When he hadpletely taken in the Seventh River Stage cultivators blood, his Qi reserves expanded!


    He had used Blood Transmutation on a person again. He had no choice, because he knew that he would not survive today if he didn''t!


    Challenging the masters of the dwarf tribe one by one and gradually increasing his strength was Long Chens strategy for the day!


    The dwarves are indeed trash! He was at the Seventh River Stage, yet he still lost to me, someone at the Fifth River Stage. He was the trashiest of trash! Now, lets see which trash dwarf is next! Long Chenughed manically, looking down at them arrogantly. He pointed at another Seventh River Stage dwarf with his halberd and roared, You! Thats right, you! Trash! Do you daree up here!?


    The dwarves exploded with rage, roaring with threats. If Song Zhongcheng were not standing there, they would have charged at him!


    Shut your mouth!


    Dumbass!


    Hey! Thats enough! Song Zhongcheng stopped the crowd. He looked at Long Chen, his brows deeply furrowed.


    Long Chen ignored him and pointed at one of the Seventh River Stage dwarves, snickering. The dwarves are cowards indeed. I asked you toe up here! Are you too afraid? And you call yourselves the Harmony family? Youre more like piles of shit!


    The only person who could confidently beat Long Chen in his current state was Song Zhongchen. But Long Chen was trying to provoke the other Seventh River Stage dwarves!


    The dwarf who was insulted by Long Chen, due to the pressure from behind, roared and charged at him!


    You brat! Youll die today! Patriarch, if I kill this brat, will I be able to enjoy your wife tonight? This one was thinner than Song Bendao, and he looked like he was faster!


    Alright! Dont be like Song Bendao! Dont embarrass the dwarves! Song Zhongchen gritted his teeth, his eyes fixed on Long Chen.


    Heh! The thin dwarf rushed up to Long Chen, eyes bloodshot, and roared, You brat! Die! I will drink your blood and feast on your flesh!


    Drink my blood? Long Chenughed manically. He was the one drinking other peoples blood. No one could drink his. Just like before, he used the Blood Devouring Domain and Divine Fire Clone once again. This dwarf was as strong as Song Bendao, so soon after, with despair in his eyes, Long Chen shed him in half with his halberd!


    His blood became Long Chens Qi.


    Long Chen tossed the two halves in front of Song Zhongcheng. The dwarves gulped at the dried-up, grotesque body and quickly backed away. They were now looking at Long Chen in fear!


    Trash! All trash! Are Seventh River Stage dwarves all useless? I refuse to believe it! Lets do it again then! You! You animal, do you daree up here?


    Long Chen looked like the god of war standing regally on the roof with his halberd in hand. The morning sun shone on his back, immersing him in light. The dwarves backed away in panic again!


    The battle between Long Chen and the dwarves had caused a hugemotion, so many people were watching. Everyone looked at each other. They had a feeling that this battle would lead to even bigger things!


    Dwarf trash!


    Long Chens gaze swept around the crowd, but no one dared to fight him!


    Patriarch, maybe you go? said an elder with a trembling voice. They had underestimated Long Chen. He was indeed too scary.


    If the Patriarch went, then he would be theughingstock of his equals at the imperial city. If he didnt, then more dwarves would die. Song Zhongcheng weighed his options and said, Alright, I shall exterminate this brat. Hes getting ahead of himself! Hes powerful, much stronger than the average cultivator. Hes at least at the Seventh River Stage! Regr cultivators are no match for him; thats why Ill go!


    Now that he dered that Long Chen was a Seventh River Stage cultivator, he felt much better about fighting him.


    Song Zhongcheng was the strongest member of the Harmony family, which was one of the three noble families of the imperial capital. Long Chen was not confident that he could beat him, not even a little bit. He was definitely going to lose.


    Eighth River Stage. That meant he was close to being number one in the whole Cangyang Kingdom.


    Long Chen knew that he could not take a single step back. Even though Song Zhongcheng was going to be next, he remained fearless. He smiled and said, Is the Eighth River Stage master finally ignoring his rank to fight me, a Fifth River Stage cultivator? The dwarves are indeed useless, so useless that they must send someone multiple levels higher than me!


    At this point, all of Clear Water City knew what was happening. Long Chen, the name that had spread across the kingdom over the past few days, was here! And he had been surrounded by the Harmony family! The people of Clear Water City had also heard of the dwarves. The dwarves were considered outsiders, so although Long Chen was being pursued by the kingdom, the city folk favored Long Chen.


    After seeing his performance, they couldnt help but stick out their thumbs and praise, Long Chen is indeed a man of steel!


    Hes young, but hes very strong. Hes fearless even in the face of a strong enemy. This guys attitude is shocking! Its a pity that a prodigy like him has made an enemy of the imperial family!


    Father, I heard that the Ninth Prince was eyeing his beloved woman, and that that was why Long Chen killed him. Why is he being hunted? Its so pitiful that he needs to fight so many people.


    What choice do we have? Your father is only at the Second River Stage. Any one of them can squash me easily.


    The mayor of Clear Water City was sitting in a teahouse far away, observing the battle.


    Long Chen had no choice. It was time for him to fight the Harmony Patriarch, Song Zhongcheng.


    Youre at the Seventh River Stage, yet you want to hide your strength and im to only be at the Fifth? Long Chen, you were insubordinate and killed the Ninth Prince! I shall be taking your life today! Enjoy your death!


    Song Zhongcheng was well aware of Long Chens terrifying abilities. He knew that if he did not kill him quickly, something unexpected might happen!


    Dwarf Secret Technique, Shadow Killing Strike!


    Song Zhongcheng moved quickly. At the Eighth River Stage, he moved several times faster than Long Chen did!


    Facing such a powerful enemy triggered Long Chens fierce nature once more. He knew he was no match for him, but since it hade to this, what could he do? He had to fight! Fight!


    Roar!


    He let out an angry roar that sounded like a dragon. The blood-red Long Chen, who looked like the king of massacre, turned into an illusion as he charged at Song Zhongcheng! All the roof tiles in his path were pulverized!


    Song Zhongcheng was even more terrifying, moving even faster. He had a pitch-ck dagger in his hand, which looked simple but contained extraordinary power. He elerated and dashed into Long Chen, thrusting his dagger right into Long Chens abdomen!


    Blood flew in all directions!


    Heh! He struck again, and Long Chen flew, blood spraying out of his mouth!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    The dwarves deserve to be in hell


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 334: Ancient Technique: Blood Sacrifice

    <h4>Chapter 334 - Ancient Technique: Blood Sacrifice</h4>


    ¡°You were bragging so much just now. Is this really your best?¡± Song Zhongchengughed and slowed down as he approached Long Chen. To be honest, he was indeed shocked that Long Chen could kill two Seventh River Stage cultivators in a row. However, the gap in strength between them had been made clear after one strike.


    This guy¡¯s too fast! Long Chen was not able to use Devouring Blood Domain and Divine Fire Clone. All that happened was that his vision blurred, then his abdomen was suddenly stabbed! Although the wound wasn¡¯t fatal, it was still a major wound. If he had no time to heal himself, he would not be able to fight at his normal level.


    However, he did not give up. His only thought was to protect Ling Xi. That was why he could not fall, not even for a moment!


    Whoosh!


    With one hand pressing on his wound and the other holding the halberd, he stood up! Although he had been defeated, the fighting spirit in his eyes shocked the crowd!


    ¡°Not dead yet?¡± Song Zhongcheng mocked him. ¡°Not bad. You didn¡¯t die even after I used my Shadow Killing Strike! However, will you live after my next attack? Long Chen, you¡¯re going to die. I¡¯ve used this on countless people, so you¡¯re not the first, and you won¡¯t be thest!


    Was this the fatal strike?


    If Song Zhongcheng was so smug about it, it had to at least be an advanced Earth-tierbat technique. There was a high chance that Long Chen wouldn''t survive this attack.


    Long Chen swallowed the blood in his mouth. ¡°You can¡¯t kill me,¡± he said coldly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll try!¡± Song Zhongcheng prepared to attack!


    Just then, there was a low wolf¡¯s howl. Xiang¡¯s gigantic body suddenly appeared in front of Long Chen. With a gentle flick of his tail, he swept Long Chen to the door of Ling Xi¡¯s shelter!


    Xiang¡¯s meaning was clear: it was Long Chen¡¯s turn to protect Ling Xi. Let him deal with Song Zhongcheng!


    ¡°Xiang!¡± Long Chen was prepared to die. He was about to instruct Xiang to escape with Ling Xi, but Xiang had seen through his intentions and intervened. His meaning was simple: Long Chen could run with Ling Xi. He would fight the enemy today!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    Beneath the morning sun, the regal Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s ck fur looked like countless ck whirlpools, swallowing sunlight!


    ¡°Get back here! I¡¯ll fight him!¡± If Xiang sacrificed his life for this, Long Chen would not be able to forgive himself. Killing the Ninth Prince was Long Chen and Ling Xi¡¯s personal matter, so he would rather die than run away!


    Xiang was, in reality, slightly weaker than Long Chen. Song Zhongcheng was an Eighth River Stage cultivator, so Xiang was no match for him!


    ck mes suddenly rose from Xiang¡¯s body. They burned fiercely, much different from the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    Hm ... Xiang¡¯s strength skyrocketed all of a sudden... This is no ordinary strength. I think it¡¯s the kind with a heavy price to pay! Long Chen realized that Xiang was risking his life for this fight! When the mes rose, Xiang grew much stronger. He could beat Song Zhongcheng back with every strike now!


    When 125 fire clones appeared, Song Zhongcheng struggled badly to defend himself. Unfortunately, they were not enough to injure him!


    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Song Zhongcheng gasped. When the mes rose, Xiang became as strong as he was.


    It¡¯s definitely a trick! He¡¯s burning his life force in order to fight me. Tricks like that are extremely harmful and will likely cripple him. After the effect is over, he will no longer pose a threat. I only need to hold on a little longer until he¡¯s fatigued! Song Zhongcheng¡¯s mind raced with cunning. He started to avoid facing Xiang¡¯s attacks, running in all directions. From an outsider¡¯s perspective, it looked pathetic, but he knew that the beast would copse by itself soon!


    Xiang was burning the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s life fire. Fire like that diminished ording to usage, and when it was finished, he would be dead!


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes widened with grief!


    ¡°Xiang!¡±


    He waspletely moved. Xiang was doing this because of their bond. Knowing that he had found a brother that would do so much for him made Long Chen beyond happy!


    How many people were willing to use up their life force to give their brother a chance to live?


    Long Chen had learned a deep lesson at Baiyang Town from the rtionship between the Yang and Bai patriarchs. He knew that the term ¡°brothers¡± could not be thrown around casually. However, what was happening before him was confirmation that although they did not share the same blood, they were closer than biological brothers!


    You treat me so well! How can I ever live with this? He watched as Xiang¡¯s life fire slowly diminished. Xiang was doing his best to beat Song Zhongcheng just to give Long Chen a chance to live.


    Long Chen¡¯s head grew hot, and he felt his blood boil. Countless blood dragons roared in his body!


    Kill!


    Kill! Kill! Kill!


    Countless dragons appeared in his mind, each of them burning with blood-red mes. They grew stronger by the second, and their bodies lengthened quickly until they upied his every thought!


    That was when the mysterious dragon jade pendant moved again!


    The Inherited Blood Essence automatically flew into the jade pendant this time. They merged and formed a divine cultivation method. Long Chen was overjoyed because every time this had happened before, he received a powerful divine technique like Blood Transmutation, Dragon Soul Transformation, Blood Devouring Domain, and Blood Warp! Each of them was shocking!


    ¡°Ancient technique, Blood Sacrifice!¡±


    The term ¡°Blood Sacrifice¡± appeared in his mind!


    Long Chen felt like his body was going to explode as he watched Xiang¡¯s life fire slowly diminish and weaken. That was when he activated his new technique, Blood Sacrifice. A terrifying energy ripple exploded from Long Chen¡¯s body! freew ebnovel


    ¡°Xiang! Stop it! I¡¯ll deal with this animal!¡±


    His heaven-shaking voice scared the crowd enough to make them take several steps back. Even Song Zhongcheng heard him, and he stared at Long Chen in confusion.


    Whoosh!


    Blood-red fire emerged from his red scales, and Long Chen burned brightly. To Song Zhongcheng¡¯s surprise, Long Chen¡¯sbat abilities skyrocketed from the Fifth River Stage to the Sixth River Stage, then stopped at the peak of the Seventh River Stage!


    Since using the Dragon Soul Transformation made his Qi ten times stronger than regr Qi, his Qi was at the Eighth River Stage, even stronger than Song Zhongcheng!


    This terrifying advancement in strength was more awesome than Xiang¡¯s method of burning his life fire.


    However, Long Chen knew that while both methods increased the user¡¯s strength, Blood Sacrifice was countless times more powerful. Xiang could only burn his life fire once in his life. If that fire finished burning, he would die. Long Chen was burning the Qi in his body, and there was a limit to the increase in strength. With his current abilities, he could only use Blood Sacrifice to advance three stages at most. Of course, there was a price. After using Blood Sacrifice, he would regress by an equal number of stages! Since he had increased his cultivation level to the Seventh River Stage, he would fall down to the Third River Stage after this fight!


    But what was there to be afraid of when he could just use Blood Transmutation?


    Blood Sacrifice and Blood Transmutation made the ultimate pair. Raising his strength to the Eighth River Stage would result in him dropping back down to the Second River Stage. With enough time, though, he would rise right back to the Fifth River Stage!


    Of course, unless absolutely necessary, it was best not to use this technique! He felt like Blood Sacrifice was more terrifying than Blood Transmutation. Only the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, one of the ten Ancestral Dragons, could possess such terrifying techniques!


    Whenever he used Blood Transmutation repeatedly, Long Chen was deeply affected by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s killing intent. If he used Blood Sacrifice and Blood Transmutation too often, he would likely meet a terrible end. It was still best to advance along the path of cultivation using a more stable method.


    But at a critical moment like this, Long Chen was forced to use Blood Sacrifice.


    Xiang was confused by Long Chen¡¯s surge in strength. He was not a Sun Devouring Wolf, so how could he burn his life fire?


    ¡°Stop it now!¡± he shouted. Xiang had no choice but to return to his original form! A strong wave of fatigue rushed over him, and it was so painful that Xiang fainted on the roof and shrank to the size of a puppy. He then fell from the roof.


    Long Chen caught him.


    ¡°Xiang ...¡± Looking at the unconscious and weakened Xiang, Long Chen¡¯s heart twitched with pain. He ced Xiang gently at the doorstep, then his bloodshot eyes locked onto Song Zhongcheng!


    ¡°Every dwarf here will die today!¡±

 Chapter 335: Annihilating the Dwarves

    Chapter 335: Annihting the Dwarves


    All eyes were on Long Chen. Although the crowd was far away, they could feel the terrifying killing intent radiating from him. Seeing Xiang end up unconscious just because he wanted to save him left Long Chenpletely enraged.


    All the dwarves stepped back in fear when his gaze swept across them.


    Song Zhongcheng looked at him with uncertainty, then he snapped out of his shock and said, Whats going on today? Why are yall too weak to fight? And you both decided to burn your lives away? That wolf did not hold up for long. Long Chen, how long do you think you can hold up?


    Long enough to take your life, Long Chen said tly, his eyes fixed on Song Zhongchen. The dwarves felt chills when they heard his hoarse voice.


    Youre only putting on a show! Song Zhongcheng snickered in contempt. He descended from the roof, pointed his dagger forward, and said, Do you know? This is an advanced Earth-tier weapon, the Hell King de, the highest-tiered weapon we dwarves have. Just now, I was merely showing mercy, which was why I did not stab you in the heart. Very soon, this de will be in your heart!


    Is that so? Long Chens killing intent exploded when he looked at him!


    His Qi was stronger than Song Zhongchengs Qi. When it erupted, the dust on the ground flew in the air!


    These are puny tricks! Trading your life for strength will only end in tragedy! Let me give you a taste of my most powerful technique!


    Holding the Hell King de tightly, an aura belonging to an Eighth River Stage cultivator exploded from his body. Qi surged furiously through him, and strange images appeared on the de.


    Hell King Illusory Killing Technique!


    The crowd heard a shrill cry, and the Hell King de was the source. Everyone felt like the world had stopped when countless illusions of Song Zhongcheng covered the sky above Long Chen. They then charged at him!


    The world was suddenly engulfed in darkness. The only visible object was the Hell King de!. A fatal ray of light from the de flew towards Long Chens neck!


    Is that your most powerful technique? Is that all? The corners of Long Chens lips curled upwards.


    Blood Devouring Domain  The red mist swirled like swimming dragons, enveloping Song Zhongcheng. It distracted him momentarily; he had experienced this before, but it had never been as terrifying as this! The gravitational pull was suffocating, and he had just unleashed his most powerful attack, so he did not have any defenses. There was now a w in the Hell King Illusory Killing Technique!


    Long Chen spotted the w!


    Youre too slow.


    Long Chensugh rang in Song Zhongchengs ears, as if he was next to him. Song Zhongcheng gasped because he felt like his movements had be slower due to the Blood Devouring Domain. Then Long Chen disappeared right before his eyes!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen restricted Song Zhongchengs speed using the terrifying gravity of the Blood Devouring Domain and then shed to his right. A heavy punchnded on Song Zhongchengs armpit!


    <em>Crack!</em>


    The scalp-numbing sound of bones shattering rang out!


    Song Zhongcheng shrieked in pain. When his armpit was hit, his Hell King de flew out of his hand and was caught by Long Chen!


    Youre too slow! To Song Zhongchengs horror, Long Chen disappeared once more. With the Hell King de in hand, Long Chen was a devil in the dark!


    To be honest, Long Chen was not as fast as Song Zhongcheng was. However, the Blood Devouring Domain had restricted thetters speed by two-thirds. The powerful pull had suppressed his Qi also by two-thirds!


    And thus, there was a surprising turn of events. Long Chen was now torturing the clumsy Song Zhongcheng within the Blood Devouring Domain!


    Since you stabbed me once, Ill stab you ten times! You damn dwarf, I hope you enjoy this!


    The Hell King de pierced through Song Zhongchengs abdomen, and he let out a piercing scream. Long Chen ignored him and pierced his lung next!


    Fresh blood poured out. Song Zhongchengs screams from within the Blood Devouring Domain made all the dwarves copse with fright. They had lost all ability to think. They didnt even know if they could run!


    When Song Zhongcheng screamed for the ninth time, Long Chen shed his head off with thest cut. The fat,rge head rolled over to the dwarves, who screamed!


    The Eighth River Stage Song Zhongcheng had died by his hand. This shocking news would shake the whole kingdom once more!


    The most powerful member of the Harmony family was dead. The dwarves were stunned, hurriedly falling to their knees. They cried and groveled in front of Long Chen!


    Mercy! Oh, God, show us mercy! I am willing to give you my wealth, my wife, and my not-yet-matured daughter as an offering!


    Yes! Please forgive us! We are willing to follow you for the rest of our lives. All our wealth is yours! All our women are also yours!


    The cries of begging and groveling rang.


    You are all just animals  Standing in front of them, Long Chen snickered coldly. Let me show you what self-respect means! What having a spine means! Wealth? Wealth must be owned! No one can take away what I have! Women? We must protect women! Everything I did today was to protect my woman. And you all are willing to offer your women in exchange for your lives? Dwarves? Haha, you have no right to call yourselves human beings! Youre all evolved beasts! Letting you roam the mortal realm will only hurt more people! So, do you think Ill let you all go? In your dreams!


    Long Chen swung the Hell King de over and over, every strike killing one dwarf. Within the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain, no one could escape the fate of death! When all the kneeling people had copsed, when a river of blood flowed, Long Chen woke up.


    He had been vicious because the dwarves were evil, and he hated them to the bone. Of course, he had also been influenced by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon!


    The Harmony family had sent almost all their cultivators to catch him, but the end result was that Long Chen had annihted the Harmony family! And he had done it single-handedly!


    When the news spread, the whole Cangyang Kingdom would be utterly shaken by Long Chen. If he could kill a cultivator of the Eighth River Stage, it meant Long Chen had grown to the level of the number one young cultivator, the Young Sword Emperor, Lin Zichen!


    At Clear Water City, when the crowd witnessed the horrific scene, their eyes widened and they gawked at the teenager in disbelief!


    Long Chen!


    This name was deeply etched in their minds.


    This boy has attained an impressive level that we peasants can only look up to mented the mayor, stroking his beard in shock.


    After he fled the imperial capital, he killed sixmanders of the royal guard, then he single-handedly killed the Harmony family, one of the three noble families! Those impressive achievements will make his name known for a thousand years! He will be even more famous than Lin Zichen!


    Father. The teenage girl next to him stared at the teenager far away with tears in her eyes. She said worriedly, Do you think Long Chen will make it out? Didnt you say that theres a mysterious person involved in this matter?


    That person  The mayor shook his head. That person is much, much stronger than Long Chen. Lets hope the kid is lucky and wont be stopped.


    The girls mind raced. When she nced at the determined Long Chen, she nodded and privately made a decision.


    <em>I need to tell him!</em>


    By now, the effects of Blood Sacrifice were starting to fade. Long Chen sensed that his strength would regress to approximately the Third River Stage.


    If he were to face more enemies, he would be useless. That was why he was well prepared. He had a reason for using the Hell King Dagger!


    This was a matter of life and death, so he had no time to worry about it. The dwarves blood would let him live on and protect Ling Xi. He had no choice but to use the Blood Devouring Domain to absorb all the fresh blood, including the Eighth River Stage Song Zhongchengs blood!


    After using Blood Sacrifice, his strength skyrocketed by two tiers, then regressed by two tiers. The journey ahead would be difficult, so he gritted his teeth and used Blood Transmutation!


    The shattered starry rivers inside Long Chen slowly took shape once more under the nourishment of the powerful cultivators blood. As time passed and the dwarves turned into dried-up corpses, Long Chen slowly climbed back up to the Fifth River Stage. He was even making progress towards the Sixth River Stage!


    The hundred thousand Heavenly River Pills he had received from the Ninth Prince were slowly getting used up.


    <em>With so much Qi in me, its time to work towards the Sixth River Stage! </em>Since he had made the decision, he had to finish the job! This was a critical time, and Long Chen didnt mind taking more shortcuts. However, he knew that once this huge ordeal had passed, he would have to learn to cultivate in a stable, honest manner.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Kill them all!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 336: Sixth River Stage

    Chapter 336: Sixth River Stage


    Every divine technique that came from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was formidable, including Blood Sacrifice and Blood Transmutation. Long Chen was using Blood Transmutation to guide the dwarves blood into his body, then refining it into blood-red Qi. Then, with the help of many Heavenly River Pills, a Heavenly River with red starlight slowly condensed in his sixth star vein.


    Long Chen did not forget about the other Heavenly River. There was an Eighth River Stage cultivators among the dwarves, so the Qi supply wasrge enough for him to ascend to the Sixth River Stage. The hundred thousand Heavenly River Pills he had taken from the Ninth Prince were more than enough for this.


    <em>If ascending to the Sixth River Stage took more than ten thousand pills, how many pills will it take to reach the Ninth River Stage?</em>


    A powerful surge of energy shot in all directions.


    All of Clear Water City had surrounded Long Chen by now. They werepletely shaken by the mysterious teenager. He had turned the tides and annihted the dwarves alone. They could not believe a teenager who was not even twenty years old had aplished all of this!


    He had even achieved a breakthrough after the battle, thus bing even stronger.


    To most of these people, he was on a level they could never reach. They had no idea that the shining hero before them was actually from a small town much lower-tiered than Clear Water City. He had started from the bottom!


    He stood up and looked at all the oddly-shaped dried-up corpses around him. He was also a little shocked that he had done all this. He had annihted the dwarves.


    Killing a person and then robbing them was the nature of life. The regr dwarves did not have much money, but as their Patriarch, Song Zhongcheng was sure to have much more. Long Chen took his Universe Pouch. The number of Heavenly River Pills inside was probably enough for him toplete the whole Heavenly River Realm.


    Of course, that would be under normal circumstances.


    Heaving a small sigh, Long Chen looked towards Xiang. Xiang was unconscious and looked very weak. It was likely that he had sustained critical injuries that caused his cultivation to regress.


    <em>Xiang, you did all of this for me. I swear I will repay you ten times for what you did. Youre my brother for life! </em>Long Chen said in his heart. He carried Xiang in his arms, opened the door, and entered, thus disappearing from the gazes of the crowd.


    The doctor had added some herbs that aided sleep to Ling Xis medicine. Despite the hugemotion outside that shook the whole city, Ling Xi, who was one of the main people involved, was still in a deep sleep. However, without Long Chen by her side, she seemed to be having a nightmare. Her eyebrows were furrowed and terror was written on her face.


    Long Chen gently put Xiang down and walked to the side of the bed. He let Ling Xis hand, which was feeling around the bed, grab his own. After sensing Long Chens presence, Ling Xi calmed down, mumbled something, then fell into deep sleep once more. However, thanks to the herbs and getting adequate rest, she was recovering and there was already some color back in her face.


    Long Chen was very happy about having someone to protect. Even if he was faced with knives and swords, he would leave a calm space for Ling Xi behind him so she could live without worry.


    Only time could heal Xiangs injury, then he would wake. He had burned his life fire after all, and if it was used up, then nothing, not even spiritual herbs, could help him. Fortunately, Long Chen had stopped Xiang in time, or he would have been in a dire situation now.


    After a while, there was a knock on the door. Long Chen used his Soul Swallowing Gaze to see who it was. It was a young girl at the Earthly Core Realm. She was considered a prodigy in Clear Water City.


    Noting the pureness in her gaze, she looked like a kind girl, so he said, Come in.


    <em>Creak! </em>The wooden door opened, and a pretty teenager of thirteen or fourteen entered. She was a little afraid of him, so her head was lowered and she peered at her surroundings cautiously. When she saw Ling Xi on the bed, her eyes widened and she blurted a praise, What a beautiful big sister!


    Herpliment was genuine.


    She had heard of Long Chen and Ling Xis story and knew that Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince because of her. That was the beginning of them fleeing for their lives. During this journey, this teenager had killed sixmanders, annihted the dwarf tribe, and be famous.


    This was a typical story of the hero and the beauty with tragic heroism, a deep bond, relentless determination, and a moving plot. Every time she recalled that these two were in front of her, she felt a fire within.


    <em>I hope to be like Big Sister one day Even if I didnt know how to cultivate, having a man who would risk his life for me  Shes so beautiful  </em>The girl admired and envied Ling Xi.


    What is it? It was rare for Long Chen to use a polite tone towards aplete stranger these days.


    Qingqing was afraid of Long Chen, so she took a few steps back. I  I am the daughter of the Clear Water City mayor. I am Liu Qingqing  I snuck here to tell you some news! she said as her scalp went numb.


    What news? He saw that the girl did not look like a malicious person and seemed like she intended to help.


    My father says that a mysterious but powerful figure from the imperial family ising. Even that dwarf leader would be no match for him! You must leave as soon as possible!


    Long Chens brows furrowed.


    He wanted to let Ling Xi and Xiang rest more, but it looked like that was not possible.


    Thank you. She had snuck out to tell Long Chen this information, proving that she was kind-hearted. Long Chen smiled at her. After some thought, he recalled the intermediate Earth-tier divine weapons he had received when he defeated Song Yuefeng, which were the Sun and Moon Daggers.


    They were considered a divine weapon to be used together.


    Qingqing was shocked when Long Chen ced the two shining des in her hands. He said, These are intermediate Earth-tier divine weapons that initially belonged to the dwarves. Be careful with them. Its best not to use them before you be strong to avoid attracting envy. Do you understand me?


    Qingqing was too emotional to speak.


    She was only itching to tell him some news she had heard because she admired him a little. She hadnt expected such a huge reward in return! This was a huge surprise to her.


    Hm, youd better head back. Dont let other people see that we were together. Itd be bad for you. Im leaving immediately. Qingqing, thank you. Well meet again if fate lets us!


    In the end, Liu Qingqing did not know how she even left the room as her mind had gone nk. Only Long Chens proud and awesome figure was left in her world, and the deep emotion when he spoke.


    However, Long Chen was fated to only be a shining passerby in her life.


    I have decided to focus on my cultivation, to advance as fast as possible! Liu Qingqing dashed to the mayors lodge.


    After Liu Qingqing left, Long Chen shook Ling Xi gently.


    Xier, its time to go.


    Mm She slowly opened her eyes and looked at him bleary-eyed. Brother Chen, is it morning already?


    She rubbed her eyes gently with her fair hands, then stared at him sleepily. She said demurely, I dont want to get up Just let me sleep a bit longer


    No, Xiao Xi, Ill carry you on my back. Itste. Long Chen helped her up, then he put some thick clothes on her so that she was wrapped up warmly.


    Alright  Ling Xi pursed her lips.


    Brother Chen, why is Xiang  Ling Xi gasped when she saw Xiangying on the ground.


    There were a few thieves just now. We killed them, but Xiang was injured. I think itll take some time for him to recover, said Long Chen as he searched for a piece of cloth. He wrapped it around his chest, then ced Xiang snugly in it.


    Thieves? Ling Xi frowned. She knew that no ordinary thief could hurt Xiang. He was a Sun Devouring Wolf that could even fight a Seventh River Stage cultivator. And his injury looked bad


    Xier, get up here. With Xiang in front and Ling Xi on his back, any oblivious outsider wouldugh at this look, but he did not care. These two were the most important people in his life. It was imperative for him to protect them.


    Ling Xi wrapped her arms around his neck, still confused.


    The door opened to reveal the mess outside. Signs of the violent battle still remained. There were almost a hundred corpses there, all dead and shriveled up due to his Blood Transmutation.


    Dwarves! Ling Xi knew who they were because they were mostly short, so they were surely dwarves.


    Brother Chen, are the dwarves here? Is that why were running? Ling Xi was nervous because Long Chen could not defeat an Eighth River Stage cultivator at his current state.


    The dwarves? They have alreadye, he said with a grin.


    Huh?


    Look at the ground. These are all the dwarves, but only their corpses remain, he said as he passed them.


    Ling Xi was even more confused.


    Brother Chen, are you saying that you killed all the dwarves while I was asleep? Ling Xi asked in disbelief.


    Xiang and I killed them together.


    Long Chen dashed out of Clear Water City, weing the morning sun. Then he turned so he traveled with his back towards the rising sun <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Should''ve covered her eyes too so she don''t see the corpses


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 337: Young Sword Emperor

    Chapter 337: Young Sword Emperor


    Upon leaving Clear Water City, they had onlypleted less than half the journey to the Western Sea Kingdom. Due to Liu Qingqings mention of the mysterious person, plus the improvement in Ling Xis health, Long Chen elerated his travel. After he traveled by foot for two days in a row, Xiang showed no signs of waking, and Ling Xis condition seemed to worsen due to theck of rest.


    So Long Chen had no choice but to slow down.


    ording to Liu Qingqing, that mysterious person was much stronger than Song Zhongcheng at the Eighth River Stage. Long Chen could guess who it was. Out of the three most powerful members of the imperial family, the Sword Emperor would not be here. That left the Sword Devil and Lin Zichen. Since the Sword Devil was guarding the Counter Essence Realm, Lin Zichen was the most likely candidate.


    If it really was Lin Zichen, Long Chen had no confidence that he could beat him. Lin Zichen was a legend in the Cangyang Kingdom after all, as he had reached the Ninth River Stage at a young age. He was a Sword Warrior with superiorbat abilities, even owning a super divine weapon like the Imperial Sword.


    The Imperial Sword was known as the number one divine weapon in the Cangyang Kingdom, so it was surely above the Earth-tier. Since the tier system went from Yellow, ck, Earth, to Heaven, then the Imperial Sword had to be a legendary Heaven-tier divine weapon!


    Long Chen could only dream of having a Heaven-tier weapon.


    Blood Sacrifice had been enough to kill Song Zhongcheng, but Lin Zichen would not be the same. He had a feeling that Lin Zichen would be his most terrifying enemy thus far!


    He could only do his best for the sake of survival!


    Brother Chen, where are we going? Ling Xi leaned her head close to his ear, giving off a pure, refined fragrance.


    Were heading towards Demon Emperor Mountain. Looking ahead, Long Chen quickened his footsteps.


    Why? Isnt the other route shorter? Ling Xi was puzzled. After traveling for two days and nights, she still felt terrible even with the nourishment of herbs.


    There is a faction in Demon Emperor Mountain that the imperials are afraid of, Heavenly Demon Pce. If we take the shorter route, we will likely be stopped, but if were in Heavenly Demon Pce territory, the imperials wont dare to act recklessly, Long Chen exined as he hurried along.


    Alright  Ling Xi nodded, burying her face in his back. She did not speak again. The spring breeze was still chilly, so she was only warmer when she curled up on his back. Brother Chen, can you carry me on your back like this forever? she suddenly asked, looking down.


    Silly girl, what are you thinking about now? Long Chen smiled in exasperation.


    Lets not search for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit anymore. I just want to stay with you like this. Lets find a ce with no killing. Ling Xi knew that her request was a little unrealistic, but she had decided to voice it out regardless.


    Hm? Dont overthink it. We must get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. If I survive this ordeal, I will return and the imperial capital will face my wrath for what theyve done. Xiang still needs to take his revenge too! Long Chen said darkly.


    Alright  Ling Xi nodded, as she had no choice. She was not worried that he would be in great danger if he returned to the Biyang Imperial Capital. Since she was more knowledgeable, she trusted his strength greatly. However, she was worried that once she had recovered her true body and cultivation, her family would sense it. In that case, it would be likely that Ling Xi and Long Chen would be separated forever.


    There was a huge canyon between them in terms of status. <em>Whatever. I shouldnt think too much and distract Brother Chen. Its a critical time now. As long as we survive thisst phase and escape sessfully, we will get to live in peace for a while. Brother Chen has been pushing his body hard for the past few days, so he must be tired  </em>she thought to herself.


    Long Chen was not the only one who was tiring out. Xiang was still in aatose state after burning his life fire. Long Chen was carrying him in a cloth tied around his neck, and the journey had been bumpy and tiring. It would likely take some time before he woke up.


    They hurried along for days. Xiao Xi, do you see that ck mountain that touches the sky up ahead? Long Chen stopped to look up at the steep mountain in front of them that pierced through the clouds. It was unbelievably tall! The mountains around it were already tall, but this one stood out like a heron in a flock of chickens.


    Ling Xi gasped in surprise. That mountain looks like a sword!


    Long Chen peered closely and indeed, it looked like a sword that pierced the sky, not just physically, but also spiritually. The ck mountains peak glinted like a sharp sword, so he did not dare to look at it directly.


    That must be the tallest mountain in the Cangyang Kingdom, Demon Emperor Mountain. Ive heard that Heavenly Demon Pce is located on this mountain, and theyre almost as powerful as the imperial family. Im sure they have a master on par with the Sword Emperor, he said.


    He had heard about the Heavenly Demon Pce at Yuanling City. When he rescued Xuan Ming from the Azure Dragon, he heard that she was from this faction, and that she held a lofty status too. I wonder what happened to Stepfather after they escaped the Star Devil Prison. I hope theyre happy, Long Chen said with a smile.


    Im sure theyre very happy together. To be honest, I admire them a lot, Ling Xi said admiringly.


    Xiao Xi, lets go. As long as we pass Demon Emperor Mountain, we will arrive in the Western Sea Kingdoms territory. Well head to their imperial capital directly. I dont think the imperial family will dare wreak havoc there. Now that they could see their destination, Long Chens heart rxed a little.


    Of course, he could not rxpletely.


    Although Lin Zichen had not arrived, his name was like a mountain on Long Chens shoulders.


    When they were about to reach the mountain, Long Chen stopped walking and the mood turned somber. He had just been joking around with Ling Xi, but when he saw an arrogant figure standing ahead, his heart sank.


    This was the path leading to Demon Emperor Mountain. There was a male, whose physique was simr to Long Chens, standing with his back towards them. He could tell that this was a tall and cold young man. With his ck hair billowing in the wind, this stranger radiated an aura even sharper and scarier than Demon Emperor Mountain itself.


    The young man was merely standing in ce, yet it was enough to make anyone feel that it was impossible to get past him.


    Long Chen ced Ling Xi down gently, then he took Xiang down from his neck and ced him in her arms. His expression was somber, because the person in front was the legendary Young Sword Emperor, Lin Zichen!


    Long Chen thought he had managed to escape him, but he had ended up right in the palm of Lin Zichens hand.


    Lin Zichen turned slowly. Finally, Long Chen saw the legendary prodigy in such close proximity for the first time.


    His ink-ck hair was initially scattered on his white clothes, but he then tied it up with a white strip of cloth behind his head. He seemed to radiate an iciness simr to a sharp sword; his sharp features seemed to be carved from a de. He stood with his thin lips pursed, and his eyes, which were unimaginably deep, red daggers at Long Chen.


    If this person could make Long Chen so guarded, Ling Xi naturally knew that this was the Lin Zichen of the legends.


    Although he was also a prince, Lin Zichen was far superior to the Ninth Prince, Lin Cangtian. A thousand Lin Cangtians would still be no match for him.


    Ling Xi was beside herself with panic, knowing how terrifying he was. The sixmanders and dwarves required Long Chen to risk his life in order to defeat them, so how could Long Chen be lucky enough to survive this?


    His presence was the equivalent of bestowing death sentences upon the duo and the wolf. Ling Xi almost broke down.


    Shh, dont worry. No matter what monster arrives, I will stand in front of you and kill them all. Close your eyes; it will all pass. Long Chen knew how scared she was, so heforted her while letting her hug Xiang.


    This was the final battle.


    If he seeded, Long Chen would truly turn his fate around on this path of life and death. If he failed, that meant he had reached the end of his journey. This was the most difficult battle, and also the most important.


    Lin Zichen spotted Long Chen, then he nonchntly eyed him up and down. He said with minimal movement in his lips, Im shocked that a person like you would appear in the Cangyang Kingdom. Unfortunately, you just had to be enemies with the imperial family


    I did not want to be your enemy. You guys are the ones who refuse to let me live in peace, Long Chen responded with a shrug.


    I heard that youre bold. Now that Ive seen you, its true  You killed the sixmanders of the royal guards and even annihted the Harmony family. This is a huge loss to the imperial family. Even though I usually appreciate talent, I need to take you back.


    Lin Zichen arched his eyebrows, then continued, To be honest, Ive been lonely for too long in the Cangyang Kingdom. A person like you is hard toe by. Unfortunately, youre just a silly hero wannabe, trying to fight the imperial family. Initially, I wanted to give you some time so you could grow further, but Ive given up on that. What you did has thoroughly embarrassed my family. My father, the Emperor, has alreadymanded me to either kill you or take you to see him


    And that beautiful girl. All of this started because of her, so she also needs to go to the imperial capital too. I heard my Ninth Brother died because of her. What an idiot. But as an older brother, I think I will fulfil his wish in ce of him  <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Looks like one more person is going to die today


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 338: Hidden Strength

    Chapter 338: Hidden Strength


    Long Chen knew that his growth had been fast, and he had done it without a background like Lin Zichens family. Less than a year had passed since he started cultivating in Baiyang Town, and he was already at the Sixth River Stage. Lin Zichen was not the samehe had been trained by the incumbent Sword Emperor since young and received the best cultivation techniques and mentorship.


    With the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons divine techniques and Divine Fire Clone, Long Chen was barely a match for Lin Zichen. As for everything else he owned, his most powerfulbat and defense techniques were only at the intermediate Earth-tier. Although he possessed the Level Three zing Thunder Combat Body, it was the same as having nothing when faced with Lin Zichen.


    Lin Zichen surely had advanced Earth-tier techniques in every aspect, even ultimate techniques at the Heaven-tier.


    How was Long Chen going to fight him?


    A normal person would have despaired after considering the canyon of a gap between them. But Long Chen did not. When he had someone he needed to protect, it did not matter how powerful the enemy washe would not take even one step back.


    Sometimes, this stubborn refusal to give up was the only way to achieve victory. Actually, Ive heard the story of you two too  Lin Zichen eyed both Long Chen and Ling Xi and smirked with amusement. Its indeed very touching. The hero, the damsel, the passion, the killing of the sixmanders, the annihtion of the dwarves  After this experience, the bond between you two must be very deep, right? But I refuse to believe that a rtionship can be absolutely strong. Ill give you two a choice. One of you must die today, while the other shall follow me back to the imperial capital. Ill give you fifteen minutes to discuss. I, Lin Zichen, always keep my promises.


    He had made himself clear. If Ling Xi died, he would take Long Chen back, and vice versa. However, it was not known how long the other person would live at the imperial capital.


    Will you keep your promise? Ling Xi asked immediately. As long as I die, youll let Brother Chen live?


    She grasped onto his promise like a drowning man grasping on a piece of floating straw.


    Xiao Xi, shut your mouth. Long Chens cold re scared Ling Xi into falling several steps back. He knew what she was thinking. Her body was only made of the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, and she was obviously willing to abandon the body so Long Chen could live.


    However, Long Chen knew that if he went to the imperial capital, he would end up dead.


    But  Ling Xi wanted to say something, but Long Chen shut her up with a fierce re. She knew he was doing this for her own good. Obtaining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was not a guarantee. Long Chen did not want to put any hope on an almost unattainable object.


    I see. Long Chen, it looks like I overestimated you. This girl is willing to die for you, and youre too afraid to die. It looks like youre not a good man. Lets put it this way. If you die, Ill let her go, so shell leave safely. What do you say? Lin Zichen smirked.


    He was throwing Long Chen a challenge. If Long Chen really loved her, he would naturally sacrifice his life for her safety. But Long Chen was not stupid. He only trusted a duel and his own strength, not a promise that the enemy made.


    Stop with the nonsense. Fight me if you dare. Lin Zichen, youre going to lose my respect if you keep uttering those empty words. Long Chen took out the Azure Dragon Halberd, then blood-red scales gradually covered his body. Xiao Xi, get back!


    Under Long Chensmand, Ling Xi paled. She had no choice but to back away, trying her best to stay away from the battle. However, Lin Zichens words made her very anxious. She was more aware than Long Chen of the gap in their strengths, so she knew that Long Chen didnt have much of a chance


    <em>If he keeps his promise, Brother Chen can make aeback as long as he stays alive. What is my life worth anyway? Its just a Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. Ive been in the Ling Xi Sword all this time, so whats stopping me from returning to it?</em>


    Ling Xi watched them both anxiously, her mind racing as she worried about Long Chens safety.


    <em>Ill keep an eye on the battle. If Brother Chen really gets into trouble, this will be the only way  </em>She sighed.


    Long Chen had long prepared himself for the battle with Lin Zichen. The tension in the air was high, and the duel was going to begin at any second.


    Your Beast Soul Transformation seems to have given you a lot of strength. You were at the Sixth River Stage, and now it looks like youre close to the Seventh River Stage already, Lin Zichen remarked with some surprise.


    In truth, his evaluation of Long Chen was incorrect, because his Qi level had already reached the Eighth River stage. This was how powerful the Dragon Soul Transformation was.


    Unfortunately, even at the Seventh River Stage, youre still too weak to me. Youre not even qualified to see mybat techniques, Lin Zichen said smugly.


    Well, lets test it out, then! Long Chen roared. He turned into a red arrow and shot towards Lin Zichen. <em>Whoosh! </em>A blood-red line turned into a dragon and flew at his head!


    Too weak! Lin Zichenughed and punched casually. Long Chens Dragon King Burial was punched away immediately. Long Chen struggled to stabilize himself despite it being merely a light punch! He was now deeply aware of the gap between them.


    However, he had expected Lin Zichen to be powerful. And youre nothing to shout about either! He gritted his teeth, spun in mid-air, then charged with another storm-like attack! His attacks were extremely vicious, and could even be described as suicidal. However, every single time, Lin Lin Zichen threw him back in the air with just a simple flick, not even needing an attack technique.


    What is going on? You wouldnt even be able to defeat a regr Seventh River Stage cultivator with this strength. How did you kill the sixmanders? And that dwarf, Song Zhongcheng? Lin Zichen was utterly disappointed by his strength. Long Chen was just a normal Sixth River Stage cultivator; there was nothing special about him.


    The rumors made you seem god-like. Looks like they arent true. And the rumors scared me too. Im disappointed  Lin Zichen looked at him with pity and disappointment. He had heard of Long Chens extraordinary talent, which was why he had voluntarily joined the chase. Since he had always been an extraordinary prodigy himself, it was difficult to find a master of the same age. When he heard of Long Chen, he rushed over immediately. To his surprise, the youth that they spoke of like a god was not as strong as he thought


    Long Chen ignored his mocking, attacking him with all he had. His eyes were red. Whenever he fought, the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragons nature would erupt through him, and his aura would turn into one of violence.


    What is Brother Chen doing? Ling Xi was puzzled. She was well aware of what he was capable of. He was not using the Blood Devouring Domain or Divine Fire Clone; he wasnt even using Blood Sacrifice, which was even stronger!


    Unless


    Indeed, by now, Lin Zichen had lost his patience. When he had verified that Long Chen was only at the Sixth River Stage, he punched Long Chens abdomen! Long Chen flew back, blood spraying out of his mouth, and crashed!


    Trash! How could trash like that cause such a hugemotion across the Cangyang Kingdom? Its hard to believe  He slowly closed in on Long Chen. It was clear that he would take Long Chens life with his next strike.


    It was only a light punch. Are you unable to stand up already? Lin Zichen was speechless when he saw Long Chen struggling on the ground. He walked nonchntly, ncing at Ling Xi. To be honest, he was tempted when he saw how beautiful she was. However, from his perspective, even the most beautiful woman was merely a distraction on the Sword Dao journey. That was how he controlled his urges.


    I cant believe Ninth Brother died because of a woman. What a useless idiot. Lin Zichen shook his head. He was about to bend over and end the struggling Long Chens life when he was enveloped in a red space!


    What is this? Lin Zichen gasped. Since he had let his guard down, he could not react in time to the sudden change.


    The red mist swirled around him like blood-colored dragons, dancing and twisting around Lin Zichen. There was a powerful pull that caused his blood to start boiling, and he was starting to lose control.


    Then endless red mes rose from Long Chens body, and 125 Divine Fire Clones appeared instantly! They all pounced on Lin Zichen,unching a suffocating attack! In that instant, roaring mes rose and the earth shook!


    <em>Has he been hiding his strength? </em>Lin Zichen had a sudden thought. When he nced at Ling Xi just now, he found that while she was nervous, she did not look grief-stricken or terrified due to Long Chens injury. This meant that she knew Long Chen was fine!


    How dare you trick me?! Lin Zichen raged. The fire clones were not that powerful to him. Although it was inconvenient, as he needed to use his Qi to suppress his blood, it was not enough to overwhelm him. Even though Long Chens attack had truly caught him off guard, he could retaliate easily.


    <em>Despite hiding his strength andunching a surprise attack, Long Chen is far too weak.</em>


    Long Chen was nothing but a weakling to the Ninth River Stage Lin Zichen.


    That was when a powerful surge of energy exploded from where Long Chen was!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time for another beatdown


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 339: Imperial Sword Qi

    Chapter 339: Imperial Sword Qi


    Blood Sacrifice.


    Long Chen could have used Blood Sacrifice from the beginning to increase his strength and fight with maximum power. However, he was worried that it would lead to an unexpected oue, seeing as Lin Zichen came from a powerful background. That was why Long Chen had to hold on and only show his strength when Lin Zichen thought he was at his lowest.


    At least for now, he had seeded. Afterpletely blocking Lin Zichens vision with the clones, he used Blood Sacrifice to force his cultivation level up two stages, thus reaching the Eighth River Stage.


    Blood-red mes rose from his body.


    This increase in strength was not without a price, because it meant that he would return to the Fourth River Stage after this battle. And if Lin Zichen was not dead then, he could kill Long Chen with a casual wave of his hand.


    This was thest gamble!


    When his Qi rose to the Eighth River Stage, the Dragon Soul Transformation put him on equal footing with someone at the Ninth River Stage. Long Chen felt like his Qi was going out of control, as it was his first time controlling such high-level Qi. He was just too powerful, tens of times more powerful than before!


    Due to the sudden rise in Qi, the Blood Devouring Domain suddenly reached a level that was strong enough to threaten Lin Zichen. Previously, Long Chens Qi was almost on the same level as Lin Zichen. Usually, if they were at the same stage, Long Chens opponent would need to use more than half of their Qi to suppress their blood in order to fight normally!


    The Divine Fire Clones were created through the True Fire Seeds that he had stored in his meridian points, so their strength had not increased. The Fifth River Stage clones merely acted as temporary obstacles to Lin Zichen, so most of them had been dispatched with ease.


    Long Chen retracted his clones when hepleted Blood Sacrifice, and a storm of attacksnded on Lin Zichen. Long Chens objective was to quicklyplete Blood Sacrifice and attack immediately. Lin Zichen was forced many steps back due to Long Chens surprising strength!


    What type of technique is that? Long Chen, why did you suddenly get so much stronger? Lin Zichens eyes widened when he was forced back by Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd. No matter how hard he thought, he would never be able to guess that Long Chen possessed incredible divine techniques like Blood Sacrifice and the Blood Devouring Domain.


    When Long Chens strength increased, his techniques became more powerful too. It was possible that if Long Chens cultivation level reached the top of the world, he could still use Blood Sacrifice to strengthen himself by one, two, and even three tiers! That would be terrifying!


    Die!


    This was his only chance to turn his fate. Long Chen did not hold backhe attacked with all he had. While maintaining the powerful Blood Devouring Domain, he used Dragon King Burial again and again, fighting for his life!


    Dragon King Burial was much more powerful than before due to his power-up. With his talent and mastery of the skill, Dragon King Burial was almost stronger than an advanced Earth-tier technique!


    <em>Boom! Boom!</em>


    Several explosions ensued. Every strike was more vicious than the previous!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Dragon King Burial!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The line of blood-colored light flew right in front of Lin Zichens eyes at lightning speed. He gasped when he saw it!


    He had been caught off guard by Long Chens sudden explosion in strength, and now he understood that this was Long Chens true strength. He had merely been pretending. Long Chen now had the right to be Lin Zichens opponent!


    Of course, he did not know that Long Chen had to pay the price of two cultivation levels for this!


    His moment of carelessness led to great danger. That terrifying sucking force made it hard for Lin Zichen to move! When Long Chen exploded with his final killing strike, Lin Zichen was immediately in mortal danger!


    Long Chens gaze was filled with violence. He knew that this was his most important moment. If he could not kill Lin Zichen with this strike, or injure him, it would be difficult to get another chance!


    Star River Spiral!


    Bright starlight emanated from Lin Zichens hands. He spun both hands, and a powerful force opposed Long Chens Azure Dragon Halberd! Under Lin Zichens control, the shining spiral protected him and pushed Long Chen aside!


    Think you can change your fate? Think again!


    Lin Zichen was strong, but Long Chens Blood Devouring Domain and Blood Sacrifice were strong too. Lin Zichens Star River Spiral was powerful, but the Azure Dragon Halberd was also powerful!


    The Azure Dragon Halberd pierced through Lin Zichens shoulder, bringing with it a chunk of flesh. Lin Zichen shrieked!


    Even using an advanced Earth-tier defense technique, Lin Zichen could notpletely stop Long Chen when he was under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain and Blood Sacrifice!


    The wound on his shoulder was not serious, and only five hundred grams of blood and flesh had been sliced off. However, the extraordinarily talented Lin Zichen had never been beaten in battle, nor had he ever been injured before! Long Chen was the first to ever hurt him!


    How dare a person with such a poor upbringing, who started off only at the Sixth River Stage, injure him? Lin Zichen raged!


    Initially, he wanted to toy with Long Chen, but he felt humiliated knowing that Long Chen had kept his strength hidden for so long, leading to this surprise attack!


    Youre looking for death! Death!


    Lin Zichen stumbled backwards and used one hand to press on the hole in his shoulder. Despite his efforts, blood still flowed!


    His face turned red, then a steely green.


    Long Chen, you are the first to hurt me. Ive decided. You must die! You must die!


    A look of insanity appeared on his face. He had always held a lofty position. It was the first time hed been insulted like this. His heart clenched in pain as he felt the burning pain in his shoulder!


    <em>Whoosh!</em> A long, golden sword appeared in his hand. Long Chen could feel a regal energy pressing on himself. The Imperial Sword lived up to its reputation as the sword of kings; even just looking at it made Long Chen nervous.


    <em>What can I do against such a powerful weapon?</em>


    That move from just now was meant to be Long Chens fatal strike, but it had only resulted in a minor injury. The fatal strike was not fatal, but the wound did make things easier for Long Chen. However, Long Chen was still not confident because of the Imperial Sword.


    Imperial Sword Qi!


    Lin Zichen made one simple sh with his sword, and a golden ray of light shot out of it. It whistled as it shot at Long Chen, bringing with it terrifying speed and fatal force. If Long Chen was slightly slow to react, he would be cut in half!


    <em>The Imperial Sword is powerful! </em>Long Chen was privately startled. It was clearly only the most basic move, yet it far surpassed Long Chens most powerful attack.


    Brother Chen! When Lin Zichen unleashed the Imperial Sword Qi, Ling Xi panicked like ants on a hot wok. Since she was an expert in swordsmanship, it took only one nce at the technique for her to know that Long Chen would not be able to withstand it.


    Long Chen heard Ling Xis reminder. Even if he used his bodybat technique to dodge it, it would not be enough. But he had other ways!


    Blood Warp! Although this technique was not as powerful as Blood Sacrifice, he moved infinitely faster! Traveling at superspeed, Long Chen could not control his direction. He turned into a blood-colored ray and disappeared. When he reappeared, he was a hundred meters away!


    If Ling Xi and Xiang were not there, Lin Zichen would not have been able to catch Long Chen.


    Although Long Chen had tried his best to control himself, he stillnded quite a distance away. This was the shortest distance he could go. Ling Xi was still there, so he had no choice but to rush back.


    A Ninth River Stage cultivator could cover a hundred meters in a breaths time.


    But a breaths time was enough for Lin Zichen to kill Ling Xi. That was why Long Chen knew he could not use Blood Warp again. This time, Lin Zichen was taken by surprise and did not react in time. He wasnt sure what would happen next time.


    Indeed, Lin Zichen was stunned for a moment when Long Chen fled using Blood Warp, causing his Imperial Sword Qi to miss its mark. While he was still stunned, Long Chen returned. He was worried about Ling Xi, so he returned to a spot in front of her.


    Ill admit, Long Chen, that you have many tricks up your sleeve that make me both shocked and jealous. Suddenly, Lin Zichen smirked maliciously. He then squinted and said, The method you used to escape just now was very impressive. It looks like it will be difficult for my Imperial Sword Qi to hit you. But I wonder, will you be able to run if I use it this way?


    Long Chen had a bad feeling.


    Indeed, Lin Zichen shot a ray of Imperial Sword Qi at Ling Xi!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ling Xi NO!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 340: Heavenly Demon Lord

    Chapter 340: Heavenly Demon Lord


    Long Chen was not far away from Ling Xi. If he truly dared, he could definitely make it before the Imperial Sword Qi arrived. But would he dare risk his life for this?


    Lin Zichen was betting on this.


    Long Chens heart clenched the moment the attack was unleashed. He knew that Ling Xi would be split in half if he wasnt there, but if he blocked it for her, he would be split in half!


    The shining, golden Imperial Sword Qi shot out and dyed Long Chens whole world gold!


    Brother Chen


    Ling Xi smiled in blissful release. She had been nothing but a burden during this whole journey, and it made her miserable all the time. Although she knew that Long Chen would not me her, she couldnt help but feel guilty. The Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus had allowed her to regain many human experiences, even bringing her many sensations she had never felt before. However, it had also brought her a lot of suffering and self-me.


    Ever since they were at Yuanling City, Long Chen had cared for her meticulously. She had received enough joy from that experience, so now she was truly ready to give it all up. During this journey of life and death, Long Chen had sacrificed himself the whole way. This time, it was her turn.


    Long Chens mind went nk. All that remained in his world was the golden sword Qi. It was a simple decision to make for him. More specifically, it did not require any thought. Just like when they were at the Star Devil Prison, Long Chen moved his feet without hesitation and stood in front of her immediately!


    Ling Xi knew he would do it. She knew him too well. Once he made a decision, nothing would ever change it. Since he had decided to protect Ling Xi, he had long tossed the notion of survival out of his mind!


    The Imperial Sword Qi instantaneously arrived in front of Long Chen, along with Lin Zichens coldughter. Long Chen felt a painful prickling on his skin before the powerful sword light even touched him!


    Long Chens mind raced for an idea. He scoured through everything he had, and the only thing he could use right now was the Hell King de he had taken from Song Zhongcheng. It was an advanced Earth-tier divine weapon that was one tier higher than the Azure Dragon Halberd!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen released all his Qi, focusing all of it on the Hell King de to block the Imperial Sword Qi.


    <em>ng!</em>


    There was a deafening ng, and Long Chen flew back from the impact with blood spraying out of his mouth and a ghostly pale face. Yet he held on with a death grip. The Imperial Sword Qi did not dissipate upon impact. It had sted Long Chen backwards, then the sharp sword light flew in all directions and cut Long Chens skin, leaving him covered in cuts!


    Long Chen felt the Imperial Sword Qi pressing on his head through the Hell King de, bearing the weight of a mountain!


    Even though he had used all the strength he could possibly muster, he had been pushed back. His arms, still gripping the dagger tightly, were about to be permanently injured!


    You actually blocked it? Im touched! Unfortunately, I dont believe in touching moments like that. If youre so willing to die for her, Ill fulfill your wish! Lets crank it up!


    Lin Zichen raised his sword high. Imperial Sword Qi!


    Yet another bout of Imperial Sword Qi shot out at Long Chen!


    Long Chen was already injured all over from the first Imperial Sword Qi and cracks started to appear on the Hell King de. It was going to shatter soon! If it did, then Long Chen would die instantly!


    Long Chen finally understood just how terrifying this guy was. The Imperial Sword Qi was merely one of Lin Zichens simpler techniques too. The Young Sword Emperor was possibly even stronger than his uncle, the Sword Devil!


    Till the very end, all Long Chen could do was put his life on the line to fight against the threat of death! Thick blood and tears filled his eyes!


    If Lin Zichen had not attacked Ling Xi, Long Chen could have relied on Blood Warp to fight him. He was confident Lin Zichen would be unable to kill him that way. Unfortunately, Lin Zichen was an unpredictable opponent, and he was willing to stoop so low too!


    Whether he lived or died would be determined at this moment!


    Brother Chen! Im saving you!


    Long Chen suddenly heard Ling Xis voice, but she sounded different! What he heard was the voice from a long time ago, when she was in the Ling Xi Sword!


    <em>Does this mean that </em>


    Lin Zichens face changed. Ignoring the Imperial Sword Qi, he turned around to see a pure-white sword Qi shoot over and shatter the Imperial Sword Qi in front of him!


    Xiao Xi!


    When the light was gone, he realized that Ling Xi had taken on a spirit-like form enveloped in white mist. The Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus slowly shrank and finally turned into a ck lotus root. It was now useless.


    This meant that Ling Xi had abandoned her Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus body to return to her spirit state. She was holding the Ling Xi Sword.


    Im sorry, Brother Chen! I cannot watch you die! Forgive me for not listening to you, but Ive had enough of being useless, okay? I trust that youll find me something better soon!


    Ling Xi had exined hurriedly, worried that Long Chen would remain stubborn.


    Of course, he knew that obtaining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was not certain to happen


    But Long Chen understood. He did love the idea of Ling Xi having a physical body and living happily without worry. Unfortunately, such a carefree life was impossible under current circumstances.


    Finding a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was a giant challenge. However, he had no way of knowing what the future held. Since he wouldnt get her body back even if he died, there was no use dwelling on it. Perhaps they could even survive this ordeal now. After he heard her, he realized that he had been acting selfishly throughout this journey. He wanted to give her a happy life, but he had also ignored her feelings.


    Brother Chen, will you forgive me? she asked worriedly.


    Previously, Long Chen had been extremely against her abandoning the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, as it was hard toe by. That was why she was anxious, afraid that he would not want her anymore after she disobeyed him.


    I umted arge amount of soul power when I was in human form, so I should be able to block him for a while. Brother Chen, can you leave? Ill hold him off for a while, then Ill catch up to you immediately, alright? Ling Xi asked nervously.


    Now that the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus was gone, Ling Xi would have to return to the Ling Xi Sword. This was an unchangeable fact, and Long Chen had to respect her choice. Since he could not change anything, then the most important thing now was to deal with Lin Zichen!


    Afterwards, he would have to cultivate even harder to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit as soon as possible. So that she could be a true human and regain her formidable strength!


    However, he would never run away on his own!


    Long Chen did not me Ling Xi for abandoning the lotus root, as she had no choice. They had been cornered! Long Chen channeled all his anger and hatred to Lin Zichen! He turned around with icy killing intent in his eyes!


    How could I ever run? Xiao Xi, if youre up for it, lets fight him together! I swear I will kill this dog today!


    Dog? Lin Zichen was still staring at Ling Xi in shock. He had seen many things in his life, but he did not know what had happened with Ling Xi. How had a normal person like her suddenly be wrapped in mist and looked so ethereal? His attacks halted too, but he finally woke up when Long Chen said he wanted to kill him.


    Although I dont know what just happened with the girl, Im intrigued. You two are nning to work together to kill me? Thats fine by me; I do want to take this girl back to study her. I need to know what just happened. At the same time, Long Chen, I will send you down to hell!


    Ling Xi arrived by Long Chens side. She had her power back now. Although it was not much, it was enough to hold off the enemy for a while!


    They were about to explode into a fight when a huge energy ripple came from the direction of Demon Emperor Mountain. Long Chen and the rest were all forced several steps back from the vibrations, and an ear-piercing demonic voice poured into their ears!


    Son of the imperial family! Leave now, or do not me me for whates next! The angry roar was manageable to Long Chen since it was not directed to him, but Lin Zichen felt all the blood in his body boil. He turned pale, and since he was already injured, he stumbled several steps back!


    Just one sentence was enough to injure Lin Zichen with sound. Only a legendary master who had surpassed the Heavenly River Realm could do something like that! Other than the Sword Emperor of the Cangyang Kingdom, only one other person was this powerful!


    The Heavenly Demon Pces Lord!


    Lin Zichens face changed when he heard the voice.


    Do you think you can run, you loser? Long Chen had not expected this at all, as they were still some distance away from Demon Emperor Mountain. He never expected the Heavenly Demon Lord to notice them!


    Long Chen, you got stupidly lucky today. Dont you ever step out of Demon Emperor Mountain though. The moment you do, I will kill you the first chance I get! Lin Zichen threatened fiercely.


    So Ill just stay in Demon Emperor Mountain. Whats the big deal? Lin Zichen, remember this. I will return to the Biyang Imperial Capital very soon. That will be the day you die! I swear that this grudge will never be resolved unless I cut you to pieces!


    Well see then! Lin Zichenughed coldly, then he sped off. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ling Xi noooooo. She had to abandon her physical form


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 341: Live And Die Together

    Chapter 341: Live And Die Together


    Long Chen had experienced three significant battles during this journey of life and death. He had started at a disadvantage when facing the sixmanders and the dwarves, but ultimately, he was able to turn the tides. However, the third battle caused his cultivation to regress by two stages and Ling Xi ended up losing her Heavenly Profound Jade Lotus body.


    Although Long Chen did not show his rage outwardly, mes of anger burned in his heart.


    <em>One day, I will go back to the Biyang Imperial Capital. Then, with tens of thousands of people watching, I shall defeat the number one prodigy of the Cangyang Kingdom! </em>he swore to himself.


    He had to return to the Biyang Imperial Capital and the Counter Essence Realm. The imperial family had bullied him, and he was going to take revenge for this one day, in broad daylight. He would make them suffer just as much as him!


    <em>Lin Zichen, I must admit that you are an admirable prodigy. Youre not only powerful, you also possess the ultimate divine weapon. Everyone thinks youre an undefeatable legend. Today, I had to rely on Blood Sacrifice to forcefully increase my cultivation level just to fight you. One day, I will squash you beneath my feet with just my own cultivation!</em>


    If Lin Zichen had not arrived, Long Chen and Ling Xi would have fled to the Western Sea Kingdom already. He would have been able to strengthen himself there while living a peaceful life with Ling Xi. However, now it was all different. Long Chen had to work very, very hard to return to the Biyang Imperial Capital as soon as possible. He wanted to get his dignity back from the imperial family!


    And also resolve Xiangs grudge! This was a matter between the two brothers. Xiang was still unconscious and Ling Xi had lost the lotus, so how could he not rage? And not hate them?


    <em>You all will regret not killing me today  The moment I return to the Biyang Imperial Capital, the imperial family will cease to exist in this world!</em>


    Long Chen made a blood pact with himself!


    Lin Zichen traveled further into the horizon.


    It was clear that he was afraid of the Heavenly Demon Lord.


    Brother Chen, it really is fine. I can still live well like this, right? Ling Xi said sadly, floating in front of him. To be honest, if she had not chosen this, Long Chen would have died by now.


    He did not me her one bit.


    Its fine. I understand. Dont worry about it, he said, looking at her. It had been a long time since he saw her in this illusory state.


    We had to flee all because of the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. Now that Ive abandoned it, I actually feel a lot lighter inside. As for the feeling of having a body, experiencing it for a short while was enough. Im truly content now. Its just that you wont be able to hold me while i fall asleep now  Ling Xi started to mumble towards the end.


    Dont worry. Well get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit very soon, he said, determined.


    Mhm! She nodded hard with absolute confidence in Long Chen. Brother Chen, Im going back to the Ling Xi Sword.


    Then she turned into a cloud of mist and slipped into the sword. The Ling Xi Sword gradually shrank and, with a <em>whoosh</em>, pierced into Long Chens ear.


    Long Chen was left in a daze when he felt the piercing sting on his ear. He had not felt this in a very long time. Suddenly, he felt content to have Ling Xi there.


    <em>Whatever. The Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus was just a dream. Only the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit can help us turn our dream into reality. That is why I must work hard </em>


    At this point, the effect of Long Chens Blood Sacrifice expired. His cultivation level gradually regressed, finally stopping at the Fourth River Stage. He was about as strong as he was when he exited the Counter Essence Realm. Long Chen could not help but smile bitterly. His cultivation level had not changed at all throughout this whole journey, yet so much had happened.


    There was suffering, but there were also touching moments. There was one undeniable oue: the rtionship between him and Ling Xi, and the brotherly bond between him and Xiang, had be extra solid after surviving this ordeal. Nothing, not even time, could break their bonds. Even many, many years into the future, this near-death experience would remain in their minds. They would even be nostalgic for this feeling.


    Only change was constant in life. People often grew nostalgic for old times because nothing remained the same forever.


    They would remember the passion, the heroics, the romance, the loyalty, the determination, and fighting together side by side, living and dying together!


    Long Chen, Ling Xi, and Mo Xiang!


    <em>Wait for the day I return to the Biyang Imperial Capital!</em>


    ***


    Long Chen, now at the Fourth River Stage, carried theatose Xiang in his arms. He would now start a new journey to be as powerful as possible.


    Brother Chen, where should we go now? Lin Zichen must have ced tight security all over the perimeter of Demon Emperor Mountain. He must be waiting for us toe to him, right? Ling Xi sounded anxious.


    We dont have to go anywhere else. Well stay at Demon Emperor Mountain. Long Chen looked up at the mountain that resembled a ck sword piercing through the ground to reach the sky.


    Why? Wasnt the Western Sea Kingdom our original destination?


    With Lin Zichen blocking us, we wont be able to go to the Western Sea Kingdom. Plus, to be honest, I think the Heavenly Demon Lord decided to protect us. Why else would he chase Lin Zichen away? Only because Lin Zichen is from the imperial family? Long Chen knew that the enemy of an enemy was a friend. Since Long Chen was an enemy of the imperial family, and the Heavenly Demon Pce was an evenrger enemy to them, then it made sense that the n would protect and even recruit him.


    Do they want to take you in? Ling Xi did not understand. Their original n was to head to the Western Sea Kingdom, so she was a little confused when she heard that they were staying.


    Lets wait here. Well know very soon. Long Chen was severely injured from the battle, though they were only surface injuries. After a short period of rest, he quickly recovered his strength. When he opened his eyes, there was a white-haired old man standing in front of him. The old man had traveled at unparalleled speed.


    Long Chen quickly regarded the old mans looks.


    He was muscr and slightly taller than Long Chen. His old age did not show on his body as his muscles were still solid and filled with explosive strength. He had a hard expression with a gaze as sharp as a sword, as well as a tall nose like a male eagle that soared through the skies.


    Long Chen felt like all his secrets were exposed in front of the old man. He felt restrained due to suddenly meeting a cultivator much stronger than Lin Zichen, and he quickly greeted him. My name is Long Chen. Greetings, Heavenly Demon Lord!


    With such a high cultivation level, he was definitely the Heavenly Demon Lord. Long Chen had heard his name beforeZhao Qingyun. Despite the elegant name, he was a vicious person who raped, robbed, andmitted every crime. He was a powerful demon through and through.


    But Long Chen did not believe that.


    It was easy to detect a persons qualities through their expressions, eyes, and aura. Since the imperial family was in charge of the Cangyang Kingdom, it was easy for them to spread false rumors to vilify the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    Long Chen had his own opinions on this person. Zhao Qingyun had an impassive look, as if he was uninterested in the battles of mortals. No killing intent radiated from his body. Instead, he gave off the energy of an immortal, as well as a hint of regality. How could a person with these qualities be the demon from the rumors?


    Zhao Qingyun was also eyeing Long Chen with confusion in his eyes. Despite his confusion, he nodded and said, Ive heard a lot about your heroics during the past few days, kid, so much that scabs will form in my ears soon. I guessed youde to the Heavenly Demon Pce. And here you are.


    It is my honor. Thank you for saving my life just now, Sir. Zhao Qingyun was a senior worth respecting, plus he was one of the top cultivators in the Cangyang Kingdom. That was why Long Chen maintained a respectful demeanor.


    The effects of Blood Sacrifice had a time limit. If Zhao Qingyun had not stopped Lin Zichen, and if he and Ling Xi continued fighting, the oue could have been tragic. There was still arge gap between him and Lin Zichen after all.


    Zhao Qingyun gave a small smile. He looked past Long Chen, and his gaze fell on the withered Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. Slightly impressed, he said, Although I did not see it with my own eyes, I could roughly sense what happened. The girl really is peculiar. Long Chen, there are many peculiar things about you. For example, you fought Lin Zichen just now, but youre only at the Fourth River Stage.


    Indeed, Zhao Qingyun had a rough idea of what had happened. Both Ling Xis Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus and Long Chens Blood Sacrifice were topics that were difficult to exin. Worried that Zhao Qingyun would question him, he grew guarded.


    Dont worry. If I were still young, I would not have let you go easily; I would have demanded the truth. However, everyone has their own secrets and trump cards. You are an extraordinarily talented junior, and you have a chance of growing to be Lin Zichens rival; that is why I will not trouble you. I came here to ask you about your ns for the future. Let me give it to you straight


    Zhao Qingyun paused, then he continued, If you want to leave the Cangyang Kingdom, I can escort you out.


    Really? Long Chen gasped. He would no longer need to worry about Lin Zichen watching them if he did that.


    But he was even more interested in listening to what Zhao Qingyun had to say next.


    Option two is to be my direct disciple. You will get many things that you desire, includingbat techniques, strength, and a Heaven-tier divine weapon that rivals the Imperial Sword!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Option 2 it is then


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 342: Demon Emperor Sword

    Chapter 342: Demon Emperor Sword


    A Heaven-tier divine weapon that rivaled the Imperial Sword?


    Zhao Qingyuns offer immediately grabbed Long Chens attention. He was almost on par with Lin Zichen when he used Blood Sacrifice. What had ultimately led to his defeat were inferiorbat techniques and, more importantly, Lin Zichens Imperial Sword!


    When Zhao Qingyun noticed that it had piqued Long Chens interest, but there was still some caution in thetters eyes, so he smiled in exasperation. Dont think that this offer is too good to be true. There are many people who appreciate talent in this world. Also, the Heavenly Demon Pce and the imperial family have always been enemies. Our strength is somewhat equal. However, the imperial family has a powerful young Ninth River Stage cultivator, while the Heavenly Demon Pce does not. Based on your performance, Im guessing that you hold a huge secret. If you be my disciple, you will be able to inherit my skills in the future. Youll even be able to surpass Lin Zichen and make me proud.


    Zhao Qingyun looked down. Ive been suppressed by the Sword Emperor all my life. Even my progeny is far inferior to his. I am unwilling to ept this fate.


    Its not that I dont believe you, your offer was just too sudden. Thats why I hesitated for a moment. After hearing Zhao Qingyuns sincere tone, Long Chen knew that this was an amazing opportunity. Zhao Qingyun could give him whatever Lin Zichen had that Long Chen did not. So what if he had to be his direct disciple?


    Furthermore, Zhao Qingyun had saved his life just now, and he was far stronger than himself. He was even the Heavenly Demon Lord, who held a first-tier position in the Cangyang Kingdom. Long Chen would not lose face if he had such a man as his master.


    Seeing as Long Chens guard was down, Zhao Qingyun felt confident and said, You dont have to decide just yet. Dont you want to hear about this divine weapon that rivals the Imperial Sword?


    I was just about to ask, Long Chen said with an embarrassed smile.


    It could be said that this sword and the Imperial Sword were once a pair. When these divine weapons were born, the ancestors of the Heavenly Demon Pce and the imperial family each managed to snatch one. They then became the most powerful weapons for both ns. The imperial family ended up with the Imperial Sword, which Lin Zichen is currently using, while the Heavenly Demon Pces divine weapon is known as  the Demon Emperor Sword!


    Demon Emperor Sword?


    Based on the names, the swords were clearly a pair. The Heavenly Demon Lord would not lie, so this was a huge opportunity for Long Chen. If he could get the Demon Emperor Sword and storm the Biyang Imperial Capital, it would surely be a huge surprise to Lin Zichen.


    Long Chen gritted his teeth and asked directly, Senior, what do I need to do in order to receive the Demon Emperor Sword?


    At this point, he had decided to stay in the Heavenly Demon Pce. His cultivation level would increase if he went to the Western Sea Kingdom, but he was unlikely to receive morebat techniques and divine weapons. It would be very different at the Heavenly Demon Pce. Since they were rivals of the imperial family, they had a thousand years worth of wealth and experience. They probably had treasures andbat techniques as impressive as the imperial familys inventory.


    Long Chens question showed that he was tempted.


    To obtain the Demon Emperor Sword, you must first be a Heavenly Demon Pce disciple, specifically a core disciple. Only then you will have the right topete for it. Then you must be the strongest among all the other young disciples, said Zhao Qingyun.


    Deal! From today onwards, I, Long Chen, will be the direct disciple of Zhao Qingyun! Long Chen dered boldly.


    Dont celebrate too soon. Although there are no core disciples as powerful as Lin Zichen, we have two disciples who have reached the peak of the Eighth River Stage, and even the Ninth River Stage. If you try fighting them now at the Fourth River Stage, youll be a joke. Its also very possible that after joining the Heavenly Demon Pce, youll amount to nothing and be the butt of jokes. Zhao Qingyun eyed him with a rare show of mischief, smirking.


    He was very satisfied with Long Chens decisiveness and determination.


    Eighth River Stage cultivators, as well as Ninth River Stage cultivators who were equivalent to Lin Zichen without the Imperial Sword. They were undeniably super strong. However, if he could injure Lin Zichens shoulder, why would he be afraid of Eighth River Stage cultivators?


    Of course, he would need time.


    How much time do I have? It would take time to rise from the Fourth River Stage to the Eighth through stable, honest means.


    We dont really have much. You have three months. Spend your time wisely, Zhao Qingyun answered.


    Three months? Long Chen grinned. Three months was enough. In three months, he would rise from the ashes and storm the Biyang Imperial Capital!


    Hey, kid, are you trulymitted to taking this risk? You must know that since we are called the Heavenly Demon Pce, we naturally have the demonic aspect within us. If you be my direct disciple, you will have an infinite halo around you. However, if you are not strong enough to live up to this identity, then infinite cmities wille. Are you prepared for this? Zhao Qingyun asked solemnly.


    Im used to difficulties and challenges. I dont care how deep the waters are in the Heavenly Demon Pce. In order to get the Demon Emperor Sword, I, Long Chen, must try! said Long Chen with great determination.


    Arent you worried that the rtionship between us as master and disciple might seem transactional? Isnt that a little unhealthy? Zhao Qingyun joked.


    The unhealthiness will turn healthy with time, I think. After some observation, Long Chen had a better grasp of Zhao Qingyuns personality. Indeed, it was embarrassing for the Sword Emperors rival to not have a disciple who could fight Lin Zichen. Long Chens startling talent had indeed attracted his attention and revived his long-dead interest in recruiting disciples.


    Alright, then. From today onwards, you shall be my ninth direct disciple! Zhao Qingyun was happy with the confirmation of the matter. Although this disciple had not chosen him out of sincerity, but rather for the Demon Emperor Sword, Zhao Qingyun had his own ns.


    He was only nting a seed today. And maybe this seed would one day grow from annihting the dwarves to destroying the imperial family.


    Ninth? Are you saying that the top two cultivators are my seniors? Long Chen asked sourly. Due to the matter with the Ninth Prince, he didnt like the thought of being called Ninth Junior Brother.


    Theyre not  Then, Zhao Qingyun exined awkwardly, Theyre not my direct disciples. You can say that I was blind years ago when I recruited disciples. Your senior brothers and sisters have not amounted to much. Even the best one is only at the Sixth River Stage. The most outstanding disciples in Heavenly Demon Pce are under the Three Demon Elders


    Oh, I see!


    It was no wonder the old geezer was so enthusiastic in recruiting Long Chen. His disciples were just too embarrassing. Forget about the Sword Emperorhis disciples were worse than the disciples of the Three Demon Elders.


    Zhao Qingyuns face twitched when he saw Long Chens look of realization. However, to be honest, he genuinely liked this disciple very much but could not show it too much as a master.


    Long Chen, let me tell you this. There are currently two factions in the Heavenly Demon Pce. I am the Heavenly Demon Lord, and also the most powerful person there. That is why I hold the most power within the n. Of course, the three Demon Elders also hold certain influence, and they have countless disciples under them. Now that you are my direct disciple, you must be prepared to be challenged. My other disciples have not achieved much partially because they are so used to being bullied by the Demon Elders disciples


    Zhao Qingyun was a little bitter.


    Long Chen did notugh at him. He understood that despite Zhao Qingyun being a powerful master, he felt miserable about having such weak disciples. The younger generation of disciples allpeted on equal footing, and Zhao Qingyun had indeed given his disciples more resources. However, he could not do anything if they could not produce results.


    So, youre my hope for giving me face, Zhao Qingyun admitted honestly.


    Give you face? Of course I will. Zhao Qingyun was an interesting person. Long Chen gave an evil smirk and said, As your favorite disciple, I will obviously make you proud. But, Master, how could you not have a wee gift for this new disciple?


    You brat, are you really asking me for stuff this soon? Zhao Qingyun was speechless. I cant give you anything too precious for now, but tell me, what do you currently need most? Ill help you think of a way.


    Long Chen hesitated. If he asked for an advanced Earth-tierbat technique, it would be pointless because he was currently at the Fourth River Stage. Although Zhao Qingyun had exined everything in a casual tone, Long Chen knew that being in the Heavenly Demon Pce meant imminent danger. Without sufficient strength, he would be humiliated. Although he didnt care about making Zhao Qingyun lose face, he could not stand being looked down on by others.


    Therefore, what he needed most now was to increase his cultivation level.


    Of course, Xiang, who was in his arms, also urgently needed help.


    I want demonic beast carcasses. The higher the tier, the more helpful it will be to me. Long Chen revealed his objective directly. Zhao Qingyun had already spotted many extraordinary abilities that Long Chen had, and Long Chen did not mind letting him know a little bit more. Long Chen was merely requesting for beast carcasses, not performing Blood Transmutation in front of him!


    Demonic beast carcasses?


    Zhao Qingyun froze, wondering why he needed them. But he still agreed immediately and said, I dont have demonic beast carcasses on hand right now, but I think theres a Category Seven Earth-tier beast near Demon Emperor Mountain. Follow me there; I will kill it now and it will be my wee gift to you!


    Long Chen was filled with emotion.


    Was this the benefit of having a masters protection?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Huh. Zhao Qingyun might not be a demon after all. He''s probably a pretty good guy to be MC''s master


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 343: Rhino King

    Chapter 343: Rhino King


    In the past, Long Chen had relied on himself to fight for almost everything he owned, including killing his own high-tier beasts to use Blood Transmutation on. Now, under the wing of one of the most powerful masters in the Cangyang Kingdom, everything was different.


    With the Heavenly Demon Lord¡¯s mentorship, Long Chen imagined that he would soon be able to take his revenge.


    "Although I don¡¯t know why you want beast carcasses, I¡¯m afraid the strongest beast within a hundred and fifty kilometers of Demon Emperor Mountain is this Category Seven Earth-tier Rhino King,¡± said Zhao Qingyun as he led Long Chen hurriedly to the beast.


    <em>Is this ce really that pitiful?</em>


    Long Chen was immersed in the joy of having a master to help him y demonic beasts. This was an unexpected oue. Though it looked like his dream of using Blood Transmutation to grow quickly would note true.


    However, using Blood Transmutation too often was not the best way to grow. Long Chen now understood this concept, so he was not feeling dejected.


    "But there is a tunnel in Demon Emperor Mountain that leads to the Pyro Passageways, where there are many Ember Beasts. However, the passages have been closed and I can¡¯t open them just for you... There will be a training session there soon, though only the top ten disciples are qualified to enter.¡±


    <em>Pyro Passageways? Ember Beast?</em>


    Long Chen privately memorized these names. If Xiang could wake up, the Pyro Passageways would be heaven to him.


    "This demonic wolf is as extraordinary as you are. I believe myself to be a well-traveled person, and yet I have not seen this demonic beast before. Could this be a mutation of the Moon Devouring Wolf? The Moon Devouring Wolf has a silver moon on its forehead, while this beast has a golden sun. How interesting. But I think he¡¯s injured. How do you n to save him?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked when he saw that Long Chen was looking rather sadly at Xiang.


    Long Chen looked up and asked directly, ¡°Master, do you have any fire elemental treasures?¡± Now that he had a master, he would be an idiot if he did not capitalize on this resource.


    "Fire elemental treasures? Let me think...¡±


    It was obvious that Zhao Qingyun liked his newly recruited disciple. Long Chen had already made two consecutive requests, but he had not even furrowed his brows.


    "I do have a few Fire Essences, but they¡¯re not with me now. I¡¯ll get you some when I return to the Heavenly Demon Pce,¡± said Zhao Qingyun after some thought.


    "You have Fire Essences too? I¡¯m being pursued right now because I killed the Ninth Prince. He has nine Fire Essences on his sword!¡±


    "Fire Essences are produced in the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s Pyro Passageways. The Sword Emperor probably took them from our disciples. Although there aren¡¯t anyrge-scale wars between the imperial family and the Heavenly Demon Pce, there are many hidden scuffles. Not long ago, a Seventh River Stage elder from the Heavenly Demon Pce died outside the Imperial Capital. He died because he attempted to kill the Ninth Prince. Since you killed the Ninth Prince, you have indirectly avenged him,¡± Zhao Qingyun said sorrowfully.


    As the Heavenly Demon Lord, he obviously did not want any n members to die, especially not in the hands of the imperial family.


    "You killed the sixmanders of the royal guards, then annihted the whole dwarf tribe. You¡¯ve got some guts. To be honest, I¡¯ve always wanted to kill off the dwarves, but I never got the chance because the imperial family has always protected them.¡± Zhao Qingyun gave a look of disgust when he spoke of the dwarves.


    "Those were just appetizers,¡± Long Chen said mildly.


    Zhao Qingyun heard the determination in his statement.


    "Kid, you¡¯re ambitious. If you can kill off the imperial family, the Demon Emperor Sword will be yours. You can even leave with it,¡± said Zhao Qingyun with a smile. If Long Chen could grow to that level, he would naturally choose to leave the Cangyang Kingdom.


    But that was not going to be easy.


    "Then I shall receive the Demon Emperor Sword gratefully,¡± Long Chen said very boldly.


    There was a burning passion beneath his great confidence.


    "And I will be waiting with great anticipation.¡±


    The two of them had almost arrived at their destination by the end of the conversation. There was a vast field ahead littered with weeds as well as murky streams. The ground rumbled and shook as there were many beasts, especially demonic beasts, living here. A violent aura emanated from the deepest parts of the wilderness. The source had to be the Category Seven Earth-tier Rhino King.


    Long Chen followed Zhao Qingyun through the fields and finally spotted the Rhino King. It was a huge beast, slightlyrger than the Nine Heavens Fire Beast. It had gray skin stronger than steel and solid knots of protruding, rock-like muscles.


    The most outstanding part of its body was the thick, sharp, four-meter-long horn on its head. It looked intimidating and was a weapon of nature!


    But these features were as unimportant as clouds to Zhao Qingyun. He gently thrust his palm onto its body, and the mighty Category Seven Earth-tier demonic beast¡¯s internal organs shattered from the vibrations. The gigantic Rhino King squealed in pain, then crashed into the ground, throwing up a plume of smoke. Then it never moved again.


    Zhao Qingyun turned to ask Long Chen smugly, ¡°Someone as strong as me is more than fit to be your master, right?¡±


    "Of course!¡±


    Long Chen was about to receive a huge piece of treasure with zero effort, so why wouldn¡¯t he praise Zhao Qingyun? However, he was genuinely impressed because even Ninth River Stage cultivators could not kill a Category Seven Earth-tier Rhino King this effortlessly.


    There was no question about Zhao Qingyun being beyond the Ninth River Stage.


    Long Chen had rough knowledge about the realm beyond the Heavenly River Realm. It was known as the Heavenly Passage Realm. The name of this realm was easy to understand, and it was like passing through to heavens to achieve a level that Ninth River Stage cultivators could notpare.


    The Draconic, Divine Core, Heavenly River, and Heavenly Passage Realms were known as the four foundational realms of cultivation. They were only fundamentals, and there were moreyers above these four foundational realms. The masters from Ling Xi¡¯s hometown were mostly in those further realms, but not many people in the Cangyang Kingdom were aware of them. Naturally, Long Chen was no exception.


    Combat techniques, divine weapons, spiritual medicines, and demonic beasts were all divided into four main tiers, in reflection of the four foundational realms. However, just like cultivation, there were tiers beyond these four too, though they did not exist in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    But these were matters for the future.


    Long Chen was only able to store the Rhino King¡¯s carcass using hisrgest Universe Pouch.


    "Now that you have epted the wee gift, Long Chen, we shall return to the Heavenly Demon Pce if there are no other matters to discuss. I will call all the high-level n members to a meeting to announce my ninth direct disciple. When that happens, you¡¯ll have to kneel and formally acknowledge me as your master in order toplete the initiation. Are you willing?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked solemnly.


    "If you¡¯re genuinely going to treat me as a disciple, and are kind to me, why would I have a problem with it? Plus, you gave me this Rhino King as a gift; it¡¯s only right for me to show some form of respect, right?¡± Long Chen did not mind. It was verymon for people to kneel before their master as a formal initiation ritual. If there was not enough respect and formality in the ritual, why would a mighty master want to pass his knowledge to someone?


    "Then let¡¯s head out. However, let me give you a reminder. You¡¯re only at the Fourth River Stage right now. If other people try to provoke you, ignoring them is definitely an option. Self-control prevents future problems. When you are strong enough, all the chattering clowns will naturally shut their mouths,¡± Zhao Qingyun said.


    "A true man picks his battles. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not an idiot. I wouldn¡¯t put myself in a situation where other people can bully me,¡± Long Chen said honestly. However, Zhao Qingyun¡¯s words made him understand that his days at the Heavenly Demon Pce would probably not be easy.


    <em>Xiao Xi, Xiang! You two will witness my extraordinary growth at the Heavenly Demon Pce! In three months¡¯ time, I will storm the Biyang Imperial Capital with the Demon Emperor Sword!</em>


    With that silent deration in his heart, Long Chen followed Zhao Qingyun and started to head towards the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    Demon Emperor Mountain was huge, and its peak pierced through the clouds. The Heavenly Demon Pce was built on a vast, t tform on the slope of the mountain. The tform waspletely t, as if someone had carved it with a sword!


    When Long Chen arrived on the tform, he touched the ground. Although there were many scratches, the tform was still clearly manmade.


    "You¡¯re shocked, aren¡¯t you?¡± Zhao Qingyun looked like he had expected this reaction.


    "I am.¡±


    "This tform was built by the founder of the Heavenly Demon Pce, Tian Mozi. He carved it with the Demon Emperor Sword! I¡¯m not strong enough to replicate that feat right now. It seems that every generation has been weaker than thest,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with some regret.


    The legendary Tian Mozi must have been much more terrifying than Zhao Qingyun to be able to carve this ce out with a sword. Cultivators of the Heavenly Passage Realm were powerful indeed.


    After appreciating Tian Mozi¡¯s might, Long Chen finally looked up at the Heavenly Demon Pce. Although there was the word ¡°demon¡± in its name, the cluster of buildings looked like a paradise nestled within the mountains. Long Chen could not rte the structures in front to the rumored violent, psychotic n he had heard about.


    "A little surprised, aren¡¯t you?¡± Zhao Qingyun had expected this. ¡°Why ¡®demon?¡¯ From my perspective, ¡®demon¡¯ does not mean violence. ¡®Demon¡¯ means to not be restricted by worldly problems. ¡®Demon¡¯ means freedom and doing whatever you want to. It means achieving extraordinary cultivation levels. That is the core value of the Heavenly Demon Pce. If we¡¯re talking about massacres and violence, then the imperials are the demons.¡±


    Long Chen was shaken by his words.


    Based on this exnation, Long Chen was a demon too. The demon of demons.


    "Alright. I shall call for everyone to gather. Get yourself prepared.¡±

 Chapter 344 - The Three Demon Elders

    <h4>Chapter 344 - The Three Demon Elders</h4>


    Long Chen followed Zhao Qingyun into the Heavenly Demon Pce. The architecture was the same as what he saw from the outside: refreshing, elegant, and ssic. From the nts and trees to the birds and flowers, it felt like a paradise in the mortal realm. The Heavenly Demon Pce was huge, but there were not many people inside. That was why he did not see many people along the way.


    However, whenever someone passed them, they looked at Zhao Qingyun with reverence in their eyes, bowing slightly before veering out of his way. Of course, they also cautiously studied Long Chen. Since they did not recognize him, they knew from a nce that he did not belong to the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    ¡°Why is this teenager following the Pce Lord? He doesn¡¯t usually pay attention to mortals and mortal matters. We don¡¯t even see him for a month sometimes.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. But it¡¯s best we don¡¯t specte on the Pce Lord¡¯s matters.¡±


    There were whispers when they walked past, even turning around to study Long Chen.


    ¡°He¡¯s only at the Fourth River Stage. Not some prodigy or anything. There¡¯s no need to pay him any attention.¡±


    Long Chen smirked when he heard the whispers.


    It looks like the only demon in the Heavenly Demon Pce is my master, Zhao Qingyun. The rest of them are mere mortals suffering from jealousy and hatred andpeting for status. It looks like it¡¯s exactly as Master described. It won¡¯t be easy here. Long Chen shook his head.


    Ignoring the shocked gazes from passersby, he followed Zhao Qingyun into thergest hall in the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    This building was named the Demon Pavilion, its architecture exuding regal magnificence. It definitely lived up to its name. Under the revered gazes of the guards, who were also disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce, at the entrance, Zhao Qingyun entered the hall.


    ¡°Gather the Three Demon Elders, Eight Protectors, Enforcers, Executioners, as well as the various Pavilion Lords. I have an announcement to make,¡± Zhao Qingyun instructed the guards when he entered.


    ¡°Right away, my Lord!¡± The guards nodded, then he hurried off. They went to instruct other disciples, who then scattered through the ce to inform all the high-level members mentioned by Zhao Qingyun.


    Zhao Qingyun sat on arge, raised, sandalwood chair and looked down at the seats below before he said to Long Chen, ¡°Long Chen, the Heavenly Demon Pce has a strict hierarchy, but it¡¯s alright if you can¡¯t remember everything right away. Out of all these people, only the three Demon Elders have the right to speak in front of me. Sometimes I respect the Demon Elders¡¯ opinions, since they have managed the Heavenly Demon Pce for many years and have a deep loyalty to the people.¡±


    Since Long Chen was a junior, he naturally did not have a seat here.


    ¡°The three Demon Elders are all at the Ninth River Stage. Other than me, they are the most powerful people in the Heavenly Demon Pce. They hold great influence here too,¡± he exined.


    ¡°Does that mean that they might not listen to your instructions? That they might target me?¡± Long Chen understood what he was implying.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. They can¡¯t do anything about my decisions.¡± Zhao Qingyun grinned as he stroked his beard.


    Soon, people started arriving in the hall. The lower their positions, the earlier they arrived. Many elders, Enforcers, and even Pce Lords started to gather within the hall. The three Demon Elders were still not present.


    Everyone had already noticed Long Chen standing behind Zhao Qingyun. This was a stranger, and they had a feeling that the announcement would be rted to him. Since the Heavenly Demon Lord was present, they could not discuss loudly, but whispers were rampant.


    ¡°The Pce Lord must have gathered us here because of that teenager.¡±


    ¡°I know that. But what¡¯s so special about him?¡±


    ¡°He is at the Fourth River Stage. That¡¯s barely an eptable level for his age. However, the way he acts so nonchntly and without a change in expression despite standing in front of so many people means that he has a strong mind.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see if he has a strong mindter.¡±


    Zhao Qingyun maintained an impassive expression as time passed. When all the people had arrived, he looked up to see three elderly people walking slowly into the Demon Pavilion. Long Chen looked up immediately, studying the legendary three Demon Elders. They were directly under Zhao Qingyun in the n.


    They were not young. Standing in the middle was an old man who looked like he was at least eighty years old. He was thin, with a lot of wrinkles on his face, but a pair of bulging eyes with a sharp glint as they swept across the crowd.


    To his left was an old woman. She looked a little younger than him and could still walk with a straight back. She had an arrogant look and did not seem like an easy person to deal with.


    Thest elder was a short and fat old man, younger than the woman. His hair was still ck, but he had a fierce face with fat rolls, making him look terrifying.


    They were not attractive in the least; to a normal person, they were indeed demons. As for Zhao Qingyun, although he was no longer young, he still looked charismatic. He must have been as handsome as Dongfang Xuanxiao when he was young.


    After entering the Demon Pce, the three Demon Elders took their seats and finally looked up to notice Long Chen standing behind Zhao Qingyun. They were no idiots, so they instantly guessed that Long Chen was the reason why they had been called to the hall. This was a mere Fourth River Stage cultivator, yet all three Demon Elders had been called over just for him. A bad impression of him formed in their minds. They could not care less about what he was here for.


    Seeing as everyone had gathered, Zhao Qingyun¡¯s eyes opened and surveyed the room. ¡°I have gathered everyone here today to make an announcement,¡± he said mildly.


    ¡°Please do, Pce Lord,¡± the group replied respectfully in unison below.


    To them, although Zhao Qingyun usually did not intervene much in n matters and rarely appeared in public, he was a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator through and through. Without his presence here, the Heavenly Demon Pce would have been ttened by the imperials a long time ago.


    Over the past thousand years, the imperials and the Heavenly Demon Pce had maintained one Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator each, causing both ns to maintain a thousand-year-long stalemate. This meant that both parties had existed at the same time for that long. That was why they maintained great respect for the Pce Lord.


    Zhao Qingyun pointed at Long Chen and said, ¡°It¡¯s nothing major. I only wanted to introduce everyone to him. This is my ninth direct disciple!¡±


    The crowd erupted when he finished speaking. There had been many disciples before Long Chen, but he had never gathered everyone to make such a grand announcement. Also, he usually selected his direct disciples from the pool of regr disciples. This time, Zhao Qingyun had picked up a random Fourth River Stage cultivator from God-knows-where!


    To be honest, the Fourth River Stage was an extremely average cultivation level. The Pce Lord had always been mysterious, appearing whenever he wanted, and they could never figure out his personality. They thought that he was excellent in all aspects, except he was terrible at picking disciples. So far, the best direct disciple he had wasn¡¯t even ranked in the top fifty in the Heavenly Demon Pce. In contrast, the number one disciple of each Demon Elder took up the top three spots, and the rest of the top ten were almost all under them too.


    From this alone, they opined that Zhao Qingyun was terrible at selecting and teaching disciplespared to the three Demon Elders. Now it was even worse because he had gathered so many people at the Demon Pavilion just to announce that he had recruited an outsider to be a direct disciple.


    This seemed like a childish act.


    Of course, most only criticized Zhao Qingyun¡¯s decision internally, though there were some who outwardly expressed their dissatisfaction, namely the three Demon Elders. The fat Third Demon Elderughed dryly once, then he said, ¡°Pce Lord, you¡¯re kidding, right?¡±


    ¡°Did that sound like it was a joke?¡± Zhao Qingyun squinted. He had been expecting the damn fat man to cause trouble, and indeed, he was the first to blurt out an objection.


    ¡°This teenager isn¡¯t a Heavenly Demon Pce disciple, is he? And he¡¯s only at the Fourth River Stage. His talent is only average. How could he have the right to be your direct disciple? That is why I thought you were only joking.¡± The Third Demon Elder smirked.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to say anything else. I have already made my decision. Long Chen, greet your elders. These are the three Demon Elders. They manage the affairs of the n.¡± Zhao Qingyun could not be bothered to argue, so he started introducing them to Long Chen instead.


    ¡°I am Long Chen. Greetings, Demon Elders.¡± Long Chen knew that these were only formalities. He only had to greet them as those were rules, then he would shut his mouth.


    Of course, he did not like the three Demon Elders either.


    The three old geezers were clearly not people who could be offended, because they dared to refute Zhao Qingyun in public.


    ¡°We shall begin the master-disciple ritual now,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a smile, looking at Long Chen approvingly.


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    That was when the Third Demon Elder suddenly spoke up. He continued, ¡°Pce Lord, are you really going to take him in as your direct disciple? Please be cautious about this, Pce Lord. You have not even told us where this person hase from!¡±


    Annoyed, Zhao Qingyun replied coldly with raised eyebrows, ¡°His name is Long Chen. Have you all not heard his name?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± Everyone thought for a second and suddenly recalled something. They then stared at him in shock!

 Chapter 345 - Reunited with Xuanxiao

    <h4>Chapter 345 - Reunited with Xuanxiao</h4>


    It was not by choice. Long Chen¡¯s fame had skyrocketed recently because he had started as an unknown, nameless kid butmitted several earth-shattering acts. Since then, he had stepped into the ranks of the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s strongest cultivators. Themon person would find it difficult or even impossible to kill the Ninth Prince, the sixmanders of the royal guards, and annihte the dwarf tribe. But one psycho had done all of that.


    Even the three Demon Elders were shocked by Long Chen. Since the imperial family was their archnemesis, they were privately happy to see their rivals being abused by a newbie kid. However, they had been under the assumption that Long Chen was at least at the Eighth River Stage in order to aplish these earth-shattering feats. How could he have killed Song Zhongcheng, who was at the Eighth River Stage, if he was not at the same level himself?


    The teenager standing in front of them was only at the Fourth River Stage. That was why after they eyed him for a while, they could not figure it out and concluded that the Heavenly Demon Lord had made a mistake.


    The three Demon Elders looked at each other. They genuinely did not believe that this Fourth River Stage kid was the Long Chen that everyone had been talking about. The Third Demon Elder was the most straightforward of the three. He scoffed and said in a low voice, ¡°All he wanted was to recruit a new disciple, but I can¡¯t believe he used that young prodigy¡¯s name as a cover. This is difficult to swallow.¡±


    Although the words he used were ugly, most of them agreed.


    Naturally, the rest of them dared not speak their minds. This was the Heavenly Demon Pce after all, and Zhao Qingyun was a good Pce Lord. They merely felt that he was unreliable at recruiting disciples. After this experience, he had be even more unreliable.


    Zhao Qingyun obviously heard them, but he was not angry. He merely gave a small smile.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you exin?¡± Long Chen raised an eyebrow. If he were the Heavenly Demon Lord, he would have kicked all three Demon Elders out.


    ¡°Have you heard of this saying? It goes like this: ¡®the world criticizes me, bullies me, humiliates me,ughs at me, looks down on me, betrays me, hurts me, and lies to me. How can I solve it? The only solution is to control thyself, let him be, avoid him, have patience, respect him, and ignore him.¡¯ Wait a few years, and they¡¯ll see. Today, they underestimate you; I do not need to say more. When the dayes, they will see it. Why should I waste my time?¡± Zhao Qingyun smiled.


    Long Chen was stunned.


    This was the difference between him and Zhao Qingyun. Perhaps due to his youth, he was impatient for revenge every time he was humiliated. However, he started to reflect after hearing Zhao Qingyun¡¯s words. Due to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s influence, he had been rash and impatient along his growth journey since the beginning, strengthening himself through violent killing. This caused his mind to be heavily influenced by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, and he had a huge amount of violent energy within him.


    Perhaps being as nonchnt and focused as Master will help me greatly. A gentleman¡¯s revenge can wait; even ten years is not toote. I am not in a great hurry, so I should stay in Heavenly Demon Pce for a while to train my mind in order to achieve stable growth. Perhaps both my cultivation and mind will strengthen beyond my expectations here.


    Long Chen suddenly realized what he needed to learn most from Zhao Qingyun. It was notbat techniques, but attitude. An attitude of ¡°letting it go.¡± Only this mindset would prevent Long Chen from losing himself on the path of massacre.


    From this moment onwards, Long Chen truly recognized Zhao Qingyun as his master because he saw the things he could learn from Zhao Qingyun.


    Seeing as the announcement had ended, the Third Demon Elder stood up and said directly, ¡°Pce Lord, since the announcement has been made, can we adjourn now? We have many matters to attend to; we¡¯re busy people, you know.¡±


    His tone was filled with mockery. Indeed, the three Demon Elders managed the daily affairs of the n while Zhao Qingyun was merely a symbol.


    ¡°Go ahead.¡± Zhao Qingyun flicked his sleeve gently.


    ¡°Alright. Also, are you sure you want to write ¡®Long Chen¡¯ on the name list?¡± The Third Demon Elder eyed Long Chen and smirked.


    He spoke so rudely that it was incongruent with his position. It was clear that he was extremely disapproving of the Pce Lord¡¯s actions. Since the three Demon Elders always acted together, Long Chen guessed that the other two were not happy either, seeing as the Third Demon Elder was dissatisfied.


    ¡°Let¡¯s put something else then ...¡± Long Chen suddenly said. He smiled and looked at the Third Demon Elder, then continued, ¡°Third Demon Elder, my real name is Di¨¦ Di¨¦. Like ¡®Hu Di¨¦.¡¯ You may record this name in the namelist and read it aloud thrice daily. I think you¡¯ll get a very magical feeling.¡±


    ¡°Di¨¦ Di¨¦?¡± The crowd was a little confused. That was not a man¡¯s name! But when they realized what the joke was, many people burst intoughter. [1]


    Didn¡¯t ¡°Di¨¦ Di¨¦¡± sound like ¡°daddy?¡± Long Chen had told the Third Demon Elder to read it aloud thrice daily, meaning he wanted him to call Long Chen his father. No one could have imagined Long Chen to be as bold as this.


    When the Third Demon Elder realized that he had been insulted, his temper red instantly. He roared at Long Chen and was about to charge at him! He had always been arrogant due to his lofty status in the Heavenly Demon Pce, so there was no way he would stand for being insulted like that! He had been humiliated in front of a bunch of people by a bratty kid!


    But he was held back by the other two Demon Elders because Zhao Qingyun stood in front of Long Chen. His expression turned cold when he saw that the Third Demon Elder was about to attack.


    ¡°Were you about to attack someone in the Demon Pavilion? Third Demon Elder, have you forgotten our ancestors¡¯ reminders? No one is allowed to attack their own kin in the Demon Pavilion. This is yourst warning. If this happens again, I don¡¯t mind crippling you.¡±


    Zhao Qingyun was mild when he was not angry, but when he was, it was terrifying. The Third Demon Elder had crossed the line today. If Long Chen had not humiliated the Third Demon Elder, he would have been walking out with his tail in the air.


    From this moment onwards, everyone started to be cautious of Long Chen. No ordinary person would be bold enough to use Zhao Qingyun¡¯s power to insult the Third Demon Elder after all, as the Third Demon Elder was ranked fourth in the n.


    ¡°Everyone, you may all leave. I do not want to see a repeat of what happened today. His name is Long Chen. I don¡¯t care if you record it or not. My direct disciple is recorded in my heart, not on the namelist,¡± Zhao Qingyun said mildly as his gaze swept across the crowd.


    ¡°Yes, Pce Lord!¡± Everyone nodded and left with their heads bowed low. Although the Third Demon Elder was indignant, he had no choice but to leave the Demon Pavilion after the two Demon Elders gave him pointed looks. However, there was already hatred in his re towards Long Chen.


    Zhao Qingyun turned to Long Chen in exasperation. ¡°You¡¯re really good at creating problems for me. Aren¡¯t you afraid he¡¯ll start targeting you?¡±


    ¡°Master, I¡¯m sure you understand that the more you oblige these clowns, the more arrogant they be. Although you¡¯repletely focused on cultivation and do not care about trivial matters, people like that still need to be taught a lesson. And if he targets me, what do I have to worry about when I have you?¡± Long Chen said with a chuckle.


    When everyone was heading out, a couple entered the Demon Pavilion. The elders and enforcers gave the man unfriendly looks.


    ¡°Father, let me tell you some-¡±


    They were a man and a woman who looked to be above thirty years old. The man was handsome and thedy was beautiful, therefore making them look like apatible couple. They passed the crowd and entered the Demon Pavilion excitedly. The woman had just entered and spoke excitedly to Zhao Qingyun, but when she saw Long Chen next to him, she froze. Even the man behind her froze instantly.


    Long Chen had no idea how to react either, because the couple was his stepfather, Dongfang Xuanxiao, and Xuan Ming!


    Long Chen gasped and blurted, ¡°Stepfather?¡± He never imagined that he would meet Dongfang Xuanxiao in the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er?¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao was shocked too.


    Xuan Ming could barely react to this and asked hurriedly, ¡°Chen¡¯er, why are you here?¡±


    After hearing their conversation, Zhao Qingyun was also stunned. He looked at the trio and asked, ¡°You all know each other?¡±


    ¡°Of course, Master. Dongfang Xuanxiao is my stepfather. We are from Yuanling City,¡± Long Chen quickly exined. Since Xuan Ming was a member of the Heavenly Demon Pce, it was normal that she was here. However, he had not expected her to be Zhao Qingyun¡¯s daughter. The rtionships were gettingplex.


    Zhao Qingyun was pleasantly surprised by this oue. This was great because the rtionships would be even stronger.


    All four of them stood together while Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming regarded Long Chen carefully. Dongfang Xuanxiao could not help but ask, ¡°Chen¡¯er, there are stories out there about someone named ¡®Long Chen¡¯ killing the Ninth Prince and being pursued. Is that you?¡±


    This was what he desperately wanted to know. When he first heard the news, he did not believe it because no matter how quickly Long Chen improved, it was impossible for him to reach that level within such a short time.


    ¡°Of course it¡¯s me! Why would I be here if it wasn¡¯t?¡± Long Chen replied with a grin. Then he asked, ¡°Stepfather, you¡¯ve been to Yuanling City recently, right?¡±


    If Dongfang Xuanxiao had not returned to Yuanling City, he would¡¯ve been under the assumption that Long Chen was dead.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve gone back to Yuanling City. I think you were in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm then. Ming¡¯er and I waited for a few days, but since you hadn¡¯te out, we left,¡± he said.


    That was how he had heard the news that Long Chen was still alive. Not only had he not died, but Long Chen was also even stronger now.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, I can¡¯t believe how much stronger you¡¯ve be. Father, how did you get to know Chen¡¯er?¡± Xuan Ming asked, looking at Long Chen emotionally.


    1. Butterfly = ºûµû (Hu Die); so µûµûdi¨¦ di¨¦ should be a female name. That¡¯s why they thought it was a strange name for a man. µùµù(di¨¥ di¨¥) = Daddy in Chinese / an affectionate term for father


    Long Chen said to call himµûµû(di¨¦ di¨¦), which sounded like µùµù(di¨¥ di¨¥). This means he wants them to call him Daddy/Father. Usually, calling someone your father or grandfather means you are beneath them because you imply that you are the son/grandson. Since the Elder is ranked higher than Long Chen, it was taken as a very rude joke. ?

 Chapter 346 - Nepotism

    <h4>Chapter 346 - Nepotism</h4>


    ¡°You should ask him,¡± said Zhao Qingyun with a mysterious smile.


    Since Zhao Qingyun had not answered Xuan Ming¡¯s question, Long Chen replied in exasperation, ¡°Stepfather, and my beautiful Stepmother, I¡¯m afraid our rtionship hierarchy will be veryplicated because I am now his direct disciple. He is my Master.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s great news! Your cultivation will improve even more now that you¡¯re my father-inw¡¯s direct disciple!¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao was genuinely happy for Long Chen.


    Some people had not left yet and were straining their ears to listen in on their conversation.


    ¡°Stepfather?¡± They only heard this word amidst the blurry conversation. Once they were far from the Demon Pavilion, the Third Demon Elder huffed disappointedly. ¡°After such a bold act, I thought he was the real Long Chen! I didn¡¯t know he was Number One Trash¡¯s stepson! So he is here because of nepotism; it¡¯s no wonder the Pce Lord protected him. He even gave him the name ¡®Long Chen!¡¯¡±


    ¡°The Pce Lord is bing more and more unreasonable.¡± The Second Demon Elder, who was the old woman, also shook her head.


    ¡°To tell if it¡¯s a mule or a donkey, you¡¯ve got to take it out for a walk. Time will tell us what the hell is going on with that brat. We don¡¯t need to be impatient. If he really is untalented, then like Dongfang Xuanxiao, he¡¯ll be an embarrassment to the Pce Lord only. Not us. Let¡¯s hope the Pce Lord learns his lesson this time and finds an appropriate disciple to inherit his skills,¡± said the First Demon Elder in his hoarse voice for the first time.


    ¡°His skills? It does not matter how strong his disciples are; how will theypare with each of our strongest disciples? Mine has already broken through to the Seventh River Stage, and you two have disciples at the Eighth River Stage. By the time the Pce Lord finds a suitable disciple, your disciples might already be at the Heavenly Passage Realm. Once that happens, he will not even need to be the Pce Lord anymore,¡± the Third Demon Elder said resentfully.


    ¡°Old Three, shut your mouth. Don¡¯t say things like that here. Zhao Qingyun is the most powerful person in the Heavenly Demon Pce right now. We are no match for him, even if all three of us fight him together. If you want to die, do not drag us down with you.¡± The First Demon Elder gave him a warning re, then he walked away.


    News that Long Chen had only be Zhao Qingyun¡¯s direct disciple through nepotism spread across the whole Heavenly Demon Pce. From that day onwards, Long Chen¡¯s name was known across the whole n. Of course, they did not know if he was the real Long Chen.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was only at the First River Stage and, in reality, he was considered very weak in the Heavenly Demon Pce. There was nothing about him that attracted attention, not until he married the Pce Lord¡¯s daughter. That¡¯s when everything changed for him. She was an angel, and how could anyone be willing to see a pretty flower given to a pig?


    Therefore, Dongfang Xuanxiao now had a popr nickname within the Heavenly Demon Pce, which was ¡°Number One Trash.¡± Long Chen obviously knew nothing about this. With his temper, he would punch someone the moment he heard it.


    At this point, Long Chen had already exined how he became Zhao Qingyun¡¯s disciple to Dongfang Xuanxiao. Everyone started chatting happily once more. He also learned that Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming had gotten married. After eighteen years of suffering, Long Chen was genuinely happy to see them have a happy ending.


    ¡°Oh, Ming¡¯er, you rushed in so excitedly just now. That¡¯s not ording to protocol. I bet you were about to tell me some really good news.¡± Zhao Qingyun was especially happy today because he had managed to recruit a direct disciple like Long Chen.


    ¡°Xuanxiao, you tell him!¡± Xuanming blushed, a little embarrassed.


    ¡°Father-inw ... Uh ... We have some good news. You¡¯re going to be a grandfather.¡± Since this was his first child, Dongfang Xuanxiao was also a little reserved. After all, he had not been a father before. He felt like a child in front of his elders.


    ¡°Ming¡¯er is pregnant?¡± Zhao Qingyun gasped, then he let out a heartyugh. ¡°We¡¯ve had double good news today! Not only did you two get to reunite with Long Chen, but you¡¯ve also got a baby on the way! Double good news! This is worth celebrating!¡±


    Long Chen was overjoyed. The child waste. Eighteen yearste. If the Azure Dragon Patriarch had not broken the couple up, their child would have been almost as old as Long Chen.


    This was amazing news, and with Long Chen¡¯s arrival to the Heavenly Demon Pce, all four of them were overjoyed. Although they were not rted by blood, Long Chen felt veryfortable with them.


    They enjoyed a feast filled with warmth, though only the four of them were present.


    At the dinner table, Long Chen talked to them about many things, including his experiences during recent times, though he had to be vague about many things that involved his personal secrets. Despite that, Xuanxiao and the rest listened with great horror.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, you¡¯ve suffered so much.¡± Xuanming was about to be a mother, and since Long Chen called her ¡°Stepmother,¡± she saw him as her child. She felt horrible hearing about her child¡¯s suffering.


    After some time, Zhao Qingyun stood up and said, ¡°You all carry on. Long Chen, I¡¯ll go get you some Fire Essence.¡±


    Fire Essences were a necessity to Xiang, so Long Chen had to get some as soon as possible. He nodded. Once Zhao Qingyun had left, Xuanxiao said solemnly, ¡°Chen¡¯er, there¡¯s something you must remember. Do not tell anyone about Ming¡¯er being locked up in the Star Devil Prison. I only told him that we were trapped in a secret realm for twenty years.¡±


    ¡°I understand. You¡¯re worried that Master will be angry and destroy the Lingwu family, right?¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had roots in the Lingwu family after all, and he already knew that Long Chen had killed the Azure Dragon Patriarch. Since this was a personal vendetta against the Patriarch only, and the Patriarch was dead, there was no need to kill off the whole Lingwu family.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. That is my n after all. Ming¡¯er understands me,¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao said tiredly.


    ¡°There¡¯s still so much time ahead of us. I can¡¯t believe I will get to spend my life with you and our child ... Brother Xuanxiao, I¡¯m very happy ...¡± Xuanming said as she gazed deeply at Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Their bond is as deep as mine and Xiao Xi¡¯s bond! But I will never let Xiao Xi suffer as much as her!


    Long Chen privately swore to himself.


    As they chatted, Zhao Qingyun soon returned with almost twenty Fire Essences in his hands. Due to the blinding light from them, he only showed them for a brief moment, then ced them in a Universe Pouch to hand to Long Chen.


    ¡°These were collected by the disciples during thest training session at the Pyro Passageways. Since we aren¡¯t doing anything with them, I took them all for you.¡±


    Long Chen was filled with gratitude for receiving such great gifts without giving anything in return. Since he had always repaid all kindness shown to him, he knew that he would return this favor a hundredfold.


    ¡°Master, do the Pyro Passageways contain many Fire Essences and high-tier beasts?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. The Pyro Passageways are actually formed from arge river of flowingva. A lot of Fire Essence can be found there, as well as many fire elemental beasts. Why do you ask?¡± asked Zhao Qingyun.


    ¡°I need arge amount of fire elemental treasures. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s Fire Essence or a fire beast¡¯s demonic core, they all work. When can I go to the Pyro Passageways?¡± Long Chen asked expectantly.


    ¡°The Pyro Passageways are opened periodically. It will be opened in less than two months¡¯ time, but before that happens, are you confident that you will be able to be one of the top ten disciples? The top ten are usually at the Seventh River Stage.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Long Chen said decisively.


    ¡°Then there won¡¯t be a problem,¡± said Zhao Qingyun a little wishfully. He smiled proudly, because he could tell that Long Chen was a confident person, and his confidence seemed to be based on actual ability.


    After chatting for a while longer, Xuanming needed to rest, so Dongfang Xuanxiao sent her back to her quarters. Since they were all in the Heavenly Demon Pce, there would be many more opportunities for them to meet, so Dongfang Xuanxiao was not anxious about staying for a longer chat.


    Then Zhao Qingyun made arrangements for Long Chen¡¯s quarters, which would be within the Azure Cloud Residence, the quarters solely belonging to the Heavenly Demon Lord¡¯s direct disciples. It was a huge ce, so every disciple had their own yard. All the necessary amenities were duly prepared.


    Before that, Zhao Qingyun even introduced Long Chen to his eight seniors. However, these people were only averagely talented and had average personalities, so Long Chen could not even remember one of them. Despite their disappointing cultivation results, Zhao Qingyun did not shun them, but treated them as true disciples.


    Masters could only act as guides along the path of cultivation. How far one would get depended mostly on oneself. Zhao Qingyun had already done well in guiding them, and they could have anything they needed. Unfortunately, they were just not capable, and there was nothing Zhao Qingyun could do about that. At this point, he could only hope that Long Chen would help him regain some dignity.


    To be honest, it was embarrassing to tell anyone that the Heavenly Demon Lord did not have a single outstanding disciple. Once Long Chen had retired to his quarters and Zhao Qingyun had left, the other direct disciples gathered and discussed in hushed voices.


    ¡°Do you guys believe that he¡¯s the Long Chen who killed the sixmanders of the royal guard, and the whole dwarf tribe?¡±


    ¡°When I looked at Ninth Junior Brother¡¯s face, there was a hint of viciousness in his eyes. If we disregard his current cultivation level, I can believe it.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it. Didn¡¯t you hear? He¡¯s Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s stepson. Master only took him in as a disciple because of his daughter. Don¡¯t get your hopes up about having someone to stand up for our Pce Lord. Go back and cultivate.¡±

 Chapter 347 - Focusing On Cultivation

    <h4>Chapter 347 - Focusing On Cultivation</h4>


    Long Chen had lost count of the number of ces he had stayed in so far. However, due to Dongfang Xuanxiao and the rest, he felt like this was home.


    Once he entered his quarters and closed the door, Ling Xi emerged excitedly from the Ling Xi Sword. The tiny girl appeared in front of Long Chen, prancing around. It had been a long time since Long Chen had experienced this.


    He ced the unconscious Xiang gently on the soft bed while Ling Xi watched quietly.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I want you to hold me while I fall asleep ...¡± Ling Xiined. She had gotten used to that. Now that she had returned to her miniature size, she felt miserable.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will storm the Biyang Imperial Capital in three months. And I will get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.¡±


    Long Chen held out his palm so she could stand on it.


    ¡°Mhm!¡± She nodded hard. ¡°Brother Chen, I¡¯ll be fine, actually. I¡¯m just missing the feeling of having a body. Plus, I have a lot of soul power right now, and there are many soul-nourishing herbs in the Heavenly Demon Pce, so I don¡¯t need to worry about fading away. And I can help you a lot too! Don¡¯t you like it better when I¡¯m like this? Unlike before, I¡¯m not a mere burden.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how you are; I like you all the same. However, I don¡¯t like other people making my decisions for me. Lin Zichen forced you to abandon the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, so I must kill him,¡± said Long Chen, gazing at the shining stars outside the window.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I think your master is right. On the journey of cultivation, one¡¯s mindset is very important. If you let go a little, it might be better,¡± she said gently, sitting on his shoulder.


    He nodded.


    ¡°But I must not waste the Rhino King¡¯s carcass. I am now at the Fourth River Stage, which is nothing in the Heavenly Demon Pce. If someone harasses me, I might even need to stand there and endure the humiliation.¡±


    The Rhino King carcass was a wee gift given to him by Zhao Qingyun. Long Chen used Blood Transmutation to absorb its blood. The Category Seven Earth-tier beast allowed him to return to the Fifth River Stage, but that was still a distance away from his peak at the Sixth River Stage.


    ¡°Blood Sacrifice is truly an extraordinarily powerful divine technique, but I need to use it less in the future, or my cultivation level will keep decreasing. That¡¯s not the way to do it. I shouldn¡¯t use it unless my life is at risk,¡± Long Chen grumbled.


    ¡°This time, I must cultivate in a stable and proper manner. Let¡¯s see if I can reach the Sixth River Stage. I also condensed my Heavenly Rivers too quickly, so I need to find a ce with adequate starlight in order to slowly fortify my cultivation.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain the closest you can get to starlight?¡± Ling Xi cocked her head in thought.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you¡¯re so smart! I¡¯ll ask Master tomorrow if I can cultivate up there. From today onwards, I shall focus my mind on cultivation until I be strong enough to defeat Lin Zichen, and maybe until I be the strongest cultivator in the Cangyang Kingdom.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s heart was filled with passion.


    Time passed while he cultivated. Close to dawn, Long Chen noticed that Xiang had regained consciousness. He was overjoyed to see that Xiang was waking up. Ling Xi also treated Xiang like a younger brother, so she was ecstatic to see him wake up. The twomunicated telepathically for a while as she told Xiang everything that had happened ever since he had fainted. That was how he had learned why he was here.


    From Ling Xi¡¯s exnation, Long Chen learned that Xiang burning his life fire had resulted in many negative consequences. His strength had even plummeted from Category Five Earth-tier to Category Four.


    Long Chen and Xiang were very simr in many aspects. Thebination of Blood Transmutation and Blood Sacrifice were simr to Xiang¡¯s life fire and ability to swallow mes to strengthen himself. However, Long Chen¡¯s method was superior because when he used Blood Sacrifice to increase his strength, it only cost him his cultivation level, while Xiang was risking his life.


    ¡°If you burn your life fire again in the future, you will no longer be a brother to me.¡± Afraid that Xiang would make an impulsive, rash decision again, Long Chen had no choice but to give him a stern warning.


    Xiang nodded awkwardly.


    ¡°These Fire Essences are all yours. I also have some good news for you. Soon, we will be going to a ce called the Pyro Passageways. There will be a lot of Fire Essence there, as well as many high-tier fire elemental demonic beasts. Xiang, the chance for your cultivation to skyrocket and even surpass me is here!¡± Long Chen announced excitedly.


    Xiang¡¯s eyes widened, visibly excited. The Fire Essences in Long Chen¡¯s hand excited him even more.


    If a ce like the Pyro Passageways existed, then it would be heaven for him.


    ¡°But the catch is that my cultivation level must be among the top ten disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce,¡± said Long Chen.


    Ling Xi and Xiangmunicated for a while, then Ling Xi said threateningly to Long Chen, ¡°Brother Chen, Xiang wants you to work hard. If he doesn¡¯t get to go to the Pyro Passageways, you will no longer be a brother to him.¡±


    Long Chen did not know whether tough or cry, because Xiang was using his own words against him.


    But it felt good to work hard together as a team ...


    Seeing as Ling Xi was much livelier and happier, Long Chen suddenly realized that his previous insistence that she should keep her Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus body might have been the wrong move. Right now, Ling Xi could truly offer Long Chen assistance, and this made her a lot happier. She did not want to be a useless person who only burdened Long Chen.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I¡¯m sorry. I haven¡¯t been considerate of your feelings,¡± he said sincerely.


    ¡°What? I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. Xiang, let¡¯s go y. Let him cultivate on his own.¡±


    ***


    Life at the Heavenly Demon Pce was quiet. His life became much simpler because after obtaining Zhao Qingyun¡¯s permission, he never returned to the Azure Cloud Residence. Instead, he stayed at the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain and worked all night and day. He mostly cultivated at the peak, but he asionally descended to visit Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming. He would keep Dongfang Xuanxiaopany for a while, passing his days without worry.


    Other than that, he never visited any other ce in the Heavenly Demon Pce. Despite his shocking arrival at the Demon Hall, like Zhao Qingyun, his public appearances were infrequent and unpredictable. He had basically disappeared from sight. After some time, other than the asional nepotism-rted joke, the people of the Heavenly Demon Pce almost forgot about him.


    As for Long Chen¡¯s attitude towards these insults, he had once overheard a conversation about it, and he did not know whether to cry orugh about it. He was the real Long Chen, but he couldn¡¯t believe that the others thought he was pretending to be Long Chen, relying on his rtionship with Dongfang Xuanxiao to be the Pce Lord¡¯s direct disciple. He was speechless. However, recently, he had deliberately worked on calming his mind and suppressing the killing intent inside him. Zhao Qingyun had inadvertently taught him to open his heart. He gained many insights when his heart was open, learning to smile and let go when he heard criticisms like that.


    There were many things that did not require exnation. Once Long Chen truly soared, everyone would be blinded by his shining light.


    He cultivated at the peak where he was closest to starlight. Days and nights passed, and the eighteen Heavenly Rivers took turns appearing above Long Chen. His cultivation continued to grow towards the Sixth River Stage while he solidified the Heavenly Rivers in his body from the previous five stages to make his foundation more stable.


    Clouds and mist enveloped Demon Emperor Mountain¡¯s peak, and not an inch of grass grew. When he looked down, he could see as far as five hundred kilometers. Even Lake City was only the size of his palm from there. That was how high up he was.


    He immersed himself in cultivation day and night while Ling Xi stayed by his side as always. Xiang no longer needed to cultivate because after consuming the twenty tiny balls of Fire Essence, he was once again a Category Five Earth-tier beast. He was now on the same level as Long Chen at the Fifth River Stage, and like Long Chen, he was also very close to Category Six.


    Long Chen looked out at the group of mountains in front.


    He stood up on the peak amidst strong wind, his clothes pping around him.


    One month had passed. At this moment, he had a more reserved look. Faint starlight flowed beneath his skin while the blood color slowly faded from his eyes, returning to their original rity.


    After experiencing the tumultuous escape, coupled with focused cultivation on Demon Emperor Mountain, Long Chen¡¯s mind had strengthened greatly.


    ¡°Not bad. You finally understand. At this rate, you¡¯ll soon reach the Sixth River Stage.¡± This was Zhao Qingyun¡¯sment for him.


    On this day, Long Chenpleted his cultivation task and returned to the Heavenly Demon Pce. He first met up with Dongfang Xuanxiao, then he reported to Zhao Qingyun and decided to return to the peak.


    He was not afraid of getting tired or bored. With Xiang and Ling Xi around, fatigue and boredom did not exist.


    After he left the Heavenly Demon Pce, he had not walked for long when he noticed some people up ahead. He wanted to mind his own business, but what they did was getting unreasonable.


    ¡°You brat, lick it all! Lick them one by one! Stick your butt up! Lick it now! If you don¡¯t lick it clean, I¡¯ll spank your bottom!¡±


    ¡°Yes! If you make your big brother feel good and make us happy, we might reward you with some Heavenly River Pills!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze fell on a row of Heavenly Demon Pce disciples. Kneeling in front of them was a teenager who was dressed like one of the errand boys. He was crying hard, begging them for mercy. But based on the rudeness of their tone, begging was probably not going to work ...

 Chapter 348 - Three Great Heaven-Tier Scriptures

    <h4>Chapter 348 - Three Great Heaven-Tier Scriptures</h4>


    Long Chen did not intend to intervene in small scuffles like this, seeing as he did not know anyone within the Heavenly Demon Pce. However, when he passed, he realized that the kneeling disciple looked familiar. He recognized him as the disciple who ran errands for himself and the other direct disciples. Long Chen had seen him a few times and had a faint impression of him. Based on what he could remember, the kid was quite timid.


    The disciples standing in a row were all rude and arrogant. They were probably backed by powerful people. They had all taken their feet out of their boots, then ced their feet on the ground in a row for the kneeling disciple to lick them.


    A repugnant smell came from every foot, and it was inhumane for them to ask the errand boy to lick them clean. Long Chen had met the boy several times after all. Seeing as the boy was about to close his eyes and oblige them, Long Chen made his way over.


    The disciples all saw Long Chen when he approached, but they did not recognize him. Long Chen had only made an appearance at the Demon Hall once, then he hardly showed his face again. That was why regr disciples didn¡¯t recognize him despite having heard his name.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± one of them asked Long Chen haughtily.


    ¡°Get up. You can go back.¡± Long Chen ignored them and helped the errand boy up.


    The errand boy was utterly relieved to see Long Chen. He had heard that Long Chen was at the Fourth River Stage, and although that was not considered powerful in the Heavenly Demon Pce, at least he was a little stronger than the other disciples present.


    He was very surprised to get out of this incident unscathed.


    If he had to lick all those stinky feet clean, he was not sure if he could continue living.


    Long Chen¡¯s attitude angered them. They demanded indignantly, ¡°You brat! Are you looking for death? Do you know who we are? We are the Third Demon Elder¡¯s direct disciples! It¡¯s best you get the fuck out of here immediately, or you¡¯ll end up like him! You¡¯ll have to lick our feet too!¡±


    Then they started to surround Long Chen. If he did not leave immediately, they would attack.


    Xiang was there as well, and when he saw that they were being too arrogant, he could not watch any longer and immediately opened his mouth to reveal a mouthful of roaring mes. Terrified, the disciples shrieked and stumbled backwards. Based on their cowardly behavior, they realized that the disciples were merely putting on airs.


    ¡°What beast is that?!¡± They were shocked to see Xiang.


    ¡°It does not matter what it is. How dare it offend us? Brothers, let¡¯s ughter it! We will have wolf soup tonight!¡± one of them yelled, and everyone assented. Then they charged at Xiang with theirbat techniques. Xiang had been bored these days, and since these people were delivering themselves to his doorstep, he morphed into hisbat state instantly!


    Xiang¡¯s huge, muscr body and sharp teeth and ws were on full disy. ck mes curled from his fur, and the sun diagram on his forehead made him look extra terrifying. After taking on hisbat form, they almost peed their pants in fear and fled for their lives, crying for their parents. They quickly disappeared from Long Chen¡¯s sight.


    ¡°What a bunch of cowardly bullies,¡± said Long Chen with a tired grin.


    Xiang looked bored too. He thought he would be able to enjoy himself, but they had turned out to bepletely useless. They all seemed fierce at first but turned into cowardly turtles the moment he showed his strength.


    ¡°Thank ... Thank you!¡± The errand boy looked at Xiang reverently, then he turned to Long Chen. The rumors had said that Long Chen was a useless idiot. However, when he saw Long Chen¡¯s impassive expression, as if everything was in his control, he did not look like an idiot.


    ¡°I¡¯ve seen you a few times before. You¡¯re from the Azure Cloud Residence, right?¡± Long Chen probed cautiously.


    ¡°Yes, yes! I¡¯ve cleaned your quarters a few times, but you weren¡¯t there. What ... what should I call you?¡± asked the errand boy.


    ¡°You¡¯re about my age. Just call me ¡®Brother Chen.¡¯ What is your name?¡± Long Chen had nothing to do and was worried the idiots woulde looking for trouble again, so he decided to escort the boy back.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I¡¯m Wang Xing. I¡¯m an errand boy now, but in two months¡¯ time, I will be promoted to be a regr disciple!¡± Wang Xing grew excited speaking about it. Bing a true Heavenly Demon Pce disciple had always been his dream, and it woulde true very soon.


    Long Chen called for Xiang, then he turned to Wang Xing and said, ¡°Those punks mighte looking for trouble again. It¡¯s better for me to escort you back.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Brother Chen!¡± Wang Xing was surprised. He thought Long Chen would be like what they described in the rumors, that he had only be the Heavenly Demon Lord¡¯s direct disciple due to nepotism. However, Long Chen radiated confidence and openness. At a nce, he could not see how Long Chen was any weaker than the other people.


    Since this was a rare chance and Long Chen was friendly, Wang Xing started to talk along the way.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why they targeted me. I don¡¯t even know them. It¡¯s probably because they happened to see me and wanted to toy with me. But they¡¯ve crossed the line.¡± Wang Xing clenched his fist. ¡°Once I¡¯m stronger, I won¡¯t need you to save me anymore, Brother Chen. I¡¯ll be able to defeat everyone who bullied me!¡±


    ¡°Work hard, then.¡± Long Chen grinned when he saw his battle spirit. This teenager was decently talented and motivated. All hecked was the fire within him.


    ¡°Brother Chen, since you¡¯re the Pce Lord¡¯s direct disciple, you¡¯ve received the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s Three Great Secret Scriptures, right?¡± Wang Xing suddenly asked when they arrived at the Azure Cloud Residence. ¡°I¡¯ve heard that the Three Great Secret Scriptures contain the most powerfulbat techniques of the Heavenly Demon Pce! That¡¯s my dream. I hope one day I¡¯ll be able to cultivate them!¡±


    ¡°What are the Three Great Secret Scriptures? I¡¯ve only just joined the Heavenly Demon Pce, so I don¡¯t know about them,¡± said Long Chen, puzzled.


    ¡°Huh? Brother Chen, are you really the Long Chen who killed the sixmanders of the royal guard and the whole dwarf tribe?¡± Wang Xing¡¯s jaw dropped. If Long Chen had known about the scriptures, that would¡¯ve indicated that was indeed a nepotism baby who already had a deep understanding of the Heavenly Demon Pce. However, since he did not know about them, it was likely that he was an outsider.


    ¡°Do you think that I am?¡± Long Chen smirked.


    ¡°If I were to guess ... I don¡¯t know, but my instinct tells me that the answer is yes!¡± Wang Xing said confidently.


    ¡°Just treat me as if I am, then. Anyway, what are the Three Great Secret Scriptures? Tell me about them in detail!¡± Long Chen said.


    Wang Xing grew excited talking about them.


    ¡°ording to rumors, the Heavenly Demon Pce has three Heaven-tierbat techniques in total! Listen carefully! They¡¯re not advanced Earth-tier! They are true Heaven-tierbat techniques!¡±


    ¡°Heaven-tierbat techniques? Three of them?¡± Long Chen was shocked. That was no joke. If it was true, then these three techniques were among the most powerful treasures owned by the Heavenly Demon Pce, on par with the Demon Emperor Sword.


    ¡°Wang Xing, tell me more about the Three Great Secret Scriptures,¡± Long Chen said. It had piqued his interest.


    ¡°The first one is a bodybat technique! It¡¯s called Traceless Demon Shadow. I heard that it¡¯s an extraordinary technique. Once you use it, you¡¯ll turn into a blur of illusory images. Even an opponent at the same level will find it very difficult to catch you! However, despite being such a magical technique, it is only ranked third among the three!


    ¡°The second scripture is a divinebat technique called the Demon Seed nting Technique. I hear that it has twoyers. When you use the technique, you can nt a Demon Seed in your Qi so that when needed, the seed explodes and you can double your Qi level! The second level of the technique allows you to increase your Qi level by four times!


    ¡°The number one scripture is even more terrifying. It¡¯s an attackbat technique called the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. It is a formidable sword technique. I heard that the only one in the Heavenly Demon Pce who can use it is the Pce Lord. The technique is a part of the Demon Emperor Sword. It can only beprehended when one has been recognized by the Demon Emperor Sword as its master!


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow, the Demon Seed nting Technique, and the Demon Emperor Sword Technique are the most powerful techniques owned by the Heavenly Demon Pce. I¡¯ll be content for the rest of my life even if I get one of them. Hehe. I know I¡¯m only dreaming. Only extremely talented disciples from lofty backgrounds get the chance to own one of the three techniques. That¡¯s why I asked if you received them,¡± Wang Xing said, scratching his head awkwardly.


    Long Chen mulled over his words. He knew that since Zhao Qingyun had invited him to the Heavenly Demon Pce, then he would give him these things eventually. But of course, he could not give them away for nothing. With the disciples of the Three Demon Elders fighting to get their hands on them, Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level was not high enough to receive the three scriptures.


    I was at a disadvantage in terms ofbat techniques during my recent battles. Only Divine Fire Clone was able to hold up against my opponents, though barely. The Azure Dragon Combat Technique is already useless. It looks like I need to put in more effort for betterbat techniques. Once I have attained the Sixth River Stage, I should mention this to Master. With my talent in learningbat techniques, I might even be able to master Heaven-tierbat techniques.


    The Heavenly Demon Pce was indeed Long Chen¡¯s cultivation heaven. With the deep rtionship between himself and Dongfang Xuanxiao, he and Zhao Qingyun already saw each other as family. The fact that Zhao Qingyun did not shun Dongfang Xuanxiao was enough to show that he was a very good person, and an elder worthy of respect.


    ¡°Wang Xing, we have arrived at the Azure Cloud Residence. I¡¯m going to the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain to cultivate. Goodbye!¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    ¡°Goodbye, Brother Chen! I will work hard!¡± said Wang Xing with great determination.


    ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll be watching your growth! If you improve, I don¡¯t mind giving you a little something,¡± said Long Chen with a smile.

 Chapter 349: Return to the Sixth River Stage

    Chapter 349: Return to the Sixth River Stage


    Long Chen was in possession of many things that were useless to him but were treasures to Wang Xing.


    Wang Xing left happily after Long Chen made his promise. Wang Xings incident had not caused much dy, and Long Chen returned to the peak of the mountain once more.


    <em>If the three Heaven-tier Secret Scriptures are being guarded by Master, then he will give them to me once my cultivation has reached a certain level. However, the Three Demon Elders also hold great power, so I will still have to work hard for the scriptures. At the very least, I need to fight for the Demon Emperor Sword Technique on my own.</em>


    Long Chen sat at the peak of the mountain to cultivate while thinking over these matters.


    <em>As for Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique, Ill mention them to Master when I have attained the Sixth River Stage. With the abilities brought to me by the dragon jade pendant, I might be able to cultivate them even though theyre Heaven-tier techniques. If I master those Heaven-tier techniques, then mybat abilities will get a huge boost.</em>


    <em>Traceless Demon Shadow is definitely a formidable bodybat technique, but Demon Seed nting sounds even more peculiar. I can boost my Qi by two or even fourfold! Doesnt that mean that after my Dragon Soul Transformation, I can boost my Qi up to gain an advantage over opponents on my level, or even opponents above my level?</em>


    If that was the case, then Long Chen truly had to get his hands on the Demon Seed nting Technique. If he received a Heaven-tier bodybat technique, divine technique, and attackbat technique, then he would not need anything else.


    His heart burned with passion as he thought about this. Now he had a goal to work towards.


    However, he had learned the concept of tranquility from Zhao Qingyun. No matter how brightly the fire in his heart burned, he slowly immersed his mind into cultivation. He connected to the power of the stars and strengthened the Heavenly Rivers within his body while increasing his Qi.


    The days passed, and Long Chen experienced quick growth. He was fast approaching the Sixth River Stage. Since he had reached that level before, breaking through was much easier than the first time. Finally, after five days, he sessfully condensed the sixth pair of Yin and Yang Heavenly Rivers and attained the Sixth River Stage once more!


    Thest time he was at the Sixth River Stage, Long Chen had used Blood Sacrifice to boost his strength to the Eighth River Stage, leading to a regression of two stages back to the Fourth River Stage. This time, he had reached it after using Blood Transmutation once and focused cultivation. This was the highest level he had ever achieved. Also, since he had achieved this breakthrough through honest cultivation, he was more stable and more powerful.


    He stood up at the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain and suddenly felt light. The improvement in his cultivation made his senses much sharper.


    Ling Xi flew out of his ear and fluttered in front of him. Brother Chen, have you achieved a breakthrough again?


    Im at the Sixth River Stage now, Long Chen said with a nod. Although I didnt use Blood Transmutation, my progress hasnt been too slow. My foundation is much more stable with this method of cultivation!


    Thats awesome! Ling Xi praised with a wide smile.


    She was happy that he was making progress towards his goals.


    <em>Perhaps one day hell actually be able to storm the Biyang Imperial Capital, and hell get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. But if that happens, what will I do?</em>


    There was a small dilemma in her heart.


    Long Chen did not know of this dilemma.


    He did not stop cultivating even after attaining the Sixth River Stage, as he needed time to solidify his cultivation. After cultivating from morning to noon, he decided to return to the Heavenly Demon Pce. He had not returned for a while because he had been working towards his breakthrough, so it was time. It was also a chance for him to tell Zhao Qingyun and Dongfang Xuanxiao about the great news.


    During this time, Zhao Qingyun had taken great care of Long Chen and basically gave him everything he wanted. That was why Long Chen genuinely recognized him as his master. In fact, Zhao Qingyun was likely Long Chens first master on his cultivation journey. So far, he had learned what freedom and tranquility truly meant from Zhao Qingyun, and their rtionship had brought him many benefits.


    Long Chen first returned to Dongfang Xuanxiaos home. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Zhao Xuanming lived very peaceful lives, which was also what Long Chen longed for with his beloved. However, he was currently working hard towards his goals. Once he found a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, he would have the right to live like Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had expected Long Chen to attain the Sixth River Stage soon. He knew how extraordinary his stepson was, climbing his way up the ranks and even surpassing himself.


    Long Chen then entered Zhao Qingyuns pavilion and found Zhao Qingyun, who was cultivating.


    Master, I have reached the Sixth River Stage, said Long Chen directly after he arrived in front of him.


    Not bad. Thats ten days faster than I expected. But its already been one month and five days. Theres less than two months left. Are you still confident you can reach the Eighth River Stage?


    Of course I am. But Master, I would like to request abat technique today.


    Long Chen and Zhao Qingyun had always been straightforward, never beating around the bush. In the beginning, Zhao Qingyun was speechless at his manner of speaking, but he slowly got used to it. None of his other disciples had made as many direct requests. And this was not even Long Chens first time.


    Naturally, Long Chen was only this bold because he was much better than Zhao Qingyuns other disciples. Zhao Qingyuns strongest disciple was at the Sixth River Stage, and he was no match for Long Chen now.


    What do you want? Zhao Qingyun asked solemnly. Looking at how excited Long Chen seemed, it wouldnt be a small request.


    Traceless Demon Shadow, or the Demon Seed nting Technique. Hehe  Long Chen knew that these two items were very precious, so he was a little embarrassed to ask for them. So far, he had not even helped Zhao Qingyun in any way, plus barely anyone in the Heavenly Demon Pce even believed he was the infamous Long Chen. In fact, due to Long Chen, Zhao Qingyuns trustworthiness had decreased greatly among the disciples.


    Zhao Qingyun was speechless. He knew Long Chen had a big appetite, but he didnt know it was this big. He was merely at the Sixth River Stage, and yet he still dared to demand a Heaven-tierbat technique?


    It was understood that every three stages represented a huge leap. The Heavenly River Realms first three stages were the initial tier, while the next three stages were the intermediate tier. Long Chen was only at the intermediate Heavenly River Realm, yet he wanted to cross tworge canyons to learn a Heaven-tierbat technique?[1]


    You can ask again when you have attained the Seventh River Stage. Youll have a higher chance of cultivating it then. If you do it now, youll likely fail to cultivate it, said Zhao Qingyun with furrowed brows. It was not because he did not want to give it to Long Chen, but rather he felt that Long Chen would be unable to master it. He felt that there was no need to rush, and that it would end up distracting him from his current cultivation.


    Master, I have extraordinary talent inbat techniques. I was already able to cultivate advanced Earth-tierbat techniques when I was at the Divine Core Realm. That is why I guarantee that I can cultivate it as well as a Seventh River Stage cultivator, Long Chen said confidently, patting his chest.


    Are you sure? You cultivated advanced Earth-tier techniques when you were at the Divine Core Realm? Zhao Qingyun asked in shock.


    A hundred percent. Long Chen was referring to Divine Fire Clone, though he had magnified his aplishments a little bit, as he had only mastered Divine Fire Clone after he attained the Heavenly River Realm. He was only dramatizing it to receive the Heaven-tierbat technique as soon as possible.


    Alright. I will let you try. If you cantplete it, you must stop at once to prevent dying advancing your cultivation level. You must understand that cultivation level is the most important thing, said Zhao Qingyun with a nod.


    What are you nning to give me, Master? Long Chen did not expect to get Zhao Qingyuns agreement so easily and was excited. Zhao Qingyun was definitely a good master. Long Chen had made the right decision to stay at Demon Emperor Mountain instead of going to the Western Sea Kingdom after all.


    He had always been a grateful person. Since Zhao Qingyun had given him such great benefits, he would repay Heavenly Demon Pce greatly when he became powerful.


    The Demon Seed nting Technique is the reward for the disciple who ranks first at the Pyro Passageways training exercise. I dont have the right to give it to you privately. After all, these techniques were passed down by the ancestors, and they set the rules. However, I do have the right to let you try out Traceless Demon Shadow. Among the younger disciples, only two have received it. They are both Eighth River Stage cultivators and very talented. I assume they have mastered it by now.


    Thank you, Master.


    Traceless Demon Shadow would be more useful to Long Chen now than the Demon Seed nting Technique. Now that he had received Zhao Qingyuns permission, he was filled with gratitude. In the past, he had to rely on his own efforts to get anything. Now he received items so easily. He was not used to this at all, but it felt good.


    The secret scripture for Traceless Demon Shadow is stored in the Heavenly Demon Pces Martial Library. Its heavily guarded. Ill take you there now.


    Since he had agreed to Long Chens request, he did not waste any time and immediately led Long Chen to the Martial Library.


    Both the Heavenly Demon Lord and Long Chen were considered mysterious people in the Heavenly Demon Pce who did not appear in public very frequently. Now that they both appeared in the public eye once again, it quickly attracted a lot of attention. Many people had not even seen this nepotism babys face before.


    In a dark spot not far away, several teenagers watched intently and cursed, That damn nepotism bastard! No wonder he was bold enough to scare us with that wolf! They were the teenagers who had bullied Wang Xing.


    1. Trantors interpretation: The author describes a gap (a canyon) every 3 tiers, take this as an example:


    1st 2nd 3rd River Stage (Initial) | 4th 5th 6th River Stage (Intermediate) | 7th 8th 9th River Stage (Advanced). Since Heaven-tier is for cultivators beyond the Heavenly River Realm, Long Chen, now at the 6th stage, is crossing two canyons <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC casually doing what other cultivators had to spend years on


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 350: Martial Library

    Chapter 350: Martial Library


    Long Chen and Zhao Qingyun had not walked for long before they arrived at a pagoda-type building. The pagoda had seven floors and was both grand and regal. It was far from the impression of demons that normal people had. Long Chen even thought that the Heavenly Demon Pce should have been called the Heavenly Deity Pce because that would have been more urate.


    From far away, he saw many guards standing around the Martial Library. More than ten of them, who were leaders of the guards, were around the Seventh River Stage and could be considered stronger members of the Heavenly Demon Pce. The Martial Library was a sacred ce for cultivation here.


    Long Chen and Zhao Qingyun stood before the sacred pagoda.


    The Martial Library stores tens of thousands of martial techniques from the Yellow-tier up to the Heaven-tier. Defense techniques, attack techniques, body techniques, healing techniques, body tempering techniques can all be found here. They have been passed down in the Heavenly Demon Pce for over a thousand years, and Ive read through most of them. Ive got more experience in cultivatingbat techniques, so if you dont understand, you can ask me, Zhao Qingyun said with a bit of pride in his tone.


    Tens of thousands ofbat techniques spanning over many levels and categories. It was clear that the Heavenly Demon Pce possessed great wealth; they even had Heaven-tier techniques at the very top of the Martial Library.


    The security around the Martial Library is extremely strict. In fact, the three Demon Elders residences are all less than five hundred meters from here, so the slightestmotion here will cause them to show up immediately. The three Demon Elders are indeed annoying sometimes, but it is undeniable that they have contributed greatly to the Heavenly Demon Pce, Zhao Qingyun exined.


    As he spoke, the bowing guards moved aside to let him take Long Chen up. Traceless Demon Shadow was located on the seventh floor.


    Long Chen grew excited. He was about to receive a Heaven-tierbat technique.


    Suddenly, footsteps could be heard from behind. Long Chen and Zhao Qingyun turned around and saw that the elders were approaching, along with two people leading in front. One of them was the short but fierce Third Demon Elder, along with a muscr teenager who was standing respectfully behind him.


    This teenager was more than two meters tall and was covered in solid muscles and tan skin. There was a hint of viciousness in his eyes; he gave Long Chen the same feeling as the Heavenly Wolf Gang. They were all brutish, violent people.


    In terms of looks, the Third Demon Elder lookedical standing in front of the muscr young man.


    Based on the teenagers aura, Long Chen guessed his identity. The two most powerful disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce were at the Eighth River Stage, both under the First and Second Demon Elders. The Third Demon Elders most powerful disciples name was Yang Jun, and he was at the peak of the Seventh River Stage, apparently about to break through to the Eighth River Stage some time soon. He had also cultivated many advanced Earth-tierbat techniques, so he was ranked third among all the young disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce. He was the Third Demon Elders favorite disciple.


    The strong and vicious teenager was Yang Jun.


    But what did Zhao Qingyun going to the Martial Library have to do with them?


    Greetings, Pce Lord! The Third Demon Elder led the group to first greet Zhao Qingyun. Zhao Qingyun was the most powerful person in the n after all, and they could not break protocol.


    What are you doing here? Zhao Qingyun asked coldly. To be honest, he did not like the Third Demon Elder.


    Pce Lord, I was going to meet you, but I just happened to see you in front of the Martial Library while I was passing by. This has saved me some effort. The Third Demon Elder was obviously intending to ask Zhao Qingyun for something, so his tone was extra polite.


    Tell me, then, why are you looking for me? Zhao Qingyun asked.


    Its like this. The Third Demon Elder nced happily at Yang Jun behind him and said, In the past, my Big Brother and Second Sisters first disciples received Traceless Demon Shadow when they reached the Seventh River Stage, and they managed to cultivate it sessfully. Yang Jun is about to break through to the Eighth River Stage, so I humbly request the Pce Lord to let Yang Jun cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow!


    The young man, Yang Jun, also bowed at Zhao Qingyun and said, Pce Lord, please believe me. I am absolutely confident that I will master Traceless Demon Shadow within half a year and attain the Eighth River Stage. Soon, I will be able to fight Lin Zichen from the imperial family!


    The other elders, who were here to support his cause, all muttered words of praise. Yang Jun should have received the Traceless Demon Shadow a long time ago, but thest time he requested it, Zhao Qingyun rejected his request. This time, they had brought arge group of people to put pressure on Zhao Qingyun.


    They did not believe that Zhao Qingyun would refuse him with so many people supporting Yang Jun. The youth was an outstanding disciple after all, and the Third Demon Elder loved him. There was no reason for Zhao Qingyun to refuse to give the Third Demon Elder face again.


    Didnt I say itst time? Yang Juns most important task now is to reach the Eighth River Stage. He has been at this level for a long time, and adding a distraction will not benefit him. Zhao Qingyun furrowed his brows. The Third Demon Elder had picked a terrible time. There was only one scripture, and he had already promised to give it to Long Chen. Now that the Third Demon Elder was here, who would he give it to?


    Of course, he privately wanted to give it to Long Chen since he had made a promise and Long Chen was his direct disciple. However, because he was his direct disciple, the Third Demon Elder would pressure him even further, citing favoritism.


    Pce Lord, I can already sense a breakthroughing. If all goes smoothly, then I will achieve it in a month. Can I get Traceless Demon Shadow first, then cultivate it after that? No one is going to need the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture within a month anyway, right? Yang Jun never even looked at Long Chen once. To him, Long Chen had only be a disciple because of nepotism, so he was not worth his attention.


    Come again once you have attained the Eighth River Stage, then, said Zhao Qingyun slightly impatiently, waving his hand.


    This angered the Third Demon Elder. He had brought so many people with him, yet Zhao Qingyun refused to give him face. This enraged him because Zhao Qingyuns refusal meant that Zhao Qingyun did not take him seriously. How could he not be angry at this? He then said mockingly, Pce Lord, Traceless Demon Shadow is sitting in the Martial Library, and no one is using it. Since its going to be given to Yang Junter anyway, well save you the effort ofing to the library again if we give it to him now. Youre unwilling to give it to him today  Could it be because the scripture is being used for something else? For example, could it be possible that itll be given to your direct disciple, <em>Long Chen</em>?


    The groupughed at the Third Demon Elders mocking words.


    The name Long Chen had be the butt of the joke in the Heavenly Demon Pce. In truth, no one understood why Zhao Qingyun would name his nepotism baby disciple Long Chen. Was it to make him more famous? Indeed, because he was called Long Chen, he was now as well-known as the sun within the n.


    The Third Demon Elder knew that there was no chance Traceless Demon Shadow would be given to Long Chen, which was why he had made a joke. However, to his shock, he was right.


    You are right. I came here today because I have decided to let Long Chen cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow. As for Yang Jun,e again when you have attained the Eighth River Stage. Zhao Qingyuns words rang across the group.


    He had always been a straightforward person. After making this direct statement, he was not afraid of attracting more problems.


    The crowd fell silent. Everyone stared at Long Chen in shock. After a long time, they finally believed that they had not made a mistake.


    Him? Are you kidding me? Hes a fake! Does he even know what a Heaven-tierbat technique is?


    Pce Lord, your decision has made my heart turn cold! Are you really going to show tant favoritism?


    Words of disagreement arose from the group instantly, and each statement was worse than thest. Forget about Zhao Qingyuneven Long Chens brows were deeply furrowed after he heard them.


    Everyone was in disbelief, especially the Third Demon Elder and Yang Jun. Yang Jun did not say anything. All he did was re venomously at Long Chen with killing intent in his eyes. Although the Third Demon Elder was famous for his short temper, how could Yang Jun swallow this injustice too?


    Pce Lord, did I hear you right? Are you saying that a prodigy like Yang Jun is less deserving of receiving the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture than a nameless brat from God-knows-where? I refuse to believe it. Is this reallying from the Heavenly Demon Pces Pce Lord? Was this decision made solely because he is your direct disciple? Pce Lord, while it is undeniable that your strength allows you to hold an indisputable position as our leader, this does not mean that you can do whatever you want and ignore our ancestors teachings! Your decision does not only disappoint me, it will also disappoint Yang Jun, who is a hardworking child, and the tens of thousands of Heavenly Demon Pce disciples!


    Although the Third Demon Elder used ugly words, it was what everyone was thinking.


    Seeing that Zhao Qingyun was silent, the Third Demon Elder continued, I have indeed overstepped, but Im sure everyone here thinks the same. Pce Lord, if you think I am wrong, kill me! And I will die without regret!


    Yes, Pce Lord. Although the Third Demon Elders words were a little emotional, he is correct! We are all moved by his words too! We hope you will re-think your decision regarding Traceless Demon Shadow!


    Please, Pce Lord!


    Therge group of people knelt before Zhao Qingyun. Only Yang Jun and the Third Demon Elder did not.


    Everyone, get up and well talk, said Zhao Qingyun in exasperation after a moment of hesitation.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    The Third Demon Elder be overstepping his bounds


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 351: Disrespecting Elders

    Chapter 351: Disrespecting Elders


    To be honest, Zhao Qingyun had been cornered.


    The Third Demon Elder was just too smart; he had attacked right at his weakest spot. If Zhao Qingyun insisted on giving Long Chen Traceless Demon Shadow, then Zhao Qingyuns reputation would fall. The image of him in the bright-eyed disciples would bepletely distorted. If they felt that the Heavenly Demon Lord was a person who favored his own disciples without regard for right and wrong, wouldnt that mean that no matter how hard they worked, they would never be as strong as a person with the right rtions?


    Zhao Qingyun told them to get up, but no one did. The Third Demon Elder was privately smug to see this happen. He really wanted to see how Zhao Qingyun would clean this mess up.


    Pce Lord, if you dont give us an exnation for this, we arent getting up. These elders were all here because they had been instructed by the Third Demon Elder toe support him. Furthermore, they indeed felt that Zhao Qingyuns decision was inappropriate; therefore, they continued to kneel and refused to get up.


    This made Zhao Qingyun look very bad, which achieved the Third Demon Elders objective.


    The smugness he felt was indescribable.


    Even Long Chen never expected this. He looked up to see Zhao Qingyun in deep thought, trying to look for a perfect solution. Long Chen knew that Zhao Qingyun wanted to give Traceless Demon Shadow to him. The fact that he did not give up even under this much pressure moved Long Chen, which was why Long Chen had no choice but to step up.


    Everyone, let me say something. Long Chen took a few steps forward, standing next to Zhao Qingyun. His gaze swept across the group of kneeling elders, as well as the Third Demon Elder. Then he said, I was the one who asked my master for Traceless Demon Shadow. Coincidentally, Senior Yang Jun also wants it today. Since the beginning of time, the stronger party takes the treasure. You all seem to think that Senior Yang Jun is the stronger party and that I, Long Chen, am not fit to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow. However, how did you alle to the conclusion that Yang Jun is stronger than I am?


    What do you mean by that? Yang Jun asked suspiciously, ring like a tiger.


    Everyone froze and looked at Long Chen in confusion. Was the nepotism baby implying that he was stronger than Yang Jun? Was this a joke?


    Even the Third Demon Elder did not know how to react.


    Long Chens gaze fell on the kneeling elders and he said coldly, Elders, you all should get up. You are all people of status in the Heavenly Demon Pce. If you start falling on your knees and crying over such a small matter, its hard to reconcile these actions to your lofty identities. The Pce Lord had asked all of you to get up, and you refused. What is the meaning of that? Are you forcefullybeling the Pce Lord to be evil and unjust? I think you all should reflect on yourselves!


    The elders faces and ears turned red with Long Chens harsh words, slowly realizing that they had crossed the line.


    With Zhao Qingyuns personality, he merely did not care to argue with them. That was the only reason they were still alive. If they had a different Pce Lord, all of them would have lost their heads already.


    When one person stood up hesitantly, everyone else followed.


    There was pride in Zhao Qingyuns eyes. To be honest, he really had been forced into a corner. If he used violence to suppress them, it would backfire. The most suitable person to speak up was Long Chen, and Long Chen did not disappoint himhe had resolved the awkward situation with just a few sentences.


    When everyone started standing up because of Long Chens words, the Third Demon Elders mouth twitched. He demanded coldly, Brat, what are you trying to say?


    What are <em>you </em>trying to say? Didnt you say that giving Traceless Demon Shadow to me is unfair? Tell me, then, what do you think is fair? I, Long Chen, will oblige, said Long Chen without a hint of obsequiousness, staring straight into the Third Demon Elders eyes.


    Youre very bold, you brat! How can you speak to me with that tone? This is utterly insubordinate! Did your parents not teach you respect? The Third Demon Elder was enraged to hear no respect in Long Chens tone. There was already killing intent in his re.


    How can I speak to you with that tone? Third Demon Elder, Id like to ask you, then, how could you speak to my master with that tone? That was even more insubordinate, right? Didnt your parents teach you respect? Are you an animal? Long Chen asked.


    The Third Demon Elder had ced pressure on Long Chen using the insubordination excuse, but unexpectedly, Long Chen had thrown it right back at him, and he was even called an animal. The Third Demon Elder had been high above everyone for countless years, so he never expected to be insulted like this. Blood rushed into his head, and if Zhao Qingyun was not standing next to Long Chen, he would have attacked.


    Long Chen had already made him lose his temper once when they were at the Demon Pavilion. Now Long Chen had done it once more. The Third Demon Elder had to swallow his mes of anger back into his belly; one could only imagine how suppressed and resentful he felt.


    This would have been better if Long Chen made no sense. Unfortunately, Long Chens words made too much sense. The Third Demon Elder had indeed spoken rudely to Zhao Qingyun.


    Zhao Qingyun was privately pleased to see the Third Demon Elder so miserable after a few words from Long Chen. He now knew why Long Chen had managed to turn his fate around in such a shocking manner. One major reason was the courage he disyed!


    Everyone else was stunned. They had initially ignored this teenager, but who would have thought that he would be this bold with such a sharp tongue?


    Did this person of unknown background who had be the Pce Lords direct disciple due to nepotism have something outstanding in him?


    Amidst the groups discussion, the Third Demon Elder suppressed his anger with great difficulty, then he threatened fiercely, Your name is Long Chen, right? Are you saying that you want topare yourself and Yang Jun to see who is stronger? To see who is more suited for Traceless Demon Shadow? Alright, Ill let Yang Junpete against you. Do you dare take this challenge?


    Since Im the one who brought it up, I am obviously not going to take it back, said Long Chen with his chin up.


    Alright! Pce Lord, Long Chen has agreed. If my disciple Yang Jun proves to you that he is countless times superior to Long Chen, will Traceless Demon Shadow be given to my disciple? The Third Demon Elders gaze passed Long Chen and fell on Zhao Qingyun.


    Long Chen turned to give Zhao Qingyun a confident look. Zhao Qingyun was initially hesitant, but he was assured by the look in Long Chens eyes. He knew that Long Chen had killed the six royalmanders and the whole dwarf tribe. He was a vicious person who could hold up against the Ninth River Stage Lin Zichen. With such viciousness and confidence, he would be able to fight Yang Jun, the third-strongest disciple of the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    Since you all have made your decision, then we shall do it. Whoever performs better today will get to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow. All of this will depend on your own capabilities. Do not me me for not showing mercy if anyone decides to change their minds. There are many things I let slip, but that does not mean I will avert my gaze forever.


    Zhao Qingyuns re was like a bolt of lightning. Everyone he looked at felt their scalps go numb as they regretted their actions. It was a fact that Zhao Qingyun was stronger even if all the masters of the Heavenly Demon Pce were added up. Therefore, wasnt it stupid to disobey the pir of the Heavenly Demon Pce?


    Now that Zhao Qingyuns permission had been obtained, everything would be much easier.


    The Third Demon Elder sighed in relief and eyed Long Chen suspiciously. Since the Pce Lord has agreed, then I shall set the rules. The most suitable method topare two people is a duel, but with such arge gap in cultivation level, some people will surely say that Yang Jun had an unfair advantage. Lets put it this way. Both of them will attack me, and I will not retaliate. All I can do is dodge and block. Anyone who canunch an attack above their own level and show me the most impressive attack will be the victor. What do you guys think? Using this method, we are judging your potential, not your current strength.


    The Third Demon Elder looked at them with glee.


    He was implying that Long Chen was no match for Yang Jun at all. And since the master-disciple duo did not want to have an unfair advantage, he had suggested theypare their potential instead.


    This put the Third Demon Elder on a moral high ground, showing that they were fair andpassionate. Long Chen did not think so, because they were both attacking the Third Demon Elder. With the Third Demon Elders abilities, he could definitely control the performance of both sides. He could be slightly lenient with Yang Jun and easily make his disciples attack look much more impressive.


    Long Chen was impressed that the Third Demon Elder could think of such an airtight n that even ced himself on moral high ground within such a short time.


    However, all of these cheap tricks were nothing in the face of true strength. Long Chen felt no fear.


    Everyone praised the Third Demon Elders idea, then he turned to ask for Zhao Qingyuns opinion. Pce Lord, what do you think?


    Zhao Qingyun naturally also saw through this cheap trick, but he trusted Long Chen. Also, he wanted to personally see how extraordinary Long Chensbat abilities were for him tomit such shocking acts.


    That will do. This is your own idea. When the results are out, you must respect them fully and stop spouting nonsense. Youre one of the Demon Elders; you must know that you need to uphold the Heavenly Demon Pces image, and your own image. I can make you a Demon Elder, but I can also cripple you.


    Zhao Qingyun spoke impassively, but the Third Demon Elder sensed a power strong enough to threaten him within this tone.


    I will naturally keep the promises I make. Lets not waste any more time, then. Youre the senior out of the both of you, so youll go first! said the Third Demon Elder after taking a few steps back.


    Everyone backed away to reveal a patch of empty space. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time to teach someone some manners


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 352: Seven Killings Demon Finger

    Chapter 352: Seven Killings Demon Finger


    Everyone backed away to make space for Yang Jun and the Third Demon Elder in front of the Martial Library, waiting excitedly to watch the show. They shot Long Chen asional nces but were shocked to find that he was neither panicked nor anxious. Long Chen and Zhao Qingyun stood together and watched calmly, their expressions identical.


    They are indeed master and disciple, someonemented.


    Nonsense. Hes merely mimicking the Pce Lord. His acting is quite good though. Well see if hes only putting on an actter when hes up against the Third Demon Elder.


    Zhao Qingyun turned to look at Long Chen and said, Are you really confident youll win?


    No, Im just going with the flow. At worst, he can have it. Anything that belongs to me wille eventually. Also, Im very used to merit-basedpetition, Long Chen responded with a small smile.


    Youve changed a lot since you came to Heavenly Demon Pce. Zhao Qingyun was pleased.


    Is that so?


    After Yang Jun and the Third Demon Elder exchanged some meaningless words, the test was finally about to begin. Zhao Qingyun and Long Chen did not speak; they merely watched quietly. Long Chen paid extra attention because he wanted to get an estimate of the Third Demon Elders strength and think of a strategy.


    Yang Jun turned and gave Long Chen a look of challenge and viciousness. Then he looked at his master, and the power of a peak Seventh River Stage cultivator exploded within him. He pounced at the Third Demon Elder instantly at awesome speed, his agility not influenced by hisrge stature at all. In the blink of an eye, he arrived in front of the Third Demon Elder.


    Good! The Third Demon Elder nodded approvingly, cheering Yang Jun on.


    The people watching were mostly between the Sixth and Seventh River Stages; very few of them were at the Eighth River Stage. They were also very satisfied with Yang Juns performance and cheered him on.


    He lived up to his reputation as the Third Demon Elders number one disciple. They could tell he was extraordinary from the moment he attacked!


    Everyone was certain that Yang Jun would win the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture.


    Seven Killings Demon Finger! Yang Jun roared as Qi exploded from inside him. A faint cloud of ck Qi flew towards the Third Demon Elder. The finger seal was activated, and seven consecutive finger attacks wereunched. Every attack carried formidable power, attacking the Third Demon Elder from all directions. This attack targeted the seven most important meridians of the human body. Only one attack hitting its target was needed to kill the opponent instantly!


    The Seven Killings Demon Finger was an advanced Earth-tierbat technique. It only took one nce for Long Chen to know how powerful it was. Each of the seven consecutive attacks was more powerful than thest. Cultivators of the same level would find it hard to withstand this attack!


    Not bad! praised the Third Demon Elder. He moved his feet, then he blurred into countless afterimages that surrounded where he initially was. Once Yang Juns attack had passed through, everyone saw that the Third Demon Elder was actually still standing on the same spot. Yang Juns seven consecutive attacks had all passed the Third Demon Elder without hitting their target even once!


    Yang Jun, again!


    He was very pleased with Yang Juns performance, so he called out to Yang Jun again to let him show off his skills.


    Yes, Master!


    Yang Jun was filled with battle spirit under the encouragement of his master. He moved on the tips of his toes and charged at the Third Demon Elder once more. This time, he used an even more powerful attack, coupled with a bodybat technique!


    Long Chen, did you see that? The bodybat technique that the Third Demon Elder used was the Heaven-tier Traceless Demon Shadow, Zhao Qingyun whispered.


    Long Chen had already guessed this himself. When the Third Demon Elder used the technique, illusory images of himself were everywhere, so no one could tell which one was the real him. And just like that, Yang Juns attacks passed through without hitting him.


    A technique like that could be used to dodge an enemys attack, as well as boost ones own attacks to be unimaginably more destructive. Long Chen privately swore to get Traceless Demon Shadow no matter what!


    Of course, Yang Jun was doing his very best. There were many people watching, so the Third Demon Elder would embarrass himself if was too lenient. Plus, would Yang Jun even need him to be lenient?


    Seventy-Two Paths True Demon Fist! Yang Jun sessfully charged right up to the Third Demon Elder. His body shook and he let out a terrifying roar like a wild beast. Tan, solid muscles bulged from his body, and he threw heavy punches at the Third Demon Elder. The wind howled at every move!


    First Path!


    This was clearly an even higher-level Earth-tierbat technique. The Seven Killings Demon Finger only had seven moves, but this one had seventy-two, which was ten times more. As the attacks stacked up, the force they generated grew stronger and stronger. The final destructive force was much more powerful than the Seven Killings Demon Finger!


    Combat techniques of the same tier could vary in power. The Seven Killings Demon Finger was considered a more elementary technique within the advanced Earth-tier, while the Seventy-Two Paths True Demon Fist was one of the more powerful ones.


    The Seventy-Two Paths True Demon Fist caused a hugemotion. Yang Jun turned into a powerful gust of wind that forced the Third Demon Elder, who could not retaliate, backwards. He roared hysterically and threw increasingly heavy punches. Everyone was privately shaken by the crazed look on his face.


    Yang Jun had a nickname, Crazy Demon, because he was crazy both when he cultivated and fought. This was why he had managed to be the Third Demon Elders number one disciple.


    To be honest, the two prodigies who were at the Eighth River Stage were not feared by the younger disciples; they were most afraid of provoking Yang Jun because that meant never-ending trouble in the future. Long Chen had clearly invited a lot of trouble on this day.


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The Third Demon Elder had a heavy expression, but he did not move his feet. Instead, he used a simple fist technique to neutralize Yang Juns attack. This was actually an indirect show of leniency. If he had used Traceless Demon Shadow since the beginning, Yang Jun would not have been able to force him back. Therefore, the Third Demon Elder now looked like he was using all his energy to defend himself.


    Not bad! Not bad!


    The Third Demon Elders precise punch interrupted Yang Juns attack, even forcing his next punch back. However, Yang Jun did not lose his focus because of this. With a fierce grimace, he roared once more, and Qi erupted from his body. He charged once more and threw another punch towards the Third Demon Elders abdomen, leaving a ck demonic shadow in his wake!


    <em>m!</em>


    The Third Demon Elder used his arm to block this punch. However, Yang Jun had used all his strength in this punch, so the vibration from its momentum shattered the Third Demon Elders sleeve. Even part of the Third Demon Elders arm was reddened from the vibrations!


    By then, the Third Demon Elder knew that it was enough. The moment Yang Jun hit him, he moved his arms quickly and gripped Yang Juns neck, so he was in a tight chokehold. If he wanted to, he could kill Yang Jun whenever he wanted.


    This meant that Yang Jun had lost.


    But Yang Jun was happy because shattering a Ninth River Stage cultivators sleeve while being at the Seventh River Stage himself was the best he had ever done. Of course, the Third Demon Elder had been lenient.


    <em>I have managed to shatter Masters sleeve, while Long Chen probably wont even be able to touch Master. Looks like Traceless Demon Shadow will surely be mine today.</em>


    Yang Jun was very happy. Under the Third Demon Elders instruction, he silently stepped away to let Long Chen have the space.


    <em>Although you did not get to beat me, how dare you try to fight me? While I cant kill you in public, there are countless ways to kill someone. Long Chen, today is your unlucky day. Its your fault for provoking us and wasting my time.</em>


    Yang Jun thought he would get his hands on Traceless Demon Shadow with no issues, but then Long Chen. If not for the Third Demon Elder for pressuring the Pce Lord, Yang Jun wouldve been the one with the unhappy ending.


    He was the chosen one. If he could not even beat a newly recruited disciple, Yang Jun would not be able to live with himself.


    Long Chen, do well, Zhao Qingyun said to Long Chen.


    Long Chen nodded and walked into the battlefield. The Third Demon Elder, who was now missing a sleeve, stood with his hands behind his back. He watched Long Chen with amusement.


    Third Demon Elder, it looks like your arm was itchy because you reached out to let your disciple scratch it! I wonder, is it still itchy now? Your arm isnt the only ce I can scratch; I can do other things too.


    Long Chens mocking words made the Third Demon Elders face turn dark red. He red at Long Chen coldly and said, You brat, dont you twist the truth with your slippery words! Time waits for no one. Be quick and get on with it. I have many matters to attend to in the n, and I dont have time to waste with you here.


    Long Chen smiled, preparing to attack. At the same time, he was thinking of a perfect strategy. <em>It looks like I will need to use that technique. Ill pretend to be a pig, then eat the tiger.</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen chargedzily at the Third Demon Elder without even using his Azure Dragon Halberd or Dragon Soul Transformation. He used the Sword Devil Finger instead!


    Such a low-levelbat technique! It cant even scratch my itch! When the Third Demon Elder saw how weak Long Chens attack was, he burst intoughter. Although the Sword Devil Finger was a decent attack, it was easily shattered with a flick of his hand. It could not even break through the Third Demon Elders defenses.


    Long Chen put on a shocked expression and cried in disappointment, Thats impossible! My advanced ck-tierbat technique is very powerful! It didnt even touch him, why?!


    His panicked reaction was within everyones expectations. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Finger technique names always made meugh (no horny)


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 353: Pretend

    Chapter 353: Pretend


    Zhao Qingyun wasughing internally. That brat Long Chen was just too cunning. Everyone thought that he was pretending to be Long Chen while using his connections to get close to Zhao Qingyun. He was ying into this impression and making everyone think that he was weak. His acting was convincing enough, and the crowd erupted intoughter. Even the Third Demon Elder waspletely rxed. He decided he would toy with Long Chen for a while, then wrap this up.


    Naturally, he did not dare overdo it, because Long Chens master, the Heavenly Demon Lord, was present. It would be bad if he became upset. After Zhao Qingyuns warning just now, the Third Demon Elder knew that he had to give the Pce Lord face.


    Hey, kid, Ill y with you. Ill show you what the true Martial Dao is! Dont worry, attack me with all you have! The Third Demon Elder smiled.


    Thats impossible! Long Chen gave a look of disbelief. He elerated and arrived quickly in front of the Third Demon Elder. This time, he took out the Azure Dragon Halberd and attacked using Starsweep Dragon. Countless stars turned into dragons and flew right at the Third Demon Elder!


    The Third Demon Elder dodged Long Chens attacks easily andughed as he said, That technique is not bad at all! However, Im guessing that its only an elementary Earth-tier technique, right? This isnt your most powerful move, is it, kid? Its no wonder youd dream of getting the Heaven-tier techniques. Your current skills are weak! Too weak! They cant even be shown in public!


    When he finished speaking, he had already dodged Long Chens Starsweep Dragon. The Third Demon Elder did not even need to use Traceless Demon Shadow, because he knew that the more carefree he seemed, the lower Long Chens potential value would look.


    Even Starsweep Dragon cant touch you? Thats impossible! Have a taste of this, then! I refuse to believe that even this cant beat you! Attack!


    Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension! He waved the Azure Dragon Halberd, and arge, illusory dragon image flew from near the Third Demon Elders crotch upwards. If it struck him, he would not be able to make more children. Then again, at his age, that thing was probably not useful anymore.


    This move is good too, but its far from being good enough


    The Third Demon Elderughed coldly, then, before the halberd arrived, he reached into the halberds range of motion and punched its side. Long Chen was thrown back, tumbling several times on the ground before stopping.


    Everyone burst intoughter at his pathetic reaction. They all knew that the Heavenly Demon Lord had not only recruited a useless direct disciple, but this disciple was also an idiot.


    Hes like his stepfather, only good for looks but is actually useless trash. You were bragging so much just now; I thought you actually had some talent. Unfortunately, this is the best you can do. Yang Jun smirked coldly.


    The Pce Lords decision to recruit him is just too funny. I bet Long Chen will be a joke to everyone in the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    Hehe, he is already a joke.


    The Third Demon Elder was secretly enjoying himself as he listened to thements.


    <em>He sounded like he thought he could defeat Yang Jun, but he turned out to actually be useless trash. Though this brat really knows how to act, because it even convinced me.</em>


    The Third Demon Elder was a little speechless about Long Chens abilities. He had only gently pushed Long Chens halberd away, but Long Chen had been sent rolling away. If he truly wanted to attack him, Long Chen would have been dead.


    <em>Whatever. I need to finish him quickly. Based on his current performance, its not enough to defeat Yang Jun at all.</em>


    The Third Demon Elder arrived in front of Long Chen in the blink of an eye and asked sternly, You brat, are you able to stand?


    Long Chens face was pale, and there was a hint of fear in his eyes as he peered at the Third Demon Elder. He struggled to crawl up on his feet, then gritted his teeth and said, I havent lost! I am a Beast Warrior! I still have my Beast Soul Transformation!


    Haha, show me your Beast Soul Transformation, then! I want to see how much itll boost your strength. Ten percent? One percent? The Third Demon Elder stoodzily in front of Long Chen with a look of contempt.


    Youll see! Long Chen cried, as if mustering up his courage. Then he activated his Dragon Soul Transformation. Dense, red scales and spines gradually covered his whole body.


    Oh! Your Beast Soul Transformation looks good, the Third Demon Elder said in an overly dramatic tone. He was in a great mood.


    Let me give you a taste of my most powerful move! Long Chen dered indignantly.


    He was still acting, and it was very convincing. It was an airtight performance. Not only had the Third Demon Elder let down his guard, even the audience was rxed. They wanted to see howical Long Chens most powerful attack would be.


    Long Chen had them in the palm of his hand.


    Zhao Qingyun was watching the duel unfold. Since he knew Long Chen well, he understood Long Chens n.


    <em>So this is why this kid has managed to aplish so many things that ordinary people cannot at such a young age. Based on how well hes ying their minds, therell be a good show soon.</em>


    Just as Zhao Qingyun finished this thought, Long Chen, whose cultivation level had risen to the Seventh River Stage after the Dragon Soul Transformation,unched his most powerful attack at the defenseless Third Demon Elder standing at arms length!


    Divine Fire Clone!


    Blood Devouring Domain!


    Soul Swallowing Gaze!


    Dragon Kings Burial!


    Long Chen used all four techniques at the same time. He used the Blood Devouring Domain to suppress the Third Demon Elder, restricting his movement, then surrounded him with 125 clones to block off his escape route in all directions. Surrounded by so many clones, the Third Demon Elder did not have enough space to use Traceless Demon Shadow! Then Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to influence the Third Demon Elders mind. Although its effect was subtle, it was better than nothing!


    Long Chen then unleashed Dragons King Burial, which was his most powerful attack!


    Long Chens performance had made the Third Demon Elderpletely let his guard down, but then Long Chen unexpectedly exploded with such a tight and terrifying setup. Not only was the audience shocked, even the Third Demon Elder froze. When he woke up, Long Chen had already sealed off his escape route using the Divine Fire Clones!


    The 125 clones surrounded him tightly, looking like a giant ming egg with the Third Demon Elder as the yolk in the center!


    What is this?! The Third Demon Elders face changed. Under normal circumstances, Long Chens Dragons King Burial would not have been a threat to him. However, they were very close to each other, and Long Chen had suddenly exploded with a fatal attack. The Third Demon Elder believed that if he did not use abat technique, he would be injured!


    It was not unheard of for a master to be killed by a weaker opponent due to carelessness.


    The Third Demon Elder had no time to think at such a critical juncture. In the face of this almost life-threatening attack, he instinctively unleashed his own attack, which was the Seven Killings Demon Finger. Seven consecutive attacks wereunched, bringing with them a gust of wind. He was using an attack as defense against Dragon Kings Burial!


    When the Third Demon Elder used the Seven Killings Demon Finger, it was not on a scale that Long Chen could withstand. However, using this attack meant that he had broken the rules he had set. At the veryst moment, Zhao Qingyun appeared in front of the Third Demon Elder and caught the attack in his palm. Then he let go without even sustaining a single scratch.


    The sudden twist in events caused the entire crowd to fall silent.


    Long Chen put away all his clones and disabled the Blood Devouring Domain. He stood next to Zhao Qingyun and looked at the Third Demon Elder with a smile. The calmness he disyed made him seem like he was apletely different person from moments ago. The crowd now knew that Long Chen had been pretending to be a pig to eat the tiger.


    Long Chen had to have considerable talent to be able to trick the Third Demon Elder and everyone else with his acting. They all felt a cocktail of emotions as they stared at the smiling teenager.


    Third Demon Elder, didnt you say just now that you could only defend and dodge without attacking? May I ask why you decided to use the Seven Killings Demon Finger? Can I interpret it as this: dodging and defending were no longer enough to withstand my attack, and you had to use your advanced Earth-tierbat technique to survive? You must know that I did not even use an advanced Earth-tier technique! Long Chen said, staring at the reddened Third Demon Elder.


    A huge wave of shock crashed through the Third Demon Elder. He stared at Long Chen with great uncertainty, his heart torn. He knew that he had been tricked, and he never would have expected Long Chen to be able to unleash power on par with a Seventh River Stage cultivator.


    <em>What if  he really is Long Chen from the rumors?</em> This question slowly popped into everyones minds. They recalled that since his arrival, the attitude he disyed did not belong to a useless idiot. His ability to withstand humiliation and trick them just now was further proof. That trick showed that he had more patience than the average person and had mastered human psychology.


    It was not a surprise for a person like that to evade the fate of death and kill an opponent much stronger than he was.


    Third Demon Elder, between Yang Jun and I, who do you think the winner is? Long Chen asked with a grin as they all watched in shock. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Say sike! A tiger pretending to be the pig has always been a ssic move


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 354: Twenty-Day Promise

    Chapter 354: Twenty-Day Promise


    Who won?


    The answer was clear. After Long Chen deactivated his Dragon Soul Transformation, everyone estimated that he was at the Sixth River Stage. His cultivation level was lower than Yang Juns, yet he had forced the Ninth River Stage Third Demon Elder to use abat technique to save his own life. All Yang Jun has managed to do was shatter the Third Demon Elders sleeve. The victor was clear.


    Even though the Third Demon Elder wanted to talk Yang Jun up, he had no choice with Zhao Qingyun present. His face turned increasingly green as his eyes were fixed on Long Chen. Finally, he said, Your performance was slightly better.


    Even the Third Demon Elder had to admit that the victor had been determined. Initially, they could have let Yang Jun and Long Chen duel to decide who would receive the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture, but the Third Demon Elder was too smart for his own good. Since he was the one who had set the rules, then he had no choice but to admit defeat.


    This meant that Long Chen would receive the scripture.


    The other people thought that this was unbelievable because before the battle, no one would have dared to imagine that the useless Long Chen could win. They were familiar with Yang Junsbat abilities, so they thought this was just a wild dream.


    No! I refuse to ept this! Yang Jun breathed heavily and his eyes slowly turned red. He red at Long Chen and announced through gritted teeth, Everyone! Long Chen forced my master to retaliate not because he is strong, but because he is more cunning and tricked my master! If we are talking in terms of true strength, he is no match for me. Pce Lord, I sincerely beg for you to let me fight him so we can decide who will get to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow!


    There was great dissatisfaction in Yang Juns heart, even hatred. However, Long Chen had already gotten Traceless Demon Shadow and was no idiot, so he said, Why are you acting like this? These were the rules of the test, and they were set by your master. You also agreed to it just now. Now that youve lost, youre refusing to admit it. Are you even a man? Also,bat requires intelligence. A dumb donkey like you shouldnt throw a tantrum here if you dont even know what the art of intelligence is. Long Chen naturally did not hold back when talking to him.


    <em>You!</em> What did you say? Im going to kill you! Yang Jun threatened viciously.


    Enough! The Third Demon Elder gasped and quickly held the enraged Yang Jun back. He said to Zhao Qingyun, Pce Lord, young people are unwilling to ept defeat sometimes, so please do not take it to heart. Yang Jun,e with me. Dont embarrass me here. He spoke darkly to Yang Jun towards the end.


    Yang Jun still looked unwilling to relent, and his venomous re never left Long Chen. He had been dreaming of the Three Great Secret Scriptures of the Heavenly Demon Pce since he started cultivating, but when one was almost in his grasp, Long Chen suddenly popped up and snatched away what belonged to him! How could he not hate Long Chen?


    The more skillful person gets it. Thats what you all said, Long Chen said mildly.


    The show was ending. The Third Demon Elder and Yang Jun were about to leave shamefully, and everyones impressions of Long Chen had changed drastically. Long Chens performance had helped Zhao Qingyun gain some face, making him very happy internally. Zhao Qingyun said with a smile, Lets go. Ill take you to get Traceless Demon Shadow.


    Wait!


    An elderly voice rang. Long Chen turned to look and realized that the two other Demon Elders had noticed themotion and were walking over. After watching for a bit, they had figured out what was happening.


    Greetings, Pce Lord!


    The two Demon Elders stood fairly close to Zhao Qingyun, both eyeing Long Chen secretly. They were at least smarter than the Third Demon Elder, so they fully understood that Zhao Qingyuns newly recruited direct disciple was indeed the Long Chen from the stories.


    What is it? Zhao Qingyuns brows were slightly furrowed. It was clear that these two were here to cause trouble.


    Pce Lord, I only would like to say that Traceless Demon Shadow has always been given to outstanding disciples beyond the Seventh River Stage. These are the ancestors rules. May I ask if Long Chen has reached the Seventh River Stage yet? the First Demon Elder asked solemnly. He was not as rash as the Third Demon Elder.


    He is now at the Sixth River Stage, Zhao Qingyun answered mildly.


    Then he doesnt qualify. Ancestral rules aside, the Sixth River Stage is two whole steps away from the Heaven-tier techniques requirements. He wouldnt be able to sessfully cultivate it at all. Inparison, Yang Jun is about to break through to the Eighth River Stage. It is my humble opinion that Long Chen wont be able toprehend Traceless Demon Shadow within even half a year. Why not let Yang Jun learn it first? Once Long Chen attains the Seventh River Stage, Yang Jun will haveprehended it already. Wouldnt that be perfect timing? said the First Demon Elder.


    The Second Demon Elder chimed in as well. Big Brother is right. That way, Long Chen will be able to focus on raising his cultivation level without any distractions. Also, the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture will be in the hands of someone who can actually utilize it, rather than letting someone who shouldnt cultivate it hog it. Most important of all, we wont be breaking the ancestral rules.


    Their points were all based on logic, so most of the people present agreed.


    Yang Jun himself had said that he would attain the Eighth River Stage in less than a month. Based on hisprehension abilities, he could probably begin to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow in a months time. Soon after, he would no longer need the secret scripture. If Long Chen reached the required cultivation level by then, it would be just in time to hand it over to him. That way, everyone would be happy.


    However, Long Chen would never allow that to happen.


    He knew that he had to resolve this issue on his own.


    Therefore, he took a step forward and said, Indeed, you two have presented valid points. However, what if I am confident that I willpletelyprehend Traceless Demon Shadow within twenty days?


    What?


    Long Chens words stunned the crowd for a while. Then they erupted in disagreement.


    Did he say he could finish cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow within twenty days? Did the brat think Traceless Demon Shadow was one of his low-grade techniques? One that could be mastered so casually?


    This is a Heaven-tierbat technique! He said hes going to master it in twenty days? What kind of joke is that?


    I think he got hit in the head. Hes gone mad because hes so desperate for a Heaven-tier technique.


    Long Chens confident words made the First and Second Demon Elders look at each other.


    Yang Jun cant attain the Eighth River Stage in twenty days anyway. Going by your logic, since the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture is just sitting there, might as well let me take it back to cultivate it! If I am not sessful, I will return it. Long Chens impassive tone showed everyone his self-confidence.


    Long Chen, are you being serious? the First Demon Elder asked cautiously.


    A gentleman does not swallow his words, Long Chen responded with a smile.


    If that is the case, Pce Lord, I shall not say anything more. If Long Chen is unable toprehend Traceless Demon Shadow by then, I hope that you will give the scripture to Yang Jun. I have witnessed Yang Juns hard work all these years. If we focus on training him, he will definitely be a pir of the Heavenly Demon Pce in the future, said the First Demon Elder, looking at Zhao Qingyun.


    Since it has been decided, you all may leave. Zhao Qingyun was getting annoyed at this point.


    However, there was a sudden cry of dissent.


    You say you can finish cultivating it in twenty days? Long Chen! Do you have the guts to make a bet with me?! Yang Jun yelled through gritted teeth, standing next to the Third Demon Elder.


    How can anyone know if you will actually do it in twenty days? You need to show it off, am I right? Why dont we have a duel in twenty days? Thats coincidentally right before the Pyro Passageways training exercise. If you have sessfully cultivated Traceless Demon Shadow by then, youll get your chance to show it off and Ill learn from it too. Do you dare take this challenge? This waspletely Yang Juns idea, but he was confident that the Third Demon Elder would support him. As expected, after he made this deration, the Third Demon Elder privately nodded.


    <em>Twenty days? Long Chens deration is just too ambitious. Well let Yang Jun test him when the timees, and well watch him embarrass himself. Yang Jun lost to him today; if he doesnt get to fight Long Chen again to undo this knot in his heart, he might not even be able to reach the Eighth River Stage, </em>the Third Demon Elder thought to himself.


    All eyes fell on Long Chen.


    Since Long Chen dared to make such an ambitious statement, then surely he was aware that he risked embarrassing himself.


    Long Chen thought of the Pyro Passageways training exercise.


    Master, didnt you say I could enter the Pyro Passageways if I defeated Yang Jun? Long Chen asked Zhao Qingyun next to him.


    If you defeat Yang Jun, you will be ranked third among the young disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Anyone in the top ten can participate in the Pyro Passageways training session, Zhao Qingyun responded.


    The audience listened to their conversation, though they thought that Long Chen was merely dreaming.


    Long Chen, do you dare take the challenge? Yang Jun asked again.


    Of course I do. When you lose again, I hope you wont continue being a sore loser, said Long Chen without hesitation.


    News of their duel spread like wildfire across the entire Heavenly Demon Pce!


    This was officially the day Long Chen truly became famous within the n. Everyone now learned that Long Chen had some capabilities, seeing as he had put on such a shocking performance in front of the Martial Library. However, his dramatic deration that he would master Traceless Demon Shadow within twenty days spread across the whole n too.


    Everyone thought that he was just a dreamer who did not know his own strength.


    After the promise was made, everyone left.


    Are you really confident that you can finish cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow within twenty days and defeat Yang Jun? To be honest, even Zhao Qingyun did not think that Long Chen couldplete this task. It was just too difficult. Even Zhao Qingyun could not have done it at his age.


    I dont know either, but therger the pressure, the more I grow. Twenty days will be enough! Long Chen grinned. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    This is how MC gonna win twenty dayster


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 355: Traceless Demon Shadow

    Chapter 355: Traceless Demon Shadow


    At the topmost floor of the Martial Library, Long Chen received his first Heaven-tierbat technique: Traceless Demon Shadow. He finally felt more assured when he put the scripture, made of an unknown paper-like material, into his Universe Pouch.


    This would be his task for the next twenty days. Since he had already made such a huge promise, then he had to master Traceless Demon Shadow before then! There were three Great Secret Scriptures in the Heavenly Demon Pce, and his goal was to obtain them all while simultaneously raising his cultivation level.


    He hadpleted his first step. Of course, it was not actuallypleteit only counted if he mastered Traceless Demon Shadow. If not, the scripture would have to be given to Yang Jun and he would be the joke of the n.


    Take some time to familiarize yourself with it. If you dont understand anything, you can ask me, Zhao Qingyun said.


    Long Chen nodded. However, he knew that he would always understand the theory because the mysterious dragon jade gave him strongprehension abilities. What hecked was the ability to execute, so he would need twenty days to practice.


    After bidding Zhao Qingyun farewell, he returned to the ce where he frequently cultivated, which was the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain. There, he sat on his usual boulder and started to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow.


    Traceless Demon Shadow. Heaven-tier techniques are indeed extraordinary


    As Long Chen read through the scripture, he felt that regr techniques could notpare to its ingenuity and power. The mostplicated technique he had cultivated so far was the advanced Earth-tier Divine Fire Clone. However, this was ten times more subtle than Divine Fire Clone.


    With his supernaturalprehension abilities, he easily understood the scripture. The next step was cultivation.


    Ling Xi sat next to him, watching the process. She had a lot of knowledge about Heaven-tier techniques, which was of great help to him.


    Understanding was easy. Cultivating was not. He faced great difficulty in the practical usage of the theories as every step of the process was very different from thest. Each step had to be performed consecutively before he couldplete Traceless Demon Shadow. It was indeed not easy to utilize the full Traceless Demon Shadow and achieve a traceless effect.


    However, if one could master it, then the user would be able to instantly create tens of thousands of split-images of himself like the Third Demon Elder had done. The opponent would find it difficult to distinguish the real person and his images; even a same-level opponent would struggle to track his movement.


    Traceless Demon Shadow really isnt easy. My speed gets out of control very easily. Xiao Xi, what do you think Imcking? Long Chen stopped his practice. This was already his fifth day cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow, but he knew that he had not made much progress. At least he had not truly felt the essence of Traceless Demon Shadow yet.


    I feel like yourecking something, said Ling Xi, cocking her head to the side.


    But she could not ce a finger on what it was.


    Ill practice for a while more, then go visit Stepfather and the rest, and also Wang Xing. Its time I give him the stuff I previously promised him.


    Long Chen practiced for a while, then he packed up and quickly descended the mountain with Xiang and Ling Xi. It took him fifteen minutes to arrive at Xuanxiaos ce. After spending some time with Xuanxiao, he headed to the Azure Cloud Residence.


    The other direct disciples were chatting. When they saw him arrive, they all took a few steps back and no one dared talk to him. They knew that he was very likely the Long Chen from the rumors. That Long Chen had killed way too many people, so they were instinctively a little scared of him.


    However, they did think that he had overestimated himself after his dramatic deration in front of the Martial Library. They knew that he was strong, but at his current cultivation level, he wasnt <em>that </em>strong.


    Long Chen did not care about the odd looks he received. These people were mere passersby to him, and there was no need to fret over their opinions. He returned to his own quarters to find Wang Xing cleaning his room.


    Wang Xing, Long Chen called gently.


    Brother Chen? Youre finally back! Ive waited for a long time! He looked like he was cleaning, but he was mostly waiting for Long Chens return. He was overjoyed to see Long Chen and scurried over to look at him expectantly.


    Wang Xing was currently at the Heavenly Core Realm, but his strongestbat technique was only an intermediate ck-tierbat technique. Long Chen wrote down some notes about the Sword Devil Finger, then he handed them to Wang Xing and even gave him some divine jades, Heavenly River Pills, and arge number of spiritual herbs he had taken from others.


    Thank you, Brother Chen! Wang Xing was so overwhelmed that he almost knelt in front of Long Chen. Fortunately, Long Chen grabbed him, so he did not kneel.


    Work hard on your cultivation. Take a look at it now; you may ask me if you dont understand anything. I need to resume my cultivation soon, Long Chen said, sitting on a stone stool.


    The teenager looked at him with fire and worship in his eyes, as well as battle spirit. That was why Long Chen did not mind helping him. This could end up changing his life.


    After studying the Sword Devil Finger for a while, Wang Xing told him nervously, Brother Chen, could you go out with me once? Ive been too scared to go out these few days. I want to buy something from the Treasure Pavilion.


    Why are you too scared to go out? Long Chen was stunned.


    I  Do you remember the people who bullied mest time? They are the Third Demon Elders disciples, which is why theyve always been very arrogant. Im just an errand boy, so Im inferior both in terms of status and strength. Thats why Im too afraid to go out. However, if I have you with me, Ill go! Youre much stronger than them!


    Are they still bullying you? Long Chen frowned.


    Mhm. Wang Xing nodded. Butst time, I escaped on my own. They threatened to beat me up every time they see me.


    Wang Xing was actually still a little scared.


    What do you want to buy? Long Chen wanted to see if he had it in his Universe Pouch. If he did, he could give it to him directly.


    Red Heart Grass, Wang Xing answered.


    Long Chen did not have that. It was probably a ck-tier item. Although he had collected many ck-tier items, he did not have everything. In fact, he felt that as his cultivation level increased, such things became more and more useless to him.


    Alright. Ill go with you. Long Chen nodded and stood up.


    He knew that within every faction, the marketce where the exchange of goods happened was the busiest ce in the area. Long Chen was now a celebrity in the Heavenly Demon Pce, so he would be watched like a monkey. However, he had no fear in his heart and naturally was not afraid of the odd looks.


    Thank you, Brother Chen! Ill lead the way! Wang Xing packed up excitedly and stood aside for Long Chen to exit. Then he ran up happily to Long Chen to lead the way.


    Long Chen had not been to the Treasure Pavilion. The Demon Pavilion and the Martial Library were icondmarks in the Heavenly Demon Pce. From the outside, the Treasure Pavilion looked like a gigantic tortoiseying on the ground, taking up arge piece ofnd.


    He could feel itsvishness only when he approached. A thick medicinal fragrance could be detected even from far away. This ce held many shockingly precious treasures, and Long Chen guessed that everything the disciples needed could be found there.


    Purchases were usually made using Heavenly River Pills. Prices were only stated in divine jades if their values were too low.


    When he was just about to enter, Xiang turned around and walked to the wall of the mountain andy down. He closed his eyes, waiting for Long Chen. Xiang did not need to cultivate these days; he was waiting for Long Chen to master Traceless Demon Shadow and defeat Yang Jun because only then would he get the chance to enter the Pyro Passageways. Then it would be his time to shine. If he had enough resources, he would surpass Long Chen in the blink of an eye.


    Xiang did not want to enter a crowded ce, and Long Chen did not mind. He followed Wang Xing into the Treasure Pavilion. The people within the bustling crowd recognized him.


    Look! Isnt that Long Chen? The Pce Lords ninth direct disciple?


    I heard hes already received Traceless Demon Shadow! He even announced that he would master it in twenty days! Do you guys believe him?


    Nonsense! Only an idiot would believe him. I dont really believe hes Long Chen in the first ce. That legendary brute not only killed the sixmanders of the royal guard, he also even killed the dwarf patriarch, who was at the Eighth River Stage! Does he look like he can do that?


    Nope. This brat looks like a pretty boy.


    Simr discussions erupted.


    All these idiots! Once Brother Chen beats all of you up, youll learn of his power! Ling Xi was angry at the insults directed at Long Chen.


    Ignore them. When the timees, they will change their minds about me. Itll be useless for me to exin now. Might as well go with the flow, Long Chen said with a chuckle.


    Ever since that old man became your master, your personality slowly started changing. The old you would have beat them up if they said anything that made you unhappy, said Ling Xi, pursing her lips.


    That just means I have matured! Im filled with the irresistible maturity of a man!


    They traveled towards the source of the medicinal fragrance  <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    "What do you think I''mcking?"


    "I think you arecking something."


    Yeah, and water is wet


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 357: Murong Yu

    Chapter 357: Murong Yu


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire had destroyed Yang Bings lineage.


    Yang Bing screamed and fell from the cliff, twitching all over. In reality, Xiang knew how far he could go and only caused Yang Bing to lose one organ. That was the only injury he had received.


    Everyone surrounded him, looking at each other in panic.


    Young Master Bings older brother is nearby! We need to tell him quickly! When one of the teenagers saw that Xiang had not left, but rather found another spot to rest, he quickly ran off. They soon found Yang Jun.


    At this time, Long Chen had already bought the Soul Nourishing Seeds and was running out after hearing themotion.


    His gaze met Yang Juns cold eyes once more.


    Whats going on? Long Chen asked.


    Xiang nodded pointedly so Long Chens gaze was directed towards the unconscious Yang Bing. Following everyones eyes, he soon saw Yang Bings smooth crotch.


    You did that? Long Chen did not know whether tough or cry. He thought he was the only one who would do something like that.


    Xiang nodded in exasperation.


    Xiang said that the brat tried to pee on him. He only wanted to scare him, but he did not manage to hold back in time  Ling Xi giggled.


    You did well. I would have done the same, Long Chen said with a grin. He did not me Xiang.


    This statement was actually meant for Yang Jun to hear.


    When he said that, Yang Juns face turned even greener. He took a few steps forward, and a heavy aura pressed on Long Chen.


    Long Chen, what did you just say? If you dont offer any exnation for what happened today, dont think youll get to leave alive.


    Are you trying to scare me? Long Chen asked nonchntly. Is there a need for me to exin? Its obvious, and Im sure many people saw it. This brat on the ground tried to pee on Xiang but unexpectedly ended up losing an important part of his body. It''s purely his own fault. He was the one looking for trouble.


    Long Chens nonchnce triggered Yang Juns temper.


    They would meet for a duel in a couple of weeks, but Yang Jun was already unable to hold himself back.


    If thats the case, give me the animal, Yang Jun demanded through gritted teeth.


    You must be dreaming! Xiang is my brother! Would I hand my brother over to you? Long Chen smiled.


    Brother? Long Chen, if you call an animal your brother, doesnt that make you an animal too? Yang Jun smirked darkly. Everyone erupted intoughter. He had finally managed to beat Long Chen with words. At least he had a small win here.


    However, Long Chen was not upset at all. He nced at Yang Bing on the ground and said, It doesnt matter if hes an animal; at least my brother still has his knob! Not like someones brother, who doesnt even have his  What kind of brother is that? I think sister is more fitting. How lovely.


    Long Chen! You! Even ten Yang Juns could not beat Long Chen at banter. Yang Jun was furious, and his eyes almost shot our mes. Everyone watched with great interest.


    Remember. There are still fifteen days left till the day we agreed on. It doesnt matter how much you hate me. Well meet in fifteen days. This is not a good time, Long Chen reminded him.


    In reality, as the direct disciple of the Heavenly Demon Lord, Long Chen was ranked higher than Yang Jun. Also, Long Chen had already shown them what he was capable of, winning over the Heavenly Demon Lord. If Yang Jun attacked now and injured Long Chen, it would definitely anger Zhao Qingyun.


    It was not worth it.


    That was why Yang Jun could only swallow his anger. Even though his younger brother was no longer a man, he had to hold himself back. In fifteen days, all would be settled.


    Alright. You said it. In fifteen days, I will resolve todays grudge. Long Chen, remember this: I will not hold back. Fists and feet do not have eyes in battle. If I identally kill you, you cant me me for it.


    You can brag all you want if youre that strong, said Long Chen, pursing his lips.


    He had to defeat Yang Jun, but it was more important that hepleted the cultivation of Traceless Demon Shadow. He had not figured the technique out yet, so he was feeling some pressure.


    <em>Fifteen days. Is it really enough? </em>At this point, even he had the same question.


    Once Yang Jun left with Yang Bing, everyone else dispersed. However, everyone was looking forward to their duel, seeing as the grudge between them had worsened.


    Most of them wanted to see Long Chen make a fool out of himself. Yang Jun was ranked third among the younger disciples after all. His position had never been challenged, which was already a great feat.


    How was it possible for anyone to cultivate a Heaven-tier technique in twenty days? They guessed that Long Chen could not even understand the secret scripture at this point.


    ***


    During the argument between Yang Jun and Long Chen, a boy and a girl were standing not far away, watching themotion.


    Both of them were under twenty years old, but it was clear that they had extraordinary achievements.


    The boy was wearing green robes. He had a handsome but expressionless face, as well as a tall, lean figure like a gpole. He had a healthy skin tone, the color of grains, shapely eyebrows, a tall nose, and tightly pursed thin lips. His dark, ink-green eyes looked as deep as the abyss.


    The girl next to him was wearing a ck chiffon dress. She had a delicate figure, and in parts where her skin was shown, it was shockingly fair. Her face was covered in a ck chiffon veil, but based on the shape, she was definitely gorgeous.


    If Long Chen saw her, he would think that she looked familiar.


    Sister Yu, do you think this is the real Long Chen? the boy asked softly.


    Ive seen him before. He is Long Chen, she replied in a canary-like voice.


    Oh? Why havent I heard you mention him? The boy was surprised.


    Do I have to tell you everything that happens to me? The girl nced coldly at him, then she said, Im going back to cultivate. Goodbye.


    Then she left without even looking back.


    The boys gaze grew lustful as he stared at her curves.


    <em>ying hard to get? Youll be lying under me one day! Murong Yu, is there a woman in this world that I, Yang Danfeng, cannot have?</em>


    ***


    Long Chen led Wang Xing back to the Azure Cloud Residence, then he prepared to return to Demon Emperor Mountains peak to continue cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow. He felt a little pressured after todays events.


    Brother Chen, dont worry. Theres still a lot of time left. Take your time. The more anxious you are, the more distracted youll be. Its better if you quiet your heart down, Ling Xi said delicately.


    Youre right. Long Chen had been focused on quietly cultivating for the past few days. Although todays events had given him more pressure, he could quickly regte his emotions and continue to immerse himself into the world of Traceless Demon Shadow.


    Theres a girl waiting for you out front, Ling Xi said unhappily.


    Long Chen froze. He activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze, and his surroundings slowly changed. Indeed, he saw a girl with a ck veil standing on the path where he usually passed through. She was clearly waiting for him.


    <em>Eighth River Stage. She must be one of the top two prodigies of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Since its a girl, shes likely Murong Yu. </em>Long Chen slowly thought about it. Very soon, he arrived in front of her. Murong Yu was tall and radiated a cold elegance simr to Yin Mengyao. However, she did not show her face.


    When he approached, he realized that he had actually met Murong Yu before. Right after he had killed the sixmanders, Murong Yu was the one who had given him advanced Earth-tier spiritual medicine so he could recover. She was also the one who had told him about the dwarves.


    At the time, Long Chen guessed that based on her strength, she had to be from a major faction like the Heavenly Demon Pce. He had not expected to be right.


    She looked up and asked in a cold voice, Long Chen, you remember me, right?


    You showed me kindness. Of course I remember you. Murong Yu was not an enemy to him.


    She nodded, then looked around him. Have you failed? That beautiful girl, where did she go?


    She knew about his story, so she also cared about where Ling Xi had gone. Even she had to admit that she was not as beautiful as Ling Xi, and there were not many girls in the world who were.


    Murong Yu was only asking out of concern, so Long Chen replied, Thank you for your concern. I have not failed. All I can say is that shes in a safe ce now. And shes very happy.


    Thats good. Shes such a pretty girl, even I could not stand to see harme to her. Murong Yu nodded, then she looked at him. Im guessing that you came to the Heavenly Demon Pce for the Three Great Secret Scriptures and the Demon Emperor Sword, then n to return to the Biyang Imperial Capital to take your revenge. Am I right?


    Long Chen nodded. The girl was smart, and he did not need to hide his intentions.


    If that is the case, then we arepetitors. I now have one more rival! I have already mastered Traceless Demon Shadow and even received the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique. The fight for the Demon Emperor Sword will likely being soon. Well see what happens. Murong Yu did not mince her words, but her tone was friendly. It sounded like she was very excited to have one more rival. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ooo new waifu


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 360: Brother Chen Appears

    Chapter 360: Brother Chen Appears


    Many people agreed with the Third Demon Elder.


    Zhao Qingyun frowned slightly. Long Chen was not here, and that was a fact. He did not know what to say, so he let them be.


    When did that little brat Long Chen be this unreliable? With his personality, even if he did notplete the technique, he wouldnt get cold feet. Zhao Qingyun was very confused.


    Pce Lord, I think we should call it off. Long Chen has probably taken the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture and slipped out of Demon Emperor Mountain. The Heavenly Demon Pce probably only has Two Great Secret Scriptures left! the Third Demon Elder mocked.


    Shut your mouth! Zhao Qingyun was already slightly angry. The rage of a Heavenly Passage Realm master was the equivalent of a storm mming into the Third Demon Elder. The Third Demon Elder let out a grunt and stumbled a few steps backwards, almost falling on his bottom.


    Let me tell you this: I am the Heavenly Demon Lord, not you! Long Chen is a disciple I took in! You say hes a traitor; doesnt that mean youre calling me blind? Third Demon Elder, youre bold!


    Zhao Qingyun was usually mild-tempered, but the moment he raged, the whole crowd fellpletely silent. They were initially prepared to cheer in support of the Third Demon Elder, but when they saw Zhao Qingyun rage, they recalled that Long Chen was his favorite disciple and realized that they had indeed crossed the line.


    The Third Demon Elder was very unwilling to be suppressed by Zhao Qingyun, but with Zhao Qingyuns status and strength, the Third Demon Elder waspletely helpless.


    Old Three, why are you so impatient? Why dont we wait two more hours? After that, you wont need to do anything. The Pce Lord will know how to deal with it. The First Demon Elders hoarse voice woke the Third Demon Elder up. He nodded solemnly.


    Standing behind the First Demon Elder was his number one disciple, Yang Danfeng, at the Eighth River Stage. And standing behind the Second Demon Elder was also her disciple, Murong Yu at the Eighth River Stage.


    Murong Yu said gently, I think he wille. I told him the trick to cultivate the technique. Then again, he wouldnt seed even if he had forty days to practice. Twenty days is just too short. However, based on his personality, I dont think he ran with the scriptures. If he wasnt held up by something else, he will definitelye.


    Murong Yus words stunned the people around her. They all gave her strange looks, especially Yang Danfeng, who did not understand why she had spoken up.


    Xiao Yu, do you know Long Chen? And you two have an amicable rtionship? the Second Demon Elder asked sternly.


    Murong Yu nodded and told her about the time they had met at the misty valley.


    All I saw is that he works very hard and is a man who can shoulder responsibility. He seemed like a good person, which is why I helped him, said Murong Yu, slightly embarrassed.


    Nonsense! the Second Demon Elder snapped, suppressing her voice.


    Murong Yu was stunned.


    Xiao Yu, listen to me. Try not to interact with Long Chen in the future, or I will punish you, the Second Demon Elder said in a low voice. The three Demon Elders held strong contempt for Long Chen, yet as the number one disciple of the Second Demon Elder, Murong Yu had given Long Chen so much help, which infuriated the trio.


    You should not have helped him at the time; you should have let him die. That way, your Third Martial Uncle would not have suffered so much with Yang Jun! The Second Demon Elder looked at her mefully.


    After some hesitation, Murong Yu finally voiced her confusion. Master, I dont understand. Isnt Long Chen quite a good person? He holds huge potential, and now that he has entered the Heavenly Demon Pce, he will definitely strengthen the n. He might even reach the Heavenly Passage Realm. Plus, he and the imperials are enemies. Isnt that in alignment with our objectives?


    Xiao Yu, are you actually an idiot? The Second Demon Elder shook her head. Have you forgotten? ording to the ancestral rules, the person who possesses the three secret scriptures, sessfully cultivates them, and is recognized as master by the Demon Emperor Sword has the right to be the next Pce Lord. Do you want the ruling seat of the Heavenly Demon Pce to end up with an outsider, whose background is unknown?


    Murong Yu understood her logic and finally understood the reason why the three Demon Elders were so nervous about Long Chen. After they confirmed that Long Chen was indeed the infamous Long Chen from the outside world, they were not relieved at all. Their mockery had turned into caution. They had long nned for one of their own disciples to be the next Heavenly Demon Lord, but Long Chen had suddenly appeared. Who would feel good about this?


    Murong Yu could only smile in exasperation. In reality, she did not really care for the position of Pce Lord. The person who really cared about it was next to herYang Danfeng. At this moment, he was staring at Murong Yu with an inexplicable light in his eyes.


    Zhao Qingyun had suppressed the three Demon Elders, but after waiting for a long time, the disciples lost their patience. They started to discuss in whispers.


    Whatever, lets go back. Its definitely going to be a no-show.


    Damn it, I was looking forward to this! Long Chen is a coward!


    Not far away from them was the young Wang Xing. He hade here with infinite admiration and respect for Long Chen. However, Long Chen had not shown up, and he felt very ufortable listening to other people insulting him. Finally, he could not stand it any longer and turned around to yell, Shut up! How could Brother Chen be afraid of Yang Jun? He must have been dyed by something important! You all just wait! Very soon, he will get here and use Traceless Demon Shadow to defeat Yang Jun!


    You bratty kid! What did you say? Are you looking for death? Wang Xings outfit showed that he was just an errand boy. It was insubordinate for an errand boy to speak so rudely to them.


    When Wang Xing saw that the others looked like they wanted to beat him up, he stumbled a few steps back in fear. However, when he thought of Long Chen, he gained courage and said, Im just telling the truth. Brother Chen will be here very soon. All you people speaking ill of him are looking for death!


    Heh, hes actually fighting back! My brothers, lets beat him up! The whole group raised their fists and surrounded him. They were about to attack when a person stood in front of them. It was Yang Danfeng. The First Demon Elder had spotted the fight brewing and was growing worried that it would throw the whole crowd into chaos, so he sent Yang Danfeng as a control measure.


    The bullies were disciples under the First Demon Elder, as well as an errand boy.


    You fools! p each other a hundred times when you get back home! I will checkter, and if I see that your faces are not swollen, I will p you myself! Yang Danfengs cold voice made them feel as if they had fallen into a freezer. They would undeniably pick to p each other themselves. If Yang Danfeng did it, would they survive?


    The disciples fled pathetically.


    Yang Danfeng turned around and nced at the timid Wang Xing. Do you even know Long Chen?


    Yeah! Brother Chen is very good to me! Wang Xing said proudly.


    Yang Danfeng smiled and returned to stand behind the First Demon Elder without another word. This small conflict was just a minor interruption inparison to the whole event.


    One more hour passed. The crowd hadpletely lost their patience, and even Zhao Qingyun could no longer suppress their resentment. If he continued to force everyone to remain, as a Pce Lord, his reputation would be the worst it had ever been.


    Father-inw, perhaps Chener really isnting. Maybe we should let them all go back? suggested Dongfang Xuanxiao, worried that Zhao Qingyuns ratings would fall greatly.


    Zhao Qingyun could only nod tiredly. He was ready to announce it when the crowd suddenly erupted. Zhao Qingyuns heart trembled when he looked to the left. Indeed, there was a figure rushing over at extremely high speed. <em>Boom! </em>The person broke through the crowd and stood on the Martial Arena!


    It was none other than Long Chen.


    Everyones minds went nk for a while when they stared at the panting but determined teenager. They all thought that if Long Chen showed up, he would be scolded to death. But looking at how hard he was panting, it looked like he had truly been held up by something?


    He finally came. Zhao Qingyun smiled approvingly. If he did note, no matter how the day ended, it wouldve been difficult for Zhao Qingyun to pick up the pieces.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Zhao Xuanming both heaved a sigh in relief.


    The only person on the side of the three Demon Elders who sighed in relief was Murong Yu. She knew she had not made a mistake. Long Chen had killed Song Zhongcheng, so there was no way he was afraid of a Seventh River-Stage cultivator like Yang Jun.


    The three Demon Elders had very interesting expressions, though the Third Demon Elder was the most furious. He yelled, Long Chen, if you were afraid, you should not have evene! How dare you even agree to a duel against Yang Jun?! You left ten thousand members of the Heavenly Demon Pce here waiting for you! What is the meaning of this?!


    Long Chen was also very frustrated internally. He had excavated the stone talisman and then time slowed down. Two days had passed in just the blink of an eye! And even after he rushed over as fast as he could, the crowd had already been waiting for almost an hour.


    Everyone, I apologize. I was held up by some important matters. However, there is no need to be resentful because soon, you will witness a very exciting duel! I believe every person here will think that this show was worth their time! Long Chen looked around him. His words were filled with confidence.


    <em>Did he seed? </em>Murong Yu had a feeling.


    Yang Jun slowly looked up and said darkly, That important matter of yours made ten thousand members of the Heavenly Demon Pce wait an hour for you. Long Chen, you think too highly of yourself!


    Thats right! Who do you think you are? That I have to wait here for you?


    Thinking you can cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow in twenty days is the joke of all jokes! Long Chen, if you can really do it, why dont you show us your Traceless Demon Shadow?


    The people watching below were furious.


    Since I have already caused a dy, then I shall not waste more time on nonsense. Yang Jun, talk is meaningless. Shall we begin? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Dammit I need the


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 359: The Ancestral Dragon Who Controls Time

    Chapter 359: The Ancestral Dragon Who Controls Time


    Xiao Xi, I should be fine if I inject my Qi into it, right? he asked before doing it.


    Dont worry. Its just a shell, Ling Xi responded.


    With Ling Xis guarantee, Long Chen was emboldened. Ling Xi did not know about the dragon jade, so she did not care about the stone talisman. However, Long Chen did not think it was a simple item at all. He guided his Qi and slowly injected it into the stone talisman.


    Hmm? To Long Chens shock, the stone talisman absorbed the Qi he injected, instead of it flowing out. Xiao Xi! Since it was an abnormal urrence, he had to let Ling Xi exin. After he called for her, the ck dragon image on the stone talisman shone with a ck light. The light was very faint, and it flickered slowly like a small candle.


    Why is it doing that? Ling Xi was surprised too. She leaned closer to the stone talisman and said with wide eyes, Brother Chen, I dont know why its like that either. How strange...


    If you dont know, then it must be very strange  Although it was glowing, nothing else was happening. Long Chen flipped it around a few times, but the ck glow did not fade. That was when he suddenly felt a strong energy that made even his soul tremble.


    <em>What is this feeling  </em>Long Chen faintly sensed that a ripple had radiated from the stone talisman and spread across all directions. The ripple was invisible, but he had definitely felt it. In fact, he sensed that due to the stone talisman, him, Ling Xi, and Xiang nearby were being contained in a strange space.


    After the creepy feeling appeared, Ling Xi gasped. Brother Chen, look at the sun! Long Chen looked up and was stunned. The sun, which was initially in the center of the sky, was setting in the west very quickly. In just a breaths time, the sky had turned dark!


    Whats happening?! Both Long Chen and Ling Xi werepletely stunned. Before they knew how to react, the sky lit up once more just two breathster! The sun rose quickly from the east and set in the west, so in two more breaths time, the sky was dark once again!


    What the hell? Whats happening?! Long Chens thoughts were a mess. Whatever he was witnessing was just too shocking to him. Any normal person would bepletely stunned by this scenario!


    Long Chen saw that one long day had beenpressed into four breaths, so one day had passed within this time. The sun flew like a shooting star, rising from the east and setting in the west. This length of time was only enough for Long Chen to utter one sentence!


    Xiao Xi, why is time passing so fast?! Long Chen started to have difficulty breathing.


    Time didnt speed up; <em>our </em>time slowed down in here! Its countless times slower here! Ling Xi said in a panic.


    One whole day had passed during the course of this conversation! They werepletely shaken by the circumstances.


    Lets get out of here now!


    Long Chen had just uttered this sentence and descended from the boulder when time finally stopped flowing so rapidly. He did not know how much time had passed, but the sun was still directly above them in the sky as if nothing happened.


    Xiao Xi, was that just a dream? Long Chen asked hoarsely, looking at the unmoving sun in the sky above.


    I dont think so. Its impossible for us both to be in the same dream. She looked around in disbelief. Brother Chen, I think its possible that this is the noon of several days in the future  she said weakly.


    Long Chen was shaken.


    Thats impossible. How could such a bizarre thing happen? Can the speed of time be changed? Long Chen shook his head, his face pale.


    Brother Chen


    Hm?


    Ling Xis voice trembled when she said, I have heard of a formidable existence from ancient times. One that could control time. I think there was an ancestral dragon who controlled the passage of time, which is why it ispletely possible. We can think of it this way. Time within the space we were in just now was suddenly countless times slower than the outside world, so we felt like we were normal, but the outside was going really fast. But to the outside, perhaps we were not even moving


    When she mentioned the ancestral dragon, Long Chen recalled that he was still holding the stone talisman. The ck glow from the dragon image waspletely gone. His hands shaking, hemented, Xiao Xi, if it really is like you said, that our time was slowed down, then does that mean it was because of this thing?


    I guess so. Ling Xi stared at the in-looking stone talisman in astonishment. She did not understand why such a powerful stone talisman would be buried in such a low-levelnd. What was it, anyway? These questions floated in Long Chens mind too. He did not dare hold it anymore, neither could he abandon it, so he immediately put it in his Universe Pouch. At least he felt more assured that way.


    Theres a dragon on the stone talisman. Xiao Xi, what is the name of the ancestral dragon that could control time? Long Chen felt like it was rted.


    Ive forgotten. Ive only casually heard of it  Its Taixu something  I dont quite remember, said Ling Xi, a little embarrassed.


    Long Chen did not dwell on this matter, because it was too far from his current level.


    That bastard Xiang is still sleeping, even after such a huge thing happened! Ling Xi covered her mouth, speechless. Long Chen did not know whether tough or cry. Xiang had be fond of taking naps. Every time he had nothing to do, he wouldy down. Of course, he truly had nothing to do.


    <em>I need to give him Traceless Demon Shadow one day so he can try it out, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Xiao Xi, if we want to check if what just happened was a hallucination, well know when we return to the Heavenly Demon Pce. Oh no!<em></em>Long Chen gasped when he recalled something.


    When she saw the shock on his face, Ling Xi asked hurriedly, What is it, Brother Chen?


    If there really was a problem with the flow of time, then how many days passed just now? We previously had two days left until the duel with Yang Jun. It would be embarrassing if we missed it! Not only for me, but my master will lose face too! No way, I must rush back now! Long Chen made Ling Xi return to the Ling Xi Sword, kicked Xiang, and yelled for him to catch up, then he dashed to the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    <em>Please dont make me miss it How many days have passed? Which noon am I in right now?</em>


    ***


    The agreed time was noon. It is noon right now, but Pce Lord, where is Long Chen? The Third Demon Elders shrill voice rang through the air, filled with smugness.


    This duel had be very famous in the Heavenly Demon Pce, to the extent that every person knew about it. That was why everyone of a certain status was present today. The space around the Martial Arena was densely packed with disciples. Almost everyone was here to watch the show.


    Zhao Qingyun, the three Demon Elders, Pavilion Lords, Enforcers, and Elders all had their own seats, watching from high above. Only Yang Jun was standing in the arena, arms crossed as he gazed downwards regally. There was thick contempt and pride in his eyes.


    It was time, but Long Chen was not here. What did that mean?


    It meant that Long Chen had gotten cold feet.


    Why had he gotten cold feet?


    It meant he had bragged too much. Twenty days to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow? It was a joke. A huge joke. Long Chen knew that he could not do it, so he did not want to show up and embarrass himself. In reality, many people had expected this to happen. No matter how talented Long Chen was, it was impossible for him to master it in twenty days.


    After the Third Demon Elders very loud question, all eyes fell on Zhao Qingyun, waiting for his answer. Zhao Qingyun was initially filled with confidence in Long Chen, so he never went to look for him before this. Long Chens absence today was also out of his expectations.


    Why are you so impatient? Perhaps he has been dyed by something. Since everyone is already here, whats the problem with waiting just a little longer? Zhao Qingyun said mildly. To be honest, he did not have much confidence either, because he did not know if Long Chen would show up.


    Many people had opinions about what he said.


    Is this a joke? How could so many of us wait for one person? Is he being stupid? Or is he just too afraid to show up?


    Lets not wait anymore. That cowardly tortoise has probably left Demon Emperor Mountain. Hes probably run off somewhere. Lets go back! Well be waiting for nothing.


    Simrints rang across the crowd.


    Next to Zhao Qingyun, Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming were also sitting with deeply furrowed brows. Dongfang Xuanxiao looked around. He knew that if Long Chen did note today, he would lose even more face than Zhao Qingyun.


    Whats the matter with Chener? He would never do something like this. Father-inw, let me go search for him, said Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Theres no need. If hes supposed toe, he wille. Zhao Qingyun shook his head.


    After the Third Demon Elder heard Zhao Qingyun, he mocked him, Wille? Who knows? We can wait, but not forever. I think we should call it off. He isnt even here now; will he evere?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    That was not what I had expected. A time dragon


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 356 - Heavenly Sacred Rain

    <h4>Chapter 356 - Heavenly Sacred Rain</h4>


    Wang Xing was unlikely to be bullied after he had arrived at the Treasure Pavilion. After they agreed on their gathering point, Long Chen let him shop on his own while he went towards the spiritual herb area.


    ¡°Brother Chen, what are you doing here?¡± Ling Xi asked expectantly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve bought you any more soul-nourishing herbs since I bought you the Sky Soul Fruit, right? How are you doing now?¡± Long Chen asked caringly.


    ¡°My soul has received sufficient nourishment during my stay in the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus and has recovered greatly. However, it has not reached satiation yet. Higher-level Earth-tier spiritual medicine should help. At least I will be able to assist you if you encounter a sticky situation,¡± Ling Xi said in a serious tone.


    ¡°What sort of sticky situations are you talking about?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°At a minimum, I can hold off a Ninth River Stage cultivator for you and still preserve a third of my current soul power afterwards.¡± Ling Xi grew excited, knowing that she could help Long Chen again.


    ¡°That¡¯s great! But remember this. Do not act rashly without my instruction,¡± Long Chen warned. He would never let Ling Xi use her abilities unless it was thest resort and his life was in danger. This was because Ling Xi would easily lose sight of her limits in order to save him, just like what happened at the Star Devil Prison. Thankfully, they had a perfect ending, or she and Long Chen would have forever disappeared from this world.


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Ling Xi stared at him timidly with widened eyes, then she nodded.


    Soon, she could smell the fragrance and remarked in surprise, ¡°There are many soul-nourishing herbs here! There are six in total, but there¡¯s something odd!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s odd?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Soul Nourishing Seeds are advanced Earth-tier spiritual medicine, but they¡¯re selling them as initial Earth-tier herbs. One Soul Nourishing Seed is only going for twenty Heavenly River Pills,¡± she said, puzzled.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go check it out,¡± he said.


    Ling Xi led Long Chen through the crowd. After making a few turns, they arrived in a secluded section of the Treasure Pavilion. Many of the shops in the Treasure Pavilion were owned by Heavenly Demon Pce disciples, so the owner of the shop in front of him was a thin man of about thirty years old. He was currently reading a book intently.


    When he sensed that someone was in front of him, he looked up at Long Chen weakly and said, ¡°What do you want?¡±


    Long Chen looked around, and his gaze fell on a small basket. There were indeed six thumb-sized ck seeds inside that radiated a powerful but subtle energy. If one was not sensitive enough, it would have been difficult to identify them.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen these ck beans before. What are they?¡± Long Chen asked casually. They were priced at twenty Heavenly River Pills, but if he rushed to buy them, the owner could sense that they were special and raise the price.


    ¡°This is called an Energy Fruit. After eating one, you¡¯ll be filled with energy and you¡¯ll be able to cultivate for ten days and ten nights in a row. It¡¯s an initial Earth-tier spiritual medicine! What do you think? Would you like to buy one?¡± the shop owner exined passionately, seeing as Long Chen had shown interest in an item he had been struggling to sell.


    ¡°It¡¯s that special?¡± Long Chen gave him an impressed look, though he quickly frowned. ¡°I want to buy them all, but they¡¯re a little expensive.¡±


    ¡°All of them?¡± Everything totaled to a hundred and twenty Heavenly River Pills. Seeing as Long Chen was genuinely interested, the shop owner said hurriedly, ¡°If that¡¯s the case, they¡¯re yours for a hundred Heavenly River Pills. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Long Chen looked as if he was unwilling to part with a hundred Heavenly River Pills. After the purchase, he put the six Soul Nourishing Seeds in his Universe Pouch and left.


    ¡°Finally tricked an idiot to sell those stupid things off. The heavens never disappoint a person who works hard ...¡± The thin man smirked creepily. He did not know that he was the actual idiot. The Soul Nourishing Seeds were actually advanced Earth-tier spiritual medicine that boosted one¡¯sprehension abilities and also nourished the soul. It was normally impossible to purchase one for less than twenty Heavenly River Pills.


    Ling Xi could not stop grinning in the Ling Xi Sword.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you¡¯re so mean!¡± Ling Xi said, a little bit disgusted.


    ¡°Mean? If I was mean, I would have eaten you up when you were sleeping. Sigh. Every time I think about how the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus was wasted just like that, my heart aches,¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    ¡°Nonsense. I¡¯m not talking to you anymore.¡± Ling Xi blushed when she recalled previous times.


    Then he heard amotion outside.


    Xiang is outside. He should be fine, right? I¡¯d better get over there quickly. With that thought, Long Chen quickly rushed out.


    ***


    Moments after Long Chen entered the Treasure Pavilion.


    Xiang had picked a cool, shady spot next to the wall of the mountain. Hey on the ground and closed his eyes to rest. Behind him was a fake cliff that could be easily climbed.


    Soon after, a group of noisy teenagers passed by. One of them spotted Xiang and cried, ¡°Everyone, look! Isn¡¯t that demonic wolf the one that follows Long Chen around?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± One of the teenagers had a fair face with clear skin. His eyes were filled with arrogance and rudeness that only the young possessed. When someone mentioned Xiang, he turned quickly and asked, ¡°This Long Chen you speak of, is he the one who defeated my elder brother at the Martial Library? Is he the one who said he¡¯s going to fight my brother?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Young Master Bing. This is the demonic beast who follows Long Chen around. It¡¯s a Category Five Earth-tier wolf, and a strong one too. It even bullied us once before. It was terrible! If we hadn¡¯t fled in time, we would have been killed by it already!¡± one of the other teenagers exined indignantly. If Long Chen were here, he would have recognized them as the teenagers who had bullied Wang Xing.


    Young Master Bing was Yang Jun¡¯s younger brother, Yang Bing.


    ¡°How ridiculous! It¡¯s fine if he¡¯s arrogant, at least he has the talent to be arrogant. But if this animal is also arrogant, then that¡¯s crossing the line. Do they think they own the ce?¡± Chen Bing said darkly.


    ¡°Yeah! Young Master Bing, not only is Long Chen arrogant enough to dere that he will master Traceless Demon Shadow in twenty days, even this animal is arrogant! How dare a demonic beast act like this in human territory? Young Master Bing, you can easily kill it with your Sixth River Stage strength!¡±


    After being provoked by this deration, Chen Bing nodded and said, ¡°If I can¡¯t teach this animal a lesson, I will not be able to face my brothers.¡±


    He eyed the sleeping Xiang for a while, then he spotted the small cliff behind Xiang and had an idea. Heughed and said, ¡°My brothers. Since this demon wolf dared to humiliate you all, then I shall humiliate it too! Just watch me!¡±


    Yang Bing stepped away from the group and walked up to the cliff as the others watched expectantly. He then climbed up the cliff like an orangutan and was soon standing at the top. He looked down and saw Xiang directly below.


    ¡°What is Young Master Bing doing?¡± Everyone looked at each other, puzzled but excited.


    When they saw that he had started to undo his pants string, they finally understood and tried their best to suppress theirughter, because they knew what he was going to do next. Xiang had picked a pretty secluded area, so not many people passed by.


    ¡°Young Master is going to use his fatal strike technique, Heavenly Sacred Rain! Hehe ...¡±


    ¡°That animal is lucky enough to enjoy the Heavenly Sacred Rain, haha ...¡±


    ¡°Lucky? Why don¡¯t you take its ce?¡±


    ¡°No way! My weak body could not withstand Young Master Bing¡¯s Heavenly Sacred Rain!¡±


    By this point, Yang Bing hadpletely undone his pants string. He grinned smugly at everyone, then dug out his little guy.


    ¡°Yang Bing¡¯s little brother isrge, as expected! I¡¯m jealous!¡±


    ¡°Of course, or would he dare show it to us? I heard Yang Master Bing is already very experienced in bed, unlike us. We haven¡¯t even touched a woman¡¯s hand!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you guys know? Young Master Bing has agreed to sneak us down Demon Emperor Mountain tomorrow to have some fun! He says that the women he rmends will all be super hot!¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± They were all extremely excited.


    They all watched in anticipation as Yang Bing took out his little guy and aimed it at Xiang. He then smirked and mouthed the words, ¡°Fatal strike, Heavenly Sacred Rain!¡±


    Liquid trickled down.


    The group of teenagers watched intently and burst intoughter.


    The cloudy flow of water was about to touch Xiang, who was speechless at their behavior. He had long noticed the group of brats, but was just toozy to care. He had not expected the one guy to cross the line. Angered, Xiang looked up, and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire shot from his mouth. The mes immediately wrapped around Yang Bing¡¯s ¡°sacred rain.¡±


    Then the trickle of urine started to freeze into hard, ck ice. In the blink of an eye, the ice grew from Xiang upwards to Yang Bing¡¯s crotch, reaching his little guy. Everything was turned into ck ice.


    Xiang looked up and privately sighed in relief because the ck ice was less than half a meter away from the top of his head. If he had reacted slightly slower, it would have reached him.


    Xiang shook his head in exasperation, then he left with a bored shake of his tail.


    Everyone stared in shock.


    Half a breath¡¯s time passed. Blood rushed into Yang Bing¡¯s swollen face, and he let out a scream that shook the earth. All the ck ice turned to dust. His crotch had bepletely t. Nothing was there.


    Everyone guessed that he would never be able to unleash the Heavenly Sacred Rain again.

 Chapter 358 - Mysterious Runes

    <h4>Chapter 358 - Mysterious Runes</h4>


    It was no wonder she was one of the two most outstanding disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce. She was on apletely different level than Yang Jun. Yang Jun had not even received the Traceless Demon Shadow yet, but Murong Yu had already received the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    ¡°You have a good chance. Now that you have Traceless Demon Shadow, if you score first ce among the disciples under the Seventh River Stage at the Pyro Passageways, you¡¯ll receive the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique,¡± Murong Yu said.


    ¡°The Seventh River Stage? How is that counted?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Yang Danfeng and I have received the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique, so we will bepeting for the second stage this time. Whoever wins will get it, while you, Yang Jun, and the rest arepeting for the first stage,¡± she exined.


    Yang Danfeng was the other young Eighth River Stage cultivator.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯ve been a little too bold. I came here today mainly to ask you about how you¡¯re progressing with Traceless Demon Shadow.¡± News of his deration to cultivate the technique in twenty days had spread like wildfire, so she obviously knew about it too.


    ¡°I¡¯ve only scratched the surface,¡± he said honestly.


    ¡°When I was cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow, I couldn¡¯t understand anything for a long time. After that, I had the idea to cultivate it in water. Water offers greater resistance and helps with controlling your speed since it slows you down. Once you have a feel of the technique, you can speed it up. You understand what I mean, right?¡±


    Not only did he understand, he was fully enlightened by it.


    ¡°Thank you so much! If you need help in the future, just tell me!¡± Long Chen was genuinely grateful for her. His journey would be much smoother with her suggestion.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to thank me. I¡¯m leaving.¡± Murong Yu left without dragging the conversation. After she left, Ling Xi emerged from the sword, cheeks puffed up, and stared at him.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen did not know whether tough or cry.


    ¡°Tell me, why is she so good to you?¡± She was a little jealous.


    ¡°It¡¯s very simple ...¡± Long Chen chuckled and patted his chest. ¡°It¡¯s because I¡¯m handsome!¡±


    ***


    Long Chen found a deepke on Demon Emperor Mountain. It was about thirty meters deep, quite a bit deeper than themonke. Theke water was dark green and slightly cloudy, but it did not affect Long Chen¡¯s vision.


    Although Murong Yu¡¯s method is a little strange, it is undeniably effective.


    After three days of practice, Long Chen realized that he had finally grasped the Traceless Demon Shadow technique and had solidified his base. He had already nted the seeds, so he only had to water and nourish them, and they would grow into tall trees soon.


    There are twelve days left. If this continues, I¡¯ll be able to utilize Traceless Demon Shadow very soon. Of course, I will need more time to truly master it, Long Chen thought to himself. He continued to practice night and day, using Traceless Demon Shadow at extremely slow speeds because he discovered it was much easier to control that way.


    He took half a day toplete the footwork, and it would only get easier from here. Based on the speed of his progress, he needed about ten more days toplete the Traceless Demon Shadow footwork in one second. It was a repetitive practice, but Long Chen did not feel bored, because Ling Xi remained by his side and helped him improve. Xiang was also not far away. With two of them by his side, he felt very motivated. The worry he initially had waspletely gone.


    He did not need ten days. About nine dayster, Long Chen could perform a moreplete version of Traceless Demon Shadow. It was a Heaven-tierbat technique, but Long Chen had figured it out in less than twenty days.


    I wonder how interesting their expressions will be when they discover that I have truly seeded in cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow. Long Chen smirked to himself.


    There are three days left. Let me familiarize myself with it in the water first. Long Chen slithered through the deepke using Traceless Demon Shadow. Although it was deep and vast, Long Chen had already been to most of theke. Traceless Demon Shadow specialized in speed, allowing the user to move so quickly that they became a demon shadow.


    While practicing Traceless Demon Shadow, Long Chen suddenly sensed that whenever he approached a specific spot, the mysterious dragon jade in his mind vibrated once! Is something happening with the dragon jade? Long Chen was pleasantly surprised because the dragon jade only stirred when it encountered items of a certain standard. What would it be this time?


    Long Chen observed his surroundings carefully. This area was narrower; therefore, he usually did note here to practice. Yet was there a piece of treasure here? This was a surprise to him. He quickly searched across the whole area, having to rely on himself seeing as the dragon jade did not stir again after it stirred once.


    ¡°Brother Chen, what are you doing?¡± Ling Xi emerged from the sword, looking around. She watched him in confusion.


    ¡°There must be something here ...¡± Long Chen said with his brows furrowed.


    They were at the bottom of the deepke, which was covered in cloudy, ck mud. It was disgusting just to look at, and it would be even worse if they tried to dig. However, Long Chen had already checked the area and found only water. If there was something here, then it had to be in the mud.


    Is it possible that I made a mistake? That nothing actually happened with the dragon jade? he thought to himself, dejected.


    ¡°Something? Let me look for it too.¡± After Long Chen searched for a while, Ling Xi helped him. Her soul power had far greater scanning abilities than Long Chen. She scanned the area slowly, but after about seven minutes, she pursed her lips. ¡°The deeper you go through this mud, the harder the ground is. There¡¯s a lot of rock, but nothing else. The only thing that might be a little special is a talisman shell. This talisman is probably considered one of the higher-level types. However, it seems to be ineffective because it has lost its talisman spirit.¡±


    ¡°A talisman shell?¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes brightened. A bit of hope was better than nothing. He asked her impatiently, ¡°Xiao Xi, what is the approximate location of the talisman shell?¡±


    Ling Xi flew to a spot and pointed downwards. ¡°Here, about fifteen meters below. It¡¯s trapped under a rock. Are you going to retrieve it?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Long Chen nodded.


    If it really was some precious treasure, he could not care less about the mess and dirt. Under her guidance, he started to dig downwards. He had activated his Dragon Soul Transformation, so it was very easy to dig through soil with his tough ws and spines.


    Very soon, he reached a huge rock. Ling Xi had said that the talisman shell was underneath it. There was a feeling in his heart that grew stronger as he grew nearer to the talisman, as if his bloodline was being connected in a metaphorical sense. Long Chen was emotional; he guessed that the talisman was rted to the dragons.


    He gently flipped the rock over and started to feel around with his fingers ording to her guidance. Very soon, he found a t stone b the size of his palm. It was a very thin b at about five millimeters thick; it was very smooth on one side, but the other was covered in runes, so it had a jagged texture. The b was cold to the touch. Long Chen felt a vibration in his chest and a familiar feeling flowed through his body. He did not stay there for long and hurried out of the hole. Then, bringing Ling Xi with him, he rushed out of theke and sat on arge boulder.


    As he sat there, he studied the stone b carefully. More specifically, it was a stone talisman. The talisman was light gray all over, just like normal stone. The only difference was that there was a ck dragon etched on its surface, which looked simr to the dragon in his sea of consciousness. There were also many runes etched on it. As he read them, he subtly felt his gaze being pulled in, and that it was a little difficult to pull himself away from it.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what do you think this is?¡± Long Chen held up the stone talisman.


    ¡°Like I said, this should be a piece of high-level talisman-type treasure. However, the strange thing is, why does it have a dragon etched on it? Usually, if you add images to runes, like a dragon image, the runes don¡¯t work. I don¡¯t know why it¡¯s like this either.¡± Ling Xi fluttered around on the surface of the stone talisman, frowning, but she could not figure it out.


    ¡°How do you think it could benefit me?¡± Long Chen asked expectantly. He knew that this item was what had caused the mysterious dragon jade to vibrate.


    ¡°It¡¯s useless. Like I said, perhaps this used to be a talisman with powerful runes that could unleash destructive attacks. However, it lost its talisman spirit, its soul, and its power. It¡¯s just like a human without a soul and power. Dead. This is just the body; it¡¯s useless,¡± said Ling Xi.


    ¡°Useless?¡± Long Chen was disappointed. He studied it again and again. There was no way it was useless if it could make the dragon jade vibrate!


    Since he was almost done with Traceless Demon Shadow, he decided to spend some time studying the runes.


    ¡°Brother Chen, are you not giving up yet?¡± Ling Xi asked. She was speechless.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m just really bored. I¡¯ve been cultivating too much, so I want to take a rest and fiddle with this.¡±


    I wonder what will happen if I inject my Qi into it? he thought excitedly.

 Chapter 361 - Beating Yang Jun

    <h4>Chapter 361 - Beating Yang Jun</h4>


    No matter what Long Chen did, the crowd did not jeer anymore. Since he had suggested that they fight, all the crowd needed to do was sit back and watch Long Chen lose to Yang Jun.


    Yang Jun never thought Long Chen woulde at the veryst moment. He had thought Long Chen was afraid of him and considered the possibility that he would never show up at all. Long Chen must be faking his panting.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright to be cowardly. There¡¯s no need to hide it ...¡± Yang Jun chuckled and stretched out his arm. Everyone saw Yang Jun cover himself in Qi, making his massive body look like a powerful bomb waiting to explode.


    Long Chen smiled.


    ¡°Dragon Soul Transformation.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s body was quickly covered in red scales, and he turned into a crimson killing machine. He was supposed to look gnarly, but everyone thought he looked like a divine beast instead.


    ¡°Your transformed look is ugly. I can¡¯t believe you would show it in public.¡± Yang Jun smiled and his face turned fierce. He hollered like a barbarian before he dug his feet into the ground andunched himself towards Long Chen like a missile.


    The entire arena shook when Yang Jun did that. It was clear that he was very strong.


    He must¡¯ve cultivated an advanced Earth-tier Body Tempering technique! His body must be stronger than mine. I need to use my speed to deal with him!


    Long Chen strategized.


    His Qi was almost equal to Yang Jung after he attained the Sixth River Stage and transformed. The difference was in brute strength.


    The Azure Dragon Halberd appeared in his hand once more. Even though it was not very effective anymore, it was Long Chen¡¯s only weapon. He held it firmly and ran towards Yang Jun.


    The sight of them running towards each other was visually shocking. One was young, while the other was more wizened. One rampaging, and one calm.


    ¡°Die! Seven Killings Demon Finger!¡± Yang Jun used the advanced Earth-tier technique the moment he got close to Long Chen. The strong wind and murderous Qi shot towards Long Chen!


    Long Chen had seen the technique twice already, so knew what to do. He chose to fight it head-on as he had absolute confidence in himself.


    ¡°Azure Dragon Combat Technique, Dragon King¡¯s Burial!¡±


    The Azure Dragon Halberd transformed into a blood-red line and shot itself towards the Seven Killings Demon Finger. Yang Jun¡¯s technique covered a wide area, while Long Chen¡¯s technique was focused. Disregarding their cultivation levels, Dragon King Burial was a suitable technique to break through the Seven Killings Demon Finger.


    ¡°It''s suicidal to use a lower tier technique to fight against a higher tier technique when one doesn¡¯t have the Qi to supplement it. Long Chen didn¡¯t learn Traceless Demon Shadow, and he even used his strongest technique. He must be scraping the bottom of the barrel now, hahaha!¡± The Third Demon Elder was cackling.


    He was very happy to see his disciple beating the disciple of the Pce Lord.


    But what happened next made his jaw drop.


    Long Chen suddenly increased his strength, and the power behind Dragon King Burial pushed the Seven Killings Demon Finger back. The Azure Combat Halberd even pushed Yang Jun back!


    Long Chen had used his strength at the Sixth River Stage and an intermediate Earth-tier technique to push back an advanced Earth-tier technique! Not only that, he had even pushed back Yang Jun! Yang Jun lost the first sh.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Yang Jun shouted. His eyes were bloodshot, and he ran towards Long Chen with an even fiercer technique.


    Looks like my tendency to go berserk and my craving for blood has lessened after I trained in silence in the Heavenly Demon Pce. Long Chen was happy, but Yang Jun had lost his rationality. He could not ept losing to Long Chen, so he panicked a little.


    ¡°Long Chen! I will skin you alive! Since you could neutralize the Seven Killings Demon Finger, I will show you this instead! Seventy-Two Path True Fists!¡±


    It was a simple fist technique, but it contained the strength of a whirlwind, and each punch was stronger than thest. As long as Long Chen could endure all seventy-two punches, he would survive, but that is if his body was strong enough to withstand all of it!


    ¡°First path!¡±


    Yang Jun¡¯s stance was oppressive, to the point that the entire arena shook. The crowd was worried too.


    A massive demonic shadow appeared behind Yang Jun. It was channeling strength into him. With it, he had enough strength to use all seventy-two fists!


    ¡°Long Chen is dead this time.¡± The Third Demon Elder was stunned at what Long Chen had done to the Seven Killings Demon Finger, but he was sure Long Chen would not survive this time.


    ¡°Seventy-Two Path True Fists?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried.


    It¡¯s time to use Traceless Demon Shadow. Long Chen chose not to move for now. He waited until Yang Jun was closer.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Everyone was confused. Even if Long Chen couldn¡¯t fight back, there was no reason to just stand there and wait to die.


    ¡°Father-inw?¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao was worried. He was about to stand up when Zhao Qingyun sat him back down. The Pce Master was grinning.


    Did he? Zhao Qingyun was not worried, and Dongfang Xuanxiao was not an idiot. He had a feeling that Long Chen was going to surprise everyone.


    While everyone was looking at Long Chen in confusion, Yang Jun¡¯s first fist closed in on him. If it hit, Long Chen would lose half of his strength, but he didn¡¯t move at all. Everyone closed their eyes because they couldn¡¯t bear to see the bloody scene.


    ¡°Are you really looking to die?¡± Yang Jun was confused, but he would not let go of this chance. There was no repercussions for killing Long Chen, which made him even more excited. He increased the speed of his punch even more.


    At thest moment, Long Chen smiled.


    The first punch of the Seventy-Two Path True Fists missed. Yang Jun looked at the empty space in front of him and raised his head. He saw several ck illusions flickering in front of him!


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow!¡± The crowd exploded with shock. The Third Demon Elder and the other elders looked at the Long Chen in shock. They stared at him and stood up subconsciously.


    Yang Jun looked at the flickering shadows in front of him and couldn¡¯t differentiate which was Long Chen.


    Even though no one could believe it, the First Demon Elder spat out in shock, ¡°This is the level of someone who is close topleting the technique! Long Chen has not only learned Traceless Demon Shadow, his mastery over it is even higher than Danfeng and Xiaoyu!¡±


    Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu were shocked when they heard what the First Demon Elder said. They looked at Long Chen, but their expressions were different. Murong Yu was surprised as she never thought Long Chen would progress so fast with just a simple tip from her.


    Yang Danfeng, on the other hand, was looking at Long Chen viciously. He had always been regarded as the strongest youth in the Heavenly Demon Pce, and now he felt ufortable that the First Demon Elder would say that Long Chen was above him. How could he like someone that Yang Jun hated? Jealousy gripped his heart when he looked at Long Chen.


    The whole crowd was shocked, much less Yang Jun, who was fighting Long Chen. Traceless Demon Shadow was an infamous technique of the Heavenly Demon Pce, so he recognized it instantly.


    Impossible! He must¡¯ve only cultivated it halfway. I should be able to tell where he is if I¡¯m careful enough. I can¡¯t get intimidated by him! Yang Jun reassured himself and knew he had to stop his technique and escape from Long Chen¡¯s encirclement first.


    But Long Chen would not let him out.


    When Yang Jun¡¯s first punch missed, Long Chen had used the Traceless Demon Shadow and appeared behind him. He then swung the Azure Dragon Halberd directly towards Yang Jun¡¯s back.


    Smack!


    Yang Jun almost fell to the ground, and a red line of blood appeared on his back.


    ¡°Shit! Why are you so tough?¡± Long Chen blurted out subconsciously. He had used all his strength tosh out with his halberd but only managed to leave a scratch!


    But to Yang Jun, this was a humiliating result. He turned around and was about to attack Long Chen when the halberd smashed into his face.


    Smack!


    Yang Jun shouted and spat out blood. Some of his teeth were even knocked out from the impact!


    Yang Jun despaired. He realized he couldn''t see Long Chen at all. He looked around him and saw nothing but shadows everywhere. Which one was he supposed to attack?


    Smack!


    Yang Jun wasunched forward as his butt got smacked by the halberd.

 Chapter 362 - Hold Onto You

    <h4>Chapter 362 - Hold Onto You</h4>


    ¡°I might not be able to kill you in one hit, but I don¡¯t believe you can survive ten thousand hits!¡± Long Chen¡¯s demonicugh echoed across the arena, and everyone heard the sound of Yang Jun being hit by the halberd again and again.


    Yang Jun was being beaten ck and blue. His clothes were in tatters and his body was covered in blood.


    Everyone watched, unable to hide their shock. They never would¡¯ve thought something like this would happen.


    Not only had Long Chen cultivated Traceless Demon Shadow, he was even capable of using it to this degree. His talent was unheard of.


    ¡°I yield! I give up!¡± Yang Jun almost cried out when he said that, and Long Chen finally stopped attacking.


    He stood in front of Yang Jun and chuckled. ¡°Yang Jun, I¡¯m so sorry that I had to be your father today to give you a beating. If you don¡¯t listen to me next time, I will beat you again until you shout for mercy.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Yang Jun¡¯s body was burning from pain, and he had lost quite a few teeth. He was wheezing from the ordeal, and his reputation was in tatters.


    It was all thanks to the strength of the Heaven-tier Traceless Demon Shadow.


    Heaven-tier Body Combat Techniques are indeed strong. Yang Jun couldn¡¯t even touch me when I used it.


    Yang Jun red at Long Chen onest time. He knew he had been humiliated in the arena. His body was in pain and his mind was nk. He still couldn¡¯te to terms with what had happened.


    He ran down the arena, leaving Long Chen alone.


    Long Chen suddenly felt like he enjoyed the feeling of having everyone looking at him like this.


    The Three Demon Elders looked at each other for a long time before the First Demon Elder sighed. ¡°I have to admit, he is indeed a genius. Looks like the rumors of him killing the sixmanders and destroying the dwarves were true. He is an incredible disciple. The Pce Master has found the correct disciple.¡±


    ¡°What should we do?¡± The Second Demon Elder was worried.


    ¡°What can we do? Luckily, Long Chen is only at the Sixth River Stage, and we are just about to start the tournament to see who can get the Demon Emperor Sword. As long as he doesn¡¯t get it, everything will be fine.¡±


    The Second Demon Elder nodded. She looked at the dazzling youth and had a feeling that Long Chen was somehow looking down on everyone here. Even though she was numerous times stronger than him, she had a feeling that Long Chen was above her, and she could only stare at him like an ant.


    ¡°I must be going blind ...¡± The Second Demon Elder sighed and looked towards the Third Demon Elder. He was grim and blood almost flowed out of his mouth.


    ¡°What are you thinking?¡± the Second Demon Elder asked.


    The Third Demon Elder thought about it before whispering, ¡°I¡¯m trying to think of how to kill him without any repercussions.¡±


    The First Demon Elder overheard him and quickly warned him, ¡°No. Now is not the time. You are no longer a youth, so you should not be rash.¡±


    ¡°Hmph! Goodbye!¡± The Third Demon Elder stood up. He had been humiliated too, so he walked out of the crowd.


    Zhao Qingyun looked at them and then at Long Chen. The more he looked at Long Chen, the more satisfied he was. Zhao Qingyun had been very anxious when Long Chen didn¡¯t show up on time, but he finally sighed in relief now that everything was over. He stood up and smiled. ¡°Everyone! The promised battle has now ended. Not only did Long Chen cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow sessfully, he has also defeated the third strongest youth, Yang Jun! Everyone, please give him a round of apuse!¡±


    Zhao Qingyun was their leader, so there was no reason for the crowd not to cheer. They cheered and pped, to the point that the entire arena was shaking. Everyone had thought Long Chen was a sham and was just boasting, but it was clear he was strong. Everyone was impressed. Those who said Long Chen was nothing prior to this felt their faces burning with embarrassment.


    Wang Xing was shouting the loudest.


    Thanks to this, Long Chen could finally walk proudly in the Heavenly Demon Pce. There was no longer any reason to keep a low profile.


    However, there was something even more important than this battle.


    ¡°Master, I heard that there will be a training exercise involving the Pyro Passageways. When will it start?¡±


    ¡°The training at the Pyro Passageways? It will start in five days.¡± Zhao Qingyun knew what Long Chen wanted to do. It was as if Long Chen had nned this from the start.


    ¡°Am I qualified to join?¡± Long Chen smiled sheepishly.


    ¡°Of course. You¡¯ve defeated Yang Jun, so you are now the third strongest youth. You are more than qualified to enter the Pyro Passageway. We decided on the ten who would enter beforehand, but since you have met the requirement, we will have eleven participants!¡± Zhao Qingyun announced.


    That way, the tenth person wouldn¡¯t resent Long Chen for disqualifying them.


    ¡°Thank you, Master!¡± Long Chen was happy. The Pyro Passageways training exercise was not only thepetition for the Demon Seed nting Technique, the treasures in there would help Xiang grow. Long Chen knew that it would be heaven for Xiang. Since he was only at the Category Five Earth-tier, entering the passageways would increase his strength drastically.


    ¡°Master, can I bring my demonic beast in there? It¡¯s been with me throughout my travels, and I¡¯m afraid that it would harm others without my supervision.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Zhao Qingyun was so happy that he would agree to any request Long Chen made.


    ¡°How about this? The exercise will start soon, and you still don¡¯t know anything about the rules. Xiao Yu, if you have the time, please fill Long Chen in.¡±


    Long Chen would be all alone during the training exercise as the other ten youths were all disciples of the Three Demon Elders. Zhao Qingyun was worried that Long Chen would be surrounded on all sides, but then he remembered Murong Yu. She was one of the friendlier disciples, and she didn¡¯t have strong feelings for anyone. She was also quite powerful. If Long Chen could forge a good rtionship with Murong Yu, she could help him inside the Pyro Passageways.


    Murong Yu never thought Zhao Qingyun would call on her, so she was stunned. She had just been warned by her master, so she looked at her. But even the Second Demon Elder didn¡¯t dare to defy the Pce Master, so Murong Yu nodded. ¡°Pce Master, I will do my best.¡±


    Zhao Qingyun nodded with satisfaction before he looked around. ¡°Everything has been settled today, so everyone can go back now. Those who are joining the training exercise, please prepare yourselves in the next five days. When I open the passageways, it will be up to you to obtain the Demon Seed nting Technique.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Pce Master!¡±


    Due to Long Chen, Zhao Qingyun¡¯s reputation had improved. Everyone had always thought that the Pce Master didn¡¯t have a good eye for picking out disciples, but now their thinking had changed.


    The crowd soon scattered. Except for Murong Yu, everyone from the Three Demon Elders¡¯ factions left.


    Long Chen failed to notice that Yang Danfeng¡¯s eyes were grim when he left. Yang Danfeng had been looking for someone in the crowd before finally finding the skinny youth. He slowly tailed the youth as everyone dispersed.


    Long Chen was oblivious to that.


    ¡°Long Chen, Xiao Yu is at the Eighth River Stage, and she¡¯s kind too. You can talk to her casually, and she should be able to help you in the Pyro Passageways,¡± Zhao Qingyun reminded Long Chen before leaving with Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Only Long Chen and the veiled Murong Yu were left at the scene.


    ¡°Looks like my master is hoping that you will protect me during the training session. I guess I¡¯ll have to hold onto you tightly, then.¡± Long Chen smiled ... bitterly.


    ¡°Hold?¡± Murong Yu was a bit angry. She knew Long Chen didn¡¯t mean that, but she still felt that it was an odd statement. She also remembered what the Three Demon Elders had warned her about.


    ¡°Long Chen, I will only talk to you about the rules. I will leave afterwards, so listen carefully.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°The Pyro Passageways are arge cave system with flowingva. There are two things hidden within theva: Fire Essences and demonic beasts called Ember Beasts. They are usually Category Six Earth-tiers, and you can find them guarding the Fire Essences. Usually, you defeat them and then collect the Fire Essences they¡¯re guarding. The rules are as follows: those who obtain the most Fire Essences wins. This time I will be fighting against Yang Danfeng, while you will bepeting with the others. If youe out with the highest number of Fire Essences, your reward will be the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique.¡±


    ¡°Is it that simple?¡±


    ¡°How else do you think it would be?¡±


    ¡°What if I obtain more Fire Essences than you and Yang Danfeng?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. You should ask the Pce Master about that. But don¡¯t think too much about it. Both me and Yang Danfeng have been there twice, so we know the ce inside and out. It¡¯s impossible for you to surpass us.¡±

 Chapter 363: Childhood Friend

    Chapter 363: Childhood Friend


    Murong Yu walked off after exining the rules. Even though the Second Demon Elder was gone, Murong Yu knew that her master was still somehow observing her, and she would get scolded if she stuck around for too long.


    But then she stopped and turned back. Oh, one more thing.


    What is it? He noticed that she looked very anxious,pletely different from how she acted earlier. He had a feeling that the Demon Elders were pressuring her to not help him. The three Demon Elders were opposing the Pce Master, and since Long Chen was in a different faction than Murong Yu, it was normal for them to do that.


    The Fire Essence is amon item in the Pyro Passageways. But there are rare asions when a Fire Essence gets refined by theva for hundreds of years and bes a Divine Essence Crystal. It would be amazing if you could find one. Each Divine Essence Crystal is worth a hundred Fire Essences. If you obtain one, the Demon Seed nting Technique is as good as yours.


    Divine Essence Crystal? I will remember that. He had another goal now.


    Also, since the Divine Essence Crystal is stronger than a Fire Essence, it will be guarded by a more powerful beast, called the Divine Ember Beast. It looks simr to the Ember Beasts, but its muchrger and stronger. A Divine Ember Beast is usually at the Category Seven Earth-tier, and theres quite a number of them in the passageways, so you need to be careful.


    Even though Murong Yu had to maintain some distance from Long Chen, she had exined everything about the Pyro Passageways. It was clear that she was still looking out for him.


    Thank you. Long Chen nodded. It was rare to find someone who treated him well.


    You also need to be careful of others. I dont know what they will do to you, and I know you understand who I mean. Goodbye. She left after saying that.


    Long Chen stood alone in therge arena. Xiang approached and jumped onto the tform before congratting him excitedly. Long Chens strength had been improving for the past few days, but Xiang has been stagnating. Thankfully, resources to help Xiang grow stronger wereing.


    But what Xiang didnt understand was that Long Chen still had two days before the fight. Why had two days passed after he woke up?


    The issue in the Heavenly Demon Pce was now settled, so Long Chen turned all of his attention to the mysterious stone talisman.


    What a remarkable object. Too bad I dont know what to do with it. I think I should just let it be for now. If I get stronger in the future, I might be able to unlock some of its secrets.


    Long Chen then brought Xiang towards the Azure Cloud Residence. There were only five days left, and Long Chen needed to seize the remaining time to cultivate. He needed to fight in a real battle to improve his Traceless Demon Shadow.


    While walking back, the way everyone looked at Long Chen had changed for the better. In the past, those that saw himughed behind his back. But now Long Chen had cultivated a Heaven-tier martial technique and broken the record of the Heavenly Demon Pce. No one dared tough at such a monster.


    All of them treated Long Chen with respect.


    I need to spend the next five days improving my master overTraceless Demon Shadow. I need to get both the Demon Seed nting Technique and the Demon Emperor Sword Technique so that I can be stronger. After that, I can make my way back to the Biyang Imperial Capital. Xiao Xi, just you wait, I will be able to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit for you!


    Ling Xi nodded when she saw Long Chens passionate eyes. Behind her excited gaze was a hint of sadness. There was one thing she hadnt told him yet. If Long Chen really got her the NIne Heavens Immortal Fruit, they could end up separated forever.


    This was what Ling Xi feared the most.


    If their rtionship had been tonic, she wouldve just given him some kind of reward after he restored her physical body, then she would leave.


    But now she couldnt do that anymore. She had grown attached to Long Chen, and if they were separated, she would be like a stringless kite. It would be no less than torture for her.


    She would rather stay with Long Chen like this forever, but she knew he was a stubborn man. Once he made a decision, he would never look back. This was why she knew that Long Chen would never give up before obtaining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Both Ling Xi and Long Chen returned to the Azure Cloud Residence while thinking about their own ns. Long Chen had been at the Heavenly Demon Pce for close to two months, but he had barely spent any time in the Azure Cloud Residence. There was one more month left. The previous two months have been peaceful, but Long Chen knew the next month would be the most chaotic one yet.


    Just then, he saw a shoe on the ground. It wasying there on its own, which attracted his attention.


    <em>This is the shoe of the disciples that do menial tasks. The only one in the Azure Cloud Residence should be Wang Xing. Why is his shoe here?</em> Long Chen was confused, and he picked it up before noticing the words carved at the bottom of the shoe.


    <em>Under therge locust tree in the mountains at the back. Come alone.</em>


    There was indeed a massive locust tree in the mountains towards the back of the Heavenly Demon Pce. It was situated on the path towards the tip of Demon Emperor Mountain. Long Chen remembered seeing Wang Xing near the tree once.


    Someone actually kidnapped Wang Xing. But who is it? Yang Jun is injured, so it shouldnt be him. Is it Yang Danfeng?


    This was just a guess.


    Long Chen asked Xiang to stay put while he ran towards the mountains at the back. After spending so much time in the area, he was very familiar with the ce, so he soon found the ce indicated on the shoe. When he saw the massive locust tree, Long Chen noticed two individuals underneath it. One of them was the trembling Wang Xing, while the other was Yang Danfeng.


    Wang Xing, heres your shoe. Long Chen sighed in relief when he saw that Wang Xing was not injured. He threw the shoe to Wang Xing before he confronted Yang Danfeng.


    Brother Chen! Wang Xing was so happy to see him that he cried. Yang Danfeng had told him just now if Long Chen did not show up, he would kill him. Thankfully, Long Chen hade.


    Its fine now. Go back and tell no one about this, Long Chen said.


    Okay! Wang Xing knew he would just be a hindrance if he stayed here. He also looked up to Long Chen and had a feeling that Wang Danfeng wouldnt do anything excessive to him.


    Once Wang Xing left, Yang Danfeng smiled coldly. Looks like you treat them well.


    Fate has brought us together. Its even more so if I can befriend them. To me, strength and status are not important in a friendship. Theres no reason to hate him. You, on the other hand, didn''t have to do any of this. You could have juste to me directly if you wanted to meet me alone.


    Yang Danfeng chuckled. I called him over to see whether you cared for his life or not. Im a core disciple, and have the authority to kill errand boys without being punished. I can execute him in public whenever I want. Do you understand?


    Just tell me what you want. Long Chen looked at Yang Danfeng with hostility. It was clear that Yang Danfeng despised him. Yang Danfeng was an Eighth River Stage cultivator who had learned Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique, so Long Chen was sure that he would not be able to win against him right now.


    There are two things I want you to do. One: you cannot take first ce in the category of those beneath the Seventh River Stage during the training exercise. Two: do not talk to Xiao Yu anymore, and its even better if you never interact with her again.


    Long Chen almostughed at how preposterous the conditions were. Yang Danfeng was so full of himself. Even Zhao Qingyun did not have the right to restrict him like this, much less Yang Danfeng.


    What makes you think I will follow your requests? Long Chen smiled defiantly.


    I knew you would say that. Yang Danfeng had expected that. It would be useless if I were to threaten you by saying I would kill you. You are proud and you think you can beat me, but what if I have your weakness?


    Yang Danfengs attitude pissed Long Chen off. Killing intent swirled in Long Chens heart.


    Its really quite simple. I know that you treat others very well. The lives of errand boys are nothing to me, but they are important to you. I have a lot of people to do my bidding here, so I assure you that I have a hundred ways to kill Wang Xing. So if you break one of the two rules, prepare to bury his corpse yourself. Yang Danfeng was certain that he had Long Chen in his grasp.


    Long Chen said nothing.


    He didnt want Wang Xing to lose his life because of him, but he could not tolerate being bullied either. Long Chen looked up and his gaze turned cold. In that case, I will also warn you that if anything happens to Wang Xing, I will kill you. I killed Song Zhongcheng, so I can definitely take your life. Goodbye.


    Having said that, Long Chen left without saying anything else.


    There was no reason to say more since the grudge had been made.


    Xiao Yu and I are childhood friends. Weve been together for twenty years. If you mess this up, I will kill you even if it costs me my life, Long Chen! Yang Danfeng shouted.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Someone''s salty hehe


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 364: Pyro Passageways

    Chapter 364: Pyro Passageways


    The training exercise officially began five dayster.


    Xiang had been excited about it. Long Chen sensed that Xiang had somehow be quite naive after he entered the body of the Sun Devouring Wolf, as if he had be a child. It was only when problems came looking for them that Xiang became serious.


    He had been following Long Chen all morning. When they left their residence, Zhao Qingyun was waiting for Long Chen outside.


    Did you talk to Murong Yu? Zhao Qingyun asked while they were heading towards the passageways.


    Dont worry. I wont lose to them even if Im all alone. Long Chen was confident in his strength.


    Zhao Qingyun nodded. I was more worried that Yang Danfeng would team up with Murong Yu to avenge Yang Jun. It would be hard for you to deal with both of them.


    No, that wont happen. Long Chen was certain of himself. Yang Danfeng had pledged himself to Murong Yu, but thetter didnt even want to be associated with him.


    Then thats fine. Remember, the more Fire Essences you get, the better. The Demon Seed nting Technique is an incredible technique, Zhao Qingyun reminded him again.


    Long Chen nodded.


    Wait, what if I obtain more Fire Essences than the both of them? Can I get both stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique? Long Chen asked inquisitively.


    The first stage allowed the user to double their Qi and the second stage quadrupled it. Long Chens Dragon Soul Transformation allowed him to increase the quality of his Qi by ten times. <em>Does this mean that I can increase the quality by forty times?!</em>


    Increasing his Qi by forty times was a horrifying concept. That meant that Long Chen would be even stronger than a Seventh River Stage cultivator once he used the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    It was indeed a good technique.


    However, no technique would surpass their own innate quality. For example, Divine Fire Clone was an advanced Earth-tier technique. The strongest each clone could be was around the Eighth River Stage. If Long Chen became much more powerful, the clones would still remain at the Eighth River Stage.


    This was the same for the Demon Seed nting Technique. Long Chen could use it as long as he was weaker than Zhao Qingyun. Any stronger than that and it would be useless.


    Long Chens question stunned Zhao Qingyun for a moment.


    Something like that has never happened before, but do you want both stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique?


    Long Chen nodded. Who doesnt want to be stronger through secret techniques?


    Then you will have to put on an act after the exercise ends. You need to taunt the Three Demon Elders. If I were to agree to it, they would most certainly object. You need to make them agree, and I will naturally do the same. But, Long Chen, I know how strong Yang Danfeng and Xiao Yu are. It will not be easy to surpass them. You should know that they are only slightly weaker than Lin Zichen.


    Long Chen was a smart guy, so he knew what Zhao Qingyun was saying.


    I will do my best.


    Traceless Demon Shadow, the Demon Seed nting Technique, and the Demon Emperor Sword Technique were all his.


    He followed Zhao Qingyun and soon arrived in the mountains. The entrance to the Pyro Passageways was situated at the back of the mountain. Long Chen had to go around the entire mountain and walk past the deep pool he had cultivated at before. He then found himself at the entrance of a cave. This was the entrance to the passageways.


    The three Demon Elders and the ten disciples were already waiting for them there. There were two factions in the Heavenly Demon Pce, the Pce Master and the three Demon Elders. The old versus the new. Long Chen was distraught because while Zhao Qingyun could take on all three Demon Elders without a problem, Long Chen could not do the same.


    The tension in the air rose when the two factions met. Long Chen and Yang Jun were ring at each other, and the other disciples under the three Demon Elders were ring at Long Chen too. They didnt dare to disobey the Pce Master, so all of them focused their animosity on Long Chen.


    Long Chen was only at the Sixth River Stage, and everyone here was above the Seventh River Stage. There was even someone at the Eighth River Stage. Every single one of them except for Murong Yu was ring at Long Chen. They expected Long Chen to be unnerved by them, but he didnt even react to their animosity. He was calm, just like Zhao Qingyun.


    <em>His mental strength is tough. He really is hard to deal with. </em>The three Demon Elders were wary of Long Chen. If he hadnt shown up out of nowhere, Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique wouldve been taken by Yang Jun. Once Yang Jun entered the Eighth River Stage, he would be at the same level as Yang Danfeng and wouldve raised the fame of the Three Demon Elders.


    But Long Chen had appeared. Not only had he snatched Traceless Demon Shadow, he had even beaten Yang Jun in the arena. Yang Jun was so depressed that he had missed the window to advance into the Eighth River Stage. It would be quite some time before he could attempt it again.


    They pinned all the me on Long Chen, and Yang Jun was the one who hated him the most.


    Now that everyone is here, we should start the training exercise without dy. The atmosphere was not right, and Zhao Qingyun naturally sensed it, but he decided to ignore it. In the previous training sessions, Zhao Qingyun didnt have a disciple to take part in it. At that time, the Three Demon Elders were so arrogant. Now he finally had Long Chen to try and shake things up while bringing him fame. Zhao Qingyun did not reveal it, but he was secretly very happy.


    In the tense atmosphere, everyone approached the entrance of the cave. Long Chen felt the heat without even entering. Xiang popped out from Long Chens shirt, and his eyes lit up when he felt the heating from the cave.


    The reason why Xiang was sleepy all the time was most likely because he had burned his life fire.


    Zhao Qingyun turned around and looked at them. We are here. The training exercise willst five days. Whoeveres out with the most Fire Essences will be the winner. Are you ready?


    We are ready!


    He looked around and asked another question on purpose. If none of you have any questions, I will open up the entrance now.


    Wait, I have a question. Long Chen knew Zhao Qingyun was creating a chance for him. Master, I want to know what would happen if I obtained more Fire Essences than the two of them? Can I obtain both stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique?


    Long Chen was brave. He ignored everyone and cast a taunting look at Yang Danfeng.


    Everyone was shocked by his question.


    A mere Sixth River Stage cultivator wanted to collect more Fire Essences than two Eighth River Stage cultivators? The two Eighth River Stage Cultivators were also the two strongest youths next to Lin Zichen that had learned two Heaven-tier martial techniques!


    Are you joking? What can you do with the two stages at your cultivation level? Yang Danfeng scoffed. He was confident in himself and thought Long Chens greed was hrious.


    The Three Demon Elders looked at each other.


    Long Chen looked around and stated clearly, The objective of the training exercise is to obtain more Fire Essences than the others. Those who obtain more are stronger than the rest. If I can get more than those two, doesnt that mean Im stronger than them? If they canpete for the second stage, why cant I?


    Idiot. The others shook their heads.


    Stop messing around! The First Demon Elder shook his head and looked at Zhao Qingyun. Pce Master, what do you think we should do?


    I will go with whatever you think is fair.


    Zhao Qingyun tossed the question back to the First Demon Elder. The First Demon Elder knew that the Pce Master was pressuring him. If he didnt allow it, that meant the three Demon Elders were not confident in their disciples. But he was worried that Long Chen would create another miracle if he did.


    Looks like the three Demon Elders are not confident in their disciples. Thats fine, then. Im sure everyone would think it unfair if I obtained the two stages at once. Long Chen taunted all of them.


    Stop bbering. Since the Pce Master told me to decide, we will agree to what you have proposed. My disciples wee the challenge. The First Demon Elder had no choice but to agree. If he declined, he would beughed at by the others.


    Zhao Qingyun had basically forced them to ept by giving the choice to the three Demon Elders rather than making the decision himself.


    Long Chen was happy with the result.


    What are you getting happy about? You cant even surpass Yang Jun, much less us, Yang Danfeng said through gritted teeth.


    Zhao Qingyun led them into the cave. It was a crimson cave that had a surprisingly high temperature even though there was no fire. The cave was filled with red rocks.


    As they made their way deeper, Long Chen soon saw the end of the cave. There was a set of heavy iron doors blocking their way. They were rusty, as if they had been there since the start of time.


    Past these doors are the Pyro Passageways. There are ten corridors leading to ten different locations down there. I suggest that if you dont want to search for Fire Essences on your own, you should quickly move around and team up with someone, Zhao Qingyun exined to the disciples, but he was secretly advising Long Chen. Now that Long Chen had made everyone his enemies, it was possible that they would all band together to take him down.


    Long Chen understood what he meant.


    Zhao Qingyun gripped the iron doors and used all of his strength to pull them open. The sound of screeching metal filled the cave.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Off we go to another adventure!


    </blockquote>

 Chapter 365 - Ten Passageways

    <h4>Chapter 365 - Ten Passageways</h4>


    When Zhao Qingyun opened the metal gates, a gust of hot air blew over everyone. It was already hot in the cavern, but now it was even hotter.


    Xiang got very excited when the thick scent of fire hit his nose. His eyes were wide with excitement as he looked into the cave. He looked like an excited dog, and Murong Yu was captivated by how cute he looked.


    ¡°All of you, enter now. There are ten passageways, so each of you will choose one. Murong Yu, since you are familiar with the ce, enter one of the passageways with Long Chen. You can decide if you want to separate away from him once you are inside,¡± Zhao Qingyun ordered.


    He had used the same tactic and ced Long Chen together with Murong Yu.


    The Second Demon Elder was angry, but the First pulled her back. She might¡¯ve actually gone ahead and argued with Zhao Qingyun if he hadn¡¯t. Murong Yu was the Second Demon Elder¡¯s disciple, and Zhao Qingyun giving that order was basically a jab at her authority.


    ¡°I understand.¡± Murong Yu nodded. She didn¡¯t mind it since she would separate from Long Chen once she was inside anyway.


    While she didn¡¯t mind, Yang Danfeng was thinking otherwise. He didn¡¯t dare go against Zhao Qingyun, but instead focused all of his anger on Long Chen. He now hated Long Chen even more.


    Yang Danfeng had actually wanted to ask Zhao Qingyun and the three Demon Elders to let Murong Yu follow him into the ten passageways, but Zhao Qingyun had arranged for her to go with Long Chen before he could do so.


    Under Zhao Qingyun¡¯s instruction, each of the disciples entered the passageways one by one. The metal doors behind them slowly closed only when Long Chen and Murong Yu walked into one of the passageways.


    Once they were in, the surroundings slowly brightened up. The rocks of the passageway were bright red, radiating heat energy. The passageway was much hotter than the outside.


    The passageway nted downwards, and Long Chen noticed that they were going deeper and deeper. This was within his calctions asva could only be found deep underground.


    Murong Yu said nothing as she led the way. In the dim, red glow, her attractive figure was easy to notice as she was wearing a tight, ck shirt.


    Zhao Qingyun had actually done something extra by assigning Long Chen to Murong Yu. Long Chen didn¡¯t need anyone¡¯s help.


    ¡°Awoo ...¡±


    Xiang whimpered. If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen, he would¡¯ve sprinted downwards already.


    Murong Yu looked back when she heard the sound. She was still wearing the veil, so Long Chen couldn¡¯t see her face. She stopped and waited until Long Chen was beside her, then she looked at the small wolf in Long Chen¡¯s shirt. ¡°What a cute wolf. Long Chen, what is the name of the beast?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a Fire Beast. It loves fire,¡± Long Chen replied.


    ¡°Fire Beast?¡± Murong Yu tried to remember everything she knew about beasts, but she didn¡¯t recognize the name. Moreover, the name was too crude.


    ¡°Are you toying with me?¡± Murong Yu was irritated.


    ¡°You can ask it if you don¡¯t believe me.¡± Long Chen rolled his eyes.


    He knew that Murong Yu wasn¡¯t trying to strike a conversation with him, it was just that Xiang was too cute.


    ¡°Ask it?¡± Murong Yu didn¡¯t know if it would work, but she did so anyway, ¡°Xiang, are you a Fire Beast?¡±


    Xiang burped, and a small ember escaped from his mouth.


    ¡°Can I hug it?¡± Murong Yu said in anticipation.


    ¡°No!¡± Ling Xi shouted from within the sword, but Murong Yu couldn¡¯t hear her. ¡°Xiang, if you let her hug you, I won¡¯t be your sister anymore!¡±


    Xiang retreated back into Long Chen¡¯s shirt along with his tail.


    ¡°See, he doesn¡¯t want it. I can¡¯t help you with that.¡± Long Chen waved her off.


    ¡°Why?¡± She was unsatisfied.


    ¡°Maybe because you¡¯re too ugly.¡±


    ¡°You rascal!¡± Murong Yu red at him and quickened her pace, leaving him in the dust. All Long Chen had done was say something stupid, and now she refused to talk to him.


    The passageway was deep. Long Chen felt like he had walked for over a kilometer, but he still hadn''t reached the end. The corridor was nted downwards, so he assumed the path was shaped like a corkscrew that extended from the metal gates above all the way down to the base of Demon Emperor Mountain.


    Long Chen enjoyed the peace after Murong Yu stopped talking to him. Ling Xi, however, stared at Murong Yu whenever she got close. Long Chen didn¡¯t want his ear to hurt, so he liked it better when Murong Yu didn¡¯t talk.


    But when they were at the exit, she stopped and asked him, ¡°Wait, Long Chen, you¡¯ve been in the Heavenly Demon Pce for a long time. Why haven¡¯t you brought the girl over?¡±


    Murong Yu seemed to have some regard for Ling Xi.


    ¡°I can¡¯t meet her for now. I will let you meet her once I be stronger. Why do you ask?¡± Long Chen would naturally never tell her that Ling Xi was hiding in his ear stud.


    ¡°It¡¯s just that I saw you protecting her so ferociously and even took a few punches because of her. I assumed you liked her a lot, so I just asked out of curiosity,¡± Murong Yu said inly. Long Chen couldn¡¯t discern what she was thinking about.


    But he had a feeling that the reason why Murong Yu had helped him was because she was touched by how Long Chen had protected a girl so ferociously. Maybe she had been moved by Long Chen¡¯s intensity.


    But Murong Yu knew she would never experience this kind of love.


    ¡°Did you feel the sudden rise in the temperature? We are almost at the Pyro Passageways.¡±


    Long Chen had indeed felt it.


    She hesitated before saying, ¡°Once inside, I have my own things to do, so we will part ways. But, Long Chen, I need to remind you to gather as many Fire Essences as possible.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen felt that she had more to say.


    ¡°I heard that everyone except for Yang Danfeng will give their Fire Essences to Yang Jun. This means that you arepeting with eight other people. So you know that you¡¯ll need a ton of Fire Essences, right?¡±


    ¡°They can do that?¡± Long Chen was speechless. He would¡¯ve underestimated the number of Fire Essences Yang Jun would collect if it wasn¡¯t for her warning. He was d she had told him.


    ¡°It¡¯s not against the rules. The only thing we care about is the number of Fire Essences each person gathers. You can even steal their Fire Essences before the time limit is up. Of course, you can¡¯t take an older Fire Essence and mix it with the Fire Essences that you¡¯ve collected today. The temperature of a Fire Essence that was just taken out of theva and one that has been ced outside for an entire year is extremely different. One can immediately differentiate which is an older Fire Essence. So I hope you didn¡¯t bring any to try and cheat.¡±


    Murong Yu had forgotten to tell him thisst time, so she was worried Long Chen would do something like that.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t have any ...¡± Long Chen could not use this method in the first ce because Xiang would¡¯ve eaten any Fire Essences that he had.


    Long Chen suddenly saw the space in front of him widening. They soon found the exit, and Long Chen approached it. He looked down and saw nothing butva!


    There was nothing else. The exit was located just above the river ofva.


    Theva bubbled and flowed as the intense heat surged towards Long Chen. Bubbles sometimes appeared at the top of theva. It was as if he was standing at the edge of a crimson pool filled with heat.


    ¡°This isva?¡± It was his first time seeing it.


    ¡°Yes. The Ember Beasts and the Fire Essences are all hidden beneath it. We need to dive into theva to collect them. You can only enter theva once you are at the Fifth River Stage. Will your little wolf be fine?¡± She was more worried about Xiang.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He was born in mes.¡± Long Chen smiled mysteriously.


    ¡°Alright, then. The others probably ran in the passageways and are already in theva. I can¡¯t dy this anymore. Goodbye!¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    Murong Yu dove down without hesitation. She wrapped her Qi around her body to withstand the heat from theva before she plunged into it.


    Xiang looked down in excitement.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. This is heaven for you, Xiang. The Pyro Passageways and Ember Beasts? They can¡¯t hide from my Soul Swallowing Gaze. It will be easy to find Fire Essences as long as we locate where the beasts are. We don¡¯t need to worry about having fewer Fire Essences than them! Let¡¯s go!¡±


    Long Chen was going to use the most efficient way to collect Fire Essences.


    After he made sure that Xiang was ready, he wrapped his body with Qi just like Murong Yu and then jumped into theva. To Xiang, theva was like bathwater!


    ¡°It¡¯s hot!¡± Long Chen saw nothing but red when he plunged into theva. It was pushing him around like a river current would.


    He had to expand the Qi surrounding his body into a sphere before he could finally see his surroundings. Xiang appeared in front of him, and Long Chen saw that theva was somehow flowing into Xiang¡¯s body automatically to be refined.


    ¡°Come, let¡¯s go find some beasts!¡±

 Chapter 366 - Ember Beast

    <h4>Chapter 366 - Ember Beast</h4>


    Demonic beast attacks were not the only dangers Long Chen would have to face in the Pyro Passageways; he would also have to be on the lookout for the other disciples. He believed that other than Murong Yu, the rest of the disciples would attack him on sight. At the very least, they would rob him of his Fire Essences.


    In truth, Long Chen was not afraid of anyone other than Yang Danfeng, as he had cultivated Traceless Demon Shadow. However, he didn¡¯t want toe across anyone before he had found sufficient Fire Essences. After all, Long Chen only had two objectives for this training exercise. One was for Xiang to level up, the other was to get the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    The Soul Swallowing Gaze was very useful in the huge river ofva. As soon as he entered, bright, boiling, redva was the only thing surrounding him in all directions. If he relied on pure luck to search, it would take forever to find Fire Essences. However, everything was different with the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    When he activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze, all theva around him disappeared and he could see souls within a five-hundred-meter radius. He spotted two souls¡ªone was Murong Yu, who was heading westwards. Long Chen did not follow her, but instead headed towards another soul.


    It was an Ember Beast.


    Indeed, there was an Ember Beast within five hundred meters of him. Long Chen called for Xiang, then they headed towards it.


    Ember Beasts live withinva and feed on it for sustenance. It¡¯s simr to the Eight wed Fire Chi we saw on Goldfish Ind. However, Ember Beasts are much more powerful. Fire Essence is the essence contained within moltenva; since Ember Beasts cannot swallowva directly, they usually stay next to Fire Essence to absorb the me essence inside. That is why ces with Ember Beasts usually also have Fire Essence.


    This was the information Long Chen had gathered over the past few days.


    When he spotted the Ember Beast using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, it meant that he had found a Fire Essence. He believed that he would be faster than other people if he worked at this speed.


    Usually, Ember Beasts and Fire Essences were found at the lowestyer of theva. This was the case for this Ember Beast. In terms of horizontal distance, it was actually not far away from Long Chen, but unfortunately, it was hundreds of meters deeper than him. Long Chen dove down in a straight line. If he moved too much, it would cause arge disturbance in theva, so he had to travel slowly and cautiously.


    I¡¯ll arrive soon.


    Long Chen could sense an Ember Beast not far away from himself. He held his breath. Initially, he wanted Xiang to show off his skills, but Xiang was still Category Five Earth-tier, so he decided that it would be faster if he did it instead.


    Long Chen quietly activated his Dragon Soul Transformation and took out the Azure Dragon Halberd. He was strong enough to defeat a Seventh River Stage cultivator, so a Category Six Earth-tier Ember Beast was not a difficult opponent.


    When he approached, he could roughly see its appearance. It was half the size of the Sun Devouring Wolf, and it looked a little like a lion with a thick mane and a regal aura. However, its body was covered in thick, fire-red scales and it had extremely sharp teeth and ws. The strangest thing was that it had a tail exactly like a scorpion¡¯s, which glinted coldly.


    So, this is an Ember Beast. It doesn¡¯t look bad at all.


    This demonic beast, perhaps due to it living inva, radiated a thick fierceness. A normal Seventh River Stage cultivator would find it difficult to win against it in this environment.


    They were at the bottom of theva. Long Chen looked around and spotted a Fire Essence not far from the Ember Beast¡¯s foot. There were mes burning on the Fire Essence, and the surrounding high temperature was likely caused by it.


    Attack! Long Chen arrived as close to the Ember Beast as possible and unleashed Dragon King¡¯s Burial instantly. His Qi, which was equivalent to that of a Seventh River Stage cultivator, exploded, paired with the quick attack. The Azure Dragon Halberd was instantly lodged in the resting Ember Beast¡¯s head!


    Long Chen pushed harder. By the time the Ember Beast¡¯s eyes sprang open in pain, the halberd was deep inside its head. It cried in agony, and countless red mes poured out of its mouth. Then it died.


    ¡°There was no way you could¡¯ve survived an ambush like that!¡± Long Chen chuckled and retrieved a fist-sized demonic core from its head and tossed it to Xiang. Excited, Xiang took it in his mouth without a word. Then he swallowed it with a huge gulp.


    ¡°What do you think?¡± Long Chen asked expectantly.


    Xiang¡¯s eyes widened and looked at him a little innocently. He had indeed already swallowed the Ember Beast¡¯s demonic core, but his stomach wasn¡¯t full yet.


    ¡°Damn, you foodie!¡± Long Chenughed and scooped up the Fire Essence on the ground and put it into his bag. As for the Ember Beast¡¯s carcass, Category Six Earth-tier beast blood was no longer useful to him, so he didn¡¯t bother to take it ...


    ¡°Let¡¯s go get our next target. We¡¯ve got one Fire Essence now. I wonder how fast the other people are.¡± Long Chen guessed that it would be easier for him to find Fire Essences because he had the Soul Swallowing Gaze, but they had more people and were more familiar with the Pyro Passageways, so victory was still uncertain.


    Now that he had experience ying an Ember Beast, it would be much easier. Ember Beasts weremon in this area, and most of the time, there was a Fire Essence near them unless he was unlucky. However, he still had note across a Divine Ember Beast or a Divine Essence Crystal.


    Long Chen spent most of his time collecting Fire Essences with the help of the Soul Swallowing Gaze, achieving easy wins in almost all his battles against Ember Beasts. The exception was when he met two Ember Beasts at once, which required more time.


    He estimated that since the other disciples couldn¡¯t spot Ember Beasts as well as he could, he still stood a chance to win first ce, or even surpass the two Eighth River Stage disciples.


    ¡°Three?¡± This time, Long Chen saw three Ember Beasts in one ce. When he approached, he killed one of them with a surprise attack, though this caused the other two to discover him. Since Ember Beasts were violent in nature, they would never flee. The moment he appeared, they engaged in a furious battle!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    When he used this technique, the two Ember Beasts were practically incapacitated. Long Chen shed them to death with his halberd instantly. After he took the five Fire Essences on the ground, he tossed the three demonic cores to Xiang. With that, Xiang finally broke through to attain the Category Six Earth-tier. Both his demonic power and physical strength experienced a boost.


    Long Chen had tallied up the total¡ªXiang had consumed more than thirty Ember Beast demonic cores. This meant that he had already killed more than thirty of them. He had already gathered forty Fire Essences too. The Fire Essences were even more helpful to Xiang, but he needed them to win the Demon Seed nting Technique, so he could only give them to Xiang after they exited.


    ¡°It¡¯s been half a day. If I maintain this speed, I should be able to gather about three hundred Fire Essences in five days. But that is also not certain. I have almost killed all the Ember Beasts in this area, so it¡¯s time to move to another spot where there are more Ember Beasts.¡±


    Now that Xiang had attained Category Six Earth-tier, paired with his Divine Fire Clone and Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, the Ember Beasts were no match for him. It would speed up Long Chen¡¯s search for Fire Essences.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to another area.¡±


    Another day passed. They did not collect as many Fire Essences as the first day, though now he had reached eighty Fire Essences. Admittedly, Long Chen had spotted Yang Jun once during this time, and he was surrounded by eight other Seventh River Stage cultivators. When Long Chen spotted them with the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he steered clear of them.


    Unless absolutely needed, he did not want to fight eight Seventh River Stage cultivators.


    ¡°Murong Yu was right. It looks like they will give all the Fire Essences they find to Yang Jun. But why are they grouped together?¡±


    If they separated, they would be able to find more Fire Essences. It was inefficient to search as a group.


    Despite his confusion, Long Chen ignored them and forged ahead. He continued using the Soul Swallowing Gaze to search for signs of Ember Beasts.


    After a total of two days, he sensed that he had arrived in a more secluded area. Theva was now mixed with faint currents of ck fire, and the surrounding temperatures were much higher, as if he was surrounded by countless Fire Essences.


    ¡°There are no Ember Beasts here, but there¡¯s an even more powerful aura. If my guess is right, there should be an even more powerful beast hiding up ahead. It must be a Category Seven Earth-tier Divine Ember Beast.¡±


    Long Chen made this guess based on his sharp instincts.


    Indeed, after sneaking forward for a while, he finally spotted a beast smaller than the Ember Beasts. Since the Soul Swallowing Gaze could only sense the presence of a soul, he could not tell what it looked like.


    ¡°Awoo ...¡± Xiang called softly. Looking at the curious and excited look in his eyes, Long Chen understood what he meant. Xiang wanted to fight it himself.

 Chapter 367 - Divine Ember Beast

    <h4>Chapter 367 - Divine Ember Beast</h4>


    When he was closer, Long Chen finally saw what the Divine Ember Beast looked like. Just like how Murong Yu had described it, it looked simr to the Ember Beasts with thick scales and a scorpion-like tail. The only difference was that it was ck all over, while the Ember Beast¡¯s scales and mane were fire-red. It was also smaller than the Ember Beasts.


    ¡°Xiang, you asked for this. The Divine Ember Beast is a Category Seven Earth-tier demonic beast, and it is even stronger inva. Do you dare fight it, even as a Category Six Earth-tier?¡± Long Chen said in a low voice, challenging him with a smirk.


    Xiang nodded. Although there was a gap in their tiers, the Sun Devouring Wolf had a higher affinity with fire than the Divine Ember Beast. Plus, he had many tricks up his sleeves, so he did not believe that he would lose to a Divine Ember Beast.


    ¡°Be careful.¡± Since Xiang had made his decision, all Long Chen could do was offer a reminder at the veryst moment.


    Xiang nodded, then he slowly morphed to hisbat state in front of Long Chen. The Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯sbat state was magnificent and evoked fear; it was much more terrifying than the Divine Ember Beast. The strange, ck mes that flowed on his body, as well as the golden sun mark on his forehead, showed just how unique he was.


    Both the Sun Devouring Wolf and the Divine Ember Beast were ck all over. Long Chen stayed in the same spot, watching the surroundings carefully while Xiang charged at the Divine Ember Beast. That way, Long Chen could assist if anything happened. The Pyro Passageways were dangerous after all.


    At this point, the Divine Ember Beast noticed the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s presence.


    There were two types of beasts in the Pyro Passageways: Ember Beasts and Divine Ember Beasts. The Ember Beasts cowered before the Divine Ember Beasts, so the Divine Ember Beasts didn¡¯t have to fight often. The only times they fought was when the males had topete for a mate during mating season. Therefore, the Divine Ember Beast was angry when it saw a beast it had never seen before challenge it.


    When it sensed Xiang¡¯s tier, it grew arrogant and let out a roar that was mismatched with its body size. mes shot out of its mouth, attacking the Sun Devouring Wolf fervently!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    The two beasts collided, fighting each other with sharp teeth and ws. Animals did not fight like what humans imagined; even animals had fighting techniques practiced and mastered across generations. Long Chen felt like his vision was blurring as he watched the fight.


    Teeth and ws collided again and again, and shrill cries rang between them.


    Although the Divine Ember Beast was smaller, it was stronger than Xiang. After about seven minutes of forcefulbat, the Divine Ember Beast left a wound on Xiang¡¯s front limb!


    This angered Xiang. He had been a human for more than ten years after all, and he had not spent a long time as a beast. He was still unfamiliar with fighting in this body, or he never would have been injured.


    After it sessfully injured Xiang, the Divine Ember Beast became arrogant, and roaring mes rose from its body. It roared mockingly, then it charged at Xiang with its small stature like a sharp arrow!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    When the Divine Ember Beast thought it was going to win, fierce mes suddenly rose from Xiang¡¯s body. As the mes curled, ck wolf silhouettes broke free from the fire. They looked simr to Xiang, though they were ck and made out of mes.


    The arrogant Divine Ember Beast was instantly surrounded by Xiang¡¯s divine fire clones. The sudden peculiar twist had almost scared it into peeing. Suddenly, it halted and turned around in terror. It was preparing to flee!


    Naturally, Xiang would not let it run. A hundred of his clones swarmed to surround the Divine Ember Beast. Once surrounded, at least fifty of them started to unleash manic attacks!


    The Divine Ember Beast let out cries of pain and agony!


    Although the Divine Ember Beast was a fire-type beast and the clones¡¯ attacks did not do huge damage to it, it could not hold off so many of them. Every clone had thebat ability of a Category Five Earth-tier beast after all. It was clear how much Xiang had improved!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    The Divine Ember Beast desperately fought to break free. One after another, the clones left wounds on its body, but even more of them hit it with their attacks!


    Flesh and blood mixed on the Divine Ember Beast¡¯s scaled body. The most severe injury it sustained was the broken limb that Xiang had inflicted. Its movements gradually slowed down and soon, it would likely be killed by Xiang.


    ¡°Xiang, wait, let it escape!¡± said Long Chen, who approached quickly.


    Xiang froze, then he retracted his clones immediately. Therge swath of ck wolf shadows all disappeared in theva. The Divine Ember Beast looked around in surprise, then timidly at Xiang. Without another word, it fled while dragging its broken leg!


    Xiang was confused!


    ¡°Follow it!¡± After the Divine Ember Beast ran for a while, Long Chen gave chase. He then exined to Xiang, ¡°There are no Fire Essences in this Divine Ember Beast¡¯s surroundings, but they are the kings of the Pyro Passageways, so how could it not possess any? I¡¯m guessing that this isn¡¯t its base. If we follow it, we can find out where it lives. Then we¡¯ll get Fire Essences along with its demonic core.¡±


    That was Long Chen¡¯s objective.


    Xiang suddenly understood. He looked at Long Chen in admiration, privately musing that the older gingers were the spiciest...


    After deciding on the n, Long Chen followed the Divine Ember Beast from afar. Since it was bleeding, Long Chen grew excited when he smelled its blood. No matter how far it went, he felt like he would have no trouble tracking it.


    In the deepest part of the Pyro Passageways, Long Chen followed the Divine Ember Beast over a huge distance and realized he had entered a tunnel filled withva. This was a shock to him because the bottom of the Pyro Passageways was a riverbed, and if there was a hole in the riverbed, what did that mean?


    Would that mean it was the nest of the Divine Ember Beast?


    When this thought popped into his mind, he activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze and saw that the deepest part of the tunnel was densely packed with Divine Ember Beasts!


    They were all congregated in arge cave, gathering in duos and trios. Long Chen didn¡¯t think his guess would be right!


    He now faced a dilemma. On the one hand, these were Category Seven Earth-tier beasts. There were at least fifty here, and even if Long Chen and Xiang fought together, it would be difficult to fight so many. It was dangerous, but there was an opportunity that came with this risk. If so many Divine Ember Beasts were happy to stay here, then there was sure to be many precious Fire Essences too, perhaps even Divine Essence Crystals.


    Long Chen described everything he saw to Xiang. Xiang frowned, also hesitating. The benefits to be gained were gigantic, but it was dangerous enough to kill either one of them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s do it this way. Since both of us can use Divine Fire Clone, I reckon we can fight twenty Divine Ember Beasts together at most. We can stay here and wait for the Divine Ember Beasts toe out. We will kill them as they emerge, and we can even bait them out. Since we have three days, I¡¯m sure we can slowly kill them all,¡± Long Chen said solemnly after some thought.


    His mind was clear.


    When the injured Divine Ember Beast returned to therge cave, the rest of the Divine Ember Beasts started to erupt in indignation. When they saw that their friend had been hurt, all the adult Divine Ember Beasts were extremely furious. Very soon, two Divine Ember Beasts traveled towards the mouth of the tunnel in Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    ¡°We just talked about them, and now two areing already. Xiang, let¡¯s fight them together. We will wait at the mouth of the tunnel, and once they exit, I will use the Blood Devouring Domain and we will kill them!¡± Long Chen made the arrangements, and they quickly arrived at the mouth of the cave, waiting for the Divine Ember Beasts.


    When the furious beasts¡¯ heads emerged from the tunnel, Long Chen activated the Blood Devouring Domain, which pressed down on them. Since the beasts did not have their guards up, their movements were instantly restricted greatly. Long Chen and Xiang ambushed them at lightning speed, immediately engaging in a fervent battle with one of them.


    Xiang used thezy method, which was to use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to burn a hole in the Divine Ember Beast¡¯s abdomen. Thanks to the Blood Devouring Domain¡¯s influence, the Divine Ember Beast¡¯s movements were restricted, and since it had been caught off guard, it died easily.


    Long Chen used the same ambush method. He swung the Azure Dragon Halberd hard, using Dragon King¡¯s Burial to unleash an efficient but fatal attack to quickly kill off the other beast.


    A total of two Category Seven Earth-tier demonic cores ended up in Xiang¡¯s belly. However, ascending to the next tier was not going to be easy. At this point, two demonic cores were only enough to partially fill his stomach.


    After two easy kills, it proved that Long Chen¡¯s method was correct. He needed to kill all of the Divine Ember Beasts to retrieve the things inside, so he did not want to waste more time and started working on a baiting strategy.

 Chapter 368 - Great Harvest

    <h4>Chapter 368 - Great Harvest</h4>


    Long Chen quickly figured out that there were sixty-eight Divine Ember Beasts inside the cave, and he and Xiang had already killed two. He did not have enough time to wait for all of them toe out, so he had to lure them out. However, he could not lure too many out at one time. If he wanted to enter the cave, he would be safe as long as he did not cause a hugemotion and attract the other Divine Ember Beasts.


    ¡°Xiang, watch me!¡± Long Chenughed and snuck into the tunnel. He was more suited to be the bait than Xiang.


    Relying on the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could easily track the Divine Ember Beasts¡¯ movements. Holding his breath, he slowly trekked inside the tunnel, quickly arriving in front of the huge cave where the Divine Ember Beasts were gathered. Due to theva, he could not see what precious treasuresy below, but he was sure that there would be a lot because this ce was a hundred times hotter than outside. This meant that there were many Fire Essences here, and perhaps even Divine Essence Crystals!


    Long Chen was sure that he had found the ce with the most Fire Essences in the entire Pyro Passageways. He had gotten lucky, but he would have to put in some work in order to maximize his gains.


    He took a few pebbles from the ground. Bracing himself, he tossed them at a few beasts close by. Although the pebbles were too small to cause any harm, they startled the Divine Ember Beasts. So when Long Chen made a soft sound outside the cave, all five of them walked out suspiciously.


    Long Chen ran instantly!


    When the Divine Ember Beasts saw him, they gave chase immediately. This time, there were five beasts in total, but Long Chen knew that he could handle them.


    Very soon, he dashed out of the mouth of the tunnel, and all five beasts followed suit. He activated the Blood Devouring Domain instantly. Xiang, who had long been hiding, released his clones and surrounded the Divine Ember Beasts instantly. Then he used the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. The surrounded Divine Ember Beasts obviously could not withstand the fire, so they were killed one by one.


    All five Divine Ember Beasts died in less than an hour. Long Chen only managed to kill one Xiang took down the other four. His Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was much more destructive than Long Chen¡¯s attacks. Long Chen was feeling a bit frustrated because while he possessed the Heaven-tier Traceless Demon Shadow as a bodybat technique and the formidable Divine Fire Clone as a divine technique, everything else he had was terrible. In terms of offense, the Azure Dragon Halberd had long be inadequate in the face of his increasingly stronger enemies.


    In contrast, Xiang¡¯s incredible talent was starting to show.


    Next, Long Chen replicated this method, every time luring five to six Divine Ember Beasts out of the cave. The situation got out of hand one time because ten Divine Ember Beasts were lured out. However, when they utilized all the clones at their disposal, plus the Blood Devouring Domain and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, even ten Divine Ember Beasts died in their hands.


    After Xiang had consumed almost fifty Category Seven Earth-tier Divine Ember Beasts¡¯ demonic cores, he underwent metamorphosis once more. This time, the processsted half a day. After his sessful metamorphosis, Xiang surpassed Long Chen to attain the Category Seven Earth-tier.


    Long Chen had long known that the Pyro Passageways would be Xiang¡¯s heaven, and he had been proved right. Xiang had sessfully leveled up by two tiers. He shrank as a result, but his body was more condensed and solid. His life force leveled up as well, and he could control an evenrger portion of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    After he leveled up, the ten-plus Divine Ember Beasts in the cave were no longer a problem to them.


    ¡°Wow, Xiang. From today onwards, I will need you to protect me! Lead the way! Let¡¯s go get our war spoils!¡±


    The teenager and the wolf ran excitedly into theva-filled cave. This time, he was no longer afraid of causing amotion. Facing Xiang¡¯s powerful attacks, the ten-plus Divine Ember Beasts were killed by his clones and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Although Xiang was at the same tier as them, he had received the legendary ancestral fire. It was only a fraction of the actual fire, and Xiang could only control a small portion of it, but that was more than enough.


    The Divine Ember Beasts were entirely killed off by Long Chen and Xiang.


    After removing the threats, Long Chen started to inspect therge quantity of war spoils. The cave was huge, big enough to fit about a hundred Divine Ember Beasts. There was a gigantic number of Fire Essences inside, and he picked one up off the ground every few steps. They shone with a blinding light and radiated high heat.


    Long Chen and Xiang separated to collect the Fire Essence, working quickly because they were worried that something unexpected could happen.


    Suddenly, Long Chen sensed a huge wave of heat. The heat wavesing from the Fire Essences were strong, but they did not affect Long Chen. This new gust of heat, however, was hot enough to make Long Chen ufortable. He could only offset it a little by using Qi to protect his body.


    He took a few steps forward and spotted the source of the heat. It was a ck crystal floating quietly in theva. If his guess was correct, this was a Divine Essence Crystal, which was worth a hundred Fire Essences!


    ¡°I didn¡¯t have to look very hard to find you ...¡± Long Chen quickly put the Divine Essence Crystal away, then he continued collecting Fire Essences. Since he did not want anything to go to waste, the duo scoured the entire cave to collect all the Fire Essences, plus even more Divine Essence Crystals.


    After Long Chen counted them all, he was stunned. In addition to the hundred-plus Fire Essences he had from ying Ember Beasts outside, he had collected a total of almost two thousand Fire Essences in the cave, plus thirteen Divine Essence Crystals. Thirteen Divine Essence Crystals were equivalent to thirteen hundred Fire Essences.


    He was jealous when he saw nine Fire Essences on the Ninth Prince¡¯s sword. He never would¡¯ve guessed that he would find so many Fire Essences here today.


    ¡°It looks like Fire Essences aren¡¯t worth anything. The nine Fire Essences stuck on that advanced Earth-tier divine sword were likely only for boosting its existing properties. This means the other materials were very important too. Nine Fire Essences aren¡¯t enough to forge an advanced-Earth-tier divine sword at all!¡±


    In the beginning, one Fire Essence was enough for Xiang to grow by one tier. Now, however, it was not the same. Fire Essences were now almost as effective as Ember Beast demonic cores, despite containing several times more fire energy than the cores.


    Long Chen had only found so many Fire Essences because he hade across a Divine Ember Beast nest. This was thergest Divine Ember Beast herd in the Pyro Passageways. They had collected countless Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals over countless years and tossed them in the nest. Over time, the essences and crystals had turned into regr rocks, then new ones were collected to rece them.


    That was the cycle, and also why Long Chen could enjoy such arge harvest.


    Of course, it was also due to his abilities. Long Chen knew that Yan Danfeng and Murong Yu, who did not have the Soul Swallowing Gaze, would not dare fight a herd of Category Seven Earth-tier Divine Ember Beasts.


    Although the Fire Essences did not have arge effect on Xiang anymore, two thousand of them would surely have a noticeable effect. Now that the collection process was over, Long Chen left and chose a quiet spot to rest. He had umted a lot of treasures, so leaving the crime scene was the smartest choice.


    ¡°The harvest has far exceeded my expectations! Xiang, arge portion of it was thanks to your efforts! I doubt they¡¯ll get as many Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals as me even though they have a hundred people. That is why I¡¯ll reserve a thousand Fire Essences and ten Divine Essence Crystals. You can have the rest as a snack!¡± Long Chen said with augh.


    He was very happy with this harvest. Not only was he confident that he would get the Demon Seed nting Technique, but Xiang¡¯s strength was also increasing at a terrifying speed. Category Seven Earth-tier was far from his limit.


    The Burning Heaven Emperor had said that as long as Xiang had enough resources, he could grow to be the strongest beast ever. Now was the time for him to flex his formidable strength. There was no limit to how many fire treasures he could consume. As long as he had enough fire-type treasures, he could grow to a level that waspletely unattainable to Long Chen.


    At least, that would be beyond the four foundational realms.


    Long Chen now knew that it was absolutely the right choice to enter the Pyro Passageways and give Xiang a chance to increase his strength. With so many Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals in his pouch, Long Chen was excited. Would Xiang be as powerful as the three Demon Elders after he consumed everything he had on hand? Maybe even surpass them?


    He was impressed by Xiang¡¯s ability to grow. He had beenpletely focused on cultivation for the past two months, but the growth he had achieved was nothingpared to what Xiang had just experienced.


    After gathering the ¡°snacks¡± that Long Chen had given him in one ce, which was about a thousand Fire Essences, Xiang started consuming them all happily.


    Then Long Chen took out another unexpected treasure he had found in the cave. It was a sword, blue all over and shining with faint starlight.

 Chapter 369 - Shadow Sword Technique

    <h4>Chapter 369 - Shadow Sword Technique</h4>


    ¡°This sword is an advanced Earth-tier weapon,¡± Ling Xi said, tapping her lips after studying the sword.


    ¡°But there are good and bad advanced Earth-tier swords. That Hell King de you previously owned was not bad at all, though unfortunately, it was destroyed by Lin Zichen¡¯s Imperial Sword. This sword is simr to the Hell King de; the Heavenly Demon Pce probably owns less than ten divine weapons on this level.¡±


    ¡°If this sword is on a level simr to the Hell King de, then it must be decent. Since it is shimmering with faint starlight, I¡¯ll call it Star Sword.¡± Long Chen nodded, touching the de with his hand. Although it had been buried for a long time, he could tell that the Star Sword was still sharp. It had not deteriorated over time.


    ¡°Why would this sword be in Divine Ember Beast territory?¡± Ling Xi asked, confused.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing a Heavenly Demon Pce disciple found the Divine Ember Beast nest at some point in time. However, he did not have a technique like the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so he could not pinpoint their numbers and locations. Therefore, he could not strategize and kill them off slowly. Instead, he was surrounded and killed, leaving this behind. This sword probably never thought it would see the light of day again ...¡± Long Chen sighed.


    Then he looked at the tiny Ling Xi in front of him and smiled. ¡°Xiao Xi, you¡¯re the most familiar with my current condition. I am now doing my best to get the Demon Emperor Sword and the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. The Azure Dragon Halberd and the Azure Dragon Combat Technique are my only means of offense, and they are pretty weak. Since I have the Star Sword now, do you have any suitable sword techniques that you can teach me?¡±


    Ling Xi said bitterly, ¡°Based on what I can remember, even the lowest tier sword technique I can teach you requires you to be at the Heavenly Passage Realm for you to master it. The Sword Devil Finger was only a trick I learned as a kid for fun. Let me think harder ...¡±


    Ling Xi¡¯s words made Long Chen speechless. The Sword Devil Finger was once Long Chen¡¯s most powerful attack, yet it was just a technique Ling Xi had learned for fun when she was a kid. What she could provide him needed to wait until he was at least at the Heavenly Passage Realm ...


    How powerful is Xiao Xi¡¯s background ... Long Chen felt weak in the knees when he thought about this.


    Xiang started to consume the Fire Essences. This time, there was arge number of Fire Essences and Divine Ember Beasts, so it would take him some time. During this period, Ling Xi thought bitterly about sword techniques while Long Chen was happy to be free for a while.


    Finally, Ling Xi blurted excitedly, ¡°I thought of a small sword technique! It¡¯s an advanced Earth-tier technique, but I¡¯ve forgotten most of its theory verses. Give me two hours. I¡¯ll try to figure it out.¡±


    After that, she continued to immerse herself in a focused meditation. It was rare to see her so focused, and she looked very attractive while doing it.


    ¡°Figure it out?¡± Long Chen was speechless. Ling Xi was basically creating a sword technique for him at this point. How much foundational knowledge and family background did it take to do such a thing? All Long Chen knew was that at this moment, he would not be able to create a sword technique.


    ¡°This sword technique is called the Shadow Sword Technique. It¡¯s something I cultivated when I was a child to y with. At the time, I felt like it was very pretty because of the shadow on the sword, which was why I learned it on my own and yed with it every day. After that, as I grew up, I lost interest in it ...¡±


    Ling Xi cocked her head, thinking out loud while simultaneously triggering Long Chen¡¯s nerves.


    What a psycho, Long Chen yelled in his heart. He had never asked how powerful Ling Xi¡¯s family was because he was afraid that if he knew, the pressure would prevent him from improving.


    It did not take two hours. Less than an hourter, Ling Xi leaped with excitement and cried, ¡°Ah! It¡¯s finally done! I don¡¯t remember the original verse, so I altered it a little. However, I can confirm that the Shadow Sword Technique is the most powerful technique below the Heaven-tier. You can use this until you get the Demon Emperor Sword!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t know what to say.


    ¡°Hey, I worked very hard. Aren¡¯t you going to praise me?¡± Ling Xi¡¯s face darkened. She had done so much and squeezed her brain dry for this so that Long Chen would praise her, but he remained stunned.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you¡¯re so amazing! You¡¯re so good to me! You¡¯re basically my parents reincarnated!¡¯ Long Chen cried out dramatically once he woke up from his shock.


    ¡°Tsk, you are my parents reincarnated! Not me! I¡¯m not that old! Alright, I¡¯m not talking to you anymore. There¡¯s not much time left, so take your time to study this. Tell me if you don¡¯t understand something.¡± Ling Xi rolled her eyes and left him the theory of the Shadow Sword Technique, then she returned to the Ling Xi Sword.


    ¡°That girl ...¡± Long Chen smiled in exasperation. But Ling Xi was right. There was indeed not much time left. Now was a critical moment for Xiang to raise his cultivation level, so Long Chen quietened his mind and started to study the Shadow Sword Technique with Ling Xi¡¯s modifications.


    After cultivating the Heaven-tier Traceless Demon Shadow, cultivating an advanced Earth-tierbat technique felt much simpler. Also, due to Ling Xi¡¯s modifications, many subtler parts had be much easier to understand. That was why it did not take him much time to master it.


    Long Chen had enough Fire Essences on hand, so he did not need to search for more. After Xiang consumed the Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals, he took time to rest his body and stabilize his cultivation. After umting the effects of so many Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals, he had sessfully leveled up from Category Seven to Category Eight.


    The inconspicuous Xiang had be thergest winner of the Pyro Passageways training exercise. The Category Eight Earth-tier Sun Devouring Wolf was now strong enough to fight cultivators like the Eighth River Stage Yang Danfeng, and maybe even surpass them. Xiang was Long Chen¡¯s brother for life, so essentially, his strength was also Long Chen¡¯s strength.


    Therefore, it meant that Long Chen had be stronger once more.


    While Xiang rested, Long Chen sessfully finished cultivating the Shadow Sword Technique. Of course, Ling Xi helped him greatly.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I can give you an even stronger sword technique after you¡¯ve reached the Heavenly Passage Realm. It¡¯s even stronger than the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. Are you excited?¡± Ling Xi said sneakily in his ear after he mastered the Shadow Sword Technique.


    ¡°Really?¡± Long Chen was pleasantly surprised.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I love you so much! I swear I will marry you in this lifetime! If I don¡¯t, won¡¯t I just be taking advantage of you?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°Do you mean you¡¯re only with me for my sword techniques?¡± Ling Xi asked resentfully, blinking with herrge eyes.


    ¡°Who said that?! There¡¯s no way I would do that, haha ...¡± Long Chenughed.


    The Heavenly Passage Realm was far away, but Long Chen was filled with anticipation. The first sword technique Ling Xi gave him would surely be no ordinary technique. Even if she said it was nothing, it could end up changing Long Chen¡¯s life.


    Only one day was left when they wrapped up their activities. Long Chen was prepared to leave. He had no need to search for more Fire Essences; all he needed to do was search for the tunnel where he entered from and prepare to return tomorrow. He refused to believe that he would lose to anyone, not with effectively two thousand Fire Essences.


    Not everyone was lucky enough to find a Divine Ember Beast nest after all. And no one else had the ability to clear a Divine Ember Beast nest.


    He had enjoyed a great harvest in this training exercise. Long Chen was steadily making progress towards his goals.


    When he finally left theva river with ck mes, after some traveling, he encountered Yang Jun and the eight other cultivators. Last time, Long Chen ignored and passed them. This time, all he had was time.


    Long Chen noticed them with the Soul Swallowing Gaze from a distance. Of course, they had not noticed him. They were conversing while traveling in Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    He stepped aside and hid. He wanted to see how many Fire Essences eight people could umte.


    ¡°This is awful! We¡¯ve been searching for two days! Why haven¡¯t we found the ce marked on the map?! Yang Jun, this map can¡¯t be fake, can it?!¡± one of the disciplesined.


    ¡°Fake?! My master personally gave this map to me! He said there are only three maps in total. Senior Yang Danfeng and Senior Murong have probably found the Frost Soul Essence already! You idiots have been walking in circles! It¡¯s been two days, and we¡¯ve found nothing!¡± Yang Jun yelled, clearly angry.


    Yang Jun was the Third Demon Elder¡¯s number one disciple, so he outranked everyone there. When he raged, despite their dissatisfaction, they did not dare to show it.


    They were called idiots, yet the idiot was Yang Jun himself. He had been the one looking at the map for two days, and giving them instructions. He was the main reason why they could not find their destination.


    ¡°I¡¯ve had enough of scolding you all! There¡¯s one day left! We still stand a chance to find the Frost Soul Essence, so get to work!¡± Yang Jun yelled furiously.


    After walking for a while, one of the disciples said worriedly, ¡°Senior Brother, we have only found a bit over two hundred Fire Essences during these two days. What will we do if Long Chen gets three hundred Fire Essences?¡±


    ¡°How is that possible?¡± Yang Jun gave a contemptuous chuckle. ¡°This is Long Chen¡¯s first timeing to the Pyro Passageways, so he will be unfamiliar with the ce. Each of you can find fifteen Fire Essences in a day, while even finding ten would be impressive for him. And if he found twenty a day, that would only add up to one hundred across five days. Don¡¯t worry about that trash. We must focus on the Frost Soul Essence! Master said it¡¯s something that can help boost one¡¯s cultivation in a stable manner!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Senior!¡±

 Chapter 370 - Frost Soul Essence

    <h4>Chapter 370 - Frost Soul Essence</h4>


    ¡°Frost Soul Essence?¡± This piqued Long Chen¡¯s interest.


    If the three Demon Elders had kept this a secret from Zhao Qingyun and instructed each of their top disciples to search for this thing, it was certain to be an extraordinary treasure.


    ¡°The Frost Soul Essence can be found inva, and it¡¯s the product of an extreme counter-effect. The extreme heat of theva ends up producing an extremely cold essence, just like Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Due to the extreme heat, it feels extremely cold,¡± Ling Xi exined.


    ¡°What are the uses of the Frost Soul Essence?¡± Long Chen asked excitedly.


    ¡°The Frost Soul Essence is a spiritual treasure formed due to the extreme condensation of Yin cold earthly Qi. It has pure, extreme cold energy. As for how useful it¡¯ll be, it depends on its size. Usually, it slowly grows from umtion over time. Usually, after more than a millennium, it¡¯s only the size of a thumb. If you cultivate a thumb-sized Frost Soul Essence, you will go from the Sixth right up to the peak of the Seventh River Stage, almost breaking through to the Eighth,¡± Ling Xi exined meticulously.


    ¡°And if it is cultivated by a person at the Eighth River Stage? What will happen?¡± Long Chen¡¯s brows were furrowed. He had a feeling that the three Demon Elders had been nning this particr Pyro Passageways training exercise for a long time. It looked like the most important thing to them was not the Fire Essence, but the Frost Soul Essence.


    ¡°If they¡¯re lucky, they should be able to reach the Ninth River Stage, so they would be on par with Lin Zichen,¡± Ling Xi answered.


    Long Chen had guessed correctly. The three Demon Elders had probably long known that there was a Frost Soul Essence down here. It was probably too small before, but the opportunity had finally ripened. That was why they had sent their disciples to collect it. Of course, this was all being done behind Zhao Qingyun¡¯s back.


    The higher one ascended in cultivation, the more difficult the journey would be. Breaking through from the Eighth River Stage to the Ninth was especially challenging. If Long Chen wanted to take that leap with Blood Transmutation, he would have to consume a Heaven-tier demonic beast. This was the most efficient method to level up, and it was beyond difficult. But everyone else had it worse.


    The Frost Soul Essence was equivalent to a Heaven-tier beast¡¯s carcass to Long Chen.


    This was something the three Demon Elders had kept secret for a long time, and indeed, it was a very tempting treasure. Long Chen couldn¡¯t resist. The Frost Soul Essence was not the same as Blood Transmutation, which was a type of robbery, a bloody and unreasonable technique. In contrast, the Frost Soul Essence was a product of nature. Refining it would still be adhering to thews of the heavens and earth. It was also considered leveling up in a stable manner.


    Xiang had already attained the Category Eight Earth-tier, and Long Chen could not fall behind.


    Dear three Demon Elders, the items you prepared for your disciples will end up in my hands. I really want to see the looks on your faces when that happens. Frost Soul Essence. What a nice name. Long Chen smirked.


    ¡°Brother Chen, what are you going to do?¡± asked Ling Xi.


    ¡°Snatch the map, of course!¡± Long Chen did not hesitate. After he spoke, he dashed at an extremely high speed, then appeared in front of Yang Jun and the rest with an amused look on his face.


    His appearance startled everyone.


    ¡°Who is that?!¡±


    Yang Jun hurriedly tried to put the map in his hand away, then he looked at Long Chen with some panic. When he got a good look at Long Chen¡¯s face, he calmed down, as did everyone else.


    ¡°Long Chen? You didn¡¯t have to do it, but you delivered yourself to our doorstep!¡± Yang Jun gestured to his brothers, and a total of eight people instantly surrounded Long Chen. Yang Jun took the lead, gazing arrogantly at him. ¡°You brat, you came here to give us something, right? Let¡¯s do it this way. Give us all the Fire Essences you¡¯ve collected, and I will show you mercy. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Dream on! You¡¯ve lost to me already, so you have no right to speak in front of me. Aren¡¯t you afraid I¡¯m going to spank your bottom again?¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± That was the most humiliating event of Yang Jun¡¯s life, and the fact that Long Chen brought it up again made his cheeks burn. Long Chen¡¯s look of contempt made him increasingly furious. As the number one disciples of the Third Demon Elder, no one had ever dared insult him like that.


    ¡°Everyone! Beat Long Chen up! You¡¯re merely at the Sixth River Stage; you only defeated me because you were lucky! How dare you showboat yourself in front of your seniors! My brothers, attack!¡± cried Yang Jun, sounding a little desperate.


    Everyone knew that Long Chen had mastered the Heaven-tier Traceless Demon Shadow, meaning he would be difficult to beat despite being one level lower than them.


    ¡°Attack!¡± All eight disciples charged. Before Long Chen arrived, these people were ranked third to tenth in the Heavenly Demon Pce. They were the best of the disciples. Qi exploded from them as they charged at Long Chen. They were almost the same as eight Yang Juns, so Long Chen could feel an unquestionable pressure.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll just give you all a taste of my newly acquired skill.¡±


    ng! Long Chen took out the Star Sword. It radiated faint starlight and was extremely sharp, enough to startle the onlooker. It was clearly a good weapon!


    The Pce Lord is clearly being unfair. This brat has only just entered the Heavenly Demon Pce, yet the Pce Lord has already given him such a good sword! Everyone felt ufortable by this. All of them had once eyed Traceless Demon Shadow, yet this neer who hade out of nowhere had robbed them of it. Everyone was furious.


    ¡°Take this! Seventy-Two Path True Fists!¡±


    ¡°Divine Wind Kick!¡±


    Wave after wave of attacks came after Long Chen, including many advanced Earth-tier techniques. Since they were all at the Seventh River Stage, cultivating advanced Earth-tierbat techniques was a minimum requirement for them. However, even the skills in this tier could be categorized as good or bad. The best advanced Earth-tier technique was at least ten times stronger than the worst advanced Earth-tier technique. After Ling Xi¡¯s modifications of Long Chen¡¯s Shadow Sword Technique, it was undeniably one of the best of its tier!


    ¡°Shadow Sword Technique!¡±


    Blurry shadows suddenly shot through the crowd, traveling so fast they were almost invisible.


    Long Chen¡¯s shadows appeared next to everyone, and they attacked the shadows fervently. However, they realized that they were not fast enough to catch up to Long Chen¡¯s bodybat technique. Every shadow was Long Chen, but also not Long Chen!


    How can Traceless Demon Shadow be this insane?! Fear rose in their hearts. That was when one of them let out a cry of pain. They all looked over and saw a sword pierced through his thigh. Long Chen was standing behind this disciple, and before anyone could react, he and his sword disappeared again, leaving the stabbed disciple crying!


    ¡°Everyone, be careful!¡± Everyone¡¯s smugness turned into panic and terror when they witnessed this. They never imagined that Long Chen would be this powerful. He had already mastered Traceless Demon Shadow to itste stage, so despite being only at the Sixth River Stage, even Yang Jun could not track his movements, let alone the others.


    Long Chen was an invisible killer to them. They were sitting ducks with no power to fight back at all!


    ¡°Ahh!¡± Another disciple screamed. Everyone turned in terror and found that his thigh had been punctured too! Blood flowed into theva. It looked like his artery had been stabbed, and the disciple was trying to stop the blood in a panic. However, the wound left him incapacitated.


    Everyone lost their minds in panic.


    ¡°Long Chen, if you are a man, don¡¯t use Traceless Demon Shadow! Fight me directly, you coward!¡± Yang Jun roared as he grimaced furiously. He was secretly also feeling terrified when he watched his men get knocked down one by one.


    ¡°Do you take me for an idiot?¡± Long Chen¡¯sughter rang across every person¡¯s minds.


    ¡°Ah!¡± Another disciple¡¯s thigh was stabbed!


    This was the trigger to the bomb. Everyone was terrified and knew that if they stayed, they would only be stabbed by Long Chen. When one person fled, the rest started to flee too.


    Even the injured ones tried to run. Long Chen had merely stabbed their thighs,but who knew if he would stab their hearts next?


    ¡°Where are you all going? Get back here!¡± Yang Jun barked in terror. Unfortunately, his yelling was useless. Long Chen¡¯s violent actions had shaken them to the core.


    When everyone left, Yang Jun was finally afraid. He quickly turned and also fled. However, what made him lose hisposure was that Long Chen gave chase!


    ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m begging you! Let me go! I¡¯m not going to fight you anymore! I¡¯m giving you all my Fire Essences! Let me go!¡± he begged bitterly as he fled. If a two-meter tall man could beg like this, it was clear how terrifying Long Chen was.


    An invisible attack was the most terrifying one. No one wanted to be in a situation where they could not even fight back, where they could die at any time.


    ¡°Since you¡¯re the one who¡¯s offering, will you agree to whatever terms I demand?¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice rang creepily next to his ear.


    Yang Jun gritted his teeth and said, ¡°As long as it does not cross my limits, anything will do! As long as you let me go!¡±

 Chapter 371 - The Mantis Catches The Cicada

    <h4>Chapter 371 - The Mantis Catches The Cicada</h4>


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen asked solemnly.


    He did not intend to kill Yang Jun, as he only wanted to get the Demon Seed nting Technique. Since the Third Demon Elder was backing Yang Jun, it was not necessary to worsen the enmity between them. He hade to the Heavenly Demon Pce only to strengthen himself until he was strong enough to storm the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    When Yang Jun saw that Long Chen had no intention to kill him, he stopped running and said in exasperation, ¡°Just tell me if there¡¯s something you want.¡± He hadpletely admitted defeat.


    ¡°Give me the Frost Soul Essence¡¯s map. It¡¯s a waste for it to end up in your hands anyway,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°You heard our conversation?¡± Yang Jun gasped, looking at him in shock.


    ¡°Less of that nonsense. Hand the map over,¡± demanded Long Chen sternly.


    Yang Jun was hesitant. The Frost Soul Essence was something the three Demon Elders let their first disciplespete for, and they wanted to keep it from Zhao Qingyun. However, if Long Chen got his hands on it, Yang Jun was going to be beaten to death by the Demon Elders.


    However, he had another idea, which made him feel better.


    Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu had the same map. Four days had passed, and perhaps they had already found the Frost Soul Essence. Even if they hadn¡¯t, how could Long Chen beat them if they all met? They had cultivated Traceless Demon Shadow as well, plus they had studied it for a longer time. They both had the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique too, so if he met them, he would just be abused. He would never get the Frost Soul Essence.


    ¡°This is the map. Can I leave now?¡± Yang Jun took out a golden scroll from his Universe Pouch, and Long Chen quickly took it. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was indeed the map that Yang Jun was previously looking at.


    Very satisfied, he said, ¡°You may leave.¡±


    With Long Chen¡¯s permission, Yang Jun immediately shot off as fast as he could. After running about a kilometer, Yang Jun finallyughed. ¡°Long Chen is an idiot! Although the Frost Soul Essence is important, the Demon Seed nting Technique is equally important! I can¡¯t believe he only cares about the Frost Soul Essence, and he didn¡¯t take my Fire Essences! Haha! What an idiot! I have three hundred Fire Essences!


    ¡°Even Senior Yang Danfeng might not have as many as me! So won¡¯t the Demon Seed nting Technique be mine? As for the Frost Soul Essence, that originally belonged to Senior Yang Danfeng and Senior Murong anyway! It¡¯s fine that I lost the map; it doesn¡¯t affect me at all.¡±


    With that thought, Yang Jun happily found a ce to hide, waiting for the next day to arrive. On the next day, Zhao Qingyun and the three Demon Elders would enter the Pyro Passageways and personally collect them. Then they would stop fighting too.


    That would be the moment of Yang Jun¡¯s victory.


    ***


    After obtaining the map, Long Chen and Xiang found a spot to focus on studying it. Because he had the Soul Swallowing Gaze and he had been to more ces, he was more familiar with the terrain of the riverbed than them.


    ¡°I recognize this. This shape should be the Divine Ember Beast cave. This is probably a map that the Demon Elders drew on their own. This patch is blurry, so it shows that they never discovered the cave,¡± he suddenly said in great surprise.


    After reverse engineering the map, he could confirm onendmark. As long as he could confirm that location, then it would be much easier to find the destination.


    ¡°The Frost Soul Essence doesn¡¯t seem to be far from the Divine Ember Beast cave. Let¡¯s go to the cave first, then head in this direction for about fifteen minutes, then we¡¯ll reach our destination!¡± Long Chen said excitedly.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you¡¯re so smart! There were eight of them and they studied the map for two days, yet they couldn¡¯t figure it out! You seeded in just a short while!¡± Ling Xi praised in admiration.


    ¡°Hehe, that¡¯s because it¡¯s me. Xiang, let¡¯s go. I can¡¯t beat Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu, so it¡¯s up to you this time. And if they haven¡¯t found it yet, we''ll surprise them!¡±


    After that, Long Chen led Xiang towards the Divine Ember Beast cave. They had juste from that ce, so returning was very easy as Long Chen had a good sense of direction.


    They traveled quickly, and soon they arrived in front of the cave. Everything was quiet now. Long Chen confirmed his location on the map once more. After he realized that his guesses were correct, he put the map down and hurried on once more.


    At this point, if they engaged in a serious battle, Long Chen was probably no match for Xiang. The Category Eight Earth-tier Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was too powerful, plus every divine fire clone possessed Category Seven Earth-tierbat abilities. If Long Chen were to fight him, it would end in tragedy.


    When they approached, Long Chen heard the sound of fighting and said mildly, ¡°What a coincidence. It looks like they¡¯ve only just arrived, which is why they¡¯re fighting over it. No one has been able to take the Frost Soul Essence away yet.¡±


    Long Chen sighed in relief.


    He traveled ahead, though he had to be cautious. As he approached, he saw that two people were fighting fiercely at the base of a basin ofva. Long Chen¡¯s eyes were not first attracted to them, but to a blue, thumb-sized bead in the basin. The bead was clear and shiny, radiating a faint glow that created a three-meter-radius space around it.


    ¡°Is that the Frost Soul Essence? It¡¯s the size of a thumb. It¡¯s no wonder the three Demon Elders instructed their disciples toe retrieve it. However, Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu are at the Eighth River Stage, so it would be unfair no matter who they gave it to. That¡¯s why they have to fight for it on their own.¡±


    ***


    ¡°Xiao Yu, don¡¯t you know how true my love is for you? We¡¯ve grown up together, and I¡¯ve been meticulously caring for you throughout all these years. Have you not felt it all?¡± Yang Danfengmented with dramatic sorrow as he fought hard.


    ¡°Meticulously? By meticulously, do you mean fighting me for the Frost Soul Essence here? Is this what you mean by true love? I¡¯m going to puke!¡± Murong Yu coldly replied.


    ¡°This is different! The Frost Soul Essence is rted to my future! Don¡¯t you like a man who works hard for his future? As long as I be strong, I will be able to protect you. Isn¡¯t it going to be the same? Let me have the Frost Soul Essence, and I will protect you forever. Won¡¯t that be wonderful?¡± Yang Danfeng said indignantly.


    ¡°Does your future entail stepping on the person you like in order to achieve greater heights? Yang Danfeng, why don¡¯t you let me have the Frost Soul Essence? Then let me protect you? You said you liked me, and you said that you¡¯ve meticulously cared for me. A girl like me doesn¡¯t deserve your ¡®meticulous care,¡¯¡± Murong Yu responded coldly. She had zero hopes for Yang Danfeng.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, you aren¡¯t listening to me! If you insist on fighting me, then don¡¯t me me for not holding back! I¡¯ve never met a woman as stubborn as you!¡±


    ¡°And I¡¯ve never met a man as disgusting as you!¡± yelled Murong Yu.


    ¡°Bitch!¡± Yang Danfeng hadpletely lost his cool in the face of Murong Yu¡¯s rudeness. A person suddenly popped into his mind, then he yelled angrily, ¡°Murong Yu! You¡¯re so cruel to me! You haven¡¯t fallen for Long Chen, have you?¡±


    Murong Yu froze, and Long Chen¡¯s face also popped into her mind. However, when she thought of Ling Xi, she immediately denied it and said coldly, ¡°Stop with that nonsense. And I¡¯m not wasting my time arguing with you. May the stronger cultivator get the Frost Soul Essence, then! There¡¯s no use talking!¡±


    Then her attacks intensified, sending a powerful st of Qi at Yang Danfeng.


    I guessed it right, and how dare she avoid the subject?! With that thought, Yang Danfeng almost fainted from anger. The woman who he had lusted after for almost twenty years had fallen into Long Chen¡¯s arms. Hot blood rushed through him and clouded his eyes!


    ¡°Murong Yu, you bitch! Die!¡±


    Blinded by rage, Yang Danfeng hadpletely gone mad. Qi exploded from him, and it was clear that he had been hiding a final trick up his sleeve. A demon shadow grew from his body, and thick, ck smoke started to curl. Yang Danfeng¡¯s aura grew stronger by the second, and in the blink of an eye, it doubled in strength!


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one who knows the Demon Seed nting Technique?¡± With a soft cry, ck smoke also rose from her body, engulfing her in darkness. Her aura became fifty percent stronger.


    ¡°I know you know it, but I obtained this technique much earlier than you did. Can you use it as well as me? Let me tell you this, Murong Yu, the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique will be mine today, as well as the Frost Soul Essence. The Demon Emperor Sword will also be mine! Once I reach the Ninth River Stage, I will be the ultimate prodigy who can go up against Lin Zichen, and Long Chen will die beneath my sword! As for you, you¡¯ll soon be a ve lying beneath me!¡± Yang Danfeng sneered.


    Murong Yu grew intensely ufortable seeing Yang Danfeng like that, but she mustered her courage and said coldly, ¡°Wait till you defeat me before spouting such derations.¡±


    ¡°As you wish!¡± Yang Danfengughed out loud like a madman. Then he turned into a ck tornado and charged at Murong Yu. In that instant, his body turned into a blur of illusory images!


    It was Traceless Demon Shadow!

 Chapter 372 - Abyssal Piercing Finger

    <h4>Chapter 372 - Abyssal Piercing Finger</h4>


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one who can use Traceless Demon Shadow?¡± Murong Yu gathered her courage, then she also turned into infinite shadows.


    ¡°My master is the First Demon Elder, who cultivates the Abyssal Piercing Finger. Your master is the Second Demon Elder, who cultivates the Willow Soul Dispersing Palm. I want to see which technique is stronger!¡± A bout ofughter came from the blur of illusions.


    When they fought, both sides used Traceless Demon Shadow. As an onlooker, Long Chen found it difficult to see their movements clearly, especially within theva. However, he discovered a new use for the Soul Swallowing Gaze. The Soul Swallowing Gaze made it much easier to track their locations, which would be a huge advantage if he fought one of them.


    Murong Yu and Yang Danfeng fought extremely fiercely, and Long Chen was privately shocked. Based on his estimations, he realized that he was currently no match for them, and he could only attain their level if he obtained the Frost Soul Essence.


    Although I''m stronger than Yang Jun, these two are still the chosen ones of the Heavenly Demon Pce. The cultivation resources they¡¯ve received are probably on the same level as Lin Zichen. Plus, the Demon Seed nting Technique effectively doubles their Qi, so they are on the same level as Sword Warriors.


    After learning about other types of warriors, Long Chen finally understood how amazing his Dragon Soul Transformation was. Regr Beast Warriors experienced a one to two-times boost in Qi level, and at most, a three-times boost.


    Armament Warriors and Beast Warriors weren¡¯t the only ones with techniques that boosted their strength. For example, the Blood Saints relied on bathing in the blood of virgins and using a secret technique to change the properties of their Qi. With great difficulty, they were able to achieve a two-times boost of their original Qi level. However, this was an evil technique and was not the conventional Dao, so while the short-term benefits were great, they would definitely suffer consequences in the long-term.


    The Demon Seed nting Technique was in the same category as the Blood Saints¡¯ techniques. However, it was not as lowly and evil. It was a fully formed technique that could boost its user¡¯s Qi by up to four times after cultivating the second stage. Just like Long Chen, its user could likely defeat a same-level opponent easily due to a much higher level of Qi.


    However, while the Demon Seed nting Technique gave one a stronger boost than a Sword Warrior, being a Sword Warrior offered a permanent boost. The Demon Seed nting Technique was an elementary Heaven-tier technique that would be useless after the cultivator surpassed the first three stages of the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    Then again, there was no one beyond the first three stages of the Heavenly Passage Realm in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    That was why it was logical for the Heavenly Demon Pce to rank the Demon Seed nting Technique above Traceless Demon Shadow. Powerful waves of Qi and fierce energy ripples radiated from Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu¡¯s battle. They were so intense that other people would find it difficult to remain near them.


    When the sandpiper and the m fought, the fisherman was the one who won in the end. That was why Long Chen did not act immediately, but waited and monitored the fight quietly.


    Their battle intensified as it went on. They used one fatal strike after another, not showing mercy at all. To be honest, both sides were on the same level and theirbat abilities were equal. The result of such a long fight would depend on their individual patience and viciousness, and it was obvious that Yang Danfeng was superior in both aspects. His attacks were quick and fierce, and his moves became more crazed in thetter stages of the fight. He was gaining an advantage over Murong Yu.


    Murong Yu was currently enveloped in Qi and was drenched in sweat, her chest rising and falling as she breathed heavily. She was frowning hard because she knew that if this continued, she would be unable to take the Frost Soul Essence with her.


    She had known that Yang Danfeng was a bad person ever since they were kids. Therefore, she had always maintained a distance from him. Due to their statuses, she understood that if she was weaker than him, she would easily be suppressed by him. And if he ever went crazy in front of the three Demon Elders, she would easily be harmed in the process.


    That was why she had worked as hard as she possibly could to cultivate.


    However, if Yang Danfeng reached the Ninth River Stage, the Demon Emperor Sword would be his and he would be a master who surpassed the three Demon Elders. He would then be able to force her to do whatever he wanted, and she would have no way to fight back. That was why she knew that she had to fight till the bitter end!


    ¡°Haha! Apologies, it looks like you¡¯ve already begun to lose. If you already knew this would happen, why did you have to fight me and waste your energy? But you don¡¯t have to worry, Xiao Yu! After I get the Frost Soul Essence, I won¡¯t treat you poorly!¡± Yang Danfeng¡¯s insaneugh rang across the cave.


    ¡°In your dreams!¡± Murong Yu took a few steps back. She was already at her wit¡¯s end, and she had no choice but to use her most powerful technique. Guiding the Qi through her whole body, she made herst gamble!


    ¡°Willow Soul Dispersing Palm, Levitating Shadow!¡±


    Murong Yu¡¯s technique could only be used when paired with Traceless Demon Shadow. Tens of thousands of palm seals appeared above the blur of countless illusions, and they all swarmed towards Yang Danfeng! The powerful attack caused theva around her to flow manically and boil from its vibrations. Then a gigantic space appeared around her!


    ¡°You fool! I knew you would use this move!¡± Yang Danfeng smirked smugly. His silhouette changed and he thrust his finger out in a precise manner. A ck sword shadow shot powerfully out of his fingertip!


    ¡°Abyssal Piercing Finger, Piercing Heaven And Earth!¡±


    From his angle, the Abyssal Piercing Finger could pierce into the side of the Willow Soul Dispersing Palm, neutralizing her attack. Yang Danfeng had used his attack in its most effective manner. Although he looked crazed, his mind was actually calm, and he knew that Murong Yu¡¯s mind was a mess. He was just waiting for her to use this move, and indeed, due to her panic, she had done exactly as he expected.


    She had fallen into his trap!


    Boom!


    Lava exploded and shot in all directions. Long Chen also felt a strong force acting on his body and forced himself to stay still using his Qi, so he was not sent flying. He activated the Dragon Soul Transformation, so his Sixth River Stage Qi had instantly risen to the peak of the Seventh River Stage. The Dragon Soul Transformation was much more impressive than the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    However, he knew that the Demon Seed nting Technique could boost his Qi once more post-Dragon Soul Transformation, helping him reach an even higher level.


    When Long Chen finished his preparations, the scales were already tipping in the battle between Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu. Due to Murong Yu¡¯s distracted thoughts, she was thrown back by the attack. There was even a little blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth.


    Of course, Yang Danfeng did not feel good about it. He was not actually more powerful than her; he was only relying on his advantage as a male. After the exchange, he was pale from the vibrations and his blood surged. He merely recovered from the impact faster, and when he saw that Murong Yu had sessfully been sent flying, his eyes lit up. Relying on this moment of distraction, he dashed towards the Frost Soul Essence as fast as he could!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    A ck silhouette appeared in front of him, and another shadow dashed out of the silhouette, heading towards the Frost Soul Essence. To Yang Danfeng¡¯s shock, Long Chen put the Frost Soul Essence in his Universe Pouch!


    Sess!


    When Long Chen¡¯s face was revealed, both Murong Yu and Yang Danfeng froze. Murong Yu was in a state of shock while infinite rage burned within Yang Danfeng!


    He had defeated Murong Yu with great difficulty in order to win the Frost Soul Essence, but Long Chen had appeared at the final moment to rob him of the fruit he hadbored for!


    Yang Danfeng had always been the one taking the fruits of others, not the other way round.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re looking for death! Hand the Frost Soul Essence to me now and I will let you live. You have ten seconds! After that, if you remain stubborn, you will die!¡± threatened Yang Danfeng, his features contorted.


    ¡°You idiot, are you daydreaming?¡± Long Chen smiled faintly without fear on his face, as if the one standing before him was a normal person instead of the Eighth River Stage Yang Danfeng.


    His contempt made Yang Danfengpletely lose his temper. He no longer wanted to argue, so he charged at Long Chen immediately. He attacked using the Seven Killings Demon Finger¡ªhe was aiming to kill!


    However, he had forgotten about Xiang, who was a Sun Devouring Wolf! He was not a simple beast!


    When Yang Danfeng attacked, Xiang instantly used Divine Fire Clone, and arge pack of Sun Devouring Wolves surrounded Yang Danfeng instantly. The insane attack stunned Yang Danfeng.


    There were more than a hundred clones, each possessing thebat abilities of a Category Seven Earth-tier demonic beast. This was a threat to Yang Danfeng. Under their fervent attacks, Yang Danfeng was forced backwards multiple times. And Xiang had not even attacked him personally yet. Xiang possessed the very destructive Nine Devils Ancestral Fire and Divine Fire Clone, so even a Ninth River Stage cultivator would find it difficult to fight him, let alone Yang Danfeng.


    As he suffered Xiang¡¯s attacks, Yang Danfeng¡¯s face soon became dusty and disheveled as he fought in a crazed manner. He screamed furiously with a strong unwillingness in his voice!


    ¡°What the hell is this thing?! Why is it so strong?! Long Chen, if you have the guts,e fight me directly! Don¡¯t hide behind that beast; you¡¯re not a fucking man at all!¡±


    ¡°You may not know if I¡¯m a man, but your mother knows! Go back and ask her!¡± Long Chen was in a very good mood after taking the Frost Soul Essence. He knew that Yang Danfeng was extremely furious right now, and the angrier he was, the happier Long Chen became.


    ¡°You!¡± Yang Danfeng was almost injured severely several times amidst the clones¡¯ attacks, especially after Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire brushed past his shoulder and caused it to instantly be numb. After that, the intention to retreat arose in his mind!


    ¡°Long Chen, you took my Frost Soul Essence today! One day, I will take it back! And I will also take your life!¡±


    Then Yang Danfeng fled.

 Chapter 373 - Number One Wolf In The World

    <h4>Chapter 373 - Number One Wolf In The World</h4>


    Xiang finally stopped his attacks and turned back into his cute, tiny form. He returned to Long Chen, and despite his cute looks, he maintained a serious expression, which made him even more adorable.


    Murong Yu looked at Long Chen, then at Xiang. She was still in disbelief.


    ¡°Is the little wolf that powerful?¡± Murong Yu croaked out, biting her lip.


    ¡°Of course! Xiang is the number one wolf in the world!¡± Long Chenughed, then he looked at Murong Yu in amusement and said, ¡°What do you think? The Frost Soul Essence is in my hands now. Do you have a problem with that?¡±


    ¡°This little wolf sent Yang Danfeng running for his life, so how could I be a match for it? I¡¯m not an idiot. Since you were able to take it, it¡¯s yours. This oue is much better than letting that jerk Yang Danfeng get it. However, Long Chen, how did you know we¡¯re fighting for the Frost Soul Essence?¡±


    ¡°I saw Yang Jun and the others looking for it with a map, so I snatched it from them and came here. Thank goodness I arrived in time, or Yang Danfeng would have gotten it,¡± said Long Chen.


    Murong Yu felt like her heart was a mess as she looked at his impassive expression. She was more powerful than Long Chen, but in her heart, he was still mysterious and powerful. The Frost Soul Essence was with him now, and she was willing to admit defeat.


    He had the Frost Soul Essence, and there was no need to search for more Fire Essences. He only had to wait one more day to leave the Pyro Passageways. He had obtained a huge haul from this trip, and his cultivation would strengthen once more now that he had the Frost Soul Essence.


    Since he and Murong Yu were not close friends, it was understandably awkward. Therefore, he nodded and said, ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll see you tomorrow. I need to go get more Fire Essences.¡±


    ¡°How many do you have so far?¡± she asked hurriedly. When she asked the question, she realized she had overstepped. Since they werepetitors, and the number of Fire Essences determined whether they would receive the Demon Seed nting Technique, telling each other how many they had was not quite appropriate.


    ¡°Fire Essences? About two thousand,¡± replied Long Chen without thinking much of it. To be honest, since she had helped him before, he basically saw her as a good friend. There was no need to hide small matters like this from a friend.


    ¡°Two thousand?¡± Murong Yu was tongue-tied. She eyed him up and down, saw the corner of his lips curl up, then said a little angrily, ¡°How dare you lie to me! Alright, I won¡¯t keep you from your search for Fire Essences! But let me remind you that if you want to get the Demon Seed nting Technique, you¡¯d best get at least five hundred Fire Essences. It¡¯s safer that way. There are eight of them after all. If you want the second stage, you¡¯ll need eight hundred ...


    ¡°Right now, counting the Divine Essence Crystals, I have the equivalent of more than seven hundred Fire Essences. I don¡¯t know how many Yang Danfeng has, but I believe he has around the same amount.¡± Murong Yu did not hold back and told him her number so he would be mentally prepared.


    ¡°Thank you very much!¡± Long Chen could tell that she was being nice to him and looked at her gratefully. He bade her farewell, then turned to leave with Xiang.


    Murong Yu stood in the spot, dazed as she watched him leave. It was only when he disappeared that she came back to her senses ...


    The day passed slowly.


    Since Long Chen had an approximate knowledge of how many Fire Essences the other disciples had, and he knew that his number far surpassed theirs, he did not collect anymore but kept Ling Xipany instead. When it was time, he felt a powerful aura pressing on the Pyro Passageways. At this time, he emerged from the surface and returned to the original tunnel.


    Zhao Qingyun was standing on the surface of theva beneath the tunnel. When he saw that Long Chen was safe and sound, he sighed in relief and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go! Follow me back!¡±


    Long Chen followed a hanging metal chain that ran upwards and returned to the tunnel. By this point, the three Demon Elders had probably taken the others back too. Long Chen followed Zhao Qingyun out and began their journey back.


    ¡°How is it possible for this demonic beast¡¯s aura to be so much stronger than before?¡± Zhao Qingyun was a little stunned when he saw Xiang, who was napping in Long Chen¡¯s arms. He eyed Xiang carefully for a while in disbelief.


    ¡°Initially, I estimated this demonic beast to be a Category Five Earth-tier, but right now, it¡¯s at least a Category Eight Earth-tier ...¡± Zhao Qingyun knew that Long Chen was a mysterious teenager who owned many mysterious items. However, he still found it difficult to ept that the beast had risen by three tiers in five days.


    Long Chen looked torn. He did not know how to exin Xiang¡¯s condition to Zhao Qingyun.


    ¡°So this is why you brought the demonic beast to the Pyro Passageways. This demonic wolf emits a thick fire energy, so the Pyro Passageways is the perfect ce for it to live.¡± There was only an impressed look in his eyes without any malicious intent.


    ¡°Alright, kid. There¡¯s no need to panic. I¡¯m old. I don¡¯t ask for much when ites to reputation, strength, and all, so I won¡¯t ask about your personal secrets. All I want to know is the name of this beast,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a grin, patting Long Chen¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Master, you must know of a ck-tier beast called the Moon Devouring Wolf, right? Xiang is a type of mutant that evolved from the Moon Devouring Wolf called the Sun Devouring Wolf,¡± Long Chen answered honestly.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of the Moon Devouring Wolf, but not the Sun Devouring Wolf. Are you sure it isn¡¯t a name you made up, kid? Hehe. Whatever. Let¡¯s put the wolf aside and discuss the main topic. Long Chen, how confident are you in winning?¡± There was anticipation, but also nervousness, in Zhao Qingyun¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Master, don¡¯t worry. I promise you¡¯ll be surprised,¡± Long Chen responded with a mysterious smile.


    ¡°Surprise? Don¡¯t underestimate the rest of them, kid. Xiao Yu is the only obedient one of the bunch. The other disciples of the three Demon Elders are all wild. They¡¯re not true demons. You, Long Chen, fit my image of a demon better.¡±


    This was why Zhao Qingyun liked Long Chen so much. Long Chen worked alone and was restricted by no one. He was extraordinarily talented, and his attitude was carefree and straightforward. This was the ¡°demon¡± that Zhao Qingyun had described, and Long Chen¡¯s personality fit the description perfectly.


    ¡°Nonsense. How could Zhao Qingyun¡¯s direct disciple be worse than them? Then again, your disciples have never beaten the disciples of the three Demon Elders. Today, I¡¯ll give you a taste of victory!¡± Although Zhao Qingyun was his master, Long Chen did not mince his words when he spoke, and Zhao Qingyun naturally did not care. Long Chen was veryfortable with a rtionship like that.


    No matter what Zhao Qingyun said, Long Chen refused to tell him how many Fire Essences he had gathered. They walked until they arrived at the end of the ten walkways where the metal door was, and Zhao Qingyun smiled in exasperation. The other people had begun to arrive too. First to arrive were the three Demon Elders, whose expressions were dark, while behind them were Yang Danfeng and Yang Jun, whose faces were even darker. There were a few more disciples with them, and a few were being propped up as they walked. These were the ones whose thighs Long Chen had stabbed.


    Murong Yu looked much more carefree than them, tagging along at the back.


    When the three Demon Elders spotted Long Chen, they shot him cold, deathly res, causing goosebumps to pop up all over his body. Since they had not announced the number of Fire Essences yet, the three Demon Elders were currently concerned about who had taken the Frost Soul Essence. That was something they had meticulously prepared for their number one disciples, yet Long Chen had reaped the fruit of theirbor. When they heard the news, even the First Demon Elder almost fainted from rage.


    At this point, the rage they felt towards Long Chen could no longer be described with words.


    However, what frustrated them was that they could not rage at Long Chen in public, because the Frost Soul Essence was a secret between them and their disciples. Usually, treasures found in the Pyro Passageways belonged to the Heavenly Demon Pce, but the three Demon Elders had kept it for themselves behind Zhao Qingyun¡¯s back. This was already a wrongdoing, so they could not publicly ask Long Chen for a trade.


    When they saw that their disciples had been hurt by Long Chen, they were even angrier.


    Unfortunately, no matter how angry they were, they had to keep it inside.


    ¡°Since everyone has arrived, then we shall not dy any longer. Let¡¯s head to the Demon Pavilion to announce the results, then decide who shall receive the Demon Seed nting Technique!¡±


    Zhao Qingyun was no fool, so of course he saw their dark expressions. He knew that they were like that because Long Chen had beaten their disciples up in the Pyro Passageways.


    He finally had a direct disciple who was superior to the others, so although Zhao Qingyun did not say it, he was privately smug.


    He led the whole group towards the Demon Pavilion. Since the Pyro Passageways training exercise was finally over, it had caused a hugemotion in the Heavenly Demon Pce. All the disciples and elders were very concerned about who would receive the Demon Seed nting Technique, so many disciples had already gathered outside the Demon Pavilion. Almost all the elders, Enforces, and Pavilion Lords were already waiting inside.


    When Zhao Qingyun arrived, the Heavenly Demon Pce disciples started to chatter. They looked behind him excitedly and indeed, the disciples that had gone into the Pyro Passageways were with him. But why was the atmosphere so strange?


    Long Chen was next to Zhao Qingyun, both with identical expressions on their faces. On the other hand, the three Demon Elders had the same expressions as their disciples. Long Chen was naturally joyful, whereas the Demon Elders¡¯ expressions were each darker than thest. Was this indicative of something?


    Did it mean ...


    Had Long Chen found more Fire Essences than them? More than Yang Jun?


    All faces were filled with disbelief.


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. He¡¯s just pretending. Once he shows the number of Fire Essences he has, you¡¯ll know who the victor is!¡± one of them said with augh.

 Chapter 374 - Counting Fire Essences

    <h4>Chapter 374 - Counting Fire Essences</h4>


    Under the confused gazes of the crowd, the row of participants entered the Demon Pavilion. The grand entrance was tall and gigantic, but it could not fit so many disciples. As a result, only the disciples with higher cultivation levels managed to squeeze into the front. The weaker ones who were forced to the back started to panic. They could only see the inside of the hall when they jumped as hard as they could, and still, their field of vision was limited!


    The disciples who squeezed to the front turned quickly and shouted, ¡°Everyone, quiet down! When we get the news, we¡¯ll tell you immediately!¡± They were more powerful, so they suppressed the disciples behind them. Most of the disciples were only fighting to be the first to hear the results. In fact, if they were all quiet, they would be able to hear the sounds from inside the hall!


    Everyone else started to scold each other, making the rest simmer down. Soon, the whole crowd fell silent, trying their best to not make a sound or say a word in order to hear the conversations in the hall clearly.


    Due to Long Chen, they were extra anxious to learn the results of the Pyro Passageways training exercise.


    As everyone was finally silent, Zhao Qingyun took the elevated seat at the head of the room, looking down at the rest with a solemn expression. When he was serious, he looked very regal. The three Demon Elders sat down on his left and right, all their eyes fixed dead at the center of the hall. Long Chen and the ten other disciples were standing there. Long Chen looked nonchnt, while the rest asionally shot venomous res in his direction. From this small detail, the other elders and Enforcers had their guesses.


    ¡°Alright. We have finallye to the end of the Pyro Passageways training exercise. Our outstanding disciples now hold the results in their hands. I won¡¯t waste any more time, so everyone, show us your Fire Essences ording to your ranks. We¡¯ll start from our tenth disciple, Ruan Cheng!¡±


    The disciple whose name was called shuddered, then he walked up anxiously. The elders started to discuss amongst themselves when they saw him.


    ¡°Ruan Cheng is around as strong as Yang Jun! He has been at the Seventh River Stage for a year now and has entered the Pyro Passageways once before!¡±


    ¡°He came out with forty Fire Essencesst time, I think. He should have more this time, maybe around seventy.¡±


    The results were about to be announced, and the disciples outside were extremely excited, especially the Third Demon Elder¡¯s disciples. Being one of the Third Demon Elder¡¯s disciples, Ruan Cheng had a great reputation and status.


    ¡°Senior Ruan Cheng should have eighty this time! I asked him a few months ago, and he said he was confident!¡± said one of the disciples.


    ¡°Eighty? The top ten disciples are indeed extraordinary!¡±


    The disciples outside the door all praised him, while the ones who were further strained their ears to listen.


    With all eyes on him, Ruan Cheng looked a little timid. He knew that he had to show his results, so he decided tomit fully and shamelessly. He took out five Fire Essences from his Universe Pouch and said, ¡°Pce Lord, I retrieved a total of five Fire Essences!¡±


    Zhao Qingyun¡¯s first reaction was tough, while the elders and Enforcers were stunned. When they saw that there were really only five Fire Essences in his hand, they looked at each other in disbelief.


    ¡°How could it just be five? Did someone rob him?¡± The crowd was puzzled.


    ¡°Ruan Cheng, how do you only have five? At your level, getting five is an extremely simple task! The Ember Beasts are only Category Six Earth-tier, so they are no match for you,¡± the elders who were more familiar with him asked.


    Ruan Cheng hung his head without a word, though his face was red with shame.


    When the disciples outside heard that Ruan Cheng had only obtained five Fire Essences, they erupted. Five was an embarrassing number! They were all confused at first, then upon confirmation, they startedughing one by one.


    ¡°Only five? Even I can get that! Haha ...¡±


    ¡°Five Fire Essences? That¡¯s too embarrassing! I can¡¯t believe we have the same master!¡±


    ¡°Silence!¡± Zhao Qingyun hurriedly suppressed the crowd when he saw that they had erupted in conversation. He scanned Ruan Cheng, then he said, ¡°Ruan Cheng, Five Essences. Alright, you can go back. Next, Zhang Dongyang, ranked ninth!¡±


    After seeing Ruan Cheng getughed at, Zhang Dongyang was much calmer. He knew that everyone after him would also beughed at, and he would only be one of many. Therefore, he strode forward. Long Chen had stabbed him in the thigh, but he had mostly recovered, though he still had a limp when he walked.


    What¡¯s up with his leg? Everyone was wondering the same. After they looked at Long Chen, they had a thought. Long Chen wasn¡¯t the one who hurt him, was he?


    Despite what other people thought, Zhang Dongyang showed his haul. Eight Fire Essences. Just like Ruan Cheng, the crowdughed at him. However, after theughter died down, everyone was confused. These people definitely were capable enough to find more, so why did they have so few?


    Unless... Had someone taken their Fire Essences?


    When this question arose in their minds, the third person showed his Fire Essences. This one had even fewer, only four. The crowd did notugh, because they knew that there would be someone with a surprisinglyrge haul.


    The next few people had no more than ten Fire Essences. Since Long Chen had defeated Yang Jun, Yang Jun had to show his haul first.


    The seven people before him had fewer than ten. Everyone wondered if his number would also be lower than ten. If that was the case, then it would be very interesting. That would mean something very interesting had happened in the Pyro Passageways that caused Yang Jun and the rest to be unable to search for Fire Essences. Or someone had taken theirs.


    Yang Jun shot Long Chen a furious re in front of everyone, then he walked up to the front.


    Long Chen, Long Chen. You took the Frost Soul Essence and made me have to go through a scolding from my master and my martial uncles. However, I wonder how you¡¯ll look when the Demon Seed nting Technique that you wanted is given to me instead? Yang Jun imagined the rage and sorrow on Long Chen¡¯s face when he saw his haul, making him very excited.


    ¡°Yang Jun, show us all the Fire Essences you¡¯ve managed to gather. Let us see what the former third-strongest disciple of the Heavenly Demon Pce achieved. Will you, like the rest before you, show us something unbelievable?¡±


    Zhao Qingyun¡¯s words were filled with subtle insults, causing the other disciples to turn red with shame.


    ¡°Yes, Pce Lord!¡±


    The Frost Soul Essence had been taken from him, but thankfully, the Demon Seed nting Technique was still his. Yang Jun¡¯s mood lifted. He had spent two days searching for the Frost Soul Essence, and on the day Long Chen took the map, his group had obtained more than a hundred Fire Essences, so they had a total of approximately five hundred of them!


    When Yang Jun ced the hot Fire Essences on the ground, everyone¡¯s anxious looks finally rxed. They looked at each other and said, ¡°Yang Jun is indeed extraordinarily talented. When everyone else could not even get ten Fire Essences, he managed to gather so many, even more than what I expected of him!¡±


    ¡°More than five hundred Fire Essences! That¡¯s shocking.¡±


    ¡°Five hundred. That means he had to kill more than fifty Ember Beasts a day. Yang Jun is too powerful! The Demon Seed nting Technique is definitely his!¡±


    ¡°Pce Lord, I have already counted them. I have a total of 522 Fire Essences.¡± It was finally Yang Jun¡¯s turn to be proud. He nced smugly at Long Chen, then he started to put away his Fire Essences. Although they had no direct use for cultivation, he could sell them for a good price somewhere else.


    When the number spread through the crowd, the disciples at the door were all shocked. They all looked at Yang Jun, praising his talent!


    Jaws also dropped when the other disciples, who could not see what was happening, heard that he hade out with 522 Fire Essences.


    ¡°Senior Yang Jun is definitely going to get the Demon Seed nting Technique. Even the previous champion only had around four hundred Fire Essences, right? He probably took all the Fire Essences in the Pyro Passageways!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! When it¡¯s our turn to go in, there might be no Ember Beasts and Fire Essences left!¡±


    They all looked impressed.


    Everyone changed their minds about Yang Jun, who had previously been defeated by Long Chen after he showed them so many Fire Essences. Everyone knew that after he received the Demon Seed nting Technique, he would likely surpass Long Chen! When that happened, it would be uncertain who would win in a fight! Yang Jun was only a step away from the Eighth River Stage after all!


    Even the three Demon Elders were extremely pleased with Yang Jun¡¯s performance. This was the only thing they were relieved about. Long Chen had taken from the Frost Soul Essence, and if he also received the Demon Seed nting Technique, the three of them would lose their cool.


    ¡°Alright, 522 Fire Essences! That¡¯s not bad at all! Yang Jun, you have performed well. Continue working hard so you can reach the Eighth River Stage. Then you will be able to cultivate Traceless Demon Shadow!¡± Zhao Qingyun said. He nced at Long Chen, but he was suspicious when he saw that Long Chen still looked very calm. How many Fire Essences did Long Chen have if he was this calm?


    ¡°Alright, Yang Jun. You may go back. Next, Long Chen. Show us your Fire Essences!¡± said Zhao Qingyun with a smile.


    Everyone watched as Long Chen took a step forward and said, ¡°Pce Lord, before I show my Fire Essences, I must say something!¡±

 Chapter 375 - Demon Seed Planting Technique: First Stage

    <h4>Chapter 375 - Demon Seed nting Technique: First Stage</h4>


    ¡°What would you like to say?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked with great interest.


    Long Chen had not taken out his Fire Essences, but rather asked to say something. Everyone was on the edge of their metaphorical seats. Long Chen and Yang Jun werepeting for the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique, so his haul was extremely important. Everyone craned their necks, trying to see the results.


    Long Chen nced at Yang Jun with some contempt and suddenly said loudly, ¡°Everyone here is smart, so I am sure you all have figured it out already. The seven disciples all had under ten Fire Essences, yet Yang Jun exceeded expectations and gathered 522 Fire Essences. This must seem suspicious to you. They are all working together. I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. I can confirm that Yang Jun has so many Fire Essences only because his juniors gave him theirs. Yang Jun, tell me, am I right or wrong?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s usation set the crowd into a flurry. The elders and Enforcers were rtively calm because they had already made some guesses. However, to the disciples, this was clearly a case of cheating! It was a clear disrespect of the merit-based system of the Heavenly Demon Pce! If every disciple who was popr enough could do this, then they would only be at a disadvantage in future training exercises. Then what were they working so hard for?


    ¡°How could he do this? That¡¯s so unfair. Didn¡¯t they all agree on the rules? They can fight each other for Fire Essences, but I don¡¯t think this is allowed!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! How would this be fair to the otherpetitors?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m working so hard all because of the Three Great Secret Scriptures. If the recipients are already internally determined, then why am I cultivating for?¡±


    The crowd grew noisy, and most of them were ring furiously at Yang Jun with contempt and me.


    ¡°Everyone, shut your mouths!¡± The Third Demon Elder could not stand this any longer. Of course, he knew that this was the truth, but they could never admit it. Therefore, he stood up, looked down at Long Chen, and asked, ¡°You brat, what evidence do you have? I think you¡¯re just trying to frame Yang Jun because you don¡¯t have enough Fire Essences! Yang Jun, tell Long Chen how you got your Fire Essences!¡±


    Yang Jun went from being one of the most respected disciples to the object of criticism, so he was filled with resentment. He red venomously at Long Chen, unable to face anyone else.


    In reality, they knew that Long Chen had learned of their modus operandi and had already thought of a method to counter his usations. Yang Jun stepped forward and said, ¡°Long Chen, let me tell you this. Out of the five hundred-plus Fire Essences, I only found half of them on my own, through my own efforts! I won the other half after fighting my juniors! Who in their right mind would simply hand me their Fire Essences? I only received their Fire Essences because I defeated them. You can ask them if you don¡¯t believe me!¡±


    Then, after he spoke, a disciple stepped forward. ¡°Pce Lord, we indeed dueled many times at the Pyro Passageways. In the end, because Senior Yang Jun was stronger than us, he basically won all our Fire Essences. We didn¡¯t say anything only because it¡¯s difficult to admit that out of the seven of us, no one could defeat Senior Yang Jun. However, I swear to the heavens that Senior Yang Jun won the Fire Essences fair and square!¡±


    After this disciple spearheaded the support, everyone else started to promise that this was what happened.


    ¡°Long Chen, in future Pyro Passageways training exercises, I¡¯d advise you to focus on searching for Fire Essences honestly. Do not spend your timeing up with dirty tricks, trying to frame other people!¡± the Third Demon Elder stated in the end. He looked at Yang Jun approvingly, then he sat down.


    After hearing Yang Jun¡¯s exnation and the other disciples¡¯ promises, the disciples outside the Demon Pavilion felt better. However, they were still uncertain of who to believe, though it looked like Long Chen hadpletely lost to Yang Jun this time.


    Everyone looked at Long Chen, but found that he did not look dejected at all after being refuted. Instead, he looked calm. What was up with that?


    Zhao Qingyun was also looking for a change in Long Chen¡¯s face, but when he saw that Long Chen¡¯s expression did not change, he thought to himself, What is this brat hiding up his sleeve?


    After that, Long Chen looked around him and said loudly, ¡°I guess I can¡¯t do much about Yang Jun¡¯s matter. However, I believe that using cheap tricks to get the Demon Seed nting Technique is something only cowardly trash would do. Trash would never understand the pride of a true prodigy. Now, let me show you all what a true prodigy is!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words were insane, but he had the right to be crazy. Under everyone¡¯s stunned looks, Fire Essences poured out of his Universe Pouch and quickly formed arge pile in front of him. The searing pile of Fire Essences caused a huge rise in temperature within the Demon Pavilion, and the air became as hot asva.


    All eyes were glued to therge pile of Fire Essences. Everyone could see that there were many more Fire Essencespared to Yang Jun.


    When the three Demon Elders and their disciples saw them, their eyeballs almost fell out of their sockets. The other elders and Enforcers werepletely stunned.


    ¡°One thousand Fire Essences in total. If you do not believe me, you may count them. But the number will not be lower than a thousand,¡± Long Chen said mildly as he gazed proudly at the crowd.


    For a long time, no one responded because they were all in disbelief.


    One thousand.


    This number spread like wildfire among the disciples. When Long Chen revealed the truth but was refuted, they all assumed that he had no hope left. It was too unexpected for Long Chen to suddenly produce such results.


    One thousand Fire Essences made everyone¡¯s hearts soar. They swarmed forward manically, trying to see if it was true.


    ¡°How could he have gathered a thousand? I don¡¯t believe it! I must see it for myself! Stop pushing!¡±


    ¡°Stop pushing! The people in front already said it! It¡¯s one thousand! I also saw it myself. It was arge pile! My goodness!¡±


    ¡°A thousand Fire Essences! Good heavens, Long Chen is a monster!¡±


    Zhao Qingyun was stunned by the number of Fire Essences. Even an Eighth River Stage disciple would find it difficult to achieve this figure on their first trip to the Pyro Passageways!


    Everyone was in disbelief, especially the Third Demon Elder, whose looked like he had been hit in the face with a wad of poop. Zhao Qingyun felt very cheerful because Long Chen had given him so much face today! He was even happier about taking Long Chen as a disciple now!


    ¡°It¡¯s correct. Long Chen did retrieve one thousand Fire Essences, surpassing Yang Jun¡¯s number. I believe everyone now knows who the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique belongs to. It belongs to my direct disciple, Long Chen!¡± Zhao Qingyunughed loudly as he announced the winner.


    Even the mostmon disciple could hear the smugness in his tone.


    When Long Chen heard him, he smiled to himself and quickly put the Fire Essences away. These were all treasures to Xiang, so it was best that he keep them in his pouch.


    Zhao Qingyun¡¯s announcement almost made Yang Jun break down. He looked at Long Chen in disbelief, then he screamed, ¡°Impossible! That¡¯s impossible! Pce Lord, Long Chen must have used some shady trick to obtain that many Fire Essences! We cannot give the Demon Seed nting Technique to an outsider from who-knows-where!¡±


    ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± roared Zhao Qingyun, creating a boom. Blood sprayed out of Yang Jun¡¯s mouth and he fell to his knees. Everyone else felt like they had been hit by a heavy hammer and felt pain spread through their whole bodies!


    Zhao Qingyun red coldly at Yang Jun and said, ¡°Kid, I am not going to investigate your case, but Long Chen used his own strength to get more Fire Essences than you. Yet you¡¯re still trying to tell lies? This is only a light punishment today. Remember this: Long Chen is my direct disciple. Even though he entered our nte, he is definitely not an outsider! Everyone, do you understand me?¡±


    Zhao Qingyun¡¯s bout of rage startled everyone. He was usually a very calm person, so they had never seen this side of him. They were all terrified and felt terrible, so naturally they did not dare to say a word. However, they now knew that they could never see Long Chen as an outsider again.


    Even the three Demon Elders could only swallow their anger at this moment. Zhao Qingyun¡¯s rage was only targeted at four people. It was normal that blood sprayed out of Yang Jun¡¯s mouth since he was not strong enough, but the three Demon Elders also suffered different levels of damage. It was clear that Zhao Qingyun was showing them what he was capable of.


    Outsider.


    Long Chenmitted Zhao Qingyun¡¯s words to memory. Anyone who treated him like their own, like Dongfang Xuanxiao had, would receive great treatment from Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen will receive the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique. Does anyone have any questions?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked coldly.


    No one replied.


    Yang Jun was lying in Yang Danfeng¡¯s arms, his mouth filled with blood and barely conscious.


    Zhao Qingyun nodded approvingly and said, ¡°In that case, we shall now determine the owner of the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique. Murong Yu and Yang Danfeng, take out your Fire Essences and tell us the number!¡±


    Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu looked at each other, then they stood in front of Zhao Qingyun.


    Long Chen watched curiously. After he had taken the Frost Soul Essence from under their noses, they had a day to search for Fire Essences. That was why he did not know how many Fire Essences they had.

 Chapter 376 - Demon Seed Planting: Second Stage

    <h4>Chapter 376 - Demon Seed nting: Second Stage</h4>


    There had been a bout of excitement over the fight for the first stage, but the crowd was even more excited to see who would receive the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu had always been almost equal. Yang Danfeng had always been number one in the rankings, but most people knew that there was actually not much of a difference between first and second.


    Who would win this round?


    The person who won the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique today would take one step forward on their journey of cultivation, leaving the other behind to be the true number one of the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s younger generation.


    Everyone watched as Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu ced the Fire Essences they had gathered on the ground. The Fire Essences fell from their Universe Pouches one by one and soon formed small piles. They did not exceed Long Chen¡¯s number, but these two were stillpeting.


    After some time, they were finally done. To the crowd¡¯s excitement, the two piles looked very simr, and it was difficult to determine the winner just by looking.


    ¡°I gathered 652 Fire Essences. However, I also have Divine Essence Crystals in my Universe Pouch,¡± said Yang Danfeng mildly.


    ¡°I have a total of 687 Fire Essences. Of course, I also have Divine Essence Crystals in my Universe Pouch,¡± said Murong Yu. So far, she had thirty-five more Fire Essences than Yang Danfeng, but the number of Divine Essence Crystals was most important. That was why she was not very confident.


    In the beginning, when everyone saw that they did not have as many Fire Essences as Long Chen, respect for Long Chen grew. But if they still had Divine Essence Crystals, then Long Chen¡¯s results were only averagepared to them.


    ¡°Chen Qing, Liu Xiyang, count their Fire Essences,¡± Zhao Qingyun instructed since their results were very simr. A small difference could affect the results, so Zhao Qingyun did not dare act recklessly. He appointed two random elders to count the Fire Essences.


    However, the results were soon announced. Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu had not faked their numbers.


    ¡°If that is the case, show us your Divine Essence Crystals. Show us what the final results of the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s two most outstanding disciples are. Do we have a number higher than a thousand?¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a smile. He recalled that before entering the Pyro Passageways, Long Chen had suggested to him that if he came out with more Fire Essences than Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu, then he would win the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    That was why he was very anxious for the results. If neither had more than a thousand Fire Essences even after including their Divine Essence Crystals, then Long Chen was thergest victor today.


    However, a rare confidence shone in the three Demon Elders¡¯ eyes.


    The first and second stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique, as well as the Frost Soul Essence, were three presents the Demon Elders had prepared for their disciples. Out of three items, two had already gone to Long Chen. The remaining item was the only one that the Demon Elders were confident about.


    Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu took out their Divine Essence Crystals, and everyone looked over.


    ¡°Let me see! Not bad! Murong Yu is holding five Divine Essence Crystals! And Yang Danfeng is holding ... six! That¡¯s right, six!¡± Zhao Qingyun was surprised. Six Divine Essence Crystals was an excellent result. If they only had three, then Long Chen would have been the victor. It was too bad that they had more than five, so there was no hope for Long Chen.


    After Yang Danfeng took out his Divine Essence Crystals, everyone knew that the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique would belong to him. It was no surprise to everyone that Yang Danfeng was the final winner, but some of the male disciples had been rooting for Murong Yu. She had a great personality and was a pretty girl after all, so she was the ultimate goddess to many of them. And she was much more popr than Yang Danfeng.


    Murong Yu bit her lip gently. She had previously told the three Demon Elders her number, but they had not told her Yang Danfeng¡¯s number. After the results were announced, and she realized she had lost, she felt dejected knowing that she would likely be bullied by Yang Danfeng in the future.


    ¡°If that is the case, then I shall announce the winner of the second stage,¡± Zhao Qingyun said.


    Everyone already knew the results.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Someone interrupted Zhao Qingyun. Everyone looked over and saw that it was Long Chen, who had been defeated by Murong Yu and Yang Danfeng. They were puzzled. What was he doing?


    ¡°Long Chen, do you have something else to say?¡± Zhao Qingyun was surprised, but in reality, he hadn¡¯t gotten over the surprise of seeing Long Chen take out a thousand Fire Essences.


    ¡°Master and Demon Elders, before entering the Pyro Passageways, I asked if I could get the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique if I gathered more Fire Essences than Murong Yu and Yang Danfeng. You all agreed that I could, right?¡± Long Chen looked up with a faint smile.


    ¡°We did agree to it, and everyone who was present witnessed it. However, you only have a thousand Fire Essences, yet they have more than a thousand when adding the Divine Essence Crystals. That is why I can¡¯t give you the second stage.¡± Zhao Qingyun was a little puzzled. While he really wanted to fulfill Long Chen¡¯s wish, he could not show favoritism in front of everyone.


    The three Demon Elders chuckled and looked at him in contempt. The Third Demon Elder said in his shrill voice, ¡°You even called yourself a prodigy, yet can¡¯t you do simple math?¡±


    No one knew what Long Chen was implying.


    Long Chen took a step forward and looked around, then he said, ¡°Everyone, during the first round, the Pce Lord asked us to count our Fire Essences, so I did. But I did not say that I did not have any Divine Essence Crystals! If they can exceed one thousand because of their Divine Essence Crystals, do my Divine Essence Crystals count as well?¡±


    Long Chen had spoken loudly, and his words shook everyone. Did he really have Divine Essence Crystals? And did his final figure surpass Yang Danfeng?


    Yang Danfeng, who had defeated Murong Yu, was stunned. His eyes widened as he stared at Long Chen¡¯s palm in disbelief!


    Long Chen took out all his Divine Essence Crystals. There were ten in total on his palm. Everyone felt like they had been struck by a hammer.


    ¡°During the training exercise, I, Long Chen, found a thousand Fire Essences and ten Divine Essence Crystals. That makes a total of two thousand. May I ask if I have surpassed Yang Danfeng yet? Or is there an issue with my math?¡±


    No one answered him.


    That was because it was difficult to answer. It was a very obvious question, and Long Chen had won. He had obtainedplete victory by far surpassing them all. Not only had he taken the Frost Soul Essence, but the first and second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique had also ended up with him!


    This set off a huge wave of shock across the whole Heavenly Demon Pce!


    No one had ever been able to achieve this in such a short time. Long Chen¡¯s performance was just too extraordinary. Jaws dropped among the Enforcers and elders, while the disciples fought to swarm forward, wanting to see what had just happened. The front of the Demon Pavilion was chaotic.


    On top of shock, Zhao Qingyun also felt deep joy. Long Chen had made him very proud today. On the other hand, the three Demon Elders and Yang Danfeng all felt like they had been struck by lightning! Yang Danfeng finally understood why Yang Jun had lost his mind before! The resentment, misery, and rage in him had reached a point where he could not control himself!


    The piece of meat had already reached his mouth, and he was drooling, waiting to have a taste of it. But then Long Chen came out of nowhere and snatched the meat away! How could the starving Yang Danfeng keep his cool?


    Yang Danfeng was about to attack Long Chen¡ªhe could no longer control himself.


    That was when an old man appeared in front of him, blocking his way. Yang Danfeng looked over and saw that it was his master, the First Demon Elder. The Second and Third Demon Elders were standing next to him. The First Demon Elder first looked at Long Chen, then at Zhao Qingyun.


    The anger had disappeared from their eyes, and their expressions were extremely cold. Terrifyingly cold. Long Chen knew that this was only the calm before the storm. Their reactions showed how terrifying theing storm would be!


    ¡°Pce Lord, it looks like our business here is done for today. Please excuse us!¡± Then they all left without even turning around. Under the watchful gazes of the crowd, they led their disciples out of the building. Long Chen saw viciousness and venom radiating from them.


    It looks like theing days will not be peaceful.


    He suddenly recalled that before entering the Pyro Passageways, Yang Danfeng had warned him that if he did not let Yang Jun win, he would kill Wang Xing, the errand boy. Long Chen decided to watch Wang Xing when he got back.


    After the three Demon Elders left, all eyes returned to Zhao Qingyun.


    ¡°In conclusion, I hereby dere that the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique goes to Long Chen!¡± Zhao Qingyun¡¯s joy reached its peak.

 Chapter 377 - Seventh River Stage

    <h4>Chapter 377 - Seventh River Stage</h4>


    Even Long Chen himself could not remember howrge his haul was. Both him and Xiang enjoyed aplete change in reputation after returning from the Pyro Passageways.


    After the three Demon Elders left in a rage, everyone eyed this extraordinary person in awe, only epting the truth after Zhao Qingyun had made the announcement.


    Then Zhao Qingyun smiled and said, ¡°Long Chen, to celebrate your receiving of the two stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique, the Heavenly Demon Pce shall hold a grand feast. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need for that,¡± Long Chen said hurriedly. ¡°Master, I¡¯m actually itching to cultivate the Demon Seed nting Technique now. How could I have time for a feast?¡±


    Zhao Qingyun genuinely approved of this and said, ¡°You¡¯re a good kid. You live up to the name of being my disciple with that desire to improve. If you work this hard, you¡¯re much better than some disciples already. If that is the case, everyone, you may return!¡±


    Under Zhao Qingyun¡¯s instructions, everyone left unwillingly. They all wanted to see Long Chen a few more times. He was the teenager who had shaken the whole Heavenly Demon Pce, the guy who had broken the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s records!


    ¡°The Demon Seed nting Technique has two stages, and I have both scriptures with me. Since you have already sessfully cultivated Traceless Demon Shadow, return it to me.¡± Zhao Qingyun took out two books simr to the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture, though they were not as thick.


    ¡°Thank you, Master!¡± After he received the Demon Seed nting Technique, he gave Zhao Qingyun the Traceless Demon Shadow scripture from his Universe Pouch and said, ¡°Master, if there¡¯s nothing else, may I return?¡±


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Zhao Qingyun nodded with a smile. He was proud that Long Chen had worked hard and had not cked off.


    In reality, Long Chen was not that impatient to cultivate the Demon Seed nting Technique. He was just worried that Yang Danfeng would attack Wang Xing, an innocent bystander. After bidding Zhao Qingyun farewell, he rushed back to the Azure Cloud Residence as fast as he could. Thankfully, Wang Xing was fine.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you¡¯ve returned from the Pyro Passageways!¡± Wang Xing was overjoyed to see Long Chen, and quickly ran up to him.


    ¡°Brother Chen, how many Fire Essences did you get? Fifty? A hundred?¡± Wang Xing asked admiringly.


    ¡°I got two thousand. Do you believe me?¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you and your jokes!¡± Wang Xing chuckled.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how many I got anymore. But I did get the Demon Seed nting Technique,¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    ¡°That¡¯s awesome! I knew you were stronger than Yang Jun,¡± said Wang Xing.


    ¡°Wang Xing, it¡¯s a chaotic time in the Heavenly Demon Pce. Stay in my room for the next few days. Don¡¯t go anywhere, and you don¡¯t need to do anything else. If someone says something, just tell them that these were my instructions. If they have questions, they can ask me!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Wang Xing was confused. As an errand boy, he had many chores to do every day. He was the only one dealing with daily chores for the nine direct disciples.


    However, the other eight direct disciples rarely saw Zhao Qingyun. Long Chen was his favorite, and also the strongest. After some thought, he felt like he would be fine if he listened to Long Chen.


    ¡°This is for your own good. It¡¯s fine to stay here too. If you have anything you don¡¯t understand rted to cultivation, I can exin it today. From today onwards, I will be training here, and you can cultivate in this yard. If anything out of the ordinary happens, shout. Do you understand?¡± Long Chen did not actually have to take Wang Xing¡¯s safety this seriously, since they were merely acquaintances. However, he did not want his personal matters to bring harm to others, which was why he was being extra careful.


    ¡°Understood!¡± Wang Xing agreed hurriedly.


    Long Chen nodded, and with a light tap of his foot, he leaped up to the roof. This was the spot nearest to the stars. Due to Wang Xing being here, he could not go to the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain.


    Plus, I don¡¯t know if the three old geezers are angry enough to attack me. That¡¯s why it¡¯s best I don¡¯t go to the peak too often.


    After making his decision, he prepared to start cultivating, though not before giving Xiang all his remaining Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals.


    ¡°Xiang, there are a lot of Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals here. Is this enough for you to reach Category Nine Earth-tier?¡± Long Chen asked expectantly.


    Xiang shook his head.


    ¡°It takes that many fire treasures to reach Category Nine?¡± Long Chen was a little tongue-tied. He could not afford to keep feeding the little brat at all. He had consumed countless Ember Beast demonic cores in the Pyro Passageways, as well as Divine Ember Beast demonic cores, Fire Essences, and Divine Essence Crystals. Yet it was not enough for him to reach Category Nine Earth-tier.


    After Long Chen gave him all his Fire Essences and Divine Essence Crystals, Xiang left happily. He would likely find a spot nearby to refine them on his own. After he left, Long Chen finally prepared for his own work.


    I¡¯ve gotten so many things from this trip. Both stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique and the Frost Soul Essence. First, I should use the Frost Soul Essence to boost my cultivation level, thought Long Chen.


    He was constantly thinking about bing stronger so he could storm the Biyang Imperial Capital, so he did not waste any time.


    He took out the Frost Soul Essence.


    It was a cold, icy core made out of thick, condensed earthly Qi. After swallowing it, it would melt into spiritual Qi and turn into the person¡¯s Qi. Although the Frost Soul Essence was only the size of a thumb, it would give him a great boost.


    Long Chen ced the Frost Soul Essence in his mouth without hesitation. It instantly turned into an icy fluid that rushed into his throat. He then felt a bone-chilling cold, as if he was in a freezer. The coldness spread from inside of his body to outside, and he could feel every blood vessel and organ in him be numb and turn into solid ice.


    I need to quickly refine and cultivate it!


    This was the only thought in his mind. Instant improvement was impossible. Although the Frost Soul Essence could help him, it contained a lot of cold Qi. If he did not resist or use enough Qi to cultivate, he would freeze to death.


    ¡°Ha!¡±


    Long Chen let out a cry and exhaled a cold, blue breath. His Qi started to flow, and his frozen blood vessels were cleared by the vibrations. The ice shards that were shaken off all turned into blue Qi molecules, which were absorbed by Long Chen¡¯s blood-red Qi.


    The ice that had formed in Long Chen¡¯s body all melted and merged with his Qi due to the powerful heat generated from the burning Qi in his body. When he was strong enough to control the cold from spreading, he would finally be able to enjoy its essence.


    In the beginning, ayer of frost covered the surface of his body. Then it slowly melted and was absorbed into his body, merging with his Qi.


    As time passed, more and more energy from the Frost Soul Essence turned into his own energy, and his Qi levels skyrocketed. After one night, he reached a breaking point and knew that the time for a breakthrough had arrived.


    He was going to reach the Seventh River Stage.


    This was a level he had not reached before, and it had long been his dream. There was a huge gap between the sixth and seventh stages, as it signified progressing from the intermediate to the advanced Heavenly River Realm.


    Arge amount of Qi surged through his body, almost causing his vessels to explode. What he needed to do next was use the energy harnessed from the stars to stabilize his body. Then, using his Qi, he would condense the seventh pair of Star Rivers in his body.


    The Heavenly River Pills he had taken from Song Zhongcheng of the Harmony family were enough tost him until the Eighth River Stage. That was why he was not worried about the number of pills in his possession. There was enough in his Universe Pouch, and with his current status, Zhao Qingyun would surely give him many more as long as he asked.


    A bright ray of starlight poured from the sky into Long Chen¡¯s body, immersing him in dreamy starlight. The Heavenly River Pills he consumed interacted with the starlight, and ripples formed on Long Chen¡¯s body.


    He meticulously condensed the seventh pair of star rivers inside him.


    Time passed slowly, and the requirements were fulfilled. This breakthrough was very quick. Soon after he consumed the Heavenly River Pills, the starlight on his body slowly faded away. His eyes sprang open and two bright rays of light shot out of them like a pair of swords flying through the sky!


    The rays of light were very attention-catching in the night sky.


    Whoosh! Zhao Qingyun appeared not far behind Long Chen. Long Chen had already closed his eyes and began quietly cultivating again. He sensed that he had only used half of the Frost Soul Essence¡¯s power. There was still another half left for him to refine.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this ... the scent of the Frost Soul Essence?¡± Zhao Qingyun was very surprised. There had been instances of a Frost Soul Essence appearing in the Pyro Passageways before. He never expected Long Chen to find one ...

 Chapter 378 - Three Demons City

    <h4>Chapter 378 - Three Demons City</h4>


    Long Chen had not told him about the Frost Soul Essence, so he thought Long Chen had stumbled into a mysterious location in the Pyro Passageways where he found a huge amount of Fire Essences and the Frost Soul Essence. He also guessed that Long Chen had not relied merely on himself; Xiang might have contributed to arge part of his haul. Zhao Qingyun opined that Xiang was on par with Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu.


    This brat is luckier than the average person. Perhaps he will actually get the Demon Emperor Sword. Even I can¡¯t figure out the true potential of the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s two divine weapons, the Demon Emperor Sword and the Imperial Sword. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re merely at the initial Heaven-tier.


    Zhao Qingyun nodded in approval, then he disappeared into the darkness while Long Chen continued to absorb the Frost Soul Essence¡¯s power and grow his Qi. After one day, he finallypleted his absorption of the Frost Soul Essence¡¯s power.


    ¡°What a pity. Just a little bit more and I would have been able to enter the Eighth River Stage. It really is a treasure that can boost an Eighth River Stage cultivator to the Ninth River Stage.¡±


    Long Chen stood up atst and checked his body. ¡°I am now only a small gap away from the Eighth River Stage. The initial n was three months, and time is almost up. I believe that I will be at the Eighth River Stage by the time the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword begins. At that point, I will no longer have any rivals in the Heavenly Demon Pce. As long as I get the Demon Emperor Sword and its sword technique, even Lin Zichen ...¡±


    He still couldn¡¯t bear to see Ling Xi live a lonely life in the Ling Xi Sword. That was why he hated Lin Zichen to the bone, because he was the one who had caused this.


    Long Chen had enough confidence in himself now.


    When Xiang saw that Long Chen hadpletely digested the Frost Soul Essence¡¯s power, he arrived by his side. He had not reached the Category Nine Earth-tier, but he was very close. Long Chen and Xiang were just one opportunity away from another major breakthrough.


    ¡°Wow, Xiang. You ate all of them that quickly?¡± Long Chenughed.


    Xiang nodded, embarrassed.


    His cultivation had been steadily improving. He was only at the Category Three Earth-tier when he first emerged from the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. Only a few months had passed, but he was already at Category Eight.


    The Burning Heaven Emperor had said that Xiang would be a formidable beast. Based on the rate of his growth, this was likely true. Although Long Chen was still in the Cangyang Kingdom, which was a low-level ce, he had some sense of the gigantic world outside from Ling Xi and Li Xuanji¡¯s words.


    There were countless masters across the Dragon Continent. The Cangyang Kingdom was merely a low-tier kingdom, which was one of ten thousand simr little kingdoms. That was why this corner of the Dragon Continent was called the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, which also included gigantic nations called the Ten Great Empires.


    Long Chen was situated in the tiny Cangyang Kingdom amidst the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He already felt like he was swimming in ake that was unfathomably deep here, let alone the Ten Great Empires!


    In fact, the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was just a corner of the Dragon Continent. Based on what he knew, both Ling Xi and Li Xuanji were not from this area, but from a ce on a higher level. Long Chen had a rough inkling that if he wanted to marry Ling Xi in broad daylight, and in front of her family, he wouldn¡¯t be allowed even if he worked ten times harder.


    Ling Xi never talked to him about her family, probably because she was afraid that he would lose motivation in the face of such huge pressure.


    No matter what, all I can say is that the stage known as the Dragon Continent is just too gigantic. My brother, Xiang, will be the most formidable demonic beast of the Dragon Continent, while I am a Dragon Warrior, which has not existed in millennia. No matter how big the Dragon Continent is, it will be the stage we will walk upon as brothers! One day, we will both reach the peak of the Dragon Continent and look down upon the rest of the mortals!


    A surge of pride rose through his heart!


    ¡°Xiang, since you could cultivate Divine Fire Clone, then it should be possible for you to cultivate the Demon Seed nting Technique. From today onwards, let¡¯s study the Demon Seed nting Technique together. We¡¯llpete and see whopletes it the fastest!¡±


    Afterying out his n, Long Chen grew cheerful.


    He opened the Demon Seed nting Technique and ced Xiang on his chest. The boy and the wolf started to study the technique with utmost focus.


    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder this technique is said to be better than Traceless Demon Shadow! It¡¯s extraordinary ... Every nightfall, you can take the Heart of the Night and condense it into a Demon Seed, then nt it in your meridians. During battle, the Demon Seed disperses and merges with the user¡¯s Qi, causing the Qi to double! And the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique allows the Qi to increase by another fold!¡±


    Cultivating the Demon Seed nting Technique was easier than cultivating Traceless Demon Shadow. Since Long Chen had greatprehension abilities, he had a rough idea of what to do after reading through the scripture¡¯s instructions. Next, all he needed to do was practice over and over again until he achieved sess!


    ***


    There was a building in the Heavenly Demon Pce that was as magnificent as the Demon Pavilion. It was called Three Demons City, which was where the three Demon Elders usually lived and cultivated. It was also near the Martial Library, because they had to guard it. It was nighttime, so the disciples of Heavenly Demon Pce were mostly immersed in cultivation. The only room that was lit was the main pavilion of Three Demons City.[1]


    At this moment, a total of six people with solemn expressions were in the main pavilion. Three were sitting, while the other three stood. The three sitting people were naturally the three Demon Elders, while their number one disciples stood.


    All three disciples had lost to Long Chen. They hung their heads, filled with shame and self-me as they did not dare face the Demon Elders¡¯ stern res.


    ¡°Actually, you all performed decently. It¡¯s just that Long Chen exceeded our expectations. If we were you guys, the results would have been simr,¡± said the First Demon Elder with a sigh.


    There was no me in his tone, so Yang Danfeng and the rest sighed in relief. The three Demon Elders had always been very strict with them. Every time there was a small mistake, they would be punished severely. That was why they did not even dare to breathe until they saw that the First Demon Elder was not going to take things any further. They felt as if they had survived the ordeal.


    ¡°Long Chen dared to kill the Ninth Prince in the Imperial Capital when his cultivation was not even one tenth of their level! He even fled more than a thousand kilometers, and along the way, he killed the Harmony Patriarch, who belonged to one of the threergest ns of the capital. Even you, Danfeng, could not have done this. It¡¯s only expected that you all lost to him due to your own carelessness. However, now that we know his strength, I hope this will not happen a second time! After all, he is not truly strong yet!¡±


    ¡°Understood!¡± The three disciples nodded hurriedly.


    Yang Danfeng and Yang Jun naturally only felt infinite hatred towards Long Chen, while Murong Yu did not. She was only going along with whatever they said, looking very obedient.


    ¡°Big Brother! Long Chen is a huge inconvenience. He already has theplete Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique, as well as the Frost Soul Essence. If we let him grow, he might even get the Demon Sword Emperor. And I¡¯m afraid he¡¯ll even be the next Heavenly Demon Lord. How could an outsider who suddenly showed up inherit and rule the Heavenly Demon Pce, the ce we managed with our blood, sweat, and tears for decades?!¡± the Third Demon Elder eximed. There was a thick killing intent in his voice.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, Big Brother. I have a bad feeling too. If we let him continue growing, we will only be suppressedpletely. I¡¯m afraid our disciples will also bepletely suppressed by him. The boy must be eliminated ...¡± The Second Demon Elder also had a look of exasperation.


    Must be eliminated?


    Murong Yu shuddered. To her, Long Chen was not a bad person. He had merely won by relying on his own strength. That was not a crime.


    Since even the Second Demon Elder had voiced her concerns, then the First Demon Elder had no choice but to nod and say, ¡°It looks like we can¡¯t hold back any longer. If we do, the Demon Emperor Sword will end up in an outsider¡¯s hands, then all three of us will be thought of as criminals for the rest of time.¡±


    ¡°Martial Uncle, Master, I think all three of us are confident we will get the Demon Emperor Sword. What happened at the Pyro Passageways was only because we were not paying attention to him, so he snuck up on us. This time, the three of us will work hard. I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll lose to him again. Plus, if we attack Long Chen, the Pce Lord will be able to figure out who did it, right? The Pce Lord favors Long Chen so much, I¡¯m afraid ...¡± Murong Yu exined hurriedly.


    Half of her exnation was for the three Demon Elders¡¯ own good, while the other half was to discourage them from harming Long Chen.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, what makes you think we haven¡¯t thought of that? Right now, we are looking for a method to settle this perfectly. Also, it¡¯s not that we look down on you all, but Long Chen is a psycho, and we can¡¯t afford to take this risk. If things don¡¯t go ording to n, we can choose to eliminate Long Chen without anyone knowing,¡± exined the Second Demon Elder.


    ¡°Long Chen stays in the Azure Cloud Residence all day with Zhao Qingyun watching nearby. When will we ever have a chance?!¡± asked the Third Demon Elder weakly.


    ¡°I have an idea,¡± Yang Danfeng suddenly said with a sneer.


    1. TL Note: In this case, ¡®city¡¯ refers to a cluster of buildings instead of a whole city ?

 Chapter 379 - Schemes

    <h4>Chapter 379 - Schemes</h4>


    Yang Danfeng¡¯s remark attracted everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°What is it? Tell us,¡± said the First Demon Elder, looking at his favorite disciple.


    ¡°Actually, we don¡¯t have to keep thinking about attacking Long Chen directly. We can use an indirect method,¡± Yang Danfeng exined confidently.


    ¡°What indirect method?¡± the Third Demon Elder, who was more impatient, asked hurriedly.


    Yang Danfeng continued, ¡°You may rte this to another matter. Didn¡¯t the Pce Lord¡¯s only daughter return to the Heavenly Demon Pce a few months ago? And that caused a hugemotion? At the time, she said she had gotten married and brought back that piece of trash, Dongfang Xuanxiao. The Pce Lord personally approved of the marriage, but do you remember someone else? The Seventh River Stage elder, He Tian!¡±


    ¡°Elder He Tian? The guy who was in love with Xuanming for a long time? He was absolutely infatuated with her, but after she went missing, he had no choice but to settle for another woman and ended up having a son with her. That Elder He Tian?¡± The Third Demon Elder recalled this person.


    ¡°Yes! I¡¯m sure everyone knows of the major incident that took ce after Xuanming returned. To prove that his love was true, Elder He Tian killed his wife and son, then he pursued Xuanming. However, she had already made her decision to be with Dongfang Xuanxiao, and who would want to be with that psycho? After he got rejected, Elder He Tian went mad and went into a rage, then tried to kill Dongfang Xuanxiao. The Pce Lord found out in time and then beat him up severely. However, the Pce Lord showed mercy and let him live ...¡±


    ¡°Danfeng, I get what you mean. Do you know where He Tian is?¡± asked the First Demon Elder with a twinkle in his eye.


    Yang Danfeng had been interrupted, but he was not irritated by it. He nodded and said, ¡°I know where he is. You probably know what I was going to say, Master. If we give him some incentive and make arrangements on our end so he can enter the Heavenly Demon Pce with ease, will he pass up a chance to kill his romantic rival? Dongfang Xuanxiao is Long Chen¡¯s stepfather. If he dies, Long Chen will definitely be distracted, and he will be unable to focus on cultivating.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± The First Demon Elder nodded in approval. ¡°No matter what action we take against Long Chen, the Pce Lord will surely suspect us. If we take action against Dongfang Xuanxiao, then as long as he dies, Long Chen will definitely be distracted. If there¡¯s something else upying his mind, there¡¯s no chance he will surpass Danfeng and Xiao Yu to get the Demon Emperor Sword. Also, we¡¯ll get more opportunities to kill him!¡±


    Even the First Demon Elder grew excited towards the end.


    After Yang Danfeng told them the n, five of them agreed immediately. The only person who had no reaction was Murong Yu. She was extremely torn inside. There were two sides¡ªone side was the masters who had mentored her and helped her get to where she was, but the other side was her conscience and sense of justice, as well as some strange emotions.


    When Yang Danfeng mentioned the n, Murong Yu knew this was trouble. She knew Long Chen well, and if Dongfang Xuanxiao really was murdered because of this scheme, then Long Chen would fall into madness. At the time, the three Demon Elders could even find a chance to kill him!


    No way! I mustn¡¯t let that happen! That¡¯s unfair to Long Chen! But my master taught me for many years. If I disobey her, won¡¯t I seem ungrateful for her mentorship all these years? Won¡¯t I be unfilial? Murong Yu¡¯s heart was filled with chaotic thoughts.


    The three Demon Elders and Yang Danfeng started to n while Murong Yu stood there in a daze. The Second Demon Elder looked over kindly at Murong Yu and said, ¡°Xiao Yu, don¡¯t stand there alone. Tell us if you¡¯ve got any good ideas. We¡¯ve got a very difficult brat to deal with. He took the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique, which belonged to you guys. That is why you must take revenge!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master, but I¡¯m a little slow today. I can¡¯t really think of any good ideas. You guys can make the decision.¡± This was all she could say for the moment.


    The Second Demon Elder nodded and did not speak to her again. She looked at Yang Danfeng approvingly, who had given them the idea and was helping themplete the n. Very soon, details including the time and location had been arranged.


    ¡°We must not dy this; this n begins in three days¡¯ time. I will pay Elder He Tian a visit before that, and I believe that based on his madman-like tendencies, there¡¯s no chance he will let this amazing opportunity go. When I have confirmed with him, we¡¯ll let him slip into the Heavenly Demon Pce at midnight in three days¡¯ time to kill Dongfang Xuanxiao! Dongfang Xuanxiao will definitely be with Xuanming. As long as Xuanming remains alive to tell other people that it was He Tian, who would suspect us?¡± said Yang Danfeng smugly.


    ¡°Amazing! This is amazing!¡± The First Demon Elder looked cheerful.


    Thank goodness Yang Danfeng hade up with this n. If not, the First Demon Elder would still be sulking and struggling to think of a n to defeat Long Chen.


    ¡°In that case, everyone, you may leave.¡± The n wasplete. Now they had to execute it, so it was time to disperse.


    That was when Yang Danfeng suddenly turned to the Second Demon Elder and said, ¡°Martial Aunt, I have something to say.¡±


    ¡°What is it, Danfeng?¡± The more the Second Demon Elder looked at her Senior Brother¡¯s disciple, the more she liked him.


    ¡°It¡¯s like this. I¡¯m sure everyone can tell, but I¡¯ve had feelings for Xiao Yu since I was young. It¡¯s just that Xiao Yu¡¯s cultivation level has always been the same as mine. As a man, I have not been able to be stronger than her, so I dared not confess to her despite my feelings. Today, in front of my master and my Martial Uncle, I was hoping you could agree to one request of mine, Martial Aunt!¡± Yang Danfeng made an aggressive move, borrowing from the momentum he had gained just now.


    ¡°What is your request?¡± the Second Demon Elder asked, amused.


    A wave of disgust surged through Murong Yu when Yang Danfeng brought this up. However, with her elders present, she could not show it. She red at him coldly as a warning, but Yang Danfeng ignored it and said to the Second Demon Elder, ¡°Martial Aunt, I swear my feelings for Xiao Yu are true! I¡¯m sure all three of you can see it. That is why I would like to take this chance to ask you. If I get the Demon Emperor Sword and surpass Junior Xiao Yu, will you let me marry her, Martial Aunt? That way, I will be able to protect Junior Xiao Yu!¡±


    After he finished, all three Demon Elders looked at each other and burst intoughter. Theyughed so hard that even Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu thought it was strange. The Second Demon Elder was the first to stopughing and said, ¡°Danfeng, you don¡¯t know this, but we have always thought of you and Xiao Yu as a pair. You two are not young anymore, and you¡¯re of age to get married. You¡¯re right, the man should be a little stronger than his woman to have face. That is why I ept your request. If you get the Demon Emperor Sword, I¡¯ll let Xiao Yu marry you!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Martial Aunt!¡± Yang Danfeng looked overjoyed.


    ¡°Master!¡± Murong Yu did not give Yang Danfeng face at all. She said hurriedly in a panic, ¡°Marriage is a huge thing, how could we be so casual about it? I¡ª¡±


    ¡°Xiao Yu, that¡¯s enough. You don¡¯t know how lucky you are,¡± the First Demon Elder interrupted with a smile. ¡°Out of the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s younger generation, the only people who surpass you are Danfeng and Lin Zichen. If you don¡¯t marry Danfeng, are you going to marry Lin Zichen? You¡¯re young and your achievements are extraordinary. You also have a man whose cultivation is soon going to surpass yours, who has loved you for twenty years. What else is there to say? Today, your Martial Uncle will make the decision for Danfeng. If he gets the Demon Sword Emperor, you¡¯re marrying him, or there¡¯s going to be a case of bride kidnapping!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Master!¡± Yang Danfeng said hurriedly.


    The three Demon Elders had been nning this for years. Yang Danfeng had merely said it out loud.


    Murong Yu¡¯s reaction was within their expectations since every girl would be confused and doubtful before marriage. The three Demon Elders thought that it was normal, and she would get used to it soon.


    ¡°Alright, then it is set. Meeting adjourned.¡± The fog in the First Demon Elder¡¯s heart was cleared.


    After Murong Yu returned to her quarters, she kept thinking about the two things that had been discussed. First, they wanted to kill Long Chen¡¯s stepfather, Dongfang Xuanxiao. Second, if Yang Danfeng received the Demon Emperor Sword, she would have to marry him and live a miserable life forever ...


    Initially, she had not been so sure, but her repulsion towards the second matter was just too strong. She sat in front of the window and stared out in a daze. Her beautiful face was hidden beneath a ck chiffon veil.


    ¡°Murong Yu, what are you going to do?¡±


    ***


    The Demon Seed nting Technique.


    Time passed as they cultivated the Demon Seed nting Technique. Three dayster, Long Chen and Xiang had achieved a certain level of progress. With Ling Xi as a trantor, all three of them studied the secret scripture together. When they discussed its contents together, the Demon Seed nting Technique became much simpler.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you need to thank me properly! Without me, you would have no way of knowing what Xiang is thinking!¡± Ling Xi said smugly.


    ¡°No way! On that note, Xiao Xi, do you have a method for Xiang and I tomunicate directly?¡± This was something that frustrated Long Chen.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Ling Xi cocked her tiny head and said, ¡°You can¡¯t learn my current method for now, but I do remember a secret technique. If a demonic beast has enough intelligence to cultivate it, it can make human sounds. Xiang is definitely intelligent enough; he justcks the technique!¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious?¡± Long Chen was a little speechless. He looked down at Wang Xing, who was cultivating quietly, and said, ¡°Wang Xing is definitely much safer staying here. Yang Danfeng will not show mercy if he sees him!¡±

 Chapter 380 - Blood Ocean Knife

    <h4>Chapter 380 - Blood Ocean Knife</h4>


    Based on Yang Danfeng¡¯s personality and the three Demon Elders¡¯ expressions when they left the Demon Pavilion, Long Chen knew they would never let him cultivate in peace. That was why he hid Wang Xing away.


    Just like that. I¡¯ll increase my cultivation level during the day, and at night, I¡¯ll cultivate the Demon Seed nting Technique. Based on my current speed, I should be able toplete the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique before the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword and even reach the Eighth River Stage.


    Long Chen was confident he could do this.


    It was almost night once again. Long Chen and Xiang came together to start cultivating the Demon Seed nting Technique, and very soon, it was almost midnight.


    Wang Xing had fallen asleep while cultivating.


    Suddenly, Long Chen heard something, and his eyes sprang open. A ck ray of light shot towards the yard¡¯s door, which opened with a creak. Long Chen focused his eyes and saw that the beautiful Murong Yu was standing right at the doorway. There was still a veil covering her face, only revealing a bright pair of eyes staring at him. From her gaze, Long Chen saw a painful dilemma as well as solid determination. After she opened Long Chen¡¯s door, her determination had defeated the dilemma.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± Long Chen asked softly. He saw her as a true friend, so he was not hostile.


    ¡°I¡¯m here to tell you something ...¡± Murong Yu looked up. ¡°Long Chen, you haven¡¯t seen your stepfather in a few days, have you?¡±


    After that, Murong Yu immediately fled in a sh. She traveled quickly and disappeared into the night.


    ¡°Stepfather?¡± Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned cold. He was no fool¡ªhe knew that Murong Yu wasing to give him a hint. He realized that he had been careless! He had been so focused on protecting Wang Xing that he had forgotten about Dongfang Xuanxiao. He had subconsciously thought that they would not dare touch Dongfang Xuanxiao because he was Zhao Qingyun¡¯s son-inw, but it looked like he had underestimated their viciousness!


    Long Chen was furious, but he did not panic. He knew that Murong Yu was his friend, and since she had gone out of her way to inform him, then there was definitely time to get to Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s ce. He rushed down without hesitation, shook Wang Xing awake, and cried, ¡°Wang Xing, here¡¯s a task for you! It doesn¡¯t matter where my master is, you must find him, then ask him to rush to Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s ce!¡±


    Long Chen did not care if Wang Xing was fully awake. He called for Xiang and shot out like an arrow. Xiang quickly assumed hisbat form, and because he could run much faster than Long Chen, he soon passed him and let him sit on his back. The boy and the wolf turned into a ck shadow and shot towards Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s quarters.


    During this time, Long Chen¡¯s eyes turned red. It had been two months; this time, his killing nature had been awakened once more.


    He could tolerate anything, but not when they attacked his family because they could not beat him in battle!


    Every dragon had a reverse scale, and death woulde to anyone who dared touch it.[1] Dongfang Xuanxiao was Long Chen¡¯s reverse scale. Despite not being his biological father, Dongfang Xuanxiao had given him many things. In fact, Long Chen would not be where he was today without his stepfather!


    Killing intent slowly clouded his mind!


    ¡°Yang Danfeng, Demon Elders! You will not get away with this!¡±


    ***


    Starlight shone upon the Little Bamboo Court.


    This was a small piece ofnd filled with green bamboo. Xuanming loved bamboo, so Zhao Qingyun built an elegant house in this bamboo forest and called it Little Bamboo Court. After Long Chen arrived in the Heavenly Demon Pce, he had spent more time here than at the Azure Cloud Residence.


    Xuanming, whose belly was starting to swell, was sound asleep. She needed more rest now that she was pregnant. Ever since Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming returned to the Heavenly Demon Pce, they rarely cultivated. They had fallen behind too much, so they could not catch up even if they wanted to. Plus, the Heavenly Demon Pce was a good ce to rest and meditate. It was much more important for them to be with each other for the rest of their lives than to cultivate.


    Of course, that was provided that no outsiders disturbed them.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao kissed her forehead gently, then he stood up and went to the courtyard. He looked up at the bright starry river above him in the sky, then smiled weakly.


    In my youth, with my infinite courage and determination, I wanted to conquer this starry river. But now, all I want to do is live a happy life with Ming¡¯er. Xuanxiao, Xuanxiao, you¡¯ve gotten old ...


    When he thought about Xuanming, he smiled again. Ming¡¯er likes this lifestyle, so I do too. I¡¯m actually fine with living like this forever. This is the result of twenty years of waiting, and it was difficult. Just like Chen¡¯er. I don¡¯t know how long he and Miss Ling Xi will have to suffer before being able to live like me ...


    To Dongfang Xuanxiao, his current life was much happier than Long Chen¡¯s good days.


    What Dongfang Xuanxiao couldn¡¯t see was that just three hundred meters away, two people were sneaking in the dark. One of them was Yang Danfeng and the other was a disheveled-looking middle-aged man. He was bare-chested and covered in wounds all over. Beneath his disheveled hair were fierce, beast-like eyes.


    ¡°Yang Danfeng, thank you so much for this opportunity. Can you give me the Heavenly River Pills you promised me now?¡± He Tian asked in a hoarse voice as he turned around.


    ¡°As long as you canplete the task, I will keep my word.¡± Yang Danfeng was toozy to y mind games with him. He tossed a Universe Pouch to He Tian and said, ¡°Catch. Two hundred thousand Heavenly Pills. It¡¯s enough for you to reach the Eighth River Stage. Remember this: kill Dongfang Xuanxiao and let Xuanming see your face. Then you can run. The further, the better. Don¡¯t me me if Zhao Qingyun chases after you and kills you!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m being paid to help solve a problem. I understand. Say no more!¡± He Tian checked the Universe Pouch in his hand and found that it indeed contained two hundred thousand Heavenly River Pills. He put it away, then he took out arge, blood-red knife and said emotionally, ¡°Blood Ocean Knife! Today, you¡¯ll finally have a chance to feast on some blood!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re useless! Do you really need an advanced Earth-tier knife to kill a First River Stage cultivator?¡± Yang Danfeng scoffed after ncing at the knife.


    ¡°Yang Danfeng, you don¡¯t understand. When I kill someone, I always use the Blood Ocean Knife to cut them into pieces. Dongfang Xuanxiao deserves it more than anyone for bedding the woman I wanted! I must chop his body up so I can finally rest!¡± He Tian said.


    ¡°Alright. Go ahead, then! Hurry up and get it done quickly! Don''t waste my time, or you¡¯ll be the dead one!¡± said Yang Danfeng coldly.


    He Tian nced at him coldly, pursed his lips, then charged towards the Little Bamboo Court like a gust of wind. Along the way, bamboo was cut in half with level cross sections, and they tumbled in swaths to the ground!


    Before he arrived, Dongfang Xuanxiao sensed the manic killing intent. He was initially immersed in the glow of love, but this sudden change made him panic, and he quickly shouted, ¡°Ming¡¯er, run!¡±


    At this critical moment, the first thought he had was to save the pregnant Zhao Xuanming!


    Since Dongfang Xuanxiao had reached the Heavenly River Realm, this shout was enough to wake her up immediately. Her first response was not to run, but to rush to his side. She looked afraid and pale, but there was determination in her eyes.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao knew she would be like this. He sighed in exasperation, then stood in front of her. They waited to see who would emerge from the bamboo forest.


    The man was muscr, his chest was bare, and he was wearing a pair of tattered pants. His face was dirty and disheveled, and he held arge, blood-colored knife that he rested on his shoulder. He walked up to them with insanity in his eyes.


    ¡°You two lovebirds! Do you remember me?¡± He Tian sneered as he walked up to them.


    ¡°He Tian!¡± Xuanming would remember him even if she was dead. When she was younger, he had pursued her like a madman, and when she returned muchter, he killed his own wife and son in order to win her heart. But how could she like a madman like that? Therefore, He Tian was chased out of the Heavenly Demon Pce by Zhao Qingyun.


    Zhao Xuanming had not expected him to return today. Previously, Zhao Qingyun had shown mercy and let him go, yet now he was here and clearly intended to attack. Did he not know remorse?


    ¡°He Tian, my father let you live, yet you dare return to the Heavenly Demon Pce. What is the meaning of that knife? Don¡¯t you know what gratitude is?¡± Xuanming asked nervously.


    ¡°That¡¯s the funniest joke ever! What even is gratitude? He¡¯s the idiot who didn¡¯t kill me. What¡¯s that got to do with me?¡± He Tian burst intoughter.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to leave the Cangyang Kingdom immediately, but today, I slipped into the Heavenly Demon Pce mainly to fulfill myst wish. Xuan Ming, I have truly loved you for many years, yet you decided to be with a useless prettyboy. That won¡¯t do. I¡¯m a true man! How could I lose to trash? Today, I will take his life. If you¡¯re afraid of blood, don¡¯t look. After I kill him, I¡¯ll reward you, okay? You¡¯re even pregnant! The trash¡¯s child will probably also be trash. And trash has no right to remain in this world. Ming¡¯er, tell me what I should do so I can kill this trash¡¯s child without hurting you, haha ...¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao drew in a sharp breath.


    He Tian was at the Seventh River Stage, while he was only at the First River Stage. He Tian could kill him in one casual move! Under such circumstances, it was impossible for him to live!


    1. In some stories, dragons have a scale that points in a reversed directionpared to its other scales. It¡¯s the Achilles heel of the dragon, therefore if you try to attack it, the dragon will be furious ?

 Chapter 381 - Massacre – He Tian

    <h4>Chapter 381 - Massacre ¨C He Tian</h4>


    The couple liked peace and quiet, so the Little Bamboo Court was situated further from the other buildings. At this point, Dongfang Xuanxiao knew that no one woulde to their rescue.


    ¡°Ming¡¯er, I¡¯m so sorry. I¡¯m useless. In the end, we couldn¡¯t escape the suffering. Perhaps I really am not suited for you. I deserve to die for wasting so many years of your youth.¡± The pain on Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s face would make anyone¡¯s heart ache.


    ¡°Brother Xuanxiao ...¡±


    There were tears in her eyes. She held Xuanxiao¡¯s hand tightly, looked at He Tian with a lump in her throat, then gritted her teeth and said, ¡°Even after being locked up for twenty years, I¡¯m very content with being able to see you again and spending so much time with you. Today, I will die with you before I am humiliated. It¡¯s too bad this child will die before it¡¯s born ...¡±


    Her words broke Xuanxiao¡¯s heart.


    ¡°No! He can never touch you! Ming¡¯er, I will stop him even if I die! Even if it¡¯s for a moment!¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao stared with determination in his eyes. Although he was countless times weaker than He Tian, he was equal in terms of fierceness!


    He Tian was a little ufortable in the face of Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s fearlessness in death. He smirked and spat, ¡°Not bad! That was touching. But I¡¯ve never believed in that sort of thing. You¡¯re trash! Do you have the guts to fight me? Do you want to try?¡±


    He Tian knew that he had no time to waste. He walked towards Dongfang Xuanxiao as he spoke, and a heavy weight pressed on Dongfang Xuanxiao. The blood-colored de glinted coldly, and Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s vision blurred. A threat he could not withstand was approaching! He gritted his teeth and tried to think of a way out, but he knew how weak he was in the face of such arge gap in cultivation levels!


    No! I cannot let Ming¡¯er die with me! And our child cannot die before it¡¯s born! God, what do I do?! Why do you do this to me? You yed me for twenty years, and I suffered for twenty years so I could be with Ming¡¯er. Do I not have a say in my own life?!


    Dongfang Xuanxiao breathed heavily as redness slowly spread through his eyes.


    ¡°Brother Xuanxiao ...¡± Xuanming¡¯s heart ached when she saw Dongfang Xuanxiao like this. Her nails almost punctured his flesh.


    ¡°Ming¡¯er, I only have one request. Will you promise me this?¡± Xuanxiao quickly said next to her ear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say it. I can promise you one thing¡ªeven if I die, I will remain by your side to face it all together. I am being selfish to our child, but I am sure they will understand!¡± Zhao Xuanming¡¯s eyes were filled with tears ...


    Dongfang Xuanxiao had lost all hope in the face of Xuanming¡¯s stubborness and the approaching He Tian.


    Strength. Everything boiled down to strength. He wasn¡¯t strong enough years ago, that was why Xuanming had been locked up in the Star Devil Prison for twenty years. This time, he wasn¡¯t strong enough, so they had no choice but to ept death!


    ¡°Ah!¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao mmed his fist into his own chest!


    ¡°If I am reborn, I will definitely work as hard as Chen¡¯er!¡± roared Dongfang Xuanxiao, his eyes fixed dead on He Tian.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er? You mean Long Chen, the one that has been famous in the Heavenly Demon Pce? The kid that people are talking about across the whole Cangyang Kingdom? He¡¯s indeed a prodigy. You¡¯re very lucky to have taken in a stepson like that. Unfortunately, he won¡¯t save you today!¡± He Tianughed and gently raised the Blood Ocean Knife. He would split Dongfang Xuanxiao in half in the next second!


    That was when a cold voice rang from behind He Tian.


    ¡°You¡¯re wrong. Today, I am saving him.¡±


    This cold voice obviously came from a teenager. He was so close, yet He Tian had not noticed him. He Tian was startled and quickly turned around in a panic, Qi exploding from his body.


    When he turned around, he saw a tall teenager with elegant features and long, ck hair that fluttered in the wind standing behind him! In his hand was a sword that radiated faint starlight.


    ¡°Long Chen, why would you be here?¡± He Tian waspletely shocked. Yang Danfeng had guaranteed that no one would show up. So why was Long Chen here?


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming felt like they were dreaming when they saw Long Chen. Xuanming almost fainted, but fortunately, Dongfang Xuanxiao was there to catch her. Their eyes were filled with tears. They had truly survived a very close brush with death. Only they knew just how dangerous it had been.


    They had paid twenty years of their lives to be together today, but everything they had built was going to be destroyed. It was truly fortunate that Long Chen had appeared. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming had full confidence in him, so they knew that they would not die tonight!


    The emotions running through them were indescribable.


    He Tian sensed an aura that scared him from Long Chen¡¯s body. At this critical moment, he made the decision to kill Dongfang Xuanxiao as quickly as possible and then flee!


    He was at the Seventh River Stage, and he had heard that Long Chen was only at the Sixth River Stage. Of course, he had heard about Long Chen defeating Yang Jun as well, which made him very nervous!


    He Tian turned around again, ready to kill Dongfang Xuanxiao with one sh. However, he didn¡¯t expect the face of arge wolf to be right in front of his eyes. Powerful mes shot at him! He Tian gasped and used all the strength in his body to barely dodge the fire.


    Xiang stood guard next to the couple and puckered his lips in contempt. If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen¡¯s instructions, he would have killed the bastard immediately.


    He Tian only had one thought: run. After dodging Xiang¡¯s mes, he leaped from the ground to flee, but to his dismay, the teenager rushed up to him.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were red as he red at He Tian and the Blood Ocean Knife. He could not imagine the tragedy that would have taken ce here if Murong Yu had not informed him! He would have regretted it forever!


    Had he arrived one secondter, he truly would¡¯ve been ovee with regret. Although He Tian had not seeded, the hatred in Long Chen¡¯s heart did not dissipate!


    ¡°Since you¡¯re here, you might as well stay ...¡± Long Chen mused.


    He Tian felt very ufortable by his tone, then madness slowly appeared in his eyes, and he roared, ¡°Alright! Since you don¡¯t want me to leave, then I¡¯ll leave after I kill you! I refuse to believe that a Seventh River Stage cultivator like myself can¡¯t beat you at the Sixth River Stage!¡±


    He Tian was already cornered into fighting back.


    ¡°I would¡¯ve toyed with you if I were in a better mood. But today, you must die.¡±


    Then He Tian roared and swung his sword at Long Chen, its cold glint forming an arc in the air.


    Long Chen was shed in half!


    After the attack, He Tian was surprised to discover that he had cut Long Chen in half! Relieved, he thought, The father¡¯s trash; the son¡¯s trash too!


    He was about to kill Dongfang Xuanxiao and run, but a voice rang in his ear.


    ¡°Who did you cut just now?¡± The voice seemed to be right next to his ear, and all his hairs stood on end. He was about to turn and swing his knife behind him when the tip of a sword pierced through his chest, extending half a meter out of his body!


    A drop of blood fell from the Star Sword, which was dotted with starlight.


    He Tian finally realized that his heart had been pierced through.


    Whoosh! Long Chen pulled the Star Sword out. He Tian had not died yet. He turned and looked at Long Chen in disbelief, stuttering, ¡°You brat .... Didn¡¯t ... didn¡¯t I just cut you?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know about Traceless Demon Shadow?¡± Long Chen then sliced his throat with his sword.


    He Tian finally copsed with his eyes still open.


    Even in death, he did not understand why he could not fight back when he should have been much stronger than Long Chen.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming watched the scene unfold in a daze. It was only when He Tian¡¯s body threw up a cloud of dust in the air that they finally believed that Long Chen¡¯sbat abilities had far surpassed He Tian¡¯s.


    After a close brush with death, Dongfang Xuanxiao was extremely emotional. He quickly said, ¡°Chen¡¯er, we owe you so much ...¡±


    ¡°Today¡¯s matters have note to an end yet.¡± Long Chen suddenly cut him off, then he disappeared right before Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s eyes. Xiang howled, then followed him.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuanming looked at each other, wondering what Long Chen was doing. That was when they heard an earth-shattering yell in front!


    ¡°Yang Danfeng! Do you still think you can run?!¡±


    Dongfang Xuanxiao froze.


    ¡°Yang Danfeng?¡±


    ¡°Brother Xuanxiao, it must have been Yang Danfeng. I was just wondering how He Tian could¡¯ve gotten here with how strict the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s security is. Someone inside must have let him in! Chen¡¯er received two stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique a few days ago, and Yang Danfeng must have gotten angry. He was the one who let He Tian in!¡± Xuanming quickly connected the dots.


    ¡°That¡¯s terrible! If Chen¡¯er knows the truth, he will definitely kill Yang Danfeng!¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s face changed. He knew Long Chen¡¯s personality well.

 Chapter 382 - Black Wind Sword Technique

    <h4>Chapter 382 - ck Wind Sword Technique </h4>


    Dongfang Xuanxiao was right. Long Chen was indeed going after Yang Danfeng!


    Long Chen had used the Soul Swallowing Gaze earlier and saw Yang Danfeng hiding three hundred meters away! This confirmed that tonight¡¯s events had been arranged by Yang Danfeng and maybe even the three Demon Elders!


    Every dragon had a reverse scale, and touching it meant death!


    Long Chen would not have been this furious if Yang Danfeng had attacked Wang Xing. But he had targeted Dongfang Xuanxiao! Dongfang Xuanxiao was an elder worthy of Long Chen¡¯s respect. Anyone who touched him, no matter who it was, would end up dead! It was only a matter of when!


    The most powerful person in the Heavenly Demon Pce was Zhao Qingyun. Yang Danfeng had targeted his son-inw and had been caught red-handed by Long Chen. Therefore, Long Chen knew that no matter what he did, Zhao Qingyun would definitely support him, which was why he decided to disregard everything and go for the kill. It didn¡¯t matter if the sky fell¡ªZhao Qingyun would be there to hold it up, so Long Chen was not afraid!


    That was why he had asked Wang Xing to call Zhao Qingyun over. He was not afraid of anything with a Heavenly Passage Realm master protecting him.


    When Yang Danfeng realized that Long Chen was there, he was shocked. His mind raced and he instantly thought of someone. His face reddened and he clenched his teeth. ¡°It must¡¯ve been that bitch, Murong Yu! She must have told him my n! Murong Yu! I can¡¯t believe you openly disobeyed your master! You¡¯re so dead! I can¡¯t wait to watch you die when the Demon Elders find out about this!¡±


    By the time Yang Danfeng spoke to himself, He Tian had already been killed by Long Chen. When Yang Danfeng saw that his n had failed, he was about to sneak off, but to his utter surprise, Long Chen knew his location and was charging over to kill him!


    How the hell does he know where I am? Yang Danfeng gasped. He didn¡¯t think he could not defeat Long Chen, but didn¡¯t his presence prove that he was the one who had brought He Tian here? If Zhao Qingyun found out about this, then Yang Danfeng would be dead. With that thought, Yang Danfeng turned around to flee, but a ck shadow rushed in front of him with a loud boom, blocking his way!


    Yang Danfeng had been tortured by Xiang once in the Pyro Passageways. Xiang had the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire and Divine Fire Clone, which had left Yang Danfeng traumatized. He thought of running off in a different direction, but Long Chen appeared behind him with his Star Sword in hand!


    ¡°Long Chen, why are you blocking me? Do you think it¡¯s that easy to bully me? Let me tell you this. Get this demon wolf out of my way, or there will be casualties!¡± Yang Danfeng knew he could not run, so he opted to dish out threats!


    Long Chen¡¯s expression was so dark, it was scary. Without a word, he raised the Star Sword and pointed it directly at Yang Danfeng. Even Yang Danfeng felt a little scared when he saw Long Chen in this state.


    ¡°Xiang, this is a duel to the death. Do not intervene,¡± Long Chen said coldly as blood-red scales covered his body. His transformation was instant, and his sharp, bony spikes made Yang Danfeng¡¯s scalp go numb!


    Long Chen¡¯s Qi was boosted by ten times thanks to the Dragon Soul Transformation, so he was now on par with Yang Danfeng! Both of them had Eighth River Stage strength!


    When he fought Song Zhongcheng, Long Chen used Blood Sacrifice to force his Qi to level up to the Eighth River Stage. Right now, however, he truly had thebat ability of an Eighth River Stage cultivator!


    Yang Danfeng was startled to find that the aura that exploded from Long Chen¡¯s body was as strong as his. He felt very irritated at Long Chen¡¯s arrogance, so he red and said, ¡°Does this mean that you¡¯ve decided to fight me? Long Chen, I don¡¯t want to fight you. Don¡¯t pick a fight you¡¯re sure to lose. If I hurt you, I don¡¯t know how I¡¯ll exin myself to the Pce Lord.¡±


    ¡°A fight I¡¯m sure to lose? You sent someone to kill my stepfather. This is a blood grudge. If I had been just a second slower, I would have regretted this all my life. The only way to cleanse this grudge is with your blood!¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes glinted fiercely.


    ¡°What do you mean by that? What evidence do you have?¡± Although both parties knew, Yang Danfeng would never be stupid enough to admit it. Long Chen had no evidence, so he could stubbornly refuse!


    ¡°Evidence? The evidence is in my sword. Yang Danfeng, I will take your life today!¡± Long Chen stepped off the ground. With a whoosh, he turned into a blood-red shadow that shot towards Yang Danfeng and swung the Star Sword straight at his head!


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one with a sword?¡± Yang Danfeng smirked and took out a huge sword from his Universe Pouch. It was heavy, all ck, and well over a meter long. He gripped it with both hands and brought it down on Long Chen!


    ¡°While I am best at the Abyssal Piercing Finger, I¡¯m also good with the ck Wind Sword Technique!¡± Yang Danfeng knew that Long Chen was not holding back. Since he had never been one to willingly be trampled on by another person, he had no choice but to react, and he shed with all his strength!


    When the swords collided, a deafening sound of friction rang out! Their Qi levels were equal, so both of them were sent flying!


    When Long Chen was thrown back, there was a cold glint in his eyes and he gently stepped on a bamboo behind him, then he shot right at Yang Danfeng!


    Yang Danfeng was startled. In a direct collision, Long Chen¡¯s Star Sword was actually the inferior weaponpared to his. However, Long Chen was not hurt at all, and he bounced back instantly!


    ¡°It looks like you¡¯re not going to give up until you die. ck Wind Sword Technique, Manic Wind Storm!¡± Yang Danfeng¡¯s face darkened. His sword vibrated hard, then turned into a shadow that rained attacks on Long Chen like a manic storm!


    No wonder he¡¯s an Eighth River Stage prodigy. He¡¯s definitely no average cultivator! Although Long Chen looked like he had lost his mind, he was calm. When Yang Danfeng¡¯s ck Wind Sword Technique arrived, he used Traceless Demon Shadow to dodge the attack instantly. At the same time, his Divine Fire Clones exploded from him, and 125 clones instantly pounced on Yang Danfeng, who was now trapped in a very small area!


    He knows this bizarre technique too! Yang Danfeng had seen Xiang¡¯s Divine Fire Clone, but didn¡¯t expect Long Chen to know it as well. However, Long Chen¡¯s Divine Fire Clones only possessed Sixth River Stage strength, so they were easier to fight!


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one who knows Traceless Demon Shadow? I do too!¡± Yang Danfeng used Traceless Demon Shadow. After countless years of study, his mastery of the technique was only almost on par with Long Chen!


    When the technique was activated, the clones could no longer find his location. He wove through them like a ck shadow, and every time he shed with his sword, he killed one clone. Long Chen knew that the clones were no longer effective, so he retracted them.


    ¡°Have you admitted defeat?¡± Yang Danfeng stopped and smiled. ¡°Then this matter hase to a close. Nothing happened anyway. I won¡¯t hold a grudge against you for stopping me today. Farewell!¡±


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re dreaming?¡± Long Chen appeared in front of him in a sh.


    ¡°Long Chen, I admit that you¡¯re decent, but if I fought you with my full strength, you would be no match for me even if you used every ounce of your strength! I¡¯m holding back because of your master, but a dog can jump over the wall when it¡¯s cornered[1], so don¡¯t me me!¡± The corner of his mouth curled up into a smirk.


    ¡°Oh? Then let¡¯s see how you, the dog, will jump over this wall!¡± Long Chen mocked him.


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± Yang Danfeng felt like he was showing Long Chen mercy for not engaging in battle. However, the brat was not intelligent enough to see it and had even insulted him! Yang Danfeng was furious!


    ¡°You¡¯re the one looking for death, so you cannot me me for this! Long Chen, let me show you what the Demon Seed nting Technique is like! You¡¯ll die when I double my strength!¡± ck smoke rose from Yang Danfeng¡¯s body, which was a sign that his Demon Seed had merged with his Qi!


    Yang Danfeng¡¯s aura intensified until it was double the previous level. Thick, ck mist swirled in his eyes, making him look demonic.


    ¡°Do you think you can defeat me when I am in this state?¡± Yang Danfeng chuckled coldly. His speed had doubled, and he instantly appeared in front of Long Chen and swung his sword!


    Long Chenughed coldly and shed the Star Sword horizontally. His opponent¡¯s enhanced strength sent him flying backwards, knocking down many bamboos before he finally stopped.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Do you finally understand how strong I am?¡± Yang Danfeng asked smugly.


    ¡°Is that the best you can do?!¡± Long Chen was not hurt at all. He chuckled coldly, then, to Yang Danfeng¡¯s shock, the same thick, ck smoke rose from Long Chen¡¯s body and his aura also intensified. An instantter, he reached Yang Danfeng¡¯s level!


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I¡¯m not very familiar with the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique yet. However, it¡¯s enough for me to take your life!¡± Long Chen said with a faint smile.


    ¡°What?¡± Yang Danfeng took a step back in disbelief. Had Long Chen mastered the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique in three days?


    Was Long Chen a monster?


    1. idiom ¨C the dog jumps over the wall when it panics // definition: people do extreme things out of desperation or when cornered ?

 Chapter 383 - Killing

    <h4>Chapter 383 - Killing</h4>


    Yang Danfeng was shocked that Long Chen had mastered Traceless Demon Shadow in twenty days. He himself had taken five times as long to master it, and he was a rare prodigy in the Heavenly Demon Pce. This meant that Long Chen was the prodigy of prodigies.


    When he found out that Long Chen hadpleted the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique in only three days, he could only say that Long Chen was nonhuman.


    However, Yang Danfeng would never ept this!


    That¡¯s impossible! He must have used some kind of trick! Maybe Zhao Qingyun has been mentoring him in secret for a long time and only introduced him to the public when Long Chen mastered them!


    Both of them were in their strongest forms.


    ¡°Good, good! Not bad! This is not bad at all! However, you have sessfully made me angry!¡± As he spoke, Yang Danfeng put away his sword. He was best at finger techniques, so when Long Chen used the Demon Seed nting Technique, he truly felt threatened and was forced to use his truebat abilities.


    ¡°Abyssal Piercing Finger Technique! This is an extremely powerful technique ranked just below the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. Out of all the advanced Earth-tier techniques, this is one of the best! My master hasplete mastery over it, and while I have only scratched the surface, it¡¯s enough to kill you, Long Chen! Since you won¡¯t let me leave, then enjoy this!¡± Yang Danfeng sneered.


    ¡°Idiot,¡± Long Chen said gently.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Yang Danfeng had always been a favored disciple with a high rank, and he had never been afraid of anyone other than the three Demon Elders and Zhao Qingyun. A line was crossed when a neer like Long Chen insulted him. He flew into a rage and his Qi exploded to its maximum level, preparing his finger attack directed at Long Chen!


    ¡°Abyssal Piercing Finger, Moving Starry River!¡±


    This was the most powerful Abyssal Piercing Finger technique. Usually, only Ninth River Stage cultivators were able to use this move, but Yang Danfeng was exceptional! Rays of light shot out of his finger and flew at Long Chen like swords flying through space. It was so powerful that even the stars in the sky seemed to tremble!


    ¡°Son of trash! Will you be able to withstand this?¡± Yang Danfeng let out a bout of manicughter as heunched the attack. With the boost from the Demon Seed nting Technique, the intensity of his attack rose. His aura took the shape of arge finger and shot directly at Long Chen!


    Long Chen chuckled and his eyes shed coldly!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain ...¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s final attack. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, blood-red mist spread across the area. Being at the same level as Long Chen, Yang Danfeng needed to use at least half of his Qi to suppress his boiling blood or his blood would be sucked away and he would die!


    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± This was Yang Danfeng¡¯s first time seeing the Blood Devouring Domain, so he was terrified. The mist swirled around him and turned into dragons, sticking onto his body. Then the strong sucking force made his face go pale!


    He felt as if his blood was boiling as it surged chaotically. Moments ago, he had been guiding most of his Qi tounch his most powerful attack, but now he was being forced to use part of it to suppress the effects of the Blood Devouring Domain. If not, blood would spray out of his body and he would die in a grotesque manner!


    When Yang Danfeng had to weaken his final attack because he had to re-distribute part of his Qi, Long Chen knew that his opportunity hade. His body exploded using Traceless Demon Shadow, and he dashed, thrusting his Star Sword forward. Then he disappeared!


    ¡°Shadow Sword Technique!¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s first time using the Shadow Sword Technique. And how could a technique that Ling Xi taught him be simple? Yang Danfeng instantly felt an energy that suffocated him. He looked up fearfully, and multiple sword shadows appeared in front of him, along with Long Chen¡¯s Traceless Demon Shadow! Yang Danfeng lost his mind when he saw how dense the attack was!


    He was in mortal danger!


    At that moment, Dongfang Xuanxiao had led Xuanming over, and they were shocked to see this. From the other end, the three Demon Elders rushed over and also saw them!


    ¡°No!¡± They were too far away, so it was impossible for them to save Yang Danfeng. They roared so loudly that their voices shook the heavens, but it was useless. Long Chen¡¯s eyes were cold and his sword, as intended, slid across Yang Danfeng¡¯s neck. He retracted his Blood Devouring Domain when he seeded.


    Long Chen had sensed the arrival of the three Demon Elders. He called Xiang over, then, without a word, stood in front of Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao stared at the teenager, who stood tall with the Star Sword in hand. Fresh blood dripped slowly from it.


    The three Demon Elders finally arrived. Their eyes widened as they stared at Yang Danfeng in shock and discovered a line of blood on his neck. Yang Danfeng stared back at them with horror in his eyes, unmoving.


    ¡°Danfeng!¡± the First Demon Elder screamed before rushing towards Yang Danfeng. When he touched Yang Danfeng¡¯s body, thetter¡¯s head came loose and tumbled to the ground, leaving a trail of blood as it rolled several times.


    The First Demon Elder clutched the headless corpse, which started to spray out arge amount of blood, leaving him drenched!


    Twenty years of mentorship. All that was left was this cold corpse.


    Long Chen had already been mentally prepared to kill Yang Danfeng. He guessed that Yang Danfeng was behind this and that he would be nearby. His guess had been proven correct.


    Although he had killed Yang Danfeng, he remained calm. He stared at the three Demon Elders coldly without any intention of retreating. He had already nned this by telling Wang Xing to find Zhao Qingyun. Before he fought Yang Danfeng, he had already spotted Zhao Qingyun using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, but Zhao Qingyun never showed himself; he merely watched from the dark.


    Long Chen knew in his heart that this was Zhao Qingyun¡¯s way of giving him permission to do this. That was why he had intensified his attack and killed Yang Danfeng before the three Demon Elders arrived, even beheading him using the Shadow Sword Technique.


    Zhao Qingyun was hiding not far away from Long Chen¡¯s left side.


    The First Demon Elder stared at his disciple in a daze with disbelief in his eyes, then regret, anger, and finally killing intent. He ced Yang Danfeng¡¯s body and head in his Universe Pouch, then red at Long Chen with blood-red eyes!


    The other two Demon Elders were filled with grief! Yang Danfeng was the most outstanding disciple, and because he was male, they focused more on him than on Murong Yu. They had spent a lot of effort on him, but it had all amounted to nothing because of Long Chen!


    They had already wanted to kill Long Chen, so why wouldn¡¯t they act now? They looked at each other, and then the youngest of the trio, the Third Demon Elder, took a step forward and said, ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯ll do it! He killed Yang Danfeng! Even the Pce Lord¡¯s disciple can¡¯t escape death after this. Let me kill him! Big Brother, I¡¯m begging you!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t let him die too quickly ...¡± the elderly First Demon Elder said in a hoarse voice. It was clear that he was trying his best to control his emotions!


    ¡°I understand!¡± The Third Demon Elder approached Long Chen with a sneer on his face and was in front of him in a sh. He was ready to attack when a middle-aged-looking man with white hair appeared between them. It was Zhao Qingyun!


    ¡°Pce Lord!¡± The Third Demon Elder gasped and quickly retreated to the side of the other two Demon Elders. He knew that he could easily kill Long Chen, but the three of them could not defeat Zhao Qingyun even if they fought him together.


    There was a momentary quiet. Zhao Qingyun¡¯s cold gaze met the First Demon Elder¡¯s violent re. The elderly First Demon Elder suddenly turned into an awakened beast, radiating a terrifying, wild aura.


    ¡°Pce Lord! I spent thest twenty years of my life mentoring my disciple! And he¡¯s gone, just like that! If you don¡¯t settle this appropriately, I¡¯m afraid this will not end peacefully,¡± said the First Demon Elder after a moment of silence.


    This meant that if Zhao Qingyun did not hand Long Chen over, then he would never give up.


    ¡°First Demon Elder, actually, there are a few things that do not need to be said out loud,¡± Zhao Qingyun suddenly said. He had actually arrived not long after Long Chen, so he was clear about everything that had happened.


    The First Demon Elder was startled by Zhao Qingyun¡¯s words. He knew that it was very likely that Zhao Qingyun already knew of their n.


    Long Chen then said loudly, ¡°I don¡¯t think you know what just happened. Yang Danfeng conspired with an outsider and let him sneak into the Heavenly Demon Pce in order to kill my stepfather. What kind of cruel and ungrateful person would target the Pce Lord¡¯s son-inw? Say, do you think he deserved to live? As my stepfather¡¯s stepson, should I have spared him?¡±


    ¡°Nonsense! You have no evidence to make such usations!¡± The Third Demon Elderughed coldly. ¡°Do you think we should just take your word for it? Where¡¯s your proof? Where are your witnesses? Also, Long Chen, even if Danfeng hadmitted an error, what right do you have to kill him? We are the ones who enforce punishment! I think you havemitted a huge sin, and you are the one who deserves to die!¡±

 Chapter 384 - Brush With Death

    <h4>Chapter 384 - Brush With Death</h4>


    ¡°Someone conspired to murder my stepfather, so I killed him. That is a very reasonable course of action. If you want to me someone, then me that useless coward. He even called himself the number one disciple of the Heavenly Demon Pce! He wasn¡¯t good enough for that,¡± Long Chen said in a mocking tone as he put his Star Sword away.


    ¡°Who did you call a coward?!¡± The Third Demon Elder lost his temper. Yang Danfeng was dead, and he had to make Long Chen pay. He was about to speak, but the First Demon Elder stopped him. The Third Demon Elder froze and followed his senior¡¯s gaze to look at Zhao Qingyun. At this moment, Zhao Qingyun¡¯s gaze was darker than ever.


    ¡°He¡¯s angry?¡± The Third Demon Elder gasped.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± the First Demon Elder said curtly, then he turned to leave. The Second Demon Elder hurried after him. Only the Third Demon Elder froze for a while, then he red at Long Chen and left.


    ¡°Big Brother, why did you give up so easily?¡± asked the Third Demon Elder hurriedly after they were some distance away.


    The First Demon Elder stared ahead without a word, though only the Second Demon Elder exined, ¡°Third Brother, didn¡¯t you hear what Zhao Qingyun said? He probably arrived long ago and maybe even witnessed our scheming. If we argue, will it be of any use? Arguing will only make him more contemptuous towards us. We are publicly going against him here, and if it wasn¡¯t for the fact that he cares about the big picture, and that we have worked hard to manage the Heavenly Demon Pce for so many years, we probably would have been killed a long time ago.¡±


    The Second Demon Elder¡¯s words made the Third Demon Elder understand. His gaze darkened. ¡°Danfeng died, and I¡¯m not willing to ept this. Twenty years of mentorship! I prepared him as a candidate for the next Pce Lord. Gone, just like that! My heart aches!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the use of that? Who knows what will happen, seeing as Long Chen is already this powerful? But I have a question. How did Long Chen know that something would happen to Dongfang Xuanxiao?¡± The Second Demon Elder was frustrated.


    The First Demon Elder, who was walking ahead, answered, ¡°There must be a mole among us who told Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°A mole? Who? There were only the six of us present that night. There¡¯s no way it was one of us, and Yang Jun hates Long Chen to the bone, so that¡¯s impossible. As for Xiao Yu ... Big Brother, are you talking about Xiao Yu?¡± The Second Demon Elder had a bad feeling. After the First Demon Elder¡¯s mention, her guess was confirmed, and her expression turned sour.


    ¡°As her master, you must be familiar with Xiao Yu¡¯s intentions. She has never liked Danfeng, and it looks like us forcing her to marry him put her in a difficult spot.¡± The First Demon Elder halted and looked up at the starry night outside.


    ¡°It was Xiao Yu! That brat! How dare she betray her own kin? She deserves to die! I¡¯m going to kill her now!¡± The Third Demon Elder¡¯s features contorted, and he was ready to leave.


    ¡°Stay where you are!¡± the First Demon Elder yelled sternly. ¡°Third Brother, could you use your brain? You¡¯re a grown man! Now that Danfeng is dead and Yang Jun is not performing well, Xiao Yu is our only trump card! Without her, the Demon Emperor Sword will end up in Long Chen¡¯s hands! Not only can we not touch her, we also need to raise her well!¡±


    ¡°But how about revenge for Danfeng?¡± The Third Demon Elder did not understand.


    ¡°Who said raising her means not torturing her? It looks like that girl has feelings for Long Chen. She¡¯s a young girl and easily gets distracted by these fake dreams. It¡¯s time to teach Xiao Yu what is most important! Let¡¯s go back!¡±


    The three of them head towards Three Demons City.


    Yang Danfeng¡¯s death was a huge blow to them, but this did not mean that they would stop. Instead, they would be worse!


    ***


    Long Chen, Zhao Qingyun, and the rest all followed Dongfang Xuanxiao to the Little Bamboo Court. Zhao Qingyun did not want news of this to spread, so Long Chen personally dealt with the body. However, it would be difficult to restore the broken bamboo in a short time.


    ¡°I pity these bamboo nts,¡± said Zhao Xuanming, shaking her head.


    ¡°As long as no one is hurt, all is well. Ming¡¯er, I really thought we were dead. It¡¯s all thanks to Chen¡¯er ...¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao looked at Long Chen gratefully. He was here, unharmed, all because of Long Chen. He never thought that that outer family brat he had met on Nine Devils Mountain would grow to this level.


    Even Zhao Qingyun was impressed that Long Chen could defeat Yang Danfeng. He said, ¡°So that¡¯s how you beat Song Zhongcheng! This is excellent. If you maintain this progress, it¡¯s very likely you¡¯ll get the Demon Emperor Sword!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s objective was to get the Three Great Secret Scriptures and reach at least the Eighth River Stage. Now he was just one step away. Afterpleting these steps, he would be strong enough to storm the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    ¡°They probably won¡¯t tell anyone about what happened tonight, so you guys shouldn¡¯t either. As for Yang Danfeng, just say he¡¯s gone missing.¡± To be honest, Zhao Qingyun was extremely furious; if Long Chen had not killed Yang Danfeng, he might have done it himself. He was a lion in the Heavenly Demon Pce, and he did not care when the tiny cats and dogs caused trouble. However, when they targeted his family, how could he not be furious?


    If he had not considered the overall situation of the Heavenly Demon Pce, he would have beaten the three Demon Elders up. He refused to believe that the three Demon Elders were not involved in such a vicious scheme!


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, Yang Danfeng and I had no grudges. Why would he want to attack us?¡± asked Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    Long Chen chuckled bitterly and said, ¡°Stepfather, it was my fault. I snatched the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique from Yang Danfeng, and he couldn¡¯t target me, so he decided to kill you to vent his anger.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that simple.¡± Zhao Qingyun shook his head. ¡°I think this was decided by the three Demon Elders. They are probably worried about the Demon Emperor Sword, so they want to distract you, Long Chen, before the fight for the sword begins. When you weakened, you would lose to their disciples during the fight. The Demon Emperor Sword is just too important to the Heavenly Demon Pce, and seeing as you¡¯ve only recently arrived, it¡¯s normal for them to see you as an outsider.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s probably the case. However, this is a low blow. They did not show you any respect at all, Master,¡± said Long Chen with a nod.


    ¡°If they took a risk like that, they probably intended for one of their own disciples to be the next Pce Lord,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a tired smile.


    ¡°The next Pce Lord? Aren¡¯t you still alive and healthy?¡± Long Chen asked with a grin.


    ¡°Even the strongest person gets old. I will need to give this position away eventually. You don¡¯t know this, but we have a rule in the Heavenly Demon Pce: anyone who gets the Three Great Secret Scriptures, cultivates all of them, and sessfully controls the Demon Emperor Sword will be the next Heavenly Demon Lord. Long Chen, based on the speed of your cultivation, you¡¯ll be able to learn the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. What youck is the Demon Emperor Sword. That¡¯s why they¡¯re afraid of you!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen froze. To be honest, he had no intention of bing the Heavenly Demon Lord.


    ¡°Of course, if you¡¯re unwilling, no one will force you. However, as the Pce Lord, you¡¯d be ranked above millions of people. I have direct control over three districts in the capital. The only person who ranks higher than the Heavenly Demon Lord is the king of the imperial family. As a Pce Lord, you could have ten thousand Heavenly Demon disciples at your disposal, as well as more than a hundred thousand disciples from other outer ns spread across the whole Cangyang Kingdom. You would directly control a small portion of crucial resources in the Cangyang Kingdom, and one day, you could even lead the Heavenly Demon Pce to overthrow the imperial family. Would you be willing to take a position like that?¡±


    Long Chen could tell that despite Zhao Qingyun¡¯s nonchnce, he really wanted Long Chen to be the next Pce Lord, seeing as he was his disciple, and he both liked and admired this youngster.


    ¡°Right, Chen¡¯er, you can pave the way in the future. With you protecting us, the two of us will livefortably here, and no one will bully us. Isn¡¯t that right?¡± Xuanming cracked a rare joke.


    Only Dongfang Xuanxiao did not speak, because he knew Long Chen best.


    As expected, Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Master, I promise you that the top-ranked imperials, including the Sword Emperor, Sword Devil, and Lin Zichen, will all be killed by me. As for whether they are overthrown¡ªthat depends on your strategy afterwards. As for the position of the Pce Lord ... Do you think I¡¯d be willing to stay here?¡±


    Long Chen looked at Zhao Qingyun with a knowing look.


    Zhao Qingyun suddenlyughed. ¡°Haha, I knew you had sky-high ambitions, and that this position wouldn¡¯t impress you. That¡¯s a good thing though, and I won¡¯t force you.¡± He too knew Long Chen well, and based on the speed he was growing, his future was limitless. The mere position of Heavenly Demon Lord was not his finishing line. All he needed was time.


    Dongfang Xuanxiao wasughing too because this was what he had guessed.


    ¡°Today, we don¡¯t need to talk about our master-disciple rtionship. We are three men, one old, one middle-aged, and one young without any blood rtions, yet we can all sit here together and call each other father and son. This is the best luck. To celebrate Xuanxiao surviving this ordeal, all three of us must drink tonight! Ming¡¯er, prepare the wine!¡±


    ¡°Father-inw, I think I¡¯ll do it. Ming¡¯er is pregnant; she should get some rest,¡± said Dongfang Xuanxiao hurriedly.


    ¡°No way. How could I miss such a joyous celebration?¡± Xuanming smiled mischievously and winked at Dongfang Xuanxiao.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to be someone¡¯s mom, and you¡¯re still acting cute!¡± Xuanxiao cracked a rare joke.


    ¡°You¡¯re so mean!¡± Xuanming punched his shoulder a few times sweetly.


    Long Chen was suddenly touched by this scene.


    He knew that he had to guard this warmth for the rest of his life.

 Chapter 385 - Black Yin Worm

    <h4>Chapter 385 - ck Yin Worm</h4>


    Three Demons City.


    The sky had not brightened yet. The tall and densely packed buildings blocked out starlight, so this ce looked dark and creepy. The three Demon Elders were all sitting in their respective elevated seats in the main pavilion, looking down at a trembling girl.


    Murong Yu¡¯s face was ghostly pale. She looked down, and felt her scalp go numb under the three Demon Elders¡¯ gazes. She knew that what she had done had been exposed.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, Danfeng is dead. Have you heard?¡± The Second Demon Elder¡¯s voice came from next to her. She jumped and found that the Second Demon Elder was right there, with her wrinkled face just half a meter away.


    Murong Yu was tall, so she was one head taller than the Second Demon Elder.


    ¡°He¡¯s dead?¡± This was a shocking piece of news to Murong Yu. She had only intended to interrupt Yang Danfeng¡¯s n, and the only person who was supposed to die was He Tian. So why was Yang Danfeng dead?


    ¡°Did the Pce Lord kill him?¡± she asked weakly.


    The Second Demon Elder did not reply, but asked another question instead. ¡°Does that mean you admit that you revealed the n to Long Chen?¡± Since Murong Yu had mentioned the Pce Lord, then it meant she knew about it.


    Murong Yu could only nod weakly. She knew that the three Demon Elders would only call for her thiste at night if something major had happened, and they were probably certain that was the mole. That was why she knew that the more she argued, the smaller her chance of survival, and why she had admitted it with no resistance.


    ¡°Why?¡± the Second Demon Elder asked painfully.


    ¡°I felt like that method was inappropriate, and I didn¡¯t want to marry Yang Danfeng ...¡± Murong Yu could not think of another reply.


    The Second Demon Elder was stunned.


    ¡°Master, I didn¡¯t know this would happen! I thought Long Chen would only go there to kill He Tian! I didn¡¯t think that Yang Danfeng would die ...¡± exined Murong Yu with tears in her eyes.


    ¡°Actually, let me tell you something. Yang Danfeng wasn¡¯t killed by the Pce Lord. He was killed by Long Chen!¡± spat the Second Demon Elder.


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± Murong Yu froze, then she blurted, ¡°That¡¯s impossible. He¡¯s not strong enough. It must have been the demon wolf!¡±


    ¡°No, it was Long Chen. He is already strong enough to defeat Yang Danfeng. This means that right now, Long Chen can also defeat you with his own strength. If this continues, then the Demon Emperor Sword is as good as his. And he will also be the next Heavenly Demon Lord. If he bes the Pce Lord, then all three of our lineages will be done for. Xiao Yu, you will be a traitor to us forever! Your selfishness has brought harm to all of us, including your juniors. How could you do this when we raised you for so many years? You ungrateful brat!¡±


    The Second Demon Elder¡¯s voice grew louder and louder until she was screaming. Every sharp usation made Murong Yu¡¯s heart shudder, and tears flowed from her eyes. The Second Demon Elder was right. Without her, Murong Yu would not be where she was today. In fact, she was Murong Yu¡¯s other parent.


    Murong Yu fell to her knees on the ground and kowtowed to her master and the other Demon Elders, crying profusely, ¡°Master, I was wrong! I¡¯m so sorry! I deserve to die! Kill me and let me clear my sins with my death!¡±


    She felt absolutely miserable and could barely breathe.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, get up. Although you havemitted an error, I have no intention of killing you.¡± The Second Demon Elder¡¯s voice suddenly turned gentle and she gently helped Murong Yu to her feet.


    ¡°But ... Master, I¡¯ve made such a huge mistake, I have wronged you ...¡±


    ¡°Danfeng is dead, and you¡¯re my most prized disciple. How could we also let you die? Then the three of us would not have any more sessors!¡± the Second Demon Elder said slowly.


    ¡°Master, what do I do now? Aren¡¯t you going to punish me?¡± Murong Yu¡¯s heart was torn. She had brought harm to all her fellow disciples and her master, one of the most important people in her life, so she was indeed filled with remorse.


    ¡°Forget about the punishment. However, the three of us have discussed and we have decided to give you a task. If you canplete it, we will forgive you,¡± the Second Demon Elder said in a calm voice.


    ¡°Please tell me. I will definitelyplete it,¡± said Murong Yu, nodding hurriedly.


    ¡°You need to calm down first. Big Brother, show it to her.¡± The Second Demon Elder turned to the First Demon Elder sitting at the head of the room.


    The First Demon Elder nodded and took out a blue bead from his Universe Pouch. Upon closer inspection, Murong Yu¡¯s jaw dropped and she gasped. ¡°Isn¡¯t that the Frost Soul Essence? Why is there another one?¡±


    ¡°We got this Frost Soul Essence a long time ago. We decided that after one of you retrieved that Frost Soul Essence, we would give this one to the other person so that both of you would enter the Ninth River Stage together. That way, the Heavenly Demon Pce would have two Ninth River Stage cultivators and suppress the imperial family. It¡¯s too bad that it was snatched away by Long Chen, and he killed Danfeng ...¡± The Second Demon Elder sighed in the end.


    ¡°Master, didn¡¯t I do something wrong? And you still want to give the Frost Soul Essence to me?¡± Murong Yu asked in disbelief.


    ¡°All is well for those who learn from their mistakes. As long as you canplete the task we give you, then we will feel better giving you this Frost Soul Essence,¡± said the Second Demon Elder as a creepy smile crept up on her wrinkly face.


    ¡°Master, what do you want me to do?¡± Murong Yu was determined to never disappoint the three of them again.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple. During theing fight for the Demon Emperor Sword, you must win and be the Pce Lord. Most importantly, during the battle for the sword, you must kill Long Chen and avenge Danfeng! That is how you will atone for your sin! If you can aplish these tasks, you will prove that all the years of effort we have put into you have been worthwhile!¡± said the Second Demon Elder.


    Murong Yu¡¯s face turned pale and she hesitated. ¡°Master, I will do my best for the Demon Emperor Sword and the position of the Heavenly Demon Lord. But must I kill Long Chen?¡± Thinking of the teenager, she felt like she could not do it.


    ¡°Yes. That¡¯s the most important point. You must kill him!¡± the Second Demon Elder repeated. She walked up to Murong Yu with a cold re and asked, ¡°Xiao Yu, you have shown Long Chen kindness several times. Tell me, have you fallen for him?¡±


    Murong Yu gasped, then she quickly replied, ¡°No! Never! How could that be possible?¡± She panicked, and when she recalled Long Chen and Ling Xi next to him, she knew that Long Chen was destined to be a passing visitor in her life whom she would not have any rtionship with.


    ¡°Very well, then. Since there are no feelings involved, then you two are purely enemies. Do you ept?¡± the Second Demon Elder asked, looking straight into her eyes.


    When she reached the Ninth River Stage, she would indeed be able to kill him, but she could not say it out loud.


    ¡°It looks like you¡¯re still hesitating. Xiao Yu, after all these years, I have never forced you to do anything. Today, I am ordering you to do this one thing to prove your loyalty. Don¡¯t me your master; I had no choice. If Long Chen lives, then the thousand people in Three Demons City might not.¡±


    As she spoke, a ck worm the size of a pinky finger appeared in the Second Demon Elder¡¯s hand. It was a fat worm that looked harmless, yet it radiated a cold aura that evoked fear, as well as a cold, dark-green mist.


    ¡°ck Yin Worm!¡± Murong Yu¡¯s face turned pale, and she took a few steps back, staring at the Second Demon Elder in disbelief. ¡°Master, are you going to use the ck Yin Worm on me?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. As long as youplete the task well, the ck Yin Worm won¡¯t do anything to you. But if you disobey us, tens of thousands of worms will eat your heart and you will die. As my disciple, I¡¯m sure you know how much of a nightmare this worm is. This will definitely be extremely painful torture.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, it¡¯s not that I¡¯m vicious. It¡¯s just that I need to think of your other fellow disciples too! I can¡¯t let you be distracted anymore. Will you be able to forgive me? Don¡¯t worry. After you have won the Demon Emperor Sword and killed Long Chen, I¡¯ll get the ck Yin Worm out of your body. Before that, you will not feel anything. Our faction mustn¡¯t lose again. That is why I have to do this. I hope you understand ...¡±


    Murong Yu¡¯s lips trembled as she retreated into a corner, staring at the ck Yin Worm in terror. The worm flipped its fat body and stopped moving, but Murong Yu knew how terrifying it was.


    She felt her stomach churn. If she had not forced it down, she would have vomited.


    ¡°Master, I ... I¡¯m begging you. Don¡¯t use the ck Yin Worm. I promise I¡¯ll kill Long Chen! Isn¡¯t that enough ...¡± Murong Yu begged weakly with tears streaming down her face.


    ¡°I can¡¯t risk the lives and futures of so many people. That is why, Xiao Yu, I¡¯m so sorry ...¡±


    Under Murong Yu¡¯s look of despair, the Second Demon Elder nted the ck Yin Worm in Murong Yu¡¯s body. Then she stood up and said in a chiding tone, ¡°Xiao Yu, the Frost Soul Essence is yours. Work hard; all our hopes are on you. You mustn¡¯t die! Think about your parents in Willow Moon City. If you die, people as weak as them will be killed just a few dayster! Grudges between families will forever be the most heartless.¡±

 Chapter 386 - Avenging Danfeng

    <h4>Chapter 386 - Avenging Danfeng</h4>


    Life at the Heavenly Demon Pce was quiet once more, but a storm was brewing beneath the calm.


    After returning from Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s ce, Long Chen was still thinking about the day¡¯s events. Ling Xi suddenly said, ¡°Brother Chen, Murong Yu told you their secret and caused the three Demon Elders¡¯ n to fail. Do you think it¡¯ll affect her after they return? She was kind enough to help you; she must be innocent ...¡±


    It was clear that Ling Xi was actually worried about her. Previously, Ling Xi hated Liu Lan of the Lingwu family when she had close contact with Long Chen, but Murong Yu had helped Long Chen several times without asking for anything in return. That was why Ling Xi liked her.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyebrows were furrowed. After thinking for a while, he said, ¡°No way. Since she helped me, and can be considered the person who saved my stepfather, I cannot abandon her. I¡¯ll go to Three Demons City right now!¡±


    Long Chen intended to leave immediately.


    ¡°Brother Chen, are you going to go alone? Why don¡¯t you call your master?¡± reminded Ling Xi.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need. After what just happened, will the three Demon Elders dare touch me? With Xiang here, they couldn¡¯t kill me even if they wanted to!¡± With Zhao Qingyun supporting him, Long Chen was not afraid of the three Demon Elders.


    Then he called for Xiang and rushed towards Three Demons City. The sky was slowly brightening now, and the morning light was starting to shine upon the Heavenly Demon Pce. Being in the corner of the Heavenly Demon Pce, the location of Three Demons City was highlighted by the morning light.


    Very soon, Long Chen arrived. It was actually an extrarge courtyard with some bronze doors. Right now, there were many disciples guarding them. When they saw Long Chen, they grew slightly panicked because they recognized him, and many had personally seen him show the equivalent of two thousand Fire Essences at the Demon Pavilion.


    Before he approached, one of the disciples mustered up his courage to ask Long Chen in an impolite tone, ¡°Long Chen, what are you doing at Three Demons City?¡± Long Chen had made the three Demon Elders lose face after all, and as the three Demon Elders¡¯ disciples, they were also embarrassed.


    ¡°I want to see Murong Yu,¡± Long Chen answered mildly, standing at the door.


    ¡°Senior Murong Yu?¡± Everyone froze, then they eyed Long Chen up and down cautiously. Murong Yu was a goddess to the Heavenly Demon Pce disciples, and everyone drooled after her. If Long Chen said he wanted to see her, then it was obviously because he admired her.


    There was a saying to not let nutritious water flow to an outsider¡¯s paddy field. Murong Yu was not just nutritious water, she was the goddess of Three Demons City! If this outsider got her, no one would feel good about it. Therefore, they all immediately gathered their courage to refuse him by saying, ¡°No way! Senior Murong doesn¡¯t even want to see us, let alone you.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not seeing anyone? Is this a lie you made up?¡± Long Chen said coldly with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°Who said we made this up? Long Chen, are you trying to force yourself in? I¡¯ll go tell the Demon Elders now! Even with the Pce Lord helping you, you¡¯ll suffer for trying to break into Three Demons City!¡± the disciple yelled sternly. He stepped back as he yelled, and a few of the disciples grouped together, nervously looking at Long Chen.


    ¡°Oh? Are you guys saying that the three Demon Elders are more powerful than the Pce Lord? How dare you say such insubordinate things? Whatever. I¡¯m toozy to argue. I¡¯ll give you two options: you either ask Murong Yu toe out here, or you lead me to her!¡± said Long Chen while closing in on the disciples. Even without using the Dragon Soul Transformation, he was at the peak of the Seventh River Stage and had surpassed Yang Jun. No one here could withstand one strike from him, so they all stumbled backwards in terror.


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re looking for death!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, our masters will kill you!¡±


    They did not forget to threaten him even after they retreated in terror.


    Long Chen did not care. All he wanted was to enter Three Demons City alone, and as soon as he saw that Murong Yu was safe, he would leave.


    ¡°Long Chen, that¡¯s enough!¡± someone shouted. Long Chen looked up and saw the three Demon Elders walking out. The First Demon Elder and the Second Demon Elder stopped, while the Third Demon Elder walked forward and red at Long Chen with reddened eyes. He threatened fiercely, ¡°You brat! Don¡¯t make me remind you again that what happenedst night is not over! Even though the Pce Lord is backing you, we are still furious. If you force our hand, don¡¯t me me for not being able to control myself! I won¡¯t hold back!¡±


    He was speaking in a very low voice, so the other disciples could not hear him clearly.


    ¡°I am not here to cause trouble. All I want is to see Murong Yu. Even though she is your disciple, I do have the right to see her once, don¡¯t I?¡± Long Chen said without fear.


    ¡°And if we don¡¯t let you see her?¡± The Third Demon Elder smirked.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple. I will see her even if I have to force myself in!¡± Long Chen had a bad feeling. Based on how they were blocking him, had something really happened to Murong Yu?


    After the Third Demon Elder heard Long Chen, he suddenly burst intoughter, which echoed across the area and shook the ground. He finally stopped and yelled in the direction of the Three Demons City. ¡°Xiao Yu,e out here.¡±


    Immediately after, Murong Yu appeared in front of Long Chen. He found that she was the same asst night¡ªtall, elegant, and curvy. But he somehow felt like she was radiating a distant coldness.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, tell this brat clearly that he needs to get the hell out of here. We¡¯re watching.¡± The Third Demon Elder smirked, then went to stand next to the First Demon Elder, looking at Long Chen in amusement.


    Murong Yu stepped forward until she was two meters away from Long Chen, then she shot him a cold look.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Long Chen was relieved when he saw that she was not hurt. However, he felt like she was acting unnatural; she was much colder than before.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine. Why is that any of your business?¡± Murong Yu suddenly raised her voice. There was some hatred in her tone.


    Long Chen was a little stunned, but based on Murong Yu¡¯s expression, it was as if she wanted to pick a fight with him.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s going on with you? Did the three old geezers force you into this? Did they do something shady?¡± Long Chen whispered. He felt like Murong Yu was acting a little unnatural, likely because of the three people standing behind her.


    ¡°You¡¯re thinking too much. Long Chen, let me tell you this. Yang Danfeng and I have been close friends since we were young, yet you killed him! My masters did not spread this information, but I know everything that happened! That is why you should not underestimate the hatred I feel towards you!¡± Murong Yu said in a low voice. The other disciples couldn¡¯t hear her, but the Demon Elders could.


    What was going on?


    Long Chen was momentarily stunned because Murong Yu¡¯s behavior had taken a sudden turn. Even if Long Chen was a fool, there was no way he wouldn¡¯t know how much she hated Yang Danfeng. Now she was saying that they were close friends? What nonsense was that?


    ¡°Long Chen! Listen to me! I have a hundred percent confidence in getting my cultivation level up to the Ninth River Stage before the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword. You¡¯d better prepare yourself. When that dayes, I will kill you to avenge Danfeng!¡± Murong Yu said coldly, ignoring Long Chen¡¯s reaction.


    ¡°You ...¡± Long Chen did not know what to say, because she was acting too strangely. He knew that she was acting this way because something had happened.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got nothing else to say. We are now enemies, so do not look for me again. You¡¯re ruining my reputation! Don¡¯t me me for treating you badly if you do!¡±


    Then Murong Yu turned to leave without even giving Long Chen a chance to reply.


    Only the disciples, who didn¡¯t know what was going on, and the three Demon Elders remained. After Murong Yu left, they smiled approvingly and looked at Long Chen. ¡°You brat, did you hear that? The toad can¡¯t get the swan! Get the hell out! Once the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword arrives, you¡¯ll have iting! Xiao Yu will be a Ninth River Stage prodigy, and in the future, she will surely reach the Heavenly Passage Realm. You¡¯re nothing but a clown!¡±


    This was a rare time where Long Chen did not argue with the three Demon Elders, as his brain was filled with Murong Yu¡¯s words. Under normal circumstances, she would never have been like this. That was why he was in deep thought.


    ¡°Hey, kid, nothing to say?¡± the Third Demon Elder asked rudely.


    ¡°I do not speak to animals.¡± Long Chen smiled, and before the Third Demon Elder understood the insult, he turned to leave. All he thought about was Murong Yu¡¯s strange behavior.


    ¡°Did he call me an animal?¡± The Third Demon Elder felt as if he had eaten a fly that he would never cough up if he did not get to torture Long Chen.


    ¡°Don¡¯t cause trouble and ruin our n,¡± the First Demon Elder said gently.


    The three Demon Elders were very satisfied with Murong Yu¡¯s performance today. After Long Chen left, they left too. The remaining disciples looked at each other, and one of them said, ¡°Did I hear that right? I think the Third Demon Elder said that Senior Murong is going to reach the Ninth River Stage?¡±


    ¡°Based on his tone, he seemed confident. If he¡¯s that confident, then it must be a certainty!¡± said another.


    ¡°Heavens! Doesn¡¯t that mean Senior Yang Danfeng will lose?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! But why didn¡¯t I see Senior Yang Danfeng today?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s probably in a cultivation retreat and also preparing to break through to the Ninth River Stage. But with Senior Murong Yu on our side, the Demon Emperor Sword will definitely belong to Three Demons City!¡±

 Chapter 387 - Drama Before The Battle

    <h4>Chapter 387 - Drama Before The Battle</h4>


    On the way back, Long Chen squeezed his brain dry thinking about the situation and finally had some guesses.


    ¡°Brother Chen, why do you think Murong Yu acted that way?¡± Ling Xi finally asked Long Chen after he left Three Demons City.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure either, but I¡¯m guessing that the three Demon Elders know that Murong Yu warned me. I thought they would punish and even kill Murong Yu for this, but now I know that they won¡¯t. Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu were their best disciples. Now that Yang Danfeng is dead, Murong Yu is theirrgest bet. Therefore, there¡¯s no way they would punish her; they¡¯ll probably provide more resources so that she bes even stronger!¡±


    ¡°What has that got to do with Murong Yu¡¯s behavior just now?¡± Ling Xi still did not understand.


    ¡°Think about it. If you were the three Demon Elders, and you were cing all your hopes on one disciple, wouldn¡¯t you use any means possible, be it threats or lures, to tie Murong Yu to your faction? Right now, Murong Yu is in this situation. Based on what they said, Murong Yu will reach the Ninth River Stage very soon. It looks like they¡¯re going to invest heavily in her, and they are even using a very sophisticated method of controlling her. At least judging from today¡¯s events, Murong Yu looks like she has no ability to fight back at all.¡±


    ¡°What do we do now?¡± Ling Xi cocked her head to think.


    ¡°Right now, Murong Yupletely belongs to the three Demon Elders¡¯ side, and I am theirrgestpetitor for the Demon Emperor Sword. If she reaches the Ninth River Stage, then she will be even more terrifying and the sword might end up in her hands. When that happens, then all that I¡¯ve done will have been for nothing.¡± Long Chen paused, then continued, ¡°However, there¡¯s one thing that we don¡¯t have to worry about. Now that she has be thest disciple of the three Demon Elders, and their final target is me, Murong Yu will be safe as long as she does not disobey their orders.¡±


    His objective today was to check on Murong Yu. It did not matter what she was thinking, but as long as she reached the Ninth River Stage, the three Demon Elders would not dare to touch her.


    ¡°But I¡¯m afraid Murong Yu won¡¯t live well after this...¡± Ling Xi was still worried about her.


    ¡°We can only wait and see.¡± Long Chen shook his head, unable to do anything. He soon returned to the Azure Cloud Residence. Zhao Qingyun had previously said that he had three months. He counted and found that there were about twenty days left, which he was going to spend cultivating.


    Long Chen cultivated quietly while two major pieces of news spread across the whole Heavenly Demon Pce. First was obviously the case of Yang Danfeng suddenly going missing. There were even rumors of Long Chen having killed Yang Danfeng. This was a rumor that spread like wildfire, though the First Demon Elder stepped out to personally exin that Yang Danfeng had only left to train in the wilderness. The people barely believed it. With the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword so close, this exnation was a little forced. As a result, people were more willing to believe that Yang Danfeng had been killed by Long Chen, and the three Demon Elders did not dare to touch Long Chen because of Zhao Qingyun. As for the hostility between Murong Yu and Long Chen, they said it was because Murong Yu was taking revenge!


    The second piece of news was rted to Murong Yu. A few days after news of Long Chen¡¯s appearance at Three Demons City spread, there was an official announcement from the Three Demons City that Murong Yu had sessfully attained the Ninth River Stage. The entire Heavenly Demon Pce was shaken by this news.


    The Heavenly Demon Pce had never had a disciple who reached the Ninth River Stage, and therefore they always looked inferior to the imperial family. Now all was well. With Murong Yu¡¯s achievement, she would be a legendary cultivator just like Lin Zichen once she won the Demon Emperor Sword.


    As for Long Chen, who had shocked the n with his extraordinary results in the Pyro Passageways, he had disappeared from everyone¡¯s view and news about Murong Yu smothered all news about him. She was just one step away from the Heavenly Passage Realm and was likely going to be an ultimate master on a level above Long Chen.


    But this was all irrelevant to Long Chen. He hid in the Azure Cloud Residence all day to cultivate quietly. Even though the outside was chaotic, the noise did not reach him.


    Long Chen knew immediately who had spread the news of Yang Danfeng¡¯s death. It was unquestionably Yang Jun, as Yang Jun knew about the n. When Yang Danfeng did not return, he sensed that something was wrong. After he connected the dots, he figured out what had happened. Shock and rage drowned his senses, but he could not do anything to Long Chen. In the end, if the three Demon Elders had not stopped him, he would have publicized this matter even more.


    The Heavenly Demon Pce disciples had always thought that the extremely talented Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu were a match made in heaven. Now that Yang Danfeng was dead and Murong Yu had reached the Ninth River Stage, the battle for the Demon Emperor Sword was going to be much more interesting. Murong Yu was likely going to use this opportunity to take revenge.


    This was all merely background noise to Long Chen.


    Long Chen waspletely immersed in cultivation as increasing his strength gave him satisfaction and motivation. He had two main tasks at hand: one was to increase his cultivation level, the other was to master the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    One day, Long Chen had just finished a cultivation session and was about to study the Demon Seed nting Technique with Xiang when Wang Xing rushed into the yard.


    ¡°Brother Chen!¡± Wang Xing was huffing and puffing, his face red from exertion. He was now a direct disciple of an elder under Zhao Qingyun, so he was no longer an errand boy. However, since Long Chen was here, he still came often.


    ¡°It¡¯s you! What news do you bring today?¡± Long Chen asked with a grin.


    ¡°Nothing much. But there¡¯s only ten days left till the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword. Everyone¡¯s been talking about you and Senior Murong Yu. Everyone¡¯s saying that ...¡± Wang Xing hesitated.


    ¡°What are they saying?¡± Long Chen asked, amused.


    ¡°They¡¯re saying that ... You killed Senior Yang Danfeng! That¡¯s why Senior Murong Yu hates you to the bone and will likely take your life during the fight for the Demon Emperor Sword! I heard that the battle for the Demon Emperor Sword has been the most heartless contest between disciples since ancient times. No one cares about their opponents'' lives during it. Brother Chen, I heard that Senior Murong Yu has reached the Ninth River Stage. What are you going to do?¡± Wang Xing asked nervously.


    So that was what Wang Xing was worried about.


    Long Chen had a determined look in his eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. No matter what happens, I will not lose.¡±


    ¡°Even in the face of a Ninth River Stage opponent? That¡¯s impossible. Everyone¡¯s counting down your remaining days ...¡± Wang Xing said indignantly. To him, Long Chen was a very good person. He didn¡¯t know why almost everyone in the Heavenly Demon Pce didn¡¯t really like Long Chen.


    ¡°Just wait and see. Go back and cultivate.¡± Long Chen sent him off, then he turned around to find Zhao Qingyun standing there. Long Chen had already sensed his presence.


    ¡°Master, what is it?¡± Long Chen saw that his expression was solemn.


    ¡°That kid said everything I wanted to say. Sigh. I thought that after you defeated Yang Danfeng, you¡¯d get the Demon Emperor Sword smoothly. I didn¡¯t expect this to happen,¡± said Zhao Qingyun with a tired smile.


    ¡°Master, do you know what happened to Murong Yu?¡± Zhao Qingyun had always appeared only when he wanted to. It was a rare chance to meet him, and Long Chen had been impatient to ask this question.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t your cultivation level increase by more than one tier due to the Frost Soul Essence? I saw her a few days ago, and she has indeed reached the Ninth River Stage. I think the Demon Elders were hiding a Frost Soul Essence. After you killed Yang Danfeng, they had to use their trump card, which was their precious Frost Soul Essence.¡±


    ¡°So it¡¯s because of the Frost Soul Essence ...¡± Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the girl. It¡¯s best if you think about yourself first. You haven¡¯t reached the Eighth River Stage yet, so you are no match for her. Ny-nine percent of people in the Heavenly Demon Pce think you¡¯re going to lose,¡± said Zhao Qingyun patiently.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Long Chen smiled mysteriously.


    Zhao Qingyun was speechless to see Long Chen being so reckless in the face of death. He gave a few more reminders and left. Then Long Chen counted again and thought to himself, Based on my current progress, ten days is enough!


    The Frost Soul Essence had brought him very close to the Eighth River Stage. After more than ten days of cultivating and solidifying his base, he had a feeling that he was going to make a breakthrough very soon.


    Indeed, as he worked hard, he finally condensed the eighth pair of starry rivers in his body when there were about five days left, sessfully attaining the Eighth River Stage!


    At the same time, he also finished cultivating the Demon Seed nting Technique. Now he had mastered two of the Three Great Secret Scriptures. Next, he only had to wait for the third and most powerful technique: the Demon Emperor Sword Technique!


    And, of course, the Heaven-tier Demon Emperor Sword!


    Long Chen felt his own strength skyrocket. He was so much stronger than when he first entered the Heavenly Demon Pce. If he was this strong before, then he would not have struggled so much when he fled!


    ¡°Xiao Xi, once this ordeal with the Demon Emperor Sword ends, I will take you back to the Biyang imperial Capital. Then I¡¯ll get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit! And I will take revenge!¡±


    There was a cold sh in his eyes as he gazed towards the east.


    After five more days of solidifying his cultivation base, the day of the Demon Emperor Sword battle finally arrived ...

 Chapter 388 - Battle For The Demon Emperor Sword

    <h4>Chapter 388 - Battle For The Demon Emperor Sword</h4>


    The day that everyone had been looking forward to finally arrived. The fight for the Demon Emperor Sword was also considered the fight for the Pce Lord position. In the past, the rule was that every Heavenly Demon Pce disciple had the right to fight for the Demon Emperor Sword. However, that rule had been adjusted¡ªonly disciples who had received Traceless Demon Shadow or the Demon Seed nting Technique were qualified.


    Receiving Traceless Demon Shadow meant they had received the recognition of their elders, while receiving the Demon Seed nting Technique meant that they possessed outstanding talent. Only four people were qualified, which were Yang Danfeng, Yang Jun, Murong Yu, and Long Chen. Today, Yang Danfeng was still not present.


    The people of the Heavenly Demon Pce arrived on the other side of Demon Emperor Mountain. This was a forbidden area behind the mountain, and usually no one was allowed here. This was the base of the sword.[1]


    There was a vast, t tform for the audience. All the people of status in the Heavenly Demon Pce had a seat on it, with Zhao Qingyun sitting at the top and the three Demon Elders beneath him. Thirty meters away, opposite Zhao Qingyun, was a ck rock ten meters tall. This rock was tall, thin, and sharp and roughly resembled a sword. Suddenly, the runes that covered the whole rock lit up and rippled, making it look even stranger.


    ¡°The Demon Emperor Sword is hidden in this rock.¡± When everyone remembered this, they all gulped. It was a Heaven-tier weapon; even if the person wielding the Demon Emperor Sword was trash, they could still kill someone many tiers above them. However, taming the sword was no easy feat, and few people were confident they could.


    ¡°Yang Jun seems to have withdrawn from thepetition. Only you and Xiao Yu will fight for the sword. Make me proud, kid,¡± said Zhao Qingyun, turning around with a smile.


    Long Chen nodded, then he looked up to see Murong Yu standing behind the Second Demon Elder. There was something different about her. She looked much stronger, but also colder. It was as if no one could get close to her, and despite that, she still attracted many stares.


    Especially from younger males, whose eyes lit up when they saw the goddess-like girl, wishing they could burn her image in their eyes.


    ¡°Senior Murong Yu has covered her face with a veil for many years. I heard she was very pretty, and based on her face shape now, I know she¡¯s even more attractive. Plus, being at the Ninth River Stage, she is the chosen one ... I have personally seen a goddess with my own eyes ...¡±


    ¡°In the past, the only person who couldpete with Senior Murong Yu was Senior Yang Danfeng. However, it seems like Senior Yang Danfeng really isn¡¯ting today. The rumors must be true ...¡±


    ¡°Shh! Keep it down! The three Demon Elders have already told us not to discuss this matter!¡± reminded one of the disciples.


    While they discussed Murong Yu, she turned to nce at Long Chen. There was only coldness and determination in her eyes. Every trace of familiarity was long gone.


    What¡¯s the matter with Murong Yu? What the hell did the Demon Elders do to her for her to be like this? Long Chen was puzzled. It was as if she was a different person.


    As he pondered about it, it was almost time for battle. Zhao Qingyun waved and said, ¡°In the beginning, there were three candidates topete for the Demon Emperor Sword. Yang Jun has withdrawn, so only Murong Yu and Long Chen remain. The final victory will likely belong to any one of them, but also not! The Demon Emperor Sword won¡¯t let anyone who is not strong enough control it!¡±


    Who would get the Demon Emperor Sword? Everyone was looking forward to the battle. Long Chen was rumored to have killed Yang Danfeng, showing that he was strong. However, Murong Yu had reached the Ninth River Stage, which was unheard of. Her terrifying strength had surpassed Long Chen.


    ¡°If it all goes as expected, the winner of the Demon Emperor Sword will be Senior Murong. Do you want to bet?¡±


    ¡°Who would take that bet? Isn¡¯t it obvious who will lose? If you¡¯ve got the guts, bet that Long Chen will win! I feel like Senior Murong will win because it hasn¡¯t been long since Long Chen received Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique. Murong Yu received them much earlier than him, right? Also, it¡¯s difficult to fill therge gap between their cultivation levels.¡±


    Discussions started to form, and the Demon Elders strained their ears to listen. They felt cheerful when they heard that most people thought Murong Yu would win.


    ¡°Everyone, quiet down. Chen¡¯er, Xiao Yu, follow me,¡± said Zhao Qingyun in a low voice. When the Pce Lord spoke, everyone fell dead silent. Zhao Qingyun stood up and walked up to therge ck stone. Long Chen quickly followed him, along with Murong Yu.


    Along the way, Long Chen nced at Murong Yu next to him and said, ¡°Hey, is there anything you want to say to me?¡±


    Murong Yu continued walking with her head low, as if she hadn¡¯t heard him. Since he did not receive a reply, he rolled his eyes and did not talk to her anymore. Everyone watched as Long Chen and Murong Yu stopped in front of the ck rock. It was actually a very normal-looking rock, but the rippling runes made it look extra mysterious and scary.


    ¡°The Demon Emperor Sword is hidden in this rock. You may not know this, but the Demon Emperor Sword and this rock are merged into one. More specifically, the rock grew out of the Demon Emperor Sword. I have not used the Demon Emperor Sword in more than five years, so that is why there is so much rock covering its surface.¡±


    How bizarre! Long Chen had never heard of rocks growing on the surface of a sword after a period of disuse. Even the stony-faced Murong Yu looked surprised.


    ¡°Hehe. The Demon Emperor Sword has always been a special weapon. Although it is ssified as an elementary Heaven-tier weapon, it is likely more powerful than other divine weapons of the same tier,¡± Zhao Qingyun exined.


    ¡°Master, is there a reason why the Demon Emperor Sword forms rocks on its own surface?¡± Long Chen felt like the runes on the rock were not so simple.


    ¡°Out of the two divine weapons, the Imperial Sword is filled with the Qi of emperors, and is the manifestation of justice and magnificence. On the other hand, the Demon Emperor Sword is filled with Killing Yin Qi. It is synonymous with evil and massacre. That is why when no one is using it, rock slowly forms on its surface to cover its violent aura. You can¡¯t really feel it now, right?¡± Zhao Qingyun smiled faintly.


    It was true. Long Chen was standing next to the Demon Emperor Sword, but it felt like a normal rock.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t used it in five years. Right now, the Demon Emperor Sword is in a master-less state, so it is overflowing with very thick killing Qi. As long as you sessfully take control of it and make it serve you willingly, you¡¯ll be able to use and control its power. Then you¡¯ll be able to suppress its killing Qi to its minimum, and this evil sword can be used for justice,¡± Zhao Qingyun exined patiently, looking at Long Chen.


    When Zhao Qingyun said this, hepletely ignored Murong Yu, who was slightly surprised. It looks like Zhao Qingyun is very confident in Long Chen. He doesn¡¯t think my Ninth River Stage strength is enough.


    She eyed Long Chen carefully and found that both Long Chen and Zhao Qingyun seemed to be cheerful and calm. They did not look worried or scared.


    ¡°Alright, now I¡¯ll tell you two the rules of thepetition,¡± Zhao Qingyun suddenly said. His words attracted the attention of both Long Chen and Murong Yu, who listened intently.


    ¡°In a moment, your bodies will enter the Demon Emperor Sword within the rock. There is a small miniverse within the Demon Emperor Sword, and once you enter, you will both face a mysterious opponent. If you beat the opponent, you will receive the recognition of the Demon Emperor Sword and will have the right to own it!


    ¡°... And if you both seed, then both of you will have to battle to determine the final victor. Of course, we will not be able to see the process. We will only see the final oue. After this ck rock explodes, whoever is holding the Demon Emperor Sword will be the final victor!


    ¡°Do you guys understand what I said?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked.


    ¡°Master, who is the mysterious opponent?¡± Long Chen was puzzled.


    ¡°You¡¯ll see when you enter. Do your best. This is a difficult obstacle. Many Eighth River Stage cultivators in history have failed!¡± Zhao Qingyun said mysteriously.


    Murong Yu didn¡¯t look confused. Long Chen guessed that the three Demon Elders had probably told her who the opponent was a long time ago. She was probably very prepared for this.


    Zhao Qingyun didn¡¯t tell Long Chen not because he was too square, but because he trusted Long Chen to face any opponent confidently.


    ¡°Do your best, kid! Remember this: if you want to be recognized by the Demon Emperor Sword, you must do something very important, which is to conquer yourself!¡± Zhao Qingyun patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder with a hopeful look.


    ¡°Conquer myself?¡± Long Chen froze, then hemitted it to memory.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take you two in now.¡± Zhao Qingyun nodded approvingly. Then he grabbed one person¡¯s arm in each hand and jumped hard. Long Chen felt a powerful force throwing him outwards, and he was traveling at a speed simr to Blood Warp. After a second, he mmed into the ck rock.


    Instead of shattering to pieces, everyone watched as both Long Chen and Murong Yu sank into the rock.


    1. TL Note: Based on the mountain¡¯s description in earlier chapters, Demon Emperor Mountain looks like a sword. The author is referring to the point where this ¡®sword¡¯ is buried in the ground ?

 Chapter 389 - Fighting Himself

    <h4>Chapter 389 - Fighting Himself</h4>


    Long Chen was not worried at all, as Zhao Qingyun was carrying them himself. Even though they were moving towards the ck rock at high speed, he did not flinch. As expected, the moment he touched the ck rock, he felt like he had jumped into ake and easily sank into the rock.


    The world spun and went dark. When his consciousness returned, he realized he was inside a vast, ck room.


    ¡°This is indeed a small miniverse. It¡¯s like the Heavenly Martial Realm and the Counter Essence Realm, but it¡¯s really small.¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes widened as he scanned the room carefully. It was a regr cube, fifty meters long on each side. Even though it was considered a miniverse, it was tiny. However, as far as rooms went, it was a veryrge room.


    The ck room waspletely empty. Every gentle step he took reverberated throughout the space.


    ¡°Murong Yu isn¡¯t here?¡± Long Chen looked around and realized that Murong Yu wasn¡¯t with him. However, he was sure that she was in another simr room.


    ¡°It looks like the mysterious enemy that Master mentioned will appear here ...¡± If Zhao Qingyun thought it was a mysterious opponent, then it was no simple entity. Basically, if Long Chen defeated it, he would have the right to control the Demon Emperor Sword. As for the final fight, it would be between him and Murong Yu and it would be unrted to the Demon Emperor Sword. This meant that the mysterious opponent was the Demon Emperor Sword¡¯s way of filtering its master.


    It was not to be underestimated.


    Long Chen kept his guard up. He knew that this mysterious opponent would appear at any moment now. He didn¡¯t know if it would be an ambush or an obvious attack, but he knew he had to be prepared.


    Suddenly, he heard footstepsing from the darkness ahead. Long Chen looked up and saw a person floating out of the ck wall. This person stood in front of Long Chen with a smirk on his face.


    The man was wearing clean, ck robes that fit him perfectly. His hair was tied up perfectly too; he had beautiful, dark blue eyes that were as dark as the ocean, yet also as cold.


    ¡°Why does this person look so familiar?¡± Long Chenmented.


    That was when Ling Xi suddenly cried, ¡°Long Chen, isn¡¯t that you?!¡±


    Long Chen jumped, and when he looked more carefully, he noticed that the boy was identical to himself! He gasped and rubbed his eyes a few times. Indeed, he was identical.


    This was very creepy.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to guess. I am you. You are Long Chen. I am also Long Chen,¡± said the boy as he nced impatiently at Long Chen.


    Long Chen was forced to ept this as reality, that the mysterious opponent looked identical to himself. He had made many guesses, but he didn¡¯t expect the opponent to be like this. He suddenly recalled Zhao Qingyun¡¯s reminder, which was to conquer himself.


    The mysterious enemy was himself, then.


    He had a bad feeling, so he asked carefully, ¡°My techniques and my cultivation level; have you copied them all?¡±


    The boy nodded. ¡°Of course. Like I said, I am you, and you are me! Everything you¡¯ve sessfully cultivated¡ªDivine Fire Clone, Traceless Demon Shadow, Shadow Sword, and the Demon Seed nting Technique¡ªI know them all! On top of that, I have ten percent more Qi than you and my techniques are ten percent more effective! You¡¯re unlucky because you have mastered two stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique. So, while your Qi increases by fourfold, I get four and half times more!¡±


    Long Chen was terrified. This guy knew everything he had in his arsenal and was stronger! Wasn¡¯t this going to be an unfair fight, then? What was the meaning of this?


    ¡°You look scared! Thinking of giving up? How useless,¡± mocked the boy.


    Long Chen was silent for a while. Then he looked up and gave a small smile. ¡°You don¡¯t know me well. Not only does this not scare or anger me, it actually makes me excited. Defeating a stronger version of myself will only make me know myself better and improve from there. Isn¡¯t that a very good thing?¡±


    ¡°If that is the case, have a taste of your own attacks!¡± There was a cold sh in the boy¡¯s eyes. Then mes shot out of his body and burned brightly. 125 burning fire clones appeared instantly!


    ¡°I¡¯ll first let you have a taste of Divine Fire Clone!¡± He ordered them to attack, and all 125 of them rushed towards Long Chen from all directions!


    This was Long Chen¡¯s first time being surrounded, and he felt like he had no space to retreat to. All he could do was fight the clones directly!


    Whoosh! Long Chen took out the Star Sword. He was not going to fight them with his own fire clones, because he felt like his opponents¡¯ clones would be stronger anyway. Divine Fire Clone was still very useful to him, and he did not want to waste his Fire Seeds here for nothing.


    It took him quite some time to condense 125 True Fire Seeds after all.


    Traceless Demon Shadow, activate!


    With the Star Sword in hand, Long Chen used Traceless Demon Shadow and turned into a shadow as he wove through the surrounding fire clones. He shed his sword asionally, cutting the clones in front of him in half!


    However, there were a total of 125 clones. If he had to kill them one by one, he didn¡¯t know how long it would take. And if he exhausted too much of his Qi, he would fare even worse against his opponent.


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow ... I think I know that too ...¡± A shadow appeared behind one of the clones. Then something blue and hard shed down towards Long Chen¡¯s head!


    Startled, Long Chen raised his Star Sword to block, and a shrill metallic friction rang across the room. Long Chen¡¯s knees were bent from holding off the huge force, almost forcing him to a kneeling position!


    At the veryst moment, Long Chen gritted his teeth, forcing himself not to kneel. He roared and used all the strength in his body to push the boy away, who finally stepped backwards. However, the densely packed fire clones swarmed towards him once more, punching at him with their ming fists. Long Chen could only hold them off with his sword frantically!


    However, he did not panic. He was very happy because his opponent¡¯s move made him realize something important.


    It¡¯s true that he is indeed very strong with Traceless Demon Shadow and that powerful sword strike. He¡¯s much stronger than the average Eighth River Stage cultivator. However, he is not the real me!


    Long Chen had only used a quarter of his strength to hold off his opponent¡¯s strike. After he absorbed the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, even without the Dragon Soul Transformation, the red Qi in his body was four times stronger than regr Qi. This was something a normal cultivator could achieve only after using the Demon Seed nting Technique to its full potential.


    And yet he had blocked off the boy¡¯s strike with just a quarter of his strength. What did that say about him?


    This means that the mysterious opponent can only imitate my cultivation level, Divine Fire Clone, Traceless Demon Shadow, and the Demon Seed nting Technique! He even has my Star Sword, but it¡¯s too bad that the Demon Emperor Sword is only a mere Heaven-tier divine weapon! It is unable to imitate my Inherited Blood Essence and its divinities such as the Blood Devouring Domain and Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Long Chen had been worried about this. If his opponent knew how to use the Blood Devouring Domain, then his chances of victory would¡¯ve been slim. He had gotten lucky that he could pick any one of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s divine techniques to defeat him.


    Just now, he had suppressed his strength to a quarter of its usual level to test this theory. He knew that the Demon Emperor Sword could never imitate a skill as extraordinary as the Dragon Soul Transformation.


    Long Chen smirked coldly, and his speed suddenly increased by fourfold. He dashed towards his opponent and shed his sword. The opponent had not expected Long Chen to be this fast and quickly dodged using Traceless Demon Shadow. He stared at Long Chen in surprise. ¡°Are you using the Demon Seed nting Technique to increase your speed by fourfold this soon? I can do that too!¡±


    He had guessed wrongly. Long Chen was only using his regr strength.


    ck smoke rose from the boy. Very soon, ck mist filled his eyes, and Long Chen sensed that his aura was strengthening to a level almost on par with his and then some. This was the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    ¡°What do you think? Can you feel it ... No matter what you use, I¡¯ll be a little stronger than you!¡± The boy that looked identical to Long Chenughed like a maniac.


    ¡°Idiot,¡± Long Chen said with a scoff. Then ck smoke also rose from his body. When the ck mist fully covered his eyes, the amount of Qi in his body was increased by four times, making it a total of sixteen times more Qi than his opponent. Right now, he was as strong as someone at the Ninth River Stage. And it was definitely enough to defeat the guy in front of him.

 Chapter 390 - Demon Emperor Sword

    <h4>Chapter 390 - Demon Emperor Sword</h4>


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Didn¡¯t you use the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique?¡± The boy who looked like Long Chen was shocked when he saw Long Chen¡¯s strength increasing.


    ¡°You think you understand me, but you don¡¯t know the secrets of my body. So you can die now.¡± Long Chen chuckled and appeared in front of the boy with a blur.


    ¡°Shadow Sword Technique!¡±


    The sword red out and became traces of shadows. Each of them was an illusion yet real at the same time!


    Long Chen was too strong for the boy. He only saw Long Chen stabbing his throat before dying.


    Once Long Chen killed the mysterious boy, his surroundings started to disappear.


    I think I know what the test given by the Demon Emperor Sword is. It needs a sessor like me that has more potential than itself. Since I have many powers that the sword cannot replicate, I beat it with ease. This trial is difficult for someone like Murong Yu since the sword can replicate Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique, and maybe it might be even stronger than her. Murong Yu is probably having a hard time oveing this.


    Long Chen kept thinking while his surroundings shifted. He suddenly found himself standing in an unfamiliar room. It was roughly the same size as the previous room, but there was a massive altar in this one. The ck altar was surrounded by four ck metal pirs. Chains coiled around the pirs, and Long Chen saw what the chains were for. They were there to seal the sword in the middle of the altar!


    The sword was covered in ck mist, yet it emanated an intense murderous aura. Long Chen was just standing there and he felt the auraing towards him. He noticed various blood-red runes flickering on the ck sword. The runes were twisted and resembled snarling faces.


    It¡¯s the Demon Emperor Sword! Long Chen was very happy to have found it.


    It was simr to the Star Sword in shape and size. It was one meter long with a thin yet sharp de. Butpared to the Star Sword, the Demon Emperor Sword was much more regal, majestic, and bloodthirsty.


    The Star Sword was a dead object, while the Demon Emperor Sword was like a living being. It was like a prowling beast that couldn¡¯t stay still, roaring in rage to free itself from the chains.


    A force that could cause spiritual damage swept towards Long Chen. He quickly braced himself to not get affected by it.


    ¡°The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon had changed me to be more bloodthirsty. The Demon Emperor Sword is definitely not a benevolent weapon either. Looks like I need to prepare myself so that I don¡¯t get swayed by its murderous aura.¡±


    The Demon Emperor Sword was just in front of him, but he wasn¡¯t in a rush to im it because he sensed that there was an invisible barrier blocking him from doing so. He didn¡¯t know what to do, so he didn¡¯t move recklessly. He was the first one to clear the trial and also the fastest in the history of the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    But one more person had entered this ce with him, and that was Murong Yu.


    The barrier seems harmless, but what will happen if I approach it? Long Chen retrieved a piece of divine jade and threw it towards the barrier. The divine jade disintegrated the moment it touched the barrier.


    It seems that the barrier originates from the sword itself, and it''s capable of turning things to dust. The sword probably has its own set of rules in choosing its sessors after doing so since ancient times, or it might be a rule added in by its creator. It probably has its own thoughts too. I am not qualified to touch the sword just yet. Maybe I will be able to pass through the barrier once I defeat Murong Yu after she defeats the doppelganger?


    Long Chen took a few steps back and waited patiently. If she couldn¡¯t even pass the first trial, Long Chen would be able to obtain the Demon Emperor Sword immediately.


    Time slowly passed, and the barrier did not disappear. Long Chen was about to try throwing something into it again when a sh of ck light exploded near him. Murong Yu appeared, and her face was ashen. Her clothes were torn, revealing her snow-white chest that moved in an alluring way while she panted.


    It had been a difficult fight for her.


    Long Chen was surprised that she wasn¡¯t hurt and was only tired. He was impressed since Murong Yu didn¡¯t have as many hidden techniques as he did. It was most definitely a hard battle for her.


    Murong Yu was even more surprised when she saw him. It was clear that Long Chen had been waiting for her. Looking at the state he was in, she knew that he had beaten his opponent with ease.


    If it wasn¡¯t for the three Demon Elders telling her what would happen in the Demon Emperor Sword and all the preparations she had made, she wouldn¡¯t be standing here right now. After all, she didn¡¯t have what Long Chen was hiding in his body.


    The two of them stood there and understood that only the one who defeated the other would be able to obtain the sword. Long Chen was worried about her even though she was his opponent.


    ¡°Hey, can you tell me what happened inside? No one is here and your master can¡¯t threaten you here.¡±


    Murong Yu bit her lip and avoided looking into his eyes. ¡°Stop talking nonsense. I¡¯m here to fight to the death with you. Come at me!¡±


    Long Chen could tell from the tone of her voice that she was forcing herself to be hostile towards him.


    ¡°Why did you be like this? Don¡¯t tell me you loved Yang Danfeng and hate me for killing him? That¡¯s bullshit. Did the Demon Elders threaten you?¡± Murong Yu had helped Long Chen a lot before, so he was worried about her. He wouldn¡¯t have even bothered if it were someone else.


    This time, she didn¡¯t answer him. She released her Ninth River Stage Qi and scoffed. ¡°Your time is up! We will fight to the death in front of the Demon Emperor Sword today! The winner takes it and the loser will be reduced to nothing but dust!¡±


    She started circting her Qi furiously while she talked. Long Chen felt the pressureing from her and remembered the feeling that Lin Zichen had given him. But he had grown stronger now¡ªhe could fight back even without using Blood Sacrifice.


    ¡°If that is the case, I will restrain you and force you to tell the truth.¡± Long Chen had no choice. He believed that he could learn the truth once he defeated her.


    ¡°To be fair, I¡¯m surprised that you passed the first stage even faster than me, but, Long Chen, I¡¯m sure you know that I¡¯m already at the Ninth River Stage. Give up ...¡±


    Murong Yu¡¯s voice slowly became softer, to the point where he couldn''t even hear her talking. Long Chen sensed that she was struggling with something.


    She must¡¯ve been threatened by the three Demon Elders!


    Just then, Murong Yu ran towards Long Chen. The eighteen star rivers within her body wereplete and formed a closed cirction system. She was many times stronger than she was at the Eight River Stage. Even though she was far away, the ripping wind made Long Chen¡¯s scalp go numb. He needed to be even more careful.


    Traceless Demon Shadow!


    Murong Yu wanted to defeat Long Chen as fast as possible, so she used the Heaven-tier martial technique from the start. In an instant, she became a myriad of afterimages in front of him andunched her attacks from all directions. Even Long Chen couldn¡¯t find where the real one was.


    I wonder if the Soul Swallowing Gaze works on Traceless Demon Shadow? Long Chen was calm when he secretly used it. He saw everything disappear except for the soul of Murong Yu.


    Traceless Demon Shadow was a technique thatbined high-speed movement and some special footwork to form illusions. The technique waspletely dismantled by Long Chen the moment he used Soul Swallowing Gaze, and he was able to pinpoint where the real Murong Yu was.


    The speed of a Ninth River Stage cultivator is unbelievable!


    The real Murong Yu appeared behind Long Chen and extended a palm. ck mist appeared when she formed the seal, and it slowly drifted towards Long Chen¡¯s back like a falling leaf.


    It was a discrete technique, but the palm technique was horrifyingly strong. If Long Chen was hit by that attack, he would be sent flying forward while spewing a lot of blood.


    Thankfully he had already seen where she was. Her Traceless Demon Shadow was perfect, but it was useless against the Soul Swallowing Gaze!

 Chapter 391 - Myriad Soul Destruction

    <h4>Chapter 391 - Myriad Soul Destruction</h4>


    Long Chen rolled on the ground and used the momentum to run forward tens of meters to dodge her attack. He looked disheveled doing so, but he actually did it effortlessly to dodge her lethal move.


    ¡°You can dodge like that?¡± Murong Yu was impressed. Her Wilow Soul Dispersing Palm was a very deceptive technique that people always failed to notice when it was used in tandem with Traceless Demon Shadow. But not only had Long Chen detected it, he had even dodged it.


    Long Chen turned around and saw that Murong Yu was only momentarily taken back before sheunched another deadly attack at him.


    He had no choice but to go all out when his opponent was a Ninth River Stage cultivator like her. He needed to defeat her to obtain the Demon Emperor Sword andplete his objective for joining the Heavenly Demon Pce. As long as he was strong, he could solve most of his issues slowly.


    You think you¡¯re the only one with the Qi of a Ninth River Stage cultivator? Long Chen chuckled and ran at Murong Yu. While charging, he transformed, and red scales covered his body. The tough scales and the menacing bone spikes warned Murong Yu of the danger. Long Chen was like a war god that radiated strength.


    His speed suddenly exploded, and Murong Yu failed to notice it until the blood-red image was already in front of her.


    ¡°Willow Soul Dispersing Palm, Myriad Soul Destruction!¡±


    At the critical moment, Murong Yu channeled all of her Qi into her palm. Sheunched a deadly palm strike towards Long Chen! ck mist swirled furiously around her and surged into her palm, causing her palm to appear to be burned.


    What an extraordinary attack! Long Chen was shocked and brandished his halberd. He quickly whipped it around and formed a tornado before he lunged at the palm strike with the tip of his halberd.


    He wanted to break through using a focused attack!


    Several explosions sounded, but Long Chen failed to force his way through the attack using his intermediate Earth-tier martial technique. Even though he flew backward from the impact, he was not hurt. Hended safely, leaving Murong Yu shocked.


    How does he have so much Qi? Did he use the Demon Seed nting Technique? And did he use both stages? Murong Yu could only think of one possibility.


    He is indeed a genius. If it wasn¡¯t for the Frost Soul Essence that my master gave me, I would never have been his opponent. If I can¡¯t kill him, I will die today. My family will also ... Murong Yu struggled with her predicament, but she forced herself to do what she needed to do. She needed to kill Long Chen, but her heart was struggling to do so every time she saw his face.


    The life of her family and hers ... There was nopetition there. She bit her lip and tried again.


    ¡°Since you¡¯ve used the Demon Seed nting Technique, I will do the same. Long Chen, let me show you the gap in our Qi after I use it!¡±


    Cold light shone in her eyes and a dense, ck mist emanated from her body. The demon seed in her body was expanding and filling up inside her, then her Qi doubled!


    Murong Yu definitely had more Qi than most Ninth River Stage cultivators at this point.


    Is that the Demon Seed nting Technique? It was clear that Murong Yu wanted to kill him. Not only had she used Traceless Demon Step, but also the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    Fine, I will do the same too to honor you. Long Chen followed suit and activated the two demon seeds in his body. They merged with his Qi and quadrupled it! Long Chen now had forty times more qi!


    He was at the peak of the Ninth River Stage in this state! If he could obtain the Demon Emperor Sword and cultivate the Demon Emperor Sword Technique, he would be hailed as one of the top five strongest cultivators in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    Long Chen had to thank Zhao Qingyun for this. He had given Long Chen everything he needed in the Heavenly Demon Pce as well as increased Mo Xiang¡¯s cultivation level. Zhao Qingyun was one of his biggest benefactors; without him, Long Chen would never have made it this far.


    Even Long Chen didn¡¯t realize that he was currently one of the peak of experts in the kingdom. There was no question that he could one day be the leader of the Cangyang Kingdom.


    Murong Yu was destined to lose to him.


    She only realized that she was wrong about Long Chen when he used the two demon seeds. She had assumed that he had been using them since the start of their fight, but now she saw he had twice as much Qi as her!


    No one had ever managed to defeat Long Chen when he had more Qi than them!


    ¡°Impossible! No, I can¡¯t believe it!¡± Murong Yu was in denial when she looked at Long Chen.


    ¡°Nothing is impossible. If I can kill Yang Danfeng, I can do the same to you too.¡± His calm voice was like a threat in her ears.


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk bullshit when the victor hasn''t even been decided.¡± She bit her lip to calm herself. She used Traceless Demon Shadow with her strengthened Qi, making it even harder to pinpoint her location!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    Long Chen did not panic. Instead, he used one of his secret techniques and filled the room with blood-red mist. Murong Yu was trapped inside and felt a strange pressure exerted on her body.


    She had no choice but to allocate some of her Qi to calm her boiling blood down. Since Long Chen was twice as strong as her now, it was extremely difficult for her to block the effect. Murong Yu stopped moving because she needed to use half of her Qi just to suppress her blood. The rest of her Qi wasn¡¯t even enough to injure him.


    Long Chen appeared in front of her.


    ¡°Do you yield?¡±


    ¡°What is this?¡± It was difficult for others to understand what the Blood Devouring Domain was. She was still in shock and denial.


    Her eyes were filled with unyielding will, but Long Chen shook his head. If he didn¡¯t defeat her, the barrier surrounding the sword would most likely not disappear. So he punched the back of her neck and caused her to faint. Her eyes rolled upwards before she fell into his embrace.


    Long Chen dispersed the domain and ced her on the ground. He didn¡¯t hurt her but just rendered her unconscious.


    ¡°You might be at the Ninth River Stage, but the distance between us is big. Once I get the sword, you will never catch up to me. Still, take pride in the fact that you managed to reach the Ninth River Stage at your age.¡± He sighed and checked to make sure she was fine before he looked at the sword.


    The ck sword was still sealed at the altar, exuding horrific energy. It trembled lightly, and Long Chen heard a bone-chilling sound before the barrier disappeared.


    He had defeated Murong Yu and the sword had somehow detected it.


    The Demon Emperor Sword was an important object that Long Chen needed to get his hands on toplete his objectives, and he never thought that it would fall in his hands. Long Chen thanked his luck for being able to meet Zhao Qingyun, or who knew how much longer he would¡¯ve had to wait to take revenge on the imperial family.


    It would most definitely take much more than three months.


    Three months had passed. It was neither a long or short time.


    ¡°Brother Chen, this weapon is not at the elementary Heaven-tier!¡± Ling Xi shouted in surprise when she could finally inspect the weapon when the barrier disappeared.


    ¡°Then how strong is it?¡± Long Chen was excited by the pleasant surprise.


    ¡°If I¡¯m not wrong, this should be an intermediate Heaven-tier weapon, and it''s even at the peak of its tier! It¡¯s very close to being able to pass as an advanced Heaven-tier weapon. I couldn¡¯t detect the strength of the Imperial Swordst time because I was trapped in a mortal¡¯s body, but I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s at the same tier!¡±


    ¡°To think that there¡¯s an intermediate Heaven-tier weapon in the Cangyang Kingdom. I thought the treasure that could secure the future of the Cangyang Kingdom was only at the elementary Heaven-tier at most.¡± Long Chen smiled in delight because this meant he was going to be stronger than he had thought.

 Chapter 392 - Demon Emperor Sword Technique

    <h4>Chapter 392 - Demon Emperor Sword Technique</h4>


    ¡°Let¡¯s not waste any time. Since the sword has recognized you, you should take it now.¡± Ling Xi was excited. She knew that Long Chen was finally going to fulfill one of hisrger goals.


    Long Chen nodded and slowly approached the sword. He was a meter away when he finally took a closer look at it.


    The sword waspletely ck with pulsating red runes. The runes sometimes emanated a strange presence while at other times shifted into snarling faces that gave off a frightening aura. Long Chen felt that the sword was alive and breathing, and the aura it gave off was its breath.


    This was a true Divine Arm; it was much stronger than the Azure Dragon Halberd. Long Chen felt a majestic strength radiating from the sword.


    More importantly, there was a Heaven-tier martial technique hidden within it. It was also the strongest technique of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Only Zhao Qingyun had managed to master it in the past, which showcased its strength and rarity.


    Long Chen was certain that he had passed the trial that the Demon Emperor Sword imposed on them, so he was sure nothing would happen if he took it. Still, he was careful that he maintained his strongest form when he attempted to touch the hilt.


    When his arm got closer, the ck aura around the sword wrapped around him like a snake. Rather than hostility, Long Chen felt that the sword was being friendly to him.


    ¡°Looks like the Demon Emperor Sword was lonely after Zhao Qingyun stopped using it for five years. It must be excited that I passed its trials.¡±


    Long Chen rxed a little, but he didn¡¯tpletely let down his guard. He wrapped ayer of Qi around his hand and grabbed the hilt. He felt nothing wrong with his hand, so he didn¡¯t hesitate to pull it out of the altar.


    The sword was freed! Long Chen held it with both hands while the Demon Emperor Sword vibrated. It was like a prisoner that had finally found their freedom. Even Long Chen¡¯s hands started shaking with it.


    Long Chen felt the ck energy of the sword infusing into his body. After circting once within him, the ck energy returned to the sword. He could feel that the sword had branded his body with its energy and recognized him as its owner.


    ¡°That¡¯s amazing! The Demon Emperor Sword just checked the condition of your body and recognized that you¡¯re qualified to hold it. It haspletely submitted itself to you. Normally, someone not at the Heavenly Passage Realm couldn¡¯t even touch a Divine Arm at the Heavenly-tier, but since you are still young and have a lot of potential, the Demon Emperor Sword has epted you! It¡¯s also fearful of the Dragon Soul Qi within your body.¡±


    Ling Xi was extremely happy with this oue.


    Long Chen had a feeling that the Demon Emperor Sword had made a bond of blood with him. He could feel the pulsations of the sword and the flow of energy within it just by holding it.


    The Demon Emperor Sword was somewhat simr to the Ling Xi Sword. But it was majestic and regal-looking, while the Ling Xi Sword was like a discarded piece of rusted metal.


    Long Chen could feel the power of the sword. He was confident that his strength would increase by many times the moment he used it. He was destined to be the strongest in the Cangyang Kingdom!


    A stream of information flowed into his mind at the same time. He could see a man dancing with a sword in his mind, releasing numerous techniques. The sword techniques were imprinted in his mind, and Long Chen quickly studied them while observing the movements of the man. He chanted along with what he was observing.


    ¡°Is this the Demon Emperor Sword Technique? It¡¯s indeed an elementary Heavenly-tier martial technique; too bad it¡¯s not an advanced one.¡±


    When the man disappeared in his mind, Long Chen more or less had a grasp of the technique. The Demon Emperor Sword Technique consisted of three different techniques, and one of them was barely even ssified as a technique. This particr technique was actually a method of using the energy from the sword and melding it with his own Qi to send out waves of attacks. Long Chen could use it now too.


    He was also very familiar with the name of the technique. It was called the Demon Emperor Sword Qi. Lin Zichen had used the counterpart, the Imperial Sword Qi, to force Long Chen to a dead endst time. It was definitely the same kind of technique; even the name was simr.


    As for the other two techniques, Long Chen needed time to cultivate them. Both of them were capable of shifting the verynd itself, so if he seeded in cultivating them, his strength would skyrocket!


    ¡°Is this the Demon Emperor Sword Technique? It¡¯s so basic. I could¡¯ve taught you that.¡± Ling Xi saw what he was doing and rolled her eyes. But she had to admit it was the most suitable technique for Long Chen right now.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t be bothered topare himself to Ling Xi, who had a monstrous background behind her. He was already very happy with having a heaven-tier martial technique in the Cangyang Kingdom. He was more or less ready for his revenge now that he had an attacking technique, a bodybat technique, and a divine technique all at the heaven-tier. He also had the various techniques of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon as well as the Soul Swallowing Gaze that Li Xuanji had taught him. He was on par with the strongest cultivators of the Cangyang Kingdom now.


    He did not covet heaven-tier defensive techniques and body tempering methods, because those could only be found through chance. He knew that one day he would be able to obtain them once he was strong enough.


    Long Chen smiled when he felt the strong energying from the Demon Emperor Sword.


    ¡°Lin Zichen, imperial family, it¡¯s time to give you the biggest surprise of your lives ...¡± Long Chen was itching for revenge.


    They were still in the strange space generated by the Demon Emperor Sword. Long Chen learned from the sword that all he needed to do was sh the space with it to exit the ce with Murong Yu.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, let¡¯s get out now. Once I finish cultivating the Demon Emperor Sword Technique, I will return to the Biyang Imperial Capital and take the Nine Immortals Heaven Fruit for you!¡±


    ¡°Brother Chen, you¡¯re the best! I have faith in you.¡± Ling Xi smiled, but she got even more worried.


    If he knew that I would be forced to separate from him once I got my body back, would he work that hard to take down the imperial family and search for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?


    Ling Xi was in distress.


    Just then, both she and Long Chen heard someone shouting. The shout snapped both of them out of their thoughts because it was none other than Murong Yu who had shouted. He quickly put the sword away and ran towards her. She was waking up, but something was wrong with her; Long Chen could see that she was in pain.


    Murong Yu curled up and her body was covered in cold sweat. Her face was ashen as she endured the pain, but it was futile. She screamed out in agony.


    Long Chen was shocked to see what was happening to her. ¡°Murong Yu, what¡¯s wrong? What¡¯s happening to you!?¡±


    But she answered him with more screams. Long Chen panicked and attempted to pick her up, but she pushed him away. His actions would only hurt her more.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Long Chen was confused. He had a feeling that she was in pain because of him!


    ¡°Brother Chen, let me take a look!¡± Ling Xi floated out from the Ling Xi Sword. She couldn¡¯t bear to watch Long Chen being this distressed. She was initially wary of Murong Yu because thetter seemed to have feelings for Long Chen, but she had to admit that Murong Yu had helped them a lot in the past, especially the time when she saved Dongfang Xuanxiao¡¯s life!


    Ling Xi used her power and checked Murong Yu¡¯s body, where she found something suspicious. She recognized what it was and got angry. ¡°It¡¯s a ck Yin Worm! Someone was vicious enough to imnt it in her body!¡±


    ¡°ck Yin Worm? Ling Xi, quick! How can I save her?¡± He didn¡¯t know what it was, so he could only rely on her for now.


    ¡°It¡¯s being controlled by an ancient curse! The curse is actually made out of the energying from the spiritual waves. Let me see if I can emte it to lure it out.¡± Ling Xi''s small body perched on Murong Yu¡¯s chest. It was where her heart was.


    Long Chen quickly realized that the reason why Murong Yu was in so much pain was because the worm was eating her heart!


    It was a despicable technique used to control others!

 Chapter 393 - Return

    <h4>Chapter 393 - Return</h4>


    Murong Yu was the savior of his stepfather, and also one of his benefactors. Even though his rtionship with her wasn¡¯t as deep as his rtionship with Ling Xi, he would treat her as a friend no matter how coldly she treated him.


    Long Chen had always been appreciative of his friends, and he would help them back if he could. Murong Yu was an important benefactor, so he could never abandon her. Seeing her in so much pain, Long Chen¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and he clenched his fists. He swore that if she died here, he would kill the three Demon Elders with his bare hands!


    It was clear that they were the culprits!


    ¡°Xiao Xi, how¡¯s it going?¡± Long Chen was anxious.


    Xiao Xi did not answer him as she was focused on treating Murong Yu. Long Chen dared not ask her any more questions, fearing he¡¯d distract her. He looked at them and felt like a boulder was weighing down his heart, making it hard for him to breathe.


    After some time, he saw Ling Xi¡¯s face rx, and Long Chen thought Murong Yu was saved. ¡°Xiao Xi?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve seeded, but don¡¯t talk right now or you will startle it,¡± she told him before focusing on controlling the worm.


    While she did that, Long Chen saw that Murong Yu was no longer in pain. It seemed that the worm was no longer eating at her heart and she had stopped screaming. Still, her face was pale and covered in sweat.


    Long Chen could only see her eyes because the rest of her face was covered in a veil.


    He sighed in relief after seeing that she was no longer in danger. Since the worm had only started attacking her heart recently, she should be able to recover as long as she could get the worm out and take in some spiritual herbs.


    Long Chen stared nervously at Ling Xi slowly moving above Murong Yu¡¯s body. She was at the chest and slowly approaching the throat. Ling Xi took a deep breath and never stopped when she reached the throat.


    A ck worm slowly crawled out of Murong Yu¡¯s mouth. Long Chen was disgusted to see such a massive insect crawling out of her, and his hatred for the three Demon Elders grew. How could they use such a technique on her?! He had never met anyone who would treat their disciples like that!


    Long Chen was even more inclined to kill the three Demon Elders now!


    When the worm crawled out, Ling Xi shot out a small amount of Sword Qi and killed it. Long Chen quickly picked it up and threw it onto the ground before stomping it into a paste.


    ¡°What a disgusting thing!¡±


    After dealing with the ck Yin Worm, Long Chen picked Murong Yu up. Thankfully, she still had a little bit of consciousness left. Long Chen took out the best spiritual herbs he had, including some of the advanced Earth-tier ones like the White Lotus Heart.


    ¡°You once used a White Lotus Heart to save my life, so I will use the same to save yours. Refine it,¡± Long Chen whispered to her.


    He crushed the White Lotus Heart and ced it in her mouth. The spiritual herb transformed into a flow of clean energy that slowly healed her bitten heart. The heart was a fragile organ, and even Murong Yu needed a lot of time to heal it since her consciousness was weak.


    Ling Xi pouted when she saw Long Chen resting Murong Yu¡¯s head on hisp. But there was nothing wrong with it. Not only was Murong Yu barely conscious, she was also heavily injured, so Ling Xi focused her dissatisfaction on the Three Demon Elders instead. ¡°Those three bastards are vile! To think that they would use such a disgusting thing on their own disciple. They probably ced it in her body not too long ago.¡±


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what was that thing?¡± Long Chen suppressed his anger to remain calm.


    ¡°It¡¯s a type of worm that people use for torture. They use a special technique to hypnotize and control the worm. The Demon Elders must¡¯ve imnted it into her body and told her to either obtain the Demon Emperor Sword or die. If she failed, it would activate and eat her heart. It¡¯s probably the reason why she was so cold towards you. She knew that she would die if she couldn¡¯t kill you.¡±


    Ling Xi pitied Murong Yu. She now felt her heart ache when she thought about the situation Murong Yu was in.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pity she has such awful masters ...¡±


    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for you, she would be dead already.¡± Long Chen growled. He hated the three Demon Elders and wanted to kill them.


    ¡°Thankfully, nothing happened ...¡± Ling Xi shook her head.


    Murong Yu had finished refining the White Lotus Heart and would soon regain consciousness.


    Long Chen could get out as long as he cut the space with the Demon Emperor Sword, but he wasn¡¯t in a hurry. Murong Yu¡¯s injuries were more important.


    ¡°Her attitude was different when I went to Three Demons City. The worm was probably inside her by then. She helped me, but I didn¡¯t manage to protect her ...¡±


    ¡°Brother Chen, you don¡¯t have to me yourself. No one could¡¯ve guessed that there was such a vile thing inside her. Thankfully, she is fine.¡±


    Murong Yu¡¯s injury was slowly healing. Ling Xi thought that it would be troublesome to exin if Murong Yu woke up and saw her in that state, so she decided to return to the sword while Long Chen was researching the Demon Emperor Sword Technique.


    The Heaven-tier martial technique gave him what he needed, a strong offensive technique. His strongest techniques used to be the Azure Dragon Technique as well as the Shadow Sword Technique that Ling Xi had taught him. Long Chen knew that he couldn¡¯t win against the imperial family with just the Shadow Sword Technique.


    That was why he needed to cultivate the Demon Emperor Sword Technique as soon as possible.


    Time slowly passed. On the other side of the space, six hours had gone by. Normally, it wouldn¡¯t take so long to fight the two battles, so Zhao Qingyun was worried.


    He was sitting at the highest seat while staring at the ck stone. The results would be known the moment the stone exploded, but it hadn¡¯t exploded after such a long time.


    Zhao Qingyun was patient, but the other disciples weren¡¯t. They started discussing what was happening inside.


    ¡°Another two hours have passed. What is going on? The winner should have been decided by now, right?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s happening inside either, but six hours is too long. Did something happen to them?¡±


    ¡°Impossible! Senior Murong is at the Ninth River Stage. How could anything happen to her? If anything, Long Chen is the one who would suffer! I think Senior Murong is holding the Demon Emperor Sword!¡±


    ¡°Of course! Her strength is on par with the three Demon Elders! She¡¯s a genius!¡±


    The Three Demon Elders were happy about thepliments, but they were still worried because the results were not announced yet.


    ¡°Brother, what do you think it¡¯s happening? With our guidance, she should have been able to finish the first trial in two hours. It can¡¯t be that she''s still fighting Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Something must¡¯ve gone wrong ...¡± The First Demon Elder frowned.


    ¡°Brother, do you think the ck Yin Worm activated?¡± The Second Demon Elder was worried.


    ¡°Xiaoyu might be interested in him, but she would never risk her family for him. Also, you know what kind of vile creature the ck Yin Worm is. You need to have trust in her.¡± The First Demon Elder was confident.


    ¡°But what if Long Chen is stronger than her?¡± The Second Demon Elder was still worried. Murong Yu was her disciple after all.


    ¡°You are thinking too much, Second Sister. She¡¯s already at the same level as us, the Ninth River Stage! Do you think Long Chen could stand up to us?¡± The Third Demon Elder chuckled.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just wait until the results are announced.¡±


    Everyone continued waiting, and the anxiety slowly built up. It was already past afternoon, but the contestants still weren¡¯t out. The disciples couldn¡¯t wait any longer; even the Three Demon Elders were perplexed at what was happening. The First Demon Elder asked, ¡°Pce Master, why aren¡¯t they out yet? Did something happen?¡±


    Zhao Qingyun was clueless too. He shook his head powerlessly. ¡°We can only wait. I don¡¯t know what is happening. If you can¡¯t wait anymore, you can head home first ...¡±


    Just then, the ck stone exploded!

 Chapter 394 - Trampling the Three Demon Elders

    <h4>Chapter 394 - Trampling the Three Demon Elders</h4>


    Right when everyone ran out of patience, the ck stone in front of them exploded. The shrapnel flew everywhere, fast enough to injure whoever was hit. The crowd did their best to dodge it.


    Zhao Qingyun was ted because the results would be announced soon. He waved his arm, and a massive force protected the crowd. He waved again, and the dust was blown away, revealing the two people at the center of the explosion.


    Everyone saw that it was indeed Long Chen and Murong Yu! The crowd wanted to know who had won, but they almost vomited blood when they saw Long Chen¡¯s arm around Murong Yu¡¯s waist!


    ¡°Motherfucker! He¡¯s holding Senior Murong! Long Chen, let her go!¡±


    ¡°You fucking toad! Your face doesn¡¯t match with hers!¡±


    The crowdpletely ignored the results of the trial and was more focused on this.


    Even Zhao Qingyun and the three Demon Elders didn¡¯t know what was happening. The Demon Elders had thought that either Long Chen or Murong Yu woulde out dead. If she failed to kill him, she would¡¯ve died thanks to the ck Yin Worm. Why was she alive, then?


    The Demon Elders didn¡¯t know what was happening.


    Long Chen saw that everyone was shouting at him to let go of Murong Yu. She could barely stand, and he made sure she was stable before releasing her. If it had been a normal situation, Long Chen would¡¯ve taken the opportunity to hold her longer, but after going through so much with Ling Xi, his heart was already hers. Also, he needed to hold back a little since Ling Xi was still watching him ...


    Still, he couldn¡¯t care less because he was on the verge of killing the Demon Elders when he saw them. He stood in front of Murong Yu and red at the trio.


    The crowd finally saw that Long Chen was holding something in his other hand. He revealed the sword, and everyone mored. It was the Heaven-tier Divine Arm Demon Emperor Sword, the treasure of the Heavenly Demon Pce!


    Long Chen had won?


    The truth was right before their eyes, but they struggled to ept it. They had heard rumors of Long Chen killing Yang Danfeng, but Murong Yu was as strong as the three Demon Elders. There was no way he was stronger than them, right?


    Everyone looked at the sword in his hand and started discussing it amongst themselves.


    ¡°Am I seeing things right? Did he really take the Demon Emperor Sword?¡±


    ¡°If you are seeing things wrong, then everyone else is too. But the sword is indeed in his hands, while senior Murong seems to be tired and wounded ...¡±


    ¡°He actually dared to hurt senior Murong? That damned animal ...¡±


    ¡°And what can you do? He¡¯s the strongest youth in the Heavenly Demon Pce.¡±


    The Demon Elders were ufortable when they listened to what everyone was talking about. Even they were astonished by what had happened. They had given Murong Yu the Frost Soul Essence and even told her what was going to happen inside the Demon Emperor Sword just so she could obtain the sword, but not only had she failed to take it, she hadn¡¯t even died. What was happening?


    Was it because of Long Chen?


    ¡°Big Brother, what is happening?¡± The Third Demon Elder¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and his breathing gradually became heavier. The oue was not what they had expected.


    The First Demon Elder said nothing. He had detected the bloodlusting from Long Chen, and it was directed towards them. Just as he sensed that, Long Chen suddenly pointed the Demon Emperor Sword at the three Demon Elders.


    ¡°You three, do you need me to tell everyone the despicable thing you did?¡± Long Chen¡¯s cold voice echoed around the ce. Everyone was still discussing the oue when they were shocked by his words. They looked at him nervously.


    Zhao Qingyun was originally very happy due to the oue, but now his expression was somber. He trusted Long Chen, and seeing what he was doing, Zhao Qingyun was sure that Long Chen had his reasons. He kept quiet and waited for the scene to unfold.


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± The Third Demon Elder felt indignant when Long Chen pointed the Demon Emperor Sword at them in public. He stood up and shouted, ¡°Put down the Demon Emperor Sword! Don¡¯t think it belongs to you just because you are holding it!? You even dare point it towards us? Do you know the difference in our status?¡±


    ¡°The three Demon Elders? You are no better than beasts.¡± Long Chen did not back down.


    ¡°What did you say?!¡± The Third Demon Elder¡¯s beard shook when he got furious. He turned around and looked at Zhao Qingyun. ¡°Pce Master, Long Chen is rude and dares to humiliate us in public. You better give us a good exnation for this! We have worked hard for the Heavenly Demon Pce, and we will not ept such humiliation from a junior! If you don¡¯t punish him severely, the Heavenly Demon Pce will be aughingstock to outsiders!¡±


    Zhao Qingyun hadn''t said anything when Long Chen suddenly charged towards the Third Demon Elder. ¡°You old dog! Don¡¯t you dare pressure my master!? Come and fight me!¡±


    No one had expected Long Chen to do something like that. Long Chen had actually picked a fight with the second-inmand of the Heavenly Demon Pce, a Demon Elder?!


    The Demon Emperor Sword was indeed a frightening weapon. The Third Demon Elder immediately turned around and faced him seriously. Long Chen was the one who had started it, so the Third Demon Elder didn¡¯t hesitate to punch Long Chen.


    The entire ground shook when the Third Demon Elder circted his Qi and focused it on his fist!


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Earth Shattering Fist!¡±


    The very air burst with shockwaves, and a ck fist appeared in front of Long Chen. Everyone thought Long Chen would be split in half by the attack!


    ¡°Presumptuous tricks!¡± Long Chen chuckled andshed out with the Demon Emperor Sword. ck Sword Qi shot outwards and crashed into the Third Demon Elder¡¯s attack. It was as strong as Lin Zichen¡¯s Imperial Sword Qi! The ck Sword Qi split the Third Demon Elder¡¯s attack in half and even continued flying towards the man himself!


    ¡°Suspended Demon Shield!¡±


    The Third Demon Elder was shocked, and he used both of his fists to block it. He formed the seals, and a ck shield appeared that barely blocked Long Chen¡¯s Sword Qi. He took a few steps back from the impact.


    The crowd couldn¡¯t believe their eyes and shouted excitedly.


    The Third Demon Elder¡¯s anger boiled over when he heard the noises. He had underestimated Long Chen. After the first attack was neutralized, Long Chen ran up andunched another sh with Demon Emperor Sword Qi. It broke the shield in half and sent the Third Demon Elder flying backwards!


    The impact caused the Third Demon Elder to spit out blood before falling onto the ground like a deted ball. Everyone failed to react when they saw how disheveled the Third Demon Elder was. They never thought that he would be sent flying by Long Chen in just two attacks! He never even got to fight back.


    ¡°How could this be?¡±


    ¡°Goodness. I must be dreaming!¡±


    ¡°A Ninth River Stage cultivator is nothing before the Demon Emperor Sword!¡±


    But they didn¡¯t even get to process their emotions when Long Chen ran over and stomped the Third Demon Elder¡¯s face. He ced the Demon Emperor Sword on the Third Demon Elder¡¯s neck and was about to lop the head off!


    ¡°Chen¡¯er! Stop!¡± Zhao Qingyun yelled from behind.


    Long Chen stopped. He knew that it was not the right time to kill the three Demon Elders; he merely wanted to scare them. The Third Demon Elder lost control of his dder when he was on the verge of death. He regretted his past actions, even though he didn¡¯t know what he was regretting.


    The Second and First Demon Elders stood in front of Long Chen. They were prepared to attack the moment Long Chen killed the Third Demon Elder. After Zhao Qingyun stopped him, the two Demon Elders sighed in relief even though the third was still being stepped on.


    Everyone was shocked when they saw the scene. They had never thought the three Demon Elders would have such a day.


    Long Chen¡¯s foot was still on the Third Demon Elder while the first and second were looking at him. Zhao Qingyun approached Long Chen and shielded him.


    Long Chen wanted to kill all three of them, but now was not the time. Also, they were right in saying that they were the pirs of the Heavenly Demon Pce. If Long Chen killed them, Zhao Qingyun¡¯s burden would increase.

 Chapter 395 - Justice In Everyone’s Heart

    <h4>Chapter 395 - Justice In Everyone¡¯s Heart</h4>


    Long Chen had actually just opposed the three Demon Elders and stepped on one of them in front of everyone else.


    He was not afraid of the consequences. The two remaining Demon Elders were ring at him, but he didn¡¯t back down even when the Third Demon Elder tried to get up. Long Chen merely stomped harder and bruised the face of the man beneath him. The Third Demon Elder was utterly immobilized!


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, let him go.¡± Zhao Qingyun defused the situation, and Long Chen heeded. He was defiant, but he needed to give his master the respect he deserved, so he moved his leg.


    Zhao Qingyun was secretly ted, but he had to put on a look of sympathy when he helped the Third Demon Elder up. The Third Demon Elder was not only hurt, but also humiliated. He almost couldn¡¯t hold himself back from charging at Long Chen the moment he got up, but Zhao Qingyun had a firm grasp on him. Everyone else saw that Zhao Qingyun was helping him up, but actually, he was holding the Third Demon Elder down before pushing him towards the other two.


    ¡°Let me go!¡± the Third Demon Elder shouted, but the First Demon Elder held him back. His eyes were bloodshot and his clothes were covered in dirt, but he wanted to skin Long Chen alive!


    The First Demon Elder was old, but he was not weak. ¡°Calm down and don¡¯t embarrass me!¡± he said into the Third Demon Elder¡¯s ear, his voice icy. The Third Demon Elder finally snapped out of it. He understood that no matter how angry he got, the two Demon Elders would never let him go, so there was no choice but to suppress his anger.


    ¡°Long Chen, you need to give us an exnation. If you can¡¯t, I will have to punish you even though you are my direct disciple,¡± Zhao Qingyun said in a chilly voice.


    Long Chen knew that Zhao Qingyun was just putting on a show of empathy for the sake of the three Demon Elders and the other people in positions of power; he actually had no ill intention towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen only needed to follow the narrative and exin his story. He told them about Murong Yu andughed at the three Demon Elders. He then walked towards Murong Yu. Currently, she was very nervous and didn¡¯t know what to say.


    ¡°Everyone, do you know what a Yin ck Worm is?¡± Long Chen stood beside her and looked at her pitifully.


    The three Demon Elders¡¯s expressions changed when they heard that. The First Demon Elder immediately calmed down and signaled the other two to remain calm.


    ¡°Yin ck Worm?¡± Zhao Qingyun looked at the Second Demon Elder. He knew that she was the one who was good at dealing with poisonous insects.


    The others who knew that the Second Demon Elder was familiar with insects looked at her too. The ck Yin Worm was umon, but it was quite a famous insect in the Heavenly Demon Pce. One of the middle-aged elders exined, ¡°I know of the Yin ck Worm. It''s a notorious poisonous insect that people can cultivate, and an ancient curse is used to control it. It can be nted in someone¡¯s body and be used to control them. If they don¡¯t obey the owner¡¯smand, the worm activates and eats the victim¡¯s heart while they¡¯re still alive. The Second Demon Elder is a famous user of poisonous insects, but why do you bring it up?¡±


    The elder that had spoken was clearly on the side of Zhao Qingyun. When Long Chen asked about the Yin ck Worm, he more or less guessed what had happened. Not only had he exined the vileness of the worm, he had even t-out said that the Second Demon Elder was good at cultivating poisonous insects.


    Long Chen was ted. That old man is so cunning!


    He looked around before looking at the Three Demon Elders. ¡°The reason why I attacked them was because I was so angry at the injustice. Everyone here will understand when I tell you what happened.¡±


    When he was about to exin what was happening, Murong Yu grabbed his arm, leaving him stunned. He knew that she didn¡¯t want him to talk about it, but Long Chen would not back down. ¡°When we were in the space of the Demon Emperor Sword, I defeated her and obtained the sword. But then I saw her copse, which was when the Yin ck Worm started eating her heart! If I hadn¡¯t saved her, she would¡¯ve died in there! I was treating her, that¡¯s why it took us so long to exit! Everyone, the Second Demon Elder excels at cultivating poisonous insects and Murong Yu had Yin ck Worm inside her. I¡¯m sure everyone can guess what happened! I can¡¯t believe someone would treat their disciple like this! Do you think beasts like them deserve to live?¡±


    Everyone gasped when they heard his exnation. They never thought the Demon Elders would do that.


    ¡°No wonder they came out sote. It seems likely that it happened.¡±


    ¡°But why would the three Demon Elders do that to their most prized disciple?¡±


    Everyone chatted and discussed amongst themselves.


    The First Demon Elder calmed everyone down, saying, ¡°Everyone, Long Chen¡¯s words are lies and baseless. He said we imnted the Yin ck Worm into Murong Yu¡¯s body, but what would be our motive for doing so? Do you think we would torture the disciple that we painstakingly raised?¡±


    He was right. Why would they want Murong Yu to die if Long Chen won? It was illogical.


    Everyone leaned towards the three Demon Elders. Long Chen¡¯s exnation sounded quite ridiculous and there was evidence; it was indeed baseless.


    Long Chen knew they would do that, so heughed and said, ¡°I assume everyone here isn¡¯t aware yet. Do all of you know how Yang Danfeng died?¡±


    The three Demon Elders were visibly distressed when Long Chen brought that up.


    But Long Chen would not stop. ¡°When I first exited the Pyro Passageways and obtained the two stages of the Demon Seed nting Technique, the disciples of the three Demon Elders were jealous of me because I took their rewards away. So Yang Danfeng did something to get back at me. He called my stepfather¡¯s previous love enemy, Elder He Tian, toe and kill Dongfang Xuanxiao! He wanted to get back at me by attacking the people I loved because I won the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique!¡±


    Long Chen stopped for a moment to let it sink in before continuing, ¡°But Murong Yu warned me and I caught on to their n. Thankfully, I managed to arrive in time to stop Elder He Tian, then I ended up killing Yang Danfeng, who was hiding nearby! Now do you understand why Yang Danfeng went missing? Because I killed him! Why have the Demon Elders not said anything about his death? It¡¯s because they are afraid that their reputation will be tainted!¡±


    The crowd couldn¡¯t get enough of the information and shouted in shock. The Demon Elders¡¯ reputation was going down rapidly, and everyone sneered at them. Long Chen increased the pressure. ¡°You guys don¡¯t know this, but I¡¯m actually good friends with Murong Yu. That¡¯s why the three Demon Elders put the Yin ck Worm inside her. If she failed to kill me, she would be killed instead. But they never thought I could defeat the Ninth River Stage Murong Yu!¡±


    Now everyone knew why the three Demon Elders would do such a thing. It was clear that they wanted to kill Long Chen. If it was all a lie, it wouldn¡¯t have been so logical. They would have no choice but to admit that Long Chen had a vivid imagination if everything was a lie.


    Everyone was silent once Long Chen finished his exnation, and they all looked at the three Demon Elders; even the other elders were staring at them. They had always seen the three Demon Elders as fair and hard-working individuals who had sacrificed a lot for the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    But they had tortured their disciple to reach their goals.


    The reputation of the three Demon Elders sank even lower.


    The Demon Elders didn¡¯t know what to do. Both the Second and Third Demon Elders were speechless after getting exposed by Long Chen. Only the First Demon Elder was calm as he looked at Long Chen. ¡°Long Chen, your imagination is very vivid. Your story definitely doesn¡¯t have any holes and I¡¯m impressed. But still, you are young and you cannot make a perfect lie.¡±


    ¡°What do you want to say?¡±


    ¡°I want to ask a question. Since you know that the Yin ck Worm is controlled by an ancient curse, how did you save Murong Yu if she was getting attacked by it? Do you also cultivate poisonous insects?¡±


    Long Chen had forgotten about this detail. The First Demon Elder was no pushover; he had toppled over Long Chen¡¯s usation with just a single question because Long Chen could never tell anyone about Ling Xi. It was his biggest secret!


    ¡°I have my own ways. Everyone has their secrets, so I don¡¯t think you can call me a liar just because I don¡¯t want to disclose it, right?¡±


    ¡°Justice is in everyone¡¯s hearts! I know everyone here will trust their judgment whether you are lying or not. Xiaoyu,e with us!¡± The First Demon Elder finally managed to turn the tables and immediately pressured Murong Yu. They were ill-prepared to face the raging Long Chen today.

 Chapter 396 - Bleak Future

    <h4>Chapter 396 - Bleak Future</h4>


    Murong Yu would be tortured if she followed the three Demon Elders back. Even if she weren¡¯t physically tortured, she would be mentally tortured. Long Chen stopped her from going back. ¡°Follow you back? And get imnted with another Yin ck Worm? If everyone here was imnted by it, wouldn¡¯t you be able to call yourselves the leaders of the Heavenly Demon Pce?¡±


    Long Chen was a smart guy. He had muddled the waters by dragging in the other people with high positions in the Heavenly Demon Pce, giving them a false sense of threat. Now they thought that they themselves could get imnted with Yin ck Worms if they followed the three Demon Elders. All of them were shocked when they imagined something like that happening. Thankfully, it was difficult to control Yin ck Worms and the three Demon Elders probably didn¡¯t have a lot of them, or they would¡¯ve actually done what Long Chen had said.


    Who would want a worm that could kill them at any time inside their body?


    Whether what Long Chen had said was the truth or not, the staunch believers of the three Demon Elders still refused to believe it. They wouldn¡¯t budge until Long Chen exined how he had killed the Yin ck Worm. The others, however, believed Long Chen.


    Zhao Qingyun sighed when he looked at Long Chen.


    He¡¯s just like a wild horse. Looks like I have to work around the clock from today onwards.


    Zhao Qingyun was azy man, which was why he had given most of his power to the three Demon Elders. But now that their trust had been damaged by Long Chen, they would not have that muchmanding power anymore. Zhao Qingyun would need to take some time to deal with it.


    The Second Demon Elder looked kindly at Murong Yu. ¡°Xiaoyu, stop getting tricked by Long Chen. Come back with us to Three Demons City. Let me heal your injuries.¡±


    Murong Yu lowered her head. On one side was her master, on the other was Long Chen. She didn¡¯t know what to do. She would¡¯ve chosen her master in the past, but it wasn¡¯t the same ever since she imnted the Yin ck Worm in her body. Murong Yu would¡¯ve died a painful death without Long Chen.


    Long Chen looked at her. ¡°Don¡¯t go back with them. Just focus on recuperating before deciding whether you want to go back or not.¡±


    Murong Yu indeed needed some time to calm down. She would¡¯ve probably gone crazy if she returned to Three Demon City now, so she bit her lip and said, ¡°Master, let me rest for a moment. I will returnter ...¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the right way to do things.¡± Long Chen pped andughed. ¡°The Pce Master is here. Since her injuries are bad, the Pce Master will give her some herbs so she can recover, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Zhao Qingyun sighed andughed. Long Chen made him speechless sometimes.


    Murong Yu¡¯s choice made the others even more suspicious of the three Demon Elders. The three of them walked away angrily after seeing all the suspicious gazes. They had been humiliated too much and their reputation was in the gutter. More importantly, the Third Demon Elder had been pummeled by Long Chen!


    This was a massive blow to them.


    The three Demon Elders were used to bringing down Zhao Qingyun¡¯s reputation, but Long Chen had turned the tables, leaving his master extremely satisfied. More importantly, Long Chen had defeated the two strongest youths, Yang Danfeng and Murong Yu. He had even defeated the Third Demon Elder and stomped him with just two attacks. No one else would say Zhao Qingyun was bad at finding disciples anymore.


    Once everyone left, Zhao Qingyun shook his head at Long Chen and Murong Yu. ¡°Long Chen, you are forcing me to face off against the three Demon Elders. They have indeed done a lot for the Heavenly Demon Pce, and this ce would definitely be more chaotic without them. It¡¯s good that you pped them in the face, but it¡¯s best not to push them too much.¡±


    ¡°I understand, Master.¡± Long Chen smiled inly. He knew that the three Demon Elders had been coddled by Zhao Qingyun for too long and he just wanted to step back.


    Zhao Qingyun looked at Murong Yu pitifully. ¡°Xiaoyu, it seems that you have suffered a lot. Go and stay at the Azure Cloud Residence. I see your injuries are quite bad, so you just need to focus on healing. I can also take care of you at the residence.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Pce Master.¡± Murong Yu nodded.


    She actually hated the three Demon Elders now, so she chose to stay by Long Chen. Still, she was ufortable with betraying the people who had raised her.


    Zhao Qingyun looked at Long Chen¡¯s Demon Emperor Sword and stroked his beard with pride. ¡°Not bad. It seems that the sword recognizes you as its owner.¡±


    ¡°Of course. I¡¯m none other than Long Chen.¡± Long Chen was happy that he hadpleted his objective.


    ¡°What do you want to do next?¡± Zhao Qingyun suddenly asked.


    Three months had passed, and Long Chen had finished what he hade here for. He knew it was time to part ways.


    ¡°Let me finish cultivating the Demon Emperor Sword Technique first.¡±


    The rule of the Heavenly Demon Pce was that the one who managed to wield the Demon Emperor Sword would be the Pce Master, but both him and Zhao Qingyun knew that Long Chen was only here temporarily. This ce was just another stop in his journey.


    Long Chen walked back to the Azure Cloud Residence and cultivation quietly. Murong Yu was recuperating in the house beside him.


    Everyone else learned about what had happened that day and about the wicked deeds of the three Demon Elders. Long Chen¡¯s talent was also engraved into everyone¡¯s minds. No one had thought that the brat at the Fourth River Stage would grow so fast in just three months.


    It had not been an easy journey for Long Chen.


    Time slowly passed, and Long Chen¡¯s mastery over the Demon Emperor Sword Technique improved. Hisprehension had always been good thanks to the Dragon Jade Pendant, and with Ling Xi¡¯s help, his proficiency in the technique grew tremendously. As long as he continued to practice, he would be able to use it effortlessly.


    During the time he was cultivating, the three Demon Elders¡¯ reputation dropped to the point that it was beyond saving. Zhao Qingyun took the chance to handle a lot of the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s matters and started taking care of things himself. And so, the strongest cultivator, the Pce Master, and his strongest disciple, Long Chen, became legends ...


    Only Zhaoqing Yun knew that Long Chen would leave the ce the moment finished cultivating.


    Xiang, on the other hand, was researching the Demon Seed nting Technique. Since Long Chen hadpleted the second stage, Xiang managed to cultivate it with his advice and teachings. He didn¡¯t make as many mistakes as Long Chen thanks to thetter¡¯s experience. Xiang could now defeat a Ninth River Stage cultivator with ease, and Long Chen could kill someone beyond that level!


    One day, when he finished cultivating, Ling Xi floated out of the Ling Xi Sword to get some fresh air.


    ¡°Ling Xi, we are about to head back to the capital to get our revenge. You will then get a body and we can travel the world with Xiang. Why do you not look happy?¡±


    ¡°Do I not?¡± Ling Xi forced a smile.


    Long Chen was certain.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, please tell me what¡¯s on your mind. Do you not want me to go back because you¡¯re afraid I will die?¡± Long Chen tried to guess why.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Ling Xi nodded. She wasn¡¯t worried about that; she was actually confident in Long Chen¡¯s strength. The only thing he didn¡¯t know was that once he obtained the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit and restored her body, her family would take her away from him. At that time, there would be nothing he could do.


    But she didn¡¯t dare say it. She looked at his passionate eyes and kept the secret to herself. Long Chen wanted to restore her body and had fought so hard to fulfill his promises. Ling Xi did not have the heart to stop him, as she knew how much it would impact him.


    Although she wasughing, she was secretly suffering.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, who do you think I am? I have survived countless dangerous situations. Do you think I¡¯m afraid of the Biyang Imperial Capital? Don¡¯t worry. The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit will be yours. Plus, I need to restore your body so I can kiss you!¡±


    Long Chen patted his chest with confidence.


    ¡°You need to protect yourself and live on when I¡¯m not with you, alright?¡± Ling Xi suddenly said.

 Chapter 397 - Fire Poison Curse

    <h4>Chapter 397 - Fire Poison Curse</h4>


    As he got more familiar with the Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Long Chen was inching closer to the day he would leave. He was currently resting in a gazebo when he saw Murong Yu approaching him. Her injuries were finally healed.


    ¡°I heard from the Pce Master that you are leaving?¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He would be leaving one way or another, so he wasn¡¯t worried that others would find out.


    ¡°Are you heading back to the capital for revenge?¡±


    She was right. Long Chen smiled. ¡°You know how I was chased by them. I almost died that day. I am more than happy to go and take revenge.¡±


    Murong Yu sat beside him. She was still wearing the ck veil. Long Chen didn¡¯t even know what she looked like.


    ¡°I actually wanted to know the story between you and that girl,¡± Murong Yu suddenly said.


    ¡°Ling Xi?¡± Long Chen was taken aback and chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s actually a pretty generic story. I¡¯ve known her for about a year, and I slowly became stronger ever since we met. We went to the capital and the Ninth Prince wanted her, so I killed him. We then escaped and ended up here.¡±


    He gave her the watered-down version.


    ¡°You are so reckless. I can¡¯t believe you opposed the imperial family with so little strength.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s worth it. I would rather die than give her to them.¡±


    Murong Yu was jealous of Ling Xi, and she shook her head bitterly. ¡°I¡¯m so jealous of her. She has someone who loves her so much ...¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know what to say. If he were still in Baiyang Town, he would¡¯ve said something stupid like he could love her too. But now his heart was filled with only Ling Xi.


    He just chuckled.


    Murong Yu changed the subject because it was very awkward. ¡°Do you n to take the Demon Emperor Sword with you? The Demon Elders will stop you. It¡¯s the treasure of the Heavenly Demon Pce, so they would never let you take it away.¡±


    ¡°I will just kill them.¡±


    He was cocky, but Murong Yu knew he would do that after seeing him stepping on the Third Demon Elder. Long Chen would definitely be unbeatable in the Heavenly Demon Pce once he learned the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. Only Zhao Qingyun would be able to stop him.


    ¡°Long Chen, since we are friends, could you do me a favor?¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Since you are leaving, I was hoping you wouldn¡¯t kill the Demon Elders even if they try to fight you, which I¡¯m certain that they will. I know you hate them, but please don¡¯t kill them.¡±


    ¡°Why? They¡¯re the ones who tortured you!¡±


    ¡°But they are also the ones who raised me to be who I am today. I can¡¯t let them die.¡±


    ¡°Fine.¡± Long Chen smiled at her reasoning. Who could say this ce was a ce for demons? Murong Yu was a kind girl who would repay gratitude with gratitude.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Murong Yu was truly grateful to him.


    Long Chen looked at her veil before he suddenly asked, ¡°Since we are friends, can I take a look at your beautiful face?¡±


    Murong Yu turned around when she heard that. She lowered her head when she felt his intense gaze. ¡°No. I¡¯m ugly. I look worse than Ling Xi and I don¡¯t want to scare you away.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen was shocked. He could see the outline of her beautiful face and her pale skin. There was no way she would be ugly. Rather, everyone called her a goddess!


    He was still feeling confused when Murong Yu took a leap of faith. ¡°Long Chen, do you really want to see it that badly?¡±


    It was a difficult decision for her.


    ¡°Brother Chen, say that you want to see it,¡± Ling Xi suddenly whispered. He had thought she would be jealous, but it seemed that wasn¡¯t the case.


    ¡°Yes, please let me see.¡± Ling Xi probably knew something that he didn''t, so Long Chen trusted her.


    Murong Yu had no choice and stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s go inside first.¡±


    Long Chen followed her and looked at her figure from the back. Judging by her slender waist and height, there was no way she was not pretty.


    Once inside, he closed the door. He turned around and saw that the veil covering her face had fallen off. Long Chen didn¡¯t see an ugly girl, but a goddess. It was just as he had expected¡ªshe was indeed a beauty. No one in the Heavenly Demon Pce couldpare to her.


    ¡°Are you crazy? You call yourself ugly?¡± Long Chen was perplexed. He was even taken back by how beautiful she was.


    Murong Yu smiled. ¡°Actually, a lot of people have seen my face like this and said I was pretty. Even Yang Danfeng was fooled by it. But this is not my true face.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°You will see.¡± Murong Yu touched the bottom of her jaw before tearing off her face. Long Chen almost yelped when he saw her skin being peeled off, but he was surprised when there was no blood.


    Murong Yu tore off the mask and ced it down. Long Chen had expected to see bloody muscles, but instead, it was another face! He realized that he had been looking at a mask all along.


    Her true face was very simr to the mask. The only thing different about her was that there were patches of red on the left side of her cheek, just like a burn mark. She did look scary like this.


    Long Chen didn''t know what to say and thought that it was senseless of him to force someone to show something like this, so he immediately apologized.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You never thought that I would be this ugly, right?¡± Murong Yu¡¯s face fell. She was very aware of what the mark did to her.


    ¡°It looks like a burn mark, but there should be a lot of spiritual herbs in the Heavenly Demon Pce that could treat you ...¡±


    ¡°Only my master knows about this. She found a lot of herbs for me, but nothing worked, so I gave up ...¡±


    Ling Xi suddenly whispered to Long Chen, ¡°Brother Chen, I know what it is! This is a Fire Poison Curse. It¡¯s a type of naturally-made seal. She must¡¯ve identallye into contact with it and got cursed. Normal herbs could never cure it.¡±


    She must¡¯ve sensed it, which was why she wanted Long Chen to ask Murong Yu to reveal her face.


    Long Chen was excited. ¡°Xiao Xi, can you unravel it?¡±


    ¡°Yep. I¡¯m pretty sure I can do that. I have an eighty-percent chance of undoing it.¡±


    That was arge margin of sess. Murong Yu was his friend, so he wasn¡¯t worried about her knowing Ling Xi¡¯s secret. He suddenly smiled and asked, ¡°Do you want to see a surprise?¡±


    The atmosphere was , so Murong Yu was surprised by what he said. She nodded, not even putting her veil back on.


    Just then, Long Chen¡¯s ear stud exuded white mist and a small beauty popped out. Ling Xi floated in front of Murong Yu, and thetter saw the beautiful face in front of her.


    ¡°Huh ...¡± Murong Yu was so shocked that she took two steps back.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be scared. You¡¯ve seen her before. She¡¯s Ling Xi.¡± Long Chen held Ling Xi in his hands and smiled.


    Murong Yu calmed down and looked at the smiling Ling Xi. She was shocked to see Ling Xi like this. ¡°You mean Ling Xi was in your ear stud when you said she was in a safe ce? Why is she like this?¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter. More importantly, Ling Xi told me that she could remove the scar on your face.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Murong Yu was stunned by what he had said.


    ¡°Xiaoyu, please lie down on the bed. There¡¯s no time to waste. I know a thing or two about curses, so I can assure you that ...¡±


    Murong Yu nodded andid down on the bed. She was still processing what was happening.

 Chapter 398 - Giving The Cangyang Kingdom To You

    <h4>Chapter 398 - Giving The Cangyang Kingdom To You</h4>


    Ling Xinded on Murong Yu¡¯s head and exined to her, ¡°The Fire Poison Curse is a type of seal that gets imprinted on one¡¯s face. While some herbs seem to heal it, it returns soon after. But it¡¯s another thing altogether if I dispel it. Since you are strong, you should be able to heal soon once the scar is gone. You will be the pretty girl you¡¯ve always wanted to be.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Miss Ling Xi ...¡± Murong Yu was still too shocked to react to what was happening.


    ¡°Close your eyes. Everything will be different once you open them,¡± Ling Xi said pitifully. No woman wanted to be ugly. It was clear that Murong Yu had been troubled by the curse for a very long time.


    She nodded and closed her eyes.


    Ling Xi started to work on dispelling the curse while Long Chen just sat in a corner to not disturb them. Time slowly passed, and Ling Xi appeared to be seeding. After just an hour, the red mark on Murong Yu¡¯s chin slowly faded.


    A pale, red line was left on Murong Yu¡¯s face. Ling Xi followed the line and slowly dismantled the curse. Making a mistake at this point would be terrible, so she was very careful. Thankfully, Ling Xi was very good with curses and seals. Two more hours passed, and the red mark waspletely gone. Murong Yu just needed to rest for a few days and her skin would be normal again.


    Ling Xi was tired when she was done. She floated towards Long Chen and warned him, ¡°I¡¯m going to sleep. Don¡¯t do anything to her just because she¡¯s pretty! And maintain your distance! Do you understand?¡±


    ¡°I know, I know.¡± Long Chen nodded and sighed. He looked at Murong Yu and saw that she was indeed a super beauty. No wonder Ling Xi had left him with a warning and was wary of her.


    ¡°Good.¡± She then disappeared into the sword.


    Murong Yu slowly got up, and Long Chen passed her a mirror without any hesitation. ¡°Take a look, prettydy Murong.¡±


    Murong Yu soon saw her own face and was surprised to see that the red mark was gone. She bit her finger to make sure that it wasn¡¯t a dream!


    She cried out of happiness.


    Long Chen sighed in relief when he saw her crying. Women truly put a lot of effort into looking good.


    She had endured it for a long time and struggled with insecurity.


    She cried for quite some time before she calmed down. ¡°Long Chen, where is Ling Xi?¡±


    ¡°She went back to sleep. If you have nothing else to do, you should do the same. People might get the wrong idea if they see you sleeping on my bed while I¡¯m in the room with you.¡±


    ¡°Alright. Thank you.¡± Murong Yu blushed and got up from the bed.


    ¡°No need to thank me. You saved my stepfather¡¯s life and even suffered the pain of the Yin ck Worm because of me. This is just a small gesture of goodwill to thank you.¡±


    Murong Yu smiled and looked at the veil on the floor. ¡°Do I still need this?¡± she mumbled.


    ¡°No need. You can confidently show everyone your face.¡±


    ¡°Am I pretty?¡± She was nervous.


    ¡°Of course. I¡¯m actually holding myself back here. Unfortunately, I¡¯ve pledged myself to Ling Xi ...¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°Then I should get rid of this,¡± she said while looking at her mask.


    ¡°Wait. What is that thing? Can it really fool others?¡±


    Long Chen had failed to notice the Fire Poison Curse because of the mask.


    ¡°This is a human skin mask. My master is good at making masks, and I learned a lot from her. You can use it to change your face. Even someone at the Heavenly Passage Realm would have a hard time seeing through it.¡± Murong Yu was quite proud of her creation.


    ¡°Wait, what?!¡± Long Chen was excited. ¡°I need to slip into the pce, but everyone knows what I look like now, so could you make me a mask?¡±


    It would be very useful if the mask was capable of fooling even someone at the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    ¡°Of course. I could make it so that even the Pce Master wouldn¡¯t recognize you.¡±


    Long Chen trusted her skills.


    ¡°Then quickly make me one!¡±


    ***


    Since it would take some time for her toplete the mask, Long Chen stayed at the Heavenly Demon Pce a little longer.


    Back in Three Demons City, the three Demon Elders were barely seated when the Second Demon Elder said, ¡°Elder Brother, Third Brother, Xiaoyu asked me for materials to make a mask a couple of days ago. I failed to notice it at first, but then I thought of something.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°You should know about how Long Chen got here. He was being pursued by the imperial pce and found the Heavenly Demon Pce. Now that he has be stronger, he will definitely return for revenge. Xiaoyu doesn¡¯t make masks without a purpose, and now she suddenly wants to make one after spending some time with Long Chen. Do you think that Long Chen would disguise himself and go to the imperial capital with the Demon Emperor Sword?¡±


    The other two were visibly shocked and knew that it was a possibility. ¡°That damned brat. He dares take the three secret techniques and the Demon Emperor Sword away from us?¡±


    The First Demon Elder frowned. ¡°There are three experts in the imperial pce: the Sword Emperor, the Sword Devil, and Lin Zichen. Long Chen might be strong, but he would die if he faced all three of them. It doesn¡¯t matter if he dies, but our Demon Emperor Sword would end up in the hands of the Emperor! Once he has that, he wille and destroy us!¡±


    The three of them realized how severe the consequences were.


    ¡°What should we do?¡±


    ¡°Go find the Pce Master. He would never let Long Chen do that,¡± the Second Demon Elder suggested.


    ¡°No.¡± The First Demon Elder shook his head. ¡°Long Chen is his direct disciple. There is no reason for Zhao Qingyun to be unaware of his n. He probably supports Long Chen! We cannot rely on Zhao Qingyun!¡±


    ¡°Then what should we do?¡± The Second Demon Elder was panicking.


    ¡°I say we stop him together. When he leaves the mountain, we will intercept him halfway and kill him! If we can¡¯t kill him, we will need to at least take the sword away from him! We can fight against the Pce Master if we work together, so there¡¯s no way we can¡¯t defeat someone at the Eighth River Stage!¡± The Third Demon Elder was still angry about what had happened to himst time.


    The First Demon Elder was worried too. ¡°I think that¡¯s the only way. Prepare yourselves and watch his movements as closely as possible. We must not let Long Chen leave with the sword, or we will perish ...¡±


    ***


    Long Chen finally mastered the Demon Emperor Sword Technique and also received the mask Murong Yu had made. When he put it on, everything about him changed except for his body.


    His mask still made him look like a handsome man, but it was someone older, around twenty-five years old. His face was sharp and mature.


    Murong Yu was very happy with her work. ¡°All you need are some mature-looking clothes and you can pass on as a twenty-five-year-old wandering cultivator.¡±


    ¡°Not bad. I can¡¯t recognize myself.¡±


    ¡°When are you leaving?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow,¡± Long Chen said as he looked at himself in the mirror.


    ¡°Okat. I will see you off tomorrow!¡±


    Just then, Zhao Qingyun appeared. Murong Yu knew they needed some time alone, so she left.


    ¡°Are you leaving tomorrow?¡± Zhao Qingyun didn¡¯t want him to leave.


    ¡°I still need to take my revenge. Also, there¡¯s something I need to do in the imperial capital. Now is the time for me to do so.¡±


    Zhao Qingyun smiled. ¡°Then I won¡¯t stop you. Just be careful. I will wait for the good news of you decimating the imperial family.¡±


    ¡°Master, you¡¯ve helped me so much. What if I gave you the entire kingdom?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°That would be great. I¡¯ve always hated the imperial city. Taking control of the kingdom wouldplete the dream of my ancestors,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a sigh.


    ¡°Then I won¡¯t disappoint you.¡± Long Chen smiled. ¡°Master, do you have any techniques that belong to the Western Sea Kingdom? I need to y that part.¡±


    The Cangyang Kingdom didn¡¯t have someone as strong as Long Chen, so it would be hard to slip in without anyone investigating him.


    ¡°Of course. I have some advanced Earth-tier techniques. You can learn them while you travel.¡± Zhao Qingyun took out some books and gave them to him.


    ¡°Then you can await the good news.¡±


    Long Chen put the book away and stared at the direction of the capital. There was nothing but killing intent in his eyes.

 Chapter 399 - Ambush

    <h4>Chapter 399 - Ambush</h4>


    Zhao Qingyun, Murong Yu, Dongfang Xuanxiao, and Xuanxiao¡¯s wife were the only ones who knew that Long Chen would be leaving. He was worried that he would incur trouble when he left with the Demon Emperor Sword, so he didn¡¯t announce it.


    Long Chen and Xiang bade goodbye to Zhao Qingyun and everyone else.


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, I won¡¯t say much. Just be careful. My baby will be born in five months, so don¡¯t miss it.¡± Dongfang Xuanxiao patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°I understand, Stepfather. I will protect myself ande back safely to celebrate it,¡± Long Chen responded with a chuckle.


    ¡°Remember. Protect your own life above all else. As long as you live, you will have a chance,¡± Xuanming reminded him.


    Zhao Qingyun and Murong Yu had said what they needed to say too.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°You can just send me off here and go back now.¡±


    ¡°No, you leave first. We will go back once we can¡¯t see you anymore.¡± Zhao Qingyun smiled and waved him off.


    ¡°In that case, goodbye!¡± Long Chen was not the type to drag things on. He smiled, then Xiang turned big and Long Chen climbed up onto his back. The man and wolf ran towards the horizon without looking back.


    Xiang¡¯s speed was much faster than before, so he was like a blur while running through the ins. Normal people couldn¡¯t even see him passing by. Long Chen could run even faster if he transformed, but he couldn¡¯tst as long, so he relied on Xiang to travel.


    They were filled with passion and unending energy as they ran towards the capital. Their mood had been sour and filled with dread when they were escaping, but now that they were stronger, they no longer feared the imperial family!


    Long Chen was going to take revenge for not only himself and Ling Xi, but also for Xiang! More importantly, he needed to take the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit and restore Ling Xi¡¯s body. He thought that once he finished everything, he would truly be free to live happily with them.


    They soon left the territory of Demon Emperor Mountain.


    Long Chen looked back at the ce he called home for the past three months. Thanks to his cultivation and trials, he had managed to be a stronger version of himself. Zhao Qingyun and the Heavenly Demon Pce had helped him too much.


    Soon, he arrived at a valley. If he passed through it, he would see a giant in. Once he crossed the ins, he would reach Clear Water City, the ce where he had killed Song Zhongcheng.


    Three months had passed since the incident, and Long Chen didn¡¯t know how to feel about it.


    He was running into the valley happily when Ling Xi warned him about the danger. Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and saw that there were numerous demonic beasts within the valley along with small animals. But there were three extremely powerful souls waiting for him at the top of the valley. Long Chen knew who it was.


    ¡°You dare intercept me here, Demon Elders?¡± Long Chen¡¯s tone was filled with shock. Only a few people knew that he was leaving, so how did the three of them know where to intercept him?


    Long Chen and Xiang stopped and looked upwards. Xiang also felt their presence and howled.


    The three Demon Elders realized that they had been found out, so they came down. The three of them red at Long Chen.


    ¡°How did you know I was leaving?¡± Long Chen was not afraid.


    ¡°Xiaoyu told us. How does it feel to be tricked by your own people?¡± The Third Demon Elder chuckled.


    ¡°Murong Yu?¡± Long Chen did not believe him. Zhao Qingyun and the other two would never sell him out, so Murong Yu was the most probable culprit. Still, she most likely had done it unintentionally. There was no harm in leaking that news anyways.


    ¡°We will deal with you now, Long Chen. You are really famous back in the Heavenly Demon Pce. There was no one who held a candle to you in the history of the Heavenly Demon Pce.¡± The Third Demon Elder chuckled.


    ¡°Yeah, no other disciple managed to stomp your face.¡± Long Chen taunted back.


    The Third Demon Elder was furious. ¡°Long Chen, we are here to take back the Demon Emperor Sword! We had intended to spare you, but now we will kill you!¡±


    ¡°You want to take the sword?¡± Long Chenughed at him. ¡°Stop dreaming. I¡¯m not the same weakling. I will give you three seconds to run away. If you don¡¯t move, I will kill you. The Demon Emperor Sword does not recognize any of you as its owner!¡±


    The Third Demon Elder was infuriated by Long Chen¡¯s defiance. He had never met someone like him before. ¡°You think you are undefeatable just after beating me once? You are an idiot. I would never have lost to you if I hadn''t been careless. Brother, Sister, he¡¯s too stubborn to talk to. He would never give us the sword even if we persuaded him. Let¡¯s kill him!¡±


    The other two had been staring at Long Chen without moving and saw that he was not afraid of them. The Third Demon Elder thought that Long Chen was stupid, but the other two had a bad feeling. They somehow guessed that Long Chen had some hidden cards to be this confident.


    Did he learn the Demon Emperor Sword Technique? They had a very bad feeling. The First Demon Elder shouted, ¡°Attack him together!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s talent was too monstrous, and it threatened their position. They had no choice but to put down their status and attack Long Chen together.


    ¡°Xiang, let me try fighting alone!¡±


    Long Chen was not afraid. He unsheathed the Demon Emperor Sword and transformed. He now had ten times more Qi, almost as much as the three Demon Elders.


    To Long Chen, this was more than enough to defeat the three of them with the Demon Emperor Sword. There was no need to use the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    Why does he have so much more Qi after transforming? The three of them were wary before the First shouted, ¡°Use the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique!¡±


    The three of them were very familiar with that technique, so they used it wlessly. They each had four times more Qi now! Their speed had risen so much that they approached Long Chen instantaneously!


    The three of themunched abined attack that was stronger than what Murong Yu had usedst time! Murong Yu could only use the first stage, but the three of them could use the second!


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow!¡±


    Long Chenughed as he was supported by his Qi. His body became a blur and he could use the technique wlessly, just like the Demon Elders.


    Using Traceless Demon Shadow, Long Chen escaped from the range of their attacks before appearing behind the Second Demon Elder. She was the weakest link, and Long Chen caught onto it. He shed andunched the Demon Emperor Sword Qi towards her!


    ¡°Be careful!¡± the First Demon Elder shouted before he punched the Demon Emperor Sword Qi and fractured it, causing it to scatter like flowers! Long Chen never thought that the First Demon Elder was that strong, and he felt the bacsh. His blood started boiling at this point.


    ¡°Are you trying to escape?¡± Long Chen ignored the damage andunched another Demon Emperor Sword Qi at the escaping Second Demon Elder. Long Chen focused on only attacking her while the other two kept saving her. The Demon Emperor Sword Qi was too strong!

 Chapter 400 - Heaven Devouring Demon

    <h4>Chapter 400 - Heaven Devouring Demon</h4>


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Scattering Fist!¡± The Third Demon Elder blocked the attack once more with his fists. Long Chen¡¯s attacks were surprisingly fierce, and he kept focusing on the Second Demon Elder. The other two had no choice but to help her.


    His fists were scattered around the area like a mad dance and he attacked Long Chen from impossible angles!


    ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for you!¡± Long Chen chuckled. He had been relentlessly attacking the Second Demon Elder, but his real goal was the third! He hated that man a lot, so there was no way he was going to let him walk out of this alive.


    ¡°Demon Seed nting Technique!¡± Long Chen used the Heaven-tier divine technique, and his Qi exploded.


    Long Chen swept his de and forced the first two Demon Elders away. The Third Demon Elder had been charging towards Long Chen, so now he was isted from the other two!


    mes erupted from Long Chen¡¯s body, and all 125 Divine Fire Clones appeared before they surged towards the first two Demon Elders. The two of them were strong, but it would still take time to deal with so many clones! Long Chenughed and swung his sword wildly as he shot out Demon Emperor Sword Qi towards the Third Demon Elder. The sword Qi carved out the rocks on the ground and swept towards him!


    ¡°You were aiming for me!¡± The Third Demon Elder cried out in rm and used Traceless Demon Shadow to dodge the attack before approaching Long Chen again.


    ¡°I know how to use Traceless Demon Shadow better than you! Taste my fist!¡±


    The Third Demon Elder thought Long Chen was looking down at him and shouted in rage. His fury was fueled by the humiliation Long Chen had brought to him from stepping on him. He used Traceless Demon Shadow, and numerous afterimages ran after Long Chen.


    Long Chen felt a dangerous presence and saw that a shadow was converging behind the Third Demon Elder. Thetter circted his Qi and melded the shadow behind him into a fist before sending it towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Heaven Devouring Demon!¡±


    The ground shook from the technique. It was a powerful technique that was enhanced by Traceless Demon Shadow. Long Chen could not see where it wasing from!


    But he knew the solution.


    He probably doesn¡¯t know anything about the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He used it and instantly found the real body.


    Time to end your life. Long Chen saw that the other two were about to escape the encirclement of the Divine Fire Clones, so he used the Traceless Demon Shadow in a hurry and appeared in front of the real Third Demon Elder before swinging his sword.


    ¡°Shadow Sword Technique!¡±


    The Shadow Sword Technique flew past the Third Demon Elder¡¯s attack and destroyed it in the process. With the aid of the Divine Arm, Long Chen stabbed the Third Demon Elder¡¯s heart.


    Time stopped at that moment!


    Everything stopped. The Third Demon Elder stared at Long Chen before looking down to see the Demon Emperor Sword inside his chest.


    ¡°What? You can¡¯t believe that I killed you?¡± Long Chen chuckled and pulled the de out before kicking him away. He then retreated using Traceless Demon Shadow and recalled all of the Divine Fire Clones. The other two Demon Elders finally caught up to them.


    They were shocked at the condition of the Third! The First saw the bloody wound on the Third Demon Elder¡¯s chest and didn¡¯t know what to do. The body gradually grew colder, and the Third Demon Elder died with his eyes wide open in shock.


    ¡°He¡¯s dead ...¡± Neither of them could register what was happening. They red at Long Chen with intense ferocity.


    The First Demon Elder was especially angry. His most prized disciple had been killed by Long Chen, and now his third brother was dead too!


    Long Chen saw their crazed expressions, but he was not afraid. ¡°I actually promised Murong Yu I wouldn¡¯t kill the three of you since you are instrumental to the order of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Even my stepfather didn¡¯t want me to kill you. I killed him as a warning. I am not the Long Chen you knew before. Do not offend me if you want to live. Come, I will kill anyone who steps forward! If you want to die now,e!¡±


    ¡°LONG CHEN, YOU IMPUDENT BASTARD!¡± The Second Demon Elder¡¯s face was twitching.


    ¡°I¡¯m not impudent. You can¡¯t see reality. There¡¯s no such thing as seniors and juniors¡ªonly strong and weak individuals. I might be your junior, but I can kill all of you! We are equals! I don¡¯t want to fight you anymore, but I do not fear you. If you want,e and try resisting the power of the Demon Emperor Sword Technique.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s final word was very scary. He had indeed not used the Demon Emperor Sword Technique yet, yet he had killed the Third Demon Elder. If he had used it, they would¡¯ve all died.


    He was right¡ªhe was young, but he was stronger than them.


    ¡°What should we do?¡± The Second Demon Elder was holding the corpse of the Third.


    The First Demon Elder said nothing.


    ¡°To be fair, I still think that you have contributed a lot to the Heavenly Demon Pce. Considering that as well as your rtionship with my master and Murong Yu, I will let you go. I hope you will cherish your lives.¡±


    Long Chen left with Xiang without even looking back. He ran out of the valley while the two Demon Elders did nothing but watch him leave. Once Long Chen was gone, the First Demon Elder sighed. ¡°Second Sister, it seems we faced a monster today. We¡¯ve lost. Now I know why Zhao Qingyun let him go with the Demon Emperor Sword.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    The First Demon Elder sighed. ¡°Because Zhao Qingyun trusted him. Zhao Qingyun was smarter than us from the very start. He trained Long Chen so much just so he could reap the rewardster on. Looks like Zhao Qingyun is better than us when ites to choosing people. We thought we could win against Zhao Qingyun because we had a lot of disciples, but he only needed a single Long Chen to win against us.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean we lost?¡±


    ¡°No, we might have a chance.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Look at him. He¡¯s already so strong when he¡¯s so young. He will definitely reach the Heavenly Passage Realm before twenty. He would be considered as a genius even at the Holy Divine Territory, so there¡¯s no way he will stay here. Once he leaves, Murong Yu will be the strongest disciple in the kingdom. She¡¯s still your disciple, so the Pce Master position will still fall on her ...¡±


    The Second Demon Elder understood what he meant.


    ¡°But Third Brother won¡¯t be able to witness all of that.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because he was too rash. He lived for so long and yet he couldn¡¯t control his anger.¡± The First Demon Elder shook his head.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go back and plead for mercy from Zhao Qingyun. Long Chen is not someone we can offend. He has all three techniques and even the Demon Emperor Sword, so he can kill anyone below the Heavenly Passage Realm. He can definitely put up a fight against Lin Zichen! I wonder who will win? The wielder of the Demon Emperor Sword or the Imperial Sword?¡±


    That was what everyone wanted to know.


    ***


    Soon after, Long Chen resumed his journey. The Heavenly Demon Pce chapter had been closed, and what awaited him was a storm that would take him further than he wanted.


    Time passed as they journeyed. He put on the mask once they got close to the capital. He was now a twenty-five-year-old seasoned wandering cultivator.


    Xiang shrunk until he could fit in Long Chen¡¯s shirt. Even though Xiang didn¡¯t want to do so, he had to endure it for his revenge. Xiang was too easily recognized; there was only one Sun Devouring Wolf in the world.


    Afterpleting his disguise, Long Chen asked Ling Xi, ¡°Xiao Xi, do you recognize me?¡±


    ¡°I recognize you the moment I look into your eyes.¡± She giggled.


    ¡°What if I dig my eyes out?¡±


    ¡°I would still recognize your spirit and aura. I will always recognize you even if you turned into ashes. You are my one and only Brother Chen!¡± Her voice was tinged with a bit of worry.


    ¡°Alright, then. Let¡¯s go!¡±

 Chapter 401: Eldest Prince

    Chapter 401: Eldest Prince


    After a few days, Long Chen finally saw the Biyang Imperial Capital once more. The beautiful city had not changed. The jade on the walls, buildings, and roofs reflected the sunlight beautifully in the distance.


    Long Chen was standing a kilometer away from the capital as he looked at the thronging crowd entering the city. He was ready to risk his life, but before that, he had something to do first.


    ¡°Come, Ling Xi, we need to enter the Counter Essence Realm to get the Nine Heaven Immortal Fruit. Once we have that, we can focus on defeating the imperial family.¡± Long Chen headed towards the Counter Essence Realm.


    ¡°Brother Chen, must we get it first?¡± She was hesitating.


    ¡°Huh? Are you hesitating now? We came all the way here and went through a lot of difficulties to obtain it. Do you not want the fruit?¡± He was puzzled.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m just afraid that you¡¯ll get hurt.¡± Ling Xi hid her worries away and bluffed. He failed to notice her bluff.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The only one capable of stopping me is the Sword Emperor. Even then, I¡¯m certain that I can escape with my life. The Sword Emperor is at the center of the capital, while I will be heading towards the Counter Essence Realm. He will not be able to get there in time.¡±


    Ling Xi became quiet when she heard that. She was not worried about his safety, but whether using the fruit was a good idea.


    <em>It¡¯s fine. Let him get it before I decide if I should use it or not. I will tell him the truth once he gets it, and I hope he won¡¯t me me ¡­</em> Ling Xi made a bitter decision.


    Long Chen and Ling Xi walked towards the Counter Essence Realm. He had only been there once, but he was familiar with the path. Last time he was following the Heavenly Wolf Gang, but now he was going there alone.


    Halfway through the journey, he heard someone fighting on the road. Long Chen hid himself and slowly approached the fight between two groups of people. One of the groups appeared to be from the pce as they wore the uniforms of the guards. There were seven of them, and each of them was quite strong. They were all protecting someone who looked to be twenty-five years old. The man looked simr to the Ninth Prince, and Long Chen heard the guards refer to him as ¡°Eldest Prince.¡±


    ¡°Xiang, do you have a grudge against the Eldest Prince?¡± Long Chen whispered.


    Long Chen remembered that Xiang had said that the ones he had a grudge against were the Sword Emperor, the Sword Devil, and Lin Zichen.


    Xiang shook his head.


    ¡°No one in the imperial family is good. I will kill him today, but it seems that he¡¯s losing?¡± Long Chen continued observing and saw that the other group of people were covered in ck clothes. They appeared to be expert assassins and were being led by a strong middle-aged man who was about to break through the imperial guards. The man was at the Eighth River Stage, and he was going to kill the Eldest Prince!


    <em>Looks like he has the same objective as me. </em>Long Chen decided to ignore them.


    Just then, the Eldest Prince howled in anger. ¡°Were you sent by Lin Zichen? That damned bastard. Father just said that he was going to choose a sessor, and he actually sent assassins to get me?! Does he think Father is an idiot?¡±


    ¡°Eldest Prince, you are right. We belong to Lin Zichen¡¯s faction, but the idiot is not the Emperor¡ªit¡¯s you. Our lord has always been decisive, and the Emperor loves that. As long as we kill you, no one will stop our lord from ascending to the throne!¡± The men in ck thought they would be able to kill the Eldest Prince here, so they admitted it with ease.


    ¡°Lin Zichen is a martial maniac! He doesn¡¯t know anything about ruling the country! I, Lin Batian, have led the military for so long to secure the borders and remove the country¡¯s threats! I¡¯m also educated and know how to introduce policies to the country. I am the most suitable heir. Lin Zhichen should just focus on his cultivation! If he ascends, the citizens will suffer!¡±


    ¡°Sorry. Our orders were to kill you. You can continue talking to the ghosts in hell.¡± The Eighth River Stage assassin killed the two guards that were blocking Lin Batian and attacked.


    ¡°Sky Dragon Sword Qi!¡± Lin Batian swung his blue sword, and the Qi transformed into a dragon that forced the assassin back!


    ¡°Sword Warriors are indeed strong, but you will still die! Goodbye, Eldest Prince!¡±


    The man roared and his speed doubled. The other guards couldn¡¯t even stop him when he appeared in front of Lin Batian. He punched the sword away before he attacked Lin Batian.


    If his fist collided with Lin Batian¡¯s chest, thetter would die instantly!


    ¡°Eldest Prince!¡± If Lin Batian died, they would all die too! The assassins would leave no witnesses.


    But they couldn¡¯t reach him in time.


    Everyone shouted in despair, but the punch never reached Lin Batian. His fist stopped just ten centimeters away even though he was still holding onto the Prince.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Everyone ran over and saw that a sword had pierced through the assassin¡¯s heart and came out from the back. Blood was gushing out of the wound!


    The Eight River Stage assassin had been killed without warning!


    Everyone was shocked. Lin Batian thought he was dead. He was in despair when he realized the killing blow never came. He opened his eyes and saw that a de was under his armpit and was lodged inside the body of the assassin. The assassin looked down in shock too.


    But his life ended right then and there. He didn¡¯t even manage to see who had killed him.


    The sword retracted and the assassin slumped to the ground slowly. Lin Batian felt a gust of wind blow past him before a flurry of shadows zipped past the remaining assassins. They all cried out in pain and copsed in just a few seconds. The man finally stopped moving.


    It was Long Chen.


    Long Chen put the Star Sword away and looked at the Eldest Prince.


    The reason why he had saved the Prince was because he had heard what they were talking about. Long Chen had a rough guess of what was going on in the capital. He had no idea that the imperial pce was looking for a sessor to the throne at the same time as the Heavenly Demon Pce was looking for the next Pce Master. On the one hand was the strong Lin Zichen, and on the other was the talented Lin Batian.


    Lin Batian could not catch up to Lin Zichen in strength, so he had decided to learn a lot of things that Lin Zichen could never excel in. Long Chen had a daring thought. All Lin Batian needed was someone strong to protect him. This could give him a chance to slip into the pce and kill some of the stronger individuals to create chaos.


    ¡°Thank you for saving my life! May I know your name?¡± Lin Batian was secretly happy to be alive, but he needed to stay calm and suppress his excitement. He intended to recruit Long Chen.


    ¡°No need to learn my name. I like helping others, and I can¡¯t ept that Lin Zichen is killing others just because he has a little bit of power. Just don¡¯t tell anyone else about me! Goodbye!¡± Long Chen then turned around.


    ¡°Wait, since you don¡¯t like Lin Zichen, could you help me? He only knows how to cultivate and is clueless when ites to ruling a kingdom. If he takes the throne, everyone will suffer. I hope that you consider my offer and help the kingdom!¡±


    ¡°I cannot afford to help everyone Ie across. I¡¯m sure you understand. Goodbye!¡± Long Chen was bluffing.


    ¡°Please help me. Once it''s done, I will give you anything you want as long as it''s within my capacity!¡± Lin Batian kneeled on the ground and begged him. If the lives of others could not attract Long Chen, then he would use riches.


    Lin Batian knew Long Chen was an expert after seeing him kill the Eighth River Stage assassin in one attack. Lin Batian would regret it if he let someone like that leave his grasp.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hehehe. nting the seeds of revolution right now.</blockquote>

 Chapter 402: Sneaking Into the Counter Essence Realm

    Chapter 402: Sneaking Into the Counter Essence Realm


    Hearing Lin Batian''s earnest begging, Long Chen pretended to think about it. ¡°Fine, I will think about it. Once I¡¯ve decided that I will help you, I will head to the Red Sun Inn in the capital. You just need to look out for me there. If I¡¯m there, that means I¡¯ve epted your offer.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t even give him time to talk and disappeared without a trace. Lin Batian looked up and was surprised to see that Long Chen was gone! The only thing on his mind was the Red Sun Inn.


    Lin Batian took a deep breath and called for the strongest guard. ¡°Chen Xiong,e here.¡±


    ¡°My Lord, what is it?¡± The youth called Chen Xiong approached the Prince.


    ¡°Do you know of anyone in the Cangyang Kingdom at that age who is very close to the Ninth River Stage? That man was incredibly strong, but I¡¯ve never heard of him before.¡±


    ¡°My Lord, there is only one who has reached the Ninth River Stage before the age of twenty-five, and that¡¯s the Fourth Prince. There seems to be one more person called Yang Danfeng who¡¯s at the Eighth River Stage, but he doesn¡¯t look like the man just now. Yang Danfeng would also never appear here.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s mysterious, but his strength is the real deal. Chen Xiong, do you think he would help me?¡±


    ¡°My Lord, he will most likely help you. He would¡¯ve just left if he didn¡¯t want to, but he talked about a meeting ce.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good. My brother is cocky because of his strength, but that¡¯s all he has. If I can find someone to match his strength, he will be at a disadvantage! We need to return now. This ce is too unsafe!¡±


    ¡°My Lord, what should we do to them? Should we show them to the Emperor and me the Fourth Prince?¡±


    ¡°No! Let him be surprised. Let him know that it¡¯s not that simple to kill me. We can¡¯t be too obvious. I am weak, so my father never considered me as important as Lin Zichen. If my name gets too famous, he will feel revolted. We will wait until that man joins us!¡±


    Lin Batian was not a fool.


    ¡°My Lord, you are too wise!¡±


    ***


    ¡°Brother Chen, are you nning on slipping into the pce using the Eldest Prince?¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t decided yet. I¡¯m only preparing just in case. have apletely different identity, so I can do whatever I want as long as I don¡¯t reveal myself. But let¡¯s see if I can get the Nine Heaven Immortal Fruit first. I might be confident, but I¡¯m also very prudent.¡±


    Long Chen soon arrived at Counter Essence City. It was still the same¡ªnormal people had difficulty entering and exiting due to therge number of guards.


    <em>I¡¯ve already shown my face to Lin Batian. There¡¯s a chance that I will expose myself if he learns that I came here, so I need to hide my face.</em> Long Chen took a piece of cloth and covered his face. It was the same piece of cloth that was worn by the assassin.


    He then changed his outfit.


    ¡°Xiang, you can¡¯t follow me this time. It¡¯s too risky because you are too recognizable. You don¡¯t have to stay here either. Instead, you should wait for me in that direction, ten Li away. Can you do that? I can escape with Blood Warp, so don¡¯t worry about me.¡± Long Chen pointed in a direction.


    He could indeed escape, but he couldn¡¯t bring Xiang with him if he used Blood Warp. It was safer for Xiang to hide somewhere further away.


    Xiang nodded and disappeared in the direction. Long Chen then focused on the city.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, let¡¯s go. I couldn¡¯t get itst time, but I will get it this time.¡± He was ready.


    ¡°Okay!¡± Ling Xi nodded, but Long Chen couldn¡¯t see how worried she was because she was in the ear stud. The Nine Heaven Immortal Fruit was something she had coveted in the past, but now it was the object of her worries.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and approached the city. Rather than using the main entrance, he used Traceless Demon Shadow to scale the wall. He used it in conjunction with the Soul Swallowing Gaze to find the weakest part of the wall before entering, so no one noticed him.


    He found a section of the wall where there were no guards and entered the city from there. He then quickly hid himself in a house. When he came out, he was wearing the uniform of an Immortal Guard as well as the token. Long Chen had kept his identity token, and he was certain that no one would bother checking it.


    Long Chen walked on the street and found Sorrow Moon Lake. He then plunged into it without any hesitation.


    There were numerous exits, but he chose the one that led to Area Eighteen of the Elementary Zone. The exit that led to the Advanced Zone was being guarded, and they would always check the identity of those entering, so Long Chen avoided it like the gue.


    The flowing water enveloped him and surged forward. When he opened his eyes, he was once again in the Counter Essence Realm. The fragrant scent of herbs reached his nose.


    Long Chen noticed that the destruction left by the previous stampede waspletely cleared away and the elementary-tier spiritual herbs were growing again. Yellow-tier herbs were everywhere, while ck-tier herbs could be found every few steps. The Earth-tier herbs were being guarded too.


    This was where he had killed Song Yuefeng, and also the start of his escape. Rather than staying here, Long Chen used his fastest speed to zip past the guards while avoiding them using the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He headed straight towards the Advanced Zone, where the herb he needed could be found.


    He realized that the Soul Swallowing Gaze was too strong. He could see all of life within a single Li and could use it to avoid everyone. With it, he moved undetected towards the Advanced Zone.


    But the deeper he went, the more bizarre he felt. Something was trembling in the space, but he didn¡¯t know what it was. The closer he got to the center, the stronger the trembling got.


    ¡°What is happening ¡­¡± Long Chen stopped and checked his body, but he found nothing.


    <em>Looks like something deep in the Advanced Zone is affecting me, but what is it? Is it the Nine Heaven Immortal Fruit?</em>


    He thought that it was very likely.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, do you feel something strange?¡±


    ¡°No, everything is fine.¡±


    <em>Maybe I¡¯m overthinking. </em>He continued his advance until he reached the Intermediate Zone. He proceeded further until came across a narrow river separating the Intermediate and the Advanced Zone. The river was projecting a wall of light that blocked him.


    ¡°Looks like a seal that separates the zones ¡­ Maybe the Advanced Zone is protected by it.¡± Ling Xi looked at the seal and was even more excited then how Xiang was when he saw the Fire Essence.


    ¡°How can I break it?¡± All seals were useless in front of Ling XI.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple. You can just break it with your Demon Emperor Sword, but it will sound the rm and everyone will rush here. I need to let you slip in without breaking it.¡±


    ¡°Can you do it?¡± Long Chen frowned. There were people guarding the exit to the Advanced Zone, and now there was a wall of light. He would¡¯ve never been able to slip past it quietly without Ling Xi here.


    ¡°Of course. Wait here patiently and give me some time.¡± She started working on the wall. Some timeter, she shouted, ¡°I did it!¡±


    She had created a small opening around a meter in diameter. Long Chen ran through it without a second thought and reached the Advanced Zone. He looked back and saw that the hole was slowly closing.


    ¡°Am I incredible?¡±


    ¡°Not bad. You are indeed my little Ling Xi. Once you get your body back, I will make sure to reward you for your efforts! Haha.¡± Long Chenughed.


    ¡°Idiot ¡­¡± Ling Xi blushed.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ma! They are being lovey-dovey again!</blockquote>

 Chapter 403: Bloodseal Lotus

    Chapter 403: Bloodseal Lotus


    Long Chen looked at the zone after he teased Ling Xi. The spiritual energy in the air was denser here than in the Intermediate Zone. The mist in the sky was thicker too. There was even white mist on the ground. It was very simr to thend of the immortals as depicted in legends.


    But what marked the ce to be different from the lower two zones was that there were fewer herbs. Most of them were advanced Earth-tier herbs.


    Long Chen also felt the trembling increase in intensity. He had a feeling that something was calling out to him, but he didn¡¯t know what it was.


    <em>I need to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit no matter what. The rest can be done after I get it. </em>He wasted no time and used Soul Swallowing Gaze to find his way around the ce. There were a lot of intermediate Earth-tier spiritual herbs that no one was watching. Only the advanced Earth-tier ones were being guarded. Long Chen avoided several groups of guards and decided it was not worth it to pluck the advanced Earth-tier spiritual herbs. They were not that important to him in the first ce.


    But it would be different if he found a Heaven-tier spiritual herb, as those were very valuable.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, what tier is the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?¡± Long Chen suddenly asked.


    ¡°Elementary Heaven-tier.¡±


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, there should be a lot of people guarding it.¡± Long Chen nodded. It was as he had expected. Only a Heaven-tier spiritual herb could recover her body.


    Long Chen approached the ces with a lot of guards carefully after knowing what to look for. He was now deep inside the Advanced Zone. Thanks to the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he was able to see everything. He zipped around before seeing a group of people towards the south.


    <em>There are two Eighth River Stage cultivators and several Seven River Stage cultivators there.</em><em>Looks like the imperial pce is stronger than I thought. The three noble families were antspared to the imperial family.</em>


    Most of the strongest Immortal Beasts inside the Counter Essence Realm, the Category Nine Heavens-tier beasts, had been killed by the Sword Devil and Lin Zichen, so it was highly unlikely one would appear again. Two Eighth River Stage guards were considered one of the strongest groups, and it was likely that they were guarding the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Long Chen had seen that one of the advanced Earth-tier spiritual herbs with strong medicinal properties was only guarded by a few Seventh River Stage cultivators.


    He slowly approached them.


    ¡°I¡¯ve smelled it. It¡¯s not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, but it¡¯s definitely an Elementary Heaven-tier spiritual herb,¡± Ling Xi suddenly said when they were two hundred meters away.


    ¡°What is it, then?¡± Long Chen frowned. Still, a Heaven-tier spiritual herb was a good thing even if it was not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    ¡°It¡¯s a Bloodseal Lotus. It¡¯s a spiritual herb that, after ingestion, can greatly enhance one''s vitality and physique. While it doesn¡¯t increase one¡¯s strength directly, it nurtures one¡¯s organs and greatly boosts all aspects of their physical fitness. Consuming it basically gives one the powerful vitality of a demonic beast," Ling Xi exined in detail.


    "So it¡¯s really good?" Long Chen asked softly.


    "Indeed, the Bloodseal Lotus can enhance your physique and even greatly increase your explosive power. Of course, it must at least be paired with a Heaven-tier Body Tempering technique, though I don¡¯t know if there are any Heaven-tier martial techniques in the Cangyang Kingdom!¡±


    "Xiao Xi, how long until the Bloodseal Lotus matures?" Long Chen was more concerned about this.


    "It matured long ago. However, Heaven-tier spiritual herbs have the greatest effect if ingested directly after harvesting. The efficacy will decrease if it''s plucked. If consumed several years after, the effect will be reduced by at least half. The imperial family treats the Counter Essence Realm as their backyard, so they left the Bloodseal Lotus here. It¡¯s also possible that other Heaven-tier spiritual herbs are already mature, including the Nine Heavens Immortal Spirit Fruit," Ling Xi said.


    "So you mean I can harvest it?" Long Chen''s eyes lit up.


    "Brother Chen, do you want to harvest it? Aren''t you afraid of causing amotion?" Ling Xi asked.


    Long Chen thought for a moment and said, "Well, let''s wait until I find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit first. Then we cane back. Let''s go."


    Ling Xi knew that Long Chen wanted the Bloodseal Lotus, but his priority was the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, which made Ling Xi feel even more appreciated.


    But what would happen after they obtained the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?


    Ling Xi was confused.


    They would never meet again.


    She was afraid of that.


    While she was lost in thought, Long Chen continued scouting the area. He noted the location of the Bloodseal Lotus and then decided which direction to go next.


    <em>It''s that direction ¡­ Something is attracting me. I hope it''s the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit,</em> Long Chen thought in his heart as he subconsciously headed in that direction.


    The direction he was heading in was actually the center of the Advanced Zone.


    Thanks to the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen didn''t have to worry about being discovered. He ran past many advanced Earth-tier spiritual herbs along the way, but he didn''t see any Heaven-tier spiritual herbs again. It seemed there were not more than five of them in the Counter Essence Realm.


    The closer he got to the center of the zone, the stronger Long Chen''s trembling became. He felt something strange about his body, but he couldn''t figure out exactly what it was.


    "Xiao Xi, do you feel anything wrong?" Long Chen was really confused.


    "I really don''t, Brother Chen. Do you feel something? Tell me about it."


    "I¡¯m not sure. It''s just ahead. Let''s keep going!"


    Long Chen continued on his way. After about half an hour, he once again used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to see that there were many Immortal Guards ahead guarding another spiritual herb. This time, there were no Seventh River Stage guards, but three Eighth River Stage guards!


    <em>Three Eighth River Stage guards ¡­ It¡¯s very likely to be the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit! </em>Long Chen was excited and hurried ahead. The temptation of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit made him forget about that strange feeling.


    About two hundred meters away, Long Chen nervously asked, "Xiao Xi, do you feel it? Is it the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?"


    Ling Xi frowned for a while before answering, "It¡¯s not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, but another Heaven-tier spiritual herb called the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit! The Eight Deste Dragon Fruit is said to grow at the ce where the ancient dragon, the Eight Deste Fire Dragon, died. It grows by absorbing the essence of the Eight Deste Fire Dragon. Not only does it contain the essence of the ancient dragon, which can enhance one''s physique andprehension, but the fire attribute energy within it can enhance the fire power of whoever consumes it. If Xiang ate it, he could reach the Category Nine Earth-tier!¡±


    "Another amazing herb! And it also has great benefits for Xiang. Unfortunately, I can''t steal it before getting the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit." Long Chen sighed.


    Upon discovering that it was the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit instead of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, Long Chen felt somewhat disappointed. Just at this moment, he suddenly felt a powerful force pressing down on his head. He quickly looked up and saw the dense, white clouds in the sky dispersing. In just a few breaths, the vast sky was revealed just above him!


    "What''s going on?"


    Long Chen was confused. He then saw arge, translucent rune appear in the empty sky!


    The rune was strange. He looked closely and saw that it was shimmering with white light.


    Following that, a dragon roar shook the heavens and the earth. Then the rune rotated rapidly and transformed into a huge, translucent ancient dragon!


    It didn''t look very different from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, but Long Chen could tell that they were twopletely different dragons! The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was ferocious and bloodthirsty, while this dragon gave people a strange illusory feeling!


    Long Chen''s mind shook when he saw the dragon.


    "Xiao Xi! Did you notice that the dragon shadow in the sky is exactly the same as the dragon-shaped rune I found before?!" Long Chen was horrified. He finally realized why he felt like something was trembling. It wasn''t him, but the mysterious stone talisman in his Universe Pouch!


    "It seems so..." Ling Xi was also stunned at this moment.


    While Long Chen was shocked, the dragon in the sky suddenly looked towards Long Chen. Two illusory rays of light burst out of its eyes and entered Long Chen''s eyes!


    Long Chen suddenly felt a tremor in his mind! At this moment, the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant in his sea of consciousness trembled!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hmmm... Interesting development</blockquote>

 Chapter 404: Eight Desolate Dragon Fruit

    Chapter 404: Eight Deste Dragon Fruit


    The Dragon Jade even reacted to it. This indicated that there was something special about the dragon illusion in the sky! When the dancing dragon''s eyes projected a ray of light into Long Chen''s eyes, Long Chen felt the entire world disappear. He looked around in shock and found himself in the middle of a river. The substance flowing in the river was not water, but strange, invisible ripples. The invisible ripples were like gusts of wind rushing past him, never to return.


    As the ripples flowed past him, Long Chen felt his body rapidly aging. Wrinkles gradually appeared on his skin, his back became bent, his white hair turned pale, and his strength disappeared. It was apletely irresistible force!


    Long Chen was a helpless bystander, unable to stop his rapid aging. The river flowed quickly, and he soon aged beyond recognition. His body weakened and hisst breath left his body before he realized he was dead.


    "Ahh!"


    Long Chen woke up in shock, looking around to find himself back in the Counter Essence Realm. The strange river around him had disappeared. He quickly checked his body and found that there was no change at all. He was still fine! He hadn''t aged at all, and everything appeared to be just an illusion.


    However, it was quite a terrifying experience.


    At this moment, Long Chen noticed that the translucent dragon in the sky was no longer looking at him but was flying around above his head. Due to its presence, the three guards protecting the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit, who were at the Eighth River Stage, all noticed Long Chen!


    This earth-shattering anomaly was very likely rted to Long Chen. They immediately rushed over, and one of them looked at Long Chen and shouted, "Who are you? Show me your identity token!"


    If these three guys weren''t killed, it would cause a hugemotion. Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to see that there was no one within a single Li. He quickly made up his mind. Now that the dragon had exposed him, the only way out was to kill them all.


    Without hesitation, Long Chen unsheathed the Demon Emperor Sword and rushed towards one of the guards. At this moment, even without using the Dragon Soul Transformation or the Demon Seed nting Technique, he had about four times more Qi than them, so his speed was far beyond theirs!


    "Demon Emperor Sword Qi!" Long Chen''s eyes were cold as he wildlyshed out. The Immortal Guard at the front was taken aback and hurriedly defended himself. However, he couldn''t stop the Demon Emperor Sword Qi. His Intermediate Earth-tier defensive technique was instantly broken by Long Chen. The Demon Emperor Sword Qi directly hit him and cut him in half!


    He died instantly.


    "The Demon Emperor Sword! You are from the Heavenly Demon Pce!"


    "Brother Zhang!"


    The two Eighth River Stage warriors shouted. They cooperated with each other to take down Long Chen. One of them used all his techniques to attack while the other took out the horn from his waist. Since Long Chen refused to show his identity token and was wearing a mask, he was obviously not from the imperial family! The guard needed to alert the others.


    "Shadow Sword Technique!" Long Chen didn''t give them a chance. He used Traceless Demon Shadow and disappeared. The two Eighth River Stage warriors couldn''t resist Long Chen''s fierce attacks, so he easily killed the one fighting him. The one who was about to blow the horn suddenly saw a ck shadow sh in front of him. Horrified, he punched out to defend himself, but it was toote. Long Chen''s Demon Emperor Sword pierced through his horn, stabbed into his throat, and cut through his neck!


    The three Eighth River Stage guards had been killed before they could blow the horn. Long Chen didn''t stop there though. He immediately picked the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit!


    "With the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit, Xiang will definitely be able to reach the Category Nine Earth-tier. No one will be able to stop us when we storm the pce.¡± Long Chen carefully ced the hot and fiery red fruit into a jade box and then into his Universe Pouch.


    Just as he was opening his Universe Pouch, a ray of light flew past Long Chen''s eyes. He had forgotten about the dragon in the sky because he had been focused on killing the three Immortal Guards. The ray of light flew out of his Universe Pouch and rushed towards the dragon in the sky!


    The translucent divine dragon let out an earth-shattering roar, and its huge body swiftly wrapped around the mysterious stone talisman. It rapidly spun and gradually turned invisible. At this moment, Long Chen had a feeling that the translucent dragon and the mysterious stone talisman were actually rted.


    "Brother Chen, I know what''s going on. I said before that the stone talisman lost its spiritual energy and became useless. Now I understand. The dragon just now is actually the spirit of the stone talisman. They were separated by some force, and now they are fusing again. If the fusion is sessful, you might obtain another treasure!" Lingxi eximed excitedly!


    "Is that true?" Long Chen was also very surprised, but he had his worries. He had caused such a bigmotion but still hadn''t found the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Although he had the stone talisman, no matter how precious it was, it was not as important to Long Chen as the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit!


    <em>Well, since it''s already caused such amotion, let''s just make it bigger. It¡¯s not like anyone in the Counter Essence Realm can beat me. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit or even the Bloodseal Lotus if I just search the entire ce!</em> Long Chen decided not to be stealthy anymore.


    The fusion of the stone talisman and the dragon-shaped rune exceeded Long Chen''s expectations. He would never have thought that such a situation would ur!


    Lingxi had said that it was a treasure, and the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant in his sea of consciousness was still reacting to it. The Dragon Jade Pendant was the most mysterious object on Long Chen''s body, with the ability to suppress even the Inherited Blood Essence of the Dragon Ancestor. It was the most incredible gift he had received from Long Qinn.


    He still needed to keep his identity a secret even though he was going to cause a ruckus. That meant he needed to kill anyone who recognized him.


    Long Chen had no mercy for the imperial family. He would have died countless times during his escape from the capital if it weren''t for his luck. Now he was here for revenge against the imperial family, and the first step was killing the Sword Devil!


    Just as Long Chen thought of the Sword Devil, a figure swiftly approached him. He knew that it was the Sword Devil. Long Chen had always intended to go to him, but he hade instead!


    Just a few breathster, the Sword Devil appeared in front of Long Chen. His eyes were like sharp swords. He first looked at the mysterious situation in the sky, then immediately shifted his gaze to Long Chen. His voice was filled with killing intent when he asked, "Kid, who are you?"


    "Someone who''s here to take your life!" Long Chen smirked and attacked the Sword Devil!


    "A mere Eighth River Stage cultivator actually dares to be arrogant in front of me? What has this worlde to?" The Sword Devil chuckled coldly. His arms shook and his Universe Pouch opened. Numerous ck swords shot outwards and floated in front of the Sword Devil.


    Long Chen saw a total of nine ck swords!


    "Surprised, aren''t you? This is my exclusive technique, the Nine Heaven Battle Swords! I can control nine swords to attack you. How could you possibly oppose me?" the Sword Devil exined with a chuckle.


    He held one sword in each hand, while the other swords were suspended around him. This method of controlling swords in midair was extraordinary!


    It seemed that the Sword Devil''s Qi wascking, but his control over the swords was extraordinary since he could control so many using only his Qi!


    Since the guy imed to be a devil, there had to be something amazing about him!


    Long Chen had put away the Demon Emperor Sword after he killed the three guards earlier. This time, however, he didn''t take out the Demon Emperor Sword, but the Star Sword. He wanted to try killing the Sword Devil without exposing himself. If he had to reveal his identity, then he had to kill the opponent without fail!


    "You want to fight all nine of my advanced Earth-tier swords with one advanced Earth-tier sword? Let me tell you, the Nine Heaven Battle Swords is the strongest technique in the Cangyang Kingdom. Apart from the Emperor Sword, other sword techniques are nothingpared to the Nine Heaven Battle Swords!"


    "You''ll find out soon enough whether I¡¯m weak or not." Long Chen smirked. He estimated that the entire Counter Essence Realm knew what was happening at this point. However, people from the Elementary and Intermediate Zones couldn''te over, so there was no one within a Li radius of Long Chen. His goal was to kill the Sword Devil before anyone showed up and extract information about the Nine Heaven Immortal Fruit from him!


    Time was of the essence!


    With this in mind, Long Chen didn¡¯t hesitate anymore. He held up the Star Sword and suddenly attacked the Sword Devil!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Revenge!</blockquote>

 Chapter 405: Nine Heavens Battle Sword

    Chapter 405: Nine Heavens Battle Sword


    "You insolent fool!" Seeing that Long Chen dared to provoke him and even killed three Eighth River Stage Immortal Guards, the Sword Devil was truly angry. However, he also had a very important question in his mind: who exactly was Long Chen?


    <em>As long as I kill you, I can find out who you are. Do you think you can hide your identity from me?</em> The Sword Devil did not hold back.


    Long Chen had already approached him. The Star Sword instantly rose and turned into countless images that shed towards the opponent. The residual images shrouded over the Sword Devil''s head and ripped through the air.


    "A trivial trick." The Sword Devil sneered. His eyes flickered, and his nine swords moved vigorously and emitted sharp whistling sounds. The swords arranged themselves in a circr formation in front of the Sword Devil!


    "Let me show you my technique! Let¡¯s see if you survive this!¡± The Sword Devilughed madly, and his Ninth River Stage Qi erupted. Streams of Qi extended from his body and connected to the nine swords, which started to rotate violently!


    "Nine Heaven Battle Swords!¡±


    He used his Qi to position the rotating swords to form a huge cone, and the tip was aimed at Long Chen¡¯s Star Sword!


    <em>ng! ng! ng!</em>


    The sound of weapons shing erupted wildly. Long Chen could feel the impact shattering the Star Sword. The broken shrapnel exploded and shot outwards!


    "Die!" All of this was within the Sword Devil''s expectations. He had nned to shatter Long Chen¡¯s sword using the nine advanced Earth-tier swords. As long as continued his attack, Long Chen would die.


    However, he had underestimated Long Chen.


    Losing the Star Sword made Long Chen realize that he wouldn¡¯t be able to kill the Sword Devil without revealing his identity. If he wanted to survive, he had to expose who he was. Also, he had to kill the Sword Devil in a very short time!


    Watching the nine swords about to pierce his body, what Long Chen felt was not despair but rather excitement. His body suddenly swayed and he avoided the attack of the Nine Heaven Battle Swords. The swords circled back to the Sword Devil. During this time, Long Chen''s body rapidly transformed. Blood-red scales quickly covered his body and he assumed his strongest form.


    "Soul Beast Transformation, blood-red dragon scales?" The Sword Devil was extremely surprised when Long Chen evaded his attack, and seeing Long Chen¡¯s transformed form reminded him of something. He rapidly searched his memories and was stunned when he remembered who Long Chen was.


    The events that took ce three months ago. Although the Sword Devil was stationed in Counter Essence City, he was well aware of what had transpired. More importantly, he had seen Long Chen before. Long Chen had killed the guards and escaped from the Counter Essence Realm, and what he had done during his escape had astonished the Sword Devil. He only knew that Long Chen had been rescued by the Heavenly Demon Pce, and now he was back?


    The Sword Devil actually felt a slight chill run down his spine.


    "You are Long Chen! What you just used looked like one of the three secret techniques of the Heavenly Demon Pce, Traceless Demon Shadow!" The Sword Devil''s mind was filled with unimaginable horror.


    Long Chen didn''t answer him. Instead, he immediately followed up with the Demon Seed nting Technique. His Qi soared again, surpassing that of the Sword Devil!


    "Demon Seed nting Technique!" This time, the Sword Devil was truly shocked. Long Chen had only fled to the Heavenly Demon Pce three months ago, yet he had already learned two of the Heavenly Demon Pce''s secret techniques. Aplishing so much in such a short time was unheard of! What kind of cultivation had Long Chen gone through?


    "Long Chen, you came back to the Biyang Imperial City for revenge, right? Unfortunately, you ran into me first! Even though you know Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique, your attacks are only at the level of the Eighth River Stage. Now that your identity is exposed, you are doomed to die!" The Sword Devilughed wildly.


    "Is that so? Then here''s something even more surprising..." At this moment, Long Chen opened his eyes shrouded in ck mist. He had far more Qi than the Sword Devil!


    "More surprising?" The Sword Devil didn¡¯t know what to expect, but then he saw Long Chen gradually pull out a Divine Arm enveloped in demonic energy! When the Sword Devil the sword, his mind went nk, and he muttered in a daze, "Demon... Emperor... Sword..."


    When Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword, the Sword Devil''s heart fell from heaven to hell. The Heavenly Demon Pce had three secret techniques, and the most precious was the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. Long Chen had proven that he was capable of utilizing two of them, and he had the Demon Emperor Sword in his possession. The Sword Devil refused to believe that Long Chen didn''t have the Demon Emperor Sword Technique!


    In other words, Long Chen had received theplete inheritance from the Heavenly Demon Pce. He only needed to elevate his cultivation level to the Heavenly Passage Realm, and he would be another Heavenly Demon Pce Master like Zhao Qingyun!


    Long Chen was undoubtedly supremely talented, or he wouldn¡¯t have aplished so much in so little time. And now that he had been given adequate resources and power, the Sword Devil didn¡¯t know what would happen. He stared at the terrifying Demon Emperor Sword, unable to utter a single word!


    When Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword, he was ready to take the Sword Devil''s life!


    "You destroyed my Star Sword just now. I''ve used that sword for some time. So..." When Long Chen said this, he suddenly used Traceless Demon Shadow. Instantly, his body split into a million shadows, making it impossible to distinguish which was real and which was fake. His attacks instantly descended upon the Sword Devil''s head!


    "Impossible!" The Sword Devil refused to ept that he would lose here, but that didn''t stop him from desperately trying to save himself. At this moment, he suddenly focused on the Nine Heaven Battle Swords and circted his Qi. The swords howled as they swirled around furiously and lunged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Nine Heavens Battle Swords, Heaven and Earth Evisceration!¡±


    The swords flew towards Long Chen with great force one by one. Each of them was like a massive w that threatened to tear him apart.


    <em>Such a fierce attack! Even the First Demon Elder might not be able to withstand it!</em>


    Long Chen secretly admired the technique. Although there were only two members of the imperial family at the Ninth River Stage, both were extraordinary individuals. With the Sword Devil''s strength, he could probably match the First Demon Elder. The First Demon Elder excelled in the Demon Seed nting Technique, while the Sword Devil was obviously skilled in attacking!


    However, Long Chen was so strong that he overwhelmed the Sword Devil in every aspect!


    "Demon Emperor Sword Qi!" After evading the Sword Devil''s attack, Long Chen suddenly swung his sword, and ck Sword Qi collided with the Nine Heaven Battle Swords. The tremendous power even caused an explosion!


    <em>ng! ng! ng!</em>


    This time, the situation waspletely opposite to thest time. Long Chen''s Star Sword had been shredded in the previous sh, but now four of the Sword Devil¡¯s swords were shattered by Long Chen''s Demon Emperor Sword. If the Sword Devil hadn''t hurriedly withdrawn the remaining five swords in a panic, they would probably have all been destroyed!


    "Long Chen, these swords are even more important than my life! You actually destroyed them!" The Sword Devil cherished his swords as much as his life. After Long Chen destroyed four of them, he let out a roar in rage. At this point, he quit trying to figure out how Long Chen had be so powerful and focused only on killing him!


    "Die!" The Sword Devil''s eyes were bloodshot now, and his Qi surged violently. To Long Chen¡¯s surprise, the five swords merged into one!


    "My swords can fuse into a Divine Arm at the Elementary Heaven-tier. Long Chen, it''s all your fault. You made me lose my Heaven-tier Divine Arm. You will pay with your life! Let me show you the Heaven-tier sword technique of the imperial family!"


    The Sword Devil let out a roar. Now with only a single sword, he shot towards Long Chen. He swung his sword violently, and a sky-rending ray of Sword Qi surged forth. The Qi shed toward Long Chen diagonally! This massive attack was at least ten times stronger than his previous one!


    This was undoubtedly the Sword Devil''s most powerful move!


    "Die! Imperial Heaven Sword!"


    The overbearing Sword Qi seemed powerful enough to tear the heavens and earth apart. Long Chen could feel that the entire Counter Essence Realm trembling!


    "You only know a single Heaven-tier sword technique?" Long Chen chuckled and took a few steps back. While retreating, ck mist began to envelop the Demon Emperor Sword. It gradually transformed into a long snake entwining the Demon Emperor Sword. At this moment, Long Chen''s expression remained calm and his aura erupted with a loud bang, then he suddenly swung his sword!


    The world instantly lost all color and the heavens were turned upside down!


    "Demon Emperor Sword Technique... Supreme Emperor Sword!"


    With this move, an even more terrifying Sword Qi erupted, and it was aimed directly at the Sword Devil''s Imperial Heaven Sword!


    The Supreme Emperor Sword was the first technique of the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. Since Long Chen had almost as much Qi as a cultivator the Heavenly Passage Realm, the attack was exceedingly strong!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Let''s gooooooo</blockquote>

 Chapter 406: Supreme Emperor Sword

    Chapter 406: Supreme Emperor Sword


    When Long Chen used the Supreme Emperor Sword, despair shed in the eyes of the Sword Devil. But soon, it was overshadowed by his madness. He roared furiously and used all of his Qi. He wanted to take Long Chen down with him!


    <em>This kid is only at the Eighth River Stage. How could he unleash such a powerful technique? The momentum of the Supreme Emperor Sword is even more terrifying than my Imperial Heaven Sword!</em>


    As this thought shed through the mind of the Sword Devil, the Imperial Heaven Sword and the Supreme Emperor Sword shed, causing the entire Counter Essence Realm to tremble violently. For a moment, the world lost its color. The dense, white clouds in the sky dispersed and all the spiritual herbs around them turned into powder in that instant!


    "Break!" Long Chen roared. The ck sword Qi emitted by the Demon Emperor Sword shattered the Imperial Heaven Sword. With a loud explosion, the sword in the Sword Devil''s hand turned into fragments. Long Chen¡¯s attack forced the shrapnel into the Sword Devil¡¯s body, covering him in cuts and blood. Then the attack of the Demon Emperor Sword finally descended upon the Sword Devil and violently sent him flying backward. Although Long Chen didn''t kill the Sword Devil immediately, the attack had inflicted a life-threatening injury!


    In a real showdown of strength, the Sword Devil was no match for Long Chen. Long Chen had suppressed himpletely!


    When the dust settled, Long Chen caught the Sword Devil and pressed him onto the ground. The Sword Devil''s vision was blurry and his whole body was in excruciating pain. His internal organs were almost shattered, and there wasn''t a single intact bone in his body. The pieces of his broken sword were pushed deeper into his body and heavily mutted him.


    "Long Chen..." With one remaining eye, the Sword Devil looked at Long Chen. He had never imagined that he would die at the hands of such a young man. Seeing the cold expression on this young man''s face, he realized how terrifying Long Chen truly was.


    This young man had killed Song Yuefeng, the Ninth Prince, the sixmanders, and even Song Zhongcheng! Long Chen seemed like a legend, and another aplishment had been added to the list. The Sword Devil shuddered to think what kind of conflict would erupt in the imperial city.


    The Sword Devil felt that he was just the first. In the future, Long Chen would kill many more people. With Long Chen''s current strength, he could confront Lin Zichen, who was even more powerful than the Sword Devil. Long Chen was indeed powerful, but Lin Zichen couldn¡¯t be written off. No one knew who was stronger ¡­


    The only thing the Sword Devil didn''t understand was why Long Chen hadn''t killed him immediately.


    At that moment, Long Chen pressed him down and leaned close to the Sword Devil. "Tell me, where is the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?"


    "No way..." Although he didn''t know what Long Chen wanted to do with the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, there was absolutely no way he would give him what he wanted.


    The phrase "no way" indicated that there was definitely a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit here. Otherwise, the Sword Devil wouldn''t have said that.


    "Think carefully. Tell me the location of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Otherwise, I will take away all the spiritual herbs and kill all of the Immortal Guards here until I find it. I will get my hands on it one way or another. Choose," Long Chen threatened.


    The Sword Devil''s lifelong duty was to guard the imperial family''s Counter Essence Realm. If Long Chen really did that, the Counter Essence Realm would be destroyed. Before dying, the Sword Devil weighed his options and said, "It''s useless even if I tell you. The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit is something my brother wants. You came at the wrong time. He took the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit a month ago..."


    "What?!" Long Chen was stunned.


    "You can continue your search If you don''t believe me. I discovered the anomaly in the Counter Essence Realm, and I warned my brother about it immediately. If you have the guts, search the ce all you want..." After saying this, the Sword Devil didn''t give Long Chen a chance to kill him as he sumbed to his injuries.


    "Shit!"


    Long Chen didn¡¯t believe the Sword Devil¡¯s words, but he didn¡¯t want to risk it. What if the Sword Emperor really came here? Long Chen would be done for. He didn''t want to die right now.


    "Brother Chen, look at the sky! They finished merging. Take the stone talisman! It might be an amazing treasure!"


    Ling Xi only spoke after the Sword Devil was dead. Now was an important time, and every single second counted.


    Long Chen realized that Ling Xi knew he would defeat the Sword Devil, so her attention had been focused on the stone talisman. Now that the fight was over, she quickly updated Long Chen on the situation. Long Chen looked up and saw that the stone talisman had resumed its original appearance.


    Without any hesitation, he jumped up, grabbed the talisman, and ced it in his Universe Pouch. At that moment, he only had time to discover that the stone tablet seemed to have a life of its own. However, after holding it for a while, it seemed to have epted Long Chen without any resistance.


    Long Chen nned to study this thing after he was out of this ce. For now, he decided to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit as quickly as possible. He had decided that if he couldn''t find it within fifteen minutes, he would believe the Sword Devil''s words and leave the Counter Essence Realm!


    Thinking of this, Long Chen headed towards the Bloodseal Lotus using his fastest speed. The Soul Swallowing Gaze made everything much easier for him, so it didn¡¯t take long for him to arrive. Most of the guards had been attracted by themotion and were currently heading to where Long Chen had fought the Sword Devil. He had avoided them using the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    An Eighth River Stage and several Seventh River Stage guards were not enough to stop Long Chen. He was a blur of red when he swept through them, and the Demon Emperor Sword instantly took away all their lives!


    "Bloodseal Lotus acquired!" Long Chen put the Bloodseal Lotus into a jade box and quickly stored it in his Universe Pouch.


    "Xiao Xi, we have less than fifteen minutes left. If we can''t find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, we will leave!"


    "Brother Chen, forget about the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. It won''t be good if the Sword Emperores here!" Ling Xi was still hesitant about acquiring the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, so she didn''t want it as much as before.


    "No, I must try again!" Long Chen said decisively and quickly moved. With the Soul Swallowing Gaze highlighting every single living being within a Li, Long Chen nned to search the area in a carpet sweep!


    He guessed that when the Counter Essence Realm experienced abnormalities, the Sword Devil would send a signal to the Sword Emperor. When the Sword Emperor received the signal, it would take roughly fifteen minutes for him, with his Heavenly Passage Realm strength, to arrive at the Counter Essence City. Long Chen had killed the Sword Devil in less than fifteen minutes, so he had less time than that to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit!


    He didn¡¯t pause for even a moment, only getting faster and faster! Whenever he discovered the location of a strong individual, Long Chen swiftly approached them just like how he had done with the Bloodseal Lotus. Even though a hugemotion had kicked off in the Counter Essence Realm, there would still be at least one Eighth River Stage guard guarding each spiritual herb!


    Time passed as Long Chenbed the area. He found several Eighth River Stage experts, but they were not guarding spiritual herbs. More than half of them were heading towards where the Sword Devil had died!


    "Brother Chen, time¡¯s up. I think what the Sword Devil said is true. We haven''t detected a single trace of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, so it must¡¯ve been taken by the Sword Emperor. If we don''t leave now, we won¡¯t stand a chance once the Sword Emperor arrives!" Ling Xi urged him anxiously.


    "Fuck!" Long Chen punched the ground and cracked it!


    "Fine! Since the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit is with him, I''ll kill him and take it if he hasn¡¯t used it. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll be able to kill him once I reach the Ninth River Stage and transform into my dragon form!"


    In the end, Long Chen failed to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. He had searched through most of the Advanced Zone of the Counter Essence Realm, and he had no choice but to give up and head towards the exit!


    On the way, Ling Xi saw Long Chen''s gloomy face and tried to console him. "Brother Chen, don''t be angry. I am not in a hurry. The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit can wait. Moreover, we found two Heaven-tier spiritual herbs and also the mysterious stone talisman..."


    "I know, Xiao Xi. You don''t need tofort me," Long Chen said when he reached the entrance of the Advanced Zone. He had located it earlier when he was searching. Long Chen changed back to his previous appearance and became a twenty-five-year-old man again.


    <em>Someone will definitely stop us at the exit once we head out of here. I will use Blood Warp and escape to where Xiang is!</em> Long Chen took a deep breath and ran out of the entrance. Sure enough, countless attacks descended on him in an instant, including attacks from Eighth River Stage warriors. However, Long Chen had anticipated this. He instantly activated Blood Warp and disappeared in front of everyone. He was nothing but a blur of red.


    The people looked at each other in shock.


    "Where did he go?"<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    One down, two to go! </blockquote>

 Chapter 407: The Sword Emperor’s Appearance

    Chapter 407: The Sword Emperor¡¯s Appearance


    Blood Warp was the least used technique that Long Chen had obtained from the Inherited Blood Essence, but it was by no means weak.


    He had used it to escape the Category Nine Earth-tier beast even though he was only at the Fourth River Stage. Now that he was at the Eighth River Stage, his speed had increased dramatically to the point that he disappeared the moment he used it.


    Everyone was stunned by his disappearance. ¡°Where is he? Wasn¡¯t he here just now? Where did he go?¡±


    ¡°Did he escape?¡±


    ¡°Probably. He¡¯s probably a peerless individual if the Sword Devil had to go in himself. It¡¯s impossible that all of us were hallucinating at the same time. He must be so strong that he managed to escape all of us!¡±


    ¡°We need to enter the Counter Essence Realm and see what has happened! Since he managed to escape, does that mean the Sword Devil lost to him?¡±


    The leader barked orders after ascertaining what had happened.


    ¡°Impossible! He must¡¯ve escaped from the Sword Devil! Chase him! Leave three people guarding the entrance and the rest of us will search around the area with me! He could be hiding nearby!¡±


    ¡°Sir, do we need to send someone inside? We don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on in the realm.¡±


    ¡°Yes. You, and you! Enter the Counter Essence Realm to discover what the situation is inside. Ask for a report there!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Sir!¡± Two cultivators ran into the Counter Essence Realm while three of them stood guard at the entrance. The rest followed the leader andbed Counter Essence City.


    A short momentter, everyone felt incredible pressureing from the top of Counter Essence City. Regardless of what they were doing, all of them kneeled and shouted, ¡°Greetings, Sword Emperor!¡±


    As soon as the greeting was given, one of the guards ran out of the Counter Essence Realm, shouting in a panic, rage, and despair, ¡°Bad news! The Sword Devil has been killed! The Heaven-tier spiritual herbs are missing too!¡±


    Because it was incredibly silent outside, his shout was heard throughout the city, and everyone was shocked.


    ¡°What?!¡± the Sword Emperor yelled.


    The messenger was suddenly killed and died with blooding out of his orifices.


    Everyone knew what had happened. The Sword Emperor, the most powerful individual in the Cangyang Kingdom, had killed him with his mere voice.


    ***


    Long Chen was ten Li away by the time everyone realized what was happening. He had used almost all of his Qi just to get that far. Even though he had a lot of Qi, it was insufficient for him to sustain the cost of Blood Warp!


    He then used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and found where Xiang was. He stopped and immediately shouted, ¡°Xiang, we need to run towards that direction now!¡±


    He had detected a dangerous presenceing from the imperial city while escaping using Blood Warp. It was a pressure given off by someone at the Heavenly Passage Realm. Long Chen realized he was outmatched. Even though he was ten Li away, he was hesitant to take it slow.


    Xiang was no fool. The moment Long Chen called out to him, he transformed into his battle form and carried Long Chen towards the direction he had pointed to. Because they were only ten Li away from Counter Essence City, Long Chen didn¡¯t want to risk being discovered despite the Sword Emperor not knowing where they had gone.


    Long Chen had chosen to go south. He had depleted his Qi thanks to Blood Warp, so he was immobilized on Xiang¡¯s back while trying to catch his breath. Just as they started escaping, they heard a thunderous roaring from Counter Essence City. The voice shook the very earth even though they were ten Li away. Long Chen shuddered when he thought about what would¡¯ve happened to him if he hadn¡¯t escaped fast enough.


    <em>Thankfully, I listened to Xiaoxi and escaped just in time.</em>


    Xiang ran as fast as he could towards the south. Time slowly passed while he ran uninterrupted in the wilderness. Half a dayter, Long Chen stopped him. They were almost a thousand Li away and were sure that the Sword Emperor would not chase them this far.


    Long Chen copsed onto the ground in the forest with Xiang. Thetter confirmed that they were safe before asking Ling Xi what had happened.


    She told him what they had done in the Counter Essence Realm in detail. By the time she was finished, both he and Long Chen had recovered their Qi. Another half a day had passed by that point.


    The situation just now was indeed very dangerous.


    After stopping and catching their breath, Long Chen talked to Ling Xi, who reminded him of their harvest. Even though they hadn¡¯t managed to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, they hade out with three treasures.


    <em>If the Sword Devil was telling the truth, the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit might really be in the clutches of the Sword Emperor. I can¡¯t fight him yet, so it¡¯s best not to reveal myself for now. It seems that I have to keep a low profile if I want to take revenge for both me and Xiang by killing the Sword Emperor ¡­¡±</em>


    Long Chen settled down to think about his next move.


    Xiang was naturally very happy after learning that one of the three people he had a grudge with, the Sword Devil, was killed. Though he would¡¯ve been happier if he had done the deed himself.


    Just then, Long Chen called Xiang over and took out a jade box from his Universe Pouch. ¡°Xiang, I really have to thank you for just now. This is your reward. Take it and refine it now. This is a safe ce!¡±


    Xiang knew that it was something that would make him stronger the moment he sensed the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit. He was very sensitive to items with the fire attribute, much less the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit, a Heaven-tier herb. He was pleasantly surprised as the spiritual herb would be a delicious meal for him.


    He gave Long Chen a thankful gaze and took the fruit to refine it elsewhere. When he returned, he was at the peak of Earth-tier beasts. He was now a Category Nine Earth-tier beast!


    <em>Xiang¡¯s newfound strength will be of great help to me. Unfortunately, I can¡¯t bring him into the capital, as he will be recognized. Since it¡¯s not that urgent to kill the Sword Emperor, I should aim for someone I can take out right now¡ªLin Zichen!</em>


    Long Chen would never forget how Lin Zichen had used the Imperial Sword Qi and forced Ling Xi to give up the Profound Jade Lotus. Lin Zichen had been arrogant back then, but now Long Chen was strong enough to take him on!


    <em>I will give you a big surprise.</em>


    ¡°Brother Chen, what are you going to do with the Bloodseal Lotus and the stone talisman?¡± Ling Xi was more interested in the stone talisman.


    ¡°Can I refine it even without a Heaven-tier Body Tempering technique?¡± Long Chen was confused.


    ¡°You can refine it, but since you don¡¯t have a Heaven-tier Body Tempering technique, the Bloodseal Lotus energy will temporarily be stored in your body. It will then exhibit its power once you have one in the future.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°In that case, we should check the stone talisman first.¡±


    It would be Long Chen¡¯srgest reward if he was lucky, but he still remembered how two days had passed in just a breath¡¯s time when he infused it with his Qi. He would be more careful now.


    He took out the stone talisman and examined it. The translucent dragon illusion was clearer this time.


    ¡°What is this? I can¡¯t even look inside of it.¡± Ling Xi was worried. She flew around the stone talisman but failed to see what it was. ¡°That¡¯s strange. There¡¯s not even a seal on it, but it¡¯s as if there¡¯s a strange fog covering it.¡± Ling Xi tilted her head in confusion.


    She looked cute when she frowned like that.


    ¡°Should I infuse some Qi again?¡± Long Chen asked tentatively.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that a few years will pass in the blink of an eye?¡± Ling Xi was worried.


    <em>A few years?</em> Long Chen suddenly recalled his experience in the Counter Essence Realm. Back then, the translucent dragon illusion in the sky projected two rays of light into his eyes, and he felt like he was standing in a river that made him age rapidly.


    <em>Wait, is that river the passage of time?</em>


    Long Chen tried recalling how Ling Xi had told him before that one of the Dragon Ancestors controlled time itself and was much stronger than the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.


    While he thought about that, the Dragon Jade Pendant inside his sea of consciousness suddenly moved. The moment it did, a strong suction force was exerted on the stone talisman. Before Long Chen realized it, the stone talisman was forced to his torso and merged into it.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Power-up?</blockquote>

 Chapter 408: Primordial Dragon Talisman

    Chapter 408: Primordial Dragon Talisman


    ¡°What?!¡± Long Chen was shocked when the stone talisman stuck to his chest. He lost control of his body and couldn¡¯t move when it happened. The talisman embedded itself into his chest and fused with his muscles, bing one with his body.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant inside his sea of consciousness stopped moving. Long Chen looked down at his chest and saw that there weren¡¯t any big changes except that now there was a dragon illusion at the center of his chest that flickered from time to time, just like how the translucent dragon illusion appeared in the Counter Essence Realm.


    <em>The stone talisman fused with me? </em>Long Chen was about to ask Ling Xi what was happening when a stream of information entered his mind. He soon knew what it was.


    <em>The stone talisman ¡­ It¡¯s called the Primordial Dragon Talisman ¡­</em>


    This was what Long Chen had learned from the information in his mind. He also learned that the Primordial Dragon Talisman was a rare object. While he did not know where it hade from, he knew that it had epted him as its owner. Due to his low cultivation level, he could only wield part of its power, but it was already almost as strong as some of the techniques of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon!


    ¡°Brother Chen, how is it?¡± Ling Xi asked hurriedly when he was back to normal.


    ¡°I think it recognized me as its owner after fusing with my body. It¡¯s called the Primordial Dragon Talisman!¡± He told her everything.


    ¡°Is that so? Primordial Dragon Talisman ¡­ Is it rted to the Dragon Ancestor that could control time?¡± Ling Xi was excited to learn about it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I know that I can use an incredible skill with it!¡± Long Chen smiled mysteriously.


    ¡°What is it? Please tell me!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing short of overpowered. It¡¯s called ¡®Rewind!¡¯¡±


    ¡°Rewind?¡± She didn¡¯t know what it meant.


    Long Chen slowly exined, ¡°Rewind allows me to rewind my own time! That¡¯s the most I can do right now, but if I get stronger, I might be able to use it on others!¡±


    ¡°What use is that? If you used it and returned yourself to three months ago, you would only be at the Fourth River Stage!¡±


    ¡°You dolt!¡± Long Chen chuckled at her. ¡°I can¡¯t go back that far. If I used all my strength, I could only rewind time for up to ten breaths.¡±


    ¡°Then isn¡¯t it extremely useless?¡± Ling Xi was still confused. She didn¡¯t see why Long Chen was so excited.


    ¡°Ling Xi, I just realized you can be slow at times.¡± Long Chen poked her head.


    ¡°Just tell me. I really don¡¯t know.¡± She pouted.


    ¡°Think about it. If I were fighting someone and was on death¡¯s door, I could use it and return my body to how it was ten breaths ago! That effectively means I have one chance to escape death! If I was fine ten breaths ago, I could rewind time and restore myself! This is immortality! As long as they don¡¯t kill me outright in one blow, I cane back for a second wind! It¡¯s an overpowered Life Combat Technique!¡±


    Ling Xi finally understood his excitement.


    ¡°Wait, it¡¯s that strong?¡± Ling Xi was surprised. She only knew that Long Chen had the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. She knew that each technique he obtained from it was stronger than thest, but to think he would obtain something even stronger from just the stone talisman!


    Rewinding time!


    Ling Xi was certain that no one where she was from knew how to control time. Only some of the ancient cultivators could control time to a certain degree, or the Dragon Ancestor itself. She was excited that Long Chen could do it ¡­


    ¡°Brother Chen, you must hide the Primordial Dragon Talisman and never let anyone know about it. It¡¯s your biggest treasure! You were given such a powerful technique from just obtaining it. The Primordial Dragon Talisman is something everyone would kill for even where I¡¯m from!¡±


    Rewinding time was a task that went beyond the rules. As long as Long Chen was not killed in one blow, he could use it to rewind time and gain another chance of living! It was even stronger than Blood Warp.


    ¡°I probably won¡¯t die since I have Blood Warp and Rewind, but their prices are steep. Blood Warp uses up all of my Qi in one go, and Rewind has a long cooldown. I can only use it once a day. If my opponent is too strong, it¡¯s entirely possible for them to kill me twice ¡­¡±


    Ling Xi chuckled. ¡°Brother Chen, don¡¯t be too greedy. There¡¯s no such thing as a technique without a weakness. Every technique exists within the rules of the Heavenly Dao. If you could rewind time infinitely, you would never die. Even though it has a restriction, your techniques are already considered as the highest tier. No one in my family has them. You should be satisfied.¡±


    Long Chen was indeed very satisfied.


    ¡°With Rewind, I essentially have two lives. This is already excellent news. Also, I think the Primordial Dragon Talisman is indeed rted to the dragon that could control time. I think it¡¯s called ¡­ Primordial something? I forgot its name, but I think I can use it to guide me towards the Inherited Blood Essence of the Dragon Ancestor!¡±


    Ling Xi rolled her eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t think about it too much. The Inherited Blood Essence of a Dragon Ancestor is basically impossible to find. No one has ever recorded one, much less found one. You don¡¯t even have full control of your Inherited Blood Essence, so how could you be so sure that it¡¯splete, much less the real Inherited Blood Essence of a Dragon Ancestor?¡±


    Long Chen smiled sheepishly.


    The Inherited Blood Essence could very well be an imitation or product made by Long Qinn.


    But he was very satisfied with it. He looked down at the Primordial Dragon Talisman on his chest and felt it pulsating with the beat of his heart.


    <em>Blood Transmutation, Dragon Soul Transformation, Blood Sacrifice, Blood Warp, Blood Devouring Domain, and even Rewind. I now have six major techniques of the highest tier. I¡¯m almost guaranteed to reach the peak of cultivation with these techniques. </em>Long Chen was confident!


    He was certain that Lin Zichen and the Sword Emperor of the Cangyang Kingdom were only small pebbles in his journey. Long Chen would kick them away.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, now that I have Rewind, I¡¯m even more confident that I can get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit for you. Just wait, I will make sure your physical body will be returned to you soon. You will be able to live like a normal human and do everything a normal human can. You will even be able to restore your strength!¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes were excited when he talked to her.


    Ling Xi lowered her head and said, ¡°Brother Chen, I think I had a good enough taste of being a normal human with the Profound Jade Lotus ¡­¡±


    ¡°Idiot. That¡¯s fake. This time, I will give you the real deal!¡±


    She bit her lip and said what had been guing her mind for a long time. ¡°But ¡­ What if ¡­ What if we have to go our separate ways once I get it?¡±


    ¡°Why would we separate? Who in the Cangyang Kingdom could separate us? No matter who they are, I will smack them the moment they try to tear us apart. Isn¡¯t that good enough?¡± Long Chen patted his chest with pride.


    But no matter how vivid his imagination was, he could never have imagined that Ling Xi¡¯s family would sense her presence from far away. Ling Xi could only leave it to fate.


    Long Chen started cultivating silently and tried familiarizing himself with the Primordial Dragon Talisman. It was a mysterious and profound object. He inspected it for half a day, but all he managed to learn from it was its name and the method to use Rewind.


    ¡°Never mind, I should cultivate properly and reach the Ninth River Stage. Only then can I obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.¡± He started cultivating after deciding that that was a better way to spend his time.


    Time slowly passed, and Xiang was still refining the fruit. Five dayster, Xiang returned as a Category Nine Earth-tier beast.


    There were no Heaven-tier beasts around the Cangyang Kingdom, so he was the strongest one.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Oh Deus-Ex Machina powers. It somehow makes its way in every novel I read.</blockquote>

 Chapter 409: Category Nine Earth-tier Xiaolang

    Chapter 409: Category Nine Earth-tier Xiang


    Xiang¡¯s aura had grown stronger again. His ck eyes, sharp ws, massive fangs, as well as the thick fire energy that exuded from his body looked leagues stronger than they were five days ago. Long Chen felt slightly afraid when he looked at him. He had a feeling that even he could not win against Xiang with thetter¡¯s Divine Fire Clone, Demon Seed nting Technique, and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Zhao Qingyun and the Sword Emperor were the only cultivators in the kingdom that could stop them right now.


    Since Xiang had be a Category Nine Earth-tier beast, it was time for them to return to capital. It had been five days since they stirred things up over there, so they estimated that the city had most likely calmed down a little<em>. It might be a good time to return now.</em>


    ¡°We are still weak, so we should try to kill Lin Zichen first. Let¡¯s go to the Biyang Imperial Capital,¡± Long Chen instructed Xiang before they started their journey back. They weren¡¯t escaping this time, so they slowed down a little.


    It was already morning when they arrived.


    Long Chen smiled when he looked at the glittering city.


    ¡°Lin Zichen should be busy with the session in the pce. It won¡¯t be easy to lure him out and leave the Sword Emperor behind. Fine, let¡¯s take a risk. Since I managed to make a connection with the eldest prince, we should put it to use. Xiang, just rx for now. I will take on half of your enemies with you. Since I¡¯m entering the capital, you should stay outside for now. I will lure Lin Zichen as fast as I can without alerting the Sword Emperor.¡±


    Xiang had no objections to his n. He nodded and left. Most beasts didn¡¯t have to cultivate because their strength was determined at birth, but Xiang was different. He had a rare constitution that allowed him to grow without a limit, though not through cultivation, but through consuming items with the fire attribute.


    That was why Xiang was quite free most of the time.He preferred to sleep whenever he was not refining his meals. There were two reasons why. One, he had used some of his life fire and injured his soul a while back, and sleeping aided the healing process. Two, sleeping hastened the refining process of what he consumed, so he could increase his strength faster.


    More importantly, Long Chen always ignored him when Ling Xi was present, so there was nothing for him to do but sleep ¡­


    After Xiang was gone, Long Chen disguised himself as a twenty-five-year-old man. He even gave himself a new name, Yang Qing. He had taken it from Yang Lingqing¡¯s name. Thinking of her, he realized he missed her.


    <em>I wonder how she is doing. Is Li Xuanji treating her well? </em>Long Chen secretly swore to himself that he would grow faster so that he could go to the ce that Li Xuanji said he would never reach. He would then take Yang Lingqing back. He was worried about her being so far away from him.


    Long Chen also realized he needed another sword. His Star Sword had been destroyed in the previous battle. Thankfully, he had been collecting the weapons from the people he killed. While he didn¡¯t have an advanced Earth-tier sword, he had some intermediate ones. Since he could only show strength up to the Eighth River Stage within the pce, Long Chen thought it would be best if he didn¡¯t have to fight at all.


    A sword was a necessity for his disguise.


    <em>Ii I remember correctly, the Red Sun Inn is around here ¡­</em> Long Chen recalled that it was one of the random inns he had seen while walking to Yuqin Pce when he first arrived. He retraced his steps and reached it. The bellboy saw a young yet strong man at the doorstep and immediately ran out to greet him politely. ¡°Dear customer¨C¡±


    Long Chen interrupted him. ¡°Give me a room.¡±


    The bellboy immediatelyplied.


    As soon as Long Chen entered the room, someone knocked on the door. He smiled and opened his door to find the Eldest Prince looking at him with gratitude.


    ¡°Come in.¡± Long Chen chuckled and made way.


    ¡°Thank you, Sir!¡± The Eldest Prince nodded and entered. There was another person behind him. The person was wearing a suit of heavy ck armorplete with a helmet and armored boots. He looked like a general, and Long Chen noticed that the man was in his forties. He looked barbaric, but his eyes radiated cunningness and intelligence.


    The general-looking man was at the Eighth River Stage too.


    ¡°Sir, I am so d that you agreed to help me. I will take it that you are helping me since you¡¯re here?¡± Lin Batian looked at Long Chen with sincerity.


    Long Chen nodded and said nothing. He didn¡¯t want to identally reveal himself.


    ¡°Thank you, Sir! May I know what to call you?¡± Lin Batian¡¯s polite tone was a sign that he was indeed happy. Usually, a ruler wouldn¡¯t treat someone with this much politeness, especially when it was a stranger. It was clear that Lin Batian was very interested in Long Chen¡¯s strength.


    ¡°My name is Yang Qing.¡±


    ¡°So you are Sir Yang Qing!¡± Lin Batian nodded and introduced Long Chen to the person behind him. ¡°This is my uncle, and he¡¯s also the First Commander. He¡¯s at the Eighth River Stage. I take it that you¡¯ve heard of him?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyebrow rose as he looked at the middle-aged man. <em>So he¡¯s the First Commander. If I¡¯d met him while I was escaping, I would¡¯ve been dead. I wonder what kind of expression he would make if he knew I killed the other six?</em>


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of the famous First Commander, but you don¡¯t have to call me ¡®Sir Yang.¡¯ Just call me ¡®Brother Yang¡¯ if you look up to me.¡±


    ¡°In that case, I will call you ¡®Brother Yang.¡¯ Since you¡¯ve agreed to help me, I will fulfill my promise. You can let me know what you need, and I will do my best to fulfill it ¡­¡±


    ¡°Wait.¡± The Eldest Prince was interrupted by the First Commander. ¡°May I know how strong Junior Yang is?¡±


    Long Chen knew that the First Commander was afraid that the Eldest Prince had been fooled. Long Chen¡¯s identity was very suspicious, and the First Commander was naturally wary of a strong cultivator that hade out of seemingly nowhere.


    ¡°Eighth River Stage,¡± Long Chen answered inly.


    ¡°You are so young and yet you are already at the Eighth River Stage? You even killed foes at the same stage with ease. I would know about you if you were from the Cangyang Kingdom, but why have I not heard of you?¡± The First Commander was very assertive.


    Lin Batian was shocked and tried to defuse the situation. ¡°Brother Yang, he just wants to know your identity. I¡¯m sorry if he¡¯s acting rashly. I hope you will forgive him.¡±


    ¡°No worries.¡± Long Chen smiled at the First Commander. ¡°I never wanted to reveal my identity in the Cangyang Kingdom, but since you want to know that much, I don¡¯t mind saying it. I don¡¯t n on staying here for long either. I¡¯m from the Western Sea Kingdom. May I ask if you know of anyone strong in that kingdom around my age?¡±


    The Western Sea Kingdom was neighbors with the Cangyang Kingdom, but there was a massive mountain range separating them, so the two kingdoms barely traded with each other. The Eldest Prince was stationed at the eastern border, so he wouldn¡¯t know either.


    ¡°So you are from the Western Sea Kingdom. I¡¯m sorry for troubling you,¡± the Eldest Prince said.


    ¡°I will be frank. I agreed to help you because I heard that there are Heaven-tier spiritual herbs in the Counter Essence Realm. You told me that you would give me anything that I wanted, provided that you could find it, as long as I helped you take the throne. Will you give me a Heaven-tier spiritual herb if I help you?¡±


    Long Chen had told a tant lie. This way, he would make his ¡°objective¡± clear to them and the First Commander would not be suspicious of him.


    ¡°Dream on!¡± The First Commander thought Long Chen was a greedy man and immediately refused.


    ¡°Quiet!¡± Lin Batian was angry at the First Commander. Even though the First Commander was his uncle, he could not tolerate him destroying his ns.


    Lin Batian then looked at Long Chen. ¡°I can get you a Heaven-tier spiritual herb, but you must promise me that you will be thergest contributor in helping me seed to the throne.¡±


    ¡°No problem.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°Brother Yang, you are very straightforward! I like that!¡± Lin Batian turned around to re at the First Commander. Seeing that they hade to an agreement, the First Commander could do nothing but lower his head.


    ¡°When will you follow me back to the pce?¡± Lin Batian was very anxious.


    ¡°I¡¯m not in a rush, but you need to tell me everything. How should I fight against Lin Zichen? How strong is he? I¡¯ve heard that he was at the Ninth River stage. I don¡¯t want to brag, but I¡¯ve defeated some Ninth River Stage experts before. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll lose to him since he¡¯s younger than me.¡± Long Chen really got into character.


    This was a ce where everyone plotted against each other. Long Chen had to act like an idiot here so that the others would lower their guards.


    The First Commander scoffed when he heard what Long Chen said.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time to sit and wait till he gets his revenge again</blockquote>

 Chapter 410: Courtesan

    Chapter 410: Courtesan


    He knew Long Chen was strong, but he never thought Long Chen would be so arrogant. To think he would talk about killing Lin Zichen. The First Commander started to rx and did not take Long Chen seriously.


    <em>It seems Batian is using him as a warrior only. If Batian really bes the Emperor, he will kill this young man to silence everyone who knows about this.</em>


    The First Commander understood what kind of man Lin Batian was and knew that was what he had nned. The Counter Essence Realm was already in chaos and there were very few Heaven-tier spiritual herbs left. Even if they had some, and even if Lin Batian became the Emperor, he wouldn¡¯t be able to give any Heaven-tier spiritual herbs because all of them were in the hands of the Sword Emperor!


    ¡°Lin Zichen is my fourth brother and also the strongest youth in the Cangyang Kingdom. He¡¯s already at the Ninth River Stage at such a young age. He¡¯s second only to my father in terms of strength!¡± Lin Batian exined since Long Chen had asked. An hourter, Lin Batian probed, ¡°Brother Yang, I¡¯ve exined the current situation to you. Should we enter the pce now?¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Lin Zichen is fine, and I should be able to fight him. Our agreement is now in full force. Prepare me the Heavenly-tier spiritual herb and I will be able to get you what you need.¡±


    Lin Batian smiled and cried, ¡°Thank you, Brother Yang, for your help! If I be the Emperor, I will never forget about your assistance!¡±


    Long Chen chuckled.


    He then followed Lin Batian towards the pce. This was the first time he had gone there. The First Commander was walking beside Long Chen. While he was looking forward most of the time, he stole nces at Long Chen quite frequently too.


    But he could see nothing wrong about Long Chen.<em>The pce is a dangerous ce for me, so I shouldn¡¯t stay there for long ¡­</em> Long Chen was very clear about his objectives.


    Since the Eldest Prince was wearing the clothes of a normal noble, and very few people had seen him in person, he was not recognized by the people on the street. Otherwise, the crowd would¡¯ve flocked towards him.


    The three of them walked up the wide street. Since this road led to the pce, it was very busy and lively. Just then, Long Chen heard someone discussing something interesting.


    ¡°Have you heard that the number of demonic beasts in the Snowpeak Mountains to the north of the Cangyang Kingdom is multiplying rapidly? Many of the beasts are flocking to our kingdom! I heard that they overran an entire city!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of it too! The beasts are currently attacking one of the most important cities in the north, Ginger City. If the pce doesn¡¯t send reinforcements soon, the people in that city will be killed! All children and elderly people there will be food for the beasts ¡­¡±


    ¡°I heard the survivors describing it as a living hell!¡±


    Long Chen frowned and looked at Lin Batian. ¡°Is it true that Ginger City is under attack?¡±


    LIn Batian nodded. ¡°I¡¯m also very concerned with this. I thought my father would let me lead some soldiers there since a stampede of that magnitude would be difficult to repel with just the number of soldiers in Ginger City. But then again, I¡¯ve heard that there¡¯s a Category Nine Earth-tier beast in the stampede, and I don¡¯t think my army could kill it. Now that my father is looking for someone to inherit the throne ¡­¡±


    ¡°That means that you could repel the stampede, but you need someone at Lin Zichen¡¯s level to deal with the Category Nine Earth-tier beast. But then there¡¯s also the issue with the session ¡­¡±


    ¡°Everything is up to my father. I will have to leave if he tells me to, but Lin Zichen is always by my father¡¯s side, so he has a higher chance of being dispatched.¡± Lin Batian sighed.


    The three of them continued making their way to the pce. This was the first time Long Chen had entered the glimmering pce, and he was impressed by how grand it was. It was many times more luxurious than the Heavenly Demon Pce. The Heavenly Demon Pce was like a ce to cultivate quietly, while the glimmering imperial pce was filled with bloodlust.


    ¡°From here onwards are the pces meant for the princes. My pce is called Qianwen Pce, while Lin Zichen¡¯s pce is over there ¡­¡± Lin Batian pointed at another pce that was as grand as his. ¡°That¡¯s Xingchen Pce, where Lin Zichen spends most of his time.¡±


    Long Chen suddenly felt a dangerous aura while hearing the exnation and looked up. He saw a beautiful man with white robes walking out with two beautiful courtesans. The two parties met each other.


    The Eldest Prince looked worse off inparison because he had two guys instead of courtesans by his side. The man who had walked out of the pce was none other than Long Chen¡¯s target, Lin Zichen. Thetter was holding the waist of two exquisite courtesans while approaching Lin Batian. It was only when they were in front of Lin Batian that Lin Zichen scoffed at him.


    ¡°My Lord, you are so strong, both in bed and outside. You are much stronger than someone else ¡­¡±


    ¡°I think so too. My body feels so numb and weak. You used too much force.¡±


    The courtesans were hugging Lin Zichen and pressing their chests to his arms. They were praising him while looking at the Eldest Prince with disgust.


    ¡°Qing Qing! Wei Wei! How dare you!¡± Lin Batian was angered when he saw who the courtesans were. Both of them had been adopted by Lin Batian when they were abandoned on the battlefield. They had lied in Lin Batian¡¯s bedst night, and now they were in Lin Zichen¡¯s arms barely a dayter.


    Wei Wei rolled her eyes at Lin Batian. ¡°What? The Fourth Prince has promised to marry us, so of course we would follow him. Why should we follow someone who¡¯s going to die soon? Everyone has been saying that you will not live for more than a few days.¡±


    ¡°Wei Wei, I will p you if you continue spouting nonsense.¡± Lin Zichen chuckled and then pushed the two courtesans lightly behind him. ¡°Brother, I have to say that your taste in women is excellent. Considering that I¡¯m your little brother, I hope you¡¯re kind enough to let me keep them since they¡¯ve chosen me.¡±


    Lin Zichen was too arrogant! Not only had he stolen Lin Batian¡¯s toys, he was even using them to humiliate him. Lin Batian was naturally very angry and was about to lose control when the First Commander stopped him. ¡°Your Highness, calm down. Don¡¯t fall into his trap. He¡¯s forcing you to make a move first. If you do, he will use this chance to injure you.¡±


    The First Commander¡¯s words made Lin Batian calm down. <em>That was close. I almost fell for the trap. I¡¯m very confident in my skills in bed since I always made the two of them feel sofortable. It¡¯s impossible for them to criticize my skills, so it¡¯s likely that Lin Zichen told them what to say.</em>


    Lin Batian was a very careful and witty individual, which was instrumental to his rise in power. Heughed instead of getting angry. ¡°Of course, if you want them, I will give them to you since I¡¯ve used them quite a bit. Though I have to say, you really do have an odd interest. You seem to enjoy taking hand-me-downs, so I guess I will give you even more the next time I get new ones.¡±


    Lin Batian¡¯s words made Lin Zichen frown.


    He wanted to taunt Lin Batian into attacking him, but he had failed.


    Lin Batian was lucky to have the First Commander with him, or he may not have avoided the trap.


    He knew what kind of man Lin Zichen was, but he had been caught off guard. Lin Zichen loved cultivation so much that women were like floating clouds to him. The two courtesans had put up an act after Lin Zichen forced them to.


    ¡°Consider yourself lucky today, Lin Batian. You are only at the Seventh River Stage and you dare to fight me? Father doesn¡¯t want me to kill you in the pce, so it''s best if you don¡¯t leave. If you do, you won¡¯t even know what hit you!¡± Lin Zichen released the two courtesans.


    Lin Batian smiled. ¡°You are just an idiot who cultivates all day. Do you really think you can manage the country? I would¡¯ve said nothing if you were as good as Father, but killing people seems to be your only talent. If you be the Emperor, the kingdom will fall.¡±


    ¡°We shall see.¡± Lin Zichen smiled and was about to leave when he saw Long Chen. There was a dangerous aura exuding from Long Chen that made him wary.


    ¡°This must be someone you found toe and help you, right?¡± Lin Zichen smiled at Long Chen.


    ¡°I¡¯m here to take your life,¡± Long Chen suddenly said.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Lin Zichen thought he had heard wrongly. He knew Long Chen was dangerous, but he was not someone he had to avoidpletely. To think a regr person would threaten a member of the royal family like this.


    Long Chen shut up and said nothing else.


    Lin Batian thought Long Chen was far too arrogant, but since Long Chen had agreed to help him, Lin Batian had no choice but to block Lin Zichen from harming Long Chen. He stood in front of Long Chen and stopped Lin Zichen. ¡°Who cares what he said? But you¡¯ve stood here long enough. It¡¯s time for you to be gone.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Lin ZIchen be stupid</blockquote>

 Chapter 411: Taking Things Too Far

    Chapter 411: Taking Things Too Far


    Lin Zichen walked away without the two courtesans, and Lin Batian would naturally not take them back. He called for the guards to escort them out of the pce without a single hint of hesitation. He didn¡¯t care about them after what they had done to him.


    <em>The pce is a merciless ce. </em>Long Chen reminded himself to be very careful here.


    They soon reached Qianwen Pce, and Lin Batian weed Long Chen warmly. He even gave Long Chen two beautiful courtesans, but Long Chen refused them. He then headed to the room Lin Batian had assigned him and started thinking about his next step.


    ¡°Brother Chen, we are now in the pce and met Lin Zichen. What should we do now? Kill him directly?¡± Ling Xi sat on the edge of the table while staring at Long Chen with her glittering eyes.


    ¡°No one can kill Lin Zichen here in the pce. Ignoring the Sword Emperor, I don¡¯t think I can confidently kill him right now,¡± Long Chen answered with a frown.


    ¡°What should we do, then?¡±


    ¡°We need to think of a way to lure Lin Zichen out of the city, the further the better. Or we might not be able to escape the Sword Emperor. Remember, we had to hide ourselves for a long time after killing the Sword Demon.¡±


    ¡°Then let me help you think of a n.¡± Ling Xi loved puzzles and had always fiddled with all types of seals and restrictions. She was smart, so she soon thought of a n. ¡°Brother Chen, do you still remember what you heard earlier today? About the beasts attacking the city.¡±


    Long Chen smiled when he heard her. He knew what she was nning.He poked her head and praised her. ¡°Xiao Xi, you are smart and this is an excellent n, but that n hinges on the Sword Emperor¡¯s decision. Let me think of something I can do now ¡­ I need to create some chaos and kill someone first.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Think about it. Lin Zichen is much stronger than Lin Batian, but the Sword Emperor still forbade him from killing Lin Batian. That means that the Sword Emperor still cares about the Eldest Prince. Remember how many people he sent to chase me down after I killed the Ninth Prince? That means he takes his sons¡¯ matters very seriously. He probably doesn¡¯t want his sons to be killed right now, but since it¡¯s a natural thing to do in order to seed to the throne, he has no choice but to let it be. Now, what happens if Lin Batian and Lin Zichen are fighting over each other so viciously while there¡¯s a crisis to the north of the kingdom?¡±


    ¡°You mean you want them to fight in the pce so the Sword Emperor sends one of them to the north to save Ginger City?¡±


    ¡°Yes. If Lin Batian goes, Lin Zichen will be forced to stay in the pce, but since the leader of the beast stampede is too strong, the Sword Emperor will most likely send Lin Zichen instead. Without a leader, the demonic beasts will be disorganized and it will be much simpler to deal with them. We only need to force Lin Zichen to go to the north, and our objective will beplete.¡±


    It was not a straightforward n, but it had a high chance of seeding. All Long Chen needed to do was stoke the fire between the two princes even more.


    ¡°Brother Chen, who are you going to kill?¡±


    ¡°You will see.¡± Long Chen smiled mysteriously and asked her to return to the sword. He then acted immediately. Since the entire pce was in the territory of the Sword Emperor, Long Chen dared not stay for too long. Since Lin Zichen and Lin Batian had a conflict today, this was a good chance to execute his n.


    The First Commander¡¯s living area was close to Qianwen Pce. Long Chen used Sight and soon found where he was.


    ¡°Brother Chen, are you going to kill him?¡± Ling Xi was surprised.


    ¡°Yeah. Lin Zichen tried to set up a trap for Lin Batian today with the insults, but the First Commander prevented that from happening. Since Lin Zichen couldn¡¯t make Lin Batian hit him first, he surely hates the First Commander. This is very logical, right? Also, since the wound inflicted by the Imperial Sword Qi is almost indistinguishable from the Demon Emperor Sword Qi, it will be easy to frame him ¡­ Xiao Xi, don¡¯t feel guilty about this. They are all our enemies, including the First Commander. He would¡¯ve killed me if he knew who I was. I killed the six othermanders, so it''s time to send the final one down for them to reunite. There is no vengeance without killing! I still remember the blow inflicted by Ling Zichen clearly!¡±


    Long Chen saw how reluctant Ling Xi was when he talked about killing a stranger, so he exined his reasoning to her calmly. They were now fifty meters away from the room of the First Commander. He had transformed into his dragon form. It was nighttime and the clouds had covered the stars, so the skies were very dim. Long Chen felt like he was moving inplete darkness.


    He didn¡¯t even need to use the first stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique. He used Sight to see that the First Commander was cultivating. Long Chen took a deep breath and took out the Demon Emperor Sword.


    ¡°Die!¡± he whispered. Then he became nothing but a shadow. He ran inside from the window andunched the Demon Emperor Sword Qi at point-nk range!


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡± the First Commander shouted in surprise, trying to block the attack with his palm.


    But there was nothing he could do. He had underestimated how strong the Demon Emperor Sword Qi was, and it cut through his arm, body, and head.


    The energy dispersed and the entire building copsed.


    The sound of rumbling could be heard from far away as dust flew everywhere.


    ¡°Done.¡± Long Chen had done it all in one move, and he didn¡¯t stop to admire his work. While running out, he calcted how long it would take for him to get here from his room. He then hid in a safe ce, and when the time was right, he ran back towards where he had killed the First Commander. When he arrived, Lin Batian was already there. The house was nothing but ruins.


    All the residents of the pce slowly arrived as well.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± The Eldest Prince¡¯s face was pale when he saw which house had copsed. The First Commander was also gone. The First Commander was not only his strongest subordinate, he was also his uncle, so Lin Batian was naturally very worried.


    Lin Batian had a bad feeling and immediately ordered the guards, ¡°Quick! Shovel out the dirt and see if he¡¯s in there!¡± He then saw Long Chen and called him over.


    ¡°Your Highness, what happened?¡± Long Chen put on a confused look.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I can¡¯t sense the First Commander¡¯s aura. Did he fight someone and is now chasing them? I don¡¯t think so. Howe we only heard the sound of the building copsing?¡± The Eldest Prince was confused.


    ¡°Impossible. Who would dare to assassinate him in the pce?¡± Long Chen acted surprised.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but where did the First Commander go? He can¡¯t be inside, right?¡± Right when he said that, one of the guards that was digging through the rubble shouted. All of them looked at the guard and saw a head on the ground.


    The bottom part of the head was covered in blood. The first thing they noticed were the eyes, which were locked in shock.


    It was as if he had died without even knowing who killed him.


    As Long Chen expected, Lin Batian lost control the moment he saw the head. Even his eyes were bloodshot.


    The head naturally belonged to the First Commander.


    ¡°Who would dare to kill my uncle? Who did it?!¡± Lin Batian shouted in a frenzy and looked at everyone with poison in his eyes before finally looking at Long Chen.


    ¡°The First Commander was already dead when I got here. That means the killer is at least ten times stronger than him. Only one person in the Cangyang Kingdom has that kind of strength.¡± Long Chen analyzed calmly and further instigated the conflict.


    Lin Batian¡¯s eyes were in shock when he howled, ¡°Lin Zichen, you took this too far!¡±


    ¡°Your Highness, the Fourth Prince is using his strength to walk all over you! The First Commander shouldn¡¯t have wronged him today!¡± Long Chen said with a frown.


    ¡°Lin Zichen is too ruthless! He always repays his grudges. He tried to trap me today, but my uncle saved me from falling into his trap. He can¡¯t kill me, so he killed my uncle to vent his anger! Impudent bastard! I¡¯m not someone he can walk all over. Brother Yang, do you dare follow me to Xingchen Pce?!¡± Lin Batian was so clouded by anger and vengeance that he would never think Long Chen was the one behind it.


    ¡°Of course! I hear he¡¯s very popr. This is a good time to meet him!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Master Instigator at work</blockquote>

 Chapter 412: Weird Sword Emperor

    Chapter 412: Weird Sword Emperor


    Even though it was chaotic, everything was still within Long Chen¡¯s control.


    Lin Batian was now truly angered because of Lin Zichen. Even though he was weaker than his younger brother, he still had exact revenge for the First Commander. If he didn''t, everyone would spread the news of how he was unwilling to defend his people when they were killed. His reputation would plummet and there would be no way for him to seed the throne then.


    He also had one more pir to rely on, Long Chen. Long Chen had killed someone at the Eighth River Stage in front of Lin Batian before, so he knew that even if Long Chen could not beat Lin Zichen, he could at least stall for time.


    Most of the guards stationed in Qianwen Pce were basically powerless, so Lin Batian took only Long Chen and ran towards Xingchen Pce.


    Long Chen followed him. Lin Batian was like a bomb on the cusp of blowing up.


    Long Chen smiled cruelly when he thought about the three members of the imperial family he had killed thus far. All three of them were rted to Xiang¡¯s family getting destroyed.


    The Sword Demon was dead, and now Long Chen was preparing to kill Lin Zichen.


    Soon, they reached the entrance of Xingchen Pce. Lin Batian ignored the guards and broke the door down before howling, ¡°Lin Zichen you fucking coward. Come out!¡±


    Everyone nearby heard him shouting. Some people even heard it from the remote corners of the pce, much less Lin Zichen. Lin Zichen was frustrated after his failed attempt to make Lin Batian attack him that day, so he ran over the moment he heard the shout. He saw the broken door and scoffed. ¡°What? Did you go insane?¡±¡°Lin Zichen, are you going to pretend you¡¯re innocent? How deplorable. No need to put up an act. Stop being a coward and admit it!¡±


    Lin Zichen looked down on Lin Batian. He was the only one who could¡¯ve killed the First Commander.


    ¡°Are you stupid? Are you trying to instigate something here? Lin Batian, I won¡¯t fight back just because you came here wanting to fight me. Fix my door and get out, or you will stay here forever.¡± Lin Zichen¡¯s eyes were glowing and emitting an aura as sharp as swords.


    Not only had Lin Zichen not admitted it, he even spoke more arrogantly than usual. This made Lin Batian¡¯s killing intent grow. ¡°I admit that I¡¯m not as strong as you in terms of cultivation, but you are rubbishpared to me when ites to everything else! You attacked me first, and in the pce grounds at that! I will call Father over and see how you will exin this.¡±


    Lin Batian marched over to the Sword Emperor¡¯s residence.


    ¡°You won¡¯t be leaving that easily after breaking my door without an exnation.¡± Lin Zichen blocked Lin Batian.


    Lin Batian was even angrier. But instead of shouting, he smiled and approached Lin Zichen.


    ¡°You killed one of my people and still act arrogant? I¡¯m impressed. But if you keep standing in my way, I will make sure that Father punishes you!¡±


    ¡°Kill your people?¡± Lin Zichen was taken back. ¡°When did I kill your people?¡±


    ¡°Are you still feigning innocence?!¡± Lin Batian skirted past him and walked towards the pce.


    ¡°Lin Batian, don¡¯t you dare try to run away without an exnation!¡± Lin Zichen tried to grab Lin Batian.


    ¡°Yang Qing!¡± Lin Batian finally called for Long Chen, and he was not disappointed. Long Chen appeared immediately and stood between Lin Batian and Lin Zichen. Lin Zichen finally had a chance to take a closer look at Lin Batian¡¯s newest subordinate.


    ¡°You are probably quite powerful if you¡¯re willing to stop me from grabbing him.¡± Lin Zichen sized Long Chen up. ¡°But you are nothing but a bug to me. Lin Batian came to my pce, wrecked my door, and even said I killed his people. I¡¯m the fourth prince, so I can¡¯t just overlook this humiliation!¡±


    Lin Zichen shouted, and his Ninth River Stage Qi exploded. He channeled it to his fist and punched Long Chen.


    Long Chen was no longer the weakling he once was. He had failed to block Lin Zichen¡¯s attacks in their previous confrontation even with the help of Blood Sacrifice, but now he didn¡¯t even need to transform. Now that themotion had grown sorge, the Sword Emperor would be here soon, so he expected that he would not need to fight Lin Zichen for long.


    Even though it was a simple punch, any attack from a Ninth River Stage cultivator was very strong.


    ¡°Tidal Punch!¡± Long Chen shouted as he attacked back. He did not cower from Lin Zichen¡¯s attack but insteadunched himself forward like the tides. His fist rippled like the water and shed with Lin Zichen¡¯s fist.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Lin Zichen remained motionless, while Long Chen wasunched back by the impact. He turned around in the air beforending roughly on the ground. He barely managed to gain bnce.


    Long Chen was not acting at all¡ªhe had fought for real. Without transforming, he had more Qi than most Eighth River Stage cultivators, but he didn¡¯t have anywhere near as much as Lin Zichen. Still, he knew he had gotten stronger after taking that attack unscathed. The Tidal Punch was an advanced Earth-tier technique that Zhao Qingyun had given him to maintain his disguise. Long Chen had cultivated it on the way here.


    ¡°You¡¯re only at the Eighth River Stage, yet you were not injured by my punch. You are the first person to do that. It seems Lin Batian has a good eye for people. Too bad you chose the wrong owner!¡± Lin Zichenughed and didn¡¯t give Long Chen another chance.


    ¡°Brother Yang, be careful!¡± Lin Batian could do nothing as a Seventh River Stage cultivator.


    ¡°Stop.¡± A dignified voice boomed, and Long Chen stopped instinctively. He had heard the voice before¡ªit belonged to the Sword Emperor. Thest time he heard it was when the Sword Emperor howled in anger at the Sword Demon¡¯s death.


    Long Chen immediately kneeled down in the direction of the voice.


    A man walked out of the darkness. He looked simr to Lin Zichen, tall and handsome and around thirty years old. He was exuding an oppressive aura that even made Long Chen lower his head. He had a feeling that all lies would be useless in front of this man.


    <em>I must not rouse suspicion! </em>Long Chen had to warn himself multiple times against the oppressive feeling.


    Even though the Sword Emperor was at the Heavenly Passage Realm, he gave off a different feeling than Zhao Qingyun. Zhao Qingyun gave off the feeling of a hermit and sage, while the Sword Emperor gave off the feeling of a conqueror. He was just like a sharp sword that prated everything. His jet-ck eyes, sharp gaze, and cold aura were in line with the Demon Emperor Sword in Long Chen¡¯s Universe Pouch!


    The Sword Emperor looked at Long Chen after seeing that he had stopped fighting the Fourth Prince. His cold gaze exuded enough pressure to make Long Chen immobile. This was the first time Long Chen had faced an opponent at the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    ¡°A cultivator from the Western Sea Kingdom? Your Tidal Punch is good.¡± The Sword Emperor nodded slightly before ring at both Lin Batian and Lin Zichen.


    ¡°Father, I did not want to fight him, but he has taken things too far. He snuck into my pce and killed the First Commander ¡­¡±


    ¡°Bullshit! When did I do that?¡±


    Lin Batian and Lin Zichen were busy defending themselves, but the Sword Emperor was clearly tired of their squabbles. ¡°No need to tell me. Both of you, go back now and stop embarrassing me. I will let both of you know how to seed to the throne tomorrow. Scram!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Even Lin Zichen dared not take a deep breath in front of the Sword Emperor. He rolled his eyes at Lin Batian before returning to his pce. Lin Batian was silent and said nothing as he took Long Chen back to his pce. Only the Sword Emperor remained, standing motionlessly.


    <em>Why does that man feel familiar?</em> The Sword Emperor frowned.


    ***


    Back in their residence, Ling Xi quickly asked, ¡°Brother Chen, did our n work?¡±


    She wasn¡¯t sure.


    ¡°It seems that it worked. We will see what the Sword Emperor says tomorrow.¡± Long Chen sighed in relief. <em>It seems that it¡¯s not that simple to kill Lin Zichen. </em>Long Chen felt like he was a normal human facing a tiger when he met the Sword Emperor.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I feel like the Sword Emperor is a bit weird ¡­¡± Ling Xi suddenly said with uncertainty.


    ¡°How so?¡±


    ¡°I got the feeling that his soul was split in half, but I don¡¯t know how it happened or what is going on. You should be able to tell if you look at him with the Soul Swallowing Gaze. But more importantly, his life was not affected even though half of his soul is gone. Rather, it seems his strength was refined ¡­¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I do not understand what happened to the Sword Emperor</blockquote>

 Chapter 413: Stampede

    Chapter 413: Stampede


    Long Chen naturally didn¡¯t know what was wrong with the Sword Emperor with his current understanding.


    The next day, Long Chen was eager to find out whether his n had worked or not. He hoped that Lin Zichen would be sent towards the north. Long Chen waited at Qianwen Pce while Lin Batian went to the pce in the morning. Lin Batian ran back in a hurry before long.


    ¡°Your Highness, how was it?¡±


    ¡°We are facing a big challenge! We don¡¯t have time, so I will talk to you while we walk. We need to prepare three thousand Ghost Horse Riders!¡±


    <em>Three thousand Ghost Horse Riders?</em> Long Chen was stunned. <em>Did the Sword Emperor make Lin Batian go to the north instead of Lin Zichen? But what about the leader of the beasts that¡¯s rumored to be at the Category Nine Earth-tier? Lin Batian cannot deal with that beast without Lin Zichen.</em>


    ¡°Your Highness, did the Emperor ask you to deal with the stampede?¡± Long Chen probed as they ran.


    ¡°No. My father announced to everyone that both me and Lin Zichen will go to Ginger City together. He will send observers to oversee our contribution in suppressing the stampede. The one who contributes the most will seed the throne. That means I will be fighting Lin Zichen in Ginger City!¡± Rather than fear, Lin Batian was filled with anticipation.


    Long Chen was excited when he heard the news. His n had worked! After killing the First Commander, he had made Lin Batian and Lin Zichen quarrel with each other, and the Sword Emperor had indeed gotten so annoyed that he sent both of his sons to the north to deal with the stampede. Since no one other than Lin Zichen could kill the leader of the stampede, the Sword Emperor would naturally send him.


    Which was why Long Chen was surprised when the Emperor sent Lin Batian as well. But it wouldn¡¯t affect the next part of his n. All Long Chen needed was to catch Lin Zichen far from the pce.¡°Your Highness, don¡¯t worry. If Lin ZIchen tries to kill you, I will definitely be able to fight back! I didn¡¯t use my full strengthst night.¡± Long Chen patted his chest with confidence.


    ¡°Is that so? Then I will be counting on you! To be fair, Lin Zichen is very difficult to deal with. I don¡¯t think you will be able to defeat him, so Father has ordered him not to attack me in order to maintain fairness. He will send people to oversee his movements, so rather than defending me from him, it''s much more important that you rack up contributions for me.¡±


    Long Chen nodded in understanding.


    He was well aware that this was a world where power stood above all. Lin Zichen was inferior to Lin Batian in all aspects, but he was certain that the Sword Emperor would give the throne to Lin Zichen. However, he didn¡¯t want to leave his oldest son in the dust, as it would incur rumors in the city, so he had given Lin Batian a seemingly fair chance.


    Once they are there at Ginger City, Lin Zichen could just kill the strongest beast. How could Lin Batian fight back against Lin Zichen¡¯s strength?


    ¡°Your Highness, will Lin Zichen depart with us?¡±


    ¡°No. He will depart on his own. But no worries, Father had told me that the beasts up north have stopped advancing for now. We still have some time before they resume their attack. Lin Zichen might be able to reach Ginger City first, but it will be pointless since there are no beasts there yet. Father gave me a fair chance, and I must seize it!¡±


    The two of them quickly reached the barracks. Other than the regr guards and Immortal Guards, the imperial family had another army division on their own. Each of them were almost as strong as an Immortal Guard, and they were geniuses in their own right, especially the Ghost Horse Riders.


    Lin Batian was the directmander of the army, so a group of people came out and kneeled down the moment he entered the barracks. Using a loud and stern voice, Lin Batian ordered, ¡°Call the Eight Generals to get ready to move out! Bring the strongest Ghost Horse Riders, three thousand of them! We shall head to Ginger City in the north!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    They heeded his orders and soon, the thunderous sound of thousands of hooves hitting the ground came from afar. The elite forces consisting of three thousand Ghost Horse Riders stopped in front of Long Chen.


    ¡°Brother Yang, get on the horse!¡±


    Lin Batian was riding one of thergest Ghost Horse while holding the reins to another. Long Chen grabbed the reins, leaped onto the horse, and followed Lin Batian out. The Eight Generals as well as the rest of the troops moved out towards Ginger City!


    The citizens made way when they saw the massive army moving out. Only a very high-ranking individual was capable ofmanding three thousand Ghost Horse Riders. Lin Batian¡¯s name spread out amongst the crowd when one of them recognized him.


    ¡°The man leading them is the Eldest Prince, Lin Batian! The eight people behind him must be the Eight Generals! I¡¯ve heard that two of them are at the Eighth River Stage!¡±


    ¡°But who¡¯s the young man beside the Eldest Prince? He¡¯s only slightly behind him and seems to be even higher ranked than the Eight Generals?¡±


    ¡°Who knows?¡±


    The crowd gossipped amongst themselves as the Ghost Horse Riders thundered out of the city.


    They were heading north!


    Long Chen looked back at the Eight Generals and saw that they were slightly stronger than the Seven Commanders, especially the two men in front. Both of them were at the Eighth River Stage, and slightly stronger than the First Commander. If he had included the First Commander, the Eldest Prince had three very powerful subordinates. However, Lin Batian thought he had four, the fourth being Long Chen.


    ¡°Brother Chen, where do you think Lin Zichen is?¡± Ling Xi was irritated when she remembered what Lin Zichen had done to them.


    ¡°He should be around the capital. He wants to kill Lin Batian, but he can¡¯t do it right now, so he¡¯s probably biding his time. We should do the same. Once he appears in Ginger City, we will kill him immediately!¡±


    Long Chen suddenly sensed something and chuckled. ¡°Xiang is following us all the way at the back. There are even two Eighth River Stage elders following us. They must be the Sword Emperor¡¯s confidants. They are here to oversee Lin Zichen and Lin Batian as well as count their contributions.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see. Since they can¡¯t keep up with Lin Zichen, they are following Lin Batian instead. They will all gather in Ginger City.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Everything is going ording to n. Once we are out of the capital and far up north, Lin Zichen will appear. If he does, I will give him a big surprise.¡±


    Lin Zichen had forced Ling Xi to abandon the Profound Jade Lotus and almost took Long Chen¡¯s life. Lin Zichen probably thought Long Chen would keep a low profile,pletely unaware that Long Chen was now back and far stronger than before.


    The three thousand Ghost Horse Riders kicked up a massive dust cloud as they thundered up north. Time slowly passed as they traveled, and Long Chen determined that they were far enough to kill Lin Zichen, but he never showed himself.


    <em>Looks like the Sword Emperor really told Lin Zichen not to touch Lin Batian. Lin Zichen, you are hiding now, but I¡¯m sure you will show up once we are at Ginger City in order to get the contribution points. If you do, I will kill you!</em> Long Chen swore to himself.


    Ginger City was much further from the capital than Yuanling City. It was a city at the border of the Cangyang Kingdom, but its strength was roughly the same as Yuanling City, with the strongest cultivator at the Second River Stage. There was no chance they could survive the stampede!


    Lin Batian collected a lot of information about the stampede as they traveled. Most of the beasts were at the ck-tier, and there weren¡¯t many Earth-tier beasts, but there was one very special beast. Every time it appeared, it destroyed at least one city and caused innumerable deaths.


    ¡°That beast shouldn¡¯t be from the Snowpeak Mountains, but from outside. It must¡¯ve realized that the people here are weaker, so it became very arrogant.¡±


    The three thousand Ghost Horse Riders traveled with very few breaks as they didn¡¯t need as much rest as normal people. They were able to endure the trip because all of them were the elite of elites that were at the Heavenly River Realm at least.


    As for the Ghost Horses, their vitality was seemingly unending. They did not need much rest while traveling.


    They finally saw a city roughly the size of Yuanling City after traveling for ten days.


    Long Chen looked ahead and saw that there were numerous beasts already outside the city walls. Most of them were ck-tier beasts, and there were thousands of them! All of them were waiting outside and howling to show off their strength. There were already numerous corpses of soldiers and cultivators of Ginger City on the ground.


    Thankfully, there weren¡¯t flying monsters, or the walls would¡¯ve been useless.


    Long Chen heard the sounds of killing and the howling of the beasts. There were corpses, broken limbs, and shattered bones all around them. There was so much blood that it flowed like a river on the ground.


    ¡°My goodness. Did the beasts go crazy?¡± They would¡¯ve never attacked while risking their life like this unless they had a grudge with the city. If things went on, Ginger City would fall.


    The mayor of Ginger City wasmanding and directing the other experts on the walls as they looked down at the ughter. Their hearts wrenched in pain every time they saw someone die.


    ¡°We are doing fine right now ¡­ But if that beast appears, Ginger City will definitely fall ¡­¡± The mayor sighed.


    ¡°Mayor, there seems to be another Earth-tier beast.¡± An elder spotted the beast from afar.


    ¡°We need to kill it fast, or the ck-tier beasts will rally by its side. I can¡¯t let them do that. I will kill it myself right now. Everyone, stay here and continue givingmands.¡±


    ¡°Mayor, let me do it instead. You are the only Third River Stage cultivator in the city, so you need to preserve your strength. Let me handle the Category One Earth-tier beast instead,¡± an elder said with conviction.


    When he said that, a thunderous sound came from afar. Everyone was shocked and looked towards the south. They saw a cloud of dusting towards them on the horizon and what looked like a troop of cavalry d in ck!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time to kill some demonic beasts! </blockquote>

 Chapter 414: Dark Moon Tiger

    Chapter 414: Dark Moon Tiger


    Everyone on the wall was excited when they saw the dense rows of Ghost Horse Riders charging towards them, causing the ground to shake.


    ¡°It¡¯s the Ghost Horse Riders of the imperial capital! The Sword Emperor is here to save us!¡± someone shouted, and the rest followed. Those who were wallowing in despair immediately perked up.


    Everyone saw Long Chen leading the soldiers, but a massive tiger was in his way. The tiger was at the Earth-tier and was currently surrounded by dozens of cultivators, many of them dead.


    ¡°You beast!¡±


    Long Chen quickly approached the tiger and pulled out a sword. The sword was simple, but everyone was astonished when they saw Long Chen decapitate the tiger in a single swing.


    The tiger¡¯s head flew into the air while the rest of the Ghost Horse Riders plowed into the beasts like a wolf into a herd of sheep. The beasts that had been threatening Ginger City were instantly trampled and ughtered.


    In just a short amount of time, a trail of blood was opened up by the Ghost Horse Riders.


    Long Chen led them until they reached the city gate. He then turned around and pulled out a halberd. He had killed dozens of beasts during the charge, grabbing everyone¡¯s attention. Even the Ghost Horse Riders listened to him by default.


    ¡°Send the Prince into the city! The rest of you, follow me!¡±It was just a small skirmish, and Lin Batian was the true leader. All he needed to do was takemand; there was no reason for him to be on the battlefield. Long Chen put up an act as a diligent soldier, though he didn¡¯t mind exterminating the demonic beasts that had been killing the people of Ginger City.


    Lin Batian was very satisfied with Long Chen¡¯s performance. Several generals escorted Lin Batian as they entered the city, and the leaders of Ginger City were already waiting to receive them. Long Chen led the other three thousand Ghost Horse Riders to continue their onught on the beasts.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I dreamed of bing a general when I was younger. I think I can fulfill that dream today!¡± Long Chen chuckled as he waved his halberd around, killing a beast with every blow. More and more warriors were saved by Long Chen, and all of them looked at him with gratitude.


    ¡°Brother Chen, why is Lin Zichen not showing his face?¡± Ling Xi detected nothing around her.


    ¡°The leader of the beasts hasn¡¯t appeared. He will probably only show himself when the beast appears.¡± Long Chen somehow had a grasp on Lin Zichen¡¯s personality and made a guess.


    While Long Chen killed the demonic beasts below, the leaders of Ginger City had already weed the Eldest Prince into the city and were watching from the wall. The mayor sighed in admiration when he looked at Long Chen. ¡°Your Majesty, that young general is very strong. To think he killed the beast that was at least at Category Two Earth-tier in just a single blow.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s at the Eighth River Stage. What do you think of that?¡± Lin Batian smiled with satisfaction. Long Chen made Lin Batian look good. If things went on like this, Lin Zichen would never be able to contribute more.


    ¡°The Eighth River Stage?!¡± The people of Ginger City were surprised. A young man no older than thirty reaching the Eighth River Stage was beyond what they could¡¯ve imagined. Even their strongest youth was only at the First River Stage.


    Most of the Ghost Horse Riders were less than thirty years old, yet most of them were at the Heavenly River Realm. The difference between the capital and a border city was very clear.


    The people of Ginger City thought the Eldest Prince was even stronger than Long Chen, so they finally saw a ray of hope.


    Under Long Chen¡¯s leadership, most of the demonic beasts had been ughtered and only a few had scattered. Ginger City was saved from the stampede! All of the cultivators cheered for Long Chen. Under everyone¡¯s praising looks, Long Chen led the Ghost Horse Riders into the city before he was quickly summoned by Lin Batian.


    ¡°Good job!¡± Lin Batian was very satisfied.


    ¡°There was only a single Earth-tier beast. The rest were weak,¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    The leaders of Ginger Cityughed dryly at that.


    ¡°This is just a small wave. The elites of the beasts didn¡¯te yet. I heard that someone at the Seventh River Stage came from the capital to deal with the beasts, but he was killed. There are several strong beasts staying close to the leader ¡­¡± the mayor quickly exined.


    <em>Even a Seventh River Stage cultivator was killed? Looks like the beast is stronger than I thought. </em>Long Chen silently noted the new information.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. If the beasts¡¯ leaderes, we have three cultivators at the Eighth River Stage. Do you think we would lose to some beast?¡± Lin Batian patted the mayor¡¯s shoulder happily.


    The mayor could onlyugh dryly while he looked down at the battlefield with worry. ¡°You¡¯ve repelled the beasts and killed most of them. I¡¯m certain that the leader will be here soon with some of the stronger beasts for vengeance. Yang City was destroyed just like that ¡­¡±


    ¡°It will appear soon?¡± Long Chen and Lin Batian smiled at each other.


    After the warm wee of the mayor, the day soon came to pass. The sun had just risen on the second day when amotion broke out outside. Screams of fear sounded from afar, and Long Chen knew the leader of the beasts had arrived. Because most of its underlings were killed yesterday, the leader was here to exact revenge.


    Long Chen walked out and saw Lin Batian¡¯s gloomy face. They soon arrived at the wall and looked down. There was a dense group of beasts just outside the city, and the one in the middle of the horde was particrlyrge.


    ¡°Dark Moon Tiger, a Category Nine Earth-tier beast.¡± Long Chen looked carefully and saw that the beast was muchrger than Xiang. It had ck fur, sharp ws, and cold eyes. The pressure it emitted was simr to that of the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast Long Chen had seen in the Counter Essence Realm.


    Now that the Dark Moon Tiger had appeared, Long Chen expected that Lin Zichen would show himself soon. At that point, he wouldn¡¯t have to continue his act.


    He was currently standing with Lin Batian, the Eight Generals, and the leaders of Ginger City. Looking from the highest point of the wall, they had a direct line of sight on the massive tiger. The mayor¡¯s body trembled in fear as he said to the Eldest Prince, ¡°Your Highness ¡­ Can you men deal with it?¡±


    Lin Batian wasn¡¯t sure. He turned around to look at Long Chen. ¡°Can you and the other two Eighth River Stage cultivators kill it? Yang Qing, we need to kill it before Lin Zichen does. If you do, I am sure that I will seed the throne without any problems.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I think we can deal with the Dark Moon Tiger, but I think Lin Zichen is already here ¡­¡± Long Chen was using Sight, and he saw that Lin Zichen was slowly closing in. He assumed that Lin Zichen had been nearby all along, waiting for the beast to appear.


    ¡°What? Lin Zichen is here?¡± Lin Batian cried out in shock and looked towards where Long Chen was looking. He saw a man appear at the left side of the beast horde. The man ran at the Dark Moon Tiger with so much speed that regr people could only see a blur.


    ¡°Brother Yang, go and stop him! Kill the Dark Moon Tiger before Lin Zichen arrives! Qian Jiang, Qian He, work with Yang Qing to kill the Dark Moon Tiger! The rest of the generals, lead the Ghost Horse Riders to kill as many beasts as possible!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± The Eight Generals heeded their orders and quickly moved out. The two Eighth River Stage generals looked at Long Chen with no respect before they ran towards the Dark Moon Tiger.


    Long Chen, on the other hand, looked at Lin Batianzily without moving.


    ¡°Brother Yang, what are you doing?¡± Lin Batian shouted.


    ¡°You dare shout at me?¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t listen to Lin Batian¡¯s orders and even looked at him with disgust, much to thetter¡¯s confusion.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Long Chen punched the Prince, causing thetter toy on the ground in pain.


    Lin Batian¡¯s mind went nk. Everyone else froze as well. They looked at Long Chen and Lin Batian in confusion. No one knew what was happening.


    Long Chen stomped on Lin Batian¡¯s face. He only needed to use a bit of force to hurt him.


    ¡°Yang Qing, what are you doing? Are you trying to die? You dare hit me?¡± Lin Batian snarled.


    ¡°Hit you? I could even kill you!¡± Long Chen stomped down harder, and Lin Batian couldn¡¯t even get up. Long Chen grinded his foot into Lin Batian¡¯s face and scraped off his skin.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been ordering me around for the past few days. Let me pay you back for that. Lin Batian, I will show you something good.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    The farce is over. Time for revenge</blockquote>

 Chapter 415: Supreme Martial Sword

    Chapter 415: Supreme Martial Sword


    ¡°A show? What are you talking about?¡± Lin Batian was truly confused by the sudden change in Long Chen¡¯s behavior.


    Qian Jiang and Qian He had been running towards the Dark Moon Tiger in order to obtain the credit for killing the beast. All of a sudden, they realized that Long Chen was not following them. Confused, Qian He asked, ¡°Brother, is the kid ying with us? How can we deal with Lin Zichen and the Dark Moon Tiger without him?¡±


    ¡°I knew that the kid had no balls. He must¡¯ve frozen in fear. We might not be able to beat Lin Zichen and the Dark Moon Tiger, but we can wait for both of them to get injured and swoop in.¡±


    Both of them nodded. They ran towards the Dark Moon Tiger without waiting for Long Chen. The other Ghost Horse Riders started killing the regr beasts. There were very few Earth-tier beasts, and the strongest of them was at the Category Seven Earth-tier. There were plenty of Ghost Horse Riders who could deal with beasts of that level. Even if Lin Zichen killed the Dark Moon Tiger, Lin Batian¡¯s contribution would be considerable. It would then be up to the Sword Emperor to decide who the winner was.


    Long Chen smiled when he saw the two Eighth River Stage generals running towards the tiger. He then looked at Lin Batian and warned him, ¡°Stay here and don¡¯t do anything stupid, or I will kill you.¡±


    Long Chen moved his foot, and Lin Batian stood up shakily. Lin Batian calmed down and red at Long Chen. ¡°Yang Qing, why?¡±


    Lin Batian had a shoe print on his face that made him look hrious.


    ¡°Shut up.¡± Long Chen shot him a look, and Lin Batian took a few steps back. He had sensed the killing intenting from Long Chen¡¯s eyes. While Long Chen had been discourteous, he had never been so cold. Long Chen¡¯s killing intent made him tremble even though he was at the Seventh River Stage.


    He felt like Long Chen was much scarier than before.Lin Batian chose to keep quiet as he looked at the situation below with Long Chen.


    The other people present didn¡¯t know what to do. Lin Batian was quiet, so they chose to keep quiet too. Some of them took a few steps back with uncertainty in their eyes when they looked at Long Chen, but soon, the battle below stole their attention.


    The Ghost Horse Riders had shed with the beasts, and the same thing happened again. They cut through the stampede like a hot knife cutting through butter, shing and trampling the beasts into a bloody pulp!


    Blood sprayed everywhere like rain.


    A few minutester, everyone¡¯s attention turned to a man who had appeared on the far side of the battlefield and the two Eighth River Stage generals. The three of them were going to reach the tiger at the same time.


    ¡°Brother Chen, are you not going to fight?¡± Ling Xi knew that Long Chen hated Lin Zichen with a passion, and it was possible that Xiang¡¯s family had been killed by Lin Zichen personally.


    ¡°I will wait until he deals with the tiger.¡±


    Lin Zichen was the strongest youth in the Cangyang Kingdom, and Long Chen intended to challenge this legend. Though he wanted to do it in front of an audience, which were the thousands of people of Ginger City.


    While there were tens of thousands of beasts, most of them were only at the ck-tier, so the Ghost Horse Riders easily plowed through them. However, the stampede would only end when they killed the Dark Moon Tiger, so all of them were focused on the beast!


    The ck Moon Tiger felt a threatening presenceing from Lin Zichen and ignored the other two. It lowered its head and roared at Lin Zichen, its ck eyes revealing a cold light.


    It had a feeling that Lin Zichen would be its strongest opponent ever since it came here.


    <em>Roar!</em>


    Its massive body bulked up. Even though it was huge, it did not affect its nimbleness at all. It didn¡¯t even look at the two generals before trampling the other beasts to pounce at Lin Zichen.


    ¡°So you are the beast that has been disturbing the peace of my kingdom?¡± Lin Zichen¡¯s body became a blur and his afterimages littered the battlefield. When he got close to the Dark Moon Tiger, a golden sword appeared in his hand, and heunched a deadly ray of golden Sword Qi at the beast without any hesitation.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The Dark Moon Tiger was shocked by the speed of the attack and swiped its ws to defend itself.


    But the beast underestimated the strength of the Imperial Sword Qi! It lost one of its ws, leaving its paw all bloody.


    ¡°Hahaha! Do you think a creature as weak as you can stand up to me? You seek death!¡± Lin Zichenughed and taunted at Long Chen¡¯s direction before continuing his attacks on the tiger.


    The two generals looked at each other when they realized that Lin Zichen was considerably stronger than the tiger. That meant that their n to swoop in would most likely be ineffective.


    ¡°Should we do something?¡±


    ¡°No. We wait for an opening.¡± Qian Jiang took a few steps back. His face was pale as he cursed in his heart. He dared not approach Lin Zichen, nor could he retreat. They could only wait here.


    Lin Zichen and the Dark Moon Tiger started fighting more seriously, and their battle got intense.


    The Imperial Sword Qi was not to be trifled with. Lin Zichen¡¯s swift attacks left numerous wounds on the tiger. He was smart and chose not to fight head-to-head; he kited it around whileunching ranged attacks. He also dodged the tiger¡¯s attacks with a profound movement skill.


    This was how Lin Zichen slowly killed the Nine Heavens True Fire Beast. He loved using this tactic against beasts withrge bodies and strong attacks. The Dark Moon Tiger was not on his level at all.


    Lin Zichen would never lose to anyone beneath the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    ¡°You beast, this is my Heaven-tier Body Combat technique, the Divine Nine Pce Step. Your attacks will nevernd on me,¡± Lin Zichen said out loud to taunt Lin Batian. It was too easy for him to beat the Dark Moon Tiger. Lin Batian, on the other hand, didn¡¯t have anyone on his side who could deal with the beast that easily.


    Lin Zichen decided to not drag it out any longer. The Dark Moon Tiger panicked and used its strongest move. It smiled and belched out a stream of ck gas. The ck gas wasposed of demonic energy, and its destructive potential was extraordinary!


    ¡°Is this the infamous Dark Torrent of the Dark Moon Tiger? It''s too weak!¡± Lin Zichen smiled coldly before he raised the Imperial Sword and shed down with full force. The attack was swift yet strong, and the Sword Qi split the Dark Torrent apart.


    ¡°Imperial Sword Technique, Supreme Martial Sword!¡±


    It was indeed overkill to use a Heaven-tier martial technique on the Dark Moon Tiger. Lin Zichen split its body in half with ease. Afterward, blood sprayed in the air and rained down.


    The bloody rain signaled the end of the battle.


    All the men and beasts were shocked by the oue. Everyone atop the city wall was holding their breath as they looked at Lin Zichen¡¯s achievement. They didn¡¯t know who Lin Zichen was; they simply assumed he was Lin Batian¡¯s underling. However, the mayor and the other leaders were confused as to why Long Chen was holding Lin Batian hostage.


    But the death of the Dark Moon Tiger was good news to them because the stampede had finally been stopped. This was all they wanted, so the mayor cheered and shouted along with everyone else in Ginger City.


    With the death of the Dark Moon Tiger, the smarter beasts ran back to the Snowpeak Mountains. The weaker ones followed suit after seeing the stronger ones run away. Lin Zichen had single-handedly averted the crisis with one swing of his sword.


    The Ghost Horse Riders stopped when they saw what was happening. They could neither leave nor praise the Fourth Prince, so they just stood there awkwardly. They knew that the two princes were here to fight for the throne. Now that Lin Zichen had used his strength to push back all of the beasts, it was most likely that he would seed to the throne.


    This meant that the Ghost Horse Riders had chosen the wrong ruler. They didn¡¯t know what to do, so they looked at the generals with pleading eyes, but even the generals didn¡¯t know what to do.


    Lin Zichen put the Dark Moon Tiger¡¯s corpse away as well as the Imperial Sword before looking at Lin Batian¡¯s direction to taunt him again.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Finally we get to see some rematch</blockquote>

 Chapter 416: It’s You

    Chapter 416: It¡¯s You


    The look in Lin Zichen¡¯s eyes made a faint smile creep onto Long Chen¡¯s face.


    Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen looked around and indeed, the two elders who had followed Lin Batian here were hiding in a patch of trees not far away. The winner of the fight for the throne had already been determined. Lin Batian¡¯s face was ashen gray.


    Lin Zichen dashed towards Lin Batian and arrived in front of him in an instant. He looked at Lin Batian in amusement and said, ¡°Big Brother, it looks like your soldiers aren¡¯t very useful. You have lost. You should be able to ept this defeat, right?¡±


    Lin Batian huffed coldly without saying a word. The most perplexing thing to him was still Long Chen¡¯s behavior. Even now, he had no idea what was going on with Long Chen.


    Lin Batian¡¯sck of reaction angered Lin Zichen, who had always been the ultimate prodigy since he was young. No matter how much noise Lin Batian made, Lin Zichen had never seen him as an equal. Now that the brat had officially lost to him and was still being stubborn, Lin Zichen felt irritated.


    ¡°Whatever. Father said I must not kill you, but ¡­¡±


    <em>p! </em>He pped Lin Batian¡¯s right cheek, which turned red instantly!


    Lin Batian was stunned again as he felt the burning pain on his cheek. His eyes turned blood-red. ¡°Lin Zichen, how dare you hit me!¡±


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I? It looks like you cannot see reality for what it is. You¡¯re trash that has been eliminated. From today onwards, there is no space for you in the Imperial Capital. You¡¯re the dog that lost the fight; you¡¯ll always be trash. This is reality, Lin Batian!¡± Lin Zichen said with a cold smirk.Lin Batian shuddered when he heard those words. It was true that he was not as strong as Lin Zichen, and his war contributions were lesser too. Lin Zichen¡¯s words could likely be reality!


    He could be trash for the rest of his life.


    That was when Lin Zichen suddenly saw the footprint on Lin Batian¡¯s face, which shocked him. He asked teasingly, ¡°Eh? What¡¯s up with the mark on your face?¡±


    ¡°I did that,¡± said Long Chen, standing behind Lin Zichen.


    Lin Zichen turned to look at Long Chen in confusion. He had thought it was strange that Long Chen was nowhere to be seen when he fought the Dark Moon Tiger. Though he did not care because he had never taken Long Chen seriously anyway.


    Right now, Long Chen¡¯s statement attracted all eyes once more.


    From their conversation, the people of Ginger City knew that Lin Zichen was a prince, and one that was stronger than Lin Batian. So why was Long Chen here to cause trouble? What was going on?


    ¡°You were the one who stepped on his face?¡± Lin Zichen asked again in disbelief.


    ¡°Have you gone deaf? Like I said, I did that,¡± Long Chen answered tly.


    ¡°You¡¯re brave! Now I¡¯m interested. Could you tell me why?¡± Lin Zichen asked with great interest.


    ¡°I will kill the royals one by one, but Lin Batian has never really offended me, so I stepped on him only as a small lesson. You¡¯re next. Lin Zichen, if you¡¯ve got the guts, follow me down there. It¡¯s time to resolve the grudge between us anyway.¡± Then Long Chen leaped off the building andnded on the battlefield.


    Long Chen¡¯s words left Lin Zichen and Lin Batian puzzled.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t he a helper you found? What happened?¡± Lin Zichen asked coldly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either, but he¡¯s challenging you. Are you brave enough to go?¡± Lin Batian asked mockingly.


    Lin Zichen ignored him and leaped off the wall too. Long Chen was walking ahead slowly, and Lin Zichen caught up while looking at him in confusion.


    More than ten thousand citizens of Ginger City, as well as the three thousand Ghost Riders and Lin Batian, watched them walk into the center of the battlefield.


    Under the gazes of therge crowd, Long Chen turned around and looked at Lin Zichen, who approached and stood twenty meters away from him.


    ¡°You say there¡¯s a grudge between us? Do we know each other?¡± Lin Zichen really wanted answers.


    ¡°Of course there is. Today, only one of us will live,¡± said Long Chen with a small smile.


    ¡°Oh?¡± Lin Zichen eyed him up and down for a while, then he said, ¡°Whatever. I don¡¯t want to waste time speaking nonsense with you. If you want to fight, hurry up. Don¡¯t pretend to be scary with that cultivation level of yours. You can be as mysterious as you want, but the moment we fight, everything will be revealed.


    Long Chen looked in the direction of the two elders sent by the Sword Emperor and said, ¡°You still need to wait a moment.¡±


    Immediately after he spoke, two screams came from that direction, then two ck objects were tossed into the air from the forest. A momentter, they were pulverized.


    Then an excited wolf¡¯s howl was heard. Everyone watched a ck demonic wolf shoot out of the forest and stop far away. It growled once at Long Chen and then sat down. No one saw the tiny girl sitting on the wolf¡¯s ear.


    She was Ling Xi.


    Long Chen had sent her to get Xiang and kill the two hiding elders, who were eventually going to be problems. Killing them first was best as Long Chen could have a true duel to the death with Lin Zichen!


    When they saw the Sun Devouring Wolf, Lin Zichen and Lin Batian paled. Lin Zichen recalled someone from a memory and eyed Long Chen once more. However, while his figure was simr, his face was far too different from Long Chen¡¯s.


    ¡°That beast, why isn¡¯t it with Long Chen?¡± Lin Zichen asked solemnly with furrowed brows.


    Long Chen smiled and red coldly at Lin Zichen. He did not answer the question. Instead, he said, ¡°I came back to take revenge. The Sword Devil in the Counter Essence Realm was only my first kill, and you, Lin Zichen, will be my second!¡±


    ¡°You killed Royal Uncle?! Who the hell are you?!¡± Lin Zichen was utterly shaken. His face changed from amusement to killing intent.


    It didn¡¯t matter who Long Chen was. To him, Long Chen was dead!


    ¡°Who am I? When you cornered me at the foot of Demon Emperor Mountain, you didn¡¯t expect that I, Long Chen, would return one day, right?!¡± Long Chenughed maniacally and tore the human skin mask off his face. His face was once again revealed to the world!


    Lin Zichen was startled by his words, and he instinctively took a step back when Long Chen tore off his mask. Lin Batian, despite being far away, took many steps back in disbelief!


    Who was Long Chen?


    Although the First Prince had never met Long Chen personally, Long Chen was very famous. He had be a legendary figure in the Cangyang Kingdom despite not being at a high cultivation level. He was only at the Fourth River Stage when he killed the Sixth River Stage Ninth Prince, and when he fled, he killed the sixmanders and annihted the dwarf family, which was one of the three major ns. In the end, he even escaped from Lin Zichen after enduring his attacks! This person had returned to the Biyang Imperial Capital and killed the Sword Demon, one of the top three masters of the imperial family, taking two Heaven-tier spiritual herbs in the process.


    Lin Batian now knew that he had been tricked by Long Chen. He had said that he wanted Heaven-tier spiritual medicine, but they were actually in his hands. All of it was only to trick Lin Batian, but why? Lin Batian didn¡¯t know until he squeezed his brain dry thinking of every interaction he had with Long Chen. He finally recalled a questionable event, which was the death of the First Commander. Since Long Chen was powerful enough to kill the Sword Devil, killing the First Commander wouldn¡¯t be an issue at all. It was the First Commander¡¯s death that had led to him and Lin Zichening to Ginger City!


    <em>His target must be Lin Zichen. Long Chen is extremely bold, and heid out such an airtight n. If he dared to infiltrate the pce just to lure Lin Zichen out, he must be very confident in winning! </em>Lin Batian stumbled several steps back with a pale face as he stared at the teenager! He never would have guessed that a teenager who was younger than Lin Zichen would be this terrifying! Both his strategy and cultivation level were scary!


    When he first met Long Chen, he had killed an Eighth River Stage cultivator instantly. With such strength, it wasn¡¯t at all surprising that he could withstand Lin Zichen¡¯s attack that night in the pce!


    Lin Zichen was even more shocked than his brother. Unable to hide the look of astonishment on his face, he eyed Long Chen once more and drew in a sharp breath when he confirmed that it was indeed Long Chen¡¯s face. ¡°So, it¡¯s you. Long Chen, you¡¯re bold! You¡¯re very bold! So why did you infiltrate the pce and then reveal yourself here?¡±


    ¡°To lure you here and kill you in a ce where the Sword Emperor cannot see you. It¡¯s a simple concept; can¡¯t you figure it out?¡± Long Chen huffed.


    ¡°No wonder that idiot Lin Batian came to me that night. You were the one behind it. To be honest, I¡¯m quite impressed that you chose to appear in front of me as an Eighth River Stage cultivator. However, since you¡¯ve decided to make an enemy out of me, things won¡¯t turn out well for you.¡± Lin Zichen sneered, licking his lips.


    ¡°Today, with ten thousand people as my witnesses, I will kill you. Everyone will see how people who offend me end up, and they will learn who the strongest cultivator of the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s younger generation is!¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice grew louder and louder, until everyone could hear him.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Get him!</blockquote>

 Chapter 417: Battling Lin Zichen

    Chapter 417: Battling Lin Zichen


    This was the first time the people of Ginger City had heard Long Chen¡¯s name. News of what he had done had not reached them because they were too far from Biyang Imperial Capital. However, he would be forever in their memories from this day onwards, along with the three thousand Ghost Riders and Eight Generals that had stunned them speechless.


    The Imperial Capital¡¯s Pretorial Guards and Royal Guards werepeting factions, but when the sixmanders of the Royal Guard died, the Pretorial Guards grieved for their deaths like the fox grieving the rabbit¡¯s death[1]. Not only had the legendary Long Chen returned, he had done so in a terrifying style by first sneaking into the Counter Essence Realm, killing the Sword Demon, and stealing Heaven-tier spiritual herbs. Afterwards, he had slipped into the pce and lured Lin Zichen here. How many people in the world would dare to do the same?


    The Eight Generals were especially shocked. They all looked at each other.


    ¡°Big Brother, what should we do?¡± one of them asked.


    ¡°If Long Chen can kill Lord Sword Demon, then he must be at least as strong as the Fourth Prince. Let¡¯s hurry over to the First Prince¡¯s side and protect him for now. Initially, I thought the First Prince was going to lose his footing forever, but it looks like there¡¯s still hope for him!¡± said Qian Jiang, the Eighth River Stage general, solemnly.


    ¡°How is that possible? The Fourth Prince killed a Category Nine Earth-tier demonic beast so easily just now! Not even ten Long Chens would be his match!¡± someone said the moment Qian Jiang finished.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe he can win either. The Fourth Prince is a legend! My father says that he¡¯ll reach the Sword Emperor¡¯s level in less than five years!¡±


    ¡°Now is not the time to argue. Let¡¯s go back first, seeing as they haven¡¯t fought yet!¡± said Qian Jiang hurriedly. There was no time to dawdle.


    After the Ghost Riders returned to Ginger City, only Long Chen and Lin Zichen remained on the vast battlefield. Everyone stood on the city wall to watch the fight between the two most talented youths of the Cangyang Kingdom.This was a duel of the highest level, and Long Chen was facing his most powerful enemy to date. Lin Zichen knew Heaven-tier bodybat techniques, wielded the Imperial Sword, and was familiar with the Imperial Sword Combat Technique. This meant his strength was simr to Long Chen¡¯s!


    Everyone watched from the edge of their seats!


    Their auras intensified quickly. Long Chen was currently at the Eighth River Stage, so his aura was weaker than Lin Zichen¡¯s for now.


    ¡°Eighth River Stage¡­ You don¡¯t know how weak you are,¡± Lin Zichen sneered. The Qi of a Ninth River Stage cultivator erupted from his body, and a st of energy shot out towards Long Chen. All the soil and dried blood on the ground were sted away.


    Long Chen did not speak. He activated his Dragon Soul Transformation, and the blood-red dragon scales and sharp bony spikes that covered his body made him look like a humanoidbat machine. His aura strengthened continuously, and the surrounding soil exploded. The energy that shot up into the sky was as strong as Lin Zichen¡¯s!


    ¡°So much Qi! Have you reached the Ninth River Stage?¡± Lin Zichen furrowed his brows when he sensed the immense auraing from Long Chen. However, this did not startle him, because Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level had always been hard to pinpoint, sometimes high and sometimes low. When they previously met in front of Demon Emperor Mountain, Long Chen had disyed strength sufficient to fight Lin Zichen.


    ¡°Even though you have as much Qi as me, as a Sword Warrior, I can triple my Qi! Long Chen, your Qi reserve is nothingpared to mine!¡± Lin Zichen eximed, hisughter reaching everyone¡¯s ears.


    The spectators didn¡¯t even blink as they listened to the conversation, deeply afraid that they would lose one detail of this historical event.


    ¡°Long Chen has about as much Qi as Lin Zichen. Does that mean he has always been at the Ninth River Stage? He¡¯s very good at keeping it hidden! But Lin Zichen is a very talented Sword Warrior, and the Sword Soul within the Imperial Sword allows him to triple his strength. How could Long Chen be a match for him?¡± To be honest, Lin Batian really hoped Long Chen would kill Lin Zichen so that he could secure the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s throne.


    Of course, that was provided Long Chen did not kill him.


    Everyone looked towards Long Chen, wondering how he would respond to Lin Zichen¡¯s remark.


    ¡°Are you saying that I have less Qi than you?¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly, then he raised his arm. ¡°Demon Seed nting Technique, activate ¡­¡± Long Chen activated the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique, so his Qi skyrocketed and surpassed Lin Zichen to reach four times its original amount. He was now much stronger!


    ¡°What?! The second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique?!¡± Lin Zichen was truly shocked now. He had his ways to suppress Long Chen even if he was at the Ninth River Stage, but after Long Chen used the Demon Seed nting Technique, Lin Zichen was no longer a match for him.


    Lin Zichen had never been surpassed by anyone in his life. Now that he was suddenly weaker than Long Chen, it made him very irritated.


    ¡°It looks like you¡¯ve received the Demon Seed nting Technique after entering the Heavenly Demon Pce. Based on your cultivation level, you must be the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s number one disciple, right? I heard that the Heavenly Demon Pce has the Demon Emperor Sword, a weapon as strong as my Imperial Sword. I wonder, were you qualified to receive it?¡± Lin Zichen asked, as if challenging him.


    He assumed Long Chen was considered an outsider since he hadn¡¯t spent much time in the Heavenly Demon Pce. It was already impressive that he had received the Demon Seed nting Technique, but the Demon Emperor Sword was a treasure that was given to the Pce Lord, so there was no chance he could¡¯ve gotten his hands on it.


    However, Lin Zichen was dead wrong. After he took the Imperial Sword out his Universe Pouch, a ck divine sword that was identical to the Imperial Sword appeared in Long Chen¡¯s hand. He raised the Demon Emperor Sword and pointed it at Lin Zichen with a smirk. ¡°Apologies. You didn¡¯t expect this. I used the Demon Emperor Sword to break the Sword Demon¡¯s Nine Heavens Sword and kill him!¡±


    When the Imperial Sword appeared, it was impressive. But when Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword, the Imperial Sword was no longer the number one divine weapon of the Cangyang Kingdom. Lin Batian and the others could tell that the divine sword in Long Chen¡¯s hand, which was identical in appearance, was as strong as the Imperial Sword too!


    Lin Zichen had initially thought that he could kill Long Chen with ease, but when Long Chen pulled out the Demon Emperor Sword, Lin Zichen¡¯s eyes grew thick with worry.


    Ninth River Stage. Demon Seed nting Technique. Demon Emperor Sword. All of this signaled that Long Chen had received the highest level of inheritance from the Heavenly Demon Pce to be the first person on his level in history.


    Lin Zichen never thought that he would meet such a person. He had always stood on the peak of the mountain. Now, without him noticing, there was someone standing next to him. How could he get used to this?


    A strong killing intent rose through Lin Zichen. Putting Long Chen¡¯s intent to kill him aside, Long Chen was at a level that made him nervous. If he did not kill Long Chen now, who knew what would happen in a few years¡¯ time? He could really be killed then!


    Lin Zichen raised the Imperial Sword slowly.


    This was the moment everyone had been waiting for. Seeing as they were about to fight, everyone craned their necks to watch. The most nervous person was Lin Batian.


    <em>That¡¯s impressive! That must be the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s legendary Demon Emperor Sword in his hand! If I¡¯m right, he¡¯s the heir to the Heavenly Demon Pce. This is a duel between the two strongest youths of the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s two strongest factions!</em>


    Lin Batian was filled with emotion.


    Long Chen had waited a long time for this moment!


    In fact, he had entered the Heavenly Demon Pce and cultivated fervently all for this moment! The moment to kill Lin Zichen!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    The whole battlefield trembled even though they had just started the fight. Yellow sand flew in the air. The corpses of demonic beasts and cultivators were thrown back in all directions by the strong gust of wind, which howled and whistled through the battlefield.


    <em>ng!</em>


    The deafening sound of a collision rang out. After so many years, the two strongest weapons of Cangyang Kingdom shed for the first time. There was a blinding ray of light, and both Lin Zichen and Long Chen moved backwards. In the next breath, both of them moved in a sh and began utilizing their powerful attacks!


    At first, no one could see much, as they could not tell the fighters apart when they looked at the flickering silhouettes moving at high speed. All they could see was a ck sword and a golden sword flying across the battlefield!


    ¡°Imperial Sword Qi!¡±


    There was a strong <em>whoosh</em>, and the attack that Lin Zichen had used against the Dark Moon Tiger shot directly at Long Chen. The Imperial Sword Qi cut a deep ditch through the ground. Everyone¡¯s hearts were in their throats when they saw the fierce attack, because Long Chen was exposed and directly in its path.


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow!¡±


    Long Chen, who was already a blurry silhouette, turned into an invisible shadow. The Imperial Sword Qi did not strike him at all, charging ahead until it dispersed far away. Everyone saw a blurry shadow spinning and charging towards Lin Zichen, and des of Sword Qi appeared out of thin air. They were as strong as his Imperial Sword Qi, and their target was Lin Zichen!


    ¡°Heaven-tier bodybat technique, Traceless Demon Shadow?¡± Lin Zichen was shocked once more. He had a feeling that Long Chen could use Traceless Demon Shadow too, but now he actually had. Plus, when he used it, he seemed as familiar as Lin Zichen was with the Divine Nine Pce Step!


    Long Chen had already mastered two of the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s Three Great Secret Scriptures. Did he also know the third one?


    Lin Zichen¡¯s expression was as dark as it could be!


    1. TL Note: Fox grieving for the rabbit¡¯s death (idiom): the fox and the rabbit arerades in this context because their enemy is the hunter. When the hunter kills the rabbit, the fox grieves. Used to describe alliance members grieving when tragedy strikes one of them ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Powered up MC is unbeatable rn</blockquote>

 Chapter 418: Supreme Demon Sword

    Chapter 418: Supreme Demon Sword


    The royal family also owned three Heaven-tier techniques, and one of them was Lin Zichen¡¯s Divine Nine Pce Step. The other two were the Imperial Sword Technique that Lin Zichen was currently using, as well as another attack technique. However, it had been destroyed by Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Emperor Sword technique at the Counter Essence Realm.


    Since Lin Zichen had cultivated the Imperial Sword Technique, he did not need that attack. Even so, it had taken him five years to master the two Heaven-tier scriptures. He knew that only about a hundred days had passed since Long Chen entered the Heavenly Demon Pce. Had he really mastered the Three Great Secret Scriptures in just a hundred days? How strong was he? Didn¡¯t that mean that Long Chen was far more talented than Lin Zichen?


    Lin Zichen was extremely smug about his talent in cultivation, so Long Chen¡¯s performance was a huge blow to him. It was at this moment that he truly felt like Long Chen was the most difficult obstacle in his life! This duel today would definitely be a duel to the death!


    Lin Zichen was not the only one who was shocked. Long Chen had been maintaining equal footing since the battle started, so Lin Batian and the others who were more familiar with Long Chen were also surprised. In terms of cultivation, Lin Zichen had always been the ultimate prodigy in the Cangyang Kingdom. Was there now a new expert who was as strong as him?


    ¡°Your Highness, do you think it¡¯s possible for Long Chen to kill the Fourth Prince?¡± Qian Jiang¡¯s voice trembled as he leaned close to Lin Batian¡¯s ear to ask this question.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. We¡¯ll see. This battle will definitely shake up the whole Cangyang Kingdom. If Father finds out about this, he will probably jump up in shock. Lin Zichen¡¯s talent in cultivation has always been his biggest source of pride!¡±


    A constant stream of voices could be heard above the wall.


    Below, Long Chen and Lin Zichen were still fighting intensely. Lin Zichen was indeed a difficult opponent. Long Chen was already in his peak form, but it was still not easy!


    ¡°Divine Nine Pce Step!¡±Faced with Long Chen¡¯s Demon Emperor Sword Qi, Lin Zichen moved quickly in nine directions. This technique allowed him to move extremely quickly, almost achieving a teleportation effect that even surpassed Traceless Demon Shadow. Traceless Demon Shadow¡¯s objective was to make the user hard to pin down, but the Divine Nine Pce Step¡¯s purpose was to dodge attacks!


    Several Demon Emperor Sword Qi des were released, but none of them struck Lin Zichen!


    ¡°Is this the legendary Demon Emperor Sword Qi? Indeed, it¡¯s identical to my Imperial Sword Qi!¡± Lin Zichen let out a roar and charged at Long Chen. He raised his sword and shed it down, and a golden de of Sword Qi flew towards Long Chen¡¯s head!


    While moving backwards, Long Chen shed the Demon Emperor Sword horizontally, so the Demon Emperor Sword Qi and Imperial Sword Qi collided!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was an explosion, and arge crater appeared where the collision took ce, throwing dirt in the air. The people on the wall were stunned by the power of their attacks.


    <em>This is a true master! </em>The people of Ginger City thought of Long Chen and Lin Zichen as deities!


    Yellow sand flew in all directions, and the wind howled hysterically. Swords collided loudly again and again. Long Chen had much more Qi than Lin Zichen, so as the fight progressed, he had the advantage. Everyone was shocked as they watched Lin Zichen get forced backwards consecutively!


    ¡°You brat! You¡¯re not going to give up until you die, are you? Today, I, Lin Zichen, will oblige. I¡¯ll show you what a true prodigy is!¡± When he finished, immense amounts of Qi exploded from his body. Lin Zichen was like a bomb charging right at Long Chen. As he ran, his power increased again, and rays of golden light shot out of the sword he was holding behind him!


    A ray of light that was so fast, it was almost invisible shot towards Long Chen!


    The shining ray of light shed past him!


    ¡°Imperial Sword Technique, Supreme Martial Sword!¡± Lin Zichen roared and attacked with all his strength as heunched the same attack he had used to kill the Dark Moon Tiger. The Sword Qi seemed to cover the whole world as it flew towards Long Chen. A deep ditch was left in its wake!


    <em>He is indeed the Young Sword Emperor. Even other Ninth River Stage cultivators like the Sword Devil could not have withstood this attack. Even though they¡¯re both at the Ninth River Stage, Lin Zichen is much stronger than the Sword Devil.</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s mind was calm. Lin Zichen had used his attack to its maximum potential while Long Chen remained extremely quiet. Everyone watched as he gathered all the Qi in his body while standing in the same spot and waved the Demon Emperor Sword!


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Emperor Sword!¡± A ck de of Sword Qi as strong as Lin Zichen¡¯s Supreme Martial Sword shot up into the air, emitting a strange, ck light. Then it collided with the Supreme Martial Sword. Both of these techniques were very simr in concept, and their cultivation levels were the same. However, Long Chen had more Qi, so the Supreme Martial Sword shattered!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    More explosions sounded. The sound rippled across the whole crowd. Many of the spectators were left ghostly pale from the vibrations!


    ¡°What?!¡± Lin Zichen was even more shocked. Since Long Chen knew both Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique, Lin Zichen assumed he hadn¡¯t cultivated the Demon Sword Technique. To his surprise, Long Chen had not only mastered it, but his attack was stronger than his own!


    ¡°How is that possible? How is it possible that you¡¯re this strong?!¡± Lin Zichen roared in a manic rage. The Supreme Emperor Sword technique had shattered his attack instantly! The remaining Sword Qi threw yellow sand into the sky and charged towards Lin Zichen. His face turned pale and he hurriedly used the Divine Nine Pce Step to dodge it!


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re twisting my arm! Alright, since you¡¯re not holding back, I won¡¯t either!¡± Lin Zichen was almost pushed to madness by now. He had repeatedly used his most powerful attacks, yet Long Chen had beaten him at every turn!


    Lin Zichen almost vomited blood from his frustration!


    However, this time, Lin Zichen was not the first tounch an attack. Under everyone¡¯s shocked gazes, Long Chen suddenly moved so quickly that he turned into an illusion. He rushed to a spot twenty meters away from Lin Zichen. His gaze was cold and full of killing intent, and he swung the Demon Emperor Sword!


    ¡°Is he using his previous move again?¡± Lin Batian and the rest were frozen in shock. Their hearts rose up to their throats when they saw that Long Chen was initiating an attack. His previous move was just too terrifying. However, to their surprise, he was not using the same attack as before!


    ¡°Unless¡­?¡± Lin Zichen¡¯s chest tightened and his pupils dted. He used the Divine Nine Pce Step urgently to retreat thirty meters back, then he gritted his teeth and Qi erupted from his body once more. He yelled, ¡°That¡¯s impossible! Even I am not sure if I can use that move in a stable manner, so it¡¯s impossible for you!¡±


    As he shouted, he held the Imperial Sword in the same stance as Long Chen. Since both swords came from the same source, their attacks also looked simr.


    The Supreme Emperor Sword Technique and the Supreme Martial Sword Technique were both the first attacks of the Demon Emperor Sword and the Imperial Sword.


    Their final exchange would involve the most terrifying moves of both swords¡¯ techniques. These moves were so powerful, they were close to the intermediate Heaven-tier!


    ¡°The final moment has arrived.¡± Long Chen closed his eyes slowly. He had waited too long for this moment. He had to hide for three whole months for this.


    Three months. All to stand here today. He swung the Demon Emperor Sword as hard as he could!


    The most powerful attacks from both sides caused even the clouds to swirl. A strong gust of wind howled once more, and an endless cloud of sand flew up all around them. Long Chen and Lin Zichen were wrapped in the center of the storm. It was the deciding moment, so the spectators couldn¡¯t help but hold their breath and engrave every moment into their memory.


    No one knew who the victor would be. This final battle had been filled with many final battles. However, one thing that had been confirmed: Long Chen was now the strongest prodigy of the Cangyang Kingdom!


    Coincidentally, both of them had the character ¡°Chen¡± in their names.


    ¡°Like I said before, only one of us will survive today.¡± Long Chen¡¯s lips moved gently, and his eyes were closed. This was the craziest moment of the battle, but he was filled with silence. He was as calm right now as he was when he was cultivating quietly at the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain.


    All of this had been taught to him by Zhao Qingyun.


    White clouds. Gentle breeze. Everything was just like the peak of Demon Emperor Mountain.


    Long Chen thrust his sword gently.


    The sky changed colors instantly!


    As if the world had shattered, the sound of terrifying explosions rang out. It was as if everything beneath Long Chen¡¯s sword would wither and die. His attack flew towards Lin Zichen.


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Demon Sword!¡± Long Chen used the most powerful technique of the Demon Emperor Sword Technique. Everything in front of him exploded!


    There was no question that he had used the Supreme Demon Sword to its maximum level. Even Zhao Qingyun couldn¡¯t match this amount of power!


    On the other side, Lin Zichen had alsopleted his attack. Just like Long Chen, his attack was unquestionably powerful. However, it was nothing in front of Long Chen¡¯s almost-perfect Supreme Demon Sword! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    We all know what''s going to happen here</blockquote>

 Chapter 419: Killing Lin Zichen

    Chapter 419: Killing Lin Zichen


    ¡°Die! Imperial Sword Technique, Supreme Sovereign Sword!¡± A golden de of Sword Qi exploded from Lin Zichen. He had used all of his strength toplete his most powerful attack. The attack even escaped from his control, destroying everything in front of it once it broke free from the Imperial Sword! ¡°Long Chen, let¡¯s see if you die!¡±[1]


    After sessfully unleashing his attack, Lin Zichen finally rxed for a moment. He previously was not sure if he could use it properly, so he was nervous. He sighed in relief when it worked out as nned. Other people did not know how powerful the Supreme Sovereign Sword technique was, but he was very clear. Even a regr Heavenly Passage Realm expert would have to fight hard to withstand this attack!


    But what was up with the surprised cries from the people on the wall? Lin Zichen froze. He had a bad feeling. He quickly turned around and looked towards Long Chen¡¯s direction. At that moment, he saw the Supreme Sovereign Sword that he was so proud of get forced backwards by Long Chen¡¯s stronger attack. Then it shattered and turned into arge cloud of powder falling back on him. The Supreme Demon Sword carried with it the power of a fierce oceanic tide, instantly drowning Lin Zichen!


    ¡°No!¡± A scream full of despair that echoed across the skies above the battlefield. More than ten thousand people heard his scream; they felt goosebumps all over their bodies, and their scalps went numb.


    They watched in shock as Lin Zichen¡¯s final attackpletely lost to Long Chen¡¯s attack. Lin Zichen was swallowed by Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Demon Sword!


    While the scream of despair was still ringing in everyone¡¯s ears, everything ended. Yellow sand fell gently, and the howling wind stopped. Everyone stared at Long Chen in a daze as he was the only person who remained standing in the whole battlefield. He put away the Demon Emperor Sword with utmost calm. His look of contempt made everyone draw in a sharp breath.


    They all spotted a golden sword stabbed into the ground not far away from him¡ªthe Imperial Sword. They did not know where its owner was.


    Lin Batian knew.


    After Long Chen¡¯s powerful attack, Lin Zichen waspletely pulverized into dust, scattered in the air. Long Chen¡¯s final strike was almost powerful enough to shatter Ginger City¡¯s protective walls, let alone Lin Zichen¡¯s tiny body.The strongest prodigy of the Cangyang Kingdom had died in Long Chen¡¯s hands right in front of Ginger City¡¯s gates.


    The people of Ginger City were not as emotional because all they had seen were two experts who were simr in strength dueling in an earth-shattering manner. However, the three thousand Ghost Riders, Eight Generals, and Lin Batian were ovee by a huge wave of shock. To them, this was a twist of events. They couldn¡¯t help but rub their eyes to check several times in order to confirm that Lin Zichen really had disappeared from this world.


    Lin Zichen was dead.


    He had been killed by Long Chen using the Demon Emperor Sword.


    This news would cause many people in the Imperial City to fall off their chairs in shock, including Lin Batian¡¯s father, who was the most powerful master of the Cangyang Kingdom¡ªthe Sword Emperor!


    Lin Batian was sitting on the ground, ghostly pale. He wasn¡¯t worried that Long Chen would kill him; he was just too shocked by reality to remain in his chair.


    Although he waspeting against Lin Zichen, he was well aware of Lin Zichen¡¯s importance in the Cangyang Kingdom. The Fourth Prince was basically the symbol of the kingdom¡¯s cultivation world. On this day, this symbol had been stepped on. The individual behind it all had performed miracles, one after another, and histest miracle had shaken the world.


    He was Long Chen.


    Everything was silent as they all stared at him.


    He moved slightly, and everyone jumped in fear and quickly took several steps backwards.


    At this moment, Long Chen was not as excited as he imagined he would be. He suddenly realized that Lin Zichen was only an obstacle in his path to growth. Now that he had kicked this obstacle down, he felt like his mind had opened. He knew that this battle would be the start of a new beginning, and not the end.


    This was a brand new start. From today onwards, he would walk on an even wider path.


    After he put away the Demon Emperor Sword, he looked up at the sky and suddenly felt as if the metaphorical clouds had opened up to reveal the moon. His heart was much brighter. He initially wanted to kill Lin Zichen to vent his anger, but now that the grudge had been resolved, he felt lighter.


    He also put the Imperial Sword in his Universe Pouch.


    <em>I overdid it and everything was destroyed. If not, I would have been able to collect more stuff. Since I¡¯m taking the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s Demon Emperor Sword, I¡¯ll leave the Imperial Sword with Master. There¡¯s no difference between good and evil in the minds of the Demon Emperor Sword and the Imperial Sword anyway, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Xiang and Ling Xi happily made their way to his side. Xiang had turned back into his adorable state, looking at Long Chen with some admiration. Even he had to admit that even though he was Category Nine Earth-tier, if he fought Long Chen, despite having the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he did not know who would win.


    ¡°Brother Chen ¡­¡± Ling Xi was moved by this because she knew that Long Chen held a huge grudge against Lin Zichen. If it wasn¡¯t for him, Ling Xi would not have abandoned the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? I¡¯ve finally taken revenge. You should be happy, right?¡± Long Chen asked gently, holding her carefully in his palm.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sad. I¡¯m just very touched.¡± Ling Xi looked at Long Chen. Her bright eyes shimmered with tears.


    ¡°Silly girl.¡± Long Chen smiled in exasperation. ¡°Even though I¡¯ve killed Lin Zichen, it doesn¡¯t mean anything. I haven¡¯t gotten you the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit yet.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no hurry for that,¡± said Ling Xi hurriedly. ¡°Brother Chen, if other people bully me in the future, will you take revenge for me like this?¡±


    ¡°Of course. Anyone who touches even one hair on my Xiao Xi¡¯s head will wish they were dead,¡± answered Long Chen with a grin.


    ¡°A true man must stick to his word. Don¡¯t lie to me, alright?¡± said Ling Xi.


    ¡°Of course. Don¡¯t you know what kind of a person I am? I am a man through and through. However, this man has some matters to attend to first. Xiao Xi, return to the Ling Xi Sword.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Ling Xi nodded and obediently returned to the Ling Xi Sword. Long Chen called for Xiang to follow him and then dashed to Ginger City¡¯s wall. Everyone stared in terror as Long Chen arrived in front of Lin Batian¡¯s eyes. He was the devil in their eyes, and they quickly stumbled backwards when he approached. Not a single person dared to stand between him and Lin Batian.


    ¡°Lin Batian, do you understand why I beat you up just now?¡± Long Chen asked mildly.


    ¡°¡­ I understand. With your strength, beating me up ¡­ is normal.¡± Lin Batian stared at him with a pale face. Despite trying to control himself, his legs were shaking slightly and he could not stand.


    ¡°Do you finally know to fear me?¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly.


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t kill me. I¡¯m begging you. When they chased after you months ago, I was at war somewhere else. That was none of my business. Could you have lured Lin Zichen out without me?¡± Lin Batian exined hurriedly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I will not kill you.¡± Long Chen paused, then continued, ¡°However, you need to help me do something. Something very important!¡±


    ¡°Please, tell me. If I can do it, I will definitely do it!¡± Lin Batian was willing to risk it all at this critical juncture.


    ¡°What I want is actually very simple!¡± Long Chen looked up at the three thousand Ghost Riders and raised his voice, uttering every word slowly. ¡°Lin Batian, go back and tell the Sword Emperor! Tell him that I have killed the Sword Devil and Lin Zichen. I believe that soon, I will return to the Imperial Capital once again! Ask him to clean his neck before then, because I, Long Chen, will kill him with the whole Imperial Capital as my witness! Do you all remember what I said?!¡±


    Everyone looked at each other after they heard his dramatic deration!


    Initially, they thought he was powerful because he had killed Lin Zichen. However, announcing that his target was the Sword Emperor was a show of arrogance and insubordination. Did he say he wanted the Sword Emperor to clean his neck in preparation for a beheading?


    Everyone drew in a sharp breath.


    ¡°Lin Batian, did you hear me? If you can¡¯t do that, I¡¯ll ask someone else. But if that happens, I won¡¯t be able to guarantee that you¡¯ll live,¡± Long Chen said coldly.


    ¡°I can do it! I can do it for sure!¡± Lin Batian said hurriedly. Long Chen¡¯s deration had stunned him. Of course, he was privately speechless at Long Chen¡¯s ignorance and arrogance.


    Lin Zichen was the number one prodigy of his generation, but Long Chen killing him was nothing. How strong was the Sword Emperor? He was a master at the Heavenly Passage Realm, and it was widely agreed that he was the number one master in the Cangyang Kingdom. They had even heard that the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s Zhao Qingyun was not as strong as he was.


    Of course, no one knew if those two had ever fought before. Right now, since arge portion of the Cangyang Kingdom was under the control of the imperial family, it was easy for the royals to toot the Sword Emperor¡¯s horn.


    ¡°However, Long Chen, why do you want to kill off the whole imperial family? My father hasn¡¯t tried to kill you, has he?¡± Lin Batian asked in a trembling voice.


    ¡°You all want to know why?¡± Long Chen smiled and looked at everyone. He said loudly, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you all, then. First of all, when you were chasing after me, the Sword Emperor must have given themand. Now that I have killed two of his sons and his younger brother, would he ever let me go? Also, there¡¯s one thing that is even more important!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s expression darkened and he slowly continued, ¡°I used to have a brother. He was a member of the Mo family, which was one of the four great noble families of the Imperial Capital. However, when he was six, his entire family was killed off. You guys must know where this is going, right? Only the royals have the right to kill off a whole n. That is why the Sword Emperor must die!¡±


    1. TL¡¯s reminder for the attack names, because it gets confusing:


    Long Chen: Supreme Emperor Sword -> Supreme Demon Sword


    Lin Zichen: Supreme Martial Sword -> Supreme Sovereign Sword ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Two down, one to go</blockquote>

 Chapter 420: Heaven Sword Array

    Chapter 420: Heaven Sword Array


    ¡°The Mo family?¡± Lin Batian had a faint memory of this event, but it had happened many years ago. Lin Batian was simr in age to Long Chen, and at the time, he was focused on learning cultivation in the pce. That was why it had not left a deep impression; he had only asionally heard people talking about it.


    Killing off an entire family was amon urrence in the Imperial Capital, which was why Lin Batian did not care much. However, the Mo family case had indeed been a chaotic affair since it was one of the four great families of the capital. Not even one of them remained, and a prospering n had been sent to hell in an instant.


    However, no one had expected one unassuming child to have survived. That was Mo Xiang.


    Lin Batian could only shake his head in exasperation. Based on Long Chen¡¯s confidence just now, he knew that not only would Long Chen avenge the Mo family, he would also do it in front of the whole world.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will definitely pass your words to my father,¡± said Lin Batian.


    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Long Chen nodded. He was not a match for the Sword Emperor right now, so he needed some time to cultivate first. His goal for his first return to the Imperial Capital had beenpleted. Three masters of the imperial family who had not reached the Heavenly Passage Realm had been killed by him.


    The only regret he had was the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    He also had one very important reason to kill the Sword Emperor. It was imperative for him to obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Everyone stared in terror as Long Chen dropped Lin Batian a final reminder, then he leaped off the building with his little wolf and disappeared towards the Snowpeak Mountains in the north. That was where Long Chen had chosen to cultivate.He did not n to return to the Heavenly Demon Pce.


    When Long Chen first set out to get revenge on the imperial family, he did not know he would have toy low at this point in his journey. At the time, he thought he could get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit with his current strength. It turned out to be impossible. Since what he was after was in the Sword Emperor¡¯s hands, he would have to work harder to retrieve it.


    After Long Chen disappeared from sight, Lin Batian and the rest rxed their tense bodies and slid weakly to the ground, looking at each other. Qian Jiang, who was at the Eighth River Stage, asked, ¡°Do we need to tell His Majesty about his instructions?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Of course! And we must even announce it loudly!¡± Lin Batian answered coldly after some thought.


    ¡°Why?¡± Qian Jiang was surprised.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think Long Chen is a bit too scary? Now that Lin Zichen has died, the throne will be passed down to me. Long Chen belongs to the Heavenly Demon Pce, and he is far more powerful than me. What do you think he will do to me in the future? Have you forgotten that the Imperial Sword is with him? That is the symbol of the imperial family! How could it stay with him?¡±


    ¡°So, are you saying that we must make His Majesty cautious and take him seriously? And make everyone else nervous? And that¡¯s the only way His Majesty will be decisive enough to kill Long Chen?¡±


    ¡°Naturally. However, when my father finds out that Lin Zichen is dead, no one will want to see Long Chen dead more than him ¡­¡± Lin Zichen was dead, and now Lin Batian had be the Emperor¡¯s favorite son. He felt a little smug, to be honest.


    ¡°Your Highness, if Long Chen really storms the Imperial Capital one day, will he be a match for His Majesty?¡± Qian Jiang waspletely stunned by Long Chen.


    ¡°What nonsense are you spouting? Do you know who my father is? I hear that he is the number one master in the whole Cangyang Kingdom. Although Long Chen is strong, he is too young. How could hepare to my father, who has experienced hundreds of battles? Has water gone into your brain?¡± Lin Batian scolded him in exasperation.


    ¡°Yes! Yes!¡± Qian Jiang quickly said in an ingratiating manner. He had no choice because Lin Batian was about to be the most powerful person in the kingdom. Now he had to put some effort into making him happy.


    Lin Batian looked towards the direction where Long Chen had gone, then hemanded, ¡°Return to the capital!¡±


    ***


    Long Chen soon arrived at the Snowpeak Mountains. This ce was far in the north, so it was very cold. He could tell that this ce was covered with snow during winter. However, summer was here, so most of the snow had melted into freshwater, which flowed inrge rivers that wove through the mountain range to the east.


    He quickly found a beautiful meadow with birds and flowers surrounded by tall, elegant trees. There was a clear stream flowing through it with fish and prawns swimming happily within. It was a beautiful sight.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, to be honest, I want to reach the Ninth River Stage by using Blood Transmutation. However, the Cangyang Kingdom doesn¡¯t have any powerful beasts. And if there were Heaven-tier beasts, I don¡¯t know if we could kill one even if Xiang and I worked together.¡±


    Ling Xi fluttered around the flowers, then she suddenly leaped in front of Long Chen and asked, ¡°Does that mean you¡¯ve got to focus on cultivating on your own?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the only way.¡±


    ¡°Do you have enough Heavenly River Pills?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve brought enough Heavenly River Pills from the Heavenly Demon Pce. Right now, I just need to gather more Qi.¡± Long Chen paused, then he said, ¡°Xiao Xi, don¡¯t worry. I will get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit as soon as possible!¡±


    He had brought up the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit again.


    Ling Xi forced a smile. There was a hint of worry in her smile.


    Long Chen had no idea what the Sword Emperor was going to do with the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. That was why he was under a lot of pressure. After chatting with her for a while, he immersed himself in cultivation. He had already condensed sixteen out of the eighteen heavenly rivers in his body. The two remaining star veins were still empty.


    Long Chen had to cultivate constantly in order to condense thest two star rivers.


    At this juncture, he truly felt the difficulty of cultivation. Previously, his quick rise wasrgely due to the awesome power of Blood Transmutation. Right now, when there was no target to use Blood Transmutation on, it was difficult to raise his cultivation level.


    <em>It looks like the Cangyang Kingdom is no longer suitable for me. After I find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, I¡¯ll help Ling Xi regain her physical body and then bring her to an evenrger kingdom that we¡¯ll explore together! </em>This was the idealistic dream that Long Chen had, and he knew where he wanted to explore next.


    There were ten thousand tiny nations like the Cangyang Kingdom in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. A few of those kingdoms were hundreds or thousands of times stronger than the Cangyang Kingdom. The Heavenly Passage Realm was exceedingly rare in the Cangyang Kingdom, but it was asmon as stray dogs in the ten great nations.


    The term given to the ten nations was the Ten Great Empires. Every empire contained more than a thousand countries under their rule, each one with a different power level. The Cangyang Kingdom was considered the weakest kind. Just from this alone, one could see how immense the legendary Dragon Continent was.


    The Cangyang Kingdom was ruled by the Divine Martial Empire, which was one of the Ten Great Empires. Long Chen had heard Zhao Qingyun mention that there was a special array that led to the Divine Martial Empire. Long Chen was not thinking of leaving the Cangyang Kingdom at the time, but now that he thought of it again, he wanted to ask Zhao Qingyun about it the next time they met.


    Long Chen felt great pressure within him because he knew that Ling Xi and Li Xuanji¡¯s hometowns were likely not within the Ten Thousand Nations Territory or the Ten Great Empires. Based on Ling Xi¡¯s abilities, he could tell that the people there would be much more terrifying than the people in the Ten Great Empires. It would not be easy for Long Chen to marry Ling Xi in broad daylight.


    Of course, that would be muchter on. He did not think much for the moment and immersed himself in cultivation.


    However, reaching the Ninth River Stage was much more difficult than he anticipated. Even after cultivating nonstop for half a month, he did not make much progress. Long Chen now knew why it had taken more than ten years for a prodigy like Lin Zichen to reach the Ninth River Stage. In contrast, Long Chen had only been cultivating for less than a year.


    <em>The path of cultivation consists of cycle after cycle; it¡¯s a difficult path. It looks like I have been underestimating this path as my journey has just been too smooth. However, I¡¯ve always been able to grow faster than other people. Xiang too.</em>


    Half a month had passed in the blink of an eye. Long Chen didn¡¯t know what chaos had ensued in the Imperial Capital after his incident. All he cared about was whether the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was still there.


    This was the main reason he had left Yuanling City to go to the Biyang Imperial Capital.


    Time passed, and his cultivation did not progress quickly. This frustrated Long Chen. He talked much less than before and spent almost every hour of every day working hard. Ling Xi felt even more timid when she saw how hard he was working, not daring to tell him about her biggest worry.


    <em>Almost a month has passed, and I¡¯ve onlypleted about a quarter of what is needed. This means that I need three more months to reach the Ninth River Stage. To other people, I¡¯m progressing very quickly, but to me, this is slow ¡­</em>


    When Ling Xi saw impatience appear in his eyes, she bit her lip and suddenly said, ¡°Brother Chen, why don¡¯t I teach you an advanced Heaven-tier technique? I wanted to wait until you were at the Heavenly Passage Realm, but with your extraordinaryprehension abilities, you might be able to learn it now.¡±


    Long Chen was ecstatic at her offer. Advanced Heaven-tier? Even the Supreme Demon Sword of the Demon Emperor Sword Technique was only at the elementary Heaven-tier. How powerful would Ling Xi¡¯s advanced Heaven-tier technique be?


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I love you so much! Quick, tell me what it is, and what makes it advanced Heaven-tier!¡± Long Chen asked excitedly, stopping his cultivation.


    ¡°You still remember the Heaven Bearing Sword Prison technique that I used at the Star Devil Prison, right? This advanced Heaven-tier technique is a sword technique from the same secret scripture as the Heaven Bearing Sword Prison, but even more useful for you. It is called the Heaven Sword Array.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ling Xi is someone from a powerful family. Will Long Chen be the burdensome son-inw next time?</blockquote>

 Chapter 421: Heaven-Tier Demonic Beast

    Chapter 421: Heaven-Tier Demonic Beast


    Long Chen had witnessed the magnificence of the Heaven Bearing Sword Prison, which formed a prison using swords around the enemy. That way it had trapped the Azure Dragon Patriarch had created a deep impression of its power. However, Long Chen didn¡¯t expect such a simple sword technique to be at the advanced Heaven-tier!


    He knew it was no ordinary technique just based on its name, which was why he cried excitedly, ¡°Heaven Sword Array? Tell me about it in detail.¡±


    ¡°The Heaven Bearing Sword Prison creates a prison, while the Heaven Sword Array creates an array. It forms an array of swords, making it a sword array, which uses ten thousand swords to attack simultaneously. You can imagine the power of such a technique; it is something the ordinary person cannot withstand. If you can use it properly, it will definitely be much stronger than the Supreme Demon Sword,¡± exined Ling Xi solemnly.


    ¡°Sword array?¡± Long Chen could roughly imagine an array made out of swords in use. The target would be trapped in the array, then ten thousand swords would fly at him simultaneously. Even a powerful cultivator would suffer in the face of the Heaven Sword Array. Long Chen had a feeling that if he could master the Heaven Sword Array, it would be his ultimate fatal strike for a long time toe!


    ¡°Brother Chen, I still have a very clear memory of the study of the Heaven Sword Array. Since you¡¯re a smart guy yourself, with my guidance, I think you¡¯ll master it. From today onwards, shall we put cultivation aside in order to learn the Heaven Sword Array?¡± Ling Xi asked cautiously.


    ¡°No way. I¡¯ll spend half of my time on the Heaven Sword Array and half on Qi cultivation. I can¡¯t rx even for a moment. I must y the Sword Emperor in front of everyone!¡± Pride and anticipation surged within his heart. With the Heaven Sword Array in his arsenal, he would be even more confident in seeding.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡± Ling Xi did not know if it was the right decision to give him the Heaven Sword Array. She could not bear to see him furrowing his brows so tightly with worry, which was why she had instinctively told him about the Heaven Sword Array. After she said it, she was privately a little regretful because she knew that after cultivating the Heaven Sword Array, Long Chen would work even harder to eventually fight the Sword Emperor for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit used to be Ling Xi¡¯s greatest desire, but after she fell deeply in love with Long Chen, it became her greatest fear. Every time she wanted to tell him, the fire burning in his eyes made her swallow her words.


    ¡°Start from the heavens,y it all on the earth. Stir the wind and the clouds, then form the sword array ¡­¡± After Ling Xi slowly exined the technique, Long Chen gradually understood that although the Heaven Sword Array was considered one technique, it was actually abination of countless tiny techniques. These tens of thousands of tiny techniquesbined into an airtight attack.This was the magnificence of the sword array. Although it was ssified as an advanced Heaven-tier technique, it was more powerful than that. The more Long Chen learned about the Heaven Sword Array, the more shocked he became! The first technique Ling Xi had taught him was indeed much more powerful than the Sword Devil Finger and the Shadow Sword.


    To Long Chen, this was a huge opportunity. Therefore, he made a hundred and twenty percent effort to study and practice the Heaven Sword Array. Despite his intelligence, this was his first time facing obstacles in learning a new technique. If Ling Xi was not there to exin it to him or even demonstrate it, it was entirely possible that he would fail to learn the technique, even if he received the technique¡¯s secret scripture.


    With Ling Xi¡¯s help, he slowly familiarized himself with it. He made progress every day, bit by bit, so over time, the umtion of tiny bits of progress grew significant. Towards the end, he could understand her pointers the moment she gave them, and he gained a deeper understanding of the technique. After about a month, hisbor finally started bearing fruit.


    If it wasn¡¯t for her help, he might not have been sessful even after ten months. Long Chen sensed that in terms of cultivating both Qi andbat techniques, he was not as talented as he had imagined. The journey of cultivation was not meant to be smooth. Everyone struggled with thews of nature, even Long Chen, despite being different from the rest.


    Thankfully, he had better luck than other people for some reason.


    ¡°Ten thousand swords dispersing evil! Justice of the heavens and earth! The clouds of nine heavens swirl! The magnificence of heaven prevails!¡±


    On this day, Long Chen was levitating above the small river, his foot less than ten centimeters away from the surface of the water. Qi rippled constantly in the gap between him and the river, supporting his body. Constant ripples ran in all directions across the river¡¯s surface.


    Long Chen pointed his finger like a sword with his eyes closed, then he gently traced strange shapes in the air. Rays of light started to appear in front of him, forming a dense mass of runes that shone with a blinding light. The runes gradually formed an array that spun under his control.


    ¡°Break.¡±


    With a gentle <em>pop</em>, there was a sudden vibration in the air, and a tall Japanese pagoda tree nearby disappearedpletely. Not even its shadow remained. If someone else were present, they would have been utterly bewildered because how could a tree that was perfectly fine disappear so suddenly?


    However, if one approached the tree¡¯s original location, they would notice something odd. There was a fine powder floating in the air, which slowly dispersed and spread out on the ground.


    Under closer inspection, each powder particle was simr in size and appearance. Just simple, ordinary powder, which was impressive. The only strange thing was that some were brown and others green.


    ¡°The brown powder is the tree trunk, and the green powder came from the leaves. Sess.¡± Long Chen walked on the grass. He had used the Heaven Sword Array without putting in much effort and directed it at a random tree in order to produce this shocking effect. However, looking at how effective his miniature Heaven Sword Array was, how terrifying would arge version of the array be?


    ¡°Brother Chen, you¡¯re so smart!¡± Ling Xi praised. When she first learned the Heaven Sword Array, she also learned it with guidance, but she took longer than he did. It was very, very rare for a person like Long Chen from such a weak country to possess such talent.


    Long Chen wanted to reply with something smug, but he felt a sudden trembling in the ground. He swallowed his words and listened closely. Even the slumbering Xiang woke up and looked towards the north with a solemn expression.


    ¡°Something¡¯s up. Let¡¯s go check it out.¡± After Long Chen confirmed the direction, he led Ling Xi and Xiang quickly towards themotion. Along the way, Ling Xi returned to the Ling Xi Sword in his ear, while Xiang entered hisbat state so that he could run faster; he was even faster than Long Chen.


    <em>Demonic beast aura? And it¡¯s a strong aura too? </em>Long Chen was very surprised. He was not the only one, because Ling Xi and Xiang had sensed it too. Faint demonic beast roars came from the deeper parts of the Snowpeak Mountains. If the beast¡¯s roar could travel such a great distance, it was sure to be very powerful.


    <em>How could there be such a powerful beast in the Snowpeak Mountains? That Dark Moon Tiger from before was much stronger than the other beasts, so it probably didn¡¯t originate from here. Now another one has appeared? </em>Long Chen¡¯s mind raced.


    Xiang also sensed that it was clearly a very powerful beast aura, and he was much more excited than Long Chen to encounter a beast. The Sun Devouring Wolf had warlike tendencies written in its genes, and Xiang had been frustrated that Long Chen had snatched the Sword Devil and Lin Zichen from him.


    This time, the desire to fight surged through Xiang!


    The boy and wolf dashed madly towards the beast. The feeling in Long Chen¡¯s heart intensified as he drew closer. This beast was definitely far from ordinary.


    As they approached, the heaven-trembling roars made him anxious. About five hundred meters away, all that was left ringing in his ear were the thunderous roars. Based on the sounds, it was likely a tiger-type beast, and it was probably rted to the previous Dark Moon Tiger!


    Long Chen was about to use the Soul Swallowing Gaze when Ling Xi made the discovery first. She said hurriedly, ¡°Brother Chen, it¡¯s a Dark Moon Tiger King! It¡¯s a rare monarch among Dark Moon Tigers, and it¡¯s at the Category One Heaven-tier. Don¡¯t worry, I can tell that it¡¯s severely injured. It has only just regained its ability to move today!¡±


    ¡°Dark Moon Tiger? Is it rted to that previous Dark Moon Tiger?¡± he asked quickly. He was very interested when he heard that it was a Heaven-tier beast. And it was injured! This was an amazing opportunity!


    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s rted. The previous Dark Moon Tiger was probably this Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s subordinate or progeny. I¡¯m guessing that this Dark Moon Tiger King has been recovering here for a long time. It¡¯s only being so loud because it has just recovered a little today, and it¡¯s calling for its scattered subordinates. We were even called over too!¡± Ling Xi exined.


    ¡°Ling Xi, if Xiang and I work together, will we be able to kill it?¡± Long Chen suddenly asked with fire in his eyes. It had been a long time since he had used Blood Transmutation. This was a rare opportunity, and he had the Heaven Sword Array to test out. As long as he reached the Ninth River Stage, he would be able to defeat the Sword Emperor!


    Ling Xi froze, then she fell silent. She was so focused on the Heaven-tier beast that she had forgotten about that. With Long Chen¡¯s personality, he would rush to kill the Sword Emperor for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit the moment he reached the Ninth River Stage. Even if it was just for Xiang¡¯s revenge, Long Chen would still fight him!


    ¡°Xiao Xi, can we kill it?¡± Long Chen had not encountered a Heaven-tier beast before, so he asked again.


    ¡°Brother Chen, can we not kill it? Can we go back?¡± Ling Xi suddenly asked with sorrow.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Long Chen froze, then he grinned. ¡°Xiao Xi, you must be kidding. Don¡¯t worry. Xiang and I should stand a chance against an injured beast, even if it¡¯s at the Heaven-tier. Xiang, don¡¯t you agree?¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    There''s our next fodder, our Dark Moon Tiger King hehe</blockquote>

 Chapter 422: Universal Transporter

    Chapter 422: Universal Transporter


    Long Chen only thought that Ling Xi was worried about his safety. After their conversation, he led Xiang to charge at the Dark Moon Tiger King. Five hundred meters took him merely a few moments to cover, so he soon ran into a gigantic creature in a wide valley.


    It was indeed a tiger-type beast. It was enormous, more than two times the previous Dark Moon Tiger¡¯s size. Being about ten meters tall, even one limb was as thick as Long Chen¡¯s body! The Dark Moon Tiger King looked almost the same as a Dark Moon Tiger and was ck all over, and the only difference was that it had a blood-red ¡°Íõ¡± pattern on its forehead. This mark made it look regal with a hint of bloodlust!


    The Dark Moon Tiger King was roaring at the skies, but Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s arrival instantly attracted its attention, especially because Xiang was radiating an aura that made it anxious. In the past, it would not have been afraid of Xiang, but it had just begun to recover from a severe injury. Its heartbeat quickened when it saw Long Chen and Xiang, but due to its dignity as the king of beasts, not only did it not retreat, it became extremely furious!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The Dark Moon Tiger King let out an intimidating roar as a warning for Long Chen to leave quickly or it would not hold back.


    ¡°Universal Transporter!¡± Ling Xi suddenly cried from within the Ling Xi Sword. There was surprise in her voice.


    Long Chen froze and asked in confusion, ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Look! Behind the Dark Moon Tiger King is the Universal Transporter. That¡¯s the mysterious array your master mentioned. You should be able to reach the Divine Martial Territory through this Universal Transporter. I was just wondering why a Heaven-tier beast would appear in the Cangyang Kingdom! This is why,¡± Ling Xi exined, suddenly understanding.


    Long Chen saw a faint array on the ground behind the Dark Moon Tiger King. It was about twenty meters in diameter. Mysterious symbols flickered gently within the array, but without close observation, it was not easy to notice it.This was the Universal Transporter that could instantly transport Long Chen to the Divine Martial Territory.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, can you tell me what it is?¡±


    ¡°The Universal Transporter requires energy in order to activate and transport a person. Usually, Universal Transporters like this small version in front of you require Heavenly Passage Pills to activate. If you want to get to the Divine Martial Territory, you¡¯ll probably need a lot of Heavenly Passage Pills.¡±


    Long Chen had heard Zhao Qingyun talk about the Heavenly Passage Pill before. The Heavenly River Realm had Heavenly River Pills, so naturally, the Heavenly Passage Realm had Heavenly Passage Pills. Cultivation at the Heavenly Passage Realm was simr in concept to the Heavenly River Realm, but instead of condensing eighteen heavenly rivers, it focused on the formation of the nine great meridian points in the body!


    Long Chen did not know which meridian points specifically, but he knew that Heavenly Passage Pills were imperative for their formation. It was just like how Heavenly River Pills were required for progressing through the Heavenly River Realm, but Heavenly Passage Pills were countless times more expensive.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, are you saying that this Dark Moon Tiger King and the previous Dark Moon Tiger passed through the Universal Transporter? And they¡¯re demonic beasts from the Divine Martial Territory?¡± It all suddenly made sense to Long Chen.


    ¡°I think so. The beasts do not have Heavenly Passage Pills on them. They probably entered the Universal Transporter by ident, but because they did not have Heavenly Passage Pills, the Universal Transporter directly absorbed their demonic energy instead. This Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s injuries were due to its demonic energy being sucked dry by the Universal Transporter. The core functions of its body were damaged, which is why it¡¯s in such a sorry state right now. The other Dark Moon Tiger wasn¡¯t injured, probably because it was being protected by this Dark Moon Tiger King!¡±


    Long Chen now understood the situation. In the beginning, he thought he was just so lucky that whatever he wanted would appear. The beasts had long been here, and Long Chen was only able to find this Dark Moon Tiger King because the previous Dark Moon Tiger had wreaked havoc.


    As Ling Xi and Long Chen conversed, the Dark Moon Tiger King realized that they would not leave despite its warnings. It had the dignity of a Heaven-tier beast, and despite being injured, it was now truly angered. A thick killing intent rose within it, and it was directed at Long Chen and Xiang.


    After Long Chen understood everything, his determination to kill the Dark Moon Tiger King solidified. This was the only way he could quickly reach the Ninth River Stage and shock everyone in the Imperial Capital with his extraordinary strength!


    When Ling Xi saw the desire to fight in his eyes, she had no choice but to swallow her words despite having much to say. She privately decided that after this battle ended, she would tell him what she was hiding in her heart.


    Because all she wanted was to be with Long Chen.


    Long Chen and Xiang locked eyes, then they immediately separated. One on the left and one on the right, they both charged at the furious Dark Moon Tiger King!


    Even a starving camel wasrger than a horse, let alone a Heaven-tier demonic beast. Long Chen did not dare let down his guard. As he charged, he quicklypleted his Dragon Soul Transformation and activated the demon seed within him. He used the Demon Seed nting Technique to increase his Qi to the maximum. The Dark Moon Tiger King initially looked down on Long Chen, but now he was a master as strong as Xiang that made the Dark Moon Tiger King nervous. It even trembled when Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword!


    It sensed that the sword was a weapon capable of injuring it!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± Long Chen used his trump card the moment they started the attack. He had not even used the Blood Devouring Domain against Lin Zichen, showing just how seriously he was taking the Heaven-tier Dark Moon Tiger King!


    Blood-red mist engulfed the Dark Moon Tiger King in an instant. The immense sucking force made it roar in panic. It had no choice but to use its demonic power to suppress its bubbling blood, leaving a lot less demonic power to fight!


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Sovereign Sword!¡±


    After using the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen leaped off the wall of the mountain and soared like a crane,nding on its head. He swung the Demon Emperor Sword down hard, and a gust of earth-shattering ck sword Qi flew towards it. Sand and pebbles flew in the air within the valley, and trees were uprooted all around them!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The Dark Moon Tiger King roared furiously and, as quick as lightning, mmed its paw against Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Sovereign Sword attack. The toughness of its body far exceeded Long Chen¡¯s imagination. All the attack had done was leave a white mark on its skin with a slight bit of blood oozing out of the wound.


    However, even though it was just a little bit, the beast¡¯s blood flew towards Long Chen as it was under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain. The Dark Moon Tiger King was in pain and hurriedly used its demonic power to suppress its blood. Then it swiped its other paw quickly at Long Chen¡¯s head!


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow¡­¡± Long Chen turned into multiple shadows circling around the Dark Moon Tiger King and sessfully dodged its attack!


    <em>This Heaven-tier beast is indeed stronger than any other beast I¡¯ve seen thus far. The attack Iunched at maximum strength only left a tiny wound on its body! And it¡¯s injured too! If it were at its peak, Xiang and I would probably be no match for it!</em>


    Long Chen was privately shocked!


    Then Xiang ran past Long Chen. He too had reached the second stage of the Demon Seed nting Technique, and he currently had half as much demonic power as the Dark Moon Tiger King. He mmed his body hard into the Dark Moon Tiger King, and the gigantic force caused the Dark Moon Tiger King to falter several steps back!


    Xiang quickly retreated with a <em>whoosh</em>. The Dark Moon Tiger King raged and bit at Xiang. Its jaws wererge enough to swallow Xiang whole, and its sharp teeth could definitely split Xiang in half with one bite!


    A human-like smile appeared on Xiang¡¯s face. As he retreated, he opened his mouth, and roaring ck mes poured like a flood towards the Dark Moon Tiger King. The mes were like an approaching tide, and they were difficult to dodge. The Dark Moon Tiger King was cautious and had a feeling that the fire would be very powerful. It opened its mouth too, and another fierce, ck wave poured out and collided with Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    <em>Sizzle, sizzle!</em>


    ck mist rose high into the air, instantly clouding Long Chen¡¯s vision!


    As a whole, the Dark Moon Tiger King had underestimated the destructive force of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Although it had done its best to dodge, Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire still drowned out its ck flood. Some peripheral mes hit the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s shoulder, and hard ice formed instantly on its body. When it moved slightly, the hard ice shattered, revealing gory blood and flesh!


    Xiang had sessfully used the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to injure the Dark Moon Tiger King!


    Severalrge, crater-like wounds appeared on the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s body, causing it to let out another earth-shaking cry! Immense demonic power erupted from its body¡ªit had gone mad this time! The fierceness of a wild beast exploded from the Dark Moon Tiger King!


    The whole valley seemed to move all of a sudden, and Xiang quickly retreated. Every swipe of the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s ws was powerful. If Long Chen or Xiang were hit even once, they would be severely injured. That was why he chose to dodge for the moment while Long Chen was behind the Dark Moon Tiger King! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    The portal to the next realm you say? Guess we will be revisiting it again next time</blockquote>

 Chapter 423: Ninth River Stage

    Chapter 423: Ninth River Stage


    After exchanging attacks, Long Chen gradually figured out the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s strength. In its injured state, although it was terrifying, it was not unbeatable.


    ¡°Haha, Xiang! Even your Nine Devils Ancestral Fire didn¡¯t kill it. It¡¯s my turn now.¡± Long Chen used Traceless Demon Shadow and appeared behind the Dark Moon Tiger King in a sh. The Demon Emperor Sword whistled as more than ten des of Demon Emperor Sword Qi flew at the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s back, forming white cuts!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The front of its body was already injured by Xiang¡¯s strange Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, and now Long Chen was attacking its back. Although the Demon Emperor Sword Qi had not injured it, the pain angered the Dark Moon Tiger King even more. It turned its gigantic body around, and when it was about to attack the irritating Long Chen, Xiang started to move behind it once more.


    The valley was wide to Long Chen, but very narrow to the Dark Moon Tiger King. This resulted in a great decrease to its agility. With Long Chen and Xiang blocking its front and back, and more importantly, the effects of the Blood Devouring Domain, the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s movement was severely restricted.


    Many wounds started to appear on its body. If it did not use its demonic power to suppress its blood, it would quickly die by Long Chen¡¯s hand.


    When Xiang saw that the Dark Moon Tiger King was focused on Long Chen, he knew that Long Chen was creating opportunity for him. Just as the Dark Moon Tiger King turned around, Xiang leaped onto its back and lowered his head. The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire poured from his mouth towards the Dark Moon Tiger King instantly!


    The close-range attack caused the Dark Moon Tiger King to let out another earth-shaking cry of agony. When Xiang stepped on its back, it already knew that it was a bad sign. It quickly waved itsrge tail to flick Xiang off, but Xiang was faster and spewed the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire on its body!


    <em>Roar!</em>There was a cry of pain. The Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s body crackled and popped as ck ice spread quickly across its back. Xiang saw that the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s tail wasing and quickly leaped off before fleeing in the opposite direction! The tail hit empty air!


    The Dark Moon Tiger King was in misery after losing so much flesh and blood, as well as sustaining injuries to its internal organs. It was already injured before this battle, and now it had new injuries on top of its old ones. It grew dizzy from the huge amount of blood loss and could barely stand up straight.


    Long Chen charged from its front. There was a gust of wind, and he thrust the Demon Emperor Sword out!


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Demon Sword!¡± At that moment, rays of sword light shot out at the Dark Moon Tiger King. This was the technique he had used to kill Lin Zichen, and this time, it was executed even more perfectly. The powerful attack charged at the Dark Moon Tiger King like a moving storm!


    The Dark Moon Tiger King was in a state of dizziness from its blood loss when the attack arrived. Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s attacks worked together perfectly. Since the Dark Moon Tiger King could not recover in time, it could not fight back against Long Chen¡¯s final strike. In a state of panic, all it could do was swipe its w at Long Chen!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    The Supreme Demon Sword pierced through the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s paw and struck its neck. The attack was so powerful that it shed open its neck, respiratory tract, blood vessels, etc. Long Chen¡¯s attack had severed all of them and still he did not stop. Using Traceless Demon Shadow, he appeared in front of the Dark Moon Tiger King instantly and stabbed his sword through the back of its head!


    The Dark Moon Tiger King finally let out a sorrowful cry and copsed. Its blood flowed towards Long Chen and formed arge sphere around him.


    At Long Chen¡¯s feet was the Heaven-tier Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s dried-up body.


    Xiang finally looked back and surveyed the situation with joy. He knew that with the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s blood, Long Chen would definitely level up by one tier.


    He waited quietly.


    Long Chen started to use Blood Transmutation to refine the beast¡¯s blood. Since the Dark Moon Tiger King was huge, it had very thick blood. Long Chen absorbed the blood bit by bit until the blood sphere around him shrank. After some time, all of the blood had been consumed by Long Chen.


    The essence contained within the blood had been turned into Dragon Qi in his body, while other impurities were released outside of his body. There was about one unit of essence for every ten, or even hundred units of blood.


    Long Chen umted more and more Qi until he had enough to condense the ninth pair of heavenly rivers in his body. Half a day had passed by then.


    <em>It¡¯s finally time to break through to the Ninth River Stage. </em>Long Chen was ecstatic. He took out almost all the Heavenly River Pills from his Universe Pouch and started condensing the ninth pair of heavenly rivers. Due to prior experience and having enough Qi, he would aplish this with ease. All he needed was time.


    With a plentiful supply of Heavenly River Pills, the ninth pair of heavenly rivers quickly formed. Long Chen¡¯s aura intensified quickly. Very soon, the final pair of heavenly rivers formed, and they were much more stable than a normal cultivator¡¯s heavenly rivers.


    His eighteen heavenly rivers connected to form a perfect cycle within his body. Blood-red Qi flowed within them, almost in a liquid state. They looked like the heavenly rivers in the sky[1]¡ªshimmering and shining with a light that shook the soul.


    Once everything ended, Long Chen stood up and stretched his arms wide with his eyes closed, feeling the power within his body.


    <em>So, this is how the Ninth River Stage feels ¡­ This is like the feeling ofpletion. </em>Long Chen gained more insight as he felt power flow through his body.


    <em>No. While the heavenly rivers in the body are indeedplete, there is one ce that hasn¡¯t been cleared yet. The power in my bodycks convergence points. If it had some, then it would be perfect. I¡¯m guessing that these centerpoints make up the meridian points of the Heavenly Passage Realm.</em>


    Long Chen knew that after the Dragon Veins, Divine Core, and Heavenly Rivers, the journey of cultivation waspleted only after he hadpleted the meridian points too. However, he also knew that it was only the beginning. The Draconic Realm, the Divine Core Realm, the Heavenly River Realm, and the Heavenly Passage Realm were only the four foundational realms of cultivation where the cultivator solidified his base. Just like how Yellow, ck, Earth, and Heaven-tier demonic beasts were the lowest-ranked beasts of the world. More powerful opponents existed in this vast world.


    <em>I¡¯ve onlypleted three of the four foundational realms. I don¡¯t know when I¡¯ll be able toplete all four. Then I can see what realms exist beyond them ¡­ </em>Long Chen sighed.


    But when he looked in the direction of the Imperial Capital, there was a smile on his face.


    <em>With my Ninth River Stage cultivation, plus my newly mastered Heaven Sword Array, I¡¯m sure I¡¯m qualified to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit now!</em>


    With that thought, he stored the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s carcass and beast soul, then he called for Xiang to leave. Two months had passed since his battle with Lin Zichen. He was now itching to battle the Sword Emperor to the death!


    Long Chen had a rough idea that with his current cultivation level, if he added the Dragon Soul Transformation and Demon Seed nting Technique, he would surely have as much Qi as someone at the Heavenly Passage Realm. With the help of his powerful divine techniques, he definitely had the right to challenge the Sword Emperor!


    Long Chen had finally be the strongest person in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    Of course, he had the Dark Moon Tiger King to thank for this. If it had not entered the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s Snowpeak Mountains by ident through the Universal Transporter, Long Chen would need two more months to make a breakthrough.


    Although he looked calm now, there was a wave of emotion running through him.


    He was about to face his final battle on the journey that started in Baiyang Town! This was the end of his saga in the Cangyang Kingdom. If he obtained the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, all his wishes would have been fulfilled. Then he would have no more stress and could live a carefree life exploring the Dragon Continent while holding Ling Xi¡¯s hand.


    Although all the fighting had been exciting, Long Chen was also tired.


    When he was in Baiyang Town, he was only a prodigal son who had nothing to do. However, many things had forced him to this current position. The threats to his family and to Ling Xi had left him with no choice but to step up and resolve them with brute force. Now everything hade to an end. He only had to fight his final battle to resolve Ling Xi¡¯s final threat. Then he would have a happy ever after with his beloved!


    How could he not feel emotional?


    He had waited for so long just for this moment!


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, Xiao Xi. It¡¯s time for thest battle. This time, I will be sure to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit for you. I won¡¯t stop until I do!¡± he said with great resolution.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I don¡¯t want the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit! I want you!¡± Ling Xi suddenly started crying.


    1. the Milky Way in the sky is also referred to as a ¡®heavenly river¡¯ in Mandarin ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hell yeah, now time to find the Sword Emperor</blockquote>

 Chapter 424: Canyon

    Chapter 424: Canyon


    Long Chen had sessfully reached the Ninth River Stage and was initially filled with confidence. He froze for a long time after he heard Ling Xi speak with such sadness, then he looked at her solemnly without a word.


    He had long noticed that something was off, but he thought it was because she was worried about his safety. However, he waspletely capable of defeating the Sword Emperor now, so why had Ling Xi said such a thing?


    ¡°Ling Xi, tell me what¡¯s on your mind.¡± Long Chen¡¯s burning passion gradually died down. He sat down on a patch of grass and waved towards Ling Xi. She pursed her lips, then flew onto the back of his hand and sat down cross-legged. She was nervous in the beginning, but as she gazed into his sincere eyes, she finally forced herself to speak.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I¡¯m bringing this up now of all times for a good reason. I have been afraid to talk about this because I thought it would make you resent me ¡­ I feel miserable,¡± she said as she looked at him. She was starting to be choked up.


    ¡°Silly girl, don¡¯t say that. You can tell me if there¡¯s a problem. Don¡¯t you trust me yet? Since the beginning, have I ever med you for anything?¡± Although Long Chen couldn¡¯t figure out what she was going to say, he remained calm.


    Ling Xi started to tell him the full story.


    ¡°When we first met, I never thought there would be a day where you and I would be so tightly connected that it would be difficult for us to separate. At the time, I thought that if you were nice to me, I didn¡¯t mind being nice to you. And if I really could return to my original state, I wouldn¡¯t mind giving you some type of reward. And then ¡­ I would bid you farewell. I would treat you as just a kind passerby in my life.¡±


    At this point, Ling Xi¡¯s voice became unintelligible due to her crying. Although she had no tears, Long Chen knew that her heart was crying too, or she would not look this sad.


    ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡± Long Chen had a bad feeling.Ling Xi shook her head and said in despair, ¡°Brother Chen, you don¡¯t understand the powers behind me. They¡¯re at a ce you cannot even fathom. I don¡¯t want you to obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit today, because I don¡¯t want to leave you! I can¡¯t bear to leave you at all!¡±


    She was usually a shy girl, but she was not afraid to speak her mind at this moment as she stared at him with her big eyes.


    It was clear how strong her feelings were.


    They had experienced too much together, from life to death, and death to life. If they did not have each other¡¯s support, it would have been difficult for them to survive to this day.


    ¡°Why will we separate once we get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit? Xi¡¯er, are you saying that your n will stop us from being together?¡± Long Chen had once thought of this problem too. However, when Ling Xi regained her body, she would not have to return to her home immediately. He had always thought that he had a lot of time to grow, then he would obtain her n¡¯s approval when he was strong enough. Was something different now?


    Long Chen¡¯s chest tightened.


    Ling Xi shook her head painfully and said apologetically, ¡°There is one thing that I have been keeping from you. Brother Chen, you don¡¯t know how powerful the people behind me are. My father and mother are very highly ranked masters. In my eyes, you¡¯re very, very awesome. But they will never be satisfied with you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve thought about this a long time ago, but Xiao Xi, don¡¯t we have time?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly.


    ¡°No, we don¡¯t have time. When ¡­ When I regain my body, the strength I once had will also return to me. My powers are easily identifiable, and my n has likely already expanded their search to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory in search of me. This means that if I regain my body, it is very, very possible that my family will discover me ande straight here¡­ Brother Chen, I¡¯m so sorry for not telling you from the beginning ¡­¡±


    Long Chen felt like lightning had struck him when he heard her exnation. He had never expected this at all. It was no wonder Ling Xi had said that she wanted him but not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    He felt like he was going mad with frustration because he understood the problem. Ling Xi¡¯s background was too powerful for him to fathom and was far from his current understanding. This also meant that when Ling Xi¡¯s family came for her, she would likely be brought back immediately. Then they would be separated forever, and they would never meet each other again ¡­


    There was a canyon as wide as the gap between heaven and earth between them. The moment they separated, it wouldst forever.


    Long Chen¡¯s throat went dry. He realized that he was extremely miserable at this moment. To be honest, he was furious. Why had she only brought this up now? She should have told him a long time ago so he would be prepared! Not now!


    He had just reached the Ninth River Stage and cultivated the Heaven Sword Array, so he was in a confident state of mind. After she gave him such a huge blow, he hadpletely woken up. He felt chills with the realization that it was not enough.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I¡¯m so sorry ¡­ I know you¡¯re miserable. I am too. I want to beat myself to death for this, but I had no choice. Every time I saw you filled with battle spirit, I couldn¡¯t bear to tell you. Now I have no other option. That¡¯s why I had to force myself to tell you. I¡¯m sorry ¡­


    ¡°When I first heard about the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in Yuanling City, I had already guessed that it would end like that. We didn¡¯t have such a deep bond at the time, so all I thought was that I would repay you generously for it, and I didn¡¯t dwell on the matter ¡­ But after that ¡­ After that, many things happened, and you slowly became the most important person in my life. Brother Chen, I¡¯m not lying. As long as you let me, I am willing to stay by your side. Even if I have no body, even if I can only stay in the sword and watch you speak. I am willing to bear it all ¡­¡±


    Ling Xi hung her head, and her emotions reached their peak.


    Long Chen pursed his lips. There was some pain in his gaze. Ling Xi¡¯s words had put him in a dilemma. Ling Xi felt like she could never leave his side, and he felt the same. He had almost gone mad with frustration when he had to endure a month without her by his side in the Counter Essence Realm.


    When she saw his deeply torn look, Ling Xi bit her lip and said gently, ¡°Brother Chen, don¡¯t be sad. I will never leave you. That is why I have decided that I don¡¯t want the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit no matter what. Can we just stay together like this and live our lives? I know that I cannot give you a child, and I cannot give myself to you ¡­ but I want to be selfish just this time. Will you let me?¡±


    When she finished, she gazed deeply at him with hope in her eyes, waiting for his reply. She had already said what she wanted to say.


    There was a huge surge of emotion in his heart. Like a drowning man, he struggled desperately in the waves until the end, then he slowly said, ¡°Xiao Xi, what you said is right. You¡¯re correct, but you don¡¯t know men. You don¡¯t know me!¡±


    Long Chen stood up. There was some redness in his eyes as he spun around, looking at the vastnds. The world was huge, and he was so minute. This made him feel weak, but it did not scare him into giving up!


    ¡°I don¡¯t know men?¡± She didn¡¯t understand what he meant.


    ¡°No, and you don¡¯t understand me.¡± Long Chen gritted his teeth and stared in the direction of the Imperial Capital coldly. ¡°Ling Xi, after being with me for so long, do you still not know my personality? I am a proud man. Have I ever given up? Have I ever been afraid? I have always held the firm belief that as long as I am forging ahead, no one in this world can stop me. Including your family!¡±


    ¡°Brother Chen, what are you saying?¡± Ling Xi was startled. Long Chen¡¯s determination scared her a little.


    ¡°What am I saying? Hehe ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled and gently held Ling Xi in his palm. He tried his best to soften his tone as he said, ¡°I have never retreated in fear. I am a man, and I especially don¡¯t want to run away from our problems so that you have to live as a soul in secret for the rest of our lives! Ling Xi, think about it! If I agree to your request today, will I be fit to be called a man?!¡±


    Towards the end, Long Chen was almost shouting. Ling Xi was frozen with shock, almost crying. Long Chen had never looked at her with such a scary expression. This was the first time, but Ling Xi knew that he would never hurt her, even if he had to die!


    ¡°Brother Chen, are you saying that you want me to use the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit? But if that happens, it is very likely that I will leave you forever. You will never see me again! Can you bear to part with me?¡± she said, sobbing.


    ¡°I could not bear to leave you, Xiao Xi ¡­¡± Long Chen closed his eyes. He was so ovee with emotion that tears almost flowed. He did his best to suppress his tears and leaned close to her ear. ¡°I would miss you ten thousand times, but I also could not bear to trap you by my side forever. I cannot destroy your future because of my selfishness. This form does not suit you. You¡¯re still young, so you should have aplete body, not live as a fugitive with me in this pitiful state. All it would prove is that I am trash! Also, the most important thing is ¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s breathing was ragged. He stared straight at her and said slowly, ¡°My darling, don¡¯t forget that one day, I will appear right in front of you again, and I will defeat and even kill every person in my way. Then you will be my wife!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Damn. A true man</blockquote>

 Chapter 425: No One Can Stop Me

    Chapter 425: No One Can Stop Me


    Long Chen¡¯s words struck Ling Xi¡¯s soul like a heavy hammer. She was at a loss for words, so she stared at Long Chen in a daze. He was breathing heavily, and his eyes were turning red. There was stubbornness and refusal to surrender in his eyes, and that gaze made Ling Xipletely lost. She didn¡¯t understand how she had ended up with such a stubborn man. There was not a hint of surrender from his eyes to his bones. He had always determined the oue of his fights. That was why he always won and his enemies always died.


    Right now, there was only one final person in the Cangyang Kingdom fit to be his enemy: the Sword Emperor.


    Long Chen had risen to his current position one step at a time. Although he looked weak, no one had been able to stop him.


    Emotion drowned Ling Xipletely. She suddenly felt so loved. Perhaps other people would think that Long Chen was just too ambitious, or that he simply did not know how vast the world was, but Ling Xi had an unwavering belief in him. If he said he would do it, then he would. If he didn¡¯t, then there would be only one possibility. It meant he was dead.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, do you know what this means? It means that no matter what happens, I will work hard to catch up to you. You are my woman right now. You will be my woman forever. So, do you think you can get away from me?¡±


    Ling Xi¡¯s mouth was agape, but she could not say a single word.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to say anything else. I have already made my decision. I must go to the Biyang Imperial Capital and I must fight the Sword Emperor. I must get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit and you must regain your body. If I really am unlucky and your family arrives to take you away, please tell me where you live. I will kill my way there even if I need to kill every god and demon who stands in my way. I will do this until I can hold your hands in mine!¡±


    Long Chen made this solemn deration while looking up at the heavens.


    The determination in his eyes was deeply etched in her heart. She initially thought that if she told Long Chen about this, he would choose to give up, but it looked like she did not understand him at all. Ling Xi suddenly understood many things now. She also knew that he had always been stubborn, and if he had made a decision, he would never change his mind.Therefore, no matter what she said, Long Chen would storm the Biyang Imperial Capital and retrieve the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in order to fulfill the dream he had for half a year.


    In order to retrieve the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, Long Chen had left Yuanling City and fought for almost half a year. They had reached the final obstacle, yet Ling Xi had hit him with a brutal revtion. It was indeed a huge blow to Long Chen, but he did not retreat. He was only sad for a while, then he reset his goal again.


    In the face of brutal reality, he was a cockroach that refused to die. That was the mindset that had allowed him to get this far.


    Xiang was watching their conversation in silence. When Long Chen uttered thest word of his deration, he beamed with a proud smile. He was bursting with pride for his big brother!


    His deration did not mean that he wasn¡¯t in pain. Talk was easy, but he needed to work ten thousand times harder. If Ling Xi really was taken away, he swore he would find her and gain her family¡¯s approval with his own abilities. But toplete this, he would have to cross rivers and mountains, and even kill tens of thousands of masters. He was sure that he would have thousands of brushes with death in order to even catch a glimpse of his goal!


    The most likely oue was that he would die in an obscure corner of the world and be a withered skeleton, then he and Ling Xi would never meet again. That was fate. Sometimes, fate was cruel. Very few people could change their fate.


    Long Chen was clear that his future efforts would all be for the solemn vow that he made today. The very, very long path ahead was now fixed.


    He had been working hard for the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, but once he got his hands on it, he would lose the beautiful dream of traveling the world with Ling Xi. He had no choice but to ept this path, one that would be very lonely. He would have to work hard towards a future that was likely impossible, all for the day he could meet her again. Then he would hug her and feel the warmth of her body, and the feeling of two hearts touching each other.


    This was fate.


    Long Chen knew that since he had made the vow, he would have to struggle against fate. But he did notin, nor did he regret it.


    He could definitely choose to follow Ling Xi¡¯s suggestion, and then he would be able to stay by her side forever without effort. However, that meant that he had surrendered to fate, and surrender was not part of his personality. He had always chosen the path against fate.


    However, what they both did not know was how much suffering they would have to endure in order to end up together. No one could control their fate. Even the strongest people still had to die in the hands of fate.


    A strong gust of wind blew.


    Long Chen took a deep breath. The path ahead did not look good. He felt like a huge boulder was pressing on his heart, but he did not give up. He gazed towards the Imperial Capital, smoothened his clothing, then said gently to Xiang, ¡°Let¡¯s go. It¡¯s our final battle in the Cangyang Kingdom. Xiang, he¡¯s also your enemy, so let¡¯s fight him together today.¡±


    Xiang finally stood up and morphed into his gigantic form. His spirits were lifted as he gazed at Long Chen with a burning fire in his eyes. Then he let out a ground-shaking howl at the skies.


    ¡°Brother Chen, Xiang says that no matter what happens, he will fight by your side till the end!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good. Let¡¯s go. Let¡¯s fight for our beautiful future!¡± Long Chen let out augh. Hisugh lightened the mood and invigorated their battle spirits. As the wind blew, the trio embarked on their journey towards the capital.


    Long Chen knew that their target was already waiting for him.


    It had been two long months.


    This final battle would surely be a colorful one.


    ***


    There had been an odd change to the mood in the Imperial Capital since Lin Zichen¡¯s death. Everyone sensed that a storm wasing.


    News of Long Chen¡¯s incident had spread across the whole capital, so every random person not only knew Long Chen¡¯s name, they could also describe in detail how he had infiltrated the pce and how he had killed Lin Zichen in front of Ginger City.


    He had killed the most favored prodigy of the Cangyang Kingdom, which caused argermotion than when he previously fled the kingdom. He was a dark horse that seemed to have materialized from nothing and taken the final victory. This grabbed almost everyone¡¯s attention in the capital.


    Long Chen¡¯s final deration had made the whole capital erupt. Everyone knew that after he killed Lin Zichen, he would return to the capital and embark on a final battle against the number one master of the Cangyang Kingdom! The abrupt appearance of this young man startled all the higher-ranked people of the kingdom.


    To them, Long Chen had long been a top-tier master. At this point, he was probably only ranked just beneath the Sword Emperor and the Heavenly Demon Lord.


    Of course, everyone now also knew of his identity.


    Ever since he used the Demon Emperor Sword and the Three Great Secret Scriptures, there was no question that he had pledged himself to the Heavenly Demon Pce and was going to be the next Lord of the Heavenly Demon Pce. The battle between Lin Zichen and Long Chen was actually a fight between the two major factions of the Cangyang Kingdom. As a result, Lin Zichen¡¯s death pressured the imperial family greatly.


    This meant that if Long Chen remained alive, the imperial family wouldpletely lose to the Heavenly Demon Pce in the near future. The Emperor¡¯s seat would also be taken by them, and the royals would face the threat of beingpletely annihted.


    The capital seemed to be holding its breath for the storm.


    The First Prince had brought back news that Long Chen would challenge the Sword Emperor, but he did not say when. Two months of anxious waiting had passed. During this time, the gossip did not lessen, but rather intensified.


    There was a discussion in a small teahouse.


    ¡°Brother Zhang, why are you here drinking tea today? Aren¡¯t you usually locked up at home cultivating?¡± asked a middle-aged man with a grin.


    ¡°To hell with that! I couldn¡¯t calm my mind, so I came to the teahouse to listen for more information. Is the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s Long Chening today?¡± the man asked softly.


    ¡°There isn¡¯t anymotion, so I don¡¯t think so?¡± answered the middle-aged man, furrowing his brows.


    ¡°The whole capital is talking about Long Chen¡¯s challenge. I wonder if he¡¯ll actuallye. It¡¯s been two months. Brother Chen, you don¡¯t think he simply made an empty promise, do you?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I hear that he¡¯sing to avenge a brother of his. I think it¡¯s almost time. I hear that the Imperial Capital has made sufficient preparations. I¡¯ll only consider it an empty promise if he doesn¡¯t show up in another month!¡±


    ¡°His Majesty the Sword Emperor¡¯s son was killed, so why didn¡¯t he storm the Heavenly Demon Pce?¡± asked the man.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. He¡¯s probably waiting for Long Chen toe. I hear that based on Long Chen¡¯s personality, if he said it, he will definitely do it. It should be almost time, so let¡¯s wait and watch!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Final battle!</blockquote>

 Chapter 426: Golden Eyes

    Chapter 426: Golden Eyes


    It was the morning assembly[1] in the pce, but the atmosphere was heavy after what had happened.


    The stampede at Ginger City hade to pass and the Cangyang Kingdom was supposed to be peaceful again. The kingdom had always emphasized cultivation strength, and the citizens lived with the belief that there was nothing that could not be solved through pure force. The morning assembly was just a tradition that had passed down through the ages and served no purpose.


    Thanks to the Sword Emperor, the Cangyang Kingdom appeared to be and ruled over by a sect rather than a proper country, though most kingdoms were the same. The Cangyang Kingdom had very few rules and regtions and was being held in ce by the strength of the imperial pce.


    The morning assembly was the only thing that resembled how a normal country would operate.


    One of the officials gave a report of what was happening in the capital as well as the other cities. No one else had anything to report after that. The patriarch of the Gongsun family, one of the two remaining noble families, stepped up. ¡°Your Highness, a lot of people flooded into the capital recently, and various incidents have taken ce. It¡¯s been ten years since something like this has happened.¡±


    The Sword Emperor was sitting on a white jade throne with his eyes closed. He appeared to be asleep and didn¡¯t move at all even though the patriarch of the Gongsun family was speaking. He slowly opened his eyes, and golden light radiated from his pupils when the Gongsun family patriarch finished his report.


    The other officials lowered their heads and dared not look into the Emperor¡¯s eyes.


    If Long Chen were here, he would¡¯ve been surprised because the Emperor¡¯s eyes were not ck like what he had seen that night, but instead gold. The Emperor with ck eyes had an indescribably gentle aura that resembled Yin energy, while the golden-eyed Emperor exuded a harsh and dominating aura that resembled Yang energy. No one dared to look at him.


    There had been a rumor circting the Cangyang Kingdom that the Sword Emperor was cultivating a secret technique that caused the changes in his eye color. It would be golden during the day and ck during the night. It was somewhat true as many had witnessed the change in eye color.The Sword Emperor looked at the Gongsun¡¯s family patriarch.


    The patriarch couldn¡¯t endure the pressure and his body trembled slightly.


    ¡°Is that so ¡­ I don¡¯t know why they are here, but if I had to guess, it¡¯s because that Long Chen brat wants to duel me.¡± The Sword Emperor enunciated each word clearly and calmly without expressing any emotions.


    ¡°I think so ¡­¡± The Gongsun family patriarch had to admit that the people flocking in were indeed here to witness the battle. How could they afford to not watch it?


    Silence filled the room.


    ¡°Hmm ¡­ Gongsun, lead your family members to kill all those that came into the city to watch the battle. Pile their corpses in front of the city gates to warn the others.¡±


    His tone was calm, as if he had just said something normal.


    The officials, however, felt their scalps go numb. They had expected something like this after serving the Emperor for so long and learning of his temperament.


    ¡°I understand!¡± The Gongsun family patriarch quickly withdrew himself. The moment the morning assembly ended, there would be a massacre. Everyone else said nothing as they waited in trepidation.


    ¡°It¡¯s been two months ¡­ When will Long Chene? I can¡¯t wait any longer. Batian, you came back with the news. Tell me.¡± The Sword Emperor looked at Lin Batian.


    Lin Batian took a deep breath and calmed himself. Ever since the death of Lin Zichen, the Sword Emperor¡¯s mood had been unpredictable. He had killed many people during this time, and even Lin Batian was afraid.


    ¡°Long Chen was slightly stronger than Lin Zichen, and he¡¯s not an idiot. He knows that you¡¯re leagues above him, so he would never dare to challenge you without improving himself first. Long Chen must be confident in himself, so he won¡¯te here before he reaches the Heavenly Passage Realm. But it takes years to get there, so I think he¡¯s lying. He will nevere here!¡±


    Lin Batian took a deep breath after saying that.


    He had never really digested what Long Chen had said to him before running back to tell his father. That was why they were in this mess right now. He finally had time to think and realized that it was possible Long Chen would note here. Although he was a genius, there was arge gap between him and the Sword Emperor.


    ¡°The Eldest Prince is right. I think Long Chen is only at the Ninth River Stage and is roughly as strong as the Fourth Prince. Youths are arrogant and always boast about themselves. He must have been ovee with embarrassment when he realized the absurdity of his statement. I think he¡¯s lying and will nevere here.¡± The Zhou family patriarch followed suit. The Zhou family was the second of the two remaining noble families.


    The Sword Emperor smiled before shouting angrily, ¡°Idiot! I know for a fact that he wille here!¡±


    Everyone kept quiet when the Emperor shouted.


    Just as he finished shouting, someone ran in with a report. The messenger kneeled on the ground in a panic. ¡°Your Highness ¡­ Long Chen and his wolf have been spotted outside the capital!¡±


    Everyone was shocked by what they had heard. All of them looked at each other in disbelief.


    ¡°He¡¯s really here?¡± Lin Batian almost fainted from the shock. He had just sworn that Long Chen would not show up.


    Lin Batian calmed down and asked, ¡°Hm? Are you sure? Is it really Long Chen?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s definitely true! Everyone on the city wall saw him, and a ck demonic wolf is with him. This is the real deal! He stood outside the capital and shouted towards us to call for the ¡­ Emperor toe out ¡­¡± The messenger hesitated at the end.


    The Emperor¡¯s golden eyes red at the messenger as he said without any emotion, ¡°Speak. What were his original words? He would never say something so simple. Answer me truthfully or die.¡±


    The Sword Emperor¡¯s words terrified the messenger. He had no choice but to tell the truth. ¡°Long Chen ¡­ Long Chen is shouting for the Emperor to scramble out of the pce immediately to serve him. Your Highness! That brat is so arrogant and full of himself. To think he would say something this controversial! He must die!¡±


    The other officials'' faces paled when they heard what Long Chen had said. The Sword Emperor was a being above them all and had never been humiliated before, and now Long Chen had called him to scramble out of the pce.


    And even wanted the Sword Emperor to serve him?


    It was insane.


    Everyone dared not to look at the Sword Emperor¡¯s face, but they could imagine how angry he had gotten.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± The Sword Emperor smiled. Everyone was surprised to see him so calm.


    ¡°He¡¯s finally here. I¡¯ve been getting impatient.¡± The Sword Emperor stood up with a smile, his golden robes covering his body. He walked forward and started heading towards the exit.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We can¡¯t have our guests waiting for us for so long.¡± The Sword Emperor approached the messenger and ced his hand on his shoulder. An instantter, the messenger¡¯s eyes grew wide and his body slumped to the ground without a breath.


    No one knew what to do.


    It was clear that the Sword Emperor¡¯s killing intent was at its peak. They feared that even the smile of the Sword Emperor was only a cover for his killing intent. No one showed any intention to help the messenger. They simply followed the Sword Emperor and headed outside.


    ¡°Does Long Chen like fighting outside city walls? I heard that he killed Zichen just outside the city walls. Interesting ¡­ To think that I didn¡¯t recognize himst time ¡­¡± The Sword Emperor¡¯s voice spread towards the back of the group.


    They slowly walked towards the city gates.


    The Sword Emperor was looking forward to fighting Long Chen, but he slowed down his pace intentionally, as if he was enjoying the moment.


    Just then, the entire capital was in chaos after hearing the news. More and more people reached the city gates, and the streets were crowded. If the people hadn¡¯t made way for the Emperor, he wouldn¡¯t have made it to the gate.


    The Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s strongest dark horse against the strongest individual. Everyone was moring to watch the fight. Thankfully, the capital¡¯s wall wasrge enough for everyone to get a look at the fight from above. Even the soldiers couldn¡¯t stop the waves of people as they surged past to find a spot on the city wall.


    The Sword Emperor led a thousand people from the pce as they slowly walked to the gates. Only the Sword Emperor was smiling while the others were serious. Long Chen was leaning on Xiang on an empty field just outside the Biyang Imperial Capital with his arms crossed.


    He had killed a guard on that very spot before meeting the Seventh Commander when he came here for the first time.


    Time had passed and now he was here again, but as the strongest youth in the Cangyang Kingdom. Ling Xi had the Profound Jade Lotus back then, but now whether she would get a physical body again hinged on him fighting onest time!


    1. The Emperor and the officials meet in the morning to discuss important matters, something like a morning meeting ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Rip the messenger</blockquote>

 Chapter 427: Battle Against The Sword Emperor

    Chapter 427: Battle Against The Sword Emperor


    ¡°Xiao Xi, do you see how everyone in the Biyang Imperial Capital is watching us?¡± Long Chen raised his head and smiled inly. The city gates were closed due to him being outside, and the ins outside were empty except for himself and Xiang.


    Xiang was currently lying on the ground while staring at the city wall. It was finally time for his revenge. He was more than excited because the time to exact revenge had finally arrived.


    To Xiang, killing the Sword Emperor was the only way toplete his revenge for the massacre of his family. Xiang was considered kind in the martial world. He only wanted to kill the Sword Emperor even though the entire imperial family had a hand in killing his family.


    Xiang and Long Chen had decided to fight together because they weren¡¯t sure if Xiang alone could handle it.


    Long Chen noticed that the number of people was increasing. They not only wanted to watch him fight the Sword Emperor, they also wanted to catch a glimpse of the legend himself. However, due to the distance, only stronger cultivators with good eyesight could see Long Chen¡¯s face clearly.


    ¡°To think the rumored Long Chen is so young. He¡¯s a legend in the Cangyang Kingdom. Too bad he¡¯s from the Heavenly Demon Pce and is doomed to fight against the imperial family ¡­¡±


    ¡°Of course. Did you think that the person who killed the Fourth Prince would be normal? I even heard that he killed the Sword Demon. Two of the three strongest individuals in the imperial family are dead. The only one left is the Sword Emperor.¡±


    ¡°Are you joking? Do you think the Sword Emperor would lose to him?¡±


    ¡°Oh, my mistake. I never said anything of the sort.¡± Everyone started discussing amongst themselves on the city wall.Everyone shuddered with anticipation when the gate finally opened and a group of people walked out. They were the strongest cultivators of the Cangyang Kingdom, and the golden-eyed Sword Emperor was at the forefront. Everyone cheered when they saw him.


    But not all of them were earnest in supporting the Sword Emperor. It was just because they lived in the capital and had no choice but to show support. They would not feel sad if the Sword Emperor lost.


    Long Chen saw the two golden lights when the city gate was opened. The lights felt like swords poking holes into his skin. To think that the gaze of the Sword Emperor was capable of achieving something like this!


    ¡°Xiao Xi, do you see his eyes? I think they were different from the ones I saw before.¡± Long Chen was confused because the Sword Emperor¡¯s eyes were ck during that night, and his presence was not as domineering as it was today.


    ¡°That¡¯s so strange.¡± Ling Xi shook her head with confusion. ¡°Half of the Sword Emperor¡¯s soul is missing, and I don¡¯t know where it is. I think the one we saw before was missing a half too, but that missing half is inside the Emperor in front of us!¡± Ling Xi thought she was seeing things.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t understand what she meant.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, we don¡¯t have to think about it too much. We just need to defeat him! Xiao Xi, I will fulfill my promise. From here onwards, I will do my best to defeat him and get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.¡± Long Chen was itching to fight.


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± Ling Xi knew that there was no turning back now that Long Chen was here. She could only hope for the best. She also knew that Long Chen would never be satisfied living with her in her current state, and he would do whatever he could to restore her physical body.


    Unfortunately, Long Chen was born in a low-tier kingdom even though his talent was unheard of. Despite the fact that he had grown into the strongest individual in the Cangyang Kingdom in just a single year, there was no chance he would win against her family in the end.


    Ling Xi knew the gap between his strength and that of her family. She loved Long Chen, but she also knew how impossible their love was.


    She said nothing to Long Chen, choosing to watch his fight silently. His opponent would be the Sword Emperor, an opponent significantly stronger than the Dark Moon Tiger.


    ¡°You finally came out? You are such a slowpoke. I thought you were napping.¡± Long Chen was not worried even though he was facing a lot of pressure. Even the people were impressed by how rxed he was.


    The Sword Emperor didn¡¯t respond; he merely told his consorts to go back. He looked at Long Chen with a calm gaze and walked out of the city. One hundred and fifty meters, one hundred meters, fifty meters¡ªhe finally stopped twenty meters away from Long Chen. Everyone was tense, wondering what was going to happen next.


    The result of this fight would affect the Cangyang Kingdom for years.


    All of them watched carefully, afraid to miss even the tiniest detail.


    The Sword Emperor stood still as he looked at Long Chen. ¡°I went to Zhao Qingyun two months ago and asked to fight him to the death, but he told me that my opponent would be you. I asked if he was joking, but he wasn¡¯t. I trusted him and waited till this day. You killed two of my sons and even my brother, but I did not touch your family and your master all because I respect your potential. I hope you at least put up a good fight today. I will kill your family and friends if I¡¯m not satisfied.¡±


    Long Chen waited for him to finish.


    ¡°Rx. I will kill you today. I spent two months preparing for this. I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t be disappointed.¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t step back at all.


    Their voices traveled a long distance across the ins, so many people heard what they had said. The Sword Emperor did indeed respect Long Chen to a certain degree.


    Only Long Chen knew that the Sword Emperor¡¯s grudge against him was almost as strong as Xiang¡¯s grudge against the Sword Emperor.


    ¡°I heard that your sworn brother was a member of a family I destroyed. I checked the records and saw that there was indeed one of them that escaped, Mo Xiang. The reports that he didn¡¯te out of the Burning Heaven Secret Realm. To think that the final bastard of the Mo family is dead. Such a shame.¡± The Sword Emperor sighed and shook his head. Long Chen was angry at how nonchnt the Sword Emperor was.


    ¡°The imperial family will suffer the same fate. I will kill you and Lin Batian. The other weaklings are too worthless for me to do anything. Do you know how Lin Cangtian died in my hands? I burned him alive. Do you know how Lin Zichen died? I cut him in half!¡± Long Chen scoffed, as if killing the princes had been easy tasks.


    The Sword Emperor¡¯s body shuddered and killing intent leaked out.


    <em>What strange eyes ¡­</em> Long Chen became wary of his foe¡¯s eyes.


    The spectators were listening to every word. They knew that the battle was going to start the moment the Sword Emperor allowed his killing intent to leak.


    The Sword Emperor took one step, and a gust blew towards Long Chen. The gust grew into a whirlwind until even the tough soil staining the city wall was blown away.


    ¡°Xiang!¡± Long Chen shouted, and they immediately executed their n. They split apart and ran towards the Sword Emperor from two directions. Long Chen needed to use all of his cards immediately against an enemy like the Sword Emperor, especially his Dragon Soul Transformation and the Demon Seed nting Technique. After his Qi multiplied, it surged through his body and the eighteen starry rivers. Long Chen¡¯s Qi exploded out of his body!


    Xiang also used the Demon Seed nting Technique, and his strength reached the border of the Heavenly Passage Realm. He could now use even more of his Nine Devil Ancestral Fire.


    The Sword Emperor was slightly taken back when both Long Chen and Xiang finished transforming. He was first shocked by Long Chen¡¯s transformation.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that your transformation is very strong, but to think it could reach this state! You have almost as much Qi as a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator when you use the Demon Seed nting Technique. No wonder Lin Zichen lost to you and Zhao Qingyun said you would be my opponent.¡±


    He was then taken aback by Xiang¡¯s Demon Seed nting Technique.


    ¡°What! How can a demonic beast cultivate the Demon Seed nting Technique?! What kind of beast is it?¡± Xiang surpassed the Sword Emperor¡¯smon sense. He had always been confident in his knowledge, but Xiang was too much of an irregrity.


    The people on the city walls heard what the Sword Emperor had said.


    ¡°DId I hear that right? Long Chen is already as strong as a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator? And the beast can use the Demon Seed nting Technique? What kind of monstrous duo are they?¡±


    ¡°Well, we can¡¯t be sure of that. We don¡¯t even know how strong Long Chen is exactly. We should just wait and see. The Sword Emperor is definitely surprised, but he¡¯s not retreating. That means he¡¯s confident in defeating Long Chen.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Preparing for the death of the Sword Emperor</blockquote>

 Chapter 428: Break Your Arm

    Chapter 428: Break Your Arm


    Long Chen utilized the enhanced speed granted by his transformation and the Demon Seed nting Technique to quickly approach the Sword Emperor.


    He knew that even though he had as much Qi as a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator, there was still arge gap between them, so Long Chen dared not be careless.


    Long Chen and Xiang had discussed prior to this that Long Chen would be fighting while Xiang supported him since thetter was slightly weaker. Xiang¡¯s strongest attack was the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, so he would only use it when the Sword Emperor¡¯s guard was down.


    Long Chen pulled out the Demon Emperor Sword at this point.


    ¡°The Demon Emperor Sword? I haven¡¯t seen it in years. Zhao Qingyun used it once to fight me when we were younger, but he wasn¡¯t my match. He doesn¡¯t stand a chance even now!¡± The Sword Emperor wasn¡¯t anxious even though Long Chen had brought out the Heaven-tier Divine Arm.


    The Sword Emperor was the monolith of the Cangyang Kingdom. Since he was the strongest, he had very few enemies. That was why he had given Lin Zichen the Imperial Sword, thinking that no one would be capable of stealing it. But now Long Chen was keeping the Imperial Sword in his Universe Pouch, so the Sword Emperor had no way of retrieving it.


    But the Sword Emperor was not helpless without the sword. When Long Chen was swiftly approaching him, the Sword Emperor pointed at Long Chen with his right index finger, and a golden light appeared on his fingertip. Under the control of the Sword Emperor, nine lights shot out of his finger towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Nine Heaven Battle Swords, Heaven and Earth Evisceration!¡±


    This was the other Heaven-tier martial technique other than the Imperial Sword Technique. Its power was not to be trifled with, and Long Chen had to use the Supreme Emperor Sword to destroy it.But what made Long Chen surprised was that the Sword Emperor¡¯s technique was ten times stronger even though he was only using his Qi and fingers. He had to use Traceless Demon Shadow to avoid the attacks. Long Chen took advantage of the gaps in the attack timings to circte his Qi andunch a jet-ck Sword Qi at the Sword Emperor.


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Emperor Sword!¡±


    The air was torn apart, and ck dirt sprayed everywhere. Long Chen used the Supreme Emperor Sword to destroy the Sword Emperor¡¯s Nine Heaven Battle Swords. At the same time, Long Chenunched numerous rays of Demon Emperor Sword Qi to push the Sword Emperor back.


    He had not lost in the first round. It was considered an incredible feat, considering his age, even though he had the Demon Emperor Sword to help him.


    Some of the more experienced cultivators knew that if Long Chen could defend against the Sword Emperor¡¯s first Heaven-tier martial technique, he could possibly block the rest too. They had thought Long Chen was weaker, but they now realized that he was almost as strong as the Sword Emperor.


    Long Chen had forced the Sword Emperor to retreat using the Demon Emperor Sword Qi. Without warning, Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain. A blood-red mist enveloped Long Chen and the Sword Emperor. He increased the strength of the technique using his Qi!


    The Blood Devouring Domain had always been one of his trump cards. It had worked exceedingly well against the Heaven-tier Dark Moon Tiger, so it would naturally work against the Sword Emperor too!


    The Sword Emperor suddenly realized that he was under the effect of an intense suction force. He frowned when he felt his blood boiling and going against its natural flow. It was out of his control!


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± The Sword Emperor quickly used arge portion of his Qi to suppress his blood. He was barely able to regain control of his body when Long Chenunched another attack at him!


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Emperor Sword!¡±


    Long Chen managed to reduce the Sword Emperor¡¯s strength with the Blood Devouring Domain. There was no way he would give his opponent a chance to catch his breath, so he poured all of his Qi into his next attack.


    He shot numerous ck rays of Sword Qi at the Sword Emperor from a range of only ten meters. Thetter was so distracted in trying to regain control of his body that he realized toote that the attack was going to hit him!


    This single attack from Long Chen was much stronger than the one he had used to kill Lin Zichen. The very earth itself was torn asunder, and the sound of screeching metal could be heard far and wide.


    The people on the city wall were stunned to see the Sword Emperor in danger right at the start of the battle. They had thought that the Sword Emperor would take care of Long Chen with ease, so the thought of seeing him in such a dire situation never crossed their minds!


    But the Sword Emperor was not that weak. Even though he was being suppressed by Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain, he still managed to retreat while forming seals with his fingers. Then his silhouette turned into a sword and Sword Qi shot out of his hands.


    ¡°Imperial Sword Technique, Supreme Martial Sword!¡±


    The Supreme Martial Sword was the first technique of the Imperial Sword Technique. The golden Sword Qi crashed into Long Chen¡¯s ck Sword Qi and exploded. The shockwave blew the two of them apart and left a crater in the middle.


    Long Chen was blown into the air before he turned andnded safely.


    ¡°Xiang, this is your chance!¡± Long Chen¡¯s two attacks were meant to set up a perfect opportunity for Xiang to strike. Xiang had approached the back of the Sword Emperor when Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain. The Sword Emperor had underestimated Xiang since thetter was only a Category Nine Earth-tier beast.


    The Sword Emperor was strong, and Long Chen had to admit that. The Sword Emperor was so strong that he was capable of breaking Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Emperor Sword with a Supreme Martial Swordunched using his fingers even though he was under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain. Long Chen would¡¯ve been helpless against the Sword Emperor if he didn¡¯t have other strategies.


    Xiang was one of his backup ns.


    The Sword Emperor had been blown back by the explosion as well. He was still thinking about what the Blood Devouring Domain was when he felt a deadly presence behind him.


    Xiang saw his nemesis flying towards him, and he could no longer wait. His eyes were bloodshot as he pounced towards the Sword Emperor. Xiang used all of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire he could muster and spat it out like a tidal wave towards the Sword Emperor.


    It was clear that Xiang hated the Sword Emperor a lot.


    Long Chen could barely imagine how much pain Xiang had endured when his family was wiped out at the age of six, resulting in him living on his own. But Xiang had managed to live on and kept a positive outlook on life!


    Xiang was his sworn brother!


    Long Chen had sworn to himself that Xiang¡¯s problems would be his as well. Naturally, the same could be said for Xiang. Even though he couldn¡¯t speak now, Xiang''s heart had not changed.


    When the Nine Devil Ancestral Fire nketed the air, the Sword Emperor felt like his life was in danger. He didn¡¯t even look back, because his battle sense told him that if he didn¡¯t run towards Long Chen, he would die!


    ¡°Divine Nine Pce Step!¡± The Sword Emperor was sweating when he used his strongest Body Combat Technique to run towards Long Chen at top speed. He would¡¯ve been faster than Long Chen if he wasn¡¯t under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain.


    Everyone on the city wall were shouting and moring when they saw the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. They didn¡¯t know what it was, but they knew it was very deadly if even the Sword Devil avoided it.


    ¡°What kind of fire emits cold energy?!¡± The Sword Emperor hissed and ran as fast as he could, but part of his body ended uping into contact with the mes, including one of his arms!


    The Sword Emperor circted his Qi towards his arm, but then he felt that he was losing all sensation in it!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Everyone was in disbelief when the Sword Emperor¡¯s left arm exploded and disappeared in the air. Even though he had avoided the bulk of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he had paid a terrible price. He had lost his left arm. It was possible to heal it with spiritual herbs, but it would not be as nimble as before.


    His battle strength had diminished as a result!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Let''s gooo! Break his body next! </blockquote>

 Chapter 429: Yin Yang Sword Emperor

    Chapter 429: Yin Yang Sword Emperor


    Everyone was in disbelief at what they saw. The Sword Emperor stood motionlessly as he watched his left arm disintegrate. The empty feeling and the prickling pain told him that a younger cultivator and a bizarre demonic beast had crippled him!


    Anger coursed through his veins and he roared like a beast. He red at Long Chen and Xiang both.


    The people didn¡¯t know what to do when they saw the Sword Emperor¡¯s arm disintegrate. They looked at each other before rubbing their eyes in hopes that they had seen it wrongly. Lin Batian suddenly felt the fear he had experienced in Ginger City. Lin Zichen had perished before Long Chen without any warning just like that.


    Long Chen was an evesting nightmare to Lin Batian!


    The Sword Emperor¡¯s howl also shocked Lin Batian. His father had always been a stoic person who never disyed his emotions, but Lin Batian could feel his father¡¯s rage now even though he had closed his eyes.


    Someone patted Lin Batian¡¯s shoulder, causing him to open his eyes. He looked back and was shocked to see who it was. His eyes went wide and his mind went nk.


    The person behind him was someone Lin Batian had seen many times before. It was the same person who was still shouting beneath the city wall. <em>How could he be up here?</em>


    ¡°This is the first time someone has forced me toe out ¡­¡± the man said before disappearing. Everyone saw a dark shadow running towards Long Chen.


    No one could see who it was, but Lin Batian fell on the ground and looked at everyone in a daze. ¡°I ¡­ I have two fathers?¡±It was indeed another Sword Emperor, but this one had ck eyes! Lin Batian knew that he was his father, but he never knew there were two of them!


    Long Chen sensed someone strong approaching him. When he turned to look, he saw a dark shadowing down from the wall. Long Chen immediately realized that the person running towards him was at the Heavenly Passage Realm!


    <em>There¡¯s another cultivator at the Heavenly Passage Realm in the city?!</em>


    But Long Chen was stunned to see who it was. He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes when he saw another Sword Emperor! The two of them looked the same except for their eye color. One of them had golden eyes while the other had ck eyes.


    The ck-eyed Sword Emperor waspletely fine, while the golden-eyed one was missing an arm.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know what was happening.


    He was not alone. The spectators couldn¡¯t believe their eyes when they saw the two Sword Emperors. It was impossible for something like this to happen. How could two people look exactly the same?


    And both of them were at the Heavenly Passage Realm!


    The people in the city had been talking about how the Sword Emperor was cultivating a technique that caused his eye color to shift, from ck at night to golden at day. But there had actually been two Sword Emperors all along?!


    Ling Xi suddenly shouted in surprise, ¡°Brother Chen, they are the same person! Each of them has half of his soul! But how could a soul be split into two and ced into two different bodies? One of the bodies is filled with pure Yang energy while the other is filled with Yin energy. I have never seen something this strange before!¡±


    <em>A soul split into two and ced into two identical bodies with the same strength?</em>


    This was something Long Chen had never heard of before.


    He took a deep breath and calmed down. The most pressing matter was to deal with two Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators right now.


    It was already challenging to defeat a single Sword Emperor, and now there were two of them. He and Xiang had almost won against the first one, but the situation had turned for the worst as he looked at the two furious Sword Emperors.


    Everyone waited with bated breath as they watched the fight unfold.


    The fight had been too surreal. Long Chen was in an advantageous position, but now the Sword Emperor held the upper hand.


    Long Chen knew he was in deep trouble.


    He had nned to fight the Sword Emperor with Xiang, but now they had no choice but to each take on a single Sword Emperor. It was possible for Long Chen to fend off one, but Xiang definitely couldn¡¯t!


    ¡°Xiang!¡± Long Chen howled and ran towards Xiang.


    ¡°You want to save that beast?¡± A sinisterugh came, and the ck-eyed Sword Emperor blocked him beforeunching a dazzling ray of Sword Qi at Long Chen. Thetter usedTraceless Demon Shadow and dodged the attack, but he lost the chance to save Xiang.


    Just then, the golden-eyed Sword Emperor appeared in front of Xiang. Even though he had lost one of his arms and his vitality had been shaved off, his strength was still at the Heavenly Passage Realm. He could easily fight off Xiang with a single hand!


    ¡°Die! Supreme Martial Sword!¡± The golden-eyed Sword Emperorunched a massive attack at Xiang that shook the earth.


    Xiang retreated and unleashed endless mes from his body. The mes transformed into Divine Fire Clones, and all of them ran towards the Supreme Martial Sword.


    <em>Bam, bam, bam!</em>


    The clones exploded when they touched the attack, but each of them shaved off some of its power. Xiang sessfully dodged towards the left after thirty clones were destroyed. He then opened his maw and shot out another wave of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    ¡°It¡¯s that sted thing again!¡± The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was what the Sword Emperor detested the most because it had taken his arm! He was furious at the sight of it.


    Xiang was slower than the Sword Emperor, but thetter still used the Nine Divine Pce Steps to dodge the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Heughed maniacally when he appeared beside Xiang. Just then, a brilliant, golden light exploded from his arm as he prepared his Sword Qi.


    ¡°You beast. You will die now! Imperial Sword Technique, Supreme Sovereign Sword!¡±


    Thousands of Sword Qi strikes exploded forth from his fingers, each one rivaling the power of Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Demon Sword. An attack of this scale was something Xiang could not avoid!


    Xiang was going to die! Ling Xi shouted in a panic, ¡°Brother Chen, save Xiang!¡±


    Long Chen was fighting the ck-eyed Sword Emperor on equal grounds while closing in on Xiang. He had been distracted in the fight and was almost wounded by the Sword Emperor on several asions.


    ¡°You want to save him? You need to face me first.¡± The Sword Emperorughed as he knew he was winning.


    He was indeed stronger than Long Chen. It was already a miracle that Long Chen could survive the barrage of attacks for so long. How could he save Xiang? If he were to try that, he would be killed by the ck-eyed Sword Emperor.


    But he was not afraid of death.


    He had to risk it by using a certain technique. The situation had turned due to the appearance of the second Sword Emperor.


    Xiang was on the brink of danger when Long Chen ran towards him without any hesitation. ¡°Supreme Demon Sword!¡± He managed to save Xiang at thest moment by crashing his technique into the Sword Emperor¡¯s technique.


    ¡°Idiot!¡± The ck-eyed Sword Emperor appeared behind Long Chen and shot out a Supreme Martial Sword at him!


    Even if Long Chen had additional arms, he was almost certain to die here today!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    There''s two of them?!</blockquote>

 Chapter 430: Rewind

    Chapter 430: Rewind


    Everyone shouted once more when they saw what was happening. They knew Long Chen was in deep trouble once the ck-eyed Sword Emperor appeared. Once the demonic beast was defeated, Long Chen would be dead as well since he would have to fight against two Sword Emperors.


    But no one had thought that Long Chen would choose to save the demonic beast when the golden-eyed Sword Emperor was about to kill it. If that was the case, Long Chen would have to deal with attacks from two different directions, and one of them would surely take his life.


    ¡°Xiang, Nine Devils Ancestral Fire! Aim for the golden-eyed Sword Emperor!¡± Long Chen shouted at Xiang as he blocked off the golden-eyed Emperor¡¯s Supreme Sovereign Sword! The sh caused an explosion, but Long Chen had the strength to fend it off!


    But his luck was over. No one had expected the appearance of the second Sword Emperor. While Long Chen managed to block the golden-eyed Sword Emperor¡¯s attack, the ck-eyed Sword Emperor¡¯s attacknded on him and sted a massive hole in his chest. Blood and flesh sprayed everywhere.


    Long Chen was dead!


    Everyone saw it happen.


    Long Chen had suffered a massive injury. His body had almost been blown to smithereens by that attack, and there was no chance he had survived.


    Everyone on the wall sighed. They had thought Long Chen was a monstrous genius when they saw him go toe to toe with the Sword Emperor at that age. No one knew what to feel after they watched a genius that surpassed Lin Zichen die. Some of them thought that it was a shame.


    A rising star had been destroyed just like that.Everything was silent.


    All of them stared at Long Chen¡¯s horrifying corpse.


    The Sword Emperors stopped and looked as well. They could sense that Long Chen¡¯s life force was dissipating rapidly; he would be dead in just a few breaths.


    The Sword Emperors looked at each other and sighed in relief. They had thought Zhao Qingyun was joking when he said Long Chen was on their level, but then they experienced how strong Long Chen was. If they hadn¡¯t worked together, one of them would¡¯ve been killed today.


    ¡°What a monstrous genius. Such a shame he chose to oppose me ¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s corpse slowly started slumping to the ground, and the two Sword Emperors shook their heads. Long Chen was dead.


    People sighed on the wall.


    All of them were looking forward to seeing how much stronger Long Chen would get, but now he was dead.


    If Long Chen had chosen to save himself and escaped as fast as he could, he might¡¯ve been able to grow strong enough to win against the Sword Emperor one day. Unfortunately, he had sacrificed his life for Xiang. Even though it was the wrong move, everyone was touched by his actions.


    They would remember Long Chen¡¯s name for a long time.


    Long Chen¡¯s body was slowly slumping towards the ground.


    Everyone closed their eyes because they couldn¡¯t bear to watch it, but they failed to notice a strange rippleing from his chest and covering his bloody body. In just a single breath, his body turned back to normal and his wounds closed up; even the blood he had sprayed on the field flew back into his body.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes lit up, and he was unscathed! There was not a single injury in sight!


    Those who had witnessed it couldn¡¯t believe what had happened! They had seen everything with their very own eyes, but they could notprehend it!


    The appearance of the two Sword Emperors was shocking enough, but Long Chen¡¯s resurrection was beyond shocking. Their understanding of cultivation had been blown away again and again. They never would¡¯ve believed it if they didn¡¯t see it first hand.


    It was as if Long Chen had returned to the past!


    Long Chen had used the technique given by the stone talisman: Rewind. This was why he had chosen to save Xiang. On the verge of death, Long Chen activated the technique and rewound time back to when he was unhurt.


    As long as he activated it within ten seconds of taking damage, he could return back to normal!


    The stone talisman was incredible. He had tested it before the fight, and it indeed did work. Except for Xiang and Ling Xi, no one knew how to react to what was happening. How had Long Chen been revived?!


    Xiang had been waiting for this chance.


    The golden-eyed Sword Emperor had been trying to kill Xiang while Long Chen was in the middle of the two to block the attack. After Long Chen recovered, he immediately swung the Demon Emperor Sword!


    Long Chen did not hold back against the Sword Emperor. His Demon Emperor Sword Qi was so fast that the Sword Emperor could not react to it. Blood sprayed everywhere as his eyes were destroyed.


    The golden-eyed Sword Emperor howled in pain and was still confused by what was happening when Xiang leapt above Long Chen and spat the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. The Sword Emperor cried out before his voice was cut off and he froze into a ck ice statue.


    The golden-eyed Sword Emperor was dead!


    To think that the fight would turn around in just a few breaths! From the death of Long Chen, to his resurrection, and to the death of the Sword Emperor. It was too shocking for the people to process.


    This was beyond a miracle! All of them rubbed their eyes in disbelief and pinched themselves, thinking that they were dreaming. But this was reality. Long Chen was still alive aftering back from the dead, while the golden-eyed Sword Emperor was dead!


    Rewind had caused such a huge upset!


    But Long Chen would¡¯ve preferred not to use it, because it was scary and painful to use Rewind to surprise his opponent. It had taken a lot of willpower to face a brush with death, and he had only done it to save Xiang. His heart was still beating from the gamble. <em>I will never choose to get hit by a lethal attack again!</em>


    Everything was silent once more.


    Xiang stood at Long Chen¡¯s side and thanked him. Long Chen had not only saved his life, he had given Xiang a chance for revenge. One of the Sword Emperors was dead, and now it would be much easier to kill the second one. Long Chen could fight at full power too.


    Long Chen suddenly realized something when he looked at the frozen golden-eyed Sword Emperor.


    Everything in the golden-eyed Sword Emperor¡¯s possession was frozen and would turn to dust along with him. <em>Does that mean the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit is gone too?</em>


    Long Chen almost passed out when he thought of that. The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was his goal, and if it was gone just like that, he wouldn¡¯t know what to do next.


    But using the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was the correct choice to kill the golden-eyed Sword Emperor. Long Chen had forgotten about the Universe Pouch during the critical moment. Ling Xi noticed his pale face. ¡°Brother Chen, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    She was still shaken up after watching Long Chen nearly die.


    ¡°The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit might be gone ¡­¡± Long Chen pointed at the frozen body of the golden-eyed Sword Emperor.


    ¡°Gone?¡± Ling Xi was secretly happy. ¡°Brother Chen, maybe the heavens are giving me a chance to stay with you. Just listen to me. Even though you are right, I still don¡¯t want to leave you!¡±


    ¡°Wait, we still have one more enemy to deal with.¡± Long Chen frowned. He would never give up in his pursuit to obtain a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. He red at the other Sword Emperor. The ck-eyed Sword Emperor was in anguish after seeing his other half dead.


    ¡°Long Chen, what is happening?!¡± he howled as he red at Long Chen.


    ¡°I¡¯m immortal.¡±


    He took a few steps forward. ¡°I will spare you if you give me the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.¡±


    ¡°How do you know I have it?¡± The ck-eyed Sword Emperor was astonished.


    Long Chen noticed the Sword Emperor¡¯s movement. He clutched his own waist lightly. That meant that the fruit was with the ck-eyed Sword Emperor!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Sike! He rewinded!</blockquote>

 Chapter 431: Heaven Sword Array

    Chapter 431: Heaven Sword Array


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to know how I¡¯ve learned that you have the fruit. This is the biggest mercy I can show you. Give the fruit to me.¡± Long Chen pointed at the ck-eyed Sword Emperor with the Demon Emperor Sword.


    The ck-eyed Sword Emperor recovered from the shock of his other half¡¯s death at this point, his pained expression slowly shifting to that of wild rage. His ck eyes were slowly covered in blood vessels.


    ¡°You used a sneak attack to defeat my other half. Do you really think you can defeat me?¡± The Sword Emperor chuckled. ¡°Had you continued your assault, I might¡¯ve died too. Too bad you wasted your time because of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Long Chen, you are too naive.¡±


    The Sword Emperor¡¯sugh echoed across the ins and reached the city. Everyone knew what he meant. It had been a day filled with surprises, and yet the ck-eyed Sword Emperor was hinting that he could defeat the monstrous Long Chen even though his other half was beaten.


    ¡°Xiang, you¡¯ve killed one of them. Let me fight him now.¡± Long Chen gently pushed Xiang away. Xiang knew he would just be a distraction, so he left the stage to Long Chen and the Sword Emperor.


    <em>The golden-eyed Sword Emperor is his other half? I can use Divine Fire Clone, but my clones are all made of fire. How did he make a clone out of flesh and blood? Wouldn¡¯t it be crazy if he could cultivate 125 clones? But stronger techniques usually have some sort of restriction. The Sword Emperor must¡¯ve put in a lot of effort to cultivate that clone, but now that it¡¯s destroyed, he will focus his entire wrath on me,</em>


    It was the final fight. The Sword Emperor¡¯s robe billowed in the wind as he stared at Long Chen, his Qi circting wildly inside him. A strange light slowly emanated from his body, resembling the reflections of swords.


    Divine Nine Pce Step.


    The Sword Emperor disappeared as he approached Long Chen, rapidlyunching Sword Qi attacks.Traceless Demon Shadow.


    Long Chen used his Heaven-tier Body Combat technique, creating numerous afterimages. The Sword Emperor was fast, but even he had a hard time locating Long Chen¡¯s true body.


    Both of them were nothing but a blur as they fought furiously. Sword Qi flew everywhere, and the people¡¯s eyes were glued to the fight. Under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen could fight on even ground with the Sword Emperor. Both of them were fighting without being pushed back. The people on the wall could see nothing but the shes of Sword Qi.


    ¡°This is a battle of experts. Long Chen is definitely one of the three strongest fighters in the Cangyang Kingdom. His master must be Zhao Qingyun from the Heavenly Demon Pce. He was only there for three months and yet he has improved so much. Looking at how much stronger he drew in that time, his master must be a monstrous teacher!¡±


    ¡°The Heavenly Demon Pce is an organization with a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator. They can stand up against the imperial family, so there¡¯s no way they would be weak. I might send my son there if I leave the capital. I¡¯ve heard that they aren¡¯t exactly evil.¡±


    Everyone was discussing and making small talk while Long Chen¡¯s fight against the Sword Emperor was approaching its climax. The Sword Emperor used two consecutive Supreme Martial Swords that pushed Long Chen back. As a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator, he had more Qi than Long Chen!


    And a portion of Long Chen¡¯s Qi was being used to maintain the Blood Devouring Domain.


    Long Chen panted as he flew backward.


    ¡°Long Chen is too young. The Sword Emperor has fought for dozens of years and umted a lot of experience. Long Chen can¡¯t be his opponent. I wonder if the Sword Emperor will kill him.¡±


    ¡°I think he will. Who would let an enemy with so much talent and potential live? If Long Chen doesn¡¯t die today, the Sword Emperor will die in the future!¡±


    Suddenly, everyone shouted and then turned to look at the battle again.


    Long Chen had to admit that the Sword Emperor was strong as thetter continued his assault.


    ¡°Long Chen, I am impressed by your strength, but unfortunately, this is the end!¡± The Sword Emperor was like a sword as light reflected off his body. He shot towards Long Chen like a massive sword.


    Sword Qi swirled around the Sword Emperor''s fingertips, its incredible pressure causing the very air to vibrate.


    The Sword Emperor was using all of his strength for this one single attack. He was trying to kill Long Chen in a single strike. Everyone on the city wall mored because they thought it was the end. The Sword Emperor was going to kill Long Chen!


    ¡°Die! Imperial Sword Technique, Supreme Sovereign Sword!¡±


    The attack he used was even stronger than the one used by the golden-eyed Sword Emperor. The sh of light was like a tornado that carried a thousand des as it shot towards Long Chen. If he was hit by it, he would be torn apart just like Lin Zichen.


    Would the same thing happen today?


    No one blinked.


    Long Chen¡¯s achievements were unheard of in the Cangyang Kingdom, and many of them didn¡¯t want Long Chen to die.


    But what they never noticed was that even though Long Chen was retreating, he was not panicking. Instead, he was very calm as he looked at the attack approaching him.


    At thest moment, Long Chen attacked with his sword. He swung the Demon Emperor Sword widely in front of him, and a massive, ck rune appeared in its wake. He was using the Demon Emperor Sword like a brush, and he drew an array filled with runes in the air before him!


    An ancient and grand energy exuded from the array.


    ¡°What¡¯s Long Chen doing?¡± No one knew what he was doing. Why was he drawing runes instead of dealing with the attack?


    ¡°Is he killing himself?¡± No one understood why.


    But they were wrong. Long Chen was not killing himself, but rather using his strongest attack. The Heaven Sword Array waspleted before the Supreme Sovereign Sword reached him. Light enveloped Long Chen, and the runes spun wildly within theyer of light.


    ¡°Destroy!¡±


    He pointed with the Demon Emperor Sword.


    The runes around him disappeared and the very skies changed. Waves of ripples surged towards the Sword Emperor, revealing illusory swords.


    The Heaven Sword Array was an advanced Heaven-tier martial technique, something that couldn¡¯t havee from the Cangyang Kingdom. The elementary Heaven-tier Supreme Sovereign Sword was nothing against it.


    The ripples enveloped the Sword Emperor and the Supreme Sovereign Sword. He had thought he could kill Long Chen when he suddenly felt a strange power exerting on his body.


    He was surprised because he felt like his body was in an empty space filled with endless swords. The swords flew past him, and there were thousands of them. His Supreme Sovereign Sword was rendered useless here!


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± The Sword Emperor didn¡¯t realize that this was Long Chen¡¯s killing move!


    In an instant, the endless swords in the empty void surged towards him. The Sword Emperor was even more surprised to find that he could not defend himself!


    Long Chen¡¯s strength was too scary!


    <em>Impossible! This is just an illusion! Once I endure it, I will be able to kill him!</em>


    But he had thought wrong.


    The endless swords reduced him to dust.


    Everyone watching from the wall screamed in shock. They had all witnessed the Supreme Sovereign Sword being destroyed with just a few runes. The runes then flew past the Sword Emperor and rapidly turned his body to dust. The Sword Emperor¡¯s face was thest thing to disappear, and all of them had seen his eyes filled with fear.


    But it was toote.


    The Sword Emperor had disappearedpletely from the world.


    The only thing left of him was the Universe Pouch that Long Chen had deliberately avoided attacking.


    The people stared at Long Chen with shock.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    He won!</blockquote>

 Chapter 432: Ruling Cangyang Kingdom

    Chapter 432: Ruling Cangyang Kingdom


    The same thought echoed across everyone¡¯s minds, one that they never dared imagine before. Long Chen had killed the Sword Emperor, the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s strongest cultivator. Two Sword Emperors had died by his hand. The golden-eyed Sword Emperor had died because of Long Chen¡¯s shocking return from death, while the ck-eyed Sword Emperor had fallen before Long Chen¡¯s absolute strength!


    He was indeed stronger than the Sword Emperor!


    The Sword Emperor was the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s highest authority. How drastically would the kingdom change now that he had died? The remaining masters of the imperial family were only at the Eighth River Stage, and there were many Eighth River Stage cultivators across the whole kingdom. Did the imperial family still have the power to control such an immense kingdom?


    The answer was, unquestionably, no.


    With the Sword Emperor¡¯s death, everyone knew that the Cangyang Kingdom would change drastically. However, the changes would depend on Long Chen. Long Chen was the one who had killed him, so he was now the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s strongest cultivator. Not the Sword Emperor, not Zhao Qingyun, but Long Chen! This person who had only recently be famous had reached the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s peak in the blink of an eye!


    And he was not even twenty years old yet! He was seventeen at most!


    To aplish such a feat at seventeen! Long Chen had be the legend of legends in the Cangyang Kingdom!


    Many people started to feel an itch when the Sword Emperor died. The imperial family had left behind such arge pie, and everyone wanted a slice. What happened now was for Long Chen to decide. Technically, the whole kingdom now belonged to Long Chen alone!


    No one dared move before he said anything!Most of the people standing on the city wall felt like they were dreaming. Everyone knew that it was reality, but most could not ept it. It was just too unbelievable. If they had not seen it with their own eyes, no one would have believed it.


    He had not just killed one, but two Sword Emperors!


    Lin Batian sat in his seat in a daze, not waking up despite calls from the people around him. He had suffered the heaviest blow in his life today andpletely lost his mind. He sat with a dazed look on his face, not moving a muscle.


    Suddenly, he ran to the edge of the wall with a look of excitement on his face. Then, as everyone watched him with confusion, he took out a sword from his Universe Pouch and stabbed his own heart before pulling it out!


    Fresh blood flowed.


    ¡°Father ¡­¡± Lin Batian uttered his final word, then he smiled. His body fell to the ground, forming a puddle of blood.


    The moment Lin Batian thought about the difficulties and pressure he was about to face, he had lost all intention to fight back, and this despair drove him to suicide.


    The people felt great sorrow for Lin Batian¡¯s death.


    Thest hope of the imperial family could not bear the weight and had chosen to kill himself. This meant that the family who had ruled the Cangyang Kingdom for thousands of years had died and would disappear from the long river of history. There would only be small remnants left for people to recall upon.


    Long Chen had watched Lin Batian kill himself.


    He only shook his head without a word. The imperial family had been on top for too long, and it was time for them to step down. Judging by how they had murdered Xiang¡¯s entire n, the imperial family were not good people anyway.


    What Long Chen yearned for was in the Universe Pouch before him. Under the gazes of everyone, he opened the Sword Emperor¡¯s Universe Pouch hurriedly. Whether or not there was a Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit inside, he would find out right now ¡­


    Long Chen felt his breathing be strangely heavy.


    Emotions surged through his heart.


    The presence or absence of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in the Universe Pouch would basically decide his future.


    Ling Xi did not dare check. She was hoping that it wasn¡¯t there. That was the only way to guarantee that she would stay by Long Chen¡¯s side. It was just too ambitious for him to get to where she was from. It was a dream too wild to believe.


    No matter how nervous Long Chen was, he had to open the Universe Pouch.


    There were many things inside, including many treasures. However, his gaze did not linger on these treasures. He only had one target, which was the Heaven-tier herb called the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Due to it being Heaven-tier, its presence would be obvious.


    Before he saw it, Ling Xi froze, then said bitterly, ¡°Brother Chen, the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit is inside.¡±


    Since she could sense it, she found the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit before Long Chen did.


    Long Chen was ecstatic. He searched hurriedly and found a jade box. There was a thick fragrance radiating from the box, simr to the Blood Seal Lotus and the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit. It could only be the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit!


    Ling Xi was right!


    Long Chen almost cried because this was what he had been working hard for for half a year. Now it was finally in his hands. His nerves finally rxed after half a year of tension. It felt like a bucket of cold water on his body; it was refreshing!


    ¡°Ling Xi, I have finally fulfilled the first promise I made to you.¡± This was why Long Chen was so determined. It was a promise he had made to Ling Xi. It did not matter what happened¡ªhe would fulfill it at any cost.


    It was difficult for him to suppress his surging emotions. He took a deep breath, then he put the Universe Pouch away. This was all his, and he could sort through everythingter.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I ¡­ Thank you so much. I don¡¯t know what to say, but I am so touched. Thank you!¡± Ling Xi could barely speak because she was crying so hard within the Ling Xi sword.


    This teenager had made an impossible promise, and today, he had fulfilled it with his blood and sweat.


    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me. Remember this. It is only the first promise. I will surely fulfill the second promise. One day, I will appear in front of you again!¡± Long Chen said with determination.


    The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was his first promise. Appearing with his head held high in front of Ling Xi was his second promise!


    He hadpleted the first. Now he would work hard for the second!


    Ling Xi felt like she had been stupid. She knew just how serious the obstacles and suffering would be if he truly chose this path. However, when she saw the determination in his eyes, she felt that perhaps he truly could do it!


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned to the people on the city wall. He already had a n for the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s future. He had actually already said something to Zhao Qingyun about it a long time ago.


    He walked towards the wall and quickly arrived at its base. He stood next to Lin Batian¡¯s body, though he did not look at it. He looked up at the people above. The ones who had made it here to watch the battle were the elites of the kingdom.


    ¡°I, Long Chen, was the one who killed the Sword Emperor. Everyone, listen to me. From now onwards, the Cangyang Kingdom is mine. Anyone who causes trouble will die.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s deration made his intentions clear.


    Anyone who felt an itch was instantly dejected. They dared not step out of line when the Sword Emperor was alive, and that wouldn¡¯t change since Long Chen was even scarier.


    However, despite the extinguishing of the fire in their hearts, many people started to wake up. Since Long Chen had dered himself ruler of the Cangyang Kingdom and no one could stand up to him, why wouldn¡¯t they submit? The sooner they submitted to him, the more benefits they would gain. Who wouldn¡¯t want a bigger slice of the pie?


    The moment Long Chen finished speaking, the two remaining ns of the Imperial Capital, the Gongsun and Zhou families, looked at each other, then they reacted immediately. They leaped to the bottom of the tower and bent one knee in front of Long Chen, looking at him sincerely.


    The Gongsun patriarch spoke first. ¡°I am Gongsun Sheng from one of the two main ns of the Imperial Capital, also the Gongsun Patriarch. Our n pledges loyalty to Your Majesty Long Chen. Please ept us under your banner. We will fight any war for you, and even if our lives are on the line, we will be loyal to the end!¡±


    The Zhou Patriarch said hurriedly, ¡°I am Zhou Long, the patriarch of the Zhou family, one of the two main ns of the Imperial Capital. The Zhou family pledges its loyalty to Your Majesty Long Chen. Please ept us under your banner. Anything the Gongsun family can do, we can do too. We are willing to follow you for the rest of our lives. Our blood and passion will only burn for you, Your Majesty!¡±


    The other factions started to snap back to reality, and a hundred people leaped from the wall to kneel in front of Long Chen, sincerely pledging their loyalty to him! They had no choice but to ept this, as Long Chen was stronger than the Sword Emperor. If he wanted to, he could control the whole Cangyang Kingdom and maybe even expand their territory to the neighboring nations!


    These people were the representatives of various factions of the Cangyang Kingdom. Now that the imperial family was gone, they all understood the situation and submitted to Long Chen¡¯s strength.


    Long Chen was very satisfied with their behavior.


    He had killed the Sword Emperor, but he did not want to cause the whole Cangyang Kingdom to fall into chaos. The only way to achieve that result was for him to take over and rule! However, the person who truly ruled would not be Long Chen. He had no time for this.


    ¡°Good! You are all very smart!¡± Long Chen smiled and his gaze swept across the crowd. ¡°I ept all your pledges, but although the Cangyang Kingdom is mine, the person who will rule Cangyang Kingdom will not be me!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Everyone burst into conversation. Did someone else have the right to be king?


    Long Chen smiled when he saw them panicking. ¡°Gongsun Patriarch, I have a task for you. Imand you to rush to Demon Emperor Mountain as fast as you can and invite my master, Zhao Qingyun, here. Tell him about everything that happened today!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Welp, too bad he''s not going to be the emperor</blockquote>

 Chapter 433 - Heavenly Passage Pill

    Chapter 433 - Heavenly Passage Pill


    A few hourster, Long Chen was already in the imperial pce. Most of the imperial family had already fled, and the remaining few were people with no power. Long Chen was toozy to deal with them. The two main ns had already pledged their loyalty to him, so they helped deal with the matters of the capital, and Long Chen did not intervene.


    In order to please Long Chen, the Gongsun and Zhou patriarchs would surely do their best to manage the Imperial City properly. Long Chen was happy to have some free time while he waited for Zhao Qingyun to lead the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s army over here.


    Long Chen had once told Zhao Qingyun that his reward for providing so much help would be the whole Cangyang Kingdom. Now Long Chen had fulfilled this promise. The whole kingdom was in his hands, and he was going to give it all to his master, Zhao Qingyun. No one dared object to this.


    Long Chen knew that while Zhao Qingyun loved living a life of independence free of responsibilities, it did not mean that hecked the ambition to rule the Cangyang Kingdom. Defeating the imperial family had always been the goal of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Now that Zhao Qingyun had the kingdom in his hands, it proved that he was more capable than the previous Heavenly Demon Lords.


    Waiting for Zhao Qingyun¡¯s arrival, Long Chen pulled out the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit to inspect it. In the end, he confirmed that it was indeed what he thought it was.


    Next, he had to inspect the things that the Sword Emperor had left behind. It was clear that the ck-eyed Sword Emperor was his true body and was slightly stronger. That was why the most precious treasures were in the Universe Pouch that was with him.


    To the Sword Emperor, taking these things with him was safer than storing them somewhere else.


    The first things that caught Long Chen¡¯s eye were the Heavenly Passage Pills. Based on his estimate, the average First Passage Stage cultivator owned twenty Heavenly Passage Pills or less, though the Sword Emperor owned almost a hundred. These were likely umted over many generations.


    Cultivation at the Heavenly Passage Realm requiredrge numbers of Heavenly Passage Pills in order to clear the cultivator¡¯s meridian points and condense Qi. That was why Heavenly Passage Pills were seen as very important. If Long Chen did not have Heavenly Passage Pills, it would be impossible for him to advance to the Heavenly Passage Realm. The pills that he had would be able tost him until he reached the Second Passage Stage.


    The points where the eighteen heavenly rivers connected were the nine meridian points. Six were spiritual meridian points, two were earthly meridian points, and one was a heavenly meridian point. These meridian points had to be cleared by breaking them with Qi, then the Heavenly Passage Pills helped solidify the meridian points in order for them to be Qi cores simr to a dantian.


    The purpose of the four foundational realms was to allow the cultivator¡¯s body to achieve its perfect state. There were rumors that when a cultivator opened the heavenly meridian point and reached the Ninth Passage Stage, their body was considered perfect. At that point, they would be able to fly in the sky and sink into the ground; they would be able to do anything they wanted.


    Of course, sinking into the ground was impossible, but flying was definitely possible. The key achievement that determined whether a cultivator hadpleted the four foundational realms was whether they could fly.


    Li Xuanji had flown easily in front of Long Chen, so it showed that she was at least above the Ninth Passage Stage. After learning about the Heavenly Passage Realm, he finally recognized just how powerful she was. Ling Xi¡¯s background was as powerful as Li Xuanji¡¯s, meaning that if Ling Xi¡¯s family really made their way over, they would definitely exert a terrifying pressure on Long Chen.


    Long Chen had worked hard to get his hands on the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit for her, and he would have to continue working hard to see her again. The next part of the journey was likely going to be a thousand times harder.


    But he was not afraid.


    He checked the Sword Emperor¡¯s Universe Pouch again, and other than the Heavenly Passage Pills and some random objects, there were not many items that would be useful to Long Chen. Some items had probably perished along with the golden-eyed Sword Emperor. All Long Chen could say was that he had gotten lucky, because when he had to choose which Sword Emperor to annihte, he had picked the correct one.


    As he moved the items from the pouch, he saw a tattered book.


    ¡°What is this?¡± He picked up the book and brushed the dust off it. To his shock, he saw the title: Soul Splitting Technique.


    ¡°Soul Splitting Technique?¡± Ling Xi leaned over. She sensed that this unassuming technique was likely the reason why the Sword Emperor had two bodies.


    ¡°Ling Xi, you are very knowledgeable. Come take a look at this.¡± Long Chen ced the book in front of her and they started to study it.


    After a while, Ling Xi said in shock, ¡°How is that even possible?¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t understand the book, so he whispered, ¡°What is this exactly?¡±


    ¡°This is just amazing. However, Brother Chen, there¡¯s no need to get excited. There is arge w in this technique, and it should not be used. Let me exin it to you. This is a secret divine technique of an unknown tier. Based on the description, this is likely a failed product. The creator of this secret technique had a powerful imagination. This is actually rted to the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about that.¡± Long Chen listened intently. It was clear that the Soul Splitting Technique was rted to the Sword Emperor having two bodies.


    ¡°A person has three souls and seven spirits.[1] The Soul Splitting Technique splits every soul and spirit into two halves. The strange thing is that each half can survive on its own, and the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit can be used to create a new body for that half of the soul. I¡¯m guessing that this is the reason why the Sword Emperor had the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit ¡­


    ¡°The golden-eyed Sword Emperor was created with the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Had you fought him anyter, the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit in your hand would likely have been used to form another Sword Emperor.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s heartbeat quickened. Splitting a person into two and multiplying one person¡¯s cultivation into two was indeed almost a vition of thews of nature.


    ¡°If that is the case, couldn¡¯t he have created countless clones if he had more Nine Heavens Immortal Fruits? If every clone was as strong as him, wouldn¡¯t he be the strongest person in the world?¡± Long Chen said sourly.


    ¡°Of course not. The Soul Splitting Technique is a failed product,¡± Ling Xi answered, shaking her head.


    ¡°First of all, creating one clone resulted in a lot of damage to his soul, so although he had two bodies, his cultivation speed ended up bing so slow that he would¡¯ve likely never progressed further. Secondly, his two souls didn¡¯t share a master-ve rtionship, meaning they were two people with different thoughts. It was as if one person suddenly became two, and it was difficult to distinguish between the two. The fact that the two Sword Emperors decided to split the time that they spent outside evenly was an extremely favorable situation.¡±


    After Ling Xi pointed out the ws, Long Chen was no longer interested in the technique. From his perspective, not only was the Soul Splitting Technique useless, it would also bring him a lot of trouble. He could not imagine how terrifying it would be to have a copy of himself in this world ¡­


    ¡°Then I must dispose of this,¡± he said with resolution. That way, it would not hurt other people.


    ¡°Brother Chen, keep it for now. I¡¯ll study it in the future, and maybe I will be able to improve it. Think about it. If you had a clone with equal strength and no thoughts, acting as only a loyal soldier, and this technique was harmless to your soul, wouldn¡¯t it be a beautiful thing?¡± said Ling Xi.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. Xiao Xi, you¡¯re just too awesome. It¡¯ll be difficult to part with you.¡± Long Chen recalled that now they had the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, it was likely that they would have to separate.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Ling Xi froze. There was a look of worry in her eyes.


    He had finished inspecting the Sword Emperor¡¯s Universe Pouch. Soon after, someone came to report that the people of the Heavenly Demon Pce had arrived. Long Chen went up to the Jinluan Pavilion and saw Zhao Qingyun, the two Demon Elders, and also Murong Yu, whom he had not seen for a long time.


    The people of the Heavenly Demon Pce were all familiar with Long Chen¡¯s achievements by now. The Demon Elders and Murong Yu had been a little nervous on the way here as they were unsure of how Long Chen would act.


    Previously, the First and Second Demon Elders had stopped Long Chen from leaving the Heavenly Demon Pce. It was only now that they finally realized just how ridiculous they had been. The Demon Emperor Sword had to be taken away by Long Chen in order for it to shine in the world!


    Of course, the First Demon Elder was extremely impressed with Zhao Qingyun because he had gained the most out of all this. He had barely put in any effort to get to this point; all he had done was raise Long Chen for a while and provided some resources. In just a few months, his investment had paid off.


    And his profit was the entire Cangyang Kingdom.


    This had been the dream of the Heavenly Demon Pce disciples for generations, and also the dream of the Demon Elders. Today, in a very soap opera-like twist, Long Chen had helped them fulfill this dream. They had received news when Long Chen started battling the Sword Emperor and started rushing over. Along the way, they had been updated on the situation, and when they arrived, everything had been resolved.


    They had no choice but to ept this reality.


    The person with the brightest grin was Zhao Qingyun. The moment he saw Long Chen, he let out an unbridledugh without caring for his appearance.


    When the people of Heavenly Demon Pce arrived, Long Chen excused the rest of the people in Jinluan Pavilion and turned to Zhao Qingyun. ¡°Greetings, Master!¡±


    ¡°Good! Good!¡± Zhao Qingyun said. It was clear that he was feeling emotional.


    When he saw Long Chen¡¯s strength skyrocket during his time at the Heavenly Demon Pce, Zhao Qingyun had already thought about a day like this. However, he had never expected this day to actually arrive.


    1. in Taoism, humans have three souls (Hun) and seven spirits (Po). While this concept ismon, the exact exnation of what these souls are called and what they do is very technical. Here¡¯s a surface-level attempt at an exnation:


    Three Hun (Èý»ê):


    Fetal Light (Ì¥¹â): Also known as the ¡°Yuan Shen,¡± it governs spirituality and represents wisdom. It can discern good from evil and understand all things.


    Shi Ling (Š]ì` or Shuang Ling ˬì`): Governs consciousness and represents the self. It enables thinking, feeling, and memory.


    You Jing (Óľ«): Associated with the earth, it often drives human desires, including lust and sensuality. It can lead to darkness, confusion, and excessive sleep, depleting vital energy.


    Seven Po (ÆßÆÇ):


    Shi Gou (ŒÆ¹·): Pertains to the corpse and governs physical movement.


    Fu Shi (·üʸ): Also rted to consciousness, it facilitates thinking, feeling, and memory.


    Que Yin (ȸÒõ): Associated with the earth, it can lead to sensuality and darkness.


    Tun Zei (ÍÌÔô): Governs consciousness and represents the self.


    Fei Du (·Ç¶¾): Pertains to the corpse and governs physical movement.


    Chu Hui (³ý»à): Also rted to consciousness, it facilitates thinking, feeling, and memory.


    Chou Fei (³ô·Î): Associated with the earth, it can lead to sensuality and darkness. ?

 Chapter 434 - Empress Murong Yu

    Chapter 434 - Empress Murong Yu


    In fact, even Zhao Qingyun did not think that Long Chen could truly defeat the Sword Emperor. After Long Chen killed Lin Zichen, he had dered that he would return to the Imperial City to fight the Sword Emperor. Zhao Qingyun expected Long Chen to take many months to be strong enough to do so.


    The fact that Long Chen had defeated the Sword Emperor just two monthster hade as a surprise.


    What shocked him was that Long Chen had not only defeated the Sword Emperor, he had defeated two of them. Even Zhao Qingyun was traumatized by the discovery of the two Sword Emperors. If the Sword Emperor had set his eyes on the Heavenly Demon Pce, the Heavenly Demon Pce would likely have been destroyed. Zhao Qingyun was not even sure if he could defeat one Sword Emperor.


    As for the Demon Elders, Long Chen had risen to a deity level in their hearts. They trembled as they stood in front of him, seeing as they had once offended Long Chen. If he decided to take revenge, they would be done for.


    ¡°First Demon Elder, Second Demon Elder. It¡¯s been a long time ¡­¡± Long Chen chuckled when he looked at them.


    ¡°Yes, Yes!¡± the First Demon Elder said nervously.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t be bothered with them, so he said, ¡°The patriarch of the Zhou family is taking his people to the Counter Essence Realm to gather the Immortal Realm Guards there. In the future, the Counter Essence Realm will belong to the Heavenly Demon Pce, so since you two are at the Ninth River Stage, go help out there.¡±


    Although the two Demon Elders were his elders, Long Chen now had the authority tomand them.


    Everything depended on one¡¯s capabilities.


    ¡°A-Alright ¡­¡± The First and Second Demon Elder looked at each other, then they hurriedly prepared to leave. Although it was a demotion because Long Chen had sent them off to be stationed somewhere else, they felt emotional when they realized they were going to be in charge of the legendary Counter Essence Realm.


    ¡°Xiao Yu, stay back,¡± Long Chen said hurriedly when he saw Murong Yu about to leave with them. She froze when she heard him.


    Murong Yu had regained her looks and was far more beautiful than he had imagined. She was already used to his extraordinary talent, so she was much calmer than her master and Martial Uncle. She looked at Long Chen like an old friend whom she had not met in a long time; there were no reservations.


    ¡°Let¡¯s have a seat and talk. Chen¡¯er, I have many questions for you,¡± said Zhao Qingyun with a chuckle. The three of them sat in the imperial family¡¯s Jinluan Pce, and Zhao Qingyun asked, ¡°Chen¡¯er, I heard that two Sword Emperors appeared. What was up with that? When I heard the news, I was shocked.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and decided that it was best not to tell Zhao Qingyun. He replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know either, but luckily, both of them are dead now. We should let this mystery die with him.¡±


    ¡°I think they were twin brothers. The two of them have been at the same cultivation level and shared the same identity¡­ I wonder why?¡± Murong Yu said.


    ¡°We will never figure out what happened with the Sword Emperor. On the other hand, Chen¡¯er, you have defeated him and the Cangyang Kingdom is in your hands. What do you n to do next?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked.


    ¡°The Sword Emperor is dead, and if no one manages the Cangyang Kingdom, it will fall into chaos. I definitely can¡¯t rule a kingdom, but there must be a ruler. The Heavenly Demon Pce has always been as strong as the royals anyway. Master, I once said that I would give you the kingdom. This is the day I fulfill that promise. You must ept it!¡± Long Chen said with determination.


    Zhao Qingyunughed.


    ¡°You make it sound so good, but you¡¯re actually asking me to pick up the pieces, aren¡¯t you?¡± Zhao Qingyun responded with a grin. He knew Long Chen too well. With his personality, he would never stay here as king. His sights were set far beyond this ce.


    That was why Zhao Qingyun had to step up to be the ruler of the kingdom. Long Chen was his favorite disciple after all.


    Of course, the Heavenly Demon Pce would benefit greatly now that they were the main faction ruling the kingdom, so it was a win-win.


    Zhao Qingyun suddenly turned solemn as he slowly said, ¡°The Heavenly Demon Pce must rule the Cangyang Kingdom, but Chen¡¯er, you know that I am a free spirit. I didn''t even want to manage the Heavenly Demon Pce, let alone the entire Cangyang Kingdom. That is why I cannot do this!¡±


    Long Chen froze. ¡°Master, you can¡¯t do this!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, don¡¯t worry! I¡¯m just saying that a pile of old bones like me isn¡¯t suited to be king. However, there¡¯s someone who is young and more suitable than me,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a chuckle.


    ¡°And that is?¡± Long Chen did not know who.


    ¡°Have you gotten slow? This person is right before your nose.¡± Zhao Qingyunughed and looked at Murong Yu.


    Long Chen finally knew who he was talking about.


    Long Chen knew that he could not be the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s ruler or the Heavenly Demon Lord, and this seat had to be upied by the same person.


    The next most powerful disciple was now Murong Yu. She was at the Ninth River Stage and was adept at Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique. All shecked was the Demon Emperor Sword technique. Yang Jun, who was ranked third, still had not reached the Eighth River Stage due to the consecutive blows he had suffered.


    At this moment, Murong Yu only needed an opportunity to surpass the three Demon Elders.


    ¡°Me?¡± Murong Yu froze. She didn¡¯t expect the conversation to be about her.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes brightened when Zhao Qingyun mentioned her. Since he did not want to be the Heavenly Demon Lord and Zhao Qingyun had declined the position, the next person in line was naturally Murong Yu. If Zhao Qingyun became the king, he would end up passing it to her in the future anyway, so it was better to let her be the Empress now!


    In terms of cultivation, mindset, and capability, Murong Yu was clearly a good choice. The two Demon Elders would surely protect her, and even Zhao Qingyun liked the girl. Due to the support from all sides, Murong Yu was a better choice than Zhao Qingyun.


    Long Chen leaped with joy and said, ¡°That¡¯s great! It¡¯s set, then. Xiao Yu, you¡¯ll be the Empress of the Cangyang Kingdom!¡±


    He was eager to hand over the responsibility. The moment the ruler had been set, he would push all the inconveniences to her.


    ¡°Me? The Empress?¡± Murong Yu thought it was a joke. She only wanted to cultivate in the Heavenly Demon Pce; she had never pictured herself as the most powerful person in the kingdom.


    ¡°Yes. Xiao Yu, you¡¯re the most suitable person. It¡¯s set now. In the future, I will need you to be the Heavenly Demon Lord too,¡± Zhao Qingyun said with a chuckle, looking at her warmly.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t Long Chen be the Heavenly Demon Lord?¡± Murong Yu thought that would be the case because he had the Demon Emperor Sword.


    ¡°Based on your understanding of Chen¡¯er, do you think he¡¯d be willing to do these things with high effort and low payoff? This brat cannot wait to explore the world; how could he be tied down by an insignificant position like the Heavenly Demon Lord, let alone the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s ruler?¡± said Zhao Qingyun, shaking his head.


    Murong Yu looked at them, feeling torn. To be honest, it was not that she could not ept the offer. She just had never imagined this oue and was feeling overwhelmed. That was why she could not make the decision at this very moment. She knew that there were many things to learn as a ruler, and many things to manage too. What would happen if she did not do well?


    ¡°I can¡¯t do it. I don¡¯t think I can do it well, and I¡¯d disappoint you guys ¡­¡± Murong Yu shook her head bitterly.


    ¡°Nonsense! If you can¡¯t do it, then a brute like me will be worse! Xiao Yu, you¡¯ve always been the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s goddess. Now you¡¯ll be the Cangyang Kingdom¡¯s goddess! I think men across the whole kingdom will rejoice!¡± Long Chen said with augh.


    His unreserved words made her blush.


    He had called her beautiful.


    Ever since she had gotten the scar, she had covered her face with the human skin mask, causing her to have low self-esteem. When Ling Xi helped her recover her face, she became much more confident.


    Long Chen stood up and approached her. He looked down at her and said, ¡°To be honest, you don¡¯t have to worry about doing badly. Won¡¯t you have the two Demon Elders helping you? Those two old geezers have managed the Heavenly Demon Pce well and are very capable. If you have a problem you can¡¯t solve, you can inform my master and he wille to your side immediately. With so many people protecting you, what can you not achieve? Also, I want to give you a huge present ¡­¡±


    Long Chen took a few steps back.


    ¡°A huge present? What is it?¡± Murong Yu realized that she was really excited for it.


    ¡°My war spoils.¡±


    Long Chen took out an item from his Universe Pouch, causing the whole Jinluan Pavilion to be bathed in golden light. When Murong Yu and Zhao Qingyun saw it, they gasped in surprise, ¡°The Imperial Sword?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s the Imperial Sword. Master, I¡¯ve gotten familiar with the Demon Emperor Sword, so I don¡¯t really want to give it back. In the future, let the Imperial Sword be your national treasure. The Imperial Sword Technique is suitable for you, Xiao Yu. As the Empress of the Cangyang Kingdom, this sword is fitting for your position!¡±


    Murong Yu bit her lip as she looked at the sword in his hand. She knew that it was an amazing opportunity, and she had always wanted the Demon Emperor Sword. Now the Imperial Sword, which was equal to the Demon Emperor Sword, was right in front of her.


    After a moment of hesitation, she exhaled and said with resolution, ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be the Empress.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡± Long Chen tossed the Imperial Sword over to Murong Yu. With her Ninth River Stage cultivation, she would likely seed in cultivating the Imperial Sword Technique.


    With Murong Yu holding the kingdom up, the problems caused by the death of the Sword Emperor were finally resolved.

 Chapter 435: Fool

    Chapter 435: Fool


    ¡°Chen¡¯er, what do you n to do next?¡± asked Zhao Qingyun. After appointing Murong Yu as Empress, the mess left behind by Long Chen was finally settled.


    Murong Yu was also listening intently.


    Long Chen was only seventeen, but he was already the strongest person in the Cangyang Kingdom. If he stayed here, he would have no space to grow, and his growth would be arrested. A young person like him had to explore the world outside instead of staying in a ce like the Cangyang Kingdom.


    ¡°I n to pay my hometown near Yuanling City a visit. Once everything in the Cangyang Kingdom is settled and Xiao Yu sessfully takes the throne, I¡¯ll leave and head towards the Divine Martial Territory.¡± Long Chen had long made his decision.


    He would go to the Divine Martial Territory whether Ling Xi was by his side or not. Ideally, Ling Xi¡¯s family wouldn¡¯t discover her presence and she would remain by his side. If she left, the only option he would have was to head to the Divine Martial Territory because he could go to other ces through there.


    While one of his main reasons for returning to Yuanling City was to meet his family, the other reason was for Ling Xi to regain her body there.


    ¡°Divine Martial Territory?¡± Zhao Qingyun nodded. That ce suited Long Chen better.


    After hearing him, there was a sh of sadness in Murong Yu¡¯s eyes. It would be difficult for her to meet him again. He could soar as high as he wanted, but she had to stay here and fulfill her duty. It seemed a little unfair.


    However, her current sess stemmed from the mentorship that the Heavenly Demon Pce had provided her, so she did not resent them.Long Chen had helped her regain her looks and had even given her the Imperial Sword. He had treated her very well.


    ¡°Right, Chen¡¯er, do you know how to get to the dem?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked with concern.


    ¡°When I went to Ginger City, I discovered a universal transporter in the Snowpeak Mountains. That¡¯s probably a universal transporter leading to the Divine Martial Territory, right?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°You even know about universal transporters?¡± Zhao Qingyun was a little surprised, then he nodded. ¡°Indeed. That is a universal transporter that leads to the Divine Martial Territory, though it has only ever been used a few times. The people of the Divine Martial Territory would nevere to a ce like this, nor do we ever go there.¡±


    The main reason the people of the Cangyang Kingdom did not visit the Divine Martial Territory was because of theck of Heavenly Passage Pills. The number of people who even possessed Heavenly Passage Pills here could probably be counted on one hand.


    ¡°Master, approximately how many Heavenly Passage Pills will we need if Xiang and I head to the Divine Martial Territory?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly. This was what he cared about the most.


    Zhao Qingyun counted for a while and said, ¡°About fifty. The universal transporter expends a great number of Heavenly Passage Pills. With you and Xiang¡¯s capabilities, you¡¯ll need more than forty toplete the transportation process.¡±


    ¡°Fifty?¡± Long Chen was stunned. He only had a hundred pills on him, and a single trip would cost him fifty. He was not sure if the remaining fifty was enough to help him reach the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    Long Chen¡¯s expression soured.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You don¡¯t have enough Heavenly Passage Pills? How many did you get from the Sword Emperor?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked with great interest.


    ¡°A hundred,¡± said Long Chen.


    Zhao Qingyun grimaced and smiled bitterly. ¡°After so many years, the Heavenly Demon Pce only has seventy pills passed down over generations. Xiao Yu needs at least thirty to reach the Heavenly Passage Realm. Since you have fifty left, I won¡¯t be giving you any ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    Then again, he had never considered asking Zhao Qingyun for Heavenly Passage Pills. He was about to go to the Divine Martial Territory, and once he arrived, wouldn¡¯t Heavenly Passage Pills be abundant? As long as the remaining fifty pills were enough for him to reach the Heavenly Passage Realm, it was sufficient.


    With that thought, Long Chen grew anxious to help Ling Xi regain her body and said, ¡°Master, I¡¯ll leave the matters of the Imperial Capital to you for now. Later, I will send mymand out. I haven¡¯t visited home in a long time, so I¡¯ll be heading there now.¡±


    ¡°So soon?¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He wasn¡¯t in a hurry to go home, but he was in a hurry to let Ling Xi regain her body.


    Zhao Qingyun nodded. ¡°Go, then.¡±


    Long Chen bade him and Murong Yu farewell, then he sent out instructions to the other factions of the Imperial Capital. The Heavenly Demon Lord was a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator, and if Long Chen wanted them to serve Zhao Qingyun, how could they refuse?


    Long Chen called Xiang over, then they quickly rushed towards Yuanling City.


    He was about to face the most important moment of his life. This was going to be a huge turning point, so he was extremely anxious and was praying hard that if Ling Xi sessfully regained her body, her family would note ¡­


    Ling Xi could not bear to part with him, and he felt the same way. Long Chen had promised that he would not allow Ling Xi to live in this state forever, or he would never forgive himself.


    Once again, he was riding on Xiang¡¯s back.


    Once again, the stars shone brightly.


    Night had fallen, and beneath the stars, Long Chen was staring ahead in a daze. Ling Xi was tiny and sparkled with a white glow; she had flown out of the Ling Xi Sword, and he reached out, so she sat on the back of his hand.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you look very anxious.¡± There was worry in her eyes.


    ¡°Nonsense,¡± he said, shaking his head. Then he looked at her solemnly and said, ¡°Just now, you said that the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was plucked about four months ago and a lot of its medicinal effects have faded. If it continues to fade, you say that the medicinal effects will not be enough for you to regain your body in ten days¡¯ time?¡±


    Ling Xi nodded tiredly. She did not want to tell him this and initially intended to let the ten days pass. The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit would be useless at that point, and they would not need to worry. However, she knew that he would not forgive her for this, so she had chosen to tell him.


    ¡°So that means you have to cultivate and refine it as soon as possible. At least within five days. We should arrive in Yuanling City in five days¡¯ time. I¡¯ll let you refine it then, understood?¡± Long Chen said with determination after some thought.


    This time, he had noints nor regrets.


    He wanted Ling Xi to have a healthy,plete body at any cost. Then she would be a true human. This had been his deepest wish for the past six months. He was beyond happy when Ling Xi was in the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus body, but Lin Zichen had forced her to abandon it. In the end, Lin Zichen had paid with his life.


    ¡°Brother Chen, have you really made the decision to do this?¡± Ling Xi asked wistfully with tears in her eyes.


    ¡°Even if I die, I¡¯ll die with noints nor regrets if it¡¯s for you,¡± Long Chen answered, gritting his teeth.


    ¡°But I can¡¯t bear to part.¡±


    Ling Xi sounded like she was about to cry. It was like a heavy hammer had struck Long Chen¡¯s heart, but in front of ultimate power, a weakling like him had no choice.


    <em>Power. All of this stems from power. If I possessed infinite power, it wouldn''t matter if Ling Xi¡¯s family came to get her. I would be able to chase them away! But I can¡¯t! Because right now, I am too weak. The journey of cultivation has no end. Right now, I am just an ant!</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s heart bled as he thought about this.


    A powerful desire grew from the depths of his heart, an infinite hunger for power!


    Millions of blood-colored dragons roared within his body and his blood boiled. Long Chen was not the only one who hungered for power. They desired power too! From a dragon¡¯s perspective, Long Chen was weaker than a hair right now. That was why he had to grow! And he had to grow at an even faster rate!


    His long hair flew in the night breeze.


    ¡°Xiao Xi.¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    Long Chen sighed and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know if my decision today is the right one. I don¡¯t know if giving up the chance to stay with you for the rest of my life is a foolish decision. But I can¡¯t bring myself to do otherwise.¡±


    ¡°Brother Chen ¡­ I understand, but my n possesses power that is unfathomable to you. They are on a level beyond the Divine Martial Territory. Any random member can destroy an empire. My worries are not baseless ¡­¡±


    Any random person could destroy an empire.


    Long Chen froze.


    This was Ling Xi¡¯s first time describing a true master to him.


    To the true masters, Long Chen, who was the strongest in the Cangyang Kingdom, was just a frog at the bottom of the well.


    Long Chen felt the weight of a mountain on his shoulders.


    He took a deep breath and looked up at the infinite expanse of the night sky. No one could control the movements of the stars. To the stars, all mortal humans were weak.


    An idea suddenly popped into his mind.


    The mortals beneath the stars were like ants. Even a person who could destroy an empire on his own was nothing but a mortal beneath the stars, though a stronger ant. However, Long Chen had the blood of the ancestral dragons, and he would one day soar through the heavens and control the stars on a whim. Why would he need to be afraid of stronger ants?


    Powerful confidence exploded in his eyes.


    He sensed the endless potential within him.


    He had trump cards¡ªdivine techniques that came from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon and the Primordial Dragon Talisman, which were no simple things. He even had the dragon jade, which he knew nothing about. With such earth-shaking trump cards, he was fated to be a supreme presence, the number one of his age. Ling Xi¡¯s n was powerful, but so what?


    Long Chen¡¯s heart burned with the mes of passion.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I have already made my decision. Once we have reached Baiyang Town, I want to personally see you refining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. You are my woman, and you will be mine in every lifetime!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 436: Withered Willow

    Chapter 436: Withered Willow


    Long Chen felt pressured. This would most likely be hisst visit to Baiyang Town. It would be hard for him to return.


    So he needed to say goodbye.


    There was only one person that Xiang cared about other than Long Chen, Yin Mengyao. He wanted to see her onest time, but he didn¡¯t want her to know that he had be a Sun Devouring Wolf, so he only wanted to look at her from afar.


    Long Chen brought him into Yuanling City¡¯s Lingwu family. The Lingwu family was visibly more quiet after their defeat. He brought Xiang into the Silver family¡¯s territory and waited for Yin Mengyao in her little estate. Long Chen and Xiang had been lounging at the gazebo for an hour before Yin Mengyao returned. She pushed open the door and found Long Chen sitting inside.


    This was a huge surprise to her!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Yin Mengyao shouted in surprise.


    Long Chen took a close look at Yin Mengyao and saw that she had matured a lot. She looked more like ady now and was already at the Heavenly Core Realm. She had improved a lot in such a short amount of time.


    ¡°Sister Mengyao, long time no see.¡± Long Chen smiled and looked at Xiang, who was staring at Yin Mengyao. His ck eyes were slightly wet from the tears.


    ¡°Why did youe back without saying anything?¡± Yin Mengyao scoffed jokingly and looked at Long Chen. ¡°You really grew up. I heard that you killed Lin Zichen and wanted to challenge the Sword Emperor. Why are you here?¡±Yin Mengyao was secretly shocked by Long Chen¡¯s talent. He had long be a legend in Yuanling City, but now he was an evenrger legend.


    Long Chen¡¯s name had spread all across the Cangyang Kingdom. Yin Mengyao was brimming with pride since she had such a strong stepbrother. Even the people of the Lingwu family treated her with respect after learning what Long Chen had done.


    He had rushed here before news of the Sword Emperor¡¯s death had reached Lingwu City, so Yin Mengyao wasn¡¯t aware yet. The people at the borders of the Cangyang Kingdom still had no idea that Long Chen had full control of the kingdom.


    ¡°Would you believe me if I said I killed the Sword Emperor and snatched the Cangyang Kingdom away from him?¡± Long Chen said in a joking tone.


    Yin Mengyao sighed. ¡°You really did it?¡± She trusted Long Chen, and she never doubted his strength after she learned that he had killed Emperor Yuan.


    ¡°Yes, but I don¡¯t have time to manage the kingdom, so I gave it to my master, Zhao Qingyun of the Heavenly Demon Pce. Don¡¯t worry though, he¡¯s a fair person that treats others with kindness. I¡¯mpletely fine with giving him the kingdom.¡±


    Long Chen was calm when he said that, but Yin Mengyao knew that he was no longer the same person who entered the Lingwu family with her.


    ¡°You are a legend! I will always be proud of you!¡± Yin Mengyao looked at Long Chen with pride.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Sister Mengyao, I have other matters to attend to. I¡¯m here to say goodbye. We might never meet again.¡±


    It would¡¯ve been easy toe back with Ling Xi if he was just traveling, but there was a chance he would never return once he embarked on the next leg of his next journey.


    Yin Mengyao¡¯s face paled and she shook her head bitterly. ¡°Go. You need a bigger space to grow. It will suit you.¡±


    She knew that Long Chen¡¯s talent would take him somewhere far away.


    Long Chen nodded. He was d that Yin Mengyao understood him, but he was here for another reason. He stood up and tossed Xiang to Yin Mengyao. ¡°The wolf seems to like you a lot. Please take care of it for me. I will return soon.¡±


    Long Chen was already gone when Yin Mengyao caught Xiang. She wasn¡¯t sure why Long Chen had left so suddenly, but the wolf soon caught her attention. Its eyes reminded her of someone.


    ¡°Why does it resemble Xiang? I will ask Long Chen where Mo Xiang is after hees back ¡­¡±


    Long Chen wanted to stay for a bit after leaving Xiang and Yin Mengyao alone, but he suddenly heard something interesting from twodies from the Silver family who were gossiping.


    ¡°The young master of ze City has reached the Heavenly River Realm already. The Patriarch of the Vermillion Bird family could not hold him back, so he ended up bringing the young master straight to the Azure Sun Pavilion. How did Liu Lan manage to make the young master fall in love with her?¡±


    ¡°What do you know about men? Young boys like him love voluptuous women like Liu Lan. Weren¡¯t Chu Yunxi and Long Chen the same? I heard that Liu Lan became Long Chen¡¯s woman back on Nine Devils Mountain. To think that the young master of ze City dared to touch Liu Lan even though Long Chen became such a legend ¡­¡±


    ¡°Long Chen might be strong, but I¡¯ve heard that he wants to challenge the Sword Emperor. The Sword Emperor is at the Heavenly Passage Realm! It¡¯s very likely Long Chen will die, so the young master could no longer hold back.¡±


    ¡°Liu Lan, that bitch. She¡¯s nothing but a withered willow[1], and yet someone still wants her! I wish that young master would love me instead.¡±


    ¡°You? Look at your breast pads! You think you can win him over?¡±


    Long Chen stood up.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go find her. You spent some time with her, so it''s technically fate.¡± Ling Xi was very understanding.


    Long Chen nodded.


    The Azure Sun Hall was not far from here. He soon reached it and recalled the first time he had met Liu Yuan here. He was only at the Earthly Core Realm and was getting ready to enter the Lingwu family, but times had changed.


    <em>I haven¡¯t seen her since we came down from Nine Devils Mountain. I wonder what she will think of me. I wonder how she would react when she sees me.</em>


    Liu Lan had used Long Chen in the beginning, but he soon grew so strong that she couldn¡¯t control him. Later on, he punished Liu Lan appropriately, and everyone assumed that she was his woman now.


    ¡°Withered willow.¡± That was the term thedy had used to describe Liu Lan.


    He slowly approached the Azure Sun Hall and heard the sound of arguing inside. Long Chen looked through the mirror and saw what was happening. There were four people in the hall. The two people talking in the middle were the Vermillion Bird family¡¯s Patriarch and Liu Yuan. The Patriarch was the same old woman, but Liu Yuan had visibly grown older.


    Behind the Patriarch was a boy who looked to be roughly fifteen years old. He was arrogantly staring at the two people talking in the middle and taking greedy nces at Liu Lan.


    Liu Lan was wearing in clothes and little makeup, but her beauty could not be hidden. Even though she made no effort, every move she made could seduce a man. But now she was lowering her head and her face was pale. She was having difficulty breathing.


    ¡°Liu Yuan, think about it. Do you know how big ze City is? It¡¯s three timesrger than Yuanling City! Young Master Hong¡¯s father rules over it, and he¡¯s at the Fifth River Stage. Young Master Hong is also strong, reaching the Second River Stage at such a young age. Lan¡¯er should be proud that he¡¯s attracted to her ¡­¡±


    The Patriarch looked at Liu Lan. As a woman, even she had to admit that Liu Lan was a vixen. If not, how could the young master of ze City be attracted to her even though Liu Lan¡¯s reputation was in the gutter?


    ¡°Also, Lan¡¯er is not young anymore. If she doesn¡¯t get married soon ¡­¡±


    Young Master Hong interjected, ¡°Sister Lan, I really love you. Please rest assured that my father will send the dowry in ten days. We have prepared a massive dowry, including an elementary Earth-tier spiritual herb that will instantly get you to the Heavenly Core Realm!¡±


    He was certain that Liu Lan would ept his offer because of the dowry.


    Liu Yuan was in trouble too. He looked at Young Master Hong and Liu Lan. ¡°Lan¡¯er, I think ¡­ Young Master Hong is indeed ¡­¡±


    ¡°Indeed what?¡± Liu Lan raised her head and red at Young Master Hong. ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard the rumors of how many women he has trampled on even though he¡¯s so young? Do you think he will be loyal to me? Also ¡­¡±


    1. A fallen woman ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Withered Willow is such a derogatory term</blockquote>

 Chapter 437: Castration

    Chapter 437: Castration


    Liu Lan could endure no longer. She hated the boy in front of her and wanted to p him viciously. She looked at him and said, ¡°The man I love is someone who stood tall and created miracles, not a young boy who relied on his father to do stuff. Do you think you deserve me just because you are stronger?¡±


    The only reason she had said that was because she had been forced into a corner. Young Master Hong snapped when he was insulted. He broke the chair, stood up, and pointed at Liu Lan. ¡°You fucking bitch! You are just a withered willow! I gave you some respect because I liked you. I came all the way here to marry you, and yet you dare to refuse me? What a joke! Vermillion Bird Patriarch! Is this how you work? Looks like the Hong family¡¯s rtionship with the Lingwu family will no longer exist! Just wait, what I will bring in ten days is a group of experts instead of a dowry. Bitch, do you think you can escape me? I will have you underneath me in ten days regardless!¡±


    Young Master Hong red at everyone before leaving angrily.


    The Patriarch and Liu Yuan were shocked. After the deaths of two Patriarchs, the Lingwu family was falling into ruins. If the Hong family came after them, the Lingwu family would be wiped out.


    ¡°Father, I¡¯m sorry ¡­¡± Liu Lan wasn¡¯t sure what to do. She had caused the death of the Lingwu family. She realized how powerless she was and regretted it. That was when she suddenly recalled the man that had taken advantage of her one night on Nine Devils Mountain, causing her to cry and leaving her unable to walk properly for a few days ¡­


    Reminiscence and love appeared in her heart.


    But she knew that her feelings for Long Chen didn¡¯t matter when he wasn¡¯t here. Everything was over. The Lingwu family was done for because of her, and she could onlymit suicide to make amends. Even if it did nothing for the family, she refused to surrender herself to that boy.


    Before dying, Liu Lan thought about a lot of things, but her most vivid memory was about that proud, young boy. She regretted it. If time could rewind, she would choose to love him instead of pressuring him.


    <em>Long Chen, I hope you don¡¯t hate me anymore. I was selfish and arrogant, but now I know how powerless I was. I can¡¯t even control my life ¡­</em>Liu Lan was ready tomit suicide when a shout came from outside. The shout belonged to Young Master Hong.


    Liu Lan stared with widened eyes as Young Master Hong was dragged back inside by a youth. To think that a Second River Stage cultivator would be so helpless!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Young Master Hong was thrown onto the ground. He was shocked, but he was fearless because of his background. ¡°You brat! Tell me your name! How dare you touch me. My father is the mayor of ze City! He will never let you go. Kneel down and call me ¡®grandfather,¡¯ or I will kill you!¡±


    The person who had dragged him was Long Chen.


    The three people from Lingwu family were stunned to see Long Chen. Long Chen ignored them as he looked at Young Master Hong. He smiled inly before stomping on the boy¡¯s crotch and popping something. Young Master Hong let out a shrill cry before he curled his body out of pain. He was sweating and panting from the pain.


    ¡°You want me, Long Chen, to call you ¡®grandfather?¡¯ Call me ¡®grandfather¡¯ instead, or I will step on you once every breath. Starting now.¡± Long Chen was toying with Young Master Hong.


    One breath passed, and Long Chen stomped again. Something broke into smithereens, and Young Master Hong shouted even louder. His body twitched and only two words came to his mind.


    ¡°Long Chen¡± and ¡°grandfather.¡±


    ¡°Grandfather! Grandfather! AHH ¡­ Grandfather!¡± Young Master Hong shouted three times before Long Chen stopped. He kicked Hong onest time to make him unconscious, and the hall was silent again. ¡°You are already castrated and yet you still call me ¡®grandfather.¡¯ What a joke.¡±


    He then smiled at the Vermillion Bird Patriarch. ¡°Long time no see. How are you?¡±


    The Patriarch was stunned and her teeth chattered. She couldn¡¯t utter a single word.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to talk to her either. ¡°Send him back to ze City and tell his father. If anyone from his family sets foot inside Yuanling City within a hundred years, I will make sure that the Hong family ceases to exist. Tell him that Long Chen gave the orders,¡± he said in a calm but unchallenged tone.


    ¡°Do you understand?¡±


    ¡°Yes ¡­ Yes!¡±


    ¡°Scram.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    A Second River Stage cultivator was like a child to Long Chen. Rumor had it that he had killed the Ninth River Stage Lin Zichen. It was undoubtedly true, which meant Long Chen could kill the Patriarch with a single wave of his hand. Therefore, Patriarch picked up Hong and ran out.


    Now the hall was quiet with just Liu Yuan and Liu Lan. Liu Yuan was in the middle of the two and became embarrassed. ¡°Uuuh ¡­ You guys can talk. I will leave now.¡±


    Liu Yuan ran away too. His heart was still beating rapidly because he had learned everything about Long Chen. He knew how strong Long Chen had gotten and knew one day he would be back. That day had arrived, and he had solved a massive crisis for Liu Lan.


    Long Chen looked at Liu Lan cheekily. He was certain that the woman would cry when she saw him, but his face froze when he saw her ring at him with killing intent.


    ¡°Long Chen, do you know what you did? If word gets out, I will never be able to get married,¡± Liu Lan said through gritted teeth.


    She loved and hated him. She adored him and yet was still angry at him. Seeing him made her want to release all of her pent-up emotions.


    Long Chen had never thought about it from that angle and just realized what he had done. Someone hade to ask for her hand in marriage and he had castrated that man. It was certain that no one else would ever ask Liu Lan to marry them if word got out.


    ¡°We are friends, aren¡¯t we? We should help each other. I saw that he was scolding you, so I gave him a warning. Smile! There¡¯s no need to frown when I came all the way here to see you.¡± Long Chen felt like teasing her.


    ¡°Are you sure you are here just to see me?¡±


    ¡°Not really ¡­¡± He smiled sheepishly.


    ¡°Get out.¡± Liu Lan lowered her head.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t know what was happening.


    ¡°No need to pity me. Thank you for your help. From here onwards, I don¡¯t want to see you again, nor do I want to talk to you anymore. Goodbye,¡± Liu Lan said adamantly.


    Long Chen was silent. He had a feeling that Liu Lan was struggling with something and knew what she was thinking. She had her pride and used to be stronger than Long Chen, but now she could only be described as pitiful. She didn¡¯t want to show her pitiful side to him, because she really cared about him.


    The look in his eyes right now told her that he had grown into a man.


    ¡°Go! Don¡¯te back, please ¡­¡± Liu Lan almost cried.


    Long Chen sighed. ¡°I came here to say goodbye to you. We are technically friends after what we went through. I will be leaving the Cangyang Kingdom and might never return. This might be thest time we meet. Will you chase me away like this?¡±


    Liu Lan wanted him to leave, but she never thought he would leave forever. Her mind went nk.


    <em>Thest time we will meet?</em>


    Long Chen had an important ce in her heart, and it wasn¡¯t easy for her to let him go.


    Both of them remained silent.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you supposed to fight the Sword Emperor?¡±


    ¡°I already killed him.¡±


    They were silent again.


    It was quite some time before Liu Lan sighed. ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the Azure Willow Residence. No matter what, we are friends. Since you are leaving, I should send you off. I want to hear about what you did after you left the Lingwu family.¡±


    <em>Back to the Azure Willow Residence?</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 438: Farewell

    Chapter 438: Farewell


    Back in the Turquoise Willow Residence, Liu Lan kept quiet as she led Long Chen to her ce.


    ¡°Brother Chen, what is she doing?¡± Ling Xi pouted.


    ¡°Don¡¯t know, but I think it will be alright.¡± If he were the same as how he was back in Baiyang Town, he would¡¯ve been seduced by Liu Lan, but now he was indifferent to her.


    Long Chen recalled how he saw her bathing herest time. Her pale skin and smooth body were definitely alluring. Liu Lan was now walking in front of him, her curvaceous body still capable of seducing any man.


    They sat in the courtyard, and it was alreadyte at night. The weak lighting from the candle illuminated Liu Lan¡¯s skin in a sensual way that urged people to bite her gently. A faint scent lingered in the air that tempted those who smelled it. The atmosphere was filled with sexual tension.


    ¡°Long Chen, I don¡¯t know who the beautiful girl that stood by your side was. She appears and disappears at random times¡­¡± Liu Lan said calmly as she stared at the sky.


    Ling Xi was not a secret to her after the incident on Nine Devils Mountain. Long Chen exined Ling Xi¡¯s predicament to Liu Lan. He had been searching for someone to talk to about it, and now he had found that someone, Liu Lan. He continued to tell his story to her.


    Liu Lan lowered her head after hearing him. ¡°Thank you for treating me as a friend and telling me so much. It¡¯s alreadyte.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°And that¡¯s why I need to leave now. I don¡¯t know when I will return. Fate has a cruel way of toying with people ¡­¡±Liu Lan nodded and raised her head, her captivating face just inches away from his. ¡°I¡¯m so jealous of thatdy to have a man like you working hard for her. She can probably hear me right now, right? You two must cherish your rtionship, because it¡¯s not easy to find someone you¡¯re sopatible with. I¡¯ve been searching for a bond like yours, but perhaps I¡¯m too ugly to have one ¡­¡±


    Long Chen felt awkward.


    He did understand her, but Ling Xi was the one he had to cherish and protect. His heart had no room for Liu Lan. Not only Liu Lan, Long Chen also had to turn down Murong Yu from the Heavenly Demon Pce. He knew that Murong Yu was attracted to him, but he had to turn her down.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You are a kind person. You will find your love in the future.¡± Long Chen smiled sheepishly.


    ¡°That¡¯s not true. I might¡¯ve had a chance if more people tried to court me, but I don¡¯t think anyone will do so after what you did today. You have topensate me!¡± Liu Lan¡¯s eyes revealed her intentions to tease him.


    ¡°Compensate? How?¡±


    Liu Lan stared at him shyly. ¡°See, I¡¯m sure that no one else will approach me. I will continue to grow older and will most likely lose my feminine charm in ten years or so. I don¡¯t think you consider me ugly, and I also think it¡¯s a shame that someone as pretty as me is destined to be alone. So when you decide to leave, I¡¯ve decided to give myself to you. Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t need you to be responsible. I just want to feel what it''s like to be a woman. I just want to say ¡­ Long Chen, I don¡¯t think I can be attracted to any other man in this world.¡±


    Liu Lan¡¯s bold words, her yful gaze, and her snow-white cleavage in the moonlight ¡­ All of her actions exuded so much charm that Long Chen was stunned. He knew that almost no one would refuse her if she said the same thing.


    But he cannot follow her demands.


    ¡°Hahaha. Look at how frightened you are. I¡¯m just toying with you. I¡¯m more afraid that the littledy wille out and tear me to pieces.¡± Liu Lan covered her mouth and chuckled.


    Long Chen sighed in relief.


    ¡°Alright, I think I¡¯ve said what I needed to. Any more and I might really miss you. Long Chen, go. Goodbye ¡­ Or more precisely, farewell.¡± Liu Lan stood up and smiled. Her eyes were resolute while sending off Long Chen.


    Long Chen stood up. He knew that she was right. Their rtionship was slightlyplicated, and if they were to talk further, it would only make them feel sad. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will see each other again if fate allows it.¡±


    Liu Lan didn¡¯t answer him and continued smiling.


    Long Chen confirmed that she was indeed just teasing him. He never thought that he had the charisma to make Liu Lan submit to him like a moth to the mes. He nodded and disappeared into the night sky after saying goodbye.


    Liu Lan slowly slumped onto the ground after Long Chen disappeared and cried. Tears stained her sleeves and robe.


    She continued crying until she fell asleep in the courtyard.


    ***


    Xiang was already waiting for him when he returned to the Silver family¡¯s residence. Long Chen knew that Xiang was sad just from seeing how crestfallen he looked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Xiang wanted to see Yin Mengyao before they left. They had spent an entire day together, and Long Chen thought that it was enough time. He took Xiang and ran towards Baiyang Town. With Xiang¡¯s speed, they arrived in no time. Long Chen didn¡¯t want to disturb the Yang family, so he decided to just sneak in and look at them from afar. He would be content as long as the Yang family Patriarch, Yang Xueqing, Yang Yuntian, Yang Qingxuan, and everyone else in the family remained safe.


    <em>Thankfully, the imperial family didn¡¯t send anyone to destroy them, or I would¡¯ve regretted my decisions. I should just ask Master to invite them to the capital so that I don¡¯t have to worry about them.</em>


    Yang Xueqing was asleep. Long Chen looked at her a few more times through the window, and felt tears well up in his eyes. He sighed. ¡°I know that our rtionship is not the best, but she¡¯s still my mother. She still raised me a little. I wonder if I will ever see her again.¡±


    ¡°Brother Chen, why don¡¯t you wake her up?¡±


    ¡°No need. It will just be even more sad.¡± Long Chen smiled, ¡°Let¡¯s go see my father onest time before you refine the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.¡±


    Ling Xi bit her lip and nodded.


    They approached the woods just outside Baiyang Town. Long Chen retraced his steps and soon found Long Qinn¡¯s grave.


    ¡°Father, I won¡¯t say much. I¡¯m on the path to bing the strongest. The secret of the Dragon Jade Pendant and your identity ¡­ I will slowly unravel their truths. Xiao Xi,e out.¡±


    Xiao Xi came out of the ear stud after he finished talking.


    ¡°Father, look closely. This is your daughter-inw, Ling Xi. She¡¯s not my wife just yet, but I will make sure she agrees to my proposal in front of everyone else one day!¡±


    LIng Xi was touched by his words. She looked at Long Qinn¡¯s grave and said, ¡°I will also call you ¡®father.¡¯ I swear that I will always stay by Long Chen¡¯s side!¡±


    ¡°Alright, I think my father heard what you said. Let¡¯s go ¡­¡±


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t too hung up on his family. He knew this day woulde. He had seen everyone he cared for and no longer had any regrets. Now he only needed to wait to see which path he should take.


    Long Chen, Ling Xi, and Xiang returned to Baiyang Town. Long Chen¡¯s old house was just outside of the Yang family estate. He hadn¡¯t been home in a year, so it was filled with dust. He released some Qi and blew out the dust to make the ce more hospitable.


    Standing in the courtyard, Long Chen looked up at the cloudy sky. The wind was howling and thunderous booms could be heard. It was going to rain soon.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, you can start now.¡±


    Back in his room, Long Chen urged her to start. Even though his voice was calm, he couldn¡¯t hide the anxiety in his eyes.


    There was only him and Ling Xi inside the room. Xiang was guarding outside and didn¡¯t want to interrupt them. Even so, he was very anxious about the results.


    It was time to refine the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. If they didn¡¯t, it would be ineffective in five days.


    No matter what, they need to face it now.


    The skies continued to rumble, and the asional lightning sh illuminated the room and turned Long Chen¡¯s face white.


    Ling Xi was shrouded in white fog as she floated in front of him. Even though she was nothing but a spirit now, her beautiful face, pale skin, and luminous eyes were very real.


    Her body gradually grew bigger until she was back to her regr size. This was the first time in a long time that Long Chen had seen her face up close when she was at her normal size. He had grown used to seeing her as a small humanoid, but now Ling Xi¡¯s anxious face was just inches away.


    The familiar scent reached Long Chen¡¯s nose.


    ¡°Brother Chen, can I please beg you onest time? I don¡¯t care if I have to stay in this form. I want to apany you forever, and I won¡¯t regret it ¡­¡± She was close to sobbing.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Bye bye </blockquote>

 Chapter 439: Ten Years of Uncertainty

    Chapter 439: Ten Years of Uncertainty


    Ling Xi''s words hurt Long Chen.


    He gritted his teeth and said, ¡°I won''t regret my decision. As a man, I will provide everything you need. Ling Xi, please trust me. If I don¡¯t go to you in ten years, that means I¡¯m dead.¡±


    Ten years.


    Ling Xi cried.


    Ten years of uncertainty. Would he really do that for her?


    Would he travel thousands of miles, to traverse the mountains and roads, kill demons and devils, bnce on the line separating life and death again and again, just to hold her hand one more time?


    ¡°If you don¡¯t find me in ten years, I will kill myself!¡± Ling Xi made sure he understood her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare do that! Refine the fruit now!¡±


    Ling Xi hesitated onest time before proceeding.She knew she was one of the lucky ones.


    Long Chen took out the jade box containing the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. He opened it and ced the fruit on the ground. Ling Xi¡¯s spirit floated beside it just like how she had done with the Profound Jade Lotus. She had ended up with nothing but a fake body that time. However, the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit would not only return her physical body, but also restore her power.


    She would return to how she was before the sword sliced her up.


    Ling Xi thought she was dead when that happened, but she was given one more chance to be reborn after meeting Long Chen and oveing countless struggles.


    It was nothing short of a dream to her.


    ¡°Time to start ¡­¡±


    It started raining outside. The room was dark, but the fruit was illuminating most of the room, covering it in a dreamy light.


    The Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was much more fragrant than the Profound Jade Lotus. Long Chen felt like he was bathing in a pool of pure Qi, and he felt his own Qi slowly increasing.


    Ling Xi¡¯s body transformed into white mist and entered the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Long Chen saw the final sense of yearning in her eyes.


    <em>A girl like you should have a real body. You cannot follow me like some ghost while traveling the world.</em>


    Long Chen sighed and dispelled all of his stray thoughts. He watched her rebirth as if he was enjoying a show.


    Ling Xi entered the fruitpletely, and a strange power pulsed into her. Her voice came in waves from the fruit, as if she was crying. Long Chen felt tears pooling in his eyes.


    He was forcing her to do this for her sake. Who knew what would happen if they don''t take this opportunity here and now?


    The white fruit resembled a ginseng. When she entered the fruit, it slowly transformed into an orb of white that reflected its surroundings like a pool of water.


    Long Chen saw Ling Xi¡¯s face flickering within the orb.


    Time slowly passed, and the orb grewrger andrger. Soon, it turned into a white cocoon, its white threads emitting pure light.


    Runes appeared on the cocoon, and they slowly spun until they resembled a whirlpool. Long Chen¡¯s reflection on the cocoon was also white like milk.


    Long Chen was both anxious and excited.


    The whirlpool slowly grew and became translucent. Long Chen then felt the natural Qi in the air being sucked into the cocoon. The massive energy that even he could not control was instantly consumed.


    <em>Is Xiao Xi really that strong? </em>Long Chen didn¡¯t know how strong she was before she lost her body, but now he understood that her strength was leagues above his.


    Xiao Xi had said that she never cultivated seriously even though was extremely strong. It was clear that her background was not simple.


    Time slowly passed.


    Long Chen was looking forward to hering out of the cocoon. Regardless of what happened after, it was excellent news that she could recover her body. As for the other issues, he could just solve them one by one. He swore that he would meet her again within ten years.


    It was soon midnight, and Long Chen lost count of how much Qi Ling Xi had consumed.


    <em>She can probably defeat me easily once shees out. </em>Long Chen felt powerless, but he held on to his pir of strength, and that was his identity as a Dragon Warrior.


    The Dragon Ancestors were beings at the pinnacle of the Dragon Continent!


    Ling Xi was close to seeding. Just then, a crack appeared in the cocoon, and a pink light leaked through. The fragrant scent smothered Long Chen, then he saw someone slowly appearing inside.


    This was not the first time he had seen her beauty, but it still left asting impression on him when he saw her. He would never forget how beautiful she was.


    Ling Xi was the most beautiful girl in the world, and no one else could rival her in his heart.


    She stretched her arms and floated in front of Long Chen. Just likest time, she was naked, but Long Chen didn¡¯t have any ill intentions in him. He was admiring her like a piece of art.


    Her pale and smooth skin, her red lips, her crescent eyebrows, her hair that reached her waist, her soft shoulders, her pale chest, her slender waist, her long arms, her toned legs, and her beautiful feet ¡­


    She was the most beautiful piece of art that he had ever seen.


    There was nothing lustful in his mind. All he felt for her was satisfaction and happiness. He knew that he had finally achieved his goal after working so hard. Ling Xi could finally live like a normal human again. She was reborn.


    Long Chen suddenly felt like it was worth it no matter how difficult things would be, even if he had to bet his life.


    It wasn''t just because she was beautiful, but also because he loved her so much.


    He remembered how he was exiled from the Yang family and meandered through life. Back then, he didn¡¯t know what love was, but now he knew after seeing Ling Xi recover her true body.


    To him, love was to provide and protect.


    Ling Xi was like a white lotus bathed in light when she appeared, pure yet beautiful.


    She opened her eyes while Long Chen was still admiring her. Two rays of sharp sword Qi appeared in them and formed symbols before slowly bing dim.


    Her eyes soon returned to normal. They were like a clear pond that rippled in the wind.


    Tears streamed down her face when she opened her eyes.


    When she felt the warmthing from her body, she knew that their future was now wrapped in thorns. There was no turning back.


    She remembered how Long Chen had touched her spirit with his finger when they first entered the Lingwu family. He had told her that he would give her back the same warmth that she felt.


    And now he had done it.


    They looked at each other as if they had been separated for hundreds of years. They didn¡¯t know what to say, and Ling Xi could only cry when she looked at him.


    But Long Chen did not. He was happy that his efforts had paid off.


    ¡°Brother Chen ¡­¡± Ling Xi suddenly broke the silence and decided on something. She approached Long Chen and pulled him into her embrace.


    She was strong, and before Long Chen could react, his face was buried in her chest. The scenting from her body plucked his heart strings and he felt his body burning up.


    <em>What is Ling Xi doing?</em>


    ¡°Brother Chen, I¡¯ve decided. You remember how Liu Lan offered to give herself to you? I know that many women will approach you after I leave you. I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll forget me, so I want to give myself to you too. You gave me the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, so my body is yours now!¡±


    Ling Xi¡¯s voice trembled as she said that.


    Sensing Long Chen¡¯s breath on her chest made her feel powerless.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 440: Ancient Graveyard

    Chapter 440: Ancient Graveyard


    Long Chen¡¯s body was reacting strongly now that the person he yearned for was hugging him. More importantly, because Ling Xi was panicking and didn¡¯t want Long Chen to stop her, she pushed him down onto the bed and pressed on him with her body.


    ¡°Mmm ¡­¡±


    She moaned and her face turned red. A faint blush appeared on her pale skin due to her embarrassment, making her look much more attractive.


    Long Chen felt like his body was going to explode when Ling Xi pushed him down and looked at him alluringly.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I ¡­¡± She lost herself in his embrace and said those few words even though she was embarrassed. Her faint breath and scent ignited the fire in Long Chen. His eyes became bloodshot and he panted rapidly. Ling Xi started going limp when she felt the heating from Long Chen¡¯s body.


    Her eyshes fluttered and her eyes filled with lust. Long Chen slowly looked down and saw her attractive body. That was when something rose from his body like a Dragon Ancestor.


    Long Chen howled and couldn¡¯t control his hands. He touched her breasts, and Ling Xi moaned again, as if she was electrocuted. She became like a kitten that moved away from the unfamiliar feeling of his touch.


    He looked at her again and saw how pure she looked. She was an invible piece of art that hade from the heavens.


    And now she was sitting on him without any clothes.Long Chen pped himself and snapped out of it. He took out the clothes that he had prepared for Ling Xi from his Universe Pouch. He then pushed her away and stood up, ¡°Put this on, now!¡±


    Long Chen''s harshness made her confidencee crashing down. Ling Xi had always been sensitive and timid. After gathering all the courage she could muster to force herself onto him, Long Chen had rejected her, making her feel dejected. She put on her clothes and cried at the same time.


    Hiding herself in the nket, she lowered her head onto her knees and said nothing.


    Long Chen¡¯s excited body finally calmed down. It was only at this point that he sighed in relief and sat on the bed. He gently asked, ¡°Xiao Xi, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Ling Xi ignored him, but her body trembled.


    ¡°Talk.¡±


    ¡°You ¡­ You detest me ¡­¡± Ling Xi sobbed.


    Long Chen shook his head and sighed. ¡°Idiot, how could you be so clueless? I will tell you why now is not the time. Lie down with me.¡±


    He hugged her and lied down on the bed. Then he pulled the nket and covered both of them.


    Loud thunder echoed across the skies as the heavy rain fell.


    Long Chen and Ling Xi were cultivators, sleep and nkets were useless, but Long Chen missed how fragile Ling Xi was when she used the Profound Jade Lotus. She was just a normal mortal who would freeze to death without a nket.


    He was also used to hugging her while she fell asleep. Now that she had restored her body, he was more than happy to do the same. The couple cuddled on the bed.


    Ling Xi didn¡¯t know why Long Chen had stopped her.


    ¡°Brother Chen, would you have stopped if I was Liu Lan?¡±


    Long Chen wanted to smack her on the head. He finally learned what she was worried about. He turned serious as he said, ¡°That¡¯s not why I stopped. Xiao Xi, have you considered how your family would react if I did that to you? Do you think I would survive?¡±


    This was what Long Chen was most afraid of. If not, he would¡¯ve never stopped when Ling Xi pushed him down. She was what he yearned for the most.


    ¡°I see. I¡¯m such an idiot.¡± Ling Xi understood what he meant. ¡°Brother Chen, I¡¯m so sorry for being such an idiot.¡±


    Ling Xi blushed when she recalled how desperate and brave she was just now. She didn¡¯t dare to look him in the eye.


    The rain continued outside while they were warm in the room. Long Chen threw away all of his worries and held her tightly. ¡°Do you like cuddling and living like a normal person?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s my dream.¡± Ling Xi¡¯s eyes were filled with yearning as she cuddled him. She felt that this was the warmest ce in the world and would never forget her adventures with him. The entire world was cold and dangerous, and only Long Chen gave her the warmth and safety she needed. Even though she was strong now, she still liked the feeling he gave her.


    Yet she felt powerless.


    What would they have to face tomorrow?


    Long Chen dared not think about it. He just wanted to enjoy the night.


    The entire world outside was drowned in the heavy downpour, but inside the house there was only the sound of their hearts beating.


    Ling Xi buried her face in his arms and looked up with teary eyes.


    ¡°This is the most beautiful night in my life.¡±


    ¡°Shh ¡­ Don¡¯t talk. Let¡¯s go to sleep.¡± Long Chen smiled and caressed her face.


    But neither of them slept. They talked for the whole night, but in the end, morning still came.


    Ling Xi looked outside. ¡°The rain stopped.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Brother Chen.¡± Ling Xi suddenly started crying and nted her face next to his. His face was covered in her tears too. The tears flowed down and stained the pillow.


    ¡°They are here. They will arrive in an hour.¡± Ling Xi was crestfallen.


    Long Chen felt like his heart had been hollowed out, as if he had lost something important. It hurt him a lot and made it difficult for him to breathe, as if his chest had been sealed off.


    He didn¡¯t dare ask her that question that entire night. He had been hoping that her family wouldn¡¯t discover where she was, but now he knew that it was impossible. Just as he had expected, the path filled with thorns was just beginning.


    Long Chen closed his eyes and took a deep breath.


    ¡°Ling Xi, I need you to tell me how to get to where you live.¡± This was the most important question. He hadn¡¯t asked her yet because he had been hoping that Ling Xi¡¯s family wouldn¡¯t find her, but now he knew he had to ask.


    Thinking how she would be separated from Long Chen in an hour, her voice faltered. There was no telling if he would ever make it, and she felt her world crumbling from the intense sadness. Tears continued to streak down her face even though the rain had stopped outside.


    ¡°Tell me now, unless you don¡¯t want me to find you!¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice was stern. Even though he felt his heart bleeding, he needed to be strong.


    Long Chen¡¯s tone frightened her, and she stopped crying. ¡°Brother Chen, listen closely.¡±


    She wiped off her tears and sobbed a little. ¡°The Ten Thousand Nations Territory is just a corner of the Dragon Continent. It¡¯s considered a sealed-off piece ofnd. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory is surrounded by the ocean on three sides, while thest remaining side is connected to arge and continuous deste wastnd. It¡¯s a forbidden area that normal cultivators cannot enter. Legend has it that it was once the site of arge battle, called the Ancient Graveyard. It¡¯s because of that ce that the people of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory cannot get out.¡±


    ¡°Ancient Graveyard?¡±


    Ling Xi nodded and continued, ¡°Just past the Ancient Graveyard is the Three Emperor Territory. That ce is the truend of the Dragon Continent. Each territory is asrge as the entire Ten Thousand Nations Territory. My family is in one of the three territories called the Swordsoul Pce. If you want to find me, you must first reach the Three Emperor Territories!¡±


    ¡°But how can I enter the Three Emperor Territories if the Ancient Graveyard is blocking me?¡± Long Chen already had a good idea of how massive Ling Xi¡¯s family was, so he wasn¡¯t frightened when she told him.


    At least he had a goal to work towards.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC YOU IDIOT</blockquote>

 Chapter 441: Expert From The Emperor Territory

    Chapter 441: Expert From The Emperor Territory


    ¡°There is a secret entrance to the Three Emperor Territories in the Ancient Graveyard. You need to first reach the Ancient Graveyard, but I don¡¯t know how you are going to do that.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean I first need to reach the Divine Martial Territory to find out the way to enter the Ancient Graveyard? Only then can I reach the Three Emperor Territories and find you?¡±


    Ling Xi was worried, but she nodded.


    Long Chen felt like his heart was being cut apart when he saw her in so much distress.


    <em>Strength ¡­ Damn! If I was strong enough, I wouldn''t have to worry about separating from her. It¡¯s all because Ick strength! </em>Long Chen had been increasing his strength steadily up till this point. He had been content with his talent, but now he knew he was just an ant.


    He was unrelenting.


    ¡°Another hour ¡­¡± Long Chen took a deep breath. This was what he had chosen, so he would not regret it, but still, it was a devastating feeling to learn that he wouldn¡¯t see her for a very long time. There was even a chance he wouldn¡¯t see her ever again.


    Ling Xi cried when she heard him.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, don¡¯t be like that. You need to stay calm and distance yourself from me. I don¡¯t know how temperamental your family is. If they look down on me and see how close we are, I¡¯m pretty sure something bad will happen.¡±He didn¡¯t fear death, he just didn¡¯t want to get into trouble. Now that he knew he couldn¡¯t change his decision, he had no choice but to ept it. But Long Chen knew that one day he would appear before her without needing to fear any repercussions.


    Long Chen¡¯s words shook her. Because it was rted to his life, Ling Xi dared not take a risk.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I can feel who¡¯sing to get me. It¡¯s my grandmother! My mom and dad might be stubborn, but my grandmother is very good to me. If I beg her, she might bring you back!¡± Ling Xi said excitedly.


    ¡°Grandmother? She treats you well?¡± Long Chen was moved. He knew that if he were to go to that ce right now with Ling Xi, the others would bully him because he was still weak. Still, he wasn¡¯t sure if he could leave Ling Xi alone. If her grandmother did allow him to follow, he would take the risk.


    ¡°My grandmother treats me well, so she might agree to it!¡±


    Long Chen never thought there would be a chance like this. If her grandmother agreed, he wouldn¡¯t have to go through the Ancient Graveyard.


    After thinking about it, he said, ¡°Ling Xi, this method might work, but you must never let them know about our rtionship. You can just say we are friends and I helped you obtain the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. We might have arger chance that way.¡±


    Long Chen was confident in his ability to survive in the Three Emperor Territories. As long as he hunted some stronger demonic beasts and used Blood Transmutation, his strength would increase drastically! Ling Xi could help him kill those beasts herself.


    That way, he wouldn¡¯t have to wait ten years. He could get her back in a year or two!


    Long Chen¡¯s disappointed heart red up again with pride and confidence. He decided that it was a good n since Ling Xi wouldpletely side with him to the point that she would fight her parents.


    ¡°Brother Chen, please just ept it. I will beg my grandmother when she gets here!¡± Ling Xi smiled for the first time after crying so much. She thought her parents woulde and fetch her, but instead, it was her beloved grandmother that always doted on her!


    Long Chen and Ling Xi decided to go with the n. They were currently standing in an empty space in front of Baiyang Town. This was where Long Chen met Ling Xi for the first time. They were holding hands and waiting for her grandmother toe.


    Xiang stood slightly further away and looked at them anxiously.


    He wasn¡¯t sure if their n would seed.


    There were too many unpredictable factors.


    ¡°Brother Chen, we can stop holding hands after they get here.¡± Ling Xi was feeling much better after seeing that they had some hope.


    Long Chen smiled inly.


    He was calmer and knew everything was now up to luck. There was a decent chance he would fail.


    An hour slowly passed. Ling Xi closed her eyes and counted before letting go of his hand at the veryst moment. She ran forward and looked up.


    The skies were clear and bright.


    Just then, a sh of light appeared on the horizon. It was so bright that Long Chen closed his eyes. When he opened them again, there were two people before him!


    <em>They are so fast ¡­</em> Long Chen felt powerless. He now knew how strong they were. He wondered if they were as strong as Li Xuanji.


    Long Chen looked at the two people who had arrived. At the front was an old woman who looked like any regr olddy. She could easily fade into the background if she was a normal person, but Long Chen had a strange feeling that she was one with the world, or rather, she didn¡¯t have much of a presence.


    Even if he opened his eyes wide and stared at her, the old woman appeared and disappeared even though she was just in front of him.


    <em>She¡¯s much stronger than Ling Xi ¡­</em>


    The person behind the olddy was even stronger. He appeared to be around fourteen years old, roughly the same age as Xiang. He was even almost as good-looking as Xiang was. But while Xiang exuded a gentle Yin energy, the youth was radiating intense Yang energy.


    As for his strength ¡­ Long Chen felt like the youth was the sun, and he could barely look at him directly. The golden eyes and movements that radiated strength confirmed Long Chen¡¯s suspicions. The youth was incredibly powerful.


    They were Ling Xi¡¯s family members, but they didn¡¯t look like her at all. <em>Maybe they are not rted by blood? But Ling Xi did say that the old woman was her grandmother.</em>


    Ling Xi cried out in surprise and hugged the old woman when they appeared.


    Long Chen smiled as he knew Ling Xi was faking it. She was still worried and scared because she had to separate from Long Chen, and she was just putting up a front.


    The old woman started crying when she found Ling Xi. Seeing how excited she was, the old woman was happy too. ¡°Good child. As long as you are safe ¡­ Quick, tell me what happened to you. How did you end up in this deserted ce? Why have you been gone for an entire year?¡±


    Ling Xi took out the Ling Xi Sword and sobbed as she told the story of how the sword had destroyed her body and bound her soul. The old woman was shocked and wanted to snatch the sword away, but an invisible wave of energy repelled her.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± The old woman was shocked. ¡°Xi¡¯er, this sword must be a demonic sword! We need to let your father examine it. It might be a great treasure.¡±


    Long Chen was also surprised by how the Ling Xi Sword had reacted.


    The sword had only allowed himself and Ling Xi to touch it. It had rejected the touch of other people, including Li Xuanji. He was certain that there was more to the sword since the old woman had said it was a treasure.


    The old woman was just about to leave, but Ling Xi started to execute her n. She grabbed her grandma¡¯s hands and said in a coy tone, ¡°Grandma, why are you in such a hurry to leave? There¡¯s still so much to tell you! Such as how I managed to restore my body so you coulde find me!¡±


    Long Chen could tell the old woman favored Ling Xi, so he sighed in relief. He felt like there was a good chance the n would seed.


    The old woman asked, ¡°Xi¡¯er, how did you restore yourself?¡±


    In order to emphasize how Long Chen had saved her while also hiding their rtionship, Ling Xi tried her best to summarize it.


    ¡°That¡¯s because I made a really interesting friend here. He¡¯s called Long Chen. He found many spiritual herbs to keep me alive and even defeated the Emperor of a kingdom to get the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit just for me. Grandma, I finally found a friend. Can I bring him to our ce to thank him for saving me so many times? I want to y with him there,¡± Ling Xi said with anticipation.


    Long Chen was anxious. This was the moment when he would learn if the n would seed or not.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hope their n works</blockquote>

 Chapter 442: Stubborn Obsession

    Chapter 442: Stubborn Obsession


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± The olddy¡¯s gaze fell on Long Chen for the first time. She eyed him up and down for a while, and there was a momentary sh of confusion in her eyes. <em>Why does this small town boy have a strange aura?</em>


    After thinking for a moment, she still could not figure it out.


    <em>Must be a mistake. </em>The olddy shook her head, then she looked at the hopeful Ling Xi and then at Long Chen. Suddenly, she furrowed her brows and waved her hand. A blurry light array wrapped around her and Ling Xi.


    Long Chen¡¯s chest tightened. What was the olddy doing? Why hadn¡¯t she answered the question, but instead separated herself and Ling Xi from him? It was strange.


    He was not strong enough to probe, so all he could do was wait quietly.


    That was when the teenager who had been silent looked at Long Chen icily. He radiated a terrifying aura and did not seem like a friendly person.


    His gaze swept Long Chen like a de, and Long Chen felt a numbing sensation on his skin. It was as if he could be killed with just a look from the stranger.


    Being watched by the teenager felt like a torturous walk on the edge of death.


    Long Chen forced himself to be still as he waited for the oue.The sess of it all depended on this moment.


    The old woman¡¯s reaction had surprised both Long Chen and Ling Xi. When Ling Xi realized that the space around her was sealed, she froze and looked at the old woman, only to find that her usually gentle and kind grandmother was ring sternly at her.


    ¡°Grandma, what¡¯s the matter ¡­¡± Ling Xi had a bad feeling.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Hehe, Xi¡¯er. All I can say is that he¡¯s smart and very lucky. If he had made you lose your virginityst night, I would have pulverized him so he wouldn¡¯t even be able to reincarnate!¡± said the old woman through gritted teeth.


    Ling Xi felt like her world had gone dark.


    ¡°Grandma, how do you know?¡± Both Ling Xi and Long Chen had only nned to tell her that they were regr friends, then take him to the Three Emperor Territories. Although they couldn¡¯t be together in public, at least they stood a chance. However, how could Ling Xi have expected her grandmother to know everything?


    ¡°Do you take your grandmother for a fool? Silly girl, I¡¯ve lived a long life. You¡¯re covered all over with that boy¡¯s scent. Did you think I wouldn¡¯t notice? You can¡¯t bear to part with him, so you wanted to pretend to be friends so I¡¯d take him with us, right?¡± the old woman said with a sigh.


    Ling Xi was shocked, and her face slowly turned pale.


    She was still too na?ve. Even though she had such a detailed n, the old woman had figured it out with just one look. The oldest gingers were the spiciest after all. Ling Xi felt like her whole world was crumbling, and she could no longer stop her tears from flowing.


    ¡°Silly girl, let it go. Don¡¯t be stubborn anymore. You¡¯re lucky I was the one who came. If your parents were here, not only would he be dead, everyone in this country would die with him too. I won¡¯t kill him, but you must also be mature. Forget about him and follow me home,¡± said the old woman, her heart aching when she saw how sad Ling Xi was.


    <em>Crash! </em>Ling Xi fell to her knees. Her eyes were fully red, and she stared at the old woman with extreme longing in her eyes. ¡°Grandma, will you try to understand my situation? He treats me so well. He has suffered so, so much just to help me regain my body. He almost died many times too. If it wasn¡¯t for him, you would have never seen me again. I promise you that after we return to the pce, I will not be with him in public, alright?¡±


    ¡°Be realistic. Xi¡¯er, it¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know how your parents are. Do you take them for fools? I can picture it now. If they see him, he will surely be killed immediately. If you truly like him, give him a chance to live on.¡±


    <em>If you truly like him, give him a chance to live on.</em>


    This sentence struck Ling Xi¡¯s mind like a heavy hammer. She thought about her parents¡¯ tempers, and it was true. If they discovered that there were such deep feelings between her and Long Chen, he would never be allowed to live. If they really brought him back to the pce, there was no question that he would die a tragic death.


    If they parted ways forever here, Long Chen would be able to continue living!


    Ling Xi was still kneeling as she stared at the old woman in a daze with tears flowing down her cheeks. The old woman¡¯s words had made her lose all hope.


    ¡°Your grandma has lived a long life; looking at the way you two look at each other, I know how deep your feelings are. I can¡¯t deny that he really is a good kid because he put in so much effort. Unfortunately, his background and capabilities are both too weak. He¡¯s even weaker than the weakest people in the pce. How is it possible for a person like him to be with you? Also, have you forgotten that your life partner was set a long time ago by your parents? Wang Chen¡¯s performance these past few years has just been terrifying ¡­ Long Chen, Wang Chen ¡­ Both of them have ¡®Chen¡¯ in their names, but the gap between them is just toorge ¡­¡±


    Every single word stabbed Ling Xi¡¯s heart like a knife. Her world had crumbled, and she could not imagine how she would live out the rest of her days.


    ¡°Silly child. Forget about him. Everyone has some wild memories from when they were younger. You¡¯ll understand in a few years. You¡¯ll understand what path suits you, and who your true life partner actually is. Even if he has given you your most memorable moments, you twoe from different worlds. He is fated to be a passerby in your life. In a few years¡¯ time, you¡¯ll forget all about him!¡±


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Ling Xi shook her head hurriedly. Through her tears, she looked at the old woman with great determination and said, ¡°I will never forget him! Even if I forget my parents, I will still never forget him! He is the person who loves me most!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just too na?ve¡­¡± The old woman shook her head in exasperation. Ling Xi¡¯s stubborn attitude gave her a bad feeling. She had a faint feeling that many, many problems would arise in the future.


    Ling Xi suddenly grabbed the bottom of her top and begged, ¡°Grandma, don¡¯t you love me the most? You can¡¯t bear to see me sad every day, right? Can¡¯t you just help me this one time? I¡¯m begging you, Gradnam! Help me one time! I really cannot bear to part with him! I¡¯ll go mad!¡±


    ¡°Enough!¡± The old woman turned stern suddenly and pried Ling Xi¡¯s hand off. She pulled the girl up, huffed coldly, and said, ¡°Xi¡¯er, it¡¯s time for you to grow up. You need to know your duties. If you still refuse to listen, don¡¯t you me me for killing him.¡±


    Ling Xi¡¯s face was ghostly white. She was unable to stop tears from rolling down her cheeks. The old woman¡¯s determined gaze made her lose all hope. She suddenly felt her whole body ovee by weakness, as if she was about to die.


    ¡°Wipe your tears and bid him farewell. You two don¡¯t have much time left.¡± Then the old woman sighed tiredly andpletely removed the membrane surrounding them.


    At this point, Long Chen was almost breaking down from the torture asserted by the teenager¡¯s gaze. He knew that the boy was merely toying with him because he was bored. It was too bad that he was a super-strong cultivator, as Long Chen could only hold it in. He swore to himself that one day, he would pay for this!


    Then Ling Xi appeared.


    Long Chen¡¯s chest tightened when he saw her tear-stained face and turned pale too. From her expression, he knew the oue.


    ¡°Brother Chen!¡± Seeing as they were about to be separated, Ling Xi no longer cared about appearances. She ran up to him and stretched her arms out, then they embraced in a tight hug. They pulled each other in with great might.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I¡¯m useless; I messed everything up. I¡¯m sorry ¡­¡± Ling Xi buried her face in his chest as she sobbed. Her tears quickly soaked through his clothes.


    ¡°So, you failed?¡± Long Chen chuckled bitterly. Indeed, there was no hope. It meant that he only had one way out, which was to make his way through the Divine Martial Empire first.


    Long Chen was in great pain, but he knew that Ling Xi was in grief as well. He quickly tussled her hair and said softly into her ear, ¡°Xiao Xi, it¡¯ll be alright. Even though we didn¡¯t seed today, I wille find you. The only difference is that it¡¯ll take more time. Wait for me ¡­¡±


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Ling Xi nodded hard. ¡°Brother Chen, I believe you can do it. After I return, I will focus on cultivation and wait for you. No one will be able to force me into anything, or I will kill myself!¡±


    There was great determination in her tone.


    From Long Chen¡¯s perspective, Ling Xi would be treated as a little princess once she returned, and no one would force her into anything. That was why he did not even attempt to understand the meaning behind her words. He wasforted to see that Ling Xi was able to let go and said, ¡°Go, then. Just like what we said yesterday, prolonging this will only make us more miserable. Go back to where you should be. Wait for my arrival.¡±


    Were they going to part just like that?


    Ling Xi was not prepared for this at all. She hugged Long Chen tightly, as if she wanted to merge their bodies into one. Unfortunately, she still had no way to take Long Chen with her.


    When the old woman saw them hugging each other so tightly, she could only sigh. Next to her, the powerful teenager who was toying with Long Chen waspletely stunned. To him, Ling Xi was a fairy from the heavens, while Long Chen was as good as a stray dog. Yet they were hugging each other, and they looked so in love. What was going on?


    ¡°Xi¡¯er, it¡¯s time. Let¡¯s go.¡± The old woman could not watch them any longer.


    They could try to prolong this, but separation was inevitable.


    Long Chen could only hope that he could be stronger quickly so he would one day be able to go to her. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Goodbye Ling Xi</blockquote>

 Chapter 443: Another Dragon Warrior

    Chapter 443: Another Dragon Warrior


    His heart was throbbing with great pain.


    Long Chen seemed very calm on the surface, there was a surge of emotion flooding through him like an infinite dragon roaring manically in his body. Despite being on the verge of a breakdown, he maintained a calm exterior. First, his dignity would not let him be looked down on by Ling Xi¡¯s grandmother. Second, Ling Xi was already beside herself with grief. As the man, if he sobbed like she did, it would only make it more difficult for her to part.


    Ling Xi shuddered when she heard the old woman call her and held Long Chen¡¯s arm even tighter. All of her tears fell on his shirt, soaking through his clothes and even reaching his heart.


    ¡°Brother Chen, I don¡¯t want to go. I can¡¯t bear to part with you, I can¡¯t ¡­¡± said Ling Xi as she sobbed, as if she were sleep talking. Her body trembled, showing just how much grief she was in.


    ¡°Be good, Xiao Xi. Don¡¯t be like this; follow your grandmother back. What I promised you will never change. You are the daughter-inw of the Long family; no one can separate us. This is only a temporary separation. Just wait for me. I promised that I will go to you one day. It will not be more than ten years. When that happens, I will definitely be qualified to marry you.¡±


    His tone was steady as he whispered gently into her ear. His eyes were fixed dead on the two people behind her as his heart roared in rage. He was extremely frustrated by today¡¯s circumstances.


    However, in the face of absolute power, he could only choose to temporarily surrender.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, believe me. This will be the only time I will surrender in my life. And it is for you. Today, I have understood the importance of strength even more. That is why this will never, ever happen again ¡­¡± Long Chen closed his eyes, holding back his tears.


    ¡°I ¡­ I don¡¯t know anything! I don¡¯t want to be away from you for ten years!¡± Ling Xi was still trapped in her grief.¡°Be good. Within ten years, as long as I¡¯m not dead, we will meet again.¡± Long Chen¡¯s gaze was infinitely passionate and determined. He indeed had the talent to do so. His father, Long Qinn, was likely a person beyond Ling Xi¡¯s n¡¯s level. This surrender today was only so that he could shine fiercely in the future.


    ¡°Xi¡¯er, if you don¡¯te here now, I¡¯m going to end it for you,¡± said the old woman coldly. She had finally lost her patience.


    Ling Xi shuddered.


    The final moment had arrived.


    Long Chen pushed her away gently. Her entire face was stained with tears, and she was crying intensely. He felt a stabbing pain in his heart and closed his eyes. He kissed her forehead gently and said, ¡°I am now nting my Long family seal on you. From today onwards, you are my wife.¡±


    Ling Xi nodded through her tears.


    ¡°Go!¡± Long Chen steeled himself and gritted his teeth. Then his tears finally flowed. This was the first time he had lost control of his emotions like that!


    But he would not let Ling Xi see it!


    He shoved her away, then he turned and dashed madly towards Baiyang Town.


    ¡°Xiang! Go! Go!¡± he roared.


    Through her blurry tears, Ling Xi saw Long Chen grow smaller and smaller, until he disappeared. Then she slumped to the ground as if she had lost her soul, and her gaze dulled.


    Long Chen had left so decisively. That was his personality. He was never the type to linger. However, he did not know that he had taken her heart with her. There was no light in Ling Xi¡¯s eyes, and she had a dazed expression, as if she was almost dead.


    ¡°Have the feelings be this deep already?¡± The old woman sighed heavily. She walked over and gently helped Ling Xi up. Then she turned to the teenager. ¡°Wang Chao, let¡¯s begin the journey back.¡±


    The teenager nodded slightly.


    Since they could travel very fast, they quickly disappeared into the horizon with Ling Xi. Ling Xi did not want to move at all, but she could not fight the old woman¡¯s control. The old woman carried her on her back, and was currently soaring quickly through the clouds.


    ¡°Xi¡¯er, are you still unwilling to forget him?¡± the old woman asked sternly.


    Ling Xi crouched on her back, in a daze, like a piece of wood. She did not reply.


    ¡°Fine, fine. You will forget.¡± The old woman sighed. She swiped her hand, which was supporting Ling Xi¡¯s back, and Ling Xi fainted.


    After Ling Xi was fully unconscious, the old woman suddenly said, ¡°Wang Chao.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± the teenager asked after he froze for a moment.


    ¡°Go back now and wipe that boy named Long Chen¡¯s memory clean. However, you must not kill him. He saved Xi¡¯er; he has done a huge favor for her after all.¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡± Wang Chao nodded and quickly headed back towards Baiyang Town.


    With this decision, the boy and the girl would bepletely segregated like heaven and earth.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if this is cruel of me, but this is for their own good. I hope Xi¡¯er won¡¯t me me. She was never meant toe to this ce, but fate is mischievous ¡­¡±


    The old woman sighed ¡­


    ***


    As Long Chen dashed madly, he felt like his chest was about to explode. His breathing had be heavy, and sweat poured like rain on his face due to how hard he was trying to hold his emotions back. Tears and sweat mixed together until neither could be distinguished from the other.


    ¡°AHHHH!¡±


    After running, he fell heavily to his knees and let out a furious roar at the sky!


    ¡°I swear! I swear! I will go to her home! No one can stop me! Impossible!¡± His skin turned red and blood churned all through his body. His blood was like countless dragons slithering through his blood vessels.


    Xiang was by his side. His eyes were filled with pity and helplessness when he saw how much pain Long Chen was in. He was the person who knew Long Chen the most now, but due to his body, he could not say anything. After Ling Xi left, Xiang and Long Chen could no longermunicate.


    ¡°Awooo<em></em>¡­¡±


    Xiang spun in panic in front of Long Chen.


    ¡°Xiang ¡­¡± Xiang suddenly heard Long Chen¡¯s hoarse voice. When he looked up, he saw that Long Chen¡¯s eyes had turned a terrifying blood-red.


    Long Chen stuck his fingers deep into the soil as he trembled and gritted his teeth. The red color in his eyes thickened.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Long Chen stood up. He knew that he could not go on like this. He did not have much time left, so he could not waste it. There was an infinite distance between Baiyang Town and Ling Xi¡¯s home; he did not know just how much time he would need in order to see her again.


    Long Chen was already at the entrance of Baiyang Town. When he stood up, the redness in his eyes slowly faded. Although his heart was in great pain, he held on bitterly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll stay in Baiyang Town for a while as thest time I¡¯lle here, then I¡¯ll get on the universal transporter and go to the Divine Martial Empire.¡± That was his current n.


    Although Ling Xi¡¯s family had not done anything to Long Chen, their contempt had trampled his ego. This made the arrogant Long Chen wake uppletely.


    ¡°A person must not be content with his achievements. Never. Because there is always a taller mountain, and there will always be a stronger person. I may be peerless in the Cangyang Kingdom, but I am a tiny ant in the outside world!¡±


    Long Chen sessfully got over the grief. He knew that if he dwelled on this, he would never achieve anything. That was why he had to understand this point as soon as possible and embark on his new journey.


    From today onwards, he only had one goal. That was to run until he could finally appear in front of Ling Xi, and publicly marry her in front of her giant n.


    After confirming this goal, he looked down and asked, ¡°Xiang, are you willing to go with me? To an even bigger world? And conquer it?¡±


    Xiang nodded emotionally.


    Long Chen forced a smile. Xiang was still by his side; that was the only thing he could be happy about. With Xiang around, he would never be lonely on his journey.


    Xiang privately heaved a sigh of relief when Long Chen found his way out of the grief.


    Long Chen only wanted to visit Baiyang Town for thest time, then he would bid Zhao Qingyun and the rest farewell before leaving for the Divine Martial Empire. The Cangyang Kingdom was no longer suitable for him.


    Standing in a corner not far away from the Yang family¡¯s residence, he watched the crowd pass by in a daze for almost two hours. This ce was filled with his childhood memories. At this point, it would likely be goodbye forever.


    ¡°Xiang, let¡¯s go ¡­¡± he said, prepared to leave.


    ¡°Go? Go where?¡± A cold voice suddenly rang behind him. Long Chen felt all his hairs stand on end. This feeling was very familiar, and he turned around immediately. It was the teenager who hade with the old woman; he was standing behind him with a cold expression.


    Long Chen felt like he had fallen into a freezer.


    Long Chen took a few steps back as he asked cautiously, ¡°Why are you back?¡± He saw malice in the teenager¡¯s eyes.


    The teenager named Wang Chao did not answer his question, but he said impassively, ¡°You may not know this, but I have an older brother. He is the ultimate prodigy admired by the masses. Recently, he received an ancient dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence and became a rare Dragon Warrior. He is the strongest and most talented cultivator in his generation. His name is Wang Chen.¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Another Dragon Warrior?!</blockquote>

 Chapter 444: Inherited Blood Essence Appears Again

    Chapter 444: Inherited Blood Essence Appears Again


    Long Chen was startled. The fact that he was a Dragon Warrior was his deepest secret, and this Wang Chen person was the second Dragon Warrior he had ever heard of. However, he did not know what dragon his Inherited Blood Essence came from. What Long Chen was sure of was that it was likely not an ancestral dragon, seeing as an ancestral dragon¡¯s blood essence almost never appeared.


    Very few people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory knew about Dragon Warriors, so Long Chen pretended to look confused.


    ¡°I knew it. An ant like you wouldn¡¯t know how terrifying a Dragon Warrior is. All I can say is that my older brother is like a god to you, and Ling Xi is my brother¡¯s future wife!¡±


    Wang Chao¡¯s words were like thorns piercing through Long Chen¡¯s brain. He was tortured.


    Future wife? Dragon Warrior, strongest in his generation, Wang Chen?


    These words echoed through Long Chen¡¯s mind. Being his future wife did not mean anything. Even if Ling Xi was forced to marry him, Long Chen could snatch her back if he was strong enough. But he had a bad feeling when Wang Chao told him these things.


    ¡°Just now, Ling Xi¡¯s grandmother sent me back here to wipe your memories, so you¡¯ll be an idiot. Be good and stay still for me. Though she said that since you saved Ling Xi¡¯s life, I must not kill you ¡­¡± Wang Chao paused, then he looked at Long Chen with a small smile and continued, ¡°But after meeting you, I have changed my mind ¡­


    ¡°My older brother would never let someone who has hugged his future wife live. That is why, in order to prevent myself from getting a scolding from him, you¡¯ll have to suffer ¡­¡±


    Then the teenager shot up into the air. Long Chen looked up and saw a ck dot in the sky. A booming voice shook all of Baiyang Town!¡°You ant! How could you fathom the strength of my n? You¡¯re a toad, but you think you can eat swan meat? Haha! Today, I shall show you what true power is!¡±


    Everyone in Baiyang Town heard his voice. They looked up and saw a ck dot in the sky. The booming voice made them think that they were looking at a god, and they were all stunned.


    Wang Chao did not give Long Chen time to react. After he spoke, his attack fell on the whole town.


    Perhaps it was just a random punch from that brat Wang Chao, but an invisible ripple crashed through the town like a tsunami, pulverizing everything in its wake.


    ¡°No!¡± Long Chen let out a panicked shout. However, the ripples covered a massive area, and it was impossible for him to escape. Where would Long Chen hide?


    ¡°Is this what true power is?¡± Long Chen finally understood this point, but he realized that the moment he understood what true power was, he was going to die.


    Wang Chao¡¯s strength was indescribably terrifying. He was capable of killing Long Chen instantly.


    With no time to react, Long Chen, Xiang, and all the people and buildings of Baiyang Town turned to powder from a gentle punch. They disappearedpletely.


    The peaceful town disappeared just like that, and not even a single trace remained.


    ¡°This is the sorrow of the weak ¡­¡± The teenager chuckled smugly as he looked down at the emptynd where only ck soil remained. After confirming that nothing living remained below, he disappeared into the sky.


    The ce where Baiyang Town once stood was deste.


    All life had disappeared with the town so that not even a mosquito remained.


    The teenager was right. This was the sorrow of the weak. A gentle punch from a master was enough to erase all traces of a weakling¡¯s existence.


    About one hour after the teenager was gone, transparent ripples appeared in the center of the town. The ripples spread across the whole area, and time seemed to flow in a strange fashion.


    Time was reversing.


    At the center of Baiyang Town, three objects broke out of the soil. The first was the ck, ancient dragon jade. Another was a drop of blood, which remained quiet as it was suppressed by the dragon jade. Thest item was the Primordial Dragon Talisman, which emitted transparent ripples.


    The Primordial Dragon Talisman slowly rose into the air, and strange ripples continued to radiate from it, covering the whole town.


    Long Chen and Xiang werepletely dead, but the Primordial Dragon Talisman was not. Under the influence of the ripples, time reversed itself in the whole town area. It was not fast, but it was stable.


    After some time, all the things that had disappeared all reappeared. The pulverized buildings returned from the bottom up. All the people reappeared as well, starting from their ankles to their calves, then finally their bodies and heads. Long Chen¡¯s body appeared in its original spot. When he had fully materialized, the mysterious dragon jade disappeared once more. Along with the suppressed Inherited Blood Essence, it returned to Long Chen¡¯s sea of consciousness.


    The ripples disappeared and the Primordial Dragon Talisman sank back into Long Chen¡¯s chest. Baiyang Town had returned to its original state, and everyone continued to do whatever they were doing before Wang Chao appeared.


    Only Long Chen knew about what Wang Chao had done and what had actually happened. He was the only one who knew that everyone in Baiyang Town had actually died once.


    This was unbelievably miraculous to him.


    He knew that Wang Chao was very powerful, but the Primordial Dragon Talisman was even more powerful. This was a power that surpassed allws, capable of dragging people from death¡¯s door. When he thought about it, he discovered just how scary it was.


    Long Chen waspletely shocked by both Wang Chao¡¯s power and the fate-changing Primordial Dragon Talisman. He had not used the Rewind technique, but the Primordial Dragon Talisman had activated on its own. Long Chen had not reversed time willingly, plus he was only able to use Rewind on himself and not on such arge area.


    This was a divine ability that only the gods in legends possessed ¡­


    Even Xiang did not know what had happened. As far as he was aware, Wang Chao had never returned, so he was a little confused by Long Chen¡¯s dazed expression.


    Long Chen ced his hand on his chest, covering the talisman.


    At that moment, he sensed just how powerful he could be.


    Right now, there were three infinitely powerful things on his body. He had the ancestral dragon Inherited Blood Essence from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, and at this moment, he could only control a thousandth of its power.


    Previously, he had not ced much importance on the Primordial Dragon Talisman, but from the miraculous experience he just had, he understood its value. Although it could notpare to the Inherited Blood Essence, it was still an ultimate treasure with terrifying potential.


    It was a little unbelievable that the Primordial Dragon Talisman and the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence would appear in an insignificant ce like the Cangyang Kingdom.


    The most important item was the dragon jade, which Long Qinn had given him. The dragon jade had only given Long Chen a superiorprehension ability so far; otherwise, it was mostly silent. However, seeing as it had the ability to suppress the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s blood essence, the jade was more terrifying.


    These would be Long Chen¡¯s tickets to bing the ultimate master!


    Long Chen sensed that the mysterious dragon jade was a living being with its own independent sentience. So far, it was not under his control. He also felt that the Primordial Dragon Talisman could think for itself.


    He was feeling his body in puzzlement when another sudden change urred.


    Previously, the Primordial Dragon Talisman had recovered all of Baiyang Town. This time, a change urred to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence that made Long Chen terrified. He roared and charged towards the outskirts of the town.


    He did not want to bring another disaster to Baiyang Town because of himself!


    As he charged in a crazed manner, he directly ran into the Deste Mountains. He remembered absorbing the Inherited Blood Essence for the first time here.


    One yearter, he was back here again, and something was happening to the blood essence.


    More specifically, the mysterious dragon jade had brought about this change. Under its control, a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence separated and left his sea of consciousness, appearing in his body.


    The one-hundredth of the blood droplet quickly dispersed. Just like venom, it quickly spread through his body. Long Chen was ecstatic and thought to himself, <em>The dragon jade would not joke with me. This means that my body ispletely capable of withstanding a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence!</em>


    Initially, the one-thousandth sliver was dispersed in his body, which was spread extremely thin. Right now, the one-hundredth fraction was ten times the previous amount. This meant that the blood essence in every part of his body would multiply by ten!


    Ten times more Inherited Blood Essence instantaneously covered every corner of his body.


    Then the changes began! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I was going to say that''s the end of the novel, but heck he gets rewinded again</blockquote>

 Chapter 445: Super Strong Combat Body

    Chapter 445: Super Strong Combat Body


    The thousandth of the drop of Inherited Blood Essence allowed Long Chen to possess the qualities of a Dragon Warrior. A hundredth of Inherited Blood Essence would strengthen these qualities by ten times. Previously, Long Chen¡¯s cultivation speed and body toughness had been boosted to a level that even the prodigies of the Cangyang Kingdom could not reach. If Long Chen focused on cultivation, he would need less than half a year to progress from the Ninth River Stage to the Heavenly Passage Realm. Lin Zichen would have taken at least five years.


    Lin Zichen was the most powerful prodigy in the Cangyang Kingdom, and Long Chen had reached his level after spending a fraction of the time cultivating. Now, with ten times more Inherited Blood Essence, his body was receiving another makeover.


    Long Chen subconsciously activated the Dragon Soul Transformation, so blood-red dragon scales slowly covered his whole body, turning him into a formidable fighting machine!


    The Inherited Blood Essence turned into a blood pupa, trapping Long Chen inside. He remained perfectly conscious while blood-colored liquid surrounded him in the pupa. This was all blood, and it gave Long Chen the feeling of being in a womb.


    He sensed that gradual changes were taking ce inside him, like many seals had appeared in every part of his body. These mysterious seals brought with them ancient but dignified auras, slowly turning Long Chen into the same species as them.


    The auras mostly came from ancient dragons.


    The ancient dragons were a legend in the Dragon Continent. They had long gone extinct, disappearing off the face of the world. No one would have expected that a terrifying ancient dragon was slowly waking up in a small corner of the Dragon Continent. When he truly woke up, his indomitable power would shock the whole continent!


    Within the blood pupa, Long Chen slowly grew fatigued and sensed that he was entering a deep slumber. The makeover done by the Inherited Blood Essence was going to take some time. He could not fight off the fatigue, and unlike the first time, the process was veryfortable. He slowly fell into a deep slumber.


    When he fell asleep, Xiang was panicking as he watched the blood pupa. Long Chen had suddenly run all the way here without giving him any exnation. This made Xiang very anxious, plus Ling Xi had just left and Long Chen had suffered a huge mental blow. He was very worried that something would happen to brother.Just looking at the blood pupa made Xiang feel chills all over his body. When he approached it, all his hairs stood on end.


    When he was just ten meters away from the pupa, he suddenly felt his scalp go numb and instantly ran away as fast as he could. When he turned around, he saw a blood-red dragon head forming above the pupa, watching him coldly.


    Xiang could not describe what he felt when he saw the dragon head. Although he was a Sun Devouring Wolf, he felt his knees go weak, almost kneeling in front of the dragon head.


    After the dragon head¡¯s warning to Xiang, it melted into the pupa once more. Upon closer inspection, Xiang noticed countless dragon shadows on the pupa. He knew that it was Long Chen.


    Ling Xi had been reborn in a white light pupa just yesterday. This time, Long Chen was the one undergoing metamorphosis in a pupa.


    Long Chen knew that this round of metamorphosis was a gift from the dragon jade. It could control the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence hiding in his body.


    Time passed slowly. Long Chen did not know how long it had been, but when he woke up, he discovered that there was not much blood remaining in the blood pupa. The makeover was almostplete, and Long Chen inspected his body excitedly.


    He viewed the inside of his body and found that everything had turned red, practically mixing together with his blood. Even his bones had turned blood-red. When he looked closer, he realized that his bones, muscles, organs, and other parts were covered in patterns made up of dragons, like seals. Tens of thousands of dragon patterns were imnted in his body.


    Long Chen¡¯s body waspletely etched with the dragon¡¯s seal due to increase in Inherited Blood Essence.


    He felt like his eyes and ears werepletely clear, and he was feeling veryfortable. He could directly absorb great amounts of earthly Qi through his breathing, and even his life force itself had been elevated. Although his body was not huge, he felt like his blood was stronger than that of thergest beast he had ever encountered, which was the Heaven-tier Dark Moon Tiger King.


    He was a humanoid beast, which was even scarier than regr demonic beasts.


    His life force had been elevated, bringing with it a boost in his talent andprehension abilities. He reminisced about past events and realized that he hadpletely mastered many things he previously did not understand. He could effortlessly use the advanced Heaven-tier Heaven Sword Array, even modifying it to his needs.


    Long Chen was ecstatic. He did a simple calction and felt that his future cultivation speed would be ten times faster than before. In just twenty days, he would be strong enough to break through to the Heavenly Passage Realm!


    With such astonishing cultivation speed, he was as strong as the young prodigies of the Royal Territory!


    And more importantly ¡­


    When the makeover wasplete, Long Chen broke out of the pupa and stood in the Deste Mountains. He was still in his Dragon Soul Transformation state, but his current form was much more formidable than the previous one. He actually looked very different from before.


    His dragon scales used to be bright red, but now the color had darkened towards maroon. At the same time, there was a faint dragon image on the surface of every scale, as if ripples of light were moving past his body. He was now exuding a cold and ancient aura.


    Xiang¡¯s eyes widened as he stared at Long Chen. The feeling he got from seeing Long Chen was identical to what he felt when he saw the dragon head!


    Just one look was enough to invoke fear in him, a Category Nine Earth-tier demonic beast.


    Xiang also sensed that the bloodiness and violence in Long Chen¡¯s aura had increased greatly. Just standing in front of him, he felt his scalp go numb, as if Long Chen was a killing machine with sharp ws and spines as his weapons.


    Long Chen¡¯s blood-red pupils made Xiang feel like he was staring at two seas of blood that housed millions of souls. They let out infinite cries of agony in his eyes. Xiang felt chills from just one look.


    He knew that the changes Long Chen had experienced were too great toprehend. This was a good and a bad thing; good because Long Chen¡¯s strength,bat abilities, and talent had increased greatly. The bad was that Long Chen¡¯s violent energy was even more intense than before, and due to Ling Xi¡¯s departure, it was likely that he would be more and more violent until he became a devil who only knew how to kill.


    But Long Chen did not think too much about it. He was still basking in the joy of experiencing another major change in his body. By just gently balling his fingers into a fist, he felt an earth-shattering strength within.


    <em>I wonder what tier body tempering technique is my body equivalent to? </em>When he first absorbed the thousandth sliver of the Inherited Blood Essence, his body had strengthened greatly. This change was even more absurd because he initially only had a Level Three zing Thunder Body. Right now, the toughness of his body had increased by almost a thousand times!


    He reached out and slid the spine on his elbow gently against a tree next to him. The gigantic tree waspletely cut in half, and it came crashing down a momentter.


    Long Chen looked up and cried excitedly, ¡°Xiang, use your ws to attack me as hard as you can!¡±


    Xiang froze, but he reacted quickly. He sensed that Long Chen was a great threat, and guessed that Long Chen¡¯s body had undergone a major change.


    He nodded and swiped at Long Chen. His sharp ws scratched across Long Chen¡¯s chest!


    <em>ng!</em>


    A deafening sound rang out.


    Xiang had dragged his ws across Long Chen, then he turned around nervously. What shocked him was that Long Chen was unscathed. His ws hadn¡¯t even left a single trace on Long Chen¡¯s dragon scales.


    Xiang¡¯s ws had even cut wounds on the Dark Moon Tiger King¡¯s body.


    However, they werepletely ineffective on Long Chen.


    He was in utter disbelief. He had only used fifty percent of his strength because he was afraid of hurting Long Chen.


    ¡°Again! Use all your strength!¡± yelled Long Chen.


    Xiang roared, and his gigantic body shot out like an arrow. He appeared in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes instantly, then his sharp ws whistled in the air before scratching Long Chen¡¯s chest. Xiang scratched with all his strength, but he felt a sharp pain in his ws!


    Xiang gasped in pain and hurriedly stopped, then he stepped back.


    He stared at Long Chen in shock.


    Xiang¡¯s immense momentum had thrown Long Chen back several steps, but to his excitement, Xiang could not leave a single scratch on his scales despite having used all his might.


    ¡°Are they that tough? Let me try with the Demon Emperor Sword!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    And now we have another person MC needs to kill</blockquote>

 Chapter 446: Reincarnation Beast

    Chapter 446: Reincarnation Beast


    Having a powerful body did indeed mean Long Chen possessed super strength, but more importantly, his defense had been enhanced to an unprecedented level. Although Xiang¡¯s greatest strength was in the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, as a Category Nine Earth-tier beast, a swipe of his ws was equal to a Ninth River Stage cultivator using his weapon to attack Long Chen. However, he could not even leave a scratch on Long Chen¡¯s scales.


    This meant that even a regr Ninth River Stage cultivator would find it difficult to hurt Long Chen.


    Also, Long Chen could tell that Xiang¡¯s attack was far from the limit.


    He took the Demon Emperor Sword out of his Universe Pouch at this point. It was an intermediate Heaven-tier divine weapon and was extremely sharp. If it could not hurt him, then Long Chen¡¯s body was at least equivalent to an advanced Heaven-tier body tempering technique.


    The advanced Heaven-tier was the tail end of the four foundational realms. Even cultivators at the Sixth and Seventh Passage Realms would find it difficult to cultivate a body tempering technique of that level.


    Long Chen swung the Demon Emperor Sword at his arm using ten percent of his strength! <em>ng! </em>The Demon Emperor Sword bounced off and nothing happened to his arm.


    <em>It is at least at the elementary Heaven tier, </em>thought Long Chen. Then, he used thirty percent of his strength. There was another loud ng, but nothing happened.


    Xiang was stunned.


    Long Chen¡¯s body was inhuman. Even beasts with bodies that many considered tough were not as tough as him.Fifty percent!


    Long Chen kept trying until he used all his strength and discovered that even using one hundred percent of his strength, he could only leave a small cut on his arm. On top of toughness, his scales had great regeneration power too. The tiny cutpletely disappeared very quickly.


    Long Chen had feltpletely dejected due to Ling Xi¡¯s departure, but when he realized that his body was equivalent to an advanced Heaven-tier body tempering technique, the mes of his battle spirit slowly burned in his heart once more.


    <em>Since my body is at least as strong as an advanced Heaven-tier body tempering technique, cultivators at the first three stages of the Heavenly Passage Realm will find it difficult to hurt me. Of course, that is if I use the Dragon Soul Transformation. If I don¡¯t, then the toughness of my body is almost the same as before.</em>


    <em>Xiao Xi, I hope that from now onwards, I¡¯ll slowly gain the right to be with you. This path is one that I chose. Since I have made my choice, then I will do it withoutints or regret. Even if I have to crawl, I must reach the end of this path!</em>


    Looking at this body, Long Chen now had great, unwavering faith!


    Looking in his Universe Pouch, he saw the only remaining Heaven-tier spiritual herb he had left, the Blood Seal Lotus. In reality, the Inherited Blood Essence was basically a better version of it. Not only had it strengthened his body, it had also boosted its toughness. Therefore, the Blood Seal Lotus was useless to him now.


    ¡°Whatever. I should be able to sell it for some money in the Divine Martial Empire.¡±


    Long Chen took a deep breath and looked up at the vast mountains. Ling Xi was not there, and he felt an emptiness by his ear. This feeling made him feel lost until Xiang nudged his calf. Long Chen regained his senses and chuckled bitterly.


    He finally shook off the grief of Ling Xi¡¯s departure.


    <em>I am a man! I must act! Comining and being sad serve no purpose. Long Chen, even if you die, you must not be looked down upon! Charge! </em>Long Chen warned himself sternly.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, Xiang.¡± He looked down at his brother, who was still faithfully by his side. If he was not there, Long Chen would have felt very lonely.


    With Baiyang Town as his starting point once more, he embarked on a new journey. Ling Xi was by his side for the first journey, but this time, it was Xiang. As he walked out of the Deste Mountains, a mysterious voice came from his chest.


    ¡°You dumb inheritor! I saved your life and even recovered the town for you. It took over ten thousand years to umte that much power! Why don¡¯t you even thank me?¡±


    The words were mysterious and dignified, but the voice was that of a child.


    Long Chen almost copsed in terror when he heard it. He quickly ripped his clothes open and looked down. There was a faint glowing from the Primordial Dragon Talisman.


    <em>Did that voicee from the Primordial Dragon Talisman? Is there really something living in the Primordial Dragon Talisman?</em>


    Long Chen was shocked, and he quickly asked, ¡°Senior, may I ask who you are?¡±


    ¡°Whatever. I initially did not want to talk to a dumb ant like you, but since I have identally said the first sentence, why not speak my second sentence?¡±


    <em>The Primordial Dragon Talisman is probably no ordinary object. But why does it sound like a young child? Since it saved me just now, is it asking for praise? </em>These thoughts popped into his mind. He confirmed that this guy¡¯s personality was likely the snobbish type.


    ¡°How should I address you, Senior?¡± Long Chen asked respectfully.


    ¡°Very few people in this world know my name. However, during the ancient era, there was a time when my name shook the whole Dragon Continent. Every master knew my name, and every one of them feared me! Ant, listen up! I am the god from the legends that controls reincarnation. My name is the Reincarnation Beast!¡±


    This name was a bit scarier than the Sun Devouring Wolf. A god that controlled reincarnation was terrifying. However, if he truly had the power he said he had, then he would not be bragging in front of an ant like Long Chen.


    Long Chen¡¯s mind raced, then he said, ¡°Senior, you¡¯ve been speaking from inside the Primordial Dragon Talisman. May I ask if you cane out? You saved us just now, as well as the people of Baiyang Town. I need to thank you properly!¡±


    ¡°Uh ¡­ I have recently ¡­ recently ¡­ Whatever. Since you want to see me, I wille out. The Primordial Dragon Talisman recognizes you as its master and I can¡¯t leave the talisman, so you¡¯ll see me sooner orter anyway.¡±


    A holographic image emerged from the talisman and appeared in front of Long Chen.


    ¡°A soul?¡± With one look, he could tell that this guy who called himself the Reincarnation Beast was only a soul. Long Chen was speechless because Ling Xi had been by his side in the same form for a long time. She had just left, but then the Reincarnation Beast suddenly appeared. A beast he had never heard mentioned in any legends before.


    Also, he had said that he could not leave the talisman, and the talisman had recognized Long Chen as its master. Did that mean that Long Chen actually had the upper hand?


    With that thought, the reverence Long Chen felt towards the Reincarnation Beast faded quickly, and when he saw the Reincarnation Beast, his reverence disappeared without a trace.


    He was also a soul, but why was there such arge difference?


    When Ling Xi first emerged from the Ling Xi Sword, her beauty had captivated Long Chenpletely. But when the Reincarnation Beast appeared, Long Chen merely gulped, unable to describe his feelings.


    The soul condensed into a solid being in front of him, and Long Chen was very familiar with this beast¡ªit was just a white cat! Most importantly, while snow-white cats were usually equated withzy, noble haughtiness, this cat was just fat ¡­


    The white cat did not have arge frame, but it was as round as a ball. He red at Long Chen for a long time, then he puffed up his belly and huffed, ¡°Ant! I have revealed my true form in front of you! Why have you not fallen to your knees and thanked me yet?!¡±


    Long Chen was feeling torn. He thought the Reincarnation Beast would look very regal, or at least as regal as Xiang, but he was just a fat cat. Long Chen really did not know how to kneel and thank something that looked thisical.


    However, it was a fact that this cat had saved his life. Long Chen was about to kneel and thank him, but the Reincarnation Beast looked at Xiang and furrowed his brows. He shuffled backwards a little, then said to Long Chen, ¡°Uh ¡­ Ant, kneeling will not be necessary. I¡¯ve always hated dogs, especially pitch-ck dogs like this one. It¡¯s extremely ugly, and not fit for a god like myself to look at. Take it away.¡±


    <em>Xiang? Ugly?</em> Long Chen was speechless. When Xiang was not in his battle state, the pitiful puppy look was a killer among girls. If Xiang was considered ugly, then the fat cat was not a pretty sight either ¡­


    Still puffing his belly up, the cat pointed usingly at Long Chen with his paw and said, ¡°Ant, I just addressed you. How dare you not reply?¡±


    Xiang was annoyed, so he opened his jaws and spat a small Nine Devils Ancestral Fire at the Reincarnation Beast. Of course, it was just a show of might. Xiang had a feeling that the cat was not as strong as he imed.


    The Reincarnation Beast¡¯s reaction almost made their jaws drop on the ground.


    When Xiang spat out his Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, the Reincarnation Beast trembled and all his hairs stood up. He fled as fast as he could and disappeared into the Primordial Dragon Talisman.


    ¡°Have mercy on me¡­¡±


    The shout echoed around Long Chen and Xiang continuously.


    Long Chen realized that the Reincarnation Beast did not have much strength. He was merely pretending to look strong.


    The brothers looked at each other.


    The Reincarnation Beast was a surprise to them. Seeing as he had fled back to the talisman, Long Chen asked gently, ¡°Uh, Senior? Do you think Xiang should follow us?¡±


    ¡°¡­ I can see that this beast is lonely, and he seems pitiful. Whatever. Even though he¡¯s ugly, I am kind. We shall keep him for the moment. As for whether he gets to stay, it will depend on his future performance,¡± said the Reincarnation Beast, forcing himself to sound calm within the talisman.


    Long Chen and Xiang looked at each other and grinned in exasperation.


    It looked like the new journey would be very interesting with this fat cat by their side ¡­<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    A cat has nine lives so this checks out. I just imagined the Reincarnation Beast looks like this</blockquote>

 Chapter 447: Primordial Realm

    Chapter 447: Primordial Realm


    Since they had already made the decision to leave, Long Chen and Xiang headed in the direction of the Imperial Capital as Long Chen wanted to bid Zhao Qingyun farewell.


    Along the way, the brothers slowly bonded with the Reincarnation Beast and Long Chen slowly figured out what the deal was with this cat. The Reincarnation Beast would not tell them about his own origins, only saying that he was from the ancient era and had always been in the Primordial Dragon Talisman. He had woken up after Long Chen found the Primordial Dragon Talisman but had not spoken until now.


    This went on until Wang Chao destroyed Baiyang Town.


    Long Chen quickly figured out the cat¡¯s main talent. Other than bragging, he did not seem to have any other abilities, to which the Reincarnation Beast replied, ¡°Do you think it was easy to change the fate of the whole town and bring you all back to life? Let me tell you this¡ªI have nobat abilities now because I have wasted all the strength I saved up over ten thousand years on you guys!¡±


    Long Chen only believed half of it.


    However, due to the presence of the fat cat, the somber journey suddenly experienced a lift in mood.


    In the beginning, Long Chen treated the Reincarnation Beast with great reverence and almost saw him as a god, seeing as he was living within the Primordial Dragon Talisman. However, the longer they chatted, the more he realized that all he did was brag.


    They thought less and less of the Reincarnation Beast as time went on, and at one point, Long Chen decided to call him ¡°Little Cat¡± or ¡°Fat Cat.¡±


    The greatest surprise he learned along the way was that Little Cat was fluent in thenguage of beasts! If Long Chen could learn it too, then he would be able tomunicate directly with Xiang!¡°Whatever. I see that you two are unable tomunicate with each other, so I have decided to shower you with mercy andpassion. Let me teach you thenguage of beasts; you must learn it properly so you do not embarrass my name. Years ago, during ancient times, I was the famous god of reincarnation!¡±


    ¡°Fat Cat, that¡¯s enough nonsense. Get on with it,¡± Long Chen said directly.


    ¡°Do not call me Fat Cat again, Ant, or I will ¡­ Whatever. A god does not argue with a mortal peasant like you. As for thenguage of beasts, listen closely ¡­¡±


    Five dayster, Long Chen had almostpletely mastered thenguage of beasts. When he realized that he actually could understand Xiang¡¯s words, he was ecstatic.


    Of course, Xiang was also excited to be able tomunicate with Long Chen. Ever since bing a Sun Devouring Wolf, he felt like he was living in his own world where only Ling Xi couldmunicate with him. Now that he could finally talk to Long Chen, he was emotional. Long Chen had chosen this path, and that meant they would be on a very, very long journey together, so everything changed when they were able tomunicate directly.


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Xiang looked emotional.


    ¡°It¡¯s good we canmunicate,¡± said Long Chen, nodding. Then he said to Little Cat, who was hiding in the Primordial Dragon Talisman, ¡°Fat Cat, I¡¯m extremely grateful for this. Let¡¯s be friends, alright? If you ever need anything, you can tell me. If I am able, I will help you!¡±


    ¡°Uh ¡­ Haha! It¡¯s nothing to me. I did it without even lifting a finger; it was effortless. No worries, no worries ¡­¡± said Little Cat humbly.


    Long Chen wanted to p him when he reacted so snobbishly. The fat cat was snobbish and loved to brag, but was also extremely cowardly. Long Chen truly suspected that he was lying about being a Reincarnation Beast.


    Little Cat emerged from the Primordial Dragon Talisman as a cloud of smoke and eyed Xiang, tutting, ¡°Little Dog, I gave you the ability to speak. How will you thank me?¡±


    ¡°I am a human, not a dog,¡± said Xiang, shaking his head in exasperation.


    ¡°Of course I know you¡¯re a human, but right now, you¡¯re in the body of a Sun Devouring Wolf, so you¡¯re a demonic beast like me. I am the Reincarnation Beast, the apex of all beasts. You need to call me ¡®Ancestor,¡¯ you know.¡± Little Cat sighed, rubbing his protruding belly with his paw.


    ¡°Fat Cat, have you ever seen a wolf whose ancestor was a cat?¡± huffed Xiang.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ Uh ¡­ Haha! All sorts of peculiarities exist in this world! How can you be so sure that I can¡¯t give birth to a wolf?¡± Little Cat responded hurriedly.


    Long Chen watched the passionate cat and the cold wolf arguing, and his heavy, hurting heart slowly healed. These two were not true demonic beasts; they had human thinking and human souls. Chatting with them was like chatting with humans. Long Chen suddenly had the urge tough as he watched them bicker.


    He had to admit that the Reincarnation Beast¡¯s appearance rxed his solemn heart.


    However, when he observed their conversation, he sensed that Little Cat was likely an extraordinary being. Long Chen had not told him about Xiang¡¯s matters, but he knew that Xiang was a human in a Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s body, and he also knew of the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s unlimited growth potential. Most importantly, he was not shocked at all by any of it, as if this was a very normal fact.


    ¡°Actually, the Primordial Dragon Talisman has another function that you can utilize, Long Chen,¡± Little Cat suddenly said when they were approaching the Imperial Capital.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen asked excitedly.


    ¡°A ce called the Primordial Realm lies within the Primordial Dragon Talisman. In your current state, you can only use it like a Universe Pouch. I¡¯m usually inside the Primordial Realm too. The benefit of it is that if someone kills you, it will be difficult for them to get the things you store inside. It¡¯s the best ce to keep anything you need to hide. And there¡¯s one more advantage ¡­¡±


    Little Cat eyed Xiang mischievously and said, ¡°Living beings can also survive in the Primordial Realm. For example, you can toss the little ck dog in there. There is a small amount of Primordial Qi in the Primordial Realm, which will help the little ck dog grow. It¡¯s not a good look for him to follow us around anyway, so might as well toss him in there so he won¡¯t scare anyone out here.¡±


    This was a great surprise to Long Chen.


    ¡°Fat Cat, how big is the Primordial Realm?¡± he asked hurriedly.


    ¡°That depends on your capabilities. The more Qi you have, therger the Primordial Realm. At your cultivation level, you can fit fifty little ck dogs like this one in hisbat state,¡± the fat cat said while snickering.


    ¡°Fifty? Considering Xiang¡¯s size, fifty is huge!¡± Long Chen was overjoyed. The appearance of the Reincarnation Beast had indeed brought him many benefits.


    ¡°What do you think? I¡¯ve given you benefits again, haven¡¯t I? So, let¡¯s lock up the little ck dog in the Primordial Realm. What do you think?¡± Little Cat seemed to instinctively harbor enmity towards Xiang, trying to target him at every opportunity.


    Xiang, who was hurrying along, turned around and red at Little Cat fiercely. Little Cat quickly hid behind Long Chen at such a speed that even Long Chen was impressed.


    Xiang didn¡¯t feel like arguing, or he would have reduced Little Cat to ashes with his Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. After a while, both Long Chen and Xiang discovered that Little Cat seemed to be afraid of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, which was why he was so afraid of Xiang.


    ¡°Alright. Can you teach me how to use the Primordial Realm now?¡± Long Chen said with a grin. He nned to move all his possessions into it. If it really was like what Little Cat said, then it was the safest ce in the world.


    Although Little Cat was snobbish, he was gracious when teaching Long Chen new techniques. Soon, Long Chen learned how to control the Primordial Realm and could sense a gray, blurry space that existed in the Primordial Dragon Talisman. There was arge amount of gray gas inside too.


    ¡°This is Primordial Qi; it was formed when the heavens and earth were formed. Both cultivators and demonic beasts alike can benefit greatly from it. The little ck dog won¡¯t evolve perfectly if all it absorbs is fire-type treasures. Primordial Qi will nourish his body and merge with him, allowing him to truly be the greatest demonic beast in the world,¡± Little Cat exined dramatically.


    As he spoke, the expression on his face showed that he would be unimpressed even if Xiang had be the ultimate beast.


    After learning how to use the Primordial Realm, Long Chen attempted to move his possessions inside. Through sensing the space with his consciousness, he could clearly sense the location of his items inside the realm. He could take them out by using his mind too.


    This was much safer than storing them in his Universe Pouch. Even if he was killed, other people would not be able to get the items he had stored inside the Primordial Realm.


    Letting Xiang stay inside the Primordial Realm to cultivate was also a good idea. Bringing a beast like him along was not convenient in certain situations, though since Xiang was not willing to enter under normal circumstances, Long Chen would not force him to. It would be all up to Xiang.


    Very quickly, Long Chen moved all of his possessions into the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Big Brother, the fat cat keeps talking up the Primordial Qi. Let me go in to check it out,¡± Xiang said curiously.


    Long Chen nodded. Xiang did not resist when he was transferred into the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°The Primordial Realm is like a miniverse under your control. When you be stronger, you might even be able to enter the Primordial Realm yourself,¡± Little Cat said smugly.


    Soon, Long Chen moved Xiang out of the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°How was it?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Fat Cat is right. I did feel something, and although it was faint, I am sure that it was definitely something good ¡­¡± said Xiang, as if he could not get enough of it.


    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s go say goodbye to my master ¡­¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Ah. An unsteble storage space. I need one too</blockquote>

 Chapter 448: Ancient Demon Domain

    Chapter 448: Ancient Demon Domain


    The Imperial City was Long Chen¡¯s final stop in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    The city was in a state of chaos for a while, but when the disciples of the Heavenly Demon Pce gradually entered, the royal guards and soldiers all chose to surrender. That was when the imperial family waspletely done for, and the Heavenly Demon Pce reced them.


    The Heavenly Demon Pce had achieved the breakthrough they had wanted for many years, finally taking control of the whole Cangyang Kingdom. Zhao Qingyun wasn¡¯t very interested in power, but there were many passionate people in the Heavenly Demon Pce, like the two Demon Elders. When they heard that Murong Yu would be Empress, they were overwhelmed with joy. These days, they were very busy learning the imperial family¡¯s traditions, though they had made time to choose the date for Murong Yu to ascend to the throne.


    As long as she was crowned, everything would be stable.


    No other faction in the kingdom had even a single Ninth River Stage cultivator. That was why if Murong Yu became the ruler instead of Long Chen, no one would dare to object. Murong Yu was a Ninth River Stage cultivator after all and possessed the Imperial Sword. She was likely to reach Lin Zichen¡¯s previous level in less than a year.


    Long Chen entered the pce, keeping a low profile. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he quickly found Zhao Qingyun. Zhao Qingyun was far more powerful than everyone else, so his soul was very unique.


    At this moment, Zhao Qingyun was in the Jinluan Pavilion with Murong Yu and the two Demon Elders. They were discussing rebuilding the nation when Long Chen entered. Due to Ling Xi¡¯s departure, Long Chen¡¯s expression was gloomy.


    ¡°Long ¡­ Long Chen.¡± When the First and Second Demon Elders saw him, they instinctively took several steps back in fear. They were deeply afraid of the monster prodigy, and at the same time, they were very impressed by Zhao Qingyun¡¯s ability to spot his potential.


    ¡°Brother Chen, you¡¯re finally here. Good, good. We were just discussing the date for Xiao Yu¡¯s coronation. Our tentative n is the seventh day of next month. You¡¯re currently the most influential person in the Cangyang Kingdom, so it is crucial that you attend the ceremony to support Xiao Yu,¡± said Zhao Qingyun with a smile.¡°Master, I am actually here to bid you farewell. I will leave Cangyang Kingdom today to go to the Divine Martial Territory,¡± Long Chen told him.


    Ling Xi¡¯s departure had caused a huge change in Long Chen¡¯s personality. At the moment, Zhao Qingyun and the rest did not know what was wrong, but they suddenly felt like he was different from before. He had less to say, and the untamable arrogance in his eyes had been reced with coldness and depth. Zhao Qingyun suddenly felt like his disciple had matured a lot.


    ¡°So soon?¡± Zhao Qingyun¡¯s brows were furrowed. He stood up and walked up to Long Chen¡¯s side. ¡°We will be able to truly build a new nation on the seventh day of next month and your stepmother will be giving birth in about three months¡¯ time, yet you want to leave today?¡± Zhao Qingyun felt that although the Cangyang Kingdom was no longer suitable for Long Chen¡¯s development, was it necessary to be in such a hurry?


    ¡°Some things happened, so I have no choice but to hurry. I¡¯ll have to miss the baby¡¯s birth, but I will definitely return one day. Things will be fine with you here. Xiao Yu will also reach the Heavenly Passage Realm soon, so she will be the pir of the nation,¡± Long Chen said with a nod.


    Murong Yu looked up and asked, ¡°Long Chen, is this about the girl?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    Zhao Qingyun did not know about Long Chen and Ling Xi. He only knew that a person like that existed, though he did not know what had happened. Seeing as Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince and fled because of her, she was extremely important to Long Chen.


    ¡°Have you made your decision already?¡± Zhao Qingyun asked for thest time.


    ¡°Master, please ry my apology to my stepfather. I will return one day,¡± Long Chen said sincerely.


    ¡°Alright. In that case, I¡¯ll go with you to the universal transporter,¡± said Zhao Qingyun.


    Murong Yu stood up and hurriedly said, ¡°I¡¯ll see you off too!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. Soon, they all rode on the Heavenly Demon Pce¡¯s vehicle of choice, which was a Peng bird that was about a Category Four Earth-tier. The Peng bird had a gentle temperament, but it was swift. Although it was not as fast as Xiang, it did not take much time for them to get to the Snowpeak Mountains in the north.


    Long Chen sat at the front and did not speak throughout the journey. Looking at his back, he seemed forlorn. Murong Yu and Zhao Qingyun, who were sitting behind, looked at each other. After some time, Zhao Qingyun finally said, ¡°Xiao Yu, go have a chat with him. You¡¯re both young, so it¡¯s easier to talk.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Pce Lord.¡± Murong Yu nodded. Then she walked over and sat down next to Long Chen. A strong wind blew on her hair, revealing her beautiful face.


    Murong Yu hesitated for a while, then she said, ¡°What happened? Can you tell me? I think we count as friends, and your master is really worried about you.¡±


    Long Chen looked up at Murong Yu. Previously, he thought that everything that had happened with Ling Xi was a private matter, but seeing as Murong Yu was only showing concern, he decided that the only thing he could do was tell her about his problems.


    ¡°Ling Xi ¡­ I used the imperial family¡¯s Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit to help her regain a human body. But she was taken away by her family, and her family¡¯s strength far exceeded my imagination ¡­¡± Long Chen sighed, then he continued, ¡°Right now, she¡¯s getting further and further away from me. Hundreds of thousands of kilometers away.¡±


    ¡°Does that girl really have such a terrifying background ¡­¡± Murong Yu was shocked. No wonder Long Chen was so sad. It was already good that he was notpletely depressed due to the potentially permanent separation. That exined why he was so impatient to embark on his journey.


    ¡°Does that mean that you¡¯re in such a hurry because you need to find her?¡± asked Murong Yu, touched.


    ¡°Yes. I promised her that I would go to her in ten years.¡± Long Chen nodded and stared ahead with determination in his eyes.


    Murong Yu saw stubbornness in them.


    ¡°That¡¯s touching.¡± Murong Yu smiled, knowing she was unable to help. She then said bitterly, ¡°Looks like you already have a goal in your heart, and you don¡¯t need my advice. However, I still need to tell you one thing¡ªbe careful, and your life is the most important thing. Don¡¯t forget that in the faraway, tiny kingdom called the Cangyang Kingdom, there¡¯s a group of people who care about you and miss you.¡±


    Towards the end, Murong Yu hung her head and her tone turned sorrowful.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± said Long Chen, nodding.


    Zhao Qingyun had heard their conversation. He walked over and said, ¡°The Dragon Continent is vast with no end. Chen¡¯er, is the girl¡¯s n in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± answered Long Chen, shaking his head.


    ¡°Then she must be from the Three Emperor Territories. So, the legendary Emperor Territories really exist. But, Chen¡¯er, you must know that the only way to get there is through the Ancient Graveyard!¡± Zhao Qingyun said, shocked.


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard opens periodically, and before it does, all Ten Great Empirespete for the right to enter. I don¡¯t know the specifics, but I think somethinges out of the earth, and anyone who gets it earns the right to enter,¡± exined Zhao Qingyun as he tried to recall the details.


    ¡°This means that I¡¯ll find the way to enter the Ancient Graveyard within the Divine Martial Territory¡­¡± This was great news for Long Chen. Although the road ahead would be difficult, at least he had a solid goal.


    Very soon, they arrived in front of the Universal Transporter, and Long Chen prepared to leave. Before he left, he told Zhao Qingyun, ¡°Master, after I leave, there are some people you must help me take care of. There are two girls in the Lingwu family of Yuanling City named Yin Mengyao and Liu Lan, as well as my family in Baiyang Town, the Yang family. Let the whole n move to the Imperial Capital and tell them it was my idea. It¡¯ll make me rest easier. As for the two girls from the Lingwu family, it depends on what they want. If they don¡¯t want toe to the Imperial Capital, send some experts to protect them.¡±


    Zhao Qingyun nodded andmitted this to memory.


    When Murong Yu heard that Long Chen was thinking about girls other than Ling Xi, she felt a little ufortable.


    ¡°Right, Chen¡¯er. I almost forgot about this. My memory these days ¡­¡± Zhao Qingyun hurriedly took a ck token out of his Universe Pouch. It was made of hard iron that could not be damaged by normal attacks.


    ¡°I forgot to tell you about this. Actually, the ancestral master of the Heavenly Demon Pce came from the Divine Martial Territory, so we have roots there. However, after he came here, he never returned to the Divine Martial Territory and cut off all contact with them.¡±


    Zhao Qingyun paused, then he continued, ¡°This ck iron token is a symbolic item from arge faction in the Divine Martial Territory. The Heavenly Demon Pce should be considered a branch of that faction, and the Universal Transporter in front of you will take you directly to the edge of that faction. I don¡¯t know if I remember this correctly, but the faction¡¯s name should be the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    ¡°Ancient Demon Domain?¡± Long Chen made a mental note of the name and took the token. It looked very old, and strange symbols were carved on one side. The other side was carved with a name,<em> Guang Yuan</em>.


    ¡°The ancestral master of the Heavenly Demon Pce was called ¡®Guang Yuan.¡¯ This should be his identifying token. Take it to the Ancient Demon Domain and you might be given the right to join them,¡± Zhao Qingyun said emotionally. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Something tells me the Ancient Demon Domain is not what it seems</blockquote>

 Chapter 449: Martial Alliance

    Chapter 449: Martial Alliance


    ¡°Join them?¡± Long Chen only wanted to enter the Divine Martial Territory as soon as possible and then find the method to enter the Ancient Graveyard, as well as increase his strength. Though increasing his strength was closely rted to his environment.


    ¡°Once you get to the Divine Martial Territory, you should find a ce that allows you to grow stronger and gain knowledge. When you join arge faction the results will be better as you will have the help of elders of the sect. Usually,rge factions have a multitude ofbat techniques. A sect like the Ancient Demon Domain probably has Heaven-tierbat techniques everywhere. Techniques like Traceless Demon Shadow and the Demon Seed nting Technique are likely simple skills there,¡± Zhao Qingyun said a little longingly.


    ¡°Master, I would like to increase my cultivation level through my own training. I¡¯ve never thought about joining a sect,¡± said Long Chen, shaking his head.


    ¡°That¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong. No one can rise quickly alone. It¡¯s the same thing here in the Imperial Capital. Right now, you¡¯re the king in the Cangyang Kingdom, but you¡¯ll be at the bottom of society in the Divine Martial Territory. How will youpete? Only when you¡¯re in a sect will you have a decent chance of staying alive. You¡¯ll find stronger techniques more easily and also get many opportunities to train. The intensepetition will even speed up your progress. Just like how you progressed quickly in the Heavenly Demon Pce, right?¡± Zhao Qingyun exined.


    ¡°Is there a ce like the Counter Essence Realm in the Ancient Demon Domain? I want to find a ce with more beasts.¡± Long Chen told him his objective directly. He actually agreed with Zhao Qingyun, but demonic beasts were most important to him. They were the only way to guarantee fast growth for Long Chen.


    ¡°The Ancient Demon Domain rules over a territory many times the size of the Cangyang Kingdoms. It is one of the most important members of the Divine Martial Territory, so why wouldn¡¯t there be demonic beasts inside?¡± Zhao Qingyun smiled, stroking his long beard.


    ¡°That¡¯s good, then. Master, I¡¯ll keep this token for the moment. Once I get to the Divine Martial Territory, I¡¯ll go to the Ancient Demon Domain and try my best to enter. You mentioned the Martial Alliance just now; what is it?¡± he asked, puzzled.


    ¡°The Divine Martial Territory has the words ¡®Divine Martial¡¯ in its name, so its most powerful factions must be mighty. All the strongest factions form an alliance that rule over the empire, and they are called the Martial Alliance. They elect a Martial Alliance Chairman who rules over all the factions. Although the Divine Martial Territory is vast, it is under the control of the alliance, though the Ancient Demon Domain is considered an influential member,¡± exined Zhao Qingyun.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± All the factions of the Divine Martial Territory formed an alliance to present a united front towards outsiders. It seemed great, but Long Chen did not know how treacherous it would be within.After Zhao Qingyun finished telling him about the Martial Alliance, it was time to leave. Long Chen took a deep breath, picked Xiang up, then turned to Zhao Qingyun and Murong Yu. ¡°Master, Xiao Yu. I¡¯m leaving now. Goodbye.¡±


    Murong Yu panicked and blurted out, ¡°Wait ¡­¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly when he saw her stiff expression.


    In the end, Murong Yu mustered up her courage and said, ¡°I ¡­ I ¡­ Long Chen, can I say that ¡­ I only became Empress for you ¡­¡± Her face turned red.


    Long Chen was startled.


    He understood what she meant. She was a prodigy as well, and she could have had her own path exploring the world too. Due to Long Chen¡¯s nomination from before, she had agreed to tie herself to a small ce like Cangyang Kingdom in order to help him manage thend. After bing the Empress of the Cangyang Kingdom, she would have to start managing many things. She did not like doing these things, but for Long Chen, she had no regrets.


    Based on this, it was clear how deep her feelings for Long Chen were.


    Long Chen signed and could only say apologetically, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Murong Yu forced a smile and gathered her courage to say, ¡°I only want to say that if you realize you cannot go on, don¡¯t forget that there are people waiting for you in the Cangyang Kingdom.¡±


    Looking at her sincere and emotional gaze, Long Chen¡¯s chest tightened. After a long time, he finally came to his senses. He bit his lip and said, ¡°I can¡¯tment on your decision, but I have already decided my path, and I will follow through till the end. I¡¯m sorry ¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Go, then.¡± Murong Yu smiled. Her expression returned to normal.


    Long Chen hesitated, then he nodded. He turned around decisively and walked towards the Universal Transporter. When he entered, the whole transporter lit up.


    At the veryst moment, when he turned around, he saw that Murong Yu was already leaning on Zhao Qingyun¡¯s shoulder. Her tears were falling like rain.


    Long Chen gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.


    He knew that he could not ept her love. That was why he had to be cruel.


    When the light disappeared, Long Chen also disappeared from the valley.


    The new journey would start now.


    ***


    When a person entered a miniverse from the outside world, their consciousness would fade momentarily, though they would quickly recover. However, using a Universal Transporter to travel was even more terrifying.


    Long Chen felt like he was dreaming. He was floating in an endless ck tunnel, and he felt many ck objects fly past him. All he could see was darkness.


    When he entered the Universal Transporter, he had put Xiang away in the Primordial Realm to save Heavenly Passage Pills. That was why he was going through it alone, unable to see the stars, moon, and sun, and unable to see the rest of the world. Everything was strangely blurry.


    Thankfully, nothing strange happened to his body.


    On the way to the Snowpeak Mountains, Zhao Qingyun had taught him how to use Heavenly Passage Pills to activate the Universal Transporter. Long Chen alone had exhausted thirty pills. This meant that he only had seventy Heavenly Passage Pills remaining, which was only enough for him to reach the First Passage Stage.


    This teleportation felt like a dream. He did not know how much time had passed; it could have been a moment or an eternity. After some time, Long Chen finally discovered a white dot of light ahead in the infinite darkness.


    The white light expanded, and he caught an ancient scent from it. It had to be the Divine Martial Territory. The Divine Martial Territory was one of the ten great empires in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory that ruled over thousands of kingdoms like the Cangyang Kingdom. It was a terrifying presence.


    The ancient scent filled Long Chen¡¯s heart with reverence.


    <em>From this moment onwards, my new journey begins. I hope I get to see everyone in the Cangyang Kingdom again one day.</em> Long Chen<em></em>signed in his heart. He could not really bear to part with his family, stepfather, and even that woman, Liu Lan. Also, that silly Murong Yu. He would miss them all. He felt like it was a difficult decision to cut them off.


    <em>A man must be firm with his decisions. I am now walking on the path I chose, so I shall march on! Glory is forged from one¡¯s own blood and sweat!</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen could not help but feel a surge of pride.


    <em>Divine Martial Territory, we¡¯reing!</em>


    The ¡°we¡± here referred to him, Xiang, and the new addition, the funny Fat Cat, also known as the legendary Reincarnation Beast.


    The white dot ahead instantly expanded and swallowed him whole. He felt a refreshing feeling, as if all restrictions on his body had been lifted. Long Chen sensed that he was already standing on solid ground.


    He felt alive.


    Long Chen sighed in relief. He had finallypleted the journey through the Universal Transporter and exited that damned ck tunnel. It was really refreshing to be in the outside world again.


    But he had no time to enjoy the refreshing sensation, because he was startled by strong Qiing from all around him. Having just emerged from the transporter, he felt like his surroundings were oddly crowded with countless powerful Qi sources. He looked out and saw that the transporter was packed with people. There were many people standing around him too, and their cultivation levels were high!


    His Ninth River Stage cultivation seemed so average here ¡­


    Long Chen drew in a sharp breath and swallowed the curses on the tip of his tongue. Other people were also speechless as they looked at the huge crowd, unable to react.


    ¡°Fuck! Are you all pigs? Get the hell out of there! There are more people that need to exit the transporter!¡± yelled a shrill voice. A red whip cracked through the crowd, which hit two people who cried out in pain.


    ¡°Hurry up!¡±


    Long Chen did not know what was going on. The crowd soon started to move, and when they left the transporter, Long Chen finally saw the person wielding the red whip clearly. He was a middle-aged man with a full face of stubble wearing golden robes. He looked magnificent, and his most eye-catching feature was the dramatic embroidery of the character ¡°Î䡱 on his chest![1]


    Long Chen felt a strong st of aura after just one nce at the character. He was privately startled.


    <em>Even a character on his clothes was enough to startle me. The Divine Martial Territory really is terrifying ¡­ Since their clothes show the ¡°wu¡± character, then these people must be from the Martial Alliance. Why are they standing guard next to the Universal Transporter?</em>


    Long Chen suddenly realized he knew nothing about this ce.


    1. Note: Îä = Pronunciation: Wu = Definition: Martial arts / Military ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Wee to NG+</blockquote>

 Chapter 450: I Would Rather Kill the Wrong Guy Than Let Him Go

    Chapter 450: I Would Rather Kill the Wrong Guy Than Let Him Go


    Long Chen looked up with wide eyes, looking around the Divine Martial Territory for the first time.


    First, the sky. It was different from the sapphire skies of the Cangyang Kingdom. Here, the sky was a heavy, deathly gray that made the atmosphere strangely suffocating. Long Chen was situated in a wide field, which was t and deste with barely a few weeds. The soil was gray-ck, dried, cracked, and infertile. The soil felt loose beneath his feet.


    This vast piece ofnd was the Divine Martial Territory.


    After surveying the environment around him, he looked at the people. Half of them hade here from other ces as well, while the other half were dressed in a simr fashion to the person with the whip. They were people of the Martial Alliance with the soul-trembling ¡°wu¡± character on their chests.


    Long Chen¡¯s brows were furrowed. From the cold and arrogant attitudes on these Martial Alliance people¡¯s faces, they were likely not polite towards outsiders like himself. That whip was a clear example.


    A deafening voice boomed in Long Chen¡¯s ears. ¡°Get in line! Stand to the left if you have the Martial Alliance¡¯s gold identity token! If this is your first time in the Martial Alliance and don¡¯t have a gold identity token, stand to the right! Everyone, get in line now or you¡¯ll be killed without hesitation!¡±


    Long Chen frowned.


    That person¡¯s attitude was terrible. However, not only were there many of them, but their cultivation levels were also high. It would not be easy to defeat them. Long Chen knew this was not the time to cause conflict, so he followed their instructions and stood in the line on the right. Most of the people who hade from the universal transporter stood on the left side while only a small portion stood on the right.


    The people from the Martial Alliance stood next to the two lines, watching them closely. The crowd was scared of their cold, stern gazes and their auras, so they did not dare to disobey.Long Chen looked at the people on the left. At the front of the line, there were several wide, rectangr stone tables with several high-level cultivators sitting on the opposite side, inspecting the people who had exited the transporter. The visitors behaved in an orderly manner. They each took out a golden token from their Universe Pouches, showed the people from the Martial Alliance, then they left safely.


    The people in Long Chen¡¯s line were more indignant because this was their first time in the Divine Martial Territory, and they were often people of high status in their own ces of origin. They did not even know what the Martial Alliance was. In contrast, the people of the Martial Alliance looked at this crowd with contempt and mocking smirks.


    <em>Perhaps in their eyes, we are merely ignorant country bumpkins. The strong eats the weak. This is thew no matter where we go.</em> Long Chen<em></em>sighed in his heart.


    Due to Zhao Qingyun¡¯s information, he was aware of how powerful the Martial Alliance was and knew that he should follow the rules. He often offended people in the Cangyang Kingdom, but after Ling Xi left, he became more reserved. He would not offend people he couldn¡¯t afford to offend.


    Of course, Long Chen always held the principle of not provoking people who did not offend him first. If someone provoked him first, he would still unleash a storm of revenge.


    More and more people exited the Universe Transporter while Long Chen moved up the line. As he observed them, he learned their procedures. The Martial Alliance was first checking their identities, then creating new golden identity tokens for neers like Long Chen.


    Those people could only leave once they had gotten their golden identity tokens.


    Long Chen was in awe. He knew that the Martial Alliance¡¯s objective here was to put their stamp on these neers, making them part of the alliance. The point of the other line was not to check their identities, but to confirm if they had identity tokens.


    Long Chen guessed that everyone in the Divine Martial Territory had a golden identity token from the Martial Alliance. He quickly spotted the ¡°wu¡± character in a dramatic calligraphy font carved on one face of the token, while the person¡¯s name was carved on the other side. After the neers gave their names, their names would be carved.


    Due to this process, Long Chen¡¯s line progressed more slowly.


    When Long Chen was almost at the front of the line, he could faintly hear that when the neer¡¯s name was given, they would also record their cultivation level, country of origin, and other personal information. Long Chen was startled because this meant that all the neers¡¯ data would be in the Martial Alliance¡¯s hands. It was very clear that the Martial Alliance¡¯s rule was much tighter than that of the imperial family over the Cangyang Kingdom.


    At the very least, if Long Chen killed the head of the Martial Alliance, he would not be able to rule the Martial Alliance.


    Of course, that was just a thought experiment.


    ¡°Fat Cat, do you know what the approximate cultivation levels of these people are?¡± At this moment, Long Chen could only ask Little Cat for help.


    ¡°Haha. Are you asking me a question? But it doesn¡¯t seem like it.¡± Little Cat pretended not to know the answer.


    ¡°Alright, Master Cat. Don¡¯t waste my time. Spit it out,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°Being called ¡®Master Cat¡¯ isn¡¯t bad at all. Not bad, not bad. We can continue to use it. Hmm ¡­ These brats are around the First and Second Passage Stages. Only a few of them are at the Second Passage Stage of the Heavenly Passage Realm. That¡¯s so weak ¡­¡± said Little Cat smugly.


    Long Chen was a little speechless.


    He had no idea that everyone he ran into the moment he arrived in the Divine Martial Territory would be psychos at the Heavenly Passage Realm. There were over two hundred of them! How terrifying would it be if they all went to the Cangyang Kingdom?


    While Long Chen was still in shock, amotion arose ahead. Someone shouted gruffly, ¡°What? I need to tell you my cultivation level too? Why? Is the Divine Martial Territory really a ce like that? Who the hell are you guys?¡±


    Long Chen looked up. At the front of the line, a tall, muscr man was arguing with the Martial Alliance people. He did not want to cooperate at all.


    Long Chen shook his head, because he knew this man would not meet a good end. If the man was truly a master, then it would¡¯ve been alright for him to withhold his cultivation level. Unfortunately, he could not read the room. This ce belonged to the Divine Martial Territory, and the Martial Alliance was an extremely powerful organization. If he was not strong enough to fight the Martial Alliance, then disobeying was a death wish.


    As expected, after he shouted, a few young men from the Martial Alliance looked at each other and chuckled coldly. Afterwards, several experts charged at him together. In the blink of an eye, the man, who was merely at the Ninth River Stage, spat out blood and died. His internal organs had shattered.


    ¡°You. Take him away and dispose of him.¡± This instruction came from a stern-looking middle-aged man at the stone table. He exuded a more powerful aura than the other people, so he was one of the Second Passage Stage cultivators that Little Cat had spotted. This meant that he was stronger than the Sword Emperor.


    Under hismand, the man¡¯s body was taken away. The standard procedures continued running, though after that tragedy, everyone fell into terrified silence as they obediently divulged very personal information.


    The Martial Alliance people who had just killed the man started to chat. ¡°These country bumpkins cannot be saved! Every day, we have to kill more than ten stupid ones just like that guy. I don¡¯t even know how many idiots I have killed over the years. Maybe more than a thousand? Haha ¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m in awe at how stupid these people are. How the hell did they cultivate to that level? Did they not think to learn a bit about the Divine Martial Territory beforeing here? At least learn who the boss here is!¡±


    Long Chen was shocked as he listened to the hushed discussion.


    Very soon, it was his turn. He walked up to the stone table. The few people who made the records did not look at him. With their heads still lowered, they asked, ¡°State your name, cultivation level, and country of origin. And the objective of your visit to the Divine Martial Territory. Quickly!¡±


    Long Chen said directly, ¡°My name is Long Chen. I am at the Ninth River Stage. I¡¯m from the Cangyang Kingdom, one of the kingdoms pledged to the Divine Martial Territory. As for visiting objectives ¡­ I came to the Divine Martial Territory mainly to train and increase my strength.¡±


    His answers were short and civil. He knew that the people who answered all the questions in one go quicklypleted the token-making process. The people who were slow and hesitant were sure to suffer.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­ Ninth River Stage ¡­¡± the people muttered to themselves. The golden identity tokens were made quickly, so Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief. After he received the token, he would be able to catch his breath and learn what the Divine Martial Territory was all about.


    After he signed in relief, the muscr middle-aged man who had given the kill order for the previous man suddenly looked up at Long Chen with a strange light in his eyes. ¡°Are you sure your name is Long Chen? ¡®Long¡¯ as in the dragon? ¡®Chen¡¯ as in the constetions?¡±[1]


    Long Chen froze, then nodded and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. May I ask if you have an order for me, Sir?¡±


    The middle-aged man broke into a grin. ¡°Alright. You¡¯re Long Chen. I¡¯d rather kill the wrong guy than let this chance go. Guards! Off with his head, then take it back to let someone check if he really is Long Chen.¡±


    His tone was impassive, but Long Chen was in shock.


    Why would he need to be killed because his name was Long Chen? What was going on?


    Long Chen sensed that it was likely a mistake. Perhaps someone named Long Chen had offended the Martial Alliance, so he exined hurriedly, ¡°Sir, this is my first time in the Divine Martial Territory. I don¡¯t understand what is going on. Perhaps it was someone else with the same name who offended the Martial Alliance?¡±


    The middle-aged man did not even listen. He waved and said, ¡°Are you all deaf? Chop his head off and then check. See if he really is <em>that </em>Long Chen!¡±


    1. Note: Long Chen (Áú³½) => Áú(Long) = dragon; Ðdz½(Xing Chen) = constetion. ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    That guy is a menace</blockquote>

 Chapter 451: Violet Savage Lion

    Chapter 451: Violet Savage Lion


    After the middle-aged man gave the order, the cultivators of the Martial Alliance rubbed their fists and made their way towards Long Chen.


    He was only at the Ninth River Stage, so they saw Long Chen as a mere weakling that they could kill at any time. Maybe they knew that he was not the one they were looking for, but it didn¡¯t matter.


    It was just bad luck that Long Chen shared the same name as a wanted person.


    The job of the Martial Alliance didn¡¯t stop. They had just singled Long Chen out, and the other people stared at him in fear. They lowered their heads, knowing that Long Chen was going to die soon. First was the brute and now Long Chen. They were afraid.


    This was their first time at the Divine Martial Empire, and they had already received a reality check. They were the strongest people back home, but they were nothing but ants here.


    This was what the Martial Alliance wanted to teach them. The first brute was an idiot, and Long Chen was just unlucky.


    Everyone looked at what was unfolding with trepidation.


    Long Chen was never someone who provoked others for no reason. ¡°Everyone, I think you¡¯re mistaking me for someone else. I¡¯m from the Cangyang Kingdom, and I¡¯m sure the Long Chen you want to hunt down is stronger than the Ninth River Stage. You don¡¯t have to act now; why not just investigate? I am more than happy to cooperate. Think about it, isn¡¯t it better to bring me back alive?¡±


    ¡°Heheh. No need to waste your breath. If our leader wants you dead, then you will die no matter what your name is!¡± The people from the Martial Allianceughed before they attacked Long Chen. A cultivator at the Heavenly Passage Realm was not to be trifled with. Long Chen felt the air around them shattering while the pressure of a mountain rushed towards him.Long Chen hasn¡¯t tested how strong he was after absorbing a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence. He was now at the peak of the Heavenly River Realm.


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Demon Sword!¡± Long Chen had no choice but to fight back. The sword appeared in front of him and he swung it. The ck Sword Qi pushed everyone back and gave him a lot of space.


    ¡°He even has a good sword! It¡¯s at least at the intermediate Heaven-tier!¡± The people from the Martial Alliance looked at his sword greedily. The middle-aged man was surprised that Long Chen had not only pushed them back, he even had a good sword.


    ¡°Go and bring me that sword! I will give a prettydy to whoever kills him!¡± The middle-aged man smiled.


    ¡°Yes, Boss!¡± Several people surrounded Long Chen. They thought they could easily kill him themselves and there was no need for so many people.


    ¡°Let me do it!¡± Someone at the Heavenly Passage Realm volunteered and ran towards Long Chen. The man was as powerful as the Sword Emperor, yet he was only a low-ranking member of the Martial Alliance.


    <em>There are two hundred of them here today but they are despicable. If I fight now, it might be difficult to liveter on. Fine, I don¡¯t have a choice since they are pushing me into a corner.</em>


    After absorbing a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence, Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Soul Transformation was his strongest technique. When the enemy¡¯s fist was close to him, he transformed, and the blood-red scales covered his body. Bone spikes protruded from his elbows, knees, and back. His ws were like knives that made him look very gnarly.


    The illusions of roaring dragons appeared within his scales.


    The others watched the helpless outsider transform into a killing machine. The scales, ws, and spikes were so gruesome that the witnesses felt their scalps go numb. More importantly, he radiated an ancient aura that made it hard for others to go against him. Even the person at the Second Passage Stage frowned when he saw Long Chen¡¯s transformation.


    ¡°I''ve never seen a beast like that before.¡±


    ¡°He looks scary. It must be a lizard or worm that is rted to blood.¡±


    ¡°Looks like he¡¯s not weak at all. To think someone from the boonies would have such a frightening aura. What a surprise.¡±


    The others looked on anxiously.


    The people from the Martial Alliance stayed put. They knew Beast Soul Transformation would increase someone¡¯s strength by several times, but how strong would a Ninth River Stage cultivator be?


    The person who was approaching Long Chen stopped and smiled when he saw Long Chen¡¯s transformation. ¡°Is that your Beast Soul Transformation? I have one too. Behold, the Category Four Heaven-tier beast, Purple Savage Lion!¡±


    He transformed too, his body growingrger and more muscr. Purple fur sprouted from his body, and his head changed into a lion¡¯s head. His ws were even scarier than Long Chen¡¯s.


    Soon, his body grewrger than Long Chen''s.


    Long Chen chuckled when he saw the humanoid lion. Just then, the lion appeared in front of him in a sh. He swiped hisrge paw at Long Chen. Based on the sound, everyone was sure Long Chen would die if he got hit.


    They thought Long Chen would dodge, but to their surprise, he was standing still, as if he had been scared stiff by the attack.


    ¡°He¡¯s not dodging. Is he surprised?¡±


    ¡°Of course. The Purple Savage Lion is a Category Four Heaven-tier beast. I don¡¯t know what kind of random beast the kid has, but it''s normal to despair in front of absolute strength. He can only me himself for meeting our boss when he¡¯s in a bad mood.¡±


    Everyone saw the paw hitting Long Chen¡¯s head, and they instantly envisioned the explosion of viscera. Some of the people closed their eyes.


    But what shocked everyone was that a loud sound rang out, and the lion stumbled backwards before falling to the ground.


    The Beast Warrior shouted in pain when he fell back. He rolled on the ground and clutched his bloody paw. Everyone saw that his hand had been broken and was bleeding from numerous puncture wounds.


    No one had thought that it would happen.


    It was out of their expectations.


    ¡°How can his skull be so dense? What kind of beast does he have?¡± The middle-aged man stood up from his stool and looked at Long Chen with surprise. The others were looking at him too.


    ¡°Why is his body so strong? How was a Beast Warrior at the Heavenly Passage Realm pushed back?!¡±


    Everyone was surprised.


    But that was just the start. Long Chen red at the man, then he disappeared. When he appeared once more, he was already holding the Beast Warrior in one hand. He threw the man down while kicking his knee up. The strong impact caused the spike on his knee to stab through the cultivator¡¯s body. The man struggled and his body went limp on Long Chen¡¯s knee.


    Everyone exhaled and looked at Long Chen with shock.


    A Ninth River Stage cultivator had killed someone at the First Passage Stage with ease. No one else was certain of Long Chen¡¯s strength anymore.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to kill everyone, nor did he want to anger the Martial Alliance. That was just a warning. Everyone was looking at him when he said to the middle-aged man, ¡°Let me tell you onest time. This is my first time here, and I¡¯m not the person you are looking for. I don¡¯t like trouble, but don¡¯t me me for acting in self-defense if you keep pressuring me.¡±


    He had already shown his strength, and it was time to stop. He only needed to intimidate them.


    But Long Chen had underestimated them. The middle-aged man was not intimated¡ªheughed instead. ¡°What a joke. Do you think you¡¯re strong? The Martial Alliance is a god in thisnd. No one has dared to attack the Martial Alliance before, but you sure are interesting. Still, you will die very soon in the Divine Martial Empire. Let me show you what death feels like now. Everyone, attack him at once. I will give two hundred Heavenly Passage Pills to whoever kills that brat!¡±


    Everyone from the Martial Alliance cheered. Two hundred Heavenly passage Pills was a substantial sum of money for them. All of them ran towards Long Chen and blocked his escape path.

 Chapter 452: Massacre

    Chapter 452: Massacre


    After surrounding him and cutting off his escape, a hundred Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators charged at Long Chen. This was Long Chen¡¯s biggest fight yet, but thanks to the hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence he had absorbed, he was many times stronger than when he faced the Emperor, making him extremely sturdy.


    Now he wanted to know how strong he had be.


    <em>I¡¯ve already exined myself clearly to them and they still want toe after my life? I¡¯m certain that they know I¡¯m not the Long Chen they are looking for. Aren¡¯t they being too arrogant?</em>


    He could endure certain things, but not everything. He had been frustrated about Ling Xi leaving him, so he exploded when the Martial Alliance wanted to kill him.


    Hundreds of Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators ganging up on a single Ninth River Stage cultivator. The crowd already knew what was going to happen, but they were unsure if Long Chen would show them a miracle.


    All of them were looking forward to the fight.


    The Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators were just in front of Long Chen. To them, Long Chen was like a sheep that had run into a pack of wolves. But what happened next proved them wrong. Long Chen was the wolf while everyone else was the sheep.


    Long Chen suddenly appeared behind a cultivator and punched him. The cultivator¡¯s clothes exploded from the impact, and he slumped to the ground after spraying blood from his mouth.


    Everyone knew that Long Chen had destroyed the man¡¯s organs in one punch.¡°One ¡­¡± Long Chen counted his victims. His strong body also granted him unparalleled dexterity, so he weaved around the group of people easily like a wolf. The cultivators dropped dead one by one. Even though all of them were at the Heavenly Passage Realm, none of them could survive a single punch from Long Chen as their internal organs were destroyed.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± In just a short breath, dozens of people had fallen to Long Chen¡¯s fist. The others didn¡¯t even manage to catch Long Chen thanks to his illusions from Traceless Demon Shadow. The cultivators didn¡¯t know if they would be next.


    The middle-aged man at the Second Passage Stage was stunned. Some of the others at the Second Passage Stage ran over and whispered, ¡°Is this Long Chen the very same one on the bounty board? The one in third ce. I think the reward was a hundred royal crystals, right? A single royal crystal is worth thousands of Heavenly Passage Pills.¡±


    ¡°Impossible! That Long Chen is beyond the Heavenly Passage Realm. He¡¯s not that weak, but this Long Chen has a very strong body too. He must have a lot of treasures as well. Maybe he found a ruin in the borders and got stronger from there!¡±


    ¡°What should we do?¡±


    ¡°What else? There¡¯s no way he can beat all two hundred of us. Think about it. He has a technique that allows him to kill cultivators at the Heavenly Passage Realm in one blow; how much stronger would we be if we stole it from him?¡±


    ¡°You are right!¡±


    The people were eager to fight Long Chen. One of them even shouted, ¡°Martial Alliance, stop your work. Come and capture this guy. Whoever kills him will be given a thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.¡±


    A thousand Heavenly Passage Pills were enough for them to reach the Fourth Passage Stage. Most of the time, cultivators didn¡¯t have an issue gathering enough Qi to advance to the next stage, but they had no choice but to stagnate because theycked Heavenly Passage Pills. That was why everyone went crazy at the prospect of a thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.


    ¡°Kill him!¡± Everyone ran at Long Chen, causing immense pressure to be exerted on thetter¡¯s side. Even though he wouldn¡¯t die to their attacks, it would still hurt since they were using Heaven-tier techniques.


    But more than forty people had already died at Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    ¡°You are the ones forcing me tomit a massacre ¡­¡± Long Chen shook his hand and his eyes turned red. He took out the Demon Emperor Sword and started killing people. His killing speed doubled with it.


    He ran past the enemies with the sword. Every time he swung it, he cut a person¡¯s neck or heart and killed them in one go.


    A shadow weaved amongst the group of gold, and everyone shouted when they were hit by him. All of them crumpled to the ground without fail. Some of the ones who discovered that something was wrong managed to stay alive by fleeing.


    <em>St! </em>


    The Demon Emperor Sword stabbed through a cultivator¡¯s heart from the back. Blood sprayed like fresh petals when Long Chen pulled his sword out. He then swung it at another cultivator¡¯s neck, killing him.


    More and more people died to him, and everyone started realizing how strong Long Chen was. Many of them started running away. Even though a thousand Heavenly Passage Pills was arge reward, it was not worth it to gamble their lives.


    ¡°Everyone, retreat! We will take over now!¡± Several leaders showed up. They were all at the Second Passage Stage. They saw that too many people had died and knew it would be difficult to report back. That was why all five of them surrounded Long Chen while the rest ran off.


    This was when Long Chen noticed that the ground was littered with corpses and blood. The other cultivators were running away, and many others escaped through the Universal Transporter. He was now surrounded by only Second Passage Stage cultivators, including the middle-aged man who had ordered the men to kill him.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t killed enough.¡± Long Chen licked his lips and taunted the man. ¡°Are you nning to let me go, or will you die like them?¡±


    Long Chen pointed at the corpses.


    The leaders looked at each other and said nothing as they ran at Long Chen. All five of themunched powerful attacks. Even though they were even more powerful than the Sword Emperor, Long Chen had also grown stronger.


    ¡°Floating Fist!¡±


    They all released their Heaven-tier martial techniques as they surrounded Long Chen. Even he had to frown when the air trembled from the attacks.


    But now that he was stronger, the attacks were nothing but cheap tricks. Even though Long Chen was only at the Heavenly River Realm, he had an advanced Heaven-tier Body Tempering Technique to deal with these enemies.


    He held up the Demon Emperor Sword and fought valiantly. He didn¡¯t use any techniques but instead danced with the sword as he advanced towards one of the cultivators. He decided to focus on that man and allowed the others to attack him.


    ¡°Die!¡± The Second Passage Stage cultivators¡¯ attacks were stronger than the hits he had easily tanked from the previous crowd, but Long Chen could endure them. He ran at full speed and appeared in front of the cultivator like lightning. Then he swung the Demon Emperor Sword at his opponent¡¯s neck at a speed that tore through the wind.


    At thest moment, the cultivator''s eyes were wide with shock, despair, and regret. He tried to block the sword with his arm, but Long Chen cut through it and reached his neck.


    Half an arm and a head flew into the air, and blood sprayed everywhere.


    The other four were shocked. They had attacked Long Chen after being promised that they would get a reward. They thought there was a limit to how strong Long Chen was, but apparently, enemies at the Second Passage Stage were nothing to him!


    ¡°It¡¯s toote to realize this.¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t stop after he killed the first one. His body was a blur until he appeared behind another cultivator and stabbed him in his heart without any warning.


    The second one died instantly.


    ¡°Run!¡± The other three were shocked and ovee with fear. They ran in three different directions in hopes that Long Chen would only be able to chase one of them.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes became even colder when he saw them running. He disappeared and chased after one of them. Ignoring the guy¡¯s shouts, Long Chen covered the man¡¯s eyes and slit his throat. Blood sprayed into the air as the cultivator fell to the ground and died.

 Chapter 453: Legend of the Martial Overlord

    Chapter 453: Legend of the Martial Overlord


    Everyone watching the fight gasped in awe.


    Long Chen was a miracle to them. Two hundred cultivators at the Heavenly Passage Realm and five at the Second Passage Stage were nothing butmbs to Long Chen. All of them had died without being able to fight back.


    And now half of the cultivators were dead while the remaining two at the Second Passage Stage were busy running away. But Long Chen would not let them go¡ªhe ran like a killing machine towards the other two. His body was a blur of red when he caught the second one and cut off the cultivator¡¯s head!


    ¡°What a strong body and incredible speed! He was born forbat!¡± Everyone was shocked by what they had witnessed.


    Now there was only one more person at the Second Passage Stage left. It was the middle-aged man who had ordered the people to kill Long Chen. The man¡¯s face was pale and he was running with all his might.


    <em>Who is he? Why is he so strong? Curse my mouth! I should¡¯ve kept quiet instead of provoking people without any reason. I need to change my habits if I get out alive!</em>


    Just then, he heard people shouting.


    Long Chen had just killed the fourth person when he saw that the man was already quite a distance away. Rather than chasing that man, Long Chen threw the Demon Emperor Sword with all his might towards the man¡¯s back.


    The sound of the air getting torn apart came from behind the man. Long Chen¡¯s immense strength sent the sword flying through the air at an incredible speed. No one could see where the sword was until the man¡¯s back exploded. Blood and flesh scattered the area before the man fell down. Long Chen ran over and picked up the sword.He wiped off the blood and put the sword back in his Primordial Realm. He then looked around and saw that the people from the Martial Alliance were mostly gone. Many of the neers had fled back home using the Universal Transporter as well. The remaining few realized that running was the best option as well.


    Long Chen sighed when he looked at the corpses on the ground.


    <em>I have been stressed out since Ling Xi left me. That¡¯s why I decided to kill them today. Even though I felt relieved after releasing some stress, will I truly be a killing machine one day?</em>


    Long Chen pondered about his future.


    But he didn¡¯t want to stay here for long, or the experts of the Martial Realm would reach this ce. He quickly left and only undid his transformation once he was far enough, which was also when he let Xiang out. It was quite boring to stay inside the Primordial Realm, and Xiang wanted to see what kind of ce the Divine Martial Empire was.


    ¡°This ce is so deste. Even the Cangyang Kingdom is better,¡± Xiang said after looking around.


    ¡°But nature¡¯s spiritual energy is dense here. Maybe that¡¯s why there are so many strong cultivators.¡± Long Chen sighed. If he hadn¡¯t absorbed the hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence, he would¡¯ve been dead. Two hundred experts at the Heavenly Passage Realm. He didn¡¯t dare to think what would happen if they all showed up in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    This ce was only a small corner of the Divine Martial Empire. There were ces where stronger martial artists gathered.


    ¡°Strong? Hehehe. Do you think they are strong at the Heavenly Passage Realm? What a joke!¡± The little catughed and rolled on the ground in the Primordial Realm to showcase his exceptional origin. Long Chen and Xiang ignored him.


    ¡°Brother, what should we do next?¡± Xiang asked.


    ¡°I still don¡¯t know a lot about this ce. Let¡¯s find a city and learn more about the Divine Martial Empire. I should also find where the Ancient Devil Region is located. I¡¯ve killed a lot of people from the Martial Alliance, so they mighte and find me in the future. It¡¯s best if I have someone to back me up.¡±


    ¡°Good idea.¡± Xiang nodded.


    Long Chen looked around and chose a random direction before heading that way. They had traveled for quite some time when the little cat piped up. ¡°Hey, you two idiots. Someone is following you.¡±


    Long Chen was surprised. They had been traversing on open ins, so they never even thought to check. He used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and found that the person tailing after them was only a hundred meters away. Long Chen turned around and said coldly, ¡°No need to hide anymore. Come out or I won¡¯t be friendly.¡±


    A young man, roughly twenty years old, walked out. He wore elegant white robes with ck borders and had numerous pieces of jewelry hanging from his body. He smiled and approached Long Chen in a surprisingly feminine gait.


    <em>Is he the young master of a family in the Divine Martial Empire?</em>


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to act rashly, especially when he didn¡¯t know the person¡¯s background and strength. ¡°Who are you? Why are you following me?¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t misunderstand. I meant no harm. I was thinking about how to approach you without offending you, but you unexpectedly found me first,¡± the man said politely.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Long Chen did not let his guard down.


    ¡°My name is Jiang Cheng. I bear no ill will and just want to be your friend. May I know your name?¡±


    ¡°No. Just tell me what you want.¡± It was not a good thing to be tailed by someone, so Long Chen was extra careful. He took a few steps back and distanced himself from Jiang Cheng.


    Jiang Cheng smiled bitterly upon seeing that Long Chen was distancing himself. ¡°I heard the sounds of fighting and went over to the Universal Teleporter. I saw how you massacred the people and was impressed by your strength. That¡¯s why I wanted to befriend you. I¡¯m sorry if it was very abrupt.¡±


    Long Chen lowered his tone after seeing how straightforward the man was. ¡°You could¡¯ve juste up to me if you wanted to befriend me. It¡¯s not a good thing to tail someone for so long.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I apologize, but may I ask if you are familiar with this ce? I¡¯m sure that you are not since this is your first time here. I saw that you didn¡¯t get a golden identity te from the Martial Alliance and still decided to travel within the Divine Martial Empire. I¡¯vee to warn you that it¡¯s dangerous if you don''t have one.¡±


    Long Chen was taken back. He was indeed clueless about the pce. Since Jiang Cheng was a resident of the Divine Martial Empire, Long Chen decided to ask some questions.


    ¡°My name is Yang Qing. You can call me ¡®Brother Yang.¡¯ Brother Jiang, I don¡¯t understand what you just said. Can you exin it to me?¡± Even though he appeared friendly, Long Chen was still wary of Jiang Cheng.


    ¡°Brother Yang, don¡¯t you know that the Martial Alliance controls everything in the Divine Martial Empire? Even the Ancient Devil Region and the Huangfu family are part of the Martial Alliance. If you don¡¯t have a golden identity te issued by the Martial Alliance, everyone will treat you as one of the fugitives wanted on the bounty board. Normally, every city has a gate to check if you have an identity te. If you can¡¯t show one, you are an enemy! You will be killed. That¡¯s why I came here to warn you of the danger.¡±


    Long Chen saw that he wasn¡¯t lying and his guard lowered a bit. Maybe Jiang Cheng wasn¡¯t an enemy.


    ¡°Is the Martial Alliance that strong? If that¡¯s the case, can you help me get one?¡±


    Jiang Cheng smiled. ¡°That¡¯s why I approached you. I know many people in the Martial Alliance. I know some of them are stationed in Yellow Martial City just up ahead. If we get there, I can get you one.¡±


    Jiang Cheng¡¯sughter was very cheerful, and Long Chen just thought he was the type of person who liked helping others. It was good that Jiang Cheng was happy to get him a golden identity te. If he didn¡¯t get one, Long Chen might¡¯ve been hunted down by the Martial Alliance.


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, thank you for your help, Brother Jiang!¡±


    ¡°No worries. We should rely on our friends when we need them. This is not a big deal for me at all. Since it¡¯s important for you, there¡¯s no reason for me not to help. I was very impressed with how you fought and couldn¡¯t peel my eyes off your battle just now.¡±


    Jiang Cheng looked at Xiang. A strange desire clouded his eyes, but they returned normal. ¡°What is this beast? There¡¯s arge, golden sun on its forehead. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a normal beast.¡±


    ¡°This is just a normal Category Nine Earth-tier beast from my hometown. It¡¯s very strong in my hometown, but here it¡¯s just a weak demonic beast.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°Of course. There are numerous experts in the Divine Martial Empire, and the demonic beasts here are equally scary too. There¡¯s a legend that an exceedingly strong Divine Phoenix residing in the Immortal Sea is capable of fighting on equal grounds against the strongest cultivator in the Divine Martial Empire, the Martial Overlord!¡±

 Chapter 454: Three Martial Realms

    Chapter 454: Three Martial Realms


    <em>Immortal Sea, Divine Phoenix, Martial Overlord¡­ </em>Long Chenmitted these names to memory and asked nothing else. He started walking towards Yellow Martial City with Jiang Cheng. ¡°Brother Jiang, do you know anything about the Martial Alliance¡¯s bounty board?¡±


    ¡°The Martial Alliance is thergest organization in the Divine Martial Empire. It leads all of the other organizations as well. They are the core of the Divine Martial Empire, and everyone listens to them. Of course, there are people who refuse to submit to them. Some of them evenmit all kinds of atrocities, so the Martial Alliance came up with the bounty board. Those with their names on it are the enemies of the Martial Alliance and must be killed on sight!


    ¡°You will get a reward for killing the cultivators on the bounty board. Those in the top ten spots provide a reward of more than ten million Heavenly Passage Pills. If you kill anyone in the top three, they will even reward you with royal crystals! The royal crystal is an important resource for those at the Three Martial Realms to cultivate. It¡¯s even more rare than Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    ¡°Ten million Heavenly Passage Pills?¡± Long Chen was shocked. He never knew that the Martial Alliance was that big and influential. To think that they would put out a reward of tens of millions of Heavenly Passage Pills just to kill a single cultivator.


    Long Chen also never heard anything about royal crystals and the Three Martial Realms.


    Jiang Cheng knew how shocked Long Chen was after seeing his expression. ¡°You probably don¡¯t know what royal crystals and the Three Martial Realms are, don¡¯t you?¡±


    Long Chen shook his head. He wasn¡¯t even at the Heavenly Passage Realm, so he naturally didn¡¯t know about the Three Martial Realms.


    Jiang Cheng smiled and exined, ¡°Then let me exin it to you. You have Four Basic Realms: Dragon Vein, Divine Core, Heavenly River, and Heavenly Passage. Above that are the Three Martial Realms: the Earthly Martial Realm, the Heavenly Martial Realm, and the Divine Martial Realm! Each realm is separated into nine stages. So the Four Basic Realms and the Three Martial Realms epass all of the cultivation realms. You are still considered a junior if you are at the Heavenly Passage Realm. You are only considered an expert once you reach the Three Martial Realms.¡±


    Long Chen was shocked to learn that. ¡°How many people in the Divine Martial Empire are at the Three Martial Realms?¡± ¡°Do you think those stronger cultivators are so easy to find?¡± Jiang Cheng smiled helplessly.


    He excitedly exined, ¡°The Demon Emperor of the Ancient Demon Domain, the Huangfu family, and even the Martial Overlord are only at the Earthly Martial Realm. Of the Ten Great Empires, only the strongest one has two cultivators at the Heavenly Martial Realm! No one is at the Divine Martial Realm here. We¡¯ve only heard of their legends in the past!¡±


    Long Chen was putting on an excited face, but he was secretly calm as he noted what Jiang Cheng had exined to him. He soon had a better picture of the world here. He knew that the Heavenly Passage Realm was the basic strength of those at the Divine Martial Empire, while those at the Earthly Martial Realm were the strong cultivators. The Heavenly Martial Realm were probably people at the highest echelons of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and there were no Divine Martial Realm cultivators there.


    Jiang Cheng thought Long Chen was from the boonies, but Long Chen had actually encountered a lot of strong people.


    <em>That means Ling Xi¡¯s grandmother, father, and mother are probably at the Divine Martial Realm, or maybe even stronger?</em>


    ¡°Brother Yang, you might be the strongest in your birthce, but you are nothing here. Once you get your identity token, you have to keep a low profile and increase your strength. You might have a chance to be strong one day. It¡¯s best if you join a good sect, as they can support you in your cultivation.¡± Jiang Cheng looked at Long Chen earnestly.


    ¡°You are right. I¡¯ve heard of the Ancient Demon Domain and wanted to go there.¡±


    ¡°Ancient Demon Domain?¡± Jiang Cheng¡¯s expression changed subtly.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Long Chen was confused.


    ¡°Nothing ¡­ The Ancient Demon Domain is good, and the Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie is not only strong, but he also has the same surname as me ¡­¡± Jiang Cheng chuckled.


    Long Chen nodded. He knew something was wrong, but he said nothing as they traveled to the city.


    ¡°Brother Jiang, what is a royal crystal?¡±


    ¡°The royal crystal is a special crystal that contains martial essence. You can only absorb it once you are at the Three Martial Realm. It elerates your cultivation speed. If you have a lot of them, your strength will increase at a rapid rate. Royal crystals, emperor crystals, and divine crystals are the treasures of cultivators at the Three Martial Realms. They each correspond to what realm they are best suited to use, with the royal crystal at the Earthly Martial Realm, the emperor crystal at the Heavenly Martial Realm, and the divine crystal at the Divine Martial Realm. But there are not a lot of emperor crystals here in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. They have only been recorded to exist in ancient times.¡±


    ¡°The royal crystal is also used as a currency, right?¡± Long Chen knew that items that could help with one¡¯s cultivation were almost always used as currency.


    ¡°Of course. A single royal crystal is equivalent to ten million Heavenly Passage Pills! That is an incredible amount of wealth. Killing someone at the top ten spots on the bounty board would set you up for life!¡±


    Long Chen smiled. ¡°Some of the people in the top ten spots are at the Earthly Martial Realm, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes. The top three are all at the Earthly Martial Realm. Even the elusive Long Chen at the third spot is at the Earthly Martial Realm! Long Chen only reached the third spot on the bounty board in the past few months. He killed someone important in the Martial Alliance to achieve that. The Martial Overlord got so angry that he swore to give a hundred royal crystals to those that killed Long Chen!¡± Jiang Cheng¡¯s eyes were filled with admiration and greed.


    Long Chen was stunned. He thought the middle-aged cultivator from before was just toying with him. How could his cultivation match with the Long Chen on the bounty board? To think that the man was serious about it.


    ¡°Brother Jiang, what about demonic beasts, spiritual herbs, and Divine Arms? How are they categorized here?¡±


    ¡°Heaven-tier demonic beasts, techniques, and spiritual herbs are the mostmon. They are everywhere here. Anything above the Heaven-tier is considered a treasure. Demonic beasts that surpass the Heaven-tier are considered to be at the top of the ecosystem. The Divine Phoenix is one of them. Just like cultivation, the spiritual herbs, demonic beasts, Divine Arms, and techniques are separated into three categories: king, emperor, and divine. Simr to the crystals, we don¡¯t have any Divine-tier items in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, while most of the Emperor-tier items are controlled by the few strongest individuals. Emperor-tier demonic beasts can destroy their surroundings with ease! As for King-tier ones, most of them are considered treasures that people covet. The Divine Phoenix is a King-tier demonic beast.¡±


    ¡°So above the Four Basic Realms are the Three Martial Realms? Demonic beasts, Divine Arms, spiritual herbs, and techniques can be separated into the king, emperor, and divine tiers. Is that correct? There¡¯s also the royal crystals, emperor crystal, and divine crystal.¡± Long Chen felt his head pounding from all the information.


    ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡±


    Long Chen nodded because he had learned a lot from him. He also had a framework of how the world worked from here onwards.


    ¡°Thank you very much.¡±


    ¡°No need to thank me. That said, where did you get your demonic wolf?¡± Jiang Cheng looked at Xiang, revealing a hint of greed in his eyes.


    ¡°It¡¯s from my hometown.¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure why Jiang Cheng kept talking about the wolf.


    ¡°I wonder, where is your hometown?¡± Jiang Cheng wanted to know.


    ¡°I can¡¯t say. We¡¯ve just met.¡± Long Chen couldn¡¯t fully trust Jiang Cheng yet. He was afraid that Jiang Cheng would bully the Cangyang Kingdom with his superior strength. He had already realized the problem when he was fighting earlier, so Long Chen had killed those who had heard him say that he came from the Cangyang Kingdom.


    ¡°Sorry, I was too rash,¡± Jiang Cheng said.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Do you know the name of the demonic beast?¡± Long Chen turned the question around.


    Jiang Cheng smiled bitterly and shook his head. ¡°I was interested in it because I had never seen it before. I¡¯m actually very interested in demonic beasts and read a lot about them, but I never saw one with an engraving of the sun on the forehead. I do know the weaker Moon Devouring Wolf though.¡±


    Jiang Cheng didn¡¯t sound like he was lying, but Long Chen still raised his guard. <em>I still need to keep my guard up around him because this is not my home. He might be kind enough to exin so much to me while even preparing a golden identity token for me, but there¡¯s no harm in being careful.</em>


    Jiang Cheng looked up and said excitedly, ¡°Brother Yang, look! We¡¯ve arrived at Yellow Martial City!¡±

 Chapter 455: Earthly Qi

    Chapter 455: Earthly Qi


    Long Chen looked up and saw a city on the horizon. It looked like a giantying down on the ground. A massive, yellow plume of Qi floated from the city center to the sky. Long Chen sensed a strong surge of Earthly Qi from the yellow plume.


    ¡°The Earthly Qi is so thick here!¡± Long Chen realized that the nature¡¯s spiritual energy in the area was tens of times denser than in the Counter Essence Realm.


    ¡°Of course. The cities of the Divine Martial Empire are built on Earth Veins. It might look barren, but the ground beneath us is actually the Earth Vein where liquid nature¡¯s spiritual energy flows through. If you look at Yellow Martial City, the yellow plumees from a hole on the ground that allows nature¡¯s spiritual energy to flow upwards. That¡¯s why nature''s spiritual energy here is so dense.¡±


    ¡°No wonder those at the Divine Martial Empire are so much stronger. The dense nature¡¯s spiritual energy makes them much stronger from birth.¡± Long Chen was speechless.


    ¡°You are correct. Yellow Martial City is just a normal city, but even those born in a smaller city would be able to unlock all of their Dragon Veins and reach the Ninth Dragon Stage. They can also form their Human Core at the age of one!¡±


    Long Chen was speechless. His grandfather had spent his entire life cultivating to reach the Ninth Dragon Stage, but those born here could reach it just by being born!


    ¡°Yellow Martial City is one of the more populous cities in the region. The yellow plume that¡¯s shooting up towards the sky is the Earthly Qi. Thanks to its nourishment, those who live in the city can easily reach the Heavenly Core Realm without any issue,¡± Jiang Cheng exined as they ran towards the city.


    Long Chen was indeed shocked.


    After seeing how grand the Divine Martial Territory was, he felt that the gap between him and Ling Xi was getting wider. If the Divine Martial Territory was this strong, Ling Xi¡¯s family was definitely leagues above that; it was possible that there were Divine Martial Realm cultivators in her family. There was no way Ling Xi¡¯s parents would approve of their marriage with his current strength.<em>Time to start working even harder,</em> Long Chen swore to himself. He didn¡¯tck the resources nor talent. He only needed time.


    Jiang Cheng suddenly asked, ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to go to the Ancient Demon Domain? Yellow Martial City is thergest city next to the Ancient Demon Domain. Just pass through the city and you will be able to reach it.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Thank you for exining it to me. I will repay you one day.¡±


    ¡°No need. We were brought together by fate. I should do what I can to help you.¡± Jiang Cheng shed a smile.


    His smile was innocent enough, but he was wearing an attire that suspiciously resembled that of a young master.


    Long Chen soon reached the city and saw that it was roughly the same size as the Biyang Imperial Capital, but it was much more grand. While the Biyang Imperial Capital was exquisite, Yellow Martial City was gnarly like a beast waiting to kill something.


    When he got close, Jiang Cheng gave him a golden identity token. ¡°Brother Yang, this is mine. You can just enter the city with it and use the name ¡®Jiang Cheng.¡¯¡±


    ¡°Then what will you use?¡±


    ¡°My family is somewhat influential, so I have another, but mine is a fake name.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. Being able to forge an identity token and using it meant that his family was nowhere as weak as he had thought. They soon reached the gate, and Long Chen saw thousands of Martial Alliance members wearing golden-yellow robes guarding the entrance.


    Long Chen lined up with Jiang Cheng at the back of the line. They soon moved forward without any issues as no one dared to cause trouble here. The Martial Alliance was here, and everyone knew that offending them was a bad idea.


    Soon, it was Jiang Cheng''s turn. Jiang Cheng took out another golden identity token and presented it to the guards. Long Chen failed to see the name on it, but the guards were visibly shaken and bowed a little before letting him enter the city.


    Long Chen noticed what was happening.


    <em>Who is he?</em>


    ¡°Jiang Cheng,e quick,¡± the real Jiang Cheng said to Long Chen.


    Long Chen nodded and gave the golden identity token to the guard. He examined the token, looked at Long Chen, and then gave him the permission to enter.


    <em>The guards didn¡¯t react when they saw the name on mine, but they did when Jiang Cheng showed his golden identity token. That meant that Jiang Cheng¡¯s real identity token was the one in his hands and mine¡¯s a fake. He¡¯s tricking me!</em>


    ¡°Brother Yang, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°Nothing. I¡¯m just shocked at how dense nature''s spiritual energy is here.¡± Long Chen smiled. The spiritual energy in this city was indeed stronger than in the Counter Essence Realm. The gasing out of the cracks on the ground made the ce feel like a furnace.


    But it was veryfortable to be in the city.


    ¡°Yellow Martial City is just a regr city. You might have a chance to go to the headquarters of the Martial Alliance at Martial Overlord City one day. Then you will know what dense nature''s spiritual energy really feels like.¡± Jiang Cheng¡¯s eyes revealed a look of admiration.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t been there before?¡±


    ¡°Of course not. Only important members of the Martial Alliance are allowed to enter. I am nowhere near qualified.¡±


    They continued walking and talking to each other. Long Chen looked at the crowd around him and found that indeed everyone here was very strong. He never spotted anyone below the Earthly Martial Realm.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, are you taking me to get an identity token?¡±


    He initially trusted Jiang Cheng somewhat, but based on the reaction of the guards outside the city just now, Jiang Cheng likely was not as kind as he had thought. Long Chen wanted to know what his goal was.


    Xiang was currently in Long Chen¡¯s robes. He looked at the city with curiosity.


    ¡°My friends in the Martial Alliance are at the western side of the city. We are at the eastern side right now. We can get there soon, but I want to get something at the auction today. It¡¯s starting soon, so I was hoping that you could wait for me a bit.¡± Jiang Cheng revealed a bitter expression at the mention of the dy.


    Long Chen thought about it. He had Blood Warp, and Jiang Cheng was only roughly at the Third Passage Stage, so he wasn¡¯t a huge threat. Long Chen nodded. ¡°You¡¯ve helped me quite a bit, so I don¡¯t mind the small dy. Please show me the way.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Brother Yang.¡± Jiang Cheng nodded and took Long Chen around the city. They arrived at a building that resembled the Dawn Trading Alliance¡¯s headquarters. Under the guidance of the guard, Jiang Cheng led Long Chen into the auction hall. It was starting soon, and Jiang Cheng entered the VIP booth.


    Long Chen looked down from the window and saw that it was dark down there. After waiting for a moment, the stage lit up. A beautiful girl wearing revealing clothes walked to the center of the stage and interacted with the guests.


    The girl¡¯s voice was sweet, so the guests were quickly enamored. She smiled and started the auction.


    ¡°Yang Qing, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m only here for one item, but then again, it would be a waste to let the other treasures go. I should probably get twenty items or so. If you need anything, just let me know and I will help you if I can. Just think of it as a gift. How does that sound?¡± Jiang Cheng smiled.


    ¡°Thank you, Brother Jiang.¡± Long Chen smiled. If Jiang Cheng wanted to harm himter on, there would be no harm in taking advantage of him while he could.


    Soon, items started being presented. The first few were various elementary Heaven-tier items. A small auction house in Yellow Martial City would normally have several intermediate Heaven-tier items.


    There were various items being auctioned off, such as spiritual herbs on the level of the Bloodseal Lotus, Heaven-tier techniques, and Divine Arms. But Long Chen didn¡¯t need anything at the elementary Heaven-tier right now. Jiang Cheng was waiting for thetter half of the auction, so they waited without talking.


    After dozens of items had been auctioned off, Xiang suddenly moved excitedly in Long Chen¡¯s robes. He stared at the item on disy, and Long Chen knew that it was incredible.

 Chapter 456: Fate My Ass!

    Chapter 456: Fate My Ass!


    ¡°We will now be auctioning off the core of a demonic beast!¡± The prettydy on the stage smiled as a red te was pushed to her side. Under the glittering light, the red te covered in red cloth looked very alluring, and it exuded a sense of enigma and suspense for the customers.


    The girl gestured at the te with her slender fingers. ¡°Everyone, take a guess at what this is. I¡¯m sure that most of you have sensed the dense fire energy exuding from it. This is indeed the core of a demonic beast with the fire attribute.¡±


    She then carefully lifted the red cloth, revealing a red demonic core that was still on fire. A beast¡¯s illusion was roaring inside the core. It appeared to be a very powerful and fearsome beast.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure most of you have guessed what it is. This is a Category Three Heaven-tier ming Lion¡¯s demonic core! This is an excellent demonic core for Beast Warriors. If you have enough Heavenly Passage Pills, it could help you advance into the Second Passage Stage from the first! Of course, I suggest that you refine it over time, or you might get burned! I won¡¯t say any more, so let¡¯s get the bidding started! The initial price is fifty Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    Once she finished announcing that, everyone started bidding and increasing the price. Fifty-one soon became eighty. At the same time, Jiang Cheng saw that Long Chen was interested in the demonic core. ¡°Brother Yang, do you want it? I recall that you are a Beast Warrior, so it should be useful for you. I will buy it for you if you are interested.¡±


    When he said that, he took secret nces at Xiang.


    ¡°I will be grateful if you do, Brother Jiang.¡±


    ¡°No worries. It¡¯s normal for you to not have any Heavenly Passage Pills since it¡¯s your first time here. Let me get it for you.¡±


    The price was already at a hundred pills, and no one was bidding anymore. That was the regr price of a Category Three Heaven-tier demonic core.Just then, Jiang Cheng shouted from the booth, ¡°One hundred and twenty Heavenly Passage Pills.¡±


    The girl below was delighted because that was above the market price! Since no one else bidded further, she announced that the demonic core belonged to Jiang Cheng.


    The auction continued, and soon, someone sent the demonic core to Jiang Cheng. He then gave it to Long Chen, who was more than happy to ept it.


    ¡°I hope it helps you grow stronger, Brother Yang.¡± Jiang Cheng smiled. Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure why he was so happy.


    <em>Why is he so happy even though he spent so much money buying demonic core for me? He¡¯s probably loaded. </em>Long Chen was considering ¡°taking¡± Jiang Cheng¡¯s Heavenly Passage Pills if thetter showed hostility.


    The auction was nearing its end. An intermediate Heaven-tier battleax was disyed, and everyone got excited about it. Someone bought it for two thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. The time for the final item hade. As the girl brought the suspense to the peak, everyone was squirming in their seats, waiting to catch a glimpse of the final treasure.


    ¡°This is the final item of the auction. I¡¯m sure many of you came all the way here for a chance to obtain it. Come, bring up the final item.¡±


    Someone pushed over a cart with a ck te on it. It was covered in a ck cloth too. The girl smiled and carefully revealed the final item. On the te was a shining cor roughly twenty centimeters in diameter. The cor wasn¡¯t normal¡ªit glowed and exuded an eerie aura. There were even hints of a bloodthirsty aura in it. Long Chen observed the cor and saw that there were many beast souls howling inside of it.


    ¡°This is the Soul Binder, an Intermediate Heaven-tier treasure! I¡¯m sure almost everyone here knows how to use it! It can be used to enve any demonic beast under the Category Six Heaven-tier! The beast will be your loyal subject, forever doing your bidding. If you capture one, you are essentially recruiting someone at the Sixth Passage Stage to your n or family! Who would miss this opportunity? Many people are willing to trade off all of their treasures just to obtain it! Hehe, sorry, that was just a joke, but the Soul Binder is a really rare treasure. You might never see one for sale again if you miss this chance! The price will start at five thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    Five thousand Heavenly Passage Pills was not a small amount, but it showed how precious the item was.


    To Long Chen, the price was far beyond what he could afford for now, but rather than the price, he was more concerned about the item. Jiang Cheng was itching to start the bidding, so Long Chen whispered, ¡°Xiang, I think something¡¯s wrong with Jiang Cheng.¡±


    ¡°I think he wants to buy the Soul Binder and then attack you. He¡¯s probably going to act once he gets it. Big Brother, what is he trying to get from you?¡± Xiang was still clueless.


    ¡°What a stupid wolf. He¡¯s clearly targeting you, not your big brother!¡± The fat cat sighed as he rolled around in the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°I see.¡± Long Chen nodded. ¡°No wonder he kept mentioning you. It seems that he knows a lot about demonic beasts. He probably knows that you are a Sun Devouring Wolf and knows what kind of ability you have. Maybe that¡¯s why he wants to buy the Soul Binder. He will use it to control you. Xiang, you are still a Category Nine Earth-tier beast. If he captures and feeds you, he will eventually have a Category Six Heaven-tier beast as his bodyguard!¡±


    ¡°Wow. He¡¯s so devious. If we hadn¡¯t noticed the behavior of the guards when we came into the city, we might¡¯ve been tricked by him. What a despicable man,¡± Xiang said angrily.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng is indeed very cunning. He probably already knew what items would be in the auction, which is why he wanted toe here first. He even got me the demonic core because he was certain that you would be able to consume it and increase your strength with it. That¡¯s why he¡¯s so happy even though he spent so much money on it.¡± Long Chen was secretly shocked that rather than targeting him, Jiang Cheng was targeting Xiang.


    If his n seeded, Jiang Cheng would definitely benefit greatly. Even Long Chen was secretly admiring Xiang¡¯s talent. If he nurtured Xiang properly, his little brother would really reach the peak of all demonic beasts. Jiang Cheng would literally be the luckiest man in the world if he used the Soul Binder on Xiang.


    <em>He probably came to Yellow Martial City to buy the Soul Binder but coincidentally saw me fighting the Martial Alliance and took a slight interest in me. But then he saw Xiang and followed me. He even tricked me intoing to Yellow Martial City!</em> Long Chen chuckled when he realized what was happening. He was originally very grateful for Jiang Cheng, but now that he knew the n, all his gratitude was gone.


    ¡°Big Brother, what should we do?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He¡¯s only at the Third Passage Stage, so I¡¯m stronger than him. Since he¡¯s underestimating us, let¡¯s just wait and see what happens to him. I might be able to obtain some Heavenly Passage Pills from him instead!¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Jiang Cheng was currently bidding for the cor. The Soul Binder was indeed a rare treasure. The price soon climbed up to ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.


    <em>He¡¯s cunning, but it seems that hees from a rich family. He¡¯spletely unphased by the idea of spending ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. </em>Long Chen was secretly surprised because he himself only had seventy pills. It wasn¡¯t even enough for him to reach the Second Passage Stage once he entered the Heavenly Passage Realm in the future.


    The bidding for the Soul Binder was nearing its end as very few people were still cing bids, but Jiang Cheng was the richest man around. He got impatient and immediately raised the price to fifteen thousand pills. Everyone else remained silent.


    Jiang Cheng sessfully obtained the Soul Binder.


    He happily put it away once the auction was over and patted Long Chen¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Brother Yang, the auction has finally ended. Sorry for taking up your time.¡±


    ¡°Brother Jiang, you are too humble. You bought me the demonic core, so it was worth the wait. I, Long Chen, don¡¯t know how to repay you!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± Jiang Cheng was taken aback because his name had changed ¡­


    ¡°Long Chen? Brother Jiang, is something wrong?¡± Long Chen was too used to saying his own name, so he had identally blurted it out.


    ¡°Oh ¡­ Uh ¡­ It¡¯s nothing, then. Since the auction is over, let¡¯s go get your identity token!¡± Jiang Cheng just brushed it off, assuming he had misheard.


    ¡°Thank you, Brother Jiang. Once I enter the Ancient Demon Domain and be sessful, I will repay you for your help today!¡±


    ¡°No worries. Fate is what brought us together.¡±


    <em>Fate my ass! </em>Long Chen silently cursed in his heart.

 Chapter 457: Ancient Trinity Seal

    Chapter 457: Ancient Trinity Seal


    Long Chen and Jiang Cheng left the auction house. Under his guidance, they circled around Yellow Martial City.


    ¡°Brother Yang, we will reach the west side of the city soon. My friends are over there.¡±


    Long Chen said nothing and nodded.


    He looked around and saw that they were indeed at the west side of the city. But the further they walked, the more deste it was. The Earthly Qi was weaker in this area, so there were fewer people around. The Divine Martial Empire didn¡¯t have a lot of people in the first ce, but most of them were strong. The poption of Yellow Martial City seemed to be even smaller than Yuanling City¡¯s.


    The stronger the individuals in an area, the easier it was for them to eliminate the weak.


    Soon, Long Chen and Jiang Cheng arrived at a dpidated building with a broken door. Dust covered the interior, indicating that it had been a long time since anyone lived inside.


    ¡°We are here! You¡¯re feeling nervous, right? They are in there.¡± Jiang Cheng opened the door and led Long Chen in.


    Long Chen chuckled because he knew that Jiang Cheng was clearly not trying to help him. It had been a long time since someone lived there, so how could the people from the Martial Alliance be inside? And they would never live somewhere so deste in the first ce.


    He had a feeling that Jiang Cheng was going to reveal his evil side soon.Long Chen soon reached the dining hall of the estate. The room wasrge, but the floor, table, and chairs were covered in dust. It was clear that no one had lived here for at least ten years.


    ¡°Brother Jiang, you said your friends are here? Why is the ce covered in dust?¡± Long Chen had asked a stupid question on purpose.


    Jiang Cheng was standing in the middle of the hall, and he slowly turned around. His gaze had changed; he was looking at Xiang with greedy eyes. ¡°Yang Qing, don¡¯t be in such a rush. They are probably out and mighte back soon. What if we take this time to discuss something?¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    Staring at how stupid Long Chen looked, Jiang Cheng chuckled. He looked at Xiang and said without any reservations, ¡°Brother Yang, I¡¯ve exined a lot of things about this ce to you, and even gifted you the demonic core. I¡¯m even forging a golden identity token for you. Have I treated you well?¡±


    ¡°Brother Jiang, you¡¯ve indeed treated me well. I will forever remember your help, but what are you thinking about discussing?¡±


    Jiang Cheng never took his eyes off Xiang. ¡°I had a strange feeling the moment I saw your demonic beast. I really love it. I wonder, can give it to me, Brother Yang? I will pay you as many Heavenly Passage Pills as you want for it.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that. Xiang is my sworn brother. How can I just give him to you? Even if you gave me tens of millions of Heavenly Passage Pills, I will never hand him over.¡± Just as he had expected, Jiang Cheng was indeed aiming to take Xiang. That was why he had bought the Soul Binder.


    Seeing how adamant Long Chen was, Jiang Cheng was taken back. He didn¡¯t want to fight, so he had tried using words instead, but he was more than happy to resort to violence.


    Jiang Cheng growled, ¡°Brother Yang, I really want your demonic beast. Can you really not give it to me?¡±


    Long Chen suddenlyughed.


    ¡°Alright, Jiang Cheng, I will stop joking with you. Ever since I knew you were aiming for Xiang the moment I saw the Soul Binder in the auction house. You probably approached me because you saw that he was a Sun Devouring Wolf, right?¡±


    Long Chen decided to reveal everything.


    Jiang Cheng was stunned. He thought he had Long Chen in his grasp, but he was the monkey instead. He felt humiliated and got angry. ¡°I see. But, Yang Qing, why did youe here if you knew I was trying to get your demonic beast? Are you stupid or something?¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s nonchnt attitude invoked a strong killing intent from Jiang Cheng, and heughed out of rage. ¡°Good! I actually wanted to let you live, but I see that you must die today. Don¡¯t me me for doing this. You are actually quite a talented person, but it¡¯s such a shame that you will die just after arriving at the Divine Martial Empire.¡±


    Long Chen was toozy to argue with him.


    Since Jiang Cheng wanted to kill him, Long Chen had no incentive to let him live. He would never let someone like him live.


    Also, Long Chen knew that Jiang Cheng came from an incredible family. Since he could spend fifteen thousand Heavenly Passage Pills on the Soul Binder with such ease, that meant that he had more in his Universe Pouch. Long Chen needed pills urgently, so there was no reason for him to not take them.


    Both of them were ready to strike.


    Long Chen suddenly transformed. He had to rely on his Dragon Soul Transformation because without it, he would never be able to win against Jiang Cheng.


    Jiang Cheng hissed when Long Chen finished transforming. He had only seen Long Chen¡¯s transformed state from afar, so he was shocked by how dense Long Chen¡¯s murderous aura was. The ancient scent of blood and massacre made him feel like kneeling for forgiveness.


    <em>It¡¯s just an illusion!</em>


    His Third Passage Stage Qi exploded outwards.


    Being at the Third Passage Stage meant that he had connected three dan meridian points, which were essentially three core areas where Qi collected. His Qi surged through his meridian points and his body before exploding in power. He was several times stronger than a regr Second Passage Stage cultivator.


    <em>Jiang Cheng is from a powerful family, so he probably has a lot of secret techniques! </em>


    But that was not the only thing Long Chen noticed.


    <em>It seems that Jiang Cheng is very inept inbat, based on how he is circting his Qi and his behavior. Even though his Qi is dense, it¡¯s quite unstable. He probably relied on spiritual herbs and pills to increase his cultivation level!</em>


    Long Chen carefully observed his opponent and came up with a n.


    <em>Jiang Cheng must be the son or grandson of someone from a great family, but maybe his body is too weak to go above the Third Passage Stage even after consuming so many resources.</em>


    Long Chen quickly pieced the bits of information together.


    <em>I will just end it quickly.</em>


    Long Chen became a blood-red illusion as he charged at Jiang Cheng. His speed came from his strong physical body, so it was faster than when he infused his body with Qi. He was also more agile and nimble, allowing him to fight more efficiently in such a small ce.


    ¡°Your speed is good!¡± Jiang Cheng howled to mask his fear when he saw Long Chen approach him. Jiang Cheng slid around the battlefield and ran towards Long Chen too. At thest moment, his Qi exploded. The air rippled and the chairs were sent flying.


    Long Chen was the first one to move, but Jiang Cheng was the first one to strike.


    ¡°Ancient Trinity Seal!¡± Halfway in the air, Jiang Cheng quickly formed a seal with his fingers. It was so fast that it rivaled the wingbeat of a dragonfly. He quickly finished the seal and threw it at Long Chen.


    The air itself was pushed down, causing the floorboards to start cracking.


    <em>It must be an elementary Heaven-tier martial technique! </em>Long Chen saw through the attack immediately. The true Ancient Trinity Seal was probably stronger than the Supreme Demon Sword as it was one of the stronger techniques at the elementary Heaven-tier.


    However, Jiang Cheng had failed to use it to its full potential.


    Long Chen leaped up towards Jiang Cheng. Halfway in the air, the Demon Emperor Sword appeared in his hands.


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Demon Sword!¡± Long Chen shot out thousands of ck des to intercept Jiang Cheng¡¯s Ancient Trinity Seal. The Ancient Trinity Seal contained three different attacks, but Long Chen¡¯s relentless assault made him an easy target for the technique.


    ¡°You dare take an attack from someone at the Third Passage Stage?!¡± Jiang Cheng was shocked because Long Chen was not acting as he had thought. Rather than fighting head-on, Long Chen was attacking from the side.


    That meant that Jiang Cheng¡¯s attack wouldnd on Long Chen, but Long Chen¡¯s attack wouldnd too. Both of them would die like this!


    Jiang Cheng froze in shock, but Long Chen smiled as he continued his assault.


    ¡°You crazy bastard!¡± At thest moment, Jiang Cheng recalled his technique and retreated to dodge Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Demon Sword.


    <em>He has too little experience in realbat. </em>Long Chen sighed and shook his head. He had noticed Jiang Cheng¡¯s shorings, so he had used a method that risked both of their lives to make Jiang Cheng retreat.


    Long Chen used the space created and continued his assault!

 Chapter 458: Nine Major Meridian Points

    Chapter 458: Nine Major Meridian Points


    In that instant, Long Chen increased his speed and used the first stage of the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Seduction.


    The Soul Swallowing Gaze was the technique that Li Xuanji had taught him. Even though Long Chen had barely scratched the surface of the technique, it had saved him multiple times, especially the third stage, Sight. It allowed him to scan the surroundings for souls while ignoring the terrain. It had proven to be very useful.


    The first stage, Seduction, could also be used inbat. Jiang Cheng was gazing at Long Chen¡¯s eyes when the character for the word ¡°seduction¡± appeared in them. Jiang Cheng was nning on retreating to avoid Long Chen¡¯s attack beforeunching his own strike.


    But Long Chen¡¯s body suddenly became hazy and even started to disappear. His surroundings were fading and turning into a whirlpool that sucked him inside.


    <em>What¡¯s going on?</em>


    While he was confused, Jiang Cheng suddenly felt like his life was in danger. Due to the sudden change in his environment, he had slowed down enough for Long Chen to reach him. When Jiang Cheng snapped out of it, Long Chen was already by his side.


    ¡°AH!¡± Jiang Cheng shouted out in fear, but no one was here to hear him due to how deste the ce was. Long Chen smiled and stabbed Jiang Cheng¡¯s neck with the Demon Emperor Sword.


    Jiang Cheng¡¯s final shout was cut off by Long Chen¡¯s Demon Emperor Sword. Even though he was a Third Passage Stage cultivator, he had lost to Long Chen because thetter had a clear understanding of his heart. Long Chen had suppressed him from the very start.


    Even so, Jiang Cheng did not die instantly. His eyes widened in shock and he started wheezing, ovee with despair. He knew that he would die the moment Long Chen pulled the sword out.¡°I was actually quite grateful to you for helping me so much, but to think that you were trying to harm me all along. This is what you deserve. You shouldn¡¯t try to befriend people just to steal their stuff. Reflect on this when you go down to hell.¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice was chilly.


    Jiang Cheng couldn¡¯t even speak. His eyes grew darker as his life slowly faded.


    This was the oue of trying to harm Long Chen.


    Long Chen withdrew the sword, and Jiang Cheng¡¯s body slowly slumped to the ground. When he died, a golden light flew off his body. It was a golden identity token! It shot past Long Chen and flew high up in the air. Long Chen was shocked. If he saw it right, that was Jiang Cheng¡¯s true golden identity token!


    <em>I cannot stay here for long! </em>Long Chen frowned and immediately took Jiang Cheng¡¯s Universe Pouch. Without even looking at its contents, he threw everything into the Primordial Realm before running out of the building.


    <em>The golden identity token with the name ¡®Jiang Cheng¡¯ is still here, but the one he used to enter the city has flown away. Maybe because he¡¯s from some noble family, his real token flew back to his family when he died. </em>


    Long Chen soon reached the western city gate. There were people guarding it too, so he took out the Jiang Cheng golden identity token to get out of the city. <em>This token is clearly not his real one. If I had taken someone else¡¯s token, it¡¯s possible that the guards would detect the discrepancies. But since this token was intended for him to get around without using his real one, I should be fine.</em>


    Soon, Long Chen got through the line and revealed his token. The guards looked at it before nodding. ¡°Jiang Cheng. Alright, you can leave now.¡±


    Long Chen then ran out of the city. After passing the inspection, he was sure that he could use it without any issues. After killing so many people from the Martial Alliance, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t dare to get one made for himself.


    <em>The person on the third spot of the bounty board is also called Long Chen. Even though it¡¯s a coincidence, I cannot use my real name. I will have to use this name, Jiang Cheng, instead. </em>Long Chen had no choice. Even though he already had a fake name, Yang Qing, he would have to use the name Jiang Cheng.


    <em>He said that the path on the other side of Yellow Martial City leads to the Ancient Demon Domain. I should be able to reach it without any issues, but I need to find a ce to hide first to count what I¡¯ve earned.</em>


    Xiang also needed a safe ce to eat the demonic core of the zing Lion. With it, he would be able to reach the Heaven-tier.


    Xiang was very excited. ¡°Big Brother!¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go find a ce to hide first.¡±


    Long Chen saw a mountain while running on the path. He increased his speed and ran towards the deste mountain. The Divine Martial Empire was massive, but there were not a lot of people, so there was no one in sight outside the city.


    He soon reached the mountain and used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to find a rtively quiet spot, choosing a small cave that was both quiet and safe. No one was around them either. Even if someone approached, Long Chen would easily spot them with the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    ¡°Xiang, take the core and refine it. You need to be a Heaven-tier demonic beast as soon as possible.¡± Long Chen immediately took the core out and gave it to Xiang.


    The fat cat suddenly said, ¡°Let the stupid dog refine it in the Primordial Realm. There might be unexpected gains.¡±


    Long Chen thought about it. The Primordial Realm did contain Primordial Qi, so it was possible Xiang would gain something if he refined the core there. And if something happened to Long Chen outside, Xiang would be safe. He nodded and sent Xiang into the Primordial Realm.


    There were three areas inside the Primordial Realm that Long Chen had separated. The first area was where the cat was. Since he was the original resident of the ce, it was normal for him to have such a big space for himself.


    The remaining two areas were where Xiang resided and where Long Chen ced his items. Long Chen¡¯s Demon Emperor Sword and other objects were ced here, including the Heavenly Passage Pills. Jiang Cheng¡¯s items were there as well.


    <em>He didn¡¯t have as much as I thought. After paying fifteen thousand Heavenly Passage Pills for the Soul Binder, there were only five thousand left in his Universe Pouch. I think he came all the way here just to buy the Soul Binder.</em>


    But five thousand Heavenly Passage Pills was a good amount. He also had the Soul Binder. If Long Chen sold it, he could get another ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills or more. He wouldn¡¯t have to worry about progressing his cultivation anytime soon.


    Since Jiang Cheng hade all this way just for the Soul Binder, he hadn¡¯t brought a lot of things. There were random personal items that Long Chen burned away. All that was left was an elementary Heaven-tier spiritual herb.


    <em>His father probably thought that there was a good chance he would be killed. If he brought any advanced Heaven-tier martial techniques with him, he might¡¯ve really gotten robbed and the techniques would have been leaked. That would be a heavy blow to his family.</em>


    Except for the five thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, Long Chen¡¯srgest reward was the golden identity token. If he didn¡¯t have it, it would be difficult for him to move around.


    <em>Just as Master said, I should join arge sect. If I don¡¯t, I¡¯ll just be buzzing around like a headless fly with no knowledge of how to increase my strength; I won''t even be able to get any techniques. Plus, I¡¯ve be the enemy of the Martial Alliance and need a n to protect me. I have to go to the Ancient Demon Domain!</em>


    Long Chen shook his head bitterly.


    <em>Once XIang finishes refining the demonic core, I have to go to the Ancient Demon Domain as quickly as possible. But for now, it¡¯s time to advance into the Heavenly Passage Realm.</em>


    After absorbing a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence, Long Chen¡¯s cultivation speed had increased by tenfold. It would¡¯ve taken him several months to reach the Heavenly Passage Realm before, but now it would only take him ten days.


    It was clear that his talent in cultivation was absurd.


    <em>I¡¯ve finished condensing the eighteen starry rivers in my body. The interior of my body is just like the night sky, but for it toe alive, I need to carve out the nine meridian points in my body. There are six spiritual meridian points, two earthly meridian points, and one heavenly meridian point. The first meridian point is the dan meridian point!</em>


    The dan meridian point was located in the dantian. Ever since he reached the Heavenly River Realm, his dantian had been left untouched, but now he has to activate it once more to form the core of his Qi. This time, he had the help of the eighteen starry rivers.


    Xiang also needed time to cultivate, so Long Chen sat down and got ready to advance into the final realm of the Four Basic Realms.

 Chapter 459: Advance into the Heavenly Passage Realm

    Chapter 459: Advance into the Heavenly Passage Realm


    The dan meridian point.


    It was the easiest of the nine meridian points to activate. It was located at the dantian, which used to be the core of the Qi. The other meridian points were never used before, so this one was simple.


    To activate it, one would need a lot of Heavenly Passage Pills to supplement the Qi. One would then need to reinforce it before letting the Qi condense and form the core. Only then would the meridian point bepleted.


    Long Chen had both the Heavenly Passage Pills and Qi to do so now. Soon, he took out fifty Heavenly Passage Pills from the Primordial Realm and consumed thirty of them. The Heavenly Passage Pills quickly became a white torrent that swept past his veins. Under his control, the white torrent fused with his Qi.


    His Qi was now glowing white like milk. Once it waspletely fused, Long Chen ate the remaining twenty. He needed more than thirty because his Qi was special.


    But fifty Heavenly Passage Pills weren¡¯t enough either.


    <em>Thankfully, I took Jiang Cheng¡¯s Heavenly Passage Pills, or this wouldn¡¯t have worked. </em>Long Chen kept consuming Heavenly Passage Pills until he ate three hundred of them. Only then did his Qi start to change a little and could start carving out the first meridian point.


    <em>A regr person would¡¯ve needed only thirty, but I need three hundred. If this goes on, I will need a ridiculous amount to reach the Ninth Passage Stage. </em>Long Chen did a rough calction and estimated that he would need millions of them.


    <em>I never needed to worry about Heavenly River Pills when I was at the Heavenly River Stage since I somehow always managed to get a lot, but now it¡¯s different since I came here empty-handed. Looks like I need to work hard to get more Heavenly Passage Pills, or I will fall behind even if I use Blood Transmutation!</em>Just then, he started carving out the first meridian point with his transformed Qi. The Qi from his eighteen starry rivers also surged towards his dantian.


    Qi was usually violent, but with the mellow strength of the Heavenly Passage Pills wrapping around it, he could control all eighteen branches of Qi from his eighteen starry rivers.


    Everything was ready, and Long Chen was preparing to advance to the next stage using his own Qi rather than Blood Transmutation, so it was much simpler than he had thought.


    The eighteen branches of Qi flowed into his dantian. Rather than destroying it, they circted and formed a small, white whirlpool.


    Long Chen felt like his dantian was about to burst.


    <em>It¡¯s never simple!</em>


    He endured it while making sure the Qi didn¡¯t harm his dantian. Time slowly passed, and a small, white core formed above the whirlpool. The core was as pretty as a gemstone.


    It was the size of a bean, but it contained unimaginable power, more than the Heavenly Core Realm by tens of thousands of times. Long Chen now realized the difference in strength between the Heavenly Core Realm and the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    ¡°Sess.¡± Long Chen sighed in relief as his white Qi swirled around the white core and released his control. His dantian was now the core of the eighteen rivers, so the Qi circted through it before returning to the starry rivers. This way, his entire body was filled with Qi.


    The power of the Heavenly Passage Pills slowly dissipated.


    The main usage of Heavenly Passage Pills was to stabilize the violent Qi. Now that it was done, the effect would dissipate. Long Chen¡¯s Qi slowly returned back to its original red color.


    Whenever Long Chen transformed, his Qi turned blood-red.


    After the Heavenly Passage Pills¡¯ effect disappeared, his Qi started circting through the whirlpool and starry rivers ten times faster than before. A mysterious energy radiated from the inside of his body.


    The howling Qi surged through his body rapidly.


    Long Chen endured it.


    As he endured, the new cirction path formed and stabilized. Long Chen was now officially at the Heavenly Passage Realm.


    He smiled with satisfaction when he saw the red whirlpool and the core above it.


    <em>The core shoulde to life when I¡¯m in battle. It will sink into the whirlpool and radiate a lot of energy. When I¡¯m not in battle, my Qi will be more reserved, simr to how a Heavenly River Realm cultivator is. So this is the difference between the two.</em>


    Long Chen stood up and examined his body.


    <em>Seventy percent of my Qi is in that little core, so only thirty percent of it is circting through my body! Even so, I¡¯m three times stronger than when I was at the Ninth River Stage. So my Qi reserves have increased by tenfold again.</em>


    Since he was at the Heavenly Passage Realm, a new path to cultivation had unfolded in front of him again. This was a good start. As long as he continued, he would have no issues growing stronger.


    <em>I¡¯ve be so strong by just carving out the first meridian point. I wonder how strong I will get when I carve out all of the meridian points? With my cultivation speed, this won¡¯t be difficult. I just need more Heavenly Passage Pills. I¡¯ve used up three hundred for the first stage, and five thousand of them might only be enough for me to reach the Third Passage Stage ¡­</em>


    Long Chen felt depressed.


    <em>It seems that I need to work hard to find more Heavenly Passage Pills. Without them stabilizing my Qi, my meridian points will be destroyed since they are fragile.</em>


    Long Chen pondered as he familiarized himself with his new body.


    ¡°Why are you so easily satisfied? You¡¯re that happy when you¡¯ve merely reached the Heavenly Passage Realm. I really can¡¯t help butugh at you.¡± The cat scoffed at Long Chen from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°You still can¡¯t beat me,¡± Long Chen retorted.


    ¡°What?! You brat! If I hadn¡¯t used all my power reviving everyone at Baiyang Town, I would¡¯ve destroyed the Divine Martial Empire with just a single sneeze.¡±


    ¡°What a joke.¡±


    The fat cat remained silent.


    Just then, Long Chen felt Xiang stirring in the Primordial Realm. Xiang¡¯s body was burning with a ck me, making him look like he was resurrecting from the ashes. His body was also changing¡ªhe had shrunk from three to two meters tall. Even so, his body was now much morepact and denser.


    Once the fire was gone, a horrible presence radiated off Xiang. It was the presence of a Heaven-tier demonic beast, and he was also emitting an incredible heat.


    He opened his eyes, and two golden lights shot out of the Primordial Realm and lit up the small cave.


    ¡°What the?!¡± Long Chen was shocked to see that Xiang¡¯s eyes had turned golden. ck mes burned in them like ck suns in the skies. Long Chen closed his eyes because merely looking at them was painful.


    When he opened them again, the golden light had disappeared and Xiang came out of the Primordial Realm. His eyes were still golden and the ck mes were still lit; even his limbs were on fire. His eyes and the marking of the sun formed a triangle on his face.


    ¡°Big Brother, I think I¡¯ve be stronger, and I think I got a new talent ¡­¡± Xiang¡¯s voice was hoarse.


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    ¡°zing Lions can control mes. Their mastery over mes can be used in many ways, even increasing the strength of their fire by three times. It¡¯s an incredible talent!¡±


    ¡°So what does that have to do with you?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure why Xiang was exining this.


    ¡°I have obtained that talent.¡±

 Chapter 460: Pyrokinesis

    Chapter 460: Pyrokinesis


    Xiang breathed out some regr fire and controlled it. He then changed the shape of the fire and made it dance around the cave with a surprising degree of uracy and speed.


    ¡°Is this your new talent? Pyrokinesis?¡± Long Chen was admiring it.


    ¡°No, you are wrong. It¡¯s not my talent, but the zing Lion¡¯s.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure what Xiang meant.


    Xiang excitedly answered, ¡°I did unlock a new talent once I reached the Heaven-tier. My talent is that I can plunder the talents of other beasts by consuming their demonic cores as long as they are of the fire attribute. Since I¡¯ve devoured the core of a zing Lion, I managed to copy its talent in Pyrokinesis. My talent, however, is not absolute. I won¡¯t always be able to take the talents of other beasts, roughly only one-third of the time.¡±


    Even the cat was impressed by Xiang¡¯s talent, so he interjected and exined, ¡°Your talent is indeed incredible. You have only consumed the demonic cores of weaker beasts so far, but when you get stronger, the beasts around you will be powerful enough to threaten the verynds themselves. All of them have incredible talents on their own. If you copy them, you will be the most powerful of all beasts.¡±


    His new talent was much more important than his breakthrough to the Heaven-tier.


    ¡°Congrattions, Xiang!¡± Long Chen was happy.


    ¡°And you have reached the Heavenly Passage Realm. Before that, you could kill someone at the Third Passage Stage, but now that you are at the Heavenly Passage Realm, you can now fight against stronger people. I¡¯m still too weak to help you. Back when we first met in Baiyang Town, I was stronger than you, but now the roles have been reversed after just one year.¡± Xiang sighed.¡°Don¡¯t worry. Who knows where we will stand in another year? Now that everything is over, we should head to the Ancient Demon Domain. We need to go there to find the entrance of the Ancient Graveyard. They should know where it is!¡±


    Long Chen then took Xiang and returned to the path. Since Xiang¡¯s speed had grown, Long Chen sat on his back and they ran across the ins. Initially, they met no one, but they soon saw more and more people as they approached the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°The skies are darker up ahead, and there are several gray mountains. Wait, there are dozens of pirs of Earthly Qi shooting up into the skies at the mountain ranges. Each one has more Earthly Qis than the one at Yellow Martial City. That must be the Ancient Demon Domain. To think that the Earthly Qi is so dense there. But why is there so little vegetation even though there¡¯s so much Earthly Qi? Cat, do you know why?¡±


    The fat cat rolled his eyes in the Primordial Realm. ¡°How would I know? I¡¯ve wasted so much energy just to save you that my senses are already dull, but ¡­ I think I know the reason why. There¡¯s no Life Qi in the ground. Nothing can grow with just Earthly Qi.¡±


    ¡°Life Qi? What is that?¡± Long Chen never heard of it before.


    ¡°Idiot. There are different kinds of Qis and energies in this world. For example, Earthly Qi is suitable for cultivation. The Qi here is much higher quality than in the Cangyang Kingdom. Of course, there are several other types of Qi that are stronger. Life Qi is one of them. For some strange reason, it¡¯s spread out evenly on the Dragon Continent. Usually, most ces have the same amount of Life Qi since it¡¯s so evenly distributed even though it¡¯s the key to life. This ce here ¡­ has even less Life Qi than the Cangyang Kingdom. Something¡¯s probably consuming it.¡±


    Long Chen had to admit that the cat was more informed of the world than Ling Xi, or at least he had never heard Ling Xi talk about it.


    ¡°Life Qi is needed to replenish life, but you don¡¯t really need it since you have Rewind. It¡¯s the ultimate technique to save your life.¡±


    <em>Something is consuming the Life Qi here? What kind of strange being is in the Ancient Demon Domain? </em>Long Chen had a fleeting thought, but he soon pushed it to the back of his mind. It didn¡¯t matter to him because he was here to cultivate.


    He would reach the Ancient Demon Domain soon, so Xiang became small again and Long Chen hid him in his clothes. Long Chen would never keep him in the Primordial Realm if Xiang didn¡¯t want to.


    ¡°Big Brother, we¡¯re approaching a town. There are a lot of people too. It''s probably because we are close to the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    Long Chen saw a lot of young cultivators riding their mounts towards the small town.


    ¡°Are they all entering the Ancient Demon Domain to cultivate? I need more information.¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t know anything about the ce.


    Since he had just entered the First Passage Stage, no one paid him any attention. Long Chen soon brought Xiang close to the town. Other than the asional gaze of the people looking at Xiang, no one paid them any attention.


    When he reached the entrance, he saw several Martial Alliance guards. He used his fake golden identity token to enter the town.


    A lot of young cultivators were rushing around the streets. Some of them were being escorted by their parents and masters.


    <em>It might be too weird if I just ask someone on the street. Let¡¯s find an inn or a restaurant to get some information.</em>


    After some time, Long Chen found thergest inn in the town, the Ten Thousand Floating Inn. Under the guidance of the waiter, he sat inside and ordered some food with wine. He enjoyed his meal while listening around.


    There were many young cultivators below the age of twenty here, but everyone was already at the First or Second Passage Stage. Some of them were even at the Third Passage Stage. All of them would¡¯ve been the strongest people in the Cangyang Kingdom, but they were nothing here.


    Long Chen soon learned why the town was buzzing. All of them were here to join the qualifiers to enter the Ancient Demon Domain. The Ancient Demon Domain conducted it once a year, and Long Chen had coincidentally arrived just in time for it. The qualifiers had been ongoing for a couple of days, so those arriving today were technicallyte. That was why most people were panicking as they ran across the town to reach the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°I heard that there are even more people this year. I think there are eighty thousand participants, but only seventy will pass, and only seven of them will be the direct disciples of the seven Demon Kings. Thepetition is fierce!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. The Ancient Demon Domain is one of thergest superpowers. There¡¯s nothing but benefits if you manage to join them. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve been working on entering for the past few years ever since I reached the Heavenly Passage Realm at sixteen. I¡¯ve failed three times, and this is myst chance!¡±


    ¡°I hope you seed, but I fear that your chances are slim since you¡¯re only at the Second Passage Stage.¡±


    ¡°I have no choice but to test my luck.¡±


    Long Chen learned a lot from them.


    <em>Another qualifier? </em>Long Chen had joined two strong factions in the past before, the Lingwu family and the Heavenly Demon Pce. He became Zhao Qingyun¡¯s direct disciple without any hassle, while it had required luck and skills to enter the Lingwu family. The qualifiers of the Ancient Demon Domain were most likely simr to thetter.


    But as one of the strongest factions, their rules were probably very strict. Eighty thousand people and only seventy could join them. That was a one-in-a-thousand chance. Those below a certain cultivation level and those whocked battle experience would have a hard time qualifying.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Even if you fail, you can still join the Martial Alliance. If your performance is good, you might get called to cultivate in Martial Overlord City. You might even be one of the top managers of the Martial Alliance! That¡¯s even better!¡±


    ¡°You are right, but we still need to work hard to enter the Ancient Demon Domain. The people you talk of are all super geniuses who were recruited immediately by them. They are nothing like us ¡­¡±


    Long Chen continued eating while listening to the news. The more he heard, the more he wanted to join the qualifiers. The inn was packed, so he heard a lot of information. He was preparing to find someone to talk about the Martial Alliance when the door to the inn suddenly mmed open and a small girl ran in.


    Her eyes lit up the moment she saw Xiang sitting beside Long Chen.

 Chapter 461: Day of the Nine Suns

    Long Chen looked over and saw that she was a ten-year-old girl. She was merely a child with pink cheeks andrge eyes. Her skin was fair, and she wore a little yellow coat. There was one shiny silver bracelet on each of her wrists and pink cloth shoes on her feet. When she walked, the bells on her bracelets tinkled just like her melodious giggles, attracting a lot of attention.


    <em>This girl is the seedling of a pretty woman! She¡¯s so adorable at such a young age; she¡¯ll definitely be a beauty when she¡¯s older. </em>This was Long Chen¡¯s first thought.


    Little Cat was mesmerized the moment it saw the girl, drooling out of its mouth. It cried emotionally, ¡°What ¡­ what a pretty girl! She¡¯s exactly my type! Oh no, my mind has been muddled by her beauty! Long Chen, save me! I can¡¯t take it anymore!¡±


    The panicked look on Little Cat¡¯s face made Long Chen speechless.


    ¡°You perverted cat! I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re interested in a child! You¡¯re creepy ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled in exasperation.


    Little Cat was so emotional that it stuttered and could not stand on its legs. Its eyes peeked out of Long Chen¡¯s chest as it stared at the girl without even blinking. It chuckled, saying, ¡°She¡¯s top-tier! Top-tier! The heavens are generous to me for giving me such a top-tier gift! My life finally has a purpose.¡±


    ¡°Get out of here. You don¡¯t even have a body, and the girl isn¡¯t even ten yet. Fat Cat, I didn¡¯t know you were a pervert,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand! Do you know that love thates from the soul is forever? She¡¯s not even ten, so nothing is formed yet. She¡¯s like a statue that I can carve. She¡¯s the symbol of purity!¡± Little Cat still kept on talking.


    The girl was walking towards Long Chen, and as she giggled, her canine teeth showed as well as her dimples, making her look extra adorable.When she arrived by Long Chen¡¯s side, she sat down on the stool next to him and rested her chin on the table. She then ced her small hands on the table, and herrge, twinkling eyes stared at Xiang on Long Chen¡¯s chest.


    ¡°You little ck dog! Get out of my way! My goddess is looking at me! You¡¯re blocking her view!¡± roared Little Cat in the Primordial Realm.


    The girl looked pitifully at Long Chen and said cautiously, ¡°Big Brother, Qi Qi wants to hug the puppy ¡­ Can I?¡±


    The moment Long Chen heard her sweet, soft voice, he knew that she was an expert at asking for what she wanted.


    ¡°What?¡± Little Cat felt like it had been struck by lightning. The goddess was interested in the dog! Little Cat was grief-stricken!


    ¡°It makes no sense! She¡¯s such a beautiful girl, but her judgment of beauty is problematic. It makes no sense at all! The dog is ck and tries to act cool; how could his handsomenesspare to mine?¡±


    Long Chen ignored Little Cat¡¯s cries. He knew that Xiang¡¯s look was killer for little girls. If she wanted to carry Xiang, she had to get his permission. It had nothing to do with Long Chen.


    ¡°You want to carry him? You¡¯ll have to ask Brother Wolf if he agrees,¡± said Long Chen, amused.


    The girl was overjoyed. With a mischievous sparkle in her eyes, she turned to Xiang and asked sweetly, ¡°Little puppy! Could you let Sister Qi carry you? If you agree, blink once!¡±


    The girl was very smart. Animals usually blinked, including demonic beasts.


    However, to her shock, Xiang¡¯s eyes widened. His golden eyes did not blink even once. The little girl waited until she broke down.


    Long Chen knew that Xiang would not entertain the girl.


    ¡°Little girl, what is your name?¡± asked Long Chen when he saw her pitiful look.


    ¡°I¡¯m Huangfu Qi,¡± she answered sadly.


    Long Chen was interested in her because she was just too powerful. He could tell that Huangfu Qi was stronger than all the teenagers present. She was clearly barely ten years old, yet she was at the Third Passage Stage and was likely as strong as someone one stage higher. Long Chen was utterly shocked by her talent!


    ¡°And what is your name, Big Brother?¡± Huangfu Qi¡¯s eyes lit up. She had not seeded with Xiang, but now that Long Chen was speaking to her, and he looked like Xiang¡¯s owner, wouldn¡¯t she get to touch Xiang if she made Long Chen happy?


    ¡°My name is Jiang Cheng,¡± Long Chen answered without hesitation.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng? What a horrible name. I think I¡¯ll just call you ¡®Big Brother.¡¯ Sounds friendlier, right? Hehe. Big Brother?¡± Huangfu Qi leaned closer to Long Chen, looking up at him in an ingratiating manner, though her eyes asionally darted toward Xiang. It seemed she <em>really</em> liked Xiang.


    ¡°Qi Qi? Do you live in this town?¡± Long Chen was very curious about the girl.


    ¡°Nope. I¡¯m here to participate in the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s recruitment qualifiers! Big Brother, I¡¯m very strong, you know? When I fight¡­ Bam! Bam! Bam! No one is a match for me! Previously, an uncle tried to bully me, but I beat his butt and tossed him into the river!¡± As she grew more excited, Huangfu Qi burst into giggles.


    Little Cat felt a cold draft on his butt and smiled shyly as he continued to stare at Huangfu Qi in a daze. He demanded, ¡°Brother, you must make my goddess stay! If you do, I will let you call me ¡®fat cat!¡¯ What do you think?


    Long Chen pretended not to hear him. He looked at Huangfu Qi with surprise and said, ¡°You¡¯re here for the Ancient Demon Domain qualifiers too? You didn¡¯te here alone, did you?!¡±


    ¡°Of course I did. I¡¯m very smart! It was a very long journey, and I got lost many times!¡± said Huangfu Qi smugly.


    ¡°Where are your parents?¡± Long Chen was speechless.


    ¡°Shh!¡± Huangfu Qi quickly ced a finger on her lips and leaned close to Long Chen¡¯s ear. She whispered, ¡°Big Brother, I ran out here alone. Don¡¯t tell my parents, or I¡¯ll toss you into the river too! Hehe!¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    ¡°Big Brother, I really want to hug the puppy ¡­¡± Huangfu Qi stared at him with longing eyes and grabbed his sleeve. There were already tears sparkling in her eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯ll ask you a few questions. If you answer them, I¡¯ll let you hug him. Alright?¡± Long Chen said sternly. He wanted to learn more about the Ancient Demon Domain, and since the girl had approached him, he did not need to find someone else.


    As for Xiang, he would have to take one for the team ¡­


    ¡°Alright.¡± Huangfu Qi nodded obediently.


    ¡°What is your current cultivation level?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Fourth Passage Stage ¡­¡±


    Indeed, she was strong.


    In order to attain the Fourth Passage Stage at such a young age, she had to be a prodigy from arge faction. If she was from arge faction, why would shee to the Ancient Demon Domain?


    ¡°What do your parents do?¡± asked Long Chen.


    Huangfu Qi panicked and said hurriedly, ¡°Big Brother, I can¡¯t tell you that, or my father will give me a beating! Can I have another question?¡±


    Long Chen was only asking casually and did not intend to make her suffer. He wanted to know more about the Ancient Demon Domain, so he asked, ¡°Do you know who the strongest people of the Ancient Demon Domain are? How strong are they?¡±


    ¡°I know this one!¡± Huangfu Qi answered excitedly. ¡°The most powerful person is the Demon Emperor, Jiang Wuxie. He is at the Earthly Martial Realm, at the Second or Third Earthly Martial Stage. He has seven Demon Kings beneath him, who are the Pavilion Lords of the Seven Pavilions in the Ancient Demon Domain. Each of them is at the First Earthly Martial Stage. Of course, there are some hidden masters too. I¡¯ve heard that there are also Earthly Martial experts in the younger generation.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s powerful!¡± Long Chen was tongue-tied, mainly shocked that there were Earthly Martial experts in the younger generation. They had to be the best prodigies of the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°The Ancient Demon Domain isn¡¯t considered a strong faction in the Divine Martial Empire; it¡¯s just one of the Martial Alliance¡¯s members. The Martial Alliance is the strongest, and there are even more masters in Martial Imperial City!¡±


    <em>The Ancient Demon Domain isn¡¯t considered strong?</em>


    To Long Chen, they were very extraordinary.


    He had worked himself halfway to death to grow stronger, yet he was only at the First Passage Stage. Who knew what unfathomable heights cultivators of the Earthly Martial Realm had reached? And people from Ling Xi¡¯s hometown were likely at least at the Divine Martial Realm. He did not even know if he could fulfill his promise of ten years. And ten years was a long time.


    Huangfu Qi was bursting with impatience. When she saw that Long Chen had suddenly fallen silent, she asked hurriedly, ¡°Big Brother, are you done asking questions?¡±


    ¡°Not yet.¡± Long Chen returned to his senses. He could tell that the little girl¡¯s family was quite powerful, yet she had chosen to run away toe here. There had to be a reason, so he asked, ¡°Qi Qi, could you tell me why you want to enter the Ancient Demon Domain?¡±


    This question also left Huangfu Qi torn. She hesitated for a bit before agreeing to tell Long Chen. She sneakily leaned up to his ear and said, ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯ll tell you, but don¡¯t tell anyone else!¡±


    ¡°Of course not. I can keep secrets,¡± Long Chen said solemnly.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. I¡¯ll tell you, then. While I was ying at home, I heard my father say that two months from now, nine suns will appear in the sky. That only happens once every ten thousand years, and it is known as the Day of the Nine Suns. The earth will turn into an oven, and to the people of the Divine Martial Empire, especially the ones with weaker cultivation that do not live in the city, it will be a catastrophe!¡±


    Long Chen was rmed. He blurted in a hushed tone, ¡°Nine suns appearing at the same time?! Everyone will die!¡±

 Chapter 462: Apocalyptic Golden Crow

    ¡°Big Brother, it¡¯s not as terrifying as you think it is! Only one of them is the real sun. I don¡¯t know what the others are, but they look simr to suns. However, they should be almost as hot. To some people, the Day of the Nine Suns is a disaster, but it¡¯s a lucky day to others,¡± Huangfu Qi continued, still speaking into Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Why?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°That¡¯s exactly why I¡¯m going to the Ancient Demon Domain. I heard that in one month¡¯s time, the Ancient Demon Domain will hold the annual examination for their disciples of the younger generation. The champion of the event will be rewarded with one Emperor me Pearl. Although its effects are not pronounced, it is extremely rare. I heard from my father that on the Day of the Nine Suns, any Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator can boost their cultivation level directly to the Ninth Passage Stage using the Emperor me Pearl! Even you can do it!¡±


    Long Chen waspletely stunned.


    Progressing from the First Passage Stage directly to the Ninth was the most unbelievable thing Long Chen had ever heard. Before this, he would not have even dared to imagine something like that. But if it really was true, then he had to strive with everything he had. What hecked most was time after all. Ten years was too long, and no one knew what would happen in between. If something happened to Ling Xi during that time, he would never forgive himself.


    ¡°Actually, it¡¯s not exactly a coincidence. All the disciples below the Ninth Passage Stage in the Ancient Demon Domain have spent years preparing to get the Emperor me Pearl. After we enter the Ancient Demon Domain, we will only have two months to prepare. There are countless experts in the Ancient Demon Domain, and the odds may be slim, but I really wish to reach the Ninth Passage Stage immediately so that my father will never call me useless again.¡± Huangfu Qi sounded a little sad when she said this, and her eyes shimmered. It seemed like she was about to cry again.


    Long Chenforted her slightly, then he asked Little Cat, ¡°Little Cat, can you tell me if the Emperor me Pearl and the Day of the Nine Suns are real?¡±


    ¡°They are.¡± Little Cat nodded, and when he saw that Long Chen was serious, he exined, ¡°There actually is only one sun during the Day of the Nine Suns. The other eight are the manifestations of my old rival, the Apocalyptic Golden Crow¡¯s soul. That crow has long gone missing; maybe it¡¯s dead. Only nine pieces of its soul remain in the sun. On the Day of the Nine Suns, eight of the nine pieces are flung out of the sun, forming this anomaly.¡±


    ¡°To me, it¡¯s just an anomaly. Humans have a very different experience because what you see are nine identical suns. The temperature on that day will indeed be very high, but the phenomenon will disappear after a day. The phenomenon can only be spotted in very few ces, and probably only in an area the size of the Divine Martial Empire. It won¡¯t affect other ces.¡±Little Cat said this because it guessed that Long Chen was worried about his friends and family in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    Indeed, his exnation cleared Long Chen¡¯s worries.


    ¡°What about the Emperor me Pearl?¡± Long Chen asked again.


    ¡°It¡¯s a good item to have, so you should try to get it. The Emperor me Pearl has no tier and doesn¡¯t actually have any uses. It¡¯s actually just a crystallization of the sweat that dripped from the Golden Crow¡¯s body. It¡¯s not exactly a precious treasure, but it does contain some traces of the Golden Crow¡¯s aura. If you use the Emperor me Pearl on that day, the nine meridian points in your body will match with the nine suns in the sky. When the energy of the nine suns enters the Emperor me Pearl, it will indeed clear all your meridian points so you can reach the Ninth Passage Stage immediately. And ¡­¡±


    Little Cat smiled mysteriously. ¡°As long as you keep this girl by your side so I can watch her, I will promise to help you steal the Golden Crow¡¯s soul piece on the Day of the Nine Suns and inject it into your nine meridian points so they will be filled with the power of the Golden Crow. Imagine¡ªyour meridian points will be filled not with meridian pills, but with the ancient Apocalyptic Golden Crow¡¯s soul! It will be as if your body has nine suns within it; you¡¯ll be a terrifying presence!¡±


    Long Chen was utterly shaken.


    He had previously been doubtful of Little Cat¡¯s identity and felt that it was not that strong, but now he started to believe it. Regr demonic beasts did not know this much; they probably did not even know what the Golden Crow was.


    ¡°Little Cat, is the Golden Crow powerful?¡± asked Long Chen.


    The cat shrugged. ¡°The Golden Crow is only average. About my level. At its peak, it could directly turn into the sun and levitate in the sky. As long as it was willing, it could turn itself into a forever entity like the sun just by changing its energy.¡±


    ¡°¡­ That¡¯s average?¡± Long Chen was speechless. If the Little Cat was not lying, a beast like that would have been at the peak of the world. Even Ling Xi¡¯s family would just be a colony of ants in front of a presence like that.


    ¡°How do you and the Golden Crowpare with the ancestral dragons?¡± Long Chen asked the most crucial question.


    ¡°Ancestral dragons?¡± Little Cat smiled in exasperation. ¡°The ancestral dragons were the rulers of the Dragon Continent. Ancient apex beasts like us only appeared when the ancient dragon race started to disappear. I won¡¯t lie; I¡¯m in my current state because of an ancestral dragon. Due tows rting to ancient secrets, I cannot tell you more, and it¡¯s best if you don¡¯t ask. However, I can tell you one thing¡ªthe divine beasts are not as strong as the ancestors.¡±


    The divine beasts weren¡¯t as strong as the ancestors.


    This meant that both the Apocalyptic Golden Crow and the Reincarnation Beast were no match for the ancestral dragons. The ancestral dragons were the true beasts of the world.


    When Little Cat spoke of the ancestral dragons, it instinctively nced at Long Chen¡¯s head with reverence. That was where Long Chen¡¯s sea of consciousness was.


    Long Chen quietened his mind. He put the matter of ancestral dragons and ancient divine beasts aside, and instead shifted his focus to the Emperor me Pearl and the Day of the Nine Suns.


    <em>This means that in order to reach the Ninth Passage Stage immediately and at the same time possess the Golden Crow soul¡¯s power in my body, I must get the Emperor me Pearl ¡­</em>


    The Emperor me Pearl was a gigantic opportunity for Long Chen!


    If a cultivator at the Eighth Passage Stage received the Emperor me Pearl, he would only ascend one stage at most. But it was different for Long Chen. With Little Cat¡¯s help, he would undergo a major metamorphosis!


    Only a small portion of the soul remained in the sun, and what Little Cat could steal was a tiny bit of that small portion. Even so, Long Chen wouldpletely change.


    ¡°Big Brother, why are you staring into space?! I¡¯m asking if you¡¯re done asking questions?!¡± the little girl screamed into Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    Due to the Primordial Dragon Talisman, Long Chen did not need to speak out loud tomunicate with Little Cat. From Huangfu Qi¡¯s perspective, Long Chen was merely staring into space after he asked about the Emperor me Pearl, which frustrated her.


    Ignoring looks from other people, Long Chen bent down to whisper in her ear, ¡°Qi Qi, are you sure the things you said about the Emperor me Pearl are true?¡±


    Huangfu Qi thought it was very fun that Long Chen was acting as sneaky as she was and forgot all about how he had been staring off into space. She also leaned to his ear and whispered, ¡°It¡¯s true! My father said so himself. The things my father says are true. I¡¯ve tested this countless times.¡±


    ¡°Alright, then. I¡¯m done asking. Xiang, take one for the team.¡± Long Chen smiled, then he looked at Xiang with schadenfreude.


    Seeing as Long Chen¡¯s expression was solemn while hemunicated with Little Cat, Xiang knew that he was asking about something very important. Since they had made a promise to the little girl, as men, they had to fulfill that promise. Xiang walked up to Huangfu Qi with a sour expression, at the same time ring at her with widened eyes.


    ¡°Wow! So cute!¡± squealed Huangfu Qi ¡­


    Xiang was speechless.


    ***


    Soon after, Long Chen left the restaurant, and Huangfu Qi followed him contently, her eyes shining with joy. Xiang endured her gentle pats while she carried him in her arms.


    Within the Primordial Dragon Realm, Little Cat was rolling on the ground, screaming ¡­


    Huangfu Qi quickened her footsteps and walked up to him. ¡°Big Brother, where are you going?¡±


    ¡°I want to buy something, then I¡¯ll join the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s qualifiers immediately.¡± Long Chen had made his decision.


    He kept Huangfu Qi by his side, as per Little Cat¡¯s request. Of course, that was through using Xiang as bait.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to buy something? I want food! I want to feed the puppy some bones!¡± Huangfu Qi gazed lovingly at Xiang. She was already so nurturing at such a young age; who knew what she would be like when she grew older?


    Long Chen ignored her. He went to a small shop and bought an empty notebook, as well as a brush and ink.


    ¡°Big Brother, why did you buy a book and a brush?¡± Huangfu Qi asked, confused.


    ¡°I¡¯m practicing calligraphy to train my mind,¡± Long Chen answered mysteriously.


    ¡°Oh!¡± Huangfu Qi nodded, then she turned her attention back to Xiang and patted his head with her small hand.


    After making his purchase, Long Chen was prepared to head to the Ancient Demon Domain. He gazed at the gray mountain range far away, as well as the ten pirs of yellow gas shooting up into the sky, piercing through the clouds.


    ¡°The Earthly Qi here really is very thick ¡­¡±mented Long Chen.


    Then he stored the book and the brush in the Primordial Realm.


    <em>Xiao Xi, from now on, I will record everything that happens along my journey. When we meet again, you will only need to read my records to know what I went through in our time apart. I hope you haven¡¯t forgotten about me when that dayes ¡­</em>


    Ten years. Could the memory of one person survive this long?

 Chapter 463: One Hundred Thousand Heavenly Pills

    The small town was certainly not this busy on a normal day. Perhaps due to the Ancient Demon Domain qualifiers, it had grown crowded in recent times. Long Chen stood on the main street and felt like there was a sea of people around him.


    He looked down and asked, ¡°Let¡¯s go. Qi Qi, do you want to follow me?¡±


    ¡°Of course! I want to be with the puppy!¡± Huangfu Qi was startled and hurriedly hugged Xiang tighter. Xiang begged Long Chen for help with his eyes.


    Through thenguage of beasts, Long Chen told Xiang, ¡°Just hold on a little longer. Haha. I really need to repay the girl for giving me such a good piece of information, so just keep herpany ¡­¡±


    Xiang could only bear it for the moment. To be honest, the girl was adorable, and he did not hate her. However, it was frustrating that he was almost an adult, yet this young girl was treating him like a puppy.


    Long Chen had already exined the Day of the Nine Suns to Xiang, so if they seeded, it would benefit Long Chen greatly. That was why he had to endure it ¡­


    Long Chen led Huangfu Qi through the crowd, and soon, they approached the edge of town. Suddenly, a teenager with a small mouth andrge cheeks, like a monkey, stood in front of Long Chen. This teenager was dressed like a servant, but he was at the Eighth River Stage. In the Cangyang Kingdom, he would have been considered a high-ranked master.


    ¡°Stop!¡± hemanded haughtily.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Long Chen asked. He wasn¡¯t even aware that the brat was talking to him at first.¡°I¡¯m not talking to you. Get out of the way.¡± The boy nced at Long Chen in disgust, then he turned his gaze to Huangfu Qi. His expression suddenly became very friendly, and he asked gently, ¡°Little girl, what is your name?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a bad person! I¡¯m not telling you my name!¡± Huangfu Qi red at him, annoyed, then continued ying with Xiang in her arms.


    ¡°Bad person? I¡¯m not a bad person. I¡¯m a very good person.¡± The boy smiled, then he continued, ¡°Little girl, you¡¯re so cute; my young master would be very happy to meet you. Why don¡¯t youe with me? If my young master likes you, he¡¯ll reward you with at least a thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! What do you think?¡±


    Huangfu Qi counted for a while, then red at him in contempt. ¡°A thousand Heavenly Passage Pills? That¡¯s not even enough for me to spend in a day!¡±


    She turned to Long Chen and asked, ¡°Big Brother, is he trying to block us?¡±


    ¡°I guess so.¡± Long Chen wasughing to himself. This guy had to have a death wish for provoking this youngdy. Being at the Fourth Passage Stage, almost no one in this town was a match for her.


    ¡°You bad man! I¡¯ll teach you a lesson.¡± It looked very strange when Huangfu Qi attacked, but the brat was rolling on the ground secondster.


    Long Chen grinned, not dwelling on this matter. Huangfu Qi indeed looked adorable, and many guys did like girls of her type.


    She had likely encountered many inconveniences such as this along her journey here.


    Very soon, they exited the small town and traveled towards the Ancient Demon Domain. The closer they got, the more shocked Long Chen was at the thickness of the Earthly Qi in the region.


    ¡°Although the Ancient Demon Domain has a lot of Earthly Qi, it¡¯s so ugly! The Earthly Qi at my home is white, like mist! It¡¯s very pretty!¡± said Huangfu Qi.


    There were many people going to the Ancient Demon Domain. These people likely came from different parts of the Divine Martial Empire, and no one knew each other, so they did not talk much. Long Chen followed the crowd so he would not need to worry about whether he was heading in the right direction. It would be bad if he missed the deadline.


    The Ancient Demon Domain consisted of a gray mountain range.


    After about four hours, Long Chen and the rest of the people finally arrived at the foot of a mountain. The entrance to the Ancient Demon Domain was just ahead, though it was shut. A sea of people crowded in front of the entrance, and with one nce, Long Chen guessed that there were tens of thousands of people present.


    All he could see was a sea of ck that was the tops of peoples¡¯ heads. The scary part was that most of the people here were experts who were at least at the Heavenly Passage Realm, so everyone was at least as strong as the Sword Emperor. If Long Chen had not experienced huge improvements after Ling Xi left, he would have been very stressed.


    <em>Most of them are at the First Passage Stage, a small portion at the Second Passage Stage, and an even smaller number at the Third Passage Stage. Hardly anyone is at the Fourth Passage Stage, but there are probably a few. Huangfu Qi is one of them. </em>Long Chen roughly figured out hispetitors.


    <em>In order to get the Emperor me Pearl, the first step is to enter the Ancient Demon Domain. Any ns to strive hard will onlye after that ¡­ </em>Long Chen thought to himself.


    ¡°There¡¯s one day left until registration begins. We¡¯ll stay here for one night first,¡± Huangfu Qi said next to him.


    ¡°Mhm.¡± Long Chen nodded, then he found a quiet ce to sit down. Huangfu Qi trotted over hurriedly to follow him. She squatted down with Xiang still in her arms, patting him gently as she whispered, ¡°There are many bad people here. Be a good dog; don¡¯t be scared. I¡¯ll keep youpany.¡±


    More and more people gathered at the entrance of the Ancient Demon Domain. Long Chen quickly entered his cultivation state, and the day passed quickly. When he opened his eyes and stopped his cultivation, there were about a hundred thousand people gathered there.


    About seventy to eighty thousand were there to participate in the qualifiers, while the rest were apanying family or friends. Everyone present had an anxious or excited expression.


    Eighty thousand peoplepeting for seventy spots¡ªentering would be no simple feat.


    However, the journey of cultivation was apetition against hundreds of millions of people. Only the best of them could continue the journey upwards and reach the peak.


    A few hundred people emerged from the Ancient Demon Domain. They were all wearing ck clothes that were identical and strange. Like the people of the Martial Alliance, the character for ¡°demon¡± was embroidered on their chests, and it radiated an evil and intimidating energy.


    ¡°Those people must be the disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain. Their cultivation levels are between the Third and Sixth Passage Stages.¡± Little Cat could clearly tell their cultivation levels.


    ¡°Sixth Passage Stage? That¡¯s an expert who has cleared six of his meridian points.¡± This was nothing to Little Cat, but Long Chen knew that while he could kill a Third Passage Stage cultivator and barely hold up against someone at the Fourth Passage Stage, he stood no chance against anyone of the Fifth Passage Stage and above.


    Although his physical body was tough, the boost it brought to his overall strength was not unlimited. Even if he used the Dragon Soul Transformation, a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator had a hundred times more Qi than him. With such a gigantic gap between them, his body¡¯s toughness, which was equivalent to the best body tempering technique of the Heaven tier, was not enough to give him the advantage.


    When the ck-clothed people fanned out into a row, they all took out documents from their Universe Pouches to start registering the attendees. Every person who wanted to participate in the qualifiers had to prove their identity first.


    Long Chen was prepared with his identity token.


    Very soon, under the instruction of the ck-clothed people, therge crowd of seventy thousand formed several hundred lines. They all lined up obediently because they knew that if they caused trouble at a time like this, they would likely be killed instantly.


    Long Chen and Huangfu Qi lined up at almost the tail end of one of the lines.


    The lines moved in an orderly manner. The disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain worked efficiently, and after just two hours, most of the people had been registered. The people who hadpleted their registrations waited for the event to truly begin.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡®m really participating in the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s qualifiers! Now that I¡¯ve thought about it, it¡¯s basically like a dream.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not even a good dream. You¡¯re only at the First Passage Stage! It¡¯s already a very rare chance to participate in the qualifiers, and based on past events, only Third or Fourth Passage Stage cultivators can pass. It¡¯s stressful.¡±


    ¡°Less than twenty years old, but already at the Fourth Passage Stage? How much of a psycho would that person be? If I¡¯m unlucky enough to encounter a Third Passage Stage cultivator, it will be an instant kill.¡±


    There were many discussions happening around Long Chen.


    That was when someone said, ¡°Did you guys hear? There are three rounds this time, with each round eliminating ny percent of participants. For every round you pass, you¡¯ll be rewarded with Heavenly Passage Pills. The amount will increase with every round. I heard that if you¡¯re one of the seventy who pass all three rounds, every person will receive at least ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!


    ¡°That¡¯s not all. The top ten, top three, and champion of each round will get much more than that. There was once someone who was the champion for all three rounds, and I heard he received a hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    ¡°A hundred thousand!¡± Long Chen initially only wanted to pass the qualifiers and did not think about the ranking. But when he heard about a hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, he was very tempted. He had consumed three hundred Heavenly Passage Pills just to enter the First Passage Stage. Advancing to the Second Passage Stage would likely take more than a thousand. If he had a hundred thousand pills, then he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about Heavenly Passage Pills until he reached the Sixth Passage Stage.


    Without Heavenly Passage Pills, he could not be strong. If he could not be strong, he would not get the Emperor me Pearl.


    <em>It looks like I will have to work hard for the one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. I don¡¯t have a person like my master protecting me anymore, so I need to get Heavenly Passage Pills on my own. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll get many chances to receiverge lump sums of Heavenly Passage Pills in the Ancient Demon Domain, </em>thought Long Chen.


    It was Huangfu Qi¡¯s turn to register.

 Chapter 464: Zhao Wuji

    When the disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain saw Huangfu Qi, they were all shocked because she was just too young. She was likely the youngest among the eighty thousand people present, yet she was stronger than the average participant too.


    ¡°Little girl, are ¡­ are you here to register?¡± the disciple asked, his voice trembling.


    ¡°Yes. My name is Huangfu Qi,¡± said Huangfu Qi with a killer smile. Her eyes turned into crescents.


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± The disciples recorded her personal information while in a state of shock.


    She had attracted many people¡¯s attention too. Many started to point and talk about the little girl in shocked tones. During registration, Huangfu Qi had said that she was at the Fourth Passage Stage, and this news spread like wildfire among the crowd.


    She was not even ten, yet she was already at the Fourth Passage Stage. She was likely the most prodigious participant there. Since she was with Long Chen, everyone had assumed that she was his family member. They had not expected her to be here for registration, or that she would be at the terrifying Fourth Passage Stage.


    The further one progressed on the path of cultivation, therger the distance between each stage. Therefore, defeating an opponent beyond your own tier was almost impossible. Almost no one was like Long Chen, who possessed advanced Heaven-tier body toughness at the Ninth River Stage. It was Long Chen¡¯s tough body that allowed him to challenge opponents beyond his level.


    Participants at the First Passage Stage could easily be disqualified in the qualifiers, while Fourth Passage Stage cultivators could progress far without difficulty.


    That was why everyone was so impressed. To them, Huangfu Qi would likely be a celebrity in the Ancient Demon Domain in the near future.While Huangfu Qi attracted everyone¡¯s attention, Long Chen attracted none despite standing behind her.


    Huangfu Qi stood aside and said sweetly, ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m done. I¡¯ll wait for you.¡±


    Everyone suddenly looked at Long Chen with jealousy and admiration. They guessed that Long Chen and Huangfu Qi were merely acquaintances, yet he had managed to earn her affection. He was likely going to pass the qualifiers just by relying on Huangfu Qi.


    Long Chen walked up to the front.


    This was a crucial test for whether the Jiang Cheng identity could be used. Long Chen took out the important golden identity token and gave it to the Ancient Demon Domain disciple.


    The disciple was about to inspect it when a loud rumbling came from behind Long Chen. He turned and saw arge stallion-type beast on the horizon. Two people were riding on it, and they were rushing over. This stallion beast was likely at the Heaven-tier, so it was very fast. In just a moment, it stopped behind Long Chen and the riders dismounted.


    The first to dismount was a teenager dressed as a servant. After he leaped off the horse¡¯s back, he immediately bent over in an ingratiating manner so that the teenager on the horse could step on his back and dismount.


    The teenager was about fourteen years old, which was younger than Xiang was when Long Chen met him. His features were clean and he was thin. The thick fragrance of makeup powder wafted off his body. However, it was undeniable that he was very powerful. Long Chen guessed that he was at the Fourth River Stage.


    Fourteen years old, Fourth River Stage. Although he was not as good as Huangfu Qi, he was much, much better than Long Chen.


    Long Chen noticed the servant first, because that servant was the one who had received a beating from Huangfu Qi. At the time, he wanted to bring Huangfu Qi back to his young master, meaning the teenager was the young master.


    Huangfu Qi had already caused amotion, but when the teenager appeared, it caused an evenrgermotion.


    ¡°That teenager is Zhao Wuji of Clear Lotus County! He¡¯s a legendary prodigy who once killed a Fifth Passage Stage opponent!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve long heard that he would participate in the qualifiers; I can¡¯t believe he actually came! I¡¯ve heard of him before, and now that I¡¯ve seen him, he is indeed extraordinary. I heard the person he killed was on the bounty board. He really is a teenage hero if he can kill someone on the bounty board at just fourteen years old!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s surely going to enter the Ancient Demon Domain. I heard that Zhao Wuji has an uncle who is a Demon General. There are twenty-eight Demon Generals, and each of them can fly! They are all Ninth Passage Stage cultivators who have cleared the heavenly meridian point!¡±


    ¡°Even if he didn¡¯t have his Demon General uncle, someone as powerful as him is certain to qualify. He¡¯s probably the favored candidate to be the three-time champion of the event! The one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills will likely belong to him!¡±


    ¡°A hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills? That guyes from a powerful n. There are probably more than a hundred thousand pills in his pocket right now.¡±


    Simr discussions sounded.


    ¡°Right, that girl from just now called Huangfu Qi is probably even more talented, right?¡±


    ¡°Indeed. However, the problem is that Huangfu Qi is still very young and has almost nobat experience. How could shepare to a teenage prodigy who has killed a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator?¡±


    Long Chen eyed the teenager slowly. Other people were saying he was very strong,


    Then he would be Long Chen¡¯s main opponent. Long Chen really needed to progress fast, so he had to get the one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. He also wanted the Emperor me Pearl, as it could take him to the Ninth Passage Stage immediately. With Little Cat¡¯s help, he would also get the Golden Crow¡¯s energy in his body.


    Zhao Wuji was clearlyte, but no one dared to say anything. Long Chen noticed that Zhao Wuji was walking towards him.


    <em>Did that servant convince him to take revenge?</em> Long Chen<em></em>wondered.


    Long Chen was wrong. Zhao Wujipletely ignored him and walked past him. The disciple who was about to record Long Chen¡¯s personal details quickly stood up and said, ¡°Are you Zhao Wuji? Demon General Strongman¡¯s nephew?¡±


    The disciple was all smiles.


    Zhao Wuji nodded mildly and said, ¡°Apologies for keeping you waiting. You may register me now!¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± said the disciple with a smile.


    Long Chen¡¯s identity token was put aside andpletely forgotten. When Zhao Wuji¡¯s registration wasplete, they made small talk with him for a while until they remembered that there was one person left who had notpleted his registration. They finally called Long Chen over and said, ¡°Come,e,e! You¡¯re the only one left, kid.¡±


    Long Chen was toozy to argue.


    That Jiang Cheng identity token was usable after all. Long Chen privately reminded himself that he was now Jiang Cheng.


    In the Ancient Demon Domain, where masters were asmon as clouds, the name ¡°Jiang Cheng¡± was destined to shine even brighter than Zhao Wuji!


    Just as Long Chen was registering, Zhao Wuji¡¯s servant finally spotted Long Chen and Huangfu Qi. His expression turned malicious, and he whispered a few words into Zhao Wuji¡¯s ear.


    After Zhao Wuji heard him, he pped the servant so hard that he spun a full circle. Even his teeth almost fell out.


    Zhao Wuji did not even look at Long Chen, but instead turned towards the Ancient Demon Domain while waiting for the qualifiers to begin.


    <em>After he told on us, he was pped? Probably a punishment for embarrassing him. However, Zhao Wuji has likely made a mental note about me, </em>thought Long Chen.


    Someone announced that the qualifiers would begin in an hour¡¯s time.


    It was the qualifiers of the Ancient Demon Domain after all, so it was especially grand!


    ¡°An hour?¡± Long Chen estimated that just moving the whole crowd of eighty thousand people would take almost one hour. There were just too many people. All he could see was a sea of people.


    Huangfu Qi was the only person he knew. No one dared get close to them, mainly because Huangfu Qi shone too brightly. Standing next to her would merely make them look pathetic.


    With the disciples at the head of the crowd, Long Chen followed everyone towards the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s entrance. The entrance was actually two mountains that looked like sharp, gray swords. Between them was arge, ck door that opened to a pitch-ck whirlpool. The gravity inside was capable of sucking them in.


    ¡°Qi Qi, do you know anything about the qualifiers of the Ancient Demon Domain?¡± Long Chen¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed as he stared at the door.


    He felt a strange but terrifying auraing from within the door. It seemed familiar, yet much stronger than what he could recall.


    ¡°Of course I do. The first round is meant to test the toughness of the body and mind. The cultivation techniques of the Ancient Demon Domain usually have high requirements for the body, hence the reason why they designed this round. After we pass through this entrance, we will arrive in a ce called the ck Prison. The deeper you go, the stronger the gravity. We will travel through the ck Prison while the cultivators of the Ancient Demon Domain watch, and you cannot use even a trace of Qi for this! If you use your Qi, you will be disqualified immediately!¡±


    ¡°Gravity?¡± That was why he thought it was so familiar. It was gravity simr to the Star Devil Prison, though this prison gave him a suffocating feeling even from far away. The gravity was likely very strong there.


    After she spoke, a person at the entrance shot up into the sky and stopped mid-air. The crowd gasped, impressed.


    Long Chen looked at him in awe too. He was a man who was about thirty years old with pencil-straight posture and handsome features. His expression was cold, and he wore a suit of pitch-ck armor. Even his head was covered with a ck helmet, and he wore long, ck boots. He radiated the aura of heroism.


    ¡°Demon General!¡± cried the crowd.

 Chapter 465: Demon General Typhoon

    <em>Is this a master who has cleared the heavenly meridian point and reached the Ninth Passage Stage? A master who can fly? </em>Long Chen was in awe. The cold and stern gaze from the ck-armored warrior gave him a suffocating feeling. Other than Ling Xi¡¯s family, this was the most powerful person Long Chen had ever met.


    The strongest person in the Ancient Demon Domain was the Demon Emperor, and the people at the top of the faction also included the seven Devil Kings and twenty-eight Demon Generals! One of these people from the top brass had appeared in front of the crowd.


    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, good day to you! I am one of the twenty-eight Demon Generals of the Ancient Demon Domain, whom people call Demon General Typhoon! I am the one in charge of the qualifiers today! No one¡¯s performance will escape my eyes, so you must work hard! After you pass three rounds, Ancient Demon Domain will be your home. Combat techniques, Heavenly Passage Pills, spiritual medicines, divine weapons, and even beautifuldies are all waiting for you! All you need to do is strive as hard as you can! Strive for your lives!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon¡¯s voice was booming loud. His short monologue was enough to ignite the battle spirit within the crowd of almost one hundred thousand. In a world ruled by the strongest, masters were the most respected individuals. Demon General Typhoon was one of the few who invited respect.


    Since he could fly, he was like a deity who was far from their reach. He stopped in the air above the crowd.


    ¡°Alright, I will not waste your time. I¡¯ll now introduce the first round¡ªck Prison! I believe you all must have learned a lot about the ck Prison before the qualifiers. In summary, the gravity within the ck Prison is much stronger than it is outside, and the deeper you go, the stronger it will be! How deep is the ck Prison? I don¡¯t know, and none of you will find out. What you need to do is simple: do your best to walk forward!


    ¡°Listen closely. The rules of the ck Prison are simple! After you enter, you are forbidden from using your Qi. You must rely on the strength of your body only. Walk as far as you can! There are eighty thousand people here, but we will only choose the seven thousand who have walked the furthest for the next round! Everyone else will be disqualified!¡±


    When he finished, Demon Typhoon General¡¯s gaze swept coldly across the crowd. ¡°I believe many of you came from far away, and many of you are carrying the weight of your parents¡¯ expectations too. That is why you must do your best to squeeze into the top seven thousand even if you need to risk your life. Opportunity belongs to people who work hard. You may only be a few steps away from sess at any given time. That is why no one should give up until the veryst moment!¡±


    The crowd clenched their fists tight, as if they were all filled with power.Indeed, many people had suffered a lot in order to reach the Heavenly Passage Realm before the age of twenty. Some had suffered even more in order toe to the Ancient Demon Domain. They were all here to do their best. If they could enter the Ancient Demon Domain, then their lives would change drastically. Who wouldn¡¯t want to change their fate?


    Everyone was filled with excitement!


    Looking at the excited smiles of the young men and women, Demon General Typhoon¡¯s lips curled upwards into a faint smile. He looked around and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Do your best to win! Now, I will exin the reward system! All cultivators who pass the first round will be awarded twenty Heavenly Passage Pills! The top thousand will receive fifty, and the top one hundred will receive two hundred each! The top ten will receive five hundred Heavenly Passage Pills!


    ¡°Of course, if you enter the top three, you will receive even more Heavenly Passage Pills. Third ce will be awarded two thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, second ce four thousand! Finally, the champion will be awarded ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    Ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! That was the average Fifth Passage Stage cultivator¡¯s life savings.


    Also, that was only the first round. The next two rounds would likely have greater rewards!


    With so many people receiving Heavenly Passage Pills, the Ancient Demon Domain was likely going to give away almost a million Heavenly Passage Pills today. It was clearly an affluent faction.


    After hearing the good news, even the people who already knew about the reward system grew excited. As long as they could pass the first round, even if they were only one of the seven thousand, they would still receive twenty Heavenly Passage Pills. This was enough motivation for them!


    Demon General Typhoon gave a proud smile when he saw the excitement in the crowd. He thought, <em>I wonder who will win the ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills? Will it be Demon General Strongman¡¯s nephew, Zhao Wuji? Or will it be that little ten-year-old girl from just now? Zhao Wuji has killed a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator, so he stands a higher chance.</em>


    Now that he had sessfully hyped the crowd up, he added, ¡°Also, all rewards will be distributed on the spot, immediately! Therefore, do your best! Now, I will arrange for you all to enter the ck Prison. Everyone will start on the same starting line, so you don¡¯t need to worry!¡±


    With Demon General Typhoon present, order was easily maintained. Plus, there were hundreds of ck-clothed disciples watching too.


    Under their instructions, Long Chen followed the crowd and entered the pitch-ck ck Prison. It was a very wide expanse, and upon entry, a red line appeared in front. All the participants were arranged to stand on the same starting line.


    From this alone, one could imagine just how big the ck Prison was!


    Demon General Typhoon was floating up in the air.


    ¡°There will be strong gravity starting from this red line, which will get stronger the further you go. Walk ahead, and remember two things: do not ever use Qi and do not attack anyone, or you will be disqualified!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± the crowd replied in unison. The crowd¡¯s voices echoed like thunder through the whole ck Prison.


    ¡°We shall begin, then.¡±


    Everyone came to their senses and started sprinting instantly, fighting to be in front. Some people believed that maintaining endurance was key, while others felt like starting slow would only make them fall behind.


    Brash people often met tragic ends. Ten thousand out of the eighty thousand participants sprinted head-first into the grounds. Because they had underestimated the gravitational pull, many of them fell t on the ground the moment they crossed the red line.


    The powerful gravity yanked their bodies towards the ground, and due to the strong impact, some hit the ground hard enough to spit out blood.


    Such a tragic scene made the rest who wanted to sprint inside halt immediately. At least three thousand of the ten thousand people had copsed.


    The crowd looked at each other in horror.


    ¡°The gravity is so strong!¡± A wave of shock ran through them.


    However, the ones who survived and were not squashed marched ahead. Everyone¡¯s chests tightened, and they reminded themselves that they could not use their Qi here. They started to head deeper inside. Since they were all prepared, they fared much better. The first batch were only unprepared because they were in a rush.


    As more and more people started to enter, Long Chen and Huangfu Qi looked at each other. Huangfu Qi said, ¡°Big Brother, don¡¯t copse the moment you enter, or I¡¯llugh at you! Hehe!¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see who copses first,¡± said Long Chen with a smile.


    He was pleasantly surprised with this round, as they were testing his strongest quality. In terms of body toughness, he was likely the strongest of all eighty thousand people.


    The one hundredth fraction of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence was no joke.


    The duo followed the crowd into the grounds. Usually, everyone slouched slightly even if they were strong until they slowly limatized and could stand up straight again.


    Huangfu Qi felt the immense pressure on her body and was not used to it at first. After some adjustments, she finally limatized.


    <em>Big Brother hasn¡¯t copsed, has he? </em>After stabilizing himself, she hurriedly turned around. She expected the First Passage Stage Long Chen to have copsed.


    However, her eyes widened because she saw him walk effortlessly. He nced at her and smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s go! Why are you standing there?¡±


    <em>Can¡¯t Big Brother feel the gravity? </em>Huangfu Qi was stunned because Long Chen looked like he was walking on normal ground. His footsteps were light and his expression was rxed.


    ¡°Qi Qi, catch up,¡± Long Chen reminded her when he saw that she was not moving.


    ¡°Oh, oh!¡± Huangfu Qi hurriedly nodded and caught up to him. She must have cultivated an intermediate body tempering technique, which was why she was able to withstand the gravity too. Long Chen was the only person in sight who was more at ease than her.


    ¡°Big Brother, what¡¯s up with you? Don¡¯t you feel the gravity?¡± Huangfu Qi asked him with wide eyes.


    ¡°Of course I do, but I¡¯m stronger than you. Do you believe me? Do you dare make a bet?¡± Long Chen said to the curious little girl.


    ¡°Hmph! I don¡¯t believe you. Let¡¯s make a bet, then! Do you think I¡¯m scared?¡± she responded.


    But she suddenly thought of something. ¡°Big Brother, where is the puppy?¡±


    When she wasn¡¯t paying attention, Long Chen had let Xiang into the Primordial Realm. It was only now that she remembered him. Long Chen said, ¡°I hid Xiang. If you can beat me, I¡¯ll show him to you.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± She froze, then her battle spirit shone in her eyes and she dered loudly, ¡°Big Brother, let¡¯s begin!¡±


    Then Huangfu Qi ran off.

 Chapter 466: Black Prison

    Long Chen smiled in exasperation when he watched the little girl sprint off and disappear from his view. He looked around. Although the gravity was strong, there were quite a few strong individuals in the vicinity. That was why they could still hold on and walk forward, though no one was doing it as effortlessly as Long Chen.


    Almost every face had an unnatural expression, as if arge boulder was sitting on the top of their heads. In some obscure corners, there were Ancient Demon Domain disciples working hard. Disciples at higher cultivation levels directly entered the gravitational area and removed all the people who had copsed. Those disciples were not affected by the gravity like Long Chen.


    Demon General Typhoon flew high up in the air within the gravitational area, his gaze sweeping across the crowd. He was doing this not only to discover candidates with great potential, but also to prevent unexpected incidents.


    ¡°There are so many great candidates this year! Cultivators at the Fourth Passage Stage can travel effortlessly in the beginning if they have cultivated body tempering techniques. Zhao Wuji and that ten-year-old girl are both doing especially well ¡­ The girl¡¯s surname is ¡®Huangfu¡¯ ¡­ Could she be ¡­?¡±


    But he shook his head. ¡°Probably not. There are many people with the surname ¡®Huangfu¡¯ in the world, and not all of them are from the Huangfu n. We¡¯ll just have to see what the Demon King thinks.¡±


    There was arge crowd, and he only paid attention to the candidates at the highest cultivation levels. Therefore, he did not notice Long Chen.


    At this moment, Long Chen activated his Dragon Soul Transformation because his body was only super strong in that state. Many others had also activated their Beast Soul Transformations, and all sorts of bizarre beast forms were present, so Long Chen did not stand out.


    More and more people copsed around him, while Long Chen maintained his speed as he traveled towards the inner part of the ck Prison. He could sense the increasing gravitational pull as he walked along, and the gravitational pull here was much stronger than in the Star Devil Prison.


    As for Huangfu Qi, because she waspeting with Long Chen, she had long disappeared.Fifteen minutester, Long Chen noticed that the crowd had thinned considerably around him. Only a few hundred people were within his field of vision, and most were at the Second Passage Stage and above. He was practically the only First Passage Stage cultivator left.


    He could feel that the gravity was indeed very strong, though it was not enough to endanger him.


    <em>I absolutely have to get those ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. It¡¯ll be even better if I can be champion three consecutive times. </em>With that thought, he quickened his pace and quickly surpassed many people.


    Several people around him were shocked that he could suddenly quicken his pace here. Previously, they had only thought that he looked too at ease, but they never would have guessed that he was far from his limit.


    At this point, Long Chen was confident that he was already in the top seven thousand. More than thirty thousand people had already been eliminated, all of them grieving their loss of this opportunity.


    ¡°That teenager! He hasn¡¯t reached his limit yet? But isn¡¯t he only at the First Passage Stage?¡± Two Fifth Passage Stage disciples noticed Long Chen. They were initially dealing with their data and carrying injured people, but Long Chen had passed them easily.


    ¡°Perhaps he has cultivated an intermediate Heaven-tier body tempering technique?¡± suggested another.


    ¡°Probably, but it¡¯s very hard to get intermediate Heaven-tier body tempering techniques. It¡¯s admirable that the brat actually has one.¡±


    ¡°The top one hundred will receive generous rewards, right? It looks like he¡¯s about to enter the top one hundred!¡±


    ¡°When I first entered the Ancient Demon Domain, I think I was in the top thousand for the first round. That brat is cooler than I was!¡±


    Long Chen quickened his pace and surpassed more people, attracting a lot of attention. Many people stopped and stared at him in a daze.


    Demon General Typhoon up in the air also noticed the red individual that stood out from the crowd. He seemed strangely arrogant and terrifying because he was sprinting like the wind, starting from the tail end of the crowd. Surpassing many people, he suddenly entered the top one hundred!


    ¡°First Passage Stage? Without using Qi?¡± Demon General Typhoon was shocked. Long Chen¡¯s performance had captured his attention, and his eyes were glued to him.


    Long Chen also noticed Demon General Typhoon¡¯s eyes on himself, but he did not react. He continued to elerate. Since the people who entered the top one hundred were usually at least at the Third Passage Stage, seeing a First Passage Stage cultivator suddenly catch up attracted more attention.


    ¡°Who is that teenager?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never seen that Beast Soul Transformation before, so it¡¯s likely not well-known. He¡¯s doing very well though! Look, he¡¯s about to enter the top fifty. The other people are already starting to lose steam, but he¡¯s still so energetic!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s performance left more and more people in awe. Demon General Typhoon¡¯s eyes were still glued to him, and his eyes widened with shock.


    ¡°This teenager¡¯s Qi isn¡¯t especially thick, but it is strange. More importantly, he seems to have cultivated a body tempering technique stronger than the average intermediate Heaven-tier one. Perhaps it¡¯s one of the stronger techniques of its tier, or maybe it¡¯s even an advanced Heaven-tier technique!


    ¡°Having the ability to skip two levels to cultivate such a formidable Heaven-tier technique shows that this young man is extraordinarily talented in cultivating body tempering techniques!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon could not help but feel impressed.


    Long Chen did not know that so many people were talking about him, because he had finally spotted the little girl. Huangfu Qi had made a bet with him. When she thought about how she would not be able to y with Xiang if she lost, she grew very anxious and used all her might to leave Long Chen far behind.


    When Long Chen hadpletely disappeared, she finally sighed in relief.


    <em>Big Brother really is scary, but he¡¯s not as strong as I am! Hmph! How dare he challenge me? He¡¯s too na?ve! That puppy will be mine one day! </em>she thought happily to herself.


    There was a lone young man in front of her, who was doing his best to walk forward.


    <em>That guy must be Zhao Wuji. He has cultivated an intermediate body tempering technique, and his cultivation level is not bad at all. </em>Huangfu Qi did not know if she was stronger than he was.


    At this moment, Huangfu Qi suddenly heard amotion behind her.


    ¡°What¡¯s everyone shouting about?¡± Huangfu Qi turned around, annoyed, then her jaw dropped. She saw Long Chen approaching quickly.


    ¡°Ah!¡± Long Chen¡¯s confident grin scared Huangfu Qi. She never thought he could actually catch up to her. And he seemed to be at ease, as if the gravity had no effect on him.


    Seeing as he was about to pass her, she huffed with all her might and her cheeks turned red. She hurriedly looked ahead and did her best to withstand the strong gravity.


    ¡°Don¡¯t chase me!¡± she cried with some panic.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, silly girl. When we¡¯re out of the ck Prison, Xiang will still y with you.¡± Long Chen suddenly appeared next to her, and she jumped in fright. Indeed, no matter how hard she tried to shake him, he still caught up to her!


    Since she had short legs, she could no longer catch up once Long Chen started to stride away.


    Long Chen made a face, then he passed her easily.


    In the beginning, she was about to cry from panic, but Long Chen¡¯s promise gave her hugefort. Long Chen and Zhao Wuji were the only ones who were in front of her. She did not know how far the people behind her were.


    <em>I¡¯m not going any further! I can¡¯t catch up to that psycho Big Brother anyway! I don¡¯t know where he gets his strength from, to be able to walk this far. Hmph ¡­ But thankfully, the puppy will be mine! Thank goodness!</em>


    She had rushed ahead mainly because of the bet with Long Chen.


    After Long Chen took second ce when he passed Huangfu Qi, he had sessfully attracted all the audience¡¯s eyeballs. One of the viewers was arge, ck horse. No one knew who this Beast Warrior was.


    ¡°I wonder who will be number one, him or Zhao Wuji?¡± Demon General Typhoon was very interested. He descended to the ground and watched them with great interest.


    There was a hugemotion in the crowd.


    ¡°There¡¯s still fifteen minutes left! It¡¯s thest stand! Only the top seven thousand can progress to the next round!¡± Demon General Typhoon¡¯s booming voice echoed across the space.


    When the participants heard him, they fought with all their might to trek forward. Zhao Wuji, who was at the very front, also quickened his pace to maintain his rank.


    Suddenly, he heard a sounding from close behind him.


    <em>Has someone caught up? Is it that girl</em>? Zhao Wuji quickly turned and saw a red silhouette. He knew he had never met this person before.


    <em>Who is this? Why is this person so strong? </em>Zhao Wuji gasped. He could barely stand the gravity at this point, but he was doing his best to go on. However, Long Chen looked like he was less affected by the gravity!


    Where had such a powerful persone from?


    Zhao Wuji gritted his teeth. He knew that he couldn¡¯t allow Long Chen to surpass him, or his dream to be the champion in all three stages would be ruined in the very first round!


    When he saw Long Chen fast approaching, he roared and trekked ahead, withstanding the heavy pressure. His body trembled with every step, and he felt like he was starting to fail against the powerful gravity!

 Chapter 467: Twenty-Eight Demon Generals

    <em>Is the brat going to risk it all? </em>Long Chen smiled in exasperation as he looked at the teenager who was moving forward in a crazed manner. It was clear that Zhao Wuji was taking thepetition results very seriously.


    <em>I didn¡¯t initially want to attract problems, but for the sake of the one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, I have no choice but to offend you. Everything depends on one¡¯s own strength, so if you lose, you lose, </em>thought Long Chen.


    The pressure he felt wasrge, but the current gravity was nowhere near Long Chen¡¯s limit. With his tough body, he would have to walk double the distance to reach his limit.


    That was why Zhao Wuji was no match for him.


    Long Chen quickened his pace once more at this critical juncture. The audience watched in awe as he quickly surpassed Zhao Wuji. Within a short period of time, the gap between them widened until it was impossible for Zhao Wuji to catch up!


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s eyes reddened with rage when he saw the distance between himself and Long Chen growing.


    <em>That¡¯s impossible! He isn¡¯t even that strong! That¡¯s impossible! I must fight harder; maybe there is still a chance to surpass him! </em>Zhao Wuji roared once more, and his features contorted. Panting heavily, he ran with all his might!


    Unfortunately, he had overestimated his own strength. While he could run very fast, he was shocked to find that he was unable to withstand the gravity anymore. Therge pressure felt like a mountain squashing him. He copsed face-down, and blood sprayed out of his mouth!


    ¡°Ah!¡± No matter how hard Zhao Wuji fought, he could not stand up again. He could not believe that he had lost! And he did not even know who he had lost to!<em>Who the hell is that guy? How dare he rob me of my glory!? I promised my uncle I would win all three rounds! This is just the first round, and I have lost just like that? </em>Zhao Wuji refused to believe the truth. He continued to struggle, and green veins popped out of his skin.


    He suddenly saw a pair of feet appear in front of him. It was the Beast Warrior covered in red scales. Long Chen¡¯s blood-red eyes were fixed coldly on him.


    And Zhao Wuji was lying face-down.


    The cold re was an endless humiliation to Zhao Wuji, and his lungs were about to explode from rage. He red at Long Chen coldly, about to insult him, but the strong gravity stopped him from even opening his mouth to speak.


    In contrast, Long Chen stood in front of him and walked effortlessly.


    Long Chen looked up because he saw Demon General Typhoon, who was standing behind Zhao Wuji. Demon General Typhoon was eyeing Long Chen carefully with his ck eyes and he nodded. ¡°It looks like your body tempering technique is an advanced Heaven-tier! Not bad! Looks like you¡¯ll be the champion of the first round!¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your praise,¡± said Long Chen with a smile, nodding back. His smile looked creepy in his dragon form.


    Demon General Typhoon nodded, and his voice spread across the whole ck Prison.


    ¡°The first round has ended. Ancient Demon Domain disciples, record the top seven thousand participants¡¯ distance. All the disciples who have crossed the minimum threshold may enter the next round, while the rest will be eliminated!¡±


    He dered the end of the first round.


    ¡°Cultivators who have sessfully progressed, follow me into the Ancient Demon Domain. There, you will have one hour to rest. Then you will enter the second round!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± answered those who had qualified and still had enough strength to speak.


    The arrangements were made swiftly, and everyone started to turn around. Those who could no longer walk were carried away. The Ancient Demon Domain had many disciples present, so all eighty thousand people quickly exited the Ancient Demon Domain. Over seventy thousand of them were feeling dejected because they had been disqualified!


    Disqualification also meant that their dream of many years had been dashed.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We failed, and we won¡¯t get another chance.¡±


    ¡°Entering the Ancient Demon Domain is just a dream after all. Normal peasants like us only belong outside.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Minor figures like us should not even dream of such things!¡±


    ¡°Seven thousand out of eighty thousand! Rules like that are too cruel!¡±


    Of course, there were also some who were rubbing their palms or clenching their fists with determination. They were prepared toe again next year, since the Ancient Demon Domain qualifiers were an annual affair.


    When Long Chen had just exited the ck Prison, he quickly became the focal point of attention. Everyone knew that he was the crazy cultivator who had surpassed Zhao Wuji. His personal data showed that he was merely at the First Passage Stage.


    Being able to achieve such results meant that he truly was a prodigy.


    Everyone had opinions to discuss.


    ¡°That brat is only at the First Passage Stage, but I heard he has already cultivated an advanced Heaven-tier body tempering technique! That¡¯s insane!¡±


    ¡°Indeed. With such a tough body, this test was basically rigged in his favor. However, I don¡¯t think he¡¯s going to have it easy in the next two rounds. The second and third rounds are not tests of toughness!¡±


    ¡°Also, didn¡¯t you see his age? He¡¯s at least seventeen or eighteen, right? He¡¯s only at the First Passage Stage, but Zhao Wuji is at the Fourth Passage Stage at just fourteen. That¡¯s a gigantic gap. Maybe that Jiang Cheng guy can beat Zhao Wuji now in terms of physical toughness, butter, he will be left far behind.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true!¡±


    The people around all nodded, as they felt that it made sense.


    The most outstanding people of this qualifier event were young but had high cultivation levels!


    Far away, Zhao Wuji red coldly at Long Chen.


    <em>That brat! Isn¡¯t he the guy that Ma Liu said beat him up? When you hit a dog, you¡¯ve got to see who the master is! Not only did he not show me respect, he humiliated me too! That¡¯s uneptable! He¡¯s only at the First Passage Stage; how dare he showboat in front of me, Zhao Wuji!</em>


    The more he thought about him, the angrier he became, especially when he saw that Long Chen was chatting happily with Huangfu Qi as if nothing had happened. This made him rage even more!


    <em>Jiang Cheng? Your name is Jiang Cheng? You just wait and see! This is just the first round. You had an unfair advantage because of your body tempering technique, but after this, you¡¯ll learn what a true master is!</em>


    Obviously, Long Chen sensed the venomous re from Zhao Wuji.


    But he did not care.


    A fourteen-year-old brat was not enough to make him nervous.


    ¡°Big Brother, you were awesome just now!¡± Stars twinkled in Huangfu Qi¡¯s eyes. It had taken him no effort to do something she couldn¡¯t do. Previously, she was concerned that she would be separated from Xiang because Long Chen would not enter Ancient Demon Domain, but now she realized that there was no need to worry.


    Long Chen smiled shyly.


    The remaining seven thousand people had started to enter the Ancient Demon Domain under the disciples¡¯ instructions.


    While the ck Prison took up part of the entrance, there was another path that led to the true Ancient Demon Domain. After they passed through the narrow pathway, they found themselves in a vast za. This za¡¯s ground was made out of ck crystal. Although it was ck, it was shiny and translucent, creating an astounding effect as it reflected the light.


    The square was easilyrge enough to hold seven thousand people.


    Long Chen looked up and saw seven gigantic pirs. Every ck pir was one and a half meters in radius, and about twenty meters tall. They looked like seven heaven-bearing pirs erected in the square.


    Many carvings had been made on the surface of the pirs, and Long Chen guessed that the second test involved these pirs!


    Seven thousand people stood in the center of the square.


    In front, Demon General Typhoon levitated mid-air and announced loudly, ¡°You all have forty-five minutes left to rest. During this time, we will distribute the rewards for the first round! When there are fifteen minutes left, we will tell you the second round¡¯s rules and the rewards!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± replied the crowd.


    It was time to distribute the Heavenly Passage Pills. Every person would receive at least twenty Heavenly Passage Pills. Huangfu Qi received two thousand for being in third ce, but she roughly stuffed them somewhere without even looking at them. It was clear that she did not care about Heavenly Passage Pills at all.


    Drawing countless envious looks, Long Chen received ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. He felt very good about getting so many pills for doing almost nothing. After he put them away, he suddenly felt a numbing sensation on his scalp because there were many masters eyeing him up and down.


    He looked up and saw that behind the seven pirs were over a dozen people dressed like Demon General Typhoon, their res sweeping coldly across the crowd. When he received the ten thousand pills, everyone looked at him.


    <em>Those people must be the twenty-eight Demon Generals. All of them have cleared their heavenly meridian points and reached the Ninth Passage Stage. They are extremely powerful. </em>Long Chen was privately startled. He knew that their power was far beyond his reach at his current level.


    Every single one of them could easily kill him.


    Masters were asmon as clouds here! This was the Ancient Demon Domain!

 Chapter 468: Heaven Passage Pillars

    Long Chen hung his head and did not look at them. He knew that the Demon Generals were talking about him right now.


    <em>Compared to a prodigy like Zhao Wuji, they must not think that I have as much potential. But so what? As long as I can get the one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, I¡¯ll be able to progress in the future without worries. Then I can enter the training grounds of the Ancient Demon Domain and my cultivation will progress quickly.</em>


    That was Long Chen¡¯s objective for entering the Ancient Demon Domain.


    The other objective was the Martial Alliance.


    When he had just arrived, he had killed many members of the Martial Alliance. He had no faction backing him, so he would be done for if any investigations traced him to that incident. That was why entering the Ancient Demon Domain was a good choice.


    Furthermore, ces with more experts were excellent for him to fully utilize his potential.


    Time passed.


    Very soon, it was almost time to begin the second round. Demon General Typhoon flew up to the sky once more and he announced, ¡°The break is almost over. I¡¯m sure your wounds from the ck Prison are mostly healed by now.¡±


    He looked around, and since no one objected, he continued, ¡°No one has any issues; that¡¯s very good. Now, I shall begin exining the rules of the second round. I¡¯m sure everyone can see the seven ck pirs here! They are very famous in the Ancient Demon Domain; they¡¯re called the Heaven Passage Pirs!¡±¡°Heavenly Passage Pirs?¡± Long Chen had a faint feeling that they were rted to the Heaven Passage Realm.


    Demon General Typhoon continued, ¡°The Heavenly Passage Pirs are targets for all Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators to test their strength! I¡¯m sure many people have heard of their function, so I¡¯ll only give you a brief exnation. Attack the Heavenly Passage Pirs with your most powerful attack, and the louder the sound from the pirs, the stronger your attack is! That¡¯s right! This round tests your attack strength! The strongest cultivators will progress to the next round! The ability to attack is the foundation of a person¡¯s capability, because strong attacks usually determine the winner of a fight! That is why this is a true test of your capabilities! There will be no shortcuts!¡±


    <em>Attack the Heavenly Passage Pirs with your strongest attack? And the Heavenly Passage Pirs will make a noise? </em>Long Chen privately made a mental note of Demon General Typhoon¡¯s words. At the same time, he eyed the Heavenly Passage Pirs. <em>Does that mean that even if someone is at the Ninth Passage Stage, they can¡¯t destroy the Heavenly Passage Pirs since they are at the Heavenly Passage Realm?</em>


    This meant that the materials used to make the Heavenly Passage Pirs were terrifying too.


    The crowd started to discuss as they gazed at the pirs in awe.


    Demon General Typhoon continued, ¡°After the first round in the ck Prison, seven thousand people remain out of the eighty thousand participants. In the second round with the Heavenly Passage Pirs, only ten percent will progress too. The Ancient Demon Domain will pick the seven hundred people who can generate the loudest sound to enter the third round! The rules are simple, but qualifying will not be simple because you need to beat the ten people next to you!¡±


    Ny percent of participants would be disqualified once more. It was a brutal process.


    Although they knew the Ancient Demon Domain was a difficult faction to enter, the crowd was still pale. They all looked at each other and saw the worry in each other¡¯s eyes.


    Whether they would enter Ancient Demon Domain all depended on whether they could risk it all.


    ¡°While the rules are brutal, the reward will be abundant if you progress to the next round. I will now announce the rewards!


    ¡°First, every person who qualifies will receive fifty Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    This number was almost three times more than before. That meant that they would get a total of seventy Heavenly Passage Pills!


    Greed ignited within them.


    Heavenly Passage Pills were the most important resource for cultivators at the Heavenly Passage Realm. Many people found themselves unable to progress because theycked Heavenly Passage Pills!


    ¡°The top one hundred people will receive three hundred Heavenly Passage Pills each, and the top ten will receive a thousand! Third ce will receive six thousand, second ce will receive ten thousand, and first ce ¡­¡±


    Demon General Typhoon nced at Long Chen and Zhao Wuji and smiled. ¡°The champion will receive thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! Let¡¯s watch and see who gets the thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    The temptation of Heavenly Passage Pills filled the dejected crowd with battle spirit once more. Victory all depended on this moment! Instead of feeling dejected, they had to work as hard as they could to fight! It was possible to seed by ident, and if that happened, they would be set for life.


    It was easy to be one of the enforcers of the Martial Alliance, but difficult to be a disciple of the Ancient Demon Domain. There were millions of Martial Alliance enforcers, but there were only about ten thousand Ancient Demon Domain disciples.


    <em>Thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills? Ick Heavenly Passage Pills right now, and due to being a Dragon Warrior, I consume ten times more pills than a regr person every time I progress one stage. Ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills won¡¯tst me very long. That is why I must be champion this time too! </em>thought Long Chen.


    The more outstanding his performance was, the more resources he would receive.


    <em>Since I¡¯m already here, I should do my best! </em>Long Chen was feeling optimistic.


    Demon General Typhoon continued, ¡°Everyone, line up in front of the pir that corresponds to the first number of your serial numbers!¡±


    During registration, Long Chen had received a serial number with seven as the first number. Therefore, he lined up in front of the seventh Heavenly Passage Pir. Huangfu Qi stood in front of him because they had registered consecutively.


    For convenience¡¯s sake, they would take their turns ording to their numbers. Since Zhao Wuji had previously cut in line and registered before Long Chen, he was now arranged to stand between Huangfu Qi and Long Chen.


    ¡°Thank you for your help, Senior Liu!¡± Zhao Wuji smiled at the disciple who had made the arrangement.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. When you get number er, you just need to treat us to a good meal,¡± said the disciple, who left with a smile.


    After Zhao Wuji¡¯s arrival, the mood turned sour quickly.


    Huangfu Qi did not like him at all, and when she saw that he was now standing between her and Long Chen, she red at him and said, ¡°You¡¯re a bad person! You cut in line! You jerk! You asshole!¡±


    Zhao Wuji and Long Chen choked at thest insult. Zhao Wuji¡¯s face turned a deep shade of red, and despite how adorable Huangfu Qi was, he scolded her coldly. ¡°Shut your mouth, girl!¡±


    ¡°What kind of a man are you, fighting a little girl?¡± Long Chen stood in front of him. ¡°If you think you¡¯re that strong, we¡¯ll see how you do against the pir! Let¡¯s see if you can get first ce.¡± Long Chen smirked, as if trying to provoke him.


    ¡°You¡¯re Jiang Cheng, right? Are you challenging me?¡± Zhao Wuji stopped and stared at him darkly.


    ¡°What¡¯s the point of challenging someone like you?¡± Long Chen gave a small smile andforted Huangfu Qi,pletely ignoring him.


    Zhao Wuji clenched his fists tightly.


    <em>The booming noise of the Heavenly Passage Pirs will make you understand what true strength really is. I¡¯ve killed a Fifth Passage Stage master, so do you think I¡¯ll be weaker than you at the First Passage Stage? My uncle isn¡¯t here today, but if I don¡¯t get number one, we¡¯ll lose face ¡­ That is why I must be number one! </em>A bright fire burned in his eyes.


    Then, ording to Demon General Typhoon¡¯s arrangements, the second round began. Since Long Chen had registeredte, it would be some time until his turn.


    Long Chen noticed that the dozen or so Demon Generals had dispersed and were now standing next to the seven pirs. With them as the judges, the winners of the round would easily be determined. He saw that the Demon Generals each had a notebook for records. They would likely record a score based on the sound they heard, thenpare all the scores to determine the top seven hundred participants!


    Since these qualifiers were held every year, they likely had a perfect scoring system.


    The participants began their attacks. Long Chen looked at the pir in front of him and saw that there was a teenager standing in front of it.


    Long Chen could not see his face because his back was towards him, but he could see the teenager trembling. However, the teenager knew that his sess depended on his next attack, so he gritted his teeth, took several steps back, and exploded with his most powerful attack!


    It was an immense fist technique unleashed with his Second Passage Stage strength. The fist seal turned into a gigantic sprinting tiger, which crashed into the pir! Ripples radiated away from the pirs, making the ck cloak of the Demon General standing behind the pir fly up.


    Long Chen heard a soft sound from the pir, but it quickly died down.


    Because this was the first strike, no one knew if it was considered loud. Though from the teenager¡¯s expression, he had not achieved his goal and he descended dejectedly. The next guy reced him.


    The Demon General recording the score never looked up. After hearing the sound created by the first person¡¯s attack, he recorded the score and then did not move.


    The second teenager was also at the Second Passage Stage, though the sound he caused was only very slightly louder than the previous guy.


    The subsequent participants performed on a simr level. The worst participant failed to make any sound at all, while the loudest result came from a Fourth Passage Stage Beast Warrior who exploded with his most powerful attack. The gentle cry from the pirsted three whole breaths!


    This was the best result from Long Chen¡¯s section. The other sections also had simr results.


    Very soon, the second round wasing to an end. The top three of the previous round were closing in on the pirs.


    This would be the most exciting moment of the second round!

 Chapter 469: Martial Peak Finger

    Even the attack from the Fourth Passage Stage Beast Warrior was not enough to make the Demon General look up. This meant that his strength had not gained the general¡¯s approval.


    ¡°Qi Qi, it¡¯s your turn. Do your best!¡± About a thousand people had lined up in front of each pir, and every person took about ten breaths¡¯ time toplete their singr attack. After about two hours, it was finally Huangfu Qi¡¯s turn.


    After Huangfu Qi would be Zhao Wuji, then Long Chen. They were the top three of the first round. Would they be the top three once more?


    Everyone was excited.


    The other groups at the six other pirs were almost done too.


    Almost all seven thousand people looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction. Huangfu Qi and Zhao Wuji had been outstanding since the beginning, while Long Chen was a dark horse that had risen in the first round. Their performance was greatly anticipated.


    ¡°Big Brother, you are no match for me in this test! And you, jerk! Just wait and see how I squash you! Hmph!¡± Huangfu Qi rolled her eyes at Zhao Wuji, then she walked up to the pir in front of everyone.


    <em>I can¡¯t use those moves, or my identity will be exposed. Looks like I can only use this one! </em>thought Huangfu Qi, cocking her head to the side. <em>This move isn¡¯t considered my n¡¯s attack, and there are many people who know about it. It¡¯s the best among all the intermediate Heaven-tier techniques, and it even surpasses the average advanced Heaven-tier attack. It should be enough to win first ce.</em>


    Soon after, Fourth Passage Stage Qi erupted from her body. Although she was young, her Qi was abnormally thick. It was even thicker than that of the Beast Warrior from before, as if infinite power had erupted from her tiny body.A powerful light shot out of her eyes, and the fiery lightnded on the Heavenly Passage Pir!


    <em>Time to make the seal!</em>


    Standing in front of the Heavenly Passage Pir, Huangfu Qi¡¯s tiny hands formed seals so quickly that they could barely be seen. A tornado appeared above her hand, which instantly grew and wrapped around her tiny body, as if turning her into a powerful tornado!


    The powerful aura of this attack made everyone near her step back. Thankfully, there was no dust on the crystal floor, or it would have flown everywhere!


    In just one breath¡¯s time, the tornado grew asrge as the pir.


    Everyone nearby chose to create some distance, but the Demon General stood in ce. He still did not look up, though the cloak behind him flew off with the wind and disappeared.


    ¡°Haargh!


    ¡°Tornado Seal!¡±


    Then Huangfu Qi fully unleashed the attack, and the tornado waspressed into a seal technique. She controlled it with her hands, then directed it toward the pir. The powerful attack shot through the pir and dispersed in two directions!


    The sound made by the pir was louder than any sound before.


    Everyone could clearly hear the difference, especially the Demon General.


    Huangfu Qi leaped with joy and ran up to Long Chen. She hugged his leg and said, as if asking for praise, ¡°Yay! Big Brother, I¡¯ve won!¡±


    ¡°Qi Qi, you¡¯re awesome! You¡¯re much stronger than many people.¡± Long Chen smiled at her in exasperation. Indeed, her performance was impressive, and it was clear that she was number one so far.


    Everyone looked at her in awe.


    They felt like they had lived their lives in vain, because she had achieved this at just ten years old. To be honest, Zhao Wuji was nothing impressivepared to Huangfu Qi.


    ¡°Not bad! Not bad at all!¡± said Demon General Typhoon in the air, pping for her. Then he turned to Zhao Wuji and said, ¡°Zhao Wuji, it¡¯s your turn. We expect the most from you; don¡¯t lose to a little girl.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t!¡± Zhao Wuji smiled confidently, then he nced coldly at Long Chen. ¡°It¡¯ll be your turn to humiliate yourselfter!¡±


    He passed Long Chen and approached the pir.


    <em>That girl chose to use an intermediate Heaven-tierbat technique, so it looks like I¡¯m winning this for sure. Other than me, who here would have an advanced Heaven-tier technique? I couldn¡¯t have killed that Fifth Passage Stage criminal without this technique. This second round suits my strengths the most!</em>


    Powerful confidence shone in his eyes!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Zhao Wuji stuck out his index finger and closed his eyes.


    Large ripples of energy radiated from his body. Zhao Wuji started very slowly to prepare for his most powerful attack.


    ¡°Has it begun yet?¡±


    ¡°This is a finger technique that Zhao Wuji uses. It must be the one that he¡¯s known for.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s only at the Fourth Passage Stage, but he¡¯s already able to use an advanced Heaven-tier technique. That¡¯s impressive! Zhao Wuji indeed has great potential. He has the right to be a disciple of the seven Demon Kings!¡±


    ¡°Then Huangfu Qi, who is only ten, has the right to be one too!¡±


    The other Demon Generals, who now had nothing to do, started to discuss.


    Zhao Wuji started tounch his most powerful attack!


    His attack was not as dramatic as Huangfu Qi¡¯s at first, but when it wasunched, its power was enough to instantly destroy Huangfu Qi¡¯s Tornado Seal. An advanced Heaven-tier technique was serious business!


    ¡°Secret Technique, Martial Peak Finger!¡±


    He pointed one finger, then a bright burst of light shot out from it like an arrow, leaving behind a shining trail. It pierced into the Heavenly Passage Pir!


    Bright light shone and the arrow of light exploded into dots of starlight. The Heavenly Passage Pir let out a loud vibration, and although it was not much stronger than Huangfu Qi¡¯s shot, itsted twice as long!


    This meant that while Zhao Wuji¡¯s attack was theoretically on the same level as hers, it was stronger in practice!


    The crowd gave genuine praise andpliments when they saw the attack. The advanced Heaven-tier Martial Peak Finger had lived up to its tier as an advanced Heaven-tier technique. From the pir¡¯s judgment, they knew how powerful it was.


    ¡°Zhao Wuji, you have lived up to your reputation! You have cultivated the Martial Peak Finger to its very peak, and you are the only person who has mastered this technique to its peak at the Fourth Passage Stage!¡± said Demon General Typhoon with augh. His voice echoed across the za.


    Everyone agreed.


    The other Demon Generals also praised Zhao Wuji, who had a wide grin from receiving so much approval. He hurriedly said to Demon General Typhoon, ¡°I can¡¯t ept your praise! I am only a humble junior, and it took me two whole years to cultivate the Martial Peak Finger!¡±


    ¡°Two years to cultivate an advanced Heaven-tier technique is an excellent achievement. You¡¯ll have a high chance of entering the three Martial Realms one day!¡± Demon General Typhoon said approvingly.


    ¡°Thank you for the praise, Demon General Typhoon!¡±


    Being the focal point of so many people¡¯s attention made him feel extremely good, and his grin became even wider.


    ¡°He¡¯s such a jerk! Big Brother, you must beat him! Make his face stinkier than his butt!¡± said Huangfu Qi.


    Seeing as the crowd did not n to continue, Huangfu Qi screamed with fury, ¡°Stop talking! My Big Brother is next!¡±


    Due to her young age, her voice was shrill, and it startled everyone. They all recovered from their awe of Zhao Wuji¡¯s performance, and Demon General Typhoon smiled awkwardly. ¡°In that case, uh ¡­ Jiang Cheng, it¡¯s your turn.¡±


    Everyone suddenly remembered that Long Chen had not had his turn yet.


    They knew that he was only at the First Passage Stage, and he had only gotten first ce before because his body was tough. The second round did not rely on body toughness!


    That was why after Zhao Wuji¡¯s result, which was the best, everyone temporarily forgot about Long Chen.


    After Huangfu Qi¡¯s tantrum, they finally looked at him to see how he would perform. Huangfu Qi¡¯s scream had drawn a lot of attention, so if he did not perform well, it would be very embarrassing.


    Long Chen was sure he was at least on par with a Third Passage Stage cultivator, which was nowhere near bad enough to be considered embarrassing.


    He finally strode towards the Heavenly Passage Pirs, and Zhao Wuji stepped back.


    When they passed each other, Zhao Wuji¡¯s mocking voice rang in Long Chen¡¯s ears. ¡°Do your best! If the pir doesn¡¯t even make a sound, it¡¯ll be very embarrassing for you.¡±


    Long Chen ignored him.


    He only needed to use his strength to prove himself.


    Long Chen approached the pir to inspect it up close.


    Suddenly, he noticed a handprint on the pir. It was obvious that someone had hit it with their palm, and it was three centimeters deep.


    <em>Zhao Wuji¡¯s most powerful attack did not even leave a scratch on the pir. Who did this? This person left behind a handprint! That¡¯s powerful ¡­</em> Long Chen<em></em>thought to himself.


    ¡°That handprint was stamped by the Demon Emperor¡¯s favorite son, Jiang Wushang, when he was at the Ninth Passage Stage. Right now, Jiang Wushang is at the three Martial Realms. No one else has been able to leave a handprint on the Heavenly Passage Pirs before attaining the Martial Realms,¡± said the Demon General who was Long Chen¡¯s examiner with his head lowered.

 Chapter 470: High Score

    Jiang Wushang?


    <em>He was able to defymon belief and left a handprint on the Heavenly Passage Pir at the Ninth Passage Stage? I wonder what I will achieve when I reach the Ninth Passage Stage. If I can get the Emperor me Pearl, I will leave a much bigger mark than this three-centimeter-deep handprint!</em>


    Long Chen was filled with confidence.


    ¡°Alright, Jiang Cheng. You may begin,¡± said Demon General Typhoon.


    Long Chen nodded and slowly activated his Dragon Soul Transformation before everyone¡¯s anxious gazes. Blood-red scales covered his whole body, making him look extremely impressive.


    ¡°Huh? What¡¯s this transformation?¡± The Demon Generals were puzzled because they could not identify what type his beast origin was. And why did this tiny form radiate such an ancient regalness? That powerful aura of violence did not belong to Long Chen; it was brought about by his Beast Soul Transformation!


    However, while they were still confused, he had already taken out his Demon Emperor Sword.


    ¡°An intermediate Heaven-tier divine weapon. Not bad. Looks like Jiang Chenges from a solid background,¡± said the Demon Generals, nodding.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and looked at the pir.In reality, he did not know what attack he would have to use in order to be a three-time champion. Right now, he had no way to hide his true capabilities.


    Of course, Huangfu Qi and Zhao Wuji had used intermediate and advanced Heaven-tier techniques. If he used the Demon Emperor Sword Technique, he would be no match for them. That was why he had to use his most powerful technique instead.


    Long Chen¡¯s expression was solemn, and he slowly started to wave the Demon Emperor Sword. Strange sword symbols started to orbit around him in a sporadic manner simr to Huangfu Qi¡¯s tornado.


    The Demon Generals were shaken when he started to use this attack. Demon General Typhoon blurted, ¡°Isn¡¯t that a sword array?¡±


    Sword arrays were usually much stronger than normal sword techniques, and they were more sophisticated too. Even in the Divine Martial Empire, sword array techniques were notmon. They had not expected Long Chen to have one.


    ¡°It¡¯s not just a sword array, it¡¯s an advanced Heaven-tier sword array!¡± The Demon Generals were even more shocked now. The other people did not know the power of sword arrays, so all they thought was that Long Chen¡¯s attack seemed very powerful.


    What happened next was even more dramatic than they could imagine. The wind and clouds swirled while he wielded the Demon Emperor Sword, and the wind howled loudly. He roared, and the Heaven Sword Array exploded. Sword symbols with unimaginable amounts of Sword Qi hidden within each one shot out and collided with the pir!


    If the pir were a person, it would have crumbled!


    From this alone, one could tell how powerful the Heaven Sword Array was!


    Long Chen knew that the Heaven Sword Array was a top-tier technique even among advanced Heaven-tier techniques. Normal techniques of this tier, like Zhao Wuji¡¯s Martial Peak Finger, were far beneath the Heaven Sword Array, seeing as this was something Ling Xi had taught him.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    When the Heaven Sword Array hit, a deafening boom came from the Heavenly Passage Pir. Although it was a short burst, it was far louder than Zhao Wuji¡¯s result!


    The sound ripples radiated across space!


    When the Demon General, who had kept his head down the entire time, heard the deafening boom, he looked up for the first time. He stared at Long Chen in shock, and Long Chen realized that ¡°he¡± was actually a beautiful woman! Though Long Chen did not pay her any attention.


    No one could believe their ears, so even after Long Chen had stopped, they had not realized that the champion had been determined.


    Long Chen¡¯s attack was unquestionably stronger than Zhao Wuji¡¯s.


    ¡°Woah! Big Brother is awesome!¡± Huangfu Qi snapped out of it first, and herrge eyes were filled with stars of adoration. She did not think Long Chen was strong before, but his performance had shocked her!


    Champion!


    Long Chen deactivated his Dragon Soul Transformation and put the Demon Emperor Sword away. Then there was a tidal surge of shocked cries and all jaws dropped. They thought Zhao Wuji¡¯s performance was an insurmountable peak, but Long Chen had made the next record!


    Even the Demon Generals looked at each other and shook their heads with bitter smiles. ¡°The kid¡¯s body is very strong and provides a great boost to his attacks. He has even cultivated an advanced Heaven-tierbat technique. Cultivating one at merely the First Passage Stage is no simple task!¡±


    ¡°You can say that this kid is more talented than Zhao Wuji in terms ofbat techniques! It¡¯s too bad that he doesn¡¯t have much talent for cultivation, or he would be the perfect prodigy.


    ¡°Cultivation is the foundation for everything.¡± Demon General Typhoon smiled and announced, ¡°Jiang Chen¡¯s performance was not bad at all!¡±


    This was genuine praise.


    Thousands of people started to p for Long Chen.


    He had surprised everyone by taking first ce in the first round, then he turned the tides in the second round to win first ce once more. In everyone¡¯s hearts, he was already a master. The second round tested their attacking abilities, and no participant felt like they could withstand that attack of his.


    The situation was clear¡ªLong Chen had beaten Zhao Wuji once more.


    The person in the most disbelief was Zhao Wuji.


    He red with wide eyes as he watched Long Chen turn around after finishing his attack. His face turned pale, but very soon, blood crept into his eyes. A trace of killing intent surfaced and ate into his heart.


    Long Chen spotted his re. He walked over, and when he passed Zhao Wuji, he smiled. ¡°Tell me, who was the one who embarrassed themselves?¡±


    Then Long Chenughed.


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s face turned green from the humiliation.


    Those were the words he had directed at Long Chen, but Long Chen ended up using them to humiliate him. This was ten times worse than just an insult from Long Chen! It was aplete mockery!


    ¡°No way! Lord Demon General Typhoon, I beg you to let me try again!¡± he cried furiously. Zhao Wuji could never let the chance to win first ce go, and he had already lost his chance in the first round.


    ¡°Of course not. The qualifiers are fair. If everyone got to try again, then wouldn¡¯t the qualifiers be meaningless?¡± Demon General Typhoon was privately speechless at Zhao Wuji¡¯s childish behavior, so his tone was harsher than before.


    Having hit a wall, Zhao Wuji was even more humiliated. His childish words had made many people burst intoughter. Theirughs were like ps across Zhao Wuji¡¯s face!


    <em>Jiang Cheng! It¡¯s your fault! It¡¯s all your fault! The third round is a battle royale, and killing is allowed! I¡¯ll kill you then! </em>he roared in his heart.


    The second round of the qualifiers ended. Demon General Typhoon saw that it was time and soared up into the air once more. He said loudly, ¡°The second round has ended! Everyone has received a score, and now we willpile your scores and rank you all. Out of seven thousand people, the top seven hundred will qualify for the next round! And you will be rewarded too! Take a break first. In fifteen minutes, I will announce the qualified participants¡¯ numbers and names!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± everyone said with great anticipation.


    Of course, there were also many who knew that they had no hope, so they were dejected.


    Long Chen was also waiting.


    He had two objectives in the Divine Martial Empire. One was to find the way to the Ancient Graveyard, and the second was to increase his strength. After he learned about the Emperor me Pearl in the Ancient Demon Domain, he knew that he had to join the Ancient Demon Domain with ster results.


    So far, his results were indeed ster.


    Very soon, Demon General Typhoon started to announce the results. He first announced the hundredth to seventh hundredth names, and everyone whose name was called was given fifty Heavenly Passage Pills. Most people were feeling dejected because they had been banking on entering the top seven hundred. When their names were not called, they felt like there was no more hope.


    ¡°Next, I will announce the eleventh to one hundredth ce. Each person will receive three hundred Heavenly Passage Pills!¡± Demon General Typhoon¡¯s voice boomed.


    Everyone listened anxiously.


    Those whose names were called automatically stepped out of the crowd with excitement on their faces while the others stared with admiration.


    Only ny names were called this time, so it was faster.


    ¡°Next, only the top ten names are left. Everyone who made it to the top ten is at the Fourth Passage Stage except for one person! And that exception is at the First Passage Stage!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon¡¯s statement killed many cultivators¡¯ dreams, specifically the ones who were at the Third Passage Stage.


    <em>The First Passage Stage cultivator is definitely Jiang Cheng, </em>they thought. With so many people watching, the Demon Generals could not tamper with the results anyway.


    ¡°I shall announce who came in fourth to tenth ce now!¡±


    The Fourth Passage Stage cultivators all stepped out excitedly. They had earned a thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.


    ¡°Now, I shall announce the much-anticipated top three names! I¡¯m sure everyone has already guessed it. The top three of the second round are the same as the first round. First, in third ce ¡­ Huangfu Qi!¡±


    It was no surprise that Huangfu Qi was third.


    In the beginning, they thought that she would be first, but she had fallen to second ce after Zhao Wuji¡¯s turn. And when Long Chen had his turn, Huangfu Qi could only take third ce.


    ¡°Next, the top two winners! Between Jiang Cheng and Zhao Wuji, who will win thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills? Everyone, take your guesses!¡±


    ¡°Jiang Cheng!¡± Long Chen¡¯s fake name rumbled across the crowd.

 Chapter 471: Seven Demon Kings

    Everyone knew the correct answer, so Demon General Typhoon could not even make the audience guess. He smiled in exasperation and said, ¡°That¡¯s right! The sound made by the Heavenly Passage Pir made it clear that Jiang Cheng¡¯s attack was stronger. That is why the champion of the second round is Jiang Cheng! Zhao Wuji¡¯s performance was, of course, excellent too, so he takes second ce. He will receive ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, and Jiang Cheng wins thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    Thirty thousand! Everyone stared at Long Chen with admiration.


    With such arge sum, he would not need to worry about his cultivation or livelihood for a very long time. Heavenly Passage Pills were basically almighty. As long as one had Heavenly Passage Pills, they would have everything else.


    Of course, Long Chen had won them using his own capabilities, so no one objected.


    ¡°Alright, it is almost the end of our qualifiers. The second round has ended. Everyone else, please leave Ancient Demon Domain using the same path. As for the remaining seven hundred, you all will enter the most crucial round. Once you pass this round, you will be a respected Ancient Demon Domain disciple!¡± announced Demon General Typhoon.


    There was only one round left. All the remaining participants were extremely anxious. But after they gritted their teeth and thought about it, they knew that their lives would change drastically as long as they passed. This was the most important crossroads of their lives. Only one in ten people would advance, so why not give it all they had?


    The crowd was filled with battle spirit.


    ¡°After the second round, your serial numbers aren¡¯t in sequence anymore, so you must take a new number! I will then announce the rules of the third round!¡±


    A disciple brought out arge box. This box was sealed, but there was a fist-sized hole on top. It waspletely ck inside.¡°There are seven hundred pieces of paper inside, and every piece has a number. Everyone! Take a number! Remember this¡ªyou¡¯re forbidden from exchanging numbers with someone else! If you do so, you will be disqualified immediately. The Ancient Demon Domain has thousands of prodigies; we won¡¯t miss you!¡± Demon General Typhoon warned sternly.


    <em>Have we finally reached thest round? The Ancient Demon Domain is indeed a super faction. Even the qualifying event is this borate. A regr person really could never join them. Perhaps this event also guarantees a constant supply of prodigies, </em>thought Long Chen.


    With his current abilities, he was only somewhat confident he could beat a Fourth Passage Stage cultivator, but cultivators at the Fifth Passage Stage and above were beyond his level. There were thousands of people beyond the Fifth Passage Stage in the Ancient Demon Domain itself.


    <em>In an environment filled with such powerful people, victors will rise quickly, but the weak will die or get disqualified. I really need to risk it all this time. </em>Long Chen steeled himself.


    This time, it was Huangfu Qi¡¯s turn. After she took her number, he took his own. The number ¡°1¡± was written on his piece of paper.


    ¡°Big Brother, mine says ¡®2!¡¯ Mine says ¡®2!¡¯ What about you?¡± Huangfu Qi looked up excitedly.


    ¡°One,¡± he said truthfully.


    ¡°How coincidental! Jiang Cheng, it looks like the heavens aren¡¯t standing on your side,¡± said a voiceced with venom.


    Long Chen did not need to turn around to know that it was Zhao Wuji.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± asked Long Chen.


    Zhao Wuji shed the paper in his hand, which also showed ¡°1,¡± and said, ¡°You¡¯ve run out of luck.¡±


    There were one hundred number ones in the box, so it wasn¡¯t at all unusual for them to get the same number.


    Long Chen ignored him. If they really were paired together, he did not mind beating him up.


    By now, everyone had their number.


    ¡°Now, I shall take you all to a new ce¡ªthe Martial Arena of the Ancient Demon Domain!¡± Demon General Typhoon led the remaining seven hundred people away.


    Very soon, they arrived in a narrow valley, and after they passed it, the space ahead opened into a t basin surrounded by medium-sized gray hills.


    Upon arrival, Long Chen sensed that there were countless masters hidden within the surrounding hills. These people were likely Ancient Demon Domain disciples here to watch the show, perhaps even people of higher status.


    Long Chen and the rest felt a terrifying pressure with so many people present. Long Chen knew that there were many old and powerful people in the Ancient Demon Domain, including the seven Demon Kings, who were at the Earthly Martial Realm.


    Cultivators at the three Martial Realms were on a whole different level, far above the four foundational realms.


    Then Long Chen saw several ck stages in the space ahead. When he counted them, he realized that, like the pirs, there were seven of them. The seven stages were arranged in the shape of the seven-starred big dipper constetion. One ck-clothed person stood on each stage, and all of them were of varying ages, gender, and look. The only simrity was the terrifying aura that radiated from them.


    Demon General Typhoon hurriedly knelt on the ground and said with a sincere look on his face, ¡°Greetings, Your Majesties the Seven Demon Kings!¡±


    ¡°Greetings, Your Majesties the Seven Demon Kings!¡± When other people saw his greeting, they quickly knelt as well. Long Chen did not want to stand out like a stork among chickens, so he also pulled Huangfu Qi down to kneel.


    ¡°Seven Demon Kings, these are the seven hundred candidates who showed great potential after the filtering process. After this final round, we will be able to choose seventy excellent candidates to join your pavilions!¡±


    One of the Demon Kings said, ¡°Typhoon, you may get up. Everyone, get up. The seven of us are only here to recruit disciples. We won¡¯t interfere with the selection process, so just follow the standard procedures.¡±


    Then they all retreated and left the seven ck stages.


    Behind the stages were eight extravagant seats made of ck metal. There was one empty chair in the middle, and the seven Demon Kings sat in the seven chairs on either side of it. Long Chen guessed that the center seat belonged to the Demon Emperor, Jiang Wuxie.


    With the permission of the Demon Kings, the crowd stood up and Demon General Typhoon brought them to the stages. He leaped onto one stage and surveyed the seven hundred young faces. ¡°It was difficult for you to make it to this point. First, I would like to congratte all of you; you all have done well. But the world is forever cruel! You must endure another ten-to-one elimination before you can reach your final goal and pass the most important test of your lives!


    ¡°First, let me exin the rules. Every person has a piece of paper with a number that matches a stage. There are seven stages, so there will be a hundred people on each one. The rules are simple. When there are only ten people left standing on your stage, and you find that you are one of them, you will be an Ancient Demon Domain disciple! Youngdies and gentlemen, everything depends on thest test!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon¡¯s words fanned the mes of passion.


    ¡°Ten people will remain on each stage, so the seventy of you will receive the most important reward¡ªbing an Ancient Demon Domain disciple, and also a thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    A thousand?


    The crowd erupted with excitement. The top three of the first round had only received two thousand Heavenly Passage Pills each. If they passed this round, they would receive a thousand! It was clear how rich the Ancient Demon Domain was.


    ¡°Of course, since the past two rounds had three top ces, then the third round will have the same format! However, those who end up in eighth to seventieth ce will receive a thousand pills. Fourth to seventh ce will receive five thousand Heavenly Passage Pills each! Third ce, ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. Second ce, thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. First ce will receive sixty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    The highest reward was sixty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. This meant that if Long Chen came out in first ce on thest round, he would win a total of one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills today!


    Everyone drooled over the rewards!


    ¡°Of course, the Heavenly Passage Pills are only part of the reward. The top seven will be the direct disciples of the seven Earthly Martial Realm Demon Kings!


    ¡°The seven Demon Kings are also the Pavilion Lords of the seven pavilions in the Ancient Demon Domain. All of them are ranked just beneath the Demon Emperor, and ranked above ten thousand people. Bing their disciple guarantees great sess, so everyone, take this seriously!¡± Demon General Typhoon said excitedly.


    ¡°Lord Demon General, won¡¯t the battle royale merely produce seventy winners? How will you determine the top seven and top three?¡± a teenager asked, puzzled.


    ¡°That¡¯s simple!¡± Demon General Typhoon smiled. ¡°Once the ten winners of each stage are decided, they will have another free-for-all until only one person remains on the stage. That person will be one of the top seven! The winners will be their respective stage¡¯s sole finalist, and all finalists will be the seven Demon Kings¡¯ direct disciples. There will then be a final battle, so the third tost to leave wille in third, the second tost to leave wille in second, and the final person remaining will be the champion!¡±


    Luck seemed to y a huge part with this ruleset. However, only a strong person would be able to remain standing.


    Out of the seven hundred people, the final person standing would be the absolute champion!


    Long Chen smiled. So, thest round was a battle royale. It was no wonder Zhao Wuji had said that Long Chen was going to die. But who would die in the end?


    He looked up at the seven Demon Kings behind the stage.


    <em>Those Earthly Martial Realm cultivators radiate an arrogant and immense power, while Ling Xi¡¯s family radiated an energy that is mysterious and terrifying. This means that her grandmother is stronger than them. However, the seven Demon Kings still look quite scary. They live up to their reputation as the top cultivators of the Divine Martial Empire!</em>


    Under Demon General Typhoon¡¯s instructions, everyone started to climb onto the martial stages.


    They would also be performance stages.

 Chapter 472: Red Ghost King

    Since he had pulled number one, Long Chen ascended the first stage. He realized that the ck stage felt muchrger when he stepped onto it. About a hundred people stood cautiously on it, all dispersed, but there was still a lot of space left.


    Long Chen was standing on one of the corners.


    As for Huangfu Qi, she was on stage number two, though he was not worried about her. No one in her group was a match for her, so she would definitely enter the top seven. The most anticipated group was the first group because Long Chen and Zhao Wuji were both there.


    That was why even though the round had not begun, most of the people were already watching them. Even the seven Demon Kings had their eyes on them.


    Long Chen suddenly felt his whole body tingle. He did not turn around, because he knew it was due to the seven Demon Kings eyeing him from head to toe. He was the champion of the first and second rounds, so he was the dark horse of dark horses. Dark horses always attracted the most attention, so they were all studying the person who had defeated Zhao Wuji.


    After a long time, the tingling sensation finally disappeared.


    <em>These are legitimately powerful people! Their gazes alone are enough to ce so much pressure on me! </em>Long Chen was privately shocked.


    Among the crowd, he spotted Zhao Wuji, who was also looking at him. Zhao Wuji¡¯s re was malicious, and anyone could see the intent to provoke in his eyes.


    Long Chen and Zhao Wuji were the most attention-grabbing people of the qualifiers. Everyone knew that both were powerful, so no one dared to provoke them and stayed far away.Demon General Typhoon looked around, then he announced the official start of the battle.


    A battle royale like this was already a cruel situation, plus the drawing process was very random, so almost no one had someone they could trust by their side. When Demon General Typhoon announced the start of the round, no one moved at first. They all peered at the other participants cautiously.


    Every person on each stage was actually fighting ny-nine other people!


    Suddenly, one person attacked. This was a sufficient trigger, and almost everyone on stage started to attack too. Cries, whooshes, and curses rang across the entire martial arena along with all sorts of lights. Even Demon General Typhoon was overwhelmed by the view.


    Every person who copsed or was knocked off the stage was considered to have lost. One by one, people copsed or were thrown off, and the number of people standing on all seven stages rapidly decreased.


    So far, no one had dared to attack Long Chen. There was arge empty space around him. He was happy to have nothing to do, and he studied his surroundings closely with an exasperated smile on his face. The third round of the qualifiers truly depended on one¡¯s strength. It was the most terrifying and cruelest. So far, he had witnessed quite a few people being killed.


    Anyone who had been killed or incapacitated were quickly removed by Ancient Demon Domain masters. The number of people on the ck stages was decreasing. Long Chen¡¯s group was also thinning quickly, and after about thirty minutes, only around ten people remained. The other groups were the same.


    The crucial moment that would decide who would enter the Ancient Demon Domain had arrived.


    Still, no one had dared to attack Long Chen. Of course, no one touched Zhao Wuji either. Both of them would be able to enter the top ten just by standing in ce.


    The people who remained were mostly at the Fourth Passage Stage. They started to exterminate the Third Passage Stage cultivators, and after a while, Long Chen counted that there were exactly ten people left. This meant that all ten of them were qualified to enter the Ancient Demon Domain!


    Everyone other than Long Chen and Zhao Wuji was ecstatic!


    Squeezing into seventy spots from the initial eighty thousand people was no easy feat. They were all content with this result, and were over the moon.


    The top ten winners soon emerged on every stage.


    The people who would enter the Ancient Demon Domain this year were finally confirmed. Next, they would be fighting for the top seven and top three spots.


    Everyone who stayed behind heaved a sigh of relief, while the people who had left the stage were all dejected. They were so close!


    ¡°Life is like that. Some people will seed, but that means that someone else will fail. When you fail, do not give up. As long as you do not give up, there will be more chances waiting for you,¡± Demon General Typhoon said in an attempt tofort the sad teenagers.


    ¡°Making it to this level proves that you all are truly powerful. Do not give up. Come again next year; there will be more chances!¡±


    Then Demon General Typhoon instructed the disciples to escort them away.


    After that, his eyes fell on the seventy remaining people.


    ¡°Congrattions, everyone! From now onwards, you all are the disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain! This means that you all are fated to be one step above the regr person! If you choose to be an Enforcer for the Martial Alliance, you will start out at a higher rank than a normal person. You will also receive far more resources than other people your age! This means that your lives are about to change drastically!¡±


    There was no need to borate on the benefits they would get upon entering the Ancient Demon Domain. Everyone was very emotional.


    However, the qualifiers had not ended yet.


    ¡°But there is still one very important thing to do, which is to determine the top seven and top three candidates among all of you! The top seven and top three will receive rewards far exceeding the rest. And if you get a Demon King as your mentor, your future will be limitless. Of course, if you¡¯re not strong enough, do not force it. If you get killed, you¡¯re wasting your chance to enter the Ancient Demon Domain! It¡¯s not worth it for you guys!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon¡¯s words were mainly directed at the top ten of stage number one because there were two strong fighters there, Long Chen and Zhao Wuji. Based on the second round, their offensive capabilities far surpassed those of other people. If they fought each other, it would likely end with death!


    Some of the people smiled in exasperation when they heard him.


    Very few people from the other stages gave up, but most of the participants on stage number one stepped down as soon as Demon General Typhoon announced themencement of the round. Long Chen, Zhao Wuji, and the other two Fourth Passage Stage cultivators remained.


    They looked at each other, then they all charged at Long Chen!


    Their logic was to go for him first since he was at a lower cultivation level than them.


    Long Chen dared not let his guard down against Fourth Passage Stage cultivators. He quickly used the Dragon Soul Transformation, so his strength skyrocketed. Since he was about to enter his final fight against Zhao Wuji, he did not hold back!


    ¡°Demon Seed nting Technique!¡±


    This was an initial Heaven-tier technique, so it was still effective for Long Chen. Starting with the Qi boost he received with his Dragon Soul Transformation, his Qi increased until he had almost as much as a Third Passage Stage cultivator. With the addition of his tough dragon body, his strength was undeniable.


    ¡°Demon Seed nting Technique? Isn¡¯t that the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯sbat technique?¡± Six of the Demon Kings looked at a red-skinned, tall, but somewhat ugly middle-aged man. This man¡¯s eyes were of different sizes and his face had many craters. He looked like a ghost.


    ¡°Who knows where the brat stole the Demon Seed nting Technique from? But he only has the second stage. It¡¯s the equivalent of an initial Heaven-tier technique, so it won¡¯t do much good!¡± The Red Ghost King coldlyughed.


    Then Long Chen disappeared.


    ¡°Traceless Demon Shadow? Isn¡¯t that the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s technique?¡±


    Everyone looked at a prettydy, who nodded slightly. ¡°It is indeed an initial Heaven-tier technique from the Clear Shallows Pavilion. He used it decently well.¡±


    Long Chenunched the Supreme Demon Sword technique at the two Fourth Passage Stage cultivators. Thanks to the various boosts he had in his arsenal, his strength had been elevated to a terrifying level!


    <em>He even knows the Supreme Demon Sword technique? Is the brat rted to the Ancient Demon Domain? </em>The seven Demon Kings were all wondering the same thing.


    ¡°Many of our disciples have been killed outside our domain throughout the years. I¡¯m guessing this brat got lucky and killed disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain. Then he robbed them of their secret scriptures! And he dares to use them in front of us too! He must have a death wish!¡± said the Red Ghost King, gritting his teeth.


    Long Chen¡¯s powerful attack threw the two Fourth Passage Stage cultivators off the stage. This was his second most powerful attack. He hadunched two strikes of the Supreme Demon Sword technique with the perfect amount of power, resulting in them being eliminated but not hurt.


    Of course, no weakling could have made it to this point. It would not have been this easy for him to kill them.


    Long Chen¡¯s move had won praise from a lot of people!


    Judging by that disy, they could tell that Long Chen was the most powerful participant in this event!


    The fights on the other stages hade to an end by now. The fastest to end was Huangfu Qi¡¯s stage. She had won first ce and was jumping for joy. She shouted in Long Chen¡¯s direction, ¡°Big Brother, I got first ce! Let¡¯s go! Beat that jerk! Make him infertile! Infertile!¡±


    Everyone was speechless.


    Huangfu Qi¡¯s words made Zhao Wuji¡¯s face twitch. He red at her angrily and roared, ¡°You bitch! Shut your mouth! We¡¯ll see who gets beat upter! You wait and see!¡±


    To Long Chen, Zhao Wuji was just a child. If they were in the streets, Long Chen would have been able to toy with him until his death. Strength was only one aspect of a person; experience and mindset were a whole different matter. With those advantages alone, Long Chen could kill him instantly.


    <em>Whatever. After beating him, I¡¯ll be number one. As the three-time champion, I¡¯ll receive a hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! I¡¯ve gotten the best result I could! </em>

 Chapter 473: Silver Lance

    <strong>Chapter 473 - Silver Lance</strong>


    The finalist of every stage would be determined soon, but stage number one attracted most of the attention because Long Chen and Zhao Wuji were there.


    Even the lofty seven Demon Kings did not wish to miss the duel between them.


    Long Chen and Zhao Wuji were having a face-off, but Zhao Wuji could not wait any longer. If Long Chen were not here, he would have easily be the three-time champion. That was why he hated Long Chen to the bone and could not wait to swallow him alive. How could he hold back any longer?


    That was why soon after Long Chen knocked the two Fourth Passage Stage cultivators off the stage, Zhao Wuji started to attack. During the second round, he had used his most powerful attack, which was the Martial Peak Finger. This time, he took out a silvernce from his Universe Pouch!


    Long Chen peered closer. It looked simr to the Azure Dragon Halberd. It was covered in silver scales, and the sharp tip gave Long Chen the same feeling as a cold, venomous snake.


    ¡°An intermediate Heaven-tier divine weapon, the Silver Snake Lance! Thence techniques of the Zhao n are peerless. Even the Martial Peak Finger was adapted from thence technique. Just wait till I have mastered the entirety of thence techniques! Your sword array will look like nothing!¡±


    Then hisnce turned into a silver thread and shot out at Long Chen at extremely high speed. It moved as quickly as Long Chen did when he used Traceless Demon Shadow.


    <em>The guy¡¯s actually decent at using hisnce,</em> Long Chen<em></emmented to himself in awe. He turned into an illusion when he used Traceless Demon Shadow, appearing and disappearing on the stage. It was even difficult to track the location of the Demon Emperor Sword.¡°Are you trying to intimidate me with cheap tricks?¡± Zhao Wuji chuckled coldly. Long Chen had used Traceless Demon Shadow to its full capacity, but Zhao Wuji was very smart and chose not to move. He strained his ears to listen to the sound of the wind around him, using it to determine Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    ¡°You¡¯re there!¡± Zhao Wuji suddenly grinned, and hisnce shot out like a flying dragon. Tens of thousands of long, silver snakes shot out of the tip of hisnce, shooting straight ahead!


    ¡°River Breaking Qi!¡±


    This attack radiated power the moment it wasunched. It was an intermediate Heaven-tier technique, further proving that Zhao Wuji was indeed a prodigy. He had learned an advanced Heaven-tier technique, but his intermediate Heaven-tier technique was also very impressive!


    <em>His senses are sharp. It looks like Traceless Demon Shadow is ineffective against experts of this level. </em>Long Chen deeply sensed that thew of nature was cruel. Previously, the Traceless Demon Shadow was one of the strongest techniques in the Cangyang Kingdom, but it had been neutralized with ease in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Every person improved quickly, and if one¡¯s speed of growth did not exceed that of another person, then they would easily be eliminated in society. Traceless Demon Shadow was considered Long Chen¡¯s treasure, but right now it was barely usable.


    Only divine techniques like Blood Transmutation would be forever impressive, and would follow him for a very long time!


    Long Chen chose to retreat. Zhao Wuji spotted his chance and pressed even further,unching attack after attack using hisnce, forcing Long Chen to the edge of the ck stage.


    ¡°Zhao Wuji¡¯s n is definitely the wealthier one. Although Long Chen looks powerful, he¡¯s actually weaker in terms of Qi. He¡¯s been at a disadvantage since the beginning of the duel.¡±


    ¡°Although his body is extremely tough, he¡¯s only at the First Passage Stage. His physical strength gives him an edge over normal Fourth Passage Stage cultivators, but a confrontation against Zhao Wuji can only end in disaster.¡±


    TheDemon Kings discussed among themselves behind the stage.


    Just as they conversed, the tides turned.


    To be fair, Long Chen was stronger than Zhao Wuji in many aspects other than Qi. For example, he managed to break free from Zhao Wuji¡¯snce using just an initial Heaven-tier attack, which was the Supreme Demon Sword technique!


    When he was suppressed by Zhao Wuji, he spotted an opportunity and used the Supreme Demon Sword to interrupt Zhao Wuji¡¯s attacks. At the same time, heunched another strike of the Supreme Demon Sword!


    It was a never-ending release of Supreme Demon Sword strikes. Although it was not a strong technique when used once, Long Chen was capable of unleashing a flurry of attacks. The storm of sword strikespletely interrupted Zhao Wuji¡¯s attack, and he could barely react to them!


    ¡°Do you n to fight me with nothing but cheap little tricks? I think you should go home and drink your milk!¡± Long Chenughed maniacally. The tides had beenpletely turned. Zhao Wuji had been forced back by Long Chen¡¯s attacks, and when he stumbled backwards, he looked more pathetic than Long Chen did.


    Long Chen¡¯s humiliation made Zhao Wuji infinitely embarrassed and furious!


    He had been arrogant all his life, and not only was Long Chen suppressing him, but he was humiliating him! He could never swallow his pride like this! A crazed look appeared on his face!


    ¡°Oh? Are you about to rage quit?¡± Long Chen had a perfect grasp of his psychology. Just from Zhao Wuji¡¯s gaze, he could tell that the ultrapetitive teen was ready to use the Martial Peak Finger.


    <em>It looks like the brat refuses to believe the Heavenly Passage Pir¡¯s judgment and still chooses to attack me directly. Unbelievable. </em>Long Chen was a little speechless. He had forced Zhao Wuji back, causing him to almost fall off the stage. With great difficulty, Zhao Wuji stabilized himself and Qi erupted from his body. He then pointed a finger outwards, and a whirlpool of Qi appeared. A shining arrow made out of starlight appeared in the whirlpool!


    ¡°Martial Peak Finger!¡±


    Zhao Wuji roared, and the attack wasunched at Long Chen. From an outside perspective, Long Chen looked like he waspletely swallowed by Zhao Wuji¡¯s attack!


    <em>Is he dead?</em> This was the question that popped into many people¡¯s minds.


    But this thought did notst very long. A sharp ray of sword light pierced through the attack, then more sword lights shot out, forming a sword array that quickly enveloped Zhao Wuji. All he could see were swords! Zhao Wuji had nowhere to hide in the face of so many sword lights. All of them were formed from sword symbols, and the symbols and Sword Qi interacted with each other.


    It took only one second. The advanced Heaven-tier Martial Peak Finger waspletely destroyed by the Heaven Sword Array. The full might of the Heaven Sword Array hit Zhao Wuji directly. This all happened within a short time, and Zhao Wuji waspletely overwhelmed with panic!


    His life was in danger. Zhao Wuji had never thought that he would die during the qualifiers. To him, these qualifiers were just a ce for him to show off his skills, not where he would die.


    But he did not have the strength to withstand Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array. The sharp sword lights hadpletely pierced through his clothing. In the next instant, his body would be cut to pieces!


    ¡°Mom! Dad!¡± Zhao Wuji was inplete panic and his mind was nk. He was inplete disbelief, regret, and despair. But if it hade to this, then it was up to fate.


    Long Chen was hesitant to kill Zhao Wuji. A lot of information instantly shed through his mind. Zhao Wuji was probably not very important to the Ancient Demon Domain, so killing him probably wouldn¡¯t cause a lot of trouble.


    With a <em>whoosh</em>, he shed the Demon Emperor Sword at Zhao Wuji.


    Suddenly, a hot gust of wind threw Long Chen back. The source of this arrogant power did not care about Long Chen at all, and almost threw him off the stage. Thankfully, Long Chen managed to block using the Demon Emperor Sword, or he would¡¯ve been hurt!


    ¡°Who did that?!¡± Long Chen stabilized himself and quickly looked over. A tall, ugly, red-skinned man was levitating in front of Zhao Wuji, looking at Long Chen. The ice-cold re in his eyes made Long Chen feel like he had fallen into a freezer.


    <em>The strength of an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator is indeed extraordinary up close! </em>Long Chen was privately shaken. He was no fool, so he would not rush over to argue with this person, who was obviously one of the seven Demon Kings. He saluted him politely and asked, ¡°The disciples are meant to fight on this stage. Lord Demon King, may I ask why you attacked?¡±


    He had done well. Even the Red Ghost King could not nitpick his words.


    Everyone was thinking the same. Long Chen was about to win, but the Red Ghost King had suddenly stepped in. Based on the way Long Chen was thrown backwards, the Red Ghost King was clearly siding with Zhao Wuji.


    The youths who had just be Ancient Demon Domain disciples felt indignant and were anxiously waiting for the Red Ghost King¡¯s response. The other disciples also looked over. The fights of the other groups had ended, and the six other Demon King disciples had been decided. The only one who remained was Long Chen¡¯s group.


    Just like the first two rounds, Long Chen hadpletely defeated Zhao Wuji. Although everyone was shocked, the result wasn¡¯t at all hard to ept.


    After Long Chen asked his question, everyone looked at the Red Ghost King.


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s face was ghostly white. He stood behind the Red Ghost King and looked at him in terror.


    ¡°Why did I attack? Do I need to exin myself to a brat like you?¡± asked the Red Ghost King coldly.


    It looked like the Red Ghost King had chosen to reply in a brute manner, but Long Chen was not afraid.


    ¡°Of course not! You are a person of a very high rank, and you are someone that my generation respects and worships. I truly admire every master who has reached the Earthly Martial Realm. However, I heard that the Ancient Demon Domain is a ce that respects rules. We were fighting ording to the rules, yet you have interrupted the fight. I still do not understand why. But as a true master, you won¡¯t take my question to heart, right?¡±


    The crowd below expressed their assent. Everyone was confused. If Long Chen was eliminated and Zhao Wuji became the finalist, they would feel that it was unfair. Everyone knew that Long Chen was clearly stronger than Zhao Wuji.

 Chapter 474: King of the Newcomers

    The reaction of the crowd ced pressure on the Red Ghost King. <em>If I kill this brat right here, it will leave a terrible impression on the new disciples. And the Domain Lord will definitely punish me when he returns.</em>


    With that thought, he red at Long Chen and said, ¡°I won¡¯t beat around the bush, kid. Just now, you used the Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Traceless Demon Shadow, and the Demon Seed nting Technique. Those are all secret techniques of the Ancient Demon Domain, and we do not teach them to outsiders. Doesn¡¯t that mean that you¡¯ve killed our disciples and robbed them of their secret scriptures?¡±


    Long Chen grinned. ¡°Lord Demon King, you¡¯re jumping to conclusions. Is murdering a disciple of the Ancient Demon Domain the only way that I could have learned your secret techniques?¡±


    The crowd waspletely impressed by Long Chen¡¯s boldness to speak to the Red Ghost King like that. Everyone strained their ears to listen to the conversation.


    ¡°If you didn¡¯t kill one of our disciples, how could you have learned them?¡± he demanded.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡± Long Chen had no choice but to take out a ck token. It was the one Zhao Qingyun had given him when he left the Cangyang Kingdom. It was an identity token with the name ¡°Guang Yuan,¡± who was their ancestral master.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you know what this is?¡±


    ¡°That is an identity token of the Ancient Demon Domain!¡± The Red Ghost King raised his eyebrows, and a wave of heat hit Long Chen. He then said with a smirk, ¡°Kid, you have an Ancient Demon Domain disciple¡¯s identity token! Does that not prove that you¡¯ve killed that person?¡±


    Long Chen was also studying the Red Ghost King. Despite being powerful, he was not very smart. The other six Demon Kings had not even said anything, and he was the only one who had rushed to the stage.However, since the Red Ghost King was being unreasonable, Long Chen could only do his best to exin himself. As long as he could convince this guy, the sixty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills would be his.


    ¡°Please calm down, Demon King.¡± Long Chen held up the metal token. ¡°The name on the token is Guang Yuan. You may check if there has been a disciple named Guang Yuan in the Ancient Demon Domain in the past one hundred years.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± asked the Red Ghost King furiously.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple. This disciple named Guang Yuan was indeed initially from the Ancient Demon Domain, but he left this ce and settled down in a random tiny kingdom in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. There, he founded a small sect as a minor branch of the Ancient Demon Domain, and it has survived until today. I am but a disciple of the leader of that small sect. Because I was sessful in cultivation, I wanted toe to the Divine Martial Empire to further grow in the Ancient Demon Domain. If you do not believe me, Lord Demon King, you can investigate this matter.¡±


    Long Chen was telling nothing but the truth. The Supreme Demon Sword was only an initial Heaven-tier technique, and many people who were not from the Ancient Demon Domain could use it.


    The Red Ghost King was only here to look for trouble. Since Long Chen had evidence, the Red Ghost King would likely be scolded by the Domain Lord if he continued this. Therefore, he nodded impatiently and said, ¡°Since you did not kill a disciple of the Ancient Demon Domain, I¡¯ve got nothing else to say.¡±


    Then he disappeared. When he reappeared, he was back in his seat.


    Long Chen was a little traumatized.


    Judging by how unreasonable the Red Ghost King was, Long Chen would likely have died if he hadn¡¯t thought to use Guang Yuan¡¯s identity token.


    When Demon General Typhoon saw this, he could only announce, ¡°The finalists from every stage have been determined! They are Jiang Cheng ¡­


    When Jiang Cheng¡¯s name was called, Zhao Wuji knew that he had lost all hope. He had initially aimed to be the three-time champion, but he had only ended up taking second ce in the first two rounds. In the third round, he had failed to enter the top seven. Zhao Wuji wanted to kill himself.


    He descended the stage dejectedly with his head hung low. With a dark and terrifying look on his face, he clenched his fists tightly.


    Demon General Typhoon announced the names of the other six finalists.


    ¡°Congrattions to you all! You are now in the top seven. Soon, you all will be lucky enough to be picked by the seven Demon Kings to be their direct disciples. As for who will be which Demon King¡¯s disciple, it will depend on your luck! Now, we must determine the top three. Everyone, get on stage number one!¡±


    The finalists made their way to the first stage. One of them was Huangfu Qi, who was overjoyed that Long Chen had also won. She ran up to him happily with her hands on her cheeks and stars in her eyes, then cried admiringly, ¡°Big Brother! You¡¯re so awesome! You beat that jerk so hard, he peed his pants!¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you awesome too, Qi Qi? No one was a match for you in your group,¡± said Long Chen with a grin, pinching her cheek.


    ¡°You¡¯re bullying me! Hmph! But I¡¯m no match for you, Big Brother,¡± Huangfu Qi said.


    Both of them stood closely together, but the other five were far away.


    Demon General Typhoon announced that the fight for the top three ces had officially begun. Everyone knew Long Chen¡¯s strength, and based on the attack he had used on Zhao Wuji, no one present could withstand it. Especially not when he was on very good terms with Huangfu Qi, who was widely considered the third-strongest present and also the number one prodigy.


    If the other five did not attack them together, no one could withstand them working together. Even so, there was no guarantee that they would win.


    Therefore, the other five decided to give up on fighting Long Chen and Huangfu Qi. The five of them fought among themselves in order to decide who would take third ce.


    Long Chen had long known it would end up like this. After defeating Zhao Wuji, he knew he would be the champion.


    After a while, the fight ended. They had gotten the best results and had be the Demon Kings¡¯ disciples. They were set for life, so there was no need to work too hard here. Third ce was only awarded five thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, so there was no need to risk their lives.


    A winner had emerged, and a panting teenager remained on the stage. He was about Zhao Wuji¡¯s age, andpared to him, he merelycked an advanced Heaven-tier technique. He had indeed rightly earned third ce.


    He was no match for Long Chen and Huangfu Qi, so he made the smart choice to descend the stage. After that, Huangfu Qi grinned mischievously. ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m notcking Heavenly Passage Pills and you look like you really need them. I¡¯ll give it to you!¡±


    Then she skipped down the stage.


    Only Long Chen remained. All eyes were on him.


    The dark horse had appeared out of nowhere and became the three-time champion!


    Most importantly, he was only at the First Passage Stage!


    Long Chen¡¯s victory today would be a popr topic among the Ancient Demon Domain disciples. There were many people watching in the surrounding mountains after all. The name ¡°Jiang Cheng¡± would spread across the entire Ancient Demon Domain.


    He was only a neer, yet he had created a huge storm with his excellent results.


    Long Chen enjoyed the gazes of therge crowd.


    <em>The King of Neers. I think this term suits me very much. </em>Long Chen smiled to himself in exasperation.


    Demon General Typhoon¡¯s booming voice announced the names of the top three. Since Long Chen was the three-time champion, Demon General Typhoon mentioned his name several times!


    Long Chen was very satisfied with bing champion, but he knew that great masters were lurking in the Ancient Demon Domain. There were many people watching him who were a lot more powerful. He was only the king of neers, so he did not even have the right to speak up in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°The qualifiers have finallye to an end. Congrattions to you seventy people, especially the ones in the top seven! From today onwards, you will begin your journey of true cultivation! Now you will have one of the Demon Kings be your master! Of course, Demon Kings do not take in trash. If you do not show sufficient improvement in two years, you will be normal disciples!¡± Demon General Typhoon¡¯s stern warning woke them up.


    No one could afford to becent. Only the ones who progressed continuously could be an elite.


    ¡°Finalists, please step forward!¡±


    Long Chen and Huangfu Qi stepped forward along with the other five disciples. He turned around and spotted Zhao Wuji¡¯s venomous re.


    He pretended not to see it and followed Demon General Typhoon up to the front of the seven Demon Kings. Facing them, even Demon General Typhoon had to hang his head. Long Chen also looked down, in case his arrogant gaze offended the Demon Kings.


    However, he wondered how the seven disciples would be allocated.


    Their talent levels varied greatly. For example, Huangfu Qi was very powerful at a very young age, making her the most talented. The other five disciples were about fourteen or fifteen and were at the Fourth Passage Stage, which made them look much better than Long Chen. It looked like Long Chen had won because he was older and had learned a few more techniques. In terms of talent, he was the worst.


    Of course, that was only how it looked from the outside. Long Chen had only started cultivating a year ago. He had spent far less time than other people, meaning his talent was terrifying.


    On top of that, which Demon King would be willing to allow a prodigy like Huangfu Qi to be taken away?


    That was why Long Chen was looking forward to seeing how they would be allocated. Who would be his new master? Long Chen had taken a nce at them. Other than the Red Ghost King, the rest were terrifying both physically and mentally!

 Chapter 475: Clear Shallows King

    ¡°Everyone, let¡¯s follow the usual rules. We shall decide by drawing lots,¡± said a cold, female voice. Long Chen had seen ady in her thirties among the seven Demon Kings when he arrived. She had a curvy figure and a pretty face, while her expression and voice were endlessly cold. The person who had spoken was thatdy.


    Women usually took better care of their looks, so Long Chen guessed that the Clear Shallows King was in her forties.


    ¡°Fine! I don¡¯t want us to waste time fighting again. These seven people have varying levels of talent; there are good and bad candidates. If we don¡¯t draw lots, will we ever be willing to ept the oue?¡± said another Demon King.


    ¡°Typhoon, bring the stuff here. I know you guys have already prepared it,¡± said another one.


    Demon General Typhoon nodded hurriedly. Then he walked up to the Demon Kings and took out a small box from his Universe Pouch. In sequence, the seven Demon Kings each took out a folded piece of paper. It was a very old-fashioned method, but it was effective.


    ¡°All seven stages have one finalist each. The number you pick will match each disciple. Do you all agree?¡± Demon General Typhoon asked respectfully.


    ¡°Of course. Everyone, let¡¯s open our pieces of paper,¡± said the Clear Shallows King, who was also the onlydy present.


    Everyone nodded and opened their papers at the same time. All of their faces changed instantly.


    ¡°You seven! Look up so the Demon Kings can see your faces!¡± Demon General Typhoon said. Long Chen and the rest all looked up. They were already standing in sequence, so it was clear which Demon King had gotten which candidate. The Clear Shallows King smiled.


    ¡°Little girl, your name is Huangfu Qi, right? See, out of us seven, I¡¯m the only girl. Out of you seven, you¡¯re the only girl too. And you¡¯re going to be my disciple! Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a great coincidence?¡±


    The Clear Shallows King¡¯s expression was usually cold, but when she opened the paper, she gave a rare smile. It was clear just how happy she was.


    Although Huangfu Qi had only won second ce, the Demon Kings opined that she was the most talented out of the seven, so she was the one that they most wanted. Now that she belonged to the Clear Shallows King, they looked at her with envy and admiration.


    ¡°Congrattions, Clear Shallows King! It¡¯s too bad I got number three. Fourteen years old, Fourth Passage Stage. Same asst year.¡±


    ¡°Me too. I got five.¡±


    ¡°I got four.¡±


    ¡°Six.¡±


    ¡°Seven.¡±


    The other Demon Kings announced their numbers. When numbers two to seven were announced, only number one remained. Everyone froze and turned to the Red Ghost King. They realized that frustration was written all over his face, with traces of rage. Then he burned the piece of paper!


    ¡°Motherfucker! Why am I always unlucky?! Last time, I got a Third Passage Stage guy and thought he was quite talented for being able to make it into the top seven. One yearter, he was still at the Third Passage Stage! Even the normal disciples had surpassed him! This time, I¡¯m even unluckier! Now I get a First Passage Stage kid, and he¡¯s already seventeen! Why do you all get prodigies while I get trash?!¡±


    He started to curse, showing just how angry he was. He had already had a faceoff with Long Chen, but Long Chen had managed to defeat him with reason. He hated Long Chen for that, but now, Long Chen had be his direct disciple.


    All top seven candidates had to be the direct disciples of Demon Kings. This was the rule set by the Domain Lord many generations ago. That was why the Red Ghost King had no choice but to ept his fate! However, although it looked like he agreed, if Long Chen went with him, he would suffer.


    ¡°Who said my Big Brother was trash? He beat that bad person Zhao Wuji and was even the three-time champion! He¡¯s number one! Is that considered trash?¡± Huangfu Qi was upset when she heard him. The newborn calf was never afraid of the tiger, so she spoke to the Red Ghost King indignantly.


    ¡°How dare you speak to me like that, girl?!¡± roared the Red Ghost King.


    ¡°Red Ghost King, don¡¯t scare my disciple! If you have a problem, talk to me instead!¡± The Clear Shallows King was in a very good mood. Huangfu Qi was the treasure of her heart, so she would do everything to protect her.


    ¡°You got a good disciple, and now you¡¯re showboating in front of me? Clear Shallows King, everyone, today I will go on the record to say that I refuse to take this Jiang Cheng guy in. Anyone who wants him can have him. Give me that eliminated guy, Zhao Wuji. I will take him as my direct disciple. I guarantee that in less than a year, Jiang Cheng will be defeated by him in just one strike!¡± the Red Ghost King said sternly.


    He had made his firm decision.


    The Red Ghost King had a terrible temper and often did things without thinking. The other six Demon Kings were a little embarrassed to be standing with him, but since they had their own disciples already, they were toozy to bother with the Red Ghost King¡¯s tantrum. When the Domain Lord returned, it would be none of their business if he wanted to punish the Red Ghost King for refusing to take in Long Chen.


    Of course, Zhao Wuji indeed held great potential too, and the other Demon Kings were also eyeing him. Now that the Red Ghost King had announced that he would take Zhao Wuji, the others let him have Zhao Wuji as they were not willing to argue over a disciple.


    ¡°Zhao Wuji,e here. I, the Red Ghost King, will take you in as my direct disciple!¡±


    Zhao Wuji was utterly stunned at first, then he was overjoyed and quickly ran over.


    ¡°Not bad. The kid is smart. From today onwards, I, the Red Ghost King, will be your master. I guarantee that in one year, you will be one of the best disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain! As for Jiang Cheng, I don¡¯t want him. Anyone who wants him can have him. He¡¯s so old, yet he¡¯s still at the First Passage Stage. Who knows when he¡¯ll reach the Sixth Passage Stage? In ten years?¡±


    No one had objected to his decision to take Zhao Wuji in, so his mood lifted. Looking at Zhao Wuji, he grew more and more pleased. He grabbed Zhao Wuji¡¯s clothes, then flew up into the sky, dering, ¡°Typhoon, send the other nine disciples to the Red Ghost Pavilionter. I¡¯ll take Zhao Wuji away first.¡±


    Worried that other people would fight him for Zhao Wuji, he left instantly.


    After the Red Ghost King said that, Zhao Wuji felt like there was hope again. Long Chen had won first ce, but in the end, he had gotten the spot instead!


    He was the ultimate winner in the end.


    Zhao Wuji thought that he was fated to be nothing after he lost to Long Chen, but he didn¡¯t expect to end up as the final winner. As long as the Red Ghost King did his best to mentor him, he could definitely surpass Long Chen by a long shot. Soon, Long Chen would be dead beneath hisnce.


    Before he left, Zhao Wuji shot Long Chen a smug look. He thought Long Chen would be devastated, but he saw no change in Long Chen¡¯s expression.


    In truth, Long Chen had never nned to be the Red Ghost King¡¯s disciple. Since the Red Ghost King hated him, Long Chen would surely be killed one day. His most important objective was to get the Emperor me Pearl and train himself. He did not really need a master like that.


    From the outside, it was a true tragedy to Long Chen ¡­


    He had entered the top ten with great effort, yet he had been abandoned to be the joke of the crowd.


    The remaining six Demon Kings looked at each other, then at Long Chen. To their surprise, Long Chen didn¡¯t seem to react. Had he gone stupid with shock?


    ¡°Does anybody want Jiang Cheng?¡± the Clear Shallows King asked gently.


    Huangfu Qi pulled Long Chen¡¯s hand and cried angrily, ¡°Big Brother, we don¡¯t want that red toad anyway! Will you follow me instead? Master, I want to be with Big Brother.¡±


    Huangfu Qi looked at the Clear Shallows King hopefully with tears in her eyes.


    This was her killer move, and when she used it on the Clear Shallows King, the Clear Shallows King¡¯s heart softened. She said, ¡°Alright, Jiang Cheng,e to the Clear Shallows Pavilion. However, I can only take in one direct disciple per year due to the rules. You¡¯ll only be able to be a regr disciple there. Are you willing?¡±


    This was just as Long Chen wished.


    ¡°Thank you, Clear Shallows King. I am willing, of course,¡± said Long Chen, nodding. He did not speak in an ingratiating manner.


    His response made it clear that he had not gone stupid with shock, but rather, he didn''t even care in the first ce. The other Demon Kings looked at each other again and faintly sensed that Long Chen was impressive in terms of both attitude and strength.


    If he was simple-minded, would he have been the three-time champion?


    The seventy new disciples were evenly distributed to the seven pavilions. The seven Demon Kings led their disciples to their pavilions, bringing the qualifiers to an end.


    Demon General Typhoon quickly gave Long Chen the sixty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. Long Chen had sessfully received a hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills today, which wouldst him a very long time.


    The details of the qualifiers spread like wildfire.


    Long Chen became a popr topic. It was just too soap-opera-like, with Long Chen bing the dark horse by winning three times, only to be abandoned by the Red Ghost King in the end. And the one he had defeated ended up bing the Red Ghost King¡¯s disciple ¡­


    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Long Chen¡¯s situation was utterly tragic.


    Of course, Long Chen also knew that this was a humiliation.


    <em>I¡¯ve only just arrived, so I musty low for a while. When I am stronger, that damn Zhao Wuji and the Red Ghost King will be easy to kill. </em>Along the way to the Clear Shallows Pavilion, Long Chen looked ahead with a small smile on his face. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Someone smack some sense into the Red Ghost King.


    Also Huangfu Qi the MVP! Along with the Clear Shallows King of course</blockquote>

 Chapter 476: Demon General Strongman

    The Clear Shallows Pavilion was situated in the eastern section of the Ancient Demon Domain, not far away from the entrance.


    The Ancient Demon Domain had seven royal pavilions controlled by the seven Demon Kings scattered throughout mountains. There was also a royal pce that was the true heart of the Ancient Demon Domain; it was where the Demon Emperor lived. However, the average person did not know where it was.


    Ten of the seventy new disciples had joined the Clear Shallows Pavilion. One of them was Huangfu Qi, who was now the Clear Shallows King¡¯s direct disciple. Long Chen and the other eight would be regr disciples. Since they had just arrived and were rtively weak, they would be the lowest-ranked disciples in the Clear Shallows Pavilion. They would have to slowly work hard to be outstanding.


    Of course, Long Chen was the exception.


    The other disciples who followed the Clear Shallows King cast Long Chen asional nces. They were shocked that Long Chen was acting so nonchntly even though he had lost his right to be a direct disciple, though they were more so impressed by his attitude.


    Long Chen may look like he had less potential than the rest, but he was the strongest among the seventy people. If he could increase his cultivation level, he would be the person the rest could only wish to be.


    Along the way, the Clear Shallows King showed great concern and care for Huangfu Qi, butpletely forgot about Long Chen and the rest.


    Very soon, they arrived at the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    The Ancient Demon Domain was situated on a group of gray mountains, so the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s environment could only be considered moderately decent as far as aesthetics went. However, it was indeed better than the other pavilions despite the fact that not many nts could grow here. ¡°There must be a strange item beneath the Ancient Demon Domain that is sucking all the life force out of this ce,¡± said Little Cat from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen asked curiously.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. The masters of the Ancient Demon Domain are too strong for you, so you should focus on increasing your cultivation level for now. If you can¡¯t get the Emperor me Pearl, no matter how powerful I am, I will not be able to nt the Golden Crow¡¯s power in your body.¡±


    This was indeed an urgent matter.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. My currentbat abilities far exceed my actual cultivation level. This means I can kill beasts several levels above me. As long as I can find a ce where beasts gather, my cultivation level will skyrocket,¡± Long Chen said confidently.


    Usually, blood from beasts three levels above him would allow him to ascend by one stage. Long Chen only had as much Qi as a First Passage Stage cultivator, but killing Category Four Heaven-tier beasts was not a problem to him. Even Category Three beasts would greatly progress his cultivation, let alone Category Four.


    During his conversation with Little Cat, the Clear Shallows King suddenly turned around and looked at the new disciples. ¡°After you all have entered the Clear Shallows Pavilion, you will be under one of the Demon Generals, Demon General Strongman. Demon General Strongman is in charge of the training and development of regr Clear Shallows Pavilion disciples. When you meet him, you will refer to him as ¡®Lord Demon General!¡¯¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Long Chen and the rest nodded.


    The Demon Kings were the only ones in the Ancient Demon Domain who had the right to take in disciples. The normal disciples like Long Chen were like soldiers and the Demon Generals were their superiors. The difference between regr and direct disciples was like heaven and earth. Of course, he knew that even direct disciples could be demoted to regr disciples if they did not perform well.


    The Clear Shallows King led them into the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s martial arena. Long Chen could already feel an immense and violent aura ahead. This was an aura generated from a hundred experts training together, which was enough to intimidate Long Chen.


    When they approached, Long Chen saw more than a hundred young disciples training in the vast training grounds. They were all wearing simple ck training armor, so they looked like normal soldiers with gigantic ¡°demon¡± characters on their chests.


    About seventy of the one hundred disciples were quietly cultivating in a corner while the others were sparring. It was a good system to train and grow through sparring.


    The Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s system was strict and dense,pletely adopting a military-style management system. Based on the vigor of the regr disciples and their pouring sweat, it was clear just how intensepetition was. Long Chen guessed that this strict military-style system was the reason why the Ancient Demon Domain had managed to be arge faction in the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°You have just left the qualifiers, but you all must have felt it, right? The Ancient Demon Domain has a strict reward and punishment system. As long as you work hard and are talented, you will be adequately rewarded and will be outstanding one day. If you do not work hard and do not produce results, you will be surpassed one day no matter how talented you are. Two of you have received a huge reward just now. Everyone, I hope you will work hard from today onwards,¡± said the Clear Shallows King before turning around.


    She was referring to Long Chen and Huangfu Qi.


    At this point, the people who were training had already sensed their arrival. Since the Clear Shallows King was the head of the pavilion, everyone obediently bowed despite their current ranks. Even the Demon General, who had just emerged from the group, did the same.


    This Demon General was abnormally muscr. Standing at over two meters tall, his body¡¯s shape was even more noticeable than his height. He had a stocky figure, so despite his height, his thick muscles made him look short. Long Chen was privately shocked by his bare arms.


    <em>This Demon General is so muscr. I wonder what he did to get that body ¡­ </em>Long Chen was speechless.


    He did a quickparison and realized that this person¡¯s arm was almost as thick as his own waist.


    After taking a few nces, he did not dare to look again because the man was a Demon General at the Ninth Passage Stage. Long Chen did not have the right to eye him boldly.


    Everyone also averted their gazes obediently.


    Long Chen knew that the muscr man was Demon General Strongman, the one he would have to follow from now on. Demon General Strongman had a mature and solemn countenance, as well as a cold re in his eyes that was very intimidating. If there was a bit more violence in his eyes, he would be almost like a violent beast.


    Just based on his looks, he was the kind of person most suited to be a general. Following his training regime, the regr disciples were all energetic and ambitious with sharp res. Every person radiated a thick killing intent.


    Back in the Heavenly Demon Pce, Zhao Qingyun associated the term ¡°demon¡± with freedom. However, the Ancient Demon Domain encouragedpetition and violence, lining up perfectly with what most people thought of when they heard the word ¡°demon.¡±


    Demon General Strongman greeted the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°Strongman, these ten are the new disciples. Qi Qi here will be my direct disciples, and the others¡¯ cultivation, talent discovery, and improvement inbat will be up to you as usual,¡± said the Clear Shallows King with a smile.


    ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am! I will do my best toplete this task. I will not give up on any prodigy, nor will I allow any trash!¡± Demon General Strongman saluted sincerely. His gaze swept across the ten people, but he did not spot the person he expected to see, so he asked, ¡°I will ept these disciples. They will undergo the Demon Light Bath tomorrow and will start their training the day after. Forgive me for asking, but may I ask if my nephew, Zhao Wuji, has been taken in by another Demon King?¡±


    Then he looked at her expectantly.


    Long Chen froze before the Clear Shallows King answered. What were the odds? He had merely followed Huangfu Qi to the Clear Shallows Pavilion, and now the person who would control his life and schedule was going to be Zhao Wuji¡¯s uncle? Long Chen knew very well how much he had humiliated Zhao Wuji during the qualifiers. Once Demon General Strongman found out about it, wouldn¡¯t he be finished?


    There was no use in regretting at this point. Long Chen could only try his best to keep his guard up in this terrible environment and strengthen himself. If he got killed before he retrieved the Emperor me Pearl, none of this would be worth it.


    ¡°Zhao Wuji has been taken in by the Red Ghost King as his direct disciple. Don¡¯t worry, the Red Ghost King acted as if he had picked up a treasure. He might even personallye to talk to you about this,¡± said the Clear Shallows King with a smile.


    Demon General Strongman sighed in relief with a bright smile on his face. He then said, ¡°My nephew is indeed talented. I watched him grow up, and I know his strengths very well. As long as he can grow safely, his future will be infinite. He once told me that he could easily be the three-time-champion. May I ask if he did it?¡±


    ¡°Three-time champion?¡± The Clear Shallows King froze and instinctively nced at Long Chen. She was smart, so she knew that if she told him what had happened, Long Chen would be his enemy and would probably be killed. Then again, Demon General Strongman was likely to learn about it sooner orter. Since Long Chen did not have much potential and wouldn¡¯t be very useful to the Clear Shallows Pavilion, the Clear Shallows King thought that it would be better for him to die because he could end up being an obstacle to Huangfu Qi¡¯s growth.


    ¡°Three-time champion? Zhao Wuji is indeed talented, but he fell just short of bing the three-time champion.¡±


    ¡°He didn¡¯t do it?¡± Demon General Strongman was a little sour. ¡°Which round did he not get first ce in? Was it the first round? His body is not tough; he did not inherit my strength.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King looked at Long Chen and shook her head. ¡°Not just the first round. He did not win the second and third rounds either. He was not even in the top seven in the third round. He only became a direct disciple because the Red Ghost King broke the rules to take him in. To be honest, someone else became the three-time champion, and he is standing in front of you!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I swear I did note up with these Demon General names</blockquote>

 Chapter 477: Exchange For Your Life

    ¡°In front of me?¡± Demon General Strongman gasped and his gaze fell on Huangfu Qi. He cried in surprise, ¡°This little girl is young, but she''s already at the Fourth Passage Stage! It¡¯s not that surprising that she became the three-time champion! What a prodigy! I wouldn¡¯t even think about resenting someone like her for beating Zhao Wuji.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King froze, knowing that he had misunderstood.


    But Huangfu Qi was upset. She grabbed Long Chen¡¯s arm and said, ¡°Uncle Blockhead! What nonsense are you spouting? The person who won first ce three times is my Big Brother! He is the number one champion of the qualifiers and should have be the direct disciple of that red toad! Your idiot nephew was no match for my Big Brother! But that red toad has a problem with his brain! He did not want my Big Brother and instead took in Zhao Wuji! That¡¯s why I asked my Big Brother to follow me here!¡±


    Huangfu Qi¡¯s choice of words shook all of them. First, she had called Demon General Strongman ¡°Uncle Blockhead,¡± which was somewhat eptable. However, she had called the Red Ghost King ¡°red toad¡± because of his pockmarked face and red skin. If he heard that Huangfu Qi had called him a red toad, he would explode in rage.


    ¡°Qi Qi, watch your words,¡± the Clear Shallows King said sternly, almost choking on her saliva. The Red Ghost King was famously difficult to deal with and short-tempered. If he found out that Huangfu Qi had called him that, he would cause never-ending problems.


    Demon General Strongman also woke up from the shock of Huangfu Qi calling him Uncle Blockhead, then hepletely digested the information she had provided. He looked at Long Chen, unable to ept reality, then asked the Clear Shallows King, ¡°Clear Shallows King, what the girl said ¡­¡±


    ¡°Everything she said is true. This young man is Jiang Cheng. He is only at the First Passage Stage, yet he has mastered advanced Heaven-tier body tempering andbat techniques. Using those advantages, he became the three-time champion and won a hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! The Red Ghost King is not on good terms with him, so he took Zhao Wuji in as his disciple instead. Now that he is under your wing, mentor him well. Keep private grudges out of this,¡± the Clear Shallows King said casually. If Demon General Strongman did it too obviously, she would be the one to lose face.


    Understanding the Clear Shallows King¡¯s warning, he nodded hurriedly.


    He studied Long Chen up and down, unable to figure out how such a normal teenager possessed the capability to win first ce three times. Demon General Strongman understood why Long Chen had not be a direct disciple. He was older than the other participants, yet his cultivation level was the lowest. Cultivation level was the foundation of everything, and a person¡¯s natural talent determined the gap between themselves and other people. Right now, Long Chen was three to four stages behind, but in the future, he would be five or six stages behind, causing him to fall behind for the rest of his life.


    People like Zhao Wuji would cultivate many advanced Heaven-tier techniques in their lifetimes.


    This gap was the reason why the Red Ghost King had chosen Zhao Wuji instead of Long Chen.


    However, the glory that initially belonged to Zhao Wuji had been taken away by this teenager, along with the Heavenly Passage Pills. Demon General Strongman was ufortable with seeing such a huge sum end up in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    Based on the look in Demon General Strongman¡¯s eyes, Long Chen knew that his days would be tough.


    However, he had never nned to stay in the Ancient Demon Domain for long anyway. The Day of the Nine Suns woulde in two months, so he would only stay for two months at most. He was confident that he would be strong very quickly, even surpassing all their imaginations. Then they would all understand who the true prodigy was.


    ¡°Your name is Jiang Cheng? Not bad, you were able to win first ce three times. Not many people have achieved that. However, you have a disadvantage in cultivation level, so you will have to work hard. I hope you remain in the top three among the seventy neers and make the Clear Shallows Pavilion proud!¡± said Demon General Strongman with a nod after eying Long Chen for a while.


    ¡°Yes, Lord Demon General,¡± Long Chen replied obediently.


    The Clear Shallows King nodded approvingly and said, ¡°Alright, Strongman, you may carry on with your training. Everyone, follow me. I will make arrangements for your amodations. Tomorrow, you all will undergo the Demon Light Bath to increase your Qi and truly be an Ancient Demon Domain disciple. On the day after, you will train with Demon General Strongman! He is a very good senior. If you train under his wing, I believe that your cultivation will improve greatly!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am!¡± everyone said.


    Under the Clear Shallows King¡¯s arrangements, Long Chen arrived at the regr disciples¡¯ quarters. There were very few buildings here. He had heard that all regr disciples below the Sixth Passage Stage would live in this area. Everyone above the Seventh Passage Stage would be considered advanced disciples as long as they had cleared one of the two earthly meridian points.[1]


    Huangfu Qi was a direct disciple of the Clear Shallows King, so she would stay with the other direct disciples. The Clear Shallows King led her away. The little girl was a little hesitant, but she left in the end.


    Long Chen, of course, knew that she would miss Xiang the most.


    After settling down, Xiang came out of the Primordial Realm. Little Cat was not willing to remain alone, so he rolled around in the small room in the form of a fat, white cat.


    ¡°Big Brother, I think Demon General Strongman will set traps for you. It¡¯ll be very difficult to guard against that. He¡¯s at the Ninth Passage Stage, so if he decides to attack you, you¡¯re done for,¡± said Xiang worriedly.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t have the right to do something in broad daylight. As long as I take this time to quickly increase my cultivation level, I will be fine. After I bathe in that light thing tomorrow, I¡¯ll head to the demonic beast training grounds in the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    As long as he could make it there, Long Chen knew that the speed of his progression would scare other people.


    ¡°What is the demon light they kept mentioning?¡± Xiang asked curiously.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Long Chen shook his head.


    ¡°It¡¯s probably a method of releasing the power in a seal. The disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain have a bit of demonic energy in their Qi, which may eventually affect their minds after some time.


    ¡°The source of this demonic energy is likely a seal. Usually, when a powerful master dies, part of their power can remain sealed in an object, which can be released to enter another person. Along with this power, the seal will also enter the recipient. The demonic energy is an example of it,¡± exined the cat.


    Long Chen and Xiang understood.


    ¡°So that means that the Demon Light Bath will make my Qi contain demonic energy? Does it mean it¡¯s best I don¡¯t go for it?¡± Long Chen asked cautiously.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to go? Aren¡¯t you afraid that the blockhead will use it as an excuse to kill you?¡± Little Cat chuckled, as if nonchnt.


    ¡°What should I do, then?¡± Long Chen was sure that the cat had an idea.


    ¡°You will go. Not only should you absorb the seal¡¯s power, you can also take all of its power for yourself,¡± said Little Cat with a mysterious smile.


    ¡°Do you have a way to remove the seal so I can absorb its pure power?¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± Little Cat¡¯s eyes widened and he smiled in exasperation. ¡°You¡¯re smart. You have at least one ten-thousandth of my smartness! Not bad, not bad. Because you¡¯re smart, I will help you erase the seal and let you absorb the power.¡±


    It was settled.


    Long Chen nned to quickly increase his cultivation level afterpleting the Demon Light Bath.


    Little Cat suddenly furrowed his brows and said, ¡°That blockhead is here! Pray you¡¯ll survive!¡± Then, faster than anyone, he fled into the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Coward,¡± said Long Chen. Then he used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and spotted Demon General Strongman walking over. He was huge, so no matter how light his footsteps were, they made a sound. Very soon, he arrived in front of Long Chen¡¯s door and knocked.


    ¡°Lord Demon General, what brings you here?¡± Long Chen asked calmly after opening the door.


    ¡°Follow me,¡± Demon General Strongman said mildly, then he turned around.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure it¡¯s alright if we discuss whatever it is here.¡± Long Chen did not move. He wasn¡¯t sure what the guy was up to, so he dared not move recklessly.


    Demon General Strongman halted and turned around. His gaze, which was as sharp as a knife, swept across Long Chen. Long Chen felt a powerful pressure on himself.


    Demon General Strongman took several steps closer, and a powerful force pressed Long Chen into the room.


    ¡°You brat, have you gotten bold after a good performance today?¡± asked the Demon General Strongman coldly with raised eyebrows.


    ¡°May I ask what you mean by that, Lord Demon General? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve done anything ever since I entered the Clear Shallows Pavilion.¡±


    ¡°And you dare argue with me too. That is your mistake.¡± Demon General Strongman¡¯s voice rumbled like thunder. Long Chen felt dizzy just from the reverberations. A Ninth Passage Stage cultivator¡¯s Qi was indeed extraordinary. He could likely kill Long Chen with a wave of his hand.


    Long Chen knew that this was an unreasonable man. The more he spoke, the more unreasonable he would be. Therefore, he chose to shut his mouth.


    Seeing as Long Chen had finally learned his lesson, Demon General Strongman said, ¡°I spoke with my nephew earlier. He has strong opinions about you and wants me to teach you a lesson. You brat, now that you¡¯re in my hands, you¡¯re going to suffer. Of course, if you canplete my training tasks for you, you won¡¯t have to suffer.¡±


    Long Chen remained silent.


    Demon General Strongman suddenly felt bored because he was not arguing back and shrugged. ¡°Whatever. You¡¯re a neer, so I won¡¯t trouble you for now. However, since you won¡¯t be able to use the one hundred Heavenly Passage Pills any time soon ¡­ Let¡¯s do it this way. Let me take ny thousand pills off your hands. This is for your safety, because other people might be eyeing them and you may even vanish into thin air if someone decides to target you for them. What do you think?¡±


    <em>Has the fox finally revealed its tail? </em>Long Chen was amused. He knew that the pills were Demon General Strongman¡¯s target. This was no small sum to him after all. From Demon General Strongman¡¯s perspective, it was a huge waste for something that should have belonged to Zhao Wuji to end up in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Give them to me. Ny thousand Heavenly Passage Pills in exchange for your life.¡± Demon General Strongman¡¯s re darkened when he saw that Long Chen was not moving.


    1. To refresh your memories: every time a person advances by one Passage Stage, one of their meridian points will be cleared/unblocked, and thus activated. ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Nvm the Red Ghost King can wait for his turn. Strongman must die first</blockquote>

 Chapter 478: Seven Demon Realms

    If Long Chen did not hand over the Heavenly Passage Pills, Demon General Strongman would kill him.


    Long Chen was nothing but an extremely minor figure to him. Despite having no background, he possessed treasures that did not match his strength. If he ended up dead, it would be well deserved.


    Long Chen was quite calm because he initially thought it was going to be a difficult night, but thankfully, he had used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and spotted Huangfu Qi nearby. She must have missed him and Xiang and quickly hurried over after settling down.


    Her arrival would coincidentally solve a huge problem for Long Chen.


    Very soon, Demon General Strongman sensed Huangfu Qi approaching, and his face stiffened. He cursed furiously, ¡°Motherfucker! You got lucky today! I¡¯m warning you though. Those one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills were supposed to belong to my nephew. If I don¡¯t get them now, I will get them eventually. Also, it¡¯s best if you don¡¯t tell anyone about what happened today, or you will die. And my reputation will only be very minorly affected. The choice is yours.¡±


    Then he wrung his hands hard and strode away. That was when Huangfu Qi arrived, and she cried, ¡°Uncle Blockhead! Oh no, wait. Uncle Brick! Why are you here?¡±


    She thought she was being smart. Since the Clear Shallows King had told her not to call him ¡°Uncle Blockhead,¡± she had changed it to ¡°Uncle Brick.¡± Indeed, due to hisrge stature, he was not far off from a brick.


    Arge, ck line appeared on Demon General Strongman¡¯s forehead when he heard her call him that.


    Of course, Huangfu Qi¡¯s rank was far above Long Chen¡¯s, so Strongman only huffed coldly and left. Huangfu Qi watched him curiously, then she slipped into Long Chen¡¯s room and eyed him up and down before sighing in relief. She patted her chest and said, ¡°Thank goodness your innocence was not ruined by Uncle Brick ¡­¡± Long Chen froze, almost choking, and cried angrily, ¡°Hey, brat, where did you learn to say that?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it true though? I heard that there are perverted uncles who prefer young, handsome teenagers with clean features like you over women. When I saw him, I thought you were going to lose your purity! Thankfully, I got here just in time, or I would¡¯ve regretted this for the rest of my life!¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    Both his and Xiang¡¯s expressions were very stiff.


    ¡°Ah, cute puppy! You¡¯re here again!¡± Huangfu Qi squealed and shifted her focus to Xiang. She grabbed him and petted him all over until Xiang¡¯s neat fur became as messy as a bird¡¯s nest.


    Long Chen¡¯s mood lifted when he saw the girl ying with Xiang. When she got tired, Long Chen asked, ¡°Little girl, did you manage to obtain the information I asked for?¡±


    He had given her an instruction before they separated, so he knew that she woulde here tonight.


    ¡°Ah! I did!¡± she answered happily.


    ¡°Tell me, then.¡± Long Chen was satisfied.


    ¡°Mhm. My master said that there is a mountain called Demon World Mountain in the Ancient Demon Domain. There is a straight road piercing vertically through the mountain, and at its peak, there is a huge hole like a volcano. That is the entrance of the tunnel!¡±


    ¡°Does the tunnel lead to the demonic beast training grounds?¡±


    ¡°Mhm! Master said that if you leap into the hole from the top, you will keep falling until you enter a ce called the Seven Layer Demon World. There are sevenyers of space, and each space is its own miniverse. The seven miniverses are stacked together to form the Seven Layer Demon World. The firstyer contains beasts at the first three Heaven-tier categories; the secondyer contains Category Four, Five, and Six beasts; the thirdyer has Category Seven, Eight, and Nine; and as for the fourthter ¡­ The fourthyer is a gigantic arena for disciples to spar in. It''s also used for training the military. It¡¯s muchrger than the Martial Arena outside. As for the fifthyer and above, I don¡¯t know. Master didn¡¯t tell me!¡±


    ¡°Seven Layer Demon World?¡± Long Chen nodded.


    The Divine Martial Empire really was different from everything he knew. There were seven miniverses stacked together here! Long Chen understood the function of the first fouryers, but he had a faint feeling that the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s secrets were all hidden in thest threeyers, including the royal pce that could not be found in the outside world.


    The seven royal pavilions were scattered throughout the Ancient Demon Domain, but the mysterious royal pce was nowhere to be found. Very few people had the right to enter.


    The bestbat techniques, divine weapons, and spiritual medicines were definitely stored in a ce like the pce.


    ¡°Qi Qi, did your master mention any restrictions for entering the Seven Layer Demon World?¡± This was the key question.


    ¡°Master said that since I am a direct disciple, I can enter the first fouryers any time I want as long as I have her permission. As for normal disciples, disciples at the first six Passage Stages are considered elementary disciples, while the disciples at thest three Passage Stages are considered advanced disciples. Elementary disciples can only ess the first twoyers, while advanced disciples have the same rights as direct disciples. Of course, anyone who has reached the Ninth Passage Stage is on the same level as the Demon Generals.¡±


    <em>I¡¯m now an elementary disciple, which means I can enter the first twoyers. I¡¯m sure the twoyers will have many demonic beasts that will be very effective for me ¡­ </em>Long Chen sighed in relief. In that case, he could head to the Seven Layer Demon World tomorrow.


    ¡°Big Brother, are you nning to go to the Seven Layer Demon World tomorrow? I want to go too!¡± she cried as her eyes lit up.


    ¡°Who said I¡¯m going? Aren¡¯t we going to do that thing called the Demon Light Bath? And isn¡¯t training going to start on the day after? I¡¯m just wondering if we will have time in the future. If we have time, I¡¯ll take you there, alright?¡± Long Chen knew the little girl would not let this rest, so he had prepared his excuse.


    ¡°Alright. But, Big Brother, you are a man, so you must do as you say. If you lie to me, I¡¯ll curse you ¡­ I¡¯ll curse you ¡­ To be infertile!¡±


    Long Chen started sweating, feeling like he was shooting himself in the foot. He did not know where Huangfu Qi had learned to say these things that could make someone choke.


    Now that he had obtained the information he wanted, Long Chen finally got the energetic little girl to leave, and he finally immersed himself in cultivation.


    <em>At this point, it looks like my Heaven-tier techniques like the Demon Emperor Sword Technique are no longer effective. The only things I can use right now are the divine techniques from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, as well as Rewind from the Primordial Dragon Talisman. As forbat techniques, I¡¯m mostly relying on my physical toughness and the Heaven Sword Array left behind by Xiao Xi. These are far from enough ¡­ </em>


    Long Chen understood that he wascking in certain aspects.


    He was like a dry sponge, and the Ancient Demon Domain was like the ocean. Now that he had leaped into the ocean, he would quickly absorb water. He didn¡¯t know how much water there was in this ocean, but he was an infinitelyrge sponge that could suck the ocean dry one day.


    <em>Once I get the Emperor me Pearl, I will advance directly to the Ninth Passage Stage on the Day of the Nine Suns. Then I will receive the Golden Crow¡¯s power in my nine meridian points. When that happens, I will surely skyrocket to the top level of the Divine Martial Empire. At that time, I will be strong enough to confidently enter the Ancient Graveyard, unlike right now. If someone like Demon General Strongman can squash me, how can I enter the Ancient Graveyard in this state? </em>


    Long Chen had a clear goal and a deep understanding of himself.


    That was why his only objective here in the Ancient Demon Domain was the Emperor me Pearl.


    <em>The Emperor me Pearl can make someone reach the Ninth Passage Stage immediately. That means that my most powerfulpetitors for it will be at the Eighth Passage Stage. This means that I must reach the Seventh Passage Stage before the Day of the Nine Suns. Will I be able to cover such arge gap? </em>


    Long Chen felt like there were many unknowns in this journey.


    Although he had Blood Transmutation, he needed a lot of Heavenly Passage Pills and blood from powerful beasts.


    ¡°Experts are asmon as clouds here. So I must work harder!¡± Long Chen clenched his fists.


    He cultivated through the night, and the second day soon arrived. He immediately opened the door after he heard urgent knocks. It was one of the other eight new disciples, though Long Chen did not know his name.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, it¡¯s almost seven in the morning! The Ancient Demon Domain has harsh punishments for beingte; I only just learned that too. The Demon Light Bath is today, so we must hurry over now!¡± the disciple said urgently.


    The Ancient Demon Domain functioned like the military, so it was understandable how strict they would be regarding punctuality.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Long Chen followed him, hurrying along as fast as he could to avoid beingte.


    After barely arriving on time, they found themselves not in a training area, but another pavilion.


    They would only enter the training grounds tomorrow when the true training began.


    When he arrived, Long Chen heard Huangfu Qi¡¯s silver bell-likeughter. He had not even spotted her when she pounced on him and cried with wide eyes, ¡°Big Brother! Where¡¯s the puppy? Where¡¯s the puppy?¡±


    ¡°The puppy isn¡¯t here today. Be good,¡± Long Chen said sternly while he gently peeled her off.


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± Huangfu Qi was a little sad, but she recovered quickly. She pointed at a young man and said, ¡°Big Brother, look. That¡¯s Senior Brother Six! He¡¯s awesome; he was number one in the qualifiers two years ago! He was also a three-time champion and won a hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! At the time, he was at the Fourth Passage Stage, but he is already at the Sixth Passage Stage! Master says that he will soon clear the earthly meridian point to reach the Seventh Passage Stage. He¡¯ll be one of the best disciples then!¡±


    Following her gaze, he looked at the legendary teenager. He seemed to be a year younger than Long Chen and had clean features. He looked like a true prodigy with a gentle exterior but a strong mind, though there was a hint of viciousness hidden beneath that gentle elegance. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    So many new terms. Gave us a headache trying to trante them</blockquote>

 Chapter 479: Second Passage Stage

    Everyone had arrived and no one waste.


    ¡°Everyone,e at least fifteen minutes earlier next time. It¡¯s rude to make me or Lord Demon General wait here for you. In fact, this is an act of insubordination!¡± said Huangfu Qi¡¯s Sixth Senior Brother. His expression was cold and stern, and when he spoke, he did not hide his power.


    ¡°Yes!¡± everyone replied a little timidly. After their arrival in the Ancient Demon Domain, the Demon Kings and the Demon Generals hadpletely suppressed their tempers. If someone wanted to be sessful here, the only way up was to be stronger.


    Long Chen merely opened his mouth symbolically.


    ¡°My name is Qin Huanyu. You may call me ¡®Senior Qin.¡¯ During regr training sessions, I will be assisting Demon General Strongman, and I will be in charge of all nine of you neers. From today onwards, you must listen to me! Do everything I say! And if you do something I said you couldn¡¯t do, you will be punished. As for the punishments doled out in the Ancient Demon Domain ¡­ Go learn about them! I believe you will find them interesting ¡­¡± Qin Huanyu chuckled lightly.


    ¡°Senior Brother Six sounds a little annoying. He wasn¡¯t like this just now,¡± Huangfu Qi whispered into Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    Of course he would be friendly towards Huangfu Qi. However, as the person in charge of the new disciples, he had to maintain his dignified demeanor and show that he meant business.


    Long Chen and the rest did not speak.


    ¡°Do you all understand?¡± Qin Huanyu asked loudly.¡°Understood.¡± Everyone nodded.


    ¡°What? Louder! I can¡¯t hear you!¡±


    ¡°Understood!¡±


    Their voices echoed in all four directions.


    Long Chen was speechless. The guy was insufferable, and it looked like theing days would be difficult. Thankfully, Long Chen already had a direction in mind. If he had to stay here and take Sixth Senior Brother¡¯s hits every day, he would probably be tempted to beat him up one day.


    Qin Huanyu¡¯s gaze fell on Long Chen, and he said, ¡°I heard that one of you ten was the three-time champion. I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s you?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Sigh ¡­¡± Qin Huanyu shook his head and said, ¡°The standards of the qualifiers have declined over every generation. When I was the three-time champion years ago, the obstacles I faced far exceeded your imagination. But I still survived in the end.¡±


    Qin Huanyu sighed andmented for a while. When he saw that no one had any reaction, he did not want to waste any more time. He was satisfied because Long Chen and the others were being obedient today.


    He took out a ck crystal ball from his Universe Pouch. It was about the size of a fist, and it looked simr to the Soul Condensing Bead with thick energy contained inside.


    ¡°The seal power in that crystal can boost a cultivator straight to the Seventh Passage Stage,¡± said Little Cat from within the Primordial Realm. Only Long Chen and Xiang could hear him.


    <em>Seventh Passage Stage? What happens if I just keep absorbing?</em> Long Chen<em></em>thought excitedly.


    ¡°You would die. First, you aren¡¯t able to control such a powerful energy in your current state. I can¡¯t digest that much either. Also, this is likely the treasure of the Clear Shallows Pavilion. If you destroy or abuse it, do you think you¡¯ll live? Most importantly, that young man controls the usage of the crystal. He can cut you off any time.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. His idea of skyrocketing his cultivation was not realistic.


    ¡°Sit with your legs crossed. I will perform the Demon Light Bath for all of you, which will help your cultivation progress. Through the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s power, you will truly be disciples today!¡± said Qin Huanyu solemnly, looking around.


    Everyone sat down with their legs crossed, forming the cultivating position. The moment the Demon Light arrived, they would be able to start cultivating.


    ¡°Good! Very good!¡± Qin Huanyu was very satisfied. He held the crystal ball in front of him and then closed his eyes. Under his control, the ck crystal ball slowly levitated until it was four meters up in the air.


    ¡°Let¡¯s begin!¡± Qin Huanyu said gently. As soon as he finished, ck mist poured out of the ck crystal ball. It looked like a rain cloud floating above Long Chen and the rest. Long Chen could feel arge power source situated above his head, and it was releasing more and more energy.


    The ck rain cloud descended, covering all of them. Slowly, it engulfed all ten of them in a gigantic egg. The crystal ball looked like a small pimple on top of the egg, still releasing ck energy.


    Long Chen could sense that the ck energy had reced the Earthly Qi in the environment and started to merge into his own Qi. It was an extremely pure source of energy, and it was ten times more concentrated and purer than the Earthly Qi of the Ancient Demon Domain. This energy could directly transform into his Qi, though the only w was that a certain quality existed within it. Without removing this quality, one would not have absolute freedom when using this power.


    Little Cat¡¯s alluring voice entered Long Chen¡¯s ears. ¡°That crystal is too slow in emitting its energy, plus it will be divided amongst the ten of you. I¡¯m guessing that each of you won¡¯t even progress by one Passage Stage in the end. Shall we take a risk and let you progress to the Second Passage Stage?¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Long Chen said decisively after thinking for a while.


    Then he noticed that the energy surrounding him started flying towards him from all directions with the Primordial Dragon Talisman as the center point. Long Chen hurriedly increased the speed of Qi flowing in his body so he could swallow copious amounts of the ck energy. This process was simr to Blood Transmutation.


    Very soon, the ck egg that enveloped all of them ended up in Long Chen¡¯s body, and the whole egg disappeared, revealing the people within. However, for the moment, most of them were still doing their best to absorb the ck energy and no one knew that the rest of it had gone to Long Chen.


    The ck crystal ball, as if acting under the influence of Long Chen¡¯s sucking force, released even more ck energy that formed a straight line connected directly to Long Chen!


    ¡°What?!¡± Qin Huanyu was initially rxing, but the sudden changepletely stunned him. He was very pale and his movements were frantic as he quickly pulled the crystal ball back into his Universe Pouch. He stared at Long Chen in shock because he looked like the culprit behind the abnormality!


    At this point, the other people had also sensed that the energy source had been cut off and only thought that it had ended. They had only just begun and were feeling like it was not enough. That short moment had granted them far more growth than cultivating under normal conditions.


    When they opened their eyes, they saw Qin Huanyu hurrying quickly towards Long Chen in anger. Based on his stance, it looked like he wanted to kill Long Chen.


    What was going on?


    They were puzzled.


    However, Huangfu Qi would not let Qin Huanyu do such a thing. She hurriedly stood in front of Long Chen and said, ¡°Sixth Senior Brother, what are you trying to do?¡±


    ¡°Little Junior Sister, move. This brat swallowed all of the energy that should have been divided between the rest of you! I don¡¯t know what diabolical method he has mastered, but I must kill him now!¡± Qin Huanyu said menacingly.


    ¡°No! No one can touch my Big Brother! Not even Sixth Senior Brother! If you don¡¯t listen, I¡¯ll tell Master that you bullied me! Sob sob ¡­¡± Not even Qin Huanyu could do anything when Huangfu Qi decided to kick up a fuss. He knew that Huangfu Qi was currently an important person to the Clear Shallows King, and her status even surpassed his. If he offended her, he would have to face consequences.


    Of course, Long Chen only dared to swallow so much energy because he was banking on Huangfu Qi doing this. If she weren''t here, Qin Huanyu would have killed Long Chen by now.


    ¡°Little Junior Sister, you don¡¯t understand! Long Chen has broken the rules! The Demon Light should have been divided among the ten of you, but he swallowed it all by himself! Don¡¯t you think he deserves to be killed?¡± Qin Huanyu said coldly.


    Everyone looked at each other. If that was true, then Long Chen had taken something that belonged to them. It seemed only right that Qin Huanyu was standing up for them.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you! Also, there¡¯s a lot of energy in that crystal ball! Can¡¯t you just take it out again and let us absorb more? Also, my Big Brother is making a breakthrough right now! No one can touch him!¡± Huangfu Qi was very stubborn and was determined to protect Long Chen, so even Qin Huanyu had no choice but to concede.


    In truth, Long Chen was indeed on the edge of a breakthrough.


    The first breakthrough had taken him three hundred Heavenly Passage Pills to clear the dan meridian point in his dantian. After the Demon Light Bath, Long Chen possessed enough Qi to attempt to clear his second meridian point, which was known as the central meridian point, located in his chest, right next to his heart. After the central meridian point was cleared, it would be the new core of his body!


    Then Long Chen would possess even greater power!


    Right now, Long Chen was aggregating all the power in his body to move toward the central meridian point from all directions. The central meridian point was unlike the dan meridian point. The dan meridian point contained arge space, while the central meridian point didn¡¯t.


    What he had to do now was force a space open within the central meridian point, so it required much more effort, and it was more difficult too!


    Before this happened, he had to mix energy from Heavenly Passage Pills into his Qi, because the energy from the pills could protect the meridian point from the violent Qi. That way, it would be expanded gently.


    This continued until Long Chen reached the Second Passage Stage. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Say sike! It''s his strength now</blockquote>

 Chapter 480: Demon World Mountain

    The first breakthrough required three hundred Heavenly Passage Pills; how many would he need to consume for the second? Thankfully, Long Chen now had a hundred thousand pills, or it would¡¯ve been a tragedy. If a cultivator did not have enough Heavenly Passage Pills, they would not dare to attempt a breakthrough, because it would result in their blood vessels breaking, their body going into shock, and eventually death!


    A hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills¡ªeven Qin Huanyu likely did not have this many. That was why these Heavenly Passage Pills would be enough for Long Chen to progress several stages even though his rate of consumption far exceeded that of regr people due to his Dragon Qi.


    Large handfuls of Heavenly Passage Pills turned into pure white energy, which entered Long Chen¡¯s body. The disciples watching him were stunned. They knew that Long Chen was only at the First Passage Stage. To the normal person, ascending from the First to the Second Passage Stage required about a hundred to two hundred Heavenly Passage Pills. Long Chen had already consumed almost five hundred pills so far, but why did he still show no signs of stopping?


    ¡°Is ¡­ is he a monster?¡± The same question popped into a few of their minds.


    Qin Huanyu, who wanted to kill Long Chen, was also stunned by this situation, which momentarily made him toss his intention to kill out the window. If Long Chen required this many pills to break through to the Second Passage Stage, how many pills would he need to reach the Ninth Passage Stage?


    There was the ¡°two million axiom¡± circting in the Divine Martial Empire, which said that reaching the Ninth Passage Stage required at least two million Heavenly Passage Pills. Most cultivators spent the majority of their resources on progressing their cultivation, which was why Ninth Passage Stage cultivators usually had only about a million Heavenly Passage Pills in total assets.


    Based on Long Chen¡¯s current speed of consumption, did that mean that he would require ten million Heavenly Passage Pills to reach the Ninth Passage Stage?


    That was terrifying.


    Of course, he was only breaking through to the Second Passage Stage right now. Handfuls of Heavenly Passage Pills appeared in his hands, which he swallowed. After swallowing about a thousand of them, Long Chen discovered that his Qi had finally reached a satiated stage. It was now time to clear the second meridian point, also known as the central meridian point.


    After he had the experience of clearing his first meridian point, it was much easier the second time. As usual, he controlled his Qi and led the gentle energy of the Heavenly Passage Pills first to rush towards the central meridian point from all directions. All the power in his body followed.


    Soon, all his Qi gathered outside the central meridian point. Currently, it was not yet a meridian point, so Long Chen had to clear it himself. He took a deep breath and slowly controlled traces of his Qi to gather in the location of the central meridian point. The Qi containedrge amounts of Heavenly Passage Pill energy, which had a healing effect on the meridian points.


    Thanks to Long Chen¡¯s careful guidance, everything went smoothly. The central meridian point slowly appeared and then gradually strengthened. When it was strong andrge enough, all the energy suddenly poured into the central meridian point and formed a white whirlpool that spun quickly.


    Next, it was almost the same as when he entered the First Passage Stage. The white whirlpool continued spinning in the central meridian point while all the energy flowed into it, exited from one of his star veins, and finally flowed back into the dan meridian point. The dan and central meridian points were now the two center points of the eighteen heavenly rivers in his body. After the Qi gathered in the two meridian points, it returned to the eighteen heavenly rivers once more.


    Within the central meridian point, a white meridian pill slowly emerged from the whirlpool and floated above it. Just like the meridian pill that had formed at the other meridian point, the two meridian pills concentrated most of the power within Long Chen¡¯s body.


    Everything was over. The Heavenly Passage Pill energy slowly dispersed and Long Chen¡¯s Qi slowly turned blood-red once again. Even the meridian pill returned to its original state.


    A new cycle had been formed in his body. He had sessfully reached the Second Passage Stage too. Sensing the increased strength in his body, Long Chen smiled proudly. It felt amazing to be stronger. From now onwards, his strength would progress exponentially until he ran out of Heavenly Passage Pills.


    It was even possible to reach the Seventh Passage Stage in a month!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Long Chen¡¯s eyes sprang open and he stood up to face the group¡¯s confused and terrified gazes. While he was cultivating, he was also paying close attention to themotion around him. That little girl Huangfu Qi was indeed as good as he expected¡ªshe had blocked Qin Huanyu for him.


    As for the others, they were never a match for Long Chen anyway. Now that Long Chen was stronger, they would not dare say anything.


    Qin Huanyu finally snapped out of his daze and looked at him coldly. ¡°Can you exin what the hell just happened, brat?¡±


    Just now, Long Chen had let Little Cat erase the seal within the crystal ball so he could absorb its pure energy until he absorbed enough Qi to reach the Second Passage Stage.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know the specifics either. I apologize, but I am only aware that arge amount of energy suddenly rushed into my body. I don¡¯t control the crystal¡¯s energy.¡± Long Chen pretended to bepletely clueless.


    Qin Huanyu was so angry that he was stunned. He couldn¡¯t figure out the reason for this either. It did not matter if Long Chen was lying, but he realized he hated this teenager, so he said, ¡°You have taken the energy that was supposed to belong to other people, and now you¡¯re pretending to be dumb?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you mean, Senior Qin! I don¡¯t know what happened!¡± Long Chen put on an innocent face.


    ¡°Are you still lying? Jiang Cheng, do you think I won¡¯t beat you up?¡± Qin Huanyu said with a dark expression.


    ¡°Senior Six, that¡¯s enough! My Big Brother has already said he doesn¡¯t know what happened, so why are you still harassing him? Don¡¯t waste any more time! Just take that crystal out and let us do it again; won¡¯t that work? I think there¡¯s still a lot of energy in that crystal!¡± Huangfu Qi pursed her lips and red at Qin Huanyu.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡± Qin Huanyu shook his head, as he had no choice. He took a nce at Long Chen and huffed. ¡°I¡¯ll let you go for now. I¡¯ll tell Master what happenedter, and we¡¯ll see how she deals with you! Also, you may leave now. Don¡¯t disturb us again!¡±


    Qin Huanyu knew that with Huangfu Qi present, he could not touch Long Chen. That was why his only choice was to let the Clear Shallows King deal with this.


    To Long Chen, this was perfect.


    ¡°Qi Qi, I¡¯ll head out first. Come y with me if you have time.¡± Long Chen could not wait to leave. What Qin Huanyu had suggested was exactly what he wanted.


    ¡°I¡¯m going with you,¡± Huangfu Qi said hurriedly.


    ¡°No, Little Junior Sister! You haven¡¯t performed the Demon Light Bath, so you do not count as a member of the Ancient Demon Domain yet! You can¡¯t go!¡± Qin Huanyu said hurriedly.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡± Huangfu Qi looked sad.


    Long Chen was a little speechless after seeing her response. If he told her that he was actually going to the Seven Layered Demon World now, that girl would likely fight with everything she had to follow him. Thank goodness he had gone about it cleverly.


    After he left, Long Chen slipped out of the Clear Shallows Pavilion and headed towards Demon World Mountain. He knew where it was, and that it would be very obvious because the other mountains in the Ancient Demon Domain were gray while it was fully ck.


    It looked simr to Demon Emperor Mountain. Perhaps the founder of the Heavenly Demon Pce had chosen to build the Heavenly Demon Pce on Demon Emperor Mountain because it was simr to Demon World Mountain.


    Right after he left thepound, he spotted Demon World Mountain in the distance. It was at this point that he realized that the Clear Shallows Pavilion was indeed the most beautiful ce around.


    ¡°This ce has a lot of Earthly Qi, yet it has an extremeck of life force. There must be something here that is absorbing all of it,¡± said Little Cat.


    Little Cat had mentioned this many times already; he did not know what this thing was either.


    This topic was still far from Long Chen¡¯s current capabilities, so he took note but did not investigate. He focused on making his way to Demon World Mountain. He did not know a single person in the Ancient Demon Domain, so no one greeted him along the way despiteing across many other disciples.


    Very soon, he arrived at the foot of the mountain. Many others were heading towards the mountain too. He saw arge hole here, and many people emerged from it. The people who exited were mostly disheveled and even had minor injuries. They had obviously gone through battle.


    ¡°After exiting from the Seven Layered Demon World, we will appear at the foot of Demon World Mountain. The peak is the entrance, while the foot of the mountain is the exit. How interesting ¡­¡± said Long Chen.


    Then he took out a ck token from his clothing with the name ¡°Jiang Cheng.¡± This was the Ancient Demon Domain disciples¡¯ identity token that proved their identities. Long Chen could only enter if he presented it.


    It had been given to the new disciplesst night.


    Holding the token, he started to hike up Demon World Mountain. The stronger members of the Ancient Demon Domain relied on their Qi to quickly sprint up. Long Chen had just made a breakthrough, but he was still considered weak here. That was why he had no choice but to slow down so he would not attract attention.


    Many people had heard of him after what he had done in the qualifiers, though they only recognized him in his post-Dragon Soul Transformation state. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I dOn''T kNoW wHaT hApPeNeD~MC is such an actor</blockquote>

 Chapter 481: Second Layer of the Demon World

    Fifteen minutester, Long Chen arrived at the peak of Demon World Mountain.


    There was arge, secure perimeter around the mountain, so no cultivator would be able to sneak in unless they were at the three Martial Realms. Long Chen had a feeling that the true core of the Ancient Demon Domain was inside the Seven Layered Demon World¡¯sst threeyers.


    The guards of Demon World Mountain were only average cultivators. That was because no one could sneak into the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Long Chen had the right to enter, so there was no risk. He stood at the peak of Demon World Mountain and looked down at the bottomless abyss. It was pitch-ck inside, and if they did not know about the Seven Layered Demon World within, no one would dare enter.


    ¡°Hey, kid, you haven¡¯t been to the Seven Layered Demon World, have you? Do you know what is the most interesting thing about the entrance?¡± one of the guards asked dramatically when he saw that Long Chen was still standing on the edge.


    ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± answered Long Chen, shaking his head.


    ¡°Hehe. Many Ninth Passage Stage masters have flown into the hole in the past. Deeper and deeper they went, only to realize that it was bottomless. I heard that the record depth was five hundred kilometers, and still, he did not see the bottom! However, if we jump inside without using Qi, we enter the firstyer of the Seven Layered Demon World after falling about five hundred meters! Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s amazing?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned. What kind of rule was that? A person who flew inside would not reach the Seven Layered Demon World even after five hundred kilometers, but if they jumped inside, they would reach it after falling just five hundred meters?


    The Dragon Continent was vast and unfathomable. The Divine Martial Empire was just a small corner of it, but even this tiny corner had such a miraculous thing. This meant that other ces were even stranger. After the guard spoke, Long Chen spread his arms and jump into the gigantic hole.


    He fell quickly.


    The wind roared in his ears. It was an exciting feeling, and Long Chen had once fallen like this at the Star Devil Prison too. It was a simr feeling. He believed that if the ground appeared now, he would turn into a meat patty even though he had supernatural powers.


    However, after falling for about five hundred meters, he mmed into an invisible membrane. He instantly knew that he had arrived in another world. There was no pain, and his momentum was gone, allowing him to fall gently.


    Looking at the vast, cknd, Long Chen knew that his strength would skyrocket from today onwards, just like when he first arrived at the Counter Essence Realm.


    The wolf had entered the herd of sheep.


    In Long Chen¡¯s eyes, demonic beasts were all sheep. Of course, except Xiang ¡­


    ¡°Is this the firstyer?¡± Long Chen studied the vastnd. Although the soil was ck, it was not the burnt color of the Burning Heaven Mountain Range. It was an extremely pure shade of ck, and every single grain of sand waspletely ck.


    Gray clouds loomed in the sky, though they did not give the feeling that it was about to rain. Gray was their original color. ck mist swirled in the space between the heavens and the earth.


    Admittedly, the Earthly Qi in the firstyer of the demon world was indeed thicker than outside. It was too bad that thend was even more barren here. Only the asional beast roar proved that there truly were living beings present.


    Powerful auras moved in from far away.


    <em>There are only category three and under beasts in the firstyer. I need to find a way to get to the secondyer, </em>thought Long Chen.


    <em>Since I¡¯m only a regr disciple, I can freely roam the first twoyers, but not the third. If the secondyer still doesn¡¯t have the beasts I need to kill, I''ll need to think of another way. Right now, the most urgent thing is to make it to the secondyer! I¡¯ll go there now! </em>


    When he was thinking this, a ripple appeared in the sky and a young man in his twenties fell from it. He opened his eyes slowly and then spotted Long Chen.


    Long Chen eyed the young man carefully. He was approximately at the Fifth Passage Stage, meaning he was a regr disciple when taking his age into consideration. He had an average face, and there was kindness in his eyes. After he saw Long Chen, he broke into a grin. Long Chen knew he was a friendly person instantly.


    Perhaps this person was nobody in the Ancient Demon Domain, but if he were in the Cangyang Kingdom, he would be like a god. Even the Sword Emperor would be an ant to him.


    This person stopped next to Long Chen and asked with a smile, ¡°Little Brother, is this your first time in the Seven Layered Demon World?¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    He studied Long Chen for a while, then he said, ¡°I can see that you¡¯re only at the first three Passage Stages. You need to be very careful here, even at the firstyer. Don¡¯t go to the secondyer.¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s chance.


    ¡°Big Brother, I don¡¯t even know how to get to the secondyer! Are you heading there?¡± he asked hurriedly. It was a good opportunity to ask someone where the secondyer was.


    ¡°I am indeed going there. If you make your way to the end of the firstyer, you will find arge canyon. Jump inside, and you will reach the secondyer. If you find a canyon while you are training, don¡¯t progress any further. Everyyer has many ck whirlpools on the ground. If you step on one, you¡¯ll be able to get out of the Seven Layered Demon World,¡± the young man exined carefully.


    Long Chen sensed that he was quite a caring person too. After he had gotten the information he wanted, Long Chen replied gratefully, ¡°Thank you, Big Brother! I will definitely be very careful! I¡¯ll turn around if I see the canyon.¡±


    ¡°Mhm. Your life is the most important thing. You can train, but you must stay alive to continue training!¡± advised the young man.


    ¡°Are you going to the secondyer now?¡± Long Chen asked again.


    ¡°Yes. There¡¯s a girl I like, and she¡¯s training there right now. I¡¯m worried about her, so I¡¯m going to help her now. Little Brother, I don¡¯t have much time. She¡¯s likely waiting for me. I¡¯m going now! Take care!¡±


    Then he hurried off. Long Chen did not even know his name.


    Since this was the entrance, more people would soon emerge. Long Chen did not want to meet anyone else, so he quickly left and started his hunt.


    Only Category One, Two, and Three Heaven-tier beasts were in the firstyer, and he could easily kill them without even using his Dragon Soul Transformation. Category One Heaven-tier beasts were the mostmon, so Long Chen found them everywhere.


    They were useless to him, so he activated his Soul Swallowing Gaze to walk around them and even avoided many disciples. He headed straight to the depths of the firstyer.


    After walking for a while, he started seeing Category Two Heaven-tier beasts. They were also useless to him, so he carried on and quickly arrived in the area with Category Three beasts. Xiang had swallowed the demonic core of a Category Three beast to enter the Heaven-tier. Since he was only at Category One, a Category Three fire-type demonic core would still be effective for him.


    Therefore, Long Chen did not avoid them but continued straight ahead. Whenever he came across a fire-type Category Three Heaven-tier beast, he killed it. Even though they were useless to him, they were useful to Xiang.


    At this moment, Long Chen pulled the Demon Emperor Sword from the neck of a zing Lion. The beast rolled several times on the ground and soon stopped moving. Xiang pounced and tore at it with his jaws. Then he plucked a fire-red demonic core out of its body and swallowed it.


    They had only received a zing Lion¡¯s demonic core but had not witnessed the magnificence of one for themselves. Despite being only at Category Three Heaven-tier, it was an extraordinary beast with great mastery over fire. If Long Chen had not used the Dragon Soul Transformation, he would not have been a match for it.


    In order to finish the kill efficiently, Long Chen had activated his Dragon Soul Transformation.


    Very quickly, Xiang finished digesting its demonic core, though he was still at Category One Heaven-tier. He could feel that demonic cores were not very effective at making him stronger. He estimated that he would need at least ten Category Three Heaven-tier demonic cores in order to ascend to Category Two.


    However, it was still very rare for a beast to be able to increase its tier by swallowing fire-type items!


    As long as he could continue growing in this manner, then one day, he would be a beast that would shock the entire Dragon Continent!


    Long Chen was looking forward to that day too. Of course, he hoped he would not be weaker than Xiang when that day arrived. How could he continue being Xiang¡¯s big brother if he was weaker?


    After Xiang finished absorbing the demonic core, Long Chen continued heading forward. There were many more Category Three beasts on the way, but Long Chen believed that Category Four beasts would suit both of them better, so he didn¡¯t stop.


    After about an hour, he spotted a deep canyon. It was a simr situation to the entrance of Demon World Mountain.


    ¡°Do I need to jump into this canyon to reach the secondyer?¡± Long Chen sensed that the concept was simr to the entrance.


    There was only ck mist on the opposite side of the canyon, and there was no other way to go. It looked like this was the only path towards the secondyer.


    ¡°Let¡¯s jump, then.¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Flying down 5km?! Kinda crazy ngl. What kind of world are they in to have mountains more than 5km deep</blockquote>

 Chapter 482: True Form of the Ancestral Dragon

    Long Chen felt the same falling sensation.


    He closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling. Very soon, after falling about five hundred meters, he mmed into an invisible membrane again. The membrane was strong but soft, and after the impact, his momentum waspletely gone and he slowly entered another space with his feetnding firmly.


    He opened his eyes and saw the same scenery as before¡ªck soil and ck skies. Everything was barren, though with a trace of terror. Here, the beast roars were louder and almost constant.


    Long Chen felt a slight pressure.


    He knew that there were likely many beasts here that he could not defeat. There were many masters here too, so he had to be much more careful here toplete his objective.


    His first task was to quickly leave the area. He soon found a safe spot to stop and used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to observe his surroundings. After scanning everything within a five-hundred-meter radius, he discovered a Category Four Heaven-tier beast. Of course, he did not know what it looked like since he had spotted it with the Soul Swallowing Gaze. However, the beasts in this area were mostly at Category Four, while Category Five and Six only appear deeper in the demon world.


    Seeing its soul allowed him to estimate its strength.


    ¡°You¡¯re a lucky brat for getting the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. No one has ever received the blood essence of an ancestral dragon before, so you¡¯re considered their only descendant. With the boost of the blood essence, you might even be a dragon yourself, the violent and bloody Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon!¡± Little Cat suddenly said.


    The Inherited Blood Essence came from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. With Little Cat¡¯s confirmation, Long Chen was now certain of this fact. He acknowledged that although Little Cat did not have anybat abilities, he was very knowledgeable. ¡°You¡¯ve known all along? But you never said a thing?¡± asked Long Chen. He knew that Little Cat had awakened a long time ago, so he must have known about Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s situation for a long time. In fact, he knew almost all of Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s secrets.


    Usually, one would find their situation hard to believe even while knowing their secrets. However, Little Cat had likely seen many things, and thus, he had only made thisment when he witnessed Long Chen¡¯s Blood Transmutation.


    ¡°It¡¯s a small thing; of course I know about it,¡± Little Cat said haughtily.


    He acted like it wasn¡¯t a big deal, but it was a huge thing. Long Chen knew that this was the reason Little Cat was with him. Otherwise, someone as arrogant as the cat would not have wasted the power he had saved for ten thousand years in order to revive Long Chen, let alone follow him around while being considered a little brother.


    This was all because of the dragon¡¯s blood.


    It did not matter if Little Cat had any malicious intent. He had once saved his life and everyone in Baiyang Town, so Long Chen would repay him. The boy, wolf, and cat got along well anyway. They would be the most extraordinary trio in the Dragon Continent in the future.


    ¡°Are you saying that I will turn into a dragon one day?¡± Long Chen asked seriously.


    ¡°When you absorb all of the Inherited Blood Essence, you should be able to awaken the dragon¡¯s true form. However, you will only be an infant dragon. A truly powerful dragon requires millions of years to grow. Even then, you will be very weak. Of course, you will be weak to me, but to the other beings, an infant dragon is the peak of existence. That is why you must work hard! Work hard for your true dragon form!¡± the Little Cat saidzily.


    ¡°Little Cat, I have a question.¡± Long Chen was very excited after hearing about the true dragon form.


    ¡°Spill it.¡±


    ¡°After I have awakened my true dragon form, will I be strong enough to marry Ling Xi?¡± Long Chen asked hopefully.


    ¡°Nonsense! Do you think the true dragon form is as weak as cabbage or something? A few brats at the Divine Martial Realm are nothing! Of course, if there are masters at the Tribtion Realm in her ce, then it¡¯ll be a little more difficult.¡±


    <em>A few brats at the Divine Martial Realm? What was the Tribtion Realm? </em>


    Long Chen was stunned and once again, he realized just how tiny he was. To him, people at the Heavenly Martial Realm were peak masters, while the Divine Martial Realm was just a legend. However, to Little Cat, they were just brats.


    At the same time, Long Chen had gained a better understanding of his potential. He had already absorbed a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence. Next time, he would be able to absorb a tenth of it, and after, he would be able to absorb all of it! As long as he could reach that second absorption, he would be strong enough to stand up to Ling Xi¡¯s family. He would be the first Ancestral Dragon Warrior. He had even more potential than the extraordinary Sun Devouring Wolf!


    That was why he had the potential to be the Dragon Continent¡¯s peak existence within a short time! When that happened, cultivators at the Divine Martial Realm would be nothing in front of him!


    If he could one day be a true ancestral dragon, one who could destroy worlds on a whim, who would be a match for him?


    Long Chen set a new goal for himself. He knew that he would be a super master and get everything he ever wanted one day. However, he needed time to grow right now. That was why he had to be cautious and at the same time improve himself. Perhaps he did not need ten years! Maybe he would be able to snatch Ling Xi back in one!


    ¡°That is why you need to work hard, boy. Just like the little ck dog, you two are miracles that identally appeared on the Dragon Continent. Right now, you two are only tiny miracles. I look forward to the day you be gigantic miracles! Then I can brag to other people that you two masters once served me!¡± Little Cat was immersed in his dream.


    Dreams were beautiful, but turning them into realized required hard work in the present.


    Long Chen and Xiang looked at each other and saw the bright mes in each other¡¯s eyes.


    One day, both of them would stand at the peak of the Dragon Continent. No one would be able to stop them!


    To make these dreamse true, they had to work hard now. Long Chen had extraordinary talent, so now he needed to progress stably. After they locked eyes, they sped up and hurried along toward the Category Four Heaven-tier beast.


    Little Cat¡¯s words had ignited a fire in Long Chen¡¯s heart, but now that it was time to act, his heart calmed down. He knew that this was the most suitable way to progress. He would set everything aside and focus on the next step in front of him.


    <em>This teenager is like an apple that fell onto a chessboard. His appearance will mess up the whole game! Will the secrets that disappeared be unraveled one by one as he grows? Why did the ancestral dragons, who were at the peak of existence, disappear overnight without a trace? If they had not gone extinct after ruling the Dragon Continent for millions of years, regr beasts like us would never have appeared. In fact, would such low-level beings like humans have appeared if the dragons were still around? </em>


    Little Cat¡¯s gaze turned infinitely solemn.


    Right now, Long Chen was close to his target. It was not a fire-type beast, so he let Xiang return to the Primordial Realm while he examined the huge creature, trying to search for memories of it.


    ¡°Seven Killings Ape. Category Four Heaven-tier. Very strong ¡­ Very fast ¡­¡± Information about the beast appeared in his mind.


    It was a tall, white demonic ape. It was about ten meters tall, which was gigantic to Long Chen. While it was white all over, ck runes were swirling on its body. Its most attention-grabbing feature was its horrifying ws.


    Long Chen would not allow himself to get scratched even in his dragon form. He could tell that those sharp ws paired with its superstrength would deal a lot of damage!


    Ape-type beasts were also decently agile!


    Long Chen immediately took out the Demon Emperor Sword and turned into a red shadow as he charged at the Seven Killings Ape! He was trying to ambush it. Since he wanted to grow as fast as he could in the Seven Layered Demon World, he would have to ambush beasts for efficient kills!


    He guided the energy within his body for the next attack. Other than the Demon Seed nting Technique, Long Chen activated everything else. Immediately after, he restricted the ape¡¯s movements using the Blood Devouring Domain. At the same time, he raised the Demon Emperor Sword high in the air! The sword glinted, and then sword symbols fell like a storm onto the Seven Killings Ape!


    ¡°Heaven Sword Array!¡±


    When he approached the Seven Killings Ape at top speed, he unleashed his most powerful move. Every time he used the Heaven Sword Array, Ling Xi¡¯s beautiful smile would appear in front of him. That girl was deeply etched in his mind.


    ¡°Ling Xi!¡± he shouted, approaching madness. The gigantic ape had turned into Wang Chao. Long Chen knew that this was a hallucination, but he swore that he would one day make Wang Chao understand that he was a terrifying presence!


    The Seven Killings Ape was strolling along casually when all the fur on its body suddenly stood on end. Due to the difference in their tiers, Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain wasn¡¯t all that effective, though it still made a huge difference at this critical moment when its life was in danger.


    Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array could have killed Zhao Wuji, who was at the Fourth Passage Stage. Right now, Long Chen was stronger than he was yesterday, while the ape was only at the Category Four Heaven-tier. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Tribtion Realm? There''s more?!</blockquote>

 Chapter 483: Ghost Shadow Fox

    Most importantly, Long Chen had ambushed the Seven Killings Ape.


    Little Cat¡¯s words had greatly motivated Long Chen to work hard to increase his strength. Instead of fighting the ape, he had chosen to use the simplest method to kill it. This was proof of his growth.


    The ape stood no chance against Long Chen¡¯s terrifying attack. At the veryst moment, it blocked the arc of cold light with its arms, which caused them to be shed to pieces. Then the Heaven Sword Array pierced its body, pulverizing its internal organs. The ape let out a cry of agony and then died.


    Long Chen stored the Seven Killings Ape¡¯s body and blood in the Primordial Realm as quickly as possible. The Primordial Realm was perfect for this and was much more useful than a Universe Pouch. As he became stronger, the space would expand too.


    The Seven Killings Ape¡¯s cry might have attracted attention of other people or beasts, so Long Chen left immediately. He went to an obscure corner, and after ensuring that his surroundings were clear using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he let Xiang out.


    ¡°Xiang, keep watch! I¡¯ll work towards the Third Passage Stage!¡±


    Long Chen did not need a very long time to umte his strength in order to advance to the next stage, thanks to the ancestral dragon¡¯s powers. As long as he had enough beast blood and Heavenly Passage Pills, he could grow very quickly. He had only just reached the Second Passage Stage, but now he was already working towards the Third.


    Long Chen swallowed all of the Seven Killings Ape¡¯s blood. Itsrge body quickly shriveled up into a dried carcass in front of him. This was the horror of the ancestral dragon. Since the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was also the dragon of massacre, it was considered an evil-type dragon, so it was normal for it to utilize such scary methods.


    The thick energy contained within the Seven Killings Ape¡¯s blood was slowly absorbed by Long Chen. Over ten tons of blood was mostly rendered useless as Blood Transmutation only turned a tiny portion of it into Qi. Under his guidance, the blood that turned to Qi entered Long Chen¡¯s Qi. The Qi he obtained from Blood Transmutation was much purer than the Qi from the Demon Light, and it suited Long Chen better. Using Blood Transmutation was a much better way to grow than absorbing Qi every day.


    After some time, the blood had been transformed into Long Chen¡¯s Qi, and he soon became strong enough to attempt a breakthrough to the Third Passage Stage. It had barely been three days since he entered the Ancient Demon Domain, but his cultivation level had risen considerably. The people who looked down on him during the qualifiers, especially the Red Ghost King, would likely bepletely shocked if they saw him now!


    Long Chen cultivated quietly.


    When he had enough Qi, he attempted to clear the third meridian point. The first meridian point was at the dantian, the second was in his chest, and the third and fourth points were in both his feet. More specifically, they were in the soles of his feet. That was why the clearing of those two points would be much more difficult than the first two.


    Of course, he would benefit greatly after these two meridian points were cleared. The Qi in one¡¯s legs was directly connected to speed. After reaching the Third Passage Stage, a cultivator¡¯s speed would increase greatly as their legs could be used to their full potential.


    There were a total of six meridian points in the body. Two were in the torso, while four were in the soles and the palms. Those four supplied great strength to the four limbs. After these six meridian points were cleared, the cultivator would have to clear the two earthly meridian points and the heavenly meridian point.


    Long Chen ced all his attention on his left foot. Now that he had experience clearing the central meridian point, he only had to be a bit more careful when clearing the third meridian point.


    Of course, the most important thing was to have Heavenly Passage Pills. Long Chen did not hesitate to stuffrge handfuls of Heavenly Passage Pills into his mouth until he felt satiated. He counted about three thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. Long Chen only had a hundred thousand in total, and a twentieth of them had already been used up just to reach the Third Passage Stage. Every subsequent tier would require even more Heavenly Passage Pills, so a hundred thousand would evaporate very quickly!


    The three thousand Heavenly Passage Pills allowed his Qi to reach satiation.


    There were only two starry veins in his leg, so Long Chen carefully guided his Qi into them and then towards the sole of his foot. The vessels in the feet were naturally fragile, so this was a huge endeavor. At least Long Chen could withstand the pain. About fifteen minutester, almost all the Qi had gathered in the sole, and it was time for the final clearing.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­ </em>


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the third meridian point appeared and slowly expanded. There was not much space in the foot in the first ce, so when the third meridian point expanded to the size of his dantian, his foot didn¡¯t grow much bigger.


    He studied it closely and realized that the meridian points were rted to his sea of consciousness. The sea of consciousness did not exist in any part of his body, but it did exist. It was the same for the meridian points. Although the meridian point in his foot was as big as his dan meridian point, it was physically only the size of a soybean.


    This was due to the limitation of space, sort of like Demon World Mountain. A vast ce like the Seven Layered Demon World was inside it, but from the outside, it was not a particrlyrge mountain. Long Chen only realized how vast it was when he was inside.


    After stabilizing the meridian point, Long Chen started the final push to break through. Under his control, all of his Qi entered the meridian point. Due to having a sufficient amount of Heavenly Passage Pills, he did not face many obstacles and sessfully formed the white whirlpool. A white meridian pill appeared above it soon after.


    The third core had formed in his body. The eighteen heavenly rivers in his body now flowed quicker and stronger.


    After the Heavenly Passage Pills¡¯ energy dispersed, Long Chen reached the Third Passage Stage sessfully and his strength increased once more! In terms of Qi, he had ten times more than before!


    He stood up and once again felt the power in his body.


    <em>Although I¡¯m much stronger than before, I am weakpared to the true masters. Even in the tiny Ancient Demon Domain, I am at the bottom despite being at the Third Passage Stage. </em>With that thought, Long Chen was not at all satisfied with his cultivation level.


    He then set his sights on the deeper region of the secondyer of the demon world.


    ¡°My next target is a Category Five Heaven-tier beast. At the same time, I need to find fire-type beasts for Xiang.¡±


    Traveling, cultivating, hunting, and breaking through to the Third Passage Stage had taken him a lot of time. One day had probably passed outside. Long Chen continued to travel ahead, strengthening himself and killing beasts. His Qi continued to grow from the base level of the Third Passage Stage. During this process, he encountered a Category Four Heaven-tier Blue Eyed Fire Fox. After killing the fox, its demonic core helped Xiang ascend by one tier, so he was now at the Category Two Heaven-tier.


    Xiang¡¯s increase in strength was of great help to Long Chen.


    Both of them defied thews of nature, and the speed of their growth was unprecedented.


    The secondyer of the demon world wasrger than the first. Long Chen traveled for a long time to arrive in the region where Category Five Heaven-tier beasts appeared. The beasts here were more sparse, but they were all powerful. Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to search for a long time until he found signs of a beast. He approached stealthily and observed from far.


    <em>I think it¡¯s a Category Five Heaven-tier Ghost Shadow Fox. Its offensive abilities are only average, but its speed surpasses even regr Category Six Heaven-tier beasts. When it travels, it is like a shadow. Its blood will indeed help me reach the Fourth Passage Stage! </em>


    One of the meridian points in his feet was already cleared, so when he reached the Fourth Passage Stage and both feet had cleared meridian points, his speed would increase by several times! Of course, he was already quite fast now.


    Long Chen quietly activated the Dragon Soul Transformation, then he snuck towards the Ghost Shadow Fox. He needed to make this kill to reach the Fourth Passage Stage.


    He had entered the Seven Layered Demon World for the sole purpose of increasing his cultivation level, so his determination was unwavering.


    He suddenly sprinted like a madman, turning into a red line as he charged towards the Ghost Shadow Fox!


    The Ghost Shadow Fox had excellent hearing, so it looked up and spotted Long Chen immediately. It was a Category Five Heaven-tier beast, while Long Chen was only at the Third Passage Stage. Theoretically, it was not supposed to be afraid of him, but Long Chen had underestimated how timid it was. When it spotted him, it ran off with a <em>whoosh</em>!


    ¡°Think you can run?¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly and elerated, giving chase. The Ghost Shadow Fox was fast, but Long Chen was not slow either. The upgrade to his physical strength had boosted his speed too! The gap between both of them slowly shrank.


    The gap was notrge in the first ce. Long Chen was relying on his physical strength, while the Ghost Shadow Fox was relying on its demonic power, making Long Chen¡¯s dash more sustainable.


    The Ghost Shadow Fox was running towards the depths of the secondyer. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Huh, didn''t expect him to be growing two stages in so little chapter. Does the author have that much content for the next few arcs? There''s so much happening over so little chapters and yet at the same time the story isn''t progressing that fast too</blockquote>

 Chapter 484: Fourth Passage Stage

    If Long Chen continued chasing after the Ghost Shadow Fox like this, there was a chance he would run into unpredictable threats. His mind raced, and he quickly decided on the spot to use Blood Warp. He only used it for a short moment, but his speed increased by tenfold and he instantly found himself in front of the Ghost Shadow Fox.


    He deactivated Blood Warp as fast as he could. That was more than enough toplete his objective, which was to advance more than a hundred meters to appear in front of the Ghost Shadow Fox.


    Long Chen rarely used Blood Warp and Blood Sacrifice.


    After he pounced in front of it, he attacked using the Heaven Sword Array. Since it was an attack that covered arge area, it was perfect for dealing with a fast beast like the Ghost Shadow Fox. It had nowhere to run, as it was surrounded by the Heaven Sword Array.


    The Ghost Shadow Fox did not understand how Long Chen had elerated so much so quickly. It was a smart beast, but it could not figure it out.


    Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array enveloped the Ghost Shadow Fox.


    Its first thought was to run some more.


    However, could it escape the looming attack?


    The Heaven Sword Array was an advanced Heaven-tier attack, and it came from Ling Xi. He waspletely confident now that there were Divine Martial Realm cultivators in Ling Xi¡¯s n. A Heaven-tier technique from one of those people was definitely a cut above the rest, so a tiny beast like the Ghost Shadow Fox would never be able to escape. When the Heaven Sword Array¡¯s storm of sword symbols fell, the Ghost Shadow Fox had nowhere to run. Being a Category Five Heaven-tier beast, its retaliation before death was quite terrifying. Long Chen dodged its attack with great difficulty, then he used the Heaven Sword Array to kill it instantly.


    The Ghost Shadow Fox was not weak, but Long Chen was slowly growing stronger. The pressure from Ling Xi¡¯s n made him grow fast. Right now, Category Five Heaven-tier beasts were unable to withstand the might of his Heaven Sword Array.


    After he put its body away in the Primordial Realm, Long Chen hurriedly used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to survey his surroundings. Due to the chase, he was now deep in the secondyer of the demon world, so he had to ensure his own safety.


    Thankfully, there were no beasts nearby, though there was one person. This person was only a hundred meters away, and despite the hugemotion, he had not approached. Instead, he seemed to be spinning around on the spot, as if searching for something.


    Long Chen initially wanted to find a spot to use Blood Transmutation to increase his strength, but after seeing this person, he was intrigued.


    ¡°This is the same guy who told you how to get to the secondyer when you had just arrived in the firstyer. Something seems to be up with him,¡± Little Cat said.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go check it out.¡± Long Chen was not worried about him. That guy was at the Fifth Passage Stage, so even if he held malicious intent, he would not be able to defeat Long Chen. Just like the Category Five Heaven-tier Ghost Shadow Fox, he was not a threat to Long Chen.


    <em>Didn¡¯t he say he was looking for the girl he likes? Why is he here alone? Did something happen to his girl? </em>


    He covered a hundred over meters very quickly and soon saw the young man. When Long Chen spotted him, he froze. Previously, the young man was a gentle, elegant person, but now his hair was messy, he had dark circles around his eyes, and there was even some violence in his gaze.


    ¡°Big Brother, do you remember me?¡± Long Chen asked cautiously. It had been about a day since his arrival in the Seven Layered Demon World.


    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± The man gasped, then he said coldly, ¡°You entered this ce even at your cultivation level? You should leave. I don¡¯t have time to talk!¡± Then he turned to leave.


    Long Chen did not move. He thought it was strange, though it was none of his business and he was toozy to ask.


    After taking a few steps, the guy turned around again and asked coldly, ¡°It looks like you aren¡¯t nning to leave.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m free to stay here. But what¡¯s up with you?¡± This person had previously helped him, so Long Chen wanted to be nice. If someone had threatened him, Long Chen would not let them go so easily.


    ¡°Die, then.¡± After hearing Long Chen¡¯s reply, he suddenly charged at him.


    Long Chen was exasperated. He had only just deactivated his Dragon Soul Transformation, but now he had to use it again. Long Chen could not be bothered to fight, so he used Blood Warp and disappeared.


    <em>Is he sick in the head? He wanted to kill me for no reason! Since you told me how to get to the secondyer of the demon world, I¡¯ll let you go this time. If this happens again, I won¡¯t show mercy. </em>


    Using Blood Warp, Long Chen left the man and found a safe spot to digest and absorb the Ghost Shadow Fox¡¯s blood so he could advance to the Fourth Passage Stage.


    Everything went smoothly once again. When the fourth meridian point was cleared in his right foot, Long Chen reached the Fourth Passage Stage. His Qi reserves increased again as a result. In his current state, his body¡¯s toughness was the greatest contributor to his strength, and this would continue until approximately the Sixth Passage Stage. His advanced Heaven-tier body would be less effective against opponents at that level, so he would have to start relying on his Qi soon.


    Many cultivators who had reached the Sixth and Seventh Passage Stages also cultivated advanced Heaven-tier body tempering techniques, though theirs were a few times weaker than Long Chen¡¯s dragon body. Long Chen¡¯s body was almost as tough as the body of someone at the three Martial Realms.


    Long Chen had used up three thousand Heavenly Passage Pills to reach the third Passage Stage, and it took him almost ten thousand to reach the Fourth. This also meant that he had used fifteen thousand Heavenly Passage Pills out of the one hundred thousand he had received. At this rate, to Long Chen¡¯s horror, his Heavenly Passage Pill stash would onlyst him until the Fifth Passage Stage ¡­


    <em>My rate of Heavenly Passage Pill consumption is terrifying. It looks like I will only be able to reach the Fifth Passage Stage at most. I don¡¯t have enough Heavenly Passage Pills, and the strongest beasts in the secondyer are only at the Category Six Heaven-tier, which will only help me reach the Fifth Passage Stage at best. After I leave, I need to find another way to get more Heavenly Passage Pills and meet stronger beasts. If I continue to grow like this, I will definitely be able to face an opponent at the Eighth Passage Stage in just a month! </em>


    What Long Chencked most was good support. If he had a strong person backing him, he would be able to get much stronger, much quicker.


    <em>Of course, even though I¡¯ll be stuck at the Fifth Passage Stage, no one under the Seventh Passage Stage will be a match for me, including Zhao Wuji and Qin Huanyu. I have be the strongest among all the regr disciples in just one or two days; I wonder how they¡¯ll react when they find out? </em>Long Chen was excited.


    His quick progress was made possible by his super strong body, which was one of the benefits of absorbing the one hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence.


    <em>Next, I must find a Category Six Heaven-tier beast to boost my cultivation level up to the Fifth Passage Stage. </em>Long Chen set his goal, then he looked towards the depths of the demon world and walked ahead.


    On his way, he encountered a few more Category Five Heaven-tier beasts. He only killed them if they were fire-type, though they made for good targets to test his new strength. He happened to find a fire-type beast among the few that he saw, so to its misfortune, it died beneath Long Chen¡¯s sword and its demonic core ended up in Xiang¡¯s belly. Xiang sessfully leveled up to Category Three Heaven-tier.


    Some beasts never leveled up in their lifetimes, but a psycho like Xiang could absorb fire energy to level up twice in such a short time.


    Category Six Heaven-tier beasts were rare even in the secondyer. It was difficult to distinguish between Category Five and Six beasts with the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so Long Chen had no choice but to search through thend on his own.


    <em>I wonder if there¡¯s a canyon at the end of the secondyer? Is that how you enter the thirdyer? </em>With that thought, Long Chen made his way to the deepest part of the secondyer, though to his frustration, he was wrong. The end of the secondyer was a membrane that he could not approach. Long Chen knew that this was the boundary of the miniverse. With his current strength, he would never be able to enter.


    <em>Looks like I need to find another way to get to the thirdyer. </em>With that thought, Long Chen had no choice but to continue his honest search for Category Six Heaven-tier beasts.


    Two dayster, after circling the area for a long time, he finally found one.


    He had also found two Category Five fire-type beasts in that time, whose cores turned into Xiang¡¯s food. Xiang¡¯s demonic power experienced a great boost, although he had not reached Category Four Heaven-tier yet. The effects of the demonic cores were not outwardly noticeable.


    After discovering the beast, Long Chen did not dare to move recklessly. It was a Category Six Heaven-tier beast after all. Even at his current cultivation level, he still had to stay alert.


    ¡°Category Six Heaven-tier Frostme Twin Headed Snake!¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Two stages in six chapters or so. That''s a new record </blockquote>

 Chapter 485: Frostflame Twin Headed Snake

    This beast¡¯s characteristics could be deduced from its name alone. To be honest, this was Long Chen¡¯s first encounter with arge snake-type beast. It was also a two-headed snake, so Long Chen was shocked by its terrifying appearance even from far away.


    It was a twenty-meter-long snake with scales covering its whole body. Half its body was covered in blue scales, while the other half was red. There was a fork at its abdomen that led to two separate heads, which were red and blue. mes curled from the red snakehead, while frosty air surrounded the blue snakehead and thick ice formed all around it.


    These two extreme characteristics had manifested in one beast.


    ¡°The Frostme Twin Headed Snake has two demonic cores, right?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Of course. Beasts like that are very unique, and they are considered peerless among beasts of the same tier. Having two demonic cores also means that it¡¯s twice as strong as other beasts, especially since it has two extreme elements. Unfortunately, this little snake is weak. Years ago, I saw a Divine Nine Headed Snake that had ten times more dominic Qi than me. It was a terrifying presence, though unfortunately, it was no match for my reincarnation powers.¡±


    Golden Crow. Reincarnation Beast. Nine Headed Snake. Based on Little Cat¡¯s exnation, they were beasts that slowly became stronger after the ancient dragons had gone extinct.


    Just based on Little Cat¡¯s description of the Golden Crow, Long Chen understood exactly how powerful they were.


    These beasts only existed in legends.


    Long Chen put aside the reverence in his heart and studied the Frostme Twin Headed Snake closely. The snake was very fierce; even though there were no threats around, it did not rx. Both pairs of eyes took turns surveying their surroundings, constantly on high alert. A snake tongue that resembled a bright, red me flickered from one of its mouths, while the other mouth had a tongue that resembled a blue de. There was a fierce glint in its eyes. The Frostme Twin Headed Snake was much fiercer than the Ghost Shadow Fox. Long Chen believed that the Frostme Twin Headed Snake would rush over immediately to tear him to pieces if he made his presence known.


    The Frostme Twin Headed Snake was considered a king-like presence in the secondyer of the demon world. It was used to being king, so naturally, it had a terrible temper.


    Long Chen did not n to waste any time. He calmed his mind, then he prepared to attack.


    That was when he suddenly heard amotioning from behind him. He was startled and his hair stood on end as he hurriedly hid himself. At the same time, he approached the source of the sounds. He was now a hundred meters away from the Frostme Twin Headed Snake, and also about a hundred meters from the sounds.


    Long Chen needed to confirm the intentions of these people before he could focus on fighting the Frostme Twin Headed Snake.


    Using his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he saw two people fighting each other. The Soul Swallowing Gaze also allowed him to keep an eye on the snake, he was not worried that the Frostme Twin Headed Snake would run away. He predicted that instead of running, it would probably attack the moment it detected themotion.


    Long Chen rushed over and hid himself. He saw that the two people fighting were a man and a woman. One of them was the young man he had met twice. The first time they met, he had been kind enough to tell him the method to enter the secondyer of the demon world. The second time, he had a bizarre expression and wanted to kill Long Chen. Right now, he had a manic expression on his face as he attacked the woman.


    The woman¡¯s age and cultivation level were simr to his, around the Fifth Passage Stage, which was no match for Long Chen. She was good-looking and curvy, a sexy-type woman who was hard toe by. Unfortunately, the man did not seem to realize this at all, because he continued to attack her.


    ¡°Fu Yang! You liar! You said that you loved me, but you¡¯re attacking me now because of the ck Emperor Seal!¡± the woman said with extreme resentment.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the same? You said you would marry me, but you hid in the secondyer just because you wanted to take the ck Emperor Seal for yourself! And when I found out, you even tried to kill me! If I wasn¡¯t smart enough, I would be dead by now! You venomous woman! How dare you call me a liar when you are one too?¡± the man yelled as he increased the speed of his attacks.


    ¡°I found the ck Emperor Seal on my own; it has nothing to do with you! Why do I need to share it with you? You said that you would die for me, yet now you are fighting me for the ck Emperor Seal! This shows that you are trash! You refuse to follow through with your promises!¡±


    ¡°Do you feel like you have suddenly seen the real me? Ptui! I am the one who has finally seen the real you! All I wanted was to share the treasure with you, and yet you tried to kill me, you venomous woman! I was the one who told you about the legend of the Emperor-tierbat technique, the Five Emperor Seals! You were the one who crossed the river and destroyed the bridge! Whatever! Since you have decided to betray me, then I will do the same! I will be taking the ck Emperor Seal, so ept your fate and die!¡±


    Based on their conversation, Long Chen could tell that the woman was the person that Fu Yang had said he liked, and Long Chen figured out the plot. The couple was fighting each other over a treasure. Their desire for the treasure had caused their love to burst like a bubble.


    Long Chen could not understand this at all. The love he knew of was the kind that made Dongfang Xuanxiao wait for Xuanming for twenty years, the kind that made him and Ling Xi willing to wait for ten years. Love would never cause two people to kill each other over a mere treasure.


    Their version of love was a great shock to Long Chen because he suddenly understood just how shallow love could be in this world.


    He did not hate them, though he pitied them. If they knew what sacrifice meant, then they would not die today. They would be able to gain sess through this treasure instead.


    Most importantly, Long Chen had heard them mention an Emperor-tierbat technique.


    Beyond the Heaven-tier was the King-tier, which was equivalent to the Earthly Martial Realm. Beyond that was the Emperor-tier, which corresponded to the Heavenly Martial Realm. The dead Jiang Cheng had exined that Emperor-tier treasures were peak-level treasures across the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Why would a peak-levelbat technique be here? Long Chen genuinely thought he had made a mistake.


    In reality, he had heard right. He had been listening carefully, and the man had indeed mentioned the legend of a Emperor-tierbat technique called the Five Emperor Seals.


    The Five Emperor Seals likely consisted of five portions. From their conversation, Long Chen guessed that the ck Emperor Seal was one of them, though he did not know what it did.


    If he could get his hands on an Emperor-tierbat technique, it would be even more effective than the Emperor me Pearl. The pearl would allow him to reach the Ninth Passage Stage, but the Five Emperor Seals was a technique that he would be able to use for a long time. Long Chen knew that perhaps no one possessed an Emperor-tierbat technique in the whole Divine Martial Empire.


    It was a rare chance. Long Chen did not know the specifics of the situation, but all he could do was snatch it and even kill them. He did not mind killing a couple like them.


    With such a huge opportunity presented to him, Long Chen would not let it go.


    The fight between the couple grew more intense, and their attacks grew more vicious, as if they were ready to kill each other. Long Chen grew very ufortable.


    <em>Perhaps this is human nature. I cannot even imagine what they were like when they were loving each other. Xiao Xi and I would nevere to this. </em>


    Just as he thought about this, he was suddenly startled by a powerful aura behind him. Their fight had attracted the Frostme Twin Headed Snake¡¯s attention. The snake was a violent Category Six Heaven-tier beast, so even if the couple worked together, they would never defeat it!


    It was quick, covering about two hundred meters instantly. Long Chen had no choice but to activate the Dragon Soul Transformation and change his hiding spot. Since the snake was here, he decided to wait for a suitable time to snatch the ck Emperor Seal.


    He no longer cared if the couple lived or died.


    By the time the couple sensed the approaching threat, the gigantic snake was right in front of them. It looked down at them from high above!


    ¡°Frostme Twin Headed Snake!¡± the woman cried in terror. She was initially in an attacking stance, but when she saw the snake, she stopped and fled. She knew exactly how powerful this beast was!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    The Frostme Twin Headed Snake first let out a hiss, then its first attacknded on the woman! This was its territory, and it was the king here. Not only had these two puny living beings disturbed its peace, they had even tried to run from it!


    The gigantic snake''s tail flew in an arc in the air, then swept towards the couple. The woman was closer, and due to therge range of attack, it was impossible to escape. It would be difficult for both to dodge this attack!


    ¡°Fu Yang, save me!¡± she cried in despair. She used all her Qi to withstand the impact from the snake¡¯s tail. The strength of a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator paired with an intermediate Heaven-tier attack was a formidablebo, so if the manunched the same attack, they would both be able to escape!


    However, the man did not attack but instead ran in the opposite direction. He chuckled coldly, and as he expected, the Frostme Twin Headed Snake¡¯s powerful tail flung the woman into the air. Arge mouthful of blood sprayed out of her mouth and her face turned pale. Almost all her bones had been broken, and it was clear that she had little time to live.


    ¡°If you die, you deserve it! The ck Emperor Seal is mine!¡± She was flying towards him, and when he saw that she was about to die, he suddenly grew excited and ran after her! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Jakiro, is that you?!</blockquote>

 Chapter 486: Emperor-Tier Combat Technique

    In reality, the Frostme Twin Headed Snake was only punishing them. If they escaped sessfully, it would not chase them. Due to the woman blocking its strike, the man had managed to create a lot of distance. If he could get the Universe Pouch in her hand, he could leave unscathed!


    When Fu Yang saw that the woman was about tond and the Frostme Twin Headed Snake did not intend to chase after them, he looked ecstatic. He shouted excitedly and then pounced!


    He could run the moment he snatched the Universe Pouch! He couldn¡¯t care less about the woman!


    When he was about to reach her, something unexpected happened. There was a sudden red sh, and something caught the woman. At the same time, a hand quickly searched her clothing. In less than a moment, the hand fished out a Universe Pouch from her voluptuous chest.


    Fu Yang fell from heaven to hell in an instant!


    ¡°Who are you?! You¡¯re looking for death!¡± Fu Yang roared in fury, then he pounced on Long Chen. Unfortunately, Fu Yang was no match for Long Chen in his dragon form. His Qi was on par with Fu Yang¡¯s, and he had a super strong body. That was why when Fu Yang lunged at him, Long Chen dodged him in a sh using Traceless Demon Shadow, reappearing in front of Fu Yang.


    ¡°What?!¡± Fu Yang looked at the bony spikes and ws that had pierced through his internal organs in despair. He understood that he was about to die. Long Chen¡¯s quick attack had caused him injuries as severe as the woman¡¯s.


    In just a sh, Long Chen was able to kill him. It was clear just howrge the gap between them was!


    ¡°Who the hell are you?¡± Fu Yang looked at the Beast Warrior in front of him. His face was ghostly pale and he had lost all hope. ¡°We¡¯ve met twice. I¡¯ll be taking the ck Emperor Seal. Thank you for telling me where the secondyer of the demon world was,¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    When the man heard him, his eyes widened in disbelief. He remembered Long Chen, of course, but wasn¡¯t he only at the Second Passage Stage? How was he this strong?


    ¡°You¡¯re the three-time consecutive champion.¡± The man suddenly recalled someone at thest moment. At this point, he regretted underestimating Long Chen.


    ¡°I am. The first time we met, you helped me; the second time we met, you wanted to kill me. They cancel out. Since we¡¯re both fighting for the same thing now, and no one must hear about the ck Emperor Seal ¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill me!¡± the man cried in panic, but it was toote. Long Chen twisted gently, and his neck snapped. Long Chen let go, and his body slumped to the ground. His eyes were still wide open in shock, even in death.


    Long Chen¡¯s icy stare turned to the woman, who was on the brink of death.


    ¡°Jiang ¡­ Jiang Cheng¡­ Don¡¯t kill me ¡­ I¡¯m willing to be your woman; I won¡¯t tell a soul! I¡¯ll obey your everymand ¡­ Please?¡± The woman had heard of Long Chen too.


    Unfortunately, there was a woman Long Chen knew who was much more beautiful than she was.


    ¡°I, Long Chen, am not worthy of such an offer from a beautiful woman like you. Since you two could not love each other sincerely while you were alive, I hope you¡¯ll do better in hell,¡± Long Chen whispered into her ear, his voice ice-cold.


    One of Long Chen¡¯s bony spines pierced through her heart.


    In the end, she was still confused over the name ¡°Long Chen.¡± His name was Jiang Cheng, so why had he called himself ¡°Long Chen?¡± And why was the name Long Chen so familiar?


    Someone named Long Chen was ranked third on the bounty board, and he was at one of the three Martial Realms. He was not that Long Chen.


    In a very short time, Long Chen had taken two lives. He arranged their bodies so they were in a tight embrace, then he turned around. At this point, the Frostme Twin Headed Snake was furious because it had caught yet another human causing trouble in its territory.


    Something about Long Chen¡¯s aura truly stirred its anger. Although it was faint, there was something terrifying about him. The Frostme Twin Headed Snake was used to being king, so it refused to acknowledge the feeling of submission it evoked, and it flew into a rage as a result.


    Furthermore, Long Chen had killed prey that belonged to it, right in front of it too!


    There was thick tension in the air as the man and snake approached each other.


    Long Chen knew that he was only one step away frompleting his objective in the Seven Layered Demon World¡ªkill the Frostme Twin Headed Snake and ascend to the Fifth Passage Stage!


    The ck Emperor Seal, which was one of the Five Emperor Seals, a Emperor-tier technique, hade as a surprise. It was a secret he could never make public, because if he did, he would be in mortal danger.


    Masters were asmon as clouds in the Ancient Demon Domain, and he was still part of the bottommost tier of society, or in the middle tier at most.


    During the standoff, Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword. There was no time to waste. Long Chen charged and swung the de, sending a powerful de of Sword Qi flying at the Frostme Twin Headed Snake!


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Demon Sword!¡± The power unleashed by the Supreme Demon Sword technique could not be underestimated. A dense swarm of ck des flew at the Frostme Twin Headed Snake!


    The Frostme Twin Headed Snake let out two screams, and both heads rushed towards Long Chen. Their jaws opened, then red fire and blue ice shot out of each mouth, which mixed together and shed with Long Chen¡¯s Supreme Demon Sword! The gigantic force it produced far surpassed the Supreme Demon Sword!


    <em>Rumble! </em>


    The Supreme Demon Sword attack dispersed from the impact, and the remaining fire and ice flew towards Long Chen. Long Chen gasped and quickly used Traceless Demon Shadow to dodge the residual waves of the impact.


    <em>The Frostme Twin Headed Snake is strong! What a difficult opponent! </em>Long Chen¡¯s eyebrows were deeply furrowed. He had hoped to kill it in one strike, but it was not going to be easy. There were few openings for him to use the Heaven Sword Array, and if the snake survived the attack, it would be very difficult to kill it afterward. And themotion would probably attract more people!


    That was when he heard Xiang¡¯s voice. ¡°Big Brother, try getting close to it. I¡¯ll try hitting it with my Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!¡±


    It was indeed a good idea. If Xiang suddenly emerged from the Primordial Realm, he would catch the Frostme Twin Headed Snake unaware, especially while using the terrifying Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Xiang had be stronger, and so had the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Long Chen grunted in agreement, then he used Traceless Demon Shadow to quickly approach the snake. Since his objective was merely to get closer, it was easy!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    The snake¡¯s gigantic tail swept beneath Long Chen¡¯s feet. Long Chen quickly leaped to dodge the attack, then he stepped off its tail and shot toward its heads!


    The Frostme Twin Headed Snake raged, and one of the heads suddenly turned and shot a volley of mes at Long Chen!


    ¡°Xiang!¡± The moment he shouted, Xiang leaped out of the Primordial Realm. The mes that he had been umting within him shot out all at once at the head. Since the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was fundamentally a much stronger fire, the snake¡¯s fire was swallowed instantly. Then the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire grew stronger and leaped on the Frostme Twin Headed Snake¡¯s red head!


    This time, the Frostme Twin Headed Snake could not react in time because Xiang¡¯s appearance had been too sudden. Even the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was very unexpected, so itpletely engulfed the red head. The head was pulverized quickly!


    The Frostme Twin Headed Snake let out a hiss of agony at the pain of losing one head. If it was not still engaged in battle, it would have rolled on the ground in pain. However, it had no time to roll around, because it was Long Chen¡¯s turn to attack right after Xiang.


    ¡°Heaven Sword Array!¡± A violent storm of Sword Qi was unleashed. The Frostme Twin Headed Snake could not withstand it at all, so it was dead a momentter. Long Chen put its carcass away, not even wasting a drop of blood, then prepared to leave.


    Before he left, Long Chen inspected the couple¡¯s bodies but did not find any more Universe Pouches. Then he checked the Universe Pouches he obtained and found a ck, normal-looking seal inside. He assumed that it was the ck Emperor Seal. Once he confirmed that he had obtained the seal, he said to Xiang, ¡°Just to be safe, I think we need to destroy the bodies to destroy the evidence.¡±


    Xiang nodded. Faced with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, the couple disappearedpletely.


    ¡°It¡¯s too bad you destroyed the Frostme Twin Headed Snake¡¯s fire-type demonic core along with the head. It would have been useful for your growth,¡± said Long Chen, shaking his head with regret.


    Then he set off to find a safe ce to perform Blood Transmutation. After he reached the Fifth Passage Stage, he would leave this ce and return to the Clear Shallows PAvilion.


    <em>I think training was supposed to begin on the day after the Demon Light Bath. Although the strict cultivation style of the Ancient Demon Domain is effective, it doesn¡¯t suit me. I wonder if they will cause me trouble again when I return ¡­ I did stay in the Seven Layered Demon World for almost three days after all ¡­ </em>thought Long Chen worriedly. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Recap: King-tier=>Emperor-tier=>Divine-tier</blockquote>

 Chapter 487: Fifth Passage Stage

    This was his third breakthrough in the demon world. This time, Long Chen had reached the Fifth Passage Stage using the Frostme Twin Headed Snake¡¯s blood. The fifth meridian point was located in his right palm, and unlike the dan meridian point at his dantian, it was not small at all. He took some time to examine the outside of his hand, but it looked the same as before.


    Almost everyone used their hands when using weapons orbat techniques, and the palm was where Qi was directly ejected. When the fifth meridian point was cleared, it shortened Long Chen¡¯s attack time and greatly increased the strength of his attacks. If he could clear his sixth meridian point in his left palm, a perfect cycle would form in his body.


    Progressing through the Heavenly Passage Realm was equivalent to the process of evolution.


    What frustrated Long Chen was that he had spent about thirty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills to reach the Fifth Passage Stage. After adding the approximately ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills he had taken from the couple, he had only about seventy thousand left. Since every tier consumed triple the amount of the previous tier, he estimated that he would need about ny thousand Heavenly Passage Pills to reach the Sixth Passage Stage.


    This meant that he would not only be unable to get to the thirdyer of the demon world, he alsocked Heavenly Passage Pills. It was crucial to find a method to increase his strength, or he wouldn¡¯t be allowed to participate in the fight for the Emperor me Pearl in a month¡¯s time.


    Since he hadpleted his cultivation goal, he had no choice but to return.


    Before that, he took out the ck Emperor Seal and inspected it carefully. It waspletely ck and did not look special at all. It looked like a very normal seal.


    ¡°Little Cat, this can¡¯t be fake, can it?¡± Long Chenmented.


    ¡°The more normal something looks, the more likely it is to be a piece of treasure. The ck Emperor Seal is likely a key. Don¡¯t they call it the Emperor-tier Five Emperor Seal? Once you collect the other four Emperor Seals, you will unlock the Five Emperor Sealbat technique. That¡¯s just my guess though.¡±Long Chen nodded. The ck Emperor Seal was useless to him for now. Since he couldn¡¯t find anything special about it, he put it away and prepared to leave. There were a bunch of exits in the secondyer of the demon world. When he was walking around searching for Category Six Heaven-tier beasts, he encountered quite a few. They looked like ck whirlpools on the ground, and they would transport him to the foot of Demon World Mountain when he entered them.


    He was not very familiar with the area, so he had to search for the exits. However, after searching for a long time, he found an evenrger ck whirlpool. There were many people guarding it, and the leader was, to his surprise, Demon General Typhoon.


    <em>I haven¡¯t been able to find the entrance to the thirdyer anywhere. Since a high-ranked person like Demon General Typhoon is guarding this ck whirlpool, it must be the entrance to the thirdyer. </em>


    Only advanced disciples above the Seventh Passage Stage were allowed into the thirdyer. With Demon General Typhoon guarding the entrance, Long Chen knew that it would be impossible for him to enter. He made a mental note of its location, then he left to search for the exit.


    After a while, he appeared at the foot of Demon World Mountain.


    Long Chen then returned to the Clear Shallows Pavilion. He was very different nowpared to a few days ago. He had just reached the Second Passage Stage when he left, but now he was at the Fifth Passage Stage. In terms ofbat abilities, disciples under the Seventh Passage Stage were no match for him.


    Only several days had passed since he joined the Ancient Demon Domain. How shocked would other people be if they found out that he had shot from the First to the Fifth Passage Stage in just a few days?


    Long Chen thought hard. If he returned to the Clear Shallows Pavilion like this, what would Qin Huanyu and Demon General Strongman do? Before this, they had emphasized being disciplined. He guessed that he would be in a lot of trouble.


    Of course, he was not afraid.


    He soon arrived in front of the Clear Shallows Pavilion. Before he entered, a regr disciple came forward, eyed him for a while, then asked coldly, ¡°Are you Jiang Cheng?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Long Chen nodded, proving that he was Jiang Cheng.


    ¡°Demon General Strongman instructed us to bring you to the training grounds the moment you showed up. Do you need me to take you there?¡± the disciple asked straightforwardly.


    ¡°Training grounds? Alright, I¡¯ll go there now.¡± Long Chen nodded, then he walked past him, clearlymunicating that he could find his own way.


    The corners of the disciple¡¯s mouth curled up as he watched Long Chen leave. ¡°What an ignorant brat. The Ancient Demon Domain has a very strict system, yet he dared to skip three consecutive days of training right after he joined. More importantly, he doesn¡¯t even know that this is punishable by death ¡­¡±


    Long Chen did not hear his words, but he knew what he was in for. After taking a few steps, he said, ¡°Xiang, bring Huangfu Qi to the training grounds. It¡¯s best if you can lure the Clear Shallows King over too. Demon General Strongman isn¡¯t likely to kill me with them present. Without them, he won¡¯t let me live since I made his nephew lose his chance to be the three-time champion.¡±


    Xiang knew how urgent this matter was. He emerged from the Primordial Realm and disappeared from Long Chen¡¯s sight.


    Huangfu Qi had many secrets; Long Chen could sense it. Also, the Clear Shallows King treated her very well. With her there, Demon General Strongman wouldn¡¯t dare act recklessly.


    Long Chen slowed down and headed towards the training grounds. Many people would have recognized him, but he barely saw anyone on the way because the regr disciples were training at this hour.


    Long Chen made a rough estimation and guessed that Huangfu Qi would arrive soon, so he finally made his appearance outside the training grounds. When the other regr disciples spotted him, they stopped what they were doing and stared at him in shock. This neer had be a hot topic for them after meals.


    He had just arrived at the Ancient Demon Domain but had disappeared for three days and kept the Demon General waiting. They could not believe how bold Long Chen was! Everyone assumed that if Long Chen appeared again, he would face certain death.


    ¡°Why would he show up here? I thought he fled the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t he just looking for death? Lord Demon General has been in a terrible mood these few days because of how Jiang Cheng disrespected him. He injured several people due to his foul mood!¡±


    ¡°I heard that Zhao Wuji is Lord Demon General¡¯s nephew. Why did he return after being absent for three days? He¡¯s looking for trouble!¡±


    More and more people stopped cultivating and whispered among themselves. They all talked about Long Chen with pity and shock on their faces.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng looks clueless. Thest time a guy didn¡¯t show up for two days, Demon General Strongman snapped his neck. And this guy was absent for three days right after bing a disciple ¡­¡±


    ¡°What a gigantic idiot.¡±


    Everyone continued to talk about him.


    Two people separated from the crowd. One was Qin Huanyu, who was in charge of training neers, the other was Demon General Strongman. When he saw Long Chen, a malicious sneer appeared on his face. Without a word, he stopped ten meters away from Long Chen and eyed him up and down. ¡°Jiang Cheng. I remember your name was Jiang Cheng. Do you know the rules of the Ancient Demon Domain? Especially my rules?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know them. What rules do you have, Demon General Strongman?¡± Long Chen asked mildly. He had not asked in an ingratiating manner at all, and everyone sighed at his ignorance in the face of death. He could not be saved.


    ¡°Hehe ¡­¡± Demon General Strongmanughed and said, ¡°As a neer, you did note for training for three days. That is an act of insubordination. Respecting your teacher is the number one rule of the Ancient Demon Domain, and you have broken it. That is a death sentence for you, and there is no room for negotiation. Even the emperor of the heavens cannot save you.¡±


    From Long Chen¡¯s perspective, all this talk about rules was just an excuse for Demon General Strongman to kill him. He knew that Strongman wanted to kill him, but he did not react because he had spotted Huangfu Qi and the Clear Shallows King just five hundred meters away using the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    ¡°Do you have the right to kill the innocent too? The one who makes the decisions in the Clear Shallows Pavilion is the Clear Shallows King, right? Whether or not I should be killed should be the Clear Shallows King¡¯s decision to make,¡± Long Chen said indignantly.


    Demon General Strongman smiled. ¡°Do we need to trouble the Clear Shallows King just to kill you, an irrelevant, minor disciple? Let¡¯s do it this way. Huanyu, you¡¯re the Clear Shallows King¡¯s favorite disciple. I¡¯ll hand over the responsibility of Jiang Cheng¡¯s death sentence to you. Don¡¯t waste time; we must carry on with the training as soon as possible.¡±


    Qin Huanyu was standing next to Demon General Strongman. After hearing his instruction, he smiled and said, ¡°Indeed, there is no need to ask for my master¡¯s permission to kill a tiny individual like Jiang Cheng. Let¡¯s do it this way: I¡¯ll eliminate him in my master¡¯s name. He even took the power of the crystal for himself ¡­¡±


    As he spoke, he looked at Long Chen in contempt and started to approach. Suddenly, he elerated towards Long Chen.


    The power of a Sixth Passage Stage cultivator erupted from him.


    At this moment, Huangfu Qi and the Clear Shallows King already arrived and saw Qin Huanyu attacking Long Chen from afar. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Strongman must die too!</blockquote>

 Chapter 488: Snow Moon Knife

    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Huangfu Qi cried when she saw Qin Huanyu attacking Long Chen. She could not move fast enough to save him, nor was she strong enough to!


    She ced herst hope on the Clear Shallows King, who was behind her. However, there was no time, so all she could do was turn in a panic and shout, ¡°Master!¡±


    If the Clear Shallows King wanted to save Long Chen, it was indeed possible, even without Huangfu Qi¡¯s reminder. However, the Clear Shallows King did not move, and instead watched Qin Huanyu coldly.


    Thissted only a moment, which was over in a blink.


    Everyone was watching to see how Qin Huanyu would kill Long Chen. Huangfu Qi was the only one that cared. Everyone else¡¯s hearts were icy, as they were jealous of his record-breaking miracles during the qualifiers!


    A hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills! Most people present would never own that many in their lifetimes!


    Qin Huanyu targeted Long Chen partially because of the one hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. There were only twenty to thirty thousand pills in his own Universe Pouch after all. He had almost exhausted the one hundred thousand pills he had received as a three-time consecutive champion, and he had not received many during the past two years.


    The twenty thousand pills he had on hand were not enough for him to advance to the Seventh Passage Stage, as he needed fifty thousand for it. If it were Long Chen, he would have needed almost five hundred thousand pills.


    Qin Huanyu attacked with the intent to kill. He used an intermediate Heaven-tierbat technique paired with his Sixth Passage Stage Qi. How could Long Chen, who was not even at the Third Passage Stage, survive this? The Clear Shallows King did not intend to help Long Chen. This meant that only death awaited him.


    Everyone else was also terrified. The Ancient Demon Domain looked so glorious from the outside, but inside, they had learned that if they disobeyed instructions or did not do something well, they would be killed. Just like Long Chen. He was the prodigy who had won three consecutive times, yet he would be killed just a few days after he entered the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    However, what happened next made their jaws drop.


    Qin Huanyu pulled out a sparkling knife that looked to be made of ice crystal. The knife was as strong as the Demon Emperor Sword, so it was also an intermediate Heaven-tier divine weapon! It was even much higher in quality than the Demon Emperor Sword. The moment it was revealed, a cold Yin aura radiated in all directions!


    ¡°Snow Moon Knife, Blizzard Strike!¡±


    He used an intermediate Heaven-tier strike as his first attack. Qin Huanyu hated Long Chen from the start. This was a huge opportunity for him, and he would even make Demon General Strongman happy! He would never miss this chance, so he shot to kill!


    Rays of light shot out like a blizzard at Long Chen. Long Chen was likely going to be chopped to pieces!


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Huangfu Qi screamed in despair. It was clear that she truly cared about him. She was starting to tear up, and her chubby face turned ghostly white.


    Just as everyone thought he was about to die, Long Chen remained calm and a ck sword appeared in his hand. He shed it horizontally, and ck sword shadows shed with Qin Huanyu¡¯s Blizzard Strike!


    ¡°Demon Emperor Sword Technique, Supreme Demon Sword!¡±


    <em>Rumble! </em>


    The sword shadows collided with the rays of sword light, causing huge ripples. The equally strong attacks from both sides made everyone ask themselves one thing: how could one casual sh of Long Chen¡¯s sword be strong enough to withstand Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack?


    It was unbelievable.


    Everyone¡¯s eyes widened. When Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack waspletely neutralized, he quickly retreated several steps and stared in shock. Everyone stared with equal magnitudes of shock.


    Although Qin Huanyu hadn¡¯t used all of his strength just now, not even a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator could have blocked his attack this easily. How had Long Chen done it?


    During the qualifiers, he had beaten the Fourth Passage Stage Zhao Wuji while only being at the First Passage Stage. This was because of his extra tough body. However, his advanced Heaven-tierbat body should not have been an obstacle to Qin Huanyu at this point. So what had Long Chen done to stay alive?


    ¡°How could he be that strong? He actually blocked Senior Qin¡¯s attack!¡±


    ¡°That is impossible! I saw how casual his defense was!¡±


    ¡°I saw Long Chen in action during the qualifiers, but even after his Beast Soul Transformation, he wasn¡¯t as strong as he is now!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s only been three days! Did Jiang Cheng take some kind of miracle pill for this?¡±


    The regr disciples started to discuss.


    This turned Qin Huanyu and Demon General Strongman¡¯s expressions sour, though they had to admit that Long Chen¡¯s performance was extraordinary. After seeing Long Chen¡¯s attack, Demon General Strongman was able to determine his cultivation level, so he cried in surprise, ¡°Jiang Cheng, when did you reach the Fifth Passage Stage?! Shouldn¡¯t you be at the Second Passage Stage?¡±


    He knew that Long Chen had reached the Second Passage Stage after the Demon Light Bath, but it had only been three days since then. Yet Long Chen had already reached the Fifth Passage Stage! This meant that he had climbed one stage per day! Strongman had never heard of such a thing before!


    Demon General Strongman¡¯s remark shocked the crowd once more.


    ¡°Fifth Passage Stage? Did I hear him right? Even Huangfu Qi and Zhao Wuji are only at the Fourth Passage Stage! How did Jiang Cheng rise to the Fifth Passage Stage so suddenly?¡±


    ¡°No wonder he disappeared for three days! Did he encounter a miracle? If a miracle like that happened to me, I would be willing to disappear for three days too!¡±


    ¡°Initially, Long Chen was not taken seriously because of his low cultivation level and the fact that he is older than others. Now he has surpassed the prodigies, and he even possesses advanced Heaven-tier body tempering techniques andbat techniques. He is as talented as Senior Qin Huanyu! Jiang Cheng has an advanced Heaven-tier body tempering technique, while Senior Qin¡¯s cultivation level is higher. They¡¯re simr in age though!¡±


    What they were saying was exactly what Demon General Strongman was thinking. Strongman had no choice but to look at the Clear Shallows King, because he knew that the reason she had not defended Long Chen just now was because she looked down on him. Now that Long Chen had proven that he was extremely talented, would she still look down on him?


    The Clear Shallows Pavilion was in great need of talent, so it was likely that the Clear Shallows King would not kill Long Chen!


    The Clear Shallows King was indeed shocked. As a master at the three Martial Realms, she had seen a great deal, but never a monster like Long Chen. Looking at the speed of his progress, she could only describe him as a monster.


    Since Qin Huanyu had halted his attacks out of shock, the fight hade to an end. In Huangfu Qi¡¯s eyes, Long Chen had always been powerful, so she was not too shocked. She leaped into his arms and sobbed heavily. ¡°Big Brother, you jerk! I thought I would never see you again, sob ¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t cry, Qi Qi. I¡¯m very strong now! How could a tiny ant kill me?¡± Long Chen said nonchntly with a smile.


    The phrase ¡°tiny ant¡± enraged Qin Huanyu, who roared, ¡°Little Junior Sister! Move! Jiang Cheng hasmitted a sin punishable by death! I was careless just now and did not manage to kill him. I won''t let him live this time!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not moving! I¡¯m not! Senior Brother Six, you¡¯re a bad person! Your son will not have a butthole!¡± Enraged, Huangfu Qi scolded Qin Huanyu while pointing at his nose.[1]


    Qin Huanyu twitched with rage, but he could not do anything, because she was the Clear Shallows King¡¯s favorite disciple. He looked at the Clear Shallows King for help, who waved and gestured for him to step back. Then she walked up to Long Chen.


    ¡°You disappeared for three days, breaking the rules. Was it to reach the Fifth Passage Stage?¡± the Clear Shallows King asked, looking at him coldly.


    ¡°Of course! There are many people here who want to kill me. If I don¡¯t get stronger, aren¡¯t I just a fish on their chopping board?¡± Long Chen answered with a small smile.


    Long Chen did not me her for not defending him, as she did not have a reason to defend a disciple who did not have much potential. However, it waspletely different now. Long Chen was old enough to understand that profit was key. The Clear Shallows King would keep him alive no matter what if she could gain something.


    ¡°Alright. Seeing as you¡¯ve just joined the Ancient Demon Domain and don¡¯t know the rules, you may go.¡± The Clear Shallows King nodded. She felt like Long Chen would be grateful because she did not press further.


    When Demon General Strongman saw that the Clear Shallows King had decided to keep Long Chen alive, he wanted to say something but decided against it. In the end, he shook his head. Long Chen had relied solely on his own strength to survive this ordeal, and he and Qin Huanyu looked at each other in frustration.


    ¡°What? How could we let this go?¡± Long Chen asked. He tapped Huangfu Qi¡¯s cheek and looked up. ¡°When the son of heaven breaks thew, he is the same as a lowly criminal. I am just a mere disciple; I should not be forgiven because of my ignorance! I need to atone for my sins!¡±


    The Clear Shallows King froze, then she asked, ¡°What do you suggest, then?¡±


    Long Chen looked at Qin Huanyu and said, ¡°Senior Qin Huanyu¡¯s cultivation level far surpasses mine. Let him teach me a lesson. In fifteen minutes, I will duel Senior Qin on the training grounds. Let everyone in the Clear Shallows Pavilion watch. I¡¯m sure Senior Qin will teach me a harsh lesson! Then everyone in the n will understand that breaking the rules is a very unwise thing to do! I believe that after they witness my lesson, the other disciples will follow the rules better! Let me atone for my sins by making this tiny contribution to the Clear Shallows Pavilion.¡±


    1. This is a childish insult/curse made by children ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hoho Qin Huanyu is gonna catch them MC''s hands</blockquote>

 Chapter 489: Liu Yiyi

    After Long Chen finished, he looked at Qin Huanyu in a goading manner.


    Everyone was impressed by Long Chen¡¯s shamelessness. He clearly wanted to challenge Qin Huanyu to a duel in public, yet he had presented such a noble reason. Only someone with thick skin would do such a thing!


    He was clearly challenging Qin Huanyu to a duel. Qin Huanyu was the three-consecutive champion from two years ago, and after growing for two years in the Clear Shallows Pavilion, he had already reached the Sixth Passage Stage and was close to the Seventh Passage Stage. He was one of the top three prodigies of the Clear Shallows Pavilion!


    On the other hand, while Long Chen was the three-consecutive champion of the most recent qualifiers, he had been abandoned by the Red Ghost King due to hisck of potential. One was a prodigy, while the other was just an average joe. Now the average joe wanted to challenge the prodigy.


    ¡°Just now, Senior Qin obviously did not use his full strength. Jiang Cheng doesn¡¯t know when to stop! The Clear Shallows King has shown him mercy, yet he still wants to cause trouble. Isn¡¯t he looking for death?¡±


    ¡°Who knows what Jiang Cheng is thinking? Maybe there¡¯s resentment in him because the Red Ghost King abandoned him and he wants to prove himself through Senior Qin. If he can defeat Senior Qin, he will indeed prove that he is a prodigy. It¡¯s just a pity that the opponent he picked is just too difficult to beat!¡±


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t even need to do this. As long as he shows that he is at the Fifth Passage Stage, he is already considered a prodigy. He has an advanced body tempering technique andbat technique after all.¡±


    Everyone discussed among themselves while the Clear Shallows King and the others looked at him.


    In the beginning, the Clear Shallows King remained silent. When the crowd was done with their discussions, she looked at Qin Huanyu with a dark expression and said, ¡°Huanyu, what is your decision?¡±Without hesitation, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll do it! Master, if I can¡¯t even beat him, can I still call myself your disciple?¡±


    ¡°Good, good. Just don¡¯t embarrass me.¡± The Clear Shallows King nodded and turned to Long Chen. ¡°You said fifteen minutes, so we will do it in fifteen minutes. Everyone, clear out the training grounds and call all the people of the Clear Shallows Pavilion here. Let them watch this ¡®lesson.¡¯¡±


    Following the Clear Shallows King¡¯s instructions, the training grounds quickly emptied out. An empty space remained for Long Chen and Qin Huanyu to fight. The regr disciples ran to different parts of the Clear Shallows Pavilion to call all the disciples over, including the older ones.


    In the Ancient Demon Domain, anyone who failed to reach the Ninth Passage Stage by the age of thirty was no longer considered a disciple; they were given the title of Elder. If they were not even at the Sixth Passage Stage, then they would be kicked out of the Ancient Demon Domain. Guang Yuan, who was the founder of Heavenly Demon Pce, was likely in this group.


    After bing an Elder, they would be a Demon General if they reached the Ninth Passage Stage. However, people usually exhausted their potential by the time they became Elders. There were many Elders in the Ancient Demon Domain, and most of them were between the Sixth and Eighth Passage Stages. There were more than a hundred of them in the Clear Shallows Pavilion alone, and Elders formed the bulk of the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s strength.


    Of course, due to their exhausted potential, they did not undergo examinations like the disciples did. For example, the fight for the Emperor me Pearl, which would happen in a month. It was a grand examination held every five years, and the highest reward was the Emperor me Pearl.


    Fifteen minutester, everyone from the Clear Shallows Pavilion was present. There were more than a hundred Elders above the Sixth Passage Stage, as well as about three hundred regr disciples. The disciples of the Clear Shallows King were also present.


    Long Chen could not help but smile when he saw the Clear Shallows King¡¯s disciples. He whispered, ¡°It looks like the other disciples of the Clear Shallows King aren¡¯t much to talk about either. She doesn¡¯t even have one at the Eighth Passage Stage.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. I hear that in the other pavilions, the strongest disciples are at the Eighth Passage Stage. The strongest disciple in the Clear Shallows Pavilion is Senior Yiyi, who is at the Seventh Passage Stage, though she¡¯s almost at the Eighth. Of course, these are not the best disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain. The best prodigies are all in the legendary pce. I hear that the Demon Emperor has a son who is at the Earthly Martial Realm. That¡¯s almost the same as my master,¡± said Huangfu Qi.


    ¡°The Demon Emperor¡¯s son again?¡± Long Chen remembered hearing about a person named Jiang Wushang during the Heavenly Demon Pirs round at the qualifiers. Jiang Wushang had left a palm print on the pir when he was at the Ninth Passage Stage.


    Long Chen revered true prodigies like that.


    Of course, Qin Huanyu was not one of them.


    Both of them stood in one corner while the direct disciples of the Clear Shallows King stood in another corner. The Clear Shallows King had about ten disciples, and other than Huangfu Qi and two young Fifth Passage Stage teenagers, the other disciples were at the Sixth and Seventh Passage Stages. There were four of them, and one was Senior Yiyi, mentioned by Huangfu Qi.


    Long Chen looked at Senior Yiyi, who was a teenage girl around the same age as himself. She wore a long white dress, her skin was as white as snow, she had a gentle countenance, and her hair fell like a waterfall down to her waist. Her eyes were bright and emotive, and she had the ethereal aura of a fairy who hade to the mortal realm.


    ¡°Xiao Xi ¡­¡± Long Chen was mesmerized and called her name out instinctively, but he quickly smiled bitterly to himself. He had made a mistake. This girl named Yiyi was very simr to Ling Xi in both looks and aura, but she was not Ling Xi. Instead of the cuteness that Ling Xi had, she emanated sophisticated elegance.


    ¡°Xiao Xi? Senior Yiyi¡¯s name is Liu Yiyi. She¡¯s my master¡¯s daughter! Big Brother, you look mesmerized! You haven¡¯t fallen for her, have you?¡± Huangfu Qi huffed, pouting hard.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say things like that.¡± Long Chen quickly covered her mouth. Huangfu Qi often did not think before she spoke, and since she wasn¡¯t speaking softly, Liu Yiyi must have been able to hear her as she was not far away. She turned to cast Long Chen a nce with a hint of enmity in her eyes.


    ¡°Senior Sister, how dare that brat look at you! I¡¯ll knock all his teeth out!¡± cried Qin Huanyu, gritting his teeth as he stood in front of Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°Mhm.¡± Liu Yiyi nodded. In reality, she could tell that Long Chen was only looking at her without any romantic intention like Huangfu Qi had said. The main character of the day was Long Chen, so she took a longer look at him. She found that he looked calm andposed, making him much scarier than Qin Huanyu, who was gritting his teeth next to her.


    Both Long Chen and Qin Huanyu were three-consecutive champions of the qualifiers, but they received very different treatment. Qin Huanyu had great potential as he was close to the Seventh Passage Stage at just sixteen. He would probably reach the Eighth Passage Stage before twenty and be a pir of the Clear Shallows Pavillion disciples like Liu Yiyi was.


    Long Chen had been abandoned from the beginning.


    His story was full of ups and downs. During the few days she had spent with Huangfu Qi, she had heard the little girl talk a lot about Long Chen, so she was curious about this person.


    ¡°Huanyu.¡±


    ¡°How may I be of service, Senior Sister?¡± Qin Huanyu asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Do not kill him. It¡¯s just a small disagreement; don¡¯t take someone¡¯s life over it. The heavens appreciate it when you show mercy ¡­¡±


    ¡°I understand, Senior Sister. Even if I wanted to kill him, I¡¯m afraid Master wouldn¡¯t let me do it. His potential is now on par with mine. And what does the Clear Shallows Pavillionck most? Talent. That is why Master won¡¯t kill him. She got him from the Red Ghost King, and if Jiang Cheng grows strong, it will be a p to the Red Ghost King¡¯s face. Master loves doing things like that.¡± Qin Huanyu was doing his best to show off his wisdom in front of Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. Remember to show mercy ¡­¡±


    At this point, the disciples and Elders who had not seen Long Chen before were all talking about him. He had first be the three-time champion, then he was abandoned by the Red Ghost King, and he had disappeared for three days and withstood Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack. News of him spread through the whole n, and they were all shocked by this person. Looking at his aplishments, they felt that he was both mysterious and powerful.


    The Clear Shallows King sat in her seat along with two of the four Demon Generals. Fifteen minutes were up, and Demon General Strongman gestured at Qin Huanyu, who nodded and walked into the grounds.


    All eyes were focused on Long Chen.


    Long Chen asked Huangfu Qi to sit still, then he left and stood fifteen meters away from Qin Huanyu.


    ¡°Big Brother! Beat him up!¡± Huangfu Qi waspletely ignorant of whose side she was supposed to be on. Although she was the direct disciple of the Clear Shallows King, she was cheering for Long Chen ¡­


    When Huangfu Qi shouted, the duel began. Qin Huanyu did not waste time with Long Chen and immediately took out his Snow Moon Knife. He pointed it at Long Chen and said, ¡°You escaped from my de before. This time, it won¡¯t be as easy.¡±


    Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword slowly and held it in front of him. His eyes were as tranquil as the surface of ake.


    There was only one thought in his mind, which was for all to witness how terrifying he was.


    That was the only way he would make them take him seriously. Then his path in the Ancient Demon Domain would grow wider. Seeing how the Clear Shallows King acted before, he was now aware of the rules of the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Long Chen wanted the Clear Shallows King and everyone else to watch this duel because this was his only way to appear powerful and show off his talent in front of everybody. Then he would be able to be an influential figure in the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    As for Qin Huanyu, he was just someone who had coincidentally arrived in front of his de and would soon be his springboard. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    It do be like this meme sometimes</blockquote>

 Chapter 490: Snowing Heavens

    The two most attention-grabbing items were the Demon Emperor Sword and the Snow Moon Knife. These were both intermediate Heaven-tier weapons, and both cultivators were equal in many aspects. That was why there was much to look forward to in this fight. In fact, many people were excited.


    Of course, these were the opinions of other people.


    This was Qin Huanyu¡¯s first time proving his strength in front of so many people. He was a little nervous, so he gritted his teeth to suppress the difort in his heart. Then he decided to face the battle with passion in his blood. During his previous strike against Long Chen, he had indeed not taken Long Chen seriously.


    The des were out and the battle had begun. Qin Huanyu turned into an illusion and charged at Long Chen, leaving glints of light in the air where his Snow Moon Knife passed!


    Qin Huanyu let out a low growl. With a dark gaze, he swung the Snow Moon Knife like a madman!


    ¡°Blizzard Strike!¡± This technique was like a blizzard in deep winter barreling towards Long Chen. The magnitude of this attack was muchrger than thest time he used it against Long Chen. In the face of a threat like Long Chen, he had no choice but to use all his strength to achieve a glorious victory!


    He had received two years of mentorship from the Clear Shallows King, so this was only right!


    The crowd was awed by Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack. Even the elders were impressed and said, ¡°Huanyu¡¯s knife technique has gotten more and more precise. The Blizzard Strike is an advanced Heaven-tier knife technique, though he is using the first strike of the sequence, which is at the intermediate Heaven-tier. However, it¡¯s impressive that he has mastered it so thoroughly. If he proceeds to use the most powerful move, even I am no match for him.¡±


    ¡°Of course. How can wepare to someone who has received personal mentorship from the Clear Shallows King?¡± The elders were powerful individuals for sure, but as they were already over thirty years old, theycked potential.


    While Qin Huanyu¡¯s attacks impressed the crowd, Long Chen maintained his calmposure, just like before. However, there was a cold sh in his eyes.


    He shed his sword at thest moment. He used the Supreme Demon Sword, which was as powerful as before!


    <em>Rumble! </em>


    The sword and knife techniques collided, and powerful ripples radiated. The crowd quickly stepped back, and even their clothes billowed in the wind created by the attacks.


    Their eyes remained glued to the battlefield.


    Just as they expected, Long Chen was out of tricks. Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack was more powerful this time, so it sted Long Chen backwards, even flipping several times in the air.


    ¡°As expected, a neer can never be a match for a direct disciple ¡­¡± This thought popped into everyone¡¯s minds.


    This included the Clear Shallows King¡¯s disciples, who thought the same. The stronger fighter was already determined just from this first exchange.


    <em>I hope Huanyu will listen to me and not kill him ¡­ </em>There was worry in Liu Yiyi¡¯s eyes.


    Long Chen was about to crash into the ground, but to the crowd¡¯s surprise, he easily resisted the momentum from Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack and lightly tapped the ground with the tip of his foot when hended. Then he shot out like a gust of wind at Qin Huanyu.


    To be honest, Long Chen would not need to use much of his power to finish Qin Huanyu if he used his Dragon Soul Transformation. Long Chen had tested this already. If he did not use his Dragon Soul Transformation, he was no match for Qin Huanyu.


    Using the Dragon Soul Transformation multiplied the amount of Qi in his body by ten times, plus it was an advanced Heaven-tierbat body!


    While he shot forward, blood-red dragon scales quickly covered his whole body, and a blood-red dragon image appeared on every single tiny scale. He radiated an ancient and regal aura, and he was suddenly ten times faster than before!


    No one could even react to the sudden change!


    He was almost as strong as Qin Huanyu before, but now he was ten times stronger. To him, Qin Huanyu was slow!


    Cries of surprise came from the crowd. The expressions of the Clear Shallows King¡¯s direct disciples changed, especially Liu Yiyi¡¯s. She saw a glint of bloodlust in his eyes, and she had a bad feeling!


    <em>Does he intend to kill Huanyu? </em>Liu Yiyi realized this immediately. Qin Huanyu was a junior she had known for two years, and other than the fact that he was a little arrogant, he had no other issues. However, Long Chen¡¯s gaze was dark and violent, with killing intent hiding within!


    Liu Yiyi would never let Qin Huanyu die. She ignored everything else and started to run towards the two people. If the duel started to be fatal, she would protect Qin Huanyu immediately.


    Before Long Chen elerated, she was confident Qin Huanyu would win. Now, however, she was very worried.


    Qin Huanyu also saw the violence in Long Chen¡¯s eyes. This was his first time realizing that Long Chen had a method of bing stronger in battle, and his hair stood on end as he watched Long Chen approaching at a speed he could not dodge.


    <em>No way! He¡¯s terrifying! If I don¡¯t use that move, I will be killed! </em>This thought popped into his mind in the extremely small window he had to react. He clenched his jaw and waved his Snow Moon Knife towards Long Chen again. He was preparing to use the final move of the Blizzard Knife technique.


    Cold air spread from the Snow Moon Knife, and a cold gust of wind wrapped around Qin Huanyu. As he waved the knife, the wind quickly strengthened into a full blizzard.


    Long Chen chuckled coldly. When he paired his current strength with the Heaven Sword Array, his opponent would lose even if he used an advanced Heaven-tier technique. Techniques in the same tier differed in strength after all.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    There was the sound of a loud tear!


    ¡°Blizzard Knife Technique, Snowing Heavens!¡±


    Qin Huanyu roared, then the Snow Moon Knife duplicated into millions of knives. Every knife glinted like a snowke, making them look like a blizzard of des.


    Snowing Heavens was an advanced Heaven-tier technique that truly lived up to its reputation because it was truly powerful!


    Long Chen was a little surprised by the move¡¯s power, though it did not exceed his expectations. It was difficult for even a Seventh Passage Stage cultivator to use this attack to this magnitude, so when heunched the attack, the crowd thought that Qin Huanyu would surely win.


    ¡°Snowing Heavens can kill cultivators above the Seventh Passage Stage, let alone a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a pity the new kid has to die this way. Huanyu must have felt threatened, so he pulled out his strongest move against him. The kid will surely die unless the Clear Shallows King protects him.¡±


    Everyone looked at the Clear Shallows King, who remained calm and did not move. It was clear that she had no intention of protecting anyone.


    The crowd gasped when Snowing Heavens was used, but it did not scare Long Chen. It was admittedly powerful, but could it beat Ling Xi¡¯s Heaven Sword Array?


    The Demon Emperor Sword shed and Long Chen elerated. Then many sword symbols appeared in front of him and exploded into the Heaven Sword Array, which far exceeded Snowing Heavens in scale. Itpletely trapped Qin Huanyu inside.


    This time, the Heaven Sword Array was more powerful than ever before because the more Qi Long Chen had, the more powerful the attack would be. In fact, this was the first time he could somewhat use the technique to its full potential!


    The wind howled in their ears. Under the crowd¡¯s shocked gazes, the blizzard from Snowing Heavens waspletely swallowed by Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array! Millions of sword symbols trapped Qin Huanyu¡¯s attack, whichpletely disappeared!


    ¡°How is that possible!?¡± Cries of shock rang out like gushing water.


    ¡°A cultivator needs to be at least the Seventh Passage Stage to use such a powerful attack! Is Jiang Cheng a monster?¡±


    ¡°I saw him use this attack during the qualifiers, but it definitely wasn¡¯t as scary as this!¡±


    ¡°Has he be that much stronger?¡±


    Even the two Demon Generals¡¯ faces twitched. Long Chen was insane to use a sword technique as powerful as this at just the Fifth Passage Stage!


    ¡°No! Huanyu will die!¡± The Clear Shallows King¡¯s direct disciples were also shocked by Long Chen¡¯s strength, but they were even more concerned that Qin Huanyu would die if the fight continued. Just a few moments ago, they thought Long Chen was the one who would die, but now Qin Huanyu was the one in mortal danger!


    They yelled for the Clear Shallows King, begging for help, but then they realized that her gaze was still calm. However, there seemed to be an additional fire burning within it.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s gaze also fell on the Clear Shallows King.


    <em>Mother really isn¡¯t going to save Qin Huanyu¡­ </em>Liu Yiyi thought bitterly to herself. She knew that the Clear Shallows King would definitely not rescue Qin Huanyu, so it was up to her. No one else knew what Liu Yiyi was thinking.


    ¡°Stop it!¡± yelled Liu Yiyi. Her white dress billowed and she quickly rushed towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Stop?¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly. At this critical moment, not only did he not stop, he intensified his attack. Snowing Heaven hadpletely died down due to the powerful Heaven Sword Array by now. Then, to everyone¡¯s shock, Long Chen¡¯s Demon Emperor Sword pierced through Qin Huanyu¡¯s heart, causing blood to spray! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    He''s already dead</blockquote>

 Chapter 491: Five Rays of Divine Light

    ¡°Huanyu!¡± Liu Yiyi was shocked. She had underestimated Long Chen¡¯s speed, so he had killed Qin Huanyu before she could reach him.


    Qin Huanyu¡¯s eyes were wide open and he was still clutching the Snow Moon Knife. He looked down and stared at the blood pouring out of his chest in shock.


    That was when he finally realized that he would die even though he had used his most powerful technique.


    Despair. Insanity. Grief. All of these emotions clouded his mind in this very short period, though it was just for a moment. His life force was quickly vanishing, and he could not even turn around to look at Long Chen!


    Behind him, Long Chen was controlling the residual energy of the Heaven Sword Array to force Liu Yiyi to back off. Then he took a few steps back and stood ten meters away from Qin Huanyu.


    That was when Qin Huanyu finally copsed. Before he died, he was able to fulfill his wish of looking at Long Chen, the one who had killed him. He did not know what to think. All he could say was that meeting a monster like Long Chen was incredibly unlucky.


    In the end, he felt a pair of soft arms supporting him. The familiar fragrance told him that it was Liu Yiyi. He had dreamt of her for a very long time, so he would never mistake her for someone else. Unfortunately, he lost consciousness right when he finally experienced a hug from her.


    Long Chen stood quietly while Qin Huanyu slumped into Liu Yiyi¡¯s arms. The crowd waspletely silent.


    Those eyes filled with reverence and shock were exactly why Long Chen had done this. He did not feel bad at all, because he had killed many people before. Qin Huanyu intended to kill him, and if Long Chen had not killed him first, Long Chen would¡¯ve been the one on the gound. Survival of the fittest. It was a simple concept. As for Liu Yiyi¡¯s response ¡­ Who didn¡¯t have one or two people who would grieve their death?


    Everyone took a deep breath and looked at Long Chen with reverence. They understood that from today onwards, Long Chen would be number one in the Clear Shallows Pavilion. The smarter ones figured out something deeper based on the Clear Shallows King¡¯s response. Someone as powerful as her could easily have saved Qin Huanyu before he died, but why hadn¡¯t she done it? This meant that Long Chen was more valuable to her than Qin Huanyu was. One of the reasons was due to Long Chen¡¯s extraordinary performance. Very few people knew of her other reason.


    They all had a faint feeling that Long Chen would be the rising star of the Clear Shallows Pavilion and thenpete against the other pavilions. Based on his performance, he had indeed earned the right. More importantly, they knew that he had risen from the First to the Fifth Passage Stage in just four days.


    He was indeed inhuman.


    His performance had sessfully made the Clear Shallows King take him seriously. As for Qin Huanyu, the Clear Shallows King did not care about losing him.


    Long Chen looked at Liu Yiyi. She shut Qin Huanyu¡¯s eyes, which were open even after death, with her slender hands. She then looked up at Long Chen, her gaze icy.


    There was a lot of blood on her white dress, and even some on her face. This made the gentle and friendly Liu Yiyi look scary, especially due to the cold and stubborn look in her eyes.


    Long Chen was a little mesmerized. He saw a shadow of Ling Xi in her. Ling Xi was also a person who hated passionately. When she hated someone, she had the same look in her eyes.


    <em>She¡¯s not Xiao Xi, </em>he thought to himself sternly. He deactivated the Dragon Soul Transformation and returned to his original state.


    Liu Yiyi stood up, stared straight at him, and said coldly, ¡°I¡¯m challenging you right now! Do you dare ept it?¡±


    Long Chen ignored her because he knew that the Clear Shallows King would speak up. As expected, she stood up and waved at Liu Yiyi. ¡°Yiyi, that¡¯s enough. Fists and kicks are blind in battle. Everyone knew that it would either end with Huanyu killing Jiang Cheng or Jiang Cheng killing Huanyu. If a fighter is not strong enough, he must not me others for his death. As for the other disciples, go bury Huanyu.¡±


    ¡°Mother!¡± The Clear Shallows King¡¯s cold words made Liu Yiyi and the other disciples feel miserable. The other disciples all came to Qin Huanyu¡¯s side and said in a panic, ¡°Master, he killed your direct disciple! Are you really going to let it go?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! If Junior Yiyi can¡¯t do it, I will! Jiang Cheng, I¡¯m challenging you to a fight now! Come fight me if you dare!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! Me too! Do you think you can get off so easily after killing Sixth Junior Brother? In your dreams!¡±


    ¡°How dare you kill our junior!¡±


    All the remaining disciples of the Clear Shallows King, other than Huangfu Qi, red at Long Chen furiously. Huangfu Qi stood next to Long Chen and made a face at them. She had known Long Chen longer, so she liked him more. Plus, Qin Huanyu had bullied Long Chen, so she did not like him anyway.


    Long Chen knew he did not need to speak.


    Indeed, the Clear Shallows King raged. She yelled sternly, ¡°I told you all to leave! Did you not hear me? Get the hell out immediately! Don¡¯t embarrass me! Go back and focus on your cultivation. The examination that takes ce every five years is very close, and if the Clear Shallows Pavilion takesst ce once again, I¡¯ll kill all of you!¡±


    The Clear Shallows King¡¯s scolding made all of them swallow their words. They looked at each other, knowing that she was really furious. She was right. They had lost to Long Chen, and it was their fault for being useless.


    A single tear slid from Liu Yiyi¡¯s eye.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Don¡¯t make my mother unhappy anymore.¡± There was hurt in her eyes too.


    ¡°Yiyi, you are my daughter. Everything I do is for your own good. Don¡¯t lead them into this nonsense,¡± said the Clear Shallows King resignedly when she saw the pain in her daughter¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°I know ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi nodded.


    Long Chen could tell that the matter wasing to a close, so he said, ¡°They don¡¯t need to go. I think I am the one who should go. Qiqi, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Without looking at the Clear Shallows King for permission, he grabbed Huangfu Qi¡¯s hand and left. He had cemented his position in the Clear Shallows Pavilion through this duel, and this would be the day he started to flourish here. He hadpleted his objective, so he did not care about everything else. Leaving was the best option now.


    Everyone watched as he left.


    The disciples of the Clear Shallows King all clenched their fists, other than Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°Alright. Everyone may go back.¡± Since it was the Clear Shallows King¡¯smand, everyone had no choice but to disperse.


    ¡°You may go bury Huanyu. Yiyi, follow me. I need to talk to you,¡± the Clear Shallows King said after a while.


    ***


    Once they returned to Long Chen¡¯s quarters, Huangfu Qi started to harass Xiang incessantly, though Xiang had gotten smarter than before. It was not as easy for Huangfu Qi to catch him anymore. This continued until Long Chen knew that Huangfu Qi was tired of ying, so he grabbed her and asked, ¡°Qi Qi, you once talked about something called the Five Emperor Seals or something like that. Do you know what that is?¡±


    Huangfu Qi gasped at his question. She stared at him in a daze and said, ¡°Big Brother, you know about the ck Emperor Seal in the Ancient Demon Domain too?¡±


    Long Chen was surprised at her surprise. He initially thought the little girl didn¡¯t know anything and wanted to get her to ask around for him. How did she know about the ck Emperor Seal?


    ¡°Do you mean that you didn¡¯te to the Ancient Demon Domain for the Emperor me Pearl? Are you actually here to search for the ck Emperor Seal?¡± Long Chen guessed her intentions immediately.


    Now that her true intentions were exposed, Huangfu Qi replied shyly, ¡°Actually, the Emperor me Pearl is my target ¡­ And the ck Emperor Seal is a bigger target. But it looks like I can¡¯t get the Emperor me Pearl anymore, so I need to shift my focus to the ck Emperor Seal.¡±


    Long Chen knew that the little girl came from a powerful family and had already guessed her identity. Two of the great factions in the Divine Martial Empire were the Ancient Demon Domain and the Huangfu family. It was obvious from her family name, plus the wealth she had faintly revealed proved that she was from the Huangfu family. Although there were many people with the same surname, no one else had this level of wealth. Since Long Chen had spent quite a bit of time with Huangfu Qi, he knew a lot about her.


    Long Chen guessed that the Clear Shallows King and the others also knew Huangfu Qi¡¯s identity and were just letting her y in the Ancient Demon Domain. They probably had even contacted the Huangfu family toe collect her. The Clear Shallows King was only being so good to Huangfu Qi because she took her family¡¯s influence seriously. If the Clear Shallows King could form close ties with the Huangfu family, her influence would grow too.


    ¡°Huangfu Qi, how did you know that the ck Emperor Seal would be in the Ancient Demon Domain? I didn¡¯t know it before; I¡¯ve only heard rumors about the Five Emperor Seals.¡± Long Chen tried to exin, knowing that if the girl guessed that he had the ck Emperor Seal and spouted some nonsense outside, he would be dead.


    ¡°I heard my father say it! My father said that one month ago, five rays of divine light fell from the heavens. At the time, no one knew what they were, but the five divine lights were scattered across different areas of the Divine Martial Empire. My father dug up some references and learned that they were the Emperor-tier Five Emperor Seals. At the time, no one recorded where the five raysnded, but there were rumors that a ck ray of divine lightnded close to the Ancient Demon Domain!¡±


    ¡°Five divine lights from the sky?¡± After hearing Huangfu Qi¡¯s exnation, Long Chen was sure that he had indeed gotten the ck Emperor Seal. An Emperor-tier technique would likely trigger a bloody war involving the whole Divine Martial Empire, and it was possible that other countries would join in. He could not help but feel relieved at his luck, but at the same time, he knew that he had to guard this secret well.


    ¡°My father said that the ck Emperor Seal is with the Demon Emperor, and I heard that the Demon Emperor lives in the pce. I want to steal the ck Emperor Seal for my father, so that¡¯s why I¡¯m here! Hehe! Big Brother, don¡¯t you ever, ever tell anyone about this!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Five different colored Emperors? Sound like Power Rangers to me</blockquote>

 Chapter 492: The Bet

    Long Chen was speechless at the little girl¡¯s n. The Demon Emperor was the strongest person in the Ancient Demon Domain. If he really had the ck Emperor Seal, how could the girl ever steal it? She was a mischievous child, as she had snuck out toe here. He guessed that her father woulde get her very soon.


    Of course, meeting the daughter of such an influential family after arriving at the Divine Martial Empire also benefited Long Chen greatly.


    After he learned a bit about the Five Emperor Seals from Huangfu Qi, he saw that the sky had darkened and said, ¡°Qi Qi, it¡¯s gettingte. You should go back.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to! I hate the other seniors! You treat me best, so I want to stay with you,¡± Huangfu Qi begged.


    Long Chen had his own cultivation tasks and could not be disturbed by the child, so he said sternly, ¡°If you don¡¯t go now, you won¡¯t get to y with Xiang again!¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s killer move, and Huangfu Qi had no choice but to leave with her head hung. She wanted to get Long Chen¡¯s pity, but Long Chen ignored her.


    After she left, Long Chen was preparing to cultivate when he sensed someone approaching. He used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and saw someone standing outside his door.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± He opened the door gently and saw Liu Yiyi, who strongly resembled Ling Xi, standing not far away. Under the moonlight, her white dress billowed, making her look like a statue made of white jade standing before him. Her gaze was filled with coldness and hatred.


    ¡°Follow me,¡± she said curtly, then she took a few steps back and looked to see Long Chen¡¯s response. Long Chen had the impression that she was a kind person. Since her junior had been killed by him, it was only natural that she harbored enmity towards him, though he did not bear any hatred towards her. However, she had approached him in a mysterious manner, so he decided to follow her after some hesitation.


    Liu Yiyi rxed when she saw that he wasing and focused on walking ahead. There were many gray mountains near the Clear Shallows Pavilion, so it didn¡¯t take long to lead him to a deste area.


    Long Chen felt confused several times as he stared at the girl as if she wasn¡¯t Liu Yiyi, but Ling Xi.


    <em>I just miss Xiao Xi too much, so much so that I can mistake someone who looks simr for her ¡­ </em>Long Chen shook his head in exasperation.


    Liu Yiyi stopped, then she turned and looked at him. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you actually dared to follow me. Aren¡¯t you afraid I set up an ambush? You¡¯re my enemy after all.¡±


    ¡°Enough with that nonsense. Just say what you want to say,¡± replied Long Chen, ignoring her. He hade to his senses and knew that this was not Ling Xi.


    Seeing as Long Chen was being so direct, Liu Yiyi took a deep breath and said, ¡°I am here to finish what I couldn¡¯t during the day, which is to get some justice for my junior brother. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t be as vicious as you were, killing someone so casually. You need to know that he had parents too. Even though you were stronger, you had no right to kill him.¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    ¡°What you think is your business and what I do is my business. Do I have to fight you just because you want to fight me? Why? Are you going to bully me just because you¡¯re at the Seventh Passage Stage and I¡¯m at the Fifth?¡± Long Chenughed coldly, then he turned to leave.


    ¡°Stop right there!¡± Liu Yiyi did not expect Long Chen toe here but refuse to fight, so she panicked. Her dress fluttered around her as she hurried forward. Long Chen¡¯s nonchnce had angered her, and her cheeks were red due to her ragged breathing.


    ¡°You killed someone! Why are you still so rude? There were no grudges between you and my sixth junior brother! Although there were disagreements, you didn¡¯t have to kill him, did you?¡± she asked weakly as she gazed at him.


    ¡°Are you stupid? If I hadn¡¯t killed him, he would have killed me. I was stronger than him, so I got to kill him. This is thew of nature. You have the protection of the elders, so of course you can pretend to be stupid here and criticize me with your righteousness. If you were me and you lived through my experiences, you would have died a long time ago with that mentality.¡±


    Long Chen felt no regret at all about killing Qin Huanyu. It was the rule of the world. People who could not think flexibly like Liu Yiyi would never survive without a powerful background.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s face turned green and then red after Long Chen¡¯s scolding. ¡°You¡¯re being unreasonable! I¡¯m not going to let you leave today. I promised Huanyu that I would make you admit you were in the wrong in front of his grave!¡± she cried angrily.


    ¡°Admit I¡¯m in the wrong in front of his grave? You can dream on.¡± Long Chen had no time to entertain this fool. Some women merely had huge breasts and no brains, but he opined that Liu Lan was countless times smarter than her despite being more voluptuous. He had killed Huanyu just a few hours ago; why would he ever apologize in front of his grave?


    Then he was prepared to leave. With the might of his Blood Warp, not even ten Liu Yiyis could stop him.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, are you afraid of me? Or do you feel like the stakes aren¡¯t high enough? I know you¡¯re a jerk who only cares about profit. Name your price, then. Let¡¯s make a bet. If you lose, you will apologize in front of Sixth Junior Brother¡¯s grave. If you win, I¡¯ll follow whatever condition you set!¡± she said coldly, clenching her teeth when she saw that Long Chen was actually going to leave.


    She had to fulfill her promise to Qin Huanyu, no matter what.


    Long Chen halted. Perhaps Liu Yiyi was right. He really did only care about profit right now. He wascking Heavenly Passage Pills, so he said, ¡°I only have one price. Five hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills or it¡¯s a no.¡±


    ¡°Five hundred thousand? Might as well rob me.¡± Liu Yiyi froze and red at him in embarrassment and anger. She only had about two hundred thousand in her Universe Pouch right now, so even if she gave all of them to him, she would not fulfill his request.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t want me to do it. Without five hundred thousand pills, how are you going to get me to apologize to Qin Huanyu?¡± Long Chen chuckled shamelessly.


    To be honest, Liu Yiyi would never be able to give him five hundred thousand pills, nor could she ask the Clear Shallows King for more, because she was doing this behind her mother¡¯s back.


    ¡°Can you lower the number? What about two hundred thousand? I only have two hundred thousand. Or you can name other conditions.¡± Liu Yiyi had never met such a shameless person and was extremely furious. However, she had no choice but to continue digging this hole to fulfill her promise. It was not going to be easy to make Long Chen apologize.


    ¡°Other conditions?¡± Long Chen eyed her up and down with a perverted look in his eyes, then he grinned. ¡°I have made my decision. I don¡¯t want five hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills anymore. I don¡¯t even want one pill. I only have one condition. If I lose, I will apologize and kowtow ten times in front of Qin Huanyu¡¯s grave. If you lose, simple. You will take off all your clothes and let me see your beautiful body. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re shameless!¡± Liu Yiyi almost fainted from anger. She could not stand the smug look on his face. She had never met such a shameless person in her life.


    ¡°Shameless? It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t agree to my terms. I won¡¯t force you. Also, you¡¯re at the Seventh Passage Stage! The strongest among all the young disciples of the Clear Shallows Pavilion! Are you worried you¡¯ll lose to me?¡± Long Chen looked at her provocatively.


    Liu Yiyi obviously did not think she would lose, but every time she met his eyes, she had a bad feeling. She could read him through his gaze. Although he pretended to be very interested in her body, she saw that his heart was calm. So calm that it terrified her.


    His eyes were like a deep well.


    ¡°Since you won¡¯t agree to my terms, goodbye.¡± Long Chen turned and quickly walked away. If she gave chase, he could easily shake her off using Blood Warp.


    ¡°Stay where you are! I ept!¡± Liu Yiyi said in the end, clenching her teeth as she overcame her fears. She was a Seventh Passage Stage cultivator, and she was close to reaching the Eighth! She had received an abundance of mentorship and resources in the Clear Shallows Pavilion. How could she lose to Long Chen?


    She had chosen to agree to his terms in order to fulfill the promise she had made to Qin Huanyu.


    Long Chen stopped and said in a strange tone, ¡°You¡¯re actually agreeing to it? Are you sure? You¡¯re a sophisticateddy! How could it be worth it to show your body to a peasant like me?¡±


    ¡°Stop daydreaming. You can never beat me,¡± Liu Yiyi said decisively.


    ¡°But it¡¯s nighttime! It¡¯s not exactly daydreaming,¡± Long Chen responded shamelessly, looking up at the sky.


    ¡°Enough of your nonsense. I agree to your terms, so let¡¯s begin! Let me see just how strong you are. If you¡¯re only as strong as what you showed earlier today, it is far from enough to beat me!¡± Liu Yiyi said with a cold expression.


    Long Chen was a little taken aback because he did not actually know if he could defeat this woman. In fact, it was likely that he would be tortured terribly. He had made two very unreasonable demands because he thought she would never agree. Now that she had agreed to it, he was in big trouble ¡­


    But a man had to abide by his words. If he actually lost, he was willing to apologize in front of that brat¡¯s grave. He would not lose anything if he did so ¡­


    However, Long Chen did admire her personality. There were not many people who could do this just to fulfill a promise. She was indeed cute because of her stubbornness and one-track mind.


    Unfortunately, Long Chen¡¯s heart already belonged to someone else. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    If your heart already belongs to someone else, why did youe up with that bet? Red g!</blockquote>

 Chapter 493: Universe Eight Trigrams Array

    Long Chen didn¡¯t really want to fight Liu Yiyi, but since he had agreed to it, he would fight with all his strength. Apologizing for no reason was not something a man was supposed to dol.


    Although Liu Yiyi was a girl, Long Chen did not dare act recklessly. After all, reaching the Seventh Passage Stage was no simple achievement.


    ¡°I have cultivated an advanced Heaven-tier body tempering technique and many advanced Heaven-tierbat techniques. You should be careful. Don¡¯t you dare die on me,¡± Liu Yiyi reminded him before they fought.


    Long Chen felt the weight of a mountain on his shoulders.


    He felt like his opponent had everything he had, and more. How could he fight like that?


    Long Chen took a deep breath, and at the same time, blood-red dragon scales slowly covered his body. He had no choice but to use his strongest form to face her attacks. This was going to be the most difficult fight of his life, and to be honest, facing Qin Huanyu had been effortless. On the other hand, he did not have much confidence in defeating Liu Yiyi. All he could do was fight the best he could. The only advantage he had was that he was more vicious than his opponent.


    The Demon Emperor Sword appeared in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    Liu Yiyi did not hold back once she saw that Long Chen was prepared. Under the night sky, she slowly revealed the strength of a Seventh Passage Stage cultivator. A powerful gust of aura sted into Long Chen¡¯s face, blowing dust and sand into the air as well.


    Her aura was more than ten times stronger than Qin Huanyu¡¯s. As expected of the daughter of the Clear Shallows King¡ªshe was indeed extraordinary.A technique like the Demon Emperor Sword Technique was surely insufficient against her, let alone Long Chen¡¯s other attacks. Long Chen¡¯s mind raced as he looked for a solution. All he could do wasunch a storm of attacks against Liu Yiyi the moment they started so she would have no time to retaliate. If he did not do this, he would have no chance of winning.


    When Liu Yiyi announced the start of the duel, Long Chen¡¯s eyes sprang open and he turned into a red line. He suddenly appeared in front of Liu Yiyi, moving the fastest he had ever moved in his life.


    ¡°You have decent speed,¡± Liu Yiyi said. She had witnessed Long Chen¡¯s capabilities before, so his performance so far was within her expectations.


    ¡°Supreme Demon Sword!¡±


    Once he approached her, he unleashed the Supreme Demon Sword twice, striking at her front, back, left, and right. The wind howled and trenches formed in the ground from his attacks.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s expression remained unchanged. Her white dress fluttered, making her look like a pure fairy beneath the moonlight. With a gentle gesture of her hand, she formed a seal, and invisible ripples radiated towards him.


    ¡°Space Breaking Seal ¡­¡±


    Just like water ripples, the waves formed in the air gently collided with Long Chen¡¯s two Supreme Demon Sword attacks, easily neutralizing them. The invisible ripples continued to close in on Long Chen.


    His eyes glinted coldly and he jumped, dodging Liu Yiyi¡¯s attack. Then an aura that seemed to stretch across heaven and earth fell on Liu Yiyi!


    ¡°It looks like you only know that one move ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi chuckled coldly. Everything he had done so far was within her expectations. She knew that he was preparing to use the Heaven Sword Array.


    She had to admit that Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array was indeed powerful. Although Long Chen could not utilize it to its maximum potential, it would be difficult for even the Seventh Passage Stage Liu Yiyi to withstand it. However, victory favored the fighter who was prepared. Liu Yiyi had long thought of a solution to defeat that move.


    She knew that as long as she survived his Heaven Sword Array, he would be hers to torture.


    If Liu Yiyi could think of this, Long Chen could too. From the moment the duel began, Long Chen knew that he waspletely under her control. This girl waspetent in battle, and this was terrible news to Long Chen.


    If he did not break free of her control, he would never be a match for her.


    While he was using the Heaven Sword Array mid-air, his mind raced for ideas as he searched through all the skills he possessed. In the end, he gritted his teeth and thought, <em>Looks like I need to take this risk. Even though it¡¯s risky, I cannot lose to this woman!</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen unleashed the might of the Heaven Sword Array ording to the original n. Earlier that day, he had not used it to his full potential because he was confident against Qin Huanyu. It was different now. Although the effects of the Demon Seed nting Technique were very weak, he used it anyway. More importantly, he had another addition¡ªthe Blood Devouring Domain!


    Blood-red mist slowly surrounded Liu Yiyi. This was her first time witnessing the Blood Devouring Domain, so she was shocked. She had no choice but to use a small portion of her Qi to suppress her boiling blood; if she did not, her blood would likely burst out of her body!


    ¡°What demented technique is this?¡± Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain was the first urrence that was out of her expectations. She realized thatplete control over Long Chen was not so simple after all.


    However, she quickly stabilized her emotions. Even though she had to use about one-fifth of her Qi to suppress the effects of the Blood Devouring Domain, she was still much stronger than him. The remaining Qi she had left was enough to neutralize Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array!


    Liu Yiyi forced herself to remain calm. Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain was terrifying, but after she understood its effects and used her Qi to suppress them, she knew she could still win!


    After the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen used his most powerful technique, which was the Heaven Sword Array. Countless sword symbols flew quickly around his body, soon turning into a tornado that wrapped around him. The howling sword symbols each shone with millions of rays of light. The symbols formed a gigantic sword array from top to bottom, descending upon Liu Yiyi. Even a regr Seventh Passage Stage cultivator would likely sumb to such a powerful attack!


    ¡°Are you finally using it?¡± Liu Yiyi had long thought of a way to defeat Long Chen. After he used the Heaven Sword Array, two bright rays of light shot out of her eyes!


    Beneath the Heaven Sword Array, her hands flew quickly and runes started to spin around her body. Every rune shone brightly, containing as much power as the sword symbols from the Heaven Sword Array. Her runes outnumbered his, and in a short period of time, countless shining runes appeared around her.


    ¡°Secret Technique, Universe Eight Trigrams Array!¡±


    She gave a soft cry, and the countless runes spun into a gigantic array. The image of the eight trigrams appeared within it and flew up towards the descending Heaven Sword Array!


    If the Heaven Sword Array was described as fast and sharp, then the Universe Eight Trigrams Array was stable and solid. The Universe Eight Trigrams Array contained a gigantic amount of destructive force and was the bane of sword arrays like Long Chen¡¯s attack. When faced with the Universe Eight Trigrams Array, the Heaven Sword Array started to break down!


    The Heaven Sword Array¡¯s sharp Sword Qi also made the Universe Eight Trigrams Array to fall apart. This exchange of attacks under the influence of the Blood Devouring Domain was actually a draw since neither couldpletely destroy the other!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a loud boom, and both attacks were pulverized at the same time. A huge amount of energy surged in all directions, turning the boulders nearby into crumbs. The momentum from the attack shredded Long Chen¡¯s body, which would have resulted in a tragedy if he weren¡¯t so hardy.


    Simrly, Liu Yiyi did not fare well against Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array. The Blood Devouring Domain made her feel miserable, but she had survived the Heaven Sword Array. Knowing that Long Chen had exhausted great amounts of Qi tounch the Heaven Sword Array once, she would surely win if he had no other tricks.


    Long Chen saw the easy smile on her face. This meant that she was very confident in winning.


    <em>I wonder what this girl¡¯s final move will be. </em>Long Chen knew something was up when he saw her smile. She surely had a final trick up her sleeve, though he did not know what it would be.


    But this would not affect Long Chen¡¯s n. After his Heaven Sword Array was destroyed, he raised the Demon Emperor Sword without a word and charged at Liu Yiyi!


    The closer he got, the more effective his final move would be.


    Long Chen had already made his brazen promise, and there was no chance he would ever kowtow to Qin Huanyu, nor was he willing to lose to Liu Yiyi. He was ready to risk it all.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Long Chen was merely ten meters away from Liu Yiyi. That was when he sensed a threat behind him. Startled, he thought, <em>Is this what she¡¯s been hiding up her sleeve?</em>


    Liu Yiyi was clearly standing in front of him; how could there be a threating from the back?


    Long Chen could not figure it out. All he could do was turn around as quickly as possible, to which he gasped in surprise, ¡°Divine Fire Clone?¡±


    Of course, what had appeared in front of him was not a Divine Fire Clone, but a divine technique that used the same concept. A ck shadow was charging at him. Although he had only taken a nce, he was sure that some sort of clone was attacking him!


    The shadow even possessed more than half of Liu Yiyi¡¯s strength!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms! Oh wait, wrong anime...</blockquote>

 Chapter 494: King-tier Combat Technique

    The clone possessed more than half of Liu Yiyi¡¯s strength, which meant that it was close to the Seventh Passage Stage. This also meant that it was about as strong as Long Chen in his current state, and this was terrifying. Long Chen¡¯s Divine Fire Clones only possessed one-fifth of the owner¡¯s strength, and these clones¡¯ strength was capped at the Eighth River Stage. He could not believe that this shadow clone was at the Seventh Passage Stage!


    This was Liu Yiyi¡¯s trump card. With the shadow clone, Long Chen would be no match for her if this fight went on. She had already withstood his strongest attack after all.


    Of course, there were many other factors that could affect the result of a battle.


    ¡°King-tierbat technique, Demonic Illusion. What do you think?¡± Liu Yiyi asked in a gentle voice.


    If she was saying that her clone was this strong because it was a King-tierbat technique, Long Chen fully believed her. As the daughter of the Clear Shallows King, how was it possible for her not to have a King-tier technique?


    After she used the Universe Eight Trigrams Array to block his most powerful attack, she immediately used the Demonic Illusion to strike Long Chen. He was only ten meters away from her, but the Demonic Illusion had arrived!


    It threw a powerful punch at Long Chen. While Liu Yiyi had never used this technique before, it was clearly an advanced Heaven-tier technique! Paired with the Universe Eight Trigrams Array, it was clear that Liu Yiyi had mastered more than two advanced Heaven-tier techniques. Her strength had far surpassed Long Chen¡¯s imagination.


    Liu Yiyi attacked at the same time as the Demonic Illusion. Long Chen was stronger than she expected, so it would be difficult to defeat him with just an advanced Heaven-tier technique. She could only guarantee sess by trapping him like this


    She had given it her all this time, so there was no way she would lose. If she lost, she would have to show him her body, and that would be worse than death! Although she did not want to kill him, the fear he instilled in her caused Liu Yiyi tounch heavy-handed attacks. Since Long Chen was strong, her victory wasn¡¯t certain yet!


    Of course, Long Chen couldunch the Heaven Sword Array again, though he was not certain if he could block the attacks from both sides, as both were advanced Heaven-tier techniques.


    ¡°Demon Suppression Punch!¡±


    This was a punch technique that had spread across the whole Ancient Demon Domain. It carried a huge suppression force that made Long Chen feel his strength being suppressed, simr to the effect of the Blood Devouring Domain. A Demon Suppression Punch from two opponents was indeed enough to defeat Long Chen.


    This was Liu Yiyi¡¯s n from the beginning. As long as she blocked Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array, she would be able to defeat him!


    She had great instincts in battle and Long Chen was tightly under her control. Long Chen was sure that if he did not beg for mercy and used all his strength to defend himself, he would likely get hurt! Defeat was certain.


    Of course, Long Chen had a n too. The difference was that his n was much crazier than hers! When the two advanced Heaven-tier Demon Suppression Punches trapped him in the middle, he moved. Ignoring her attack, he turned to face her clone and released a mini Heaven Sword Array in the shortest time possible. The Heaven Sword Array chopped the clone up to pieces, so he seeded in knocking back its attack!


    Long Chen¡¯s choice stunned Liu Yiyi. She had not expected him to be this stupid. Usually, in the face of a two-sided attack, a person would only stand a chance if he fended off both sides at the same time. But Long Chen had only dealt with one side, allowing his opponent to attack him from the other side unimpeded. Did he have a death wish?


    Liu Yiyi had not expected this at all. Long Chen had neutralized the clone¡¯s attack, but her punch fullynded on his back!


    If Long Chen had just defended himself a little, Liu Yiyi would have been able to show him mercy at the final moment. However, the way he had left himself open hade as aplete surprise, so it would be very difficult for her to retract her punch!


    ¡°Careful!¡± Liu Yiyi cried. This was not the result she wanted! All she wanted was for him to apologize to Qin Huanyu; she did not want to kill Long Chen!


    But she was toote. Long Chen turned his head woodenly, as if stupefied, and took her attack with his chest. Although she had tried her best to retract her attack, the remaining momentum still sent the defenseless Long Chen flying through the air. Liu Yiyi clearly heard his bones shattering, then blood sprayed out of his mouth and his whole chest sank inwards!


    His blood sprayed onto her long dress.


    Long Chen copsed on the ground, rolled several times, and then stopped moving.


    Liu Yiyi turned as pale as a sheet.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng ¡­¡± she cried, then she rushed over to Long Chen. Self-me and guilt drowned her heart. She only wanted him to apologize! But who would have guessed that he would react this way to her final attack!


    <em>No! He must have done that because he had no way of withstanding that attack! It¡¯s all my fault! He¡¯s only at the Fifth Passage Stage, yet I attacked him so viciously! It¡¯s all my fault! I said he was vicious, but I was the vicious one all along! </em>


    With that thought, tears poured down her face. She felt like she had been stabbed in the heart as she looked at the blood on the ground. She fell by his side and propped up his body.


    She had some healing herbs, so all she could do was hope that he was not dead. That was the only way she could save him, or she would live for the rest of her life with self-me.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m so sorry! I was wrong ¡­ I deserve to die ¡­¡± She knew she had to calm down in moments like this, but she could not stop the flow of her tears. She had never panicked this much in her life.


    If Long Chen was dead, then he would be the first person she ever killed. Plus, she never intended to kill him, as he had never even done anything wrong in the first ce.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s heart was tortured with grief.


    She supported him, ready to check if he really was dead. Suddenly, there was a de pressing against her throat. Liu Yiyi was paralyzed with fear.


    ¡°Tell me. If I apply a little bit of strength, will you die?¡± A familiar voice rang in her ear. Liu Yiyi¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief when she saw that Long Chen, who was lying in her arms, was fine. All the blood was gone and he had returned to an unharmed state, as if nothing had ever happened.


    Liu Yiyi thought she was dreaming, but the cold feeling on her throat reminded her that this was reality.


    But how could reality be this far-fetched? She had just killed Long Chen, and she had seen his chest sinking inwards with her own eyes! She had seen the pain in his eyes! But why was it all gone? Was it all just a hallucination?


    ¡°Pretty girl, are you going to keep holding me in your arms like that? Don¡¯t you know that it¡¯s inappropriate for a boy and a girl to be like this?¡± The corners of his lips curled upwards. In reality, his heart was twitching. Rewind really was a demented technique. Traumatized by the feeling of death every single time he used it, he swore never to use it again. The pain he felt was absolutely unbearable, plus this had only been a fight of the ego, so there was no real reason to use it.


    But if he had not used Rewind, it would have been impossible for him to put the Demon Emperor Sword this close to Liu Yiyi¡¯s neck.


    Long Chen¡¯s perverted words were not enough to snap Liu Yiyi out of her shock, making him speechless at the still-crying girl. He stood up with the Demon Emperor Sword still on her throat, then he said sternly, ¡°Liu Yiyi, I can take your life at any time. It¡¯s clear who the winner of this battle is. Don¡¯t be shocked about how I won; the final result is that I won and you lost. Do you ept defeat?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words pulled Liu Yiyi back to reality. She shook her head, looked at him in disbelief, and said, ¡°My attack almost killed you ¡­¡±


    ¡°If I said that I cannot die, would you believe me?¡± he asked with a small smile.


    She shook her head.


    ¡°So does this mean you have epted defeat? No one cares what tactics you use to win in battle. If we really wanted to kill each other, you would have died already. There is no question that you have lost. I think you¡¯re a person who keeps her promises, so isn¡¯t it time for you to fulfill that promise now?¡± Long Chen put the Demon Emperor Sword away and looked at her with a fire in his eyes.


    ¡°Promise ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi stood up in terror. Her face was pale. Long Chen was right. She had lost, and if they were fighting to kill, he definitely could have used that demented technique to kill her. But she could not admit defeat, because if she did, it meant she would have to ¡­


    Liu Yiyi had only just stopped crying, but now she was on the brink of tears again. She had only agreed to the deal out of impulse, and even with such aplete n, she had lost to him ¡­


    This meant she had to strip in front of Long Chen. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I don''t think she will strip or this novel would''ve ended right here.</blockquote>

 Chapter 495: Strip

    When Long Chen saw Liu Yiyi kneeling on the ground with her head hung and a ssy look in her eyes, he took a few steps forward and asked coldly, ¡°Are you breaking your promise?¡±


    Liu Yiyi leaned away from him, trembling as she was tortured by grief and regret.


    ¡°You¡¯re the daughter of the Clear Shallows King! How could you change your mind after making a bet? Is this what the Clear Shallows King and her direct disciples do? It¡¯s terrible,¡± Long Chen said with a perverted expression.


    ¡°Nonsense! Who said I¡¯m breaking my promise? Plus, whatever I do is unrted to my mother ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi clenched her teeth and gently stood up. Her head was still hung, but he could faintly see traces of tears on her face.


    ¡°That¡¯s right! Someone of your status can¡¯t break promises, of course! Or I¡¯d look down on you. That¡¯s why you need to strip! I¡¯m waiting!¡± Long Chen snickered with sparkling eyes.


    Liu Yiyi was both embarrassed and furious at his shameless quip. It was her first time being cornered like this in her life. She was extremely torn within. Even her mother had not seen her body at this age, and now was she going to bare it all to a strange guy she had only known for a day?


    Long Chen¡¯s fiery gaze made her feel weak, as if she was already standing exposed in front of him without a shred of clothing. She had always valued her strength and relied on it. Unfortunately, these things were useless here. No matter how powerful she was, she was just amb in front of Long Chen, while he was the wolf.


    He gave an evil sneer. ¡°Strip, then. I¡¯m getting impatient.¡±


    She shuddered and took a few steps back. She bit her lip as tears fell down her face, well aware that this was all her own doing. She knew that Long Chen was not an easy person to deal with, yet she had run towards his devil ws. However, she was unwilling to bebeled as a person who broke promises. ¡°Jiang Cheng, you will regret this! I will make you pay for the humiliation I suffer today ¡­¡± said Liu Yiyi through clenched teeth at thest moment.


    ¡°Regret? I guess I do regret it. If I lose to you in our next fight, I¡¯ll need to strip for you. No one has seen my pure body before! And you will get to see it for nothing,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    ¡°You ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi almost fainted from anger.


    ¡°Don¡¯t waste any more time. What a beautiful moment ¡­ I¡¯ll reminisce about it for the rest of my life ¡­¡±


    As if his eyes were hands, they ran up and down her body. Soon, embarrassment reced anger.


    ¡°I will make you pay for the humiliation today!¡± Her finger slowly fell on her cor. She closed her eyes and tears rolled down her cheeks. She was about to gently tug her clothing off to reveal her fair skin to Long Chen.


    That was when her hand was swatted away. She froze and her eyes sprang open to see apletely different Long Chen.


    ¡°Alright. We¡¯ll stop here. You¡¯re a good girl; you shouldn¡¯t be punished.¡±


    Long Chen had only been acting. Ever since Ling Xi appeared in his life, he stopped being a pervert.


    Liu Yiyi was indeed a very good girl. She had been willing to use her body in a bet in order to get Long Chen to apologize to Qin Huanyu, and when she lost, she could have changed her mind. Both of them knew that Long Chen was no match for her, and if she changed her mind, he could not do anything about it.


    But she hadn¡¯t.


    That said enough to Long Chen.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s mouth was agape as she stared at him.


    Liu Yiyi stood frozen for a while until she finally understood what he meant.


    <em>He doesn¡¯t want to look at me anymore? Because there¡¯s nothing worth looking at? </em>Liu Yiyi was torn. On the one hand, she wanted to prove to him that this was not the case, but wouldn¡¯t that prove that she was being shameless?


    She looked down. They weren¡¯t small ¡­


    Then she finally understood that Long Chen was only pretending all along. He had never thought about her that way and was only scaring her so that she would not harass him again.


    <em>Perhaps he isn¡¯t as terrible as I imagined him to be ¡­ </em>Liu Yiyi came to a realization. When she turned around, he was already far away. He looked lonely and arrogant, but there was no malice. She understood that she had been wrong about him.


    <em>He must be a good person. I was the one looking for trouble, but he let me go ¡­ </em>The hatred and fury in her disappeared and were reced with curiosity. She was curious about his personality and identity.


    Suddenly, she thought of something and called out, ¡°Jiang Cheng?¡±


    ¡°What the hell do you want?¡± he said, turning around.


    ¡° ¡­ Uh ¡­ Didn¡¯t you disappear for three days? Zhao Wuji came looking for you twice, but you weren¡¯t there. I think he has reached the Fifth Passage Stage and wants to challenge you as payback for his defeat. I think he¡¯lle again soon.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? The Fifth Passage Stage is nothing to me. I couldn¡¯t care less. If he annoys me, I¡¯ll take away his ability to make babies!¡± Long Chen snickered, then he left. Liu Yiyi stood frozen, staring at him. For some reason, she felt like this young man had a strange magical ability to take up space in her mind. She could not wave him out of her mind if she tried.


    <em>Who is he? Just now, he looked so perverted, but his gaze was so clear and pure. I think he was just teasing me ¡­</em>


    <em>But he has still defeated me. If Mother finds out about this, she will surely let him participate in the Ancient Demon Domain examination next month. His cultivation has advanced a lot in just a few short days. I wonder if he will be even stronger in one month.</em>


    Liu Yiyi left with her emotions a mess. Long Chen also returned to his quarters.


    ¡°I¡¯ve made a huge mistake! I forgot to hound that girl for my two hundred thousand pills!¡± said Long Chen, frustrated.


    ¡°Tsk tsk. You brat, don¡¯t act stupid in front of me. You gave her a taste. While you didn¡¯t get her Heavenly Passage Pills, you got her heart! As long as you have her heart, won¡¯t it only be a matter of time before you get the pills too?¡± said Little Cat, eyeing him with contempt.


    ¡°What do you mean? She¡¯s annoying; I only intended to scare her so she won¡¯t annoy me again,¡± he said, speechless.


    ¡°Don¡¯t act stupid. Your ying-hard-to-get tactics will make that girl¡¯s heart itch. I think she¡¯lle looking for you in a few days.¡± Little Cat snickered.


    Long Chen ignored him. That was not his intention at all. Right now, the most urgent matter at hand was to increase his cultivation level. While he could cultivate, he would never reach the Sixth Passage Stage if he didn¡¯t have enough Heavenly Passage Pills. And if he did not reach the Seventh Passage Stage, he would never get the Emperor me Pearl.


    ¡°I can¡¯t get into the thirdyer of the Demon World at the moment. It also seems impossible to kill people for their possessions in the Ancient Demon Domain. Looks like I have to use my final tactic,¡± Long Chen said in a low voice.


    ¡°What final tactic?¡± Little Cat was curious.


    ¡°I¡¯ll borrow!¡±


    ¡°Borrow from who?¡± Little Cat asked, speechless.


    ¡°Who else? I have a little rich woman, Huangfu Qi, by my side! If I don¡¯t ughter this pig, who else will I ughter? Hahaha ¡­¡± Long Chenughed creepily.


    Of course, he did not need so many Heavenly Passage Pills right now. If he could not enter the thirdyer of the Demon World, he would have no choice but to cultivate earnestly like everyone else. Due to his absorption of the one-thousandth Inherited Blood Essence, he was progressing steadily. Since he had no better ideas, he chose to cultivate.


    The night passed quickly as he cultivated. At dawn the next day, there was amotion outside. Long Chen opened the door and saw that it was the idiot, Zhao Wuji, with a group of disciples from the Red Ghost Pavilion at his doorstep. Zhao Wuji had lost several times to Long Chen during the qualifiers and had been unwilling to ept it.


    After he entered the Red Ghost Pavilion, he achieved a breakthrough very quickly and reached the Fifth Passage Stage. He had managed to kill a Fifth Passage Stage opponent when he was at the Fourth Passage Stage, so when he reached the Sixth Passage Stage, wouldn¡¯t he be able to kill a Seventh Passage Stage opponent? That was why he was here to challenge Long Chen again.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng? I haven¡¯t seen you in a while. I¡¯ve been here several times, but I could not find you! You¡¯re a professional coward!¡± Zhao Wuji said arrogantly, standing ten meters away from Long Chen.


    ¡°What are you doing here? Just spit it out.¡± Long Chen had no time to waste on this idiot.


    ¡°What else? I¡¯m here for revenge, of course. Jiang Cheng, do you have the guts to fight me again? Let¡¯s see who''s stronger now! Let¡¯s see who is the actual neer king of this year!¡±


    He was not a Clear Shallows Pavilion disciple, so if he attacked without Long Chen¡¯s consent, this would be considered a conflict between two pavilions. If Long Chen agreed, this would just be considered a spar between two young disciples and the matter would be viewed differently. The decision was in Long Chen¡¯s hands. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Oh whew dodged a bullet there. I thought we had to censor the entire chapter</blockquote>

 Chapter 496: Huangfu Qis Identity

    Demon General Strongman had been busy training the other disciples, so Zhao Wuji likely did not know that Long Chen had defeated Qin Huanyu, who was at the Sixth Passage Stage. Long Chen was now on apletely different level. Zhao Wuji had never been his match, and now the gap between them was wider. Long Chen had no interest in dueling him at all.


    Coincidentally, Huangfu Qi came skipping along. The most important thing she had to do this morning was visit Long Chen, and when she saw Zhao Wuji standing there, her face darkened. She ran up to Long Chen¡¯s side, pointed at Zhao Wuji, and yelled, ¡°You loser! What are you doing here again? Are you here to embarrass yourself?¡±


    ¡°I was looking for Long Chen to spar with him. This is none of your business, girl.¡± Zhao Wuji nced at her with contempt. They were at the same stage before, but now it was different.


    ¡°Do you think I have to agree to duel everyone who knocks on my door and demands to fight me?¡± Long Chen waved him off. Liu Yiyi¡¯s challengest night had already made him speechless. Zhao Wuji had the backing of the Red Ghost King, so he was not a person to be offended. If he beat Zhao Wuji up and lured the Red Ghost King out, he would be in deep trouble.


    Although Long Chen was not afraid of trouble, he tried to avoid it if he could.


    That was why he had ordered Zhao Wuji to leave and left with Huangfu Qi, leaving Zhao Wuji standing there like an idiot.


    ¡°Senior Zhao, what do we do now?¡± asked one of the disciples.


    ¡°We tried to fight fair, but he chose to be a coward. Now he is forcing me to fight dirty. It suits me anyway; we¡¯ll fight dirty!¡± Zhao Wuji sneered darkly, then he ordered everyone to leave. With his current status and the fact that his uncle was a Demon General under the Clear Shallows King, no one in the Clear Shallows Pavillion stopped him.


    ¡°That idiot! Why is he trying to fight Jiang Cheng? Does he not know how strong Jiang Cheng is?¡± ¡°I know! He¡¯s only at the Fifth Passage Stage too! He¡¯ll be humiliating himself. Jiang Chengpletely ignored him.¡±


    Zhao Wuji heard the whispersing from the Clear Shallows disciples, which only fanned the mes.


    <em>I wanted to get Uncle to help me arrange a duel against Jiang Cheng, but it looks like Jiang Cheng has decided to be a coward. I¡¯ll need to fight dirty, then. Will you be able to hide this time? Since he has chosen to do it this way, I won¡¯t have to trouble Uncle! </em>With that thought, Zhao Wuji left, and a n slowly took shape in his mind.


    Zhao Wuji was only a bored, annoying child in Long Chen¡¯s eyes. He did not care about him, and he naturally did not know what n the brat was cooking. He was in a hurry to drag Huangfu Qi away because he had one objective¡ªto borrow money.


    ¡°Big Brother, it¡¯s almost time to cultivate. Aren¡¯t you going to the training grounds?¡± The previousmotion was all because Long Chen had not been attending training.


    ¡°Training grounds? Isn¡¯t that a ce regr disciples go to? I can now defeat a Sixth Passage Stage direct disciple; do I still need to go to the training grounds?¡± he asked with a small smile.


    ¡°Oh. You don¡¯t have to go, then. Uncle Brickhead won¡¯t dare to scold you anymore, so you¡¯re no longer under his control, hehe.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Right, Qi Qi. Do you have any Heavenly Passage Pills? I need to borrow some ¡­¡± To be honest, he was embarrassed about borrowing money from a young girl like her.


    ¡°Ah? I do! How many do you want? I brought one million Heavenly Passage Pills with me.¡± Huangfu Qi looked at him with herrge eyes.


    Long Chen almost fainted. One million Heavenly Passage Pills? The average Ninth Passage Stage cultivator¡¯s worth was one million pills, yet this ten-year-old was just carrying that many like it was pocket change. How terrifying was her background?


    Long Chen thought about how Liu Yiyi, as the daughter of the Clear Shallows King, only had about two hundred thousand pills, and she was already at the Seventh Passage Stage. This meant that Huangfu Qi¡¯s parents held a higher status than the Clear Shallows King. In the Ancient Demon Domain, only the Demon Emperor was ranked above the Clear Shallows King. This meant that her parents were some of the most powerful people in the Huangfu family!


    Long Che was privately shocked.


    ¡°Big Brother, how many do you want? You can¡¯t have them all, or my father will spank my bottom!¡± Huangfu Qi looked at him worriedly, afraid that he would name an astronomical figure ¡­


    Long Chen had not nned to borrow a huge sum anyway. He only wanted to advance to the Sixth Passage Stage and then think of a method to reach the Seventh Passage Stageter.


    ¡°Qi Qi, I only need fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. I will return them to you in the future! This is my promise to you. But remember, you must not tell anyone that you have one million pills with you, or someone may try to kill you,¡± said Long Chen sternly.


    ¡°Only fifty thousand? Big Brother, why don¡¯t I lend you five hundred thousand?¡± Huangfu Qi said.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need, no need,¡± said Long Chen, sweating. He had never met such a willing lender before.


    ¡°Alright, fifty thousand, then. Big Brother, you¡¯re the only person I¡¯ll tell. I¡¯d never tell other people! Not even my master! Big Brother, you¡¯re the closest person to me!¡± she said with a happy grin.


    Long Chen took the fifty thousand pills guiltily.


    ¡°Big Brother, are you really going to return them to me?¡± she suddenly looked at him with sparkling eyes.


    ¡°Of course! Why?¡± Long Chen saw that she seemed to have something to say.


    ¡°I just wanted to ask, if I suddenly left Ancient Demon Domain, would you look for me? To return the fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills?¡± she asked hopefully.


    Long Chen understood that she did not care about the fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, but whether he would look for her after they separated.


    ¡°You naughty girl! You want to y with Xiang, don¡¯t you?¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    ¡°Hehe! You¡¯re very smart!¡±


    He was speechless.


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will surely return the fifty thousand pills, unless I die all of a sudden.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re strong, so you won¡¯t die,¡± Huangfu Qi said confidently.


    Long Chen smiled drily. Now that he had borrowed fifty thousand pills, he had a hundred and twenty thousand in total. His previous breakthrough had used up thirty thousand pills, and he only needed enough to guarantee one more advancement.


    Then Long Chen started to cultivate alone. Huangfu Qi finally achieved her objective and sessfully grabbed Xiang. Xiang had thought nothing of the girl in the beginning, but after getting to know her, they had grown closer too ¡­


    Time passed quickly as he cultivated. When night fell, he sent her back because she was the direct disciple of the Clear Shallows King.


    After she left, Long Chen returned to his quarters to continue cultivating. Without Ling Xi here, the only thing he could do was cultivate. When he was not cultivating, he made a habit of journaling. After he bought enough notebooks and brushes in the town outside the Ancient Demon Domain, he started recording everything that happened along this journey.


    <em>Xiao Xi, I met a girl today called Liu Yiyi. She looks very much like you, but I am very clear that she is not you ¡­</em>


    After a simple entry, he closed his eyes and started cultivating. This was his only hope of seeing her again. He only truly understood how deep their feelings were when they separated, and while he missed her during the day, the longing that gnawed at his heart made him miserable when night fell ¡­


    <em>Ten years! I might be an old man or even die before I see her. I must work even harder; I mustn¡¯t keep her waiting for ten years. One day, I will stand proudly before her! </em>


    Intense longing filled his heart.


    Memories of Ling Xi kept reying in his mind.


    He forced himself to calm down and continued to cultivate. The Earthly Qi within the Ancient Demon Domain was very thick, boosting the effect of cultivation. With Long Chen¡¯s extraordinary talent, regr cultivation was very effective.


    More time passed.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Something pierced through Long Chen¡¯s door and flew towards him. His eyes sprang open and he caught it with his hand. It was a small steel arrow. There was nothing special about it and it had not been shot with much force, so it would not have killed him.


    Long Chen noticed a small strip of paper hanging on its tail, which said, <em>Head in the direction this arrow came from. I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re willing or not; I must fight you again to prove who is stronger! Come alone. If you inform anyone else, it will not benefit you because I have Huangfu Qi! </em>


    It had to be Zhao Wuji.


    ¡°Oh no! He doesn¡¯t know that Huangfu Qi has a powerful background, so he might act recklessly!¡± Long Chen shuddered and leaped up. There was a hint of violence in his eyes.


    ¡°He¡¯s looking for death! I did not want to deal with him, and yet he resorted to such lowly tactics! How dare he kidnap Huangfu Qi! Has he been kicked in the head?!¡± Long Chen knew Zhao Wuji¡¯s personality well. He had been talented all his life and people thought he was a peerless prodigy. He had set his eyes on being the three-time champion, but he had been robbed of his glory by a First Passage Stage cultivator. This became a huge regret. If Long Chen were an even greater prodigy than he was, he would have been willing to ept it. But Long Chen did not have a strong background, nor did he show any potential. This made Zhao Wuji very resentful.


    That was why he had decided to make Long Chen pay as soon as he reached the Fifth Passage Stage. This was the personality of a childish brat, though since he was only about fourteen years old, it was normal for him to not think before he did things.


    ¡°How dare you provoke me like this! I don¡¯t care how much of a prodigy you are ¡­¡± Long Chen shook his head. He opened his door and then dashed towards the direction Zhao Wuji had mentioned.


    ¡°Alright! Since you want to fight, I¡¯ll fight! If you hurt Qi Qi, I¡¯ll make you pay ten times over!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    She''s a noble?! </blockquote>

 Chapter 497: The Need To Be Vicious

    Long Chen ran fast in the night. He ran strictly in the direction where the small arrow hade from, at the same time searching the area using his Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    To be honest, ever since he started cultivating, there had been many incidents of people around him being kidnapped because of him. It made him extremely furious. This time, due to Zhao Wuji¡¯s idiotic behavior, Long Chen decided to teach him a brutal lesson!


    Long Chen was several times stronger than Zhao Wuji, and he had already beaten him once. He was well aware that it would take him no effort to beat Zhao Wuji. In fact, if he wasn¡¯t trying to avoid the Red Ghost King, he would have beaten Zhao Wuji up already.


    Long Chen soon left the Clear Shallows Pavilionpound. The Ancient Demon Domain covered arge region, and there were only seven main pavilions, so the rest of thend consisted of barren mountains. Long Chen arrived at one of the mountains, which was not far from the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    If the location was too far, Long Chen would not have found them.


    Before he reached this mountain, he had spotted a soul using the Soul Swallowing Gaze and guessed that it was Zhao Wuji. But where was Huangfu Qi? Huangfu Qi had long be a little sister to him, one that he needed to protect. His concern for her was beyond Zhao Wuji¡¯s imagination.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Long Chen dashed into the mountain. As expected, the person standing there watching him approach was Zhao Wuji, who burst intoughter.


    ¡°I knew it was you. Zhao Wuji, I¡¯m here now. Where is Huangfu Qi?¡± Long Chen suppressed the anger in him and red at him darkly. He had to guarantee Huangfu Qi¡¯s safety first. If it was not for that, he would have beaten Zhao Wuji up the moment he saw him.


    Long Chen¡¯s words made Zhao Wujiugh even harder. He clutched his belly and looked at him teasingly. ¡°I thought you were smart! How did you be this stupid?¡±¡°What do you mean?¡± Long Chen froze.


    ¡°Look around! Huangfu Qi isn¡¯t here! That brat is probably sleeping soundly in her bed right now. She¡¯s the darling of the Clear Shallows King; I would never touch her! Only an idiot like you would fall into this trap! You came here so obediently! Haha!¡± Zhao Wuji was delighted.


    Long Chen¡¯s face darkened.


    He thought Zhao Wuji was an idiot, but today, he had been toyed with by this idiot. It felt like he had been yed by a donkey, which frustrated him.


    But it made sense. Zhao Wuji had always acted on impulse, so it was logical to assume that he had actually kidnapped Huangfu Qi. Long Chen had only fallen into the trap because he cared about her.


    To Long Chen, it was better to have been yed than the alternative. Since Huangfu Qi was safe, he would not need to hold back.


    However, if he did not beat Zhao Wuji up today, he knew the kid would never stop. At this moment, Zhao Wuji was stillughing, while Long Chen clenched his fists.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, since you¡¯re here already, don¡¯t think of being a coward again. Come fight me fair and square. I want you to see who the true neer king of the year is!¡± Zhao Wuji¡¯s smile disappeared and his eyes shed coldly.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard about what I¡¯ve done in the Clear Shallows Pavilion?¡± Long Chen was puzzled. If Zhao Wuji knew that he had killed Qin Huanyu, he would not do something as stupid as lure Long Chen out for a fight.


    ¡°You¡¯re a measly First Passage Stage cultivator! What can you do? Don¡¯t make meugh,¡± said Zhao Wuji with a contemptuous sneer.


    Long Chen thought for a while. <em>Since Zhao Wuji doesn¡¯t know about it, then the people of the other pavilions don¡¯t know either. I think the Clear Shallows King put the incident on lockdown. Why? </em>


    When he thought about the Clear Shallows King¡¯s attitude to himself, after some pondering, he had only one guess. The Clear Shallows King saw him as a dark horse. Her trump card.


    <em>Qi Qi said that the other pavilions have Eight Passage Stage disciples, but the Clear Shallows Pavilion doesn¡¯t. Is the Clear Shallows King trying to raise me to be one? </em>This was a good thing for him. This was his time to grow. If he had the Clear Shallows King guiding him, would he ever need to worry about Heavenly Passage Pills?


    When Zhao Wuji saw that Long Chen was staring into space, he felt humiliated. The Qi of a Fifth Passage Staged cultivator erupted from him, then he grinned and said, ¡°Jiang Cheng, you don¡¯t know this, but I have reached the Fifth Passage Stage. I want you to see how powerful the Fifth Passage Stage is!¡±


    Long Chen snapped back to reality. He knew that the most urgent matter at hand was to teach Zhao Wuji a brutal lesson! It was time to vent his anger!


    Initially, he had nned not to use his Dragon Soul Transformation, because he could easily beat Zhao Wuji without it. However, he wanted Zhao Wuji to see exactly howrge the gap between them was, so he quickly activated the Dragon Soul Transformation to reach his strongest form!


    ¡°Oh? I¡¯ve got to say that your Beast Soul Transformation is quite strong! It¡¯s just a pity that your cultivation level is too low!¡± Zhao Wuji chuckled.


    ¡°Die! It¡¯ll only take one strike to take your life!¡± Zhao Wuji let out a roar and charged towards Long Chen. His attack was several times stronger than thest time he used it!


    ¡°Martial Peak Finger!¡±


    It was a powerful attack containing all the strength he could muster! The powerful Finger Seal looked like it could put a hole in Long Chen¡¯s chest!


    Insanity filled Zhao Wuji¡¯s eyes. He had been waiting for this moment for far too long!


    But he was confused. Why was Long Chen not trying to dodge?


    When he saw that Long Chen was not moving, he was puzzled, though he quickly reaffirmed his decision to kill him. <em>The moon is not bright and the winds are strong tonight. It¡¯s a good time to kill someone. Right now, Jiang Cheng isn¡¯t seen as an important person in the Ancient Demon Domain, so it will be fine to kill him! </em>


    Not only did he not stop his attack, he charged with all his might!


    ¡°Haha! Have you gone stupid from fear? Die!¡± At thest moment, Zhao Wuji let out a furious roar. The Martial Peak Finger was soon going to touch Long Chen¡¯s chest! It was going to pierce through him!


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got?¡± Long Chen suddenly broke into a grin. This was a very bizarre thing to Zhao Wuji.


    What happened next stunned Zhao Wuji.


    Long Chen gently reached out with both hands and grabbed Zhao Wuji¡¯s arm, stopping the advanced Heaven-tier attack, which should have been strong enough to kill a Sixth Passage Stage cultivator. Zhao Wuji realized that Long Chen was gripping his arm, and he could not break free no matter how hard he tried!


    What was happening?


    <em>Only a Seventh Passage Stage cultivator could do this, right? To catch a Fifth Passage Stage cultivator¡¯s Martial Peak Finger like that? </em>


    Zhao Wuji was stunned and a surge of emotion passed through him. He stared at Long Chen with wide eyes, momentarily forgetting that they were battling.


    Long Chen said coldly, ¡°You little brat. You must remember that a measly attack like yours isn¡¯t even enough to scratch an itch on my body ¡­¡± Then, he quickly lifted his right leg, and the red spine on his knee stabbed into Zhao Wuji¡¯s crotch!


    Zhao Wuji arched his back and let out an earth-shattering scream!


    The spine on Long Chen¡¯s knee had shattered everything on his crotch, even piercing a hole. He was not going to be a man again, though Long Chen was kind enough to let him be a woman.


    He gently pushed Zhao Wuji away, who copsed.


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s face paled as he red at Long Chen with despair and hatred. What had happened today was a nightmare. Even though he had reached the Fifth Passage Stage, Long Chen was far stronger than he had imagined!


    He felt a body-splitting pain in his crotch. He was willing to be injured in any part of his body, except that part! He felt unimaginable despair when he thought about how he would never be a man again.


    Rage and hatredpletely drowned Zhao Wuji as he rolled on the ground in pain. His blood-red eyes were fixed dead on Long Chen as he growled.


    ¡°You were the one who started this. Zhao Wuji, let me tell you this. You will never catch up to me, so just be a good and obedient direct disciple. I am only teaching you a lesson today. Do not annoy me again. You can¡¯t afford to annoy me!¡±


    Then Long Chen left, though first he turned around and said, ¡°Let me give you a suggestion. Go see the Red Ghost King as soon as you can and show him your pitiful state. Maybe he¡¯ll feel merciful and give you some high-level medicine so you can be a man again.¡±


    Men needed to be vicious sometimes.


    Long Chen understood that his opponents would only submit to himpletely when he was vicious, especially when dealing with ignorant people like Zhao Wuji.


    However, Long Chen had underestimated him. He hadn¡¯t been vicious enough, so he was destined for a great ordeal on this night.


    When Long Chen turned to leave, he did not see Zhao Wuji¡¯s beast-like re.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, you forced me to do this!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Time for him to die!</blockquote>

 Chapter 498: Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman

    The moment Long Chen turned to leave, Zhao Wuji quickly pulled out a light-purple paper talisman from his Universe Pouch. Dark purple runes were drawn all over the talisman, and every rune turned into dense tendrils of electricity. The electricity that wove around the talisman turned into runes, blending back into the paper once more.


    When the talisman was pulled out, Long Chen felt a sharp rise in the surrounding temperature. He had not deactivated his Dragon Soul Transformation, yet he could feel prickling pain all over his skin.


    A powerful source of energy had appeared out of thin air behind him.


    <em>What was that?! </em>Long Chen was startled and sprinted away immediately. While he ran, he turned around and saw Zhao Wuji¡¯s contorted features, as well as the talisman in his hand, which was crackling with electricity!


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, this is something my master gave me. It¡¯s a talisman meant to keep me alive¡ªthe Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman! Anyone beneath the Eighth Passage Stage will certainly die when faced with this. Enjoy your death!¡± When Long Chen turned around, Zhao Wuji wasughing like a maniac!


    When Long Chen saw the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman, he knew something was wrong. It had not even been used yet, but it was already radiating such powerful energy. If Zhao Wuji used it, even an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator would end up half-dead, let alone Long Chen!


    <strong></strong>Zhao Wuji had reached the Fourth Passage Stage at a very young age, even mastering advanced Heaven-tier techniques. He was likely to be a Devil King, so the Red Ghost King liked him very much. At the same time, he knew that this direct disciple of his loved to get himself into vicious fights, so he was worried that he would suddenly be killed by a random master. That was why he had given him the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman!


    Zhao Wuji had only received it two or three days ago, yet he was already using it against Long Chen. Holding back his pain, heughed and threw the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman towards Long Chen!


    Although it was merely a piece of paper, it shot out as fast as the average throwing weapon. Long Chen was very close, so he was quickly targeted by the talisman! This was why talisman attacks were powerful. Once the talisman locked onto its target, its target would never be able to escape!It was almost as if Zhao Wuji could see what Long Chen would look like after he was burnt ck by the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman. He would be reduced to charcoal,pletely dead. That was what Zhao Wuji wanted to see happen.


    Just as Zhao Wuji imagined, the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman flew above Long Chen¡¯s head and then exploded into a three-meter-wide lightning ball. The blinding, purple lightning lit up half the sky above the Clear Shallows Pavilion!


    Fierce purple lightning wove around the purple ball of electricity, crackling loudly. The surrounding temperature rose and the whole barren mountain was lit with incredible light from the lightning. The wielder of the attack, Zhao Wuji, would remainpletely safe!


    ¡°Die!¡± Zhao Wuji let out an evilugh when he saw Long Chenpletely trapped by the lightning ball. Then he activated the talisman, and the gigantic lightning ball exploded above Long Chen¡¯s head!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Endless lightning shot out of the barren mountain with Long Chen as the center point. The mountain boulders around them turned into powder. When the mighty lightning swept across the area, not even a tiny mosquito would survive such an ordeal!


    Bright light cut through the darkness of the night sky, lighting up the whole Clear Shallows Pavilion!


    Even the deafening boom traveled very far!


    Looking at the patch of purple before him, Zhao Wuji was sure that even Long Chen¡¯s ashes would not remain. When the power of the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman slowly faded, Zhao Wuji checked and realized that all the rocks around them had disappeared and a huge crater remained where Long Chen used to be. Even the soil had turned ck. It was clear just how powerful the talisman was!


    ¡°He¡¯s dead! Hehe, he¡¯s finally dead! This is what happens to anyone who tries to fight me!¡± Zhao Wujiughed like a madman as he struggled to stand up. However, his body kept twitching from the pain in his crotch. He looked down and saw only a blur of blood and flesh; he was unable to distinguish anything.


    <em>You¡¯ve ended my bloodline! Jiang Cheng, you may have brought me the greatest pain, but I won in the end because you have been turned into powder by my lightning! </em>With that thought, Zhao Wuji feltforted.


    However, he still felt tortured because he was going to be a eunuch before he had a chance to bed a woman.


    <em>I need to go back and look for Master. He must have some type of medicine that can help me. The explosion was very loud, so people will arrive very soon. I cannot stay for long! </em>Then he quickly scrambled to stand up.


    ¡°Do you need me to help you up?¡± A familiar voice came from behind him.


    ¡°Alright ¡­ Who are you?¡± Zhao Wuji replied instinctively, then when he realized who it was, his face paled. He turned around with great difficulty. The person standing behind and looking down at him was Long Chen.


    Long Chen gazed at him with amusement, though he was internally a little traumatized. He had learned a huge lesson today.


    If Blood Warp weren¡¯t fast enough to break free from the talisman, he would not have survived. Although Long Chen rarely used Blood Warp and Blood Sacrifice, the techniques of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon were admittedly powerful. Regr people could not hide once they were targeted by a talisman, but Long Chen could!


    Of course, Long Chen could also use Rewind, but it was too painful. Using Blood Warp was more direct, and Rewind had to be avoided since it was only supposed to be used in painful situations.


    Zhao Wuji had truly taught him a lesson¡ªno matter how weak his opponent was, he had to take them seriously. He had severely underestimated Zhao Wuji, and due to the contempt in his heart, he had not taken him seriously. That was how he had been tricked intoing here in the first ce, even almost getting himself killed!


    The Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman was definitely powerful enough to kill Long Chen.


    Thankfully, he had survived due to the extremely fast Blood Warp.


    Long Chen understood that he could not keep enemies who wanted to kill him alive. If he let Zhao Wuji go now, he would try his best to kill Long Chen again.


    Zhao Wuji saw the coldness in Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible! How did you survive?! With such a powerful explosion, you should be very dead!¡± Zhao Wuji scrambled backwards with terror. This time, he was truly afraid.


    ¡°There are many things that you do not know,¡± said Long Chen, shaking his head. ¡°Zhao Wuji, you taught me a huge lesson. To be honest, I¡¯m very thankful, but now you need a taste of your own medicine ¡­¡±


    ¡°No! I¡¯m begging you!¡± Zhao Wuji screamed in fear as he gazed at Long Chen in despair. Long Chen¡¯s intentions were clear¡ªhe wanted to kill Zhao Wuji!


    His despair and begging did not make Long Chen¡¯s heart soften.


    Sharp ws pierced into Zhao Wuji¡¯s chest and crushed his heart. Zhao Wuji¡¯s eyes widened, still filled with despair. Unfortunately, it was toote. He was the one who had made Long Chen decide to kill him. There was no one else to me.


    Long Chen sighed and said, ¡°Xiang, lend me your fire.¡±


    He used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to survey his surroundings. After such a hugemotion, people would be arriving soon.


    Xiang hurried out of the Primordial Realm. His Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was perfect for burning corpses and destroying evidence.


    But it was toote. Two people were present when he used the Soul Swallowing Gaze¡ªDemon General Strongman and the Clear Shallows King. Since this was right next to the Clear Shallows Pavilion, they were the first ones to check on themotion. Unfortunately, what greeted them was Zhao Wuji¡¯s bloody corpse while Long Chen was standing next to him, unharmed.


    He was one step toote. Long Chen had nned to burn the corpse to destroy all evidence, then he would flee the scene, but he had no choice now.


    After seeing Zhao Wuji¡¯s body, the Clear Shallows King¡¯s pupils constricted. She knew that themotion had been caused by a Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman, and it was something that belonged to the Red Ghost King. Since Zhao Wuji was the Red Ghost King¡¯s disciple, he was the only one who could have possibly used it. But using it should have meant certain death for Long Chen. So why was Long Chen alive while Zhao Wuji was dead even after he used the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman?


    To the Clear Shallows King, this was a little hard to believe. She knew exactly how destructive the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman was, and very few disciples of the younger generation would have been able to survive it. The Red Ghost King must have really liked Zhao Wuji if he had given him a Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman!


    Long Chen¡¯s position in the Clear Shallows King¡¯s heart rose once more.


    Most importantly, the Clear Shallows King had heard from Liu Yiyi a few hours ago that she had lost to him too.


    This meant that Long Chen was an extraordinary prodigy, and he surely had many secrets. The Clear Shallows King needed talent more than anything, especially dark horses like Long Chen.


    Long Chen knew this too. Based on the fire in her eyes, he knew that he was safe, even though Demon General Strongman¡¯s eyes had gone red when he saw Zhao Wuji¡¯s body. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Heheh. Demon General Strongman can''t do anything and Zhao Wuji is finally dead. Life is good.</blockquote>

 Chapter 499: Not Related at All

    Previously, Long Chen was worried that Demon General Strongman would kill him after he failed to destroy the evidence on time. But that worry was gone as he knew that the Clear Shallows King needed him for something, or she would not have allowed him to kill Qin Huanyu, nor would she have set up an information lockdown to stop the news of him killing Qin Huanyu from spreading.


    Demon General Strongman¡¯s eyes were blood-red. After seeing Zhao Wuji¡¯s pitiful state, he roared, ¡°Jiang Cheng, you motherfucker! You killed my nephew! You must have a death wish!¡±


    The aura of a Ninth Passage Stage cultivator erupted from his body, and a mountain of force pressed on Long Chen, pushing him several steps back. Then Demon General Strongman roared furiously and stomped his muscr leg on the ground before sprinting towards Long Chen!


    If he attacked, Long Chen would surely die in one strike!


    ¡°Stop!¡± The Clear Shallows King stopped him immediately, pulling Demon General Strongman back. She said with a cold expression, ¡°Strongman, you¡¯d better calm down. This is the Clear Shallows Pavilion; I am the one who makes decisions here, not you!¡±


    The Clear Shallows King was an Earthly Martial Realm master, so she was much stronger than he was. After she pulled him back, he could not move at all. Even her voice had scared him. Demon General Strongman finally snapped out of his rage; he had acted on impulse due to the rage caused by Zhao Wuji¡¯s death.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, exin what happened!¡± said the Clear Shallows King, looking at him coldly.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple. I¡¯m sure you both know that Zhao Wuji has been looking to fight me ever since he reached the Fifth Passage Stage to get revenge for the humiliation he experienced during the qualifiers. I did not agree to his request this morning, so tonight, he used maniptive tactics to lure me here. I defeated him but let him live. Unfortunately, he was unwilling to ept defeat and took out the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman to kill me. I was lucky enough to survive it, and I had to kill him afterwards.¡±


    Demon General Strongman and the Clear Shallows King indeed knew that Zhao Wuji had been looking to harass Long Chen for several days now. Due to the Clear Shallows King, news of Long Chen¡¯s true strength had not been leaked out, and Demon General Strongman had not found the time to tell Zhao Wuji about Long Chen. He had not expected this to happen tonight.The Clear Shallows King nodded. What Long Chen had said was the same as what the situation looked like, so it was clear that he was telling the truth. Demon General Strongman was even more familiar with Zhao Wuji¡¯sbative personality, so he also knew that Long Chen was telling the truth. However, Zhao Wuji was his nephew; how could he let Zhao Wuji die just like that?


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, you still killed Zhao Wuji. You are only a regr disciple, and yet you dared to kill the Red Ghost King¡¯s direct disciple! Plus, Zhao Wuji is my nephew. If you kill someone, you pay for it with your life. It doesn¡¯t matter what the reason was; you need to pay!¡± growled Demon General Strongman.


    If Long Chen was truly just a regr disciple, Demon General Strongman could have easily killed him to avenge Zhao Wuji. There was a clear rule forbidding private duels in the Ancient Demon Domain, but as one of the twenty-eight Demon Generals, Demon General Strongman had the right to kill regr disciples. He had killed many regr disciples before, and the Clear Shallows King had never intervened!


    That was why Demon General Strongman did not think much into it. After Long Chen had described what happened, he immediately prepared tounch an attack!


    ¡°Stop it!¡± roared the Clear Shallows King, and she shoved Demon General Strongman several steps back. Her stern repletely stunned Demon General Strongman, who looked at her in confusion.


    ¡°Lord Clear Shallows, he is merely a regr disciple, yet he killed my nephew! Can¡¯t I avenge my nephew?¡±


    The Clear Shallows King had never intervened before, so why was she stopping him now? He was one of the four great Demon Generals of the Clear Shallows Pavilion; how could he not outrank the puny Long Chen?


    The Clear Shallows King¡¯s strange behavior drove Demon General Strongman up the wall.


    ¡°Enough with your nonsense. The disciple of the Red Ghost Pavilion was the instigator. Jiang Cheng was only defending himself. We belong to the Clear Shallows Pavilion. Strongman, you cannot be taking the wrong side,¡± the Clear Shallows King said coldly.


    Demon General Strongman froze. He knew that if the Clear Shallows King was taking this angle as her exnation, it meant that there was no room for discussion. He was no idiot, so the true reason was not hard to figure out. Why was the Clear Shallows King using all sorts of methods to protect Long Chen? It was because of his potential. Plus, Demon General Strongman knew some things that even Long Chen did not.


    ¡°I¡¯ll let you handle Zhao Wuji¡¯s matters. Jiang Cheng, follow me back to the Clear Shallows Pavilion.¡± The Clear Shallows King did not give Demon General Strongman room to negotiate at all and left promptly. Long Chen calmed himself and quickly followed the Clear Shallows King.


    He did not look at Demon General Strongman, but he could feel the venomous re from him. In this world, everyone needed strength to survive. Long Chen was no match for a Ninth Passage Stage cultivator, so all he could do was follow the Clear Shallows King without a sound.


    With the Clear Shallows King protecting him, he would not need to worry about Demon General Strongman in the near future, unless Strongman went mad and decided he no longer wanted to stay in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Only the people of the Clear Shallows Pavilion could see what had happened in the mountains, while the other pavilions were not as clear. Under the instruction of the Clear Shallows King, the information was temporarily suppressed, and no one knew what had happened for now. As for Long Chen, he was led to the ce where the Clear Shallows King lived, which was the core of the Clear Shallows Pavilion. He had not been here before.


    Long Chen and the Clear Shallows King were the only ones in the royal pavilion. She sat on her luxurious throne on the dais, looking down at him. As an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator, she had gained Long Chen¡¯s respect.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re an idiot, so you must know that I am keeping you alive,¡± the Clear Shallows King said after a while.


    ¡°Thank you so much for your graciousness, Clear Shallows King. I understand that if it were not for you, Demon General Strongman would have killed me.¡± Long Chen knew this very well. He only dared to kill Zhao Wuji because he had guessed her stance after observing her actions. It looked like a huge risk, but Long Chen was very confident in his decision. Plus, Zhao Wuji had wanted to kill Long Chen on multiple asions, so how could Long Chen let him live?


    ¡°It¡¯s good that you know. We are not rted at all, and you are not a direct disciple of mine. Yet I helped you. I¡¯m sure you know that there is a reason,¡± she continued.


    ¡°What can I do for you?¡± Long Chen had his guesses, but this confirmed his suspicions.


    The Clear Shallows King was silent for a while, then she smiled bitterly. ¡°Five years ago, during the examination of the seven pavilions¡¯ disciples, the Clear Shallows Pavilion cedst. There was arge gap between our disciples and the others too. I¡¯m sure you know the current situation. The Clear Shallows Pavilion does not have any Eighth Passage Stage disciples in the younger generation, but the other six pavilions do. This means it is almost certain that we will end up inst ce again. The Clear Shallows Pavilion has not achieved anything throughout my leadership, and the disciples are getting worse by the year. Perhaps when I retire, the Clear Shallows Pavilion will no longer exist.¡±


    When she spoke, her mood was somber.


    Long Chen listened to every word she said.


    <em>Last ce, twice in a row? That¡¯s quite a tragedy. But Liu Yiyi is almost at the Eighth Passage Stage. Looking at her abilities, it¡¯s just a matter of one or two months. I think the Clear Shallows King is being a little heavy-handed with her deration that the Clear Shallows Pavilion will not exist. </em>Long Chen pondered the topic. If Liu Yiyi were someone else, the Clear Shallows King might have forgotten about her. But Long Chen was clear about Liu Yiyi¡¯s strength, so he was puzzled.


    Of course, no matter how tragic the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s trajectory was, it had nothing to do with Long Chen. He understood what she meant.


    ¡°Are you saying that you want me to represent the Clear Shallows Pavilion at the examination in a month¡¯s time?¡±


    He was privately delighted because this was going ording to n. He had been wondering how he could participate in the examination to get the Emperor me Pearl, and now the Clear Shallows King was giving him an opportunity.


    ¡°You¡¯re very smart. That¡¯s exactly what I was thinking. From today onwards, I will mentor you so that you will make huge progress within one month. Are you confident you can defeat an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator and enter the top three in a month¡¯s time? Maybe even be champion?¡± she asked solemnly with her eyes fixed on him.


    Long Chen knew that because she had kept him alive today, he had no right to refuse, or Demon General Strongman would tear him to pieces.


    ¡°If you are willing to mentor me and give me the things I need, I¡¯m sure we will not be rankedst at the very least. Even getting into the top three won¡¯t be difficult,¡± he said decisively with determination in his eyes.


    From the outside, he looked like he was being cornered by the Clear Shallows King¡¯s demands, but Long Chen was actually ecstatic inside. His objective was already to be as strong as he could before the examination and get the Emperor me Pearl. She was now offering huge benefits, and Long Chen would now no longer need to worry about resources because he would get everything he needed.


    Long Chen¡¯s confident answer satisfied the Clear Shallows King. She said with a smile, ¡°You seem confident. It looks like you¡¯ve got a n, right? What do you need? Just tell me.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and said, ¡°I want a million Heavenly Passage Pills and the crystal used during our Demon Light Bath.¡±


    One million Heavenly Passage Pills. That was the total sum of an average Ninth Passage Stage cultivator¡¯s assets. Furthermore, that crystal was a treasure of the Clear Shallows Pavilion, and she only had five of them.


    Long Chen¡¯s demands made the Clear Shallows King¡¯s brows furrow slightly. She thought for a while and said, ¡°If I give you these things, you¡¯re confident that you can defeat an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator in a month? How can you guarantee this?¡±


    ¡°If I do not achieve it, my head will be yours.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Last ce twice in a row! Damn they are weak</blockquote>

 Chapter 500: Sixth Passage Stage

    If Long Chen really could defeat an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator, then one million Heavenly Passage Pills and the crystal would be nothing. The Clear Shallows King thought about it for a while. She knew that she had to pay a price in order to keep Long Chen, plus the fact that he had progressed so quickly from the First Passage Stage showed that he would likely seed. Therefore, she nodded and said, ¡°Alright. One million Heavenly Passage Pills and the crystal. I will give them to you tonight. I hope you fulfill your end of the bargain and seed.¡±


    ¡°A man must keep his promises,¡± said Long Chen.


    She looked at him approvingly and said, ¡°You¡¯ve got courage. But what do you want the crystal for? The energy in the crystal has a seal belonging to an ancient master. If you absorb too much, you will not experience any benefits.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I know that. You just need to give it to me.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King did not ask any more questions. She told him to wait and walked off.


    About fifteen minutester, she returned and handed him a Universe Pouch. ¡°The one million Heavenly Passage Pills and the crystal are inside. You may return. I have temporarily suppressed the news about Zhao Wuji¡¯s death, but I¡¯m sure the Red Ghost King will learn of it very soon, and he wille looking for trouble. Of course, I will cover for you, but you need to be smart about it.¡±


    Long Chen understood that the Red Ghost King favored Zhao Wuji greatly, seeing as how he had given him the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman. Now that Zhao Wuji had died here, he would definitelye knocking the moment he found out. When that happened, Long Chen would have to be strong enough, or he would not be able to survive!


    Of course, the crystal and one million Heavenly Passage Pills would guarantee his sess. Long Chen was impatient to get back, because Little Cat could remove the seal in the crystal. With the crystal and the pills, he would at least reach the Seventh Passage Stage.


    Only at the Seventh Passage Stage could he possibly defeat an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator.Of course, there was one thing he had to do before he left, which was to return the pills he had borrowed. Previously, he had borrowed Heavenly Passage Pills from Huangfu Qi only as a backup. Now that he had more than a million, he no longer needed the fifty thousand pills she had lent him. After all, it was very awkward to borrow from a little girl.


    When he left, he asked, ¡°I¡¯d like to see Huangfu Qi. Where does she stay?¡± It was evening, so she would have only just returned.


    ¡°Qi Qi? Her father came to get her two hours ago,¡± said the Clear Shallows King a little sourly. To her, the longer Huangfu Qi stayed, the deeper their bond would be. Since the girl had only stayed for a few days, it would be impossible for her to form a rtionship with the powerful figures of the Huangfu n.


    ¡°She left?¡± Long Chen gasped. It hadn¡¯t been all that long since they saw each other, and her father had alreadye to pick her up? And poor old Long Chen had even believed that Zhao Wuji had kidnapped her.


    Her father must have been very angry, or Huangfu Qi surely would¡¯vee to bid him farewell. Then this whole ordeal would not have happened tonight.


    <em>Oh no! I promised her that I would return the fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills to her even if she left! Did I just shoot myself in the foot? </em>Long Chen privatelymented.


    ¡°Qi Qi¡¯s father is on the level of the Demon Emperor,¡± the Clear Shallows King said with a sigh.


    Long Chen had already guessed this too. Since he urgently needed to be strong, he bade her farewell and returned to his quarters. The moment he arrived, he said to Little Cat, ¡°Fat Cat, you said that the crystal has enough power to get me to the Seventh Passage Stage, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course. I said it, so it is true,¡± Little Cat said haughtily, raising a paw to rub his round belly. He had long grown ustomed to Long Chen¡¯s nickname.


    ¡°Alright, then I won¡¯t waste any time. Let¡¯s begin. I want to reach the Seventh Passage Stage directly!¡± Reaching the Seventh Passage Stage was his most important task before the examination.


    ¡°Wait! Do you think I¡¯d help you just because you asked?¡± Little Cat pretended to be unwilling.


    ¡°Don¡¯t waste my time, or I¡¯ll ask Xiang to burn your little brother off!¡± Long Chen said, then he took out the crystal. He knew that Little Cat was afraid of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, and it could easily hurt him.


    Little Cat was so terrified that he arched his back and retracted something. He recalled the terrible state Zhao Wuji was in when he was turned from a man to a woman; it was a violent tactic.


    ¡°Whatever, whatever. Seeing as you are young and ignorant, and quite pitiful, I will go out of my way to help you out.¡± Little Cat shook his head and helped Long Chen extract the seal power in the crystal, leaving behind pure power for Long Chen to absorb.


    The crystal contained the power of a past master. Most of it had dispersed with time, so only less than a thousandth remained in the crystal. Even so, it was enough for Long Chen to reach the Seventh Passage Stage.


    He had to level up by two stages.


    Little Cat used some unknown, devilish technique to keep the crystal¡¯s energy output under his control. Long Chen¡¯s cultivation progressed with his help; he absorbed the crystal¡¯s power just like before, but he absorbed much, much more this time.


    A flood of energy flowed into Long Chen¡¯s body. He absorbed and refined it until the energy became a part of his body!


    Under Little Cat¡¯s control, the energy flowed in an orderly manner while Long Chen absorbed it withoutplications. His body was adequately strong, so there was no danger of death from overexertion. With steady progress, Long Chen soon reached the edge of the Fifth Passage Stage. Little Cat stopped the energy flow, knowing that Long Chen was likely going to attempt his breakthrough to the Sixth Passage Stage.


    Out of the nine meridian points, there were six main points to be cleared in the Heavenly Passage Realm. Long Chen had cleared five of them, so there were five energy cores in his body. Only thest one remained, and the meridian points in his body would bepletely cleared once he reached the Sixth Passage Stage.


    The six energy cores of the body formed a perfect cycle.


    With his prior experience of five breakthroughs, he easily reached the Sixth Passage Stage. Even he was shocked at the speed at which his strength was growing. Ever since he absorbed the one-hundredth Inherited Blood Essence, his body was like a ck hole that required copious amounts of energy.


    It did not matter if he was performing Blood Transmutation or directly absorbing energy from a crystal like this¡ªhe did not feel any difort and he had a feeling that he couldplete the whole Heavenly Passage Realm in this manner. This was the extraordinary effect brought about by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence.


    The Sixth Passage Stage was far from the heights he would reach.


    ¡°Carry on, then. You have the insane powers of the ancestral dragon blood! If other people absorbed energy at your rate, their bodies would have exploded many times by now. Only you can hold on for this long!¡± Little Cat was very impressed.


    He continued the release of energy from the crystal, and Long Chen made steady progress towards the Seventh Passage Stage without another word. Based on his current progress, he would surely reach the Seventh Passage Stage today.


    However, he had already used up about a hundred and ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills to reach the Sixth Passage Stage. He had a feeling that he would need at least three hundred thousand to reach the Seventh Passage Stage. This meant that the one million pills he had received would not be enough for him to reach the Eighth Passage Stage!


    Other people required a million pills only when they were clearing thest meridian point, which was the heavenly meridian. However, Long Chen would need a million pills at only the Eighth Passage Stage. While the Dragon Qi he possessed was ten times stronger than regr Qi, it made it ten times more difficult for him to progress because he could not seed without enough Heavenly Passage Pills.


    Based on this, it was obvious thating to the Ancient Demon Domain was the right choice. If he were out there on his own, where would he have gotten this many Heavenly Passage Pills? If he had note here, he guessed that he would only be at the Third or Fourth Passage Stage right now. Without the Heavenly Passage Pills, even Blood Transmutation would be useless.


    By the time he had absorbed enough Qi, Long Chen had exhausted 350,000 Heavenly Passage Pills. His Qi finally stabilized and it was time to clear the sixth meridian point.


    Out of his 1,100,000 pills, only 850,000 remained. It was not enough for him to reach the Eighth Passage Stage, and he knew that it was likely he would not be able to advance any more before the examination. The further along one was on the cultivation path, the harder it would be to level up. The amount of resources required increased, and Long Chen did not have that much.


    When he was at the First Passage Stage, he could rely on his super-strong advanced Heaven-tierbat body to defeat a Category Four Heaven-tier beast. However, now some Category Nine beasts had bodies tougher than his, so he no longer held an advantage. This meant that advancing to the next tier would be very difficult.


    Unless he received the Emperor me Pearl.


    That was something that would help him achieve great heights instantly.


    If he reached the Seventh Passage Stage, he was certain he would receive the Emperor me Pearl. Therefore, he did not dare rx at this stage. He carefully guided all of his Qi towards his head.


    The two Earthly meridian points were called the Earth Yin and Earth Yang meridian points respectively. They were in the right and left brains. Clearing them was much more difficult than clearing the previous six main meridian points and required much more focus. A slight mistake could kill Long Chen. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Easy peasy to get to the Sixth Passage Stage</blockquote>

 Chapter 501 - Ying Shaotian

    <h4>Chapter 501 - Ying Shaotian</h4>


    The seventh meridian was the Earth Yang meridian. Long Chen slowly directed his Qi to his Earth Yang meridian. The eighteen starry rivers in his body provided a lot of Qi, but because of how violent it was, Long Chen needed arge amount of Heavenly Passage Pills to stabilize it. Otherwise, he would destroy his meridians.


    The strength of 350,000 Heavenly Passage Pills was not to be trifled with!


    The seventh meridian point was dangerous to carve open, but thanks to Long Chen¡¯s careful control, he did it sessfully. Thanks to the effect of the Heavenly Passage Pills, the Earthly Yang meridian slowly formed in his head. It was notrge, but it contained a fiery energy. The core formed inside of it also resembled a ball of fire.


    Long Chen assumed the eighth meridian, the Earth Yin meridian, would resemble a ball of cold wind.


    As for thest meridian, even he did not know where it would form. The heavenly meridian point was the center of all the meridian points, and its location differed from person to person. It could be said that it was the core of the cultivator. Long Chen would only learn its location once he reached the Eighth Passage Stage.


    It took almost ten times longer for him to finish carving the Earth Yang meridian. When he was done, the sky was already bright. He pushed open the door and saw that his vision had changed.


    Clear. The rity was unparalleled. His vision, hearing, scent, and even taste had been elevated to a rity he never imagined he could experience. He could see the small ditches on a mountain and he could hear many people talking in the Clear Shallows Pavillion. This was the effect of carving out the Earth Yang meridian. Since both the Earth Yang and Earth Yin meridian were situated in his head, not only had they increased his strength, they had also enhanced his five senses.


    It was an evolution.


    Long Chen estimated that he could defeat an average Eighth Passage Stage cultivator. If he fought Liu Yiyi again, he was confident he would be able to block not only her two advanced Heaven-tier martial techniques, but also her King-tier Demonic Illusion.


    There¡¯s still a month left. I didn''t know that I would hit my goal so fast. I don¡¯t think anyone had ever advanced from the First Passage Stage to the Seventh Passage Stage in just a few days.


    Long Chen was impressed with his talent.


    Though he knew where it came from¡ªhis talent originated from the hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence that increased his body¡¯s resistance. Without it, Long Chen¡¯s continued usage of Blood Transmutation would¡¯ve destroyed him by now.


    I have one more month, but most of my Qi came from outside sources, meaning my basics are still shaky. Rather than advancing to the next stage, I should consolidate my Qi. Also, it might be difficult to advance into the Eighth Passage Stage. I will need at least a million Heavenly Passage Pills for that, but I only have 150,000 left. While I might be able to obtain more from the Clear Shallows King, I doubt I¡¯ll be able to find a Category Nine Heaven-tier beast ...


    Long Chen was not in a hurry to increase his cultivation level. His current strength was more than enough for the exam that came every five years. He had just entered the Ancient Demon Domain, yet he was exhibiting unprecedented talent. His strength would shock the entire Ancient Demon Domain soon.


    There were two thousand elders at the Sixth Passage Stage, two hundred higher-tier disciples, and six thousand regr disciples. Ten thousand people, and none of them could hold a candle to Long Chen¡¯s talent.


    In fact, no one in the Divine Martial Empire exhibited the talent he had. If he revealed it, everyone would be shocked, and those at the top management of the Martial Alliance would be alerted by his presence.


    The Martial Alliance was thergest organization in the country,prising many sects and families rivaling the Ancient Demon Domain. The Huangfu family that Huangfu Qi came from was just one of them. Even then, they only had a single seat at the top of the Martial Alliance.


    But Long Chen wouldn¡¯t bother with them just yet.


    I¡¯mcking martial techniques. Now that my physical body has reached the peak of the Heavenly Passage Realm, I doubt that anyone can rival it. I already have the Heaven Sword Array, a technique far stronger than its peers. What I need are Body Combat techniques and Defensive techniques. Even Liu Yiyi has a King-tier divine technique.


    Long Chen really wanted to get his hands on the Demon Illusion technique. That technique could create a clone with seventy five percent of his original strength. A single Demon Illusion was stronger than all 125 Divine Fire Clones. Having the Demon Illusion was akin to having anotherpanion.


    Long Chen had advanced far too fast, much faster than Xiang. In a battle, Xiang wouldn¡¯t be able to help him. Fat Cat, on the other hand, was a coward even though he had a lot of strange techniques.


    I need to find a King-tier martial technique, but how? Liu Yiyi? I don¡¯t think it¡¯s feasible. Maybe I should just talk to the Clear Shallows King. She might give me one since she wants me to win.


    With that in mind, he headed over to where she was. Thanks to the increased sensitivity of his hearing, he heard some noiseing from the Clear Shallows King¡¯s pce. Someone is here. Long Chen focused a little and heard who it was.


    Must be the Red Ghost King. It seems news of Zhao Wuji¡¯s death has reached his ears. While the Clear Shallows King could seal the mouths of most people, she could not control Demon General Strongman. Since the Clear Shallows King had ordered Demon General Strongman not to attack Long Chen, he would have the Red Ghost King do it instead.


    Thankfully, Long Chen had reached the Seventh Passage Stage and was one step closer to bing one of the strongest members of this sect. He wasn¡¯t worried, because the Clear Shallows King would protect him. He quickly ran towards the pce and soon saw the Red Ghost King¡¯s tall and muscr figure in the pce.


    He ran past the Red Ghost King and took his ce beside the Clear Shallows King. The Clear Shallows King was sitting with her eyes closed to calm down. Liu Yiyi was wearing a white skirt, standing beside her mother silently. She was a little afraid of the Red Ghost King and was looking at him nervously.


    She had learned about yesterday''s events through the Clear Shallows King.


    She noticed that Long Chen¡¯s Qi felt different fromst time. He has gotten stronger! She quickly gestured for him toe closer, and the Clear Shallows King took a look at Long Chen before ring at the angry Red Ghost King.


    Long Chen was staring at the Red Ghost King as well as the man behind him. The Red Ghost King was easily recognizable by his red skin. Just as Huangfu Qi had said, he looked like a red toad. Compared to the man behind him, he indeed looked exactly like an ugly toad.


    The man behind the Red Ghost King was tall and regal. He wore a ck and white robe and his eyes were like a constetion. His lips were thin, his nose was tall, and his fingers were long yet strong. He was a beautiful man, and he had surely seduced a lot of girls in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    But Long Chen also looked good. His body was exuding strength, and the innocent look he had in the past had been reced by an authoritative and regal look. He was also radiating the murderous auraing from the Inherited Blood Essence.


    Long Chen looked like he was born for massacre.


    That was all because of the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.


    ¡°That man is Ying Shaotian, the only Eighth Passage Stage cultivator in the Red Ghost Pavilion. He¡¯s ranked third among the disciples of the Seven Demon Kings ...¡± Liu Yiyi whispered to Long Chen.


    She was wary and repulsed by Ying Shaotian. There was even a hint of hatred in her eyes.


    There¡¯s no reason for her to hate him if he¡¯s a good guy. That means that he¡¯s an asshole too.


    Long Chen had noticed that Ying Shaotian had given Liu Yiyi a faint smile before he looked at the Clear Shallows King.


    The Red Ghost King¡¯s face was red to begin with, but now it was even redder. He had taken note of how Long Chen had rudely ran past him without saying anything, and he was fuming because Long Chen had killed his favorite disciple. His anger burst forth and he slowly approached Long Chen. ¡°You brat! How dare you kill my beloved disciple?! I will tear you apart!¡±


    The Qi of an Earthly Martial Realm master radiated from his body and almost ttened Long Chen.


    But Long Chen did not move, because he knew that the Clear Shallows King would protect him and would never allow the Red Ghost King to go crazy here.

 Chapter 502 - Plan

    <h4>Chapter 502 - n</h4>


    As expected, when the Red Ghost King was about to hit Long Chen, the Clear Shallows King stood in front of Long Chen and dispersed the pressure that came crashing on him. Long Chen enjoyed being protected by someone, especially when that someone was a prettydy like the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°Red Ghost King, did you just walk into my pavilion and try to kill one of my direct disciples? Are you here to wage war with me?¡±


    ¡°Direct disciple?! How is Jiang Cheng your direct disciple?! You can only take one every year!¡± the Red Ghost King hollered.


    ¡°Are you stupid? I did want to ept Huangfu Qi as my direct disciple, but since she¡¯s someone important from the Huangfu family, I had to let her go. Since she¡¯s gone, I can naturally have Jiang Cheng take her ce. Who are you toe and question my freedom?¡± The Clear Shallows King''s face was filled with frost and arrogance.


    ¡°Fine! I won¡¯t talk about that right now. You know why I¡¯m here. Even though he¡¯s your direct disciple, he can¡¯t just kill mine! Jiang Cheng must die today!¡± The Red Ghost King didn¡¯t want to fight the Clear Shallows King if possible, because there were no benefits to that, and they would also get reprimanded by the Demon Emperor.


    But Long Chen had to pay!


    The Red Ghost King doted on Zhao Wuji. He intended to train him to be the second Ying Shaotian. In a few years, he would have two geniuses under his care and he would defeat the other Kings. That was why he had given Zhao Wuji the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman to defend his life. But then the news of his disciple¡¯s passing reached his ears merely hourster.


    The Red Ghost King¡¯s heart shattered when he heard that, so he had grabbed Ying Shaotian and rushed to the Clear Shallows Pavilion to get revenge.


    But things were not going as smoothly as he had thought. Even though Zhao Wuji was his direct disciple, the Clear Shallows King was iming that Long Chen was her direct disciple as well. It would¡¯ve been fine for him to kill Long Chen if thetter were just a normal disciple, but how could a Demon King let someone kill their direct disciple?


    Long Chen nodded in his heart. The Clear Shallows King was determined to protect him. Long Chen was officially her direct disciple after she announced it today. That meant he was now qualified to go to the thirdyer of the Demon World. Also, since he was at the Seventh Passage Stage, he could go to the region where the other Seventh Passage Stage disciples were.


    The Red Ghost King still intended to take Long Chen¡¯s life despite everything.


    The Clear Shallows King scoffed, ¡°Red Ghost King, everyone is bound by rules. You cannot treat my direct disciple as a nobody while calling your direct disciple an important person at the same time. The masters muste out to mediate when disciples fight. Also, while Zhao Wuji was indeed killed by Jiang Cheng, do you know the reason why? Jiang Cheng, tell us what happened.¡±


    Long Chen exined what had happened the previous night. The Red Ghost King knew that ever since Zhao Wuji reached the Fifth Passage Stage, he had knocked on Long Chen¡¯s door every day to redeem his dishonor. While he believed Long Chen¡¯s story, he didn¡¯t want to ept it.


    ¡°Fucking bullshit! He used the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman, and there¡¯s no way you could¡¯ve avoided it! Your story is full of holes! I think you¡¯re hiding something from me about his death. Did someone set up an ambush to kill him?¡± The Red Ghost King¡¯s eyes were like cold daggers as he red at Long Chen.


    ¡°What are you insinuating?¡± The Clear Shallows King was angered.


    ¡°What do I mean? My direct disciple was killed and I demand an exnation! I will never back down! My disciples cannot die without a reason!¡±


    The Red Ghost King was saying that he wouldn¡¯t leave without an exnation.


    ¡°You want one? Fine, I will y by your rules! Come, let¡¯s fight! It¡¯s been five years since we sparred, but don¡¯t you dare assume I¡¯m afraid of you!¡± The Clear Shallows King''s eyes glittered with cold light. Since the Red Ghost King was refusing to step back, she had no intention of stepping back either. In fact, she was even more angry. She would rather fight the Red Ghost King right here and now.


    ¡°You and me? Fine!¡± The Red Ghost Kingughed but stopped halfway. ¡°You have guts. I don¡¯t think I will be satisfied if I don¡¯t fight you today! Two Demon Kings fighting against each other! I guess this will be the highlight of the day!¡±


    Their Qi built up slowly while their argument escted. The other three felt ufortable by the amount of Qi permeating in the air.


    Just then, Ying Shaotian suddenly interjected, ¡°May the two Kings please listen to my plea? Both of you upy high positions in the Ancient Demon Domain. If you fight now, it will affect our reputation and, more importantly, yours. Since the disciples were the ones whomitted the offense, we should be the ones to settle the disagreement. How does that sound?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes shrunk. Based on what he had said, Long Chen deduced that Ying Shaotian was a formidable foe ...


    Just as expected, the Clear Shallows King and the Red Ghost King stopped fighting. The Red Ghost King was satisfied with his direct disciple¡¯s idea. In fact, he loved him more than Zhao Wuji. ¡°Shaotian, how do you think we should go about this?¡±


    Ying Shaotian smiled and looked at Long Chen. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that he could deal with the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman? My attacks are almost on par with the power of a single talisman, so let me hit him with one move. If Jiang Cheng survives it, that means he is telling the truth. That would mean that my junior really did attempt to challenge Jiang Cheng and even used an underhanded technique just to die in shame. If that¡¯s the case, he deserved it ...¡±


    Ying Shaotian was an eloquent and smart man. After hearing the conversation between the Red Ghost King and the Clear Shallows King, he had obtained the key information and put it to use. He actually wanted to use his Eighth Passage Stage strength to deal with Long Chen, and he had made up the perfect excuse for it.


    If it were yesterday, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have been able to take even a single one of his attacks. Therefore, he was under the assumption that he could just kill Long Chen and say it was an ident.


    The Red Ghost King was impressed by his direct disciple¡¯s intellect andughed. ¡°You are right. Let¡¯s do as you¡¯ve said. Clear Shallows King, do you ept? If not, your direct disciple is lying, and you won¡¯t be able to me me for what happens next ...¡±


    The Clear Shallows King hesitated. Ying Shaotian was indeed strong, and even she didn¡¯t know how to turn the situation around. She would be asking for Long Chen to die if she asked him to take even a single hit from Ying Shaotian.


    The Clear Shallows King was about to reject that proposal when Long Chen interjected, ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. Let¡¯s do it right now. But if I manage to block it, take your master and get out of here. We do not wee you here.¡±


    ¡°Jiang Cheng ...¡± Both the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi were shocked. They thought Long Chen was being rash. Liu Yiyi had seen Ying Shaotian¡¯s strength, and he was stronger than her, so she was worried.


    Both the Red Ghost King and Ying Shaotian were surprised by how fast Long Chen had agreed. Ying Shaotian had a feeling that the situation was now beyond his control after a single sentence from Long Chen.


    ¡°To be fair, I wouldn¡¯t be here if it wasn¡¯t for the death of my junior.¡± Ying Shaotian nodded and epted Long Chen¡¯s proposal. If Long Chen could block a single attack from him, they would leave.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Long Chen said when he saw the Clear Shallows King frowning. He then walked to the empty spot in the middle of the pavilion and looked at Ying Shaotian. ¡°Come, stop wasting our time.¡±


    The Red Ghost King and Ying Shaotian exchanged looks before thetter approached Long Chen. Ying Shaotian stopped ten meters away from his target and looked at him carefully. He sensed nothing wrong with Long Chen.


    I watched him barely beat someone at the Fourth Passage Stage during the qualifiers. He¡¯s much weaker than me, yet he agreed to my proposal? Might as well kill him and let Master reward meter on ...


    Ying Shaotian circted his Qi and turned serious. A soft wind blew his sleeves, making him look like a godly general descending from the heavens.


    Long Chen decided not to transform. It was not yet time for him to reveal his true strength. He only needed to chase the two of them away today.


    Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows KIng looked on with concern on their faces. To the Clear Shallows King, Long Chen was her hope for the event in one month. If he died, she would be in trouble too.


    Ying Shaotian¡¯s body shed and he shot towards Long Chen like a tornado. When he got close, he pointed at Long Chen with his finger. The atmosphere changed, and strong wind hurled past the pavilion and blew Long Chen¡¯s hair wildly.

 Chapter 503 - Wind Riding Sword Finger

    <h4>Chapter 503 - Wind Riding Sword Finger</h4>


    Ying Shaotian was talented in wind-attribute techniques just like Chu Yunxi was. Inside the tornado, Ying Shaotian pointed a single finger at Long Chen¡¯s throat. A strong ray of energy shot towards him like a sword.


    ¡°Wind Riding Sword Finger!¡±


    To make sure his n worked, Ying Shaotian used an advanced Heaven-tier martial technique. The strongest aspect of this technique was its speed. Just like Long Chen¡¯s Sword Devil Finger, Ying Shaotian had used it when the sword was already near Long Chen¡¯s throat.


    The attack was several times scarier than Ling Xi¡¯s Sword Devil Finger in terms of speed and strength.


    Under the whirlwind¡¯s effect, the sword was also rotating like a drill. If it hit Long Chen, it would pierce through his throat!


    Both Demon Kings were in awe at the attack. With Ying Shaotian¡¯s talent, he would definitely be the next Demon King in just ten years. A Demon King at the age of twenty-seven was unheard of.


    Of course, there were many others at the Earth Martial Realm in the pce.


    The Clear Shallows King was frowning. She knew most of Long Chen¡¯s battle strength came from his transformation, and he hadn¡¯t transformed yet, so he was defenseless against the advanced Heaven-tier martial technique. If Long Chen died here, he wouldn¡¯t be able to participate in the uing assessment.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s face was pale. Long Chen was a boy who had left a deep impression on her. She couldn¡¯t stop Long Chen¡¯s naughty smile for the past few days, not the stoic expression he had on his face when he walked away. If he died now, her heart would be empty.


    The Clear Shallows King was about to save him when she saw the Red Ghost King staring at her. It was likely that he would stop her the moment she moved.


    At the final moment, Long Chen made his move. Everyone was shocked to see him transform into a blood-red light and dodge the attack. He also disappeared from the Clear Shallows King Pavilion.


    Both the Clear Shallows King and the Red Ghost King saw the bizarre scene.


    They were certain that even if they used all their strength, they could not move at such speeds. Only one person could move at that speed, and it was none other than the master of the Ancient Demon Domain, the one who was called the Demon Emperor, Jiang Wuxie!


    The two were stunned. Only Liu Yiyi sighed in relief when she saw that Long Chen was fine. She looked towards the outside of the pavilion and knew that Long Chen was somewhere nearby.


    She had seen how mysterious Long Chen was. She was certain that she had killed him in their fight, but he hade out unscathed. And now, despite being at such a low cultivation level, he had exhibited such demonic speed ...


    Ying Shaotian was the one who was most surprised. He had finally found a chance to kill Long Chen with justification, but Long Chen had somehow disappeared right before his eyes. With that speed, he was a hundred times faster than Ying Shaotian!


    That was how Long Chen disappeared. Ying Shaotian recalled his technique and almost spat blood at how he had missed Long Chen with that attack. Still, he could not trash the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    After recalling his technique, he looked back in a daze. His gentlemanly look was gone because of how zoned-out he was.


    ¡°That technique ... seems to burn up Qi to escape. It¡¯s very rare to find one,¡± the Clear Shallows King mumbled to herself.


    She now understood how Long Chen had dodged Zhao Wuji¡¯s Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman that night. It wasn¡¯t because he was strong enough to withstand the damage, but because of his method to escape.


    Blood Warp was incredibly strong, and there was no limit to its speed. There were other techniques used to escape, but all of them were limited by their tiers. Once a cultivator¡¯s level surpassed that tier, the technique would be useless. Blood Warp was in its own league!


    The Red Ghost King knew of the existence of such techniques.


    They then looked at Long Chen slowly strolling into the pavilion. He said to the Red Ghost King and Ying Shaotian, ¡°I believe you wanted to see how I survived the talisman, and I just showed it to you. Brother Ying¡¯s attack didn¡¯t even touch me, so I hope you are convinced that I was not lying. Please leave the pavilion now.¡±


    His voice was filled with authority and defiance.


    ¡°No, you needed to take on the technique, not escape it!¡± The Red Ghost King didn¡¯t know what to do here.


    ¡°Red Ghost King, did you forget what Ying Shaotian said? He said that he wanted to see how I survived the talisman, not block it. Red Ghost King, it¡¯s very easy for people to misunderstand what you are trying to do here. People might think you are trying to kill me through a test. You¡¯re not that kind of person, right?¡± Long Chen returned to the side of the Clear Shallows King.


    Long Chen¡¯s words made the Red Ghost King silent. Ying Shaotian was even more frustrated. He had shot himself in the foot. Long Chen had used his words against him, and there was no way to turn the situation around.


    Ying Shaotian shook his head at the Red Ghost King.


    The Red Ghost King¡¯s face turned even redder as he suppressed his anger, but the Clear Shallows King¡¯s face made him extremely mad. Zhao Wuji was dead, and as his master, he couldn¡¯t do anything due to the wager just now. Ying Shaotian had sealed the deal by setting the wrong conditions.


    He had no choice but to leave now.


    Thergest surprise hade from Long Chen. Both the Red Ghost King and Ying Shaotian looked at him. To think that the youth who had just entered the Ancient Demon Domain had so many secrets ... The Red Ghost King also recalled how Long Chen was supposed to be his direct disciple. He felt that he was blind to pass on Long Chen now that he had witnessed his talent.


    Of course, Long Chen hadn¡¯t shown his true power. If he had, the Red Ghost King would¡¯ve spat blood out of regret and died.


    ¡°Both of you, please leave,¡± Long Chen reminded them once more.


    The Red Ghost King gritted his teeth and suppressed the urge to smack Long Chen, but he was wary of the Clear Shallows King, so he had to endure it for now. Just then, he looked at Liu Yiyi and chuckled. ¡°Is this your daughter? She¡¯s growing up to be beautiful. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s an exaggeration to call her the greatest beauty in the Seven Demon King Pavilions. She would be a great match for Ying Shaotian. Clear Shallows King, don¡¯t forget about the bet we made before. It was made in front of the Demon Emperor himself. I wonder, can anyone in your pavilion defeat Ying Shaotian?¡±


    He thenughed and walked away. Ying Shaotian smiled and bowed. ¡°I apologize for the brazen words of my master. Miss Liu Yiyi is definitely stronger than me. It¡¯s uncertain who will win. I¡¯m sorry for offending you today, and I will return to apologize another day. Goodbye.¡±


    He then left with the Red Ghost King.


    Only Long Chen and the other two were left.


    Both the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi were impressed by how Long Chen had turned the situation around so easily.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, you did well today. I would like to appoint you as my direct disciple. Do you ept?¡±


    ¡°Of course I do ... But what¡¯s the bet that you made with them?¡± Long Chen had a feeling that the bet concerned Liu Yiyi and Ying Shaotian, and the reason why the Clear Shallows King was nurturing him so much was because of the bet.


    The Clear Shallows King knew that she could not hide it anymore, so she sighed and looked apologetically at Liu Yiyi. ¡°This was five years ago. I was rash and harmed Yiyi.¡±


    Harmed?


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°During the previous assessment, the Red Ghost King Pavilion got second ce and we gotst. At the final battle, the Red Ghost King¡¯s disciple killed our strongest disciple. We never had a friendly rtionship to begin with, so I fought him that day. Afterwards, we made a bet in front of the Demon Emperor. If we lost to the Red Ghost King Pavilion in the next assessment, I would marry off my daughter to his strongest disciple, and if he lost, he would have to kowtow three times to me and apologize.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King was regretting her actions when she looked at her daughter. ¡°This was the biggest mistake of my life. I harmed my daughter because of how rash I was, and I still me myself to this very day. Yiyi, I¡¯m so sorry ...¡±


    Long Chen suddenly felt like the Clear Shallows King was not as irritating as before.

 Chapter 504 - Demonic Illusion

    <h4>Chapter 504 - Demonic Illusion</h4>


    Seeing how sad her mother was, Liu Yiyi started to cry too. She carefully stroked her mother¡¯s arm. ¡°No, Mother, I don¡¯t me you. I know that we were always the weakest and you always felt bad because of the bet. I¡¯m so sorry for being weak. I¡¯m only at the Seventh Passage Stage, so I can¡¯t win against them. I¡¯m so sorry ...¡±


    The two apologized to each other without end.


    The Clear Shallows King had never really taken notice of Long Chen. When she discovered his strength and wanted to nurture him, Long Chen was shocked to hear that she wanted him to kill her direct disciple. That made him think that she was cruel, but she had her sad side as well. She loved her daughter, and that was why she had tried to dig out every single bit of potential Long Chen had in him so that he could represent her pavilion.


    Long Chen slowly forgave what the Clear Shallows King had done. It was already hard to survive as a woman in this male-dominated world, especially when it came to maintaining an entire pavilion by herself.


    When the mother and daughter duo stopped apologizing to themselves, the Clear Shallows King recalled something and looked at Long Chen with excitement. ¡°Jiang Cheng, Liu Yiyi is not strong enough to fight against Ying Shaotian yet. Do you think you can beat him if you train for another month? Yiyi¡¯s happiness is in your hands.¡±


    Long Chen thought about it. ¡°I have confidence when ites to increased my cultivation level, but Ying Shaotian is the Red Ghost King¡¯s number one disciple, so he definitely has more martial techniques than me. I think I¡¯mcking a good martial technique to win.¡±


    He had been trying toe up with a way to request the Demonic Illusion technique, and the opportunity had finally presented itself.


    ¡°What do you need?¡± The Clear Shallows King was more than happy to give him any techniques he wanted for the sake of Liu Yiyi. She was initially suspicious of Long Chen, but his performance today had convinced her of both his conviction and potential. Long Chen was a top fighter, but the Red Ghost King was too blind to see that.


    Long Chen looked at Liu Yiyi and smiled. ¡°The King-tierbat technique, Demonic Illusion.¡±


    Both she and the Clear Shallows King were slightly taken back. The Clear Shallows Kingughed bitterly. ¡°Did you see Yiyi use it? You have good taste. I will let you learn the King-tierbat technique Demonic Illusion, but can you learn it in one month? This is a King-tier we are talking about!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I know my limits. As long as you give it to me, I can solve your problem.¡±


    He had made a daring im, but both the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi saw the conviction in his eyes and trusted him. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do as you¡¯ve said. The Demonic Illusion is a technique taught to others through words. Since you and Liu Yiyi will be joining the assessment, you should just live with her so that she can teach you the technique.¡±


    ¡°Uh ...¡± Both Long Chen and Liu Yiyi felt awkward about that arrangement since they were technically single.


    The Clear Shallows King red at Long Chen. ¡°Jiang Cheng, I need to warn you not to do anything to my daughter, or I will kill you.¡±


    She was being serious.


    Long Chen was somewhat at a loss of words. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Even though your daughter is beautiful, not every man values appearances, right?¡±


    Liu Yiyi was still in a daze when she remembered that Long Chen had called her ¡°t.¡± Her face blushed with embarrassment and indignation.


    ¡°In that case, I will leave now. I want to enter the thirdyer of the Demon World. Could you send word to them to let me in?¡± Long Chen had heard that as long as their masters agreed, direct disciples could enter the thirdyer.


    ¡°You may do so, but why do you want to go there? It¡¯s filled with Category Seven Heaven-tier beasts. Many of them are stronger than Yiyi too. Are you sure you want to go there?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and it won¡¯t take long. I wille back and train with Yiyi once I¡¯m done with my own stuff.¡± Long Chen only had one reason to go there. Even though his strength had increased a lot, Xiang¡¯s cultivation was stuck. He had always been Long Chen¡¯s strongest ally, so Long Chen wanted to increase Xiang¡¯s strength too. There were sure to be strong fire-attribute monsters in the thirdyer, so going there now was a good choice. Xiang was only at the Category Four Heaven-tier, so there was not much he could help with right now.


    Once Xiang became stronger, Long Chen could focus on cultivating the Demonic Illusion until the assessment to obtain the Emperor me Pearl.


    Long Chen had always been mysterious, but the Clear Shallows King knew that he would never go overboard. She nodded and gave him a letter to enter the thirdyer of the Demon World. She even gave him a new identity token that signified his new position as her direct disciple.


    Once that was done, Long Chen left the pavilion.


    Both the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi stood there motionlessly.


    ¡°Yiyi, what do you think about Jiang Cheng?¡± the Clear Shallows King asked after she calmed down.


    ¡°I think he¡¯s strong yet mysterious, just like a cloud of fog that we cannot see through. He sometimes surpasses our expectations, and it is difficult to grasp his character.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King nodded. ¡°Do you know what I think of him?¡±


    ¡°Mother, what do you think of him?¡±


    ¡°I think he¡¯s very dangerous. He is covered in thorns, and he only retracts them around the people he cares about the most. If you are together with him, and you can¡¯t control him, you will find yourself hurt by those thorns. Do you understand? Try not to do anything to him, though it seems that you already have a budding idea in your heart ...¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Liu Yiyi was speechless. ¡°Mother, what are you saying? I just got to know him recently. You are thinking too much.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Hehe, maybe. Just don¡¯t interact with him too much when you teach him the Demonic Illusion.¡±


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you teach him, then?¡± Liu Yiyi was confused.


    ¡°He¡¯s even more guarded against me. If I teach him, there¡¯s a chance everything would fall apart. I need him to save you, but you are different. Your kindness will make him stay, and he will not fight against you.¡±


    ¡°Oh. I think I understand what you mean. You want me to make him like me, but I cannot like him?¡± Liu Yiyi finally understood what her mother was trying to say.


    The Clear Shallows King nodded, her eyes slightly sad. ¡°You are still young and haven¡¯t experienced much of the world, so you don¡¯t know what love is. Those who have their heart moved by love end up suffering the most. They are inflicted with countless wounds.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Liu Yiyi was slightly unnerved by her mother today.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand? Look at me. Do you not see what¡¯s wrong? Why does everyone have a father but you don¡¯t? Why does no one talk about your father? That¡¯s because no one knows who your father is, and I lost terribly in love.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King sighed and gently pushed Liu Yiyi away from her. ¡°Remember my words. Let him stay for a little longer. You can ignore him once the assessment is over ...¡±


    The Clear Shallows King left the pavilion, leaving only Liu Yiyi staring at her mother¡¯s back.


    ¡°My ... father?¡±


    ***


    Long Chen felt a shiver when he exited the Clear Shallows Pavilion. Someone was staring at him from the left. He used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and immediately saw who it was. He walked over and found Demon General Strongman.


    Demon General Strongman was surprised by how easily he had been spotted.


    His eyes were filled with hatred as he red at Long Chen. The Clear Shallows King''s actions to protect Long Chen made him feel indignant and frustrated. To think that he, one of the twenty-eight Demon Generals, and one of the four strongest Demon Generals of the Clear Shallows Pavilion, was nowhere near as important as Long Chen!


    ¡°How brazen of you to approach me,¡± Demon General Strongman growled.


    ¡°You leaked the news to the Red Ghost King, right?¡± Long Chen was calm in front of Demon General Strongman.


    ¡°And so what if I did? To think that even the Red Ghost King could not kill you. It seems that the Clear Shallows King has decided to coddle you.¡± Demon General Strongman chuckled.


    He had said ¡°coddle¡± rather than ¡°look after.¡± Those two had a different meaning altogether. Demon General Strongman was insinuating that the Clear Shallows King loved Long Chen and would do everything to protect him.


    I¡¯ve been here for a long time, yet I¡¯ve never heard of anyone mentioning her husband. Is she a widow? But why would Demon General Strongman say it in such a way?


    He looked up at Demon General Strongman. ¡°Do you think I¡¯m afraid of telling the Clear Shallows King what you¡¯ve just said?¡±


    Demon General Strongman chuckled. ¡°And so what if she finds out? She was the one who did it in the first ce, and now she wants to silence me? Only the Demon Emperor can pass judgment on a Demon General. She never loved herself and gave birth to a baby even before she was married. We don¡¯t even know who impregnated her, and now you want me to stop talking about it? You can tell her whatever you want, but I doubt she would kill me after I¡¯ve worked so hard for the Clear Shallows Pavilion.¡±


    Demon General Strongman was losing it ...

 Chapter 505: Third Layer of the Demon World

    <em>Zhao Wuji¡¯s death and his inability to do anything about it must¡¯ve impacted him a lot. He¡¯s going crazy, and it¡¯ll be dangerous if I continue standing in front of him like this since I¡¯m his enemy. He might kill me if I¡¯m not careful. </em>Long Chen said nothing and left.


    One thing he did take note of was what Demon General Strongman had said about the Clear Shallows King. Long Chen treated it as mere gossip though as he knew that the Clear Shallows King was not the kind of woman who would sleep with just anyone. Judging by how headstrong she seemed, she would only sleep with someone if they killed her first.


    Back in his room, Long Chen informed Xiang about his n. ¡°I have a method to go to the thirdyer of the Demon World, but let me consolidate my Qi first. It¡¯s still a bit unstable since I¡¯ve just reached the Seventh Passage Stage.


    Xiang nodded. Ever since they came to the Divine Martial Empire, he hadn¡¯t had a chance to help Long Chen in anything, so he was feeling ufortable even though there was no choice. His strength would only increase if he ate mes; he could not grow strong through cultivating.


    ¡°I will start cultivating the Demonic Illusion with Liu Yiyi in a few days. Since we learned Divine Fire Clone together, you should cultivate it too.¡±


    Xiang had also cultivated Long Chen¡¯s two divine techniques, Divine Fire Clone and the Demon Seed nting Technique. As long as Long Chen guided him, Xiang wouldn¡¯t have too much trouble mastering the Demonic Illusion.


    Two dayster, Long Chen finished consolidating his Qi. Only then did he depart for Demon World Mountain.


    He was now stronger than the first time he went there.


    The Clear Shallows King never announced that Long Chen had killed Zhao Wuji, and the Red Ghost King would die rather than humiliate himself by announcing that his disciple had lost. But there was one news that the Clear Shallows King had spread to the world, and that was Long Chen bing her direct disciple.This told the public that Huangfu Qi was indeed from the Huangfu family. The Red Ghost King had given up on Long Chen, causing thetter to lose his chance to be a direct disciple, but Long Chen had lucked out and ended up bing a direct disciple of the Clear Shallows King. Many people had seen Long Chen in the past, so he was recognized when he went out.


    After all, there were six thousand regr disciples, but only seventy or so were direct disciples. No matter where they went, they would be the focal point. Long Chen¡¯s poprity was technically at the bottom of the barrel, while Liu Yiyi and Ying Shaotian were known by everyone.


    Everyone steered clear of Long Chen when they saw his fierce face.


    Once back at the mountain, Long Chen heard someone gossiping about him. ¡°That¡¯s Jiang Cheng. He just got lucky and became a direct disciple. Do you see how haughty he looked?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no point in being haughty. He might be strong, but his potential is finished. I¡¯m sure he will be a regr disciple again in two years, and no one will pay him any mind. I heard that he was only at the First Passage Stage. It seems he might not even be an elder before the age of thirty.


    One needed to be at the Sixth Passage Stage to be an elder.


    There were many people above the age of thirty from the Ancient Demon Domain that had been sent out to work. Some of them worked in the businesses of the Ancient Demon Domain, some opened branch sects, and there were even a few who went to smaller kingdoms like the Cangyang Kingdom to build their own country.


    Long Chen ignored their gossip.


    Once back at the mountaintop, he jumped down and arrived at the firstyer. With his previous experience, he soon found the secondyer. He remembered the path leading to the thirdyer, but it was still arge ce to explore. It took a whole hour for Long Chen to find Demon General Typhoon again.


    It was clear that the Seven Layer Demon World was massive. The firstyer was around the size of the Ancient Demon Domain, and the secondyer was bigger than that. It was clear that the deeper levels would be evenrger.


    It was a strange Miniverse.


    The Ancient Demon Domain had been in operation for tens of thousands of years, and they never would¡¯ve chosen to build their base here if it wasn¡¯t for the Seven Layer Demon World. Many of therger sects were reliant on the Miniverse they found.


    Long Chen¡¯s appearance came as a shock to the guards who looked after the entrance to the thirdyer. Demon General Typhoon approached him. ¡°Jiang Cheng, this is the thirdyer of the demon world. There are demonic beasts at the Category Seven Heaven-tier. You should stand back a little.¡±


    He assumed Long Chen was lost.


    Still, he was surprised that Long Chen had found this ce so easily in the secondyer.


    ¡°Demon General, have you heard of the news of me bing the direct disciple of the Clear Shallows King?¡± Long Chen handed him his identity token.


    The Demon General examined it and returned it to Long Chen. ¡°I¡¯ve heard. Congrattions! Your future prospects are good if the Clear Shallows King is teaching you personally.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. This is a letter from my master.¡±


    He looked at the letter and was shocked. ¡°You want to enter the thirdyer?¡±


    As far as he was aware, Long Chen was only at the First Passage Stage, and he assumed that Long Chen had only managed to explore the secondyer because of his unrivaled talent in battle. But that should¡¯ve been his limit. It was too much of a joke for him to enter the thirdyer.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Yes. Please let me in.¡±


    Demon General Typhoon confirmed again and was certain that the Clear Shallows King had allowed him to enter the thirdyer. He had no right to stop him, but he still didn¡¯t understand why. At this moment, he suddenly hurled a punch and shouted, ¡°Take this!¡±


    He had controlled his strength to be around the level of a Fourth Passage Stage cultivator. Surely Long Chen wouldn¡¯t be able to defend himself.


    This test was his way of being kind.


    Long Chen smiled and extended his arm to block the attack easily before punching back. The Demon General''s eyes went wide with shock. ¡°Jiang Cheng, you crazy bastard! To think that you hid your strength so well! You are already close to the Seventh Passage Stage!¡±


    He didn¡¯t know that Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level increased explosively in the past few days. Progressing that quickly was impossible as far as he knew, so he assumed Long Chen had used a secret technique to hide his real cultivation level. If not, how could his new strength be exined?


    ¡°Can I enter the thirdyer now?¡± Long Chen whispered.


    Only the two of them knew about this.


    ¡°Of course. I had no idea you were hiding your strength; even I was fooled! The Red Ghost King will die from regret if he learns about your real strength.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°Please keep this a secret for now.¡±


    The Demon General Typhoon nodded. ¡°Of course. You may enter, but don¡¯t go too deep. There are Category Eight Heaven-tier demonic beasts in the deeper regions, and there¡¯s even a Category Nine Heaven-tier demonic beast in the deepest region!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Thank you. I will remember your warning.¡±


    Having said that, Demon General Typhoon led him to the entrance. Inside the entrance was a fork.


    ¡°The left leads to the thirdyer, while the right leads to the fourth. There was once a King-tier demonic beast in the fourthyer, but it was in a long time ago. Now that it¡¯s empty, they built arge warfield there, and it¡¯s where the assessment will be held. I hope you do well when that timees!¡±


    <em>The fourthyer?</em>


    Long Chen only knew that the assessment was going to be held at the fourthyer of the Demon World.


    That meant the entrance to the fifth, sixth, and seventhyers was hidden in either the third or the fourth, though it was most likely in the fourth.


    Long Chen thanked Demon General Typhoon and entered the thirdyer.


    As he had expected, it was just a beefed-up version of the secondyer. It was muchrger, and the dark gas in the sky was even more dense than in the secondyer. He even faintly sensed the presence of several demonic beasts in the area that posed a threat to him.


    Fat Cat suddenly spoke up at this point.


    ¡°I feel it. The thing that¡¯s consuming Life Qi is below us.¡±


    Long Chen was stunned. He kept hearing the cat talking about it, but what was its true nature?


    <em>Below? Maybe it¡¯s in the bottomyers? Around the seventhyer, maybe?</em>


    The rumored pce was built in one of the bottomyers.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Please tell me it''s a massive demonic worm eating up all that Life Qi. Giving me Dune vibes</blockquote>

 Chapter 506: Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast

    ¡°Do you know what it is?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s too far to tell. I might be able to detect it if we get to the sameyer, but the barriers between theyers are blocking me.¡± The cat sighed.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t go to the deeperyers for now, but he was confident that he would get there eventually if he stayed in the Ancient Demon Domain longer. He just wasn¡¯t sure how long it would take. His mission was to find a way to enter the Ancient Graveyard, so he wouldn¡¯t stay here for too long.


    The Ancient Demon Domain was just a ce for him to increase his strength. The Divine Martial Empire was massive, and he wasn¡¯t content with being stuck in one ce. He hade here to avoid the Martial Alliance as well as to hunt down stronger demonic beasts. After meeting Huangfu Qi, he hade up with another goal: obtain the Emperor me Pearl.


    And now it was within his sights.


    Once he reached the thirdyer, he didn¡¯t dare to let his guard down. The ce had fewer demonic beasts, but all of them were extremely strong. He used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to navigate the area. At his current stage, he needed the blood of a Category Nine Heaven-tier beast to be stronger. Unfortunately, he wasn¡¯t strong enough to kill one.


    The stronger he got, therger the gap between stages was. The advantages brought to him by his strong physical body hadpletely diminished.


    He was focused on finding fire-attribute demonic beasts in the thirdyer, but there were very few demonic beasts in the first ce, and finding ones that suited Xiang¡¯s needs was proving to be difficult. It took Long Chen almost four hours to find a Category Seven Heaven-tier fire-attribute beast.


    It was a wolf-type demonic beast. It wasrger than Xiang and its fur was red. The heat it emitted made it hard to see what it looked like. The Sun Devouring Wolf was originally a Category One Earth-tier beast, but because of its special talent, it was much rarer than the fire wolf in front of him.Long Chen didn¡¯t need to transform to hunt the beast down, since he was already at the Seventh Passage Stage. He took the Demon Emperor Sword and shot out a Supreme Demon Sword at the wolf¡¯s waist.


    The Sword Qi pushed the wolf several meters back, and Long Chen quickly followed it. He used Blood Devouring Domain at the same time to restrict the wolf¡¯s movements. Long Chen used this chance to stab his sword into the wolf¡¯s throat and destroy its brain using Sword Qi.


    The wolf howled and fell over. Long Chen picked up its demon core and ced the corpse in the Primordial Realm. It was a Category Seven Heaven-tier demonic beast, so there was a possibility the corpse would be useful at some point.


    The demonic core was enough for Xiang to advance into the next tier. Long Chen was happy to see his brother slowly growing stronger. Xiang¡¯s ability to devour fire was several times stronger than Long Chen¡¯s Blood Transmutation. Thetter had restrictions, but Xiang didn¡¯t. All he needed to do was eat as much as he could and he would eventually reach the peak of all demonic beasts.


    After some time, Xiang finished digesting the demonic core and reached the Category Five Heaven-tier. However, he had failed to copy the talent of the fire wolf, as the odds were fairly low. Thankfully, he had managed to copy the talent of the zing Lionst time, which allowed him to control the Nine Demons Ancestral Fire even more urately.


    ¡°I still can¡¯t hunt a Category Nine Heaven-tier beast, and I don¡¯t think there are any with the fire attribute here. Let¡¯s go see if there¡¯s any at the Category Eight Heaven-tiers instead. I can still hunt them down.¡±


    Xiang nodded. ¡°I will just follow you.¡±


    He was actually bored.


    Thanks to Long Chen¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, his growth could be described as explosive. If he got the Emperor me Pearl, he could easily reach the Ninth Passage Stage, and Xiang would fall behind. Thankfully, they were working together, and the stronger one would protect the weaker one until they grew up. Since Long Chen was stronger now, he was protecting Xiang while hunting down the resources for his brother to grow.


    If Xiang became stronger, he could hunt the demonic beasts down himself.


    Long Chen and Xiang slowly encroached into the deeper part of the thirdyer. Even though Demon General Typhoon had warned him not to go too deep, Long Chen slowly entered the deeper regions. After an hour, the demonic beasts around them became suspiciously scarce. Long Chen searched around for a long time, but he found nothing.


    ¡°Hmm. You are really lucky,¡± the cat suddenly said.


    ¡°Fat Cat? You found something?¡± Long Chen was pleasantly surprised.


    ¡°What should you call me?¡±


    ¡°Sir Cat, hehehe.¡±


    The catzily pointed at a direction, and Long Chen walked towards it. When he got closer, he sensed the temperature around him rising rapidly. The closer he got, the hotter it became.


    <em>It¡¯s a Category Eight Heaven-tier fire-attribute beast! I¡¯m so lucky!</em>


    But he didn¡¯t dare to let his guard down. Hunting down a Category Eight Heaven-tier beast was pushing it, though it would allow him to gauge how well he could handle an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator like Ying Shaotian. The only difference was that thetter would have a lot of martial techniques as he was a direct disciple of the Red Ghost King.


    He was closer now.


    There was a deep gorge in front of him. ck rocks littered the ce, and the walls were burnt ck. Long Chen entered the gorge and slowly moved towards the end.


    There were small embers floating in the air and white smoke drifted out from the rocks. The temperature was visibly high here. Those below the Divine Core Realm would be burned to a crisp in no time.


    He heard the sounds of a strong heartbeating from the depths of the gorge, signifying the strength of the beast. The loud heartbeat meant that its blood was very strong too, though the blood of a Category Eight Heaven-tier beast was no longer useful to Long Chen.


    Long Chen also understood that using Blood Transmutation to increase his cultivation level was not a good idea. He had only done it for the Emperor me Pearl. Thankfully, his emotions were still under control thanks to the hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence.


    Long Chen slowly made his way towards the beast. Soon, he saw what kind of beast it was.


    The beast¡¯s body was covered in green mes. The beast was ugly, with thick paws, sharp fangs, and green saliva. The disgusting saliva did not evaporate in the heat but instead burned a dark hole on the ground when it dripped out of the creature¡¯s mouth.


    The beast had one other characteristic: there were nine fiery wheels on its back, and they seemed to be the source of the fire.


    The greenish fire flowed viciously on its body.


    ¡°Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast ¡­¡± Long Chen recalled what he had read about it. It was a Category Eight Heaven-tier demonic beast that was fairly well known. Its strongest attack was called the Nine Wheels Ghost Fire. It was an attack that chained nine times with destructive force.


    Xiang was looking at the beast with greed. It was a delicious meal for him.


    ¡°Xiang, watch how well I perform, hehehe ¡­¡± Long Chen took out the Demon Emperor Sword and transformed. His blood-red scales and sharp bone spikespleted his battle form. The ancient and regal aura of a king overflowed from his body, and the Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast immediately reacted to it. It warily looked at the direction where Long Chen was hiding and stood up.


    After standing up, Long Chen saw that the beast wasrger than the wolf from earlier. Its thick paws indicated that it excelled in ripping things apart.


    Long Chen had decided that there was no point in sneaking around. He shot forward like a red arrow and used the Blood Devouring Domain in the process. Under its influence, Long Chen could attack even more fiercely!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    The beast howled in anger when it saw the small being attacking it.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    These names are such a hassle to trante and there''s no good alternatives!</blockquote>

 Chapter 507: Chen Feng

    The blood-red mist spread throughout the gorge, covering it like a red cocoon. Since Long Chen had a lot of Qi, the Blood Devouring Domain was stronger than ever. He imagined that he would easily be able to kill billions with it once he reached the peak of cultivation.


    Naturally, that was the level of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.


    <em>I should be able to use the full strength of the Heaven Sword Array right now. </em>Long Chen raised his sword as he flew close to the beast. A tornado of runes formed a massive array under hismand, then he shot it towards the beast.


    The Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast felt the threat to his life the moment Long Chen did that. It had thought Long Chen was insignificant, but now it treated Long Chen as its mortal enemy. The Heaven Sword Array disyed its true strength as it surrounded the beast from every direction. The entire gorge was covered by the array, and the rocks were cut up by its power.


    The coteral damage was caused by the tiny bits of power that escaped from the gaps in the array.


    Under the influence of both the Blood Devouring Domain and the Heaven Sword Array, the beast felt thergest threat it had ever faced, so it roared towards the sky. A suffocating demonic aura spread out and engulfed the surroundings. Long Chen felt like he was deep in the ocean and his movements were restricted.


    But the Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast was even more restricted, as Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain reduced at least twenty percent of its strength.


    The Heaven Sword Array above its head flew downwards, and the beast felt the threatening power approaching. It decided not to hold back¡ªthe greenish fire covering its body shot upwards. Nine fiery wheels made of green mes swirled rapidly around its body, then all of them detached and grew bigger. After a few seconds, the wheels grew into massive wheels of fire three meters across and flew towards Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array.


    The beast was confident it would be able to Long Chen as soon as it destroyed the Heaven Sword Array! It refused to believe that it was weaker than Long Chen, telling itself that it was only in this predicament because thetter hadunched a surprise attack.The nine wheels of fire were not weak in the slightest; Long Chen determined that they could destroy an entire mountain! A green sh of light exploded under the Heaven Sword Array that even outshone Long Chen¡¯s blood-red mist.


    <em>Is it using its strongest attack? </em>Long Chen smiled and saw that the Heaven Sword Array was going to sh with the wheels of fire. Only then did he release the remaining strength of the Heaven Sword Array that he had been intentionally suppressing. Long Chen had suppressed half of the array¡¯s strength in the beginning, yet it was enough to force the beast to use its strongest attack!


    The Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast was going to die!


    The Heaven Sword Array generated an inexhaustible number of swords that sliced apart the nine wheels of fire. Following that, the runes shot downwards and exploded. The beast could not defend itself, so its organs were blended up by the swords.


    Long Chen was stunned by the Heaven Sword Array¡¯s full strength.


    No wonder Ling Xi had said the technique was close to being a King-tier technique even though it was only an advanced Heaven-tier. The Category Eight Heaven-tier Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast was no match for Long Chen. Although they had a simr amount of Qi, their techniques weren¡¯t on the same level.


    After giving Xiang the demonic core, Long Chen took the corpse and left. Their battle had caused a hugemotion, and it would be bad if anyone or anything came here right now.


    Xiang took the demonic core and started refining it once he was back in the Primordial Realm. As for Long Chen, his mission in the thirdyer of the Demon World was nowplete. He was also confident that he could win the assessment.


    <em>The other pavilions don¡¯t know about me. I will give them a huge surpriseter!</em> Long Chen needed to get his hands on the Emperor me Pearl no matter what.


    <em>Earthly Martial Realm, Heavenly Martial Realm, and Divine Martial Realm ¡­ I need to be at least at the Divine Martial Realm to be able to meet Ling Xi, but can I grow that strong? No one in thisnd is above the Heavenly Martial Realm. Of the millions of people in the Cangyang Kingdom and the hundreds of billions of people in the Ten Thousand Nation Territory, even the strongest person has only managed to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm. Will I be able to surpass them?</em>


    He was under a lot of stress.


    Long Chen stopped thinking about it. Now that he hadpleted his objective, he headed for the exit. There wasn¡¯t much time left, and he still needed to cultivate the Demonic Illusion.


    He couldn¡¯t wait to have a shadow with almost as much strength as himself.


    He remembered how he had gotten here, so he quickly retraced his steps back to the entrance. However, two people intercepted him when he was about to reach the exit.


    One of them was none other than Ying Shaotian from the Red Ghost King Pavilion, and the other was another man slightly thinner than him. The man waspletely dressed in ck with ck skin. His nimble-looking body shape made Long Chen think that he looked like a ck panther, especially his cold eyes. Long Chen could feel the hostilitying from the man. Somehow, he sensed a stronger pressure from him than Ying Shaotian.


    The three of them stood still.


    ¡°Brother Chen Feng, he¡¯s Jiang Cheng from the Clear Shallows Pavilion. Someone as extraordinary as him is sure to be a pir of the Clear Shallows Pavilion soon.¡± Ying Shaotian¡¯s voice was filled with hints of sarcasm.


    The man called Chen Feng scoffed. ¡°Stop joking with me. He¡¯s barely qualified to join the assessment, much less be an elder or a pir.¡±


    ¡°Then you don¡¯t know what I¡¯ve experienced myself. I used the Wind Riding Sword Finger on him, and he somehow managed to avoid it with his incredible speed! You¡¯re always trying to improve your speed, so you should be interested in his escape technique ¡­¡± Ying Shaotian chuckled and looked at Long Chen with eyes glimmering with schemes.


    No wonder Ying Shaotian was talking in circles. Long Chen understood what he wanted to do¡ªhe wanted Chen Feng to get interested in Blood Warp. Long Chen would never give it to him, and then Chen Feng would then attack him. That was a good n indeed.


    The man called Chen Feng lit up with excitement and asked, ¡°Are you certain, Brother Ying?¡±


    ¡°He even managed to escape the Nine Heavens Thunder Talisman. What do you think?¡±


    Chen Feng looked at Long Chen with greed in his eyes. ¡°I am Chen Feng from the Azure Purgatory King Pavilion. Have you heard of me before? I¡¯m the eldest disciple there.¡±


    Long Chen shook his head. ¡°Never heard of you. Are you famous?¡±


    ¡°Not really, but I¡¯m the only disciple who has reached the Ninth Passage Stage in the seven pavilions,¡± Chen Feng said with pride.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t heard of the news? He reached the Ninth Heaven Stage a few days ago and shocked the entire Ancient Demon Domain. It¡¯s natural you don¡¯t know a lot of things. Hahaha ¡­¡±


    <em>Ninth Passage Stage?</em>


    Long Chen looked at the man, and sure enough, he felt the strength of a Ninth Passage Stage cultivator. It appeared that he was indeed the strongest disciple in the seven pavilions, powerful enough to rival a Demon General.


    Long Chen knew that there was a massive gap between the Eighth and Ninth Passage Stages, since one could soar in the sky at the Ninth Passage Stage. Since Chen Feng had activated his heavenly meridian point, he could fly too.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to bully you, but Brother Ying says that you have a special technique used to escape. Could you give it to me? I can trade an advanced Heaven-tier technique for it. You can choose either a martial technique, a body tempering method, or even bodybat techniques. Judging your strength, that technique is an advanced Heaven-tier technique, right? If we make a trade, you can gain another advanced Heaven-tier technique. What do you think?¡±


    Chen Feng was looking at Long Chen with anticipation. Long Chen was supposed to tearfully ept the offer due to the other party¡¯s identity, and he would get another technique at the same tier, but Long Chen did not budge.


    Chen Feng¡¯s face slowly changed.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Might as well as rob it why don''t ya?</blockquote>

 Chapter 508: Emperor Flame Pearl and Beauty

    ¡°Jiang Cheng, Chen Feng is offering to trade a technique at the same tier. You can¡¯t just decline his offer. There aren¡¯t a lot of disciples in the Clear Shallows Pavilion, so you will be joining the assessment, right? Even though Chen Feng is already at the Ninth Passage Stage, he¡¯s going to be there as well. If you refuse, you will sufferter.¡± Ying Shaotian chuckled sneakily.


    <em>Even someone at the Ninth Passage Stage is joining the assessment to get the Emperor me Pearl?</em>


    Chen Feng had managed to advance a few days ago, after the rosters had been confirmed. Even though he didn¡¯t need the me Emperor Pearl anymore, he could give it to others. There was no reason for him to not join it.


    Long Chen was slightly taken aback. This was beyond his expectations. He thought the Emperor me Pearl was as good as his with his current strength, but having topete with someone at the Ninth Passage Stage would make things difficult.


    Chen Feng would be a deadly foe for him to face.


    But Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid. All it meant was that his chances of winning had be slimmer. Also, Chen Feng would not be able to cultivate Blood Warp even if he got it.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t fazed by theirbined threat. Even someone like the Clear Shallows King could not capture him if he used Blood Warp, much less two disciples. Long Chen looked at them and said coldly, ¡°It¡¯s my technique. It¡¯s up to me whether or not I give it to you. Now, it¡¯s not a courteous thing to block the path of others. A good dog doesn¡¯t block the road, don¡¯t you know that?¡±


    Both Ying Shaotian and Chen Feng were stunned by his words. They thought Long Chen was weak. In the past, Chen Feng would¡¯ve just taken what he wanted rather than trying to bargain, but Long Chen had thrown his offer into the dirt just like that. He had even called them dogs!


    They exchanged angry looks and nodded at each other. They were nning to kill Long Chen here. Since this was the thirdyer, they could push the me onto the beasts. In their eyes, Long Chen was stupid for offending them.¡°What? Are you going to kill me?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid. He took a few steps back and chuckled. ¡°Are you stupid? Ying Shaotian, you know that I have a method to escape. You think you can seed the second time after failing the first?¡±


    Ying Shaotian knew that Long Chen was right. Long Chen did indeed have the power to fight back, because he could escape and there was nothing either of them could do about it.


    It was frustrating to know that there was nothing he could do despite being stronger than Long Chen!


    But Chen Feng hadn¡¯t seen the technique before, so he didn¡¯t believe in Long Chen¡¯s ims. His Qi exploded and he growled, ¡°Then you will die here. Jiang Cheng, just try to escape!¡±


    Chen Feng¡¯s speed exploded and he appeared in front of Long Chen instantly!


    <em>He¡¯s too quick! </em>


    Chen Feng was like a ck panther that excelled in speed. No wonder he was so interested in Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp. Even though he specialized in speed, that didn¡¯t mean he was weak in other aspects; someone at the Ninth Passage Stage would never be weak. His fist caused the air to explode.


    To think a simple fist could be so strong!


    ¡°Too slow!¡± Long Chen turned into a red light and disappeared right before their eyes. He was a hundred meters away from the exit when he reappeared.


    Chen Feng turned around, his eyes lighting up in excitement.


    ¡°What an incredible technique!¡± Chen Feng needed the technique now. He forgot the humiliation Long Chen had given him and said, ¡°Jiang Cheng, I will trade two advanced Heaven-tier techniques for it! You are benefiting from this trade!¡±


    Long Chen shook his head adamantly. ¡°Dream on. I wouldn¡¯t agree even if you gave me a King-tier technique.¡±


    Chen Feng¡¯s eyes turned bloodshot. ¡°Don¡¯t force me! You can¡¯t run away with only a single technique. I have a dozen ways to kill you!¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Long Chen smiled. ¡°It¡¯s too bad I don¡¯t have time to deal with you. Just wait for the date of the assessment to fight me. I will give you a surprise on that day. As for Ying Shaotian ¡­¡±


    Long Chen looked at him with hostility. Ying Shaotian was the one who had instigated this. ¡°You still have to get through me to get married to Liu Yiyi. Don¡¯t daydream too much¡ªit¡¯s not good for your body! Hahahaha¡­¡±


    Without waiting for their reply. Long Chen exited.


    Ying Shaotian and Chen Feng looked at each other in bewilderment.


    ¡°Brother Ying, does he intend to challenge us during the assessment?¡±


    Ying Shaotian revealed a taunting look. ¡°He probably got kicked on the head by a donkey. Someone like him won¡¯t live long. All he has is a strange escape technique and he thinks he can beat us?¡±


    Chen Feng smiled too. ¡°What a distasteful encounter. To think a dog could crawl all over my head and we couldn¡¯t do anything. Our reputation will be tarnished if news gets out.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We can just teach him a lesson during the assessment. How about something like asking him to kowtow and kneel to us?¡±


    ¡°Good idea, Brother Ying. Even though I¡¯m already at the Ninth Passage Stage, I truly admire your talent. Once we pass the assessment, you will be able to enjoy your nights with that beauty Liu Yiyi.¡± Chen Feng revealed a grin that only men could rte to.


    ¡°She¡¯s just a pretty skeleton in the end. You¡¯ve probably had your fair share of women, right? Probably ten times more than me. I¡¯m sure all of your women are extremely beautiful. I¡¯m actually the one who should be admiring you since the Emperor me Pearl is undoubtedly yours.¡±


    ¡°The Emperor me Pearl? I have no use for it. How about I give it to you and you give me Liu Yiyi? I kinda like her.¡± Chen Feng chuckled.


    Even though he was stoic like a panther on the outside, he was a wolf on the inside.


    ¡°You¡¯re a funny guy! Hahaha ¡­¡±


    ***


    As the two of themughed, Long Chen bade Demon General Typhoon goodbye. He then left the Seven Layer Demon World and returned to the Clear Shallows Pavilion. On the way, he received excellent news¡ªXiang had reached the Category Six Heaven-tier. More importantly, he had managed to copy the special talent of the Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast and could manifest nine wheels of fire. It would be a deadly technique if he used it with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Long Chen had seen firsthand how strong the technique was and was certain that Xiang could elevate it to be even more destructive with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    <em>But Chen Feng is at the Ninth Passage Stage. It seems that the assessment just became harder. I need to find Liu Yiyi and learn the Demonic Illusion as soon as possible.</em>


    The moment he returned to the pavilion, he went to Liu Yiyi.


    Time was now the deciding factor for Long Chen to win.


    Liu Yiyi had been waiting for him, and she sighed in relief when she saw him. ¡°Why did you go to the thirdyer of the Demon World? Aren¡¯t you afraid of being attacked by powerful demonic beasts?¡±


    ¡°Were you worried about me?¡±


    ¡°No ¡­¡± Under his intense gaze, Liu Yiyi backed off and shook her head. ¡°There¡¯s a certain condition to fulfill to cultivate the Demonic Illusion. Come with me.¡±


    Long Chen had teased her because it was fun, but he never thought she would be so shy. He stopped teasing her and followed her towards the back of the pavilion. They soon reached a deste mountain. Long Chen had a feeling that something was blocking regr people from entering this ce.


    ¡°This is the mountain behind the Clear Shallows Pavilion. A natural seal prevents people from entering, though someone at the Ninth Passage Stage could just fly over it.¡± Liu Yiyi didn¡¯t even have the courage to look at Long Chen while she spoke.


    Long Chen stopped.


    Watching her from behind and hearing her mention seals made him think of the girl he loved. He suddenly felt parched, a result of having his emotions suddenly stirred.


    After experiencing life and death together, their journey had ended in separation. Ling Xi¡¯s crying face and Wang Chao¡¯s deadly punch continued to y again and again in his brain. Even his breathing became heavier.


    Sensing that Long Chen had stopped, Liu Yiyi turned around and saw that he had lowered his head. Bloodlust emanated from Long Chen¡¯s menacing body. Liu Yiyi was surprised and took several steps back.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng ¡­ You ¡­¡±


    Long Chen snapped out of it.


    Jiang Cheng, not Long Chen.


    He recalled his identity in the Ancient Demon Domain and suppressed the pain in his heart. He smiled at Liu Yiyi and said, ¡°I¡¯m fine, let¡¯s go ¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi nodded and turned around without another word.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I miss Ling Xi too. I wonder how''s she doing</blockquote>

 Chapter 509: Single Guy and Lady

    The way Long Chen had acted just now made Liu Yiyi wary. She kept wondering what happened to him to make him look like that. He was so mysterious. As much as she was curious about him, she didn¡¯t dare ask.


    The Clear Shallows King had told her that Long Chen was a dangerous man, and now Liu Yiyi knew what she meant.


    They soon reached their destination. There was a cave in front of them, and Liu Yiyi exined, ¡°To cultivate the Demonic Illusion, you need to be able to see your shadow. This is a closed-off ce to cultivate it. Since we have less than a month to cultivate it, we will have to ¡­ ¡° She blushed.


    She would have to cultivate here with Long Chen for the rest of the month. She had never spent so much time with him before, so she was panicking.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t eat you.¡± Long Chen smiled wryly. Now recovered, he entered the dark cave. The cave was long but narrow, with only enough room to fit two or three people side to side. They walked for ten meters before Long Chen saw light. At the end of the tunnel was arge, circr cavern around fifty meters in diameter.


    There was only a single entrance to the cave, making it rtively sealed off. If it wasn¡¯t for the candlelight, the entire cave would bepletely dark. Long Chen spotted arge candle in the middle. It was feeding a palm-sized me that illuminated the cave. He also saw his own shadow on the wall.


    <em>It¡¯s very strange that the Demonic Illusion requires one to train in such an environment. </em>Long Chen looked around in awe.


    Liu Yiyi entered after he did. She was familiar with the ce since she cultivated here a lot. She walked to a small, wooden house at the edge of the cave. Even though the door was shut, Long Chen could tell that the interior was decorated quite exquisitely, befitting of Liu Yiyi¡¯s behavior.


    She blushed when he examined the house. ¡°I spent a lot of time here cultivating the Demonic Illusion. The Earthly Qi here is also thicker, so I¡¯ve beening here ever since I was young ¡­¡±¡°When you were young? Alone?¡± Long Chen was speechless. He wouldn¡¯t be able to endure the loneliness. Even now, he had Xiang and Fat Cat apanying him. He was impressed by how she endured it.


    ¡°This is where I live. You can¡¯te inside ¡­¡±


    Even though it was a weird house, Long Chen understood the rules. It was wrong to barge into a girl¡¯s room without any warning.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m not a bad person. I was just teasing you that night.¡±


    ¡°I know ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi nodded and looked at Long Chen with glimmering eyes.


    The atmosphere was nothing less than romantic.


    The Clear Shallows King¡¯s arrangement was slightly problematic.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know what to say, and Fat Cat in the Primordial Realmughed and rolled on the ground.


    Liu Yiyi broke the silence first. ¡°The Azure Purgatory King Pavilion¡¯s Chen Feng reached the Ninth Passage Stage a few days ago, yet he still intends to join the assessment. Have you heard?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, do you intend to get the Emperor me Pearl?¡± Liu Yiyi asked boldly.


    She was not stupid, so she knew what he wanted, and Long Chen had no need to hide it. ¡°Of course. Who doesn¡¯t want it? But obtaining it is another thing altogether.¡±


    ¡°But Chen Feng is really strong. Can you win against him with your current strength?¡±


    ¡°Probably not. That¡¯s why I need the beautiful Miss Liu Yiyi to teach me the King-tierbat technique.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Being called beautiful made her feel a bit awkward, and her heart beat faster. She even felt her face turning hot when she lowered her head. ¡°Chen Feng is the strongest disciple in the seven pavilions. You need to work hard.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, but Miss Liu ¡­¡±


    ¡°Just call me ¡®Senior Yiyi.¡¯ You are technically my mother¡¯s disciple.¡±


    Long Chen smiled helplessly. Liu Yiyi was actually much younger than him. ¡°I have a question. Where is the pce? Whichyer is it in?¡±


    ¡°Only those at the rank of Demon General and above can enter the pce. I never went there before, but I know it¡¯s at the fifthyer of the Demon World,¡± Liu Yiyi answered.


    ¡°The fifth? Then what¡¯s in the sixth and seventhyers?¡± Long Chen asked again. He remembered the cat telling him that the thing sucking the Life Qi was at the bottomyers.


    ¡°I know the sixthyer is the Demon Emperor¡¯s vault. There are numerous halls in there that safeguard various Divine Arms, spiritual herbs, and martial techniques. All of his assets are located there. As for the seventhyer ¡­ I¡¯ve never heard anything about it. I suppose no one has been there before?¡±


    <em>That means the being or the thing is at the seventhyer?</em>


    Long Chen secretly noted down the information and continued asking questions to defuse the awkwardness. ¡°Then, other than the Demon Emperor, is there anyone else notable in the pce?¡±


    Liu Yiyi slowly grew confident. She answered his questions and didn¡¯t blush that easily anymore. ¡°The grand elders are there too. All of them are at the Ninth Passage Stage, and there are fifty of them. Each of them is as strong as a Demon General. There will always only be twenty-eight Demon Generals that handle the various administrative tasks in the Ancient Demon Domain. If someone reaches the Ninth Passage Stage and doesn¡¯t want to be a Demon General, they can choose to be a grand elder. The grand elders hold the same position as the Demon Generals, but they only need to concentrate on cultivating and are not burdened by administrative tasks. Chen Feng will probably be one after the assessment.¡±


    Long Chen was shocked. He thought there were only twenty-eight people at the Ninth Passage Stage in the Ancient Demon Domain, but he was wrong. There were fifty more! To think there were almost eighty people that were stronger than him. Long Chen felt his scalp go numb at the thought of so many people above him.


    Long Chen had underestimated the strength of the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°The family of the Demon Emperor also resides in the pce, including Jiang Wushang, who is at the First Earthly Martial Stage.¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s eyes were filled with awe when she mentioned him.


    Reaching that stage at such a young age was almost unheard of. Jiang Wushang was undoubtedly the strongest youth in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Long Chen was also impressed with Jiang Wushang¡¯s strength.


    ¡°Are all of the Demon Emperor¡¯s sons as strong as Jiang Wushang?¡±


    ¡°No. He has nine sons. Some are strong and some are weak. But I¡¯m talking about their talent rather than their current strength. He has a ten-year-old son who reached the Third Passage Stage just like Huangfu Qi.¡±


    ¡°How weak is weak?¡± Long Chen was interested.


    ¡°I think one of his sons is around our age, but he is only at the Third Passage Stage. He is quite famous in the Ancient Demon Domain as a bad example ¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡± Long Chen nodded. He just wanted to know a bit about the pce and the Demon Emperor, as well as let Liu Yiyi familiarize herself with him. It would be difficult to cultivate the Demonic Illusion if Liu Yiyi kept blushing and avoiding him. ¡°Let¡¯s start training!¡±


    The two of them got closer, and Liu Yiyi started teaching him after seeing that Long Chen was not aiming to ¡°devour¡± her. She sighed in relief as Long Chen seemed sincere about learning.


    ¡°The Demonic Illusion is a special divine technique that surpasses all of the techniques in the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    When she started teaching, Long Chen sat down like a good student.


    ¡°Look at my shadow.¡± She pointed at the ground, and Long Chen saw her shadow elongating, then it suddenly stood up. The shadow was the same size and shape as Liu Yiyi.


    Except it was wearing no clothes.


    Still, since it was a shadow, there was nothing to see. It just had the same external shape as the user. But Long Chen sensed that the shadow was almost as strong as him.


    ¡°Do you sense anything from my shadow?¡±


    ¡°Hmm ¡­ I sense that I was wrong. You have a beautiful body.¡±


    Liu Yiyi froze and followed his gaze. She saw her curvy shadow, and her face exploded in a rush of red. Her face looked like an apple. She withdrew her shadow and pointed at Long Chen while huffing. ¡°You ¡­ You ¡­ You bastard student! Lecher!¡±


    ¡°Uh ¡­ I thought you wanted me to notice that.¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I approve. Who said you can''t have someone else other than Ling Xi?</blockquote>

 Chapter 510: Attack at Night

    Just like that, Long Chen apanied Liu Yiyi as he cultivated the Demonic Illusion in the cave. The reason they were here was not only because it was safe, but the ce also fulfilled the conditions of needing a clear and stable shadow to cultivate the Demonic Illusion. If one couldn¡¯t fly, the only entrance to the cave was through the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    Several days passed. Long Chen and Liu Yiyi became closer as time went on. Long Chen teased her a lot in the beginning, but he quickly became more serious. He kept asking her about the parts that he wasn¡¯t sure about during his cultivation. Cultivating martial techniques usually took years, ranging from one year to fifty, but Long Chen was different. After absorbing the Inherited Blood Essence, hisprehension was elevated to the point that even a King-tier technique wasparatively simple for him to learn.


    Xiang hadn''t even grasped the fundamentals when Long Chen¡¯s Demonic Illusion showed the initial signs of mastery. It had just been a few days since he started.


    Liu Yiyi was more and more impressed by Long Chen¡¯s performance. She knew how difficult it was to cultivate the King-tier technique, but Long Chen was making it look easy. He cultivated it without any bottlenecks.


    ¡°If you continue at this pace, you will be able to utilize the Demonic Illusion even better than me by the time the assessment rolls around.¡±


    Long Chen was focused and smiled inly before continuing his cultivation.


    Liu Yiyi stared at him while he focused. She was somewhat attracted to the outline of his nose and his focused gaze. The Clear Shallow King was right. Long Chen was horrifying when he revealed his thorns, but he looked very friendly when he wanted to. He was like a very friendly and approachable neighbor.


    <em>My mom told me to stay close to him, but I must not fall for him. </em>Liu Yiyi stopped looking at him and entered her room. The assessment was just around the corner, and she couldn¡¯t put all of her hopes on Long Chen. She needed to work hard too.


    Time passed as they cultivated their own techniques. They were seeing good improvements over time.<em>The first step of the Demonic Illusion is to feel the soul so that I can control the shadow. The second step is to absorb nature¡¯s spiritual energy using the technique and replicate my shadow. The shadow must have at least three-fourths of my strength. The third step is to control it. I must learn how to move it around while using different martial techniques. Only then can I say that I have mastered the Demonic Illusion.</em>


    Long Chen hadpleted the first step, so he could control his shadow to a certain extent. Now it was time to learn the second step. It took him five days to form the shadow replica of himself.


    Now all he needed to do was learn how to control it. He needed to familiarize himself with using the Demonic Illusion forbat. It would take a long time to be able to do so, just like a baby learning how to walk.


    Ten days had passed since he first started cultivating the technique. Long Chen was busy controlling his Demonic Illusion to run swiftly in the cave when Liu Yiyi came out of her room. She didn¡¯t need to be here anymore, but something had attracted her to Long Chen. She smiled in approval when she saw his improvement.


    Long Chen continued to improve his control over the Demonic Illusion.


    He knew that hard work and effort would get him far, so he focused on his control until he felt like time was almost up.


    ¡°How many days do we have left? Is it daytime or night right now?¡±


    ¡°We still have sixteen days, and it¡¯ste at night.¡± Liu Yiyi stood up. She realized that her heart would start beating faster every time Long Chen talked to her. The first time she lost to him, she felt like he was a mischievous person. But after interacting with him for so long, she realized that Long Chen was focused on his goal, and he would never stop going after it.


    ¡°Why are you here thiste? Aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll eat you since nobody¡¯s here to see?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    He liked how embarrassed she got from his teasing. It was his sole entertainment in the cave.


    ¡°I know you wouldn¡¯t.¡± Liu Yiyi smiled. She was not afraid of him anymore, but a numbing feeling traveled up her body when she saw how Long Chen was looking at her.


    ¡°How¡¯s everything outside?¡± Long Chen hadn¡¯t gone outside in days, since he was focused on cultivating.


    ¡°The entire Ancient Demon Domain is getting more and more excited because of the Emperor me Pearl. Everyone is talking about it ¡­ as well as about the bet between my mother and the Red Ghost King. They are probably waiting to see the disgraceful defeat of the Clear Shallows King ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi revealed an exasperated look.


    She really couldn¡¯t stomach the thought of marrying Ying Shaotian. She had been living in this ce for a long time, so she knew about the scandals involving him. She hated those kinds of people.


    ¡°Is that so? I think they will be surprised by the results because of me.¡± Long Chen smiled with confidence.


    Long Chen was confident he could beat Ying Shaotian, but he was wary of Chen Feng. He wasn¡¯t certain if he could win against someone at the Ninth Passage Stage. It was impossible to reach the next cultivation level in the time he had left, so he would have to rely on hisbat experience to eke out a victory.


    He needed to cultivate the Demonic Illusion to perfection so that he could use it as a hidden trump card.


    Liu Yiyi nodded. Her fate was in Long Chen¡¯s hands. No matter how strong their opponents were, she was confident in his strength.


    She knew that Long Chen was at the Seventh Passage Stage just like her. Long Chen had defeated her when he was at the Fifth Passage Stage, so it would be easy for him to defeat Ying Shaotian.


    Both of them quietly continued their cultivation.


    Liu Yiyi suddenly remembered something that was trivial to her. ¡°Also, when I came back here, I saw Demon General Strongman following me from afar. I don¡¯t know what he was doing. When I turned around, he disappeared.¡±


    Long Chen shuddered. He stood up and shouted at her, ¡°You idiot! Why didn¡¯t you tell me that first!?¡±


    Liu Yiyi was shocked.


    Long Chen immediately used Sight and looked outside. He knew that Demon General Strongman hated him, and the reason he had hidden himself in this cave was to avoid him. Someone who had gone crazy was the worst kind of opponent. After being shunned by the Clear Shallows King, the resentment he had for Long Chen was boiling over. Strongman would never let Long Chen live!


    Demon General Strongman had been suspicious of Long Chen¡¯s extended disappearance. That was why he had followed Liu Yiyi and learned that Long Chen was cultivating the Demonic Illusion in the cave. Liu Yiyi had told Long Chen that while the mountain had a seal around it, those who could fly could enter. If Demon General Strongman really wanted to kill Long Chen, he would already be here!


    Long Chen recalled the bloodlust emanating from Demon General Strongman after the Red Ghost King was chased away.


    Just as he had expected, he saw a towering man running towards the cave when he used Sight. The man¡¯s heavy footsteps shook the cave.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s face paled when she saw Demon General Strongman at the mouth of the cave. He was wearing ck armor that covered his entire body. A wild and terrifying aura exuded from his body, and his bloodshot eyes resembled those of a beast.


    Demon General Strongman let out augh when he saw Long Chen and Liu Yiyi. ¡°How lucky. To think that I would find both of you bitches here. No wonder I didn¡¯t see you for so many days!¡±


    Long Chen thought he would be able to cultivate in peace until the assessment; he never thought Demon General Strongman would find him! Long Chen was well aware of Demon General Strongman¡¯s strength and resentment. Dealing with him would be difficult, and he would have to put his life on the line to win.


    Long Chen grew serious at the imminent danger.


    ¡°Bitches?¡± Liu Yiyi was visibly upset by the insult and red at him. ¡°I¡¯m obeying my mother¡¯s order to teach him the Demonic Illusion. We are not doing anything immoral here!¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Thest thing you need to worry about is him calling you and your mom a bitch</blockquote>

 Chapter 511: True Martial Demon Body

    ¡°It¡¯s not what I think it is?¡± The Demon Generalughed. ¡°And what else would it be? You two have set up a little love nest here. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve been having fun for the past few days. You are indeed a bitch, just like your mother. To think that you are even more of a whore than her.¡±


    Demon General Strongman¡¯s words were vile. Liu Yiyi never thought he would say something like that, and tears pooled in her eyes. She had never been scolded like this before.


    Seeing how helpless she was, Long Chen frowned. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to him. He¡¯s just incapable of reasoning with himself. Plus, you did nothing wrong. Why are you afraid of him? Even if we had done something, so what? It¡¯s your choice, so what does it have to do with him?¡±


    Long Chen was right. She nodded and recovered.


    Long Chen then looked at Demon General Strongman. ¡°I know you¡¯re here for me. She¡¯s innocent, so let her go. You came here to kill me, right? Let¡¯s settle the score right here and now.¡±


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, do you take me for a fool? If I let her go, she wille back with reinforcements. Since I¡¯m already here blocking your escape, that means I don¡¯t intend on living at the Ancient Demon Domain anymore. I will kill you and then enjoy myself with her. You think I¡¯m an idiot? Why wouldn¡¯t I take advantage of her since we are alone? This is the only way I can feel good after getting mistreated by that bitch the Clear Shallows King.¡±


    Long Chen snarled. He could tell the girl behind him was already trembling, so he gently took her hand. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He won¡¯t be able to do anything with me here.¡±


    A warm strength came from Long Chen¡¯s hands. The helpless Liu Yiyi felt safe thanks to him. Demon General Strongman was snarling and on the verge of insanity. He looked horrifying, but Long Chen was right. Now that the situation was at its worst, being afraid would not help her. The only thing she could do was fight back. At worst, she would die with Long Chen, but she didn¡¯t think that would be a bad way to go.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m not scared of him.¡± Liu Yiyi nodded. Long Chen¡¯s hand gave her a lot of warmth.¡°When the fight starts, find a way to escape. As long as you can escape, I will be fine.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to reveal the Primordial Realm if possible, or he would¡¯ve ced Liu Yiyi into it while he used Blood Warp to escape. Demon General Strongman would never be able to capture him like that. Still, Long Chen was certain that he could hold up against the Demon General until Liu Yiyi escaped. As long as she did, they would be safe.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to run away by myself. I want to stay with you ¡­¡±


    ¡°Have you forgotten my escape technique? As long as you are out of here, I will be safe!¡±


    Liu Yiyi finally realized that it was a good n. She had forgotten about the techniquepletely. As long as she could make it out, Long Chen would be able to escape too. Thankfully, they were whispering to each other, so Demon General Strongman did not hear them.


    Liu Yiyi was visibly more rxed now that they had a n. She nodded and waited to see how Long Chen would distract the Demon General.


    The Demon General smiled when he saw the two of them whispering to each other. He approached them, and the cave shook with every step.


    Liu Yiyi didn¡¯t know how strong Long Chen was, so she exined, ¡°He¡¯s called Strongman because he has a King-tier Body Tempering technique, the True Martial Demon Body! It¡¯s one of the top three strongest Body Tempering techniques in the Ancient Demon Domain. Only those above the Demon General rank are allowed to learn it, and only a few grand elders have managed to cultivate it sessfully. Out of all the Demon Generals, only Strongman was sessful in cultivating it, so you need to be careful!¡±


    ¡°True Martial Demon Body? King-tier?¡± Long Chen was shocked. A King-tier Body Tempering technique was far stronger than his own physical body. This was the first time he had met someone whose physical body was stronger than his after he had absorbed a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence.


    Demon General Strongman!


    The Clear Shallows King was stronger than the Demon Generals, but Long Chen hadn¡¯t gotten a chance to fight them yet.


    Long Chen felt an oppressive strengthing from Demon General Strongman. He felt like he was facing a tall mountain that had stood motionlessly for eons. Strongman wasn¡¯t that much smaller than demonic beasts, and his strength wasparable to theirs!


    The cave trembled every time Demon General Strongman took a step.


    ¡°Have you felt how insignificant you are after sensing my strength?¡± Demon General Strongman was only ten meters away. He raised his head and smiled cruelly at Long Chen before ogling Liu Yiyi. Liu Yiyi was indeed a beautiful girl with snow-white skin and a curvy body. Even old men like Demon General Strongman would desire her.


    Long Chen took a few steps back while he observed Demon General Strongman. He transformed as he retreated. Blood-red scales covered Long Chen¡¯s body while Demon General Strongman looked at him in surprise.


    Even he sensed how strong Long Chen had be after transforming.


    ¡°What a terrifying Beast Soul Transformation. You must¡¯ve absorbed a Beast Soul at the Category Nine Heaven-tier or above after you reached the Heavenly Passage Realm. It seems that you have quite the background here.¡±


    ¡°I do have a fairly formidable background. Still want to fight me?¡±


    ¡°Hmph! Even if the king of heaven wanted to protect you, I would still take your life today! I¡¯ve always wanted to leave the Ancient Demon Domain anyway! I can be the strongest man in one of the smaller kingdoms. Once I establish a kingdom, I can be the emperor and have as many beauties as I want.¡± Demon General Strongman chuckled as he envisioned his future. He always wanted to leave this ce, and Long Chen¡¯s arrival had hastened his decision.


    Plus, he needed to take revenge for Zhao Wuji.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that your physical body is the strongest amongst the youths. Let me show you today what a truly strong physical body looks like!¡± Demon General Strongman took a deep breath before charging at Long Chen.


    A simple punch from the Demon General was strong enough to split the seas. He did not hold back at all!


    ¡°Now!¡± Long Chen pushed Liu Yiyi to the side. He had already promised her that he would be safe the moment she managed to escape.


    In order to give her enough time to do so, Long Chen would have to distract Demon General Strongman. That was why he charged at him right after throwing Liu Yiyi to the side. While running towards the Demon General, he took out the Demon Emperor Sword and swung it. An incredibly strong Sword Qi crashed into the Demon General¡¯s fist.


    ¡°Haha! Too weak! You¡¯re barely scratching my itch!¡± Demon General Strongmanughed. Even though Long Chen used his full strength, he couldn¡¯t leave a scratch on Demon General Strongman¡¯s fist. The True Martial Demon Body was indeed overpowering!


    Long Chen was extremely shocked.


    Thankfully, Liu Yiyi did not waste any time. She ran as fast as possible towards the exit while Long Chen was fighting. The sooner she ran out, the better the chances of Long Chen surviving.


    Even though she was worried about him, she bit her lip and ran. Still, tears streamed down her cheeks. Long Chen could¡¯ve escaped if he didn¡¯t have her to worry about, but now he was risking his life for her!


    Long Chen was watching Liu Yiyi while he was fighting. He dodged Demon General Strongman¡¯s attacks. Demon General Strongman was proficient in melee, and Long Chen would die if he was hit by a single attack.


    So Long Chen decided to use the Demon Emperor Sword and used the Sword Qi to attack him from afar.


    ¡°Are you buying time for her to escape? How magnanimous of you.¡± Demon General Strongman reacted when he noticed Liu Yiyi running away. Rather than continuing his battle with Long Chen, he turned around to chase after Liu Yiyi. He could easily capture her because he was faster.


    Long Chen frowned. He never thought Demon General Strongman would focus on her. That meant his n would fail!


    Long Chen used the Heavenly Sword Array and the Blood Devouring Domain at the same time. Even though he wasn¡¯t sure if he could defeat the Demon General, he was hoping that he could at least stall for time.


    Sensing therge disturbance behind him, Demon General Strongman realized that danger wasing. He was on the verge of taking Liu Yiyi hostage, but he was forced to turn around to face Long Chen.


    <em>When did he get so strong!?</em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    How I imagine myself if I have the True Martial Demon Body</blockquote>

 Chapter 512: Blood Sacrifice Reappearance

    Demon General Strongman had thought Long Chen was at the Fifth Passage Stage because he had managed to kill Zhao Wuji. He had never thought Long Chen would be able to unleash such a fearsome attack.


    <em>He¡¯s strong! He¡¯s been hiding his strength all this time! </em>Demon General Strongman gave up on Liu Yiyi to face Long Chen¡¯s attack. The Heavenly Sword Array had beenpleted and was already above his head.


    At the same time, the Blood Devouring Domain had covered the entire cave. The blood-red mist obscured Demon General Strongman¡¯s vision. He also felt a strange force that threatened to suck his blood out!


    ¡°What is this?!¡± He was shocked and immediately used a portion of his Qi to counteract the suction.


    He was experiencing Long Chen¡¯s tenacity for the first time!


    <em>That brat! If I don¡¯t fight at my full strength, I will die!</em>


    He had no choice as the Heavenly Sword Array reached him. His Ninth Passage Stage Qi exploded, causing the entire cave to tremble. Wind blew everywhere as Demon General Strongman red at Long Chen before punching him.


    <em>Roar!</em>


    A tiger illusion appeared on his fist. The tiger charged towards the Heavenly Sword Array with terrifying speed. An incredible burst of energy swept past the entire cave and shook the mountain.Liu Yiyi was already at the entrance of the cave. She wanted to look back when she sensed the tremors, but she knew she would slow down if she did so. The longer she took, the more danger Long Chen would be in.


    ¡°Why are you doing this for me? We aren¡¯t close, so there¡¯s no reason for you to risk your life for me ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi was crying. She knew that Long Chen would only be safe if she managed to escape. So she continued to run towards the Clear Shallows King.


    Long Chen and Demon General Strongman sensed that Liu Yiyi was already out of the cave. Long Chen rxed a little, while Demon General Strongman frowned.


    ¡°Brat, you are forcing me to kill you faster!¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s escape meant that the Clear Shallows King woulde here soon. When she arrived, Demon General Strongman would undoubtedly die even if he killed Long Chen. That was why his killing intent exploded.


    <em>Roar! </em>


    The tiger illusion continued to crash into the Heavenly Sword Array. A strong surge of energy swept past everything, and chunks of earth fell from the cave¡¯s ceiling. If they continued to fight here, the entire cave would copse!


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat me even if you were ten times stronger!¡± Demon General Strongman¡¯s fist broke past the Heavenly Sword Array and sent Long Chen flying deep into the wall of the cave.


    Long Chen felt his blood boiling, and he almost spat out a lot of it. Demon General Strongman¡¯s attacks were indeed horrifying. Even a simple punch was much stronger than his Heavenly Sword Array!


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen chuckled. He had been wounded, but Liu Yiyi had managed to escape. Escaping would be easy if he used Blood Warp right now, but he chose not to. Not only did he want her to get further away, he didn¡¯t want his enemy to live any longer!


    Since Demon General Strongman wanted to kill Long Chen, Long Chen naturally wanted to kill Demon General Strongman!


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t kill you even if I were ten times stronger? What a joke. I haven¡¯t used this in a long time ¡­¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s confidence confused Demon General Strongman.


    Not only had he not used it in a long time, he had only used it twice in his life. Both times were when he was being chased in the Cangyang Kingdom.


    It was Blood Sacrifice!


    It was an incredible technique that was no weaker than Blood Transmutation and the Dragon Soul Transformation.


    Blood Sacrifice had three stages. The first stage would sacrifice one stage of his cultivation to temporarily increase his cultivation level by one stage. If he used it now and paired it with his Dragon Soul Transformation, he would have as much Qi as someone at the Ninth Passage Stage! But after the duration ran out, he would drop down to the Sixth Passage Stage.


    The second stage would sacrifice two stages to temporarily increase his cultivation level by two stages. After the technique expired, he would drop down to the Fifth Passage Stage.


    The third stage sacrificed three stages to temporarily increase his strength by three stages. He would drop down to the Fourth Passage Stage after it was over.


    Blood Sacrifice was ast resort. Not only would it cause his cultivation level to regress, it would also damage his body to a certain extent.


    The first stage¡¯s bacsh was minimal to non-existent. The second stage had to be used sparingly as it would inflict a moderate bacsh. He had used the second stage to fight against Song Zhongcheng and Lin Zichen. The third stage would cause a considerable bacsh that would cripple him for an extended period of time. He couldn¡¯t use it unless he was on the verge of death.


    Long Chen actually had many different techniques to save his life. Rewind, Blood Warp, and Blood Sacrifice were extremely strong techniques that had saved his life in different ways.


    It was fine for him to use the first stage, and since Liu Yiyi had escaped, he could use it to kill Demon General Strongman now!


    Blood-red fire lit up on Long Chen¡¯s body. As the fire grew, Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level increased. Coupled with his transformation, he now had as much Qi as a Ninth Passage Stage cultivator!


    He had used the first stage of Blood Sacrifice!


    The burning fire shocked Demon General Strongman.


    ¡°What is that?¡± He wanted to kill Long Chen as quickly as possible, but he waspletely stumped when he saw the fire.


    ¡°It¡¯s something that will take your life!¡± The first stage waspleted. Long Chen had kept some demonic beast corpses for emergency situations, and now he could use them!


    His eyes were filled with blood-red fire too.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Just as Demon General Strongman wanted to deal with Long Chen as soon as possible, thetter was thinking the same thing!


    Due to the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen had never been defeated by enemies at the same cultivation level as himself. Since he was stronger now, Demon General Strongman had a hard time resisting the Blood Devouring Domain!


    ¡°What is this!?¡± Demon General Strongman started to lose control over his blood, so he allocated even more Qi to suppress it. It took half of his Qi to stabilize himself.


    Just then, a Heavenly Sword Array ten times stronger than beforended on him.


    ¡°No!¡± Demon General Strongman howled and punched numerous times, but his attacks were too weak. The sharp edges of the Heavenly Sword Array tore the Demon General to shreds. Only his Universe Pouch survived Long Chen¡¯s merciless attack.


    Long Chen quickly stashed it.


    Blood Sacrifice¡¯s duration soon ran out, and Long Chen saw the Earth Yang meridian slowly closing itself. He quickly sat down and started to use Blood Transmutation on the Nine Wheels Ghost Fire Beast. After transforming the blood into Qi, he quickly used it along with some Heavenly Passage Pills to cultivate.


    He used another 350,000 Heavenly Passage Pills to advance back into the Seventh Passage Stage, but he was not sad about it. Since Demon General Strongman intended to run away from the Ancient Demon Domain, Long Chen was certain that the Universe Pouch would be filled with many things.


    Descending back to the Sixth Passage Stage and advancing back to the Seventh Passage Stage was a simple process, but it was a horrible feeling. Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have risked it if his opponent wasn¡¯t an enemy with a grudge who also had a lot of treasures.


    Killing people and taking their money was the fastest way to get rich. Long Chen¡¯s true n had been to let Liu Yiyi escape and then use Blood Sacrifice and the Blood Devouring Domain to kill the Demon General and collect his money.


    It was not something he would usually do since it was risky.


    When Long Chen finished cultivating, he had a feeling that Liu Yiyi would return soon. Sure enough, she ran into the cave after a few minutes. Her face was filled with worry, shock, and streaks of tears.


    Long Chen knew that she wouldn¡¯t call the Clear Shallows King but instead turn back halfway. She thought Long Chen would catch up to her, but she panicked when he never showed up. This made her assume that Long Chen had been killed, and she med herself.


    She ran back in despair because she thought it was better if she died with Long Chen since he had died for her sake.


    But when she reached the cave, she was greeted by an unexpected scene.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    d he remembered not to destroy the Universe Pouch</blockquote>

 Chapter 513: True Martial Poison Vine

    The cave was in ruins. Liu Yiyi¡¯s little house had copsed during the fight. At the same time, rock and dirt had fallen off the walls of the cave, leaving the interior covered in dust.


    But there was nothing on the ground. Liu Yiyi saw Long Chen sitting on the ground, but Demon General Strongman hadpletely disappeared, or rather been reduced to dust.


    Liu Yiyi stared nkly at Long Chen. She saw blooding from his mouth, so she knew that he was hurt. She also realized he had won after seeing the blood on his sword. If not, Demon General Strongman wouldn¡¯t have disappearedpletely ¡­


    Liu Yiyi slumped to the ground in shock. She didn¡¯t know how to react after seeing Long Chen, but her tears soon fell and obscured her vision.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng ¡­¡±


    The man¡¯s back was ingrained deeply into her mind. She would never forget him. She didn''t know how this had happened. She knew that Long Chen didn¡¯t have any feelings for her, but everything he did, including the miracle he had just performed, enamored her.


    Long Chen stood up and approached Liu Yiyi after some time. ¡°Everything is done now. Why are you crying? Demon General Strongman is dead.¡±


    ¡°Dead?¡± Long Chen confirmed her suspicions and she wiped off her tears. ¡°Jiang Cheng, you¡¯re strong. I can¡¯t believe you killed a Demon General at the Ninth Passage Stage. But his death will be major news in the Ancient Demon Domain. Let my mother deal with this, alright?¡±


    Even if Long Chen hadn¡¯t killed the Demon General, the Clear Shallows King would¡¯ve done so after learning what thetter was nning to do to her daughter and direct disciple. Long Chen was confident that she would handle it perfectly.¡°Tell your mother about what happened today. From today onwards, I not only want to cultivate the Demonic Illusion, but also this technique. I think I will make a lot of noise when I cultivate it, so let me have the cave for now. Is that alright?¡± Long Chen saw that she was attracted to him. This was not good for him, because he was going to leave sooner orter and didn¡¯t want to hurt her feelings.


    So he had no choice but to be more stern.


    Liu Yiyi naturally didn¡¯t know what he was thinking. She thought he just wanted to focus on cultivating and didn¡¯t want to be disturbed. Plus, there was nothing she could teach him other than the Demonic Illusion. That was when she looked at what he was showing her.


    It was a hand-copied manual of the technique that Long Chen had taken from Demon General Strongman¡¯s Universe Pouch.


    ¡°This is ¡­ The True Martial Demon Body!¡± Liu Yiyi was shocked, but she soon recovered. Long Chen had killed him, so of course he would have Demon General Strongman¡¯s Universe Pouch.


    ¡°What do I need to do to cultivate this? Is there a rule saying that I can¡¯t cultivate it?¡±


    ¡° ¡­ There is, but since you are my mother¡¯s direct disciple and Demon General Strongman is working under us, my mother has the authority to let you learn two King-tier techniques. But ¡­ You need to cultivate both of them in just sixteen days. Are you sure you can do it?¡±


    ¡°We never know unless we try.¡±


    ¡°Alright. Let me talk to my mother first ¡­¡±


    She stared at him longingly before she left.


    ¡°Tsk tsk. Brat, you sure have guts. How could you turn such a beauty away? I¡¯m speechless. Are you sure you¡¯re not useless in a certain aspect? I didn¡¯t think you would get ¡®defeated¡¯ from the slightest touch.¡± The cat taunted him.


    ¡°And you are still a useless cat,¡± Long Chen retorted. ¡°Your thoughts are too simple. She¡¯s just a passerby in my life. I will not stay here for long. I live to fight, and she¡¯s a good girl. I can¡¯t ruin her life here.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? I bet she would strip naked the moment you ordered her to.


    ¡°And there would be one more Clear Shallows King in the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    Since she was not destined to be with him, he swore not to hurt them.


    ¡°Stop spouting nonsense. The strength in my body is unstable. I need some time to consolidate it. Blood Sacrifice is still too risky to use. Thankfully, I managed to earn back a million and a half Heavenly Passage Pills, as well as the True Martial Demon Body, a King-tier Body Tempering technique! I need to learn both the True Martial Demon Body and the Demonic Illusion in sixteen days! Only then will I have the confidence to beat Chen Feng!¡±


    Long Chen was determined.


    He resumed cultivating!


    Long Chen didn¡¯t have time to waste if he only had sixteen days! He consolidated the strength he obtained from Blood Transmutation while starting to cultivate the True Martial Demon Body. Since he was fairly familiar with the Demonic Illusion, he only needed to spend four hours a day practicing it!


    He was certain that he could master it in sixteen days!


    It was more important for him to get started on the True Martial Demon Body.


    Long Chen¡¯sprehension had been increased thanks to the Inherited Blood Essence, and his physical body had also improved greatly. His body was even stronger than that of a King-tier beast. Therefore, his talent in cultivating Body Tempering techniques was unmatched in the entire Divine Martial Empire!


    The Inherited Blood Essence would also improve his potential throughout his life. His increased physical strength was just a byproduct of it. Long Chen hadn¡¯t even cultivated a Body Tempering technique and yet, his body was on par with that of someone who had cultivated an advanced Heaven-tier Body Tempering technique. It was clear that the potential of his physical body was unimaginable.


    The True Martial Demon Body!


    It was one of the three strongest Body Tempering techniques in the Ancient Demon Domain. One¡¯s strength would increase so much that they could split mountains after sessfully cultivating it.


    But it was not simple to master it. Long Chen required a certain elementary King-tier spiritual herb called the True Martial Poison Vine. Even though it was poisonous, it could spur the body¡¯s immune response to strengthen it. The manual described that one would need the poison to harden one¡¯s body to cultivate the True Martial Demon Body.


    Long Chen naturally didn¡¯t have the spiritual herb, so he had to rely on the Clear Shallows King. On the second day, the Clear Shallows King brought the herb to Long Chen along with Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°This is just a short segment of the vine, but it costs more than a million Heavenly Passage Pills. You need to be certain that you will be able to cultivate it so it¡¯s not a waste of money!¡± The Clear Shallows King was secretly shocked at Long Chen¡¯s improvement. She could see his potential to be stronger was several times better than the other geniuses.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will make sure that Liu Yiyi will not have to marry someone she doesn¡¯t like.¡± Long Chen chuckled. Even though he looked rxed, the strength hidden in his eyes assured them that he would seed.


    Clear Shallows King only gave him the vine after seeing his eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯ve dealt with the matter of Demon General Strongman. No one will ask about him again. You can continue to cultivate in peace. I await your results.¡±


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Long Chen was grateful for her help. Even though they were using each other, he still had to thank her. Without her help, he would never have been able to get the Demonic Illusion or the True Martial Demon Body. Part of his strength had been obtained with the help of the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°Win in the assessment and make the Clear Shallows Pavilion famous. Only then will I thank you as well. You can cultivate now. Let¡¯s go.¡± She then took Liu Yiyi away. Once they were gone, Long Chen focused on cultivating the True Martial Demon Body.


    ¡°The True Martial Poison VIne is a crucial part of the cultivation process. All I need to do is resist the poison. I need to use my Qi to refine it and turn the poison into my strength. Only by doing this repeatedly can I cultivate the True Martial Demon Body.¡±


    Long Chen did not hesitate to swallow the vine!


    After it entered his stomach, it rapidly dissolved just like the Inherited Blood Essence. It then circted throughout his body and turned his skin ck! Long Chen looked like a human-shaped charcoal!


    Pain!


    Unending pain!


    The poison was like little spikes that poked Long Chen¡¯s body incessantly. He felt pain all over. If his will wasn¡¯t strong enough, he would¡¯ve passed out and died from the poison.


    A King-tier spiritual herb¡¯s poison was not that easy to endure!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I mean, I guess it makes sense? Build up resistance by poisoning yourself a little. Just like how we drink more beers to get better at drinking</blockquote>

 Chapter 514: Completion

    ¡°Wake up!¡± The cat¡¯s shout snapped Long Chen out of the intense pain. Rather than enduring the pain from the poison, he needed to refine it!


    The first step to cultivate the True Martial Demon Body was to refine the poison. He quickly recalled the technique and started the refining process.


    But before he even started refining it, the pain suddenly subsided. He checked his body and saw that the poison had been forced into a small orb in the center of his chest.


    His blood had suppressed the poison on its own!


    ¡°The Inherited Blood Essence of an Ancestral Dragon flows in your veins. The blood of such a creature would never allow a poison of this caliber to infiltrate your body. Even a King-tier poison would not harm you,¡± the cat exined.


    Long Chen just realized that that was indeed the case.


    Thankfully, it didn¡¯t hinder his cultivation. Since the poison has been isted at his chest thanks to his blood, it became hundreds of times easier for him to refine it. A regr person would have to endure the pain for an entire month topletely refine it. Thanks to his unique blood, he finished it in a day.


    The True Martial Demon Body was not an easy technique to cultivate due to the poison, but one would gain absolute strength if they were sessful in cultivating it. Demon General Strongman had died because he hadn¡¯t cultivated it properly.


    The poison soon turned into a power that Long Chen could utilize. The power enveloped his body after a day, and he could now enter the next step.This was where the true cultivation would start!


    He needed to cultivate it by training in a specific fist art. Rather than using it for attacking, it was used for cultivating. Long Chen stood up and copied the movement he had seen in the manual.


    He closed his eyes and focused.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    He punched numerous times and moved around with clear intention. Long Chen danced in the cave while the poison¡¯s strength slowly merged into his muscles and skeleton to strengthen his body. As he cultivated, he was also slowly absorbing nature¡¯s spiritual energy into his body to reinforce it!


    Thanks to the reinforcement of nature¡¯s spiritual energy and the poison¡¯s energy, Long Chen¡¯s fist technique became stronger. He submerged himself in the profoundness of the fist art. Time slowly passed, and Liu Yiyi visited numerous times. But Long Chen did not notice her, as if he was asleep.


    She left with disappointment every time.


    She told her mother about his progress, and the Clear Shallows King sighed in shock. ¡°He already refined the poison and reached that stage? He¡¯s beyond a genius. Very few people have managed to cultivate that technique. Most that tried were tortured to death by the pain of the poison. Even though Demon General Strongman seeded, he only managed to do it halfway. I never thought Long Chen would be so sessful! And it took him so little time.¡±


    ¡°Mom, why did you let him cultivate something so unreliable?¡± Liu Yiyi scoffed.


    ¡°That¡¯s because I have faith in him. See, he¡¯s almost close topletion.¡±


    Liu Yiyi had her own thoughts.


    When she entered the cave a few dayster, she saw clouds of dust flying around. She couldn¡¯t see Long Chen, but she knew he was still inside cultivating.


    There was too much dust, and Long Chen¡¯s movements were too fast.


    Eleven days passed.


    Liu Yiyi had been standing guard outside the whole time. There were only five days left until the assessment and she was worried that Long Chen hadn¡¯tpleted his cultivation yet. If that was the case, then both her and the Clear Shallows King would be in trouble.


    Just then, the cave copsed. The entire ground shook and dust covered everything. Liu Yiyi was shocked and thought Long Chen had been buried alive. Just then, a yellowish figure ran out of the cave and stood in front of her


    ¡°You look so ugly ¡­¡± Liu Yiyiughed. Long Chen¡¯s body was covered in yellow dirt. His eyes were slightly red, but the rest of his body was caked in dirt.


    This was the result of cultivating for eleven days. Long Chen hadn¡¯t even bothered taking care of himself.


    Liu Yiyiughed at him.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen used his Qi to shake off the dirt and reveal his original self. Liu Yiyi stoppedughing.


    He looked so sharp that he appeared like a sword. Liu Yiyi felt that she was being cut just by looking at him. She was like a rabbit standing in front of Long Chen; all he needed was to hit her lightly and he would kill her!


    She had never felt such a dangerous aura even from Demon General Strongman.


    ¡°Have you ¡­ seeded?¡± Liu Yiyi trembled.


    ¡°Yes.¡± He nodded, as if it was insignificant. ¡°How many days have passed? How much time do we have left? Did we miss the assessment?¡±


    Long Chen was worried that he had missed the assessment due to being so engrossed in cultivation. Their ns would be useless if he missed it.


    ¡° ¡­ Five more days. We have five more days.¡± Liu Yiyi was in a daze as she stared at him. Long Chen had cultivated a King-tier martial technique in just tens of days. No one in the Divine Martial Empire could achieve that! Long Chen¡¯s secrets attracted Liu Yiyi so much.


    ¡°Phew. Thankfully,, I¡¯ve finished cultivating the True Martial Demon Body. Though I still have some trouble controlling the Demonic Illusion. There are only five days left, so I need to work on that. I have a lot of questions to ask.¡± Long Chen quickly formed a schedule for the next five days.


    This had be his habit.


    Liu Yiyi was happy when she thought she could spend the next five days with him and quickly nodded.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure what to do with her attraction towards him.


    <em>I will leave this ce for the Ancient Graveyard once I get the Emperor me Pearl. I hope she will forget me after enough time passes.</em>


    After meeting the Clear Shallows King, Long Chen returned to his room. It hadn''t even been two months since he arrived, but his status has changed so much. He was only at the First Passage Stage when he first joined and was at the bottom of the food chain, but now he was at the peak of all disciples in the Clear Shallows Pavilion!


    Even Liu Yiyi could not win against him now.


    Even though Long Chen was thetest one to join and was supposed to be of the lowest rank, the Clear Shallows King had designated him as the eldest disciple, so everyone else¡¯s ranks had dropped. That meant even Liu Yiyi had to call him ¡°senior ¡­¡±


    Many of the disciples still recalled how Long Chen had killed Qin Huanyu, but they had to admit that Long Chen was a monster when they saw him.


    The others respected him too.


    Thankfully, the Clear Shallows King had restricted information about Long Chen, so the other kings didn¡¯t know about him.


    Five days passed in a sh.


    In those five days, Long Chen finally cultivated the Demonic Illusion and the True Martial Demon Body close to the point of mastering them. His proficiency in the Demonic Illusion was no weaker than Liu Yiyi''s.


    The day of the assessment had arrived. This time, regr disciples would not have the privilege of observing it. Only higher-ranked disciples, direct disciples, elders, and grand elders could enter the fourthyer of the Demon World. The Demon Generals, on the other hand, would be in charge of maintaining order.


    Even so, there were close to three thousand spectators. They made up the main strength of the Ancient Demon Domain. None of them were lower than the Sixth Passage Stage.


    The Clear Shallows King Pavilion was going to send out five contestants, including Long Chen and Liu Yiyi. All of them were at the Seventh Passage Stage. Approximately sixty contestants were registered from all seven pavilions. Out of the sixty, some of them were beyond the Seventh Passage Stage. It was clear that the Clear Shallows Pavilion was weaker than the others.


    On this day, Long Chen and the others were standing in front of the Clear Shallows King.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Easy peasy, got a new skill already~</blockquote>

 Chapter 515: Demon Emperor’s Return

    Long Chen had grown very familiar with his two King-tier techniques. Even though they weren¡¯tbat techniques, they had increased his strength by a lot.


    Long Chen, Liu Yiyi, and the other three were standing in front of the Clear Shallows King. The passage to the fourthyer of the Demon World has opened. Those who were qualified to enter were already inside. The Clear Shallows King was waiting for the arrival of her disciples.


    She focused on Long Chen and called for him the moment she saw him. ¡°Are you certain you can achieve victory?¡±


    ¡°Rx. You¡¯ve given me so much. I will do what I need to do.¡±


    ¡°Have you really cultivated the Demonic Illusion and the True Martial Demon Body?¡± She was stunned.


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Monster.¡± She shook her head.


    Seeing the Clear Shallows Kingpletely focused on Long Chen made the other disciples visibly upset. They were older than him, but they had to obey the Clear Shallows King¡¯s orders to call him ¡°senior.¡±


    They were the strongest in the pavilion except for Liu Yiyi, so they were naturally unwilling to call Long Chen ¡°senior.¡±¡°Master really does not care about our feelings ¡­¡±


    ¡°She didn¡¯t even look at us. I fear that we are only here to make up the numbers in the assessment.¡±


    ¡°I think she¡¯s only focused on Jiang Cheng. She even ignored Senior Liu Yiyi.¡±


    ¡°I wonder how strong Jiang Cheng is? I think his cultivation level increased very fast, but isn¡¯t he at the same stage as us? We can do the things that he can do too!¡±


    The three of them hated Long Chen because they were being ignored by the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°Stop it. He¡¯s definitely stronger than all of us. We wouldn¡¯t be able to win against him even if we fought him at the same time,¡± Liu Yiyi warned them after seeing how agitated they were.


    ¡°Junior Liu Yiyi, you must be joking. Even someone at the Eighth Passage Stage might not be able to handle all four of us at the same time!¡± the previous eldest disciple retorted.


    ¡°You will find out how strong he is during the assessment.¡± Liu Yiyi decided to stop arguing with them.


    She knew Long Chen had cultivated the True Martial Demon Body. Their attacks would be useless against his physical body. In fact, his physical body was even stronger than that of Demon General Strongman.


    After finishing their discussion, the Clear Shallows King waved to let them know to follow her.


    ¡°The Demon Emperor is back! He will most likely make an appearance during the assessment, so you must do your best! Do not embarrass my pavilion!¡± the Clear Shallows King shouted.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Everyone nodded.


    Outside of the Clear Shallows Pavilion were three Demon Generals and some elders who worked at the pavilion. They followed the Clear Shallows King Pavilion when she walked out. They then made their way towards Demon World Mountain. The regr disciples looked at them in awe.


    There was quite a distance from their pavilion to the fourthyer of the Demon World.


    ¡°Mom, why did the Demon Emperore back? I thought he rarely made an appearance?¡± Liu Yiyi asked.


    The Clear Shallows King whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t spread this, but I¡¯ve heard that his useless son was killed, so the Demon Emperor stopped cultivating toe back and find the killer.¡±


    ¡°Huh? He¡¯s dead? No wonder I haven¡¯t heard of him for so long. Haven¡¯t seen him in two months too.¡± Liu Yiyi was shocked.


    ¡°We have arrived. Let¡¯s stop talking about it.¡± Demon World Mountain was in front of them, and they soon scaled to the top. The guards let them pass and the Clear Shallows King led everyone into the Demon World.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that the Clear Shallows King sent out five people, but none of them are at the Eighth Passage Stage?¡± one of the guards whispered after the Clear Shallows King left.


    ¡°Yeah. I think they wille inst this time for sure. I will bet ten thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.¡±


    ¡°Only an idiot would take that bet!¡±


    ***


    They moved towards the secondyer after passing the first. Because they didn¡¯t take the shortcut, it took them half a day to get there. Long Chen and the others stopped in front of the entrance because someone was blocking the path. The people in front turned around. They were from the Red Ghost Pavilion! The Red Ghost King and Ying Shaotian were standing at the forefront.


    ¡°Clear Shallows King?¡± The Red Ghost King chuckled and counted the number of her representatives. ¡°What a grand army you have here. Five contestants! So scary.¡±


    Ying Shaotian was at the Eighth Passage Stage and there were seven more at the Seventh Passage Stage representing the Red Ghost King. In terms of group strength, their strength far exceeded the Clear Shallows King¡¯s representatives. Thankfully, the assessment revolved around individual matches instead of group matches.


    Everyone from the Red Ghost Pavilionughed too.


    ¡°A group of cowards brought up by a woman!¡± The Red Ghost King continued to taunt them.


    His groupughed again. Theirughter angered everyone from the Clear Shallows Pavilion. They were not the kind of people who would argue with scoundrels like the Red Ghost King, but Long Chen was. He approached the Red Ghost King and said, ¡°It¡¯s a blessing for us to be brought up by the beautiful Clear Shallows King. We have so many beautifuldies here. I think you guys are jealous because your leader is a bulbous red toad. Regr men like me want to vomit the moment we see someone so hideous.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words were like cold water that extinguished the Red Ghost King¡¯s arrogance. Everyone from the Clear Shallows Pavilion cheered for Long Chen.


    Even the Clear Shallows Kingughed at that. She thought that Long Chen was strangely cute. Thankfully, he was on her side, or he would look more like a devil if he was her enemy.


    The already red face of the Red Ghost King became even redder. Blood almost sprang forth from his eyes and white steam gushed out of his nose. It was clear that he was angry.


    It was one thing to be insulted by the Clear Shallows King since they had the same rank, but Long Chen was a disciple! He would not tolerate such disrespect.


    ¡°Bastard! Die!¡±


    He approached Long Chen to kill him, but the Clear Shallows King intercepted him. ¡°Red Ghost King, you taunted us first, so it''s courtesy we taunt back. Are you really so disgraceful that you would use physical force here? Are you a man? Since the Demon Emperor is back, the Ancient Demon Domain is not a ce where you can do as you please. The Demon Emperor is very angry right now, so just try touching me.¡±


    The Red Ghost King stopped out of fear. She was right. The Demon Emperor was in a bad mood. If they fought here and tarnished the reputation of the Demon Emperor, there was a chance that he would be killed.


    The Red Ghost King red at both the Clear Shallows King and Long Chen. ¡°I will stop this today on ount of the Demon Emperor. Let us meet at the fourthyer. Clear Shallows King, even though I¡¯m not Ying Shaotian¡¯s father, I am technically his stepfather. Once the assessment is over, you and I will be family, so we cannot fight here.¡±


    He then looked at Liu Yiyi. ¡°Yiyi is bing prettier each day. Hehehe. I¡¯m so happy Ying Shaotian is going to marry her! Hahaha!¡±


    The Red Ghost King patted Ying Shaotian¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    Under hismand, the rest of them entered the secondyer. The Clear Shallows King turned around and looked at her followers. ¡°The Red Ghost King ndered us just now, so it¡¯s up to the five of you to return the favor at the assessment! Show them your strength!¡±


    Long Chen and the others nodded.


    Since the Clear Shallows King had done so much to help him, it was time to uphold his end of the deal. He needed to win!


    They followed the Red Ghost King and soon reached the fourthyer after traversing through the second and third. This time, Demon General Typhoon was not standing guard; it was another Demon General. This was Long Chen¡¯s first time at the fourthyer.


    The ground was simr to that of the thirdyer, but there was not a hint of demonic beasts here. There were only people, and thousands of them. All of them were extremely strong. Most of the people joining the assessment were already here.


    Long Chen followed the Clear Shallows King to reach their designated spot. Each of the pavilions was standing in an arc facing arge, ck arena!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Wait, the Demon Emperor''s surname is Jiang right? I have a feeling...</blockquote>

 Chapter 516: Jiang Wushang

    The fourthyer of the Demon World was very noisy today.


    Only seven people had their own seats here, and they were the Seven Demon Kings. Currently, they were seated in a circle around the arena and were roughly thirty meters away from each other.


    Each pavilion had its own elders and disciples. Most of them had close to three hundred people. The Clear Shallows King had fewer people at around two hundred, but some of the pavilions had five hundred!


    Everyone had arrived and congregated around the arena. At this time, several people walked onto it. Long Chen could feel how strong they were. There were fifty of them, and all of them were grand elders at the Ninth Passage Stage. They were as strong as the Demon Generals and were close to the peak of the hierarchy in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    But their positions were slightly higher than the Demon Generals because they served the Demon Emperor. That was why all of them had their own seats. Still, their seats were smaller than those of the Seven Demon King to signify the difference in their positions.


    But some of them had seatsrger than those of the Demon Kings. One of the men walked to the seat and sat down, attracting everyone¡¯s attention.


    Long Chen looked at the man and saw that he had a soft face, was around twenty years old, and was very handsome. He had a simr vibe to Xiang, but underneath that soft demeanor was a strong and passionate heart. Long Chen could see it in his eyes.


    Long Chen had a strange feeling. He thought the man looked familiar.


    <em>That should be impossible. I¡¯vee straight to the Ancient Demon Domain after reaching the Divine Martial Empire. I never went anywhere else. How could I have seen him?</em>He had a feeling that the man was as strong as the Clear Shallows King. Even though the man was quiet, his actions exuded strength. Long Chen had a feeling that he was at the Earthly Martial Realm, which meant that he was none other than the genius, Jiang Wushang!


    That was Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie¡¯s son and sessor.


    Long Chen was impressed by how the young man had reached the Earthly Martial Realm at such a young age. Even though he himself had sped through the Heavenly Passage Stage, he still didn¡¯t know how to cultivate at the Three Martial Realms. Even Zhao Qingyun didn¡¯t know.


    The moment Jiang Wushang made his appearance, everyone became quiet. They stopped talking and stared at him in awe. Not only was he a son of the Demon Emperor, he was the strongest son. The other children of the Demon Emperor were at the Ninth Passage Stage at most. It was clear Jiang Wushang¡¯s talent was superior.


    The Demon Emperor was showing how much he cared about him by allowing him to preside over the assessment.


    Jiang Wushang had been the object of worship for the disciples over the past few years.


    Cultivating the Three Martial Realm was different from the Four Basic Realm. People had alwaysmented that it was easy to reach the Ninth Passage Stage, but difficult to reach the Earthly Martial Realm. It was an incredible feat to reach the Earthly Martial Realm at an age close to Long Chen¡¯s!


    ¡°Jiang Wushang managed to leave a handprint on a Heavenly Passage Pir when he was at the Ninth Passage Stage. He could probably destroy them now!¡±


    The disciples started discussing again.


    ¡°That¡¯s nothing! I¡¯ve heard that he once faced off against eight cultivators at the Ninth Passage Stage even though he himself was at the same stage. He killed all of them! The eight cultivators were none other than the Fearsome Eight of the North Seas! Each of them was famous on the bounty board, but all of them were killed by Jiang Wushang!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s just a regr training session for Prince Wushang. I¡¯ve heard that he killed a King-tier beast at the Immortal Sea!¡±


    ¡°A King-tier beast at the Immortal Sea? I heard that that was the nest of the exceedingly strong Divine Phoenix. To think that he would venture there!¡±


    Long Chen realized that disciples like Ying Shaotian and Chen Feng were nothingpared to Jiang Wushang. They were like specks of dust, while Jiang Wushang was like a star.


    It was a legendary feat to reach the Earthly Martial Realm at that age even in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Also, leaving a handprint on the Heavenly Passage Pirs, killing eight cultivators at the Ninth Passage Stage at the same time, and even defeating a King-tier beast all at the Ninth Passage Stage were monstrous feats that regr people would never achieve, excluding Long Chen.


    Long Chen had to reevaluate his understanding of Jiang Wushang. It was the first time he had met such a genius.


    Everyone was focused on Jiang Wushang. He suddenly stood up and bowed to the Seven Demon Kings. ¡°Seven Demon Kings, my father has matters to attend to, so I apologize for having to take his ce here today.¡±


    ¡°Prince Wushang, there is no need to be so courteous. Your strength and position make you more than qualified. We only need to watch.¡± The Red Ghost King chuckled.


    The other Demon Kings agreed.


    Jiang Wushang nodded. ¡°Since everyone is here, then let the assessment start. I am only here to oversee. Demon General Typhoon, please start the assessment.¡±


    He returned to his seat after that.


    Everyone then focused on the ck arena instead of Jiang Wushang. Typhoon was d in ck armor in the middle of the arena. Long Chen almostughed when he saw Demon General Typhoon.


    <em>I suppose he¡¯s the expert when ites to being the emcee. He¡¯s been doing it every time.</em>


    Demon General Typhoon didn¡¯t fly this time because there were several people above him, one being the Prince. He looked around and said in a cheerful voice, ¡°I am Typhoon! Greetings, Seven Demon Kings and Prince Wushang! Now let me exin the rules! There are two rounds to the assessment! This way, we can not only determine the winner to obtain the Emperor me Pearl, but also let the grand elders evaluate the disciples of each pavilion. The rankings of the pavilions will depend on their scoring! The grand elders work for the Demon Emperor, so they will be absolutely fair! They will record their evaluations with their true names, so don¡¯t worry about any shady things going on during the assessment! As experts at the Ninth Passage Stage, they will naturally be able to spot all extraordinary feats from the disciples!¡±


    It was a good rule. The assessment was for both the disciples and their respective pavilions. Since the grand elders worked directly for the Demon Emperor and would be using their real names to score the assessment, this was a very fair process.


    ¡°Now let me exin the first stage!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon looked around before stomping, causing the entire arena to tremble.


    <em>What incredible strength! </em>Even Long Chen was surprised.


    The entire arena started to rumble, and the disciples saw twelve ck pirs rise up.


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    Several breathster, the pirs stopped moving. All of them looked like the Heavenly Passage Pirs, but they were replicas. They were seven meters tall and surrounded the arena to form a circle.


    Long Chen looked at the top of each pir and saw a fiery, red orb. The orbs were exuding great power, so he first thought they were Emperor me Pearls. However, he quickly judged that that was not the case because there was only one of those. Still, even though the orbs were not Emperor me Pearls, he knew the pirs were extraordinary too.


    ¡°These are regr me Pearls, not Emperor me Pearl. I¡¯m sure most of you are aware of their properties. You can obtain some strength when you use one during the Day of the Nine Suns. You might even advance to the next stage if you are lucky. The me Pearls are the rewards for the first stage. The rules are simple. All of you will stand on the same starting line and attempt to grab the pearls when I say ¡®go.¡¯ Those who have a pearl in their possession by the end of the time limit will advance into the next stage. That means that out of the sixty contestants, only twelve will move on! You need to move as fast possible to grab one the moment we start! Once you obtain a me Pearl, you cannot keep it in your Universe Pouch! You must hold it in your hand and protect it until time is up. Only then will you earn the right to enter the second stage. The round willst twenty breaths. It¡¯s up to you to decide how to defend yourselves!¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Reminds me of Fall Guys ngl. Haven''t yed that in a while. It was mad fun</blockquote>

 Chapter 517: Shocking Everyone

    ¡°Do you understand the rules?¡± the Clear Shallows King asked her representatives.


    Long Chen and the others nodded.


    ¡°You need to work together when you obtain a me Pearl. Help others secure them too. There are seven pavilions and twelve pearls. As long as we have two people entering the next stage, our pavilion will not be inst ce.¡±


    ¡°Two spots? There are so many strong contestants from the other pavilions. We didn¡¯t even manage to get onest time ¡­¡± One of the disciples was pessimistic about the assessment.


    ¡°That wasst time. This time is different ¡­¡± The Clear Shallows King smiled and said nothing else.


    After the announcement of Demon General Typhoon, the first stage officially started. Long Chen and the others entered the arena. The sixty contestants formed arge circle surrounding the twelve pirs. Everyone was an equal distance away from at least one of the pirs.


    Naturally, the contestants were separated from their own teams. Long Chen, Liu Yiyi, and the others were ced in different spots around the circle. Long Chen looked around and took note of where Liu Yiyi was so that he could help her. He ignored the other three.


    When he looked at Liu Yiyi, she looked at him too. Liu Yiyi was feeling pressured because she was surrounded by disciples at the Seventh Passage Stage. It was very hard to secure a me Pearl when surrounded by so many strong disciples. The Clear Shallows King had told them that they needed to get at least two me Pearls to not be cedst. She could only rely on Long Chen and herself for that; the other three on her team were not reliable.


    But Long Chen¡¯s gaze calmed her down.<em>I need to do this and win for my mother! </em>Liu Yiyi was focused on victory.


    There were thousands of spectators, but most of them weren¡¯t focused on Long Chen. Instead, they were looking at the contestants at the Eighth Passage Stage. Demon General Typhoon separated them and ced them at different locations on the circle to ensure that they wouldn¡¯t fight each other the moment the first stage started.


    There was also Chen Feng at the Ninth Passage Stage, as well as Ying Shaotian and the others from the Red Ghost Pavilion. All of them were highly regarded by the others. They stood in the circle and waited for the signal from Demon General Typhoon. They were ready to grab a me Pearl the moment the stage started.


    Jiang Wushang was staring at Chen Feng. He looked at the grand elder beside him and said, ¡°Chen Feng is young, but he¡¯s already at the Ninth Passage Stage. He¡¯s simr to my fifth brother. Once the assessment is over, let him be my subordinate and work for me.¡±


    ¡°Understood! It would be his honor to work for you, Prince Wushang!¡±


    Jiang Wushang nodded and said nothing else.


    Even though he was of simr age to Chen Feng and the others, his status and strength were on another level.


    Of course, he hadn¡¯t noticed someone called Jiang Cheng among the sixty contestants. In fact, most people don¡¯t know that there was a Jiang Cheng in the Clear Shallows Pavilion.


    Jiang Cheng was just a fake name Long Chen was using. He only recognized two contestants outside the disciples of the Clear Shallows Pavilion: Ying Shaotian and Chen Feng. Ying Shaotian was standing at the opposite end of Liu Yiyi. He was looking at her boldly, but Liu Yiyi wasn¡¯t looking at him. Chen Feng, on the other hand, looked at Long Chen and smiled for a short moment before ignoring him.


    Chen Feng thought that Long Chen was destined to embarrass himself today. Long Chen had the ability to escape extremely quickly, but that was useless here in the assessment. How could he win by just running and hiding?


    Time slowly passed. When the contestants and everyone else started losing their patience, Demon General Typhoon gave the signal to start. Everyone watched in anticipation of the grand fight.


    ¡°Three, two, one, start!¡±


    Everyone tensed up when they heard ¡°three.¡± Strong energy swirled in their bodies andpressed, ready to be released like a powerful spring. The moment the first stage started, everyone shot forward like an arrow towards the pir closest to them.


    Even though they were all roughly a hundred meters away from a pir, the power gap between each disciple was soon revealed. Chen Feng was naturally the fastest, followed by the several disciples at the Eighth Passage Stage. He was so dazzling that no one noticed that the second fastest contestant was Long Chen instead of an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator.


    Long Chen had not transformed but relied on his Qi. Thanks to his Qi¡¯s innate quality of being four times better than regr Qi, as well as being the only one with a King-tier Body Tempering technique, his leg muscles were extremely powerful. When Demon General Typhoon announced the start of the stage, Long Chen was the first one to run past the group of Seventh Passage Stage disciples around him.


    The atmosphere in the fourthyer of the Demon World red up as everyone cheered excitedly. Since most were focused on Chen Feng, only a few hundred spectators noticed Long Chen¡¯s speed.


    The grand elders, the twenty-eight Demon Generals, the seven Demon Kings, and Jiang Wushang all noticed Long Chen¡¯s speed!


    ¡°Chen Feng is so fast! He¡¯s indeed at the Ninth Passage Stage! I think he will manage to grab two me Pearls!¡±


    ¡°The others at the Eighth Passage Stage are strong too!¡±


    The crowd discussed amongst themselves.


    The members of the Clear Shallows Pavilion were focused on Long Chen and Liu Yiyi. Liu Yiyi¡¯s performance was good; she was within the top three in terms of speed amongst those at the Seventh Passage Stage. But Long Chen was monstrous¡ªhis speed was close to Chen Feng¡¯s!


    <em>How did Jiang Cheng achieve that speed without transforming?! </em>Even the Clear Shallows King was shocked. But this was good news to her since it was almost certain that Long Chen would be able to secure a me Pearl.


    Jiang Wushang noticed Long Chen and asked the grand elder beside him, ¡°Who is that man? Is he from the Clear Shallows Pavilion?¡±


    The grand elder was shocked too. ¡°I only know that he¡¯s from the Clear Shallows Pavilion. I do not know his name.¡±


    ¡°Go and check. Give me his name immediately!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    At the same time, Chen Feng wasughing because he was already in front of a pir. The others hadn¡¯t even reached the halfway mark yet! Long Chen ran up a pir and grabbed a me Pearl. The crowd admired and worshiped him.


    ¡°Chen Feng has obtained a me Pearl!¡± Demon General Typhoon was excited and riled up the crowd again.


    The other disciples were only halfway to the pirs. All of them ran faster when they heard that Chen Feng had obtained a me Pearl.


    No one dared to fight Chen Feng for his me Pearl. The people from the Azure Purgatory Pavilion cheered wildly.


    But a surprise unfolded when they cheered. Long Chen ran up a pir to grab a me Pearls of his own. The other disciples at the Seventh Passage Stage around him were also halfway to the pir. They looked up and saw that the closest me Pearl was gone!


    ¡°Jiang ¡­ Jiang Cheng got a me Pearl as well!¡± Demon General Typhoon was shocked to see someone almost as fast as Chen Feng, and surprisingly enough, it was someone he knew. He had seen how quickly Long Chen had grown, but he never thought Long Chen would catch up to Chen Feng!


    Everyone shouted wildly too as they focused on Long Chen. Chen Feng¡¯s glory vanished in an instant, and the disciples at the Eighth Passage Stage were also ignored.


    This time, it was the Clear Shallow King''s turn to cheer.


    She looked at the Red Ghost King and saw that he had stood up. ¡°That brat is fast, but do you think he will be able to hold it until the end with just speed?¡±


    The Clear Shallows King¡¯s haughty gaze angered him, but he thought Long Chen only had his speed going for him, so he consoled himself.


    Jiang Cheng¡¯s name spread into everyone¡¯s ears.


    Many of them had seen Long Chen back when he entered the Ancient Demon Domain. When they confirmed that it was the same person, everyone¡¯s excitement bubbled over. It was unheard of for someone to grow so fast in two months, from the First Passage Stage to the seventh!


    What monstrous talent!


    Even the Seven Demon Kings were shocked.


    While they were shocked at Long Chen¡¯s talent, all of them were also looking at the Red Ghost King provokingly. They remembered how the Red Ghost King had abandoned Long Chen in the beginning, and now such a talented individual was the Clear Shallows King¡¯s disciple instead. They thought the Red Ghost King was blind.


    The discussions and taunting looks made the Red Ghost King¡¯s face go green from anger. He really wanted to kill Long Chen.


    But he couldn¡¯t do so here.


    Jiang Wushang stared at Long Chen. <em>He¡¯s called Jiang Cheng? The name is familiar, and he has the same surname as us. Is he from our family? He is much more talented than me if he got to this point from the First Passage Stage in just two months. But why hasn¡¯t he reached the Three Martial Realms yet with his talent? Did he start cultivating toote in life? </em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Everyoneugh at the Red Ghost King!</blockquote>

 Chapter 518: Amazing Everyone

    Long Chen knew that he had be the focus of everyone¡¯s attention when he heard resounding cheersing from everywhere. He had amazed everyone with just his speed.


    But that was not enough. It took him five breaths to do this, and there were fifteen breaths left. The others were already reaching him and the pirs.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng is fast, but he doesn¡¯t have a lot ofbat strength!¡± No one knew who shouted that. Many of the contestants were running towards the other me Pearls, but some of them heard the shout. They knew that Long Chen had taken one of the me Pearls, so they focused on him instead!


    Almost all sixty contestants were close to the twelve pirs now. It was time for the most exciting part of the stage! Numerous battles started in the small arena. Not too long after Long Chen obtained his me Pearl, the Eighth Passage Stage disciples grabbed theirs!


    Even those at the Eighth Passage Stage would have a hard time fighting against several people at the Seventh Passage Stage, much less someone at the Seventh Passage Stage. Many who obtained their me Pearls immediately ran to the borders of the arena. There were fewer people there, so it would be easier for them to defend themselves for the remaining time.


    Long Chen did not run away after getting his me Pearl. Instead, he looked for Liu Yiyi and saw that she was not far away. She was fighting two other contestants at the Seventh Passage Stage. Because she was surrounded, she had to use the Demonic Illusion.


    Long Chen knew that the two contestants were on the same team. They wanted to distract Liu Yiyi while the other would take the me Pearl closest to them. But because Liu Yiyi had the Demonic Illusion, the two of them had no choice but to fight her at the same time.


    That meant the three of them had lost their chance to grab the me Pearl safely, and the other contestants saw the me Pearl sitting at the top of the pir. Five others ran to where they were.


    Liu Yiyi was horrified. She had almost gotten the me Pearl thanks to her Demonic Illusion, but two people had suddenly blocked her.Both of them were from the Red Ghost Pavilion!


    ¡°Liu Yiyi, if we can¡¯t have it, you won¡¯t get it either! You are our senior brother¡¯s woman! We can¡¯t let you get a me Pearl!¡± The two of them abandoned any thoughts of getting the me Pearl and instead focused on dragging Liu Yiyi down. They didn¡¯t mind if others took it.


    Five contestants rushed towards the me Pearl and fought vehemently.


    Several others approached Long Chen after hearing that he could not fight well. Long Chen didn¡¯t even bother fighting them. He used the elementary Heaven-tier Traceless Demon Shadow and disappeared the moment the others were confused by his footwork.


    ¡°Impossible! I can¡¯t even keep up with my intermediate Heaven-tier Body Combat technique! How did he use Traceless Demon Shadow so well?!¡±


    The ones who wanted to fight Long Chen were speechless.


    Twenty breaths was a short time, so everyone¡¯s chances were slim. Those who chased after Long Chen and failed to get his me Pearl didn¡¯t have time to run to another person anymore.


    Long Chen was in the limelight right now. His every movement was even more dazzling than Chen Feng¡¯s. Long Chen escaped the encirclement of the Seventh Passage Stage disciples and ran towards where Liu Yiyi was.


    ¡°Hah!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s body was no weaker than Demon General Strongman¡¯s. Someone tried to block him, but a single punch was enough to send that Seventh Passage Stage disciple flying. He then sent two more disciples flying with just his physical strength.


    ¡°His punches are strong!¡±


    Some of the grand elders stood up in shock. One of them with a burly body shouted, ¡°My eyes are not deceiving me! He has cultivated the True Martial Demon Body! I¡¯ve cultivated it for twenty years, so I¡¯m certain!¡±


    An expert like the grand elder who had cultivated the True Martial Demon Body was naturally very credible. Everyone was shocked by that. Jiang Wushang was also shocked. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say he was only here for two months? Did he manage to cultivate it in that time frame?¡±


    ¡°Prince Wushang, I¡¯m shocked too. It¡¯s impossible, but I really think that it¡¯s the True Martial Demon Body!¡± The grand elder couldn¡¯t believe his eyes either.


    Long Chen sent the remaining disciples flying with his fist and grabbed the me Pearl. He then ran towards the two disciples who were surrounding Liu Yiyi. When he arrived, he sent one flying and punched the other one on the nose.


    <em>I never thought that the fist art that I used to cultivate the True Martial Demon Body would be so useful inbat! It¡¯s no weaker than an intermediate Heaven-tier martial technique, and the fist technique can be chained infinitely!</em>


    Long Chen was pleasantly surprised.


    With his help, Liu Yiyi was finally free from being attacked. She stopped and looked at Long Chen in a daze. She was deeply attracted by his dashing figure after seeing how he had saved her.


    ¡°Why are you standing around like that? Let¡¯s go!¡± Long Chen stuffed one of the me Pearls into her hand and pulled her towards the border of the arena. There was chaos everywhere as no one knew who had me Pearls. Many knew Long Chen had two, but they also understood that those at the Seventh Passage Stage would be sent flying by him!


    Long Chen and Liu Yiyi soon reached the border of the arena. Long Chen shielded her and stared at the several Seventh Passage Stage disciples running towards him. He charged into the crowd and created a blur of violence. In just two breaths, three Seventh Passage Stage cultivators were lying on the ground in pain.


    ¡°He¡¯s so strong! To think that he has cultivated the True Martial Demon Body to the point that he can use the fist art inbat!¡± The grand elder sighed in awe.


    ¡°Does that mean Jiang Cheng is a genius unlike any we¡¯ve ever seen? It seems that the Ancient Demon Domain is a very lucky ce. We need to take care of such a genius and let him be a pir of the Ancient Demon Domain.¡± Jiang Wushangughed happily.


    Just then, the Demon General Typhoon¡¯s voice rang out. ¡°Twenty breaths is up! Everyone, stop!¡±


    Everyone stopped immediately.


    Under his orders, everyone stopped their attacks. Those who were not holding a me Pearl were eliminated.


    ¡°Those who don¡¯t have a me Pearl, please leave the arena!¡±


    Demon General Typhoon then ushered those who had been eliminated to get out of the arena. The three other representatives of the Clear Shallows Pavilion were sent out too. They walked past Long Chen, and the oldest disciple looked at him with gratitude. They had seen his ster performance. ¡°Jiang Cheng, I have to admit that I respect you. From today onwards, you are our eldest disciple!¡±


    They then walked away from the arena.


    Liu Yiyi held onto the me Pearl in her hand. If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen, she wouldn¡¯t be standing here today. She knew that her mother would be very happy with the results.


    The twelve remaining contestants were revealed once the others had gone down the arena. Except for Chen Feng, there were five Eighth Passage Stage disciples. Chen Feng had two me Pearls, and he had given one of them to another disciple from the Azure Purgatory Pavilion. The other me Pearls were obtained by Seventh Passage Stage disciples from the other pavilions. Some obtained theirs through luck while others secured them with their strength.


    Of the twelve contestants, there was one Ninth Passage Stage disciple, five Eighth Passage Stage disciples, and six Seventh Passage Stage disciples. Only two pavilions had a single disciple getting into the next stage. One of the pavilions was none other than the Red Ghost Pavilion.


    The Red Ghost King¡¯s nose became crooked from anger.


    This was an embarrassment to him. The Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s performance far exceeded his. If this went on, his pavilion¡¯s ranking would drop below the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s! That meant he would have to kneel and apologize to the Clear Shallows King.


    How could he do that?!


    The Red Ghost King was originally very confident, but Long Chen had screwed everything up. Long Chen alone had secured two spots for the Clear Shallows Pavilion to advance into the next stage. This was an incredible feat, and Long Chen¡¯s performance far exceeded that of Chen Feng.


    The Red Ghost King was once again haunted by guilt and regret for abandoning Long Chen and giving him to the Clear Shallow King ¡­


    He felt like he had been pped in public.


    ¡°Red Ghost, are you prepared to kneel down?¡± The Clear Shallows King¡¯s voice entered the Red Ghost King¡¯s ears. He didn¡¯t even look at her, because he knew she would taunt him to no end. His face burned red from his anger.


    Long Chen was undoubtedly the most dazzling of the twelve contestants.


    Chen Feng had actually done a great job in getting two me Pearls, but Long Chen had done the same thing while being two stages lower than him.


    Which was why Long Chen was getting all of the people¡¯s attention.


    Demon General Typhoon descended in front of the twelve disciples.


    ¡°Congrattions! Let me announce the rules of the second stage!¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    As expected of our MC. Heh</blockquote>

 Chapter 519: Royal Crystal

    ¡°The second stage is simple,¡± Demon General Typhoon said slowly. His gaze swept past everyone and eventually stopped on Long Chen. He had witnessed Long Chen¡¯s growth and felt much more friendly towards him.


    Of course, many others were also looking at Long Chen as the dark horse of the assessment.


    He was the dark horsest time, but it had barely been more than a month since he revealed his dazzling strength. Who wouldn¡¯t focus their attention on him after such a massive improvement? Everyone thought Long Chen¡¯s talent had been exhausted and he wouldn¡¯t grow anymore, but they were surprised!


    The Red Ghost King was the one who had lost them most. Because of his mistake, he was now at risk of having to apologize to the Clear Shallows King if he lost.


    The Red Ghost King was currently scolding his disciples harshly, and everyone else chuckled at his misfortune.


    Demon General Typhoon¡¯s voice rang out and everyone snapped out of it.


    ¡°The second stage will be the usual, an elimination match! There are twelve of you, so you will be separated into six pairs. The first half of this stage will involve you fighting your pair to determine the top six. The winners will then be separated into three pairs to determine the top three. As for the top three, the champion will be decided with a melee! The three will fight each other and thest man standing will be the champion! The one who falls first will take third ce and so on! These are the rules. Are we clear?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Long Chen and the others replied.


    The rules were simple, but the melee at the final stage was the highlight. It would be the hardest yet the simplest stage because the third person would benefit from the fight between the other two. Not only did one¡¯s strength matter, but also their wits and experience. It was a test for the truly strong to stand at the peak!¡°Good!¡± Demon General Typhoon smiled and looked at the crowd. ¡°Of course, the second stage will be a much more brutal fight, but the rewards are equally good! Those in the top six will get five hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills, while the one in third ce will get a million! Second ce will get three million Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    The rewards were indeed extremely good. A million Heavenly Passage Pills was usually the entire worth of someone at the Ninth Passage Stage. Second ce could even get three million! Someone at the Eighth Passage Stage would be considered wealthy the moment they obtained it. They wouldn¡¯t need to worry about advancing into the Ninth Passage Stage, and they could even use it as currency!


    But the champion¡¯s rewards would be even better!


    Demon General Typhoon smiled. ¡°As for the champion, not only will they get the Emperor me Pearl, they will also get a single royal crystal!¡±


    Everyone eximed in surprise when they heard that.


    ¡°A royal crystal! What an incredible prize! Normally, the champion only gets five million Heavenly Passage Pills!¡±


    ¡°A royal crystal is equivalent to ten million Heavenly Passage Pills! In fact, you might not be able to get one even if you have the pills! To think that someone who hasn¡¯t reached the Three Martial Realms would get a royal crystal! Today¡¯s champion is definitely going to earn a fortune!¡±


    ¡°I wonder who will win? Chen Feng? Liu Dongtian? Ying Shaotian? Or maybe Jiang Cheng?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think Jiang Cheng will win since he¡¯s only at the Seventh Passage Stage. Ying Shaotian and the others will probably get second ce. The champion will undoubtedly be Chen Feng! He¡¯s at the Ninth Passage Stage and is already considered a grand elder. Hisbat strength must be incredible!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true!¡±


    Everyone shared the same thought.


    <em>Royal crystal? </em>Long Chen was very interested. He wanted to see what item would be worth ten million Heavenly Passage Pills. Royal crystals, emperor crystals, and divine crystals were all important items for those cultivating at the Three Martial Realms. He assumed that they were simr to spirit jades and divine jades but with better quality.


    <em>Within the royal crystal is a sliver of Martial Essence, something that¡¯s instrumental for those at the Three Martial Realms ¡­</em> Long Chen was still unclear as to how the cultivation at the Three Martial Realms would go. He decided to find an expert to exin it after getting the Emperor me Orb and reaching the Ninth Passage Stage.


    After announcing the rules, Demon General Typhoon asked them to step forward to draw lots. The twelve disciples had to be separated into six groups and naturally, there were gaps between their strengths. Those who had to fight Chen Feng were destined to lose. Long Chen only needed to fight against someone at the Seventh Passage Stage and he would be destined to win.


    Long Chen¡¯s performance in the first stage was amazing, but if that was all he had to show, then his strength wasckingpared to the others. In fact, because he was only at the Seventh Passage Stage, the others didn¡¯t really take him as a threat. The Red Ghost Pavilion still had a chance to win against the Clear Shallows Pavilion because they had someone like Ying Shaotian, who would probably squeeze into the top three spots.


    When they were drawing lots, Ying Shaotian walked past and red at both Long Chen and Liu Yiyi. ¡°I hope you don¡¯t have to fight me, or I will make sure you have a bad time!¡±


    He was clearly directing that at Long Chen.


    Long Chen had stolen everyone¡¯s attention during the first stage, leaving Ying Shaotian burning with envy.


    He then went and drew his lot. The next person was Chen Feng, who hated Long Chen for stealing his limelight. He thought this would be a great chance to showcase his skills, but Long Chen had stolen everyone¡¯s attention.


    ¡°If Ying Shaotian doesn¡¯t beat you down, I will. I hope you don¡¯t get matched against the two of us, or we will make sure you won¡¯t be able to walk down the arena.¡± Chen Feng chuckled and grabbed his number.


    Liu Yiyi looked at Long Chen with worry. ¡°They want to hurt you. What are you going to do?¡±


    Long Chen smiled when he saw her worried face. ¡°Do you not trust me? I can handle them. We don¡¯t know who the victor will be until we fight ¡­¡±


    He wasn¡¯t worried, but Liu Yiyi was.


    ¡°Focus on your fight and win for your mother. Don¡¯t worry about me,¡± Long Chen whispered to her.


    ¡°I understand.¡± Liu Yiyi nodded and drew her lot. Long Chen did the same. His number was seven, and Liu Yiyi was ten.


    Now that everyone had their numbers, Demon General Typhoon smiled. ¡°This is easy. Numbers one and two will remain on the stage and the others will go down for now. Once they are done, I will call for the third and fourth person toe up to the stage. Also, you are not allowed to trade numbers with each other!¡±


    Long Chen and the others got off the stage.


    He and Liu Yiyi stood together while the others stood with their own groups. There were some who stood alone. Everyone was watching the contestants, so none of them dared to change their numbers.


    The first and second person were both at the Eighth Passage Stage. This was normal since they had drawn their lots randomly, but unfortunately, one of them would have to lose today even though both of them would have entered the top six if they had been a bit luckier.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know the numbers of the other contestants except for Liu Yiyi. Many of them didn¡¯t know who had what number, so everyone was nervous.


    The battle soon started and the two disciples at the Eighth Passage Stage shed. They were simr in strength, and everyone cheered at how exciting the battle was. Both contestants were the eldest disciples of their respective pavilions, so they refused to lose!


    Everyone was pleasantly surprised by how entertaining the first battle was.


    It was as if two pavilions were fighting against each other, so the disciples shouted and hollered.


    Half an hourter, the battle finally ended. One of them came out victorious, but he had to pay a steep price. He was immediately ushered to get treatment because he had to fight again soon.


    The one who got defeated was naturally treated too, but his treatment was much simpler.


    Everyone was excited to see who would go up next.


    Two people moved amidst the remaining ten, and everyone was stupefied. It was a fight involving two Seventh Passage Stage disciples! There were six Seventh Passage Stage disciples including Long Chen and Liu Yiyi, but to think two of them had to fight each other.


    This was unfortunately a random chance thanks to the lots, so nothing could be done about it.


    ¡°Two Seventh Passage Stage disciples? I wonder what will happen for the next few pairings?¡± Demon General Typhoon smiled and started the match.


    No one knew who they were going to fight, so everyone was excited to see who would go up on stage. Long Chen did a rough calction and ascertained that there were tens of fights before the second stage would conclude. Those who managed to endure until the final challenge were undoubtedly very strong.


    The two contestants fought vehemently. One of them belonged to the Azure Purgatory Pavilion, the same pavilion as Chen Feng. His me Pearl had been given to him by Chen Feng, but his strength was not amazing. In just fifteen minutes, he was defeated by the other contestant.


    Chen Feng scowled.


    ¡°Next! Contestants number five and six!¡± Demon General Typhoon announced.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 520: Incredible Battle

    Who were the fifth and sixth contestants?


    Demon General Typhoon has just finished announcing when someone jumped onto the arena. Everyone saw that it was none other than Ying Shaotian. Before Chen Feng advanced into the Ninth Passage Stage, Ying Shaotian was considered the strongest disciple. Now he was in second ce.


    Since the Red Ghost King had always lived a high-profile life, Ying Shaotian¡¯s appearance garnered everyone¡¯s attention.


    ¡°Who¡¯s number six?¡± Ying Shaotian asked, looking at Long Chen. He had hoped that Long Chen would be number six. Unfortunately, he was number seven, or Long Chen would¡¯ve run up and pummeled Ying Shaotian.


    <em>Since both Liu Yiyi and I have secured a spot, the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s ranking will be higher than the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯s as long as I beat Ying Shaotian! Liu Yiyi won¡¯t have to marry Ying Shaotian!</em>


    Long Chen had made a promise to the Clear Shallows King and he will achieve it no matter what!


    So who was the sixth contestant?


    Everyone was shocked to see who it was. To think that it was another disciple at the Eighth Passage Stage! The lots had been too coincidental. The crowd was already brimming with excitement from the previous fight, and now they would be able to spectate another fight between disciples at the same cultivation level.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening? That means two disciples at the Eighth Passage Stage will be eliminated! Doesn¡¯t that mean two disciples at the Seventh Passage Stage will be able to enter the top six? Isn¡¯t this illegal?¡±¡°How is it illegal? Luck ys arge part. When ites to drawing lots, everything depends on luck. Plus, who cares about being in the top six? Everyone wants to reach the top three. Even though they will enter the top six due to luck, will they be able to advance into the top three with luck alone?¡±


    Everyone started chattering and discussing.


    The Red Ghost King frowned when Ying Shaotian didn¡¯t get paired with Long Chen. If Ying Shaotian lost here, the Red Ghost King would definitely have to kneel and apologize even if both Liu Yiyi and Long Chen didn¡¯t enter the final six.


    Just then, an old man who was around the same age as the Red Ghost Kingmented, ¡°Red Ghost King, who do you think is better, Liu Dongtian or your disciple Ying Shaotian?¡±


    The Red Ghost King didn¡¯t even hesitate to answer, ¡°Of course Ying Shaotian is better!¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Then I hope Ying Shaotian fights hard, or you will have to kneel down in front of a woman. You would be theughingstock of the Ancient Demon Domain if that happened, hahaha!¡± The old manughed without care.


    ¡°Void re King, don¡¯t you dareugh at my misfortune!¡± The Red Ghost King¡¯s mustache curled up from anger.


    Ying Shaotian and Liu Dongtian started their fight. Ying Shaotian was going to be his opponent in the end, so Long Chen observed closely.


    Ying Shaotian was indeed strong. He used the Wind Riding Sword Finger the moment the battle started, but Liu Dongtian was no pushover. His techniques shed with Ying Shaotian¡¯s repeatedly. They were almost evenly matched.


    Both of them were stronger than regr Eighth Passage Stage cultivators, so their battle was intense. They sprinted across the arena andunched attacks one after another while defending against their opponent¡¯s attacks wlessly. Their battle was nothing short of incredible.


    The crowd strained their necks from trying to spectate the battle. None of them wished to miss even a single detail.


    Half an hourter, the two of them were tired. At the final moment, Ying Shaotian endured and knocked his opponent off the arena to take the victory. He didn¡¯t forget to taunt Long Chen before copsing on the arena himself.


    ¡°Shaotian!¡± The Red Ghost King ran down to the arena and took his disciple for treatment. Thankfully, there was some time before his next fight, enough for Ying Shaotian to recover.


    Ying Shaotian had sessfully entered the top six. If Long Chen and Liu Yiyi both failed to advance, the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s cement would be lower than the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯s. In that case, Liu Yiyi would have to marry Ying Shaotian.


    After Ying Shaotian was transported away from the arena, Demon General Typhoon announced the fourth fight. Long Chen was number seven, so he went up to the arena. He wasn¡¯t sure who his opponent would be.


    Chen Feng¡¯s face fell when he saw Long Chen walking up. It was clear that he wasn¡¯t paired with Long Chen.


    ¡°It¡¯s Jiang Cheng! He can easily defeat someone at the Seventh Passage Stage. As long as he gets paired with one, he will definitely win! But there¡¯s one person at the Eighth Passage Stage and another at the Ninth Passage Stage amongst the remaining five ¡­¡±


    ¡°Then whether he can advance into the next half of the stage or not will depend on luck.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Luck alone won¡¯t get you into the top three, not to mention first ce!¡±


    Everyone was discussing and chatting when Long Chen entered the arena. He knew that his luck was good because one of the other Seventh Passage Stage disciples was approaching.


    ¡°Red City Pavilion, Yan Cheng!¡±


    ¡°Clear Shallows Pavilion, Jiang Cheng!¡±


    Long Chen was cordial to the opponent since the other party was respectful to him. Both of them introduced themselves and started the fight the moment the signal came from Demon General Typhoon.


    Someone at the Seventh Passage Stage would never be Long Chen¡¯s opponent. As the others had expected, the disciple was defeated in just a few breaths. Long Chen didn¡¯t hurt the disciple, so Yan Cheng was grateful for that.


    ¡°Thank you for your mercy. I, Yan Cheng, admit defeat!¡±


    Afterwards, Yan Cheng returned to where the Red City Pavilion was stationed. He was not at all resentful about losing to Long Chen.


    Even the Red Ghost King was frowning at Long Chen¡¯s luck. The previous disciples had all fought tooth and nail against each other, but Long Chen had won with ease. The Clear Shallows Kingughed happily.


    ¡°What are you happy about? Luck might be important, but you can¡¯t win without strength. Do you think you will be the one to have the finalugh? Shaotian will definitely enter the top three. As long as he enters the top three spots, the Red Ghost Pavilion will be above yours!¡± Red Ghost King grunted.


    But he had spoken so quietly that no one heard him.


    Long Chen left the arena after the fight.


    ¡°Yiyi, if you are matched with Chen Feng, just admit defeat. But if you are matched against the Eighth Passage Stage cultivator, you can try your best. You can always admit defeat if you can¡¯t win. But if you get paired with the Seventh Passage Stage disciple ¡­ I will have to congratte you,¡± Long Chen informed Liu Yiyi.


    She nodded. ¡°I understand.¡±


    She felt her heart flutter from his sweetness. She knew he was looking out for her.


    Demon General Typhoon announced the start of the fifth battle. The ninth contestant was a nervous-looking disciple. He stared at Chen Feng and the others in anticipation.


    Both Long Chen and the Clear Shallows King smiled. Not only was Long Chen lucky, Liu Yiyi was too. She was paired against the Seventh Passage Stage disciple.


    ¡°How could this be? I can¡¯t believe how coincidental the pairings are! They are all fighting against someone on their own level!¡±


    ¡°This is unfair! How did they do it?¡±


    ¡°It must be a scam!¡±


    Because of the lots, three of the Eighth Passage Stage cultivators were destined to lose. They had the strength to enter the top six spots, but they had lost due to luck. The people from the losers¡¯ pavilions were grumbling because their ranking would drop once their oldest disciples lost.


    Their shouts got louder, especially after Liu Yiyi entered the stage. That meant the final Eighth Passage Stage disciple would have to fight against Chen Feng! That was certain defeat for that poor disciple. He had wanted to attain glory for his pavilion, but now he was destined to lose.


    Even Demon General Typhoon was feeling helpless.


    ¡°Quiet!¡± Jiang Wushang stood up and scolded them. His voice generated a shockwave that shook everyone¡¯s brains. Everyone became quiet and stared at Jiang Wushang.


    ¡°We are the Ancient Demon Domain, one of the strongest entities of the Divine Martial Empire. The assessment is naturally fair. Don¡¯t you think you are embarrassing the Ancient Demon Domain byining here? Luck ys an integral role since we decided to do it through drawing lots! Luck is important because you can die if you¡¯re unlucky! If you are not content with the results,e talk to me directly! Don¡¯t disrupt the assessment! Typhoon, start the fight!¡±


    Jiang Wushang¡¯s voice was very loud, so everyone heard him clearly. They remained quiet and said nothing.


    They just wanted to express their discontent since it was impossible to cheat at drawing lots. Everything that had happened today had been purely coincidental.


    No oneined again after Jiang Wushang said that.


    He was right. Inbat, those who were unlucky would die.


    Jiang Wushang was the son of the Demon Emperor, meaning he had ess to resources unthinkable to most people. Wasn¡¯t that luck too?


    After that little interruption, Liu Yiyi started her fight. She was considered the strongest Seventh Passage Stage disciple because of her King-tier martial techniques. Normally, not even those at the Eighth Passage Stage had one. Her opponent soon crumbled under her Demonic Illusion.


    The final six spots had been decided swiftly.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    It''s not a coincidence. It''s plot armor</blockquote>

 Chapter 521: Hurricane Sword Finger

    The final battle was Chen Feng¡¯s. It was obvious that he would win and enter the top six. In the end, the final six consisted of one Ninth Passage Stage, two Eighth Passage Stage, and three Seventh Passage Stage disciples.


    This was the first time three disciples at the Seventh Passage Stage had entered the top six, and two of them were from the Clear Shallows Pavilion! The Clear Shallows King¡¯s reputation had definitely skyrocketed today. Her disciples usually ced deadst, but now they had a chance of aiming for the top three!


    Two pavilions had been eliminated, and those were now at the bottom of the rankings. The Clear Shallows Pavilion only needed to make sure that they didn¡¯t ce lower than the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯s, and that whether or not that happened would depend on Long Chen and Liu Yiyi.


    Even so, the Clear Shallows King was more than happy with the oue. Both Long Chen and Liu Yiyi had defended her honor, though it was mainly due to luck so far.


    Chen Feng had defeated his opponent easily, but he wasn¡¯t smiling.


    The final six were called to the arena by Demon General Typhoon. Ying Shaotian and the others were feeling better after their treatment.


    When Ying Shaotian woke up, he almost fell unconscious from anger after hearing that both Long Chen and Liu Yiyi would enter the next phase. But he then thought that this would be a good chance for him to defeat Long Chen in front of a crowd!


    Or maybe even kill him!


    It wasmon for someone to die in an intense fight. Even the Clear Shallows King wouldn¡¯t be able to stop him!<em>They are only standing here due to luck! I¡¯m certain that they will not advance past the final three! As long as I be one of the top three, the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯s rank will be higher than the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s even if I get second ce! Liu Yiyi will be my woman! </em>Ying Shaotian revealed a lecherous gaze as he stared at Liu Yiyi¡¯s body.


    Liu Yiyi sensed his gaze and hid behind Long Chen. Ying Shaotian was angry that she had ignored himpletely.


    ¡°Brother Ying, there¡¯s only six of us now. If we are lucky, one of us will fight against Jiang Cheng. Don¡¯t hold back if you do get paired with him,¡± Chen Feng whispered.


    ¡°Of course.¡± Ying Shaotian smiled cruelly.


    Demon General Typhoon approached them with new lots to draw. This time they were bamboo sticks with numbers at the bottom. He covered the bottoms and let the disciples draw them.


    ¡°Come and decide your fate! Let¡¯s see which of you will be lucky enough to enter the top three!¡± Demon General Typhoon chuckled.


    Chen Feng was first. Long Chen and Liu Yiyi were thest two. Long Chen drew his lot and saw the number six on it.


    ¡°Numbers one and two, stay here. The others can go down.¡±


    Long Chen saw Liu Yiyi staring at him bitterly and knew that she was one of the contestants. <em>So who is the other? </em>Long Chen looked around and saw that everyone was leaving the arena. Only Ying Shaotiao stood there as he revealed his lot. He was number one.


    Liu Yiyi would be fighting Ying Shaotian.


    ¡°If you can¡¯t win, just admit defeat and leave everything to me!¡± Long Chen whispered to her before heading down.


    Liu Yiyi nodded. Long Chen¡¯s words gave her a sense of security.


    Once everyone went down, Liu Yiyi stared at Ying Shaotian smiling at her. Her luck had run out.


    Their fight also represented the conflict between the Red Ghost King and the Clear Shallows King. The Clear Shallows King didn¡¯t want her daughter to fight against Ying Shaotian, but she was surprised by how fast Liu Yiyi had grown thanks to Long Chen¡¯s help. Seeing her daughter¡¯s growth made her very satisfied.


    Of course, she was hoping that Liu Yiyi would be able to win against Ying Shaotian.


    ¡°She¡¯s just a girl. It¡¯s one thing to be someone¡¯s wife, but it''s another to try and fight in an arena.¡± The Red Ghost King chuckled.


    ¡°I am also a girl. You can¡¯t even hope to beat me and yet you are insulting my daughter?¡± The Clear Shallows King hit back.


    The Red Ghost King was not good with words, and a single retort from the Clear Shallows King was enough to make him mad. ¡°We will see who wins in the end! You raised your daughter just so she could be my disciple¡¯s wife.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s too early to say that?¡± The Clear Shallows King was confident in Long Chen¡¯s strength.


    ¡°We shall wait and see!¡± The Red Ghost King gritted his teeth in anger.


    Liu Yiyi was indeed weaker than Ying Shaotian, and everyone knew that. Still, she chose to fight him instead of surrendering.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt such a beauty. Just give up.¡± Ying Shaotian smiled inly.


    ¡°Stop bullshitting. The Ying Shaotian I know doesn¡¯t p his mouth.¡± Liu Yiyi looked fierce as her Qi circted in her body. She was close to the Eighth Passage Stage.


    Ying Shaotian knew that the more he spoke, the more the others would look down on him. His face grew cold when he saw how Liu Yiyi looked down on him. He recalled how she started to treat him poorly after Long Chen appeared.


    Ying Shaotian was angry at Long Chen, but he could do nothing but vent his anger on Liu Yiyi for now.


    ¡°Careful, then!¡± Ying Shaotian shouted. He then turned into a blur and ran towards Liu Yiyi. A hurricane swirled around him as heshed out at her. A massive wave of Sword Qi shot out from the middle of the hurricane!


    ¡°Hurricane Sword Finger!¡±


    Ying Shaotian had no intention to hold back¡ªhe used an advanced Heaven-tier martial technique right at the start!


    It was also the one he was most familiar with!


    Facing the strong attack, Liu Yiyi grew serious and quickly shifted around the arena. She was using the Universe Eight Trigrams Array, a technique she had used on Long Chen. It was a good martial technique that epassed both offensive and defensive moves. The brilliant lighting from the array attracted everyone¡¯s attention.


    If she were at the Eighth Passage Stage, she wouldn¡¯t be any weaker than Ying Shaotian.


    Unfortunately, shecked the luck to advance to the next stage.


    The Hurricane Sword Finger and the Universe Eight Trigrams Array crashed into each other. Ying Shaotianpletely shattered Liu Yiyi¡¯s Universe Eight Trigrams Array due to his advantage in cultivation level. Ying Shaotian was about to celebrate, but Liu Yiyi punched him the moment the array shattered.


    Ying Shaotian frowned and was about to attack when he sensed another attacking from his back.


    <em>Demonic Illusion! </em>Ying Shaotian was surprised. It was not easy to defend against two advanced Heaven-tier attacks, but he was not afraid.


    ¡°Hurricane Sword Finger!¡±


    Ying Shaotian¡¯s body rotated rapidly, and he soon turned into a tornado. Several Sword Qi waves flew out of the wind, shooting in two different directions. One shot towards Liu Yiyi and the other at her Demonic Illusion.


    ¡°Damn!¡± Liu Yiyi knew that she was not his match. She could not handle an attack of that caliber, so she quickly released her Demonic Illusion and retreated.


    ¡°Trying to run?¡± Ying Shaotian smiled viciously. His disdain towards her was ignited by her retreat. He ramped up his attack, and the countless rays of Sword Qi shot towards Liu Yiyi like a torrent.


    She would die if she got hit!


    ¡°I admit defeat!¡± Liu Yiyi shouted. It was impossible for her to block the attack. Ying Shaotian was too strong.


    Liu Yiyi had admitted defeat, so the match was over. Ying Shaotian was supposed to stop attacking, but he didn¡¯t. She would be torn to shreds if he didn¡¯t stop.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Long Chen was beyond angry. He was too far away from Liu Yiyi, so he couldn¡¯t save her. The other Demon King was even further than him, so he thought there was no way that they would reach the arena in time.


    No one could¡¯ve guessed that Ying Shaotian would try to take Liu Yiyi¡¯s life!


    The atmosphere was tense. The Clear Shallows King was so angry that she shattered her seat and transformed into a green illusion before appearing above Liu Yiyi. With a wave of her hand, she sent Ying Shaotian¡¯s attack flying back at him.


    ¡°You dare hit my disciple?!¡± The Red Ghost King was afraid that the Clear Shallows King would hurt his disciple, so he quickly rushed out to grab Ying Shaotian from the air.


    <em>Are people at the Three Martial Realm that strong? </em>Long Chen was shocked. He thought the Clear Shallows King would never be able to save Liu Yiyi, but he was wrong. Long Chen sighed in relief.


    The Clear Shallows King was not an idiot. She wanted to beat the crap out of the Red Ghost King, but it would be unwise since there was no chance the Red Ghost King would step down. That was why she hadn¡¯t injured Ying Shaotian gravely. She would usually pulverize anyone else that tried to kill her daughter.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    We all know who will be the next casualty</blockquote>

 Chapter 522: Evil People Are Bad Everywhere

    ¡°I don¡¯t see anything wrong with hitting your disciple. She had admitted defeat, so why is he still attacking? Is this how the Red Ghost Pavilion conducts itself? What an eye-opener.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King had insulted them. She didn¡¯t want to embarrass herself, so she brought her daughter down from the arena, leaving the Red Ghost King and Ying Shaotian alone.


    Even the Red Ghost King wasn¡¯t sure why Ying Shaotian would do something like that. That act had tarnished their pavilion¡¯s honor. Since the Clear Shallows King didn¡¯t want to fight him to the bitter end, he could only scurry down the arena with Ying Shaotian in his arms.


    The crowdughed.


    ¡°Ying Shaotian is so weird. Liu Yiyi gave up, yet he continued to attack her. Do you think he went crazy? Everyone knows that Liu Yiyi has to marry Ying Shaotian if the cement of the Clear Shallows Pavilion is lower than the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯s. Maybe Ying Shaotian thinks there¡¯s no chance he will marry Liu Yiyi anymore.¡±


    ¡°Who knows? I thought he was a great disciple, but it seems that his demeanor is the same as his master¡¯s. Like father, like son, I suppose.¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s just that evil people are the same everywhere in the world, just like how crows are ck no matter which part of the world theye from.¡±


    ¡°ck? You mean red?¡±


    ¡°Haha!¡±If it were only one person who wasughing at him, the Red Ghost King would¡¯ve whipped that person to death. But there was no way he could kill everyone when most of the crowd wasughing at him.


    He roared at the crowd, ¡°Shut up! We will see who has thestugh!¡±


    Ying Shaotian has indeed won, so he would enter the final three. If Long Chen couldn¡¯t advance, the Red Ghost King would win.


    Everyone stopped talking after seeing how angry Red Ghost King was. But they were still secretly criticizing Ying Shaotian¡¯s actions. Liu Yiyi was a beautifuldy, and if the Clear Shallows King had beente, someone as beautiful as her would¡¯ve been dead. Who would be happy about that?


    ¡°Shaotian, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡± the Red Ghost King hollered at him.


    Ying Shaotian was afraid and embarrassed. His face was almost as red as his master¡¯s. ¡°Master, I couldn¡¯t stand it when Liu Yiyi looked down on me. I wanted to show her how strong I am.¡±


    ¡°Idiot! If you want to show her how strong you are, you need to at least get second ce for me!¡±


    The Red Ghost King was confused. Ying Shaotian was usually smart and cold, so why was he so rash today? Beating her was indeed a way to show her how strong he was, but that had damaged his reputation and the Red Ghost King¡¯s.


    Ying Shaotian snapped out of it and apologized. ¡°Master, I was indeed rash. I¡¯ve never been humiliated by a woman before. Let me restore the honor of the Red Ghost Pavilionter.¡±


    He then red venomously at Long Chen.


    After the little scuffle had ended, the battle continued. Who was going to fight next? Everything wasing down to luck once more.


    When Demon General Typhoon saw that everything was over, he waited for approval from Jiang Wushang before starting the next match. ¡°Numbers three and four,e up to the arena. Let me remind you once more that once someone admits defeat, the other must stop immediately! If you continue to attack and kill them, your participation will be voided! I hope everyone can understand this!¡±


    This rule had just been set by Jiang Wushang, so Ying Shaotian wasn¡¯t kicked out.


    So who were the next fighters?


    Chen Feng was the first one to move once Demon General Typhoon called for them toe up. He red at Long Chen before heading to the arena, then he said to Demon General Typhoon, ¡°I am number four, but who is number three?¡±


    One of the disciples¡¯ faces paled when he saw Chen Feng walk up.


    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± The disciple was at the Eighth Passage Stage. He shook his head in shame.


    He had faced off against another Eighth Passage Stage disciple previously. After fighting hard to enter the next stage, he had drawn Chen Feng as his opponent. He knew that he couldn¡¯t win, so he admitted defeat on the spot.


    ¡°Everyone, I am very unlucky today. I give up!¡±


    The disciple had been trying to figure out who his opponent would be before this, hoping he would be lucky. As long as he didn¡¯t have to fight Chen Feng, he would definitely enter the final three. But luck wasn¡¯t on his side today.


    He had no choice but to admit defeat.


    Some were born with misfortune, while some were born with the stars of fortune guiding them. This was inevitable.


    The crowd became noisy again when the disciple gave up. It was certain that Chen Feng would enter the top three, so they didn¡¯t think much, but to think Long Chen would enter the top three too!


    ¡°My goodness! He¡¯s too lucky! He met a Seventh Passage Stage disciple in the first round, and now he has met another!¡±


    ¡°This is a coincidence, but his luck is too good!¡±


    ¡°To think that a mere Seventh Passage Stage disciple would enter the top three with just luck! This is too coincidental!¡±


    Long Chen hadn''t officially entered the top three yet, but considering his previous fight with a Seventh Passage Stage disciple, it was certain that he would win this time too.


    The Clear Shallows King had originally been angry at Liu Yiyi¡¯s incident, but now she could barely contain her smile. Liu Yiyi was in the top six, while Long Chen would be in the top three. That meant her pavilion¡¯s ranking would be higher than that of the Red Ghost Pavilion! The grand elders were fair in their assessment.


    That meant Liu Yiyi wouldn¡¯t have to marry Ying Shaotian, and the Red Ghost King was destined to kneel today!


    Their promise from the past was made in front of witnesses. Not only was the Emperor me Pearl the focus of this assessment, everyone was also very excited to see the oue of the promise between the Clear Shallows King and the Red Ghost King. It seemed the Clear Shallows King woulde out on top.


    ¡°Red Ghost King, be a man and honor your words. Don¡¯t make me look down on you! Don¡¯t make everyone look down on you!¡± The Clear Shallows King¡¯s words reverberated across the entire fourthyer of the Demon World.


    ¡°In your dreams! Jiang Cheng hasn''t even entered the top three yet!¡± The Red Ghost King¡¯s face was extremely sour. His body trembled and his chair was crushed!


    ¡°Shaotian, be the champion! Only then will I not have to kneel!¡± the Red Ghost King ordered.


    ¡°Champion? But Chen Feng is at the Ninth Passage Stage!¡± Ying Shaotian was certain that he would not be able to win.


    The Red Ghost King knew that too. Chen Feng belonged to the Azure Purgatory Pavilion, and he had friendly rtions with them. He wanted to ask Chen Feng to give Ying Shaotian the victory instead, but now it appeared to be impossible.


    ¡°There¡¯s no chance Jiang Cheng will give up easily. Tell Chen Feng to kill Jiang Cheng as quickly as possible! That will at least let me kneel in peace!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve thought of a n.¡± Ying Shaotian chuckled menacingly.


    While they were whispering to each other, Long Chen walked up to the arena.


    At the same time, Chen Feng was making his way off the arena, so they crossed paths.


    ¡°Careful. If you enter the top three, both me and Ying Shaotian will be sure to take good care of you, you lucky bastard!¡± Chen Feng said in a cold tone when he walked past Long Chen.


    Long Chen had expected something like this to happen.


    It was certain that Chen Feng would enter the top three, and Long Chen was confident that he would as well.


    Ying Shaotian and Chen Feng were friends, so they were sure to team up and kill Long Chen! Long Chen was not afraid of Ying Shaotian, but he was wary of Chen Feng. It wouldn¡¯t be easy to deal with both.


    But Long Chen was not weak, and he hadn''t even transformed once.


    It was up to fate to decide who the Emperor me Pearl would go to in the end.


    Everyone waited for the next match.


    ¡°Who will obtain the final spot?¡± Everyone was eager to see the oue. Even Demon General Typhoon didn¡¯t know what would happen.


    ¡°It will all depend on this fight! Start the battle!¡±


    The moment he announced that, Long Chen¡¯s body became a blur and he appeared in front of his opponent.


    ¡°So fast!¡± The disciple was just about to attack when Long Chen¡¯s fistnded on his stomach. Long Chen then grabbed the disciple¡¯s arm and threw him out of the arena.


    Everything ended in a single breath.


    Demon General Typhoon was shocked. This was the fastest match today. Long Chen had used his overwhelming speed and strength to defeat the enemy!


    This meant he would advance into the final phase!


    <em>Jiang Cheng is amazing. They think he only seeded due to his luck, but his strength is actually befitting someone at the top three. </em>Jiang Wushang sighed in awe.


    The second phase had officially concluded.


    Demon General Typhoon wanted to ask if anyone needed rest, but Long Chen red at both Ying Shaotian and Chen Feng.


    ¡°Chen Feng, Ying Shaotian! Stop wasting time ande here!¡±


    Ruthless!


    Cocky!


    Long Chen¡¯s statement made it seem like he would take them both at the same time!


    He knew that that would be the case. Both of them hated him, so how could they not work together to kill Long Chen?


    ¡°Chen Feng, kill Jiang Cheng and I will admit defeat afterwards!¡± Ying Shaotian whispered.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Scratch that, make it two casualties for today</blockquote>

 Chapter 523: One Against Two

    Chen Fengughed. This was exactly what he wanted, or he would¡¯ve needed to expend more energy to deal with Ying Shaotian.


    He nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Jiang Cheng will not be able to escape if I use my King-tier Body Combat technique.¡±


    The two of them entered the arena at the same time before everyone¡¯s eyes.


    Only the three of them remained in the arena once Demon General Typhoon walked off. This was the pivotal fight that revolved around Long Chen fighting against Chen Feng and Ying Shaotian at the same time.


    Liu Yiyi was uncertain of what would happen. ¡°Mother, what if they work together to deal with Jiang Cheng?¡±


    The Clear Shallows King frowned. She knew how strong Long Chen was, but Chen Feng and Ying Shaotian appeared to be stronger when they worked together. Both of them were already strong on their own, so she was worried that Long Chen would not be able to handle both of them at the same time.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t underestimate Jiang Cheng. Since he has the courage to fight, that means he has a n. Even if he can¡¯t win, I will make sure they don¡¯t kill him.¡± The Clear Shallows King would save Long Chen at the critical moment.


    What was once a rtionship based on profit had turned into a friendship thanks to Liu Yiyi¡¯s help. But Long Chen never seriously thought of himself as a disciple of the Clear Shallows King.


    With the Clear Shallows King guaranteeing his safety, Liu Yiyi calmed down a little, but tears started to pool in her eyes because she knew Long Chen was fighting for them.In reality, Long Chen was doing it for himself ¡­


    He wouldn¡¯t be helping them if he had nothing to gain; the Emperor me Pearl was very important to him.


    The crowd knew what was going on since even Liu Yiyi could tell that Chen Feng and Ying Shaotian were nning to gang up on Long Chen.


    ¡°Are they kidding? Will they really fight Jiang Cheng together? Isn¡¯t that unfair?¡±


    ¡°But that¡¯s part of the rules. It¡¯s just coincidental that Chen Feng and Ying Shaotian are on friendly terms. Jiang Cheng¡¯s luck has been good, but this is the end for him. No matter how he got there, one needs true strength to be the champion.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s fair. What if Jiang Cheng is slightly stronger than Chen Feng? Isn¡¯t it a waste if he loses because of the rules?¡±


    ¡°Are you kidding me? Do you really think he¡¯s stronger than Chen Feng?¡±


    ¡°Hmm ¡­ That¡¯s true. Let¡¯s just see how it pans out. These are the rules, and there¡¯s nothing we can do.¡±


    Those were indeed the rules. If Long Chen could thrive using the rules, he could identally die because of them too.


    But no matter what everyone said, Long Chen kept calm.


    He needed to be calm to win.


    Long Chen was much more experienced in battle, so he was far moreposed than the others. Chen Feng had his fair share of battles, but Ying Shaotian appeared to becking. This made it easy to decide who Long Chen would target first.


    He needed to beat one of them as quickly as possible in order to obtain victory. It wouldn¡¯t be easy.


    ¡°How long do you think Jiang Cheng willst?¡±


    ¡°Five breaths. No more than that.¡±


    ¡°I think he canst ten breaths. It will be a miracle if he survives more than that.¡±


    Everyone started cing their bets left and right.


    Demon General Typhoon saw that the time was right and officially announced the start of the battle!


    Everyone watched the arena closely with unblinking eyes. The final battle would be the most interesting fight of them all.


    Even Jiang Wushang was very interested in the final battle. He didn¡¯t know who would be the champion, so he found it very interesting.


    Everyone¡¯s gazes were trained on the three disciples on the arena.


    Chen Feng and Ying Shaotian looked at each other and smiled. ¡°Brother Ying, let¡¯s see who kills him first.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± Ying Shaotian whispered.


    Both of them instantly disappeared from the spot and pounced towards Long Chen. Even though Ying Shaotian was weaker, he was by no means a pushover.


    Long Chen had long prepared himself. The Demon Emperor Sword appeared in his hand and he transformed while everyone was watching him. He had a King-tier Body Tempering technique, so his body became even more robust after transforming. His Qi was also steadily increasing as he transformed. He now had more Qi than Ying Shaotian!


    <em>Hiss!</em>


    Two wisps of steam shot out of his nostrils.


    His body contained an enormous amount of power, waiting to be unleashed.


    ¡°Chen Feng, let¡¯s attack him now! Wind Riding Sword Finger!¡± Ying Shaotian attacked first even though he was slower than Chen Feng. A ray of Sword Qi flew towards Long Chen while Chen Feng used his incredible speed to approach Long Chen and punch him.


    ¡°Tiger Impact Fist!¡± A beast¡¯s howl came from his fist. The force behind his punch was equal to an entire charging army, making Ying Shaotian¡¯s Wind Riding Sword Finger look weak.


    While both were targeting Long Chen, both of them remained wary of each other.


    Both techniques were advanced Heaven-tier techniques. Long Chen¡¯s strongest technique was the Heaven Sword Array, but he had decided not to use it for now because there wasn''t a need to do so.


    He relied on his physical strength and charged forward.


    He avoided Chen Feng¡¯s Tiger Impact Fist with a slight hop forward and crashed into Ying Shaotian¡¯s Wind Riding Sword Finger.


    But Long Chen wasn¡¯t looking to die. Even though the Wind Riding Sword Finger looked dangerous, its attack radius was actually quite small, so Long Chen wasn¡¯t even hit by the main attack when he ducked into the whirlwind. The surrounding wind still cut him, but those were just shallow wounds.


    Long Chen swung his sword andunched three separate Supreme Demon Swords to push Ying Shaotian away. The attacks weren¡¯t strong, but they would hurt if Ying Shaotian got hit.


    Ying Shaotian had no choice but to dodge. Their encirclement was broken down just like that. Chen Feng was still behind Long Chen while Ying Shaotian was being pushed back.


    ¡°He¡¯s bold, but why is he separating them? Chen Feng could catch him easily.¡± Jiang Wushang frowned and was confused by what Long Chen was doing.


    Several breaths had passed since the start of the battle.


    Everyone had thought Long Chen would fall fairly quickly, so they were surprised by what was unfolding.


    ¡°Idiot. Are you thinking of separating me from Chen Feng? What¡¯s next?¡± Ying Shaotianughed haughtily. As far as he was aware, Long Chen only knew how to hide and run, so he assumed Long Chen was weak.


    It was true. Chen Feng was not stupid and he could easily close the gap again to surround Long Chen. It would be even easier this time since Long Chen¡¯s back was exposed to Chen Feng now.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen smiled. He ignored Chen Feng and continued attacking Ying Shaotian. The Demon Emperor Sword never stopped shing, and he pushed Ying Shaotian to the border of the arena. Ying Shaotian was confused and intrigued by what Long Chen was doing, so he didn¡¯t stop him.


    Chen Feng was now closing in on Long Chen¡¯s back!


    ¡°Haha! Brother Ying, he turned his back to me. Don¡¯t me me for killing him first!¡± Chen Feng didn¡¯t know what Long Chen was doing, but he startedughing happily as he ran towards Long Chen¡¯s back. With his speed, he instantly got close andunched another attack. This time, Long Chen would die if he got hit by it.


    But why had Long Chen not turned around to deal with Chen Feng? Did he really have a death wish?


    Everyone was craning their necks to see what would happen next.


    ¡°Mother, I think I know what he''s doing! He¡¯s tricking everyone!¡± Liu Yiyi was both surprised and happy when she saw what was happening.


    As soon as she said that, a ck shadow came out of Long Chen¡¯s body and shot towards Chen Feng. The shadow blocked Chen Feng and saved Long Chen!


    ¡°Demonic Illusion!¡± everyone shouted in unison. The crowd knew what that was. Everyone was shocked when they saw that Long Chen had the True Martial Demon Body, but he had used the Demonic Illusion now! Even the grand elders and Jiang Wushang were shocked.


    He had cultivated two King-tier techniques in a month!


    And he had advanced from the First Passage Stage to the Seventh Passage Stage in a month!


    This was not the progression of a genius, but a monster! Only monsters could aplish that!


    Long Chen¡¯s Demonic Illusion was more than enough to shock everyone in the crowd.


    But he didn¡¯t want to just surprise them¡ªhe wanted to defeat Ying Shaotian. He had been holding back to let Ying Shaotian drop his guard. Ying Shaotian thought Chen Feng was going to kill Long Chen, but at thest possible moment, the Demonic Illusion had stopped Chen Feng!


    ¡°That¡¯s ¡­ the Clear Shallows King¡¯s Demonic Illusion!¡± Ying Shaotian¡¯s eyes were wide with shock.


    At the same time, Long Chen appeared right in front of him.


    ¡°Die!¡± Long Chen enveloped Ying Shaotian with the Blood Devouring Domain and used the Heaven Sword Array at the same time!


    ¡°What is this?!¡± It was the first time Ying Shaotian had seen the Blood Devouring Domain. The blood-red mist and the strong suction forced him to use almost half of his Qi to stabilize his blood. Long Chen¡¯s attack hit him at the same time as the domain came down from above.


    Everyone was shocked by the sudden turnaround!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 524: Consequences

    ¡°It¡¯s not that easy to kill me!¡± Ying Shaotian knew that he had been fooled by Long Chen. He never would¡¯ve guessed that Long Chen was this strong, so he was still in disbelief. He now realized that Long Chen was an exceedingly dangerous foe, but there was no time to process his shock. He needed to fight back now, or he would be dead!


    Even Ying Shaotian shuddered when he felt the strength of the Heaven Sword Array.


    Countless runes formed a circr pattern and then swept towards Ying Shaotian.


    ¡°Impossible! It cannot be that strong!¡± An enemy at the same level as Long Chen would not be able to fight back thanks to the Blood Devouring Domain. Long Chen¡¯s attack far exceeded Ying Shaotian¡¯s expectations. This was a kill in one blow!


    ¡°Hurricane Sword Finger!¡± Ying Shaotian used the technique that he had used on Liu Yiyi, but this time it was weaker due to the Blood Devouring Domain.


    ¡°No!¡±


    The Red Ghost King was the one who had shouted, not Ying Shaotian.


    He was at the Earthly Martial Realm, so he could tell that Long Chen could kill Ying Shaotian. He decided to step in to save his disciple just like Clear Shallows King had. But the Red Ghost King was not as courteous as the Clear Shallows King, so no one knew if he would spare Long Chen.


    As if anticipating this, the Clear Shallows King blocked the Red Ghost King.¡°Red Ghost, your disciple hasn¡¯t admitted defeat. You can rescue him once he does!¡± The Clear Shallows King had the rules on her side.


    She was right. The Red Ghost King couldn¡¯t save him before Ying Shaotian admitted defeat.


    ¡°Go away!¡± The Red Ghost King was beyond nervous. He had no time to deal with her. He tried circling around her, but she still blocked him. He realized that she was determined to make him her enemy today!


    They were simr in strength, so he was confident he could beat her, but he had no time. Ying Shaotian was going to die if he didn¡¯t get there now.


    ¡°Shaotian, admit defeat!¡± the Red Ghost King howled.


    His eyes were bloodshot too.


    Everyone could hear his guttural shout.


    Chen Feng was distracted by Long Chen¡¯s Demonic Illusion. Even though Chen Feng was stronger, the Demonic Illusion was still strong enough to dy him and allow Long Chen to kill Ying Shaotian.


    Everyone thought Ying Shaotian was going to be killed, including the Red Ghost King, but Ying Shaotian himself didn¡¯t believe it.


    <em>Master wants me to quit? Is he looking down on me? No! I must not admit defeat to this idiot! </em>he shouted from the bottom of his heart.


    Ignoring his boiling blood, he used all of his Qi to increase the strength of his Hurricane Sword Finger.


    His attack soon became as powerful as the one he had used against Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°I would be an idiot to show you mercy.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Ying Shaotian had gonepletely crazy. Even though he was smart, he was very arrogant deep down. He thought Long Chen was far below him, so even though his life was about to be taken by Long Chen, he refused to believe that he would lose.


    That was why he did not admit defeat even though the Red Ghost King wanted him to.


    ¡°Master! Watch me win!¡± he shouted from inside the Blood Devouring Domain.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Heaven Sword Array and the Hurricane Sword Finger crashed into each other. Long Chen had prepared the Heaven Sword Array meticulously, while Ying Shaotian prepared his attack in a hurry. That was why he had lost.


    The Heaven Sword Array alone wasn¡¯t powerful enough to kill someone with a body as sturdy as his, but unfortunately, he had chosen to ignore the Blood Devouring Domain. The moment their techniques shed, the Hurricane Sword Finger managed to hold up against the Heaven Sword Array, but Ying Shaotian¡¯s physical body couldn¡¯t.


    Blood sprayed out of his orifices.


    The Heaven Sword Array was still being held back by the Hurricane Sword Finger when Ying Shaotian¡¯s entire body exploded from the extreme force exerted on his body from the impact of the techniques, as well as the internal pressure of his blood trying to escape his body. Everyone saw him exploding to bits.


    ¡°NOOOOOO!¡±


    That was his final shout.


    ¡°NOO!¡± The Red Ghost King shouted in vain and ignored the Clear Shallows King. If she were to block him this time, he would spare no thought in fighting her with his full strength.


    ¡°Clear Shallows King! Jiang Cheng dared to kill my disciple, so he must die too! If you block me, I will kill you too!¡± The Red Ghost King¡¯s incredible aura exploded from his body, scaring everyone in the crowd.


    ¡°And who do you think you are to say something like that? Do you think you are the Demon Emperor?¡± The Clear Shallows King chuckled.


    Long Chen¡¯s final attack had made her happy because the issue that had been concerning her the most for the past few years was gone just like that.


    ¡°Red Ghost King, your disciple killed mine five years ago. I reacted the same way you did today. Now you know how I felt! These are the consequences of your actions!¡±


    ¡°Clear Shallows King, you stupid bitch. Do you really think I won¡¯t fight you?¡± he shouted in anger as blood filled his eyes.


    He was about to fight when a cold voice came from behind him.


    ¡°Red Ghost King, do you want to die?¡± It was Jiang Wushang¡¯s voice. He hade down from his seat and stood behind the Red Ghost King.


    The Red Ghost King felt shivers run up his body and looked back to confirm that it was indeed Jiang Wushang.


    Jiang Wushang himself was not a fearsome individual, but the person behind him was.


    ¡°Prince Wushang, you cannot be biased! Didn¡¯t you say that the disciples can¡¯t kill each other? Jiang Cheng killed Ying Shaotian, so he should die!¡±


    ¡°When was I ever biased? I¡¯ve been doing nothing but following the rules. Your disciple refused to admit defeat and died in the hands of another disciple. Do not me others for that. Everyone saw it happening, so everyone knows whether I am being biased or not. You are one of the Seven Demon Kings, and yet you dare spout such lies? Are you looking down on me? Do you want to die?¡±


    The look in Jiang Wushang¡¯s eyes made it clear that he was not messing around. There was a hidden power in them that scared the Red Ghost King.


    ¡°I admit my wrongdoings.¡± The Red Ghost King had no choice but to suppress his anger and hatred for today. He knew he had lost. With Ying Shaotian¡¯s death, the Red Ghost Pavilion¡¯s ranking would fall rapidly.


    Ying Shaotian wouldn¡¯t have died if he had admitted defeat, so who could me Jiang Cheng? Ying Shaotian could only me himself for being arrogant, for being nurtured that way by the Red Ghost King.


    Everyone would get their due consequences. The Red Ghost King had been served today.


    Five years ago, he was on the other side. He never thought that he would be the victim this time.


    The Red Ghost King slowly shuffled back to his position.


    He lowered his face to prevent others from looking at his eyes, because they were still red.


    Those from his pavilion didn¡¯t even stand beside him, much less the others.


    The Clear Shallows King smiled and returned to her own position.


    Long Chen¡¯s performance had exceeded her expectations. Now the main concern wasn¡¯t defeating the Red Ghost Pavilion, but to see if Long Chen could get the Emperor me Pearl and push the Clear Shallows Pavilion to first ce!


    There was no need for the Red Ghost King to kneel anymore. Long Chen had done something better: he had killed Ying Shaotian. That would leave a longersting impact on the Red Ghost King.


    Ying Shaotian waspletely gone, his body disintegrated. How could the Red Ghost King force Liu Yiyi to marry Ying Shaotian now?


    Nothing could be done.


    The unexpected oue had left the crowd silent. No one dared to say anything as they silently looked at the blood-red individual in the middle of the arena.


    The Demonic Illusion had returned to Long Chen¡¯s side. Chen Feng frowned and stopped his attack.


    ¡°Continue the battle. Your strength is the only factor that will decide who gets the Emperor me Pearl!¡± Jiang Wushang announced.


    Both Long Chen and Chen Feng were people Jiang Wushang wanted to nurture, especially Long Chen. Jiang Wushang wanted to give the Emperor me Pearl to Long Chen since he had exhibited such fearsome battle prowess even though he was only at the Seventh Passage Stage. Chen Feng was already at the Ninth Passage Stage, so he didn¡¯t need the Emperor me Pearl anymore.


    How much stronger would Long Chen be if he advanced into the Ninth Passage Stage?


    Unfortunately, Jiang Wushang had no choice but to abide by the rules.


    After witnessing Ying Shaotian¡¯s death, everyone¡¯s perception of Long Chen had changedpletely. They had thought Long Chen was just a lucky donkey.


    But was luck alone enough to kill someone at the Eighth Passage Stage?


    Was it luck that had allowed him to y around with two strong enemies?


    It was clearly impossible.


    Chen Feng was now deeply wary of Long Chen.


    ¡°Both me and Ying Shaotian underestimated you.¡± Chen Feng shook his head and sighed, ¡°You chose to target him first, so he has perished, but I will not make the same mistake. Jiang Cheng, you are one of the strongest enemies I will face on my path of growth. I will use all of my strength to defeat you!¡±


    Chen Feng¡¯s body slowly transformed too.


    <em>Beast Warrior?! </em>Long Chen was shocked.


    He was indeed a Beast Warrior. Chen Feng¡¯s body didn¡¯t change much after transforming, but he looked much more nimble after he grew ck fur. His hands and feet had be paws with powerful ws.


    He was a humanoid ck panther!


    Long Chen felt a heavy pressure exuding from the transformed Chen Feng.


    <em>It seems it won¡¯t be easy to get the Emperor me Pearl ¡­</em> Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure if he could win, so he had no choice but to use all of his strength.


    But now the situation had turned to his advantage.


    It was still a two-on-one fight, but now it was Chen Feng¡¯s turn to be outnumbered.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Yaaaaaaas! </blockquote>

 Chapter 525: Traceless Purgatory Step

    Long Chen against Chen Feng.


    Now was the time for the most intense fight.


    No one had thought that the oue would be like this. Even the Clear Shallows King never thought Long Chen would make it this far. He was a regr ck horse during the trial to enter the Ancient Demon Domain, and he was now an even bigger one.


    Beast-like bloodlust exuded from the transformed Chen Feng.


    Long Chen knew that Chen Feng had just reached the Ninth Passage Stage. Compared to someone like the Demon General Strongman, who had been at the Ninth Passage Stage for years, Chen Feng was weaker. Long Chen had only used the first stage of Blood Sacrifice to kill Demon General Strongman, so there was no way he would lose here. He also had the King-tier True Martial Demon Body, the Demonic Illusion, as well as the various techniques provided by the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. Long Chen knew he had a chance to win here.


    From the spectators¡¯ point of view, two beasts were about to sh.


    Chen Feng had always been a Beast Warrior. His Primary Beast Soul was a panther-like beast that granted him the speed he had right now.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what your beast soul is, but it seems interesting ¡­¡± Chen Feng revealed a blood-red tongue and licked his lips.


    The battle officially started.Chen Feng was so fast that he appeared next to Long Chen merely a moment after he finished speaking!


    <em>He¡¯s too fast! </em>Long Chen realized that his opponent was much faster than him!


    But he had ways to deal with him.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    He used it once more. Thanks to the pressure exerted from the Blood Devouring Domain, Chen Feng¡¯s Qi and speed were suppressed. Even Chen Feng was surprised by how slow he had gotten. He felt like he was wading through a swamp instead.


    Chen Feng didn¡¯t dare to ignore the Blood Devouring Domain because this technique had yed a role in Ying Shaotian¡¯s death. In order to kill Long Chen, Ying Shaotian had chosen to ignore the Blood Devouring Domain and died before Long Chen even defeated him.


    ¡°What is this damned thing?¡± On top of having his speed suppressed, Chen Feng had no choice but to use part of his Qi to stop his own blood from losing control.


    Now Long Chen could catch up to Chen Feng¡¯s speed.


    In just less than a month, Long Chen had learned to control the Demonic Illusion freely. It was just like the Divine Fire Clone, but the Demonic Illusion was stronger!


    Long Chen was using his Demonic Illusion to form a pincer attack against Chen Feng! The Demonic Illusion produced another intermediate Heaven-tier sword. It was the weapon that Long Chen had requested from the Clear Shallows King. He had been offered an advanced Heaven-tier sword, but he was used to the Demon Emperor Sword, so he didn''t need it. There wasn¡¯t much point in getting a new weapon unless it was at the King-tier.


    Chen Feng excelled in speed, so his attack power was slightlycking.


    ¡°HOWAAAH!¡±


    Chen Feng let out a guttural roar, and his aura exploded.


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one with a King-tier martial technique?¡±


    Chen Feng turned from one into a hundred, creating afterimages in front of Long Chen!


    It was simr to the Divine Fire Clone, but rather than looking like humanoid fire, all of the afterimages were the same!


    Long Chen knew that the technique was simr to Traceless Demon Shadow. He had used it countless times before. The technique produced afterimages that confused the opponents, but Chen Feng¡¯s technique was much more refined. Each afterimage looked extremely simr to each other!


    Hundreds of Chen Fengs appeared in the arena!


    <em>What incredible speed, and his movements are so bizarre!</em>


    Long Chen was secretly shocked, but he was also happy.


    Chen Feng failed to sense Long Chen¡¯s happiness.


    ¡°Traceless Purgatory Step! This is a King-tier Body Combat technique! Let me show you how powerful it is!¡± Chen Feng''sughter came in waves. The hundreds of afterimages switched between each other as if all of them were real. No one could tell which was the real body.


    Long Chen had a panicked look on his face as he retreated while the hundreds of afterimages chased after him,unching a barrage of attacks as he did so.


    ¡°You think you can surround me with your Demonic Illusion? Let me show you what a true encirclement is!¡± Chen Fengughed. Most of his attacks were aimed at Long Chen while some of the more powerful ones were aimed at the Demonic Illusion. He was trying to separate Long Chen and the Demonic Illusion just like how Long Chen had separated Ying Shaotian from Chen Feng!


    Some of Chen Feng¡¯s attacks were real, others were feints. However, Long Chen had no choice but to deal with all of them. Getting hit by a feint wouldn¡¯t be an issue, but it would be bad if he was hit by a real attack!


    ¡°Sky Rending ws!¡±


    A howl came, and several afterimages used the same technique to attack Long Chen. Long Chen didn¡¯t know which was real and which was fake. He had to dodge and evade like a madman as the crowd cheered.


    Long Chen was losing badly to the King-tier techniques. Not only was he running like a coward in the arena, his Demonic Illusion was doing the same thing too ¡­


    The Clear Shallows King sighed and shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯d be possible to defeat Chen Feng since he¡¯s at the Ninth Passage Stage. He¡¯s just one step away from getting the Emperor me Pearl.¡±


    ¡°The victor hasn''t been decided yet. Jiang Cheng might not lose ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi still believed in him.


    ¡°You silly girl.¡± The Clear Shallows King sighed again.


    Long Chen was being chased around by Chen Feng like a dog!


    ¡°Let¡¯s see if you can keep running while I bet you up!¡± Most of the afterimages in front of Long Chen startedughing. Several of them used the Sky Rending ws again to attack while the rest were dealing with the Demonic Illusion!


    Long Chen and the Demonic Illusion were separated, while Chen Feng¡¯s afterimages were concentrated in the middle. There were hundreds of afterimages, but only one was real. Chen Feng was changing his position so fast that he was never in the same ce for more than a single moment.


    Long Chen had actually seen through the trick, but he was feigning ignorance, hiding the fact that he could use Sight to track Chen Feng.


    Sight allowed him to see Chen Feng¡¯s soul changing its position at different speeds, but Long Chen endured and feigned ignorance to bide his time for a single chance.


    Seeing his King-tier technique suppress Long Chen made Chen Feng excited. He was so busy ying with Long Chen that he dropped his guard.


    Several Sky Rending ws wereunched at Long Chen, but none of them were real. The same was done on the Demonic Illusion as well. The real Chen Feng was enjoying the moment, watching Long Chen dodge and roll like a madman.


    ¡°Hahaha! Die! Sky Rending w!¡± Hundreds of afterimagesughed at the same time.


    Long Chen''s face was pale as he rolled again, but this time it was different. He suddenly stood up in the middle of his roll.


    ¡°Is hemitting suicide?¡± No one knew why Long Chen had decided to ignore all of the Sky Rending ws. He was going to take the attacks head-on! The Demonic Illusion was doing the same. Both of them were going to be torn to shreds!


    Everyone shouted at the same time.


    They didn¡¯t want to see what would happen to Long Chen. Long Chen had gone crazy!


    But to the crowd¡¯s shock, their bodies phased through the Sky Rending ws and emerged unharmed.


    ¡°Was he betting that those attacks were fake?¡± Everyone had the same thought, including Chen Feng. He never believed that Long Chen could tell which body was real.


    Everyone sighed in relief. Long Chen was too bold, but thankfully, he was lucky this time.


    Now that he had escaped the attacks, what would Long Chen do?


    Fifty more afterimages stood before him. Only one of them was real, and Chen Feng was constantly changing his position. Could Long Chen find the real Chen Feng? It was impossible to do so even if he risked his life again.


    Just then, both Long Chen and the Demonic Illusion charged at a specific afterimage. Everyone held their breath. Was Long Chen putting it all on the line?


    Long Chen swiftly ran past several afterimages and focused his attack on a single one. The crowd didn¡¯t know what was happening, but Chen Feng did, because Long Chen was attacking his real body!


    He never thought Long Chen would find his real body since his master, the Azure Purgatory King, had told him that only those at the Demon Emperor¡¯s level could tell which was his real body. So how had Long Chen and his Demonic Illusion found his real body in such a short amount of time andunched their most deadly attack at the same time?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Chen Feng should just run away at this point</blockquote>

 Chapter 526: The Strongest Disciple

    Long Chen had known Chen Feng¡¯s position all along, he had just been waiting for the perfect opportunity to defeat him.


    He might not have been able to defeat Chen Feng if he revealed that he could pinpoint his location from the start. That was why Long Chen had chosen to put up an act and dodged like a madman. He wanted Chen Feng to drop his guard and assume that he was safe. That had created an opening for Long Chen to surprise him.


    The Demonic Illusion behind Chen Feng alsounched a deadly attack.


    Long Chen and the Demonic Illusion targeted Chen Feng¡¯s real body amidst the fifty illusions and attacked with the Heavenly Sword Array at the same time with the two intermediate Heaven-tier Divine Arms.


    Chen Feng didn¡¯t realize that they knew his real location, so he failed to react in time.


    ¡°Impossible, impossible!¡± he muttered in disbelief before realizing he had to fight back. The two attacks formed a massive array, and they were barrelling towards him. One array had killed Ying Shaotian, so two were sure to kill him.


    Chen Feng panicked because Long Chen had left him absolutely bewildered. He had intended to y with his food, but the situation had been reversed.


    Everyone watched Long Chen use the Heaven Sword Array, but they thought he had merely picked a random illusion to attack. Chen Feng¡¯s words, however, made everyone pause in shock because it seemed that Long Chen had found the real body.


    The battle was nearing its climax.¡°You are strong, but so what?¡± When he was surrounded by the two powerful techniques, Chen Feng realized that he had been tricked and was burning with rage. His eyes were cold and radiating bloodlust as the Qi of a Ninth Passage Stage cultivator exploded from his body.


    ¡°Since you chose to do this, I will fight you to the bitter end!¡± Chen Feng howled.


    A panther-like beast illusion appeared behind his back and he swung his paw. The illusion sunk into the paw as Chen Feng lunged towards one of the Heaven Sword Arrays. This was Chen Feng¡¯s strongest attack!


    Long Chen frowned, but he was not afraid. The Heaven Sword Array shed with the ws. He suddenly realized that Chen Feng¡¯s attack was powerful enough to push his Heaven Sword Array back.


    But it was not enough to destroy the Heaven Sword Arraypletely. Still, the shockwave from the sh sent Long Chen flying. He spat out a mouthful of blood and was almost thrown out of the arena.


    Chen Feng was indeed strong; a cultivator at the Ninth Passage Stage was not to be trifled with.


    But using the Traceless Purgatory Step was a mistake, as Long Chen had easily countered it with Sight. That was the reason Long Chen had emerged victorious.


    Chen Feng had decided to fight to the bitter end to no avail. Long Chen was only hurt mildly after the sh.


    However, Chen Feng did not die. When faced with two Heaven Sword Arrays, he had chosen to only fight Long Chen. In the end, he was rescued by the Azure Purgatory King.


    Chen Feng would¡¯ve either died outright or been gravely injured if the Heaven Sword Array hit him. No matter what, he wasn¡¯t a match for Long Chen.


    When everything settled down, the crowd was speechless.


    Long Chen silently stood up and walked to the center of the arena. The Azure Purgatory King stopped the Heaven Sword Array as he held Chen Feng. Long Chen, on the other hand, stopped controlling his Demonic Illusion.


    ¡°Master, let me go. I need to fight Jiang Cheng and determine the winner.¡±


    The Azure Purgatory King shook his head and sighed. ¡°You¡¯ve already lost.¡±


    ¡°Lost? Impossible!¡± Chen Feng¡¯s eyes widened in shock.


    ¡°Yes, you¡¯ve lostpletely. Even though you were stronger, you still lost to him. You should¡¯ve defeated him at the start rather than show off your King-tier technique. That was how he found a way to fight back. There¡¯s no need to exin yourself further. Let¡¯s go¡­ ¡°


    It was only at this point that everyone realized that Long Chen had been aware of Chen Feng¡¯s real location all along. He had chosen to endure and hide the fact that he could do that just to clinch victory in the end.


    Chen Feng was indeed stronger than Long Chen, but he had lost.


    One¡¯s state of mind and experience yed arge role in battle. Long Chen¡¯s fight against Chen Feng was a ssic one where he had won psychologically.


    ¡°No. I¡¯m much stronger than him¡­ ¡° Chen Feng was close to tears when he heard that he had lost.


    The Azure Purgatory King decided that it was pointless to console someone who couldn¡¯t see the truth. He looked at Long Chen before dragging Chen Feng down the arena and back to where his seat was.


    Long Chen dispelled his Demonic Illusion and became thest person standing on the arena.


    No one knew what to say when they saw the blood-red lizard on the arena. He was like a rising star that no one could stop.


    Everyone finally realized how strong Long Chen was, and how bright his future looked.


    Thedies around Liu Yiyi¡¯s age were enamored by him.


    No one could believe their eyes when Long Chen defeated everyone during the trial to enter the Ancient Demon Domain, and now he had repeated that feat. He was victorious in the assessment, and no one had expected that to happen.


    Long Chen had be a legend in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    His exploits would be spread throughout the Ancient Demon Domain, or maybe the entirety of the Divine Martial Empire. Everyone would learn his name, especially after he obtained the Emperor me Pearl.


    Jiang Wushang shook his head and smiled. He was impressed by Long Chen and started pping. Everyone soon followed suit.


    This was the strongest affirmation and reward for him.


    Jiang Wushang was indeed regarding Long Chen highly. As the leader of the Ancient Demon Domain, he needed to have several strong assistants. Jiang Wushang had initially chosen Chen Feng, but now he preferred Long Chen.


    He was thinking that after using the me Emperor Pearl, Long Chen would be as strong as a cultivator at the Three Martial Realms.


    Jiang Wushang was looking forward to it.


    Everyone was impressed by Long Chen¡¯s incredible performance.


    Even the Clear Shallows King was starting to cry.


    Because of Long Chen, the Clear Shallows Pavilion¡¯s ranking had skyrocketed fromst ce to first. This was the best result they could¡¯ve ever asked for, and it had happened during her reign!


    How could she not be touched?


    Liu Yiyi understood what her mother was feeling and held her hand tightly. She was also crying.


    The grand elders finished calcting their scores. Demon General Typhoon took a look at the results and was very happy with them. ¡°Let me now announce the ranking of each disciple! I¡¯m sure that everyone watched Jiang Cheng be the champion and how Liu Yiyi entered the final six. That means that the Clear Shallows Pavilion is undeniably the champion.¡±


    Everyone pped and cheered.


    The members of the Clear Shallows Pavilion hugged each other happily. They had never felt more proud. They all looked at Long Chen with reverence.


    ¡°Second ce goes to the Azure Purgatory King Pavilion, with Chen Fenging out second ce and another disciple entering the final twelve!¡±


    The cheers were quieter this time.


    Everyone had thought the Azure Purgatory Pavilion was undeniably the strongest. It was embarrassing to be in second ce.


    No one cheered starting from the third ce. When Demon General Typhoon finished announcing the results, everyone noticed that the members of the pavilion that had ended up inst ce were very angry.


    ¡°Now, it¡¯s time to distribute the rewards to the disciples. May the top sixe up to the stage.¡±


    Because Ying Shaotian was dead, only five disciples made their way onto the arena.


    Demon General Typhoon started giving out the rewards.


    ¡°Jiang Qing, five hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.


    ¡°Liu Yiyi, five hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.


    ¡°Qian Long, five hundred thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.¡±


    Next, it was Chen Feng¡¯s turn, and Demon General Typhoon raised his voice before cing a Universe Pouch into Chen Feng¡¯s hand. ¡°Azure Purgatory Pavilion, Chen Feng, five million Heavenly Passage Pills. This is what he deserves.¡±


    Five million Heavenly Passage Pills. That was the dream of every disciple, and the crowd pped happily.


    ¡°The five of you can go down for now. Jiang Cheng¡¯s rewards are not in my hands. Prince Jiang Wushang will personally present them to him.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Victory!</blockquote>

 Chapter 527: Arrival of the Demon Emperor

    Following Demon General Typhoon¡¯s instructions, Liu Yiyi and the others exited the arena. As they walked, she told Long Chen, ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting for you.¡±


    When she spoke to him, there was a hint of redness in her cheeks.


    Long Chen nodded.


    After they descended, Jiang Wushang appeared in front of Long Chen while Demon General Typhoon retreated to a corner.


    Long Chen studied the legendary young man for the first time, and Jiang Wushang did the same. Based on his gaze, actions, and faint aura, it was clear that Jiang Wushang was a master of great talent.


    However, Long Chen did not know why Jiang Wushang looked so familiar, as if they had met before.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng,¡± Jiang Wushang said softly, then he smiled. ¡°An extraordinary teenage prodigy. You deserve everything you¡¯ve won today. Take this.¡±


    Then a Universe Pouch appeared in his hand.


    ¡°There are two items inside. One of them is a royal crystal. One royal crystal is equivalent to ten million Heavenly Passage Pills. If you need Heavenly Passage Pills, I can exchange it for ten million pills. Second, the Emperor me Pearl. You will be able to unlock all nine meridian points in your body on the Day of the Nine Suns, which is in ten days. When you bathe in the true fire of the sun, you will reach the Ninth Passage Stage.¡°Thank you, Prince Wushang.¡± The Emperor me Pearl was indeed the object of Long Chen¡¯s dreams. He reached out to take the Universe Pouch and stored it in the Primordial Realm. Now that the final prize had been given out, the evaluation hade to an end.


    Long Chen wanted to leave the Ancient Demon Domain. He nned to find an obscure ce and ascend to the Ninth Passage Stage on the Day of the Nine Suns. With Little Cat¡¯s help, he would also be able to absorb the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants.


    However, based on the look in Jiang Wushang¡¯s eyes, he surely wanted Long Chen to stay in the Ancient Demon Domain and be a confidante. Jiang Wushang said, ¡°Your name is Jiang Cheng¡ªyou have the same surname as the Demon Emperor¡¯s bloodline. Fate has brought us together.¡±


    ¡°It is my honor,¡± Long Chen responded hurriedly. Jiang Wushang held a high status, so this was to be expected.


    There was a hint of helplessness on Jiang Wushang¡¯s face when he said with a bitter smile, ¡°Then again, I have a very useless younger brother. His name is very simr to yours. Two months ago, he died a mysterious death. At the time, my father could not leave; therefore, he failed to rescue my brother. By the time we arrived, we didn¡¯t know where the culprit had gone.¡±


    Jiang Wushang was only reminiscing.


    All Long Chen could do was give a dry smile, though his face soon froze and he asked, ¡°What was your brother¡¯s name?¡±


    ¡°Jiang Wucheng. My father was very urate in naming him. Wucheng did not aplish anything before he died,¡± answered Jiang Wucheng with a bitter smile. [1]


    Long Chen felt like lightning had struck him.


    Jiang Wucheng, Jiang Cheng!


    A few days ago, he had heard the Clear Shallows King talk about a son of the Demon Emperor who had been killed two months ago. At the time, he had not paid attention, nor had he connected the dots when Jiang Wushang appeared. Now, with all the clues before him, how could he not know?


    The teenager who had targeted Xiang and tried to kill Long Cheng in Yellow Martial City was actually the Demon Emperor¡¯s unaplished son, also Jiang Wushang¡¯s younger brother, Jiang Wucheng!


    And why did Long Cheng feel like Jiang Wushang looked familiar? Because Jiang Wushang and Jiang Wucheng¡¯s faces were practically made from the same mold!


    At the time, Jiang Wucheng had used his real golden identity token to enter the city, making it obvious that his status was high. The name ¡°Jiang Cheng¡± was merely a cover! The person Long Chen had killed was Jiang Wucheng!


    Long Chen knew that his deductions were right!


    His encounter had taken ce two months ago, the names of the two people were eerily simr, and even their faces looked the same!


    All of this told Long Chen that the person he had killed was the Demon Emperor¡¯s dead son, Jiang Wucheng!


    Long Chen was currently in the Ancient Demon Domain, and so was the Demon Emperor. If this information got out, Long Chen would never survive even if he had a hundred lives!


    It was impossible for Long Chen to stay in the Ancient Demon Domain any longer!


    That was because of the name he was using¡ªJiang Cheng! It was obvious that Jiang Wushang did not know that Jiang Wucheng had a cover name, but surely someone in the Ancient Demon Domain knew, right? It was very likely that the Demon Emperor would find out! Long Chen had killed his son and even entered his turf; wasn¡¯t he looking for death?


    When he connected the dots, Long Chen¡¯s face paled and he took a few steps back.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, what¡¯s the matter? You should be fine, right? Alright, the evaluation has ended. Everyone may return. As for you, from now onwards, you have my permission to enter the sixthyer of the Demon World, which is the royal pce!¡± Jiang Wushang said with a grin.


    He was trying to recruit Long Chen into his camp.


    Long Chen¡¯s hairs stood on end. He knew that he could not stay in the Ancient Demon Domain for even fifteen more minutes. The Demon Emperor had not appeared yet; if he arrived, Long Chen would die!


    He had to leave the Ancient Demon Domain as soon as possible and go far, far away!


    Long Chen was impressed by his luck. How could a coincidence like that happen? Previously, Long Chen had told Jiang Cheng that he wanted to go to the Ancient Demon Domain. No wonder Jiang Cheng had a strange expression on his face. At the time, he saw Long Chen as a fat goat, so how could he not find it strange that the goat¡¯s target was his own nest?


    It was toote to even cry.


    He knew that this was fate. This would be his first serious disaster on the path to Ling Xi. How strong was the Demon Emperor? How strong were the seven Demon Kings plus Jiang Wushang? What about the seventy-plus Ninth Passage Stage cultivators, all of whom were more powerful than Chen Feng? Every single one of them was stronger than Long Chen. If he was exposed, it would mean certain death!


    Long Chen felt his scalp go numb.


    He was not even this afraid when he met Wang Chao.


    Previously, Long Chen had no inkling of how powerful Wang Chao was, but he had personally witnessed how powerful the masters of the Ancient Demon Domain were.


    He had many things he had yet to aplish, and Ling Xi was waiting for him. He did not even know how Yang Lingqing was doing. If he died in the Ancient Demon Domain, how would Ling Xi live?


    How could he let her wait for the rest of her life?


    No, never!


    Despite the endless shock and terror in his heart, Long Chen was forced to pretend to be normal. He looked around, knowing that he had to leave as soon as possible.


    No one knew yet, so he had to remain calm. He had not expected this to happen!


    Life was unpredictable.


    ¡°Jiang Cheng, why aren¡¯t you talking?¡± Jiang Wushang asked, puzzled. He had noticed the strange look on Long Chen¡¯s face. Long Chen had taken a few steps back and then remained deep in thought, ignoring Prince Wushang.


    It seemed to be because he had mentioned the name ¡°Jiang Wucheng.¡±


    ¡°Nothing, sorry. Winning first ce was just a huge surprise to me, so I don¡¯t know how to react,¡± said Long Chen, forcing himself to remain calm.


    ¡°I see. But I was quite impressed by your performance today too ¡­¡± said Jiang Wushang with a smile. He looked up at Demon General Typhoon and said, ¡°Typhoon, announce the end of the evaluation and let everyone leave. I need to have a good chat with Jiang Cheng.¡±


    Demon General Typhoon nodded. When he was about to make his announcement, a hoarse but maic voice rang in everyone¡¯s ears.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t even arrived yet, so how could it end?¡±


    Long Chen felt as if someone was speaking right next to his ear, causing his hairs to stand on end once again. Everyone else put on looks of reverence, then they all fell on their knees!


    ¡°Greetings, Demon Emperor!¡±


    Theirbined voices were as loud as a tsunami crashing onto the shore.


    Long Chen felt like a huge boulder was sitting on his chest. He had no choice but to kneel, seeing as everyone was kneeling, though he was slower than the rest.


    He drew a sharp breath, forcing himself to stop trembling. He felt millions of ants crawling on his heart. He could only pray that the Demon Emperor did not know that Jiang Wucheng had used the cover name ¡°Jiang Cheng.¡±


    Long Chen saw a pair of ck boots appear in front of him. Then the old, hoarse voice rang by his ear.


    ¡°You. Lift your head; look at me.¡±


    That was the voice of the Demon Emperor, Jiang Wuxie.


    Long Chen slowly lifted his head, his scalp going numb. The man wore a long, ck robe that also covered his head. Only eyes as dark as the abyss were visible; they resembled the entrances to the Demon World. Long Chen could not see anything in them, let alone pupils.


    The Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie made Long Chen feel a terrifying pressure, as if this was not a human in front of him, but a bottomless hole.


    This was the strongest person Long Chen had met ever since arriving in the Divine Martial Empire. The Demon Emperor was one of the strongest people in the whole territory after all.


    Long Chen took a deep breath, waiting for Jiang Wuxie¡¯s judgment.


    It was likely that his next sentence would determine everything.


    If he talked about something else, it meant he did not know about Jiang Wucheng¡¯s cover name. If he spoke about Jiang Wucheng, it meant that he knew ¡­


    The Demon Emperorughed.


    1. Note: Wucheng (ÎÞ³É) trantes to No Aplishments ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC in trouble rn</blockquote>

 Chapter 528: Seven Days, Seven Nights

    The sound of hisughter was even more bone-chilling.


    Long Chen was ready for hisst fight.


    Long Chen mustered up the courage to say, suppressing the trembling in his voice, ¡°Greetings, Demon Emperor.¡±


    Then Jiang Wuxie¡¯sughter stopped. His eyes, which were as dark as the abyss, were fixed on Long Chen, and his lips moved slightly as he said, ¡°You have killed the tiger¡¯s cub, yet you dare enter the tiger¡¯sir?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s world shattered!


    More specifically, he had lost all hope. The Demon Emperor had found out that Long Chen had murdered his son. He definitely knew, or he would not have said such a thing!


    Death!


    Long Chen knew that if he did not react, only death awaited him!


    At this critical moment, Long Chen only thought of one divine technique!Blood Warp!


    Everyone was still kneeling, and since Jiang Wuxie had not told them to rise, no one dared rise. However, they could still look up to see what was going on. Under normal circumstances, Jiang Wuxie would have asked them to rise by now!


    They all looked up and saw Jiang Wuxie standing in front of Long Chen. Although his voice was not loud, everyone could hear him very clearly.


    ¡°You have killed the tiger¡¯s cub, yet you dare enter the tiger¡¯sir?¡±


    The Ancient Demon Domain was clearly the tiger¡¯sir, and the only cub that had been killed was Jiang Wucheng. Did that mean that Long Chen had killed Jiang Wucheng?


    This was earth-shattering news to many people.


    It was shocking.


    If the Demon Emperor had said it, then it had to be the truth. He would not ce false me on Long Chen!


    Long Chen had thought about saying that he had found Jiang Cheng¡¯s body by chance and took the gold identity token, but a small trick like that would definitely not work on a powerful master like the Demon Emperor!


    That was why his only choice was to run!


    Before anyone could react, Long Chen suddenly turned into a blood arrow and disappeared from sight. The blood-colored light headed towards the exit of the fourthyer of the Demon World. Long Chen had memorized the path and knew that as long as he reached the secondyer, he would be able to use Blood Warp again to return to the first instantly. After that, he would leave Demon World Mountain and subsequently the Ancient Demon Domain!


    Using Blood Warp in stages was the only way!


    He did not know whether this n would work, seeing as this person was surely not only at the First Earthly Martial Stage. Perhaps he was far beyond it, and perhaps Long Chen would never be able to move as fast as him, even with Blood Warp!


    Long Chen had guessed right this time!


    Before he arrived at the pathway to the secondyer, someone was blocking his path. It was Jiang Wuxie! With him blocking the way out, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t be able to pass even if he had a million tricks up his sleeve. If he forced his way through, he would die, so he had no choice but to stop.


    Since he could not escape, he hoped there would be another chance. Didn¡¯t everyone think Jiang Wucheng was useless? A lofty figure like Jiang Wuxie surely wouldn¡¯t value a useless son, right?


    That was why Long Chen stopped and stood thirty meters away from Jiang Wuxie.


    After he stopped, the seven Demon Kings, Jiang Wushang, the Grand Elders, and the twenty-eight Demon Generals quickly arrived andpletely surrounded Long Chen. Even if Long Chen had wings, he would find it difficult to escape.


    ¡°You brat! You¡¯re bold! You killed my son and dared to use his golden identity token to enter the Ancient Demon Domain to spread lies! Who the hell are you?¡±


    Jiang Wuxie¡¯s voice pushed Long Chen several steps back, making him turn pale.


    <em>He¡¯s so strong! </em>Long Chen had to admit that Jiang Wuxie was just too strong. And he was slower than him even with Blood Warp!


    Was he going to die?


    Long Chen was unwilling to die. There were many things that he hadn¡¯t aplished yet, so there was no way he could die in a ce like this! If he had known that Jiang Cheng was Jiang Wucheng, he never would havee to the Ancient Demon Domain!


    What now?


    Long Chen¡¯s mind was a mess, and his eyes slowly turned blood-red. Killing Qi slowly emanated from his body.


    After hearing what the Demon Emperor said, the other people had more or less figured out the situation. Only the Clear Shallows King had a rtionship with Long Chen out of the seven Demon Kings, and just now, he had been the pride of the Clear Shallows Pavilion, an object of admiration! How had ite to this in the blink of an eye?


    The Clear Shallows King waspletely stunned, while Liu Yiyi¡¯s face was covered in tears. The hero she worshiped had fallen to such a state in his shining moment. It was a huge blow to her.


    ¡°Mother, what now? If what the Demon Emperor said is true, then he will die! What do we do ¡­¡± muttered Liu Yiyi, as if she had lost her soul.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either, child. I can¡¯t do anything either ¡­ Who knew it woulde to this? His real name is not Jiang Cheng, and I¡¯m guessing he does not have a golden identity token. He must have taken Prince Wucheng¡¯s token after he killed him. He probably didn¡¯t even know that he had killed Prince Wucheng.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King was helpless. He was an extraordinary prodigy; was he going to die just like that?


    ¡°How could this be? How could anything be this coincidental? Wouldn¡¯t he be fine if he never came to the Ancient Demon Domain ¡­ Sob sob ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s heart broke when she saw so many people surrounding the helpless teenager.


    ¡°Yiyi, shut your mouth. Do you want to die too? He killed the son of the Demon Emperor, so he is our enemy! You must know where you stand; don¡¯t say things that will make other peoplee looking for trouble! The Red Ghost King can¡¯t wait to see us die! What we need to do now is draw a clear line between us and him! Don¡¯t me me for being cruel; we cannot do anything to help him, alright?¡± said the Clear Shallows King helplessly.


    ¡°Must we do that ¡­ Is there really no way to help him?¡± Liu Yiyi asked woodenly.


    After more than two months of knowing each other, Long Chen was deeply etched in her mind. Was he going to die just like that?


    She was experiencing heartbreak for the first time.


    In contrast to her heartbreak, more people felt schadenfreude. This was their chance to turn the tides! It was a joyous surprise. The Red Ghost King felt exactly this way. His favorite disciple, Ying Shaotian, had been killed by Long Chen. He thought he would never be able to get revenge; how would he have guessed that the heavens would give him an opportunity like this?


    Jiang Cheng wasn¡¯t Jiang Cheng? And he was the person who had killed Jiang Wucheng?


    The Red Ghost King knew that Jiang Wuxie valued his children. Of course, Jiang Wucheng was useless and wasn¡¯t likable, plus Jiang Wuxie never cared about him and even chased him out of the pce. However, they were rted by blood.


    Jiang Wuxie had a great reputation uphold. His son had been killed by a minor figure! If he did not act, would he not lose face if this got out?


    The Red Ghost King looked overjoyed.


    Long Chen was under great pressure.


    At this moment, Jiang Wushang reached Jiang Wuxie¡¯s side. With his brows tightly furrowed, he asked, ¡°Father, how should we deal with him? Shall I do it? I thought he would make a good subordinate, but since he is an enemy of the Jiang n, I have no use for him anymore. He is very talented, so we mustn¡¯t let him leave. If this prodigy with inhuman talent leaves this ce alive, the Jiang family will be in deep trouble one day!¡±


    Jiang Wushang¡¯s gaze started to change. In the beginning, he appreciated Long Chen for his talent, so he was friendly. He had evaluated Long Chen¡¯s talent highly. Now, however, since Long Chen could no longer be used, he had to be killed as soon as possible!


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned sharp and his breathing turned ragged. Jiang Wushang was a practical person, and he had a certain amount of maturity as the Demon Emperor¡¯s son.


    If Long Chen could not be used by him, then he had to be killed!


    This was Jiang Wushang¡¯s principle.


    ¡°Father, let me do it. Let¡¯s not kill a chicken with a cow butcher¡¯s knife. Since he¡¯s part of my generation, let me do it,¡± said Jiang Wushang.


    The Demon Emperor had not spoken yet. After what Jiang Wushang said, he finally nodded.


    He agreed with Jiang Wushang. The Demon Emperor had spent a lot of time looking for the murderer, and now he realized that the culprit had been right under his nose all along. Although Long Chen was talented, he was a weaklingpared to him. He did not care about this very much as he knew that after resolving this matter, the knot in his heart would be gone.


    The Red Ghost King took a step forward and knelt in front of the Demon Emperor. ¡°Demon Emperor, this brat killed my disciple just now; there is an unresolvable grudge between us. I cannot wait to skin him alive! Please let me do it ¡­ This boy does not respect the Ancient Demon Domain, so we cannot kill him too quickly. I have a Red Ghost Worm! If we put the worm into his body, it will consume his internal organs, forcing him to remain conscious. He will only die after seven days and seven nights!¡±


    The worm would chew on his organs for seven days and seven nights without him being able to retaliate. And he would be conscious the whole time. Only the Red Ghost King could think of such a cruel punishment.


    This would create a much deeper impression than just killing Long Chen.


    Jiang Wushang wanted to deliver the killing blow himself, but the Red Ghost King had knelt down with longing in his eyes, plus he had suggested using the Red Ghost Worm. Therefore, he nodded and said, ¡°Alright, then. You do it. Remember, you must seed, or I will make you kill yourself.¡±


    His words had determined Long Chen¡¯s fate.


    Long Chen drew a sharp breath.


    At least the Red Ghost King had wanted to kill Long Chen since the beginning. Jiang Wushang had been very friendly, but now he was crueler than the Red Ghost King. If Jiang Wushang was like that, then Jiang Wuxie, who was guarding the exit, was sure to be worse. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Things escted quickly, but damn this is exciting</blockquote>

 Chapter 529 - The Last Blood Sacrifice

    <h4>Chapter 529 - The Last Blood Sacrifice</h4>


    ¡°No!¡± Liu Yiyi shouted, but the Clear Shallows King immediately covered her mouth. Liu Yiyi¡¯s face was covered with tears. If the Clear Shallows King was not holding her tight, she might have run to Long Chen¡¯s side.


    He would die if the Red Ghost Worm fed on his organs for seven days and seven nights.


    Liu Yiyi almost fainted after hearing that Long Chen would have to undergo such a brutal punishment.


    How could she bear to let Long Chen die like that?


    But with so many masters surrounding him, how could he possibly fight back?


    Even though Long Chen was talented, there was nothing he could do in this situation.


    He could use Blood Warp, but the Demon Emperor was blocking the exit. The technique was now useless, and he was trapped.


    Everyone dispersed to make space for the Red Ghost King to capture Long Chen and make him swallow the Red Ghost Worm.


    The crowd was startled by the Red Ghost King¡¯s blood-red eyes. The Red Ghost King had always been crazy and vicious, and this proved that he was indeed not to be provoked. If Jiang Wushang had been the executioner, Long Chen would likely have died immediately. However, the Red Ghost King¡¯s Red Ghost Worm would make Long Chen suffer for seven days and seven nights before killing him!


    Long Chen had not expected the Red Ghost King to step up, which had ruined his final n.


    He initially thought that if Jiang Wushang fought him, he would be able to hold Jiang Wushang hostage using Blood Sacrifice and then run away. Even so, it was not a n with a high chance of sess, since the effects of Blood Sacrifice would eventually fade. However, if he held the Red Ghost King hostage, Jiang Wushang would not care!


    Long Chen was cornered.


    He knew that he had a ny-nine percent chance of dying here. None of his divine techniques would help him escape alive, not Blood Warp, Blood Sacrifice, or even Rewind!


    In this world where masters were asmon as clouds, Long Chen once again felt how helpless he was.


    Xi¡¯er, all I can say is sorry. I could not fulfill the promise I made you. I¡¯m useless. I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry ...


    Long Chen felt like he had been stabbed in the heart when he thought about how Ling Xi would live alone for the rest of her life. She would wait forever, but she would never see him again ...


    I hope you find your own happiness one day. A useless person like me is not fit for you. Long Chen suddenly felt likeughing. He had been filled to the brim with battle spirit, and he even swore he would make his way to Ling Xi.


    But now?


    Cruel reality was right in front of him.


    The almighty, mysterious leader of the Ancient Demon Domain, the Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie.


    Seven Demon Kings and the Earthly-Martial-Realm Jiang Wuxie.


    Fifty-plus grand elders, twenty-eight Demon Generals!


    All these people were stronger than Long Chen!


    He wouldn¡¯t be able to escape from them even if he had wings.


    I wonder if anyone will remember me after I die ... Long Chen¡¯s heart was filled with bitterness. He looked up and saw the sneer on the Red Ghost King¡¯s face. The Red Ghost King approached him. When Long Chen saw the Red Ghost King¡¯s red eyes, his eyes turned red too.


    You son of a bitch! If I die today, you will die with me! Long Chen roared in his heart. He was cornered, and he was going crazy. Blood-red scales covered his whole body. His dangerous-looking spines and the violence in his eyes shook everyone to the core!


    ¡°No... No ...¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s face was ghostly pale when she saw Long Chen like this. Tears drowned her soul. She did not want Long Chen to die, especially not in such a tragic manner. Seven days and seven nights! How terrible would it be?


    ¡°Yiyi, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Tears formed in the Clear Shallows King¡¯s eyes when she saw how heartbroken her daughter was. Only the people of the Clear Shallows Pavilion did not feel schadenfreude at Long Chen¡¯s terrible state, because he had brought them pride and glory!


    That was just moments ago.


    That was a moment when all of them felt the proudest.


    Everyone else had only mockery in their eyes!


    ¡°Are you going to fight?¡± The Red Ghost King looked at him mockingly when he saw that Long Chen had used the Dragon Soul Transformation. ¡°You brat, you must not have expected to end up like this when you were immersed in glory just now. Every empire must fall ...¡±


    ¡°You trash! You toad! What right do you have to talk to me like that? If I looked like you, I would have killed myself to atone for my ugliness! And you¡¯re here in front of other people? Aren¡¯t you afraid we¡¯ll pukest night¡¯s dinner out? You look like an animal, and I think you actually are one!¡± As Long Chen spoke, he pulled out the Demon Emperor Sword!


    Since he was going to die, then he had to die proudly!


    He had to show everyone that even if he died, he would go down better than any of them!


    His blood-red eyes swept across the space.


    He memorized every single face that wasughing at him!


    ¡°Bastard! Are you still trying to argue while staring death in the face? You heard what I said, right? It will chew on your organs for seven days and seven nights! Let¡¯s see if you¡¯ll beughing then!¡± said the Red Ghost King furiously.


    Long Chen acted as if he had not heard the Red Ghost King at all and continued to mock him. ¡°I wonder what animal a donkey mated with to give birth to a monster like you. How bizarre. I respect the fact that you have the courage to live even when you look like that!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± roared the Red Ghost King.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to insert the Red Ghost Worm into me? Do you even have the balls to kill me, coward?¡± Long Chen asked, unafraid.


    The Red Ghost King almost fainted from rage. He could not wait to kill Long Chen, but for now, he had to catch Long Chen and nt the Red Ghost Worm in him.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± The Red Ghost King was an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator. The moment he attacked, Long Chen would not be able to retaliate at all.


    Everyone knew that Long Chen would be caught by the Red Ghost King, then he would suffer for seven days and nights before dying.


    Xi¡¯er ... The fairy who appeared in white mist popped into his mind.


    Her beauty and fragrance seemed within reach, but he knew that he would only be able to touch her in his dreams.


    It was such a beautiful dream, but it would nevere true.


    A tear slid down the corner of his eye.


    A man did not cry easily, only in grief.


    Long Chen finally had a moment of vulnerability before death. Then he saw the Red Ghost King¡¯s palm.


    Do you guys know how proud I am ...


    Long Chen closed his eyes.


    Blood Sacrifice, Third Stage.


    There were many cries of surprise, and the crowd erupted because everyone saw blood-red mes rising from his body! The roaring mes shot to the skies, even forcing the approaching Red Ghost King away!


    Roar!


    Long Chen had never used this extreme level of Blood Sacrifice before. Doing this would severely damage his body!


    He had burned three stages worth of energy to use Blood Sacrifice at its third stage, in turn temporarily raising his strength by three tiers!


    This was a technique that broke the rules of the game!


    All the masters¡¯ eyes widened!


    ¡°What is that?!¡±


    Everyone gasped in shock. The ones with some capability could sense that his strength was quickly increasing. They had never seen growth on this level before.


    Due to his Dragon Soul Transformation, he had as much Qi as an Eighth Passage Stage cultivator. When the blood-red mes burned, Long Chen¡¯s Qi suddenly surpassed the Ninth Passage Stage, touching upon the border of the Earthly Martial Realm!


    The power source of the Earthly Martial Realm was no longer Qi, but an evolved version known as essence. Long Chen had a lot more Qi now, but Qi was inferior to essence. However, after progressing three stages, Long Chen¡¯s huge Qi reserves far outweighed the essence possessed by a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator! He was even close to the Second Earthly Martial Stage!


    It was now up to fate to decide how it would trante intobat power!


    Qi and essence were different after all!


    Long Chen¡¯s sudden rise in Qi was just one of the things the crowd was shocked at. After the red mes appeared, an animal¡¯s shadow appeared in the mes, and furious roars could be heard.


    The beast seemed to be a snake or a Jiao[1], but it was very different from those two. A word popped into everyone¡¯s heads.


    ¡°A dragon! That¡¯s a dragon from the legends!¡± someone said, causing the crowd to erupt. Everyone turned to look at the roaring dragon shadow in the mes, but it had only appeared for a moment.


    After it disappeared, the red mes remained, crackling on Long Chen¡¯s body!


    No one knew how strong he was at this point!


    This was Long Chen¡¯sst retaliation at the brink of death. He was a proud man, so he had to die in a spectacr manner. That was why he had chosen this extreme method!


    How powerful was he now?


    Long Chen did not know either. All he knew was that even though he had cultivated the True Martial Demon Body, his body was on the brink of breaking down! He had to attack quickly to put the energy to good use!


    ¡°It¡¯s just an illusion!¡± The Red Ghost King was stunned too. When he came to his senses, he was furious because he realized he had run away in fright. This was a huge humiliation. Ignoring everything else, he ran towards Long Chen.


    As a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, capturing Long Chen would be simple.


    When Long Chen looked up, the look in his eyes and his cold smirk stunned the Red Ghost King for a moment.


    1. Note: A Jiao is a Chinese mythological water dragon ?

 Chapter 530 - Dragon Clan

    <h4>Chapter 530 - Dragon n</h4>


    ¡°Die.¡± Long Chen only said one word, then he disappeared. An immense Heaven Sword Array appeared above the Red Ghost King¡¯s head. Everything happened so fast!


    The Red Ghost King gasped. A sword array formed above his head, containing millions of blood-red sword symbols, all burning with blood-red mes!


    The power it radiated even surpassed what the Red Ghost King was capable of!


    ¡°How is this possible? He is only at the Seventh Passage Stage; how could he unleash power like that?!¡± The Red Ghost King waspletely shocked. At thest possible moment, all he could do was do his best to defend himself!


    But he had underestimated Long Chen!


    Beneath the Heaven Sword Array that Long Chen had unleashed with all his might, the Red Ghost King let out an earth-shattering scream. To the crowd¡¯s disbelief, he was dead almost instantly!


    Everyone was stunned. There was shock and disbelief written all over every person¡¯s face!


    Although they knew that Long Chen had used some secret technique to increase his strength by many folds, it should not have risen to this level! How had he killed the Red Ghost King in just one strike? He was one of the seven Demon Kings of the Ancient Demon Domain! If this got out, the whole Divine Martial Empire would be shocked!


    Many people rubbed their eyes. They finally believed that the Red Ghost King had been killed by Long Chen. Just like Ying Shaotian, not even ashes were left behind!


    Even the Demon Emperor was stunned. He was clear that if he had allowed Jiang Wushang to kill Long Chen instead, the one dead would have been Jiang Wushang. Thankfully, the Red Ghost King had stepped up. Jiang Wuxie hurriedly pulled his son behind him, then he charged towards Long Chen!


    Long Chen knew that the Demon Emperor would attack now!


    ¡°You all want me to die! How would that be possible without paying a price? Haha! Jiang Wuxie, aren¡¯t you supposed to be strong? Isn¡¯t the Ancient Demon Domain supposed to be strong?¡± Long Chenughed loudly. After he killed the Red Ghost King, he suddenly appeared in the sky above the crowd of grand elders!


    He unleashed the Heaven Sword Array once more!


    ¡°No!¡±


    Beneath such a great force, even the grand elders could do nothing to defend themselves!


    This was a huge twist of events. At least half of the fifty-plus grand elders were killed by Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array! Killing the Red Ghost King was a huge blow, and now Long Chen had brought evenrger losses to the Ancient Demon Domain!


    He was a madman!


    Everyone considered Long Chen a true madman now!


    More than half of the grand elders had died by his hand!


    This was a super-event that would shake the whole Divine Martial Empire!


    It had been a long time since something like that had happened in the Divine Martial Empire. The person who had caused this huge incident was a mysterious teenager whose identity was unknown. At this point, no one knew Long Chen¡¯s name yet.


    ¡°You have a death wish!¡± The mysterious and powerful Demon Emperor was also startled by Long Chen. To him, Long Chen was merely a minor character who he did not take seriously. How could he have expected such a drastic change after Long Chen used Blood Sacrifice?


    One Demon King was dead and so were more than half of the grand elders. This was a heavy blow to the Demon Emperor because a quarter of the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s power was gone!


    In just one breath¡¯s time!


    The Demon Emperor regretted not killing Long Chen himself just now, but it was toote!


    He appeared next to Long Chen instantly.


    Crack! He snapped the Demon Emperor Sword to crumbs!


    After Long Chen used the Heaven Sword Array for the second time, there was no longer any strength in his body. He had initially cleared seven meridian points in his body, but now three of them werepletely sealed once more, leaving him at the Fourth Passage Stage. Due overexertion from the Blood Sacrifice, his body had sustained great damage, which included foundational damage!


    In the past, the Inherited Blood Essence had strengthened his body¡¯s foundation, so hisprehension and various bodily functions were better than those of a regr person. Now, however, his foundation had been mostly destroyed. This damage was almost enough to make Long Chen a cripple!


    Bearing the pain that prated deep into his bones, Long Chen smiled bitterly. He knew that this was the price of Blood Sacrifice¡¯s third stage!


    The third stage of Blood Sacrifice was never to be used unless one was in mortal danger. This was exactly his situation, but even after using it, he remained in danger.


    After all his strength evaporated, just like his sword, the Demon Emperor grabbed his arm. It looked as if he was helping Long Chen stand.


    Jiang Wuxie initially wanted to kill Long Chen, as he obviously could not let Long Chen continue to cause trouble. He was filled with rage!


    However, Long Chen was just too mysterious. There were too many things Long Chen possessed that ignited Jiang Wuxie¡¯s greed. His Blood Warp and ability to increase his strength dramatically were both mysterious and insane.


    Long Chen could not even stand properly.


    When Jiang Wuxie saw Long Chen¡¯s condition, he smirked. ¡°Was that a method that exhausts one¡¯s potential for a powerful attack? It looks like you¡¯ve be a cripple after using that method.¡±


    The searing pain all over his body prevented Long Chen from answering.


    Jiang Wuxie had guessed correctly. Long Chen was now basically a cripple.


    He would be able to recover if he could get out of this ce alive, but right now, even someone at the First Passage Stage could easily kill him. How could he possibly run?


    Long Chen did not have much hope left.


    He gazed at his surroundings weakly. He had killed a Demon King and many grand elders, so his death was not in vain.


    Jiang Wuxie was also looking at the casualties sustained by the Ancient Demon Domain. He no longer had to worry about Long Chen in this state; even if he let go, Long Chen would have no strength to run.


    ¡°If I knew this would happen, I would have killed you myself. Then the Ancient Demon Domain would not have suffered such heavy losses.¡± Jiang Wuxie felt like he had been stabbed in the heart after he saw how heavy the losses were.


    He regretted not personally handling the matter.


    But it was toote.


    The people were dead. Long Chen¡¯sst struggle before death was indeed terrifying.


    The crowd was still terrified after witnessing the terrifying ughter. They knew that if Long Chen had attacked in their direction, many would have died too. Every one of the surviving grand elders was injured.


    Everyone¡¯s faces were somber.


    All eyes fell on the teenager who could barely even stand. If they had not witnessed it with their own eyes, no one would have believed that he had done all of this on his own!


    Even the Demon Emperor would not have believed it.


    Even if he killed Long Chen a thousand times, or ten thousand times, he would not be able to resolve his hatred, because Long Chen¡¯s life was not worth all of theirs.


    The terrified Jiang Wushang instructed a portion of the people to start cleaning up the mess. Many people did not even dare to move. They were merely waiting to hear what Jiang Wuxie was nning to do to Long Chen.


    They did not dareugh, because to them, Long Chen was the devil.


    Long Chen had brought endless terror to them.


    Looking at the pale but still proudly standing teenager, Liu Yiyi shook her head painfully. She was the person who knew Long Chen best at this moment, but why did it feel like he was so far away?


    Mother, he has a body that cannot die ... This thought suddenly popped into her head.


    There was only dead silence.


    Everyone was watching the Demon Emperor and Long Chen. The smarter ones could see that anyone could kill Long Chen, but even if he died, he would not be able to pay for the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s losses. They only wanted to see what would happen to him.


    Jiang Wuxie paced in front of Long Chen.


    ¡°Give me a clean death. If you don¡¯t kill me, I¡¯ll kill myself.¡± Long Chen was already content. He was just a minor figure, but he had made the leader of this sect so torn. He was feeling quite proud.


    Jiang Wuxie looked up. His eyes were still like the abyss.


    ¡°What is your name?¡± asked Jiang Wuxie.


    ¡°Long Chen, but not the Long Chen on the Bounty Board,¡± Long Chen answered directly.


    If it was not for that person, Long Chen would not have killed those people from the Martial Alliance, nor would he have met Jiang Wucheng. And he would not be in this situation today.


    ¡°You have the right topare yourself to him,¡± said Jiang Wuxie in a low voice.


    ¡°Are you going to kill me or not? Don¡¯t waste my time.¡± Long Chen knew that the best oue he could ask for right now was a quick death.


    Jiang Wuxie was mulling over how to recover his losses, so he did not speak.


    That was when Jiang Wuxie¡¯s brows suddenly furrowed and he roared, ¡°Who is that? Why are you sneaking around? Show yourselves!¡±


    His furious roar echoed across the whole fourthyer of the Demon World!


    Long Chen took several steps back, his ears filled with the Demon Emperor¡¯s booming voice. Blood trickled out of his ears.


    Who could it be? Long Chen would never have expected other people to appear in the Ancient Demon Domain. Everyone followed the Demon Emperor¡¯s gaze.


    Six dots suddenly flew from a faraway spot in the sky towards them, slowly erging until they turned into six people in front of the whole crowd. Long Chen¡¯s gaze swept across all six and, to his shock, it seemed like every single one of them was as strong as a Demon King!


    And some were even stronger!


    The six people looked young, but their cultivation levels were sky-high. He could not figure out why these six unrted masters would appear here.


    Most people who were present did not recognize them, though the Demon Generals and the grand elders had terror written on their faces, stumbling backwards. Jiang Wushang and the five Demon Kings stood next to Jiang Wuxie.


    Only the Clear Shallows King stood paralyzed, staring at one of the six people.


    ¡°So it¡¯s the Dragon n. What are you doing here in the Ancient Demon Domain, so far from your base?¡± Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie smiled coldly.

 Chapter 531 - Traitor

    <h4>Chapter 531 - Traitor</h4>


    [1]


    Dragon n.


    When Long Chen heard the name, he was puzzled. He had never heard of them before, and he did not know anyone else rted to dragons. Since they called themselves the Dragon n, were they rted to dragons?


    This was also the assumption of the members of the Ancient Demon Domain. Why would they be in the fourthyer of the Demon World?


    Long Chen had already lost hope, certain these were his final moments, but he sensed a possible opportunity with this sudden twist. He started to study the six people in detail.


    He could confirm that they were all at the Earthly Martial Realm, though he did not know the specific tiers. Based on the calm demeanor they disyed in front of the Demon Emperor, they were at least as strong as the Ancient Demon Domain.


    After Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie spoke, one of the six stepped forward. This man was about forty years old, but his youthful features made him look like he was thirty. He had a head full of long, ck hair that fell like a waterfall, a slender figure, and clear features. He gave Long Chen the same feeling as Dongfang Xuanxiao¡ªa very charismatic middle-aged man.


    However, this guy was much stronger.


    Long Chen noticed that the man in ck clothing had features very simr to Jiang Wushang, and Jiang Wucheng too. Based on his age, he was likely rted to the Demon Emperor, though Long Chen could not see the Demon Emperor¡¯s features underneath his cloak. However, since he was Jiang Wushang¡¯s father, then his features were probably simr.


    All of this meant that the middle-aged man with a sorrowful expression was closely rted to the Demon Emperor.


    He stepped forward and said to the Demon Emperor, ¡°Big Brother, how have you been?¡±


    ¡°You traitor of the Ancient Demon Domain! What right do you have to call me ¡®Big Brother?¡¯¡± The Demon Emperor snickered coldly.


    The man did not react to Jiang Wuxie¡¯s cold treatment and stepped back. Jiang Wuxie looked at the six people and said, ¡°Tell me why you are here. The Seven Layered Demon World of the Ancient Demon Domain is not a ce you can enter on a whim!¡±


    ¡°What are you yapping about? There¡¯s nothing special about this ce! I¡¯ll tell you! We came to steal! We¡¯ve already searched your whole treasury in the sixthyer!¡± said a pretty girl, who was wearing blue clothing.


    The girl looked like she was only a little bit older than Long Chen, but in reality, she was at least five or six years older. She had a seductive look, and every movement she made could ignite the feelings of an onlooker. Her snow-white skin, yful gaze, and bright-red lips attracted all the male disciples¡¯ attention.


    She was definitely as pretty as Liu Yiyi, though she was many times more seductive.


    However, Long Chen was more focused on her cultivation level. She was clearly just a little older than Jiang Wushang, but she was already an Earthly Martial Realm master. She had to be a super prodigy of the younger generation in the Divine Martial Empire!


    ¡°You came here to steal?¡± The Demon Emperor¡¯s tone changed and his voice turned ten times colder. There was now a hint of killing intent in his re.


    ¡°Dragon n, do you n to go to war with the Ancient Demon Domain?¡±


    The Demon Emperor was far stronger than the Demon Kings. As he spoke, he slowly raised his arms, and power condensed in his hands. The Demon Kings¡¯ gazes turned sharp too; they were prepared to fight.


    If the six of them had taken something that belonged to the Ancient Demon Domain, the Demon Emperor would never let them leave.


    Long Chen looked at ady in the middle, because he sensed that she was definitely as strong as the Demon Emperor. Due to her presence, the six of them were not afraid of the Demon Emperor at all.


    Long Chen could tell that the true leader of the six was not the Demon Emperor¡¯s younger brother, not the youngdy in blue, but thedy in the middle.


    He confirmed it from her getup. She was petite and covered in tight, ck armor. Like the Demon Emperor, she was covered in a mist that made it difficult to see her features. Based on her exposed fingers, which were fair and slender, she definitely looked decent.


    The more he looked at her, the more he felt like she was simr to the Demon Emperor.


    More importantly, Long Chen sensed a familiar aura from her body. He felt as if he had met a sibling, and a startling thought popped into his head.


    Dragon Warrior? Long Chen was shocked to discover that there was dragon blood auraing from her body.


    There was another Dragon Warrior in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory?


    Weren¡¯t Dragon Warriors gone? Now there were two of them in the tiny Divine Martial Empire!


    Long Chen remembered that Wang Chao had said that his older brother had be a Dragon Warrior, which had been earth-shattering news. That was why he believed that Dragon Warriors were mysterious and powerful. But now there was another one?


    ¡°Hey, idiot, she¡¯s not a Dragon Warrior. More specifically, one of her ancestors was one, which is why a minute trace of dragon blood remains in her bloodline. She was able to dig it out and put it to use, thereby unleashing the huge power of the dragon blood!¡± Little Cat exined from the Primordial Dragon Realm.


    Long Chen had just survived an intense battle while the cat had been hiding like a tortoise instead of helping him. Now that beautiful women had made an appearance, he had immediately made his presence known.


    Long Chen calmed down after hearing Little Cat¡¯s exnation. Thedy could be considered a descendant of a Dragon Warrior, then. However, even though she was only a descendant, she could utilize more of the dragon blood¡¯s power than Long Chen.


    Thedy covered in ck armor gently said, ¡°I¡¯ll tell the truth. We are here to look for the ck Emperor Seal. The stuff in the sixthyer isn¡¯t good enough for us anyway.¡±


    The Demon Emperor¡¯s face changed. He knew that thisdy was trustworthy. If she said they hadn¡¯t touched anything, then it was the truth.


    ¡°ck Emperor Seal? Who knows where that is? I want to know too. But do you think the Ancient Demon Domain is a ce you can go in and out of as you please?¡±


    The spirited girl in blue replied, ¡°Of course! We initially wanted to leave because we didn¡¯t find it, but coincidentally, you were blocking the exit and slowed us down. If you weren¡¯t in our way, you would¡¯ve had no idea we were here!¡±


    The Demon Emperor¡¯s face darkened, and he confirmed that they had not taken anything. On the one hand, it would be bad for the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s reputation if people heard that he let them go just like that. On the other hand, the main powers of the Ancient Demon Domain were here. If he chose to fight and they were lucky enough to kill the six of them, the Ancient Demon Domain would suffer heavy losses.


    The Dragon n may be the Martial Alliance¡¯s enemy, but they are not the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s enemy. The Martial Alliance may be after them, but all the Ancient Demon Domain actually needs to do is pretend to make some noise and it will do. It won¡¯t do us any good if we fight, and I don¡¯t think we should put any effort into this ...


    The Demon Emperor¡¯s mind raced.


    The six members of the Dragon n were also waiting for an answer. Their attitude was simple¡ªsince they were already here, they would fight if needed, but they were also fine with not fighting. They had always been straightforward like this; there was nothing to be scared of.


    The Ancient Demon Domain had suffered enough losses today. Most people trembled when they heard the name of the Dragon n, so Jiang Wuxie chose to let them go. However, he had to save some face, so he said coldly, ¡°You want me to let you go? I can do that; I will just say were my guests. But how can I allow you to leave without paying a price? Send me one person. If that person can withstand one punch from me, I will let you go.¡±


    ¡°Is that some kind of joke? You can¡¯t even stop us. We can just go if we want to! Why would we take a punch from you?¡± The girl in blueughed.


    She was the youngest out of the six, and likely also the weakest, but she was also the most talkative. When she finished, the man in ck, who looked like he belonged to the Jiang bloodline, pulled her back and stepped forward. ¡°Thank you, Big Brother! I was the one who brought them into the Ancient Demon Domain. I will take the punch!¡±


    ¡°Wuya, let me do it,¡± said the leadingdy with Dragon Warrior blood. She was the only one who was equal to the Demon Emperor.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± The man in ck, named Jiang Wuya, shook his head. He looked like the oldest out of the six of them and seemed to be the second strongest.


    Seeing as he was insistent, thedy did not speak again. Her dark eyes were as tranquil as a quietke. She stared at Jiang Wuya for a while, and the look in her eyes remained unchanged.


    When the Demon Emperor saw that Jiang Wuya had stepped forward, there was a sh of anger in his eyes. ¡°I knew you¡¯d be the one to step forward, you traitor!¡±


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Jiang Wuya¡¯s expression was also solemn. ¡°Remember, the one I betrayed was not the Ancient Demon Domain, but the Martial Alliance! I know I am still a traitor, but I do not regret anything that I have done!¡±


    ¡°Including orbiting around thatdy every day like a clown?¡± said Jiang Wuxie.


    Jiang Wuya froze, then he bit his lip and said, ¡°My business is none of your concern. Just do it!¡±


    The Demon Emperor did not hold back at all. The moment Jiang Wuya finished speaking, he appeared right in front of him and threw a punch.


    Long Chen was shocked!


    He had been watching Jiang Wuxie¡¯s attack closely. There were no frills to it, just a simple punch. He did not see any eruption of Qi, but this punch terrified Long Chen.


    Not much Qi leaked out of his punch; all his energy was concentrated in his fist. Although it doesn¡¯t look powerful, if he punched me, all my bones would¡¯ve shattered many times over. Is this why it¡¯s called the ¡®Martial¡¯ Realm?


    1. The author uses ¡®Jiang Wuxie¡¯ and ¡®Demon Emperor¡¯ interchangeably. They are the same person! Jiang Wushang is his son. ?

 Chapter 532 – Past Affairs

    <h4>Chapter 532 ¨C Past Affairs</h4>


    Long Chen quickly looked towards Jiang Wuya to see the result of the punch. To his amazement, Jiang Wuya had not defended himself at all, letting the Demon Emperor¡¯s punch st him into the air!


    Blood sprayed out of his mouth.


    Mid-air, the leadingdy caught Jiang Wuya. His face was pale and his chest was sunken in, though Long Chen observed that it was puffing back up at a speed visible to the naked eye.


    It had to be some Life Combat Technique. <strong> </strong>


    ¡°You didn¡¯t defend yourself? It¡¯s your fault, then.¡± The Demon Emperor had no idea that the other party wouldn¡¯t defend himself at all.


    Jiang Wuya coughed up some blood clots. A few momentster, he managed to get out of thedy¡¯s arms and stand mid-air, proving that his body had a shocking regenerative ability. He looked at the Demon Emperor and said, ¡°Brother, after that punch, I no longer have any connection to the Ancient Demon Domain. This ce has never given me anything. If we meet again in the future, I will not hold back then.¡±


    ¡°Big derations like that should wait until you have reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage. If I had not held back, would you still be alive?¡± asked the Demon Emperor.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± thedymanded before Jiang Wuya coulde up with a reply. What had happened was Jiang Wuya¡¯s own choice. Although the other five wanted to stop him, it was useless to speak when he was this stubborn.


    Considering how powerful they were, if they really wanted to leave, the Demon Emperor could not stop them. However, they had given the Demon Emperor some face because Jiang Wuya was once part of the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Under the trembling gazes of the crowd, the six members of the Dragon n started moving towards the exit. Halfway, Jiang Wuya suddenly halted and turned around to look at the Clear Shallows King, who was tearing up.


    When he saw the look in the Clear Shallows King¡¯s eyes, his chest tightened. The other five also stopped when he did and looked at him with concern. The girl in blue asked, ¡°Second Brother, what¡¯s the matter?¡±


    ¡°Wait for me. I need to chat with an old friend.¡± Then Jiang Wuya went towards the Clear Shallows King. Everyone around the Clear Shallows King backed away in fear when they saw him approaching. Only Liu Yiyi remained, though she was puzzled. She held the Clear Shallows King¡¯s arm and hid behind her back, eyeing this strange but familiar man timidly.


    ¡°Clear Shallows, it¡¯s been over ten years since west saw each other, hasn¡¯t it? I¡¯vee to the Ancient Demon Domain a few times since, but I never saw you. Have you been well?¡± Jiang Wuya was a little reserved.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been very well.¡± The Clear Shallows King hurriedly wiped her tears and gave a faint smile.


    Jiang Wuya sighed in relief and said, ¡°Our identities have changed. Old friends like us can¡¯t meet anymore. I heard you had a daughter; I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s her. She¡¯s ...¡±


    When Jiang Wuya finally gave Liu Yiyi a good look, he froze. The feeling of bloodlines connecting suddenly overwhelmed him.


    His face made Jiang Wuxie and the others give a knowing smirk.


    ¡°Yes, she¡¯s my daughter.¡± The Clear Shallows King quickly pulled Liu Yiyi behind her. Pain shed in her eyes, but soon, she buried it and looked at him bravely.


    Shock crashed through Jiang Wuya¡¯s heart. When he finally stabilized his emotions after great difficulty, the Clear Shallows King said coldly, ¡°Wuya, since you decided to betray us, you should leave as soon as possible. This is no ce for you. We haven¡¯t been friends for a long time. You should leave.¡±


    ¡°What is her name ...¡± asked Jiang Wuya, as if talking in his sleep.


    ¡°I am Liu Yiyi.¡± Liu Yiyi didn¡¯t know how her mother was rted to this man. Growing up, she had heard stories about this person. He used to be a prodigy in the Ancient Demon Domain, but after that, he killed countless Martial Alliance members for a woman and betrayed the Ancient Demon Domain. Thus, he became one of the top ten on the Bounty Board!


    To her surprise, her mother seemed to be quite familiar with Jiang Wuya. At this moment, Liu Yiyi was mostly concerned about Long Chen. When the six of them appeared, she had imagined they would rescue Long Chen, but she was left disappointed because they had not given Long Chen even one look.


    When the man spoke to her mother, Liu Yiyi knew this was her chance. Especially when he even asked for her name, she knew that he cared about her, so she quickly begged him, ¡°Can ... Can I please ask you for something? Could you do me a favor? Please?¡±


    The Clear Shallows King quickly said, ¡°Yiyi, don¡¯t trouble him.¡±


    Jiang Wuya took a deep breath. His thoughts were a mess because he knew that this teenage girl was likely rted to him. He recalled the dramatic love affair years ago and knew in his heart.


    ¡°What do you want? I will do it!¡± he said hurriedly.


    ¡°Save him. Take him away.¡± Hope had returned. Liu Yiyi pointed at Long Chen in panic, as if she had found a chance for him to live. She said with tears in her eyes, ¡°Save him and take him away, I¡¯m begging you ...¡±


    Seeing her heartbroken gaze was a huge blow to Jiang Wuya. He looked at Long Chen. He knew what the young man had just done, and even he had thought about rescuing the young man. However, this would cause a huge conflict with the Ancient Demon Domain!


    Therefore, he had decided to simply walk away!


    But now this girl, who was very likely his daughter, had begged him so sincerely. How could he refuse?


    Saving the teenager was going to beplicated. Jiang Wuya knew that it would bring great trouble.


    He nced at the Clear Shallows King and saw no objection in her eyes. Although she did not speak, Jiang Wuya knew that she hoped he saved Long Chen too. He made his decision in his heart.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    After that, he went back to his gang in the blink of an eye. Liu Yiyi had spoken quite loudly, so almost all the masters present were watching to see what Jiang Wuya would do.


    ¡°You want to save him? It looks like you guys are certainly going to fight the Ancient Demon Domain today.¡± The Demon Emperor smirked.


    When the other five members of the Dragon n met Jiang Wuya¡¯s eyes, they saw the determination in them. The leadingdy¡¯s eyes widened the most, but she very quickly stabilized her emotions.


    Since the six of them had not left yet, it showed their decision.


    ¡°We must take this young man away,¡± said thedy.


    ¡°Nonsense! He killed a Demon King of the Ancient Demon Domain and many grand elders! Even the king of the heavens will not be able to take him away!¡±


    The harshness of the Demon Emperor¡¯s attitude was a huge problem to the six people. A few of their brows were deeply furrowed. But when Jiang Wuya nced at Liu Yiyi again, the hopeful look in her eyes made him decide that he would do his best no matter what.


    ¡°Yue, are you confident?¡± Jiang Wuya asked in a low voice.


    ¡°I will try.¡± The ck-clotheddy took a few steps forward.


    Long Chen was watching the whole process. He had not expected Liu Yiyi to be hisst ray of hope. He knew that Liu Yiyi had always liked him very much, but he had no choice but to let her go because he never belonged to this ce, and his life goal was to meet Ling Xi.


    Could that man named Jiang Wuya be Yiyi¡¯s father? Long Chen came to this conclusion after observing their behavior. The tension in the air was thick; it was clear that they were ready to grab him immediately.


    Long Chen did not want his fate to be in another person¡¯s hands at a moment like this.


    I am severely injured, so I definitely cannot use Blood Warp. Although those people are as strong as the whole Ancient Demon Domain, I am very fragile right now. Even if they manage to get me, the Demon Emperor and the rest can kill me with a casual attack. I cannot just wait like this ...


    The only thing I can use is the Primordial Dragon Talisman. This talisman has its own powers, so it is unrted to my body¡¯s condition ...


    Now¡¯s the time!


    Long Chen started to move!


    Both sides were still in a standoff; one side was thinking about how to save Long Chen, while the other side was ying defense. The Demon Emperor was ready to instruct a Demon King to lock Long Chen up. Previously, Long Chen was not able to run even though they were not holding him. It was different now. Since they wanted to save him, the Demon Emperor had to lock Long Chen up.


    Long Chen suddenly sprinted towards the six!


    His movement was the hairpin trigger!


    Thedy moved at the same time as the Demon Emperor!


    Since the Demon Emperor was closer to Long Chen, he appeared next to him in a sh. The Demon Emperor watched the fast-approachingdy with a smirk and said, ¡°You want to save him? Let¡¯s see how you¡¯ll save him when he¡¯s dead!¡±


    He had been trying toe up with an appropriate way to kill Long Chen to make him pay for the losses, but since these masters wanted to save Long Chen, he obviously could not let them get away with him. Therefore, he had decided to kill Long Chen directly!


    Killing Long Chen was a simple task for the Demon Emperor!


    Another punch!


    Sparks flew!


    The Demon Emperor was closer to Long Chen, so he arrived first. Just because of this slight advantage, his fist hit Long Chen. It was a simple punch, but it was enough for Long Chen¡¯s life force to fade very quickly!


    Now! Primordial Dragon Talisman, Rewind!


    At the veryst moment, Long Chen used Rewind!


    Time flowed backwards and his body returned to the state it was in ten breaths ago!


    The Demon Emperor had assumed that a casual punch would be enough to kill Long Chen. After he confirmed that Long Chen would die, he was about tough, but Long Chen merely tumbled once on the ground and looked exactly the same. Most bizarrely, he was somehow caught and guarded by the Dragon n.


    This was the most intense moment of Long Chen¡¯s life.


    And he had seeded.

 Chapter 533 – Reborn

    <h4>Chapter 533 ¨C Reborn</h4>


    The crowd was momentarily stunned. The Demon Emperor was the one who had gotten to Long Chen first, so how had Long Chen survived?


    They could only describe it as a supernatural phenomenon.


    It was a very short moment, so the crowd hadn¡¯t seen exactly what had happened.


    Even the Dragon n did not know what had happened when they helped Long Chen up. They thought they had failed to save him, but they seeded in the end. Somehow, Long Chen was theirs.


    The whole area was silent.


    The Demon Emperor was frozen in ce.


    After a while, the crowd had no choice but to believe that this was reality. Long Chen was saved. Now that he was with the six masters, even the Demon Emperor could not kill him.


    When Liu Yiyi saw this, she smiled through her tears.


    Long Chen looked at the teenage girl with a bitter smile, not knowing what to say. He had been on the brink of death, but he had survived because of her.


    Although the six did not know why Long Chen hadn¡¯t been killed, they did not ask questions. They were still in the Ancient Demon Domain after all, and they needed to get out fast.


    The most shocked and confused person was definitely the Demon Emperor. He had punched Long Chen, and he was confident in his own abilities. Long Chen¡¯s survival was out of his expectations, causing him to first feel shocked, then defeated.


    ¡°Do you really think you can take him away just like that? Do you guys think you can save someone the Ancient Demon Domain wants to kill?¡± asked the Demon Emperor, shaking his head.


    ¡°What do you mean by that? He¡¯s already in our hands, and you¡¯re still arguing about it?¡± asked the girl in blue.


    Admittedly, this was a veryplex issue, and the Demon Emperor was struggling to solve it. He frowned and pointed a finger in the direction of the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi. He said mildly, ¡°You guys are too na?ve. Do you think you can save him just like that? Clear Shallows King, Liu Yiyi, you two conspired with the enemy! This is a punishable act!¡±


    Jiang Wuya had only decided to rescue Long Chen because of Liu Yiyi¡¯s words. Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King were still members of the Ancient Demon Domain, so the Demon Emperor could hold them hostage in order to ckmail the Dragon n. He was very sure that Jiang Wuya cared about their safety. Compared to them, Long Chen was nothing.


    The Demon Emperor¡¯s eyes fell on Jiang Wuya. ¡°Wuya, you choose! Either they die, or he dies!¡±


    He had sessfully struck Jiang Wuya¡¯s Achilles¡¯ heel.


    Helplessness shed in the Clear Shallows King¡¯s eyes as she said, ¡°Yiyi, we have tried our best, so ...¡±


    Liu Yiyi thought they had seeded, but was it all for nothing?


    Long Chen was the main character of the day, and he had escaped the Demon Emperor¡¯s ws, but he would have to go straight back into them. He would never let the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi sacrifice themselves for him.


    ¡°You¡¯re the mighty Demon Emperor of the Ancient Demon Domain! And yet you are afraid of a puny figure like me, afraid enough to stoop to a lowly threat?¡± Long Chen broke free of the person supporting him and walked up to the front while he mocked the Demon Emperor.


    His words were sharp, catching the Demon Emperor¡¯s Achilles¡¯ heel.


    Long Chen had already escaped, but the Demon Emperor had used a lowly method to threaten him. If this got out, it would surely affect his reputation.


    ¡°When everyone learns that Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie used two women to threaten a weak teenager, with one of the women being a Demon King of the Ancient Demon Domain, I wonder what other people will think!¡± Long Chen continued.


    ¡°What are you trying to say, you brat?¡± The Demon Emperor¡¯s brows were furrowed. He sensed that if news of today¡¯s events got out, it would indeed soundical. As the n leader, his reputation was very important. This would indeed affect him.


    ¡°Big Brother.¡± Jiang Wuya couldn¡¯t take it anymore and looked at the Demon Emperor wistfully. ¡°You¡¯re aware of the rtionship between me and Clear Shallows. Although we were not fated to be together, I can confidently tell you that if anything happens to her or Yiyi, I will never let the Ancient Demon Domain have a moment of peace for the rest of my life! The Dragon n is united, and there is nothing in this world that we dare not do. That is all I have to say. This young man is leaving with us today!¡±


    ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± asked the Demon Emperor furiously.


    ¡°I¡¯m not threatening you, I¡¯m just telling you not to force me. I may have left this ce by my own will, but I have never forgotten that this was once my home. I hope you won¡¯t kick me out for real; if you do, don¡¯t me me for treating you like a stranger!¡± cried Jiang Wuya fiercely.


    ¡°You!¡± The Demon Emperor was so furious, he could not speak.


    He knew his younger brother¡¯s personality well¡ªhe was an insanely stubborn person. If he made a decision, he would follow through no matter the cost. The Demon Emperor knew that he would actually do as he said, but the problem was that Long Chen was filled with secrets. If the Ancient Demon Domain let him leave now, who could say he would note back for revenge?


    ¡°I hope you listen to me. Goodbye!¡± After Jiang Wuya finished, he nced at the Clear Shallows King one more time, clenched his jaw, grabbed Long Chen, and dashed into the pathway. The other five followed him. The fourthyer of the Demon World was finally quiet again.


    No one dared to speak.


    ¡°Father, Second Uncle took a punch from you. Let this matter rest. I think Long Chen sustained severe foundational damage; he¡¯s almost a cripple. Even if he lives, he will be useless. And what can trash do to the Ancient Demon Domain? You don¡¯t have to worry anymore, Father,¡± said Jiang Wushang in an attempt tofort his father.


    He made sense.


    ¡°I¡¯m going back to the pce. I¡¯ll let you handle the rest,¡± said the Demon Emperor, resigned.


    Jiang Wushang nodded and asked, ¡°What do we do with the Clear Shallows Pavilion?¡±


    The Demon Emperor leaned close to his ear and said, ¡°Liu Yiyi is your cousin; what can we do? Can we do anything to someone with Jiang blood?¡±


    Then the Demon Emperor disappeared.


    ***


    He was saved.


    Long Chen felt like he had escaped the clutches of death.


    This was the closest he had ever been to a dead end. All he could do was sigh at how lucky he had gotten to survive this ordeal.


    But then again, he was very unlucky to have killed the Demon Emperor¡¯s son, even entering the Ancient Demon Domain afterwards ...


    Everything was controlled by luck.


    The third stage of Blood Sacrifice had caused far more damage than the other stages. Since Rewind could only bring him back to his condition from ten breaths ago, he was not able to recover this time. While he was in the Demon World, he was only forcibly holding on until he was finally saved. Afterwards, he suddenly felt weak throughout his whole body and he fainted before he could thank his saviors.


    He did not know how long he had been unconscious.


    Suddenly, he felt a warm current flowing into his body. He was not conscious enough to control the fluid, but it still flowed through his body in an orderly manner to slowly heal his internal injuries. It treated the injuries but was not able to heal foundational damage.


    After the fluid appeared three times, Long Chen felt much better and slowly regained full consciousness. By the time he opened his eyes, he realized he was lying on a soft, grass mat.


    He first saw the girl in the blue dress. While she had a seductive look, there was a hint of mischief and arrogance in her. Although her features conveyed temptation, the actual personality that shone through was filled with mischief.


    Other than her, four people surrounded him. They were all male, and one of them was Jiang Wuya. The other three were between Jiang Wuya and the girl in blue¡¯s age, so they were in their twenties to thirties. On the path of cultivation, they were considered youths.


    However, they possessed terrifying strength.


    ¡°Oh! Big Sister, he¡¯s finally awake,¡± cried the girl in blue with joy and surprise. Then the otherdy came up and Long Chen saw only her eyes, which were as deep as ake.


    She took a look and said, ¡°Mmm. You¡¯ve recovered thanks to the nourishment of the Life Spirit Essence Fluid, but there are still deeper injuries that require arge amount of spiritual herbs to fix.¡±


    Long Chen was suddenly moved by all the concerned looks. They had only just met, yet they cared so much. It was clear that the six of them were good people. He quickly sat up and said, ¡°Thank you all for saving me. I ... I will never forget this!¡±


    Although it had been Liu Yiyi¡¯s request, the fact that they had chosen to save him was a huge act of kindness to Long Chen.


    Now that he was awake, the six of them looked at each other and the leadingdy said, ¡°Little Brother, why don¡¯t you introduce yourself? We¡¯re all very interested in you.¡±


    Her voice was low, and he could not tell what she was feeling.


    ¡°My name is Long Chen ...¡± Due to the name on the Bounty Board, Long Chen was hesitant to tell them his name.


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± The six of them were indeed surprised. The girl in blue cried in surprise, ¡°What a coincidence! You have the same name as Sister Long Yue¡¯s younger brother.¡±


    Everyone looked at thedy.


    Long Chen finally learned that this Dragon Warrior descendant¡¯s name was Long Yue.


    So the Long Chen on the Bounty Board is Long Yue¡¯s younger brother?


    Long Chen once heard Jiang Cheng say that the top three people on the Bounty Board were masters at the Earthly Martial Realm.


    ¡°It is a coincidence indeed.¡± Long Yue paused, then she said, ¡°Long Chen, with that name, I guess you were fated to meet us. Since you¡¯re awake now, we will officially ask you some questions. Don¡¯t worry, we don¡¯t want to trouble you, so everything is up to you.¡±


    Long Chen froze. What did they want to ask?

 Chapter 534: Dragon Warrior Descendant

    The others did not speak; they were all looking at the leader, Long Yue. Long Chen did not fear this mysterious woman who seemed to be shrouded in mist, perhaps due to her having some Dragon Warrior energy in her. She felt familiar.


    Long Yue spoke in a manner that was not rushed, but not dragged either. She seemed cold, but that was merely her personality. He could not measure her emotions at all from her voice.


    Judging by her voice, she was, at most, in her thirties. Compared to the Demon Emperor, who was in his fifties, it meant that she was much more talented than he was.


    Long Yue¡¯s eyes scanned his body, and then she said, ¡°When I was treating your injuries, I checked your body and indeed found that you also possess the blood of a Dragon Warrior. I thought I had made a mistake when I saw your Dragon Soul Transformation before.¡±


    Long Chen smiled bitterly in his heart. She was treating him as a Dragon Warrior Descendant. Since he could not absolutely trust these people, he obviously would not tell them that he was a Dragon Warrior himself. His mind raced quickly, and he realized that he should pretend not to know anything. That was the more normal response.


    Therefore, he replied cluelessly, ¡°What is a Dragon Warrior?¡±


    His response was within the six people¡¯s expectations.


    ¡°During the Ancient Era of the Dragon Continent, ancient dragons ruled the world. However, they are all extinct now, and not much of their bloodline remains today. When one receives the Inherited Blood Essence from the dragons, they can be a powerful Dragon Warrior. We are the descendants of Dragon Warriors,¡± exined Long Yue.


    ¡°So that¡¯s why I have powers like these. Is it because of the Dragon Warrior?¡± Long Chen replied with surprise. Due to the situation, he had no choice but to lie. No one other than Ling Xi and Xiang could know about this.Long Yue nodded.


    ¡°In regards to my bloodline, only my younger brother and I remain. And we know that there are no more Dragon Warrior descendants in the Divine Martial Empire. This bloodline has been passed down for a long time, and many family members have gone missing in the middle. That is why I am sure that you and I are actually from the same family. We both have the same ancestor.¡± Even though she had found a family member, Long Yue did not seem very emotional. However, the others were grinning because their leader would not talk this much if not for Long Chen.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± There was confusion in his eyes, though he was only acting. It was just a white lie; he genuinely felt grateful to them.


    ¡°Do you have any other family members?¡± Long Yue asked hurriedly. This was the actual question she wanted to ask.


    ¡°I don¡¯t. I¡¯ve been alone for as long as I can remember,¡± said Long Chen.


    The six of them were a little disappointed. After a while, Long Yue said, ¡°I initially thought that if you had arge family, Dragon Warriors like us would be able to restore our glory by relying on you guys. This is a pity. But, Long Chen, since you and I are rted by blood, and we saved you from the Ancient Demon Domain, I need to tell you something.¡±


    ¡°Please, do tell,¡± said Long Chen, nodding.


    ¡°Do you know who we are?¡± Long Yue asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t. To be honest, I¡¯m from a small kingdom under the jurisdiction of the Divine Martial Empire. I am not familiar with this ce at all. If I was, I would not have identally killed the Demon Emperor¡¯s son, causing that disaster,¡± said Long Chen.


    They nodded. They were just wondering why the Demon Emperor wanted to kill this minor character.


    ¡°I¡¯ll introduce us to little Long Chen, then.¡± Jiang Wuya, who was from the Ancient Demon Domain, took a step forward. He was a handsome middle-aged man who was as sophisticated as Dongfang Xuanxiao. With a faint smile on his face, he said, ¡°The six of us do not belong to any faction. We gathered together and were sworn in as brothers and sisters. We y together, kill together, sing together, and drink together. Due to Yue, the six of us named ourselves the Dragon n. Every major faction of the Divine Martial Empire hates us like a thorn in their flesh! We are all from different ces, but we share one simrity. We are the enemies of the Martial Alliance. Archnemeses. The six of us take up six spots in the Bounty Board¡¯s top ten!¡±


    Long Chen was surprised. So they were all enemies of the Martial Alliance. That exined why their attitudes were so wild and free. Most importantly, they took up six spots on the Bounty Board¡¯s top ten?


    ¡°But why did I hear that only the top three are at the Earthly Martial Realm?¡± Long Chen recalled Jiang Cheng mentioning this.


    ¡°That¡¯s just lies from the Martial Alliance to make the general public think we are weak. If we were only as strong as they said, why would the Demon Emperor let us leave the Ancient Demon Domain?¡± said Jiang Wuya with a faint smile.


    ¡°I see.¡± Long Chen nodded.


    Jiang Wuya pointed at Long Yue and said, ¡°She, Long Yue, is number two on the Bounty Board. I am fourth. As for them, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth. It was as if the Bounty Board was started just for us.¡±


    Long Chen was very impressed.


    Jiang Wuya continued, ¡°After such a long introduction, my point is that your name has probably spread everywhere already because we saved you. The Martial Alliance sees us as a thorn in their flesh, and with their personalities, they will definitely see you as one of us. That is why you cannot continue to stay the Divine Martial Empire. Your cultivation has fallen to a very weak state too; it¡¯s not enough for self-preservation at all.¡±


    ¡°What should I do, then?¡± Long Chen had sensed this problem too. He had already fought the Martial Alliance in the very beginning. This time, they would likely put a bounty on his head. In the face of the major factions, he stood no chance of survival in his current state.


    Jiang Wuya gazed at him warmly. ¡°You have two choices. First, you can return to where you came from. Since we rescued you, we will finish the job and escort you home.¡±


    ¡°What about the second?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°The second is something that we all discussed and agreed on. You maye with us temporarily and we will, of course, be able to protect you. Don¡¯t get all suspicious of our intentions; we¡¯re doing this because you are from the same n as Yue¡¯er. I believe Yue¡¯er also really wants her n¡¯s bloodline to continue.¡±


    Jiang Wuya looked at Long Yue as he spoke.


    She nodded and said, ¡°You are from the Long n and naturally, it is my duty to protect you. I will be able to use medicine to help you heal from the hidden damage done to your body. It is up to you if you want to follow us six siblings.¡±


    Long Chen was first silent.


    ¡°You brat, what are you hesitating for? These six people are all you can rely on for now! It¡¯ll be the right decision to follow them for now!¡± reminded Little Cat in the Primordial Realm.


    It was true. Long Chen thought for a moment and made his decision.


    Long Yue suddenly said, ¡°Of course, the six of us are already sworn brothers and sisters. You¡¯re only temporarily following us. If we find that you¡¯re good, we don¡¯t mind having a Seventh Brother.¡±


    The others smiled.


    The girl in blue said, ¡°Yeah! Little Brother, you need to work hard! I¡¯m the youngest here right now, and I¡¯m getting bullied!¡±


    Jiang Wuya said, ¡°Looks like our anti-Martial Alliance team is getting stronger. Plus, he¡¯s a Dragon Warrior like Yue¡¯er! It¡¯s a pity that Xiao Chen doesn¡¯t like to be tied down and isn¡¯t willing to team up with us. If he were here, we would be even stronger.


    Long Chen knew that Xiao Chen was the other Long Chen, who was ranked third on the Bounty Board. He was probably even stronger than Jiang Wuya.


    Long Chen was filled with gratitude to them. ¡°Thank you all so much for saving me and taking me in. I will never forget this!¡±


    This meant that he had decided to go with them. At least, Long Yue had already promised to clear all the hidden damage done to his body, and Long Chen needed some time to recover his strength. Their protection was what he needed most.


    The five of them smiled when they heard him, while Long Yue¡¯s face remained difficult to see. However, Long Chen saw joy in her eyes. Perhaps she felt the sense of familiarity in him too.


    ¡°Your name is Long Chen; Yue¡¯er¡¯s brother is also Long Chen. We call him ¡®Xiao Chen¡¯ though. As for you, we will call you by your name for now. After you have passed our test, we will call you ¡®Seventh Brother.¡¯¡±


    The corners of Jiang Wuya¡¯s mouth curled upwards. He paused, then he said, ¡°Let us introduce ourselves. I am Jiang Wuya. Out of the six of us, I am the oldest, though they call me ¡®Second Brother¡¯ because Yue¡¯er is the boss here. I am at the Second Earthly Martial Stage, while Yue¡¯er is at the Third Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He already knew both their names, though this was his first time learning of their cultivation levels.


    The rest of them began their self-introductions.


    First was the man in long, white robes. He had been silent since the beginning and did not smile often. He was also very handsome and his features were sharp, like they were carved with a de. He had a tall nose, and a cold sword light glinted in his eyes.


    His most outstanding feature was his full head of long, white hair, including white eyebrows. They were a pure white that was easy on the eyes.


    Long Chen sensed a terrifying Sword Qi radiating from his body.


    He guessed that this person was a Sword Warrior. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Long Yue new waifu? To repopte the Dragon Warriors?</blockquote>

 Chapter 535: Thunder Bat Dragon

    Long Chen had sensed a unique Sword Qi radiating from the royal family members of the Cangyang Kingdom, but the Sword Qiing from the white-haired man was countless times more powerful than Lin Zichen¡¯s. Long Chen felt as if he could see a world of swords in his ck irises.


    ¡°I¡¯m ranked third, and my name is Jian Chen. Sword Warrior. First Earthly Martial Stage,¡± said the man.


    His features were very unique, so Long Chen easily remembered his name. Jian Chen. The name fit him.[1]


    Next was another man, who was the most muscr of the bunch. His body shape was simr to Demon General Strongman¡¯s, butpared to Demon General Strongman¡¯s brick-like build, this man¡¯s lines were much more elegant, which caused a huge visual sh. What made him different from the rest was his one-centimeter-long hair. His features were much harder than Jian Chen''s, though he was currently grinning at Long Chen. His expression made him look like an honest and friendly person, but his body radiated an aura that resembled a fierce beast.


    Long Chen instantly knew that he was a Beast Warrior.


    As expected, the muscr man said, ¡°Little Brother, my name is Lei Zhen. I¡¯m from the Northern Battle n! The Northern Battle n is a faction as powerful as the Ancient Demon Domain! I am at the First Earthly Martial Stage, and my Earthly Martial Beast Soul Origin is a Category Three King-tier beast called the Heavenly Mantra Thunder Beast.


    Category Three King-tier?


    Long Chen was even more shocked. Indeed, every single person in this group was a formidable presence. Putting Long Yue and Jiang Wuya aside, even Jian Chen and Lei Zhen were an Armament Warrior and a Beast Warrior respectively. Both of them were also terrifying.


    Long Chen had never heard of the Northern Battle n before, as he had only heard of the Martial Alliance, the Ancient Demon Domain, and the Huangfu n. Even with just the six of them, the Dragon n was considered one of the top factions. The next two were younger than the others. The one who first spoke was a thin man wearing all-ck, tight-fitting clothes. He was clearly very agile, and he was as quiet as Jian Chen. There was a strong killing intent hidden in his eyes, and from his outfit and aura, Long Chen had a feeling that he specialized in meleebat and speed like Chen Feng.


    ¡°I am Chi Ying. First Earthly Martial Stage. I am the founder of the Divine Martial Empire¡¯srgest organization of assassins¡ªthe Red Souls. I am also the only King-tier killer of the organization. I have a nickname: No-Fail Chi Ying. This is because I have never failed a single task I have taken. However, I¡¯m no longer in the assassination business, and the Red Souls are serving Big Sister.¡±


    The ¡°Big Sister¡± he was referring to was Long Yue.


    Long Chen was amazed. Chi Ying looked inconspicuous in this group, but he was actually the founder of the Divine Martial Empire¡¯srgest assassin organization! And he looked only twenty-seven or twenty-eight at most.


    ¡°The Martial Alliance forbids assassin organizations, so a few years ago, they started a sweep of these groups. The Red Souls were caught within the tide, and if Big Sister had not rescued me, I would not be here today. Now the Red Souls have gone underground,¡± said Chi Ying, moved.


    He was only talking about this because he was grateful.


    Long Chen nodded.


    The girl in blue wasst, as they were speaking in the sequence of their ranking. The animated girl had always been the most talkative, so this time was no exception. When it was her turn to speak, she said immediately, ¡°My name is Lan Ling¡¯er; call me Sister Lan. I am also at the First Earthly Martial Stage, and I¡¯m an extraordinary prodigy! But I can¡¯t tell you too much about myself, because I can¡¯t let you learn about my secrets.¡±


    ¡°Ling¡¯er is good at disguises; she has mastered techniques like bone shaping! She¡¯s amazing at transforming one¡¯s features and using disguise-rted medicine and tools, and people call her the Ever-Changing Demon Girl! Long Chen, you need to be careful of her or one day, you¡¯ll find yourself an identical twin,¡± said Jiang Wuya with a grin.


    By now, Long Chen had been introduced to every member. He had a feeling that they would be very important people in his life. His journey had been a lonely one, but everything was about to change due to the appearance of these few people.


    At the very least, there was no question about how powerful they were.


    The leader, Long Yue, was a master as powerful as the Demon Emperor. Did that mean that she was in the top five of the whole Divine Martial Empire? With a person like that protecting them, Long Chen would not need to worry anymore!


    The mysterious Big Sister Long Yue; the Ancient Demon Domain-born Jiang Wuya; Sword Warrior Jian Chen; Lei Zhen with a Category Three King-tier Beast Soul; the leader of thergest assassin organization, Chi Ying; and the Ever-Changing Demon Girl, Lan Ling¡¯er. The six of them formed the Martial Alliance¡¯s most terrifying enemy¡ªthe Dragon n!


    Seeing as everyone had introduced themselves, Long Yue said, ¡°We haven¡¯t found the ck Emperor Seal yet, so we did not manage to fulfill our goal. We will return to the Phantom Ravine, and we will only leave when we receive news on the other Emperor Seals. Long Chen¡¯s injuries require rest and treatment, so we should not wait any longer. Lei Zhen, we¡¯ll leave now!¡±


    The fourth-ranked Lei Zhen, the muscr Beast Warrior, gave a warm smile. ¡°Alright, Big Sister!¡±


    Long Chen only had one objective ining to the Divine Martial Empire, which was to head to the Ancient Graveyard. These six people were some of the strongest people in the Divine Martial Empire, so he wanted to ask them about it, but seeing as they wanted to travel as soon as possible, he would do thatter.


    He thought about it and realized that he would have to follow them at least until his injuries were healed. After he became closer to them, it would be more natural to ask them about the Ancient Graveyard. There was no need to rush.


    But why had Long Yue only spoken to Lei Zhen when they were about to leave? Long Chen quickly had his answer. A gigantic beast was released from arge, purple bracelet on Lei Zhen¡¯s wrist!


    Long Chen had always thought that the Primordial Realm was the only thing that could fit beasts, but he had not expected Lei Zhen to have the same thing.


    Due to Jiang Wuya¡¯s rtionship with Liu Yiyi, he was more concerned about Long Chen than even Long Yue. He knew that Liu Yiyi liked Long Chen, so he had also taken a liking to this young man. Therefore, he exined, ¡°The Northern Battle n is a faction independent from the Martial Alliance. They are very powerful, and Lei Zhen is the first prince of the n. He snuck out to train on his own, but due to his folly of youth, he got into trouble with the Martial Alliance. If it was not for Yue¡¯er, he would have died.¡±


    ¡°Second Brother, let¡¯s not talk about my embarrassing past, haha!¡± Lei Zhenughed as he spoke to the gigantic beast in a strangenguage.


    ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t. Long Chen, you must not know that the whole Northern Battle n consists of Beast Warriors, and they possess powerful techniques to tame beasts. They can even tame King-tier beasts to sell their souls for them. They have also mastered many beastnguages, so they can directlymunicate with beasts. You see his bracelet? That¡¯s a Beast Soul Crystal, an item exclusive to the Northern Battle n. It serves as a shelter for their beasts. It¡¯s much more impressive than Universe Pouches.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s so cool!¡± Long Chen was shaken.


    That was when Little Cat saidzily, ¡°It¡¯s just an unimportant crystal. Although it¡¯s considered rare, how could itpare to the Primordial Realm? Beasts can¡¯t stay for long inside crystals like that. If you don¡¯t let the beast out before the time limit, the beast will die. How could thatpare?¡±


    What Little Cat had said made the Primordial Realm even more impressive.


    ¡°Once you stay with us for longer, you will learn more about the Divine Martial Empire. We need to hurry. After we reach the Phantom Ravine, I want to ask you about Yiyi,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Alright.¡±


    Then he looked at the beast. It was a beast with huge wings that could fly, though it was not an avian-type beast. Instead, it was more simr to a bat, though its body was longer than a bat¡¯s, making it look more sophisticated. Most importantly, its head looked simr to a dragon¡¯s. Long Chen could even sense an extremely minute trace of Dragon Blood from it.


    ¡°This is a Category Nine Heaven-tier demonic beast called the Thunder Bat Dragon. It¡¯s the fastest Heaven-tier beast, and it is lightning-fast. Of course, you must also be able to tell that this Thunder Bat Dragon is a descendant of the dragons. I can sense a tiny trace of Dragon Blood in it, but it¡¯s much weaker than yours,¡± exined Long Yue when she saw that Long Chen looked puzzled.


    Countless shes of lightning appeared on the surface of its body as if it were covered in a web of electricity. The crackling and popping of lightning made Long Chen¡¯s scalp go numb.


    The Dragon n was so impressive that even their mode of transport was terrifying.


    Long Chen would probably die if the Thunder Bat Dragon touched him gently.


    ¡°I¡¯ll help him. You guys go first,¡± said Jiang Wuya to the others, standing next to Long Chen. Everyone flew up in the air and sat on the lightning-covered Thunder Bat Dragon¡¯s back. Ayer of energy appeared on the surface of their bodies, wrapping them up so the lightning would not touch them.


    Suddenly, Long Chen sensed a warm energy wrapping around his body. With a <em>whoosh</em>, he was suddenly sitting on the back of the beast. There were purple scales on the back of the Thunder Bat Dragon, simr to dragon scales.


    Upon closer inspection, Long Chen realized that he was being wrapped in Jiang Wuya¡¯s energy. It felt like a warm fluid that stuck closely to his body, guaranteeing his safety.


    ¡°Is this essence of the Martial Realm?¡± asked Long Chen.


    He realized he was wrapped in the same space as Jiang Wuya.


    ¡°Yes. When a person reaches the Martial Realm, the eighteen starry rivers in his body turn into Martial Veins. The nine main meridian points turn into Martial Meridians, and the Qi within them turn into essence, which is close to a fluid state. Of course, you can also call it Martial Essence.


    1. Note: ½£³¾ (Jian Chen) trantes to Sword Dust ?<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    With the amount of different demonic beasts here they could''ve came up with a game like pokemon</blockquote>

 Chapter 536: Phantom Ravine

    Long Chen did not know anything about the Martial Realms.


    Though he knew that he was not far away from the Martial Realms, because he had something very important: the Emperor me Pearl. He did not know how long he had been unconscious for, but it was likely only one or two days. On the Day of the Nine Suns, he would be able to use the Emperor me Pearl to immediately progress to the Ninth Passage Stage, which would not require even Heavenly Passage Pills.


    However, there was one thing he had to do first, which was to treat all the hidden damages caused by the third stage of Blood Sacrifice as soon as possible. Even if he used the Emperor me Pearl, these hidden problems would remain and would only cause more issues. Every hidden injury would be like a de stuck in his body. If they were not removed, they would bring him fatal harm in the future.


    Long Yue seemed to have a solution.


    Long Chen would only be able to be strong once more with the help of these kind people. He had to take this opportunity seriously.


    ¡°Long Chen, I want to ask you more about the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi. Just tell me what you experienced after you met them, in detail,¡± said Jiang Wuya, pursing his lips. He looked at Long Chen solemnly.


    Long Chen did not know what to feel about this man. It was clear that he was pursuing Long Yue, and he must have liked her for a long time. He was probably the romantic type. However, why did it seem like he previously had a rtionship with the Clear Shallows King, even leaving behind a daughter?


    He did not look like the irresponsible type to abandon his wife and child. Long Chen did not know theplicated story between them, so he could not judge further. All he knew was that the Clear Shallows King was a decent person, and so was Jiang Wuya.


    He told him about his experiences, though he chose to skip parts rted to his own secrets, for example, the ck Emperor Seal. The six of them had gone to the Ancient Demon Domain because of the ck Emperor Seal; how could he tell them that it was actually with him? The ultimate treasure, which was the Emperor-tier Five Emperor Seal technique, could be retrieved bybining all five Emperor Seals. Emperor-tier techniques were precious things that people fought over in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and the Divine Martial Empire was no exception. It was clear that these six had been searching for the Emperor Seal in recent times.


    Jiang Wuya guessed the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi¡¯s lives through Long Chen¡¯s experiences. His eyes were wet when Long Chen finished, though he quickly wiped them and said, ¡°Thank you so much.¡±


    ¡°You guys have shown me insurmountable kindness. I should be the one thanking you,¡± Long Chen said solemnly.


    Jiang Wuya smiled, though his expression suddenly turned serious when he asked, ¡°Long Chen, do you want to take Yiyi as your wife?¡±


    Long Chen was a little exasperated. Jiang Wuya was Liu Yiyi¡¯s father, so naturally he cared about his daughter¡¯s matters. Long Chen said, ¡°I am not in control of my fate currently, and I do not have the luck to enjoy Miss Yiyi¡¯s good intentions in this lifetime.¡±


    ¡°In that case, I forbid you from returning to the Ancient Demon Domain again. Don¡¯t even set foot in there without my permission!¡± said Jiang Wuya sternly.


    ¡°Mhm.¡± Long Chen nodded. He understood where Jiang Wuya wasing from. Since Long Chen did not love her, then he would not let Long Chen hurt her.


    After their chat, Jiang Wuya did not speak again.


    The Thunder Bat Dragon flew very quickly. Long Chen could see the clouds quickly flying past them while electricity flew all around them. Soon after, he sensed the beast slowing down and suddenly, the Thunder Bat Dragon stopped mid-air, let out a low roar, and disappeared. Jiang Wuya carried Long Chen and descended from the sky.


    Below them was a vast patch of forest.


    Thick, white mist was everywhere, clouding Long Chen¡¯s vision. It was difficult to see what was ahead. After they descended, they immediately slipped into the forest and traveled towards the deeper parts of the mountains.


    Obscured by the endless mist, the ce they lived in was quite hidden too.


    It was an endless patch of mountains. After several kilometers of trekking within the thick mist, the space suddenly opened up. It was a paradise in a very deep part of the mountains.


    What Long Chen saw was a ravine that was tranquil and filled with trees. Beneath the trees, flowers dotted the ground like stars. Not far away was a calmke that was notrge, but it was strangely clear, so even tiny fishes and prawns could be seen within. Several Sika Deer were drinking from it. They were regr animals, not demonic beasts. After being spotted, not only did they not run, they boldly approached. Their sparkling eyes were very adorable.


    Not far away from the edge of theke stood several elegant wooden houses. Long Chen counted six of them, which was the same as the number of members.


    ¡°What do you think, Little Brother? Isn¡¯t our home beautiful?¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er smugly, leaning over to Long Chen. Color flowed within her sparkling eyes, making them look beautiful.


    Long Chen took a deep breath. This ce was peaceful and tranquil; it was indeed a good ce to rest and heal.


    ¡°It is indeed beautiful,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°It is beautiful, and we built the houses ourselves. However, if someone starts calling me ¡®Sister Lan,¡¯ I would be so happy that I would even be willing to help that injured person build a house!¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er with a chuckle.


    ¡°Alright, Ling¡¯er. That¡¯s enough. Everyone, help him out. I will prepare some medicine. His condition is difficult to treat.¡± Long Yue paused, then she looked at Long Chen. ¡°From tomorrow onwards, I should be able to help you treat your injuries. Stay with them today and familiarize yourself with this ce.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, everyone!¡± Long Chen nodded, his eyes filled with gratitude.


    Then Long Yue went off to prepare the medicine. Chi Ying left, likely to check with the Red Souls members for recent updates, while the others quickly helped Long Chen build a simple wooden house. At least Long Chen now had a quiet ce to cultivate.


    Long Chen felt like he was in a dream as he looked around at everything.


    He could tell that the six of them had a close bond, one that was as close as true siblings.


    Night soon fell. Chi Ying returned, and to celebrate Long Chen¡¯s arrival, the few of them decided to make a bonfire. Long Chen was impressed by Jian Chen and Lei Zhen¡¯s excellent cooking¡ªJian Chen was great at making sophisticated dishes, while Lei Zhen specialized in barbecuing meat ¡­


    Long Chen soon rxed under their warm wee.


    He had always thought that the path of cultivation was filled with only bitter training and violence, but he saw something else in them. Freedom. All of them were extremely drawn towards freedom, and that was why they shed with the Martial Alliance¡¯s control. However, it felt good to gather with them; it was them against the world.


    Very soon, Long Chen grew familiar with them. Since he was the youngest, he referred to them as brothers, though obviously, Lan Ling¡¯er was ¡°Sister Lan.¡± Being called that made Lan Ling¡¯er especially happy, seeing as she had always been the youngest. Finally, there was someone younger.


    The six of them had been sworn in, but Long Chen was considered only a temporary guest.


    ¡°Long Chen, there are many trials and tribtions in life, and there will be danger. However, having siblings by your side makes it all worth it. Don¡¯t you guys agree?¡± said Jiang Wuya with a grin after drinking some wine.


    Everyone agreed.


    ¡°Cultivation and killing are boring. What do we do so that we do not be boring people? We put on a show! You¡¯re new, so we¡¯ll go easy on you. You will performst! If you don¡¯t do well, I won¡¯t let you live it down!¡± After drinking a little, Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s face was a little red, making her extremely beautiful.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, don¡¯t bother him. We¡¯ll start first. Third Brother, to celebrate Long Chen¡¯s arrival, shall we perform a guqin-flute duet?¡± said Jiang Wuya with a smile.


    ¡°Of course.¡± The white-haired Jian Chen gave a rare smile.


    Very soon, Jiang Wuya started ying his guqin beneath the moonlight while Jian Chen stood and yed his flute. Both of them were absolute masters at their instruments. Long Chen and the others enjoyed the music greatly.


    The duet between the guqin and the flute started gentle, like a tune in a dream, but it went up in a crescendo in the middle of the song until it became like a war song sung by ten thousand people. Chi Ying plucked a leaf from a tree and said, ¡°I¡¯ll join you guys!¡±


    To Long Chen¡¯s astonishment, Chi Ying then started ying a beautiful tune from a leaf!


    ¡°How could we not dance when there¡¯s such beautiful music ying?¡± Lan Ling¡¯er giggled and walked up to Long Chen. She started to dance along to the music. Long Chen had spent a long time immersed in the world of prodigal sons in Baiyang Town, so he had watched many beautiful dances. However, Lan Ling¡¯er resembled a blue butterfly swimming along with the tides. Her moves were elegant and graceful, and this was surely the most beautiful dance he had ever witnessed.


    <em>Are all of them this talented? Surely that blockhead Lei Zhen doesn¡¯t have any skills ¡­ </em>thought Long Chen in exasperation. Lei Zhen suddenly let out a joyousugh, rushed into the space, and said, ¡°With all of you performing, how could we not include the Northern Battle n¡¯s dance?¡±


    He moved quickly as he spoke. His dance involved vigorous movements withrge actions, but it was filled with wildness and masculinity. When paired with Lei Zhen¡¯s muscr figure and the emotional crescendo of the music, he seemed like a wild beast whenpared to Lan Ling¡¯er, who was dancing like a butterfly!


    Everything finally came to an end.


    All of them stared woodenly at Long Chen. Lan Ling¡¯er said, ¡°Little Brother, you have watched our performance for free! It¡¯s your turn! If I¡¯m not satisfied, I¡¯ll strip you naked and you¡¯ll freeze in thatke for three days and three nights.¡±


    Everyone grinned at him with schadenfreude.


    Long Chen had finally seen their true selves. In general, the Dragon n members were powerful in cultivation but yful children at heart.


    He loved this ce. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    This chapter got me like</blockquote>

 Chapter 537: Learning About The Martial Realm

    When he tried to think of a performance, Long Chen¡¯s mind went nk. Ever since he received the dragon jade, he had been focused on learning how to kill. He had forgotten about things like that a long time ago. That was why he felt like he was inferior to them whenparing his life of killing to their lives of freedom.


    He had gotten on the right path for cultivation, but in terms of mindset, he had taken a more demented path; Blood Transmutation had led him into the abyss of killing and violence.


    ¡°I truly don¡¯t know anything ¡­¡± Long Chen waved his hand with a bitter smile.


    ¡°You don¡¯t? Then I¡¯ll have to do what I said! I¡¯ll have to strip you naked!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er tried to scare him.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, that¡¯s enough. Don¡¯t scare him. You¡¯re ady, why are you always talking about getting naked? If he let you strip him naked, would you even dare to do it?¡± Jiang Wuyaughed.


    Lan Ling¡¯er turned both embarrassed and angry.


    ¡°But, Long Chen, you can¡¯t just watch us without performing. We will give you a task. If youplete it, we will not force you,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    ¡°If you can get Yue¡¯er out here, we will let you go,¡± he continued.


    Long Chen was just wondering why Long Yue wasn¡¯t here when the five of them were enjoying themselves. ¡°Big Sister has always been like that. She works too hard and usually ignores us when we y. That is why if you can get her out here, we will not bother you anymore,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er added.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll try my best.¡± Seeing as everyone looked so insistent, Long Chen had no choice but to stand up and head towards Long Yue¡¯s wooden house. Perhaps because she liked the quiet, her wooden house was far from the others.


    He looked back and saw that they were partying once more. He was speechless at how they acted this way at their ages.


    There was no sounding from Long Yue¡¯s wooden house. After he arrived at the door, he was about to knock when a voice came from inside. ¡°Come in.¡±


    It was Long Yue¡¯s voice.


    He pushed the door and entered, then he was stunned by what he saw. He saw a girl in loose-fitting silk clothing with her hair up in a ponytail while she practiced a punching routine. Her punches looked normal, but there was something philosophical about the way she performed. Long Chen¡¯s gaze was immediately attracted to her, and he waspletely immersed in her routine, quickly forgetting why he was there.


    Her every move, including every punch and every time she retracted her fist, seemed to connect to the depths of his heart. The space in front of him seemed to be endlessly vast and Long Yue was standing at the center of it. Every time she punched, the earth shook and waves of energy crashed. Although her punches seemed simple, they were closely connected to the pulse of thend, as if she were the center of the world. Every moment made the ground shake around her.


    As the strange punches flew in front of his eyes, an indescribable feeling arose in his mind. He was confident that no matter how much strength he used, he would not be able to recreate these punches. It was unrted to their strength because Long Yue was punching so lightly that not a sound could be heard.


    <em>She is using only a tiny bit of strength, but it is enough to shake the ground. This is not rted to strength, but to her mind and soul. </em>When Long Chenprehended this point, Long Yue finally slowed down her punches, and Long Chen woke up from his astonishment.


    Long Yue was not wearing the helmet she had been wearing before. Her ponytail paired with her soft, white clothing made her look exceptionally graceful. Long Yue was as beautiful as Lan Ling¡¯er, but while Lan Ling¡¯er was coquettish, Long Yue radiated elegance. There was also magnificence in her eyes that made other people too intimidated to look into them. Her energy field even made him feel chills.


    She looked at Long Chen and asked, ¡°Did you feel anything from the punching routine just now?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m confused; I don¡¯t really understand it.¡± Long Chen did not dare put on airs in front of her.


    Long Yue changed the subject and said, ¡°I heard your cultivation progressed very quickly in the Heavenly Passage Realm. You improved a lot in just one or two months, right?¡±


    ¡°Mhm.¡± Long Chen nodded, unsure of her intentions.


    ¡°I bet you won¡¯t be able to achieve that speed when you reach the Three Martial Realms,¡± she said directly.


    ¡°Why?¡± He did not understand, because if he relied on Blood Transmutation, he would be able to achieve quick growth regardless of the cultivation level.


    ¡°It looks like you don¡¯t know a thing about the Three Martial Realms. The Three Martial Realms are different from the Four Foundational Realms, as the Four Foundational Realms involve pure Qi growth and clearing the meridians of the body. The Three Martial Realms are different. You can say that you are only considered a true martial artist once you have entered the Martial Realms!¡±


    ¡°Why do you say so?¡± Long Yue¡¯s exnation shook his understanding.


    ¡°As long as you have a tiny bit of talent and you can refine some spiritual herbs to gain more Qi, you can clear the Heavenly meridian and reach the Ninth Passage Stage when you¡¯re at the Four Foundational Realms. However, why are there so many people stuck at the Ninth Passage Stage, unable to progress to the Three Martial Realms? It¡¯s because they don¡¯t understand what ¡®martial¡¯ means! They don¡¯t know what ¡®Martial Realm¡¯ means!¡± Long Yue gazed at him wistfully. What she was implying was that if Long Chen did not understand this, it would be very hard for him to progress.


    She was a cultivator at the Third Earthly Martial Realm, so she definitely had the right to teach him. He knew that since she had said this, then she intended to teach him the right way.


    He asked hurriedly, ¡°Could you please exin it to me in detail, Sister Long Yue?¡±


    Long Yue privately approved when she saw that he was not stubborn in his ways and was humble enough to seek teaching. She said, ¡°The most important thing for you now is to clear your hidden injuries, then use the Emperor me Pearl to ascend to the Ninth Passage Stage during the Day of the Nine Suns, which will be in eight days. After that, I will teach you what the Martial Realm means.¡±


    Long Chen knew that being impatient would get him nowhere.


    Therefore, he nodded and said, ¡°Thank you!¡±


    Long Yue was a woman filled with personality, and she was warm despite her icy exterior. He reckoned it would be beneficial to get to know her well.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to thank me. The blood flowing in your body is the same as mine. When you be strong, you¡¯ll be able to extend our bloodline. That is my dream,¡± said Long Yue.


    Even without her helmet, she spoke without any expression.


    ¡°I have prepared the spiritual medicine. Since you¡¯re here, I¡¯ll start treating your injuries now. You used a method that exhausts your body¡¯s potential. While I have no way of helping you get back the potential you lost, I can return your body to brand new. But you must remember never to use that technique again.¡±


    Though her words were cold, Long Chen could hear the concern hidden in them.


    He knew that she was taking great care of him because of their bloodline.


    ¡°Are we starting now? They¡¯re waiting for me outside ¡­¡± he said awkwardly.


    For some reason, he felt like a younger brother in front of Long Yue, afraid that his older sister would be displeased by his poor performance.


    ¡°Ignore those idiots,¡± Long Yue said directly.


    She brought him into his own quarters.


    ¡°Your injuries require both internal and external treatment, so they will take at least three days and three nights to healpletely. I have prepared a few spiritual medicines that will be effective only when they are used together. The main ingredient is the elementary King-tier spiritual herb, the Snow Heart Lotus.¡±


    Long Chen only nodded. He would let Long Yue take control of his treatment as she must have already made ample preparations. She took out a gigantic boulder from her Universe Pouch, which had a smooth indentrge enough to fit Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°This indent ¡­¡± Long Chen was shocked.


    ¡°You guessed it? Not bad. Yes, I hit it to create the indent.¡± She looked at him with praise in her eyes.


    Long Chen was astonished. The smoothness of the indentation on this boulder made it look like it had been formed over a long, long time, yet Long Yue said she had created it with her fists.


    <em>Does the Martial Realm mean using power at this level? </em>Long Chen was speechless.


    Then, following her instructions, he entered the deep indentation in the boulder. With her control, the medicinal fluid she had prepared flowed into the indentation and immersed him. The essence within the medicine seeped into his body, bringing him greatfort.


    Then Long Yue let him consume the Snow Heart Lotus.


    <em>This must be what she meant by internal and external treatment. </em>With the King-tier Snow Heart Lotus inside and precious medicinal fluid outside, the damage sustained due to the third stage of Blood Sacrifice would heal in three days and three nights.


    When everything was done, Long Yue gave him some reminders, then she left.


    Bathing in the spiritual medicine, he felt his body slowly heal. He heaved a sigh of relief and finally started to think about his current situation.


    <em>I managed to survive and even received the Emperor me Pearl. Although the journey was filled with tribtions, the results were the same as what I previously expected. Now that I have left the Ancient Demon Domain, I¡¯ll formte a new n after I have reached the Ninth Passage Stage in nine days¡¯ time.</em>


    With a goal set, he felt his mind clear up.


    <em>It looks like I¡¯ll still need to follow them for a while. It might be very difficult to reach the Martial Realm if I try to figure it out on my own, and Long Yue clearly ns to teach me. The Divine Martial Empire is the Martial Alliance¡¯s turf, and I can tell that the Martial Alliance exerts strict control over theirnd. If I go out on my own, there will surely be informants and I might even die without knowing how it happened. It¡¯s good to be with them anyway. At least I will stay alive, and they are indeed a bunch of interesting people ¡­ </em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Slow chapter</blockquote>

 Chapter 538: Xiaolangs Wish

    This path full of struggle was filled with dangers.


    With a faction like the Martial Alliance present, the Divine Martial Empire was surely a treacherous ce. Long Chen would never submit to anyone, so how could he possibly live without ever shing with such a powerful faction?


    ¡°Big Brother, Fat Cat told me some great news!¡± Xiang cried excitedly from within the Primordial Realm while Long Chen was treating his injuries.


    ¡°What good news?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Have you seen a King-tier beast?¡± asked Xiang.


    ¡°Of course not.¡± There were no King-tier beasts in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°Fat Cat says that demonic beasts at the King-tier and above can take human form. The more powerful they are, the more powerful their human form. However, A King-tier beast¡¯s human form is far weaker than their beast form. And when the beast reaches the Emperor-tier or Divine-tier, their human form will be extremely powerful too! This means I will have a chance to be human again ¡­¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Long Chen almost leaped from the boulder with excitement. He had always regretted allowing Xiang to lose his body and turn into a Sun Devouring Wolf. So there was a chance for him to turn into a human again? Even though he wouldn¡¯t be strong in human form, that was not really important! The most important thing was to recover his human form. He was a perfectly normal person, but he had been forced to live as a beast¡ªno one would enjoy that fate!


    ¡°Every martial artist in the Divine Martial Empire knows that King-tier beasts can assume human form. What is so surprising about that? It¡¯s embarrassing for a god like me to be with you two ignorant hillbillies!¡± Little Cat sighed. ¡°Shut your mouth,¡± Long Chen said jokingly. Then he said to Xiang, ¡°This is great news! After the Day of the Nine Suns, I will do my best to find fire-type treasures for you to help you break through to the King-tier! I wonder what changes wille when the Sun Devouring Wolf bes a King-tier beast! I¡¯m looking forward to seeing it!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Big Brother!¡± Xiang was emotional too.


    ¡°We¡¯re brothers! You don¡¯t have to thank me!¡± Long Chen hadn¡¯t learned much about King-tier beasts in the Ancient Demon Domain, so this new piece of information was a pleasant surprise.


    This was the happiest piece of news he had received since leaving the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Xiang had left his hometown with him, and they were brothers for life. Long Chen knew that losing his human form to be a beast was Xiang¡¯s biggest regret. Even though he would fundamentally be a beast despite taking human form, at least he would be able to live as a human again.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was initially only a Category One Earth-tier beast, but it possessed extraordinary absorption abilities. Long Chen knew just how terrifying Xiang could be with time!


    The ancient dragons ruled over all the species on the Dragon Continent. They were super strong from birth, and Long Chen did not know much about other beings. However, unlike humans, a beast¡¯s strength was mostly determined at birth. The Sun Devouring Wolf was a special exception, and it was simr to humans in that it could increase its strength.


    Humans were naturally the weakest beings, but they had great sticity and were highly intelligent. They had invented cultivation techniques to increase their strength. If it were not for the fact that humans could cultivate, the Dragon Continent would belong to the beasts. Without cultivation, how could humans rule the continent?


    Long Chen privately decided that he would help Xiang get stronger as soon as possible.


    He was a human being first and foremost, so even though he had be a beast, he had to live as a human.


    Three days and three nights passed quickly. Long Chen exited the wooden house after hepletely absorbed all the medicine that Long Yue had prepared for him. Her work was as reliable as expected, and Long Chen hadpletely recovered from the damages caused by Blood Sacrifice.


    As for the foundational damage he had sustained, his foundation had always been more powerful than that of other people, resulting in extraordinaryprehension and cultivation speed. He had already absorbed a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence, and the next time he absorbed the Inherited Blood Essence, this tiny bit of damage would bepletely fixed.


    Long Chen remembered that he would turn into a true Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon after absorbing all of the Inherited Blood Essence. Of course, he would first take a juvenile form and it would take a very long time to grow, but he knew it would be enough for him to marry Ling Xi proudly in broad daylight.


    His future, which had been dark just recently, was filled with color once more. Battle spirit filled his gaze!


    His body was filled with power once more!


    The ordeal at the Ancient Demon Domain had not defeated him!


    ¡°All we have left to do is wait for the Day of the Nine Suns, which will be in five days!¡±


    There would be nine suns in the sky, and they were all remnants of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul! What would happen then?


    When his body was filled with the Golden Crow¡¯s powers, despite being at the Ninth Passage Stage, he would be able to unleash powers beyond that level, right?


    Little Cat once said that the suns were actually remnants of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul and that he could only retrieve a small portion of it. However, Little Cat had bragged about how powerful the legendary Golden Crow was, so it was surely an excellent beast!


    Long Chen had a feeling that this would bring a powerful boost to his future battles!


    He couldn¡¯t wait for the Day of the Nine Suns.


    Long Chen looked around and found that there was no one around. When he used the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he realized that the rest were in their houses, so they were probably cultivating. Only Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s house was empty. He was just wondering where she was when a powerful force ambushed him and pushed him into the tranquilke.


    He climbed out in exasperation while Lan Ling¡¯er was bent over in squeals ofughter.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been soaking for three days; you didn¡¯t expect to be soaked again right after you came out, right?¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er,ughing.


    He could not stand her. She was already in her twenties, yet she was still so childish. He climbed out without a word and dried his clothes.


    ¡°Long Chen, while you were healing, the rest have been cultivating. I¡¯ve been so bored. You must go out with me.¡± Her clear eyes sparkled.


    ¡°Will Sister Long Yue let you go out without permission?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Of course! I¡¯m not a three-year-old, and my disguises are ten thousand times better than what you can do. I¡¯m going to take that as a yes. Wait for me ¡­¡± Then she turned into a blue gust of wind and disappeared. When she reappeared, Long Chen was stunned.


    A handsome, elegant young man appeared in front of him. He spun a few times and said, ¡°What do you think? Brother Long, can you still recognize me?¡±


    Her voice was still high-pitched, but it was very different from its previous feminine tone. Regr teenage males also sounded like that. She was indeed the Ever-Changing Demon Girl, and only a shadow of her previous self could be seen in her current looks. Even her height had changed; she was about ten centimeters taller than before. She was apletely different person.


    ¡°Sister Lan, I¡¯m impressed! Very impressed!¡± Long Chen could not help but give her a thumbs up.


    ¡°Wrong, you need to call me ¡®Brother Lan!¡¯¡± corrected Lan Ling¡¯er. Then she grabbed his hand and dragged him into flight. He felt the wind blowing on his face and could faintly tell that she was leading him through the trees.


    <em>I must admit that the Earthly Martial Realm is terrifying. I was only able to kill the Red Ghost King due to luck. </em>


    Although he was very powerful then, arge contributing factor to the Red Ghost King¡¯s death was the fact that he had underestimated Long Chen. If the Red Ghost King had used all his strength to defend himself, Long Chen would¡¯ve been no match for him.


    Judging by how Lan Ling¡¯er slowed down a lot once she had left the Phantom Ravine, she was definitely sneaking out.


    Long Chen finally could see his surroundings clearly, and when they were close to the edge of the forest, she basically let him travel on his own.


    She grabbed his sleeve and said demurely when she saw how serious his expression was, ¡°My good brother, why are you so nervous? I was bored in the Phantom Ravine! I¡¯m just bringing you out to y!¡±


    Long Chen could not stand her.


    ¡°Alright, alright. We¡¯ll y. I¡¯m not afraid.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how a man should be.¡± She chuckled when she won.


    Long Chen sensed the auras of many people around, and they were all at least at the Seventh Passage Stage.


    ¡°These people are all Fifth Brother¡¯s subordinates, also the assassins of the Red Souls. Due to suppression of the Martial Alliance, the Red Souls don¡¯t take assignments anymore, but their informationwork is powerful. They¡¯re the reason we learn about what happens in the Divine Martial Empire very quickly,¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er with pride.


    This was yet another impressive part about the Dragon n.


    ¡°You must work hard to gain their approval and be our Seventh Brother. You¡¯ll be sworn in, and maybe Fifth Brother will give you a few subordinates so you can have fun being a leader,¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er.


    Swear in?


    Long Chen thought for a moment. Perhaps it was not a bad choice at all.


    ¡°I will work hard,¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    Lan Ling¡¯er nodded and continued to lead the way. After they exited the forest, a city asrge as Yellow Martial City appeared ahead.


    Turning around to look at the vast forest, Lan Ling¡¯er said, ¡°Little Brother, many Red Souls assassins are hiding in that forest. If someone tries to kill you, we wille out to save you as soon as you enter this forest! Of course, it¡¯ll be better if you stay with us the whole time.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡± He privately made a mental note. What she had implied was that the Red Souls had taken over this patch of forest.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to Liang Martial City!¡±


    There was a hilly area ahead, and on its other side was Liang Martial City. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Dibs on calling that something''s gonna happen in that city</blockquote>

 Chapter 539: Battle For A Hand In Marriage

    Earthly Spiritual Qi shot up into the heavens.


    Liang Martial City seemed close, but it was actually very far, so it took Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er quite some time to arrive. It was a city simr to Yellow Martial City, and also the closest city to the Phantom Ravine. Lan Ling¡¯er often visited, though she usually came alone. Now that Long Chen was around, she could finally bully someone intoing here.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry! Although Liang Martial City is under the Martial Alliance¡¯s control, there is only one First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator in the whole city, who is weaker than me! We won¡¯t have any problems going in,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er exined hurriedly when she saw how cautious he looked.


    ¡°There are so many Martial Alliance guards at the gates. How will we enter?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°We¡¯ll sneak in from somewhere else, of course, stupid! Who can a simple city wall keep out?¡± Lan Ling¡¯er knocked his forehead, then she led him on a huge detour to a more hidden spot in the city wall. She blinked her watery eyes and said, ¡°After we enter, remember to call me ¡®Brother Lan!¡¯¡±


    Long Chen nodded with a grin, then she quickly led him into the city. Of course, no one had seen them sneak in; she was an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator after all.


    ¡°Why did you want toe to Liang Martial City?¡± Long Chen asked curiously.


    ¡°For fun, of course! This world is full of marvelous things. The others love staying in the Phantom Ravine, but I don¡¯t like that ce. It¡¯s too quiet. I love hustle and bustle. Let¡¯s go walk around!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er pulled him away to a very busy main street. She kept staring at disys ofdies¡¯ fashion, forgetting that she was in a man¡¯s disguise.


    Long Chen followed her in exasperation. There were few high-tiered cultivators in this city of a hundred thousand people. Long Chen looked around and saw that most of the people were at the Heavenly River Realm, while the kids were mostly at the Divine Core Realm. Of course, there were also regr people who could not cultivate.


    They roamed around as he kept Lan Ling¡¯erpany, and he truly felt how scary a woman could be. Whenever she spotted something she liked, she would use all sorts of methods to get it. After half a day, she seemed to be somewhat satisfied. He was about to suggest going back when they noticed amotion ahead.


    When she heard the noise, she pulled him over and said, ¡°Brother Long, let¡¯s go check it out!¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    When they arrived, Long Chen saw a grand hotel called the Liang Martial Hotel. Judging by the name, it was the grandest hotel in the whole city. At the bottom of the hotel stood arge red stage, which added to the celebratory atmosphere. There were many people surrounding the stage, and most of them were male.


    Lan Ling¡¯er, with her Earthly Martial Realm strength, was soon able to squeeze herself to the front with Long Chen. She hurriedly grabbed a bystander and asked, ¡°Brother, what is happening here?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know? The owner of the Liang Martial Hotel¡¯s daughter is organizing apetition for her hand in marriage! Anyone who is under twenty-two years old, and whose cultivation level is higher than hers can be his son-inw! Let me tell you this, the hotel owner is the mayor¡¯s younger brother. He¡¯s very wealthy, and if you get to be his son-inw, you¡¯re going to enjoy the rest of your life in riches!¡±


    ¡°Son-inw?¡± Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s eyes lit up.


    ¡°Sister Lan, that¡¯s enough. Our identities are sensitive. We should keep a low profile,¡± Long Chen said hurriedly because she looked like she really wanted to participate.


    ¡°I just want to watch. Nothing will happen! Don¡¯t worry about anything! Also, have you forgotten what you need to call me?¡± Lan Ling¡¯er furrowed her brows, pretending to be fierce.


    On a high floor of the hotel, three middle-aged men were watching the scene downstairs through a window. One was short and fat, another was as regal as a tiger, while thest was wearing a formal, long, yellow robe with a giant ¡°martial¡± (Îä) character.


    The short, fat man was the hotel owner, while the regal one was naturally the Earthly Martial Realm mayor. The mayor of Liang Martial City said to the yellow-robed man, ¡°Martial King Qin, I apologize for my niece¡¯s funny idea to search for a prodigy.¡±


    The man called Martial King Qin smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s not funny at all! Yu¡¯er is only eighteen, yet she has already reached the Eighth Passage Stage. She would be considered a prodigy in the Martial Alliance. If someone defeats her and bes your new son-inw, it will be a good thing as long as you are clear about their identity.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, that¡¯s true. We must be clear about their identity. We can¡¯t let anyone with malicious intent or hatred for the Martial Alliance in,¡± said the mayor hurriedly.


    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s watch carefully. Let¡¯s see what sort of prodigies live in Liang Martial City,¡± said Martial King Qin with a smile.


    The main character of the event, a girl named Yu¡¯er, finally made an appearance. Long Chen took a nce and saw that she was indeed pretty and was at the Eighth Passage Stage. She would have been considered a top-tier prodigy in the Ancient Demon Domain.


    The girl emphasized that anyone who could beat her would be the Liang family¡¯s new son-inw, then she announced the start of the event. Long Chen never thought a practice found in Baiyang Town, which was a small ce in the Cangyang Kingdom, to also be found here.


    However, this seemed like a very new thing to Lan Ling¡¯er, so she was very excited.


    This was considered a major event in Liang Martial City. However, very few people dared step up despite the growing crowd. This girl was the number one prodigy of the city after all. Many Seventh Passage Stage cultivators went up, but they were defeated and had to flee pathetically. Time passed quickly, and the number of participants dwindled. Although the girl was pretty and it was very tempting, everyone knew their own capabilities well and did not go up to embarrass themselves.


    ¡°There are hundreds of thousands of people in Liang Martial City! Is there not a single man who can defeat a little girl?¡± The girl named Yu¡¯er looked down at the crowd mockingly.


    Lan Ling¡¯er was furious. ¡°Fuck that! How dare she look down on me! Let me get up there and show you what a true man is!¡±


    Then she rushed onto the stage and stood in front of the girl!


    <em>She¡¯s a fake; what does she know about being a man ¡­ </em>Long Chen was speechless. They were supposed to be keeping a low profile, but Lan Ling¡¯er wasn¡¯t taking their safety seriously and Long Chen had failed to pull her back in time before she ran up.


    Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s words triggered loud cheers in the crowd. She smiled and raised a hand for them to quiet down. She said loudly, ¡°Fellow men! I did not intend toe up here, but this girl dared look down on us! I came up here for justice! Not only must I punish this girl here on this stage, I will punish her again on the night of our consummation to vent the anger in my heart!¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s words ignited a deafening cheer from the crowd.


    Long Chen was stupefied.


    She was being too reckless.


    ¡°You bastard! How dare you spout that nonsense! You¡¯re looking for death!¡± The girl had turned red from Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s insults and hurriedly attacked her. To the crowd¡¯s shock, one casual move from Lan Ling¡¯er was enough to defeat her.


    Everyone gasped in surprise.


    Long Chen furrowed his brows. It was getting out of hand, so he had no choice but to announce loudly, ¡°Brother Lan, it¡¯s time to go. If you aren¡¯t leaving, I¡¯ll head out first!¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er knew she had overdone it when she saw that Long Chen was getting angry. She smiled sheepishly and let the girl go. She was about to head to Long Chen when a loud explosion came from the top of the hotel. Two middle-aged men rushed out, hovering in the air. They looked at Lan Ling¡¯er with interest while the mayor said coldly, ¡°Young man! You need to respect my rules after you have defeated my niece! Are you really going to leave?¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s gaze instantly turned cold. Her gaze moved from the mayor to the other man. The man was also studying her, but his eyes suddenly widened!


    ¡°Lan Ling¡¯er! I can¡¯t believe it¡¯s you! I was just wondering why such a young Earthly Martial Realm cultivator would appear here! Only the Ever-Changing Demon Girl could make herself a man, haha! I did not even have to spend any effort to search for you! Brother Liang, we¡¯re going to be generously rewarded for this!¡± Martial King Qin said emotionally.


    When the crowd sensed the tension in the air, they fled quickly.


    They all knew the mayor, but if this man could sit side-by-side with him, there was no way he was a simple figure. And if they looked at Lan Ling¡¯er as if they had met their archnemesis, would Lan Ling¡¯er be a simple figure? If they fought each other, it would surely result in great casualties!


    ¡°A master at the Earthly Martial Realm! He¡¯s a Martial King from the Martial Alliance!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s face changed. She was only one person, and there were two opponents! If they attacked together, she would be no match for them!


    She was only here to y; she had not expected this at all!


    Her mind raced, trying to find a way to deal with this. Suddenly, she had an idea. In a sh, she grabbed the girl named Yu¡¯er and wrapped her hand around her neck. Lan Ling¡¯er would easily be able to kill Yu¡¯er if they attacked.


    ¡°Big Brother, she is holding my daughter hostage!¡± cried the stout hotel owner in a panic.


    The mayor frowned. Martial King Qin did not speak and rushed at Long Chen. The mayor had not noticed what Long Chen said to Lan Ling¡¯er, but he had. Since Lan Ling¡¯er had decided to hold Yu¡¯er hostage, why couldn¡¯t he hold Long Chen hostage?


    There was an unexpected twist in the tournament for marriage! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Lan Ling''er you idiot!</blockquote>

 Chapter 540: Sworn In

    Lan Ling¡¯er was previously focused on taking Yu¡¯er hostage, so she hadpletely forgotten about Long Chen. When the Martial King attacked Long Chen, her face changed. Knowing the urgency of the matter, she was about to abandon her hostage to rush towards him. Long Chen remained calm and said loudly, ¡°Leave me! I have my own methods!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s mind had been racing ever since the situation took a turn for the worse. The other side had two Earthly Martial Realm masters, and they had discovered Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s identity. With two against one, they could definitely win. However, since she was holding an important person of theirs, at least the mayor would not dare act recklessly. Lan Ling¡¯er could likely survive alone for a short while!


    Long Chen was the problem. If he was held hostage, it was possible that both he and Lan Ling¡¯er would die here! That was why his mind raced. Not only did he have to run, he had to return to tell the others so they could rescue her!


    At the veryst moment, Long Chen stopped Lan Ling¡¯er from giving up her hostage. He was still at the Fourth Passage Stage and his body had recovered considerably, so he could use Blood Warp!


    Martial King Qin had only moved a short distance!


    Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp was extremely fast, but due to his lowered cultivation level, he ended up moving as fast as Martial King Qin¡¯s regr speed!


    But that was enough!


    Because Lan Ling¡¯er was more important, if Martial King Qin went after Long Chen and left the mayor alone, he would surely not be able to hold Lan Ling¡¯er back! Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp had also taken Martial King Qin by surprise, so he only realized what had happened after Long Chen had turned into a ray of blood-colored light. However, if he wanted to chase after Long Chen, it would take a lot of time!


    ¡°What?¡± The mayor and Martial King Qin watched in shock as he left! Lan Ling¡¯er had not expected Long Chen to do this either. Initially, she regretted it and was about to give up her hostage to save him. She had not expected him to stop her and then flee!


    This did not mean that Long Chen had abandoned his mate and ran off alone. He knew that he was useless here and that his presence could even make matters worse for her. That was why he had decided to run and seek help!


    Lan Ling¡¯er was not stupid, so she quickly figured it out.


    <em>Long Chen is going to bring back help! I must hold on until they arrive so that his hard work won¡¯t be a waste! I¡¯ve really caused a lot of trouble today! If Big Sister finds out, I¡¯m done for! Sigh! </em>


    Lan Ling¡¯er regretted it greatly.


    However, after spending a lot of time with Long Yue and the rest, she also had a streak of viciousness in her. Now that she had a hostage, there was still hope that she could hold on until Long Chen brought Long Yue and the rest here!


    ¡°I¡¯ll do my best!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er expression turned icy!


    ***


    Long Chen had burned up all his Qi, but he had only traveled five kilometers. Liang Martial City was about eight or nine kilometers away from the forest, and he knew that Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s life was in his hands!


    <em>Sister Lan said that as long as I find the Red Souls in the forest, they can pass the message to the Phantom Ravine! </em>


    He recalled what Lan Ling¡¯er previously told him.


    However, he had spent all his Qi, so he could only rely on his body¡¯s strength to sprint. He still had a King-tier bodybat technique, but at his current speed, she would be dead by the time he arrived at the forest.


    His eyes turned red!


    <em>Although we¡¯ve only just met, everyone is like siblings! I must not let her die! </em>


    He tried thinking of a way as he ran like a madman.


    He knew he could not keep pushing his limits like this!


    <em>I will be able to reach the Ninth Passage Stage on the Day of the Nine Suns in five days. Whatever, I can live without this Fourth Passage Stage cultivation for the moment! </em>


    With that thought, his eyes turned blood-red!


    He activated Blood Sacrifice once more! Only Blood Sacrifice could bring him power!


    Of course, this time he used only the first stage, which added one tier of strength. His exhausted Qi was partially replenished!


    The core in one of his meridian points shattered and turned into blood-red Qi that flowed within his body. Using this Qi, he used Blood Warp once more and rushed into the forest.


    ¡°Red Souls! Get out here!¡±


    Long Chen roared using hisst shred of energy! His body had only just recovered, but since he had used Blood Sacrifice to save Lan Ling¡¯er, cracks began to appear in his newly recovered body. Blood sprayed out of his mouth and he copsed!


    His injuries were not as serious asst time though. If Long Yue still had more of those herbs, he would probably be able to recover in one or two days!


    However, it was still extremely painful!


    Long Chen¡¯s shout sessfully attracted several Red Souls assassins. When they saw that it was him, a few of them quickly helped him up. Some of them had seen him leave with Lan Ling¡¯er, and now he had returned in an injured state while Lan Ling¡¯er was gone. Everyone¡¯s brows furrowed.


    Long Chen struggled to get out, ¡°Go to the Phantom Ravine! Tell them that Lan Ling¡¯er is in trouble in Liang Martial City!¡±


    The moment they heard him, two rushed off to the depths of the Phantom Ravine while someone helped him sit up. He took a deep breath and wiped the blood from the corners of his mouth. He felt miserable, but he hadpleted his task. Whether or not Lan Ling¡¯er survived was up to fate now.


    Long Chen consumed some medicine, allowing his condition to improve a little.


    He looked towards the Phantom Ravine. There was a sudden <em>whoosh</em>, and Long Yue appeared in front of him. She took a cold nce at him, then she disappeared. After a short while, Jiang Wuya and the others appeared. When they saw Long Chen, Jiang Wuya hurried over, frowned, and said, ¡°Long Chen, did you use that potential-exhausting technique again?¡±


    There was some me in his tone.


    ¡°Sister Lan is in Liang Martial City! There are two Earthly Martial Realm cultivators attacking her! If I hadn¡¯t done this, it would¡¯ve taken me much longer to get here,¡± Long Chen said helplessly.


    Jiang Wuya and the others looked at each other. Although they did not say it, there was gratitude in their eyes.


    Jiang Wuya helped Long Chen up and said, ¡°Yue¡¯er has gone to save her. Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll take you to Liang Martial City! Let¡¯s show the people of Martial Alliance what happens when they touch a sister of the Dragon n!¡±


    Jian Chen, Lei Zhen, and Chi Ying hurried after Jiang Wuya towards Liang Martial City. They moved as fast as Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp and arrived quickly. The city was in chaos, but they ignored it. When they arrived at the Liang Martial Hotel, Long Chen saw that Long Yue was carrying Lan Ling¡¯er in her arms. Thetter was pale and there was blood in the corners of her mouth. Her eyes were filled with fear, but thankfully, her life was not in danger.


    Not far awayy a body that looked like Yu¡¯er. Long Chen guessed that in order to catch Lan Ling¡¯er and im the bounty, Martial King Qin had attacked without consideration for Yu¡¯er¡¯s safety.


    Not far away from Long Yue¡¯s feet were the mayor and Martial King Qin lying on the ground. Their faces were bloody and their expressions were dark as theyy on the ground, though they were not dead. However, Long Yue had turned them into cripples.


    Long Chen looked at Long Yue in shock. He knew that very little time had passed, but she had already defeated these two and saved Lan Ling¡¯er.


    Everyone was safe, so Long Chen was no longer worried.


    Long Yue ced Lan Ling¡¯er down gently so she could stand on her own, then she waved Long Chen over and said, ¡°Come here.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and stood with Lan Ling¡¯er. The rest of them stood behind Long Yue. She was indeed very capable and knew what he had sacrificed to save Lan Ling¡¯er just with one nce.


    ¡°Apologize,¡± she said to Lan Ling¡¯er.


    She nodded, then she looked at Long Chen awkwardly and bitterly, saying, ¡°Little Brother, I¡¯m sorry. I was the one who got us into trouble, and you almost ended up in harm¡¯s way. I ¡­¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er looked guilty like a young child.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you alright? Since everyone is alright, we don¡¯t need to overthink it. The bad people who bullied you are already on the ground. We should be happy,¡± Long Chen said with a chuckle.


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er nodded hard.


    Long Yue nodded too. She then looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°I have made a decision. I don¡¯t know if you guys agree.¡±


    ¡°Please tell us, Big Sister,¡± the others said hurriedly.


    Long Yue walked up to the dying mayor and Martial King Qin, then she said to Long Chen, ¡°Long Chen, are you interested in being sworn in as one of our brothers? If you¡¯re willing, kill them and we will bond by blood! Then you will be one of us!¡±


    Smiles appeared on all their faces. Long Chen did not care about harming himself in order to save Lan Ling¡¯er, and they knew that this had moved Long Yue, inspiring her to make this decision.


    Everyone liked him too, especially Lan Ling¡¯er, who was closest in age. She said excitedly, ¡°Alright! I have always wanted a Seventh Brother so he could call me ¡®Sister Lan!¡¯ And Brother Long Chen is very cute too, and he saved me! I¡¯ll fight anyone who objects to this!¡±


    She red at everyone threateningly. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Nooo his cultivation. It''s been going up and down like crazy</blockquote>

 Chapter 541: News of the Red Emperor Seal

    Jiang Wuya could not help but smile. ¡°Our little Miss Lan Ling¡¯er has spoken! Humble ones like us can only submit to her magnificence! I recognize Long Chen as a brother. It¡¯s a pity I¡¯m at least twenty years older than him, so I don¡¯t know if he¡¯ll take me as his Second Brother.¡±


    Jian Chen, Lei Zhen, and Chi Ying had little to say, but they also invited Long Chen to join them.


    Long Chen grinned when he met their hopeful gazes. Without saying a word, he took out a weapon from the Primordial Realm and headed towards the mayor and Martial King Qin.


    The Demon Emperor Sword had been shattered by the Demon Emperor, so he had to use something else.


    The dying mayor and Martial King Qin had heard Long Yue, and Long Chen¡¯s actions made them panic. When he approached, they realized that the person who was about to join the Dragon n was the teenager who had used a bizarre technique to flee!


    Martial King Qin struggled to say, ¡°Long Yue! Do you dare kill me? Once I die, the Martial Alliance will surely send countless masters to chop you to pieces! The only reason the Martial Overlord hasn¡¯t killed you guys is because you are just too insignificant for him to kill! However, since you have overstepped the line, His Majesty will surely avenge me!¡±


    ¡°Are those yourst words?¡± Long Chen quickened his footsteps.


    ¡°You will regret joining the Dragon n, kid. The Dragon n is a thorn in the Martial Alliance¡¯s flesh. In just a few days, they will bepletely destroyed by the Martial Alliance!¡±


    ¡°I have never regretted anything I¡¯ve done!¡± Long Chen smiled coldly and, with a <em>whoosh</em>, his sword pierced through Martial King Qin¡¯s heart!¡°You¡¯re the second Earthly Martial Realm cultivator I¡¯ve killed!¡± Long Chen said as he saw consciousness fade from the Martial King¡¯s eyes. Then he turned to look at the despaired mayor.


    ¡°Long Chen, we¡¯ll stop here. Although the mayor of Liang Martial City submits to the Martial Alliance, he has notmitted any serious crimes. If he dies, I don¡¯t know how many people will suffer,¡± Long Yue suddenly said when he raised his sword.


    Since he was still considered a good person, Long Chen let him go. He had mostly attacked Lan Ling¡¯er due to pressure from the Martial Alliance.


    ¡°We are connected as brothers and sisters, and we treat each other with open hearts. This is enemy territory, so we¡¯ll forgo the swearing-in ritual. However, Long Chen, you have killed Martial King Qin, proving that you are willing to join the Dragon n to be our Seventh Brother. You will live and die with us, and we will fight side by side! If you do anything that brings us harm in the future, I will not let you live!¡± Long Yue said solemnly, standing before him.


    ¡°Big Sister, everyone is in such a good mood. Don¡¯t make it all so serious! Seventh Brother is a good person. Don¡¯t scare him!¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Brothers and Sisters, since I have chosen to join you all, I am willing to put my life on the line for you all! I would never betray my own kin, so you can rest assured!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s performance today had gained everyone¡¯s approval, so they were not worried.


    ¡°I was just giving a gentle reminder. Let¡¯s go.¡± Long Yue looked at him kindly, then she brought Long Chen away from Liang Martial City and returned to the Phantom Ravine.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, cracks have appeared in your body because you used that technique again. Thankfully, I still have some of the spiritual medicine I used on you, and it should be enough for you to recover. Remember not to use that technique again,¡± Long Yue said with concern when they returned.


    ¡°The Day of the Nine Suns is in five days. I won¡¯t take that risk again,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    When that day arrived, he would be a true master. Long Chen guessed that hisbat abilities would likely catch up to his older siblings. As he was both the youngest and weakest, he had no choice but to refer tol them as older siblings. Of course, they also showed him great care.


    ¡°Once you have reached the Ninth Passage Stage, I¡¯ll help you with your cultivation and inprehending the Martial Realm!¡± Long Yue said as she prepared the herbs.


    With them here, Long Chen would not need to worry about bing stronger. It was an amazing feeling to have people looking out for him ¡­


    ***


    One day and one nightter, Long Chen had fully recovered. He swore never to use Blood Sacrifice until he recovered his initial strength. He had just recovered, so even using the first stage of Blood Sacrifice would be enough to cause damage.


    After that, he waited for the Day of the Nine Suns, which would happen in four days. It was fun living in the Phantom Ravine, and Long Chen grew closer to the others. His goofy personality was slowly revealed too.


    Long Yue usually ignored the rest and focused on cultivation. Jiang Wuya also seldom showed up. As for the other three, although they did not speak much, Long Chen realized that they were very pleasant to talk to in private. Especially Chi Ying¡ªas the founder of thergest assassin organization, how could he be a simple person?


    Long Chen also learned about Jian Chen¡¯s history. He was usually very quiet, like a cold, sharp sword, but when Long Chen talked to him alone, he would answer all his questions.


    ¡°I¡¯ve lived in a small town all my life. When I was young, I learned how to use the sword and was seen as a prodigy because I showed some talent. That was when the Martial Alliance recruited me. They are like a machine that aggregates all the talented kids together so we can cultivate, then they teach us how to kill. In the end, the kids that do well be ranked higher and higher, while the rest are either kicked out or killed, or even sent to be cannon fodder. I climbed upwards in that kind of environment one step at a time.¡± Jian Chen sighed as he reminisced.


    ¡°Why did you leave the Martial Alliance toe here?¡± Long Chen asked, puzzled. He had not expected the quietest Third Brother would be from the Martial Alliance.


    Jian Chen smiled mockingly. ¡°That ce did not suit me. I turned thirty this year, but the day I turned twenty-six, the Martial Overlord personally named me the Sword Martial King! I have never liked to be controlled and I was not suited for a ce like that. After enduring it all for twenty-six years, I broke free from the Martial Alliance since I was finally strong enough.¡±


    ¡°So that is why they put you on the Bounty Board and chased you to the end of the world?¡± Long Chen sweated.


    ¡°The Martial Alliance inflicts severe punishment on traitors, and they especially hate me for joining these guys. The Martial Alliance considers this a huge humiliation. Besides Big Sister, I am the person they want to kill the most among us!¡± Jian Chen said with a bitter smile.


    Long Chen had a rough idea.


    The Divine Martial Empire was the Martial Alliance¡¯s turf. Everyone living in their borders had to either submit or get killed. They would not be able to survive for long in broad daylight.


    ¡°Our group is able to stay together because we have hearts of freedom. I really like my life right now¡ªit¡¯s so freeing. Isn¡¯t this what life is all about?¡± said Jian Chen with a smile as he stood up.


    Long Chen nodded.


    Chi Ying suddenly rushed in and shouted, ¡°Big Sister! Everyone,e out! I have news!¡±


    The Phantom Ravine had always been quiet, so everyone heard his shout. Everyone gathered quickly, and when Long Yue saw how anxious he was, she asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Good news and bad news. Which one first?¡± Chi Ying smirked mysteriously.


    ¡°Don¡¯t beat around the bush, Fifth Brother! As usual, we¡¯ll take the bad news first!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er cried anxiously.


    Seeing as no one had any objection, Chi Ying said, ¡°Because of Martial King Qin¡¯s death, the Martial Alliance is mad and has deployed many masters to kill us. There are a few Martial Saints and almost ten Martial Kings among them! The Martial Alliance has sent out about a quarter of its people after us! Big Sister, Liang Martial City is very close to us. They are heading to Liang Martial City and will start searching from there. That is why this ce is no longer safe.¡±


    Everyone frowned. They looked around, unwilling to leave this ce.


    ¡°It¡¯s all my fault,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er said dejectedly.


    ¡°This is not the time to talk about who¡¯s at fault. I know you don¡¯t want to leave, but we have no choice. We are not strong enough to fight the Martial Alliance. Chi Ying, lead the Red Souls out of here. Let them separate and slip into the nearby cities. They all have clean tes, so they won¡¯t attract the Martial Alliance¡¯s attention. As for us, we need to move,¡± said Long Yue.


    Everyone nodded.


    ¡°In that case, let me tell you the good news. Everyone, we have information on the Red Emperor Seal!¡± Chi Ying said with a grin.


    ¡°Red Emperor Seal?¡± Long Yue looked surprised, and she asked hurriedly, ¡°Tell me, where is it?¡±


    ¡°The members of the Red Souls heard that two strange phenomena took ce in the depths of the Cloud Dream Swamp in the south. Both times, firelight shot up from the ground to the sky, dyeing half the sky red. We hear that someone saw the silhouette of the Red Emperor Seal in the light! Now is the time for all five Emperor Seals to be born, so this must be the Red Emperor Seal!¡± cried Chi Ying.


    Everyone was emotional.


    Long Chen had listened to everything carefully. He knew that they were looking for the Emperor Seal. He thought about the ck Emperor Seal, but after some thought, he decided not to tell them about it.


    ¡°The Martial Alliance has been guarding the Universe Transporters to stop this information from leaking to the other countries. It looks like they want to take the seals for themselves. However, with us here, it won¡¯t be easy for them to get all five Emperor Seals!¡±


    Long Yue said, ¡°Since we need to abandon Phantom Ravine and the Red Emperor Seal has appeared in the Cloud Dream Swamp, let¡¯s go there first! Once we get it, we can think about our next base. We must move now!¡±


    ¡°Yue¡¯er, what will the arrangements be?¡± asked Jiang Wuya.


    Long Yue looked at everyone, then her gaze fell on Long Chen. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Five Emperor Seals? More like Power Rangers... Seals?</blockquote>

 Chapter 542: Golden Lightning Stallions

    ¡°We need to separate into three groups,¡± said Long Yue.


    ¡°Why?¡± They didn¡¯t understand her n.


    ¡°Long Chen needs to take advantage of the Day of the Nine Suns to reach the Ninth Passage Stage. He will be using the Emperor me Pearl, which I¡¯m afraid will cause a hugemotion, meaning the pursuers from the Martial Alliance will discover us easily. It will be a risky situation because Long Chen cannot be interrupted during the process, even if we are fighting. However, none of us can be sure that the other party won¡¯t use some sneak attack on him, right? That is why it would be very dangerous if we all stayed together,¡± Long Yue exined.


    ¡°Can¡¯t we use the Thunder Bat Dragon to travel quickly?¡± asked Lei Zhen.


    ¡°It¡¯s a very big target. In the past, the Martial Alliance was wary of us and did not chase after us even when they saw us. However, now it¡¯s different. They have sent masters after us; perhaps they want to at least teach us a lesson? No matter how high and how fast we fly, a beast thatrge is quite attention-grabbing.¡±


    ¡°Yue¡¯er, just tell us your n,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    She nodded and said, ¡°When the seven of us are together, we¡¯re a huge target. We need to separate to be safe. First, I will stay behind to cover for you guys and do my best to stop our pursuers. You guys will be safer that way.¡±


    ¡°Yue¡¯er, it¡¯ll be too dangerous for you to stay behind alone. I¡¯ll stay back to help too. It will be safer with two people,¡± Jiang Wuya said hurriedly.


    Seeing as he was insistent, she nodded. ¡°Alright. With you helping me, they will be even safer. ¡° ¡°Where will the two groups go?¡± asked Long Chen. He had a feeling that Long Yue would n around him.


    ¡°This ce is the Red Souls¡¯ base. Fifth Brother Chi Ying will need to stay back for a while because a huge number of them will be moving, plus they have to move in secret. After everything is done, only will he be able to leave for the Cloud Dream Swamp. Long Chen, you must leave first, and you must find a ce with nobody around. Do your best to reach a deste ce before the Day of the Nine Suns. Also, don¡¯t travel in a straight line from here to the Cloud Dream Swamp. It¡¯s fine if you¡¯re a bit slower. Safety is of paramount importance.¡±


    Everyone nodded. Her n made sense. Jian Chen said, ¡°Seventh Brother is very weak now and needs protection. I¡¯ll go with him.¡± Other than Long Yue and Jiang Wuya, he was the strongest and therefore the most suitable to protect him.


    ¡°I want to go with Third and Seventh Brother,¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er.


    Lei Zhen looked around and said, ¡°Since Third Brother and Sixth Sister will be together, I¡¯ll stay back to help Fifth Brother. When the arrangements for the Red Souls are settled, we¡¯ll go to the Cloud Dream Swamp. We¡¯ll pick a spot to meet up there.¡±


    ¡°Mhm. It¡¯s set, then. Seven people, divided into three groups. Wuya and I will dy the pursuers. The onesing are only at the Second Earthly Martial Stage at best, so the two of us will be able to deal with them. As for Chi Ying and Lei Zhen, please be careful.¡±


    Jian Chen said, ¡°Since we have four days, I think the depths of the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range should be a good ce. No one lives there, so it¡¯ll be a suitable pce for Long Chen to use the Emperor me Pearl to ascend to the Ninth Passage Stage.¡±


    Everyone nodded as they felt that it was indeed a suitable ce. It was also not in a straight line towards the Cloud Dream Swamp. No one would expect them to go there, right?


    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s go. Jian Chen, Long Chen, and Ling¡¯er, you guys head out first. Lei Zhen, give them three Golden Lightning Stallions,¡± instructed Long Yue.


    Golden Lightning Stallions? Long Chen was just wondering what they were when Lei Zhen released three beasts from his Beast Soul Crystal. The three stallions were not veryrge, simr in size to normal wild horses. Their fur was a sophisticated yellow, while their eyes were golden. Yellow lightning crackled around their hooves, making them look quite intimidating.


    The stallions were bathed in yellow lightning, which exined why they were called Golden Lightning Stallions.


    ¡°Golden Lightning Stallions are Category Six Heaven-tier beasts. They are not as quick as the Thunder Bat Dragon, but they are not bad at all. Although we can move much faster, we can¡¯t maintain our speed for long-distance travel. That is why using the Golden Lightning Stallions will be better,¡± said Jian Chen.


    Long Chen nodded and told Lei Zhen, ¡°Fourth Brother, I¡¯m only at the Third Passage Stage right now. Can I even mount a Category Six Heaven-tier beast?¡±


    Lei Zhen grinned. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The beasts I tame are fierce towards enemies but obedient to our own. I have already told them that you are one of us, so you don¡¯t need to worry, as long as you don¡¯t mistreat them.¡±


    Xiang was now a Category Six Heaven-tier beast, so he was surely not slower than the stallions. He had been in the Primordial Realm for a long time too, so he was itching to get out. Long Chen was just wondering how he could introduce Xiang to everyone, so he took this chance to release him.


    Everyone was stunned by the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Previously, Jiang Cheng had recognized the Sun Devouring Wolf. Since Lei Zhen was more familiar with beasts, Long Chen nced at him. However, there was only confusion on his face, not shock. This meant that he did not know of Sun Devouring Wolves. While that Jiang Wucheng bastard was bad at cultivation, this proved that he was quite knowledgeable.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, do you have a Beast Soul Crystal too?¡± They all looked at him, puzzled.


    He could only nod, as he could not tell them about the Primordial Realm. Everyone knew that he had many secrets, and everyone had their own secrets, even after bing sworn brothers and sisters. Therefore, they did not ask him more questions but only studied the Sun Devouring Wolf closely.


    ¡°This is my brother Xiang. We¡¯ve been together for a long time. If we¡¯re traveling long distances, Xiang can do it too. I¡¯m more familiar with him.¡±


    Lei Zhen nodded and put one of the stallions away. He then smiled. ¡°Since you have a beast of your own, I¡¯m taking mine back. Seventh Brother, what species is this? Why haven¡¯t I heard of it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a mutated beast. I named it the Sun Devouring Wolf. Have you heard of a beast like that?¡± asked Long Chen.


    Lei Zhen shook his head with a bitter smile. ¡°There are very few beasts in this world I do not know about, and I cannot recognize this one. Category Six Heaven-tier. I wonder how good it is in battle.¡±


    Long Yue also studied Xiang for a while, then she finally said, ¡°Alright, we must hurry. Jian Chen will lead you guys away first. We will meet again at Cloud Heaven City outside the Cloud Dream Swamp! See you there!¡±


    The trio nodded, and two of them mounted their Golden Lightning Stallions while Long Chen sat on Xiang¡¯s back. They bade the others farewell, then went towards the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range.


    To protect Long Chen, Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er traveled next to him, one on each side.


    There was a mountainous area outside the forest. Terrain like that was advantageous to Xiang, so their speed was not affected.


    ¡°Long Chen, go this way!¡± Jian Chen led the way ording to the map in his memory. Long Chen followed him while Lan Ling¡¯er followed casually behind them. Since there were no obstacles, they traveled quickly. Jian Chen had chosen a deserted area to travel through, so they did not see anyone.


    Time passed quickly.


    They hurried along until they finally arrived at the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range a few nightster. The Day of the Nine Suns was the next day.


    <em>Sister Long Yue must have already dealt with the pursuers. Fourth and Fifth Brothers must have started to travel towards the Cloud Dream Swamp too. I must go meet them as soon as I finish cultivating on the Day of the Nine Suns. Then we¡¯ll go search for information on the Red Emperor Seal. </em>


    <em>Once I reach the Ninth Passage Stage and have the power of the Golden Crow in my body, I will be countless times stronger. I wonder if anyone from the Ancient Demon Domain will be at Cloud Dream Swamp; this will be a huge surprise for them!</em>


    <em>The Five Emperor Seals is an Emperor-tierbat technique. If the Martial Alliance had not ced an information lockdown, a huge, violent battle would have taken ce already! This must be the most powerful secret treasure that has ever appeared in the Divine Martial Empire! Surely tens of thousands of people are fighting for it! And I have the ck Emperor Seal ¡­ </em>


    Long Chen knew that he was very weak right now. There were countless masters in the Divine Martial Empire like Long Yue, the Demon Emperor, the Huangfu n patriarch, and the Martial Overlord. He still had no right to fight them. However, he chose to believe in himself because he was a Dragon Warrior.


    Of course, he would only be able to utilize the powers of the dragons when he hadpletely absorbed the Inherited Blood Essence. So far, he had only absorbed a hundredth of it and was only a normal Dragon Warrior.


    <em>The Emperor me Pearl is my chance to be stronger, then the Five Emperor Seals will be an even greater chance. The Emperor me Pearl is in my hands already, then I¡¯ll need to get the Five Emperor Seals. After that, I¡¯ll be able to hurry to Ling Xi¡¯s country as fast as possible. I must not give up! </em>


    Long Chen was determined.


    He would work hard for the Red Emperor Seal!


    He looked up. They were still traveling, but he knew that when dawn came, it would be the Day of the Nine Suns. They were already very close to the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range.


    Jian Chen suddenly turned around to say, ¡°On the Day of the Nine Suns, the nine suns don¡¯t remain in the sky for the entire day. They will only be there for two hours at noon. That is why we must arrive in the deepest parts of the Swirling Clouds Mountain Range before noon tomorrow. Looking at our current speed, we have enough time.¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Day of the Nine Suns sound interesting</blockquote>

 Chapter 543: Heaven Meridian Point

    Long Chen knew very little about the Day of the Nine Suns, so he had been under the assumption that the phenomenon wouldst the whole day. Since Jian Chen had said it would onlyst two hours, it meant they had a lot more time to get to their destination. Plus, the surrounding temperatures were going to increase by several times, so if itsted through a whole day, arge number of regr people would die. If it onlysted for two hours, the effects would not be that serious.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, don¡¯t worry. Big Sister should have been able to stop the pursuing forces. We haven¡¯t seen even one of them on this road thus far. So don¡¯t worry and focus on your absorption. The Emperor me Pearl will channel the power of the nine suns into your body. The nine suns correspond to your nine meridian points, so even the meridian points that have been opened will be opened once more,¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er with a grin as she came up to him.


    Long Chen nodded. To be honest, with two Earthly Martial Realm experts protecting him, there was nothing to worry about.


    The sky soon brightened and the sun rose from the east. Golden rays spread across thend, and Long Chen suddenly heard a shrill bird call. Then he saw the silhouette of a golden bird sh in the fire-red sun.


    ¡°That means that when noones, the nine suns will definitely appear,¡± Jian Chen exined with a sigh.


    Long Chen looked up at the vast Swirling Cloud Mountain Range. It was a boundless sea of mountains with countless peaks like waves crashing towards the sky, with some peaks even touching the clouds. It was no wonder this ce was called the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range.


    ¡°We¡¯re here! Let¡¯s hurry to the deeper parts of the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range. The deeper we go, the lower the chance of Seventh Brother from being interrupted.¡± Lan Ling¡¯er stretched, revealing beautiful curves.


    Both Long Chen and Jian Chen pretended not to see her seductive move, causing her to feel defeated, privately scolding the two men for not appreciating beauty. They had to have some difficulties in a certain area ¡­


    The three of them hurried along without stopping and soon entered the mountains. As soon as they arrived, Long Chen and the others heard a shout. A man with tattered clothes and a dusty face rushed out of the woods. He was covered in blood stains and had many scratches inflicted by ws on his body. He must have been attacked by a beast. Then a powerful tiger pounced from behind him, immediately pressing him against the ground. It opened its huge jaws and moved its head towards his head. If he was bit, his entire head would be ripped off, resulting in an unimaginably tragic death.


    The man kept screaming for help, and he screamed even louder when he saw the trio.


    Before Long Chen and Jian Chen even moved, Lan Ling¡¯er picked up a rock and flung it so hard that it punched a hole in the tiger¡¯s head. The tiger copsed weakly on the man and never moved again.


    Long Chen initially felt like the three of them had to keep their identities secret, so he was torn between saving the man or not. However, this person was just a minor figure who had not even reached the Heavenly River Realm and likely did not know them, so he would not be able to leak their location.


    The man was overjoyed because he was saved. He mbered to his feet and kowtowed to the three of them. ¡°Thank you for saving my life! I will never forget this! May I know the names of the three of you? I will repay you for your kindness!¡±


    ¡°Forget about names. It was nothing; it¡¯s not worth mentioning,¡± Jian Chen said curtly, then he led Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er quickly into the mountain range, thus disappearing from his sight.


    Then that man looked up in confusion. He muttered to himself, ¡°White hair ¡­ white hair ¡­ A hundred kilometers from here, there is a city called White City with a young Martial King from the Martial Alliance. He was the ultimate prodigy, but then hemitted treason. That guy was so strong; he couldn¡¯t be Jian Chen, could he?¡±


    With that thought, he suddenly grew excited!


    ¡°The reward for reporting the location of people on the Bounty Board is a hundredth of the total reward. The bounty for Jian Chen is ten million Heavenly Passage Pills! If I make a report, doesn¡¯t that mean I¡¯m going to receive a hundred thousand pills?!¡±


    The man quickly rolled up from the ground and ran out of the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range like he was running for his life.


    The trio did not know that this act of kindness would trigger a huge problem.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t been home in a long time,¡± said Jian Chen, suddenly looking southwards as they hurried along.


    ¡°Where is your home?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°It¡¯s in that direction. One hundred kilometers away lies a city called White City. That¡¯s where I grew up. However, my parents died when I was very young, so I wasn¡¯t really treated well in my family and was always bullied. But those are just things that happened when I was young. I have taken my revenge,¡± Jian Chen said wistfully.


    His early life experiences were simr to Long Chen¡¯s.


    In the beginning, Long Chen hated the Yang family too. But not anymore, because he had long reached a far higher level than them.


    Two hours before noon, Jian Chen stopped. They were in a deep valley that was very quiet and filled with nts. No one hade here for a long time, so the nts were lush.


    ¡°This is considered a deep part of the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range. If we go any deeper, there might be some powerful beasts. They mighte looking for trouble when the Emperor me Pearl causes amotion, so this ce will do.¡±


    Since there were two hours left, Long Chen had enough time to prepare. He found an empty space in the valley, then he sat down on a clean boulder. He looked up at the sky. The sun was diagonally above, in the east. In two hours, the sun would be directly above.


    The sun looked like it was up in mes. It was likely that most people had already noticed the strange phenomenon. The surrounding temperatures had increased drastically, and without the Dragon Soul Transformation, Long Chen felt a faint burning sensation on his skin.


    ¡°Little Cat, are you ready?¡± Long Chen asked. He was relying on Little Cat to get the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants.


    ¡°Of course. When the Golden Crow was alive, he was no match for me. Now this is just a tiny remnant of his soul, so how could it escape me?¡± Little Cat said smugly, rubbing his belly. He paused, then he said, ¡°However, I¡¯m exhausting my energy for you once again. Energy that I have umted over a <em>very</em> long time. Tell me, how will you thank me?¡±


    ¡°Can I find you a few prettydy cats?¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    ¡°You jerk! You know I can¡¯t do anything now! And you¡¯re still joking with me!¡± Little Cat raged.


    Long Chen smiled, then he said seriously, ¡°I am still weak now, but I will never forget your help, Reincarnation Beast. You were the one who saved my life. If I be sessful in the future, you will be served at every feast!¡±


    Little Cat knew that Long Chen was serious.


    He knew Long Chen¡¯s personality.


    ¡°Alright! Looking at your condition, you¡¯ll be trash even if you cultivate harder. Seeing as you work quite hard, I¡¯ll be kind and help you one more time.¡±


    Long Chen was toozy to return his insults.


    Jian Chen sealed the entrance to the valley they were in while Lan Ling¡¯er fussed over Xiang not far away, studying him. Xiang was speechless. Was he really that cute? Why did these girls, like the ten-year-old Huangfu Qi and Lan Ling¡¯er in her twenties, all fuss over him the moment they saw him?


    Xiang pretended that Lan Ling¡¯er was just a fly. He looked up at the sun, which was burning brightly. The temperature was increasing fast, but he loved the heat. The hotter it was, the morefortable he felt.


    <em>Sun Devouring Wolf ¡­ In my final form, will I be able to swallow even the sun? </em>Xiang thought to himself.


    After taking a nce at them, Long Chen started to focus on waiting. Noon quickly arrived, and at this point, the sun was close to the center of the sky. Long Chen looked up and saw a gigantic, fiery circle around the sun. The sun seemed to be several timesrger than before, burning with golden mes!


    Long Chen was sure that countless people were observing this grand phenomenon!


    This was a very rare event!


    Long Chen was feeling both anxious and excited. The rtionship between him and the Day of the Nine Suns was the most intimate in the whole Divine Martial Empire.


    The nine suns had not appeared yet, but sparks were starting to fly through the air. Under the brutal heat, the nts and trees were starting to wilt. Long Chen imagined that regr nts would wilt and even die en masse when the nine suns appeared unless they were extremely hardy.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you ready? It¡¯s about to begin,¡± said Little Cat in a rare moment of seriousness.


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°When it begins, use the Emperor me Pearl and guide the energy of the nine suns to open your nine meridian points. When that is almostplete, I will use a secret technique to capture the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnant and inject it into the nine cores. However, before that, you need to find the location of your heaven meridian point,¡± said Little Cat.


    ¡°Heaven meridian point?¡± Long Chen had not thought about it. He had heard that every person had a different heaven meridian point. When a cultivator progressed from the Eighth to the Ninth Passage Stage, they would naturally find out where it was.


    ¡°Every person has a different heaven meridian point. When your nine meridian points openter, you¡¯ll have to feel where thest one is on your own. I mentioned it so that you can take note and be prepared.¡±


    Long Chen knew what to do.


    The nine meridian points were the centerpoints of the body. Since the heaven meridian point was the core of the nine meridian points, it was very important. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Why is Little Cat so horny</blockquote>

 Chapter 544: Day of the Nine Suns

    On this day, it would look like nine suns had appeared, but eight of them were remnants of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul. Only the one in the dead center would be the sun. The position of one¡¯s heaven meridian point was simr to the sun in the center of the sky.


    Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er watched with concern as Long Chen took a deep breath. He had a feeling that the phenomenon would begin in a short while. The world seemed to have fallen silent. Long Chen held the Emperor me Pearl in his hand, then he looked up and watched the sun in silence.


    <em>It has begun! </em>Long Chen¡¯s heart skipped a beat!


    The sun in the sky trembled in a manner visible to the naked eye. Bright and melodious bird calls filled the air; they sounded like they came from far away but were also close to the ear. Eight bird silhouettes emerged from the sun. They orbited around the sun, then they turned into burning suns themselves identical to the real sun in the center!


    A total of nine suns dotted the sky. The image of the golden bird appeared in every sun.


    That was the Golden Crow!


    Long Chen felt truly shaken when he witnessed it.


    <em>Is this what true power is like? </em>


    <em>Remnants of its souls remain in the sun so that even after its death, they appear in this manner. </em>The nine suns were in the center of the sky!


    Hundreds of millions of people were watching this miraculous scene across the whole Divine Martial Empire!


    It looked magnificent at first, but it became scorching hot soon after. Every single sun emitted waves of pure heat that roasted the world below. Long Chen felt the extreme heat around him, as if the air itself was burning.


    Although he was not burning, he felt as if he was situated in the middle of burning mes. Every inch of his skin was being burned by the suns!


    The people who were not as strong as him were probably suffering even more.


    Of course, everyone had long known that this day woulde, so it wasmon for everyone to take precautions. Thankfully, the situation was not as tragic as he imagined.


    ¡°How interesting.¡±


    Xiang stared woodenly at the nine suns high up in the sky. He stood up subconsciously with brazen greed in his eyes. This brazen, insatiable greed came from the nature of the Sun Devouring Wolf, not Xiang.


    The nine suns in the sky were the objects of his dream!


    Due to the opening of the nine meridian points and the Emperor me Pearl, the main character of the day was Long Chen.


    The nine suns had officially formed, so Long Chen guessed that the Emperor me Pearl would activate soon. As expected, the quiet Emperor me Pearl suddenly emitted a shocking amount of heat and levitated from his palm until it was floating above his head!


    The Emperor me Pearl spun quickly, and Long Chen kept reminding himself to calm down as he watched it spin. It was not an absolutely safe method to directly progress to the Ninth Passage Stage, so he had to remain cautious.


    Everyone else watched the Emperor me Pearl spin anxiously.


    The burning suns were directly above the Emperor me Pearl. It let out a soft cry, then, to Long Chen¡¯s shock, he saw a golden thread flying out from each sun towards his head!


    They were golden threads when they were in the sky, but by the time they reached his head, they turned into golden fiery poles!


    This was why Long Yue said that Long Chen would cause a hugemotion. Even people beyond the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range would see nine fiery poles descend into the mountain range!


    The poles came directly from the nine suns in the sky!


    The gigantic poles quickly reached his head. By now, Long Chen had already lost consciousness and all he felt was his body floating as hey horizontal in the air. All he could see were golden mes!


    <em>Rumble! </em>


    When the gigantic fiery poles hit the top of his head, they shrank immediately and all their heat poured into the Emperor me Pearl. The Emperor me Pearl was absorbing them into itself!


    The singr pearl suddenly multiplied into nine, and every pole corresponded to one pearl. The arrangement of the pearls was the same as the suns in the sky.


    From Long Chen¡¯s perspective, the nine pearls looked like nine miniature golden suns, though they were close by. Behind the nine miniature suns were the actual suns in the sky!


    Nine Emperor me Pearls, nine suns! They reflected each other!


    ¡°Long Chen, focus! Begin!¡± said Little Cat.


    Little Cat¡¯s reminder made Long Chen a lot more awake.


    An invisible force guided Long Chen¡¯s Qi.


    One of the nine pearls led the power from the golden poles to slowly descend upon his body. It was heading towards Long Chen¡¯s dantian. This was the dan meridian point, also the first meridian point in his body!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Long Chen watched the Emperor me Pearl melt into his body, flow to his dantian, and merge with his dantian. Golden energy flowed through his body and followed the eighteen starry rivers within to travel to his four limbs. To his surprise, having mes burning within his golden energy was not as terrifying as it seemed. It was a gentle, nourishing source of energy that did not belong to any element. It was just like the Ascension Fruit he had consumed a long, long time ago!


    The nourishment helped his past injuries heal very quickly. This included the foundational damage caused by the third stage of Blood Sacrifice. If merely one pearl was effective, he could not imagine what the others would do.


    When the first Emperor me Pearl hadpletely merged with his dan meridian point, the second Emperor me Pearl descended. Just like a liquid, it flowed into his central meridian point, then even more energy poured into his body!


    The nine suns provided a continuous flow of energy, and when the pearls merged into his meridian points, the power of the suns entered his body directly.


    It wasfortable, veryfortable. He had the same sensation as bathing in warm water on a winter day when he was very young. Not only did the golden energy heal his injuries, it also left behind a seal that strengthened his body.


    <em>It¡¯s the third one now ¡­ </em>The third Emperor me Pearl merged into the sole of his left foot.


    Time passed slowly. The strange phenomenon taking ce in the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range continued.


    Long Chen had already opened the first three meridian points, while the other four were sealed because of Blood Sacrifice. However, this was no obstacle to the Emperor me Pearls¡ªthe meridian points quickly opened once more after the pearls merged with them.


    In the blink of an eye, seven pearls had merged with seven meridian points. The merging of the eighth meridian point had begun. Just now, Long Chen had been terrified because the power of the pearl entered his Yang meridian point, which was located in his fragile brain!


    The merging of the eighth pearl was undeniably a sess. Out of the nine suns in the sky, eight of them were actually soul remnants of the Golden Crow, but they were now directly connected to his body!


    <em>Only the heaven meridian point remains. Once this seeds, I¡¯ll begin ¡­ </em>thought Little Cat.


    The Emperor me Pearl in the center moved. Long Chen watched it anxiously because he had a feeling that it was moving towards his heaven meridian point!


    Little Cat¡¯s assistance would be the most important moment of today. Right now, this was the second most important moment!


    After he finished clearing his heaven meridian point, his cultivation would be solidified at the Ninth Passage Stage!


    While he was anxious, the other two were anxious too. Lan Ling¡¯er had been watching nervously since the beginning as the fiery poles were very scary. She would not have dared to use this method to increase her strength.


    Of course, she did not need the Emperor me Pearl since she was at the Earthly Martial Realm.


    Jian Chen squinted, also watching for Long Chen¡¯s heaven meridian point.


    Usually, the position of the heaven meridian point was strongly rted to one¡¯s talent in cultivation. The more important the location was, the more talented the cultivator. It was usually located in the torso, but there were both good and bad ces within. The most powerful location was the heart.


    If the heaven meridian point appeared in the limbs, then that person was not talented in cultivation.


    A peak prodigy¡¯s heaven meridian point would be in between their eyebrows, forming a triangle with the Yang Earth and Yin Earth meridian points. Jian Chen had heard that only a handful of people had this. The legendary Martial Overlord of the Martial Alliance was one such case.


    Long Chen was extraordinary too, so Jian Chen really wanted to know ¡­ Where would his heaven meridian point be?


    Jian Chen¡¯s expression suddenly changed.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, someone¡¯sing. Be prepared to kill. Protect Long Chen at all costs!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Day of the Nine Suns sounds like a nightmarish day for Muzan</blockquote>

 Chapter 545: Pursuit

    Lan Ling¡¯er was not the only one who had heard Jian Chen; Long Chen had as well. However, Long Chen was in a critical moment right now, so he could not be distracted. He knew that the others would deal with it. He was grateful to have met them, because without their protection, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to use the Emperor me Pearl in peace, nor would he have escaped the Demon Emperor¡¯s grasp.


    He was puzzled because they had made their way deep into the mountain range, so why would someone disturb them this soon?


    Although the nine suns would remain for two hours, only fifteen minutes had passed. Maybe these people were initially in the Swirling Cloud Mountains and wereing over after seeing themotion Long Chen was causing?


    The pursuers came from the direction of the valley entrance, and they entered confidently in broad daylight. Long Chen was focusing on thest Emperor me Pearl, but he managed to take a quick nce in their direction. Three people had appeared in front of Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er!


    The three of them were wearing the Martial Alliance¡¯s golden brocade robes. Two men, one woman, and all three were older than Jian Chen. They clearly had very high positions in the Martial Alliance, because their clothing was identical to Martial King Qin¡¯s clothing. This meant they were at least the same rank as him!


    Most importantly, there were three of them!


    And on Long Chen¡¯s side, there were only two!


    Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s faces changed slightly when they saw the trio. Long Chen was also slightly nervous, though he was clear that no matter how powerful his enemies were, he had toplete the task at hand!


    <em>Remain calm! The most important thing is to remain calm right now! Third Brother is a Sword Warrior and he is at the peak of the First Earthly Martial Stage! He will be able to hold the two of them off for a while, and once I seed, I will be able to help ease his burden! </em>This was what Long Chen thought. He initially assumed that they would be regr cultivators, the kind who entered the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range to hunt demonic beasts. Who would¡¯ve thought that they would be from the Martial Alliance?


    <em>There¡¯s no chance three Martial Alliance members would be strolling around the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range for no reason. It¡¯s very likely our location was exposed and they had long arrived here to search for us. But because the area is toorge, they only came after themotion I caused by using the Emperor me Pearl! </em>


    They hadn¡¯t met anyone on the way here, so who could have leaked their location?


    The only person they met was the man who was attacked by the beast.


    <em>It must¡¯ve been him. A man¡¯s greed knows no bounds! We saved his life and he paid us back by stabbing us in the back. It looks like the Divine Martial Empire is not the Cangyang Kingdom. I must not be that naive ever again. </em>


    <em>Let¡¯s ignore everything else and focus on opening my heaven meridian point! </em>


    One of the worries that burdened Jian Chen was eased when he saw that Long Chen was still able to focus. He was not worried about Long Chen making a mistake. He and Lan Ling''er locked eyes and he said, ¡°That woman is the Flower Martial King. She¡¯s very good at seducing men, but her strength is only average. You deal with her. It¡¯s best if you kill her as soon as possible. I¡¯ll take the other two!¡±


    ¡°Third Brother, are you sure you can handle two Martial Kings?¡± Lan Ling''er asked with a frown.


    ¡°We¡¯ll just have to do our best. Long Chen¡¯s safety is the priority. He¡¯s young, and he¡¯s our brother. We must protect him till the end!¡± Jian Chen said coldly as he gazed at the approaching Martial Kings.


    Lan Ling''er hesitated, but all she could do was agree.


    Jian Chen could hold off two Earthly Martial Realm cultivators, but she could not.


    The woman¡¯s eyes shone with greed the moment she saw Jian Chen, her gaze fixed on his body. ¡°It is indeed the Sword Martial King! I didn¡¯t believe it in the beginning, but it really is you! Look at you; such a handsome man who betrayed the Martial Alliance! If you follow me back to the Martial Alliance and listen to me, you might even be able to keep your life! Of course, I will reward you very generously too.¡±


    ¡°Flower Martial King, Jian Chen has betrayed the Martial Alliance. Even if he wanted to return, he would be executed,¡± reminded the Martial King next to her.


    ¡°I know. Do you really have to tell me?¡± Flower Martial King rolled her eyes, then her gaze fell on Long Chen behind Jian Chen. She chuckled. ¡°What a handsome young man! Yet you choose to go against the Martial Alliance. I can y with you first, then I¡¯ll kill you. It¡¯s time! Let¡¯s fight! We¡¯ll make a huge contribution to the Martial Alliance today!¡±


    The woman¡¯s mood changed instantly. In the beginning, she was flirting with Jian Chen and even seemed interested in Long Chen, but then killing intent suddenly appeared in her eyes. She looked like a venomous snake.


    Long Chen was at the most critical juncture, so he could not attack. It would be very bad if he was forced to stop cultivating. The two male Martial Kings locked eyes, exchanging vicious looks. Then one of them charged at Jian Chen and the other at Lan Ling¡¯er!


    ¡°You¡¯re nothing, yet you think you can beat us?¡± Jian Chen chuckled coldly and took a step forward. A white sword appeared in his hand. It was a sword, but a more urate description was a sword-shaped jade because it was made of a material simr to jade¡ªtranslucent, reflective, and beautiful!


    However, it had a cold, sharp glint. It was much sharper than regr swords forged from metal!


    ¡°Is that a King-tier Cloud Sword? That belongs to the Martial Alliance, so we''ll take it back to the Martial Alliance today!¡± The Flower Martial King trembled as she giggled.


    She thought she would not need to do anything, but to her shock, Jian Chen stopped the two Martial Kings with the Cloud Sword!


    ¡°One against two? You¡¯re too bold!¡± mocked the Flower Martial King.


    The woman was as charming as Lan Ling¡¯er, but Lan Ling''er had a charm unique to a young woman, so it was more conservative. Her charm was fleeting, and only present in a sudden movement or smile. The Flower Martial King was different; her seductiveness came with her aura that radiated in all directions.


    Lan Ling''er hated women like that.


    ¡°Die, bitch!¡± With a <em>whoosh</em>, Lan Ling''er ran past the two Martial Kings and arrived in front of the Flower Martial King.


    ¡°The Ever-Changing Demon Girl! You dare insult me, you lowly scum?!¡±


    Very beautiful women were natural enemies!


    Although the fight between them startedter, the intensity surpassed Jian Chen¡¯s battle!


    Long Chen was not worried about Lan Ling''er, but he was worried about Jian Chen. Although Jian Chen was powerful and one of them was no match for him, fighting two opponents was a different matter!


    Watching a battle between Earthly Martial-Realm cultivators would be very beneficial to Long Chen, but he had no time to watch. He only had a rough gauge of the situation, and to his relief, Jian Chen seemed like he would be able to hold on for a while.


    The heaven meridian point was located between his eyebrows.


    Thest Emperor me Pearl brought with it the power of the true sun. It sank into the point between his eyebrows, then it melted into a liquid.


    <em>The three meridians form a triangle. My level of talent is the highest possible. </em>Long Chen was satisfied with the position of the heaven meridian point as it proved that he was more talented than others.


    He guided the energy from the Emperor me Pearl to open the heaven meridian point.


    Once it was opened, he would be able to fly.


    Suddenly, he froze.


    He waspletely stunned.


    Because the final Emperor me Pearl had disappeared in his body.


    <em>What¡¯s going on? What happened? Where did the heaven meridian point go? </em>This was an unexpected twist because how could the heaven meridian point suddenly go missing?


    Amidst his shock, he suddenly heard a <em>boom</em>.


    The point that should have been his heaven meridian point, also the point where the eighteen starry rivers in his body connected, suddenly became illusory. Long Chen entered the illusory point and found that it opened up into a space. Wasn¡¯t this his sea of consciousness?


    The Ancient Dragon Jade was still at the center of the sea of consciousness. The remaining Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon blood was still suppressed beneath it, and it remained unmoved.


    <em>Why would Qi containing energy with physical properties connect to the sea of consciousness? </em>Long Chen was puzzled.


    It was at this point that he noticed a pearl. It was the Emperor me Pearl!


    He watched in shock as the pearl slowly morphed into what looked like a meridian point. Two starry veins that had turned illusory connected to the newly formed meridian point, then golden energy poured out of it. It passed through the two illusory starry veins to connect to the eight main meridian points outside!


    <em>How is this possible? My heaven meridian point appeared in my sea of consciousness! </em>


    Long Chen was in disbelief.


    The heaven meridian point was a physical point. How could it have formed in his sea of consciousness?


    However, the dragon jade and the Inherited Blood Essence were also physical objects that were stored in his sea of consciousness.


    There were all sorts of strange things in this world. After the initial shock, he recovered immediately because he knew that this was a good thing. It did not matter where the heaven meridian point was¡ªhe could just progress as usual, right? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    All cultivators are jealous of MC! Him having the meridian point in his sea of consciousness is going to make him the fastest growing cultivator for sure</blockquote>

 Chapter 546: Soul Remnants of the Golden Crow

    Long Chen¡¯s nine meridian points were fully formed now.


    The nine suns in the sky shot nine golden ming poles thatnded on Long Chen. Nine golden shining points appeared on his body, reflecting the nine suns.


    Jian Chen and Lan Ling''er¡¯s battles had reached an extremely intense level, especially Jian Chen¡¯s fight. He had to not only block their attacks, but also prevent them from ambushing Long Chen, so he was having a very difficult time. He had to risk his life several times to ck an attack for Long Chen!


    It was time for Long Chen to refine the golden energy and turn it into his own dragon Qi. However, he did not do so immediately because he knew that Little Cat was about to act!


    His body and the nine suns had sessfully been connected. The next important step was absorbing the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants! He would only start to refine the golden energy once the soul remnants had been incorporated into his meridian points.


    This was a crucial moment. If he was interrupted now, it would all be for nothing. Jian Chen and Lan Ling''er knew this, so they fought especially hard!


    <em>His nine meridian points have already been opened. Is he about to start refining? </em>There was a venomous sh in the Flower Martial King¡¯s eyes when she saw that Long Chen¡¯s whole body was connected to the nine suns. She had been forced back several times by Lan Ling''er¡¯s attacks, and she knew that if this continued, she would likely be defeated!


    <em>This little bitch is impressive, but does she think she can beat me? </em>The Flower Martial King smiled to herself and suddenly retreated. As she did so, she flicked up a rock using the tip of her foot, then there was a <em>boom</em> and the rock flew past Lan Ling''er towards Long Chen!


    <em>Oh no! </em>Lan Ling''er had been working hard to kill the Flower Martial King, so she had not expected her opponent to pull a trick like that. She could not react in time, so the rock was heading towards Long Chen unimpeded. The rock had the strength of an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator behind it, so it would pierce through his body! Both Lan Ling''er and Jian Chen¡¯s faces turned pale!


    Everything had happened so fast. After Lan Ling''er turned pale, she could not even scream before someone stood in front of Long Chen!


    It was Xiang!


    Xiang had been hiding all this time to stop them from ambushing Long Chen. As expected, when he saw the rock, he quickly spat out a powerful burst of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, which engulfed the whole rock!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    However, the rock was simply moving too fast to be burned uppletely. When it struck Xiang, he felt like arge boulder had crashed into him. Xiang was then thrown to Long Chen¡¯s feet, almost crashing into him!


    The power of an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator was terrifying!


    However, Long Chen was safe thanks to Xiang.


    Both Lan Ling''er and Jian Chen sighed in relief, but because they had slowed down slightly, their opponents¡¯ attacks grew even fiercer. Wave after wave of attacks came, so Jian Chen could not afford to be distracted. However, with his abilities and the Cloud Sword, he was able to suppress his two opponents.


    As for Lan Ling''er, she initially had the upper hand, but the surprise ambush had helped the Flower Martial King turn the tides. While Lan Ling''er was in shock, the Flower Martial King took the chance to quickly gain the upper hand, forcing Lan Ling''er back with every strike!


    Of course, defeating Lan Ling''er was no simple task!


    Jian Chen initially wanted Lan Ling''er to kill the Flower Martial King as fast as possible, but looking at the current situation, a quick kill was not possible.


    What now?


    Wait until Long Chen reached the Ninth Passage Stage? Then what? Even at the Ninth Passage Stage, he would not be able to participate in this battle. To Jian Chen, they had been cornered. He had no idea how to proceed.


    <em>All we can do is let Long Chen escape when he reaches the Ninth Passage Stage. After he flees, Ling¡¯er and I can run if we are still capable, </em>thought Jian Chen as he clenched his teeth.


    To be honest, the Flower Martial King¡¯s ambush had also startled Long Chen. Thankfully, Xiang had managed to stop it in time. Although Xiang was a little injured, it was not serious. Long Chen was filled with gratitude. He forgot about him sometimes, but he was d that Xiang was his brother for life!


    Long Chen believed that even if that attack had been a fatal one, Xiang would¡¯ve blocked it for him regardless. Long Chen was content to have found such a good brother.


    <em>I must not waste Xiang¡¯s kindness! </em>He focused on waiting for Little Cat. At this moment, an image slowly formed above the Primordial Realm in his chest. It was Little Cat¡¯s plump body, but he was much more serious than usual.


    ¡°Long time no see, old friend,¡± Little Cat said wistfully to the nine suns in the sky. To Long Chen¡¯s astonishment, the nine suns reacted as if they had heard Little Cat¡¯s words!


    The nine suns moved in unison!


    ¡°Although only a trace of your soul remains, a huge amount of power is stored within it. I have aplete soul, but I don¡¯t have a trace of power. Hundreds of millions of years ago, did we ever think that we would end up like this?¡±


    There was a wistful look on its face.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to talk nonsense. Today, your old friend just wants to borrow some power for this kid. Don¡¯t be selfish ¡­¡± said Little Cat as he reached out with his little paw and touched the thickest pole of sunlight in the center.


    Long Chen did not know what method was being used, but he suddenly sensed a terrifying reactioning from the other side of the pole!


    Something arrived instantly in his body!


    Nine indescribable things had instantaneously arrived in his meridian points!


    ¡°It¡¯splete! Refine it now, quick!¡± said Little Cat. He did not return to the Primordial Realm but savored the golden energy with great sorrow. Hot tears filled his eyes as he sensed the familiar energy, shaking his head helplessly. When he saw that Long Chen had started to refine the golden energy, which was thest step, he sighed in relief. ¡°Old friend, since you¡¯re so generous, why don¡¯t you give a bit of energy to that wolf too?¡±


    When Little Cat finished speaking, far away in the sky, the sun in the center ejected golden mes toward Xiang¡¯s head! The golden mes were different from the golden poles that had flown to Long Chen. Long Chen had received pure sr energy, while Xiang was receiving pure sr fire!


    ¡°This is the most powerful level that you can absorb. My mission isplete.¡± Little Cat nced at Xiang, then at Long Chen. Both of them were quickly growing stronger, and he knew that he was the main reason why. Seeing them grow stronger made him quite happy.


    ¡°Old friend, I don¡¯t know when we¡¯ll meet again ¡­¡± Little Cat returned to the Primordial Realm in deep thought.


    Xiang was no idiot, so he knew that the fat cat was helping him. Although there was not much sr fire, there was no chance he would pass it up. He quickly swallowed the golden mes!


    Then he started to digest them!


    He initially started at the Category Six Heaven-tier, but his cultivation level was quickly rising at a pace faster than Long Chen!


    Long Chen was also progressing very quickly. He knew that both Jian Chen and Lan Ling''er were quickly approaching their limits, so he had to speed up the process!


    This was so that he couldplete his cultivation and help them!


    Filled with golden energy, Long Chen fervently guided the energy through the eighteen starry rivers and nine meridian points in his body. He activated his Dragon Soul Transformation, which made him tougher. The characteristics of his Dragon Qi were even more pronounced now!


    The Qi given to him by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was blood-red, and it was ranked higher than the Golden Crow¡¯s power. That was why the golden energy slowly turned blood-red as he guided it through his body.


    Before that, there was one more process that was even more important. The soul remnants of the Golden Crow had split into nine pieces and nted themselves in Long Chen¡¯s nine meridian points. All of them were activated at the same time, and infinite golden energy flowed through his eighteen starry rivers and nine meridian points. The power umted and soon reached the limit that his starry veins could bear!


    While his strength skyrocketed, just like the sun rising at dawn, the nine tiny suns in his body rose from their nine whirlpools, and nine chilling bird calls rang in his body. The nine golden suns had reced his meridian points!


    All of the tiny suns burned brightly with golden mes, and Long Chen saw small, golden birds inside each one!


    Those were the soul remnants of the Golden Crow! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Just so you know, golden crows are buffed af</blockquote>

 Chapter 547: Ninth Passage Stage

    When looking at the nine Golden Crow soul remnants, Long Chen felt anxious deep in his soul.


    He knew that based on this, Little Cat had seeded. He had sessfully taken a portion of the soul remnants in the sun and nted them into his nine meridian points.


    <em>I wonder what changes they¡¯ll bring to my body? </em>


    Long Chen was curious, so he closely inspected the golden birds, whose eyes were closed. Suddenly, the nine soul remnants opened their eyes at the same time, and he felt the same terror as when he faced the Inherited Blood Essence.


    It was as if a god from high above had suddenly looked at him for a moment. The immense regalness and unstoppable power almost scared him into falling to his knees!


    But they quickly closed their eyes again.


    <em>That was powerful. They are indeed Golden Crow soul remnants who lived in the sun. </em>


    He was impressed. At this moment, his body was filled with awesome strength, which was much stronger than his previous peak form!


    The foundational damage caused by the third stage of Blood Sacrifice finally recovered fully. Not only that, he had leveled up in every aspect, achieving great strength! Although he did not know what the soul remnants provided at the moment, he had no time to study them. Jian Chen was fighting two Martial Kings alone, and if he did not help him, Jian Chen and Lan Ling''er would die!


    Long Chen would never forgive himself if they died because of him!


    Long Chen¡¯s body was filled with golden energy from the sun. Thest step was to absorb and convert it. If he did not have the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, he would not need to convert it because the golden energy was strong enough!


    However, the blood-red Dragon Qi was his foundation!


    A hint of blood-red Qi appeared in the expanse of golden energy. Like a pigment, it slowly dyed all the golden energy blood-red. The patch of blood-red Qi expanded and followed the flow of Qi through his body, traversing the eighteen starry rivers and nine meridian points, reaching all his bones and four limbs. After several cycles, all the golden energy within him was blood-red. It flowed like blood in his body!


    The golden whirlpools in his meridian points turned blood-red, and the golden suns above the golden whirlpools also turned into blood-red suns burning with red mes!


    All his meridian points were nowpletely red!


    Another nine chilling bird calls were unleashed, and the sound waves almost caused his body to explode. However, several blood-red dragons flew out of his blood-red Qi and entered every meridian point, causing the soul remnants to turn blood-red.


    <em>The blood of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon is awesome. Even the fundamental quality of the soul remnants were converted. It truly is an ancestor of dragons. The ten Ancestral Dragons were once the peak creatures in the Dragon Continent, </em>Little Cat thought when he saw the changes.


    Long Chen¡¯s cultivation finally came to an end!


    There were still nine suns in the sky, but after Long Chen had converted all of the golden energy into blood-red Qi, the nine suns cut off their connection to Long Chen.


    The Day of the Nine Suns really was a miraculous phenomenon.


    Long Chen felt like he had undergone rebirth whenparing himself before and after using the Emperor me Pearl. Due to Blood Sacrifice, he had dropped to the Third Passage Stage, but now he had activated the heaven meridian point to reach the Ninth Passage Stage! The peak of the Heavenly Passage Realm! He had even received the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants, as per his wish! Even his injuries were all gone ¡­


    In less than two hours, Long Chen had reached the strongest state he had ever been in in his life!


    Especially after the Dragon Soul Transformation, he was far beyond the Ninth Passage Stage in terms of Qi quantity. He had far, far more Qi than ever before; almost as much as he had after he used the third stage of Blood Sacrifice. During thest Blood Sacrifice, Long Chen¡¯s body had been far too weak to withstand such energy. Now, however, he could control it perfectly, so he was much stronger than before.


    Jian Chen and the rest had waited far too long for this moment.


    Long Chen, who was sitting on a boulder, opened his eyes and stood up.


    The first thing he did was take note of Jian Chen and Lan Ling''er¡¯s current situation. Lan Ling¡¯er had managed to tip the scales back in her favor, but the Flower Martial King was no easy opponent. Due to the trick she had pulled earlier, she had managed to hang on. She knew that she just had to survive until the two other Martial Kings defeated Jian Chen!


    Rays of light shot out from Jian Chen¡¯s Cloud Sword. His opponents did not dare face him directly, but did their best to work together against him. Jian Chen was trying to prevent them from ambushing Long Chen, so he was in a very dangerous situation.


    Long Chen noticed that Jian Chen was getting pale; he was struggling to hold on after dealing with his powerful opponents for such a long time!


    Long Chen had taken much longer than Jian Chen expected. When he saw that Long Chen had finally seeded, he saw hope and roared, ¡°Long Chen, run! As long as you make it out, we will be able to run!¡±


    Lan Ling''er thought Long Chen would be as smart as he was at Liang Martial City, but Long Chen did not move. Instead, he leaped off the smooth boulder, nced at the deeply slumbering Xiang, who was still digesting the sr fire, and took out a sword from the Primordial Realm!


    Intermediate Heaven-tier swords weremon in the Divine Martial Empire, so it wasn¡¯t difficult to find one as powerful as the Demon Emperor Sword. Long Chen had used the Heaven Sword Array to its maximum potential and knew that he was starting to fall behind in terms ofbat techniques. However, it was powerful enough to deal with these people!


    <em>Long Chen isn¡¯t leaving? </em>There was a sh of confusion in Jian Chen¡¯s eyes. Long Chen was approaching him. For a moment, Jian Chen had a mistaken feeling that it wasn¡¯t Long Chen, but a gigantic ancient beast!


    His terrifying aura even terrified Jian Chen!


    Blood-red heat waves spread in Jian Chen¡¯s direction.


    Of course, they were not directed at him, but released subconsciously by Long Chen!


    Clumsily dodging an attack, Jian Chen roared, ¡°Long Chen, why aren¡¯t you leaving?¡±


    ¡°Leaving?¡± Long Chen shook his head. He was now right on the edge of their battle, watching his two opponents. ¡°Third Brother, let me take one of them!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± The three Martial Kings of the Martial Alliance thought they had heard him wrong. Long Chen had only just reached the Ninth Passage Stage, yet he wanted to battle an Earthly Martial Realm opponent?


    They had experienced the metamorphosis of progressing from the Heavenly Passage Realm to the Earthly Martial Realm, so they knew exactly how big the gap between the two realms was. Even though a Seventh Passage Stage cultivator could be talented enough to fight a Ninth Passage Stage opponent, a Ninth Passage Stage cultivator would never be a match for someone at the Earthly Martial Realm!


    Because they were on a whole different level!


    No one had ever done this before!


    The two Martial Kings burst intoughter. One of them said, ¡°You Dragon n people are all so ignorant! You think you¡¯re better than everyone just because you reached the Ninth Passage State!¡±


    ¡°Whatever. Since he made the request himself, I shall show him the power of the Earthly Martial Realm! It may look simple, but it is countless times stronger than the Four Foundational Realms!¡±


    As he spoke, he prepared to head towards Long Chen!


    Jian Chen initially wanted to stop him, but he did not because he had witnessed how powerful Long Yue was, and he knew how mysterious Long Chen was too. When he was in the Ancient Demon Domain, Long Chen had killed a Demon King! Although Long Chen had used a special technique that caused severe injury to himself, it was undeniable thatmon logic did not apply to him!


    That was why he did not stop him.


    Long Chen smiled when he saw the Martial Kinging in his direction. Now it was only a matter of time before Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er could defeat their opponents. Ever since he finished cultivating, he knew that they were free from danger.


    It had been a terrifying ordeal.


    He was too close to Jian Chen, and he needed arge space. Therefore, he created some distance. He wanted to truly see how big the gap between himself and someone at the Earthly Martial Realm was, and check how powerful he currently was!


    The Four Foundational Realms versus the Three Martial Realms. This was the biggest power gap he would have to ovee thus far!


    The Martial King standing in front of him had a slender figure and a hawk-like nose. He was strong and had excellentbat abilities in all aspects. Although he had been battling Jian Chen for a long time, his strength level hadn''t declined much!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    Long Chen realized that when he stepped on the ground, he felt as if he was connected to it. He was the earth, and the earth was him.


    Now that he had opened the heaven meridian point, he knew that he could fly, though it was not very useful at the Ninth Passage Stage. It was suitable for showing off, but definitely not battling in the air.


    ¡°Brat, I am the Eagle Martial King of the Martial Alliance! Now you know who will kill you!¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Aw yis, back to his peak</blockquote>

 Chapter 548: Battling The Earthly Martial Realm

    An Earthly Martial Realm cultivator.


    Although his opponent was only at the First Earthly Martial Stage, Long Chen did not let his guard down.


    As he felt the power flow through his body, he gazed at the Eagle Martial King. He would move when his opponent moved, not daring to attack first, because he was not confident.


    He wondered what it would be like to fight a true Earthly Martial Realm cultivator.


    At this moment, Long Chen had the King-tier True Martial Demon Body and the Demonic Illusion. He guessed that his opponent had one or two King-tier techniques at most, but in terms of Qi, Long Chen definitely had more Qi than the opponent had essence!


    However, Earthly Martial Realm cultivators had something else.


    Long Chen had seen them fight before. It was as if they could control every bit of energy in a punch so that it was all concentrated in one point. It would look like a simple attack, but it would contain far more energy than what a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator could release!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    The Eagle Martial King ran out of patience when he saw that Long Chen was not moving. There was a cold sh in his eyes, then he turned into an illusion as he sprinted forward. In the next second, he was already right in front of Long Chen! <em>He¡¯s so ¡­ fast ¡­ but his movements look like mine before I started cultivating, before I reached the Dragon Realm ¡­ </em>Long Chen studied the Eagle Martial King¡¯s movements in detail.


    <em>I can sense that all of his power is concentrated in his torso, and I can even sense that he is connected to the earth. Every time his footnds, he absorbs the energy in the earth. Perhaps the Earthly Martial Realm is rted to the earth? </em>


    Long Chen thought back to when he watched Long Yue¡¯s punching routine. At the time, he suddenly felt as if she was one with thend. Every punch seemed to conform with the pulse of the earth, flowing like waves in the ocean.


    <em>That was a simple punching routine, but each punch was an earth-shattering attack. After passing through the drama of the Four Foundational Realms, the Earthly Martial Realm likely returns to the origin point. It is like meleebat before one reaches the Dragon Realm. It looks like the Earthly Martial Realm has a high requirement for close-rangebat. One can onlyprehend the strength of the Martial Realm in an intense battle of life and death. </em>


    Many thoughts popped into his mind as he watched the Eagle Martial King.


    ¡°Let me show you what the Martial Realm truly is!¡± When he was close to Long Chen, the Eagle Martial King smirked and suddenly punched. He did not use any attack techniques; it was merely a punch. It was simple, but it seemed to bring with it the pulse of the earth. It was as if the earth was flying toward him!


    Long Chen took a deep breath, let out a roar, and also threw a punch!


    He was only at the Ninth Passage Stage, so he was using his Qi. However, the amount of Qi he had ess to far surpassed the weight of the Eagle Martial King¡¯s essence!


    To Long Chen¡¯s shock, that punch had been instinctive. The silhouettes of the Golden Crows in his nine meridian points appeared in his mind, and he had instinctively used the energy from them. Then he realized that when he threw his punch, his fist had emitted a blood-red firelight and burned up in mes. His fist collided with the Eagle Martial King!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    Long Chen was thrown back from the impact!


    The result left him utterly shocked. The Eagle Martial King¡¯s punch had allowed him to truly feel the power of the Earthly Martial Realm. Even with his King-tier body tempering technique and the toughness of the Dragon Soul Transformation, his arm felt numb and trembled. He quickly rxed his arm, but he was forced tens of steps back!


    The Eagle Martial King was suffering too. He had not been forced back by Long Chen¡¯s strength; he was retreating on his own due to the pain. Long Chen looked up and saw that half of his opponent¡¯s fist was charred. There was even hot smokeing from it, and judging by the Eagle Martial King¡¯s contorted features, it was very painful.


    If their exchange was any indication, the Eagle Martial King was clearly stronger. If he had not stopped because of the pain, the pain in Long Chen¡¯s arm would have been worse!


    <em>Is this the power of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants? </em>


    Long Chen now understood that the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants were now living in his nine meridian points and had be his power cores. Whenever he used his Qi, their power would merge with his Qi, therefore adding powerful mes and strength to his attacks!


    Just now, Long Chen¡¯s Qi, which could match someone at the Earthly Martial Realm, could only barely withstand the Eagle Martial King¡¯s attack. However, the Golden Crow¡¯s power had injured the Eagle Martial King.


    <em>Perhaps the Golden Crow¡¯s power will be incorporated into my attacks from now on. This is an amazing boost. Will the Golden Crow¡¯s power also be incorporated into my sword techniques? </em>


    Long Chen was in a great mood.


    If he could wield the Golden Crow¡¯s powers well, it could result in terrifying effects!


    It was just like the Dragon Soul Transformation, which gave Long Chen Qi that was ten times stronger than average. These effects also grew with Long Chen, so he wondered if the effects would be increased by another tenfold when he became a super master!


    Long Chen did not believe that the soul remnants contained this little power. It was likely that the power was only released based on how much Qi he utilized.


    That was why the Golden Crow¡¯s power was likely a divine technique just like the Dragon Soul Transformation, which would continue to stay with Long Chen as he grew!


    ¡°How could your Qi have such an intense heat? This is impossible! You absorbed pure, non-elemental energy, so how could it be this hot?¡± The Eagle Martial King was in disbelief.


    Of course, he did not know that there was a legendary Reincarnation Beast in the Primordial Realm located in Long Chen¡¯s chest, who had helped him get the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants!


    The Eagle Martial King was not the only one. Jian Chen and the others were also paying attention to Long Chen. Jian Chen¡¯s brows were furrowed when he saw that Long Chen had chosen to face the Eagle Martial King directly, but when he saw the result, he could not believe it for a moment.


    However, he and Lan Ling¡¯er sighed in relief.


    ¡°Ling¡¯er, quickly finish her up!¡± Jian Chen took a deep breath, then heunched a storm of attacks at his opponent! A single Martial King was no match for him!


    ¡°Old Eagle, what are you still standing there for? Fight him! I can¡¯t hold on for long!¡± roared the Martial King who was fighting Jian Chen.


    The Eagle Martial King calmed down and finally saw Long Chen as an opponent he had to take seriously.


    ¡°You brat, you must have used some demented technique.¡± Then the Eagle Martial King suddenly flew like an eagle and swooped at Long Chen¡¯s head. There was a<em> whoosh</em>, and Long Chen realized that the whole sky above him was filled with the Eagle Martial King¡¯s iron talons!


    The Eagle Martial King had a talon-type attack!


    This was likely not a King-tierbat technique, but since it was used by an Earthly Martial Realm master, it was quite terrifying. His simple punch was already powerful, so this would be worse!


    <em>He¡¯s fast and his attacks are vicious! </em>


    This was Long Chen¡¯s impression of the Eagle Martial King. He did not dare underestimate this talon attack too. Although his Heaven Sword Array looked dazzling from the outside, it was nowhere near as strong as a simple punch from an Earthly Martial Realm master!


    The Heaven Sword Array had enough power to leave countless scars if he were to use it to attack a mountain, but a simple punch from an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator wouldpletely shatter the whole mountain!


    Long Chen finally experienced the power of the Martial Realm for himself!


    Why were they called the Three Martial Realms?


    Because this was the true meaning of ¡°martial!¡±


    Of course, the Heaven Sword Array was different when it was used by Long Chen.


    Long Chen had several advantages that a regr Ninth Passage Stage cultivator could only dream of!


    When the Eagle Martial King moved, Long Chen moved too. He was retreating as fast as he could, and at the same time, consecutive des of Sword Qi flew from his sword towards the Eagle Martial King¡¯s attack. These des of Qi collided with the talon seals!


    <em>Crack! Crack! Crack! </em>


    Long Chen¡¯s Sword Qi contained Qi from his own body. At this level, a regr Ninth Passage Stage cultivator would be easily killed by his des. However, they werecking in the face of the Earthly Martial Realm attacks.


    But the blood-red mes burning brightly on top of his Sword Qi were going to make all the difference!


    The collision between the two attacks was abnormally violent. The Eagle Martial King wanted to approach, but Long Chen did not let him. He knew that if he got within close range of an Earthly Martial Realm master, he would die.


    Every time the talons appeared, they formedrge arcs as if they wanted to scratch space itself apart. There were even sounds of explosions, which proved just how powerful the attack was! However, the Eagle Martial King had suffered from the Golden Crow¡¯s powers once already, so he did not dare face Long Chen directly!


    Only through dodging and unleashing his essence was he able to shatter Long Chen¡¯s Sword Qi. Right now, Long Chen waspletely exposed beneath the talons!


    Jian Chen let out a furious roar. Without looking back, the Eagle Martial King knew that Jian Chen had forced the other Martial King to his limit and would likely kill him in a few breaths¡¯ time!


    <em>I didn¡¯t expect Jian Chen to be this good! No way, I must kill this brat now. I will let him have a taste of my most powerful attack! Hold on, Brother! </em>


    If he could finish Long Chen now, he would be able to save his partner!


    If Long Chen died, Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er would die too!


    <em>Whoosh ¡­ </em>


    The Eagle Martial King exhaled a white mist, and an ice-cold light appeared in his eyes. Loud snapping and cracking came from his bones, making Long Chen¡¯s scalp go numb. Then the human in front of him turned into an eagle and charged directly at Long Chen!


    <em>Soul Dispersing Talons! </em><blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I can already foresee a gruesome death</blockquote>

 Chapter 549: Power of the Golden Crow

    Having mastery over King-tierbat techniques was a specific sign that a cultivator was at the Martial Realm. The Eagle Martial King¡¯s Soul Dispersing Talons was a King-tierbat technique.


    The scratches from the talons turned into five bright rays of light that shot straight at Long Chen. At this point, the Eagle Martial King could no longer be seen clearly. All Long Chen could see was a heaven-epassing eagle, as well as the sharp talons right before his eyes. When the talons swiped past him, it looked as if space itself was twisted. It was clear just how terrifying this attack was.


    <em>I am no match for the Eagle Martial King when ites to expertise in my attacks. That is why I can only gain the upper hand through sheer strength. </em>This was the only thing Long Chen could do. As usual, he used the Heaven Sword Array, though this one was quite different from previous ones.


    Number one, he was much, much stronger.


    Number two, he had the power of the Golden Crow.


    When the Eagle Martial Kingunched an attack, Long Chen did not sit around and wait for it to arrive. He had used the Heaven Sword Array countless times, but this time, it was used on an unprecedented level. He raised his sword in an arc, lifting it high in the air, then he swung it in one powerful strike. Countless sword symbols formed a sword array, which despite its small size, contained ten times more power in every single symbolpared to before!


    Every sword symbol trembled and let out shrill calls, causing even the air to tremble. If this was it, then it would still be insufficient to threaten the Eagle Martial King. Most importantly, blood-red mes burned brightly above every sword symbol!


    Just one burning sword symbol was enough to hurt the Eagle Martial King, let alone tens of thousands of them on this scale. An instantter, the Eagle Martial King was engulfed in red mes!


    ¡°Die!¡± Long Chen unleashed the Heaven Sword Array! ¡°Die!¡± Although the mes were scary, the Eagle Martial King clenched his teeth, trying his best to withstand them!


    Due to the presence of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants, Long Chen¡¯s energy was now Yang-leaning. The blood in his body surged as if it had started to boil. Powerful Qi and Yang energy surged through his youthful and strong body, presenting the characteristics of a Yang body.


    The Heaven Sword Array, boosted by the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants, collided with the Eagle Martial King¡¯s King-tier Soul Dispersing Talons! Everyone else was watching this moment out of the corners of their eyes, so they were extremely nervous too. No one initially thought that Long Chen was a match for the Eagle Martial King, but when strange, red mes appeared in his attack, they were uncertain!


    Perhaps there was a possibility that Long Chen would win!


    Long Chen had killed many people by just relying on the Heaven Sword Array; his first victim was the Sword Emperor and now it was the Eagle Martial King. Without counting the incident where he used the third stage of Blood Sacrifice, the Eagle Martial King was the most powerful opponent he had fought with the Heaven Sword Array thus far. Furthermore, his Heaven Sword Array was currently in its strongest state!


    The Heaven Sword Array fell hard, and it was immense. As long as one was engulfed within, the swords would seal the space around them. The swords glinted, and they were each very fatal once alight with the red mes!


    The victor would be determined in the next moment!


    As long as the Eagle Martial King could get close to Long Chen, Long Chen would immediately lose. Once a cultivator reached the Earthly Martial Realm, they mostly engaged in meleebat because their strength and speed far outmatched someone at the Heavenly Passage Realm. Even the most brutal attacks from a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator could not match close-range attacks from them. Usually, killing a Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator would be as easy as chopping vegetables when they were close by.


    Long Chen was a monster¡ªhe was only at the Ninth Passage Realm, yet he possessed enough strength to kill an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator. This time, he was well aware that it was unwise to get close to an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator. That was why he won. His attack also far exceeded the Heavenly Passage Realm level, therefore breaking this naturalw!


    Beneath the pelting of the Heaven Sword Array, the Eagle Martial King sprinted forward with all his might while holding back the sword lights. As long as he could get out of the Heaven Sword Array¡¯s range, it would only be a matter of time before he killed Long Chen. However, he underestimated how powerful the Heaven Sword Array was!


    When the first burning sword light broke through his defenses and pierced into his body, the intense pain almost made the Eagle Martial King curl up. It was so hot that it instantly burned a piece of his flesh!


    Due to the pain, the Eagle Martial King lost his focus. Then tens of thousands of sword lights swallowed him whole.


    He let out a scream of agony, though it quickly died down. Everything the Eagle Martial King had worked for was gone beneath the Heaven Sword Array. He was now dead.


    Everything in front of Long Chen returned to emptiness.


    Long Chen suddenly felt weak. He knew that he could not use the Golden Crow¡¯s power recklessly. He had to be frugal with it and use it to kill his enemies at thest moment!


    His fight was over.


    The other two fights changed drastically when his fight ended. Due to an advantage in strength, the moment after Long Chen killed his opponent, Jian Chen¡¯s opponent drowned in a flurry of sword attacks.


    Jian Chen¡¯s Cloud Sword pierced through his opponent¡¯s throat. He pulled it out, and his opponent copsed. He did not close his eyes, even in death.


    The Flower Martial King was smart. When she saw that her two helpers were faltering, she took out some red powder from somewhere and threw it at Lan Ling''er!


    Having heard of the Flower Martial King¡¯s reputation, Lan Ling''er knew what the red powder was. It was an aphrodisiac-type medicine. Once poisoned, Jian Chen and Long Chen would embarrass themselves greatly. Lan Ling''er had no choice but to quickly retreat to dodge the red powder; she knew not toe into contact with it!


    ¡°You little bitch! Why are you dodging it? You have two handsome men, one young and one old, here for you to enjoy! Isn¡¯t this aphrodisiac powder exactly what you want? Hehe ¡­¡±


    Since Lan Ling''er had been forced away, the Flower Martial Kingughed and shot off like a madwoman!


    In terms of speed, Jian Chen was only as fast as she was, and now he was blocked by the powder. That was why the three of them could only watch her leave.


    ¡°You horny woman! One day, I¡¯ll chop you up to pieces! Aaaaaah!¡± Lan Ling''er was mad with rage, throwing punches at the boulder next to her. Then she suddenly recalled something and then looked at Long Chen with wide eyes as if he was a stranger. Even Jian Chen was eyeing him from head to toe in shock.


    ¡° ¡­S-seventh Brother! You killed the Eagle Martial King?¡± Lan Ling''er stuttered, walking up to him.


    ¡°Of course. This means I¡¯m better than you now,¡± Long Chen said proudly with a smug look on his face.


    ¡°Tsk, look at you being all smug. Even one hundred of you would be no match for me,¡± Lan Ling''er said with a grin.


    ¡°You killed an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator despite only being at the Ninth Passage Stage. Long Chen, you have basically performed a miracle. Your strength is on par with us; you¡¯re now qualified to truly be a part of the Dragon n. If Big Sister assigns a task to you, you cannot refuse it.¡± Jian Chen showed his approval in his tone.


    Two of the three Martial Kings that had ambushed them were dead and one had escaped.


    After he finished speaking, there was a boom in the sky. Long Chen looked up. Two hours had gone by, and the grand phenomenon of the Day of the Nine Suns hadpletely disappeared. The extremely hot air started to cool too. The temperature would return to normal levels in a few hours.


    Long Chen¡¯s achievements had far surpassed his own imagination.


    ¡°Since the Flower Martial King ran off, we shouldn¡¯t stick around here. Once Xiang wakes up, we need to hurry to the Cloud Dream Swamp,¡± said Jian Chen with furrowed brows after he woke up from his shock.


    The people of the Martial Alliance were everywhere. Just like flies, catching one¡¯s attention would not end well.


    Long Chen and Lan Ling''er both nodded.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t even make sense! I have always been the weakest, and after great difficulty, I finally found a younger brother to bully. Now this younger brother seems to have be stronger than me.¡± Lan Ling''er sighed, resigned. However, she was still quite shocked. It looked like it was the right decision to have Long Chen join them.


    ¡°In that case, what do you think about calling me ¡®Elder Brother Chen?¡¯¡± Long Chen teased.


    ¡°You bastard! Do you want to fight? You¡¯re just a brat!¡±


    Long Chen initially wanted to tease her more, but something was happening to Xiang. Long Chen did not know what growth the sr fire would bring to him, so he quickly went to Xiang¡¯s side and watched with great anticipation.


    The golden mes burning on Xiang¡¯s body slowly died down, and the heat radiating from him also slowly dissipated until he returned back to normal. Suddenly, his eyes sprang open to reveal golden pupils and golden mes burning within. When Long Chen looked at them up close, he felt as if he was in an endless sea of golden mes himself.


    ¡°I¡¯m just one step away from the Category Nine Heaven-tier. Just a little more,¡± Xiang said resignedll.


    ¡°That¡¯s okay. This is already great.¡± The Category Nine Heaven-tier was within Long Chen¡¯s expectations. He and Xiang had always been on a simr level, though Long Chen was always a little stronger than Xiang. However, although he was at the Category Nine Heaven-tier, the Nine Demons Ancestral Fire was a terrifying tool.


    The two Golden Lightning Stallions waiting far away grew frightened when Xiang woke up.


    ¡°Alright. In that case, let¡¯s hurry to the Cloud Dream Swamp,¡± Jian Chen suggested, worried that the Flower Martial King would return with more experts.


    Long Chen and Lan Ling''er nodded and both climbed on their mounts. With Jian Chen leading the way, they rushed toward the Cloud Dream Swamp at high speeds.


    The birth of the Red Emperor Seal would be a grand phenomenon. How many people would there be? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    MC: </blockquote>

 Chapter 550: Void Martial Saint

    After leaving the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range, the trio chose a more obscure path as they headed towards the Cloud Dream Swamp.


    ¡°There is a small city called White City a hundred kilometers from here. That¡¯s where I was born; I spent my childhood there,¡± Jian Chen said wistfully. His eyes were dark.


    ¡°White City? Third Brother, do you want to visit? It won¡¯t take long,¡± said Long Chen. Jian Chen¡¯s journey was simr to his own. If he were to pass by Baiyang Town, he would definitely want to go.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need. With me being wanted and all, there¡¯s no need to go back. Also, my parents both died a long time ago and so did my grandparents. I wasn¡¯t close with anyone else. If I went back now, I¡¯d just get them in trouble. That would be bad,¡± said Jian Chen, shaking his head after some thought.


    ¡°Third Brother, don¡¯t be so hesitant. Even if you don¡¯t visit, you can still look at it from afar,¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er.


    ¡°Alright, then. It¡¯s been about ten years since Ist went back. So much has changed in these ten years. When I was young, I felt like a hero when I joined the Martial Alliance. Who would have thought I¡¯d end up like this?¡± Jian Chen looked resigned as he stared into the distance.


    ¡°We were born to be eagles. No faction can tie us down,¡± said Long Chen suddenly.


    Jian Chen and Lan Ling''er nodded. They both loved freedom, so they had ended up together.


    Xiang moved quicker than the Golden Lightning Stallions, so the journey was effortless. They quickly covered a hundred kilometers. There was some excitement in Jian Chen''s eyes, as he was about to reach the ce he was born in. They gradually approached.


    Long Chen looked up and saw a small city ahead. It was not big and looked tranquil. However, there seemed to be some loud noiseing from it.


    Upon closer inspection, he saw many people on top of the city walls, but the city gates were tightly shut.


    ¡°Third Brother, something is happening at White City.¡± The three of them only wanted to take a look and leave immediately, but after Long Chen saw the abnormal situation, he quickly alerted them.


    Both Lan Ling''er and Jian Chen saw it too.


    Lan Ling''er was not sure what was happening, but Jian Chen¡¯s expression soon turned unbelievably cold!


    ¡°I¡¯m going there now!¡± Jian Chen said coldly. Then, he urged his stallion on with his crop, and they turned into a yellow lightning storm that flew towards White City. Long Chen and Lan Ling''er looked at each other.


    ¡°Follow him!¡± Although they didn¡¯t know what Jian Chen was doing, he was not an impulsive person, so Long Chen trusted him.


    The three of them flew to White City like a gust of wind. When they approached, Long Chen saw what was going on. The people on the walls were all looking in the same direction, which was the top of the city walls. Long Chen then saw thirty-plus thick ropes dangling from the wall, with a body at the bottom of each rope. He did not know if they had been strangled or strung up after they died.


    Thirty-plus bodies were hanging in the same fashion. It was an eerie sight.


    <em>This is bad ¡­ </em>Long Chen and Lan Ling''er¡¯s eyes met, seeing the worry in each other. Those people were likely people from Jian Chen¡¯s n, or Jian Chen would not have had this reaction!


    A thick aura of violence radiated from Jian Chen!


    Long Chen saw a silhouette above the city tower¡ªthe Flower Martial King!


    She must have known about Jian Chen¡¯s past. After running from the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range, she must havee here to kill his whole n and hung them on the wall as revenge! She knew Jian Chen and the others would surelye here!


    Looking at the smirk on the Flower Martial King¡¯s face, Long Chen confirmed his suspicions. Although Jian Chen was not very close to his family, it was likely that they had all been killed.


    Long Chen saw many Martial Alliance Enforcers in the small White City. Usually, such a small city would not need this many Enforcers. This meant that the Martial Alliance had long set a trap here, and they were only waiting for Jian Chen to fall into it!


    This was why Jian Chen¡¯s family had lived until now!


    They were alive only because they could serve as bait.


    Looking at the row of bodies and the cold smirk on the Flower Martial King¡¯s face, Long Chen knew that if he was Jian Chen, he would go crazy! Thankfully, he still had his wits about him.


    ¡°Xiang, catch up to Third Brother,¡± Long Chen said hurriedly with a dark expression.


    They quickly rushed up to Jian Chen, who had already stopped, dismounted, and unsheathed his sword. Jian Chen was marching towards White City one heavy footstep at a time.


    Long Chen approached and saw that Jian Chen¡¯s eyes had turned blood-red. A thick aura of violence radiated from him. Long Chen knew that his killing intent must have risen to the limit!


    No one could remain calm in a situation like that!


    ¡°Third Brother ¡­ The Flower Martial King would only dare do this if she had a way to defeat us. We will definitely take revenge, but let¡¯s calm down first. Let¡¯s assess the situation and kill our enemies, alright?¡± Long Chen said solemnly.


    ¡°I am unable to remain calm.¡± Jian Chen¡¯s voice was as cold as ice.


    ¡°Third Brother, no matter what happens, we will fight alongside you. However, we must remain calm, or not only will we not get our revenge, but those bastards will take advantage of us too. That would be bad,¡± Lan Ling''er said gently, grabbing his arm.


    Jian Chen stopped and took a deep breath. ¡°Why don¡¯t you guys head to the Cloud Dream Swamp? I¡¯ll catch up right after I deal with this.¡±


    Long Chen stood in front of him and blocked him. He stared straight into Jian Chen¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°You said that we are brothers and sisters. Third Brother, is that what you think brothers do? We live together and die together. That is what a brother is to me. Just now, you protected me when I was using the Emperor me Pearl. Now it¡¯s my time to repay you!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. We will never leave,¡± said Lan Ling''er in a panic.


    Seeing as they were so insistent, and Long Chen¡¯s words had touched Jian Chen, he regained some of his senses. He took a deep breath and calmed his emotions. If he drowned in rage and only killed blindly, he would fall into their trap.


    Why would the Flower Martial King dare face the three of them without some kind of trap?


    When the trio arrived in front of the city gates, Jian Chen did not even look at the people above the walls. With a frigid expression and holding back his great sorrow, he put the bodies one by one in his Universe Pouch. After taking thest body, he returned to Long Chen¡¯s side. Long Chen saw tears in his eyes.


    ¡°I was the one who brought them harm.¡± It was a short sentence, but the endless self-me was evident.


    ¡°If I can live on, I will never let the Martial Alliance live in peace again. No matter how many masters appear, I will kill them all until no one remains in the Martial Alliance!¡± Jian Chen swore in front of Long Chen and Lan Ling''er.


    Long Chen and Xiang locked eyes, knowing that a major battle wasing.


    ¡°Jian Chen, this is the first present from the Martial Alliance to you. Aren¡¯t you surprised? Are you going to cry from joy? Of course, don¡¯t thank me¡ªthis isn¡¯t from me. I was only in charge of hanging them ¡­¡± Then she let out a seductive giggle.


    Jian Chen clenched his fists tightly.


    ¡°You bitch! Get the fuck down here! I beat you up so bad just now that you ran off with your tail between your legs, and now you¡¯re being a coward?!¡± Lan Ling''er was almost blinded by rage. She had never seen such a shameless woman in her life!


    ¡°What did you say?!¡± The Flower Martial King was annoyed. Lan Ling''er hated her, and the hatred was reciprocated. However, she had notpleted her task here, so she ignored Lan Ling''er and continued looking at Jian Chen. ¡°Next, the Martial Alliance would like to give you your second present. Second present, pleasee out ¡­¡±


    Second present?


    Were there more people killed?


    Long Chen¡¯s brows furrowed.


    A man suddenly appeared behind her with a sh and pulled her into his arms. He expertly reached his hand into her clothes and grabbed her breast, brazenly kneading it. The Flower Martial King was reduced to whimpers, apanied by vigorous panting. Her face immediately reddened and her eyes zed over.


    Long Chen felt greatly threatened by this man.


    Upon closer inspection, this man had a head full of white hair and a wrinkled face. He was tall and thin, looking to be in his fifties. There was a cold glint in his hawk-like eyes. He did not look at the Flower Martial King in his arms, but at Jian Chen.


    ¡°My good disciple, how have you been?¡± His hoarse voice, along with the Flower Martial King¡¯s moans, rang through the air. The Flower Martial King¡¯s voice made everyone¡¯s imaginations run wild and their mouths grew dry, but his voice made their hairs stand on end.


    <em>Disciple? Is he Jian Chen¡¯s master? </em>Long Chen wondered.


    Lan Ling''er¡¯s face changed and she whispered in Long Chen¡¯s ear, ¡°This is bad. That person was Third Brother¡¯s master in the Martial Alliance. He¡¯s the Void Martial Saint. He was the one who taught Third Brother his sword techniques, and he is a violent and short-tempered person. Third Brother left the Martial Alliance because he couldn¡¯t stand his way of teaching!¡±


    Martial Saints were simr to Demon Saints. Cultivators at the First Earthly Martial Stage were given the King title, like Demon King and Martial King. Those at the Second Earthly Martial Stage were called Saints, such as Sword Saint, Demon Saint, and Martial Saint. Cultivators who had reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage were known as Emperors; the Demon Emperor and the three Martial Emperors of the Martial Alliance were on this level.


    The Void Martial Saint was at the Second Earthly Martial Stage!


    Long Chen knew they were in trouble. This was the Flower Martial King¡¯s trump card! With the Void Martial Saint here, what was there to be afraid of? <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    "Let''s calm down"


    "I am unable to remain calm"


    Damn that was fire</blockquote>

 Chapter 551: Illusory Sword Technique

    Long Chen had tried fighting someone at the First Earthly Martial Stage. If he was lucky, he could defeat them, but the gap between him and someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage was far too wide. The Void Sword Saint was clearly on Jiang Wuya¡¯s level. He was also just slightly weaker than Long Yue.


    The three of them never needed to face such danger with Long Yue holding off the pursuers. They could only me their luck since the Void Sword Saint was not here to actively hunt them. He was only coincidentally nearby.


    Coincidences like these happened all the time.


    Long Chen looked at Jian Chen, the oldest of the trio. He had to shoulder the most responsibility here. However, his expression changed when he saw the Void Sword Saint. ¡°Ling¡¯er, Long Chen, this is thest time I¡¯m begging you. I can buy you some time to escape. If I don¡¯t, all three of us will die here today.¡±


    Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er looked at each other and nodded. Long Chen replied, ¡°Then let us die together. If we can¡¯t face off against a strong foe together, we are notrades.¡±


    Jian Chen didn¡¯t know what to do with the two of them being stubborn. He was wary of the Void Sword Saint and didn¡¯t have time to chase both of them away.


    ¡°Sister Lan, can you hold off the Flower Martial King? Me, Third Brother, and Xiang will surround the Void Sword Saint. We might have a chance¡­ ¡° Long Chen whispered to her.


    ¡°Xiang?¡± Both Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er were confused. Xiang was only at the Category Nine Heaven-tier. Could he be as strong as Long Chen?


    Long Chen chuckled mysteriously. ¡°He¡¯s a Sun Devouring Wolf, and he¡¯s quite a special one. Have you seen a demonic beast that could increase its tier?¡±Xiang had indeed consumed the sr fire and increased his strength, much to the surprise of the others.


    Long Chen and Xiang nodded before thetter entered the Primordial Realm. Xiang¡¯s only lethal attack against the Void Sword Saint was the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. He would only have one chance to pop out of the Primordial Realm and give the Void Sword Saint a surprise.


    Jian Chen could only consent to the n after seeing how prepared Long Chen was. ¡°Fine, just this once. Let¡¯s do this.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t easy for him to make that decision, because he didn¡¯t want Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er to die.


    They came up with the best solution in the shortest amount of time.


    Just then, the obscene sounds from the Flower Martial King became louder. She raised both of her arms and hung them around the neck of the Void Sword Saint. She kept grinding her plump buttocks against the man¡¯s body like a water snake.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, my darling. I will make sure to make love to you for three days and three nights after this is over,¡± the Void Sword Saint whispered to her.


    ¡°Three days and three nights? That¡¯s so mean! You know I can¡¯t handle how strong you are! Can¡¯t you take pity on me?¡± the Flower Martial King replied in a shy voice.


    ¡°Have you ever heard of oxen that were worked to death, but no fields were ever tilled until they were destroyed? Especially a field like you ¡­¡± The Void Sword Saint smiled obscenely when he took his hands out of the Flower Martial King¡¯s clothes and sniffed it. ¡°What a lovely scent.¡±


    ¡°Disgusting. What a pervert. Both of them need to die.¡± Lan Ling¡¯er almost puked.


    Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s words made the Void Sword Saint focus on her.


    ¡°Oh? Is that the legendary Ever-Changing Demon Girl? You are the girl of every man¡¯s dream. If I get my hands on you, I could make you change your face every day and not have to find new women all the time.¡± The Void Sword Saint stared at her longingly.


    ¡°Scram. You want to y with women when you¡¯re that old? You should just get a coffin so that you can bury yourself. Don¡¯t go around scaring others with your face. No wonder my Third Brother hates you. If I had a master like you, I would p ¡­ No, I would cut off a piece of your flesh every day!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er never stopped scolding him.


    The Void Sword Saint¡¯s face became more and more vicious.


    ¡°It seems that I have to fight for real today. My darling, I will leave her to you. Don¡¯t harm a single strand of her hair, or I will let you ¡®starve¡¯ for half a month. You will only be able to relieve yourself when I allow it. I will go ahead and deal with that wretched disciple of mine.¡±


    His sharp gaze fell on Jian Chen.


    However, he had ignored Long Chen.


    The Flower Martial King wanted to remind him that Long Chen was hard to deal with too, but then she thought she could just focus on Lan Ling¡¯er while Long Chen would be dealt with by the Void Sword Saint.


    Jian Chen shouted, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare call me that! I no longer have anything to do with you! We are sworn enemies!¡±


    ¡°You no longer have anything to do with me? Then don¡¯t use the Illusory Sword Technique on me.¡± The Void Sword Saint chuckled and leaped down from the top of the wall. He stood thirty meters away from Jian Chen, and the Flower King followed him down.


    Everyone on the wall repositioned to watch the battle.


    It was going to start soon.


    With the two of them fighting, Long Chen was the only one being ignored.


    ¡°Bitch,e over here. Let me pummel you.¡± Lan Ling¡¯er was disgusted by the Flower Martial King and started cursing at her.


    The Flower Martial King was outraged. She saw that Lan Ling¡¯er had chosen her battlefield and immediately chased after her. Only Long Chen, Jian Chen, and the Void Sword Saint were left.


    Long Chen and Jian Chen stood together as they observed their foe warily.


    An enemy at the Second Earthly Martial Stage was not to be trifled with. Even though Jian Chen was close to advancing into the Second Earthly Martial Stage, he was weaker than the Void Sword Saint. Long Chen was even worse off since he was not even at the Three Martial Realms yet. He only had strong and bizarre techniques.


    Jian Chen said nothing as he unsheathed his pure-white Cloud Sword.


    ¡°That¡¯s the Cloud Sword that I requested from the Martial Overlord as a gift to you when you entered the Three Martial Realms.¡± The Void Sword Saint was pissed. He had never thought the gift he had given his disciple would be pointed at him one day.


    Jian Chen took out another sword and gave it to Long Chen. ¡°This is the advanced Heaven-tier Deste Cleaving Sword. I used it when I was at the Heavenly Passage Realm. It should be better than yours. Use it for now. You don¡¯t use swords to begin with and will go back to learning fist arts when you reach the Three Martial Realms, so a good sword would be wasted on you.¡±


    He was right. Long Chen had only used a sword for the sake of the Demon Emperor Sword Technique andter on for the Heaven Sword Array. His understanding of sword arts was extremely lowpared to those born as Armament Warriors.


    Long Chen took it.


    In front of him was the Void Sword Saint, Jian Chen¡¯s previous master. His understanding of the sword was naturally very deep. The Void Sword Saint reached into his Universe Pouch and took out a jade-green sword, simr to Jian Chen¡¯s Cloud Sword.


    ¡°That is the Jade Sword, an elementary King-tier Divine Arms. It¡¯s of the same series as the Cloud Sword,¡± Jian Chen whispered to Long Chen.


    Three men, three swords.


    ¡°This is yourst chance to beg for forgiveness from the Martial Overlord. Do you yield?¡±


    ¡°Of course, if you kill yourself in front of me.¡± Jian Chen chuckled.


    The Void Sword Saint relented. He knew that it would be impossible to convince Jian Chen. He slowly raised his Jade Sword. ¡°It seems that we will settle everything here today.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re so old yet so talkative.¡± Jian Chen smiled.


    No one would admit that they were old, much less the Void Sword Saint. He was angered by Jian Chen¡¯s words and his eyes slowly grew bloodshot. Of course, they did not look as bad as Jian Chen¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°I was the one who taught you the Illusory Sword Technique. Do you think you can defeat me with it?¡± The Void Sword Saint chuckled.


    Jian Chen said nothing and slowly raised his sword too. With a <em>whoosh</em>, he disappeared. The Void Sword Saint disappeared with blinding speed too. The two of them started fighting furiously!


    <em>So fast! Did they forget about me? </em>Long Chen held up the Deste Cleaving Sword and slowly inched towards where they were fighting.


    Sword.


    The sword arts of those at the Earthly Martial Realm followed the same concept as those who used fists. The two of them were fighting as if their legs were stuck to the ground. Every single sword movement was chained to the soft pulse of the earth. Even though their movements were simple, they were profound and carried destructive powers beyond what one would imagine. The Void Sword Saint identally tapped the ground once with his sword, causing the ground to shake violently.


    It was clear that Jian Chen was being suppressed from the very start. The Void Sword Saint was stronger in all aspects.


    ¡°Illusory World, Killing Words.¡±


    ¡°Illusory World, Killing Words.¡±


    The sound of screeching metal could be heard as the Cloud Sword and the Jade Sword crashed into each other. Since the sh didn¡¯t result in a shockwave, Long Chen was certain that their attacks were contained within the des.


    Jian Chen was repelled by the attack. He stood in front of Long Chen, and thetter could see that Jian Chen was visibly paler. He had used a lot of energy to fight the Void Sword Saint.


    The Void Sword Saint also retreated.


    ¡°Third Brother, could you use your sword to stop him from moving for a single breath?¡± Long Chen whispered.


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°Then trust me. We will move together.¡± Long Chen prepared himself.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 552: Death of the Sword Saint

    Jian Chen believed in Long Chen even though he didn¡¯t know what the n was.


    ¡°I can make sure he stops moving for two breaths.¡± Jian Chen disappeared once more and he charged towards the Void Sword Saint after he said that.


    Long Chen followed him quickly and secretly used the Dragon Soul Transformation to assume his strongest form.


    ¡°Old man, I know my mastery over the Illusory Sword Technique is at least equal to yours.¡± Jian Chen was certain that the only advantage the Void Sword Saint had over them was the difference in their cultivation levels. They were equal in strength in terms of the Illusory Sword Technique.


    Jian Chen¡¯s words caught the Void Sword Saint¡¯s attention. ¡°Is that so? Then let¡¯s try again.¡±


    The Cloud Sword and the Jade Sword shed once more. The two of them appeared to be glued together as they attacked.


    ¡°Binding Words?¡± The Void Sword Saintughed. ¡°You dare use it against me? Don¡¯t you know that I¡¯m better at it?¡±


    The Cloud Sword was the one binding the Jade Sword until now, but the situation hadpletely reversed. The two of them were stuck together like glue.


    <em>Now! </em>Long Chen knew this was his chance. He quickly ran to the side and slightly caught the attention of the Void Sword Saint. Still, thetter hadn¡¯t paid attention to any cultivators at the Ninth Passage Stage for years.Just then, the strength of the Binding Words increased. Jian Chen twisted his sword, and a hurricane engulfed the Void Sword Saint.


    ¡°You dare use your strongest attack on me? Hahaha!¡± The Void Sword Saint twisted his sword too, and arger hurricane engulfed Jian Chen.


    ¡°Illusory World Massacre.¡±


    Long Chen knew that while it looked simple, the strength of the techniques was enormous. If he faced them head-on, he would be shattered to pieces.


    But there was no need for him to get close.


    At thest moment, he activated his technique.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± His Qi expanded and unleashed a torrent of energy simr to a cultivator at the First Earthly Martial Stage. It formed a blood-red space that engulfed the Void Sword Saint. Its powers were exerted only on the Void Sword Saint while ignoring Jian Chen.


    The Blood Devouring Domain still worked on the Void Sword Saint, especially when it appeared so suddenly. The Void Sword Saint was stunned and had no choice to use some of his Qi to suppress his blood. That caused his final attack to be weaker.


    Jian Chen barely managed to deflect that attack.


    ¡°Xiang!¡± While Jian Chen and the Void Sword Saint were stuck together, Long Chen got close and shouted for Xiang. The ck wolf leaped out of the Primordial Realm and released a wave of burning mes towards the Void Sword Saint.


    The cold mes made the Void Sword Saint shiver in fear.


    <em>Run. </em>That was the only thought in his mind. He now realized that Jian Chen was only a distraction. Their real killing technique was the attack from the wolf!


    Even though it was not befitting of him to escape, his life was more precious than anything.


    He wanted to run, but Jian Chen suddenly changed his sword stance and used Binding Words again. His Jade Sword was glued to the Cloud Sword!


    If he wanted to run, he would have to let go of the Jade Sword since breaking the Binding Words would cost him the time of a single breath. By then, the mes would hit him.


    <em>Shit. Why should I be scared? I have a King-tier Body Tempering technique. I don¡¯t have to fear some random me.</em> The Void Sword Saint broke open the Binding Words with his sword. Since he had wasted so much time, his only choice was to use the Jade Sword to defend himself from the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    ¡°Jade Windfall.¡±


    The technique released a massive wheel of wind. The flickering sword hidden inside the wind blocked the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Soon, the Void Sword Saint would be able to escape.


    <em>Hmph! Two amateurs. </em>The Void Sword Saint was about to back away when he felt a sense of danger from his back. He turned around and saw a massive sword array falling on him.


    ¡°What is that!?¡± the Void Sword Saint shouted. To his knowledge, only those at the Earthly Martial Realm could unleash an array of that size, but the Qiing from it didn¡¯t belong to an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator.


    The Void Sword Saint could only block one of the attacks. He had a strange feeling that he would be injured no matter which one he chose.


    He never thought he would be forced into a corner like this.


    <em>You are smart. But once I endure it, I will make sure you suffer. </em>The Void Sword Saint howled in rage.window.yaContextCb=window.yaContextCb||[]


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    He remembered Long Chen. He had ignored him, but now he knew that Long Chen was more dangerous.


    The Heaven Sword Array and the fire¡ªhe had to endure one of them. The fire was the better option. He was wary of it, but it probably wouldn¡¯t harm him; the array looked more dangerous. Though it wasn¡¯t powerful enough to kill him, it would leave a lot of injuries, and he wouldn¡¯t like that.


    ¡°Die!¡± The Void Sword Saint swung his sword, and a hurricane dispersed the Heaven Sword Array with ease. Even the person behind the Heaven Sword Array disintegrated.


    <em>Did I kill him? </em>The Void Sword Saint was confused. He thought the person behind the array would be severely injured at most. He was trying to destroy the array, not Long Chen.


    But by the time he realized what had happened, it was toote.


    ¡°Demonic Illusion.¡± The Heaven Sword Array had been used by the Demonic Illusion! He turned around and was engulfed by the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. The Void Sword Saint was on fire.


    ¡°AAH!¡± A painful scream came from beneath the mes. The Void Sword Saint¡¯s arms iled around as he rolled on the ground furiously. He used his Qi to form a barrier to protect himself from the mes, but some parts of the barrier failed to protect him properly.


    Even so, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire would not be able to defeat the Void Sword Saint.


    Xiang could only control a small part of it for now.


    But Long Chen was ready.


    The moment the Void Sword Saint was engulfed by the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Long Chen used the Heaven Sword Array with the strength of the Golden Crow soul remnants. The attacknded on the Void Sword Saint without any difficulty. The burning mes from the Golden Crow soul remnant and the freezing mes of the Nine Devils ANcestral Fire caused the Void Sword Saint¡¯s body to crumble when he was hit by the Heaven Sword Array.


    Long Chen used the Heaven Sword Array to tear open the Void Sword Saint¡¯s body, allowing the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to spread to his insides. The Void Sword Saint howled in pain and stoppedpletely after three breaths. All that was left of him was a ck statue made of ice.


    They had won.


    Jian Chen paused in shock and stared at the corpse. Everything had happened too quickly.


    Jian Chen never thought they would win; he had thought that he and Long Chen would die here today, and Lan Ling¡¯er would be humiliated, but the Void Sword Saint was dead.


    He looked at Long Chen in a daze. He knew that all he had done was hold the Void Sword Saint down¡ªLong Chen was the one who had delivered the killing blow.


    Everything was within his control.


    The Binding Words, the Blood Devouring Domain, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, the Demonic Illusion, and the Heaven Sword Array. All these techniques had been used in quick session, and the Void Sword Saint fell to the Heaven Sword Array even though he had withstood the attack from the Demonic Illusion.


    One of the ten strongest people in the Martial Alliance was now a block of ice. All of that had happened because of Long Chen.


    Jian Chen couldn¡¯t breathe.


    He realized that Long Chen was much scarier than Long Yue. At the very least, Long Yue¡¯s strength was within his expectations, but Long Chen was perfect even though his cultivation level was lower.


    Not only was Jian Chen shocked, the spectators on the wall were shocked too. They knew how strong the Void Sword Saint was.


    There was One Martial Overlord, Three Martial Emperors, and Ten Martial Saints. The Void Sword Saint was one of the Ten Martial Saints.


    And he had died to some random person.


    All of them focused on Long Chen.


    <em>Who is the youth beside Jian Chen?</em>


    Now only the Flower Martial King was left.


    She had been taking it easy because she knew she only needed to distract Lan Ling¡¯er until the Void Sword Saint dealt with the rest.


    But now the Void Sword Saint was dead.<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts</blockquote>

 Chapter 553: Monster

    The Flower Martial King had watched the Void Sword Saint die. She knew about Long Chen¡¯s final Heaven Sword Array and wanted to warn the Void Sword Saint, but she was toote. By the time she had that thought, he was already an ice sculpture.


    ¡°He¡¯s dead?¡± The Flower Martial King was shocked by Long Chen. It was unheard of for someone weaker and younger to do something like this. She looked at him as if he was a monster.


    ¡°Monster. He¡¯s a monster.¡± The Flower Martial King was shocked and afraid. She had been indulging in her desires just now, but her body trembled with fear after learning that the Void Sword Saint was dead.


    ¡°Die.¡± Due to her momentary distraction, Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s punchnded on the Flower Martial King¡¯s shoulder. She cried out in pain and was blown back by the impact.


    She rolled over on the ground and got covered in dirt. She looked absolutely disheveled, but she didn¡¯t dare to stop. She quickly stood up and was about to run when a white de stabbed her back and came out of her chest.


    Life quickly left her body.


    Jian Chen took out his sword and turned her body around. Her chest was a pool of red.


    Herrgest source of pride now had a hole.


    She took onest look at Jian Chen before slumping to the ground.¡°Bitch. You deserved to die like one.¡± Lan Ling¡¯er stomped her enemy¡¯s body a few times before feeling better. She then looked at Jian Chen. ¡°Third brother, I know you are upset, but at least we¡¯vepleted our revenge and we are alive.¡±


    Jian Chen nodded. ¡°Ling¡¯er, no need to console me. I¡¯ve lived for a long time and I¡¯m used to it. The dead have departed, and the only thing I could do for them was take revenge since I share the same blood as them. Now it''s time for them to rest.¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er nodded, but she didn¡¯t really understand what he meant.


    But Long Chen understood. It seemed a lot of people around Jian Chen had died, or maybe the people he cared for had died. That was why he had left the Martial Alliance and joined Long Yue.


    With the Void Sword Saint dead, no one here could threaten.


    But the Flower Martial King¡¯s belongings were still there. Lan Ling¡¯er opened her Universe Pouch, and what she found made her blush. She took ten royal crystals before throwing the entire Universe Pouch away.


    ¡°What a whore. To think she carried so many things,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er said.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t look, but he could guess what was in there. With her behavior, it would be weird if she didn¡¯t have at least one in her Universe Pouch.


    ¡°Not bad, you did an excellent job. These are for you.¡± Lan Ling¡¯er passed the royal crystals to him. Long Chen was stunned, but he didn¡¯t refuse them.


    royal crystals were important for those at the Martial Realm, and Long Chen only had one.


    ¡°Let¡¯s find somewhere peaceful.¡± Jian Chen called for his Golden Lightning Stallion. Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er followed him. Even though he looked calm, his heart was most likely suffering.


    They wanted to find a peaceful ce.


    That was what Long Chen had thought as well when he wanted to bury Long Qinn.


    <em>It feels like my life started after that day. </em>Long Chen sighed. He had only managed to get this far thanks to the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant.


    They followed Jian Chen for quite some time before they found the perfect ce. They needed to bury over thirty people, but thanks to Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er helping him, it took them less time than they had thought.


    Jian Chen found arge rock and used his sword to carve out thirty tombstones before engraving the names on each one.


    Everything was done.


    ¡°Third Brother, it¡¯s time to leave. Big Sister is waiting for us,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er said to Jian Chen, who was kneeling in front of the graves.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Jian Chen stood up and hopped onto his Golden Lightning Stallion. Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er smiled at each other before following him towards the Cloud Dream Swamp.


    They could only be consideredrades if they lived and died together. Long Chen had a feeling that he had integrated well into their group.


    <em>Dragon n¡­ It¡¯s a good name.</em>


    Time slowly passed.


    Jian Chen no longer traversed the paths where people were walking, so there weren¡¯t any obstacles. After learning their lesson at the Swirling Cloud Mountain Range, Jian Chen increased his awareness. His white hair was much more attention-seeking than he had thought.


    ¡°Cloud Dream Swamp. We will reach it in a day,¡± Jian Chen told them after they traveled for three more days.


    His face appeared normal as if nothing had happened, but Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er knew he was still upset.


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    Time slowly passed, and Long Chen realized that the closer they got to the swamp, the more people they encountered. All of them were cultivators. Many of them were at the Heavenly Passage Realm, but some were at the Heavenly River Realm.


    Lan Ling¡¯er assessed the situation. ¡°So the Scarlet Emperor Seal has indeed appeared. Some of them are here to test their luck. There will probably be tens of thousands of people surging into the swamp when it opens up. That¡¯s good for us since we can blend in, but in the end, only those at the Earthly Martial Realm will truly have a chance to obtain the Scarlet Emperor Seal.¡±


    ¡°Tens of thousands?¡± Long Chen was shocked. The allure of a treasure was indeed hard to resist.


    Since there were too many people, Jian Chen decided to use a path that was seldom used. Everyone was heading towards the Cloud Dream Swamp, while Jian Chen was heading to Cloud Heaven City, which was beside it. Once they arrived, Long Chen had Xiang enter the Primordial Realm as well as the two Golden Lightning Stallions. Of course, he told them that he was using a Beast Soul Crystal.


    Without a mount, they looked considerably inconspicuous. Lan Ling¡¯er also used her technique to transform herself, Long Chen, and Jian Chen. No one would be able to recognize them.


    When they got close to the city, some people walked past them in a hurry, while others walked slowly. All of them were discussing what had happened in the past few days.


    ¡°Have you heard of Long Chen? He was originally a disciple from the Ancient Demon Domain, but apparently, he killed the Demon Emperor¡¯s son and was rescued by the Dragon n. A few days ago, people were saying that he appeared outside of White City and helped Jian Chen to kill his master. Now the Void Sword Saint from the Martial Alliance as well as three Martial Kings are dead.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s incredible! He must be at the First Earthly Martial Stage! Is he the original Long Chen?¡±


    ¡°No. I¡¯ve heard that he looks different.¡±


    ¡°But exteriors can be changed. Look at the Ever-Changing Demon Girl. She can change her appearance every day; she might even be a man. It¡¯s so disgusting! Why would the Dragon n risk their lives to save Long Chen? Is it because he¡¯s the brother of Long Yue, the Icy Dragon Queen?¡±


    ¡°You have a point.¡±


    They then walked past Long Chen.


    Long Chen almost burst outughing when he heard them talking. First, he found Long Yue¡¯s title funny. She must¡¯ve acted so cold that she scared the others away.


    The second funny thing was what they had said about Lan Ling¡¯er. They were disgusted at the prospect of her being a guy, and now she was disguised like one ¡­


    ¡°What are youughing at? I will tear off your mouth! I¡¯m a man, so what? Are youughing at me, little miss?¡± Lan Ling¡¯er red at Long Chen.


    Long Chen then realized that the disguise she had set up for him made him look like a woman. It was probably a joke of hers.


    ¡°What a rascal.¡± He wiped the makeup off.


    ¡°You look like a tabby cat, hahaha!¡± Lan Ling¡¯erughed when she saw Long Chen¡¯s face.


    Long Chen wanted to smack her. He quickly ran towards a spring and washed his face off. Thanks to them fooling around, Jian Chen¡¯s mood appeared to have improved.


    ¡°You are famous now. Long Yue probably knows about what happened to you.¡± Lan Ling¡¯er chuckled once Long Chen was done.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. We won¡¯t have to exin why we arete.¡±


    Cloud Heaven City was just in front of them.


    Before they got close, a voice called for them. ¡°Third Brother, over here.¡±


    They turned around and saw that it was Chi Ying. His informants had most likely spotted them, so he hade over to take them directly to Long Yue. On the way, Chi Ying stared at Long Chen like an oddity. He then raised his thumbs in approval. ¡°Seventh Brother, I heard that you killed the Void Sword Saint.¡±


    ¡°Third Brother took his attention and held him down while I attacked. I fear I wouldn¡¯t have been able tond a single attack without his help.¡±


    ¡°Even so, that¡¯s an incredible feat. I wouldn¡¯t be able to do the same.¡± Chi Ying smiled, revealing his white teeth.


    He brought the three of them into a cave on a mountainside. Lei Zhen was standing guard outside and there was a gazebo inside. Jiang Wuya and Long Yue were ying chess there. Long Yue stood up when she saw Long Chen.


    But Jiang Wuya stopped her. ¡°Don¡¯t run away. You are losing.¡±


    Long Yue rolled her eyes and mmed the table. The chess pieces turned to dust.


    Jiang Wuya could do nothing but smile bitterly.


    Despite how strong she was, there was still a childish side to her.


    Long Chen now became the center of attention, and even Long Yue realized that she had underestimated him ¡­<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    WHATS IN HER UNIVERSE POUCH?!</blockquote>

 Chapter 555: Two Demon Saint

    In the past, Long Chen would¡¯ve thought that this ce was heaven to him since there were so many demonic beasts. But now he knew that progressing through the Three Martial Realm not only required an increase in his essence, but also an increase in hisprehension. The blood essence of demonic beasts could help him reach the peak of every stage quickly, but it was not the key to making him be stronger.


    Long Yue turned around when she heard them talking. ¡°The King-tier demonic beasts hate humans. Theirir is at the depths of the Cloud Dream Swamp. If we respress on their territory, they will definitely retaliate. If the Red Emperor¡¯s Seal appears there, we will have some trouble on our hands.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. We will not be the only cultivators there¡ªthe people from the Martial Alliance will definitely show up. There are also the people from the Ancient Demon Domain and the Huangfu family. I doubt that the beasts will do anything when faced with so many people,¡± Jiang Wuya exined.


    ¡°We should still be careful. We should not be the vanguard at a time like this,¡± Long Yue warned.


    They continued trudging forward. A lot of people were entering the swamp, and Long Yue chose the path with the least amount of traffic. When they got close, Long Chen had a feeling that the ce was even more dangerous than the Ancient Demon Domain. A vile stench assaulted them; it was a mix of rotting corpses and mud.


    Lan Ling¡¯er quickly flew up a meter to avoid the mud. She didn¡¯t want to even touch it.


    ¡°The muddy terrain will impede ourbat abilities. Long Chen, you¡¯ve just reached the Ninth Passage Stage. Have you tried flying?¡± Long Yue sounded serious when she asked him.


    Long Chen had tried before. He already had ess to his Heaven Meridian. While they were moving towards the Cloud Dream Swamp, Lan Ling¡¯er had taught him how to fly. Still, he could only float half a meter high as a beginner.


    ¡°I can stabilize my body in the air, but I still can¡¯t fight midair.¡± Long Chen smiled bitterly.Long Yue nodded. ¡°Usually, those at the Ninth Passage Stage can only do so much. Still, when you reach the Earthly Martial Realm, you will have to fight onnd even though you will be familiar with flying. The basis of the Earth Martial Realm lies in the earth. You need to feel andprehend the pulse of the earth. Even though you can fly, you cannot escape being on the ground.¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean flying is useless?¡±


    Long Yue shook her head. ¡°No. Once you reach the Heavenly Martial Realm, most of your battles will be done in the air. To be honest, I don''t even know the specifics of it. But since the strength of those at the Earthly Martial Realmes from the earth, then the strength of those at the Heavenly Martial Realm shoulde from the skies. Only a few of them exist in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    Jiang Wuya sighed. ¡°Even though the Divine Martial Empire is one of the Ten Great Empires, we were always the weakest among all of them. The other Empires look down on us because our strongest fighter, the Martial Overlord, is only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. He¡¯s not even qualified to fetch the shoes of the strongest cultivators in the other Empires.¡±


    Long Yue nodded. ¡°The news of the Five Emperor Seal has been contained by the Martial Alliance so that the other Empires don¡¯t find out about it, or the Divine Martial Empire would be bathed in blood. I hope that the Emperor-tier technique, the Five Emperor Seal, allows an extremely strong cultivator to arise in the Divine Martial Empire.¡±


    Long Chen listened to them silently.


    He had a rough understanding of the Ten Great Empires now.


    <em>The Divine Martial Empire is the weakest of the ten, but I think that the people here are already strong. Thankfully, I didn¡¯t go to the other empires, or I would be dead by now.</em>


    Long Yue then continued, ¡°Anyway, you should learn how to fly better. There¡¯s a very strong technique in the Huangfu family called the Willow Step. It¡¯s an intermediate King-tier technique that allows one to dodge in the air like a falling willow leaf. It allows the user to evade attacks mid-air.¡±


    A King-tier martial technique, and an intermediate one too.


    It was one of the highest-tiered techniques in the Divine Martial Empire.


    There were probably no advanced King-tier techniques in the Divine Martial Empire.


    It was clear that the Emperor-tier Five Emperor Seal was an incredibly rare technique here.


    As they spoke, they made their way into the swamp. Even though there were tens of thousands of people gathering here, the ce was massive. If they needed to hide, they could take one of the more hidden routes to shake off pursuers.


    The seven of them walked carefully through the gray miasma.


    There were many dangers hidden in the swamp, so Long Chen¡¯s Soul Swallowing Gaze yed a big role. It could detect any souls in the swamp, including incredibly small ones. None escaped his eyes.


    After walking for more than ten Li, they noticed that more and more Poison Beasts and Poison Insects were around them. They didn¡¯t know how long they had been here, but they saw that the mud beneath them was bubbling nonstop. Long Chen used Sight and saw that there were numerous crocodiles underneath the mud. There were thousands of them!


    They were not normal crocodiles, but ones at the Heaven-tier. They were around Category Three to Five, and each of them was more than five meters long. Their bodies were ck and robust with sharp spikes covering their tails. Their strong jaws were filled with dagger-like teeth.


    ¡°Demon Crocodiles,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er warned Long Chen.


    As if sensing the presence of humans, the massive crocodiles poked their heads out of the swamp and revealed their teeth, making the ce look like and filled with swords.


    ¡°Who wants to open up a path for us?¡±


    The Demon Crocodiles did not understand how strong they were, so they would attack if no one scared them away.


    ¡°Let me do it.¡± Lei Zhenughed and walked to the front. Lightning formed on his fist and he punched the swamp in front of him. The lightning shot out and took the shape of a fist before crashing into the swamp. The lightning traveled through the swamp and quickly spread to cover a wide area. Most of the Demon Crocodiles cried out in pain before dying. Using the lightning, Lei Zhen killed more than half of the Demon Crocodiles.


    <em>Lei Zhen is very strong too. He might be stronger than Jian Chen if he uses the Heavenly Mantra Thunder Beast.</em>


    Thanks to that single attack from Lei Zhen, the Demon Crocodiles were scared and immediately plunged back into the depths of the swamp. While they were fierce and would attack humans, they were smart enough to know when they were outssed.


    Long Chen used Sight and saw that the Demon Crocodiles were swimming back into the depths as fast as they could.


    They were about to leave when Long Yue suddenly turned around. Long Chen turned around and used Sight. Four people were closing in on them from just one Li away. In the blink of an eye, they appeared in front of Long Chen.


    They were from the Ancient Demon Domain, and the person at the front was Jiang Wuxie. The person on his side was Jiang Wushang. There were two more white-haired old men following them. One was taller than the other, and both wore the outfit of the grand elders, but their strength was unmeasurable.


    ¡°To think the two of them are still alive. They probably ran here the moment they heard that the Red Emperor Seal was showing up,¡± Lan Ling¡¯erined beside Long Chen.


    ¡°How strong are they?¡±


    ¡°They are the trump cards of the Ancient Demon Domain. Those two are at the Second Earthly Martial Stage. They are also the two Demon Saints of the Ancient Demon Domain. To think they are still alive. We never ran into them when we entered the Ancient Demon Domain, so they were probably in isted training.¡±


    Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    They were as strong as Jiang Wuya.


    The Ancient Demon Domain was actually very strong. If Jiang Wuya were still in the Ancient Demon Domain, they would actually have three Demon Saints.


    There were four of them, while Long Chen¡¯s party had seven people. They stood there and looked at each other before Jiang Wuxie smiled coldly.


    ¡°We were wondering who it was when he detected movements here. So it¡¯s the Dragon n.¡±


    ¡°I thought the Demon Emperor already had the ck Emperor Seal. Are you here for the Red Emperor Seal too? You greedy bastard,¡± Long Yue said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have it, but, Long Yue, I know you have the Azure Emperor Seal in your hands.¡± The Demon Emperor¡¯s eyes kindled with a dangerous light.


    ¡°Your information is wrong.¡± Long Yue did not flinch at all.


    <em>The Azure Emperor Seal is in Long Yue¡¯s hands?</em>


    Long Chen thought that this was possible. They traveled everywhere to find the Five Emperor Seals, so they had to have at least one of them.


    If that was the case, adding in the Red Emperor Seal, three out of the five seals had appeared. But no one would have thought that the ck Emperor Seal was in Long Chen¡¯s hands. Jiang Wuxie had been feeling very frustrated because everyone thought he had the ck Emperor Seal.


    Jiang Wuxie did not press the matter since Long Yue denied having the Azure Emperor Seal. He looked at Jiang Wuya before staring at the youth at the back of the group.


    ¡°Long Chen.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s name has been spread far and wide. The death of the Void Sword Saint was rted to Long Chen, but many did not believe it since they had not witnessed it with their own eyes. How could someone at the Ninth Passage Stage kill someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage?


    Killing someone at the Four Basic Realms was one thing, but killing someone at the Three Martial Realms was another ¡­<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    I have no idea why they always use the Chinese word for "Thunder" but then they always used "Lightning" instead</blockquote>

 Chapter 556: Blood Ocean Viper

    Jiang Wuxie was not the only one looking at Long Chen. Jiang Wushang and the two Demon Saints were staring at him too. Jiang Wuxie could easily tell that Long Chen was only at the Ninth Passage Stage.


    ¡°It seems that you used the Emperor me Pearl to reach the Ninth Passage Stage during the Day of the Nine Suns,¡± Jiang Wuxie said without any emotion.


    ¡°I have to thank you for that. If not for you, I wouldn¡¯t have had the chance to progress so quickly.¡±


    ¡°Hmph.¡± Jiang Wushang scoffed and taunted, ¡°You are nothing but a cripple, so it¡¯s almost impossible for you to progress further. So what if you reached the Ninth Passage Stage with the help of an external object? You will never reach the Three Martial Realm in your life, and you will never be strong again. I think the rumors of you killing the Void Sword Saint are fake.¡±


    The Demon Emperor had examined Long Chen¡¯s body when thetter used Blood Sacrifice, so he knew that Blood Sacrifice had left him crippled. Jiang Wushang knew this too.


    Long Chen did not deny it.


    It was better for them to look down on him so that they would let their guard down.


    The Demon Emperor assumed that Long Chen would remain at the Ninth Passage Stage for the rest of his life.


    But Long Chen¡¯s body was fine. The third stage of Blood Sacrifice had only injured part of his body. Thanks to Long Yue¡¯s treatment, as well as the golden energy that had healed him during the Day of the Nine Suns, Long Chen¡¯s body hadpletely recovered. It was even stronger than before.¡°He¡¯s only at the Ninth Passage Stage and yet you brought him here. Aren¡¯t you afraid that he will die?¡± Jiang Wushang scoffed.


    He actually wanted to take Long Chen in as his aide, but now that Long Chen had killed his brother, one of the Demon Kings, and numerous grand elders, he felt nothing but hatred. Long Chen would¡¯ve died if the Dragon n hadn¡¯t shown up.


    Long Yue did not back down. ¡°Since everyone from the Ancient Demon Domain is here, I should let you know that Long Chen is the seventh member of the Dragon n. He will follow us wherever we go. We will fight to the death if anyone dares to touch him. Jiang Wuxie, we are done here. Goodbye.¡±


    Long Yue ignored them and turned around. The others shot looks at the people from the Ancient Demon Domain and left too.


    With so many people guarding him, Long Chen was not afraid, so he smiled at Jiang Wuxie. ¡°You already lost a son and yet you brought him here? Aren¡¯t you afraid that you will lose another?¡±


    He then quickly followed Long Yue.


    Thatment made Jiang Wushang angry and he was about to attack, but Jiang Wuxie stopped him. ¡°There¡¯s no reason to attack just because they said something about us. Our goal is to get the Red Emperor Seal. There are a lot of experts here right now, so we should let the Dragon n and the Martial Alliance fight each other while we reap the rewards. If you really hate him, you will have a chance to attack himter.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father.¡± Jiang Wushang nodded.


    ***


    They continued traveling deeper into the swamp.


    The deeper they went, the stronger the Poison Beasts and Poison Insects. Everyone exercised caution as they went forward. After traveling for a long time, they finally reached the vicinity of the deepest part of the Cloud Dream Swamp. Many others were also arriving at this location. Long Chen saw numerous groups of people around him.


    Some had started fighting even though the Red Emperor Seal hadn¡¯t appeared.


    After seeing the strength of Long Chen¡¯s group, many chose not to approach them.


    Killing others to snatch their treasures was always the fastest way to be rich. The appearance of the Red Emperor Seal had attracted a lot of strong people here, and many of them were quite rich. That meant there was a lot of money to be earned here. Many of the cultivators present weren¡¯t targeting the Red Emperor Seal, but the treasures of others.


    ¡°They have started killing each other.¡± Looking at the blood pooling on the mud, Long Chen frowned and looked around. The faint scent of blood mixed with the stench in the air.


    They weren¡¯t just killing each other, but also the demonic beasts. Many of them were already engaged in battle with the strong demonic beasts that called the Dream Cloud Swamp their home. There were also demonic beasts at the Category Nine Heaven-tier here in the swamp. They stood at the peak of the food chain, so they were very sensitive when it came to their territory. Seeing people entering their territory as they pleased made them angry.


    Howls of beasts could be heard in the depths of the Cloud Dream Swamp from time to time.


    The painful screams of people could be heard too.


    But the demonic beasts could not stop Long Chen and the rest. With Lei Zhen clearing the path, even beasts at the Category Nine Heaven-tier were killed with just a single punch. His lightning attribute countered the beasts that were affiliated with the Yin or cold attribute, so none of them could escape Lei Zhen¡¯s attacks.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Lei Zhen¡¯s fist killed a ck snake in one hit. The snake was more than twenty meters long and was close to one meter thick. Its mouth was filled with venom. It was a Category Eight Heaven-tier beast that boasted strong offensive capabilities, but it had been killed by Lei Zhen in one hit.


    After Lei Zhen killed the snake, a strange sound came from the depths of the swamp.


    ¡°Careful. It¡¯s a King-tier beast,¡± Long Yue warned them. She then pushed Lei Zhen back. The others huddled together and watched carefully.


    The swamp started bubbling just ten meters away from Long Yue. Suddenly, the mud burst forth and a massive, ck body shot out. Long Chen was immediately attracted to the red eyes that wererger than dinner tes. Wild animosity exuded from those red eyes.


    Long Chen took a closer look and realized that it was a snake¡¯s head! The head was the size of a small house.


    ¡°Category One King-tier, Blood Ocean Viper,¡± Lan Ling¡¯er whispered.


    ¡°What a massive beast.¡± Long Chen was in awe. This was the first King-tier beast he had ever seen. It was indeed out of his expectations because the head of the snake could easily scare off many people, especially with those blood-red eyes. They were like two pools of blood that radiated bloodlust.


    The snake red at Long Chen and the rest. Dark miasma suddenly covered the snake and then it disappeared, revealing a youth in a ck shirt in midair in its original location.


    The youth was still beast-like, however. His face and eyes were slender and his skin was fairly ck. His eyes were small, but they were simr to his eyes in his beast form. The demonic beast''s aura radiated from the youth¡¯s body.


    The youth opened his mouth and his tongue flickered. Long Chen realized that his tongue was still a snake''s tongue. No matter how he looked, Long Chen could tell that the youth was just like a snake.


    <em>It¡¯s the human form of a King-tier demonic beast. I can¡¯t tell how strong it is, but its body is so much smaller now.</em>


    The youth stared at them and opened his mouth. He waited for some time before finally saying, ¡°You ¡­ Strong ¡­ Scary ¡­¡±


    It had justprehended speech and wasn¡¯t good at it.


    Long Yue did not interrupt it and waited for it to finish.


    ¡°Here ¡­ Our ¡­ Home ¡­ We eat ¡­ Those who trespass ¡­ Go away ¡­¡± Its eyes were fierce as it red at everyone.


    ¡°We are here to find the Red Emperor Seal. It¡¯s useless to you but priceless to us. We just want to take it. We have no intention of taking your territory,¡± Long Yue exined calmly.


    ¡°No ¡­ Territory ¡­ Sacred ¡­ Go ¡­ If not ¡­ My King ¡­ Will eat ¡­ You ¡­¡± The youth struggled to say the words, but he was adamant.


    ¡°Sorry. We need to get the Red Emperor Seal no matter what.¡±


    ¡°Die.¡± Seeing that Long Yue refused to go, he submerged back into the swamp after ring at them onest time. The mud rumbled and bubbled. Long Chen assumed that the snake had turned around and went away under the mud.


    ¡°Its appearance means that we are close to the center of the Cloud Dream Swamp,¡± Long Yue exined.


    ¡°Big Sister, is the king he mentioned the legendary ¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s the second strongest demonic beast recorded in the Divine Martial Empire, the ck Water Viper. The Dream Cloud Swamp is its nest. Every beast here obeys it.¡±


    ¡°How strong is the ck Water Viper?¡±


    ¡°Category Three King-tier, and it¡¯s at the top of it. It¡¯s only weaker than the Heavenly Phoenix of the Immortal Seas. The ck Water Viper has lived for thousands of years and is a very strong beast. It¡¯s probably ten timesrger than the Blood Ocean Viper.¡±


    The Blood Ocean Viper was at least hundreds of meters long. That meant the ck Water Viper was thousands of meters long. It was a horrifying concept.


    Long Chen was extremely shocked to learn this.


    ¡°The ck Water Viper might be strong, but it can¡¯t stop us. Me, Jiang Wuxie, and also Yang Ningfeng should be able to force it to retreat if we fight together, but there are too many other experts around. It will be difficult to get the Red Emperor Seal ¡­¡± Long Yue frowned.


    ¡°One finds riches amidst danger. We should prioritize protecting our lives and consider the Red Emperor Seal a secondary objective,¡± Jiang Wuya suggested.


    They then continued to make their way to the depths of the swamp. The Blood Ocean Viper had merely warned them to leave after sensing how strong they were.


    Many others were also making their way to the depths of the Cloud Dream Swamp. It was rumored that the Red Emperor Seal was going to appear at the center of the Cloud Dream Swamp.


    Long Yue suddenly stopped. ¡°The Martial Alliance is here.¡±<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    There''s another snake!? And it''s even bigger?!</blockquote>

 Chapter 557: Martial Emperor Yang Ningfeng

    After hearing Long Yue¡¯s warning, the whole group immediately held their breaths. This time, the Martial Alliance had not discovered them first, but the other way around. They could exchange some insults with people of the Ancient Demon Domain, but if they encountered the Martial Alliance, due to the enmity between them, it would surely end in a huge fight.


    Engaging in a huge fight before the appearance of the Red Emperor Seal was not a wise move.


    That was why everyone was extremely tense.


    ¡°Lay on your stomachs,¡± Long Yue instructed softly. If they dropped to their stomachs, held their breaths, and sealed their energies, it would be difficult to find them unless someone had Long Chen¡¯s Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    Lying prone did not mean their bodies would touch the mud, since they were all high-level cultivators. In fact, with the pressure from Long Yue¡¯s essence, arge depression formed in the mud. All of them entered the ditch, and only their eyes emerged to look in the direction Long Yue was pointing at.


    Indeed, just a few hundred meters away, Long Chen saw a group of people dressed in golden-yellow clothing. These people did not attempt to hide their presence, which was why Long Yue had noticed them with ease. Due to the distance, Long Chen could not see their faces clearly. However, he sensed that they were surely at least as strong as their group.


    There were nine of them in total, and one of them was obviously one of the Three Martial Emperors, Yang Ningfeng. Being at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, he was considered one of the highest-level cultivators in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Having Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators was what turned a faction into a major superpower.


    Long Chen eyed the group of Martial Alliance members. They were not heading towards the Dragon n, so as long as they left, they would be safe. Long Chen could hear their conversation. One of them asked, ¡°Any signs of the Red Emperor Seal?¡±


    Another replied, ¡°The Fire Soul Crystal hasn¡¯t lit up yet. Perhaps the fire energy in this area isn¡¯t strong yet. Martial Emperor Yang, let¡¯s try again when we go deeper.¡±


    Yang Ningfeng replied, ¡°If we go any deeper, we¡¯ll reach the ck Water Viper¡¯s territory. However, anyone who gets in our way, even if it¡¯s that snake, must die. Carry on the search with the Fire Soul Crystal.¡±


    As they spoke, they moved further from Long Chen¡¯s group.


    ¡°Fire Soul Crystal? I can¡¯t believe they brought something like that here. Although it¡¯s not very useful, it is very sensitive to fire energy. It''ll be much, much easier for them to find the Red Emperor Seal ¡­¡± Long Yue said with furrowed brows when they were far away.


    At this point, the people of the Martial Alliance hadpletely disappeared into the mist. Even Long Yue could no longer see them.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we just follow them?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°If we follow too closely, they¡¯ll discover us. If we follow from too far away, it¡¯ll be difficult to find them. Just like right now. I don¡¯t even know where they¡¯ve gone,¡± Long Yue answered with some frustration.


    ¡°I have a way to follow them from afar and not get discovered. You guys can just follow me,¡± Long Chen said suddenly, standing up.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Everyone else stood up and peered at him with surprise. Long Yue asked, ¡°You really have a way?¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He would use the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    With the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could follow them from five hundred meters away, so they would not be found easily. He was decisive, so he immediately set off to follow them. Everyone else trusted him, so they looked at each other and then followed him.


    ¡°If we can¡¯t get the Red Emperor Seal, the Martial Alliance must not get it either,¡± Long Yue said softly. Following the Martial Alliance closely would work; plus, if there was trouble ahead, they would face it first. In the end, the Martial Alliance would be the ones to suffer. This n served to benefit the Dragon n!


    The only people in the depths of the Cloud Dream Swamp were masters, because people below the Seventh Passage Stage would find it difficult to get here.


    From this region onwards, they were in the territory of King-tier beasts. That was why Long Chen no longer saw any beasts in the area, not even tiny venomous insects.


    The higher level a beast was, the more territorial they became. Entering their territory was the most severe act of provocation to these creatures. That was why the moment the Martial Alliance group entered this area, the whole muddy swamp trembled.


    The people of the Martial Alliance halted and red ahead menacingly.


    Arge patch of mud in front of them bubbled furiously, as if boiling, and endless mud flew into the air. Consecutive ear-piercing hisses sounded, making their hairs stand on end. It was clearly the cry of a snake-type demonic beast.


    There was a huge <em>boom,</em> and a gigantic beast shot into the air. The portion of its body that was above the mud was already a hundred meters long. Sensing such an immense presence made Long Chen and the rest stop too. A pair of bright, red eyes red at the Martial Alliance members¡ªit was the Blood Ocean Viper, the same one who had warned Long Chen and the others.


    A red line extended from its head to its tail.


    They did not know how much of the beast¡¯s body was under the mud. This time, the Blood Ocean Viper was clearly furious. It had already warned the humans once, so why were they still here?


    It did not matter how powerful the humans were¡ªthey were not allowed in this territory. This was the home of the beasts of the Cloud Dream Swamp, and they saw themselves as powerful. How could they not get furious when puny humans tried to enter theirnd?


    The Blood Ocean Viper let out an earth-shattering hiss and lowered its head. The snake¡¯s head shot towards the Martial Alliance members like an arrow. <em>Whoosh! </em>When it was close to them, it suddenly spat out a cloud of red mist!


    This was the Blood Ocean Viper¡¯s venom mist. If a person was caught within, all the blood in their body would turn bad, causing the body to rot and die. It was a terrifying attack. Those beneath the Earthly Martial Realm were basically defenseless against it.


    ¡°Just a useless trick.¡± There was a white-haired old man standing at the very front of the Martial Alliance members. He was not very tall, but his shiny, white hair was tied into a ponytail, making him look clean and elegant. What differentiated him from the rest was the long, white robes he was wearing, which had golden embroidery, signifying that he was highly ranked.


    This person was one of the Three Martial Emperors, Yang Ningfeng.


    With Yang Ningfeng present, the others were not worried about the Blood Ocean Viper. The red mist quickly shot towards them, but Yang Ningfeng waved his hand gently. A gust of wind blew towards the Blood Ocean Viper¡¯s face, blowing the venom mist back at it!


    ¡°Hiss!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just looking for death.¡± Without another word, Yang Ningfeng disappeared in a sh. The next time he appeared, he was already right in front of the Blood Ocean Viper¡¯s eyes. The snake cried out in surprise due to the human¡¯s sudden appearance and retreated in a panic. Unfortunately, it was toote¡ªYang Ningfeng threw a punch right at its head. There was a loud <em>boom</em> and a ripple traveled from the snake¡¯s head to its tail, along with numerous cracks and snaps. Those were the sounds of the Blood Ocean Viper¡¯s bones breaking in many ces.


    The snake¡¯s head had taken the most damage from his punch.


    The Blood Ocean Viper let out a cry, then it copsed. Its gigantic body fell on the surface of the mud, causing another loud boom as mud flew in all directions.


    The Martial Alliance members cheered.


    ¡°You deserve the title of Martial Emperor! Killing a King-tier beast was as easy as chopping vegetables.¡±


    ¡°I might¡¯ve lost to the Blood Ocean Viper even if I put my life on the line to beat it. Yet the Martial Emperor killed it with just one punch! I ampletely floored.¡±


    Yang Ningfeng nodded when he listened to their praises and said, ¡°Martial King Zhao, keep the useful parts of the Blood Ocean Viper, especially the Beast Soul. Someone in the Martial Alliance needs a King-tier Beast Soul, right?¡±


    The Martial King in question, whose surname was Zhao, nodded hurriedly and started to deal with the carcass. The rest of them looked around cautiously. Yang Ningfeng had just killed a King-tier beast, an act that was sure to create a grudge between them and the beasts of the swamp. They believed that revenge woulde soon.


    However, Yang Ningfeng was not worried at all. The Martial Alliance was the number one faction of the Divine Martial Empire. They had always acted like this; what was there to be afraid of?


    Very soon, Martial King Zhao finished cutting up the carcass and took everything he wanted to. The remaining flesh and blood were useless to them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. The ck Water Viper sees this puny thing as its guard dog. I¡¯m just showing him what we¡¯re capable of so that he knows to stay away from us. The only ones who can¡¯t be angered are the Martial Alliance,¡± said Yang Ningfeng with a smile.


    The Martial Alliance members continued to travel ahead.


    The Dragon n looked at each other and immediately followed.


    The people they were tailing were indeed crazy.


    ¡°Yang Ningfeng was initially one of the top five in the Divine Martial Empire as the Great Priest of the Wind God Sect. However, the Martial Alliance absorbed them and he became just a ve to the Martial Alliance. I can¡¯t believe that he has be their loyal dog after merely ten years. I guess it¡¯s a huge improvement going from ve to dog.¡± Long Yue¡¯s tone was filled with mockery and contempt.


    Since the Martial Alliance continued moving forward, they did the same.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know where the people of the Ancient Demon Domain have gone, but with their personalities, they must have also arrived in the King-tier beast area. Now that the Martial Alliance has made an opening here, I¡¯m sure many people will rush in through this hole. We must move quickly so that other people do not notice us.¡± <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Welp, there''s goes snake number one. One more snake to go.</blockquote>

 Chapter 558: Black Water Viper

    As expected, many masters started entering this area, following the Martial Alliance¡¯s footsteps. However, Ninth Passage Stage cultivators benefited the most from this excursion.


    Usually, cultivators who reached the Earthly Martial Realm were recorded in the Martial Alliance¡¯s database. Unless they were very good at running away, they would be caught by the Martial Alliance, who would give them two choices. Either they pledge loyalty to the Martial Alliance, or die. That was why the vast majority of Earthly Martial Realm cultivators had been absorbed by the Martial Alliance already, or at least had to call themselves members of the Martial Alliance. Even a major faction like the Ancient Demon Domain had to call themselves part of the Martial Alliance, let alone the others.


    When the number of humans increased, the other King-tier beasts strangely disappeared.


    The Martial Alliance members traveled for a long time, but they did not run into any more King-tier beasts. ces that should have been home to King-tier beasts were empty.


    ¡°Perhaps they¡¯ve ¡­ run away?¡± Long Chen said.


    These King-tier beasts could take human form, so they also had intelligence. With so many experts here, the beasts around Category One King-tier must have hid themselves temporarily as they knew that fighting the Martial Alliance would only mean trouble.


    Long Chen had a feeling that the Red Emperor Seal would appear in this ce.


    They continued to venture deeper.


    At this point, many people surpassed Long Chen¡¯s group to sneak toward the Martial Alliance members. With them around, the Dragon n could finally follow without sneaking around. There were now many people following the Martial Alliance.


    ¡°Martial Emperor Yang, shall I kill them?¡± asked one of the Martial Kings.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need. They are insignificant figures; what can they do? Even if I put the Red Emperor Seal in front of them, they would not dare take it,¡± said Yang Ningfeng, who did not even take one look at them.


    That was when one of the men said, ¡°The Fire Soul Crystal is heating up! It has likely sensed the presence of the Red Emperor Seal! That way!¡±


    The Martial Alliance members quickly rushed in the direction the man had pointed to.


    ¡°They¡¯ve discovered something.¡± Long Yue gestured for her group to quickly follow them. They were fast and good at hiding themselves, so they soon closed in on the Martial Alliance while blending in with the crowd. Of course, they still made an effort to keep themselves hidden.


    <em>Boom! </em>


    There was an explosion, and sky-high mes burned brightly ahead. Firelight lit up half the sky, then it suddenly disappeared! The humid air of the Cloud Dream Swamp suddenly turned dry and hot!


    ¡°The Red Emperor Seal is that way!¡±


    ¡°Yes, it must be!¡±


    Everyone started shouting, and Long Yue¡¯s face changed. She quickly instructed Jiang Wuya, ¡°Protect them!¡±


    Then she disappeared right in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes!


    <em>She¡¯s fast. </em>Long Chen was startled. With such a hugemotion, there would surely be a huge crowding to this area. They had a great advantage because they were so close. Since Long Yue had gone to fight for the Red Emperor Seal, they did not dare slow down. With Jiang Wuya leading them, the Dragon n quickly passed countless people and followed the Martial Alliance members closely. In fact, they were not much farther from the Red Emperor Seal than the Martial Alliance!


    Just like Long Yue, the leader of the Martial Alliance¡¯s squad, Yang Ningfeng, had also long disappeared. They were the strongest, so it was expected that the fight for the Red Emperor Seal would be initiated by the strongest people. Long Chen and the rest merely took supporting roles.


    The Dragon n and the Martial Alliance instantly left everyone else behind as they shot off towards the location of the fire. The Martial Alliance had already discovered the Dragon n, and they had two Second Earthly Martial-Stage Martial Saints leading their team!


    They were a little stronger than Long Chen¡¯s squad.


    However, the real fight had yet to begin, so they did not attack Long Chen¡¯s squad. As for the Dragon n, they knew that they would meet a tragic end if they fought without a huge advantage!


    That was why neither side had attacked.


    The true fight would be between Long Yue and Yang Ningfeng.


    Long Chen and the rest quickly arrived at a location just two hundred meters away from Long Yue¡¯s target location. Everyone halted here because Long Yue and Yang Ningfeng were heading towards the same destination!


    ¡°Long Yue! You again! You¡¯re looking for death!¡± The moment Yang Ningfeng saw her, he knew who it was. There were only a handful of Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Both of them ran as fast as they could!


    Long Chen looked up and saw a fireball floating in the air fifty meters ahead. He could not see it clearly, but if there was a fire in a wet and humid ce like the Cloud Dream Swamp, then it had to be the Red Emperor Seal!


    Although it was a precious treasure, the first ones who noticed it were two of the strongest people in the Divine Martial Empire. This meant that other people did not have much of a chance to take it for themselves.


    Everyone was watching the battle between Long Yue and Yang Ningfeng. One was the cier Dragon Emperor, while the other was the Martial Emperor of the Martial Alliance. Who was stronger?


    Everyone was curious.


    However, Long Chen sensed that something was off. When he used the Soul Swallowing Gaze, his face changed and he roared, ¡°Long Yue! Careful of the swamp!¡±


    To prevent any confusion at such a critical moment, Long Chen had yelled her name. Long Yue was in a race against Yang Ningfeng, and she heard Long Chen¡¯s shout.


    She recognized Long Chen¡¯s voice, so she diverted some of her attention to the swamp beneath her as she ran forward. The moment she noticed it, her face changed and she quickly dodged sideways!


    Yang Ningfeng both heard Long Chen and saw Long Yue¡¯s reaction. He was no idiot, so he knew that if Long Yue was dodging something, it was a good idea to pay attention to the swamp below. After sensing the being beneath the mud, his face changed.


    Just like Long Yue, he swerved!


    Suddenly, the whole Cloud Dream Swamp trembled. This was tens of times more severe than themotion caused by the Blood Ocean Viper! The whole swamp seemed to be boiling and mud flew in all directions!


    There was a <em>boom</em>, and the moment Long Yue and Yang Ningfeng dodged, their previous location exploded. Mud shot into the sky and something that looked like a ck mountain shot out. The ck mountain was actually a ck snakehead!


    Indeed, it was the king of the Cloud Dream Swamp, the ck Water Snake!


    Its head alone was a small hill, and it was ten timesrger than the Blood Ocean Viper. If the head alone was that big, its body had to be more than a thousand meters long!


    ¡°Fuck!¡± Yang Ningfeng was upset because the moment the ck Water Viper emerged, it swallowed the Red Emperor Seal. Then it gradually emerged from the swamp. When a third of its body was above ground, the mud level lowered by a whole meter!


    This showed how immense this creature was!


    Everyone looked up at the gigantic ck snake slowly emerging right in front of them.


    The ck Water Viper¡¯s head was hundreds of meters above the ground. Its emerald, shining eyes looked down at them. They were just like ants in its eyes.


    ¡°The ck Water Viper!¡±


    Many people cried in surprise. To them, the ck Water Viper was just a legend of the Cloud Dream Swamp as it had not revealed itself for countless years. They had not expected to see it today.


    However, it was not a pleasant surprise in the least.


    After it swallowed the Red Emperor Seal and postured itself above, it looked down and spat out ck mist!


    Due to its size, the ck mist covered arge area. Everyone felt like a ck tsunami was crashing towards them, causing their scalps to go numb from fear.


    ¡°Run!¡±


    ¡°The poison gas will eat into our bodies! We¡¯ll be done for the second we touch it!¡±


    ¡°Save me!¡±


    The other cultivators screamed in agony as they ran. However, only those at the Ninth Passage Stage and above managed to break free. Those who were too close could not escape, not even the people at the Ninth Passage Stage.


    Long Chen and the rest were in the thick of it, so the ck mist reached them first!


    ¡°Protect yourselves with essence!¡±manded Jiang Wuya, then he immediately pulled Long Chen to his side and protected him.


    <em>Rumble! </em>The thick, ck mist crashed through the area.


    The Martial Realm cultivators could protect themselves with their essence. The rest were simply unlucky. A single attack from the ck Water Viper had killed half of the people here!


    The remaining half were terrified and quickly hid themselves far away. Some of them were already screaming for their parents as they ran off. Some were unwilling to give up and watched from far away. The only remaining people were the stronger cultivators, which were a few Earthly Martial Realm cultivators, as well as the Dragon n and the Martial Alliance.


    However, another team approached.


    They had been hiding amongst the crowd until now, but after the ck mist, they were exposed. They were the Ancient Demon Domain members. <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Sudden raid boss iing!</blockquote>

 Chapter 559: Wind God Kick

    With the emergence of the Ancient Demon Domain squad, all of the top parties were present.


    After the ck Water Viper¡¯s show of might, its massive body rose once more, blocking out the sun as it looked down on the crowd. It was deeply nervous about three specific humans, which were Long Yue, Yang Ningfeng, and Jiang Wuxie.


    Long Yuended in front of Long Chen and the others and said, ¡°Everyone, back off. The ck Water Viper has swallowed the Red Emperor Seal, so we have no choice but to kill it. There will be a huge battle, and you all must stay safe. Wuya, protect them well.¡±


    Jiang Wuya nodded and led Long Chen and the rest to retreat quickly. On the other side, everyone from the Martial Alliance except for Yang Ningfeng left as well. Since the Red Emperor Seal was in the ck Water Viper¡¯s body, this meant that the only useful person in their group was the Martial Emperor.


    ¡°I know who you are! You¡¯re the Demon Emperor of the Ancient Demon Domain! I am Yang Ningfeng; how have you been?¡± Yang Ningfeng said with a smile.


    When Jiang Wuxie saw that his identity had been exposed, he did not continue to hide himself. He instructed the two Demon Saints to retreat with his son, then he said with a smile, ¡°So it¡¯s Great Priest Yang of the Wind God Sect! It¡¯s been a long time.¡±


    Jiang Wuxie had purposely not used the title the Martial Alliance had given him, but instead hit him where it hurt the most. There was an intention to mock him within his words, and Yang Ningfeng was painfully aware. However, this was not the time for him to rage, so he said coldly, ¡°What was the Wind God Sect worth anyway? I am one of the Three Martial Emperors of the Martial Alliance, Yang Ningfeng. And you, Demon Emperor, are a grand elder of the Martial Alliance. In fact, we¡¯re actuallyrades.¡±


    Long Yue and the Martial Alliance were enemies, and she also had a terrible rtionship with the Ancient Demon Domain. On the other hand, Jiang Wuxie was part of the Martial Alliance. If he and Yang Ningfeng worked together, they would likely seed in beating both Long Yue and the ck Water Viper.


    But the Demon Emperor was no idiot. If he agreed to it, who would get the Red Emperor Seal in the end? If he fought as a member of the Martial Alliance, he would never get the Red Emperor Seal. That was why Jiang Wuxie said, ¡°True, true, but right now, the ck Water Viper has swallowed the Red Emperor Seal. Let¡¯s work together to deal with the ck Water Viper first, then we¡¯ll talk. Long Yue, what do you think?¡±


    He intended to remain neutral, which was why he had chosen to seek an opinion from Long Yue.


    <em>He¡¯s an old fox. </em>Long Yue smirked to herself and said, ¡°Since we have alle for the Red Emperor Seal and the ck Water Viper has swallowed it, how will we ever get the seal without killing it first?¡±


    ¡°In that case, let the three of us work together. All grudges can wait until after the ck Water Viper dies. What do you think?¡± said Jiang Wuxie, looking at the two of them.


    Long Yue and Yang Ningfeng could only nod.


    This was the only way.


    Of course, there were too many unpredictable factors, so all of them remained cautious.


    Long Chen was paying close attention to them. The Martial Alliance and the Ancient Demon Domain were considered allies, and both also wanted to exterminate the Dragon n. If they worked together, Jiang Wuya and the others would also be in danger.


    Jiang Wuya also had the same thought, so he said, ¡°The Ancient Demon Domain and the Martial Alliance have four Second Earthly Martial Realm cultivators in total. If the four of them work together, they can definitely kill us all. No one expected this to happen. If we stay here, we¡¯ll only be a burden to Yue¡¯er. That is why we must leave.¡±


    Everyone thought about it and realized it made sense. Long Yue was very strong and she could retreat safely if the Martial Emperor and the Demon Emperor worked together to kill her. However, it would be different with them nearby. If they were held hostage, it would end badly.


    Everyone nodded.


    ¡°In that case, we¡¯ll leave now!¡± Jiang Wuya instructed.


    Long Chen, however, suddenly said, ¡°Everyone, I would like to stay.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Jiang Wuya asked hurriedly. They had alreadye to an agreement, but Long Chen suddenly wanted to stay?


    ¡°I have a technique that allows me to travel five kilometers very quickly. At my current level, even a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator cannot catch me. I want to stay and watch for a while so that if anything happens to Big Sister, I can inform you guys. If someone tries to attack me, I can use my technique to escape,¡± Long Chen exined.


    Everyone knew about his technique.


    It was a good idea for Long Chen to stay behind and be their lookout. That was why Jiang Wuya nodded and said, ¡°We will be five kilometers away in this direction. If you¡¯re in danger or Yue¡¯er is in danger, you muste to us immediately! Remember that!¡±


    ¡°Second Brother, everyone, don¡¯t worry. I know my limits,¡± Long Chen said solemnly.


    They knew his personality well too.


    Now that their next course of action had been decided, they all looked at each other and started moving immediately. Jiang Wuya led the other four away while Long Chen remained in the same spot. Everyone else saw them leave, but without the Martial Emperor or the Demon Emperor¡¯s instructions, they did not move.


    The Red Emperor Seal was their highest priority. To prevent further unexpected events, they did not instruct their people to give chase.


    However, the fact that the Dragon n had left behind a teenager at the Heavenly Passage Realm surprised them, especially Jiang Wushang.


    Long Yue was happy with Jiang Wuya¡¯s decision, because this was exactly what she needed. If the Martial Alliance and the Ancient Demon Domain worked together, the Dragon n would surely die. But why had Long Chen stayed?


    Then she thought of his escape technique and understood.


    In that case, she could now focuspletely on the battle ahead.


    Long Chen was also watching closely. This battle would help himprehend the Martial Realm greatly.


    ¡°Hiss!¡±


    The ck Water Viper felt an immense pressure when it was surrounded by three Third Earthly Martial Realm cultivators. This also provoked it greatly. There was a crackling sounding from its body, and they realized that it was shrinking!


    <em>That gigantic body is its original form, which could easily kill off tens of thousands of regr cultivators with just one breath of the venom mist. However, now that it¡¯s battling stronger cultivators, shrinking down will make its attacks more concentrated and it¡¯ll be much faster and more agile. The only drawback is that his range will be smaller! </em>This was Long Chen¡¯s guess.


    Very soon, the ck Water Viper was now only a hundredth of its initial size and a tenth of the Blood Ocean Viper¡¯s size. The Blood Ocean Viper was previously hundreds of meters long, but now, the ck Water Viper was only thirty meters long and less than half a meter wide!


    However, it was now more terrifying because it was both tough and agile!


    Long Chen guessed that this was its strongest form.


    The three Third Earthly Martial Stage masters were nervous when it shrank down to its smaller form. There was a thick tension in the air and no one dared to move first.


    The ck Water Viper held its head high up and emergedpletely from the mud and coiled up. As its body twisted and turned, it disyed shocking strength.


    Strange trails were left behind as it moved its tail, and to Long Chen¡¯s surprise, even the King-tier demonic beast''s movements were connected with the pulse of the earth. The King-tier and the Earthly Martial Realm were both on the same level.


    This was why King-tier beasts were so powerful.


    ¡°Hiss!¡±


    A bright, red forked tongue darted in and out of its mouth.


    Jiang Wuxie and Yang Ningfeng looked at each other. Jiang Wuxie said, ¡°Yang Ningfeng, I hear that your Wind God Kick is the number one kick technique in the whole Divine Martial Empire! Will I have the honor of witnessing it?¡±


    Yang Ningfeng smiled and said, ¡°I hear that the Demon Emperor¡¯s Ancient Demon Punch is the Divine Martial Empire¡¯s number one punching technique! Will I have the honor of witnessing it?¡±


    ¡°You two are dilly-dallying and being absolute cowards! You have lost my respect,¡± Long Yue said expressionlessly when she heard their banter. Then she disappeared and reappeared in front of the ck Water Viper.


    Red scales covered her whole body. Long Chen was familiar with this because it was the Dragon Soul Transformation! The transformation was quicklypleted. Just like Long Chen, not only was her body much tougher than before, but the quality of her Qi was much more concentrated. Of course, it had not strengthened as much as Long Chen¡¯s Qi, which became ten times stronger.


    Long Yue was not a true Dragon Warrior after all, only the descendant of one.


    Light red dragon scales covered her entire body. It looked like ayer of clothing fit tightly on her body, revealing her graceful curves. Due to her feminine figure, her Dragon Soul Transformation looked better than Long Chen¡¯s form.


    Of course, that was from a male perspective ¡­


    After seeing Long Yue¡¯s Dragon Soul Transformation, Fat Cat scoffed. ¡°So it¡¯s the lowest-level dragon, the Red Dragon. Green Dragons and Red Dragons were the equivalent of normal humans who did not cultivate in the Ancient Era. The difference between them and the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon is as big as the distance between heaven and earth. Of course, that girl thinks you¡¯re part of her family since you¡¯re both red.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. Her Dragon Soul Transformation indeed looked simr to his.


    However, Green and Red Dragons were only normal people? How terrifying was the Dragon Continent in the Ancient Era?


    Long Chen really wanted to travel back in time to see how the dragons who ruled the Dragon Continent went extinct.


    Such terrifying creatures should have been able to survive! Why had they all disappeared?


    Long Chen could not figure it out.


    Long Yue¡¯s mocking tone and her Dragon Soul Transformation had provoked the ck Water Viper.


    ¡°If you guys don¡¯t want the Red Emperor Seal, I¡¯m taking it.¡± Then, with a <em>whoosh</em>, she rushed towards the ck Water Viper. The two emperors locked eyes and quickly attacked. They only needed a person to begin. With her leading them, they followed suit.


    The three Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators surrounded the ck Water Viper in three directions.


    ¡°Hiss!¡±


    The ck Water Viper let out ear-piercing hisses!


    The battle had begun! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Long Yue would cry if she heard what the Little Cat said</blockquote>

 Chapter 560: Heaven Piercing Five Dragons

    When they truly began the battle, Long Chen suddenly realized that they were moving so fast that he could barely see them clearly. All he saw were afterimages swooping past. Even the ck Water Viper had turned into a ck silhouette, darting in all directions.


    But it never broke free from the trio!


    The ck Water Viper had lived for more than a thousand years, and none of them would ever be able to defeat it if they fought alone. However, it was a different story when the three of them worked together. All of them were individual opponents that the ck Water Viper had to take seriously, and when they attacked simultaneously, it suffered.


    The three masters¡¯ attacks were lightning-fast. Shadows flickered in front of Long Chen, and he could only hear snake hisses!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The three humans and the snake separated. Long Chen realized that the snake was already bleeding profusely and its body was covered in w marks. Those scratches must have been caused by Long Yue. The Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor both used punch and kick techniques, so although the wounds could not be seen from the outside, the viper must have sustained internal injuries.


    It did not matter how strong the ck Water Viper was when it was three against one. After about ten breaths¡¯ time, it retreated. The previously arrogant viper sensed that its opponents were no simple humans, but powerful members of their species!


    After the first skirmish, the ck Water Viper started to n its retreat. It moved quickly and attempted to burrow back beneath the swamp. The three masters hurriedly gave chase. The Demon Emperor was the closest to it, so he was at the very front of the trio. That was when the ck Water Viper¡¯s tail suddenly turned into a shadow whipping in his direction!


    The Demon Emperor¡¯s face changed and he retreated hurriedly!


    ¡°Think you can run? You¡¯ll never escape!¡± Yang Ningfengughed coldly. If they let the ck Water Viper burrow underground, all their ns would be ruined. When the Demon Emperor was forced backward, the Martial Emperor stomped on the ground, causing arge patch of mud to fly up. Even the part of the viper that had just entered the mud flew into the air from the force of the stomp! Long Yue remained calm. After they stopped the snake, she took this opportunity to move. The viper had been thrown close to her, so without a word, she scratched its side with her sharp ws!


    There was a vibration!


    Her five ws swiped past, turning into five blood-red dragon shadows that swirled around the ck Water Viper!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡±


    Five earth-shattering dragon cries rang out along with the ck Water Viper¡¯s cries of pain. Long Chen had watched Long Yue swipe her w, forming five blood-red dragons that pounced on the ck Water Viper¡¯s body. Five shes appeared on the viper¡¯s side, leaving wounds so deep that bone could be seen! A huge chunk of flesh had been cut off!


    <em>That move was powerful. </em>Long Chen was shaken. He had long heard that Long Yue had an intermediate King-tierbat technique called the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. When Long Chen encountered the Eagle Martial King, thetter had used the Soul Dispersing Talons, which was merely an imitation of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. Long Yue¡¯s version was on a whole other level!


    Long Chen was amazed by Long Yue¡¯s technique.


    He made a mental note of the name¡ªFive Piercing Dragons!


    The dragons had indeed pierced through the ck Water Viper, and a huge chunk of its flesh had been torn off. The ck Water Viper let out a cry that trembled the skies, and its emerald eyes turned blood-red!


    Long Yue¡¯s attack sent the ck Water Viper flying in Yang Ningfeng¡¯s direction. It was now heavily injured. Yang Ningfeng¡¯s expression turned cold and he disappeared in a sh. When he reappeared, a strong gust of wind blew towards the viper and mmed into its body. The gust of wind was actually an endless storm of kicks!


    The ck Water Viper was now utterly incapacitated. Three masters that were on the same level as itself had worked together to defeat it, so it did not even have a chance to flee. When it was hit by the Martial Emperor¡¯s attack, its life force was cut in half and itnded near the Demon Emperor.


    ¡°Since you two have made your moves, let me end it all!¡± The Demon Emperor let out a roar and threw a punch. A blurry shadow appeared behind him, which concentrated into a terrifying fist seal that mmed into the ck Water Viper¡¯s head, causing it to cave inwards!


    The ck Water Viper let out itsst cry.


    Then it died.


    It did not matter how strong it was. With three people attacking it, it was helpless.


    After all the life force had been drained from its body, it quickly expanded and returned to its previous size. The gigantic body was like a mountain range lying right in front of Long Chen!


    The group froze when the ck Water Viper died, then they realized that it was time to fight for the Red Emperor Seal.


    The first to react were the three masters. Without a word, they shot through the ck Water Viper¡¯s body. It was toorge for them to take away, and they did not have Universe Pouches that could fit it. That was why the only option was to pierce through the carcass to search for the Red Emperor Seal!


    They did not care how disgusting it was, because the Red Emperor Seal was priceless.


    All three of them had tough bodies, especially Long Yue, whose sharp ws allowed her to move through the corpse very smoothly! The toughest part was the skin; she easily dug through its muscles and internal organs with her ws!


    After the three masters entered, the Martial Alliance and the Ancient Demon Domain members all looked at each other, then they swarmed towards the viper¡¯s carcass. They all unsheathed their various weapons and chopped up the carcass. If they were lucky, they would strike the Red Emperor Seal!


    Long Chen also wanted to join in.


    Jiang Wuya and the rest had left, so Long Chen had nothing to worry about. If he could not hold on any longer, he could just use Blood Warp. Therefore, he took out the Deste Cleaving Sword and rushed to the viper.


    If he came across an enemy inside, Long Chen knew they would start fighting.


    To the Dragon n, the life of a member was more important than getting the Red Emperor Seal, so it was best that they did not participate in this chaotic rush for treasure.


    Long Chen had just approached the carcass when someone stopped him. It was Jiang Wushang.


    ¡°I was thinking ¡­ If Long Yue gets the Red Emperor Seal and I hold you hostage, won¡¯t it end up in my hands?¡± Jiang Wushang said with a smile.


    ¡°And if Jiang Wuxie gets the Red Emperor Seal and I hold you hostage, won¡¯t it end up in my hands?¡± Long Chen threw him the same question.


    It was a good thing that Jiang Wushang had stopped him. Trying his luck out here was better than going into the snake. He would be dead if he identally encountered the Martial or Demon Emperor inside. He would not even be able to use his Blood Warp in such a small space.


    Everyone else had entered the viper¡¯s carcass by now.


    Jiang Wushang froze for a moment because Long Chen did not seem afraid at all, and he had even thrown his words back at him. Then Jiang Wushang smiled and said, ¡°I remember what you did at the Ancient Demon Domain. Do you really think you can defeat an Earthly Martial Stage cultivator?¡±


    ¡°Less of that nonsense. Come if you dare.¡± After Long Chen spoke, he ran away from the ck Water Viper, and Jiang Wushang quickly gave chase.


    Long Chen had first heard of Jiang Wushang soon after he entered the Ancient Demon Domain. He was the number one prodigy of the Ancient Demon Domain who had left a handprint on the Heaven Passage Pirs while only at the Ninth Passage Stage. At the time, Long Chen had only just entered the Heavenly Passage Realm himself.


    Only two months had passed, but Long Chen was now as powerful as Jiang Wushang.


    The rest of the people were fighting vigorously within the viper carcass. They did not know that the battle taking ce outside would affect the whole field. Long Yue would never let Long Chen die, while Jiang Wushang was Jiang Wuxie¡¯s hope for the future. This meant that the result of the battle between Long Chen and Jiang Wushang would decide if the Red Emperor Seal would end up with the Martial Alliance.


    Of course, Jiang Wushang was confident that he would win.


    ¡°It seems like you don¡¯t even have a King-tierbat technique,¡± said Jiang Wuxie with contempt as he eyed Long Chen.


    Long Chen only had the True Martial Demon Body and the Demon Illusion.


    ¡°Long Yue was likely going to teach you the Soul Dispersing Dragon ws, but unfortunately, it¡¯s toote for that now. Of course, even if you had learned it, so what? The Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s Ancient Demon Punch is ten thousand times better.¡±


    <em>Does that mean that this brat has mastered the Ancient Demon Punch? </em>


    Long Chen felt a little threatened.


    Of course, he would never let himself be a burden to Long Yue.


    <em>A person can¡¯t be considered a master without reaching the Earthly Martial Realm. I really need to start working harder to break through. </em>Long Chen set his next goal with great determination.


    He could only do his best against Jiang Wushang.


    He gently raised the Deste Cleaving Sword and said, ¡°I don¡¯t need King-tierbat techniques to deal with you.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re brave!¡± Jiang Wushang gave a small smile. Long Chen¡¯s brazen arrogance was within his expectations.


    The battle for the Red Emperor Seal was about to reach its climax, and Jiang Wushang had to fight for every extra second. After he spoke, he immediately charged at Long Chen!


    Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Long Chen immediately took his most powerful form!


    The Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants burned in his nine meridian points.


    Long Chen became a heat source in the cold and damp Cloud Dream Swamp. Thick water vapor rose from the mud around him due to the sheer heat.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    A Demon Illusion clone holding an intermediate Heaven-tier sword appeared next to Long Chen and then positioned itself behind Jiang Wushang.


    Then both figures charged at Jiang Wushang at the same time! <blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Let''s gooooooooo</blockquote>

 Chapter 561: Let Him Go

    Long Chen had stayed back only to keep an eye on Long Yue for her safety. He had not expected Jiang Wushang to attack.


    Long Chen had previously caused major losses to the Ancient Demon Domain, and as the Young Master of the Ancient Demon Domain, Jiang Wushang¡¯s hatred for him was far more intense than Jiang Wuxie¡¯s.


    That was why his very first attack was heavy-handed.


    ¡°Although your True Martial Demon Body is decent, the strongest body tempering technique in the Ancient Demon Domain is the Ancient Demon Body!¡± Jiang Wuxie smirked coldly. Based on Long Chen¡¯s moves, he guessed that his opponent wasn¡¯t capable of killing a Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    What he did not know was that Long Chen never lost to opponents who had as much Qi as himself due to the Blood Devouring Domain. After using the Dragon Soul Transformation, the enormous amount of Qi in his body becameparable to the essence of a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    The fight for the Red Emperor Seal would onlyst a short time, so Long Chen had to resolve this battle quickly.


    That was why he immediately used the Blood Devouring Domain!


    Blood-red mist enveloped Jiang Wushang. The unbeatable and terrifying technique left him stunned.


    To be honest, he had seen Long Chen use the Blood Devouring Domain before, but he had not expected it to be this powerful. A strong sucking force was acting on his body, causing his blood to boil. It was as if every drop of blood in him had grown sentient and wanted to break free from his control to return to nature outside. He had no choice but to use his essence to suppress his blood.


    The moment he did this, almost half of his essence could no longer be used.


    As a result, Long Chen was one step above Jiang Wushang in terms of strength.


    ¡°Is this some kind of satanic technique? When faced with true power, tricks like this are insignificant!¡± Jiang Wushang calmed himself down and did not slow down at all. He did not even nce at the Demon Illusion clone behind him and charged towards Long Chen, turning into a shadow.


    ¡°Ancient Demon Body!¡±


    The Ancient Demon Body was powerful. He used his essence to suppress his blood while he threw a powerful punch at Long Chen. It was indeed no simple technique.


    Long Chen was not an idiot, so he did not choose to face his foe¡¯s attacks directly.


    He quickly dodged the attack while the Demon Illusion clone approached Jiang Wushang. If Jiang Wushang continued to attack, he would be in an unsafe situation.


    His only choice was to dodge.


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± After Jiang Wushang avoided the clone¡¯s attack, he turned around and came back. The clone caught up to him and unleashed the Heaven Sword Array in his direction!


    The clone¡¯s Heaven Sword Array was naturally much weaker than Long Chen¡¯s real attack. However, since part of Jiang Wushang¡¯s strength was being spent on suppressing the Blood Devouring Domain, the Heaven Sword Array was a considerable threat to him!


    ¡°This clone is annoying! I¡¯m going to destroy it now!¡± Jiang Wushang snickered coldly without a hint of fear. He clenched his fists and performed a punching routine. This was exactly the same as the Ancient Demon Punch technique that the Demon Emperor had previously used. Now that Long Chen was so close to Jiang Wushang, he could see it even more clearly.


    Faint silhouettes so numerous that they covered the sky appeared behind Jiang Wushang, then they shot into his fist when he threw his final punch. Then a terrifying ck Fist Seal erupted from his fist. Long Chen felt as if he saw the face of the devil on the Fist Seal!


    ¡°Have you finally used your ultimate attack?¡± Long Chen gave a faint smile. After his clone used the Heaven Sword Array, he recalled it before it sustained any damage. Then the Heaven Sword Array and Jiang Wushang¡¯s Ancient Demon Punch collided. Although Jiang Wushang had only used half of his strength, it was an intermediate King-tierbat technique, something that Long Chen¡¯s clone couldn¡¯t withstand. Therefore, the clone¡¯s attack was quickly shattered.


    ¡°It may have looked good, but it was useless! This is within my expectations!¡± Jiang Wushang snickered and threw more punches until the whole Heaven Sword Array dispersed and stopped.


    But was this the end?


    The moment the clone¡¯s Heaven Sword Array dispersed, the real Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array appeared. It was more than ten times more powerful! Blood-red mes burned brightly above the dense storm of sword symbols!


    The scorching mes stunned Jiang Wushang. He knew that Long Chen¡¯s swords did not bear mes before, so he wondered how they hade about. Furthermore, he sensed a terrifying regalnessing from the mes.


    ¡°Heaven Sword Array!¡±


    Another Heaven Sword Array fell, and this one was even more terrifying. Loud whooshes apanied the endless storm of sword symbols shooting toward Jiang Wushang!


    The Eagle Martial King was no match for this attack, even without the Blood Devouring Domain. Jiang Wushang did not fare much better; although his Ancient Demon Punch was powerful, he was unable to invest all his power into the technique. Under the battering of Long Chen¡¯s sword symbols, the Ancient Demon Punch waspletely destroyed!


    The endless sword symbols and blood-red mes forced Jiang Wushang to stop his Ancient Demon Punch. Then they swarmed around him and started attacking him fiercely!


    Long Chen nned to kill Jiang Wushang, but now was not the time. Jiang Wuxie was just too powerful. Long Chen did not want to burden himself and other people before he was strong enough to kill Jiang Wuxie.


    Jiang Wushang was shocked to find himself trapped, then Long Chen stabbed his Deste Cleaving Sword into his abdomen and mmed the back of his head, causing Jiang Wushang to faint from the pain. Of course, this injury was not fatal.


    Even Jiang Wushang was absolutely shocked by this oue.


    He never would have imagined that the final wave of Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array was this powerful. He had already cultivated an intermediate King-tier technique, but that was not enough to defend himself against the Heaven Sword Array!


    ¡°How is that possible ¡­¡±


    Before he was knocked unconscious, Jiang Wushang¡¯s expression was full of disbelief.


    But the pain in his abdomen told him that this was all real.


    Of course, Long Chen was only able to do this because he had ess to the Golden Crow¡¯s power. The boost it provided was immense. So far, it had increased Long Chen¡¯sbat abilities by several times!


    Defeating Jiang Wushang was no surprise to Long Chen. He held Jiang Wushang in a backhanded grip and stood in front of the immense ck Waver Viper carcass, waiting. Several explosions urred within the carcass, indicating that there was an intense battle unfolding inside. The Red Emperor Seal must have been found.


    After waiting for fifteen minutes, severalrge holes tore open on the ck Water Viper¡¯s skin and several people rushed out. They were the Demon Emperor and the two Demon Saints, and they had excitement written all over their faces. They had clearly retrieved the Red Emperor Seal.


    Finding the Red Emperor Seal in the viper¡¯s carcass required luck; therefore, Long Chen was not surprised to see that the Demon Emperor had gotten it. He was even happy with this oue, though he knew that the enmity between them would deepen greatly this time.


    Then Long Yue and the Martial Alliance members also emerged from the carcass and surrounded the Demon Emperor and the Demon Saints. Yang Ningfeng¡¯s expression was dark as he said, ¡°Demon Emperor, you are also a subordinate of the Martial Overlord. Let me take the Red Emperor Seal back to him; I know he will reward you generously!¡±


    The Demon Emperorughed dryly and said, ¡°Who said I found the Red Emperor Seal? Did you see me take it? If I don¡¯t have it, how could I give it to the Martial Emperor?¡±


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s expression darkened even more. ¡°Jiang Wuxie, do you really want the whole Ancient Demon Domain to be taken over? If you want to continue barely surviving, you need to be smart and hand it over.¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re talking about the Red Emperor Seal, which I do not have, you must know that we, the Ancient Demon Domain, are not afraid. Do your worst.¡± The Demon Emperor stood his ground stubbornly. The fact that the Ancient Demon Domain could still live on despite the threat of the Martial Alliance meant that it was no simple faction. The Demon Emperor definitely had some sort of trick up his sleeve.


    Long Yue spotted Long Chen at this point, and her eyes lit up when she saw him holding Jiang Wushang. She immediately went to his side, which attracted the others¡¯ attention. Everyone suddenly saw the unconscious Jiang Wushang in his hands, as well as blood dripping from his abdomen, which had stained arge patch of his clothing!


    ¡°Wushang!¡± Jiang Wuxie¡¯s chest tightened when he saw his son. Thankfully, Jiang Wushang was not dead, or he would have gone mad. He had finally raised a son who could take over his role after twenty-plus years. If he had died just like that, Jiang Wuxie would¡¯ve blown his top off.


    After some thought, they all knew what had happened. Long Chen and Jiang Wushang must have taken the opportunity to fight while everyone else was fighting over the Red Emperor Seal. n Jiang Wushang ended up losing and was now his hostage.


    ¡°This is the Long Chen from the rumors; he worked with Jian Chen to kill the Void Martial Saint,¡± a middle-aged man whispered into the Martial Emperor¡¯s ear.


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s expression was solemn as he studied Long Chen closely. ¡°He possesses greatbat abilities at just the Ninth Passage Stage. This is exceedingly rare. Doesn¡¯t this mean he will be able to fight a Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator once he enters the Earthly Martial Realm?¡±


    ¡°I guess so.¡±


    <em>This is a prodigy, yet the Martial Alliance is unable to use him, and he has decided to join the Dragon n. The only solution is to kill him as soon as possible so we can rest easy ¡­ </em>Yang Ningfeng made his decision.


    This teenager made him extremely nervous.


    The Martial Alliance side was already radiating killing intent, but the Ancient Demon Domain members were even more furious. The Demon Emperor red at Long Chen coldly and said, ¡°Let him go, or I will shatter your bones.¡±


    Long Chen was not afraid. He said calmly, ¡°Let him go? That¡¯s an easy matter, but I won¡¯t do this without a gift in return. I¡¯ll let him go, and you¡¯ll give me the Red Emperor Seal. What do you think?¡±

 Chapter 562: Divine Fire Realm

    Although everyone had expected Long Chen to present this condition, when he said it, everyone felt like the brat was being a little too bold.


    He was only brave enough to say this because Long Yue was protecting him.


    The Demon Emperor had a feeling that this would happen, but when Long Chen said it, anger stirred within him.


    One of the Demon Saint¡¯s faces was steely green when he said darkly, ¡°You brat, you guys have already made an enemy out of the Martial Alliance. Do you guys really want to make the Ancient Demon Domain an enemy too? It doesn¡¯t matter how many masters the Dragon n has¡ªyou guys won¡¯t be able to fight us all! Don¡¯t you dare twist our arms.¡±


    The other Demon Saint added, ¡°Let us have this win today, and we will help you next time. If this goes south, with the sheer size of the Martial Alliance and the Ancient Demon Domain, can you be sure that the Dragon n members won¡¯t be killed off one by one? Not every Dragon n member is as powerful as the cier Dragon Emperor.¡±


    The two Demon Saints were older, so they were experienced, cunning foxes.


    Their words made sense.


    However, this did not scare Long Chen and Long Yue, because the Ancient Demon Domain and the Dragon n were already enemies. If the Dragon n was afraid of them, Long Yue would not havee here today. Jiang Wuya was far away, so Long Chen was not worried. Jiang Wuya was a trustworthy person, and with him leading the other four, it would be difficult for the Martial Alliance and the Ancient Demon Domain to touch them.


    The Divine Martial was huge, so finding a single person would be very hard. Even if they remained in the Cloud Dream Swamp, it would be difficult to find Jiang Wuya and his squad after he left.


    Long Chen and Long Yue locked eyes for a moment, then Long Chen said, ¡°Elders, you do not need to scare me. Without the Red Emperor Seal in my hand, I will never hand Jiang Wushang over. Oh no, let me see! It looks like he¡¯s bleeding! If this drags out and he loses too much blood, he¡¯ll die! And if that happens, you can¡¯t me me.¡±


    Long Chen spoke in an infuriating tone.


    The Demon Emperor and the others¡¯s faces were green. They regretted not killing Long Chen when he was in the Ancient Demon Domain. If they had killed him, this stalemate would not have happened.


    Jiang Wuxie¡¯s heart shattered when he saw the state his son was in.


    The blood flowing out of Jiang Wushang¡¯s abdomen was his blood too.


    ¡°What now?¡± Jiang Wuxie¡¯s mind was a mess.


    ¡°The Red Emperor Seal is one of the five Emperor Seals. Do you think you can gather all five Emperor Seals and get the Emperor-tierbat technique on your own? With the Martial Emperor present, that¡¯s obviously impossible. Even if you do collect all five, where will you hide if the Martial Overlord decides to kill you? The Dragon n is different. The Martial Overlord can¡¯t do anything to us. That is why it¡¯s best you recognize the situation as it is,¡± Long Chen said.


    It was the truth. The Demon Emperor¡¯s home was the Ancient Demon Domain, which meant he could not appear and disappear like the Dragon n. Even if he could collect all five Emperor Seals, he would have to give them to the powerful Martial Overlord.


    With that thought, the Demon Emperor and the two Demon Saints epted their fate. Long Chen¡¯s words had sessfully convinced them.


    But would the Martial Alliance give up?


    The Demon Emperor was concerned about Jiang Wushang¡¯s life, but the Martial Alliance was not. While the Demon Emperor hesitated, Yang Ningfeng gestured, and all the Martial Alliance members surrounded Long Chen and Long Yue. Completing the trade with the Demon Emperor was not going to be easy.


    They found themselves in a stalemate once again.


    Long Chen frowned. With the Martial Alliance intervening, this was going to be much more difficult.


    ¡°Big Sister, what do we do?¡± asked Long Chen. The Martial Alliance was watching, and he did not have a solution.


    Long Chen had no confidence that he couldplete the trade under these circumstances.


    No one dared to move first, so the tension continued.


    When everyone¡¯s patience was wearing thin and Jiang Wushang grew paler, another unexpected twist happened.


    There was a sudden explosion not far behind Long Chen, which threw mud into the air. Then they saw fire ten times hotter than before shooting up into the sky, causing half the sky to turnpletely red. The sound of a chanting mantra came from the fiery-red clouds, and suddenly, a gigantic projection of the Red Emperor Seal appeared within the clouds. A momentter, it disappeared!


    This phenomenonsted more than ten times longer than before. While everyone was still stunned, the ground trembled as if something was digging to the surface.


    Long Chen froze for a while, though because his mind was sharper than average, he immediately thought of the Red Emperor Seal¡¯s legend. That bizarre phenomenon was identical to the legends, which stated that the phenomenon appeared in two steps. The previous phenomenon only consisted of the firelight!


    Didn¡¯t that mean that the Red Emperor Seal from before was a fake?!


    When Long Chen realized this, Long Yue quickly drew the same conclusion! Everyone looked at the Demon Emperor, who froze and immediately took out the Red Emperor Seal. He mmed his palm on it, and the legendary Red Emperor Seal shattered!


    <em>It¡¯s a fake! We¡¯ve been yed! </em>The same thought popped into everyone¡¯s minds. They must have been tricked! The first phenomenon must have been fabricated by someone, and the replica Red Emperor Seal must have been used as a decoy!


    It was an extremely intricate n too!


    It was obvious that this time was the actual birth of the Red Emperor Seal!


    The person behind this had pulled an extremely cunning trick. Many people had died or sustained injuries in the previous battle. The Dragon n, the Martial Alliance, and the Ancient Demon Domain had fought and even formed grudges. They had no idea that it was over a fake Red Emperor Seal!


    They were stunned when the true Red Emperor Seal was revealed.


    The one who reacted the fastest was the Martial Alliance because they had no attachments and quickly adjusted to the situation when they realized that the seal was fake. They sprinted toward the location where the Red Emperor Seal was born. The Ancient Demon Domain obviously wanted to go too, but Jiang Wushang was still in Long Chen¡¯s hands!


    Long Chen could read the situation and knew that the Demon Emperor did not actually have the Red Emperor Seal, so Jiang Wushang was now useless to him. Taking Jiang Wushang with him would only mean carrying an extra burden. Without a word, he threw Jiang Wushang at the Demon Emperor, who carefully caught him and passed him to a Demon Saint. With no time to teach Long Chen a lesson, they quickly followed the Martial Alliance towards the true Red Emperor Seal.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go too,¡± Long Yue said.


    ¡°Big Sister, you go first. I¡¯ll catch upter. Don¡¯t worry, I have Blood Warp. If anything goes wrong, I will run immediately!¡±


    After what had happened, Long Yue trusted him and quickly nodded before following the Ancient Demon Domain. Long Chen was confident in Long Yue¡¯s abilities too. After she left, he went up to the ck Water Viper¡¯s carcass.


    Someone had taken its demonic core and beast soul.


    But the most important thing to him was its blood.


    Even the Primordial Realm could not fit such a big body, so he used the Blood Devouring Domain once more to extract all the blood in its body. When he was done, arge blood orb had gathered in front of Long Chen. He looked like an ant next to it!


    The withered carcass of the ck Water Viper remained in ce.


    Although the body did not fit, he could fit its blood in the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Although the most important thing when cultivating at the Martial Realm isprehension, increasing one¡¯s essence is very important. With this Category Three King-tier beast¡¯s blood, I won¡¯t have to worry about getting King Crystals.¡±


    Other people relied on King Crystals to strengthen their essence, but Long Chen could do it with just beast blood.


    After he stored the blood in the Primordial Realm, Long Chen looked towards the Red Emperor Seal¡¯s direction.


    ¡°Although there are powerful enemies present, the Five Emperor Seals are extremely important to me. Even if I only have a tiny trace of hope, I must try to take it. I don¡¯t have the luxury of choosing. If I don¡¯t get strong enough, how will I be able to meet Xiao Xi¡¯s parents?¡±


    Long Chen missed the girl dearly; his longing for her sometimes made him so miserable that he could not breathe. Perhaps this was love.


    All the experiences he had with her were enough for him to savor and reminisce for the rest of his life.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    After steeling himself, he took a deep breath and sprinted to battle. This task had not taken much time, so he was sure that no one had gotten the Red Emperor Seal yet.


    Very soon, Long Chen arrived at his destination. The same people from before were standing in a circle, though Long Chen¡¯s eyes were first drawn to a strange structure. It was arge, fiery door that rose from the ground!


    More specifically, it was a gigantic fireball. On one side, there was arge, bronze door bathed in mes. It looked simple, but it radiated an ancient aura and a regalness that made everyone nervous.


    There was a fiery red sign above the bronze door engraved with fiery characters.


    ¡°It¡¯s the ¡­ Divine Fire Realm!¡±


    Long Chen quickly read the sign.


    This meant that the fiery door led to a miniverse, and the Red Emperor Seal was in that miniverse!


    After studying the door, he looked at the people in front and noticed a burnt, ck body on the ground. Since the body was in front of the door and no one was rushing in, it likely meant that this person had tried to make his way through but was burnt to death!

 Chapter 563: Huangfu Fengchen

    That was the reason why no one was moving.


    They would have long started fighting if the treasure was right in front of their eyes.


    The people in front of Long Chen were divided into four teams. He walked up to Long Yue¡¯s side, who gave a slight nod when she saw him, then she continued watching the bronze door intently.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze fell on another person.


    There were four teams here. Long Yue, the Ancient Demon Domain, and the Martial Alliance formed one group each. The other team also only consisted of one person, and the Ancient Demon Domain and Martial Alliance members were ring at this man with seething hatred.


    The man was wearing long, yellow robes embroidered with blooming daisies. He was likely almost the same age as Long Yue, in his thirties at most. The only way to describe how he looked was handsome and sophisticated, but not controlled by anyone. He wore a smirk and an expression that said he did not respect anyone present. Despite the res, he was smiling at them, which infuriated everyone.


    ¡°He is the strongest member of the Huangfu family, as well as the patriarch, Huangfu Fengchen. The fake Red Emperor Seal was his doing,¡± Long Yue whispered when she saw that Long Chen was looking at Huangfu Fengchen.


    Long Chen understood.


    The fact that this man dared to stand here alone like Long Yue showed that his cultivation level was high. Only the patriarch of the Huangfu family would be both bold and strong enough to do this. Had this man really single-handedly caused that wholemotion before? Long Chen was speechless. The way Huangfu Fengchen had yed the whole crowd with a fake Red Emperor Seal was very impressive. If the Martial Alliance and Ancient Demon Domain members were not focused on the bronze door, they would have attacked Huangfu Fengchen in fury.


    Long Chen was ignored. He did not have any positive feelings about Huangfu Fengchen based on his first impression, but he wondered if he was Huangfu Qi¡¯s father. Perhaps she had gotten her crazy personality from him.


    While Long Chen was studying Huangfu Fengchen, thetter was also studying Long Chen. After a while, he broke into a chuckle and said, ¡°Hey, kid, my darling daughter misses you. When are youing to visit the Huangfu residence?¡±


    Indeed, he was Huangfu Qi¡¯s father.


    Long Chen guessed that he had always kept his daughter hidden, keeping her a secret from the world. That was why no one guessed that she was his daughter when she ran to the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely visit when I have the time,¡± Long Chen said with a nod. He was not familiar with Huangfu Fengchen and did not know how the rtionship between him and Long Yue was, so he kept his distance.


    When he heard Long Chen¡¯s response, Huangfu Fengchen smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be such a stranger, kid. My daughter calls you ¡®Big Brother¡¯ and treats you like a real brother. She¡¯s always talking about you! Since you¡¯re her brother, you don¡¯t need to be so formal with me. You may even see me as your father.¡±


    Long Chen almost choked on his spit.


    Huangfu Fengchen was indeed a little crazy.


    That was some strange logic! Since his daughter called him ¡°Big Brother,¡± Long Chen was now his son. Long Chen did not know how to respond, so he said, ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll just call you ¡®Uncle.¡¯¡±


    He would not get into trouble for this, and he could even build a rtionship with Huangfu Fengchen. Although Long Chen had Long Yue protecting him, he would benefit from additional protection from Huangfu Fengchen.


    Many people could read between the lines. Although it sounded like he was joking, he was trying to close the distance between himself and Long Chen. It was a warning to the rest. He had called himself Long Chen¡¯s father, meaning that if other people touched Long Chen, they¡¯d be pping Huangfu Fengchen in the face! If he wanted to defend Long Chen, no one could object.


    Everyone present knew that perhaps due to his daughter, Huangfu Fengchen seemed to intend to protect Long Chen. Those who wanted to attack Long Chen were forced to consider if they could afford to offend Huangfu Fengchen.


    However, Long Yue rolled her eyes after Long Chen spoke.


    Long Chen suddenly had a bizarre realization. Long Chen, Long Yue, and the rest all called themselves brothers and sisters. Since he called Huangfu Fengchen ¡°Uncle,¡± didn¡¯t that put Long Yue one generation beneath Huangfu Fengchen?


    Huangfu Fengchenughed.


    Long Chen had fallen into his trap. Huangfu Fengchen looked at Long Yue smugly.


    But she ignored him.


    Everyone was staring at the door nervously. They had already tried, and attacking it was useless. There had already been one death. If someone like Long Yue did not dare act recklessly, everyone else was even more cautious.


    All they could do was wait.


    Huangfu Fengchen was clearly a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Including him, there was a total of four Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators present.


    Long Chen waited for a while. While everyone was thinking of a solution, sparks appeared in front of the door. They danced around and slowly morphed into several characters.


    Just like the sign above, the characters looked ancient. Long Chen guessed that they were from the Middle Ages.


    <em>Only five may enter, or the realm will copse </em>


    After the sparks formed those words, they disappeared immediately.


    ¡°Only five?¡± They were all momentarily at a loss. If six people entered, the realm would copse, bringing the Red Emperor Seal down with it and possibly trapping the people inside too. The four masters present were top-ranked leaders in the Divine Martial Empire. If they all died, many people would also end up in tragedy.


    Therefore, they did not dare act recklessly.


    The four of them looked at each other, and very soon, a fair solution was proposed. Yang Ningfeng said, ¡°There are four factions present, but there will be one spot left. It doesn¡¯t matter who takes the spot, since everyone else would be unhappy, right? So only four of us should go.¡±


    Time was running out. Yang Ningfeng wanted the Martial Alliance to send two people, but he knew that no one would ever agree to it.


    Huangfu Fengchen was the first to agree, seeing as he hade alone. Long Yue looked at Long Chen, then she agreed. With Long Chen¡¯s strength, he probably wouldn¡¯t get the Red Emperor Seal from the three masters.


    Since three of them had agreed, Jiang Wuxie had no choice but to agree too.


    ¡°Long Chen, after I enter, they will surely attack you. Just use your escape technique to leave and look for Wuya and the rest,¡± Long Yue instructed.


    Long Chen nodded. When Jiang Wuya left, he had told Long Chen where they were headed. Only Long Chen could easily find them.


    But was he really going to leave just like that?


    Long Chen was unwilling.


    <em>Only five may enter. So far, four people are going in ¡­ </em>Long Chen¡¯s mind raced as he watched the bronze door.


    There was a loud <em>creak</em>¡ªthe bronze door was slowly opening! No one dared to move, so they could only wait. When the door waspletely open, they realized that roaring mes were burning on the inside.


    The four of them took several steps forward, looking at each other. No one dared do anything rash, especially the Demon and Martial Emperors. They were older and more cautious.


    ¡°You cowards.¡± Huangfu Fengchen nced at those two with contempt, then he slipped into the mes. The roaring mes rippled like the surface of ake. Huangfu Fengchen had disappeared.


    ¡°So it¡¯s an optical illusion.¡± Soon after Huangfu Fengchen entered, Long Yue followed suit. The two emperors locked eyes and fought to rush in too.


    When they had passed through the bronze door, they realized they were all standing in a cave. They all looked at each other cautiously, then stood farther away from each other.


    They studied the cave. To their confusion, it was a sealed cave with no exit. The only exit was through the bronze door.


    The bronze door had not closed, and they could see the outside clearly despite the fact that the roaring mes had blocked the vision when they were outside.


    ¡°Only five may enter. Is it possible that we need exactly five people? Since there are only four of us, maybe the door won¡¯t close and a new path won¡¯t open up until the fifth person enters?¡± said Long Yue.


    Everyone thought that made sense. If not, how could they exin this situation? They were all trapped inside a cave, and this was a miniverse. They did not even know how to exit.


    After some thought, the Martial Emperor and the Demon Emperors panicked. The fifth person had to be a member of one of their teams, but the problem was that their voices could not travel out of the miniverse. They would have to wait until the people outsidee to the same conclusion! The first person to figure out that five people were required would be the fifth.


    The four of them looked outwards.


    Long Chen had made his decision as soon as they entered.


    The moment Long Yue left, the Martial Alliance and Ancient Demon Domain members all looked at him.


    He had killed Martial Alliance members before and had even held Jiang Wushang hostage. Both factions had plenty of reasons to kill him.


    ¡°Do you guys intend to kill me? Unfortunately, you¡¯re not capable of doing that.¡±


    He was not nervous at all. There were four Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators present; did he really think he could escape unscathed?


    There were two Demon Saints present; one was caring for Jiang Wushang while the other took several steps forward and said to the Martial Alliance, ¡°Brothers of the Martial Alliance. This brat hurt my Young Master, so I must kill him.¡±


    ¡°He killed my good friend, the Void Martial Saint! I must be the one to kill him!¡± said someone from the Martial Alliance indignantly.


    It wasical that they were fighting over who would get to kill him. Long Chen had no patience to argue, so he said, ¡°Stop bickering, you old farts! Why don¡¯t I just fight everyone at the same time?¡±


    ¡°This kid is bold! He has a death wish!¡±

 Chapter 564: Red Emperor

    The Martial Saint and the Demon Saint both attacked Long Chen, a Ninth Heavenly Passage Stage cultivator, at the same time.


    ¡°You idiots.¡± Long Chenughed and turned into a ray of blood-colored light. <em>Whoosh! </em>He disappeared. Everyone thought he was running away, but to their surprise, he was heading towards the bronze door.


    By the time they realized it, he became visible for a moment and then plunged into the mes. There were some ripples in the mes, then they swallowed him whole.


    ¡°He entered the Divine Fire Realm!¡± The crowd gasped and quickly ran after him. Before they arrived, he hadpletely vanished.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move! If six people enter, the whole Divine Fire Realm will copse! Then the Martial Emperor and the rest will die,¡± said the Martial Saint from the Martial Alliance, hurriedly stopping everyone.


    ¡°How humiliating that the brat managed to get in! That brat is cunning. He probably nned to enter all along. That¡¯s why he was standing there so calmly!¡±


    ¡°We were tricked!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s so young, but so cunning.¡±


    ¡°The Demon Emperor can easily kill him off inside. Why are you so worried? I¡¯m sure that he won¡¯t be able to leave. There are four Third Earthly Martial Stage masters in there. A puny Long Chen is nothing!¡± Everyone cursed furiously.


    Then the door creaked again and slowly closed. Startled, everyone backed away. After they retreated, the fireball slowly engulfed the whole door and the ¡°Divine Fire Realm¡± sign, turning into just a gigantic ball of fire floating in front of them. It spun, then it slowly sank into the mud. It disappeared just like that.


    Everything returned to normal. They all looked at each other in shock.


    ¡°Even the door disappeared! Nothing is left! How will the Demon Emperor and the others get out?¡± one of the Demon Saints cried in panic.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Since someone designed the test to be like that, then there must be a way to get out. I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll get the Red Emperor Seal!¡± said the other Demon Saint with determination.


    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s return to the Ancient Demon Domain.¡± After the two Demon Saints made their decision, they left with the injured and unconscious Jiang Wushang. The Martial Alliance members looked at each other and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go to Cloud Heaven City to set up camp, then report what happened to the Martial Overlord. We¡¯ll let him decide!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Sir!¡±


    ***


    Long Chen appeared in front of the others who had entered.


    The moment he did, Long Yue pulled him behind her, watching the two emperors cautiously. They had already agreed on sending in four people, but now that Long Yue had an extra person with her, they would not let it rest.


    As expected, Yang Ningfeng said, ¡°We have four factions here, so only four may fight for the Red Emperor Seal. Now that there¡¯s one more person, I think the only way to make it fair is to kill him.¡±


    The Demon Emperor said, ¡°Long Yue, will you do it? Or should we? Don¡¯t anger everyone just because of one puny Ninth Passage Stage kid!¡±


    Long Yue looked at them coldly and smiled. ¡°If you want to kill him, it¡¯s simple. You can do it over my dead body. The problem is, will you be able to do it?¡±


    Seeing that the situation was getting tense, Huangfu Fengchen maintained his smile and said, ¡°Don¡¯t make jokes like that! Long Chen is my darling daughter¡¯s big brother! And he is now my nephew. In the future, he might even be my son-inw! How could I allow you to kill him on a whim?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned.


    He stared at Huangfu Fengchen in shock. To be honest, he had never seen a father behaving like that. Huangfu Qi was only ten¡ªwhy was he already looking for a son-inw? He was a strange man indeed.


    After some thought, Long Chen realized that Huangfu Fengchen was just trying to protect him, and it was just a joke.


    This meant that Huangfu Fengchen and Long Chen were on the same side. As a result, he was also on the same team as Long Yue.


    The Demon and Martial Emperors were naturally on the same team.


    With two versus two, it was even. As for Long Chen, if there was truly a battle, he could not do much and would basically just be a burden.


    The two emperors locked eyes, reading the situation well. If they wanted to kill Long Chen, it would ignite a battle between the four of them. That would not be worth it.


    The entrance waspletely shut now. The whole space trembled, and mes lit up five spots on the wall in front of them. The mes grewrger until they turned into five passageways. Every inch of each passage was also covered in fire, except for the ground.


    A spark flew out of the passage and formed several words.


    ¡°One person per tunnel, or die.¡±


    The instructions did not state who would die, but if they disobeyed, they would not meet a good end. The four of them were used to being mighty leaders in the Divine Martial Empire, but they were forced toy low and be obedient in the Divine Fire Realm.


    Both Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen were worried about Long Chen because this meant they would not be able to take care of him. He was actually a burden for them.


    ¡°Big Sister and ¡­ Patriarch Huangfu, you two don¡¯t have to worry about me. I¡¯ll be fine,¡± said Long Chen, trying tofort them.


    He was not very confident either, but he had many divine techniques on top of hisbat techniques. He even had Little Cat with him, who was a very knowledgeable fellow. He would surely be able to stay alive. Maybe he would even be able to get the Red Emperor Seal.


    Huangfu Fengchen and Long Yue locked eyes, seeing concern in each other¡¯s faces.


    ¡°I personally would not have rmended you toe in here, but since you¡¯re already here, there¡¯s nothing I can say. Good luck, kid,¡± said Huangfu Fengchen in a rare moment of seriousness.


    ¡°He¡¯s right. I won¡¯t be able to help you either,¡± Long Yue said sadly.


    The two emperors nced at them with schadenfreude, then they each entered a passage. Every passage looked the same, so there was nothing to fight over.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Perhaps I will be the one who gets the Red Emperor Seal in the end.¡± Long Chen stood up with great confidence. He waved at them, then he entered one of the tunnels.


    ¡°This teenager is bold,¡± Huangfu Fengchenmented.


    ¡°Like you, no?¡± said Long Yue. Then she entered one of the tunnels, leaving thest one for Huangfu Fengchen.


    ***


    Other than the dried soil on the ground, fire covered everything. If Long Chen had not injected the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants into his nine meridians, the heat here would have barbecued him alive.


    The deeper he went, the higher the temperatures.


    ¡°Only five could enter, and after that happened, five tunnels appeared. It¡¯s like everything was pre-arranged. Why? Is there someone above controlling us?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. Someone controls the Divine Fire Realm, though that person has long died. I don¡¯t have much power now, so I can¡¯t really sense his presence,¡± said Fat Cat.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°The remnants of his soul control the Divine Fire Realm. When a Martial Realm cultivator cultivates, he is actually growing his Martial Soul. An Earthy Martial Realm cultivator has to empower his Earthly Martial Soul to progress, and he has to do the same with the Heavenly Martial Soul at the Heavenly Martial Realm and the Divine Martial Soul at the Divine Martial Realm. Both the Earthly Martial Soul and the Heavenly Martial Soul exist independently from a person¡¯s own soul, which is also known as the Divine Soul. However, when one reaches the Divine Martial Realm, the Martial Soul and the Divine Soul merge together. As long as the Martial Soul isn¡¯t destroyed, the Divine Soul will exist forever.


    ¡°The Martial Soul is power, while the Divine Soul is sentience. Even though the body has died, the souls may still remain under the right circumstances. I¡¯m guessing that a Divine Martial Soul left behind by a cultivator who was at the Divine Martial Realm controls the Divine Fire Realm. Of course, it¡¯s likely only a small portion of the original Divine Martial Soul.¡±


    Long Chen only half-understood what Little Cat had said.


    He did not know enough about what cultivation at the Martial Realm entailed.


    However, he understood the part about the Divine Martial Realm master, and he replied in shock, ¡°Divine Martial Realm? Above the Earthly Martial Realm is the Heavenly Martial Realm, and both have nine stages, making a total of eighteen stages. The most powerful cultivators in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory are only at the Heavenly Martial Realm, so where did this Divine Martial Realm persone from?¡±


    ¡°He isn¡¯t from the current times. There were Divine Martial Realm cultivators in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory in the Middle Ages. I don¡¯t really know who they were though. Since you guys are looking for the Red Emperor Seal, perhaps this is the Red Emperor,¡± said Little Cat.


    ¡°Red Emperor? Divine Martial Realm? Five Emperors?¡± Long Chen made a mental note.


    He knew that the Divine Martial Realm was his goal. If he reached it, he would have the right to marry Ling Xi. But how long would it take to get there?


    He bit his lip. He had a feeling that he would have an extraordinary opportunity in the Divine Fire Realm, and it would be up to him to take full advantage of it.


    He felt a little helpless.


    Being looked down upon by his beloved¡¯s family¡ªthat was the worst form of humiliation to a man. If he did not fight hard, he would have to carry this shame for the rest of his life.


    He was unwilling to surrender.


    That was why he strode forward without fear.


    That was why he was willing to put himself in danger to enter the Divine Fire Realm.


    If he did not enter, how could he marry Ling Xi?


    Long Chen did not know how long he had been walking, but he nearly started sprinting when he saw light at the end of the tunnel. When he rushed out of the tunnel, he found himself in a cave simr to the one before. There were no mes around here, and there was another exit that led to an identical tunnel.


    But getting there would not be easy.


    A total of ten little mes burned not far from his feet. The moment he arrived, the mes suddenly rose up into the air!

 Chapter 565: Immortal Fire

    <em>Something¡¯s happening. </em>Long Chen retreated hurriedly after the mes red up, keeping his guard up in case anything else happened. He knew that the Red Emperor Seal was in the Divine Fire Realm, so he assumed that he was heading towards it. Five people werepeting to take the Red Emperor Seal for themselves, and they would have to face various tests to get it.


    These sparks were Long Chen¡¯s first test.


    ¡°Interesting.¡± Long Chen watched as the twinkling sparks quickly expanded to the size of a human, they then morphed into human shapes. They looked simr to Long Chen¡¯s Divine Fire Clones, though they were countless times stronger.


    The mes burned brightly and colorful lights danced and flowed within them like crystals.


    A total of ten ming men appeared before him.


    Their faces slowly morphed until eyes, ears, noses, and mouths took shape. Only the eyes took a more detailed form with darker-colored, tiny fireballs.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­ </em>


    Rays of light shot out of their eyes. Long Chen sensed that slumbering souls were waking up.


    ¡°Do I need to defeat them to pass through?¡± He looked at the passage up ahead and saw another bronze door at the end of it. The door was wrapped in mes and tightly shut. He guessed that he would never be able to open it if he tried to force his way through. Therefore, the only way was to defeat the ming men.


    These were not normal living beings, so he could not tell how powerful they were. For his safety, Long Chen activated the Dragon Soul Transformation, radiating the aura of dragons and powerful fire energy due to the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants. They provided Long Chen with an advantage when facing fire.


    He was sure that although the other four people were powerful, they did not have a huge advantage like he did.


    Faint, red mes flowed on the surface of his blood-red scales.


    As Qi traveled through his body, the Golden Crow¡¯s energy covered him in a fiery membrane.


    The membrane boosted his defense.


    One of the ten ming men stepped out and approached Long Chen.


    ¡°Is oneing over to test my strength?¡± Long Chen¡¯s mind raced. There were ten of them, so he chose to remain in the tunnel. That way, due to limited space, he would not need to deal with all of them at the same time.


    He would not need to worry if it was just one opponent.


    The ming man suddenly elerated¡ªit charged right up to him and threw a punch. To his shock, the punch brought with it a powerful wave of heat, and the fist became several times bigger when it flew towards his chest. He even sensed Earthly Martial Realm-level energy from the punch!


    ¡°He¡¯s strong!¡± Long Chen was startled. He threw his own punch in retaliation. It was a simple punch backed by his physical strength, but it was special due to the boost from the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants. The Golden Crow¡¯s energy turned into red mes and wrapped around his fist. The two types of fire collided!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    The Golden Crow¡¯s energy was slightly stronger, causing his opponent to take several steps back!


    Long Chen was shocked because the Eagle Martial King had also been forced back by his punch. Didn¡¯t this mean that one ming man was the equivalent to an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator? And there were ten of them!


    Chills ran through his body.


    If this was only the first test, what more awaited him?


    No matter whaty ahead, he could not give up now, as he had to stay alive. He quickly stabilized himself and took out the Deste Cleaving Sword, setting fire to the de. Then he charged at the ming man. The first time he shed, the ming man blocked with its fist, and the second time he shed, the ming man was split in half!


    Without the Golden Crow¡¯s power, Long Chen would¡¯ve found it very difficult to resolve this situation.


    ¡°One down, but many more to go.¡± Long Chen rushed back to the mouth of the cave with the sword still burning in his hand. The other ming men had not moved yet, so he did not move either.


    ¡°How do I get past them?¡± Long Chen and the ming men stood in a stalemate while his mind raced.


    ¡°Long Chen, careful!¡± Little Cat warned.


    Long Chen¡¯s hair stood on end. When he heard Little Cat¡¯s voice, he felt a huge threating from behind him. He turned and swung his sword as fast as he could. It coincidentally collided with a ming man¡¯s fist!


    If he had not been fast enough, the punch would havended on the back of his head! He would have been greatly injured, as the ming man was at the Earthly Martial Realm.


    After Long Chen¡¯s desperate sh, the ming arm was cut in half and flew in the air.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I split that guy in half just now? How is he still alive?¡± Long Chen was very puzzled.


    Then he saw the ming arm, which had been thrown up in the air, disappear. A brand new arm grew from the ming man¡¯s body, and it attacked him again!


    ¡°Is it immortal? Are you kidding me?¡± Long Chen smiled bitterly. It was difficult enough to fight ten of them, and now they were immortal? How long would it take him to defeat them all and open the bronze door to get to the next level?


    ¡°I refuse to believe I can¡¯t kill you!¡± Long Chen refused to ept defeat when the ming man¡¯s arm regrew. He swung his ming sword around with all his might. Seven minutester, the ming man had been cut to tiny pieces.


    Long Chen heaved a sigh of relief.


    The ming men were not immortal. They had something that resembled life force within them, and every time he hurt them, their life force deteriorated. Its previous injury had not caused much damage to its life force, but afternding about a hundred shes on its body, the ming man finally died and dispersedpletely.


    Long Chen put down the Deste Cleaving Sword, panting heavily.


    ¡°What a tough being! It takes a hundred shes to kill one?! Even if theye one by one, I¡¯m going to die from exhaustion!¡± Long Chen paled as he looked at the other ming men. After the first death, the rest of them moved simultaneously.


    ¡°No!¡± Long Chen gasped. He thought two or three woulde, but now all of them were approaching. He even saw anger in their eyes!


    Long Chen was not in the cave, but the tunnel. Since it was not wide, he was only faced with four or five of them. Even then, it was brutal!


    Five fists flew at him simultaneously. It did not matter how fast he was¡ªit was impossible to block that many punches. He could only attack and retreat at the same time, but the ming men needed a hundred shes to die. After he retreated a hundred meters, he still had not killed even one!


    ¡°I¡¯m dead if this goes on.¡± In the face of great pressure, Long Chen¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed, though he did not regret his decision at all. He continued to retreat. One of them, with a mate as cover, managed tond a punch on his shoulder!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    The ming man¡¯s punch was strong. Although Long Chen had the True Martial Demon Body, a tough Dragon Body, and was boosted by the Golden Crow¡¯s power, he was thrown back in the air, almost dropping the Deste Cleaving Sword!


    ¡°It¡¯s powerful!¡± Long Chen was destabilized by the punch and almost vomited blood. One punch was enough to injure him, and he was very clear about the reality of the situation.


    ¡°If this goes on, I will die.¡± Long Chen understood this very well when he crashed into the ground. If he did not have the Golden Crow¡¯s fiery membrane covering his body, the ming man¡¯s fire energy would have burned him to crisp.


    When hended on the ground, six or seven of them swarmed towards him. They had already sessfullynded a punch; if they rode on this momentum, they would be able to kill him!


    Long Chen¡¯s face changed. After hended, he quickly unleashed the Heaven Sword Array. Blood-red sword symbols emitting endless sword light materialized in the tight space. The ming men were swallowed by the Heaven Sword Array, and the crowded tunnel suddenly became empty!


    <em>Is it over?</em> Just as the question popped into his mind, the sparks that remained in the tunnel turned into ming men again. Not a single one of them had died, though their life force had diminished after the attack.


    ¡°A full-power Heaven Sword Array merely diminished one-tenth of their life force. I can¡¯t use the Heaven Sword Array ten times ¡­¡± His brows were furrowed.


    How would he survive such a terrifying test?


    Xiang¡¯s voice came from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Big Brother, let me try! Aren¡¯t they immortal? I¡¯ll swallow them whole! But since they¡¯re difficult to defeat, why don¡¯t I swallow them when you catch them?¡±


    Xiang was at the Category Nine Heaven-tier, so he was almost on the same level as the ming men. Long Chen had a feeling that his idea would work, so he nodded and let Xiang out of the Primordial Realm.


    This was his only hope ¡­

 Chapter 566: Golden Thread Kingsnake

    The Sun Devouring Wolf was a fire-element beast, but it was also the predator of all beings that used the fire element.


    After Xiang emerged from the Primordial Realm, he stood next to Long Chen and hung his head as he gazed at the fiery men. ck mes flickered in his eyes.


    If all of the fiery men attacked Xiang at the same time, even Xiang would suffer, so Long Chen¡¯s current task was to cover for him.


    He activated the Demon Illusion, and his clone separated from his body.


    Long Chen and his clone stood to the left and right of Xiang.


    Xiang gave Long Chen a look to show that he was ready, then he leaped towards the fiery men, which had just recovered from Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array. Xiang arrived in front of them in the blink of an eye, and Long Chen followed him closely.


    ¡°Let¡¯s begin ¡­¡± When the closest fiery man threw a punch at him, Xiang opened his mouth, and a ck whirlpool appeared in his throat!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    The overwhelming sucking force pulled the fiery man in. It tried to retreat when it realized what was happening, but it was toote. It struggled to take even one step and was quickly mashed into a fireball before Xiang swallowed it whole. Xiang closed his mouth. Two red mes flickered in his eyes, then they disappeared.


    During that time, Long Chen chopped two fiery men into halves!


    ¡°It worked! That¡¯s good ¡­¡± Long Chen sighed in relief while Xiang looked excited. This showed that swallowing the fiery men was beneficial to him. Perhaps he could really be a King-tier demonic beast soon.


    If he reached the King-tier, he would be able to take human form. Although his main body was still one of a beast, getting a chance to live like a human was the greatest surprise to Xiang.


    Long Chen was even more careful because of this.


    While Xiang was swallowing a fiery man, Long Chen worked hard to chop up the other fiery men. Xiang swallowed them increasingly fast as he became more familiar with the process. The number of fiery men slowly dwindled, and they became less and less of a threat to Long Chen.


    Without the assistance of a special beast like Xiang, Long Chen would never have been able to defeat all ten fiery men. Even Long Yue and the others probably had to defeat them slowly. Every kill was time-consuming!


    Finally, Xiang killed off thest man.


    Xiang¡¯s aura had strengthened greatly.


    ¡°What do you think? Is it enough for you to break through to the King-tier?¡± Long Chen asked with concern.


    ¡°No, I need just a little more. Reaching the King-tier is different because it¡¯s like bing a life form on a whole different level. Almost no demonic beast has been able to progress from the Heaven-tier to the King-tier. That¡¯s why I think it''ll be very difficult!¡± said Xiang, a little resigned. He had already digested a lot of fire, even absorbing the sr fire from before. Unfortunately, he was unable to cross the canyon between his current level and the King-tier right now.


    If he ever reached the King-tier, he would surely be much more powerful.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s only one test here. We need to proceed to the next one. Perhaps we¡¯ll make more gains.¡± Right when Long Chen finished speaking, the bronze door at the end of the passage suddenly opened. He and Xiang nodded, and he let Xiang back into the Primordial Realm while he carefully walked up to the bronze door.


    Once he passed through the door, the space in front of him suddenly opened up and he found himself in a luxurious, underground hall. The floor, walls, and ceiling were all made of clear, fire-red fire crystal. Although this type of crystal was not as precious as royal crystal, their neat arrangement was aesthetically pleasing.


    This ce was a squared-shaped hall, though it was separated into five sections that resembled five corridors that led to the next stage. However, there seemed to be an invisible wall between each section that prevented anyone from crossing over, though they could see through the entire room.


    One of the sections belonged to Long Chen. There was another bronze door at the end of the hall, and at this moment, it was open.


    The first thing Long Chen saw were sparkling white crystals scattered messily on the red floor. They were royal crystals! Many of them!


    royal crystals were valuable, and he knew that this was his reward for passing the first round. He immediately stored them in the Primordial Realm. After a rough count, he found that there were more than seven hundred crystals. He knew that the average First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator had about ten royal crystals, and Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators had around fifty. Seven hundred crystals was well above the worth of even Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators.


    After putting away the royal crystals, Long Chen looked over and saw four other bronze doors, which were all open. The floor was also clean.


    <em>Does this mean that the other four have passed the first test already? </em>Long Chen looked around and found nothing else out of the ordinary. He turned around and passed through the door, which rumbled and closed behind him.


    The other four were at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, so he was not surprised that they had passed the first test quicker than him.


    <em>The first stage was so difficult ¡­ What will the second stage be like? </em>Long Chen was not very confident, but after a brief moment of hesitation, he steeled himself.


    <em>I¡¯ve alreadye this far! If I don¡¯t go on, can I even call myself a man? </em>He was in tunnel identical to the previous one, and as he walked further, he noticed that the surrounding temperature was hotter than before.


    There were whooshing soundsing from the front.


    Something was waiting there for him.


    Long Chen was still in his Dragon Soul Transformation. With the Deste Cleaving Sword in hand, he slowly made his way deeper into the tunnel. After walking for about fifteen minutes, he saw a bright firelight. He put his guard up as he approached, and he found that there was another cave ahead. This cave was muchrger than the previous one, perhaps several timesrger.


    He sensed a huge threat in this cave.


    What was it?


    <em>Hiss! </em>


    Long Chen heard snake hisses. The ground was empty, but when he looked up, he suddenly saw a sea of fire on the ceiling! The fire burned brightly, and the hisses wereing from the sea of mes!


    When he looked closer, he realized that it was not a sea of fire, but millions of small, fiery snakes. Every snake was just half a meter long, but they were not real snakes. Just like the fiery men from before, they were made of mes, but the snakes moved exactly like real snakes.


    Long Chen spotted a small, golden snake made of real flesh and blood at the center of the millions of fiery snakes. It was almost as small as the fiery snakes, but Long Chen sensed a terrifying auraing from its body.


    ¡°Be careful. That demonic beast was very famous in the Middle Ages. It¡¯s a Golden Thread Kingsnake, a Category Two King-tier beast, but it can kill opponents far beyond its level,¡± the knowledgeable Little Cat exined.


    Long Chen eyed the golden snake cautiously. In his mind, the higher level a beast was, therger it was supposed to be. It was unbelievable to him that this tiny snake was a Category Two King-tier.


    Category Two King-tier?


    Long Chen¡¯s scalp went numb.


    ¡°What¡¯s so special about it?¡± Long Chen asked tiredly.


    ¡°Look at the other snakes. They are made of normal, condensed mes. Every fiery snake is a clone of it. Normal people can¡¯t find the snake¡¯s true body in the sea of fiery snakes. Its strength is in attacks and being able to hide easily so no one can touch it. However, it does not have strong defenses, and you stand a chance to survive because of this w. So, use your Soul Swallowing Gaze well,¡± Little Cat said nonchntly, as if this was none of his business.


    Long Chen¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed.


    Li Xuanji was the one who had taught him the Soul Swallowing Gaze. After reaching its third stage, which was Sight, he never progressed further. However, Sight had proven to be very useful recently. Everything disappeared from his sight; only the soul of the Golden Thread Kingsnake remained.


    Long Chen was able to pinpoint its location due to its soul.


    This was his only chance to win and live.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be scared. You¡¯re extraordinarily lucky. A First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator would have died on the first level, but you had Xiang. In this level, Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators might exhaust themselves to death, but you stand a chance because of your Soul Swallowing Gaze,¡± Little Cat said.


    Even Long Chen felt like he was indeed quite lucky.


    He looked up at the Golden Thread Kingsnake, and the millions of fiery snakes also looked at him. Then the Golden Thread Kingsnake hissed once and fell to the ground. The rest of the fiery snakes followed suit, as if the kingsnake had a gravitational pull.


    Loud hisses sounded across the cave.


    Long Chen¡¯s hair stood on end.


    The countless fiery snakes instantly drowned out the kingsnake, and there was a sudden burst of firelight. Then a gigantic fiery snake asrge as the King-tier Blood Ocean Viper appeared before Long Chen!


    When he took a closer look, the gigantic snake was made of countless tiny snakes! The whole colony moved as one like they had gained sentience, their tongues flickering out of their mouths!

 Chapter 567: My Reason To Live

    Long Chen took several steps back with some resignation.


    ¡°The Golden Thread Kingsnake is hiding somewhere in the giant snake. Use your Soul Swallowing Gaze to find it, then do your best to kill it. After you kill the kingsnake, all the little fiery snakes will disappear. You have an advantage here because you know where it is. Other people might end up half-dead trying to fight the snake without knowing where it is,¡± said Little Cat.


    Although Long Chen was able to find it, killing it would not be easy!


    Compared to Long Yue and the others, he was at a disadvantage because he was too weak. After passing the reward room earlier, he knew that they were progressing faster than he was.


    The gigantic, fiery snake took up a quarter of the cave when coiled. It red menacingly at Long Chen. He was still in the passageway, and the moment he entered the cave, it would unleash a storm of attacks on him.


    Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen saw the Golden Thread Kingsnake in its abdomen, though it probably wouldn¡¯t remain in the same location. The Golden Thread Kingsnake was moving slowly as it studied Long Chen. It was in control of the gigantic body.


    The center of its abdomen was not an easy spot to get to.


    What now?


    The Golden Thread Kingsnake was a Category Two King-tier for a reason, despite its only w, which was having a weak defense. Long Chen was strong enough to kill it, but he would have to find the perfect opportunity. <em>I wonder if it¡¯s able to distinguish between my Demon Illusion clone and myself? </em>Long Chen released his Demon Illusion clone, which was holding an intermediate Heaven-tier sword. With a <em>whoosh</em>, his clone charged into the cave but did not attack the gigantic snake. Instead, it charged towards a corner!


    <em>Hiss!</em>


    Countless hisses rang. The gigantic snake blurred as it charged at the clone!


    <em>I¡¯m afraid my clone will be destroyed here. </em>Long Chen frowned. The clone was a very helpful tool, and if it was destroyed, he would be weakened. However, all he really needed to do was kill the snake to pass to the next stage.


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the clone suddenly turned around after it rushed to the corner. The gigantic snake was very close now, and the tall mes on its body flew at the clone like a ming mountain!


    Long Chen had the clone use its most powerful attack, the Heaven Sword Array. It sent a tidal wave of sword symbols flying at the gigantic snake!


    When the array collided with the snake,rge mes shot out of its head, as if there were explosions. More sparks flew in all directions while the giant snake screamed and quickly retreated. The clone¡¯s Heaven Sword Array had taken a chunk off its head!


    But then the countless little snakes slithered up and quickly filled up the hole. The fiery snake only shrank by a tiny bit as a result.


    This showed just how resilient the snake was. Long Chen would probably have to use the Heaven Sword Array thousands of times in order to make itpletely disappear, but that was impossible.


    If he did not find another method to deal with the snake, it would be impossible for him to pass!


    The Divine Fire Realm was indeed a terrifying ce.


    The real Long Chen was waiting in the tunnel, holding his breath. Just as expected, after his clone shot out, the kingsnake¡¯s full attention was on his clone. It did not seem to notice Long Chen!


    Therge snake¡¯s head approached the clone, though its body remained coiled, flipping asionally. The kingsnake in its abdomen moved slowly.


    One of the giant snake¡¯s sections was not far from Long Chen. To prevent its opponent from finding it, the kingsnake kept moving through the giant snake. All Long Chen could do was wait until the kingsnake moved to the portion in front of him!


    He hoped his clone would survive until then.


    Long Chen waited. After the giant snake was injured by the clone, it let out a deafening scream, and the kingsnakemanded it to pounce on the clone once more. It opened its immense jaws and shot endless mes at the clone. Its n was to swallow the clone and burn it to a crisp!


    The clone continued to retaliate with another bout of the Heaven Sword Array!


    Immense amounts of Sword Qi forced the giant snake away once more!


    Once again, a small portion of the body was gone, though it did not affect the giant snake¡¯sbat abilities at all.


    The clone was only able to force it away; it was impossible for the clone to kill the giant snake!


    <em>It¡¯s close! </em>Long Chen¡¯s muscles werepletely tensed. Furious, the kingsnake changed locations quickly. Unbeknownst to it, it was heading towards Long Chen. Once it was close, Long Chen would shoot out andunch his fatal strike!


    After two bouts of the Heaven Sword Array, Long Chen¡¯s clone was bing dull in color. Victory would be determined in the next attack. Whether he seeded or not was all up to luck!


    The giant snake was even angrier this time, and countless fiery snakes screamed. The noise merged into a deafening sound wave that flew towards the clone. The gigantic snake sped up and its head shot out at the clone like an asteroid falling from the sky!


    This time, the impact would destroy the clone even if it used the Heaven Sword Array. This waspletely possible as the gigantic snake was very strong; it was an aggregation of countless snakes after all!


    Long Chen¡¯s heart pounded in his chest.


    He was nervous.


    Sess all depended on this one shot.


    For thest time, the clone used all its strength tounch a final Heaven Sword Array. A tidal wave of swords inflicted damage on the snake, but the snake did not stop even after it was attacked. It waspletely consumed by rage!


    <em>Hiss! </em>


    A deep cut opened up on its head, and hundreds of tiny snakes were torn to shreds by the Heaven Sword Array once more. More snakes rushed forward to rece them!


    The clone had used up all its energy, so it could not dodge the gigantic snake¡¯s furious attack or defend itself. Therge snake swallowed it with ease!


    Long Chen sensed the aura of the clone weakening under the terrifying mes. The clone then turned into a wisp of gas and disappeared. Long Chen¡¯s shadow appeared beneath his feet!


    He knew that his Demon Illusion clone was gone!


    However, he had already achieved his goal. The kingsnake was now ten meters away, and all its attention was on the clone. When it sensed that the clone was about topletely disappear, it visibly rxed and was about to disperse the gigantic snake!


    That was when Long Chen charged!


    He had been waiting for this moment. With the Deste Cleaving Sword in hand, he used the Blood Devouring Domain on the snake the moment he shot out. The Dragon Soul Transformation and Blood Devouring Domain had be necessities in his recent battles, bringing him countless victories!


    It was the same this time!


    Long Chen covered a distance of ten meters in the blink of an eye. The gigantic snake was about five meters wide. With red mes covering his body, he mmed his fist onto the gigantic snake to open a hole. Then he unleashed the Heaven Sword Array towards the kingsnake!


    With the boost of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants, his Heaven Sword Array was ten times more powerful than the clone¡¯s array! Since Long Chen had managed to get very close, the kingsnake could not react in time. The Blood Devouring Domain yed a huge part in this as well, but most importantly, the Demonic Illusion clone hadpletely tricked it!


    Sword symbols with red mes exploded, covering a ten meter radius around Long Chen with burning Sword Qi. The Golden Thread Kingsnake waspletely trapped!


    <em>Hiss! Hiss! Hiss! </em>


    Countless fiery snakes were destroyed by the Heaven Sword Array. The gigantic fiery snake was severed in half, and the kingsnake could not dodge in time. It drowned in Long Chen¡¯s Sword Qi!


    Long Chen had poured all his strength into this final attack!


    It was a perfect fatal strike that had sessfully cut the Golden Thread Kingsnake in half!


    He had won!


    Long Chen had the urge to fall to his knees.


    Admittedly, both tests were close calls. In the first test, he would not have passed if it were not for Xiang. This time, he would not have passed if he did not have his Demonic Illusion clone or the Soul Swallowing Gaze. Although the Divine Fire Realm was treacherous, it was as if the tests were designed for Long Chen.


    The fiery snake disappearedpletely when the Golden Thread Kingsnake died. They turned into small mes that fell on the ground like rain, creating a beautiful sight. Millions of tiny sparks covered the ground.


    The only loss he had suffered was the Demonic Illusion clone.


    The Demonic Illusion had brought Long Chen a lot of benefits. If he did not have it while fighting the Void Martial Saint, he would not have won either.


    Most importantly, he had cultivated the Demonic Illusion with Liu Yiyi.


    The girl who was very simr to Ling Xi.


    Two faces appeared in his mind. In the end, he could not let go of the image of Ling Xi.


    <em>What is love? I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯m chasing after Ling Xi as if she¡¯s my reason to live.</em>


    Long Chen stood up, looking around numbly.

 Chapter 568: Solar Fire

    This time, Long Chen believed that he had passed his test faster than the others. Finding the snake¡¯s location while dealing with its powerful gigantic form was difficult even for a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, so the others would take some time to defeat it.


    Cultivators at the First Earthly Martial Stage would not even have been able to pass the first test, and cultivators at the second Earthly Martial Stage would not have passed the second. These two tests were clearly set up to filter off people below the Third Earthly Martial Stage. However, although Long Chen was only at the Ninth Heavenly Passage Stage, he had miraculously passed.


    After the Golden Thread Kingsnake died, Long Chen put away its carcass. He saw that the bronze door on the other end of the cave had opened.


    Was there going to be another test?


    If there was, it could end in tragedy for him. He had gotten very lucky to survive this long.


    If he had to go through a more difficult test, he would likely die.


    After cleaning up, Long Chen exited through the door without hesitation. It led to a bright space, and he realized that it was another hall that was also divided into five sections. Each section could see the other side, but there were transparent walls dividing them.


    Long Chen could tell who had passed when he looked at the othernes. He did, and this time, he discovered that none of the other four bronze doors were open. This meant that the four Third Earthly Martial Stage masters had not killed their respective Golden Thread Kingsnakes yet.


    Without a technique like the Soul Swallowing Gaze, they had no way of knowing the location of the Golden Thread Kingsnake, so it would indeed be difficult. Long Chen pushed them out of his mind and looked forward. He saw a light array not far away from the door. It was notrge; its radius was only about one meter, so it was far smaller than a universe transporter. However, there were several times more symbols on it, and they were both beautiful andplex.


    ¡°This is a Mini Transporter, which only allows one person to pass, and it only goes in one direction. It is also transboundary,¡± said Little Cat when he saw how confused Long Chen was.


    ¡°Transboundary? What do you mean?¡± Long Chen understood the first part, but not thest part.


    ¡°The transporter you went through in the Cangyang Kingdom is not transboundary because it transports people within the same universe. This transporter can send you from the Divine Fire Realm to the outside world, so it is transboundary,¡± Little Catzily exined, looking at him with disgust as if Long Chen was a hillbilly.


    Long Chen turned his gaze from the mini transporter to other ces.


    ¡°This means that this is the exit leading out of the Divine Fire Realm. Then the item that I want must be here.¡± Long Chen looked ahead for the first time.


    ¡°It¡¯s really hot ¡­¡± Long Chen sensed that the temperature was very high, much higher than in the other sections.


    When he looked closely, he saw that the space in front of the passage was filled with mes, and they blocked him from walking any further. Xiang grew very excited when he sensed the presence of the mes.


    ¡°Big Brother, those are not ordinary mes!¡± Xiang said hurriedly.


    ¡°Not ordinary?¡± Long Chen looked closely and saw that other than having abnormally high temperatures, they were a little different from normal mes. Wasn¡¯t that sr fire? There was more of it here than what Xiang had absorbed!


    Sr fire was the mostmon type of fire found on the sun. It would sometimes fall andnd on the ground, but it was very rare to see so much of it concentrated in one ce. Although Long Chen could not see all of it, he estimated that there was ten times more sr fire than what Xiang had received!


    This meant that Xiang would likely achieve a breakthrough to be a true King-tier beast just by consuming the sr fire in this room!


    Xiang was not the only one who was excited¡ªLong Chen was too.


    The next step was to obviously let Xiang swallow the mes.


    It was time to let Xiang out, but one of the bronze doors suddenly burst open behind him. A red, feminine silhouette appeared¡ªit was Long Yue! There were many ck, burnt patches on her body, likely injuries sustained from the battle with the Golden Thread Kingsnake.


    The first to appear out of the others was Long Yue.


    Then again, it did not mean that she was the strongest. It only meant that she was the fastest to defeat her opponent.


    Since she was out, that meant the others would soon follow. Long Chen initially wanted to let Xiang out, but looking at the current situation, he would have to wait.


    When Long Yue emerged, she instantly spotted Long Chen. Her initially sorrowful expression turned into shock when she saw him, and disbelief filled her eyes.


    ¡°Long ¡­ Long Chen, you¡¯re here?!¡±


    Long Chen knew that the reason she was so shocked was because under normal circumstances, he should not have been able to pass the first level with his First Earthly Martial Stage strength.


    ¡°If I said it was due to luck, would you believe me?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Long Yue gave him a strange sense of closeness.


    She eyed the shocking teenager once more, and in the end, she had to believe that her eyes weren¡¯t ying tricks. She shook her head with resignation and said, ¡°It¡¯s as if you¡¯ve been creating miracles since the beginning. We¡¯ll talkter. Since you arrived first, what have you found here?¡±


    Long Chen pointed at the mini transporter and said, ¡°That is likely the exit of the Divine Fire Realm. But I think the Red Emperor Seal is in the mes.¡±


    He pointed at the sr fire.


    The front of Long Yue¡¯s section was also filled with sr fire.


    As he spoke, a small me leaped out of the sr fire, and the same happened on Long Yue¡¯s side. The golden me shook and a row of characters took shape in front of them.


    ¡°The Red Emperor Seal is in the sr fire, which stretches over a hundred meters. Whoever traverses fifty meters first will get the seal. Anyone who canplete a hundred meters will get a mystery gift.¡±


    That was the message from the me.


    Long Chen and Long Yue locked eyes, and he saw the exhaustion in her eyes. She said, ¡°The sr fire is extremely hot, so I need to wrap myself in essence to pass through it. And if I exhaust my essence, I might even be burned to death inside. With my capabilities, I can only walk forty meters at most. The rest of them likely cannot make it past thirty meters either. This means that no one below the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage can get the Red Emperor Seal!¡±


    Long Yue¡¯s analysis was surely urate.


    However, Long Chen was not stressed. Instead, he was pleasantly surprised, because he had Xiang with him. Xiang could swallow the sr fire, guaranteeing Long Chen¡¯s ability to enter. However, Long Yue was still here, so Long Chen was not in a hurry.


    ¡°I can only hold on for forty meters at most. Even if I could get to the Red Emperor Seal, I would need to have enough essence to make it back here. Since merely going there would exhaust all my essence, I¡¯d die on the way back. As for the mystery gift, it¡¯s impossible to get it without reaching the Fifth or Sixth Earthly Martial Stage!¡± Long Yue said solemnly.


    This meant that there was still a huge gap between the other four and the Red Emperor Seal.


    The other three doors burst open consecutively. Yang Ningfeng, Huangfu Fengchen, and the Demon Emperor all emerged, and all of them looked ashy and disheveled. They were all in a worse state than Long Yue.


    When they emerged, they studied their surroundings carefully, understanding the situation in the hall. Of course, what shocked them the most was Long Chen. They all assumed Long Chen was long dead, as even they had to put in some effort to pass the two tests. How had Long Chen made it here unscathed?


    ¡°How is that possible? How did you survive that, brat? Putting the golden snake aside, even one of the fiery men could have easily killed you,¡± blurted the Demon Emperor.


    Yang Ningfeng and Huangfu Fengchen were wondering the same thing.


    Huangfu Fengchen was pleasantly surprised to see that Long Chen had survived. He studied the teenager with a grin. The look of disbelief on his face turned into praise.


    <em>It looks like this brat has many secrets. Since Qiqi likes him so much, when she¡¯s older ¡­ Hehe ¡­ </em>he thought creepily.


    Long Chen ignored the Demon Emperor. Since there were transparent walls, the Demon King could not touch him. He looked at Long Yue and asked, ¡°Big Sister, what¡¯s your n?¡±


    ¡°I must still try. Wait for me outside. The sr fire is extremely hot; do not go in.¡± Then Long Yue wrapped her whole body with essence. Without even looking at the other three, she entered and was instantly swallowed by the mes.


    Long Yue had always been a decisive person.


    When she made her move, the others ignored Long Chen and quickly approached. mes also popped out to give them the instructions.


    ¡°Fifty meters? Is that a joke? Doesn¡¯t that mean we need to walk a hundred meters in the sr fire?¡± Jiang Wuxie¡¯s expression changed. The other two were also torn because their capabilities were all simr.


    ¡°I absolutely must try. Even that woman Long Yue went in!¡± Huangfu Fengchenughed, then, like Long Yue, he wrapped himself in essence and entered.


    Yang Ningfeng and Jiang Wuxie locked eyes and scrambled to enter too. Very soon, only Long Chen remained.

 Chapter 569: Prismatic Key

    Long Chen hadn¡¯t entered yet because he could not let the rest know that he had gotten the Red Emperor Seal. With so many strong enemies around, he wouldn¡¯t be able to keep it for long. He could not even tell anyone that he had the ck Emperor Seal.


    After they entered, Long Chen called for Xiang to open up a path for him. However, there was another worry. If Xiang came out to swallow all the mes, the others would see him, right?


    However, Long Chen quickly came up with a n. As long as he did not swallow the mes at the mouth of the tunnel, showing that the mes were still there, it would be fine. He let Xiang out of the Primordial Realm. Xiang¡¯s eyes were filled with greed when he saw the sr fire. To him, it was the most delicious food in the world.


    ¡°Xiang, you must only start swallowing when you go one meter deep into the tunnel. I should be able to make it past one meter,¡± Long Chen instructed.


    Xiang nodded, then he shot into the mes. After ten breaths of time, Xiang emerged once more and said, ¡°Big Brother, I have formed a space one meter away from the entrance. You can enter, then I will continue to swallow the mes.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He wrapped all his Qi around his body, which contained the Golden Crow¡¯s power. The Golden Crow¡¯s fire was several tiers higher than sr fire. Although there was only a minute trace of it in his Qi, it was probably sufficient to protect him for long enough to move one meter.


    Xiang entered the sr fire once more.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and plunged into the mes. An insanely hot wave of heat rushed at him, making him feel like his entire body would melt! The sr fire was indeed terrifying; even a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator would only be able to walk one meter. The fact that the others could make it to forty meters proved just how big the gap between each cultivation level was.


    One meter was initially enough to exhaust all of Long Chen¡¯s Qi, but he realized that the Golden Crow¡¯s energy provided ample protection against the mes. Although the red mes covering his body looked thin, they were able to block off the main heat from the sr fire. After one meter, only a third of his Qi was spent. If he used all his strength, he would be able to walk three meters.


    After making it past one meter, Long Chen noticed an empty space in front, and Xiang appeared. His mouth was open and he was currently swallowingrge swathes of sr fire.


    Long Chen knew that due to time constraints, Xiang would swallow the fire now and then digest itter.


    Since he had swallowed sr fire before, he worked fast, and they were able to progress much faster than the others. There was already three to four meters of space for Long Chen to move in.


    As Xiang trekked forward, Long Chen followed him.


    All of the golden sr fire aggregated inside Xiang, causing both his body and fur to slowly turn bright gold.


    After he finished digesting the sr fire, he would return to ck because that was the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s original color.


    They progressed quickly.


    Long Chen was in a great mood because if this continued, the Red Emperor Seal would be his.


    Ten meters! Twenty! Thirty!


    He had already covered more distance than the others ever could, and they were likely only about ten meters deep at this point in time. Under such immense stress, no one could travel quickly within the sr fire. Long Chen had only managed to walk fast for one meter because he had the protection of the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants.


    Very soon, he was forty meters deep. Long Chen watched with great anticipation.


    <em>Ten more meters ¡­ </em>Counting his footsteps, Long Chen knew that he was almost there.


    After a short while, Long Chen had made it through half of the tunnel. Suddenly, Xiang stopped because a fire-red seal had appeared before him.


    The seal had only materialized after Long Chen passed the fifty-meter mark.


    Long Chen was sure that it was the Red Emperor Seal.


    He had seen the ck Emperor Seal before, which waspletely ck. It looked simple and old, but there was nothing strange about it. The Red Emperor Seal was the same. Although it belonged to the fire element, it was not hot.


    Long Chen studied it for a while, then he said to Xiang, ¡°Carry on. I want to see what the mystery gift at the hundred-meter mark is.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s likely more precious than the Red Emperor Seal. The Red Emperor Seal is already one of the Five Emperor Seals and is rted to an Emperor-tierbat technique. I wonder what the mystery gift will be?¡± Xiang was curious too.


    He continued swallowing the mes.


    Maintaining their speed, they soon passed fifty more meters.


    Long Chen was truly grateful for Xiang this time because he would not have passed even the first test without him, nor would he have made it past three meters without him. Xiang had not only enabled him to get the Red Emperor Seal, but also the mystery gift!


    The Red and ck Emperor Seals were now both in his hands. No one would ever have expected this!


    As for the Azure, White, and Yellow Emperor Seals, Long Yue likely had the Azure Emperor Seal, though Long Chen was not sure about the other two. However, he was the one closest topleting the set of five as he had two!


    After thest trace of the sr fire was swallowed, Long Chen found himself before a cave. It was a small cave, and when he entered, he realized that there were five entrances. The other four entrances were filled with roaring sr fire.


    Those entrances led to the other tunnels, so in theory, all of them could gather here if they passed through. Or more urately, they could fight here.


    Xiang burped and said, ¡°Big Brother, I really feel like I have reached my limit already. Let me back into the Primordial Realm. I need to refine the sr fire to reach the King-tier!¡±


    Long Chen nodded and sent him back into the Primordial Realm.


    There was a square boulder at the center of the cave. There was a keyying on it, and white, green, ck, red, and yellow lights danced on it. Long Chen¡¯s mind raced. He understood that this was a reflection of the Five Emperors, namely the White, Azure, ck, Red, and Yellow Emperors.


    The five-colored key was clearly the mystery gift.


    Long Chen walked over.


    Suddenly, a fire-red silhouette shot out of the five-colored key. He took several steps back, eyeing the red shadow with caution.


    ¡°That is the Divine Martial Soul that has been left behind for many years,¡± Little Cat said softly.


    Long Chen nodded.


    The red silhouette slowly took the shape of a human, and he stared straight ahead as if he did not notice Long Chen. Long Chen knew that he had died a long time ago and that this was whatever the owner had recorded back then.


    ¡°I am the Red Emperor, one of the Five Emperors of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory! You are very lucky, man of fate, because you are likely going to get the treasure that the Five Emperors left behind!¡±


    Treasure of the Five Emperors?


    Long Chen was ecstatic. Were there other treasures aside from the Emperor-tierbat technique?


    <em>This person must have been a master in the Middle Ages. Fat Cat said this was a Divine Martial Soul, so he must have been at the Divine Martial Realm. The Five Emperors must have been master cultivators at the Divine Martial Realm, so the treasures they left behind can¡¯t be as simple as a mere Emperor-tierbat technique. Perhaps they passed on some legendary Divine-tier items? </em>


    Long Chen was extremely excited!


    King-tier, Emperor-tier, Divine-tier!


    Even an Emperor-tier treasure could trigger a storm of blood and violence in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, let alone Divine-tier treasures!


    ¡°The treasure of the Five Emperors is located in the Ancient Graveyard. There are a total of five Prismatic Keys; you need to have all five in order to unlock the treasure! I wish you luck!¡±


    The Red Emperor¡¯s message was short and simple. After that, the red silhouette disappeared. Long Chen first put the Prismatic Key in the Primordial Realm, then he straightened his thoughts.


    <em>The Five Emperors must have been the five strongest people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory in the Middle Ages. They managed to reach the legendary Divine Martial Realm, while the most powerful person today is only at the Heavenly Martial Realm. After they died, they left behind some treasure and hid it in the Ancient Graveyard. The only way to unlock the treasure is to collect all five Prismatic Keys, and now I have one ¡­ </em>


    <em>As for the Five Emperor Seals, the Emperor-tierbat technique is likely considered a low-level item among the treasures they left behind, which is why they are located in the outside world. Because I was lucky, I not only got the Red Emperor Seal, but also one of the Prismatic Keys. There will likely be something else much more precious than an Emperor-tierbat technique!</em>


    It was not an easy feat to get to this key.


    Based on what Long Yue had said, only a cultivator at the Fifth or Sixth Earthly Martial Stage would be able toplete the journey of one hundred meters.


    There were no masters at that level in the Divine Martial Empire.


    If Long Chen hadn¡¯te here, no one would have been able to get the Red Emperor Seal or the Prismatic Key.


    <em>I got the Red Emperor Seal, the Prismatic Key, and the King Crystals from before! What a great haul! But the others will being out soon. If they don''t see me, they¡¯ll get suspicious. I need to get out fast! </em>


    It had taken a long time to get in, but going out was much easier. He covered ny-nine meters quickly and, just like before, it took some effort to pass through thest meter of sr fire. Right when he emerged andposed himself, he saw Long Yue emerge from the sr fire.

 Chapter 570: Earthly Martial Realm

    ¡°How was it? Did you get the Red Emperor Seal?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly when he saw Long Yue.


    She shook her head with a bitter smile and said, ¡°I did my best, but I only managed to go twenty-five meters deep. That¡¯s only half the journey! Unless I reach the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, it¡¯ll be impossible to get the Red Emperor Seal. Only the Martial Overlord can get it, but he¡¯s not here.¡±


    ¡°What if you cultivate here until you reach the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage?¡± asked Long Chen.


    She thought for a while and then shook her head. ¡°No, I still have a long way to go before I reach the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. I don¡¯t know what will happen to the Divine Fire Realm during that time. If I stayed here for too long and got stuck, that would be a tragedy. Thankfully, if I can¡¯t get the Red Emperor Seal, the others can¡¯t either.¡±


    Long Yue did not know that not just the Red Emperor Seal, but also the ck Emperor Seal were with Long Chen.


    He thought for a while and decided not to tell her about them. He trusted Long Yue, but one could never be too cautious. Then again, they were only useful when all five seals were together. It would be useless telling her now anyway.


    Then Huangfu Fengchen and the others also emerged from the sr fire. Just like Long Yue, they were dusty and disheveled, and none of them had managed to reach the Red Emperor Seal. How would they feel if they knew that the Red Emperor Seal they had worked so hard to get was actually with Long Chen?


    Most importantly, Long Chen even had the Prismatic Key, which led to the treasure of the Five Emperors.


    Xiang was in a deep sleep. Long Chen guessed that when he woke up, he would be a King-tier demonic beast. It was time to leave the Divine Fire Realm, but since he was with Long Yue, he had to wait for her, or the others would attack him when he got out.


    After all the four masters emerged and saw that everyone else was disheveled, they all privately sighed in relief. They knew that no one had gotten the Red Emperor Seal. However, they did not give up or leave immediately.


    They all sat down to cultivate using the King Crystals. They absorbed the Martial Essence within them and slowly healed. They would need about half a day to recover all their lost essence.


    Long Yue had also exhausted all her essence.


    She initially also wanted to sit down to cultivate, but when she looked at the mini transporter, her face changed. She approached Long Chen and whispered, ¡°Chen¡¯er, don¡¯t touch the mini transporter, and don¡¯t try to leave yet.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen asked, puzzled.


    ¡°That¡¯s a transboundary mini transporter. When you cross between worlds, there will be a huge tear in space. Although you have cultivated a King-tier body tempering technique, you are not at the Earthly Martial Realm yet, and you do not possess essence or an Earthly Martial Body. The tearing force will destroy you! If you try to use the transporter, you¡¯ll likely be severely injured, and it could result in permanent damage!¡± Long Yue exined with a frown.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen was stunned and quickly asked Little Cat, ¡°Fat Cat, is what she said true?¡±


    ¡°It is true, haha ¡­¡± Little Cat¡¯sughter sounded a little guilty.


    ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you say so earlier?¡±


    ¡°I am a god! How could I remember the details relevant to weaklings like you guys? To me, you are no different from a normal human. When I was at my peak, I could kill millions of you with just a breath ¡­¡±


    Long Chen had not expected an obstacle like this and was speechless. He looked up and asked, ¡°Big Sister, doesn¡¯t that mean that I have to reach the Martial Realm if I want to leave?¡±


    Long Yue nodded. ¡°That¡¯s the only way for now. You have already reached the Ninth Passage Stage, and it is already time to break through anyway. Since I can¡¯t get the Red Emperor Seal for the moment, I¡¯ll teach you the cultivation method now.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and knew that this was a rare chance. He knew nothing about the Earthly Martial Realm, so with Long Yue teaching him, it would be easier. The only thing that worried him was whether anything would happen to the Divine Fire Realm if he did not leave soon.


    The other three people were busy recovering, preparing to try again. Long Yue said, ¡°I am sure that none of us will get the Red Emperor Seal unless we reach the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Since that is the case, I will fully focus on teaching you. Let me recover my essence first, or I won¡¯t be able to demonstrate. Of course, I will first exin the theory of the Earthly Martial Realm¡¯s cultivation so you understand.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Big Sister,¡± he said, nodding hurriedly.


    ¡°We¡¯re siblings; you don¡¯t have to thank me. Plus, we are rted by blood, so it¡¯s only natural that you should call me ¡®Big Sister.¡¯¡± Long Yue spoke in a cold tone, but there was a hint of gentleness hiding in her cold re, especially when she spoke to Long Chen.


    ¡°I understand,¡± he replied. He had never respected authority, but in front of Long Yue, he felt like he was speaking to an elder.


    ¡°The cultivation of the Earthly Martial Realmes in two parts. The first part is the same as the four foundational realms, which consist of meditating and absorbing the spiritual Qi of the earth to strengthen your essence. The second part isprehending the word ¡®martial¡¯ during your punching routine. As a result, you will form your Martial Soul within your sea of consciousness!


    ¡°Your punches are the foundation of your martial abilities. Once you master your punches, you will master swordsmanship, seal techniques, and finger techniques. It does not matter if they are attacks with or without weapons¡ªthey are an extension of punches. Master your punches, and the other attacks wille easily. The Earthly Martial Fist Manual exins all of this. If you follow the manual in its entirety, you willplete your Earthly Martial Soul and reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Of course, that is easy to say but difficult in practice. I¡¯ll recover my essence while you read the summary and first part of the manual.¡±


    Then Long Yue took out a manual. It was notrge and did not have many diagrams. Most of it consisted of introductions and guidance for the main concepts. Due to the transparent walls, he could not take the manual, so she opened it and ced it on the ground for him to read.


    He was smart and had a photographic memory, so after scanning the words a few times, he memorized almost everything. Of course, memorizing and understanding them were two separate matters.


    Due to hisprehension abilities and battle experience, he had a deeper level of understanding of the concept of ¡°martial,¡± so cultivating would be smoother for him.


    <em>The Four Foundational Realms really were just the foundations. </em>


    Long Chen nodded as he thought about the meaning of the text.


    <em>The eighteen heavenly rivers be Martial Veins that pass through the entire body, while the nine meridian points be the nine Martial Meridians and are the center points of the body¡¯s power. Most importantly, Qi bes Essence and thickens so that one¡¯s strength multiplies by many times¡­</em>


    <em>After reaching the Ninth Passage Stage, a cultivator reaches the limit of the strength that his consciousness can control. Therefore, he needs to strengthen his consciousness by turning it into a Martial Soul so that it can control even more power. The cultivation process of the Earthly Martial Realm is actually a strengthening process for the Martial Soul. Absorbing more earthly spiritual Qi to be essence is a separate but not very significant step. </em>


    <em>My Blood Transmutation can help me quickly gather martial essence, but cultivating the Martial Soul will requireprehension and diligence. Comprehending my punching technique is the most important step. </em>


    <em>Cultivating at the Earthly Martial Realm also condenses and trains the Martial Soul. The strength of the Martial Soul is reflected in one¡¯s martial abilities. This is a process that is rted to the earth. </em>


    <em>One must connect to the pulse of the earth and borrow the power within the earth to boost one¡¯s attacks. This will result in an attack several times stronger. The martial soul is also strengthened when it connects to the earth ¡­ </em>


    <em>The pulse of the body connects to the pulse of the earth. This energyes in endless waves, and reaching the First Earthly Martial Stage allows one to use the first stage of the earth¡¯s pulse, strengthening the cultivator¡¯s attack by a factor of one. Reaching the Second Earthly Martial Stage allows one to use two waves of the earth¡¯s pulse, and at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, a cultivator can multiply their strength by nine times! Just a simple punch would be enough to make a mountain tremble ¡­ </em>


    <em>A cultivator must connect to the earth to be a true master. </em>


    <em>Utilize the potential of every part of a cultivator¡¯s body. </em>


    <em>Condense and train the martial soul. With a stronger martial soul, a cultivator can more urately control the strength in their body. The martial soul is able to concentrate the body¡¯s power in one dot, preventing any energy loss. This results in an even stronger attack! </em>


    From this, Long Chen understood why masters at the Earthly Martial Realm like Long Yue could carve out a smooth hole in a boulder.


    After looking through the manual, he roughly understood what the Earthly Martial Realm was.


    <em>In order to reach the Earthly Martial Realm, I must first sense the power of the earth. Then I need to guide it and inject it into my body. Standing on the ground while performing punches is the easiest way to sense the earth. Every punch and every time a cultivator¡¯s footnds on the ground can help them improve until their attack ispletely connected to the pulse of the earth. </em>


    Long Chen took off his shoes so that his bare feet were on the ground. He slowly felt the energy of the earth.


    It was cold.


    That was what he felt.


    <em>It shouldn¡¯t just be cold. I need to feel the movement. The earth is not still; it is moving. It¡¯s just that we are on it, so we cannot feel its movements ¡­ </em>

 Chapter 571: Two Geniuses

    Long Chen stoodpletely still as he tried to make sense of what the Earthly Martial Fist Manual was exining.


    ¡°The Earthly Martial Soul and the pulse of the earth ¡­ Martial Veins, Martial Meridians, and my heaven meridian point. Within my sea of consciousness ¡­ ¡±


    Long Chen had a feeling that he wasprehending the method to enter the Three Martial Realms much faster than others.


    He was reading it through quite fast.


    He then found the crucial point in the manual.


    <em>The problem should lie with the heaven meridian point. Other people¡¯s heaven meridian points lie somewhere in their bodies, but mine is in my sea of consciousness. An Earthly Martial Realm cultivator cultivates their Martial Soul, which is located in the sea of consciousness. Since my heaven meridian point is inside my sea of consciousness, it will be much easier for me to connect it with the power of the Martial Soul. Conversely, the close proximity between the two will also allow me to better control the essenceing from the meridian points. The connection between my Martial Soul and my essence will be superior to the connection of others. It seems I will have an easier time advancing into the next realm than other people.</em>


    Long Chen snickered at that prospect.


    He had never heard of anyone whose heaven meridian point had appeared in their sea of consciousness. Since the average person¡¯s Martial Soul was located inside their sea of consciousness while their essence was stored in their body, some found it difficult to connect the two, but Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have this problem.


    <em>Others might find it hard to do this, but I will probably have an easier time. I will probably have the strength to find Ling Xi in five years.</em>The difference between ten and five years was massive.


    Long Chen did not believe that there was an obstacle he couldn¡¯t ovee.


    ¡°With this advantage that I have, no one can stop me.¡±


    The Martial Realm was just in front of him.


    The Four Basic Realms and the Three Martial Realms. The Earthly Martial Realm, the Heavenly Martial Realm, and the Divine Martial Realm.


    But would the Divine Martial Realm be the final stage?


    Long Chen didn¡¯t think so. He knew that the Ancestor Dragons were not that weak. At the very least, Little Cat was stronger than a Divine Martial Realm cultivator before he died in the past.


    Long Chen was excited to immerse himself in the feeling of advancing into the next realm. At this time, Long Yue stopped resting. Only a short amount of time had passed, so the other three hadn¡¯t recovered yet. Long Chen was certain that Long Yue hadn¡¯t either.


    But for the sake of helping him make a breakthrough so that he could depart from here safely, she had chosen to teach Long Chen instead of recovering.


    In order to avoid the others, they went to a corner of the room. Long Yue asked, ¡°Have you read it? Do you understand it?¡±


    ¡°More or less.¡± Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°Your heaven meridian point is in your head, so yourprehension should be leagues better than the average person¡¯s. Try telling me what you learned and I will see if you misunderstood anything.¡± Long Yue was very thorough in her teaching.


    Long Chen told her what he understood, and Long Yue was shocked.


    ¡°Is this really the first time you¡¯ve read it?¡± She was speechless.


    She definitely knew it was the first time, so she had asked casually. Long Chen never failed to create miracles. Long Yue even thought that his talent was at the forefront here in the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°Long Chen, do you know of the two geniuses of the Divine Martial Empire?¡± Long Yue suddenly asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± Ever since Ling Xi left, Long Chen had matured. He talked less and wasn¡¯t as arrogant as before. All that was left of his old self was an indomitable heart that refused to give up.


    He was even more dangerous now too.


    ¡°Compared to the other empires, the geniuses here are nothing, but there are two of them that are clearly above the rest. You should know one of them.¡± Long Yue¡¯s expression shifted slightly when she said that.


    ¡°Who is it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s ¡­ Long Chen, my brother. He has the same name as you, but he turns twenty this year. However, he¡¯s already at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, around the same as me. But he has always been rebellious and prefers to work on his own. He has never agreed with my methods and even argued with me. I have no idea where he is right now.¡±


    Long Yue looked sad when she said that.


    Maybe she was feeling guilty.


    ¡°Young people always make mistakes. Maybe he will realize that he was wrong and will apologize to you in the future.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. You are younger, but your heart is more mature than his. It¡¯s clear that you¡¯ve experienced far more hardships than him. He never had a goal, but I could feel that you¡¯re working towards something, something so important to you that you will strive to obtain it until you die.¡±


    Long Chen never thought she would see through him.


    He smiled and shifted the topic. ¡°Who¡¯s the second person?¡±


    Long Yue expected that he would change the topic.


    ¡°The Martial Alliance more or less controls the Divine Martial Empire. Their assets and talents are naturally very strong. The other is the personal disciple of the Martial Overlord, Zhao Danchen. He¡¯s also around twenty, and he is also one of the Three Martial Emperors along with Yang Ningfeng and Xiao Lin.¡±


    Martial Emperor. That meant he was at the Third Earthly Martial Stage.


    Long Chen was only at the Ninth Passage Stage. It was clear that both of them were significantly stronger than him.


    ¡°Long Chen and Zhao Danchen. The two geniuses. It would be funny if I joined their ranks as the second Long Chen,¡± Long Chen said with a chuckle.


    ¡°I think you have a chance to do that. I will now show you the ropes of how to enter the Earthly Martial Realm. I taught this to my brother, but now he¡¯s stronger than me.¡±


    ¡°How long did he take to enter the Martial Realm from the Ninth Passage Stage?¡±


    ¡°One month.¡±


    ¡°Then I will only need ten days.¡± Long Chen was confident that he could do so.


    ¡°If you want to finish in ten days, then you need to work even harder. First, I will demonstrate the first stage of the fist art once. Practicing it will help you get close to the earth. You need to feel the power of the earth.¡±


    Long Yue got ready.


    She punched slowly, with intention.


    Long Chen observed closely. He had a feeling that Long Yue was connected to the ground. It was as if she was a stone and her Martial Vein had connected with the Earth Vein. Her essence was also circting with the Earthly Qi.


    It was as if she had caught the heart of the earth and started dancing to the beat.


    Her fists and the movements of her body made it seem like she was dancing with the earth. It was more like a work of art. Long Chen forced himself to not get enthralled by it and instead focused on every single detail before imprinting it all in his brain.


    Talent and hard work would make it impossible for him to fail.


    One who had talent but refused to work hard would be worthless.


    But it was possible for someone without talent who worked hard to achieve sess after enduring harsh difficulties.


    Long Yuepleted the first stage while the other three recovered. She panted and white steam escaped her mouth.


    Long Chen had memorized the details of her fist art.


    The more he watched, the more he learned from her. Knowledge poured into his body as he immersed himself in her movements. He also tried to connect himself to the ground and move with it, but he moved the earth instead.


    Everything before his eyes disappeared. What remained was the endless yellow ground and dust. Sand swirled past him as he stood with his feet nted to the ground. He felt his heartbeat and the beat of the ground connecting.


    <em>The first movement should be like this ¡­</em>


    As the earth pulsed again and again, Long Chen practiced. The moment he could coordinate his attacks with the beat of the earth would be the moment he could use the power of the Earthly Martial Realm.


    Long Yue wanted to talk to Long Chen and ask how much he had learned, but he stood up and started practicing.


    She was surprised.


    This was the first time Long Chen was practicing it. His form was riddled with imperfections, but the state of his heart was far beyond what Long Yue could achieve.


    But she knew that Long Chen was the only person who could start practicing by just reading the manual once.


    After he finished the first stage, Long Yue smiled bitterly. ¡°You are the only person I¡¯ve seen with such monstrousprehension. You are even better than my brother. In fact, you might really be able to reach the Earthly Martial Realm in ten days.¡±


    ¡°Really? I felt nothing when I practiced. I¡¯m lousy at itpared to you. I forgot the steps halfway through, so I just did something random.¡± Long Chen panted while he talked.


    He had always thought of himself as weak.


    ¡°Not bad, but don¡¯t get too cocky. I will continue to teach you what I know. I will also have to correct some of the ring errors you made when you were practicing just now. You can correct it and then show it to me again.¡±


    Long Chen had been under two masters before. The Clear Shallows King was only a temporary one, but he respected Zhao Qingyun despite the fact that he only even gave him items. He had never helped Long Chen in terms of cultivation.


    That was because Long Chen was too much of a genius for Zhao Qingyun to teach.


    Long Yue was the first person to properly guide him on the path of cultivation.


    Long Chen knew that without her, he would¡¯ve been stuck at the Four Basic Realms for at least a few months.


    But now it had gotten simpler for him.

 Chapter 572: Earthly Martial Realm in Ten Days

    Even though Huangfu Fengchen and the others were recovering through meditation, they could sense their surroundings. They were initially curious as to why Long Yue was teaching Long Chen to cultivate here, but they understood the reason when they saw the Mini Transporter.


    The Martial Emperor and the Demon Emperor were both happy when they saw that they had one lesspetitor since Long Yue was too busy to attempt to take the Red Emperor Seal. They also didn¡¯t care about Long Chen¡¯s predicament. However, their eyes were filled with fear when they recovered and saw Long Chen¡¯s monstrous talent.


    <em>If he continues to grow, he could really attain the same strength as the two geniuses. </em>Both the Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor came to the same conclusion.


    But they could do nothing to him right now as they were trapped in this ce.


    They would only be able to touch him after they got out. But another problem arose. Both Huangfu Fengchen and Long Yue wanted to protect Long Chen, so it didn¡¯t seem usible to attack him.


    Without any n, the two of them could only focus on trying to take the Red Emperor Seal for themselves. Even though it was almost impossible to get it, they refused to give up when it was just out of reach.


    As for attempting to break into the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage and obtaining it ¡­ They never even entertained the idea. Many cultivators could only go so far on the path of cultivation. They would be on the level of the Martial Overlord if they made just one more breakthrough, but it was never that simple. If it was, then Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji wouldn¡¯t have dominated the entire Divine Martial Empire.


    The Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor locked eyes before they made their way into the sr fire once more.


    If they learned that Long Chen had already taken the Red Emperor Seal, they would get so angry that they would faint on the spot.Huangfu Fengchen was the type of person who didn¡¯t try too hard when it came to things that he couldn¡¯t do. After he failed once, he gave up and tried to teach Long Chen. Since his corridor was on the other side of Long Chen, both he and Long Yue could teach him.


    After Long Chen practiced once, Long Yue started to exin his mistakes.


    ¡°In order to enter the Earthly Martial Realm, you must first perfect the form. From there, try to understand its essence. Once you do, you no longer need to care about the form. If you understand the basic concept and have a firm understanding of its essence, you can shape any form you like based on it.


    ¡°But first, you need to perfect the first stage of the fist art. You have to do it again and again to perfect the form. You can start now, and I will point out where you need to improve.¡± Long Yue was taking this very seriously.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and tried recalling what Long Yue had done. He was smart enough to know that he had to be immersed in a world where there was only him and the earth. That was exactly what Long Yue wanted him to do.


    Huangfu Fengchen was amused by this. He tried his hand at teaching Long Chen from time to time. Since he and Long Yue had different experiences when it came to advancing to the Earthly Martial Realm, it was easier to point out what the other person had missed.


    Long Yue was ady, but herbat tendencies were based on pure strength and brute force. She had the strongest attacking power amongst the four of them, while Huangfu Fengchen was adept at using spears and evasion. He preferred agility and evasion over power.


    Both of them had their own requirements and criteria, but neither side criticized one another. Rather than picking one side, Long Chen chose to take in both views and incorporated them into his cultivation. This led to an unforeseen growth.


    Huangfu Fengchen nodded as he watched Long Chen cultivate. ¡°He really canplete it in ten days.¡±


    With just a few repetitions, Long Chen managed to improve massively. Huangfu Fengchen approved of him.


    ¡°It¡¯s too early to say that.¡± Long Yue, however, was calm.


    She was stricter than Huangfu Fengchen.


    ¡°Martial Realm, Martial ¡­¡± Long Chen immersed himself as he practiced again and again. In just a single day, he perfected the form of the first stage.


    It was also thanks to his strengthenedprehension.


    His strength surged all the way to his heaven meridian point and connected with his sea of consciousness. He had a much easier time than most when it came to controlling it.


    ¡°Feel the power of the earth. Heaven and earth form the world, and they themselves are immensely powerful. Humans are weakpared to heaven and earth. The Earthly Martial Realm uses one''s strength to guide the strength of the earth ¡­ The power of the earthes in the form of pulses, vibrations, and waves. To obtain it, one must immerse themselves and be one with the earth. The Earthly Martial Fist Manual is the bridge to that.¡±


    Long Chen had thought that it was just a simple manual and felt nothing afterpleting it for the first time. Without the words guiding him, he might¡¯ve given up.


    But Long Yue said nothing, which meant his words were right.


    After practicing a few times, Long Chen suddenly had a faint feeling that some of his punches contained a profound feeling.


    The more he practiced, the more he felt it. Three dayster, his punches were all filled with profound energy when he did the first stage of the fist art.


    ¡°This is the process of going from simple toplicated before returning back to simplicity again. You have nowpleted half of the manual, but that was the easy part. The second half is where the difficulty spikes up. You need to feel and understand the power contained in your fists to obtain the essence of the Earthly Martial Realm,¡± Long Yue exined.


    ¡°Unfortunately, words cannot help you in the next stage. You need to grasp the essence on your own, but we can practice it for you. We can show you what our Earthly Martial Realm looks like. Let¡¯s see if you can grasp anything.¡± Huangfu Fengchen was abnormally excited. Without waiting for Long Chen to agree, he immediately started disying how he did the Earthly Martial Fist.


    Long Chen was transfixed on the movements.


    The movements were the same, but Huangfu Fengchen gave off a different feeling than Long Yue. Long Yue¡¯s movements were snappy and powerful, but Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s were billowy and fleeting just like a swallow.


    Long Chen immersed himself in Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s world.


    <em>Essence. Now what is it?</em> Long Chen pondered as he observed Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s dance. As he watched, he immersed himself in Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s practice and even started to copy him!


    ¡°This is the path of spears.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen suddenly took out an ordinary spear.


    ¡°The art of spears originated from fists. Even though it¡¯s disyed in a different form, the logic behind it is the same.¡±


    The same movements could be applied when using the spear.


    Every single movement contained the intention of Huangfu Fengchen, regardless of whether he used his fists or spear.


    Long Chen did his best to grasp what essence was.


    He had always been smarter than others. He also had many advantages that the others didn''t have. With two experts leading the way for him, everything proceeded smoothly, and Long Chen¡¯s improvement could be seen within hours. Both Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen witnessed his growth.


    Once Huangfu Fengchenpleted his demonstration, Long Chen closed his eyes and immersed himself in his own little world.


    He mirrored his own movements in his mind andpared them with Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s.


    <em>If it¡¯s like this ¡­</em>


    <em>The fist should start from the heart ¡­</em>


    Everything around him went silent. Long Chen heard a thumping sound in his world. He realized that it wasing from his body and from somewhere far away.


    <em>Bam.</em>


    Long Chen punched.


    <em>Bam. </em>


    Long Chen punched again.


    His fists were swift just like the raging river.


    He gradually felt the shape of the earth. He had a feeling that he was close to connecting with the earth. As he continued to grapple with the sensation, he felt that he was no longer standing on the earth but instead on a giant beating heart.


    <em>Bam. Thump. Bam.</em>


    He felt the ground pulse every time he heard the sound.


    <em>This should be the pulse of the earth. As long as I can align my attacks with the timing of the pulse, then my attacks will contain the essence that I need.</em>


    Long Chen started to abandon his form. He had goodprehension, so he knew that it was more important to align his attacks with the pulse of the earth.


    After all, everyone forged their own path of cultivation.


    Without being restricted to the form, Long Chen¡¯s attacks were as free as soaring birds. The energying from the earth was the updraft that allowed the bird to fly.


    Long Chen needed to connect himself to the endless earth, just like how birds soared in the endless air. He was but a chick practicing to feel the presence of air when he first started, and now he managed to feel it.


    As long as he continued cultivating, he would grasp the timing and grow as a chick. He would officially advance into the Earthly Martial Realm when the little chick could fly in the air.


    The theory had always been the same.


    Long Chen understood many things after his first repetition.


    He slowed down and took a deep breath.


    Then he opened his eyes and saw that Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen were looking at him as if he was a freak.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen looked at each other. Long Yue shed a rare smile while Huangfu Fengchen gave him a thumbs up. ¡°You have extraordinaryprehension. In terms ofprehension, you are unbeatable in the Divine Martial Empire. Your fist contained a little bit of the essence just now. As long as you continue to cultivate, you will be able to form your Martial Soul. When that happens, you will officially advance into the Earthly Martial Realm.¡±


    ¡°We are now on the third day. I think you will be able to do it in three more days.¡± Even Long Yue was impressed.


    Just then, both the Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor came out of the sr fire. They looked at each other in disappointment.

 Chapter 573: Eighteen Divine Dragons

    They had tried three times so far, but neither of them had managed to make it to the end. They wanted to give up but felt slightly consoled when they saw that Huangfu Fengchen and Long Yue hadn¡¯t attempted to cross the sr fire again.


    No oneughed at anyone since no one had obtained the Red Emperor Seal. They would¡¯ve felt frustrated if either Long Yue or Huangfu Fengchen got their hands on it.


    But little did they know that they were the real losers here.


    Still, they understood that Long Chen had to reach the Earthly Martial Realm in order to leave this ce. While the Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor were recovering their Qi, they also mocked Long Chen at the same time.


    The Demon Emperor thought he knew all about Long Chen and mocked him ruthlessly. ¡°What are you cultivating for? If it wasn¡¯t for the Emperor me Pearl, you would be the weakest of the weak. You only reached the Ninth Passage Stage because of it. With your potential, you will probably take ten years to reach the Earthly Martial Realm.¡±


    Yang Ningfeng said, ¡°Ten years? This ce will copse by then. No one can survive here for ten years. I doubt that any of us could reach the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage within ten years without any lucky encounters. I think we have to give up on it.¡±


    ¡°Brother Yang, do you want to give up?¡±


    ¡°I thought you were thinking the same, Brother Jiang.¡±


    They knew that no one here could obtain it. The Demon Emperor had to go back to the Ancient Demon Domain as thousands of people were waiting for his leadership. The ce would crumble within years if he didn¡¯t go back. The Demon Emperor was worried that years of hard work would be undone.The Martial Emperor was in the same spot. He was one of the three Martial Emperors. If he spent several years here, his position would be forfeit by the time he left.


    ¡°I will try onest time. If I fail again, I will leave,¡± Jiang Wuxie dered.


    They made onest attempt, and they failed again. They could not reach where the Red Emperor Seal was without killing themselves. To them, it was impossible to obtain it alive.


    ¡°Long Yue, Huangfu Fengchen, you can stay here and wait for him to be an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator. Make sure toe out in a few years. I won¡¯t be apanying you anymore.¡± The Demon Emperor chuckled.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we can do anything if Huangfu Fengchen decides not to take care of his family¡¯s safety.¡± Yang Ningfengughed too.


    If Huangfu Fengchen did not exit soon, then something would really happen to his family. Unfortunately, even though the Huangfu family and the Ancient Demon Domain were in an alliance with the Martial Alliance on surface, the truth was far from that.


    Without Huangfu Fengchen, the entire Huangfu family would be absorbed into the Martial Alliance, just like Yang Ningfeng¡¯s Wind God Sect was.


    Jiang Wuxie and Yang Ningfeng looked at each other before leaving the ce using the Mini Teleporters.


    Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen didn¡¯t even react to their threats. The Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor had been so busy trying to obtain the Red Emperor Seal that neither of them had noticed Long Chen¡¯s improvements. If they had, they wouldn¡¯t have said that Long Chen would only advance in ten years.


    In fact, Long Chen would only need three days.


    Once the Demon Emperor and the Martial Emperor had left, Long Chen focused on his cultivation. With Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen showing him their respective worlds, he improved at a rapid pace. He took in the best of both worlds to form his own.


    Long Chen lost himself in his cultivation and felt himself getting connected to the earth. He improved every time he practiced. Three days passed, and the rate of Long Chen¡¯s improvement surpassed both Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s expectations.


    It was currently the fifth day.


    ¡°The pulse of the earth ¡­¡±


    Even though he was standing on the heart of the earth, Long Chen could not feel its pulse. This was one of the most important steps in the process to enter the Earthly Martial Realm. Only when he could use his fist to channel the power of the earth in order to obtain more strength would he seed in finally forming the Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness.


    But the final step was the most difficult.


    <em>How can I feel the pulse of the earth? </em>Long Chen was lost in thought.


    <em>No, I shouldn¡¯t be hasty when I¡¯m this close to seeding. If I immerse myself in cultivation, I should eventually seed. </em>He soon found the way to break through the bottleneck.


    He had both form and essence. He was essentially at the level of Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen right now in terms of the Earthly Martial Realm Fist. He had Long Yue¡¯s might and speed as well as Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s gracefulness.


    <em>Most people live on the earth throughout their entire lives. The earth is the foundation for us. Doesn¡¯t that mean I¡¯m already connected to it?</em>


    The pulse of the earth had to be learned through experience.


    The slow drum of the earth started to resonate inside of Long Chen.


    <em>This is how it feels ¡­</em>


    Long Chen punched.


    Through his hard work, he slowly got closer and closer to perfecting the timing. The pulse of the earth no longer restricted how he punched. Long Chen felt like his legs were rooted to the ground as he absorbed the strength of the earth to grow.


    After some time, one of Long Chen¡¯s punches resulted in arge <em>bang</em>. His cultivation waspleted.


    The yellow Earthly Qi surged upwards from his legs and covered his body. He was now encased in arge, yellow cocoon formed by an unlimited amount of Earthly Qi.


    Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen bothughed.


    They knew that Long Chen was just one step away from making a breakthrough.


    ¡°He said he would finish it in ten days, but he did it in five. This guy ¡­¡± Long Yue smiled in satisfaction.


    ¡°Oh ho, the rumored icy princess is smiling. You have such a beautiful smile too. It¡¯s a waste that you are usually frowning.¡± Huangfu Fengchen teased her.


    Long Yue¡¯s smile froze and she frowned again. She red at Huangfu Fengchen before looking at Long Chen.


    Huangfu Fengchen chuckled and stared at Long Chen too.


    The two of them were pr opposites. Long Yue rarely smiled, while Huangfu Fengchen smiled all the time.


    Long Chen was now at the final and most critical stage.


    <em>I havepleted the cultivation of the Earthly Martial Realm. The only thing left to do is to let the Earthly Qi enter my body. It will transform my starry rivers into martial veins, my nine meridian points into Martial Meridians, and then turn my Qi into essence. Only then will my Martial Soul be born.</em>


    Thanks to their guidance, Long Chen had a good idea of what was going to happen next.


    An unlimited amount of Earthly Qi surged into his body, and the cocoon became a maelstrom. It absorbed all of the Earthly Qi and channeled it into Long Chen¡¯s body.


    Long Chen was drowned in the sea of Earthly Qi.


    <em>It¡¯s starting ¡­</em>


    The Earthly Qi entered his body and soon came into contact with his Dragon Soul Qi. He quickly transformed at the same time.


    The two energies shed but merged harmoniously. The blood-red Qi merged with the Earthly Qi, transforming it from yellow to red. It became the basis of Long Chen¡¯s strength.


    The gaseous Dragon Soul Qi slowly changed into a liquid as it flowed through Long Chen¡¯s eighteen heavenly rivers and nine meridian points.


    The overwhelming power soon surpassed what his heavenly rivers and meridian points could handle.


    Long Chen started to feel it going out of control.


    His Dragon Soul Qi continued to flow through his body. Thanks to an invisible force, his starry rivers quickly transformed into thick Martial Veins. The egg-sized meridian points soon expanded to the size of a fist, bing stronger and sturdier than before.


    But this change could not be seen from the outside.


    Nine Martial Meridians and eighteen Martial Veins. Due to the constant flow of the Dragon Soul Qi, both of them becamerger and sturdier than ever before. But as they continued to grow, an unexpected change started to take ce.


    Long Chen¡¯s Martial Veins were covered in faint dragon scales. They even had the faint markings of a dragon¡¯s head, tail, and whiskers. Each of his Martial Veins was like a red dragon coiling around his body,


    His Martial Veins became eighteen Divine Dragons that coiled around his body.


    All of this was due to the influence of the Dragon Soul Qi.


    Long Chen was stunned because he had never expected something like this to happen. He had a strange feeling that his Martial Veins were stronger than those of other people, and this would bring him even more benefits than he had thought.


    His Martial Veins would sustain him throughout the entire three realms of the Martial Realms. The Three Martial Realms were divided into twenty-seven stages, and advancing through each stage would be significantly harder than advancing during the Four Basic Realms.


    It would also take him a lot of time.


    If Long Chen could not advance past the Divine Martial Realm, the eighteen Divine Dragons would live inside his body forever.


    But so far, this was the only unexpected change that had urred.


    The final step was forming the Martial Soul.

 Chapter 574: Dragon Martial Soul

    Even though his eighteen Martial Veins and nine Martial Meridians werepleted, his essence continued to grow inside his body until there was ten times more than before. His blood-red essence flowed like a river inside his nine Martial Meridians and eighteen Martial Veins.


    The sound of a roaring river flowed inside his body.


    The essence of someone at the Earthly Martial Realm was monstrous.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t imagine how strong he would be once he had full control over it.


    The meridian pills in his nine Martial Meridians were slowly changing too. Initially, they were like blood-red suns with the Golden Crow¡¯s illusion inside of them. But they had changed under the influence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon too.


    They looked like a cross between birds and dragons right now.


    Even the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants were affected by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s influence.


    An ancient aura filled with bloodlust radiated out of Long Chen.


    The essence inside his body was currently at maximum capacity.When he used the Dragon Soul Transformation, he would have as much essence as someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    When he entered the Earthly Martial Realm, he would be able to beat someone one stage above him thanks to the Dragon Soul Transformation. Those at the same stage wouldn¡¯t be his match whatsoever.


    It was only when his bodypleted the transformation that a change urred in his sea of consciousness.


    The fog inside his sea of consciousness rippled. The Dragon Jade Pendant and the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence werepletely still.


    The white fog rippled intensely before it started to condense. The fog was a representation of Long Chen¡¯s consciousness, and it had started to condense to form his Martial Soul.


    But this was only his Earthly Martial Soul. There would be an evenrger change when he advanced into the Heavenly Martial Soul and the Divine Martial Soul.


    As time passed, Long Chen remained immersed in the profoundness of the Earthly Martial Realm. His Martial Soul slowly formed, but to Long Chen¡¯s surprise, the transformation waspleted when the fog condensed into a miniature humanoid shape that looked blurry and fragile.


    The Martial Soul of those at the First Earthly Martial Stage was indeed fragile. It was only when they advanced that its outline became clearer and stronger.


    Once his Martial Soul waspleted, Long Chen felt like he could control the essence in his body through it.


    He was genuinely surprised by how perfectly he could control it. He felt like he was the miniature humanoid inside his sea of consciousness. Looking through the Martial Soul¡¯s eyes allowed him to observe his body and control it perfectly, down to the smallest group of muscles.


    The Martial Soul wasplete.


    Through it, he could control his strength and body perfectly.


    Long Chen was ted at how precise it was.


    He knew that he was now at the Earthly Martial Realm.


    He thought he had obtained a new life once he reached the Ninth Passage Stage, but now he knew he was wrong. A bigger change had urred when he advanced into the Earthly Martial Realm.


    Long Chen was now a true cultivator after advancing into the Three Martial Realms.


    Only those who advanced into the Earthly Martial Stage were considered true martial artists.


    A martial artist was also someone who lived for martial arts.


    Long Chen thought everything was over after his Martial Soul was formed.


    All he needed to do was wake up and leave the ce through the Mini Teleporter.


    But something unexpected happened.


    A Martial Soul was supposed to form in the center of one¡¯s sea of consciousness, but in Long Chen¡¯s case, that spot was taken over by the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant and the Inherited Blood Essence.


    Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul could never dream of overtaking them.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant suddenly exuded a force that pulled Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul towards the center. It then ced Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul above it.


    So now a strange scene unfolded in his sea of consciousness.


    The Inherited Blood Essence was at the bottom, the Dragon Jade Pendant at the middle, and his Martial Soul at the top.


    The three of them were lined up perfectly.


    Both the Martial Soul and the Inherited Blood Essence appeared to be controlled by the Dragon Jade Pendant.


    Just then, out of Long Chen¡¯s control, the Dragon Jade Pendant exuded another force that took one ten-thousandth[1] of the Inherited Blood Essence and merged it with his Martial Soul.


    The minuscule amount didn¡¯t affect the Inherited Blood Essence, but it caused a massive change in his Martial Soul. His Martial Soul slowly changed from a miniature humanoid to a shimmering dragon.


    The one ten-thousandth of the Inherited Blood Essence had fused into his Martial Soul due to the mysterious power of the Dragon Jade Pendant.


    Which was why his Martial Soul had transformed into the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s visage.


    The shape of the Martial Soul was not superficial. Any changes in its shape would determine its quality and strength.


    When a demonic beast reached the King-tier, it would also undergo a transformation. They would form something called the Demonic Soul. The Demonic Qi in their body would transform into Demonic Essence. Each demonic beast would develop a Demonic Soul that was an exact replica of their body. For example, the ck Water Viper would¡¯ve had a Demonic Soul that looked exactly like its real body.


    This was why Long Chen¡¯s case was special. Even though he was human on the outside, his Martial Soul had taken the shape of a dragon. It was likely that once his body had mergedpletely with the Inherited Blood Essence, his body and soul would also take the forms of a true Dragon Ancestor.


    But it was not urate to say that Long Chen was like Xiang in that he would be a demonic beast.


    The Primordial Dragons were different from demonic beasts. Demonic beasts were in a category of their own. Primordial Dragons, on the other hand, were distantly rted to humans. Even though he would be a dragon one day, he would still be rted to humans.


    For now, the transformation of his Martial Soul brought no benefits, but he was certain that something extremely beneficial would ur for him in the future.


    This made Long Chen ponder what would happen to Xiang. Him bing a Sun Devouring Wolf was purely an ident.


    <em>He has a human soul but the body of the Sun Devouring Wolf. I wonder if he will have a humanoid Martial Soul or a beast-shaped Demonic Soul?</em>


    Long Chen woke up once his Martial Soul had formed.


    The cocoon formed by the yellow Earthly Qi slowly disappeared. Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen saw him slowly appear in the middle. Both of them had the same sense of confusion when they first saw Long Chen emerge. They had a feeling that they were looking at a coiling Primordial Dragon rather than Long Chen.


    They blinked and saw that Long Chen was back to normal again.


    Long Chen closed his eyes and felt the strength on his body through his Martial Soul. He looked over the eighteen Martial Veins resembling Primordial Dragons, the nine Martial Meridians, and the flowing blood-red Dragon Soul Essence. It flowed through his body and condensed within his nine Martial Meridians. The whirlpool of essence continued to swirl as the blood-red suns burned.


    Almost half of Long Chen¡¯s strength originated from the nine burning suns.


    <em>Advancing to the Three Martial Realms has truly brought about a massive change.</em>


    The immense strength inside his body made him sigh in admiration.


    Thanks to his Martial Soul, he couldpletely hide his aura and strength to appear as a regr human, but the strength in his eyes and his intentional movements could not be covered.


    Long Yue shed one of her rare smiles when she saw that Long Chen had seeded.


    ¡°Now that you¡¯ve made your breakthrough, all seven of us are at the Earthly Martial Realm. I think that you¡¯re stronger than the others now, so I hope you will take care of your senior brothers and sisters.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to your teachings that I managed to advance. Also, we are all siblings, so I will always fight for them!¡± Long Chen smiled.


    Huangfu Fengchen chuckled and said, ¡°Hey, he just advanced into the Earthly Martial Realm. Why are you asking him to work immediately?¡±


    Long Yue ignored him. ¡°SInce you are at the Earthly Martial Realm and we can¡¯t get the Red Emperor Seal, we should head out now. I fear that they might¡¯ve set an ambush for us.¡±


    She was right. Yang Ningfeng was the sort of guy that would set a trap since he knew Long Yue would have toe out one day. She would be in trouble if she was trapped. Thankfully, two days was too short of a time frame to have ced an borate trap.


    Long Yue was also worried about Jiang Wuya and the rest.


    Long Chen and Huangfu Fengchen nodded. The two of them said nothing as they stepped onto the Mini Transporters. The price to activate it was harsh¡ªLong Chen had to spend two King Crystals.


    This was the second time he had used one of these.


    It took significantly longer for this transporter to activate, but this one was much more powerful than the one that Long Chen had used at the Cangyang Kingdom. He felt a force tearing his body from all directions, but he was fine since he had the body of an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator.


    Soon, they saw the sun outside.


    They looked around cautiously before finding that they were on the outskirts of the Cloud Dream Swamp. They were just three Li away from Cloud Heaven City.


    After confirming that they were safe, Huangfu Fengchen bade them goodbye. ¡°I should head back home soon since we are out now. Long Chen, my daughter still misses you. Doe and pay us a visit if you have the time.¡±


    Long Chen still remembered how he owed her fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. He would naturally visit them one day since he was not the type of person who would break a promise he had made with ady.


    1. 1/10,000 ?

 Chapter 575: Information on Ancient Graveyard

    Long Chen replied, ¡°I will go there when I have the time one day. Not only have you protected me, you even guided me into the Earthly Martial Realm. I will repay the favor one day.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchenughed. ¡°That¡¯s alright. No need for such formalities. My daughter has taken quite a liking to you, and I don¡¯t find you repulsive. Helping you didn¡¯t cost me anything, so it¡¯s fine. I will have to go now. Goodbye.¡±


    He then disappeared swiftly after saying goodbye to Long Yue too.


    ¡°Huangfu Fengchen is not a bad guy. He¡¯s quite humane.¡± Long Yue approved of him too.


    ¡°He¡¯s indeed good.¡± Long Chen watched Huangfu Fengchen disappear before looking at Long Yue. ¡°Big Sister, I¡¯ve reached the Earthly Martial Realm, but we didn¡¯t get the Red Emperor Seal. What should we do next?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s find the others first. We have people from the Red Souls in Cloud Heaven City. We can locate the others through them.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    They were only three Li away, so they sprinted towards Cloud Heaven City.


    Long Chen was conflicted. He didn¡¯t know if he should tell her that he had obtained the Red Emperor Seal. The Red Emperor Seal was one of the clues that would lead them to the Prismatic Key, which would then lead them to the treasure of the Five Emperors. ording to the fragmented soul of the Red Emperor, the treasure was located in the Ancient Graveyard.The Ancient Graveyard was also where Long Chen needed to go.


    It was the perfect time to obtain information about the ce since Long Yue would know more than the others. Long Chen asked her, ¡°Big Sister, do you know anything about the Ancient Graveyard? Could you tell me about it?¡±


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard?¡± Long Yue did not expect that question from him. ¡°Long Chen, how do you know about it?¡±


    ¡°I thought I could explore one day.¡±


    Long Yue shook her head and sighed. ¡°It¡¯s too dangerous there. The Ancient Graveyard is where numerous experts from the Ten Thousand Nations Empire perished in ancient times. While there are numerous treasures there, it¡¯s also filled with unimaginable dangers. Setting aside the King-tier and Emperor-tier demonic beasts that dominate the ce, there are also traps and trials left behind by the experts from back then. The Divine Fire Realm is an example. It was a miracle that you survived both of its trials.¡±


    <em>The Ancient Graveyard is most likely a forbidden area where treasures and danger go hand-in-hand. </em>This was within Long Chen¡¯s expectations, but he wanted to know how it connected to the Three Emperor Territory.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have the qualifications to go there now, but if I get lucky and be stronger, I should be able to go there. I wonder how I should do that?¡±


    Long Yue saw how sincere he was and answered in kind.


    ¡°Are you sure you want to go there? Every time the Ancient Graveyard opens, a bloodbath ensues. Very few people return from that ce since everyone wants a treasure for themselves. The Ancient Graveyard can be described as arge coliseum that numerous experts from the Nine Divine Empires strive to enter. Every time it opens, experts kill each other without any hesitation as the allure of treasures and the grudges held between the empires blind them. Many of the experts of the Nine Divine Empires rose to their positions thanks to the treasures they found at the Ancient Graveyard.¡±


    ¡°Nine Divine Empires? I thought there were ten?¡± Long Chen was confused.


    Long Yue smiled wryly. ¡°Nine, not ten. That¡¯s because the Divine Martial Empire is no longer qualified to be called one. If it weren¡¯t for the Nine Divine Empires honoring the promise they made in the past, the Divine Martial Empire wouldn¡¯t have survived until today.¡±


    Long Chen had never heard of any of this before. Based on what she had said, it appeared that the Divine Martial Empire was the weakest of them all.


    ¡°Why is that?¡±


    ¡°Thousands of years ago, the strength of each empire was roughly the same, but as time went on, the people of the Divine Martial Empire started bing weaker and weaker. Due to that, the other empires attacked the Divine Martial Empire in an attempt to secure morend from themselves. The Divine Martial Empire was supposed to be wiped out that day. The weak perish and be food for the strong. But one day, roughly a thousand years ago, an extremely strong individual appeared in the Divine Martial Empire. He had reached the peak of the Heavenly Martial Realm. He challenged the experts of all nine empires and won. No one was his match. He was the strongest individual in the Ten Thousand Nations Empire.¡±


    Long Yue became excited when she said that.


    ¡°You mean he made a promise with them before he challenged all of them? If he beat all of them, the others would never encroach on the Divine Martial Empire?¡± Long Chen immediately guessed what had happened back then.


    ¡°Yes, but with a time limit. They agreed to set it as two thousand years. Thanks to that, even though the Divine Martial Realm was currently the weakest, we have a thousand years of peace left. Still, it¡¯s a fact that we are considerably weaker than the other empires.¡±


    Even though all of that had happened long before Long Chen was born, he could feel how admirable that person was just from listening to the story.


    ¡°He made the nine other empires adhere to the promise to give two thousand years of peace to the Divine Martial Empire. That person must have been extremely powerful.¡±


    Long Yue nodded and said proudly, ¡°That person had the surname ¡®Long.¡¯¡±


    Long Chen was stunned.


    ¡°You are right, and he was our ancestor. His blood flows through our veins. It¡¯s just a shame that none of his descendants inherited his strength. Then the despicable Martial Alliance overtook our family and became the leader of thisnd,¡± Long Yue said with a sad expression on her face.


    To think that the extremely powerful figure was Long Yue¡¯s ancestor.


    Long Chen had a feeling that Long Yue''s ancestor was a Dragon Warrior of the lowest-ranked Red Dragon. To think that even the weakest dragon would make him the strongest person in the entire Ten Thousand Nations Empire. It was clear that Dragon Warriors were extremely strong.


    That was how the Divine Martial Empire remained standing even though they were weak.


    Simrly, it also showed how strong the rest of the empires were. <em>The Martial Overlord at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage would probably just be a regr person if he went to the other empires.</em>


    ¡°Long Chen, do you understand how strong the other empires are now? If you go to the Ancient Graveyard, your opponents will not only be those from our empire, but also the others. Imagine this: you are alone and from the Divine Martial Empire, but the other empires have thousands of people with them. All of them are at the Earthly Martial Realm, and some of them are even at the Heavenly Martial Realm. How will you fight against them?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, but could you tell me how to enter the ce? I¡¯m asking out of curiosity since I can¡¯t enter when I¡¯m this weak.¡±


    Long Yue nodded. ¡°The Ancient Graveyard opens periodically. News of its opening is explosive news for the other empires, but no one in the Divine Martial Empire knows about it. Do you know why?¡±


    ¡°Of course not.¡± Long Chen shook his head.


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard is controlled by an invisible force. Whenever it opens, the invisible force gives out special tokens called Ancient Tokens to every empire. Those who possess tokens are then sucked into the Ancient Graveyard when it opens.¡±


    Long Chen was shocked, not because of the tokens, but the person sending them.


    <em>That person must be extremely powerful.</em>


    Most of the people in the Ten Thousand Nations Empire did not know about the Three Emperor Territory. The Ten Divine Empires had the perception that the Three Martial Realms were the peak of cultivation, which was why they didn¡¯t know that the invisible force was most likely an expert from the Three Emperor Territory taking care of the Ancient Graveyard.


    But that was just his conjecture. He was still weak, so this wasn¡¯t the time to concern himself with these matters. He was more concerned about whether the tokens would be given to the Divine Martial Empire or not.


    ¡°Yes, every empire receives them, but the numbers are based on the empire¡¯s overall strength. Each empire is given anywhere from five hundred to several thousand based on their strength, but the Divine Martial Empire is only ever given one as a courtesy.¡±


    <em>One?</em>


    Long Chen almost fell over from shock.


    The Divine Martial Empire was too weak.


    That meant that he would have to get his hands on that single token no matter what.


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard opens up once every ten years or so. Thest time it opened, Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji entered and never returned. Before that, someone strong from the Martial Alliance obtained it, but he never returned either. The Ancient Graveyard is considered a nightmare for the experts of the Divine Martial Empire.¡±


    Long Yue tried to intimidate Long Chen with the truth, but he refused to give up. ¡°When was thest time it opened?¡±


    Long Yue smiled bitterly. ¡°Coincidentally, thest time it opened was roughly ten years ago. I wonder if Zhao Wuji will go. I know I definitely wouldn¡¯t.¡±


    Long Chen had onest question. ¡°Where will the Ancient Token appear?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s random. There is no fixed location.¡±

 Chapter 576: Well Prepared and Ready For Action

    Long Chen was satisfied after learning that much about the Ancient Graveyard.


    Even though there would only be one token in the entire Divine Martial Empire, he had to obtain it. If he couldn¡¯t, he would have no choice but to go to another empire to grab one. But the problem was that the other empires¡¯ cultivators were stronger, so it would be harder to get one.


    The difference in strength between the Divine Martial Empire and the other empires was clear just by looking at the difference in the number of Ancient Tokens.


    It was urate of Long Yue to call it the Nine Divine Empires instead of Ten Divine Empires.


    Based on the number of ancient tokens, Long Chen estimated that tens of thousands of cultivators would enter the Ancient Graveyard in order to obtain the treasures. Long Chen¡¯s goal was to travel past the Ancient Graveyard to enter the Three Emperor Territory, so he wouldn¡¯t need to fight others that much.


    Still, he would be more than happy to try his luck at contesting for treasures if his strength allowed for it. One of the Prismatic Keys was already in Long Chen¡¯s Primordial Realm, so he would lose nothing if he tried to take the treasure of the Five Emperors.


    <em>There are five Prismatic Keys, and I just got the fifth one. Does that mean the Ancient Graveyard will be opening soon? It¡¯s a shame that I don¡¯t know where the Ancient Token will appear. I could¡¯ve waited at that location until it appeared.</em>


    Long Chen pondered about what his next ns would be.


    They soon reached Cloud Heaven City.Long Chen memorized the details about the Ancient Graveyard before he apanied Long Yue to find people from the Red Souls. They waited at a gazebo and soon, a man in ck overalls appeared.


    ¡°How are the others? Where are they?¡± Long Yue wasted no time.


    The man respectfully answered, ¡°They actually wanted to hide and wait for you here in Cloud Heaven City, but something happened a few days ago, so they rushed to where the Northern Battle n is.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s happening there?¡±


    ¡°The Battle Emperor was heavily injured out of nowhere and his life is in danger. The Martial Alliance is attacking the Battle n, so Lord Lei Zhen had to head back. The others followed him and assigned me to wait for you here.¡±


    ¡°The Martial Alliance must¡¯ve injured that old man.¡± Long Yue frowned.


    ¡°They¡¯re the only ones who could have injured him. It must¡¯ve been Zhao Danchen, one of the Three Martial Emperors, who did it. Two days ago, Yang Ningfeng exited the Cloud Dream Swamp and ran towards the Battle n. I think that the two Martial Emperors are nning to defeat the Battle n once and for all.¡±


    ¡°Even though the Battle Emperor is old, he should still be strong. Zhao Danchen must¡¯ve be stronger recently. I fear that even I cannot defeat him now ¡­¡± Long Yue shook her head and sighed.


    ¡°The Battle n is the only major faction that has yet to submit to the Martial Alliance. I fear that they will fight to the death if the Martial Alliance invades. I doubt Second Brother can stop the Martial Alliance by himself, so we should hurry and help them,¡± Long Chen said.


    Long Yue nodded. ¡°You are right. The Martial Alliance don¡¯t usually act on their own, but they are dreadful when they do. If the old Battle Emperor was injured, the Battle n would be done under the attack of two Martial Emperors.¡±


    They immediately set off for the Battle n.


    ¡°Lord Long, there is one more thing. My master told me to inform you about this the moment you appeared.¡± The man appeared to be anxious.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Yue had a bad feeling.


    ¡°We managed to find the location of your brother, Long Chen, ten days ago. He was caught by the Martial Overlord and was imprisoned in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. We do not know if he¡¯s alive or dead.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Long Yue smashed the stone table to pieces as she stood up. Her eyes exuded cold bloodlust. Long Chen had a feeling that she was enveloped in bloodlust.


    ¡°We don¡¯t even know if he¡¯s alive?¡± Long Yue clenched her fists so hard that her bones cracked. She was extremely angry because her brother was in danger. Even though she hadn¡¯t seen him in a while, they shared the same blood.


    She was angry yet silent.


    ¡°Nine Spirit Purgatory ¡­¡± Long Chen had never heard of it, so he asked the man in ck, ¡°What is that ce?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s one of the Martial Alliance¡¯s Miniverses. It¡¯s situated in Martial Overlord City, and it¡¯s where the prisoners of the Martial Alliance are kept. No one has ever managed to escape it, so no one knows what it looks like inside. I fear that only the Martial Overlord knows ¡­ ¡± the man exined with trepidation.


    Long Chen frowned too.


    <em>It must be fate that I have the same name as him. He¡¯s one of the two geniuses, a Third Earthly Martial Stage expert, and he was somehow imprisoned in the Nine Spirit Purgatory? There is no way Long Yue would be calm, but I fear that they need her at the Battle n too ¡­ She wouldn¡¯t abandon her blood brothers and sisters, but she can¡¯t abandon her own brother too ¡­</em>


    Long Chen knew she was struggling.


    Which was why he decided on a bold n. ¡°Big Sister, if you need to rescue your brother, get some information from the Martial Alliance first. Save him if you can. I will go to where the Battle n is. I am improving rapidly, so I should be able to beat foes at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    On one side were her blood siblings and on the other was her brother. Long Yue was conflicted.


    But she sighed in exasperation when she heard Long Chen¡¯s n. ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯ve owed my little brother too much ever since I was young. I have to rescue him now. Please apologize to our brothers and sisters on my behalf. I will rush over there as soon as possible.¡±


    Long Chen understood what she was going through. Bonds between family members could never be severed. He nodded. ¡°Go now. I will handle the issue with the Battle n.¡±


    Long Yue had a good understanding of Long Chen¡¯s strength and knew that he was trustworthy. ¡°Don¡¯t be rash and don¡¯t die. Survive and live so that you can fight back another day.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    The big picture was the priority here.


    Since they had decided on their course of action, Long Yue wasted no time and dismissed the man in ck. She then reached into her Universe Pouch, took out a golden book, and passed it to Long Chen. Long Chen saw an engraving of a Red Dragon on the cover of the book. The ws were its most prominent feature.


    ¡°This is the Long¡¯s family secret technique, the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. It¡¯s an intermediate King-tier martial technique. Since you have the same surname, you should also be part of our family. I will pass it to you today and you can pass it to your descendants one day. Do not give it to outsiders,¡± Long Yue warned sternly. She was treating Long Chen as if he was her true brother.


    Long Chen was conflicted. He was certain that he did not belong to her family, but then he thought that he really needed the martial technique. He wouldn¡¯t leak it to outsiders, so he agreed.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s separate now.¡± Long Yue watched Long Chen put the book away and leave.


    The two of them went their separate ways.


    After saying goodbye, Long Chen made his way to the Northern Battle n. Since Xiang was still sleeping, he didn¡¯t have a ride. But since Long Chen was at the Earthly Martial Realm now, he could slowly absorb the Earthly Qi and transform it into Dragon Soul Essence. That way, his speed would be on par with a demonic beast at the Category Eight Heaven-tier.


    While traveling, Long Chen also immersed himself in the feeling of connecting with the earth. He was doing two things at the same time. One of them was cultivating the Earthly Martial Realm Fist. He needed to learn the second stage to advance into the Second Earthly Martial Stage. Thanks to his experience, he was learning it at an incredible speed.


    His heaven meridian was located in his sea of consciousness and his Martial Soul was a dragon! There was no way hisprehension was weak with such talent!


    Long Chen only took a few days to understand the theory behind the second stage of the Earthly Martial Realm Fist. Now he only needed to practice it in order to advance into the Second Earthly Martial Stage sessfully.


    As for how long it would take, that depended on how quickly he could understand the essence of it.


    He cultivated as he traveled.


    Even though he could choose to fly, Long Chen chose to run onnd to feel the energy and pulse of the earth. It was also the source of his strength.


    The second thing he was cultivating was the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. An intermediate King-tier martial technique was naturally hard to learn. It wasplex and grand, though thankfully, Long Chen had a simr fighting style to Long Yue, so it wouldpliment him well.


    Soul Dispersing.


    This was the first time Long Chen had tried to cultivate a w technique, but he understood how well it suited him. He was not an Armament Warrior, so weapons did not suit him well. After transforming, his main weapons had to be his fists, seals, fingers, and ws.


    His ws were extremely sturdy, but he had never used them. The Soul Dispersing Dragon w would release his potential.


    The ws were the hardest part of his body when he transformed.


    Long Chen already had an elementary King-tier Body Tempering technique. He didn¡¯t have the Demonic Illusion anymore, and the Heaven Sword Array was too weak for him now.


    The Soul Dispersing Dragon w hade at the right time.


    Especially since it would be enhanced by the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants.


    Long Chen remained transformed as he cultivated the technique. That way, he could feel how strong and deadly the technique was.


    It was a technique that excelled at close-quartersbat.


    It was also the perfect technique for Long Chen after he reached the Earthly Martial Realm.


    He ran through deste ces while he made his way to the Battle n. He was like a caveman running without shoes as he cultivated the Earthly Martial Realm Fist and the Soul Dispersing Dragon w from time to time.


    His talent was unmatched thanks to being a Dragon Warrior.


    He had no problem with understanding the difficult words written in the book.

 Chapter 577: Soul Dispersing Dragon Claw

    The Soul Dispersing Dragon w was a profound technique even amongst other techniques at the same tier. Long Chen managed to grasp the fleeting sensation of the profoundness of the Martial Realms by cultivating the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. He had a feeling that the Martial Realms were limitless and he was barely scratching the surface.


    But that was more than enough for him to improve.


    He didn¡¯t know the exact location of the Battle n, only the general direction, so he headed north and gathered information.


    He was afraid for the other¡¯s safety if the Martial Alliance attacked, so he did his best to travel faster as he cultivated the Soul Dispersing Dragon w.


    A blood-red figure ran towards the north.


    The Divine Martial Empire was roughly tens of timesrger than the Cangyang Kingdom. Even though Long Chen¡¯s speed had increased drastically, it still took him more than ten days to reach the northern region. He estimated that he would need another five days to reach where the Battle n was located.


    He had spent those ten days immersed in the cultivation of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. In fact, he had almost mastered one of the basic techniques recorded in the book.


    Other than the basic technique, there were two more techniques. He had watched Long Yue use one of them, the Five Piercing Dragons. The two techniques were the essence of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, but the basic technique was still usable.


    As he journeyed, he found some demonic beasts as practice targets. But he could kill normal demonic beasts without even transforming. Demonic beasts at the Category One King-tier and below were no match for him.<em>No wonder this is the secret technique of Long Yue¡¯s family. It¡¯s several times stronger than the Soul Dispersing Eagle w!</em>


    Long Chen admired how strong the technique was.


    He could now be called a true expert after he obtained the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants, advanced into the Earthly Martial Realm, and mastered the Soul Dispersing Dragon w.


    Long Chen was no longer the person who had to run and hide when entering the Divine Martial Empire for the first time.


    His thick Dragon Soul Essence was like a raging river coursing through his body. The maelstrom in his Martial Meridians contained unimaginable power, and the nine burning suns were horrifyingly strong.


    Long Chen ran into a small forest. Several thin lines appeared on the trees. When he exited from the other side, the dense trees were reduced to ashes. An entire forest had disappeared and left nothing behind.


    ¡°At least I¡¯ve mastered the basic technique. As for the other two techniques ¡­ Hehe ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled confidently and continued his journey.


    Long Chen was taking in the beautiful scenery when he unexpectedly found a clean and wide path. Several demonic beasts were pulling carriages on the path.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± Long Chen looked around and saw that there was something interesting towards the left of the path. Deep inside the forest was a kaleidoscopic mist that barely showed the outline of a building.


    The building wasrge and beautiful. Long Chen estimated that tens of thousands of people could live in it.


    He didn¡¯t want to know what it was and was about to leave when he heard someone saying that it was where the Huangfu family was located.


    ¡°To think that the Huangfu family lives here!¡± Long Chen was shocked. Huangfu Fengchen had left the Cloud Dream Swamp moments before him. He never thought that he would reach Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s home so soon. <em>He¡¯s probably at home now since he can run faster than me.</em>


    Even though it was nighttime, the Huangfu family¡¯s building was bright due to the copious amount ofnterns.


    ¡°Might as well visit them since I¡¯m already here. I don¡¯t know if I will have a chance toe back here in the future. I definitely won¡¯t have the time to return Qiqi her fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills when I start looking for the Ancient Token, so I better do it now. It probably won¡¯t take too much time.¡±


    He then approached the building.


    Since he was visiting them, he took some time to clean himself up.


    The Huangfu family was as strong as the Ancient Demon Domain, but they followed the ruling method of a family.


    Long Chen guessed that they probably operated just like the Lingwu family.


    However, the Huangfu family only had one patriarch, while the Lingwu family had four.


    He soon reached the grand gates of the building. Long Chen noticed that the people who entered and exited presented a special token. There were guards stationed outside the building, and they noticed Long Chen fairly soon. One of them approached him and asked, ¡°Who are you? Why are you loitering around here?¡±


    ¡°I am Long Chen. I wish to greet the patriarch of the Huangfu family, Huangfu Fengchen. Could you pass on the message?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± The guard was shocked. ¡°Which Long Chen?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s name had been spread far and wide. There was only one Long Chen before, but now there were two.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t do anything about it, so he exined, ¡°I¡¯m not on the bounty board. I¡¯m also the best friend of Miss Huangfu Qi. I am here to see her.¡±


    ¡°Not on the bounty board? Both Long Chens are on it, but I think I know which Long Chen you are if you say you are Miss Qiqi¡¯s best friend. You must be the one from the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s me.¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t know his name was on the bounty board.


    The guard nodded. ¡°Alright. Let me take you to the Patriarch.¡±


    Maybe it was the influence of Huangfu Fengchen, but Long Chen had a feeling that everyone in his family was easy to talk to and was not bound by rules. It was a good feeling. While walking, they chatted and Long Chen learned the guard¡¯s name, Huangfu Song. Coincidentally, Huangfu Song was just slightly younger than Huangfu Fengchen.


    The Huangfu family estate was beautifulpared to the deste Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°The Patriarch just returned two days ago and is in the study. Let me lead you there.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    They followed a small path and soon reached the study room.


    Though they called it a room, it was actually an entire building. The building was graceful and timeless. Long Chen saw Huangfu Fengchen standing outside, waiting to greet him. He could hear hisughter from far away.


    ¡°Long Chen, I just invited you to the Huangfu family and you actually came so soon! What a surprise.¡± He was indeed surprised that Long Chen would show up so soon.


    Long Chen smiled.


    He had a good impression of Huangfu Fengchen. ¡°I¡¯m not here to see you. I¡¯m here for Qiqi.¡±


    ¡°So you are here because you are enamored by my daughter¡¯s beauty? Alright. Huangfu Song, go and arrange a banquet. I will bring Long Chen thereter.¡±


    Huangfu Song left to prepare the banquet.


    Following Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s lead, Long Chen talked with him as they made their way to another building.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard the news about the Battle n. You are heading there, right? You must¡¯ve identallye across this path and ended up here.¡± Huangfu Fengchen deduced exactly what had happened.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I didn¡¯t know the Huangfu family was here. I overheard someone saying that on the path and came over.¡±


    ¡°Where is that violent Long Yue? I don¡¯t see her.¡±


    ¡°Her brother got imprisoned by the Martial Overlord, so she went to the Nine Spirit Purgatory.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s face paled. ¡°Long Yue is too rash. That is not a ce she can enter and exit freely. I fear that she is in danger this time.¡±


    It was clear that the Nine Spirit Purgatory was a dangerous ce if even Huangfu Fengchen would say that. Long Chen frowned in worry. The Battle n needed him, but he also couldn¡¯t rx when Long Yue was in such a dangerous predicament.


    All of them were in danger, but he wasn¡¯t strong enough to solve their problems. What was he supposed to do?


    Long Chen didn¡¯t have a n.


    Huangfu Fengchen stopped and looked at Long Chen with a conflicted expression. ¡°Long Yue must be there by now, and I can¡¯t help you at the Battle n either. Long Chen, to be honest, my family has only survived up till now because we took no side and did not go against the Martial Alliance. Thousands of my family member¡¯s lives are in my hands. I fear that I cannot help you in regards to the Battle n.¡±


    He thought Long Chen was here to ask him for help.


    But Long Chen actually understood Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s predicament. Since they allied themselves with the Martial Alliance, they would definitely be in trouble if they went and helped the Battle n. Huangfu Fengchen would never risk the lives of his family members.


    Long Chen never thought of asking Huangfu Fengchen for help to begin with.


    ¡°You are thinking too much. I am really here to see Qiqi. I still owe her fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills. If I don¡¯t return them to her now, I probably won¡¯t have a chance to do so again.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen sighed when he heard Long Chen say that. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry that I can¡¯t help you, but since you are here, let me show you my hospitality. I don¡¯t want Long Yue to call me stingy! Hahaha!¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen brought Long Chen into the side pce. He sat at the head of the table while Long Chen sat to his right. The table was already filled with food.


    Long Chen had just sat down when a yellow whirlwind burst through the door and blew towards him.


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Huangfu Qi sat on Long Chen¡¯sp.

 Chapter 578: Warlord Spear Technique

    She was finally reunited with Long Chen, so she wouldn¡¯t let him go. She kept grabbing his face with her pudgy hands. ¡°Big Brother! Why didn¡¯t you visit earlier? I was so bored in this house. That old bastard won''t let me go out anymore.¡±


    Huangfu Qi red at Huangfu Fengchen.


    <em>Old bastard ¡­</em>


    Long Chen was speechless to see her scolding her father at such a young age.


    Huangfu Fengchen ignored her andughed dryly. He then dedicated a toast to Long Chen.


    Long Chen talked with Huangfu Fengchen while he endured Huangfu Qi¡¯s assault on his face. It took some time until she stopped and asked, ¡°Big Brother, where is the dog?¡±


    Huangfu Qi wanted to see Xiang badly.


    She actually wanted Long Chen toe to her house so that he could show her Xiang.


    ¡°My dear daughter, haven¡¯t I bought you several thousand dogs? There¡¯s one of every breed. Why do you still want to see another person¡¯s dog?¡± Huangfu Fengchen was speechless.¡°I don¡¯t care. I want Big Brother¡¯s dog,¡± Huangfu Qi snarled.


    Long Chen and Huangfu Fengchen smiled bitterly.


    Huangfu Qi was indeed a courageous young girl.


    Huangfu Fengchen waved his hands and called for Huangfu Song. ¡°Go and prepare some entertainment. I will be drinking with Long Chen.¡±


    Huangfu Song left quickly. After some time, as Long Chen and Huangfu Fenghcen were conversing, a group of dancers wearing beautiful clothes waltzed in and danced in front of them. There were musicians at the side too.


    Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s life was nothing short of entertaining.


    One of the dancers was especially good. As she danced, she swept her long sleeves across Long Chen¡¯s face and shed a devilishly seductive smile.


    ¡°Long Chen, what do you think about the dancer?¡± Huangfu Fengchen chuckled mischievously.


    ¡°Beautiful.¡±


    ¡°Hehe. She is actually my brother¡¯s step sister. She will be getting married to my nephew soon.¡± Huangfu Fengchenughed.


    That was a random fact that didn¡¯t concern Long Chen.


    Long Chen took a look at Huangfu Qi and asked, ¡°Qiqi, let me return the fifty thousand Heavenly Passage Pills.¡± He was getting ready to leave.


    ¡°No!¡± Huangfu Qi refused.


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want them! If I take them, you won¡¯te back. You can¡¯t leave tonight!¡± Huangfu Qi was adamant.


    She grabbed Long Chen¡¯s hands tightly, and there was nothing he could do.


    Huangfu Fengchen chimed in. ¡°Long Chen, you took quite some time to get here, so I don¡¯t think staying the night will make much of a difference. Take some time to at least rest up.¡±


    Long Chen considered how well they had treated him and how Huangfu Qi refused to let him go before he agreed. ¡°Very well. I shall heed your words.¡±


    The dancers finished their performance and were preparing to leave when two people entered through the front door. The main dancer, who was the fiancee of Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s nephew, acknowledged the two people, bowed, and left.


    Long Chen took a look at them as well.


    One of them looked simr to Huangfu Fengchen but was slightly older. There were already wisps of white hair on his head. Following him was a youth roughly the same age as Long Chen. He was also handsome since he was part of a wealthy family. He wore a light-yellow silk brocade and his chin was high. It was clear that he was arrogant.


    Even though Long Chen couldn¡¯t see through the other party¡¯s strength, he had a feeling that Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s older brother was at the Second Earthly Martial Stage, while the youth was most likely at the First Earthly Martial Stage.


    The youth was as strong as Jiang Wuchang.


    Even though he was weakpared to Zhao Danchen, being on par with Jiang Wuchang wasn¡¯t bad at all.


    When they approached, Huangfu Fengchen immediately introduced them to Long Chen. ¡°This is my older brother, Huangfu Fengyun. And that is my brother¡¯s son, and also the famous youth in my family, Huangfu Yu.¡±


    Hearing that Huangfu Fengchen was introducing them to a youth, both Huangfu Fengyun and Huangfu Yu looked at Long Chen. They noticed that Long Chen was an expert at the Earthly Martial Realm, and Huangfu Yu squinted with suspicion.


    ¡°Patriarch, who is this esteemed man?¡± Huangfu Fengyun asked.


    ¡°This is Long Chen. The very same man that killed the Void Sword Saint and revealed his talent in the Cloud Dream Swamp,¡± Huangfu Fengchen said with pride as if he was the one who had trained Long Chen.


    ¡°Killed the Void Sword Saint?¡± They had heard the rumor before, but they thought it was just a joke. Many people thought that Jian Chen was the one who had done the most in that battle.


    ¡°Esteemed? More like just fishing for fame,¡± Huangfu Yu whispered, smiling in disdain.


    Except for Huangfu Qi, everyone in the room heard that remark. Long Chen paid no mind since he had met a lot of people like Huangfu Yu. The strongest youths were always ced first in the family, so it was natural that they did not think highly of others.


    After the introductions, Huangfu Fengyun started to talk about official matters.


    ¡°Big Brother, just tell me what¡¯s on your mind.¡± Huangfu Fengchen was direct.


    ¡°It¡¯s like this.¡± Huangfu Fengyun pushed Huangfu Yu towards the front. ¡°Little Yu has almost finished cultivating the Warlord Spear Technique. He¡¯s very talented, so I think it¡¯s time for him to learn the Willow Step.¡±


    The Warlord Spear Technique and the Willow Step were the two ultimate techniques of the Huangfu family. An attacking technique and a bodybat technique. They were the perfect pair that could take advantage of each other¡¯s strong points.


    <em>The Warlord Spear Technique is an intermediate King-tier martial technique, and Huangfu Yu is almost done cultivating it.</em> Long Chen was surprised by how strong Huangfu Yu was.


    He looked at Huangfu Fengchen to see what kind of decision would be made.


    He knew a bit about the Huangfu family. The position of patriarch should have been inherited by Huangfu Fengyun, but Huangfu Fengchen had grown strong too fast. In the end, he was conferred the position of patriarch. Even though the two of them didn¡¯t show it outright, there was some resentment between them.


    Huangfu Fengyun sired a lot of children, but Huangfu Fengchen only had a daughter. Huangfu Qi was only ten years old and was a girl, so the next patriarch would definitely be Huangfu Yu.


    But with Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s attitude, it was clear that he didn¡¯t care about being the patriarch.


    Huangfu Fengchen listened to his brother and looked at Huangfu Yu. ¡°Little Yu, there are three stages to the Warlord Spear Technique. Which stage are you on now?¡±


    Huangfu Yu said with pride, ¡°Patriarch, I¡¯vepleted the first stage and will be finished with the second stage soon.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen frowned. ¡°Your cultivation is notplete. It¡¯s still too early to learn the Willow Step. You should talk to me again once you finish the third stage or reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    Huangfu Fengyun did notply when he heard that. ¡°Patriarch, it¡¯s not that simple to cultivate the third stage of the Warlord Spear Technique or even reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage. Doesn¡¯t that mean that Little Yu might not even get to start cultivating the Willow Step in ten years?¡±


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then his talent is too weak. You should know that cultivating the Willow Step will only impede his progress if he has too many things on his te to cultivate,¡± Huangfu Fengchen exined sincerely.


    ¡°Are you afraid that Qiqi will never catch up to me?¡± Huangfu Yu asked in a weirdly provocative tone.


    Huangfu Fengchen smiled. ¡°Little Yu, even though your cultivation isgging behind, you are getting more and more prideful. You are confined in the safety of the Huangfu family and don¡¯t know how strong the people outside are. There are many people who are stronger than you.¡±


    ¡°Many? You mean like Long Chen, who killed the Void Sword Saint?¡± Huangfu Yu pointed at Long Chen and looked at him with disdain.


    Huangfu Yu had been pampered since young. Even though he was as strong as Jiang Wushang, his mind was weak.


    Huangfu Fengchen smiled when he saw that Huangfu Yu was trying to provoke Long Chen. ¡°Fine. I have to make you understand your folly today. If you defeat Long Chen, I will give you the Willow Step.¡±


    Without waiting for Huangfu Yu to agree, Huangfu Fengchen looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°I helped you advance into the Earthly Martial Realm, so could you consider doing this for me?¡±


    Long Chen understood that if he didn¡¯t show them how strong he was, Huangfu Fengyun and Huangfu Yu would not stop. Long Chen owed Huangfu Fengchen a favor, and it was also a good chance to test his strength at the Earthly Martial Realm. ¡°Of course. But I don¡¯t know if Young Master Huangfu Yu would want me to be his opponent.¡±


    Huangfu Yu looked at Long Chen and rolled his eyes. ¡°Patriarch, you want me to fight him? Just say it and don¡¯t waste any more time.¡±


    Huangfu Yu was arrogant beyond measure.


    Long Chen stood up and decided to not transform to fight against Huangfu Yu. He wanted to test his strength after all.


    Seeing that they were ready, Huangfu Fengyun stood to the side.


    ¡°Son, show them your Warlord Spear Technique. Don¡¯t be careless.¡±


    ¡°I know, I know. Don¡¯t start nagging again. You are also annoying even though you are so old,¡± Huangfu Yu saidzily. Then he pulled a glimmering gold spear from his Universe Pouch and focused on Long Chen.


    The spear appeared to have been forged from gold, but its strength was far beyond that. The spear was engraved beautifully, and the tip was dangerously sharp.


    ¡°Elementary King-tier Divine Arm, Golden Warlord Spear.¡±

 Chapter 579: Golden Warlord Spear

    Long Chen frowned when he saw the spear, though he rxed at the next moment. The spear was indeed strong, but the person using it was not.


    ¡°Yay! I get to see Big Brother smack some evil bastard again! Brother Yu is an evil bastard who always bullies others. He even harasses otherdies. Hmph! Qiqi has wanted to beat him for a very long time,¡± Huangfu Qi said.


    Long Chen was speechless.


    It appeared that Huangfu Qi didn¡¯t really like her cousin.


    There was no reason for Long Chen to hold back now.


    The side pce wasrge and there was enough empty space in the middle for them to spar. Huangfu Yu stood on the opposite side and looked past Long Chen to address Huangfu Fengchen. ¡°Patriarch, I hope you will honor your words. If I defeat him, you will give me the Willow Step.¡±


    ¡°A gentleman always keeps his word.¡±


    Huangfu Yu was satisfied and smiled evilly. He raised his spear and mmed it onto the ground, causing the sound of screeching metal to reach Long Chen¡¯s ears.


    ¡°You are lucky enough to spar with the strongest youth of the Huangfu family. Just show me any technique you have and let me see whether you are as strong as the rumors say!¡±¡°Is that so? Then I won¡¯t hold back.¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t have the chance to¨C¡±


    He was cut off when Long Chen became a blur and appeared in front of him the next instant.


    <em>Fast! </em>Huangfu Yu immediately raised his guard after seeing how fast Long Chen was. He quickly retreated and stabbed his spear forward. The spear snaked around the air like a soaring dragon.


    A piercing sound exploded, and the spear appeared in front of Long Chen. It was a strong attack being used by an expert at the Earthly Martial Stage.


    The essence of an Earthly Martial Realm expert filled the spear, so the explosive strength was immense.


    Every time the spear stabbed forward, the air was ripped apart to the point that even space itself warped a little. When Long Chen heard the explosive sounding from the spear, he knew that Huangfu Yu was actually really strong even though he was very arrogant.


    ¡°Is that all you got?¡± Long Chen only needed to dodge faster if the spear was fast. As the spear stabbed forward, Long Chen quickly caught it with his quick reaction speed.


    Huangfu Yu immediately rotated his body with both hands on the spear. That force was enough to make Long Chen lose his grip on the spear, but Long Chen chuckled. ¡°Idiot. Who wants your spear?¡±


    When Huangfu Yu twisted his body, Long Chen let go and almost made him fall down.


    One had to remain rational during a fight.


    Long Chen¡¯s battle sense has been honed to a frightening degree thanks to all the fights he had gone through. The moment Huangfu Yu lost his bnce, Long Chenunched himself forward and punched him.


    mes suddenly appeared on his fist.


    ¡°What is that?!¡± Huangfu Yu was shocked to see that. To him, rather than a fist, it was more like a golden bird flying towards him.


    The fire was hard to protect himself against.


    <em>Danger. </em>Huangfu Yu realized that he was in danger and stopped looking down on Long Chen, but he still refused to acknowledge him. He quickly spun the spear and formed arge shield with his essence.


    ¡°Golden Warlord Shield.¡±


    It was a rare defensive technique. Long Chen recalled how he had the Nine Spinning Fire Shield.


    Huangfu Yu clearly intended to use the Golden Warlord Shield to take on Long Chen¡¯s punch. But Long Chen quickly turned his hands when he got close, and a fiery shield appeared in his hand.


    The Nine Spinning Fire Shield had undergone a transformation. With Long Chen using the Golden Crow soul remnants, the blood-red shield was clearly stronger than before.


    But there was a limit to how strong a technique could get. Even the soul remnants couldn¡¯t increase the strength of the Nine Spinning Fire Shield too much. Long Chen also had Divine Fire Clones, but he didn¡¯t have that many Golden Crow mes.


    This time, he used the Nine Spinning Fire Shield as an offensive technique. It crashed into the Golden Warlord Shield. One was attacking while the other was defending, so it was clear who won. Long Chen sent Huangfu Yu rolling on the ground. Huangfu Yu hastily stood up.


    Long Chen, on the other hand, was only pushed back a few steps.


    ¡°Hahaha!¡± Huangfu Qiughed out loud. ¡°The donkey is rolling on the ground.¡±


    Everyone except for Huangu Yu and Huangfu Fengyun was smiling andughing.


    ¡°Little Yu, don¡¯t look down on him. He¡¯s not as strong, but he has a lot of tricks up his sleeve,¡± Huangfu Fengyun told his son. Even though he knew Long Chen was stronger, he couldn¡¯t discourage his son right here.


    Huangfu Yu was not at all intimidated by Long Chen, but he couldn¡¯t forget how humiliating it was to be sent rolling by Long Chen¡¯s punch. He had always been undefeated and had never once rolled on the ground after getting hit.


    ¡°You bastard!¡± Huangfu Yu was angry after seeing Long Chen¡¯s taunting smile. ¡°Your attacks are weak! Let me show you how strong my family¡¯s Warlord Spear Technique is!¡±


    He swung his spear around and got faster and faster. Huangfu Yu got so fast that rather than swinging a spear, he was swinging a golden light.


    Long Chen felt the pressureing from him.


    Huangfu Yu suddenly charged forward and became a golden light, instantly appearing in front of Long Chen.


    ¡°Warlord Spear Technique, Sun Piercing Ray!¡±


    The Warlord Spear Technique was the strongest offensive technique of the Huangfu family. When Huangfu Yu used it, Long Chen felt the entire side pce tremble.


    <em>Horrifying</em>.


    But he wasn¡¯t afraid.


    He smiled when he saw the spear approaching him. He syed his palm out and curled his fingers like a w. Eerie red mes lit up on his w.


    Huangfu Yu was stronger than the Eagle Martial King thanks to his Warlord Spear Technique, but Long Chen could easily deal with it. He had killed the Eagle Martial King using the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants while he was only at the Ninth Passage Stage after all.


    When Huangfu Yu unleashed his technique, Long Chen used his too. He suddenly sprung forward like a coiled dragon. Long Chen transformed into an illusory Red Dragon as he pounced towards Huangfu Yu.


    <em>Roar! </em>


    A dragon¡¯s howl could be heard in the side pce as the blood-red dragon crashed into the Golden Warlord Spear. The blood-red fire red up from the impact.


    A horrifying screeching sound echoed through the side pce. Even Huangfu Qi covered her ears in pain. She watched the golden spear and the blood-red dragon ws sh again and again.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w.¡± Huangfu Fengchen was shocked. <em>He didn¡¯t know how to use it when we left the Divine Fire Realm. Does that mean Long Yue gave him the manual and he actually cultivated it in just ten days?!</em>


    Huangfu Fengchen couldn¡¯t calm down when he realized this.


    <em>Genius! He¡¯s a true genius! He only took five days to advance into the Earthly Martial Realm. He then cultivated the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, a technique that others would take several months to a year to cultivate, in ten days! Compared to Little Yu, Long Chen is the true monster here. Zhao Danchen could never bepared to Long Chen!</em>


    <em>Long Chen should be part of Long Yue¡¯s family, and their ancestor was the one who rescued the Divine Martial Empire. The Huangfu family also benefited from the protection given by that hero in ancient times. The Long family¡¯s ancestor was the strongest person in all Ten Divine Empires. Is Long Chen going to be the one who will revive the Long¡¯s family glory?</em>


    Huangfu Fengchen thought quickly.


    This was the first time Long Chen had used the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, and he hadn¡¯t even transformed. He had only used the basic technique, but even so, he had five times more essence than Huangfu Yu despite not transforming. He even had the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnants, so Huangfu Yu could never win against him.

 Chapter 580: Wu’er

    <em>Bam!</em>


    A massive explosion rocked the pce, and a golden light crashed open the doors.


    Someone shrieked from outside. The person had been spying on them and was surprised when they were almost hit by the attack. The person knew that they had been discovered, so they walked out sheepishly. It was none other than the lead dancer from earlier, Huangfu Yu¡¯s fiancee.


    She had been spying on them because she was worried about whether Huangfu Yu would be able to obtain the Willow Step or not.


    The golden light that had caused the door to open was none other than the Golden Warlord Spear. The spear fell to the ground, sending sparks flying everywhere.


    The dancer and everyone else were shocked by the scene.


    Huangfu Yu¡¯s face was pale and Long Chen¡¯s hand was on his neck.


    It was clear who had won.


    Huangfu Yu¡¯s spear had been knocked away by Long Chen, and thetter¡¯s ws were wrapped around Huangfu Yu¡¯s neck. If Long Chen hadn¡¯t shown mercy, Huangfu Yu would be dead right now.Long Chen had won.


    This was within Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s expectations. Long Chen had defeated Jiang Wushang even before he reached the Earthly Martial Realm, so naturally, he could defeat Huangfu Yu.


    Huangfu Fengchen smiled because Long Chen had helped him solve a difficult matter.


    Huangfu Qi danced happily. ¡°Haha! The evil bastard has finally been defeated. I told you Big Brother was strong. If you bully the consorts and maids again, Big Brother wille and smack your butt as punishment!!¡±


    Huangfu Yu¡¯s face soured when he heard her. It was humiliating to hear all that from a child.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Huangfu Yu knocked away Long Chen¡¯s arm. He refused to admit defeat and tried to punch Long Chen, but Long Chen was faster. A single kick was all it took to send Huangfu Yu spiraling onto the ground.


    ¡°Huangfu Yu!¡± The dancer tried to help him up, but Huangfu Yu was angry and pushed her away.


    ¡°Go away.¡±


    The dancer retreated with a pained look on her face.


    Huangfu Fengchen became upset when he saw that. ¡°Little Yu, you are a man. You must ept defeat when you lose. Don¡¯t make the outsiders think that we of the Huangfu family are shameless. We are men that admit defeat when we are outssed. Don¡¯t embarrass us.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen was usually quite easy-going, so his harsh words startled Huangfu Yu, who looked down and said nothing.


    Huangfu Fengyun took this chance to defuse the situation. ¡°Little Yu has lost. It seems there are more experts out there than he expected. Little Yu, let¡¯s go. Don¡¯t embarrass us any further here.¡±


    Huangfu Fengyun was embarrassed by his son¡¯s performance and didn¡¯t want to remain here any longer.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Huangfu Fengchen stopped them. ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m not trying to make Little Yu look bad. Haven¡¯t you seen his technique? He still hasn¡¯t mastered the Sun Piercing Ray. He doesn¡¯t understand its essence yet, much less the second and third stages. You should only bring him here to talk about the Willow Step after he masters the second stage.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Patriarch.¡± Huangfu Fengyun nodded without showing a hint of expression before looking at Long Chen. ¡°You are indeed very strong. I am impressed.¡±


    Huangfu Fengyun then left with his son.


    Huangfu Yu red at Long Chen before leaving. He thought that the reason he couldn¡¯t obtain the Willow Step was Long Chen.


    The dancer bowed and said, ¡°Patriarch, Wu¡¯er will be leaving too.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen chuckled when she was gone. ¡°Long Chen, you are really impressive. I can¡¯t believe you learned Long Yue¡¯s signature technique in just ten days.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve only learned the basics. That was my first time using it, and I made a few mistakes when executing it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯smendable that you can use it at all. I am impressed. I really want to make you my son-inw right now. If only Qiqi was born sooner ¡­¡±


    Long Chen could onlyugh dryly in response.


    ¡°Dad, do you want me to marry Big Brother? Will I get to leave this ce if I marry him? I want to marry him, then!¡± Huangfu Qi¡¯s eyes glowed with anticipation.


    ¡°Marry?!¡± Huangfu Fengchen almost slumped from the shock of hearing his daughter saying that. He had only been joking, but Huangfu Qi thought it was real.


    ¡°Qiqi, I still have important things to do. My brothers and sisters are in danger and I cannot stay here for long ¡­¡±


    ¡°No! It¡¯s alreadyte. You can leave tomorrow!¡± Huangfu Qi pulled Long Chen¡¯s sleeve.


    Huangfu Fengchen chuckled. ¡°In that case, Qiqi, you can show Long Chen your favorite ces. But you haven¡¯t finished your cultivation yet. If you don¡¯t finish, you will be grounded for a month.¡±


    ¡°Fine. I will y with Big Brother for a bit before sending him to his room, then I will continue my cultivation.¡± Huangfu Qi quickly pulled Long Chen out of the ce.


    Long Chen actually had a huge soft spot for Huangfu Qi. Since he was here, he thought it would be fine to spend a night. <em>I¡¯m not as strong as Long Yue, so I don¡¯t think I will be able to help the Battle n all that much.</em>


    If he was as strong as Long Yue, he wouldn¡¯t have had to stop to cultivate as he journeyed.


    Long Chen spent four hours with Huangfu Qi. She showed him the various ces in the estate. The Huangfu family¡¯s estate was more like a pce, and it was far better than the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Even though it was nighttime, the ce was very beautiful.


    It waste at night when Huangfu Qi brought Long Chen to the guest room. ¡°Big Brother, I have to cultivate for four hours a day. I need to go back now, but you mustn¡¯t leave! I wille and fetch you tomorrow morning.¡±


    Huangfu Qi actually wanted Long Chen to go to her room, but Long Chen had refused. It was inappropriate.


    Huangfu Qi skipped back to her room. Long Chen was about to close his door when he saw the lead dancer approaching. He recalled that her name was Wu''er. She had a sad look on her face when she walked past his door.


    <em>It seems that she¡¯s Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s stepdaughter, so she¡¯s also Qiqi¡¯s cousin. </em>Long Chen didn¡¯t think much more of it and slid his door shut. But before the door waspletely shut, he saw Huangfu Yu lurking in the darkness and tailing Wu¡¯er. There was a very angry expression on his face.


    ¡°They are engaged, so I probably shouldn¡¯t butt in.¡± Long Chen saw the two of them go towards Wu¡¯er¡¯s residence. She was living in a beautiful building just on the other side of the pond.


    Long Chen closed the doors and finally started cultivating.


    ¡°Little Cat, how¡¯s Xiang doing?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s undergoing some changes. He should be able to reach the King-tier in a few days and show himself as a human again,¡± Little Cat answeredzily.


    Long Chen was excited to finally see Xiang as a human again.


    <em>Xiao Xi saw Xiang back in Baiyang Town. I wonder if she will be surprised to see him again in human form. Hehe.</em> Long Chen chuckled as he thought about that.


    His opponent today was by no means weak, and Long Chen had learned a bit more about the Soul Dispersing Dragon w after the battle. He was going to review it tonight and master it. He had a feeling that he could use the Five Piercing Dragons if he focused.


    Dragon Soul Transformation and the Five Piercing Dragon. That was Long Chen¡¯s strongestbo.


    The night passed in a sh.


    Four hourster, Huangfu Qi crashed through Long Chen¡¯s door with a pale face. ¡°Big Brother! Big Brother! Something awful has happened!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Long Chen shook himself from his cultivation.


    ¡°Sister Wu¡¯er was killed.¡± Huangfu Qi was crying when she told him the news.


    Long Chen was shocked.


    ¡°Sister Wu¡¯er was only a dancer, so she was only at the Second Passage Stage. We don¡¯t know who would be cruel enough to kill her! If I knew who did it, I would skin them alive myself!¡±


    Long Chen bit his lip and calmed her down. ¡°Qiqi, let us go and see what happened.¡±


    ¡°My father is still in closed cultivation, so he doesn¡¯t know about it yet. I only overheard it when I wasing over to you. Let¡¯s go quickly.¡± Huangfu Qi pulled Long Chen out of the room and ran past the pond.


    There were already a lot of people near the building where Wu¡¯er was living. Long Chen had a bad feeling and recalled what he had seenst night.


    <em>Who would kill her? Could it be ¡­</em>


    Long Chen and Huangfu Qi arrived at the scene, where many people were already discussing what had happened.


    ¡°How did she suddenly die? She was fine just yesterday! Did someone kill her? Who would dare to do such a thing? She was as beautiful as a prized gem and also the fiancee of Young Master Yu.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I thought they were getting ready for their wedding. I think Young Master Yu is going to go crazy over this. To think his fiancee is dead now.¡±


    ¡°Who would do such a thing? Wu¡¯er has been living here for half a year. Why today of all days?¡±


    ¡°We need to find the culprit and tear them to pieces!¡±

 Chapter 581: Who’s The Culprit?

    Everyone was trying to deduce who the culprit was. Not many people could assassinate her without being found out.


    Suddenly, the group was split in half and a path was formed. Two people ran up to the building. The one at the front was none other than Huangfu Yu. His face was pale and tears welled in his eyes. Everyone felt pity for him when they saw his expression.


    Wu¡¯er was his fiancee, and even though they had only spent a short time together, their feelings for each other were deep.


    Huangfu Yu howled Wu¡¯er¡¯s name before running into the building. His father, Huangfu Fengyun, was also frowning and quickly followed him. Those with a higher standing in the family followed them inside.


    ¡°Big Brother, let¡¯s enter too.¡± Huangfu Qi pulled him into the building, and no one stopped them even though Long Chen was an outsider.


    More than twenty people entered the ce.


    Long Chen said nothing as he observed Huangfu Yu. He had an idea of what happened, so he was quite surprised to see Huangfu Yu¡¯s reaction. <em>Why is he acting like that? I have a feeling that things are not as simple as they seem. What is he nning?</em>


    They reached Wu''er¡¯s room. There were guards stationed outside to control the scene. A middle-aged man saw Huangfu Yu and quickly addressed him, ¡°Young Master Yu, we never touched anything after we secured the building.¡±


    ¡°Search the ce! We need to find out who the culprit is! I must torture the person who did it no matter what!¡± Huangfu Yu snarled.Huangfu Fengyun calmed his son down and took control. ¡°Huangfu Yang, who was the first one to find out that Wu¡¯er had died?¡±


    ¡°It was Wu¡¯er¡¯s personal maid. They found out half an hour ago. I heard her shouting and quickly ran over. Cui¡¯er,e here.¡± Huangfu Yang called for the maid toe.


    Before Huangfu Fengyun said anything, Huangfu Yu walked past them and entered the room. Huangfu Fengyun revealed a pained expression as he said, ¡°Let¡¯s go inside. I want to see who would dare to kill someone from our family in our own house.¡±


    They entered the room together. The room wasrge enough to fit all twenty high-ranked members of the Huangfu family. There were even some at the Earthly Martial Realm.


    Long Chen followed Huangfu Qi inside. Huangfu Qi was an infamous troublemaker in the family, so no one dared to stop her from entering with Long Chen.


    ¡°Wu¡¯er!¡± Long Chen heard a painful sob and saw Huangfu Yu rush to Wu¡¯er¡¯s corpse. Long Chen saw that Wu¡¯er¡¯s face was pale as she kneeled on the ground. Her arms and neck were covered in wounds made from being tied up. It was clear that she had been strangled. More importantly, her clothes were in tatters. Someone had tried to rape her, and she had died when she fought back.


    <em>Someone tried to rape her, but she fought back and was killed for it? </em>Long Chen was stunned. He looked at Huangfu Yu and saw that he was reaching for her corpse when


    Huangfu Fengyun stopped him. ¡°Little Yu, don¡¯t be rash! Don¡¯t move her yet. We need to search for clues.¡±


    ¡°Dad! I need to find the killer no matter what! They dared to harm my woman. She fought back but was killed! I have to kill that person no matter what!¡± Huangfu Yu appeared to have lost all sense of reason.


    He suddenly locked eyes with Long Chen.


    Long Chen had a bad feeling.


    He quickly thought back to yesterday.


    <em>I saw Huangfu Yu following Wu¡¯er, but his expression was suspicious. It¡¯s clear that they argued. I thought the killer was Huangfu Yu, but it seems that Wu¡¯er was really killed by someone who tried to rape her. She died because she fought back. There¡¯s no reason for her to fight back if they are getting married anyway.</em>


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know why, but he had a scary thought when he saw Huangfu Yu lock his gaze on him.


    He saw a hint of killing intent in Huangfu Yu¡¯s eyes.


    Long Chen knew he was going to be framed!


    Long Chen recalled what had happened in the side pce.<em> Huangfu Yu lost to me and Wu¡¯er watched. Huangfu Yu is an arrogant brat with a bad temper, and there was probably already some resentment between him and Wu¡¯er. I think that their marriage was forced by the Huangfu family ¡­</em>


    <em>Then ¡­ Maybe Wu¡¯er didn¡¯t really love Huangfu Yu. Since Huangfu Yu lost yesterday, he was in a bad mood and probably started arguing with Wu¡¯er. He must¡¯ve identally killed her when she refused his advances ¡­ And then he tried to cover up his mistake by framing me!</em>


    That meant Wu¡¯er¡¯s death was rted to Long Chen! Of course, something like this would¡¯ve happenedter on no matter what.


    Huangfu Yu became crazy and escaped his father¡¯s grasp as he rushed to where Wu¡¯er was. He cried before he suddenly saw something in Wu¡¯er¡¯s hands. ¡°What is this?¡±


    He took it out and saw that it was a piece of cloth that had been ripped from the bed sheet.


    ¡°She held onto it so tightly before she died. She must be trying to tell us something!¡± Huangfu Yu unfurled the cloth to reveal a golden dragon embroidery.


    ¡°Dragon? Why is it a dragon?¡± Huangfu Yu was confused, and Huangfu Fengyun took the cloth. He looked at it before ring at Long Chen.


    ¡°Dragon. Long Chen. This evidence points towards you! Wu¡¯er clutched it tight in her hands so that she could tell us that the culprit was you.¡±


    Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s words shocked everyone in the room. Those around Long Chen quickly surrounded him.


    All of them were ring at him.


    They had heard of Long Chen, especially how he had defeated Huangfu Yu.


    Huangfu Fengyun chuckled. ¡°You animal. You thought that you could escape, but you must¡¯ve never thought that Wu¡¯er would tell us that before she died. Wu¡¯er had been fine ever since she came here, but you must¡¯ve gotten entranced by her beauty when she danced for you yesterday. So that¡¯s why you tried to assault her yesterday! You dare do such a thing here in the Huangfu family?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s you! Bastard! I will kill you even if I have to die in the process! You will never get to be reincarnated again!¡± Huangfu Yu charged towards Long Chen, but he was held back by Huangfu Fengyun.


    Before Long Chen could say anything, Huangfu Qi yelled, ¡°Bullshit! Big Brother would never do something like that! He was with me throughout the entire evening and only returnedte at midnight. I even went and visited him after four hours!¡±


    ¡°Four hours. Isn¡¯t that enough time for him to do the crime? His room is right on the other side of the pond. He could have rushed over here easily without any issue. Bastard.¡± Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s aura pressed down on Long Chen.


    ¡°I will send you down to hell on behalf of my son and my dead daughter-inw.¡±


    Long Chen remained calm and said, ¡°You want to kill me over just a single piece of cloth? Anyone who would want to frame me could¡¯ve just torn that cloth from something and ced it in her hands. If you think that I¡¯m the culprit based on the cloth alone, then I have to say that the Huangfu family is very stupid.¡±


    Long Chen knew who the culprit was and pointed at Huangfu Yu. ¡°You can fool them, but you cannot fool me, you bastard. I didn¡¯t think you were capable of putting on an act.¡±


    Everyone except for Huangfu Qi was ready to fight Long Chen. Words were useless here, but Long Chen didn¡¯t mind that. The strongest member of the family, Huangfu Fengchen, was not here yet.


    He only needed to make Huangfu Fengchen understand who the real culprit was.


    ¡°How dare you spout such lies. You think you can trick the others after you kill someone from the Huangfu family? I don¡¯t care if you are the guest of our Patriarch¡ªyou must die today!¡± Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s Second Earthly Martial Stage essence exploded.


    Huangfu Fengyun was the second person in the Huangfu family who reached the Second Earthly Martial Stage. He was also an aplished cultivator in the Divine Martial Empire. His rank was second only to Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s, so no one thought that it was inappropriate to punish Long Chen.


    After all, they had very different standings.


    Huangfu Qi tried to stop him. ¡°If you touch my Big Brother, I won¡¯t consider you my uncle anymore!¡±

 Chapter 582: Act

    Huangfu Fengyun had always doted on her, but now she was nothing. He ignored her and punched Long Chen, setting off a massive shockwave in the room.


    ¡°You don¡¯t even care about Huangfu Qi¡¯s safety. What a pity.¡± Long Chen sighed and quickly retreated with Huangfu Qi. He then ran out of the building in one go.


    ¡°Chase after him! Don¡¯t let him escape!¡± Huangfu Yu followed his father and called on the others to quickly chase after Long Chen.


    The others were outside the building when the wall exploded and Long Chen ran out with Huangfu Qi. Huangfu Fengyun led the others to chase after them.


    ¡°Stop that bastard! He killed Wu¡¯er!¡±


    When someone shouted that out loud, the others immediately understood what had transpired. All of them red angrily at Long Chen and chased after him.


    Long Chennded and ced the panicking Huangfu Qi on the ground. ¡°Qiqi, don¡¯t worry. Your uncle can¡¯t defeat me. Go and call your father.¡±


    Huangfu Qi nodded. She was certain that Long Chen would never do that, so she quickly ran towards where her father was.


    Huangfu Fengyun and five Earthly Martial Realm cultivators surrounded Long Chen.¡°Long Chen you bastard. I will kill you today to appease Wu¡¯er¡¯s soul!¡± Huangfu Yu almost shouted his lungs out.


    The others stood behind Huangfu Fengyun while three cultivators at the First Earthly Martial Stage tried to pull Huangfu Yu back. Even so, his bestial eyes and howls looked very real.


    ¡°Not bad. Huangfu Yu, you are a really talented actor.¡± Long Chen smiled bitterly.


    If Huangfu Fengchen didn¡¯t arrive soon, Long Chen would have no choice but to fight.


    He was itching to fight someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    After absorbing the Inherited Blood Essence, he had been feeling abnormallypetitive. Combat made his blood boil and excited him a lot.


    ¡°Little Yu, give me the Golden Warlord Spear.¡± Huangfu Fengyun was an expert, and the spear was originally his. He hadn''t used it in a while, so he had loaned it to Huangfu Yu in hopes that his son could be stronger, but to think he had lost to Long Chen.


    Huangfu Yu tossed him the golden spear and yelled, ¡°Father, kill him for me!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t be able to meet our ancestors if he doesn¡¯t die today.¡± Huangfu Fengyun took the spear and swung it around. A golden whirlwind formed and shot towards Long Chen.


    The golden light enveloped Long Chen. As expected of someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage¡ªhis attack was ten times stronger than Huangfu Yu¡¯s.


    This was a true expert that had lived through real tribtions.


    Huangfu Fengyun had plenty ofbat experience. He was in a different category than Huangfu Yu.


    <em>St!</em>


    Long Chen could not avoid one of the attacks, so it pierced through his arm. The force from the impact sent him flying! He crashed through a tree beforending in the pond.


    <em>Ssh! </em>


    Arge plume of water flew upwards.


    ¡°He¡¯s dead!¡± Everyone cheered because they thought it was a simple matter for a legendary figure like Huangfu Fengyun to kill someone younger with just a single blow.


    ¡°Long Chen is an idiot for thinking that the Huangfu family is weak.¡±


    ¡°He dared to harm one of us! To think he¡¯s so arrogant to tantly disregard us!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s such a shame that he died so early. Wu¡¯er was such a prettydy, yet he killed her. I wouldn¡¯t have given him such a quick death.¡±


    Everyone started chatting after they thought Long Chen was dead.


    ¡°What are you talking about? He¡¯s not dead,¡± one of the Earthly Martial Realm experts told them.


    When Long Chen fell into the pond, Huangfu Fengyun stood on the surface of the water and looked down.


    ¡°Come out.¡± He thrusted the Golden Warlord Spear downwards, causing the pond to explode. The pond was split in half, revealing even the muddy bottom.


    Everyone saw Long Chen at the bottom of the pond. He stood up and approached Huangfu Fengyun. Long Chen waspletely different now because he was covered in blood-red scales and bone spikes. His ws were five centimeters long, and each of them resembled a blood-red de. The way he looked left a deep impression on the onlookers.


    Long Chen¡¯s strongest body part was undoubtedly his ws.


    Everyone was shocked by how he looked. They had thought Long Chen was dead.


    ¡°Why is Long Chen fine? And why is he stronger now?¡±


    Long Chen knew that he would have to transform to face off against Huangfu Fengyun. His Dragon Soul Transformation was one of his trump cards.


    The blood-red glow of the Golden Crow mes covered his body. The fire and his essence melded perfectly.


    It was rare to see such a perfect melding.


    Huangfu Fengyun frowned and twirled his spear when he saw Long Chen. ¡°Child¡¯s y. You are just putting on an act.¡±


    Huangfu Fengyun thrusted the Golden Warlord Spear numerous times. The afterimages nketed Long Chen.


    The pond slowly leveled out. Long Chen wasn¡¯t adept at fighting on air; he would rather fight on the surface of the pond since it didn¡¯t affect hisbat capabilities at all.


    Huangfu Fengyun was fast. He suddenly swung his spear at Long Chen. That was how Long Chen was blown back previously.


    The golden spear was like a snake that whipped towards Long Chen¡¯s neck. Everyone was looking forward to seeing Long Chen get decapitated, but ¡­


    <em>ng!</em>


    Sparks flew and Long Chen managed to block the Golden Warlord Spear with just his hands. The spear wouldn¡¯t budge no matter what.


    ¡°Is this all you got? Huangfu Fengyun, you are getting old.¡± Long Chen chuckled and moved his arm. He smashed the spear off his body and punched Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s heart with his other arm.


    ¡°Bastard! Die!¡± Huangfu Fengyun was shocked. He never thought he would have to defend against Long Chen¡¯s attacks!


    ¡°Are you running? Aren¡¯t you the honorable Huangfu Fengyun?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    It wasn¡¯t because he wanted to run, but Long Chen¡¯s attacks and defense were too strong. Huangfu Fengyun was beyond shocked by this.


    <em>He¡¯s indeed strong! I thought the rumors were false, but it seems he really did kill the Void Sword Saint! I cannot be careless and tarnish my reputation here!</em>


    That was why Huangfu Fengyun was being so careful.


    He ignored Long Chen¡¯s taunt and continued fighting at a range he wasfortable with. He needed more space to unleash the strength of the Golden Warlord Spear.


    It was simple enough for him to do so.


    He pushed Long Chen back with numerous thrusts, but Long Chen had expected it.


    ¡°Is that all you got?¡± Long Chen chuckled. He had a feeling that the only way to defeat Huangfu Fengyun was to pour everything into offense.


    The onlookers were surprised when Long Chen¡¯s ws suddenly lit up in mes. There were numerous illusions of dragons swimming in the mes. For some reason, they could even hear the dragons roaring.


    Golden Crow mes and the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. It was an absurdly strongbination.


    Long Chenughed and became a blur of red as he charged towards Huangfu Fengyun.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w!¡±


    Everyone recognized the technique.


    But the Soul Dispersing Dragon w had undergone a transformation when Long Chen used it.


    ¡°Hmph! Such a technique could neverpare to the Huangfu family¡¯s Warlord Spear Technique!¡± Huangfu Fengyunughed andunched numerous Sun Piercing Rays using the Golden Warlord Spear.


    It was sunrise. The sun was just rising in the east, and Long Chen positioned himself with his back facing it. Every time Huangfu Fengyun thrusted the Golden Warlord Spear, it created a ray of light that shot towards Long Chen!

 Chapter 583: Shattered World

    Long Chen didn¡¯t even flinch when he saw the iing attack that was ten times stronger than Huangfu Yu¡¯s technique. The mes and dragons on his ws grew bigger as he circted his essence. He thenunched himself towards Huangfu Fengyun with the ming blood-red dragons in his ws.


    The Soul Dispersing Dragon w was a melee technique. As long as Long Chen could maneuver himself around Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s attacks, he would be able to defeat him using the Soul Dispersing Dragon w at close range.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The massive attacks caused an explosion above the pond. The water was blown back and arge crater formed at the bottom.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see how you escape my ws.¡± Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s Sun Piercing Ray was strong, but Long Chen¡¯s Soul Dispersing Dragon w was even stronger. He had more essence due to his Dragon Soul Transformation, enough to even rival Huangfu Fengchen. There was also the Golden Crow mes inside his essence, which made his attacks even more fearsome.


    Ever since he had obtained the Inherited Blood Essence, Long Chen¡¯s life had been nothing but one battle after another. Closebat was his forte, and his talent inbat flourished whenever he found aplimentary martial technique.


    <em>Crack! Boom!</em>


    Sounds of explosions rang out as craters appeared underneath the pond before the water filled it up.


    ¡°You brat! Die!¡± Long Chen used his Soul Dispersing Dragon w to break the Sun Piercing Ray and then pounced at Huangfu Fengyun. Huangfu Fengyun swore and immediately spun his spear.


    ¡°Golden Warlord Shield!¡± he shouted. A golden shield appeared on Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s arm to block Long Chen.


    ¡°You think you can block me with that?¡± Long Chen¡¯sugh sent shivers down everyone¡¯s spines. Even though victory had not been determined yet, everyone was very surprised by how tough Long Chen was. They never thought he was as strong as Huangfu Fengyun.


    Everyone stared as the blood-red dragon pounced onto Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s golden shield, creating a terrifying screeching noise. Numerous attacks impacted the Golden Warlord Shield. Those attacks came from Long Chen¡¯s knife-like ws!


    The Soul Dispersing Dragon w made Long Chen¡¯s ws as strong as Divine Arms. His ws could now rival the Golden Warlord Spear since Long Chen had cultivated the elementary King-tier True Martial Demon Body.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    An explosion sounded again. Huangfu Fengyun was knocked back by the attack and sank into the pond. Hended in the mud before the water submerged him in the crater.


    The situation had taken a turn¡ªit was Huangfu Fengyun who was knocked down this time.


    The onlookers were shocked. They had been craving for revenge, but now they were just too shocked to say anything. Huangfu Yu¡¯s expression made him look like he had just eaten feces.


    ¡°Impossible! There is no way Long Chen is that strong!¡± The situation had actually transpired as Long Chen had deduced. Huangfu Yu was the one who had killed Wu¡¯er to frame him. He wanted Huangfu Fengyun to kill Long Chen as soon as possible so that everything would be over, but he never expected something like this to happen.


    Huangfu Fengyun had lost to Long Chen.


    ¡°Father! Use all of your strength! Don¡¯t underestimate him!¡± Huangfu Yu shouted furiously.


    He was also very scared.


    He hoped that Huangfu Fengyun would kill Long Chen before Huangfu Fengchen got here. It would be difficult to kill Long Chen if Huangfu Fengchen arrived since he favored Long Chen.


    Huangfu Yu was also afraid that Long Chen would reveal his plot to Huangfu Fengchen.


    Long Chen had already deduced who the murderer was, so that was very likely to happen.


    Long Chen''s deductions were quite spot-on. When Huangfu Yu lost to Long Chen, the former felt frustrated and vented it on Wu¡¯er. Because of that, Wu¡¯er got angry too, so she declined Huangfu Yu¡¯s advances to sleep with her.


    Because of his anger, he lost control and choked Wu¡¯er to death. When he realized what he had done, he tried to cover it up. He then saw the dragon embroidery on the bedsheet and tore it off, stuffing it into Wu¡¯er¡¯s hand so that he could frame Long Chen.


    It was a good n. He had even asked his father to take a walk with him in the morning so that they could reach the crime scene as soon as possible. He was certain that Long Chen would be dead as soon as his father unleashed his anger.


    But Long Chen did not die.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The disheveled Huangfu Fengyun exploded upwards from the bottom of the pond. He was so angry that his body was trembling slightly.


    ¡°I shall hold back no longer. You will be the first opponent I go all-out with in ten years.¡± Huangfu Fengyun howled and leaped into the air.


    <em>Huh? Why is he so fast? It¡¯s as if he¡¯s weightless. </em>Long Chen was shocked to see Huangfu Fengyun floating so freely in the air. He could shift with the wind and appear at different ces. It was very hard to predict his movements.


    <em>Forever shifting with the wind. This must be the Willow Step!</em>


    ¡°I am certain that you will die if Ibine the Willow Step with the second technique of the Warlord Spear Technique!¡± Huangfu Fengyun cackled maniacally in the air.


    The Willow Step looked elegant, but it was extremely deadly.


    <em>What an incredible Body Combat technique. </em>Long Chen knew how dangerous those irrational movements were.


    As Huangfu Fengyun moved with the wind, Long Chen tried predicting the wind direction and aimed a Soul Dispersing Dragon w towards his back. He also used Sight to make his attack urate.


    But what surprised him was that his Soul Dispersing Dragon wpletely missed. Huangfu Fengyun was just like a feather who had been blown to the side by Long Chen¡¯s attack.


    <em>I can¡¯t even hit him! Might as well not try. </em>Long Chen stopped attacking. He chose to not attack instead.


    Huangfu Fengyun was actually in a hurry to kill Long Chen, while Long Chen was trying to buy time until Huangfu Fengchen arrived. Long Chen had made the right decision.


    The Willow Step was strong, but it was a Body Combat technique that was used exclusively for evading. If Long Chen didn''t attack, then Huangfu Fengyun could only float there uselessly.


    Huangfu Fengyun and Huangfu Yu realized what Long Chen was trying to do when they saw him standing there and smiling at them. ¡°Father! Stop using the Willow Step and kill him!¡±


    ¡°Fine.¡± Huangfu Fengyun knew he couldn¡¯t drag this on any further, so he stopped. He held the Golden Warlord Spear tightly and charged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Brat! I shall show you another powerful move!¡± Huangfu Fengyun¡¯sugh came from behind Long Chen.


    Huangfu Fengyun jumped high in the air and raised his Golden Warlord Spear.


    The Sun Piercing Ray was a strong technique that started at the bottom of the spear before attacking upwards. For the next technique, Huangfu Fengyun had his back against the sun as his essence circted furiously in his body. He channeled the essence towards his spear, and the horrifying pressure caused the pond''s surface to sink roughly a meter.


    ¡°You think that¡¯s strong?¡± Long Chen chuckled. He also had a stronger technique that he hadn¡¯t shown yet. The winner would be decided soon.


    ¡°Even a genius like you has to die if you dare tomit a crime in our house!¡± Huangfu Fengyun howled as golden light enveloped his body.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    A golden light shot towards Long Chen. It was the Golden Warlord Spear itself.


    ¡°Warlord Spear Technique, Shattered World.¡±


    The water of the pond exploded and submerged both Long Chen and Huangfu Fengyun with a thunderous boom. Even Long Chen himself thought it would take a miracle to survive a hit from such a powerful technique.


    This was the strongest technique used by someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    The golden light swept downwards.


    Even though the technique¡¯s name was exaggerated, the destructive force was not. If Long Chen was the world, he would definitely be shattered.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Another explosion resounded.


    ¡°Is Long Chen dead?¡± someone asked meekly.


    ¡°No, look.¡±


    There was a zing fire in the middle of the pond, and within the blood-red fire were fiverge dragon illusions. The dragons flew upwards, leaving a trail of carnage as they homed in on Huangfu Fengyun.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡±


    The five dragons howled and smashed through Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s attack. They were closing in on Huangfu Fengyun, about to rip him to shreds!


    The dragon illusions were actually Long Chen¡¯s ws. He had only used one hand, so there were five dragons, or there would¡¯ve been ten.


    ¡°What!?¡± Huangfu Fengyun¡¯s face paled at the imminent threat.


    He never thought his strongest attack would be destroyed by Long Chen so easily. The Golden Warlord Spear was deflected to the skies when it hit Long Chen¡¯s w, then the five dragon illusions trapped him.


    Huangfu Fengyun felt the shadow of death creeping on him.


    This was the first time he had felt so close to death.


    And the source of his fear was a youth that was barely twenty years old.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Huangfu Fengyun howled in despair.


    But that was the reality.


    Right when everyone thought Huangfu Fengyun was going to be killed by Long Chen, Huangfu Fengchen appeared ¡­

 Chapter 584: Problem

    <em>He¡¯s strong. </em>Long Chen knew how strong the Five Piercing Dragons was and was certain that Huangfu Fengyun would not be able to defend against it even if he used Willow Step.


    But Huangfu Fengchen easily moved Huangfu Fengyun away from the attack range of the Five Piercing Dragons. Thankfully, Long Chen didn¡¯t intend to kill Huangfu Fengyun, so Huangfu Fengchen hade right on time.


    Huangfu Fengchen plopped Huangfu Fengyun onto the bank of theke, and Long Chennded opposite of them. Huangfu Qi ran up and hung on Long Chen¡¯s neck, ¡°Wow! Big Brother, you are so strong! You even defeated my gloomy uncle!¡±


    ¡°Qiqi,e down now. Let¡¯s not cause any trouble here.¡± Long Chen gently eased Huangfu Qi down. He was serious because the issue was not resolved yet. <em>Huangfu Fengyun and Huangfu Yu won¡¯t stop trying to frame me.</em>


    As he had thought, Huangfu Fengyun immediatelyined to Huangfu Fengchen. ¡°Patriarch, Long Chen wanted to rape Wu¡¯er, but he identally killed her instead. The proof is right here, and he should be punished. How dare hemit such a grave sin here in the home of the Huangfu family? He¡¯s impudent and we must kill him now to protect our honor!¡±


    Huangfu Yu ran over and kneeled on the ground as he cried, ¡°Patriarch! He killed Wu¡¯er! The proof is irrefutable. Please take revenge for Wu¡¯er! I don¡¯t think I can live any longer without her! The honor of the Huangfu family will be sullied if he leaves alive!¡±


    No one except for Long Chen saw through his act. He was a natural-born actor who was doing his best to frame Long Chen for his own crimes.


    Huangfu Fengchen was hesitating, and the onlookers noticed that. They looked at each other before they kneeled down too. ¡°Patriarch! Please kill the criminal to protect our honor!¡±


    They knew that Long Chen was a guest Huangfu Fengchen had invited and weren¡¯t certain if killing him was the right move, but all of them firmly believed that Long Chen had killed Wu¡¯er. Their anger would not be appeased if Long Chen was not dead.Everyone kneeled except for Long Chen and Huangfu Qi. Huangfu Qi ignored everyone else because she was younger and didn¡¯t understand the gravity of the situation. Everyone was iming Long Chen was the killer, but she refused to believe it. She growled at everyone, ¡°Bullshit! My brother would not do that. He¡¯s so much better than Brother Yu. So many girls love my Big Brother, yet he chose none of them.¡±


    Naturally, no one heeded her words.


    Huangfu Fengchen frowned. ¡°Big Brother, Little Yu. You said that you have evidence. Where is it?¡±


    Huangfu Yu took out the torn piece of fabric and gave it to Huangfu Fengchen. ¡°Patriarch, when we discovered Wu¡¯er¡¯s corpse, she was holding onto this tightly. It¡¯s clear that she tore it off before she died. There¡¯s an embroidered dragon on it. She¡¯s trying to tell us the identity of the culprit. There are only a few people with the surname ¡®Long¡¯ in the Divine Martial Empire¡ªLong Yue and two Long Chens. Long Chen¡¯s guest room and Wu¡¯er¡¯s residence are only separated by a pond. I believe that Long Chen was bewitched by her beauty and intended to rape her, but she fought back and died. Wu¡¯er has been fine all this time, but she died the moment Long Chen arrived. Isn¡¯t it clear that he¡¯s the culprit?¡±


    It was a very logical deduction.


    Huangfu Fengchen looked at everyone surrounding them and noticed that all of them were ring at Long Chen. They wanted him to kill Long Chen.


    Huangfu Fengchen didn¡¯t know what to do.


    More importantly, he had no evidence that Long Chen wasn¡¯t behind it.


    If he protected Long Chen without justification, no one would support him as the patriarch anymore. The Huangfu family would be split in half, and he was wary of that.


    He could only sigh and ask Long Chen, ¡°Do you have an alibi?¡±


    He could only protect Long Chen if thetter had one.


    But Long Chen didn¡¯t and could only smile bitterly.


    Huangfu Yu¡¯s evidence was very weak, but the issue was that Long Chen didn¡¯t have anything to refute it. No one could be a witness to Long Chen¡¯s location after Huangfu Qi left him in his room.


    Long Chen tried to think of a way since he could not produce an alibi and he didn¡¯t want to cause trouble for Huangfu Fengchen. He knew that Huangfu Fengchen would do nothing to him even if he could not give an alibi.


    But that would cause the Huangfu family to lose trust in Huangfu Fengchen.


    He didn¡¯t want to cause trouble for Huangfu Fengchen, so he made a decision. He carefully picked up Huangfu Qi and ced his hand around her neck gently. ¡°I don¡¯t have an alibi, but I have three things to say.¡±


    Everyone realized that Long Chen was taking Huangfu Qi as a hostage. Huangfu Qi was Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s daughter, and while Huangfu Fengyun knew about the rtionship between Long Chen and Huangfu Qi, the others were still in the dark. All of them tensed up.


    ¡°Brat, what are you trying to do?¡±


    ¡°Let her go.¡±


    Everyone surrounded Long Chen in a panic.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡± Huangfu Fengchen stopped them and gestuerd for Long Chen to continue.


    Long Chen remained calm. ¡°First, it¡¯s easy to frame me. Anyone could frame me with just a single embroidery of a dragon the next time they murder someone. Don¡¯t you think so?¡±


    The others shouted at him, ¡°What are you talking about? We, the Huangfu family, work together as one! No one would kill a family member just to frame you! This is the fiancee of Young Master Yu we are talking about!¡±


    Everyone objected and booed at Long Chen.


    Long Chen ignored them. ¡°Secondly, after I separated from Qiqi yesterday, I saw Huangfu Yu tailing Wu¡¯er.¡±


    He then stared at Huangfu Yu.


    Everyoneughed at him. ¡°Are you stupid? Do you really think Young Master Yu would kill Wu¡¯er just to frame you? Your imagination is really extraordinary.¡±


    Huangfu Fengyun was gloomy after losing to Long Chen and scoffed. ¡°Are you an idiot? Do you think the people of the Huangfu family are savages like you? Do you really think my son would kill his fiancee just to frame you?¡±


    Long Chen did not answer. He smiled because he knew who the real savage was.


    Huangfu Fengchen understood too. Long Chen noticed that Huangfu Fengchen trusted him after he said those two sentences and knew that he had a chance to resolve this. But the others still don¡¯t trust him.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want Huangfu Fengchen to get in trouble for protecting him. He had only visited the Huangfu family to see Huangfu Qi in the first ce. Now that his objective was achieved, he had no reason to stay anymore. ¡°Third, though I think it¡¯s useless for me to tell you this. I already have someone I love whom I will chase after for my entire life. Since you say only a savage would do something like this, don¡¯t try to frame me for it. Goodbye. I will release Huangfu Qi once I¡¯m far from here. If you follow me, you will suffer the consequences.¡±


    He took a nce at Huangfu Fengchen and saw that thetter understood what he was trying to do.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t care if the others knew he was innocent or not.


    Huangfu Fengchen didn¡¯t need to exin too much to the others.


    Long Chen left, but Huangfu Fengchen didn¡¯t chase after him. The rest of them stayed put too. Huangfu Fengchen spat once he saw Long Chen disappear. ¡°That cunning bastard took my daughter hostage. I will chase after him now, andI will kill him.¡±


    He then disappeared too.


    The others were left at the scene without knowing what to do.


    Everything was over just like that.


    When Long Chen finished making those three statements, there was actually one other person who believed him, and that was Huangfu Fengyun. He understood his son the best.


    ¡°Little Yu,e with me.¡± Huangfu Fengyun was extremely crossed. The others thought he was angry because he had failed to kill Long Chen.


    ¡°Y-Yes,¡± Huangfu Yu stammered.


    ***


    After Long Chen left the Huangfu family, Huangfu Qi asked him, ¡°Big Brother, Wu¡¯er was killed by Huangfu Yu, right?¡±


    ¡°Wow, you are very smart.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    ¡°Of course! I¡¯m a genius! But are you eloping with me now?¡± Huangfu Qi asked excitedly.


    ¡°You must be dreaming. Look behind you.¡± Long Chen knocked her head lightly.


    Huangfu Qi looked back and saw her own father. She frowned and grumbled, ¡°Lousy father. Why are you chasing after us?¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen took Huangfu Qi and pinched her nose lightly, ¡°You little brat. You hate me so much that you want to get married at this age? Your big brother is busy, so it¡¯s best if you don¡¯t go and bother him.¡±

 Chapter 585: Willow Step

    Long Chen nodded. He looked at Huangfu Fengchen and said, ¡°Patriarch Huangfu, about this ¡­¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen gave an apologetic look and said, ¡°I apologize for what happened. n matters areplicated to deal with. It¡¯s not easy to keep everyone¡¯s mouth shut either. I¡¯ve watched that kid Huangfu Yu grow up; I obviously know what he¡¯s like. I didn¡¯t want to give him the Willow Step because I didn¡¯t want the Huangfu family to fall because of him.¡±


    At this point in the conversation, Long Chen knew that Huangfu Fengchen knew everything.


    That was good, and Long Chen did not need to exin himself.


    It was not a big deal after all. It was just a fight. The only regret he had was not being able to beat Huangfu Yu up, because Long Chen did not like him at all.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I came here mainly to see Qiqi. Now that I have fulfilled my objective, and even dyed my trip a bit, it really is time for me to rush to the Northern Battle n,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°Don¡¯t go yet. I have something for you. Aspensation.¡± Huangfu Fengchen took out a simple, hand-written book from his Universe Pouch.


    ¡°What is this?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Last night, I worked through the night to copy down the Willow Step¡¯s instructions. I initially wanted to give it to Huangfu Yu once he performed better, but after what happened today, he has lost the right to inherit this. So, I¡¯m giving it to you!¡± said Huangfu Fengchen with a generous smile.¡°No way! Isn¡¯t this an inherited treasure of the Huangfu family? I cannot take this,¡± said Long Chen, shaking his head.


    ¡°I¡¯ve lost face because of what happened today. If you don¡¯t take this, I will be too embarrassed to ever see you again in the future,¡± Huangfu Fengchen said, then he tossed the handwritten book to Long Chen. ¡°I think the old Battle Emperor is going to die soon. The Battle n is in great danger, but I am unable to help. Please help them in my ce. Looking at your performance today, I know you have surpassed all cultivators beneath the Third Earthly Martial Stage. And how many Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators are there in the whole Divine Martial Territory? Work hard and catch up to the two prodigies. You¡¯ll get there soon!¡±


    Then, before Long Chen could reply, Huangfu Fengchen quickly disappeared along with Huangfu Qi. With his speed, Long Chen would never be able to catch up even with his Dragon Soul Transformation!


    All that remained was the cries of Huangfu Qi.


    She thought she still had time to y with Long Chen, but Huangfu Fengchen grabbed her and disappeared.


    Long Chen stared at the item in his hand, frozen. He smiled bitterly and said, ¡°It was only just a fight, but I received an intermediate King-tierbat technique. I¡¯ve actually gained something from this trip to the Huangfu family.¡±


    Every member of the Huangfu family other than Huangfu Fengchen now saw him as an enemy.


    But Long Chen did not care.


    The others were irrelevant to him.


    Since this was a problematic ce, Long Chen did not stay for long. He had almostpleted his cultivation of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w on the way here. He was going to spend the next part of his journey studying the Willow Step!


    This technique was more suitable to be cultivated during his travels than the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. He had to improve his movement somehow, and the bodybat technique was useful for that. The Willow Step made the body as light as a swallow, so not only was it useful for dodging attacks, it was also advantageous while traveling.


    The Willow Step was great training for his ability to fight in the air, and he did not need to step on the ground when he started using the technique.


    Previously, he had seen Huangfu Fengyun use it, and he had somehow managed to ¡°blow¡± him away using the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, which was a forceful attack. It showed that this technique was something special, despite it looking so simple!


    The essence of the Willow Step could be understood from its name. Willow fluff was extremely light, and the seeds flew with the breeze. If the opponent¡¯s attack was the wind, then Long Chen was a willow seed. The moment there was a breeze, he would fly away immediately.


    [Note: There is a fluffy part that resembles cotton attached to the seeds of the willow tree, which aids in seed dispersal by wind.]


    When he truly used the Willow Step, his body became much lighter than before, so light that it was terrifying!


    This did not mean that his attacks would be weak, however. His attacks were still as strong as before, but when he used the Willow Step, he became as light and graceful as Huangfu Fengchen!


    This boosted Long Chen¡¯sbat abilities once more!


    Long Chen had extraordinary talent when it came to cultivatingbat techniques. This was likely due to the nourishment from the Inherited Blood Essence, as well as the Mysterious Dragon Jade in his sea of consciousness. His Martial Soul was very important for his ability toprehendbat techniques too, and now that it had taken the form of a dragon situated above the Dragon Jade, it took hisprehension abilities to the next level!


    Long Chen had ate start, but there was no one else in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory with a hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence and a dragon-shaped Martial Soul. He had a lower starting pointpared to other people, but the speed at which he progressed was unprecedented!


    The only other person who could keep up with him was Xiang, who was a mutated demonic beast!


    Long Chen cultivated the Willow Step for five days. Not only were there secret teachings in the handwritten book, there were also exnations provided by Huangfu Fengchen, and he had even drawn many diagrams. After looking at them, many concepts that he could not understand were quickly exined.


    Five dayster, Long Chen could dance in the air like a light piece of willow fluff. He could move very quickly, and as he made his way through the forest, almost no one could see him clearly.


    Huangfu Fengchen was right. There were not many people who could fight Long Chen as an equal in the whole Divine Martial Territory. There were only a handful of Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators after all.


    It had only been a little more than three months since he came to the Divine Martial Territory, yet he had improved by a terrifying margin. If other people learned of his journey, their jaws would surely be on the floor.


    Long Chen had only truly been cultivating for a little more than a year.


    This was why the blood of the ancestral dragons was so powerful.


    The only prodigy who could be his equal was by his side. He was also Long Chen¡¯s closest friend, a brother, a Sun Devouring Wolf¡ªMo Xiang!


    On this day, Long Chen was traveling through the forest with the tip of his foot a meter above ground. His eyes were closed, but he managed to dodge all the obstacles ahead, as if sleepwalking.


    Suddenly, his eyes sprang open and he cried with joy, ¡°Xiang!¡±


    He halted, and a cloud of gray mist poured from his chest. Arge, ck wolf appeared. After a long time of digesting, absorbing nutrients, and evolving, Xiang was now ten timesrger than his previous size. This was a sign that he had reached the King-tier!


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was currently a King-tier demonic beast that was almost on the same level as the Blood Ocean Viper. He was gigantic at more than ten meters tall and twenty meters long. He lied down while Long Chen stood in front of him, looking like a mouse in front of an elephant.


    Xiang was not awake yet, but Long Chen knew that it was almost time.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf waspletely engulfed in ck mes. Long Chen sensed a suffocating coldness radiating from Xiang. It was a bone-chilling cold that came from the ck mes. Those were the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Xiang¡¯s fatal attack!


    After reaching the King-tier, Xiang would surely be able to control even more of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The huge fire swallowed Xiang whole, and the ck mes started to turn the surrounding ground into hard, ck ice. Thankfully, Long Chen was still floating in the air, so he was not affected.


    The ck mes slowly disappeared.


    The mes soon extinguished, but the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire continued to burn on his four paws. The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was just like Long Chen¡¯s Golden Crow mes, offering a great boost to Xiang¡¯s attacks!


    One swipe with his paw was enough to turn his opponent into hard ice!


    The fatal strike that had killed the Void Martial Saint had been Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, and Long Chen¡¯s Heaven Sword Array had merely helped the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire enter his body.


    After entering King-tier, Xiang could now concentrate the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire on his paws.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    The Sun Devouring Wolf stood up and his ck eyes sprang open. Long Chen did not see pupils in them, but two ck mes¡ªthe Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    ¡°Awoo!¡±


    Xiang looked up and let out a terrifying, eerie cry. His howl traveled far and wide; every demonic beast who heard him trembled and was paralyzed with fear.


    This was a natural suppression of inferior beasts by a superior beast.


    Now that Xiang had reached the King-tier, he had sessfully broken free from the status of an inferior beast.


    Just like cultivators, the Yellow, ck, Earth, and Heaven tiers were only foundational tiers for demonic beasts. They were only true demonic beasts when they reached the King-tier. This was also when the beasts started to be intelligent. Of course, this did not include Xiang, because he had a human soul, so he had always possessed peak intelligence.


    The King-tier was only the beginning. Xiang had a long way to go before reaching the peak of all beasts.


    Even Long Chen was nervous when he saw Xiang in this state.


    He had pitch-ck fur, a muscr body, agile grace, sharp ws, and canine teeth. Frightening ck mes danced on his shiny fur while the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire burned on his four paws.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf looked like a nightmare from hell!


    Despite all this, Long Chen was most concerned about Xiang¡¯s ability to take human form.

 Chapter 586: Death of the Battle Emperor

    After Xiang let out all his excitement with a single howl, he finally stopped. He started off looking fierce, but when he saw Long Chen, his eyes returned to their pure, innocent state, even with a hint of shyness.


    Xiang had shown the wildness in his heart with that howl.


    In reality, he had always allowed Long Chen to make the decisions throughout their time together. Long Chen never had a younger brother, but Xiang basically was one. Although he was not talkative and was a little shy, there was fiery passion in his heart!


    Long Chen still remembered what the Yang Patriarch had said to him in Baiyang Town.


    <em>When you have a brother, you must be clear about what is in his heart; you must know if his heart is filled with passion or poison!</em>


    <em>My heart is filled with passion!</em>


    Looking at Long Chen, Xiang gently shook his body. A wave of mes quickly blew across his body, and then his gigantic body vanished. What remained was a beautiful teenager with waterfall-like hair, who stood bare-footed on the ck ice!


    Yes. When it came to Mo Xiang¡¯s looks, Long Chen could only use the word ¡°beautiful¡± to describe him.


    The more Long Chen cultivated, the stronger the Yang energy in his body became. Perhaps due to the influence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, he had lost his prodigal-son energy and ended up bing dark and intimidating like a blood-red me. On the other hand, perhaps due to the influence of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Xiang leaned more towards Yin, graceful and pure. However, he still had endless killing intent deep inside!


    It had been a long time. Long Chen finally saw the purity he first saw in Xiang, which felt like clearke water. Xiang¡¯s hair was quite long now, and despite having be a Sun Devouring Wolf, his looks had not changed. Compared to Long Chen, Xiang was slightly thinner and his skin was much fairer. In fact, he had better skin than many girls. His fingers were fair and slender, his features were clean ¡­ He was ¡­ beautiful.


    Right when he turned human, Xiang¡¯s eyes were still two ck mes, which gradually disappeared to reveal two bright, ck but pure pupils.


    He was exactly the same as before.


    The only difference was the faint hint of Demonic Qi radiating from his body, perhaps because he was now a demonic beast. Those who were more capable could tell that he was not a human, but a demonic beast after sensing his aura.


    Or rather, he was a member of the demon race.


    Long Chen did not know how to describe what he felt. He wondered if he should give Xiang a hug and maybe cry out, ¡°Brother!¡± or something simr, but he gave up after some thought. He had a lot to say, but it all amounted to, ¡°Hey, how are you still better-looking than me?¡±


    Xiang shook his head shyly when he heard Long Chen, then he tried to move his new body. There was a clearke not far away, so he hurried over to it to take a good look at himself. After a long time, he finally cried with joy, ¡°Big ¡­ Big Brother! I ¡­ I still look ¡­ exactly the same.¡±


    He hadn¡¯t spoken using thenguage of beasts, but with his mouth.


    ¡°Why are you stuttering?¡± Long Chen was a little speechless.


    Long Chen had always been open whenmunicating with Xiang. But now that Xiang had a human body, he suddenly felt awkward talking to him.


    However, he was still in a great mood.


    ¡°I ¡­ I¡¯ve just regained my human form ¡­ I ¡­ I¡¯m not used to it yet ¡­ It¡¯ll ¡­ It¡¯ll get better with time,¡± said Mo Xiang with a shy smile. His expression was so innocent that it was purer than sunlight.


    He looked around, then he examined his body, hands, and feet. In the end, he sighed. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve felt like this ¡­¡±


    After a few sentences, his speech became much smoother.


    He had always known how to talk; it had just been a long time since he formted words.


    Looking at the teenager, Long Chen pursed his lips and gazed at him solemnly. He truly felt like he was Xiang¡¯s older brother. There were many things he had to do for Mo Xiang, and he could not keep letting Xiang work for him.


    During this journey, Long Chen had been chasing after his goal of meeting Ling Xi, but Xiang had only been an asional side character. It was only when Xiang appeared in front of him in human form that Long Chen felt like he had been an irresponsible brother.


    ¡°Xiang, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Long Chen said sincerely, patting Mo Xiang¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Big Brother, why are you saying that?¡± Mo Xiang asked, confused.


    ¡°Nothing. Forget it, my good brother! Can you fight with this body?¡± Long Chen grinned and tossed the guilt away.


    There was no need for draggy feelings between brothers. If he had made a mistake, all he could do was do better in the future.


    ¡°As a King-tier beast, my human body doesn¡¯t have muchbat abilities. To most beasts, the human body is a burden. If I want to fight, I have to return to the Sun Devouring Wolf form. Once I reach the Emperor-tier, or maybe the Divine-tier, my human body will be powerful, though not as strong as my original form,¡± said Mo Xiang, resigned.


    ¡°That¡¯s fine. Just be like this from now on. Don¡¯t go into the Primordial Realm anymore. We¡¯ll explore the world as brothers! If we need to fight, you can turn into the Sun Devouring Wolf then.¡± Long Chen did not mind. He had already started to treat Xiang as a demonic beast.


    He was a brother, not a demonic beast! Long Chen felt like it was an insult to Xiang to make him stay in the Primordial Realm.


    Mo Xiang understood what Long Chen was thinking, so he smiled and said, ¡°Big Brother, I actually think the Primordial Realm is great. I¡¯m quitezy these days and I like sleeping there. When I¡¯m in deep sleep, I slowly grow stronger too. After bing a demonic beast, my habits have changed. We brothers don¡¯t have to worry about things like that, right?¡±


    He looked at Long Chen gratefully and continued, ¡°Thank you so much for taking care of me. If it wasn¡¯t for you, I wouldn¡¯t have consumed so many things. You can even say that I¡¯m only here today because of you! You have shown me so much kindness! I will follow you for the rest of my life, and we will fight side by side in all battles! If you want to go look for Sister Ling Xi, I will help. Then we¡¯ll show them just how powerful we are!¡±


    ¡°Good, good!¡±


    ¡°Brothers for life!¡±


    ¡°Mhm.¡±


    Passions ran high as they made proud promises.


    No one knew what the future held, but with two brothers side by side, what was there to be afraid of?


    Long Chen knew that he would not be lonely on this journey!


    ¡°Hey, hey! How could you guys forget about me, Master Cat? I have saved your lives and given you a lot of help!¡± cried the lonely Little Cat in the Primordial Realm.


    Long Chen obviously would never forget about Little Cat. Although he was annoying, he had a good heart. He had exined many things that Long Chen did not understand and offered a lot of help.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t forgotten about you, of course! Little Cat, if you perform well on this journey with us, I don¡¯t mind calling you our brother too! Haha!¡± Long Chen said.


    ¡°Tsk! Do you think Master Cat cares about two brats? Years ago, people like you two weren¡¯t even fit to carry my shoes!¡± Little Cat said smugly.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang locked eyes and grinned.


    ¡°Come, let¡¯s go to the Battle n!¡± Long Chen did not dwell further.


    It was a good thing that Xiang had be a King-tier beast before arriving at the Battle n. Long Chen knew that although Xiang was only at the Category One King-tier, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire and his other impressive abilities made him a great asset in battle!


    Long Chen knew that if he had to face the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire face-on, his survival was not guaranteed!


    There was no need to drag emotional conversations between brothers.


    Very soon, Long Chen arrived in front of a small city in the northern region. Before this, Long Yue had taught him how to send a message to the Red Souls. Long Chen knew that there were Red Souls members in this small city, so he used that method to call for someone. It turned out to be a thin teenager in a hotel busboy¡¯s outfit.


    ¡°Greetings, Seventh Master,¡± the teenager said hurriedly when he saw Long Chen.


    Long Chen rubbed his nose, unsure of when he had been coined as ¡°Seventh Master.¡± He grinned and said, ¡°How far is this ce from the Northern Battle n?¡±


    The teenager pointed in a direction and said, ¡°If you travel in that direction for twenty-five kilometers, you will arrive at the Northern Battle n¡¯s territory. Second Master and the others are there. The moment you arrive, someone will greet you.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°That¡¯s good. I understand. Right, do you have any news about the Battle n?¡±


    ¡°There is major news,¡± said the teenager nervously.


    ¡°Tell me,¡± Long Chen said with furrowed brows.


    ¡°The Battle Emperor of the Battle n, due to severe injuries, has passed away. Now the head of the Battle n is the First Prince, Lei Zhen. Second Master and the others assisted Lei Zhen, so he had a stable ascension. Since there are enemies on their doorstep, they quickly united all the n members and are prepared to fight the Martial Alliance!¡±


    ¡°The old Battle Emperor has died, and Fourth Brother has be the n leader?¡± Long Chen muttered to himself.


    ¡°Yes, but there¡¯s one more thing. Yesterday, Yang Ningfeng, a few Martial Saints, and at least ten Martial Kings entered the Battle n¡¯s territory. They emerged not long after. We don¡¯t know what exactly has happened at this point; perhaps you¡¯ll only know when you arrive, Seventh Master. However, the Martial Alliance haspletely sealed the Battle n¡¯s territory, so you must be careful when going in.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Alright, you may go back.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± The teenager quickly left.


    ¡°Big Brother, there are two Martial Emperors there. Will we be able to defeat them?¡± asked Mo Xiang.


    ¡°In the face of a strong enemy, all we can do is fight bravely. Turning back is not an option. Those guys have helped me before, and they are my siblings. They¡¯re also your siblings. We can¡¯t only live for ourselves. If I can die fighting for my brother, I will die without regrets,¡± said Long Chen, squinting as he stared in the direction of the Battle n.


    ¡°I understand,¡± said Mo Xiang with a smile, revealing his bright, white teeth.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you pretend to be cute!¡± Long Chen scolded him.


    Then they headed for the Battle n!

 Chapter 587: Battle Clan Territory

    The Battle n lived in a vast, mountainous forest. After rushing for twenty-five kilometers, Long Chen could see the boundless patch of forest ahead. He traveled along treacherous mountain roads with shorter trees around him. Tall trees were rare.


    ¡°Big Brother, there are Martial Alliance people up ahead.¡± Mo Xiang relied on his sharp olfactory senses to quickly sense the presence of Martial Alliance members.


    They had just crossed over a mountain when Xiang alerted him. Long Chen quickly looked ahead and lo and behold, a group of Martial Alliance enforcers were standing in between the trees. Enforcers wore golden-yellow uniforms with a giant ¡°martial¡± character on their chests. They werepletely blocking the path leading towards the Battle n by standing in a row.


    There were more than a hundred of them, all at the Heavenly Passage Realm. Long Chen postted that the rest of the paths leading to the Battle n were probably blocked too. Their objective was probably to stop any Battle n members from exiting, or any outsiders from entering before ramping up their operations. Perhaps they wanted the Battle n to surrender and pledge loyalty to the Martial Alliance like the Ancient Demon Domain and the Huangfu family had done.


    Long Chen guessed that with the Battle n¡¯s temper, the likelihood of arge-scale conflict was quiterge.


    The Battle n was located behind this patch of forest.


    ¡°Big Brother, shall we enter?¡± Mo Xiang asked innocently with sparkling eyes.


    ¡°Nonsense!¡± Long Chenughed. They were all Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators, and the only Earthly Martial Realm cultivator present was still resting. He was only at the First Earthly Martial Stage too, so Long Chen did not take him seriously.


    Xiang couldn¡¯t fight in human form, but he could still travel quickly. Turning into the Sun Devouring Wolf to fight these people was unnecessary.So Long Chen said, ¡°Let me do it! Just follow me!¡±


    Then he charged at the Martial Alliance blockade like a gust of wind. Mo Xiang¡¯s eyes lit up and he quickly hurried behind Long Chen. He could run as fast as Long Chen, and when he ran, his back was bent so he looked very simr to a wolf-type beast!


    The Enforcers quickly noticed the duo and sounded the rm. The crowd of one hundred people stood in formation, blocking Long Chen¡¯s path. The Earthly Martial Realm cultivator who was resting with his eyes closed was already standing at the very front. He red coldly at the charging Long Chen and roared, ¡°Who are you? The Martial Alliance is working here, and the path leading to the Battle n has been sealed off. If you take one more step, we will kill you!¡±


    Not many people from the Divine Martial Empire would dare disobey themands of the Martial Alliance. But when the cultivator saw that Long Chen was not going to slow down after his deration, his gaze darkened and he roared, ¡°It¡¯s an enemy ambush! Kill him!¡±


    Everyone grew anxious with hismand and spread out to charge at Long Chen. At least five of the enforcers in front were at the Ninth Passage Stage! But cultivators at that level would find it difficult to cause Long Chen any harm. Very quickly, Long Chen collided with them, but their abilities were on very different levels. Long Chen could basically kill one person with one strike!


    When both sides came into contact, bodies flew in the air one after another. Everyone was frightened by the tragic sight!


    ¡°Everyone, be careful! He¡¯s at the Earthly Martial Realm!¡± They had not seen Long Chen¡¯s face clearly yet because he was moving too fast. Before they could tell who he was, he had already killed many people!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    There came the sound of heavy panting.


    ¡°Everyone, stay back! Let me handle this Earthly Martial Realm cultivator!¡± the Earthly Martial Realm enforcer roared. Everyone retreated to form a gigantic circle around Long Chen, with the enforcer standing directly in front of him!


    ¡°You think you can stop me?¡± Long Chenughed and turned into an illusion. Then he appeared in front of the enforcer in the blink of an eye.


    ¡°Ground Punch Technique!¡± the enforcer roared as he threw a punch at Long Chen¡¯s face. Even the ground trembled when he threw the powerful punch. It was clear that this punching technique was connected to the essence of the earth!


    <em>Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!</em>


    Consecutive booms rang in Long Chen¡¯s ears like dull thunder. Admittedly, this enforcer had alreadypletely mastered this King-tier technique. He was a middle-aged man who had spent many years studying his technique, so achieving this level of mastery was not surprising!


    However, it was nothingpared to Long Chen¡¯s extraordinary talent!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    The powerful punchnded on Long Chen¡¯s chest. The enforcer did not know why it was so easy to hit Long Chen, but in reality, Long Chen had not been hit at all!


    When he was about toe into contact with his enemy¡¯s chest, it was like a gust of wind had blown Long Chen away! It was very strange!


    ¡°What?¡± The Enforcer was both shocked and terrified. He was very knowledgeable, so he knew that this was a terrifying bodybat technique and what this meant. With a panicked look on his face, he gasped!


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this the Huang¨C¡± Before he finished, he saw a blood-red glinting from a w. Itnded on his neck and caused his head to fly off. No one could believe what just happened!


    At the veryst moment, he had seen Long Chen¡¯s face clearly.


    Long Chen¡¯s appearance was recorded in the Martial Alliance¡¯s system, so this Enforcer, who was a Martial King, knew who Long Chen was. However, why did Long Chen have the Huangfu family¡¯s Willow Step? He died with this question in mind.


    He would bring this question down to hell.


    ¡°Xiang, let¡¯s go!¡± After Long Chen killed the Martial King, everyone else was still stunned. They only reacted after a long pause, and they all shouted in terror!


    ¡°Report this to the Martial Saint now! Tell the two Martial Emperors!¡± Many people scrambled to get reinforcements while the rest remained. They looked at the Martial King¡¯s body, then at themselves.


    ¡°Who was that? He killed a Martial King in just one short fight. He must be a Martial Saint-level master.¡±


    ¡°I got a brief glimpse of his face just now. He looked very young. Are there any teenagers other than Martial Emperor Zhao who are this strong?¡±


    The crowd was left confused.


    At this point, Long Chen had already disappeared into the forest with Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen had easily broken free from their encirclement to enter the Battle n¡¯s territory. The mountainous roads here were treacherous, but Long Chen and Xiang ran through them with ease.


    When Long Chen started fighting the Martial Alliance, informants reported it to the Battle n. The moment Long Chen arrived in their territory, several tall and muscr men came up to him and asked, ¡°Young man, may I ask who you are?¡±


    ¡°I am a good friend of your n leader, Lei Zhen. My name is Long Chen. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve heard of me?¡± Long Chen quickly stopped and spoke respectfully to therge men, who had simr figures to Lei Zhen.


    The men looked overjoyed and said, ¡°Are you the Long Chen who killed the Void Martial Saint? Our n leader and his siblings talk about you every day! It¡¯s amazing that you¡¯re here. I¡¯ll bring you to meet them now. Yantou, pass this message!¡±


    The leading man gave a cheerful smile.


    In reality, they had been sullen for many days. A smile was very rare. However, when they turned to look at Long Chen¡¯s back, they looked sad once more, as if they had not seen the person they were looking for yet.


    One of the men nodded and rushed off to pass the message. Long Chen and Mo Xiang followed the leader towards a deeper part of the territory.


    Along the way, the man started to tell Long Chen about the Battle n. Long Chen learned that the whole n consisted of Beast Warriors, and most of them were very strong too. They were usually stronger than normal cultivators at the same level. Furthermore, they also tamed beasts, and many beasts in this region were close friends with the Battle n!


    In fact, when the beasts died, they were willing to offer their Beast Souls to them so they could continue fighting for the Battle n. Along the way, Long Chen saw many resting beasts. Many of them were of the thunder element, and Long Chen even saw the same beast that Lei Zhen had, the Thunder Bat Dragon!


    Golden Lightning Stallions were everywhere.


    When the demonic beasts saw Xiang, they all had terror in their eyes. They lowered their heads to show that they were loyal to him.


    The men were telling Long Chen about the culture of the Battle n, but when they saw this, they started to study Mo Xiang carefully.


    ¡°You¡¯re an interesting person; you make these demonic beasts afraid ¡­¡± said the men, who were puzzled.


    Xiang radiated the aura of a demonic beast, but his aura is much fainter than that of other King-tier demonic beasts. That was why these Heavenly Passage Realm cultivators did not notice that his original form was a demonic beast.


    ¡°This brother of mine is interesting, of course! As for why, you all will understand in the future,¡± said Long Chen with augh, patting Xiang¡¯s shoulder.


    Very soon, they emerged from the mountainous forest into a true forest. Although the path was still treacherous and littered with boulders, the trees were much taller andrger from here onwards. There were many strange-looking trees that made this dense forest frightening.


    ¡°This is the base camp of the Battle n. Many generations of n members have lived here. We do not fight with anyone else, and we mind our own business. We only ally with demonic beasts! The Martial Alliance bastards just would not stop bugging us!¡± There was rage in the men¡¯s eyes.


    They clenched their fists tightly. It was clear that they were very angry!

 Chapter 588: Three Duels, Two Victories

    ¡°Was the Battle Emperor really defeated by Zhao Danchen?¡± Long Chen asked.


    The men nodded dejectedly. ¡°Zhao Danchen was just too strong, plus the old Battle Emperor was in his senior years. He was not as strong as he once was. Although they were at the same cultivation level, he was no match for Zhao Danchen. Of course, while he hurt my n leader, he sustained injuries too. If not, the Martial Alliance wouldn¡¯t have sent Yang Ningfeng here as reinforcement.¡±


    Long Chen nodded, realizing how strong Zhao Danchen was. A person who could defeat a master of the older generation in a direct fight had to be very strong. He was the only direct disciple of the Martial Overlord, who was the strongest person in the Divine Martial Empire. Perhaps he had even received all the Martial Overlord¡¯s techniques. In a few years¡¯ time, he would probably be the new Martial Overlord.


    ¡°The old n leader¡¯s injuries were very severe, so he passed away just a few days ago. The new n leader is now Prince Lei Zhen. He¡¯s a young prodigy with courage and a pure heart, and the Martial Alliance has a grudge against him. We are all willing to follow him though,¡± said the men wistfully.


    What the Red Souls member had said was true. Lei Zhen really was the new leader of the Battle n.


    Long Chen wanted to talk to the men about other things, but several people were walking towards them. He looked up and saw that they were Jiang Wuya, Jian Chen, Lei Zhen, Chi Ying, and Lan Ling¡¯er. They had parted ways at the Cloud Dream Swamp; now they were finally reunited!


    ¡°Seventh Brother!¡± The five of themughed happily. When the men saw that their leader had arrived, they quickly bowed and greeted him before stepping aside.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take Seventh Brother from here. You guys go back to observing the Martial Alliance¡¯s movements,¡± instructed Lei Zhen.


    The men quickly nodded and left.It was clear that Lei Zhen had matured greatly after this major tragedy. After bing the n leader of the Battle n, his every move was filled with regalness.


    Everyone was happy to be reunited after being apart for a while. However, when they saw Long Chen alone, there was a hint of disappointment in their eyes.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, is Big Sister not with you?¡± Lei Zhen asked sadly.


    ¡°Her younger brother was caught by the Martial Alliance, so she rushed to see him,¡± said Long Chen.


    Everyone nodded. Jiang Wuya said, ¡°We expected Yue¡¯er not toe because she was concerned about her brother¡¯s safety. It¡¯s not that she doesn¡¯t care about us; her brother¡¯s situation is way more dangerous than ours. We don¡¯t me her.¡±


    ¡°Second Brother, how could we? We¡¯ve all been together for so long. We know her well! It¡¯s fine. I will survive this ordeal with the Battle n,¡± said Lei Zhen with a determined nod.


    ¡°There are many things to talk about. Let¡¯s chat on the way back.¡± Jiang Wuya nodded and called for the whole group to follow him. They walked towards the depths of the forest, where the main base of the Battle n was. When they arrived, there were many warriors guarding the area. The Battle n clearly had far more members than the Ancient Demon Domain. With such arge n, it was understandable that the Martial Alliance was nervous and wanted to eliminate them as soon as possible. Perhaps the Martial Alliance had always wanted to invade; they had only just gotten their chance to do it.


    Since Long Yue was not here, they shifted their focus to Long Chen. After studying him, they gasped. ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯ve reached the Earthly Martial Realm?¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°I broke through in the Divine Fire Realm. I had help from Big Sister and the Huangfu Patriarch. I¡¯m very grateful to both of them.¡±


    ¡°Oh my goodness! How long were you in there? And you¡¯ve reached the Earthly Martial Realm already? This is infuriating!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er cried furiously. She was still in her male disguise, looking as beautiful as Xiang.


    ¡°Seventh Brother is indeed extraordinarily talented. You can¡¯tpare him to us. Sixth Sister, just admit defeat! Haha, but, Seventh Brother, who got the Red Emperor Seal in the end?¡± Jiang Wuya asked solemnly.


    He had heard some information himself, but he wanted Long Chen to verify it.


    Long Chen told them about what had happened, though he obviously omitted the part where he took the Red Emperor Seal. From his description, everyone believed that no one had retrieved the Red Emperor Seal, let alone the mysterious gift.


    ¡°It¡¯s the best case scenario that no one retrieved it. We¡¯re most afraid of the Martial Alliance collecting the Five Emperor Seals. If that happens, the Martial Overlord¡¯s power will be boosted greatly, and the whole Divine Martial Empire will have to kneel before him,¡± Jian Chen said.


    Lei Zhen nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right. When we searched for the Azure Emperor Seal, we found it very quickly. Then we searched the Seven Layered Demon World for half a day to find the ck Emperor Seal, but we came out empty-handed. Now all the effort for the Red Emperor Seal was also for nothing. The Azure Emperor Seal is with us and no one has the Red Emperor Seal, so no one will be able to get all five. That¡¯s for the best. Seventh Brother, you didn¡¯t know the Azure Emperor Seal was with us, right?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± said Long Chen, shaking his head, though he had already guessed it. He did not want to talk about the Five Emperor Seals for the moment, but that did not mean he did not see them as his brothers.


    The most urgent task at hand was to help the Battle n survive this ordeal.


    Lan Ling¡¯er looked behind Long Chen and asked with hearts in her eyes, ¡°Right, Seventh Brother, why haven¡¯t you introduced this pretty little brother to us?¡±


    Long Chen grinned and pulled Xiang forward. ¡°Have you forgotten? You¡¯ve met him before. His name is Mo Xiang.¡±


    Xiang?


    They had a vague impression of this name.


    Lei Zhen studied him for a while. Since he had grown up with demonic beasts, he was the first to realize it and cried out with great surprise, ¡°Seventh Brother, this is ¡­ A King-tier demonic beast? How could I forget a beast I¡¯ve met?! Why is his demonic aura so faint?¡±


    When he mentioned it, Jian Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er both recalled the ck demonic beast that Long Chen rode. Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s jaw dropped and she cried, ¡°Wow, is this that ck demonic wolf? Why is he so pretty after taking a human form? And how could a beast have this much capacity for growth? He grew from the Heaven-tier to the King-tier!¡±


    Lei Zhen exined, ¡°Many powerful beasts do not possess great power at birth. This demonic wolf is clearly a mutated beast. We might not know what tier he belongs to, so he will be whatever tier he happens to reach when he matures. As he grows older, he will be stronger.¡±


    Everyone nodded.


    Long Chen knew that the Sun Devouring Wolf was not considered a very powerful beast in a normal sense. Xiang had reached the King-tier because he had an impressive ability to absorb power.


    After getting to know Xiang, they asked a few more questions. Long Chen turned his attention to the current state of the Battle n. He could tell that although they did not express it clearly, there was a hint of worry on their faces when his siblings spoke.


    Especially Lei Zhen, who was likely very worried right now.


    They had all hoped that Long Yue woulde. Without her, it would be difficult to fight two Martial Emperors. The future of the Battle n was bleak. Lei Zhen had only just be the n leader, but he was already facing great pressure.


    Long Chen asked, ¡°What is the situation with the Battle n now? Now that I have reached the Earthly Martial Realm, I might be able to help.¡±


    Lei Zhen shook his head without a word while Jiang Wuya chuckled bitterly and said, ¡°You can let me exin it. The current state is, frankly, terrible.¡±


    ¡°Why do you say so?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°A few days ago, when the old Battle Emperor passed away, Lei Zhen dealt with the funeral rites and became the n leader, taking over this huge responsibility. The Martial Alliance¡¯s Zhao Danchen and Yang Ningfeng have arrived and may invade at any moment. If they force their way through, we will be no match for them. However, they are not nning to invade for the moment.¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Although the Martial Alliance is powerful, the Battle n has been cornered and has nothing left to lose. Fighting an opponent with nothing to lose will result in great losses on their side. They are forced to think about the potential losses. Previously, they subdued the Ancient Demon Domain and Huangfu family by force, forcing them to pledge loyalty and be alliance members. However, this method is useless for the Battle n because the men here value freedom and would never bend the knee to anyone. They would rather fight to their deaths instead of submitting to them! The Martial Alliance does not know the Battle n well; they are even working hard to make the Battle n submit right now. If they fail, they will resort to military might and destroy the whole n.¡±


    Long Chen finally understood. In short, the Battle n was a thorn in the Martial Alliance¡¯s flesh. If the n was not killed off entirely, every Battle n member would be a potential threat in the future. That was why they had to attempt to force the Battle n into submission.


    ¡°Yesterday, Martial Emperor Yang Ningfeng came to make a bet with us,¡± Jiang Wuya said solemnly.


    ¡°What bet?¡± Long Chen asked curiously.


    ¡°He asked for three duels to determine the oue. One First Earthly Martial Stage, one Second Earthly Martial Stage, and one Third Earthly Martial Stage duel. Each side will send their strongest cultivator at each stage to duel. If we win two duels, the Martial Alliance will get out and not invade us for a hundred years. If we lose, the Battle n will have to submit to the Martial Alliance,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    Three battles in between the strongest First and Second Earthly Martial Stage fighters from both sides. But what about the Third Earthly Martial Stage?


    Long Chen asked hurriedly, ¡°I thought we didn¡¯t have any Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators on our side?¡±


    Before Jiang Wuya replied, Lan Ling¡¯er said, ¡°Those Martial Alliance bastards! They¡¯re bullying us! They said, ¡®we have Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators on our side, but if you guys don¡¯t have one, you can send a First Passage Stage guy as recement!¡¯ Damn it! We haven¡¯t even started the fight and they¡¯re already fated to win! How could this be fair?¡±

 Chapter 589: Old Vulture

    The Martial Alliance had Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators on their side. Before even starting the duel, they were fated to win one round. If the Battle n wanted to keep their freedom, they would have to win both the duels between the First and Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators. This was not easy as the Martial Alliance was abundant with prodigies.


    ¡°Second Brother, have you agreed to this?¡± asked Long Chen. The bet was unfair, so Long Chen thought they would not agree.


    However, Jiang Wuya nodded and said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen was puzzled because it was clearly unfair.


    ¡°Fourth Brother said that this is a gift that they delivered to our doorstep, so how could we refuse? The Martial Alliance has a reputation to maintain. If they lose, they must keep their word if they want to maintain their reputation in the Divine Martial Empire. But we¡¯re not the same. We are the victims, and we need to fight for our lives no matter what, so there is no difference if the battle starts after we lose. The word ¡®submission¡¯ does not exist in the Battle n¡¯s vocabry.¡± Jiang Wuya¡¯s tone became a little wistful in the end.


    Long Chen realized that they were ready to fight after they lost, and were not nning to submit at all. That was also the style of the Dragon n. Long Chen did not feel that it was funny, only that it was tragic but brave.


    Looking at the tall, muscr man standing before him, Long Chen felt a sense of respect rise within him.


    The fact that this man could bravely lift the n up in the face of extinction showed that he was a good man! The Dragon n were true brothers to stay by Lei Zhen¡¯s side through this ordeal! Wasn¡¯t it the same for Long Chen and Mo Xiang?


    Everyone saw death asing home at this moment.However, Long Chen felt that there was a chance for victory. At the very least, no one at the same stage could defeat him. With Long Chen here, they would surely win the First Earthly Martial Stage battle. Now it depended on the Second Earthly Martial Stage battle. That was what Long Chen was worried about.


    ¡°Second Brother, what are your arrangements for the bet?¡± asked Long Chen.


    Jiang Wuya said, ¡°We don¡¯t even need to think about the Third Earthly Martial Stage battle. Anyone who takes that role will surely lose, so we n to just admit defeat. As for the First Earthly Martial Stage, we initially thought Third Brother could go, but Fourth Brother is going to the Battle n¡¯s Lightning Pool toprehend the Running Thunder de. When he emerges in ten days, he¡¯ll surely be much stronger. That is why Lei Zhen will be our fighter for the First Earthly Martial Stage battle.¡±


    Long Chen was sure that he was much stronger than Lei Zhen, but he did not say anything. Based on what Jiang Wuya had said, they had ten more days, so it was not urgent.


    ¡°As for the Second Earthly Martial Stage, there is only one Battle Saint in the Battle n, plus me, who qualify. Old Vulture is at the Second Earthly Martial Stage, but he is very old. That is why I¡¯ll take the battle instead,¡± Jiang Wuya said solemnly.


    Jiang Wuya?


    Long Chen nodded. Jiang Wuya was indeed strong and was surely considered one of the strongest Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators. However, Long Chen felt like neither Jiang Wuya nor Lei Zhen could guarantee sess. Long Chen himself could guarantee he would win in the First Earthly Martial Stage battle, seeing as he could even defeat a Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator!


    Of course, if he said it now, they would not believe him.


    ¡°Their participants wille to the Battle n and fight us in front of our ancestral mausoleum in ten days! Even if I die, I, Lei Zhen, must win in a magnificent manner!¡± Lei Zhen clenched his fists tightly, causing his green veins to pop. His eyes were filled with hatred.


    Everyone else looked ready to sacrifice themselves too.


    All they could do was try their best.


    They chatted along the way, and Long Chen learned that they actually felt very helpless too. The Martial Alliance was very powerful. Now that the Battle Emperor was dead, there was no Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator in the Battle n. They could not even be considered a faction on the same level as the Huangfu family or the Ancient Demon Domain anymore.


    Despite therge number of n members.


    The Battle n had eight First Earthly Martial Stage cultivators with Lei Zhen here. They called themselves the Eight Battle Kings of the Battle n. However, there was only one Battle Saint at the Second Earthly Martial Stage. He was called Old Vulture.


    Lei Zhen led them to the inner section of the n, where Long Chen met the eight Battle Kings and Old Vulture. Old Vulture was a thin old man of few words. There was also a cloud hanging over him, likely privately worried about the problem with the Martial Alliance.


    Like the other Dragon n members, Long Chen received a warm wee.


    Due to the Lei Zhen, the Dragon n was famous in the Battle n. During this treacherous time when they were facing mortal danger, almost all the powerful Dragon n members had gathered here. How could they not be moved?


    The Dragon n was one of the main reasons why Lei Zhen ended up bing the n leader, despite not being the strongest in the n. The Battle n had always respected power!


    Numerous tall, muscr warriors looked at Long Chen and the others with reverence.


    When they arrived, the Second Earthly Martial Stage Old Vulture asked coldly, ¡°Is this teenager the Long Chen who killed Void Martial Saint and defeated Jiang Wushang at the Cloud Dream Swamp?¡±


    Most of the Battle n members were tall and huge like bears, but Old Vulture was thin like a vulture. There was barely any hair on the top of his head too.


    ¡°I am,¡± said Long Chen with a nod. Lei Zhen had told him that this old man was the old Battle Emperor¡¯s brother, as well as Lei Zhen¡¯s uncle. However, he had gone missing when he was young and was raised by demonic beasts for over ten years before he was brought back to the n. His personality had always been cold, but he had always dedicated his efforts to the Battle n. Even though Lei Zhen had taken over leadership, Old Vulture was still managing many daily affairs.


    Old Vulture nodded. ¡°You are not even twenty yet. Indeed, you are a teenage hero. Thank you for helping the Battle n!¡±


    ¡°This is my duty. The Battle n has many masters, and I may not actually be able to contribute much. Old Vulture, you¡¯re exaggerating my achievements,¡± Long Chen said humbly.


    Long Chen admired the Battle n¡¯s willingness to die instead of surrender. That was why he was very polite to everyone.


    Next, Long Chen got to know the seven of the eight Battle Kings. Lei Zhen was one of the eight, and they already knew each other. Although Lei Zhen was the n leader, the Battle n had always ranked members ording to strength, so he was still holding the position of a Battle King.


    Each of the Battle Kingsmanded a branch of the army.


    The eight kings were mostly tall and muscr, but there was one handsome man whose figure was simr to Old Vulture¡¯s. Long Chen asked around and learned that this was Old Vulture¡¯s son, also the Second Prince of the Battle n and Lei Zhen¡¯s cousin. Although he looked frail, he was only slightly weaker than Lei Zhen because Lei Zhen¡¯s Beast Soul was the Category Three King-tier Heavenly Mantra Thunder Beast that the old Battle Emperor had personally killed!


    The Second Prince had a much warmer personality than Old Vulture. He was the one who spoke to Long Chen the most.


    After getting to know Long Chen, the Battle n members with worry in their eyes dispersed. Lei Zhen looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°Seventh Brother, the Battle n is at a crossroads that will determine our fate. I need to go deal with some matters and intensify my cultivation. Since you¡¯ve just reached the Earthly Martial Realm, you need to solidify your base. All our siblings have reached the Earthly Martial Realm a long time ago, so you can ask them about anything you don¡¯t understand.¡±


    ¡°I understand, Fourth Brother. Go do whatever you need to,¡± Long Chen said with a nod.


    Jiang Wuya also left to go cultivate in preparation for his duel, so five of them remained. Since Long Chen needed to continue practicing his Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Willow Step, plus the mood was very heavy, he searched for a ce to cultivate on his own. Mo Xiang had nothing to do, so he followed.


    ¡°Big Brother, I just realized something. It¡¯s easier to cultivate your divine techniques when I¡¯m in human form,¡± Xiang suddenly said in the room that Lei Zhen had arranged for them.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Xiang¡¯s shadow stood up, and then it returned to its original state.


    ¡°Have you sessfully cultivated the Demonic Illusion?¡± Long Chen asked with surprise and excitement.


    Mo Xiang nodded and said, ¡°It¡¯s been so long; it¡¯s about time I finished cultivating it. I just never had the chance to use it. Big Brother, not only do I have the Demonic Illusion, I can also use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. If I¡¯m chosen for the First Earthly Martial Stage duel, I guarantee that no one is a match for me.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. Indeed, if Xiang went, he was more likely to win than Lei Zhen.


    Of course, Long Chen was the one with the highest chance.


    ¡°We still have ten days left, so we don¡¯t have to decide yet. Let¡¯s see how much of the Running Thunder de Fourth Brother is able to master. I¡¯ll mention it to him then,¡± said Long Chen with a nod.


    ¡°Big Brother, you¡¯re more suitable than I am for the First Earthly Martial Stage duel. Then again, the Martial Alliance has so many people that I don¡¯t think Jiang Wuya can guarantee victory,¡± said Mo Xiang, furrowing his brows.


    Long Chen thought the same.


    ¡°If we lose, the Battle n will fight the Martial Alliance directly, which will surely lead to countless casualties. I¡¯m sure no one wants to see that. Xiang, I¡¯ve made my decision,¡± Long Chen said with determination.


    ¡°What have you decided?¡± Xiang asked.


    Long Chen exhaled and said, ¡°For the First Earthly Martial Stage duel, you¡¯ll go. If Second Brother loses, I¡¯ll give the Third Earthly Martial Stage duel a shot. No one is a match for me at the Second Earthly Martial Stage, so it¡¯s also time for me to challenge even stronger opponents!¡±


    ¡°No one is a match for you at the Second Earthly Martial Stage? Big Brother, I¡¯ve got to say ¡­ You¡¯re a psycho ¡­¡± Mo Xiang said with a bitter smile.


    ¡°You¡¯re the psycho,¡± Long Chen replied. Then he continued to practice his Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Willow Step.


    Time passed quickly as he cultivated.


    Before they knew it, night arrived.

 Chapter 590: Zhao Danchen

    Long Chen had the habit of often using the Soul Swallowing Gaze. While he was practicing the Willow Step in his room, he asionally saw Lei Zhen walk past his house.


    The future of his whole n was now in his hands alone. It was a huge weight on his shoulders, and although Lei Zhen presented as a strong person, he was suffering privately and felt bleak.


    The Battle n had to win the bet in ten days, and he was going to be one of the fighters. The agreement was that if they did not win two rounds, the Battle n would submit to the Martial Alliance. The Martial Alliance believed that the Battle n was going to hold up their end of the bet. Their goal was to subdue the Battle n without any effort spent. In reality, to the Battle n, that would be the beginning of the true war for their lives.


    If they lost the bet, then they would fight for their lives.


    Fighting for their lives would ignite the passion in their blood. Lei Zhen knew that without an absolutely powerful master in the Battle n, they were fated to lose the war. There was basically no chance of surviving this.


    When the Martial Alliance made their quick rise to power in the Divine Martial Empire, the Battle n knew that this day woulde.


    The Battle n had existed for countless years. They were different from the Ancient Demon Domain and Huangfu family, because they had an unwillingness to submit. The other two powers would never be able topare in terms of spirit. If it came down to a true battle for the n¡¯s survival, neither of those forces would be a match for the Battle n.


    Although raw power was important on the journey of the Martial Dao, one¡¯s mindset, determination, and even faith were just as important. The undying stubbornness of the Battle n had be their faith.


    That was why this man, Lei Zhen, was carrying such a huge weight on his shoulders.Long Chen opened the door and came out with Xiang. Xiang had always been quiet, so he did not say much.


    When Lei Zhen saw that it was Long Chen, he squeezed a smile with great difficulty and said, ¡°Seventh Brother, why are you out here?¡±


    Long Chen went to his side, studied Lei Zhen for a while, and then said, ¡°I can see that you¡¯re thinking about many things, Fourth Brother. Let¡¯s take a walk and talk about it.¡±


    Lei Zhen froze for a second, then he nodded. ¡°Mhm, alright ¡­¡±


    They walked towards the outside of the forest.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, you guys don¡¯t actually need to get involved in this mess. It looks like the Battle n can¡¯t avoid this tragedy; I don¡¯t want you guys to be dragged into it too. I¡¯ve tried to convince Second and Third Brother to leave, but unfortunately, they won¡¯t listen. Now you¡¯re here too. Seventh Brother, you¡¯re still young. Don¡¯t kill your future because of me, your useless Fourth Brother ¡­¡±


    As he spoke, Lei Zhen gave a resigned, bitter smile.


    Long Chen¡¯s heart sank.


    Experiencing life and death together¡ªthat was what the rest of the Dragon n was doing. Therefore, Long Chen could do the same! They were the ones who had rescued him from the Ancient Demon Domain. And without their protection, Long Chen never would¡¯ve gotten the Red Emperor Seal and Prismatic Key. He would not even have reached the Earthly Martial Realm! These were all the things they had done for him as brothers!


    Now his brother was in danger, so how could he not help?


    Looking at Lei Zhen¡¯s depressed expression, a rage towards the Martial Alliance rose in his heart. He pped Lei Zhen¡¯s shoulder and said in a low voice, ¡°Fourth Brother, don¡¯t try to convince me to leave either. I¡¯ll never go! You and the Martial Alliance bear a deep hatred and enmity towards each other, which means the same for me and the Martial Alliance! If the Martial Alliance dares to touch the Battle n, I will do my best to kill as many of them as I can!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s insistence moved Lei Zhen. He knew that this Seventh Brother of his was an even more stubborn character that would be even harder to convince.


    ¡°Alright, just promise me that you will protect your life. That is the number one priority,¡± Lei Zhen said tiredly, shaking his head.


    Over the past few days, the muscr and courageous-looking Lei Zhen had aged by several years.


    Along the way, many other muscr men greeted them. The greetings of the Battle n were clean but filled with power. Their eyes were filled with admiration when they looked at Lei Zhen.


    It was nighttime, so the old, weak, and young were all asleep. Only the strong men were patrolling the area. The n was in mortal danger, so they did not dare let their guards down.


    Long Chen wanted to talk about something else when the forest suddenly opened up into a jagged hill. This hill was not tall, and boulders were strewn about. Long Chen and Lei Zhen quickly reached the top and looked down at the forest, which was shrouded in white mist. The corners of Lei Zhen¡¯s eyes grew misty too, and he opened his arms wide. He said with great sorrow in his voice, ¡°The Battle n has lived on this piece ofnd for five thousand and three hundred years. In ten days¡¯ time, it will be ravaged by the fires of battle, and it will die in my, Lei Zhen¡¯s, hands. I, Lei Zhen, will have wronged thousands of generations of ancestors!¡±


    <em>Crash! </em>He fell to his knees and hit his forehead hard on a rock. <em>Crack! </em>The rock shattered and left a trace of blood on Lei Zhen¡¯s forehead.


    ¡°Fourth Brother, don¡¯t say that. The results have not been determined yet.¡± Long Chen felt suffocated and quickly pulled Lei Zhen up. Lei Zhen gently pushed him away.


    ¡°If the Battle n dies, I won¡¯t be able to live either! As the n leader, I must be at the very front of the front lines! I will trade my blood for the Martial Alliance¡¯s blood! The Battle n will never surrender! We will fight to our deaths! Those stronger than us will step on our bodies, but never our spirits!¡±


    There was another<em> crash,</em> and he mmed his forehead on the ground once more. After three kowtows in a row, flesh and blood blurred on his forehead.


    Of course, with Lei Zhen¡¯s regenerative abilities, it would heal quickly.


    Then he stared to the east with great sorrow. It waste at night, so the sky was filled with stars. Lei Zhen put his palms together in a prayer pose and closed his eyes, singing a folk song. It was clearly a folk song of the Battle n, likely in their ancestralnguage. Long Chen did not understand what he was singing, but the tone of the song made him think that it was about the willingness to die, the refusal to surrender, the courage in war, and massacre!


    Looking at the man before him, Long Chen clenched his fists tight. Although the feelings of brotherhood between them were not as deep as what he and Xiang shared, Long Chen felt that he would never regret it if he lost his life fighting for this man.


    Of course, that would be if he managed to save the Battle n.


    Refusal to surrender. This idea aligned with Long Chen¡¯s spirit, and it was something Long Chen had always chased. During this journey, he had never bowed down to anyone. If he had surrendered in front of a huge obstacle such as Ling Xi¡¯s family, would he still be on this path?


    After a long time, Lei Zhen stood up and smiled at Long Chen, embarrassed. ¡°Seventh Brother, I apologize for this.¡±


    ¡°Fourth Brother, you are a true man. You have my genuine respect,¡± Long Chen said seriously.


    Lei Zhen nodded and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go. I have finished venting, so it¡¯s time to go back. The huge Battle n needs my supervision.¡±


    Long Chen and Lei Zhen prepared to leave. Suddenly, a very creepyugh came from behind them. Their hair stood on end and they quickly turned around. Xiang did not speak, but two balls of mes appeared in his eyes. The ck mes were the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Long Chen looked at the man, who was the source of theughter.


    It was a young man wearing long, golden robes that fell loosely around him, shining luxuriously. His long hair fell behind him, and what made him look strange was that both his long hair and eyes were pure golden, making him look very shiny. Such a strange-looking person was surely no ordinary man.


    He looked at the two of them with a smile on his face, like he was looking at prey.


    It was Long Chen¡¯s first time meeting a person with golden hair and eyes. When he used the Dragon Soul Transformation, his eyes turned blood-red. If this person looked like that without any transformation, it meant he was part of some special bloodline.


    Lei Zhen¡¯s gaze changed when he saw the young man. He took several steps back, pulled Long Chen behind him, and said, ¡°Zhao Danchen, your injuries have healed?!¡±


    Long Chen froze. So that was why he felt like this young man was strong! He was one of the legendary top two prodigies of the Divine Martial Empire, Zhao Danchen!


    Zhao Danchen was about twenty years old and he was one of the three Martial Emperors of the Martial Alliance! He was at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, meaning he was extremely powerful! Zhao Danchen¡¯s surname was not originally Zhao. Like Jian Chen, he had climbed the ranks through the Martial Alliance¡¯s training process. Due to his outstanding performance, when he reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage and became a Martial Emperor, Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji took him in as a stepson and gave him the surname Zhao!


    Reaching Long Yue¡¯s level at such a young age showed that Zhao Danchen was no ordinary person. Huangfu Fengchen, Long Yue, the other Martial Emperors, and the Demon Emperor were all in their thirties when they reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage. If Zhao Danchen continued to grow at this rate, it was possible for him to reach the Fourth or Fifth Earthly Martial Stage!


    Long Chen had heard that he was injured when he fought the Battle Emperor. It had only been a few days, but he had already recovered.


    When Long Chen met the young man face to face, he sensed exactly how terrifying he was. Those golden eyes were filled with a suffocating power. Their eyes only met for a moment, but he felt like a whole mountain was pressing on him.


    Normal people would instinctively dodge Zhao Danchen¡¯s gaze, but Long Chen did not. His heart had a strong refusal to admit defeat, which came from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. With such determination in his heart, how would he ever bow down to this person?


    What was Zhao Danchen doing here?


    Long Chen and Lei Zhen did not know, but his appearance did not bode well for them.

 Chapter 591: Choose One

    After studying Lei Zhen, Long Chen, and Xiang, Zhao Danchen smiled. ¡°Two young, delicate-skinned teenagers! The preferences of the Battle n leader must be quite special. I didn¡¯t know you liked them this way.¡±


    Lei Zhen had always been an honest man, so he did not understand Zhao Danchen¡¯s subtle insult. Long Chen did, so he instantly understood this person¡¯s personality. The fact that he had managed to stand out amongst countless children and climbed up to his current position showed that he was no simple man. His personality was quite simr to Long Chen¡¯s.


    Long Chen knew that he had met his match this time.


    Lei Zhen ignored him and said coldly, ¡°Zhao Danchen, you havee to the Battle n¡¯s territory, so just tell me what this is about. If you keep beating around the bush, you¡¯re going to lose my respect!¡±


    Zhao Danchenughed for a while, then he finally said, ¡°Tell me, what do you think I¡¯m here for?¡± His eyes ran up and down Lei Zhen. ¡°Lei Zhen, you¡¯re useless, but they let youmand the whole Battle n. I don¡¯t think you¡¯re fit for the job, so I want to kill you. That way, a new n leader will be chosen. What do you think?¡±


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s tone made it sound like he was joking, but Long Chen and Lei Zhen knew that he was not. Although Lei Zhen was weak in terms of cultivation, he was stubborn and was a n leader who was hard to deal with. Zhao Danchen had a faint feeling that even if Lei Zhen lost the bet, he would bite back. That was why he hade over to survey the situation.


    Based on what he had just seen, he felt like there was a huge possibility that his hunch was correct.


    Yang Ningfeng had made the bet without Zhao Danchen¡¯s consent. At the time, Zhao Danchen was undergoing treatment for his injuries. When he woke up and heard about what Yang Ningfeng had done, he immediately pped Yang Ningfeng in the face.


    Although they were both Martial Emperors, Zhao Danchen held a lot more power than Yang Ningfeng. Zhao Danchen was the Martial Overlord¡¯s direct disciple with a clean background. Yang Ningfeng, on the other hand, used to be the Great Priest of the Wind God Sect. There was noparison between them, so even though Yang Ningfeng had been pped, he had to hold his anger back.However, the Martial Alliance had already made the bet, so they could not change anything.


    Lei Zhen was not intimidated. He replied mockingly, ¡°Is the great Martial Alliance unable to follow through with its own bet?¡±


    Zhao Danchen replied, ¡°The bet will still go on, of course. But the bet did not state that I cannot change the Battle n¡¯s n leader, right? Since you¡¯re so disobedient, Lei Zhen, I need to put who is more obedient in your seat.¡±


    Zhao Danchen spoke as if it was very logical, but Long Chen found a w in his logic andughed loudly. ¡°I¡¯ve long heard that Zhao Danchen was the ultimate prodigy, but I didn¡¯t expect you to be the kind of man that doesn¡¯t keep his promises! I am utterly shocked by how low you are willing to get!¡±


    ¡°Why do you say that?¡± Zhao Danchen looked at Long Chen. He did not know who this First Earthly Martial Stage teenager was, but there was no need to know.


    ¡°The bet consists of a total of three battles. My Fourth Brother will be representing the Battle n in the first battle. If you kill him, doesn¡¯t that count as breaking the rules of the bet? If the Martial Alliance is so scared, you might as well kill all three representatives, then! If you do that, I¡¯m sure you will die of embarrassment!¡± Long Chen said without a hint of submission.


    Zhao Danchen had said that the bet would still be upheld, but since Lei Zhen was going to participate in the duel, killing him was considered breaking the conditions of the bet. Zhao Danchen had just shot himself in the foot. He had actuallye today to kill Lei Zhen, but his n was ruined because of a few words from Long Chen.


    ¡°You¡¯re a great Martial Emperor of the Martial Alliance! Supposedly the number one person beneath the Martial Overlord himself! But you are actually such a lowly character; I have learned something new today,¡± Long Chen continued.


    Lei Zhen looked at Long Chen gratefully. After what Long Chen said, Zhao Danchen no longer had an excuse to attack Lei Zhen. The bet had already been made and announced to the world. If Zhao Danchen killed Lei Zhen here, he would only embarrass the Martial Alliance.


    ¡°Alright! Alright!¡± Zhao Danchen had been cornered in wordy by Long Chen, leaving him furious. Indeed, he did not know that the Battle n would send Lei Zhen for the duel.


    He would not be able to kill Lei Zhen today, but since he was here, how could he leave empty-handed?


    His cold, golden eyes moved from Lei Zhen to Long Chen, whom he had ignored since the beginning. He gave a cold sneer and said, ¡°You are weak, yet you have so much to say. May I ask what your name is?!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen.¡± Long Chen faintly guessed what Zhao Danchen was nning to do. Having sessfully led Lei Zhen out of danger, half of his mission wasplete. The next step depended on him.


    Xiang clenched his fists. He was not an idiot, so he knew what Long Chen intended to do.


    Everyone was close to each other, but their minds were all upied with their own thoughts.


    ¡°Your name is Long Chen?¡± Zhao Danchen thought of the other person, who was one of the two well-known prodigies. His brows were furrowed, knowing that this Long Chen was not him. However, there was another Long Chen in recent news that had caused a hugemotion. Although he was also quite famous, he was just a clown in Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes.


    Zhao Danchen lifted his chin up to ask, ¡°Are you the one who killed the Void Martial Saint?¡±


    Long Chen nodded without a word.


    Zhao Danchen smiled and said, ¡°You and Lei Zhen are both at the First Earthly Martial Stage. Since Lei Zhen is participating in the duel, then you won¡¯t need to, right? I can¡¯t kill Lei Zhen, but why would I let you live?¡±


    Lei Zhen¡¯s face changed and he quickly put Long Chen behind him without hesitation. He cried angrily, ¡°Zhao Danchen, you shameless bastard!¡±


    Zhao Danchen gave an impatient expression and said, ¡°What do you mean, shameless? I came here from very far away; do you think I¡¯m going to go back empty-handed? It¡¯s your fault that you¡¯re both at the First Earthly Martial Stage. Between the two of you, only one of you gets to live. Lei Zhen, who do you want to keep alive?¡±


    Then Zhao Danchen chuckled in a very annoying manner.


    Lei Zhen was so mad that his face turned red. He took a deep breath and said coldly without even thinking, ¡°You bastard! If you want to kill someone, kill me! Long Chen will fight at the First Earthly Martial Stage duel!¡±


    Even in the face of death, he did not want to burden his brother. This was Lei Zhen¡¯s core belief!


    ¡°Seventh Brother, please go back and tell our brothers that I¡¯ll hand the Battle n over to them. Let Old Vulture take the position of n leader for the moment. He is very experienced, so I feel assured letting him take the position!¡±


    As he spoke, Lei Zhen looked like he was ready to die!


    ¡°How touching! I¡¯m going to dig in, then! Lei Zhen, you¡¯re the one who wanted this.¡± Zhao Danchen was indeed waiting for Lei Zhen to say this. Lei Zhen¡¯s strong personality was going to be a major obstacle in the Martial Alliance¡¯s attempt to subdue the Battle n. That was why he had toe alone in the middle of the night to kill him!


    Now that he was presented with the opportunity, he did not even wait for Long Chen to speak and attacked Lei Zhen!


    ¡°Xiang!¡±


    At that moment, Long Chen and Xiang moved!


    Long Chen had long known that Zhao Danchen would do this, so he was ready. When Zhao Danchen was speaking, he quietly activated his Dragon Soul Transformation. The moment Zhao Danchen moved, Long Chen suddenly pulled Lei Zhen¡¯s arm!


    He was much stronger than Lei Zhen, who was prepared to attack Zhao Danchen. He had not expected Long Chen to suddenly move too. After the Dragon Soul Transformation, Long Chen was very strong and tossed Lei Zhen behind him. He was ten times stronger than Lei Zhen in this form, plus Lei Zhen was caughtpletely off guard, so he was instantly thrown more than two hundred meters away!


    When Lei Zhen realized what had happened, Long Chen had reced him to face Zhao Danchen and started to fight him. More urately, Long Chen was the one attacking Zhao Danchen!


    He had the first-move advantage because of his speed!


    ¡°Awoo!¡±


    A cold but regal howl rang from Long Chen¡¯s side. There was a sudden sh of ck fire, and Xiang, who had been standing quietly, suddenly grew bigger! In a very short time, Xiang returned to his Sun Devouring Wolf form!


    At the same time, his cold howl pierced through the clouds. Every Battle n member in the forest had surely heard his howl!


    ¡°Second Brother! Old Vulture!¡± After Xiang¡¯s howl, Lei Zhen realized that it would be useless to rush forward. Chiding himself for being careless, he roared as loud as he could to call the two strongest people here!


    When there were more people present, it would not be easy for Zhao Danchen to do anything!


    They were not far from the ce where Jiang Wuya and the rest were. At this point, it all depended on how long Long Chen could survive while facing Zhao Danchen.


    While Lei Zhen shouted for Jiang Wuya and Old Vulture, he did not forget to rescue Long Chen!


    He had intended to fight Zhao Danchen; how could he have guessed that Long Chen would do this!


    <em>Furthermore, how was Seventh Brother so strong just now? I could not even fight back!</em>


    This was the most confusing part to Lei Zhen.


    Long Chen had long figured out that Zhao Danchen had snuck in here to kill Lei Zhen quietly. If there were more people present, not only would it make his task more difficult, but his reputation would be affected if this got out.


    This was why Zhao Danchen wanted to p Yang Ningfeng. Yang Ningfeng had chosen a route that did not involve military force, but to Zhao Danchen, having such a powerful military and not using it was the same as shooting themselves in the foot.


    Long Chen knew what to expect. He only had to hold on until other people arrived. That was why heunched a storm of attacks from the beginning so Zhao Danchen could not react in time!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±

 Chapter 592: Golden Eye of Annihilation

    Long Chen had not used this technique in a long time. He didn¡¯t need to use it in his fight against Huangfu Fengyun. Huangfu Fengchen had said that in his current state, no one at the Second Earthly Martial Stage was a match for him. His actual strength was very close to the Third Earthly Martial Stage, so it was not an issue to hold on for a period of time when fighting Zhao Danchen!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡±


    When the Blood Devouring Domain spread out, the air was filled with blood-red mist. As Long Chen had grown stronger, the effects of the Blood Devouring Domain had gotten stronger too. At this moment, his Blood Devouring Domain turned the areapletely blood-red. From Lei Zhen¡¯s perspective, Long Chen and Zhao Danchen were wrapped in a blood-red cocoon that he could not see through!


    Only half of Xiang¡¯s body was outside.


    Long Chen had absolute control over the Blood Devouring Domain, so it did not affect Xiang at all.


    After Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain, he suppressed Zhao Danchen¡¯s strength while catching him off guard. At the same time, he used his most powerful attack, which was the Five Piercing Dragons. With the boost of the Golden Crow mes, blood-red mes burned brightly on his ws,plimenting his essence. With thebination of these two types of forces, the projection of his w turned into five blood-red dragon images that flew towards Zhao Danchen in the Blood Devouring Domain!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    The moment his Soul Dispersing Dragon w touched down, all the nearby rocks shattered. Zhao Danchen and Long Chen were not far apart, so his attack instantly arrived in front of Zhao Danchen!


    Zhao Danchen waspletely stunned that a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator couldunch an attack like that. As far as he was aware, not even Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators couldunch attacks as powerful as this. Even he could not reach this level if he did not focus on the attack!<em>This is such a terrifying attack! And this domain suppresses my Qi; it really is powerful! It¡¯s no wonder they said he killed the Void Martial Saint! I initially thought that was a joke, but it¡¯s true! </em>From this one attack, Zhao Danchen¡¯s impression of Long Chenpletely changed.


    Previously, Long Chen was an insignificant character, but now Zhao Danchen ranked him above Lei Zhen!


    Zhao Danchen only took experts seriously. Although Lei Zhen held a key position, Zhao Danchen looked down on him for being weaker!


    ¡°Such a powerful attack!¡± Zhao Danchen quickly retreated, but from his tone, it was clear that this had not disrupted his mind!


    The Five Piercing Dragons arrived in front of him!


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a taste of my very own special attack!¡± Zhao Danchen smirked coldly. When Long Chen¡¯s attack approached, his golden eyes lit up like two suns, and blinding rays shot out!


    ¡°Golden Eye of Annihtion!


    <em>Whoosh! Whoosh!</em>


    Two golden rays of light shot out of his eyes, aimed at Long Chen. The two rays were powerful; even Long Chen¡¯s Five Piercing Dragons looked like they were starting to shatter when the rays shone on them!


    From this alone, it was clear that Zhao Danchen was using all his strength to fight Long Chen!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was an explosion. Long Chen¡¯s Five Piercing Dragons dispersed on the spot, and the Golden Eye of Annihtion was also used up in the process.


    Long Chen was privately traumatized. Under normal circumstances, Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Eye of Annihtion would be enough to kill him. Long Chen was only able to suppress him because he had caught him off guard.


    The Five Piercing Dragons attack had ended.


    When Zhao Danchen saw that Long Chen had nothing else to pull from his bag of tricks, he smiled. He stopped retreating and shot forward, instantly appearing in front of Long Chen with a <em>whoosh</em>. He threw a punch at the exhausted Long Chen. Zhao Danchen knew that he had to kill the prodigy before him, or he would be done for if Long Chen truly grew and became stronger.


    But he did not see the fear of death in Long Chen¡¯s eyes!


    ¡°Xiang!¡± Long Chen shouted.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    A fierce wave of mes poured out of Xiang¡¯s mouth and engulfed Long Chen. The fiery tide quickly swarmed towards Zhao Danchen, turning everything in its path into hard ice, resulting in the soil and rocks shattering!


    Zhao Danchen watched as Long Chen was swallowed by the mes.


    In reality, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was only passing around Long Chen. Thanks to Xiang¡¯s extremely masterful control, Long Chen was safe as there was an empty space among the mes. They flowed past Long Chen and crashed into the nearby Zhao Danchen like a tsunami!


    <em>What the hell is that?!</em>


    Zhao Danchen threw a punch, but to his astonishment, the power that came with his punch waspletely sucked by the ck mes. Seeing as the mes were about to reach his body, he hesitated for a moment and decided to retreat!


    Xiang had used a huge quantity of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire for this. The roaring mes forced Zhao Danchen back a hundred meters!


    ¡°What?!¡± At this point, Zhao Danchen was very frustrated. He could only wait for the ck mes to die down before he could attack Long Chen. However, he felt another powerful attack quietly heading towards him from his back!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Zhao Danchen had only just turned around when he saw the pitch-ck silhouette of a wolf mming into his body. And the shadow was solid! This caused Zhao Danchen to recall a special technique from the Ancient Demon Domain.


    <em>The Demonic Illusion!</em>


    <em>Is this clone from the wolf?</em>


    <em>Is this a joke?!</em>


    Zhao Danchen had no time to think. All he knew was that while he was retreating, the wolf¡¯s attack had knocked him into the mes!


    <em>Sizzle sizzle sizzle!</em>


    A terrifying sound came from Zhao Danchen¡¯s body, and he felt as if ayer of his skin had been shaved off. He shouted in horror and quickly wrapped himself in his essence, extracting himself from the mes before he was injured.


    However, that terrifying feeling invoked true fear in him.


    It had been many years since hest felt like he was in mortal danger.


    When he emerged from the range of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire disappeared. The gigantic Sun Devouring Wolf quickly turned back to human form. Long Chen led him to Lei Zhen¡¯s side, and they were now two hundred meters away from Zhao Danchen.


    On the other side, more sounds wereing from the forest. The moment Zhao Danchen hesitated, more figures appeared by Lei Zhen and Long Chen¡¯s side. They were Jiang Wuya, Jian Chen, Lan Ling¡¯er, the eight Battle Kings, and more.


    Of course, there were also countless other Battle n warriors who stood there fiercely with their own demonic beasts like Thunder Tigers and Lightning Panthers. Following their masters¡¯ intentions, the fierce demonic beasts roared furiously at Zhao Danchen after looking at Xiang with reverence.


    The powerful warriors of the Battle n had gathered.


    There were hundreds of Nine Fang Warriors, who wore nine sharp beast fangs around their necks. This was a symbol of their glory, and all of them were at least at the Ninth Passage Stage. They had killed a certain number of enemies and made huge contributions to the n!


    Hundreds of Nine Fang Warriors mounted their lightning beasts surrounded Lei Zhen. The Eight Kings were also guarding Lei Zhen as they red furiously at Zhao Danchen!


    Jiang Wuya¡¯s expression was the darkest, as he was the most well-traveled person there. He was standing at the front of the army, ring at Zhao Danchen coldly as he said, ¡°I was just wondering who would dare act so boldly on the Battle n¡¯snd! So it¡¯s Martial Emperor Zhao! Is this how low the Martial Alliance is willing to go? I¡¯ve learned something new today!¡±


    Zhao Danchen red at them coldly. Now that all the Battle n members were here, if Zhao Danchen continued attacking, he would be breaking the conditions of the bet and dering an early war.


    Zhao Danchen did not look at Jiang Wuya. He red coldly at Long Chen and Mo Xiang, who were the greatest threats to him. Those two teenagers were hiding in the crowd, so he could not harm them at the moment.


    ¡°Long Chen, since you survived today, I¡¯ll let you live for a few more days. I¡¯ll surely kill you! We shall meet again in ten days!¡±


    Then Zhao Danchen turned into a golden gust of wind and disappeared!


    ¡°That Martial Alliance bastard!¡±


    ¡°Bastard! The bastard that killed the old n leader!¡±


    The people of the Battle n recognized Zhao Danchen as he was the one who suddenly came one day to challenge the old n leader, leading them to their current situation. Zhao Danchen was the archnemesis of Lei Zhen.


    After he left, the Battle n members were left disgruntled.


    Lei Zhen¡¯s gaze was dark when he said, ¡°Eight Kings, stay. Everyone else, you may leave.¡±


    Under Lei Zhen¡¯s instructions, the Nine Fang Warriors had to leave. The only ones who remained were the warriors at the Earthly Martial Realm. Lei Zhen looked around and said, ¡°Why isn¡¯t Old Vulture here?¡±


    Lei Zhen had called for Old Vulture and Jiang Wuya. Theoretically, they should¡¯ve arrived first. Jiang Wuya had long arrived, but not Old Vulture.


    ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± The small, thin Old Vulture parted the crowd and stepped forward. Perhaps because he was too small, the crowd did not notice him at first.


    Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s eyes met, seeing the question in the other¡¯s eyes. This was a Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator! When Jiang Wuya arrived, his aura had suppressed the whole battlefield. How was it possible that no one had noticed Old Vulture?


    Lei Zhen and the others did not notice this problem. At this moment, everyone surrounded Lei Zhen with sullen expressions.

 Chapter 593: Bathe in the Blood of Our Enemies

    ¡°What happened?¡± Jiang Wuya asked.


    When he arrived, Zhao Danchen had been forced a hundred meters back due to the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The rest were even more confused.


    Lei Zhen looked around and smiled bitterly. ¡°I was chatting with Seventh Brother here, but Zhao Danchen suddenly appeared. He wanted to kill me, but Seventh Brother said I was going to participate in one of the three duels, so he would be breaking the conditions of the bet if he killed me. So, since Zhao Danchen couldn¡¯t kill me, he shifted his focus to Seventh Brother.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean Zhao Danchen was attacking Long Chen just now?¡± Everyone looked at Long Chen. They had seen part of the battle, and it seemed like Long Chen and Xiang had worked together to force Zhao Danchen back.


    What did that mean?


    He was only at the First Earthly Martial Stage, while Xiang was a Category One King-tier demonic beast. Yet they had forced the Third Earthly Martial Stage Zhao Danchen back?


    How strong was he?


    Everyone looked at Long Chen awkwardly.The eight Battle Kings naturally did not know how strong Long Chen was. As for the Dragon n, they knew that Long Chen was extraordinary, as he could defeat an Earthly Martial Realm opponent when he was at the Ninth Passage Stage. This was not surprising!


    ¡°If I saw correctly, although I was blocked by the red mist, I think I saw that Zhao Danchen even used his unique attack, the Golden Eye of Annihtion!¡±


    Lei Zhen looked at Long Chen in shock.


    ¡°Golden Eye of Annihtion? Only other Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators can withstand that attack. Long Chen, how are you still unharmed?¡± Even Jiang Wuya¡¯s jaw dropped in disbelief.


    Long Chen did not know what to say as everyone¡¯s attention was on him. ¡°I was lucky that I was able to survive. I knew that he would leave when you all arrived, so I used all my strength to hold him off for a while. Actually, it was Xiang¡¯s mes that forced Zhao Danchen back.¡±


    Everyone turned their gazes to Mo Xiang, who looked like he could harm no one. They could not understand how a mere Category One King-tier beast could produce such terrifying mes.


    ¡°Second Brother, Fourth Brother, shall we start nning our next step?¡± asked Long Chen, changing the topic.


    All of them were walking back, and the ones who were present were trustworthy, so Lei Zhen said, ¡°The three duels areing soon, and I cannot wait any longer. Tomorrow, at dawn, I will go to the forbidden area and enter the Lightning Pool toprehend the Thunder Knife Technique. It¡¯s an intermediate King-tierbat technique. Even with the help of the Lightning Pool, I¡¯m not sure if nine days will be enough for me toplete it!¡±


    Everyone nodded!


    Tonight¡¯s ordeal had passed without incident due to Long Chen¡¯s quick wits. When the eight Battle Kings and Old Vulture left, Lei Zhen looked at his own siblings. Suddenly, he fell to his knees.


    ¡°Fourth Brother, what are you doing?! Get up!¡± Jiang Wuya said sternly as he helped Lei Zhen up. He was strong, so Lei Zhen could not fight back.


    ¡°My brothers and sister! I beg you to do one thing!¡± Lei Zhen said through gritted teeth.


    ¡°We are brothers! Why would you need to <em>beg</em> us? Fourth Brother, if you say that word again, it will mean you don¡¯t see me, Jian Chen, as a brother!¡± said the white-haired Jian Chen.


    Lei Zhen nodded. He looked at them solemnly and said, ¡°Everyone, you saw just now that Zhao Danchen has recovered from his injuries. With Zhao Danchen and Yang Ningfeng together, we are no match for them! The Battle n is already fated to die! I¡¯m sincerely requesting you all to leave! Don¡¯t die because of me! I don¡¯t care if I die, but if I burden my siblings, it¡¯ll be even more painful than death!¡±


    Tears poured out of his eyes.


    Everyone looked at each other. In the end, Jiang Wuya gently patted Lei Zhen¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°Fourth Brother, you still don¡¯t understand that all men must die. If we¡¯re all going to die one day, we might as well die for a noble cause! If I have to die for a brother, I, Jiang Wuya, will die with no regrets!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! My life was given to me by Big Sister. Without her, I would have been in the ground by now. I should have died a long time ago, so if I die now, I won¡¯t be losing anything. Just like Second Brother said, I have no regrets.¡±


    Chi Ying smiled and said, ¡°Fourth Brother, don¡¯t fight us on this. We¡¯re all people who should have died a long time ago. Sheer luck allowed us to live this long. Do you think any of us fear death? It¡¯s just like going to sleep, right?¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er smiled. ¡°Fourth Brother is crying! That¡¯s embarrassing!¡±


    Long Chen did not say anything, but from what he had done earlier, Lei Zhen knew what his intentions were. He knew that the youngest brother was actually the most stubborn one present. If Long Chen put his mind to something, he would never change it!


    Lei Zhen wiped away his tears. Looking at his brothers and sister, he saw the stubbornness and fire in their eyes. This is the moment that he knew that his life had been worth living.


    ¡°You¡¯re all good brothers!¡± He held out his hand, and everyone stacked their hands on his. Six hands stacked on top of each other.


    ¡°Let¡¯s all fuck the Martial Alliance up!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er cried out excitedly. Everyone pressed their palms down with bright grins.


    Looking at them, Long Chen suddenly felt moved. No matter how many achievements a person had, it did not mean that he was sessful. But if he had a loved one who loved him back, and a group of siblings who were willing to live and die together, he could die with no regrets.


    The Dragon n was a name that would forever sit in the deepest part of Long Chen¡¯s memory.


    Although they could notpare to Ling Xi or Mo Xiang, their spirit moved Long Chen.


    ¡°We shall bathe in the blood of our enemies!¡±


    Everyone¡¯s eyes were filled with passion. They viewed death asing home.


    ¡°My brothers, the great war cannot be avoided. I won¡¯t waste my time on more nonsense. This time, the odds are against the Battle n, so I must keep the Battle n¡¯s roots alive. A few days ago, I personally picked a hundred talented Battle n children. I hope that when the great war starts, you all will get them out of here! They are the roots of the Battle n, and I hope you all will not refuse this request.¡±


    Lei Zhen looked at everyone. Who would lead these children out of the Martial Alliance¡¯s grasp safely?


    Jiang Wuya looked around, and his gaze fell on Long Chen and Lan Ling¡¯er. ¡°Long Chen¡¯s talent runs deeper than we can see. He and Lan Ling¡¯er are still young. There¡¯s no need for them to risk their lives with us. We will have Long Chen and Ling¡¯er escort the children. Remember, the future of the Battle n is in your hands. Do not let your guard down, especially you, Long Chen. You are extraordinarily talented. If we all die at the hands of the Martial Alliance, you¡¯re in charge of avenging us when you get stronger!¡±


    Long Chen did not know what to do when he saw their hopeful gazes. His initial n was to choose a suitable time to tell them about changing the candidates for the duels. Now they had given him a task that would most likely ensure that he would survive. He did not know what to say, so he had to agree for now. ¡°Alright, leave it to me.¡±


    He could put the children in the Primordial Realm if needed, and they would be absolutely safe. Long Chen also had another idea where war was not inevitable. As long as they won the bet, the war would not need to happen.


    ¡°Alright, in that case, you may all return to your cultivation. There¡¯s not much time left. Use this time wisely. Tomorrow, Fourth Brother is going into the Lightning Pool. We¡¯ll send him off,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    Then, after a few words from them, they dispersed. After Long Chen and Xiang returned to their quarters, they suddenly recalled Old Vulture. While everyone was focusing on Long Chen, he noticed something off with Old Vulture.


    When Lei Zhen was in danger, he had been the slowest to arrive. His response did not fit the reputation of being the strongest master of the Battle n. He should not have arrived that slowly, so it must have been on purpose.


    ¡°Lei Zhen clearly respects him greatly. It¡¯s probably nothing. I¡¯m overthinking it.¡± Long Chen tossed it to the back of his mind and started to focus on studying the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Willow Step. At the same time, he was also quickly improving in the second part of the Earthly Martial Realm Punching Technique.


    ***


    An old figure was standing by the window of a dark stone house, looking at the stars in the sky. The door suddenly burst open, and a simrly thin but handsome man walked in. He was the Second Prince, Old Vulture¡¯s son. The old man by the window was Old Vulture himself.


    ¡°Father.¡± Lei Ming entered and closed the door gently, then he stood respectfully behind Old Vulture.


    Old Vulture¡¯s low voice rang across the dark room. ¡°You must have guessed what happened today, right?¡±


    Lei Ming nodded and said, ¡°I have. You arrived muchter than Jiang Wuya. I¡¯m sure that was on purpose.¡±


    ¡°Unfortunately, Lei Zhen did not die! I thought he was surely going to die this time. I knew Zhao Danchen would never befortable with Yang Ningfeng¡¯s bet, so I was sure he woulde looking for Lei Zhen. I can¡¯t believe even Zhao Danchen failed to kill him. I was slow on purpose, but it seems like that did not work.¡± Old Vulture sighed.


    Lei Ming¡¯s brows were furrowed. Puzzled, he asked, ¡°Father, I still don¡¯t understand. Lei Zhen is being protected by almost everyone, and he has help from his Dragon n friends. It¡¯s hard for us to knock him off his seat as n leader. Why must we kill him?¡±

 Chapter 594: Soul of the Battle Clan

    Old Vulture was quiet for a moment, then he shook his head and said, ¡°Ming¡¯er, you don¡¯t understand my intentions. I know Lei Zhen¡¯s temper well. He is forcing the whole Battle n towards death. I must stop him so that the Battle n has a chance to live! Lei Zhen is no longer suitable to be the n leader. I have already spoken to Zhao Danchen¡ªthe next n leader will be you, Lei Ming!¡±


    Lei Ming trembled. Being made n leader was a huge temptation to him.


    ¡°Father, please borate on your n,¡± Lei Ming said respectfully, bowing.


    ¡°Our side must win two rounds to win the bet. However, Zhao Danchen has told me that the Battle n will never win. And if the Battle n loses, with Lei Zhen¡¯s personality, he will surely lead the whole n to fight to their deaths. But take a look at the Martial Alliance! The Battle n is not fit even to carry the shoes of the Martial Alliance. When that happens, the entire n will surely die. Not just Lei Zhen, but even we will be the criminals who wronged generations of n members!¡±


    Lei Ming nodded and said, ¡°I understand, Father. This means that as long as Lei Zhen dies the Battle n loses the bet, with me as the new n leader and you being the only Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator here, we will submit to the Martial Alliance. That way, you, me, and the Battle n will continue to exist perpetually!¡±


    Old Vulture¡¯s gaze traveled from outside the window to Lei Ming, whom he studied for a while, then he said, ¡°Little brat, you¡¯ve be much smarter. You¡¯re right. When Lei Zhen dies, his friends will likely leave, and we¡¯ll have fewer people causing problems. Then our mission to keep the n alive will seed. You must remember that because we are protecting the n, we are in the right. Lei Zhen and the others are the criminals!¡±


    Was that really the case? Lei Ming¡¯s heart was confused too. He knew that he and his father were the only ones in the Battle n who didn¡¯t see death asing home. The others could not wait to die and bring the Martial Alliance down with them.


    ¡°Father, if we do this, will the n members think that we are cowards? That we are being spineless, and we would have embarrassed our ancestors?¡± Lei Ming asked carefully.


    Old Vulture chuckled coldly and said, ¡°They¡¯re idiots, so let them say what they want. We were the ones who kept them alive. One or two years down the line, they will eventually fall to their knees in front of us, praising our noble act! Therefore, Lei Zhen is an obstacle to the livelihood of the n. He must die!¡±When he said the word ¡°die,¡± cracking sounds came from Old Vulture¡¯s fist.


    ¡°Father, Zhao Danchen didn¡¯t get to kill Lei Zhen today. What do we do now?¡± Lei Ming asked anxiously.


    Old Vulture let out chillingugh that even sent chills down Lei Ming¡¯s spine.


    ¡°Tomorrow. Tomorrow, Lei Zhen will enter the Lightning Pool, which is in the forbidden area. No one else will be able to enter, and the only person nearby will be the escort who led him to the entrance. I will not apany him tomorrow, and when they ask about it, you will tell them that I am cultivating to prepare for the final fight. Then I will slip into the forbidden area on my own. When Lei Zhen passes by, I will kill him! Afterwards, you and the rest of the people will rush in, and you will put the me on Zhao Danchen!¡± Old Vulture exined slowly, though he grew more emotional towards the end.


    Lei Ming took a deep breath and nodded. ¡°Father, this is the perfect n! When Lei Zhen dies, the n will have to choose a new n leader. With you present, I will surely be the most suitable candidate. And when Lei Zhen¡¯s friends see that Lei Zhen has died, they will surely leave the Battle n to fight the Martial Alliance! Then we will swoop in! The Dragon n will never be a match for the Martial Alliance. And when the three duels happen and the Battle n loses to the Martial Alliance, we will fulfill the promise and pledge our loyalty to the Martial Alliance. When that happens, the Martial Alliance will surely reward us generously!¡±


    Lei Ming burst intoughter.


    ¡°You fool!¡± Old Vulture suddenly pped him across the face.


    ¡°Father, why?¡± Lei Ming was stunned.


    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®the Martial Alliance will surely reward us generously?¡¯ You must remember that we are not doing this for our own selfish benefit! We¡¯re doing this because we don¡¯t want to see Lei Zhen destroy the umted effort the n has put in over thousands of years! Our ancestors will cheer us on!¡± cried Old Vulture with a wild look in his eyes.


    ¡°Yes ¡­ Yes ¡­¡± Lei Ming nodded quickly.


    <em>Will the ancestors really cheer us on? </em>He wanted to ask this question very badly


    If all the Battle n¡¯s warriors be servants to the Martial Alliance, would that really be better than death? If that happened, the Battle n would end up like the Wind God Sect or worse, because they did not have a Third Earthly Martial Stage master protecting them.


    These questions were buried in Lei Ming¡¯s heart.


    Looking at the excited old man, Lei Ming clenched his fists tightly and told himself, <em>He¡¯s my father and he has lived a longer life than me! He surely knows a lot more than I do, so doing as he says must be right!</em>


    ***


    Dawn came quickly.


    Long Chen had spent the entire night cultivating. After many rounds of practice, Long Chen was much more familiar with the Soul Dispersing w and the Willow Step. After familiarizing himself with them, he started to continue cultivating the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    He practiced ording to the Earthly Martial Fist Manual, trying toprehend the punching technique of the Second Earthly Martial Stage. After Long Yue and Huangfu Fengchen helped him enter the Earthly Martial Realm, progressing further was much easier. Due to the heaven meridian point and his other qualities, cultivation was easier for Long Chen in the Martial Realm.


    ¡°The pulse of the earthes in one wave after another. Reaching the Second Earthly Martial Stage requires one to fit two pulses of the earth in an attack. In that case, one attack would actually contain two attacks, making it much stronger ¡­¡±


    Long Chen still could not break through thisst obstacle.


    As for the cultivation of essence, Long Chen had consumed the beast blood of the ck Water Viper right after his breakthrough. After using Blood Transmutation, the blood had turned into his essence and was being stored in his Martial Veins and Martial Meridians.


    He had enough essence to break through to the Second Earthly Martial Stage, but heckedprehension of the theory.


    This was not something easily achieved overnight, so Long Chen was not impatient. He slowly halted his punches and then opened the door. Xiang rarely entered the Primordial Realm these days, and when Long Chen was cultivating, he also studied his own attack techniques. He was much more hardworking than before.


    Long Chen opened the door because Lei Zhen and the rest had passed the front of his room. Everyone else had arrived too, and when they saw Long Chene out, they quickly called him over.


    ¡°The Lightning Pool is in the forbidden area, which you guys can¡¯t enter. If you all really want to send me off, you can send me off at the entrance,¡± said Lei Zhen.


    The Running Thunder de was a de technique only the n leader could cultivate, and it had to be done in the Lightning Pool. However, the Lightning Pool was dangerous, and someone had to stand guard outside the entrance. If the cultivator inside was in trouble, at least someone would be alerted.


    ¡°The lightning also has a paralyzing effect. If I am unable to withstand it and cannot get myself out, it doesn¡¯t matter whether you¡¯re allowed inside or not¡ª just carry me out of there! If I¡¯m left in there for too long, I¡¯ll die, haha ¡­¡± Lei Zhen said with a grin.


    Everyone gave a rare chuckle. Jian Chen thensaid, ¡°Second Brother Jiang also needs to cultivate for theing battle. Let me guard the entrance, then. If you can¡¯t withstand the lightning, just call for me.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Third Brother,¡± Lei Zhen said gratefully.


    Everyone soon arrived in front of the forbidden area. It was actually a deep valley surrounded by a dense forest. There was strict security around this area. Long Chen even discovered naturally formed seals that could not be broken unless the cultivator was past a certain level.


    Entering the Lightning Pool was a solemn ritual to the Battle n. Lei Zhen had long prepared the altar and incense to pray to the ancestors before entering.


    All the significant n members had to attend this important ritual, so the other seven Battle Kings had arrived to kneel and pray to the ancestors. When it all ended, Lei Zhen asked Lei Ming, ¡°Brother Lei Ming, why isn¡¯t Old Vulture here today?¡±


    Lei Ming took half a step back, unable to hide the strange look on his face. But he quickly hid it, took a deep breath, and said, ¡°My Father is worried about the bet and is focused on cultivation now, hoping to help the n when the timees. That¡¯s why he¡¯s not here.¡±


    Lei Zhen froze and said, ¡°This is an urgent time, so I¡¯m not going to press further regarding Old Vulture¡¯s absence. However, remember to tell him that all cultivators at the Earthly Martial Realm must be present during the next ancestral prayer.¡±


    Lei Ming nodded and said, ¡°Alright, I understand.¡±


    Lei Zhen did not think much about it and turned to the Dragon n. ¡°Everyone other than Third Brother may leave. I¡¯m going in.¡±


    Jiang Wuya nodded. ¡°We¡¯ll head back after you enter.¡±


    Lei Zhen smiled. Everyone watched as he entered the deep valley. When hepletely disappeared, the Dragon n members and the Battle Kings prepared to leave.


    Long Chen noticed a small detail. He had been watching Lei Ming while they watched Lei Zhen leave. When Lei Zhen disappeared, there was a malicious look on his face.


    Yesterday, Long Chen had sensed that Old Vulture¡¯s reaction had been strange. Today, when Lei Ming talked about Old Vulture, Long Chen had paid attention too. Due to yesterday¡¯s suspicions, he naturally felt that Lei Ming¡¯s response was strange. When he saw Lei Ming¡¯s expression plus his exnation that Old Vulture was absent because he was cultivating, Long Chen felt like there was something wrong.

 Chapter 595: Exposing The Plot

    The group was about to separate and head out into two directions when Long Chen suddenly said, ¡°Prince Lei Ming, please wait a moment.¡±


    Lei Ming halted, and so did the other Battle Kings.


    Long Chen and Lei Ming did not really know each other, so it was a bit strange when Long Chen stopped him. Even Jiang Wuya and the others did not know what Long Chen was up to.


    Lei Ming furrowed his brows and turned to look at Long Chen. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like to ask Old Vulture for some guidance on something; may I ask if you could take me to him?¡± Long Chen asked after some thought.


    The moment Long Chen mentioned Old Vulture, Lei Ming¡¯s expression stiffened. He shook his head instinctively and said, ¡°You can¡¯t. My father is deeply focused on his cultivation, so no one is allowed to disturb him!¡±


    His tone was quite harsh, and he gave Long Chen no chance to reply. After that, he immediately turned and left.


    Not only did Long Chen grow suspicious from his reaction, Jiang Wuya and the others did too. Lei Ming wanted to leave as quickly as possible to avoid more questions that would affect his father¡¯s ns. However, he had not expected his reaction to cause even more suspicion.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The Dragon n members surrounded him, and Jiang Wuya asked with confusion, ¡°Brother Lei Ming, is there some problem with Old Vulture? Is there any way we can help?¡±¡°Is that a joke? My father is a great Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator¡ªof course there¡¯s no problem with him,¡± said Lei Ming, his face turning slightly green. His gaze swept across the group and he said, ¡°Why are you guys blocking me? Don¡¯t you think you can disrespect me just because you guys are close with our n leader!¡±


    Lei Ming was willing to say anything to leave.


    ¡°Lei Ming, how could you say that? The Dragon n members are the Battle n¡¯s brothers!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! They are willing to risk their lives to help the Battle n! How could you speak to them with that tone?!¡±


    The other Battle n members disapproved of Lei Ming¡¯s unfriendly tone. Every Battle n member had endless gratitude for Jiang Wuya and his team. Without the Dragon n helping them, the Battle n would likely be in ruins by now.


    In the face of such pressure, Lei Ming¡¯s face slowly turned pale. He knew that this was a very critical moment for his father, and he could not ruin the n now!


    That was why he chose to remain silent.


    <em>This brat is behaving very strangely; there must be something going on if he won¡¯t let me meet Old Vulture. Yesterday, Old Vulture arrivedte to the scene. Was it because he wanted to let Zhao Danchen kill Fourth Brother? And Old Vulture isn¡¯t here now, which means ¡­</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s face changed!


    ¡°Oh no, Second Brother!¡±


    Long Chen was not sure if he was right, but in case he was, he had to act as quickly as he could. He disregarded the rules of the forbidden area and used the Dragon Soul Transformation, then he dashed towards the depths of the forbidden area like a gust of red wind.


    ¡°Long Chen, you can¡¯t enter the Battle n¡¯s forbidden area!¡± shouted a Battle King in panic, but he could not stop Long Chen in time. Looking at the red gust of wind, he sighed at Long Chen¡¯s speed.


    Every Dragon n member trusted Long Chen¡¯s abilities. Long Chen had rushed into the forbidden area and called for Jiang Wuya ¡­ Jiang Wuya was no idiot, so he quickly guessed what was going through Long Chen¡¯s mind and followed him into the forbidden area. At the same time, he instructed, ¡°Third Brother, you guys stop Lei Ming!¡±


    From the Battle n¡¯s point of view, the Dragon n was being too rash, especially when they heard the order to stop Lei Ming. The Battle Kings were very confused, but they trusted Long Chen and the others. Lei Ming had indeed been acting strangely today, so they did not move when Jian Chen and the others surrounded him.


    When Lei Ming saw Long Chen and Jiang Wuya rush into the forbidden area, his face paled and he became very anxious. When they saw his expressions, everyone drew the same conclusion.


    Lan Ling¡¯er was always first to speak. ¡°Is Seventh Brother thinking that Old Vulture is nning to ambush Fourth Brother in there?¡±


    Jian Chen and Chi Ying¡¯s faces changed, then they replied coldly, ¡°Yes!¡±


    They had no time to worry about anything else, so they immediately trapped Lei Ming. Since there was little space to work with, Lei Ming could not retaliate at all. Jian Chen¡¯s Cloud Sword rested on his neck.


    ¡°What?¡± The other Battle Kings gasped and looked at the pale Lei Ming in disbelief. Lei Ming did not argue, which meant that what Lan Ling¡¯er had said was likely true!


    ¡°Bastard!¡±


    ¡°Animals!¡±


    ¡°Did you and your father get kicked in the head?!¡±


    The Battle Kings roared with anger and ran into the forbidden area. Jian Chen and the others also entered the forbidden area while holding Lei Ming hostage. No one had expected something like this to happen today. Until now, no one knew why Old Vulture would do such a thing.


    The Battle n members held out a ray of hope. They hoped that this was not true. The Battle n had always been united and never killed each other. If a plot like this was truly unfolding, it would be a major blow to all of them.


    Even Long Chen did not know why Old Vulture would want to do this.


    All he knew was that it was strange for Old Vulture to arrivete yesterday, plus Lei Ming¡¯s reactions had been strange. That was why he could not help but probe. Lei Ming¡¯s mind was torn, and the moment Long Chen asked him a question, his expression gave him away.


    Sensing the severity of the situation, Long Chen ran as fast as he could, disappearing from Jiang Wuya¡¯s sight. Jiang Wuya initially thought he could catch up, but to his shock, not only could he not catch up, the gap between them was increasing!


    Jiang Wuya soon caught up to Xiang, who was still in human form. He did not say much and immediately passed Xiang, feeling anxious and shocked. He was anxious about Lei Zhen¡¯s safety and shocked by Long Chen¡¯s speed.


    Gusts of wind blew past Long Chen!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    When Long Chen was still feeling uncertain about his guess, he heard the sounds of collisions up ahead. They were definitely the sounds of a fight between Earthly Martial Realm experts, as they were deep and dull, but very powerful!


    <em>Just as I expected! They¡¯re fighting! </em>If Long Chen was right, Old Vulture had been hiding here for a long time. This was a Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator ambushing a First Earthly Martial Stage target; there was no way Lei Zhen would be able to hold him off for long if he was caught by surprise!


    ¡°Third Brother!¡± At this moment, Lei Zhen could only call for Jian Chen, who was outside the forbidden area. Since sound traveled quickly, both Long Chen and the others heard him at the same time.


    Lei Zhen¡¯s voice was filled with rage and even sounded a bit hoarse. He was likely injured, and severely too!


    ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± Every Battle King was in disbelief. When they heard his shout for help, everyone was certain that Old Vulture and his son had plotted to harm Lei Zhen. Fortunately, Long Chen had discovered their plot. They could only pray that Long Chen and Jiang Wuya would arrive in time to save Lei Zhen. If Lei Zhen died, the Battle n would be done for!


    ¡°Those bastards! Why would Old Vulture do this? Even though he has done so much for the Battle n, he is looking for death this time! The warriors of the Battle n will never forgive him!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! If n Leader really dies, how will we ever face our old n leader in the afterlife?¡±


    Everyone roared with rage, and their eyes turned red as they dashed through the forbidden area.


    When Long Chen heard the voice, he was able to pinpoint Lei Zhen¡¯s location. He sped up and zoomed through the dense forest. Every dull thud and furious roaring from up ahead felt like direct blows to his heart!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    A powerful bolt of lightning exploded. Relying on the power of his Dragon Soul Transformation, Long Chen forced himself through and entered a col. He saw arge figure flying towards him!


    Blood sprayed out of the person¡¯s mouth, almostnding on Long Chen. When Long Chen looked closer, he realized that it was Lei Zhen. Lei Zhen¡¯s face was pale, and several deep gashes ran across his chest, bleeding profusely. He was severely injured!


    ¡°Die!¡± A thin and small person was running after Lei Zhen. It was Old Vulture, whose features were twisted into a sneer. He had sessfully injured Lei Zhen, leaving him incapacitated. Now he wasunching a powerful talon attack in order to kill Lei Zhen once and for all!


    That was when Long Chen showed up!


    A blood-red figure suddenly appeared in front of Lei Zhen. He quickly caught Lei Zhen and thenid him t on the ground. Then the red figure pounced on Old Vulture, and blood-red ws collided with his talons, which were crackling with electricity, causing a shrill screech from the collision.


    ¡°Who are you?!¡± Old Vulture never expected another person to show up. No one could find out that he was the one who had killed Lei Zhen. Now that Long Chen was here, he had to kill Long Chen too!


    Long Chen¡¯s ws carried as much force as Old Vulture¡¯s attack. Old Vulture had used his favorite attack, which brought harm through lightning. However, he discovered that the blood-red mes were burning his skin, and they were more powerful than his talons!


    Old Vulture was thrown back in the air!

 Chapter 596: Lightning Vulture Talons

    ¡°Who are you?! Who are you?! Who are you?!¡± Old Vulture panicked when he felt the immense force of the attack. His opponent was clearly at the Second Earthly Martial Stage and was much stronger than Lei Zhen. Old Vulture had only managed to cause suchrge harm to Lei Zhen mainly because he had caught thetter off guard.


    Old Vulture knew his own abilities well. When he exchanged blows with the intruder, he knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to kill this person in a short time!


    He was privately panicking too because now Long Chen knew that he had attacked Lei Zhen, meaning his crime would be exposed. The key to his n was to make sure the killer was unknown so that he could pin the me on Zhao Danchen. Then he would take the opportunity to let his son, Lei Ming, be n leader. However, if everyone knew that he had killed Lei Zhen, the whole Battle n would see both him and his son as enemies!


    The Battle n had always refused to surrender. The n was very united, so every n member hated killing between n members the most!


    Long Chen¡¯s appearance hadpletely disrupted Old Vulture¡¯s n!


    After Long Chen knocked him up into the air, another dark figure rushed out¡ªJiang Wuya. Jiang Wuya¡¯s face was green, especially when he saw Lei Zhen¡¯s condition!


    Everyone quickly arrived too.


    ¡°Old Vulture, there must be something wrong with your head! The Martial Alliance is the enemy, and yet you want to kill Lei Zhen!¡± Jiang Wuya cried through gritted teeth. His voice was thick with killing intent!


    ¡°Second Brother! I¡¯ll deal with him! You take care of Fourth Brother!¡± Long Chen said with a cold voice. When Jiang Wuya looked at Long Chen and sensed his killing intent, he felt like he had fallen into a freezer!


    Long Chen¡¯s heart filled with rage when he saw Lei Zhen¡¯s wounds. He considered every member of the Dragon n a person that he needed to protect. He had prioritizeding to the Battle n instead of leaving to search for more information about the Ancient Graveyard because he took this brotherhood seriously!


    Although Lei Zhen¡¯s injuries were not fatal, Long Chen¡¯s blood boiled. He knew that if he had discovered the plot just a littleter and taken just a few seconds longer to arrive, Lei Zhen would likely have been killed by Old Vulture!


    And if Lei Zhen died, Long Chen would not be able to fully vent his anger even if Old Vulture died a hundred times!


    Long Chen shot a venomous re at him!


    ¡°You bastard! How dare you hurt my Fourth Brother! You have a death wish!¡± Long Chen roared. He looked terrifying in his dragon form. Violent dragon aura erupted from his body and radiated toward Old Vulture.


    Then blood-red mist enveloped Long Chen and flowed towards Old Vulture.


    <em>It¡¯s that teenager! </em>Old Vulture was utterly shocked. He recognized Long Chen from his voice!


    Long Chen was only at the First Earthly Martial Stage, so how was his attack powerful? And how could there be such immense power radiating from his body?!


    It would be difficult for a cultivator to radiate this level of power without reaching the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    But when Jiang Wuya appeared, Old Vulture lost all hope. He knew that his n had failedpletely. What rose within him next was not fear, but madness! All the emotions erupted within him!


    ¡°So you figured out my n? Great! Everyone must die! Everyone must die!¡± Old Vultureughed like a madman.


    Long Chen took a few steps forward, locked in a stalemate with Old Vulture. Jiang Wuya initially wanted to tell Long Chen that he would deal with Old Vulture, but he swallowed his words. At the final moment, he realized that he trusted Long Chen.


    <em>When he was at the Ninth Passage Stage, he defeated an Earthly Martial Realm master. Now that he is at the Earthly Martial Realm, he might actually be able to defeat Old Vulture.</em>


    Ever since they saved Long Chen from the Ancient Demon Domain, he had shown them miracle after miracle.


    Before Long Chen attacked, the Battle Kings and everyone else started to arrive.


    When more people gathered, Old Vulture¡¯s eyes turned blood-red.


    Long Chen studied Old Vulture, who had undergone the Beast Soul Transformation. He was covered in blue feathers that looked like steel des. Terrifying blue lightning flowed all over them, providing him with a powerful defense. At the same time, like Long Chen, his fingers turned into sharp talons with crackles of blue electricity flowing on them.


    Clearly, he had a vulture-type Beast Soul, and it was a strong one too.


    ¡°Everyone is here! That¡¯s fine! Everyone must die! Might as well let the Martial Alliance kill off the whole Battle n¡ªthat would be for the best!¡± Old Vulture roared manically. When he saw that his son was being held hostage by Jian Chen, he let out a furious roar and charged towards them.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Long Chen stood in his way.


    Old Vulture was likely as strong as Huangfu Fengchen, so Long Chen was confident in defeating him. His ws burned with Golden Crow mes, and he rushed in front of Old Vulture, immediately waving them to unleash the Soul Dispersing Dragon w!


    ¡°Seventh Brother!¡±


    Everyone cried out anxiously when they saw Long Chen attack. They were naturally worried for his safety, but then they saw that his attack was forcing Old Vulture back!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w!¡± They watched Long Chen with joyful surprise, especially Jiang Wuya and the others. They recognized the attack as it was the technique that Long Yue was best at!


    It was magnificent! Cool! Violent!


    This battle surpassed everyone¡¯s expectations!


    Old Vulture felt immense pressure from battling Long Chen!


    <em>The brat knows the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, and his cultivation level isn¡¯t low! </em>Old Vulture immediately sensed that Long Chen was quite a terrifying opponent. shes of blood-red w Seals flew towards him, and every w Seal contained a blood-red dragon whose jaws were open, making them look terrifying. He could already sense the bloodlust within them before they even approached him!


    Old Vulture roared. His face changed and he waved his talons very quickly, creating Talon Seals that formed a web of lightning that flew toward Long Chen!


    <em>Sizzle!</em>


    Both seals collided, and everyone saw two silhouettes quickly moving within the countless ever-changing seals. It was impossible to tell them apart. Blood-red mes and blue lightning collided constantly!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w!¡± Old Vulture was an old man after all, and Long Chen knew that Old Vulture was no match for himself. His Soul Dispersing Dragon w was much more powerful than Old Vulture¡¯s attack, especially with the boost from the Golden Crow mes. Every time Old Vulture was hit once, the blood-red mes quickly wrapped around his body. Old Vulture spent a huge amount of essence to block off the mes!


    Beneath the Battle Emperor, the second strongest member of the Battle n was Old Vulture, who was the only Battle Saint. Long Chen¡¯s storm of attacks left the Battle Saint shouting with pain while constantly forcing him back!


    This fight had left everyone stunned, not just Old Vulture.


    When the Battle n¡¯s Battle Kings witnessed this, they had mixed feelings. What they wanted most was to question Old Vulture and ask why he would do such a thing. However, when they arrived, Old Vulture¡¯s crazed derations made them swallow their words. Right now, they could only watch to see what would happen!


    Thankfully, Lei Zhen was no longer in mortal danger. If he took some time to rest, he would heal from his injuries!


    Jiang Wuya should have been the one to deal with masters like the Old Vulture. However, Long Chen had stepped up, and he looked even more fierce than Jiang Wuya. Old Vulture was no match for him at all!


    <em>Does this mean that the second strongest member of the Dragon n isn¡¯t the Second Earthly Martial Stage Jiang Wuya, but Long Chen?! </em>Everyone was privately shocked!


    <em>His Soul Dispersing Dragon w has directly suppressed Old Vulture¡¯s Lightning Vulture Talons! Long Chen isn¡¯t just intelligent enough to expose Old Vulture and Lei Ming¡¯s plot, he is also a strong fighter. Is he also stronger than Jiang Wuya?</em>


    The Battle Kings started to analyze the situation.


    How would today¡¯s events end?


    At the end of the day, the Battle n considered the act of hurting a fellow n member to be a great tragedy. At first, they were stunned by Long Chen¡¯s strength, but then they looked at each other with heavy hearts, as they had to face the threat of the Martial Alliance.


    ¡°Your name is Long Chen, right? I must admit, you¡¯re strong! No First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator is your match!¡± There was a hint of panic in Old Vulture¡¯s voice. Due to the Golden Crow mes in Long Chen¡¯s Soul Dispersing Dragon w, his arm was almost crippled at this point!


    ¡°It¡¯s good that you know that! How dare you hurt my Fourth Brother?! Your life is mine today!¡± It was impossible to fend Long Chen off when he intended to kill.


    Old Vulture was going mad as the threat of Long Chen killing him loomed. His son was still with Jian Chen! If he did not fight as hard as he could today, neither of them would survive today!


    ¡°Everyone, die! Lightning Vulture Talons! Nine Soul Chasing Bolts!¡± He was cornered, and Old Vulture finally used his most powerful technique. A total of nine lightning Talon Seals shot at Long Chen from all directions.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡±


    Five dragons exploded from Long Chen¡¯s ws. Old Vulture was no match for his Soul Dispersing Dragon w, let alone the Five Piercing Dragons. The mighty Five Piercing Dragons flew at him menacingly.

 Chapter 597: Pride

    The terrifying attack directly shattered Old Vulture¡¯s attack, and the w Seals with five dragons quickly wrapped around him. Long Chen¡¯s next move would surely be able to tear Old Vulture to shreds!


    Long Chen had absolutely won this battle, defeating Old Vulture! Everyone understood that if Jiang Wuya was the one who had dealt with him, he would not have achieved this result without being harmed himself. This meant that Long Chen was likely the strongest person present!


    No one would have thought that this teenager would be able to achieve this!


    They recalled that yesterday, Long Chen had managed to escape from Zhao Danchen not due to luck, but because he was powerful!


    Jiang Wuya and Old Vulture were no longer the strongest in the Battle n¡ªLong Chen was!


    The members of the Dragon n looked at each other. They had not expected their youngest brother to be the strongest among them!


    When Long Chen was about to kill Old Vulture, Lei Zhen, who had regained consciousness, suddenly shouted, ¡°Seventh Brother, have mercy!¡±


    Although Long Chen had an endless desire to kill him, Lei Zhen was the victim and Long Chen had to listen to him. Though this did not mean that he had to let Old Vulture go lightly. When Lei Zhen shouted, Long Chen held back slightly, though his Soul Dispersing Dragon w directly severed several Martial Veins within Old Vulture¡¯s abdomen!


    If they were not treated as soon as possible, he would be a cripple. This also meant that he was temporarily incapacitated right now! Old Vulture cried out in pain and crashed into the ground, his blood dyeing the earth red. Of course, as a resilient Earthly Martial Realm cultivator, he would not die so easily.


    ¡°Father!¡± screamed Lei Ming, but Jian Chen hit him to knock him out. He knew that Lei Zhen had many questions for Old Vulture.


    When the bloody Old Vulturended on the ground, everyone waspletely quiet. They all looked at the blood-red figure standing in the middle, and their mouths ran dry. He had defeated Old Vulture at such a young age! If he continued to grow, he would be on the same level as ultimate prodigies like Zhao Danchen!


    This was hard to believe!


    Everyone looked at him with added reverence. After a long time, they woke up from the shock of his power and drew in sharp breaths as they watched Lei Zhen¡¯s next move.


    With Jiang Wuya¡¯s support, Lei Zhen walked up to Old Vulture¡¯s side, and everyone followed. At this moment, Old Vulture¡¯s eyes were zed over, his face was pale, and he was barely breathing. He struggled to flip his body over, then he stared at everyone with a bleak look in his eyes.


    ¡°Uncle Vulture, could you exin to your nephew why you did this?¡± Lei Zhen asked hoarsely. His eyes were fixed on Old Vulture and his expression was unreadable, but everyone could see that he was in great pain. This was a crucial moment that would determine the Battle n¡¯s survival, yet as the strongest member of the n, Old Vulture had decided to assassinate the n leader!


    ¡°Why?¡± Old Vulture started to chuckle, wincing from the pain. He looked at Lei Zhen coldly and said, ¡°You want to know why? I¡¯ll tell you, Lei Zhen! It¡¯s because you will cause the downfall of the whole n! You will destroy the whole n! You will be the great criminal that destroys generations of hard work!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you mean,¡± said Lei Zhen, shaking his head with confusion.


    ¡°You don¡¯t? Don¡¯t you act stupid!¡± Old Vulture spat on the ground.


    Lei Zhen sighed and stood up straight. ¡°Uncle, I get it now. You¡¯re upset that I¡¯m leading the Battle n to war against the Martial Alliance, right?¡±


    Old Vulture smirked with contempt and said, ¡°At least you''re smart. The Martial Alliance will follow the conditions of the three duels, but only to uphold their reputation. However, I know that you will never follow the conditions. The moment we lose, you will lead the whole n to war against them. I think that will be the day our whole n goes extinct!¡±


    Lei Zhen looked at him wistfully. ¡°Uncle, don¡¯t you understand that the Battle n lives to die in battle? Do you mean that you want the Battle n to submit to the Martial Alliance, bing their ves forever?¡±


    Old Vulture said coldly, ¡°What do you mean, ve? Being a ve is better than being dead, right? Why did I want to kill you? Because if you don¡¯t die, you will lead the whole n to their deaths. If you had died, I would¡¯ve been able to lead the whole n to join the Martial Alliance, thus giving us all a chance to live!¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Lei Zhen roared. His face was pulled tight and the tendons on his neck popped up. He clenched his fists tight and roared at Old Vulture, ¡°A chance to live!? What would that mean!? Bing the Martial Alliance¡¯s ves!? Or their dogs!? The Battle n is a wolf in the wilderness! We are proud and we never submit! If a wolf turns into a dog just to live, what right does he have to call himself a wolf?¡±


    He panted heavily, ring at Old Vulture as he continued yelling, ¡°Uncle, you don¡¯t understand that while our bodies would be alive if we submitted to the Martial Alliance, our spirits would be dead! We are the Battle n! We live to fight, and we will never submit! Death is not scary; the scary part is losing our souls to be walking corpses!¡±


    Lei Zhen pointed at his chest and said, ¡°Our ancestors have given us a strong backbone because they wanted us to live as free people who can stand up straight! Not because they wanted us to bend over and be dogs! If every warrior of the Battle n needs to give their lives to preserve our pride, all I can say is that I, Lei Zhen, will not regret it!¡±


    When Lei Zhen finished, the other six Battle Kings surrounded him, and everyone¡¯s eyes were blood-red. They gazed at Lei Zhen with determination and respect, saying, ¡°Broken jade is better than whole y! If the Battle n bes the Martial Alliance¡¯s dogs, we won¡¯t be able to call ourselves the Battle n¡ªwe will be the Dog n! Our ancestors gave us this life because they wanted us to conquer thends with glory, not for us to submit to other people! Old Vulture, I have always respected you, but if you want to be a dog of the Martial Alliance just because you¡¯re afraid of death, I will never forgive you!¡±


    ¡°We will never submit! If the enemy is powerful, they can destroy our bodies, but they will never break our spirit! If we die, we will go to hell and tell our ancestors with our heads held high that we died in battle!¡±


    ¡°A n that has lost its spirit cannot call itself a n. We are guarding our spirit! We will die with pride!¡±


    Every person¡¯s deration was a blow to Old Vulture.


    He had not felt much when Lei Zhen spoke alone, but when everyone told him the same thing, he slowly became more and more dejected.


    ¡°No! That¡¯s not right ¡­ This is not the way ¡­¡± Old Vulture shook his head fervently and red at everyone venomously. ¡°You will cause the downfall of the Battle n! You are all criminals!¡±


    Lei Zhen shook his head tiredly. ¡°Uncle, if you want the Battle n to be the Martial Alliance¡¯s ves, you are the true criminal. We are all proud people. If we are lucky enough to produce descendants, we want them to live dignified lives, not be someone else¡¯s dog the moment they are born. If that happens, I¡¯d rather they not be born at all!¡±


    Old Vulture¡¯s eyes widened as he looked at Lei Zhen and every Battle King. When he saw the determination and passion in their eyes, his heart went cold. As his gaze swept across each person, it ultimately fell on Long Chen, the one who had defeated him.


    Long Chen shook his head, looking at the defected old man. He had watched the whole argument, and as a whole, Long Chen respected Lei Zhen and the others. The idiom ¡°broken jade is better than whole y¡± was very fitting here.


    Long Chen stretched and said to the Old Vulture, ¡°Who said that the Battle n is sure to lose to the Martial Alliance? Even if we lose, we will make sure they end up in a worse state than us! They are strong, but how will we know who is stronger without a proper fight? Old Vulture, if we had not fought today, would you have known that I¡¯m stronger than you?¡±


    His words sessfully lifted the mood.


    Lei Zhen nodded. It was time for him to end today¡¯s matters. He hesitated for a while, as he did not really want to kill Old Vulture.


    ¡°Uncle, you tried to kill me and almost seeded. I will need to lock you up before the Battle n¡¯s major day. Once we survive this ordeal, I will decide what to do with you.¡±


    This was indeed a very generous sentence for him, but everyone knew that it was a little inappropriate to sentence Old Vulture to death when they were facing such a huge threat as a n.


    ¡°You¡¯re locking me up? How will I face anyone after what I¡¯ve done?¡± Old Vulture looked down and smiled like a madman. ¡°I did not seed today, so I must admit that you have won. However, Lei Zhen, even though I¡¯ll die today, you all will still be criminals!¡±


    Then Old Vulture pierced his own heart with his sharp talons.


    No one stopped him from killing himself. When Lei Zhen caught him, he had already stopped breathing.


    Everyone looked at each other.


    After a long time, Lei Zhen finally stood up and said tiredly, ¡°Old Vulture did not grow up in the Battle n, so he does not know what ¡®spirit¡¯ means to us.¡±


    ¡°He has always been the strongest member of the n. This is a huge pity.¡± The other Battle Kings shook their heads. They were all passionate men who respected Lei Zhen. Lei Zhen¡¯s courageous personality was the reason why they supported his bing the n leader.


    The matters of the day had finallye to an end.


    ¡°n Leader, are you still going to the Lightning Pool?¡± asked one of the Battle Kings.


    Lei Zhen shook his head and said, ¡°I¡¯m badly injured. I need ten days of rest to heal.¡±


    ¡°What will happen to the duel, then?¡± Lei Zhen was supposed to participate in the First Earthly Martial Stage duel.


    Lei Zhen grinned. Everyone followed his gaze and looked at Long Chen. Then everyone gave proud smiles too.

 Chapter 598: The Showdown

    Jiang Wuya said, ¡°If we let Long Chen participate in the First Earthly Martial Stage duel, we will win for sure. Long Chen is currently even stronger than I am, so it would be great if he could participate in the Second Earthly Martial Stage duel. It¡¯s too bad he¡¯s not at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    Everyone had decided to hand over the First Earthly Martial Stage duel to Long Chen.


    Long Chen suddenly cut him off and said, ¡°Everyone, I have another idea for the duel.¡±


    The crowd froze and Lei Zhen asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Long Chen pulled Xiang over and said, ¡°The bet is between experts of both sides. Although Xiang is a demonic beast, he is also considered an expert from our side. He is currently a Category One King-tier demonic beast. If he participates, I am confident that he will win!¡±


    Jian Chen and Lei Zhen were the only members of the group who had witnessed Xiang in battle before. When they were battling the Void Martial Saint, the most importantponent was actually his Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. It was also what chased Zhao Danchen awayst night.


    On top of that, Long Chen was endorsing him. That was why they did not doubt Xiang¡¯s strength. However, they did not understand why Long Chen did not want to participate in the duel.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, why can¡¯t you participate in the duel? Although Xiang is very strong, and we believe you, we feel that it will be an even more solid win if you go,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t Yang Ningfeng say we can send anyone for the third match because we have no Third Earthly Martial Stage people? I would like to participate in that duel. If Xiang or Second Brother don¡¯t seed, I would like to go for the final round!¡± Long Chen did not beat around the bush and directly told them his intentions.


    When he finished, everyone was impressed by his courage. They looked at each other and in the end, Jiang Wuya said, ¡°Seventh Brother, do you know how big the gap is between us and someone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage? Yang Ningfeng, the person who made the bet, will be the one fighting. He is Martial Emperor Yang Ningfeng, and you witnessed his capabilities at the Cloud Dream Swamp, right?¡±


    ¡°I have, and that is why I would like to go for the final match!¡± Long Chen said with determination. There was endless confidence in his tone.


    Everyone could see his determination when he answered.


    ¡°If you are confident Xiang can win the first match, I think this is worth trying,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    Everyone agreed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, everyone. It will be a simple matter for Xiang to win. Please believe me,¡± said Long Chen.


    He was not exaggerating. Not only did Xiang have the super-powerful Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he had also cultivated divinebat techniques. No human or beast in his tier was his match!


    With Long Chen¡¯s insistence, it had been decided. The three people who would participate would be Mo Xiang, Jiang Wuya, and Long Chen!


    Long Chen would face Yang Ningfeng, a Martial Emperor-level master who was the former Great Priest of the Wind God Sect!


    When everything was arranged, Lei Zhen buried Old Vulture in secret. This matter could not get out before the duel. As for Lei Ming, Lei Zhen could only lock him up for the moment.


    The battle had yet to begin, but the Battle n had already lost two great contributors. However, they had gained something new with the discovery of Long Chen¡¯s terrifyingbat abilities.


    The insignificant Seventh Brother had suddenly be the center of attention!


    Initially, Long Chen was supposed to escort the Battle n¡¯s children, but because he was going to participate in the duel, the task was assigned to Chi Ying.


    The Battle n graduallypleted their preparations for the day of the duels.


    During these few days, Long Chen fully immersed himself in cultivation to reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage. He let go of everything else and fully focused on progressing. Initially, he had nned to reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage before the duel.


    However, the difficulty of his goal far surpassed his expectations. It felt like a mountain in front of him, so close that he could almost touch it, but no matter how close he got, it felt so far away.


    <em>What will the pulse of the second stage feel like? </em>Within his room, Long Chen stepped on the ground with bare feet as he performed the Second Earthly Martial Stage¡¯s fist technique. He had long grown familiar with the fist technique, and he had prepared his mind. Thest step wasprehension.


    On thest day, Long Chen still had yet toprehend the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    <em>I thought I could reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage before the duel with Yang Ningfeng, but I failed ¡­ </em>Long Chen was slightly anxious and sad.


    He still did not understand how inhuman he was. He had only been attempting to reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage for a few weeks, yet he felt like his progress was too slow. Would the people stuck at the First Earthly Martial Stage for several years balk at his thoughts?


    Long Chen possessed mysterious treasures and he had seen more than most of the people in the Divine Martial Empire. That was why he did not feel like it was important. In reality, his cultivation speed was unheard of in the Divine Martial Empire!


    How would heplete thest step?


    Long Chen still could not grasp the essence of it.


    But the time of the duels had arrived.


    <em>I¡¯ll let this go for the moment. If Xiang and Second Brother win their duels, I won¡¯t even need to fight, </em>he thought in an attempt tofort himself.


    There was half a day left, so there was not enough time for him to cultivate more. Long Chen led Xiang to the ancestral mausoleum of the Battle n. Today, the masters of the Martial Alliance woulde to this ce to begin the duels!


    Before that, Lei Zhen hadpleted all the preparations for the n to fight the Martial Alliance in the ultimate war. They were in a dense forest, which was an advantageous battlefield for the Battle n. Although they had fewer fighters, the Martial Alliance would have to pay a hefty price to kill them all when they were spread out in the forest!


    The Battle n was both courageous and vicious, and it was made up of warriors. This was why Yang Ningfeng wanted them to submit in a manner that did not require military force. Of course, he had no idea that Lei Zhen was prepared to fight to the death if they lost.


    Since Lei Zhen was no longer worried about cultivating, he was able to make sure everything was in order. Every Battle n member was filled with courage and passion. The only thing left to do was wait for the final battle.


    Just as Lei Zhen had said, they were born to fight. Death was not suffering¡ªdeath was glory to them!


    When Long Chen arrived in front of the ancestral mausoleum, the rest were already prepared. Only experts at the Earthly Martial Realm were qualified to be here today. The Nine Fang Warriors, who were the elites of the n, were all proficient in battle and were very familiar with the terrain, so Lei Zhen did not want them to die here.


    The ancient mausoleum was located in a mountain, and it was also a forbidden area to them.


    In front of it was arge, empty patch ofnd. The Battle n members stood in front of their ancestors as they awaited the arrival of the Martial Alliance. This was the final battle for glory; the livelihood of the n depended on this!


    Even Long Chen felt a weight on his shoulders when he saw the hope in everyone¡¯s eyes, let alone Mo Xiang and Jiang Wuya, who would be fighting the main duels. In fact, their battles were the most crucial part. Long Chen¡¯s part was only the final struggle for life!


    There was not much of a problem with Xiang, but Long Chen was worried about Jiang Wuya. There were indeed Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators who were even scarier than Jiang Wuya in the Martial Alliance. It was difficult to say who had the absolute advantage; Jiang Wuya¡¯s victory was not certain!


    ¡°How have your preparations gone?¡± asked Lei Zhen when he saw Long Chen and Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯ll do our best,¡± Long Chen answered with a nod.


    ¡°Just do your best. Whether we live or die depends on the heavens ¡­¡± Lei Zhen chuckled bitterly. It was the key moment that would determine the fate of the n, so the mood was heavy and tinged with anxiety.


    However, when everyone noticed that they were surrounded by brothers who would fight side-by-side with them, passion filled their hearts!


    ¡°Let¡¯s not sulk so much! The Martial Alliance will look down on us! Brothers, if we die today, we will drag a few of them down with us!¡± Jiang Wuyaughed loudly.


    Everyone smiled, in full agreement.


    The Battle n members smiled gratefully at Jiang Wuya and the others.


    They all stood together, and time passed slowly. It was almost the agreed time.


    They had agreed to duel at noon!


    Long Chen looked up and saw that the sun was already at the center of the sky.


    Blood rushed through every warrior¡¯s heart!


    ¡°The time hase! They¡¯re here!¡± someone said. Everyone looked up and saw that beneath the blinding sunlight, a group of golden-robed men were flying above the dense forest. Their clothes fluttered loudly in the wind as they flew towards them!


    The two people leading them were Zhao Danchen, the one Long Chen had previously encountered, and Yang Ningfeng!


    Behind them were at least four Martial Saints and around ten Martial Kings. In terms of strength, they were superior to Long Chen¡¯s side, especially with two Martial Emperors! And one of them was the legendary Zhao Danchen!


    Previously, although Zhao Danchen had only casually used his Golden Eye of Annihtion, Long Chen knew exactly how terrifying his abilities were!


    As for Yang Ningfeng, he was a person who couldpete with Long Yue and was the former Great Priest of the Wind God Sect. How simple could a person like that be?


    And the four Martial Saints and ten-plus Martial Kings ¡­


    If they fought here, the Battle n would not end up on top.


    The Battle n members felt immense pressure.


    <em>Boom! Boom! Boom! </em>


    A cloud of dust flew in all directions when the Martial Alliance groupnded on the yellow soil fifty meters away.


    Beneath the sunlight, every Martial Alliance cultivator had a smile on his face. Zhao Danchen was in front, and he walked past Yang Ningfeng to the very front of the group, studying the Battle n members. He said with a grin, ¡°Cowards of the Battle n! I can¡¯t believe you guys actually dared to fight us!¡±

 Chapter 599: Golden Combat Body

    The stand-off between both sides began.


    After Zhao Danchen spoke in a contemptuous tone, the tension in the air rose. The Martial Alliance clearly did not take the Battle n seriously. That was why their icy expressions quickly turned into mocking sneers the moment they arrived.


    When Zhao Danchen called the Battle n cowards, they all burst out inughter, pointing at Lei Zhen and the others.


    ¡°Does the Martial Alliance need to resort to childish insults? The Martial Alliance is the number one faction of the Divine Martial Empire, yet your behavior is nothing but embarrassing. It really is difficult to believe,¡± Lei Zhen said after a cold chuckle.


    ¡°What?¡± Zhao Danchen had a personality simr to Long Chen¡¯s; he was more talkative and never lost a verbal fight. He continued, ¡°What do you mean, number one faction? There is only one faction in the whole Divine Martial Empire, and that is the Martial Alliance! The other factions are just our dogs! As for theughable Battle n, it will also soon be one of them.¡±


    The term ¡°dog¡± cut deep into the warriors¡¯ hearts. Every Battle n warrior¡¯s expression grew icy. There was a deep enmity between them!


    The Martial Alliance was the archnemesis of the Battle n!


    ¡°The duel has not begun; the results have not been set yet. Don¡¯t you celebrate too early,¡± said Jiang Wuya, who was standing next to Lei Zhen.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s gaze fell on Jiang Wuya. He suddenly thought of something andughed. ¡°Dragon n! You guys are clowns who think too highly of yourselves! If you weren¡¯t all cowards that did nothing but hide, you would have been dead by now! You guys are being very nosy here.¡± ¡°The Martial Alliance has always been arrogant; you have never taken anyone seriously. You, Zhao Danchen, are even more violent than the rest of the lot! We¡¯re here for no reason other than helping the heavens enforce justice!¡± Jiang Wuya said proudly.


    ¡°Helping the heavens enforce justice? Hahaha! Alright, Dragon n! It seems you¡¯re unaware, but your dragon has lost its head!¡± Zhao Danchen broke into the grin of a madman.


    The moment he said that, the whole Dragon n shuddered, including Long Chen. Did Zhao Danchen mean that Long Yue was dead? Everyone paled for a brief moment.


    ¡°Don¡¯t believe him! Don¡¯t let him get to you! Long Yue isn¡¯t stupid, how could she be killed?¡± Jiang Wuya said hurriedly, slowly pulling them out of their grief. They realized he was right; how could they trust what Zhao Danchen had said?


    When Zhao Danchen saw that their reactions were mild, heughed even more with a perverted look in his eyes. ¡°Looks like you don¡¯t believe me. That bitch Long Yue wanted to enter the Nine Spirit Purgatory to save her younger brother, but she didn¡¯t expect that it would alert my master, the Martial Overlord. How could she hope to run from someone as powerful as him? In the sky above Martial Overlord City, my master stripped Long Yue naked and humiliated her for three days and three nights! Then she killed herself! It was a magnificent sight! Just imagine ¡­ Beneath the beautiful moonlight, two naked bodies twisting in the air while ten thousand people watched from below ¡­¡±


    Zhao Danchen spoke with no restraint, and his words made every Dragon n member¡¯s eyes turn red. Their breathing grew rugged, especially Jiang Wuya¡¯s, whose eyes had turned blood-red. He was the one who cared most about Long Yue. If this was true, his world had copsed.


    Sky-high killing intent rose from every Dragon n member, with the strongest intenting from Jiang Wuya. He seemed to have lost his mind and turned into a crazed wild beast.


    There was no question that Jiang Wuya liked Long Yue, or he would not have betrayed the Ancient Demon Domain and be a stray together with her. Usually, he never spoke much with Long Yue, but Long Chen could tell that the look in his eyes resembled the way he looked at Ling Xi.


    It was loveing from the depths of the heart.


    That was why Zhao Danchen¡¯s words were a huge blow to Jiang Wuya.


    Long Chen panicked.


    ¡°That¡¯s nonsense! Who would believe your lies? If such a major thing had really happened, we would have learned about it a long time ago! Do you think you¡¯d be the one to tell us? Zhao Danchen, don¡¯t you need to think your lies through before telling them? And my Big Sister is no weakling! If she wanted to kill herself, do you think Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji would be able to stop her?¡± said Long Chen.


    He was the only one whose wits were still intact. He did not believe Zhao Danchen at all since there were simply too many ws in the story. Plus, it was clear that Zhao Danchen was only trying to affect the Dragon n¡¯sbat abilities.


    Long Chen¡¯s words sessfully snapped everyone to their senses. Jiang Wuya and the rest privately thought to themselves that it was close. If Long Chen had not spoken, they would have likely fallen into the trap. Long Yue had taken great care of them; if anything happened to her, they would likely lose their minds and pounce on Zhao Danchen immediately.


    And they would then fall into his trap.


    Zhao Danchen and Yang Ningfeng were two Martial Emperors of the Martial Alliance. Long Chen¡¯s team wasn¡¯t even close to their level. Zhao Danchen was an utterly shameless person.


    When Zhao Danchen saw that his trick had failed to work, he was not disappointed. Instead, he chuckled smugly. He said with a grin, ¡°It looks like at least one of you isn''t an idiot. Not bad, not bad! Your name is Long Chen, right? Probably a descendant of the Long family too. The Long family has three descendants, and two are already in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. They¡¯re probably going to be there for the rest of their lives!¡±


    Long Yue was also locked in the Nine Spirit Purgatory?


    That was probably true.


    If that was not the case, how would anyone know that Long Yue had gone to Martial Overlord City, considering how skillful she was at hiding? The only way Zhao Danchen could¡¯ve made up that story was if he knew that Long Yue had gone there.


    Jiang Wuya, Jian Chen, Long Chen, and the others looked at each other. Long Chen was more collected than the rest, and he was currently the strongest fighter on their side. Somehow, he had be the rock of the group, so he said, ¡°I don¡¯t care if that is true; we will deal with it after the duel! Zhao Danchen is a slippery trickster; we must not let this affect our duel! Big Sister may not be in trouble! We shouldn¡¯t worry when we don¡¯t know what the truth is!¡±


    Everyone nodded. What Long Chen had said made sense. Worrying now was useless as the Martial Alliance was a gigantic obstacle. Even the strongest among them, Long Chen, was far from their level! If Yang Ningfeng had not set up this bet to avoid using military force, they would not even be able to talk to these people!


    ¡°Especially you, Second Brother. You must trust Big Sister.¡± Long Chen was most worried that Jiang Wuya¡¯s mental state would affect him during his fight.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not a child,¡± Jiang Wuya said with a bitter smile, seeing as he was just lectured by Long Chen, who was twenty years younger than he was. He knew what he had to do.


    Long Chen did not want to give Zhao Danchen any more opportunities to trick them, so he said to the grinning Zhao Danchen directly, ¡°Since the time hase, let¡¯s not waste time talking. Let¡¯s begin the duels. I wonder, which First Earthly Martial Stage expert will represent the Martial Alliance?¡±


    Zhao Danchen was nonchnt. He had onlye here to hurt the Dragon n using Long Yue¡¯s situation. Now that his objective had been reached, he took several steps back, ignoring Long Chen. Yang Ningfeng was the one who had set this up; it was none of his business.


    <em>Snap! </em>


    A Martial King took out a luxurious,fortable chair and ced it behind Zhao Danchen. He then invited Zhao Danchen to sit down. Zhao Danchenyzily on this lounge chair-type seat, squinting. He took a nce at Yang Ningfeng and said, ¡°You¡¯re the one who made the bet, so you deal with it!¡±


    Although Zhao Danchen¡¯s tone was rude, the usually arrogant Yang Ningfeng did not dare rebuke him. He nodded obediently, then he prepared for the start of the duel.


    It was clear that although they were both Martial Emperors, the gap between their ranks was huge.


    They were at the came cultivation level; however, Zhao Danchen was a prodigy and the Martial Overlord¡¯s direct disciple. Was that enough for Zhao Danchen to order Yang Ningfeng around?


    Long Chen was puzzled, and when he saw Lan Ling¡¯er next to him, he asked, ¡°Sister Lan, how strong is Zhao Danchen if even Yang Ningfeng obeys him?¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er put on a look full of disgust. ¡°That brat is famous for being arrogant and violent; people get scared the moment his name is mentioned. He has done many terrifying things and is a very evil guy. However, he does indeed have the right to be arrogant, because he is very powerful. He is definitely number one out of the three Martial Emperors, and the Martial Alliance officially recognizes him as their second strongest member and the second strongest in the whole empire. If he wasn¡¯t, how could the old Battle Emperor have been killed by him?¡±


    ¡°Is that so ¡­¡± Long Chen and Zhao Danchen had a slight sh previously, but he did not know that this person was this strong.


    Lan Ling¡¯er gave a dejected look. ¡°If we lose the bet today, many people are going to be killed by Zhao Danchen, including you and me. Very few people in the whole Divine Martial Empire are a match for that psycho!¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen whispered.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen is very talented, and it is rumored that the Martial Emperor has passed down his intermediate King-tierbat technique, the Yellow Martial Divine Seal, to him! He has sessfully cultivated it, and what makes it more terrifying is the Golden Combat Body that he was born with! As his cultivation level rises, the Golden Combat Body strengthens. This not only strengthens his physical body to the level of an intermediate King-tier body tempering technique, it also allows him to use many divine techniques such as the Golden Eye of Annihtion!¡±

 Chapter 600: Yellow River Sword King

    This was the first time Long Chen had heard of a natural-bornbat body. Based on what Lan Ling''er had said, Long Chen¡¯s Constetion Combat Body, zing Thunder Combat Body, and True Martial Demon Body were all learned body tempering techniques, while Zhao Danchen was born with the Golden Combat Body?


    When Lan Ling''er saw the confusion in his eyes, she continued, ¡°Very few people have natural-bornbat bodies. Based on what I know, Zhao Danchen is the only one who has such an impressive quality in the whole Divine Martial Empire. He would not be this strong today without the Golden Combat Body, and the Martial Overlord might not take him in as his only direct disciple.¡±


    Long Chen had a rough idea of natural-bornbat bodies now. He had not seen anyone with one before. This meant that Zhao Danchen was indeed very strong! Long Chen knew that if he had to fight him, it would be certain death.


    However, in the face of such a terrifying enemy, Lei Zhen and the others still chose to fight till the end. This was proof of how courageous the Battle n was! Now he truly viewed death asing home!


    While Long Chen and Lan Ling''er conversed, the Martial Alliance¡¯s representative for the first duel had stepped forward. Wearing yellow robes, he was a very thin, very tall man, and there was an icy glint in his eyes. He looked like a sword, a very sharp sword!


    Of course, there was also a sword in his hand.


    ¡°Junior Brother ¡­¡± On Long Chen¡¯s other side, Jian Chen¡¯s brows were furrowed. He knew this man. He did not expect the representative for the first duel to be him.


    When Long Chen heard Jian Chen, he roughly guessed the yellow-robed cultivator¡¯s identity.


    Jian Chen said to them, ¡°That is the Void Martial Saint¡¯s disciple, and he is as strong as I am. Other people call him the Yellow River Sword King! The sword in his hand is the Yellow River Sword, which is from the same series as my Cloud Sword! He cultivates the Yellow River Sword Manual!¡± Yellow River Sword King.


    Jian Chen was considered strong among First Earthly Martial Stage cultivators, seeing as he was a true Sword Warrior. If he said that the Yellow River Sword King was as strong as he was, then the result would be unpredictable if Lei Zhen went up against him. Victory would not be certain.


    However, since they were going to send Mo Xiang instead, everything would be different.


    The moment the Yellow River Sword King stepped into the space, his sword-like re fell on Jian Chen and he said coldly, ¡°You, the traitor who betrayed our n and killed our master! I know you¡¯re here to duel, so you¡¯d better get the fuck over here! It was very difficult for me to get this chance, and it was all to kill you, Jian Chen!¡±


    His voice was hoarse and cold, like a sword piercing through the crowd. Just based on his voice, it was clear that he was not weak.


    But did he think that they were sending Jian Chen to fight?


    He was very, very wrong. Although Jian Chen was strong, victory would not be guaranteed if he stepped up. ¡°You¡¯re thinking too much. The Dragon n and the Battle n have countless masters and experts. They would not send me out there to embarrass myself! We naturally have experts capable of dealing with you! Also, don¡¯t you pin me as a traitor! You people have done nothing for me! In fact, there is enmity between us! Why can¡¯t I kill you too?¡±


    Jian Chen did not feel any guilt at all over the Void Martial Saint¡¯s death!


    ¡°You!¡± Jian Chen¡¯s words stunned the Yellow River Sword King. They all thought Jian Chen would be the one fighting, but there was someone else! Lei Zhen? Lei Zhen seemed to be strong enough, but he was the current n leader. Would they let him take this risk? What if he died?


    They did not state that killing was forbidden in the duel.


    The Martial Alliance¡¯s gazes fell on Lei Zhen. To their surprise, Lei Zhen did not move. Instead, an unknown, beautiful teenager next to Long Chen stepped forward.


    Long Chen patted Mo Xiang¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°Win as fast as you can!¡±


    Mo Xiang nodded and chuckled lightly. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Big Brother. A mere Martial King is nothing to me.¡±


    When Mo Xiang was twenty meters away from the Yellow River Sword King, the Martial Alliance members were finally sure that the Yellow River Sword King¡¯s opponent was going to be this unknown brat.


    The Martial Kings and Martial Saints burst intoughter, holding their bellies. Even Yang Ningfeng smirked and said, ¡°Have the Battle n and the Dragon n run out of people? Why did you send a random brat to us? It looks like you¡¯re going to admit defeat. You should let Jian Chen do it so you don¡¯t be sore losers.¡±


    The only person who did notugh was Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°We won¡¯t be changing our representative, but if Martial Emperor Yang is not satisfied, he can change his representative,¡± Lei Zhen said loudly.


    Yang Ningfeng froze, unable to figure out what they were plotting.


    Zhao Danchen privately cursed Yang Ningfeng for being an idiot and said, ¡°Why has the Battle n sent a demonic beast? Did we say we can send demonic beasts in the bet?¡± He was not actually familiar with the conditions that the idiot Yang Ningfeng had set for the battle. All he knew was that when Xiang was in his Sun Devouring Wolf form, the mes he had spat out were quite powerful!


    Even he was terrified of them!


    ¡°He¡¯s a demonic beast?¡± Everyone was stunned, and upon closer inspection, they realized that the beautifully handsome teenager emitted a faint trace of Demonic Qi.


    After taking a human form, demonic beasts often retained a small part of their beastly characteristics. It was rare for them to look like Xiang. In terms of handsomeness, Xiang was clearly the best-looking person present. When they realized that they were not even as good-looking as a beast, they were in disbelief.


    ¡°Demonic beast?¡± The Yellow River Sword King was also studying Mo Xiang. No matter how hard he looked, he felt like Mo Xiang would never hurt a soul.


    He did not care if this was a beast or not. Since Jian Chen wasn¡¯ting, he needed to win this battle.


    On Long Chen¡¯s side, Lei Zhen refuted Zhao Danchen¡¯s question. ¡°When we set the conditions of the bet, we did not say we could not send demonic beasts. Demonic beasts have always been a huge part of our forces in the Battle n, so of course our beasts can participate! Unless ¡­ Zhao Danchen, are you afraid of us beating you?¡±


    Lei Zhen¡¯s mocking question forced Zhao Danchen to swallow his words. He eyed Xiang, toozy to care, and said, ¡°Whatever. If you win the first round, does that automatically mean you¡¯ll win the second?¡±


    The Martial Alliance members did not understand why Zhao Danchen would make himself look bad before the duel even began. The Yellow River Sword King thought Zhao Danchen was underestimating him, which made him upset. He pulled the jade-like Yellow River Sword, which was shining a mud-yellow-colored light, out of its sheath and said coldly, ¡°I don¡¯t care if this is a human or beast; it makes no difference to me! I, the Yellow River Sword King, will not show mercy. Since you have chosen toe to this duel, then prepare to be killed by me!¡±


    The corners of Mo Xiang¡¯s lips curled up. He did not move; he merely looked at his opponent. His calm look made the Yellow River Sword King feel like he was being disrespected, and it was a little shameful to be looked down on by a beast!


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± With a cry, the Yellow River Sword King turned into a yellow sword shadow and pounced at Mo Xiang! The moment he moved, Long Chen could tell that the Yellow River Sword King was on par with Jian Chen in terms of both speed andbat abilities!


    Bright sword lights and a cloud of dust flew towards Mo Xiang, clouding his vision!


    Mo Xiang kept Long Chen¡¯s reminder in mind¡ªwin as fast as he could. He wanted Xiang tounch his fatal strike as soon as possible, resulting in a quick win to prevent unexpected situations that could possibly branch out into further problems. The moment the Yellow River Sword King moved, Mo Xiang growled. After a bout of ck mes, a tall Sun Devouring Wolf was standing in front of the Yellow River Sword King. The Yellow River Sword King looked pitiful and tiny next to the wolf!


    ¡°Do you think being huge will work? You¡¯ll still die!¡± The Yellow River Sword Kingughed, and his Sword Qi howled like the wind. There was a buzzing sound in the air, then he waved his sword and ran up to Mo Xiang¡¯s head!


    ¡°Yellow River Sword Manual! Nine Turning Rivers!¡± He turned his sword, which turned into a sharp whirlpool flying towards Xiang¡¯s head. The pressure was immense!


    The Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s eyes were filled with pitch-ck mes. He quickly took several steps back, and his gigantic shadow turned into another ck wolf, which bared its teeth and attacked the sword king!


    <em>Boom! Boom! Boom! </em>


    The crazed sword shadow exchanged attacks with Xiang¡¯s demonic clone at high speeds. Every time they collided, sparks flew!


    ¡°What the hell is this?!¡± The Yellow River Sword King did not recognize the Demonic Illusion, but if he did, he would be even more shocked. Xiang¡¯s clone was almost as strong as his original body, which was why it could fight him directly!


    While his clone was upying the Yellow River Sword King, the wolf suddenly appeared in the air above him, and a mouthful of Nine Devil Ancestral Fire fell from above like a tidal wave!


    Stepping on ck mes, Xiang stood up in the air, showing that a King-tier demonic beast had the ability to fly.


    ¡°What kind of fire is this?!¡± While fighting the demonic clone, the Yellow River Sword King suddenly felt a cold gust when the wolf suddenly sprayed fire at him!


    To his knowledge, fire was supposed to be hot, but this fire was cold! Although it was abnormal, the Yellow River Sword King did not dwell on it, treating it as one of Xiang¡¯s attacks. He quickly used his sword techniques to force the demonic clone back temporarily!

 Chapter 601: Swallowing Heaven and Earth

    At the same time, his sword turned into an illusion, turning into a huge umbre that wrapped around him!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    A huge amount of roaring Nine Devils Ancestral Fire poured down, drowning out the Yellow River Sword King. In the beginning, the sword illusions forced the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire out, but tragedy soon struck!


    Although it was only Mo Xiang¡¯s clone controlling the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, it was very powerful. It was ancient fire after all; how could the Yellow River Sword King hide from it just by waving his sword? Even Zhao Danchen dared not touch the mes when hest encountered them, choosing to run away!


    ¡°Ahhh!¡± An earth-shattering scream came from within the burning mes, sending chills down everyone¡¯s spines. The Martial Alliance members initially wanted to save him, but they were toote. When the fire died down, only a ck ice sculpture, so intricate that it looked alive, remained at the spot where the Yellow River Sword King used to be. The sculpture was him.


    Everyone felt a chill in their core. His face was frozen in a screaming expression, his mouth was wide open, and his eyes were fixed in the direction of the Sun Devouring Wolf. They could even see the disbelief in his eyes!


    That was the might of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    Other than Zhao Danchen, no one in the Martial Alliance had expected this to happen.


    As everyone stared in shock, Xiang gentlynded on the ground and retracted his demonic clone. He then returned to his human form, and after ncing approvingly at his work with his pure and calm eyes, he returned to Long Chen¡¯s side without saying a word. ¡°Nice one, Brother!¡± Long Chen chuckled, pping his chest.


    When Mo Xiang received Long Chen¡¯s affirmation, he smiled and said, ¡°After being with you for so long, wouldn¡¯t I embarrass you if I couldn¡¯t even beat a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator?¡±


    Every Martial Alliance member¡¯s expression darkened when they heard the brazen conversation between them. The Yellow River Sword King¡¯s body, which still stood in front of them, was the biggest blow to them. They had been smug from the moment they arrived, but after losing the first duel, they felt like they had been pped across the face.


    ¡°That didn¡¯t count! This is supposed to be a duel between humans; how could they send a demonic beast?!¡± someone from the Martial Alliance said indignantly.


    ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± yelled Yang Ningfeng. They had lost the first duel, and he was feeling the heat. The next duel was crucial. The Martial Alliance only had to win one of the first two duels to win the battle. If they won the second round, then they would win the bet, though the same could be said for the other side. As for the third duel¡ªwho even thought it would happen?


    This was just a method they were using to mock the Battle n.


    Zhao Danchen red at him coldly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t embarrass us. Begin the second duel!¡±


    Then he gently stepped on the ground, and the ck ice sculpture turned into ck ice shavings. Soon, they melted into a puddle of water.


    Zhao Danchen was unquestionably vicious.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, I¡¯ve got to say that sending Xiang was the right choice. He has gotten us our first point! Good one!¡± Lei Zhen could not help but give them a thumbs up.


    They had won the first round, so everyone was in a good mood. They only had to hold on for the second round, and the Battle n would win. This meant that they would likely avoid war and the Martial Alliance would be forced to leave empty-handed.


    Everything was up to Jiang Wuya now.


    All eyes were on Jiang Wuya. Long Chen said, ¡°Second Brother, do your best, but remember that staying alive is the most important thing. If you can¡¯t do it, just admit defeat and I¡¯ll try my luck in the third round!¡±


    Long Chen was hoping that there would be no need for a third round. He would only risk his life if there was no other choice.


    ¡°There will be no need for a third round. If any one of us goes for the third round, we¡¯ll only be giving Yang Ningfeng a chance to kill us. Don¡¯t worry, I will surely win this!¡± Jiang Wuya said with determination. He nodded at the group, then he turned and casually walked into the ring.


    Jiang Wuya was the only Second Earthly Martial Stage from the Battle n¡¯s side, so the Martial Alliance knew that he would be sent forward.


    When he arrived in the center, Jiang Wuya¡¯s gaze swept across their group and he asked, ¡°Who¡¯sing?¡±


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s lips curled into a cold smirk. He waved and said, ¡°Jiang Kun, you go!¡±


    This time, he sounded much more confident.


    ¡°Jiang Kun?¡± Long Chen had never heard of him before. One of the four Martial Saints stepped forward. Although he was also wearing golden-yellow robes, perhaps due to their age, they looked quite tattered.


    ¡°Jiang Kun? He¡¯s considered a mysterious Martial Saint, and it is very rare for him to make an appearance. I hear that he¡¯s very powerful, but no one has ever seen him before. He has a nickname¡ªMartial Lunatic!¡±


    Martial Lunatic, Jiang Kun!


    Anyone who had a nickname like that was sure to have something extraordinary about them. Long Chen¡¯s brows furrowed as he sensed a thick, bloody auraing from Jiang Kun. The bloody auraing from Long Chen was from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, while Jiang Lun¡¯s aura was filled with pure violence.


    Jiang Kun, who looked like a beggar with his disheveled hair, stood twenty meters away from Jiang Wuya. His eyes were zed and his mouth was slightly agape, resembling a walking corpse. Everyone was privately shaken by his dead appearance.


    ¡°Jiang Kun?¡± Jiang Wuya¡¯s eyebrows were furrowed too. He knew the least about Jiang Kun out of the four Martial Saints.


    The two of them entered their battle stances. The man named Jiang Kun looked up and stared a little woodenly at Jiang Wuya. Suddenly, killing intent erupted from him!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Jiang Kun exhaled a white mist and clenched his fists!


    Jiang Wuya was not scared, as he also practiced a fist technique. Jiang Wuya¡¯s best attack was the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s Ancient Demon Punch, and he was much better at it than Jiang Wushang.


    His fingers curled into a fist!


    The flow of essence sped up within his body!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Suddenly, both parties moved at the same time and collided in the next second. Then they started their storm of attacks!


    Jiang Wuya¡¯s Ancient Demon Punch was a very powerful fist technique that focused on strength. On the other hand, a gray mist flowed across Jiang Kun¡¯s body, and he utilized a very strange punching technique! The battle between them suddenly intensified due to Jiang Kun¡¯s crazed manner! In just a few seconds, they had already exchanged dozens of attacks!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    Their fists collided and they both separated, then they quickly fought again!


    The dynamic was imbnced between Xiang and the Yellow River Sword King, so the winner had been determined very quickly. However, this battle looked like a stalemate.


    ¡°Ancient Demon Punch, Layered Demon Shadow!¡±


    During the battle, Jiang Wuya¡¯s expression was calm. When he had the slight upper hand, he quickly retracted his fist and punched. Behind him, the gust of wind that came with his punch turned into an illusory image as the earth-shattering punch flew towards Jiang Kun!


    <em>Crack, crack, crack, crack! </em>


    The wind left behind a trail of explosions. Although Earthly Martial Realm battles were not very dramatic, the might of a punch could not be underestimated!


    ¡°Soul Confusion Step!¡± There were several whooshes while Jiang Kun quickly moved with his head down. He dodged left and right in front of Jiang Wuya, so thetter¡¯s powerful punchnded on nothing. Despite this, Jiang Kun was still not the winner!


    The battle continued to intensify.


    ¡°The Martial Alliance decided to send Jiang Kun forward instead of the other three Martial Saints. There must be something different with him. But what is it?¡± Long Chen observed Jiang Kun¡¯s fight carefully but could not find anything. Although he was indeed powerful, there was nothing shocking about him!


    ¡°Second Brother seems to be dealing with his attacks just fine. What¡¯s going on?¡± Although it looked like it was a draw, Jiang Wuya had a subtle upper hand in this battle.


    On the other side, Yang Ningfeng¡¯s brows were slightly furrowed. He thought to himself, <em>Jiang Wuya is much stronger than I expected. I thought he was only average, but he is actually close to the Third Earthly Martial Stage. He justcks an opportunity to advance. It looks like I¡¯m going to lose Jiang Kun this time ¡­ </em>


    Just as Yang Ningfeng thought this, Jiang Wuya had sessfully suppressed Jiang Kun, who was still raining down attacks. Both of them were very strong, but Jiang Wuya was slightly better!


    The closer he got to victory, the more careful he became!


    ¡°Ancient Demon Punch, Swallowing Heaven and Earth!¡± Jiang Wuya took a deep breath, and essence surged through his eighteen Martial Veins. He threw a punch, and the image of the Ancient Demon appeared behind him one more time. This time, a gigantic mouth appeared!


    Along with Jiang Wuya¡¯s punch, the mouth flew together with the shadow of his fist. This punch looked like a ck whirlpool flying towards his opponent!


    ¡°Die!¡± Jiang Kun had no intention of retreating in the face of an attack like that. Just like Jiang Wuya, he threw a punch at him. It looked normal, but it contained all the essence in his body!


    ¡°Heaven Soaring Punch!¡±


    This punch was powerful. Like a mighty stallion, Jiang Kun collided with Jiang Wuya¡¯s attack!

 Chapter 602: Corpse Transformation

    Unlike the first duel, the second duel was a rollercoaster of emotions. Mo Xiang had quickly ended the fight, while the second duel was much more crucial because it would decide the result of the bet and also the fate of countless people!


    Everyone watched anxiously as they fought. Jiang Wuya¡¯s Ancient Demon Punch was an intermediate King-tier technique, which was slightly better than what Jiang Kun had, so it directly sent Jiang Kun flying. After bearing the immense force of the attack, blood sprayed out of Jiang Kun¡¯s mouth and he crashed, tumbling several times!


    Had Jiang Wuya won just like that?


    The Battle n and the Dragon n were stunned, though that sentiment quickly turned to joy. Didn¡¯t this mean that they no longer had to go to war?


    Hadn¡¯t victorye just a bit too early?


    Long Chen did not believe that it had ended so easily. While everyone was prepared to cheer, his eyes were fixed on Jiang Kun. To prevent any unexpected idents, Jiang Wuya was prepared to strike Jiang Kun again. Suddenly, Jiang Kun leaped up to his feet.


    Blood continued to flow down the corner of his mouth, but it was as if Jiang Kun waspletely unaware of it. An animalistic glint shone in his eyes, as if he had turned into a fierce wild beast!


    He was injured, so how was he able to jump up so quickly?


    The excitement in their hearts died down when he leaped up. Jiang Kun¡¯s features twisted in a menacing manner, and he looked strange. Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what was happening. ¡°I don¡¯t want to die, but I must not lose! You¡¯ve forced me to do this!¡± Jiang Kun suddenly said with an evil sneer. He then lowered his head.


    Long Chen¡¯s team did not know what he meant, but everyone¡¯s chest tightened, especially Jiang Wuya¡¯s. Victory was within his grasp, and he did not dare let his guard down at such a critical moment!


    Jiang Wuya charged at Jiang Kun as if nothing had happened. The image of his fist turned intoyers of images as they flew towards Jiang Lun!


    Swallowing Heaven and Earth had sessfully hurt Jiang Kun once, so Jiang Wuya believed that he could beat him twice or thrice if needed!


    However, when Jiang Wuya was about to attack, Jiang Kun let out a furious roar. Everyone saw him transform right before their eyes!


    His body was withering!


    He was thin to begin with, but his flesh quickly withered until he was like a skin-wrapped skeleton. Green smoke rose from his body, and the smell of rot filled the air!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Jiang Kun looked up. There was not a hint of flesh on his face, and his eyeballs rolled within their sockets, making him look like a skeleton with just ayer of skin! When he bared his teeth, he looked terrifying!


    ¡°What just happened?!¡± Everyone on the Battle n¡¯s side was shocked by Jiang Kun¡¯s transformation, including Long Chen. All he knew was that since Yang Ningfeng had sent Jiang Kun, he would be a difficult opponent to beat!


    As expected, when Jiang Kun was about to lose, this transformation happened!


    ¡°Corpse Transformation!¡± Lan Ling¡¯er suddenly cried out. She was more well-traveled than the other people after all.


    Everyone quickly looked at her and asked, ¡°Corpse Transformation? What does it do?¡±


    There was panic and worry in her eyes when she said, ¡°Corpse Transformation is a divinebat technique that has long gone extinct in the Divine Martial Empire. It is an evil technique that burns up the user¡¯s blood, flesh, internal organs, and all their essence, turning them into fuel for his final fight. Corpse Transformation multiplies the user¡¯sbat abilities by five times, but he will die!¡±


    Increase by five times?


    Jiang Kun was only slightly weaker than Jiang Wuya, so if he became five times stronger, how would Jiang Wuya hold him off?


    Jiang Wuya, however, did not back down. Although he had heard Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s exnation, the future of the Battle n was in his hands, so how could he back down now?


    ¡°Five times ¡­¡± Jiang Wuya clenched his teeth. <em>Five times is enough for Jiang Kun to kill me. I will just have to do my best! Even if I die, I must not lose! </em>


    He knew the consequences of failure. If he lost, tens of thousands of lives would be taken because of him. There was a huge weight on his shoulders!


    <em>I cannot lose! I absolutely cannot! </em>He clenched his fist and warned himself. He had just been a step away from victory. He must not back down now!


    ¡°Second Brother, yield!¡± When Lei Zhen heard Lan Ling¡¯er, he knew what to do. He could sense the power radiating from Jiang Kun. That man was as strong as a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator¡ªhow could Jiang Wuya hold up against him?


    Lei Zhen had prepared himself to fight to the end of his life.


    He had been prepared since ten days ago!


    ¡°I¡¯ll keep going,¡± Jiang Wuya said in a t voice.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    He disappeared, then he reappeared. He brought with him the power of the heavens and earth with his Swallowing Heaven and Earth technique as he flew at Jiang Kun. A ck whirlpool turned into a Fist Seal and flew at Jiang Kun!


    <em>Roar! </em>


    The withered Jiang Kun let out a beast-like roar. He opened his mouth to reveal a rotten tongue and green slime.


    When he exhausted his power, he would die!


    It now depended on whether Jiang Wuya could survive until then!


    Jiang Kun punched and collided with Jiang Wuya¡¯s fist!


    <em>Crack, crack! </em>


    Jiang Wuya cried out in pain and was thrown into the air.


    Not only was Jiang Kun fast, his strength had reached a level that was difficult for Jiang Wuya to deal with. His immense strength had directly shattered most of the bones in Jiang Wuya¡¯s arm. He would have to rely on spiritual medicine to heal.


    After this attack, Jiang Wuya had already lost all use of one arm!


    ¡°Second Brother, yield!¡± This time, Lei Zhen was not the only one. Everyone else¡¯s faces changed too and quickly begged Jiang Wuya to yield.


    Jiang Wuya was no match for Jiang Kun in this form!


    ¡°No! He cannot go on for long in that state! I only have to hold on a little longer, and we¡¯ll win!¡± Jiang Wuya stabilized himself. Although he felt pain in his arm, he did not even furrow his brows!


    He had to hold it in!


    Blood dripped from his arm.


    He hung his head, ring coldly at Jiang Kun, who was looking at him with contempt.


    ¡°When you have to rely on a method like that, what¡¯s there to be smug about even if you beat me?¡± Jiang Wuya gave a mocking smirk.


    Jiang Kun did not speak, but Yang Ningfeng spoke on his behalf with a smile. ¡°You guys used a loophole to send a beast to fight, so why can¡¯t I let Jiang Kun use his Corpse Transformation? Haha, we all only care about the results. And the result is: the Martial Alliance wins!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s too early to talk about such things!¡± Jiang Wuya said coldly.


    As he spoke, Jiang Kun was already charging at him. Jiang Wuya knew that he was no match in terms of strength, so all he could do was drag out the fight!


    But how much time could he buy?


    Not only was Jiang Kun stronger, he was also very fast! When he gave chase, Jiang Wuya fled for his life, but Jiang Kun immediately caught up to him due to therge gap in speed!


    ¡°Haha! Die!¡± A simple punchnded on Jiang Wuya¡¯s back!


    Jiang Wuya gasped and could only turn to block with his arms. Jiang Kun was just too strong, so the punch threw Jiang Wuya into the air.


    <em>Crack, crack! </em>


    The sound of breaking bones rang out as Jiang Wuya tumbled on the ground. His arms were bloody, clearly crippled momentarily.


    ¡°Second Brother!¡± Everyone gasped and quickly rushed forward topletely surround Jiang Wuya. His face was pale, but he still managed to prop himself up. He struggled to stand and roared, ¡°Everyone, get out! The fight has not ¡­¡±


    Although he was severely injured, he did not give up


    <em>m! </em>


    Long Chen struck the back of his neck. Jiang Wuya¡¯s eyes widened and he fainted, falling into Long Chen¡¯s arms. Long Chen gave everyone a look, and they quickly backed away, bringing Jiang Wuya with them.


    ¡°Roar!¡± Jiang Kun roared furiously and charged towards Jiang Wuya among the crowd.


    ¡°What is going on? Are you guys breaking the rules?¡± cried Yang Ningfeng.


    Long Chen stepped forward and said, ¡°We admit defeat for the second round. There was no condition in the bet that stated we must fight to the death, right? So if Jiang Kun moves, don¡¯t me us for what we do to him!¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± The Battle n had killed their previous candidate, the Yellow River Sword King, so Yang Ningfeng would never get to vent his anger if they did not kill Jiang Wuya. Since Jiang Kun had gone mad and was difficult to control, Yang Ningfeng did notmand him to stop, using this as an opportunity to kill Jiang Wuya!


    ¡°Damn it! Xiang!¡± Long Chen¡¯s brows were furrowed. Xiang was ready and immediately spat out his Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, forming a gigantic fireball that wrapped around the group!


    Jiang Kun would have to pass through the fireball to attack Jiang Wuya!


    <em>Poof! </em>


    Their world went dark and they were plunged into the cold. At the same time, they heard a sizzling sound. Jiang Kun, who was covered in patches of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, had rushed in!

 Chapter 603: Insults

    Jiang Kun withstood the ravaging of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire with his great strength, but then Xiang concentrated the mes all on Jiang Kun.


    Long Chen had notified the other party that they had admitted defeat for the second round. Since Jiang Kun continued to attack, then they could not me him for taking action. Despite Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Jiang Kun had decided to rush in.


    Considering his speed, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire might not have been able to catch up to him in a real confrontation. However, he had rushed into it on his own ord, so this was a whole different matter.


    The furious roars of a wild beast rang from within the mes, and after a few times, the roars disappearedpletely. When Xiang retracted the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, only a hyperrealistic ice sculpture of Jiang Kun remained.


    The Dragon n and the Battle n huddled close together as they eyed the Martial Alliance, awaiting their next move.


    This time, the Martial Alliance was the one who did not follow the rules, so it was none of their business.


    However, the Martial Alliance had always been arrogant, so why would they care?


    Every Martial Alliance member present was furious at Jiang Kun¡¯s death. When Yang Ningfeng saw it, he first calmed them down then said coldly, ¡°Battle n, you have intervened in the duel and even killed our Martial Saint. I think that¡¯s against the rules.¡±


    ¡°We admitted defeat, yet Jiang Kun continued to attack. He was the one who broke the rules first, and we had to kill him because we didn¡¯t have a choice. Anyone who saw it would understand, yet you¡¯re trying to distort the truth, Martial Emperor Yang. Aren¡¯t you afraid that the heroes of the world willugh at you?¡± Long Chen said with a smile. After Jiang Wuya fainted, Long Chen became their rock, especially after they saw him and Xiang working together to kill Jiang Kun.


    ¡°Also, everyone knows that even if we hadn¡¯t done anything, Jiang Kun would¡¯ve died after a while due to his technique,¡± he added.


    Yang Ningfeng had never been good at banter, so he was left speechless by Long Chen¡¯s argument. He looked at Zhao Danchen, silently asking for help. Zhao Danchen¡¯s face turned green as he yelled, ¡°Don¡¯t you waste any more time! Haven¡¯t we won? Ask them if they are submitting to us! If they don¡¯t, we¡¯ll attack!¡±


    Zhao Danchen was always pro-war and did not care what the cost was. He would¡¯ve been happier to kill off the whole Battle n, yet Yang Ningfeng had set this bet, which restricted what he could do. If he didn¡¯t have to take the Martial Alliance¡¯s reputation into consideration, he would have invaded already!


    Yang Ningfeng quickly nodded in an ingratiating manner, then he red at Long Chen¡¯s party and said loudly, ¡°In that case, we will not dwell on the matter. However, you have already lost the bet. Good men of the Battle n, from today onwards, the Battle n shall submit to the Martial Alliance! You will be under the control of the Martial Alliance! True men are true to their word. I believe that n Leader Lei Zhen isn¡¯t an imbecile who breaks his promises, right?¡±


    This moment came after all!


    A look of tired eptance shed across every person¡¯s face.


    Yang Ningfeng did not understand the Battle n and thought that they were going to submit to them. In reality, they were epting the fact that the final war was about to begin!


    Deep breaths.


    They had to wait for Lei Zhen to make the final decision. Lei Zhen was now the n leader, so no matter what he said, the six Battle Kings would obey him.


    Looking at Jiang Wuya¡¯s injuries and the Martial Alliance¡¯s looks of contempt, Lei Zhen clenched his fists. Everyone knew that he had made his decision.


    The tension in the air was broken by a cold voice.


    ¡°Who said that we have already lost? Isn¡¯t there supposed to be three rounds? Don¡¯t we have one round left?¡±


    It was Long Chen¡¯s voice. Everyone turned to look at him. Long Chen looked up with fierce violence in his eyes. His voice was filled with determination.


    Long Chen knew that Lei Zhen and the rest would forget about thest fight. After Jiang Wuya lost, they thought that the Battle n had lost. Thest fight was the Third Earthly Martial Stage fight after all. They did not want Long Chen to take the risk, as it was an impossible fight!


    ¡°Seventh Brother, forget about it!¡± advised Lei Zhen, grabbing Long Chen¡¯s arm.


    ¡°Starting a war will likely end with death. Let me try; there might be a way!¡± Long Chen said gently as he gently pushed Lei Zhen¡¯s hand off. Everyone wanted to say something, but they didn¡¯t; they watched as he walked up to the Martial Alliance!


    Everyone wanted to call him back, but when they saw how determined he was, they realized their words were stuck in their throats and remained silent.


    Resilience. Refusal to submit. They saw a spirit even more authentic than that of a Battle n member within him!


    ¡°My good brother! Do your best!¡± The look of worry in Lei Zhen¡¯s eyes turned into passion! Long Chen¡¯s decisive footsteps ignited the fires within all of them!


    Be courageous! View death asing home!


    Long Chen walked up to the Martial Alliance, passing the ice sculpture of Jiang Kun. Without an expression, he gently flicked the ice sculpture, and it turned into a ck powder that slowly fluttered to the ground.


    The master hadpletely disappeared from this world. Nothing of him remained.


    The moment Jiang Kun used Corpse Transformation, he was fated to die. It was a simr technique to Blood Sacrifice, but Long Chen¡¯s Blood Sacrifice was countless times superior.


    He looked up at the Martial Alliance. Although they were all powerful, he did not avoid their gazes at all!


    Forward!


    The people behind him quietly cheered him on in their hearts!


    The injured Jiang Wuya slowly closed his eyes and his lips moved gently. ¡°Seventh Brother is a good man. He will avenge us ¡­¡±


    ¡°But ¡­¡± Everyone hoped that Long Chen would survive, but was that possible? The Battle n had killed two people from the Martial Alliance. If Yang Ningfeng had the advantage in the battle, why would he ever let Long Chen live?


    Long Chen did not overthink this. He did not think about the results; he only knew that if he beat Yang Ningfeng, the Martial Alliance would get out of this ce!


    That was why he had to fight!


    The Martial Alliance was a little puzzled by his actions.


    Yang Ningfeng arched an eyebrow and said, ¡°Lei Zhen, what is the meaning of this? I asked you to submit, but you sent us a brat?¡±


    Long Chen did not wait for Lei Zhen to speak and said, ¡°What, submit? We¡¯ve agreed to three matches, and only two have taken ce. Yang Ningfeng, stop spouting nonsense and let¡¯s fight!¡±


    The Martial Alliance first smiled at Long Chen¡¯s arrogance, then they burst intoughter. Initially, the two deaths had angered them, but Long Chen¡¯s words made them so happy that they forgot about their grudges ¡­


    ¡°What did you say? You want to fight me?¡± Yang Ningfeng was first confused, and he burst intoughter. After a long time, he straightened his clothes and said, ¡°Hey, kid, just go home. Don¡¯t think you¡¯re so strong just because you¡¯ve reached the Earthly Martial Realm. Someone at your cultivation level isn¡¯t even fit to carry my shoes. If you want to participate in the third round, send someone who is more presentable. Don¡¯t you guys have Old Vulture?¡±


    When Long Chen heard him, he squinted and roared, ¡°Yang Ningfeng, enough of the nonsense! If you have the guts, get the hell over here!¡±


    His roar was like the rumbling thunder, and the Martial Alliance members instinctively took a step back!


    Long Chen had inherited the blood of the ancestral dragon, so every part of him contained its ancient regalness. Although he had a human form, he was also like arge, fierce beast. More specifically, a dragon!


    His roar contained the might of a dragon!


    At this time, dense, blood-red scales quickly covered his whole body. The silhouette of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon appeared on every single scale as if they were flying in the air. Sharp, blood-red spines shot out of his body, covering his spine, elbows, and knees. These were also powerful weapons for him, especially the ten ws on his hands, which were like des!


    Instantly, the weak-looking teenager turned into a war machine. After seeing his new look and hearing his previous shout, the Martial Alliance quickly took him seriously.


    If Yang Ningfeng did not fight him after being insulted like that, his reputation would surely take a hit. His face gradually turned green as he stared at Long Chen, then he turned to Lei Zhen and said, ¡°Lei Zhen, are you sure you¡¯re sending this bratty kid for the third round?¡±


    Lei Zhen had just nodded when Long Chen chuckled and said, ¡°I¡¯m able to bed your mother three hundred times; are you sure I am just a bratty kid? Take your sisters and daughters out for me to have a taste, and you¡¯ll know whether I¡¯m still just a bratty kid!¡±


    Lan Ling¡¯er¡¯s eyes widened, and everyone else was also shocked. They had known Long Chen for a while now, but they did not know he had such a rough side to him. But it did seem quite adorable.


    Only Mo Xiang knew that the true Long Chen had returned. Ever since Ling Xi left, Long Chen had be much more reserved, much colder, and more violent. Now, in the face of the Martial Alliance, Long Chen¡¯s true personality had awoken once more.


    He had not spoken like this in a long time!


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s face turned green when he heard all those insults from a weak-looking kid. The people around him quickly backed off while a terrifying aura radiated from his body. His eyes, which had turned red from rage, invoked fear in the rest of them!

 Chapter 604: Whirlwind Style

    Long Chen, despite being targeted by Yang Ningfeng, did not even take one step back. With a manic grin on his face, he pointed a finger and made ae hither motion at Yang Ningfeng, saying, ¡°Come here, little dog!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± Yang Ningfeng held a lofty position, yet he was being humiliated by Long Chen. He felt like his head was going to explode. He no longer cared if Long Chen qualified to be his opponent¡ªhe waspletely filled with rage!


    He shot a punch at Long Chen¡¯s face!


    <em>He¡¯s fast! </em>Yang Ningfeng was very fast, even faster than Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s fluttering techniques!


    ¡°Willow Step!¡± Long Chen¡¯s feet left the ground, and after the punch, his feet moved quickly. He instantly turned as light as a willow seed!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s punch seemed to carry an invisible gust of wind. The immense power approached Long Chen, and Yang Ningfeng assumed he would shatter his head with it. However, Long Chen suddenly turned as light as a piece of paper and was instantly blown away before he was hit!


    ¡°Willow Step!¡± Everyone was stunned, as they knew that Willow Step belonged to the Huangfu n. Why did Long Chen know it? And how had he mastered it so well within such a short time?


    Willow Step was an intermediate King-tier technique, on par with the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. A cultivator could only learn it once they reached the Earthly Martial Realm. Of course, Long Chen, the inhuman prodigy, was an exception! ¡°Why do you have the Huangfu n¡¯s Willow Step? That bastard Huangfu Fengchen must have given it to you!¡± Yang Ningfeng asked hurriedly after sting Long Chen away.


    ¡°He gave it to me? Why don¡¯t you give me your Wind God Kick? Are you that generous?¡± Long Chenughed after seeding on his first try. Of course, this was just acting. He knew that if this had been a true fight, he would never be able to beat Yang Ningfeng.


    ¡°Do you mean that you stole it?¡± Yang Ningfeng¡¯s brows were furrowed.


    ¡°What I mean is, can you spout less nonsense while we¡¯re fighting?¡± Long Chen did not want to continue this banter. He had to win, or he would die!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    After Long Chen was sted away, the crowd watched as he turned into a ray of blood-colored light and charged at Yang Ningfeng!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± Blood Devouring Domain had a significant effect on Yang Ningfeng. Right now, Long Chen¡¯s essence was equivalent to the Second Earthly Martial Stage, and other Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivators would need to use almost half of their essence to suppress their Qi in order to withstand the Blood Devouring Domain. Even a cultivator like Yang Ningfeng would need to use twenty percent of his Qi!


    This blood-red space instantly weakened Yang Ningfeng by twenty percent!


    Twenty percent was actually a lot!


    Any single one of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s divine techniques was very impressive when utilized to its full potential!


    The moment the Blood Devouring Domain appeared, Yang Ningfeng felt the changes in his body. His face changed as his boiling blood and Qi impeded the usage of his essence. He also had to focus part of his attention on withstanding the powerful gravity of the Blood Devouring Domain, causing him to be distracted!


    Within the Blood Devouring Domain, the blood-red Long Chen became hard to spot, but Yang Ningfeng could still easily locate him. As long as Earthly Martial Realm cultivators were in contact with the ground, they were very sensitive to the movements in it. Although Long Chen was using Willow Step, he still used the ground for strength!


    As long as he was standing on the ground, Long Chen would have a constant source of power!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w!¡±


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    The Soul Dispersing Dragon w was a technique good for close-rangebat. Long Chen instantly approached his opponent andunched his attack, which turned into a blood-red dragon flying at Yang Ningfeng!


    Pairing the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Blood Devouring Domain, Long Chen was able tounch his maximum-power attack!


    <em>Swish, swish, swish! </em>


    His sharp ws turned into groups of w Seals that flew at Yang Ningfeng from all directions. Long Chen¡¯s attack speed had far exceeded everyone¡¯s expectations!


    ¡°How is that possible? He¡¯s only at the First Earthly Martial Stage, but he is already that strong?¡±


    ¡°Looking at the strength of his essence, isn¡¯t he at the Second Earthly Martial Stage?¡±


    In the beginning, the Martial Alliance members only saw Long Chen as a joke at first. They did not expect him to be this frightening in battle. Other than Yang Ningfeng and Zhao Danchen, no one dared say that they could confidently defeat Long Chen!


    ¡°With time, this brat will surely be like the other Long Chen! He is a rare prodigy!¡± Even the Martial Alliance members started to praise Long Chen.


    ¡°Die!¡± The storm of Soul Dispersing Dragon ws flew at Yang Ningfeng!


    The Blood Devouring Domain had shocked Yang Ningfeng, and Long Chen¡¯s powerful attack shocked him a second time!


    After waking up from his shock, he realized that he would have to fight seriously in order to defeat and kill Long Chen to vent his anger.


    ¡°You damn brat! I must kill you today, no matter the cost!¡± Yang Ningfeng¡¯s expression was cold. The Wind God Sect was famous across the Divine Martial Empire for its kicking techniques. The legs were much stronger than the arms as they contained Martial Veins and Martial Meridians. Therefore, when a cultivator mastered a kicking technique, it was more terrifying than an upper body technique!


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Whirlwind Style!¡±


    While Long Chen used the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Yang Ningfeng did not hold back. Long Chen was just like a pouncing beast, but he shot out like a sharp de!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s long legs turned into flexible whips and collided with the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. The dragon ws collided with his legs several times. They exchanged hits fervently, and in terms of retaliation and style, Long Chen was on par with Yang Ningfeng. The only disadvantage he had was his essence!


    Every time they collided, Yang Ningfeng¡¯s legs felt like mountains hitting Long Chen¡¯s body. Long Chen held on bitterly because he knew he could not lose!


    ¡°Roar!¡± With a furious roar, Long Chen¡¯s w broke free from Yang Ningfeng¡¯s kicks and instantly swiped at Yang Ningfeng¡¯s neck. Long Chen had risked his life to make this move because he intended to kill his opponent!


    No matter the cost!


    ¡°Die!¡± A beast-like voice rumbled from Long Chen¡¯s throat!


    ¡°Die?¡± While attacking, Yang Ningfeng smirked smugly. He had to admit that Long Chen was an extreme prodigy, but the gap between them was huge. One was a master from the previous generation, while the other was a neer who had only recently risen to power. They were not on the same level!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    When Long Chen was about to touch Yang Ningfeng, Yang Ningfeng¡¯s storm-like flurry of kicksnded on Long Chen¡¯s abdomen. The powerful force sent Long Chen flying!


    Fresh blood flowed from his mouth. The powerful force caused Long Chen to tumble many times on the ground, leaving behind a long, bloody trail. Long Chen struggled to dig his ws into the ground before finally stabilizing himself!


    ¡°Seventh Brother!¡± cried every Dragon n member as their faces paled. They were about to run up to him when Long Chen climbed onto his feet with great determination. He raised his hand, gesturing for Lei Zhen and the rest to go back!


    Seeing the bloody teenager standing straight, everyone¡¯s eyes moistened.


    They all hoped that Long Chen could win, but this was the Martial Alliance. How could a mortal beat such a huge superpower?


    ¡°Seventh Brother ¡­¡± Everyone¡¯s hearts rose to their throats when they saw this teenager stubbornly get back on his feet.


    Yang Ningfeng hadn¡¯t held back in his attack, and Long Chen had taken it directly. If it was not for the great defensive and regenerative properties of the dragon body, he might have died.


    Withstanding the pain, Long Chen stood up and clenched his teeth, chuckling coldly. ¡°Yang Ningfeng, you live up to the reputation of being one of the three Martial Emperors! You¡¯re about¡­ as strong as a woman!¡±


    Yang Ningfeng licked his lips. He was quite impressed that the teenager could stand. But the more impressed he felt, the more he wanted Long Chen to die!


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the Blood Devouring Domain spread across the battlefield once more!


    <em>I was too rash just now, too impatient to win. I didn¡¯t expect to give this old fart the chance to hurt me! </em>


    Long Chen knew what he had done wrong.


    However, he still had no way to kill him!


    Death was inching closer.


    Long Chen paused. The strength of his opponent reminded him of Ling Xi. He knew that the girl was waiting for him, so he couldn¡¯t die here!


    <em>I must not abandon those important to me and die! Especially not my woman! That is why I only have one way out of this, which is to kill Yang Ningfeng! I have no right to choose death! I, Long Chen, have two lives anyway! </em>


    His blood surged with passion.


    Through the dragon scales, they could see his thick veins popping out of his skin, making him look terrifying. The killing intent of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon erupted from him. Even Yang Ningfeng feared this aura!


    His de-like ws swiped decisively at Yang Ningfeng once more!


    The blood-red w Seals flew at Yang Ningfeng¡¯s head like a magnificent red dragon!


    Long Chen¡¯s battle spirit dampened Yang Ningfeng¡¯s spirit a little!


    <em>This brat is basically a natural born war machine! I must eliminate him! </em>


    With that thought, Yang Ningfeng began his powerful attacks once more!


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Typhoon Style!¡±

 Chapter 605: Bitter Battle Against Martial Emperor

    The Typhoon Style was stronger than the Whirlwind Style.


    The innumerable kicks from before were like a whirlwind, but now they were like a typhoon.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t see Yang Ningfeng after thetter¡¯s speed exploded. He was the fastest person Long Chen had ever encountered. Both Yang Ningfeng¡¯s speed and attacks were the strongest he had ever faced.


    <em>Typhoon..</em>.


    Long Chen¡¯s heart was ready for battle. No matter how strong the attack was, he did not fear it, so he chose to fight head-on rather than avoiding it.


    His sharp ws were like knives as the blood-red mes enveloped them. Several small dragon illusions swam inside the mes.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡±


    The five dragons roared andunched themselves toward Yang Ningfeng.


    Yang Ningfeng¡¯s Typhoon Style crashed into the technique.The two powerful techniques exploded on impact. The ground trembled as both Long Chen and Yang Ningfeng controlled their essence to a frightening degree. They created numerous explosions as they attacked each other.


    Long Chen¡¯s ws and the Golden Crow mes attacked Yang Ningfeng¡¯s Wind God Kick directly. Long Chen¡¯s advantage was that his ws and mes could damage Yang Ningfeng despite the gap in cultivation level. He managed to injure Yang Ningfeng¡¯s legs several times as the burning mes coated his body.


    But Yang Ningfeng¡¯s attacks were strong and fast. They were extremely deadly to Long Chen, so he soon had to retreat. The Typhoon Style had won against the Five Piercing Dragons.


    Yang Ningfeng kicked Long Chen with his full strength. Sensing that he was outmatched, Long Chen blocked the kick with his arms and was forced back by the impact.


    This time, he spun numerous times in the air before crashing onto the ground. The impact caused him to bleed. It had been a long time since Long Chen suffered such injuries.


    His organs were continuously ravaged by Yang Ningfeng¡¯s essence, causing Long Chen to spit out another mouthful of blood.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, that¡¯s enough!¡± Lei Zhen pleaded when he saw how terrible Long Chen looked. They understood what kind of person Long Chen was, and they were right¡ªLong Chen would never give up before he achieved his goals.


    Just like how he was chasing after Ling Xi.


    Just like how he was standing at the front for the sake of the Battle n¡¯s survival.


    Everyone started to cry when they saw the youth stagger back up. The image of the youth¡¯s strong back was carved into their minds.


    ¡°You are still alive. Not bad,¡± Yang Ningfeng said in a taunting tone, but he was secretly afraid. There were multiplecerations on his legs, and he felt like he was kicking a furnace when he attacked Long Chen. He still felt the difort even now.


    If it wasn¡¯t for his essence protecting him, his legs would¡¯ve been burned by now.


    And his opponent was only at the First Earthly Martial Realm. There were two levels separating them. Usually, Yang Ningfeng¡¯s Typhoon Style could easily kill someone at the Second Earthly Martial Realm, yet he was struggling to kill Long Chen.


    It was clear how strong Long Chen was.


    The people from the Martial Alliance whispered to each other.


    ¡°Long Chen is a monster. To think he could survive Martial Emperor¡¯s Yang Wind God Kick, Typhoon Style.¡±


    ¡°Long Yue and her brother Long Chen are both at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. This Long Chen is only at the First Earthly Martial Stage, but hisbat abilities are already close to theirs.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that in the past, the Long family was the strongest faction in the Divine Martial Empire. It seems that it¡¯s true ¡­¡±


    They assumed Long Chen was Long Yue¡¯s cousin since his battle style was simr.


    Yang Ningfeng hadn¡¯t finished Long Chen off yet because he wanted to torture him.


    Long Chen stood up and chuckled as if he was unharmed. ¡°Do you think an old man like you has enough strength to kill me? Even if I stood still and let you kick me, I wouldn¡¯t have any issues surviving.¡±


    But in reality, he would notst long.


    <em>I still don¡¯t have enough essence. I need to reach the Second Earthly Martial Realm. </em>Long Chen needed strength, or he would die.


    <em>What is the key to advancing into the Second Earthly Martial Realm? </em>Even though he was in the middle of his fight against Yang Ningfeng, Long Chen was trying toe up with a way to reach the Second Earthly Martial Stage. In fact, he felt like was right on the brink of breaking through.


    The chance to break through came from the understanding he had gained inbat.


    Long Chen quickly recalled how Yang Ningfeng had attacked. Not only did Yang Ningfeng have more essence, but his attacks and speed were on a different level. Every time Long Chen thought he could block his opponent¡¯s attacks, there were two more impacts that would always send him flying away.


    <em>Is this how someone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage uses the power of the earth?</em>


    He recalled the second stage of the Earthly Martial Fist as well as what was recorded in the manual. He then superimposed the image of him cultivating with Yang Ningfeng¡¯s body.


    It was taboo to enter a daze during battle. Yang Ningfeng felt like he was being looked down upon.


    ¡°Yang Ningfeng, end it quickly. Don¡¯t waste any more time,¡± Zhao Danchen said coldly from the back. Yang Ningfeng nodded quickly, recovering from the shock.


    Zhao Danchen had been observing their fight carefully. He already knew how strong Long Chen was after he used the Five Piercing Dragons and Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to force him away.


    <em>He¡¯s only at the First Earthly Martial Stage, but he¡¯s much stronger than anyone else on his level. He¡¯s very talented.</em>


    Zhao Danchen was unhappy, but he was also wary of Long Chen.


    In fact, the other Long Chen never gave him this much pressure.


    That was why he wanted Yang Ningfeng to end the battle as soon as possible. Yang Ningfeng snarled and remembered how Long Chen had insulted him just now. He raised his head and scoffed. ¡°You are worthy of dying by my hand. I will show you my strongest technique.¡±


    Yang Ningfeng did not hold back.


    A simple kick instantly appeared in front of Long Chen. It was a direct attack without any superfluous movements, but it was visibly stronger than the Typhoon Style.


    It could only be described as profound.


    Even space itself was distorted by Yang Ningfeng¡¯s kick. Long Chen had a feeling that he was not facing a single kick, but the other half of the world crashing towards him.


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Wind God Style.¡±


    <em>This is it ¡­</em> Long Chen¡¯s bottleneck was shattered thanks to that single kick. He suddenly understood the key to advancing into the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    Even during the final moments, Long Chen was in a trance.


    He didn¡¯t block the attack¡ªitnded squarely on his body. An attack from a Third Earthly Martial Stage foe could kill him instantly.


    And it almost did. Long Chen¡¯s body almost snapped in half and blood sprayed out from his orifices. He was covered in blood from head to toe.


    Yang Ningfeng rxed because he knew Long Chen was dead.


    The people from the Martial Alliance rxed too.


    ¡°A dead genius is nothing.¡±


    Everyone from the Battle n and the Dragon n shouted when they saw Long Chen¡¯s corpse flying through the air.


    They barely finished their cries when they saw Long Chen¡¯s body changing.


    ¡°Rewind.¡±


    The Primordial Dragon Talisman floated out of Long Chen¡¯s chest, and he used the strongest technique that he had ess to.


    Time rewinded. Long Chen¡¯s blood flowed back into his body and his wounds recovered. Even his crushed organs and the cavity in his chest returned back to normal. Long Chen was back to the state he was in before he was hit by the Wind God Kick.


    It was as if Yang Ningfeng¡¯s attack had missed.


    ¡°What?!¡± Long Chen was flying through the air at an extremely fast speed. Everyone thought they had seen blood, but to their surprise, Long Chennded without any injury. Those from the Martial Alliance choked on their words when they saw what happened.

 Chapter 606: Second Earthly Martial Stage

    The people from the Battle n cried out happily when they saw that Long Chen was fine.


    The Dragon n members were even happier. They recalled what they had seen when they first saw Long Chen at the Ancient Demon Domain, as this situation was extremely simr. Everyone thought Long Chen had been killed by the Demon Emperor, but he had miraculously survived back then.


    The people from the Martial Alliance thought they had seen wrongly, while those from the Dragon n knew that Long Chen had used a method to resurrect himself.


    Long Chen had several other unique techniques that would be useful in this situation like Blood Sacrifice. However, he would¡¯ve regressed back to the Ninth Passage Stage if he used it, and there was a chance that his Martial Soul would be gone.


    That was why he dared not use it right now.


    He had chosen to use Rewind to save his life after taking on Yang Ningfeng¡¯s attack.


    Everyone was surprised when they saw what Long Chen did the moment hended. He was cultivating the second stage of the Earthly Martial Fist!


    Since he now had enoughprehension, hepleted it in one go. He finally grasped the essence of the second stage.


    Long Chen had Yang Ningfeng to thank for his breakthrough. Long Chen¡¯s body started to buzz and underwent another transformation. The Earthly Qi surged into him and bolstered his essence.The dragon-shaped Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness roared and twisted. Its body had be less illusory. This was a sign that Long Chen had entered the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    His extraordinary talent and battle experience had allowed him to advance in the middle of a battle.


    <em>Roar!</em>


    The eighteen Martial Veins were like eighteen blood-red dragons soaring through the sky. Earthly Qi entered his body and was eaten by the dragons, converting it into Dragon Soul Essence.


    Usually, the absorption and conversion process would be swift, but Long Chen¡¯s process was abnormally slow. Thankfully, he had prepared beforehand. He had stored a lot of blood essence from the ck Water Viper in the Primordial Realm, so he took it out for this asion. Everyone saw Long Chen being enveloped in a mist of blood which he soon absorbed.


    After his Martial Soul was strengthened, Long Chen felt his body thirsting for more power. The Earthly Qi was not enough, so he had to use Blood Transmutation to supplement it. He transformed the blood essence into regr essence, and his Martial Veins pulsed when he had the power he needed.


    No one knew how to react when they saw the blood around Long Chen¡¯s body disappear, but they sensed that he had be stronger.


    Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    Long Chen had advanced while inbat


    Everyone realized what was happening, and they were absolutely mortified, especially the Martial Alliance. The Dragon n, however, was very happy.


    No one had ever thought Long Chen wouldpletely turn the tables.


    Everyone thought he was going to die, but he had miraculously survived.


    The Dragon n members who understood Long Chen¡¯s strength were happy. They knew what the change in situation meant.


    Jiang Wuya smiled when he saw how strong Long Chen¡¯s body was. ¡°Seventh Brother is probably stronger than Long Yue now. It has only been a few days since hisst breakthrough. He¡¯s truly a monster.¡±


    Everyone looked at Long Chen, not responding to Jiang Wuya, though their silence affirmed what he had said.


    ¡°The fate of the Battle n is in Long Chen¡¯s hands.¡±


    Long Chen could defeat foes at the Second Earthly Martial Stage when he was only at the First Earthly Martial Stage. Now that he had advanced, he could defeat an enemy at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. He was now officially considered one of the strongest cultivators in the Divine Martial Empire. He could even rece Zhao Danchen and be the person just below the Martial Overlord.


    Long Chen¡¯s strength was now on par with the three Martial Emperors, the Dragon Emperor, and the Demon Emperor.


    His victory was certain.


    But the people from the Martial Alliance refused to believe this. All of them were shocked, especially Yang Ningfeng. He stared at Long Chen with wide, shock-filed eyes.


    ¡°Long ¡­ Long Chen, you actually reached the Second Earthly Martial Stage?¡± Yang Ningfeng stammered.


    Long Chen wasted no time talking to him.


    Now that he was at the Second Earthly Martial Stage, Yang Ningfeng was no longer stronger than him. Long Chen thought of nothing but to kill him immediately.


    His approach was smart¡ªhe always killed weaker enemies immediately to prevent anything unexpected from happening. However, he stalled for time whenever he faced a stronger opponent so he could find a method to defeat them.


    Most people would do the opposite; Yang Ningfeng had chosen to toy with Long Chen instead of putting an end to the bet.


    Long Chen attacked.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain.¡±


    This time, Yang Ningfeng¡¯s strength was reduced by almost forty percent. He had to use a lot of his essence to control his blood.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons.¡± It was the same technique, but its destructive power had grown ten times stronger.


    The shadow of death cloaked Yang Ningfeng.


    <em>Impossible! How could he be this strong? </em>To think a brat like Long Chen could fight against him! Yang Ningfeng stared in disbelief and howled.


    He could not ept Long Chen tormenting him! It should¡¯ve been the other way around!


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Wind God Style!¡±


    He appeared in front of Long Chen again with the same extreme speed as before, but this time his strength was diminished due to the Blood Devouring Domain. The result was obvious. Long Chen used two dragons to stop the attack while the other three coiled around Yang Ningfeng. The three dragons were Long Chen¡¯s ws, and they coiled around his enemy tightly.


    <em>Crack, crack, crack!</em>


    The sound of cracking bones rang out.


    ¡°AAAAH! NOOOO!¡± Yang Ningfeng shouted in despair, but it was toote.


    Zhao Danchen was surprised by how strong Long Chen had gotten, but he had never expected that Yang Ningfeng would be killed in one strike. He was sitting far in the back, so he didn¡¯t have time to save Yang Ningfeng.


    ¡°AH!¡± Yang Ningfeng shouted in pain as Long Chen tore him apart. Blood sttered everywhere as his body exploded.


    It was a gruesome sight.


    Yang Ningfeng was ground to dust.


    Even though Lan Xiang¡¯er and the others were happy that Yang Ningfeng was dead, they were taken aback by the gruesome scene. They respected Long Chen even more now.


    Long Chen then made his way to where Lei Zhen was. Yang Ningfeng¡¯s corpse was burned away by Long Chen¡¯s Golden Crow mes. He was soon reduced to ashes.


    One of the three Martial Emperors had been killed by Long Chen.


    Everyone was shocked by what they saw.


    Long Chen scoffed. ¡°Everyone, victory has been decided. The Battle n has won. Please honor your promise and leave now.¡±


    He had enhanced his voice with a lot of energy, so his words boomed across the entire region. Everyone in the Battle n and Martial Alliance heard it.


    He had nned to spread news of his victory to everyone.


    And his goal was achieved.


    The Battle n was in disbelief, much less the Martial Alliance. Zhao Danchen stood up and red at Long Chen, but he was wary of Long Chen¡¯s aura. He knew that Long Chen was no longer weak, and he himself could lose if they fought.


    Unless the Martial Overlord came, they could never defeat the Battle n now.


    The Battle n didn¡¯t have anyone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, which was why the Martial Alliance dared to make a move. But now that Long Chen was protecting them, the Martial Alliance had lost their chance.


    Zhao Danchen was not stupid. He knew that the Martial Alliance would suffer major losses if they fought now. Yang Ningfeng was dead and Long Chen was now protecting the Battle n. The Martial Alliance had been defeated today.

 Chapter 607: Liu Yiyi Marrying Someone

    A cold set of eyes red at Long Chen with an indomitable pressure.


    But Long Chen did not yield. His strength gave him confidence, and he smiled. ¡°Everyone, this is thend of the Battle n. Only righteous people are allowed to stand here. Please leave.¡±


    He was clear that the Martial Alliance was a bunch of thieves.


    ¡°You dare call us criminals? Do you want to die? Do you think you¡¯re amazing just because you¡¯ve killed Martial Emperor Yang? We still have Zhao Danchen and Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji. He could kill you in a single strike.¡± The Martial Alliance members were frustrated that Yang Ningfeng was dead, but all they could do now was ept the results.


    Zhao Danchen took a deep breath.


    He chose to endure.


    It was foolish for him to fight Long Chen right now. He wasn¡¯t an idiot, so he chose to retreat for now. He gestured for the others to be quiet before he looked at Long Chen. ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯ve underestimated you. The Martial Alliance lost to you today, and you are qualified to be called an expert. Still, no expert has ever opposed the Martial Alliance and lived. We have the Nine Spirit Purgatory, a ce that even those at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage have failed to escape.¡±


    He looked down at his white hands, ¡°I admit defeat, but only for today. I warn you not to get cocky. Your days are numbered. Goodbye.¡±


    He then left.Zhao Danchen''s reaction scared Long Chen.


    A strong person was indeed frightening, but one who could endure was even worse. Even if Zhao Danchen had gone all out today, he could not have done anything to Long Chen, so he had chosen to retreat even though his status was higher.


    <em>Zhao Danchen is a difficult enemy ¡­</em>


    Zhao Danchen suddenly came back and smiled wickedly. ¡°Oh, I forgot to tell you. One month from now, I will be marrying Liu Yiyi, the daughter of the Clear Shallows King from the Ancient Demon Domain. Don¡¯t forget toe and celebrate our union.¡±


    Heughed and left with the Martial Alliance.


    It was clear that the message was intended for Long Chen and Jiang Wuya, because Long Chen had spent some time with Liu Yiyi and Jiang Wuya was her father.


    ¡°What?!¡± Both Long Chen and Jiang Wuya were shocked. They were immersed in the joy of victory when the sudden announcement hit them.


    Long Chen did not chase after Zhao Danchen but instead helped Jiang Wuya up. ¡°Second Brother, don¡¯t be too rash now. If he¡¯s telling the truth, we cane up with a n.¡±


    ¡°Bastard,¡± Jiang Wuya snarled. ¡°It must have been that old crone Jiang Wuxie that came up with that idea. He knows that Liu Yiyi is my daughter.¡±


    Long Chen thought the same.


    ¡°Calm down for now.¡± Long Chen looked around. ¡°Now that the crisis of the Martial Alliance has been resolved, we should rest before we n for our next steps.¡±


    Lei Zhen nodded and looked at Long Chen with gratitude. ¡°Thank you, Seventh Brother. I represent the entire Battle n when I kneel to you in gratitude.¡±


    He was very happy with the way things had concluded, but Long Chen stopped him. ¡°Fourth Brother, we are all siblings here. This is my duty.¡±


    Lei Zhen didn¡¯t kneel, but the other six Battle Kings did. They said nothing, but the gratitude in their eyes exined everything.


    ¡°Please get up.¡±


    ¡°You are the benefactor of the Battle n. We will remember your name and pass it down to the next generation.¡± Lei Zhen started to sob a little as he looked at the others.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t need that, but he was happy.


    It felt good to help others.


    But he frowned at the bad news. ¡°We won this time, but we have two problems ¡­ Fourth Brother, let¡¯se up with a n first for the Dragon n.¡±


    Lei Zhen nodded and instructed the other six Battle Kings, ¡°You go and deal with the aftermath. Spread news of the prowess and the victory of our n!¡±


    They nodded and started spreading the news of their victory. The Divine Martial Empire would be shaken once word got out.


    Long Chen was like a rising star that shone brighter than the other Long Chen.


    After the adrenaline wore off, the Dragon n was worried. Jiang Wuya was inconsble. ¡°Liu Yiyi never met Zhao Danchen before and he is certain to treat her badly. Jiang Wuxie, that bastard. How dare he push her into the fire. No, I must find Jiang Wuxie, but Yue¡¯er ¡­¡±


    Zhao Danchen had brought two pieces of news. One was about Liu Yiyi and the other was about Long Yue. Long Chen had a feeling that Long Yue had been imprisoned in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. Although the chances of rescuing her were slim, Long Chen refused to give up.


    Long Chen saw how conflicted Jiang Wuxie was. On one side was the woman he loved, while the other was his daughter. He didn¡¯t want to give up on either side.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want toment on Jiang Wuxie¡¯s love history. He knew that Jiang Wuxie loved Long Yue all this time, but didn¡¯t know that the Clear Shallows King was pregnant with his child. The appearance of his daughter must¡¯ve messed him up. He had to decide between his responsibility as a father and the woman he was pursuing. Even he himself didn¡¯t know what to do.


    Long Chen had to make the decision for him.


    ¡°Second Brother, I will go to Martial Overlord City. You will go to the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    ¡°You will go to Martial Overlord City?¡± Jiang Wuya raised his head.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I¡¯m stronger than you, and those at the Third Earthly Martial Stage cannot win against me. You would be marching to your death, considering even Long Yue was captured. I am telling the truth. I might be able to save Long Yue. As for the Ancient Demon Domain, you and the Demon Emperor are brothers. Only you can save Liu Yiyi.¡±


    Long Chen was right, and Jiang Wuya was not the type to hesitate for long. He pondered and nodded. He was worried about Long Yue, but there was nothing he could do to help her.


    ¡°What about us?¡± Lan Xiang¡¯er asked Long Chen. Unbeknownst to them, Long Chen had be their main pir of strength.


    ¡°You guys ¡­¡± Long Chen pondered. ¡°Martial Overlord City is dangerous, so it¡¯s safer for me to move alone. Second Brother needs more people to help him, so let Third Brother go do that. You and Fifth Brother can help our Fourth Brother here. If we are not here, the Battle n needs some experts to back them up. Since we don¡¯t have a base right now, let¡¯s make one here. What do you think?¡±


    Everyone nodded in agreement, but they were still worried for Long Chen. Lan Xiang¡¯er asked, ¡°Seventh Brother, will you be alright going to Martial Overlord City on your own? The Nine Spirit Purgatory is located in the inner city, where no one else is allowed to enter except for the core members of the Martial Alliance and their families. Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ll be in danger?¡±


    Long Chen agreed that it was dangerous. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about the ce. Can you exin it to me? What should I look out for? Second Brother, since you are injured, why not take some time to recover before you head to the Ancient Demon Domain? Zhao Danchen said that there¡¯s still a month, so I can use that time to investigate.¡±


    Chi Ying nodded. ¡°I will arrange for some men to send details about Martial Overlord City, as well as gather information on Long Yue and Liu Yiyi.¡±


    Information was crucial. The Red Souls had an extensive informationwork, so Chi Ying was the perfect candidate to gather it.


    After everything had been set, everyone left the ancestral mausoleum to n their next course of action.


    The Battle n was immersed in joy, and Long Chen watched them celebrate their victory. They shouted, drank, sang, and danced as they turned the ce into their personal heaven.


    All of them were extremely thankful for Long Chen, and they looked at him with gratitude. Long Chen was showered with gifts. If it wasn¡¯t for Lei Zhen stopping them, Long Chen would¡¯ve been buried by the gifts.


    Everyone in the Battle n knew who had saved them.


    After they reached their temporary residences, Lan Xiang¡¯er said to Long Chen, ¡°Back in the Cloud Dream Swamp, I watched a lone Martial King get killed by a King-tier demonic beast. I used his skin to make a mask and then burned his body. I think he¡¯s considered missing by the Martial Alliance, so we can use his identity now. You can impersonate him and enter Martial Overlord City. I will ask Fifth Brother to gather as much detail as possible about the Martial King called Chen Guangjun. I also have the manuals for the martial techniques he cultivated in my Universe Pouch.¡±


    Long Chen nodded in approval.


    Lan Xiang¡¯er¡¯s talent was very rare. She was called the Ever-Changing Demon Girl, someone who could not only change her appearance, but also the appearance of others. Long Chen would have no issues turning into Chen Guangjun with her technique.

 Chapter 608: Yellow Emperor Seal

    Jiang Wuya quickly recovered while the others worked hard on their respective jobs, especially Chi Ying. He took an entire day to prepare the information on not only Martial Overlord City, but also on Chen Guangjun. Long Chen needed it to impersonate him.


    He quickly memorized everything. With Lan Xiang¡¯er¡¯s help, he started to disguise himself and waspletely transformed into Chen Guangjun in a single day.


    He had to prepare properly to save Long Yue. He needed to memorize theyout of Martial Overlord City, as well as the location of the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    At the same time, Long Chen also learned that Long Yue had indeed been captured by the Martial Overlord and thrown into the Nine Spirit Purgatory along with the other Long Chen. The news about Liu Yiyi¡¯s marriage was true too. Jiang Wuxie had forced the arranged marriage, but the Clear Shallows King refused. She was severely beaten by Jiang Wuxie as a result of her protest.


    After reading the news, Long Chen was angered to the point that he would beat up the Demon Emperor if he had gone to the Ancient Demon Domain. He now had the strength to do so.


    News of him had spread throughout the Divine Martial Empire. There weren¡¯t two geniuses, but three now.


    Two of them were coincidentally called Long Chen.


    But Long Chen was more famous than Long Yue¡¯s brother because he had killed someone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, which the other two had not aplished.


    There were only two Martial Emperors left in the Martial Alliance. It was surprising that the Martial Overlord had done nothing.No one dared to question the strong Martial Alliance.


    Long Chen soon finished his preparations, and Jiang Wuxie recovered.


    Long Chen was currently wearing a golden robe with arge ¡°Martial¡± character embroidered on the front. He was also a middle-aged man with a yellow face and stubble. His body was also much more robust and taller. Long Chen had copied the appearance, voice, and even behavior of Chen Guangjun closely. No one would guess that he was Long Chen.


    Long Chen looked very different from Chen Guangjun, but Lan Xiang¡¯er¡¯s technique had turned him into the other person. It was clear her techniques were extraordinary.


    ¡°Wow, you look simr. No, actually, you look the same.¡± Lei Zhen and the others were surprised by how Long Chen looked and acted.


    Long Chen checked himself out in the mirror and felt confident. Chen Guangjun had only been missing for a few weeks and couldn¡¯t be considered a deserter to the Martial Alliance. He only needed to tell the others that he had been injured by a King-tier beast and hid himself to recover before he returned to Martial Overlord City.


    He doubted that anyone would scrutinize his excuse since the Martial Alliance recently made such arge move against the Battle n. The Martial Alliance was a massive force with forty other Martial Kings. There were also a lot of people advancing into the Earthly Martial Realm.


    It was time to depart.


    Before they left, Long Chen cultivated some of Chen Guangjun¡¯s martial techniques. Chen Guangjun¡¯s strongest technique was an elementary King-tier de technique. He soon learned it and used the de that the original Chen Guangjun had used before. Lan Xiang¡¯er had looted it from Chen Guangjun¡¯s corpse.


    Lan Xiang¡¯er had a habit of making masks and usually used the corpses of Martial Alliance cultivators. This habit was useful from time to time, and since they needed it to be very convincing, she usually took everything.


    Long Chen was not worried about being found out with Lan Xiang¡¯er¡¯s technique.


    ¡°Alright, not even Chen Guangjun¡¯s wife would be able to tell you¡¯re an imposter. But just to be safe, try to avoid going back to his home.¡± Lan Xiang¡¯er crossed her arms and looked at her masterpiece.


    They set off.


    Before they did, Lei Zhen called for them. ¡°Wait, there¡¯s something I need to tell everyone.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Jiang Wuya was curious.


    Lei Zhen answered, ¡°We¡¯ve been trying to locate the Five Emperor Seals, but we only managed to get the Azure Emperor Seal, which is with our Eldest Sister. My father actually found the Yellow Emperor Seal by chance, and he gave it to me before he died.¡±


    They never had much hope of finding all five seals, but they smiled when they heard what Lei Zhen told them. ¡°Good. Once we rescue our Eldest sister, we will then have two of the five seals.¡±


    Chi Ying frowned. ¡°Everyone, there¡¯s another piece of news. When our Eldest Sister lost to the Martial Overlord, the Azure Emperor Seal was taken away. I heard that the Martial Overlord has the Golden Emperor Seal as well.¡±


    ¡°So Zhao Wuji has two of them now. If he had all five, we would be in trouble.¡±


    Long Chen decided to tell them the truth about him having the other two seals. They were his sworn brothers and sisters and Lei Zhen had been truthful to them, so there was no reason for him to hide it.


    While everyone was frowning at the disconcerting news, Long Chen said, ¡°Everyone, I have something to say.¡±


    Lei Zhen was curious. ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Of the Five Emperor Seals, the Azure and Golden Emperor Seals are in Zhao Wuji¡¯s clutch. The Yellow Emperor Seal is in Fourth Brother¡¯s possession. I have the ck and Scarlet Emperor Seals with me.¡±


    He then pulled the seals from the Primordial Realm.


    It was an astonishing piece of news. None of them believed Long Chen at first, but they did after they saw the two seals.


    ¡°Sorry for hiding this ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled bitterly.


    While it was the truth, they still couldn¡¯t quite believe it. Jiang Wuxie was perplexed. ¡°You were in the Ancient Demon Domain, so I could understand how you obtained the ck Emperor Seal, but how did you get the Scarlet Emperor Seal?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that even Sister Long Yue couldn¡¯t endure the sr fire to get the Scarlet Emperor Seal?¡± Lan Xiang¡¯er was confused too.


    Long Chen said, ¡°I managed to get the Scarlet Emperor Seal because I have a special body, but I was still new at that time, so I wasn¡¯t familiar with everyone ¡­¡±


    Jiang Wuyaughed. ¡°It¡¯s normal that you were wary of us since you joined usst. Don¡¯t worry, we don¡¯t covet the technique. We just thought that it would be bad for the Martial Overlord to have it because we might get killed if he manages to collect all five.¡±


    Lei Zhen nodded. ¡°Good. Now that we have the Scarlet, ck, and Yellow Emperor Seals, we only need to snatch the other two from the Martial Overlord and we will have all five.¡±


    Jiang Wuya nodded. ¡°We cannot let the others know that Seventh Brother has the other two seals. I think the Martial Overlord is looking for any news on the three remaining seals. If he finds out that we have them, we are as good as dead. We just barely saved the Battle n and managed to establish our base, so we cannot die now.¡±


    Everyone nodded.


    Long Chen nodded too. He could not let anyone else know about the news. He still didn¡¯t have the power necessary to defeat the Martial Overlord. so he could not afford to spread the news yet, but once he had the strength, it would be a simple matter to collect thest two seals.


    Five Emperor Seals and five prismatic keys. Long Chen had a feeling that once he cultivated the Emperor-tier Five Emperor Seal, his strength would increase exponentially. It would be of great help for him when he entered the Ancient Graveyard to find the treasure of the Five Emperors.


    Emperor-tier martial techniques were cultivated by those at the Heavenly Martial Realm. Even the name itself sounded incredibly strong. Long Chen knew that he would benefit greatly just by cultivating it.


    The Earthly Martial Realm, the Heavenly Martial Realm, and the Divine Martial Realm. Long Chen was only at the start, so there was still a long way to go to reach the Divine Martial Realm.


    It had been three or four months since Ling Xi left him. Half a year had passed by in a sh. Could Long Chen stand proudly in front of her within ten years?


    Even Ling Xi¡¯s grandmother was beyond strong. Her faction, the Swordsoul Pce, sounded frightening. One of the Three Emperor Territories was the Swordsoul Territory. It was clear that the Swordsoul Pce was the one governing that territory.


    The Divine Martial Empire and the Ten Thousand Nations Territory were jokes to the Swordsoul Pce.


    Long Chen clenched his fists.


    Gathering the Five Emperor Seals was an incredible chance for him to be stronger. He could not let it fall into the hands of the Martial Overlord.


    Once they were instructed on what to do, Long Chen decided to leave for his mission.


    After thinking about it, Lei Zhen came to a decision. ¡°I will find a remote ce to bury the Yellow Emperor Seal to prevent the Martial Overlord from obtaining all five of them. We can unearth it after we get the two remaining seals. What do you think?¡±

 Chapter 609: Hundred-War Martial King

    Jiang Wuya and the others nodded. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea, but the ce has to be very remote.¡±


    Long Chen then bade them goodbye. He kept the Scarlet Emperor Seal and the ck Emperor Seal in the Primordial Realm, which would be controlled by Little Cat if he died. The Martial Overlord would never be able to get his hands on the Five Emperor Seals like that.


    Long Chen left the Battle n and made his way towards the center of the Divine Martial Empire, Martial Overlord City.


    Because he was disguised as Chen Guangjun, he had to keep Xiang in the Primordial Realm to maintain his disguise. Xiang didn¡¯t mind at all.


    Long Chen already knew the path to reach Martial Overlord City.


    The journey was long, but thankfully, he had something to do, and that was cultivating the Wind God Kick.


    It was quite lucky that he had managed to snatch Yang Ningfeng¡¯s Universe Pouch before he killed him. He thought he would only be able to find money like King Crystals, but he ended up finding the secret technique of the Wind God Sect.


    Long Chen had never cultivated any strong leg techniques before, and he actually admired the Wind God Kick. Thankfully, the Wind God Kick was a martial technique on the same tier as the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, so it was strong enough to be worth the time investment. A technique for his ws and a technique for his legs. It could be said that his entire body was a weapon thatplimented hisbat style well.


    If Long Chen managed to cultivate the Wind God Kick, he would be able to use it with the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and Willow Step. Three intermediate King-tier martial techniques would be the basis of hisbat style, elevating him to the next stage.He was excited to start studying the manual!


    ¡°Zhao Danchen would lose to me if Ibined the Wind God Kick and the Soul Dispersing Dragon w.¡±


    Long Chen started to cultivate it. With his experience in cultivating the other two intermediate King-tier martial techniques coupled with his talent, he cultivated it even faster than the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. More importantly, he had seen Yang Ningfeng use it a few times, so he knew what the technique looked like when it waspleted.


    After reaching the Second Earthly Martial Stage, he had as much essence as someone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage once he used his Dragon Soul Transformation. He now had the strength to cultivate the final technique of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w.


    Unfortunately, he would not be able to use the Wind God Kick and the Soul Dispersing Dragon w while he was in the city since he was disguised as Chen Guangjun. The Martial King was also called the Hundred-War Martial King thanks to his martial technique the Hundred-War de Technique. It was a fairly strong King-tier technique that was passed down in his family.


    Long Chen focused on cultivating the Wind God Kick. There were the Whirlwind Style, Typhoon Style, and Wind God Style. He was also running like the wind as he headed towards Martial Overlord City.


    During the journey, he continued to improve himself in terms of essence. It took him dozens of days to reach Martial Overlord City from the Battle n. He finally saw an end to the wilderness when he spotted therge city.


    It was a golden city, one bigger than any he had ever seen. It looked just like the golden pces of the heavens surrounded by clouds. The golden light reflecting off the walls lit up the clouds and made the entire ce look dreamy.


    In the middle of the city was a plume of pure white gas shooting upwards into the skies, forming a white mushroom cloud. Long Chen took a breath and could feel the dense nature¡¯s spiritual energy entering his body,


    ¡°The spiritual energy here is so dense yet so pure. No wonder the people in this ce are stronger than in other ces. I think that cultivating here would be tens of thousands of times fasterpared to the Cangyang Kingdom.¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    The Cangyang Kingdom couldn¡¯t produce any exceptionally strong individuals due to theck of spiritual energy. Long Chen might never have been able to reach the Earthly Martial Realm if he hadn¡¯te here.


    That was why Lu Xuanji, and even Ling Xi¡¯s family, had determined that Long Chen would never be able to be strong if he stayed in the Cangyang Kingdom his entire life.


    A regr warrior from the Divine Martial Empire could be a king in the Cangyang Kingdom. But why didn¡¯t they go there? That was because they would feel suffocated, like a big fish trapped in a puddle.


    Martial Overlord City gave Long Chen a big shock.


    The closer he got to the city, therger it grew. It was too big; even the walls themselves were thousands of meters tall. Long Chen raised his head and saw nothing but the endless golden wall reaching all the way up to the sky.


    The city was separated into the outer and inner cities. The inner city was the true Martial Overlord City, while the outer city was where millions of regr people lived. The nobles and even the regr members of the Martial Alliance were living in the outer city. Except for stronger factions like the Huangfu family and the Ancient Demon Domain, everyone considered it an honor to be able to live in Martial Overlord City.


    Long Chen stopped in front of the golden gates. He didn¡¯t follow the others into the city but instead approached a small gate. Even though the gate was small, the guards were all at the Ninth Passage Stage.


    This was the door that only people in the upper echelons could enter. Regr people had to line up at the main gate and wait for their turn to enter.


    Long Chen was now Chen Guangjun, the Hundred-War Martial King. He was more than qualified to enter through the small door. If he used the main gate, he would arouse suspicion.


    He had learned everything he needed to know back in the Battle n.


    As the Hundred-War Martial King, he naturally had something to verify his identity, and that was the Martial King¡¯s golden token. Not only was the token inscribed with his name and face, there were only around forty Martial Kings to begin with, so the guards naturally recognized all of them.


    Long Chen approached them, and the guards immediately kneeled. ¡°Greetings, Hundred-War Martial King.¡±


    ¡°Stand up.¡± ording to the information he had received, the Hundred-War Martial King loved to fight and was cold to others. He was usually very quiet, so it was easy for Long Chen to impersonate him.


    The guards stood up. The captain of the guards walked over and saluted. ¡°Greetings, Hundred-War Martial King. I am Gong Sunsheng. You¡¯ve disappeared for more than ten days without any news. Where have you been?¡±


    ¡°None of your business.¡± Long Chen red at him.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve spoken too much.¡± Gong Sunsheng knew about Chen Guangjun¡¯s temperament, so he stepped back immediately. He would¡¯ve actually suspected Long Chen if thetter had provided an exnation.


    After Gong Sunsheng retreated, Long Chen entered the city without even looking back. The others saluted him until Long Chen was deep inside the city. Afterwards, Gong Sunsheng spat onto the ground, ¡°Tsk. You are only at the First Earthly Martial Stage. I will be able to enter the inner city one day. Let¡¯s see how you act when I do.¡±


    It was clear that Long Chen¡¯s disguise was perfect.


    After he entered the city, Long Chen saw that he had underestimated how rich the city was. This was the core of the Divine Martial Empire. There were people everywhere, but thanks to Long Chen¡¯s identity, none of the people dared to get close to him.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to stir up trouble, so he went straight towards the inner city. He merely took short nces at the bustling streets on the way.


    Most of the people living in the outer city were either nobles or family members of members of the Martial Alliance.


    Long Chen noticed that everyone heid eyes on was at least at the Heavenly River Stage, even the peddlers. Martial Overlord City truly was a powerhouse. Long Chen recalled how Heavenly River Stage cultivators were at the peak of Yuanling City.


    Long Chen continued to make his way towards the inner city.


    Suddenly ¡­


    ¡°Big Brother, wait.¡± Mo Xiang¡¯s voice came from within the Primordial Realm. Long Chen heard it loud and clear since he was the owner of the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Look to your left.¡±


    Long Chen looked to the left and saw an eight-story-tall golden pagoda. It was decorated beautifully. The golden sign on the entrance read: <em>Martial Merchant Alliance</em>.


    Long Chen recognized the organization. It was a merchant organization run by the Martial Alliance that operated throughout the Divine Martial Empire to control the economy. They sold many wares such as ingredients, martial techniques, spiritual herbs, and Divine Arms. They had everything a cultivator needed.


    The pagoda was clearly their headquarters.


    ¡°Is there something good inside?¡±


    Xiang nodded. ¡°There¡¯s a zing me on the eighth floor that will help my cultivation.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He only needed money to obtain it, so it wouldn¡¯t expose his identity.


    Long Chen made his way towards the pagoda. Several guards were stationed at the entrance, scrutinizing the crowd, but they mellowed out the moment they saw Long Chen¡¯s attire and recognized him as a high-ranked official.

 Chapter 610: Blue Devil Flame

    ¡°Wee, dear Sir.¡± A beautifuldy approached Long Chen. She wore the same uniform as the otherdies working in the pagoda, a snow-white fox fur jacket. The delicate brocade hugged her body to show her curves. Her irresistible snow-white leg was in full view.


    Thedy became friendlier when she noticed Long Chen¡¯s clothes. ¡°Dear Sir, do you require my assistance? I will guide you if you wish to buy anything.¡±


    Her voice was as sweet as singing canaries and her smile was bewitching.


    But Long Chen ignored her as he looked at the first floor. It was a massive room that spanned dozens of square Mu.[1] He couldn¡¯t even see the end, and numerous spiritual herbs, martial techniques, weapons, and treasures filled the space.


    Everything could be found here.


    But everything on this floor was at the Heaven-tier, so Long Chen didn¡¯t need any of it. ¡°I need to go up.¡±


    Thedy had expected that. ¡°Please follow me.¡±


    As she climbed up, her hips swayed to appeal to Long Chen.


    Long Chen followed her all the way up to the fifth floor. Most of the items here were still at the Heaven-tier, but all of them were at the advanced Heaven-tier. If he went up more, he would find King-tier items. Thedy asked, ¡°Sir, I do not have permission to go to the sixth floor and above. If you need to go up there, my supervisor will guide you instead.¡±Long Chen nodded.


    She then led Long Chen to an old man with golden sses. The old man looked at him once and said, ¡°Are you the Hundred-War Martial King?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    After confirming his identity, the old man smiled and nodded. ¡°I fear that I¡¯ve used up all my luck to receive a visit from the Hundred-War Martial King, haha. Please follow me.¡±


    Seeing how the old man wasn¡¯t afraid of him, Long Chen was certain that the old man was at the same ranking as Martial Kings. He was also certain that many other Martial Kings hade here before.


    <em>There are probably some Martial Kings on the sixth floor and above. I should just get what I want and leave as soon as possible. </em>Long Chen suddenly realized that it wasn¡¯t that simple to get what he wanted on the eighth floor.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you need, Hundred-War Martial King, but we have everything except for the Five Emperor Seals.¡± Even though the old man was exaggerating, the riches of the Martial Merchant Alliance were indeed frightening.


    ¡°I need to go to the eighth floor.¡±


    ¡°Ah ¡­¡± The eighth floor was where the Martial Merchant Alliance kept their most precious items. Usually, only those at the Second Earthly Martial Stage had enough money to purchase them, so the old man was shocked.


    But after working for so long, the old man knew that a silent person was the deadliest. The Hundred-War Martial king was infamous for his silence and didn¡¯t have many friends, but the old man wouldn¡¯t underestimate him.


    ¡°Please follow me.¡± The old man guided him up.


    The eighth floor was also fairlyrge, but there weren¡¯t a lot of treasures to be seen. Most of the items were useless to Long Chen, and the true treasures were usually pocketed by people like the Martial Overlord.


    Following Xiang¡¯s guidance, Long Chen soon saw the thing he was attracted to. He followed the path and felt the air burning. Something was radiating intense heat.


    In front of him was ake, and inside theke was a green liquid. Long Chen was certain that it wasn¡¯t water.


    Long Chen saw a small, blue me burning in the green liquid.


    The old man noticed that Long Chen wanted to buy it and started exining, ¡°This is the water from the Jade Frost Lake. Its temperature is extremely low; someone below the Heavenly Passage Realm would be frozen to death if they were submerged in it.


    ¡°But we cannot sense the coldness right now due to the presence of a mystical beast re. It¡¯s called the Blue Devil me.¡± The old man smiled. ¡°I¡¯m sure that you are here for it. You have good taste. The Blue Devil me is a beast re formed after an extremely powerful demonic beast died. If you merge it into your essence, it will drastically increase your strength.¡±


    <em>Blue Devil me. Beast re.</em>


    It was the first time Long Chen had heard of it. <em>Does that mean it¡¯s simr to the Golden Crow mes?</em>


    Long Chen asked Little Cat, ¡°Is it simr to the Golden Crow mes?¡±


    Little Cat answered, ¡°It¡¯s far different. The Blue Devil me was clearly formed after the death of a Category Six King-tier beast. The Golden Crow is leagues above that. The Blue Devil me might increase your strength a bit now, but it will be useless once you be stronger. The Golden Crow mes, however, form the nucleus of your cores, so they will grow stronger with you. Do you think they are the same?¡±


    Long Chen said nothing as he now understood the difference.


    The old man thought Long Chen was here for the Blue Devil me, and he also assumed that Long Chen knew about its benefits. ¡°Are you here to purchase it? You have good eyes. If you merge it, I fear most of the Martial Kings would lose to you.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it dangerous to merge with it?¡± Long Chen asked coldly.


    ¡°Well ¡­¡± The old manughed dryly. ¡°There are no safe paths in cultivation. If you wish to be stronger, you have to take on such risks.¡±


    He knew that Long Chen was here to purchase it, but the old man doubted that he had the money. The Blue Devil me was so expensive that regr cultivators at the Second Earthly Martial Stage couldn¡¯t afford it.


    ¡°This is an expensive item priced at fifty King Crystals. Would you ¡­¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Alright. I have prepared enough to purchase it.¡±


    Fifty King Crystals was arge transaction, so the old man was overjoyed. ¡°The Blue Devil me and the water are included in the price. You can take all of them away with fifty King Crystals.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He was about to ce it in the Primordial Realm and give it to Xiang when a few people walked into the eighth floor. The person in the lead almost shocked Long Chen to death.


    Most of them were warriors from the Martial Alliance, but the person walking at the front was extremely familiar. It was none other than Zhao Danchen. He was smiling as he led a beautiful woman into the floor. The woman was naturally an extreme beauty that even thedies at the shop couldn¡¯tpare to.


    Seeing how Zhao Danchen was being so affectionate to her, Long Chen assumed that she was just one of many women he preyed upon.


    Long Chen tensed up when he saw Zhao Danchen. It was an unfortunate meeting, but all he could do was hope that his disguise would hold up.


    In order to prevent strong cultivators like Zhao Danchen from recognizing Long Chen¡¯s aura, Lan Xiang¡¯er had used a special ointment that disguised his aura as that of someone at the First Earthly Martial Stage.


    Since his aura has been covered up, Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried about Zhao Danchen discovering his true identity. In fact, even Jiang Wuya couldn¡¯t tell that he was Long Chen in disguise.


    Zhao Danchen and the beautifuldy were walking and flirting. Ady of the Martial Merchant Alliance was guiding the way for them.


    When the old man saw Zhao Danchen, he ignored Long Chen and quickly kneeled. ¡°Greetings, Martial Emperor Zhao.¡±


    Zhao Danchen waved his hand and finally spotted Long Chen.


    The old man needed to kneel, but Long Chen didn¡¯t have to since he was a Martial King. He bowed and said, ¡°Chen Guangjun greets Martial Emperor Zhao.¡±


    ¡°Chen Guangjun ¡­ I remember you. You are the subordinate of Yang Ningfeng.¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s gaze pierced through Long Chen¡¯s body. Long Chen shivered, not because of Zhao Danchen, but because he was wary of the Martial Overlord.


    There were three Martial Emperors, and each of them led over a dozen Martial Kings. Chen Guangjun was under the guidance of Yang Ningfeng, but with his death, Chen Guangjun didn¡¯t have a superior now.


    Long Chen lowered his head and answered, ¡°Yes, Emperor Zhao.¡±


    Zhao Danchen was displeased by how quiet Long Chen was, but then recalled how Chen Guangjung was a Martial King who was overly loyal to the Martial Alliance but usually talked very little. He decided to ignore Long Chen when the woman beside him pulled on his arm. ¡°Brother Zhao, I want that Blue Devil me. I¡¯m already at the Ninth Passage Stage, so once I be stronger and reach the Earthly Martial Realm, I can absorb the me and be strong.¡±


    Long Chen scowled slightly. It appeared that Zhao Danchen was apanying thedy to take the Blue Devil me. With his identity, the Martial Merchant Alliance wouldn¡¯t dare to take his money since the person behind Zhao Danchen was the Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji.


    Zhao Danchen hugged thedy and teased her. ¡°I can give you the Blue Devil me, but how will you thank me tonight?¡±


    ¡°You are so bad ¡­¡± Thedy raised a small fist and lightly thumped on Zhao Danchen¡¯s chest. Theypletely ignored Long Chen and the others.


    Long Chen dared not reveal his identity, so he waited to see what would happen.


    Zhao Danchen and thedy flirted for a while before hemanded the old man, ¡°Put the Blue Devil me into a Universe Pouch and give it to my darling.¡±


    1. 1 Mu=666.667 squared meters ?

 Chapter 611: Inner City

    The old man nodded quickly andpletely ignored Long Chen. He then ced the item in a Universe Pouch and gave it to thedy.


    Thedy held out her hands happily to take it.


    Just then, something unexpected happened.


    When he was handing over the Universe Pouch, his hands identally touched thedy¡¯s hands. It was amon urrence, but thedy became furious. She took the Universe Pouch andined to Zhao Danchen, ¡°Brother Zhao, he actually touched me.¡±


    Zhao Danchen swung his hand. A strong wind blew the old man away without any warning. By the time hended, he was dead.


    The other supervisor of the Martial Merchant Alliance, thedy who had been leading them, immediately kneeled on the ground for mercy.


    Thedy in Zhao Danchen¡¯s embrace scoffed at the old man¡¯s corpse. ¡°How dare he touch me. I¡¯m your woman; did he think that he could touch me?¡±


    Zhao Danchen chuckled and embraced her. He took the chance to grope her chest, and she even moaned. ¡°Alright, Lian¡¯er. I¡¯ve given you the Blue Devil me now. I have something urgent to do. so I will send you back first. I wille to visit you at night, alright?¡±


    ¡°You muste, alright?¡± the venomous woman answered shyly.Long Chen saw everything.<em> Birds of a feather flock together. Zhao Danchen isn¡¯t a virtuous person, and his women aren¡¯t either. The old man identally touched her fingers and was killed just like that.</em>


    After taking the Blue Devil me, Zhao Danchen left with Lian¡¯er.


    Long Chen sighed, feeling grateful that Zhao Danchen hadn¡¯t noticed him.


    Just then, Zhao Danchen suddenly turned back. He frowned when he looked at Long Chen. ¡°Chen Guangjun, why are you here?¡±


    Long Chen knew that Zhao Danchen was suspecting him, so he kept calm. If he lied now, Zhao Danchen would definitely be able to tell. ¡°I thought of buying the Blue Devil me, but I shall concede it to you, Martial Emperor Zhao.¡±


    He didn¡¯t add any superfluous words to his sentence, which was exactly how Chen Guangjun would speak.


    Lian¡¯er gave Long Chen a condescending look, ¡°A minor character like you wanted the Blue Devil me? What a joke.¡±


    She evenughed out loud.


    Long Chen said nothing as he lowered his head.


    Chen Guangjun had been gone for weeks, but Zhao Danchen didn¡¯t know because of his position, nor would he take notice.


    To him, Long Chen looked just like Chen Guangjun. Zhao Danchen thought that he had sensed wrongly when he felt the sliver of dangering off from Long Chen just now. Zhao Danchen said nothing more and he led his group downstairs.


    Long Chen left the ce after them.


    It was a close call, but thankfully, Zhao Danchen did not realize he was an imposter.


    ¡°Xiang, I think Zhao Danchen said he would escort thedy home before and then go elsewhere. Let¡¯s follow her somewhere remote, then we will take her life and grab the Blue Devil me.¡±


    Even though thedy was beautiful, she was wicked to the core. Long Chen decided to take revenge for the old man and also release his pent-up frustration of someone taking the thing that was supposed to be his.


    Mo Xiang responded, ¡°Big Brother, I think we should let it go for now. If she goes missing, Zhao Danchen will definitely know that you were the one who did it. We don¡¯t know how long you will have to stay here, so we cannot reveal your identity just for the Blue Devil me.¡±


    After pondering a bit, Long Chen agreed. He still had to use the identity of the Hundred-War Martial King, so he could not act rashly.


    ¡°She¡¯s still below the Earthly Martial Realm, so there¡¯s no need to worry about her using it. I will take it from her another day. Let¡¯s find out where she lives so we know where to find her.¡±


    He quickly stalked Zhao Danchen and everyone else through the crowd. Once they were out of the Martial Merchant Alliance, Zhao Danchen and thedy separated. Thedy entered an extravagant carriage under the guard of the Martial Alliance and sped off towards the east.


    Long Chen quickly pursued her.


    Soon, the carriage reached its destination. Long Chen saw that it was an extravagant estate. They were still in the outer city, so he deduced that the woman was a noble with at least someone at the Earthly Martial Realm guarding her family.


    After taking note of the location, Long Chen left.


    Even though the Blue Devil me was important to Xiang, he hadn¡¯t forgotten his true mission. It was to rescue Long Yue.


    <em>The Nine Spirit Purgatory has only one entrance, which is also the only exit. But the Red Souls said otherwise. The third Martial Emperor, Xiao Lin, most likely knows where the other exit is located ¡­ I need to find a way to get close to him.</em>


    Long Chen had a n to get the answer after he befriended Xiao Lin.


    <em>I can finally use the fourth stage of the Soul Swallowing Gaze: Control. The true strength of the Soul Swallowing Gaze is finally revealing itself.</em>


    Long Chen barely used Seduction and Soul Snatching. He did, however, rely on Sight quite often. In fact, it had saved him many times.


    Most importantly, the fourth stage, Control, allowed him to control the minds of others through hypnosis. But it had a lot of restrictions and couldn¡¯t be used easily.


    Still, it was a technique that defied the heavens.


    He nned to use Control on Xiao Lin to obtain the answer.


    Long Chen had a clear goal as he reached the gate connecting to the inner city. There were even more guards here than in the previous gate. The inner city was where the high-ranked members of the Martial Alliance resided. Only nobles and the families of Martial Kings and above could enter, so it was much quieter.


    He reached the gate, and someone quickly noticed him. It was another Martial King. Long Chen had read the reports and familiarized himself with the other Martial Kings. The one guarding the gate to the inner city was the Fierce Tiger Martial King. He had the Primary Beast Soul of a fire tiger at the King-tier.


    ¡°Hundred-War Martial King, where have you been? We thought you went missing.¡± The Fierce Tiger Martial King was unfriendly from the start.


    He was slightly higher ranked than the Hundred-War Martial King since he was guarding the gates. He was older as well, so he was superior in every aspect.


    Long Chen simply said, ¡°I ran into a Blue Eyes Golden Toad, a Category One King-tier demonic beast, and almost lost my life. I recovered and rushed back here.¡±


    The real Hundred-War Martial King was actually dead.


    ¡°Blue Eyes Golden Toad? That¡¯s a scary beast.¡± The Fierce Tiger Martial King was surprised when he looked at Long Chen. ¡°It¡¯s not an easy feat to survive an attack from it.¡±


    Everyone Long Chen had met so far had fallen for the disguise without fail. It was clear that Lan Xiang¡¯er¡¯s techniques were unmatched.


    ¡°It¡¯s a miracle I did not die.¡± Long Chen did his best to imitate the Hundred-War Martial King¡¯s tone and exchanged as few words with the Fierce Tiger Martial King as possible because he was afraid that he might slip up. ¡°I haven¡¯t returned in a long time and I¡¯m worried for my family. Fierce Tiger, I will have to take my leave now.¡±


    Fierce Tiger Martial King smiled and patted his shoulder as he snickered. ¡°You are not missing your family, just your beautiful wife. She came here and asked about you many times. Hurry up and go home.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and entered the inner city without saying anything else. He had passed the Fierce Tiger Martial King¡¯s test!


    Staring at Long Chen¡¯s back, the Fierce Tiger Martial King licked his lips and sighed. ¡°To think he really came back. I was actually thinking of visiting his wife tonight, but he came back at just the right time. I really don¡¯t understand how that woman would fall in love with him.¡±


    Naturally, Long Chen did not hear that.


    The Hundred-War Martial King had a wife called Lady Mo. She was the Hundred-War Martial King''s childhood friend and she was very pretty. They had a son and a daughter together.


    Long Chen naturally did not enter the Hundred-War Martial King¡¯s house. Even though he was confident in Lan Xiang¡¯er¡¯s technique, it would be very hard to hide himself in front of the Hundred-War Martial King¡¯s wife. He needed to save Long Yue as soon as possible.


    But he was racing against time.


    His n hinged on obtaining Xiao Lin¡¯s trust to seed.


    He knew his way around the inner city since he had memorized the map.


    There were very few people here, but those who lived here were of high status, and they rarely went out.


    Long Chen recalled where the Nine Spirit Purgatory was. He took a few steps before a woman shouted behind him.


    ¡°Dear?¡±

 Chapter 612: Bewitching Lady Mo

    Long Chen turned around and saw a woman in her twenties. She was looking at him with dumbfounded eyes. She was indeed pretty and had a mature air about her.


    Long Chen remembered that that was what Chen Guangjun¡¯s wife called him. He had to admit that he was unlucky. He had decided to avoid going to Chen Guangjun¡¯s house so there wouldn¡¯t be any slip ups, and he never thought he would meet her here.


    It was clear that she hade to ask the Fierce Tiger Martial King if he knew the whereabouts of the Hundred-War Martial King.


    ¡°Lady Mo.¡± Long Chen could only y along.


    His words had just escaped his lips when she pounced into his embrace. She hooked his neck with her pale arms as she cried happily.


    ¡°My dear, you are finally back. I thought ¡­ I thought ¡­¡± She cried pitifully.


    She pushed herself into his chest, and her sexiness aroused Long Chen a little. He pushed her away slightly to calm himself down. ¡°Alright. It¡¯s fine now. I¡¯m back. Don¡¯t worry, I was dyed by something minor. Let¡¯s go home and talk.¡±


    Long Chen was worried that she would see through his disguise after saying so much, but Lady Mo did not notice anything wrong.


    ¡°Alright. Yu¡¯er and Zhan¡¯er are waiting for you at home.¡±The Hundred-War Martial King had a son and a daughter. One was seven and the other was six. The son was called Chen Guangzhan and the daughter was called Chen Guangyu. Long Chen had memorized their names too.


    With Lady Mo by his side, Long Chen knew that he had no choice but to follow her home. He couldn¡¯t afford to risk his disguise by ditching her in the streets, so he stayed with her.


    Along the way, Lady Mo kept asking about what had happened, and Long Chen had to lie to her. She listened with tears in her eyes, feeling pity for her husband.


    Long Chen was d that everything was proceeding so smoothly.


    He was actually pitying Lady Mo since her husband was dead and she would have to raise her two children alone.


    Soon, they reached the Hundred-War Martial King¡¯s estate. The children were sitting at the doorway, staring outside. They jumped like rabbits when they saw Long Chen and Lady Mo returning. They each hugged one of Long Chen¡¯s legs. ¡°Father! You are back! We missed you!¡±


    The children were very cute, but Long Chen didn¡¯t know what to do. Thankfully, Lady Mo and the children didn¡¯t notice anything wrong with him. Long Chen decided to deal with it by heading into the estate first. He was confident that as long as he was here, he would have a chance to enter the Nine Spirit Pavilion.


    The Nine Spirit Pavilion was the entrance to the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    ¡°Both of them were very naughty when you were away.¡± Lady Mo winked at Long Chen and chuckled.


    ¡°No! Me and my brother were very obedient,¡± Yu¡¯erined.


    ¡°Mother is the bad guy! She tried to frame us! Hmph! I don¡¯t want to be friends with you anymore.¡± Zhan¡¯er scoffed at Lady Mo yfully.


    The two of them were very cute, and Long Chen actually liked children. He thought that it would be perfect if he and Ling Xi had a son and daughter.


    That was the future Long Chen wanted.


    The only issue was that he wasn¡¯t sure how long he would have to wait until then.


    ¡°Father, where are our gifts?¡± The two children looked at him.


    Long Chen froze. He didn¡¯t know what the Hundred-War Martial King had promised them, and he would be in trouble if he didn¡¯t deal with this situation properly.


    Seeing how Long Chen said nothing, Lady Mo quickly interjected. ¡°Your father was in danger and got injured. He couldn¡¯t get anything for the both of you, so don¡¯t trouble him any further.¡±


    Her kind words swept like a wind, and the children nodded.


    Long Chen was saved!


    They entered the Hundred-War King estate afterwards.


    Lady Mo went off to prepare dinner since it waste, so Long Chen sat in the courtyard to talk with Lady Mo¡¯s children. Since they were young, they didn¡¯t feel like anything was off with Long Chen even though he was silent most of the time.


    Soon, it turned dark and they had their dinner. After Lady Mo put the children to sleep, Long Chen didn¡¯t know what to do. He stood in the courtyard as he tried to n his next steps. The moon illuminated him in a soft glow as Lady Mo walked out and hugged his arm. ¡°You must¡¯ve been waiting for so long.¡±


    Her face was flushed red.


    <em>Waiting for long?</em>


    Long Chen was stupefied.


    He didn¡¯t react when Lady Mo pulled him into her room and locked the door. She then approached him. ¡°When you were gone, I asked my cousin to find you, but he had to guard the Nine Spirit Pavilion, so he just sent some men to do it. After some time, they came back and reported that you were missing and most likely died. I almost went crazy when I heard their news, but thankfully, you returned ¡­¡±


    She started crying.


    <em>Cousin?</em>


    Long Chen suddenly remembered that Lady Mo indeed had a cousin. He was also a Martial King, but he worked underneath Xiao Lin. <em>Doesn¡¯t that mean that if I get close to the cousin, I can get close to Xiao Lin and win his trust too?</em>


    Long Chen thought that the n was usible.


    He suddenly found a way to execute his n.


    All he needed to do was wait here and Lady Mo¡¯s cousin would definitely appear after hearing the news of his return. All Long Chen needed to do was ask for a rmendation to work under Xiao Lin and it would probably be fine.


    The only challenge now was not to reveal his true self to Lady Mo.


    Long Chen sighed in relief when he finally had a goal. Thankfully, neither she nor the children had discovered his true identity, so he was confident in his disguise.


    ¡°Dear ¡­¡± He suddenly heard a bewitching voice.


    When he turned to her, a pair of slender arms wrapped around his neck. Lady Mo pushed her voluptuous body onto Long Chen. He looked down and saw that her eyes were already zing over and her lips were slightly parted. Her blushed cheeks showed that she was getting aroused too.


    <em>Ack! </em>Long Chen suddenly realized that Lady Mo hadn''t seen her husband for quite some time and they were supposed to consummate tonight! Long Chen could not do this, and now he realized he had been backed into a corner.


    ¡°Lady Mo, I don¡¯t think that we should do this today. I haven¡¯t recovered.¡± Long Chen had to purposefully make his voice hoarse as he pulled himself out of her embrace.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t recovered?!¡± Lady Mo¡¯s eyes became clear again as she controlled herself. ¡°I¡¯m sorry ¡­ We can do it some other time ¡­ I thought you were having a hard time controlling yourself too ¡­¡±


    Lady Mo blushed because her advances were turned down.


    Long Chen could only smile.


    Ten minutester, Long Chenid on the bed like a log as Lady Mo cuddled him. She hugged his waist and ced her head in his arms. Long Chen was supposed to cuddle only with Ling Xi, but he had no choice today.


    ¡°Lady Mo, uh ¡­ I should cultivate now.¡± Long Chen despised himself for saying this, but the warmth and softness of Lady Mo¡¯s body was not something he could handle right now. Her body and scent invoked something primal in him.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you injured? Rest now. No need to work so hard,¡± Lady Mo said unhappily.


    Long Chen had to wait until she fell asleep to escape her embrace. He had to admit that he envied the Hundred-War Martial King for having such a pretty wife and cute children waiting for him at home.


    Suddenly, Lady Mo stuck her hand into Long Chen¡¯s pants and groped him without any warning.


    Lady Mo sat on Long Chen¡¯s body and chuckled. ¡°You said you were injured, but look at how hard ¡­¡±


    Then she suddenly let go in fear. ¡°Wait, this isn¡¯t right. You ¡­ When did you be so big?¡±


    The dragon signified the utmost Yang, so thanks to the Inherited Blood Essence, Long Chen was also given the most magnificent girth. It was natural for him to be bigger than the Hundred-War Martial King.


    Long Chen had been very careful, but he never thought he would slip up like this.


    Lady Mo¡¯s eyes filled with fear. She stood up and stammered, ¡°You ¡­ You are not my dear! Your scent is different too!¡±


    Long Chen never knew guys had a scent too.


    Only a woman who spent a long time with someone would recognize it.


    He was found out.


    Before she shouted, Long Chen pushed her down and covered her mouth with lightning speed. ¡°Don¡¯t shout, or your children will die.¡±


    Lady Mo was frightened to her core.

 Chapter 613: Soul Swallowing Gaze, Control!

    Long Chen suppressed her with force. She was worried about her children, so she didn¡¯t dare to move.


    Lady Mo¡¯s face was pale as she cried, ¡°Who are you? What do you want? Don¡¯t harm my children.¡±


    ¡°Look at me,¡± Long Chenmanded.


    Lady Mo looked into Long Chen¡¯s eyes and saw dark whirlpools in them. She was curious and wanted to see the bottom of the whirlpools, but a strange force sucked her in.


    ¡°I am Chen Guangjun, you are my woman, Lady Mo ¡­¡± Long Chen whispered.


    ¡°You are my dear ¡­¡± she whispered.


    Long Chen then quickly worked on his hypnosis to give hermands. He had to use Control to maintain his identity. After somemands, Lady Mo forgot about everything that had happened and recognized him as her husband.


    The basis of Control was like hypnosis, but it was stronger.


    Lady Mo was weak, so he could¡¯ve easily controlled her from the start. But he had chosen to use it as ast resort, and he was d that it worked.Afterpleting his brain washing, Lady Mo listened to Long Chen and slept on the bed. Long Chen started cultivating because no matter how much he revealed to her, she would always think that he was her husband.


    Long Chen rxed after that.


    After cultivating some fist art, he heard someone reaching the estate. Long Chen used Sight and saw there were two people waiting in front of the gate. One of them was knocking on the main gate.


    ¡°Who is it thiste at night?¡± Now that Lady Mo was under his control, he woke her up. No one would question his identity if Lady Mo was on his side.


    When they got close to the gate, Long Chen felt the strong presence of the two people. One of them was at the First Earthly Martial Stage while the other was exceedingly strong. Long Chen could only detect a Martial Saint¡¯s strength right now, so he guessed that the other person was a Martial Emperor.


    It was indeed a coincidence.


    He opened the door and saw who it was. The one knocking was naturally Lady Mo¡¯s cousin, Mo Feng, while the other person was none other than Xiao Lin, the third Martial Emperor. He had white hair but a tall stature, and he was smiling kindly.


    Long Chen never thought his target would appear here today. He had heard that Xiao Lin¡¯s temperament was the best among the three, but he was certain that Xiao Lin would never show mercy to an enemy.


    ¡°Hundred-War Martial King, I hope I didn¡¯t interrupt the two of you.¡± Xiao Lin smiled inly.


    Long Chen quickly replied, ¡°No, of course not. Greetings, Martial Emperor.¡±


    Lady Mo also greeted Xiao Lin. She was only brainwashed about the part where Long Chen was her husband. She could still function normally outside of that.


    ¡°Is that so? Are you not going to invite us in?¡± Xiao Lin smiled.


    Long Chen quickly invited Xiao Lin and Mo Feng into the estate. In the guest hall, they each took their seats while Lady Mo prepared some fruit and tea before she stood behind Long Chen.


    Xiao Lin and Mo Feng didn¡¯t even question Long Chen¡¯s identity since Lady Mo was so close to him.


    ¡°It¡¯ste, so I will go straight into the details.¡±


    ¡°Do you have any orders for me?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure why they were here sote at night.


    ¡°We were passing by and heard you were back, so we visited spontaneously.¡± Lady Mo¡¯s cousin, Mo Feng, chuckled.


    Xiao Lin nodded, ¡°My subordinate, the Yellow River Sword King, was killed at the Battle n. He was supposed to guard the Nine Spirit Pavilion with Mo Feng but was instead taken by Yang Ningfeng to fight. Yang Ningfeng is now dead and I have an opening at the Nine Spirit Purgatory, so I was thinking of recruiting you to work under me there.¡±


    Mo Feng added, ¡°Hundred-War Martial King, guarding the Nine Spirit Pavilion is an easy job. You don¡¯t have to take missions outside or even risk your life. I was afraid my cousin would have to take care of her children herself, so I thought of rmending you for the position.¡±


    Long Chen was pleasantly surprised by the news.


    Chen Guangjun would¡¯ve been happy with the offer too as he could¡¯ve just stayed in the safety of Martial Overlord City in close proximity to his family. To Long Chen, he could finally enter the Nine Spirit Pavilion to check on the news about the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    Before Long Chen could respond, Lady Mo answered, ¡°Is that so? That¡¯s amazing! We thank the Martial Emperor for his grace.¡± She had long wanted her husband toe home to her every day. It would be good news if he did.


    She urged Long Chen to quickly ept it.


    It was indeed good news, so he agreed.


    Long Chen stood up and said with dignity, ¡°I shall ept the position. I swear on my life that I will be loyal to you and do my best.¡±


    Xiao Lin chuckled. ¡°Is that so? That¡¯s good. I won¡¯t be disturbing you any longer. Come find me in three days.¡±


    He and Mo Feng then left.


    The opportunity had quite literallye knocking before Long Chen even did anything. Luck was truly on his side.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t have to worry about his identity since he was controlling Lady Mo.


    ***


    Three dayster, Long Chen showed up at the Nine Spirit Pavilion. Xiao Lin was in closed-door cultivation, as usual. The entrance to the Nine Spirit Purgatory was in the depths of the Nine Spirit Pavilion. It was an infamous ce that no one had ever managed to escape before. It didn¡¯t really need any guards, but guards were still posted here to prevent people from causing trouble. It was indeed an easy job.


    Xiao Lin¡¯s residence was inside the pavilion. He usually didn''t bother dealing with daily matters personally, so Long Chen only needed to interact with Mo Feng.


    Without Xiao Lin around, Mo Feng referred to Long Chen as his cousin-inw. Being called cousin-inw by a middle-aged man felt quite weird.


    ¡°Since this is your first time here, let me show you around. You just need to stand at the entrance of the Nine Spirit Purgatory to guard the ce. There¡¯s usually nothing to do, but the Martial Overlord mighte and imprison someone. He usually appears every few days.¡±


    The Nine Spirit Pavilion was a beautiful ce with a lot of greenery. It didn¡¯t resemble a prison at all.


    ¡°Both me and Yellow River used to guard the ce. If he had something to do, I would take his shift. If I had something to do, he would cover for me. We actually only need a single guard at a time, so why don¡¯t we split the shift in half? If you have something urgent such as my cousin getting pregnant, I don¡¯t mind doing some overtime,¡± Mo Feng said with a chuckle.


    The Martial Alliance was arge organization, and everyone had their own job to do. Every single Martial King was in charge of something, not just working as a soldier for the Martial Alliance.


    They soon reached the entrance of the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    A small, ancient, wooden hut stood before them. Its exterior was gray and it exuded a strange aura. Long Chen even saw gray misting out from the wooden hut. The ground within a hundred meter radius of the hut waspletely gray with nothing growing on it.


    ¡°Is that the entrance to the Nine Spirit Purgatory? I have never seen it before.¡± Long Chen was shocked.


    ¡°It¡¯s the most frightening ce here. No one can get out alive since there¡¯s only a single entrance and no exit,¡± Mo Feng said proudly.


    ¡°No exits? Maybe the people imprisoned inside couldn¡¯t find it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I¡¯ve heard that the Nine Spirit Purgatory is a destend where there¡¯s not a single wisp of nature¡¯s spiritual energy. Cultivators can barely survive there without spiritual energy. Also, I¡¯ve heard that the most terrifying aspect of the ce is that everyone inside loses their sense of direction. If you walk in a straight line, you will find yourself walking in arge circle instead.¡±


    <em>No spiritual energy and no sense of direction.</em>


    <em>No wonder no one has managed to escape.</em>


    He then realized that something was wrong. ¡°Wait, if no one has ever managed to escape, then how do we know what the interior of the Nine Spirit Purgatory is like?¡±


    Mo Feng smiled bitterly. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    It was clear that Mo Feng didn¡¯t know much either. The Red Souls¡¯ informationwork was indeed terrifying to be able to find out the things that even Mo Feng didn¡¯t know.


    Long Chen was certain that the path to exit the Nine Spirit Purgatory was in Xiao Lin¡¯s hands.


    <em>Big Sister, give me some time to get the answer from Xiao Lin, then I wille and rescue you.</em>


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want her to suffer too long, nor did he know how bad it was inside.


    Long Yue had helped him a lot, so he had to save her.

 Chapter 614: Nine Spirit Purgatory

    Xiao Lin lived in the Nine Souls Pavilion, and since Long Chen was stationed there, he would sometimese out and talk to him. But there were also times when Long Chen waspletely alone. Long Chen realized that every time Xiao Lin was alone with him, it was a golden opportunity to use Control.


    But Long Chen was careful. He needed to be friendly to Xiao Lin until the other party was no longer guarded towards him. Only then could he use Control, or he would fail even though his Martial Soul was strong. If he failed, everything woulde crumbling down.


    It was a risky move to infiltrate the Nine Souls Pavilion, but it was necessary for him to save Long Yue. Everyone else was waiting for the good news, so he could not fail.


    For the next seven days, he stood guard for half a day at a time. Xiao Lin passed by a few times and talked to him every time.


    At Xiao Lin¡¯s age, he wouldn¡¯t be able to advance anymore no matter how hard he cultivated, so there was no reason for him to cultivate. He was also more inclined to enjoy his twilight years, so his days were leisurely.


    Of the three Martial Emperors, Xiao Lin was the only one Long Chen was on fairly friendly terms with. Not everyone in Martial Overlord City was evil. For example, Lady Mo was a pitiful and innocent woman.


    Seven dayster, Long Chen was already on good terms with Xiao Lin. Long Chen wasted no time and cultivated as he stood guard. Since he was disguised as someone at the First Earthly Martial Stage, he practiced the second stage of the Earthly Martial Fist whenever Xiao Lin passed. In reality, he had already mastered it.


    But with his capabilities, he could feign it by making mistakes.


    Xiao Lin started giving him pointers.Long Chen heeded Xiao Lin¡¯s advice and improved his cultivation. Time passed, and Long Chen saw that it was a good time to use Control since they had been talking for so long. Now that he had obtained Xiao Lin¡¯s trust, he had to seize the opportunity as he didn¡¯t know when his next chance woulde.


    As he spoke with Xiao Lin, Long Chen carefully used Control but started off weak. He nned to slowly increase the intensity of Control over a long period of time. Xiao Lin¡¯s Martial Soul was strong, so it wouldn¡¯t be easy to conquer it.


    It wasn''t until Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes started to ze over while they conversed that Long Chen knew that his technique had worked. But this was only the first step¡ªit was still risky to ask for the answer now.


    Control was not omnipotent.


    Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level was lower than Xiao Lin''s, so the chances of failure were high. The moment Xiao Lin sensed any changes in Long Chen¡¯s essence and Long Chen tried to attack him, Xiao Lin would immediately wake up.


    Control could only dominate the minds of those weaker than him, and Long Chen could evenmand them to hurt themselves.


    ¡°When did you reach the Earthly Martial Realm?¡± Long Chen tried to prevent anyrge fluctuations in Xiao Lin¡¯s emotions, so he asked a simpler question. These questions were also deemed normal to Xiao Lin.


    ¡°Twenty-seven¡­¡± Xiao Lin answered without any hesitation.


    Long Chen then started to ask questions that slowly infringed on Xiao Lin¡¯s personal life. Long Chen had already prepared the questions beforehand, and each one would require an answer that was buried deeper in Xiao Lin¡¯s mind. That way, Xiao Lin wouldn¡¯t wake up from the hypnosis due to shock.


    Long Chen saved the most important question forst. ¡°I¡¯ve heard that the Nine Souls Purgatory doesn¡¯t have an exit, but someone told me that you know how to get out of it. I was wondering if you could exin that to me?¡±


    Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes were still zed over. ¡°Of course I know ¡­ Do you want to know?¡±


    ¡°Could you tell me, please?¡± Long Chen asked in a pleading tone. It was easier for Xiao Lin to answer that way.


    ¡°First, you must find a ten-meter-tall hill in the Nine Souls Purgatory. Dig downwards for a hundred meters and you will find apass. Follow thepass¡¯ direction and finally ¡­¡±


    ¡°Greetings, Martial Emperor.¡± Just then, Mo Feng entered and greeted Xiao Lin.


    Long Chen¡¯s heart skipped a beat.


    Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes regained rity when Mo Feng called for him. He stared at Long Chen in confusion, and Long Chen thanked him. ¡°Thank you, Martial Emperor Xiao, for your guidance! I¡¯m one step closer to the Second Earthly Martial Stage!¡±


    ¡°Guidance?¡± Xiao Lin had a feeling that something was wrong with his mind. It was as if he was sleeping and had just woken up.


    He never would¡¯ve guessed that there was a technique like Control in this world that could fish out the deepest secrets in his heart. He shook his head and smiled bitterly. ¡°I think I¡¯m getting so old that I¡¯ve started spacing out. You can talk to each other for now. I will go back and rest.¡±


    Xiao Lin left after that.


    <em>That was close!</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s heart was beating rapidly. Thankfully, he had managed to learn the method to escape the Nine Spirit Purgatory, or else his ns would be wasted.


    ¡°Cousin-inw, why is the Martial Emperor acting weird?¡± Mo Feng was confused too.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. He was guiding me on the Earthly Martial Fist just now,¡± Long Chen answered then he continued his cultivation.


    Mo Feng dropped the topic and continued to talk to Long Chen. After some time, Long Chen left the Nine Souls Pavilion and returned to his home.


    <em>I cannot enter the Nine Spirit Purgatory right now, or it would be too suspicious. I should wait a day or two before I enter.</em>


    Two dayster, Long Chen decided that it was time to rescue Long Yue. He used Control on Lady Mo one more time so that she would be even more certain that Long Chen was her husband. He tried to minimize the risk as much as possible while he was entering the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    It was Long Chen¡¯s turn to stand guard that day. He could reach the wooden hut without any worry. He used Sight and checked that no one was there before he opened the door.


    Before he could react, a strong force pulled Long Chen into the hut. The door closed lightly, and the Hundred-War Martial King disappeared from the world once more.


    Long Chen could only apologize to Lady Mo. The death of her husband didn¡¯t concern him, and he only gave her some closure by appearing in front of her as the Hundred-War Martial King. Since she had a cousin who was also a Martial King, Long Chen was certain that her life wouldn¡¯t be terrible. There were people living in worse conditions than her in the world.


    The strong force sucked Long Chen into the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    He opened his eyes and was surprised by what he saw.


    The Nine Spirit Purgatory was devoid of color. Everything was gray, including the sky. There were no signs of nts, and gray clouds covered the sky. A cold wind blew past the endless wastnd.


    ¡°This is the legendary Nine Spirit Purgatory ¡­¡± Long Chen looked around and realized two important things. One, everything was the same no matter which direction he looked. It was like a massive maze.


    The second thing was that there was barely any nature¡¯s spiritual energy here. It was weaker than even Baiyang Town. Long Chen realized that his essence was circting much more slowly than usual, and he wasn¡¯t able to replenish any essence that had been used up.


    Long Chen had a thousand King Crystals that he had plundered from Yang Ninfeng, and he had eight hundred more of his own. Most of the King Crystals came from the Divine Fire Realm. Even the Martial Overlord might not have as many King Crystals as he did.


    Each King Crystal contained an enormous amount of nature¡¯s spiritual energy, so he wasn¡¯t worried about his predicament right now.


    But he could imagine how those without King Crystals would slowly be weaker if they were trapped here. Since the Nine Spirit Purgatory¡¯s exit was also well hidden, many of them would¡¯ve died here.


    It was the most likely reason why the Martial Overlord had chosen this ce as his prison.


    It was a cruel environment without any resources.


    <em>I need to find Long Yue before I search for thepass.</em>


    He had a goal, but he could do nothing but smile bitterly. There was nothing in this barrennd, so how would he find Long Yue? Where was the little hill? It might¡¯ve been easier to find the hill if the nd continued infinitely, but Long Yue was a different matter. It was possible that she was already dead.


    Long Chen wasted no time and ran as fast as he could in one direction. A gray shadow ran across the barrennd.


    He didn¡¯t know if he still needed his disguise, so he didn¡¯t take it off yet.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen ran for a long time but met no one. In fact, the sky andnd looked the same as the ce he had justnded.


    Suddenly, he saw footprints in front of him. On closer inspection, he realized that the footprints were his!

 Chapter 615: Gray-Clothed Youth

    ¡°That¡¯s strange. I¡¯ve been running in a straight line but ended up back in the same ce. If I continue, I might not be able to find the exit. I should change directions to go to other ces.¡±


    Since running in a straight line would lead him back to his original location, Long Chen chose to run and change his directions randomly numerous times. He thought that it would lead him somewhere else.


    Half a day passed, and Long Chen never saw his footprints again. That meant he had left his original location.


    <em>The Nine Spirit Purgatory doesn¡¯t have a fixed direction and is always changing. No wonder I need apass to find the exit. I think thepass¡¯ direction will change from time to time to show the exit. Even though I can leave the original location by running in random directions, I do not think I will be able to find the exit like this.</em>


    Long Chen continued his journey.


    Suddenly, he saw someone on the horizon. Long Chen approached the person, but the other party saw him too. The person ran towards Long Chen while shouting something.


    Long Chen realized that the person was looking at him like prey. Long Chen quickly stopped and saw that the person wasn¡¯t Long Yue, but someone at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    Long Chen was shocked by the person¡¯s appearance.


    His clothes were in tatters and his hair was long and messy. His entire body was caked in dirt, as if he had just dug himself out of the earth. More importantly, his eyes were unfocused until he saw Long Chen, which was when they changed into an animalistic stare.<em>So this is how a person ends up if they are trapped here for a long time.</em>


    The man appeared in front of Long Chen as he panted and red.


    ¡°Newbie, give me your Universe Pouch and King Crystals. I will let you live if you do so. Quickly!¡± the man shouted at Long Chen.


    King Crystals.


    In this barren ce, King Crystals were the key to someone¡¯s survival. Without them, a cultivator¡¯s strength would slowly dissipate as they aged and died.


    Long Chen pitied the man.


    ¡°How long have you been locked up here?¡±


    ¡°Years? I don¡¯t know how long. Quick, give me the crystals,¡± the person continued. It was clear that he didn¡¯t want to fight Long Chen, as it would expend too much energy.


    Long Chen frowned and gave him two King Crystals. ¡°Here, this is for you. Can you answer some questions for me?¡±


    The man ignored him as he took the King Crystals with trembling hands. He stared at them with glee as if they were the world''s greatest treasures.


    ¡°Answer me,¡± Long Chen repeated.


    But the man ignored him as he smiled wildly. He put the King Crystals away and then looked at Long Chen with bloodshot eyes.


    ¡°Newbie, give me all of your King Crystals. I will live eternally. Give me all of them, or I will kill you.¡±


    He turned crazier now that he had two King Crystals. He immediately pounced towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Greedy bastard.¡± Long Chen shook his head. The man was very weakened and yet he dared to attack Long Chen. It was clear that the King Crystals were the most sought-after items here.


    Long Chen waved his hands and pped the man away.


    After rolling onto the ground several times, the man struggled to get up before he pounced towards Long Chen again. ¡°Newbie! You have a lot of King Crystals and you will be killed soon! They are going to take all your King Crystals! You are going to die anyway, so might as well give them to me!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen suppressed the man easily. Even though the man was on the same cultivation level as he was, he could easily defeat him. Still, the man was struggling so much that Long Chen found it difficult to use Control to get information.


    ¡°You are strong, but so what? I was very strong, stronger than you when I first came here! But I became the same as the others. Go die like them!¡± The man continued to resist even though he was being suppressed.


    Long Chen felt a forlorn sadness when he saw how crazed the man was. He also realized how scary the Nine Spirit Purgatory was, to be able to reduce a strong cultivator to nothing but a madman. This ce was suitable as a graveyard.


    Also, he wasn¡¯t sure if Xiao Lin¡¯s method would work.


    ¡°Let me ask you this. Did a female cultivatore here recently? She¡¯s at the Third Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    ¡°A female cultivator? Hahaha. If she was injured by the Martial Overlord, she would most probably be dismembered by now. I definitely do not have the luck nor strength to share the spoils, hahaha.¡±


    Long Chen learned how cruel this ce was.


    It was clear that the man didn¡¯t know about Long Yue.


    The Nine Spirit Purgatory was arge ce, and it wasn¡¯t going to be easy to locate someone in here.


    But Long Chen did not give up. He felt that time was short, so he warned the man, ¡°I don¡¯t want to kill you, so you have two choices. One, get out of my sight. Two, die and give me peace of mind.¡±


    The man¡¯s eyes were still bloodshot when he shouted, ¡°I have a third option! Kill you and take all of your King Crystals!¡±


    <em>Crack.</em>


    Long Chen snapped the man¡¯s neck.


    ¡°I gave you the option to live and yet you did not grab it.¡± Long Chen was speechless. He ced the corpse down and then stared at the wastnd around him. <em>Not only will the physical body be under stress, even their mental health will deteriorate. They lose all reason if they get trapped here for too long. It¡¯s better to just die.</em>


    He then continued his journey.


    Long Chen found that his deductions were urate. If he traveled in a straight path, he would return to his original location, but he would reach other ces if he walked randomly.


    <em>Where is this ce?</em> Time slowly passed. At first, it was hours, and then days passed. Three dayster, Long Chen had only met two other people. Both of them had lost their minds and were killed by him.


    Another three days passed before Long Chen saw something major. Four cultivators were chasing after a youth in gray clothes. His clothes looked rtively new, so Long Chen assumed that he had only arrived recently.


    There were five of them. Long Chen hoped that he could obtain some information from them.


    ¡°Don¡¯t run!¡±


    ¡°Give us your King Crystals or we will kill you!¡±


    The four cultivators were drained of any essence. Long Chen didn¡¯t know how strong they were originally, but being trapped here without any King Crystals had caused their strength to deteriorate to the point of being regr human beings. Even a normal Heavenly Passage Realm cultivator could kill them now.


    The gray-clothed youth was very disheveled. He then tripped and rolled on the ground. Underneath his messy hair were clear eyes filled with animosity. ¡°If you force me any further, I will absorb my King Crystals¡¯ power and kill all of you!¡±


    The youth thought they would back off, but he was mistaken. One of the cultivators stepped forward. ¡°Kill us, then. We don¡¯t want to live anymore.¡±


    The prisoners here were both afraid and unafraid of death. They wanted to use the King Crystals to extend their lives because they were worried about slowly wasting away. They didn¡¯t have the courage to kill themselves. Some of them weed death at the hands of others.


    The youth was backed into a corner. He had no choice but to fight as he looked pitifully at the four other cultivators. A single King Crystal appeared in his hand, and he absorbed it.


    The King Crystal disappeared. The four cultivators prepared themselves for death as they pounced towards the youth.


    The youth moved instantly, and dragons appeared. The dragons blew past the four cultivators and killed them without any mercy.


    The youth staggered and almost lost his footing.


    <em>Soul Dispersing Dragon w! </em>It was Long Chen¡¯s turn to be shocked. To think that the youth had used it! <em>He must be the other Long Chen!</em>


    The youth was none other than Long Yue¡¯s brother, the genius at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen never thought that he would be this weak after being imprisoned here.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Long Chen ran towards the youth and stopped him from running away. The youth¡¯s expression had been cold, but he was shocked to see who was blocking him. ¡°Someone new? And you are even a Martial King!¡±


    Long Chen was still in disguise.


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m not from the Martial Alliance. Do you know Lan Xiang¡¯er? She gave me the disguise. I know you are Long Chen and you are also Long Yue¡¯s brother. I¡¯m not sure if you¡¯ve heard of me.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words caused a glimmer of light to appear in the youth¡¯s eyes, especially after he mentioned a certain someone.

 Chapter 616: Fengyun Group

    ¡°I¡¯ve seen everyone in the Dragon n. You must be Long Chen, our newest member, since you¡¯re referring to my sister as ¡®Eldest Sister.¡¯ And you have the same name as me! I¡¯ve heard the news of what you¡¯ve done before I was imprisoned here. I never thought you woulde here though.¡±


    Long Chen was even more certain of who the youth was.


    The youth was none other than Long Chen.


    Long Chen had finally found someone significant after three days here.


    The youth was captured and imprisoned roughly a month ago, so he didn¡¯t know what had happened outside.


    Long Chen said, ¡°I¡¯m here to rescue you both.¡±


    ¡°Us?¡± The youthughed. ¡°You must be crazy. There¡¯s no exit in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. You cannot escape once you enter.¡±


    Long Chen smiled but didn¡¯t exin more.


    ¡°Wait, you said both of us. Who else are you rescuing?¡± The youth was confused.Long Chen knew that the youth didn¡¯t know Long Yue had been imprisoned as well. They would¡¯ve been together if they had met each other in this ce.


    ¡°Eldest Sister is also imprisoned here. She came here roughly ten days ago after hearing that you were imprisoned here. She battled against the Martial Overlord and lost.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± The youth¡¯s cold expression instantly turned pale as he looked at Long Chen incredulously. ¡°You mean my sister tried to rescue me and got imprisoned here too?!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the truth. I came here to rescue her too.¡±


    The youth was in a daze as he contemted what to do. He squatted on the ground and held his head in despair. ¡°Why would she risk her life to rescue me? I¡¯ve never listened to her once and always angered her. I even left her, so why did shee here? I thought she hated me.¡±


    <em>They really did argue before he left. </em>Long Chen smiled. ¡°How could she hate you? You are her brother, and your sister will always take care of you, no matter what happens. You are the only one who truly thinks she hates you.¡±


    In reality, the youth was in his rebellious phase, which was why he had refused to let Long Yue take care of him. That was why he left her, but it was not a significant enough conflict to damage his rtionship with her.


    Bonds between siblings weren''t fragile enough to shatter with just an argument.


    The youth fell quiet after listening to Long Chen, then he shook his head and recovered. ¡°She¡¯s so stupid. She should¡¯ve thought of me as dead as soon as I was imprisoned. Why did she waste her life? Our n is now extinct.¡±


    Long Chen smiled. Those words meant that the youth was no longer at odds with his sister. It was good news since he could save both him and Long Yue at the same time.


    The youth then looked at Long Chen. ¡°You came here to rescue my sister. Does that mean you know the way out?¡±


    It only just dawned on him that Long Chen hade prepared.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I do know the method, but we must find your sister first. The Martial Overlord must¡¯ve taken all of her King Crystals when he threw her into this ce. I haven¡¯t seen her once in the past three days.¡±


    The youth panicked and clenched his fists. ¡°That Martial Overlord bastard. How dare he hurt my sister! I will tear him to bits!¡±


    The youth didn¡¯t even think to ask how to escape when he heard that his sister was injured.


    Long Chen had a lot of King Crystals and spare Universe Pouches. He took out a hundred King Crystals and ced them in a Universe Pouch. ¡°Here, take this.¡±


    The youth was shocked when he saw the hundred King Crystals. ¡°Why do you have so many?¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°I got them on my own. You should be able to recover with this much. Since you¡¯re at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, you should be able tost until we get out of this ce.¡±


    ¡°Brother, I, Long Chen, will never forget what you¡¯ve done for me.¡±


    Long Chenughed dryly. ¡°Don¡¯t say ¡®Long Chen¡¯ anymore. We have the same name, so it feels weird.¡±


    The two of them became close just like that.


    Long Chen liked the youth¡¯s personality and soon got on very friendly terms with him.


    The youth then remembered to ask the important question. ¡°Wait, I thought there was no exit to this ce? I¡¯ve been exploring for an entire month and still haven¡¯t found the exit. No matter how much I walk, I always end up in the same ce or region. How do you know there¡¯s an exit? How do we get out?¡±


    ¡°I learned it from Xiao Lin. It should exist.¡±


    ¡°How do we find it, then?¡±


    ¡°Xiao Lin told me that there¡¯s a ten-meter-tall hill. Climb up the hill and dig down a hundred meters to find apass. Follow the direction of thepass and we will be able to leave the Nine Spirit Purgatory.¡±


    ¡°A hill and apass? Then thepass must be something special. As for a ten-meter-tall hill ¡­. I think I saw it once.¡±


    Long Chen was excited to hear that since it meant Xiao Lin wasn¡¯t lying.


    ¡°Do you know where it is?¡±


    The youth frowned. ¡°I do not. It¡¯s very hard to go back to an exact location here. But I¡¯ve seen it once, so it must be real. Since you have enough King Crystals, we have a lot of time to find it again.¡±


    The youth was right.


    They had time and hope on their side.


    ¡°Still, we need to find your sister first. Let¡¯s move out now. Not only is she ady, she¡¯s also injured. It¡¯s very dangerous for her to be here in such a vulnerable state.¡±


    The youth was also worried about his sister, so he nodded. He quickly followed Long Chen to find Long Yue¡¯s whereabouts. Rather than finding her, it was more urate to say that they just walked in random directions to test their luck. If they walked in a straight line, they would find themselves back where they started.


    After absorbing the King Crystals, the youth¡¯s strength returned to the Third Earthly Martial Stage. He now knew that Long Chen was at the Second Earthly Martial Stage. ¡°You are very strong for your age. You should be able to reach the Third Earthly Martial Stage in a short amount of time,¡± the youthmented.


    Long Chen nodded. His currentbat capabilities far exceeded that of a regr Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Even the youth couldn¡¯t win against him, especially after Long Chen merged the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and Wind God Kick. Thebination of his ws and kicks was devastating.


    There were a lot of people in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. The Martial Overlord regrly imprisoned people here, including those not even at the Earthly Martial Realm. Long Chen and the youth captured everyone they encountered to ask about Long Yue¡¯s whereabouts, but none of them had an answer.


    Long Chen and the youth¡¯s patient gradually wore out. Ten dayster, they felt like they had circled around the entire Nine Spirit Purgatory, but still hadn¡¯t found Long Yue.


    On the twelfth day, Long Chen caught a First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. The man had tried to take Long Chen¡¯s King Crystals but was defeated.


    Long Chen suppressed the man and asked about Long Yue. Surprisingly, the man hesitated before answering, ¡°I think ¡­ I think I saw her ¡­¡±


    Both Long Chen and the youth were shocked. ¡°Where? Where did you see her? Tell me everything and I will give you ten King Crystals.¡±


    Ten King Crystals were enough for him to be king in this ce. The man looked at them with surprise until Long Chen pped him. ¡°I ¡­ I saw the people from Fengyun Group chasing her. She doesn¡¯t have any King Crystals, but the boss of the Fengyun Group wanted to take her as his wife.¡±


    ¡°Fengyun Group?¡± Long Chen frowned.


    The youth at his side was angry. ¡°The Fengyun Group was originally one of therger factions in the Divine Martial Empire, simr to the Wind God Sect. They were a group of bandits that were rebellious and refused to yield to the Martial Alliance. All eight experts were imprisoned here, including their leader, who¡¯s at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. I¡¯ve heard of them in this ce. They had a lot of King Crystals when they entered and they kept taking King Crystals from others. That¡¯s why no one dares to fight against them. But they must die for trying to touch my sister.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    Time was of the essence, and they needed to act now.

 Chapter 617: Final Struggle

    Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid of the Fengyun Group because they were trapped in the Nine Spirit Purgatory for so long.


    He had obtained even more information about Long Yue from the cultivator. The man had told them that hest saw Long Yue yesterday and didn¡¯t know where she was today, but he was certain that she was nearby. If Long Yue wasn¡¯t captured yet, then Long Chen and the youth would have spotted them immediately since having numerous people chasing after a single cultivator would¡¯ve roused a hugemotion.


    Long Chen and the youth separated but maintained a distance of a hundred meters so that they were always in each other¡¯s sight. They then startedbing the area. Both of them started panicking after learning that Long Yue was in danger, but they weren¡¯t afraid of the Fengyun Group. Both of them were born for battle and didn¡¯t even fear the Martial Alliance, much less a group of bandits.


    ***


    Gray clouds covered the sky as a cold wind blew past the wastnd. The gray earth stretched all the way to the horizon as if there was no end to it.


    Long Yue was tired. She had spent most of the time running away from her pursuers after she was thrown into this ce half a month ago. She had already used up most of her essence, so she was relying solely on her willpower to run now.


    She had fallen numerous times, so her clothes were dirty. Her clothes were also covered in blood from both herself and others.


    Long Yue felt dizzy and identally fell down again. Her body told her that she needed to rest, but the presence of pursuers spurred her to wake up again.


    ¡°No, I cannot stop, or I will really die.¡± Behind her were the people from Fengyun Group. At first, they wanted to capture her to satisfy themselves, but after Long Yue killed some of their partners, their greed and hatred had amplified many times. Long Yue knew she would be done for if she was captured.Long Yue had never thought she would die in this ce and in the hands of people like them.


    She gritted her teeth and stood up. Her red face was now pale from exhaustion. The wounds inflicted by the Martial Overlord and her constant usage of her essence had left her on the brink of copsing.


    She didn¡¯t know how much longer she would be able to handle this, but she still gritted her teeth and continued forward. Even so, the obsceneughter and angry shouts were getting closer and closer.


    Long Yue felt fear for the first time when she heard those bestial shouts. She had always been fearless and didn¡¯t cower when she confronted the Martial Overlord, but the people from Fengyun Group were like demonic beasts after suffering in the Nine Spirit Purgatory for so long.


    Her strength was nearly exhausted and she couldn¡¯tst any longer. The more she used thest remaining bit of her essence, the faster she felt her dizzinessing back again.


    ¡°What should I do to escape this?¡± Long Yue despaired. She wasn¡¯t afraid of death, but she was afraid of not finding her brother here. If both of them died in this ce, the Dragon n would go extinct. She felt ashamed for letting her ancestors down.


    The dizziness grew stronger and her vision blurred. Her legs went limp and she hit the ground again. This time, she didn¡¯t crawl back up. Her pursuers saw that she was down for good and immediately ran towards her.


    When Long Yue crawled up again, the group had encircled her. There were five men, and all of them were wearing tattered clothes. Their hair was a mess and looked like beggars, but their auras were stronger than Long Yue''s because they had Royal Crystals.


    All of them were ring at her with hatred and lust. One of the skinny men approached her as he panted. His eyes were filled with intense desire.


    ¡°Long Yue, I actually yearned for you ten years ago. I thought I lost my chance when I was imprisoned in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, but I never thought you would end up here too. You once defeated me, and now you even killed members of the Fengyun Group. I will make you pay for everything here today!¡±


    The man¡¯s shirt was in slightly better condition than the others because he was the leader of the Fengyun Group. He had a supply of Royal Crystals, so no one could defeat him. He always took most of the Royal Crystals for himself.


    Long Yue knew that without Royal Crystals, they wouldn¡¯t have lived for so long. The Nine Spirit Purgatory was a barren ce, but she had learned that many of the prisoners spent their time digging because there was a chance they could get a King Crystal or two if they were lucky.


    It was all thanks to the buried Royal Crystals and the asional new prisoners bringing in Royal Crystals that they were able to survive until today.


    Long Yue smiled as she red at Feng Zhiyun. ¡°I thought you were already dead, not surviving like a zombie here in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. Do you think you¡¯re great for bullying the people here? Everyone here is weak and pitiful. You are aplishing nothing by bullying them.¡±


    Long Yue¡¯s taunt hit a sore spot. Feng Zhiyun knew that no matter how glorious he was in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, he was nothing but a joke to outsiders.


    ¡°Fine! I, Feng Zhiyun, love to bully the weak, but so what? You are now in my hands. Don¡¯t think that I will let you off so easily. Ten years ¡­ I haven¡¯t tasted a woman in ten years, especially one of your caliber. I never thought I would have the luck to experience this again. Once I¡¯m done with you, I will let my brothers savor you too! I won¡¯t let you die easily¡ªI will use you as a tool for as long as I live.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Boss!¡± The other four became excited when they heard that Feng Zhiyun was going to give them a chance too. They were also tempted by Long Yue¡¯s beauty.


    Brothers shared everything.


    But Long Yue was not afraid. She chuckled and shook her head. ¡°No matter what you do, you will always be a loser to me. A lowlife piece of trash.¡±


    Long Yue wasn¡¯t afraid of them, as she could just kill herself before they touched her, but she was disappointed that she was unable to find her brother.


    Feng Zhiyun was angry after getting insulted by Long Yue so many times. He shouted angrily, ¡°Go! We¡¯ve wasted two Royal Crystals just for her! We cannot waste any more!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Boss!¡± The four men revealed lecherous looks and pounced towards her. After so many years, even their attacks had be pitiful.


    Long Yue didn¡¯t have enough essence to do much, not even to use the Dragon Soul Transformation. But even without it, she had her base strength as a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w.¡± Using her physical strength and thest of her essence, Long Yue decided to go all out. Killing one more before she died was more than enough.


    Long Yue¡¯s final struggle was even more fearsome than they had thought. The Soul Dispersing Dragon w was a strong attack that intensified even more when she attacked recklessly. The four men who hadn¡¯t had a real battle for a long time were pushed back.


    ¡°Die! Five Piercing Dragons!¡± Long Yue wanted to kill Feng Zhiyun, but to her surprise, he asked his followers to block the attack.


    Even so, with enough Royal Crystals, Feng Zhiyun¡¯s followers could defend themselves from an injured Long Yue with no essence. Feng Zhiyun could even ensure his safety.


    Long Yue mustered all of her remaining strength and used the Five Piercing Dragons. Four of the dragons attacked the four men while the final one charged towards Feng Zhiyun, but thetter had miscalcted. Long Yue¡¯s final desperate attack was not something a regr First Earthly Martial Stage cultivator could block. Feng Zhiyun was shocked when he saw his four followers¡¯ necks cut open with heavy sh wounds, causing blood to be sprayed from their arteries.


    ¡°No!¡± Feng Zhiyun used all of his strength to block Long Yue¡¯s final attack. He had underestimated her strength, which resulted in the deaths of his followers.


    After using thest of her strength and killing four of the men, she fell to the ground without any strength left. She couldn¡¯t fight back against Feng Zhiyun anymore; her strength left her body and her consciousness faded.


    The only thing she heard was Feng Zhiyun¡¯s angry shouts. His four followers had helped him a lot, and after spending thest ten years together, he had formed a brotherly bond with them, but now they were dead.


    Feng Zhiyun suddenly stopped shouting andughed. ¡°Fine. They are all dead. That means I get to enjoy Long Yue on my own. She¡¯s all mine now. I have even more Royal Crystals to use now that they''re dead. Not bad. Not bad.¡±

 Chapter 618: What Are You Laughing At?

    Long Yue smiled bitterly.


    There was no more hope for her.


    She was going to get sullied.


    But she was not going to let Feng Zhiyun get what he wanted. She was prepared tomit suicide and even explode her body to bits in the process to prevent the pervert from defiling her corpse. She was certain that he would do so now that he had be a crazed animal.


    Long Yue caught a whiff of Feng Zhiyun¡¯s stench.


    Even in her final moments, Long Yue was still worrying about the Battle n. Between them and her brother, she valued thetter more. She thought that it was possible that the Battle n and the Dragon n had been eradicated since she wasn¡¯t there.


    Long Yue recalled her entire life. She had lived half of her life with her brother, while the other half was with the Dragon n.


    She recalled everyone''s faces and even the moments she spent with her brother, Long Chen. It wasn¡¯t until the end that she recalled the other Long Chen, who created miracle after miracle.


    Suddenly, she heard Long Chen¡¯s voice. Long Yue thought she was hallucinating because it was impossible for him to be here in the Nine Spirit Purgatory.¡°Stop!¡± A thunderous shout woke Long Yue up. She raised her head groggily and saw two figures approaching. They were running at the speed of Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators.


    <em>Who are they?</em>


    Long Yue thought she was still hallucinating.


    Feng Zhiyun was now just beside her.


    He hadn¡¯t touched a woman in ten years and couldn¡¯t hold back anymore.


    Feng Zhiyun¡¯s crotch was already bulging when he saw Long Yue¡¯s pale face and curvy body.


    But at the same time, he heard someone shouting. He scowled and looked at who it was. Two figures appeared in front of him in an instant. One of them, a youth in gray clothing, sped past and used his arm to sh at Feng Zhiyun¡¯s neck.


    ¡°Who are you?!¡± Feng Zhiyun gurgled as his vision blurred. Blood sprayed from his neck and covered his clothes. The cold pain informed him of his broken neck as his head drooped downwards.


    <em>I¡¯m dead?</em> His consciousness faded and he stared in disbelief. His head fell uncontrobly. The thing he saw was Long Yue¡¯s surprised look.


    And then there was darkness.


    ¡°Xiao Chen!¡± Long Yue cried with joy. She thought she had heard her seventh brother Long Chen, but it was actually her real brother.


    Long Chen stood at the side. Xiao Chen was what Long Yue called her real brother, while she would call him by his name or ¡®Seventh Brother.¡¯ It was easier to differentiate them like this.


    Long Yue was stillying on the ground as she stared at the gray-clothed teenager. Both of them were crying, ignoring Long Chen. Long Chen chuckled and took out several King Crystals from the Primordial Realm. ¡°Eldest Sister, don¡¯t get too excited yet. Absorb these King Crystals first. You don¡¯t have any essence right now, and it¡¯s very hard to feed you spiritual herbs like that.¡±


    The King Crystals fell into Long Yue¡¯s hands. Those King Crystals were enough for her to recover half of her strength. Long Chen could give her more once she recovered.


    Long Yue was shocked to hear Long Chen¡¯s voice. He was still disguised as the Hundred-War Martial King, so she didn¡¯t recognize him.


    ¡°Seventh Brother?¡± Long Yue couldn¡¯t believe her eyes.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s me. Hurry up and refine them. We can exin everything once you¡¯ve recovered. I have thousands of King Crystals, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    Long Yue nodded like a good child and understood that his disguise came from Lan Xiang¡¯er. She also had a good guess as to where Long Chen¡¯s King Crystals came from. She quickly refined the King Crystals in her hand.


    She sat up as she refined the crystals. The youth finally rxed and looked at Long Chen with gratitude. ¡°I am very grateful. If it wasn¡¯t for you, both me and my sister would be goners. I really don¡¯t know how to thank you ¡­¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so polite. She¡¯s your sister, and in a way, she¡¯s also my sister after I joined the Dragon n. It¡¯s normal for me to save her. Without her, I wouldn¡¯t be where I am today. In a sense, she¡¯s also my benefactor.¡±


    After he had escaped the Ancient Demon Domain, Long Yue had helped Long Chen recover and even guided him into the Earthly Martial Realm. If it wasn¡¯t for her, Long Chen might¡¯ve made a lot of mistakes.


    The youth nodded and smiled. ¡°Looks like the Dragon n is doing well, seeing how you¡¯re treating them. I¡¯m envious now. If I get out of here, I will stay with my sister and follow you all.¡±


    ¡°You thought it through?¡± Long Chen was surprised. He thought that the youth would still be rebellious, but it would be better if he followed Long Yue. That way, the Dragon n would have another strong cultivator.


    The youth smiled bitterly when he looked at Long Yue. ¡°Maybe. I realized that no matter what I do, she will always look at me as if I am always a child in her eyes. As they say, our oldest siblings are our parents too. Maybe it¡¯s time for me to listen to her since she¡¯s my only family right now.¡±


    Long Chen rxed when he heard that.


    He was certain that Long Yue would be happy too.


    The Martial Alliance was bing weaker, while they were bing stronger. This was good news for them.


    Half a dayter, while the two Long Chens were conversing, Long Yue finally recovered. She had regained half of her essence and was now out of the critical zone.


    Long Chen gave Long Yue hundreds of King Crystals. He was not a stingy person, so he didn¡¯t mind giving her that much.


    Long Yue had heard their conversation while she was refining the King Crystals. After she recovered and took the other King Crystals, she looked at her brother in excitement. ¡°Xiao Chen, did you mean what you said?¡±


    The youth nodded. ¡°It¡¯s true. From today onwards, I will follow you. Don¡¯t abandon me, alright?¡±


    Long Yue cried again, but then she remembered where they were and her expression turned bitter. ¡°There¡¯s no way to escape this ce. What good would it be for you to follow me? Wait, Seventh Brother, why are you here? What happened to the Battle n?¡±


    Long Yue wanted to know a lot of things.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t answer her. ¡°Eldest Sister, now that you¡¯ve recovered, we need to find the ten-meter hill. I will exin the restter.¡±


    The two of them nodded. While the youth was looking for the hill, Long Chen started to fill Long Yue in on what had taken ce during her absence.


    He briefly exined what happened to the Battle n since Long Yue was worried. Both Long Yue and the youth were shocked to hear his story.


    ¡°You mean ¡­ You advanced into the Second Earthly Martial Stage during the fight and killed Yang Ningfeng? That¡¯s how you won and chased the Martial Alliance away?¡± Long Yue¡¯s voice was trembling from awe.


    ¡°You even killed Yang Ningfeng? I couldn¡¯t even kill that old bastard!¡± The youth was shocked too. It was already a miracle to advance to the next stage during battle, but Long Chen had even managed to kill a Martial Emperor!


    They looked at Long Chen and saw that he wasn¡¯t lying at all.


    ¡°Almost a month ago, when we first left the Cloud Dream Swamp, you were only at the First Earthly Martial Stage. You advanced to the Second Earthly Martial Stage in just ten or so days? Seventh Brother, you ¡­¡± Long Yue didn¡¯t know what to say about Long Chen¡¯s talent.


    She had never seen someone so monstrous before.


    The youth had told Long Chen before that as long as he worked hard, he would reach the Third Earthly Martial Stage and be as strong as Zhao Danchen. But Long Chen had not only aplished that, he had even surpassed it a little. The youth was embarrassed.


    Long Chen nodded nonstop.


    He wasn¡¯t sure how to react when both Long Yue and the other Long Chen looked at him like a monster. He decided to exin the rest of the story. ¡°Zhao Danchen told me that you were imprisoned in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, and he even said he was going to marry Second Brother¡¯s daughter, Liu Yiyi. So I asked Second Brother to head to the Ancient Demon Domain while I came here to rescue you.¡±


    Long Yue was touched when she heard that he was here to rescue her, but then she felt pain in her heart. ¡°Why are you so stupid? You shouldn¡¯t havee here. Now all three of us are stuck. All we can do now is await death. The Dragon n no longer has any descendants.¡±


    She was angry.


    But both Long Chen and the youth chuckled.


    ¡°What are youughing at?¡± Long Yue was confused.

 Chapter 619: Stone Scorpions

    ¡°Sister, he knows the way out. We need to find the small hill and we can get out of here,¡± the youth exined with a smile.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the information from the Red Souls. They told me Xiao Lin knew the way out of the Nine Souls Purgatory. I used a secret technique to learn the information. We need to find a small hill that¡¯s roughly ten meters tall and dig down a hundred meters. That¡¯s where we will find apass that will aid us in escaping this ce,¡± Long Chen exined.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Yue was overjoyed. Long Chen had created a lot of miracles, but this would be thergest one of them all if they really escaped the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go find the small hill now.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s rest for a bit first. Eldest Sister, you are still injured. I have some spiritual herbs here that can help you recover faster.¡± Long Chen took out some spiritual herbs and gave them to her.


    They were clear on what to do next.


    Find the small hill and escape.


    It had taken them tens of days to find Long Yue. Long Chen estimated that they would need the same amount of time to find the small hill. The gray-shirted youth hade across it once, but due to how the Nine Spirit Purgatory worked, it was hard to find it again.¡°That¡¯s strange. I know I saw it before. Why didn¡¯t we see it in the past ten days?¡± The youth sighed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We should be able to find it as long as we keep searching,¡± Long Chen said to console him. The Nine Spirit Purgatory was devoid of anything. Anyone stuck inside for a long period of time would¡¯ve gone crazy if they were alone.


    Ten days passed by in a sh. Thanks to Long Chen¡¯s King Crystals and the spiritual herbs, Long Yue recoveredpletely. The three of them were at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, so theirbined attacks could decimate anyone in the Divine Martial Empire. Even the Martial Overlord had to be wary of them if they escaped.


    Even the Ancient Demon Domain only had a single person at the Third Earthly Martial Realm.


    The Martial Alliance, on the other hand, only had two left.


    The three of them spent their time talking as they searched for the small hill.


    Because they needed to find it fast, Long Chen didn¡¯t spend much time cultivating for the past ten days.


    The Earthly Martial Realm could technically cultivate as long as their feet were nted on the ground and connected to the earth.


    In those ten days, Long Chen removed his disguise as the Hundred-War Martial King and revealed his true self.


    ¡°The Nine Spirit Purgatory is truly a bleak ce. There¡¯s nothing here at all.¡± Long Chen huffed as he stared at the unchanged terrain.


    ¡°Other than the gray clouds and ground, there really is nothing else.¡± Long Yue sighed in exasperation too.


    ¡°There are also some strange stone scorpions. I haven¡¯t seen one yet, but the others kept talking about how fearsome those scorpions were. The scorpions are a pile of animated stones and not demonic beasts. They are extremely durable, and most Earthly Martial Realm cultivators find it hard to destroy them. The stone scorpions are also exceedingly powerful. I think we would die from just a single jab from their tail or a single crush from their pincers. But the most fearsome trait is that they always appeared in groups of at least a thousand. Almost no one survives their onught whenever they appear.¡± The gray-shirted youth knew more about the Nine Spirit Purgatory as he had been imprisoned here longer.


    ¡°Oh? Is there really such a thing?¡± Both Long Chen and Long Yue were shocked to hear about the fearsome stone scorpions. <em>To think that they may not be alive and yet have even stronger attacks than regr beasts.</em>


    ¡°The scorpions are like the bringers of death in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. A lot of people die whenever they appear. Those without sufficient King Crystals are destined to be killed by a group of stone scorpions. Thankfully, we have plenty, and the stone scorpions usually appear once every few years. If not, there might not be anyone left alive¡ª¡±


    He suddenly paused, stopping mid-sentence.


    ¡°Wait, the ground is shaking.¡± The youth was stunned by what was happening.


    Long Chen and Long Yue frowned. Long Chen focused on the ground to feel the vibrations. Sure enough, the ground was shaking, and it was steadily growing stronger. All of them had a bad feeling and looked around them with their guard up.


    ¡°Did I ¡­ Did I just jinx everyone?¡± the youth grumbled.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Long Yue and Long Chen answered at the same time. They saw arge cloud of dust on the horizon that blurred the line between the sky and the ground. Long Chen squinted and saw numerous tails high up in the air.


    He had a horrifying realization that the scorpions¡¯ tails were ten meters long if he could see them from so far away.


    Ten meters was a conservative estimation.


    ¡°Holy shit. They really are the scorpions. Fuck!¡± The gray-shirted youth was dumbfounded. He was just talking about the scorpions, but then they really appeared.


    The rumbling grew stronger. It was clear that the stone scorpions¡¯ strength was immense from how the ground shook even though they were so far away. They didn¡¯t know what kind of stone the scorpions were made out of, but they were certain that the scorpions were extremely durable.


    The trio looked at each other and decided to run.


    They didn¡¯t know what the stone scorpions were, but they knew they would be dead if they got surrounded. There was no reason to risk their lives here in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, so they ran immediately.


    To conserve their King Crystals, they decided to maintain a set distance from the scorpions. Thankfully, they had enough, or they would end up like the other survivors¡ªbutchered by the scorpions.


    The cloud of dust was like a meat grinder as it approached the three. The stone scorpions somehow homed in on the trio because no matter where they ran, the scorpions were behind them.


    ¡°I understand now! The Nine Spirit Purgatory is a prison, and the stone scorpions spawned to eradicate us due to our essence ¡­¡±


    It was a usible exnation to why the stone scorpions were chasing after them only.


    Even though they had enough King Crystals to run, the search for the small hill had to be postponed.


    Long Chen and the others tried to shake the stone scorpions off, but they refused to give up. The stone scorpions ground up any cultivators that were unlucky enough to run into them. The other cultivators they encountered ran as fast as they could too.


    Three days passed¡­


    All three of them were tired. The stone scorpions were closing in on them. Long Chen looked back and saw what they looked like. They were made from grayish-white rocks and they towered above Long Chen. Their tails were more than twenty meters tall and their massive pincers were raised high. The creatures were armed to the teeth with their fearsome appendages.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we should run anymore. They¡¯ve killed countless people while chasing us and yet they are not stopping. Will they not stop until they¡¯ve killed us?¡± Long Chen was curious.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. We¡¯ve used a lot of King Crystals in the past three days. If we continue running like this, we will be dead long before we find the small hill.¡± The youth huffed as he spat out his words with difficulty.


    Long Yue smiled bitterly and shook her head.


    Two more days passed after that.


    All three of them were very tired after running nonstop for five days, but the stone scorpions were still chasing after them. They were a hundred meters away now. The stone scorpions would close the gap significantly if any one of them were to stop even momentarily.


    All three of them were panicking.


    They never came across the small hill even though they¡¯d been running for days.


    Long Chen suddenly heard Long Yue cry out in surprise, ¡°They stopped!¡± He looked back and saw that the stone scorpions had indeed stopped chasing. They were standing still, and the dust cloud settled down.


    Thousands of the stone scorpions stood deathly still in a neat row just a hundred meters away from them. Long Chen could finally stop and take a closer look at them.


    Other than the grayish-white stone making up the scorpions¡¯ bodies, he also saw a strange ck rune on each of their carapaces. The ck runes pulsated and glowed when the stone scorpions were moving.


    <em>Is the ck rune the reason why they can move?</em>


    ¡°They¡¯ve stopped moving. Why?¡± The youth circled around some of the stone scorpions and found that they didn¡¯t have eyes. Theypletely ignored the youth despite how close he was.


    ¡°Maybe they ran out of energy after chasing us for five days? Maybe that¡¯s why they aren¡¯t moving.¡±


    ¡°Good. We can finally get away from them. Let¡¯s go.¡± The youth smiled and turned around.


    ¡°Wait, they are digging into the ground. The Nine Spirit Purgatory is a bizarre ce. Aren¡¯t you curious about where they came from and what¡¯s so special about them? Since we haven¡¯t found the small hill yet, why don¡¯t we follow them? We can run back up here if there¡¯s any danger,¡± Long Chen suggested.


    The stone scorpions were indeed starting to dig into the gray earth. Their bodies were massive, but they dug with surprising speed.


    Long Yue hesitated before she said, ¡°Alright, let¡¯s chase after them. We can get out the moment we encounter any danger.¡±

 Chapter 620: Underground Space

    Both Long Chens were adventurous while Long Yue was a determined person.


    Using Sight, Long Chen saw that the stone scorpionscked souls.<em> They don¡¯t have souls? What are they, then?</em>


    The three of them watched the stone scorpions sink into the ground. The ground was like their home. Once they burrowed, the ground returned back to normal as if nothing had happened.


    The three of them had to dig down into the earth to chase after the scorpions, so they activated their powerful dragon forms. Due to being Earthly Martial Realm cultivators, their strength came from the earth, so their digging speed matched the stone scorpions¡¯.


    Long Yue and the youth realized that Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Soul Transformation was different from theirs. Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Soul Transformation gave him darker-colored scales that were more evenly distributed. His bone spikes were also much stronger than those of the siblings.


    The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon and the Red Dragon were both red, but there was arge gap between the strongest and weakest dragon.


    ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re from our family? Why is your Dragon Soul Transformation much stronger than ours?¡± the youth asked.


    Long Chen shook his head and smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I was like this when I first learned the Dragon Soul Transformation. Your sister said that I might be from a branch of your family. Let¡¯s continue chasing after the stone scorpions. We can¡¯t let them detect us.¡±


    He didn¡¯t want them to know about his Dragon Soul Transformation, so he changed the subject.The three of them dug silently. Their bodies and ws were harder than the gray earth, so it was easy enough to tunnel through it.


    But the deeper they dug, the stronger the pressure became. The pressure was bing unbearable, but the stone scorpions still continued to go deeper. Not knowing when they would reach their destination, Long Yue was the first to give up. ¡°Let¡¯s stop chasing them. If we continue digging downwards, we might not be able to escape if there¡¯s danger. Let¡¯s go back now.¡±


    The youth nodded.


    Just then, Long Chen said, ¡°Wait, they disappeared. What a strange space ¡­¡±


    Long Yue really wanted to leave, but she had no choice but to continue digging when she heard Long Chen say that. Long Chen had defeated the Martial Emperor Yang Ningfeng and was the strongest of the three, so she had no qualms with letting him lead them.


    Long Chen dug towards where the stone scorpions had disappeared. Right before they arrived at the spot, Long Chen felt his ws breaking into empty space. He stopped immediately. <em>What is this?</em>


    He reached out and felt his arm reach out of the ground. Long Chen realized that they were just outside of an empty space deep underground.


    <em>How big is the space in front of us?</em>


    Long Chen was fearless because he had the strength to back it up. ¡°There¡¯s something strange up ahead. Let me enter first and I will let you know if there¡¯s any danger.¡±


    Since he had suggested it, he was the one who entered the strange space first. He tunneled forward and entered the empty space. Much to his surprise, he found that he was high up in the air when he broke through. He quickly suspended his body in the air and slowly floated downwards. Thankfully, he still remembered how to fly.


    He looked down, and what he saw was shocking.


    It was a massive cavern, one so big that he couldn¡¯t see the other end of it. The only thing he saw was therge amount of stones on the ground. The stones were the same color as the stone scorpions. Long Chen suspected that the stones on the ground were the scorpions themselves.


    The cave was their nest. When the stone scorpions came here, their bodies were dismantled and turned back to normal stones.


    But it was just Long Chen¡¯s guess.


    The bottom of the cavern was filled with stones. Long Chen looked up and saw a membrane of ck light holding up the earth to form the cavern. The light rippled just like the water in ake and looked beautiful.


    Long Chen had tunneled through theyer of light just now. It appeared that the light only kept the dirt out while allowing other things to enter.


    Just then, the ck light shimmered behind Long Chen. Long Yue and the youth came through. They were worried that Long Chen was in danger, so they entered without waiting for Long Chen to give them a clear signal.


    The two of them were shocked too when they saw what was in the cavern.


    ¡°This is a massive cavern ¡­ But where are the stone scorpions?¡± Long Yue was intrigued.


    Long Chen pointed at the nket of stones underneath them. ¡°Those should be the stone scorpions.¡±


    ¡°Are you saying ¡­¡± Long Yue was surprised.


    The gray-shirted youth pointed in a direction and said, ¡°Wait, look over there. There¡¯s a massive stone there in the middle.¡±


    They looked at what he was pointing at. It was a massive boulder surrounded by fragmented stones in the middle of the cavern. The boulder waspletely gray and appeared to be made of the same type of stone as the stone scorpions. It was smooth with a soft light glowing on its surface. The boulder was roughly twenty meters in diameter.


    ¡°I think that boulder is the reason why this ce is so strange.¡± Long Chen then waved his hands and gestured for them to check the boulder. ¡°Since we are here, might as well check what it is.¡±


    He made his way towards the boulder.


    Nothing happened when they started approaching it.


    But Long Chen suddenly sensed danger when they were close. He stopped and asked them to retreat. They did so, only to find that a ck light had appeared underneath them. Several ck runes lit up, then the stones quickly converged, forming several stone scorpions in front of them.


    The ck runes were shimmering on the carapaces of the scorpions.


    ¡°The stone scorpions are really made out of inanimate rocks!¡± The youth was shocked.


    The thousands of stone scorpions that had chased after them for five days were scarier, but there were only a few dozen of them right now, so they weren¡¯t afraid. Most of the stones on the ground remained in ce.


    ¡°I think the scorpions are out of energy after chasing after us for five days. Maybe that¡¯s why only a few dozen are moving right now. Let¡¯s deal with them first.¡±


    There was no reason for them to be afraid if Long Chen was right.


    It would be easy for them to deal with this number of scorpions.


    Long Chen suddenly appeared in front of one of them. The scorpion used its massive pincer to punch Long Chen.


    ¡°Willow Step.¡± Long Chen evaded the pincer easily with the technique. The scorpion couldn¡¯t touch him at all.


    The stone scorpion suddenly swung its tail at Long Chen. The tail was much faster and stronger than its pincers.


    Its tail whistled through the air.


    Long Chen used Willow Step to evade it too.


    ¡°The Huangfu¡¯s family Willow Step?¡± Both Long Yue and the youth were shocked to see Long Chen using Willow Step. <em>How did Long Chen obtain it and when did he find the time to cultivate it?</em>


    Despite only being apart for a short time, Long Chen had not only advanced to the next stage, he had also learned two intermediate King-tier martial techniques!


    Long Yue was surprised by Long Chen¡¯s improvement.


    The youth was also impressed by Long Chen¡¯s strength. At first, he felt superior to Long Chen since he was at the Third Earthly Martial Stage at such a young age, two years younger than Zhao Danchen. But his confidence was bruised when he learned of Long Chen¡¯s aplishments.


    ¡°What a monster.¡± The youth sighed.


    Because Long Chen had approached them first, the stone scorpions designated him as the main threat and surrounded him. The attacks came relentlessly. The stone scorpions were fast and strong, but Willow Step allowed him to avoid the attacks with ease. He didn¡¯t even need to attack them.


    Whenever an attack was going to hit him, he would stand in front of one of the stone scorpions and use Willow Step to dodge it. The attack would then hit another stone scorpion.

 Chapter 621: Man In The Boulder

    The attacks from the stone scorpions were indeed strong. One of them dented the carapace of another, causing the ck rune to be dim.


    While they possessed strength, they were not intelligent and felt no pain, so they ignored each other¡¯s attacks as they chased after Long Chen relentlessly. They never stopped even though many of theirpanions crumbled to dust.


    In contrast, the siblings were fighting ferociously. Long Chen finished his opponents faster than the two of thembined. In just fifteen minutes, without even lifting a finger, Long Chen had destroyed five stone scorpions by redirecting their attacks towards each other. The final stone scorpion was on the verge of copse and its ck rune was starting to fade.


    Long Chen dodged again as the stone scorpion attacked with its tail once more. This time, the tail hit the boulder behind Long Chen, causing it to shake. A crack appeared on the boulder, though it didn¡¯t move much.


    He wasn¡¯t sure what the boulder was, but he didn¡¯t want the stone scorpion to destroy it. He flew up into the air and kicked downwards.


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Whirlwind Style.¡± He flew down like a meteor andunched consecutive attacks on the stone scorpion¡¯s carapace.


    <em>Crack, crack, crack.</em>


    The horrifying sounds filled the cavern as the stone scorpion copsed from his attacks.


    The final stone scorpion chasing after Long Chen was finally destroyed.At the same time, the siblings were also facing off against their final stone scorpion. The two of them only had to fight four scorpions, yet they had taken longer to kill them than Long Chen.


    Willow Step was surprisingly effective against the stone scorpions.


    ¡°Wind God Kick?¡± The siblings were already shocked when they saw Long Chen using Willow Step, and seeing the Wind God Kick truly threw them off. They almost got hit by the final scorpion because they were distracted. They quickly used the Soul Dispersing Dragon w to finish off the final scorpion.


    The cavern was quiet once more.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, you¡¯ve cultivated Willow Step and the Wind God Kick?¡± Long Yue was surprised. She had thought Long Chen was just a child, but now hisbat power far surpassed hers. She felt embarrassed.


    ¡°The Huangfu family gave me the Willow Step, and I stole the Wind God Kick from Yang Ningfeng. I cultivated them and got some satisfactory results.¡±


    Long Yue was still surprised even though Long Chen exined how he had obtained the techniques. Long Chen could somehow both Willow Step and the Wind God Kick to a surprisingly good degree.


    ¡°You are the greatest genius I¡¯ve ever seen in both cultivation and martial techniques.¡± Long Yue smiled bitterly.


    The youth was in awe too. ¡°I, Long Chen, have never looked up to anyone in my life. You are the first. I never thought someone could cultivate two intermediate King-tier martial techniques in just a month.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°It still feels weird to call me by my name.¡±


    Having the same name was confusing ¡­


    The two of themughed. The siblings were impressed by Long Chen, and they secretly regarded him as their leader now.


    After the stone scorpions were defeated, Long Chen looked at the boulder in the middle.


    ¡°The stone scorpions probably used up all of their power, so what is this thing?¡± The three of them lightly tapped the boulder and saw that it was the same type of stone as the ones that littered on the ground. The only difference was howrge and round the boulder was.


    ¡°They should all be the same type of rock. I wonder what kind of secret it holds?¡± the youth said.


    Long Chen investigated the boulder for half a day but found nothing. <em>Is this just the nest of the stone scorpions? </em>Just then, he heard something from inside the boulder.


    He quickly pressed his ear onto it and heard the sound of knocking from the inside.


    Long Chen activated Sight and saw something shocking. There was an empty pocket roughly one meter in diameter in the middle of the boulder! And someone was inside!


    Long Chen could see the weakened soul of the person.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Long Yue was curious when she saw Long Chen''s actions.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s inside, and they are not dead.¡±


    ¡°Impossible. How could there be someone in there? Even if it''s true, how could they still be alive after being trapped for so long?¡± The siblings were staring at the boulder with wide eyes.


    ¡°Should we open it up?¡±


    Suddenly, the youth shouted at them, ¡°Sister! I know who it is! It must be him!¡±


    Long Yue was puzzled by how excited the youth had gotten. ¡°Who are you referring to?¡±


    ¡°Sister, have you forgotten what our father told us when he was still alive? When we were very young, our grandfather went missing. At that time, he was at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage and was as strong as the Martial Overlord. Our father couldn¡¯t confirm it, but he thought that the previous Martial Overlord had imprisoned our grandfather!¡±


    Long Yue realized what he was trying to say. ¡°Xiaochen, are you saying that the man inside the boulder could be our grandfather, Long Shan?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    ¡°Then we need to break the boulder open. Let¡¯s do it slowly so we don¡¯t injure him.¡± Long Chen never expected to find something like this, but he wasn¡¯t worried. Using Sight, he confirmed that the person inside was on the brink of death. If they rescued them, they wouldn¡¯t be able to bring the trio any harm.


    Long Chen had to admit that their grandfather was really strong if he was still alive after being trapped in the boulder for so many years.


    The boulder must¡¯ve been made by someone, but who? And why would they imprison someone in a boulder? Long Chen didn¡¯t know the answer to that.


    The three of them acted immediately. Even though the boulder was hard, all three of them had a method to break it open. Long Yue and the youth each had an intermediate King-tier Divine Arm that could chip it open. Long Chen, on the other hand, used his ws, which were as strong as their Divine Arms.


    ¡°Why are your ws so hard?¡± The youth was shocked. He had a feeling that other than his cultivation level, Long Chen had them outssed in every aspect.


    Long Chen smiled and said nothing as they worked together to open the boulder.


    Time slowly passed.


    ¡°Almost there now ¡­¡± Long Chen could tell that they were getting closer to the center.


    <em>Crack. </em>His ws reached the empty space in the middle, then he pulled out arge chunk of stone. When the dust settled, Long Chen and everyone else saw that there was indeed someone inside the boulder.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t bear to look at the man.


    It was an emaciated old man with his skin stuck to his bones. He looked simr to how Jiang Kun looked when he used Corpse Transformation. The old man had long, white hair and his beard covered his entire face. His clothes were almost reduced to nothing too.


    Long Chen could barely see a pair of eyes through the messy hair and beard. The old man¡¯s eyes were dim and barely open, a clear indication that he was close to death. But when he saw Long Chen and the other two, a strange vigor filled his eyes.


    Long Chen felt a sense of familiarity from the old man due to his bloodline, simr to when he first met Long Yue. He was certain that the old man was Long Yue¡¯s grandfather, Long Shan.


    Wasting no time, he took out hundreds of King Crystals from the Primordial Realm and gave them to the elder. The King Crystals could replenish the old man¡¯s strength.


    After seeing the King Crystals, the old man perked up instantly. A strange suction formed in the center of his stomach as he absorbed all of them. He separated the hundreds of crystals and distributed them evenly on his nine Martial Meridians.


    Long Chen sighed in relief.


    The old man could still be saved if he had enough vitality to absorb the power of the King Crystals. The King Crystals started to shine, and their light enveloped the old man. Long Chen stepped back and let the old man refine them slowly. That was when he turned around and saw that Long Yue and the youth were crying.


    Now he was even more certain that the old man was Long Shan.


    ¡°Grandfather ¡­¡± Long Yue and the youth never thought they would meet their grandfather here.


    To think that their grandfather had been subjected to such torment for so long.


    He had been trapped here for thirty years and was barely alive by the time they found him. Long Chen now understood how vile the methods of the Martial Alliance were.


    If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen suggesting that they follow the stone scorpions, the old man would¡¯ve died eventually. But the old man never gave up and used as little energy as possible to live because he had hopes that he would be rescued one day.


    Long Chen was impressed by his willpower.


    Someone with a weaker will would¡¯ve died long ago.

 Chapter 622: Return of a Master

    Time passed slowly.


    Based on the old man¡¯s initial cultivation level and his current state of starvation, Long Chen sensed that one hundred King Crystals were nowhere near enough for him to recover. However, he had been trapped for many years, so it was also uncertain if it was even possible for him to fully regain his previous strength.


    Long Chen had Blood Transmutation, so he was not worried about needing resources to recover his essence. The purpose of King Crystals to him was just to buy things. At the moment, they were not especially useful to him.


    The Long siblings watched the old man anxiously. Before they said anything, Long Chen took out another two hundred King Crystals. He had two thousand in total, and now he had about fifteen hundred left. Most of them hade from Yang Ningfeng, so he had no qualms with giving them away.


    The thick martial essence contained within the crystals was absorbed by the old man once more. Half a dayter, the light around the old man slowly faded and his body filled out until he was looking much more healthy than his previous, terrifyingly withered state.


    Under his control, the extra white hair on his body slowly fell off. When he opened his eyes, two rays of divine light shot out, and Long Chen saw faint dragon images in them.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The old man stood in front of the trio, looking much more normal now. He admired his body with great excitement and disbelief. Tears started to pool in his eyes.


    He had waited for many years, and now that he was finally broken out, he was unimaginably emotional.


    The feeling was indescribable.The trio did not interrupt him; tears flowed from his eyes for a long time. After about an hour, the old man finally stopped crying and he looked at the trio. They were in their Dragon Soul Transformation states, so he felt infinitely close to them.


    ¡°Is your name Long Shan? Our grandfather?¡± Long Yue asked cautiously, as she could notpletely confirm his identity.


    The old man froze and stared at them, stuttering, ¡°Are ¡­ are you all Yang¡¯er¡¯s children?¡±


    Long Yue and the gray-robed teenager nodded hurriedly. Their father was Yang¡¯er.


    ¡°Good! Good!¡± The old man¡¯s eyes were filled with emotion. He looked around and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this¡ªthat you woulde here to rescue me! After Chen Xiong trapped me here, I long thought that I would die for sure. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m still alive!¡±


    When he mentioned the name, Long Shan¡¯s eyes filled with rage!


    ¡°Chen Xiong? The former Martial Emperor? I think he received the Ancient Token, then he entered the Ancient Graveyard and never came back. He¡¯s definitely dead,¡± said the gray-robed teenager.


    ¡°Dead?¡± Long Shan froze, took a few steps back, and finally said with a bitter smile, ¡°So he¡¯s dead? I have long held this grudge and I swore that I would take revenge one day. I didn¡¯t expect that scum to be dead. Yeah, it¡¯s been a long time. Too long ¡­¡±


    Long Yue nodded and said, ¡°Grandfather, I am my father¡¯s oldest child. My name is Long Yue, and this is my younger brother. His name is ¡­ Long Chen.¡±


    When Long Shan saw that both his grandchildren seemed quite powerful, he felt proud and reassured. He asked, ¡°What about your father?¡±


    ¡°Father is gone too. Only the three of us remain from the Long family,¡± said Long Yue.


    ¡°Yang¡¯er is gone too?¡± Long Shan repeated. ¡°Yang¡¯er wasn¡¯t good at cultivation, and he didn¡¯t have much talent. Many years have passed; I expected this to happen.¡±


    Silence.


    ¡°What is the outside world like now? Is the Divine Martial Empire still being controlled by the Martial Alliance?¡± Long Shan asked with a sigh after a very long time.


    ¡°The current Martial Overlord¡¯s name is Zhao Wuji, and he¡¯s at the Fourth Martial Stage. No one in the whole Divine Martial Empire is his match. That¡¯s why the empire is still under the Martial Alliance¡¯s control,¡± Long Yue answered with a nod.


    ¡°Fourth Martial Stage? Hehe. Martial Alliance, Martial Alliance; Chen Xiong, Chen Xiong. You trapped me in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, but I know the way out. You couldn¡¯t kill me, so you trapped me here, but I bet you never expected me to escape one day. Will the Martial Alliance continue to exist when I get out of here?¡± A dark smile appeared on his face.


    ¡°Grandfather, what is your current cultivation level?¡± the gray-robed teenager blurted.


    Long Chen could tell that the old man used to be a peerless master. He had been trapped for years; who knew how much of his strength remained?


    The old man shook his head and said, ¡°My true cultivation level is the Fifth Martial Stage, but due to the extremeck of essence and many injuries, mybat abilities are roughly the same as yours right now. If I absorb enough King Crystals, I might be able to reach the Fourth Martial Stage. As for the fifth, it will take a long period of healing to recover.¡±


    His true cultivation level was the Fifth Martial Stage?


    That was terrifying. Right now, the strongest person in the empire, Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji, was only at the Fourth Martial Stage. Long Shan¡¯s true level was much higher than his.


    ¡°How many King Crystals do you need?¡± Long Chen asked directly.


    Long Shan finally noticed him after he spoke, as Long Chen¡¯s silence from the beginning made Long Shan overlook him. Long Shan recalled that Long Yue had not introduced him.


    Plus, Long Chen also called him Grandfather.


    But what was up with his Dragon Soul Transformation?


    When Long Yue noticed his confusion, she quickly exined, ¡°Grandfather, this teenager¡¯s name is also Long Chen. He has the same name as my brother. He has our blood; I¡¯m guessing he¡¯s from a long-lost branch of our family.¡±


    ¡°Branch?¡± Long Shan¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed. ¡°The whole Long lineage is a direct line. The ten generations before me did not have any branches, so how could he be from a branch family?¡±


    Long Yue and her brother were speechless when they heard him.


    Long Shan studied Long Chen carefully and shook his head. ¡°His Dragon Soul Transformation differs from ours, so he is not rted to the Long family. However, there must have been one of those legendary Dragon Warriors in his bloodline! Am I right, kid?¡±


    Thankfully, Long Shan did not find out Long Chen¡¯s secret.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about my ancestors, and I¡¯m the only one in my family with these powers. I don¡¯t know where it came from either.¡±


    Long Chen could not tell them that he was a Dragon Warrior, so he made up a lie.


    Long Shan remembered that Long Chen was the one who had given him the King Crystals.


    Long Yue said, ¡°Grandfather, we are sworn siblings, so it does not matter if he is rted to us by blood. He is my younger brother, and I have passed the Soul Dispersing Dragon w to him. He came into the Nine Spirit Purgatory to save us.¡±


    Long Yue rushed to exin everything because she was afraid that Long Shan would think Long Chen was an outsider.


    Long Chen smiled too. ¡°We have known each other for a long time. I have a lot of King Crystals, so how much do you need to regain your Fourth Martial Stage strength?¡±


    If he could truly reach the Fourth Martial Stage, Long Shan would be of great help to them. And if Long Chen had a good rtionship with him, doing anything in the future would be much easier. For example, getting an Ancient Token.


    There were many masters in the Divine Martial Empire who wouldpete for the Ancient Token, so Long Chen was not very confident he would get it himself.


    After the short chat, Long Shan quickly epted Long Chen as another outstanding junior of his. He said, ¡°I think I will need about a thousand King Crystals to regain my Fourth Martial Stagebat abilities. It¡¯s too much. Do you have that many King Crystals?¡±


    It would take a thousand King Crystals to produce one Fourth Martial Stage master. After some thought, Long Chen thought it was worth it, so he nodded and said, ¡°Of course I have a thousand King Crystals.¡±


    Then he took out exactly one thousand King Crystals from the Primordial Realm and ced it in Long Shan¡¯s hand.


    ¡°Kid, you¡¯re a generous fellow. When I regain my cultivation, I will naturally treat you well. Even though we are not blood-rted, I will protect you like my grandchild in the future.¡±


    Long Shan broke out into a joyful grin.


    Long Chen was a little apprehensive about suddenly bing someone¡¯s grandson, but when he thought about how this old man was almost a hundred and was very powerful, he stopped caring. The King Crystals hade to him quickly because he had gotten them after killing Yang Ningfeng. On the other hand, getting a master like this to protect him was not an easy feat.


    The Long siblings shot Long Chen grateful looks.


    Long Chen¡¯s trip to the Nine Spirit Purgatory was a gigantic act of kindness. Although Long Yue had said that they were sworn siblings, she felt a little embarrassed.


    ¡°Big Sister, don¡¯t look at me like that! The Soul Dispersing Dragon w you gave me is worth at least that many King Crystals,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    ¡°I was just thinking about how rescuing you from the Ancient Demon Domain was an excellent decision. Hehe. You should thank that Liu Yiyi girl. If she hadn¡¯t begged, Wuya wouldn¡¯t have risked his life to save you,¡± Long Yue said with a smile.


    Liu Yiyi?


    He wondered if Jiang Wuya had managed to resolve her problem. Zhao Danchen had said she would be married off in about a month, and almost a month had passed. If Jiang Wuya could not solve it, then Long Chen and the masters with him would have to solve it with force.


    Though he did not know if they still had enough time.


    The group was not in a hurry to leave. They waited for Long Shan to absorb the power of the thousand King Crystals. Once he seeded, they would have one Fourth Martial Stage cultivator on their side. Would they still need to fear the Martial Overlord then?


    They could do whatever they wanted in Martial Overlord City when they left.


    One thousand King Crystals were arranged around Long Shan in an orderly manner, and they were all glowing like the world¡¯s most beautiful pieces of jade. The King Crystals gathered to form a glowing circle, which spun around him slowly and steadily.

 Chapter 623 Ancient Demon Corpse

    <h4>Chapter 623 Ancient Demon Corpse</h4>


    As the King Crystals spun around Long Shan, he quickly absorbed and refined their energy. He was like a bottomless pit, and due to the long period of starvation, he did not hold back at all. Endless amounts of martial essence flowed into his body.


    Starting from the Earthly Martial Realm, progressing through each stage required a long time and a great amount of effort asprehension wasn¡¯t easy. Very few people could progress as quickly as Long Chen, so masters beyond the Third Earthly Martial Stage were rare. Now the trio was about to personally create a Fourth Martial Stage cultivator.


    Long Shan¡¯s actual cultivation level was the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, but he would not reach it without several years of rest and recovery. Long Chen sensed that the old man had great hatred and resentment in his heart, and this resentment wasn¡¯t resolved even after he learned that Chen Xiong was dead. The people who would face his wrath would naturally be the Martial Alliance!


    To Long Chen, this was amazing news!


    No one knew that an anti-Martial Alliance faction was quickly growing in this tiny ce.


    Another half a day passed quickly.


    The King Crystals spinning around Long Shan had mostly dimmed, and the martial essence within them was slowly disappearing.


    ¡°It¡¯s almost time.¡± Long Chen had only just spoken when the floating King Crystals all turned into regr stones and fell noisily on the ground.


    The light in the cave dimmed, though it was pitch-ck to normal people.


    Long Shan stood up slowly. Long Chen sensed that he was a source of danger; ever since he reached the Second Earthly Martial Stage, very few people had given Long Chen this feeling. He knew that Long Shan was strong enough to kill him!


    He was likely on the Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji¡¯s level.


    Long Shan savored the power running through his body and slowly opened his eyes. He first looked at Long Chen, and his face, which had stiffened over many years, broke into another smile.


    ¡°Thank you so much, kid.¡± Genuine gratitude filled Long Shan¡¯s eyes.


    Long Yue smiled happily. ¡°Grandfather, my brother and I were trapped in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. That Long Chen tricked a Martial Emperor into telling him the way to leave this ce, then he came here to save us. It was also his idea to follow the stone scorpions here.¡±


    Long Shanughed and said, ¡°In that case, you are truly my savior. All these King Crystals were yours too. You have done a great act of kindness to my family, so in the future, just tell me if you need my help. I will do anything to help you!¡±


    Long Chenughed dryly. ¡°You all are taking this too seriously. We¡¯re family; this was nothing. Anyway, it¡¯s gettingte. We should leave as soon as possible.¡±


    This was not a good ce to stay for long. They all nodded and then headed upwards. Soon, following the path that had brought them here, they returned to the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    Looking around, Long Shan sighed. ¡°The Nine Spirit Purgatory hasn¡¯t changed one bit, but the number of people who have died here must have reached millions throughout the centuries.¡±


    Then he looked at Long Chen and asked, ¡°You know how to get out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory too?¡±


    ¡°I heard that the Nine Spirit Purgatory has a ten-meter-tall hill, and if you dig a hundred meters down from there, you will find apass. And if we follow the direction it points to, we will be able to get out,¡± Long Chen answered with a nod.


    ¡°Not bad. It¡¯s the same way I know,¡± Long Shan said approvingly.


    The four of them immediately started to search for the small hill. Due to their discovery of Long Shan, they had dyed their journey by a day.


    With a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage master protecting them, Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried about his safety after getting out.


    The four of them forged on determinedly in search of the small hill the gray-clothed teenager had once seen. They walked for a very long time until they finally found the legendary hill.


    During these four days, the four of them traveled with little stress, asionally chatting, which made them closer.


    Long Chen got to learn about Long Shan¡¯s life too. Years ago, Long Shan and the then Martial Overlord were both at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. They were good friends. After that, Long Shan reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage first, but he was tricked by his friend and waster trapped in the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    His misced trust had resulted in him being harmed by Martial Overlord Chen Xiong.


    Just like that, more than thirty years passed.


    Years ago, he was a mighty master, but now he was an old man weathered by time. Long Chen was frightened by his story.


    The Yang family patriarch was right. One had to know his own friends well, or he might not even know the cause of his own death.


    Long Chen was grateful that the people he met were good people he could trust.


    After they found the small hill, Long Chen personally dug a hundred meters deep. Lo and behold, he found an ice-coldpass. After they took it out, they studied it in detail.


    It looked very normal, and they did not find anything strange about it. It was made of bronze and looked just like a normalpass. However, when Long Chen held it, he faintly sensed that thepass was connected to the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    Holding it t, thepass quickly pointed in a particr direction.


    Since they had found thepass, they were ready to leave.


    ¡°This way.¡± They left immediately, heading to the direction it was pointing. But to their surprise, after they took about ten steps, thepass pointed in the reverse direction.


    ¡°How could this be?!¡±mented the gray-clothed teenager. They had juste from that direction!


    ¡°Whatever. We¡¯ll just follow it.¡± Long Chen frowned and turned around, ready to walk back in the direction he came from.


    ¡°We can¡¯t get out of this cursed ce exactly because the directions here are so strange. Let¡¯s try following it no matter what first,¡± said Long Chen while they walked.


    After they walked for a while, thepass pointed in a different direction again, and the group continued to follow it without question.


    The Nine Spirit Purgatory is a bizarre ce! We¡¯ve been following thispass along such a random path. In the beginning, I thought we were walking just as blindly as before¡ªI didn¡¯t know that such a random pattern could actually be the true way out! This was what everyone thought after a few days had passed.


    During these few days, the four of them became much closer to Long Shan, and he learned about the major events that had taken ce over the past decade in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Long Shan also learned about the current state of affairs in the empire.


    ¡°In that case, it looks like the Martial Overlord¡¯s family monopolizes the whole empire. Have factions like the Ancient Demon Domain submitted to them too?¡± Long Shan asked, puzzled.


    ¡°Yes, the Ancient Demon Domain submitted to the Martial Alliance ten or so years ago. At the time, the Martial Overlord was there personally. In front of countless people, he defeated all the masters of the faction with a few moves,¡± said Long Yue a little sourly.


    The Martial Overlord was widely recognized as the strongest person in the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°He defeated all the masters of the Ancient Demon Domain?¡± Long Shan nodded slowly and continued, ¡°Every Martial Overlord gets to cultivate the Martial Alliance¡¯s most advanced secret scripture; it¡¯s the Divine Martial Empire¡¯s only advanced King-tierbat technique called the Martial Overlord Seal! It makes sense that the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s masters were defeated. The gap between techniques of the same level can berge, and this is especially the case at the King tier. It can defeat all the otherbat techniques unless there is an Emperor-tierbat technique, which has never been seen in the Divine Martial Empire before. Until one appears, no one will be a match for the Martial Overlord.¡±


    An advanced King-tier technique would far surpass Long Chen¡¯s current Soul Dispersing Dragon w, and it was indeed powerful. Long Chen was privately nervous knowing that he would surely need to fight the Martial Overlord in the future!


    ¡°Wait ... Isn¡¯t there an Ancient Demon Corpse sitting in the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s Seven Layered Demon World? There are rumors that every leader can control the corpse. It possesses powerfulbat abilities, and even a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator might not be able to defeat it. How could it be that the current domain leader didn¡¯t use it?¡± Long Shan looked confused.


    ¡°Ancient Demon Corpse?¡± The three younger ones looked at each other, as if they had never heard of such a thing.


    Looking at their confusion, Long Shan shook his head with a bitter smile. ¡°Maybe the rumors are false. If the Ancient Demon Domain really had the Ancient Demon Corpse, and they could control it, why would they let the Martial Alliance step on their heads?¡±


    Long Yue and the others nodded.


    Long Chen had some questions about it because he thought about how barren the Ancient Demon Domain was. While Long Yue and Long Shan chatted, he asked Little Cat in the Primordial Realm, ¡°Fat Cat, could the Ancient Demon Corpse be rted to that thing absorbing all the life force from the Ancient Demon Domain? You sensed something at the bottom of the Seven Layered Demon World. Could it be the Ancient Demon Corpse?¡±


    Little Cat saidzily, ¡°Oh, you¡¯re quite smart! You are worthy of my protection ...¡±


    ¡°Enough of that nonsense,¡± said Long Chen, lowering his voice to scare the cat.


    Little Catughed drily and said, ¡°If I¡¯m right, the Ancient Demon Corpse is in the seventhyer of the Demon World. As for why it absorbs life force¡ªit¡¯s a corpse, meaning it¡¯s dead. If you want to use a secret technique to control the dead corpse, you must inject enough life force to make it move. That is why the Ancient Demon Domain is so barren!¡±

 Chapter 624 – Gigantic Wheel of Fire

    <h4>Chapter 624 ¨C Gigantic Wheel of Fire</h4>


    ¡°So what exactly is the Ancient Demon Corpse?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Ancient Demon is just a name for the corpse. It¡¯s called ¡®demon¡¯ perhaps because the body belonged to an ancient master. After the master died, the corpse was refined in a ritual to be used in battle. Since its strengthes from when the owner was alive, the fact that the Ancient Demon Corpse can reach the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage and above means that he used to be a powerful master at the Heavenly Martial Realm,¡± exined Little Cat.


    There were many masters in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. A long, long time ago, there were many Heavenly Martial Realm masters too, so it was very normal for the Ancient Demon Domain to have a corpse like that.


    Why didn¡¯t the Ancient Demon Domain use the Ancient Demon Corpse then? The answer is simple¡ªit cannot be used right now. It can only be used after it has absorbed a certain amount of life force. It looks like I need to pay more attention to any updates on the Ancient Demon Corpse ... Long Chen made a mental note to himself.


    As they walked, their surroundings started to change and the gray mist around them thinned greatly. The gray clouds in the sky parted to reveal a gray sky. This meant that they were far from their initial starting point.


    ¡°If we continue like this, we will surely be able to leave this cursed ce.¡± With a master like Long Shan at their side, they did not need to fear the Martial Overlord after they exited.


    Long Yue and the gray-clothed teenager were both looking forward to seeing how Long Shan would do after they left.


    Long Chen was thinking about something else¡ªLiu Yiyi¡¯s marriage. Liu Yiyi and Long Chen had a friendship, and she was Jiang Wuya¡¯s daughter too. She was a good girl, and when he heard that she was to be married to Zhao Danchen, all he could think was, Go to hell, Zhao Danchen!


    However, Long Chen did not know how much time was left until the wedding.


    He was getting anxious too.


    Everything depended on when he would make it out of this ce.


    Seven days had passed since they first found thepass. They had been following its arrow, and on this day, they suddenly sensed that the temperature was much higher than before.


    ¡°Why is it getting hotter the longer we follow thepass? The ground is also slowly turning from gray to faint red. If we continue to walk, will it turn red?¡± asked the gray-clothed teenager.


    Although Long Chen kept changing directions, he had a feeling that he was walking towards a fire source.


    When Mo Xiang, who was in the Primordial Realm, smelled the aura of fire, he asked with excitement, ¡°Big Brother, could we be walking towards somewhere with fire? If its heat can be felt from so far away, it can¡¯t be a simple source of heat.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Let¡¯s hurry up and check it out,¡± said Long Chen.


    They continued to travel ahead, and the temperatures kept increasing. Soon, Long Chen found that the sky had turned bright red. Walking felt like stepping on a red, burning wok.


    Faint wisps of firebusted in the air, then quickly disappeared.


    ¡°Could the exit of the Nine Spirit Purgatory be in a sea of fire?¡± Long Chen was in the front of the group, and thepass changed directions again. This time, it pointed southward.


    ¡°This way.¡± After Long Chen pointed, thepass suddenly shattered in his hand.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Long Shan and the others asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Without thepass, doesn¡¯t that mean we won¡¯t get out of here?¡± The gray-robed teenager was the first to look crestfallen. After saving Long Shan, the Martial Overlord would no longer be a threat. He was waiting to get out of this ce, but thepass had shattered!


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry just yet.¡± Long Chen was initially shocked too, but he thought for a while and said, ¡°We¡¯ve already reached this ce and thepass even pointed in a specific direction just now. I¡¯m sure we can get out. Let¡¯s move southward now, and we should be able to reach it.¡±


    ¡°I agree.¡± Long Yue nodded. Although Long Chen was the youngest here, he had always been mature. Much more mature than the other Long Chen.


    Hence, they walked southwards. It was already hot here, but the further south they walked, the hotter it felt. Based on this, Long Chen assumed he was going in the right direction.


    They walked for another half-day until Long Chen suddenly found himself in and engulfed in mes. Tiny wisps of fire twinkled in the air and quickly extinguished.


    Although it was hot, there was almost zero earthly Qi here, making it a more barren ce than the gray area from before. Long Chen even felt a spiraling air current here.


    ¡°It was already extremely difficult to get out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory. Now there¡¯s fire blocking us from the exit. With such strong mes in the way, how will we escape?¡± said the gray-clothed teenager when he looked at the fiery patch in front of him, feeling dejected.


    Long Yue frowned even more as the temperature rose. Even Long Shan¡¯s gaunt face was tightly pulled. Only Long Chen looked carefree.


    They were all curious about his reaction, so they asked in disbelief, ¡°Seventh Brother, do you have a solution?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s talk when we find the exit. I¡¯m not sure,¡± said Long Chen.


    Finally, they found themselves before a sea of fire. When he looked up, a magnificent sight weed him. Between the red sky and ground was a gigantic wheel of fire, which spun quickly. Countless mes burned on its edges, and like an angel scattering flowers on the ground, balls of fire fell to the red, sandy ground where fire continued to burn fiercely.


    The wheel of fire was gigantic inparison to them. Long Chen was not sure if they could identify south if they walked around the wheel, so he guessed that the exit was in the fire wheel itself.


    ¡°Grandfather, what do we do?¡± asked the gray-clothed teenager.


    The elderly Long Shan¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed as he stared at the gigantic fire wheel. With a bitter smile, he said, ¡°With my essence, I may be able to make my way to its center and check it out. If there¡¯s an exit, it will be possible for me to get out. But with that temperature, it is not certain for you guys. I don¡¯t think you can approach it.¡±


    Long Shan was actually a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage master. Although he could only use as much essence as someone at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, he was a knowledgeable man. If he said that their essence was not enough to help them through the fire, then it had to be true.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Everyone was crestfallen. They hade to this ce after great effort, and now they couldn¡¯t get out? Were they going to die here?


    ¡°Grandfather, think of a way! I don¡¯t want to stay here!¡± With an elder protecting him, the gray-clothed teenager put all his hopes on Long Shan.


    Long Shan was trying toe up with an idea, but the more he thought, the deeper his frown became.


    ¡°Long Chen, what about you? What ideas do you have?¡± Long Yue looked at him when she recalled how he did not look worried.


    Long Chen was talking to Little Cat.


    ¡°The center of the fire wheel must be the exit of the Nine Spirit Purgatory,¡± Little Cat said confidently.


    ¡°What makes you say that?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you noticed? The earthly Qi in this ce is even thinner, but when you get closer to the center, you will find potent earthly Qi. The earthly Qi is being sucked out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory into the outside world via the fire wheel. That is the reason why this ce is a hell with no Qi.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Long Chen was shocked.


    ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t need to worry. The fire won¡¯t be able to stop you at all, because you¡¯ve got that little ck dog as your brother. With him here, even ancestral fire could not stop you, let alone this beast fire,¡± Little Cat said wisely, rubbing his stomach.


    ¡°Is this a type of beast fire?¡± Long Chen and Mo Xiang¡¯s eyes lit up.


    ¡°Yes. Those mes came from a beast¡¯s corpse and bones. It has been a very long time, so I can¡¯t tell what beast it was. Based on the size of the fire wheel, you can imagine just howrge it used to be.¡±


    Mo Xiang could not wait any longer, so he said, ¡°Big Brother, since the exit is at the center of the fire wheel, let me swallow the beast fire! I can sense that this fire is much more powerful than the Blue Devil me from before!¡±


    Indeed, the Blue Devil me was tiny, but the beast fire was vast in terms of quantity. It was tens of thousands of timesrger.


    The more powerful a fire was, the more nourishing it would be to Xiang.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf had no limit.


    As long as he could continue to grow, he would have a bright future. In fact, he had even greater potential than Long Chen.


    Though the heights could reach depended on how much high-level fire existed in the world.


    Long Chen nodded.


    Long Yue and the others looked at him with a begging look in their eyes.


    What now?


    ¡°Seventh Brother, do you have a way?¡± Long Yue asked again anxiously.


    Long Chen had told her about Jiang Wuya and Liu Yiyi, so she was probably as anxious as he was too.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Leave it all to me. Wait for me here; I¡¯ll go there first,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    There was still some distance between them and the fire wheel, so he sprinted straight ahead. It looked as if he intended to run into the fire.


    ¡°What is that brat doing?¡± Long Yue looked puzzled.


    She did not know how powerful Xiang was.

 Chapter 625 - Sixth Layer of the Demon World

    <h4>Chapter 625 - Sixth Layer of the Demon World</h4>


    After he spoke, Long Chen ran towards the gigantic wheel of fire, ignoring the mes that wrapped around him. mes like that could not cause him any harm.


    When the gigantic wheel was in front of him, Long Chen looked up and said, ¡°Xiang,e out. I¡¯ll leave it up to you now.¡±


    Xiang had grown very powerful throughout his time with Long Chen, proving that this decision to follow him had been the right one. If he had stayed in Cangyang Kingdom ore out on his own without Long Chen¡¯s luck and protection, he probably would have been killed by some guy who was out hunting demonic beasts.


    Even Long Chen himself had killed many demonic beasts.


    Demonic beasts and humans killed each other at all times in the Dragon Continent. Very few humans were like the Battle n, who managed to tame the beasts so they would fight alongside humans, even bing friends. Both races had been enemies for as long as anyone could remember.


    Long Yue and the others watched Long Chen, not knowing what he was doing. Then Long Chen opened his arms, and a ck shadow shot out of his chest and instantly expanded into arge, muscr, ck wolf, who leaped towards the fiery wheel!


    ¡°Xiang?¡± Long Yue squinted. She remembered a demonic beast who always followed Long Chen around. Long Chen had once shown them Xiang when they were at Phantom Ravine, so she recognized him.


    ¡°That¡¯s a demonic beast! What¡¯s the use of that?¡± said the gray-robed teenager, speechless. He thought Long Chen would take out some life-changing piece of treasure to part the mes and clear a path for them.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either, but Seventh Brother has always been reliable. When I first met him, he was not even at the Earthly Martial Realm yet, but now he¡¯s stronger than us. Don¡¯t you guys think he¡¯s terrifying?¡± There was a proud smile on Long Yue¡¯s face.


    The teenager was a little unhappy when he sensed that the other Long Chen was ranked higher in his sister¡¯s heart than himself. He pouted and said, ¡°Is he really that strong? We¡¯ll see, then. Even Grandfather can¡¯t do anything about the mes; I don¡¯t believe he can help.¡±


    Xiang was almost twenty meters tall. Long Chen stood behind him, though he was only as tall as Xiang¡¯s foot.


    This was the maximum size a Category One King-tier Sun Devouring Wolf could reach.


    As he grew stronger, he would likely growrger too.


    Therger a King tier beast was, the stronger they were.


    He¡¯s going to start soon. There was a smile on Long Chen¡¯s face as he watched his brother perform with great satisfaction.


    Mo Xiang¡¯s strength was also his strength.


    ¡°Awooo ...¡±


    Mo Xiang unleashed a chilling howl at the skies. His howl was filled with power, blowing the surrounding mes away. It was clear just how excited he was.


    Then Xiang ran towards the fiery wheel. Everyone watched in shock as the gigantic wolf leaped into it!


    Although he wasrge, he was tinypared to the wheel.


    He was merely a tiny, ck dot in front of the gigantic fire wheel, but he was about to trigger a huge change. The wheel, which was spinning at high speed, started to shake, or more specifically, it trembled. It was like a man who had swallowed poison, curling up on the ground.


    Whoosh ...


    The mes on the wheel stopped shooting out in all directions. The fast-spinning wheel instantly slowed down to almost a stop. The wheel turned into a fireball, and it was quickly shrinking!


    Long Chen saw a tiny, ck dot at the center of the sky-high fireball.


    He knew that it was Xiang.


    The dot was emitting an immense and terrifying aura!


    Long Yue and the others also saw the strange phenomenon. In the beginning, they did not have much hope, but now their jaws were on the ground, especially the gray-clothed teenager¡¯s. His lip trembled as he stuttered, ¡°Th-th-that ... that demonic wolf! It¡¯s only at Category One King-tier, but why is it so ... strange?¡±


    The Sun Devouring Wolf seemed to control the sky-high mes. Previously, he thought that Long Chen could not do anything with the fire, but now he realized that he had underestimated Long Chen. His face turned red with embarrassment.


    Long Shan was shocked too. After studying Xiang, he asked, ¡°Yue¡¯er, do you know what the kid¡¯s demonic beast is called?¡±


    Long Yue replied, ¡°I think it¡¯s called the Sun Devouring Wolf. It¡¯s a mutated type, and I think Seventh Brother gave it this name.¡±


    ¡°Sun Devouring Wolf ... Sun Devouring Wolf. That¡¯s amazing! That beast swallows beast fire! It¡¯s no ordinary beast at all! I¡¯ve never heard of a beast like that in my life!¡±


    There was a solemn look in Long Shan¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Is that beast really that powerful?¡± Long Shan was currently the strongest master in the Divine Martial Empire, and the gray-clothed teenager was shocked at how highly Long Shan spoke of the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    He resented Long Chen at first, but when he saw that Long Chen could make such a terrifying beast submit to him, he knew that there was something special about him.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either, but it¡¯s unheard of for a beast to have the ability to swallow beast fire! Thank goodness for this kid! We¡¯ll surely get out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory now!¡± said Long Shan with augh.


    Anyone would want to get out of this cursed ce.


    ¡°Yue¡¯er, this teenager has many extraordinary qualities and even has a demonic beast like that. He is a very lucky person. If you have a good rtionship with him and even help him, you¡¯ll surely benefit greatly!¡± Long Shan said wistfully as he stroked his beard.


    ¡°Really?¡± Long Yue was a little stunned. When she previously saved Long Chen, she never imagined something like this would happen. However, if she had not helped him then, even the other members of the Dragon n would not be doing as well as they were today.


    While they chatted, what was once the fire wheel changed once more. The gigantic fireball that touched the sky was shrinking at a speed visible to the naked eye. As time passed, the fireball shrank more and more, and the surrounding temperature fell. Even the red ground slowly dimmed into a gray color.


    ¡°Sess.¡± Long Chen broke into a grin.


    The beast fire was the reason why this ce was fiery-red. After Xiang swallowed it, thisnd quickly returned to its original look, which was identical to the rest of the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    The gray sky slowly reappeared in front of them.


    The fireball on the horizon shrank until it disappeared, and a gigantic, ck, demonic wolf appeared. Red mes burned brightly on his body.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf hadpletely reced the fire wheel.


    Although they had expected this oue, Long Shan and the others were still shaken. They looked at each other with bitter smiles.


    Long Chen and his demonic beast were simply extraordinary.


    The burning, fiery wolf ran towards Long Chen, turned into a ray of fiery-red light, and dashed into his chest.


    Everything returned to its original peace and quiet.


    Long Chen knew that due to the unknown beast fire, Xiang¡¯s cultivation was about to progress greatly. It would surely prove much more beneficial than the Blue Devil me.


    After swallowing the beast fire, Xiang would fall into a deep slumber. When he woke up, he would be stronger once more. When he progressed to the King tier, it was a metamorphosis, so he had slept for quite a while. It would probably not take as long this time.


    Previously, the sound of fire crackling filled the ce, but now it was quiet. Long Shan and the others quickly rushed towards Long Chen and soon, they were by his side. Before they could praise Xiang¡¯s extraordinary abilities, their eyes were attracted to something in front of them.


    A ripple suddenly appeared in the air in front of them, resembling a whirlpool. It was like a ripple forming on ake.


    ¡°This must be the exit. Let¡¯s get out of here.¡± Long Chen went ahead without hesitation and quickly embedded himself into the ripples.


    ¡°That young man has some guts,¡± Long Shan said approvingly.


    ¡°If he didn¡¯t, would he daree here alone to save me? He¡¯s probably the first person to ever voluntarily enter the Nine Spirit Purgatory!¡± Long Yue smiled, then she disappeared into the ripples. The other two followed and disappeared from the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    ***


    Seven Layered Demon World. Sixthyer. Royal pce of the Ancient Demon Domain.


    There were seven pavilions and one royal pce in the Ancient Demon Domain. The seven pavilions were scattered across the mountains while the royal pce was located in the sixthyer of the Seven Layered Demon World. Only people at the ranks of Demon Generals and above could enter the royal pce.


    Many Grand Elders lived in the pce. Most importantly, the Demon Emperor¡¯s family was there too.


    The royal pce was built morevishly and magnificently than the pavilions. It was fully ck, making it look imposing and serious. Their servants trained inside and would live there for the rest of their lives to serve the other residents. All the servants walked around with their heads hung, stepping cautiously and not daring to make a single mistake.


    The royal pce was the core of the Ancient Demon Domain. As a major faction of the Divine Martial Empire, all the wealth and power of the faction was disyed in the pce.

 Chapter 626 – Purple Bamboo Court

    <h4>Chapter 626 ¨C Purple Bamboo Court</h4>


    If this were a couple of months ago, the people in the pce would be ultimate masters to Long Chen. Now, however, they were mere ants to him. The once mysterious and powerful pce was now unimpressive to Long Chen.


    One hundred and eight guards in ck armor stood in front of the grand entrance. They were all at least at the Eighth Passage Stage, and they had spent their whole lives in the sixthyer. They only had two ways to get out¡ªeither they grew too old and were killed, or they broke through to the Ninth Passage Stage and became Grand Elders.


    The guards were standing solemnly around a man, their young master, Jiang Wushang. Jiang Wushang stood with a dark expression and his hands behind his back as he stared at a woman with reddened eyes.


    She was the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°Prince Wushang, let me in! I want to see my daughter!¡± Her eyes were covered with blood vessels, and she was clearly upset. She gazed into his eyes, slowly losing patience.


    Jiang Wushang smirked and said, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you one more time! My father has forbidden anyone from meeting Liu Yiyi! It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s Jiang Wuya or you!¡±


    The Clear Shallows King¡¯s voice turned cold as she stepped forward. ¡°Why can¡¯t I see my own daughter? Jiang Wushang, don¡¯t twist my arm! You may be marrying her off to Martial Emperor Zhao Danchen, but you cannot take away my right to see her!¡±


    ¡°Twist your arm? Clear Shallows King, as one of the seven Demon Kings, how dare you disobey the Demon Emperor¡¯smand? Do you intend tomit treason?¡± Jiang Wushang wrung his hands nonchntly.


    ¡°You!¡± The Clear Shallows King raged. She took a deep breath, steeled herself, and said, ¡°I must see Yiyi today. If anyone dares to stop me, don¡¯t me me for hurting you!¡±


    As she spoke, she quickly strode towards his side, nning to walk around him and enter the pce behind him. The only people in the Ancient Demon Domain who could defeat a Demon King were the two elderly Demon Saints and the Demon Emperor.


    As for Jiang Wushang, he was just a young Earthly Martial Realm junior to her.


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± When Jiang Wuya saw that the madwoman dared to enter by force, he became annoyed and attacked before she could make a move. Ever since he lost to Long Chen at the Cloud Dream Swamp, his temperament had changed a lot. He had be much more short-tempered, and this was felt by everyone around him.


    News of Long Chen defeating Jiang Wushang had long spread across the whole Ancient Demon Domain. Jiang Wushang had always been a legend in the Ancient Demon Domain, but the legend had fallen tragically. In the beginning, the public mocked him while musing that Long Chen had gotten lucky. Though after Long Chen defeated Martial Emperor Yang Ningfeng, they realized that Long Chen had not relied on luck but on his extraordinary talent!


    At the entrance, Jiang Wushang and the Clear Shallows King started to fight. One was young but possessed very powerful techniques, the other had many years of experience. For the moment, it was difficult to determine who would win in this fight between two Earthly Martial Realm masters. It was also a rare opportunity to watch a fight between two masters, so since the guards could not stop them, they watched closely, learning everything they could.


    One or two guards went to report the fight.


    The only one who could control Jiang Wushang was Demon Emperor Jiang Wuxie, so they were surely going to report to him.


    The Clear Shallows King was worried about her daughter, so she fought fervently. When she saw Jiang Wushang¡¯s nonchnce, she grew angrier and her attacks intensified.


    ¡°You crazy bitch! Do you want to die?¡± Jiang Wushang cursed as he was forced back. This was when he pulled out his best technique, the Ancient Demon Punch, to fight her. He only intended to stop her at first, but now he was mad.


    About seven minutester, a ck whirlwind flew out of the pce. m! The Clear Shallows King cried in pain and was thrown into the air by the ck shadow. The guards cried out in surprise. The battle stopped, leaving Jiang Wushang panting with a pale face. Standing next to him was a man with a cold expression¡ªDemon Emperor Jiang Wuxie!


    Jiang Wuxie had attacked and thrown the Clear Shallows King back. She crashed into the ground and tumbled several times, then she mbered to her feet. When she saw that it was the Demon Emperor, she felt both worry and terror. A trickle of blood remained on the corner of her mouth. His attack had injured her.


    Liu Yiyi had been taken to the royal pce about ten days ago, and the Clear Shallows King had not seen her daughter since. The Demon Emperor was about to marry her off to Martial Overlord City, so how could the Clear Shallows King rest easy? She knew her daughter well. Liu Yiyi had a fragile personality, and if she was forced into marriage, she would surely not be able to take it. Perhaps she had run out of tears by now. In fact, the Clear Shallows King was worried her daughter was contemting suicide.


    She knew who Liu Yiyi was actually longing for.


    ¡°Clear Shallows, how dare you attack Wushang in front of my pce? Do you want to die?¡± A chill ran through her bones and her hair stood on end when the Demon Emperor¡¯s voice rang in her ears.


    ¡°Your Majesty ... I ... I would like to see my daughter, Yiyi! I hope you will allow me to do so!¡± she said anxiously, though terrified. She was well aware of how easily he could kill her. The Ancient Demon Domain would not care to lose her.


    ¡°You want to see Yiyi?¡± To her surprise, he did not refuse her directly but repeated her request.


    ¡°Yes.¡± She nodded hurriedly, seeing some hope. She had not seen her daughter in more than ten days and did not know how she was doing. She had been distraught every day.


    After some deep thought, the Demon Emperor finally nodded and said, ¡°You are Yiyi¡¯s mother, and she is going to be married off to the Martial Alliance far away. She will be marrying the extraordinary prodigy, Martial Emperor Zhao Danchen. This is amazing news! Yiyi is making the Ancient Demon Domain proud. As her mother, of course you have the right to see her.¡±


    ¡°Really? Thank you, Your Majesty!¡± The Clear Shallows King was overjoyed and quickly started to kowtow, but the Demon Emperor waved impatiently. She stood up, unable to control her emotions.


    ¡°Follow me.¡± The Demon Emperor turned around, and she quickly followed him into the royal pce. She was not a stranger to this ce, and she was soon brought to a courtyard named the Purple Bamboo Court. Many purple bamboo nts grew in the yard, and deep inside was a house. When they arrived at the house, the Demon Emperor turned around and said to the shocked but emotional Clear Shallows King, ¡°Yiyi is inside. I¡¯m giving you an hour. After your time is up, you will leave on your own.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Your Majesty! I will leave in an hour!¡± she said, nodding hurriedly. She dared to disobey Jiang Wushang, but not the Demon Emperor. Jiang Wushang could not kill her, but the Demon Emperor could do it easily.


    ¡°Mhm. That¡¯s good. There seems to be a problem with Yiyi¡¯s mood in recent days. Talk to her for me. Do you know who Zhao Danchen is? He¡¯s one of the three great Martial Emperors! He¡¯s also the only direct disciple of the Martial Overlord, the most powerful cultivator in the empire. He reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage at the age of twenty-one, and he will surely be the next Martial Overlord. He was also born with a Golden Combat Body. It is tremendous luck for Yiyi to be able to marry him. I hope you guys understand,¡± the Demon Emperor said mildly.


    ¡°Yes, yes, Your Majesty. I understand.¡± The Clear Shallows King knew that the Demon Emperor had only let her in because he had an objective. Liu Yiyi was likely contemting suicide now, and the only one who could convince her otherwise was the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°Remember, if her situation does not get better, you will never be allowed to see her again,¡± he said coldly. His cold voice pierced into her soul like a needle.


    She shuddered and quickly nodded obediently.


    It was difficult enough to protect oneself in the world, let alone in a hierarchical faction like the Ancient Demon Domain. Here, the Demon Emperor was a god. How could she dare disobey him?


    After he left, tears fell from her eyes. She stepped into the house quietly, and the door creaked when she pushed it. There was a white-clothed teenage girl lying t on the bed, covered in a pink nket. Her eyes were soulless and nk, as if she was dead.


    The sound of the creaking door did not wake her up from her daze.


    ¡°Yiyi ...¡± The Clear Shallows King gave a pained look when she saw her daughter in his state.


    Liu Yiyi shuddered and quickly sat up when she heard the familiar voice. When she saw her mother, tears flowed from her eyes. After staying in the pce for so long, she had be much thinner.


    Both of them looked at each other with tears in their eyes for a long time. Finally, Liu Yiyi said, ¡°Mother, the Demon Emperor asked you to talk to me, right? Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m fine. I was only acting for them. I¡¯m not going to kill myself over this.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King was proud to hear that her daughter was holding on. She stroked Liu Yiyi¡¯s hair lovingly and said, ¡°My good daughter, you really have grown up. You¡¯re right. I was worried you would be suffering here, but now that I¡¯ve seen you, I¡¯m much more assured.¡±


    Liu Yiyi nodded, pursing her lips. ¡°Yes, Mother. I heard that ... Jiang Wuya came to the Ancient Demon Domain to cause trouble and was hurt by the Demon Emperor. How is he doing?¡±


    When the Clear Shallows King heard his name, she was left in a daze for a moment, then she shook her head resignedly and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know. I think he¡¯s fine. Yiyi, you know what happened to us. He is indeed your father, but ... but ...¡±


    ¡°But what?¡± Having grown up without a father, Liu Yiyi cared deeply about this matter.

 Chapter 627 – The Long Family Strikes Back

    <h4>Chapter 627 ¨C The Long Family Strikes Back</h4>


    ¡°This matter isn¡¯t fully his fault. I don¡¯t want to talk about the grudges and hatred from years ago. The urgent matter at hand is how you can survive this ordeal,¡± said the Clear Shallows King with concern, changing the topic.


    ¡°Mother, do you think he¡¯ll try to rescue me on the way to the Martial Overlord City?¡± Liu Yiyi asked.


    She was naturally referring to Jiang Wuya.


    ¡°Probably. With his personality, he would never leave something unfinished, just like how he left while pursuing that woman,¡± said the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°He¡¯lle save me? But I hear that he¡¯s at the Second Earthly Martial Stage. The Demon Emperor will surely escort me to Martial Overlord City, and Zhao Danchen wille too. They¡¯re all at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, and if Jiang Wuyaes, wouldn¡¯t he be killed?¡± Liu Yiyi asked worriedly.


    Although they¡¯d only exchanged a few words, he was her father. She did not want to see him die just like that.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. I¡¯m not strong enough to do much right now. Forget the Demon Emperor, even Zhao Danchen is too strong. He¡¯s young, yet he is already at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. Even Jiang Wushang is only fit to carry his shoes. They are on whole different levels.¡±


    A cloud hung over Liu Yiyi. She pursed her lips and thought of another person. ¡°Mother, I heard that Long Chen killed Yang Ningfeng, one of the three Martial Emperors, at the Battle n. Long Chen is definitely younger than Zhao Danchen, but their cultivation levels are almost the same. He¡¯s much more talented!¡±


    Her heart raced when she thought of that person.


    She had spent a lot of time with him. At the time, she never would have expected that that teenager, who looked lonely but was very annoying, would achieve such heights after he left the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°Yeah. The whole Divine Martial Empire is shaken by his progress. He¡¯s now as famous as the two other prodigies. If he can save you, this matter will be resolved. But ...¡±


    ¡°But what?¡± Liu Yiyi asked anxiously.


    ¡°Long Chen is not with the Battle n and hasn¡¯t been seen in a long time. With his personality, I think he would havee here if he were still in the Divine Martial Empire. That is why I think he left the Divine Martial Empire. There is another possibility¡ªI heard that Long Yue was captured and locked up in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. Jiang Wuya didn¡¯t go to the Martial Overlord City, so someone must have gone instead. I think that person is Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°The Nine Spirit Purgatory?¡± Liu Yiyi gasped and her face paled. ¡°Mother, no one can get out of that ce after going in, right? Could he be ...?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to say. Although he¡¯s powerful, he¡¯s far from being the Martial Overlord¡¯s match ...¡± The Clear Shallows King sighed.


    Liu Yiyi took two steps back.


    ¡°Silly girl, worry about yourself. If nothing works, you¡¯ll just have to ept your fate. Your mother is useless; I can¡¯t help you ...¡± The Clear Shallows King pulled her daughter into her arms with tears in her eyes.


    ¡°Must I ept my fate?¡± Liu Yiyi muttered woodenly.


    ***


    Martial Overlord City was bustling.


    The busy crowd rushed through the main street of the outer city.


    It was much quieter in the inner city as few people were walking around. Martial Overlord Pce sat at the center of the inner city, tall enough to touch the clouds. The most powerful man in the empire, Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji, lived in Martial Overlord Pce.


    The pce waspletely sealed so no outsider could see what was inside. To the normal person, Martial Overlord Pce was a tall tower that stretched into the clouds, and the leader of the empire was living at the top.


    asionally, people would gaze towards the top of the tower with reverence in their eyes.


    Everything was peaceful in the inner city.


    Suddenly, ripples appeared in the sky above the inner city. They looked like ripples on the surface of ake. Many people looked up to see this strange phenomenon and started to discuss.


    ¡°A phenomenon like that must have been created by His Majesty the Martial Overlord!¡± This was what everyone thought.


    Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji was like a god in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Suddenly, four silhouettes appeared at the center of the ripples, and their features quickly became clear.


    The four people floated in the air, meaning they were masters at the Ninth Passage Stage or above who had opened their heavenly meridian points.


    They were too high up, so the crowd could not see Long Chen and the others¡¯ faces. Only highly ranked people could fly above Martial Overlord City. That was why people looked at the four of them with reverence in their eyes. Only the most powerful people in the inner city noticed the strangeness of thismotion!


    It was daytime, so anyone who was outdoors could see the people in the air.


    Long Chen and the others had ended up here after exiting the Nine Spirit Purgatory. They had not expected to appear in the air. If they were below the Ninth Passage Stage, they would have fallen to their deaths.


    After stabilizing himself, Long Chen smiled bitterly. He looked down and realized that the vast Martial Overlord City was right beneath him!


    Also, not far away was the magnificent Martial Overlord Pce. If the Martial Overlord was there now, then he would be very close to them.


    Long Chen was shocked and also privately relieved. Coming out this close to Martial Overlord Pce after rescuing Long Yue would¡¯ve spelled misfortune. However, he had rescued Long Shan too! Long Shan was once Zhao Wuji¡¯s master¡¯s rival! Although he had been trapped for many years and only had thebat abilities of a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, he was powerful enough to fight Zhao Wuji!


    With him protecting them, there was nothing to worry about!


    So what if they were above Martial Overlord City?


    Long Chen savored the outside world, feeling the thick earthly Qi in the air. Long Shan felt the same but with much more intensity. He had been trapped in a barren and obscure ce for a long time, so when he felt the outside world once again, hot tears filled his eyes.


    Boom!


    Long Shan punched gently, and a gigantic ripple radiated far away, dispersing the clouds!


    ¡°I never thought ... I never thought that I would get out of there alive! I can¡¯t believe it!¡± Long Shan looked at his hands in disbelief with emotional tears.


    Long Chen recalled how he looked when they pulled him from therge rock. Even he felt his heart clench. This man had been trapped inside for many years. It was clear just how resilient the old man was, and just how intense the hatred in his heart was!


    Unfortunately, his archnemesis, Chen Xiong, was no longer alive.


    ¡°Grandfather, what should we do now? I¡¯ll follow you!¡± After seeing Long Shan¡¯s reddened eyes and Martial Overlord City, the gray-clothed teenager knew what he intended. Long Shan¡¯s appearance represented the rise of the Long family in the Divine Martial Empire! The strongest members of their family had surpassed the Martial Overlord¡¯s faction!


    Long Shan took a deep breath and the rage in his face disappeared, reced by calmness. He said slowly, ¡°We¡¯re not in a hurry. We¡¯ll leave the Divine Martial Empire in the Martial Overlord¡¯s hands for a while. The Divine Martial Empire was saved because of the Long family¡¯s ancestors. In fact, the Long family has gone to battle for this nation for countless years. In the end, our ancestors lost this nation, but we must take it back one day. That day wille soon.¡±


    Long Chen knew what they were going to do.


    Destroy the Martial Overlord¡¯s faction and take control of the whole Divine Martial Empire.


    The people of the Divine Martial Empire did not have much freedom under the control of the Martial Overlord; many lived suppressed lives. Long Chen was on Long Shan¡¯s side, so he would support them. With Long Yue there, Long Chen trusted them.


    Since they were going to destroy the Martial Overlord¡¯s faction, he could not support them more.


    Of course, now was not the time.


    Long Shan had only just recovered and would take a long time to regain his strength. Also, the Martial Overlord had controlled the Divine Martial Empire for many years, so his roots were very deep. Removing a cancerous tumor like this one could not be done overnight. It was not something that could bepleted by merely killing the Martial Overlord.


    The most important thing to do was leave.


    Long Chen was still thinking about Liu Yiyi; he wondered how Jiang Wuya was doing.


    ¡°Grandfather, we cannot stay here for long. Let¡¯s go,¡± said Long Yue.


    ¡°Leave? Hehe, there¡¯s no way those arrogant bastards let us leave so easily.¡± Long Shan chuckled.


    After he spoke, people shot into the air from the inner city, surrounding them. Perhaps they sensed that they were all at least at the Earthly Martial Realm, so these people were at least Martial Kings. There were ten Martial Saints in the Martial Alliance, and Jiang Kun and the Void Martial Saint had died. Five out of the eight remaining Martial Saints were here now.


    The leader of the group was Xiao Lin, the Martial Emperor ruling over the Nine Spirit Purgatory!


    Xiao Lin was only ranked beneath Zhao Wuji and Zhao Danchen in the Martial Alliance. However, he was nothing in front of them because three of them were as strong as he was, and they had one person stronger than him!


    Escorted by the Martial Kings, Xiao Lin flew at the very front. His expression was extremely dark, and this was the most anxious he had been in many years. He knew where these four people had emerged from. If they appeared in the air above the Martial Overlord City, it could only mean that they hade from the Nine Spirit Purgatory!

 Chapter 628 – Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji

    <h4>Chapter 628 ¨C Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji</h4>


    Long Chen recognized Xiao Lin, but Xiao Lin did not know that they had met before. The Hundred-War Martial King had suddenly gone missing recently. Everyone had searched for him, but they failed to find him. He had suddenly disappeared while guarding the Nine Spirit Purgatory¡¯s entrance. No one saw hime out, so they concluded that he had entered the Nine Spirit Purgatory, though no one knew why.


    Although Chen Guangjun was a Martial King, he was a minor figure in Martial Overlord City.


    Xiao Lin was smart, but he did not connect Long Chen and the Hundred-War Martial King. He recognized two of the four, namely Long Yue and the gray-clothed teenager. Xiao Lin had seen them many times, and he knew Long Chen too, as his looks were recorded by the Martial Alliance. The teenager was an unimaginable figure who had killed one of the three Martial Emperors, so Xiao Lin remembered his face clearly. He assumed Long Chen woulde to Martial Overlord City eventually, but he did not expect him to appear here.


    Xiao Lin did not recognize the old man, but his aura made Xiao Lin apprehensive.


    How did these people get out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory?


    Xiao Lin could not figure it out. He knew that there were two obstacles to getting out. First, they had to find thepass and follow where it pointed. Only Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji and himself knew about this; even Zhao Danchen did not know. The second obstacle was the vast sea of beast fire blocking the Nine Spirit Purgatory¡¯s exit. How could anyone get out without reaching the Martial Overlord¡¯s level?


    Unless these people were at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage?


    That was clearly impossible.


    That was why Xiao Lin was half fearful, half confused.


    Very soon, the Martial Kings and Martial Saints surrounded Long Chen and his group.


    The people on the ground initially thought Long Chen and the others were major figures of the Martial Alliance, but when the actual major figures made an appearance, they sensed that something was wrong. The crowd started to discuss, and because Long Yue and the gray-clothed teenager were famous in the Divine Martial Empire, people quickly guessed who they were. As for Long Chen, due to his appearance, they soon figured out who he was too.


    ¡°It¡¯s the two Long Chens and the head of the Dragon n, Long Yue!¡±


    The people who lived in Martial Overlord City were mostly powerful figures with their own connections and informants.


    Everyone watched nervously as they wondered what would happen.


    Xiao Lin had a dark expression. He stared at them solemnly, floating twenty meters away from Long Chen. Looking at them, he moved his lips gently as he asked, ¡°Did the four of youe out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory?¡±


    The city was silent, so the crowd below could hear his voice. The crowd looked at each other. They heard that one could enter the Nine Spirit Purgatory but not get out. Did that mean that the legend was broken?


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious?¡± Long Chen said with a grin, standing in front of his group.


    Very few people in the Divine Martial Empire dared talk to Xiao Lin like that.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care how you guys left the Nine Spirit Purgatory, but you are in Martial Overlord City! Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ll get to leave.¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s hair floated behind him as he red at them with his eagle-like eyes.


    ¡°Are you strong enough to stop us? Or do you want to be the second Yang Ningfeng?¡± Long Chen asked arrogantly.


    Everyone was now certain that he was the Long Chen who had killed Yang Ningfeng!


    He was the most outstanding rising star in the Divine Martial Empire. He hade out of nowhere and reached his current level in just a few short months, shocking everyone.


    He was crazy, but he had the strength to back it up!


    ¡°You¡¯re also called Long Chen ...¡± Xiao Lin squinted at Long Chen. He felt like Long Chen was familiar, as if they had met before. But where?


    ¡°Why? Do you think I look familiar?¡± Long Chen asked teasingly.


    Xiao Lin froze.


    ¡°Old man, you must know that I have an older sister called the Ever-Changing Demon Girl, Lan Ling¡¯er, right? Have you met anyone strange recently?¡± Long Chen did not mind telling him about it.


    He also had another objective. He had used Control on Lady Mo before this so that she wouldn¡¯t suspect that Long Chen was an imposter. Now that he had told the truth, Lady Mo would likely wake up from the Control if the news spread.


    Xiao Lin was no idiot.


    ¡°The Hundred-War Martial King was you! He was you!¡± There was shock in his eyes as he studied Long Chen¡¯s gaze. The gaze was the most difficult to imitate. Right now, Long Chen¡¯s gaze was exactly the same as that of the Hundred-War Martial King, but the Hundred-War Martial King had a humble gaze at the time. Right now, he had an arrogant gaze!


    ¡°It¡¯s good that you know.¡± Long Chen stepped aside, as his job was done. As for what he would do next, it was up to Long Shan.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Long Shan nodded when he saw that Long Chen was done speaking. He led the three youths away.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s face changed and he quickly blocked Long Shan. He could tell that Long Shan was the most powerful person among them, but he did not know how strong he was.


    Xiao Lin could not figure out who this person was.


    ¡°Xiao Lin, do you remember me?¡± When Long Shan saw that Xiao Lin had stopped him, he looked up and stared cooly at the white-haired but muscr old man.


    ¡°You are...?¡± Xiao Lin froze once more. He knew which masters had been locked up in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, but he thought that Long Shan had long died, and the man before was as thin as a stick. He was far too different from what he used to look like.


    ¡°Move aside. Don¡¯t make me vent my anger for Chen Xiong on you,¡± said Long Shan.


    ¡°Chen Xiong?¡± The name triggered many memories in Xiao Lin because Chen Xiong was his previous master. When he heard that name, Xiao Lin instantly thought about Long Shan. Long Chen impersonating the Hundred-War Martial King had already made him speechless, but now he was inplete disbelief over Long Shan¡¯s identity.


    ¡°Long Shan ...?¡± Xiao Lin was in shock and took several steps back in the air. He stared at the elderly Long Shan with wide eyes.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s me,¡± said Long Shan.


    ¡°It¡¯s been so many years! How is it possible that you¡¯re not dead? This is impossible! Impossible!¡± muttered Xiao Lin.


    Long Shan ignored him. He waved at the others and prepared to fly around Xiao Lin and leave Martial Overlord City to rest. When he regained his Fifth Earthly Martial Stage strength, he would be able to easily destroy the whole Martial Alliance.


    And if their master came out now, it would be very inconvenient.


    The Martial Overlord had not arrived, so how could Xiao Lin let them leave? Therefore, he quickly blocked their way again. Without another word, Long Shan waved, and a powerful gust flew at Xiao Lin!


    Xiao Lin¡¯s face changed and he quickly used both hands to block. Long Shan had only waved his hand, but it was enough to produce such a powerful attack. Xiao Lin knew that only the Martial Overlord could do the same.


    This old man has been trapped until now, yet he¡¯s still as strong as a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator at least! That¡¯s terrifying! Xiao Lin thought nervously to himself. He did not want to get hurt, so he quickly retreated. Although the others did not know who Long Shan was, when they saw Xiao Lin¡¯s expression, the Martial Kings and Martial Saints behind him also retreated!


    The highest-ranked figures of the great Martial Alliance were being forced to retreat by a mysterious old man. Who was the old man?


    Everyone was curious about Long Shan¡¯s identity.


    One wave was enough to push back the Martial Alliance.


    He was beyond powerful.


    Everyone was shocked when he forced Xiao Lin back in one move, because it meant that he was on the Martial Overlord¡¯s level!


    If another master on the Martial Overlord¡¯s level appeared in the Divine Martial Empire, then it would surely shake the whole empire up. Those who were more forward-thinking felt like the tides would change in the Divine Martial Empire with Long Shan¡¯s appearance.


    Now that Long Shan was back, he would never let the Martial Overlord rule over the Divine Martial Empire.


    Everyone knew that Xiao Lin could not stop him from leaving, but if he let Long Shan go, this would be a major problem to the Martial Alliance. Letting a tiger go back to its mountain would lead to future problems.


    Long Chen guessed that if the Martial Overlord was currently in Martial Overlord City, he would surely show up.


    He¡¯s probably seen enough. Long Chen looked towards Martial Overlord Pce. He knew that Zhao Wuji had been watching for a long time, and as expected, after Long Shan attacked, the legendary Zhao Wuji finally appeared.


    A man was standing at the very top of the golden Martial Overlord Pce. He was a middle-aged man in long, white robes, and his hair fluttered in the wind. Although there was some distance between them, Long Chen could tell that he was handsome. No one who saw his face would think that this sophisticated middle-aged schr was actually Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji, the man who controlled the whole Divine Martial Empire!


    The moment he appeared, the whole city erupted. The Martial Overlord had not appeared in public in a very long time. Many people had never even caught a glimpse of him before.


    Long Shan and the others ignored Xiao Lin and looked at the Martial Overlord. Long Shan was slightly apprehensive about his past rival¡¯s disciple. If he could control the whole Divine Martial Empire, he was surely no simple man.

 Chapter 629 – One Punch Between Peak Masters

    <h4>Chapter 629 ¨C One Punch Between Peak Masters</h4>


    This was a battle between Zhao Wuji and Long Shan, so Long Chen temporarily fell back from the frontlines and observed.


    When Zhao Wuji arrived, he did not attack immediately. He looked calm, as if he was admiring his own garden, while studying Long Shan carefully without any visible emotion on his face.


    Long Shan had been trapped for more than thirty years, and he had suddenly emerged on this day. This was very unexpected, yet Zhao Wuji looked very calm. This showed how resilient his mind was. The more mature an opponent was, the harder they were to defeat.


    ¡°Wuji, it¡¯s been many years since west saw each other,¡± Long Shan said mildly.


    Zhao Wuji was silent for a while, then he finally gave a resigned, bitter smile. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s been many years.¡±


    ¡°You never expected me to be alive, right?¡± The longer Long Shan looked at Zhao Wuji, the worse his expression became. Zhao Wuji was Chen Xiong¡¯s disciple, and hatred burned in his heart as he stared at the disciple of the enemy who had brought him the worst suffering of his life.


    Zhao Wuji did not say anything. He only nodded.


    He indeed thought Long Shan had died a long time ago, unaware that thetter had been in the Nine Spirit Purgatory all along.


    Although Zhao Wuji knew how to get out of that ce, he would never enter it.


    Long Shan managed to suppress his desire to kill. He looked at Zhao Wuji for a while and said, ¡°It¡¯s been many years, and you¡¯ve achieved great heights. Now that I¡¯m back, you must understand that the Martial Alliance¡¯s days are numbered. Although Chen Xiong is dead, I must take my revenge. The next time we meet, it will likely be war!¡±


    Then he turned to leave.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Zhao Wuji held up one hand to stop Long Shan.


    ¡°You want to fight now?¡± Long Shan turned around with a sh of coldness on his face.


    Zhao Wuji did not reply, but he suddenly dashed towards Long Shan. There was finally a sh of coldness in his clear gaze.


    ¡°Everyone, fall back!¡± shouted Long Shan. Long Chen and the others nodded and quickly backed away. Long Chen knew that Zhao Wuji would not let Long Shan go easily because if he could not kill Long Shan today, it would be worse the next time they met.


    The two ultimate masters of the Divine Martial Empire met in the air, before the gazes of countless people. Both of them looked calm, and they did not use any fancy techniques. All they did was throw one punch each!


    The punches looked very normal, and when they collided, there was no sound, as if they had merely bumped fists.


    But the whole city shook gently from their mere punches!


    Only cultivators at the Earthly Martial Realm could sense the faint vibration. Although it was faint, the way it had spread across the whole city made it clear how powerful the attacks were.


    Even Long Chen felt scared.


    The punches looked simple, but it showed how much control they had over their energy. Long Chen was unable tounch an attack where not a single drop of energy was leaked out. All energy was focused on one point, making it much stronger than mostbat techniques.


    Whoosh!


    After the fists collided, both men were thrown back. It was clear that both of them were affected by the force, especially the Martial Overlord, who almost collided with Martial Overlord Pce before he stabilized himself.


    He supported himself on the golden wall of the pce and looked up at Long Shan, panting slightly. On the other end, Long Shan had already stabilized himself. He looked at Zhao Wuji with a smile on his face and said, ¡°Wuji, how do you feel after taking my punch?¡±


    There was a tiny change on Zhao Wuji¡¯s face.


    He did not seem talkative today, and he did not reply.


    The whole city saw that this mysterious old man seemed to be slightly stronger than Zhao Wuji!


    Everyone was shocked.


    Had someone more terrifying than Zhao Wuji appeared in the Divine Martial Empire?


    Zhao Wuji did not speak. Did that mean that he had admitted defeat?


    This was a huge blow to the Martial Alliance. The Martial Kings all surrounded Zhao Wuji and peered nervously. If Zhao Wuji fell, then the whole Martial Alliance would fall too.


    ¡°Remember this! The Long family will take back the Divine Martial Empire one day! Not just you, Zhao Wuji¡ªevery member of the Martial Alliance must remember this!¡± Long Shanughed coldly, having won the fight with just one move.


    Long Shan turned and left happily, leading Long Chen and the others.


    This time, Zhao Wuji did not speak and no one stopped him.


    ¡°Who was that old man? Long family?¡±


    ¡°My goodness, he defeated the Martial Overlord ...¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t jump to conclusions! They only exchanged one strike! It¡¯s not clear who would win in a serious fight yet!¡±


    ¡°But why did the Martial Overlord not make him stay and fight him? Is he afraid?¡±


    ¡°What do you know? This is Martial Overlord City. The Martial Overlord is concerned about our safety. If they fought here, wouldn¡¯t it tten the whole city?¡±


    Simr discussions erupted below.


    The Martial Overlord had not been injured by the strike, but he had figured out Long Shan¡¯s capabilities. Long Chen knew that Zhao Wuji was concerned about the city, and that was why he had decided not to fight Long Shan today. He was aware that the whole city would be destroyed if they went all out.


    That was why Long Chen could leave smoothly.


    ¡°Grandfather, even the Martial Overlord couldn¡¯t beat you! You¡¯re amazing!¡± The gray-clothed teenager followed closely behind the icy Long Shan with admiration in his eyes. Long Shan was already powerful; how strong would he be if he regained his Fifth Earthly Martial Stage strength?


    ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to the kid¡¯s King Crystals, and he got us out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory. If not him, we would just be one of the many corpses in the Nine Spirit Purgatory,¡± said Long Shan, looking at Long Chen.


    They all looked at Long Chen gratefully.


    Long Chen said with a small smile, ¡°Eldest Sister and I are close; I merely fulfilled my duty. It¡¯s nothing.¡±


    The four of them left the inner city nonchntly, heading towards the outer city. After the hugemotion, almost everyone in Martial Overlord City hade out, including the people in the outer city.


    This was the first time anyone had left Martial Overlord City so effortlessly.


    Saving Long Yue was an almost impossible task, yet Long Chen managed to do it. The Dragon n members who had stayed back at the Battle n had probably lost all hope by now.


    Long Chen and Long Yue locked eyes. They had decided where to go after leaving Martial Overlord City.


    Suddenly, Long Chen saw a familiar figure looking up from the crowd. Long Chen had once memorized the location where this person was standing.


    I almost forgot about the Blue Devil me! But it has delivered itself to my doorstep. Beneath him, ady was watching the four of them fearfully. Long Chen had seen her at the Martial Merchant Alliance, and she had been with Zhao Danchen at the time. She had snatched Xiang¡¯s Blue Devil me, and although it was likely useless to Xiang now, thedy was rude, vicious, and clearly not a good person. If Long Chen hadn¡¯t been quick on his feet, she would have also asked Zhao Danchen to kill him.


    ¡°Please wait a moment.¡± With a whoosh, Long Chen rushed downwards. They were about to leave, but Long Chen had suddenly dove down, causing the crowd to erupt again.


    Long Chen was quick. He was instantly above the residents and stopped ten meters away from thedy. When she realized that he was looking at her, her face changed.


    ¡°Give me the Blue Devil me, or I¡¯ll kill you.¡± The corners of his lips curled up into a smile.


    ¡°Ah ...¡± Thedy fell several steps back. She was confused at first, but once his gaze started to turn cold, she quickly fished out a Universe Pouch from her clothing and tossed it to him with trembling hands. It still had a lingering smell.


    She had no idea how Long Chen knew that she had the Blue Devil me.


    After Long Chen took the Universe Pouch and confirmed that the Blue Devil me was inside, he flew back to her and said in her ear coldly, ¡°Is Zhao Danchen not here?¡±


    Thedy became even more afraid when he came close. She was most afraid of that mysterious old man, and he was clearly one of his people. She was just the princess of a small faction, so how could she afford to offend Long Chen?


    ¡°He ... he has gone to marry someone from the Ancient Demon Domain ...¡± said thedy, her teeth chattering.


    ¡°How long has he been gone?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°About f-f-five days ...¡± she stuttered.


    ¡°Very good.¡± Long Chenughed, then he pped her. She was sent flying and knocked down several walls beforending in a yard.


    Long Chen did not care if she lived or died. He then flew up into the air and returned to Long Shan¡¯s side. ¡°We can leave now.¡±


    The three of them had seen what he had done, but it was just a minor interruption, so they did not ask questions.


    Long Chen had publicly attacked someone in Martial Overlord City, but the people of the Martial Alliance had not moved because Zhao Wuji had not given anymands. All they could do was watch indignantly.


    After the four of thempletely disappeared, Zhao Wuji asked Xiao Lin with a mild expression, ¡°That teenager who attacked her just now¡ªhe must be the guy they¡¯re recently talking about, the Long Chen who killed that idiot Yang Ningfeng, right?¡±

 Chapter 630 – Responsibility

    <h4>Chapter 630 ¨C Responsibility</h4>


    ¡°That¡¯s him. When he impersonated the Hundred-War Martial King, even I was fooled, and he was able to enter the Nine Spirit Purgatory to rescue them. What I¡¯m puzzled about is, how did Long Chen know the way out of the Nine Spirit Purgatory?¡± Xiao Lin was confused.


    ¡°He even knew that Long Shan was in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. I¡¯m afraid that teenager knows many of the Martial Alliance¡¯s secrets. He is an even bigger threat to us than the other Long Chen. We must eliminate him as soon as possible ...¡± said Zhao Wuji, shaking his head.


    ¡°Your Majesty, do we let them go just like that? The fact that they dared attack a Martial Alliance member in front of you ... It grinds my gears ...¡± said one of the old Martial Saints next to him.


    Zhao Wuji thought deeply for a while, then he said, ¡°We will cross that bridge when we reach it. It¡¯s just some old guy; don¡¯t worry too much about it. It doesn¡¯t matter how strong he is, because how much longer can he live? The Divine Martial Empire will forever be the Martial Alliance¡¯s domain. You¡¯ll see ...¡± Zhao Wuji did not look worried at all. He then walked directly into Martial Overlord Pce.


    This is all in spite of him losing in the standoff just now.


    Everyone looked at each other.


    Xiao Lin was the only one who looked confident.


    ¡°Martial Emperor Xiao, does His Majesty mean that we don¡¯t need to worry?¡± asked one of the Martial Saints worriedly.


    Xiao Lin nodded and said, ¡°His Majesty has never made a wrong judgment before, so you do not need to worry. What does the Long family know?¡±


    Then Xiao Lin left to deal with other matters.


    Through the informants of various factions, news of the incident at Martial Overlord City spread across the whole Divine Martial Empire.


    ***


    After leaving Martial Overlord City, the four of them stopped in a valley to discuss their next step.


    Long Shan had only just exited the Nine Spirit Purgatory, so Long Yue had to make arrangements for him. Long Chen and Long Yue¡¯s eyes met, and Long Yue said, ¡°Grandfather, we have a brother whose daughter is being forced to marry Zhao Wuji¡¯s disciple. Our progress has been dyed greatly, so we must leave to settle that matter first, then we will head to the Battle n. We¡¯ll treat that as our base .What do you think?¡±


    Long Shan smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m old; this is the youth¡¯s world now. It¡¯s up to you guys to decide. Other than enjoying life, all this bag of old bones can do is help you block off a strong enemy during critical moments. The harsh words I said at Martial Overlord City were only to help you guys let the matter go.¡±


    His intentions were clear. He had only just gotten his freedom, and he was old. Long Yue and the rest still had to take matters into their own hands. He was only in charge of dealing with the Martial Overlord.


    ¡°Why do you say that? Grandfather, you managed to strike the Martial Overlord back with just one punch just now,¡± said the gray-clothed teenager.


    The moment after the teenager spoke, Long Shan gave a bitter smile and a bit of blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth. Even Long Chen froze when he saw the blood.


    This meant that Long Shan had actually lost to the Martial Overlord in the battle just now. He had only forced himself to hold on until now.


    ¡°Now you see it, right? Zhao Wuji is quite extraordinary. Very few people are a match for him at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. My injuries have not healedpletely yet; in a serious battle, I am definitely no match for him,¡± Long Shan said bitterly.


    The gray-clothed teenager was shocked.


    Long Chen initially thought that Long Shan was stronger. He had not expected the Martial Overlord to actually be the more terrifying one. Youth was strength. In Long Shan¡¯s current state, he was no match for the Martial Overlord.


    Long Yue said, ¡°In that case, we¡¯ll rest so that Grandfather¡¯s injuries can heal.¡±


    Long Shan nodded. ¡°To me, recovery is the most important thing now. However, you have a brother who needs your help, so I¡¯ll go with you. Years ago, I had a good rtionship with the Battle n. I didn¡¯t expect my grandchildren to fight alongside the Battle n too; this is fate.¡±


    Long Chen and the others decided to settle matters at the Ancient Demon Domain first, then they would return to the Battle n.


    Long Chen¡¯s main goal was the Ancient Token, then the two Emperor Seals, which were with the Martial Overlord. This meant that he would have to fight the Martial Overlord one day. Joining Long Yue¡¯s team was the best decision he had made.


    He was worried for Liu Yiyi¡¯s safety too.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen has had five days; I think he should be arriving at the Ancient Demon Domain soon. We must go now. If Wuya isn¡¯t able to hold himself back and decides to attack, I¡¯m afraid something will happen to him because he is no match for Zhao Danchen and Jiang Wuxie. We must hurry.¡± There was a hint of worry in Long Yue¡¯s eyes.


    Jiang Wuya had followed her around for many years, and to tell the truth, she had long epted him. However, she was unable to ept that he had a wife and child. Now that Jiang Wuya had gone to the Ancient Demon Domain to save his daughter, her heart was torn.


    She kept feeling like she was destroying someone else¡¯s happiness, so she felt a bit guilty.


    ¡°Eldest Sister, don¡¯t overthink it,¡± said Long Chen while they hurried along, knowing what she was thinking.


    Time was running out and they had to focus on their travels.


    ***


    Yellow Martial City, in the outer regions of the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Yellow Martial City was the first city Long Chen had visited after he entered the Divine Martial Empire. This was where he had killed the Demon Emperor¡¯s son, leading to him being pursued by the Demon Emperor. In the end, he was saved by the Dragon n, leading to the many events afterwards.


    In a corner of Yellow Martial City, on the first floor of the city¡¯s tower, Jiang Wuya and Jian Chen were looking in the direction of the Ancient Demon Domain with furrowed brows.


    The Ancient Demon Domain was barren, as always.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen has gone to the Ancient Demon Domain. His entourage will likelye out with Yiyi in a day¡¯s time.¡± Jiang Wuya looked pale. He had slipped into the Ancient Demon Domain more than once in the past few days, but he kept getting beaten out by Jiang Wuxie. If he were not smart enough, his older brother might have actually killed him.


    ¡°Second Brother, Jiang Wuxie and Zhao Danchen will both be present when that momentes. Won¡¯t that make it more difficult for us?¡± Jian Chen watched the Ancient Demon Domain with a sword-like re.


    ¡°That may be the case, but we cannot back down. Even if I die, I cannot let her suffer. I haven¡¯t been a good father, and I owe her too much. All I have left to give is my life, and I will risk it for her. It¡¯s up to the heavens to decide whether I seed or not.¡± Jiang Wuya¡¯s abyss-like eyes started to moisten.


    ¡°You don¡¯t just have your life, you still have a squad of siblings who are willing to live and die alongside you,¡± reminded Jian Chen.


    Jiang Wuya froze.


    Indeed, he had a squad of siblings too.


    Jian Chen had stubbornly insisted on following him, and despite Jiang Wuya advising him to head back more than once, it did not work. That was why Jiang Wuya had stopped trying to convince him.


    Both of them were quiet for a while, then Jian Chen broke the silence. ¡°After Seventh Brother went to Martial Overlord City, we received no more news. I¡¯m afraid ...¡±


    ¡°Afraid of what?¡± Jiang Wuya said.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that he and Eldest Sister are both trapped in the Nine Spirit Purgatory, unable to get out,¡± Jian Chen said directly.


    Jiang Wuya squinted.


    Jian Chen was right. He thought the same too, but he had never said it out loud.


    ¡°Seventh Brother is still young, but he is extremely talented. It is truly a pity. As for Yue¡¯er, if she dies there, I¡¯ll go to the Nine Spirit Purgatory to keep herpany after I save Yiyi and make sufficient arrangements for her,¡± said Jiang Wuya with great resolution.


    ¡°Second Brother, there¡¯s something I want to say, but I don¡¯t know if I should,¡± Jian Chen said suddenly.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Jiang Wuya asked.


    Jian Chen was quiet for a long time, then he said, ¡°I think the most important thing for a man to do is take responsibility. You have followed Eldest Sister for too long, and you¡¯ve had your freedom for too long. You have lived a life you liked, but you rarely think about other matters aside from Eldest Sister and our little group. We¡¯re all not young anymore. At our age, we should give up on certain things we chase after. Then again ...¡±


    ¡°Then again what?¡± Jiang Wuya pursed his lips with a bitter smile.


    Jian Chen thought for a moment, then he decided to speak honestly. ¡°Have you ever thought about how Eldest Sister feels? I believe the reason she hasn¡¯t gotten together with you is because she isn¡¯t willing to rob someone else of their happiness. Some people need you more than she does.¡±


    Jiang Wuya was silent for a long time.


    ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s true that too much time has passed. Must I really give up now? Take responsibility?¡± Jiang Wuya was in a daze when he spoke.


    He thought about the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi.


    What kind of lives had the mother and daughter been living during the many years that he was away?


    That girl named Liu Yiyi had his blood flowing in her veins. How did she grow up?


    Thinking about the girl who once cried in front of him, Jiang Wuya suddenly felt his heart ache. He clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, then let go.


    When he looked up once more, his eyes were filled with determination.


    ¡°Third Brother, I¡¯ve got it. This time, I will put my life on the line for her! She is my daughter! No one can stop me from providing her with a happy life!¡±


    He leaped from the city wall and strode towards the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°I¡¯ll wait here for them toe out. There¡¯s a very low chance of Yue¡¯er and the others surviving that ce. I think if I do this, Clear Shallows won¡¯t resent me anymore ...¡± Killing intent appeared in Jiang Wuya¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯m only living now because I got lucky. Since Eldest Sister isn¡¯t here, then there is no need for me to live. Tomorrow, anyone who tries to stop me will face my sword. I refuse to believe that I won¡¯t be able to reach the Third Earthly Martial Stage! If Seventh Brother can achieve a breakthrough in battle, why can¡¯t I, Jian Chen, do the same?¡± The two men were ready to risk their lives. They stood proudly like stone pirs.


    One dayter, the huge doors of the Ancient Demon Domain opened, and arge group of people emerged. The Enforcers of the Martial Alliance and the Demon Generals of the Ancient Demon Domain were all escorting Zhao Danchen, Jiang Wuxie, and the others out of the Ancient Demon Domain. This marriage would join the Martial Alliance and the Ancient Demon Domain, deepening their rtionship. That was why Jiang Wuxie took this very seriously. In addition, knowing that someone was trying to stop them, he was personally present to escort Liu Yiyi to Martial Overlord City!

 Chapter 631: King-tier Demon Seed Planting Technique

    The Martial Alliance¡¯s contingent symbolized might in the Divine Martial Empire. Every Enforcer was strong, and to the average person, they looked very powerful. The whole city erupted with excitement when the parade passed Yellow Martial City.


    Through rumors, the city folk had learned that the most talented prodigy of the Martial Alliance was going to marry the daughter of a Demon King from the Ancient Demon Domain. Before that, the girl had been taken in by the Demon Emperor as his stepdaughter.


    Millions of people worshiped Zhao Danchen, and he was the dream lover of almost every girl in the whole Divine Martial Empire. That was why many girls¡¯ hearts shattered when they heard about the marriage, and at the same time, they were jealous of Liu Yiyi. They wished they could rece her to be the happiest girl in the world.


    This marriage made Liu Yiyi seem like a sparrow who had flown to a higher branch and turned into a phoenix [1]. Zhao Danchen was known to be a yer, and many girls in Martial Overlord City had spent nights with him. There were at least eight hundred of them, if not a thousand. However, Zhao Danchen never entered any rtionships and thus far, no one had been able to be his wife.


    Within the Divine Martial Empire, the Martial Overlord was the symbol of power and strength, while his outstanding disciple, Zhao Danchen, was a shining rising star.


    No one dared to watch the contingent up close. Tens of thousands of people were densely packed on Yellow Martial City¡¯s walls to watch the group of people who had exited the Ancient Demon Domain.


    The crowd was noisy, and most of them were unmarried teenage girls. They chattered excitedly as if they were the ones getting married, not Liu Yiyi.


    No one saw two small, ck dots standing in the path of the Martial Alliance¡¯s contingent. They were Jiang Wuya and Jian Chen, and they were prepared to die today.


    Zhao Danchen and Jiang Wuxie each rode a demonic beast, and they were traveling in front of a golden-yellow carriage. Red silk hung on the carriage, symbolizing a joyous asion. At this moment, Liu Yiyi was sitting inside, all dolled up as the bride.Zhao Danchen and Jiang Wuxie were each riding on a Divine Pegasus, which was a Heaven-tier demonic beast. This beast was two times more muscr than a regr horse, and it had a pair of snow-white, feathered wings that extended from its sides, like a bird but thicker and stronger.


    Divine Pegasi were quicker than Ninth Passage Stage cultivators at their maximum speed. They were white all over, giving them a pure, clean look. Zhao Danchen was the only youth in the whole Divine Martial Empire who could afford to organize such avish parade.


    The Enforcers rode on Category One Heaven-tier Golden Horned Stallions, which had shiny, golden horns. Their sharp horns were strong, menacing weapons in battle.


    The Golden Horned Stallions and the snow-white Divine Pegasi made the contingent look like they had stepped out of a legend. They shone and sparkled in the sunlight, forming a magnificent sight.


    After seeing the grand parade, the girls grew even more jealous of Liu Yiyi. Many even felt like they were willing to give their lives away just to be her.


    Although they were far away, the girls could sense the charisma of the young man sitting on the Divine Pegasus. This highly-ranked youth was the most perfect man in their eyes.


    Unfortunately, some people did not like men like that.


    Liu Yiyi was one of them.


    Liu Yiyi was only at the Eighth Passage Stage, while Zhao Danchen was at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. Without the Demon Emperor as the matchmaker, despite how pretty Liu Yiyi was, Zhao Danchen would never have agreed to this arrangement.


    Zhao Danchen had a feeling that through Liu Yiyi, the whole Ancient Demon Domain would be firmly in his grasp.


    Both sides had their hidden intentions.


    Then, two people who could not read the room appeared. They were Jiang Wuya and Jian Chen. They were like two steel poles nailed into the ground.


    Zhao Danchen and Jiang Wuxie saw them from far away, and they knew what this was about. At this moment, there was arge, red flower pinned to Zhao Danchen¡¯s chest. With a bright smile on his face, he said, ¡°Demon Emperor, I think two people are standing in our way. Jiang Wuya is your younger brother, so he must be here to congratte us, right?¡±


    When the Demon Emperor saw Jiang Wuya and Jian Chen, his face stiffened and he chuckled drily. He said, ¡°Of course they are. However, my brother betrayed and left the Ancient Demon Domain a long time ago. He is also an enemy of the Martial Alliance. Even if he is here to congratte us, I must capture him today and hand him over to the Martial Alliance. Please wait a moment, Martial Emperor Zhao.¡±


    Jiang Wuya was originally from the Ancient Demon Domain, and the Ancient Demon Domain was marrying out of its league to gain benefits from the Martial Alliance. That was why Jiang Wuxie moved to personally capture Jiang Wuya. Right before he left, however, Zhao Danchen waved to stop him. ¡°Demon Emperor, you are Yiyi¡¯s stepfather, and my future father-inw. How could I let you do all the work while I sit on a Divine Pegasus? Sit tight. Let your son-inw stretch his legs; I¡¯ll show Jiang Wuya how powerful the Martial Alliance is.¡±


    In terms of cultivation, Zhao Danchen was stronger than the Demon Emperor. That was why the Demon Emperor obeyed him and did not dare object, despite being his ¡°father-inw.¡±


    Zhao Danchen did not wait for Jiang Wuxie to respond. He urged his Divine Pegasus on, which let out an earth-shattering neigh and batted its snow-white wings. It soared in the air, passing the whole Martial Alliance contingent and flying towards Jiang Wuya and Jian Chen while the crowd watched in admiration!


    Beneath the sunlight, Zhao Danchen looked like a god descending from the heavens. The girls in Yellow Martial City screamed in adoration.


    The Demon Emperor¡¯s expression changed.


    Unbeknownst to Zhao Danchen, the Demon Emperor suddenly clenched his fists so tight that green veins popped from his hand.


    Although Jiang Wuya had betrayed and left the Ancient Demon Domain years ago, Jiang Wuxie never intended to kill him. There was still a hint of brotherly love in his heart after all. That was why Jiang Wuxie had never killed him despite Jiang Wuya trespassing in the Ancient Demon Domain several times. Although Jiang Wuxie was angry, he only wanted to chase his younger brother away today. However, Zhao Danchen had decided to step up.


    <em>That idiot. He¡¯s probably going to die this time. </em>Jiang Wuxie sighed softly. He knew that the true reason why Zhao Danchen had volunteered to deal with him was not to be a virtuous young man. Maybe he truly intended to kill Jiang Wuya.


    <em>Zhao Danchen suffered a great deal of embarrassment at the Battle n, and it was due to the Dragon n and especially Long Chen. Jiang Wuya is one of the Dragon n¡¯s main members. Now that Jiang Wuya has delivered himself to our doorstep, Zhao Danchen will surely kill him ¡­</em>


    The Martial Alliance contingent stopped.


    Jiang Wuya watched as Zhao Danchen rode the Pegasus over without a change in his expression. Next to him, Jian Chen was a little nervous because the enemy was too strong for them.


    ¡°Second Brother, are we going to fight him directly?¡± Jian Chen whispered.


    ¡°Stand aside and watch. If you get the chance, help me save my daughter. No matter how strong Zhao Danchen is, there¡¯s no way I¡¯ll allow him to marry my daughter,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    Although his tone was mild, there was a volcano erupting in his heart.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Zhao Danchen dismounted from the Pegasus and stood twenty meters away from Jiang Wuya, looking at him coldly. Jian Chen hesitated for a second and thought that if something happened to Jiang Wuya, all hope would be on him. That was why he took a few steps back.


    All eyes were on Jiang Wuya and Zhao Danchen.


    Jiang Wuya lived up to his reputation as the famous second-strongest member of the Dragon n. Despite standing before the youngest prodigy of the Divine Martial Empire, there was not a hint of fear in his eyes. Instead, battle spirit soared through him!


    ¡°Who is that guy? He¡¯s standing in Zhao Danchen¡¯s way!¡±


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t look very young. Could he be the bride¡¯s lover? What a shameless woman! How could a woman like that have any right to marry Zhao Danchen?!¡±


    Noisy chattering came from the direction of Yellow Martial City.


    It was a sunny day, and there were no clouds in the sky.


    ¡°I heard you¡¯re Liu Yiyi¡¯s father. To be honest, I agreed to marry Liu Yiyi precisely because you¡¯re her father. The Dragon n thinks they¡¯re the shit, right? But with Liu Yiyi so close me, I can torture her however I like. The more upset you get, the happier I be. Jiang Wuya, tell me, how does defeat taste?¡± Zhao Danchen did not waste any time telling him exactly what he was thinking.


    However, unexpectedly, Jiang Wuya¡¯s expression did not turn sour.


    Jiang Wuya had long guessed his true intentions. Zhao Danchen was used to being a yer, while Liu Yiyi was just an unknown girl from the Ancient Demon Domain. The Demon Emperor had many daughters, so why had he chosen Liu Yiyi? Jiang Wuya was the reason.


    Jiang Wuya was no idiot. He had long figured this out.


    ¡°Then we shall see if you are fated for this,¡± said Jiang Wuya, moving his lips gently.


    The essence of a Second Earthly Martial Stage cultivator surged through his body.


    ¡°King-tier ¡­ Demon Seed nting Technique!¡±


    While he was speaking, ck smoke rose from Jiang Wuya¡¯s body and soon enveloped him. The Demon Seed nting Technique caused his essence to skyrocket as the smoke covered him. The demon seed that was in his chest slowly melted into his essence.


    The Demon Seed nting Technique had fouryers. Only the royal pce had ess to the fourthyer, and it was an elementary King-tier technique. With this technique, Jiang Wuya was able to increase his essence by three to four times.


    1. To use another person¡¯s higher status to elevate your own ?

 Chapter 632: Golden Combat Body

    Although it was not as powerful as the Dragon Soul Transformation, it was an extraordinary boost.


    Previously, Jiang Kun had used Corpse Transformation to instantly be too strong for Jiang Wuya to handle. That was why Jiang Wuya had not used his final technique, which was the Demon Seed nting Technique.


    ¡°Oh? The Demon Seed nting Technique? It spreads the demon seed¡¯s power throughout your whole body. I think it¡¯ll paralyze you for a month after the effect ends, right? Even your cultivation may be affected. It looks like you¡¯re ready to risk it all today, Jiang Wuya.¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s gaze grew solemn when he saw the ck smoke rising from Jiang Wuya¡¯s body.


    ¡°Show me how strong your Golden Combat Body is.¡± After the Demon Seed nting Technique wasplete, Jiang Wuya did not hesitate. Essence exploded through his body, which was almost bursting. He had to attack as soon as possible!


    This was his final stand, and everything was on the line. That was why he turned into a madman the moment he attacked. He dashed instantly, turning into illusory shadows that shot at Zhao Danchen. Although this speed was not very impressive to Zhao Danchen, the people who had not reached the Earthly Martial Realm could barely see anything clearly.


    ¡°He¡¯s fast!¡±


    Those who looked down on Jiang Wuya or even mocked him were shocked when they saw his speed. Zhao Danchen and Jiang Wuxie were the only ones who could keep up!


    ¡°Shapeshifting Shadow ¡­¡±


    <em>Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! </em>This was a bodybat technique that was simr to Traceless Demon Shadow, but countless times moreplicated. Jiang Wuya circled quickly around Zhao Danchen at high speed, so thetter could only see a blurry shadow. However, Zhao Danchen was not worried; in fact, there was a cold smirk on his face.¡°Just a party trick. You¡¯re embarrassing yourself in front of me.¡±


    Zhao Danchen gave a loud cry and took a step back, then, with a<em> whoosh</em>, he mmed his fist into the ground. The barren soil shook upon the powerful impact, and the Golden Horned Stallions squealed and retreated after feeling the ground shake. The explosive aura traveling through the ground terrified them.


    Even Yellow Martial City¡¯s walls shook gently. It was clear just how powerful Zhao Danchen was!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Consecutive explosions sounded from the soil around Zhao Danchen. Endless soil was thrown up in the air. The area where Jiang Wuya was running was now fully swallowed by flying soil!


    Due to Zhao Danchen¡¯s powerful strike, the soil contained great attacking capabilities, especially because there was a lot of it!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The ground exploded around Zhao Danchen, sealing him inside. Jiang Wuya was initially closing in on Zhao Danchen, but due to the attack, he was forced to scramble backwards while covered in soil!


    Jiang Wuya¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed. Just a simple punch from his opponent was enough to cause a huge tremor; he was far from able to do this!


    When they witnessed the dramatic view, the Martial Alliance¡¯s cultivators praised him in awe!


    ¡°Martial Emperor Zhao is absolutely powerful! No one other than the Martial Overlord is a match for him!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! He¡¯s the Martial Overlord¡¯s direct disciple after all! Is anyone in the younger generation as good as he is? Even the Demon Emperor from the previous generation is no match for him!¡±


    They did not care that the Demon Emperor could hear every word they were saying.


    The Demon Emperor had a dark expression, especially after hearing such brazen remarks from the Martial Alliance.


    <em>Martial Alliance, Martial Alliance. Do you think you will get to continue being so arrogant?</em>


    Just then, there was amotion at the entrance of the golden carriage drawn by twenty-eight Golden Horned Stallions. Thevish doors were flung open roughly, and a girl in red bridal clothing rushed out, despite the servant girls¡¯ attempts to block her. She was beautiful, but she was crying hard. She was the bride, Liu Yiyi. Admittedly, she was especially beautiful today, and her beauty evoked a sense of pity.


    The only w was that her tears had ruined most of her makeup.


    The servant girls panicked when Liu Yiyi emerged, but because she now had a lofty status, they could not pull her back by force. They had no choice but to stop because the Demon Emperor was watching.


    When she was outside, she stared woodenly at the dark silhouette in front. Tears flowed from her eyes.


    It was him indeed.


    The Clear Shallows King was right. Jiang Wuya was definitely going toe save her. He had not given up even though Zhao Danchen was his opponent.


    The Demon Emperor nced coldly at Liu Yiyi. He knew that the girl was fated to be a sacrificial punching bag for Zhao Danchen; she was going to live a tragic life. However, this was still a public and legal marriage, so he had to save everyone some face. He waved and said, ¡°Get her back.¡±


    After hismand, the servant girls did not need to hold back.


    Another person shot out from behind the carriage. Jiang Wuxie took a look but did not stop her. If he did, she would not have been able toe here.


    The personing from the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s direction was the Clear Shallows King. She knew Jiang Wuya woulde at this moment, so she hade too.


    ¡°Clear Shallows, you¡¯re just in time. Take Yiyi inside. A girl crying during her wedding is very normal. As her mother, you should talk to her.¡±


    The Clear Shallows King was only worried about Liu Yiyi. She had no right to take her away, as the Demon Emperor¡¯smand had directly limited what she could do. She could only nod woodenly, then she took a nce at Jiang Wuya and said to Liu Yiyi, ¡°Yiyi, go inside. There¡¯s no hope.¡±


    ¡°No, Mother. I want to watch,¡± said Liu Yiyi determinedly.


    ¡°Wipe your tears. Give the Martial Alliance some face,¡± the Clear Shallows King said gently by her ear.


    Liu Yiyi understood quickly. Looking like the way she did would easily lead to spections from the crowd in Yellow Martial City, and if this got out, it would be bad for the Martial Alliance¡¯s reputation. Liu Yiyi quickly wiped her tears away.


    If she acted more normally, the Demon Emperor would not be in a hurry to get her inside.


    ¡°This is good too. I¡¯ll let you two watch him die so that you¡¯ll give up. He has abandoned you for more than ten years, yet now he has returned to try to be the good person. You two are the only ones who are touched by this. He is a heartless man.¡± Jiang Wuxie chuckled coldly, then he ignored them.


    Liu Yiyi wanted to rebut, but the Clear Shallows King stopped her.


    ¡°Mother, I suddenly no longer want to live anymore if he dies,¡± Liu Yiyi whispered gently in the Clear Shallows King¡¯s ear.


    Although this father of hers had never given her anything, when Liu Yiyi saw how fearless he was in the face of death, she suddenly felt like it was enough.


    That single moment was enough.


    She had always been a person who was easy to satisfy.


    To her surprise, the Clear Shallows King did not scold her. The Clear Shallows King merely froze, then she said, ¡°Perhaps the three of us will be happy if we form a family in the afterlife.¡±


    It had been more than ten years. Who wouldn¡¯t yearn for a normal family?


    That man who had left because he was chasing something else; it was finally time for him to return.


    As the Clear Shallows King watched him fight as hard as he could, the corners of her mouth curled into a genuine smile. For the first time in her life, she felt that he was actually quite cute. She just never noticed it.


    Cries of surprise came from the people around the two of them.


    Zhao Danchen had directly forced Jiang Wuya back with a simple punch, causing Jiang Wuya to be covered in soil. His face was dirty and his hair was disheveled.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    Jiang Wuya sted the soil on his body away.


    He clenched his fist tight and did not stop at all. Moving through the clouds of dust, Jiang Wuya shot towards Zhao Danchen once more. Zhao Danchen was retracting his fist slowly, watching the struggling Jiang Wuya with a carefree smile.


    He looked at Jiang Wuya like he was looking at a clown.


    ¡°The rice-sized pearl dares to show off its brilliance in front of the shining moon ¡­¡±


    He had a mocking expression on his face, but he did not move.


    ¡°Demon Swallowing Heaven and Earth!¡± Using a King-tier bodybat technique, Jiang Wuya instantly arrived by Zhao Danchen¡¯s side and threw a punch. This was the intermediate King-tier Ancient Demon Punch, also the strongest technique of the Ancient Demon Domain. A pitch-ck demon shadow appeared behind Jiang Wuya; it concentrated on his fist like a ck whirlpool and shot out at Zhao Danchen!


    The people on the Martial Alliance¡¯s side saw half the sky behind Jiang Wuya turn ck along with his punch!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    This was a very dramatic attack, but to everyone¡¯s surprise, Zhao Danchen did not move at all. He crossed his arms tightly with a mocking smile on his face.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    To everyone¡¯s horror, the Demon Swallowing Heaven and Earth punchnded on Zhao Danchen¡¯s arm. What transpired next happened too quickly. The crowd only saw a sh of golden light, then Zhao Danchen took a few steps back and Jiang Wuya was thrown back into the air!


    <em>The gap between us is huge! </em>This was a huge blow to Jiang Wuya. He had used the Demon Seed nting Technique, so no one at the Second Earthly Martial Stage was a match for him. He initially thought he would be close to Zhao Danchen¡¯s level, but now he was shocked at the huge gap!


    He had used his most powerful intermediate King-tier technique andnded a direct hit on Zhao Danchen, but Zhao Danchen had blocked it with nothing but his arms, and it was enough to throw him into the air. Zhao Danchen was crazy strong.

 Chapter 633: Father

    At that moment, Jiang Wuya felt like he had punched a steel wall. He had never seen steel as hard as this, which could injure his fist this badly.


    Blood trickled from his right fist.


    He had punched Zhao Danchen, but Jiang Wuya was the one who hade out injured.


    At thest moment, Jiang Wuya had merely seen a golden sh of light on Zhao Danchen¡¯s arm. It was a blinding light, and in the end, Jiang Wuya had shattered Zhao Danchen¡¯s sleeve but had dealt no damage at all.


    ¡°What do you think? Do you understand how useless you are now?¡± Zhao Danchen slowly unfolded his arms and gently blew on where he had been hit. Then he burst into brazenughter.


    Jiang Wuya took a deep breath to calm himself down.


    The burning pain in his hand told him that if he continued like this, he would surely die.


    However, he turned around and saw the gazes of two people in the Martial Alliance contingent. Those were perhaps the two most important people in his life, and he owed them far too much. When he saw their concerned gazes, he smiled. This was the most masculine moment of his life. That was why he clenched his teeth and decided to hold on.


    ¡°Second Brother, we should give up.¡± Even Jian Chen was scared when he saw the gap in strength.Today¡¯s mission was exactly like a moth flying towards a me.


    Jiang Wuya roared furiously as if he had not heard him at all. Blood vessels appeared in his eyes, then he shot towards Zhao Danchen without hesitation!


    <em>I, Jiang Wuya, am useless! I have lived in ignorance for so many years, but today, I understand that I must forge ahead no matter what! The only thing that can stop me is death!</em>


    With a crazed look on his face, ck essence surged through his eighteen martial veins and a violent aura radiated from his body.


    Tens of thousands of ck demon shadows shot at Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°That crazy man wants to die; he¡¯s actually attacking Zhao Danchen. There¡¯s something wrong with his brain ¡­¡±


    ¡°I agree. We can see that Martial Emperor Zhao is ten thousand times stronger than him, and yet he still doesn¡¯t want to give up. He¡¯s bold!¡±


    ¡°I bet he¡¯s going to die today!¡±


    Simr conversations rang around Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King. The two women clutched each other¡¯s hands tightly as they watched the man risking his life for their sake. They could feel the sweat in the other¡¯s hands, and Liu Yiyi found that her mother, who had not cried in many years, could not seem to hold back her tears now.


    She had never enjoyed the feeling of having another person fight for her in her entire life. At this moment, there was no concept of life and death in Jiang Wuya¡¯s mind. Just like how Long Chen once fought for Ling Xi. All they thought about was forging ahead. They did not think about death.


    ¡°Mother ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi cried so hard, she could not speak, and her delicate shoulders were trembling.


    The negativements around them were all directed at Jiang Wuya, but at this moment, Jiang Wuya was the hero in Liu Yiyi¡¯s heart. This man was exactly the father she had imagined, but he was far toote.


    She had been unsure of her feelings for eighteen years; she had even decided to hate the father who had never shown his face for the rest of her life. But she found that she could not summon any hate at this moment!


    Their eyes never left Jiang Wuya, not even for a moment.


    ¡°You¡¯re still not giving up? My patience has a limit.¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s mocking smile gradually turned into ice.


    His eyes were initially golden-yellow, but when he turned cold, a powerful light burst from them, making them look like two burning suns in front of Jiang Wuya.


    Jiang Wuya did not reply. Heunched his most powerful attack, which fell like a storm on Zhao Danchen. However, just like before, his attacks bounced off foe¡¯s body with consecutive thuds. In the end, Zhao Danchen was left unscathed, while both of Jiang Wuya¡¯s arms were covered in blood. Although his attacks hadnded squarely on Zhao Danchen¡¯s body, his arms had been injured by the rebound.


    From this alone, it was clear how tough Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body was!


    His natural-bornbat body gave him arge advantage. The toughness spread from inside to the outside, giving him much more strength than normal body tempering techniques. Jiang Wuya could not even make a dent on his Golden Combat Body.


    ¡°Have you had enough?¡± Jiang Wuya was attacking fervently, but all he received in response was a cold question. Zhao Danchen¡¯s voice was like a venomous snake slithering by his ear.


    Then cries of surprise came from the crowd.


    Jiang Wuya threw a punch, but Zhao Danchen reached out and caught his fist with a smirk on his face! Zhao Danchen had directly stopped the vigorous attack just like that!


    ¡°Careful!¡± cried the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi in unison, their faces pale.


    ¡°Do you still want to run?¡± Zhao Danchen smiled coldly. He was only holding Jiang Wuya¡¯s fist in one hand, but Jiang Wuya could not move it at all.


    ¡°Run? Who wants to run? Die!¡± Jiang Wuya roared, his eyes blood-red. His leg flew towards Zhao Danchen¡¯s chin. Since the chin was one of the weakest parts of a person¡¯s body, Zhao Danchen would surely take some damage. Previously, Zhao Danchen had blocked Jiang Wuya only because Jiang Wuya was attacking a strong body part!


    The kick was strong, fast, and precise. A regr opponent¡¯s head would easily be thrown in the air by this kick.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s expression changed slightly and anger appeared in his eyes, which led to a vicious smile.


    ¡°Die,¡± Zhao Danchen said mildly. He then tugged, and there was a ripping sound. Before the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi¡¯s heartbroken gazes, Zhao Danchen ripped Jiang Wuya¡¯s whole arm off, sending blood flying in all directions. Then Zhao Danchen turned and kicked Jiang Wuya back in the air!


    Jiang Wuya shrieked and tumbled a few times on the ground, then Jian Chen helped him up. Jiang Wuya¡¯s face was pale. His arm had been torn off and half his body was trembling. Jian Chen was able to stop the blood pouring out of the wound, but Zhao Danchen had directly crushed the torn-off arm.


    This all happened in just a moment. When the crowd realized it, Jiang Wuya was armless and tumbling away.


    Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King¡¯s hearts clenched. They took a few steps forward subconsciously, but the Demon Emperor stopped them. His gaze was dark too. He knew Zhao Danchen definitely wanted to kill Jiang Wuya, so he could not let them go.


    ¡°I¡¯m begging you. Let me go there.¡± The sight of blood broke Liu Yiyi¡¯s heart. As if she had lost her soul, the only thing she wanted now was to die by that man¡¯s side.


    I want to go!¡± said the Clear Shallows King harshly, being more direct than Liu Yiyi.


    The Demon Emperor furrowed his brow, but he kept his mouth shut for the moment.


    Zhao Danchen slowly strode over to Jiang Wuya and said tly, ¡°You were the one who came running at us. Losing an arm is just the beginning. You Dragon n members have been arroganttely. I will show you what the Martial Alliance can do. The Martial Alliance doesn¡¯t just want your life; we want your whole family¡¯s lives.¡±


    Jiang Wuya shivered for a long time, then he finally woke up from his pain. He was in extreme agony, but he did not make a sound. He merely held the pain in stubbornly. He shoved Jian Chen away as hard as he could with his remaining arm, gave him a warning look, then straightened his back. His eyes were fixed dead on Zhao Danchen, then heughed.


    ¡°What are youughing at?¡± asked Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°What am Iughing at? I¡¯mughing at the fact that this is the best you can do,¡± said Jiang Wuya.


    ¡°Why? You can¡¯t even withstand one strike from me, and yet you dare say that?¡± Zhao Danchen said arrogantly.


    Jiang Wuya stabilized himself as best he could, then he smiled and said, ¡°To be a strong cultivator, one not only needs strength, but also a strong heart. You are merely a lowly scumbag who vents his anger on someone else¡¯s weakness. What right do you have to call yourself a master? A strong master is like my seventh brother Long Chen. He is not afraid of the heavens or the earth. He even dared to enter the Nine Spirit Purgatory, and he would never resort to such a lowly method to vent his anger. You, Zhao Danchen, are not a master. At most, you¡¯re just a violent man with talent in cultivation. I am sure that someone with a weak heart like you is no match for him!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen? Long Chen? Haha!¡± Zhao Danchen froze and then burst into manicughter. Heughed so hard that he bent over, then he continued, ¡°That¡¯s nonsense! So what if he defeated that idiot Yang Ningfeng? Does that put him on my level? You say he went to the Nine Spirit Purgatory, well, that¡¯s good. No one is able to get out of that ce. The whole Long family is gone, then. After I kill you guys, I¡¯ll head over to the Battle n and eliminate the rest of the Dragon n!¡±


    Jiang Wuyaughed mockingly and said, ¡°You just wait. One day, they will return. Then, despite your lofty ranking, they will step on your head!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m waiting for that day too, but you, Jiang Wuya, will not see that day.¡± Jiang Wuya¡¯s look of pity made Zhao Danchen very ufortable.


    Although Zhao Danchen wasughing, Jiang Wuya¡¯s contempt ignited a killing intent within him.


    Jiang Wuya was almost incapacitated at this point. He would die in one more hit.


    As they watched the distance between Zhao Danchen and Jiang Wuya shrink, the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi lost all hope. This time, they did not care that the Demon Emperor was blocking them and rushed towards Zhao Danchen. The other Martial Alliance cultivators could not stop the Earthly Martial Realm Clear Shallows King in time.


    As for the Demon Emperor, he watched with squinted eyes. No one knew what he was thinking.

 Chapter 634: Return of the King

    The Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi quickly arrived by Jiang Wuya¡¯s side. Zhao Danchen did not need to turn around to know that they wereing. Initially, he was in a great mood after getting to vent his anger on Jiang Wuya, but when he saw them, his mood soured once more.


    Zhao Danchen halted temporarily and turned around. His golden eyes were fixed on the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi. His cold, stern re stopped them in their tracks.


    All they could do was scream helplessly. ¡°Leave!¡±


    Jiang Wuya would never leave.


    Hot tears filled his eyes too as he watched them, as if the pain from his arm had disappeared. The pain he was experiencing now was heartache.


    As he watched the two crying women, he finally knew what he needed to protect. The feeling of enlightenment was good.


    ¡°Leave? Who said you could leave?¡± Zhao Danchen looked at them. He knew their rtionship, so he smirked maliciously and said in a low voice, ¡°The reunification of old mes. This is quite a touching scene. Unfortunately, I, Zhao Danchen, don¡¯t like touching scenes. Just now, you lost an arm. What¡¯s next?¡±


    Zhao Danchen moved in a sh and soon appeared by Jiang Wuya¡¯s side. After Jiang Wuya lost an arm, the gap between their strength became endlessly huge. In the face of Zhao Danchen¡¯s sudden ambush, Jiang Wuya tried everything he could, but he could not block Jiang Wuya¡¯s attack. Zhao Danchen gripped his neck and lifted him into the air.


    He punched a few times, causing blood to pour out of Jiang Wuya¡¯s mouth. He hadpletely lost the ability to fight.¡°No!¡± The Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi felt like their world was spinning when they saw Jiang Wuya¡¯s dismal state. Ignoring everything else, they rushed to him, but Zhao Danchen waved casually, and they flew back clumsily. Zhao Danchen was determined to kill Jiang Wuya today. He no longer cared about Liu Yiyi making him lose face by running out here.


    To him, the people of the Divine Martial Empire were mere ants under the control of the Martial Alliance. Why would he care about the opinions of ants?


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t break his neck so soon. Doesn¡¯t he still have an arm and two legs?¡± Zhao Danchen sneered, then he gently gripped Jiang Wuya¡¯s remaining arm with a vicious look on his face.


    The Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi, the two helpless women, had lost their minds by now. They climbed to their feet numbly. The man in front of them was so powerful that they could not fight back at all.


    ¡°If he were here, we would not end up like this ¡­¡± They had heard that Long Chen had defeated Yang Ningfeng; he was surely as strong as Zhao Danchen too. Unfortunately, Long Chen had entered the Nine Spirit Purgatory, so it was impossible for him to appear here.


    Liu Yiyi stood up woodenly.


    She looked at the man in Zhao Danchen¡¯s hand. There was still violence and refusal to surrender in his eyes. Zhao Danchen¡¯s strength did not scare him at all.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, you may kill me today, but you must remember that your death is not far away!¡± said Jiang Wuya with a cold smirk.


    The contempt in his eyes made Zhao Danchen very ufortable.


    ¡°Is that so? Too bad you won¡¯t be able to witness it.¡± Zhao Danchen gripped Jiang Wuya¡¯s remaining arm. He was about to rip it off when Jian Chen finally saw his chance. His Cloud Sword turned into a ray of light and shot at Zhao Danchen!


    ¡°Void Sword Qi?¡± Zhao Danchen smiled and lifted his hand to block it. The Void Sword Qi hit his arm, and sparks flew. Jian Chen was thrown back into the air and the Cloud Sword flew out of his hand. It fell with a <em>ng,</em> and a huge crack was left on the de.


    The Golden Combat Body was unimaginably tough!


    ¡°It looks like no one ising to save you, right? Zhao Danchenughed and prepared to rip the arm off.


    If Jiang Wuya lost another arm, he would bepletely incapacitated.


    The Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi werepletely hopeless. There was no hope.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    At the veryst moment, the ground shook once more. It shook even harder than when Zhao Danchen punched earlier.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Zhao Danchen was sensitive to changes, so he felt the vibrations first. He had gripped Jiang Wuya¡¯s arm and was about to rip it off, but he stopped. He looked towards the source of the vibration, which was in the direction of Yellow Martial City!


    Four tiny figures were rushing towards them from the city. Based on the speed, Zhao Danchen estimated that they were as strong as he was, especially a thin, small figure who was traveling faster than Zhao Danchen could imagine. Speed usually represented a person¡¯s strength.


    Zhao Danchen knew that the only person stronger than him in the entire empire was the Martial Overlord. However, the thin person was clearly not Zhao Wuji. The three people behind him, on the other hand, looked as fast as Zhao Danchen too.


    Zhao Danchen was shocked. The neers included three Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators and one master as strong as Zhao Wuji?


    He initially thought that these were masters from another empire. That was the only exnation. But the masters of the Divine Martial Empire had long destroyed the universal transporters leading to other empires. It would require at least a year for outsiders to enter the Divine Martial Empire from the nearest empire.


    This meant they had traveled for a year toe to a ce as obscure as the Divine Martial Empire. Why?


    That was Zhao Danchen¡¯s first question.


    If these were masters from another empire, this would be a major affair much more serious than Jiang Wuya, so Zhao Danchen instantly lost interest in torturing him.


    During this short period of shock and contemtion, the four of them arrived in front of Zhao Danchen. The thin old man arrived first, while the other three were still much further. He was less than a hundred meters away.


    Zhao Danchen hurriedly let go of Jiang Wuya, who crashed into the ground, and spoke to the thin old man. ¡°May I ask which empire are you from, elder? My name is Zhao Danchen, and I am the direct disciple of the Divine Martial Empire¡¯s Martial Overlord, Zhao Wuji!¡±


    ¡°Which empire? Haha! I¡¯m from the Divine Martial Empire. Do you know who I am?¡± As he spoke, the thin old man arrived in front of Zhao Danchen and attacked. He threw a punch at Zhao Danchen, and consecutive explosions sounded in the air.


    ¡°Elder, why are you attacking me? Is there some misunderstanding?¡± Zhao Danchen hadn¡¯t heard the old man clearly, so he asked another question. But the thin old man did not stop attacking!


    The sudden punch felt as if the ground itself was flying at Zhao Danchen. His face changed and he backed away clumsily. The old man¡¯s punch was powerful, so Zhao Danchen was forced a hundred meters back in order to dodge his attack.


    It was a simple punch, but it was packed with immense power.


    Zhao Danchen hadpletely backed away from Jiang Wuya and the Clear Shallows King.


    When Jian Chen, the Clear Shallows King, and Liu Yiyi saw that Zhao Danchen was chased away, they rushed over to help Jiang Wuya up. They did not care who the old man was.


    The Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi were here, and Jian Chen felt that he could not do much else, so he quickly bowed to the old man and said, ¡°Elder, thank you for saving my Second Brother. Thank you so much. We are endlessly grateful.¡±


    Initially, when the thin old man was looking at Zhao Danchen, his face was solemn. But when he turned to Jian Chen, his expression warmed and he even smiled slightly. ¡°Don¡¯t thank me. Thank the people behind.¡±


    He was the strongest, so everyone instinctively noticed him and forgot about the other three people, who were just arriving. After he spoke, Jian Chen, Jiang Wuya, the Clear Shallows King, and Liu Yiyi turned to look at the other three.


    When they saw their faces, everyone¡¯s jaws dropped, including the Martial Alliance members. The most shocked ones were Zhao Danchen and the Demon Emperor.


    ¡°Long Yue, Long Chen!¡±


    Cries of surprise rang.


    Even the crowd in Yellow Martial City erupted. This was supposed to be a bride-receiving ceremony, yet it had escted to this current situation. No one would have expected this. Long Yue and Long Chen¡¯s arrival also stunned them. All it took was for one person in Yellow Martial City to recognize him for the news to spread quickly.


    Within a short time, the onlookers had a rough idea of what had happened.


    Who was that mysterious old man? Why was he so strong?


    The two Long Chens and Long Yue had been locked in the Nine Spirit Purgatory by the Martial Overlord. How had they gotten out?


    The familiar faces stunned Jiang Wuyapletely. Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King helped him up, one on each side. Liu Yiyi held his remaining arm while the Clear Shallows King supported his body. From the moment he risked his life for Liu Yiyi, the distance between them evaporated.


    The Clear Shallows King did not know what to say upon this reunification. All she did was look at his wound with heartache, knowing that he was in great pain.


    But the pain was dulled by the shock of Long Chen¡¯s squad¡¯s arrival.


    ¡°Yue¡¯er, Seventh Brother! You guys ¡­¡± Jiang Wuya was instantly emotional.


    ¡°Big Sister, Seventh Brother, weren¡¯t you guys locked in the Nine Spirits Purgatory? How did you get out? How did you get here?¡± Jian Chen quickly ran up to them with great emotion written on his face.

 Chapter 635 – Challenging Zhao Danchen

    <h4>Chapter 635 ¨C Challenging Zhao Danchen</h4>


    From the time they left Martial Alliance¡¯s Martial Overlord City, Long Chen and the others traveled for seven days and seven nights to get here. If they were just a littleter, Jiang Wuya would be dead by now.


    Long Shan¡¯s powerful punch had forced Zhao Danchen away. Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King came to Long Chen¡¯s side. Theoretically, Long Chen¡¯s objective foring to the Ancient Demon Domain had been fulfilled, but after he saw that Jiang Wuya had lost an arm, his eyes turned blood-red.


    The smile on his face froze and Long Yue¡¯s face also turned icy. They did not answer Jian Chen¡¯s question but quickly went up to Jiang Wuya.


    Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King¡¯s expressions were stiff when they saw Long Yue and Long Chen. Long Yue was considered the Clear Shallows King¡¯s love rival, so it was awkward, and Long Chen was the person Liu Yiyi yearned to see. Ever since he left, she had never seen him again. She could only learn about him through informants.


    All the information she had received was undeniably shocking. Ever since he killed the Void Martial Saint, his performance had been more and more extraordinary. In just a short month, he had risen to be an unprecedented prodigy in the Divine Martial Empire!


    The bloody wound where Jiang Wuya lost his arm was a jarring sight.


    ¡°Second Brother, did Zhao Danchen do this?¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice was cold. The others felt like they had fallen into a freezer. It was clear just how furious he was.


    Long Chen saw every member of the Dragon n as a sibling, and he would never allow anyone to hurt them. These people were off limits.


    He lost an arm!


    He lost an arm!


    This meant that from today onwards, Jiang Wuya¡¯sbat abilities would be greatly affected. He would likely be the weakest member of the Dragon n.


    This was a huge blow to a man!


    Long Yue was initially already awkward in front of the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi. When Long Chen asked about the topic that made her angry, she knew to shut her mouth.


    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s reddening eyes, Jiang Wuya still hadn¡¯t gotten over the shock of learning that they had escaped the Nine Spirit Purgatory. But then he saw determination in Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    So he nodded.


    That fucking bastard! How dare he touch my brother! You broke his arm, so I will break your whole body! Long Chen cursed in his heart.


    After Jiang Wuya nodded, Long Chen did not speak. Everyone watched as he walked in Zhao Danchen¡¯s direction.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, what are you doing?¡± Long Yue asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Killing someone.¡±


    ¡°Killing someone?¡± Long Yue froze. She knew how strong Zhao Danchen was; even she was no match for him. However, she did not know Long Chen¡¯s limits, and it was possible that he could actually beat Zhao Danchen. Also, with Long Chen¡¯s personality, it was difficult for other people to persuade him otherwise when he had already made a decision.


    Plus, with Long Shan here, Long Chen could be saved if he Zhao Danchen proved to be too much to handle.


    However, Jiang Wuya had intimate knowledge of Zhao Danchen¡¯s strength. When he saw that Long Chen was acting rashly, he panicked and shouted, ¡°Seventh Brother, don¡¯t go! You¡¯re no match for him! His Golden Combat Body is far stronger than you can imagine!¡±


    This was a warning that came from the depths of his heart.


    The Golden Combat Body was his nightmare. In front of it, he felt like a helpless child.


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t go ...¡± muttered Liu Yiyi, who was also worried.


    But Long Chen had only nced at her for a moment before his attention was attracted to Jiang Wuya¡¯s broken arm.


    Liu Yiyi felt like this was enough.


    She knew that Long Chen still cared about her. There was just not enough time to talk sometimes.


    When he heard their warnings, Long Chen only paused for a moment. Then, without turning around, he continued to walk towards Zhao Danchen.


    In the beginning, Zhao Danchen was watching these people in shock and hesitation.


    Now he finally understood what the thin old man had said. The old man was from the Divine Martial Empire. He had only been in hiding, and he was a strong master that even Zhao Wuji did not know about.


    ¡°This is going to be difficult ...¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s brows were furrowed. If that old man wanted to attack him, then he would surely die.


    That was why he was worried.


    Even without the old man, if the two Long Chens and Long Yue worked together, Zhao Danchen would not survive against three people with Third Earthly Martial Stage strength.


    Jiang Wuxie, who was behind him, could only block Long Yue at most.


    ¡°Demon Emperor, do you know who that old man is?¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s face was pale. Long Shan¡¯s punch had scared him.


    Feeling obligated, the Demon Emperor stood by Zhao Danchen¡¯s side.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know him. Could he be rted to the Long family? The Long family was once the Divine Martial Empire¡¯s number one family.¡± The Demon Emperor was also shocked. No one would have expected this.


    ¡°If he attacks, both of us will die. What should we do?¡± asked Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think he will. Martial Emperor Zhao, you are the direct disciple of the Martial Overlord. Since he is in the Divine Martial Empire, he would not want to offend a person like the Martial Overlord. No matter how strong he is, he still isn¡¯t a match for the Martial Overlord, right?¡± the Demon Emperor said confidently.


    That was true too.


    Although Long Shan¡¯s punch was powerful, it still did not give Zhao Danchen the same feeling of fear as the Martial Overlord¡¯s attacks. People who merely saw the Martial Overlord from afar often thought that he was an elegant schr. Only those who truly interacted with him knew. The better they knew him, the more terrifying and darker he seemed.


    Long Shan did not move, but surprisingly, Long Chen walked over to Zhao Danchen. When Zhao Danchen saw the expression on Long Chen¡¯s face, he said with surprise, ¡°Demon Emperor, will this brat really be my nightmare like Jiang Wuya said? What is the meaning of this? Is he challenging me to take revenge for breaking Jiang Wuya¡¯s arm?¡±


    The Demon Emperor said resignedly, ¡°Based on the look on that brat¡¯s face, I think that¡¯s what it is. He only left the Ancient Demon Domain one or two months ago, yet he has already reached this level. However, he is terribly far from Martial Emperor Zhao¡¯s level. He¡¯s just a violent brickhead who is arrogant because he thinks he has some capability. He does not know how much depth a true expert has.¡±


    Long Chen stepped twenty meters away from Zhao Danchen in front of countless eyes.


    It had been more than a month since theyst met. Zhao Danchen was still just as annoying.


    When he saw the evil grin on Zhao Danchen¡¯s face, Long Chen could not wait to beat his face to a pulp!


    ¡°What is he doing? He walked up to Martial Emperor Zhao Danchen alone. Is he challenging him? What a joke. An example was made out of Jiang Wuya just now. Even the older generation is no match for Martial Emperor Zhao. Does he really think he is on Martial Emperor Zhao¡¯s level?¡±


    Zhao Danchen was a legend in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Despite the countless conversations, Long Chen¡¯s face did not change. Thick killing intent radiated from his body and wisps of blood-red mist appeared around him. The violent aura made the audience take him seriously for the first time. He had killed Yang Ningfeng, so he actually had the right to bepared to Zhao Danchen. However, Zhao Danchen¡¯s performance just now was just too powerful. That was why they did not think that Long Chen was a match for him.


    ¡°Long Chen, what is the meaning of this? I, Zhao Danchen, am receiving my wife today, but you guys came here to cause trouble. Are you challenging the Martial Alliance? If you want to dere war against the Martial Alliance, you can go to the Martial Overlord with a formal challenge. Don¡¯t sneak up here; you¡¯ll make me look down on you guys!¡± Zhao Danchen said loudly.


    If Long Shan attacked, then they would be bullying the weak.


    Zhao Danchen wanted to use his words to stop Long Shan from acting.


    However, his words could not stop Long Chen. Long Chen lifted his hand and pointed at Zhao Danchen. Under countless gazes, he said slowly and coldly, ¡°Zhao Danchen! If you are a man, stop talking nonsense! I¡¯ll be direct¡ªyou broke my Second Brother¡¯s arm. I¡¯ve always been a person who repays kindness ten times over. Since you¡¯ve shown my Second Brother this act of kindness, I will repay you a hundred times over. Do you have the guts to ept it?¡±


    Do you have the guts to ept it?


    Long Chen¡¯s powerful voice traveled far and wide. His question even echoed above Yellow Martial City. It even lured many people who were still indoors out of their homes.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen?¡±


    ¡°Broken arm?¡±


    More people ran outside to watch.


    Zhao Danchen was a person of great reputation in the Divine Martial Empire, while Long Chen was just a neer. Long Chen¡¯s challenge left Zhao Danchen no room to refuse.


    ¡°You want to fight me? Just you?¡± Zhao Danchen froze, then his dark expression turned into a burst ofughter. ¡°Just you, Long Chen? Do I have the guts to ept it? Are you kidding me? I, Zhao Danchen, have never been one to talk nonsense ...¡±


    Zhao Danchen was afraid of the old man, but not of Long Chen. Long Chen¡¯s open challenge to him also challenged his rank.


    Jiang Wuya¡¯s words were still clearly etched in Zhao Danchen¡¯s mind.


    Jiang Wuya had said that Zhao Danchen was no match for Long Chen. Now Long Chen was here. Although he did not know how Long Chen had escaped the Nine Spirit Purgatory, Zhao Danchen could not swallow his anger.


    He had never been looked down on by another person in his life. No one had ever said that he was not as good as another youth his age.


    These two people had finally met.


    When the Demon Emperor saw that he was not involved, he stepped back, leaving space for Long Chen and Zhao Danchen.

 Chapter 636 – Golden Heavy Punch

    <h4>Chapter 636 ¨C Golden Heavy Punch</h4>


    On Long Shan¡¯s side, Jiang Wuya stopped worrying about his own injuries and asked worriedly, ¡°Yue¡¯er, can Long Chen defeat Zhao Danchen?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Don¡¯t worry. If he can¡¯t, Grandfather will deal with him.¡± Long Yue moved aside and stood by Jian Chen. She was maintaining some distance from Jiang Wuya in order to avoid the awkward situation.


    Based on Jiang Wuya¡¯s performance just now, Long Yue knew that he had made a decision. She was happy for him.


    But it was unknown if it was genuine happiness.


    ¡°Grandfather?¡± Jiang Wuya nced at Long Shan, puzzled. He knew that Long Yue was referring to the old man. He initially wanted to ask further, but Long Chen had already started fighting Zhao Danchen in front of everyone!


    Zhao Danchen was surely a strong enemy! His Golden Combat Body brought him super toughness.


    Long Chen had activated his Dragon Soul Transformation, and although he had the True Martial Demon Body in addition to his tough dragon body, they were nothingpared to the Golden Combat Body.


    Blood-red dragon scales covered his whole body. His Dragon Soul Transformation was far superior to Long Yue¡¯s transformation; it boosted hisbat abilities from the Second to the Third Earthly Martial Stage!


    The power that had allowed him to kill Yang Ningfeng was on disy once more!


    Seeing Long Chen in this state caused the smile to disappear from Zhao Danchen¡¯s face.


    ¡°You have indeed proven your strength by killing that idiot Yang Ningfeng. It looks like I need to show off some of my capabilities today.¡± Zhao Danchen smiled. Both of them used their bodybat techniques, then they flickered. Long Chen hadpleted his Dragon Soul Transformation and turned blood-red. Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes flickered with golden light, then golden ripples spread from his eyes to his whole body. His skin emitted a faint, golden light, as if it was covered in ayer of golden paper.


    The golden light did not just make him look tough¡ªit was also the symbol of sharpness.


    Long Chen¡¯s blood-red eyes glinted coldly. The flickering yellow light made him deeply anxious.


    He did not have much confidence against Zhao Danchen.


    At least his situation was decent today because if he lost, Long Shan was there to help. However, he had his pride to consider. Zhao Danchen had broken Jiang Wuya¡¯s arm, and as Jiang Wuya¡¯s Seventh Brother, he had to personally make Zhao Danchen pay!


    ¡°Golden Combat Body ...¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s pupils instantly expanded because Zhao Danchen had turned into a golden silhouette that shot straight at him!


    The ray of gold was faint, but it felt heavy. Long Chen had a strange feeling, as if this was not a person, but an immense, golden mountain peak that was heavy, sharp, and fatal!


    The shape of a fist quickly expanded before his eyes!


    ¡°Golden Heavy Punch!¡±


    Although Zhao Danchen was not physically asrge as Lei Zhen, physical strength was his specialty. Long Chen was not as strong as he was in terms of pure strength. For example, the Golden Heavy Punch was filled with power, and if itnded on Yellow Martial City¡¯s walls, they would probably copse!


    The crowd was impressed by the strength of this punch. Even though they were all the way in Yellow Martial City, they could feel the power of the attack.


    ¡°That strength is enough to kill me. How will Seventh Brother block it?¡± Jiang Wuya¡¯s eyes widened. Having just fought Zhao Danchen, he knew how strong it was.


    Jiang Wuya was worried, but to Long Chen, everything was in his control.


    ¡°Willow Step.¡± Using Willow Step was the best choice when facing physically strong opponents. Long Chen¡¯s feet moved quickly, and he levitated. Zhao Danchen arrived in front of him instantly, and the Golden Heavy Punch was about tond. The immense aura that came with it sted Long Chen away!


    Long Chen was like a light feather, so before Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack hit, it blew him away. Long Chen flew away quickly, so the people far away thought he had beenunched away because he was hit. That was not actually the case.


    ¡°Is he finished just like that?¡± Many people in Yellow Martial City started tough at him, but then they saw Long Chen stabilizing himself mid-air, as if nothing had happened to him.


    ¡°He was hit, but he is unharmed! Maybe he wasn¡¯t hit at all?¡±


    This was the question that popped into every person¡¯s mind.


    At the Battle n, Zhao Danchen had witnessed Long Chen¡¯s miraculous Willow Step. Now it had shocked him even more because his mastery of it was impressive. He could use it as well as Huangfu Fengchen, who had studied it for many years!


    Long Chen was able to react unpredictably when using this bodybat technique, making it easy for him to dodge even a quick and powerful attack from Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°How can you call yourself a true man if all you know how to do is dodge?¡± Zhao Danchen had missed his target at the start of the fight, and this annoyed him. After he spoke, heunched himself from the tips of his toes and instantly appeared in front of Long Chen with a whoosh.


    ¡°Take my punch if you have the guts!¡± roared Zhao Danchen.


    He knew that a coward like Long Chen would never take his punch directly. He was good at Willow Step after all, and it guaranteed he could not be harmed by Zhao Danchen.


    But to Zhao Danchen¡¯s surprise, in the face of his second punch, Long Chen spread his ws and shot at Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡±


    The wind howled, and five blood-red dragon images flew at Zhao Danchen, waving their ws and baring their teeth. The Five Piercing Dragons collided with the Golden Heavy Punch!


    Just like five knives shing on a golden pole, the friction caused a grating sound. The crowd only saw a red and a golden shadow rapidly changing forms. They heard the grating sounds, then finally a boom. The blood-red dragons and golden pir suddenly separated. Long Chen used Willow Step to retreat ten meters away, while Zhao Danchen did the same!


    The exchange, to everyone¡¯s surprise, ended in a draw. Zhao Danchen had never expected this at all. Long Chen had used the Soul Dispersing w to its peak just now. He had unleashed the attack in its peak form in just a short time, which formed five strong sources of power.


    The Soul Dispersing w had left scratch wounds on Zhao Danchen¡¯s fist, and at the same time, Long Chen was shaken by the other party¡¯s punch.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s right hand trembled slightly. His sleeve had shattered, and at least a dozen scratches could be seen on his fair arm.


    After so many years, this was Zhao Danchen¡¯s first time being hurt by someone his age.


    To him, this had always been impossible.


    This triggered his rage and killing intent.


    He looked up at the cold youth. He knew that he had to Long Chen at all costs today. If he let this brat continue to grow, Zhao Danchen would die sooner orter.


    Even his Golden Combat Body had been cut through by his ws. Zhao Danchen started to panic.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, you were so arrogant just now! Is this the best you can do?¡± Everyone around them could hear Long Chen¡¯s mocking.


    The crowd were not strictly on anyone¡¯s side, but Zhao Danchen was just so strong that he left a deep impression on them. Long Chen¡¯s mocking also made them start tough. At the same time, they deeply revered the teenager.


    On Long Yue¡¯s side, Long Shan smiled while stroking his beard, as if this was within his expectations. Long Yue and the others looked impressed. Jiang Wuya smiled bitterly. He was forced to admit that Long Chen had left him biting the dust.


    Jiang Wuya, the Clear Shallows King, and Liu Yiyi gave each other a nce.


    ¡°When Long Chen entered the Clear Shallows Pavilion, he was only at the Second Passage Stage. To grow so much within a few months ... He really is a monster,¡± said the Clear Shallows King.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s eyes were filled with emotion.


    She was the cause of everything that had happened today. On the one hand, they could say that Long Chen was taking revenge for Jiang Wuya. On the other hand, he was also snatching Zhao Danchen¡¯s bride.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s heart pounded, and her pale face blushed beautifully.


    The stark contrast in the way she looked at Long Chen made Zhao Danchen so embarrassed that it turned into rage.


    He had looked down on Long Chen, but he could not kill him. Naturally, he was humiliated.


    Without another word, Zhao Danchen charged at Long Chen like a gust of golden wind.


    ¡°You blocked the Golden Heavy Punch? What about this?¡± Zhao Danchen instantly arrived in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes. Golden mes appeared in his eyes, then two thick rays of light shot out at Long Chen. The golden rays were burning hot. A normal person would literally melt if Zhao Danchen looked at them.


    ¡°The Golden Eye of Annihtion!¡±


    Long Chen had once witnessed this attack at the Battle n.


    Whoosh!


    The two rays of light instantly arrived in front of Long Chen.


    The Golden Eye of Annihtion was one of Zhao Danchen¡¯s most powerful moves, and it was frightening. He was the only person in the whole Divine Martial Empire who had an attack like this.


    Boom! Boom!


    Long Chen squinted.


    He was too close to Zhao Danchen.


    However, the Golden Eye of Annihtion was not powerful enough to threaten Long Chen, plus he had long known about this move.


    He used Willow Step once more. When his feet moved, he used Willow Step on a level above Huangfu Fengchen. With the rays of light so close to him, he showed off Willow Step at its highest form. The awed crowd watched the two rays of light miss him andnd on the ground!

 Chapter 637 – Yellow Martial Seal

    <h4>Chapter 637 ¨C Yellow Martial Seal</h4>


    Willow Step.


    Despite Zhao Danchen unleashing the Golden Eye of Annihtion at such close range, Long Chen had used Willow Step to perfection and dodged the terrifying attack. The two golden rays of light had left two ten-meter-wide craters on the ground behind Long Chen.


    If they had hit Long Chen, his body would have broken to pieces.


    However, Long Chen had been able to dodge the attack using Willow Step. Even Huangfu Fengchen could not have utilized this technique on such a precise level.


    Those who were knowledgeable were impressed by Long Chen¡¯s power.


    ¡°That teenager can use the Huangfu n¡¯s Willow Step so well!¡± Even the strongest person present, Long Shan, nodded with shock. The Golden Eye of Annihtion was very powerful, and had beenunched at very close range. Even Long Shan might not have been able to dodge it.


    The battle between the two had everyone on the edge of their seats.


    Whoosh!


    Zhao Danchen had missed his target once more. He had never lost twice in a row in his life!


    This was like throwing a handful of dog poop at his face!


    ¡°You¡¯re the direct disciple of the great Martial Overlord! Are you really this weak?¡± Long Chen¡¯s lips moved slightly as he spoke, though they were curved up in a mocking smile.


    Zhao Danchen was so angry that his mouth twitched several times.


    Long Chen had easily dealt with both the Golden Eye of Annihtion and the Golden Heavy Punch. Zhao Danchen was strong, but he could not hit Long Chen, so what could he do?


    With the grudge of Jiang Wuya¡¯s lost arm in his heart, Long Chen now took the offensive and attacked. He was nervous about Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body, but if they did not fight directly, he would not be able to win!


    A storm of attacks flew at Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Typhoon Style!¡±


    This was Long Chen¡¯s first time using Wind God Kick in public, so the crowd was too surprised to react. The Wind God Kick was Yang Ningfeng¡¯s strongest attack. It had only been a month; how had it been passed to Long Chen?


    Also, Long Chen¡¯s attack was much more precise than Yang Ningfeng¡¯s. It looked as if this technique originally belonged to Long Chen, not Yang Ningfeng.


    The typhoon of kicks arrived in front of Zhao Danchen. Zhao Danchen felt his vision blur, then the blood-red kicks appeared in front of him. Each one was like a whip covered with thorns, cracking at him!


    That monster! He can even use the Wind God Kick on this level? Zhao Danchen¡¯s heart was filled with shock.


    But this was not enough to hurt his pride!


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    The greatest strength of the Wind God Kick was its speed. Long Chen turned into a red tornado over Zhao Danchen¡¯s head. Dense images of his leg fell on Zhao Danchen with consecutive loud booms. Long Chen¡¯s kicksnded on Zhao Danchen¡¯s arm again and again in a deafening manner!


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s body was very tough, as his Golden Combat Body was the equivalent of golden steel, perhaps even stronger! He was able to block every kick with his arm, and Long Chen felt like he was kicking steel. Every time he kicked, his leg felt a bit numb!


    ¡°Your Wind God Kick is not bad at all! I must admit that other Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators are no match for you! But I am different. Your attacks can never break through my defenses!¡± The Typhoon Style kicks soon ended, and he was able to block every kick with his arm!


    Long Chen¡¯s Wind God Kick was not much stronger than Jiang Wuya¡¯s previous attack, so he could not break through Zhao Danchen¡¯s defenses. Zhao Danchen merely felt his arm going a bit numb.


    The Golden Combat Body was much stronger than Long Chen had imagined!


    As a result, Zhao Danchen regained his confidence, and he was very smug!


    ¡°Really?¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly. Zhao Danchen¡¯s defensive strategy also included attacking with the Golden Heavy Punch, which he used on Long Chen. He thought Long Chen would use the Willow Step to dodge it, but to his surprise, Long Chen used the Soul Dispersing Dragon w to p back!


    Previously, the collision between the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and Golden Heavy Punch ended in a draw. It was the same this time. However, it was different because Long Chen quickly stopped the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and kicked. Before Zhao Danchen could dodge, a footnded on his chin!


    Crack!


    There was an ear-piercing crack, and Zhao Danchen cried out in pain. He wasunched into the air by the kick!


    Of course, it was ast-minute kick from Long Chen, so it was not enough to cause a severe injury. It was only enough to humiliate Zhao Danchen at most. This was Zhao Danchen¡¯s first time getting hurt since he started learning how to fight!


    His mouth had been forced to shut, and he almost bit his tongue. Long Chen¡¯s kick made Zhao Danchen dizzy.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes turned red instantly.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Zhao Danchen roared furiously.


    Hended hard, and before the crowd couldugh at him, he crouched and shot at Long Chen!


    That kick was extremely humiliating to him!


    He had been just slightly angry this whole time, but now his brain was about to explode from rage. His breathing grew ragged and he exhaled white mist, as if he had turned into a wild beast!


    Long Chen felt a crazy surge of energy crashing through Zhao Danchen¡¯s body. The golden light on his body became brighter. Soon, Zhao Danchen was golden from head to toe!


    ¡°Long Chen has forced Zhao Danchen into a crazed rage. This brat has received the teachings of the Martial Overlord¡¯s lineage, and he is very powerful. He will likely be the new Martial Overlord soon. If Long Chen can¡¯t kill him today, I will,¡± said Long Shan to Long Yue as he watched the battle.


    ¡°Is Zhao Danchen stronger? Can¡¯t Long Chen kill him?¡± asked Long Yue.


    ¡°He¡¯s very strong. In terms of strength and attacks, that teenager is no match for Zhao Danchen. However, the teenager far surpasses him in terms of technique, speed, and agility. They are equal. However, if Zhao Danchen still has more tricks up his sleeve, it will be difficult for Long Chen to defeat him,¡± said Long Shan solemnly.


    ¡°Grandfather, are you referring to ...?¡± Long Yue seemed to have recalled something, and she had a look of concern in her eyes.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s the advanced King-tier Martial Overlord Seal. It¡¯s the only advanced King-tierbat technique in the Divine Martial Empire! If Zhao Danchen can use one of the techniques from the Martial Overlord Seal, Long Chen is no match for him,¡± said Long Shan.


    ¡°The Martial Overlord Seal? As Zhao Wuji¡¯s only direct disciple, Zhao Wuji must have already passed the Martial Overlord Seal to him. Zhao Danchen really is the strongest out of the three Martial Emperors. The other two are probably no match for him. Grandfather, if Long Chen is in danger, you must save him,¡± said Long Yue anxiously.


    When they heard that Long Chen could be in danger, Jiang Wuya and the others grew worried. Liu Yiyi was especially worried. Her eyes were fixed dead on Long Chen, and her eyes were filled with tears.


    Previously, Jiang Wuya and Zhao Danchen had fought and Jiang Wuya ended up losing an arm, almost dying. Now, Zhao Danchen was fighting Long Chen. These two men were the people that Liu Yiyi cared about the most.


    Liu Yiyi had been extremely anxious all day.


    ¡°Long Chen, you must win. You must stay safe.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s kick hadunched Zhao Danchen into the air, and Liu Yiyi looked excited when that happened.


    But her mood crashed once more.


    Because Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack was approaching again.


    This time, Zhao Danchen was truly angry. He was initially mid-air, so while he descended quickly, he formed seals with his hands. The seal technique he was preparing wasplicated, and when he started activating it, the air started to vibrate!


    Boom, boom, boom, boom!


    Consecutive booms sounded in the air. Thick earthly spiritual Qi started to flood towards Zhao Danchen in the air. The earthly spiritual Qi mainly came directly from the ground, and it aggregated into muddy-yellow snake-like lines. Ten of these ¡°snakes¡± connected to Zhao Danchen, as if they were growing out of his hands.


    As the Qi concentrated in his hands, Zhao Danchen¡¯s hands moved quickly, and he held the Qi directly. He then changed gestures, and the earthly spiritual Qi condensed into a gigantic golden ¡°martial (Îä)¡± character!


    It was arge and thick seal!


    ¡°Yellow Martial Seal!¡±


    This was Zhao Danchen¡¯s famous Yellow Martial Seal, which was also a secret technique passed down to him by the Martial Overlord. Of course, there were higher-level seals, but it was unknown whether the Martial Overlord had taught him more.


    The Yellow Martial Seal was famous among the intermediate King-tierbat techniques. It was known as the strongest technique out of all the intermediate King-tier techniques in the Divine Martial Empire!


    Boosted by Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body, his Yellow Martial Seal was filled with terrifying power!


    At this moment, Zhao Danchen¡¯s entire body was glowing gold. His eyes were cold, and an evil smile hung on his face. Long Chen¡¯s kick had turned him mad with rage.

 Chapter 638 – Nine Heavens Strike

    <h4>Chapter 638 ¨C Nine Heavens Strike</h4>


    Long Chen squinted.


    ¡°Not bad ...¡± To the crowd¡¯s surprise, Long Chen was not afraid when faced with the immensely powerful Yellow Martial Seal. His face did not change, and instead, it turned terrifyingly cold!


    Is he pretending to be cool? Zhao Danchen mocked him privately when he saw Long Chen¡¯s face. He increased his power output. Essence poured out of his nine martial meridian points, flowing into the Yellow Martial Seal in his hand!


    ¡°Break!¡±


    With a loud cry, Zhao Danchen unleashed the Yellow Martial Seal. The gigantic ¡°martial (Îä)¡± character flew towards Long Chen¡¯s head!


    Long Chen suddenly felt like the whole sky was pressing down on him!


    The Yellow Martial Seal had not even touched him yet, but Long Chen could already sense the pressure acting on his body, which caused his feet to sink deeply into the soil.


    The power of the Yellow Martial Seal suddenly exploded!


    The ¡°martial (Îä)¡± character was like a mountain. In fact, the weight of a whole mountain range was pressing down on Long Chen!


    The scale of this attack frightened everyone!


    Previously, Zhao Danchen had missed Long Chen with his attacks, causing everyone to think that he was not that strong. However, when he used the Yellow Martial Seal, they were allpletely convinced of his strength.


    The people on Long Yue¡¯s side were shocked too.


    Long Shan initially wanted to help him, but when he saw Long Chen¡¯s calm face, he stopped. He knew that the kid had a solution!


    As expected, when the Yellow Martial Seal descended, Long Chen moved his hands¡ªor more specifically, his ws¡ªto block. The blood-red Golden Crow mes burned brightly on his hands. He unleashed all the Golden Crow mes he could muster so he became like a miniature sun. The heat he emitted caused surrounding temperature to rise significantly!


    Roar!


    Small, blood-red dragons appeared on Long Chen¡¯s hands, twisting around his fingers. As the fire burned, the small dragons came in and out of view, letting out dragon roars!


    ¡°Is that some kind of party trick?¡± Zhao Danchenughed coldly, then the Yellow Martial Seal descended on Long Chen¡¯s head!


    Zhao Danchen had never seen this attack before, but after seeing the changes, Long Shan and the other two Longs were shocked. They recognized that Long Chen¡¯s attack was the final attack of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Nine Heavens Strike!¡±


    The nine tiny dragons flew quicker in his hands. Long Chen then turned into a ray of blood-red light, and when the Yellow Martial Sealnded, he stepped on the ground with the tip of his foot and sprang toward Zhao Danchen!


    He pushed the Soul Dispersing Dragon w outwards!


    Thest attack of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w was very simr to Long Chen¡¯s Primordial Dragon Seal; it also consisted of nine dragons flying out at the same time. However, the Nine Heavens Strike was much more powerful than the Primordial Dragon Seal, as the Primordial Dragon Seal was a simple strikeing from the dragon images. On top of that, the Nine Heavens Strike consisted of nineyers of attacks!


    Nine Heavens Strike!


    w marks formed by the nine dragons flew consecutively from the center of Long Chen¡¯s palm!


    Nine huge explosions rang out!


    The Yellow Martial Seal struck only once, but Long Chen¡¯s Nine Heavens Strike contained nine times the power!


    Everyone watched the techniques collide!


    Suddenly, the two fighters disappeared. Nine blood-red dragon images and a golden mountain remained in their eyes. The golden peak was like a sharp de, while the nine dragons were like nine divine knives cutting the mountain peak!


    Boom, boom, boom!


    Shrill sounds rang out when Long Chen¡¯s knife-like ws collided with Zhao Danchen¡¯s tough Golden Combat Body!


    ¡°Which of these two extraordinary youths is stronger?¡±


    This is the question that popped into everyone¡¯s minds.


    Long Chen had no choice but to admit that Zhao Danchen was like a tortoise. When he scratched the thick tortoiseshell with his ws, even he felt pain!


    When he used the Dragon Soul Transformation, Long Chen had as much essence as Zhao Danchen. Zhao Danchen¡¯s Yellow Martial Seal was just as strong as Long Chen¡¯s Nine Heavens Strike. Zhao Danchen had the Golden Combat Body, while Long Chen had the extraordinary Golden Crow mes. Basically, they were quite simr in strength.


    Of course, due to Zhao Danchen¡¯s tough defense provided by his Golden Combat Body, he was a very difficult opponent to defeat. At this point, Long Chen¡¯s Nine Heavens Strike had not done any damage in the face of the Yellow Martial Seal.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s Yellow Martial Seal was no joke!


    When this exchange of the highest level concluded, the results were out¡ªLong Chen had lost. After the collision, the Yellow Martial Seal started to force Long Chen backwards!


    ¡°Long Chen is going to lose.¡± Long Shan shook his head resignedly. He had to admit that Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body was too powerful.


    ¡°No, Long Chen still has hisst trick that he hasn¡¯t used yet.¡± Long Yue was initially worried, but she thought of something else.


    ¡°Last trick?¡± Long Shan froze.


    At this critical moment, Long Chen finally used the Blood Devouring Domain.


    Blood-red mist instantly spread out like a huge cocoon, enveloping both of them. No onlooker below the Earthly Martial Realm could see what was happening inside.


    The Blood Devouring Domain directly restricted forty percent of Zhao Danchen¡¯s essence.


    Zhao Danchen had once experienced the power of the Blood Devouring Domain, but he did not think that it could be this powerful. It was as if his blood did not belong to him. He was forced to use a huge amount of his Qi to suppress his bubbling blood in order to continue moving his body.


    Zhao Danchen finally understood why Yang Ningfeng had lost so quickly when Long Chen reached the Second Earthly Martial Stage. The moment Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain, Yang Ningfeng basically could not retaliate at all. The Yellow Martial Seal initially could defeat Long Chen¡¯s Nine Heavens Strike, but the tides turned when the Blood Devouring Domain was used. Due to the restriction ced on Zhao Danchen, the Nine Heavens Strike quickly gained the upper hand and won easily! That was why Long Chen had chosen this moment to use the Blood Devouring Domain!


    He could only achieve certain victory by using his final trick when Zhao Danchen was the most rxed!


    And his final trick was the Nine Heavens Strike.


    Long Chen then unleashed another attack through his feet. Not only did he use the final attack of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w, he also used the final attack of the Wind God Kick. The Wind God Kick was a high-level secret scripture that belonged to the Wind God Sect, which was one of the major factions of the Divine Martial Empire decades ago. Long Chen used its final attack, which was the Wind God Style, at this critical moment!


    Zhao Danchen could not even withstand the Nine Heavens Strike, let alone this next wave of attacks!


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Wind God Style!¡±


    Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!


    The greatest advantage of the Wind God Kick was its speed, and Long Chen used the technique to its maximum potential,nding consecutive kicks all over Zhao Danchen¡¯s body. Due to the pressure from the Blood Devouring Domain, the Yellow Martial Seal could not hold up any longer, so Long Chen¡¯s Soul Dispersing Dragon w and Wind God Kick hit Zhao Danchen directly!


    Just like a storm, the dense pitter-patters of raindrops sounded!


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s face changed the moment the Blood Devouring Domain appeared. It was clear that his Yellow Martial Seal could suppress Long Chen, but before he could celebrate, the tables turned and Long Chen forced him to the edge of defeat!


    ¡°How is that possible?!¡± cried Zhao Danchen with a pale face!


    His heartbeat quickened. Long Chen¡¯s blood-red, ice-cold re was like a nightmare from the deepest part of his heart, sending chills through him.


    He had always been the strongest prodigy of the Divine Martial Empire. Although the other Long Chen was also known as a prodigy on the same level, he had always looked down on him in his heart.


    But this Long Chen had appeared out of nowhere, forcing him off his throne.


    Punches and kicks allnded on Zhao Danchen, hitting him directly. Despite his Golden Combat Body, he could not withstand direct attacks of this level. The w technique and the leg technique made Zhao Danchen cry out loud in pain!


    Thud, thud, thud!


    Thest kicknded on Zhao Danchen¡¯s head, sending him to the ground. There was a loud explosion and arge crater formed on the hard ground, kicking up soil into the air and in all directions.


    The Blood Devouring Domain finally disappeared.


    Every jaw fell as they watched the scene unfold.


    Most people did not know what had happened inside the Blood Devouring Domain. How could they have imagined that after just a moment, Long Chen would turn the tables and end up kicking the Martial Alliance¡¯s most famous prodigy to the ground?


    Then Long Chennded, went up to Zhao Danchen¡¯s side, and flipped him up into the air with his foot!


    The bloody Zhao Danchen flew high up into the air for all to see.


    Everyone was stunned when they saw him.


    Was that really Zhao Danchen?


    The man had lost his charisma and turned into a struggling wild beast in Long Chen¡¯s grip!


    Although he struggled, it was useless!


    After throwing Zhao Danchen up into the air, Long Chen shot up to his side and kicked him vigorously using the Wind God Kick¡¯s Typhoon Style. He kicked with all his heart, treating Zhao Danchen as a sandbag while Zhao Danchen screamed in pain like a pig being ughtered!

 Chapter 639: The Ancient Demon Returns

    ¡°Long Chen ¡­ Ah ¡­ Ah ¡­ Mercy! I¡¯m begging you, let me go ¡­ Ah!¡± This was the sound of Zhao Danchen bitterly begging for mercy!


    His Golden Combat Body made it difficult for Long Chen to kill him. However, Long Chen had managed to suppress him to the point that he had no chance to fight back. Due to Long Chen¡¯s consecutive attacks, his body was gradually damaged!


    Another Nine Heavens Strike struck Zhao Danchen directly in the chest. Despite his Golden Combat Body, arge hole was sted in his chest. Nine deep w marks appeared, and blood poured out!


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s face grew even paler, and the fresh blood turned his clothespletely red!


    Blood sprayed out of his mouth as well.


    Everyone was frightened. Zhao Danchen was already on the edge of death, severely injured. All of this was caused by the blood-red teenager. The crowd looked at the blood-red figure flying in the air with fear in their hearts.


    Who could¡¯ve guessed that this wedding parade would lead to this?


    The people on the Martial Alliance¡¯s side had long been stunned with shock. If Zhao Danchen was no match for Long Chen, then the rest were not either. That was why no one acted to save Zhao Danchen for the moment. They all looked at the Demon Emperor, while a Martial King with higher rank said, ¡°Demon Emperor, if you don¡¯t save Martial Emperor Zhao, the whole Ancient Demon Domain will be done for!¡±


    Jiang Wuxie was initially stunned by Long Chen too.Now the Martial Alliance was pressuring him. They were right. If Zhao Danchen died here, the Martial Overlord would surely vent his anger on Jiang Wuxie.


    ¡°Hmph! He¡¯s so powerful that even Martial Emperor Zhao is no match for him. If I go, it¡¯ll be like trying to put out a fire with a cup of water,¡± the Demon Emperor muttered resentfully.


    Long Chen was so strong that even Zhao Danchen was no match for him. He would never want to take this risk.


    If the Martial Overlord got angry, then let him be angry. Ever since Long Shan appeared, the Martial Overlord was no longer the sole ruler of the Divine Martial Empire. Also, Jiang Wuxie had a trump card that he was holding close to his heart. After holding his anger in for so many years, his time woulde soon.


    ¡°You!¡± The Martial King was furious, but he could not do anything about it.


    Then Long Chen¡¯s kicknded on Zhao Danchen¡¯s abdomen. He rolled until he stopped in front of Jiang Wuxie. Zhao Dancheny in a puddle of blood, and everyone could see that he was barely breathing. His body was covered in wounds and his breaths were very shallow; he was not far from death now.


    The corner of Jiang Wuxie¡¯s mouth spasmed when he saw Zhao Danchen in this state.


    Zhao Danchen no longer had anybat ability left.


    Jiang Wuxie looked up. The blood-red teenager was looking at him with amusement. ¡°Demon Emperor, you tried to kill me when I was in the Ancient Demon Domain. Isn¡¯t it time for us to settle the grudge between us?¡±


    Jiang Wuya was shocked and took a few steps back. He faked a friendly tone and said, ¡°Little Long, you¡¯re overthinking it. You¡¯re part of the Ancient Demon Domain. That previous conflict was just a misunderstanding, so let¡¯s justugh it off.¡±


    ¡°Misunderstanding? Alright. I¡¯ll treat it as a misunderstanding too. Please move aside.¡± As he spoke, Long Chen walked towards Zhao Danchen.


    Jiang Wuxie hesitated for a moment. If he moved, it would undeniably be humiliating for him. But if he did not, that showed that he wanted to help Zhao Danchen fight Long Chen. Jiang Wuxie knew his limits well, and he could never defeat Long Chen. That was why he chose to back off after a moment of hesitation, triggering whispers in the crowd.


    News of Long Chen defeating Zhao Danchen and scaring the Demon Emperor into backing down would likely spread across the whole Divine Martial Empire.


    Now the question of who the strongest cultivator beneath the Martial Overlord was was answered.


    It was not Zhao Danchen, but Long Chen.


    After Long Chen arrived by Zhao Danchen¡¯s side, Zhao Danchen struggled to open his eyes and looked at Long Chen with fear.


    He struggled to say, ¡°¡­ If ¡­ if you dare kill me, my master will never let you go!¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dare kill you, of course!¡± Long Chen chuckled. Despite the grin, there was coldness in his eyes.


    ¡°Good!¡± Zhao Danchen sighed in relief.


    Then Long Chen grabbed his right arm at lightning speed and tugged. <em>Rip! </em>He ripped Zhao Danchen¡¯s whole arm off and tossed the bloody arm high up into the air, apanied by Zhao Danchen¡¯s scream of agony!


    It was a bone-chilling scream.


    The crowd felt a chill when they saw the violent scene. They looked at the teenager with fear in their eyes.


    Zhao Danchen had ripped Jiang Wuya¡¯s arm off. Long Chen had merely returned the favor.


    Admittedly, his Golden Combat Body was extremely tough, so Long Chen had to use massive strength to rip the arm off.


    However, Zhao Danchen¡¯s most powerful attack, the Yellow Martial Seal, required both arms. Now that he had lost his right arm, his strength was greatly reduced. In addition to his injuries, he was now a cripple.


    The once shining prodigy had been reduced to a cripple.


    To Zhao Danchen, this was worse than death. At least death was clean, but living meant endless torture. From this moment on, mockery and contempt would apany him for the rest of his life. His glorious life had been destroyed by Long Chen in just one day.


    After his arm broke, Zhao Danchen was stunned. He stared at Long Chen, frozen, and forgot about his pain.


    ¡°Death is not the worst punishment. You broke my Second Brother¡¯s arm, so I also broke your arm. This is the most merciful thing I can do for you. Zhao Danchen, enjoy being trash for the rest of your life,¡± mocked Long Chen.


    This just was him performing psychological torture on Zhao Danchen.


    If Long Chen did not kill him, Zhao Danchen would probably kill himself not long after. He had the Golden Combat Body, so killing him would require too much effort. Long Chen had another grudge to resolve, so he left Zhao Danchen hanging.


    If he truly spent the effort to kill Zhao Danchen, Jiang Wuxie would likely take the chance run off.


    Although Jiang Wuxie was his Second Brother¡¯s biological brother, a grudge was a grudge. Long Chen was clear about this.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>He appeared in front of Jiang Wuxie and said mildly, ¡°Demon Emperor, it¡¯s your turn.¡±


    Jiang Wuxie knew Long Chen would never let him off.


    His main base, the Ancient Demon Domain, was just behind him, and he had nowhere else to hide. He deeply regretted not killing Long Chen while he was still weak, or he would¡¯ve be in such a difficult position.


    It was a must for Long Chen to kill Zhao Danchen. On the other hand, there was a grudge between Jiang Wuxie and Long Chen because he had killed Jiang Wuxie¡¯s son. If Long Chen did not kill him, Jiang Wuxie would still kill Long Chen sooner orter.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I say that everything between us was just a misunderstanding?¡± Jiang Wuxie said in a slightly ingratiating manner.


    He knew he was no match for Long Chen.


    ¡°Your son was greedy for my demonic beast. I killed him, and then you almost killed me. Now you¡¯re saying that the deep enmity between us is just a misunderstanding. Demon Emperor, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re being ridiculous?¡± Long Chen knew that he was a slippery coward, so he did not n to give Jiang Wuxie a chance to argue.


    Jiang Wuxie was an old fox. If he grew stronger, he would surely be a huge problem to Long Chen. Might as well kill him to prevent future problems.


    When the Demon Emperor heard what Long Chen said, he knew that he was left with no room to argue.


    He looked at Jiang Wuya with a begging look in his eyes.


    Long Chen sighed. He knew the Demon Emperor would beg Jiang Wuya to save him.


    As expected, Jiang Wuya took their blood rtion into consideration. From far away, he said loudly to Long Chen, ¡°Seventh Brother, would you let my older brother go for my sake? I¡¯m sure he will repay this kindness and won¡¯t trouble you again.¡±


    In Long Chen¡¯s eyes, Jiang Wuya was a senior worthy of his respect, so he listened to him. ¡°Demon Emperor, I¡¯ll let it go this time. If you cross me again, I won¡¯t let you go.¡±


    There was clear determination in his icy voice, which evoked fear in the Demon Emperor.


    He was the great Domain Lord of the Ancient Demon Domain. He never cowered this pathetically even in front of the Martial Overlord.


    The Martial Overlord probably would not attack him, but if he made Long Chen angry, Long Chen would not show mercy. Just like what had happened to Zhao Danchen.


    Every time he saw the pitiful state Zhao Danchen was in, Jiang Wuya felt a chill in his heart.


    <em>Second Brother, I hope the kindness you¡¯ve shown today gets this guy far. Now that Long Shan is out, the Divine Martial Empire is going to change. It¡¯ll all depend on which side Jiang Wuxie takes then,</em> Long Chen<em></em>thought to himself.


    There was no question that there would be a huge battle between the Dragon n and the Martial Alliance over the Divine Martial Empire.


    The time for the final battle hade.


    The results of this battle would also determine who would get the Five Emperor Seals.


    Both sides had part of the five, so who would win in the end?


    At least today¡¯s events hade to an end. After Long Chen let him go, Jiang Wuxie no longer regarded the people of the Martial Alliance and headed straight back into the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Long Chen prepared to annihte the whole Martial Alliance contingent.


    Jiang Wuxie was sessfully saved, and Liu Yiyi was sessfully rescued. Everyone heaved sighs of relief.


    That was when something strange happened.


    On this day, the ground had shaken twice already. Now the ground shook violently once more, but much more vigorously this time, and itsted for a while. Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what had just happened.


    Long Chen also looked puzzled as he felt the vibrations in the ground.


    What was going on?


    The source of the vibrations seemed to be in the direction of the Ancient Demon Domain. Within the crowd, Jiang Wuya looked up, puzzled. Then he saw the ecstatic expression on his older brother¡¯s face. Jiang Wuya froze, his expression changed, then he cried, ¡°The Ancient Demon Corpse? Is it finally going to emerge after more than a century?¡±

 Chapter 640: Ancient Demon Flag

    Ancient Demon Corpse?


    When Long Chen was at the Nine Spirit Purgatory, Long Shan had talked about something called the Ancient Demon Corpse from the Ancient Demon Domain. At the time, he had briefly discussed it with Little Cat, and they spected that it was the reason why the Ancient Demon Domain region was barren, and that it could be in the seventhyer of the Seven Layered Demon World.


    ¡°The Ancient Demon Corpse can now wake up and move around since it has absorbed sufficient earthly spiritual Qi. The Ancient Demon Corpse once belonged to a master; after being treated and forged through a secret technique, it became a powerful puppet. Its body is especially tough. Jiang Wuxie should have a way to control it,¡± Little Cat said in the Primordial Realm.


    Long Chen licked his lips and squinted.


    By now, Jiang Wuxie had left everyone in the dust, heading towards the Ancient Demon Domain with a look of excitement on his face. He was a master at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, so he could travel fast. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from Long Chen¡¯s field of vision. Long Chen could not give chase even if he wanted to.


    He suddenly had a feeling that he had let the tiger go back to its mountain.


    ¡°Seventh Brother!¡± Long Yue and the others all came to Long Chen¡¯s side anxiously. They had forgotten about the injured Zhao Danchen, who wasying on the ground.


    The other people of the Martial Alliance looked at each other, not daring to move recklessly. This group of people was just too strong, and Zhao Danchen was no match for them. They had no choice but to back away obediently like cowards. Zhao Dancheny on the ground without anyone caring for him. The people of the Martial Alliance were all frightened, and no one dared to drag him back.


    Zhao Danchen, who was on the verge of death, was forgotten by everyone. At this moment, his eyes were closed, but no one noticed that his wounds were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye. This was an effect of the strong healing ability of his Golden Combat Body and because he had secretly taken some spiritual medicine.Long Chen¡¯s attention was fully grabbed by themotion at the Ancient Demon Domain.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe the legendary Ancient Demon is waking up now! This Ancient Demon has consumed copious amounts of life force from thisnd, and its body is very tough; it can match at least a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator in battle, though it may be even stronger!¡± Long Shan exined in shock, being the person most qualified to speak at this moment.


    ¡°Fourth Earthly Martial Stage?¡± Long Chen was a little speechless. The Divine Martial Empire was truly changing. First, the appearance of Long Shan, who was strong enough topete with the Martial Overlord. And now the Ancient Demon Domain was about to possessbat abilities of a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator?


    With everyone listening, Jiang Wuya said, ¡°When I was young, I heard my father say that there is an Ancient Demon Corpse in the seventhyer of the Seven Layered Demon World. When the Ancient Demon Corpse wakes up, the Ancient Demon Domain will not need to bow down to the Martial Alliance! They will need to kneel at our feet instead! I¡¯m guessing that Jiang Wuxie has been holding a grudge ever since he joined the Martial Alliance! Now that the Ancient Demon Corpse has finally woken up, I think the Martial Alliance will have a huge problem on their hands. Jiang Wuxie has had to submit to them for so many years; he must be very resentful!¡±


    When they heard his exnation, they were all shocked.


    ¡°The Martial Alliance is not the only one with a problem. It¡¯s an evenrger problem for us. Now that the Ancient Demon Corpse has woken up, there are three major factions in the Divine Martial Empire¡ªthe Martial Alliance, the Ancient Demon Domain, and the bunch of us grouped together. The Ancient Demon Domain has worked with the Martial Alliance for many years, so I¡¯m afraid they¡¯ll both target us first. Everyone, don¡¯t forget that I killed Jiang Wuxie¡¯s son. Would he let me go like that?¡± Long Chen said solemnly after a moment of deep thought.


    When Jiang Wuya heard him, he said sourly, ¡°Seventh Brother, I¡¯m so sorry. I didn¡¯t think that the Ancient Demon Corpse would wake up today. Had I known, I would not have asked you to spare Jiang Wuxie.¡±


    Of course, Long Chen did not me him. Jiang Wuya was only taking their brotherhood into consideration. If it were Long Chen, despite any conflict between them, he would not want his biological brother to die. Therefore, Long Chen said hurriedly, ¡°Second Brother, don¡¯t misunderstand me. I don¡¯t think that at all. He was lucky that he managed to escape. However, we must think of a solution now. The Ancient Demon Corpse will emerge immediately. Should we back away for the moment, or prepare to snatch the Ancient Demon Corpse from Jiang Wuxie? Second Brother, do you know how to control the Ancient Demon Corpse?¡±


    Snatch the Ancient Demon Corpse from Jiang Wuxie?


    Everyone thought about it and felt like it was a good idea.


    Although Long Chen was young, he was the strongest person here other than Long Shan. That was why he still had a major right to speak. In fact, his right to speak even surpassed Long Shan since Long Shan had only juste out and could notmand Jiang Wuya and Jian Chen, who were unrted to him. Jiang Wuya, Jian Chen, and the others basically saw Long Chen as the leader now; even Long Yue was used to listening to him.


    This was all formed out of habit.


    When everyone looked at Jiang Wuya, he thought for a moment and said, ¡°I remember now. I think Father once passed down a ck g to my brother. It¡¯s called the Ancient Demon g. He told my brother that he must protect it carefully and not to let anyone other than us brothers know about it. The Ancient Demon g must be the key to controlling the Ancient Demon Corpse!¡±


    ¡°So, we only need to snatch the Ancient Demon g?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°I think so. But we must first see what Jiang Wuxie intends to do. If he is bent on being our enemy, then we must snatch the Ancient Demon g. If he is willing to join forces with us to destroy the Martial Alliance, I think we can coborate. Both of us have been bullied by the Martial Alliance after all!¡± Long Yue said, using her big sister card.


    Long Chen had noment.


    They were all siblings who fought alongside each other, and they often discussed amongst each other toe to agreements.


    After Long Yue finished, she sought everyone''s agreement, and when they all agreed, she nodded and said, ¡°Then it is decided.¡±


    Even more violent shaking came from the Ancient Demon Domain. The strongest cultivators present all headed towards the epicenter.


    Long Chen looked over and saw the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s grand doors. Beyond the grand entrance was another set of pitch-ck doors that looked like gaping jaws opening to an endless ck abyss. Long Chen remembered that the ce was called the ck Prison. When he entered the Ancient Demon Domain, his physical strength was tested in the ck Prison¡¯s strong gravity.


    Long Chen did not know how deep the ck Prison was, only that he had only covered a tiny distance.


    Jiang Wuxie was standing in front of the ck Prison, so emotional that he was trembling. Such a powerful weapon was now going to be in his control, and he was unimaginably excited.


    ¡°Power, power. I can¡¯t believe that I, Jiang Wuxie, will get to experience this too. How long has it been? How long? How long have I been suppressed by the Martial Alliance? By that bastard Zhao Wuji? From today onwards, I will have the Ancient Demon Corpse. Zhao Wuji will be nothing to me!¡±


    Jiang Wuxie could no longer hold in his excitement andughed like a madman.


    As the mountains shook, the five remaining Demon Kings, two Demon Saints, Jiang Wushang, the Grand Elders, the twenty-eight Demon Generals, and other people arrived and stood behind Jiang Wuxie. They had a rough idea of what was happening and were all excited. They fell to their knees behind Jiang Wuxie and cried in unison, ¡°Congrattions, Demon Emperor! With the Ancient Demon Corpse on our side, the Divine Martial Empire shall belong to the Demon Emperor from today onwards!¡±


    Every single person had a look of ecstasy on their face!


    Jiang Wuxieughed loudly and waved. ¡°Don¡¯t just congratte me! Every single one of you will also benefit from this. From today onwards, the Ancient Demon Domain will no longer be the Martial Alliance¡¯s puppet. We are now equal to them. In fact, we possessbat abilities exceeding those of Martial Emperor Zhao Wuji!¡±


    ¡°Congrattions, Demon Emperor, for bing the number one master of the Divine Martial Empire! Sooner orter, we will unite the whole Divine Martial Empire and rule over it!¡± cried a Demon King excitedly.


    Jiang Wuxie was smug and said with a grin, ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough sucking up. Everyone, back off. The Ancient Demon Corpse ising up. I¡¯ll be controlling it. Be careful, or it¡¯ll identally hurt you!¡±


    Everyone nodded and backed away, leaving Jiang Wuxie standing in front of the ck Prison¡¯s doors. He pulled a ck g out of his Universe Pouch. The g was only the size of his face and had golden embroidered edges. It had a blood-red, half-meter-long gpole, which he held. A blurry demon silhouette drawn using blood surrounded by blood-red runes decorated the g. The runes twisted in a bizarre manner, as if they were alive. This was the Ancient Demon g.


    This was the object that allowed Jiang Wuxie to control the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    ¡°The ck Prison leads directly to the seventhyer of the demon world?¡± Long Chen watched with surprise after he stopped far away.


    No one would have expected the ck Prison to lead to the seventhyer.


    Themotion grew more vigorous, and Long Chen watched with bated breath. Suddenly, thick, ck mist poured from the ck Prison and enveloped Jiang Wuxie instantly. As the ck mist grew, it also shrouded the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Long Chen sensed a dangerous aura within the ck Prison, as if a powerful beast was lying within. However,pared to a demonic beast, the thing inside had an extrayer of violence and massacre in its aura, even madness. This feeling was simr to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.

 Chapter 641: Strongest Under The Heavens

    The real Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s bloodlust and aura of massacre would¡¯ve been infinitely stronger than that of the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Still, the stench of blooding from the Ancient Demon g was strong.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse was a dangerous weapon. Without the g controlling it, the Ancient Demon Corpse could turn the entire Divine Martial Empire into hell.


    It howled from the depths of ck Prison, causing the ground to shake intensely. Everyone thought their eardrums were going to burst because the noise was like a sharp spike that pierced into everyone¡¯s ears. Liu Yiyi, the weakest person in the group, shouted out of pain.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, protect Yiyi!¡± Jiang Wuxie¡¯s essence had been exhausted, so he had to rely on Long Chen¡¯s help.


    Long Chen knew what he meant.


    Long Chen circted his essence and covered Liu Yiyi with it. For now, the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s howl would n¡¯t affect her ears.


    Liu Yiyi was temporarily safe. She looked at him and blushed. ¡°Thank you, Long Chen.¡±


    Long Chen bit his lips and teased her. ¡°No need to thank me, Yiyi. We haven¡¯t seen each other for a long time, yet you are still stuck at the Heavenly Passage Realm. You really are useless.¡±Liu Yiyi never thought the first thing he would say after speaking to her for the first time in so long was to admonish her. <em>Why is he still so despicable? But ¡­ I don¡¯t hate it.</em> The atmosphere was not as awkward as before with Long Chen there.


    Long Shan then exined, ¡°The Ancient Demon Corpse is very strong. Its physical strength is on par with someone at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm. If Jiang Wuxie can control it as he wishes, then the Ancient Demon Corpse can fight with even more power. You cannot win against it yet, so retreat for now. I will go and see what Jiang Wuxie intends to do.¡±


    Long Shan was right. The Ancient Demon Corpse was most likely massive too. If Jiang Wuxie went crazy and decided to kill all of them, Long Shan wouldn¡¯t be able to keep everyone alive.


    Everyone had confidence in Long Shan¡¯s strength. Even if Jiang Wuxie could control the Ancient Demon Corpse as he wished, Long Shan wouldn¡¯t be injured easily. Everyone nodded and retreated.


    ¡°Long Chen, you are the strongest one here. If the people from the Ancient Demon Domain attack, you need to block them,¡± Long Shan instructed.


    Long Chen was only at the Second Earthly Martial Realm, but his strength far exceeded that of Long Yue and the others.


    As for the other Long Chen ¡­ He could only shake his head bitterly. He used to be everyone¡¯s main pir of support, but that role had been taken over by Long Chen. However, the youth was not upset but instead said, ¡°I should change my name, or we will have no idea who¡¯s referring to who.¡±


    It was naturally a joke.


    It wouldn¡¯t be easy to change a name that he had used for tens of years, and it would invite a lot of trouble.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will protect everyone.¡± Long Chen nodded. He was also worried that he might not be able to defend himself against the attacks of the Ancient Demon Corpse after hearing Long Shan¡¯s description.


    Long Chen could defeat Zhao Danchen, but there was still a wide gap between him and a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. The higher the cultivation level, the wider the gap between each level. Long Chen was already impressive for being able to defeat someone one stage above him.


    So Long Chen brought everyone else to evacuate while Long Shan went alone towards the Ancient Demon Domain.


    In the depths of the ck Prison, the Ancient Demon Corpse howled in anger. The bloody Demon Qi continued to leak outside.


    It was like a giant crawling upwards, and Long Chen knew that it was the Ancient Demon Corpse slowly getting out of the ck Prison. The ck Prison was massive and yet it could still climb up. <em>Is it asrge as a King-tier demonic beast?</em>


    The ck Water Viper and Xiang were huge too.


    ¡°It¡¯sing out.¡± Long Chen caught the scent of a rotten corpse. The smell became intense as the Ancient Demon Corpse gradually climbed upwards. After being left alone for years, the scent had festered a lot.


    Everyone frowned when they smelled it.


    It had a disgusting smell.


    Outside of the ck Prison, the Demon Qi started leaking out. Even with their strength, Long Chen and the others still couldn¡¯t see the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s body as the ground continued to shake. Suddenly, a strong pressure came from the front, and Long Chen sensed something terrifying.


    He had to circte his essence to dispel the horrifying presence.


    The Demon Qi started to shoot up towards the sky, and the quaking intensified. The horrible howls came closer and the Demon Qi consolidated. A massive twenty-meter-tall corpse appeared.


    Twenty meters was a horrifying height. Long Chen and the others weren¡¯t even the size of the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s fingertip. The putrid stench hung in the air as it climbed out.


    Long Chen channeled his essence into his eyes to take a good look at the Ancient Demon Corpse. It was apletely ck corpse covered in tattered, gray bandages. Its body was covered in dents. While it was shaped like a humanoid, there was nothing human about it. Its facial features had been contorted into a singr point, leaving only a single blood-red eye on the forehead and a bloody mouth on the left side of its face.


    The dense Demon Qi enveloped the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s body. The surface of its body was like a crocodile''s skin with ugly dents.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse was also bald with only a few strands of dry, ck hair stered on its head.


    ¡°What an ugly thing, but it''s really strong ¡­¡± Long Chen had to admit that.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse was very aggressive even though it had just gotten out of the ck Prison. It used its singr red eye to look around as it gave off a jovial, beast-like howl. The stench of blood and rot started to spread out.


    A single step from the Ancient Demon Corpse caused the earth to shake violently. It was even stronger than when Zhao Danchen punched the ground. The Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s physical strength was horrific indeed.


    ¡°With the Ancient Demon Corpse on his side, Jiang Wuxie¡¯s position will be equivalent to the Martial Overlord¡¯s. It will be difficult for the Long n to take back the Divine Martial Empire ¡­¡± Long Chen was wary of the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Especially since he had killed Jiang Wuxie¡¯s son.


    Jiang Wuxie would never let him go.


    Thankfully, Long Shan could protect him.


    When the Ancient Demon Corpse appeared, Jiang Wuxie¡¯s expression turned from happy to serious. He bit his finger and sttered his blood onto the Ancient Demon g. He made sure to cover every inch of it, coloring the ck g blood-red. A strange, bloody light emanated from the Ancient Demon g along with a peculiar stench.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse smelled the scent and became calm, just like a child being given candy. It stopped jumping around and looked at the Ancient Demon g before lowering its towering body in front of Jiang Wuxie.


    <em>Growl ¡­</em>


    It growled a bit before it retreated and looked at Jiang Wuxie warily.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t harm you ¡­¡± Jiang Wuxie was like a kind father when he smiled at the Ancient Demon Corpse. Looking at the Ancient Demon Corpse with warm eyes, he waved the Ancient Demon g lightly, causing bloody runes to float out of the g. They floated towards the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s head and covered it.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s head was a meter and a half in diameter.


    The blood-red runes seeped into the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s head and formed the strange rune imprinted on the Ancient Demon g inside of its head. When it waspleted, Long Chen sensed that the aura of the Ancient Demon Corpse had changed. The rampaging beast had be a puppet that the holder of the g could control!


    The process waspleted in a short amount of time.


    Just like that, Jiang Wuxie had control over the Ancient Demon Corpse. After seeing the Ancient Demon Corpse submitting to him, Jiang Wuxie knew he had seeded, and he felt relieved. The moment he had awaited all his life was here.


    Heughed maniacally.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse continued to bow in front of him like a dog.


    The people of the Ancient Demon Domain were also celebrating.


    ¡°Has he seeded? Congrattions to the Demon Emperor!¡±


    ¡°From today onwards, the Ancient Demon Domain will be the strongest faction of the Divine Martial Empire, and the Demon Emperor is now the strongest being!¡±


    ¡°The Ancient Demon Domain is the strongest!¡±


    All of them were celebrating Jiang Wuxie¡¯s achievement.


    Long Chen frowned because Long Yue¡¯s n to attack Jiang Wuxie together had failed. Jiang Wuxie was a maniac that had endured for many years; there was no way he would let Long Yue and Long Chen escape.


    After taking control of the Ancient Demon Corpse, Jiang Wuxie was eager to test out its strength.

 Chapter 642: Conditions

    The Ancient Demon Corpse was the Ancient Demon Domain¡¯s most mysterious treasure, and the Ancient Demon g was designed to solely control the corpse.


    That treasure was now in Jiang Wuxie¡¯s control.


    Long Shan didn¡¯t manage to stop him. After bringing the Ancient Demon Corpse under his control, Jiang Wuxie stared at Long Shan with cold eyes.


    ¡°So, will the senior from the Dragon n step forward and try to take the Ancient Demon Corpse from me?¡± His eyes were flickering with amusement and his voice was arrogant.


    Long Shan squinted. ¡°No, it belongs to the Ancient Demon Domain. I have no intention of touching it.¡±


    Jiang Wuxie chuckled, ¡°Looks like you know a little about the Ancient Demon Domain.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve only heard of it in passing. Jiang Wuxie, I will be clear with my demands. Since you obtained the Ancient Demon Corpse, you are technically recognized as someone at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. You¡¯ve been suppressed by the Martial Overlord for the past few years, so I¡¯m sure you have a grudge against-¡±


    Jiang Wuxie interrupted, ¡°Do you mean to suggest that we work together and defeat Zhao Wuji? You aren¡¯t wrong. I do want to kill Zhao Wuji. With you around, the Dragon n now has the requirements to work with me. However, I have a condition. I won¡¯t cooperate with you if the condition is not fulfilled.¡±


    Jiang Wuxie was adamant on that matter.¡°What is your condition?¡± Long Shan had a feeling he knew what it was.


    Jiang Wuxieughed. He walked towards the Ancient Demon Corpse and said, ¡°It¡¯s simple. Kill Long Chen. I want the Long Chen who killed my son to die. Give him to me and I will cooperate with you to deal with the Martial Alliance.¡±


    Long Shan had expected that.


    Long Yue was furious when Jiang Wuxie demanded Long Chen¡¯s life. ¡°Grandfather, there¡¯s no way we can cooperate. Let¡¯s go back.¡±


    None of them would agree to sacrifice Long Chen just to cooperate with the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Long Chen was also Long Shan¡¯s savior; he had led the entire Long n to escape the Nine Spirit Purgatory and he possessed unlimited potential. Long Shan would never sacrifice Long Chen for the sake of Jiang Wuxie, so he refused. ¡°It seems that we cannot cooperate, then. Goodbye.¡±


    Long Shan then walked towards Long Chen.


    It was time to return to the Battle n.


    Just then, Jiang Wuxie¡¯s cold voice came from behind Long Shan.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Jiang Wuxieughed coldly as he waved the Ancient Demon g. ¡°I don¡¯t care if we cooperate or not, but Long Chen must die today. I will kill anyone who tries to stop me. Come and test the might of the Ancient Demon Corpse!¡±


    Jiang Wuxie swung the Ancient Demon g and gave his orders. The Ancient Demon Corpse stood up and then shrunk mysteriously. The Ancient Demon Corpse stopped shrinking when it was around the same height as Jiang Wuxie. Now that it was smaller, its muscles were denser. Its horrifying aura was oppressive, and everyone sensed that the Ancient Demon Corpse became stronger in this form.


    ¡°Har ¡­ Hurh ¡­¡± The Ancient Demon Corpse opened its mouth and panted, its single eye bing blood-red again as its bloodlust burst forth.


    ¡°Time to fight?¡± Long Shan chuckled. As a senior in terms of cultivation, he didn¡¯t fear the Ancient Demon Corpse. Long Shan was once at the Fifth Earthly Martial Realm, but his current condition didn¡¯t allow him to use all of his strength. Once he fully recovered, he could easily defeat the Ancient Demon Corpse no matter how perfect Jiang Wuxie¡¯s control over it was.


    ¡°I will kill those who dare to shield Long Chen.¡± Jiang Wuxieughed arrogantly as he waved the g. The Ancient Demon Corpse sprinted towards Long Chen. The ground dented every time it took a step.


    Long Chen felt the suffocating pressure exerting on his body. There was nothing but the sprinting Ancient Demon Corpse in his eyes. The presence of the corpse intensified to the point that Long Chen felt like he couldn¡¯t move.


    It was as if amb had run into a lion.


    Long Chen now knew the true gap between each stage of the Earthly Martial Realm. The Ancient Demon Corpse was so much stronger than him that he couldn¡¯t retaliate at all.


    ¡°Impudent.¡± Long Shan blocked the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Long Chen sighed. The terrifying presence had caused him to break out in cold sweat.


    ¡°Long Chen, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Liu Yiyi was worried about him.


    She clearly cared for him.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Long Chen shook his head. ¡°Eldest Sister, Senior Long Shan is still in the middle of his recovery. Will he be fine if he fights now?¡± He looked at Long Shan and the Ancient Demon Corpse fighting against each other.


    Long Yue smiled bitterly and shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Long Chen could only watch the battle unfold anxiously.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse relied purely on its physical strength to fight on par with Long Shan, who could utilize as much essence as a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. <em>The Ancient Demon Corpse must¡¯ve been exceptionally strong when it was alive.</em>


    The power of the flesh was indeed terrifying. Every punch it threw caused the very air to explode. It managed to cause tremors whenever its fistsnded onto the ground. Long Shan dared not take on the attacks directly but instead deflected them.


    ¡°Five Piercing Dragons.¡±


    Long Shan¡¯s execution of the technique was exquisite. The five dragons coiled around the Ancient Demon Corpse in an attempt to grind it to dust.


    ¡°Break!¡± Long Shan howled angrily as his ws made a screeching voice against the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s rigid body. The battle was simr to Long Chen¡¯s battle against Zhao Danchen, but the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s body was tougher than the Golden Combat Body.


    The two crossed each other, and Long Shan appeared behind the Ancient Demon Corpse. Thetter was covered incerations so deep that everyone could see the bones, but Long Chen was surprised when he saw that the Ancient Demon Corpse wasn¡¯t shedding a single drop of blood. More importantly, thecerations were healing at a rapid speed.


    <em>What incredible regenerative abilities. </em>Long Chen was even more wary of the Ancient Demon Corpse now.


    <em>I¡¯m not sure if Senior Long Shan can continue to fight like this. He needs more time to rest and doesn¡¯t have much stamina now. We will be in trouble if this keeps up. </em>Long Chen frowned.


    Long Shan was also frowning because he knew his limit.


    ¡°What do you think? I¡¯m sure that the Ancient Demon Corpse is a surprisingly strong enemy for you.¡± Jiang Wuxieughed and waved the Ancient Demon g. Strands of power flowed into the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Jiang Wuxie was satisfied with the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s strength.


    It was very strong.


    If the mysterious Long Shan had such a tough time fighting against it, Jiang Wuxie was certain that the Martial Overlord would have a difficult time too. Jiang Wuxie finally had the strength to fight Zhao Wuji. He felt like his dream was going toe true.


    <em>Long Chen must die today.</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s immeasurable potential made Jiang Wuxie feel pressured.


    He would never rest until Long Chen was dead.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s strength was endless. Jiang Wuxiemanded it to sh with Long Shan again and again. The horrific battle was more intense than Long Chen¡¯s previous battle. Everyone had already evacuated while Jiang Wuxie had retreated until his back reached a mountain. He was afraid that Long Shan would attack him instead. Several strong experts from the Ancient Demon Domain saw that Jiang Wuxie was vulnerable, and they immediately surrounded the Demon Emperor to shield him from danger.


    It would be difficult tounch a surprise attack unless they came from the back.


    Jiang Wuxie could see everyone from his position. The moment Long Chen made any movement to steal the Ancient Demon g, Jiang Wuxie would immediately recall the Ancient Demon Corpse to protect him.


    Everyone could do nothing but watch Long Shan battling the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Long Shan was more agile, but the Ancient Demon Corpse was stronger and tougher. Long Shan could only bide his time.


    <em>This is a very strong monster. What can I do to make it retreat? </em>Long Shan was trying toe up with a n as he fought. The Ancient Demon Corpse reminded him a lot of the previous Martial Overlord, though the Ancient Demon Corpse was even more sturdy. A single blow from it was more than enough to kill Long Shan.


    ¡°I have to take a risk.¡±


    The Ancient Demon Corpse could only use basic punches and kicks, but those were more than enough to destroy a mountain.


    The battle continued as Long Shan relied on his martial techniques. He used the Five Piercing Dragons again and shed with the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s attacks. This was the first time he had taken it head-on. Both of them were pushed back by the impact, with Long Shan¡¯s face bing paler while the Ancient Demon Corpse rolled on the ground.


    After pushing the Ancient Demon Corpse down, Long Shan wasted no time¡ªhe suppressed his boiling blood and ran at the Ancient Demon Corpse while using his strongest technique, the Nine Heavens Strike.

 Chapter 643: Change

    The nine dragons flew towards the Ancient Demon Corpse, hitting it squarely. A terrifying screeching sound could be heard as the attacks were like des running across the surface of the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s body.


    Blood-red light burst forth from the wounds. Long Shan had risked sustaining injuries tond his strongest martial technique! The Ancient Demon Corpse cried out in pain. The strongest attack from a Fourth Earthly Martial Cultivator was not to be underestimated if even the Ancient Demon Corpse had to cry out.


    But Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure that it had worked. The Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s flesh was much stronger than Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body. Even after Long Shan used the Nine Heavens Strike, the skin of the Ancient Demon Corpse was merely covered in shallow wounds.


    None of them were fatal.


    Just then, the Ancient Demon Corpse endured the pain and punched Long Shan. He quickly deactivated the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and used both arms to block the attack. The massive force impacted Long Shan¡¯s arms and caused his shirt to burst open. Long Shan¡¯s arms were bloody from the impact.


    He spat out blood and retreated with his face bing paler by the second. He staggered and took a long time to steady himself.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse was covered in wounds too. It hunched over and let out painful growls, unable to move. Still, its wounds were stitching together rapidly, though it needed some time due to the sheer amount ofcerations.


    The sh ended in a draw with both sustaining injuries.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse had beaten Long Shan with just its physical body, proving its strength.Long Chen studied the situation calmly.


    <em>Long Shan is old, and the punch from the Ancient Demon Corpse must¡¯ve caused internal injuries. It won¡¯t be easy for him to recover at his age, but the Ancient Demon Corpse is different. Its wounds will recover in half a day or so. The Ancient Demon Corpse is indeed stronger than Long Shan.</em>


    He was worried.


    Long Shan quickly wiped the blood off his mouth. His face soon recovered its ruddiness as he looked at the Ancient Demon Corpse. ¡°Demon Emperor, it seems that it¡¯s impossible for you to kill Long Chen today with me shielding him. Do you want your Ancient Demon Corpse to be destroyed by my hands?¡±


    Long Shan wouldn¡¯t be able to destroy the Ancient Demon Corpse even if he used his full strength, but he could cause it to lose most of itsbat capabilities. Jiang Wuxie needed the Ancient Corpse to kill Zhao Wuji; it would be a waste for it to be destroyed by Long Shan.


    Jiang Wuxie was hesitating.


    His initial n was to kill Long Chen if the Ancient Demon Corpse could suppress Long Shan easily, but the Ancient Demon Corpse had barely won. Jiang Wuxie was also wary of any hidden trump cards up Long Shan¡¯s sleeves.


    Therefore, he had no choice but to give up. ¡°We can never cooperate. Get out of the Ancient Demon Domain. We will meet on the battlefield. I am eager to find out who will rule the Divine Martial Empire.¡±


    Long Shan¡¯s faction was the weakest of three. Zhao Wuji was strong and mysterious, while Jiang Wuxie¡¯s Ancient Demon Corpse was slightly stronger than Long Shan.


    Jiang Wuxie had spared them, but his words were still harsh.


    ¡°We shall leave now since you do not wee us.¡± Long Shan was clearly upset.


    Even though he looked fine on the outside, Long Chen knew that Long Shan¡¯s internal injuries were severe. It was impossible for Long Shan to be fine after being trapped in the boulder for so long.


    With their objectives achieved, everyone left the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King couldn¡¯t stay at the Ancient Demon Domain anymore. Jiang Wuxia looked at them embarrassingly as his broken arm dangled. ¡°Will youe with me?¡±


    That was his choice.


    Long Yue smiled, but no one knew what she was thinking.


    Even though the Clear Shallows King had a lot of resentment towards Jiang Wuya, she knew that she couldn¡¯t stay at the Ancient Demon Domain anymore. She would suffer if she didn¡¯t have the Dragon n protecting her, so she had decided to stay with them. ¡°Fine. I will give you a chance to redeem yourself.¡±


    ¡°I ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi was happy that her wish wasing true. It waste, but it was better than noting true at all.


    Jiang Wuya had made this decision on his own without anyone helping him this time.


    Long Chen dared notment on the matter. Long Shan was injured, and they needed to return to the Battle n to recover. They had no choice but to make another n for the future.


    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s go back,¡± Long Yue said.


    Everyone nodded.


    But the situation suddenly changed.


    Sounds of explosions came from where Jiang Wuxie was. Everyone turned and looked at him.


    In order to prevent Long Shan or Long Chen from attacking him, Jiang Wuxie had retreated to a mountain. He had turned his back towards the mountain while he monitored the two people who could harm him while he controlled the Ancient Demon Corpse. But both him and Long Chen had forgotten one other person.


    Two golden lights shot down onto Jiang Wuxie¡¯s head. Long Chen immediately realized what it was¡ªZhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Eye of Annihtion.


    ¡°Oh no, I forgot about Zhao Danchen!¡± Long Chen was surprised too. He was about to kill Zhao Danchen when the Ancient Demon Corpse arrived. Therger threat had made him forget about Zhao Danchen.


    Zhao Danchen was at the top of the mountain, above Jiang Wuxie. Jiang Wuxie had been so engrossed with Long Shan and Long Chen that he had failed to notice that someone was above him.


    Long Chen had underestimated Zhao Danchen¡¯s recovery speed. He assumed Zhao Danchen was already on the brink of his death after crippling one of his arms, but the recovery power of the Golden Combat Body far exceeded everyone¡¯s expectations.


    While Long Shan was fighting against the Ancient Demon Corpse, Zhao Danchen had taken the opportunity to climb up the mountain from the back. When Jiang Wuxie let his guard down, Zhao Danchen jumped down and used his strongest technique, the Golden Eye of Annihtion.


    The attack hade too fast and too close. Jiang Wuxie¡¯s guard was fully down when he sensed the attacks. He managed to dodge one, but the second beam sted a hole in his chest.


    Jiang Wuxie cried out in pain. His lungs were exposed and blood sprayed everywhere.


    The disciples of the Ancient Demon Domain were shocked.


    Zhao Danchen had prepared his attack meticulously, so there was no way Jiang Wuxie could escape him. After using the Golden Eye of Annihtion, he used his one remaining arm to hit Jiang Wuxie¡¯s back with the Golden Heavy Punch.


    Blood gushed out of Jiang Wuxie''s mouth. He slumped to the ground, his face pale as paper. He was on the brink of death and couldn¡¯t resist Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Zhao ¡­¡±


    Zhao Danchenughed and took Jiang Wuxie¡¯s Ancient Demon g. Even though he had lost one of his arms, his Golden Combat Body made him impervious to attacks of those at the Second Earthly Martial Realm and below. Zhao Danchen ran through the group of people from the Ancient Demon Domain with the g in hand. Their attacks did nothing to him, and he quickly waved the Ancient Demon g so the Ancient Demon Corpse would follow him.


    Zhao Danchen understood how to use the Ancient Demon g after experimenting with it.


    No one had expected him to circle around Jiang Wuxie to steal the Ancient Demon g and take control of the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    It was a surprising development.


    Jiang Wuxie had lost consciousness and was on the brink of death. He never would¡¯ve expected that he would lose the Ancient Demon Corpse so soon after obtaining it.


    He felt like he had fallen from heaven to earth.


    Long Chen realized how dire the situation was.


    He cursed himself for not finishing Zhao Danchen off and allowing thetter to pull off such a significant reversal.


    No one in the Ancient Demon Domain could stop Zhao Danchen, especially now that he had control of the Ancient Demon Corpse. Zhao Danchen easily escaped their encirclement as he waved the Ancient Demon g with glee. His body was covered in wounds, but most of them had scabbed over. Due to how vigorously he was moving, most of the wounds reopened and left him covered in blood.


    Under the control of Zhao Danchen, the Ancient Demon Corpse rapidly expanded back to its original size. No one dared to move carelessly when they saw itsrge body.


    <em>Roaaaaar!</em>


    The Ancient Demon Corpse roared and cusped Zhao Danchen in its palms before raising him high above the clouds. Zhao Danchen looked down from the palm of the Ancient Demon Corpse.

 Chapter 644: Calm Before the Storm

    The Demon Emperor was close to dying because he had forgotten about Zhao Danchen. Almost everyone from the Ancient Demon Domain was huddled around the Demon Emperor, trying to give him all the spiritual herbs they had. The two Demon Saints and the remaining Demon Kings were shouting in anger at Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, you despicable man! How dare you attack us from the back!¡±


    ¡°You dare harm the Demon Emperor and steal the Ancient Demon Corpse?! You are despicable!¡±


    Few knew about the Ancient Demon Corpse, including the Martial Overlord. Only those at the higher echelons of the Ancient Demon Domain, or those at the same seniority as Long Shan, knew about its existence.


    The Ancient Demon Domain had kept the Ancient Demon Corpse hidden for a long time, and no one would¡¯ve guessed that Zhao Danchen would be the one who would profit from it.


    They were frustrated and refused to yield to reality. The two Demon Saints attacked Zhao Danchen recklessly, but thetter scoffed and waved the Ancient Demon g. The Ancient Demon Corpse swung its arm at the two Demon Saints. Although its attack missed, the strong wind blew them away.


    They rolled on the ground several times, their faces bing pale when they stopped.


    They looked at each other and sighed as they resigned. They had lost. The Demon Emperor was unconscious and they had lost control of the Ancient Demon Corpse. No one in the Ancient Demon Domain could stand up to Zhao Danchen now.


    Even though Zhao Danchen was bloody and had lost one of his arms, he had control over the Ancient Demon Corpse. ¡°Shit. To think I gave him a chance to survive.¡± Long Chen was frustrated too. Letting Zhao Danchen gain control of the Ancient Demon Corpse was bad news. If they didn¡¯t do anything now, they would face terrible danger in the future.


    He looked at Long Shan, and thetter nodded. ¡°You help them evacuate. I will do my best to try and take Zhao Danchen down.¡±


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t fight against the Ancient Demon Corpse, so Long Shan¡¯s idea was their best shot.


    Long Shan was also worried that the Ancient Demon Corpse would attack Long Chen and the others.


    Long Chen sighed and nodded.


    Saving the lives of everyone here was more important.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to run. The one who should be running is me.¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s cold voice came from above.


    His glee had turned into a deadly calmness. He looked at everyone, and his gaze stopped on Long Chen.


    ¡°I lost to you today and you broke off one of my arms. The next time we meet, I will break off all of your limbs in return.¡±


    Zhao Danchen ignored everyone, including the people from the Martial Alliance, and waved the Ancient Demon g. The Ancient Demon Corpse ran as fast as it could with him in tow.


    Even though Zhao Danchen¡¯s actions had saved a lot of trouble for Long Chen and the others, Long Chen knew that they now had another threat.


    Zhao Danchen was heavily wounded, and the Ancient Demon Corpse was in bad shape after fighting against Long Shan. Even so, if Zhao Danchen had fallen to madness, he would¡¯ve killed everyone here even if he lost his own life. He had lost once, and his ego wouldn¡¯t allow him to lose again.


    Zhao Danchen would be stronger than Long Shan once he recovered and gainedplete control over the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Long Shan was too injured to chase Zhao Danchen.


    In fact, it would be more dangerous since Long Shan could die if he pushed Zhao Danchen to a corner.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s final words were aimed at Long Chen.


    Long Chen felt the pressure increase.


    The Martial Alliance already had the Martial Overlord, and now there was Zhao Danchen and the Ancient Demon Corpse. Long Shan wouldn¡¯t be able to block both of them.


    They had to change their original n now.


    The ground shook as the Ancient Demon Corpse disappeared with Zhao Danchen. He would be stronger after surviving today.


    Everyone was silent as they took in the situation.


    The pressure of survival had be intense.


    ¡°Damn it. It¡¯s my fault for not killing Zhao Danchen. Now the Ancient Demon Corpse is in his hands. He¡¯s even more dangerous than Jiang Wuxie ¡­¡± Long Chen was feeling guilty. If it wasn¡¯t for how sturdy Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body was, Long Chen would¡¯ve been able to kill him easily.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, don¡¯t be too harsh on yourself. No one expected things to turn out this way. Even Jiang Wuxie fell for his ns. Right now, we should prioritize heading back to the Battle n to rest ¡­¡± Long Yue then looked at Long Shan. ¡°Grandfather, you are injured.¡±


    Long Shan nodded. ¡°I¡¯m old and useless now. I still have a lot of hidden injuries in my body that cannot be healed without the proper spiritual herbs. I fear that I won¡¯t be able to return to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. In fact, I might be weaker than a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator after today¡¯s fight.¡±


    Long Shan was their barrier. Everyone would be in trouble if he died, so they were worried about him.


    At the same time, Jiang Wuya looked at Jiang Wuxie.


    ¡°Go and look after him.¡± Long Yue knew that Jiang Wuya still had some brotherly love for Jiang Wuxie.


    Jiang Wuya nodded and walked towards the Ancient Demon Domain. Everyone was depressed over there, and they would never ignore Jiang Wuya. He returned after a short while. ¡°He¡¯s not in danger anymore, but he needs a lot of time to recover. I think the Ancient Demon Domain will be quiet for a very long time. I hope the Martial Alliance won¡¯t destroy them.¡±


    ¡°The Martial Overlord is not stupid. He¡¯s targeting us and will most likely ignore Jiang Wuxie,¡± Long Yue said.


    ¡°In that case, we need to head back to the Battle n right now.¡±


    They separated into two groups and headed back to the Battle n. Jiang Wuya was apanied by the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi while Long Chen was apanied by the others. Jiang Wuya had lost one of his arms but gained his family back. Long Chen was genuinely happy for him.


    Long Yue said nothing, but Long Chen had a feeling that she was feeling conflicted.


    Several dayster, they reached the Battle n without incident.


    The news of what had happened at the Ancient Demon Domain had spread everywhere. Lei Zhen, Lan Xiang¡¯er, and Chi Ying had learned everything that had transpired. Even though defeating Zhao Danchen was supposed to be joyful news, what happened afterwards dampened the mood.


    Everything had changed too quickly.


    After losing the Ancient Demon Corpse, the Ancient Demon Domain was destined to lose its reign of supremacy. Meanwhile, the Martial Alliance had gained two cultivators at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. As for the Dragon n, they had gained Long Shan as a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Overall, the Martial Alliance was still stronger, and because Long Shan was a potential threat, the Martial Alliance would never let them go.


    A menacing force had gathered in the north of the Divine Martial Empire.


    They had one person at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, three Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators, and numerous people at the First and Second Earthly Martial Stages. The Dragon n was almost as strong as the Martial Alliance.


    The only bad news was the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    It gave them a lot of pressure.


    Long Chen was well aware of Long Shan¡¯s condition. His injuries were worse than he had thought. It was already hard enough for him to maintain his strength, much less regain his strength as a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Long Yue and the others hurriedly scoured for spiritual herbs once they reached the Battle n. Chi Ying used his massive informationwork to find the most crucial spiritual herbs, but it was a monumental task.


    The Martial Alliance¡¯s pride had been challenged after the Dragon n and the Martial Alliance fought so viciously outside the Ancient Demon Domain. No one believed that the Martial Alliance would let such a humiliation slide, especially once Zhao Wuji saw Zhao Danchen¡¯s lost arm.


    The storm wasing.


    Everyone was depressed because they were too weak.


    Long Chen and the others met up with Lei Zhen and the rest. After a short conversation and a few days of rest, they gathered to strategize.


    Long Shan was the oldest and the strongest person present. ¡°My job is to rest and recover as much as I can. I suggest that we don¡¯t move now. We have a lot of geniuses here, so the more we stall, the better it will be for us.¡±


    That was indeed one of the best choices they could make right now.


    When he mentioned geniuses, he mainly meant Long Chen.


    Everyone knew how strong the Martial Overlord was. Long Chen was only considered strong in the younger generation; there was arge gap between him and the Martial Overlord. And he didn''t have enough time to bridge that gap.


    Resting and bing stronger was their only way to escape danger.


    But they were still pressured by what was happening.


    ¡°Fifth Brother, from today onwards, the Red Souls will monitor Martial Overlord City and observe the movements of the Martial Alliance. Report to us the moment anything happens over there. Also, don¡¯t forget to search for the spiritual herbs,¡± Long Yue instructed.

 Chapter 645: Fiance

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Leave it to me. I swear on my soul that I will find it.¡± Chi Ying chuckled and tried to lighten the mood, but everyone only gave a chuckle before they were depressed again.


    Long Chen was feeling helpless too.


    ¡°The Martial Overlord has taken the Azure Emperor Seal. We cannot let him take the rest. The Scarlet and ck Emperor Seals are in Seventh Brother¡¯s hands while the Yellow Emperor Seal was hidden by Lei Zhen. Once we snatch the two seals from the Martial Overlord, we will also give the Yellow Emperor Seal to Seventh Brother,¡± Long Yue proposed.


    Long Chen was confused as to why they were giving him all five seals. ¡°Eldest Sister, we gathered the Five Emperor Seals together, so we should share them.¡±


    Long Yueughed bitterly. ¡°Do you think we have the same monstrous talent as you? Your talent in cultivating martial techniques is second to none. This is an Emperor-tier martial technique that we are talking about. We will be satisfied just watching you use it. There¡¯s no point in forcing ourselves to cultivate it.¡±


    Long Chen understood why they hade to this decision.


    Of the Five Emperor Seals, Long Chen had managed to obtain both the Scarlet and ck Emperor Seals on his own, so his contribution was thergest. It was indeed reasonable for them to give him the rights to cultivate it.


    The reason he had told them about the Scarlet and ck Emperor Seals was to help hisrades. He cherished the bond he had with them.


    He wasn¡¯t sure if he would meet another group ofrades like them if he went to the Three Emperor Territory.That was how the issue regarding the Five Emperor Seals was solved.


    They brainstorm for ideas but couldn¡¯te up with any good ones to deal with the Martial Overlord. Long Yue ordered Long Chen to increase his cultivation level within a short period of time since he was the second strongest person in their group.


    They finished their meeting and were about to leave when Long Chen stopped them. ¡°Wait, I have one more thing to say.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    Long Chen wanted to use this chance to tell them about the Ancient Token and the Ancient Graveyard. ¡°Fifth Brother, I¡¯ve heard about the Ancient Graveyard. I need to go there, so I was hoping that you could help me gather information about it, such as the appearance of the Ancient Token.¡±


    ¡°You want to enter the Ancient Graveyard?¡± Long Shan was the first to question him.


    Long Chen nodded.


    Long Shan observed him and sighed. ¡°You are young and adventurous indeed. The Divine Martial Empire only gets a single Ancient Token. I¡¯m sure Zhao Wuji wants it too. Since his master died in the Ancient Graveyard, he had no choice but to raise Zhao Danchen to the point where thetter could reign supreme in Martial Overlord City before he heads there himself. You can try your luck to get the single Ancient Token. Though there¡¯s one other person who wants to enter the Ancient Graveyard.¡±


    Long Chen had expected Zhao Wuji¡¯s intention to enter the Ancient Graveyard.


    There were barely any opportunities to be stronger in Martial Overlord City, especially for someone of Zhao Wuji¡¯s caliber. The Ancient Graveyard was his final chance even though there was a risk of death.


    But Long Chen was surprised to hear that there was one more person. After thinking about it, he asked, ¡°Senior, the one other person you mentioned ¡­ Is it yourself?¡±


    Long Shan smiled. ¡°You are correct.¡±


    Everyone was in disbelief. Long Shan and Long Chen were both from the same faction and yet they both wanted to enter the Ancient Graveyard. It was certain that they would have to fight each other in the end.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t help it.


    ¡°Will you fight me if you need to go?¡± Long Shan asked seriously.


    Long Chen nodded without hesitation. ¡°I will pay any price to head to the Ancient Graveyard.¡±


    The only reason Long Chen hade to the Divine Martial Empire was to enter the Ancient Graveyard. Since he was already here, he would never stop and give up, even if it meant fighting against Long Shan.


    Sparks seemed to fill the air.


    Long Yue tried to calm both of them down. ¡°We can talk about the Ancient Graveyardter. We don¡¯t even know when the Ancient Token will appear. We should worry about the Martial Alliance first.¡±


    Long Yue looked at Long Shan nervously.


    She didn¡¯t know how temperamental Long Shan was. It would be troublesome if Long Shan and Long Chen fought each other.


    Unexpectedly, Long Shanughed when he saw Long Yue trying to defuse the situation; heughed so hard that his wounds reopened a little. He coughed and said, ¡°Xiao Yue¡¯er, you are too nervous. Who do you take me for? I¡¯m just curious as to why he wanted to go to the Ancient Graveyard. Long Chen, do you know why I want to go there?¡±


    Long Shan never meant to antagonize Long Chen. ¡°Please tell me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve lived long enough and I¡¯m nearing the end of my life. I just want to explore the world. The Ancient Graveyard has imprisoned me here all my life. I wish to see what the outside world looks like. I¡¯ve heard of the legends of the Three Emperor Territory, where the strongest people of the Dragon Continent congregate, but this is just a small wish of mine. It¡¯s fine if I can¡¯t fulfill it. I was just curious about the Ancient Graveyard since Chen Xiong died there. And what about you?¡±


    Long Chen looked at them silently before answering briefly, ¡°I¡¯m going to the Three Emperor Territory to find someone.¡±


    ¡°Someone?¡± Everyone was shocked because Long Chen had never talked about this before. Lan Xiang¡¯er, the one who gossiped the most, immediately followed up with another question. ¡°My dear brother, you want to go to the legendary Three Emperor Territory to find someone? I never thought you would have such a secret. Are you heading there for someone you love?¡±


    Lan Xiang¡¯er had hit the nail on the head. Long Chen needed to go there to meet his lover.


    Long Chen remained quiet and smiled.


    Long Yue rolled her eyes at Lan Xiang¡¯er. ¡°Don¡¯t spout nonsense. Seventh Brother has his own secrets, and we shouldn¡¯t pry. He will tell us naturally when the timees, right?¡±


    Long Yue smiled warmly at Long Chen.


    Long Chen smiled back.


    Initially, Long Yue was someone that never smiled. That was why people called her the cier Dragon Queen.


    Long Chen was grateful to them, and he naturally would tell them when the time came.


    Long Shan broke the silence at this point. ¡°Since you are adamant on going there, I will forfeit my chance. If the Ancient Token appears, I will help you obtain it.¡±


    Long Chen was surprised.


    He initially thought he would have to fight Long Shan to take it, but he never thought Long Shan would volunteer to help him instead.


    ¡°Thank you, Senior!¡±


    Long Shan smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t thank me. You are the savior of my family, and we owe you too much. If I can¡¯t even satisfy your little request, I won¡¯t have the face to stay with my two grandchildren.¡± He stammered a little. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the Ancient Token for now. Before it appears, the sky surrounding it will turn red and mist will fill up the area. No matter where we are in the Divine Martial Empire, we will be able to get there in time without any issue.¡±


    Long Chen sighed in relief.


    He felt a weight fall off his heart upon hearing that.


    They scattered after the meeting, and Long Chen started cultivating in his own residence.


    Everyone had settled down in the Battle n, including Liu Yiyi and the Clear Shallows King. After Jiang Wuya lost his arm, he had been focusing on recovery and rarely participated in meetings with Long Yue. Nowadays, he spent more time with the Clear Shallows King and Liu Yiyi in an attempt to rebuild his family.


    Liu Yiyi sometimes visited Long Chen, but she kept their conversations short in order to not disrupt his cultivation. One time, Liu Yiyi asked, ¡°I heard that you are going to the Three Emperor Territory to find someone. Is it a girl?¡±


    Her eyshes fluttered as she looked at Long Chen nervously.


    Long Chen remained silent because he didn¡¯t know how to answer her.


    Liu Yiyi smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You don¡¯t have to tell me, and I won¡¯t ask again. I will leave now so you can continue your cultivation.¡±


    She left promptly.


    Her white skirt disappeared from Long Chen¡¯s sight.


    Ling Xi was wearing something simr when he first met her.


    Long Chen recalled the first time heid eyes on Ling Xi. He saw how pure, fleeting, and ethereal she looked. She was the most beautiful angel in the heavens, and he had never seen one as pretty as her.


    As expected, she was the child of a super powerful family in the Three Emperor Territory. Compared to her noble status, Long Chen was like an ant. She was looking down from above the highest peaks, while Long Chen was crawling bitterly at the base of the mountain.


    ¡°Ten years ¡­ And yet half a year has already passed.¡±


    Long Chen clenched his fist when he looked out of his window.


    <em>Fiance, Wang Chen, Dragon Warrior.</em>


    He repeated those words continuously in his mind.


    ¡°Xiao Xi, I will get the Ancient Token and enter the Ancient Graveyard, then I will see you again soon after. I said ten years, and I¡¯ve already used up half a year. I wonder howrge the gap between us is now.¡±


    Long Chen was lost.


    He looked at the numerous peaks blocking his view outside.


    Even if he reached the Three Emperor Territory, he would be small and insignificant. What could he do in an environment filled with countless experts?

 Chapter 646: Lady Xuan

    Huangfu Fengchen was lounging on his chair in his study, holding a yellow book. He was staring at the book, but his mind was elsewhere.


    Just then, someone knocked urgently on his door.


    ¡°Come in,¡± Huangfu Fengchen replied and stood up. He had a bad feeling.


    The one who entered was the strongest youth of the Huangfu family, Huangfu Yu. Huangfu Yu was panting as he stammered, ¡°Patriarch! Someone brought word that Lady Xuan was calling for you, so I ran here immediately ¡­¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen frowned when he heard who it was, but he soon calmed down. ¡°I understand.¡±


    He then walked past Huangfu Yu and approached the ce where ¡°Lady Xuan¡± was waiting. Once he left, Huangfu Yu¡¯s stare turned cold.


    ¡°Huangfu Fengchen, let me see how haughty you can be with Lady Xuan¡¯s arrival!¡±


    Huangfu Yu revealed a lecherous expression when he recalled Ladu Xuan. ¡°Lady Xuan from the main branch family is very pretty. Who in the Divine Martial Empire canpare to her? She¡¯s not young anymore, but she showed some interest in me ¡­¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen entered a beautiful courtyard. Ake with an ind was in the center. There was a house in the middle of the ind, and it was the most luxurious one they had in the Huangfu family. It was where Huangfu Fengchen used to live with his wife, but ever since Lady Xuan had appeared, Huangfu Fengchen had moved out and conceded the residence to her.Like a swallow, he glided effortlessly across the clearke and entered the house. He quietly made his way through the hallways and stopped in front of an elegant room.


    The sound of running water could be heard from inside.


    ¡°Lady Xuan, it¡¯s me, Huangfu Fengchen. May I know your purpose for summoning me?¡±


    It was unheard of for someone to ¡°summon¡± Huangfu Fengchen. Even the Martial Overlord didn''t have the right to do that.


    ¡°Come in ¡­¡± A beguiling voice came from inside the room. A strange numbing sensation ran through Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s body. Lady Xuan was not an easy opponent.


    Huangfu Fengchen hesitated. <em>There¡¯s the sound of running water. I hope she¡¯s not taking a bath in the middle of the day.</em>


    He opened the door lightly and entered. It was an elegant room with traditional decorations. The wooden furniture was ced neatly. This was where his wife used to live, so he was familiar with the ce. There was a white, translucent curtain between the door and the room, but it was bright enough that Huangfu Fengchen could see through it.


    Huangfu Fengchen noticed that something was wrong as soon as he entered the room. It was too fragrant, and he couldn¡¯t dispel it from his nostrils no matter how hard he tried.


    In the middle of the room was arge, wooden tub. Because of the white curtain, Huangfu Fengchen couldn¡¯t get a good look, but he knew Lady Xuan was inside it. The overpowering fragrance came from her.


    Huangfu Fengchen knew how dangerous she was.


    He immediately turned back and stammered, ¡°Lady Xuan! I didn¡¯t know you were bathing! Please forgive me! I will leave now.¡±


    He hastened his steps to exit the room.


    ¡°Wait ¡­¡± A voice came from inside the tub.


    ¡°Do you have any orders?¡± Huangfu Fengchen had a bad feeling.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ¡­ Don¡¯t you want toe in?¡± Her voice prated deep into his bones.


    Huangfu Fengchen wasn¡¯t a virgin, so he knew what she meant. Lady Xuan was pretty and looked like she was in her twenties, but she was actually older than him.


    Huangfu Fengchen knew what she wanted; her behavior was clear enough. He was a handsome man and Lady Xuan wanted him.


    She was in the bathtub waiting for him.


    Huangfu Fengchen was aware that the Huangfu family would be more prosperous if he hooked up with her.


    Lady Xuan was very influential, to the point that even Huangfu Fengchen couldn¡¯t decline her most of the time.


    She also never expected him to refuse.


    Huangfu Fengchen had a wife, and he was adamant on being loyal even if it meant facing unforeseen problems. ¡°Lady Xuan, you must be toying with me. You are of noble status while I¡¯m only the insignificant branch head. I would never dare to sully you. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave now.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen never took another nce into the room.


    Lady Xuan remained quiet.


    Huangfu Fengchen became nervous when a dangerous aura wrapped around him. He even started trembling a little. He hadn¡¯t felt this weak ever since he reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage.


    ¡°Fine. Leave.¡± Lady Xuan¡¯s voice was no longer beguiling but instead cold. Huangfu Fengchen knew he was in trouble. Lady Xuan was a noble, and it was an insult to turn down her advances.


    There was nothing else he could do. He readied himself as he closed the door lightly and left.


    ¡°Huangfu Fengchen ¡­ Good ¡­ I was still trying to find a reason to deal with you, but to think you dare to humiliate me. Don¡¯t me me for what happens next ¡­¡±


    Lady Xuan revealed a cold smile as she sat in her bathtub.


    ¡°Huangfu Yu, enter,¡± she suddenly said out loud.


    Huangfu Yu had been eavesdropping outside and was shocked. He nervously entered the room and stared at Lady Xuan without any reservation.


    Lady Xuan was pleased with his reaction, and her voice changed back. ¡°Huangfu Yu, do you think I¡¯m pretty?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Lady Xuan, you are the most beautiful person I¡¯ve ever met! No one is as pretty as you! I¡¯ve never seen anyone as bewitching as you!¡± Huangfu Yu was so nervous that he stammered a lot.


    Lady Xuan¡¯s melodiousugh rang out from inside the bathtub, causing Huangfu Yu to get bewitched by her.


    ¡°Huangfu Yu, do you want to be the patriarch of the Huangfu family?¡± Lady Xuan suddenly asked.


    ¡°Pa ¡­ Patriarch?¡± Huangfu Yu was so stunned that he thought he had misheard.


    ¡°Let me ask you again. Do you wish to be the patriarch of the Huangfu family?¡±


    Huangfu Yu forced himself to calm down.


    <em>Lady Xuan is from the main branch, and she¡¯s stronger than Huangfu Fengchen. She could easily kill him and make me into the patriarch. Huangfu Fengchen looked weird just now, so he must¡¯ve angered her. This is a good chance! Huangfu Fengchen, you are dead!</em>


    Huangfu Yu was excited. ¡°La ¡­ Lady Xuan! I want to be the patriarch! Can you turn me into one?¡±


    Lady Xuan chuckled. ¡°Of course I can. Come, enter the bathtub, and I will make a patriarch out of you ¡­¡±

 Chapter 647: Myriad Earth Essence

    <em>Enter?</em>


    <em>Lady Xuan is inside the bathtub and she wants me to enter?</em>


    <em>Doesn¡¯t that mean ¡­</em>


    Huangfu Yu was ecstatic. He never thought something like this would happen to him. He had been fantasizing about Lady Xuan ever since he firstid eyes on her, but he never thought that it woulde true.


    He stumbled into the bathtub.


    But he was thrown out in just under three minutes.


    Huangfu Yu was shocked. He had tried tost longer, but Lady Xuan was simply too powerful.


    ***


    Martial Overlord City.News about the fight at the Ancient Demon Domain had spread throughout the Martial Alliance. Martial Overlord City was buzzing with activity as the citizens gossiped and discussed it.


    Long Shan¡¯s appearance was already shocking news, but the news about Long Chen defeating Zhao Danchen and twisting off one of his arms was even more surprising. Zhao Danchen and Zhao Wuji were legends in the Divine Martial Empire. Putting aside their personalities, their strength was unmatched.


    But after the appearance of Long Shan, who was on Zhao Wuji¡¯s level, Long Chen had managed to defeat Zhao Danchen.


    Long Chen¡¯s fame skyrocketed, and now everyone has heard his name. His position in the hearts of the people had far surpassed Zhao Danchen. To think a nameless nobody could be one of the strongest experts in the Divine Martial Empire in just a few months.


    The dazzling light surrounding Long Chen¡¯s fame cast arge shadow over the two geniuses.


    Zhao Danchen was not an easy target. He had lost an arm, but he hadn''t lost his rationality. He had inflicted a severe wound on the Demon Emperor and managed to steal the Ancient Demon Corpse, a being capable of fighting toe-to-toe against Long Shan with his Fourth Earthly Martial Stage strength.


    The incident was both good and bad news for the Martial Alliance. The bad news was that Zhao Danchen had lost to Long Chen, a member of the Dragon n. The good news was that the Martial Alliance had managed to secure the Ancient Demon Corpse, a tool as powerful as the Martial Overlord. It was such a bizarre twist of fate. If Zhao Danchen hadn¡¯t lost, he would¡¯ve never managed to attack Jiang Wuxie from the back.


    Everyone had a feeling that the Divine Martial Empire was undergoing arge change.


    The troops that had gone to the Ancient Demon Domain returned without Zhao Danchen, which left the Martial Alliance confused. <em>Isn¡¯t it better for him toe back to Martial Overlord City to recover?</em>


    No one knew why he hadn¡¯t returned immediately.


    Half a monthter, someone snuck into Martial Overlord Pce. At the topmost floor was a dark room so dark that one could barely see their hand in front of them. A man wearing white was sitting in the middle of the room.


    In front of the door was Xiao Lin. He waited patiently for the Martial Overlord toplete his cultivation before entering and reporting the recent incidents.


    <em>He didn¡¯t even react to his disciple getting one of his arms twisted off in front of the Ancient Demon Domain. Rather, he¡¯s just cultivating day and night. What¡¯s going on? </em>Xiao Lin was confused too.


    Xiao Lin was initially furious when he heard that Zhao Danchen had lost an arm. He reported to the Martial Overlord and assumed thetter would react the same way. Then they would lead the Martial Alliance to destroy the Dragon n. Surprisingly, the Martial Overlord had merely nodded and asked Xiao Lin to return, then he resumed cultivating.


    The Martial Overlord also didn¡¯t seek out news from Xiao Lin throughout the half-month.


    Xiao Lin hade again to try and persuade the Martial Overlord. Due to the incident at the Ancient Demon Domain, chaos had erupted everywhere in the Divine Martial Empire. There were too many issues for Xiao Lin to deal with alone, so he needed the Martial Overlord to step in.


    Time slowly passed, and Xiao Lin sensed that it was a good time to enter. He was about to knock on the door when he heard someone walking up the stairs from behind him. The intruder¡¯s aura was dense, an indication of an expert.


    A sharp aura pierced from underneath the floors.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± The aura wasparable to his own.


    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± Zhao Danchen looked at Xiao Lin when he reached the top of the stairs. Zhao Danchen had already recovered a lot and the blood on his body had long since been washed off. Xiao Lin noticed that Zhao Danchen looked the same as before, just without his right arm. The right sleeve of Zhao Danchen¡¯s clothes hung in the air.


    Xiao Lin sighed. ¡°Danchen, you are back. The Martial Overlord must¡¯ve been waiting for you.¡±


    ¡°Him? Waiting for me? Hehe, you are right. He is waiting for me.¡± Zhao Danchen scoffed. Rather than warmth, there was only coldness in his eyes.


    Xiao Lin was stunned. He didn¡¯t know what Zhao Danchen was saying.


    ¡°Go back down. I want to talk to him alone.¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s tone was dangerously cold.


    His position was slightly higher than Xiao Lin ¡¯s. Zhao Danchen was acting strange today, but Xiao Lin decided not to argue with him. ¡°Then I will take my leave now.¡±


    <em>It seems that Zhao Danchen is not on friendly terms with the Martial Overlord. No wonder he didn¡¯t return for so long.</em>


    Xiao Lin pondered as he went back down.


    <em>Maybe Zhao Danchen and the Martial Overlord have a secret? Even though they have the same surname, their bloodline is different ¡­</em>


    Zhao Danchen cursed under his breath as he looked at Xiao Lin walking down before he pushed open the door and entered the dark room. Zhao Danchen¡¯s footsteps echoed in the room, and he saw the man in white seated just ten meters away from him.


    ¡°I¡¯m back.¡±


    The room was silent.


    It was quite some time before the hoarse voice of the man in white resounded in the room.


    ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t return after you gained the strength to stand against me,¡± Zhao Wuji said with a nk stare.


    Zhao Danchen calmly responded, ¡°Of course not. There¡¯s no way I would continue living under you once I got the strength to oppose you.¡±


    ¡°To think that a descendant of the Great Gold n of the Divine Molten Gold Empire would be exiled to the insignificant Divine Martial Empire. Even after spending so many years here, your arrogance has yet to dissipate.¡±


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s voice echoed again.


    The Divine Molten Gold Empire and the Great Gold n were terms Long Chen hadn¡¯t heard before. The Divine Molten Gold Empire was one of the Ten Divine Empires. The Divine Martial Empire was the only weak one out of the ten.


    That exined Zhao Danchen¡¯s talent. He was an exile from the Divine Molten Gold Empire!


    ¡°Do you still care about my identity?¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s voice was cold.


    ¡°Of course. You stand above everyone here in the Divine Martial Empire, but you are just a petty criminal in the Divine Molten Gold Empire.¡± Zhao Wuji¡¯s voice was cold, carrying a hint of disdain.


    ¡°I¡¯m not here to talk with you. I want to take something from you,¡± Zhao Danchen said.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°An advanced King-tier spiritual herb, the Myriad Earth Essence. I know you have it.¡±


    ¡°The Myriad Earth Essence? It¡¯s a spiritual herb with intense healing properties. It could even regenerate the limbs of those at the Earthly Martial Realm. You want to heal your right arm? As my disciple, I could naturally give it to you, but on one condition.¡±


    ¡°What condition?¡±


    ¡°I want the Ancient Demon Corpse.¡±


    Zhao Danchenughed. ¡°Don¡¯t try to fool me, you old bastard! I¡¯m as strong as you now, but if I gave you the Ancient Demon Corpse, I would be your ve again!¡±


    ¡°ve?¡± Zhao Wuji sighed and shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s just your assumption. I¡¯ve always treated you as my sessor. I wanted to let you take over the Divine Martial Empire, but it seems you are ungrateful.¡±


    ¡°What kind of master would take his disciple¡¯s belongings?¡± Zhao Danchen retorted.


    ¡°I¡¯m leaving the Divine Martial Empire. The Ancient Demon Corpse will help me greatly. My chances of survival will increase if I have it.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Zhao Danchen realized what he was saying. ¡°Are you nning to enter the Ancient Graveyard? It¡¯s a battlefield where millions of experts have perished in the past. They¡¯ve left a lot of treasures there. The strongest people in the Ten Divine Empires all rose to their current positions after obtaining the treasures in the Ancient Graveyard. Zhao Wuji, you are truly a scheming bastard. You intend to give me the lousy Divine Martial Empire while you go look for treasure in the Ancient Graveyard!¡±


    Zhao Wuji shook his head. ¡°Isn¡¯t it good that you get the Divine Martial Empire? You are still young. You can get the Ancient Token to enter the Ancient Graveyard next time. By then, you should be at the Fourth or Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. You will have a higher chance of survival like that. If you enter now, you will die. I¡¯m already old and don¡¯t have any wishes left, so I want to risk it onest time.¡±

 Chapter 648: Category Three King-tier

    ¡°No wonder you didn¡¯t react even though Long Shan made such arge ruckus in Martial Overlord City. You don¡¯t care at all. That exins why you did nothing when the Martial Alliance was humiliated at the Ancient Demon Domain. You were focusing on the Ancient Graveyard! What a good n indeed! I won¡¯t give you the Ancient Demon Corpse, but I will pry the Myriad Earth Essence out of your hands!¡± Zhao Danchen wasn¡¯t afraid of his master.


    Zhao Wuji was silent for a bit, then he said, ¡°Leave. Come back once you really need the Myriad Earth Essence. I don¡¯t want the Divine Martial Empire anymore. I don¡¯t care who takes it, but I don¡¯t think you will ignore it.¡±


    He would be above billions of people, with control over a thousand kingdoms in the Ten Thousand Kingdom Territory. It was tempting, but Zhao Danchen was more interested in the Ancient Graveyard because that was his chance to be stronger!


    ¡°I will go to the Ancient Graveyard too, but we only have one Ancient Token ¡­ We shall fight and see who is superior! I will get the Myriad Earth Essence and the Ancient Token!¡±


    Zhao Danchen left after he spat those words. Zhao Wuji made no gesture to stop him.


    It wasn¡¯t until Zhao Danchen was gone that Zhao Wuji clenched his fists.


    ¡°You think a useless exile like you can stand up to me?¡± Zhao Wuji looked out of the window.


    ¡°The Ancient Tolen is mine for sure. The Ten Divine Empires and the Nine Great ns. Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Thunder, Demon, and Divine. Each great n is powerful on its own. It seems that without adequate luck, I will die at the Ancient Graveyard ¡­¡±


    Time slowly passed. There was no news of the Martial Alliance moving out, nor was there any news of the appearance of the Ancient Token. Long Chen was worried.The Dragon n had thought that the Martial Alliance would attack them immediately after the humiliating disy at the Ancient Demon Domain. But to their bewilderment, the Martial Alliance had done nothing. Even though most of the people in the Martial Alliance were cursing the Dragon n, the Martial Overlord had made no movements.


    That caused everyone else to think that the Martial Alliance was wary of Long Chen and Zhao Wuji had be a coward. Even though it was an insult to Zhao Wuji, hepletely ignored them and continued to cultivate.


    Long Yue and the others weren¡¯t sure what was happening. They thought the Martial Alliance was going to attack them immediately.


    There was nothing they could do but put up their guard and increase their strength as soon as possible. The ones who were injured were focused on recovering while the rest were focused on increasing their strength.


    Long Chen had mastered both the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Wind God Kick. His next task was to cultivate the third stage of the Earthly Martial Fist. Two monthster, Long Chen felt like he was nearing the Third Earthly Martial Stage under the guidance of Long Yue and Long Shan.


    Long Chen had progressed through the Four Basic Realms incredibly quickly, but when it came to the Three Martial Realms, he needed toprehend the meaning of ¡°martial arts¡± himself. Long Chen had no choice but to cultivate slowly as he figured out his own path.


    Progressing through the Earthly Martial Realm emphasized studying the earth itself. Earthly Qi was an infinite energy source for Earthly Martial Realm cultivators. Sensing,prehending, and using it in battle was the core of the Earthly Martial Realm.


    The Martial Soul was the key in controlling essence.


    A cultivator¡¯s initial consciousness couldn¡¯t handle essence.


    Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul slowly improved as he cultivated the Earthly Martial Fist.


    But he did not tell anyone that he was close to breaking through the bottleneck and advancing into the Third Earthly Martial Stage.


    <em>Once I reach the Third Earthly Martial Stage, I will have the strength to fight equally against Zhao Wuji, Long Shan, and the Ancient Demon Corpse. Both Long Shan and Zhao Wuji are aiming for the Ancient Token and the Five Emperor Seals. Long Shan is an ally, so I can put him aside for now, but I will have trouble fighting against Zhao Wuji and the Ancient Demon Corpse if I don¡¯t be a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.</em>


    Long Chen paused his cultivation in the middle of the mountain range.


    Nothing but mountains surrounded him.


    This was the mountain range behind the forest where the Battle n resided. There was nothing but shriveled-up trees here and the ground was poor in nutrients. It reminded Long Chen of the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    He looked around and took a deep breath. Ever since Ling Xi left, his behavior had changed a lot. He used to be arrogant, but now he was more mellow and silent. But only those close to him knew that Long Chen kept his bloodlust hidden deep inside his heart.


    Bing more silent had made him even more dangerous. A silent venomous snake was deadlier than one that announced its presence.


    In a sense, he had grown and matured.


    He started to grasp a lot of things on his own after Ling Xi had left.


    Only through struggling could he change his fate.


    Long Chen had never once taken a step back.


    <em>Time to go back. I wonder if there¡¯s any news on the Ancient Token ¡­</em> Long Chen started to climb down the mountain.


    Halfway down, he sensed something and became excited.


    Mo Xiang had woken up from inside the Primordial Realm. He had devoured the massive beast fire resembling a wheel in the Nine Spirit Purgatory. The beast fire was more dangerous than the Blue Devil me, so it had greatly increased Xiang¡¯s strength!


    Mo Xiang was also one of Long Chen¡¯s trump cards.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf had two incredible talents. One, the incredible growth rate through consuming mes. Two, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, a me that existed at the same time as the Ancestral Dragons. Mo Xiang was only capable of controlling a small portion of it, but those hit by the mes rarely survived.


    When Xiang was only at the Category Nine Heaven-tier, the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was powerful enough to kill the Void Sword Saint.


    Long Chen quickly opened up the Primordial Realm. ck mes gushed out of his chest and rapidly expanded in the air. A ck lotusposed of mes hung above him. It wasrger than Xiang by at least a third! Based on its size, Long Chen knew that Xiang had grown stronger.


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire shifted in front of Long Chen, and he soon saw Xiang¡¯s body in the middle of it. The phenomena unfolding before him resembled the revival of a phoenix. Xiang¡¯s body was nowrger, and his Demonic Qi had increased a lot.


    Xiang¡¯s eyes were filled with ck mes as he stared at Long Chen. The aura he was exuding made Long Chen be wary of him.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was originally a Category One Earth-tier beast. Long Chen could not imagine how strong Xiang would be as he improved.


    The terrifying sensation didn¡¯tst long. The massive body of the Sun Devouring Wolf rapidly shrank and became the familiar Mo Xiang. The ck mes dissipated and Mo Xiang opened his eyes, revealing the ck mes in them.


    Whenever he assumed this form, he was weaker than demonic beasts at the same category. It was most likely due to his human soul.


    Mo Xiang¡¯s aura was far more powerful than that of the strongest demonic beast in the Cloud Dream Swamp, the ck Water Viper.


    ¡°Big Brother.¡± Xiang smiled and scratched the back of his head.


    ¡°How strong are you now?¡±


    ¡°King-tier ¡­ Category Three!¡± Mo Xiang was humble and bashful.


    Category Three King-tier. It was the same strength as the ck Water Viper. Except for the Divine Phoenix at the Immortal Sea, Mo Xiang was now the strongest demonic beast in the Divine Martial Empire.


    A Category Three King-tier Xiang was more than enough to be Long Chen¡¯s ace. Their coordination, the Blood Devouring Domain, and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire were more than enough to kill anyone.


    As sworn brothers, they didn¡¯t have to talk much to show how they felt.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go back,¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    As they climbed down the mountain, Long Chen exined what had happened after they escaped from the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    ¡°The Five Emperor Seals are the key to obtaining the Emperor-tier martial technique. If we can get our hands on it, it will help us a lot. The Ancient Token is also the key for me to reach the Three Emperor Territory. I need to get both of them even if it costs me my life!¡± Long Chen clenched his teeth.


    ¡°Then I shall fight to the bitter end with you.¡± Mo Xiang was pumped too.


    Long Chen would never mistreat Mo Xiang even if thetter did.


    Mo Xiang lowered his head and whispered, ¡°Big Brother, do you miss Sister Ling Xi?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned. He never thought Xiang would talk about this with him. Mo Xiang smiled awkwardly. ¡°I just asked out of curiosity. I don¡¯t know what to talk about if you keep quiet.¡±


    Long Chenughed. ¡°Of course I miss her. There¡¯s nothing else I can say, but ¡­¡± Long Chen squinted at the horizon. ¡°One day, we will reach the Three Emperor Territory. Once we are there, we will finally see what a true Dragon Warrior is!¡±


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    They soon reached the Battle n, and Long Yue passed them an unfortunate piece of news. ¡°Seventh Brother, something happened to the Huangfu family.¡±

 Chapter 649: Two News

    ¡°Something¡¯s wrong with the Huangfu family?¡± Long Chen panicked. Long Yue wouldn¡¯t have told him if it was trivial. <em>They must be in danger!</em>


    ¡°Big Sister, what¡¯s wrong with them? Why are you panicking?¡±


    Long Yue was perplexed. ¡°The Red Souls told us that the Huangfu family has changed their patriarch.¡±


    ¡°Changed their patriarch? Who became the new patriarch?¡± Long Chen was surprised. The strongest person was Huangfu Fengchen at the Third Earthly Martial Realm while Huangfu Fengyun was the second strongest at the Second Earthly Martial Realm. It was impossible for the Huangfu family to assign a new patriarch unless something happened to Huangfu Fengchen.


    The Willow Step had been a gift to Long Chen, and Huangfu Qi was his friend. Long Chen would never stay silent if something were to happen to them.


    ¡°Their patriarch is now Huangfu Yu, but he¡¯s just a youth at the First Earthly Martial Realm. This is such a joke. Still, I don¡¯t know what happened to them. The Red Souls had been focusing on gaining information on the Martial Overlord City and only barely caught wind of the news in the Huangfu family. I have a feeling that something bad is happening there,¡± Long Yue said.


    Long Chen was extremely shocked to learn that Huangfu Yu had be the patriarch.


    <em>This is impossible! Unless ¡­ Something fishy is going on.</em>


    ¡°Eldest Sister, how¡¯s the Martial Alliance recently? Is there anything I need to do?¡± Long Chen suddenly asked.¡°The Martial Alliance isn¡¯t moving for now. I don¡¯t think they will do anything to us. They gave us the time to recover, so we won¡¯t be in trouble for now. Are you nning to go to the Huangfu family? Don¡¯t worry about us if that¡¯s the case. My grandfather will be protecting the Battle n, so you should go and check on the Huangfu family. You have to repay their favor after all. But be careful because we don¡¯t know their full history.¡±


    ¡°Could you tell me more about them?¡± It was true that Long Chen didn¡¯t know about the Huangfu family¡¯s history.


    Long Yue frowned and tried her best to recall. ¡°I have to talk to my grandfather about it. I think he told me before that the Huangfu family relocated here from somewhere else and has always kept a low profile. I¡¯m certain that no family or n has ever managed to grow asrge as them while under the control of the Martial Alliance, so they probably came from another Divine Empire.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    Due to the urgency of the matter, Long Chen didn¡¯t have time to ask Long Shan about it. ¡°Eldest Sister, I''m going there right now.¡±


    ¡°Be careful. We still need you here.¡± Long Yue smiled. She had a ponytail today that made her look refreshed.


    After the issue with Jiang Wuxie had been dealt with, she had more time to deal with the matters regarding the Dragon n and the Battle n.


    Long Chen brought only Xiang with him. They had been inseparable ever since they started their journey in the Cangyang Kingdom. Long Chen still remembered how to reach the Huangfu family since he had been there once before.


    He followed the path and made his way over with Xiang following closely behind.


    ¡°Do you think that Huangfu Fengchen has been killed? Will we be in danger if we go there?¡± Xiang asked.


    ¡°Are you afraid?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not afraid, but¡­ Huangfu Qi is very cute. I won¡¯t forgive anyone thatys their hands on her.¡±


    Long Chen was stunned. He remembered how Huangfu Qi kept nagging him to hug Xiang. After spending some time with her, Xiang had grown fond of her. That exined his attitude right now.


    After reaching the Category Three King-tier, Xiang¡¯s way of speaking had be more intimidating. His opponents would¡¯ve shivered if they saw how angry he was.


    ¡°Hah! So the little ck dog is baring his fangs. I¡¯m so afraid!¡± The Fat Cat chuckled and taunted Xiang from inside the Primordial Realm.


    Both Long Chen and Xiang ignored him, causing the Fat Cat¡¯s whiskers to tremble with indignity. They had long grown used to him. Even though Fat Cat could be annoying at times, he was still a good person.


    Long Chen had previously taken five days to reach the Battle n from the Huangfu family, but this time it only took him three days.


    Before heading into the Huangfu family estate, Long Chen first entered the city on the outskirts. The city was called Huangfu City. Long Chen used the secret code to summon the Red Souls. The one who met him was an old man working as a doctor in Huangfu City. It was a real job that served as his disguise.


    ¡°I greet the Seventh Master.¡± The old man bowed as he recognized Long Chen.


    In the simple study room, Long Chen went straight to business and asked, ¡°I¡¯m here to learn more about the Huangfu family. Tell me everything you know.¡±


    Long Chen was hoping that they had gathered more information in the past three days.


    The old man nodded. ¡°What you¡¯ve heard is true. The Huangfu family has changed their patriarch to Huangfu Yu, a First Earthly Martial Realm cultivator. He is far weaker than the previous patriarch, so we decided to investigate more since it was an abnormal development.¡±


    ¡°And what did you learn?¡±


    ¡°Two things. One, the original patriarch, Huangfu Fengchen, his wife, and their children have disappeared.¡±


    ¡°Disappeared?¡± Long Chen couldn¡¯t keep his murderous intent hidden, and Xiang snarled when he heard that Huangfu Qi was gone too. Xiang¡¯s Demonic Qi leaked outwards, causing the elder to shiver.


    He quickly nodded in fear.


    Long Chen patted the old man¡¯s shoulder to reassure him. ¡°Then what is the second piece of news?¡±


    The old man calmed down a little. ¡°There¡¯s a mysterious woman visiting the Huangfu family. We managed to get some information on her. Apparently, before Huangfu Fengchen disappeared, he was very wary of her and treated her very politely. He even gave her his own house. I think the woman is directly linked to his disappearance as well as Huangfu Yu¡¯s appointment as the patriarch. Seventh Master, I only have so much information right now. You might need to enter the Huangfu family on your own to learn more.¡±


    ¡°A mysterious woman that intimidated even Huangfu Fengchen? She must be at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm at the very least. Eldest Sister Long Yue told me that the Huangfu family most likely came from another Divine Empire. Maybe that¡¯s where the woman is from. It would also exin how such a strong individual suddenly appeared in the Huangfu family.¡±


    Mo Xiang clenched his teeth. ¡°Big Brother, what should we do? We should enter and rescue them if she hasn''t killed Huangfu Qi yet.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and bade the old man goodbye. They then left Huangfu City and reached the main entrance to the Huangfu family¡¯s estate. Even though the guards looked orderly from the outside, their expressions were either nk or depressed. They had their reservations when it came to the new patriarch.


    ¡°Xiang, enter the Primordial Realm for now. Let me infiltrate alone since I have the Soul Swallowing Gaze. I should be able to avoid everyone. I will find Huangfu Yu and force him to tell me the truth. We need to find out what happened to Qi Qi and the others.¡±


    Long Chen felt even angrier when he recalled Qi Qi¡¯s cute face. Long Chen had doted on her when they first entered the Ancient Demon Domain. The incident today had touched both his and Xiao Lang¡¯s bottom line.


    ¡°Big Brother, if any danger arises, we will face it together.¡± Mo Xiang was adamant. He felt ufortable being hidden in the Primordial Realm while Long Chen fought on his own. Now that he had be stronger, he could fight alongside his brother.


    ¡°Idiot. I have Blood Warp to escape. My life won¡¯t be in any danger.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Mo Xiang had indeed forgotten that Long Chen had Blood Warp.


    Long Chen patted his chest and said with pride, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t forget you if we have to fight. We will fight together.¡±


    Xiang was excited and nodded.


    He entered the Primordial Realm afterwards. The Fat Cat started nagging as soon as he was inside.


    To Long Chen, Mo Xiang was his sworn brother. But to the Fat Cat, Mo Xiang was a demonic beast just like himself. Long Chen thought that the Fat Cat was envious because Xiang received more attention.


    Long Chen steeled his heart and looked at the Huangfu family¡¯s estate. He blinked and used Sight. Everything around him faded away. He could only see the souls of every living being right now. The souls were blurry, some being stronger than others. Long Chen could vaguely estimate a person¡¯s strength by looking at their souls.


    He snuck into the estate by climbing up one of the walls. He had been here once before, so he was more or less familiar with theyout. He assumed that Huangfu Yu was likely to be found where Huangfu Fengchen once lived or worked since he was the patriarch now.

 Chapter 650: Heavenly Wind Empire

    Long Chen still remembered where Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s study was, as well as the side pce where he had stayed. Long Chen was now much stronger than most of the Huangfu family¡¯s guards, so no one noticed him. Relying on his memory, he reached Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s study, but to his disappointment, there was no one inside.


    He looked in the surrounding area and found no one else nearby.


    Long Chen left the ce and spent almost an hour checking the entire estate. He searched everywhere except for the house in the middle of theke, where the mysterious woman resided. He failed to find Huangfu Yu, but he did manage to find his father, Huangfu Fengyun. Unfortunately, Huangfu Fengyun was not someone Long Chen could defeat in an instant, so he didn¡¯t attack him.


    <em>He must be at the house in the middle of theke. I haven¡¯t settled our debt fromst time. I will make him pay today. </em>Long Chen decided to sit in the study and wait for Huangfu Yu to return.


    Four hourster, the time finally came. It was already dark, but Long Chen used Sight and saw someone stumbling into the study. Huangfu Yu¡¯s face was blushed and he looked drained. Even his gait was uneven, and his expression showed that he was still in a trance. Long Chen smelled the scent of wine on Huangfu Yu.


    <em>Huangfu Yu is not a bad cultivator, but his body has been drained by both wine and sex at such a young age. Did he have fun with the mysterious woman? </em>Long Chen smiled.


    Huangfu Yu was exhausted, making it the perfect opportunity to suppress him. Huangfu Yu stumbled into the study room and closed the door. Unfortunately, he failed to sense that Long Chen was waiting for him.


    It took him some time before Huangfu Yu finally sensed another presence in the room. His hair stood up in shock when he turned around and saw Long Chen.


    ¡°Long-¡±Huangfu Yu¡¯s eyes were wide with shock. He was about to shout when Long Chen disappeared right before his eyes. Suddenly, Huangfu Yu felt arge impact on his abdomen. Huangfu Yu curled up in pain as Long Chen had minced his intestines.


    He couldn¡¯t even shout, because Long Chen held his mouth tight. Long Chen then used his knee to kick Huangfu Yu¡¯s abdomen again. The pain made him shout, but Long Chen¡¯s grip on his mouth was firm. No matter how much he struggled, he failed to escape Long Chen¡¯s grip.


    Huangfu Yu almost passed out from the burning sensation in his abdomen. It felt like a thousand knives had eviscerated him.


    Just then, Long Chen grabbed Huangfu Yu¡¯s head and lifted him up. He red at Huangfu Yu and stated clearly, ¡°Look into my eyes.¡±


    ¡°Eyes ¡­ Eyes ¡­?¡± Huangfu Yu was weaker than Long Chen to begin with. Coupled with his injury and dazed condition, Long Chen¡¯s Control easily prated Huangfu Yu¡¯s mind, allowing him to control his thoughts. Long Chen rxed a little after Control worked on Huangfu Yu.


    Long Chen sighed when he looked at the useless Huangfu Yu.


    To think that in just a month or two, he had easily overtaken Huangfu Yu by leagues.


    ¡°Who¡¯s the woman in the house in the middle of theke?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Lady Xuan.¡± Huangfu Yu had no idea what wasing out of his mouth at this point.


    Long Chen had never heard that name before.


    ¡°What¡¯s her position? How strong is she?¡± Long Chen had a lot of time, so he could get a lot of information.


    ¡°Lady Xuan belongs to the noble Wind n of the Heavenly Wind Empire. The Huangfu family is but a branch family of the Wind n. Lady Xuan should be at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm or higher, but I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    <em>The Heavenly Wind Empire should be one of the Ten Divine Empires. I need to learn more about them and the ns from Long Shanter. </em>Long Chen never thought that the Huangfu family was but a branch family of the Wind n. This meant that the Huangfu family held considerable strength and control in the Heavenly Wind Empire.


    To think that a simple branch family from another empire could be one of the strongest factions here at the Divine Martial Empire.


    <em>But ¡­ The Huangfu family has been here for a long time and yet there¡¯s no movement from the main family. Maybe most of the people in the main family don¡¯t know about the existence of the Huangfu family.</em>


    Long Chen memorized what Huangfu Yu had said before asking, ¡°Did Lady Xuan make you the new patriarch? Where is Huangfu Fengchen and his family?¡±


    Huangfu Yu answered with no hesitation, ¡°Huangfu Fengchen has been crippled by Lady Xuan and exiled to a small city called Lingering Wind City.¡±


    ¡°Crippled?¡± Long Chen¡¯s breathing turned heavy. Huangfu Fengchen was at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. Being crippled and turned into a regr man meant that he had a substantial grudge with Lady Xuan. One had to remember that he was once the patriarch of the Huangfu family!


    ¡°Why did Lady Xuan do that?¡± Long Chen was already gnashing his teeth.


    ¡°It¡¯s because Lady Xuan wanted him to have sex with her, but he refused. Then I was given the opportunity instead.¡± Huangfu Yu didn¡¯t even think his answers were despicable since he was under the influence of Control.


    <em>All of this just because of coitus?</em>


    <em>Lady Xuan is not only strong, she¡¯s also very temperamental. People like her are the worst to deal with. </em>Long Chen wanted to do nothing but kill Lady Xuan right now, but he knew he was still weaker than her if she could cripple Huangfu Fengchen so easily.


    Long Chen needed to go to Lingering Wind City as soon as possible to find Huangfu Fengchen. Revenge could wait, and Long Chen coulde back and kill Lady Xuanter.


    After he made up his mind, he removed Control over Huangfu Yu.


    Huangfu Yu gradually woke up with no recollection of what had transpired in the past few minutes. He woke up with Long Chen¡¯s palm on the top of his head.


    ¡°Long Chen, you dare injure me? I am the Huangfu family¡¯s-¡±


    But he didn¡¯t finish his sentence because Long Chen tore his head off. Blood sprayed everywhere, and Huangfu Yu¡¯s body slumped to the ground while he held Huangfu Yu¡¯s head in his hands.


    ¡°What a weak neck.¡±


    Long Chen tossed Huangfu Yu¡¯s head away. Initially, he only wanted to snap Huangfu Yu¡¯s neck, but the guy¡¯s neck was so weak that it just snapped in half.


    It was also partly due to Long Chen¡¯s anger, which caused him to lose control of his own strength.


    Huangfu Yu had never thought that he would die in Long Chen¡¯s hands just as things were going smoothly for him.


    ¡°Good job, Big Brother,¡± Mo Xiang said from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Yeah.¡± Long Chen nodded and used Sight to leave the Huangfu family¡¯s estate.


    ¡°Are you going to Lingering Wind City to find Huangfu Qi and her family?¡± Mo Xiang asked.


    Long Chen was certain that the information was urate since he had used Control.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s dantian is probably crippled, and Qi Qi might be injured. I¡¯dpletely forgotten about her because of how angry I was. Let¡¯s go find them. And if we can, let¡¯s take them to the Battle n for their safety.¡±


    Long Chen returned to Huangfu City and found the old man from the Red Souls once more. The old man caught a whiff of blood on Long Chen. ¡°Seventh Master, have you killed someone?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. I killed Huangfu Yu, that bitch.¡±


    ¡°Huangfu Yu?¡± The old man took a sharp breath and dared not look at Long Chen directly. Long Chen¡¯s reputation was very well-known by now.


    To think the current patriarch of the Huangfu family, Huangfu Yu, had been killed by Long Chen so easily.


    ¡°Seventh Master, what happened there?¡±


    ¡°The mysteriousdy is called Lady Xuan. She crippled Huangfu Fengchen and exiled him to Lingering Wind City. I think she wants him to live there for the rest of his life. Lady Xuan is at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm or higher. We now have another cultivator at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm, so you must warn Long Yue and the others. I need to go to Lingering Wind City now.¡±


    The old man nodded after hearing his orders.


    ¡°It¡¯s such a shame that the hero Huangfu Fengchen has been crippled by that mysterious woman. I fear that the Divine Martial Empire will undergo massive changes now that we have four cultivators at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm. The Martial Overlord, Senior Long Shan, the Ancient Demon Corpse, and now this mysterious Lady Xuan.¡± The old man sighed.


    ¡°Also, can you tell me where Lingering Wind City is?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Seventh Master, please wait just a moment.¡±


    The old man took out a map from his Universe Pouch and pointed at a far corner. ¡°This is Lingering Wind City. It¡¯s a small city with very poor resources. You should be able to get there in five days.¡±

 Chapter 651: Huangfu Qi Is In Trouble

    After Long Chen received the map, he gave the elder a few more reminders and left Huangfu City to head towards Lingering Wind City.


    He had not expected the problem to have escted to this level.


    ¡°Big Brother, we don¡¯t have much time. Let me handle it,¡± said Mo Xiang.


    Long Chen nodded and let him out. After Mo Xiang emerged, a bout of ck mes quickly enveloped him and gradually erged until he turned into the Sun Devouring Wolf. Because they needed to travel fast, Xiang shrank his body by a huge margin until he was the size of a horse, which would make him faster.


    Long Chen sat on his back and then, without another word, the Sun Devouring Wolf ran towards Lingering Wind City!


    Mo Xiang was a Category Three King-tier, so he was faster than Long Chen now. Demonic beasts were also superior in stamina, so Mo Xiang could maintain his speed until they arrived.


    They did not chat along the way. Long Chen took this chance to work towards the Third Earthly Martial Stage. There were many urgent matters he had to deal with these days, so he continued to work hard.


    Xiang, on the other hand, passed his time rather carefreely.


    He had extraordinary talent, which allowed him to level up endlessly as long as he could consume fire-type treasures.Since they had a Sun Devouring Wolf, the estimated five-day travel time waspressed into three days. At noon three dayster, Long Chen arrived at Lingering Wind City. It was a small city in the middle of a desert, located in a considerably poor and barren region. The cultivation level of the residents here was rtively low, far weaker than the people of other cities in the Divine Martial Empire. Even the earthly Qi in the area was almost the same as the capital of Cangyang Kingdom.


    This was considered extremely weak in the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°Huangfu Fengchen is supposed to be here, but this is a big ce. How will we find him?¡± Xiang turned back into human form and stood on the walls of Lingering Wind City.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple. Watch,¡± said Long Chen, then he turned to look at the city and shouted, ¡°Huangfu Fengchen, it¡¯s me, Long Chen! Come to the city gates!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s shout traveled across the whole city. He was strong, so this was an easy feat. The Martial Alliance did not have a presence in this city, but even if they did, those people would not dare show their faces when they heard Long Chen¡¯s name.


    But many people emerged to check him out.


    Long Chen¡¯s voice was like a rumble of thunder. Most of the people were startled, and they quickly understood that he was a master if he was willing to be so boisterous. Also, why did Long Chen¡¯s name sound so familiar?


    Lingering Wind City was very isted and considered just a small city in the desert. That was why very few people knew about Long Chen.


    Many people on the streets peeked out to look towards the city gates. However, Long Chen¡¯s voice sounded fierce, so they merely looked and started to discuss, not daring to approach.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze swept across every face, but none of them was Huangfu Fengchen. However, Long Chen was not impatient. If Huangfu Fengchen truly was here, he had definitely heard him. Now that he had lost all his cultivation, he needed some time to travel across this city.


    Long Chen stood at the highest point of the city walls, waiting for him.


    ¡°I am looking for a person named Huangfu Fengchen. He is in this city. Anyone who knows where he is can tell me now. I will reward them generously!¡± said Long Chen, then he levitated in the air.


    ¡°A super master!¡± The people of Lingering Wind City looked at him with both terror and worship when they saw that he could fly. This meant that he was a peak-level master, and since he was so young, he probably had a high status.


    Looking down at their expressions of reverence, Long Chen suddenly thought about himself. Wang Chao had looked at him the same way he was now looking down at these people. Long Chen finally understood just how tiny he was in front of masters of that level.


    Long Chen exhaled.


    Once his announcement spread across the city, he quickly received a response. A woman squeezed out of the crowd, ran to an empty space, and waved at him in a panicked manner. Her voice was faint, but Long Chen could hear her clearly. She was saying that she was one of Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s people.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Long Chen came to the woman¡¯s side.


    The woman was about Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s age, which was about thirty years old. She was a rare beauty with a warm and gentle look. Her face was very simr to Huangfu Qi¡¯s, so this meant that when Huangfu Qi grew up, she would also be a beautiful woman.


    While this woman was beautiful, she was wearing clothes made of rough hemp. Her hair was tied up, and she was dressed very inly. No one would have thought that she was once the Huangfu patriarch''s wife.


    Long Chen did not know how to address her, so he said, ¡°Where is the Huangfu patriarch?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll take you there.¡± The woman looked very emotional. She had heard of Long Chen before, and she was too emotional to speak when she saw him.


    Long Chen was worried about Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s condition, so he quickly followed her. Along the way, the crowd quickly parted and then followed him until Long Chen red at them, and they stopped.


    ¡°Who is Huangfu Fengchen? Who is that master, Long Chen? Why is he so young?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either.¡±


    ¡°Huangfu Fengchen? I think I¡¯ve heard that name before. Isn¡¯t there a very powerful group called the Huangfu n in the Divine Martial Empire?¡±


    Their discussions grew louder and louder.


    ¡°I know thatdy! Didn¡¯t she recently move to Lingering Wind City? I think she has a sick, bedridden husband!¡± someone suddenly said.


    Each person knew little, but when the crowd wasbined, they knew much more. Long Chen did not let them follow, so they could only discuss on the spot, though they soon learned much more. Some people had already spread information about Long Chen¡¯s reputation. Suddenly, the whole city was bustling with discussion.


    They did not need to travel far. After making a few turns through the alleys, the woman led Long Chen to a simple house. Long Chen could already sense Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s presence, but he was puzzled because he did not see Huangfu Qi. He hurried into the house and saw Huangfu Fengchen lying in bed with a pale face. His handsome, charismatic look waspletely gone. All that was left was a pale, sickly countenance.


    When he saw Long Chen, he opened his dull eyes and looked at him with a resigned expression.


    ¡°Huangfu patriarch.¡± Long Chen halted and stood in front of Huangfu Fengchen, looking pitifully at the suffering man. His woman stood behind Long Chen with tears in her eyes.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe you found us here. Did you infiltrate the Huangfu n ¡­¡± Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s voice was hoarse and his breath was shallow.


    Lady Xuan was vicious. She had destroyed all eighteen of Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s Martial Veins. No amount of spiritual medicine could heal him, and his essence waspletely lost. He was just a cultivation-less cripple now.


    Anger surged in Long Chen¡¯s heart. He clenched his fists tight!


    ¡°I went to the Huangfu n and killed Huangfu Yu,¡± said Long Chen, clenching his teeth.


    ¡°Oh?¡± There was a twinkle in Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s eyes. He chuckled lightly and said, ¡°Good one. Alleviates some of my anger.¡±


    ¡°Is there any possibility of you recovering? I can bring you guys to the Battle n. There are many people there, and they can take care of you. They¡¯re old friends; you can trust them.¡± Long Chen knew that Huangfu Fengchen and Long Yue had a cordial rtionship.


    Life here was quite difficult.


    But Huangfu Fengchen shook his head with a smile and said, ¡°There¡¯s no need. I think it¡¯s quite nice here. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t adapt to the Battle n. Living here is enough for two normal people like us.¡±


    Long Chen understood. If he went to the Battle n, he would be surrounded by masters everywhere, which would only make him more miserable. This ce was probably more suitable for him. Living out the rest of his life in this isted ce wasn¡¯t a bad choice.


    ¡°Two people?¡±


    Long Chen knew that there was something wrong.


    He had not sensed Huangfu Qi¡¯s aura since he arrived, and based on Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s words, it seemed like Huangfu Qi was not with them.


    Long Chen recalled Huangfu Yu¡¯s words to himself. He had said that Huangfu Fengchen was in Lingering Wind City, but he had not mentioned Huangfu Qi. Long Chen had only assumed that they were together since they were all missing.


    Long Chen¡¯s face changed.


    Next to him, Mo Xiang¡¯s face also changed.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and asked, ¡°Huangfu patriarch, where is Qi Qi?¡±


    <em>Crash! </em>Thedy fell to her knees tearfully. It was difficult to speak through her tears.


    Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s eyes were fixed on Long Chen. He said, ¡°Long Chen, your arrival today has shown me hope. We would like to beg you for a favor! I hope you can agree to it!¡±


    ¡°Tell me!¡± Long Chen had a bad feeling. He helped thedy up and let her sit on the edge of the bed, then he looked at Huangfu Fengchen.


    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s determined gaze, Huangfu Fengchen knew that they truly had hope now.


    Long Chen took rtionships seriously. If they needed help, he would surely agree wholeheartedly!


    Huangfu Fengchen cut right to the chase. ¡°The Huangfu n is a branch of the Wind n, which is the ruler of the Heavenly Wind Empire. A while back, a woman from the Wind n came. You probably know this. She came to get the Ancient Token. Initially, I thought she would leave once she received it, but I didn¡¯t expect her to find three Heavenly Wind Veins in Qi Qi. This is a vein that every Wind n member has in them. That was why she ns to transnt these Heavenly Wind Veins into her own body. This will kill Qi Qi!¡±

 Chapter 652: Vein Transplant

    There were two things Huangfu Fengchen said that startled Long Chen. First, Lady Xuan¡¯s objective foring to the Divine Martial Empire! He was just wondering why she woulde here from so far away. She was not capable enough to get an Ancient Token in the Heavenly Wind Empire, so she hade to the Divine Martial Empire!


    Even a master like her was too weak to get an Ancient Token in the Heavenly Wind Empire. It was clear how terrifying that ce was!


    The second point that shocked him was naturally Huangfu Qi¡¯s predicament.


    That was what truly terrified him. Endless rage burned within him, but he forced himself to remain calm and said to Huangfu Fengchen, ¡°Tell me in detail. What exactly happened?¡±


    There was both sorrow and helplessness in his eyes. He shook his head and said, ¡°It¡¯s all my fault for being useless. Sigh ¡­ When that woman came to the Huangfu n, we served her very well and were terrified of upsetting her. That woman is terrifying. She discovered that Qi Qi has the Heavenly Wind Veins in her body. It is a vein unique to the Heavenly Wind n. I think Qi Qi has a total of three. I heard that the prodigies of the n have a total of eighteen Heavenly Wind Veins. These Martial Veins provide the Wind n with iparable talent and strength! They¡¯re the core of the Wind n¡¯s power! When the woman discovered that Qi Qi has this vein, she found an excuse to remove all my cultivation and exiled me to this ce, but she kept Qi Qi by her side!¡±


    Huangfu Qi was still on Lake¡¯s Heart Ind. Long Chen thought Huangfu Fengchen had brought her here!


    ¡°Heavenly Wind Vein?¡± Long Chen had a feeling that this was a well-known thing in stronger empires like the Heavenly Wind Empire. If Lady Xuan was so concerned about it, then it had to be extraordinary.


    It looked like the true cause of this predicament was Qi Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins. The reason Huangfu Yu had offered, that Huangfu Fengchen had ended up like this only because he had refused Lady Xuan¡¯s advances, was merely an excuse for her to remove him! That woman was pure evil!


    ¡°I have a rough idea of the process. To get Qi Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins, she must prepare certain herbs, then treat Qi Qi as spiritual medicine by refining her body and extracting the Heavenly Wind Veins to merge into her own body. Although a procedure like that will lead to a lot of side effects, it can boost her potential and talent, thus increasing her strength! But this method is violent and evil!¡±Huangfu Fengchen spoke with clenched teeth, and his eyes turned blood-red!


    When they heard his exnation, Long Chen and Mo Xiang¡¯s eyes also turned blood-red. The woman was going to refine Huangfu Qi¡¯s body like she was a medicine, then extract the Heavenly Wind Veins from her body. Huangfu Qi was just an innocent child. If Lady Xuan seeded, Long Chen would go mad!


    Although their time together wasn¡¯t all that long, Huangfu Qi was still one of Long Chen¡¯s good friends, and she was a cute little girl.


    After Huangfu Fengchen spoke, he suddenly crashed to his knees. He was still injured, so this made his face even paler. He gritted his teeth and looked at Long Chen beggingly. ¡°Little Long Chen, seeing as you and Qi Qi are friends, although I don¡¯t know how strong you are, or whether it would be like striking a rock with an egg if you fought Lady Xuan ¡­ You may even die ¡­ I don¡¯t care about anything else. I love Qi Qi very much, and I have be a useless man now. I¡¯m begging you to save her. Please? She¡¯s so young. She shouldn¡¯t be punished like that!¡±


    The great patriarch of the Huangfu family was now crying in front of Long Chen. The man kneeling before him had aged a lot. He was even starting to grow white hair.


    Even if Long Chen had to bleed or lose his head for this mission, he would still agree to it. This was his style.


    Long Chen gently helped Huangfu Fengchen up and said, ¡°Leave Qi Qi to me. Don¡¯t worry, Patriarch. As long as I am alive, I will bring Qi Qi back whole!¡±


    ¡°And I, Mo Xiang, will help too!¡± Mo Xiang said anxiously. He was worried about Huangfu Qi too. He had spent as much time with her as Long Chen, or even more.


    When Huangfu Fengchen heard their promises, he nodded with tears in his eyes and said, ¡°Thank you so much! I¡¯m putting all my hopes on you two. Long Chen, I trust you, and I am aware of your achievements in recent times. I trust that you will be able to do this!¡±


    Long Chen did not truly know whether he could. Although he had made a promise to Huangfu Fengchen, he was not confident. He asked, ¡°Huangfu Patriarch, you have surely fought her before. What cultivation level is she at?¡±


    When speaking of this, Huangfu Fengchen slightly furrowed his brow andmented, ¡°I think she¡¯s at least at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. At the peak of it too. However, it¡¯s also very likely that she is at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if she is.¡±


    Fifth Earthly Martial Stage?


    Wasn¡¯t that Long Shan¡¯s previous level before he was injured?


    If that was true, that was frightening!


    ¡°Long Chen, you must be very careful. If you can¡¯t do it, don¡¯t force yourself. This is Qi Qi¡¯s fate. But I just don¡¯t want her to die such a tragic death. She¡¯s still a child. If you can¡¯t save her, kill her!¡± said Huangfu Fengchen with tears in his eyes.


    ¡°Kill her?¡± To Long Chen, this was impossible.


    However, if it really was like Huangfu Fengchen had said, he might as well kill her instead of letting Huangfu Qi get refined to death. To Huangfu Qi, this would be a good thing.


    ¡°That woman! How could she be this evil to such a young child?!¡± Long Chen¡¯s chest was filled with burning rage!


    It took everything to remain calm.


    Long Chen calmly asked, ¡°What should I do?¡±


    ¡°If that woman wants to transnt Qi Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins into herself, she must first cut open her own body. Recovery would require a lot of medicine. I know that the main medicine she needs is called Myriad Earth Essence. This medicine can even help a person regenerate their arm, so it is very powerful. That woman has everything but the Myriad Earth Essence, so I¡¯m guessing she will go get it.¡±


    ¡°Where can Myriad Earth Essence be found?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji is the only person in the whole Divine Martial Empire who has Myriad Earth Essence. You¡¯ve been to the Huangfu n¡¯s ce. At the time, was she still there?¡± asked Huangfu Fengchen.


    Long Chen tried to recall. Huangfu Yu had just returned, and it was clear that he had just returned from a wild time. Thatdy was probably still in the Huangfu n, so he nodded.


    ¡°You took at least three to five days to get here, so that woman has likely rushed over to Martial Overlord City already. Based on how careful she is, she surely took Qi Qi with her. If you go to the Huangfu n now, you won¡¯t get anything. It is better for you to go to Martial Overlord City to wait for her, as this ce is nearer to Martial Overlord City. If you push yourself, you can arrive before she does. She will need to ask the Martial Overlord for the Myriad Earth Essence, and with her arrogance, she will surely start fighting him if he tries to negotiate with her. Watch and see if you can find a chance to save Qi Qi. What do you think?¡± Although Huangfu Fengchen was crippled, he still had a bright mind.


    It did not take long for him to formte a n.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do that, then. We don''t have much time. Xiang and I will leave now, but before that, I¡¯ll take you to the Battle n, alright? As long as we find a city with the Red Souls, I can hand you over to them,¡± said Long Chen.


    Huangfu Fengchen shook his head with a bitter smile and said, ¡°Long Chen, as I said before, with my current state, it is not suitable for me to go to the Battle n. A normal person should live a normal person¡¯s life. This ce is quite nice; life is simple and there is no conflict here.¡±


    Since that was what he wanted, Long Chen did not force him. He was very concerned about Huangfu Qi, so after bidding Huangfu Fengchen farewell, he prepared to leave.


    ¡°Long Chen.¡± Huangfu Fengchen suddenly stopped him.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen turned to ask.


    ¡°Thank you so much for this. It¡¯s too bad I am no longer in the condition to say I¡¯ll do anything for you. If there is another life, I am willing to do anything youmand of me!¡±


    Looking at the frail man, Long Chen deeply felt the sorrow of losing one¡¯s strength and bing weak.


    If he became like that one day, he would consider killing himself.


    Huangfu Fengchen remained alive because he had a wife and a child. This was a responsibility he had to bear.


    Sometimes, men lived because of responsibility. The courage to risk one¡¯s life often arose because of one¡¯s family.


    Long Chen pursed his lips, unsure of what to say. He was silent for a moment, then he said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will bring Qi Qi back to you, whole.¡±


    After that, Long Chen led Mo Xiang and rushed off, leaving the couple behind, stunned. Their eyes were filled with emotion and gratitude.


    After leaving Lingering Wind City, Long Chen knew that he did not have much time. The brothers quickly rushed towards Martial Overlord City.


    Xiang ran as fast as he could. The ck demonic wolf ran like a gust of wind. Normal people could barely see Xiang¡¯s silhouette before he left their field of vision. This was just how fast he was!

 Chapter 653: Returning to Martial Overlord City

    ¡°Xiang, you don¡¯t need to be too worried. We are traveling as fast as we can, but she isn¡¯t. That¡¯s why we should be able to arrive in Martial Overlord City before she does. With her loud personality, we¡¯ll easily notice her when she arrives,¡± reminded Long Chen, calming himself down.


    Xiang nodded, but he did not slow down.


    A city appeared in front of them. It was a considerablyrge city, but Long Chen did not know what city it was.


    ¡°Let¡¯s stop for a while.¡±


    Long Chen instructed Xiang to stop, then he quickly went to the city to look for a representative of the Red Souls. Arge city like this was likely to have Red Souls members. The Red Souls were an organization of assassins led by Chi Ying, but after Chi Ying joined the Dragon n, he basically served the Dragon n. Under Long Yue¡¯s leadership, the Red Souls became several times stronger andrger. It was now argework spanning the Divine Martial Empire.


    After finding the Red Souls representative, Long Chen said to her, ¡°Find a few cultivators above the Seventh Passage Stage to base permanently in Lingering Wind City and protect Huangfu Fengchen secretly.¡±


    ¡°Seventh Master, are you sure it was Huangfu Fengchen?¡± the pretty girl asked with surprise.


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Huangfu Fengchen has lost his cultivation, and he is currently living in Lingering Wind City. Send a few people to protect him in secret, but don¡¯t disturb his daily life.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll do it now!¡± Thedy knew not to ask too many questions if they were unnecessary. All she had to do was obey.After making these arrangements, Long Chen felt much more assured. The next thing to do was to focus on dealing with Lady Xuan.


    ¡°Elder Brother, that was a good decision. The Huangfu patriarch has lost his cultivation, and without anyone to protect him, something could happen to him.¡± Xiang was previously anxious to leave, so he had not thought of it at all.


    Long Chen nodded. After they left the city, they went towards the Martial Overlord City. This time, they traveled at full speed too. Huangfu Qi¡¯s life was in danger, every second they wasted could lead to her death.


    Her life was fully in Long Chen¡¯s hands. Although he was furious and frustrated, he had no choice but to force himself to calm down. His greatest strength had always been being able to remain calm in a crisis. Only a clear mind could bring him victory!


    Long Chen spent another five days traveling from Lingering Wind City to Martial Overlord City. When he saw the vast Martial Overlord City far ahead, he finally sighed in relief because the city still looked quite peaceful. It was very early in the morning, so there were very few people on the streets. However, the security at the gates was strict.


    It was difficult for people without proper identification to enter.


    Of course, Long Chen chose to sneak inside this time.


    Less than a month had passed since he wasst here. Long Chen did not expect to return.


    Coincidentally, both times he came here was to rescue someone.


    Very few people were out and about. Long Chen had Willow Step, which allowed him to travel with light footsteps. He entered the outer city without making a single sound, then he used the same method to sneak into the inner city. There were even fewer people in the inner city. Relying on the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he rushed into a family¡¯s home, then used the Control technique of his Soul Swallowing Gaze on all of them.


    This was likely the house of some high-level official of the Martial Alliance. That high-level official was not in, and the rest of them were only at the Heavenly Passage Stage at most. Therefore, they could not resist Long Chen¡¯s Soul Swallowing Gaze at all.


    Long Chen walked around in the house casually, relying on Control so that all of them thought it was natural for him to do this, thinking he was one of them.


    No one sensed anything wrong.


    After talking to them, Long Chen learned that nothing had happened in Martial Overlord City during the past few days. The only thing that made Long Chen suspicious was that the missing Zhao Danchen had not returned to Martial Overlord City.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t that guy return?¡± asked Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Could there be conflict between him and the Martial Overlord? After getting the Ancient Demon Corpse, could he be afraid that the Martial Overlord would want it? Right, the Huangfu patriarch said that the Myriad Earth Essence can regenerate an arm. I¡¯ve torn off one of his arms, so why didn¡¯t he return to get the Myriad Earth Essence?¡± Long Chen said after analyzing the situation.


    ¡°This means that the rtionship between Zhao Danchen and Zhao Wuji isn¡¯t as simple as we think. It is likely they have their own conflicts too. It¡¯s no wonder Zhao Wuji and Zhao Danchen didn¡¯t attack the Dragon n together yet. This could be one of the reasons,¡± said Mo Xiang.


    He was able to draw this conclusion based on a small, suspicious act.


    ¡°If Zhao Danchen is not here, we will just have to take advantage of the chaos when the Martial Overlord and Lady Xuan start fighting. Lady Xuan doesn¡¯t have the Primordial Realm. As long as I put Qi Qi in the Primordial Realm and use Blood Warp, we should seed.¡±


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Mo Xiang also thought that this was the only way.


    The n was set, so all they had to do was wait. During this time, Long Chen gathered more information. Using the Control technique of the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he learned everything that the average Martial Overlord City resident knew. Just as he expected, the rtionship between Zhao Danchen and Zhao Wuji was not as peaceful as he had imagined. It was even likely that they saw each other as enemies.


    <em>That is good news for us ¡­ </em>thought Long Chen. He had learned of this by asking someone under the effect of the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    <em>The Soul Swallowing Gaze is very useful. I don¡¯t know what level thisbat technique is for it to work so miraculously. Both Sight and Control are very helpful techniques. I haven¡¯t used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to its maximum yet though. I wonder what other surprises it holds.</em>


    When he thought about the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he thought about Li Xuanji, then Yang Lingqing.


    <em>Li Xuanji should be from the Royal Territory. Why was she trapped in the Lingwu family¡¯s Star Devil Prison? If she could give me the Soul Swallowing Gaze so casually, she must have a powerful background! I wonder how shepares to Xiao Xi.</em>


    <em>And Lingqing ¡­ </em>When he thought about that resilient little girl, the corners of his lips curled up into a smile.


    He had not been home for a long time.


    Suddenly, they heard amotion outside.


    Long Chen had chosen a location close to Martial Overlord Pce, which was where the Martial Overlord was. If amotion broke out at the pce, he would surely notice it. Just like right now. A crowd had formed outside, so they both rushed outdoors to join the crowd to watch themotion.


    ¡°It¡¯s her!¡± Long Chen squinted when he saw the woman floating in the air.


    A graceful woman wearing white clothing and a face veil floated next to the pce. She was looking at Martial Overlord Pce, deep in thought. Her eyes were filled with brazen courage and coldness. Her white clothes floated around her, and a dizzying fragrance that made people mistake her for a fairy wafted from her. However, the violent aura radiating from her ruined the image.


    ¡°She didn¡¯t bring Huangfu Qi?¡± The woman was clearly alone, which shocked Long Chen. Both he and Huangfu Fengchen guessed that Lady Xuan would bring Huangfu Qi with her, so why wasn¡¯t she here?


    ¡°Should we return to the Huangfu n now?¡± asked Long Chen, frustrated.


    It was all for nothing!


    ¡°No, Elder Brother, I think she hid Huangfu Qi somewhere, then came here alone. She has a bit of Qi Qi¡¯s scent, and the scent is still clear. I think she only recently put Huangfu Qi down!¡± said Xiang excitedly.


    Long Chen was initially frustrated, but he rxed a little when he heard Xiang. He had forgotten about this due to a moment of panic. The Sun Devouring Wolf was a demonic beast, so his nose was more sensitive than Long Chen¡¯s. Long Chen naturally trusted what he said.


    ¡°Can you follow the scent to find Qi Qi?¡± asked Long Chen hurriedly.


    Xiang smiled bitterly and said, ¡°I can¡¯t. I can¡¯t smell the scent anywhere else. It¡¯s only on her ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was a bit disappointed.


    If they could search directly, this would be much easier. They could let Lady Xuan fight the Martial Overlord to death while Long Chen brough Huangfu Qi away, surprising Lady Xuan.


    ¡°Elder Brother, should we go search for Qi Qi or stay here to watch? If Lady Xuan gets the Myriad Earth Essence, she will surely go to Qi Qi. And if she is at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, while it is impossible for us to defeat her even if we work together, we can at least snatch Qi Qi away from her, right? She doesn¡¯t know we have the Primordial Realm.¡±


    If they left now, they could possibly find Huangfu Qi if they were lucky. However, they were likely to fail. If Lady Xuan got the Myriad Earth Essence and escaped, it would leave Long Chen and Xiang with nothing.


    Therefore, Long Chen quickly made his decision.


    ¡°We¡¯ll stay here and watch.¡±


    ¡°I think that¡¯s better too.¡± Mo Xiang looked up at Lady Xuan in the sky with hatred in his eyes. He was not at all interested in her seductive figure.


    Long Chen watched carefully.


    Lady Xuan started to speak. She was showing off her power brazenly, and her immense aura frightened every person in the crowd below who could sense it!


    ¡°What is happening? Has another master as strong as the Martial Overlord appeared?¡±


    ¡°And it¡¯s a woman?¡±


    ¡°This woman¡¯s not an idiot, right? Her face is covered with a veil, so I can¡¯t see what she looks like. But her figure is fucking amazing! Look! Look at her breasts, her ass! It¡¯s so tempting. I¡¯m willing to give ten years of my life just to spend a night with her!¡±


    The crowd started to discuss. Thatstment hade from a muscr man.

 Chapter 654: Fifth Earthly Martial Realm Master

    The man thought Lady Xuan was too far to hear him speak. That was why he had spoken so brazenly. While the crowd discussed among themselves, Lady Xuan suddenly looked at the man and flicked her finger. A small bead shot out at him, then his brain juices flowed out of his head. That man¡¯s head had exploded from the impact. The people around him screamed in terror when they saw the headless body!


    She was such a pretty woman, but she was vicious too.


    After she killed the man, Lady Xuan did not even furrow her brows. She made a pushing gesture with her hand and shot out another small bead at the pce¡¯s wall. When the bead hit, it created a huge hole!


    Considering Lady Xuan¡¯s strength, the bead should have shot through the other end of the pce, but it had not. This meant that someone inside had caught it.


    The crowd below was initially talking amongst themselves, but after witnessing her violence, they fell silent with terror, only daring to hide and watch. Long Chen and Xiang hid among the people, observing the event.


    Very soon, Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji appeared at the very top of Martial Overlord Pce. He stepped lightly on the very top and stared at Lady Xuan with a gaze that resembled deep, still well-water. Then his gaze turned from its initial calm to slight shock.


    It looked like the woman¡¯s strength surpassed his expectations.


    ¡°Are you Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji?¡± Lady Xuan held her head high, looking at him with amusement.


    Zhao Wuji did not answer her. ¡°You must be from another empire, right? If I were to guess, you are from the Heavenly Wind Empire. Has the Heavenly Wind Empire forgotten the agreement between the Divine Martial Empire and the other Great Empires? Aren¡¯t you afraid of the other nine empires working together toe after you?¡±Lady Xuan giggled and said, ¡°I came here today not because I want to destroy your pitiful Divine Martial Empire. What Ten Great Empires? To us, there are only Nine Great Empires in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    ¡°So why did youe to Martial Overlord City?¡± asked Zhao Wuji without a hint of submission. The feeling this woman gave him was scarier than Long Shan.


    He was nowhere near as nervous when he faced Long Shan.


    A person from another empire was surely not simple.


    ¡°I am here to ask you for something,¡± Lady Xuan said carefreely with a smile.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Zhao Wuji had a bad feeling. She could ask for someone¡¯s life. Perhaps she was here to kill him.


    ¡°I want the Myriad Earth Essence. Would you be willing to give it to a girl like me?¡± Lady Xuan looked at him wistfully. Her face was hidden by a veil, but her gaze terrified him.


    She wanted the Myriad Earth Essence?


    Zhao Wuji squinted. He did not have a n. The Myriad Earth Essence was something he had obtained to keep himself alive. That was going to be his trump card after he entered the Ancient Graveyard. He could not even bear to give it to Zhao Danchen, let alone Lady Xuan. If he had to give it to someone, he might as well give it to his own disciple.


    Lady Xuan was getting impatient when she saw that Zhao Wuji was not speaking, so she said arrogantly, ¡°What do you think? If you hand the Myriad Earth Essence to me, I will leave immediately.¡±


    Although she was speaking to the ruler of arge empire, she felt nothing but contempt for him.


    He was the ruler of an empire, but he was so weak. It wasughable.


    The Divine Martial Empire was just a joke whenpared to the other empires.


    Lady Xuan was being too bold. If she had gone to meet Zhao Wuji in a ce where no one else was present, there was a possibility that he would give it to her because she was very powerful. However, there was a crowd watching. If Zhao Wuji obliged, he would lose face.


    The fact that he had not attacked Long Shan had decreased the people¡¯s trust in him. After the incident at the Ancient Demon Domain, the public had even started to doubt his courage. Now, Lady Xuan was bullying him at his doorstep. If he did nothing, he would no longer be considered the Martial Overlord.


    ¡°If you want the Myriad Earth Essence, you can have it in exchange for something of equal value. If it is a fair trade, we will both be very happy.¡± Zhao Wuji did not reject her directly, but instead gave an indirect reply.


    If this could happen, then not only would he not be at a loss, he would also make a friend. What was there not to like?


    But Lady Xuan never took Zhao Wuji seriously, so why would she make a trade? When she heard his reply, she chuckled coldly and said, ¡°It looks like you do not intend to be a sincere friend of mine, Martial Overlord. You will regret this.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the one without sincerity? Did youe to the Divine Martial Empire with the intention to rob us?¡± Zhao Wuji¡¯s voice turned cold. Although she was powerful, Zhao Wuji had ruled over the Martial Alliance for many years, so he was not weak either!


    When Lady Xuan heard him, she startedughing hard.


    ¡°You¡¯re a funny one! I gave you a way to live, and yet you want to die. You don¡¯t treasure your own life at all ¡­ Do you know what level I am at?¡±


    <em>Her cultivation level?</em>


    <em>Judging by the way she is acting, it seems like she is not at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Is she stronger?</em>


    <em>Is this woman the strongest person in the Divine Martial Empire right now?</em>


    Long Chen wondered in shock.


    The people below listened to the conversation in silence, not daring to discuss. They merelymunicated with shocked nces.


    Was this outsider stronger than the Martial Overlord?


    The Divine Martial Empire had recently been rocked with many events. With this woman here, it was about to be even more chaotic.


    The Martial Overlord¡¯s pupils constricted when he heard her.


    She was intending to attack.


    The Martial Overlord was currently wearing long, white robes like a friendly elder. His opponent was powerful, but he did not even change his expression.


    His challenging gaze ignited a fire of fury within her.


    ¡°How dare a mere ant challenge me?! Since you refuse to give me the Myriad Earth Essence, then I will have to take it from your dead body! By the way, I came to the Divine Martial Empire to take the Ancient Token. You also want it, right? Too bad! The Ancient Token is mine!¡± Lady Xuan said coldly.


    ¡°In that case, I won¡¯t rest until I die!¡± Zhao Wuji replied mildly. After a pause, he said, ¡°Follow me. Don¡¯t hurt themoners here.¡±


    Then he turned and flew away from the city.


    Lady Xuan had no time to worry aboutmoners. She chuckled coldly and then followed Zhao Wuji out of Martial Overlord City.


    Most of the people did not dare follow them. They swarmed to Martial Overlord City¡¯s walls. Long Chen was in the crowd and squeezed his way to the walls as well. He found a spot close to them.


    This was a huge event, so no one cared about Long Chen¡¯s identity.


    Outside the city, Zhao Wuji and Lady Xuan stood about fifty meters apart. Zhao Wuji had always been a direct person. Since they had decided on a duel to the death, he did not waste time on nonsense. The man in the long, white robes shot at Lady Xuan.


    ¡°He¡¯s fast!¡± Long Chen gave a low cry. Zhao Wuji¡¯s speed surpassed his imagination. He was much slower even with the Dragon Soul Transformation. Zhao Danchen¡¯s weakness was speed, while Zhao Wuji was an all-rounder like Long Chen.


    Long Chen¡¯s abilities were very equal in all aspects.


    A battle at the peak of the Divine Martial Empire quickly ignited. A normal person could not even identify them because they could only see two people in white clothing fighting. They could not distinguish them and therefore could not tell who was winning.


    However, Long Chen and Mo Xiang could.


    ¡°He lives up to his name as the Martial Overlord. His attacks are sharp and precise, and he is extremely fast. Hisprehension of the Martial Realm surpasses that of the average person.¡± Long Chen watched the Martial Overlord carefully, analyzing his movements. This was very important to him as the Martial Overlord was at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen suddenly understood many things after watching the Martial Overlord¡¯s movements. The questions he previously struggled to answer were now cleared.


    He had taken another step towards the Third Earthly Martial Stage.


    Then he looked at the other person, Lady Xuan. In the beginning, the Martial Overlord was the one who kept attacking, while Lady Xuan only retaliated symbolically. She kept dodging, and she gave a teasing grin.


    When he saw this, Long Chen started to believe that the woman was at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. If she could be this carefree while the Martial Overlord was attacking her, then she was definitely at least one stage higher.


    <em>Thisdy¡¯s bodybat technique is very simr to the Willow Step, though it is superior. It¡¯s also a technique that is good for dodging attacks. It¡¯s no wonder Zhao Wuji can¡¯t hit her. It¡¯s because of this technique.</em>


    The crowd cried out in surprise.


    Long Chen saw the Martial Overlord¡¯s face grow more and more solemn. He guessed that Lady Xuan was at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage.


    As expected, while they fought, the Martial Overlord said, ¡°You¡¯re at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. At your level, you should also be able to get an Ancient Token at the Heavenly Wind Empire. Why did you need to travel so far to fight for one in the Divine Martial Empire?¡±


    Lady Xuan giggled and said smugly, ¡°Do you think you have the right to ask questions? Now that you know my level, are you going to give me the Myriad Earth Essence?¡±


    ¡°In your dreams!¡± Zhao Wuji huffed coldly and punched. The air exploded nine times consecutively. The punch that exceeded the speed of sound arrived in front of her face!


    ¡°Such a weak trick!¡± Lady Xuan giggled and moved her feet quickly, easily dodging his attack and moving to his side.


    ¡°Next, I¡¯ll show you the true power of the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage!¡±

 Chapter 655: Essence Ring

    The true power of the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage?


    Long Chen had now confirmed her cultivation level.


    It was a hair-raising battle to watch.


    Zhao Wuji and Lady Xuan separated. Long Chen noticed that Zhao Wuji¡¯s expression was very dark.


    On the other hand, a carefree smile was stered on Lady Xuan¡¯s face. Without another word, she shot at him at a speed several times faster than before! She was from the Wind n of the Heavenly Wind Empire, and wind was the symbol of speed and lightness. It was clear that she was exceptional in terms of speed!


    Even Long Chen¡¯s vision blurred.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    In the blink of an eye, Lady Xuan arrived before Zhao Wuji.


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusory Palms!¡±Lady Xuan swung her palm at Zhao Wuji. Her palm turned into two, then three, then an increasing number of palm seals appeared instantly, instantly drowning Zhao Wuji!


    ¡°Yellow Martial Seal!¡±


    At this critical moment, Zhao Wuji took a deep breath and used the Yellow Martial Seal, an attack Zhao Danchen previously used. However, his attack was more than ten times stronger than Zhao Danchen! The Martial Overlord¡¯s strength was no joke!


    A golden ¡°martial¡± character appeared in front of Zhao Wuji. His face was cold as he pushed out the seal. The golden seal expanded into a mountain that collided with her Three Thousand Illusory Palms. Her technique consisted of three thousand attacks, and they all fell on his Yellow Martial Seal!


    This was the true moment that would decide who was stronger.


    Long Chen was not shocked by Lady Xuan¡¯s strength, but rather Zhao Wuji¡¯s. He could see that Zhao Wuji was still at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, but he could unleash an attack strong enough topete with Lady Xuan. This meant that he was very close to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage! Perhaps this was why he was always cultivating and did not care about the Dragon n or everyone else!


    If he reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, no one would be a match for him!


    He would be able to defeat Long Shan and his other enemies easily then.


    However, he was unlucky because Lady Xuan from the Heavenly Wind Empire had suddenly shown up at his doorstep. Not only did she want his Myriad Earth Essence, she was also here to fight him for the Ancient Token. If she did not die, then his n would be ruined!


    That was why he was fighting as hard as he could!


    The soundsing from the battle between two masters were deafening. However, it was not like when Zhao Danchen fought, where the whole earth shook. In reality, their attacks were even stronger because they focused all their strength in their attacks. They were clearly proficient in controlling their essence!


    When the Yellow Martial Seal and Three Thousand Illusory Palms collided, Lady Xuan¡¯s attack was slightly stronger. A portion of the palm seals passed through the Yellow Martial Seal andnded on Zhao Wuji¡¯s body, throwing him back!


    The crowd cried out in surprise!


    In their hearts, the Martial Overlord was the symbol of constant victory. Was he showing signs of defeat today?


    The crowd stared in disbelief!


    However, his injuries were not severe.


    The Martial Overlord quickly stabilized himself. His face was slightly pale, and the coolness in his eyes turned ice-cold. A violent aura radiated from his body.


    ¡°Oh? Are you angry?¡± Lady Xuan thought everything was within her control. She giggled and looked at him with contempt.


    ¡°You will regret this.¡± Zhao Wuji¡¯s cold voice was heard by everyone between heaven and earth. Then Long Chen suddenly felt suffocated because an immense pressure erupted from the Martial Overlord¡¯s body. The crowd felt a force acting on them!


    The ones who were weaker looked pale and even felt like they were going to faint. Then they suddenly fled in a swarm, causing chaos. Thankfully, the Martial Alliance had many Martial Kings, including Xiao Lin, to maintain order, so the chaos died down quickly.


    ¡°Is Zhao Wuji going to risk it all?¡± Long Chen silently used his essence to withstand the pressure. Looking at Zhao Wuji, he realized that the Martial Overlord¡¯s body was changing!


    ¡°Divine Martial Possession!¡± cried someone of a higher level in the Martial Alliance. They had heard rumors, so they knew what technique he was using.


    At this moment, Zhao Wuji was covered in a golden membrane. Densely-packed golden runes appeared all over his body, including his face. The elegant and sophisticated-looking Zhao Wuji instantly turned violent and terrifying!


    ¡°This is Divine Martial Possession?¡± Long Chen sensed that Zhao Wuji had be several times more powerful! He was initially close to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, and after using Divine Martial Possession, he reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage!


    Now Zhao Wuji was strong enough to fight Lady Xuan!


    ¡°Is Divine Martial Possession a divine technique simr to the Demon Seed nting Technique? Does it increase a person¡¯sbat abilities during battle?¡± muttered Long Chen to himself.


    ¡°You¡¯re wrong, stupid,¡± Little Cat said smugly.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°This is Zhao Wuji using his ancestors¡¯ powers. I¡¯m guessing that previous Martial Overlords have injected their own powers and imprints into a treasure. After a long time, the treasure umted great power. Do you see the golden ring on Zhao Wuji¡¯s finger? That¡¯s a status symbol passed down to each Martial Overlord. Of course, because it¡¯s an external source of energy, using it leads to bodily damage!¡±


    As Long Chen listened to Little Cat, he spotted a golden ring on Zhao Wuji¡¯s thumb. Golden rays of line shone out of the ring and pierced into his body!


    As power flowed from the ring into his body, Zhao Wuji grew stronger at great speed. His whole body was covered in golden runes!


    He was borrowing power from his ancestors, and it was a type of divine technique much stronger than the Demon Seed nting Technique. Only the highest-level members of the Martial Alliance knew of this secret. Other people only roughly knew that every Martial Overlord could use a divine technique called Divine Martial Possession.


    ¡°You have an Essence Ring?¡± Lady Xuan asked with surprise when Zhao Wuji used Divine Martial Possession. She looked at the ring on his thumb with surprise. During the few moments she was stunned, Zhao Wuji absorbed a portion of the power in his Essence ring, causing hisbat abilities to instantly increase to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage!


    Lady Xuan initially held victory confidently in her hands, but when the Essence ring appeared, despite her partially veiled face, Long Chen saw her brows furrowing slightly.


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s aura became several times stronger.


    ¡°I did not want to use them, since they are meant to help me stay alive in the Ancient Graveyard and their power diminishes with every use. However, since you¡¯re being so stubborn, I, Zhao Wuji, will not be polite either.¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re saying that, do you mean you want to kill me?¡± teased Lady Xuan.


    Zhao Wuji had pulled out his trump card. If he did not kill Lady Xuan now and she came back to trouble him again, how many uses did his Essence ring have left?


    ¡°You¡¯re right!¡±


    The intense battle red up once more, this time more terrifying than before. Lady Xuan had been suppressing Zhao Wuji, but it was Zhao Wujiunching a series of attacks on her this time! He fought as hard as he could, and Lady Xuan slowly started to falter!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    The initially sophisticated-looking Zhao Wuji¡¯s features slowly contorted into viciousness. The golden runes covering his body flickered. He threw punch after punch; all of his power was concentrated in his fist, colliding powerfully with Lady Xuan¡¯s attacks!


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Furious, Lady Xuan also started to fight with all her might. When Fifth Earthly Martial Stage masters started to fight seriously, Long Chen realized that even he could not see what they were doing clearly. Two blurry shadows moved quickly just outside of Martial Overlord City!


    Long Chen was far from qualified to participate in a battle of this level!


    ¡°Zhao Wuji is about to use his most powerful move.¡± Long Chen sensed that Zhao Wuji¡¯s power had risen to a new high. He knew that Zhao Wuji was about tounch his final strike!


    This was his only chance!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    There were consecutive explosions. Zhao Wuji suddenly flew up into the air, and countless golden light threads appeared around him. They flew to his body, turning him into a golden sun! The golden runes spun quickly over his skin, and Zhao Wuji¡¯s fingers formed seals with lightning speed. A shocking level of power erupted from his body!


    ¡°This must be the only advanced King-tier technique in the whole Divine Martial Empire¡ªthe Martial Overlord Seal!¡±


    <em>Boom!</em>


    An explosion went off when Zhao Wuji pushed his seal outwards. At that moment, it was as if the whole world was shaking. The golden rays turned into arge illusory image of a golden-armored war god, which appeared behind Zhao Wuji. As he pushed out the seal, therge, golden-armored war god reached out and threw itsrge, golden fist at Lady Xuan!


    The whole world changed colors!


    The Martial Overlord was shockingly powerful!


    Long Chen knew that he would surely die if he were hit with this attack, unless he used Rewind after taking one hit!

 Chapter 656: Three Thousand Illusions

    ¡°Is this your most powerful attack?¡± Lady Xuan¡¯s expression had changed too in the face of such an attack. She was starting to panic. Initially, she thought she could easily defeat the Martial Overlord. How could she have expected him to have Essence Rings? Since he ruled over the whole Divine Martial Empire, it made sense that he had a trump card!


    Lady Xuan privately regretted not attacking Zhao Wuji vigorously the moment they started fighting, so that he would not have the chance to use the Essence Rings!


    Now she had no choice but to brace herself and endure this!


    This woman, Feng Xuan, was no weakling!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡± When the Martial Overlord Seal was about to arrive, her gaze turned cold and essence flowed through her whole body. With the surge of essence and power, a strong gust of wind blew around her and turned into three thousand illusions. These illusions were humanoid shadows made of wind. They all looked like people, but they were not solid!


    <em>This is a divine technique simr to the Divine Fire Clone and Demonic Illusion. Every illusion created by Three Thousand Illusions is a clone. Compared to the other two techniques, Three Thousand Illusions is much more powerful in terms of numbers, agility, and power!</em>


    Long Chen privately analyzed the attack.


    Three Thousand Illusions was a divinebat technique, but Feng Xuan had used it as a defensive technique. Faced with the looming threat of the Martial Overlord Seal, the three thousand shadows flew at it. Every illusion was a powerful attack that could stop the Martial Overlord seal for a while. Whenbined together, three thousand of them were an immense force!


    The Martial Overlord Seal and Three Thousand Illusions collided!<em>Boom!</em>


    Explosions rang out consecutively as each shadow collided with the Martial Overlord Seal, causing arge explosion. After the explosion, the shadows turned into the wind and disappeared while a new shadow emerged from Feng Xuan¡¯s side!


    This attack was much stronger than Three Thousand Palms!


    Feng Xuan could fire an endless stream of them until she exhausted all her Qi. Of course, her opponent would be long dead by then!


    The golden war god that was the Martial Overlord Seal battled the three thousand shadows while the crowd watched with their jaws on the floor.


    These two were true masters. Even their battle was exciting to watch!


    Long Chen was deeply impressed.


    He currently had the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Wind God Kick, but they were far weaker than an attack like the Martial Overlord Seal. Long Chen felt like hecked an attack that could kill his opponent in one move!


    <em>Gathering the Five Emperor Seals is my goal. But if I can get an advanced King-tier technique before that, something like the Martial Overlord Seal, it would be better ¡­ But the Martial Overlord Seal belongs to Zhao Wuji. He did not even pass it down to Zhao Danchen, so how would I get it?</em>


    Initially, Feng Xuan was holding off the Martial Overlord Seal, but the tides turned while Long Chen was thinking!


    Zhao Wuji was terrifying when he was mad. After his Martial Overlord Seal was blocked by Feng Xuan, he gritted his teeth and drew a lot more energy from his Essence Rings. This power had exceeded what he could control, causing the martial veins in his body to start showing signs of breaking down. Blood trickled out of his skin, but he was bent on killing Feng Xuan, so he did not even frown at this!


    Zhao Wuji directed copious amounts of energy into the Martial Overlord seal, which was instantly charged with an earth-shattering power. The Martial Overlord Seal was now moving forward at a speed faster than the Three Thousand Illusions could deal with. Therge, golden-armored war god roared in anger, then it swung itsrge, golden fist at Feng Xuan!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Countless illusions stood in front of Feng Xuan, but even so, she wasunched into the air!


    While she flew through the sky, blood sprayed out of her mouth, dying her veil red. The veil slipped off while she flew, revealing her face. She had seductive and demon-like features. Although she looked like she was in her twenties, she was actually in her thirties.


    The path of cultivation was also a path of longevity.


    As a person¡¯s cultivation level increased, their lifespan lengthened too.


    The Four Foundational Realms did not do much to increase one¡¯s lifespan, but after reaching the First Earthly Martial Stage, a cultivator could live for more than a hundred years. Every stage of the Earthly Martial Realm increased a person¡¯s lifespan by fifty years. At the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, a cultivator could live for more than five hundred years.


    However, after breaking through to the Heavenly Martial Realm, they could live for a thousand years!


    In other empires, there were old monsters who had lived for centuries. Those people were truly terrifying!


    At the Heavenly Martial Realm, advancing a level increased a person¡¯s lifespan by a century! The monsters at the Ninth Heavenly Martial Stage could basically live for more than two thousand years.


    If a person could reach the legendary Divine Martial Realm, then they could live for more than five thousand years. The increase in lifespan was more terrifying after that. It was rumored that a person could live for ten thousand years at the peak of the Divine Martial Realm!


    Ten thousand years. What was that like?


    No empire among the Ten Great Empires had a history of ten thousand years, yet a person could live for ten thousand years. This was no longer a person, this was a legendary deity!


    Of course, the Heavenly and Divine Martial Realms were far out of Long Chen¡¯s reach.


    He was still at the Second Earthly Martial Stage, and struggling to break through to the third.


    Zhao Wuji initially did not look like he could defeat Feng Xuan, but after using Divine Martial Possession, he defeated her in one strike. At the same time, due to overexertion, his internal organs sustained great damage. He likely needed a long time to heal.


    But if what he got in return for this damage was Feng Xuan¡¯s death, then it was worth it. The Myriad Earth Essence was a minor issue, but the Ancient Token was major. Zhao Wuji was not at all afraid when Long Shan appeared, but Feng Xuan was different. As long as she was alive, he would never sleep well.


    ¡°Die!¡± After sessfully hitting Feng Xuan, he dashed over as fast as he could, turning into a golden ray of light!


    The golden light instantly arrived in front of her!


    Zhao Wuji¡¯s performance made the spectators cheer.


    Martial Overlord City was where the core members of the Martial Alliance lived. Here, most people supported the Martial Overlord¡¯s rule.


    <em>Is Feng Xuan going to die just like that? </em>Long Chen was shocked. He thought the Martial Overlord was surely dead, but he had the Essence Rings. He had managed to borrow his ancestors¡¯ strength to defeat her in one strike.


    If Zhao Wuji could hit her again, the incapacitated Feng Xuan surely would be unable to block him. Blood had sprayed out of her mouth, showing that she had sustained internal injuries. Zhao Wuji moved too fast, so she could not stop him at all!


    Within an extremely short moment, he reached out with his shining, golden palm to grab her neck. If he caught her, he would surely break her neck instantly!


    Watching such a critical moment, Long Chen¡¯s heart raced.


    Today¡¯s battle was just too exciting.


    Was Feng Xuan going to die just like that?


    Despite being far away, Long Chen saw the terror in her eyes, which were also filled with regret. It was clear that she had run out of solutions. She hade to this faraway ce, yet she had not even gotten her hands on the Ancient Token, and she was going to lose to a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator?


    This was a tragedy!


    That was when another twist happened.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The ground beneath both of them exploded, throwing soil in all four directions. A ck figure shot out of the ground!


    This sudden change caused Zhao Wuji to slow down slightly, but this was enough for Feng Xuan to recover enough to use a bodybat technique to dodge his attack. Then the ck shadow that erupted from the ground shot towards Zhao Wuji!


    When the ck thing appeared, the stench of blood and rot filled the air and wafted towards Martial Overlord City. The crowd was shocked and started to talk. Some people recognized what it was.


    ¡°The Ancient Demon Corpse!¡± Long Chen was startled. It was not strange for the Ancient Demon Corpse to be here, but it was strange that it had rescued Feng Xuan from Zhao Wuji. Although Feng Xuan had sustained injuries, they were not life-threatening. When given a short time to recover, she was able to run from Zhao Wuji and gradually regain herbat abilities!


    ¡°What just happened?¡±


    ¡°Why did Zhao Danchen¡¯s Ancient Demon Corpse attack the Martial Overlord?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. The Martial Overlord would have killed the woman if it hadn¡¯t popped out. What was that about?¡± The crowd erupted in discussions.


    Long Chen was puzzled too.


    With the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s help, Feng Xuan had sessfully fled from Zhao Wuji¡¯s attack. Her face was pale, and she looked very worried. If the Ancient Demon Corpse had arrived just a momentter, she would have been done for. She had not expected Zhao Wuji to use a technique that hurt himself to kill her!


    She had almost died.


    Thankfully, she was lucky and managed to survive.


    She used spiritual medicine to treat her injuries and recovered as fast as she could. She backed out of his attack range while the Ancient Demon Corpse forced Zhao Wuji back. Then the Ancient Demon Corpse retreated to a spot ten meters away from Feng Xuan. That was when Zhao Danchen quickly flew over from far away, appearing in front of the crowd. He stopped next to the Ancient Demon Corpse.

 Chapter 657: The Heavens Will Be Furious

    He was indeed the one controlling the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    ¡°Why is Martial Emperor Zhao standing next to that demon girl?¡±


    ¡°Was he really the one who controlled the Ancient Demon Corpse just now? Why would he do that?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. Zhao Danchen is the Martial Overlord¡¯s favorite disciple. Is he betraying him now?¡±


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s appearance made the crowd even noisier. Almost everyone spoke loudly with hesitation and disbelief.


    Long Chen was a bit surprised too.


    <em>Could it be that Zhao Danchen decided to stop following the Martial Overlord after taking the Ancient Demon Corpse? </em>Long Chen quickly figured it out.


    At this moment, Zhao Danchen and Zhao Wuji were in a standoff. Zhao Danchen¡¯s expression was mild with a mocking smirk, but the Martial Overlord¡¯s expression was terrible. He had spent a ton of energy to finally get a chance to kill Feng Xuan, but Zhao Danchen had ruined his chance. It had been very difficult to create that opportunity, and he would probably never get another one.


    The Ancient Token that should have belonged to him was now in a limbo.How could Zhao Wuji not be furious? It did not matter how calm he was as a person¡ªanyone would be furious in his position. He admitted that there were some conflicts between him and Zhao Danchen, but he never expected Zhao Danchen to do such a thing.


    This tiny action had forced Zhao Wuji to a dead end!


    There was a saying that the oldest ginger was the spiciest. However, Zhao Wuji had just been betrayed by his closest disciple. This showed how cold Zhao Danchen was.


    ¡°Danchen, exin yourself,¡± Zhao Wuji said hoarsely with a cold stare.


    ¡°Exin myself?¡± Zhao Danchenughed loudly and said, ¡°Is that a joke? Why do I need to exin myself? What is the rtionship between us? Am I your direct disciple? Or a tool for you to use?¡±


    Zhao Wuji was silent for a moment, and his eyes were fixed on him. ¡°You don¡¯t need to think too much. I¡¯ll give you everything that should be yours, including the Martial Overlord Seal and the Myriad Earth Essence. I can forget about what you did today if you work with me to kill this woman! She is from the Heavenly Wind Empire. If she doesn¡¯t die, we¡¯re all finished!¡±


    At this critical moment, Zhao Wuji did not want to waste time arguing with Zhao Danchen. It was time to finish her off while Feng Xuan was still injured!


    If they didn¡¯t, there would be many problems in the future!


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Zhao Danchenughed even louder. He looked at Zhao Wuji like he was looking at an idiot and said, ¡°Old man, you have a wild imagination. Do you think I¡¯m an idiot? I stopped you just now and ruined your glorious ns. Now you need my strength, so you say you will forget about what I did. But what about after she dies? You¡¯ll try to kill me, right? I am no idiot, so don¡¯t even think about it.¡±


    Initially, when Feng Xuan heard that Zhao Danchen was Zhao Wuji¡¯s disciple, she grew slightly nervous. If they worked together, the injured Feng Xuan would not be a match for them. But when she heard their conversation, she knew that they weren¡¯t on the same page.


    ¡°So, what do you want?¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s nonchnce was infuriating. There were already people calling him an ungrateful animal in Martial Overlord City, as they had heard the conversation very clearly!


    ¡°What do I want? I told you already, I want the Myriad Earth Essence. You did not give it to me when I asked for it, so do it now. If you don¡¯t, you¡¯ll be dead,¡± threatened Zhao Danchen.


    Dead?


    This implied that if Zhao Wuji did not give him the Myriad Earth Essence, he would attack Zhao Wuji, who was currently also heavily injured due to the huge side effects of Divine Martial Possession.


    ¡°Of course, give me the Martial Overlord rings too. I want to have a taste of the Divine Martial Possession¡¯s power, haha ¡­¡± Zhao Danchenughed brazenly.


    If he had only asked for the Myriad Earth Essence, Zhao Wuji would have agreed on the spot. However, he was hesitant to hand over the Martial Overlord rings. These rings represented the Martial Overlord¡¯s status and were passed down over generations of Martial Overlords. If Zhao Danchen became the new Martial Overlord in the future, Zhao Wuji would need to give them to him. However, Zhao Wuji¡¯s situation was different because he needed to bring them into the Ancient Graveyard!


    That was why even if Zhao Danchen obediently took the Martial Overlord position, he would not receive them!


    The Martial Overlord¡¯s eyebrows furrowed even more after he heard Zhao Danchen¡¯s request.


    If Zhao Danchen refused to take a step back and continued to drag this on, the consequences would be unimaginable when Feng Xuan recovered.


    Feng Xuan spoke up.


    ¡°Hey, little brother, I have an even better suggestion. Will you listen?¡± Feng Xuan was speaking to Zhao Danchen. Her voice was seductive enough to make a person¡¯s heart itch.


    Zhao Danchen looked at her in a friendly manner. He got a good look at her face and her body, then he looked surprised. When he spoke, his eyes were fixed on her voluptuous chest, and he gulped. ¡°What would you like to say?¡±


    When Feng Xuan saw him drooling over her body, she giggled. Her foxlike eyes had a hypnotizing effect as she gazed at him demurely and said, ¡°I came to Martial Overlord City only to ask for some Myriad Earth Essence. You also want the Myriad Earth Essence and whatever that Martial Overlord ring is. Only one person has those. Why don¡¯t we work together to destroy him? I only want half of the Myriad Earth Essence. Everything else is yours. What do you think?¡±


    Feng Xuan had spoken evil words in a girly voice.


    Martial Overlord City was shaken by her offer.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen wouldn¡¯t agree, would he?¡± The crowd grew anxious. Xiao Lin, who was standing in the crowd, was watching with a dark gaze. He did not move, because he could not offer any help in such a high-level standoff. However, he knew what something even bigger was going to happen today.


    If this really happened, he knew he would have to pick a side soon.


    Zhao Danchen smiled. In the beginning, he did not reply, and he looked at Zhao Wuji. Zhao Wuji was looking at him with a pressuring gaze. Zhao Danchen felt very ufortable to be looked at like that, even miserable, as if all the dark secrets in his heart were exposed to Zhao Wuji.


    He suddenly recalled that Zhao Wuji was the man who had nurtured his talent.


    <em>No! Zhao Wuji is only a selfish person. He didn¡¯t even want to give me the Myriad Earth Essence. He only wants to prepare himself to enter the Ancient Graveyard, and he won¡¯t even give me the Martial Overlord rings because of it. Why would I work so hard for such a selfish person? Today will be my only chance to get the Myriad Earth Essence and the Martial Overlord rings!</em>


    As for Feng Xuan, Zhao Danchen was not afraid of her now. She was injured; if she wasn¡¯t, she would not have offered to work with him.


    In front of countless gazes of disbelief, Zhao Danchen smiled. He nodded at Feng Xuan and said loudly, ¡°I could never say no to such a beautiful girl! Let¡¯s hurry up, then!¡±


    As he spoke, he waved the g in his hand, and the Ancient Demon Corpse let out a heaven-shaking roar. The bones in its body crackled loudly!


    Feng Xuan did not expect Zhao Danchen to actually agree.


    <em>This guy even dares to kill his own master. He must be a prominent figure. His cultivation level is not high, he just has the corpse. After we kill his master and my injuries recover, I¡¯ll kill him and take that g ¡­</em>


    This was Feng Xuan¡¯s n.


    ¡°Now!¡±


    Feng Xuan withstood the pain from her injuries and started performing a strange type of footwork. A gust of wind blew towards Zhao Wuji while the Ancient Demon Corpse attacked him!


    ¡°Die, Zhao Wuji!¡± Zhao Danchen gave a chilling smile.


    Martial Overlord City erupted with curses. Almost everyone watched furiously as the Martial Overlord was attacked. The face of the man was as dark as coal!


    ¡°Zhao Danchen! What an ungrateful bastard! I used to worship his talent; I never thought he was that type of person! He¡¯s going to kill his master over the Myriad Earth Essence and the Martial Overlord rings!¡±


    ¡°That animal! Animal! The heavens will be furious!¡±


    Some elders turned red with anger, almost fainting.


    Waves of insults and curses flew at the sky, from cursing Zhao Danchen¡¯s eighteen generations of ancestors to curses of infertility.


    Martial Emperor Xiao Lin was at the core of the crowd. Most of the Martial Kings gathered next to him, letting him lead!


    ¡°Martial Emperor Xiao, we should quickly rescue the Martial Overlord. If this goes on, he¡¯ll die!¡±


    ¡°Yeah. If Zhao Danchen takes control of the Martial Alliance, will we be able to survive, considering his viciousness? The Martial Alliance will fall in his hands!¡±


    Everyone spoke to him with tears in their eyes.


    Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes were fixed on Zhao Wuji. Two masters were attacking him, and Zhao Wuji was already injured and could barely use any more of the Martial Overlord rings¡¯ power. He was truly in a pathetic state. If this continued, death would be unavoidable. This was just hisst struggle.


    Just now, Zhao Danchen had stopped Zhao Wuji from dealing the finishing blow to Feng Xuan, an opportunity Zhao Wuji had paid a great price to create. Zhao Wuji would not defeat Feng Xuan, especially not with the Ancient Demon Corpse helping her. It was a terrifying creature that did not fear death!


    Even if Xiao Lin sacrificed his and all the Martial Kings¡¯ lives, there was no way they could save Zhao Wuji.


    Zhao Wuji had never expected to die by his own disciple¡¯s hand.


    He refused to surrender!


    Zhao Wuji was like a wild beast. The power in the Martial Overlord rings poured into his body. The huge surge of energy burst many of his blood vessels as he forcefully increased his strength.


    If this continued, he would copse.

 Chapter 658: Death of the Martial Overlord

    When Feng Xuan and the Ancient Demon Corpse attacked Zhao Wuji, he was like an old wild beast. He roared like a madman as the power of the Martial Overlord rings surged through him. This power was enough to help him barely withstand the attacks of the two people. However, the power of his ancestors was also gradually destroying his body.


    Blood started to flow, slowly dying his whole body red.


    When the crowd understood that this was the Martial Overlord¡¯s final struggle, they screamed and cursed Zhao Danchen. However, even Xiao Lin did not dare help him, because they knew that they would also die.


    ¡°Big Brother, if this continues, the Martial Overlord will die. Should we help? I think that having Zhao Danchen and this woman as enemies is more trouble than having Zhao Wuji as an enemy,¡± Mo Xiang said with furrowed brows.


    Long Chen thought for a moment and shook his head. ¡°We need to focus on Qi Qi¡¯s problem.¡±


    If they attacked now, they would not be able to defeat those two, and it would also affect their n to save Huangfu Qi. Long Chen had made a promise to Huangfu Fengchen, so he had to save her!


    Mo Xiang understood Long Chen¡¯s intentions.


    Although the Martial Emperor was pitiful and betrayed by his own disciple, Mo Xiang and Long Chen saw things from a different point of view, since they had different goals. Ever since they entered the Divine Martial Empire, Long Chen was fated to be Zhao Wuji¡¯s enemy. If Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan did not attack the Martial Overlord today, Zhao Wuji would be Long Chen¡¯s major rival during the final fight for the Ancient Token!


    Mo Xiang did not feel any sympathy for Zhao Wuji either. He just thought that Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan would be even more difficult to deal with.This was a battle at the very peak of the Divine Martial Empire. Other than Long Shan, who was resting in the Battle n, no one in the whole Divine Martial Empire was powerful enough to save the Martial Overlord!


    ¡°Die, old man ¡­¡± Zhao Danchen sneered.


    Zhao Wuji was not old. Compared to other cultivators who had reached his level, he was even considered young. But Zhao Danchen wanted him dead.


    ¡°You scum! If only I knew you were such an evil person! I should not have taken you into the Martial Alliance and taught you cultivation!¡± Zhao Wuji¡¯s eyes were covered with blood vessels, and he roared hoarsely. Killing intent radiated from his cold eyes.


    ¡°It¡¯s toote now! Haha! I don¡¯t think you ever expected this to happen, right? It¡¯s good that you¡¯ll die. From today onwards, I, Zhao Danchen, will rule over the Martial Alliance!¡± Zhao Danchenughed like a madman.


    ¡°You ¡­¡± Zhao Wuji went mad with rage when he looked at Zhao Danchen¡¯s infuriating face.


    ¡°Ancestors of the Martial Alliance! I was not careful, and I mistakenly took in this scorpion-hearted brat as my disciple! I will clean up this lineage even if I die!¡± Zhao Wuji roared, and the golden runes on his body erupted in mes. Copious amounts of power flowed from the rings into his body, causing him to almost explode. But he did not care, and he merely sneered.


    At this moment, Zhao Wuji abandoned the Ancient Demon Corpse and Feng Xuan, then he shot towards Zhao Danchen like a golden shadow!


    ¡°Die, you animal!¡± The golden shadow instantly appeared in front of Zhao Danchen!


    Zhao Danchen did not expect the Martial Overlord tounch such a strong attack right before he died. Because he had to control the Ancient Demon Corpse, he was not standing far from the battle!


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s face fell!


    He never thought Zhao Wuji would drag him down to hell with him. Even if Zhao Wuji killed him, he would be killed by Feng Xuan and the Ancient Demon Corpse when they caught up. Feng Xuan would be happy to see both Zhao Danchen and Zhao Wuji dead, so despite being the fastest person, she slowed down and watched with a smirk. On the other hand, while the Ancient Demon Corpse was strong, it was not very fast ¡­


    If Zhao Wuji killed Zhao Danchen, Feng Xuan would immediately pass the Ancient Demon Corpse to kill Zhao Wuji. Then she would be the ultimate winner!


    ¡°No!¡± Zhao Danchen backed away in a panic. Using his remaining arm, he pushed out a Golden Punch, thinking of using the recoil to back away. But that move was just too weak to Zhao Wuji, who was on hisst struggle before death.


    Zhao Danchen watched with despair as Zhao Wuji neared him.


    <em>Is this my karma? </em>At that moment, Zhao Danchen¡¯s world copsed, and the shadow of death loomed over him. Zhao Wuji¡¯s attack, which was a golden fist, was about to hit his face, and along with it came Zhao Wuji¡¯s cold and furious re!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    What happened next was beyond Zhao Danchen¡¯s expectations!


    When Zhao Wuji was about to hit him, his body exploded. The power flowing from the Martial Overlord rings was too much for him to handle. At the veryst moment, Zhao Wuji was unable to withstand it and finally exploded into a pile of meat pieces thatnded on Zhao Danchen¡¯s body, drenching him in blood!


    Bits of meat and bone hung on Zhao Danchen¡¯s body.


    Silence fell.


    The Ancient Demon Corpse stopped in front of Zhao Danchen and then turned around to look at Feng Xuan cautiously. It roared as if to warn her that it would attack if she approached.


    Admittedly, Zhao Danchen had gotten very lucky.


    In the Ancient Demon Domain, he had been defeated by Long Chen but had not died, then he ended up taking the powerful Ancient Demon Corpse for himself.


    Here in Martial Overlord City, he should have been killed by the Martial Overlord, but the Martial Overlord had exploded at the veryst moment!


    The Martial Overlord¡¯s furious expression yed continuously in Zhao Danchen¡¯s mind. His body was covered in the man¡¯s blood, which fell to the ground like raindrops.


    ¡°Haha!¡± Zhao Danchen was stunned at first, then he let out a manicugh. Heughed so hard that he bent over, and he had a crazed look on his face.


    ¡°I¡¯m still alive? I¡¯m still alive? Zhao Wuji is dead? It¡¯s good he died! He died at just the right time!¡± Zhao Danchen sted off the blood and flesh on his body, but there was too much of it. He was overwhelmed with excitement, so no matter what he did, he could not get rid of the Martial Overlord¡¯s imprint on him.


    ¡°On the day you took me in as your direct disciple, you never thought you¡¯d explode into pieces in front of me, right? This isn¡¯t a bad way to die at all. Looks like my luck has been very good. People with great luck will surely have a bright future. Is this my time to soar?¡±


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s voice traveled across the whole city.


    Everyone watched in stunned silence.


    The Martial Overlord was dead.


    Everyone had watched the Martial Overlord, who used to rule their world, die by his only direct disciple¡¯s hand!


    Zhao Danchen!


    Everyone looked at the young man with reverence!


    Just now, their hearts had been filled with rage, but that had turned into reverence! Deep reverence. Not only was he lucky and talented, he was also as venomous as a scorpion. No one in Martial Overlord City could provoke him, not even Xiao Lin. Everyone had been cursing Zhao Danchen just now, but the moment the Martial Overlord died, who would dare say anything bad about him?


    The whole city fell dead silent.


    Zhao Danchen shook once, and essence swarmed out of his body. All the blood and flesh stuck to his body was finally shaken to the ground. He held two things in his hands¡ªthe Martial Overlord rings and the Universe Pouch that Zhao Wuji carried with him. He held these two items with a mocking look on his face. He looked at Feng Xuan and said, ¡°Did you want me to die just now?¡±


    Feng Xuan smiled and said, ¡°Who said that? Of course I wanted to save you. But Zhao Wuji was just too fast in hisst struggle, so I couldn¡¯t keep up. Now that we have won, give me half of the Myriad Earth Essence as per our agreement.¡±


    She looked at him with a flirtatious smile.


    If Zhao Danchen did not agree, that smile would turn deadly.


    Feng Xuan had sustained internal injuries, and she was in a hurry to get Huangfu Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins. Therefore, she did not want to risk causing further problems. If she were at her peak health, she would have snatched Zhao Danchen¡¯s Ancient Demon Corpse and the Martial Overlord rings.


    Zhao Danchen thought for a while.


    He knew that provoking this woman over some Myriad Earth Essence was not a smart move. She would overpower the Ancient Demon Corpse if it were not for her injuries. If he chose to let this go, Zhao Danchen could find the cultivation method for the Martial Overlord Seal since he now had the Martial Overlord rings. After some time, with the help of the Ancient Demon Corpse, he would be able to defeat her.


    With that thought, he took out two bottles from Zhao Wuji¡¯s Universe Pouch. They were notrge, but they were sparkling yet clear, showing that they were made of a special material.


    ¡°He had a total of four bottles of Myriad Earth Essence. These two are for you.¡± As he spoke, he tossed two bottles to Feng Xuan. She caught them and opened one. It was indeed Myriad Earth Essence. These two bottles were enough for her to recover after transnting the Heavenly Wind Veins, so she did not dwell on whether Zhao Danchen was keeping more for himself. She quickly put them away and smiled at him.


    The teasing and seductive smile ignited a fire in Zhao Danchen. However, when he recalled that this was a woman he could not handle, he stopped his train of thought. If he got involved with this woman, he would die one day.


    ¡°What? Isn¡¯t the new Martial Overlord going to invite me to his pce for a drink? I am still a prettydy after all, right?¡± said Feng Xuan.


    ¡°Not today. I need to deal with the Martial Overlord¡¯s affairs. Today¡¯s events have been major, and it¡¯s going to be a headache for me. If you want toe, you cane over another time. The next time youe to Martial Overlord City, I will surely give you the warmest wee!¡±

 Chapter 659: Brother

    Zhao Danchen was clearly telling her to leave.


    Of course, Feng Xuan was only teasing. Zhao Danchen was young, but he was vicious and talented. He was a hundred times better than her previous boytoy, Huangfu Yu. The only w was that hecked an arm. However, now that he had the Myriad Earth Essence, he would grow his arm back. Feng Xuan did not need him to have two arms anyway.


    However, Huangfu Qi was waiting.


    After they flirted for a while, she turned to leave.


    Zhao Danchen turned and looked at Martial Overlord City.


    He had made his intentions clear in the conversation he had with Feng Xuan.


    He wanted to be the Martial Overlord.


    Everyone looked at him in petrified silence, including Xiao Lin, who also had terror written all over his face.


    Zhao Danchen smiled. There was no need for him to say anything. He stuck out his right thumb and held it high in the air. Then he put the golden ring on his thumb in front of everyone!He continued holding his thumb up for everyone to see.


    ¡°Your Majesty, the Martial Overlord!¡±


    All the people of Martial Overlord City fell to their knees, one by one. After a while, everyone had knelt down. Zhao Wuji¡¯s era was over; it was Zhao Danchen¡¯s era!


    ¡°With that bastard being the Martial Overlord, the Divine Martial Empire will be even worse,¡± said Long Chen, then he leaped off the wall on the side of the city with Mo Xiang. He abandoned everyone in Martial Overlord city, and while everyone was greeting Zhao Danchen, Long Chen ran after Feng Xuan.


    Feng Xuan had sustained internal injuries, so she could not move very quickly. This allowed Long Chen and Xiang to catch up, and Long Chen did not use his Dragon Soul Transformation.


    If Feng Xuan was not injured, he did not know if they would have been able to catch up.


    Long Chen had seen her in battle, so he deeply revered her. The Fifth Earthly Martial Stage was indeed very strong!


    ¡°Xiang, be careful. We¡¯ll wait for our chance! When I let you into the Primordial Realm, you must not hesitate at all!¡±


    ¡°I understand, Elder Brother. Saving Qi Qi is the most important thing,¡± said Mo Xiang with a nod.


    Both of them were nervous, but for the sake of Huangfu Qi, they gave chase without hesitation.


    The only good news was that Feng Xuan was injured. Based on her condition, the damage was quite severe. If Zhao Danchen had not arrived, Feng Xuan would have been the dead one.


    The Martial Overlord¡¯s Martial Overlord Seal was quite terrifying!


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang held their breaths and approached slowly, not daring to make a sound. They were facing a master they could not defeat in a direct battle.


    The task ahead was not an easy one.


    Very quickly, Feng Xuan arrived in a ce that was close to Huangfu Qi¡¯s hiding spot. It was a valley with beautiful nts and chirping birds, though it also contained many demonic beasts. It was arge valley, but the demonic beasts were not strong. There were no King-tier beasts that could take human form here.


    The earthly spiritual Qi here was thick, so even the weaker beasts were decently strong. Within this valley, the beasts were between the Earth and Heaven tier, and they roamed across arge area.


    Feng Xuan dashed quickly through the valley.


    Long Chen and Xiang followed closely. Long Chen had the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so he could follow her from a distance. Xiang had a sensitive nose, so he could pick up her scent.


    ¡°So, she¡¯s in this valley. If only we had known about this ce from the start. However, if we were to search on our own, we might not have found this ce even if we searched for ten days,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°Elder Brother, what do we do now?¡± Xiang saw Long Chen as the leader, and Long Chen was also quicker with ideas.


    Long Chen thought for a while, then he said solemnly, ¡°Perhaps one of us can lure her away, then the other can save Qi Qi?¡±


    ¡°Should I be the one to lure her away? You have the Primordial Realm, so you can quickly put Qi Qi in a safe ce. If you don¡¯t use the Dragon Soul Transformation, I¡¯m a little faster than you,¡± Mo Xiang said decisively.


    ¡°No way, that¡¯s very dangerous for you,¡± blurted Long Chen.


    ¡°You don¡¯t trust me?¡± Mo Xiang looked at him solemnly for the first time. His eyes were filled with determination. Xiang was usually very obedient, but when he decided to be stubborn, even Long Chen could not convince him otherwise.


    Seeing Mo Xiang so serious, Long Chen clenched his teeth and thought for a moment. He said, ¡°Alright. You¡¯ll try leading her awayter. If you can¡¯t, it¡¯s no big deal. We will simply fight to our deaths!¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡± A smile finally appeared on his tightened face. He was waiting for Long Chen to say this. He had always wanted to help Long Chen do something, and it seemed like there were fewer and fewer chances for him to help out along this journey. He had finally reached Category Three King-tier with great difficulty, so now he could share Long Chen¡¯s burden!


    Mo Xiang was even more desperate to save Huangfu Qi!


    ¡°Elder Brother, she stopped,¡± Mo Xiang suddenly said, looking at Long Chen with his bright eyes.


    ¡°Mm ¡­¡± Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and spotted Huangfu Qi. Huangfu Qi¡¯s soul was very blurry, so he guessed that she was unconscious. If Feng Xuan wanted her to stay in one spot, it made sense for her to make Huangfu Qi unconscious.


    ¡°Is she preparing to transnt Qi Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins into her own body in this valley?¡± Mo Xiang asked.


    Long Chen thought for a while and nodded. ¡°There isn¡¯t anyone nearby, so that is very possible. If she returns to the Huangfu family, she might be interrupted.¡±


    If she nned to return to the Huangfu family, Feng Xuan would have taken Huangfu Qi away immediately. However, she had stayed in the same ce. That was why Mo Xiang guessed that she would perform the transnt here.


    ¡°Elder Brother, I will go over to attack herter. She has just arrived at the Divine Martial Empire, so she won¡¯t recognize us. And when she sees that I¡¯m a demonic beast, she will surely chase after me. If I run fast, it should be no problem!¡± said Xiang.


    Luring an enemy away created too many variables. Long Chen was not sure about this, but since Xiang insisted on taking this dangerous task, Long Chen had no choice.


    ¡°Be very careful. When we fight, listen to my instructions. If you ruin the n because of your stubbornness, I won¡¯t forgive you.¡± Long Chen knew that Xiang could be stubborn sometimes. For example, when he was running for his life with Ling Xi and Xiang, and the dwarves arrived, Xiang did not listen to him and used up his own life force to help Long Chen fight them!


    Although it was not good that he was stubborn, at that moment, Long Chen recognized Mo Xiang as his brother for life!


    Mo Xiang was no idiot. He knew what Long Chen was talking about, and seeing how serious Long Chen was, he bit his lip and nodded. ¡°I understand, Big Brother.¡±


    The arrangements had been made.


    There were five hundred meters left. They arrived in the blink of an eye and hid behind a gigantic, ancient tree. This tree¡¯s leaves wererge enough topletely hide Xiang and Long Chen.


    After Xiang turned into human form, he barely had any demonic Qi on him. If that were not the case, Feng Xuan would have long noticed the presence of a powerful demonic beast.


    Looking through the gaps between the leaves, Long Chen could see where Feng Xuan was. There was a semicircr cave on the lush, green mountain wall ahead. He could see inside of this wide cave from his current location. The inner walls of the cave were very smooth, so he could tell that she had created it herself.


    Feng Xuan stood in the cave and stared ahead with excitement.


    There was a wooden tub in front of her. It was about two meters in diameter and one meter tall. The wood used to make this tub was likely precious and sturdy, and it was dark purple. It was clear that it was not ordinary wood, as it would not have been able to withstand the medicine inside.


    Half of the tub was filled with light green medicine. The medicine was viscous, and was likely a liquid formed from mixing several types of herbs. It looked disgusting but gave off a pleasant fragrance. Taking a sniff would result in a refreshing feeling.


    Huangfu Qi was lying in the medicine. The thick, green liquid covered her tiny body and only her face remained outside, though her eyes were tightly shut.


    Her face was a mild green and did not have much redness to it, as if she was assimting with the medicine.


    When Long Chen and Mo Xiang saw her, their eyes turned blood-red. Mo Xiang even started panting heavily, showing how furious he was. Long Chen was worried he would make a sound, so he gripped his arm tightly to remind him.


    Mo Xiang finally quietened down.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a small branch family, yet a young prodigy with three Heavenly Wind Veins appeared. If you were allowed to reach the Earthly Martial Realm, you would experience the benefits of the Heavenly Wind Veins, and you might¡¯ve been able to reach the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. I only have two Heavenly Wind Veins myself; why does this little girl have more than me?¡±


    Feng Xuan walked around Huangfu Qi, looking at her with great interest. Then she muttered to herself with a smile, ¡°It looks likeing to the Divine Martial Empire was a smart move. Not only will I get the Ancient Token with ease, I am about get three Heavenly Wind Veins. Although this transnting method will have some side effects and I¡¯ll be inferior to people born with five Heavenly Wind Veins, I will be stronger. I should be able to reach the Sixth or Seventh Earthly Martial Stage!¡±


    Looking at Huangfu Qi¡¯s tiny body, Feng Xuan gave an approving smile.

 Chapter 660: Failed Plan

    "Feng Xuan, O Feng Xuan. Aren¡¯t you getting impatient already? Shall we start?¡± Feng Xuan muttered to herself.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang¡¯s gazes darkened. They could tell that Feng Xuan was about to begin.


    If they didn¡¯t stop her, Huangfu Qi¡¯s body would dissolve until only three Heavenly Wind Veins remained in the wooden tub. Then Feng Xuan would be able to transnt the three veins into her own body.


    This method was evil and violent, a reflection of the woman.


    <em>That woman must die, </em>Long Chen privately told himself.


    Mo Xiang touched his arm, then gave him a pointed look.


    Long Chen nodded.


    It was time.


    Mo Xiang dashed nimbly to another spot in the forest. Then he started executing his n.Meanwhile, Long Chen snuck to a spot close to the cave.


    Mo Xiang regained his powerfulbat abilities by turning into the Sun Devouring Wolf. Now that he had reached Category Three King-tier, he was muchrger than before. He was just slightly weaker than the ckwater Viper!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    A gust of ck mes burned down all the trees around him. The ck Sun Devouring Wolf leaped out of the mes andnded in front of Feng Xuan.


    When Mo Xiang started moving, Feng Xuan did not look in his direction, but there was a cold smirk on her face.


    Long Chen thought he had imagined it. It was a critical juncture, so he did not dwell on it.


    After Xiang had turned into the Sun Devouring Wolf, Feng Xuan turned around quickly, just as they expected. When she saw Xiang, there was a sh of surprise in her eyes, but she quickly calmed down.


    ¡°Have you finally decided to act? This beast is not bad at all,¡± Feng Xuan said with a smile.


    Long Chen and Xiang were startled, then they realized that Feng Xuan might have noticed them a long time ago. She had not done anything only because she was toying with them.


    Long Chen immediately realized how serious their predicament was!


    ¡°Oh no!¡±


    There was a sh of panic in the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s eyes when he saw that Feng Xuan was not surprised to see him at all, but he quickly calmed down. With a fierce expression, a portion of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire separated and poured in her direction!


    ¡°Oh, what kind of fire is this?¡± Feng Xuan moved aside, then put the tub with Huangfu Qi inside in front of herself!


    Xiang quickly retracted the mes when he saw this, because if the fire hit Huangfu Qi, their n would fail.


    Their n did not include Feng Xuan knowing about their presence, so they became the defensive party.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang had no idea how Feng Xuan had found out about them.


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire attack had not baited Feng Xuan to chase after him, and his actions had allowed her to figure out what Long Chen and Mo Xiang were after. Xiang did not want to hurt Huangfu Qi; didn¡¯t that mean that they were here to rescue her?


    ¡°So you¡¯re here to save the girl. You followed me from Martial Overlord City, and you really thought I didn¡¯t know about you? As for the other one,e out here. I know where you are.¡± Feng Xuan looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction.


    <em>Fuck. We¡¯ve got to risk it all now. </em>Long Chen knew there was no longer a need to hide. He walked out from behind a tree trunk and looked at her wistfully.


    When Feng Xuan saw him, there was a hint of approval on her face. Eyeing him up and down, she said, ¡°You¡¯ve reached a high cultivation level at a very young age, and you even have a Category Three King-tier beast apanying you. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re famous in the Divine Martial Empire, right?¡±


    Long Chen did not answer her.


    He was thinking of a n.


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was standing not far from him. His eyes were burning with ck mes, and they were fixed on Feng Xuan. Huangfu Qi was next to her. He looked at Long Chen, asking him how they would approach this matter.


    Long Chen was also out of ideas, so they could only go with the flow.


    Feng Xuan was a bitch through and through.


    Her greedy gaze swept across both Long Chen and Mo Xiang, but Long Chen felt disgusted by it and said, ¡°We brothers aren¡¯t interested in old women, especially old women that anyone can get with. You¡¯re going to be disappointed.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words made Feng Xuan tremble with rage.


    In recent years, being called an old woman really got under her skin. Not only had Long Chen thrown the most triggering insult at her, he had said it with a look of contempt on his face, igniting the fire of rage in her heart.


    ¡°Alright! Alright! You did not listen when I was nice, so die!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡±


    After her furious reply, she unleashed the attack she had used against the Martial Overlord Seal, thinking she could finish Long Chen and Mo Xiang at the same time. If she dealt with them, she would be able to transnt Huangfu Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins without worry.


    Three thousand densely packed shadows made of the wind appeared around Feng Xuan. They were all human-shaped with arms and feet. Each of them possessed greatbat abilities, and they could even self-destruct at thest moment, inflicting even greater damage!


    Under Feng Xuan¡¯s control, the three thousand shadows surrounded the brothers instantly. There seemed to be no space for Long Chen and Mo Xiang to run, including upwards and downwards.


    The Three Thousand Illusions made Long Chen¡¯s brows furrow.


    Very soon, he had an idea.


    But it was a dangerous one.


    However, if they fought her shadows and wasted time, they would likely die before they could touch Feng Xuan.


    ¡°Haha! I¡¯ll give you a taste of my Three Thousand Illusions! Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m only going to catch you guys. I won¡¯t let you guys die so quickly. You two young men are quite handsome, so I must treat you to a good time, of course!¡± Feng Xuan chuckled and shook her waist.


    The illusions instantly leaped at Long Chen and the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Long Chen ran to Xiang¡¯s side and whispered into his ear, ¡°Xiang, cover me so I can escape.¡±


    <em>Cover him so he can escape?</em>


    Mo Xiang knew that Long Chen was a righteous person, and he would not abandon Mo Xiang and Huangfu Qi to run off on his own. If he wanted Xiang to cover him, he definitely had his reasons!


    At this moment, the illusions arrived. More than a hundred of them were packed densely around them, so they attacked from all directions. Escaping was almost impossible for a cultivator under the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage!


    ¡°Dragon Soul Transformation!¡± Long Chen used the Dragon Soul Transformation to boost hisbat abilities by ten times, making his essence the equivalent of a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s essence!


    Blood-red dragon scales covered his body, and his sharp, knife-like spines made him look menacing!


    After using the Dragon Soul Transformation, he rushed toward at least four illusions and used the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. He had to sh four times in order to shatter thempletely, but new ones emerged from Feng Xuan¡¯s side. Countless gusts of wind blew in Long Chen¡¯s direction!


    The Sun Devouring Wolf roared and sprayed arge swath of ck mes from his mouth. The ck mes were the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. It was difficult for the illusions to withstand the fire, so they were burned away. The Sun Devouring Wolf stood in front of Long Chen and helped him clear a path!


    All the illusions along the path were clearedpletely by Xiang!


    Long Chen rushed through the path and ran ten times faster than he did before in order to break free from the illusions!


    After breaking free from them, Long Chen¡¯s furious voice echoed across the cave. ¡°You bitch! I¡¯m going to kill you one day! But I¡¯ll let you live today!¡±


    When Feng Xuan heard him and saw him running away, she shook her head and said, ¡°He abandoned the little girl and his own demonic beast to run off alone? Looks like the brat isn¡¯t a good person either. And he wants toe back for revenge? Hehe. Do you think you can run from me?¡±


    After Xiang spat out the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he was trapped by countless shadows. The only weapon he had against them was his Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, which prevented him from immediately being killed. However, his situation quickly grew dire. He told himself that he had to hold on until Long Chen¡¯s n seeded!


    Long Chen was not running off on his own; he definitely had a n!


    Feng Xuan was confident that her illusions could defeat Xiang. From the sounds of the wind, she knew that there was no one else within a few-kilometer radius. Therefore, she decided to abandon Huangfu Qi for the moment and chase after Long Chen.


    With her speed, she could catch Long Chen in just a few breaths¡¯ time.

 Chapter 661: Greenwitch Liquid

    Three Thousand Illusions was a technique powerful enough to block the Martial Overlord Seal, which was an attack used by the Martial Overlord after using his Martial Overlord rings. The Sun Devouring Wolf was only at Category Three King-tier, so Three Thousand Illusions posed a great threat to him.


    ¡°No! I must hold on!¡± The illusions were tiny, while Xiang was huge, so while they surrounded him and punched him, all he could do was use some fire to burn a portion of them. He was on the losing end because they exploded next to him! The explosions were strong enough to damage his skin from this range!


    The power of Three Thousand Illusions was terrifying.


    After some time, there were many wounds on Xiang¡¯s body. Blood slowly dyed his ck fur, but during this process, Xiang did not even furrow his brows.


    <em>I must hold on until he seeds! </em>This was Xiang¡¯s belief!


    Not far from him, Huangfu Qi¡¯s tiny bodyy quietly in the dark purple tub. She slept peacefully; she could not see or hear anything that was happening around her.


    This was what gave Xiang strength to hold on!


    Long Chen ran through the forest as fast as he could, as if running for his life. Very soon, he covered about one kilometer. That was when Feng Xuan¡¯s yful chuckle came from behind him!


    ¡°When I saw your gaze, I thought you were a man of values. I didn¡¯t expect you to be a coward who abandons his friend and escapes on his own! I look down on people like you!¡±As expected, she had chased after him and left Huangfu Qi behind.


    This was Long Chen¡¯s n!


    He knew that Feng Xuan would chase after him. She was far more powerful than him, so catching up would only take a moment.


    Long Chen immediately stopped and turned to look at her.


    While he was running, he looked like he was struggling, which made it all the more convincing. However, when he turned around, Feng Xuan saw a mocking grin on his face.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to die soon, and you dareugh?¡± Feng Xuan also stopped. She stood in front of him, eyeing him up and down. She then said in surprise, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to be a Beast Warrior! And your Beast Soul seems quite strong, as it greatly boosted your essence!¡±


    ¡°There are many more things you do not know.¡± Long Chen gave a cold smirk. The Sun Devouring Wolf was still being attacked by the illusions, so Long Chen knew that he did not have much time. Not wasting any time, he used another divine technique he had not used for a long time!


    ¡°Blood Warp!¡± A ray of blood-colored light shot past Feng Xuan without warning, and Long Chen disappeared!


    Blood Warp spent Long Chen¡¯s essence in order to increase his speed by tens of times, even a hundred times. Despite being fast, Long Chen could only maintain it for five kilometers at the moment. Since Huangfu Qi was a kilometer away, he had enough essence to reach her!


    This was his n!


    Long Chen thought of this when Feng Xuan used Three Thousand Illusions.


    Three Thousand Illusions was enough to trap Xiang. If Long Chen fled, Feng Xuan would surely choose to abandon Huangfu Qi and give chase. She was confident that she could capture Long Chen in just ten breaths¡¯ time, but she never thought that he would have such an extraordinary technique like Blood Warp!


    Long Chen was quick-witted enough to think of this n in a short time, which was something ordinary people could not pull off. His ability to keep calm during crises was his greatest strength!


    He had sessfully lured Feng Xuan to this ce, then he had used Blood Warp to instantly return to Huangfu Qi¡¯s side!


    He had no choice but to use this n because he had not expected Feng Xuan to find out they were following her!


    ¡°What escape technique is that?¡± The ray of blood-colored light stunned Feng Xuan. She knew that she had been yed. The look in Long Chen¡¯s eyes told her that he was not the kind of person who would escape on his own. When she understood that she was tricked, a surge of fury rose within her, then she gave chase!


    She was part of the Wind n, so she had great talent in speed. She also knew where he was going, so she immediately turned and ran towards Huangfu Qi¡¯s direction. However, although she was fast, she could not catch up to Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp. When she spotted him far away, he had already stopped by Huangfu Qi¡¯s side!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡± Feng Xuan immediately retracted the illusions from Xiang¡¯s side, and they all swarmed towards Long Chen¡¯s direction, preparing to trap him!


    ¡°Snatching my hostage away right in front of me won¡¯t be easy! How are you going to run with such a big tub?¡± Feng Xuan did not panic. With a strong cultivator like her present, Long Chen could never take Huangfu Qi.


    But she was shocked once more.


    Long Chen stored the tub in the Primordial Realm, and once anything was inside, it would nevere out again unless he or Little Cat agreed to it. Even if Long Chen died, Feng Xuan would not be able to get it out!


    ¡°How is that possible?¡± Feng Xuan gasped. She did not know about the Primordial Realm!


    When he put Huangfu Qi away, the dense swarm of illusions appeared in front of him!


    However, what followed was Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Since all the illusions were now attacking Long Chen, Xiang regained his freedom. All the shadows had gathered into a swarm to attack Long Chen, so this was a good chance for Xiang to make his move. With them huddled so close together, he could kill them all in one shot!


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire could definitely kill them all. Xiang previously could not defeat them because he was surrounded and trapped, and they were all scattered. He could not strike them in one shot!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    Xiang mustered up all his strength to spray all the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire he could handle. Under the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, almost all the illusions were destroyed. Nothing of them remained, other than a few scattered ones that still attacked Long Chen.


    The chemistry between them had reached an unbelievable stage.


    They had finally seeded, and only thest step remained. Long Chen grinned ecstatically.


    Xiang had destroyed a majority of Three Thousand Illusions, which was a huge loss to Feng Xuan. If they returned to her body in the end, she would quickly recover her essence. But now, not only had she lost Huangfu Qi, she had also lost a major portion of her essence, in addition to the severe internal injury she had sustained earlier. The consecutive blows infuriated her so much that blood sprayed out of her mouth!


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± When Long Chen saw Feng Xuan going mad, he took the chance to rush to Xiang¡¯s side and pulled him into the Primordial Realm. At this point, the furious Feng Xuan was very close to Long Chen!


    ¡°Die!¡± roared Feng Xuan. Her pretty features contorted menacingly.


    If she let Long Chen get away, then she would be left with nothing today, and her n would be utterly ruined!


    That fight against the Martial Overlord would have been for nothing. In the end, it would merely benefit Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Goodbye, bitch!¡± Long Chen turned around and gave her a mocking grin. Then, exhausting his remaining Qi, he used Blood Qi to travel four kilometers away instantly. Four kilometers was not far, but not near either. With Feng Xuan running as fast as she could, they could still get caught if they were unlucky!


    ¡°Elder Brother, let me do it!¡± said Xiang in the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got one more move!¡±


    As they spoke, Long Chen used Rewind on his body.


    Less than ten breaths¡¯ time had passed since he used Blood Warp to cover four kilometers. The Rewind technique from the Primordial Dragon Talisman allowed Long Chen to recover to his previous state from ten breaths ago. At the time, he still had at least eighty percent of his essence. That was enough for him to use Blood Warp again!


    The spent essence in his body recovered to eighty percent at a speed visible to the naked eye. This force did not follow thews of nature, and his essence seemed to appear out of thin air.


    Changing his direction, Long Chen used Blood Warp once more to travel another four kilometers. This time, he was truly spent and he had to let Xiang out. The skin-level wounds on Xiang¡¯s body were not significant, and they did not affect his speed. They had not been traveling in a straight line and they were still more than five kilometers from their previous location. It would be difficult for Feng Xuan to catch up.


    Long Chen quickly recovered his essence while riding on Xiang¡¯s back. Since he did not have beast blood for him to perform Blood Transmutation, Long Chen absorbed the Martial Essence contained in King Crystals to replenish his energy.


    They kept changing directions slightly as they fled for their lives.


    A very short whileter, Feng Xuan appeared in the spot where Long Chen had stopped after his first Blood Warp and used Rewind.


    ¡°They¡¯re not here?¡± Feng Xuan¡¯s expression turned sour.


    ¡°That bastard! I will chop you all to pieces! How dare you ruin my n of getting the Heavenly Wind Veins! Damn it! Damn it! If I see you guys again, I¡¯ll surely kill you all!¡±


    Her expression was menacing!


    Then she suddenlyughed loudly.


    ¡°What¡¯s the use of saving the girl? That girl lost all her life force the moment she was immersed in my Greenwitch Liquid. She has been brain-dead for a long time, and only her body remains alive. You just rescued a dead person. What¡¯s there to be happy about? Haha!¡±


    Feng Xuan¡¯s beautiful face was filled with terrifying violence.


    She clenched her fist tightly, and the green veins on the back of her hand popped up. It was clear how furious she was.

 Chapter 662: Sky Isle

    ¡°Long Chen, you can stop now,¡± Little Cat said after Long Chen was more than fifty Li away from Lady Xuan. He was certain that Lady Xuan wouldn''t be able to catch them.


    Long Chen was recovering his strength rapidly while Xiang ran through the forest as fast as he could. The two of them had escaped into a deste mountain range.


    The brothers stopped after hearing Little Cat speak. ¡°Fat Cat, what other nonsense do you have to say?¡±


    Little Cat was visibly annoyed by Long Chen¡¯s tone and chuckled. ¡°I do have something else to say. Let the little girl out. That woman won¡¯t be able to catch us now. In fact, I¡¯m more worried about the little girl.¡±


    Long Chen had a bad feeling.


    Something was definitely wrong if Little Cat said that. Since they had put a lot of distance between themselves and Lady Xuan, Long Chen jumped down from Xiang¡¯s back. As soon as he touched the ground, he took the purple wooden bathtub out of the Primordial Realm and carefully ced it on the ground.


    He did a quick check and was relieved to find that Huangfu Qi¡¯s heart was still beating. Long Chen thought she was dead when he heard Little Cat say he was worried.


    Huangfu Qi was motionless in the green liquid. Even her face was green.


    Xiang returned to his human form and peered into the wooden bathtub. He was worried, so he said, ¡°Fat Cat! Are you dozing off right now? Check her out right now! Is she alright?¡±¡°Huh? You actually want to go against me, you little ck dog? If it weren¡¯t for him, I would¡¯ve disintegrated you with a single breath.¡± Fat Cat huffed with hisrge belly and looked at Xiang with disdain.


    ¡°Alright, enough fighting. What¡¯s wrong with her?¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice was cold andmanding. Fat Cat truly could be annoying at times, but when Long Chen was stern, even he would shut up and listen.


    ¡°I will keep it short. She¡¯s in grave danger. In fact, her current condition is no different than death.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Long Chen and Xiang shouted at the same time and looked at Little Cat in disbelief.


    ¡°Why are you guys shouting at me? I¡¯m not the one who killed her, it was thatdy.¡± Little Cat grumbled.


    Long Chen calmed down and demanded, ¡°Alright, Fat Cat, enough talking about nonsense. Tell me what¡¯s wrong in detail, and can we save her?¡±


    ¡°We can still save her, but there¡¯s a small chance of seeding.¡± Little Cat said this first because he feared that both Long Chen and Xiang would beat him up if he beat around the bush.


    Long Chen and Xiang sighed in relief. Even though the chances were slim, they could still save Huangfu Qi. Long Chen would never give up if there was even a tiny sliver of hope left.


    ¡°Can you tell me what¡¯s wrong with her?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s currently being soaked in a green liquid called Greenwitch Liquid. It¡¯s made from thirty-eight different spiritual herbs. Its special property is to kill off the brain while leaving the victim¡¯s other organs alone. Right now, all organs except for her brain are still alive. Unfortunately, she has been immersed in it for so long that her consciousness is most likely gone. The only thing left of her is her body. That¡¯s how thatdy was going to extract the Heavenly Wind Veins from Huangfu Qi.¡±


    ¡°Greenwitch Liquid?¡± Long Chen grit his teeth. Lady Xuan was much more venomous than he had thought. He clenched his fists as anger filled his heart.


    ¡°I will not stop until I tear her apart!¡±


    ¡°We must remove Qi Qi from the liquid now!¡± Mo Xiang, who was usually calm, had also lost his rationality due to his anger. He wanted to take Huangfu Qi out of the bathtub since the Greenwitch Liquid was the thing killing her.


    ¡°You stupid mutt, stop,¡± Little Cat saidzily.


    Xiang stopped. He was confused rather than being angry at Little Cat for scolding him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°Her body is functioning by absorbing the nutrients from the Greenwitch Liquid. If you take her out now, you will kill her physical body. We won¡¯t be able to save her then.¡±


    It was clear that both Long Chen and Xiang cared for Huangfu Qi a lot.


    ¡°Fat Cat, just tell us how to save her. We will listen,¡± Long Chen said calmly as he stared at Huangfu Qi¡¯s green face.


    But his tone wasced with an icy anger. Little Cat trembled a little and quickly exined, ¡°There¡¯s only one way to save her right now. I think there¡¯s a ce called the Immortal Sea here in the Divine Martial Empire, where a Category Four King-tier Heavenly Phoenix lives. It¡¯s the descendent of the legendary Divine Phoenix. The Divine Phoenix was as strong as me and the Golden Crow back in our peaks. The Heavenly Phoenix, on the other hand, has a slight trace of its ancestor¡¯s blood, which grants it immortality to a certain degree. If we kill the Heavenly Phoenix, harvest its blood, and soak the little girl in it for three days and three nights, her consciousness could consolidate again and she will revive! Absorbing the blood will also grant her other benegits.¡±


    Heavenly Phoenix!


    ¡°So the only way is to kill the Category Four King-tier Heavenly Phoenix?¡± Long Chen raised his head.


    He had heard of the Heavenly Phoenix when he first reached the Divine Martial Empire. The Category Four King-tier demonic beast was as powerful as the Martial Overlord. The Heavenly Phoenix was an infamous beast here that had made its nest at the Immortal Sea.


    The Immortal Sea was not actually a sea, but arge swathe of mist in the sky at a certain region of the Divine Martial Empire. Inside the clouds and mist were numerous floating inds, the ideal habitats of bird-type demonic beasts like the Heavenly Phoenix.


    The Immortal Sea was even more dangerous than the Cloud Dream Swamp. It had a pretty name, but it was a famously dangerous ce. Even though its name contained the word ¡°immortal,¡± most people died when they entered, except for those as strong as the Martial Overlord.


    There were various King-tier demonic beasts in the Immortal Sea. The collective strength of the demonic beasts residing there could rival the Martial Alliance. There was the Category Four King-tier Heavenly Phoenix, several Category Three King-tier demonic beasts, numerous Category Two King-tier demonic beasts, and a lot of Category One King-tier demonic beasts.


    Thankfully, the beasts of the Immortal Sea limited their activity range to the sea of clouds. They rarely appeared anywhere else, or the Martial Alliance would be in trouble. Long Chen doubted that the Martial Alliance would be able to do anything to flying beasts.


    A Category Four King-tier demonic beast with a trace of the ancient Divine Phoenix. A demonic beast of this caliber would be even stronger than a wounded Lady Xuan. If Long Chen wanted to rescue Huangfu Qi, he needed to go to the Immortal Sea and hunt the Heavenly Phoenix down. He had to do the impossible!


    ¡°The Category Four King-tier demonic beast should be hard for you to deal with right now. You might lose your life even if both of you were to go there now. I rmend that you don¡¯t go there. If she¡¯s unlucky, she will die, but that¡¯s the end of it ¡­ Wait, what are you doing?¡±


    While Little Cat was nagging, Long Chen put Huangfu Qi back in the Primordial Realm without saying a word. Xiang then transformed back to his beast form. Thanks to his increased regeneration properties, his external wounds healed rapidly. Even though he was tired from using the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, traveling would use only a little bit of his energy, so he was fine.


    Long Chen sat on Xiang¡¯s back and worked on recovering his essence as quickly as possible so that he could be at full strength once he reached his destination.


    ¡°Hey! Why are you guys so determined to do this?¡± Little Cat was worried. He had just warned them not to go to the Immortal Sea, yet both Long Chen and Xiang had decided to go without any hesitation.


    ¡°We are going to the Immortal Sea.¡±


    ¡°You guys can¡¯t defeat it. Aren¡¯t you just looking to die?¡±


    ¡°How will we know if we don¡¯t try?¡± Long Chen said.


    Little Cat couldn¡¯t persuade them, so he returned to the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°You will probably change your mind after you see how strong the Heavenly Phoenix is.¡±


    Everyone ignored the cat.


    Mo Xiang ran as fast as he could. He was but a blurry shadow that moved too fast for regr people to notice him.


    Long Chen was focused on recovering his essence.


    Running from Lady Xuan had depleted his essence, though he had benefited a lot from watching her fight with the Martial Overlord. While he was recovering his strength, he was also focused on recalling the fight and copying the Martial Overlord¡¯s movements.


    The Three Martial Realms emphasized the cultivator¡¯s martial arts. The more they fought, the stronger their bond with their martial arts became. Long Chen had gained a lot of insight in regards to his martial arts after witnessing the sh between Lady Xuan and the Martial Overlord. While traveling to the Immortal Sea, he took the time toprehend his learning.


    Sitting on Xiang was the only time he could cultivate.


    Long Chen had traveled a lot after he left the Battle n. This would most likely be hisst trip. He could finally wait for the Ancient Token after he saved Huangfu Qi.

 Chapter 663: Third Earthly Martial Realm

    The Martial Overlord was dead, and Zhao Danchen had reced him. More importantly, Lady Xuan had joined the battle. Even though Long Shan was willing to help Long Chen, it would be difficult to obtain the Ancient Token. However, Long Chen had no choice but to fight for it, because the Ancient Token was worth more than his life.


    The Ancient Token was his only ticket to meet Ling Xi again.


    If he didn¡¯t get it this time, he would have to wait ten years or more. Ling Xi couldn¡¯t wait for him that long.


    How was her life at the Swordsoul Pce?


    How strong was the Swordsoul Pce?


    All of this remained a mystery to Long Chen.


    He could only fight to the death for her!


    He had to continue cultivating! Cultivating at the Martial Realms was not as simple as the Basic Realms, where all he needed to do was devour the blood essence of his enemies. Long Chen had increased his strength with utmost ease in the past, and now he finally realized how difficult it was to progress through the Martial Realms. He now understood how others stagnated for years or for their entire lives now that even he felt like his progress was slow.


    His heavenly meridian point was located within his sea of consciousness, granting him better insight than anyone.He finally broke through the final barrier and entered the Third Earthly Martial Realm after he incorporated the insight he had obtained from observing the fights of others and from Long Yue¡¯s guidance. His own battle against Lady Xuan had also contributed a lot.


    Xiang slowed down after he sensed a slight change in Long Chen. Just then, Long Chen dropped to the ground with his eyes closed and started practicing the third stage of the Earthly Martial Fist.


    Long Chen felt himself connected to the ground, and his veins became the veins of the earth. The veins beat in sync as if they were one and the same. His every movement was in sync with the earth.


    ¡°Ha!¡±


    Long Chen was covered in yellow sand. The yellow sand somehow had a life of its own as it danced around Long Chen rhythmically.


    The yellow sand soon became a tornado that engulfed Long Chen, and earthly Qi surged into him. There wasn¡¯t much earthly Qi in the area, but thanks to Long Chen¡¯s breakthrough, all the earthly Qi within the radius of a single Li converged on him and entered his body. He absorbed it all and transformed it into his Dragon Soul Essence.


    Due to the earthly Qi, the ground around the area started to shine and glimmer. The very earth itself transformed into crystals!


    Xiang was shocked when he saw that.


    In the middle of Long Chen¡¯s sea of consciousness, the Dragon Jade Pendant was floating just below his Martial Soul, controlling the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon beneath it. Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul became clearer after his understanding of his own martial arts deepened. He was now at the Third Earthly Martial Realm.


    A dragon-shaped Martial Soul has never been seen or heard of in the Dragon Continent. Even though there were other Dragon Warriors out there, none of them had a dragon-shaped Martial Soul. Long Chen¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence of an Ancestor Dragon was unique and powerful!


    The Ancestor Dragons were beings far above the other dragons. As legendary beings, dragons left behind their Inherited Blood Essence, which survived long after they had been exterminated. For example, Long Yue¡¯s ancestor had obtained the inherited blood essence of the lowest ss of dragons, the Red Dragons.


    There was also Wang Chen, the person destined to be Long Chen¡¯s strongest enemy in the future. He had never seen him before, but he was already feeling the pressure.


    Dragon Warriors were rare even in the Three Emperor Territory. Long Chen was confident that even Wang Chen did not have the Inherited Blood Essence of an Ancestor Dragon!


    Only Long Chen was destined to get one.


    After Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul became more solid, he could use it to control even more essence and turn it into his strength. The earthly Qi entered his body and made its way into his Martial Veins, where it met his Dragon Soul Essence. Thanks to his unique constitution, a hundred portions of earthly Qi would only be transformed into a single portion of Dragon Soul Essence. Endless amounts of earthly Qi entered his body to increase his essence until he had ten times more than before!


    Long Chen finally had as much essence as a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    He could now fight against those at the Fourth Earth Martial Stage!


    Long Chen had never expected to break through like this after he decided to go to the Immortal Sea. He initially held the belief that he would die there, but his breakthrough would allow him to challenge the Heavenly Phoenix!


    The sandstorm stopped surrounding him.


    Long Chen opened his eyes, and two blood-red lights shot out of them.


    Long Chen was filled with strength. Even Xiang, who was at the same cultivation level as him, felt wary. Long Chen¡¯s source of strength was not only his essence, but also an invisible form of oppressioning from his Martial Soul.


    The Martial Soul was the foundation of the Earthly Martial Realm!


    Only by increasing the strength of one¡¯s Martial Soul could one increase their strength!


    ¡°Big Brother, did you seed?¡± Xiang was in awe.


    He also thought that they were going to fight a losing battle, but now they had a fighting chance.


    Long Chen was now strong enough to fight against Zhao Danchen¡¯s Ancient Demon Corpse and Lady Xuan!


    His strength has finally reached the peak of the Divine Martial Empire. Even Long Shan would lose to Long Chen if he couldn¡¯t recover his Fifth Earthly Martial Stage strength.


    Long Chen smiled and nodded.


    His n to go to the Immortal Sea didn¡¯t seem crazy anymore.


    ¡°Xiang, let¡¯s go. We will fight together!¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t have to transform to match Xiang¡¯s speed this time.


    Xiang nodded excitedly.


    ¡°Our destination: the Immortal Sea!¡±


    The two of them felt more rxed after Long Chen became stronger.


    But they were still wary of the Heavenly Phoenix. It was by no means easy to kill, considering how long it had reigned supreme at the Immortal Sea.


    Even Zhao Wuji would not have gone to the Sky Isle without a good reason. Anyone traversing that area would be locked in a bitter battle if they were discovered by the Heavenly Phoenix.


    After four days and four nights, the two of them finally reached their destination.


    There was nothing there except for an entire in of grass.


    There was grass everywhere. The grass grew to their knees and obstructed Long Chen¡¯s vision.


    But the grass was dull and sickly-looking.


    It was all because of the sky. Long Chen raised his head and saw nothing but a massive sea of clouds. Except for the clouds and white mist, there was nothing else in the field.


    Sounds of bird cries came from within the clouds.


    The only ones capable of living in the clouds were bird-type demonic beasts.


    ¡°Xiang, you can enter the Primordial Realm while I infiltrate the ce. Once I find the Heavenly Phoenix, you cane out and help me defeat it!¡±


    Xiang didn¡¯t have muchbat strength in his human form, but his beast form was too conspicuous to be sneaking around. He nodded and followed Long Chen¡¯s n.


    He had faith that Long Chen could do it!


    After Xiang entered the Primordial Realm, Long Chen took a deep breath and flew into the sky. He plunged headfirst into the clouds and mist.


    Visibility was poor in the mist, and everything turned white around him. Long Chen felt like he was swimming in the ocean, though the resistance here was weaker than underwater.


    There was nothing but white clouds and mist in sight.


    Long Chen¡¯s control of his breath and essence was exceptional at this point. He carefully controlled his breath and reduced his presence to be as weak as possible to prevent the beasts from finding him. He also used Sight to navigate around the area and avoid any beasts he saw. While there were plenty of bird-type demonic beasts around, none of them spotted him.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid of them, but it would be a headache to fight against them before he reached the Sky Isle.


    The Heavenly Phoenix excelled in aerial battles, while Long Chen didn¡¯t. Both his and Xiang¡¯s strength would be reduced if they fought in the air. They could only use their full strength on the ground.


    Since they could not attract the Heavenly Phoenix down to the ground, Long Chen had no choice but to go to the Sky Isle himself. Thankfully, there were some floating rocks up there that would make it easier for him to fight. Also, the Sky Isle was the home of the Heavenly Phoenix, meaning that was where it would go if it was injured. Therefore, it had nowhere else to run.


    Before heading to the Immortal Sea, Long Chen had contacted the people from Red Souls in a nearby town to ask about the location of the Sky Isle. The Immortal Sea was the most mysterious ce in the Divine Martial Empire, but thankfully, the Red Souls had information about it. They gave Long Chen a map and showed him the direction of the Sky Isle.


    The scent of demonic beasts became thicker in front of him.


    There were thousands of them!

 Chapter 664: Six-Winged Fire Bird

    Long Chen carefully made his way towards Sky Isle as he traversed through the mist.


    Bird-type beasts weren¡¯t new to him, though most of the ones he had seen had been tamed by people to be used as transportation. Now, however, he was in a ce where there were many flying demonic beasts he had never seen before. The demonic beasts flew freely in the sky and let off massive gusts of winds.


    There were Clouds Sparrows and Four-Winged Fire Birds everywhere. There were many fire-type demonic beasts here, most likely due to the influence of the Heavenly Phoenix. This was good news for Xiang because the demonic core of the Heavenly Phoenix would increase his strength further!


    Long Chen also noticed that a lot of the demonic beasts were fighting each other in the dense mist and clouds. It was not as peaceful as he had thought.


    He carefully avoided their fights. Thanks to Sight, he could see their souls through the clouds and mist. Long Chen avoided them long before they got close to him.


    He had to reach Sky Isle to be able to fight properly.


    The mist and clouds wererger than he had expected. Long Chen had flown for half a day before he finally saw Sky Isle.


    It was the territory of the Heavenly Phoenix. The closer he got, the higher the temperatures were. It was no exaggeration to say that the Heavenly Phoenix was the strongest demonic beast in the Divine Martial Empire if even its mes could make this ce so hot here.


    Sky Isle was surrounded by thick mist and clouds, so Long Chen only saw its faint outline. He had to get quite close to see the grey earth and the outline of a ruined city.<em>A city? In the middle of Sky Isle? Was this ce attached to something and was then taken over by the Heavenly Phoenix?</em>


    He carefully got close to the ind and saw that it wasn¡¯t big. It was only roughly half the size of Martial Overlord City.


    The ind looked scary and mysterious from within the mist. In fact, it looked deste. Even so, it was densely popted with bird-type demonic beasts. Each of them had their own territory. The closer they got to the center, therger the ruined buildings were and the stronger the demonic beasts were.


    The demonic beasts at the outermostyer were at the Heaven-tier. Those below that tier couldn¡¯t survive in Sky Isle.


    Long Chen no longer had any hesitation when he saw Sky Isle. He increased his speed and touched the ground. Just as he had expected, the ground was solid here even though the entire isle was floating in the air.


    But the ce was very chaotic and there were marks of bird-type demonic beasts everywhere. It was evident that it had been a long time since a human set foot here. The ruined buildings were covered in marks from being abandoned for a long time.


    Due to their habitat, the bird-type beasts here had long developed keen eyesight. Therefore, many of them noticed Long Chen the moment hended.


    A human¡¯s presence was different from that of a demonic beast! Long Chen was like a demonic beast that had entered a human habitat. Shrill cries filled the air as the demonic beasts called out to warn the others of an intruder.


    The entire isle started to stir with activity.


    Thousands of demonic beasts flew into the air and covered the ce in a dark shadow. Their cries could pierce a person¡¯s eardrums.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Numerous attacks from fire and wind-type beasts flew towards Long Chen. The intense mes and strong gales almost swallowed him whole.


    But he was not afraid.


    While the attacks were intense and there were many demonic beasts, all of them were only at the Heaven-tier. Long Chen didn¡¯t need to dodge their attacks since he would be impervious to them. But for safety¡¯s sake, Long Chen let Xiang out. Xiang was a Category Three King-tier demonic beast that could threaten the other demonic beasts easily.


    A ck me surged out from Long Chen and grewrger, taking the form of a jet-ck demonic beast. Xiang howled.


    As he howled, ck mes radiated outwards and burned the nearby beasts to crisps. Many of them flew away in a panic, but most of them were dead. A Category Three King-tier beast was not to be trifled with. The demonic beasts panicked and escaped to a safe distance after Xiang¡¯s appearance.


    Since all of them were bird-type beasts, they flew freely in the air as they waited for the stronger beasts toe and defeat the Sun Devouring Wolf. They weren¡¯t as stupid as Long Chen had expected.


    Demonic beasts were much more wary of each other than humans, especially beasts asrge as Xiang. None of the beasts below the King-tier dared to challenge him.


    Xiang easily repelled the weaker beasts.


    Even after his transformation, he could stillmunicate with Long Chen through thenguage of beasts. ¡°Big Brother! I¡¯ve sensed the presence of the Heavenly Phoenix! Follow me.¡±


    Xiang trudged forward towards the center of Sky Isle. The closer they got, the higher the temperature was.


    The demonic beasts all flew into the air as Xiang approached them. They knew they were outmatched.


    ¡°Who are you?!¡± Just then, a young man with a burning body appeared in front of Xiang. The man had red crystals for eyes and long, red hair. He was looking at Long Chen and Mo Xiang.


    It was clearly a King-tier demonic beast with some form of intelligence. If not, it would¡¯ve never been able to transform into a human-form tomunicate with Long Chen.


    ¡°This is the territory of the king! Outsider, human, begone!¡± the man snarled as he looked at Long Chen and Xiang.


    ¡°Xiang, kill him!¡± Long Chen couldn¡¯t be bothered with the demonic beast.


    The man had the strength to fight against Xiang, so Long Chen deduced that his true body was also a Category Three King-tier demonic beast!


    As he had expected, the man became angry and mes exploded from his body. He then transformed into a fiery bird and expanded his wings.


    Long Chen had seen that form before. It was simr to the Four-Winged Fire Bird from before, but this one had six wings. Each of its feathers was burning brightly.


    It was a Six-Winged Fire Bird!


    The Four-Winged Fire Bird was supposed to be the normal kind, so the Six-Winged Fire Bird was clearly a mutation. Most demonic beasts only underwent minute changes when they had a mutation, but the Six-Winged Fire Bird was four stages stronger than a regr Four-Winged Fire Bird! It had reached the Category Three King-tier!


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird extended its wings and flew into the air at a fast speed. Its wingspan made it seem farrger than Xiang, though its body was simr in size.


    A sharp voice was apanied with burning mes as it flew towards Long Chen and Xiang.


    But it was an insult to use fire-based attacks in front of a Sun Devouring Wolf. Xiang growled and pounced towards the Six-Winged Fire Bird.


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird extended its ws to attack Xiang!


    The collision of their massive bodies made a loud thud that reverberated across Sky Isle. The Six-Winged Fire Bird was clearly weaker than Xiang. The Sun Devouring Wolf bit into the Six-Winged Fire Bird¡¯s w and threw it to the ground!


    <em>Crack!</em>


    Arge section of the ruins was ttened by the Six-Winged Fire Bird¡¯s body. Under its intense mes, the ground surrounding it was charred ck!


    But its injuries were minimal, and being thrown down by Xiang made it even more infuriated. It pped its wings furiously and shot up into the air. Xiang was left all alone on the ground.


    As a Category Three King-tier beast, it had a lot of pride. It was feeling humiliated after being thrown onto the ground by Xiang in the first bout. It pped its wings, and fiery balls rained down from the heavens. The fire balls were so numerous that they almost nketed Xiang!


    ¡°You want to fight Xiang with fire?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Xiang opened his maw, and a ck whirlpool appeared near his snout. The mes were sucked into the ck whirlpool and funneled into his stomach.


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird was shocked. It had never seen a beast like that before! It became angrier and pped its wings even faster. It believed its mes could kill Xiang! Even more fireballs rained down, faster and stronger than before. Each fireball was three meters in diameter this time!

 Chapter 665: Heavenly Phoenix

    But the mes were barely enough for Xiang to fill up his stomach.


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird was panicking and pping in circles when the ck whirlpool on Xiang¡¯s snout disappeared. Thinking that Xiang was exhausted, the Six-Winged Fire Bird dove down from the air. It attempted to peck out Xiang¡¯s eyes, but thetter suddenly spat out the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird was instantly engulfed by the mes.


    It panicked and pped furiously in an attempt to escape. It let out painful cries as it was burned by the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, but its pain quickly came to an end. The Six-Winged Fire Bird soon turned into a ck ice sculpture in front of Xiang.


    Long Chen quickly stored the entire ice sculpture in the Primordial Realm. If he had done so even a single secondter, the ice sculpture would¡¯ve fallen to the ground and been reduced to dust.


    <em>What a pretty thing. I¡¯m sure Ling Xi would love it.</em>


    Long Chen then looked towards the highest point in the sky.


    A massive presence stirred after the death of the Six-Winged Fire Bird.


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird was the strongest demonic beast in Sky Isle, barring the Heavenly Phoenix. As a Category Three King-tier demonic beast, it was even stronger than the ck Water Viper. After its death, the other beasts on Sky Isle were at most at the Category Two King-tier. All of them flew high into the air as they red and crowed at Long Chen.Both Long Chen and Xiang stood still as they waited for the descent of the Heavenly Phoenix!


    The brothers looked at each other before they sprinted towards the nest of the Heavenly Phoenix. Thanks to Xiang¡¯s massive body, the dpidated buildings were destroyed even further.


    ¡°The temperature here is so high! It¡¯s almostparable to the Beast re of the Nine Spirit Purgatory! The Heavenly Phoenix is surprisingly strong!¡±


    In front of them were various broken buildings. Many of them were no longer hospitable, but looking at the ruined walls and signs, Long Chen thought that the ce looked simr to a ruined sect.


    He was certain that Sky Isle was once the base of arge sect. But for some reason, it was abandoned or ruined until the Heavenly Phoenix brought its underlings to live here.


    Due to the destruction by the demonic beasts, the traces of the once magnificent sect were almost erased from this world.


    Nothing withstood the passage of time.


    Time was the most terrifyingw in the world.


    The buildings and the ground around the center of Sky Isle were scorched ck due to the intense temperature. The two of them made haste and soon reached the center.


    Long Chen looked up and used Sight. It was only then that he saw a massive soul, one muchrger than Xiang¡¯s. But he was confused, because the soul appeared to be just waking up from a slumber.


    In front of him wererge swathes of ckened buildings. The area used to be the central point of the ancient sect. The buildings were evenrger than Xiang¡¯s body, acting like a wall around the center of the sect.


    ¡°It¡¯s inside.¡± Long Chen and Xiang navigated around the buildings until they reached an area where they were no longer ck but glowing red. mes flickered asionally from the walls.


    Xiang was overjoyed by howfy the ce was for him.


    Fire was nothing but food for a Sun Devouring Wolf.


    Long Chen held his breath and walked past a dpidated building before he saw a massive za. The za¡¯s ground was glowing red!


    In the middle of the za was a massive egg roughly ten meters tall. The egg was smoldering and covered in strange runes. The profound runes swam on the shell of the egg, glimmering gold and red.


    An intimidating aura burst forth from the egg!


    <em>The Heavenly Phoenix is an egg?</em>


    Right when Long Chen stopped, numerous cracks appeared on the surface of the massive egg. Then mes burst forth from the cracks and the egg exploded.


    <em>Crackle!</em>


    A golden globe of fire floated from where the egg once was. It rapidly grew, reminding Long Chen of how Mo Xiang changed from his human form to beast form.


    Scarlet mes licked the air and expanded until it was twice asrge as the Six-Winged Fire Bird. At the same time, a pair of ming wings burst forth from the center. Then numerous fireballs rained down and exploded.


    A sharp cry came from inside the ball of fire, overpowering the callsing from the other demonic beasts above. All of the demonic beasts stopped crying and the ce was soon silent. The demonic beastsnded and bowed to the Heavenly Phoenix.


    The Heavenly Phoenix slowly emerged from the ball of fire.


    When it expanded itsrge wings, Long Chen noted how simr it looked to the legendary Phoenix. The Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s feathers were ming red with a trace of golden runes. It was nothing short of beautiful.


    The Six-Winged Fire Bird was also a bird-type demonic beast with the fire-attribute, but its exterior was a far cry from the Heavenly Phoenix. As the king of Sky Isle, the Heavenly Phoenix had golden eyes with golden mes emitting from them. It pped its wings, and an oppressive pressure nketed both Xiang and Long Chen.


    The Heavenly Phoenix red at the duo. Rather than anger, its eyes were cold and calctive.


    Long Chen was certain that the Heavenly Phoenix was more intelligent than the Six-Winged Fire Bird and the ck Water Viper.


    ¡°Xiang, I will deal with its attacks while you use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to support me.¡±


    The Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s strongest talent was in its ability to increase its cultivation level by consuming mes. Xiang had the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, but he was also one tier lower than the Heavenly Phoenix. Long Chen didn¡¯t want him to get hurt.


    Long Chen also wanted to test his strength after finally reaching the Third Earthly Martial Stage.


    He slowly transformed into the blood-red dragon form. Blood-red scales covered his body and ws reced his nails. He was in his perfect battle form.


    Before he transformed, the Heavenly Phoenix had been focused on Xiang. Since Xiang was a beast that radiated a terrifying heat, the Heavenly Phoenix had designated him as thergest threat. But when Long Chen transformed, the Heavenly Phoenix was surprised and retreated half a step when it sensed the danger.


    Long Chen radiated a cold sense of danger, one that made the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s blood cower. The Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s prided blood had a very minuscule trace of the legendary Divine Phoenix¡ªthat was what had allowed it to be the king of Sky Isle. But for the very first time, its prided blood was afraid of Long Chen.


    Did Long Chen have a bloodline that threatened its own?


    The Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s shock soon turned into confusion.


    It sensed that Long Chen had a substantial amount of essence. More importantly, there was a zing me in Long Chen¡¯s essence that was hotter than the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s very own golden mes.


    The Heavenly Phoenix now knew who the real threat was.


    Long Chen walked past Xiang and charged towards the Heavenly Phoenix as thetter took to the skies. Long Chen knew that he had to get the Heavenly Phoenix tond for him to use his full strength.


    With a sh of blood-red light, Long Chen appeared directly beneath the Heavenly Phoenix.


    A dragon¡¯s illusion appeared on his body.


    Long Chen was ten times faster than he was before.


    He punched.


    With hisprehension of the Third Earthly Martial Stage and as much essence as someone at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, Long Chen¡¯s punch wasparable to an intermediate King-tier martial technique.

 Chapter 666: Phoenix’s Bloodline

    Long Chen¡¯s Five Piercing Dragon was barely stronger than his regr punch at this point.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The air was ripped apart as Long Chen¡¯s essence coursed through his nine Martial Meridians. The blood-red Golden Crow appeared vaguely on his cores as the mes surged into his fist. Long Chen¡¯s fist was shrouded in the illusion of a blood-red Golden Crow!


    On top of the terrifying feeling emanating from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragoning from Long Chen¡¯s veins, the Heavenly Phoenix was also wary of the bird-type presence inside him. The Divine Phoenix was rumored to be immortal and the peak of all bird-type demonic beasts. It also had a trace of the Divine Phoenix¡¯s blood in its veins, but even so, it was wary of the Golden Crow¡¯s strength.


    Despite all that, the Heavenly Phoenix would not retreat. It had its pride as the king of Sky Isle and as the descendant of the Divine Phoenix. It would never retreat, even though Long Chen was stronger!


    Long Chen¡¯s punch had angered the Heavenly Phoenix. It would not allow itself to be challenged by him, especially after thetter had killed its strongest subordinate.


    The Heavenly Phoenix cultivated by reversing its body into an egg and cultivating inside of it. When Long Chen and Xiang first appeared, the Heavenly Phoenix only sensed Xiang¡¯s strength and ignored Long Chen. That was why it had sent the Six-Winged Fire Bird to intercept them while it underwent the process of revival. It had never thought the Six-Winged Fire Bird would be killed by Xiang shortly after.


    <em>When did such a talented youngster appear in the Divine Martial Empire? Did hee from one of the other empires?</em>


    The Heavenly Phoenix couldn¡¯t afford to waste time on such questions since Long Chen was directly below it. The Heavenly Phoenix turned its body downwards and used its ws to block Long Chen¡¯s attack. Its body wasrge enough to cover the sun while its ws wererger than Long Chen!An ancient power surged out from the Heavenly Phoenix.


    In terms of physical strength, the demonic beasts had humans outssed. It would¡¯ve been fine if Long Chen had managed to cultivate an intermediate or advanced King-tier Body Tempering Method, but it was extremely difficult to use only his essence to block the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯srge body.


    Thankfully, humans had martial techniques.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen flew backwards from the impact, causing his blood to boil.


    But he soon recovered and chuckled. ¡°Not bad! You are strong.¡±


    Being able to withstand a hit from the Heavenly Phoenix was a testament to how strong Long Chen¡¯s body was.


    The Heavenly Phoenix realized that even though Long Chen was small, his body was surprisingly sturdy. Therefore, it decided to sacrifice some of its strength and turned smaller. mes appeared on its body as it shrunk.


    Demonic beasts at the King-tier were all capable of shrinking their bodies. Xiang had the power to do so even while he was at the Earth-tier, though it was not suitable forbat. On the other hand, the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s mini-form was much suited forbat.


    A King-tier demonic beast could shrink their body to a certain degree forbat. Xiang could shrink his body to the size of a horse while the Heavenly Phoenix could shrink to six meters!


    A massive being capable of covering the sun had shrunk down to six meters. Nothing had changed for the Heavenly Phoenix except for its strength and mobility. By shrinking down, it had increased its mobility at the cost of some strength.


    Demonic beasts preferred to maintain their natural body size and weight because it was the mostfortable state for them. Therger a demonic beast, the stronger they were. This was the basic rule that Long Chen and every cultivator understood.


    The Heavenly Phoenix wouldn¡¯t have shrunk unless it was necessary to do so.


    Because it had seen how agile Long Chen was.


    <em>To think that the Willow Step is so versatile! I could even use it in the air! </em>This was the first time Long Chen had tried to use it mid-air, though he had mentally prepared himself just in case he had to fight on the ground.


    Using Willow Step, Long Chen floated and zipped in the air like a willow leaf. The Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s attack had only managed to knock him away.


    After shrinking, the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s speed and agility increased drastically, and it flew towards Long Chen.


    It had recognized Long Chen as the primary threat!


    The gold and red mes swirled around the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s body.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    The Heavenly Phoenix swooped down again. Its zing red body appeared in front of Long Chen in an instant!


    It was twice as fast now!


    Long Chen no longer had the advantage in agility.


    The Divine Phoenix¡¯s wings were like burning des attempting to cut him down.


    It pped its wings and formed a torrent of mes resembling des. The burning des shot towards Long Chen at extreme speeds!


    The attack¡¯s power wasparable to a human¡¯s martial technique!


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Typhoon Style!¡± Long Chen used the second technique of the Wind God Kick to parry the burning des. Simr to the Divine Phoenix, Long Chen¡¯s legs were cloaked in the mes of the Golden Crow.


    There was a difference between blood-red and scarlet. The Divine Phoenix¡¯s mes had a tinge of gold and yellow, while Long Chen¡¯s mes werepletely blood-red with an overbearing heat!


    Two different mes shed in the air, covering the sky in mes. A human and a bird zipped over Sky Isle. They were evenly matched as their attacks shed again and again. Long Chen used his legs to force the Divine Phoenix back, while the Divine Phoenix forced him back using its wings.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡± Long Chen suddenly used his ws to attack the DIvine Phoenix! Five dragon illusions flew towards it.


    The battle was intense.


    Just as the Divine Phoenix had its own strengths, Long Chen has his too. Neither side showed any promise of victory for now.


    But Long Chen was secretly wary because he knew how strong the Divine Phoenix was. He was certain that if he hadn¡¯t managed to break into the Third Earthly Martial Stage, he would never have been able to defeat it, even with Xiang¡¯s help.


    The powerful ming des were more than enough to chop Long Chen and Xiang to bits. Long Chen would¡¯ve never been able to use the Golden Crow mes to force the Divine Phoenix back if he was still at the Second Earthly Martial Stage.


    The Divine Phoenix was forced to be passive after Long Chen used the Five Piercing Dragons, but it wasn¡¯t panicking at all, as it had ws simr to Long Chen¡¯s. It shed its own talons and extended them forward to take on Long Chen¡¯s attacks. Its talons were even harder than Long Chen¡¯s!


    ws and talons shed in the air, creating a terrifying grinding sound.


    The Five Piercing Dragons were strong enough to cut up the flesh on the Divine Phoenix¡¯s legs, but Long Chen was not having a good time either. His ws were almost broken by the hard talons.


    He felt a burning sensation on his hand.


    Long Chen quickly retreated. <em>One wrong move and I¡¯m dead!</em>


    Both the man and the beast were injured from that sh, but the Heavenly Phoenix was infuriated. In the end, it was merely a demonic beast, so its intelligence was limited.


    It let out a sharp cry, causing the clouds surrounding them to dissipate.


    The scarlet mes on the Heavenly Phoenix sputtered out. Recing them were golden mes, and the Heavenly Phoenix was enveloped by them. A dangerous power started to consolidate in the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s body.


    <em>Is it using its strongest attack?! </em>

 Chapter 667: Mysterious Tombstone

    Long Chen was right. After being injured, the Heavenly Phoenix finally decided to use its strongest move. Its body was bathed in the burning mes and it started to spin rapidly. Suddenly, the Divine Phoenix stopped, but the golden mes on its body continued to spin and growrger.


    The golden mes radiated terrifying amounts of power. Long Chen sensed that the Heavenly Phoenix had used most of its Demonic Qi creating the mes. The destructive power they carried was enough to pressure him!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The golden mes detached from the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s body and surged towards Long Chen. They twisted and changed into a golden bird on the way. Although the ming bird was small, it was much more regal-looking than the Heavenly Phoenix.


    <em>Wait, is that what a Divine Phoenix looks like?</em>


    The Divine Phoenix was the king of birds. Even though it was a fake, Long Chen was stunned by its beauty. However, he quickly snapped out of it since the dangerous attack was just in front of him. He had no time to admire its beauty when his life was at stake.


    ¡°Xiang!¡±


    Long Chen knew that he could suppress the Heavenly Phoenix, so there was no need for him to risk his life needlessly. He was confident that he could endure the attack head-on, but he also knew he would be injured. Since the Heavenly Phoenix had sensed that its life was in danger, it had activated the Divine Phoenix¡¯s blood inside of its body to form this attack. It wouldn¡¯t be easy to defend against it.


    The only attack stronger than it right now would be the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire had never failed before. Xiang had started preparing it as soon as he saw the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s ultimate attack. He was worried about Long Chen being killed by it


    Even if Long Chen had never called for him, Xiang would¡¯ve acted now. He had been observing the battle and positioned himself at a distance between the Heavenly Phoenix and Long Chen. The moment Long Chen called for him, he pounced forward and shot out all of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire that he could muster.


    The temperature around the za plummeted the moment he released the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. The ck mes nketed the ground and surged towards the golden mes. The Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s ultimate attack was fast, but the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire still swallowed it since Xiang had anticipated it.


    Two different mes, one extremely hot and the other extremely cold, shed in front of Long Chen. He quickly used the Nine Spinning Fire Shield, though the explosion blew him backwards. Thankfully, it was only the aftershock of the impact, or it would¡¯ve been bad for him.


    The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was an Ancestral Fire, a type of fire far beyond regr mes; even the mes from the Golden Crow and the Divine Phoenixbined wouldn¡¯t be able to snuff it out. The ultimate attack from the Heavenly Phoenix was strong, but it was no match for the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire quickly converted the attack and added it to its own mass before Xiang swallowed it whole.


    Xiang had initially eaten only a minuscule portion of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire and could use only a portion of that. But that was enough.


    The Heavenly Phoenix was surprised to see its strongest attack was consumed by the strange, ck wolf. Somehow, its eyes revealed a nk stare even though it was a demonic beast.


    The other demonic beasts were silent too.


    When the Heavenly Phoenix used its strongest attack, the other demonic beasts had remained motionless because they were afraid of the power behind that attack, but now it had disappeared without any warning.


    None of them knew what had happened.


    The Heavenly Phoenix finally felt fear for Xiang.


    This was the first time it had felt a sense of dread.


    Long Chen noticed that the Heavenly Phoenix was afraid and immediately sprung into action. He finally cornered it and refused to let it go, charing at it the moment the golden phoenix disappeared.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± Long Chen used one of his secret techniques at the best moment. The blood-red mist reced the natural, white mist. The Heavenly Phoenix and Xiang were enveloped in the area of effect. Due to his increased essence reserves, Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain¡¯s strength had also increased, so even the Heavenly Phoenix was affected by the suppressive power of the domain.


    The Heavenly Phoenix was further frightened by the appearance of the Blood Devouring Domain. The once proud and courageous Heavenly Phoenix had lost itsposure. Due to the debilitating effects of the Blood Devouring Domain, the Heavenly Phoenix had failed to realize when Long Chen appeared in front of it.


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Nine Heavens Strike!¡± Long Chen unleashed his strongest technique. Nine dragons coiled around the defenseless Heavenly Phoenix and carved out numerous flesh wounds on its body.


    Feathers and blood sprayed everywhere.


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Wind God Style!¡± Long Chen kicked the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s head with full force. It was already in a daze due to the previous attack, and now Long Chen¡¯s kick caused it to cry out in agony.


    The impact caused the Heavenly Phoenix to crash into Sky Isle. Long Chen estimated that he only needed to attack a few more times to kill it since it had already been hit by the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Wind God Kick.


    Xiang pounced towards the Heavenly Phoenix without hesitation and crashed into it like a cannonball, causing it to fly to the depths of Sky Isle!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Itnded behind the za. Long Chen was chasing after it when he suddenly noticed a strange, ck tombstone at the point of impact. The tombstone was roughly four to five meters tall.


    He initially paid no mind to it until he realized that the tombstone was somehow still standing even after the Heavenly Phoenix had crashed into it. The buildings in the isle were in ruins, but there wasn¡¯t a single crack on the tombstone. Rather than breaking into pieces, a strangeyer of light had deflected the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s body.


    Long Chen was right. When the Heavenly Phoenix touched the strange tombstone, a gray rune shed and sent the Heavenly Phoenix crashing in the opposite direction. The Heavenly Phoenix rolled on the ground a few times before lying motionlessly. It was just a few breaths away from death at this point.


    Xiang quickly bit the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s head and broke it apart using the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire in his mouth. He cracked open the skull, took out a fist-sized golden demonic core, and ate it.


    The Heavenly Phoenix was dead and its demonic core had been consumed.


    Xiang hadnded the final blow after Long Chen defeated it.


    The death of the Heavenly Phoenix benefited both of them. Xiang would be able to increase his strength again through digesting the demonic core while Long Chen could use the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix to revive Huangfu Qi. Long Chen quickly stored the corpse in the Primordial Realm to save the blood.


    ¡°Big Brother, I need to refine the power from the demonic core as soon as possible. I hope that I will be able to help you contest for the Ancient Token soon. I will leave Qi Qi to you,¡± Mo Xiang said quickly as he transformed into a human.


    Long Chen nodded and let him into the Primordial Realm.


    The loud battlefield had turned silent. The other demonic beasts had flown up high after the death of the Heavenly Phoenix. None of them dared to perch on Sky Isle, so they merely cried out loud in the air, including the demonic beasts at the Category One and Two King-tier.


    They were afraid of Long Chen.


    Long Chen ignored them and focused on the strange tombstone.


    <em>There must be some secret to it if it even deflected the Heavenly Phoenix.</em>


    <em>But ¡­ I need to save Huangfu Qi first. I will have to check it another time.</em>


    Fat Cat appeared out from the Primordial Realm and observed the tombstone too. ¡°Hmmm ¡­ These are the ruins of a sect, and looking at the buildings¡¯ condition, I think it¡¯s around ten thousand years old or more. Maybe it¡¯s a ruin from the Middle Ages. The tombstone should contain some of the martial techniques of the ruined sect. You should check it out. Maybe you will get something out of it.¡±


    Fat Cat had always prided himself on his knowledge.

 Chapter 668: The Mystery of the Tombstone

    ¡°Let¡¯s save Qi Qi first.¡± Long Chen turned around, choosing to ignore the tombstone for now, and took out the wooden bathtub. It was still filled with Greenwitch Liquid and Qi Qi was lying inside. The Primordial Realm had increased in size after Long Chen got stronger; it was now roughly ten Li in diameter, which was big enough to fit anything he needed.


    Long Chen was worried when he looked at Qi Qi¡¯s green face.


    ¡°What should I do?¡±


    ¡°Use the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix to rece the Greenwitch Liquid. But the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s blood is very hot, so she will burn up if you fill it up as it is.¡±


    ¡°Then what should I do?¡± Long Chen frowned. He was annoyed that Little Cat hadn''t told him that before.


    ¡°That¡¯s where Ie in. Keep her in the Primordial Realm and I will do the rest. I will return her back to normal after some time. By the way, what will my reward be?¡± Little Cat chuckled.


    ¡°Fat Cat, we have been together for a long time, so I will keep it short. You¡¯ve indeed helped us a lot, and even saved my life when I was killed. I, Long Chen, am someone who repays kindness with even more kindness. I won¡¯t mistreat you in the future, and we are technically sworn brothers. Or maybe you think that I¡¯m not fit to be your sworn brother since you are the ¡®Divine¡¯ Reincarnation Beast?¡±


    Little Cat made a face of disgust. ¡°Fine, no need to be sentimental with me. I¡¯m not somedy and I won¡¯t fall for your tricks. Go and look at the tombstone while I treat her.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled.He knew Little Cat would react like that.


    Long Chen had a good grasp on Little Cat¡¯s behavior. Little Cat has been dependable in desperate times even though he was a bit of a show-off and exaggerated a lot of his tales.


    He let Fat Cat into the Primordial Realm before cing Huangfu Qi inside. The blood of the Heavenly Phoenix was already in the Primordial Realm. As half of its owner, Fat Cat could naturally control it easily.


    ¡°By the way, do you want to restore your power one day?¡± Long Chen suddenly asked.


    Fat Cat revealed a bewildered expression before he chuckled bitterly. ¡°That¡¯s impossible, so there¡¯s no need to think about it. It¡¯s already good enough that I get to talk to someone right now.¡±


    <em>Hmm ¡­ It seems he had a difficult past.</em>


    Long Chen would always help his sworn brothers no matter what. Even though Little Cat said nothing, Long Chen noted this down in his heart.


    There was no such thing as impossible in this world. It had always been an issue of being weak.


    Long Chen sighed in relief once Little Cat got busy saving Huangfu Qi. Seeing that Little Cat was doing his best, he was relieved that the entire ordeal was finally about to be over. Long Chen could finally return Huangfu Qi to Huangfu Fengchen safely.


    As for Xiang, he was resting in a corner of the Primordial Realm, refining the demonic core. He had changed back to his beast form with ck mes sputtering out of his body. asionally, golden mes belonging to the Divine Phoenix¡¯s bloodline appeared.


    In order to help Long Chen obtain the Ancient Token, Xiang was doing his best to increase his strength as quickly as possible.


    The Ancient Token was extremely important to Long Chen.


    Now that everything was done, Long Chen could finally take the time to inspect the strange tombstone. He turned around and saw that the tombstone was covered in holes. It also appeared to have been charred by the mes, resulting in its ck color.


    If the Heavenly Phoenix hadn''t crashed into it, Long Chen never would¡¯ve discovered its strangeness.


    <em>Fat Cat told me that the tombstone might contain a martial technique belonging to the ancient sect of Sky Isle. I wonder if it''s true.</em> Long Chen approached the tombstone.


    He was five meters away from it, but nothing happened. He sensed no strange energy, so he wasn¡¯t sure how to activate it.


    <em>I wonder what kind of secret is contained in the tombstone? </em>Still feeling nothing, he made his way closer until he was standing just inches away from the tombstone, yet nothing happened. He plucked his courage and tapped it.


    Due to the death of the Heavenly Phoenix, the temperature in the surroundings plummeted rapidly. The air had already cooled down a lot, but the tombstone was surprisingly cold.


    <em>Why did this thing deflect the Heavenly Phoenix, while nothing happened to me?</em> Long Chen was confused. He then ced his palm on the tombstone and rubbed it. He felt the tombstone¡¯s little fractures and holes, but nothing happened. He did this for an hour until he was familiar with the surface of the tombstone, but still, nothing happened.


    Long Chen started to use force.


    He gently punched it, but nothing happened other than a dull <em>thud</em>. It was simr to a regr tombstone.


    <em>Do I need to use as much force as the Heavenly Phoenix crashing into it? Will I get deflected?</em>


    Long Chen grumbled.


    He thought he could¡¯ve obtained whatever martial technique was infused into the tombstone by getting close to it.


    Little Cat took a bit of time to teach him while saving Huangfu Qi.


    ¡°Martial techniques of higher levels are not that simple to cultivate, especially ones hidden by an expert of a sect this grand. Don¡¯t be hasty and wait for nighttime toe. Once the moon is out, you can look at it and maybe learn something after two hours or so. But don¡¯t just stare at it. You need to feel its presence.¡±


    ¡°Is it that difficult?¡± Long Chen pouted. It had been smooth sailing for him when it came to cultivating martial techniques in the past. He had never felt a sense of reverence or awe even when he was cultivating the Wind God Kick and the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. It hade to him naturally.


    But the technique in the tombstone was most likely stronger than his techniques, since it was that difficult to learn it. Long Chen assumed the technique hidden in the tombstone would be as strong as the Martial Overlord Seal.


    <em>But the Five Emperor Seals must be even stronger since it''s an Emperor-tier technique of indeterminate strength. But how could it be weak if it''s a technique derived by the only five Divine Martial Realm experts of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory?</em>


    <em>The treasure of the five emperors located in the Ancient Graveyard must be its true essence. Still, even the individual seals are quite strong already.</em>


    Long Chen dared not think too much of the Five Emperor Seals. Both the Scarlet and Golden Emperor Seals had been taken by Zhao Danchen, so Long Chen could only start cultivating the Five Emperor Seals after taking them.


    So the mysterious technique right in front of his eyes was a good chance to increase his strength right now.


    He needed a strong offensive martial technique!


    Patience was an important trait for strong cultivators to have. Long Chen knew that there was a reason behind Little Cat¡¯s words, so he waited. He stepped ten meters back and started feeling out the tombstone using his five senses.


    <em>I need to wait for the moonlight? </em>Long Chen wasn¡¯t in a rush.


    He had just reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage, so there were still parts of his cultivation that he had to consolidate.


    He had to reinforce a lot of his techniques in order to strengthen them.


    He was currently at the peak of the Divine Martial Empire.


    His only enemies were Zhao Danchen and Lady Xuan!


    It was soon nighttime.


    The moonlight prated the clouds and hid Sky Isle.


    <em>Everything''s so blurry now. I doubt I will be able to see anything on the tombstone now. </em>Long Chen was confused.


    Little Cat was in the critical stages of rescuing Huangfu Qi, so Long Chen couldn¡¯t interrupt him. Long Chen had toprehend it on his own, so he followed Little Cat¡¯s advice and started to examine the tombstone with all his senses.


    He was already familiar with the surface of the tombstone, but he still didn¡¯t get anything from it.


    Most people would¡¯ve never cracked the mystery of the tombstone since no one would stay here for so long.


    <em>Comprehend, but not through observation. I can already imagine its size and shape in my mind, but how does that help me?</em>


    Long Chen pondered.


    The faint moonlight caused his shadow to be projected on the tombstone. It was a natural phenomenon. The shadow moved as Long Chen moved. Nothing was out of the ordinary here.


    Long Chen observed the tombstone for more than two hours but still got nothing.


    <em>Maybe I finally hit a bottleneck? </em>Long Chen sighed.


    He didn¡¯t want to force himself and hoped that he would crack the mystery by chance.


    He got bored and started cultivating the fourth stage of the Earthly Martial Fist.

 Chapter 669: Desolate Divine Seal

    Long Chen set aside the mysterious tombstone and immersed himself in the cultivation of the Earthly Martial Fist for quite some time. It was so profound that Long Chen couldn¡¯tprehend it on the spot. He cultivated and realized he had a lot of questions when it came to cultivating it. Rather than stressing himself over it, he stopped cultivating.


    He had been doing it for the past hour.


    He opened his eyes and looked at the mysterious tombstone. This time, he noticed something different.


    Even though Long Chen had stopped, his shadow on the tombstone was still moving. More importantly, it was moving in a way that waspletely different from the fourth stage of the Earthly Martial Fist.


    Rather than a fist technique, his shadow was mimicking the movements of a seal technique. The soft moonlight shone on the tombstone, causing it to take on a dull, yellow color. Suddenly, the color brightened up and the shadow started to move again, casting the mysterious seal technique.


    ¡°What the ¡­?¡± Long Chen was shocked, but then he realized that it was the secret of the tombstone! He quickly focused on the shadow¡¯s movements.


    He immersed himself in observing the shadow and memorizing the movements. He had a feeling that he was in a trance.


    Long Chen thought he had been sucked into the tombstone.


    As time passed, his body started to emit a soft, yellow light too.The shadow on the tombstone repeated the same exact movements again and again. Long Chen had to watch it ten times to memorize everything.


    Even though the movements were simple, it didn¡¯t mean that Long Chen would be able to learn the technique. He knew the form of the technique, but not its essence.


    Long Chen continued to stare at the tombstone.


    Suddenly, he felt like his body had been transported to a different ce. He opened his eyes and saw that he was standing in a deste in where everything was gray. The Nine Spirit Purgatory was much more vibrant than this ce.


    Gray sand and ck clouds stretched out as far as he could see. Cold wind blew past him, and the presence of death permeated everywhere. Long Chen also somehow smelled the stench of animal carcasses and rotten nts.


    The terrible stench lingered in the air.


    <em>Where is this ce? </em>Long Chen was shocked. He recalled that he had been observing the movements of the shadow on the tombstone, but then he was suddenly transported here.


    He was shocked to see the deste ins. The stench of death started to invade his body, causing him to feel pain. He looked down and saw his skin slowly rotting away. His arm lost its color and turned gray before it rotted.


    The pain almost made Long Chen want tomit suicide.


    ¡°What is this ce? Why is it so scary?¡± Long Chen started running. He needed to escape the ce. The pain was intense, but it wasn¡¯t enough to stop him from running. He knew he would die the moment he stopped!


    Long Chen finally spotted an oasis in the distance. It wasn¡¯trge, but it was filled with nts and livestock.


    <em>There¡¯s an oasis in the middle of this deste ce? </em>He wasn¡¯t sure if this was reality.


    It was too strange to be real.


    Rather than trying to find out how he had ended up here, he was more concerned about where he was right now. He quickly approached the oasis.


    Halfway there, an angry howl came from the sky and the ck clouds were sted away. A massive, gray hand reached down the sky, covering the sun. The hand was shrouded in the aura of death, and it crushed the oasis.


    When it disappeared and the clouds returned, the oasis had been reduced to nothing. Long Chen looked in awe as the oasis had been transformed to the same deste piece ofnd. The oasis left no traces after the rot had taken over it.


    The aura of death still lingered in the area.


    Long Chen was awestruck by therge, gray hand. He was originally terrified by the power behind it, but now he was impressed by the profoundness of that strike.


    ¡°I was cultivating the technique on the tombstone and then I found myself here. That hand ¡­¡± Long Chen had a feeling that the tombstone and the hand were connected.


    <em>Is the hand shrouded in the aura of death the seal technique I¡¯m cultivating? </em>He quickly recalled everything and had a certain sense of understanding of the technique¡¯s essence.


    ¡°Is this the true Deste Divine Seal?¡±


    After he realized that, his body was transported back to the front of the tombstone. The moon had been covered and the shadow on the tombstone had disappeared. It had returned to how it was before, normal and silent. Long Chen noted that everything was silent other than the birds crying in the air.


    But he ignored them.


    He recalled the profoundness of the technique. Long Chen had only learned the technique¡¯s name after he had a better understanding of its essence. The Deste Divine Seal was different from the Yellow Martial Divine Seal that Zhao Danchen had used.


    The Yellow Martial Divine Seal was only an intermediate King-tier martial technique, while the Deste Divine Seal was an advanced King-tier martial technique! It was also the strongest advanced King-tier martial technique!


    At the very least, it was stronger than the Martial Overlord Seal.


    Martial techniques of the same tier weren¡¯t necessarily equal when it came to power. For example, the Wind God Kick was an intermediate King-tier martial technique with three different styles, the Whirlwind Style, the Typhoon Style, and the Wind God Style. All three styles belonged to the same tier, but the former two were weaker than the Wind God Style.


    Long Chen had a vague understanding of how strong the Deste Divine Seal was after he saw the horrifying scene.


    ¡°The Deste Divine Seal is also called the Death Seal. The aura of death is infused into the attack to bring out twice as much destructive power ¡­¡± Long Chen slowly deciphered the technique on his own.


    Not only had he seen how strong it was with his own eyes, he had even sensed the strength behind the gray hand.


    Long Chen felt like his understanding of the technique had deepened thanks to the demonstration. Since Xiang was still refining the demonic core and Little Cat was saving Huangfu Qi, Long Chen decided to cultivate the technique.


    The more he studied it, the more shocked he became. ¡°The Deste Divine Seal is simr to Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire! The aura of death can erode a person¡¯s body! Not only is it strong, it¡¯s also fatal. Those hit by the seal are almost guaranteed to die. No wonder it¡¯s the strongest King-tier technique!¡±


    The technique was vicious, but Long Chen didn¡¯t dislike it. Instead, he was overjoyed that he had managed to get a strong martial technique before he got the Five Emperor Seal. With another weapon in arsenal, he had a better chance of obtaining the Ancient Token.


    That was his final goal!


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, do you think you are the strongest now that you have the Heavenly Overlord Seal? I know you wille to find me soon, but now I have the Deste Divine Seal, a martial technique stronger than the Heavenly Overlord Seal!¡±


    The Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Wind God Kick were strong martial techniques, but the Deste Divine Seal contained the eroding powers of rot and decay. It was also stronger than the Heavenly Overlord Seal to begin with. Long Chen had a feeling that both Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan would be surprised!


    This thought made him even more motivated to learn it.


    He started cultivating the martial technique every day restlessly on Sky Isle. Little Cat had long finished his work and was waiting for Huangfu Qi to wake up naturally as she bathed in the Heavenly Phoenix blood. Xiang, on the other hand, was still refining the demonic core of the Heavenly Phoenix. Thanks to the trace amount of the Divine Phoenix in the demonic core, Xiang would gain a lot more from this than from eating the demonic core of a regr Category Four or Five King-tier demonic beast.


    <em>Maybe Xiang will</em>


    <em> grow into a Category Four King-tier demonic beast?</em> Long Chen pondered.

 Chapter 670: Primordial Time Dragon

    There was a chance Xiang would advance into the Category Four King-tier after refining the demonic core. Ten days had passed since then. Huangfu Qi had almost recovered, but Xiang was still slumbering. The more time he spent refining the demonic core, the higher the chance for him to be a Category Four King-tier.


    One day, Little Cat told Long Chen that Huangfu Qi was going to wake up soon. Long Chen stopped cultivating the Deste Divine Seal temporarily and took her out of the Primordial Realm, cing her and the bathtub on the za.


    She was still soaking in the bathtub, but she looked much better. She was soaked in the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix. For some reason, part of the blood was golden.


    The temperature of the blood was very high. Long Chen felt like he was standing next to the Heavenly Phoenix right now. Most of the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s heat came from its blood. Thanks to Little Cat¡¯s technique, Huangfu Qi was not burned by the hot liquid.


    The green coloration on Huangfu Qi¡¯s skin was gone, reced by redness. Initially, only her heart was beating, but now she was also breathing. She truly seemed close to waking up.


    Long Chen noticed that the golden blood was slowly seeping into her body.


    ¡°She¡¯s lucky that she survived this misfortune. She even got the chance to bathe in the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix. It will definitely increase her strength in the future. Also, the Heavenly Wind Vein in her body is decent enough. If she works hard, she can reach the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, meaning she might be the strongest person in the Divine Martial Empire.¡±


    At least Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have to worry about her after he left the Divine Martial Empire.


    His friends were all protected by Long Shan for now. By the time Long Shan retired, Huangfu Qi would be the strongest cultivator in the Divine Martial Empire. She was basically next in line to be the supreme ruler.<em>Huangfu Fengchen would be proud of her. Even though he has lost his strength, he will probably still be happy that his daughter will be strong.</em> Long Chen knew that Huangfu Fengchen valued her more than his own life, or he would¡¯ve never begged Long Chen to save Huangfu Qi despite knowing that Long Chen was weaker than Feng Xuan.


    ¡°Little Cat, what about me? How¡¯s my potential?¡±


    ¡°You?¡± The Little Cat looked at him with disdain. ¡°You have the Inherited Blood Essence of one of an Ancestor Dragon, the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon! No one in this world can be stronger than you, but don¡¯t think that it will be easy to absorb all of it! It won¡¯t be easy to refine, and I don¡¯t know how strong you will be.¡±


    Long Chen had thought as much. If he wanted to get stronger, he had to get himself into more life-threatening situations. Even though his growth had exploded after he gained the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, he had also met a lot of dangers.


    ¡°Little Cat, how many Dragon Warriors are there right now?¡±


    ¡°Dragon Warriors? I don¡¯t think there are many of them left. Most of the Inherited Blood Essence is gone and I don¡¯t know where any of it is right now. Though I remember there were many Dragon Warriors during the Middle Ages.¡±


    ¡°Do you think the Inherited Blood Essence of the nine remaining Ancestor Dragons is still around?¡± Long Chen was worried. He needed to know if there was anyone else who would be his rival.


    ¡°None. I don¡¯t know how you managed to get the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, but I do know that the Inherited Blood Essence of the other nine Ancestor Dragons cannot be obtained by anyone else. Even if someone did manage to find it, only someone at the Divine Martial Realm would be able to use it.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen recalled how he had found the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. Long Qinn had told him that the Dragon Seal was the key for him to be a Dragon Warrior. The Inherited Blood Essence had been sealed, but Ling Xi had managed to unlock it.


    Long Chen was also surprised that he had managed to get the Inherited Blood Essence so easily.


    <em>It must¡¯ve been my father¡¯s handiwork. He arranged everything. Based on his words, it seems that the Long family is much stronger than Ling Xi¡¯s family. Ling Xi belongs to the Swordsoul Pce of the Three Emperor Territory. They are very strong, but is my family stronger?</em>


    <em>Are there other ces beyond the Three Emperor Territory?</em>


    ¡°But I do know the location of another Inherited Blood Essence of an Ancestor Dragon.¡± Little Cat suddenly dropped a bombshell that shocked Long Chen.


    ¡°Hehe, Sir Cat, are you telling the truth?¡±


    Long Chen immediately called him ¡°Sir Cat¡± to butter him up.


    Little Cat was satisfied by the sudden change in treatment even though he had intended to tell Long Chen about this regardless. He simply hadn''t gotten the chance to do so yet.


    ¡°Of course. When have I ever lied to you?¡±


    ¡°Then where is it?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to panic. You can¡¯t get it now anyway,¡± Little Cat said slowly. ¡°Sigh ¡­ To tell you the truth, I lost to the Ancestor Dragon in battle. It then plucked out one of its scales and sealed me in it. The Primordial Dragon Talisman on your chest is that very same scale. Since you have the Primordial Dragon Talisman, I should be able to sense where the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancestor Dragon when you get close to it. I can actually sense it now, but unfortunately, it¡¯s quite far away.¡±


    ¡°The Primordial Dragon Talisman is a dragon scale?¡± Long Chen was dumbstruck. <em>That¡¯s why I can use Rewind!</em>


    Long Chen had just learned a lot from Little Cat.


    <em>Little Cat lost to an Ancestor Dragon. If he was once as strong as the Golden Crow, then the Ancestor Dragons were certainly very strong. Even though he always said that he had battled against the Ancestor Dragons valiantly, I¡¯m fairly certain he lost in a single strike. If not, how could he be sealed by a single scale?</em>


    <em>Also, Little Cat doesn''t know the exact location of the Inherited Blood Essence; he can merely use the Primordial Dragon Talisman to find it.</em>


    ¡°Do you know the approximate location of it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not here in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. It should be in the Three Emperor Territory.¡±


    ¡°That means I still have to go there ¡­¡± Long Chen had to go to the Three Emperor Territory for the sake of Ling Xi, Yang Lingqing, and even the Inherited Blood Essence.


    Long Chen had just reinforced his resolve to head there now!


    ¡°Wait, Little Cat. What¡¯s the name of the Ancestor Dragon you lost to? Primordial ¡­ something dragon?¡±


    Little Cat revealed an expression of reverence as he muttered, ¡°Going from the past to the present is the flow of time, while everything above thend is expansive space. Time is the constant that connects the past to the present. From the Rewind technique that you¡¯ve obtained, it¡¯s clear that the Ancestor Dragon controls thew of time, to reverse life and death, to travel from past to present. It is the dragon of evesting time, the Primordial Time Dragon!¡±


    <em>Primordial Time Dragon!</em>


    Long Chen felt his heart beat rapidly when he heard the name.


    He knew that the name was missing a word, but he never thought it would indeed be time. The Primordial Time Dragon was an Ancestor Dragon that swam freely in the river of time as it had control over it.


    The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon governed blood and massacre, but the Primordial Time Dragon controlled time! Long Chen had always thought the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was scary, but the Primordial Time Dragon appeared to be even stronger.


    ¡°Little Cat, do you know how strong the ten Ancestor Dragons were? How strong is the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragonpared to the Primordial Time Dragon?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s not much difference in their strength. Each of them are the peak of their existence. Though I do think the Primordial Time Dragon is better, not because of its strength, but because of thew it controlled. Thew of time should be stronger than thew of massacre. The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon became an Ancestor Dragon through its ownw and made its name on the Dragon Continent, but thew of massacre still feels slightly inferior to thew of time.¡±


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure what thosews were.


    ¡°What arews?¡±


    ¡°Laws? They are the various powers of the world. Everyw has its own characteristics, and it¡¯s the strongest power there is. Our strength is based on it. For example, your essence will be depleted if you don¡¯t have nature''s spiritual energy to replenish it. Without thews, we wouldn¡¯t have any powers.¡±


    ¡°Uh ¡­ I still don¡¯t understand. Could you make it simpler for me?¡±

 Chapter 671: Exceedingly Difficult

    ¡°Laws are the power that utilizes the strength of the world. They themselves are the strength of the world. It¡¯s too early for you to learn about this. You are still at the Earthly Martial Realm, so you should focus on deepening your understanding on Martial Arts for now. It¡¯s also a type ofw called the Law of Martial Arts, or rather, you are learning the Law of Earthly Martial Arts at this point. It¡¯s a weak type ofw that will allow you to feel the power of the earth. You will be able to use very little essence to redirect the strength of the earth once you learn more. Once you are at the Heavenly Martial Realm, you will naturally be able to learn more aboutws, because by then, you will have to understand thews of the world rather than just the earth.¡±


    Long Chen was confused.


    He felt like the path of cultivation had just be harder. It had been easy enough to absorb blood essence from his enemies in the past, but that method was useless now. He never thought it would be that difficult to progress through the Three Martial Realms.


    The path to cultivation was exceedingly difficult.


    Those who stood at the top were all heroes.


    The Four Basic Realms were indeed the basics, while the Three Martial Realms were just the beginning of the path of cultivation. The realms beyond that were even more difficult.


    Little Cat tried to console Long Chen. ¡°The path to cultivation has always been that difficult. To be honest, you wouldn¡¯t have achieved much if you didn¡¯t have the Inherited Blood Essence since you were born in such a deste ce. Even if you dug out all of your potential back in Baiyang Town, you would at most reach the Heavenly Passage Realm, but now you are different. Half of your body has transformed that into a dragon with you noticing. Your Martial Soul should be shaped like a dragon, correct?¡±


    Long Chen had never told Little Cat about that secret.


    Little Cat was surprisingly serious this time.Long Chen nodded.


    Little Cat smiled. ¡°Then that just proved my conjecture. You were once a human, but now your Martial Soul is a dragon. That means you will be a dragon in the future. However, your soul, or rather your Divine Soul, is a human since you were born one. That means you will always be a human and you must follow thews of how a human can cultivate. Compared to demonic beasts, humans have weaker bodies. They are exceedingly fragile if youpare them to the Ancestor Dragons. Demonic beasts, on the other hand, were born strong; however, their strength is determined at birth. They will naturally reach their full strength once they be adults. Xiang, on the other hand, is a mutant that can increase his cultivation level by consuming mes. Theoretically, he shouldn¡¯t have to cultivate norprehend anything to be stronger.


    ¡°Humans are the weakest race. To be strong, they must continue to cultivate ceaselessly. The Martial Realm allows them to better use their strength and have a shallow understanding of thews of the world. You will now face many more trials to be stronger, so be prepared.¡±


    Little Cat had rattled so fast that Long Chen realized this was the first time he had been this serious. Long Chen was also surprised by how much he himself didn¡¯t know about the world.


    But he was grateful to Little Cat for pressuring him so that he would feel desperate enough to continue cultivating.


    <em>I will be a dragon one day, but my Divine Soul remains as a human. I will always be one, so I cannot be like Xiang, who can be stronger with ease. I have to continue to fight and learn how to control thews of the world. Only then will I be the strongest. The Three Martial Realms are all about learning the Law of Martial Arts, the most basicw. But the Ancestor Dragons were versed in the Law of Massacre and the Law of Time. Those must be some of the highest-levelws in the world.</em>


    He organized his thoughts and had a feeling that he just learned something new.


    He never had to think about what to cultivate in the Four basic Realm which was why he was facing bottlenecks in the Three Martial Realms. But now through Little Cat¡¯s exnation, he had learned a lot.


    Cultivating was the method to take back control of his life.


    Cultivating was to go against the Heavens.


    The more one goes against the Heavens, the more one gets to control themselves.


    The Four Basic Realms were used to umte energy and change one¡¯s body, while the Three Martial Realms were the start to one¡¯s cultivation. The umtion of strength was no longer important at those stages. What was more important was to feel and try to control thews. One also had to make their Martial Soul stronger to share the lifespan of the world.


    Little Cat thought he might¡¯ve been too harsh on Long Chen, but he was surprised to see Long Chen became motivated instead. Long Chen had always been rebellious, striving to be stronger to prove himself. His heart was still beating strong while his spirit remained unbroken.


    Little Cat suddenly realized that Long Chen hadn¡¯t survived up till today through sheer luck after he looked into his passionate eyes. It was because of his attitude.


    One¡¯s attitude determined their life.


    They had to make the decision to go against the heavens themselves.


    While Little Cat was still stunned, Long Chen sensed that Huangfu Qi was stirring from her slumber. He quickly turned around and checked on her. Long Chen was keeping Little Cat secret at the moment, so he quickly hid him.


    Huangfu Qi moved her fingers as she soaked in the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix. Her breathing stabilized and she slowly opened her eyes. They were filled with life.


    This was the Huangfu Qi that Long Chen knew.


    She was young, so she was supposed to be happy and naive.


    But she was confused and distressed when she opened her eyes.


    ¡°Bad woman ¡­¡± She suddenly saw Long Chen and paused, giving him a look full of disbelief before she smiled.


    Children were simple; they always assumed that what they were seeing was the truth.


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Huangfu Qi jumped up and hugged Long Chen. Her body was still covered in the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix.


    Long Chen consumed the blood and turned it into Dragon Soul Essence. It wasn¡¯t much, but there wasn''t any reason to waste it.


    He then realized most of the blood essence in the tub had been absorbed by Huangfu Qi. Still, it was more important for him to learn about the Law of Earthly Martial Arts right now, so Blood Transmutation was not that important to him.


    ¡°Big Brother, why are you here? Why am I here? Where¡¯s the evil woman?¡± Huangfu Qi looked at Long Chen excitedly before she looked around. She didn¡¯t know where she was since there was mist everywhere.


    ¡°This is Sky Isle in the Immortal Sea. Have you heard of it before?¡±


    ¡°I have! It¡¯s a mysterious ce that even my father dares not enter. Huh, why did I be stronger?¡± Huangfu Qi suddenly looked at herself with wonder.


    ¡°It¡¯s probably due to the blood of the Heavenly Phoenix. You were soaked in it for more than ten days straight. Your nine great meridian points should have been opened up by the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s blood. Is your heavenly meridian point open? Where is it now?¡±


    Long Chen sensed that Huangfu Qi was somewhere between the Eighth and Ninth Passage Stages. It was already impressive to have such strength at such a young age. She was destined to be the strongest in the Divine Martial Empire, second only to Long Chen.


    She was only ten years old, yet she was already at the Ninth Passage Stage. Very few had achieved the same at her age.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s open. It¡¯s here.¡± Huangfu Qi pointed at her head and chuckled.


    She suddenly remembered what Long Chen said and was shocked. ¡°Big Brother, the Heavenly Phoenix should be the strongest demonic beast in the Immortal Sea. Did you kill it?¡±


    She had heard that even Zhao Wuji dared not provoke the Heavenly Phoenix. <em>If he came here and killed it, doesn¡¯t that mean he¡¯s stronger than Zhao Wuji?</em>


    Long Chen nodded and pinched her little nose. ¡°Yes, I was the one who killed it to save you.¡±


    ¡°Waaaa!¡± Huangfu Qi¡¯s eyes lit up like stars.


    She didn''t have any concept of someone strong. She only knew that Long Chen was undefeated.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s bring you to your father. He must be worried about you.¡±


    His mission waspleted.


    ¡°Father! Yes, I want to see him! That new woman is evil! She took my mother¡¯s house and even kidnapped me. I don¡¯t know what she did, but I fell asleep somehow. When I woke up, you were beside me.¡± Huangfu Qi revealed a disgusted face when she talked about Lady Xuan.

 Chapter 672: Love of the Parents

    Huangfu Qi didn¡¯t know about Huangfu Fengchen being crippled and that she herself had almost been killed by Feng Xuan.


    Long Chen decided not to tell her the truth since she was still young. He took her down from the Immortal Sea and then ran straight to Lingering Wind City. He nned to go there first before returning to the Battle n. Xiang was still refining the demonic core and Long Chen still needed some time to master the Deste Divine Seal.


    Long Chen and Huangfu Qi talked a lot during their journey. She didn¡¯t know she had been on the verge of death as she chatted happily. She wanted Long Chen to follow her to the Huangfu family estate to stay with her. She also stopped asking about Xiang.


    After several days, Huangfu Qi finally realized that she wasn¡¯t heading towards the Huangfu family¡¯s estate. She asked, ¡°Big Brother, I thought we were going to see my parents. Where are we going now?¡±


    ¡°To Lingering Wind City. It¡¯s where your parents are.¡±


    ¡°Huh? I thought they were at home. Are you lying?¡± She pouted.


    Long Chen decided to tell her part of the truth. ¡°When you were unconscious, that evil woman took over your house and chased your parents away.¡±


    ¡°Huh?!¡± Huangfu Qi revealed an expression full of hatred. ¡°Even my father lost to her? Despicable! Once I grow up, I will beat that evil woman until her butt explodes. But, Big Brother, since you are so strong, can you help me beat her up and then take my parents back home?¡±


    Huangfu Qi was being carried by Long Chen as she spoke.She was smart enough to ask Long Chen to take revenge for her.


    Feng Xuan was destined to fight against Long Chen again to get the Ancient Token, so it was just a matter of time. Since he was now at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, he had a better chance to beat her.


    He nodded. ¡°Leave it to me. I will beat her till her butt explodes.¡±


    He grinned when he recalled Feng Xuan¡¯srge butt.


    But it wouldn¡¯t be easy to beat her, since she was at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage and she came from the Divine Wind Empire. Her Three Thousand Illusory Palms and Three Thousand Illusions were extremely strong, so he would have to work with Xiang to kill her, just like how they had killed the Heavenly Phoenix.


    They finally reached Lingering Wind City after a few days.


    ***


    ¡°Fengchen.¡± The wooden door was pushed open as thedy entered the courtyard. The courtyard was already filled with nts and flowers that Huangfu Fengchen had nted. He was watering one of the flowers when his wife ran back anxiously.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Huangfu Fengchen was calm as he held his wife.


    She calmed down and said, ¡°I went to see if there were any news and heard that Feng Xuan returned to the Huangfu family ten days ago. She was in a bad mood and killed the servants for any single mistake.¡±


    ¡°Bad mood? After she came back from the Martial Overlord City? Wait ¡­ Could it be? Maybe Long Chen rescued Qi Qi!¡± Huangfu Fengchen was overjoyed.


    ¡°Maybe not...¡± The woman smiled bitterly.


    ¡°But what if he did?¡± Huangfu Fengchen raised his eyebrows.


    His wife was smart too. ¡°If Long Chen was sessful, he would¡¯vee here. But it¡¯s been ten days and there¡¯s no news at all. What if ¡­ What if Qi Qi died during the fight and Feng Xuan¡¯s n failed? Maybe that¡¯s why she was in a bad mood. Long Chen would¡¯ve been too embarrassed toe and face us too.¡±


    His wife was sad.


    ¡°That¡¯s just a baseless usation.¡± Huangfu Fengchen scoffed, but he was worried too. It had been a long time and there was no news at all. He had a bad feeling, but he refused to acknowledge it.


    ¡°Long Chen is strong and relentless, but his opponent is at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. I fear that he is likely to fail. Feng Xuan must¡¯ve been angry about not getting the Heavenly Wind Veins. But if Long Chen doesn¡¯te back here¡­ Then it might be true that he¡¯s embarrassed. I don¡¯t me him, since I gave him an impossible mission.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen shook his head powerlessly.


    His wife was on the verge of tears too.


    ¡°Fengchen, what should we do? Qi Qi is still young. Is this how she dies?¡± She started crying.


    Huangfu Fengchen sighed and led her into the house.


    Their life was peaceful right now, and they didn¡¯t have to worry about anything. It could be said that this was their ideal life, but Huangfu Qi was not there with them. The little courtyard was filled with sadness.


    Time passed, and both of them despaired.


    One day, while having lunch, they looked at each other and thought about Huangfu Qi. They smiled bitterly as they ate their meal. They hadn¡¯t eaten much in the past few days as they didn¡¯t have much of an appetite.


    Their eyes were red. Every time his wife remembered Huangfu Qi, she would cry. Her eyes were now puffy.


    ¡°It¡¯s all because of me. I¡¯m useless and can¡¯t do anything.¡± Huangfu Fengchen med himself.


    ¡°Fengchen, don¡¯t say that. You have your own situation. It¡¯s just that Lady Xuan was vicious.¡± His wife clenched her teeth in spite.


    They had given up hope.


    Just then ¡­


    ¡°Father, Mother.¡±


    She heard a familiar voiceing from outside. They immediately stood up from their chairs.


    <em>I must¡¯ve heard wrongly.</em> Both of them thought the same thing because they had long assumed Huangfu Qi was dead.


    But was it possible for two people to mishear?


    They beamed the moment they realized Huangfu Qi was alive.


    ¡°Qi Qi is back!¡± They ran towards the door with joy. The chairs were knocked over, but they didn¡¯t care.


    They opened the door and saw a small girl wearing yellow overalls with silver bracelets on her arms. She was running towards them! Both parents cried out of joy the moment they saw her.


    Huangfu Fengchen had never felt this happy before, not even when he became the patriarch of the Huangfu family.


    Huangfu Qi was their world.


    A parent¡¯s love was limitless and transcended everything. It was also the mostmon form of love that almost everyone possessed. Only when one had lost their parents would they realize how precious this love was.


    When Huangfu Fengchen held his daughter tightly in his arms and felt her soft skin, he knew he wasn¡¯t dreaming. He quickly passed his daughter to his wife. ¡°It¡¯s Qi Qi! It¡¯s really her!¡±


    His wife was already crying. Her tears of joy quite literally gushed out from her eyes.


    ¡°Father, Mother, I am back. Why are you crying? Isn¡¯t it embarrassing to cry when you¡¯re so old?¡± Huangfu Qi panicked when she saw them crying.


    ¡°Who said we¡¯re crying?¡± Huangfu Fengchen inspected Huangfu Qi and was relieved to find that she was uninjured. Her arms and legs were still attached, and she had even gotten stronger! He finally rxed.


    To most parents in the world, the happiest thing one could experience was the safe return of their children. It was the best gift they could ever obtain.


    Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s wife was going to ask Huangfu Qi about what had happened when Huangfu Fengchen smiled at Long Chen.


    Long Chen stood there calmly as if he was one with the heavens and earth. He seemed simple, with all of his sharp edges hidden, just like a schr. But Huangfu Fengchen knew that Long Chen had grown even more since thest time he had met him. To him, Long Chen was a miraculous being.


    ¡°You¡¯ve done so much. I¡¯m so sorry for putting all this on you, Long Chen. Thank you so much ¡­¡± Huangfu Fengchen regretted what he had said in theirst meeting.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I know your intentions to begin with, Patriarch. Plus, I am her older brother now. I didn¡¯t save her just because I wanted you to thank me, haha.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s rxed posture made the atmosphere much lively.


    ¡°I¡¯m just a regr person now, so don¡¯t call me ¡®patriarch.¡¯ Since I¡¯m only ten years older than you, you can just call me ¡®Uncle.¡¯ Come inside and rest. You must¡¯ve had a long journey.¡± Huangfu Fengchen smiled bitterly.


    ¡°Big Brother, don¡¯t go.¡± Huangfu Qi ran towards Long Chen and pulled on his arm, leading him into the house.


    ¡°This little girl ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled helplessly.


    He saw that the two had been eating their lunch. Huangfu Fengchen and his wife didn¡¯t have the appetite to eat anymore, so they just cleaned up hastily.


    ¡°It took quite some time. Did something happen?¡± Huangfu Fengchen asked.

 Chapter 673: Divine and Demon Clan

    Long Chen told them the story as soon as they sat down. He skipped the part about Little Cat and just said he found the method to save Huangfu Qi in an ancient book.


    Both Huangfu Fengchen and his wife were shocked to hear that Long Chen had gone to the Immortal Sea to kill the Heavenly Phoenix. They looked at him in disbelief. ¡°The Heavenly Phoenix lived for hundreds of years. No one dared to provoke it, but you ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was officially stronger than Zhao Wuji now that he had killed the Heavenly Phoenix.


    ¡°The strongest beings in the Divine Martial Empire were Zhao Wuji and the Heavenly Phoenix. But Zhao Wuji has been killed by his disciple and Feng Xuan, while you killed the Heavenly Phoenix. It seems that the Divine Martial Empire has changed so much ¡­ Long Chen, I have never seen anyone with your talent before. I fear that you would be considered a genius even if you were to go to the other empires.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen was impressed and grateful that Long Chen had risked his life to save Huangfu Qi by killing the Heavenly Phoenix. Huangfu Fengchen knew that he would never be able to repay this debt.


    He had given him the Willow Step, the prized martial technique of the Huangfu family, out of goodwill. Now he knew that he had made the right move. If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen, Huangfu Qi would likely be dead by now.


    Long Chen thought this was a good time to ask about the Ancient Graveyard. The other empires would get a lot of Ancient Tokens, so he needed to know what kinds of enemies he would be facing. ¡°Uncle Chen, could you tell me about the other empires?¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen took a guess. ¡°Do you want to enter the Ancient Graveyard by obtaining the Ancient Token?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.Huangfu Fengchen shook his head. ¡°Long Chen, I advise you not to do that.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°You are young. You haven¡¯t reached the age of twenty and yet you already have the strength of someone at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. While this is enough for you to be called a genius, you¡¯re not considered strong yet. Those who get to enter the Ancient Graveyard are all incredibly strong. You might have a chance to get some treasures if you fight against the younger cultivators, but you are far weaker than those vicious old bastards. Cultivators at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage aremonce in the other empires. You are only considered strong if you reach the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Almost everyone who enters the Ancient Graveyard is at the Fourth Earthly Martial Realm at least, except for those who get lucky, of course. If you entered now, you would be the weakest one of them all. Why don¡¯t you spend a few years cultivating first? You might be able to survive if you enter once you¡¯re at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s analysis was urate. There were a lot of treasures in the Ancient Graveyard, but there was a lot of danger too. Not only were there natural disasters, there were also demonic beasts and other cultivators. Only a few managed to survive every time. Long Chen would bemitting suicide by entering now.


    Huangfu Fengchen wanted him to be stronger before entering the Ancient Graveyard.


    ¡°If you think the Divine Martial Empire is blocking your cultivation, you can go to the other empires. There are a lot of strong cultivators there that might help you. You will have more chances to be strong. More importantly, it¡¯s less risky than going to the Ancient Graveyard. Once you be the strongest person in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, you can enter and find treasures with ease.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen was worried that something would happen to Long Chen. It would¡¯ve been a waste of talent if Long Chen died just like that. Since Long Chen had saved Huangfu Qi, Huangfu Fengchen treated him like family and gave the best advice he could.


    But Long Chen shook his head. ¡°Uncle Chen, I have a reason for going there. I¡¯m actually here in the Divine Martial Empire precisely because I need to enter the Ancient Graveyard. I won¡¯t regret it even if I die there.¡±


    ¡°Is that so ¡­¡± Huangfu Fengchen knew that Long Chen wouldn¡¯t give up when he saw thetter¡¯s eyes. He decided not to ask the reason why since it was important to Long Chen. ¡°In that case, I won¡¯t stop you. But you should know that Feng Xuan is here in the Divine Martial Empire to get the Ancient Token. You will have to fight her if you want it.¡±


    ¡°Uncle Chen, do you think that I won¡¯t fight her if she stays in the Divine Martial Empire? There¡¯s also Zhao Danchen. There will only be one winner amongst us.¡±


    He appeared to be boasting, but Huangfu Fengchen knew that Long Chen had the strength to back it up.


    Huangfu Fengchen didn¡¯t try to discourage him anymore but instead told him about the other nine empires.


    ¡°There are Ten Divine Empires in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The Divine Martial Empire is mostly weakened. The thousands of smaller kingdoms that were once governed by us were also mostly split amongst the other nine empires. The Nine Divine Empires are also the ninergest ns in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    ¡°Nine Great ns? Is the Wind n one of them?¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen nodded. ¡°Yes. The Nine Great ns control the Nine Divine Empires. The Heavenly Wind Empire is controlled by the Wind n. The Wind n is also stronger than the Martial Alliance.¡±


    ¡°Then what about the other eight?¡±


    ¡°In the middle ages, there were many cultivators at the Divine Martial Realm in the Ten Thousand Nation Territory. The current Nine Great ns are the descendants of some of those cultivators. The Five Element Alliance is an alliance between five of the ns. They are rumored to have five people at the Divine Martial Realm. They are also the descendants of the Five Emperors. The other four ns are also descendants of strong cultivators. The Nine Great ns have three different factions.¡±


    ¡°Three factions?¡± Long Chen was shocked, but then he understood why. There was bound to be conflict between the Nine Great ns.


    Huangfu Fengchen nodded. ¡°The three factions are mostly equal in power. The first is the Five Element Alliance. They are the direct descendants of the Five Emperors. They are naturally the Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth ns. Each of them is roughly as strong as the Wind n. The other two factions are the Divine Wind faction and Thunder Demon faction.¡±


    Long Chen realized that something was wrong. <em>Why were they split into three different factions when the first faction already has five of the ns? The Divine Wind faction should be the Wind n and Divine n, while the Thunder Demon faction should be the Thunder faction and Demon faction. If the Wind n is as strong as one of the ns from the Five Element Alliance, then doesn¡¯t that mean that either the Divine n or the Demon n is as strong as four nsbined?</em>


    Huangfu Fengchen sensed his confusion and answered, ¡°You are right. The strongest ns are the Divine n and the Demon n. Their strongest cultivators make them more powerful than the other seven empires. It could be said that the Divine n and the Demon n are the strongest forces in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. They are each allied with another n, the Wind and Thunder ns. The other five ns have to work together to fight against them. That was how the three factions formed.¡±


    ¡°Uncle Chen, could you tell me more about the Divine and Demon ns?¡± Long Chen was interested in the two strongest ns.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be too worried about them. They are humans just like us, the only difference is their bloodline. They have the Divine God Veins and Demon God Veins in them. They are stronger than the Heavenly Wind Veins or the Profound me Veins. I don¡¯t know where those two ns came from, but I know that they weren¡¯t that strong before. They were weaker than the Five Element Alliance a long time ago.¡±


    Long Chen thought the Nine Great ns were terrifying.


    He suddenly realized how difficult it would be for him to enter the Ancient Graveyard to find Ling Xi.


    The only resources he could use there were the Prismatic Key and the Scarlet Emperor Seal.


    <em>The Five Element Alliance, the Divine Wind faction, and the Thunder Demon faction. It would be terrifying to see all of them in the Ancient Graveyard, but I can worry about thatter. I must defeat Feng Xuan and Zhao Danchen first.</em>


    His strongest martial technique right now was the Deste Divine Seal, but he hadn''t mastered it yet, so he dared not challenge them now.


    Long Chen''s next goal would be the Five Emperor Seal.


    <em>The Five Emperors were the five strongest cultivators in the Divine Martial Empire in the past. They had aplished many miraculous feats and everyone worshiped them, especially those from the Five Element Alliance. All of them are proud of the fact that they are the descendants of the Five Emperors. The treasure hidden in the Ancient Graveyard was most likely hidden by the Five Emperors too.</em>


    Long Chen sorted out the information in his brain.


    <em>The Deste Divine Seal is the strongest technique amongst King-tier martial techniques, and the Five Emperor Seal is an Emperor-tier technique. Its strength must be even stronger than the Yellow Martial Seal. Zhao Danchen, get ready ¡­</em>


    Long Chen smiled when he thought about it.


    ¡°Uncle Chen, do you have any other ns now that Qi Qi is back? She¡¯s now at the Ninth Passage Stage due to the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s blood. If she stays here in the Lingering Wind City, I fear that I won¡¯t be able to protect all of you if Feng Xuan returns ¡­ ¡±

 Chapter 674: Zhao Danchen’s Transformation

    What Long Chen said was a possible problem.


    If Feng Xuan learned that Huangfu Qi was here, she would never let them live.


    Huangfu Fengchen fell into deep thought. Now that Huangfu Qi was safe, they had to think about the future. After Huangfu Fengchen lost all his strength, what he wanted most was a peaceful life. However, that did not seem possible with Huangfu Qi here.


    Long Chen said, ¡°Uncle Chen, I have a suggestion.¡±


    ¡°Tell me,¡± said Huangfu Fengchen.


    Long Chen said directly, ¡°Qi Qi has reached the Ninth Passage Stage. She has three Heavenly Wind Veins in her body, and after bathing in the Heavenly Phoenix¡¯s blood, you know how much potential she holds. She will reach the Earthly Martial Realm soon, and her cultivation will surely improve very quickly.¡±


    ¡°Then?¡± asked Huangfu Fengchen.


    ¡°The Huangfu n is your n. It must not fall into Feng Xuan¡¯s hands. It doesn¡¯t matter whether Feng Xuan gets the Ancient Token or not; she will leave eventually. If you can¡¯t bear to see the Huangfu n be a mess, you must return to recoup the family.¡±


    ¡°Me? I have lost my cultivation; I don¡¯t have the right to do that,¡± said Huangfu Fengchen with a bitter smile.¡°But Qi Qi can. It won¡¯t be long before she surpasses you. With the support from my brothers in the Dragon n, she will surely be able to be the head of the family when Feng Xuan and Zhao Danchen are out of the picture. Of course, you will be supporting her from the back,¡± said Long Chen.


    Huangfu Fengchen understood Long Chen¡¯s intentions.


    ¡°But how will we return to the n with Feng Xuan still here?¡±


    ¡°Leave that to me,¡± said Long Chen with great confidence in his eyes!


    ¡°Alright! What should we do now, then?¡± Huangfu Fengchen was also a very decisive person. He knew that for the sake of his daughter and his n, he could not stay in this ce for the rest of his life.


    ¡°I will return to the Battle n now to check on them. I have no choice but to bring you guys to prevent Zhao Danchen or Feng Xuan from holding you hostage. When the danger in the Divine Martial Empire is resolved, you guys can go wherever you want,¡± said Long Chen.


    He was doing this for their safety.


    The final battle wasing. Long Chen did not want more unnecessary problems to arise due to a small mistake.


    Huangfu Fengchen and his wife nced at each other. They were not idiots, so they nodded. They had no choice but to agree, for the sake of their daughter¡¯s safety.


    ¡°Yay! Father, Mother, Big Brother and I will finally be together!¡± After they came to an agreement, Huangfu Qi was the happiest of them all. She was so excited that she skipped around adorably.


    Soon after, Huangfu Fengchen packed up his things and was ready to go.


    ¡°Uncle Chen, I will take you guys to a secret space. This space is a secret of mine, so please do not tell anyone about it,¡± Long Chen said seriously.


    Huangfu Fengchen smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am sensible.¡±


    Long Chen trusted Huangfu Fengchen, so he said, ¡°Since you have already prepared your daily essentials, I¡¯ll ce you inside it. You¡¯ll spend a few days there, then I¡¯ll let you out once we¡¯re at the Battle n.¡±


    After chatting with Huangfu Fengchen for a while, Long Chen put him and his wife in the Primordial Realm. He manipted the mist in the Primordial Realm to put them in an independent space. The nourishing Primordial Qi inside was beneficial to Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s injuries.


    As for Huangfu Qi, she already knew that Long Chen had the Primordial Realm. She did not want to go in, but wanted Long Chen to carry her on his back.


    Since she was a tiny little girl, her weight would not affect Long Chen¡¯s speed.


    ¡°Long Chen, this is ¡­ an interesting ce.¡± Huangfu Fengchen was a knowledgeable man, so he could tell that this was a special ce and was privately shocked.


    He knew that this was a space simr to a Universe Pouch, but countless times superior.


    Finally, the Huangfu family¡¯s affairs were settled. As long as Long Chen could eliminate Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan, there would be nothing left for him to worry about in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Long Chen set out for the Northern Battle n.


    It had been more than twenty days since he left them. He did not know how they were doing now.


    After making sure that the three of them were fine, he embarked on his journey. When he stopped at the first city he saw, he searched for a Red Souls representative. When the representative saw Long Chen, he looked overjoyed as Long Chen had been missing for many days. The Red Souls headquarters had even sent out a message for all of them to start searching for him.


    They did not expect him toe to them first.


    ¡°Seventh Master, you¡¯re finally back! We¡¯ve all been searching hard for you!¡± said the middle-aged man in ck robes.


    Long Chen went directly into the topic and said, ¡°I had to do something that dyed my return. What¡¯s the situation with the Battle n now? I¡¯m going there immediately.¡±


    He was asking only for his assurance.


    After hearing Long Chen, the man frowned and said, ¡°After the Martial Overlord died, Zhao Danchen, who is now the new Martial Overlord, has be very arrogant. The Martial Alliance is closing in on us, and he is much more difficult to deal with than Zhao Wuji. Many of our brothers have been killed by them. I also heard that Zhao Danchen¡¯s cultivation has improved significantly, and he has mastered controlling the Ancient Demon Corpse even better. I hear he wants to lead the Martial Alliance¡¯s masters to destroy the Battle npletely. We even heard that he was going to invite Feng Xuan, who is in the Huangfu n, to fight alongside him because you made her suffer a huge loss. Feng Xuan went to the Battle n in search of you once and hurt a few people to vent her anger when she couldn¡¯t find you. In the end, she was chased away after old man Long Shan fought her with all his might.¡±


    ¡°Feng Xuan went to the Battle n and even hurt people?¡± Long Chen¡¯s brows were tightly furrowed.


    ¡°Many people were injured, but your siblings are still fine. They did not sacrifice themselves to stop Feng Xuan. However, Zhao Danchen wants to destroy the Dragon n. When he invites Feng Xuan, she will surely agree!¡± said the ck-robed man.


    ¡°When is Zhao Danchen preparing to attack?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°Likely in a few days. Martial Overlord City is closer to the Battle n than the Battle n is to here. Seventh Master, you should hurry there now. Maybe you can help them. If you lose, tens of thousands of Red Souls will have nowhere to go too,¡± said the ck-robed man, resigned.


    Long Chen made a brief calction. If Zhao Danchen was about to attack, then they had to hurry.


    Long Shan¡¯s severe injuries had notpletely healed, but he had faced several major blows already. If this continued, it would cause more problems.


    Based on his personality, it was indeed likely that Zhao Danchen was going to ask Feng Xuan to join him. First of all, Long Chen guessed that Zhao Danchen wanted the Five Emperor Seals more than the Ancient Token. He was not an idiot and knew his own strength well. Since going to the Ancient Graveyard was suicide, he might as well rule over the Divine Martial Empire for a few years and strengthen himself more before going there.


    Therefore, he and Feng Xuan did not have a conflict of interest. Both of them were cunning and evil, so they were suited to be allies.


    Of course, Feng Xuan would surely eye Zhao Danchen¡¯s Ancient Demon Corpse too. But the Ancient Demon Corpse was not weak, and Feng Xuan likely would not want to start any problems before getting the Ancient Token.


    Long Shan was originally a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, but he only had Third Earthly Martial Stagebat abilities at the moment. Despite that, he was their strongest fighter at the moment. Now that Zhao Danchen had gotten the Martial Overlord Rings and the Martial Overlord Seal, he would naturally remove a huge threat like Long Shan.


    With that thought, Long Chen immediately rushed to the Battle n.


    Mo Xiang was still digesting the demonic core, so Long Chen did not think he would wake up any time soon.


    The final battle was likely just around the corner.


    ***


    Ancestral Mausoleum, Battle n.


    Thest time Zhao Danchen hade here, he was still one of the three Martial Emperors and he only had several Martial Saints and around ten Martial Kings with him. Now pretty much the whole Martial Alliance hade here. They were standing around Zhao Danchen, and he was the highest-ranked person in the whole empire, the Martial Overlord!


    After the major battles, very few masters were left in the Martial Alliance. Only a few of the ten Martial Saints remained by his side. The only remaining Martial Emperor, Xiao Lin, waspletely loyal to Zhao Danchen, and he was currently managing daily affairs in Martial Overlord City.


    The remaining twenty-plus Martial Kings stood behind Zhao Danchen.


    Although the Martial Saints and Martial Kings were very weak to Zhao Danchen, they were not useless. After he killed the strongest members of the Dragon n, he would need his minions to destroy the rest of the Battle n and the Dragon n. It was inappropriate for someone of Zhao Danchen¡¯s status to execute such menial tasks, and he couldn¡¯t killrge numbers of people by himself. That was why the Martial Saints and Martial Kings¡¯ purpose was to kill the minor figures.


    This was Zhao Danchen¡¯s second time standing in front of the Ancestral Mausoleum, but he waspletely different from before.


    After bing the Martial Overlord, Zhao Danchen¡¯s aura had changedpletely. He wore long, golden robes, looking more extravagant than Zhao Wuji. There was fire in his eyes and a grin on his face, as if he waspletely confident in victory.


    He had learned briefly about Long Shan¡¯s abilities from Feng Xuan. The current Long Shan was no match for him.


    Feng Xuan was standing not far from Zhao Danchen.


    She was wearing the same getup as before. She wore a thin face veil and her clothes billowed in the wind, asionally revealing her beautiful curves. The Martial Alliance¡¯s Martial Saints and Martial Kings gulped as they ogled the curves of her ass.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, did you invite me here because of such weak trash?¡± Feng Xuan pointed at the Battle n with contempt.

 Chapter 675: Dragon Clan in Danger

    ¡°Lady Xuan, you don¡¯t need to do anything. I can deal with these pieces of trash on my own; I only invited you just in case. Thank you for giving me face today. I will perform well. If not, how will I win over a beautifuldy¡¯s heart?¡± said Zhao Danchen with a faint smile.


    His tant flirtation made Feng Xuan giggle.


    ¡°Alright, perform well, then. If you perform well, I may be yours tonight,¡± Lady Xuan said sweetly.


    Her feminine voice made the Martial Kings and Martial Saints behind Zhao Danchen gulp.


    <em>Fuck! I wouldn¡¯t dare bed a crazy bitch like you! Who knows if you¡¯ll throw me a punch while we¡¯re in bed? </em>Zhao Danchen cursed her in his heart.


    However, he knew that as long as thisdy remained in the Divine Martial Empire, he had no choice but to maintain a good rtionship with her. To a person like him, she was very strong. Even at his current level, he felt helpless in front of Feng Xuan.


    With Feng Xuan here, the members of the Dragon n were probably feeling hopeless before the battle even began.


    This was what Zhao Danchen smugly thought to himself.


    This was the effect he wanted to create.Standing opposite him were Long Shan, Long Yue, and the others. All of them had somber expressions as they faced therge army, along with the notorious Feng Xuan.


    Long Shan sighed, then he took a step forward.


    ¡°Grandfather!¡± Long Yue said in panic.¡°You were injured again during the previous battle with Feng Xuan. You can¡¯t do this now ¡­¡±


    Long Shan shook his head and said, ¡°If I don¡¯t do it, who will? Yue¡¯er, if you¡¯re willing to listen to me, take everyone and flee while we fight.¡±


    Long Yue was on the brink of tears as she cried, ¡°Grandfather, that bastard Zhao Danchen even called Feng Xuan over here. Isn¡¯t that exactly because he¡¯s afraid we¡¯ll run while you and him fight? If not, his Martial Saints and Martial Kings wouldn¡¯t be able to stop us. If we escape, everyone from the Martial Alliance will die off except him. But with Feng Xuan here, not a single one of us can run!¡±


    Everyone knew why Zhao Danchen had called Feng Xuan here.


    Even if Feng Xuan only stood there without doing anything, the pressure of her presence was enormous.


    There was another major reason why Zhao Danchen hade to the Battle n. He knew that the Yellow Emperor Seal, one of the Five Emperor Seals, was with the Battle n. He already had two, and now he wanted to take the Yellow Emperor Seal and destroy them at the same time.


    ¡°What else can I do, other than fight?¡± Long Shan said bitterly.


    Ever since he emerged from the Nine Spirit Purgatory, he thought he would be able to help his descendants. However, he never expected so many powerful masters to appear right after he arrived.


    First, it was the Ancient Demon Corpse, then Feng Xuan. Long Shan had not even recovered, but he had squeezed himself dry to fight two more battles. By this point, he was almost at the end of the road.


    ¡°Grandfather ¡­¡±


    ¡°Senior Long ¡­¡±


    Looking at the weathered old man, Long Yue, Lei Zhen, Jian Chen, and the others had bitter expressions too.


    ¡°Children, are you underestimating me?¡± Long Shan suddenly squeezed out a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not weak. Even if I die, I will be sure to kill Zhao Danchen. As long as Zhao Danchen dies, Feng Xuan will be toozy to trouble you. Even if she does, she is one person. If you run in separate directions, will she be able to find all of you?¡±


    What Long Shan said seemed to be their only chance.


    Feng Xuan and Zhao Danchen did not have much of a rtionship to start with. They merely did not have a conflict of interest, therefore leading to a temporary allyship.


    This meant that Long Shan was ready to fight for his life.


    To Zhao Danchen, as long as they defeated the old man, everything else would fall apart.


    ¡°Let¡¯s fight, then! Since we are going to die, then we shall fight to the end! It doesn¡¯t matter if we¡¯re the Dragon n or the Battle n; is there even a single coward among us?¡± roared the tall and muscr Lei Zhen with all his might.


    After they heard him, endless battle spirit was ignited within them.


    It did not matter if the enemy was strong. They would fight for their lives! Who was afraid of who now?


    Since they wanted to fight, they would fight!


    When Long Shan saw the battle spirit in their eyes, he smiled proudly.


    ¡°I was able to survive under those harsh conditions and managed to feel like a person again. I am already content enough with seeing all of them ¡­¡± muttered the old man. Then he looked at Zhao Danchen with killing intent in his eyes.


    <em>First, it was Chen Xiong, then Zhao Wuji, and now Zhao Danchen. Indeed, every Martial Overlord is fated to be a major enemy of the Long family. The Long ancestors have allowed me a chance to live again; it is because they wanted me to help our descendants clear the obstacles in their path!</em>


    With that thought, the old man¡¯s chest was filled with pride and emotion. Life was no longer the most important thing¡ªthe most important thing now was duty. Therefore, he strode proudly to the center. His thin body was like a steelnce standing straight between heaven and earth. The intimidating aura and fierce re startled many of the Martial Kings and Martial Saints of the Martial Alliance. At this moment, Long Shan was shining very brightly, as if he was a war god who had descended to the mortal realm!


    At this moment, it was as if he had be younger by decades, returning to his prime days!


    Time did not forgive anyone. Everyone was once young.


    But why did this old man look so terrifying?


    Even Zhao Danchen squinted.


    ¡°Hmph! It doesn¡¯t matter how you act. You¡¯re still going to be beaten up by my Ancient Demon Corpse until no trace of you remains!¡± Zhao Danchen snickered, then he took two steps forward, breaking free from the crowd to stand proudly in front of Long Shan.


    One young and arrogant, one old and fierce. Who would get thestugh?


    Zhao Danchenughed again and waved the Ancient Demon g. The ground shook immediately, and the Ancient Demon Corpse, which had shrunk down to the size of a normal human, crawled out of the ground. It stood next to Zhao Danchen with a hunched back. Its pitch-ck skin was rough like crocodile skin and was full of pockmarks. It radiated killing intent as well as a pungent, rotting stench.


    The people on the Dragon n¡¯s side were privately startled by its menacing look. It was clear that Zhao Danchen hadpletely mastered controlling the Ancient Demon Corpse. No one had expected the most valuable treasure of the Ancient Demon Domain to end up in his hands, bing his most powerful trump card!


    Zhao Danchen twisted the Martial Overlord Ring on his thumb and smiled. ¡°Ancient Demon, help me tten the Battle n today!¡±


    As he spoke, he waved the Ancient Demon g, and a flow of mysterious energy flowed into the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s body. Its eyes turned blood-red and it instantly pounced at Long Shan like a wild beast, turning into a shadow!


    Long Shan was in terrible physical condition. After three heavy blows, his body was on the brink of breaking down. However, he would fight till the end, as he had to protect his descendants. That was why the old man not only refused to back down, his killing intent rose to its peak!


    Looking at the fast-approaching Ancient Demon Corpse, Long Shan¡¯s gaze darkened. He activated all the strength in his body to leap toward it!


    When the Ancient Demon Corpse attacked, it did not attempt to dodge or defend itself at all. All it knew was to attack. Long Shan was locked in a vigorous battle, fighting in a simr style. He had put all thoughts of death out of his mind. The only thing on his mind was to kill Zhao Danchen!


    As long as Zhao Danchen was dead, everything would be solved!


    Even a frail camel wasrger than a horse. Although Long Shan did not have as much essence as he used to, he still had theprehension of a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage master. When he fought the Ancient Demon Corpse, although he did not have enough strength, his techniques far surpassed the Ancient Demon Corpse. The demon and human were tightly engaged in the battle, and when one of their attacks hit the ground, it was enough to shake the hills!


    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Five Piercing Dragons!¡± Five dragon projections baring their teeth twisted around the Ancient Demon Corpse, leaving five blood-red shes on its body. However, it did not bleed, and only dark-red flesh was exposed from the wounds. The flesh wriggled quickly and started regrouping. Soon, it would healpletely.


    Wounds like that did not affect the Ancient Demon Corpse at all. Instead, it took this opportunity to swing its w at Long Shan¡¯s head, as if it did not care for its own life! It excelled in physical strength, so this was a fast and terrifying strike. If Long Shan was hit, his whole head would fly off!


    ¡°Haargh!¡± At this critical moment, Long Shan guided his essence to both his arms to block the strike!


    <em>m! </em>The collision sent him flying to the left. The strike had left his arms feeling numb, almost losing all sensation. However, to everyone¡¯s shock, he did not stop even for a second. In the next moment, he roared again and charged at the Ancient Demon Corpse!


    ¡°This old man doesn¡¯t fear death at all!¡± The corners of Zhao Danchen¡¯s mouth curled up into a cold sneer. He slowly waved the Ancient Demon g, using it to control the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s powerful attacks. He did not care at all when Long Shan¡¯s attack struck the Ancient Demon Corpse!


    Everyone was on edge of their seats, watching the two masters battle it out.


    ¡°Eldest Sister, Senior Long doesn¡¯t look like he can hold on much longer. What should we do?¡± Lei Zhen, the Battle n¡¯s leader, asked Long Yue resignedly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. We¡¯re in a very precarious situation. Our enemies are powerful; my grandfather is the only one who can hold them off. If only Seventh Brother was here, we might have stood a chance ¡­¡±

 Chapter 676: Ancient Demon Blood Killing

    ¡°Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Nine Heavens Strike!¡±


    The ground shook as Long Shan unleashed a roar, sounding like a furious dragon that shook the heavens and earth. He charged menacingly at the Ancient Demon Corpse,unching his most powerful attack!


    Nine dragons shot out of his hand! Long Shan¡¯s Nine Heavens Strike was much more powerful than Long Chen¡¯s. The crowd sensed a huge pressure acting on them, and some even struggled to open their eyes!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Nine dragons arrived right in front of the Ancient Demon Corpse!


    ¡°Do you think the Ancient Demon Corpse doesn¡¯t know anybat techniques?¡± Zhao Danchen smirked. He then held the Ancient Demon g to his chest, and his essence flowed into it. A whirlpool formed and the blood-colored demonic runes on the g lit up!


    Blood-colored light spread from the Ancient Demon g to the Ancient Demon Corpse. Suddenly, the Ancient Demon Corpse let out a long roar at the heavens! Blood-red runes appeared on its body soon after!


    ¡°Ancient Demon Blood Killing!¡± Zhao Danchen uttered each word slowly.


    In the face of the approaching Nine Heavens Strike, the Ancient Demon Corpse suddenly threw a furious punch. When it punched, the blood-red runes on its body rushed to gather on its fist, then they shot out along with the punch and merged form a blood-red projection of a demon¡¯s head!The nine dragons and the blood-red Ancient Demon Blood Killing collided violently. Dragon roars and demonic roars shook the whole Battle n!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The first wave of the Nine Heavens Strike, which was the first dragon, collided with the Ancient Demon Blood Killing!


    There was a loud explosion, and the first wave of the Nine Heavens Strike was shattered to pieces. The forward-flying momentum of the Ancient Demon Blood Killing diminished slightly!


    But something surprising happened!


    Long Shan let out theugh of a madman. After the first wave shattered, to everyone¡¯s surprise, the Nine Heavens Strike deviated from its original path. Under Long Shan¡¯s control, it flew towards Zhao Danchen!


    This was the strongest attack of a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, so how could it be simple?


    The remaining eight dragons flew towards Zhao Danchen!


    Long Shan had left the Ancient Demon Corpse far behind him!


    At this critical moment, no one expected Long Shan to risk his life like that. His target was not the Ancient Demon Corpse, but Zhao Danchen!


    The smug grinning Zhao Danchen was taken by surprise!


    Long Shan had fought the Ancient Demon Corpse until now in order to attract everyone¡¯s attention, so everyone would forget that he could attack Zhao Danchen too.


    Although Zhao Danchen had used the Myriad Earth Essence to regrow the arm that Long Chen ripped off, he was only at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. How could he withstand the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage Long Shan¡¯s full-power attack?


    The Martial Saints and Martial Kings of the Martial Alliance were shocked. Zhao Wuji had just died. If Zhao Danchen also died, then the Martial Alliance would be done for.


    On the Dragon n¡¯s side, everyone looked ecstatic. The oldest gingers were indeed the spiciest! Long Shan¡¯s move indeed could resolve their current problem. As long as Long Shan seeded, today¡¯s matters would be resolved.


    Ever since they offended Zhao Danchen in front of the Ancient Demon Domain, everyone knew that this dangerous situation woulde eventually. Today was it.


    The crazed Long Shan used up thest bit of essence in his body, bent on killing the young man!


    He was confident he could!


    He saw a clear sh of panic in Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes!


    <em>I must take this opportunity ¡­ </em>If he could kill Zhao Danchen, Long Shan would die without regret.


    Then the panic in Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes disappearedpletely and was reced with a cold smirk. He moved his lips gently to utter a few more words.


    What he said was earth-shattering news to Long Shan.


    He said, ¡°You underestimated me, idiot!¡±


    Thick, powerful essence erupted from Zhao Danchen¡¯s body! The strength of his aura surpassed that of a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator! Golden energy covered his body, making him golden and sparkling all over like a god that had just descended from the heavens!


    The Nine Heavens Strike arrived in front of Zhao Danchen!


    Just when everyone thought he was going to die, Zhao Danchen erupted with power that he had never shown before. He held his two golden palms together and made a seal. Then a gigantic ¡°martial(Îä)¡± character appeared in front of him. Under his control, the explosive energy shot right at Long Shan!


    The Yellow Martial Seal was not much different from when the previous Martial Overlord used it!


    The crowd cried out in surprise!


    ¡°He has reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage! Zhao Danchen now fully has the right to be the new Martial Overlord!¡±


    ¡°From today onwards, we willpletely submit and bow at his feet!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s so young, yet he¡¯s already at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage! Zhao Danchen holds much more potential than Zhao Wuji! If this continues, the Divine Martial Empire can regain its former glory!¡±


    With that thought, every Martial Alliance member grew emotional.


    But this was an absolute nightmare to the Dragon n.


    They initially thought Long Shan could kill Zhao Danchen. But now Zhao Danchen¡¯s strength surpassed Long Shan¡¯s, so how could he kill Zhao Danchen?


    Despair filled their hearts.


    This was a tragedy for Long Shan. Despite his meticulous n, he had not predicted that Zhao Danchen would have advanced to the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Long Shan had looked down on Zhao Danchen all this time because thetter was no match for Long Chen, who was a true prodigy in Long Shan¡¯s eyes. However, it now looked like Zhao Danchen had managed to emerge from Zhao Wuji¡¯s shadow and made a breakthrough, bing one of the elites!


    Both the Yellow Martial Seal and the Nine Heavens Strike were weakened from the collision. However, although Zhao Danchen had only released his technique at the veryst second, it was enough to withstand Long Shan¡¯s attack. The strength of the Yellow Martial Seal forced Long Shan back!


    The Ancient Demon Corpse roared and returned to Zhao Danchen furiously!


    The Nine Heavens Strike had exhausted thest of Long Shan¡¯s essence. He could not squeeze his body anymore, or he would die instantly.


    The momentum from the collision forced Long Shan back for a long distance before he finally stabilized. The collision had left his internal organs bleeding, and he could no longer control the trickle of blood flowing from the corner of his mouth. He already looked old, but now he looked even older.


    Zhao Danchen let out a maniacalugh.


    Everyone could see that Long Shan could not hold on any longer. Any random Martial Saint, let alone Zhao Danchen, could kill Long Shan now!


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect the great elder of the Long family to be so weak! How could the Long family be a match for the lineage of the Martial Overlord? From today onwards, as long as the Martial Overlord exists, the Long family will never have a chance to shine!¡± Zhao Danchen pointed at the Long family members mockingly.


    As he looked down at them, even Long Yue had to admit that they were helpless in front of Zhao Danchen in his current state.


    He was strong enough to suppress thempletely!


    Zhao Danchen was very smug when he saw the looks of despair on their faces. However, he still had one regret.


    That loss he had suffered in front of the Ancient Demon Domain!


    That was the only tragic loss he had experienced in his life! Although that loss had led to his current achievement, it did not mean that he had forgotten that humiliation!


    If he did not take revenge, he would hold this grudge his whole life! While people worshiped how powerful he was, they would also think of this smudge in his life!


    Now Zhao Danchen was far stronger!


    He had the Martial Overlord Rings, the Martial Overlord Seal, and the Ancient Demon Corpse¡ªeach of those tools alone was enough to kill Long Chen instantly. But where was Long Chen?


    His gaze swept across the whole crowd while the Ancient Demon Corpse rushed towards Long Shan to restrict him. As long as Zhao Danchenmanded, it would kill Long Shan immediately!


    Long Shan felt helpless looking at the Ancient Demon Corpse. He had no more essence left in him and his blood vessels and internal organs were damaged. The fact that he could still hold on and remain standing showed how determined he was.


    Everyone thought Zhao Danchen would kill Long Shan immediately!


    Long Yue and the rest could not wait any longer. It was time for the final battle for their lives.


    However, Zhao Danchen was not in a hurry to fight. He looked around and asked, ¡°What? Is that coward Long Chen still not going to appear?!¡±


    His furious roar shook the whole Battle n!


    Long Chen!


    That was Zhao Danchen¡¯s main objective foring here.


    He was also Feng Xuan¡¯s main objective for showing up today. She had to find Long Chen and Huangfu Qi. Getting the Heavenly Wind Veins was the second most important thing she wanted to do in the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°Long Chen, if you do note out, a river of blood will flow! Millions of corpses will pile up!¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s furious roar shook the whole Battle n once more!


    But silence was all that greeted him.

 Chapter 677: Return of the King

    ¡°In that case, I¡¯m going to start. From the oldest to the youngest! Long Shan is first!¡± There was a sh of violence in Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes. He had always fulfilled his promises. After he spoke, he controlled the Ancient Demon Corpse to charge at Long Shan!


    The Ancient Demon Corpse held out its gigantic palm, ready to swipe at Long Shan¡¯s head. It was extremely powerful, so one p was enough to break Long Shan¡¯s head!


    However, even the current most powerful member of the Long family, Long Yue, could not block this hit!


    The might of their enemy made them feel utterly helpless!


    ¡°Grandfather!¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s viciousness terrified the Dragon n. Long Yue and the others shouted and quickly rushed in the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s direction. Then the whole ce descended into chaos. When Zhao Danchen saw this, he smirked while all the Martial Saints and Martial Kings behind him clenched their fists. The time for them to make a contribution to the Martial Alliance and Zhao Danchen hade.


    Not only Long Shan, but everyone not on the Martial Alliance¡¯s side had to die today!


    ¡°Long Chen, I want to see whether you¡¯ll show up after I¡¯ve killed everyone here!¡±


    Zhao Danchen roared withughter.


    The other Long Chen, who was once known as the other prodigy on the same level as Zhao Danchen, was now far weaker than him. He knew that the Long Chen Zhao Danchen had mentioned was not him. At this moment, Long Yue and Long Chen attacked first. Their grandfather was in mortal danger, so they could not sit and watch even though death was certain!


    But so what? They were just increasing the number of casualties here.


    The Martial Alliance had the advantage in this chaotic battle, as they had Zhao Danchen and the Ancient Demon Corpse, who were the absolute masters here. Next to him, he had Feng Xuan. No matter what, the Dragon n stood no chance.


    Despair was written all over every face. They knew there was no other way, and death was the only escape. This triggered the survival instincts in all of them. Despite the disadvantage, they dared to attack the Martial Alliance. This proved that they did not fear death at all!


    If they died, they had to make the enemy pay for it!


    Long Shan was in the most danger out of all of them. The Ancient Demon Corpse was about to kill him, but hecked essence, so he could not fight back!


    Resignation! All he felt was resignation!


    When he left the Nine Spirit Purgatory, he initially thought he could help his descendants do something. He never expected to end up in such a hopeless situation!


    Since he could not fight back, Long Shan closed his eyes and waited for death to arrive.


    When Long Yue and the others saw this, their eyes widened with terror!


    Just then, a sudden roar erupted! ¡°Stop it, Zhao Danchen!¡±


    Everyone present felt dizzy from the deafening roar, which boomed in their ears. They even started to lose their hearing!


    The voice started from far away, but by the end of the sentence, its owner seemed to be very close!


    Zhao Danchen was startled and quickly looked to the south!


    He was all too familiar with that voice, because it belonged to Long Chen!


    It was indeed Long Chen! A young man rushed out of the dense forest and threw a weapon, which flew like an arrow at the Ancient Demon Corpse and pierced its arm!


    Although it could not cause much damage, Long Chen¡¯s attack made its arm deviate from its initial arc, brushing past Long Shan so it did not hurt him.


    Long Chen had managed to save Long Shan at thest possible moment through precise control of his strength. He ran extremely quickly, and Zhao Danchen stopped controlling the Ancient Demon Corpse. That was why Long Chen had enough time to reach Long Shan and save him!


    Long Shan was on the brink of death.


    ¡°Everyone, back off!¡± Long Chen yelled at the crowd, who were ready to fight for their lives. The distance between the Martial Alliance and the Dragon n slowly increased due to Long Chen¡¯s control.


    The Martial Alliance members had been rubbing their fists and palms in preparation for war. However, Long Chen¡¯s appearance had interrupted the fire that burned in them, leaving them frustrated. Some of them had not even seen Long Chen before, so they did not recognize him!


    The only people who were ring venomously at Long Chen were Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan!


    Zhao Danchen was overwhelmed by emotion when he saw his nemesis, even forgetting to kill Long Shan. To him, Long Shan was merely old trash, but Long Chen represented the greatest humiliation of his life. When Long Chen showed up, he was the only one in Zhao Danchen¡®s eyes!


    Although Long Chen had saved Long Shan, Zhao Danchen did not react. His eyes were fixed on Long Chen, and violence brewed in them.


    Feng Xuan also took a few steps forward, eyeing Long Chen up and down.


    The other people of the Martial Alliance did not dare attack, as Zhao Danchen had not given themand.


    Long Chen had the Dragon n and the rest stand behind him. Ever since he heard the news that the Martial Alliance was going to attack the Battle n, he rushed here as fast as he could. It had actually happened, and fortunately, he had arrived just in time. If not, this would have descended into a terrible tragedy.


    If he was a dayte, a river of blood would be flowing.


    Then it would¡¯ve been toote to even feel remorse.


    When the crowd saw that it was Long Chen, they were filled withplex emotions. They were happy that the missing Long Chen returned safely, but he was back at the wrong time.


    The usually calm Long Yue lost her cool and yelled in panic, ¡°Seventh Brother, why did youe back now?! We¡¯re all going to die here today! If you had continued getting stronger, you could have avenged us some other time! Now we¡¯re all going to die here ¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Seventh Brother! Why did youe now?! You have huge potential, and you could have avenged us! Now that you¡¯re here, we¡¯re all just going to die.¡± All his other older siblings looked at him with pity.


    They initially had one ray of hope because Long Chen was still alive, and he would surely make Zhao Danchen suffer in the future. However, he was back now. With the hatred Zhao Danchen felt towards him, would he let Long Chen live?


    Of course not!


    It would¡¯ve been fine if Long Chen hadn¡¯t returned. They would¡¯ve fought as hard as they could, then died if it came to that. But now that Long Chen was back, they were even sadder. Theirst hope was gone. Looking at their young Seventh Brother, their hearts were filled with bitterness.


    ¡°They are just too strong. Even Zhao Danchen has reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. I¡¯m afraid we¡¯re all going to die here today,¡± said Long Shan, shaking his head. His injuries were worsening. Even with medicine, he probably wouldn¡¯t be able to live long.


    Everyone surrounded Long Chen andmented pitifully.


    Long Chen furrowed his brows, not listening to them. He looked at Zhao Danchen. Indeed, he was different from before.


    When Long Chen had reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage, Zhao Danchen had advanced to the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, so he was one level above Long Chen!


    With his other supporting factors, it was no wonder they were saying that everyone was going to die.


    Long Chen did not think they were cowards; it was normal to feel these things in front of absolute power. They were not afraid of death, but they wanted to make the Martial Alliance pay.


    Long Chen¡¯s return had dampened the Dragon n¡¯s spirit greatly.


    These people hoped Long Chen would avenge them one day, but now he was going to die with them ¡­


    Indeed, after Long Chen appeared, Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan¡¯s attention werepletely attracted to him.


    ¡°Long Chen, get over here. I lost to you in front of the Ancient Demon Domain. This time, I want to show you what a true prodigy is!¡± Zhao Danchen said coldly, pointing at Long Chen mockingly.


    ¡°You think you can redeem yourself?¡± Long Chenughed and turned to walk towards Zhao Danchen confidently, which surprised everyone, especially the Dragon n. Long Yue quickly pulled him back and said anxiously, ¡°Seventh Brother, we¡¯ll cover for you. You have great potential. Escape now and return to take revenge for us in the future, alright?¡±


    Everyone agreed with this idea.


    Long Chen smiled bitterly and shook his head. ¡°You want me to run from battle and abandon my siblings? Don¡¯t you already know that that¡¯s not my style? Do you want me to be an untrustworthy coward?¡±


    ¡°No, Seventh Brother. Don¡¯t think that way. It is enough for us to die here. You¡¯re most suited to take revenge for us. I also believe that you will be the Martial Alliance¡¯s nightmare!¡± Everyone chipped in.


    After Long Chen heard them, he fell silent for a while, then he gave a small smile. He gently pushed away Long Yue¡¯s hands and said, ¡°The people who once lost to me have never been able to redeem themselves, because I am advancing at a speed that far surpasses them.¡±


    Then he turned towards Zhao Danchen, leaving Long Yue and the rest behind, stunned. After a long time, she said weakly, ¡°Seventh Brother is still so stubborn. How could we ever convince him?¡±


    No one could do a thing.


    ¡°Perhaps we can believe in him. He has always done the impossible anyway,¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er. She and Long Chen were close in age and had a great rtionship, so she knew him better.


    All they could do was nod and watch.


    Long Chen faced therge Martial Alliance army alone and without fear. In fact, there was still a carefree smile on the corner of his mouth. His gaze swept across the group, then it finally fell on Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan.

 Chapter 678: Ghost Venom Ants

    Zhao Danchen sneered. He was about to attack when Feng Xuan gently pulled him back and said, ¡°I want to ask for some information first.¡±


    Zhao Danchen knew what she was going to ask, so he nodded.


    Feng Xuan asked with her nose in the air, ¡°Brat, before you die ¡­ Tell me, where did you hide that girl Huangfu Qi?¡±


    Long Chenughed and said, ¡°What kind of question is that? I rescued her from you, so why would I tell you where I hid her? Do you think I¡¯m an idiot? Or do you just have big breasts but no brains?¡±


    Feng Xuan was so furious, her eyes reddened.


    She could not believe that Long Chen would insult her under such circumstances!


    He was about to die. Where did his confidencee from?


    Feng Xuan held back her rage. For the sake of Huangfu Qi, she could hold it back one time, so she said calmly, ¡°Let¡¯s make a trade. I, Feng Xuan, can keep a promise. If you can hand Huangfu Qi over to me, I¡¯ll keep you alive today!¡±


    The Martial Alliance members were annoyed by her offer, especially Zhao Danchen, who red at her coldly. His re was as sharp as a sword, but it did not frighten Feng Xuan. She was a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage master after all!She had the right to say this, and she did not need to give Zhao Danchen face!


    Zhao Danchen did not attack Feng Xuan, because he knew Long Chen well!


    Long Chen was even more arrogant than he was, so he would never ept the offer.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°I can ept that offer, but I have a condition. As long as you fulfill this condition, I will give you Huangfu Qi.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± asked Feng Xuan.


    ¡°Kill Zhao Danchen and give the Ancient Demon Corpse to me, then I will give you Huangfu Qi. What do you think?¡± Long Chen grinned.


    The crowd was stunned by his boldness. The Dragon n looked at him nervously. The fact that he dared say such a thing to cause a rift between two masters showed that he had extraordinary mental fortitude.


    To be honest, if Long Chen was telling the truth, Feng Xuan would really consider it. However, he was clearly a cunning person. Even if she killed Zhao Danchen, it wasn¡¯t certain that he would give her anything.


    Of course, Feng Xuan was right. Even if she killed Zhao Danchen, he would not hand Huangfu Qi over to her.


    She knew him, so she did not want to take the risk.


    Zhao Danchen eyed Feng Xuan cautiously. Long Chen was just too cunning. He was worried that Feng Xuan would attack him under Long Chen¡¯s persuasion.


    Thankfully, she did not fall for it. Her thin brows, which were shaped like willow leaves, were slightly furrowed when she said, ¡°It looks like you have no intention to make a trade. Think about it. If you refuse, not just you, but the whole Battle n and Dragon n will die. Not a single person will survive, and a river of blood will flow. Don¡¯t force me.¡±


    Feng Xuan now pressured Long Chen as well as all the people behind him.


    However, no member of the Dragon n would ever betray a friend for their own benefit!


    Long Chen felt that he was lucky to have made these friends. He had no regrets!


    All eyes were on him. They wanted to know what his decision was.


    He did not hesitate for a moment. He pointed at Zhao Danchen, the Ancient Demon Corpse, and Feng Xuan and said mildly, ¡°Will the three of youe together, one by one, or are you guys going to pair up and take turns?¡±


    In the beginning, they did not understand him. But when they did, their jaws dropped.


    Come together, one by one, or pair up and take turns?


    Everyone was speechless. Zhao Danchen, the Ancient Demon Corpse, and Feng Xuan could each kill Long Chen with ease. Was he saying such arrogant things only to gain the favor of the crowd?


    In the end, this was nothing but a joke.


    The Martial Alliance membersughed.


    Only Zhao Danchen did not.


    After Feng Xuan¡¯s brief dy, Zhao Danchen could no longer wait to fight this enemy from the past. The loss in front of the Ancient Demon Domain and having his arm ripped off was the most humiliating thing he had ever experienced!


    He could not wait even a moment longer when his enemy was just in front of him!


    He would only rest when he killed Long Chen personally and ripped every part of his body out!


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡± Zhao Danchen roared and strode over with heavy steps. There was a <em>boom </em>with each heavy footstep!


    He did not even want to control the Ancient Demon Corpse. He only wanted to kill Long Chen personally!


    The Dragon n did not want Long Chen to face the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage Zhao Danchen, but he was stubborn, and they could not do anything. They had to leave it up to fate and hope a miracle would happen!


    Golden energy flowed on Zhao Danchen¡¯s skin, making him look like a golden war god standing in front of Long Chen. Long Chen looked very in, but he stood his ground despite Zhao Danchen¡¯s threats. His expression did not even change.


    ¡°Just you?¡± Long Chen chuckled, not taking Zhao Danchen seriously.


    ¡°Do you think witty insults are useful here, Long Chen?¡± Zhao Danchen asked coldly.


    ¡°No, they aren¡¯t. So let¡¯s hurry up and get this over with.¡± After Long Chen spoke, he began his Dragon Soul Transformation. This battle was inevitable. He wanted Zhao Danchen to know that Long Chen was a peak that Zhao Danchen would never conquer.


    Long Chen¡¯s awesome Dragon Soul Transformation looked even more terrifying than Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body.


    On the Dragon n¡¯s side, Long Yue, Jiang Wuya, Lei Zhen, and the others started discussing.


    ¡°Eldest Sister, do you think Seventh Brother can beat Zhao Danchen?¡± Jiang Wuya asked solemnly.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen has reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Let¡¯s hope Seventh Brother can hold on for a while. I think the news from Martial Overlord City will reach here soon.¡±


    ¡°Out of the few of us, Fifth Brother Chi Ying is the fastest, so he was the one who executed that task. I think he seeded since Zhao Danchen and the others left Martial Overlord City a few days ago. The moment the news arrives, Zhao Danchen will surely hurry back to Martial Overlord City!¡±


    ¡°Tens of thousands of Ghost Venom Ants, my most valuable asset. My master left them to me years ago. Letting them lose in Martial Overlord city will likely cause huge chaos, but it will also kill and hurt many ordinary people ¡­¡± Lan Ling¡¯er said sadly.


    ¡°They released the Ghost Venom Ants in the army camp where tens of thousands of Martial Alliance Enforcers are. This won¡¯t affect ordinary people much. Sixth Sister, don¡¯t me yourself. We had no choice but to use that method to distract them, in order for us to survive this ordeal. The Ghost Venom Ants are difficult to deal with, and Zhao Danchen has brought all his strongest people here. Let¡¯s hope he rushes back once he hears about it. He has only just be the Martial Overlord; he wouldn¡¯t want to lose all his subordinates! Without the Enforcers, how will the Martial Alliance control the Divine Martial Empire?¡±


    They knew that Zhao Danchen would attack the Battle n, so they hadunched a n, which involved releasing the demonic insects that Lan Ling¡¯er kept, the Ghost Venom Ants, into the Enforcers¡¯ camp. Since they wanted to congratte Zhao Danchen on bing the new Martial Overlord, many Head Enforcers from across the Divine Martial Empire had gathered in the city. If Zhao Danchen did not return to save them, they would all die as Xiao Lin could not deal with so many ants on his own.


    Although the Ghost Venom Ants were useless against stronger masters, they were a nightmare to the lower-level Enforcers, who were around the Seventh Passage Stage!


    Lan Ling¡¯er did not usually show them off, so Long Chen did not know about them. But the other Dragon n members did.


    Their only hope was for Long Chen to hold on a little longer until Zhao Danchen received news and rushed back to Martial Overlord City!


    After Long Chen used the Dragon Soul Transformation, Zhao Danchen could no longer hold himself back, so he attacked.


    Long Chen radiated an immense aura. Zhao Danchen wondered if Long Chen had improved.


    <em>That¡¯s impossible. He only just reached the Second Earthly Martial Stage. </em>Zhao Danchen smirked to himself, then the golden energy flowed through his whole body. He started radiating pure heat, turning him into a sun!


    He had just reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Although he was just a little weaker than the previous Martial Overlord, he had no doubts about defeating Long Chen!


    It was time to wash away the humiliation from their previous battle!


    Not only did he want to break Long Chen¡¯s arm off, he also wanted to make him wish he was dead!


    This was the most violent revenge!


    There was a glint of bloodlust in his eyes.


    Zhao Danchen chuckled coldly and suddenly turned into a golden arrow, flying straight at Long Chen!


    His fist tore through space, creating a deafening sound of friction. His golden fist contained great strength, and it had arrived in front of Long Chen!


    Zhao Danchen was at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage; adding the power provided by his Golden Combat Body, just a simple move was powerful beyond belief!


    He was like an unstoppable tidal wave!


    But Long Chen was like a sturdy rock by the beach that stood unmoving despite the wind. When Zhao Danchen charged, Long Chen stood his ground and closed his eyes, slowly swinging his fist. This punch contained all hisprehension of the Earthly Martial Realm, and although it looked slow, it met Zhao Danchen¡¯s fist!


    The golden fist and the red fist collided!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a burst of red and golden light, which then faded.


    Long Chen and Zhao Danchen took a few steps back.


    This was apetition of pure power, but the results were out of everyone¡¯s expectations.


    Zhao Danchen had the Golden Combat Body and was at the fourth Earthly Martial Stage. How had Long Chen managed to withstand Zhao Danchen¡¯s tsunami-like punch?!

 Chapter 679: Beating Zhao Danchen Back

    The first exchange of strikes did not result in a one-sided victory as the crowd expected, which shook them. This was purely apetition of strength. Normal people could not see the true meaning of this. They thought that Long Chen had only managed to block Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack because Zhao Danchen had given him a chance.


    Only the people with truly deep cultivation experience like Feng Xuan and Long Shan could see that Zhao Danchen had actually used all his strength in that punch just now. And despite that, he had failed to defeat Long Chen. In fact, Zhao Danchen had spent arge amount of power, while Long Chen was carefree.


    Everyone was still on edge.


    <em>That brat has gotten this much stronger?</em> Behind Zhao Danchen, Feng Xuan was shocked beneath her veil. The increase in Zhao Danchen¡¯s strength had already made her ufortable, but Long Chen was also much stronger than before.


    <em>Although he hasn¡¯t reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage like Zhao Danchen, Long Chen¡¯sprehension of the Martial Realm is clearly more stable. That punch just now revealed everything ¡­</em>


    Previously, Feng Xuan only took Long Chen as a cunning teenager who also had a strange warp technique. However, she did not expect him to be this strong in battle!


    This was the first time she took Long Chen seriously.


    Zhao Danchen and Long Chen shed once more.


    The first time, everyone thought Zhao Danchen had held back and was just testing Long Chen¡¯s strength. The next strike would surely be his true attack.But they were wrong.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s gaze had gone from smug and full of contempt into shocked and confused after the first exchange. Long Chen was as strong as he was. Unless ¡­


    ¡°Did your cultivation level increase?¡± Zhao Danchen asked in a low voice.


    ¡°What do you think?¡± Long Chen asked mildly. Then he gave him a bellicose look and continued, ¡°As I said before, the people who have lost to me will always be beneath me!¡±


    ¡°Impossible!¡± roared Zhao Danchen!


    Ever since Zhao Danchen achieved histest breakthrough, what he yearned the most was to defeat Long Chen to cleanse the humiliation! Now the opportunity was right in front of him. He refused to believe that he still wasn¡¯t a match for Long Chen despite bing stronger! Someone with Long Chen¡¯s background did not have a right to be Zhao Danchen¡¯s archnemesis!


    After the roar, Zhao Danchen¡¯s fist burned with golden light!


    ¡°Golden Divine Punch!¡± Once again, this attack concentrated all of Zhao Danchen¡¯s strength. There was a sh of golden light, and the powerful fist flew at Long Chen with mountain-ttening force. It was as if a golden mountain was flying at him!


    This time, Zhao Danchen attacked first again!


    The strength of a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator erupted. This punch was much more powerful than the previous one!


    The gap between the two cultivators¡¯ abilities would be revealed very soon.


    To the crowd¡¯s surprise, Long Chen remained calm. He did not look panicked as they imagined he would. He watched Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack with a dark expression, and his eyes were filled with calm!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The air exploded as the Golden Divine Punch flew forward!


    Zhao Danchen was capable of unleashing countless times more power than in their previous encounter. He had directly neutralized Long Chen¡¯s Soul Dispersing Dragon w with this very same punch back then!


    This time, Long Chen used the same trick, the Five Piercing Dragons of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. Five blood-red dragons roared furiously and tore at Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Divine Punch! The fist and ws collided, leading to a deafening boom!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s w seal held terrifying power, which shed Zhao Danchen¡¯s fist. Despite having the Golden Combat Body, several shes appeared on the back of Zhao Danchen¡¯s hand. Long Chen was also thrown back in the air by the violent energy of the punch!


    The Martial Alliance members cried out in surprise when they saw Long Chen sail through the air.


    But at the next moment, they were stunned once more because they saw Long Chen use a strange technique. He shook in the air like a willow seed, easily avoiding the force from Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack so that it struck nothing.


    Everyone could see the gashes on the back of Zhao Danchen¡¯s hand. The wounds were bleeding too, but due to his Golden Combat Body¡¯s healing capabilities, they healed at a speed visible to the naked eye. They would likely bepletely healed soon.


    His natural-born Golden Combat Body was amazing.


    The crowd fellpletely silent after the exchange.


    They initially thought Zhao Danchen would defeat Long Chen with ease, but that was not the case. Zhao Danchen had reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, but not only had he not squashed Long Chen, but Long Chen had actually dealt more in battle!


    When had Long Chen be so powerful?


    No one could believe it.


    Long Chen was rising too quickly, surprising them all over and over. They wondered if his cultivation level had increased again.


    If he was still at his previous level, he would never be a match for Zhao Danchen. However, he seemed like he could beat Zhao Danchen. This was enough to prove that Long Chen had also experienced massive growth in less than a month!


    Zhao Danchen also believed this. This did not discourage him, it merely drove him madder.


    Ever since he reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, he stopped taking Long Chen seriously. Now he finally understood that Long Chen was a very difficult opponent to beat. This was going to be a very difficult obstacle for him to ovee!


    Seeing Long Chen¡¯s nonchnt expression, as if not taking him seriously, Zhao Danchen was furious.


    Ever since he became the Martial Overlord, he constantly reminded himself to watch his emotions and control his impulsive habits. However, all his discipline evaporated when he saw Long Chen. Now all he wanted to do was chop Long Chen into pieces!


    However, he had a feeling. Previously, Zhao Danchen had lost to Long Chen. Now both parties had advanced by one level. Didn¡¯t that mean he would lose to Long Chen again? From the exchange just now, Zhao Danchen had a faint feeling that he needed to fight with all he had, using his Martial Overlord Ring, the Martial Overlord Seal, and the Ancient Demon Corpse!


    He would only be able to defeat Long Chen if he used everything he had.


    But Feng Xuan was here. If he risked his life fighting Long Chen, Feng Xuan would take advantage of it and be the final winner. What was he supposed to do?


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s mind raced quickly.


    ¡°Little Long Chen should be able to deal with Zhao Danchen for the moment, unless he uses the Martial Overlord Ring,¡± said Long Shan with surprise after watching for a while.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean his cultivation level has increased again?¡± The Dragon n was speechless. Long Yue was the one who led Long Chen to the Earthly Martial Realm. Now he was at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, while she hadn¡¯t advanced at all.


    The higher the cultivation level, the more difficult it was to advance. Yet Long Chen seemed to be a monster; his cultivation speed far exceeded their imagination.


    ¡°Seventh Brother is extraordinary ¡­ Only the word ¡®inhuman¡¯ can be used to describe him!¡± The Dragon n members nced at each other and smiled weakly.


    Of course, they could not rx now. Zhao Danchen was at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage after all, and he had the Martial Overlord Ring. If Zhao Danchen decided to risk it all, leading to a huge battle of immense scale, Long Chen would lose!


    It could be said that Zhao Danchen hadpletely surpassed Zhao Wuji as the Martial Overlord!


    While the crowd discussed, a Martial King suddenly stepped forward and whispered into Zhao Danchen¡¯s ear. His face changed, and he red in Long Yue and the others¡¯ direction like a venomous snake. He said, ¡°The Ghost Venom Ants in Martial Overlord City¡ªyou guys are behind them, right?¡±


    The news had finally arrived.


    Long Yue and the others were slightly relieved. It was up to Zhao Danchen now.


    ¡°So what if we are? If you want to destroy us, your whole army will be killed by the Ghost Venom Ants,¡± Long Yue said mildly.


    He expected her to say this.


    <em>I wanted to defeat the Battle n and the Long family today. The old man is incapacitated, but they¡¯ve got Long Chen, my archnemesis, now. Martial Overlord City is under attack by the Ghost Venom Ants, and killing Long Chen is going to be difficult. I can choose not to attack for the moment. When Long Chen and Feng Xuan fight over the Ancient Token, I will swoop in!</em>


    With that thought, Zhao Danchen made his decision.


    When he sensed how strong Long Chen was, he forced himself to clear his mind.


    After surveying the Dragon n, he said coldly, ¡°This method of distraction was indeed smart. I¡¯ll let you all live this time. However, the next time Ie will be the day you all die!¡±


    In the end, he looked at Long Chen.


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s bellicose re challenged him.


    Then he led the Martial Alliance away furiously, leaving Feng Xuan behind alone.


    Both Feng Xuan and Zhao Danchen were cunning people. They did not want to expend more energy than needed so that other people could take advantage of them. Since Zhao Danchen had walked away despite his rage, Feng Xuan naturally did not n to attack either. It was clear that Long Chen was at least as strong as Zhao Danchen.

 Chapter 680: Promise

    ¡°Since you don¡¯t want to tell me where Huangfu Qi is, I won¡¯t force you. But you¡¯d better be careful. The Divine Martial Empire isn¡¯t that big. How long can you hide someone?¡± Then Feng Xuan followed Zhao Danchen away.


    The ordeal had finallye to an end.


    Although Long Chen did not know the specifics of this distraction tactic, he had a rough idea.


    Initially, he thought he was going to fight Zhao Danchen to the death, but Zhao Danchen had left. Long Chen sighed in relief. He was not in his peak state yet, as he had not finished cultivating the Deste Divine Seal. Plus, Xiang, who was a huge help, had not woken from his slumber yet.


    Zhao Danchen thought he could let Long Chen and Feng Xuan fight first. However, he did not know what Long Chen was nning. Once he sessfully cultivated the Deste Divine Seal and Xiang woke up, he was going to march straight to Martial Overlord City to fight Zhao Danchen to the death!


    As for Feng Xuan, he would only kill her when they fought over the Ancient Token.


    Those two had to die!


    After Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan were gone, everyone was still in disbelief. Just likest time, they had only survived because of Long Chen!


    During both ordeals, Long Chen had led them to victory due to his absolute power!Everyone surrounded him and looked at him like he was an alien. He gave a resigned smile and said, ¡°What¡¯s up with everyone? Have I be more handsome? Are you guys swooning?¡±


    ¡°Damn you!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s something you say to girls. How could you say that to men like us?¡±


    Everyone started tough and scold him.


    The threat had been neutralized.


    Everyone felt like they were reborn.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We survived a huge ordeal and a powerful cultivator like Seventh Brother has returned. This is a joyous asion. We must drink to celebrate Long Chen¡¯s return!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    Joy spread throughout the whole n.


    Very soon, the Battle n organized a grand bonfire party. Long Chen let Huangfu Fengchen and the others out and told Long Yue and the others about his recent affairs. They were speechless when they learned how much he had been through in just a short time. He was something like an alien to them by now.


    The bonfire party was bustling, and the whole Battle n celebrated. There were even many performances taking ce such as Battle n dance and other routines by tamed demonic beasts. They were all exciting disys, and Long Chen was enamored by them.


    This was the grandest celebration ever held by the Battle n.


    Having saved the Battle n twice now, he was naturally received warmly, so much so that he was ufortable.


    However, this would also be hisst party before he left the Divine Martial Empire. After this, it did not matter if he received the Ancient Token¡ªhe was about to embark on his journey to leave the Divine Martial Empire. The brotherhood he shared with this bunch, as well as the bond he shared with Huangfu Qi and the rest, were his greatest treasures from this trip.


    He could only leave with peace of mind if he eliminated Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan so that his friends could live in peace.


    This was Huangfu Qi¡¯s first timeing to a ce with so many people, and everyone was willing to y with the adorable little girl. Long Chen also introduced Huangfu Fengchen to the Dragon n members. Although Huangfu Fengchen had lost his power, everyone respected him. Long Chen had ced Huangfu Qi under Long Yue¡¯s care.


    In the end, Long Shan, who had a rare opportunity to rx, directly took Huangfu Qi in as his disciple. As a result, Huangfu Qi even outranked Long Yue and the rest.


    After Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s family settled in, Long Chen felt assured. After he dealt with Feng Xuan and Zhao Danchen, he would send people to help Huangfu Fengchen regroup the Huangfu n and let Huangfu Qi be the n leader. Of course, she had to quickly reach the Earthly Martial Realm first.


    Long Chen enjoyed this, watching them enjoy themselves on this bustling night.


    <em>If Xiao Xi were here, she would be so happy to see such a busy party, </em>thought Long Chen numbly after some wine.


    ¡°Seventh Brother,¡± Long Yue suddenly said, standing in front of him.


    Long Chen looked up, then Long Yue stuffed a Universe Pouch in his hand.


    ¡°What is this?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The Yellow Emperor Seal,¡± she answered.


    ¡°You¡¯re giving it to me?¡± he asked, shocked.


    ¡°Who else could I give it to? If it¡¯s with us, it¡¯ll be snatched away. You¡¯ll fight Zhao Danchen one day, and we all believe in you. If you seed, the Five Emperor Seal will be yours. If you don¡¯t, do your best not to let Zhao Danchen get it. Alright?¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°I guarantee Zhao Danchen will never get the Five Emperor Seal. Don¡¯t worry about that.¡±


    Long Chen rarely promised something so confidently, so Long Yue was assured. She gave a small smile and said, ¡°It¡¯s such a busy night. What are you thinking about, hiding here alone?¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡± he said with an awkward grin.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s talk business.¡± Long Yue sat down next to him and looked at him solemnly. She asked, ¡°Seventh Brother, you know my grandfather was not initially in good physical condition. After sustaining severe injuries three times, he can¡¯t fight anymore. The Martial Alliance¡¯s Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan are both serious threats to us¡ªthey can destroy the whole n at any time. Although we survived today, we can¡¯t run forever ¡­¡±


    ¡°Eldest Sister, what do you want to ask?¡± Long Chen asked directly.


    It was clear she wanted to ask him for something.


    Long Yue nodded and said, ¡°You¡¯re the only one who can solve our problem now. I wanted to ask you this question. Are you confident you can defeat Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan? Tell me the truth. I need a clear answer so I can n the next step.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and said honestly, ¡°I am at the Third Earthly Martial Stage now. Zhao Danchen has the Martial Overlord Ring and the Martial Overlord Seal. However, I am sure that even with everything he has at his disposal, I can fight him to the death and even win. Of course, there is a caveat. I am now cultivating an advanced King-tierbat technique. I will be confident if I canplete it.¡±


    Long Chen was being honest.


    Zhao Danchen had the Martial Overlord Ring, the Martial Overlord Seal, and more. But Long Chen had the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s many techniques, Rewind, and the Golden Crow me! If he was in danger, he could use Blood Sacrifice!


    If he did, both Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan would be no match for him!


    Of course, he would not use it until thest moment. This was a critical period as he wanted to enter the Ancient Graveyard; a decrease in cultivation level would make him lose his edge. Also, now that he had hit the Earthly Martial Realm, he did not know how much his strength would decrease.


    Would he lose hisprehension of the martial arts? Or would he only lose essence without losing the growth of his Martial Soul?


    These were all unknown, so he did not want to take this risk now.


    ¡°Do you mean that after some time, you¡¯ll be strong enough to kill Zhao Danchen?¡± Long Yue was overjoyed. This was what she wanted. She knew that Long Chen had always been a reliable person.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen has the Ancient Demon Corpse, but it is merely a fighting machine that relies on physical strength. As long as I am stronger than it, it will not be difficult to deal with. Even if Zhao Danchen and the Ancient Demon Corpse attacked me at the same time, I wouldn¡¯t be afraid. Don¡¯t worry about Zhao Danchen,¡± said Long Chen.


    He was not exaggerating, and he spoke honestly and calmly.


    Long Yue still did not believe him. She subconsciously thought that Zhao Danchen was too strong. Was Long Chen only making this promise to make her feel more assured? But he was not the kind to brag.


    To be honest, Long Yue was very stressed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave Zhao Danchen to you, then. But what about Feng Xuan?¡± Long Yue gritted her teeth and decided to believe him. If he truly was strong enough, it would be simpler for her to n.


    ¡°Feng Xuan?¡± Long Chen furrowed his brows and recalled her battle outside Martial Overlord City.


    Long Chen looked up at her as he said, ¡°She¡¯s at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage and she¡¯s from the Heavenly Wind Empire. She¡¯s no simple opponent. But, Eldest Sister, do you remember Xiang?¡±


    ¡°Your demonic beast? Where is it?¡± asked Long Yue.


    ¡°Xiang is currently on the brink of Category Three King-tier, working hard to break through to Category Four. If he seeds, we can work together to fight Feng Xuan, and defeating her will be possible,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°Category Four King-tier?¡± Long Yue drew in a sharp breath.


    She did not know that the demonic beast, who had just reached the King-tier when she first saw it, was as terrifying as Long Chen!


    To Long Yue and the others, Long Chen and his demonic beast were the prodigy of prodigies. No one had heard of a beast advancing levels, but the Sun Devouring Wolf had done it.


    To them, Long Chen was shrouded in thick mystery. No one could figure him out.


    ¡°If I work together with Xiang, maybe we don¡¯t need to be afraid of Feng Xuan anymore,¡± said Long Chen.


    That was his assumption.


    There was no one else who could deal with those two difficult opponents. Everything was up to him. Saying this would make Long Yue rest easier.


    Long Yue gritted her teeth hesitantly. However, as she looked at his determined gaze, she nodded and said, ¡°Seventh Brother, I believe you. If that really is the case, then our enemies are no longer scary, because you can block off the strongest ones. With Zhao Danchen out of the way, we can deal with the rest of the Martial Alliance. Feng Xuan doesn¡¯t even have a subordinate. As long as you kill Zhao Danchen and keep Feng Xuan busy, we can take over the whole Divine Martial Empire!¡±

 Chapter 681: Passing Guest

    Long Yue put all her hopes on Long Chen.


    If he seeded, then they seeded. If he failed, they would not end up well either.


    To Long Chen, it was indeed stressful that all of their futures and livelihoods were in his hands. However, he was confident in his own abilities and was also doing this to make Long Yue rest easy. He smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. After I finish cultivating this technique and Xiang wakes up, I¡¯ll go look for Zhao Danchen.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Long Yue paused. ¡°With your current situation, you should deal with Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan separately. Zhao Danchen is weaker and is your main opponent. As for Feng Xuan, her final goal is the Ancient Token. You can put her aside until it appears.¡±


    The n was set.


    Long Yue said, ¡°As long as you kill Zhao Danchen, I can control the whole Divine Martial Empire. As for the specific n, we¡¯ll wait until you¡¯re fully prepared before deciding.¡±


    The bonfire party continued until veryte before the crowd started to disperse. Before that, Long Yue called everyone together to discuss. Long Chen did not participate. He found a spot to study the advanced King-tier Deste Divine Seal.


    Moonlight shone on them.


    Long Chen sat on the branch of a tall, thick, ancient tree in the lush forest and looked up at the sky.¡°Only the final obstacle remains in the Divine Martial Empire,¡± Long Chen muttered to himself.


    He had been cultivating the Deste Divine Seal for over ten days now. He was supposed to spend a long, long time cultivating a technique of this level. However, he had watched a gigantic palm descend in the mysterious space created by the tombstone. The palm contained all the essential information of the Deste Divine Seal, making it much simpler to master than learning the technique through normal means.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen ¡­ He reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage and has more trump cards than me. But I, Long Chen, will give him a huge surprise!¡± Long Chen clenched his fist and gave a faint smile.


    While Zhao Danchen thought he was awesome for mastering the Martial Overlord Seal, Long Chen would use the Deste Divine Seal to show him what the actual strongestbat technique in the Divine Martial Empire was!


    Beneath the moonlight, Long Chen sat cross-legged on the branch without moving, but his hands were making various seals. His hands moved at varying speeds and without rhythm. The patterns looked simple, but they were profound. As they moved, a gray gas formed on his palms and spun around his hands, slowly turning into an irregr-shaped ball.


    The small, gray ball looked like another world. It was blurry, and the grayness made it look like there were many things inside. Gray clouds and gray earth, the asional oasis, and that gigantic palm from before ¡­


    When Long Chen¡¯s hands reached a speed that was no longer clear to the naked eye, the strange ball disappeared. It had dispersed very suddenly.


    ¡°The Deste Divine Seal is the only thing I¡¯mcking. But I still can¡¯t do it; just a little bit more. I might need more time to practice to control the Deste Divine Sealpletely.¡± Long Chen contemted the technique.


    He was prepared to do it again, but he heard footsteps nearby. He looked down and saw a white-clothed teenage girl. She had simple makeup and her clothes billowed around her. She emerged from the darkness and came beneath Long Chen like a dream.


    It was Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°Come up here.¡± Since she was looking at him, he knew that she was searching for him.


    Liu Yiyi had not reached the Ninth Passage Stage yet, so she could not fly. But he was not in a high spot, so she easily leaped up andnded by his side. She sat next to him on the branch and stared at him, pursing her lips without a word.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen saw sadness in her eyes.


    ¡°While you were fighting earlier today, I was watching you from afar. You really are getting stronger; you¡¯ve left me far behind,¡±mented Liu Yiyi.


    He chuckled and said, ¡°Are youplimenting me? Why do I detect a hint of sourness? Are you jealous?¡±


    Liu Yiyi burst into a chuckle.


    She was beautiful, more so when sheughed. She looked so simr to Ling Xi that Long Chen went into a daze for a moment. Looking at his intense stare, Liu Yiyi immediately turned red.


    ¡°What are you looking at?¡± She turned away shyly.


    Long Chen woke up and grinned awkwardly, ¡°Nothing ¡­¡±


    Liu Yiyi suddenly looked up, mustered up the courage to look at him, and asked, ¡°After you finish your matters in the Divine Martial Empire, you¡¯ll leave immediately, right?¡±


    This was likely what she actually wanted to ask today.


    Long Chen did not want to lie to her, so he nodded.


    ¡°That also means that we aren¡¯t going to see each other ever again, right?¡± Liu Yiyi asked bitterly. Tears were starting to pool in her eyes.


    Long Chen thought for a while. He knew that there were someplicated feelings between them. Liu Yiyi was the one who actually liked him, while she only reminded him of Ling Xi.


    She was the one who had begged Jiang Wuya to save him at the Ancient Demon Domain so Long Chen could live.


    Long Chen had fought in front of the Ancient Demon Domain so Liu Yiyi could escape the fate of being married off to the Martial Alliance.


    From an outsider¡¯s point of view, this counted as love.


    But Long Chen knew that there was only one person in his heart. Thepanionship he experienced during that part of his journey, and risking their lives together, was something he would never experience again. That was why he could only apologize to Liu Yiyi. It did not mean that she was not good. In fact, she was a very good girl. It was just that his heart had already been filled by another person.


    So he clenched his teeth and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what will happen in the future either the future is unclear. I have stayed in the Divine Martial Empire for close to a year. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll die on my journey forward either. So, I don¡¯t think it will be forever. Perhaps there is a possibility that I will return.¡±


    If he returned, it would mean that he had failed at the Royal Territory but did not die. It would mean that he hadpletely lost hope. But it would be unlikely for that to happen. Long Chen was an arrogant person and would never permit himself to be a weakling. He would forge ahead and deal with every problem as they came!


    ¡°Perhaps you will return?¡± Liu Yiyi muttered to herself woodenly. Then she looked at him gratefully and said, ¡°Thank you for not giving me hope in order tofort me. My mother told me that some people are fated to just be passing guests in our lives. It¡¯s our luck to have met them, and we are fated to part. We don¡¯t need to force anything, so I have let this go ¡­¡±


    Long Chen bit his lip. He wanted to say something but stopped.


    He could see Liu Yiyi¡¯s feelings towards him. Many men could decisively head to their deaths, but could not cut off their feelings. Long Chen was the same. In this world of feelings, everything was blurry, but Ling Xi gave him direction. His only goal was to advance in her direction!


    There was a strong yearning in his heart to head to the Royal Territory and fight the people who looked down on him!


    Those people had easily destroyed Long Chen in Baiyang Town. One day, he would go to the Royal Territory and show them how much stronger the person they had looked down on had be!


    Who would expect that he was still alive?


    When Liu Yiyi saw that Long Chen had only furrowed his brows and did not speak, as if thinking about something, she remained quiet. She only spoke when he returned to calm and said, ¡°Are you going to the Royal Territory to find a girl?¡±


    Although her mother had warned her, she still wanted to know if this was true.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Yes.¡±


    There was nothing else to say.


    Liu Yiyi bit her lip and forced a smile, but her tears would not cooperate and started to flow. What she wanted most was for her to be the person he was searching for. But she wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°Goodbye ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi leaped off the branch, then her white silhouette flickered through the trees and disappeared from his sight.


    It was a very clean goodbye.


    Long Chen sighed.


    Liu Yiyi was also just a passing guest on his journey. He was just like a star that was slowly rising in the sky. He was fated to reach the highest peak and be an indomitable bright sun. Nothing in his path would stop him.


    He calmed his emotions and resumed his cultivation. There was not much time left. He knew that he had to kill Zhao Danchen before the Ancient Token appeared. Then he would be able to fully focus on dealing with Feng Xuan!


    She was his final enemy!


    He formed seals with his hands again.


    ***


    Liu Yiyi returned to her home with swollen eyes. This was a newly formed home with Jiang Wuya and the Clear Shallows King. They lived a happy life in the Battle n.


    As long as they eliminated the Martial Alliance, then they would live a happy, carefree life.


    Both Jiang Wuya and the Clear Shallows King wanted a life like that.


    When the couple saw Liu Yiyi return with red and swollen eyes, they both had a rough guess of what had happened. The Clear Shallows King pulled Liu Yiyi into her arms and said, ¡°My child, do you remember what I said?¡±


    Liu Yiyi nodded obediently.


    ¡°Mother, I want to go take a walk and have some quiet time alone. I won¡¯t go somewhere with many people. I want to go to a ce with mountains and water to look at the scenery and rx,¡± said Liu Yiyi.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go with you,¡± said the Clear Shallows King.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need. I want to be alone. When I return, you¡¯ll see a happy daughter,¡± Liu Yiyi said with a forced smile.


    Jiang Wuya and the Clear Shallows King looked at each other. In the end, they could only agree.


    Their hearts ached for their daughter. If she could not get over this, she may never be happy again for the rest of her life.

 Chapter 682: Mastering The Divine Seal

    After Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan left, everything was peaceful and there were no major events. Zhao Danchen was likely waiting for the Ancient Token to emerge so that Long Chen and Feng Xuan could fight each other. Feng Xuan did not attack for the moment either. She also sensed that Long Chen was a threat to her.


    Previously, Zhao Wuji was merely at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage when they fought outside the Martial Overlord City, but he had almost killed her. The lesson she learned that day had made her timid.


    However, many scouts were spotted outside the Battle n. Long Yue and the others caught a few and realized they were from the Huangfu family. They had been ordered by Feng Xuan to find out where Huangfu Qi was. Huangfu Qi was with the Battle n, and for safety purposes, Long Chen kept her by his side. Even if he was cultivating, he let her y near him since she liked staying with him anyway.


    There was another thing¡ªLiu Yiyi had left the Battle n. Jiang Wuya had said that she had gone off to clear her mind, and Long Chen had to ept it. Although this was a dangerous time, Liu Yiyi was not an important figure, so she should be safe.


    After Long Yue learned of Long Chen¡¯s capabilities, she quickly nned for the future and proactively prepared for war. The experts of the Red Souls had already spread across all the major cities of the Divine Martial Empire. The moment the Martial Alliance copsed, Long Yue would quickly take over to control the whole Divine Martial Empire. She was a natural leader, so she was familiar with this.


    She did not want to rule over the Divine Martial Empire, but the Martial Alliance was their enemy. If Zhao Danchen did not die, they would not live. On the other hand, if he died, they would have to take over the responsibility of ruling the Divine Martial Empire. If not, the Divine Martial Empire would descend into chaos without anyone ruling over them.


    Long Chen focused on his growth.


    One monthter, Long Chen was sitting in the dense forest of the Battle n on a thick branch while Huangfu Qi yed below. She was having a lot of fun with the children of the Battle n, so a group of them were chasing each other andughing loudly below. Due to Huangfu Qi being stronger, she quickly became the leader and was so happy that she did not want to go home.


    Long Chen had told her not to disturb him, so she only yed with the other children without affecting him.The gray gas still covered his hands. It was clear that this was the same gas as the deathly Qi from the mysterious tombstone.


    Deathly Qi danced in his hands.


    Suddenly, he moved his arms and gently pressed his palms on the tree trunk, which was thick enough for two people to hold hands around its circumference.


    <em>Poof!</em>


    His hands suddenly sank in, as if he was touching water instead of a tree.


    The kids were running around the tree when it suddenly disappeared. They looked up in a daze and saw Long Chen floating in the air.


    He had only used a little strength, but the deathly Qi had poured out of the Deste Divine Seal and eaten into the whole tree. The gray deathly Qi had a strong corrosive property.


    ¡°The Deste Divine Seal is finallyplete ¡­¡± Long Chen opened his eyes and looked at his hands in disbelief.


    His essence initially had a Yang quality, but after using the Deste Divine Seal, it quickly turned into terrifying, gray deathly Qi. This was a brutal type of power that had extraordinary effects simr to Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    Even Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body would be corroded if he touched Long Chen¡¯s divine seal.


    The Deste Divine Seal was supposed to be the most powerful of all the King-tierbat techniques, so this effect was expected.


    Long Chen finally had a unique fatal strike of his own above the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Wind God Kick. This technique was much more vicious than he had imagined. It would be his trump card for defeating Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan, as well as when he entered the Ancient Graveyard.


    He had many divine techniques already. Regr people would never even have one of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s divine techniques, but he had many.


    Now that he had mastered the Deste Divine Seal, he heaved a sigh of relief.


    The final battle wasing.


    Below him, the children chattered.


    ¡°Uncle Chen, were you the one who made the tree disappear? You¡¯re so cool!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! Yeah! It was a perfectly fine tree, but it disappeared all of a sudden!¡±


    The children, who were barely ten years old, looked at him with sparkling eyes full of worship.


    Long Chen did not expect to be called an uncle. Time waited for no one. Huangfu Qi called him ¡®Big Brother,¡¯ but the ones who were younger called him ¡®Uncle Chen.¡¯


    It made sense. Their parents were in their twenties, and Long Chen was almost twenty.


    ¡°Big Brother, I want to learn this technique too!¡± Huangfu Qi begged when he came down, tugging on his shirt.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be a man if you practice this technique! Do you still want it?¡± Long Chen teased.


    ¡°Be a man? That¡¯s ugly! I don¡¯t want it!¡± Huangfu Qi quickly dodged him. She and the other children made faces at him, then they ran off.


    ¡°Have you seeded?¡± Long Yue appeared ahead and gave him a warm smile.


    ¡°Yes. I think Xiang will be awake soon too. However, the fight against Zhao Danchen will not need Xiang! I cannot drag this on any longer. I¡¯ll head to Martial Overlord City now and kill Zhao Danchen ¡­ I¡¯ll leave the other arrangements to you.¡±


    Long Chen was decisive. He had already waited a month and knew that there was no need to wait any longer.


    It was finally time for the final battle.


    Long Yue gathered all the Earthly Martial Realm masters, and they all looked at him with admiration.


    ¡°I won¡¯t say too much. I¡¯m going to the Martial Alliance to take Zhao Danchen down. As for what¡¯s next, it¡¯s up to you all,¡± Long Chen said mildly.


    The more he grew, the quieter he became.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, but you must promise us that you¡¯ll be back to see us again!¡± Long Yue looked at him with a sisterly gaze.


    Everyone had witnessed his growth.


    ¡°You really are a strong man,¡± she added.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Yeah, don¡¯t you know who I am? I¡¯m going now. Grandfather Long, the safety of the Battle n will be in your hands for the moment. I will leave for Martial Overlord City in secret so Feng Xuan will not know I left. Other than you guys, no one will know. As for Qi Qi, I will take her away too. With me protecting her, she will be safe.¡±


    Huangfu Fengchen knew that Long Chen would put her in the Primordial Realm, so he had peace of mind.


    Everyone looked at him with hope in their eyes.


    ¡°Brother, your older brothers are useless. The future of the Dragon n and the Battle n is in your hands now!¡± said Jiang Wuya, patting his shoulder.


    ¡°Second Brother, Feng Xuan has Myriad Earth Essence with her. I will bring it back so you can regrow your lost arm,¡± he said determinedly.


    ¡°Do your best. Staying alive is the priority.¡± Jiang Wuya was touched.


    Just like that, Long Chen put Huangfu Qi in the Primordial Realm, then he left quietly for Martial Overlord City. The Battle n remained peaceful and did not change due to his departure. By the time Feng Xuan found out he was at Martial Overlord City, he might have killed Zhao Danchen already.


    The final battle would start quietly.


    ***


    Martial Overlord City, Martial Overlord Pce.


    The dark top floor of the Martial Overlord Pce had be the ce where Zhao Danchen spent most of his time. He used to dislike this ce, but ever since he took over, he started to live here.


    He could look down on the whole city from here. Controlling this city also meant he controlled the whole empire.


    A gigantic empire.


    Although it was a weak one, it still had a poption and its own territory.


    On the one hand, Zhao Danchen found he had be lonely. He had caused Zhao Wuji¡¯s death for the sake of power and strength. In exchange, he received the reverence of everyone. Even the Third Earthly Martial Stage Xiao Lin also spoke to him in a reverent manner. This life made Zhao Danchen even more somber.


    Ordinary people did not dare talk in front of him.


    Everyone knew that Zhao Danchen was much darker and more terrifying than the previous Martial Overlord in terms of both mental fortitude and physical strength.


    A dark cloud hung over Martial Overlord City.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Zhao Danchen clenched his fists tight, and his eyes were covered in blood vessels!


    ¡°That bastard has many tricks up his sleeve! I now have the Martial Overlord Seal and the Martial Overlord Ring, yet I still can¡¯t confidently beat him! If I fight him, even if I kill him, I will likely be injured too. Then that evil woman, Feng Xuan, will take advantage of it!¡±


    Despite Zhao Danchen¡¯s infinite rage towards Long Chen, he did not dare attack now.


    He wanted Long Chen and Feng Xuan to fight to their deaths first, but a month had passed and there was no news of the Ancient Token. Feng Xuan and Long Chen were also quiet.

 Chapter 683: Arrival in Style

    ¡°Looks like that bitch Feng Xuan is also good at holding back her anger. Has she also realized that Long Chen will be a difficult opponent?¡± Zhao Danchen stood up and looked at the vast outer city from his dark tower.


    Although he could not wait to kill Long Chen and use his blood to wash away his humiliation, he had to hold it in and wait. This was a person who had defeated him before, so how could he be easy to beat?


    But Zhao Danchen could not wait any longer!


    The terrible loss he had suffered was constantly torturing him!


    <em>Should I really forget everything else and attack first? </em>thought Zhao Danchen.


    At this moment, footsteps sounded from the staircase below. Someone knocked on the door.


    ¡°Come in,¡± said Zhao Danchen.


    There was only one person who coulde here¡ªXiao Lin. After opening the door, as expected, the white-haired man walked in. His back was hunched over; he was old now.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Zhao Danchen asked with furrowed brows.He did not like people interrupting him while he was thinking.


    ¡°I have a piece of news that I think the Martial Overlord will be interested in,¡± Xiao Lin said respectfully.


    ¡°Just spit it out,¡± huffed Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°My men caught a woman at Magnolia Lake in the north. I think this woman came out alone to clear her mind. She¡¯s only at the Eighth Passage Stage, so my men easily caught her and brought her back to Martial Overlord City. I¡¯ll await your instructions,¡± Xiao Lin said slowly.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s interest was piqued.


    Xiao Lin looked up and said, ¡°Liu Yiyi.¡±


    Zhao Danchen was first shocked, then his expression turned from dark to lustful. Slowly, a cold smirk crept up his face and fire burned in his eyes.


    ¡°Xiao Lin, you know her well. Bring her here, then. I want to know what Long Chen¡¯s woman tastes like.¡±


    Xiao Lin nodded and left. Only Zhao Danchen¡¯s heavy breathing remained in the dark space.


    Ever since he had be the Martial Overlord, he was very rarely interested in women. He did not really care about Liu Yiyi, but after Long Chen saved her, everything became different.


    Very soon, Xiao Lin brought Liu Yiyi over, who was wearing a long, white dress. Everyone knew that Zhao Danchen was likely interested in her, so no one dared touch her along the way and only made her unconscious. Before he brought her up, Xiao Lin made Liu Yiyi wake up.


    In the dark room, Liu Yiyi saw a pair of golden eyes looking at her like a wild beast looking at its prey.


    Her heart fell to rock bottom.


    She had a knot in her heart, so she wanted to go out and clear her mind so that she could catch her breath. If she stayed at the Battle n and kept looking at Long Chen, the knot in her heart would only be more and more difficult to undo. Jiang Wuya and the Clear Shallows King both supported her trip as they did not want their daughter to be depressed.


    So, she could not be fully med.


    During those days, she immersed herself in nature, and indeed, she had forgotten about many things.


    She was very careful, but she was extremely unlucky. Very few people in the Martial Alliance knew her, yet she hade across one of them.


    Zhao Danchen had only brought a few Martial Kings to the Ancient Demon Domain to escort her to Martial Overlord City, which was where she encountered the one who had caught her. That was how unlucky she was.


    The moment she was subdued, she knew that she would be taken to Martial Overlord City, and she would need to face that madman Zhao Danchen.


    After Xiao Lin brought her here, he left knowingly. Only Zhao Danchen and Liu Yiyi remained in the narrow, dark room.


    ¡°Liu Yiyi ¡­¡± Zhao Danchen smiled and paced in front of Liu Yiyi, gazing at her from all directions. Then he walked up to her and gently held her chin up with a finger. He smiled and whispered, ¡°Do you know what¡¯s going to happen next?¡±


    There was a very aggressive auraing from this terrifying man, making her tremble. She had suppressed her fear for a long time, but she could no longer control it. But she knew she could not be afraid and forced herself to remain calm. She said coldly, ¡°I don¡¯t.¡±


    Zhao Danchen smiled and said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll show you!¡±


    <em>Whoosh! </em>He grabbed her bony shoulders tight like two pincers, thus restricting her movement. Then he kissed her cheek!


    ¡°You bastard!¡± In a panic, all Liu Yiyi could do was move her head away and kick his crotch. This was an instinctual movement. Due to his impatience, he had forgotten that she was a cultivator, and since he was pressing so close to her, she had managed to kick him.


    However, Zhao Danchen had the Golden Combat Body, so he didn¡¯t feel even a tiny bit of pain even though Liu Yiyi had kicked his weakest part.


    But Zhao Danchen stopped his actions. He still gripped her shoulders and red at her darkly. ¡°How dare you kick me there? You don¡¯t even know how hard it actually is, but you will soon. Despite your looks, Long Chen hasn¡¯t had a taste of you yet, right? He¡¯s probably a eunuch; he didn¡¯t even touch a girl who was so near him ¡­¡±


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s words made all her hairs stand up.


    But he had mentioned Long Chen.


    ¡°Do you have the right topare yourself to Long Chen?¡± Liu Yiyi looked at him stubbornly and held her head up high.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Zhao Danchen threatened.


    Liu Yiyi already had a n and was ready to risk it all. She said, ¡°You¡¯re human scum; you¡¯re an animal. What part of you can bepared to him? You betrayed and killed your master, while Long Chen takes rtionships seriously and helps his brothers in need. When you¡¯repared to him, you¡¯re basically as good as a pile of dogshit!¡±


    ¡°You!¡± Blood vessels could be seen on the edge of Zhao Danchen¡¯s golden pupils. He looked like a furious wild beast.


    ¡°Alright! Alright! You were the one who forced me. I thought I¡¯d let you feel good, but ¡­¡± Zhao Danchen smiled. His re was like daggers piercing into Liu Yiyi.


    He reached out to tug her clothes off.


    <em>Goodbye ¡­ </em>Liu Yiyi closed her eyes. If she died, Zhao Danchen would not get anything.


    She was unconscious during the journey here, so she never had a chance to kill herself.


    Her life was going to reach its end. She was only alive right now because there were many things she could not bear to leave behind. But now, it looked like she had no choice.


    However, heavy footsteps suddenly came from below.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± Zhao Danchen roared, furious that someone wasing at such a critical moment. The metal doors shattered from his roar.


    Outside was a panicked Xiao Lin.


    ¡°You imbecile! Are you looking for death?¡± Zhao Danchen was getting excited, but he was interrupted by Xiao Lin, so he was furious.


    ¡°Martial ¡­ Martial Overlord, there¡¯s a problem ¡­¡± Xiao Lin stuttered.


    ¡°Tell me, then! If it isn¡¯t a big problem, you¡¯d better kill yourself!¡± roared Zhao Danchen.


    Liu Yiyi shivered next to him.


    Xiao Lin stabilized his emotions and said, ¡°Long Chen has arrived. You¡¯re the only one in Martial Overlord City who can defeat him. I think he¡¯sing to battle it out with you ¡­¡±


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Zhao Danchen froze for a moment. His pupils dted, then he squinted and said, ¡°You¡¯re saying that Long Chen is here?¡±


    Then heughed.


    After hearing Long Chen¡¯s name, Liu Yiyi¡¯s ssy eyes regained light.


    At the moment she was preparing to kill herself, Long Chen had arrived. He was the hero of her life. Every time she was in danger, he appeared. She was so moved, she broke down into tears.


    ¡°Why are you crying? You¡¯ll cry even more soon.¡± Zhao Danchen smirked, then he grabbed her arm and flew up.


    There was an exit at the very top of Martial Overlord Pce. Zhao Wuji always exited from here, and now it was Zhao Danchen¡¯s turn. However, who would be next?


    ***


    Long Chen had traveled nonstop until he finally arrived at Martial Overlord City. There was some distance between here and the Huangfu family, so there was a chance Feng Xuan wouldn¡¯t find out about this until the battle ended.


    That was why Long Chen had entered Martial Overlord City in a very high-profile manner, flying in from the sky in front of countless people. Many people recognized his face, so it triggered a hugemotion!


    Long Chen had arrived!


    A month ago, Long Chen had returned with style and saved the threatened Battle n, even chasing away Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan. That disy of strength made everyone consider him one of the top three masters alongside Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan!


    Everyone also knew about the conflict between him and Zhao Danchen!


    They were archnemeses!


    Now, Long Chen hade to Martial Overlord City. Didn¡¯t that clearly mean he wanted to fight Zhao Danchen in a final battle?


    The whole city erupted upon his arrival.

 Chapter 684: Evil and Scheming

    Long Chen had made a grand entrance! Feng Xuan had arrived in Martial Overlord City in this manner thest time she was here. That visit ended with Zhao Wuji¡¯s death.


    What would this end up like?


    Those living in the inner city were mostly the Martial Alliance¡¯s loyal protectors and saw themselves as members of the Martial Alliance. It was different in the outer city because they were the rich and influential of Martial Overlord City. They were willing to side with whoever was ruling the Divine Martial Empire. They did not bear hatred towards Long Chen and were instead looking forward to Long Chen and Zhao Danchen¡¯s battle to see what would happen!


    Long Chen looked down at the bustling city coldly.


    When Feng Xuan came, the Martial Kings dared to surround her. The moment Long Chen arrived, however, they instantly recognized him, so they did not dare move. Everyone looked up at the powerful young man in the sky woodenly, waiting for the Martial Overlord to deal with him!


    That was why Long Chen arrived right outside Martial Overlord Pce unobstructed!


    This was the same ce he had found himself in when he emerged from the Nine Spirit Purgatory. This time, the statuses of Long Chen and Zhao Danchen were no longer important.


    Long Chen was not one to stall. His eyes were fixed on Martial Overlord Pce¡ªhe knew Zhao Danchen was there!


    Everyone below discussed with each other.¡°The Long Chen just flew in clearly shows he doesn¡¯t respect the Martial Overlord.¡±


    ¡°Of course not! He¡¯s literallying to challenge the Martial Overlord!¡±


    ¡°I hear Long Chen is very powerful, but I¡¯m not convinced. Not only does the Martial Overlord have strong cultivation, he also has the Ancient Demon Corpse and Feng Xuan. Wouldn¡¯t the Martial Overlord easily beat Long Chen if they fight two-against-one?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true. I hear that woman is at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, so she is one level higher than the Martial Overlord. I don¡¯t see anything special about this Long Chen kid. Those rumors sounded too exaggerated. It¡¯s true he once defeated the Martial Overlord, but now the Martial Overlord is much, much more powerful than he previously was!¡±


    These conversations clearly came from the inner city.


    They were not important.


    What mattered was that Long Yue and the rest were waiting for good news from him. He was carrying the fate of many on his shoulders, so there was only one oue for him today. He had to win!


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, get the hell out here,¡± Long Chenmanded calmly, his voice traveling across the whole city.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Zhao Danchen appeared on the very top of Martial Overlord Pce.


    They met again in this manner.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze darkened.


    Liu Yiyi was with Zhao Danchen; he was gripping her so tightly that she could not move. She looked up at Long Chen apologetically with tears in her eyes and said hurriedly, ¡°Long Chen, I¡¯m sorry ¡­¡±


    She had been captured by Zhao Danchen when she was out clearing her mind.


    Long Chen pursed his lips and did not speak.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s presence had messed up his n. He knew he had to stay calm, or neither he nor Liu Yiyi woulde out of this alive.


    ¡°You really know how to pick the best timing, don¡¯t you? If you had arrived just a little bitter, your woman would have be mine. Of course, she still won¡¯t escape her fate.¡± Zhao Danchen looked at Long Chen coldly. His calm demeanor ignited rage within Zhao Danchen.


    He recalled the things that Liu Yiyi said about how he had no right to bepared to Long Chen. Zhao Danchen was an arrogant person, so those words had been a huge blow to him. This was the time for him to prove himself.


    Long Chen saw that although Liu Yiyi¡¯s clothes were a little disheveled, she had not been sullied, so he sighed in relief. Although this was going to be a difficult problem to solve, it did not shake his determination. He hade here with only one aim, which was to kill Zhao Danchen!


    ¡°Let her go and we¡¯ll fight to the death. What do you think?¡± Although Long Chen¡¯s tone was mild, his voice spread across Martial Overlord City.


    Everyone watched.


    Liu Yiyi¡¯s appearance made the duel more interesting. They wondered if Zhao Danchen would let the advantageous hostage go in order to fight Long Chen in a clean and righteous manner.


    They looked at Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Let her go?¡± Zhao Danchenughed loudly. His pride was part of what made him evil. He had captured Liu Yiyi with great difficulty. Not only would he not let her go, but he would also use her to defeat Long Chen! Zhao Danchen had always been an evil, scheming scumbag!


    The crowd understood hisughter.


    He would never let this opportunity go.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi was on the brink of a breakdown. She sensed that she was going to be a burden to Long Chen in this battle and may even be the cause of his defeat! If that was the case, she might as well die.


    She was filled with guilt, and tears flowed down her face.


    Long Chen was worried that she would do something stupid, so he said to her, ¡°Don¡¯t do anything stupid. Just watch. I will get you back safely from him. Trust me!¡±


    His words stabilized Liu Yiyi¡¯s mind.


    Liu Yiyi had no choice but to believe him after seeing the determination in his eyes. She had always been an obedient child, especially now that Long Chen was giving her instruction. She initially wanted to kill herself, but Long Chen reignited her confidence and she chose to believe in him.


    In her heart, this extraordinary young man was a peerless existence.


    Some people made others believe that they could do it all, like they could solve every impossible problem with ease. Long Chen was one of them.


    Long Chen¡¯s statement also showed his contempt towards Zhao Danchen.


    Liu Yiyi was still in Zhao Danchen¡¯s hands, but Long Chen conversed with her as if no one was around. Zhao Danchen¡¯s face darkened. He gripped Liu Yiyi tightly so she could not move at all.


    ¡°Come outside the city gates if you dare!¡± Long Chen took one nce at Zhao Danchen, then flew outside Martial Overlord City¡¯ gates. Previously, Feng Xuan and Zhao Wuji had fought here.


    Zhao Danchen chuckled coldly and brought Liu Yiyi over. A small, ck g, the Ancient Demon g, appeared in his other hand. Under Zhao Danchen¡¯s control, the Ancient Demon Corpse burst out of the ground outside Martial Overlord City in front of Long Chen. Long Chen was greeted with the stench of blood and rot!


    This would be Long Chen¡¯s first time directly battling this cold war-machine!


    He felt a huge pressure.


    Zhao Danchen also arrived, but he did notnd. He remained high up in the air, trapping Liu Yiyi and controlling the Ancient Demon g. When he saw the standoff between Long Chen and the Ancient Demon Corpse, heughed and said, ¡°Alright, since you¡¯re already prepared, let¡¯s begin the game!¡±


    A dense crowd appeared on top of the wall!


    Another ultimate battle was starting outside Martial Overlord City!


    <em>Game? </em>Long Chen furrowed his brows. He had a feeling that the scumbag Zhao Danchen was going to pull another shameless move.


    Zhao Danchen squeezed Liu Yiyi¡¯s arm slightly, causing her to turn pale from the pain. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead, but in order not to worry Long Chen, she clenched her teeth and did not let herself cry from the pain.


    Zhao Danchenughed loudly. ¡°Do you see this? These are the rules of my game! My Ancient Demon Corpse shall attack you, and every time you dodge or attack it, I will break one of her arms or legs. You have four chances in total, because on the fifth time, I will break her neck. Aiya, why are you looking at me that way? Are you thinking that I¡¯m mistreating a woman?¡±


    After Zhao Danchen spoke, even the people of Martial Overlord City talked among themselves. In general, the people in the outer city were not truly willing to be ruled by Zhao Danchen. They were merely being suppressed. How many people would be willing to recognize him as their leader after he had killed his own master?


    What Zhao Danchen had said made his character seem even worse to them.


    Theyined about Zhao Danchen, feeling like he was not fit to be the Martial Overlord. Zhao Danchen could hear these casualments, which made his expression turn sour!


    After he finished, Long Chen merely looked at him coldly. That cold expression suddenly made Zhao Danchen feel shameful, which ignited the mes of rage within him!


    <em>I am literally suppressing him right now, and he is about to be killed by me. Why does he still dare to look at me like that? </em>Zhao Danchen roared in his heart!


    He waved the Ancient Demon g, and the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s eyes lit up red.


    ¡°Long Chen, remember! You only have four chances to retaliate!¡± Zhao Danchen was so angry that he startedughing like a madman. Liu Yiyi was like a harmless kitten in his hands, and her tears were flowing. She really wanted to die, but why had Long Chen said that he had a way?


    Long Chen said, ¡°Zhao Danchen, no true master would fear your tricks. You may have won against me in terms of schemes, but you lose when ites to true strength. What¡¯s there to be smug about?¡±


    ¡°Nonsense! If I¡¯m able to kill you, I am stronger than you!¡± roared Zhao Danchen in rage. The crowd watched in shock as the Ancient Demon Corpse shot at Long Chen with a <em>whoosh</em> like a ck shadow, instantly appearing in front of him!


    The Ancient Demon Corpse threw a powerful punch, which led to a loud crackling in the air. Its fist was locked on Long Chen, and it brought with it the force of a mountain as it flew towards his chest!


    ¡°Long Chen, remember! This will cost an arm!¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯sughter echoed in Long Chen¡¯s ears.


    Long Chen squinted and gave up on attacking it.

 Chapter 685: Ten Breaths

    <em>Boom!</em>


    The crowd watched in shock as the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s fistnded squarely on Long Chen¡¯s chest!


    The only thing Long Chen did was use the Dragon Soul Transformation. The blood-red scales had only just appeared and covered his abdomen when the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s fist sank into his chest!


    No one could survive a punch from the Ancient Demon Corpse like that!


    Previously, Long Shan had been severely injured after blocking a punch from the Ancient Demon Corpse. Yet Long Chen had received the same punch squarely in the chest. The strength of it sent Long Chen flying. Blood sprayed out of his mouth and the sound of bones shattering in his chest could be heard!


    Long Chen¡¯s body tempering technique was merely the elementary King-tier True Martial Demon Body, which was far inferior to Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Combat Body. Zhao Danchen might have been able to block the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s punch, but Long Chen could not. That punch had almost killed him!


    Loud cries of shock came from Martial Overlord City!


    They did not expect Long Chen to not block the punch!


    He never even attempted to block the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s punch¡ªonly a true man could do such a thing!There was a glimmer of respect in their eyes as they watched Long Chen fly through the air, though also pity. Long Chen was initially equal to Zhao Danchen in terms of strength, but now he had likely lost most of hisbat abilities. Long Chen would not be able to fight Zhao Danchen now.


    Merely holding Liu Yiyi hostage had allowed Zhao Danchen to make Long Chen withstand a punch so powerful that it sent him thirty meters back. After Long Chen tumbled several times, he finally shed off the momentum and leaped to his feet, forcing himself to be stable. He looked at Zhao Danchen coldly without a word. However, that re evoked a hint of fear in the depths of Zhao Danchen¡¯s heart.


    It was as if an ancient, fierce beast was looking at him, not a human!


    Thick blood flowed from the corner of Long Chen¡¯s mouth, dyeing him red.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s heart shattered after the punch. She felt like Long Chen was only lying to her when he said he could do it. How could he do anything under such circumstances? After just one punch, Long Chen was almost certainly going to lose!


    ¡°Zhao Danchen, you lowly scum! You¡¯re a coward! You¡¯re too afraid to fight him in a true battle, and you use such lowly tactics! Aren¡¯t you afraid that the world willugh at you?¡± Liu Yiyi screamed at him.


    ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± he shouted. Liu Yiyi was right. Zhao Danchen was indeed acting like a scumbag, so he could not hold his emotions back when he was provoked like this.


    Many people were also pointing and talking about him in the city. A volcano of rage was building up in Zhao Danchen¡¯s chest!


    If there were no witnesses, Zhao Danchen could surely kill Long Chen by using Liu Yiyi as a hostage. However, he could not do the same outside Martial Overlord City. Zhao Danchen was also a proud person. After the Ancient Demon Corpse hurt Long Chen, the discussions that seemed to fill the whole world made him erupt with rage!


    Right now, Long Chen was severely injured. Did he still need to use Liu Yiyi to threaten Long Chen?


    He did not!


    ¡°Let¡¯s see who is truly the stronger one today!¡± Zhao Danchen sneered and tossed Liu Yiyi hard to the ground. He red at Long Chen furiously, and at the same time used the Ancient Demon g to control the Ancient Demon Corpse. He wanted the Ancient Demon Corpse to hold Liu Yiyi!


    Long Chen had to die. After that, Zhao Danchen would make her understand who the strongest man in the Divine Martial Empire truly was, both in and outside the bedroom! Zhao Danchen was the king!


    And Long Chen would forever be the person who lost to him!


    ¡°Long Chen, I was only ying with you just now. I didn¡¯t expect you to not even withstand a punch from the Ancient Demon Corpse! However, just so you¡¯ll give up, I¡¯ll give you a chance to fight me!¡± Zhao Danchen said haughtily.


    People who were less experienced might have believed that he was only just ying, but most people could see that his previous move had caused Long Chen to lose most of hisbat abilities.


    Physical toughness was not Long Chen¡¯s strength after all.


    Zhao Danchen had just let Liu Yiyi go, about to use the Ancient Demon Corpse to trap her. Long Chen was more than forty meters away.


    While Zhao Danchen spoke, despite the blood on Long Chen¡¯s mouth, Long Chen gave a smug smile.


    Patience had finally given him the results he wanted.


    Long Chen knew Zhao Danchen well. He had chosen not to retaliate because he was waiting for this moment. He knew that when Zhao Danchen was scoffed at by many people and looked down upon, he would choose to fight personally. Zhao Danchen¡¯s pride would never waver, and impulse drowned out his logic when he was looked down on.


    Long Chen had seeded.


    When Zhao Danchen let Liu Yiyi go and sent the Ancient Demon Corpse to trap her, Long Chen turned into a ray of blood-colored light and instantly arrived next to Zhao Danchen. He grabbed Liu Yiyi, then instantly left Zhao Danchen and the Ancient Demon Corpse¡¯s attack range.


    At the next moment, Liu Yiyi was in Long Chen¡¯s arms, and they were more than twenty meters away.


    The time between Long Chen getting injured and saving Liu Yiyi was very short¡ªonly about ten breaths. After he saved her, he put her down, then invisible ripples poured out of his chest. A strange power affected his body, bringing it back to its condition from ten breaths ago.


    Ten breaths meant the time taken for ten inhales and exhales.


    Rewinding time by ten breaths turned Long Chen¡¯s condition back to before he was injured by the Ancient Demon Corpse.


    Everything had happened in a very short time.


    The crowd was stunned.


    Long Chen was one to take huge gambles, though they were based on his careful analyses. Taking risks based on analysis was not truly considered gambling. He knew that Zhao Danchen would be unable to withstand the pressure from the gossip. As expected, he had let Liu Yiyi go.


    As long as he did, Long Chen could save her.


    He then used that opening to activate Rewind, healing his injuries and leaving him in perfect condition.


    He had spent his one use of Rewind to save Liu Yiyi from Zhao Danchen. It was a very risky move, but it had worked.


    Liu Yiyi was the only one present who was familiar with Rewind because he had also used it to save himself when he was escaping from the Ancient Demon Domain.


    Everyone in Martial Overlord City was stunned.


    They did not know what had happened in those few moments. The ripples caused by Rewind were small, but many saw the blood on the corner of his mouth flow back into his lips, and the sunken part of his chest puff back up.


    Liu Yiyi was the closest and saw it in the most detail, so she was the most astonished. She also had not expected Long Chen to dash over and grab her. She stared at him in a daze.


    ¡°Yiyi, I¡¯m going to fight him directly. I¡¯m going to put you in a safe ce now. After I kill him, I¡¯ll let you out. Alright?¡± Long Chen quickly said.


    Liu Yiyi had not recovered from her shock, so she nodded woodenly. Her trust in Long Chen had reached a blind stage. If he asked her to kill herself now, there was a chance she would agree.


    Long Chen then put the shocked girl in the Primordial Realm!


    From now on, he could fully focus on the battle!


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze fell on Zhao Danchen, meeting his foe¡¯s furious, humiliated, and confused gaze!


    ¡°You ¡­ you recovered? Did you use a Life Combat Technique? It¡¯s so powerful!¡± Zhao Danchen was first stunned, then his eyes shone with greed!


    That lifebat technique was terrifying!


    Zhao Danchen had never seen one this powerful before!


    He had never even heard of one that could do so much.


    The two young masters of the Divine Martial Empire had a standoff!


    The people in Martial Overlord City were still talking among themselves.


    ¡°How did Long Chen snatch that girl from Zhao Danchen just now?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! I couldn¡¯t see it clearly, but he snatched her away. And where did he put her?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s so bizarre! Long Chen seems to have many secrets!¡±


    ¡°The even stranger thing is that Long Chen was clearly injured just now, and it looked very serious. Why does he look like he has returned to his previous state?¡±


    No one could answer these questions.


    However, they suddenly wondered if something bizarre was going to happen today.


    For example, could Long Chen really kill Zhao Danchen?


    Who would rule over the Divine Martial Empire next?


    However, these were just posttions. Even though Long Chen could defeat Zhao Danchen, could he win when Zhao Danchen and the Ancient Demon Corpse fought together?


    They did not know that there were still disadvantages to using the Ancient Demon Corpse. Zhao Danchen had to use the Ancient Demon g to control it, so one hand was upied. And he had to focus on it too. This meant that Zhao Danchen could not fight Long Chen together with the Ancient Demon Corpse!


    It was time for the final battle between the two young masters!


    All sorts of emotions shone in Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes¡ªgreed, hatred, and more.


    There was only one thing in Long Chen¡¯s gaze: icy calm!

 Chapter 686: Ancestors

    Long Chen looked at Zhao Danchen coolly, like he was looking at a dead person!


    Zhao Danchen had the Ancient Demon Corpse burrow into the ground again, then casually put the Ancient Demon g away to fight Long Chen in a true duel. He did not want to use the Ancient Demon Corpse again.


    Long Chen was currently in his peak condition.


    ¡°This is a fair fight now. Will you be a match for me under such conditions?¡± Zhao Danchen chuckled coldly. After he spoke, everyone saw him charge at Long Chen!


    The true battle was triggered in a second!


    Although Long Chen did not show it, he knew he had to kill Zhao Danchen as quickly as possible!


    His dense, blood-red scales sparkled beneath the sun!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The blood-red Long Chen and the golden Zhao Danchen met each other instantly, and they bothunched their attacks. Long Chen¡¯s Soul Dispersing Dragon w, Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Divine Punch and Yellow Martial Seal all collided violently.


    <em>Boom! Boom! Boom!</em>Craters appeared on the ground as their battle caused many explosions, throwing dust into the air that clouded the crowd¡¯s vision. Just like the fight between Zhao Wuji and Feng Xuan, only the people on Xiao Lin¡¯s level could see them. They could not tell who was winning!


    ¡°Nine Heavens Strike!¡± Long Chen used this attack on a scale that surpassed Long Shan. Nine dragons flew at Zhao Danchen; it was a quick but powerful attack!


    All nine dragon projections flew, and they formed w seals that instantly arrived in front of Zhao Danchen¡¯s eyes!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    One after another, the devastating blows drowned Zhao Danchenpletely. Dust flew everywhere, so no one could see what was happening. But a golden ray burst through the smoke, and a red shadow shot out too!


    That red shadow was Long Chen! After dodging Zhao Danchen¡¯s Golden Eye of Annihtion, he chuckled and turned into a red shadow again to pounce on Zhao Danchen!


    ¡°You madman!¡± Zhao Danchen was frustrated at Long Chen¡¯s vigorous fighting style; it was as if he would not stop attacking until his opponent had copsed. In a difficult situation, the most aggressive party usually won. That was why Zhao Danchen was suppressed and found himself at a disadvantage the moment the duel began!


    They had equal amounts of essence, but Long Chen had more battle experience than him. Although Long Chen was from a small town, he had ten times more battle experience than Zhao Danchen. Zhao Danchen had always fought people who were weaker than him, and he never had a mortal enemy. Long Chen was constantly fighting people stronger than himself!


    A person¡¯s experience forged from real battle was a huge factor in determining the result of a duel. This was the case for the fight between them. Furthermore, the Willow Step he had from the Huangfu n also benefited him greatly!


    Zhao Danchen had to block Long Chen¡¯s attacks, but Long Chen could easily dodge Zhao Danchen¡¯s attacks using this technique!


    There were no bodybat techniques that could beat Willow Step in the Divine Martial Empire!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    Zhao Danchen¡¯s punch blew Long Chen away, and Long Chenughed once more.


    ¡°Wind God Kick, Typhoon Style!¡± His blood-red leg turned into countless whips shing at Zhao Danchen. Zhao Danchen¡¯s scalp went numb when he saw the densely packed whips!


    ¡°Yellow Martial Seal!¡± Zhao Danchen could not stand the feeling of being suppressed. He consolidated his energy into a gigantic Yellow Martial Seal to st Long Chen away!


    Long Chen was unharmed because of Willow Step!


    The two finally separated after nonstop exchanges!


    But Long Chen still looked fine. Despite the fierce look on his face, his actions were breezy. On the other hand, while Zhao Danchen had not been injured by Long Chen¡¯s vigorous attacks, his face and hair were dusty, his clothes were disheveled, and his expression could be described as ¡°crying without tears!¡±


    To Zhao Danchen, the faint smile on Long Chen¡¯s face was absolute humiliation!


    New hatred was added to past hatred. These two types of hatredpletely drowned Zhao Danchen!


    He burned with the mes of fury!


    ¡°LONG CHEN!¡± Zhao Danchen roared. He never thought he would ever have a day like this!


    The people standing on the walls were shocked by this situation.


    They never expected Zhao Danchen to be toyed with by Long Chen. Based on how they looked, Long Chen had the upper hand in the duel. The great Martial Overlord was left with a dusty face!


    This young man who had only recently risen in the past year had a strange halo around him. He was extraordinary!


    Many people looked at each other.


    <em>Will Zhao Danchen really lose to Long Chen? </em>This question popped into many minds.


    But they quickly denied this.


    Because they knew that Zhao Danchen had two more tricks that he had not used. One was the Martial Overlord Ring on his thumb, and the other was his advanced King-tierbat technique that uniquely belonged to the Martial Overlord, the Martial Overlord Seal!


    There was a reason why Zhao Danchen had learned the Martial Overlord Seal so quickly. It resided in the Martial Overlord Ring, so when he put it on, Zhao Danchen quicklyprehended the technique with the help of the spirits of his ancestors. He could then use the Martial Overlord seal via the Martial Overlord ring!


    Without the ancestral spirits¡¯ help, someone with Zhao Danchen¡¯s talent would take at least a year to cultivate the Martial Overlord Seal.


    There probably wasn¡¯t a single person in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory who could master the Deste Divine Seal and even use it within a month like Long Chen!


    There was a brief pause in the battle.


    Zhao Danchen was filled with rage as he strode towards Long Chen.


    The whites of his eyes were covered in blood vessels, surrounding his golden irises!


    The dense blood vessels made Zhao Danchen look fierce.


    Although he did not have a Beast Soul Transformation, he looked more animalistic than Long Chen. Although Long Chen was using a Beast Soul Transformation as far as others could tell, his movements were fast and elegant, which waspletely opposite to Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°It looks like I can¡¯t kill you without using a bit of the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power, Long Chen.¡± Zhao Danchen paused, then he continued, ¡°The fact that you have reached this level and forced me to use the Divine Martial Possession¡¯s powers proves that you are an impressive prodigy. However, even the greatest prodigies will find their bones shattering before the power of the Martial Overlord¡¯s ancestors!¡±


    As he spoke, countless secret runes appeared on Zhao Danchen¡¯s body, just like Zhao Wuji. The runes merged with his Golden Combat Body, which gave him arger advantagepared to Zhao Wuji. Due to his tough body, he could withstand even more power from the ring!


    ¡°Divine Martial Possession!¡±


    Discussions erupted on top of the city walls.


    ¡°The moment he uses the Divine Martial Possession, Long Chen is finished.¡±


    ¡°What a pity that Zhao Danchen needs to use this technique to win. The power within the Martial Overlord Ring will only decrease as he uses more of it. I wonder if there will be any power left by the time he¡¯s no longer the Martial Overlord!¡±


    A powerful surge of energy flowed from the Martial Overlord Ring into Zhao Danchen¡¯s body. More and more golden runes covered his skin, including his face.


    After hepleted the Divine Martial Possession, Zhao Danchen was countless times stronger, even reaching the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. This immense power turned into an intense pressure weighing down Long Chen¡¯s body!


    The power of the Martial Overlord Ring was indeed terrifying!


    Long Chen previously saw Zhao Wuji using it, but now he was experiencing it first-hand from his opponent!


    He hadpletely suppressed Zhao Danchen until now, but it was uncertain if he could continue.


    The battle had be even more interesting. Previously, Long Chen was bullying Zhao Danchen, but the tables had turned. Would Long Chen be able to withstand Zhao Danchen¡¯s attacks?


    The crowd was deeply engrossed in this exciting fight.


    When Zhao Danchen felt the power flowing into him, he sneered.


    However, to his disappointment, he did not see fear or despair on Long Chen¡¯s face. His expression was ice-cold like before. Zhao Danchen started to wonder if Long Chen was capable of making a fearful expression. Or was he hiding it?


    To be honest, Zhao Danchen was genuinely impressed that Long Chen could hold up against him until now.


    ¡°Die ¡­¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s speed increased by several times, along with his super-strength.


    The crowd watched anxiously.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen smirked coldly.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain ¡­¡± This was Long Chen¡¯s most used divine technique. The Blood Devouring Domain quickly enveloped himself and Zhao Danchen, covering the whole area with blood-red mist. The mist sometimes stirred into blood-red dragon images that formed and dispersed intermittently. The bizarre mist even exerted a strong sucking force on Zhao Danchen¡¯s body!


    This was not Zhao Danchen¡¯s first time experiencing the power of the Blood Devouring Domain.


    But every time he did, he felt like he was about to vomit blood. Using the Martial Overlord Ring should have boosted his strength by many times, yet he was still forced to use a portion of his power to suppress his boiling blood due to the Blood Devouring Domain.


    It was as if his own blood did not belong to him.


    His blood and Qi surged within his body. His body was already unstable after he used the Martial Overlord Ring, and the Blood Devouring Domain brought his body to the brink of breaking down. If this went on, Long Chen would not even need to do anything¡ªZhao Danchen¡¯s body would break down on its own from the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power and the Blood Devouring Domain.

 Chapter 687: Battle of Two Seals

    Previously, Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji¡¯s body had exploded because he overused the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power.


    ¡°This is bad!¡± Zhao Danchen sensed that this was a bad sign.


    If this continued, something bad would happen. He had to kill Long Chen as soon as possible, before his strength ran out!


    He did not expect Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain to affect him so deeply. Zhao Danchen was speechless, and he wondered if Long Chen really was fated to be his archnemesis.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Zhao Danchen controlled his strength and roared. Bringing with him the power of the Divine Martial Possession, he charged at Long Chen!


    After Long Chen saw the hint of fear in his fierceness, he knew that the Blood Devouring Domain was affecting his absorption of the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power.


    He was delighted. He was going topletely suppress Zhao Danchen today.


    However, he did not dare act carelessly. Zhao Danchen waspletely immersed in a manic rage. Long Chen concentrated the Blood Devouring Domain on Zhao Danchen¡¯s body!


    ¡°Yellow Martial Seal!¡± A golden martial(Îä) character, which was many timesrger than before, shot at Long Chen!The martial character was like a golden mountain, bringing with it enough force to tten Martial Overlord City¡¯s walls!


    The golden light radiating from the martial character pierced through Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain and shone outwards!


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze darkened and he unleashed the Nine Heavens Strike, which was the third stage of the Soul Dispersing Dragon w. It collided with the Yellow Martial Seal. This time, he was thrown back from the impact. Despite the suppression from the Blood Devouring Domain, Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack hit Long Chen so hard that his blood boiled!


    Long Chen had finally lost an exchange!


    Zhao Danchenughed like a madman. If Long Chen was not even a match for his Yellow Martial Seal, it meant that he was out of tricks. He had already seen all of Long Chen¡¯s techniques!


    He was now certain that he could kill Long Chen.


    When the crowd heard Zhao Danchen¡¯sughter, they knew that with Divine Martial Possession, Long Chen was clearly no match for Zhao Danchen. Although they felt it was a pity, this could not be helped. Zhao Danchen had the Martial Overlord Ring after all.


    If they had relied on purely their own strength, Zhao Danchen surely would have lost to Long Chen.


    If Long Chen lost in the end, it would be considered a dignified defeat.


    <em>This is the most terrifying, most difficult opponent I have ever met in my life. Therefore, I should give him the best treatment ¡­ </em>Zhao Danchen¡¯s crazed sneer was getting closer to Long Chen.


    Despite the terrifying pressure, Long Chen¡¯s face did not change.


    <em>Is he about to use the Martial Overlord Seal?</em>


    Long Chen guessed it when he saw the golden light pouring out of his opponent.


    The Martial Overlord Seal was indeed a very powerful attack; Long Chen understood this when he first saw Zhao Wuji using it. The Martial Overlord Seal Zhao Danchen unleashed with the help of the Martial Overlord Ring was identical in power to the one Zhao Wuji used!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    More violent Qi surged within Zhao Danchen¡¯s body. and blinding. golden lightpletely covered him. He was certain to kill Long Chen right now!


    This was his first time using the Martial Overlord Seal, so Zhao Danchen was overwhelmed with emotion!


    ¡°Long Chen, you should be proud to be killed by my first ever Martial Overlord Seal!¡± Zhao Danchen¡¯s hands formed seals vigorously. Power poured into his body from the Martial Overlord Ring, then out of his palms to form the Martial Overlord Seal!


    Behind Zhao Danchen, a gigantic silhouette of a golden war god appeared. The golden god was wearing golden armor, making him look magnificent. He was covered in golden runes, making him look like a magnified version of Zhao Danchen!


    Immense power radiated from the golden war god!


    Long Chen squinted when he sensed the immense power. He had to admit that Zhao Danchen was very powerful now and could even kill the average Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator!


    Just like how Zhao Wuji had almost killed Feng Xuan!


    The Martial Overlord Ring contained the power generously left behind by countless Martial Overlords!


    ¡°Die!¡± Zhao Danchen looked crazy. He pushed the Martial Overlord Seal out, and the golden war god concentrated into his hand seal. It was aimed in Long Chen¡¯s direction!


    This earth-shattering palm seal almostpletely dispersed Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain. This showed how powerful the Martial Overlord Seal was after a huge portion of the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power had been used!


    All of Martial Overlord City rumbled from the Martial Overlord Seal!


    Everyone was terrified at Zhao Danchen¡¯s power. They sensed that Zhao Danchen was almost a peerless existence from today onwards. He was surely the most terrifying person in the Divine Martial Empire, and under his rule, the empire would enter a new era!


    The only person without fear was Long Chen.


    He watched calmly as Zhao Danchen released the Martial Overlord Seal that brought along a huge surge of power.


    ¡°It¡¯s time to end it all.¡±


    Long Chen did something different from Zhao Danchen¡ªhe merely used one hand to form a seal. Although it was also a seal technique, Long Chen¡¯s seal looked much simpler. As his hand moved, a small, gray ball appeared on his palm!


    ¡°What is Long Chen doing? Is he too shocked by Zhao Danchen¡¯s attack? Why isn¡¯t he retaliating?¡± This was the question that popped into many minds because Long Chen did not even attempt to dodge.


    In the next second, they saw Long Chen wave the hand behind his back. He released his hand seal, and a gray shadow shot wards the approaching Martial Overlord Seal!


    The hand seal made up of a small ball of gray gas sent chills through the crowd. They saw a dead world and a gigantic, world-epassing gray palm inside the small seal!


    ¡°What is that?¡± Zhao Danchen also sensed how terrifying it was! This was much scarier than his own attack. Zhao Danchen wasn¡¯t using his own power after all; he was using the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power!


    When that thought formed in Zhao Danchen¡¯s head, Long Chen¡¯s hand gesture changed. The gigantic palm within the gray ball suddenly broke free from its world, turning into a gray palm that covered the sun and the sky!


    Deathly Qi surrounded it, and it radiated a chilling aura.


    The gray palm appeared in Zhao Danchen¡¯s field of vision, then in the next moment, it collided with the Martial Overlord Seal!


    The crowd¡¯s eyes widened as they watched the final sh!


    To their shock, the dramatic collision they imagined did not happen. After the two attacks made contact, the gray palm turned into a gas that enveloped the golden war god, letting out a sizzling sound. Zhao Danchen¡¯s Martial Overlord Seal was being corroded by Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal!


    This was how powerful the Deste Divine Seal was!


    The gray palm mmed into the golden war god. The golden war god disappeared bit by bit, and the huge power that came with it was also dispersed by the gray palm!


    The corrosive power of the Deste Divine Seal far exceeded Zhao Danchen¡¯s Martial Overlord Seal! Within a short time, the projection of the golden war god hadpletely disappeared!


    ¡°How is that possible?!¡± Zhao Danchen had spent all his energy on that attack, yet it had done no damage. Furthermore, Long Chen¡¯s bizarre hand seal had turned his Martial Overlord Seal into a ball of deathly Qi!


    The gray palm flew toward Zhao Danchen with terrifying speed, leaving him in disbelief!


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Zhao Danchen had ced high hopes on the Martial Overlord Seal, but it had disappeared just like that. He could not even react to this. Zhao Danchen had killed Zhao Wuji because he wanted the Martial Overlord Ring and the Martial Overlord Seal! He thought he was a peerless existence now, but Long Chen had only had to use one move to destroy his best attack!


    The Golden Eye of Annihtion shot out in a blinding ray, shooting through Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal. Two rays of golden light shot up into the sky!


    But that did not block the Deste Divine Seal at all. To Zhao Danchen¡¯s shock, the gray palm mmed into him and then a terrifying, gray gas burned his body, making a frightening sizzling sound!


    Zhao Danchen let out an earth-shattering scream!


    <em>Boom! Boom! Boom!</em>


    Zhao Danchen punched frantically again and again, wanting to break Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal. Unfortunately, it could not be broken so easily. The punches only partially dispersed the Deste Divine Seal!


    ¡°Nine Heavens Strike!¡± At thest moment, Long Chen rushed into the attack range of the Deste Divine Seal, then he swung his w at Zhao Danchen¡¯s neck. He shed the screaming Zhao Danchen¡¯s neck nine times, and all of themnded on the same spot!


    After the first time, Zhao Danchen¡¯s bloodshot eyes popped out as he looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction in disbelief. He had already lost the ability to fight back!


    Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal hadpletely swallowed his body and was corroding it quickly. Long Chen took this chance to snatch Zhao Danchen¡¯s Universe Pouch. Hisst sh cut Zhao Danchen¡¯s head off!


    His Golden Combat Body was useless now!


    The Deste Divine Seal was the strongest technique of its tier because it used deathly Qi to corrode life itself! Once the seal wrapped around Zhao Danchen, he had no possibility of living; plus, Long Chen had cut his head off!

 Chapter 688: White Bones

    Finally, the Deste Divine Seal dispersed!


    To everyone¡¯s shock, Zhao Danchen¡¯s body had turned into a withered skeleton standing stiffly outside Martial Overlord City. He did not copse, despite being dead.


    Long Chen stood next to him, looking like he had sustained no damage at all.


    Zhao Danchen was nothing but a skeleton, so he was certainly dead.


    This meant that Long Chen hadpletely defeated him!


    He was the strongest person in the Divine Martial Empire!


    As for Feng Xuan, she was not from the Divine Martial Empire!


    Zhao Danchen was dead? Many people could not ept this result, especially the ones who were loyally protecting the Martial Overlord¡¯s lineage in the inner city. This meant that the leadership of the Martial Overlord and the Martial Alliance hadpletely disappeared! Everything had suddenly changed!


    The crowd¡¯s hearts were filled with shock as they stared at the teenager at the center of the battlefield. It was aplicated feeling. Just like when Zhao Wuji died, it would take a long time for many people to believe Zhao Danchen was dead!Previously, everyone assumed that Long Chen would die from Zhao Danchen¡¯s Martial Overlord Seal. But after a short time, Long Chen had turned the tables and won, even killing Zhao Danchen.


    This was earth-shattering news!


    ¡°Long Chen killed the Martial Overlord Zhao Danchen ¡­¡±


    ¡°Heavens! What¡¯s going on with the Divine Martial Empire? These prodigies are getting more and more inhuman ¡­¡±


    ¡°Especially Long Chen. I thought he was the most talented person after Zhao Wuji, but actually, he was the most talented person of all. Zhao Danchen used the Martial Overlord Ring¡¯s power, but still wasn¡¯t a match for him!¡±


    ¡°If Long Chen bes the leader of the Divine Martial Empire, there will be no limits to what he can achieve. However, wouldn¡¯t that mean the Martial Alliance will copse?¡±


    The copse of the Martial Alliance represented many opportunities for them. Many people were already thinking about how they could snag a position for themselves in Martial Overlord City during the chaos.


    The people in the most pain and confusion were the Martial Alliance members, especially those in the inner city. It meant that their lives were going to change dramatically!


    After Zhao Danchen¡¯s death, the Martial Alliance would surely cease to exist. The Third Earthly Martial Stage Xiao Lin remained, but how could he have the right to control the whole Divine Martial Empire?


    Everyone looked at Xiao Lin!


    This old man had been loyal to the Martial Alliance for a long time. Not only did Zhao Wuji take him seriously, Zhao Danchen hadn¡¯t killed him either. This meant that Xiao Lin had many strengths. Most importantly, he was wise enough to recognize what needed to be done.


    Of course, Long Chen did not care about them. After he killed Zhao Danchen, he first sighed in relief. Zhao Danchen was dead and he had Zhao Danchen¡¯s Universe Pouch in his hand. This was very important to him, so he quickly opened it.


    Just as he expected, a person like Zhao Danchen would keep the Red and Golden Emperor Seals in the ce he thought was the safest, which was close to himself. There was a huge sum of King Crystals, essentials, the Red and Golden Emperor Seals, and the Ancient Demon g in the pouch.


    The Five Emperor Seals were finally together.


    Long Chen was overjoyed.


    The Five Emperor Seals were rted to an Emperor-tierbat technique. If even the advanced King-tier Deste Divine Seal could be so powerful, then an Emperor-tierbat technique would be even better. If he could enter the Ancient Graveyard, then the Five Emperor Seals would be his trump card.


    Long Chen sighed in relief after killing Zhao Danchen.


    He had finallypleted one of the missions Long Yue and the rest had given him. Next, only Feng Xuan remained. That would be much easier.


    Now that he had gotten the Five Emperor Seals, cleaning up the mess was also important.


    After Zhao Danchen died, the Martial Alliance was left without a leader. Not just Martial Overlord City, but the whole Divine Martial Empire would descend into chaos!


    Long Chen did not want innocent people to die because of him, so he turned around and looked at the hundreds of thousands of people watching him. Long Chen¡¯s dignified gaze made him seemrger than the crowd!


    As his blood-red gaze swept across the people, everyone lowered their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.


    Long Chen was very scary to them.


    Finally, his eyes rested on Xiao Lin, who was surrounded by the crowd. The old man¡¯s hair was all white. When he saw Long Chen¡¯s blood-red eyes, he sensed that the teenager was much scarier than Zhao Danchen.


    He instinctively averted his gaze.


    Even Zhao Danchen was dead, so he was no match for Long Chen either. Previously, he had submitted because of Zhao Danchen¡¯s power. Now, if Long Chen requested it, Xiao Lin would do it again. Strength was king in this world. If Long Chen could kill Zhao Danchen, it proved that he had the right to earn Xiao Lin¡¯s submission.


    ¡°Martial Emperor Xiao ¡­¡± said Long Chen.


    Xiao Lin listened carefully.


    ¡°I will let you manage Martial Overlord City temporarily. In a few days, the Dragon n will officially move into Martial Overlord City and rece the Martial Alliance in ruling over the Divine Martial Empire. During these few days, I forbid any chaos or violence in Martial Overlord City. If I see something different from what I expect the next time Ie here, I¡¯m taking your life, Xiao Lin.¡±


    Xiao Lin looked down without speaking.


    In the beginning, a portion of the Martial Alliance members looked furious. But when they saw no one reacting, they felt resigned and epted reality. They could only lower their heads.


    This was humiliating, but they could not fight back!


    The enemy was just too strong for them!


    Long Chen paused, then he continued, ¡°The Divine Martial Empire will be handed over to my siblings in the Dragon n! Of course, if anyone in the Martial Alliance is willing to pledge loyalty to the Dragon n, you are wee to join, including you, Xiao Lin! Watch over Martial Overlord City for a few days, and I will surely treat you well in the future!¡±


    To be honest, Long Chen¡¯s offer was tempting to many people who had lost hope in the Martial Alliance.


    Long Chen stopped talking.


    It was enough.


    Looking at Xiao Lin¡¯s expression, Long Chen could tell that he would follow his instructions and manage the city well while waiting for the Dragon n to arrive. As for the other cities, after news of Zhao Danchen¡¯s death spread, the Red Souls would manage them.


    The whole Divine Martial Empire was slowly changing to a new dynasty.


    ¡°I understand!¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s voice traveled from the walls of Martial Overlord City. Long Chen looked at him from afar and saw a look of submission.


    He knew that as long as Long Chen was still in the Divine Martial Empire, he had to listen to Long Chen, or he would never escape him. Xiao Lin was not young, and he had tens of people in his family. They were all in Martial Overlord City, so he could not run anywhere.


    A portion of the people privately cursed Xiao Lin for being a coward, as he was surrendering to Long Chen. However, no one dared say it out loud, since they wanted to live.


    Plus, Zhao Danchen had not taken root in their hearts either.


    Long Chen had taken control of the whole Divine Martial Empire with merely a few sentences.


    He then turned to leave, leaving behind the skeleton behind. Everyone looked at the still-standing skeleton and felt chills.


    The northern wind blew and brought with it the smell of blood. ¡°Martial King Chen, bury the bones somewhere. It¡¯s an eyesore,¡± Xiao Linmanded with furrowed brows.


    ***


    After leaving the Divine Martial Empire, Long Chen let Liu Yiyi out. There were many things they had not discussed, so Liu Yiyi had been panicking in the Primordial Realm. Her eyes were swollen from crying.


    They were in a lush forest. When she emerged and saw her surroundings and the unharmed Long Chen, she was overjoyed. She felt like she had a brush with death and really wanted to hug him. However, she recalled their rtionship and had to hold herself back.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­ are you alright? What happened to Zhao Danchen?¡± she asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you tell? I¡¯m alive and well. As for that evil Zhao Danchen, I¡¯ve turned him into a pile of bones. Doesn¡¯t it feel satisfying?¡± Long Chen smiled and stretched.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen is dead?¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s eyes lit up, then she smiled bitterly. ¡°You must be lying to me again. He¡¯s at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage and has the Martial Overlord Ring. He¡¯s almost at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage already. How could you beat him and get away unharmed?¡±


    ¡°You can go ask around, then you¡¯ll understand.¡± Long Chen knew that it was a bit unbelievable. Zhao Danchen was indeed very strong.


    ¡°Really?¡± Liu Yiyi realized that he was not lying. She looked at him in shock and felt a deep sense of gratitude.


    ¡°Thank you ¡­ You saved me again ¡­¡± Liu Yiyi said stiffly.


    The rtionship between her and Long Chen was indeedplicated. She initially wanted to get out and clear her mind to forget him. In the end, this happened.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I already wanted to kill Zhao Danchen, and coincidentally, I saved you too. I¡¯ll take you back to the Battle n. Second Brother must be very worried since you haven¡¯t been back in so long.¡±


    ¡°I get it, Seventh Uncle!¡± Liu Yiyi clenched her teeth and let go of the puppy love. She suddenly had a revtion when she looked at him.


    She had never even entered his heart¡ªit was just a one-sided affair. If she behaved in an extreme manner, Long Chen could even stay away from her forever. So, why not just be good friends? That way, she would still have a chance to see him, and she was content with that.

 Chapter 689: Final Battle

    ¡°I¡¯m your Seventh Uncle now?¡± Long Chen was speechless.


    That was actually correct. Long Chen referred to Jiang Wuya as ¡®Second Brother,¡¯ and Liu Yiyi was Jiang Wuya¡¯s daughter.


    But it was very awkward to have someone of the same age address him as ¡®uncle.¡¯


    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s go back to the Battle n.¡± When Long Chen saw Liu Yiyi returning to her happy self, he knew that her mindset had changed. This was a good thing.


    It was not that she was not a good person. He just had his own goals, and he did not want to be an irresponsible man who gave jerk promises he could never fulfill. How would he be different from Zhao Danchen if he did that?


    He was doing it all for Liu Yiyi¡¯s good.


    Ling Xi was waiting for him, and she may have been suffering. The moment he thought about her, he felt like countless ants were crawling on his heart.


    They both moved in the Battle n¡¯s direction.


    ¡°Yiyi, wait ¡­¡± Long Chen suddenly stopped. He wanted to go, but he suddenly remembered something.¡°What is it?¡± Liu Yiyi¡¯s innocent face had the reflection of moisture.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve given you a present yet. Although it¡¯s a bit ugly, it¡¯s enough to protect you.¡± Long Chen took out the small Ancient Demon g from the Primordial realm.


    When he left Martial Overlord City, he had taken the Ancient Demon g for himself, and using it was very easy. Previously, Zhao Danchen was able to use the Ancient Demon g the moment he snatched it, so it made sense that Long Chen could too. He summoned the Ancient Demon Corpse. Although it was very strong and may be useful to Long Chen, he thought it would be better to give it to Liu Yiyi to ensure her safety. This was thest thing he could do for her.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this the ¡­ Ancient Demon g?¡± She covered her mouth in surprise.


    ¡°No way, Long Chen! That¡¯s too valuable. I can¡¯t ept it ¡­¡± She did not care about the Ancient Demon Corpse being ugly. She just felt like it would be very important to Long Chen.


    Long Chen shook his head and said, ¡°I beat Zhao Danchen with my own hands. The Ancient Demon Corpse is useless to me. Take it. In the future, when I leave, let him protect you in my ce. If my siblings are in danger, help them. Your father is part of the Dragon n after all. Let me teach you how to use the Ancient Demon g.¡±


    He spoke with determination. Although she was not willing to ept it, she could not convince Long Chen otherwise. Plus, she felt a sweetness in her heart when she thought about how he was thinking about her safety.


    Therefore, Liu Yiyi learned how to control the Ancient Demon Corpse. If she used it well, she would be the equivalent of the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    Long Shan was the only member of the Dragon n that had thebat abilities of a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, but he was very old and did not have much time left. It was a good thing for Liu Yiyi¡¯s Ancient Demon Corpse to manage the situation until other people reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage.


    After giving quite a few instructions, Long Chen realized that he could finally leave the Divine Martial Empire and embark on his long journey with peace of mind!


    What would the future be like?


    How many people would find their way into his life? How many people would die by his hand?


    These were all unknowns.


    Just as he was prepared to return, a strange phenomenon happened. There was a deep rumble from far away. Long Chen quickly looked up at the sky. To his shock, part of the western sky had turned red.


    ¡°Long Chen, isn¡¯t that a sign that the Ancient Token will appear?¡± Liu Yiyi said hurriedly, as she had heard about it.


    Long Chen nodded with surprise. ¡°I think so. I didn¡¯t think the Ancient Token would appear now. After the red light, the Ancient Token may appear at any time. Based on the direction, it should be on the Immortal Sea¡¯s side. The Huangfu n is close to the Immortal Sea, so once Feng Xuan sees this strange phenomenon, she will surely rush over. I cannot be slower than her ¡­¡±


    ¡°You go. I will inform my father and the rest so they can go take over the Divine Martial Empire, and move our base to Martial Overlord City,¡± Liu Yiyi said conscientiously.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said without hesitation, ¡°I¡¯ll go, then.¡±


    ¡°Mhm. Be careful. Staying alive is the priority. If you can¡¯t get it, leave it. There will be more in the future.¡± There was concern in Liu Yiyi¡¯s sparkling eyes.


    ¡°This is my only chance,¡± he said, clenching his teeth. ¡°I¡¯m going!¡± Long Chen turned into a gust of wind, quickly disappearing from her sight.


    ¡°Be ¡­¡± As she watched him disappear, she swallowed the word ¡°careful¡± back down resignedly. Her eyes were still fixed in the direction he had gone towards. After a long time, she wiped away a single tear.


    ***


    Long Chen felt assured handing over the matters of the Divine Martial Empire to Long Yue and the others. With Long Shan and the Ancient Demon Corpse, as well as two Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivators, he believed they could easily control the whole empire. As long as Feng Xuan left, the Huangfu n would easily return to Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s hands.


    Of course, Long Chen¡¯s help was also very important.


    His fight would be the most critical!


    Feng Xuan was surely more difficult to deal with than Zhao Danchen!


    ¡°Whether or not I get to go to the Ancient Graveyard will depend on my sess this round. Feng Xuan must have arrived at the Immortal Sea by now.¡±


    He had guessed it correctly. As he neared the Immortal Sea, he could faintly sense that the Ancient Token was appearing there, where he had been before!


    The endless, white sea of mist had turnedpletely red, so it was more apt to call it a red sea of mist instead of white.


    Long Chen traveled as fast as he could to the center of the Immortal Sea. The sea of mist in the sky was now a bloody sea with red light flowing through, making it look terrifying.


    ¡°It¡¯s up there.¡± Then he flew up into the sky, towards Sky Isle. He had a feeling that the Ancient Token was near it.


    At the same time, he activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    If Feng Xuan appeared within five hundred meters of him, Long Chen would find her. The most important thing this time was not finding the Ancient Token, but killing Feng Xuan!


    Once she was dead, then the Ancient Token would belong to him. If she wasn¡¯t dead, he would not be able to live in peace even if he got the Ancient Token. This was because if Feng Xuan couldn¡¯t find Long Chen, she could go kill his siblings. And would Long Chen ever let such a thing happen?


    In short, either she or Long Chen had to die today!


    Not even half a day had passed since his battle against Zhao Danchen.


    Thankfully, he had shocking healing abilities, so he had almost recovered to his peak state.


    Furthermore, he had even more confidence in this battle than the previous one!


    The closer he got to Sky Isle, the redder his surroundings became. After the phenomenon began, all the birds and beasts of the Immortal Sea became strangely ufortable. They cried out all constantly and flew erratically. After the Heavenly Phoenix died, they had lost their protector and became timid.


    Flocks of avian-type beasts flew in a panicked manner as if they were in a storm.


    Long Chen activated his Dragon Soul Transformation and released his powerful aura. The birds were familiar with his aura, recognizing him as the person who had killed the Heavenly Phoenix. That was why when they encountered him, they quickly flew away at top speed.


    Very soon, he spotted Sky Isle.


    <em>It¡¯s too bad that I don¡¯t have much time, or I would have looked at the Five Emperor Seals first. Maybe fighting Feng Xuan would be easier that way, </em>Long Chen thought to himself as hended on Sky Isle.


    <em>But even the Deste Divine Seal was so difficult to cultivate. It might take me a month or two to master the Five Emperor Seals. If I can kill that bitch Feng Xuan, I¡¯ll try it out. I want to see what secrets the Five Emperor Seals hold!</em>


    With that thought, he pushed the Five Emperor Seals out of his mind.


    He walked through the isle, carefully observing his surroundings. He soon appeared at the square he previously arrived at, and when he approached, he squinted because he had spotted Feng Xuan with the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    He deactivated it, then charged forward for a while. He could already see her curvy figure standing in front of the tombstone where heprehended the Deste Divine Seal.


    <em>Did she also notice the mysteriousness of the tombstone? </em>Long Chen was privately surprised.


    Very soon, he was ten meters behind her.


    Feng Xuan turned around abruptly. She was not wearing a white veil on her face this time. Her face had a light blush, and she radiated a seductive aura.


    When she saw that it was Long Chen, she smiled, as if meeting a friend she had not seen in a long time. ¡°Long Chen, you came?¡±


    Long Chen did not dare let his guard down before this cunning woman. He calmed down and said coldly, ¡°Either you or I will die today. Do we still need to talk nonsense?¡±


    When she heard him, she giggled and said, ¡°You really aren¡¯t likable at all, you know? What conflict is there between us? What happened in the past were just minor issues. As they say, you make friends through a fight.¡±


    ¡°What are you trying to say?¡± Long Chen furrowed his brows.


    When Feng Xuan saw that Long Chen was not affected by her, her expression cooled and she said, ¡°I can see that you¡¯re an impressive prodigy. It would be a pity if you just died here. You¡¯re young, so why do you want to fight me for the Ancient Token? You will have many more chances to enter the Ancient Graveyard, but I only have this chance. Go back now, and once I seed, I will help you defeat Zhao Danchen. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Zhao Danchen is dead. I just killed him!¡± he replied immediately.

 Chapter 690: Battling Feng Xuan

    ¡°Dead?¡± Feng Xuan looked at him with surprise. She could tell that Long Chen wasn¡¯t the type to lie. Based on his cold and stern re, Feng Xuan sensed that it was true.


    ¡°He has many things, making him as strong as Zhao Wuji. Yet he died by your hand?¡± Feng Xuan had to reevaluate Long Chen with fresh eyes.


    Zhao Danchen was a scumbag. A true scumbag with madness in his personality. But Long Chen was different¡ªhe had the qualities of both a wolf and a venomous snake. Compared to Zhao Danchen, who was like a fierce tiger who used brute force, Long Chen was much scarier.


    Long Chen did not answer Feng Xuan. If this woman suddenly asked him to leave, she surely had her reasons. He smirked and said, ¡°Tell me the truth. Did you notice something strange with this tombstone? Are you nning to study it? You¡¯re worried I¡¯ll disturb you, so you¡¯re asking me to leave?¡±


    ¡°You also know that this tombstone has a secret?¡± Feng Xuan was even more surprised. Long Chen was right¡ªshe had been studying the tombstone intently but was interrupted. She also knew that killing Long Chen would require a huge amount of effort, so she wanted to continue dying their battle.


    But Long Chen saw through it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know? There used to be a Heavenly Phoenix here.¡±


    ¡°And then?¡±


    ¡°I killed it.¡±¡°You killed it too?¡± Feng Xuan found him to be more and more mysterious.


    She faintly remembered that when they first met, Long Chen did not possess the strength to defeat her and was forced to run away. But it had barely been two months. She suddenly realized that he was actually the most terrifying person in the Divine Martial Empire. Long Shan, Zhao Danchen, and Zhao Wuji were all iparable to Long Chen.


    He could suppress his anger, was young, patient, calm, and decisive with killing. These were all good qualities forged from his long journey of cultivation!


    ¡°So does that mean that you¡¯ve learned thebat technique hiding in the tombstone?¡± Feng Xuan¡¯s expression gradually turned cold.


    ¡°Do you usually talk so much nonsense?¡± Long Chen grinned.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Killing intent appeared in her eyes. No matter how patient she was, when she faced Long Chen, she could not wait any longer.


    ¡°In that case, there¡¯s nothing else for me to say. If I eliminate you, the Ancient Token shall be mine. And thisbat technique will also be mine ¡­¡± Feng Xuan had always liked young juniors with great potential such as Zhao Danchen and Huangfu Yu. However, Long Chen, who used to be not outstanding at all, made her feel fear!


    ¡°Same. If I kill you, everything will belong to me, Long Chen!¡± Long Chen said with a smirk. He paused, then he continued, ¡°Do you still remember when Xiang and I attacked you? When I was far weaker than you? Let me show you the power of us brothers today!¡±


    ¡°Xiang?¡±


    While Feng Xuan was puzzled, ck mes sprayed out of Long Chen¡¯s chest. They twisted quickly around Long Chen like a storm, soon blocking out the sun!


    mes usually represented high temperatures, but these ck mes were the opposite. Feng Xuan sensed that the surrounding temperatures were falling to extreme lows!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    The ck mes dispersed and a pitch-ck demonic wolf appeared by Long Chen¡¯s side. The wolf was muscr, with sharp teeth and ws. It was burning with ck mes, and two deep and cold mes reced its pupils. This made the demonic wolf look like it hade out of hell. Compared to Long Chen, it was even colder and more frightening!


    Very soon, the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s body shrank down to the size of a horse. Although doing this decreased his strength, Xiao Laang gained a lot of speed!


    ¡°Category Four King-tier!¡± Long Chen discovered that after refining the demonic core of the Heavenly Phoenix, Xiang had sessfully reached the Category Four King-tier. Xiang had gained a lot from the ancient Phoenix blood in the demonic core. It was even more beneficial than some of the Category Five King-tier beasts!


    Previously, the two brothers were pathetic before Feng Xuan. Now it was time to wash away their humiliation!


    A human and a wolf. One on the left and the other on the right. One with blood-red eyes and a violent aura scarier than the Ancient Demon Corpse. The other with a dark and cold gaze. Both of them were powerful and radiated strength that shocked Feng Xuan!


    She furrowed her brows, slowly sensing that this was going to be a difficult battle!


    ¡°Does this mean you want me to fight?¡± Feng Xuan asked coldly. A cold breeze asionally blew in Sky Isle. Her long dress billowed in the wind, revealing her fair legs. She did not look like a woman in her thirties at all.


    Long Chen and Xiang looked at each other.


    This was the start of a fiery, passionate battle.


    Long Chen still remembered that this terrible woman had almost killed Huangfu Qi, and if he had not risked his life to go to the Immortal Sea, the child wouldn¡¯t have survived. She was willing to kill a young girl like Huangfu Qi just to make herself stronger. It showed just how evil Feng Xuan was!


    ¡°Since you killed Zhao Danchen, it means you have the right to fight me too!¡± Feng Xuan said with a cold smirk.


    Long Chen and Xiang charged at Feng Xuan at the same time from the left and right. Although their attacks looked chaotic, they were working together seamlessly!


    When she saw them charging at her, her expression soured!


    <em>Two unlikeable brats! Don¡¯t me me for this, then ¡­ </em>This ignited rage within her. Feng Xuan also moved quickly, using a bodybat technique simr to Willow Step.


    Long Chen did not dare let his guard down in the face of a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator! He chose a strong offensive strategy with Xiang, where they would overwhelm Feng Xuan in the shortest time possible!


    When he was near her, he immediately used his most powerful technique, the Blood Devouring Domain, which spread out across the area. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, only Feng Xuan was influenced while Xiang remained safe!


    Blood-red mist spread across the whole square. This was Feng Xuan¡¯s first time seeing him use this divine technique. Just like his other opponents, the huge sucking force acted on her body. Despite her Fifth Earthly Martial Stage essence, she was not immune to this force at all!


    <em>What the hell is this? A domain-type divine technique? Or a domain from the Heavenly Martial Realm? He¡¯s only at the Earthly Martial Realm, so he surely doesn¡¯t have the Heavenly Martial Realm¡¯s domain. Then it must be a divine technique. But how could a regr divine technique be this powerful? </em>Feng Xuan spent twenty percent of her essence just to keep her boiling blood under control. She could not use this portion at all, or her blood would go out of control and start moving erratically through her body. And if she used a powerful technique that required her essence, it would causeplications!


    The formation of the Blood Devouring Domain shocked her from the beginning.


    Then Xiang charged as fast as he could and arrived in front of her instantly. Cold Nine Devils Ancestral Fire burned on his four limbs and teeth, and he pounced on her. His sharp teeth and ws glinted with a chilling light!


    Demonic beasts had great physical strength. Some people were not as strong as beasts despite having cultivated strong body tempering techniques. Furthermore, Xiang was a Category Four King-tier beast, so he was stronger than the Heavenly Phoenix!


    What made him even more terrifying was the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire on his ws!


    ¡°What kind of fire is that?!¡± Feng Xuan was shocked again. She had seen this fire once before and was very well aware of how scary it could be. That was why she did not face it directly and used a technique that turned herself into an illusion. She brushed past Xiang, causing him tond on nothing!


    By this point, Long Chen had already rushed up to Feng Xuan and leaped forward. He flew like a sharp de into Feng Xuan¡¯s defensive range!


    ¡°Wind God Style!¡± This was the most powerful move of the Wind God Kick. Long Chen¡¯s endless kicks flew like a storm. Even though Feng Xuan had powerful attacks, it was difficult to use them when she was restricted by the Blood Devouring Domain, so she was forced back consecutively by his kicks!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    After Xiang¡¯s first miss, he turned abruptly and pounced on Feng Xuan again. Demonic beasts had their ownbat techniques, and he was no exception. The Sun Devouring Wolf possessed great strength, so every swipe and pounce was as powerful as abat technique!


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Feng Xuan was furious to be forced back like this at the start of the fight! When the duo surrounded and attacked her, she suddenly spun!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡± This was Feng Xuan¡¯s most mysterious technique. A storm blew around her, and three thousand illusions were released. Long Chen and Xiang were blown backwards!


    Then the storm materialized into more than three thousand humanoid figures that looked like they were made of the wind and could disperse at any time.


    But they did not disperse.


    The three thousand illusions were her three thousand clones. Under her control, the dense crowd of illusory figures swarmed at Xiang only, as if she wanted to separate herself from him. After they sessfully surrounded him, she looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°You brat, it¡¯s your turn to die!¡±


    As she spoke, a powerful gust of wind blew around her.


    Long Chen squinted.


    Feng Xuan was no idiot, so she knew to use the Three Thousand Illusions against Xiang. However, Long Chen was not worried. The illusions could not trap Xiang now, as the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire would make short work of them!

 Chapter 691: Turning The Tides

    Feng Xuan could create more of the Three Thousand Illusions, of course, but they required essence. Twenty percent of her essence was restricted due to Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain, so how could she have extra capacity to create more?


    ¡°Are we the only ones left now?¡± Feng Xuan used a bodybat technique to quickly swoop at Long Chen. If it was only Long Chen, she was not afraid at all. She was only apprehensive about the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    ¡°So what if it¡¯s just us?¡± Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain surrounded them.


    ¡°If it¡¯s just the two of us, you will die!¡± Feng Xuan¡¯s expression was filled with malice!


    Long Chen did not like her, and vice versa. She also knew that the Three Thousand Illusions could not trap Xiang for a long time, so her only solution was to kill Long Chen as soon as possible!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusory Palms!¡± Countless illusory palms flew at Long Chen, bringing with them immense power. They were made of wind, and the wind roared as they flew at Long Chen!


    The Three Thousand Palms was simr to the Three Thousand Illusions, but it was a direct attack, so it had apletely different effect!


    ¡°Willow Step ¡­¡± Facing the dense palms, Long Chen confidently used Willow Step. He had mastered it to the fullest, even better than Feng Xuan when she used her own bodybat technique. The countless palms could only blow Long Chen here and there, unable to touch him!


    <em>This brat¡¯s ability toprehend techniques is insane. Someone like that must not be left alive! </em>There was a sh of brutal resolution in her eyes.Two more illusory des appeared in her hands!


    These des were formed from fast-flowing wind. They were like real des, but even more frightening. A whistling sound came from the des, and countless blinding glints appeared on them along with flowing air.


    When she gripped the des, it looked like she was controlling countless de glints!


    ¡°You dodged my Three Thousand Illusory Palms using a bodybat technique; to be honest, I¡¯m quite impressed. However, will you be able to dodge this too?¡± Feng Xuan let out a maliciousugh and swooped at Long Chen abruptly. She brought with her a powerful gust of power and then threw both the des!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    The two des turned into countless wind des!


    The countless des made up of wind flew countless times faster than the Three Thousand Illusory Palms. Previously, Long Chen could dodge using the Willow Step, but it was uncertain whether he could do the same in the face of endless wind des!


    ¡°Wind n Technique, Typhoon des!¡±


    Just like its name, these were des made from typhoon winds!


    <em>The Wind n is the ruler of the Heavenly Wind Empire, which is countless times stronger than the Divine Martial Empire. Even theirbat techniques are frightening ¡­ </em>Long Chen was privately shocked.


    But he was not shaken!


    Twenty percent of her essence was being suppressed by his Blood Devouring Domain, or her attacks would have been worse!


    Long Chen¡¯s mind raced. As he looked at the smug Feng Xuan, he suddenly had an idea.


    He decided to use his old strategy, which had always seeded so far. If he did not have this technique, he would not have been able to beat Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Nine Heavens Strike!¡± His de-like ws turned into nine dragons, which flew at the illusory des! Vigorous crackling and popping sounds could be heard everywhere as his ws and the wind des collided. His Nine Heavens Strike was fully capable of dispersing the Typhoon des, but their numbers far surpassed his imagination. By this point, Feng Xuan hadpletely stopped releasing the Three Thousand Illusions, focusing all her essence on forming Typhoon des!


    This made her intentions clear. She wanted to kill Long Chen first, then deal with Xiang!


    To her, Long Chen was a huge problem. If she killed him, she could finally be at peace!


    This teenager gave her a terrifying feeling!


    Countless wind des flew at Long Chen endlessly. Every de flew quickly, and within five breaths¡¯ time, Long Chen used the Nine Heavens Strike to disperse all of them!


    But Feng Xuan formed arge quantity of new wind des and shot them at him again!


    Having no choice, Long Chen released another powerful round of the Nine Heavens Strike. Within a short time, he released several rounds without holding back. If he did not, the des would chop him up to pieces!


    ¡°I want to see how much essence you have to fight against me!¡± Feng Xuanughed and released another round of Typhoon des! She divided her essence into three sections. Twenty percent was used to suppress the effects of the Blood Devouring Domain. Another portion was used to form the Three Thousand Illusions, while the rest was dedicated to kill Long Chen. Despite this, she still had a lot more essence left than Long Chen!


    As he continuously released Nine Heavens Strikes, just as Feng Xuan expected, his essence was quickly depleting. Fifteen breathster, he had used Nine Heavens Strikes five or six times. This intermediate King-tier technique was bringing him to the brink of exhaustion.


    But the Typhoon des never stopped.


    Feng Xuan saw that there was no chance for Long Chen to survive this!


    She sensed that his energy was getting weaker, showing that he was on the brink of exhaustion!


    ¡°Die!¡± Feng Xuan chuckled coldly, and two more Typhoon des appeared in her hands. She had spent almost all the essence she could spare on him. Almost all the Three Thousand Illusions behind her had been killed by Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire by now.


    <em>I need to kill this brat first. As for the demonic wolf, I need to see what special talents it has. If I can tame it, I will be another level stronger. Then I¡¯ll show the people in the Ancient Graveyard who¡¯s boss! </em>Feng Xuan thought excitedly to herself.


    She never let her guard down in front of the exhausted Long Chen. She used a bodybat technique to charge at him. Since the Typhoon des had not killed him, she had to add another attack!


    However, what she did not see was that despite being exhausted, Long Chen did not look panicked. When he saw thest wave of Typhoon des, the corners of his mouth curled up into a faint smile!


    It was a terrible feeling to use up his essence. Using his remaining essence, he unleashed the Nine Heavens Strike for thest time, though it was not aplete one. Halfway through, his attack was defeated and, just as Feng Xuan hoped, Long Chen let out a cry of despair. Then he was drowned by the Typhoon des!


    ¡°You¡¯re surely going to die now!¡± Feng Xuan grinned excitedly.


    On the other side, Xiang¡¯s gaze was dark. He knew Long Chen coulde up with ideas on the spot and surely would not let Feng Xuan win so easily. However, he was notpletely assured and was also furious. Xiang abandoned the remaining thousand illusory figures around him, ignoring the fact that their attacks werending on his body, and pounced on Feng Xuan!


    Xiang¡¯s furious roar confirmed Feng Xuan¡¯s deductions. She knew that Long Chen had to be chopped to pieces now. The Sun Devouring Wolf had ignored the Three Thousand Illusions and was attacking her. That was the best proof!


    Another sign that proved Long Chen¡¯s death was that the Blood Devouring Domain, which had been severely restricting her abilities, had disappeared. The space around them had regained visibility!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    The Sun Devouring Wolf was thirty meters away from Feng Xuan, expanding in size. He spat out all the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire he could control, and a ck flood of fire rushed at her like a tsunami!


    Feng Xuan felt a suffocating chill!


    Everything the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire touched turned into hard, ck ice. Even the illusions that were notpletely covered also shattered!


    Feng Xuan had never heard of such a frightening fire, but this solidified her determination to tame Xiang. But how would she know that a human soul was hidden in the Sun Devouring Wolf?


    <em>That¡¯s scary! </em>At this critical moment, all she could think of was to dodge it. Long Chen was dead, so it was time to focus on fighting Xiang. She refused to believe that Xiang could use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire an unlimited number of times!


    Wind was naturally fast. Out of the nine great ns, the Wind n was most famous for its speed. At least Feng Xuan was the fastest person in the Divine Martial Empire at the moment!


    She quickly backed away to preserve her own life!


    ¡°Darling, do you think you can burn me?¡± The Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was not as fast as Feng Xuan, so she knew she would not be in danger. She covered her mouth and giggled with a flirtatious look in her eyes. She recalled that she had not ever had a taste of demonic beast before. When Xiang turned into his human form, he was quite handsome. If she could tame him, wouldn¡¯t she live a good life?


    Feng Xuan was so happy, she was going crazy!


    That was when something unexpected happened!


    Feng Xuan suddenly sensed a terrifying aura close by, but when she noticed it, the gray deathly Qi was already covering her body!


    ¡°What is that?¡± The terrifying, gray aura was as frightening as the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. Feng Xuan had confirmed there was nothing behind her, so how had this gray aurae about?


    She was instantly filled with shock!

 Chapter 692: Birth of the Ancient Token

    Feng Xuan turned around furiously and was greeted with Long Chen¡¯s cold smirk. The person she thought was dead appeared in front of her, unharmed. His essence had not been exhausted at all¡ªhe had a lot left!


    ¡°You!¡± Feng Xuan turned pale instantly when she saw Long Chen¡¯s gray deathly Qi hand seal colliding with her chest!


    She let out an earth-shaking scream!


    Her gaze, which was still filled with joy from killing Long Chen, turned into extreme shock. His attack had been too sudden. Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was in front, and Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal was behind. Where could she run to?


    No one could bear such pain!


    Feng Xuan¡¯s face contorted. She desperately wanted to break free but had no strength!


    She looked at the calm Long Chen!


    <em>Why ¡­ isn¡¯t he dead yet?! </em>Even in the end, this question remained in Feng Xuan¡¯s mind.


    Her gaze was filled with despair.At the veryst moment, there was a sh in her eyes and an invisible seal quietly exited her forehead, entering Long Chen¡¯s arm. Long Chen was focused on her condition, so he did not notice this.


    Then the Nine Devils Ancestral Firended on her and fiercely burned her body. Very soon, the ck mes dispersed, leaving behind a hyper-realistic ck ice sculpture between Xiang and Long Chen!


    During thest round of Typhoon de attacks, Long Chen had used Rewindto survive the attacks and return his essence to its level ten breaths ago, when he had half his essence left.


    Rewind was an unbelievable divine technique that likely belonged to the Primordial Time Dragon. In itsplete state, it would be even more terrifying than the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s divine techniques. It would be like how Little Cat had previously used it, where the whole destroyed Baiyang Town could be returned to its original state.


    This proved that there was some basis to why Little Cat had said the Primordial Time Dragon was ranked above the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.


    About one day had passed since thest time he used Rewind, so it was just in time for Long Chen to use it again.


    This was a close call. Feng Xuan was a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage master, while Long Chen had only just reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage. He intended to work with Xiang, but they had been separated. If he had not taken huge risks, it would have been difficult to kill her.


    This battle had been both exciting and dangerous!


    Looking at the hyper-realistic ice sculpture of Feng Xuan, Long Chen slumped to the ground weakly. Thest round of Deste Divine Seal had exhausted almost all the essence in his body. However, he had finally killed Feng Xuan. This was unbelievable to him.


    Mo Xiang returned to his human form and came to his side. His side of the battle had been intense too, and his forehead was covered in sweat while he panted, looking as exhausted as Long Chen.


    ¡°Xiang, is it finally over? Have we really killed both Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan?¡± Long Chen asked in disbelief.


    ¡°Zhao Danchen¡¯s death had nothing to do with me. Elder Brother, have you been scared silly by that woman?¡± Mo Xiang grinned.


    He had not gone silly. It was just that the hopes of so many people were in his hands. Long Chen naturally cared very deeply, and even after he killed Feng Xuan, he felt like it was a dream.


    Especially when Feng Xuan¡¯s death meant the Ancient Token belonged to him.


    The affairs of the Divine Martial Empire had finallye to a close.


    To Long Chen, this was breaking free. He could embark on a new journey now. As long as he passed through the Ancient Graveyard, he could see Ling Xi!


    They had not met for more than a year now. There was a powerful, deep longing in his heart!


    ¡°Elder Brother, Zhao Danchen is dead and Feng Xuan too. The matters of the Divine Martial Empire are over now. If they knew about this, I think they would jump with joy.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°By this time, they should have taken over Martial Overlord City already. That old man Xiao Lin would not dare fight back.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve got to say goodbye,¡± said Xiang.


    ¡°Mhm. Of course. Everyone must separate eventually.¡±


    ¡°What about you and me?¡± Xiang said suddenly.


    Long Chen froze, then he grinned and said, ¡°First of all, I would like to say that I have no interest in guys at all. Second, I¡¯m telling you that we brothers will be together every lifetime, and we will fight alongside each other like we did today! Every enemy of ours will die like this old witch, haha!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not interested in guys either!¡± Mo Xiang gave a weak smile.


    Long Chen felt a weight lift.


    However, he could not rx when he thought about his future. Although the Ancient Graveyard was filled with opportunities, they co-existed with danger. That ce was countless times more dangerous than the Divine Martial Empire. Not only were there demonic beasts, but there were also natural disasters and countless enemies. That was arger challenge!


    ¡°Hey, brat. I want to tell you something,¡± Little Cat said suddenly from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen froze.


    ¡°When that woman died, she ced her bloodline¡¯s mark on your body. That bloodline mark belongs to her n, which is the Wind n. In the future, when her nsmen sense the mark on you, they will know that you killed one of them.¡±


    Long Chen was stunned.


    ¡°Where is it? Can I remove it?¡± Long Chen furrowed his brows.


    That was going to be troublesome. The Wind n would surely go to the Ancient Graveyard, and he did not want to be immediately killed by one of them.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have much power now, so I can¡¯t remove it. However, after seven thousand seven hundred and forty-nine days, the mark will disappear on its own. It depends on your luck.¡± Little Cat snickered, as if this was none of his business.


    ¡°Fuck!¡± Long Chen cursed, not knowing what to say.


    However, it had already happened, so dwelling on it was useless. He had to think about how to deal with the Wind n. If he was ready, he believed he would be fine.


    Next, he waited for the Ancient Token¡¯s birth.


    After Feng Xuan died, no one else in the Divine Martial Empire could fight Long Chen for the Ancient Token. He had spent a year crawling from the lowest rung to the peak of the Divine Martial Empire. Very few people could do the same.


    At the same time, Xiang had be a Category Four King-tier demonic beast, so he was quite powerful too.


    Of course, Xiang had only achieved this because of Long Chen. Without Long Chen, where would he get so many powerful treasures to consume?


    Bit by bit, time passed on Sky Isle.


    ¡°It¡¯s appearing!¡± Long Chen was meditating, but he suddenly stood up. After a day of rest, his body had recovered to its perfect state!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a loud boom in the sky, and the red sea of mist dispersed. The Immortal Sea, which had always been covered in white mist, suddenly became a vast expanse around Sky Isle. Long Chen could see a bright, blue sky!


    This should be impossible in the Immortal Sea, but Long Chen saw it.


    He saw something else that shocked him!


    ¡°Is that a mirage?¡± Long Chen stared at a point of the sky in a daze. There were blurry objects there, but he faintly saw a forest of tall and solemn tombstones. All sorts of tombstones were packed together, creating a magnificent scene. This forest of tombstones radiated an ancient but supernatural aura.


    The tombstones had only just appeared, but they were soon covered by gray mist and the ce turned into a patch of white. But that ancient scene was etched deeply in Long Chen¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Is that the battlefield of the Middle Ages? The Ancient Graveyard?¡± Long Chen muttered to himself.


    Then a gray ray of light appeared where the mirage was just now. The ray was traveling in Long Chen¡¯s direction. His eyes lit up and he quickly ran towards it!


    It was heading in the direction of Sky Isle. Mid-air, Long Chen intercepted the ray of light and grabbed it. He looked in his hand and saw a gray token. It was only the size of his palm, and he could not tell what it was made of, though it resembled rotten wood and did not seem special in any way. There were no symbols orbels on it either.


    ¡°Is this the Ancient Token?¡± There was confusion in his eyes.


    But it was certainly the Ancient Token.


    ¡°The stranger the object, the more mysterious it is. Now that I have the Ancient Token, how will I enter the Ancient Graveyard?¡± he asked himself.


    He flipped the token around several times but found nothing weird about it.


    ¡°Let me try injecting my essence into it.¡± He slowly injected his dragon soul essence into the Ancient Token, which suddenly lit up with gray light that shone into Long Chen¡¯s palm. Information flowed into his mind.


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard opens in one month!¡±

 Chapter 693: Celebratory Dinner

    ¡°It¡¯ll be next month, on this date. Which means I have thirty days left.¡± Long Chen sighed in relief.


    This meant that he had time to say goodbye to the others, and also study the Five Emperor Seals.


    Long Chen studied the Ancient Token for a while but did not find anything new with it, so he put it in the Primordial Realm. However, he found that something was stopping him.


    ¡°Little Cat, what¡¯s the matter with this? Is the Ancient Token refusing to let me keep it in the Primordial Realm?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Mhm. Someone did something to it so that it cannot be kept in a Universe Pouch. As for the Primordial Realm ¡­ It can store everything. A mere Ancient Token won¡¯t be a problem,¡± Little Cat saidzily.


    ¡°Someone did something to it? Who?¡± Long Chen gasped.


    An Ancient Token was the key needed for a person to enter the Ancient Graveyard. It had arrived in Long Chen¡¯s possession in an unbelievable manner, as if everything had been pre-arranged. He had instinctively thought that it was a natural phenomenon, but based on what Little Cat had said, it probably was not.


    Someone was surely controlling it in order to form such a coincidence. Who was behind it?


    ¡°How would I know the details? You¡¯re about to enter the game. If I told you the behind-the-scenes of this game, then ying would be meaningless,¡± said Little Cat.Behind-the-scenes?


    Long Chen was speechless. Based on Little Cat¡¯s attitude, it looked like he was not going to tell him, so he asked, ¡°Why won¡¯t you tell me?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me. I won¡¯t tell you about this no matter what,¡± Little Cat said nonchntly.


    Long Chen did not bother to force him.


    He knew that if he was in danger, Little Cat would definitely warn him since they were on the same boat.


    <em>Even if Little Cat doesn¡¯t say something, I would have guessed it myself. Someone must be controlling the Ancient Graveyard behind the scenes, but who? </em>Long Chen could not figure it out, so he abandoned the matter.


    Bringing Xiang with him, Long Chen descended from Sky Isle and went towards Martial Overlord City.


    Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan were dead, and he had gotten the Ancient Token. The world was peaceful. Long Chen believed that under Long Yue and the others¡¯ rule, the whole Divine Martial Empire would prosper and perhaps even regain its past glory.


    In the past, the Divine Martial Empire was one of the Ten Great Empires after all.


    Two or three days had passed since he left. By this point, the Dragon n hadpletely taken over Martial Overlord City. The members of the Martial Alliance had either chosen to pledge loyalty to them or flee, but arge portion chose the former. With the Martial Alliance¡¯s management style, it was difficult to raise cultivators who were loyal. These cultivators saw that the era of the Martial Alliance was over and naturally chose to submit and continue living in Martial Overlord City. To them, it was almost the same as changing to another Martial Overlord.


    The Red Souls also controlled the Divine Martial Empire.


    The Dragon n¡¯s power spread across the whole empire in a short time. Changing a dynasty turned out to be a quick affair.


    At this moment, Long Yue and the others were sitting in the main pavilion of Martial Overlord Pce, discussing the future development of the Divine Martial Empire.


    ¡°All our ns are built upon the assumption that Seventh Brother manages to kill Feng Xuan. If Feng Xuan survives but Seventh Brother doesn¡¯t, she won¡¯t let us remain in Martial Overlord City, seeing as we are enemies.¡± Long Yue could not help but make this depressingment after they confirmed their ns.


    ¡°Eldest Sister, will Seventh Brother win?¡± Lan Ling¡¯er asked worriedly, biting her lip.


    Long Yue saw that the atmosphere had be solemn, so she smiled and said, ¡°What¡¯s the matter with everyone? Don¡¯t you have confidence in Seventh Brother? He is the rarest super-prodigy there is in the whole Divine Martial Empire! He even killed Zhao Danchen! Feng Xuan isn¡¯t that much stronger than Zhao Danchen, so I believe he will seed!¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s not panic just yet. They have gone to the Immortal Sea; news of them will arrive very soon. We¡¯ll just wait and see who the final victor is.¡± Long Shan was the oldest, so everyone listened to him.


    ¡°Plus, Long Chen has his demonic wolf, which I think has reached Category Four King-tier. That is the same level as the Heavenly Phoenix. I think they should be able to defeat Feng Xuan if both of them work together ¡­¡± said Lan Ling¡¯er, looking around.


    She did not actually have much confidence, but she spoke aloud to give herself some hope and feel better.


    Miracles often happened to Seventh Brother. Would another miracle happen again at thisst moment?


    The group put down the empire¡¯s affairs for the moment and went to the city walls. It was almost time for them to receive news about him.


    Their hearts felt like fifteen hanging buckets of water swaying up and down.[1]


    Half a day passed. Just as they were losing patience, they saw two silhouettes on the horizon, one man and one wolf. As they approached the city, the Sun Devouring Wolf turned into his human form. Two handsome teenagers, one cold and one pure-looking, were heading towards Martial Overlord city.


    The Dragon n¡¯s anxious hearts finally calmed when they saw the two figures. Didn¡¯t this mean that Long Chen had defeated Feng Xuan and sessfully gotten the Ancient Token? They knew that the phenomenon signifying the birth of the Ancient Token had disappeared.


    When they saw that Long Chen was unharmed, they all broke into wide grins, especially the Dragon n members.


    Time had flown quickly, and they all had known him for more than half a year now. Their bond had deepened to an iparable level. Other than Xiang, who was Long Chen¡¯s brother for life, these were Long Chen¡¯s closest loved ones.


    ¡°Seventh Brother!¡± the group shouted at him.


    Long Chen had long seen them standing on the city walls to wee, and he also broke out into a grin. He rushed up the walls in a sh, and in a few breaths¡¯ time, an unharmed Long Chen and Xiang were standing right in front of them.


    The group eyed them both closely with approval and admiration in their eyes. Many of them hurried to ask, ¡°Seventh Brother, what happened to Feng Xuan? Did you kill her? Did you get the Ancient Token?¡±


    They all knew how important the Ancient Token was to him.


    Everyone looked at him expectantly. Long Chen nodded with a smile and said, ¡°Everyone, rest assured that from today onwards, no one will be a match for us in the whole Divine Martial Empire. And I have gotten the Ancient Token!¡±


    When they heard his deration, both the young and old broke out into joyful cheers with joy and gratitude on their faces.


    They looked at the young man with admiration, knowing that without him, they would not have had such a perfect ending today. They probably would have died a long time ago.


    If it were not for Long Chen¡¯s extraordinary power, there was no chance they would¡¯ve survived.


    Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan were two enemies that were impossible to defeat, yet he had killed them!


    Furthermore, he had gotten the Ancient Token, and everyone was happy for him. The only person whose smile was a little stiff was Liu Yiyi, who was standing in a corner with a smile and tears in her eyes.


    The Clear Shallows King gently tapped her daughter¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Yiyi, he got the Ancient Token. He¡¯ll leave soon. Are you upset about it?¡±


    Liu Yiyi faked a smile and said, ¡°Who said I was upset? His dream ising true; that¡¯s great news. He was never going to stay here. He has to leave sooner orter.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s good that you¡¯ve figured it out.¡± The Clear Shallows King looked at her daughter with heartache.


    She had more experience in life, and she knew that Long Chen was a young man who was like a shooting star that would never stop in one ce just because it saw some pretty scenery. The goal he was chasing was just too high up and too far away.


    While they spoke, the crowd had already started to ask Long Chen when he would leave for the Ancient Graveyard.


    Long Chen told them he still had a month left.


    ¡°One month. That¡¯s good. The Divine Martial Empire should have stabilized by then, and it¡¯ll be enough time for Seventh Brother to prepare well. The Ancient Graveyard isn¡¯t like the Divine Martial Empire; danger and opportunity co-exist there. Seventh Brother must make sufficient preparations for it!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! But today is a day worth celebrating. Shall we return to prepare the feast and have a drink?¡± said Long Yue¡¯s younger brother.


    Both siblings were at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. After Long Chen left, other than Long Shan, they would be the two strongest people in the empire. They had many things to attend to in the Divine Martial Empire.


    After his suggestion, the group returned to thevish Martial Overlord Pce. News of Long Chen killing Feng Xuan spread like the wind across the Divine Martial Empire. Any factions who previously were not willing to submit to the Dragon npletely submitted to them after hearing the news.


    This grand feast was a celebratory dinner for them. Without pressure from external enemies, everyone had great fun that night, and there were many great performances to watch. Long Chen was immersed in joy too, and they had many hours of fun. When everyone was tired out, they finally dispersed and Long Chen returned to the amodations Long Yue had prepared for him.


    After this, Long Chen would prepare for his trip while the others continued to n the future management of the Divine Martial Empire. Although Long Yue was a woman, she was very talented in strategy, and a kind person too. Every member of the Dragon n was kind, so Long Chen could rest easy leaving the Divine Martial Empire in their hands.


    He knew that they were all freedom-loving people and may not like ruling over the Divine Martial Empire. However, since they had killed the Martial Overlord and overthrown the original rulers, if they did not control the empire firmly and quickly, millions of citizens would suffer!


    And that was why they had stepped up.


    1. TL Note: This is a Chinese idiom that describes a feeling of uncertainty / anxiety ?

 Chapter 694: Terrifying Royal Territory

    The old man Long Shan met Long Chen again to tell him everything he knew about the Ancient Graveyard. He learned that in a month¡¯s time, the Ancient Token would directly take him to the Ancient Graveyard, where he would meet masters from the other Nine Great Empires, as well as countless tiny kingdoms. There would be at least ten thousand people there who would be at least at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, making themparable to Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji!


    There were countless hidden masters in the other empires too, so there would surely be many people stronger than Long Chen.


    ¡°No one from the Divine Martial Empire has managed to return from the Ancient Graveyard alive in the past few centuries. That¡¯s why I don¡¯t know much about the ce. However, I must remind you that killing is unavoidable. I heard that you need to kill a certain number of opponents and merge their Ancient Tokens with yours to get the right to exit the Ancient Graveyard. If not, you¡¯ll die in there.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Long Chen gasped. In that case, there would surely be an intense massacre in the Ancient Graveyard. Those people would not kill just one, but a certain number of opponents.


    ¡°How many people specifically?¡± asked Long Chen with furrowed brows.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I heard that it¡¯s very difficult and terrifying. Once you enter the Ancient Graveyard, you will be immersed in the massacre. Ten thousand people enter, but less than a thousand exit every time. There was a particrly terrifying time when only a hundred-plus people returned. Of course ¡­¡± Long Shan paused, then he attempted tofort Long Chen. ¡°Every person emerges from the Ancient Graveyard with a great boost in strength and wealth. There are treasures left behind by countless masters of the Middle Ages there, and many of those masters were at the Heavenly Martial Realm. If you return to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory with a Heavenly Martial Realm master¡¯s inheritance, you¡¯ll basically be the king!¡±


    Long Chen recalled how the Ancient Token could not be stored in a Universe Pouch. It was so that it was more convenient for people to fight over it in battle and merge it with theirs. However, this further proved that someone was controlling all of this behind the scenes. He wondered who.


    In order to win the game, he would have to y it. He would only understand everything when he entered the Ancient Graveyard.


    ¡°Only people who can survive the massacre will be true masters. I am old. I previously wanted to go to the Ancient Graveyard so I could see that legendary ce before I die. But you¡¯re different¡ªyou¡¯re born with thebat factor and are suited for a ce like the Ancient Graveyard. Be very careful when you¡¯re in there and keep a low profile. Don¡¯t offend the influential figures of the Nine Great ns. That way, you¡¯ll survive the frontmost period where your cultivation level is still low. Once you survive that, you can do whatever you want,¡± warned Long Shan as he knew that Long Chen had great potential.¡°Thank you, Elder Long. I will do my best to stay alive,¡± said Long Shan gratefully. Recalling another matter, he asked, ¡°I heard that the Ancient Graveyard has a path leading to the Three Royal Territories. May I ask if you know about this?¡±


    ¡°The Three Royal Territories?¡± Long Shan looked at him with surprise. ¡°Indeed, some people have said that, but so far, no one has proven this legend, so I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s true. Do you want to go to the Royal Territories?¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect your ambitions to be that high. It¡¯s a good thing for a young man to have goals like that. The Three Royal Territories are like legends; they are the cores of the Dragon Continent and the true concentrations of power. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory may look huge, but we¡¯re just a small corner,¡± said Long Shan wistfully.


    ¡°Are the Three Royal Territories that terrifying?¡± asked Long Chen, biting his lip.


    ¡°Of course. Although I¡¯ve never seen the ce before, literature states that there are extraordinary masters there whose levels far exceed the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. There are many ancient races there as well. I hear that many children of these races can skip the Four Foundational Realms when they are just born and startprehending the Three Martial Realms at just five or six years old!¡±


    Long Chen was stunned.


    Newborn babies who could quickly skip cultivating the Four Foundational Realms, thenprehend the Three Martial Realms at just five or six years old. What would that be like?


    How powerful would they be at twenty years old, then?


    Of course, Long Shan was only talking about ancient races ording to the legends. If everyone there was on that level, Long Chen did not even need to think about going.


    The weight on his shoulders increased after his conversation with Long Shan. However, Long Chen was a strange person whose battle spirit increased when the pressure intensified. As long as he was not dead, he would never stop forging ahead. How many people in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory had courage and determination like him?


    ¡°I, Long Chen, will surely set foot in the Royal Territories one day!¡± Long Chen clenched his fists and his eyes sparkled.


    ¡°I can see that you have great determination in your heart. Work hard, young man!¡± Long Shan patted his shoulder with a smile.


    Long Chen was the most talented youth Long Shan had ever seen. Other than his extraordinary talent, he even had an equally extraordinary demonic wolf by his side. Xiang was currently sitting next to him, not speaking.


    When Long Chen asked about the Royal Territories, there was a fire in his eyes too.


    ¡°Thank you, Elder Long,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°Why are you thanking me? Hehe. Right, have you collected all Five Emperor Seals?¡± asked Long Shan.


    Long Chen said, ¡°I have them all. I was just about to study them, but I don¡¯t know anything about them. Shall we take a look together? I didn¡¯t get them all myself after all. It¡¯s only right that I share them with everyone.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± said Long Shan with a smile, waving him off quickly. ¡°At this age, what¡¯s the use of learning anything? And this is an Emperor-tierbat technique, so I won¡¯t understand much either. It¡¯s good enough for me to master my own techniques.¡±


    Long Shan did not stay after that. He bade Long Chen farewell and left.


    Therefore, Long Chen had to study the Five Emperor Seals on his own. If the Deste Divine Seal was so difficult to learn, Long Chen had a feeling that cultivating the Five Emperor Seals would be even more difficult.


    After Long Shan left, Long Chen looked at Xiang.


    ¡°Elder Brother.¡± Mo Xiang stood up and walked closer to Long Chen.


    ¡°What is it?¡± he asked.


    ¡°It looks like going to the Royal Territories will be much more difficult to reach than we imagined. I know you probably feel a little down now. Even though I don¡¯t think that it¡¯s going to be simple, I just want to say that no matter what, I, Mo Xiang, will stand by your side. I know that Sister Ling Xi is very important to you. We are brothers, and I¡¯m only where I am today because of you. In the future, I will follow you and fight alongside you until you no longer need me!¡± Xiang uttered slowly, looking at Long Chen with great determination.


    Long Chen froze, then heughed heartily. He patted Xiang¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°Why are you saying such emotional things for no reason? Go do whatever you need to do. I¡¯m going to start studying the Five Emperor Seals!¡±


    Mo Xiang rubbed his nose and gave a smile.


    Long Chen was like that. Whenever Mo Xiang said something serious, Long Chen acted all nonchnt.


    ¡°I¡¯m going out to get some air.¡± Mo Xiang did not want to disturb him, so he went outside.


    ¡°Wait.¡± When he was at the door, Long Chen suddenly turned.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Mo Xiang looked at him, puzzled.


    ¡°What did you say? ¡®Until I no longer need you?¡¯¡± Long Chen repeated.


    ¡°Mhm.¡±


    Looking at the youth¡¯s clear eyes, Long Chen was silent for a moment, then he said, ¡°First, I must emphasize that I¡¯m not interested in men. Second ¡­ You and Xiao Xi are the two most important people to me. I am willing to risk my life and embark on this treacherous journey for her, and it is the same with you, Mo Xiang! I feel the same!¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Mo Xiang was stunned. He privately thought all this while that Long Chen cared most about Ling Xi. In fact, he often overlooked Mo Xiang.


    ¡°Because we¡¯re brothers! Now get out!¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    ¡°Alright!¡± Mo Xiang broke out into a grin. There was no need to say too much. He understood this well in his heart.


    After Mo Xiang left, Long Chen gave a resigned smile and said, ¡°I think I often overlook that guy¡¯s feelings. Sigh ¡­ I wonder when I will be able to help him truly turn back into a human again instead of being a demonic beast in human form!¡±


    Long Chen took this to heart.


    Next, Long Chen took out all Five Emperor Seals and put them on the round sandalwood table. The five seals were golden, azure, ck, red, and yellow respectively. Other than their colors, they were identical and very old with some soil stuck to them. He did not see anything special about them.


    He arranged them in a pentagon formation and started to think about what he could do with them. Initially, he thought that the legendary Emperor-tier Five Emperor Sealsbat technique would appear the moment he gathered all five, but that did not seem to be the case. It seemed like he needed to do something to activate them.


    Long Chen had traveled along this journey of cultivation like a blind man crossing a river by feeling the rocks. He did not understand many things, seeing as he was born in a small town like Baiyang Town, unlike Ling Xi, who was like a child of God. However, he was very lucky and had Ling Xi as a guide when he first started cultivating. After she left, he met the alleged Reincarnation Beast, Little Cat.


    If he did not understand something, Little Cat was the best one to ask. Long Chen was toozy to think anymore, so he asked, ¡°Fat Cat, what should I do?¡±


    The moment he spoke, Little Cat emerged from the Primordial Realm. He looked much more illusory than Ling Xi previously did.

 Chapter 695: Dragon Overlord Long Chen

    Little Cat did not reply. He floated above the Five Emperor Seals, studied them for a while, then said, ¡°I think the Five Emperor Seals are considered a kind of magical artifact. If you want to control them, you¡¯ll need to use your blood for them to recognize you as their master.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s a magical artifact?¡± Long Chen asked.


    Little Cat nced at him with contempt, then huffed, ¡°There are two types of artifacts in the Dragon Continent¡ªweapons and magical artifacts. You¡¯ve seen weapons before; high-quality divine weapons can help boost a cultivator¡¯sbat abilities. Armament Warriors born of weapons are very rare in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, but there is arge area in the Royal Territory ruled by true Armament Warriors. As for what powers they have¡ªyou¡¯ll know when you meet them.¡±


    ¡°Is the Swordsoul Pce rted to Armament Warriors?¡± Long Chen guessed based on what Little Cat had said.


    ¡°Not bad. You¡¯re quite smart. The Swordsoul Territory is the Armament Warriors¡¯ world, while the Swordsoul Pce is the gathering ce of the most powerful Armament Warriors. The Armament Warriors there are many times stronger than the ones here. They can use all types of secret techniques using their weapons. The moment they use their knives and swords, their enemies fall! I can¡¯t even begin to describe it; you¡¯ll understand when you witness it.¡±


    <em>Is he saying that the Armament Warriors there arepletely different from the ones here?</em>


    This was something he would understandter. Although it was closely rted to Ling Xi, that could wait, so he changed the topic and asked, ¡°Then what are magical artifacts?¡±


    ¡°Other than weapons like knives, spears, swords, and halberds, there are many artifacts that are not in the form of traditional weapons but possess greatbat abilities. They are known as magical artifacts and they have all sorts of functions like attacking, defending, healing, and more. The Ancient Demon g used to control the Ancient Demon Corpse is considered a magical artifact, and the Five Emperor Seals are also considered a type. Of course, these are magical artifacts of the lowest level with only cool-sounding names. They would be nothing in the Royal Territory!¡±


    After Little Cat¡¯s brief introduction, Long Chen had a rough understanding of weapons and magical artifacts. He realized that he was just like a neer who had only started the journey of cultivation. He had only just started to learn about many concepts. Although he was considered knowledgeable in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory,pared to the true stage of the Three Royal Territories, he knew too little.This ignited an even deeper yearning in him to get to the Royal Territory, where true masters were. The longer he was immersed in cultivation, the more he yearned for battle and challenges. The stronger his opponents were, the greater the fire within him. He thought it was just a difference in his attitude, but actually, he was mainly influenced by the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s blood within him. The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was the ancestral dragon of massacre; it lived for killing. In its world, there was only killing. Long Chen could maintain a stable mind todayrgely due to the mysterious dragon jade in his sea of consciousness!


    Without it, he would have be a demon who only killed!


    Putting these thoughts away, Long Chen looked at the Five Emperor Seals and asked, ¡°Does that mean I need to drip my blood on the Five Emperor Seals?¡±


    ¡°Your blood contains your own unique seal. No one else in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory canpare to your blood, so give it a try,¡± said Little Catzily.


    Long Chen nodded. He had extraordinary control over blood; he directly forced blood out of his finger, then carefully dripped it on each seal. In the beginning, the blood drops flowed down along the seals without any reaction, but he remained calm. When he finally dripped his blood on thest one, the Yellow Emperor Seal, something finally happened.


    Almost at the same time, the five seals absorbed his blood, then the five normal and old-looking seals slowly gave a fuzzy glow.


    Gold, azure, ck, scarlet, and yellow. Five colors shone before him. Initially, it was merely a fuzzy glow, but it slowly brightened!


    ¡°It¡¯s starting!¡± cried Little Cat, then he returned to the Primordial Realm with a whoosh.


    This meant that dripping his blood on them was the correct method.


    Right after Little Cat returned to the Primordial Realm, Long Chen sensed a powerful and regal energying from the seals. This power made a string of houses copse and pushed down all the walls around Long Chen. The table beneath the seals was pulverized instantly!


    Long Chen was living in a quiet area, so there were few people around. That was why the copsed houses did not squash anyone. However, thergemotion startled all of Martial Overlord City.


    Next, the Five Emperor Seals gathered in a circle and flew upwards above Long Chen¡¯s head, then not far from the top of Martial Overlord Pce. Powerful light shot out of the seals in five colors, bathing the whole city in gold, azure, ck, scarlet, and yellow light.


    The powerful lights made everyone indoorse out. They could not see the seals, but they saw five different-colored suns in the sky!


    ¡°Wow! What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°How strange! What¡¯s happening? Is this a goding to the mortal realm? Is there really a god?¡±


    Millions of people lived in Martial Overlord City, and they were all gawking at the strange phenomenon, discussing among themselves.


    Long Chen followed the Five Emperor Seals and flew until he arrived beneath them. He did not fly up directly to them for the moment, wanting to see what would happen. The Five Emperor Seals had absorbed his blood anyway, so other people could not snatch them even if they tried.


    It was impossible for Long Yue and the others to not notice such a hugemotion; even Mo Xiang quickly came to his side. The others who had reached the Earthly Martial Realm all came as well. Long Shan was first to ask in surprise, ¡°Little Long Chen, are those the Five Emperor Seals?¡±


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Yes!¡±


    ¡°This is a huge opportunity. You must take this chance and master them. You will depend heavily on them in the Ancient Graveyard,¡± mused Long Shan.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll rest easier if you have the Five Emperor Seals. But you must keep a low profile. Don¡¯t let other people know that you have an Emperor-tierbat technique. Very few people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory have one,¡± warned Long Yue.


    ¡°I understand.¡± Long Chen epted their reminders graciously.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. Alright, let¡¯s not disturb Seventh Brother. We¡¯ll let him focus onprehending the Five Emperor Seals. Tonight, we¡¯ll be a bit busier to prevent anything from interrupting him.¡± Long Yue gave a small smile and started to give instructions. Under her arrangements, the group went to all corners of Martial Overlord City to keep watch and maintain order amongst the crowd.


    Long Chen floated in the air beneath the Five Emperor Seals, so he was very eye-catching. Many people knew his face as well.


    News of his killing of Zhao Danchen and Feng Xuan had already spread across the whole Divine Martial Empire. Everyone now knew that he was the most terrifying figure in the whole empire. None of the millions of people in the Divine Martial Empire was a match for him.


    A person like Long Chen was directly recorded in the Divine Martial Empire¡¯s historical records.


    He was not even twenty, yet he had be the most outstanding figure in the Divine Martial Empire.


    Beneath him, the crowd started discussing him with admiration in their eyes. Not only was he a young prodigy, but his mindset and personality were superior to Zhao Danchen. In reality, most people did not know that he was going to leave and thought he would be the next ruler of the Divine Martial Empire.


    Many people had even coined a name for him¡ªthe Dragon Overlord!


    The Martial Overlord¡¯s lineage waspletely eliminated, and Long Chen was the strongest member of the Dragon n, so it was normal for him to represent the Dragon n and take his ce as the ruler. The Martial Overlord would be reced with the new Dragon Overlord!


    Of course, that was just the outsiders¡¯ perspective. Long Chen did not want to stay in a ce like the Divine Martial Empire or be the Dragon Overlord.


    Although the name sounded awesome.


    In a random corner of Martial Overlord City, a beautifuldy and her two children were looking up at the shining figure in the sky.


    ¡°Mother, is that older brother the Dragon Overlord?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s awesome! He¡¯s so young, but he became the Dragon Overlord!¡± The two children chatted noisily as they hugged her legs.


    ¡°Mhm. He¡¯s very powerful. You two must be as strong as he is when you grow up!¡± the woman said gently, stroking their heads.


    ¡°Of course!¡± they cried.


    The woman nodded approvingly and looked up at the youth in the sky. She knew who he was. He was the one who had disguised himself as her husband and slept in her bed. At the time, she thought he was the Hundred-War Martial King. They had interacted before, and it was awkward to think about it.


    However, having a brief interaction with such a shining character of the generation was also a lovely memory to her.


    The corners of her lips curled upwards as she looked at the magnificent youth in the sky.


    She knew that there were millions of pairs of eyes beneath him. He would never notice hers, but that was enough.


    Then the Five Emperor Seals started to change. Long Chen calmed his mind and watched carefully.


    He did not know that he was already known as the Dragon Overlord.

 Chapter 696: Five Emperor Seals

    The Five Emperor Seals remained unchanged in the air. The tremor originated from somewhere else. Everyone felt the ground reverberating a little, but it wasn¡¯t a cause for concern. Martial Overlord City shook even harder when Long Chen was fighting against Zhao Danchen.


    But no one knew that the tremor wasn¡¯t only limited to Martial Overlord City¡ªit could also be felt by people hundreds of Li away.


    Long Chen was also observing the faint movement of the earth. He felt that the Five Emperor Seals were releasing an energy that controlled the entire world around him.


    It was as if each of the seals was sucking in Qi, working on a simr principle as Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain, but they weren¡¯t absorbing Qi from humans. Long Chen remained untouched by the power.


    But he soon realized what the Five Emperor Seals were attracting.


    A faint tremor came from all around, and he raised his head. Five different Qis were flowing in the heavens. They were golden, azure, ck, red, and yellow in color respectively. The Qis came from the earth, rivers, and forests and flowed towards the Five Emperor Seals.


    Everyone below was shocked.


    They saw the five different-colored Qis flowing in the air like massive rivers, blocking the stars.


    Long Chen felt the Qising from innumerable metal veins, trees, rivers, fire, and the earth itself. The Five Emperor Seals were devouring the essences of those things. The five massive rivers of Qis flowed into the five different-colored Five Emperor Seals.The Qis merged seamlessly with the corresponding color seal.


    More and more Qi was sucked out from the earth, and the Five Emperor Seals continued to devour it. The Five Emperor Seals were like bottomless pis that continued to devour the Qi. Everyone continued to watch until their necks were sore. It took a long time before the five different-colored Qis disappearedpletely and merged into the Five Emperor Seals.


    ¡°I never thought Long Chen would be the one who would collect all five seals!¡± In a dark corner of Martial Overlord City, Xiao Lin was staring at the sky in awe. ¡°To think he¡¯s such a monster. He secretly collected all five seals and became the strongest person in the Divine Martial Empire. It¡¯s no wonder he could obtain such glory.¡± He was very impressed by Long Chen.


    Many people had the same thoughts as Xiao Lin.


    Long Chen now had the power to make them submit to him. The only one with a little strength in the Martial Alliance was Xiao Lin, but he was old and no longer had any ambitions. He only wanted to enjoy his retirement and didn¡¯t care who would be the leader.


    The five flowing Qis in the sky disappeared and the Five Emperor Seals darkened a little. The lights were no longer as brilliant as before. When the light around them disappeared, Long Chen saw that the Five Emperor Seals had shrunk. Each of the seals was now the size of his thumb, but they were glittering like gemstones.


    Long Chen knew that they were ready. He could feel that the Five Emperor Seals were connected to his body, and he slowly approached them. The Five Emperor Seals somehow sensed him and started floating towards him too.


    He stopped and extended his right arm instinctively. He syed open his palm and was certain that it was the right move even though he had done it instinctively.


    The Five Emperor Seals soon floated in front of him. They glittered with a beguiling light before merging into his palm, giving him a cooling sensation. He only looked at his palm after the light disappeared.


    The Five Emperor Seals disappeared after the light died down. On his palm was now a tattoo-like rune depicting the Five Emperor Seals. Each of them had its own color, remaining motionlessly in his palm.


    This meant that the Five Emperor Seals had merged with him sessfully.


    Long Chen sighed in relief and used his mind to activate them. As he had expected, the seals moved as if they were a part of his body. The Five Emperor Seals then transmitted information into his mind, and Long Chen greedily absorbed it.


    The information was none other than the method to cultivate the Five Emperor Seals.


    There were tens of thousands of words he had to remember just to cultivate it. It was at least twenty times harder than the cultivation of the Deste Divine Seal. It was clear that the Five Emperor Seals were extremely powerful. Long Chen felt like he was transported into a time where exceedingly strong individuals like the five emperors were present as he read the words.


    ¡°So this is the Five Emperor Seals ¡­?¡± For the very first time, he finally encountered some difficulty in the cultivation of a martial technique. Even the Deste Divine Seal hadn¡¯t given him this feeling.


    Long Chen merely took a nce, and his brain was instantly tired. He realized that his brain would somehow be tired when he read the words. An Emperor-tier martial technique was not that easy to cultivate even for Long Chen!


    But the more challenging it was, the more motivated he was toplete it!


    This was how he could activate the fighting spirit deep in his blood.


    Long Chen read the preface and obtained some key information on the cultivation of the Five Emperor Seals.


    ¡°The Five Emperor Seals are separated into five different techniques: the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal, the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal, the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal, the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, and the Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal. They differ from the other martial techniques in that all five techniques are of equal strength and are only differentiated by their element. I could use different elements to attack different enemies in order to maximize my damage! But more importantly, the different elements of the Five Emperor Seals canplement each other!¡±


    A sane cultivator would¡¯ve chosen to just cultivate one of the seals since they were all equal in strength, but none would do so, because the seals couldplement and increase each other¡¯s strength! If Long Chen had cultivated the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal and the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal, the effects of the two seals would be amplified! More importantly, it was not a simple addition, but an amplification of the strength!


    Using two different seals at the same time could potentially make an attack four to five times stronger!


    And now Long Chen had all five seals in his hand!


    His battle strength had already increased even though he hadn''t cultivated all five seals yet. If he could use all five at the same time, his attack would be hundreds of times stronger than usual!


    <em>The Five Emperor Seals are so strong! I¡¯ve hit the jackpot this time! </em>Long Chen was excited.


    ¡°To think that any of the seals is at the elementary Emperor-tier. They are stronger than my Deste Divine Seal! Once I cultivate three seals, the amplification will most likely increase the resulting attack¡¯s strength to the intermediate Emperor-tier. That means the Five Emperor Seals are not a regr elementary Emperor-tier martial technique!¡±


    Long Chen was now very confident in his journey to the Ancient Graveyard.


    The Five Emperor Seals were the strongest treasures in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Who could possibly produce a technique stronger than the Five Emperor Seals in the Divine Martial Empire?


    It was hard to imagine how strong it would be if Long Chen used all five elements at the same time.


    But he was well aware of how difficult the cultivation process would be.


    ¡°I need to find a corresponding treasure that matches the element of the seal that I want to cultivate. If I want to cultivate the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, I need to find a fire-attribute treasure. Xiang ate a sr re as well as the Beast re in the Nine Spirits Purgatory. The Blue Devil me is now useless for Xiang, but I wonder if I could use it?¡±


    Each seal required a corresponding trigger to be cultivated.


    Long Chen could only attempt to cultivate the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal for now. He needed more time to find treasures that contained the metal, wood, water, and earth attributes.

 Chapter 697: Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal

    It wasn''t hard for Long Chen to cultivate a single seal. If he seeded, the Scarlet Emperor Seal on his palm would be activated. His palm would then be imbued by an intense fire energy that would turn everything in front into a sea of fire.


    But cultivating the second seal would be difficult for him. The different elements could amplify each other''s strengths, but they could also sh against each other. Long Chen needed to converge two different elements into his palm at the same time while only having a single Martial Meridian in that palm. It would take a lot of time to figure out how to do so.


    It would be even harder for the third and fourth seals.


    Long Chen was both happy and worried after he gained the knowledge on how to cultivate the technique. He was happy that the Five Emperor Seals were strong, but was worried because of how hard it was to cultivate them.


    <em>I should just ignore it for now. The path will show itself to me when the timees.</em>


    The phenomena in the sky has died down, leaving only Long Chen floating in the air alone. Long Yue and the others only approached him after knowing that he had taken the Five Emperor Seals.


    ¡°Everyone, you may return now,¡± Long Yue said. There were tens of thousands of civilians looking at them from below. Now that Long Yue was the leader of Martial Overlord City, the civilians had no choice but to return to their homes.


    The civilians spread the news of the Five Emperor Seals everywhere. Long Chen was embarrassed because only he himself had obtained the Five Emperor Seals when they were supposed to be shared with the others, but the Dragon n didn¡¯t mind.


    ¡°Only someone as monstrous as our Seventh Brother can cultivate the Five Emperor Seals. We are just regr cultivators! It¡¯s already an honor to be able to look at them so closely,¡± Jiang Wuya said with a chuckle.Everyoneughed too.


    Long Chen was happy that everyone wasn¡¯t jealous of him but instead celebrated his win.


    ¡°Young man, you need to fight hard. I will await for the news of your heroic feats in the Ancient Graveyard. Maybe we will be able to share some of your fame by then.¡± The past few days had been Long Shan¡¯s happiest ever since he escaped the Nine Spirit Purgatory. He could now spend his remaining days in peace.


    Everyone congratted Long Chen before Long Yue interrupted, ¡°Alright, let¡¯s not disturb our little genius anymore. He will need to prepare to enter the Ancient Graveyard, so we shouldn¡¯t disturb his cultivation for now.¡± She then turned to him. ¡°Good luck!¡±


    ¡°Good luck!¡± The rest cheered him on too.


    Lei Zhen had to take care of the Battle n, so he returned after a few days. Jian Chen followed him to help him, while the rest stayed in Martial Overlord City. With the help of Long Yue, Huangfu Fengchen returned to the Huangfu family estate.


    Even though Huangfu Fengchen had been crippled, no one objected to him as the patriarch. The strongest being in the Divine Martial Empire was now Long Chen, and everyone knew about Huangfu Fengchen¡¯s rtionship with Long Chen. Even his older brother, Huangfu Fengyun, had to be respectful to Huangfu Fengchen.


    Huangfu Qi was slowly growing stronger thanks to her family.


    Everything was going along as Long Chen had imagined.


    He was very happy with the oue.


    He himself was happy as long as the people around him were happy too.


    Only then could he focus on fighting for his future.


    Long Chen would sometimes ask himself whether it was worth it to struggle so hard for the sake of a single woman.


    But he would alwaysugh at himself. Love wasn¡¯t a matter of worth or not, but a matter or willingness. One always had to listen to their heart since that was where love grew.


    Long Chen¡¯s heart had been set ever since he made that promise outside of Baiyang Town. He was uncertain at the time, but now he had the strength to stand on his own. He would make sure those who once looked down on him would change their minds when they saw him again.


    ¡°My life is in my own hands. One day, I will make sure all of you will be beneath me!¡±


    Long Chen found a suitable ce to start cultivating the Five Emperor Seals.


    They were important techniques that would help him massively in the Ancient Graveyard.


    There was only one month left, so he needed to spend all his time focusing on them.


    Long Chen sat in his roomte at night, studying the Five Emperor Seals. Xiang was taking a stroll outside at this point. Long Chen had spent the past few days reading the information of the Five Emperor Seals again and again. He was now much more familiar with the techniques and finally understood some of the moreplicated terms.


    But that didn¡¯t mean his cultivation would be easy. The Five Emperor Seals were convoluted techniques that required consistent effort.


    Long Chen was nning on starting with the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal and just skimmed past the information on the other seals.


    ¡°The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal is a fire-attribute attack. I have the Golden Crow mes in my body, and I even have the Golden Crow¡¯s soul remnant in the Martial Meridian of my palm. It might be easier for me to cultivate the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal like this.¡±


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal was indeed a fire-attribute attack. Long Chen had cultivated the Burning Devil Sun Fist in the past, but the differences between the two techniques¡¯ strength was extremelyrge.


    The Five Emperor Seals were capable of bulldozing an entire mountain. The Burning Devil Sun Fist couldn¡¯t hold a candle to it.


    The more he cultivated, the more Long Chen realized how strong and difficult it was, but he never gave up.


    <em>I wonder if the Blue Devil me can be the catalyst to cultivate the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal?</em>


    Long Chen nned to use the Blue Devil me as the catalyst while relying on the Golden Crow mes to cultivate the technique. He was certain that he could do it in one go.


    Time slowly passed. After six days of researching the cultivation method of the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, he decided it was time to cultivate it. He found a deste mountain range near Martial Overlord City, and Xiang stood guard.


    Xiang didn¡¯t need to cultivate to get stronger, so he had a lot of time to observe Long Chen cultivate.


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal ¡­ Of absolute Yang energy, use the mes as a catalyst to burn the heavens!¡±


    Long Chen immersed himself in cultivation, reciting the words as he ced the Blue Devil me in his palm. The heat radiating from the mes was hot, but Long Chen withstood the heat thanks to his Dragon Soul Transformation. If not, his palm would¡¯ve been charred.


    <em>I have to hold the Blue Devil me for three days straight before the Scarlet Emperor Seal can absorb itpletely. Only then can I move on to the next step ¡­</em>


    Long Chen endured the pain as he chanted. Cultivation had always been a steep path. A cultivator wouldn¡¯t be able to achieve sess if they couldn¡¯t endure this much pain. Long Chen¡¯s willpower had always been stronger than others, so he endured without any noise.


    Three days passed by swiftly.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t have as much essence as the people of the other empires, but his physical body far exceeded theirs. It took him three days to merge the Blue Devil me into his palm. Just then, he felt an excruciating pain burrowing deep into his hand. The burning pain wasn¡¯t something an ordinary person could endure.


    <em>Endure this! </em>Long Chen suffered but refused to give up. He yearned to be stronger. Those who couldn¡¯t endure weren¡¯t true men!


    He gritted his teeth and endured it. Only then could he be a dragon amongst men and control his fate. He never once wavered in his cultivation.


    Three more days passed before the pain subsided. A soothing feeling reced the burning pain.


    The Scarlet Emperor Seal haspletely absorbed the Blue Devil me. The tattoo in his palm was directly connected to his Martial Meridian in his hand. The Blue Devil me was now in his Martial Meridian after being absorbed by the Scarlet Emperor Seal!


    <em>It¡¯s time to start ¡­ </em>Long Chen continued his chant and made hand seals with his right hand. The sequence andplexity of the seals were also part of the cultivation process. He recalled the sequence and immersed himself in the profound feeling.


    It was a long and arduous process.


    The Scarlet Emperor Seal on his palm extended a small thread made of fire. The thread wrapped around the Blue Devil me, then several minute runes traveled down the thread and wrapped around the Blue Devil me. The Blue Devil me appeared to be too weak for the Scarlet Emperor me. There was a chance that it was too weak to be a catalyst, but Long Chen decided to give it a go since he was certain that the Golden Crow mes would help himter on.


    Time passed slowly.


    Every little change took a very long time to happen. It was a test of Long Chen¡¯s will and patience. He focused on chanting and making the seals while he controlled the Scarlet Emperor Seal. Several days had passed since he started. At this point, the Blue Devil me appeared to be so weak that it could be extinguished at any second.

 Chapter 698: Departure

    Just then, the Golden Crow mes ignited in his core. The mes engulfed the Blue Devil me and turned it a blood-red color. The Golden Crow mes were originally golden, but due to Long Chen¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, they were blood-red.


    Once that was done, the Blue Devil me¡¯s strength increased rapidly. The smaller runesing from the Scarlet Emperor Seal started to appear in the me too. More and more fiery red threads emerged from the Scarlet Emperor Seal to wrap up the Blue Devil me.


    Thanks to the Golden Crow mes and his previous research, the cultivation of the Scarlet Emperor Seal wasn¡¯t as hard as he had imagined, but Long Chen knew that the Golden Crow mes were the biggest factor behind his sess.


    There were also various problems in the beginning, such as the pain from holding the me and the amount of concentration needed to continue chanting. One wrong move and the cultivation would fail.


    Also, cultivating the first seal was the easiest. The second one would be significantly harder.


    Long Chen was satisfied with the oue. He had prepared sufficiently, yet it took a long time for the Blue Devil me and the Scarlet Emperor Seal to be tied together by numerous fire threads. The Blue Devil me was now orbiting Long Chen¡¯s core in his Martial Meridian.


    ¡°Did I do it?¡± Long Chen sensed the power in his palm. He felt that only the Scarlet Emperor Seal hade to life. It pulsed in his palm like a small lifeform, and he could feel its every movement.


    Thanks to the Scarlet Emperor Seal, his Martial Meridian waspletely engulfed in mes. Long Chen felt like his right palm was warmer than his left, and faint, blood-red fire flowed between his scales. His right arm was now significantly stronger than his left.


    Long Chen felt like his right arm was like a volcano that he could use at any time. His strength had quite literally exploded!His right arm was trembling nonstop at this point.


    ¡°What incredible power. If I''d learned this previously, Feng Xuan would¡¯ve been dead in one hit ¡­¡± Long Chen mumbled.


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal was at least ten times stronger than the Deste Divine Seal! Even though Long Chen¡¯s essence has been bolstered by his Dragon Soul Transformation, he could still only use the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal once. The Emperor-tier martial technique was indeed very strong, to the point that it almost matched the strength of Blood Warp!


    Long Chen opened his hand, and the Scarlet Emperor Seal glittered red. He saw a small red fire in the tattoo of the Scarlet Emperor Seal. The fire was abination of the Golden Crow mes and the Blue Devil me. The main strength came from the Golden Crow mes.


    Long Chen willed it, and his entire arm burst in blood-red mes. Even he was shocked by the intense heat.


    ¡°It seems that I¡¯ve be Xiang.¡± Long Chen smiled.


    But his mes were filled with Yang energy, while Xiang¡¯s mes were filled with Yin energy. Their two mes were fundamentally different, which was why Long Chen couldn¡¯t use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire as the catalyst.


    Mo Xiang stared at Long Chen with shock. ¡°What strong fire energy!¡±


    Xiang was an expert in mes, so his praise was a testament to how strong the fire was.


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°The first seal is rtively easy; the rest will be progressively more difficult to cultivate. But now that I have cultivated it, my chances of surviving in the Ancient Graveyard just got better. Wait, Xiang, how many days have passed since I¡¯ve started cultivating?¡±


    ¡°Twenty-three days. We have seven more days until the Ancient Graveyard opens,¡± Xiang said.


    ¡°In that case, I should reinforce my cultivation a little before we spend some time with them. It¡¯s best if we say our goodbyes before we leave.¡±


    Long Chen then reviewed his cultivation of the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal.


    One dayter, he returned to Martial Overlord City. Thanks to Long Yue, the Divine Martial Empire was finally back on its rightful course. Liu Yiyi had learned how to control the Ancient Demon Corpse while Long Shan focused on his recovery. He could now use as much strength as a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, so Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried about their security.


    Long Chen found Long Yue in Martial Overlord Pce. Long Yue put down her work and checked on him.


    ¡°How¡¯s your cultivation?¡±


    ¡°I managed to finish one of them, but I fear the rest will be hard ¡­¡± Long Chen said.


    ¡°It¡¯s already an excellent result.¡± Long Yue smiled. ¡°You will be leaving in five or six days, right? To be fair, I really don¡¯t want you to go. Time passes by so fast, and you are already leaving. I still remember the day we first met. It seems like it was just moments ago.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, your beauty willst for ages.¡± Long Chen chuckled. ¡°And what about the Martial Alliance?¡±


    ¡°They want you to quickly announce that you will be the next Martial Overlord,¡± Long Yue said with a smile.


    ¡°You know I can¡¯t stay here ¡­¡±


    ¡°I know, but I wanted to tell them after you left.¡±


    Long Chen spent some time at Martial Overlord City before he went to the Huangfu family. Huangfu Qi finally managed to see Long Chen and refused to let him go.


    She smiled as she said, ¡°Big Brother! I finally know what the martial realm is! My dad said that I will be an Earthly Martial Realm cultivator in just half a day. Then I can be the new patriarch!¡±


    Long Chen never told her that he was leaving.


    He only got to talk with Huangfu Fengchen after Huangfu Qi had to leave for her cultivation session.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I actually wanted to find a method to heal you, but I don¡¯t have enough time ¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Huangfu Fengchen smiled. ¡°You and I are different. To me, strength means nothing right now. Once Qi Qi bes an adult, I will finally be able to rx and live with my wife at ease. The path of cultivation is too perilous. I have to thank Feng Xuan for giving me a chance to rx like this.¡±


    Long Chen was naturally happy after he saw how well Huangfu Fengchen was doing.


    He silently left the Huangfu family and went to look for Liu Yiyi, but this time he did not get close. He saw her sitting in a gazebo alone, enjoying the silence. He didn¡¯t want to disturb her, so he left Martial Overlord City with Xiang.


    They found a quiet ce and waited for the moment toe.


    Long Chen knew that there would be another bloodbath tomorrow, but tonight was the calm before the storm. He had endured hardships throughout his journey and finally became the strongest person!


    He only said goodbye to those close to him before he left quietly.


    ¡°Overall, my experiences in the Divine Martial Empire were good. I now have the strength to take on the next stage, the Ancient Graveyard.¡±


    Long Chen looked towards the horizon.


    The skies were filled with stars, but all Long Chen could see was a path drenched in blood.


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Xiang warned him.


    Long Chen looked down and saw the Ancient Token glowing gray.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to start soon. Xiang, enter the Primordial Realm!¡±


    Xiang turned into ck mes and surged into Long Chen¡¯s body.


    The Ancient Token could only bring a single person, but since Long Chen had the Primordial Realm, he could bring in as many people as he wanted.


    Long Chen put up his guard and held the Ancient Token in his hand. The cold token was suddenly radiating heat.


    ¡°It¡¯s almost time ¡­¡± The seemingly unremarkable token was now exuding an ancient aura that sealed Long Chen in a closed-off space.


    The token suddenly shed, and a gray array appeared in front of Long Chen. Dense runes appeared in the array and wrapped around him. He didn¡¯t fight back, allowing them to cover him.


    He had a feeling that he was now in a teleportation array. It swiftly activated as the runes covered his body.


    Dawn came.


    When the first ray of sunlight shone on Long Chen¡¯s body, a shimmering ripple appeared and his body slowly disappeared.


    That was how Long Chenpletely vanished from the Divine Martial Empire.


    What awaited him was a journey of massacre and blood.

 Chapter 699: Boundless Starplate

    Everything was dark around Long Chen as he traveled through a dark tunnel. He couldn¡¯t move his body at all as a strong suction force pulled him forward. In front of him was the glimmer of faint starlight.


    Long Chen felt like he was being devoured by a beast.


    The first time he experienced this was when he used the Universal Teleporter to reach the Divine Martial Empire from the Cangyang Kingdom, but now the Ancient Token was using a much more intricate teleporter to send him to a mysterious location.


    <em>Is it bringing me to the Ancient Graveyard?</em>


    Some timeter, he saw the light in front of him grow bigger. He finally reached the end of the tunnel.


    The ray of light sucked Long Chen into it!


    He disappeared in the light, soon finding that he could control his body again.


    He stepped on something hard and was shocked by it. He hadn''t even opened his eyes yet, but he felt like the thing beneath his feet was spinning rapidly. Long Chen quickly used his essence to attach himself to the ground to prevent himself from being thrown out.


    ¡°Where is this?¡± Long Chen opened his eyes and was shocked by what he saw.Above him was the starry sky, but it was different from the one in the Divine Martial Empire. The stars were so close that he felt he could catch them with his hands. He was certain that he was very high up in the sky right now.


    The Ancient Token has transported him into the skies!


    Long Chen looked down and saw stars too! The constetions rotated at a fixed pace, and he was transfixed by the beauty of it.


    But the stars were only a part of the surprise. Long Chen started inspecting what he was standing on and realized it was arge, metal te. It was rotating at high speeds as it transported him to a faraway ce. The te was massive and stretched to the horizons. Long Chen thought he was on a ttened star as the te emanated a blue glow. There were also golden runes on the te that formed circles on the te. The strange rotating force came from those runes.


    It was a massive starte flying in the endless skies.


    The other thing that shocked Long Chen was the people. He opened his eyes and saw that there were a lot of other people on the te. More and more bright lights shed, and another cultivator appeared with each one.


    ¡°So the people who obtained the Ancient Tokens will appear on the same te to travel to the Ancient Graveyard together ¡­ So that means we haven¡¯t reached the Ancient Graveyard yet.¡±


    Long Chen rxed a little before he withdrew his aura. He observed the neers and counted their numbers. He heard that more than ten thousand people would be transported every time the Ancient Graveyard opened, but the te was sorge that even ten thousand people wouldn''t fill it up.


    Long Chen took a deep breath.


    The people around him were exactly as he had imagined. All of them were as strong or stronger than Zhao Wuji. Some of them were so strong that Long Chen couldn¡¯t determine their strength. Almost half a dayter, he never saw someone at his level. There wasn¡¯t anyone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage here!


    More importantly, those who dared to journey to the Ancient Graveyard were all viinous people that had taken numerous lives before. All of them had cold gazes and their bloodlust filled the air.


    No one dared to move much under the tense atmosphere.


    Based on the size of the runes, Long Chen determined that he was in the center of the starte. If he had appeared on the edges, he might¡¯ve been thrown off as soon as he arrived.


    He shuddered at the thought of being thrown off the te.


    The te was rotating at high speeds as it traveled in an unknown direction. Long Chen held onto the surface tightly. Even though he wasn¡¯t afraid of the people, he was still wary of showing off too much. He didn¡¯t want unnecessary trouble.


    He needed to go to the Three Emperor Territory through the Ancient Graveyard, but the biggest condition before being able to do so was to increase his strength.


    Another half a day passed, and almost everyone was present by then. There were at least ten thousand people on the te. Every single one of them was exceedingly strong and had their ownprehension of martial arts. Long Chen was dismayed because any one of them could¡¯ve been the Martial Overlord in the Divine Martial Empire even though they were so young, but there were ten thousand of them here on the te!


    He also saw many people younger than him.


    This was a ce where all of the youths with insane talent were gathered.


    The Ancient Graveyard was a ce where everyone killed each other for treasures. Even though it was dangerous, many people still risked their life to go there.


    Almost no one recognized anyone, so they dared not approach anyone. Instead, they looked around as if everyone was their enemy. But there were some people who formed little groups.


    Just then, several white lights shed near Long Chen, bringing in numerous tall cultivators. Long Chen was wary of them because they had appeared so close to him. They were also temporarily surprised when they appeared. One of the plump cultivators fell down and rolled towards Long Chen.


    It was normal for someone to act like that since the te was spinning rapidly. Long Chen caught the man with his arm.


    After some time of getting used to the rotation, the man finally regained control over his body. Long Chen released him, and the man turned to thank him.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± The man was plump with thick eyebrows, but his eyes were small. His voice was loud, but the most distinguishing feature of the man was the massive ax behind his back. The ax was at least two meters long and the stench of blood came from its cold edges.


    Long Chen knew that the man was very strong even though he looked plump. Rather than being soft, the man¡¯s body was hard. <em>He must¡¯ve learned a technique that hardens his body.</em>


    Long Chen smiled and nodded after sensing no hostile intentions from the man.


    It was just a temporary meeting, and the man didn¡¯t waste any energy trying to befriend Long Chen. Rather, the man just returned to his group. His group wasposed of muscr cultivators that were tall and scary-looking. Bloodlust was also dripping out of their bodies. They appeared to be used to killing.


    The only friendly-looking one was the plump man.


    Long Chen then ignored them and looked at other new arrivals. A lot of them appeared beside Long Chen, but none of them talked to him much.


    Just then, a lot of white light appeared near the center of the starte.


    ¡°The people from the Nine Great ns are here.¡± When someone muttered that, Long Chen looked towards the middle.


    There were roughly a thousand people in the middle of the starte, and none of them belonged to the Nine Great ns. Just because the Nine Great ns were the ones ruling over the other divine empires, it didn¡¯t mean that there were no other strong cultivators.


    Even though the Nine Great ns were much stronger than the Martial Alliance, they could only amodate so many people. They couldn¡¯t absorb anyone they wanted like the Martial Alliance.


    There were also various smaller kingdoms whose citizens reached the same cultivation level as the people from the Nine Great ns.


    The Divine Wind faction and the Thunder Demon faction had almost a thousand cultivatorsbined. The people near the center of the te retreated as they looked at the thousands of lights with awe and fear.

 Chapter 700: Five Element Alliance

    Long Chen had been standing near the center of the te, so he was affected by the people moving away from it.


    After the Nine Great ns had appeared, they separated into three different factions. Long Chen could tell that the faction with the highest number of people was the Five Element Alliance. They had more than six hundred people. The rest of them either belonged to the Divine Wind faction or the Thunder Demon faction.


    The differences between each n of the Five Element Alliance was apparent. ording to the others, they were the descendents of the Five Emperors. Their martial techniques corresponded to the elements of their respective ns, which were the gold, wood, water, fire, and earth. Each of the ns was strong to begin with, but they were stronger than the Divine Wind faction and the Thunder Demon faction if all five of them worked together.


    Long Chen saw that the people from the Five Element Alliance had a distinctive feature. Their heads had markings with the symbol of gold, wood, fire, water, and earth depending on their n. <em>It must be a mark that they are born with. There¡¯s probably certain martial techniques that only they can use through the marks on their foreheads.</em>


    Long Chen then looked at the Thunder Demon faction. There were two ns in that faction, being the Thunder n and the Demon n. They didn¡¯t have any markings, but their appearance was distinct enough. Those from the Thunder n all sportedrge frames with electrifying auras enveloping their bodies just like Lei Zhen, while those from the Demon n looked like regr people. They wore ck overalls, but their faces were paler and more sinister-looking.


    Long Chen was more wary of the Divine Wind faction since he had killed Feng Xuan. She had left a mark on his body, so he dared not get close to them. He would be dead if they discovered him on the starte since there was nowhere to run to.


    The Divine Wind faction looked simr to each other, with the people from the Wind n all wearing green overalls. They looked elegant and haughty, while those from the Divine n were all of extreme beauty. They wore pure-white overalls without a hint of dirt on them.


    But there were few truly pure people in this world. The Divine n wouldn¡¯t have grown this strong if they hadn¡¯t used tricks or massacred people.


    Both the Demon and Divine ns were slightly stronger than the other ns. They only had several people with them, but each of them were elites amongst the elites. Their auras and strength were beyond regr cultivators.Long Chen was now weaker than the most unremarkable cultivators on the starte.


    The Ancient Graveyard was clearly an event where the Nine Great ns would contest each other for treasures. While there were quite a few strong people among the eight thousand regr cultivators, they would be no match for the Nine Great ns.


    The final battle for the real treasures would almost certainly be between the Nine Great ns. The other cultivators weren¡¯t qualified to even get close to them.


    ¡°Looking at how many people they sent, the Nine Great ns are going all-out this time ¡­¡±


    ¡°I wonder if we have any chance with so many strong cultivators here.¡±


    ¡°We can only do our best. I fear that we won¡¯t be able to get out if we don¡¯t kill enough people, much less find treasures of our own.¡±


    Everyone prepared themselves when the Nine Great ns showed up.


    The awe in their eyes reminded Long Chen of how he was in awe of the regr cultivators the first time he arrived in the Divine Martial Empire.


    <em>Since the fight between the Nine Great ns doesn¡¯t concern me, I should stand somewhere further away, especially from the Wind n.</em> Long Chen was about to leave when someone stopped him. It was the plump man from before. Because of how the people moved just now, Long Chen had approached the man unknowingly.


    ¡°Brother, are you really going to the Ancient Graveyard alone? You have guts.¡± The man was shocked to see that Long Chen was not only alone, but also much weaker than himself!


    ¡°Yes.¡± Long Chen nodded before he stared at the man in front of him. If the man had ill intentions, Long Chen decided that he would stop talking to him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not aiming for your neck. My name is Shao Yu. You can just call me Big Yu. What about you?¡± Big Yu was surprisingly friendly.


    One could tell if a person was sincere or not through their eyes. Long Chen could tell that Big Yu was worried about him after he had saved thetter from falling away.


    ¡°I¡¯m Long Chen.¡± His icy expression softened a little.


    Shao Yu chuckled and wanted to talk to Long Chen about other things, but their surroundings suddenly turned silent. That was because the Nine Great ns were talking in the center of the starte. Long Chen and the others tried eavesdropping on their conversation.


    Several people walked to the front of the three factions. Long Chen assumed that those were the leaders of their respective groups, the people that Long Chen could not afford to offend for now.


    Five elders appeared from the Five Element Alliance, each of them representing the gold, wood, water, fire, and earth ns. They were all extremely ancient. <em>Those at the First Earthly Martial Stage have a lifespan of a hundred years, while every increase in a stage increases their lifespan by fifty years. If they are at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, they can live for up to five or six hundred years.</em>


    The five elders looked like regr old men, not emitting any sort of aura, but Long Chen knew how scary they were, seeing as they could perfectly control their power. The less one¡¯s aura fluctuated, the more adept one was at controlling it. The five elders were, without a doubt, ancient monsters capable of controlling their auras perfectly.


    Even though there weren¡¯t any auras, their calm eyes paralyzed the others from fear. When they looked around and saw Long Chen, the calm but oppressive feeling actually forced Long Chen¡¯s essence to stop circting for a moment.


    <em>What incredible masters. They could¡¯ve suppressed me with just a single nce. Are the strongest cultivators from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory that strong?</em>


    ¡°The five patriarchs of the Five Element Alliance. Each of them is more than four hundred years old and has ruled the Five Element Alliance for more than two hundred years. To think they are still so strong,¡± Shao Yumented.


    ¡°How strong are they?¡± Long Chen whispered. He realized there were still a lot of things he didn¡¯t know. The Nine Divine Empires was where information traveled quickly, and Long Chen did not hesitate to ask Shao Yu questions.


    ¡°They are probably stronger than most Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators, but it¡¯s been a long time since anyone saw them fight. The heroic deeds they aplished in the past are still being circted around the Ten Thousand Nations Territory even right now. They are the pirs of the Five Element Alliance. Theirbined attacks are extremely powerful!¡± Shao Yu whispered back.


    Shao Yu noticed that Long Chen appeared to havee from a more remote ce, ¡°Hey, Ie from the Heavenly Wind Empire of the Five Elemental Alliance. Where did youe from?¡±


    ¡°Just a small nation. You wouldn¡¯t know the name,¡± Long Chen said inly.


    Shao Yu nodded as if it was within his calctions.


    ¡°Then you are very reckless toe to the Ancient Graveyard on your own. Don¡¯t you know how dangerous that ce is? I wouldn¡¯t havee here without allies.¡± Shao Yu then pointed at the several fierce-looking people that were his allies. Long Chen assumed that Shao Yu was the only talkative one in their group.


    Just then, the Divine Wind faction and the Thunder Demon faction each sent someone to the front. Long Chen continued to observe them. The Thunder Demon faction had sent a middle-aged man and a youth. The middle-aged man was wearing a purple brocade embroidered with several lightning beasts. The man was bulky like Lei Zhen, but he was several times stronger! He had short hair and deep, purple eyes. Long Chen also noticed sparks of blue lightning in the man¡¯s eyes, as if the heavens¡¯ lightning was all contained within them.


    The man squinted, and the pressureing off him was more barbaric and stronger than the five patriarchs of the Five Element Alliance.


    But Long Chen was confused by the youth at his side. If the middle-aged man was the patriarch of the Thunder n, then the youth would be the patriarch of the Demon n. <em>How is he the patriarch if he¡¯s so young?</em>


    Long Chen then realized he was wrong.


    Even though the man looked young, his eyes were like dark, bottomless pits that could make someone unconscious. Long Chen realized that the youth was not as weak as he had thought.


    The youth gave off a bizarre impression. His face was pale and looked sickly. He didn¡¯t look as strong as the patriarch of the Thunder n, but Long Chen felt a primal fearing from his heart when he looked at the youth. The youth stood casually, but the world somehow appeared to revolve around him, as if he could control everything.

 Chapter 701: Demon and Divine Clan

    Long Chen was confused, so Shao Yu exined, ¡°The man in purple is the patriarch of the Thunder n. He¡¯s as strong as the patriarchs from the Five Element Alliance. He¡¯s also roughly three hundred years old right now, and a man of legends. In the past, when he was only at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, he killed three of his siblings at the same cultivation level to be the patriarch! As for the youth in ck, hehe ¡­¡±


    ¡°What about him?¡±


    ¡°You must be thinking that he¡¯s just a regr person, right? He¡¯s actually the patriarch of the Demon n! He should be five hundred years old already! He¡¯s also one of the few legendary Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Five hundred years! He is the legend of the Demon n, and also my idol hehe!¡±


    Shao Yu was excited when he talked about the Demon n¡¯s patriarch. His saliva flew everywhere, and Long Chen could tell that he was a passionate man.


    At the same time, Long Chen silently noted down the appearance of the Demon n¡¯s patriarch.


    Long Chen was just a small ant right now, but he was confident that he could catch up to them soon!


    He also had the Prismatic Key in the Primordial Realm. It was supposed to unlock the treasure left behind by the Five Emperors. Long Chen was certain that the Nine Great ns were looking for it too!


    After the patriarchs of the Thunder Demon faction walked forward, the patriarchs of the Divine Wind faction came forward too. The Wind n¡¯s patriarch was a wizened old man that looked like a sage. He had snow-white hair and a faint smile on his face. Long Chen was certain that the man was roughly as strong as the Thunder n¡¯s patriarch. Long Chen then took special notice of the Divine n¡¯s patriarch.


    The Divine n¡¯s patriarch was a youngdy.But Long Chen knew that this person was most likely simr to the patriarch of the Demon n. <em>She should be an old crone who has lived for hundreds of years. </em>


    The patriarch of the Divine n was wearing a long, white dress and a white veil covering her face that gave an impression that she was a goddess. No matter where she went, her aura made her the center of attention.


    Many of them looked at the patriarch of the Divine n and caught glimpses of her beautiful face through the veil. Long Chen wasn¡¯t attracted to her since he kept thinking about her age.


    She was also the only female amidst the patriarchs.


    ¡°Of the nine patriarchs, the Divine and Demon ns¡¯ patriarchs are the strongest. Both of them are at the Heavenly Martial Realm. One of them is my idol, while the other is my goddess! I never thought that I would get to see them both today!¡± Shao Yu was starstruck.


    Long Chen, however, maintained his rity as he looked at all of them,paring them to himself.


    <em>It took me almost four months to reach the Third Earthly Martial Stage from the first, and the difficulty between each stage seems to be at least fifty percent harder. Does that mean I will take four to five years to catch up to them? </em>Long Chen was slightly depressed by that calction.


    But if anyone were to know his inner thoughts, they would¡¯ve pped him. The two patriarchs had reached the Heavenly Martial Realm after cultivating for hundreds of years, and they never got stronger ever since they reached that stage. It was clear that cultivation was extremely difficult, and yet Long Chen wasining about taking four to five years.


    But it was still true that Long Chen couldn¡¯t defeat anybody from the Nine Great ns right now.


    <em>I need to hide and increase my strength for now. If not, I will die in the Ancient Graveyard.</em>


    No one dared to move on the starte. Many of them were wary of each other because the killing would start the moment they reached the Ancient Graveyard.


    There was only war here!


    Even the Nine Great ns would do the same.


    Just then, the nine patriarchs started conversing and taunting each other.


    On the Five Element Alliance¡¯s side, an old man with a gold marking on his forehead said to the Thunder Demon faction and Divine Wind faction, ¡°Thunder, Demon, Wind, and Divine Patriarchs, how do you do?¡±


    The Demon and Divine ns were the ones leading their respective factions. Before the Demon n¡¯s patriarch could say anything, the Divine n¡¯s patriarch responded with her soft voice, ¡°Gold n patriarch, is that all you can say?¡±


    She ignored the five patriarchs and instead taunted them without any reservations. It was clear that she was very arrogant.


    But the patriarchs were not the type of people that would lose control of their emotions so easily. The Gold n patriarch smiled and rebuked, ¡°So the Divine n¡¯s patriarch is still short-tempered. You are already so old and yet you still have a menstrual cycle?¡±


    Everyoneughed.


    All of them secretlymented on how the Gold n¡¯s patriarch had a venomous tongue.


    The Divine n¡¯s patriarch saw that she had not only failed to agitate the Five Element Alliance, she was getting insulted too. Her eyes grew cold and everyone stoppedughing. They felt the chilling anger exuding from her spreading throughout the spinning starte.


    The Five Element Alliance, the Divine Wind faction, and the Thunder Demon faction all took their stances as they red at each other.


    The atmosphere was tense and filled with gunpowder.


    The Demon n¡¯s patriarch''s deep voice broke the tension. ¡°What a joke.¡±


    ¡°This is the Ancient Graveyard, a ce where we kill each other. There¡¯s no need to be friendly. We will all meet on the battlefield. Don¡¯t forget that it¡¯s a stupid idea to fight here. If the starte breaks, all of us will die.¡±


    The Demon n¡¯s patriarch returned to his group and sat down to meditate.


    <em>The Demon n¡¯s patriarch is quite straightforward.</em>


    With just a few words, Long Chen had a good understanding of the dynamics between the factions as well as the patriarchs¡¯ temperament.


    The reason why the three factions had remained standing for so long was because none of them wanted to ally with each other. If not for that reason, any two factions would have destroyed the other one.


    The Demon and Divine ns were strong, but the Five Element Alliance were the oldest ns in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory with a wealth of resources. All three factions were equally strong right now.


    The Demon n¡¯s patriarch was straightforward and ruthless. The Divine n¡¯s patriarch was arrogant and snobby. The five patriarchs were undoubtedly cunning old men.


    <em>Just kill each other, dammit. </em>Long Chen wanted all of them to die fighting so that he wouldn¡¯t have to face them.


    After the Demon n¡¯s patriarch stepped away, the others scoffed and returned to their respective ces too. They were now waiting to arrive at the Ancient Graveyard, the ce where their true battles would take ce.


    Long Chen noticed that when the Divine n¡¯s patriarch returned to her group, a young man weed her. The young man had his hair tied into a neat crown. His eyebrows were neat and tidy while his white robes were flowing in the air. He looked just like a god descending from the heavens. His skin had a faint glow and his eyes contained beams of light. His face was undoubtedly the most handsome one on the starte.


    The youth radiated a strong aura. The patriarchs had all suppressed their auras, but the youth did not. His monstrous aura threatened everyone near him.


    <em>He should be one of the stronger youths in the Nine Great ns. He¡¯s probably at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.</em>


    The youth was talking to the Divine n¡¯s patriarch, and Long Chen heard him calling her ¡°mother.¡± <em>So he¡¯s the patriarch¡¯s son? But they look almost the same age.</em>


    ¡°Ah, that must be the famous young master of the Divine n. I¡¯ve heard that the patriarch of the Divine n loves him more than anything. Why did she bring him here, then? The Ancient Graveyard is a dangerous ce ¡­ Also, there are a lot of stronger cultivators. I wonder if there will be a major incident this time?¡± Shao Yu mumbled.


    ¡°Young master?¡± Long Chen now had an impression of the youth. He knew that he couldn¡¯t even hold a candle to the youth right now, but it was fine since he didn¡¯t have a grudge against the youth.


    <em>Even the strongest youths of the Nine Great ns are high above the Divine Martial Empire.</em>


    ¡°The starte is slowing down. We should be arriving soon. Oh, little Long Chen, can I ask you something?¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°You are here alone, and you are also the weakest person here. To be honest, it will be difficult for you to stay alive. Since fate has brought us together, why don¡¯t you join us?¡± Shao Yu¡¯s eyes were glittering when he said that.


    Shao Yu saw that Long Chen was still young. It would be a shame for him to die so young, so he wanted to save him.


    Before Long Chen could reject him, a man that looked like a vulture approached them and red at Shao Yu. ¡°Idiot! You are already dead weight to us and now you want another one to join us? Do you not believe that I would cut you down right now?¡±

 Chapter 702: Wu Guangyu

    The vulture-looking man was radiating bloodlust. His face was dark and he had a scar on his cheek. He looked scary when he shouted, and Shao Yu quickly apologized. ¡°Boss Du Jiu! I¡¯m so sorry for saying the wrong thing!¡±


    ¡°Good! Don¡¯t you know that not everyone can join us? What if they drag us down? How many lives do you have to spare to let others drag you down? He can join us if he shows us what he¡¯s capable of!¡±


    Du Jiu red at Long Chen before he left. Shao Yu looked at Long Chen apologetically before leaving too.


    Long Chen was unfazed. He was going to reject Shao Yu¡¯s invitation to begin with. He ignored Du Jiu¡¯s scorn. Since Du Jiu was the leader of the group, Long Chen was certain that he was at least at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage or above, which would make him stronger than Feng Xuan. He was not someone Long Chen could fight now.


    Long Chen remained silent after Shao Yu left. After struggling for the past year, he had calmed down a lot. He knew what kinds of opponents were the strongest, and he yearned to be as strong as them.


    As Shao Yu had said, the starte was indeed slowing down. Everyone was buzzing with anticipation because they were about to reach the Ancient Graveyard.


    The starte had been flying for a very long time, and no one knew where the Ancient Graveyard was located. Long Chen had only heard that the Ancient Graveyard encapsted the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, but that was still being disputed.


    Regardless, he now sensed the existence of the Ancient Graveyard.


    In front of him was the outline of a massivend. Long Chen thought it was just a mirage.He then realized that rather than a mirage, it was a blinding light. The Ancient Graveyard was located in the light. The starte crashed into the light, and Long Chen closed his eyes instinctively. When he opened them again, he saw that the starte beneath him had disappeared.


    Since everyone was at the Earthly Martial Realm, all of them managed tond safely. They immediately scattered as they explored the new world.


    Long Chen was stunned by what he saw.


    <em>This is the Ancient Graveyard? </em>It was much different than the barrennd that he had imagined. Long Chen hadnded in a lush forest where songbirds were abundant. The nts were growing everywhere, as if there hadn''t been anyone here for a very long time.


    This was not the graveyard that Long Chen had expected.


    <em>Is this really the ce where countless cultivators were buried?</em>


    Those who were here for the first time were taken back by the scenery.


    Long Chen never expected the Ancient Graveyard to be so beautiful. Nature¡¯s spiritual Qi was also much denser here. While the Divine Martial Empire was rich in Earthly Qi, the Ancient Graveyard was filled with numerous kinds of Qi, including Life Qi.


    ¡°Is this really the Ancient Graveyard?¡±


    ¡°I thought it would be filled with tombstones!¡±


    ¡°I thought so too!¡±


    ¡°I think only those that have managed to escape the Ancient Graveyard before, especially those from the Nine Great ns, know about this ce.¡±


    Everyone discussed what they were seeing.


    The Ancient Graveyard was a ce of strife, where everyone would kill each other for treasures. After taking in the scenery, they quickly put up their guard and looked at each other warily.


    The ce was filled with people, and no one knew where to go. Suddenly, the people from the Nine Great ns flew away. They red at each other before flying in different directions.


    The others followed suit. The Ancient Graveyard was filled with treasure, but that didn¡¯t mean everyone would get one. Those who werete wouldn¡¯t get anything. They scattered and quickly searched for valuables. Many of them were clueless about the ce and didn¡¯t know which way to go, so they followed one of the three factions.


    Ten thousand people had somehow scattered into different directions without killing each other. When Long Chen saw that everyone had left, he knew he couldn¡¯t stay here any longer. He chose a random direction, where the forest was very dense. There were a lot of demonic beasts around, but most of them couldn¡¯t harm Long Chen and the others. The location where the starte hadnded was most likely the safest ce.


    Everyone had left the area, leaving only Long Chen alone.


    He stopped and let Xiang out. Xiang was his sworn brother, and he didn¡¯t want to coop him up in the Primordial Realm forever.


    ¡°Big Brother, is this the Ancient Graveyard? Why is it so pretty?¡± Xiang was shocked too.


    Long Chen sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know why either. I thought it would be barren like the Nine Spirit Purgatory.¡±


    Right when he said that, Xiang sensed something was wrong and frowned. ¡°Big Brother, someone is flying towards us! The fire energy is very strong too!¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Long Chen was shocked.


    He had just reached the Ancient Graveyard. Except for Shao Yu, no one had taken notice of him. So why was someone approaching them? <em>Was Xiang wrong?</em>


    ***


    In the Divine n group, the mysterious patriarch and her son were leading the way when he stopped.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Guangyu?¡± the patriarch asked in a soft voice.


    The young master extended his arm and showed her the green jade bracelet on his wrist. ¡°Mother, didn¡¯t you tell me that the treasure of the Azure Lotus Lord was of a fire-attribute? The Azure Lotus Bracelet should get warmer if we get close to the tomb, but why is it bing warmer now?¡±


    The patriarch touched the bracelet and was shocked. ¡°It is indeed warm, but this shouldn¡¯t be the ce where the inheritance of the Azure Lotus Lord is located. Maybe there¡¯s an incredible fire-attributed treasure or a demonic beast?¡±


    ¡°Then it must be some kind of treasure for it to be warm. Mother, wait here. I will go and find it. It would be great if we could find another treasure. Maybe I¡¯ll get lucky today,¡± Wu Guangyu said coyly like a child.


    ¡°Alright, but be safe. We will wait for you here.¡± The patriarch loved him so much that she allowed him to go, but she also ordered for some guards to protect him from the back. The others waited with her for their return.


    <em>Wu Guangyu probably won¡¯t take too long.</em>


    <em>***</em>


    ¡°Are they reallying towards us?¡± Long Chen was shocked by the person¡¯s speed. Xiang had detected it when they were fairly close. Long Chen used Sight and saw that a lot of people were already within one Li of them. The person at the front was so strong that Long Chen couldn¡¯t even determine his strength. The others were strong as well. There were also many others following them to see what was going on.


    Everyone was confused as to why the young master of the Divine n was running so fast, so they followed him. They thought that a treasure was about to appear if the Divine n¡¯s young master was making haste.


    Even if they didn¡¯t get the treasure, they wanted to see if it would help them increase their knowledge of this ce.


    Wu Guangyu appeared in front of Long Chen in an instant. Behind him were several cultivators from the Divine n. Behind them were hundreds of cultivators wanting to see what was going on.


    They were confused as to why the young master of the Divine n was staring at the weak Long Chen. Who was he? Why was the young master in such a hurry?


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know what the young master was trying to do, but he soon realized what was happening. He saw the young master¡¯s eyes twinkling with desire when he looked at Xiang.


    ¡°To think it''s a Sun Devouring Wolf! The legendary demonic beast that can increase its strength without limits!¡± He was ted! To think that the Azure Lotus Bracelet had led him to such a treasure! The Ancient Graveyard naturally would not have such a demonic beast, so he was certain that the youth beside the demonic beast had brought it in.


    <em>What luck!</em>


    Long Chen thought that Wu Guangyu was the only other person who knew so much about the Sun Devouring Wolf. <em>He even knows that the Sun Devouring Wolf can increase its strength indefinitely!</em>

 Chapter 703: Divine Clan’s Young Master

    How strong was the young master of the Divine n?


    He was hundreds of times stronger than Long Chen. Long Chen knew howrge the gap in their strength was and regretted letting Xiang out so fast. If they had been further away, the young master probably wouldn¡¯t have detected them.


    He had never expected something like this to happen. He was already alone at that time, and no one knew the young master had the Azure Lotus Bracelet.


    Long Chen held his breath.


    At the very least, the young master of the Divine n wasn¡¯t showing any murderous intent. He just looked at Xiang with pleasure and ignored Long Chen since he was merely at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. Hended and circled around Xiang before nodding with satisfaction. ¡°This is indeed the legendary Sun Devouring Wolf. What an amazing creature. It was originally a Category One Earth-tier demonic beast, but this one is a Category Four King-tier. It evenpleted its human form ¡­¡±


    It was clear that the young master of the Divine n was not some sheltered brat that relied on his elders to protect him. Instead, he was quite knowledgeable. After confirming that it was indeed a Sun Devouring Wolf, the young master then looked at Long Chen and asked inly, ¡°Is this your Sun Devouring Wolf?¡±


    ¡°Yes, young master ¡­¡± Long Chen was trying toe up with a way to escape. The young master had appeared too suddenly and even stood between him and Xiang. It was too difficult for him to put Xiang into the Primordial Realm and escape using Bloodwarp now.


    He refused to give up, but there was nothing he could do but endure it.


    The gap in their strength was toorge.The others talked amongst each other as they watched what was happening.


    ¡°It seems that the young master of the Divine n wants the demonic beast of that youth.¡±


    ¡°What is that demonic beast? To think that even the young master of the Divine n would talk to such a weak cultivator.¡±


    Everyone was confused.


    Almost no one knew about the Sun Devouring Wolf. Jiang Wucheng had tried to kill Long Chen to take the Sun Devouring Wolf back in the Divine Martial Empire, but he ultimately failed and was killed instead. The young master of the Divine n was different, however. He was thousands of times stronger than Jiang Wucheng.


    The young master looked at Xiang with anticipation after he heard Long Chen¡¯s reply. ¡°It seems that you know about the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s talent. I didn¡¯t want to let you live, but since you¡¯ve taken such good care of the beast, I will spare you today. Scram!¡±


    His order was absolute.


    Both Long Chen and Xiang panicked.


    Who knew they would encounter such a crisis as soon as they justnded?


    And it was none other than the young master of the Divine n!


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure how strong the young master was, but he was certain that thetter was at least at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. It was not a foe that he could ovee now.


    But they had lost the chance to escape. The young master appeared to know that they would try to run, so he had ced himself between Long Chen and Xiang.


    Long Chen was still trying to figure out the correct way to go about this. He knew that the young master could kill him with just a single nce. It was going to be difficult to try and rescue Xiang here.


    ¡°Young master, I am more than willing to give it to you, but could you give me some time to say goodbye? I¡¯ve taken care of it for the past few years ¡­¡± Long Chen feigned pity and tried to plead for some time.


    He had no choice but to do so if he wanted both of them to live, but Long Chen woulde back and take revenge!


    Long Chen always remembered his grudges, even if the person was the young master of the Divine n!


    What Long Chen needed to do was get close to Xiang and let him enter the Primordial Realm. He could then use Blood Warp to escape. Still, he was uncertain if Blood Warp would allow him to escape the young master. It was quite unlucky to encounter such trouble the moment he arrived.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me? Scram.¡± The young master frowned and a dangerous aura enveloped Long Chen. Long Chen felt a strong oppressive force acting on his body.


    ¡°Big Brother!¡± Xiang gritted his teeth and forced himself to not attack. He knew that the young master was too strong for them, and if they angered him, both him and Long Chen would be in trouble.


    Long Chen gritted his teeth too. He knew that the young master wanted to take Xiang as a pet. The young master was in a good mood, so he was allowing Long Chen to run. But if Long Chen continued to disobey, the young master would kill him. Words were useless in front of absolute strength.


    The other cultivators pitied Long Chen for encountering such bad luck when he had just entered the Ancient Graveyard.


    Long Chen was already angered by the young master¡¯s gaze. As the wielder of the Inherited Blood Essence of an Ancestor Dragon, he had his own pride. The two times he had lowered his voice were already his limit, but the young master still continued to push him further! Long Chen was certain that the young master would kill him.


    The Divine and Demon ns were the strongest out of the Nine Great ns, and the young master was the second strongest person in the Divine n. He was also the son of the patriarch! Even the other two factions wouldn¡¯t humiliate the young master in public like this!


    Which was why the young masterpletely ignored Long Chen.


    ¡°Why are you still here?¡± A colder voice enveloped Long Chen. The Divine n¡¯s young master¡¯s eyes emitted a blinding white light towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen realized that the young master was an expert in swords!


    ¡°Now!¡± Buying time was not the best strategy, but no one expected that Long Chen would fight back against the young master! They all thought that Long Chen was too reckless and brave! The gap in strength was too big! Long Chen was like a beggar attacking the prince of a kingdom!


    Long Chen decided to risk it and let Xiang enter into the Primordial Realm. He could use thenguage of beasts tomunicate with Xiang, but the others wouldn¡¯t know what they were talking about!


    When Long Chen attacked, Xiang instantly morphed into hisbat form and spat out the Nine Devils Ancestor Fire.


    Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain. Even though it had minimal effect on the young master, it was still useful as a distraction. This was the first time Long Chen had to fight someone so strong!


    It was not a gap that could be filled using wits!


    The Nine Devils Ancestor Fire surged towards the young master. He was initially shocked, but then he smiled tauntingly when both Xiang and Long Chen acted. But the eerie mes heading towards him piqued his interest.


    ¡°What a strange me ¡­¡±


    ¡°Xiang,e here!¡± Long Chen used thenguage of beasts, so no one knew what his n was.


    After spewing out the Nine Devils Ancestor Fire, Xiang quickly ran towards Long Chen. Long Chen thought that the young master would block the mes, but instead, he disappeared. In the next instant, the young master appeared in front of Long Chen.


    <em>What incredible speed! </em>Long Chen couldn¡¯t track the young master¡¯s speed with his eyes! Even if Long Chen transformed and used Blood Warp, his speed would only be slightly above the young master¡¯s.


    ¡°What a strange fellow to try and attack me ¡­¡± The young master looked at Long Chen with interest. He used his essence to suppress Long Chen. The young master had never met anyone in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory who would do that.


    Xiang was fairly close to Long Chen, but now the young master had blocked him again.


    ¡°So what if I attack you? I will even fuck your mother!¡± Long Chen cursed.


    The young master was giving off such an intense pressure that Long Chen could barely breathe as his blood boiled. He had never fought someone this strong in the Divine Martial Empire before. He had no choice but to be ruthless.


    The traces of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon were roaring in every inch of his body, as if it was offended that such a miniscule being would challenge it!


    ¡°What did you say?¡± The young master frowned. His mother was the patriarch of the Divine n.


    <em>Did he just insult the goddess-like being of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory? Did he just scold the pure saintess that everyone loves?</em>


    The onlookers were shocked.

 Chapter 704: Today’s Humiliation

    <em>Who is he? Is he someone with a massive backing, or just an idiot?</em>


    Wu Guangyu almost lost consciousness from the sudden anger he had just experienced. He started panting and wanted to kill Long Chen!


    But Long Chen reacted first!


    This was the first time Long Chen would use the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal. It would use up all of his essence, so he didn¡¯t want to use it, but there was no other choice.


    <em>Fwoosh!</em>


    A blood-red me burned up in Long Chen¡¯s palm. Since the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal was a technique that only required a palm to activate, Long Chen could release it with rtive ease and speed. By the time he raised his arm, the seal in his right palm was alreadypleted. He then thrusted his palm and shot the fiery seal forward!


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡±


    At the final moment, Long Chen¡¯s right arm turned into mes, and the fire surged out from his Martial Meridian. The Scarlet Emperor Seal in his palm lit up and transformed into arge, fiery seal before being shot towards the young master!


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the seal becamerger; itt was as big as a mountain by the time it was in front of the young master! The air burned up and a crackling sound could be heard.¡°Die!¡± The fiery mountain fell downwards onto the young master!


    It was clear how desperate Long Chen was when he used this technique. He had used up all of his essence and condensed it into a single powerful strike to attack the young master!


    No one had expected a single Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator to exhibit such incredible strength!


    It was an attack that even a regr Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator would have difficulty using. The young master was caught unaware as the burning seal crashed into him.


    ¡°Huh?!¡± The hundreds of onlookers were shocked. They never thought someone so young could use such a destructive technique.


    ¡°How could someone at the Third Earthly Martial Realm use such a technique?¡±


    ¡°Judging by its strength, is it an Emperor-tier martial technique? How did a regr person get an Emperor-tier martial technique and even managed to cultivate it?¡±


    Everyone was shocked, but what reced that thought afterwards was greed. An Emperor-tier martial technique was a very tantalizing prize. Everyone at the scene took note of Long Chen¡¯s appearance in hopes that they would be able to hunt him down one day.


    But they also knew that Long Chen wouldn¡¯t be able to escape the Divine n today, since he had attacked the young master. Only Long Chen was stupid and brave enough to do that!


    The group from the Divine n had several people that were almost as strong as the young master, but they didn¡¯t intervene even though their young master was attacked. They saw how powerful the martial technique was, but the user was too weak.


    The earth shook from the impact as the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal crashed down and engulfed the young master in mes. Everyone instinctively knew that someone at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage or below would¡¯ve been done for!


    ¡°How¡¯s the young master?¡± Everyone was curious to see what had happened when a blinding light cut the seal in half. The sword of light cut the mes into pieces and destroyed the seal!


    Long Chen frowned.


    To think that the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, a technique capable of killing those at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, would be destroyed so easily. But the good thing was that the Divine n¡¯s young master had been distracted long enough for Xiang to get close to Long Chen. He could almost enter the Primordial Realm.


    However, Long Chen had also used up all of his essence to use the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal. He couldn¡¯t even punch, much less use Blood Warp.


    But he had ns!


    <em>Rewind! </em>Long Chen rewinded time, and the faint ripple covered his body. His essence swiftly recovered and returned back to how it was ten breaths ago!


    Xiang was happy and immediately dove towards Long Chen¡¯s Primordial Realm.


    Just then, the young master had dismantled the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, but his hair was a mess and his face was red. Looking at his disheveled clothes and singed hair, it was clear the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal had dealt some damage to him.


    He had just destroyed the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal when he saw Xiang turning into a ck light and entering Long Chen¡¯s Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Trying to run? Violet Bone Chains!¡±


    A violet chain shot out from the young master''s sleeve! It was so fast that it ripped past space and tied Xiang up!


    ¡°What?!¡± Long Chen barely saw a purple blur before he heard Xiang howling in pain. Xiang was being binded by a purple metal chain that dug deep into his fur. Blood oozed out of the wounds!


    ¡°Xiang!¡± Long Chen was angry!


    He had never let Xiang encounter such danger before. They were sworn brothers, and he had sworn to protect Xiang, but now the young master had used those chains to bind him!


    Xiang¡¯s eyes wincing in pain made Long Chen mad.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes became bloodshot and a murderous aura exploded from his eyes. He red at the young master as thetter slowly reeled in Xiang with the chains. ¡°Stupid mongrel. Do you think you can escape? Nothing can escape the Violet Bone Chains, not even you!¡±


    Long Chen looked at the chains and saw that it was indeed as Little Cat had told him before. Magical artifacts like these were used differently, and their effects were also quite different from weapons. But the Violet Bone Chains¡¯ effect was very apparent.


    ¡°The Sun Devouring Wolf is a legendary demonic beast. How dare you be its owner with your lowly status and strength? You are desecrating such a beast. Don¡¯t worry, I will take over and let it eat a lot of different mes. Its strength will increase by many times under my care. As for you, you can die now!¡± The young master was ecstatic to have Xiang in his grip.


    He had no reason to talk so much, but he took pleasure in looking at Long Chen¡¯s frustrated gaze.


    ¡°Big Brother ¡­¡±


    Xiang used thenguage of beasts tomunicate with him.


    ¡°Big Brother, he¡¯s too strong. Let me stay by his side temporarily. He just wants my strength and intends to tame me. He thinks I¡¯m a beast, but I¡¯m actually human, so he will never be able to tame me. Leave with him and escape. He will feed me mes and let me be stronger. Once either you or me can defeat him, we will skin him alive! Let¡¯s settle this in the future!¡±


    This was the only n Xiang coulde up with.


    If Long Chen continued to fight here, he would undoubtedly die, especially since he had used Rewind. Long Chen was too unlucky today!


    ¡°Divine n¡¯s young master ¡­¡± Long Chen gritted his teeth. He knew when to back down, and Xiang was right. The young master didn¡¯t know that Xiang was originally a human and couldn¡¯t be tamed. All Xiang needed to do was to fake it and then he would get a lot of resources to eat. Once Xiang became stronger, he could kill the young master!


    That way, both of them could survive and be stronger! Long Chen would never have to face such humiliation again if he became stronger!


    This time, Long Chen would have to swallow this humiliation!


    He swore to pay it back tenfold.


    ¡°Xiang, promise me that you won¡¯t attack him before I do!¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice was trembling.


    Xiang nodded.


    They had decided on a n, so now it was time to escape. Long Chen wanted to rescue Xiang, but it was impossible to do that now.


    Long Chen took a deep breath.


    Everyone looked at the youth. They recognized his strength, but there was nothing he could do since he was facing off against the young master of the Divine n, someone who had both power and authority.


    Everyone pitied him.


    ¡°I wille back one day and kill you! I am Long Chen, and you better remember my name!¡±

 Chapter 705: Fourth Earthly Martial Stage

    Everyone wanted tough after hearing what Long Chen had said. Everyone thought he was stupid. Long Chen could barely ensure his own survival, much less kill the young master of the Divine n. It was a tant joke.


    But they were stunned when they sensed the killing intent he was giving off. He looked like the divine incarnate of massacre. He was weak, but it wasn¡¯t hard to imagine how scary he would be if he became stronger.


    ¡°I swear on my blood that I will be so strong that I can kill you in half a year! Wash your neck and wait for me!¡± Everyone heard him swear, but no one believed him. All of them thought that he was just saying his final words before being killed. Still, some of them thought that he wasn¡¯t lying.


    The Ancient Graveyard would only remain open for a single year. Long Chen¡¯s goal was to kill the young master of the Divine n in half a year. This was impossible if he were to stick to the progress he had made in the Divine Martial Empire, so he needed to find ways to break through.


    Long Chen¡¯s blood was boiling!


    <em>I refuse to yield! I need to be strong! </em>Long Chen¡¯s heart craved for the strength he needed to defeat the young master. He memorized the young master¡¯s face and swore to tear it apart one day!


    The young master was taken aback before heughed. He waved his hands at Long Chen, saying, ¡°Are you daydreaming, you mongrel? Someone go and kill him. He¡¯s sullying my eyes. To think that an ant would talk such rubbish in front of me. The world must¡¯ve changed a lot if you don¡¯t know the Divine n.¡±


    The young master mumbled and ignored Long Chen.


    However, it was Long Chen¡¯s turn tough.¡°Xiang, take care!¡± He used thenguage of beasts to say goodbye to Xiang for now. He was disgusted by how they called themselves the Divine n even though they were humans too.


    A man had to know when to retreat. Long Chen was certain that he couldn¡¯t win even if he used the third stage of Blood Sacrifice. The only thing to do now was to run and bide his time until he became stronger. He would show the young master how cruel he could be.


    ¡°Big Brother, take care!¡± Xiang refused to yield, but there was nothing he could do either.


    He wanted to travel with Long Chen and not act like a dog in front of the young master.


    ¡°We will meet when we be stronger.¡± Long Chen smiled before he red at the young master. His re was so cold and murderous that even the young master trembled a little.


    For just a single moment, the young master saw an ancient being that towered above the heavens in front of him, rather than a human. The noble bloodline of the being made the young master¡¯s own bloodline feel inferior. He was the ant right now!


    Long Chen suddenly transformed into a ray of blood-red light and disappeared. No one had expected Long Chen to have such a technique! They thought Long Chen would most certainly die today, but they never thought he had such a hidden card left!


    Everyone realized that the words he had said were meant to buy time to prepare Blood Warp!


    The young master did not chase after him. He was still petrified by Long Chen¡¯s gaze. He only snapped back a momentter and chuckled. <em>Wu Guangyu, oh, Wu Guangyu. How could you get intimidated by an ant? He wouldn¡¯t be able to surpass you even if he worked for an entire lifetime, much less half a year. The inheritance of one of the Seven Lords, the Azure Lotus Lord, is still waiting for you. The Sun Devouring Wolf will also make me stronger!</em>


    The young master was beyond excited.


    The Ancient Graveyard was a treasure trove for him! To think that he had a lucky encounter the moment he entered this ce.


    ¡°Young master, the youth ran away. Should we chase him?¡± one of the underlings asked carefully.


    ¡°There¡¯s no reason for people of our status to chase after the ant.¡± The young master looked at the Sun Devouring Wolf with satisfaction.


    Xiang rxed a bit after seeing that Long Chen was safe. He knew that he didn¡¯t need to worry about Long Chen and was certain that Long Chen would be back in half a year.


    He always fulfilled his promises!


    Xiang carefully hid his killing intent and pretended to be a real demonic beast by ring at them nkly with a fierce stare.


    The young master smiled and took his entourage away happily.


    The crowd was still buzzing with excitement over what had happened when one of them asked, ¡°Hey, do you think that youth will really kill the young master one day?¡±


    ¡°Are you dumb? It¡¯s just a joke. There¡¯s no way he will survive the Ancient Graveyard at his cultivation level, much less kill the young master.¡±


    ¡°Only someone like you would take him seriously.¡±


    Little did they know, all of them were minor characters.


    They dispersed afterwards, but they told everyone they met about what had happened. A minor character called Long Chen dared to fight back against the young master of the Divine n. It was the first joke of the year.


    The Divine n was one of the tworgest ns in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. They were also a symbol of strength. There were billions of people, but there was only a single Divine n. The patriarch of said n only had a single son. Wasn¡¯t it a joke for someone like Long Chen to challenge him?


    The young master of the Divine n, Wu Guangyu, was one of the most prominent youths and was also very strong. He had ess to far more resources than a regr person could imagine. Long Chen was only at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. He wouldn¡¯t be able to challenge the young master unless he worked on his cultivation for tens of years, much less half a year.


    Even Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure if he would seed!


    He only wanted to pass through the Ancient Graveyard to begin with, but now he had another goal: to kill the young master of the Divine n and rescue his sworn brother!


    Long Chen didn¡¯t mind how hard it would be. Even though everyone thought of it as a joke, he would treat it seriously. He had faith in the Inherited Blood Essence of one of the ten Ancestor Dragons! He only needed time.


    Intention was the first criteria of cultivation!


    Long Chen traveled ten Li away with Blood Warp. He dared not stop and continued to run using his physical strength while refining on King Crystals to replenish his essence. He had killed a lot of people in the Divine Martial Empire, so he had three thousand King Crystals, but that wasn¡¯t enough for him. He could also use the blood essence of demonic beasts, but he hadn''te across any suitable beasts yet.


    He ran through the lush forest for a while before realizing that no one was chasing him. Long Chen confirmed that he was safe before he entered a secluded cave. He hid himself and immediately started refining a thousand King Crystals at the same time!


    The crystals surrounded his body and he absorbed the essence to change it into his Dragon Soul Essence!


    After facing such a strong foe today, Long Chen¡¯s nerves were a wreck. His anger caused his blood to boil, and it took a long time to calm himself down. He could feel his cultivation steadily progressing as he took in the essence.


    ¡°Young master ¡­¡± Half a day passed before he finished recovering his essence. Long Chen stood up and red at the direction the young master of the Divine n was headed to.


    The grudge had been tied, and he had sworn with his blood. He knew the Divine n was strong, and he knew he would be aughingstock, but he didn¡¯t care. He was truly strong, and he knew that he would be stronger than them, so he didn¡¯t care about the criticism of others.


    Long Chen was the strongest in the Divine Martial Empire, but now he was the weakest in the Ancient Graveyard. Anyone here could defeat him easily.


    ¡°Nothing is more important than my cultivation! I can only dictate my fate if I¡¯m strong enough ¡­¡± Long Chen sighed, but his fighting spirit ignited!


    He started cultivating the fourth stage of the Earthly Martial Fist in the cave.


    He had been cultivating it ever since he reached the third stage. He hadn''t forgotten to do so even when he was cultivating the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal. It had been a month since he started cultivating the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, and he finally reached the breaking point several days after the close call with the young master!


    In the narrow cave, Long Chen¡¯s fist moved in a profound path. He moved ording to the pulse of the earth as he felt himself merging with it. He started picking up speed until his body was a blur. He then slowed down until he was barely moving!


    ¡°Is this how it feels to be at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage?¡± Long Chen immersed himself in the profound feeling. The fist was the basis of attacks. The other variations of attacking would follow suit after he mastered the fist.

 Chapter 706: Iron Demonic Wolf

    Long Chen had left numerous fist prints onto the walls of the small cave. He had cultivated continuously for four days straight without rest until he filled the entire cave with his fist prints.


    He was the type to exhibit more strength the more desperate the situation was. He had managed to advance into the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage due to the pressure from the young master of the Divine n. The oppressive pressure had forced his essence to grow stronger!


    While he cultivated, the dragon-shaped Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness became clearer and more solid. Its aura also grew stronger to the point that even Long Chen was slightly afraid of it. But deep down, he knew that the Martial Soul was himself.


    A cultivator¡¯s soul can be separated into two different parts: the Divine Soul and the Martial Soul. The Divine Soul controlled their thoughts, and was further separated into the three spirits and seven souls. The Martial Soul, on the other hand, was formed from their cultivation. It controlled their essence and was the core of their battle strength. It was also the condensed consciousness of a cultivator.


    As his Martial Soul became stronger, more and more Earthly Qi entered his body and became his Dragon Soul Essence. Long Chen steadily grew stronger!


    The wild energy burst forth from Long Chen¡¯s body.


    ¡°I¡¯m already this strong at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage ¡­ I suppose the young master could kill me with one finger at his cultivation level.¡± Long Chen reflected deeply on the gap between him and the young master.


    The young master of the Divine n wasn¡¯t at the Heavenly Martial Realm yet, but the gap was stillrge. Long Chen still couldn¡¯t defeat the young master even though he had just made a breakthrough.


    But he was not in a rush.¡°Since you want Xiang, I will let you make him stronger. I will then take him backter. I want to see what kind of expression you will make. Do you really think that Xiang is someone you can tame?¡±


    Several dayster, Long Chen finally solidified his strength at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. If he transformed now, his strength would be on par with someone at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. He also had various strong techniques such as the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal that could kill someone at the Sixth Earthly Martial Realm with ease.


    It was impossible to improve if one stagnated in the same ce for too long. Long Chen set his heart straight and solidified his strength before he embarked on a new journey.


    To fight to the death!


    Long Chen navigated the lush forest while using Sight. The forest was iparably big and littered with various spiritual herbs. Long Chen also found certain ces that were filled with signs of fighting. <em>Someone fought here for the sake of the spiritual herbs.</em>


    Ten thousand people had entered the Ancient Graveyard, but the ce was so big that Long Chen didn¡¯t meet anyone as he traveled. However, the signs of fighting were everywhere. There were even ces where trees were uprooted with a lot of beast blood scattered.


    <em>Thepetition in the Ancient Graveyard is intense!</em>


    Long Chen squinted and followed the traces of battle.


    <em>There¡¯s someone fighting up ahead. </em>Long Chen suddenly heard the sound of people fighting. He realized that information was his biggest weak point in the Ancient Graveyard, as he didn¡¯t know a lot of things that the others did. This meant that he had to be more passive than usual. He needed to obtain information about this ce as soon as possible!


    He followed the sound of fighting.


    While he moved forward, he realized that the number of trees around him was slowly thinning out.


    <em>Is this the edge of the forest?</em> Long Chen noticed that the trees, flowers, and grass were thinning out. Even the lush atmosphere was slowly disappearing. He walked forward until he left the forest.


    He found himself in an open field that had a very bright re.


    Long Chen squinted and looked forward. The area in front of him waspletely different from the forest and was more simr to his concept of what the Ancient Graveyard would look like.


    In front of him was a deste in without any nts. The only thing in the deste ins was the dark-brown earth thatcked nutrients. Long Chen looked closer to find that the ground was covered in metal dust! The entire in in front of him was covered in metallic dust! It was more urate to say that he was in a desertposed of metallic dust.


    There were also numerous steel spikes growing from the ground. They were sharp as the sunlight reflected on the cold metal. Some of them even had traces of blood on them.


    It was a world of metal.


    The world of metal in front of him appeared to be roughly the same size as the forest.


    <em>Ancient Graveyard ¡­ The treasure of the Five Emperors ¡­ I think I understand now. The Ancient Graveyard is separated into five different districts. I arrived in the wood district, while the one in front of me is the metal district.</em>


    The Ancient Graveyard was a strange ce.


    He looked down at the deste ins and the asionalrge metal piece protruding from the ground when he was once again attracted by the sound of people fighting. He looked towards the source of the sound to find that a group of people was fighting against demonic beasts. Long Chen was immediately attracted to the demonic beasts and saw that they were wolves. The small pack of wolves numbered in the dozens, but each of them wasrger than a horse! <em>Hmm ¡­ That shouldn¡¯t be their true form. They can probably change their size to adapt to the battle just like Xiang.</em>


    The Ancient Graveyard was a scary ce, and the demonic beasts weren¡¯t weak either. Each of the wolves was at least at the Category Four King-tier. To think that the Heavenly Phoenix, the strongest beast in the Divine Martial Empire, was only as strong as the wolves!


    The wolves were unique in that they resembled metal rather than demonic beasts. The gray wolves appeared to have been constructed from metal. They were both sturdy and supple, so ded weapons barely injured them. They could move nimbly and were stronger than regr metal puppets!


    They also appeared to be sturdier than Xiang. Long Chen would¡¯ve thought that they were metal puppets if it wasn¡¯t for the scent of their blood.


    Each wolf was fighting against two humans. The wolves were so strong that the metal sand flew up everytime they attacked. They left holes on the sturdy ground while the attacks from the humans barely did anything!


    A hoarse voice came from the group of people. ¡°Brothers, don¡¯t stop! If we kill them, we can sell their metal stones and demonic cores for a lot of King Crystals! The metal stones in their bodies are very precious!¡±


    Long Chen saw a tall, muscr man with dark skin. His scarred face depicted intense bloodlust.


    <em>Wait, isn¡¯t he Du Jiu? The leader of the group Shao Yu was in?</em>


    Long Chen had gotten to know Shao Yu on the starte. Shao Yu was also the one who had given Long Chen a lot of information. That was how Long Chen recognized the young master of the Divine n.


    <em>If Du Jiu is here, Shao Yu should be too. </em>Long Chen scanned the crowd and saw the plump Shao Yu fighting against a single wolf alone. Shao Yu was a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, and he was waving hisrge, ck ax around. He swung his weapon down hard onto the wolf as he fought intensely.


    But Long Chen soon realized that the ax was toorge and the Iron Demonic Wolf was too agile. It kept dodging Shao Yu¡¯s attacks, leaving the man exhausted. Everyone else had mostly wrapped up their battles, but Shao Yu was left all alone to fend for himself.


    ¡°Boss Du Jiu! Help me!¡± His essence was depleting and his face was pale. The Iron Demonic Wolf, on the other hand, still had loads of stamina!


    The Iron Demonic Wolves had battle tactics that had been passed down for generations. They had perfected it over the years, making them formidable foes. Their ws and teeth were exceedingly hard, enough to leave dents on Shao Yu¡¯s ax, while the ax barely left any wounds on the Iron Demonic Wolf!


    A Iron Demonic Wolf would most likely be the strongest being in the Divine Martial Empire if it went there. Even Martial Overlord Zhao Wuji might not have been able to handle such fearsome beasts. They were too strong!


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure if the Heavenly Phoenix could deal with a single Iron Demonic Wolf either!


    Du Jiu had clearly heard Shao Yu¡¯s pleas, but he ignored them. He was toying with his own prey at his leisure. Du Jiu was at least at the Sixth Earthly Martial Realm, stronger than Feng Xuan was. He would have dealt with the Iron Demonic Wolf easily, but he refused to.


    ¡°Boss Du Jiu!¡± Shao Yu was in despair. They hade here together, but because he was the weakest, Du Jiu usually looked down on him. Now Du Jiu even refused to help him. Shao Yu felt bitterness in his heart.


    Suddenly, the Iron Demonic Wolf let out a horrifying howl. It opened itsrge, metallic jaws and pounced towards Shao Yu. Thetter panicked and tried blocking it with his ax.


    <em>ng!</em>


    The Iron Demonic Wolf bit down hard on his ax, its teeth sinking into the metal. Shao Yu felt an incredible force exerting on his arm and almost lost his ax. He bit down on his teeth and used thest of his essence to seize control of his ax!

 Chapter 707: I’m Dead

    The Iron Demonic Wolf¡¯s eyes became blood-red and it twisted its body. The sound of screeching metal could be heard before it threw Shao Yu¡¯s ax away. Shao Yu fell forward from the momentum, and the Iron Demonic Wolf yelped in delight before lunging towards his neck.


    ¡°I¡¯m dead!¡± Shao Yu¡¯s face was pale as he struggled, but it was useless. The Iron Demonic Wolf was too strong to resist. He despaired when the wolf aimed for his neck.


    Suddenly, a strong aura appeared behind Shao Yu. Someone flew past him and kicked the Iron Demonic Wolf hard in its jaw before blowing it away.


    <em>ng!</em>


    ¡°Boss Du Jiu!¡± Shao Yu thought Du Jiu was the one who had saved him. He looked up to thank him when he saw that it wasn¡¯t Du Jiu. Rather, it was a familiar youth that had just saved him.


    ¡°You are ¡­ Ah! I remember now. You are Long Chen! I met you on the starte before.¡± Shao Yu was surprised. He recalled that Long Chen was only at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. <em>How did he kick away the Iron Demonic Wolf so easily?</em>


    ¡°You still remember my name?¡± Long Chen smiled. Everyone else was shocked by his appearance too. Du Jiu and the others only remembered him after Shao Yu called out Long Chen¡¯s name. Du Jiu thought that Long Chen was useless when he saw him on the starte.


    Shao Yu didn¡¯t know what to say when the Iron Demonic Wolf lunged towards Long Chen in anger. It was infuriated after it had been kicked!


    ¡°Long Chen, look out!¡± Shao Yu was worried because he thought Long Chen had only managed to hit the Iron Demonic Wolf because he had caught it by surprise. He was certain that Long Chen would lose in a normal fight. Shao Yu charged towards the Iron Demonic Wolf to save Long Chen, but he had lost his ax.Long Chen stared at the Iron Demonic Wolf nkly before he transformed his left arm into his dragon form. The ws on his left hands were like sharp des!


    The Iron Demonic Wolf howled in anger. It thought that Long Chen was weak because he was small. Being attacked by a weaker being was humiliating for it!


    The Iron Demonic Wolf was not only sturdy, it was also very fast. It left afterimages as it darted around before appearing in front of Long Chen to bite off his head!


    ¡°Careful!¡± The Iron Demonic Wolf was already in front of Long Chen and yet he did nothing. Shao Yu thought Long Chen was petrified from fear and wanted to save him, but it was toote.


    Just as the Iron Demonic Wolf was about to swallow Long Chen up, his left arm moved swiftly and pierced through the Iron Demonic Wolf¡¯s lower jaw with his blood-red ws.


    <em>ng, ng!</em>


    The Iron Demonic Wolf let out a horrific shriek because Long Chen¡¯s ws had pierced deep into its lower jaw, a ce where even Shao Yu¡¯s ax failed to reach. Long Chen¡¯s ws were harder than Shao Yu¡¯s ax!


    Long Chen then swung the Iron Demonic Wolf upwards before smashing it down into the ground! The Iron Demonic Wolf was as heavy as a small hill and yet Long Chen had flipped it easily!


    ¡°You are just a demonic beast and you want to try eating me?¡± Long Chen chuckled and gripped the Iron Demonic Wolf¡¯s lower jaw harder before smashing it onto the ground again.


    <em>Crack!</em>


    He then tore off the Iron Demonic Wolf¡¯s head with ease.


    The Iron Demonic Wolf was dead just like that.


    After killing it, Long Chen started refining its blood. While the outeryer of the wolf wasposed of metal, its inner body was still flesh and blood. He refined the blood essence, and the Iron Demonic Wolf shrunk like a mummified corpse.


    The blood essence was only useful for increasing his essence at this stage.


    Long Chen had killed the Iron Demonic Wolf very quickly. Everyone was shocked by his strength, especially Shao Yu. He had been worried that Long Chen would die, but now he saw that it was just his misunderstanding. Long Chen was far stronger than an Iron Demonic Wolf.


    The others were also confused as to why an unremarkable youth like him was so strong.


    Du Jiu squinted. He previously felt that the youth was at most the Third Earthly Martial Stage, but from the amount of essence that Long Chen had used just now, he reevaluated Long Chen as a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator instead.


    <em>Did he manage to break through? He must have a lot of secrets if he can fight like that. I need to have him stay by our side ¡­</em><em>I wonder if he is hiding his power even now? I should let him stay with us and act only after I get to know him more. That way, I can reap the most benefits.</em>


    As for Shao Yu, he now ignored Du Jiu.


    He had been in danger just now, but Du Jiu had not rescued him. Instead, it was Long Chen who had saved him. Now Shao Yu was more inclined to join Long Chen than Du Jiu.


    Because of Long Chen¡¯s appearance, the other people had been distracted from their battles. The Iron Demonic Wolves seized the chance tounch a fierce counterattack. Everyone started losing their battles as their initiative was lost.


    ¡°Focus on your enemies!¡± Du Jiu shouted, then he killed the Iron Demonic Wolf in front of him before helping the others. As more of them were freed from their own battles, the Iron Demonic Wolves were getting killed faster and faster.


    Long Chen did not help them one bit.


    Shao Yu retrieved his ax and inspected it, only to find numerous cracks on it. Faint, ck light seeped out from the cracks.


    ¡°Little Long Chen, I never thought you were so strong. Thank you for saving my life!¡±


    ¡°I was just passing by. I didn¡¯t think I would be lucky enough to run into you. I suppose this is fate.¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    Shao Yu smiled too until he remembered something. ¡°Where are you going now? Are you following us to the Metal District or heading back to the Wood District?¡±


    Long Chen did not answer but asked a question instead. ¡°Do you know a lot about the Ancient Graveyard? Where are you guys going?¡±


    Shao Yu scratched his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know this ce that much, but I think I do know more than you. We are heading to the Metal District. To be more urate, we need to go to Iron City.¡±


    ¡°Iron City? Why there?¡±


    ¡°Hmm ¡­ You really don¡¯t know anything about this ce, do you? Why don¡¯t you follow me and I can tell you everything I know?¡±


    Shao Yu was desperate.


    Long Chen knew why. Based on Du Jiu¡¯s actions, Long Chen could see that Du Jiu never once thought of Shao Yu as hisrade. Shao Yu would be dead soon if he still continued to follow Du Jiu. He wanted to stay by Long Chen¡¯s side so he could prolong his life.


    Du Jiu and the others finally dealt with the other Iron Demonic Wolves and happily looted the corpses. While they were doing so, Du Jiu brought another underling at the Fifth Earthly Martial Realm to approach Long Chen. They smiled happily at him. ¡°Little brother, thank you for saving ourrade! I was entangled with my opponent and almost caused Shao Yu¡¯s death. I¡¯m deeply ashamed of my inability.¡±


    Long Chen still remembered how Du Jiu had called him useless on the starte. He never thought Du Jiu was so adaptable.


    Shao Yu wanted to save his own skin, so he quickly asked, ¡°Boss Du Jiu, Long Chen is here alone in the Ancient Graveyard and knows next to nothing about this ce. Why don¡¯t we let him join the group and we can go to Iron City together? We should be able to do it with his strength.¡±


    Long Chen did not me Shao Yu for prioritizing his own life. Long Chen only wanted to learn more about the Ancient Graveyard and didn¡¯t mind leaving after he obtained all the information.


    Du Jiu had been waiting for Shao Yu to say this. Long Chen was a youth with a lot of secrets. He didn¡¯t want to let Long Chen go, so h e nodded. ¡°Little Brother Long Chen is indeed a talented cultivator! He is more than qualified to travel with us despite beind so young!¡±


    Shao Yu was delighted and looked at Long Chen pleadingly. Long Chen pondered. ¡°Then I will have to thank you for the hospitality, Boss Du Jiu.¡±


    But Long Chen was very clear on what was going on.


    <em>Trying to take advantage of me? Hehe, it seems you do not value your life.</em>

 Chapter 708: Metal District

    After a brief discussion with them, Long Chen set off with the small team of cultivators. The only person he was familiar with was Shao Yu. The others looked fierce; they spoke little with Long Chen and red at him with enmity in their eyes. Their boss, Du Jiu, did not speak much either,pletely ostracizing Long Chen and Shao Yu.


    Long Chen knew that Du Jiu was just trying to find an excuse to keep him close. He had not figured out Long Chen¡¯s capabilities yet and was worried that Long Chen had some trump card that they could not deal with. Otherwise, he would have attacked already.


    Du Jiu led them through the district. They walked on the cold, dark-brown ground covered with fine sand made of metal. The soil was mixed with the metal, making the ground as hard as steel. Every step they took created a <em>crunch</em>, a result of the metal grains rubbing against each other.


    Du Jiu and the others walked at the very front. One of therge men walked up to him and said in a low voice, ¡°Boss, when will we make a move on that brat? He doesn¡¯t look strong to me. I can chop him into two!¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not in a hurry. If we encounter any dangerter, let him rush in front. I want to figure out his capabilities first. The brat is a bit mysterious, so we must not act rashly,¡± said Di Jiu with a cold chuckle.


    ¡°Mysterious?¡± Therge man smirked and turned to nce at Long Chen. He could not see anything special about the brat and cocked an eyebrow. He then returned to his position and cracked his knuckles.


    Long Chen did not hear their conversation, but based on the way they were speaking into each other¡¯s ears, he could easily guess what they were talking about. He privately chuckled to himself. He had two objectives here. First, he wanted to learn more about this ce from Shao Yu. Second, Shao Yu was a good person¡ªat least he was good to Long Chen. Long Chen knew that if Shao Yu followed them, he would either die or be cannon fodderter, so Long Chen wanted to help him if he could.


    ¡°Brother Yu, tell me about Iron City. What is it?¡± Long Chen asked, walking up to Shao Yu.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t heard much about the Ancient Graveyard, so you don¡¯t know about it. The ancestors of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory havee here many times. The first time they came, they suffered major casualties, so they learned their lesson and set some rules which the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory agreed to abide by. The Nine Great ns enforce these rules, but they also follow them. The cities are part of the rules,¡± said Shao Yu wistfully.¡°Could you tell me the specifics?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard is divided into five districts, namely the Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth Districts. We are currently in the Metal District. The majority of thend across these five districts is devoid of people, save for special spots in all the districts. These are abandoned cities left behind from the Ancient Era, for example, and there are many Iron Cities in the Metal District!¡±


    ¡°What are these Iron Cities for?¡± Long Chen asked.


    Shao Yu chuckled and said, ¡°Within the Metal District, the Iron Cities are ces we can rest in. You might know this¡ªthe Ancient Graveyard is filled with treasures, and these treasures are often in strange ces. If there ever were treasures inmon ces, the ancestors have taken them already. Everyone is almost always immersed in killing because they are fighting over these treasures and killing to merge their Ancient Tokens to get out. As a result, most people will die here. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory suffered casualties too severe, so the ancestors gathered to set some rules. For example, since there were basically no treasures in the cities, the Nine Great ns banned fighting in the cities, and everyone abides by this rule. Everywhere else is dangerous, but to us, the Iron Cities of the Metal District will be safe since killing is forbidden! If anyone is discovered to have broken this rule, they will be persecuted by the Nine Great ns!¡±


    Shao Yu said all of this in one breath, so he was panting afterward. He grinned at Long Chen and said, ¡°Of course, we came to the Ancient Graveyard to kill. Riches are to be gained through risk and danger. We cannot stay in the Iron Cities forever. That was why they set another rule. No one is allowed to stay in a city for more than a month or they will be automatically kicked out! Boss Du Jiu¡¯s n is to set up a base in the city, then search and fight for treasures outside. We can fight outside, then if we suffer losses, we can return to the city so that the losses are not too major.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°As long as the city has the Nine Great ns guarding it, they will enforce this rule. But if the Nine Great ns are not based in a city, then the rules don¡¯t count there. They left before us, so if we head in this direction, we will find a city. Then we won¡¯t need to be as afraid as we are now,¡± said Shao Yu.


    The cities offered a ce for the cultivators to rest and recuperate for a while. This was the convenience that the Nine Great ns offered to regr cultivators. But Long Chen had another idea.


    <em>If regr cultivators that are based in the cities find treasure, they¡¯ll likely be watched and targeted by the Nine Great ns. With these rules, not only can the Nine Great ns stake a im on the cities, they can also reap many other benefits, </em>thought Long Chen.


    He suddenly thought about the matter of merging the Ancient Tokens and asked, ¡°How does merging the Ancient Tokens work?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± Shao Yu was shocked.


    When he saw how clueless Long Chen looked, he said, ¡°One of the root causes of the killing in the Ancient Graveyard is the fighting over treasures. The second root cause of killing is the merging of Ancient Tokens. Every person has an Ancient Token, but they are gray in color. This token records our essence level after entering the Ancient Graveyard, so it knows our approximate strength. One year after it opens, the route back to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory will open once more, and only the people whose Ancient Tokens have turned gold will be qualified to leave. I don¡¯t know what happens to those who are left behind.¡±


    ¡°How many other Ancient Tokens do you need to merge yours with in order to turn it gold?¡± Long Chen was very concerned about this.


    There was a sh of resignation on Shao Yu¡¯s face when he said, ¡°Someone has made the approximate calction. People of our level will need to kill ten equal-level opponents to turn it gold. People one level above us will need to kill fewer than that. As for people on the same level as the Divine and Demon n leaders, they always leave easily every time, so the requirement for them is likely very low. The ones who suffer are people like us in the bottom rungs. I really don¡¯t know who will merge with my Ancient Token in the end.¡±


    Every time, more than ten thousand people would enter the Ancient Graveyard, but only hundreds returned, maybe even fewer. This showed how terrifying the massacres were. There was only a one-in-a-hundred chance of living. However, those who survived basically became ultimate masters. That was why many people wanted toe in and take a gamble, despite knowing the risk!


    Riches were gained through risk and danger!


    ¡°I can¡¯t leave in the end if my Ancient Token doesn¡¯t turn golden. The Ancient Graveyard opens every ten years. Wouldn¡¯t that mean that there are still people from the previous batch who have not left here?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°You¡¯re smart to think of this question so soon. I was also wondering the same. This is the most mysterious part of the Ancient Graveyard.¡± There was fear in Shao Yu¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°I hear that when the killing is almost over in the Ancient Graveyard and only about a thousand or so people remain, hundreds of people are left behind. There are always some Seventh or Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators among those people, who have lifespans of centuries. It should be easy for them to continue living in the Ancient Graveyard. However, the strange thing is that whenever a new batch of people enter, the people from the previous batch are nowhere to be found. Not even their corpses are found. We don¡¯t know why ¡­¡±


    Long Chen squinted.


    <em>The distributed Ancient Tokens, the transporters, the merging of Ancient Tokens ¡­ All these factors indicate that the Ancient Graveyard is clearly controlled by someone. It feels like someone else thinks this is a game where we fight over treasures. We are in a chess game, but who are the ones ying? The people of the Three Royal Territories?</em>


    Long Chen was no idiot, so he quickly thought of this. The people who did not achieve a golden Ancient Token and were left behind could likely be ¡°cleaned up¡± by the people who organized this game. After cleaning them up, they would set up the next game every ten years.


    There were sure to be eyes high up in the sky looking down on these ants fighting for their lives.


    <em>Indeed, the strongest ones have infinite privileges. Weaklings like me can only be toyed with. </em>Long Chen was extremely unwilling, but he could not do anything. He could not even defeat the young master of the Divine n, let alone others.


    He could not even protect Xiang. Long Chen saw the truth for what it was¡ªhe was too weak! If he went to the Royal Territory, he would only humiliate himself!


    <em>Right now, I must increase my cultivation level as soon as possible, then search for more treasures of other elements. I need toplete the cultivation of the Five Emperor Seals soon too. Very few people in the Ancient Graveyard have an Emperor-tierbat technique like this. </em>

 Chapter 709: Legend of the Seven Lords

    Shao Yumented, ¡°People die for riches; birds die for food. I don¡¯t know what got into my head when I snatched that Ancient Token. After that, I was suddenly whisked to this ce. After I truly witnessed the killing here, I fully regretteding, but it is useless. Even if I die here, no one will pity me. I can only fight as hard as I can now. If I can get the inheritance of the Seven Lords, it will be worth it even if I die ¡­¡±


    Shao Yu¡¯s unintentionalment caught Long Chen¡¯s attention, who asked hurriedly, ¡°Brother Yu, what is the inheritance of the Seven Lords?¡±


    ¡°Why did youe to the Ancient Graveyard if you don¡¯t even know about this?¡± Shao Yu was speechless at his ignorance. He paused, then he said, ¡°There are countless treasures in the Ancient Graveyard. They were left behind by masters from the Middle Era. Many people be respected masters when they return to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory because they found some of these treasures. Other than the ancient Five Element Alliance, the others of the Nine Great ns basically rose due to the treasures found in the Ancient Graveyard. The Divine and Demon ns are a ssic story. They are factions that rose to power muchter, but became some of the most fearsome ns in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory in a very short time! That¡¯s because they received the Seven Lords¡¯ Inheritance!¡± Shao Yu exined with admiration in his eyes.


    ¡°Even the Divine and Demon ns rose to power because of the Ancient Graveyard¡¯s treasures?¡± Long Chen froze slightly. This showed just how powerful the treasures were.


    ¡°Everyone knows of the countless treasures in the Ancient Graveyard like divine weapons, magical artifacts, spiritual herbs,bat techniques, and many other strange things. The most famous of them all is the inheritance of the Seven Lords. That¡¯s the dream of every cultivator whoes to the Ancient Graveyard!¡±


    Long Chen did not know about the Seven Lords. He only knew about the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, which was what he learned from the Prismatic Key. The legends told that the Five Emperors of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory were buried in the Ancient Graveyard, so why did Shao Yu not talk about the Five Emperors, but the Seven Lords instead?¡±


    ¡°Seven Lords? What did they do? Isn¡¯t there anything about the Five Emperors¡¯ inheritance?¡± Long Chen asked, puzzled.


    Shao Yu looked at him like he could not be saved, then he said with widened eyes, ¡°Five Emperors? The Five Emperors¡¯ inheritance only exists in the legends. After countless years, no one has gotten any information about it, so no one believes it anymore. How could it exist? But the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritance is real. And it¡¯s the peak of all treasures in the Ancient Graveyard!¡±


    Long Chen thought to himself, <em>It looks like no one has ever found the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures. Then how can they exin the Prismatic Key and the Five Emperor Seals I have on me?</em>Long Chen kept this question in his heart.


    Shao Yu started talking about the Seven Lords.


    ¡°In the Middle Era, there were masters that went to war alongside the Five Emperors. Seven of them were the most famous, and they wereter known as the Seven Lords. ording to legend, they were just one step away from the Divine Martial Realm, because they were at the peak of the Heavenly Martial Realm with lifespans of more than two thousand years! The Seven Lords include the Divine Demon Lord, the White Lotus Fairy, the Azure Lotus Lord, the True Fire Lord, the Seven Star Lord, and more. The Divine Demon Lord and the White Lotus Fairy¡¯s inheritances have already been found, but the rest still remain in the Ancient Graveyard. You should be able to guess who received those inheritances, right?


    The Divine n and the Demon n were both powerful factions in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and they were the ones who had received the inheritances of the Divine Demon Lord and the White Lotus Fairy. This also meant that the inheritances had indirectly created the current power situation.


    Long Chen naturally could figure that out.


    It had been a long time since masters at the peak of the Heavenly Martial Realm were seen in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. It was only natural that the inheritances left behind by them would be treated as ultimate treasures by millions of citizens. Just the Divine Demon Lord and the White Lotus Fairy¡¯s inheritances could skyrocket the two ns into power. This was proof of how terrifying they were.


    <em>If I could also get one of the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritance ¡­ </em>As Long Chen listened, a yearning formed in his heart. For the moment, he did not really want the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures, but he would be able to have something to rely on when he went to the Three Royal Territories if he could get one of the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritances.


    <em>Five of them have not been found yet. Looks like I can try striving for them. If I can get one of them, I will have some hope in defeating the Divine n¡¯s young master and getting Xiang back.</em>


    The most urgent problem that he had to solve now was getting Xiang back. This was a huge source of anxiety even though it had only been a day. Xiang had said it was no problem, that he could keep himself alive. But what if something unexpected happened? What if the Divine n¡¯s young master suddenly became violent? What if he did something frightening to Xiang?


    All of these were possibilities!


    <em>If anything happens to Xiang, I will bury the whole Divine n with him! I don¡¯t care if I¡¯m strong enough for that or not! I will! </em>Long Chen clenched his teeth and privately swore to himself!


    Whenever he recalled the young master¡¯s contemptuous smirk, he had the urge to squash him to death!


    <em>You just wait and see ¡­ </em>Long Chen put down his fist, stabilizing his emotions.


    ¡°Brother Long Chen, what¡¯s the matter? Do you also want to get the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritances? Haha. I think you have a chance. Work hard and stay alive, maybe you¡¯ll really get one. As for me, I have no family background, no potential, no looks, no connections, no determination. Everything is just average. People like me deserve to die early. There¡¯s nothing special about me. The only thing is that I¡¯m fat!


    Shao Yu chuckled, but Long Chen heard some resignation in his chuckle.


    Indeed, most people weren¡¯t anything special, nor would they be remembered. In fact, they sometimes even looked down on themselves. Before Long Chen left Baiyang Town, he was one of those people. Every day, he was just surviving and waiting to die with no goal and no courage to live.


    The moment Long Qinn¡¯s eyes closed and Ling Xi left, he had turned into a machine. He had no concept of fatigue and feared nothing as he embarked on this long and uncertain journey. But that was when he realized he already had his own life and goals.


    As for Shao Yu, he was in the same state as Long Chen was a long time ago. He had no life and no goals. He was very ordinary and went with the flow. One day, if fate dictated that he would die, he would die naturally. Other than a mound of soil, he would never leave a trace in the world.


    Long Chen did not know how to exin these concepts to him.


    ¡°Do you have any desires? What sort of person do you want to be?¡± Long Chen suddenly asked.


    Shao Yu froze, then he said, ¡°Desires? I don¡¯t know. My parents are dead; the person I like is dead. Perhaps the only reason why I¡¯m alive is because I fear death. To be honest, if you had not saved me just now, I would have scared myself to death already.¡±


    Long Chen was speechless.


    This was a very personal matter, so Long Chen could not do much. He was grateful that his life differed from Shao Yu¡¯s. Although it was tiring, it was fulfilling. If not, he would feel like he was a pitiful person.


    They walked across the dark-brown ground with metal sand. Their path was not t. Sometimes, a mountain of metal with spatters of rust would appear next to them. Long Chen felt nauseated when the chilling scent of rust hit him.


    This disgusting smell traveled with the wind from all directions.


    During their journey, the group was hit with another demonic beast attack. This time, it was a Category Four King-tier scorpion. It was covered in pitch-ck metal and had a fearsome re. It was only Category Four King-tier, yet it dared attack them. Very soon, it was killed by a tall cultivator next to Du Jiu.


    After the guy killed the scorpion, he shot Long Chen a bellicose look. Long Chen pretended not to see it.


    He had learned many things from Shao Yu. The only reason why he was still here was because he felt like he could not watch Shao Yu be someone else¡¯s cannon fodder and do nothing. Long Chen was a person who took friendship seriously. Shao Yu saw him as a brother, and he took that to heart.


    After crossing a hill made of metal pieces, they heard the sound of battle ahead. Their expressions changed. Everyone other than Long Chen and Shao Yu surrounded Du Jiu with violence and coldness in their eyes.


    ¡°Sneak over to check it out! See if you can take advantage of it!¡± Du Jiu said in a low voice. Everyone followed him with bent backs towards the sound. They were less than five hundred meters away. Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and easily saw what was happening before they did.


    Two groups of people were locked in a vigorous battle, but it wasing to an end. It was a tragic scene; fresh blood and corpses were everywhere. There should have been five or six people on both sides, but only two people remained fighting as the others were dead!


    ¡°You bastard! How dare you kill so many of my brothers?! Hand over that ax and I¡¯ll let you go alive!¡±


    They heard the voiceing from up ahead. Long Chen and the others approached until they could see the fight. Du Jiu and the others¡¯ eyes lit up with joy. It was a bloody scene with blood and corpses strewn all over.


    Both parties fought viciously, so there were even broken limbs on the ground.


    The one who spoke was a short cultivator, and he was fighting violently against another man in yellow clothes who roared furiously, ¡°We were the ones who got the ax first, but you all came to snatch it away! Your brothers deserved to die! If you don¡¯t leave now, I¡¯m killing you too!¡±


    ¡°In your dreams! Die! Essence Finger Spear!¡±

 Chapter 710: Blue Light Battleaxe

    The fighting between the two men was vigorous. They mostly ignored their opponents¡¯ attacks and tried to kill the other person by risking their lives. If this continued, both of them would die at the same time. Du Jiu and the others were coincidentally present to take advantage of this.


    Du Jiu turned around and said to Long Chen with a smile, ¡°Little Brother Long Chen, both of these people are already on the brink of death. You haven¡¯t shown us your capabilities yet ever since you joined us; I¡¯ll leave them to you!¡±


    There was a deep chill hidden in his smile.


    Both of the men were at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. Du Jiu could have easily killed them off, but he had asked Long Chen to do it instead. He was clearly trying to figure out how strong Long Chen was.


    ¡°They¡¯re focused on each other. We can just go and take the treasure after they¡¯re done. Why would we need Brother Long Chen to go?¡± asked Shao Yu, puzzled.


    He did not know that Du Jiu was targeting Long Chen. The fat man was a little dumb; if he was smarter, he would not have joined this team.


    Du Jiu¡¯s squad did not even blink when they killed, but Shao Yu was kind at heart. How could he ever mix with them?


    ¡°Fat Yu, if those two slip away, you will be responsible!¡± Many of the cultivators next to Du Jiu red at Shao Yu, forcing him to swallow his words.


    Long Chen smiled without a word and went directly to the two fighting men. They were fighting so intensely that they did not care about their own lives. When Long Chen went up to them, clearly wanting to take advantage of the situation, both of them would likely hate him equally! Both men quickly separated and red at Long Chen venomously.There were many wounds on their bodies, which were still bleeding, but they did not care.


    ¡°Brat, we¡¯re trying to kill here. Why did youe here? Are you looking to die?¡±


    ¡°If you take one more step forward, we will kill you first!¡± said the other cooperatively.


    Although they hated each other¡¯s guts, they would never let someone else take away a piece of treasure that had caused their brothers¡¯ deaths! If Long Chen stepped closer, they would work together without question!


    Long Chen continued walking forward, ignoring their warnings. Then he suddenly elerated and arrived in front of them!


    ¡°Deste Divine Seal!¡±


    Heunched the Deste Divine Seal at them. He did not use his Dragon Soul Transformation, so his essence was at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. However, because both of them were severely injured and the Deste Divine Seal was an advanced King-tierbat technique, he managed to suppress them!


    The palm filled with deathly Qi flew towards them. A cloud of gray mistpletely wrapped around both of them!


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡± When Long Chen attacked, they scrambled to retaliate. They had let their guards down because Long Chen was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. They had not expected Long Chen tounch such a powerful attack so quickly!


    The mighty Deste Divine Seal boosted by the Golden Crow me¡¯s power spread towards the both of them. The Golden Crow me was a huge boost to Long Chen¡¯s abilities, which increased together with his cultivation level. When its burning heat mixed with the Deste Divine Seal¡¯s deathly Qi, the resultingbat ability was shocking!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    Gray mist washed over the two men. When Du Jiu and the others finally saw what had happened, Long Chen was already behind them and there was a gray palm on both their chests. The gray Qi spread in all directions until it covered their whole bodies. Very quickly, they died.


    It was a quick and direct kill, also considered a form of mercy from Long Chen to them. One had to have an understanding of death in the Ancient Graveyard. The strongest ate the weakest¡ªthat was thew of the world!


    After Long Chen killed both of them, Du Jiu and the others were in a daze. They had not expected Long Chen to resolve this so cleanly. Du Jiu initially wanted to figure out Long Chen¡¯s abilities by waiting for him to reveal his trump card. If Long Chen ended up being weaker than him, he would immediately kill Long Chen. However, Long Chen still remained a mystery.


    Du Jiu, who was itching to make a move, forcefully suppressed his desire to kill. The other people also reined in their imaginations. They knew that if it were them, they would not have killed those two men that quickly.


    However, after Long Chen killed them, the group quickly followed Du Jiu and instantly arrived next to the two dead men. Du Jiu was the fastest. Right after Long Chen killed them, they ripped out their Universe Pouches. Du Jiu pulled out a sharp ax from one!


    Long Chen focused his gaze and saw that it was a metal ax. It was ck all over with dark-blue light flowing on its surface. It was shiny and had a subtle but powerful energy ripple. It was a divine weapon at least of the intermediate King-tier. It may even have been an advanced King-tier.


    ¡°How unlucky. It¡¯s an ax. Does any brother here use an ax?¡± one of the men blurted after seeing the glowing blue ax. It was unquestionably a good divine weapon, but unfortunately, it did not suit him.


    Everyone was dejected.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ Elder Brothers, my ax was ruined when I was fighting the Iron Demonic Wolf. Would it be possible to give me that ax?¡± Shao Yu asked timidly, eyeing the Blue Light Battleaxe with a burning gaze.


    When he finished speaking, Du Jiu had already put the Blue Light Battleaxe away. He looked at Shao Yu, then said expressionlessly, ¡°This battleax looks like it is an advanced King-tier weapon. This is the first valuable item we retrieved since arriving in the Ancient Graveyard. Your cultivation level is not high enough for this battleax to be used at its full potential. I¡¯ll keep it for now. I will only feel more assured giving it to you when you reach the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Brother Shao Yu. That is an excellent ax, and you¡¯re not able to use it to its full potential. Might as well sell it in exchange for some King Crystals and spiritual medicine that will benefit everyone. You¡¯ve contributed the least along this journey, so how could you take the best war spoil as your own?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right. I will not agree to you having it.¡±


    Everyone chimed in. Initially, Shao Yu was looking forward to having the ax, but he looked miserable by the time they finished. Although he was not very bright, he knew that they were bullying him.


    It was such a good battleax; it would be a pity if it was exchanged for King Crystals. But Du Jiu had put it away and refused to let him use it. He wascking a weapon too. Without his ax, hisbat abilities had reduced greatly.


    But Shao Yu did not dare fight back. Resigned, he shook his head and sighed.


    Long Chen watched the whole conversation.


    Then he walked up to Du Jiu, looked into his eyes, and said calmly, ¡°Based on the rules, I should be the one who gets the battle ax. I am the one who has the right to decide who it goes to. But you made the decision to keep it on your own. What is the meaning of that?¡±


    To Du Jiu, giving such a good weapon to Shao Yu was like cing a flower on a pile of cow dung. [1]


    But he did not expect Long Chen to argue with him for the sake of trash like Shao Yu. Du Jiu had been targeting Long Chen all along anyway. He hadn¡¯t attacked him yet because he could not figure out Long Chen¡¯s capabilities. Now that Long Chen was directly arguing with him, being an ill-tempered person, his killing intent rose instantly.


    They had a standoff, ring at each other coldly. The others smirked coldly when they saw this, rubbing their fists. They stood behind Du Jiu and red at Long Chen and Shao Yu with bloodlust in their eyes. Only Shao Yu stood behind Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen, forget about it. Boss Du Jiu is right. I¡¯m not strong enough to use that battleax. If I lost it, I would just embarrass everyone. It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine ¡­¡± Shao Yu hurriedly tugged at Long Chen¡¯s arm in a panic. He could tell that Du Jiu and the others had killing intent. Long Chen was not strong enough to face them all on his own.


    Long Chen gently pushed him away. He could not swallow this injustice, so he said, ¡°Everyone is on the same team, so everyone should be treated equally. As the leader, you should prioritize the wellbeing of your brothers. You don¡¯t even know this; how could you be the leader?¡±


    ¡°You want to be the leader? It¡¯s very disrespectful of you to be like this after you only just joined us. Of course, you can be the leader. That depends on whether my brothers agree!¡± Du Jiu smirked coldly. The scar on his face moved along with his smile like a disgusting, wriggling worm.


    ¡°Is that a joke? If he bes the leader, I¡¯m chopping his head off!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s just some punk! Do you even know what a leader is? Hehe ¡­¡±


    Everyone burst intoughter.


    Long Chen was unaffected. He squinted and said mildly, ¡°I¡¯m not wasting time on nonsense. I was the one who got the battleax. Hand it over and I will give this matter a rest. If you don¡¯t¡¯ ¡­¡±


    ¡°Then you¡¯ll kill me and take it for yourself?¡± Du Jiu smiled.


    Although this brat was mysterious, he was too arrogant. There were ten-plus Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators here, and Du Jiu was a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage master. What right did Long Chen have to speak like that?


    In the beginning, Du Jiu thought Long Chen had a trump card, so he did not dare act recklessly in case it caused casualties. Now he saw that Long Chen was just a reckless young man.


    After reaching the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, Long Chen had a rough gauge of his own strength.


    Long Chen would have killed them off if it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Shao Yu would be alone if they died, which was an even stickier problem. But now, he saw that if he did not kill them, Shao Yu would die sooner orter while he followed them. In that case, Long Chen decided that he did not mind killing them right now.


    The onlyplicated part was that he could not let Shao Yu follow him for the rest of his journey. His current solution was to first kill all these wolf-like men, then send Shao You to an Iron City.


    When he was about to attack, the metal ground started shaking and he sensed something terrifying!


    ¡°Natural Disaster!¡± someone yelled.


    1. To ce a flower on a pile of cow dung = wasting something good on a person who does not deserve it ?

 Chapter 711: Metal Devouring Wind

    This twist was beyond any of their expectations. The standoff waspletely interrupted by the sudden change. Long Chen did not know what was happening, so he was a bit confused, but he saw panicked expressions on all their faces. Even the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage Du Jiu tossed Long Chen aside!


    The only thing they could think of was to run!


    Du Jiu ran the fastest, and everyone followed behind him. Shao Yu also knew that it was time to run. He obviously would not leave Long Chen behind, so he roared, ¡°Brother, this is one of the five natural disasters! Run or you¡¯ll die!¡±


    Long Chen was no idiot. They were all running; he did not need Shao Yu to tell him. In fact, he ran much faster than all of them and got ahead of the group!


    The dark-brown ground suddenly shook and endless, frightening sizzling could be heard. Gusts of golden air currents shot out of the ground like springs, and then tens of thousands of air currents as thick as an arm merged together!


    These air currents terrified him. He did not dare get anywhere near Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, and he felt the same way about them. The air currents looked as if they were the sharpest knives. He was certain that he would be chopped to pieces if he touched them!


    The golden air currents had only just appeared, but they were terrifying!


    <em>Five natural disasters? Despite the names, they probably aren¡¯t that simple. Even Du Jiu looks terrified! </em>Long Chen thought to himself, privately putting his guard up.


    The air currents merged together mid-air, and a huge, golden male lion materialized. It let out an earth-shattering roar, then charged at Long Chen and the others!The ground shook every time its pawsnded on the ground. Their faces turned pale when they sensed that it was chasing after them!


    The golden lion turned into a golden gust of wind as it ran. The mountains of metal were cut to crumbs where it passed!


    It ran faster than them too. Long Chen finally understood why they were so afraid. They would be chopped to pieces with just a gentle touch. How could they not be afraid? This natural disaster could easily kill them!


    Long Chen sensed just how serious the situation was.


    He slowed down and grabbed Shao Yu, who was at the back of the group. Not caring if he was willing or not, he put him in the Primordial Realm, then covered his eyes with Primordial Qi so that he could not see anything.


    After that, he felt more assured. However, the golden lion was frighteningly fast and pounced in front of Long Chen in just the blink of an eye. If he had not saved Shao Yu, Shao Yu would have been dead!


    Blood Warp!


    Facing critical danger, he used Blood Warp for a short moment. He did not dare use up all his essence for this technique, as he could easily die from any threat without essence. And threats were everywhere in the Ancient Graveyard!


    He traveled five hundred meters in an instant, which used up one-tenth of his essence. The golden lion, which was behind Long Chen, was now a few hundred meters away. Long Chen also deviated from his original direction, so the lion did not run toward him. Instead, the lion turned into a golden gust of wind and pounced in front of Du Jiu and the others!


    ¡°Ahh!¡±


    Cries of agony came from them. Long Chen watched in terror. The slower ones were directly swallowed by the golden wind; they turned into a powder of blood and flesh, which scattered in the wind. One by one, Du Jiu¡¯s muscr subordinates were killed by the golden wind.


    Long Chen was out of danger now, so he took Shao Yu out. To Shao Yu, everything had happened in less than two breaths. Before he knew what happened and where he went, he was taken out of the Primordial Realm!


    ¡°Long Chen, I ¡­¡± Before he finished, he spotted his teammates being turned into blood powder by the golden wind! It was a gory scene. All they could do was scream in despair, then die.


    Shao Yu was pale with fear. He knew that without Long Chen, he would have also been turned into powder. Once again, he felt endless gratitude for Long Chen. At this point, even if Long Chenmanded him to enter a sea of fire, he would not even frown before obeying him!


    One by one, they were killed by the golden lion. Shao Yu was not sad, but rather he felt like his anger had been vented. Everyone there had bullied him before, and he had suppressed his feelings in order to live. Today, they finally received their retribution!


    The five natural disasters were notorious in the Ancient Graveyard, enough to instill fear the moment people heard their names. Countless people died from these natural disasters. That was why everyone panicked when they saw the golden air currents!


    Long Chen and Shao Yu watched coldly as the ten-plus cultivators were all swallowed until one remained¡ªDu Jiu. Du Jiu was at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, so he was several times faster than the others. That was why he could escape in time and the golden wind could not catch up!


    The threat of death usually triggered endless potential within people, and it was the same for Du Jiu. Although the golden wind was close to him during the chase, there was still some distance between them. Du Jiu did his best to activate his essence and run so that he could stay alive!


    Everyone only had one chance to live. He did not want to die due to a natural disaster. Not when Long Chen and Shao Yu seemed to have sessfully escaped!


    Ten-plus brothers were all dead. He was the only one left, and he was in great pain. This was a natural disaster, so he could not me anyone, but his heart was still filled with rage!


    And he could only vent this rage on Long Chen and Shao Yu.


    Long Chen was watching the golden air current solemnly with reverence in his eyes. He knew that if it touched him, he would die. There was too much of it, so he would not be able to dodge. He asked, ¡°Brother Yu, what was that? What are the five natural disasters?¡±


    Shao Yu still looked terrified. He muttered, ¡°Five ¡­ Five natural disasters. They¡¯re the five disasters that often kill many people in the Ancient Graveyard. They are natural, not man-made. That golden current is unique to the Metal District, and it¡¯s called the Metal Devouring Wind!¡±


    Metal Devouring Wind?


    Long Chen had not expected something like that in the Ancient Graveyard. The Metal Devouring Wind had appeared suddenly without any patterns and even gave chase, making it terrifying. If a person were unlucky enough to be nearby when it appeared, they would be chopped into countless pieces!


    The Metal Devouring Wind was a gust of wind formed from countless minute golden des aggregated together!


    ¡°Oh no! Long Chen, Boss Du Jiu is getting away!¡± cried Shao Yu in panic. He could see the venomous look on Du Jiu¡¯s face. So many of his brothers had died, so he was likely blinded by emotion. If he returned to take revenge, they would be finished.


    But Long Chen was unaffected by Shao Yu¡¯s words. He watched the golden lion chase Du Jiu. After it chased Du Jiu for a while but was unable to catch him, the golden lion let out a weak, sorrowful cry and turned back into thousands of airstreams that dove into the dark-brown ground.


    ¡°It stopped¡­¡± There was a resigned look in Shao Yu¡¯s eyes. Looking at Du Jiu, who was in a violent rage, he knew that he had to leave it all up to fate now.


    As expected, Du Jiu stopped and breathed heavily. When his strength returned, he suddenly looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction with hatred and venom. Shao Yu was so startled that he took several steps back.


    ¡°Long Chen, we need to run!¡± Shao Yu knew that there was no room for negotiation. Du Jiu was clearly set on killing them both. The only hope was that Long Chen was faster than him.


    But when he turned around, to his exasperation, Long Chen pulled him back. Long Chen¡¯s arm looked like a baby¡¯s armpared to his own, but he could still grab Shao Yu¡¯s arm firmly.


    ¡°Long Chen, you ¡­¡± Shao Yu looked at him, puzzled. They had lost their chance. He had not expected Long Chen to choose suicide. Or did he really think he could defeat Du Jiu?


    Despite Du Jiu looking like he was in his thirties, he was almost fifty. In contrast to his fearsome sneer, Long Chen looked like an innocent doll. He did not look like he was a match for Du Jiu at all.

 Chapter 712: Killing Du Jiu

    ¡°Stand here. Don¡¯t move.¡± What made Shao Yu speechless was that after Long Chen instructed him curtly, he rushed toward the approaching Du Jiu. Their gazes met, one venomous and one cold. There was thick tension in the air.


    ¡°Don¡¯t fight him. You¡¯re not ¡­¡± Shao Yu lowered his voice, but by that time, Long Chen was already far from him. Then Long Chen¡¯s body changed, which made Shao Yu realize that perhaps Long Chen stood a chance.


    Long Chen used the Dragon Soul Transformation. Blood-red dragon scalespletely covered his body and sharp spines shot out. His sharp ws glinted coldly, and he radiated a violent aura. His aura was no weaker than Du Jiu¡¯s!


    ¡°Not bad! You¡¯re even volunteering to die!¡± Du Jiu roared and did not bother to say anything else before charging at Long Chen. All of his brothers had died, and his heart had fallen to rock bottom. Killing Long Chen and Shao Yu was the only way he could regain somefort!


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to waste too much time on nonsense.


    This was a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, so Long Chen did not dare let his guard down. He was two levels above Long Chen after all, so even though the Dragon Soul Transformation strengthened his Qi by ten times, his opponent¡¯s Qi was still one level higher!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± The Blood Devouring Domain not only suppressed Du Jiu¡¯s Qi, it allowed Long Chen to exert more control over the situation. The moment Du Jiu was distracted, Long Chen could take advantage of the situation!


    Both of them fought with all their might.


    Blood-red mist quickly enveloped the whole space, wrapping Du Jiu in a blood-red cocoon. A terrifying sucking force acted on Du Jiu¡¯s body from all directions!¡°What the hell is this? Looks like you¡¯ve got many strange tricks, brat!¡± Du Jiu smirked coldly. Although he looked carefree, he was privately shocked. He could only use seventy to eighty percent of his essence due to the Blood Devouring Domain. If Long Chen was just one level higher, then he would be no match for Long Chen.


    ¡°It¡¯s enough to finish you off.¡± Long Chen¡¯s voice echoed in Du Jiu¡¯s ears. He used Willow Step and quickly spun around Du Jiu, looking for a chance to attack!


    ¡°Die!¡± Du Jiu felt like he was being underestimated due to Long Chen¡¯sck of fear. Although he had exhausted a portion of his essence running away from the Metal Devouring Wind, he believed that his remaining essence was enough to kill Long Chen!


    ¡°Seven Killings Demon Finger!¡±


    <em>Whoosh! </em>A hand shot out of Du Jiu¡¯s right hand. The skin of this hand was almost like ck charcoal and a ck air current twisted around its finger like a disgusting worm.


    All of Du Jiu¡¯s essence erupted into action, and he turned into a shadow. An instantter, he appeared in front of Long Chen and shot his right hand¡¯s finger at Long Chen¡¯s forehead. The ck stream turned into seven whirlpools with a demon¡¯s shadow on every one of them!


    Evilughter rang in Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    <em>Are weparing this now? </em>Long Chen smirked to himself. The Seven Killings Demon Finger was filled with killing Qi and venomous Qi. It was an evil Yin type of power, but Long Chen also had an attack of the same category, which was the Deste Divine Seal!


    Long Chen was currently in peak health. He started to guide the essence in his body towards the meridian point in his right hand, as well as the Golden Crow me within his dragon soul essence. As he formed seals with his hands, his palm burst into mes and he produced a gray hand seal!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    After the Seven Killings Demon Finger appeared, he quickly pushed out the Deste Divine Seal. The Deste Divine Seal contained thick deathly Qi, which was frankly an evil Yin attack. Although Long Chen was inferior in terms of essence, his attack was superior!


    The attacks collided violently, causing the wind and clouds around them to billow. Dark-brown metal sand shifted beneath them!


    This exchange ended in a draw!


    Both parties backed away, preparing for their next attack!


    Shao Yu was stunned by the exchange. He thought that Long Chen would surely die from Du Jiu¡¯s famous Seven Killings Demon Finger due to therge gap in cultivation, but Long Chen¡¯s attack blocked it. This was a difficult feat to Shao Yu!


    But Shao Yu still felt miserable when he thought about how Du Jiu would use more powerful techniques next. Long Chen was a good person, and he did not want Long Chen to be killed. He did not care if he died, but Long Chen was still a teenager. It was not worth it.


    With that thought, Shao Yu quietly snuck forward, hoping he could help Long Chen a little or even hold Du Jiu off so that Long Chen would have a chance to run away!


    After that attack just now, Long Chen had figured out his opponent¡¯sbat abilities. Although he was at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, it was not unmanageable to him!


    Of course, Du Jiu was just a nomadic cultivator with no powerful n backing him or anything passed down to him. If this were someone from the core members of the Nine Great ns at the same cultivation level, Long Chen would not find it easy to defeat them due to their many treasures.


    From Du Jiu¡¯s perspective, Long Chen was indeed a shocking opponent! The intermediate King-tierbat technique he had used just now was considered one of his better techniques, yet despite using his Sixth Earthly Martial Stage level essence, he could not kill Long Chen.


    ¡°You brat! Dodging once is just luck. Come try my advanced King-tierbat technique, which very few have survived. You should be honored to see this!¡±


    Du Jiuughed like a madman, then he turned into a ck shadow and charged at Long Chen!


    This time, Du Jiu was determined to kill the mysterious teenager, even if it exhausted all his essence! Long Chen was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, yet he showed great capability. This meant that there was something special about him. He was willing to risk everything; perhaps the things he received after killing Long Chen would make him an elite of his generation!


    In this world, the strong ate the weak! That was thew of nature.


    ¡°Die ¡­¡± A gust of ck mist covered Du Jiu¡¯s eyes and spread to the rest of his body, soon covering him whole. ¡°Nine Headed Vulture Clone! Kill!¡± A bird¡¯s cry that was so ear-piercing that Long Chen¡¯s eardrums hurt rang from the ck mist. Du Jiu was no joke when he started fighting seriously. This was clearly a very powerful attack!


    The Nine-headed Vulture was a high-level demonic beast from legends and was likely an Emperor-tier beast. The Nine Headed Vulture Clone was a technique named after this beast. The ck mist suddenly swirled and solidified into a giant pair of ck wings on his back, then nine more heads grew out of his head!


    This made him look nightmarish and intimidating. A cold aura spread across the whole area, and Long Chen was immersed in it.


    Du Jiu seemed to have turned into the legendary beast. He was evil, violent, and his eyes were filled with an animalistic bloodlust!


    Nine bird cries sounded. The image of the nine-headed vulture swooped like sharp and agile spears!


    <em>Since this is Yin and cold, then I will use a Yang method to defeat it. The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal is the most suitable for this ¡­ </em>Long Chen felt fortunate that this was the first technique he had mastered. If he had learned the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal instead, defeating the nine-headed vulture would be difficult!


    During his first time using the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, the young master of the Divine n had easily blocked it. It did not mean that the attack was not strong though. Long Chen had managed to push the young master back using thisbat technique despite a gap of six or seven levels between them. This showed how scary the Burning Heaven Seal was!


    The Emperor-tierbat technique was peerless!


    Blood-red mes erupted from Long Chen¡¯s right arm, and the Burning Heaven Seal in his palm lit up brighter than it ever had. Long Chen used all the Qi in his body to control the Burning Heaven Seal!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The mes burned brightly, and a gigantic, fiery seal formed in his palm. The appearance of the Burning Heaven Seal was quick and sudden. When Du Jiu was charging at him, Long Chen pushed out the seal, and it instantly flew at Du Jiu!


    ¡°What was that?!¡± cried Du Jiu in surprise. The final exchange had begun. The Burning Heaven Seal not only surpassed the Nine Headed Vulture clone in terms of level, it also had a detrimental effect due to being the opposite element. Although Du Jiu had more essence, the nine heads of the nine-headed vulture were destroyed by Long Chen¡¯s terrifying attack!

 Chapter 713: The Wind Clan Attacks

    The gigantic seal mmed into Du Jiu¡¯s body, making him scream in agony. His scream grew louder and more devastating as the frightening destructive force from the Burning Heaven Seal shattered his bones and internal organs. He died instantly!


    At the same time, tall mes turned him into a burning corpse.


    Surprisingly, Long Chen ended up unharmed from the battle, yet Du Jiu was thrown back into the air like a firebird. There was the smell of roasted meat in the air.


    Long Chen flew past Du Jiu, and by the time hended, he was holding Du Jiu¡¯s Universe Pouch. The burning corpse crashed into the ground with a loud <em>thud</em>. Other than the burning mes, there was no movement.


    Even upon death, he never thought that Long Chen would have such a terrifyingbat technique. That was not the scariest part¡ªit was the fact that Long Chen had mastered it!


    It hadpletely overwhelmed Du Jiu¡¯s advanced King-tierbat technique, meaning this technique was unquestionably an Emperor-tier technique. Very few people owned one, and Du Jiu never thought Long Chen was one of them.


    All these surprises led to Du Jiu¡¯s death.


    Shao Yu was stunned by the result. He stared at Long Chen in a daze and his mouth agape. The young man made his mouth turn dry and he could not utter even a single word, as if he had a whole egg in his mouth.


    After utilizing the Burning Heaven Seal, Long Chen hadpletely spent his essence. The Ancient Graveyard was a ce of massacre, and such a hugemotion would likely attract people. That would be bad, so Long Chen said hurriedly, ¡°Brother Yu, we cannot stay here for long. Let¡¯s run first and talkter. Hurry!¡±After Long Chen¡¯s final instruction, Shao Yu woke up, gulped, and stuttered, ¡°Al ¡­ Alright. I¡¯ming ¡­¡±


    His shock was like a bone lodged in his throat that he could not get out.


    The other teammates had all been killed by the Metal Devouring Wind, so that was none of Long Chen¡¯s business. As for Du Jiu, he deserved to die. Only Shao Yu remained. Long Chen had to make sufficient arrangements for him before embarking on his own journey.


    After traveling a while, Long Chen ced Du Jiu¡¯s Universe Pouch in Shao Yu¡¯s hand and said, ¡°Brother Yu, this is yours. The ax you wanted is inside. Take a look.¡±


    Shao Yu hurriedly pushed it back to Long Chen and stuttered, ¡°I ¡­ I can¡¯t ept this. This is your war spoil! How could I take it?¡±


    Long Chen pulled out Shao Yu¡¯s hand and put the pouch on hisrge palm, then said, ¡°To be honest, this is useless to me. I took it for you. If you don¡¯t ept it, it means you¡¯re not giving me face.¡±


    Long Chen was insistent, and Shao Yu thought about how Long Chen would look down on him if he was hesitant. Therefore, he took it decisively and said determinedly, ¡°Thank you for your kindness, Brother! I will remember what you did today for the rest of my life!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. He was not one to be draggy either. As they walked, he spoke honestly. ¡°I had to fight today because I had no other choice. If I didn¡¯t, Du Jiu would have killed you sooner orter. However, I¡¯ve killed him now and your other teammates are dead too. And I have some personal matters to attend to ¡­¡±


    ¡°Brother, don¡¯t worry about that. I¡¯ve figured it out!¡± Shao Yu smiled and said, ¡°Although I don¡¯t have any goals for the moment, I will go to an Iron City. I will stay for a month there and should be able to make some good friends. After this incident, I¡¯ve learned how to read people and distinguish those who are brothers and those who will stab me in the back! Don¡¯t worry about me. I can find a city on my own. If you¡¯re busy, you can go ahead and leave me!¡±


    Shao Yu was a sensible person. He was already embarrassed that Long Chen had to save him. Long Chen was much stronger than he was, and they were from different worlds. Long Chen had many things he wanted to do, and he did not want to be a burden to him.


    Long Chen¡¯s worries disappeared after Shao Yu¡¯s offer and said, ¡°I do have some matters to attend to, but they¡¯re not too urgent. It¡¯s dangerous here. I¡¯ll taker you to an Iron City first, then I¡¯ll make a decision once you¡¯re safe.¡±


    ¡°In that case, thank you, Brother Long Chen!¡± Shao Yu looked at the young man gratefully. He had a feeling that this young man would be one of the most outstanding people in this trip to the Ancient Graveyard.


    Long Chen did not know anything about the Ancient Graveyard, yet he had so many trump cards. Who was he?


    Shao Yu almost worshiped him.


    Next, Long Chen and Shao Yu traveled in the direction of a city. Along the way, they encountered a lot of killing involving both demonic beasts and humans. Everyone killed crazily for the sake of merging Ancient Tokens.


    During the previous journey, Du Jiu and his gang had merged with the other victims¡¯ Ancient Tokens, but the gang¡¯s Ancient Tokens were destroyed by the Metal Devouring Wind. However, Long Chen was not worried because subsequently, two separate squads attacked him they saw only two people. In the end, Long Chen killed them all. Half the Ancient Tokens went to Long Chen and the other to Shao Yu.


    Merging the Ancient Tokens was a very simple task to Long Chen. In the beginning, his recorded level was too low. That was why seven Ancient Tokens was enough to turn half of his Ancient Token golden. It was almost the same for Shao Yu. As for the rest, Long Chen could not continue helping him. Everyone had to rely on themselves in order to survive in the Ancient Graveyard. They were lucky enough to meet each other, but he could only help Shao Yu up till this point.


    After traveling for five or six days, the silhouette of a city finally appeared in front of them on the vast, dark-brownnd. It was still very far away, but Long Chen could see that the city was made of pitch-ck iron. It looked like a fearsome beast crouching on the horizon!


    Long Chen could faintly make out arge, green g nted at the very top of the city!


    ¡°We¡¯ve finally reached a city! There¡¯s a green g at the top, meaning the city has been imed by the Wind n. I¡¯m from the Heavenly Wind Empire myself, so I should be able to get better treatment in a city imed by the Wind n. Brother Long Chen, thank you for taking care of me. I can¡¯t believe that trash like me managed to meet a kind person like you!¡±


    Long Chen sighed in relief. He smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t dwell too much on it. Fate brought us together, and you taught me many things too.¡±


    Since it was a city imed by the Wind n, Long Chen did not n to go there. He had killed Feng Xuan and her mark was left on him. If it was discovered, it would be aplicated problem. There were countless masters in the Wind n, and many were as strong as the young master of the Divine n. Long Chen did not want to die like that.


    Long Chen pursed his lips, then he smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ll leave you here, then. You can go over on your own. Goodbye and we¡¯ll see if fate brings us together again.¡±


    It was impossible for Shao Yu not to feel grateful after Long Chen saved his life twice in a row. After a few days together, he knew Long Chen better too, and he was a little unwilling to separate. However, they were worlds apart, so their time together was short.


    ¡°If I get a chance, I will surely repay you well, Brother Long Chen! You saved my life!¡± said Shao Yu determinedly.


    ¡°Alright, you may go. Don¡¯t drag this out,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    Shao Yu nodded and bade Long Chen farewell. He turned to nce at Long Chen several times before heading towards the city far away.


    However, that was when another twist happened. Long Chen suddenly noticed two fearsome auras behind him. He turned around quickly and saw two men in long, green robes rushing quickly towards the Iron City. Long Chen and Shao Yu were in their way, so they would surely pass him!


    From their gazes, Long Chen saw that they had only taken a casual nce at Long Chen and Shao Yu and did not intend to attack. If other people had passed them like this, Long Chen would not have been worried. However, their clothing and auras, as well as their great speed, showed that they were influential members of the Wind n.


    <em>Oh no! </em>Long Chen quickly dodged sideways and pretended to give way to them in an ordinary manner. If he overreacted, they could find something amiss.


    Both men quickly dashed past him and were approaching Shao Yu. Shao Yu also sensed them and quickly turned around. When he saw that they were two Wind n members, he was relieved.


    <em>Thank goodness ¡­ </em>Long Chen sighed in relief. He was very fortunate that they did not notice him.


    But the two men suddenly stopped between Long Chen and Shao Yu, about ten meters away from both of them. They then turned around and stared at Long Chen. Their confused gazes swept past him, then one of them said coldly, ¡°You brat! You killed one of my nsmen! You¡¯re looking for death!¡±


    Then both of them charged at Long Chen!


    <em>Oh no! I was still found out! </em>Long Chen was exasperated at how bad his luck was. He had not expected Wind n members to pass by here.


    It looked like a battle was unavoidable unless he used Blood Warp.

 Chapter 714: Kill With One Strike

    Feng Xuan had left a mark on Long Chen when she died. That was how the two Wind n members knew that Long Chen had once killed a nsman. Both of them red at him with bloodlust, then charged at him!


    Both were at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen could kill one if he fought as hard as he could, but the other person would be a problem. He didn¡¯t know what other special tricks the Wind n had. That was why he was prepared to run. In a situation where strength was insufficient, the best solution was to run.


    However, both of them could pinpoint Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level. He was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, so only one person was needed to deal with him. Therefore, one of them suddenly retreated and smirked. ¡°Brother, this guy is only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. I¡¯ll leave it to you. He has another partner over there too!¡±


    The partner he mentioned was Shao Yu!


    After he spoke, he sped up and charged at Shao Yu!


    With his capabilities, he could definitely kill Shao Yu in one second!


    Long Chen did not expect this to happen, and his mind went nk. Everything had happened so fast. He charged as fast as he could towards Shao Yu, but the Wind n member had already arrived by Shao Yu¡¯s side. Shao Yu¡¯s eyes were filled with panic as the man gently pressed his chest with his palm!


    ¡°Long ¡­¡± His Adam¡¯s apple moved, but he did not finish uttering Long Chen¡¯s name before copsing. His breath was gone. Even in death, he had a confused expression. After Long Chen had saved him twice, he thought he was safe and free from danger. He finally had a n for the future, but he did not expect to die when he was so close!


    ¡°Shao Yu!¡± Long Chen was left in a daze and his world shattered. He stopped and looked at Shao Yu¡¯s body. The whites of his eyes were slowly covered in blood vessels and a violent aura erupted from him!¡°Die!¡± Shao Yu¡¯s death triggered Long Chen¡¯s rage and hatred, and he drowned in deep self-me. If it weren¡¯t for him, Shao Yu would not have died. But also, without Long Chen, Shao Yu would have died a long time ago!


    Perhaps this was fate. People with terrible fates still ended up the same, no matter how hard they fought!


    Long Chen¡¯s mind was nk as anger rushed into his brain, filling his whole world with blood. He had not been this furious in a long time. Thest time this happened was when Feng Xuan was preparing to steal Huangfu Qi¡¯s Heavenly Wind Veins. This time, it was because they had killed a friend!


    ¡°You all shall die!¡± Blood-red scales covered his whole body and an even stronger aura erupted from him!


    ¡°Oh? You¡¯re a Beast Warrior too? What demonic beast is your Beast Soul Origin?¡± The two Wind n members did not take Long Chen seriously at all.


    ¡°Who knows? And it looks like this brat ns to fight us hard? How interesting. Haven¡¯t you already learned howrge the gap between each cultivation level is?¡±


    ¡°Which of us shall deal with him?¡±


    ¡°Me, of course. You¡¯ve already killed one. Don¡¯t take this guy from me.¡±


    ¡°Haha, alright. He¡¯s yours. But that fat pig just now really was weak. This little brat looks tougher. y with him for a while; don¡¯t kill him so quickly like I did!¡±


    Both of themughed as if no one else was present. They did not take Long Chen seriously at all. One of them turned into a fast-spinning tornado as heughed and charged at Long Chen. Shimmersing from the tips of des flickered in the tornado!


    ¡°Tornado Strike!¡± The man used one of his best moves. How dare Long Chen kill a Wind n member? If that person even nted a mark on him, it was clear how much the victim hated Long Chen! That was why the Wind n cultivator had decided to use this technique to torture Long Chen to death!


    But he had underestimated Long Chen.


    After using his Dragon Soul Transformation, he possessed endless power. Long Chen had killed a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator before, so he could surely do it again, especially when his opponent underestimated him. They were very close to a city imed by the Wind n, so Long Chen knew he could not stay for long.


    <em>You¡¯ve already passed away, so I cannot save you no matter what I do. In that case, let me avenge you ¡­ </em>Long Chen smiled bitterly to himself.


    A bright, cold light burst from his eyes and his right arm erupted in mes. The fire-red Burning Heaven Seal in his palm suddenly lit up. His Martial Meridian was filled with mes now, and the gigantic image of the Burning Heaven Seal appeared in his palm!


    ¡°Burning Heaven Seal!¡±


    When his opponent charged at him, Long Chen immediately used his best attack. He even used the Blood Devouring Domain at the same time to suppress the man¡¯s essence. Such an aggressive attack instantly made the magnificent cultivator lookughable.


    After the Blood Devouring Domain was activated, he pushed out the Burning Heaven Seal!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    ¡°What?¡± The man, who was in the middle ofunching the Tornado Strike, was startled by the Blood Devouring Domain. Before he could react, Long Chen aimed the Burning Heaven Seal at his head!


    ¡°How could he be this strong? That¡¯s surely an Emperor-tier technique!¡± Both men were stunned. They initially looked down on Long Chen, but now their expressions were colorful, especially the one fighting. He was going to be directly hit with the might of the Burning Heaven Seal!


    The heaven-epassing seal flew down at his head!


    ¡°No!¡± After a tragic howl, his attack waspletely drowned out by the Burning Heaven Seal and his body was turned into charcoal. He died without even leaving behind a corpse!


    Long Chen had killed a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator with just one strike!


    Long Chen was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, but he could kill enemies two levels above him. Long Chen was probably the only person who could do this in the whole Ancient Graveyard.


    How scary was this to the other Wind n member?


    He initially thought that Long Chen would die easily like Shao Yu. How could he have known this would happen? After he saw his partner, who was simr in strength to himself, get killed so quickly by Long Chen, his first thought was to run!


    The Wind n¡¯s Iron City was right in front of his eyes. The moment his partner died, he ran like a madman. The Wind n had a great advantage in speed. If Long Chen did not use Blood Warp, he would not be able to catch up to him.


    Blood Warp was more suitable for fleeing as it was too difficult to control if used for chasing down an enemy. If he was too fast, he would pass the man. However, Long Chen was unwilling to let an enemy go, especially when this man was the guy who killed Shao Yu. How could Long Chen ever let him live?


    So he ran as fast as he could and gave chase!


    But that was when a hugemotion came from Iron City. The people based there had already noticed the fight here, and they knew that a Wind nsman had been killed at their own doorstep. Enraged, several masters beyond the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage rushed over at lightning speed. If they arrived, Long Chen would never catch up to the other person.


    ¡°Damn it!¡± Those masters were surprisingly fast. In just an instant, Long Chen sensed that they were about to close in. Due to the dy caused by his previous battle, the other person had managed to run some distance away. Long Chen could not avenge Shao Yu before the others arrived!


    ¡°There¡¯s a lot of time left. I refuse to believe that I can¡¯t kill you one day! And the rest of the Wind n!¡± There was a cold sh in Long Chen¡¯s eyes. He returned to Shao Yu¡¯s side and put his body in the Primordial Realm. Before the masters of the Wind n arrived, he used Blood Warp and turned into blood-red light, disappearing into the horizon!


    The masters could not find Long Chen at all!


    ¡°Who was that?¡±


    ¡°Investigate this matter now! How dare he harm our men right in front of our city! He is truly insolent! Check which faction he is from! If he¡¯s not from the Nine Great ns, destroy his whole faction!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Sir!¡±


    ***


    After putting Shao Yu¡¯s body away, Long Chen traveled for a very long distance. He turned around and saw that the city had disappeared. There was a silhouette the size of an egg far away on the horizon. That was likely the Wind n¡¯s Iron City.


    He clenched his teeth, feeling bitter.


    Although he had performed very well since his arrival in the Ancient Graveyard, he still felt like he was not strong enough. How could he face the people of the Nine ns at this level? How was he going to save Xiang? Getting to the Royal Territory was going to be even more difficult!


    <em>I shouldn¡¯t overthink it. I¡¯m going to focus on cultivation after burying Brother Shao Yu! </em>The ground was quite hard in the Metal District. Long Chen spent a long time searching before finding a fairly secluded spot. He buried Shao Yu, then, in front of his grave, Long Chen sighed and said, ¡°The world is like that. The strong eat the weak. Since your life has not been favorable, I hope you¡¯ll get your peace after death.¡±


    He stood silently before the grave for a very long time before he finally left.


    Long Chen did not know where to go next. His logic told him that he had to find a safe spot to cultivate, then onlye back out when he was strong enough. That way, he would have a higher chance of keeping himself alive. But Shao Yu¡¯s murderer was still alive. This was a thorn in Long Chen¡¯s heart.


    Without another thought, Long Chen set off toward the Wind n¡¯s Iron City!

 Chapter 715: Martial God Tombstone

    Long Chen¡¯s objective was to sneak in and kill that man!


    He did not take his original path back to the Iron City. After half a day, he saw the city once again. Its green g was very eye-catching as it fluttered in the wind. This trip to the Wind n was unquestionably dangerous, but since Long Chen had once escaped the Divine n¡¯s young master, this would surely be easier. The ultimate masters of the Wind n would certainly not be inside.


    With Blood Warp, he was not worried about being in mortal danger. He also had the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so he could carefully avoid other people. The ground around the city was not t, with many metal pieces protruding from the ground. Long Chen hid behind these metal protrusions and managed to sneak into the Iron City without anyone noticing him.


    The city was huge. If this were in the outside world, it would have fit more than a hundred thousand people. Right now, only a few hundred were inside, so it felt empty. With Long Chen¡¯s ability to sense anyone within five hundred meters, it would be difficult for other people to find him.


    <em>This whole city is forged from iron. </em>Long Chen looked around in wonder. There were many buildings, houses, streets, and bars around. Everything was there, but walls that should have been built with bricks were built with iron instead. It radiated a cold, solemn, and intimidating aura with a faint iron smell in the air. Even the floors were made of iron with beautiful patterns etched on it.


    <em>This city was clearly forged by someone. Was the Ancient Graveyard once like the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, a ce where people lived? Did something happen that led to this ce bing deserted and empty like a graveyard? </em>Long Chen wondered.


    All Long Chen wanted to do was find the person who killed Shao Yu. As long as he was killed, Long Chen would leave with peace of mind and deal with his own matters. He did not feel like he was being nosey¡ªhe considered taking revenge as one of his personal matters.


    The people of the Wind n would surely be in the center of the city, so Long Chen headed in that direction. Only a few steps in, Long Chen looked up and saw a strange object surrounded by countless orbiting iron pieces at the center of the city. It released strong energy ripples, and when the ripples swept across his body, he felt like his blood was boiling and was instantly filled with battle intent!


    Since he was quite far away from it, he could not see it clearly. Little Catughed incredulously. ¡°You¡¯re a lucky brat. Can¡¯t believe you found it after sneaking into this city.¡±¡°What is it?¡± Based on Little Cat¡¯s remark, Long Chen knew that it was a treasure.


    ¡°A cultivator carved his life¡¯s knowledge on that tombstone, so remnants of his Martial Soul remain on it. If you can get this tombstone and learn the knowledge it contains, you will progress ten times faster in your cultivation,¡± said Little Catzily.


    ¡°Tombstone?¡± Long Chen was instantly excited.


    Ten times faster cultivation. This was extremely tempting to Long Chen. This was the ultimate treasure to him. In fact, it was more suitable for him than the Five Emperor Seals because Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level was insufficient. If he could increase his cultivation level, his overall strength would skyrocket.


    In the beginning, he could not see it clearly since many iron buildings were blocking it. He could only see one of its corners, but when he peered closely, he realized it was the corner of the tombstone. The tombstone waspletely ck and released strange ripples that could affect Long Chen¡¯s desire to fight. He was still too far away, so Long Chen continued heading towards the center of the city, passing many people on the way.


    Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could discover them before they spotted him. It was easy to recognize people from the Wind n. Due to the requirement for a uniform symbol of recognition, most of them wore long, green robes, making the men and women look elegant and sophisticated. Long Chen could interact with anyone except for members of the Wind n.


    Some people hade here looking for a base, like Shao Yu. This city was controlled by the Wind n and all fighting was banned. This ce provided safety, which was why everyone chose to stay here. Very few people could slip in here like Long Chen due to the tight control, so every inhabitant was registered. One month after entering, they would be kicked out.


    After discovering two people, Long Chen stood not far away from them as if he was also a regr inhabitant. Sneaking around would just make other people suspicious. As long as he did not meet a Wind n member, he would be fine.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe the Martial God Tombstone appeared in an obscure city. The Wind n has sent masters here. I believe many will arrive soon. Under the Wind n¡¯s strict watch, people like us won¡¯t even get a chance to see it!¡±


    ¡°With those dozen or so Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivators guarding the ce, forget about seeing it. If we get any closer, we¡¯ll be killed. There will be more mastersing here from the Wind n. This Martial God Tombstone is the first treasure that appeared in the Ancient Graveyard on this trip. Thest time this happened was decades ago, and it was taken by the Demon n. It instantly skyrocketed the Demon n¡¯s power. Many of the masters in their n relied onprehending the Martial God Tombstone to advance their cultivation by multiple levels!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m so jealous! I¡¯d be satisfied if I could even get a nce at it. Maybe it¡¯ll help me break through to the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about it. We should be content enough by the fact that we don¡¯t need to worry about enemies, demonic beasts, and Metal Devouring Winds here. If the Wind n heard what you said, they¡¯d y you. Be careful.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    Long Chen learned a lot from their conversation.


    <em>There are so many people here. Are they all guarding the Martial God Tombstone? Even Earthly Martial Realm cultivators canprehend it, meaning this thing was left behind by a master who was at least at the Heavenly Martial Realm. Perhaps this is a very powerful treasure aside from the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritance. The Wind n will likely take this very seriously, send as many masters as they can to guard it, and prevent other people from snatching it away! But there are about ten Seventh Earthly Martial Stage masters now?</em>


    Long Chen was currently able to defeat one Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator at most. If two attacked him at the same time, he was not sure if he could defeat them. It looked like it was going to be very difficult to obtain the Martial God Tombstone.


    Long Chen shook his head. He was still too weak.


    The yearning to be stronger burned in his heart.


    Although he was fast approaching the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, he was still not satisfied. The Martial God Tombstone was his opportunity to rise!


    <em>The Wind n¡¯s people must be guarding the Martial God Tombstone. The person who killed Shao Yu might be there. I have the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so I should observe for a while. I need to understand the situation in this Iron City before I make a move. If not, it¡¯ll getplicated ¡­</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen snuck towards the city center.


    ***


    More than fifty kilometers away from this Iron City was an evenrger Iron City. This was thergest city in the Metal District, and it was at least ten timesrger than the city Long Chen was currently in. It was a city approximately the size of Martial Overlord City, and it could fit hundreds of thousands of people.


    Many golden buildings sparkled in this ck Iron City, especially the buildings in the center, which were all golden. There was a golden pce in the exact center of the Iron City. It looked magnificent and regal, showing that it was likely the core of the whole Metal District.


    The name of this city was Giant Metal City!


    The patriarch of the Wind n and the other leaders of the Wind n were based here, at the same time expanding their reach in all directions so the Wind n was in most of the Metal District. The Wind and the Divine n were the two major factions this time. The Divine n took over the Fire District, which was also one of the five districts, while the Wind n took over most of the Metal District. A small portion of the Metal District was taken over by the Gold n of the Five Elements Alliance. This also meant that the Wind n¡¯srgest rival in the Metal District was the Gold n.


    Both factions were old enemies by now, and they fought often.


    More than a thousand cultivators hade to the vast Giant Metal City. The n leader of the Wind n was based here, so it was the safest ce in the whole Metal District. Even the Metal Devouring Wind did note here. Of course, no one could stay in this city forever, as that would defeat the purpose ofing to the Ancient Graveyard.


    The main objective ofing to the Ancient Graveyard was to kill people and rob treasures!


    The truly vicious ones would immerse themselves in massacre the moment they arrived. During this process, they would use the treasures they obtained to strengthen themselves!


    Some people lived; some people died. Those who lived would be true elites!


    A thousand people were scattered throughout Giant Metal City. The core members and military might of the Wind n were naturally in the pce at the center of the district.


    At this moment, two people were chatting in the golden pavilion at the center of the pce.

 Chapter 716: Feng Zhilin

    Of the two, one was seated on the highest golden seat. It was a regal throne; though a bit old, it still radiated the luxuriousness it was intended to when it was made ages ago. The man sitting on it had the sophisticated aura of an immortal, white hair, a deep and sharp re, and he was wearing white robes. He was the Wind n¡¯s patriarch, who Long Chen saw when he was on the starte! He was as strong as the Five Element Alliance leader, and they were simr in age.


    The other person was a graceful teenage girl wearing a long, light-green dress. Although she wore a white face veil like Feng Xuan, based on her delicate figure and the silhouette of her face, she was very pretty. She radiated a youthful energy, so she was clearly quite young, unlike the older Feng Xuan. Even her aura was much more powerful than Feng Xuan''s.


    Since she was brought into the Ancient Graveyard, it showed that she held a rank simr to the young master of the Divine n. This teenage girl was likely a treasured child of the Wind n.


    Her light green dress gently billowed as she talked softly with the Wind patriarch. Her voice was melodious like an oriole.


    The Wind patriarch looked at her with a smile and great approval.


    Some timeter, a middle-aged man walked into the main hall. He looked overjoyed and was in a hurry, but he forced himself to remain calm as he fell to his knees and reported excitedly to them, ¡°Greetings, patriarch and Princess Lin. We heard amazing news from ck Gold City!¡±


    ¡°What news?¡± the Wind patriarch asked.


    ¡°The Martial God Tombstone has appeared in ck Gold City! That artifact has the ability to allow its user toprehend the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage!¡± cried the middle-aged man.


    The Wind patriarch shot to his feet with joy and said, ¡°Is that really true? Is there really a Martial God Tombstone? And it was found in one of the cities we¡¯re based in?¡±The middle-aged man said hurriedly, ¡°This news came from ck Gold City. It¡¯s true!¡±


    The Wind patriarchughed loudly and said, ¡°Good! Good! The heavens are helping the Wind n. With the Martial God Tombstone, the Wind n¡¯s power will increase by several times!¡±


    Afterughing for a long time, he furrowed his brows slightly and said, ¡°Zhilin, the Martial God Tombstone is no small artifact. A Universe Pouch cannot store such a gigantic object. I¡¯m giving you this storage ring. Go to ck Gold City and get the Martial God Tombstone out of there. If the Gold n receives news of this, they will surely fight us for it. I still have matters to attend to here in Giant Metal City, so I can¡¯t go myself. I¡¯ll leave this to you!¡±


    The pretty girl nodded quickly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Grandfather. I promise I¡¯ll settle this matter perfectly. I¡¯ll hand the Martial God Tombstone over to you in two days.¡±


    ¡°You really are a good granddaughter. You¡¯ve always stood out from your siblings.¡±


    Feng Zhilin gave a faint smile. She had long gotten used to praise from her elders.


    Out of all the Wind n members of her generation, only Feng Zhilin had seventeen Heavenly Wind Veins. This meant that she had the potential to reach at least the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Even the current patriarch only had sixteen Heavenly Wind Veins!


    Within the Wind n, the number of Heavenly Wind Veins basically equated to a cultivator¡¯s potential. The more veins, the better their potential and body, leading to greater future achievements. So far, there was no one with the same number as Feng Zhilin.


    She was the iparable princess of the Wind n.


    That was why her grandfather had brought her to the Ancient Graveyard and always had her by his side. Any time they found something good, Feng Qing would always give it to Feng Zhilin immediately. After Feng Zhilin retrieved the Martial God Tombstone, she would be the first to use it!


    She was eighteen years old but was already at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage and almost breaking through to the ninth. A prodigy like her was rare in the Heavenly Wind Empire. The Martial God Tombstone could very likely take her to the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, so it was the ultimate treasure to her.


    However, Feng Zhilin was not very emotional, as she had always been well taken care of by Lady Luck. She had long gotten used to lucky events like that.


    ¡°Feng Yang, there isn¡¯t anything out of the ordinary in ck Gold City right now, right? Could news of the Martial God Tombstone have been leaked out? Could the Gold n know?¡± asked Feng Qing, worried about his darling granddaughter.


    The middle-aged man kneeling on the ground quickly replied, ¡°No, it was definitely not leaked. Not a single one of the regr cultivators in ck Gold City has left the city. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that we were afraid of too much condemnation, I would have killed them all. However, we are currently trapping them in the city, and will only lift the restrictions once Princess Lin has retrieved the Martial God Tombstone.¡±


    ¡°Mhm. You have done well. In the future, you¡¯ll also get to use the Martial God Tombstone!¡± said Feng Qing mildly.


    ¡°Thank you, patriarch! I will work hard to break through to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage so I can contribute more to the Wind n!¡± Feng Yang said emotionally.


    Once Feng Zhilin retrieved the Martial God Tombstone and finished using it, other people could have a share!


    ¡°Mhm. In that case, Zhilin, you may leave for ck Gold City.¡± Feng Qing looked at his granddaughter affectionately, then he took out a ck ring. Dense runes were carved on the tiny ring. It gave the same feeling as a Universe Pouch, but it contained a muchrger storage space. This was the storage ring that Feng Qing had mentioned!


    ¡°Take good care of this ring. We have no more than five of these in the Wind n. I¡¯m giving this one to you today,¡± Feng Qing said smilingly.


    ¡°Thank you, Grandfather ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin smiled and bent her knees in a slight curtsy to the patriarch.


    ¡°Right, patriarch, there¡¯s another small matter ¡­¡± said Feng Yang.


    ¡°What small matter?¡± Feng Qing asked.


    ¡°This morning, two people were heading towards ck Gold City. Coincidentally, two Wind n cultivators ran into them, and our cultivators found that one of them had once killed a Wind nsman as he had our n¡¯s mark on him!¡±


    ¡°And then?¡± Feng Qing sounded displeased when he heard that his nsman was killed.


    ¡°Then our cultivators attacked them. They killed one of the two, but the other escaped. The person who escaped even killed one of our cultivators. He was very far away from ck Gold City, so he probably doesn¡¯t know about the emergence of the Martial God Tombstone!¡± said Feng Yang.


    ¡°It¡¯s good if he doesn¡¯t know. We haven¡¯t had any casualties during these past few days. This person probably came to the Ancient Graveyard because he previously killed someone from our n.¡± Feng Qing did not dwell too much on it.


    That was when Feng Zhilin spoke up coldly. ¡°What is that person¡¯s cultivation level? Why didn¡¯t they pursue him? Did they just watch him leave?¡±


    It was clear that she had a shorter temper than her grandfather.


    Feng Yang knew her haughty personality, so he did not dare cross her and said hurriedly, ¡°That was the strange part. He was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, but he used abat technique that seemed to be at the Emperor-tier to kill one of our Sixth Earthly Martial Stage nsmen. Then he used a warp technique, turned into a ray of blood-colored light, and fled immediately ¡­¡±


    ¡°Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, used an Emperor-tierbat technique, and killed a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator?¡± Feng Qing was in disbelief as he looked at Feng Yang and asked, ¡°Are you kidding me? How could a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator have an Emperor-tier technique?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. That is what the other cultivator who ran back said. If a Fourth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator wanted to kill someone at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, how could they do it without an Emperor-tier technique?¡±


    ¡°So, it¡¯s him ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin¡¯s lips curled into a faint smile.


    ¡°Zhilin, you know this person?¡± Feng Qing asked.


    ¡°Grandfather, do you remember what happened to the Divine n¡¯s young master, Wu Guangyu? When he first arrived at the Ancient Graveyard, he snatched a strange demonic wolf from someone and he¡¯s been treating it like the ultimate treasure. That demonic wolf was snatched from a mysterious teenager called Long Chen who used an Emperor-tierbat technique on Wu Guangyu, and then used a warp technique to flee right in front of his eyes. This is clearly the same person,¡± Feng Zhilin exined calmly.


    ¡°Such a mysterious person. Zhilin, keep a lookout for him on this trip. If you snatch his Emperor-tierbat technique, that would be good,¡± said Feng Qing with a smile.


    ¡°Of course. Don¡¯t worry, Grandfather.¡± Feng Zhilin smiled as well.


    Feng Qing suddenly recalled something. After dismissing Feng Yang, he told Feng Zhilin, ¡°White Lotus was in a hurry to bring Wu Guangyu to the Fire District. I¡¯m guessing they¡¯re going to search for the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. If Wu Guangyu gets it, his strength will skyrocket, ensuring that he bes the number one of the younger generation.¡±


    ¡°The Azure Lotus Lord?¡± Feng Zhilin pursed her lips and looked out the window. ¡°My betrothed, my man. Without such achievements, how would he be fit to marry me?¡±


    ¡°Are you agreeable to this engagement? White Lotus and I were the ones who set this up,¡± said Feng Qing.


    Feng Zhilin smiled and said, ¡°Grandfather, don¡¯t worry about it. Is there a man more impressive than Wu Guangyu in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory? If I really must marry someone, he will do.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a proud girl, aren¡¯t you?¡± Feng Qing smiled exasperatedly. ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. It¡¯s better to get the Martial God Tombstone as soon as possible. Go now. I¡¯ll send your Aunt Snow with you.¡±

 Chapter 717: The Woman in The Purple Dress

    Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen avoided everyone and directly headed for the center of the Iron City. The nearer he got, the clearer he could see the Martial God Tombstone.


    He assumed he was headed in the right direction. Long Chen looked pastyers andyers of iron buildings to see the Martial God Tombstone, which was like a huge, ck, stone b. It was covered in spots of rust and looked greatly weathered. Ripples of ck light flowed on its surface. Since Long Chen wasing from the back, he could not see what was so special about it. The only thing that shocked him with the ancient feeling it gave him, as well as the martial aura it emitted. Even though this was not its front face, its mighty power was enough to give Long Chen a strong psychological impact!


    Long Chen had a feeling that his cultivation would progress greatly if he could get the Martial God Tombstone. He was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, and that was too weakpared to the people around him.


    However, there were Seven Earthly Martial Stage cultivators guarding the Martial God Tombstone. How would he be able to get it?


    Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivators were no joke.


    Long Chen approached quickly but could not progress any further when he was about three hundred meters away from the Martial God Tombstone. At least thirty Wind n members were stationed there, and most of them were at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, or at least at the Sixth. He could see them all through his Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    He guessed that the Nine Great ns only allowed members at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage or above toe to the Ancient Graveyard. Those at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage were the stronger ones while those at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage and above were considered masters. The gaps between cultivation levels increased with each level.


    All of them were from the Wind n. They had set a boundary three hundred meters away from the Martial God Tombstone. No non-Wind n members were allowed to approach, or they would be killed instantly. This area was tightly surveilled, so even if Long Chen had not killed Feng Xuan, they would kill him if he approached!


    He quietly hid in an obscure corner and observed them with the Soul Swallowing Gaze. Finally, he detected a familiar aura. It was the person who had killed Shao Yu. Long Chen memorized this person¡¯s position. However, there were many people around him, so Long Chen did not have a way to kill him. The only thing he could do was wait for this person toe out on his one.Long Chen did not know if he would have this chance.


    He stealthily went around the Martial God Tombstone so that he could see its front face. He finally had the chance to look at it properly.


    It was fully ck and more than thirty meters tall, as well as over ten meters wide. The Wind n members were tinypared to it. It had likely fallen from the sky seeing as how it was standing on a broken building. It was firmly lodged in the iron ground!


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze was quickly attracted to the Martial God Tombstone now that he could see its front face.


    There were over ten rows of characters on the tombstone, and each character was asrge as a human head. They were directly carved on it and were written in magnificent calligraphy. Many of the characters were used during ancient times, so Long Chen did not recognize them, though that was not important. It only took a single nce for them to be deeply carved into his mind.


    Based on the characters he knew, they seemed to merely be an essay describing the magnificent scenery of rivers and mountains, so he could not find anything special about it. However, for some unknown reason, his gaze was glued to it and he could not wake up for a brief moment.


    <em>Is there something special about the Martial God Tombstone? Something I need toprehend, like the Deste Divine Seal? </em>Long Chen thought to himself. He stared at it for more than two hours until his eyes tired. The ancient auraing from the Martial God Tombstone gave him a feeling that made his blood boil.


    Gradually, Long Chen discovered that the ck text on the Martial God Tombstone started to twist. He knew that he was the only one seeing this happen. Other people probably saw it in its original form. From that, he understood that there was a block on the Martial God Tombstone so not everyone could understand it. One had to be at the Earthly Martial Realm or above to read it.


    The faster a person could catch the strangeness of the Martial God Tombstone, therger their potential was. Long Chen had spent two hours staring before he finally spotted changes in it. He did not know whether this was good or bad, but several other Wind n cultivators were also secretly observing it, and based on their gazes, no one had achieved ¡°selflessness¡± like Long Chen.


    After the first time the characters changed, Long Chen took less time to enter this state on his next attempt.


    In Long Chen¡¯s world, the iron buildings and the Wind nsmen all disappeared. The only thing that remained was the ancient Martial God Tombstone. It was thirty meters tall, but to him, this was the only thing left in the world!


    To him, the Martial God Tombstone was five hundred kilometers tall. It touched the sky! It blocked out the sun!


    Standing before the Martial God Tombstone, Long Chen seemed as tiny as an ant. He looked up at it with great reverence.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The text on the Martial God Tombstone started changing right before his eyes. It twisted until the individual lines rearranged and regrouped themselves. Long Chen watched as the characters slowly morphed into the silhouette of a person.


    This person was like a shadow trapped on the Martial God Tombstone. In the beginning, it did not move. Long Chen waited anxiously until it finally did. To his surprise, the silhouette was doing a punching routine, and it was following the Earthly Martial Fist Manual!


    However, the feeling it gave was different from when Long Chen did it. In fact, it was slightly different from everyone else. Although the routine was the same, the feeling it gave off was vastly different. Compared to Long Chen, its punches were much more powerful. Long Chen suddenly discovered just now much he wascking.


    As the silhouette gradually went through the motions of the Earthly Martial Fist Manual, Long Chen waspletely immersed in the strange rhythm. It started from the First Earthly Martial Stage. As he watched its performance, he discovered various details he previously never noticed from almost every punch. He felt as if he had never reached the Earthly Martial Realm before and was learning from the beginning. Many of his gaps were filled as he re-learned the process.


    The Martial Dao was a long and deep journey. Long Chen had only touched on a tiny sliver of it. As a result, he gained many insights from this silhouette¡¯s demonstration.


    When the silhouette¡¯s demonstration reached the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage and Long Chen was about to wee new learnings, a sense of mortal danger suddenly enveloped him, causing him to wake up in a panic!


    He had beenpletely immersed in the Martial God Tombstone, forgetting about his surroundings. He was instantly drenched in cold sweat when he woke up. Being immersed in cultivation in such a dangerous ce was too risky. If he was discovered, he would be in a sticky situation.


    After he woke up, he sighed in relief when he realized he had not been discovered. He was only startled awake because new people hade to the Iron City.


    And they were the masters of masters.


    Long Chen immediately hid far away, moving from his spot close to the Martial God Tombstone until he mixed with the other regr cultivators. The regr cultivators had mainlye to this ce in search of shelter and protection. However, due to themotion with the Martial God Tombstone, they were also here to watch the drama. Although they were privately disgruntled and had to watch from afar, no one dared approach.


    The reputation of the Wind n was frightening enough.


    Long Chen hid in a corner and watched two people fly in from the horizon. They quickly arrived above ck Gold City and slowly descended near the Martial God Tombstone.


    They were two females. The leader looked very young. She was wearing a long, light-green dress and her face was covered with a white veil. Despite the veil, a solemn chill radiated from her expression.


    Behind her was a woman in a long, purple dress. She looked calm with a faint, elegant smile. It was not clear how old she was, but she did not look over thirty. Thisdy did not wear a face veil. Her body was curvy, and she radiated a mature elegance, attracting many looks.


    <em>Thatdy in the purple dress is probably older than thirty, so it¡¯s not surprising that she¡¯s this strong. But that teenage girl. She¡¯s so young, yet her cultivation is frightening. She¡¯s probably on the same level as the Divine n¡¯s young master. She¡¯s from the Wind n; could she be the Wind n¡¯s prodigy of the younger generation? </em>Long Chen wondered to himself.


    Right when this question popped into his mind, some people started to discuss next to him. ¡°Isn¡¯t that the legendary princess of the Wind n? The girl named Feng Zhilin who has seventeen Heavenly Wind Veins?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s definitely her! Thedy next to her is an honorary guest of the Wind n named Lady Snow. Both of them have frightening cultivation levels. I hear that they¡¯re both at least at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, especially Feng Zhilin. She receives countless resources,bat techniques, spiritual medicine, and much more from the n, and they¡¯re all of the best quality. She also has many secret divine techniques; she is basically peerless at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage!¡±


    ¡°The Martial God Tombstone must be a very attractive treasure. I can¡¯t believe both of them came here, and they surely have brought a storage ring with them too. It looks like the Martial God Tombstone will belong to the Wind n.¡±

 Chapter 718: Arrival of the Gold Clan

    Everyone was disappointed because the treasure was destined to be out of their grasp, but they refused to let such a treasure slip past their hands.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that Feng Zhilin is betrothed to the young master of the Divine n, Wu Guangyu. It¡¯s likely that they will get married after they get out of the Ancient Graveyard! They are both the strongest youths of their respective ns. What a match made in heaven!¡±


    ¡°With their strength, status, and good looks, they are destined to be with each other. I fear that Wu Guangyu is the only man good enough for her!¡±


    Everyone was busy discussing while Long Chen listened silently.


    <em>Feng Zhilin? </em>Long Chen silently noted the name down. <em>She¡¯s his fiancee? What a coincidence. She is indeed stronger than me. Do I have a chance to obtain the Martial God Tombstone now that she wants it too?</em>


    Long Chen refused to just give it to her like that. The treasure was important because it gave him a chance to turn the tides by increasing his cultivation level.


    Long Chen also knew about Storage Rings, which could store much more than a Universe Pouch. The Storage Ring was also much sturdier than a Universe Pouch. A regr attack would barely dent it. The other benefit of the Storage Ring was that it could recognize its master by dripping a person¡¯s blood on it. It was actually considered an artifact.


    But there weren¡¯t a lot of Storage Rings to begin with. Long Chen never saw anyone with one before. He was certain that his Primordial Realm was muchrger than a Storage Ring¡¯s capacity since the Primordial Realm becamerger as he became stronger. He wanted to try fitting the tombstone into the Primordial Realm, but if it was too heavy, he would need a bit of time to fit it in. More importantly, the Martial God Tombstone was impaled into the ground. Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure if he had the strength to pull it out, so he dared not act rashly.


    Especially since Feng Zhilin was here.Long Chen looked at her just like the others were. The legendary girl was filled with arrogance, looking only at the Martial God Tombstone and nothing else.


    She approached the tombstone and was just ten meters away when she stopped and admired it. Her pink lips parted slightly. ¡°Is this the Martial God Tombstone? What an interesting object ¡­¡±


    ¡°Young miss, let¡¯s get it into the Storage Ring to prevent any mishaps. The Ancient Graveyard is not a forgiving ce ¡­¡± thedy in the purple dressmented.


    ¡°No need to rush. Let me see what¡¯s so special about this thing ¡­¡± She approached the tombstone and traced it gently with her long, white fingers. She traced the words inscribed on the tombstone and frowned.


    ¡°What a miraculous object ¡­¡±


    ¡°The Martial God Tombstone was left behind by someone at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage. Young miss, it¡¯s normal if you don¡¯t understand how it works yet. It fell from the sky and at least a third of it is embedded in the metal ground. If we want to put it in the Storage Ring, we need to pull it up. Leave it to me.¡±


    ¡°Sorry for troubling you, Aunt Snow.¡± Feng Zhilin did not reject her help but rather epted it directly. It was clear that she did not look up to Aunt Snow at all. If she did, she would¡¯ve done it on her own.


    ¡°It¡¯s no trouble at all.¡± Aunt Snow smiled.


    She walked past Feng Zhilin, approached the Martial God Tombstone, and hugged it tightly. Her white skin contrasted sharply with the ck tombstone.


    She quickly circted her essence and focused it onto her palms. Ice-cold energy flowed from her hands and into the Martial God Tombstone, forming a tight suction on it.


    ¡°Up!¡± She grunted and started pulling the tombstone upwards. Even though it was heavy, her expression and movements remained graceful.


    <em>The Martial God Tombstone is embedded in the ground. When she pulls it up, she can put it in the Storage Ring. </em>Long Chen was panicking a bit.


    <em>If I used Bloodwarp and appeared directly above the tombstone the moment it¡¯s loosened, I should be able to store it in my Primordial Realm. It¡¯s roughly three hundred meters from here ¡­ I think I can control the distance. I can then escape with Bloodwarp after storing it, but it seems risky.</em>


    Long Chen continued to strategize.


    It was not easy to snatch something from two Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators. But he had to risk it because the reward was too good. Long Chen was very familiar with the concept of high risk, high reward.


    He was certain that he wouldn¡¯t die. Even if he failed, he could use Blood Sacrifice. He wasn¡¯t sure if it would be enough to fight against them, but it would buy him time to survive rather than dying outright.


    Rewind and Blood Sacrifice had turned Long Chen into a cockroach that was very hard to kill.


    Long Chen held his breath as he watched the woman in the purple dress slowly lift the Martial God Tombstone. The moment it was loosened, Feng Zhilin would store it in the Storage Ring.


    By now, Feng Zhilin had raised her arm, revealing a ck ring on her finger. The ring was pretty, with engravings of flowers. In the middle of the ring was arge, ck gemstone. The gemstone was where items were stored.


    The Storage Ring had the capacity to store the entire Martial God Tombstone.


    Long Chen continued holding his breath, waiting for the moment the Martial God Tombstone was loosened. It was the signal for him to move. Feng Zhilin didn¡¯t know he was lying in wait, so there was a chance he would seed.


    The atmosphere was tense when something suddenly happened.


    Two golden lights shot down from the skies. They were each as thick as the waist of a regr human. The lights were aimed at the woman in purple!


    <em>Golden Eye of Annihtion?! </em>Long Chen was very familiar with that technique. It was the same martial technique that Zhao Danchen had used against him numerous times. He never thought he would see it again here in the Ancient Graveyard. Based on the thickness of the light, Long Chen was certain that the user was leagues above Zhao Danchen.


    ¡°Aunt Snow!¡± Feng Zhilin was toote to notice the threat. Aunt Snow had to protect her life, so she let go and dodged. The two golden lights hit the Martial God Tombstone, causing it to shake a little. It was so sturdy that the Golden Eye of Annihtion left no mark on it.


    ¡°The Golden Eye of Annihtion? The people from the Gold n are here.¡± Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow looked above. Aunt Snow was worried, while Feng Zhilin smirked arrogantly.


    Another pair of golden lights shot down. This time, two elders appeared in front of them. The elders had golden hair and eyes. There was a mark of a golden circle on each of their foreheads. More importantly, the two of them looked the same!


    <em>Is Zhao Danchen from the Gold n? He had golden eyes as well as the Molten Gold Combat Body and the Golden Eye of Annihtion. These two must be from the Gold n too.</em>


    ¡°I was wondering who would make such a grand entrance. To think that it¡¯s the famous twins from the Gold n, Jin Xiong and Jin Ba. Why are old men like you working so hard outside?¡± Aunt Snow was wary of the two, but she soon veiled her wariness with haughtiness.


    The twins from the Gold n were eyeing the tombstone and only looked at Aunt Snow after she talked to them. ¡°Oh, so it''s Madam Snow and ¡­ The famous Feng Zhilin, I suppose? The Wind n¡¯s information is really tightly guarded. If we hadn¡¯t passed by, we wouldn¡¯t have known that there was a treasure here.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Feng Zhilin interrupted them,


    ¡°What else? Treasures belong to the virtuous ones. We passed by and coincidentally saw the Martial God Tombstone. That means we are fated to have it, so it belongs to us. Stop what you¡¯re doing and head back to Giant Metal City!¡±


    The two of them looked down on the two women from the Wind n. Women were regarded as weaker in battles due to their natural body strength, so they were frowned upon everywhere.


    ¡°Stop bullshitting so much if you want to take it from us. The Gold n lost to us in an attempt to take over Giant Metal City and now you are here to look down on us? I didn¡¯t know the Gold n was this shameless.¡± Feng Zhilin chuckled.

 Chapter 719: Profound Golden Soul

    ¡°And what do you know, little girl? That¡¯s because the main force of the Gold n wasn¡¯t there. If our patriarch were present, the Wind n would¡¯ve lost to us. The patriarch didn¡¯te because he wasn¡¯t concerned about Giant Metal City!¡± one of the elders retorted in haste.


    ¡°Words mean nothing here. We will know who¡¯s the weak one here if we fight directly,¡± Feng Zhilin scoffed.


    The atmosphere was crackling with animosity as both sides remained silent. They were ring at each other, waiting for the right opportunity.


    Long Chen was speechless. He had already prepared his n, and Aunt Snow was about to uproot the Martial God Tombstone. The arrival of the two elders from the Gold n had been too sudden.


    If Aunt Snow were to go and uproot the tombstone, she would be attacked by them. She had abandoned all thoughts of uprooting it for the moment as she faced the elders along with Feng Zhilin. The other people from the Wind n were too weak to help. Long Chen was even weaker, so he was on the sidelines.


    Feng Zhilin had ignited the gunpowder in the air with her sharp tongue.


    She hated how the two elders looked down on her and said, ¡°Since you are here, stop trying to weasel your way out and fight us. Words are cheap here. Power dictates everything. Aunt Snow, we will each fight one of them!¡±


    Feng Zhilin seized the initiative and appeared directly in front of the two elders. Her golden skirt trailed in the air like a fairy.


    ¡°Young miss!¡± Aunt Snow was left speechless by the arrogant Feng Zhilin¡¯s actions. She quickly moved forward to block one of the elders.The other people from the Wind n surrounded the Martial God Tombstone to prevent anyone else from taking it during the fight.


    The two elders from the Gold n looked at each other and smiled before they each met their opponents.


    Feng Zhilin moved to the side to give space for Aunt Snow to fight while one of the elders followed her.


    ¡°Little girl, I can¡¯t believe that your grandfather allowed you to run out without any security. Let me y with you for a moment,¡± the old man said lecherously as he looked at her attractive face.


    Feng Zhilin smiled, but her smile was filled with coldness and cruelty.


    She had met many people like the elder. All of them had paid with their lives.


    The fight broke out instantly. One of them attacked Feng Zhilin while the other was still ring at Aunt Snow.


    The two elders were almost two hundred years old and had a deep connection with each other as twins. Aunt Snow, on the other hand, was one of the stronger fighters at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Feng Zhilin, on the other hand, was a young girl and appeared to be an easier foe. As long as they captured her, it would be easy to ckmail Aunt Snow. It would then be an easy matter to take the Martial God Tombstone.


    The other elder was ring at Aunt Snow. Even though he was old, his lust was still strong. He looked at the sexy Aunt Snow with a perverted look.


    Jin Xiong had already started his fight with Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°The Gold n¡¯s Molten Gold Combat Body? And already at the Second Stage?¡± Feng Zhilin smirked.


    Jin Xiong¡¯s body was covered in a flowing sheet of gold light. This was the second stage of the Molten Gold Combat Body in which a suit of armor made of gold was formed. It would increase the user¡¯s attack and defense drastically.


    ¡°So you do know about this technique!¡± Jin Xiong smiled and became a golden whirlwind. Heunched a mighty punch at Feng Zhilin. It contained the essence of someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage as well as the second stage of the Molten Gold Combat Body. It was an attack far beyond what Zhao Danchen could use.


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The air ripped apart from the punch. Even space itself was distorted slightly.


    <em>Incredible! The Gold n should be specialized in strength and defense. Zhao Danchen was very strong, but he was probably not a pure-blooded Gold n member. He didn¡¯t have the mark on his forehead.</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s goal was the Martial God Tombstone. He was ready to spring into action at any moment!


    The more chaotic it was, the better his chances were!


    He was interested in seeing how strong Feng Zhilin was.


    He soon witnessed her strength. Feng Zhilin was so fast that Long Chen could barely keep up. She used a Body Combat Technique that appeared to be the higher-ranked version of the Willow Step, but she used it so masterfully that her body had be a willow leaf itself! All eight punches of Jin Xiong missed!


    ¡°Little girl, do you only know how to run?¡± Jin Xiong spat hatefully. He wanted to capture her, but she was like an eel that was dancing just barely out of his grasp.


    As he punched again and again, the air rippled with golden light. But none of his attacks hit her, which drove him crazy. It was humiliating!


    ¡°Little girl, stop running. Show me that the Wind n can use techniques that aren¡¯t for escaping! You are just a lower n that is allied with the Divine n. Do you really think of yourself as one of the Nine Great ns?¡±


    The Wind n¡¯s sore point was being told that they were the ves of the Divine n. After numerous years, the Wind n had gotten much stronger than before. Even though they weren¡¯t as strong as the Divine n, they were at leastparable to them a little. Jin Xiong was so arrogant that even Feng Zhilin leaked out her murderous intent.


    Her bloodlust was frightening!


    Feng Zhilin was trying to buy more time, but she fell for his taunt. She suddenly moved and transformed into a wind de, flying towards Jin Xiong!


    Fast! She was too fast!


    The wind de was two meters long and filled with azure light. Her body was hidden inside it.


    ¡°The Wind n¡¯s advanced King-tier martial technique, Wind de?¡± Jin Xiong squinted. He became serious because Feng Zhilin¡¯s Wind de was much faster than he had anticipated. The Wind n was famous for their speed, and speed was strength. Her Wind de was undoubtedly powerful.


    Jin Xiong didn¡¯t have time to think¡ªthe Wind de was right in front of him before he knew it. Even with the Molten Gold Combat Body¡¯s protection, he felt the wind blowing so hard that his face became numb.


    <em>What a good chance! She wants to sh with me head-on! </em>Jin Xiong was secretly happy and started circting his essence. A golden essence flowed into his right finger. When his finger was glowing, he pointed it at the Wind de.


    ¡°Gold Dragon Departure!¡±


    It was a powerful technique that condensed all of his strength into a single point. The power behind it was unimaginable!


    The illusion of a dragon appeared and crashed into the Wind de. The two colossal forces of nature exploded, causing azure and gold energy to scatter everywhere. Even the sturdy metal walls were bent slightly.


    The explosion was intense!


    Everyone was staring at them anxiously while Jin Ba was facing Aunt Snow. Feng Zhilin rarely fought, so no one knew how strong she was.


    The Wind n was renowned for their speed, but the Gold n was renowned for their strength. As expected, Feng Zhilin had to retreat even though she was unharmed. But surprisingly, Jin Xiong was blown back by the strong wind, spinning in the air. He was unharmed though.


    But as an older cultivator, this was humiliating!


    ¡°Brother, stop holding back! Use your full strength,¡± Jin Ba reminded his brother.


    Jin Xiong steadied himself and looked at Feng Zhilin with shock. He gritted his teeth when he heard Jin Ba. ¡°Fine!¡±


    He opened his arms and legs, and golden energy condensed onto his body.


    With a <em>whoosh</em>, a golden stone appeared from his chest and floated upwards. It was a purely golden stone with irregr shape, roughly the size of a person¡¯s heart. The golden stone was covered densely with golden runes.


    <em>What is that?</em> Long Chen was surprised to find that the golden stone exuded a dense metal energy.


    Everyone else was shocked by it too.


    ¡°Is that the Gold n¡¯s Profound Golden Soul?¡± One of the onlookers recognized it.


    ¡°Profound Golden Soul? Feng Zhilin is destined to lose once he uses it!¡± one of the men from the Wind n eximed.

 Chapter 720: Emperor-Tier Divine Arms

    Everyone from the Wind n was shocked the moment they saw the Profound Golden Soul. It was clear that the item was one of the most important treasures of the Gold n.


    Even Aunt Snow was stunned.


    ¡°Hehe, never thought the patriarch would give us the Profound Golden Soul, did you? Why don¡¯t you start running away since you know how strong this treasure is. You won¡¯t be able to escape the moment I use it!¡± Jin Ba shouted at Aunt Snow.


    Aunt Snow was worried, but Feng Zhilin wasn¡¯t afraid at all.


    <em>Does the young mistress have something that can deal with the Profound Golden Soul?</em>


    Even Long Chen was wondering that, because Feng Zhilin was too calm.


    ¡°Hey, brat, let me tell you something good!¡± Little Cat¡¯s voice drifted from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    The situation was critical. Every single good news might be the chance for Long Chen to turn things around.¡°Did you see that treasure? The Profound Golden Soul is filled with the energy of metal. It would amplify the strength of metal-type martial techniques. However, the one in front of us is such a small chunk that the amplification wouldn¡¯t be too strong. Still, it will be enough for the twins to use. More importantly, the Profound Golden Soul can help you cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    ¡°The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal?¡± Long Chen stared at the golden stone floating in front of Jin Xiong greedily. The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal would be as strong as the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal. But the special property of the Five Emperor Seals was their amplification! By merging two seals together, the destructive powers would be amplified by many folds.


    The moreplete the Five Emperor Seals were, the stronger they would be!


    A regr Emperor-tier martial technique wouldn¡¯t hold a candle to the Five Emperor Seals!


    Long Chen now had a dilemma. Both the Martial God Tombstone and the Profound Golden Soul were very useful for him, but he was currently too weak to take them. He could not obtain both items at the same time unless he risked his life by going all-out.


    Those who could stand at the top were often crazy. Long Chen decided to be crazy just for today!


    Feng Zhilin was still smiling calmly even when she recognized Jin Xiong¡¯s Profound Golden Soul. Jin Xiong felt humiliated by her courage. ¡°Feng Zhilin, leave this ce. The Martial God Tombstone is not something the Wind n can take. Do not me me for using the Profound Golden Soul to amplify my Golden Eyes of Annihtion enough to truly hurt you!¡±


    He chuckled coldly.


    ¡°Young mistress ¡­¡± Aunt Snow was worried. She wanted to tell Feng Zhilin that their lives were more important, but she stopped talking when she saw Feng Zhilin¡¯s undaunted face.


    Feng Zhilin finally said, ¡°Go ahead and use it. We will soon know who will have to leave this ce.¡±


    Her voice was cold and disrespectful towards the two elders from the Gold n.


    Someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage was far stronger than what Long Chen could handle. Feng Zhilin, however, could not only ignore them, she even ignored the Profound Golden Soul.


    ¡°Hmph!¡± Jin Xiong and Jin Ba looked at each other. They knew that they would have to use their full strength in front of the haughty Feng Zhilin today. It was worth it for the sake of taking the Martial God Tombstone from the Wind n. They were aware that Feng Zhilin was Feng Qing¡¯s favorite, but they had to risk it.


    It was actually too early for the final sh between the Nine Great ns. They had been courteous with one another on the starte. After years of being in control of their own empires, all three factions were already at each other''s throats. They only remained courteous because two factions attacking each other in the open would result in the third faction reaping all the benefits.


    This particr opening of the Ancient Graveyard was extremely important. Everyone expected there to be a massive battle near the end of the year, where the Nine Great ns would kill each other. Jin Xiong and Jin Wu both thought that it was worth moving the final battle forward for the sake of the Martial God Tombstone!


    The Five Great ns were arrogant because they were the true descendants of the Five Emperors. They did not fear anyone.


    Jin Xiong gritted his teeth and started controlling the Profound Golden Soul.


    ¡°Young mistress!¡± Aunt Snow pounced towards Jin Xiong recklessly, but Jin Ba blocked her.


    ¡°Woman, your opponent is me!¡±


    For the sake of Feng Zhilin, Aunt Snow used all of her strength to fight Jin Ba.


    As her name implied, she was an expert in using snow. Cold air enveloped her body, causing the surrounding temperature to drop rapidly. Everyone stared at her with awe as she covered herself with snow and hail.


    The battle became fiercer! Beforeing to ck Gold City, Feng Qing had instructed Aunt Snow to protect Feng Zhilin at all costs. She was putting her life on the line to protect Feng Zhilin right now, so she used various snow-rted martial techniques. Each snowke was seeped in a frightening amount of bloodlust.


    ¡°So this is the rumored snowdy. Your Snowke Fist is indeed strong, but can these little things cut through my Golden Combat Body?¡± Jin Baughed and stood in front of her. While he wasughing on the outside, he was actually secretly going all-out against the serious Aunt Snow. The floating snowkes in the air were actually capable of cutting through his technique!


    While the two of them fought w-to-w, Jin Xiong finally used his technique. He controlled the Profound Golden Soul to float near him before charging towards Feng Zhilin!


    Feng Zhilin did not even blink even though he was getting close to her!


    Jin Xiong howled as he stared at the Profound Golden Soul with killing intent.


    ¡°Die! Golden Eyes of Annihtion!¡±


    Two rays of light shot out of his eyes and fused with the Profound Golden Soul. The Profound Golden Soul shook violently, and the dark, golden runes lit up on it. In just a short period of time, it had vibrated thousands of times.


    ¡°Go!¡± Jin Xiong shouted.


    The Profound Golden Soul trembled violently onest time before shooting out the same two rays of light, but this time they were tens of times thicker and were significantly faster!


    The Golden Eyes of Annihtion was the famous technique of the Gold n. It was a technique that became stronger with the user, just like the Wind n¡¯s Three Thousand Illusions. However, Feng Zhilin hadn''t used the Three Thousand Illusions yet!


    Feng Zhilin rarely fought, but every time she did, everyone would be surprised by her strength.


    Her face was still stoic even when she saw the amplified Golden Eyes of Annihtion.


    ¡°Young mistress!¡± Aunt Snow panicked. Because Feng Zhilin rarely fought in public, even Aunt Snow didn¡¯t know how strong she was. She had only heard Feng Qing telling her that Feng Zhilin was strong.


    She turned away from Jin Xiong, which was a huge risk, and ushed to rescue Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°Don¡¯te here!¡± Feng Zhilin shouted.


    At the same time, she waved her hand furiously.


    Everything had been normal prior to this, but the moment she waved her right arm, an entire shockwave blew towards Jin Xiong.


    Long Chen was shocked. <em>Feng Zhilin looked like she just swung a long whip, but there¡¯s nothing in her right hand. Where is her whip?</em>


    The answer soon became clear.


    When the amplified Golden Eye of Annihtion almost hit Feng Zhilin, she waved her arm. Everyone watched the Profound Golden Soul get swatted away even though it was under the control of Jin Xiong!


    Everyone was surprised because they knew what it was.


    Since the Profound Golden Soul had been moved, the Golden Eyes of Annihtion naturally missed her. Feng Zhilin stood still as the two rays of light flew just two meters away from her and impacted something in the horizon.


    Jin Xiong had lost control of the Profound Golden Soul.


    Both Jin Xiong and Jin Ba ignored the Profound Golden Soul while their jaws dropped.


    Everyone except for Long Chen looked at Feng Zhilin with shock and awe. Even Aunt Snow was surprised. ¡°To think that the Wind n¡¯s patriarch gave the young mistress the Shapeless Whip ¡­¡±


    Jin Xiong and Jin Ba recognized the object. The Wind n¡¯s Shapeless Whip was a well-known artifact, simr to the Gold n¡¯s Profound Golden Soul. As its name implied, the whip was invisible. The only one who could see it was its owner. The owner of the Shapeless Whip had to use their blood to take control of it.

 Chapter 721: A Crazy Plan

    The Shapeless Whip¡¯s strongest feature was its invisibility. Everyone, including Long Chen, only saw her fingers lightly curled up, but none of them knew that she was holding something.


    The Shapeless Whip was an elementary Emperor-tier Divine Weapon! This was the highest grade of Divine Weapon that Long Chen had ever seen. The Shapeless Whip contained a lot of force inside of it, and Feng Zhilin had used her essence to stimte the strength within the whip to smack the Profound Golden Soul away.


    The Profound Golden Soul flew past the Martial God Tombstone and fell down just behind it.


    But no one from the Wind n nor the other cultivators noticed that. All of them were staring at Feng Zhilin¡¯s Shapeless Whip, the Emperor-tier Divine Weapon.


    Even the Gold n¡¯s Golden Combat Body couldn¡¯t withstand the invisible and powerful Shapeless Whip!


    ¡°Die!¡± Feng Zhilin smiled and her body shifted rapidly. Wind cloaked her before separating and forming three thousand illusions. Her illusions encircled both the elders from the Gold npletely.


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s Three Thousand Illusion was far superior to Feng Xuan¡¯s. Every single illusion was at least at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. Each of them was as strong as Long Chen! Usually, Jin Xiong and Jin Ba could deal with the illusions together, but Feng Zhilin was now hiding amidst them. A single attack from her would be fatal!


    Jin Xiong and Jin Ba were terrified. They had lost their fighting spirit after learning that Feng Zhilin had the Shapeless Whip. Fearing death, both of them quickly surrendered and apologized. ¡°Feng Zhilin, the rtionship between the Gold n and the Wind n isn¡¯t that bad. There¡¯s no need to kill each other! We admit that we are not your opponents when you have the Shapeless Whip. Remove your Three Thousand Illusions and we will retreat. We will give you the Martial God Tombstone!¡±


    They were old men, but they wanted to survive; they also needed to maintain their honor. Their words were sweet but also disgusting. Everyone frowned when they heard them.¡°Feng Zhilin, do you agree or not ¡­ AH!¡± Jin Xiong wanted her answer, but he shouted in pain. Everyone saw his waist burst open. His Golden Combat Body broke and blood flowed out from a deep gash.


    Jin Xiong was in deep pain. The injury inflicted by the Shapeless Whip was not superficial. The energy from the Shapeless Whip prated deep and destroyed his body from the inside. His organs were currently being minced!


    ¡°Big Brother, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Jin Ba was worried, but he was being attacked by Feng Zhilin. He staggered forward when a deep gash appeared on his back too.


    Both him and Jin Xiong were crying in pain.


    The Shapeless Whip¡¯s energy was too strong!


    ¡°Big Brother, we need to go all-out! I doubt we would lose to her Three Thousand Illusion if we worked together. She¡¯s just borrowing the strength from the Shapeless Whip! She cannot win against us with her own strength!¡± Jin Ba shouted in pain.


    Both of them decided to go all-out as they stared at their surroundings warily.


    ¡°Feng Zhilin, you despicable woman! We¡¯ve already surrendered and yet you didn¡¯t let us go. Don¡¯t me us for being uncourteous!¡±Jin Xiong and Jin Ba howled angrily. They used their own techniques to break through the encirclement. Both of them were at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, so their attacks destroyed the illusions easily. Unfortunately, Feng Zhilin swiftly produced another Three Thousand Illusions.


    In terms of essence, Feng Zhilin was not inferior to them!


    Her Shapeless Whip was also very hard to dodge. The brothers had their backs facing each other as they fought. Even though the Shapeless Whip was invisible, it produced sound when it ripped through the air. By listening to the sounds, they somehow managed to dodge it.


    That was how they managed to buy some time, but it was futile. They knew that they would die here if things dragged on.


    Their eyes were seething with hatred. There were at least three gashes on each of their bodies now. The wounds burned and were hard to heal. They had lost a lot of blood and could barely hold on any longer.


    ¡°Die!¡± Feng Zhilin¡¯s cold voice came from the Three Thousand Illusions. Each illusion replicated her voice and stunned both brothers.


    ¡°Ah!¡±


    ¡°Argh!¡±


    Both of them were attacked, but Jin Ba¡¯s head was hit by the whip this time. A bloody gash was left on his face. Even though the Golden Combat Body was sturdy, the Shapeless Whip broke through it and caused him to go deaf in one ear from the impact. His right eye also burst open.


    It was a gruesome sight.


    ¡°Younger brother!¡± Jin Xiong endured the pain and checked on Jin Ba, who was now left with a single functioning eye and ear. He had been crippled by Feng Zhilin¡¯s attack. The twins were usually hard to differentiate, but now the wound had made it easier for others to know who was Jin Xiong and who was Jin Ba.


    ¡°Feng Zhilin, I can¡¯t believe you are this venomous even though you are so young! You fucker!¡± The brothers,pletely enraged, used their trump card to deal with the illusions. The illusions were torn apart rapidly as they fell against the two brothers, but the Shapeless Whip would not fall that easily.


    Everyone stared at the intense battle.


    They had all acknowledged the princess of the Wind n.


    The Martial God Tombstone and the Profound Golden Soul had been cast aside for now as everyone stared at the intense battle. The Profound Golden Soul was not as valuable as the Shapeless Whip, and the Martial God Tombstone had a different function from the Shapeless Whip. But if the Wind n did obtain it, the Martial God Tombstone would be almost as valuable as the Shapeless Whip.


    Long Chen saw an opportunity when he noticed no one was looking at the Profound Golden Soul. He carefully snuck around and hid the Profound Golden Soul in the Primordial Realm.


    His beating heart calmed down a bit when he obtained it. He had been very careful when he made his way behind the Martial God Tombstone. If Feng Zhilin noticed him, a single swing of the whip would be enough to kill him.


    Long Chen had a feeling that even grazing the whip would mean the end for him.


    He was impressed by the destructive power of the whip, but he was even more impressed by how vicious Feng Zhilin was despite her young age.


    She was a terrifying foe!


    Long Chen decided to not face off against her before he became stronger.


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s battle was so intense that no one wanted to shift their gaze from it. That was why Long Chen managed to snag the Profound Golden Soul.


    There was a four hundred meter distance between the Profound Golden Soul and the Martial God Tombstone. After obtaining the Profound Golden Soul, Long Chen stared at the Martial God Tombstone greedily. He decided to risk it and snuck towards the Martial God Tombstone while the battle was still ongoing.


    There were two types of people in the world: crazy people and crazier people.


    The appearance of the Gold n had provided Long Chen with a big chance. If he didn''t seize it now, he would regret it. Thankfully, he still had Rewind and the third stage of Blood Sacrifice. Long Chen didn¡¯t fear death, but he feared that his strength would stagnate.


    Everything was a distraction. Strength was a man¡¯s true measure of worth here.


    Jin Xiong and Jin Ba struggled vehemently, but their strength slowly diminished. Even Long Chen could tell that they would soon die under Feng Zhilin¡¯s onught.


    Long Chen needed to take the Martial God Tombstone before the battle was over!


    Thanks to Aunt Snow, the Martial God Tombstone was already on the verge of being loosened. Long Chen intended to hit the Martial God Tombstone with one strong attack to loosen itpletely.


    He only had one chance. If he seeded, he could instantly store it in the Primordial Realm. If he failed, the sound from his attack would attract everyone¡¯s attention. Disregarding Feng Zhilin, Aunt Snow and the other Wind n cultivators would stop him.


    He had to escape swiftly the moment he attacked the Martial God Tombstone whether he seeded or not.


    He held his breath and suppressed his essence. He reached a state of near death before he slowly approached the Martial God Tombstone.


    Everyone was watching the battle and no one was looking at the back of the Martial God Tombstone. No one noticed a single person slowly approaching it.


    Four hundred meters, three hundred meters, two hundred meters, and finally one hundred meters. Long Chen slowly entered the range of the Wind n when he was around thirty meters away. The closest Wind n member was just several meters away on the other side of the Martial God Tombstone.

 Chapter 722: Obtaining the Tombstone

    Long Chen slowly approached until he was just ten meters away. He dared not get any closer, but thankfully, there were various metal houses around him. He hid in one of them and held his breath. He looked out warily and stared at the magnificent tombstone, stunned by the ancient air around it.


    Especially the ¡°martial¡± aura around it.


    Feng Zhilin was busy ughtering the two brothers on the other side!


    Long Chen calcted the timing, and blood-red scales covered his body. His eyes slowly turned blood-red as he looked at the tombstone.


    Thanks to the tombstone blocking everyone¡¯s view, no one had noticed him.


    Long Chen used Sight to observe his surroundings. He would be alerted instantly the moment anyone noticed him.


    Using Sight, he noted down the positions of the Wind n cultivators. The one who killed Shao Yu was currently standing next to the Martial God Tombstone. Coincidentally, he was also the one closest to Long Chen.


    Long Chen wanted to kill him to avenge Shao Yu, but he knew the importance of the Martial God Tombstone. If he failed this time, he would never get another chance to take it. But he was certain that he could kill whoever was in possession of it if he himself became stronger.


    Long Chen focused on the Martial God Tombstone.At the final moments of the battle between Feng Zhilin and the two brothers, Long Chen acted. Suddenly, the Wind n cultivator turned his head and saw Long Chen charging towards him. He was surprised by the sudden appearance of the red-scaled warrior.


    Long Chen also didn¡¯t know why the person had suddenly turned his head. It was a coincidence and bad luck.


    The person opened his mouth to shout the moment he saw Long Chen.


    Long Chen had killed one of hisrades yesterday, so the person clearly remembered him. How would he not be surprised to find Long Chen just behind the Martial God Tombstone?


    ¡°Damn!¡± Long Chen had no choice but to improvise. Since the person was standing just in front of the Martial God Tombstone, Long Chen decided to attack him too. Long Chen''s right arm was engulfed in fire as the Scarlet Emperor Seal lit up in his palm.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    Long Chen activated the Blood Devouring Domain to suppress the person as well!


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡±


    He had wanted to use it to dislodge the Martial God Tombstone, but now he had to use it to kill the person!


    Long Chen¡¯s attack hade out of nowhere. The cultivator hadn¡¯t fully recovered from the shock of seeing Long Chen here as the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal swiftly approached him!


    ¡°HE¡ª¡± He remembered how hisrade had fallen to the same attack. He was so afraid that he forgot to fight back. Long Chen¡¯s Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal touched his chest.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    ¡°Die!¡± The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal hit the warrior andunched his corpse straight into the Martial God Tombstone. The remaining force from the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal impacted the Martial God Tombstone and disintegrated the warrior. Long Chen then attacked with his palm as the burning me exploded outwards.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Martial God Tombstone let out an explosive sound.


    Long Chen used all of his strength to unleash a single potent attack. He was surprised by how everything turned out even though it was risky. Not only had he avenged Shao Yu, he had even hit the Martial God Tombstone.


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal¡¯s strength might¡¯ve been reduced a bit after hitting the warrior, but Long Chen still sensed that it was powerful enough to move the Martial God Tombstone. It was now up to luck to determine if it was enough to dislodge it!


    Everyone noticed what was happening the moment Long Chen used the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal. They turned around and saw a person exploding into chunks of flesh while blood-red fire sprayed everywhere on the Martial God Tombstone.


    Even Feng Zhilin was attracted by the sound.


    She wasunching her final blow when it happened, but her pride didn¡¯t allow her to stop now. She intended to kill the two elders from the Gold n before taking the Martial God Tombstone.


    ¡°Someone is behind the Martial God Tombstone!¡± Aunt Snow disappeared and instantly reappeared in front of Long Chen. The speed of someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Realm was not to be underestimated!


    Using Sight, he saw that everyone except for Feng Zhilin was surrounding him!


    ¡°I have to risk it!¡± Long Chen activated the Primordial Realm and tried to take the Martial God Tombstone!


    ¡°Damn! It¡¯s still stuck a bit! Just a little more!¡± Long Chen was dismayed when he noticed that he needed to dislodge it just a bit for it to work. His luck was bad. If it wasn¡¯t for that cultivator, he would¡¯ve been able to take the Martial God Tombstone.


    He had taken a huge risk and failed. It would be one of hisrgest regrets!


    Everyone was approaching him and his window of escape was bing slim. He knew when to give up and was about to use Blood Warp when¡­


    ¡°Brat, let me help you!¡± Little Cat¡¯s words were like a blessing for him!


    Long Chen continued to open the Primordial Realm. With Little Cat¡¯s help, it emitted a strong suction! A ck light burst forth and enveloped the Martial God Tombstone, causing it to shrink before it entered the Primordial Realm.


    The Martial God Tombstone had disappeared!


    Everyone saw Long Chen¡¯s blood-red figure.


    Aunt Snow was the closest to him at barely ten meters away while everyone else surrounded him from a distance.


    When the Martial God Tombstone disappeared, everyone knew that Long Chen had a Storage Ring and had sneakily stolen the tombstone while everyone was upied with Feng Zhilin¡¯s battle.


    Everyone from the Wind n was angry.


    But they were shocked to find that Long Chen wasn¡¯t as strong as they had thought¡ªhis essence indicated that he was only roughly at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage.


    The weakest Wind n member present was at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. Each of Feng Zhilin¡¯s illusions was also at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Anyone could kill Long Chen with a single tap and yet he had somehow sessfully stole the Martial God Tombstone?


    <em>Who is this person? </em>Even Aunt Snow was confused.


    She was shocked to find that the Martial God Tombstone was stolen, but she was even more surprised to find that someone so weak was behind it. <em>Does he have a death wish? And where did he obtain a Storage Ring?</em>


    No one knew who Long Chen was at first, but Feng Zhilin did.


    Even though she had never seen him before, she had heard his name twice. The first time was about how he had escaped safely even though the young master of the Divine n had stolen his pet.


    The second time was when Long Chen killed a Wind n cultivator in front of ck Gold City.


    Rather than anger, Feng Zhilin was instead curious when she saw him. She had never seen someone so mysterious before.


    But she soon remembered what Wu Guangyu had told her, that Long Chen had an amazing technique used for escaping.


    ¡°Damn!¡± Her Shapeless Whip cracked towards Long Chen like a snake. Long Chen would be split apart if he was hit by it!


    ¡°Blood Warp!¡± The moment the Martial God Tombstone was in his hands, he became a blood-red light and escaped. Even the Shapeless Whip missed him!


    Everyone knew how serious the situation was when Long Chen disappeared.


    To think that the Martial God Tombstone was stolen by a mysterious nobody.


    And even Feng Zhilin¡¯s Shapeless Whip had missed him?


    No one knew what was going on.


    Everyone was shocked, but the two brothers on the verge of death were happy with Long Chen¡¯s appearance. They knew that Feng Zhilin would let them live, as she needed to chase him.


    ¡°He might be able to escape from Wu Guangyu, but he will not be able to escape from me! Aunt Snow, I will leave the two pieces of garbage to you. Wind God¡¯s Warp!¡±


    She turned into a gust of wind and chased after Long Chen!


    Feng Zhilin was already fast, but her Wind God¡¯s Warp made her even faster, enough to rival Long Chen¡¯s speed. But Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp onlysted for ten Li, while she could use her¡¯s freely.

 Chapter 723: Escape

    It was too sudden. Everyone was still stunned after Feng Zhilin left with the Wind God Warp.


    Long Chen had suddenly appeared and stolen the Martial God Tombstone. Everyone had thought Feng Zhilin would get rid of the brave fool, but none of them had expected Long Chen to escape using Blood Warp.


    The strange yet powerful Blood Warp made everyone guess who Long Chen really was. Long Chen had previouslye here and killed several people from the Wind n before escaping with Blood Warp. The people from the Wind n had been staying here for the past few days, so everyone knew about what he had done.


    ¡°That brat ¡­¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t he escape yesterday? He had the guts to return! Wait, I saw blood sttering behind the Martial God Tombstone just now. Who died?¡±


    The Wind n searched around and soon determined that the person Long Chen had killed was the one who had killed Shao Yu yesterday. All of them sighed at the revtion.


    ¡°What a terrifying brat. To think he could endure for so long with so little power. Not only did he manage to fool us, he even managed to escape from the young mistress!¡±


    ¡°He hasn''t escaped yet. Princess Lin is chasing him right now. She has both the Wind God Warp and the Shapeless Whip. It won¡¯t be easy for him to escape!¡±


    ¡°I hope Princess Lin kills him, or it will be terrifying if he grows even stronger! His personality, strange techniques, and the Martial God Tombstone will make him a formidable foeter on!¡±¡°That¡¯s true. Wait, where¡¯s the Profound Golden Soul?¡±


    Everyone was shocked. Everyone except for Aunt Snow, who was trapping the two elders, searched around and found that the Profound Golden Soul was missing too.


    Everyone frowned because they knew that it must¡¯ve been Long Chen who had taken it.


    The two elders gritted their teeth when they heard that Long Chen had also taken the Profound Golden Soul.


    ¡°Big Brother, what should we do? We lost the Profound Golden Soul!¡±


    ¡°What can we do? It¡¯s already a miracle that we survived. That bitch Feng Zhilin is chasing him. It would be suicidal to chase them now! We need to escape while she¡¯s not here!¡±


    Both of them were on the verge of death. They didn¡¯t know if they had the strength to escape from Aunt Snow.


    ck Gold City was in chaos!


    ***


    Long Chen miraculously dodged Feng Zhilin¡¯s Shapeless Whip using Blood Warp. It felt incredible to experience the speed that Blood Warp granted him.


    More importantly, by risking his life, he had obtained both the Martial God Tombstone and the Profound Golden Soul. The Martial God Tombstone would increase his cultivation speed ten fold while the Profound Golden Soul would allow him to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal.


    But it would be difficult!


    Long Chen was excited! It had been a while since he felt such excitement. The previous time he felt his heart beating so fast was when he obtained the Five Emperor Seals. Now he had not only the Martial God Tombstone, but also the Profound Golden Soul in his hands!


    ¡°Don¡¯t be too happy yet! She¡¯s catching up to us!¡± Little Cat¡¯s statement shocked him so much that he started sweating profusely.


    Long Chen soon reached the ten Li limit.


    Usually, he would¡¯ve used Rewind to replenish his essence in order to use Blood Warp again so that he could be safe, but this time he felt that Feng Zhilin was too close to him!


    He looked back and saw the wind howling furiously on the horizon. She was indeed homed in on him and was flying at breakneck speed!


    Without Blood Warp, Long Chen could never hope to outrun her!


    Suddenly, he was plunged into another crisis.


    She was about to reach him when Little Cat gave him an idea. ¡°Don¡¯t panic yet. You have a method to escape. Do as I say. First, drip your blood onto the Profound Golden Soul and make it recognize you as its owner.¡±


    Long Chen did not hesitate to take out the golden stone. He dropped a single drop of blood onto it.


    ¡°Your bloodline is stronger than the Golden n¡¯s, so you can control your blood to destroy the marking left behind by the Gold n. Do as I say and make it recognize you as the owner!¡±


    Long Chen nodded. This was the first time he had done something like this, but with Little Cat¡¯s instructions, he quickly used his blood to remove the marking of the Gold n and seized absolute control over the Profound Golden Soul. Long Chen felt it bing a part of his body. He had a feeling that he could use it as his third arm.


    A strong, golden energy radiated inside the Profound Golden Soul.


    Long Chen felt like he was submerged in a sea of gold.


    <em>Is this the power of metal? Hard, sturdy, and sharp. It¡¯s incredible ¡­¡± </em>Long Chen was still immersed in the feeling when he sensed danger. He opened his eyes after merging with the Profound Golden Soul and saw a veiled woman. She was staring at him curiously.


    Long Chen took a deep breath when he looked at her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. This ce is filled with metal sand. Use the Profound Golden Soul to swim through the metal sand swiftly. Even though she¡¯s strong, she will be much slower than you when you are swimming underground.¡±


    Little Cat¡¯s words gave him the courage to face Feng Zhilin. He rxed a bit after knowing that he could escape with his life.


    Feng Zhilin was staring at Long Chen with interest.


    Her canary-like voice rang out. ¡°You took both the Profound Golden Soul and the Martial God Tombstone.¡±


    ¡°You are right.¡±


    ¡°And you are not afraid of me? You should know I can kill you easily.¡± Feng Zhilin was surprised.


    ¡°You are right.¡±


    ¡°... Can you say something else?¡± Feng Zhilin became upset.


    She waved her arm slightly. Even though it was invisible, Long Chen knew that she was holding onto the Shapeless Whip. A single swing and he was dead.


    ¡°You are right.¡± He provoked her.


    Feng Zhilin looked at him silently. Even though she tried to remain calm, Long Chen¡¯s strange background and techniques disrupted her emotions and clouded her judgment.


    Usually, she would¡¯ve killed anyone who tried to take something that she wanted, but Long Chen was special. Despite being weak, he had managed to seed in his mission. He also had a grudge with Wu Guangyu, her fiance.


    ¡°Did you swear that you would kill Wu Guangyu?¡±


    ¡°You are right!¡± Long Chen smiled.


    ¡°Do you really not fear death?¡± Feng Zhilin was pissed at him for repeating the same sentence again and again.


    ¡°You are ¡­ right!¡± Long Chen repeated without fear even though Feng Zhilin¡¯s gaze became cold.


    ¡°I was actually curious to see how far you could go with your potential, but I don¡¯t think I want to do that now. I wonder ¡­ How will you escape my attacks? Well ¡­ Die.¡±


    She waved her arm.


    An invisible force ripped through the air and snaked towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Profound Golden Soul!¡± Long Chen was prepared. He activated it and swam through the dense, metal sand in the ground.


    ¡°What a fool to try and escape underground.¡± Feng Zhilin smiled and used her behemoth strength to break open the metallic ground. Her attacks went deep and she moved fast, but she soon realized that Long Chen¡¯s speed underground far exceeded her expectations!


    ¡°Why is he so fast? Is it because of the Profound Golden Soul? It¡¯s difficult to break through the metallic sand. My speed is slowed down, but his speed is somehow unrestricted!¡±


    Long Chen swam like a fish as he swiftly escaped her detection radius. Feng Zhilin¡¯s calmness turned into anger.


    No one had ever managed to anger her this much before. She also never expected Long Chen to escape right under nose. She was proud of her speed, having beaten even Wu Guangyu in that aspect. She was confident in it to the point that she wasn¡¯t worried that Long Chen had the Martial God Tombstone in his ¡°Storage Ring.¡±


    She had been confident that she would be able to retrieve it easily, but now she realized that she was far slower underground than Long Chen!

 Chapter 724: Fifth Earthly Martial Stage

    She was certain that she would catch up with Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp, but the situation was different now!


    ¡°Damn!¡± Long Chen had disappeared. Feng Zhilin waved her Shapeless Whip wildly and blew arge hole in the ground, sending dirt and metallic sand flying everywhere.


    She crushed the metallic sand even further in her rampage.


    ¡°Damn! Damn!¡± The angry Feng Zhilin was like a wild beast that continued to rage blindly. The sand flew continuously as she dug arge hole in front of her using the Shapeless Whip.


    But no matter what she did, Long Chen was gone.


    ¡°Long Chen, I will take back the Martial God Tombstone from you! Just you wait! I refuse to believe that you will stay underground forever. The moment you step out, I will butcher you into bits!¡±


    She howled angrily in the cavernous space.


    The Martial God Tombstone was supposed to be the chance for Feng Zhilin to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, and also the key to increasing the strength of the Wind n. The Wind n¡¯s patriarch had given the important task of transporting it to Feng Zhilin, even leaving the Shapeless Whip with her in hopes that she would obtain treasures for the n.


    It was supposed to be an easy mission for her, but her pride had ruined it!¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin calmed down and stared at the direction Long Chen had disappeared. She was oozing bloodlust.


    ¡°To think someone below the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage could win against me like this ¡­¡±


    Herughter echoed underground.


    Long Chen naturally didn¡¯t hear her, but he could imagine what kind of face she was making. She had underestimated him, and Long Chen had actually managed to steal the Martial God Tombstone.


    He had seeded.


    He sighed in relief.


    <em>I would be too anxious to cultivate up there, but with the Profound Golden Soul, I can cultivate underground in peace since I can move around freely. It won¡¯t be toote to resurface after I¡¯ve be stronger.</em>


    Long Chen continued to travel for another fifty Li before he stopped. During his escape, he had changed directions several times. Even though it was impossible for Feng Zhilin to find him deep underground, he decided to be careful and swam deeper.


    Simr to Feng Zhilin, Long Chen carved out a space underground that could fit around ten people. It was filled with metallic sand. The deeper he dug down, the more metallic sand there was. The ce was filled with the power of metal.


    ¡°This is a world of metal. The Profound Golden Soul will allow me to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. This is the best ce to do it ¡­¡±


    Long Chen looked around and felt excited. He could cultivate in peace without any worries of being attacked!


    ¡°But first, I should check the Martial God Tombstone. It is a highly sought-after treasure after all. While my martial techniques are strong with the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, my cultivation level is low. I should try to increase my cultivation level first!¡±


    When he first entered the Ancient Graveyard, he had broken through the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage. Only a few had passed, yet he had started cultivating the fifth stage of the Earthly Martial Fist. With the Martial God Tombstone, he was certain that he would reach the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage soon.


    The Martial God Tombstone was a treasure that could increase a person¡¯s cultivation speed by ten fold!


    <em>I should look at it first. </em>Long Chen made a decision and focused on his Primordial Realm. As the master, he could see everything inside of it, especially since the Martial God Tombstone was massive. Usually, a person who stored the Martial God Tombstone in a Storage Ring would need to take it out to look at it, but Long Chen could see it directly in his Primordial Realm.


    Long Chen had ced it in an independent space inside of the Primordial Realm. The ce was filled with the gray Primordial Qi. It enveloped the Martial God Tombstone like towels and made it look even more mysterious.


    With the Martial God Tombstone in his possession, he was much calmer. In the safe underground space, Long Chen sat down and focused on the tombstone. After the experience he hadst time, the words on the Martial God Tombstone soon turned into an illusion of a cultivator before his eyes.


    The illusion started practicing the Earthly Martial Fist from the first stage. Even though it was only the first stage, Long Chen did not ignore it. Bing stronger required him to solidify his basics first. However, the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage wouldn¡¯t be easy to break into even if he solidified his basics.


    Long Chen copied the movements of the illusion. Copying it gave him a profound feeling. As he learned and cultivated, his progress sped up to the point that it was ten times faster.


    He could be faster if hisprehension was better.


    The Martial God Tombstone immortalized the ancestor that sought after the meaning of ¡°martial.¡± The more Long Chen immersed himself in it, the more he became grateful for the ancestor. The person had never given up on cultivating even after death. It was a tenacity that went beyond death!


    Long Chen resonated with the feelings radiating from the Martial God Tombstone. He was also someone who defied the heavens, so the Martial God Tombstone granted him a lot of potential to learn.


    He solidified his basics after copying the first to fourth stages of the Earthly Martial Fist. The Martial God Tombstone had given him a lot of ideas, so much so that he noticed a lot of different movements that he had missed in the past. Long Chen was certain that he would be stronger as long as he continued to cultivate!


    Five dayster, his basics had surpassed that of others at his age. He was slowly making his way to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. Without the Martial God Tombstone, he would¡¯ve needed to study the manual before advancing, but now he could just copy the illusion¡¯s movements to improve!


    As long as the form and essence was correct, his Martial Soul would naturally grow too. His strength would increase substantially.


    Long Chen immersed himself in cultivation in the underground cave, where no one could disturb him. Little Cat remained silent as he watched Long Chen slowly grow stronger.


    Time slowly passed. Under the guidance of the Martial God Tombstone, things finally started to change on the fifteenth day. Earthly Qi surged towards Long Chen and enveloped his fist as he cultivated. The space warped a little while aftershocks caused tremors in the earth again and again.


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The Earthly Qi enveloped himpletely.


    He punched onest time and then sat down. He hadpleted the fifth stage of the Earthly Martial Fist and his Martial Soul had changed once more.


    The fog in his sea of consciousness surged towards his dragon-shaped Martial Soul. Afterpleting the fifth stage, Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul had be substantially realistic. He could now see the traces of scales on it.


    His Martial Soul wasing to life.


    The increasing strength of the Martial Soul caused it to suck the surrounding Earthly Qi into his body. Long Chen transformed it into his Dragon Soul Essence as it came in. His veins had gotten stronger thanks to his Martial Soul, allowing him to store more essence. The cores within his nine Martial Meridians also became more vibrant.


    Time continued to pass.


    Long Chen finally stopped cultivating, signaling his sess in reaching the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. It had only been a month since he came to the Ancient Graveyard, and his strength had increased from the Third Earthly Martial Stage to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. Including his Dragon Soul Transformation and the Five Emperor Seals, he was now an intermediate cultivator in the Ancient Graveyard.


    He stood up and felt the new power in his body. His confidence grew from feeling the new strength in him, or rather he was confident in the Martial God Tombstone. It had taken him only fifteen days to make a breakthrough thanks to the Martial God Tombstone. How much longer would it take to reach the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage?


    The Martial God Tombstone would only make Long Chen stronger.

 Chapter 725: Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal

    Long Chen thought carefully. He had just reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, and it was too soon for him to strive for the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. He needed time to get used to his new power. It was a good time to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. To prevent any incidents from happening, he took out the Profound Golden Soul from the Primordial Realm.


    Without any rest after achieving the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, he started cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. He was very hardworking and refused to yield to life¡¯s difficulties. This was for the sake of taking Ling Xi back fair and square in the future!


    ¡°Little Cat, how will I get out of here if I use the Profound Golden Soul to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal? I will have to consume it.¡±


    It would be difficult for Long Chen to dig out from so deep underground without the Profound Golden Soul.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯ll be consumed when you cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal, but it won¡¯tpletely disappear. Instead, it¡¯ll exist in another form in your body. The Profound Golden Soul doesn¡¯t have much use on you since you don¡¯t specialize in metal-based martial techniques, so it''s best for you to just use it. But it would be exceedingly painful to hold both the power of fire and metal in a single Martial Meridian. Regr people would die from the pain.¡±


    With Little Cat¡¯s guarantee, Long Chen was much rxed. He didn¡¯t hesitate to start cultivating after a brief rest.


    How strong would thebined attack of the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal and the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal be?


    Long Chen anticipated the results, but first, he had to jump through the first major obstacle: cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal.


    He had familiarized himself with the cultivation method since it was simr to that of the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal. The hard part was fusing both of them together.The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal was filled with fire energy, while the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal was filled with metal energy. Thankfully, theyplemented each other, so the difficulty wouldn¡¯t spike quite as sharply as cultivating the other seals. It would be a different story if Long Chen attempted to fuse water and fire energy together. The violent reaction would¡¯ve caused his body to explode.


    ¡°Good luck, brat. I know that your body can withstand the force, but can you endure the pain? If you can, you are truly a dragon amongst men. If not, you are just a worm.¡± Little Cat chuckled.


    Long Chen ignored him. He was holding the Profound Golden Soul in front of him as he breathed in deeply.


    ¡°Time to start.¡±


    The Profound Golden Soul graduallynded on his right palm. It was where the Five Emperor Seals were located. Out of the five, the Scarlet Emperor Seal was the brightest. When the Profound Golden Soul got close to his palm, the Golden Emperor Seal lit up too.


    Long Chen sensed that his control over the Profound Golden Soul deteriorated rapidly. The Golden Emperor Seal then sucked in the Profound Golden Soul, causing it to stick to his palm. The Golden Emperor Seal converted it into a golden liquid before taking it in.


    The golden liquid flowed through the Golden Emperor Seal and traveled into Long Chen¡¯s Martial Meridian in his right palm. It was where the energy of the Scarlet Emperor Seal dwelled. Now the energies were fighting for dominance!


    As the energies of metal and fire shed, Long Chen winced from the pain. Merging energies was not simple; he felt like his arm was going to explode. It was already difficult enough to not get cramps from the pain, much less cultivate through it. Long Chen was sweating profusely when he realized that it would be difficult to merge both energies into the same Martial Meridian.


    The fire energy had taken most of the space in his Martial Meridian, and now the metal energy arrival was threatening the fire energy¡¯s spot. The metal energy was slowly flowing into his Martial Meridian thanks to the Profound Golden Soul. It was definitely a treasure leagues above the Blue Devil me, so the energy it produced could overpower the fire energy for now.


    The pain was overbearing. Blood-red fire and golden metallic shes appeared as they shed again and again. The two energies were fighting for space in his right arm. Long Chen¡¯s face was pale. It was extremely difficult for him to control his arm right now.


    Long Chen had to start cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal before harmonizing the two energies. He had a feeling that he would fail many times before he seeded.


    ¡°I have to endure such hardships to be stronger!¡± Long Chen grit his teeth and endured. His willpower had always been far superiorpared to others at his age. He used his Martial Soul to control the essence from the other eight Martial Meridians to suppress the shing energy.


    The pain subsided significantly after he did that. He then used his essence to separate the two energies. While he was doing so, he had to start cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal at the same time. It would be bad for him if he dragged it out.


    The fire energy in his Martial Meridian was amplified by the Golden Crow mes. It was a terrifying power that refused to let go of its territory in the Martial Meridian.


    But with Long Chen, the master of the body, controlling it, the fire energy had no choice but to be silent.


    Even so, he was running out of time, because he wasn¡¯t sure how much longer he could suppress both energies.


    <em>I need to go all out! </em>Long Chen focused on cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal and ignored all the distractions from the outside world. He ignored the pain and suffering, leaving only his willpower to cultivate it!


    ¡°Metal, the symbol of sharpness and sturdiness. An energy that embodies cold ughter!¡±


    Of the five elements, metal and fire were both elements with strong offensive properties. That was the reason why the shing of the two energies was so intense right now. It was like two ancient beasts fighting each other!


    Thanks to his experience in cultivating the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, it was much easier for him to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal, especially since there was arge amount of metal energy deep underground. With the help from the Golden Emperor Seal, a faint stream of Qi started flowing from the metallic sand towards Long Chen. Every grain of sand only contained a bit of Metal Qi, but with so much metallic sand around him, the faint stream soon became a torrent that flowed into his body through the Golden Emperor Seal.


    The amount of metal energy in his body grew rapidly.


    Using the Profound Golden Soul as the catalyst, Long Chen utilized the energying from the Metal Qi to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. Just like the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal slowly formed in his palm. The Golden Emperor Seal lit up, looking just like the Scarlet Emperor Seal.


    Inside his Martial Meridian, Long Chen used his essence to separate both energies. On the left was the surging torrent of fire energy while on the right was the dazzling metal energy. Both of them were circling around his core, but Long Chen was keeping them apart with his essence.


    He had seeded in cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    That was the first part of the entire cultivation process. The second part was tobine two energies. This was a delicate process. Long Chen gradually released some of his essence and allowed the two energies to merge slowly. Once they had gotten used to each other, the bacsh from the merging wouldn¡¯t be that violent.


    <em>I need a lot of time to merge the two energies. It might take half a month ¡­</em> Long Chen took a rough guess.


    Merging the two energies required willpower and patience since he would have to endure the pain constantly. Even though the two energies werepleted, they were still violent and constantly shed with each other.


    ¡°No choice but to continue enduring it ¡­¡±


    Deep underground, Long Chen gave the two energies a lot of time to slowly merge. Time passed. Thankfully, the merging process was much faster than he had estimated.


    By the time Long Chen released all of his essence, the Blue Devil me and the Profound Golden Soul were both slowly circling around his core in the Martial Meridian.


    The cultivation of the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal had officially beenpleted.


    Long Chen sensed a terrifying power in his palm. The destruction that the two powers would cause was unimaginable.


    When he finished cultivating, Long Chen felt like he had been reborn.


    ¡°The path to cultivation has always been harsh. No one can seed in it easily. No matter what happens, one must endure the pain and be stronger just like me. I am now several times stronger than before!¡±


    Fifth Earthly Martial Stage with two of the Five Emperor Seals.


    He was now as strong as a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    <em>Should I continue and advance into the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, or should I leave first? It will be hard to find such an amazing ce to cultivate elsewhere, but I won¡¯t grow without experiencing new difficulties ¡­</em>

 Chapter 726: Final Star Altar

    <em>They already know who I am and about the treasure in my possession. Both the Gold n and the Wind n should be hunting me to get the Martial God Tombstone and the Profound Golden Soul. The others won¡¯t let me go either. I might¡¯ve be stronger, but they are still stronger than me. Should I proceed to the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage before I get out?</em>


    Long Chen was still deciding when Little Cat interrupted him. ¡°You should stop when you can. Did you really think that this ce was safe?¡±


    ¡°Wait, is it dangerous here?¡± Long Chen was confused.


    ¡°Where do you think the Metal Devouring Wind came from?¡±


    Long Chenbed through his memories. He recalled that the first time he saw it, the Metal Devouring Wind appeared to have exploded upwards from underground. <em>Wait ¡­</em>


    ¡°Roughly one kilometer down, there¡¯s an ocean of Metal Devouring Wind. The natural disaster that you saw is due to the Metal Devouring Wind erupting and escaping to the surface. You are now somewhere in the middle, not too close and not too far away from the ocean of Metal Devouring Wind. I told you to cultivate here in peace because the ocean of Metal Devouring Wind was calm, but now it seems that it''s getting more and more violent. I think it will erupt again soon. Even with the Profound Golden Soul, I think you will have a hard time dodging it!¡±


    ¡°Fuck! Why didn¡¯t you tell me that earlier?!¡± Long Chen had to thank his good luck forpleting the cultivation of the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal earlier. He would¡¯ve been torn to pieces if the Metal Devouring Wind hit him while he was cultivating!


    Long Chen naturally didn¡¯t want to stay here anymore, so he nodded. ¡°In that case I will leave now. The Ancient Graveyard is huge and I have Sight. It won¡¯t be easy for them to find me. As long as I¡¯m in the Metal District, Feng Zhilin will have a hard time catching me since I have the Profound Golden Soul.¡±


    He activated the Profound Golden Soul and swam upwards. He was curious as to what had happened aboveground after an entire month.He popped his head out of the ground and saw that it was nighttime. He wasn¡¯t sure where the Ancient Graveyard was, but based on the constetions, it appeared to be in another dimension. Somehow there was a sun and moon here too just like in the Dragon Continent. Long Chen thought that the Ancient Graveyard was most likely in another corner of the Dragon Continent.


    He heard someone say before that the Ancient Graveyard was the stretch of uninhabitednd between the Ten Thousand Nations Territory and the Three Emperor Territory.


    <em>Wait, I smell blood! Someone¡¯s here! </em>Long Chen noticed it immediately. While many people knew his name, most of them associated his name with his transformed state, including Feng Zhilin. Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried that people would start hunting him down the moment he appeared.


    Also, he was quite far away from ck Gold City. He looked around and recognized that he was still in the Metal District, but in an unknown ce. Compared to the tnd of ck Gold City, the ce he was in was popted by a forest of metal spikes. The metal spikes jutted outwards from the sand!


    He assumed that the metal spikes were most likely very ancient since they werepletely rusted. The smells of rust and blood mixed together in the air, forming a uniquely disgusting stench.


    Long Chen used Sight and checked out the area around him. Because the area was densely covered by metal spikes, each tens of meters tall, he had no choice but to use Sight to scout the area.


    He looked around and found where the smell of blood wasing from. He saw over twenty cultivators fighting.


    <em>They are fighting hard. Is there treasure there?</em> Long Chen held his breath and slowly approached the fight. The cultivators were so busy fighting that none of them noticed him.


    <em>Wait, so many people have died here! </em>Long Chen noticed that there were already thirty corpses on the ground. <em>Did a treasure appear here and attracted their attention? Maybe that¡¯s why they are fighting to the death.</em>


    Long Chen looked past the group of people fighting and saw a metallic cavern. The entrance to the cave was dark, but there was a soft, blue lighting from the end of the tunnel.


    The cavern resembled the entrance to a tomb. Since this was the Ancient Graveyard, it was most likely that the cavern was indeed a tomb.


    That meant there were treasures in there.


    <em>I wonder what the treasure is? </em>Long Chen was curious. He looked at the people fighting in hopes that he would glean some information.


    Most of them were at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage and several were at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. Most of them were injured and had chosen to sit out from the fight since they knew they had no more chances of winning. They all stared at the two people fighting in the middle. Both of them were at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage!


    Those at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage were considered experts here in the Ancient Graveyard.


    There weren''t that many people at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage here.


    The two of them were fighting to the death.


    ¡°Hey, who do you think will get the seventh spot to enter the tomb?¡±


    ¡°I think the man in ck has a better chance. He only got here recently, so he didn¡¯t have to fight that many people. He should have more energy.¡±


    ¡°I think the other person is stronger since he could defeat another person at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage just now! He¡¯s not your average cultivator.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s only onest spot, and it doesn¡¯t concern us anymore. Never thought a tomb would open up here. I wonder what kind of treasure is hidden inside?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I do know there are seven Star Altars inside it. Since even the stronger cultivators are fighting for it, do you think there¡¯s a chance that this is the tomb of one of the Seven Lords, the Seven Star Lord?¡±


    ¡°Dream on. Do you think that we would get to witness the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord? The Demon n and the Divine n both rose to their current strength after they obtained the inheritance of the Divine Demon Lord and the White Lotus Fairy respectively. An inheritance on that level is not something we can see with our own eyes ¡­¡±


    One of themughed.


    There were only corpses around him, so he was the only oneughing.


    Long Chen observed the situation closely. The two fighting in the middle were at the Seventh Earthly Martial Realm. They were most likely fighting to enter the tomb. There were seven Star Altars, but only one of them was still glowing. This meant that once someone entered, one of the lights would be extinguished.


    <em>Is it really the tomb of the Seven Star Lord? </em>Shao Yu had once exined to Long Chen that the treasure of the Five Emperors was considered a legend that didn¡¯t exist in the Ancient Graveyard, but the inheritances of the Seven Lords did. Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure how good the inheritance was, but bing one of the Seven Lords meant that the Seven Star Lord must¡¯ve been very strong. An expert like that wouldn¡¯t have left some meager inheritance.


    The Ancient Graveyard was indeed a good ce to hunt for treasure. First, there was the Martial God Tombstone that Long Chen had stolen, and now there was the possible tomb of the Seven Star Lord.


    Long Chen decided that he had to enter now. Since there was only one spot left, he decided to contest for it. He also wanted to test his new strength against two injured Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivators.


    While the two of them were fighting, the others in the crowd were also thinking about how to reap the rewards for themselves. Then Long Chen appeared.


    ¡°Here¡¯s another person trying to take the treasure.¡±


    ¡°What a joke. How could a brat like him get it?¡±


    Everyone was waiting for the two Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivators to conclude their fight. They were hoping that the two of them would be injured together, because if any one of them won, the crowd would have no hope of entering the tomb. The crowd also didn¡¯t charge into the tomb, because they were afraid of the two cultivators working together to punish them!


    Everyone here was at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, so they could sense that Long Chen was only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. They ignored him and continued to spectate the fight.


    But they were surprised to see Long Chen ignoring the fight in the middle and walking towards the cave.


    The strange youth caught everyone¡¯s attention, including the two fighting in the middle. Both of them separated from their fight and gave themselves some distance as they stared at Long Chen incredulously. They were fighting so hard for the final spot to enter the cave. Wasn¡¯t it a joke to them that Long Chen had just ignored them to enter?

 Chapter 727: Killing Everyone

    One of them, the skinny one wearing ck clothes, stopped Long Chen. ¡°Brat, move away. Don¡¯t waste our time! I will kill you.¡±


    The other cultivator sighed as he rested a bit. He nned to wait for the other cultivator to kill Long Chen before resuming their fight.


    Killing someone at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage was so easy that no one batted an eye.


    ¡°Is he stupid? We didn¡¯t even dare to enter the cave while the two were fighting and yet he did. Isn¡¯t he just looking to die?¡±


    Everyone discussed and waited for Long Chen¡¯s reaction.


    But Long Chen gave them his answer without speaking. He transformed into his half-dragon form that allowed him to fight those above his stage.


    Killing those that were stages above him was one of Long Chen¡¯s talents acquired from the Inherited Blood Essence. He had no issue killing those at the same stage as him; regr Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators would die from a single strike from him.


    After transforming, Long Chen¡¯s body was covered in blood-red scales, and his essence turned blood-red too.


    His essence was increased by ten times, which meant his strength was roughly at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage now.Everyone was shocked. This was the Metal District, the territory in which the Wind n and Gold n were fighting to establish their dominance. A month ago, a youth called Long Chen did the unthinkable in ck Gold City. Long Chen was famous for two things. One, attacking the young master of the Divine n and managing to escape unscathed.


    Two, despite only being at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage, he had managed to steal the Martial God Tombstone from under the Wind n¡¯s nose and even escaped Feng Zhilin¡¯s pursuit.


    Long Chen had not only offended the Divine n, but also the Gold n and the Wind n. Everyone from the Gold n and the Wind n was looking for him. Even though the Ancient Graveyard was huge, information was ryed quickly. Long Chen¡¯s deeds and appearance had long since been spread around, especially about his transformed look!


    Because his transformed appearance was so unique, almost everyone recognized him.


    Their eyes shone with greed.


    Long Chen¡¯s appearance also meant the appearance of the Martial God Tombstone.


    It was a treasure that could increase a person¡¯s cultivation speed by tenfold!


    Many of them had stagnated at their cultivation levels without an iota of improvement for tens of years. The Martial God Tombstone was the key for them to be stronger!


    Everyone¡¯s hearts started beating rapidly when they saw Long Chen. Those that don¡¯t recognize him also had a feeling that something was happening based on everyone¡¯s reaction.


    ¡°Long Chen! He¡¯s Long Chen!¡± someone shouted, then everyone burst into action.


    The one closest to Long Chen, the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator with the ck shirt, tried to kill Long Chen when he transformed.


    To that cultivator, Long Chen was now an even more attractive treasure than the cave, especially because he thought Long Chen was too weak to safekeep the treasure!


    Long Chen still hadn''t realized that this ce was different from his world. This was the Ancient Graveyard, a ce where everyone was crazy enough to enter for the sake of treasure. No matter where he went, he would be hunted down by the others because he was a walking treasure chest!


    The treasures of the Ancient Graveyard could give cultivators a chance to be stronger once more. They could also get resources to set up a n and control the world when they got out.


    The Ancient Graveyard was a ce of bloodshed!


    Long Chen understood what this meant and stopped being naive.


    The one attacking him first was the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. After discovering Long Chen¡¯s identity, he charged immediately. The second Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator moved next. Long Chen realized he had underestimated their greed when he saw those at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage also risking their lives to attack him.


    His gaze became cold.


    ¡°You want to die?¡± Long Chen would never show no mercy to those who wanted to kill him. On the other hand, he would be kind to those that were kind to him. Because Shao Yu was kind to Long Chen and exined a bit about the Ancient Graveyard, Long Chen had saved him twice!


    But now these cultivators wanted to kill him!


    Long Chen had no reason to show mercy.


    The cultivator in ck was the first one who approached Long Chen. He wanted to kill Long Chen swiftly, ce the corpse into his bag, and run. It would be amazing if his n worked, but what surprised him was Long Chen¡¯s reaction.


    With a <em>whoosh</em>, Long Chen extended his right arm.


    Suddenly, the golden metallic sand trembled under him. A flow of golden Qi surged into Long Chen¡¯s palm and formed a whirlpool. The Golden Emperor Seal lit up. The light blinded everyone, making them squint.


    ¡°What is that?¡± The man in ck was shocked. Long Chen¡¯s aura far exceeded his expectations¡ªit was sharp like a de. Everyone felt their skin prickling like numerous needles were poking into them. The pain made them stop.


    A blinding light came from Long Chen¡¯s body and turned him as bright as the sun.


    ¡°Golden Emperor¡­¡±


    Long Chen swiftly flipped his palm, and a massive golden seal appeared. The seal was like a massive block of metal that Long Chen could control freely. ¡°...Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal flew up high into the air and covered the sky. The golden lightpletely filled the heavens!


    Everyone was shocked, but the horrific pressureing from the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal made their knees tremble, threatening to bend. Even the cultivator in ck was suppressed by the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Impossible!¡±


    Just then, under Long Chen¡¯s control, the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal pressed down like a massive golden mountain. The entire force of the seal was focused on the cultivator in ck while the aftershocks were aimed at the remaining cultivators.


    ¡°Heavenly Dominant Fist!¡± the man shouted. It was his strongest technique, but to his dismay, it was not on the same level as Long Chen¡¯s attack. The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal destroyed the technique and hit him squarely in the chest.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Sealpletely ttened the surrounding metal spikes when itnded! The seal had not only reduced the cultivator in ck into ground meat, the other cultivators were killed too!


    But the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s allure was too strong. The other cultivators still charged after Long Chen as if they had abandoned their lives!


    <em>To think that the Ancient Graveyard is such a bloodthirsty ce! I have no choice but to be the king of ughter here. I won¡¯t kill people unprovoked, but I will kill those that try to kill me first! Now that they know my identity, I have to kill all of them, or they will spread the news of me appearing here!</em>


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want the Wind n and Gold n to station their troops near the entrance to capture him after he left the cave. It would be a death sentence for him.


    He had no choice but to do this!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± While everyone was still taken aback by Long Chen¡¯s strength, he used the Blood Devouring Domain and enveloped everyone in it. Those inside, including the remaining Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, were horrified by the strength of the Blood Devouring Domain.


    ¡°What is this?!¡± They were surprised by the strange suction force acting on them, and their greed disappeared. They realized that the youth in front of them had done the unthinkable, including stealing the Martial God Tombstone. How could anyone like that be ordinary?


    The Blood Devouring Domain disorientated them. They couldn¡¯t see anything inside of it, so they moved around aimlessly.


    The sole remaining Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator felt fear after seeing hispetitor killed in one blow. His greed spurred him forward, but his fear pulled him back. In the end, his fear won and he tried to escape. The Martial God Tombstone had lost its appeal to him. Unfortunately, a lot of the other cultivators were blocking his way, so it would be difficult for him to escape.

 Chapter 728: Inheritance of the Seven Star Lord

    Everyone was shocked by the Blood Devouring Domain.


    Suddenly, the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator felt the aura of death approaching him. He tried to escape and even went as far as killing the cultivator beside him, but unfortunately, Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal hit his back!


    Both him and the other Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator were already nearly out of strength, which was how Long Chen had managed to kill both of them so easily.


    Both Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivators had died by Long Chen¡¯s hand. Everyone watched in fear and shock when the second one died in just one strike.


    Long Chen was not only strong, he was also very deadly!


    ¡°Run!¡±


    Everyone tried to escape.


    But it was toote. Long Chen had gone through a lot, so he understood that his kindness would bring danger. He couldn¡¯t afford to make the same mistake, so he increased the strength of his Blood Devouring Domain. Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators had to use half of their essence to suppress their blood!


    Their strength was now reduced by half.Long Chen was already stronger than they were before this. With the Blood Devouring Domain¡¯s effect, the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators were nothing to him. Killing them brought Long Chen no remorse. The Dragon Continent had billions of people, so the lives of humans were worthless.


    The strong survived.


    Since everyone wanted to kill him, he had to kill them to ensure his own survival. It was something he had to do.


    Tens of cultivators fell before Long Chen. Each of them died with fear while the others tried to escape. Unfortunately, those trying to escape died faster. In the end, all of them died in Long Chen¡¯s hands. There were a few who tried to feign death, but it was useless with Long Chen using Sight.


    Long Chen slowed down once he confirmed that there were no living beings within a single Li around him. He shook his head when he looked at the scene in front of him before entering the cave.


    The entrance to the tomb was made of hard metal. He wasn¡¯t sure what kind of metal it was, but it was much sturdier than regr metal. He noted that the metal was suitable to be forged into Divine Weapons.


    Long Chen walked alone in the metal cave since everyone was dead outside. His footsteps echoed loudly, creating metallic <em>ngs</em> as the cold air wrapped around him. The atmosphere in the cave was solemn and dangerous.


    In front of him was a round te roughly a meter in diameter. It was giving off a faint, blue light that resembled the stars when looked from afar.


    Long Chen noticed that there were seven of these tes, but the other six were dim. They had been used by other people.


    ¡°That¡¯s why they said this was most likely the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. There¡¯s seven tes ¡­¡± Long Chen approached the one remaining glowing te and inspected it. He noticed that the te had seven moving dots of light that resembled the changing stars.


    ¡°Who cares whose inheritance this is. Just step on it. There¡¯s already six people inside, and the treasure might¡¯ve been taken by them.¡± Little Cat stretched his back as he said that.


    Long Chen nodded and stepped on the te. The light shed briefly before a warm starlight enveloped him. He felt like he was in a warm bath.


    <em>A teleporter ¡­</em> Long Chen realized that it was a teleporter, and it was most likely a single-use one. He felt his body twisting as he was sent into another world. <em>It should be a Miniverse. Even though the tomb looked simple, this might really be the Seven Star Lord¡¯s tomb if there¡¯s a Miniverse in it. </em>


    Long Chen was excited. The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was even more precious than the Martial God Tombstone. The inheritances of the Seven Lords were some of the best treasures, second only to the Five Emperors Treasure. Long Chen was excited to obtain one!


    But he had to defeat the six others in front of him first.


    Who else was in the tomb? Were there any at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage? Long Chen could barely beat Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivators at their full strength, but he had no chance to win against Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators. They were much too strong, especially if they had Emperor-tier Divine Weapons like Feng Zhilin.


    While he was deep in thought, Long Chen arrived at his destination. When he stepped on the te previously, the light had dimmedpletely. The passageway to the Miniverse had closed offpletely.


    He was stunned by the beautiful scenery when he arrived. He looked up into the limitless sky and felt like he was on the starte again. Dazzling gxies were just above him and stars were everywhere. The stars flowed in a strangely beautiful orbit.


    Long Chen was currently standing on dirt.


    It was just like the Lingwu family''s Star Devil Prison. Long Chen was standing on a blue, but it wasn¡¯trge, since he could see that the horizon was curved. He had a feeling that the was only asrge as Martial Overlord City. There was nothing but glimmering blue sand on the.


    ¡°Where is this ce ¡­¡± Long Chen was even more certain that this was the tomb of the Seven Star Lord after seeing the expansive sea of stars. He was impressed by his luck, but that didn¡¯t mean that the treasure was his. There were already six people here, and they had most likely been here for a long time.


    When Long Chen used Sight, he could see roughly a tenth of the. He suddenly saw a very weak soul on the edge of death.


    <em>The person is dying. Was there a fight here?</em> Long Chen adapted to the gravity of the small before heading towards where he had seen the weak soul. He continued to use Sight to prevent others from attacking him.


    He approached the soul and realized there were three more twisted corpses beside the dying person. Out of the six people, one was on the verge of death while the other three had died. Only two remained.


    <em>Who are the two remaining survivors? Are they allies or enemies?</em>


    Long Chen wanted to know, but thankfully, the person was still alive albeit barely. Long Chen quickly approached the dying man. The person was currently staring at the stars with his weak gaze. Long Chen noticed the deep gash on his body. It appeared to have been inflicted by a whip, and the person¡¯s bones were exposed to the air. It was the cause of his demise.


    The person saw Long Chen and was confused. He seemed to recall something and smiled briefly.


    ¡°Can I ask a question?¡±


    If the person refused to answer, Long Chen would have to use Control to fish out the answer.


    ¡°... Sure.¡± The person had no more attachments to life. His wounds made it hard for him to even nod. He could barely speak as his lips quivered.


    ¡°Who injured you? How strong are the two remaining people? Is this the Seven Star Lord¡¯s Inheritance?¡±


    The person tried his best to answer. ¡°Feng Zhilin ¡­ Seven Star Lord ¡­¡±


    Long Chen frowned. He had obtained two key pieces of information. This ce was most likely the tomb of the Seven Star Lord, but more importantly, Feng Zhilin was here. Long Chen had a feeling that the second survivor was Aunt Snow. Both of them were at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Out of the six people in this ce, three had died and the fourth was dying. Feng Zhilin was probably thinking that the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was going to be hers.


    ¡°Friend, I need your help ¡­¡± the person requested.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Kill me.¡±


    Long Chen knew that this man had no hope of surviving. Rather than being tortured in hisst moments, it would be better to kill him swiftly.


    Long Chen nodded and ended the person''s life. Long Chen then left this ce and looked at the blue. <em>What a coincidence for both of us to be here. Since I can take your Martial God Tombstone, I can also take your Seven Star Lord Inheritance!</em>

 Chapter 729: Strong Enemy

    ¡°Little Cat, do you know where the Seven Star Lord Inheritance would be? There¡¯s nothing but blue sand on this.¡± Long Chen was confused.


    Little Cat scoffed. ¡°When I was in my prime, I never stooped down this low to look for such a measly inheritance. Also, I used up almost all of my power to revive you in Baiyang Town. I even used some of it again to help you steal the Martial God Tombstone. I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t help you here.¡±


    Long Chen frowned.


    <em>Sometimes those who talk a lot are pretty useless.</em>


    Long Chen ignored Little Cat and used Sight constantly to prevent Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow from entering into his range. He also checked his surroundings to see if there was anything special about this ce, in hopes that he would obtain a clue about the inheritance.


    He understood that while he had improved a lot, he still couldn¡¯t beat Feng Zhilin. It was best if he could avoid her while searching for the Inheritance. As he checked the area, Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow entered his range numerous times, but he noticed them immediately and walked into another direction.


    <em>Yikes. If they knew that I was here, they would¡¯ve started searching to kill me. There¡¯s no ce to hide here. If I were to fight against her, I would need to spend a lot of time recovering.</em>


    Long Chen was worried.


    He wasn¡¯t afraid of Feng Zhilin, but he had to admit that she was stronger than him now. Aunt Snow was also stronger than him. Long Chen couldn¡¯t even win against one of them, much less two.While avoiding them, Long Chen continued to search. The wasn¡¯trge, and he was certain that he had explored all of it in just half a day. But there was nothing here but blue sand.


    <em>Where is that inheritance? </em>Long Chen was powerless.


    But he knew that he could not be anxious here. If he hadn''t found it, Feng Zhilin most likely wouldn''t have found it either. Long Chen had spotted them multiple times here, but he quickly avoided them using Sight every time.


    <em>I cannot leave since I¡¯m already here. The Inheritance must exist. It¡¯s up to a person¡¯s luck and observation skill to obtain it. I believe I¡¯m stronger than Feng Zhilin in that aspect!</em>


    Long Chen was patient. He believed that he could endure hundreds of days if it meant finding that inheritance. He refused to give up!


    After all, the inheritance of one of the Seven Lords was not a simple treasure.


    He was hopeful. The inheritance of the White Lotus Fairy and the Divine Demon God had allowed the Divine n and the Demon n to grow very powerful, so Long Chen knew that the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance wouldn¡¯t be weak!


    Long Chen started to search his surroundings again, this time with more care. But he still found nothing but blue sand.


    ¡°Could it be underground?¡± Long Chen frowned.


    On the other side of the, ady wearing a white veil was frowning too. Feng Zhilin walked at the front and beside her was Aunt Snow.


    ¡°Aunt Snow, we¡¯ve searched this ce countless times, but still found nothing. Did we miss something?¡± Feng Zhilin was impatient.


    ¡°The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord is real. Don¡¯t worry, all the people here have been killed by us. We have enough time to find it,¡± Aunt Snow said patiently. She was not as impatient as Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Feng Zhilin tried to calm down. She understood how important the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was, so she knew she had to seed.


    ¡°The Martial God Tombstone was stolen from me, causing me to lose an opportunity to allow the Wind n to be stronger. The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord is just one step away from me. I need to obtain it. With it, the Wind n can be powerful and escape the Divine n¡¯s clutches. I will then be the Wind n¡¯s most famous person!¡±


    She suppressed her excited heart and continued to search. They were more efficient with two people searching the area.


    ¡°Aunt Snow, I had a bad feeling for some reason. Do you think I will fail to obtain the inheritance? This is the chance for the Wind n to be strong!¡± Feng Zhilin suddenly said.


    ¡°Stop thinking like that. You will obtain it. You are the hope of the Wind n!¡± Aunt Snow pampered her.


    Feng Zhilin nodded.


    The two of them continued searching the area until they reached the spot where they first arrived on the. They had initially waited here and killed the four people that came after them. They wanted to wait for the final person, but because no one appeared for a very long time, they decided to leave and search the.


    But they never thought they would fail to find anything even after two hours had passed.


    ¡°That¡¯s strange. There should be one more person, but they are not here yet.¡± Aunt Snow and Feng Zhilin were uncertain. The was small, so it was highly likely that they would meet thest person while they searched. However, they had met no one.


    They didn¡¯t understand why.


    When they passed by the corpses, Feng Zhilin stopped. She sensed an aura of massacre on one of the corpses.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, young mistress?¡± Aunt Snow asked.


    Feng Zhilin didn¡¯t answer. She suddenly tore open one of the corpse¡¯s clothes, revealing a bloody handprint on the chest!


    ¡°This injury wasn¡¯t left by us. We don¡¯t use palm strikes. Someone¡¯s here, and they killed this person,¡± Feng Zhilin said coldly.


    ¡°Oh? So thest person is here and even managed to hide from us?¡±


    ¡°Aunt Snow!¡± Feng Zhilin suddenly shouted.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Aunt Snow was confused by Feng Zhilin¡¯s reaction. Feng Zhilin was snarling, yet she looked excited. Aunt Snow knew that Feng Zhilin was weird sometimes and was interested in seeing what she would say.


    ¡°Long Chen! This must be Long Chen! I won¡¯t forget his aura even if I die! It must be him! This palm strike was left behind by him. He took the final spot to enter this ce! He¡¯s good at hiding. He most likely knows that we were here, so he is hiding while searching for the inheritance.¡±


    Feng Zhilin was howling softly when she said that. She hated Long Chen deeply. She had never tasted defeat once in her life. Long Chen was the first person who had given her that feeling. Long Chen, the weak cultivator, had stolen her Martial God Tombstone.


    She had one of the highest statuses out of the billions of people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. She was an elite even amidst those in the nine ns. She would never tolerate a defeat in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Impossible. I don¡¯t think the odds of it being him are high, young mistress. Are you mistaking it for someone else? You want revenge on Long Chen so bad that you are seeing things wrong here. Didn¡¯t he escape using the Profound Golden Soul? Do you think he¡¯s foolish enough toe here even though we¡¯re here?¡±


    ¡°No. He¡¯s brave and foolish. If he wasn¡¯t, he wouldn¡¯t have thought of stealing my Martial God Tombstone.¡± Feng Zhilin stood up and smiled.


    The wind blew her veil up and revealed her beautiful face. Unfortunately, it was seeped in bloodlust.


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, you should be happy. Not only will you get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, you can get back the Martial God Tombstone too.¡± Aunt Snow smiled as well. She was happy because Long Chen was weaker than both of them. She assumed that the reason Long Chen had managed to steal the Martial God Tombstone was all because of luck.


    ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate him. We need to kill him first. Only then can we focus on finding the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Aunt Snow, listen to me. We need to work together!¡±

 Chapter 730: Snow Talisman

    Feng Zhilin was as vindictive as Long Chen. She was tricked by Long Chen the first time, and this was the second time she hade across him. She would be very attentive to prevent Long Chen from escaping her once more.


    ¡°Go! This is very small, and we now know that he¡¯s here. We will be able to chase him down no matter what kind of method he uses!¡± Feng Zhilin started moving.


    ¡°Wind!¡± Feng Zhilinmanded the wind and flew up high in the air. Her long skirt flowed around her, revealing her white legs.


    ¡°She¡¯s so stubborn, but that¡¯s probably why she¡¯s so strong despite being so young ¡­¡± Aunt Snow nodded and disappeared too. Both of them moved as fast as they could to scour around the for Long Chen.


    Their method worked against Long Chen¡¯s Sight. Sight only had an effective radius of a single Li. With their speed, they could reach Long Chen in an instant even if he noticed them.


    Long Chen was currently shifting his attention towards the underground. He tried swimming into the earth, but he soon realized the crust of the was exceedingly tough. He needed to use his strongest technique to break it, but Feng Zhilin would notice him immediately if he used it.


    ¡°What should I do?¡± Long Chen wasying on the ground as he lightly tapped it. He suddenly heard an echoing from the ground. <em>The is hollow! </em>This revtion shocked him.


    <em>The exists in this strange ce and it''s hollow? </em>Long Chen was speechless. He never thought the world would be this bizarre. He started getting excited and tried to confirm his findings again. He started hitting the ground harder and harder as he listened. Judging by how long it took for the echo to reach him, he determined that the ground was hollow just ten meters down! He wasn¡¯t certain if the entire would be hollow, but he was certain that the ground in a radius of one Li was hollow. He was certain that the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was inside!


    He became excited!The was calm for now, which meant Feng Zhilin hadn''t noticed the hollow part yet. Long Chen was the first one who discovered it, which meant he had the highest chance of finding the inheritance, but how would he destroy the ground without alerting them?


    He wanted to prevent them from obtaining the inheritance, but the ground was too hard. His regr techniques wouldn¡¯t dent it the slightest.


    But if he destroyed the ground using his strongest technique, Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow would learn of his location.


    Long Chen had the Five Emperor Seal. He could use both the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal and the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal numerous times, but if hebined both seals together, he could only use them once. He didn¡¯t want to risk it by using it now.


    ¡°Damn it. I should just risk it!¡± Long Chen prepared to attack when he suddenly saw two strong individuals crossing into his radius of one Li. He jumped up from shock and tried to escape, but Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow were just a hundred meters away from him! They were so close that they could see him.


    Long Chen knew he couldn¡¯t escape, so he stopped. As expected, the two changed courses and ran towards him.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Feng Zhilin appeared ten meters away from him with Aunt Snow behind her. They weren¡¯t surprised but instead angry when they saw him. <em>They knew I was here?</em>


    Long Chen was confused. He never left any signs behind, so how had they found him?


    He calmed down when he faced Feng Zhilin. Being calm allowed him to think more rationally. No matter how strong his opponent was, the moment he lost his courage was the moment he lostpletely. Fighting with his life on the line could be his only chance of surviving here.


    ¡°You must be confused as to why we managed to find you, right?¡± Feng Zhilin was excited.


    ¡°Of course. How did you find me? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve left any traces.¡± Long Chen was indeed confused. He had been careful and never even left a footprint.


    Feng Zhilin answered his question.


    ¡°You hit someone when you arrived and left a palm print.¡±


    Long Chen then realized it was the person he had killed. <em>I made an error and left them a clue. </em>Long Chen had killed the person as his final wish; he never thought Feng Zhilin would find him with that.


    But now was not the time for regrets.


    ¡°Did you bring the Martial God Tombstone?¡± Feng Zhilin red at him.


    ¡°Are you kidding me? There''s no way I would have such an important treasure with me. I traded it for something else with another person. You can check and see if I have any Storage Rings on me!¡±


    Storage Rings had the power to seal off space and were naturally stronger than Universe Pouches. Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow would be able to detect their power at such a close range.


    Feng Zhilin found no traces of a Storage Ring on Long Chen.


    She was infuriated. She was much stronger than Long Chen, and people like him usually had to kneel to her. But Long Chen was unfazed even though he was standing right in front of her! Feng Zhilin had a feeling that she was being tricked by him.


    Her breathing became rapid and her chest heaved. Long Chen had to admit that both her and Aunt Snow were very attractive.


    Long Chen smiled.


    He appeared rxed, but he was secretly stressed that he had to risk his life here.


    ¡°Young mistress, don¡¯t be too rash. Let me talk to him and see if I can frighten him. I¡¯ve met people like him before that were mentally strong. They usually don¡¯t have the strength to back that attitude up,¡± Aunt Snow whispered.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Feng Zhilin wasn¡¯t an idiot. She slowly calmed down. It was true that Long Chen wasn¡¯t strong enough to threaten them.


    ¡°In that case, capture and interrogate him about the whereabouts of the Martial God Tombstone. I don¡¯t believe that the methods of the Wind n would fail to pry that out of his mouth!¡±


    She felt better after being alerted by Aunt Snow.


    The angrier Feng Zhilin got, the easier it was for her to fall for Long Chen¡¯s tricks.


    She nodded and made way for Aunt Snow. She continued to re at Long Chen to prevent him from escaping. Other than his strange transformation, Aunt Snow failed to notice anything special about Long Chen.


    ¡°With your strength, it¡¯s already a miracle that you angered my mistress. But people like you always lead short lives. If you tell me the whereabouts of the Martial God Tombstone, I will plead to the young mistress to let you go. If not, you are dead. I have my own methods of torturing you.¡±


    Aunt Snow took something out before continuing, ¡°Do you know what this is?¡±


    She showed Long Chen an item resembling a snowke. It caused the temperature around them to drop rapidly. ¡°This is the snow talisman, something special that only I can make. If I nt it on your body, you will gradually freeze over. Your veins, bones, and blood will slowly freeze over forty-nine days before you die. You will suffer pain beyond your imagination. I¡¯m not trying to scare you. You can try it if you want. Tell me, where is the Martial God Tombstone?¡±


    Her final sentence made her true goalclear. She wanted to know where the Martial God Tombstone was without killing him.


    But Long Chen was not frightened by her threat. He was assessing his chances of winning instead.

 Chapter 731: Unrelenting Blood Sacrifice

    Aunt Snow was an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, and one who was stronger than the twins of the Gold n. Long Chen had no chance of beating her right now. Even the Blood Devouring Domain would be useless against her.


    ¡°What¡¯s your decision?¡± Aunt Snow asked.


    Long Chen was not intimidated. ¡°I¡¯ve sold off the Martial God Tombstone. I don¡¯t know where it is. It¡¯s up to you to believe it or not.¡±


    ¡°You!¡± Aunt Snow frowned.


    ¡°Aunt Snow, stop bickering with him. We should kill him to prevent anything from happening. I will attack him now!¡±


    Aunt Snow knew that Feng Zhilin was very wary of Long Chen and wanted to kill him as soon as possible, so she stopped wasting time. ¡°Please wait a moment, young mistress!¡±


    Her eyes changed when she said that. White snowkes appeared in her ck pupils and cold air emanated from her body. Snow fluttered around Long Chen!


    Since she was called Aunt Snow, her techniques were all rted to snow too.


    <em>Boom!</em>With a point of her finger, numerous snowkes as sharp as razor des appeared around her. The snowkes were strong as they were formed from her essence.


    Long Chen immediately retreated, but he didn¡¯t use Blood Warp. He didn¡¯t want to escape but instead wanted to ce some distance between them. Thankfully, Feng Zhilin didn¡¯t attack, leaving it to Aunt Snow. The Shapeless Whip was much more dangerous, so Long Chen was less stressed with Aunt Snow attacking him first.


    Feng Zhilin didn¡¯t move even though Long Chen had moved back thirty meters. He used this time to figure out how to deal with Aunt Snow. Someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage was too strong for him, but Long Chen decided to try fighting once!


    He knew he only had the strength of someone at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage and yet wanted to fight someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. He was nothing short of being crazy!


    ¡°Trying to run? You will die by my hand no matter what!¡± Aunt Snow caught up as the snowkes circled around her. Under her control, the snowkes converged and formed a white peony!


    ¡°Snow Peony!¡±


    The white peony flew towards Long Chen, cutting up the ground on the way. Long Chen circted his essence and charged towards the peony.


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡± Fire was the best element to fight against Aunt Snow. In terms of martial techniques, Long Chen was certain that his was superior, but he didn¡¯t have the essence to back the technique up!


    The fiery red seal exploded against the white peony, rocking the. Long Chen¡¯s intense fire melted some of the snowkes, but many of them shot past it and destroyed the seal, then they flew towards Long Chen.


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal had used up half of his essence, but he didn¡¯t have enough time to think that much in this life-threatening situation. He used the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal again to block off Aunt Snow¡¯s technique, but the impact still threw him backwards. He fell onto the ground hard and almost spat blood.


    Aunt Snow¡¯s cultivation was not to be trifled with. Long Chen had used an Emperor-tier martial technique but still lost to her regr technique.


    Long Chen was shocked, but Aunt Snow was even more surprised. She knew that he had an Emperor-tier martial technique, but it was far stronger than she had imagined. She was at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, and yet Long Chen could block her technique even though he was much weaker.


    Even though it was just a regr technique, someone at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage would find it hard to block it.


    Long Chen was barely strong enough to defeat someone at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. The two that he had killed at the entrance were close to their limit, so it was easy for him to take them out. If he entered one of the Nine Great ns, he would find it difficult to defeat them even if he used the Emperor-tier martial technique.


    Long Chen stood up and red at Aunt Snow.


    ¡°Brat, you are indeed strong. Tell me the location of the Martial God Tombstone, or my next attack will be worse.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and pointed at his crotch. ¡°It¡¯s here. Want to put your hands here and take it yourself?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words were shameless. Aunt Snow didn¡¯t fall for his taunt, but Feng Zhilin was infuriated by his insolence.


    <em>He¡¯s nothingpared to Wu Guangyu. He has no right to exist in this world.</em>


    Aunt Snow paused and stared at Long Chen. He was wounded, but he was still brave. She revealed her killing intent and said, ¡°I won¡¯t take it, but I will smash it!¡±


    Long Chen taunted her further. ¡°Haha! You are so violent! I bet your husband is miserable living with you!¡±


    ¡°You brat!¡± Aunt Snow cared deeply about her reputation, and Long Chen had touched her bottom line numerous times. She was now angry even though she had told Feng Zhilin to not be angry. She lost her rationality and pounced towards Long Chen, using her strongest techniques.


    <em>Finally lost her cool? </em>Long Chen chuckled as his n had worked.


    He had to admit that he had bad luck to meet them here, but that didn¡¯t mean that he had given up.


    Since he would die anyway, he would rather fight back with all his strength for a single hope of survival.


    Long Chen¡¯s words were meant to make Aunt Snow lose her cool.


    He already prepared his next move when Aunt Snow started running at him.


    <em>Feng Zhilin probably doesn''t have enough time to save her at this range. </em>Long Chen then used the forbidden technique that even he rarely used.


    He had recently reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, and he decided to sacrifice his progress if it meant killing both Feng Zhilin and Aunt Snow here.


    He skipped the first stage and used the second stage of Blood Sacrifice!


    It would bring him to the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. With his Dragon Soul Transformation, he would have the strength to defeat someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, but the price he paid would be his cultivation. His cultivation level would fall to the Third Earthly Martial Stage by the end of it.


    That was his cultivation level when he first arrived in the Ancient Graveyard.


    At that point, he would lose the strength to defend himself, but he wouldn¡¯t regret it. He had no choice but to use it, or he would die here today. He would risk it for a chance of surviving!


    More importantly, if he could kill both Aunt Snow and Feng Zhilin here, he would be able to obtain the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord without worry. If he truly obtained the inheritance, there would be no reason to fear being weak.


    He had passed the Third Earthly Martial Stage once, he could do it again.


    Long Chen used the second stage of Blood Sacrifice. This was the key to his survival!


    When Aunt Snow was prepared to kill Long Chen once and for all, Long Chen syed open his arms as if he was prepared to die.


    <em>Wait, is he really looking to die? </em>Aunt Snow was confused. Long Chen opened his arms and closed his eyes, seeming to ignore the attacks from his Eighth Earthly Martial Stage enemy. This was nothing short of suicidal.


    Feng Zhilin was confused too.


    What was Long Chen doing?


    They soon realized what he was doing. When Aunt Snow was close to him, blood-red mes suddenly appeared on Long Chen¡¯s body and engulfed him.


    More importantly, when the blood-red mes lit up, countless blood-colored dragon illusions howled at the top of Long Chen¡¯s head. During the process, Long Chen¡¯s essence surged rapidly!


    ¡°Oh no! He¡¯s bing stronger!¡± Feng Zhilin was caught unaware!

 Chapter 732: Killing Aunt Snow

    ¡°Aunt Snow, be careful!¡± Feng Zhilin realized that something was wrong. While a sudden explosion of strength was normal when someone squeezed out their potential, Long Chen¡¯s growth was far too abnormal. Feng Zhilin had never seen anyone¡¯s essence bing ten times stronger!


    To her, Long Chen was like a maniac now. He had too many mysterious techniques such as Blood Warp and the current technique that increased his essence.


    Long Chen temporarily had as much essence as both Aunt Snow and Feng Zhilin right now!


    Aunt Snow was left in a daze after seeing Long Chen¡¯s sudden increase in strength. Long Chen¡¯s bloodlust and massacre aura far exceeded Aunt Snow¡¯s aura, which had the characteristic of snow!


    Faint traces of a dragon tattoo covered his body while his eyes werepletely blood-red. He resembled an ancient dragon in front of Aunt Snow. A single gaze filled with bloodlust made her tremble.


    <em>No, I cannot be afraid here. He¡¯s trying to scare me away. He doesn¡¯t have the strength to back it up! It¡¯s just my imagination! </em>Aunt Snow reminded herself. With Feng Zhilin¡¯s warning, Aunt Snow used her strongest technique to prevent any mishaps.


    Snowkes formed a massive white tiger. The tiger was ten times stronger than the peony, and itunched itself at Long Chen. The flurry of razor-sharp snowkes surged towards him!


    The fire on Long Chen¡¯s body slowly died out, but his essence was now at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. The strength exploding from within his body threatened to leak out!


    Long Chen had never held this much strength before. He finally realized how strong Feng Zhilin was, and how lucky he was to be able to survive an encounter with her!He felt the power inside him was like a massive ocean! It was fathomless and thick!


    The essence pushed through his veins and threatened to burst them open! Long Chen had to use the energy soon, or his body would explode.


    Aunt Snow¡¯s attack was about to reach him!


    <em>This is the first time I¡¯ve had this much strength. I suppose I have to try using it against these two. Don¡¯t me me for being ruthless¡ªyou were the ones who forced me to do this! </em>Numerous dragon illusions roared inside his body.


    Long Chen raised his head and saw the white tiger charging towards him. He smiled. The Scarlet Emperor Seal on his right palm lit up brightly and blood-red mes covered his arm. The Golden Crow mes looked simr to the fire from Blood Sacrifice, but it was another thing altogether!


    The Golden Crow mes merged with the fire from Blood Sacrifice before flowing towards the Scarlet Emperor Seal. They lit up brightly before Long Chen made the gestures for the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, then heunched it.


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal was ten times stronger than before! It was even ten timesrger than the one he had previously used.


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal¡¯s fire transformed into blood-red dragons when it shed with Aunt Snow¡¯s technique.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± Long Chen was as strong as someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage! The Golden Crow mes and the Emperor-tier martial technique were far superior to Aunt Snow¡¯s technique. It destroyed her technique easily without any resistance.


    Long Chen¡¯s Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal caused Aunt Snow¡¯s white tiger to burst open and melt into water, and the remaining power hit Aunt Snow!


    ¡°Aaaah! No!¡± She was afraid as the fire burned away her clothes, skin, and muscles! It turned her into charcoal.


    Everything had happened too fast, and Feng Zhilin failed to save Aunt Snow!


    Long Chen had taunted Aunt Snow in the beginning so that she would chase after him. Even though they were fifty meters away from Feng Zhilin, she thought that it wasn¡¯t an issue since she could cover that gap in an instant. But she had never thought Long Chen would have a technique to increase his essence.


    She also never thought Aunt Snow would fall under Long Chen¡¯s attack.


    If they had worked together, Long Chen was certain that he would fail even if he used the second stage of Blood Sacrifice. That was why he wanted to separate them and kill one of them using the element of surprise. Only then would he have the space and time to fight the other. He knew that Blood Sacrifice wouldn¡¯tst long. He would die if he failed to kill them by the time Blood Sacrifice¡¯s time ran out.


    Being kind to his opponent meant being cruel to himself.


    Even though Aunt Snow was pretty, Long Chen wasn¡¯t attracted to her. In fact, he was very wary of her. Long Chen never even gave himself a chance to hesitate; he merely killed her instantly.


    Aunt Snow was killed in an instant by his Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal left no trace of her due to its incredible strength. She was confused as to how she died. She had lived for a long time and survived numerous plots to kill her. Her life was actually quite good, but she had never thought someone so young would have an incredible technique that would kill her without giving her a chance.


    No one would learn that Aunt Snow, the famous guest of the Wind n, had died in the tomb of the Seven Star Lord because of Long Chen. She was the very first famous person to die in this opening of the Ancient Graveyard. The twins from the Gold n had managed to escape thanks to Long Chen.


    Feng Zhilin watched Long Chen kill Aunt Snow with her very own eyes.


    She felt her world falling apart.


    She didn¡¯t rely on Aunt Snow; Aunt Snow was just a woman that her grandfather yed with. What was special about Aunt Snow was that she had been by Feng Qing¡¯s side for a very long time. Feng Zhilin was barely twenty, so she was very close to Aunt Snow. She had been in every stage of Feng Zhilin¡¯s life. No matter how much Feng Zhilin looked down on her, she had to admit that Aunt Snow was indeed someone special in the Wind n, and was slightly higher in rank than the others.


    But Long Chen had killed her.


    First Long Chen had stolen the Martial God Tombstone, and now he had killed Aunt Snow. Feng Zhilin had imprinted Long Chen¡¯s name into her mind. It wasn¡¯t as simple as revenge now.


    She never saw Long Chen as important; she thought he was just a sacrifice for Wu Guangyu. But Long Chen had bested her every time. How could she endure such humiliation?


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin felt like her body was on the verge of exploding when she looked at the youth covered in blood-red fire. Her essence was like a hurricane ripping apart the ocean in her body.


    A shapeless whirlwind surged forth from her body and covered the.


    As it did, the wind blew off her veil. Her beautiful face was out in the open. It was undeniable that she was the only one for Wu Guangyu. She had both the looks, strength, and power. Her beauty far exceeded the others in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    But now her face was full of bloodlust. Her eyes were blood-red and bloodlust emanated from her body. The wind ripped past Long Chen!


    Long Chen looked up at the woman in front of him. He knew that he had angered her, but that was fine because he wanted to kill her anyway!


    After using the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal once, the power in his body calmed down a bit. Long Chen knew that he didn''t have much time. If he didn''t kill her now, he would die the moment Blood Sacrifice¡¯s time ran out.

 Chapter 733: Emperor-Tier Technique Thousand Seals

    This was the first time Long Chen would be fighting head-on with one of the top geniuses of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He was excited and his blood started pumping faster through his veins.


    <em>Feng Zhilin is most likely stronger than Aunt Snow by arge margin! </em>Long Chen was excited by strong opponents.


    <em>I need to kill her in the shortest amount of time possible! </em>He smiled and attacked at the same time as Feng Zhilin.


    The intense battle started without any warning!


    ¡°The power you have right now doesn¡¯t belong to you! I don¡¯t know how you got your power, but I¡¯m certain that you won¡¯t be able to use them masterfully! I¡¯m different!¡± Feng Zhilin''s voice was cold and confident. The whirlwind had hidden her from view and she changed directions rapidly with her Body Combat Technique. Long Chen couldn¡¯t lock onto her like this.


    She was indeed right. She would be even smarter if she could determine that Long Chen¡¯s current power-up had a time limit. If she did, she could easily keep her distance for a period of time until the time limit on his Blood Sacrifice ran out. She could easily kill him at that point. Because of her anger due to Aunt Snow¡¯s death, she couldn¡¯t figure that out and chose to fight Long Chen head-on!


    <em>Bam!</em>


    The wind surged around, scattering the blue sand and revealing the thick, blue crust of the. The crust wasn¡¯t made of metal, but a material that was significantly harder.


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡± Feng Zhilin used the signature technique of the Wind n. The whirlwind intensified as the illusions appeared in front of Long Chen to confuse him. The Three Thousand Illusions were fast and Feng Zhilin was faster. They all mixed together and made it difficult to identify which was the real body.But Feng Zhilin didn¡¯t know that it was useless against Long Chen. He had Sight, and as long as Feng Zhilin had a soul, Long Chen could detect which was the real body.


    Three Thousand Illusions attacked LOng Chen at the same time. Each of them was as strong as a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, and every time one was destroyed, another one was formed. They were like immortal soldiersunching an endless assault on Long Chen.


    Long Chen¡¯s punches were capable of destroying arge amount of illusions at the same time, but they continued to reform. His movements were being restricted by Feng Zhilin!


    Amidst the Three Thousand Illusions, Feng Zhilin¡¯s eyes were bloodshot as she charged towards Long Chen with her Shapeless Whip.


    Long Chen knew that she was holding it. While it was indeed invisible, the Shapeless Whip was still a real object. Long Chen could sense the aura of the Emperor-tier Divine Weapon. His Sight could also locate Feng Zhilin easily.


    Just then, under the guise of the Three Thousand Illusions, Feng Zhilin approached Long Chen and attacked with her whip!


    But Long Chen had anticipated that.


    He had alreadye up with a n.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± The blood-red space expanded and consumed everything. Feng Zhilin was trapped in it too. The Blood Devouring Domain was terrifying when used by someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Right now, Feng Zhilin was as strong as Long Chen, with her essence reaching the threshold of someone at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Even then, she still had to use a lot of her essence to suppress her boiling blood!


    ¡°What¡¯s happening!?¡± Feng Zhilin was shocked. She had never encountered something that could affect her blood like this bizarre, red space. There were a lot of strange martial techniques in the world, but she had never heard of one that could affect the blood of an enemy!


    The Blood Devouring Domain¡¯s true power was actually to amplify the effects of Blood Transmutation. If Long Chen was two to three stages higher than his opponents, no matter how many there were, he could transmute their blood and consume it without any issue. The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was the Ancestor Dragon governing over bloodlust and massacre. One could imagine that if Long Chen were to be the peak of all existence, a single use of the Blood Devouring Domain would turn every living being with blood in its range of effect into a mummy.


    The Blood Devouring Domain embodied bloodlust and massacre.


    The Dragon Continent the ten Ancestor Dragons in the past housed, each one of them being the peak of all existence. If the Ancestor Dragon of bloodlust and massacre was already this strong, then the one governing over time and eternity would be even stronger!


    Feng Zhilin was caught unawares when Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain. She was in the midst of swinging her whip when the Blood Devouring Domain appeared, causing her to lose her focus and miss her attack. The Shapeless Whip missed Long Chen¡¯s head.


    <em>What is this strange technique that¡¯s making me lose control over my blood? </em>Feng Zhilin panicked and used her essence to suppress her blood. She would explode if she didn¡¯t do so!


    She realized that if she stayed in this strange space, she would have to use arge portion of her essence to suppress her blood. In this case, she could only use a portion of her essence forbat. Herbat capabilities fell by arge margin!


    The Blood Devouring Domain had achieved Long Chen¡¯s goal.


    Long Chen pounced at her the moment he activated it. Victory could be determined in a split second. Long Chen used this chance to use the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal.


    Unlike the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal was fast and sharp like a de.


    Feng Zhilin remembered how Aunt Snow had died to the same technique and panicked. Long Chen¡¯s numerous frightening techniques had left a shadow in her heart. She had to admit that Long Chen was the only one who had ever surprised her so much.


    <em>Where is his powering from? Can he maintain it? Or is this his true strength? </em>Feng Zhilin¡¯s thoughts were in disarray, but her grudge pushed her to continue fighting him. She never considered buying time to see how long Long Chen couldst.


    ¡°You think you are the only one with an Emperor-tier martial technique?¡± Feng Zhilin scoffed when she saw the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. She put the Shapeless Whip away and used her own technique. She floated in the air with the wind blowing around her.


    Dense essence flowed in her body and appeared as a light-green light around her.


    Feng Zhilin extended her arms and syed her palms before raising them up. Long Chen saw an uncountable amount of illusions appear when she moved her arms. Light enveloped her, and Long Chen saw Feng Zhilin grow a lot of arms on her shoulders.


    They resembled a pair of wings! Each arm contained a lot of essence!


    She then thrusted all of her arms and essence towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Thousand Seals!¡± A thousand arms, each one using a wind seal. A thousand attacks rained down on Long Chen. It was not an exaggeration to call it an Emperor-tier martial technique, because it could push back Long Chen¡¯s Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    Long Chen realized that the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal was not enough to kill her when she used the Thousand Seals. Feng Zhilin was indeed stronger than Aunt Snow!


    The two Emperor-tier martial techniques crashed in the air.


    The Thousand Seals hit Long Chen¡¯s Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal head-on. Wind and metal energy shed in the air, and the sound of the intense sh spread everywhere. Long Chen felt a thousand attacks hitting his palm and almost destroying the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    This was the result of two equally strong opponents fighting against each other!


    The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal was strong, but the Wind n¡¯s Thousand Seals weren¡¯t weak either. The Thousand Sealspletely destroyed Long Chen¡¯s attacks. But Feng Zhilin was surprised because she thought they would not only destroy the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal, but would also harm Long Chen. Instead, the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal barely held on and the remaining force flew towards her.


    She dodged it.


    Both of them, one in the air and one on the ground, stood and red at each other.


    Long Chen noticed that their fight had left a crater roughly three meters deep on the ground. If he could deepen it by ten more meters or so, he could finally find out the secrets of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    But Long Chen frowned.


    The Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal was not enough to kill Feng Zhilin, and he didn¡¯t have much time left. If he failed to kill her before Blood Sacrifice¡¯s time ran out, Feng Zhilin would kill him instead.


    He would naturally fail to obtain the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance if that happened.

 Chapter 734: Two Seals as One

    He only had one more chance to attack. If it failed to kill Feng Zhilin, he would be the one who ended up dead. If he killed Feng Zhilin, he would be able to obtain the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance too.


    Long Chen was still unfamiliar with how to use the final attack, because he just learned it, but he had no choice but to risk it.


    Since that was the case, Long Chen calmed down and focused on using the Blood Devouring Domain to restrict Feng Zhilin¡¯s movements. Feng Zhilin, on the other hand, had just avoided Long Chen¡¯s Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. She was staring dumbfoundedly at Long Chen, and fear crept up into her heart.


    But her viciousness stifled her fear.


    <em>He¡¯s already on hisst legs, but I still have one final technique. He¡¯s not on my level. He might be experienced, but he doesn¡¯t have the resources from the Nine Great ns like me ¡­</em> Feng Zhilin took a deep breath and revealed a maniacal expression as she red at Long Chen with bloodshot eyes.


    Long Chen appeared much calmer than her.


    Just then, Feng Zhilin took out the Shapeless Whip from her Storage Ring. Long Chen couldn¡¯t see it, but he still sensed that it was there.


    <em>Does Feng Zhilin have another technique? </em>Long Chen squinted.


    Feng Zhilin smiled as she stared at him. She said only one word. ¡°Die.¡±She then swung her whip. Feng Zhilin was fast, but Long Chen was even more shocked to see her use the Thousand Seals again. This time, however, she was using the Shapeless Whip as a medium! The thousand arms behind her were all wielding a Shapeless Whip!


    A thousand arms, half on her left and the other half on the right. But this time, the five hundred arms on her right were wielding Shapeless Whips. Even a single one was enough to force one of the twins from the Gold n, a cultivator at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, to the brink of death. If those five hundred whips hit Long Chen, his body would bepletely disintegrated!


    She was the only one capable of using this technique in the Wind n. It was the ultimate technique that she hade up with herself. A regr Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator would die under her most prized technique. It was also the technique that allowed her to beat the other geniuses of her age.


    The Thousand Sealsbined with the Shapeless Whip. It was a devastating fusion of techniques that only Feng Zhilin could use.


    She was indeed a genius!


    Five hundred Shapeless Whips swung down at the same time. The dense bunch of whips ripped the wind apart and struck fear in those that heard the sound. Long Chen looked up and noticed that the entire sky was covered in Shapeless Whips! What was horrifying was that the whips were all invisible. Long Chen could sense the powering off them but couldn¡¯t see them!


    Facing such a fearsome attack, Long Chen closed his eyes. A technique that covered such arge area would affect his focus, so he had to do so. It was not an act of giving up. At the same time, he readied himself to use both the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal and the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal at the same time.


    This was his strongest technique.


    But a fusion of these two techniques was risky. It was the first time Long Chen would be using it, so he wasn¡¯t sure if he would seed. He was afraid that it would fail in front of Feng Zhilin¡¯s attack.


    However, he had no choice but to risk it.


    Under the nket of whips, Long Chen¡¯s essence surged onest time. He moved all of his essence into his right palm and condensed all of the essence of an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator into his tiny Martial Meridian.


    <em>Kaboom!</em>


    Long Chen felt like his Martial Meridian was on the verge of exploding as the Blue Devil me and the Profound Golden Soul circled each other inside it. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, both objects established a connection with the Five Emperor Seals. The Scarlet Emperor Seal and the Golden Emperor Seal lit up at the same time and emitted a very strong light.


    <em>Kaboom!</em>


    Thebined seals flew upwards under Long Chen¡¯s control. At the same time, Feng Zhilin¡¯s attacks were already dangerously close to him.


    <em>He still has another technique?! </em>At first, Feng Zhilin did not think that the fused seals were anything dangerous. At most it would be a technique thatbined the strength of the two seals, but she soon realized her folly. Thebination of two seals was not just a simple addition.


    Both of their strongest attacks shed in the air.


    Long Chen¡¯s fused seals had far more power than what a regr Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator could output.


    He felt his body being drainedpletely. He was currently sitting on the ground in a daze as he awaited the result.


    This was his final struggle.


    The Shapeless Whip shed with the fused Emperor Seals. The Shapeless Whip was extremely strong. While Feng Zhilin had five hundred seals toplement it, the five hundred Shapeless Whips¡¯ attacks far exceeded what the five hundred seals could do. At first, the impact from the five hundred Shapeless Whips forced back Long Chen¡¯s fused Emperor Seals. Feng Zhilin smiled when she saw that, because it meant Long Chen had lost! But her smile soon vanished.


    The two fused Emperor Seals, under the pressure of Feng Zhilin¡¯s attack, suddenly exploded. Because of how condensed their energies were, the explosion was ridiculously powerful. Long Chen felt the entire shake for a certain period of time.


    The¡¯s orbit even moved sideways from the explosion in the air. The power behind the explosion was nothing to scoff at!


    <em>Boom! Crackle! Crash!</em>


    The deafening explosion sounded continuously. This time, it was Long Chen¡¯s turn tough. Even though the Shapeless Whip was strong, Long Chen¡¯s fused Emperor Seals were stronger. The explosion swept towards Feng Zhilin and destroyed everything in its path!


    The stopped quaking after the force of the two Emperor Seals diminished. Their sh had ripped the¡¯s crust open, and blue smoke rose into the air. Long Chen couldn¡¯t see past the smoke without Sight.


    He didn¡¯t have enough power to see what had happened to Feng Zhilin. After using the fusion of the two Emperor Seals, he had burned through his essence and exhausted the power of Blood Sacrifice. His essence quickly diminished until he only had as much as someone at the Third Earthly Martial Stage.


    Once at the Earthly Martial Realm, the reduction in essence wasn¡¯t considered a downgrade. If it was, Long Chen could just consume the blood essence of a few beasts to replenish it. The key item in the Earthly Martial Realm was his Martial Soul.


    Long Chen realized that a reduction in his cultivation also meant a change in his martial Soul. His Martial Soul had started to show dragon scales when he reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, but now they were slowly fading away. His Martial Soul also appeared wounded and he felt dizzy.


    The Martial Soul hadn¡¯t degraded, but was wounded. Still, it brought around the same effect, causing him to only be able to control a simr amount of essence as a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. He could only be a Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator again after he healed his Martial Soul.


    That was one of the reasons why he dared not use Blood Sacrifice all this time. He wasn¡¯t sure what would happen to his Martial Soul if his cultivation regressed, but now he knew that it would get wounded.


    Thankfully, his Martial Soul wouldn¡¯t regress.


    The Martial Soul grew ording to Long Chen¡¯sprehension of martial arts. Hisprehension and understanding of his own path of his martial arts still existed. Using Blood Sacrifice meant that his Martial Soul would get wounded.


    He felt dizzy and his body was limp. Long Chen was so weak that anyone coulde and kill him now. ¡°Little Cat, do you know how I can heal my Martial Soul?¡±


    Little Cat was indeed the person that understood Long Chen¡¯s body the best. He knew about the powers of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon as well as Long Chen¡¯s condition. However, he wasn¡¯t sure what would happen to the Martial Soul when Long Chen used Blood Sacrifice, but now he had found out.


    ¡°I suppose this is the best possible scenario for you. If your Martial Soul really regressed, you would have to cultivate andprehend your own martial arts again. Essentially, you would¡¯ve had to start over, but if it''s just a wounded Martial Soul, you can probably use some spiritual herbs to heal it.¡±

 Chapter 735: Star Tomb

    Long Chen could find spiritual herbs that nurtured the Martial Soul to heal it.


    He suddenly remembered Ling Xi when he heard about the spiritual herbs. Back when she was still with him, Long Chen had to find various spiritual herbs that nurtured the Divine Soul to keep her alive.


    The Martial Soul and the Divine Soul were interconnected. They were both types of souls. If there were spiritual herbs that could nurture the Divine Soul, there would be ones that could nurture the Martial Soul too.


    <em>I wonder how strong Ling Xi will be after she recovers her strength. She kept saying that she waszy and didn¡¯t want to study, but it seems that she was quite strong when she was at her peak ¡­</em>


    Long Chen suddenly thought of that.


    But now was not the time to figure that out. After fusing the two Emperor Seals, Long Chen¡¯s essence was pretty much gone. Blue smoke covered the area, and Long Chen couldn¡¯t see what had happened to Feng Zhilin.


    He was on the brink of death. Surely she was dead too?


    Long Chen shuddered and used Sight. If she was still alive, Long Chen would definitely be dead.


    He was panicking even when he used Sight.He was afraid that Feng Zhilin was still standing even after that attack. She was royalty from the Wind n and had unlimited resources in her hands. That wasn¡¯t something Long Chen could match.


    Long Chen was now extremely weak.


    His heart was beating rapidly from the pressure.


    As he had expected, Feng Zhilin was still alive, but thankfully, she had suffered a grievous injury. She was like Long Chen, unable to fight.


    This was slightly out of Long Chen¡¯s expectations. While the fused Emperor Seals were strong, Feng Zhilin¡¯sbination of the Shapeless Whip and the Thousand Seals far exceeded the strength of a regr Emperor-tier martial technique. She had barely managed to resist the explosion, but the shockwave and impact had injured her.


    Her face was pale and her veins were all severed. Various wounds were carved on her body and her clothes were tattered, revealing her jade-white skin in various ces. She gradually stood up and staggered.


    Long Chen was in slightly better condition than her. He had only exhausted his essence and wounded his Martial Soul. But Feng Zhilin was injured gravely and her essence was also exhausted after thatst attack.


    Long Chen almost killed her, but unfortunately he was back at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, so he dared not risk it.


    The cloud of blue sand soon scattered. Long Chen and Feng Zhilin looked at each other. Because he had exhausted his essence, Long Chen¡¯s transformation was undone. This was the first time Feng Zhilin had seen Long Chen¡¯s true form of a handsome youth with strong eyes.


    This was the youth that had killed the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator Aunt Snow, and also the one who had injured her. Long Chen had seeded in all aspects.


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s attitude towards Long Chen had changed from underestimating him, to ignoring him, and now to being wary of him. Even though he now only had the strength of a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, his calmness and resolute will showed no weakness. Feng Zhilin was wary that he had other techniques that could make him strong again in an instant.


    The two of them stared at each other as they thought about how to kill the other. That was when the two of them were attracted to the same spot on the.


    After their sh and the explosion, the crust of the had been destroyed, leaving behind a massive hole. Both of them saw at the same time that at the end of the hole was a starry sky!


    Both of them changed their ns because it was most likely that the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was hidden inside. Even though both of them had lost their strength and dared not underestimate their opponent, the appearance of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance drove their greed to make riskier ns.


    Long Chen noticed that he was closer to the hole and he started sprinting towards it. Because of the regression in his cultivation, his speed had greatly diminished. Feng Zhilin moved at the same time. She was wounded, so moving at such speeds hurt her a lot, but the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was just in front of her! She refused to submit to Long Chen.


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡± Enduring the pain, Feng Zhilin used thest of her essence to generate a single illusion to block Long Chen. The illusion was so fast that Long Chen barely reacted to it when it attacked his arm.


    But thanks to Feng Zhilin¡¯s wounds, the force behind the illusion had reduced a lot. It was not enough to kill Long Chen, but it did knock him over. Feng Zhilin gained enough time to enter the hole before he did.


    ¡°Shit!¡± Long Chen was frustrated when he saw Feng Zhilin entering the hole first. He quickly jumped up and destroyed the illusion before jumping in too!


    While falling, he sensed that he had be weightless.


    He suddenlynded on an object simr to a suspended wooden board. He almost fell to the side from the sudden change in sensation.


    He quickly scanned his surroundings and looked at what he was stepping on. It was a mini starte! The same one that Long Chen hadnded on when he first entered the Ancient Graveyard, but this one was only ten meters or so in diameter. The golden runes pulsated from the center like ripples in ake.


    Long Chen checked his surroundings and was amazed by what he saw. There was another starry sky inside the blue. He thought the faraway stars were blue jewels.


    There was a miniature starry space inside of the blue!


    When Long Chennded on the starte, it started moving towards the center of the. Just as he had thought, the center of the was hollow.


    He then saw another starte in front of him. It was none other than Feng Zhilin. She revealed an expression of spite and hatred when she saw the starte formed under Long Chen¡¯s feet when he fell down here.


    This was certainly the tomb of the Seven Star Lord. If both her and Long Chen were here, it meant that they would have to fight over it. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was even more important than the Martial God Tombstone. Since Long Chen had taken the Martial God Tombstone, then Feng Zhilin had to ensure that he never took the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord!


    She had identified Long Chen as a formidable foe!


    Her injuries had been caused by Long Chen. She had lost most of her strength and thought Long Chen would kill her, but thankfully, he had run out of essence too.


    The two startes flew silently in the starry sky. Long Chen¡¯s starte soon caught up to hers and they flew side by side.


    Long Chen looked at her warily while she looked at him with hatred.


    ¡°I wonder how much more you can fight?¡± Feng Zhilin¡¯s spiteful voice floated into Long Chen¡¯s ears.


    ¡°You can try it when we reach our destination.¡± Long Chen smiled.


    Feng Zhilin was even more wary now. She thought Long Chen was putting up a strong front to fool her, but his sudden increase in strength, killing Aunt Snow, and injuring her had made her realize that Long Chen was indeed strong. Long Chen was actually harmless to her right now, but he had managed to fool her.


    Feng Zhilin frowned and dared not attack.


    <em>Who is he? He managed to block my Thousand Seals fused with the Shapeless Whip! Is Wu Guangyu the only one who can defeat him?</em>


    She was heavily injured and she knew that if she attacked him further, her injuries would get worse. It would be bad if she exposed how weak she was to Long Chen right now. He would find out immediately if she failed to kill him in one strike.


    Both of them were extremely exhausted, but because they were both afraid of showing their weakness, neither of them did anything.


    In reality, if Feng Zhilin attacked recklessly, she could actually kill Long Chen at the price of worsening her injuries.


    Both of them remained silent as the startes sailed in the infinite starry sky.


    The blue wasn¡¯trge, so Long Chen soon saw arge blue light in the distance. It grewrger andrger until both of them saw the ancient tomb floating in space!

 Chapter 736: The Bronze Door

    An ancient tomb appeared in the starry sky in front of Long Chen and Feng Zhilin. It was huge, and despite being just a tomb, it was asvishly built as a pce. Countless years should have passed since its erection, butpared to the Iron Cities outside, it was luxurious and beautiful, as if it was only recently built!


    The tomb had seven bright dots of starlight!


    At this point, Long Chen could confirm that this was the tomb of the Seven Star Lord, who was one of the Seven Lords.


    An immense aura radiated from the tomb and flew at Long Chen and Feng Zhilin¡¯s faces. Long Chen was in awe. Just the aura of this elder was enough to make him respect him.


    The star tes brought Long Chen and Feng Zhilin closer and closer to the ancient tomb while they grew more anxious. Not only did this mean that they would likely face the Seven Star Lord¡¯s test soon, but they would also have to worry about their opponent ambushing them!


    Very soon, only the gigantic starry tomb remained in Long Chen¡¯s field of vision. Arge, blue tform extended from the entrance. The two star tes were heading toward the tform at the same time.


    The other end of the tform was an ancient but grand door.


    Long Chen and Feng Zhilin were anxious. While they studied the starry tomb, they also took nervous nces at each other to prevent the other person from ambushing them.


    To Feng Zhilin, receiving the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was the most important task. Killing Long Chen to avenge Aunt Snow was just the method for her to get the inheritance. The situation was only this awkward because both parties had lost most of theirbat abilities.


    The startes were almost touching the blue tform now. Long Chen and Feng Zhilin sprang to action in unison. Both of them ran onto the blue tform, then towards the door at the center of the tomb, at the same time!


    They had only just begun, but the gap between their abilities was soon evident. Although Feng Zhilin was injured, she had a great advantage in cultivation level and essence. She surpassed Long Chen instantly to rush to the front of the tomb¡¯s bronze door. But very soon, she was left stunned. This bronze door was very heavy and tightly shut. Breaking through it was going to be difficult with her strength.


    She mmed her palm onto the door, but nothing happened. It did not even shake; the dust on it did not even fall. But Feng Zhilin fell two steps back in pain. It was clear just how solid this door was.


    ¡°What a hard door!¡± cried Feng Zhilin in surprise after taking two steps back. If she was in her peak state, she could probably try to hit it, but now she could not. Feng Zhilin recalled that ancient tombs of this level usually could not be opened by brute force. The only way was usually through wit and luck.


    Long Chen finally arrived and stood behind her. He carefully studied therge, bronze door and did not fight Feng Zhilin. Even at a moment like this, his expression remained calm and pure, as if he was not aware of his situation.


    The temptation of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was enough to drive anyone in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory mad!


    Feng Zhilin turned around and looked at him coldly. She warned, ¡°If you take one more step, I¡¯ll kill you even if it means risking my life!¡±


    She had not attacked him because she was afraid of worsening her injuries!


    Receiving the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was not an easy process. First, a cultivator had to win one of the seven slots out of the many people outside. That was only the first test. Then all seven candidates would kill each other on this while searching for the way to this starry tomb!


    It would normally be difficult for people to think that the path to the inheritance would be hidden underground.


    Long Chen had thought of it before Feng Zhilin and the rest, but he was afraid of striking the as it would cause a hugemotion.


    The third test was this bronze door.


    It looked simple. He looked up and noticed that it gave off immense pressure. There seemed to be an endless starry sky contained within it.


    The door looked like it was made of normal bronze, but in reality, he did not know what it was made of, as it was not metal. The bronze door had nothing on it other than seven metal pieces arranged irregrly. The seven semicircr metal pieces were stuck strangely to the door like mas.


    Feng Zhilin also noticed the seven semicircr pieces. She eyed Long Chen cautiously while she tried to touch them. Indeed, she realized that she could not lift the heavy pieces at all, but they could slide on the door!


    <em>Could these seven metal pieces rte to the seven stars represented by the Seven Star Lord? </em>Feng Zhilin furrowed her brows. Based on that, the door would likely open once the metal pieces were arranged ording to the constetion. However, she did not know how the seven stars were arranged in the sky. Their paths were almost always changing, so how would she know how they were arranged?


    After some thought, Feng Zhilin randomly arranged them several times but to no avail. She finally looked at Long Chen and asked, ¡°Do you know how the Seven Star Constetion is arranged in the sky?¡±


    She was only asking casually, but to her surprise, Long Chen nodded.


    Feng Zhilin hesitated for a while, then her gaze darkened. She had already made her decision. Based on what had happened earlier, Long Chen was no match for her. The moment he helped her open this door, she would risk her injuries to kill him!


    With that thought, she took a few steps back and said to Long Chen, ¡°You do it, then. Don¡¯t pull any of your tricks.¡±


    In reality, she was preparing her own tricks.


    Long Chen did not actually know how the seven stars were arranged, but Little Cat did, and he said to Long Chen, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid she¡¯ll kill you the moment you open the door? Although she¡¯s injured, there¡¯s still a substantial gap between you.¡±


    Long Chen smirked to himself and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have an idea. Just follow my instructions.¡±


    Little Cat did not say anymore, knowing Long Chen often had many tricks up his sleeve and would not be hurt by Feng Zhilin. So, Little Cat was assured enough to tell him the arrangement of the Seven Star Constetion in the sky today. Long Chen followed Little Cat¡¯s instructions and moved the first metal piece to the first position. The metal piece suddenly lit up with a blue glow. From afar, it looked like a star had been attached to the bronze door.


    When Feng Zhilin saw the metal piece light up, her eyes lit up too.


    ¡°Did you think you could just try all the positions until all the metal pieces lit up?¡± The moment this thought popped into her mind, Long Chen turned around and said her thoughts out loud.


    Feng Zhilin chuckled and said, ¡°You¡¯re using a thief¡¯s mentality to gauge a gentleman.¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re a gentleman?¡± Long Chen nced at her. She was Wu Guangyu¡¯s woman. Although they were not married yet, this beautiful body would belong to him one day.


    ¡°You only have one chance to move every piece. If you make a mistake, everything will be for nothing. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can try. Then no one will get a chance to get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance at all!¡± warned Long Chen.


    Then he ced the second metal piece to its position based on Little Cat¡¯s instructions, and it lit up too. He did the same for the third piece, and then the others. On the seventh piece, Long Chen did not move. He turned around and looked at the anxious Feng Zhilin without fear. ¡°The moment the seventh piecends, the whole constetion will bepleted and the bronze door will open. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance will also appear. However, only I know where thest piece should be ced. I¡¯m guessing that someone¡¯s going to attack the moment I lose my value, right?¡±


    Feng Zhilin froze. He had exposed her n.


    Long Chen knew that she was waiting to kill him the moment he opened the door, then rush inside to get the inheritance.


    ¡°If that is the case, you can try cing thest piece on your own, or we¡¯re going to be here forever. I can stay for a long time. What about you?¡± Long Chen did not touch the seventh piece. He looked at her mildly.


    ¡°What do you n to do, then?¡± Feng Zhilin asked coldly.


    She did not fear him, as she could tell that he was also at his limit. She was merely worried that he would pull some bizarre trick again.


    ¡°Take twenty steps back, then I will ce thest piece.¡± He looked up, and their eyes met. The tension of violence in the air was thick.


    <em>The Seven Star Lord is one of the Seven Lords. It¡¯s probably not on a firste-first-served basis. After entering, we will likely need topare our abilities too. Only this brat can open the bronze door. I¡¯ll let him live a bit longer. Once we enter and fight over the treasure, I can kill him then too. He wouldn¡¯t be able to escape from this tomb even if he had wings!</em>


    After these thoughts, Feng Zhilin finally made her decision. She nodded and moved twenty meters away. Although she was heavily injured, she could still easily travel this distance. She waited for Long Chen to open the bronze door. It was all up to luck now.

 Chapter 737: Constellation Map

    Long Chen did not say anything else. He took a deep breath and moved thest metal piece to the position Little Cat had told him to.


    As expected, after he ced it, the metal piece glowed with a blue light, then the whole bronze door lit up with a blinding light. A gust of star power sted Long Chen back. Feng Zhilin, who was behind him and about to attack, was also thrown backwards!


    Long Chen could not open his eyes and look at the blinding light directly. He could only observe the bronze door, which seemed to turn into a patch of starry sky, through the gaps in his fingers. Seven stars in the sky were brighter than the rest!


    It was the Seven Star Constetion!


    The starry sky suddenly vanished along with the bronze door. Long Chen did not think of anything else and immediately charged into the ancient tomb. Feng Zhilin followed closely.


    ¡°Die, Long Chen!¡± Now that the door was open, Feng Zhilin was prepared to kill Long Chen.


    She could only get the inheritance in peace if she killed him.


    But when she entered the tomb, she suddenly sensed a powerful energy acting on her body, restricting her movements. It pinned her feet to the ground, making it extremely difficult to move. The immense pressure did not squash her, but merely restricted her movements.


    Long Chen had the same experience. After entering the tomb, he realized that there was a powerful energy restricting his movements.Behind him, Feng Zhilin could not move either.


    There was confusion in both their eyes as they looked around. Long Chen sighed in relief. At least he wasn¡¯t killed by Feng Zhilin yet.


    They were in the main hall of a pce. The ground was covered in smooth and shiny ss stones with ripples of blue light flowing through them. It was the same with the walls. Above their heads was a deep-blue starry sky, as if the night sky was concentrated on the ceiling of this small pce. The constetions moved across the sky, consisting of blue, purple, and even red stars. It was a beautiful sight.


    ¡°What the hell is this ce? What is restricting my movement?¡± Feng Zhilin was going mad. Long Chen was merely two meters away from her, but she could not close the gap. She could inch herself forward very slowly, but it would take her a whole day to close just two meters.


    Long Chen was also puzzled. It was not a type of gravity, because if it was, he would feel a squashing sensation. Right now, if he did not want to move, he would actually feel quite rxed. The moment he moved, even if he tried to blink, he would face great resistance.


    Neither of them could move, so Long Chen now had some time to catch his breath.


    ¡°This is the power of the domain left behind by a Heavenly Martial Realm master. I¡¯m guessing that the Seven Star Lord wanted the descendants who entered to break free from this domain. Then you¡¯ll get the inheritance and leave. This relies on yourprehension abilities, not strength. Right now, you and the girl are on the same starting point. No one can touch the other, so it¡¯s a fair fight. Do your best!¡± said Little Cat.


    ¡°What¡¯s a domain of the Heavenly Martial Realm?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°You¡¯ll understand when you reach the Heavenly Martial Realm. In general, in the human race¡¯s cultivation system, there are the Three Martial realms. The core of the Earthly Martial Realm is the ¡®pulse of the earth,¡¯ where the cultivator merges with the earth¡¯s power. The core of the Heavenly Martial Realm is the ¡®domain.¡¯ It should be easier for you to understand because you have the Blood Devouring Domain, which is a type of ¡®domain.¡¯ In simple terms, the Earthly Martial Realm controls the strength of the earth, while the Heavenly Martial Realm controls the power of the skies and the whole world. It is a merging of you and the world, not just with the earth. Heavenly Martial Realm masters can use their Martial Souls to exert a certain amount of control over their surroundings. Just like how this guy can restrict you two in this space.¡±


    The journey of cultivation was indeed strange.


    The Heavenly Martial Realm requiredprehending even more conceptspared to the Earthly Martial Realm because it controlled the world. The cultivation of this realm could be understood just from its name, which included the word ¡°Heavenly.¡±


    The Blood Devouring Domain was indeed a domain-type technique, and entering the Heavenly Martial Realm meant merging with and exerting control on the surrounding world. The concepts were still in alignment. The Heavenly Martial Realm had nine levels, so the strength of the domain increased with a cultivator¡¯s level.


    Of course, that was far in the future.


    Long Chen was currently upied with how to break free from the Seven Star Lord¡¯s domain. Little Cat mentioned that as long as he could leave, he would get the inheritance.


    There were so many tests. It was clear just how difficult it was to get the inheritance.


    Thankfully, this test was an evaluation of theirprehension abilities. If it were a true fight, Long Chen would be no match for her.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze kept changing with his thoughts, and Feng Zhilin was the same. Feng Zhilin did not have Little Cat, so she did not know much in the beginning. She was only thinking of using her remaining strength to break free from this restrictive energy.


    By now, Long Chen discovered that the only movement he was allowed to make was look up. This led him to wonder if the key to breaking free was above his head.


    If they werepeting with theirprehension abilities, he did not think that he would lose to Feng Zhilin. Although she was a cultivator at the highest level of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, Long Chen was not terrible either. Although he had a weak background, his shockingprehension abilities and potential had led him to his current level.


    Feng Zhilin saw him look up at the starry sky as ifpletely immersed in it. She was no idiot, so she thought, <em>This brat has looked confident since the beginning. Now he¡¯s looking up at the things above his head. He must know that we can¡¯t break free through brute force. Is the key to breaking free above our heads?</em>


    Very soon, Feng Zhilin realized that while she could hardly move, she could look up at the shining constetions above.


    <em>Could this constetion map contain the key to breaking free? </em>Feng Zhilin quickly put all her emotions aside and focused on looking at the constetions.


    <em>I don¡¯t even know where this brat came from; he¡¯s really weak sometimes, but really strong too. He doesn¡¯t have the power and wealth of the Wind n, so how could he have betterprehension abilities than me? I¡¯ve read more than ten thousandbat abilities and I¡¯m familiar with all sorts of cultivation methods. I¡¯ve read the cultivation notes of countless people who havee before me. This guy will never be able to catch up to me!</em>


    After that, Feng Zhilinpletely focused on looking at the constetion map.


    Long Chen did not look at her. He waspletely immersed in the stars. As the stars turned and moved, rays of light appeared.


    <em>What secrets do they hold? </em>Long Chen¡¯s interest was piqued. He loved solving problems. He had great confidence in his ownprehension abilities, so he did not panic. If he panicked, he would not be able to find the true meaning of the stars.


    <em>It¡¯s such arge constetion map. There must be something special. Where would it be? </em>Long Chen¡¯s eyes slowly scanned the image. He was fully focused on the stars above and did not notice the passing of time at all.


    Very soon, one day passed.


    Feng Zhilin had not found anything during this time and had started to get anxious. If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen, who still remained in the same position looking at the stars, she would have long given up.


    Both of them werepeting for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. They did not have to be very good, just enough to defeat the other person. Since Long Chen was still patiently studying the image, she had no choice but to force herself to find something special about the constetion map.


    But Long Chen was fully immersed in the movement of the stars.


    One was doing it out of interest, while the other was forcing herself. The gap between them was revealed. While Feng Zhilin grew increasingly antsy, Long Chen had already noticed something strange about the constetions.


    All the stars moved in an irregr pattern, but out of the countless stars here, only seven stars far in the north moved in the same pattern.


    <em>These seven should be the Big Dipper ¡­ </em>Long Chen focused his gaze on the Big Dipper constetion. It looked like adle hanging in the north of the sky.


    The more he observed the Big Dipper¡¯s path, the stranger he found it. He momentarily put all the other stars aside and fully focused on them. As time passed, their paths werepletely carved into his mind.


    He faintly sensed that there was a profoundw to their movement. He did not know whatw they followed, he only knew that he felt good.


    More time passed. He waspletely immersed in the profound movement of the constetion. Slowly, his eyes started to shine with blue starlight. Feng Zhilin panicked when she saw him!


    She knew that Long Chen hadpletely entered the zone. If this continued, he could evenprehend something.


    <em>That¡¯s impossible! How could hisprehension abilities be better than mine? That¡¯s impossible! </em>she thought in a panic.


    But Long Chen was close to sess now.


    Mental fortitude didn¡¯t seem like much, but here, it decided the winner.

 Chapter 738: Big Dipper Step

    <em>Does the path of the Big Dipper contain a hidden bodybat technique? </em>Long Chen wondered excitedly.


    He turned out to be right. As he observed the spinning of the Big Dipper stars, he slowly saw a bodybat technique belonging to the Seven Star Lord, which was surely an Emperor-tier technique. Very few people in the Ancient Graveyard had an Emperor-tier bodybat technique, and this one came from the Seven Star Lord!


    The name of this technique was the Big Dipper Step!


    <em>Is this bodybat technique the key to breaking free from this domain? </em>Long Chen thought to himself, puzzled. He could only figure out a rough concept of the technique, but he did not truly study it in depth.


    Very soon, he figured out the key.


    <em>The Seven Star Lord left behind this domain that¡¯s trapping us now. He also left behind the Big Dipper Step. Perhaps I can break free by using this technique. At least I¡¯d be able to move around freely here!</em>


    Being able to move around freely here was enough. Long Chen would be able to use the Big Dipper Step to leave this ce and enter the deeper parts of the tomb, thus receiving the true inheritance.


    Long Chen grew excited. He had finally found a way to win.


    Feng Zhilin was standing behind him, so he could not see her expression and did not know how she was doing. However, he was confident enough. He knew that with Feng Zhilin¡¯s mindset andprehension abilities, she could not figure it out as fast as he had.Long Chen immersed himself in cultivating the Big Dipper Step. He observed the path of the moving constetion and slowly derived a bodybat technique from it.


    This process was long. He spent a total of five days studying and extracting the core concepts of the Big Dipper Step based on the movements of the constetion.


    Most of his exhausted essence had recovered during these past five days. However, his essence was still stuck at the Third Earthly Martial Stage. His Martial Soul was still injured, and he would not be able to control too much essence anyway. He estimated that Feng Zhilin had also recovered. She came from a wealthy background and had likely consumed countless times more spiritual medicines in her lifetime. Her body likely had a substantial healing factor, plus she seemed to know some regenerative lifebat techniques too. Her injuries had likely healed by now.


    She would likely regain her peak form in one or two months.


    After she could not figure out the way to get out despite carefully poring over the stars, Feng Zhilin chose a different path. She focused on replenishing her strength. Although she could not move, she could still guide her essence through her body. Through the movement of her essence and triggering the remaining medicinal factors in her body, she achieved her goal of healing her injuries.


    If the domain power vanished, she would be able to easily kill Long Chen with just a wave of her hand. The gap between the Third and Eighth Earthly Martial Stages was unimaginable.


    Feng Zhilin had reached the Third Earthly Martial Stage when she was very young. She was almost as talented as some people in the Royal Territories.


    One person was focused on cultivating the Big Dipper Step while the other person focused on healing her injuries. Who would seed in the end?


    More time passed.


    Long Chen could not see Feng Zhilin, but she could see his every move. Long Chen did not move at all during the past few days, as if he was dead. He waspletely immersed in the constetion map above his head. The only thing Feng Zhilin found strange was that several rays of starlight would asionally flicker in his eyes.


    On the eleventh day, Long Chen finally moved. Feng Zhilin clearly saw his leg move once. She was utterly shocked. Feng Zhilin knew that Long Chen only possessed the strength of a Third Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, and since she could not even move, how had he done that?


    There were many more things she did not know about.


    <em>Indeed, afterpleting the cultivation of the Big Dipper Step, I can now move freely in this domain. </em>He had been studying the Big Dipper Step intently for days. After he figured out the core concepts, he started cultivating the technique. It was difficult in the beginning because how could he practice when he could not move his body?


    However, Long Chen decided that since the Seven Star Lord had made this test, there had to be a solution. He did not give up and clenched his teeth to try. He had no attachments left in the Ancient Graveyard anyway. Other than Xiang, who was still with the Divine n¡¯s young master and whose status was unknown, he had nothing else to worry about.


    Furthermore, with the restrictions in this domain, Feng Zhilin could not touch him at all. Although she was far stronger than he was, so what? If Long Chen had the ability to move, while she did not. What would the oue be then?


    With Long Chen¡¯s viciousness, he would never let her go.


    After trying repeatedly, he finallypleted the first step, which was to move his leg slightly. It was just a slight nudge, but to him, it held a huge meaning. This showed that as long as hepleted the cultivation of the Big Dipper Step, he would be able to move freely!


    Once that happened, wouldn¡¯t Feng Zhilin be his to torture?


    Once that happened, would there be anyone else to fight him for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?


    Long Chen forced his excitement down. Only a calm mind would take him far. He tried again and again to perform the routine he had visualized thousands of times in his mind, wishing he could move more in this tight space.


    Feng Zhilin watched him with terror and was privately panicking. She was suddenly terrified as she looked at the teenager, and she felt an indescribable helplessness.


    To her, Long Chen was supposed to be inferior in every aspect, so how had he magically beaten her every single time?


    This ordinary teenager had suddenly turned into the devil. Beforeing to this domain, she had been very confident, thinking that herprehension abilities had far surpassed Long Chen¡¯s. But when she saw Long Chen move, she suffered a huge blow to her heart!


    If Long Chen could move normally in this ce, would she be able toe out alive?


    Definitely not.


    Her heart trembled as she looked at him in panic. All she could do was pray that he could not seed.


    But the more she thought that, the nearer he grew to sess.


    <em>The Big Dipper Step is indeed an Emperor-tier bodybat technique. Previously, I thought my cultivation speed would be very, very slow due to the restriction of this domain. Now I see that I can only achieve this cultivation speed because of the pressure holding me down.</em>


    The Seven Star Lord had probably made adequate arrangements for this. If Long Chen received the Big Dipper directly and cultivated it on his own, he did not know how long it would take him. However, under the restrictions of the domain, he could practice the Big Dipper Step at the slowest speed possible, which was extremely beneficial for him to gradually grasp the Emperor-tier technique.


    Very soon, Long Chen could makerger movements with his limbs, much to Feng Zhilin¡¯s horror. First, he moved his feet, then his arms, and in the end, Feng Zhilin lost all hope.


    Ten more days passed. Feng Zhilin¡¯s injuries had mostly recovered. If she controlled all the essence in her body, she might be able to move her body and limbs slightly. That was the most she could do. Yet Long Chen could even cultivate a bodybat technique here!


    Long Chen did not even look back once within these ten days, but this terrified her even more. She knew that the day he turned to look back was also the day she would die.


    The killer and the victim had switched ces.


    In the beginning, Long Chen was a prey who could not fight back against Feng Zhilin at all. Now Feng Zhilin felt like she was a helplessmb, while Long Chen was the most terrifying wolf. He was merelyying low. Sooner orter, he would pounce fiercely to take her life.


    Feng Zhilin knew him well. She knew he was not the kind who showed mercy to pretty girls. Lady Snow was a very beautiful woman, but Long Chen had used the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal to reduce her to ashes!


    When she thought about how she would end up the same, Feng Zhilin turned pale with fear.


    She regretted fighting this terrifying teenager. This was the most tragic event of her life. Previously, she never expected him to be this scary, but now she understood. Everyone outside was mocking Long Chen for saying he would never let the Divine n¡¯s young master go, that he wanted to fight him. Feng Zhilin alsoughed at Long Chen for being so arrogant, but now she knew that Long Chen might actually be able to do it. The fact that the Divine n¡¯s young master had not killed Long Chen when he had the chance meant that it would certainly cause huge problems in the future.


    The starlight from above shone down on Long Chen¡¯s body, which faintly sparkled with starlight, making him look like he was part of the stars. He then started to move very quickly. Sometimes, he would appear here, but in the next moment, he would appear in another ce.

 Chapter 739 – True Man

    <h4>Chapter 739 ¨C True Man</h4>


    What a fascinating technique! It can achieve such incredible speed. Even my Wind n bodybat technique cannot achieve such speeds. He changes his location between seven spots, which makes it equivalent to having seven lives. This should be an Emperor-tier technique, and a technique of this level must have been left behind by the Seven Star Lord!


    When Feng Zhilin thought of this, she gritted her teeth. Both she and Long Chen hade here at the same time, but he was the one who had received the technique in the end. If she knew it would end up like that, she would not have given up and spent most of her energy on healing her injuries.


    Using her essence, she could indeed inch her way out of this domain within a few days. However, Long Chen had a shortcut. As long as he was using the Big Dipper Step, he could move wherever he pleased.


    Long Chen had long been able to move freely within the domain. He had not touched Feng Zhilin yet because she was trapped here already. Long Chen wanted topletely master the Big Dipper Step first while he still had this domain.


    The Big Dipper Step involved seven points. Like how the stars moved, Long Chen could quickly change his location within these seven points. It would be difficult for opponents to strike him usingmonbat techniques when he used the Big Dipper Step. For example, Feng Zhilin¡¯s Shapeless Whip would likely miss!


    Although the Shapeless Whip was fast, Long Chen was not slow either.


    There were naturally aspects of an Emperor-tierbat technique that were superior to the others.


    Long Chen spent a full month in this domain to finallyplete the cultivation of the Big Dipper Step. He knew that without the pressure of the domain, he would have taken longer toplete it.


    Long Chen had not turned around this whole time.


    Feng Zhilin had long been on the edge of a mental breakdown. Long Chen had the ability to kill her half a month ago. Why had he not killed her yet?


    Or was he thinking of a more vicious method?


    When Feng Zhilin recalled all the stories she had heard, she drew in a sharp breath. She feared that he would rape her. She was a beautiful girl, while he was an active young man. She had humiliated him before, and now she was helpless before him. Why would he ever let this pretty girl go?


    Feng Zhilin was nervous when she thought about the possibilities.


    At this moment, the body that seemed like it had split into seven suddenly stopped. He suddenly turned to look back, and two rays of shining starlight shot out from his eyes onto her, meeting her terrified gaze.


    The two blue lights vanished quickly. His expression was as calm as deep water. Standing before her, she could not tell what he was thinking at all. But she had a bad feeling because she knew that he was even scarier this way.


    She gathered enough of her Qi and tried her best to move her lips, finally forcing out a few words. ¡°If you¡¯re a man, you¡¯ll kill me directly!¡±


    To be honest, she was not afraid of death. She was afraid of being sullied.


    When he heard her, he made no expression. He had also been thinking about what to do with her. Killing her would be the most direct choice, but this did not seem sufficient to him. Then again, he did not actually have any grudges against Feng Zhilin. The person he hated was her betrothed, the Divine n¡¯s young master, Wu Guangyu!


    Xiang was still with him, and he did not know if Xiang was dead or alive!


    Every time he thought of this, he would start to get very anxious.


    That was why he could not kill her so easily. Looking at her panicked expression, he mulled over his options and soon made a decision.


    After he cultivated the Big Dipper Step and broke free from the restrictions of the domain, he was free to move as he wanted. This meant he waspletely certain of victory. He did not need to worry about her pulling any tricks, which could lead to idents.


    He shed a cold smirk and approached her. She lost all hope when she sensed the heavy and violent aura radiating from him, along with his frightening expression. What she was worried about most was finally going to happen. Long Chen was indeed an animal.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get any closer!¡± Feng Zhilin cried, exhausting a huge amount of essence just to utter a few words. To her despair, he easily walked up to her. He was just half a meter away, and he looked down at the beautiful teenage girl.


    ¡°Every person must kill in the Ancient Graveyard. There were no grudges between us before this, but both of us are fighting for the same things. Now that I have the upper hand, I cannot let you go. Everything can only be med on your poor luck,¡± said Long Chen as he stretched a finger from his right hand. Feng Zhilin stared at him with terror and begged him for mercy with her eyes, but he gently ced his finger on her face and pricked her.


    Feng Zhilin felt like she had been electrocuted due to her fright. At that moment, he was the most terrifying demon in the world. That cold touch had made her scalp go numb.


    Long Chen was privately feeling a bit smug when he saw this arrogant girl so terrified of him that she was about to cry. He maintained a cold expression and fixed his eyes on hers. Then he slid his finger down towards the sleeve of her light green dress.


    ¡°No!¡± she cried once more. Feng Zhilin knew what he was going to do next. Tears started to flow from her eyes.


    But Long Chen was not stopped by her pitiful look. He clearly remembered how she did not even furrow her brows when she killed someone. There was a devil in her heart, and she merely had a beautiful shell. She was iparable to Ling Xi.


    Feng Zhilin watched with despair as he slowly scratched his finger several times on her dress from top to bottom.


    Seven minutester, he finally cut her dress off. Her fair, naked body was revealed in front of him, exposed to thisrge, empty hall. He did not have any expression, merely staring into her eyes. The cold re was a huge blow to her. She had always been high above the rest, and she killed anyone she wanted. Many innocent people had died before her emotionless eyes during all these years. Now she felt like a helpless woman. Her life was in his hands.


    If she could move, she would have been trembling.


    This was her first time exposing her body to a stranger. If she still had her strength, she would be thinking of chopping him to pieces. Right now, however, she was just like a vulnerablemb to him.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were like two fireballs.


    This was her first time, and it was a man whom she could not wait to chop to pieces.


    Long Chen got closer. The heat radiating from his body frightened her even more. Long Chen leaned close to her ear. Feng Zhilin did not even dare to meet his solemn re.


    ¡°Your body is not bad at all for someone your young age. It¡¯s wasted on Wu Guangyu ...¡± he said into her ear.


    This confirmed Feng Zhilin¡¯s guesses. It implied that he would take her for himself.


    She hated him to the bone! Long Chen had taken too much away from her¡ªhe had even killed Aunt Snow!


    What was he going to do next?

 Chapter 740 – Seven Star Technique

    <h4>Chapter 740 ¨C Seven Star Technique</h4>


    ¡°I initially thought it would be Wu Guangyu, hehe ...¡± Feng Zhilin started to chuckle with self-mockery.


    There was no movement for a long time.


    She was confused. Wasn¡¯t he going to start? She realized that Long Chen had moved behind her and she froze. She cursed privately, Does this bastard have some strange kinks?! This is my first time; does he want to go from the back ...


    With that thought, Feng Zhilin let out a scream. Of course, the scream did note out, because she could not even move her mouth without using her essence.


    What the hell was Long Chen doing?


    Feng Zhilin did not know that Long Chen had carved his name on her body. After two characters in dramatic calligraphy were cut, he looked at his artwork approvingly and smirked. ¡°I wonder what expression Wu Guangyu will make when he sees you.¡±


    Then heughed loudly. Hisughter echoed across the empty hall. Both he and hisughter gradually disappeared from the ce. He had left in search of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Only the constetion map and the naked Feng Zhilin remained in the hall. She was left confused, unsure of what had just happened. With great effort, she straightened her thoughts.


    He stripped my clothes, so why didn¡¯t he touch me? Did he just want to cut me?


    What is his true objective?


    After he left, the mes of hatred and rage finally burned in her heart.


    When he was present, she only felt fear. She knew that he had left in search of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. What belonged to her was going to end up in his hands!


    ¡°Long Chen, Long Chen!¡± This name angered her so much that she was going to go mad. No one had brought her to such a tragic state before! First, he snatched her Martial God Tombstone, then he killed her Aunt Snow, then he humiliated her and took away the most important treasure, the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance! It was like he was an obstacle she could not ovee!


    But she was unwilling to ept defeat. She clenched her teeth with violence in her eyes.


    You did not kill me today. Once I get out of here and catch you, I will make you suffer the worst torture the world has ever seen! she roared in her heart.


    The stinging pain on her bottom was like Long Chen¡¯s mockingughter that brought Feng Zhilin back to reality.


    She found it difficult to move in this domain, and all she could do was guide her essence to coax the rejuvenation of her flesh and heal the wound. However, there would still be a scar. Any outsider who saw it would know what had happened.


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s hatred towards him intensified when she saw the scars left behind on her wless skin!


    Long Chen knew that after letting her live today, if he met her again and was weaker than her, he would have to endure her storm-like wrath and maybe die. Many people in the past who did not kill Long Chen died afterward because of this.


    But Long Chen was different.


    He had defeated Feng Zhilin once already, so he would not be afraid of her if they met again. This was a form of pressure he ced on himself. She had lost to him today, and during their next encounter, he would have an even bigger surprise for her.


    The next time we meet will be the time I get Xiang back from you guys. I¡¯ll also be counting our grudges then ... Long Chen¡¯s lips curled into a smirk.


    Anyone who encountered a piece of treasure could have a stake in it, but in the end, they would have to battle it out to determine who would get to take it. It did not matter if it was the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance or the Martial God Tombstone¡ªneither truly belonged to Feng Zhilin. Although she thought that Long Chen had taken away her treasures, Long Chen disagreed. These things belonged to anyone who had the luck and ability to get them. Feng Zhilin could only me fate if she failed to make them hers.


    For example, when they both first entered the domain, they were on the same starting line. He had chosen to study andprehend the Seven Star Lord¡¯s constetion map, while Feng Zhilin had chosen to heal her injuries and use brute force to break free from the domain. In the end, he had seeded and she had failed.


    She was the one who was useless. Long Chen did not snatch away her inheritance. Even if Long Chen had note here, there was no guarantee that she would get the inheritance either. How could it be that easy to get one of the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritances?


    Long Chen passed through the main hall to the deeper parts of the tomb. There was something there that attracted him.


    He had received a lot of information from the Big Dipper Step. The technique that the Seven Star Lord previously cultivated was an Emperor-tier technique known as the Seven Star Manual. The Big Dipper Step was one of the techniques within the Seven Star Manual. There was another body-tempering technique inside called the Seven Star Body!


    In short, the Seven Star Manual was divided into the Seven Star Body and the Big Dipper Step!


    Long Chen was currently going to retrieve the Seven Star Body¡¯s secret scripture.


    He discovered that techniques were slightly different at the Emperor-tier. Before this, techniques were independently differentiated into attacks, body tempering techniques, and bodybat techniques. For example, the Soul Dispersing Dragon w and the Willow Step. After reaching the Emperor-tier, thebat techniques appeared in sets. For example, the Seven Star Lord¡¯s Seven Star Manual had a base technique. If Long Chen followed this base technique, he could cultivate the Seven Star Essence, which could be used to cultivate a body tempering technique and a bodybat technique!


    Of course, this was not all of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance!


    Long Chen knew that there was one more item that belonged to him at the deepest part of the star tomb. That was the true treasure that he had left behind!


    The Seven Star Body was the Seven Star Lord¡¯s most famous technique, and it was more fearsome than the Big Dipper Step despite being on the same level! It was an intermediate Emperor-tier body tempering technique!


    If he could master it, no one in the Ancient Graveyard would have a tougher body than him.


    Long Chen entered the pitch-ck tunnel with great excitement. The moment he set foot inside, the surrounding walls lit up with blue glowing spots that made it look like he was walking through a starry sky.


    Long Chen froze for a moment, then he entered. He had passed all the tests. There were no more dangers in the tomb, so he felt assured enough to enter.


    At the end of the tunnel, there was a tform with a deep-blue rock slightlyrger than a fist. It had an irregr shape, but when he got nearer, he realized it was identical to a human heart.


    It was even the size of a human heart.


    A bright, blue light flowed through the translucent rock, and it was beating like a heart. Long Chen had the feeling that it was alive.


    ¡°Is this the Seven Star Body ...¡± Long Chen was overwhelmed. It lived up to its reputation of being an Emperor-tier technique. Even its aesthetics far surpassed all his otherbat techniques, save for the Five Emperor Seals. His previous techniques were recorded in scriptures; they were never in the form of a rock!


    Much less a beautiful blue rock that looked like a heart.


    Seven bright stars could faintly be seen hidden within the translucent rock. His gaze was attracted to the beating heart, as if a space as vast as the night sky existed within it.


    The Seven Star Lord, who was one of the Seven Lords, was indeed terrifying! It¡¯s no wonder the Divine n and the Demon n reached their current level after receiving inheritances! And this isn¡¯t even the most important treasure that the Seven Star Lord left behind!


    The Seven Star Manual, which included the Seven Star Body and the Big Dipper Step, was only a portion of his inheritance. The most important part was behind this rock, where a dark-blue door appeared. The door was shut, but bright rays of starlight seeped out of the cracks.


    Long Chen put the blue heart away and looked at the blue door in a daze.


    I wonder what¡¯s inside?

 Chapter 741 – Three Thousand Star Clusters

    <h4>Chapter 741 ¨C Three Thousand Star Clusters</h4>


    After putting the blue rock in the Primordial Realm, Long Chen took a deep breath and went towards the door. Bright, blue starlight leaked out of the gaps around the door; it was beautiful.


    Judging from the constetion map, Long Chen roughly guessed what the Seven Star Lord had left behind. The Seven Star Manual was one thing, while the other was his former weapon. Of course, the weapon contained thebat technique he formerly used!


    Thisbat technique was naturally of the Emperor-tier, as well as the weapon. It was likely ranked one step above the Shapeless Whip, which was powerful enough to be the ultimate treasure of the Wind n. What he received was even more awesome than the Shapeless Whip.


    The weapon was behind the door.


    At this moment, he only knew the name of the weapon. It was a magnificent name¡ªThree Thousand Star Clusters.


    Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t guess what kind of weapon it was based on its name, but a faint silhouette appeared in his mind. He was a powerful cultivator standing amidst countless stars in the sky, wearing blue armor that shone with starlight. In his hand was a two-meter-long weapon, though Long Chen did not know what it was. He had previously used the Azure Dragon Halberd, but he could not identify what this was.


    Perhaps it was a spear!


    The sword and the spear were not too different. Long Chen had already learned how to use a sword and a halberd. If the Three Thousand Star Domain was a spear, then it was great news as he could boost his Five Emperor Seals with a powerful attack from a weapon!


    This would be another item he could rely on in battle!


    To be honest, the Seven Star Manual alone already overwhelmed Long Chen. The divine weapon and the attack technique hade as surprises. He did not know what the other Seven Lords had left behind, but the Seven Star Lord had left behind his attack, his body tempering and bodybat techniques, plus his weapon. This was probably more than what the other inheritances contained.


    Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Filled with emotion, Long Chen gently touched the cold, blue door and then pulled it open. It was only gently closed, so it took little strength topletely pull it open. When it was fully open, he stepped forward and stood at the entrance!


    He peered inside!


    His field of vision dramatically expanded. Right before him was an endless expanse of stars, like he had gone through the star tomb andnded outside. He thought he had exited the tomb at first, but upon closer inspection, he realized that he had not. He was still inside the tomb, but this vast space was thergest section of it.


    Countless stars hung in the sky, forming clusters against the pitch-ck backdrop. Long Chen roughly counted and realized that there were about three thousand of these shining blue clusters!


    Are these three thousand star clusters rted to the weapon?


    When the question popped into his mind, he felt an ancient aura surging towards himself. The three thousand star clusters moved quickly before his eyes. They slowly gathered in front of him at an unknown distance into shining characters!


    ¡°Seven Star Lord!¡±


    These characters radiated a mighty aura. Long Chen felt as if he saw a master standing proudly in the sky behind them!


    Then the clusters moved again and formed another set of characters, though this time, Long Chen was not surprised because they formed the phrase ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡±


    The shining sky was not the real sky. After the countless stars formed the characters, they suddenly dispersed and endless starlight flew at him, as if the whole night sky was going to him. Three thousand star clusters aggregated at a point around ten meters away from him and slowly materialized into an item two meters long.


    Long Chen watched emotionally.


    He knew that they were forming the Three Thousand Star Clusters weapon!


    Time passed quickly. The stars finally aggregated into a long, blue spear with beautiful, flowing lights. This was the most beautiful weapon he had ever seen.


    ¡°Is this the Three Thousand Star Clusters?¡± Long Chen smiled widely. He realized that the weapon was radiating the mighty power of stars, which was countless times more powerful than the Shapeless Whip. The spear¡¯s handle was smooth and it was a pretty blue, simr to iron. The tip of the spear was very sharp and shone blue. It evoked fear in any onlooker.


    Long Chen stabilized his emotions and then went towards the Three Thousand Star Clusters. He knew that the Seven Star Lord was long dead, but Long Chen had won his approval afterprehending the Big Dipper Step. Next, all he had to do was take the weapon.


    The nearer he got, the stronger its aura felt. It was a divine weapon that could not be used by an ordinary person. The immense pressureing from it resembled the previous domain¡¯s power, preventing him from getting closer!


    If he did not have the Big Dipper Step, he would not have been able to get the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Using the Big Dipper Step, he easily approached it. Ripples of blue light flowed on its surface, making it beautiful. This was his first time seeing something so magnificent. Of course, it was no simple weapon. Based on the glint from its spearhead, countless people had surely fallen victim to it.


    Long Chen slowly reached out, then gently held the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Suddenly, an icy chill spread through his arm. It was like a thorn trying to prick him so he would let go.


    But he did not let go. He chose to bear the intense pain instead. The Three Thousand Star Clusters also had its own pride. Ordinary people did not have the right to own it.


    Rays of blue starlight spread over his body until he was covered with shining starlight. He had be a star himself, shining with bright light.


    ¡°This weapon has generated a sense of self-governance. You may choose to drip your blood on it for it to recognize you as its master. That way, you will add your blood seal to the Three Thousand Star Clusters,¡± exined Little Cat.


    Long Chen hummed in response. No one in the world was better than him at controlling their own blood. He only needed to generate an intention, and his blood flowed out of his hand and into the Three Thousand Star Clusters, which absorbed it.


    Long Chen took the opportunity to merge his essence into the weapon. He could slowly sense the world within the Three Thousand Star Clusters. It was a vast, starry world with nothing but countless spinning stars.


    When his blood waspletely absorbed into the Three Thousand Star Clusters, an additional blood-red line appeared on the spear, which twisted until it turned into a faint, blood-red dragon on the handle. From this, Long Chen realized that he now hadplete control over the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    It was as if it was now part of his arm. Previously, he had used the same method for the Profound Golden Soul to recognize him as its master. Of course, the Three Thousand Star Clusters contained much more power than the Profound Golden Soul.


    He felt like with the Three Thousand Star Clusters in his hand, he could even fight cultivators at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. However, just a simple wave of the Three Thousand Star Clusters required an unimaginable amount of essence.


    Now that I have the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, the time has finallye for me to rise to glory. The most important thing now is to rejuvenate my Martial Soul, which is currently injured. If I don¡¯t, the Martial God Tombstone will be useless to me!


    Long Chen was clear about his current condition.


    The most important thing was for his Martial Soul to recover, then he could tend to other matters.


    It did not matter if it was Feng Zhilin, Wu Guangyu, or the masters of the Nine Great ns. Long Chen would show them that thepetition in the Ancient Graveyard did not only involve the nine ns, but also him!


    Of course, his true objective was to pass through the Ancient Graveyard to the Royal Territory!


    His short-term goal was to get as powerful as possible in the Ancient Graveyard. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was not enough. He still had one more trump card in his hands, which was the Prismatic Key!


    I wonder if the treasure of the Five Emperors truly exists. Long Chen¡¯s lips curled into an excited smile.


    He did not dwell on this matter. He looked at the shining blue Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    ¡°Return!¡± he said gently, and the Three Thousand Star Clusters exploded into three thousand dots of starlight, which merged with his body. The tiny stars merged with his skin. He felt like he was wearing a full suit of armor as the toughness of his body becameparable to an advanced King-tier body tempering technique.

 Chapter 742 – Meeting Wu Guangyu Again

    <h4>Chapter 742 ¨C Meeting Wu Guangyu Again</h4>


    Long Chen had not expected the Three Thousand Star Clusters to provide this additional benefit.


    If hepleted the cultivation of the Seven Star Body, the effects would be even more terrifying.


    The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is already quite powerful. I wonder what will be inside the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure ...


    The Five Emperors were Divine Martial Realm-level masters of the Middle Ages, so there was no way their treasure would be simple. Just the Five Emperor Seals were already terrifying. If he could acquire treasures of the other three elements, the merging of the Five Emperor Seals would allow for an attack technique that would surpass ordinary Emperor-tierbat techniques.


    After he put away the Three Thousand Star Clusters, he started thinking about the way out, but then he realized that the whole tomb was shaking.


    Oh no! The tomb is copsing! Long Chen realized that the tomb was likely going to be destroyed after he took the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. The Seven Star Lord had not left behind instructions on how to get out. Did that mean he was about to be buried inside the blue?


    The whole tomb trembled and chunks of what looked like rocks fell and shattered, throwing dust into the air.


    Long Chen ran towards the outside, but then a force started acting on his body. Before he realized it, this transporter-like energy transported him outside. When he realized what was happening, he was already standing in the Metal District.


    He had been transported right outside the iron graveyard. Blood was still everywhere. A whole month had passed, and many people had discovered this ce. Quite a few people were around, and when Long Chen appeared out of thin air, he instantly attracted everyone¡¯s attention!


    There were many masters present, some even more powerful than Feng Zhilin.


    Next to Long Chen, Feng Zhilin also appeared amidst bright starlight. They were the only ones.


    The other five people who had entered were dead.


    The domain had probably vanished before the tomb copsed. That was why Feng Zhilin had already put on the clothing that Long Chen stripped off. Of course, due to theck of time, she looked disheveled, like she had just been sullied ....


    Thankfully, she acted quickly enough that no one saw her exposed body, as she wrapped herself tightly. The moment she appeared, she first wrapped her clothing around herself, then searched for Long Chen. She knew that if she was ejected, Long Chen would be too. Another ray of starlight appeared next to her, which told her that Long Chen had appeared about ten meters away from her.


    The Shapeless Whip appeared in her hand instantly and she charged at him furiously!


    ¡°Goodbye.¡± He chuckled coldly. He had arrived first, and when she attacked, he was sufficiently prepared. Using the Profound Golden Soul, he burrowed into the iron ground, where he could move very quickly. The Shapeless Whip brushed past the top of his head, making the iron structures around them explode and turn into iron crumbs.


    ¡°Sister Zhilin!¡± At the veryst moment, Long Chen heard a familiar voice and saw its owner out of the corner of his eye. As expected, it was the Divine n¡¯s young master, Wu Guangyu. This was the person he could not wait to kill, even in his dreams. He knew that this was not the time yet, so he did not choose to fight Wu Guangyu now!


    He also spotted Xiang, who was in human form and was standing obediently behind Wu Guangyu. His gaze was numb and violent, like a regr demonic beast. But the moment he spotted Long Chen, there was a sh of human emotion and worry in them.


    Xiang and Long Chen had been apart for about two months. He was naturally very worried about his older brother, but he could not escape the Divine young master¡¯s control. He was waiting for the day Long Chen came for him. Furthermore, the young master was under the impression that Xiang hadpletely submitted to him and had given him a lot of fire to swallow.


    Long Chen sensed that Xiang¡¯s aura had already reached Category Six King-tier levels. Long Chen was pleased with this. He knew that the next time they met, Xiang would be even stronger. That would be when the brothers would take revenge on the young master.


    The Divine n¡¯s young master did not know the saying, ¡°rearing a tiger will be a future crisis.¡±


    ¡°Big Brother, run!¡± When Long Chen suddenly appeared, Xiang used thenguage of beasts to hurriedly warn him. Long Chen did not say anything, but he gave Xiang a confident and smug smile, then he vanished. Although they did not have time to converse, Xiang understood. Judging by Long Chen''s gaze, he had confidence in their future.


    And he was confident in Long Chen.


    Indeed, Long Chen escaped Feng Zhilin and the Divine n¡¯s young master just like that. After Long Chen left, Xiang looked towards Feng Zhilin, who was furious, red in the face from rage, and her clothing was disheveled. When he saw her like this, he thought in surprise, Did Long Chen get with her in that tomb?


    Xiang was not the only one who thought that way, but it was only a brief thought for the others. With just a nce, they could tell that there was arge gap between the two¡¯s abilities. With Feng Zhilin¡¯s strength, how could Long Chen have possibly touched her?


    After Long Chen left, the crowd that was attracted to themotion looked at each other, not knowing what had just happened. The Divine n¡¯s young master appeared by Feng Zhilin¡¯s side. When he saw the state she was in, his handsome face froze for a moment. Confused, he asked, ¡°Sister Zhilin, what happened to you?¡±


    As he spoke, he reached out with both hands, wanting to support Feng Zhilin. Unexpectedly, Feng Zhilin took two steps backwards. While she straightened her clothing, she said coldly, ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    She had always treated Wu Guangyu like this. Her coldness and arrogance were famous across the nine ns. This made Wu Guangyu both love and hate her.


    Feng Zhilin refused to give him face despite being in front of so many people. This privately infuriated him, but when he saw her disheveled state and thought about all the possibilities, his face turned green. His voice turned cold and he asked, ¡°Who was that guy? It¡¯s been a month since you went in. What happened in there? What about the Wind n¡¯s honorary guest, Lady Snow?¡±


    ¡°You haven¡¯t told me why you¡¯re here.¡± Feng Zhilin ignored his question and looked at him cautiously.


    ¡°Your grandfather was the one who asked me toe here. When I went to Giant Metal City to meet you, your grandfather told me where you were. After I came here, I spent a huge amount of effort to learn from someone that you¡¯d already gone inside. That¡¯s why I waited here,¡± said Wu Guangyu.


    By this time, Feng Zhilin had already finished straightening her clothing. She said in a low voice, ¡°Weren¡¯t you off searching for the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡±


    Wu Guangyu grinned smugly. ¡°I¡¯ve already gotten the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. With my strength andprehension abilities, I will reach the Heavenly Martial Realm soon. Then no one else in the younger generation will be a match for me!¡± A confident light shone in his eyes as he spoke.


    This light made Feng Zhilin¡¯s heart clench. He had already obtained the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. She sensed that if she continued to treat him coldly and made him angry, it would cause trouble for her!


    When she saw that his expression was starting to sour, she quickly abandoned her cold tone and said gently, ¡°The Azure Lotus Lord and the White Lotus Fairy were the only pair of lovers among the Seven Lords, and the Divine n has obtained both their inheritances. It looks like the Divine n will be the number one n of the Nine Great ns! Congrattions!¡±


    Wu Guangyu said, ¡°The Divine n and the Wind n are of the same faction, and when you and I wed, we will be even closer as a family. But you haven¡¯t told me what happened here yet. Who was that guy?¡±


    Feng Zhilin took a deep breath. The moment she thought of him, rage and hatred burned in her heart. But the moment she recalled what happened in that domain, her face turned red with both rage and embarrassment. That was the most painful memory of her life!


    ¡°That bastard has fled. There are too many people here, so I¡¯ll exin as we walk. This time, I think it¡¯ll require all the military might of the Wind n and the Divine n,¡± said Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°Are you talking about the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡± Wu Guangyu had guessed it based on the seven star tes.


    Along the way, Feng Zhilin briefly exined what had happened and her experience in the tomb. However, she lied about the part where Long Chen humiliated her, saying the violent energy in the domain tore at her clothing. As for Long Chen, she did not know how he had passed through the domain to get the inheritance either!


    This matter about the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance could not be leaked out yet, or it could trigger a battle between the nine ns. That was why she had only told Wu Guangyu.


    ¡°Sister Zhilin, you¡¯ve told me so much, but who is that mysterious teenager? Is he a member of the nine ns?¡± Wu Guangyu understood that Feng Zhilin could not be med for her bad mood after hearing her story. If Wu Guangyu had experienced such a frustrating event, he would have gone mad too.

 Chapter 743: Desolate Royal Territory

    Wu Guangyu let go of his previous worries. After some thought, it made sense. He could tell at a nce that the guy that hade out was only at the Fourth Earthly Martial Stage at most. How could a weakling sully an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator who had a divine weapon like the Shapeless Whip?


    Could an ant sully an elephant?


    Of course not.


    So Wu Guangyu let go of his concerns and did not me Feng Zhilin anymore. But there was one thing. The Wind and Divine ns were part of the same faction, so the stronger Feng Zhilin was, the more beneficial she was to him. Feng Zhilin initially had the great potential of bing a superstrong cultivator, and she even had a chance to be on the same level as himself. It was a pity that she had missed this chance.


    It was an amazing opportunity to get both the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, yet it had been snatched away by an unknown figure. What a pity!


    Although Wu Guangyu did not speak, he mocked her in his heart. <em>Other than Mother, it is indeed true that very few females arepetent at all. I initially had high hopes for Feng Zhilin, but it looks like she¡¯s aplete idiot. It was such a good opportunity, yet it was snatched away by a Third Earthly Martial Stage weakling.</em>


    After Feng Zhilin was silent for a while, she said, ¡°That guy. You know him. You¡¯ve met him before.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve met him before?¡± Now it was Wu Guangyu¡¯s turn to be stunned. Exasperated, he asked, ¡°Where would I have met such a weak cultivator? Are you joking?¡±


    Then heughed.Feng Zhilin did notugh. She looked past him at Xiang, then she smirked coldly and said, ¡°I¡¯m not joking. You snatched this demonic wolf away from him. Didn¡¯t you also let him run away?¡±


    After Wu Guangyu heard her, a person popped into his mind. He¡¯d long forgotten about him. When Feng Zhilin mentioned it, he finally recalled Long Chen and was immediately shocked. What Feng Zhilin had said was hard to believe.


    ¡°That brat was him? How is it possible that he had the ability to pull that off? Impossible, impossible ¡­¡±


    ¡°Hehe. And he even said that he¡¯ll take revenge on you one day.¡± Feng Zhilin paused. Her brows were furrowed as she walked, then she said, ¡°He has the Profound Golden Soul, so he can burrow through the ground in the Metal District. The moment he goes above ground or enters another district, he won¡¯t be able to run. The Metal District is almost entirely considered the Wind n¡¯s territory. I¡¯m going back to Giant Metal City. I¡¯ll ask my grandfather to summon all the men and horses of the Wind n to search for Long Chen. Since you¡¯ve just arrived and you don¡¯t have any matters at hand,e help me take back the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance!


    Wu Guangyu was still in shock. He recalled what Long Chen once said to him. At the time, he thought of it as a joke, but now he saw that this guy had extraordinary luck and mental fortitude. If he really got hold of the Martial God Tombstone and the inheritance, perhaps he would actually be a problem to him.


    With that thought, Wu Guangyu clenched his fists and cried, ¡°I¡¯m definitely helping you. After we find him, I¡¯ll kill him personally!¡±


    ¡°No, I will chop him to pieces, then spread his ashes!¡± Feng Zhilin gave a look of seething hatred.


    Behind them, Xiang gave a faint smile.


    <em>These two idiots!</em>


    ***


    Using the Profound Golden Soul, Long Chen burrowed into the ground once more. He was overwhelmed with emotion after seeing Wu Guangyu and Xiang. He was feeling a bit relieved after he saw that Xiang was still safe and that Wu Guangyu had been tricked by Xiang into thinking that Xiang was loyal to him. On the day Long Chen returned stronger, Wu Guangyu would learn just how stupid he was for wasting his resources on making Xiang stronger.


    Despite that, Long Chen was unable to rx. He knew that Xiang was¡¯t enjoying following Wu Guangyu around. If it was not for the fact that Wu Guangyu was too powerful, he would have long returned to Long Chen. That was why Long Chen felt huge pressure. He knew that he had to be much stronger so that Feng Zhilin and Wu Guangyu would see who got thestugh.


    If he wanted to be stronger, he would need to find soul-nourishing herbs to heal and rejuvenate his injured Martial Soul. Then he could work towards a higher goal.


    <em>The metal sand is everywhere in the Metal District. It¡¯s probably very difficult for herbs to grow here. That is why divine weapons and treasures are moremonly found here. The Wood District likely has many spiritual herbs.</em>


    <em>I have gotten the Profound Golden Soul, and Feng Zhilin will not give up on the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and the Martial God Tombstone easily. She probably thinks I will stay in the Metal District, but for the sake of spiritual herbs, I must go to the Wood District. Good luck searching for me!</em>


    His new goal was the Wood District.


    After making his decision, Long Chen went towards the Wood District. When he noticed that his surroundings were no longer metal sand, but fertile ck soil, he knew he had arrived. The Profound Golden Soul was useless to him now as it could not make him move any faster. He no longer had the advantage that helped him flee from Feng Zhilin and the others. Therefore, Long Chen returned to the surface once more.


    He was very famous in the Metal District but guessed that very few would recognize him in the Wood District. It was a vast area with only about two thousand people. Among them were about three to four hundred people from the Nine Great ns, while the rest were regr cultivators. Long Chen was currently at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, which was considered the weakest level among the regr cultivators. The previous bout of Blood Sacrifice had knocked him back down to his initial state.


    Thankfully, with the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, he could quickly grow stronger. Long Chen started his search for spiritual herbs in the lush Wood District. In a nutshell, the Metal District was filled with cold metal, while the Wood District was filled with trees and beautiful, lush scenery. This was exactly what Long Chen liked.


    <em>Feng Zhilin will probably take several days to realize that I so bravely left for the Wood District. By then, I will be deep into the Wood District. There are five districts in the Ancient Graveyard and she doesn¡¯t know my Martial Soul is injured, so how would she know that I would enter the Wood District? There are probably gathering points like Iron Cities here. I need to search for them and see if anyone has soul nourishing herbs and is willing to trade with me.</em>


    Long Chen trekked deeper into Wood District.


    It had been more than two months since he arrived in the Ancient Graveyard. Most people were scattered in various corners of the Ancient Graveyard, searching for treasures. Unless he went to cities like the Iron Cities, it would be difficult to meet anyone.


    There were many demonic beasts in the Wood District, but Long Chen had the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so he could easily avoid them. Many were Category Six and Seven King-tier beasts, even as high as Category Eight!


    If ordinary cultivators without the Soul Swallowing Gaze approached them recklessly, they would surely die. Long Chen could travel safely because of it.


    Nothing with a soul could escape his sight.


    Long Chen spotted a Category Three King-tier demonic beast just five hundred meters away. It was not strong enough to be a threat to him, so he approached bravely. When he did, he was astonished to find that the beast was an ancient tree that stood tall on the ground.


    <em>I never thought that a nt could also undergo demonification to be a demonic beast. </em>Long Chen peered at it curiously. In some obscure parts of the tree, he spotted the beast¡¯s eyes, ears, and other body parts. These features were a little different from those of humans and other demonic beasts, but in general, it had everything an ordinary beast had.


    <em>It looks like this is just a demonic beast with nt skin. Internally, it¡¯s basically the same as other demonic beasts.</em>


    Demonic beasts at the King-tier and above could take on a human form. Long Chen waited for a while and saw the ancient tree suddenly turn into a human. It was ugly in human form, with many tree-like features. Even its hair was made of green leaves. It looked both grotesque and cartoonish.


    <em>There really are all sorts of oddities in this world, </em>mused Long Chen.


    Little Cat chuckled and said, ¡°You know too little. You think demonic beasts are just powerful wild beasts. You don¡¯t know that one of the Three Royal Territories, the Deste Royal Territory, ispletely controlled by demonic beasts, though they call themselves the demon race! The demon race is a terrifying race to you. There are ten thousand species and they all have their own talents. In theory, the Deste Royal Territory is actually the most powerful of the three. The other two Royal Territories are ruled over by humans, while the Deste Royal Territory only has demonic beasts. The other two Royal Territories have not been able to achieve unity, yet the demon race independently rules over an area. Do you understand how extraordinary that is?¡±


    ¡°Deste Royal Territory?¡± Long Chen was surprised. He had never heard of this before. After demonic beasts reached the King-tier, they could take on a human form, thus calling themselves the demon race. Almost all the demonic beasts in the Deste Royal Territory could take human form. The stronger they were, the more they resembled humans.


    ¡°Just like this tree. In the Deste Royal Territory, there is a very powerful type of beast called the Ancient Life Tree race. They have a certain immortal quality, wherein they cane back to life despite being chopped into multiple sections. Legends say that the Ancient Life Tree race possesses the blood of one of the Ten Ancestral Dragons, the Dragon of Life and Creation, in their veins ¡­¡±


    Long Chen started to look forward to getting there. He could tell that that was thergest stage there was in the whole Dragon Continent, where the demon and human races fought for power. Millions of races were present there. Those who gathered at the Three Royal Territories were the true masters!

 Chapter 744: Dream Demon

    Long Chen was in the Wood District.


    He spent the next several more days trekking even deeper, spotting more demonic beasts during his journey. nt-type beasts made up the majority, and all of them were bizarre. They were King-tier demonic beasts, and even though they took on a human form, arge part of their bodies still looked like their original forms. Only Xiang could execute this in an excellent fashion. Despite also being a King-tier beast himself, he looked exactly like a human without a hint of beast when he changed forms.


    Along the way, Long Chen also witnessed a lot of killing. More specifically, evidence left behind after the killing. The humans had died one or two months ago, and their bodies had been carried off by demonic beasts. Only huge messes remained.


    This showed how violent the killing was in the Ancient Graveyard.


    It was no wonder only hundreds emerged despite ten thousand people entering every time.


    Long Chen saw many spiritual herbs during this time too. However, only one of them had soul-nourishing properties. It was too bad that it was only an elementary King-tier herb, so it was not enough for his Martial Soul to recover. Having no other choice, Long Chen continued to advance forward. He estimated that only an intermediate King-tier spiritual herb could help him recover.


    As he trekked ahead, he finally saw a city with people in it. An extremely tall tree appeared in front of him, and the width of its trunk far surpassed Long Chen¡¯s imagination. The part of the trunk in front of him was like an endless wall!


    <em>Are cities in the Wood District built on gigantic trees like that? </em>Long Chen looked up in astonishment. The crown of the tree covered the whole sky above him. This was his first time seeing a tree like this!


    He faintly saw the shadow of a city on the gigantic tree.In the Metal District, cities were built in the form of Iron Cities, so even the insides of the cities were made of iron. The cities of the Wood District were even more bizarre, being built on giant trees.


    <em>I wonder who used to live in the Ancient Graveyard. Both the Iron City and this city on the gigantic tree are fascinating.</em>


    Long Chen mulled over this while heading towards the city above his head. If there was a city, there were sure to be people inside. Then his chances of finding the spiritual herbs he needed would be higher.


    Furthermore, he did not know the general situation of the Wood District. Which of the Nine Great ns had control over the Wood District? This was crucial information for him. After he recovered his Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivation level, he would immediately search for a hiding ce to start studying the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Long Chen moved very quickly. It only took a few breaths¡¯ time to rush up to the city on the tree. After he leaped over the city walls, he entered and looked across the whole city. He saw crisscrossing branches everywhere, and this city seemed very quiet. There were some houses built from boulders, though most were wooden houses. Based on its silhouette, this city must have been beautiful many years ago. Right now, it was dpidated and had turned into a pile of ruins.


    He used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to search for any signs of humans in the city. By the looks of it, this city had not been taken over by any of the Nine Great ns yet. As a result, few regr cultivators woulde to this city in search of protection. However, Long Chen guessed that there would still be people here.


    He walked through the city while using the Soul Swallowing Gaze. Very soon, he found one person, but to his surprise, this person¡¯s breath was extremely weak. He was on the brink of death. He had also met a dying man when he had just arrived at the Seven Star Lord¡¯s. He had not expected to meet another one here.


    <em>Is he dying because of a fight? </em>Long Chen was speechless. Frankly, the Ancient Graveyard was like a meat grinder. Ten thousand people entered, but only hundreds exited. Most people would die due to attacks from demonic beasts or fighting over treasures. Some people would even die because they could not turn their Ancient Tokens golden.


    Long Chen immediately went towards the person. Soon, he saw him through his Soul Swallowing Gaze, but he came across many corpses on the ground before that. These people must have killed each other. Many bodies had fatal wounds.


    It seemed like a violent massacre had taken ce before he arrived.


    What puzzled Long Chen was the strange expression on each body, which looked like they had experienced something extremely terrifying before they died. Everyone had an expression of terror.


    <em>They died in a state of terror. Did they encounter something?</em>


    Long Chen checked carefully and realized that they had died very recently. He went over to the only person who was still alive, who was located inside a wooden house that looked like it was about to copse. It was a frail middle-aged man covered in gashes and barely breathing. His eyes were not even open, and he was waiting for death. When he heard Long Chen¡¯s footsteps, he started, then he saw the teenage stranger.


    Long Chen was curious about what had happened here. When he saw that the man was still barely alive, he stood next to him and asked, ¡°What happened here?¡±


    The middle-aged man struggled to look at Long Chen for a long while, then he opened his mouth and said with great difficulty, ¡°There¡¯s a cat ¡­ It¡¯s terrifying ¡­ It makes people hallucinate ¡­ Then they kill each other ¡­¡±


    ¡°A cat?¡± Long Chen was stunned.


    In the Primordial Realm, Little Cat chuckled when he heard the man. ¡°A cat who knows hallucinatory magic? It must be the little demonic beast called the Dream Demon. I did not expect the Ancient Graveyard to have an interesting demonic beast like that. I can use it as my body for a while. Hey, kid, go catch the Dream Demon for me!¡±


    Based on what Little Cat had said, it seemed like the cause of this tragic situation was a cat who knew magic?


    ¡°Hey ¡­ kid. You should go. If you get caught in its ¡­ spell, you will see ¡­ terrifying things. It will drive you mad ¡­¡± warned the middle-aged man out of kindness.


    He was severely injured, so much so that even Long Chen would not be able to save him. After speaking, the man stopped breathing.


    Long Chen exited the wooden house without saying another word. Using his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he started to search for the beast in the city on the gigantic tree.


    <em>Fat Cat seemed to imply that he could possess the Dream Demon¡¯s body. Since Fat Cat has helped me a lot so far, I might as well help him now.</em>


    Long Chen also knew that if Fat Cat could have the Dream Demon¡¯s body, he would also be able to help Long Chen. Based on the catastrophic mess, that was no simple beast.


    ¡°Fat Cat, what kind of beast is the Dream Demon?¡± asked Long Chen as he hurried along.


    Little Cat grinned and said, ¡°Its tier isn¡¯t that high at all, but it has a fascinating ability to use hallucinatory magic on people. The Dream Demon is only at Category Nine Heaven tier. It is not a King-tier beast. If a strong cultivator gets close to it, just a gentle strike can kill it. However, I must admit that its magic is very impressive. Just take a look around and you¡¯ll understand. Many Fourth and Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators have been killed by it.¡±


    Little Cat was usually a haughty fellow, yet he was praising a Category Nine Heaven-tier beast. This meant it was sure to be extraordinary. Although it was not as talented as the Sun Devouring Wolf, it had its strengths. Little Cat also seemed to be very excited, which was rare as he had always been mysterious. Long Chen wanted to try his best to search for the Dream Demon, so he was going to check whether it was still in the city.


    Since they were on a gigantic tree, it had a limited range. If the Dream Demon did not move too quickly, Long Chen would be able to find it.


    ¡°Little Cat, are you saying that you can enter the Dream Demon¡¯s body and use its abilities?¡± asked Long Chen while searching.


    ¡°Naturally. I am a powerful god. Why wouldn¡¯t I be able to do something so simple? Not only will I take over its body, I can also magnify its abilities! The next time you fight someone, I can secretly use my magic on the guy. I¡¯m going to be so much more useful than that little ck dog!¡± said Fat Cat smugly while holding his big belly.


    ¡°Do you have any limitations? For example, if someone kills the Dream Demon, will you die too?¡± probed Long Chen.


    ¡°Do you think I¡¯m cabbage?[1] How could I die so easily? If that body is killed, I can return to the Primordial Realm unscathed. To be honest, my soul is sealed in the Primordial Realm. That is why even if I take over its body, I won¡¯t be able to roam more than a hundred meters away from you.¡±


    Long Chen was fascinated. It was no wonder why Little Cat usually talked so much smack but still stayed in the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°I¡¯m only taking over the Dream Demon¡¯s body for fun. When I get tired of it, I can toss it away. When the mood strikes me again, I¡¯ll just take over another body!¡± said Fat Cat haughtily.


    1. Cabbage = Chinese ng referring to a beginner ?

 Chapter 745: Nightmare

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you could do that?¡± asked Long Chen.


    This ability was extraordinary. In the future, couldn¡¯t he just ask Little Cat to possess any terrifying beast¡¯s body when they encountered one?


    ¡°About that ¡­ Haha. It¡¯s because the Dream Demon has some strange powers and, like me, it looks like a cat. That¡¯s why I¡¯m paying more attention to this. As for the other demonic beasts, they¡¯re all hideous. I would never be interested in possessing their bodies!¡±


    Long Chen suddenly understood. ¡°I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s because the Dream Demon is only at the Category Nine Heaven tier; that¡¯s why you can take advantage of it. As for the other beasts, if you dared touch them, they¡¯d beat you up for it!¡±


    Fat Cat was appalled that Long Chen had guessed it right. ¡°Hey, brat, you know nothing! Before I was sealed in the Primordial Realm, I had powers you wouldn¡¯t be able toprehend. I collected a lot of energy after all these years with great effort, but I used all of it to save Baitang Town. How dare you say such a thing? It makes me mad!¡±


    Despite Fat Cat looking so flustered, Long Chen ignored him. He continued searching the city. Suddenly, he spotted his target through the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    ¡°Based on the soul¡¯s aura, I think it¡¯s the Dream Demon. It hasn¡¯t left this ce yet. Little Cat, I¡¯ll leave it up to youter. If the Dream Demon uses its magic on me, I won¡¯t be able to withstand it!¡±


    Fat Cat came out of the Primordial Realm and said impatiently, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Just take me over there and leave everything to me.¡±


    Long Chen quickly covered the distance of five hundred meters. He wove through the dpidated wooden houses and soon arrived at his destination. He did not reveal himself instantly, but instead hid in a dark area to observe for a while. He first saw an old man with a battle knife in his hand. The old man¡¯s hair and beard were white and he had a look of terror and viciousness. His eyes were bloodshot and he was waving his sword madly, chopping down many wooden houses without stopping. One by one, wooden houses copsed and shattered due to his crazed shing, and even thick tree branches exploded from the impact!


    ¡°Hu Yidao! Die! Die! How dare you kill my wife and son? Die!¡± the old man kept shouting as blinding light erupted from his knife. His surroundings were a mess.


    Long Chen finally understood how those people had died. The Dream Demon was only a Category Nine Heaven-tier beast thatcked the power to kill them directly, but it could disrupt a person¡¯s mind and immerse them in hatred.


    Not just hatred, but they could be immersed in all sorts of desires too. The old man was lost in hatred.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze passed the old man andnded on a dark corner behind him. There was a wooden house whose door had fallen off and was leaning haphazardly against a wall. There were many shadows on the ground, and one was only the size of a palm, so its owner was surely no bigger than that.


    ¡°My little baby¡­ It¡¯s there ¡­¡± Little Cat cried excitedly.


    They were thirty meters away, so the Dream Demon did not hear Little Cat¡¯s creepy remark. Long Chen¡¯s eyes were fixed in that direction. After a while, the old man¡¯s essence was almost exhausted and the shadow in the dark area moved. A little ball of fur emerged.


    Long Chen peered closely and realized that it was a little ck cat. It was a bit plump and very furry, about the size of a palm. It sat on the ground and stared at the old man curiously with itsrge, ck eyes. While the old man was going crazy, it started and retracted its neck to its shoulders, making it look adorable.


    Long Chen did not know that such an adorable beast could be a merciless killer. It looked at the old man like it was terrified of him. People who did not know what it had done would likely think that it really felt that way, but in reality, the old man was fully under its control.


    The Dream Demon had to have an extraordinary ability to have such a name ¡­


    When that old man was about to cut his own neck with his knife, Long Chen hurried Little Cat and said, ¡°You should move quickly. Let¡¯s not drag this until after he kills himself.¡±


    Little Cat snickered and said, ¡°Hey, idiot, don¡¯t you know that heroes only appear at thest second? I want to wait until his knife touches his neck, then we¡¯ll talk!¡±


    ¡°Get the hell over there!¡± raged Long Chen.


    His sudden shout startled the Dream Demon. When it detected the sound, it suddenly looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction cautiously. At that moment, Long Chen saw its eyes turn into gigantic, ck whirlpools that were going to suck him in!


    <em>It¡¯s a hallucination! That little thing is using magic on me! </em>Long Chen was stunned for a moment, but he came to his senses instantly. He quickly put his guard up to prevent himself from being affected by the Dream Demon. He had seen what it could do; even Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators could not put up a fight against it, let alone Long Chen.


    ¡°Brother Chen!¡± Long Chen suddenly heard a voice. In the beginning, he thought he had imagined it because it was undeniably Ling Xi¡¯s voice. This voice had been buried deep in his heart for a very long time. When he heard it, his longing poured out like floodwater.


    He suddenly realized he had not fallen for the Dream Demon¡¯s spell yet, as he was still in the city on the giant tree. His surroundings were exactly the same. The Dream Demon looked at Long Chen, then trembled in fear and ran off with its tail between its legs.


    Long Chen whipped his head around, then he felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He saw a teenage girl in a long, white dress standing amidst an ethereal mist. She gazed at him emotionally as tears filled her eyes.


    This was the person he thought of day and night, his woman, Ling Xi!


    ¡°Brother Chen!¡± It was such a familiar voice. Every expression and every movement was identical to his memory! Long Chen would never forget those details. He knew that despite how powerful the Dream Demon was, it would not be able to recreate Ling Xi in such aplete manner. Plus, the Dream Demon had run away already. Long Chen still had his sense of touch. He could feel the surrounding warmth and sunlight, and the toughness of the wood beneath his feet. Furthermore, because the Dream Demon had run away, the old man next to him had recovered. With his knife in hand, the old man stared at Long Chen and Ling Xi.


    The girl looked at Long Chen with tears in her eyes, speechless.


    Long Chen really wanted to call out her name, but his voice could not leave his throat. He realized his throat was blocked and could not make a sound, and he had no way of venting his longing. It was a miserable feeling.


    He wanted to stand up and pull her into his arms, but he could not.


    While he was in great pain, Ling Xi slowly walked up to him. When her fragrance wafted into his nostrils, he realized the beautiful girl was already standing in front of him.


    ¡°Brother Chen ¡­¡± A teardrop slid down from her eye. Long Chen looked up and watched her cry. Her tears made his heart ache. He reached out in a daze, wanting to hold her fair and slender fingers.


    Ling Xi wiped away her tears and took out the Ling Xi Sword from somewhere. Then her expression changedpletely from tears to a vicious sneer. She smirked at him mockingly and her cold voice rang in his ears!


    ¡°Long Chen, you¡¯re fantasizing too much! You¡¯re only trash from a lowly ce, while I am from the Swordsoul Pce of the Three Royal Territories. How could you have the right to be with me? To be honest, I never loved you. Everything that happened in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was just to coax you into getting me the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. I can¡¯t believe you actually believed me! Now, it is your time to die! I came to the Ancient Graveyard with only one goal, which is to kill you so that you won¡¯t go to the Royal Territory and disrupt my life!¡±


    Her voice was like a sharp knife stabbing his heart and body again and again until he was covered in wounds.


    He suddenly felt weak all over; even breathing was difficult. A suffocating feeling consumed him. Ling Xi¡¯s vicious expression, her mocking and contemptuous tone ¡­ He had never seen her like this. He had not even thought she could be like that.


    ¡°Die!¡± Ling Xi sneered and thrust the Ling Xi Sword into Long Chen¡¯s throat. It was a vicious strike with no hesitation. If Long Chen did not fight back, he would die!


    <em>Xiao Xi ¡­ She wants to kill me? She said I¡¯d be disrupting her life if I went to the Royal Territory? She looks down ¡­ she looks down on me? </em>Long Chen¡¯s eyes were filled with disbelief. It was too different from what he imagined. He thought Ling Xi would cry every day in the Royal Territory thinking about him. How could it be like this ¡­


    His heart was in great pain as he panted heavily and could, unable to make a single sound. He stared at her sword in a daze, which wasing determinedly at him. He looked at her contemptuous expression. Ling Xi was aplete stranger to him in this state!


    Long Chen was left in a daze, not knowing whether to dodge. But everything he had worked for was all for this woman. Now she did not need him anymore, so what was the meaning of living ¡­


    <em>Might as well die ¡­ </em>

 Chapter 746: Rainbow Lingzhi Mushroom

    Long Chen was deep in grief, biting his lip so hard that it bled. Ling Xi thrust her sword at him, but he did not dodge it.


    He was very familiar with the Ling Xi Sword. When he first met her, she was trapped in it, and he was the one who had rescued her from the sword and gave her a physical body using the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit. Long Chen suddenly recalled every detail of their time together.


    From the trials and tribtions since the day they met, to the stubbornness to remain together while they were pursued by the royal family of the Cangyang Kingdom, to their final separation. Every detail was deeply carved into his mind. The Ling Xi in his heart was kind, adorable, innocent, and loved deeply. She was willing to give up everything for his sake. This made Long Chen understand that Ling Xi would never act like this!


    ¡°No! You¡¯re not Ling Xi!¡± When the sword was about to pierce his throat, Long Chen burst into a furious roar with a change in expression and threw a punch at her!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    When Long Chen punched her abdomen, her face contorted in pain. Both the sense of touch in his fist and Ling Xi¡¯s expression of pain ¡­ It was all so real. Long Chen even felt a twinge of regret. He was a man, so he couldn¡¯t hit his woman no matter what!


    But when he punched Ling Xi, his surroundings shattered. Ling Xi soon turned into white light dots and disappeared from his sight. To his horror, he realized that his fingers were clutching his own neck, and they were squeezing hard, almost to the point of suffocating himself!


    ¡°How could this be!?¡± Long Chen felt strength return to his body. He stood up with a <em>whoosh</em> and looked around in a daze. Ling Xi had long disappeared, and only the fat Little Cat remained by his side.


    Little Cat looked at him mockingly and scolded, ¡°You¡¯re useless! You were about to strangle yourself to death for a woman. Thank goodness you woke up in the end, or I would not have saved you!¡±¡°What happened?¡± Long Chen still wasn¡¯t sure what had happened.


    ¡°I can¡¯t be bothered to tell you. I¡¯m going to retrieve my little Dream Demon!¡± said Little Cat, whose translucent body suddenly appeared in front of his eyes, then left. Long Chen looked in the direction where he had gone and saw a ck, furry cat suddenly dive to hide in the shadows in front.


    ¡°Dream Demon!¡±


    Long Chen suddenly recalled what had happened. <em>Didn¡¯t the Dream Demon run off just now? Why is it still here? </em>After collecting his thoughts, he was drenched in cold sweat because he understood that he had experienced the effects of the Dream Demon¡¯s magic.


    <em>What a terrifying spell! That was impressive. Everything was so real. Even Xiao Xi was exactly the same as the real her. If I had not woken up in the end, and Little Cat was not with me, that bastard would have killed me!</em>


    Long Chen was terrified by that thought.


    However, he was also thankful to the Dream Demon for giving him a chance to see Ling Xi again. Everything was so real that Long Chen almost wanted to be immersed in that world again.


    After a long time, he sighed and thought tiredly, <em>My mind is still not strong enough. The Dream Demon likely uses a person¡¯s memories to create dream scenarios. It knew that the softest spot in my heart was Ling Xi. That was why I was tricked. I even strangled myself ¡­</em>


    At least he had survived the ordeal.


    Long Chen now deeply understood how terrifying it was. It was no wonder Little Cat spoke so highly of it. Although it was a low-level beast, it had magical powers.


    Long Chen now knew why so many people had been killed by its magic in this city. Even the Control technique of the Soul Swallowing Gaze had many more limitations than this.


    He looked in the direction the Dream Demon had gone. The moment a mysterious character like Little Cat acted, the Dream Demon had to surrender no matter how strong it was. At this point, the tiny Dream Demon had already copsed on the ground in the dark corner with a white mist wrapped around it. The tiny beast had fainted. Little Cat would be the one controlling its body when it woke up.


    Little Cat was indeed quite terrifying.


    After Little Cat took control of the Dream Demon, the hallucinating old man also recovered. He had made many cuts on his own body, but thankfully, they were not fatal. After he woke up, he looked around in a daze and muttered, ¡°Where¡¯s Hu Yidao? Where¡¯s Hu Yidao? I almost killed him. Where has he gone?¡±


    He suddenly saw Long Chen and furrowed his brows. When he realized Long Chen was not his archnemesis, the fierceness in his expression faded slightly and he asked, ¡°Hey, kid, have you seen a big, tall man? Bald, has one eye!¡±


    The Dream Demon¡¯s magic was so powerful that the old man was still focused on the dream despite having woken up. Long Chen shook his head in exasperation and said, ¡°Do you know that there¡¯s a terrifying beast here? It can cast hallucinatory magic to create a world that immerses a person in desire and hatred so people start killing others or themselves in it.¡±


    The old man shuddered, then he looked around carefully. He seemed to recall something, and it looked like he was also aware of the Dream Demon and seen other victims. Then he understood what had happened. It was merely a dream that invoked strong feelings of longing. That was why it was difficult to wake up.


    Killing an enemy was the strongest satisfaction one could ever feel, and it was also a dream this old man had chased his whole life.


    The old man shook his head tiredly and sighed, then he looked at Long Chen. ¡°It¡¯s been more than twenty years. Hu Yidao has been dead for more than twenty years, and I am old. I can¡¯t believe I could be muddled by something like that. I really have gotten old. Young man, were you the one who chased away that terrifying beast?¡±


    Long Chen said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened either. After I came here, that beast, which looked like a ck cat, ran off.¡±


    ¡°No matter what, I still need to thank you. Everyone here is probably dead already. I didn¡¯t expect an old man like me to be lucky and survive. I¡¯ve gotten used to moving alone. After I saw all the dead people here, I wanted to merge my Ancient Token with theirs to make it turn golden. In the end, my Ancient Token turned gold, but I almost died.¡±


    Long Chen suddenly recalled that his Ancient Token had not turned golden yet.


    The old man took out many Universe Pouches and walked over to Long Chen, then he said, ¡°Young man, although they say there are no emotions in the Ancient Graveyard, only killing, you saved me today. I picked these from the other corpses, and I haven¡¯t had the time to look inside them. There are probably many treasures inside. They¡¯re all yours.¡±


    Long Chen declined hurriedly. ¡°You were the one who retrieved them. I cannot ept this. Then again, I didn¡¯t really help. The demonic beast fled on its own. I didn¡¯t do anything.¡±


    To be honest, those people¡¯s Universe Pouches would not have anything Long Chen needed. The old man was working alone and had a high chance of dying here; he was only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage too. It was more suitable for him to keep them.


    ¡°Young man, don¡¯t be all formal now. You¡¯re only at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, right? Without resources, you will never improve. And you¡¯re alone too. It¡¯s already a miracle that a young man like you without experience could live this long in the Ancient Graveyard.¡±


    Long Chen suddenly recalled something and said, ¡°Why don¡¯t we do this? I need a spiritual herb of the intermediate King-tier and above, one that can be used to nourish the soul. Can I search for it in these Universe Pouches?¡±


    ¡°Is that so ¡­ Alright.¡± Since Long Chen had declined the items, the old man did not insist. He generously ced all the Universe Pouches in front of Long Chen, who counted more than ten of them.


    He did not beat around the bush and directly searched them. After a while, Long Chen gave a grin of satisfaction because he found an intermediate King-tier spiritual herb.


    It was called the Rainbow Lingzhi Mushroom.


    This was a Lingzhi that shone with rainbow light and emitted a thick, medicinal fragrance. Long Chen felt refreshed when he smelled it.


    <em>This Rainbow Lingzhi should be able to heal my Martial Soul, but I¡¯m not sure how much it will heal. </em>Long Chen was very pleased with this find.


    After he put it in his Primordial Realm, he stood up.


    ¡°Young man, are you only taking one Rainbow Lingzhi? Don¡¯t you need these King Crystals, spiritual herbs, divine weapons, and scriptures?¡± the old man asked with surprise. There were many things in the Universe Pouches that tempted even the old man, yet Long Chen did not even show any expression when he saw them. How strong was the young man¡¯s discipline?


    ¡°I don¡¯t need them. This Rainbow Lingzhi is enough. I¡¯m giving the rest of it back to you,¡± Long Chen said with a nod and determination in his eyes.


    ¡°Alright!¡± said the old man, then he put the items away. Long Chen was very mysterious, and he found him to be a strange person. He suddenly thought of something and took out seven Ancient Tokens. He gave them to Long Chen and said, ¡°Here are seven Ancient Tokens. I¡¯m guessing your Ancient Token isn¡¯t golden yet. These are all for you. I think that will do. In the Ancient Graveyard, the hardest thing is to turn your Ancient Token golden. I got lucky this time; not only did I turn my Ancient Token golden, I also retrieved many items. Few people could get this lucky in the Ancient Graveyard ¡­¡± the old man remarked wistfully.


    ¡°Have you been in the Wood District all this time? May I ask where thergest city in the Wood District is?¡± asked Long Chen.

 Chapter 747: Heavenly Wood City

    The old man was speechless when he saw how Long Chen seemed to ignore the Ancient Tokens in his hands and was instead asking about the Wood District. He reminded Long Chen, ¡°Young man, these Ancient Tokens ¡­¡±


    Long Chen finally regarded the Ancient Token, and seeing as the old man was insistent, he hurriedly took them. He then took out his own Ancient Token, which was already half-golden.


    ¡°I see that yours is already half-golden. You¡¯re doing well for someone at your cultivation level. How did you get the other tokens? Were you lucky enough to pick them up like me?¡± asked the old man with surprise.


    Long Chen could not be bothered to exin, so he said, ¡°Indeed, I picked them up. If not, how could someone as weak as me have gotten this many Ancient Tokens? Thank you for your Ancient Tokens. I think this is enough to turn Ancient Token golden.¡±


    While they spoke, Long Chen merged them with his own. The gray tokens were soon swallowed by Long Chen¡¯s half-golden token. With every token merged, Long Chen¡¯s Ancient Token¡¯s golden color grew deeper.


    By the time Long Chen finished speaking, his whole token had turned golden.


    The old man gave a proud smile, then he said sternly, ¡°Do not let anyone else see your Ancient Token. Other people can turn their own tokens golden by merging theirs with only yours. That is why it will be a huge temptation to other people. You don¡¯t have much strength, so if you get targeted, it won¡¯t end well.¡±


    Long Chen nodded at the old man¡¯s reminder, though in reality, he was ignoring it. Many people were working hard to turn their Ancient Tokens golden, but Long Chen did not care. To him, this was an easy task. He was only at the Third Earthly Martial Stage when he arrived, and he would have easily turned his token golden after killing a few cultivators above his level.


    ¡°May I ask where thergest city in the Wood District is? And which of the Nine Great ns control it?¡±The old man thought for a moment and said, ¡°Thergest city in the Wood District is Heavenly Wood City, which is located at the center of the district. Right now, the whole Wood District is under the control of the two ns of the Thunder Demon Faction. Heavenly Wood City is naturally the faction¡¯s main base.¡±


    ¡°The Thunder Demon faction has only taken over the Wood District?¡± Long Chen was a little puzzled. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory had three main factions, namely the Five Element Alliance, the Thunder Demon Faction, and the Divine Wind Faction. As for the Divine Wind Faction, both the Wind and the Gold ns were fighting over the Metal District, while the Divine n hadpletely taken over the Fire District. This showed howbative each n was. The Thunder Demon faction kept a rtively low profile and was merely hiding in the Wood District. Long Chen did not know what they were nning.


    ¡°Who controls each of the five districts?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°The five districts? Let me think ¡­ I know that the Thunder Demon faction has merely stayed in the Wood District. The Wind n seems to have gone to the Metal District. The Divine n controls the Fire District. The Five Element Alliance has taken two districts, namely the Water and Earth Districts. As for the Metal District, the Wind and Gold ns are fighting over it.¡±


    Long Chen now had a clear understanding of how the factions were spread across the Ancient Graveyard. He had also obtained enough information from the old man, and after a small chat, the old man said, ¡°What are your ns from here out? Do you want to travel with me, or¡­?¡±


    Long Chen hurriedly smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m used to traveling alone and leaving my fate to the heavens. I do not fear death when I am in the Ancient Graveyard. If you¡¯ve got other matters to attend to, please go. I won¡¯t be going with you.¡±


    They had only just met. Although they had a good conversation going, the old man did not wish to travel with Long Chen either. He nodded and said, ¡°In that case, I shall leave. This city is very dangerous, young man. Even with the terrifying demonic beast gone, other people whoe here might guess that you¡¯ve taken the belongings of the dead. I think you should leave as soon as possible.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go now.¡± The old man nagged too much, but since he was only saying this for Long Chen¡¯s own good, Long Chen entertained him.


    The old man did not say anything else and left.


    After the old man was gone, Long Chen went up to Little Cat. The Dream Demon was lying on its back, and its fuzzy, round stomach was slightly heaving. It was still breathing, but its eyes were tightly shut and slightly twitching. Long Chen could tell that there was a brutal fight going on in its body!


    Of course, it was impossible for Little Cat to lose. After waiting for a while, the fuzzy creature got up from the ground and opened its huge eyes. They were like ck crystals, and it stared stupidly at Long Chen. After a while, sentience emerged in its eyes, and that was the moment Little Cat fully took control of the Dream Demon¡¯s body.


    ¡°Damn it! This little creature was really stubborn. I exhausted all the energy I¡¯ve been saving up for a long time because of it!¡± He paused and studied his body approvingly, then he lifted his fuzzy, pink paws to look at them. ¡°Although it¡¯s a bit ugly, not even one ten-thousandth as good-looking as me, this will do for the moment. Now I won¡¯t need to keep going back to that stupid Primordial Realm.¡±


    Then it leaped onto Long Chen¡¯s shoulder without asking permission, red at Long Chen with hisrge ck eyes, and said, ¡°Hey, brat, what are you looking at? I¡¯m still in a male body. Don¡¯t you dare think you can take advantage of me. Now you are my mount. Let¡¯s go!¡±


    ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± Long Chen stuck out a finger and flicked Little Cat¡¯s forehead. Little Cat hissed in pain and red at Long Chen angrily, making him look adorable.


    Actually, Long Chen was also d to see that Little Cat could have his own body.


    Long Chen leaped off the city on the gigantic tree, then turned to the ck cat on his shoulder and said, ¡°Now that you can control the Dream Demon¡¯s body, can you use its frightening hallucinatory magic?¡±


    ¡°Of course. I am a powerful god; this is peanuts to me. In the future, if you can¡¯t defeat an enemy, I can cast a spell and finish them off with ease!¡± Little Cat puffed his chest out confidently.


    ¡°Are there any limitations to the hallucinatory magic?¡± Long Chen did not believe that it could be this good. He had witnessed hallucinatory magic before, and it was a huge threat to him in his current stage.


    ¡°About that ¡­ I have limited power, simr to the Dream Demon. If an opponent is like you, I can cast the magic countless times. But the higher their cultivation level, the fewer times I can cast magic on them. Right now ¡­ I can only face a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. As for the others ¡­¡±


    Long Chen had expected this. If Little Cat could even defeat a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator, then there was no need for him to cultivate anymore. Even the Dream Demon was not as strong as that.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it though. I think I can use the little Dream Demon¡¯s body for a very long time. As I recover my strength, the magic will grow stronger. After a while, I will be able topletely surpass you,¡± Little Cat said smugly.


    Long Chen made a rough estimate of Little Cat¡¯sbat abilities based on his exnation. It was not bad at all. He would be a great supportive figure, and if he used those abilities well, the man-and-cat team could be a powerfulbination.


    The fact that Little Cat could put down his identity as the Reincarnation Beast to fight alongside Long Chen was a huge sign that he had epted Long Chen as a brother.


    <em>When Xiang gets back, the three of us brothers can fight alongside each other. Then no one in the Ancient Graveyard and the Three Royal Territories will be a match for us, haha! </em>There was a glint in Long Chen¡¯s eye.


    He now had the Rainbow Lingzhi. Once his strength hadpletely recovered, he would use the Martial Gold Tombstone to reach an even higher cultivation level and even receive the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. That would be the day the Divine n¡¯s young master would die!


    When it came to some people, Long Chen was satisfied with defeating them. For others, Long Chen felt like he had to kill them to vent his hatred. The Divine n¡¯s young master was in thetter category. If Long Chen did not kill him, he could not vent his hatred!


    Long Chen first found a hidden ce and carved out an obscure cave hidden amidst countless trees. Inside the cave, he took out the Rainbow Lingzhi, which was an intermediate King-tier spiritual herb.


    The Lingzhi shone with a gentle light, bathing the cave in beautiful colors.


    ¡°It does look good.¡± Long Chen smiled. However, he started to think of Ling Xi. Ling Xi had only been able to survive because she had cultivated soul-nourishing herbs. Subsequently, she was able to assist Long Chen in battle too.


    He had fallen for the hallucinatory spell at the city on the gigantic tree, and it was as if the real Ling Xi was right in front of him. Now that he had some time to quiet down, he reminisced on the hallucinations.


    <em>Ling Xi would never treat me like that. She will wait for me in the Royal Territory. </em>Long Chen was sure of this. When he thought about how there was such a great girl waiting for him there, he clenched his fists, feeling more determined to fight on than ever. He had to forge ahead bravely so that all those people who looked down on him knew they were mistaken.


    Not only would they be mistaken, but they would also be utterly shocked.


    Next, it was time to cultivate the Rainbow Lingzhi. As Long Chen refined the Lingzhi¡¯s spiritual energy, it quickly turned into medicinal power that nourished his Martial Soul.

 Chapter 748: Cold Lake

    As time passed, Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul slowly healed. Once all the medicinal power in the Rainbow Lingzhi had been spent, his Martial Soul had healedpletely.


    His Martial Soul had returned to its Fifth Earthly Martial Stage state.


    <em>In terms of essence, I am still at the Third Earthly Martial Stage, but my Martial Soul has recovered. Essence is simple to get. All I need to do is kill a few demonic beasts.</em>


    At this point, Long Chen only needed to regain enough essence to reach the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, then even a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator would be no match for him. Even now, he could fight a Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    Long Chen exited the mountain cave and went searching for demonic beasts to hunt. The Wood District had demonic beasts in abundance, especially ones that were at the Category Six King-tier and below.


    It didn¡¯t take much effort to find two Category Six King-tier Green Wind Leopards. He killed them using the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal, then used Blood Transmutation to absorb their blood. The two Green Wind Leopards were able to take human form, but they were covered with green patterns and moved very quickly when they did so. They had seen the Third Earthly Martial Stage Long Chen as prey, but in the end, they had turned into prey instead.


    After swallowing their blood, Long Chen sessfully reached the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage and was considered to have fully regained his previous strength. This meant that he could use the Martial Gold Tombstone and progress even further. He started to think about where he would go next.


    ¡°Little Cat, should I go find a ce to focus on studying the Martial God Tombstone now?¡± Although the little brat liked to brag, he still gave Long Chen great advice during key moments.


    ¡°There¡¯s one more thing I forgot to tell you,¡± said the little ck cat on his shoulder, rolling his eyes.¡°What is it?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance that you received contains the Seven Star Body. It¡¯s an intermediate Emperor-tier body tempering technique, so even cultivating it will be no simple feat. You need to guide the celestial Qi from the sky into your body in order to cultivate the Seven Star Body. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can take out that blue rock and try.¡±


    When Long Chen heard this, he hurriedly took out the blue rock. Previously, he had been focused on healing his Martial Soul, so he had momentarily forgotten about the inheritance. He immersed his whole mind into the rock, which was shaped like a heart organ. He faintly saw a vision of a human-shaped silhouette standing on the peak of a mountain controlling the violent energy of the stars in the sky so that it poured into his body. The celestial Qi was more terrifying than the Metal Devouring Wind from before, yet that person held on!


    The man took all the terrifying celestial Qi into his body.


    It was just a vision, but it was a massive shock to Long Chen. He paused for a second, then asked, ¡°Are you saying that I need to go to a very high ce to cultivate the Seven Star Body? Is that where I can guide the celestial Qi?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Little Cat nodded, then he said, ¡°Based on the terrain of the Wood District, the highest point should be in thergest city, which is controlled by the Thunder Demon Faction. You currently have many grudges against the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Element Alliance, so the Thunder Demon Faction is the only one you are neutral with. If you can form a good rtionship with them, you will have their support when you kill the Divine n¡¯s young masterter. Therefore, you must go to the Heavenly Wood City.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and felt like Little Cat made sense. He had to find a ce to improve himself anyway, so might as well go to Heavenly Wood City. If all he did was hide and study the Martial God Tombstone, he wouldn¡¯t find any strong opponents or get real battle experience. That would result in slow growth.


    Sometimes, learning from real battle was much better than thinking and meditating alone.


    Since he had already made his decision, Long Chen cultivated while heading towards Heavenly Wood City. Before the old man left, he had told Long Chen the directions to the city.


    He had heard that Heavenly Wood City was also built on a gigantic tree that was more than a hundred times thicker and taller than the previous city Long Chen was in. That was why Heavenly Wood City was also a hundred timesrger!


    The Thunder Demon Faction hadpletely taken over therge city. All the other cultivators in the Wood District would likely choose to be based in Heavenly Wood City too, so Long Chen expected it to be bustling. Since killing was banned there, he likely wouldn¡¯t have any issues as long as no one found out about the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Only the highest-level members of the Divine and Wind ns knew that he had obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Naturally, if they wanted to snatch it away from him, they would not advertise that he had it. If they did, other people would get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance instead.


    Long Chen knew that they were not that stupid.


    That was why he was not worried about his safety in Heavenly Wood City. Of course, he would need to be careful when he was cultivating with celestial Qi. Long Chen did not have a clear n right now. He would have to decide when he saw the situation for himself.


    If could not use the celestial Qi to cultivate, he could settle down in Heavenly Wood City since it was less hostile than the four other districts. He could also obtain a lot of information while living there. Long Chen¡¯s objective foring here was to pass through the Ancient Graveyard, so he did not want to miss out on useful information just because he was cultivating.


    Therefore, he hurried towards Heavenly Wood City.


    Heavenly Wood City was the center point of the Wood District, which was muchrger than the Divine Martial Empire. Long Chen previously took twenty days to pass through the Divine Martial Empire, and now that he was much stronger, he took five days to cover the same distance.


    When he was still far away, Long Chen stood on the tallest branch to gaze at the gigantic tree on the horizon. The ancient tree was so tall it pierced through the sea of clouds in the sky. Long Chen then flew up through the clouds and saw the crown of the tree, which looked like an ind floating on clouds. It was immense, and Long Chen roughly estimated that the area of the crown was equivalent to half of the Cangyang Kingdom!


    Heavenly Wood City was built on this tree¡¯s crown!


    Long Chen did not dare stop for long in the air, because, to his surprise, many avian-type beasts were flying around. These beasts were even stronger than the Heavenly Phoenix! The Thunder Phoenix and the Nine Wing Vulture were all Category Six King-tier and above, so Long Chen did not want to fight them for no good reason. These demonic beasts probably lived in flocks, so he would be finished if they all swarmed him.


    <em>I can¡¯t believe such arge tree exists in this world. How rare. </em>Long Chen shook his head with a bitter smile andnded. The tree was gigantic. He never would¡¯ve imagined that such a huge tree existed. He suspected that if he stood in front of it, he would think it was a gigantic wall standing between heaven and earth!


    ¡°How embarrassing of you to be this shocked in front of a tree. Gigantic objects like this tree are everywhere in the Three Royal Territories, especially in the Deste Royal Territory. Although the demon race is usually in human form, the sizes of their original forms would startle you to death! The size of this tree is just average.¡± Little Cat looked at Long Chen with his chubby face. He looked so cute but used such a contemptuous tone when he spoke, making him seem very amusing.


    The Deste Royal Territory! The demon race!


    Long Chen could only shut his mouth every time he heard Little Cat talk about the Royal Territories. He was still very far from the masters of the Royal Territories, and he knew that although he was getting stronger and progressing shockingly fast, that was no excuse to becent, because he was too far away from his goals.


    He was in a hilly area with many trees growing at various heights. The nearer he got to Heavenly Wood City, therger and more ancient the trees looked. Many of the trees wererge enough to build cities on.


    <em>The earthly spiritual Qi of the wood element is thick here. I wonder if I can cultivate one of the Five Emperor Seals, namely the Azure Emperor¡¯s Rising Heaven Seal, while I¡¯m here, </em>Long Chen thought to himself.


    The Ancient Graveyard was and of treasures to Long Chen. Ever since he came here, he had gotten many good items. This was the time to digest all the treasures he had.


    It was like looking at a mountain while running your horse to death.[1] Although Heavenly Wood City seemed close, he was quite a distance away from it. As Long Chen walked through the hilly area, he came across many gigantic mountain peaks.


    When he arrived in a darker area, he suddenly sensed that his surroundings had gotten colder. The trees here were very tall, so not much light passed through, making the ce dim. The only sounds were beast roars far away.


    Long Chen did not think too much and continued to hurry along. He heard the sound of water ahead, and the nearer he got to the water source, the colder the surroundings became.


    <em>There must be a coldke ahead, </em>guessed Long Chen. As expected, when he went closer, he spotted an emerald-greenke. The water was ice-cold, even colder than ice water. Normal people could not even get close to it. However, it was not an issue for Long Chen.


    1. this is an idiom ¨C things are farther away than they seem ?

 Chapter 749: The Girl In The Water

    Behind the coldke was the wall of a mountain.


    Long Chen would be able to continue heading in Heavenly Wood City¡¯s direction once he passed thiske. There were many flying beasts in the sky, and he could not hide himself, so he did not choose to travel by air.


    Long Chen was prepared to leave when he noticed some movement in the water. The moment he noticed it, he saw a patch of snow-white skin floating up to the surface from the bottom of theke.


    He only took a nce and quickly averted his gaze. This person was not Feng Zhilin, so Long Chen abided by conventional courtesies. Based on the short nce he had, she was just some young girl.


    She was likely taking a bath in the coldke, but Long Chen was puzzled because the water¡¯s temperature was so low. Why had the girl chosen to bathe here?


    The girl was about fourteen years old. Although it was only a quick nce, he had seen her face. She was cute, and although she was young, she was as beautiful as a hibiscus flower with skin as clear as white jade. Emerald-green water beads rolled down her skin into the water, making her look even more beautiful.


    When she noticed Long Chen, she froze for a moment, then she screamed with a trembling voice. Long Chen knew that he was in trouble. He had seen her body, and if she refused to let him go, he truly would not know what to do.


    Long Chen looked away.


    The girl rushed up to shore and put on her clothes very quickly. Long Chen stopped averting his gaze and looked at her. The girl, whose height was up to his chin, was ring at him furiously. She pointed at him with a trembling finger, and tears were starting to pool in her eyes.¡°You ¡­ You ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was already thankful that she had not attacked him immediately. Although she was young, she was already a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, so it would be difficult to defeat her if he did not risk his life and fight with everything he had. She only red angrily, so he opined that she was likely a good person.


    He said hurriedly, ¡°I was only passing by; I did not have any intention to peep. After I noticed you, I immediately turned around. I didn¡¯t see anything. I apologize if I have offended you.¡±


    Long Chen spoke formally and politely. When the girl saw the pureness in his eyes with no intention of lying, she sighed in relief and patted her chest. She then said in her melodious, bell-like voice, ¡°It¡¯s good that you didn¡¯t see anything. You don¡¯t look like a bad person, but you should go. I ¡­ I have matters to attend to ¡­¡±


    Long Chen privately sighed in relief too when he saw that she wasn¡¯t angry at him. Little Cat pursed his lips in contempt at how cowardly he seemed.


    ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll excuse myself.¡± Long Che nodded. He had actually seen her body, but he had lied and was looking for a reason to flee. Now the girl was saying that she was busy in such a mysterious manner, so Long Chen could take this opportunity to leave.


    When she saw how fast he walked away, the girl froze and thought, <em>What a strange guy. Let¡¯s hope he really didn¡¯t see me. Father said that if anyone bullies me, he¡¯ll chop them up into a thousand pieces!</em>


    After that, there was a sh of bitterness on her face. She seemed to remember something, and tears flowed from her eyes.


    ¡°Father, Yan¡¯er will never get to see you again. You should hurry up ande see me ¡­ Sob ¡­¡± As she spoke, she started sobbing.


    The sound of her crying traveled from the coldke¡¯s shore.


    Although Long Chen had left, he still sensed her crying. He halted and looked back in confusion. <em>I only took a short nce; it¡¯s not enough to make her cry this hard, right?</em>


    Long Chen did not have a single perverted thought towards this prepubescent girl. However, he still found it strange that she was crying so sadly here.


    ¡°That girl is injured, hehe ¡­¡± Little Cat said.


    ¡°What kind of injury is it?¡± Long Chen froze. She looked healthy. How could she be injured?


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. You can go check and we¡¯ll know,¡± said Little Cat.


    Long Chen already had the intention of going back, so after Little Cat said that, he ran back in the direction he came from and soon saw the girl by theke. He ran up to her with a <em>whoosh</em> and was about to speak, but then he saw something that shocked him.


    Her previously fair arms had be rough and withered, like an old person¡¯s arms. Even her whole body had turned frail, like she had be old in the blink of an eye. The girl looked up, and Long Chen saw, to his shock, that the girl as beautiful as a hibiscus had be exactly like a shriveled, wrinkled, rough-skinned olddy.


    Long Chen was witnessing this with his own eyes, so he did not think that he had made a mistake.


    ¡°What happened to you?!¡± The moment Long Chen said this, she spotted him, screamed, and jumped into theke. She then quickly dove into its depths.


    ¡°Little Cat, what was that?¡± The change in the girl was just too bizarre. Long Chen had never seen anything like this before. How had a healthy young girl aged all of a sudden?


    Little Cat cocked his head and thought for a while. ¡°I don¡¯t know either. She must have been attacked with some spell that made her body age rapidly. She¡¯s very smart though. She must have known that the extremely low temperature of this coldke would slow down the aging process. But just now, you scared her out of theke. She only came out for a while, yet she has already aged this much.¡±


    Little Cat looked so haughty, as if it was none of his business.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean I was the one who made her situation more severe?¡± Long Chen did not want to owe anyone anything, and the girl was indeed in a pitiful situation. He was moved enough to help her, so he asked, ¡°Tell me. Is there any way I can help her?¡±


    ¡°Are you sure you want to help her? She¡¯s a stranger you just met. Do you really need to help her? It¡¯s not because you¡¯re attracted to her body, is it?¡± Little Cat had be adorable after he took over the Dream Demon¡¯s body, but when he made an evil expression, it just made him look hrious.


    Itpletely ruined the adorable look of the Dream Demon.


    ¡°Stop it. Just tell me if you have a way,¡± chided Long Chen.


    ¡°Alright, alright. This spell is an evil Yin technique, which fears Yang energy items most. Your dragon blood is good for this. Let the girl drink all of it; maybe she¡¯ll recover,¡± Little Cat saidzily.


    ¡°All of it? Won¡¯t I die then?¡± Long Chen red at him.


    ¡°What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Enough with the nonsense. Tell me the real way,¡± Long Chen said angrily.


    ¡°Alright, alright. Bros before hoes, you know. Your dragon blood has the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s blood and has great medicinal power. If she drank all of it, her small body would explode. Just let her drink a small mouthful and it should be enough. But I don¡¯t know how long it will take topletely eradicate the problem.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and felt like it was doable.


    Although she was only a stranger, and Long Chen was used to treating his enemies viciously, this girl was no enemy. He also felt responsible for her aging to this extent, so he wanted to help her.


    At this point, she had already sunk to the bottom of theke and dared note out to see him, so Long Chen rushed into the water. Now that he had recovered his strength, he arrived in front of her immediately despite the icy chill!


    The girl quickly backed away like a frightened deer when she saw him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move. I can help you!¡± said Long Chen solemnly.


    The girl froze, then she backed away.


    Long Chen did not bother to say anything else. At this point, the girl had lost almost all of herbat abilities. Long Chen moved a little and came to her side. He gripped her frail shoulders tightly, made a cut on his wrist, then put it up to her mouth andmanded, ¡°Drink!¡±


    ¡°Sob sob ¡­¡± The girl started to cry from fear and would not stop. She kept her mouth shut and was unwilling to drink his blood, as she was terrified of him.


    When Long Chen saw her refusing, he pinned her down, forced her mouth open, and poured a small amount of dragon blood into her mouth. After she was forced to swallow it, he loosened his grip. By then, she had cried a lot of tears and pushed him away in panic, staring at him in terror. At the same time, she clutched her throat and wanted to spit out the spicy liquid she had swallowed.


    But she could not.


    Long Chen stood in front of her and watched to see if the dragon blood would really work as Little Cat had said.


    One was calm, while the other panicked. Neither spoke while time passed at the bottom of the deepke.


    After a while, Long Chen saw the effects. The girl¡¯s skin started to recover. He quickly said, ¡°I¡¯m not a bad person. I only wanted to help you. Look at your skin.¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡± When she looked down, she burst into surprisedughter.

 Chapter 750: Princess of the Demon Clan

    Under the nourishment of Long Chen¡¯s dragon blood, the girl¡¯s body was starting to revert back to its original state at a rate visible to the naked eye. It looked bizarre, resembling Long Chen¡¯s Rewind technique, though its effects were not as fast. The girl only fully reverted to her original state after about fifteen minutes.


    Her attitude towards Long Chen changed from panic and aversion to gratitude and worship. When she waspletely healed, she gazed at him with her watery eyes and gratitude. Her pink lips slowly opened, as if she had a lot to say to thank him but did not know how.


    ¡°Let¡¯s talk when we get out,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°But ¡­ After I get out, I¡¯ll return to my previous state. I don¡¯t want to ¡­¡± the girl said timidly in a low voice.


    Long Chen had already asked Little Cat about it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You¡¯ll maintain this state for at least ten days. Do you trust me?¡± Long Chen pretended to be serious.


    ¡°I do ¡­¡± she said timidly.


    Long Chen smiled warmly and went up to the shore first. The girl followed and peered at him curiously, also returning to the shore. At the bottom of an emerald-green boulder, Long Chen turned around to look at the beautiful but shy girl. To be honest, she had a pure and fairy-like quality to her. Although she was young, he could tell that she would be a beautiful woman when she grew up.


    After she stabilized herself, he asked, ¡°What is your name?¡±She pursed her lips and tugged at the corners of her clothing, answering, ¡°Su ¡­ Suyan.¡± Long Chen had just forced her to drink his blood, resulting in the healing of a condition that should have been impossible to heal. This left a deep impression on her. In the beginning, she was furious at him because he might have seen her body, but now she was only grateful and curious about him.


    ¡°Suyan?¡± Long Chen memorized her name, then he asked, ¡°How did you get injured? Who did this to you?¡±


    Long Chen was very curious about such a bizarre technique.


    ¡°I ¡­ I don¡¯t know who it was.¡± Suyan grew anxious at the question, likely because it made her remember a terrifying event.


    ¡°Tell me specifically what happened,¡± said Long Chen.


    Long Chen had a certain regalness to him that made Suyan dare not refuse him. She nodded and said, ¡°Previously, I was in this area when a few strange people appeared. I couldn¡¯t see their faces clearly. One of them said I was very pretty, then a woman grew mad. She touched me gently, then said ¡­ She said ¡­¡±


    ¡°What did she say?¡± Long Chen furrowed his brows. Based on what Suyan had described, those people must have had high cultivation levels. Long Chen thought for a moment. <em>Even Feng Zhilin and the others do not have a technique like that, right? Could the attackers have been masters at the Heavenly Martial Realm? But how could there be so many Heavenly Martial Realm masters in the Ancient Graveyard?</em>


    ¡°She said I will age within a day and turn into white bones. Then she said she¡¯ll see if I can still be pretty ¡­¡± Suyan¡¯s eyes welled up with tears as she spoke.


    ¡°Little Cat, what do you think?¡± Long Chen asked after a pause.


    ¡°How would I know?¡± Little Cat rolled his eyes.


    Long Chen could not figure it out either. He asked, ¡°Did you see how many people there were?¡±


    ¡°About six people ¡­¡± she said softly.


    ¡°You¡¯re a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Were you able to gauge their cultivation levels?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. But ¡­ I think that even if they were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, it should¡¯ve been impossible for me to at least put up a fight. I could not see their faces clearly. Their strength was deeper than I am able to gauge, like my father,¡± said Suyan, cocking her head to think.


    Her fear had calmed with Long Chen by her side, as she had seen evidence that she did not age anymore after Long Chen fed her his blood. Now that she saw she could be saved, her panic calmed a little.


    Long Chen now roughly guessed who those people were. Before he came to the Ancient Graveyard, he kept feeling like the Ancient Graveyard had some puppet masters behind the curtain. Those people were likely from the Three Royal Territories, and they surely had a way to get there!


    However, why did these people from the Royal Territories want to organize the game of the Ancient Graveyard? Long Chen could not figure this out. Of course, that was not what he cared about most. He was most concerned about learning the way to get to the Royal Territories from the mysterious people.


    The Three Royal Territories were his true destination.


    Previously, he had sworn that he would find Ling Xi in ten years. Only a bit over a year had gone by, and he realized it was possible to get to the Royal Territories soon.


    He felt excited when he thought about it.


    Based on what had happened to the girl, he assumed that there were some bad actors behind the curtains of the Ancient Graveyard. The Nine Great ns did notpletely control the Ancient Graveyard. At the same time, he also knew that it was possible that these people were nearby, though Long Chen did not dare search for them openly. Based on Suyan¡¯s experience, he could tell that they were vicious and violent.


    ¡°Hey, brat, I¡¯d like to remind you not to be too rash or emotional. If you want to talk to those people, you¡¯d best increase your cultivation level first. To be honest, you don¡¯t even have the right to speak to them before you reach the Heavenly Martial Realm.¡±


    Little Cat¡¯s words woke him up.


    Long Chen took a deep breath and slowly straightened out his thoughts. However, he was still baffled. What were those people doing in the Ancient Graveyard? If they were drooling after some treasure in the Ancient Graveyard, why hadn¡¯t they taken the treasures directly? Why would they send cultivators from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory inside every ten years? What was their true intention?


    Long Chen could not figure it out.


    He now understood that those whose Ancient Tokens had not turned golden in a year¡¯s time would be cleared off by the people behind the curtains, since they would be left behind in the Ancient Graveyard.


    ¡°Big Brother, what are you thinking ¡­¡± Suyan asked curiously when she saw that Long Chen was silent. She was no longer afraid of him. She walked up to him quietly and stood in front of him, peering at him curiously.


    Long Chen woke up and looked at the girl. He thought of what she previously said and asked, ¡°Suyan, you said that their cultivation levels were too deep to be gauged, like your father¡¯s. Who is your father?¡±


    Long Chen knew that a father who could raise a daughter like her was surely no simple figure. He was likely a famous master in the Ancient Graveyard.


    She thought for a moment but chose to trust him and said, ¡°My father is the n leader of the Demon n, Bai Lan. You may know him. He¡¯s in Heavenly Wood City, not far from here. I ¡­ I originally thought I¡¯d never get to go back again ¡­¡±


    The Demon n leader?


    How coincidental.


    Long Chen was slightly surprised, but it made sense. He had been able to raise his daughter to almost the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Once she reached Feng Zhilin¡¯s age, she would likely be at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage or above. Only people like n leaders could achieve this.


    Bai Lan.


    Long Chen had finally learned the name of the Demon n leader, a cultivator who had long reached the Heavenly Martial Realm. In that case, the girl¡¯s full name was Bai Suyan.


    Many thoughts popped into his mind when he heard her father¡¯s identity. It was imperative for him to go to Heavenly Wood City, and Little Cat had said that out of the three major factions, Long Chen and the Divine Wind Faction were archnemeses, while the Gold n of the Five Element Alliance would alsoe looking for him because he had taken their Profound Golden Soul. The only faction he had not offended was the Thunder Demon Faction. If Long Chen wanted to kill the Divine n¡¯s young master, having the ability to kill him was not enough. He needed to be strong enough to go against the whole Divine Wind Faction.


    That was why he had to form a good rtionship with the Thunder Demon Faction, or at least get to know them. Wasn¡¯t this girl the bridge that would lead him to them?


    Long Chen had not expected to meet the little princess of the Demon n in a ce like this, even sessfully saving her. He also had to continue helping her. In the beginning, he thought it would be quite troublesome after saving her, but it would be no trouble at all if she was also going to Heavenly Wood City.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ Big Brother, how do I address you?¡± Suyan asked.


    ¡°My name is Long Chen,¡± he said.


    ¡°Oh ¡­ Then I¡¯ll call you ¡®Brother Chen.¡¯¡± Suyan beamed a mesmerizing smile at him.


    ¡°You may call me ¡®Big Brother,¡¯¡± said Long Chen with a smile. Ling Xi was the one who called him ¡°Brother Chen.¡± He was not used to other people calling him that. Suyan reminded him of the quirky Huangfu Qi, and he saw her as his little sister. Since Huangfu Qi called him ¡°Big Brother,¡± Suyan could do the same, as she was almost the same as her.


    There was a sh of anxiety in her eyes, then she mustered up her courage to ask, ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯d like to ask a question¡­ You said I would only maintain this state for ten days. Will I die in ten days? I ¡­¡± Suyan¡¯s tears started to well up again when she thought about death.


    He smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You won¡¯t die. I let you drink my blood just now. For the next hundred days, I will let you drink my blood once every ten days. Then you will recover fully.¡±

 Chapter 751: Suxue

    ¡°Really?¡± Suyan was overjoyed as she gazed at him with sparkling eyes.


    ¡°As for why my blood can heal you ¡­ You don¡¯t need to know that. You have a base in Heavenly Wood City, right? I will be staying there for a while, so I can also treat you during this time. Come see me once every ten days, then you will fully recover in a hundred days. But on one condition.¡±


    ¡°What is it? I will surely agree to it!¡± cried Suyan. Long Chen had not only saved her, but also agreed to stay in Heavenly Wood City. She felt like this was a close brush with death and was naturally excited. Long Chen looked like a good person, and although he was a bit fierce sometimes, he was also attractive at other times ¡­


    Looking at the energetic girl, he gave an exasperated smile. This girl likely had not experienced any hardships since she was young, so that ordeal must have terrified her. Long Chen¡¯s appearance was like thest straw that saved her. It was natural that she grew reliant on him.


    If she had encountered someone with malicious intent, she would have been finished.


    Long Chen said, ¡°You must promise not to tell anyone what methods I used to save you. If other people ask about it, say you don¡¯t know anything. Never tell other people that I am using my blood to treat you.¡±


    Long Chen had said this to prevent news of him having strange blood from spreading. If some masters found out about it, they could be curious and dissect him. If that happened, he would be done for.


    That was an extremely simple request to Suyan, so she nodded fervently like a chick pecking at rice and said, ¡°Alright, I understand. If other people ask me, I¡¯ll say that you¡¯re a mysterious alchemist!¡±


    ¡°Alchemist? What¡¯s that?¡± Long Chen asked with surprise.¡°Big Brother, don¡¯t you know what that is?¡± Suyan looked at him strangely. Now that they were familiar, she grew much livelier. This was her true personality.


    ¡°Alchemists are people who use spiritual herbs, materials from demonic beasts, and other magical items to make pills by refining them with core fire through mysterious techniques. The spiritual medicines they create are often several times more powerful than their original materials, sometimes even ten times more potent. Every alchemist is a precious asset to the Nine Great ns. Just like our Demon n¡¯s Brother Situ Yu. He¡¯s a very famous alchemist! I heard that powerful alchemists can even use simple spiritual herbs to create pills that make the deade back to life!¡±


    Long Chen remained silent as he digested her words.


    He had never heard of alchemists, but they seemed powerful, based on her exnation.


    ¡°Alchemists are extremely rare in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, but they are everywhere in the Royal Territories. There, the alchemists have formed an extraordinary organization, and it¡¯s a popr upation for cultivators. Many cultivators also study pill refinement part-time! Many alchemists even founded powerful factions! The True Martial Territory of the Three Royal Territories has the most alchemists,¡± Little Cat saidzily.


    If he went to the three Royal Territories, he would surely meet alchemists.


    Little Cat had told him many things about the Royal Territories recently. First, he had told him about the Armament Warriors of the Swordsoul Territory, who followed a different systempared to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Then he told him how the Deste Royal Territory had ten thousand demon races, and now he had told him about alchemists.


    Long Chen finally knew the names of all three Royal Territories. They were the True Martial, Swordsoul, and Deste Royal Territories! Each territory wasrger than the whole sum of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. They were also densely packed with miniverses, and some of the miniverses were extremelyrge!


    The total area of the Three Royal Territories was farrger than Long Chen had imagined. Just the True Martial Territory had tens of times more people than the billions of people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory!


    This was because miniverses were everywhere in the territories.


    ¡°Big Brother, you haven¡¯t said if I could say you¡¯re an alchemist! Only alchemists have the power to heal my strange injury through miraculous methods,¡± said Suyan, gazing at him with wide eyes.


    Long Chen thought for a moment and nodded. ¡°Of course you can.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± She smiled happily. She had escaped death and met such a kind person. His position in her heart was skyrocketing to unimaginable heights.


    ¡°Father and the others are probably worried sick because I snuck out of the city. Big Brother, can we hurry back?¡± Suyan asked anxiously.


    It was about time anyway.


    He was also heading to Heavenly Wood City. Now that he had made friends with Suyan, being able to form a rtionship with the Demon n leader, Bai Lan, would be amazing for him. That was if news of him receiving the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance did not spread. If someone leaked this information, he was not sure if Bai Lan would attack him just because he had saved Suyan. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was extremely important to the nine ns after all.


    However, Long Chen was confident that he could live in peace at least for the next hundred days, which was enough for him. During this time, Suyan had to consume dragon blood periodically, or she would die.


    With this as insurance, he was not worried that the Demon n leader would do anything to him. Based on what she had said, Bai Lai likely loved her very much and was a good father.


    After all these deductions, he boldly embarked on his journey to Heavenly Wood City.


    Suyan hade from there. He followed her and soon approached a gigantic tree. The nearer he went, the more stunned he became. He realized he had underestimated the tree. Its size far surpassed what he imagined.


    When she saw his stunned expression, she grinned mischievously and said, ¡°Big Brother, you¡¯re stunned too? It looks like this is your first time in Heavenly Wood City. When I saw Heavenly Wood City for the first time, I was terrified. How could such a gigantic tree exist in this world? Even though Father told me about this tree a long time ago, I couldn¡¯t help being terrified when I saw it. Hehe.¡±


    He looked up at the endless wall ahead. That was the ancient tree¡¯s trunk.


    When he looked up, he realized he was inside the world created by this tree. Countless small trees grew above the tree, and they were densely packed together. The Metal District was almostpletely made up of metal, and simrly, the Wood District was covered in ancient trees, including this terrifying giant.


    ¡°We¡¯ll arrive soon,¡± said Su Yan, who turned around and smiled.


    Long Chen nodded. Suddenly, he saw many people rushing over from the city through his Soul Swallowing Gaze. They had been walking in many directions, shouting, as if searching for something. Long Chen quickly understood that they were searching for Suyan outside the city.


    Suyan heard a faint shout and grew emotional. She turned to Long Chen and cried, ¡°Big Brother, they¡¯re looking for me!¡±


    When she spoke, many people had already discovered them. There was cheering, then the group of people swarmed toward Long Chen. Long Chen looked around and saw that they were all either wearing ck or purple. These people were from the Demon and Thunder ns.


    The main forces of the Demon and Thunder ns were based in Heavenly Wood City.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er!¡± There was a cry, and Long Chen turned to look at the person leading the group. The voice came from a girl, who was rushing to the front. She looked slightly older than Long Chen, but Long Chen was slightly cautious of her cultivation level. He sensed an aura no weaker than Wu Guanyu¡¯s radiating from her.


    If she was not at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, she was at the ninth, and thetter was more likely.


    ¡°That¡¯s my older sister, Suxue. She¡¯s very impressive; she¡¯s a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator! Out of everyone in the Demon and Thunder ns, my sister is the strongest of the younger generation,¡± said Suyan with a smile as they looked at the girl who was running over.


    It was as he had guessed.


    He studied the girl named Suxue. She looked very simr to Suyan, as if they were both made from the same mold. But unlike Suyan, she was fully matured and had be very beautiful. She had a beautiful figure and clean, feminine features. Although they looked simr, Suyan was much more attractive than the younger girl.


    How wonderful would it be if a man could take these two sisters home as his wives ¡­


    Of course, that was just one of Long Chen¡¯s casual thoughts.


    Suxue quickly ran up to Suyan and hugged her anxiously. Clutching her shoulders, Suxue peered her up and down, and when she realized the girl was fine, she rubbed her nose and scolded, ¡°You naughty girl! Where did you run off to this time? We were so worried! Didn¡¯t I tell you not to run off in the Ancient Graveyard? That your life could be in danger? You need a spanking!¡±


    It was clear that Suxue cared about her younger sister very much.


    That was great. Suyan needed Long Chen to care for her for a hundred days. The more they cared about Suyan, the more they would care about Long Chen. Long Chen needed to cultivate his Seven Star Body at the highest point of Heavenly Wood City as that was the closest location to the stars.

 Chapter 752: Suspicious

    ¡°Big Sister, something bad happened this time. I¡¯ll tell you about it when we get back ¡­¡± Suyan stuck out her tongue while her arms were around Suxue¡¯s thin waist.


    ¡°Something bad?¡± Suxue furrowed her brows, then she looked past Suyan at Long Chen. Connecting it to what Suyan said, Suxue¡¯s expression went through a hundred-and-eighty-degree change from concern towards Suyan to a bone-chilling look saved for a stranger. She looked at Long Chen coldly with an imposing re.


    She then asked in a cold voice, ¡°Who are you? Why are you standing so close to my younger sister?¡±


    Long Chen sensed very obvious enmity from Suxue. It was understandable as her younger sister really was a little gullible and seemed to be the exact kind who could be easily tricked and manipted. That was why Suxue thought Long Chen had malicious intent.


    ¡°Big Sister, you¡¯re mistaken. Big Brother is not a bad person. I ran into a little trouble, and he saved me,¡± Suyan hurriedly exined while hugging her sister.


    ¡°Are you kidding? He¡¯s only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage; how could he have saved you? Yan¡¯er, tell me what happened. Have you been tricked by him?¡± Su Xue looked at Long Chen cautiously with disgust in her eyes.


    Long Chen did not know what made her hate him so much. Since she insisted on looking down on him, his gaze turned cold and he said, ¡°What do you mean by that? Is this how the princess of the Demon n treats her guests?¡±


    The Nine Great ns were actually the Nine Great Empires. Every n leader was actually the leader of their empire. People like Feng Zhilin and Suxue were usually called princesses in their empires.


    Suxue never expected Long Chen to be so rude to her, or even mock her using her own title, so she became furious. Long Chen was a mere Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, and yet he dared speak to her that way. She had never met a person like him before.To be honest, she was beautiful with a fairy-like aura, a stark contrast to the cold and arrogant Feng Zhilin. However, Long Chen had met many beautiful girls before, and it did not matter how pretty she was. If she was rude to him, he could not be bothered to be nice either.


    ¡°Do you want to die?¡± A powerful killing intent surged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Big Sister!¡± Suyan was a little angry now. She stood in front of Long Chen with a frown and said, ¡°As I said, Big Brother saved me. He¡¯s the reason why I¡¯m still alive!¡±


    When she saw her younger sister so insistent, Suxue froze for a moment. Her sister had never dared speak to her this way before. Although she was a little mischievous, she had always been obedient in front of other people. And she really loved her younger sister too.


    Suxue finally let go of her assumptions, peered at Long Chen strangely, and then said, ¡°Yan¡¯er, what happened?¡±


    When Suyan saw that her sister had dropped her hostility towards Long Chen, she sighed in relief and said, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you while we walk back.¡±


    Suxue nodded, then she looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°Is he also going to Heavenly Wood City?¡±


    Suyan nodded and said, ¡°Of course. He still needs to treat me.¡±


    ¡°Treat?¡± There were many things Suxue was desperate to know, so she flew up to the city on the tree, leading the group.


    ¡°Big Brother, apologies. My older sister may be short-tempered towards strangers, but after you get to know her, you¡¯ll find her to be a good person,¡± said Suyan anxiously while they traveled, as she was worried that Long Chen would be upset.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t pin this on her. A gentleman does not dwell on another person¡¯s shorings.¡±


    ¡°You!¡± Suxue turned around and red at him furiously. She wanted to rage at him, but she saw how pitiful her younger sister looked. Then she suppressed her anger and said to Suyan, ¡°Yan¡¯er,e to my side and tell me what happened.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Suyan nodded obediently and went to Suxue¡¯s side. The people of the Demon and Thunder ns followed behind the three of them. They looked at the trio curiously because the two sisters were whispering, so no one knew what they were talking about.


    ¡°What?!¡± Suyan had only spoken for a little while when Suxue¡¯s face changed. She gripped Suyan¡¯s arm hard and almost yelled, but when she realized this matter had to be kept hushed, she suppressed her shock and asked anxiously, ¡°Yan¡¯er, are you being serious? One of them touched you gently, and you became like this? And you¡¯d die in a day from old age?¡±


    Suyan was also antsy when she saw how anxious Suxue was. She said hurriedly, ¡°Yes. I hid in the coldke and realized that my body stopped aging. But when I got out, I immediately started to age again. If Big Brother hadn¡¯t been passing by and saved me with a magical pill, I would be dead by now!¡±


    As she spoke, Suyan started to cry.


    Suyan¡¯s face turned pale and there was a deep anxiety in her gaze. She checked her sister up and down in a panic, but she could not find anything strange.


    ¡°Big Sister, don¡¯t worry. Big Brother gave me a pill and said that I wouldn¡¯t be old for ten days. Then he said that if I took his pill once every ten days for the next hundred days, I would recoverpletely. That is why I said he saved my life! You believe me now, right?¡±


    When Suyan saw tears welling up in her sister¡¯s eyes, she quickly gave her the positive news to assure her.


    ¡°Really?¡± Suxue froze. To be honest, she did not believe that Long Chen, a young cultivator merely at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, could save Suyan from such a terrifying spell.


    Suxue looked at him mildly and asked, ¡°Are you an alchemist?¡±


    Long Chen recalled the promise between himself and Suyan, then nodded without a word.


    Suxue eyed him for a while but did not find anything wrong. So she looked away from him and said to Suyan, ¡°What happened to you is very serious. We must go and meet Father now! And you! Follow us!¡±


    She pointed at Long Chen as she spoke.


    ¡°Big Brother,e meet my Father, alright?¡± Suyan knew how scary her father could be, so she wanted to hear Long Chen out.


    Long Chen knew that he would need to meet the Demon n leader, Bai Lan, sooner orter due to his reason foring to Heavenly Wood City. Might as well get it over with sooner. That was why he had noment. He nodded at Suyan and said, ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡±


    His attitude towards the two sisters waspletely different. He was cold towards Suxue but friendly to Suyan. This made Suxue embarrassed and angry, knowing that Long Chen was doing it on purpose.


    <em>You¡¯re just a maniptive fake! Once you meet my father, you¡¯ll suffer! If you¡¯re a crook, you¡¯ll never escape my father¡¯s eyes!</em>


    Suxue privately dissed him.


    Long Chen followed them up the gigantic tree trunk and wove through the tree branches and leaves. The city was like a bird¡¯s nest on a tree, and it was gigantic too. Long Chen looked up and could faintly see the silhouette of the city. Although it was on a tree, the city was muchrger than ck Gold City. It was simr to Giant Metal City of the Metal District!


    Long Chen followed Suxue past the city walls to the beautiful Heavenly Wood City. When he finallyid eyes on the city, he was slightly astonished as the previous city he saw was in ruins with dpidated wooden houses everywhere. Heavenly Wood City, however, was like a paradise. It was no wonder the Thunder and Demon ns would build their base here.


    Long Chen stood on the tall city walls and looked across the city. The whole city was covered in ayer of white mist, like the legendary pce of immortals. The only difference was that the city was filled with beautiful wooden houses. This city had brought the art of building with wood to its peak. He realized that the houses were not just buildings, but pieces of art.


    All types of hyper-realistic wooden sculptures peeked through the mist. When the breeze blew gently, many sophisticated wooden buildings became visible. It was the first time he had seen such beautiful structures.


    ¡°Big Brother, this ce is beautiful, isn¡¯t it? I want to live here forever. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that we can only stay in the Ancient Graveyard for a year, I would have asked Father to let me stay here forever. I¡¯ve never seen such a beautiful and elegant city built on a tree in my life,¡± said Suyan energetically.


    ¡°You almost died and you¡¯re talking about the city!¡± Suxue scolded her. ¡°Let¡¯s not waste any more time. Come and meet Father with me now.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Suyan stuck out her tongue, then followed Suxue and Long Chen. They flew in the sky above Heavenly Wood City, heading towards Bai Lan¡¯s quarters. Long Chen knew that soon, he would be standing in front of a live Heavenly Martial Realm master. He had seen Bai Lan once on the star te, but at the time, he did not know his name. This man who had received the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance was one of the strongest masters in the Nine Great ns, also in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory!


    Very soon, Long Chen was close. Using his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he spotted two powerful souls in the destination ahead. One had an aura as violent as lightning and thunder, while the other was like a deep ck hole.

 Chapter 753: Bai Lan

    Long Chen had seen the Demon n leader, Bai Lan, and the Thunder n leader, Lei Ji, on the gigantic star te, though it was from far away. Neither of them had even looked his way. Long Chen followed Suxue and Suyan into the sophisticated hall, then went up to the Demon n leader.


    Bai Lan probably did not know that Suyan had gone missing yet, since she had only been out for a day and only a few people had gone out to search for her. Bai Lan and Lei Ji were sitting on wooden easy chairs and sharing a pot of tea. They were enjoying themselves and chatting about various topics.


    Bai Lan was not young anymore, but his cultivation progressed quickly when he was very young, so he didn¡¯t exactly seem like a Heavenly Martial Realm master. He looked like he was just the two sisters¡¯ older brother. Based on looks, no one would think that Bai Lan was their father.


    The Thunder n leader was a man of few words. He looked like an easygoing and slow fellow, but when he listened to Bai Lan speak, there were several asional glints in his eyes that proved that he was no idiot, but a super-master who led a whole n.


    While they spoke, Suxue led them over anxiously. When Bai Lan saw the strange expression on his daughters¡¯ faces, he froze slightly, then both he and Lei Ji looked at the stranger, Long Chen. Long Chen felt like he was being seen through to his very core as the two masters studied him. If he had some malicious intent, they would have easily killed him.


    Long Chen had heard about the concept of ¡°domain¡± in the Heavenly Martial Realm from Little Cat. He studied them out of the corner of his eye and noticed an energy simr to the Seven Star Lord¡¯s energy on them. Both Bai Lan and Lei Ji had it, but Lei Ji¡¯s energy was weaker. He probably hadn¡¯t been at the Heavenly Martial Realm for long, so he had notpletelyprehended it yet.


    <em>It looks like the Demon n leader is a true Heavenly Martial Realm master. It is no wonder both Wu Guangyu and Suxue are already at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage; the other n leaders are surely above the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage too.</em>


    These thoughts popped into Long Chen¡¯s mind.


    Under the pressure of the two imposing Heavenly Martial Realm masters, Long Chen made himself stay calm and forcefully withstood the strong pressure. He followed Suxue and stopped in front of Bai Lan and Lei Ji.¡°Father. Uncle Lei.¡± Suyan stuck out her little tongue, then hid behind Suxue.


    ¡°My darling daughters, I see that both of you havee to see me. What¡¯s the matter?¡± Bai Lan asked with a chuckle. He ignored Long Chen for the moment but looked at his daughters smilingly.


    Suxue looked anxious and had always been more direct, so she said, ¡°Father, Yan¡¯er ran out this morning. She was attacked, then severely injured and almost died. Thankfully, she was rescued, but the problem isn¡¯tpletely solved yet. I¡¯ll let Yan¡¯er tell you the whole thing. Yan¡¯er, tell Father everything that happened!¡±


    After Suxue spoke, Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other. Their gazes changed from rxed to res full of killing intent. Everyone in the Ancient Graveyard knew that Bai Lai loved his two daughters very much. That was why he had brought them into the Ancient Graveyard with him. Suxue was already grown, so he was less worried about her, but Suyan was his youngest daughter. She was obedient and he loved her very much; he usually treated her with immeasurable care, and when he heard that such a thing had happened, killing intent surged within him.


    Long Chen faintly sensed a suffocating auraing from Bai Lan. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that his daughter was in the room and he was suppressing it, Long Chen and the others would have been scared to death by his aura.


    Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators radiated power.


    Suyan walked up to Bai Lan, a little frightened, then grabbed Bai Lan¡¯s fingers and whined, ¡°Father, don¡¯t get angry yet. I¡¯ll tell you what happened, okay?¡±


    Bai Lan nodded and said, ¡°My darling daughter, tell me what happened.¡±


    Suyan nodded, then told him everything that took ce after she left. When she finished, Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other and fell into deep thought. Usually, when he learned that someone had hurt his daughter, he would have rushed out to kill them. Yet he did not show his emotions this time. His brows were deeply furrowed.


    ¡°Father, who were those ck-clothed people? Yan¡¯er is at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. No matter how powerful they are, Yan¡¯er should at least have been able to see their faces, right? There are so many things that are strange about this. Could they be masters at the Heavenly Martial Realm? Are there that many Heavenly Martial Realm masters in the Ancient Graveyard?¡± Suxue blurted.


    After a while, Bai Lan shook his head and said, ¡°Forget about that for the moment. Your Uncle Lei and I will deal with it. As for this kid ¡­¡± Bai Lan and Lei Ji turned their attention to Long Chen. Bai Lan¡¯s facial expressions changed several times the moment he set his eyes on Long Chen, then he asked, ¡°What is your name?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen,¡± said Long Chen without a hint of fear. Bai Lan approved of his calmness, but to Suxue, Long Chen was just pretending to be brave.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­ I remember now. You were the one who snatched the Wind n girl¡¯s Martial God Tombstone in ck Gold City, right? And you took the Gold n¡¯s Profound Golden Soul too. The fact that you did all of that at your cultivation level ¡­ That is special.¡± Bai Lan lived up to his reputation as a n leader. He was analytical and well-informed. He even knew so much about someone as unimportant as Long Chen.


    Suxue and Suyan did not know about these incidents, but Suxue did know about Feng Zhilin. Both of them had been rivals for a long time. Suxue was one level above Feng Zhilin in terms of cultivation, so she had always looked down on Feng Zhilin, though in private, she was cautious of her. Her impression of Long Chen changed when she heard that he had pulled off something so impressive.


    ¡°That is me,¡± said Long Chen with a nod. Many knew about the Martial God Tombstone incident. Although the Martial God Tombstone was a precious treasure just a step below the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, Long Chen didn¡¯t believe that Bai Lan would throw his daughter¡¯s life away for it.


    ¡°Not bad, not bad.¡± Bai Lan nodded approvingly, then he looked at Suyan and said, ¡°Yan¡¯er, let me check you.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father.¡± Suyan looked at him lovingly and walked up to him obediently. He inspected her up and down while Lei Ji watched next to him. Both of their expressions grew more and more solemn until finally, both of them bit their lips gently with shock in their eyes.


    Bai Lan looked at Long Chen solemnly. ¡°Long Chen, are you really sure that you can heal my daughterpletely in a hundred days?¡±


    Long Chen nodded confidently and said, ¡°Suyan¡¯s body aged very rapidly before, but I helped her return to her current state. My pills are too strong to be taken at once, which is why she needs to consume one every ten days. After a hundred days, her bizarre condition will naturally recover.¡±


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other without expression. Long Chen did not know what they were thinking.


    Then Suxue nced at Long Chen and said to Bai Lan, ¡°Father, I don¡¯t think that is appropriate. We don¡¯t even know Long Chen. Why would he help us? Is he after something from the Demon n? He¡¯s only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, how could it be possible that he has the kind of pills that can save Yan¡¯er? I don¡¯t trust him. Long Chen, if you think I¡¯m wrong, you can show us the pills!¡±


    She was speaking pointedly at Long Chen, and looked at him cautiously, probing him with her gaze.


    ¡°Big Sister! How could you talk like that?¡± Suyan stood between her and Long Chen. She knew that it was a lie that Long Chen was an alchemist, and he would not be able to show her any pills.


    Then Long Chen gently pushed Suyan aside and shot Suxue a re as sharp as a sword. ¡°Lady Suxue, it was fate that brought me and Suyan together. I was coincidentally passing by, so I chose to save her. If you want to gauge the heart of a gentleman with your own mean measure, then I can do nothing about it.¡±


    Suxue grew more furious when he called her mean. She was about to rage when Bai Lan waved to stop her. He said to Long Chen, ¡°Since Yan¡¯er trusts you, then I will trust you too. Stay in Heavenly Wood City for now. I will leave Yan¡¯er to you. If she heals in a hundred days, you may tell me any request you have. As long as it¡¯s within my power, I will fulfill it. What do you think?¡±


    Bai Lan¡¯s attitude was much better than Suxue''s. Long Chen¡¯s original intention was to get to know Bai Lan so that he had someone to back him up when he dealt with the Divine n¡¯s young master in the future. Since the Demon n leader chose to trust Long Chen directly, Long Chen had a good impression of him and nodded. ¡°Lady Suyan is my good friend. I will naturally do my best.¡±


    ¡°Father, Yan¡¯er is young and doesn¡¯t know what she¡¯s doing. She¡¯s easily tricked. How could you ¡­¡± Suxue panicked when she saw that Bai Lan had chosen to trust Long Chen directly. No matter how she looked at him, she could not see how he was a good person.


    ¡°Shut your mouth,¡± Bai Lan chided gently, forcing Suxue to swallow her words. Bai Lan had always treated his daughters very well and never scolded them. When Suxue saw that he was growing impatient, she knew that she had angered him. She was so terrified that she shut her mouth immediately, but she red at Long Chen stubbornly. She looked cute, like a rooster who had just lost a fight.

 Chapter 754: The Two Beautiful Princesses

    They did not make Long Chen show his pills, because that was an alchemist¡¯s secret. Such information could not be shown to other people in an indiscriminate manner. This was a taboo topic for alchemists, just like how it was taboo for people to unt their wealth.


    ¡°I will check on the results in ten days¡¯ time. Don¡¯t disappoint me. My daughter¡¯s life is in your hands,¡± reminded Bai Lan after asking a few more questions.


    Long Chen nodded and said that he wouldplete the task well.


    ¡°Xue¡¯er, arrange for Long Chen to stay in Yan¡¯er¡¯s courtyard. See that his needs are met,¡± instructed Bai Lan.


    ¡°What? How could an unmarried woman stay with a man? What if this guy ¡­¡±


    ¡°Enough! Go make arrangements!¡± scolded Bai Lan, furrowing his brows.


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± Suxue nodded sadly. She had been scolded twice in a row by her father, so there were already tears in her eyes. This was all because of that jerk Long Chen! That was why she red at him like she could not wait to squash him to death.


    Long Chen thought it was funny to see this spoiled girl get scolded, and it vented his anger. However, he did not hate her. She was merely concerned for Suyan¡¯s safety. It was rare to see sisterhood like that in major factions. Many siblings fought each other for their elders¡¯ attention.


    Afterwards, Long Chen and the others left the hall. After the trio left, Lei Ji and Bai Lan¡¯s faces darkenedpletely.¡°Brother Bai, do you think those people really exist? Do you think they¡¯re the ones who did this to Yan¡¯er?¡± asked Lei Ji darkly.


    ¡°The only ones who can inflict Yan¡¯er with such a terrifying secret technique must be at the Heavenly Martial Realm or above. There are six Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators, and there aren¡¯t even that many Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators in the Nine ns or the Five Martial Alliance. They¡¯re clearly not just at the First Heavenly Martial Stage either. The waters of the Ancient Graveyard are much deeper than we imagined ¡­¡± Bai Lan furrowed his brows.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± asked Lei Ji.


    ¡°Since we havee here, then we must follow the rules of the game. However, I¡¯m guessing that the fight over the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure will not be easy. I think it will be very violent. And if it is being controlled by someone from the Royal Territories behind the scenes, then it will be even more terrifying. Fighting for treasure is a small matterpared to staying alive. Now that we, the Demon and the Thunder ns, know about their existence, then we must prioritize our safety. Some things are not ours to take; we must not force it,¡± said Bai Lan, gazing far away.


    ¡°People from the Royal Territories? In their eyes, we are just ants meant to be toyed with. Outstanding ants are too eye-catching and easy to kill. Brother Bai, I¡¯ll listen to your advice. It¡¯s best we be more careful,¡± said Lei Ji with a nod.


    Bai Lan nodded too.


    ¡°Right, what should we do about Yan¡¯er¡¯s problem? Are we really going to leave it up to that Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator? He¡¯s such a young alchemist. Do you really think he can break a spell from the Royal Territories?¡± Lei Ji was also unsure about this decision.


    Bai Lan said, ¡°What else can we do? Who else in the Thunder or Demon ns can do it? We can only wait and see if a miracle happens. And Yan¡¯er said she had previously aged once, yet the young man helped her survive. If he could do it once, he should be able to do it again.¡±


    Lei Ji said, ¡°Brother Bai, don¡¯t you feel like there¡¯s something strange about that young man?¡±


    Bai Lan said, ¡°The Five Emperors were from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Even when they died, they continued to watch over us. That teenager has the aura of the Five Emperors, so he might be the person the Five Emperors have picked. He even has the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance; he probably only just received it. Even the Seven Star Lord¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters is with him. Once that teenager¡¯s cultivation level increases, he will be a rising star in the Ancient Graveyard. Perhaps he will even dominate the younger generation of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    If Long Chen had been here, he would have been shocked. He thought he had hidden all these secrets well, but Bai Lan had seen through him with just a few nces; he had even detected the Five Emperors¡¯ aura on him. Although Bai Lan had discovered something very important, he didn¡¯t reveal anything at all when he was talking to Long Chen. This showed just how disciplined and analytical Bai Lan was.


    Even Lei Ji did not know about these things. When he heard Bai Lan talk about the Five Emperors¡¯ aura and the Seven Star Lord, his mouth fell open slightly with shock. He cried, ¡°The Five Emperors¡¯ aura, the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord, and the Martial God Tombstone. So many treasures are concentrated on just one Fifth Earthly Martial Stage person ¡­ Isn¡¯t that ¡­ Isn¡¯t that too ridiculous?¡±


    Bai Lan chuckled bitterly. ¡°I don¡¯t know. But the luck and mindset of that teenager are likely top-tier, or he would not have obtained so many things. If he was just relying on luck, could he have snatched the Martial God Tombstone from Feng Zhilin?¡±


    There was a sh in Lei Ji¡¯s eyes, then he said directly, ¡°Brother Bai, both the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and the Martial God Tombstone will boost both our ns¡¯ strength. That boy is only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. We can ¡­¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Bai Lan red at Lei Ji sternly and said, ¡°I object for two reasons. One, due to the presence of people behind the scenes of the Ancient Graveyard, it is best we don¡¯t make ourselves stand out too much. Second, he has the aura of the Five Emperors. The Five Emperors are masters at the Divine Martial Realm; there¡¯s no way we could ever understand their thought process. I know they must have their reasons for choosing Long Chen. The Five Emperors are heroes guarding the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. We must not ruin their grand ns due to our own selfish desires, or we will be known as criminals for many generations.¡±


    Lei Ji was convinced, and he nodded. ¡°Brother Bai, what you said makes sense. In that case, not only must we not suppress his growth, but we should encourage him. It¡¯s best if we form a good rtionship with him. He has a good rtionship with Yan¡¯er. Perhaps we can coax that ¡­¡±


    ¡°Damn you! My Yan¡¯er is still young! But Xue¡¯er is grown. Few in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory can impress her. I can see that she and Long Chen have been bickering today, but as they say, hitting is love, and scolding is also love. Perhaps something can happen between Xue¡¯er and him ¡­¡±


    ¡°You sneaky bastard,¡± Lei Ji said with augh.


    Bai Lan smiled, but then his gaze darkened again, and he said, ¡°To be honest, it all depends on his performance. If he does well, I am willing to let him marry my daughter. If he doesn¡¯t, I don¡¯t mind taking away the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, the Martial God Tombstone, and even the things the Five Emperors left behind for him. How could we leave peak-level treasures of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory in an idiot¡¯s hands?¡±


    Lei Ji froze, then he said, ¡°Indeed ¡­ The Ten Thousand Nations Territory is just a vige,pared to the Three Royal Territories. We are all just hillbillies to them.¡±


    ***


    When Long Chen walked with the two beautiful princesses, they attracted a lot of attention. The little princess, Suyan, stuck by his side, asking him many questions. Many people looked at them with jealousy and admiration, as the two princesses were goddesses to the youths of the Thunder and Demon ns. They all often worked hard so that the pair of goddesses would take one look at them, and they often fantasized about marrying the princesses to be the sessful son-inws of the Demon n¡¯s leader. They would be powerful with two princesses by their side, ruling the world ¡­


    Of course, that was just a dream. This was a pair of aristocratic and talented sisters. If a normal person could get one of them, that was probably from the karma umted across three lifetimes. Getting two was probably unattainable even after umting karma across a hundred lifetimes.


    ¡°Who is that guy? Why does Princess Yan¡¯er seem so interested in him? Even the older princess is walking with him!¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t they also walking towards the princesses'' quarters? Good heavens! Even Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators have no right to go there. Why does this guy get to go?¡±


    ¡°This guy has a foreign aura and is only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. He¡¯s not one of us, nor is he one of our brothers from the Thunder n. Why would he be here?!¡±


    ¡°Aiya! He¡¯s so close with Princess Yan¡¯er too! I feel like I¡¯ve been stabbed by a thousand knives.¡±


    Long Chen did not hear what they had said. Under Suyan¡¯s request, Long Chen now addressed her as ¡®Yan¡¯er.¡¯


    Suxue was walking in front, but she was unhappy when she saw them chatting happily and said, ¡°Yan¡¯er,e walk with me. Don¡¯t talk to him.¡±


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± Suyan stuck out her tongue obediently, then went to Suxue¡¯s side in a resigned manner. While she walked with her sister, she asionally turned around to shoot Long Chen a mischievous look.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, I¡¯ll be cultivating in the quarters next to yours. If he suddenly bullies you, just shout for me. I will rush over and kill him instantly,¡± whispered Suxue in Suyan¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Big Sister, don¡¯t say that. Big Brother isn¡¯t that kind of person ¡­¡± Suyan giggled.


    ¡°You must listen to me!¡± Suxue raised her voice.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡± Suyan looked at her older sister pitifully, then said, ¡°Plus, I¡¯m at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, you know. How could he bully me? I¡¯d be the one doing the bullying¡±


    Suxue thought for a while and realized that made sense. With the gap in their cultivation levels, even if Long Chen had perverted desires, he would not be able to act on them. After that, she felt more assured. The trio returned to the princesses¡¯ quarters under the jealous gazes of the public. Although it was just their quarters, they were actually two beautiful courtyards with many rooms. Suxue arranged for Long Chen to stay in Suyan¡¯s courtyard, though in a room that was very far from Suyan¡¯s.

 Chapter 755: Actors Behind The Scenes

    ¡°Yan¡¯er, you may leave now. I need to speak to him,¡± said Suxue to her younger sister after Long Chen settled in.


    ¡°No ¡­¡± Suyan said hurriedly, worried that she would bully Long Chen.


    ¡°Be good,¡± Suxue said with a raised voice. She was getting mad at her stubborn sister, and her chest was heaving.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, go back,¡± said Long Chen. He wanted to see what Suxue would do.


    Suyan was willing to listen to Long Chen, so after he spoke, she nodded obediently and left. She looked back at almost every step, showing just how unwilling she was to leave.


    After Suyan left, Suxue¡¯s gaze cooled. She eyed him for a while, then said, ¡°I don¡¯t know how you made my father believe you, but I¡¯m warning you now. If you start having funny thoughts and you fail to save my sister, I will never let you live!¡±


    Since she was unpleasant to him, there was no reason for him to be pleasant to her. He squinted and said, ¡°To be honest, it has nothing to do with you, whether I am willing to save your sister or not. I have my way of doing things. If you don¡¯t like it, you may leave. There is no need to threaten me. Don¡¯t assume that I am afraid of you, alright?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s rudeness angered her so much that her face turned red. Swallowing her anger, she said coldly, ¡°Don¡¯t celebrate too early. Don¡¯t think that I am ignorant of your true intentions. You just want to manipte my sister and climb on my father so you¡¯ll get a boost to power. I¡¯ve met people like you before, but I will dash your dreams very soon. Don¡¯t think that there are no other alchemists in the Demon n. Our alchemists are a hundred times stronger than you. You just wait! When I call one over, you will be exposed as a fake alchemist! You just wait!¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t be seeing you off.¡± Long Chen did not bother with the argument and pointed at the door.¡°Hmph!¡± Suxue huffed, then turned to leave. Her fragrance slowly disappeared.


    ¡°She thinks she¡¯s the shit.¡± Long Chen did not even shoot her a nce.


    After she left, Suyan walked in cautiously. She looked at him apologetically and said, ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m so sorry. My sister has always been cautious of strangers. But she¡¯s not usually like this ¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Yan¡¯er. I don¡¯t me you. Alright, then I shall stay here. I¡¯ll treat you again in ten days. During this time, I will be cultivating alone. Do not disturb me without my permission, got it?¡± Long Chen¡¯s objective foring to Heavenly Wood City was to cultivate. The earthly spiritual Qi in the city was extremely potent, more so than in the other ces he had been before. This was an excellent ce for cultivating.


    ¡°I can¡¯t disturb you?¡± Suyan pouted. She thought she would be able to y with him every day, but Long Chen needed to cultivate. She did not dare disturb him though, so she nodded obediently and said, ¡°Alright, I understand. I¡¯ll onlye when there¡¯s a need. If my sisteres looking for trouble, I¡¯ll stop her.¡±


    ¡°Good girl.¡± Long Chen smiled warmly.


    After a while, she finally left. Long Chen closed the door and sat cross-legged on the floor.


    The ck, furry cat emerged from the Primordial Realm and climbed onto the wooden desk. He looked at Long Chen, snickered, and said, ¡°You¡¯re lucky, kid. Wherever you go, cute girls pester you. I think you should stay here. Why are you still searching for that Ling Xi girl? There are two princesses here. One is obedient, the other loves to argue. You could get both girls in bed and enjoy the most glorious thing in life. This is wonderful; you don¡¯t know how many people are jealous.¡±


    Long Chen red at him coldly and asked, ¡°Did youe out just to spout nonsense?¡±


    Little Cat continued with a grin, ¡°I¡¯m being serious. The Royal Territories are more treacherous than you imagine. An unimportant figure like you will just be treated as a joke when you go to the immense Swordsoul Pce. You may even die randomly, and no one will bother to bury you. You¡¯re just going to humiliate yourself. Heavenly Wood City is amazing with two women for you. One has both a fiery temper and figure, while the other is gentle in both nature and figure. They are highly ranked too. Why would you destroy such a beautiful life for an uncertain, faraway dream?¡±


    Long Chen bit his lip. He looked at Little Cat coldly and said, ¡°You want to know why? I¡¯ll tell you why. Because I am Long Chen!¡±


    This was such a simple answer to Long Chen. Why wouldn¡¯t he enjoy such a beautiful life, and instead choose to embark on a journey of no return? Why would he risk his life to forge ahead, even having countless brushes with death? There was only one reason¡ªhe was Long Chen!


    Looking at Long Chen¡¯s determined gaze, Little Cat smiled awkwardly and said, ¡°I was just making a joke. Why are you getting all riled up? Do you think I don¡¯t know how you are? Hehe. Let¡¯s change the topic. For example, your trump cards like the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance have been seen through by someone.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief.


    ¡°Do not underestimate other masters. I am sure that guy Bai Lan knows that you have received the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and even sensed your Five Emperor Seals. He hid it well, right? You didn¡¯t even realize that he saw right through you.¡±


    ¡°What do I do?¡± He saw that Little Cat was calm, so he knew that he would have a solution.


    Little Cat saidzily, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He did not attack you immediately because he is a smart man. He knows there are things he can touch and things he cannot.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Long Chen still did not understand.


    ¡°Just trust me. You came here wanting to meet Bai Lan, but I think that he will try to get closer to you too. Based on how he let you treat his darling daughter and stay right next to her, it shows that he is trying to nurture the rtionship between you and his daughter.¡±


    Long Chen had a revtion. ¡°He is indeed an old fox. I can¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t figure that out. If you hadn¡¯t told me, I would still be in the dark.¡±


    Long Chen thought he was a little too careless sometimes. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Bai Lan wanted to get closer to him, he would have died already.


    But why did Bai Lan want to be good to him?


    ¡°I think he also knows about the presence of the people behind the scenes. You see, the Thunder Demon faction and the Divine Wind faction are almost equal in strength. Yet the Divine Wind faction took up two districts so brazenly, whereas the Thunder Demon faction focused all their strength on Heavenly Wood City. It shows that Bai Lan wants to keep a low profile. He is cautious of the people behind the scenes, so he dares not stand out. He knows the saying, ¡®the outstanding bird gets shot.¡¯ That is why he will not touch you, but will quietly build a rtionship with you. Alright, I can say that both of you guys suddenly want to build a rtionship. Could this be a match made in heaven?¡±


    ¡°To hell with you,¡± scolded Long Chen whileughing.


    ¡°It looks like I can do anything without reservation in Heavenly Wood City, then. After I reach the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, I will start going to the peak of the city to cultivate the Seven Star Body! Of course, I must first cultivate the Seven Star Constetion¡¯s essence, which is the foundation for cultivating the Seven Star Body and the Big Dipper Step. As for the divine weapon I received, the Three Thousand Star Clusters, it¡¯s too powerful. I¡¯ll save that forter.¡±


    Very soon, Long Chenid out his cultivation ns.


    As long as he was in Heavenly Wood City, Long Chen had the protection of Bai Lan and the little girl Suyan guarding him, so he could sleep without any worries.


    However, the people behind the scenes were like a thorn in his mind.


    After he cleared out his thoughts, he let Little Cat keep watch and sank his mind into the Primordial Realm without a worry, starting to study the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage¡¯s techniques. Some time had passed since he broke through to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, so it was time to work towards the next breakthrough.


    The Martial God Tombstone glowed gray beneath the enveloping, gray Primordial Qi.


    Long Chen focused his attention on the tombstone. A silhouette of a person appeared. Once again, this person started performing the Earthly Martial Fist Manual from the First Earthly Martial Stage until the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen realized that every time he revised this routine, it benefited him greatly. He previously had many ws in his Fifth Earthly Martial Stage cultivation, but they were all filled now.


    After about half a day, the silhouette finally reached the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. When it started performing it, Little Cat¡¯s voice came from outside the Primordial Realm. Long Chen had no choice but to pull his mind out of the Primordial Realm. He opened his eyes and saw Little Cat staring at him with hisrge eyes.


    ¡°What is it?¡± blurted Long Chen.


    ¡°Take a look for yourself.¡± Little Cat then stretched his back.


    Long Chen quickly used the Soul Swallowing Gaze and indeed, not far away, Suxue was rushing over angrily with a young man by her side.


    ¡°Big Sister, Big Brother said that no one can disturb him when he¡¯s cultivating,¡± Suyan said anxiously, trying her best to stop her sister.


    ¡°What? Who does he think he is? He¡¯s merely cultivating, and he is in my city. Yet I¡¯m not allowed to get near him?¡± Suxue was furious.


    ¡°But Big Brother said ¡­¡± said Suyan in a small voice.


    ¡°So what if he did?¡± Suxue pushed her gently aside, then walked over to his quarters.


    ¡°Big Sister, if you do this, I¡¯ll never talk to you again ¡­¡± When Suyan said this, the door opened with a creak.

 Chapter 756: Alchemist

    Suxue was being insufferable, and that angered Long Chen. Long Chen opened the door with a creak and stared at her coldly. The way he emerged without a sound and that cold re scared Suxue.


    But she quickly thought to herself with both anger and embarrassment, <em>That jerk is only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. He¡¯s far below my level. Why am I afraid of him?</em>


    With that thought, she grew brave once more and red at him equally coldly. ¡°It¡¯s good you¡¯vee out. I thought you would hide inside like a cowardly tortoise!¡±


    ¡°Big Sister, how could you talk like that?!¡± Suyan was furious too. She stood next to Long Chen and gently tugged at his sleeve. She said to Long Chen tiredly, ¡°Big Brother, I couldn¡¯t stop her. I¡¯m sorry ¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± It did not matter how upset Long Chen was. When he saw the obedient little girl, he was not so angry anymore. But Suxue really was like a troublesome housefly. Long Chen had not bothered her at all, yet she kept pestering him.


    What did she want now?


    Long Chen looked at the person standing next to Suxue. He looked simr in age to Long Chen, but his true age was unknown. As Long Chen studied the young man, he was also doing the same to Long Chen.


    This youth¡¯s looks and aura were simr to Bai Lan¡¯s. His face was pale and he was tall and thin with a chilling quality. However, he was not rted to Bai Lan. He merely had a simr air to him, and his looks were not too far off. If Bai Lan could have such a beautiful pair of daughters, then it was natural that he was better-looking than this person, though this guy was not ugly either.


    It seemed like the men of the Demon n had simr airs to Bai Lan too. Cold and pale. This was an outstanding feature of this youth. However, Long Chen also sensed a burning fire beneath his cold exterior.Still staring at Long Chen, the youth said in his slightly hoarse voice, ¡°Princess Xue, is he the person you were talking about?¡±


    Suxue nodded and said, ¡°That¡¯s him. What do you think?¡±


    The youth did not reply. He looked at Suyan and said, ¡°Princess Yan¡¯er,e here and let me see you.¡±


    Suyan nced at Long Chen, then she nodded and said, ¡°Alright ¡­ Brother Situ.¡±


    Then she went up to the youth. She seemed to be afraid of him, so she did not dare stand close. She stood one meter away and peered at the cold youth fearfully.


    Long Chen suddenly recalled that Suyan had once told him about a young person named Situ Yu in the Demon n. Since she called him ¡®Brother Situ,¡¯ this was him.


    Situ Yu inspected Suyan for a while with furrowed brows. He approached her and touched her gently several times. Of course, he did not touch anywhere inappropriate, only checking her arms, cheeks, and other body parts that weren¡¯t intimate. After a long time, Suyan could not stand it and backed several steps away. He finally stopped and looked at Suyan quizzically. ¡°Princess Yan¡¯er, there¡¯s nothing wrong with your body. How do you know that you¡¯ll age in ten days? You¡¯repletely fine now.¡±


    ¡°But Big Brother says I will,¡± said Suyan, confused.


    ¡°Could you have been tricked?¡± asked Situ Yu with a frown. There was a cold sh in his eyes as he shot a look at Long Chen.


    ¡°No way! Father believes Big Brother too!¡± Suyan said hurriedly. She backed several steps away to Long Chen¡¯s side and continued, ¡°Now, Big Brother will be staying at my ce. If anything happens to me in ten days, he will help. Big Brother is a very good alchemist!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Situ Yu straightened his back. He was the only alchemist in Heavenly Wood City, but now another one had arrived. This neer was only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage too, and when he saw how close Suyan was with him, he was privately unhappy. He eyed Long Chen for a while, then said mockingly, ¡°Where did this swindlere from? He¡¯s calling himself an alchemist while looking like that? What do you have that will prove you are an alchemist? Show me a pill.¡±


    ¡°Yeah! You can¡¯t even show us a single pill. How could you prove that you¡¯re an alchemist?¡± Suxue had the lead now. She eyed Long Chen suspiciously. Even though Bai Lan trusted him, she was not assured enough to put her sister¡¯s life in a stranger¡¯s hands. And this stranger had been rude to her too, so she did not find him likable at all.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have to prove I¡¯m an alchemist to you guys, do I?¡± Long Chen asked mildly.


    ¡°Hmph! I think you¡¯re just pretending!¡± responded Suxue.


    ¡°There is no need to argue with us. As long as you can show us something to prove that you are an alchemist, we will let you participate in Princess Yan¡¯er¡¯s matters. If not, how could we rest easy?¡± Situ Yu said matter-of-factly.


    After a pause, he said, ¡°To be an alchemist, the first thing one must do is condense their core fire. Let me see your core fire, and I won¡¯t say anything else.¡±


    He was aware that Bai Lan seemed to ce importance on Long Chen. Other, he would have tossed someone at Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level off Heavenly Wood City a long time ago. He would not have even entertained him.


    Seeing as Long Chen still did not react, he looked at Long Chen, and then held out his right hand. When he opened his right palm, a small, emerald-green me appeared. It danced and flickered, emitting intense heat. Situ Yu unted his green me in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes for a while, then put it away and said, ¡°Enough with the nonsense. Just show us your core fire.¡±


    ¡°No way! Big Brother wouldn¡¯t want to show you guys anything.¡± Suyan knew that Long Chen was a fake alchemist, so she quickly refuted it. However, she was young and did not know how to lie. Her rebuttal worsened the situation even more. In reality, if Long Chen was truly an alchemist, he would not have minded showing them his core fire.


    ¡°Long Chen, is it time for your lies to finally be exposed? I can see that you¡¯re a fake alchemist. You can¡¯t even show us your core fire, yet you want to save my sister. If my father learns of this, he will never let you go! Situ Yu, let¡¯s go. Let¡¯s go tell my father now.¡± When Suxue saw that Long Chen could not show them his core fire, she was relieved. Finally, she had evidence to bring to her father. She was still indignant about being reprimanded twice before.


    ¡°Big Sister, don¡¯t be like this ¡­¡± Suyan panicked and wanted to cry. She knew that her sister didn¡¯t used to be like this. She cared too much, so it made her appear like she was making trouble out of nothing.


    Unfortunately, her words could not persuade Suxue to stay.


    ¡°Wait,¡± Long Chen said.


    Suxue and Situ Yu turned around. Suxue looked at him and asked, ¡°What else do you want to say, liar?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you guys want to see my core fire? That¡¯s a simple request,¡± said Long Chen, then he held up his right palm.


    ¡°Big Brother?¡± Suyan looked puzzled. She knew that Long Chen could never have core fire. What was he doing now?


    To her surprise, a small, blood-red me burst from Long Chen¡¯s palm. The me burned fiercely, and unlike Situ Yu¡¯s pitiful green me, Long Chen¡¯s me looked fierce and more powerful.


    ¡°That ¡­ That ¡­¡± After they saw the me in his palm, Suxue and Situ Yu looked at each other, stunned. When Long Chen put away the blood-red Golden Crow me, both of them stood in stunned silence before asking, ¡°How is that possible? How could you have core fire?¡±


    ¡°Of course he does. As I said before, Big Brother is a powerful alchemist.¡± Suyan was extremely relieved. The other two were so adamant on making usations against him, but now that Long Chen had produced the core fire, it was like a p to their faces.


    Of course, Suyan was still privately puzzled. Long Chen wasn¡¯t an alchemist, so how could he have core fire?


    There was nothing Situ Yu and Suxue could say. Even Suxue started to wonder if she had been wrong. What if Long Chen really had a way to save her sister? And that she was looking at a gentleman through a selfish lens? Even her wise father had chosen to trust him, then even reprimanded her for her behavior. If Long Chen didn¡¯t actually have a solution, why would Bai Lan do that?


    From another angle, if Long Chen really was her sister¡¯s savior, and yet she kept obstructing his work and made his life difficult ¡­ What if he ran off in anger? Wouldn¡¯t she have harmed her sister?


    With that thought, Suxue started to be afraid.


    However, Situ Yu was still unconvinced. He calmed himself and said coldly, ¡°Having core fire doesn¡¯t mean you are a good alchemist. Materials, knowledge, core fire, and many factors are crucial to bing a powerful alchemist. I do not believe that you can produce good medicine with just Fifth Earthly Martial Stage essence. Why don¡¯t we make a bet?¡±


    ¡°What do you want to bet on?¡± Long Chen was never one to be afraid of bets, especially when he would definitely win.


    ¡°There are ten more days. I can refine an anti-aging pill as well. If Princess Yan¡¯er really has a problem then, we shallpete to see whose pill can make her recover!¡± Situ Yu said coldly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think involving someone¡¯s life in a bet is immoral?¡± Long Chen did not agree.


    He truly was very repulsed by this. He only wanted to use his blood to save a girl. There was no need for it to be a bet. The fact that Situ Yu would do this was disrespectful to Suyan.

 Chapter 757: Big Breasts But No Brain

    ¡°How dare you lecture me?¡±


    Situ Yu red and was about to attack, but Suxue blocked him and said, ¡°He¡¯s right. How could you involve my sister¡¯s life in a bet? But, Situ Yu, you should research this when you get back too. We can¡¯t ce all hope on this stranger. Yan¡¯er¡¯s fate is in your hands.¡±


    Situ Yu swallowed his anger, red venomously at Long Chen, and said, ¡°Alright. Leave the pill-making to me. They will be ready in ten days. Long Chen, we shall see who can help Princess Yan¡¯er recover then! I¡¯m leaving!¡±


    Then, without even bidding them farewell, he walked off. This proved that Situ Yu was a high-ranking member of the Demon n. Other than Suxue and Suyan, he was likely the highest-ranked person in the younger generation. After he left, Suxue looked at Long Chen hesitantly. ¡°Long Chen, my sister¡¯s life ¡­ No matter what, it is in your hands. If anything happens to my sister, I will never forgive you.¡±


    ¡°Big Sister, don¡¯t worry. You will see that Big Brother is both amazing and a good person,¡± Suyan said confidently.


    The fact that Long Chen had reprimanded Situ Yu for the bet made Suxue see him in a positive light. She took one more nce at him, feeling like he was no longer so repulsive. Then she left, feeling assured.


    ¡°If you only have big breasts and no brains, you won¡¯t amount to anything,¡± said Long Chen not long after she walked away.


    Suxue was so furious that she wanted to hit him, but she held herself back after some thought.


    <em>Once my sister recovers, I¡¯m going to beat you up! No one in the Demon n dares offend me, Suxue! Hmph!</em>When Suyan saw her sister get angry at Long Chen that smoke almost rose from her head, she started to giggle.


    ¡°Big Brother, you¡¯re amazing! No one has ever been able to make my sister that mad. She¡¯s really powerful and men are all afraid of her. Even Brother Situ Yu wouldn¡¯t dare say the wrong things in front of her.¡±


    Long Chen smiled in exasperation. After he came here, he initially did not want to make any enemies, but Situ Yu had literallye to his doorstep and challenged him. That was why Long Chen could not be med. The other guy was insistent and rude, while Long Chen would not let anyone bully him. He had only refuted one or two sentences, but since they were haughty people, enemies were made.


    Of course, Long Chen was only here to cultivate and help Suyan during her critical moments. He had no time to go fight Situ Yu. There were no grudges between them anyway. Any misunderstandings would just fade with time. Long Chen did not want to kill anyone, nor could he defeat an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator at the moment. That was why he did not feel any pressure.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, go y on your own. I wille out of my cultivation in ten days." Since they were finally gone, Long Chen wanted to continue cultivating. He had just started watching the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage¡¯s punching routine when they had interrupted him. Long Chen had barely gotten a taste of it, so he was anxious to resume cultivating.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡± Suyan pouted unwillingly.


    ¡°Silly girl. If I don¡¯t cultivate, anyone will be able to bully me,¡± said Long Chen with a smile.


    ¡°But I can protect you! I¡¯ll beat up whoever touches you!¡± Suyan said fiercely, waving her small fist.


    She was such a cute girl. She should¡¯ve been living the life of an angel, deserving nothing but good things.


    Long Chen smiled. After he sent Suyan back, he immersed himself in the cultivation of the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. With the teachings of the Martial God Tombstone, Long Chen¡¯s strength improved quickly as his foundation was already strong. He felt like he was very near to the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage.


    While he was working hard on his cultivation, Suyan¡¯s problem spread to everyone in Heavenly Wood City. Now everyone knew that Suyan had been hit with a spell from an unknown character and that she would age in ten days. She still had hope to live because two people were working hard for her. One was the alchemist Situ Yu, whom everyone knew. Situ Yu only ranked below Suxue among people of the younger generation, plus he was an alchemist. That was why he was taken very seriously in the Demon n and was one of the role models for the youths. He was very famous in Heavenly Wood City.


    Everyone had some confidence in him, seeing as he had performed miracles before. He hadpletely mastered the art of alchemy and was famous for it. Not a single person disliked the little princess in Heavenly Wood City, so during these ten days, all her rtives who had heard of her problem came to visit her, making her scramble to greet them. However, due to Suyan¡¯s request, no one approached Long Chen¡¯s area.


    In the end, under Bai Lan¡¯s request, no one visited Suyan anymore. He did not want his daughter to be disturbed. During this time, Bai Lan hade once, and after he heard that Long Chen was cultivating, he gave an expression as if he had expected it. Afterforting his daughter, he left quickly.


    Everyone was extremely anxious, but the father, who was the person who loved his daughter most, waspletely rxed. Everyone was puzzled by this. Was Bai Lan that confident in Situ Yu?


    While Long Chen was cultivating, Situ Yu was busy refining pills. Sounds of explosions often came from his quarters, so everyone could tell that he was very busy.


    News of Long Chen also quietly spread across the city. Many people learned that there was an outsider in the city named Long Chen who was also an alchemist, and he was also refining pills for Suyan. This person was only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, and the only special thing about him was that he was brought back by Suyan. Princess Suyan seemed to be very close with this person, which broke the hearts of many people who had fantasized about her before.


    Just like that, ten days passed. During this time, Suxue hade countless times to check on Long Chen. She found him immersed in cultivation every single time, yet Situ Yu was working hard to refine pills. The difference between them was apparent with just a nce.


    Long Chen once again turned into a swindler in Suxue¡¯s eyes. In the end, she did not even bother to check on him, because she had long lost hope in him. During this time, she had met Bai Lan several times, and although she was so anxious about Suyan that she could almost puke out blood, her father showed no signs of anxiety. Every day, he continued to y chess and drink with the Thunder n leader.


    On thest night, Suxue kept Suyanpany.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, aren¡¯t you afraid of death?¡±


    ¡°I am,¡± said Suyan.


    ¡°Then why aren¡¯t you crying? Tomorrow is the tenth day.¡±


    ¡°Big Brother will save me tomorrow,¡± Suyan said with wide eyes.


    Suxue was speechless.


    On the next day, at dawn, many people gathered in Suyan¡¯s elegant courtyard. These were the top leaders of the Demon n. As for the Thunder n, only Lei Ji apanied Bai Lan. The top leaders of the Demon n were at least the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. A total of ten people were squeezed into the yard, and every single one of them could easily kill Long Chen.


    Behind Bai Lan were the eight Sect Elders of the Demon n. They were all masters at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, and some already had a foot in the Heavenly Martial Realm and were just a step away from a breakthrough. However, there was a huge valley to cross in order to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm. Although they were just a step away, it did not mean that they would reach it. It was even possible that they would stagnate for the rest of their lives. When they truly reached the Heavenly Martial Realm, it would be the equivalent of taking one step and flying into the sky.


    Many people failed to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm when they were young. Once they reached two hundred years of age, which was when their tendons, muscles, and bones started to age, reaching the Heavenly Martial realm would be difficult.


    All the top leaders of the Demon n were gathered in this small space. They were all famous people in the outside world, but they were gathered here because they were concerned about Princess Suyan. Bai Lan was famous for loving his daughters. Whether she lived or died would be decided today, so it was natural that they were present.


    If anything happened to Suyan, and Bai Lan went mad, they did not know how many casualties there would be.


    They all stood in the yard in an orderly fashion, looking at Bai Lan in front. Bai Lan¡¯s expression should have been dark, but to their surprise, he was acting like nothing was out of the norm. As usual, he was chatting away happily with the Thunder n leader, Lei Ji.


    Bai Lan¡¯s demeanor shocked everyone. Had his personality changed? Or did it mean Suyan was actually fine? Was her condition actually not serious at all?


    The group was puzzled, but since Bai Lan was so close, they did not dare discuss it among themselves. Bai Lan was the person who had received the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance, and his cultivation had reached a terrifying level. Even the Thunder n leader was no match for him at all.


    Everyone watched as Suyan and Suxue sat together in a small pavilion. Suxue was clutching Suyan¡¯s hand tightly, letting her rest her tiny head on her chest. The beautiful sisters huddled together and looked in harmony with the beautiful scenery.


    ¡°Xue¡¯er really has grown up. Look at her hugging Yan¡¯er. She looks like a mother,¡± joked Lei Ji when he looked at them.


    ¡°Damn you, my daughter is only in her twenties. In the world of cultivation and the Three Martial Realms, she¡¯s considered very young,¡± chuckled Bai Lan without worry in his eyes.


    However, Suxue was so anxious that tears were welling up in her eyes.


    ¡°Big Sister, are you crying?¡± Suyan asked sadly as she reached out to touch Suxue¡¯s face with her fair hand.

 Chapter 758: Spring Restoration Pill

    ¡°That¡¯s nonsense.¡± Suxue gently pushed her hand away and wiped her tears. She then looked at her sister, who did not know anything. Her heart ached as she gazed at her innocent face and stroked Suyan¡¯s long hair. She said, ¡°Yan¡¯er, don¡¯t be scared. You¡¯ll recover.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not afraid.¡± Suyan¡¯s eyes were wide as she looked at her older sister. ¡°Like I said, Big Brother will save me.¡±


    Suxue wasn¡¯t sure how to respond. ¡°Don¡¯t trust that bastard. It¡¯s been ten days. Situ Yu has worked hard all this time, while that bastard has only been cultivating in his room. There was not a single sound from him. And he isn¡¯t even out now. Do you think he¡¯s getting scared? Let¡¯s see how long he¡¯ll hide in there!¡±


    ¡° ¡­ Brother Situ hasn¡¯te either,¡± Suyan muttered softly.


    After Suyan spoke, Situ Yu entered the yard. He walked up to Bai Lan and bowed his head. Next to him, an older man with a straight posture asked, ¡°Xiao Yu, is it done?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Grandfather. It will definitely work,¡± answered Situ with a nod.


    The old man was at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, and was one of the eight Sect Masters, so he was ranked high in the Demon n. The eight Sect Elders were powerful people who controlled one county each across the Divine Demon Empire.


    When the old man heard Situ Yu, he nodded and said, ¡°Let the n Leader know, then.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Situ Yu nodded and went up to Bai Lan. He said, ¡°Greetings, n Leader. After working hard for ten days, I have sessfully formted an anti-aging pill. The Spring Restoration Pill took eighteen types of spiritual herbs to make, including seven advanced King-tier herbs. I had to refine it with my core fire for three days and three nights!¡±¡°Oh? Spring Restoration Pill? What an ugly name you¡¯ve given it! Haha ¡­¡± Bai Lan and Lei Jiughed heartily, leaving the crowd speechless. Why were the two men acting so strangely?


    Situ Yu was showing them the pill he made, and it was a very important matter. Not only did Bai Lan not care to ask about the pill¡¯s medicinal properties, he had just called its name ugly. What was the meaning of this?


    Situ Yu wanted to give his pill an introduction, but after a few lines, Bai Lan¡¯sughterpletely drowned out his words. Situ Yu felt like vomiting blood. He had worked hard for ten days in order topete against Long Chen, yet Bai Lan¡¯sughter showed that he did not take him seriously at all. Situ Yu swallowed his anger.


    Since he saw that Bai Lan was not paying attention, he retreated to his grandfather¡¯s side. His grandfather, Situ Yao, was also privately puzzled. Bai Lan was not usually like this. Why would he make a joke at a moment like this?


    Situ Yu was still young, so his indignation was written all over his face. Without a word, Situ Yao gave him a look of reassurance, then quietly waited for time to pass.


    ¡°Father, I¡¯ll get Long Chen out here.¡± Suxue stood up and went to Long Chen¡¯s quarters, but halfway through, Bai Lan stopped her.


    He said, ¡°He¡¯s cultivating. Let¡¯s not disturb him. It¡¯s not time yet.¡±


    Suxue looked at her father with surprise. She did not understand. Why was Bai Lan treating Long Chen so well? Why was there such a huge difference in the attitude he had just shown Situ Yu? This made the people of the Demon n privately unhappy, especially Situ Yu and Situ Yao, who were unable to figure out why.


    Having no choice, Suxue could only return to her spot.


    After a while, she cried out loud because she saw wrinkles forming on her younger sister¡¯s smooth face. Her ck hair was starting to turn white, which made Suxue cry out in shock.


    She kept hoping that Suyan¡¯s aging was a fake story, yet it was happening right before her eyes. Her beautiful younger sister had suddenly turned old, and her heart ached so much that she wanted to cry.


    Bai Lan¡¯s face changed too. He instantly went up to his daughter and supported her in his arms. Heforted her and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be scared, Yan¡¯er. You¡¯ll be well very soon.¡±


    Mere moments ago, Bai Lan wasughing at his joke, but now he radiated a terrifying killing intent. He clearly still cared about his daughter very much.


    ¡°Father, am I ugly?¡± Suyan asked weakly, continuing to age.


    ¡°Who said that? My Yan¡¯er is the most beautiful girl,¡± said Bai Lan gently with a warm smile.


    Next, Situ Yao gestured, and Situ Yu went up to Bai Lan. He said, ¡°n Leader, Yan¡¯er¡¯s symptoms have started showing. I¡¯ll let her consume the Spring Restoration Pill. If we dy this, she may ¡­¡±


    Bai Lan looked up, and his cold re scared Situ into taking a step back.


    ¡°Father, if Long Chen won¡¯te, let Situ Yu try. Situ Yu worked hard for many days. I think he¡¯s the only one who can save Yan¡¯er,¡± Suxue said anxiously.


    She was puzzled by her father¡¯s strange behavior.


    The other people of the Demon n looked at Bai Lan strangely, not knowing what he was thinking.


    ¡°Brother Bai, let the kid try first. Then we can let the other one reach the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage beforeing here,¡± said Lei Ji.


    Everyone finally understood what Bai Lan was waiting for. Long Chen was breaking through to the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage right now, which was why Bai Lan hadn¡¯t called him out. Why did he put so much importance on the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage kid? They did not understand at all.


    ¡°You may try.¡± Since Lei Ji had spoken, Bai Lan did not insist on opposing him and let Situ Yu try. However, this was very frustrating to Situ Yu. He had created this pill with great difficulty, yet he had to obtain permission from Bai Lan before giving it to Suyan. This was all because of Long Chen. Even if Situ Yu sessfully saved Suyan, he would continue to hate Long Chen.


    Everyone watched as Situ Yu took an elegant, white jade box out of his Universe Pouch. He opened it gently. Within a gentle, white mist was a pill that looked like a pearl. He had only just opened the box, yet its fragrance had spread to everyone present.


    ¡°Judging by its color, texture, and fragrance, we can tell that Situ Yu¡¯s Spring Restoration Pill is a good one.¡±


    ¡°Indeed. He¡¯s the only one who could make such a good pill. I think it will heal Princess Yan¡¯er.¡±


    Everyone discussed in hushed voices while Situ Yu ced the clear pill into her mouth. Her body was already starting to change on arge scale, and the spectators could no longer bear to watch. It was tragic for the beautiful, cute little princes to turn into this state.


    Of course, they wanted to see the effects of the Spring Restoration Pill.


    When Suyan swallowed the pill ording to his instructions, everyone¡¯s eyes were fixed on her. After it reached her stomach, she cultivated it and it started to melt in her stomach, activating its medicinal properties.


    Everyone was anxious, especially Suxue. In her mind, this was the only chance for her little sister to survive. If this pill failed to heal her, there was nothing that could be done.


    ¡°It¡¯s working! Sess!¡± someone cried. Everyone peered carefully and noticed that her fast-aging process was already starting to slow, and there were even signs of it reversing.


    ¡°It actually worked!¡± Suxue was overwhelmed with emotion. She looked at Situ Yu with gratitude in her eyes. Situ Yu had always been a very attractive member of the Demon n, and everyone knew that his grandfather wanted to get Bai Lan to marry Suxue to Situ Yu. Situ Yu worked very hard too, doing his best to fulfill her every request. He had used up many of his treasures to refine this pill in order to win her heart.


    The pill had worked. Situ Yu felt triumphant. Previously, Bai Lan had intimidated him, but now he had seeded. He looked at the crowd smugly.


    ¡°It actually worked. Situ Yu really is the only alchemist of the Demon n. He is extraordinary.¡±


    ¡°Yes. He is a rare, handsome talent too. He is at the Eight Earthly Martial Stage now and will likely reach the Heavenly Martial Realm in the future. We will have an additional Heavenly Martial Realm master in our midst.¡±


    Situ Yu was privately delighted to hear such praise. He had seeded, and Long Chen had not shown up yet. This was a p to Bai Lan, who ced great trust in Long Chen.


    Bai Lan looked a little shocked too. He studied Suyan carefully and indeed, her aging process was starting to reverse. However, it was very slow and she probably needed half a day to healpletely.


    Bai Lan had to admit that he had underestimated Situ Yu.


    ¡°Father, I feel terrible ¡­¡± Suyan suddenly said, her face pale. Everyone was startled and looked over. She was starting to age again! The pill had merely stopped the process for a short while.


    Situ Yu felt as if he had been struck by lightning.


    Everyone was stunned.


    Even Suxue was in disbelief. Her heart shattered after seeing her sister like this.


    ¡°Long Chen, Long Chen!¡± Suxue finally ced her hopes on Long Chen.

 Chapter 759: Long Chen’s Alchemy Skills

    Situ Yu¡¯s failure brought everyone¡¯s happy mood down to rock bottom once more. Situ Yu was in the most disbelief. He looked at the increasingly old Suyan in shock and incredulity. He yelled in confusion, ¡°That¡¯s impossible! Impossible! I used multiple precious herbs to refine the Spring Restoration Pill! How could it not work? That¡¯s impossible!¡±


    His voice grew louder and louder. In this ce full of powerful masters, it was indeed inappropriate for a junior to be yelling like this. Everyone¡¯s brows were furrowed while Bai Lan waved and said coldly, ¡°Shut your mouth. Get out!¡±


    Bai Lan was starting to get angry as he was seeing his daughter suffer.


    He was the highest-ranked person in the Demon n. The moment heshed out, Situ Yu was startled awake and knew that he had acted too boldly. His grandfather shot him a look, and he quickly nodded and stepped back to the outer ring of the group. However, he did not leave but watched from a distance.


    No one cared about what happened to Situ Yu; the main concern was whether Suyan would live. They felt helpless seeing her face grow older.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to call Long Chen!¡± Suxue said anxiously. Even though Long Chen was trying to break into the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, she had no choice but to call him out here. Although she did not quite believe that he would seed, it was better than letting Suyan wait for death here.


    ¡°Big Brother ¡­¡± At this point, Suyan was starting to lose consciousness. Her face was old and withered, and she looked so old that they thought she would die soon.


    Everyone looked at Bai Lan to see what he would decide. This was his daughter, and he was in control of her life now. Bai Lan finally made the decision to wake Long Chen up, even though he was at a critical moment in his breakthrough.


    ¡°Xue¡¯er, go get him!¡±The moment Bai Lan spoke, a sh of joy suddenly appeared on his face. Indeed, there was a hugemotioning from the small, wooden house. A huge amount of essence surged towards Long Chen¡¯s quarters for about ten breaths. Then the wooden door sted open and Long Chen appeared. He instantly rushed to Suyan.


    ¡°Sorry I¡¯mte.¡± Long Chen had indeed been focused on his breakthrough, but in reality, even he did not know it would take this long. When he seeded, he sensed all the people gathered outside.


    He knew that this was the tenth day, of course, and also the day that Suyan¡¯s aging symptoms would begin. That was why he was so anxious and even looked regretful. If he had known, he would not have been so anxious to reach the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. Suyan was a good child. If he had beente and caused her to die, he would have med himself for a long time.


    Of course, even if he did not me himself, others would never forgive him. Bai Lan had left Suyan to him because he trusted him. Long Chen knew that he could not let him down.


    ¡°Where¡¯s your pill? Take it out,¡± roared Suxue, looking like she could not wait to kill Long Chen.


    Everyone looked at him, curious about what pill he would take out.


    Outside the crowd, Situ Yu watched Long Chen with venom in his eyes. He realized he was just like a clown to them. After joking around for a while, he was reprimanded and chased out. He had invested ten days of painstaking effort, yet Bai Lan still cared more about Long Chen. This made Situ Yu, who had always received utmost attention, burn with the mes of fury!


    Long Chen felt great pressure since everyone was watching. He did not dare act recklessly, so he said to Bai Lan, ¡°n Leader Bai, give Yan¡¯er to me. I will return a healthy daughter back to you in fifteen minutes.¡±


    ¡°Just take the pill out now,¡± said Suxue, unsure of what Long Chen was doing. No one knew why he was stalling. If he was an alchemist, couldn¡¯t he just take the pill out?


    Long Chen and Bai Lan ignored them. Long Chen reached out and grabbed Suyan, then turned to enter his wooden house. <em>m! </em>He shut his door. Everyone looked at each other and started to discuss.


    ¡°What was that? How could he take Princess Yan¡¯er inside?¡±


    Even the eight sect elders did not know what he was doing. Situ Yao looked at Bai Lan and said in a low voice, ¡°n Leader, how could you hand Princess Yan¡¯er over to an outsider like that? She¡¯s in a critical condition now. How could we let a kid of unknown origin do whatever he wants to her? If anything happens to Yan¡¯er ¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah, n Leader. Why do you trust that kid so much?¡±


    Everyone started to argue. Suxue cried anxiously, ¡°Father, he took Yan¡¯er inside. What if ¡­ What if something happens ¡­ She wouldn¡¯t even be able to see us for thest time ¡­¡±


    As she spoke, tears flowed from her eyes and she started to choke.


    Outside the crowd, Situ Yu chuckled coldly. ¡°That uneducated, talentless bastard. Let¡¯s see how he¡¯ll talk his way out of this when Yan¡¯er dies!¡±


    While everyone argued, Lei Ji, who was next to Bai Lan, huffed and cried, ¡°Enough with this discussion! You are all the highest-ranked people of the Demon n! Is this how you should be acting? Brother Bai has a reason for making this decision. As his subordinates, you only need to watch. Don¡¯t start spouting nonsense!¡±


    Bai Lan could not be bothered to talk to them, but Lei Ji was irritated, so he reprimanded them. In reality, Lei Ji and Bai Lan had been good friends since young and supported each other for many years. They were true brothers, and they had a solid bond. Bai Lan had always made it known that within the Demon n, Lei Ji¡¯s words carried the same weight as his own. That was why no one dared to make an indignant expression when he reprimanded them.


    After Lei Ji spoke, everyone was silent.


    Everyone looked at the room Long Chen had entered. They were powerful masters, so they could sense that Suyan¡¯s aura had not disappeared. In fact, it even showed signs of strengthening. When they sensed this, they could hardly believe it.


    Had Long Chen seeded?


    How was that possible?


    The only alchemist of the Demon n had spent ten days and exhausted countless precious herbs creating one Spring Restoration Pill, while Long Chen had been doing nothing but cultivating. Had he prepared the pill a long time ago, and was only letting her consume it now?


    There was now an additional halo of mystery around him.


    Bai Lan was the first to show a carefree smile. He met Lei Ji¡¯s eyes, and they understood each other¡¯s thoughts. From today onwards, Bai Lan would take Long Chen even more seriously. At the very least, Long Chen was now Suyan¡¯s savior, and she would need to be saved nine more times in the next ny days. Therefore, he had no choice but to let Long Chen livefortably in Heavenly Wood City.


    After a while, as everyone expected, the wooden door was gently opened. Suyan, who was now back to being a young girl, skipped happily out of the room and came up to Bai Lan and the others. The overwhelmed Suxue and the smiling Bai Lan hugged her together.


    Everyone also watched Long Chen walk out. He had finally saved Suxue. Long Chen sighed in relief. His task was sessfullypleted.


    They all studied Suyan in shock and found that she hadpletely recovered. Not only had her life force not weakened, it was even stronger. Usually, women had weaker Qi than men. However, after Long Chen fed her dragon blood, her Qi grew stronger and her life force became more exuberant.


    Long Chen¡¯s Qi was more powerful than that ofrge King-tier demonic beasts. As he merged with more of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s blood, his Qi¡¯s quality would increase until he became a true Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.


    Seeing that Suyan was fine, everyone turned to Long Chen. The mysterious teenager had impressed them. It was true that Bai Lan trusted Long Chen so much for a reason. Everything was said through his actions, and he had proved himself.


    Everyone other than Situ Yao had tossed Situ Yu to the backs of their minds. He was nothing but a jokepared to Long Chen. Beyond the crowd, Situ Yu stared at the energetically skipping Suyan in a daze. He shook his head hard and looked again. Suyan was still healed.


    Long Chen was the one who had helped her recover.


    Situ Yu was very confident in his alchemy skills, but despite working hard for ten days, he had lost. He wanted to perform well for Suxue so that she would fall for him, but Suxue was gazing at Long Chen with gratitude and even admiration in her eyes right now. Amidst her overwhelming emotions, crystal-like tears pooled in her eyes.


    Everything that should have belonged to Situ Yu had gone to Long Chen.


    With that thought, Situ Yu was filled with anger. He realized that if he stayed here, he would only be the butt of the joke. He stormed off, but before that, he red at Long Chen again and said with a sneer, ¡°You humiliated me today, but you just watch. In this world where only the strongest people win, what¡¯s the use of good alchemy skills when you don¡¯t have strength?¡±


    Then he left.


    Bai Lan smiled and looked at his obedient daughter for a long time, then he finally waved at everyone and said, ¡°Yan¡¯er is fine now. Thank you, everyone, for your concern today. You may all return. Let us have some father-daughter alone-time.¡±

 Chapter 760: Seven Star Body

    ¡°Congrattions, n Leader!¡± Everyone excused themselves afterwards. Situ Yao was at the very front, and when he saw his grandson leaving, he quickly caught up to him. He knew his grandson well, and the youth had just experienced a huge embarrassment.


    Only the two sisters, two n leaders, and Long Chen remained in the courtyard. Suxue looked at Long Chen guiltily and said, ¡°I ¡­ Long Chen, I was mistaken about you. I¡¯m very sorry. I would like to apologize for my rude behavior.¡±


    She previously hated Long Chen because she did not believe in his abilities and was afraid that he would worsen Suyan¡¯s problem. Now that Long Chen had proven his worth, he had won her recognition. In her heart, he had an additional shroud of mystery, while Situ Yu became the talentless one.


    Situ Yu had worked hard to build a positive impression of himself, but it had all gone to ruins.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I know you were just concerned about Yan¡¯er.¡± Long Chen was not a stingy person and naturally did not want to argue with Suxue. He wanted to cultivate the Seven Star Body, so if he fought with her, how would he be able to ask Bai Lan for protection?


    Long Chen had figured out Bai Lan¡¯s cultivation level. Lei Ji was at the First Heavenly Martial Stage, while Bai Lan was a rare Second Heavenly Martial Stage master. This was in addition to the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance, solidifying Bai Lan as the strongest of all the masters in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Long Chen and Bai Lan both had intentions to build a rtionship with each other, and now that Long Chen had helped save Suyan¡¯s life, it further improved their rtionship despite no words being exchanged.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, go y with your older sister. I want to talk to Long Chen for a while.¡± Afterforting Suyan for a while, Bai Lan told the sisters to leave. They were very obedient and quickly excused themselves. Only Long Chen and the two n leaders remained.


    ¡°Thank you so much for today, Long Chen. Have a seat.¡± Within the pavilion, Bai Lan gestured for Long Chen to sit. After he sat, he eyed Long Chen and said, ¡°Entering the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage with help from the Martial God Tombstone was fast, right?¡±Long Chen had long known that Bai Lan knew about his trump cards, including the Martial God Tombstone. That was why he was not surprised and said, ¡°Indeed, the Martial God Tombstone is an amazing treasure. I do not need to worry about my safety in Heavenly Wood City now. Thank you, n Leader, for providing me with a safe cultivation environment.


    Bai Lan smiled and said, ¡°Safe or not, that depends on yourself. Although I am the n leader, I cannot micromanage everything. As the Demon n¡¯s leader, if I take an outsider¡¯s side, people will think that my interests lie elsewhere. Do you agree?¡±


    Bai Lan was an old fox through and through. From his words, Long Chen knew that he was talking about Situ Yu, and was indirectly telling him that if Long Chen and Situ Yu fought, he would be put in a difficult situation due to his position. That was why he wanted Long Chen to do his best to avoid conflict with Situ Yu. Even if there was conflict, it would be best if Long Chen did not attack first, as doing so would give them a reason to oust him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, n Leader. I understand.¡± Long Chen nodded.


    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Bai Lan smiled approvingly. In his eyes, Long Chen was indeed a smart and likable junior.


    After observing Long Chen for a while, he suddenly said, ¡°I think you have already sessfully cultivated the Big Dipper Step. And now you¡¯ve just reached the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. Don¡¯t be in a hurry to increase your cultivation level; you should rest for a while. There should be a technique called Seven Star Body in the Seven Star Manual. I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s the reason why you came to Heavenly Wood City?¡±


    Bai Lan had easily listed out all of Long Chen¡¯s trump cards.


    If Little Cat had not warned Long Chen, he would have been terrified. However, since he had expected it, he said calmly, ¡°It is indeed as you said. I want to go to the peak of this giant tree to experience celestial Qi!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s reaction shocked both Bai Lan and Lei Ji. They thought Long Chen would be shocked, but he was unexpectedly calm.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other and smiled in exasperation. Bai Lan said, ¡°We thought you didn¡¯t know that we had seen through your trump cards. I didn¡¯t expect you to know. That¡¯s good; now we can speak freely. However, I would like to ask you this¡ªyou¡¯re working alone, yet you¡¯re carrying such important treasures with you. Aren¡¯t you afraid that we will snatch your treasures and kill you? These treasures are huge temptations to us. Even with your warp technique, you can¡¯t escape a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator¡¯s domain.¡±


    Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators controlled the energy of the world and could form their own domains around themselves. Long Chen would find it difficult to escape even with his Blood Warp, unless he also had his own domain to withstand his opponent¡¯s domain.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t do that, would you, n Leader Bai?¡± Long Chen redirected his question instead of answering.


    Bai Lanughed heartily and said, ¡°Whatever. I¡¯m not going to tease you. My darling daughter¡¯s life is in your hands too. There are at least ny days left, and I can¡¯t touch you during this time. However, I couldn''t bear for such a good thing to walk away right before my eyes.¡± After a pause, Bai Lan suddenly said, ¡°Hey, kid, what do you think of my daughter?¡±


    Long Chen froze, not understanding why he had suddenly asked that. ¡°Yan¡¯er is adorable and energetic. She¡¯s a good girl.¡±


    ¡°Damn you! I¡¯m not talking about Yan¡¯er. Yan¡¯er is only fourteen; you can dream on! I¡¯m talking about Xue¡¯er. Bai Suxue.¡±


    Long Chen was even more confused. ¡°Suxue is naturally intelligent and very beautiful. She¡¯s your daughter too, so I¡¯m sure she is iparable to the rest.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good. When you cultivate the Seven Star Body, let Xue¡¯er apany you. She¡¯s fairly powerful, so she can assist you if you meet danger.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while and felt like he and Suxue had not really clicked. Plus, he did not like other people watching him cultivate. If Bai Lan had agreed to protect him, he could basically do whatever he wanted in Heavenly Wood City anyway. With that thought, he declined the offer. ¡°Princess Xue and I aren¡¯t really familiar with each other, and I don¡¯t think she will have the patience to apany me for such a long time either. I think I¡¯ll have to pass this time.¡±


    When Bai Lan heard him say that, he did not force it. He chuckled and said, ¡°All in all, I still want to thank you for today. You may stay in Heavenly Wood City as long as you like. I¡¯m leaving now.¡±


    Then he and Lei Ji flung their sleeves and left. They were probably off to y chess and drink tea. Long Chen thought it was strange for these two old men to spend so much time together every day. Didn¡¯t they find it weird?


    Then again, he spent a lot of time every day with Xiang too.


    ¡°Wu Guangyu, it¡¯s almost time for you to die.¡± Long Chen gave a faint smile.


    ***


    After Long Chen left Suyan¡¯s small courtyard, a shadow in a dark corner far away scurried off. The shadow wove through the wooden houses and quickly arrived in another elegant yard. He did not knock and directly jumped over the wall.


    ¡°Brother Situ!¡± The shadow was a teenager with dark skin. He was muscr, making him seem like a ck panther, and he looked a little younger than Situ Yu.


    When the door opened, Situ Yu emerged with a dark expression. When he saw the teenager, he smirked and said, ¡°Chen Xu, do you have news?¡±


    ¡°Brother Situ, the person you wanted me to watch has left the courtyard. Based on the direction he is heading, he is going higher up in Heavenly Wood City. I¡¯m guessing he¡¯s heading to the peak of this tree. But why is he going there?¡±


    Situ Yu chuckled coldly. ¡°Who cares what he¡¯s going to do? He humiliated me just now, then he started sneaking around mysteriously. If he¡¯s doing something bad, then I can catch and kill him. But if he¡¯s just bored and going up there to hang around, I¡¯ll go there to teach him a lesson. No one has ever humiliated me like this before!¡±


    ¡°Brother Situ, you¡¯re right. That brat is a little annoying, and he¡¯s so close with the two beautiful princesses too. He¡¯s just looking for trouble,¡± Chen Xu said respectfully.


    Situ Yu nodded. He went back into the house and then changed into a full-ck outfit. He said to Chen Xu, ¡°Chen Xu, I see you as my brother. That¡¯s why I sent you to follow that brat. No matter what happens tonight, you must not tell a soul.¡±

 Chapter 761: The Plot

    Chen Xu quickly nodded and said, ¡°Brother Situ, what are you talking about?! We are brothers; how could you ever doubt me? I will apany you tonight. If you need to attack, then I will join in and give him a stab with my knife too.¡±


    There was a sh in Situ Yu¡¯s eyes, then he smiled. ¡°It¡¯s an excellent thing that you are willing to help me. Quick, change into your outfit. I¡¯ll give you twenty seconds.¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Chen Xu nodded excitedly and quickly changed into his getup. Both of them vanished into the darkness. It was not long after Long Chen¡¯s departure, so they quickly went in the same direction as he did and gave chase. In the dark of night, no one noticed them.


    ***


    This ancient tree was stupidly tall. Long Chen was surrounded by white mist like when he was at the Immortal Sea, but the mist here was even thicker. He could not see objects around him clearly, but thankfully, there was a sea of stars in the sky above. It was due to the starlight that the visibility increased.


    ¡°This tree is so tall!¡± Long Chen was speechless. He hiked even farther to pass throughyers of clouds before finally approaching the peak of the tree.


    At this point, there were few leaves around him, and his whole world was covered in white mist. Then, at some point, his field of vision suddenly expanded and he discovered that he had climbed past the cloudyer. Below him, the cloudyer was like the sea with countless waves in the mist. Thick branches from the ancient tree protruded from the sea of clouds here and there, and Long Chen was perched on one of them.


    The magnificent sight left him in a daze.


    <em>This world really is too huge toprehend. When will I be a presence as gigantic as the heavens and earth? </em>This thought suddenly popped into his mind.He chuckled bitterly, then he looked up. The stars in the sky were beautiful and shone brightly. Standing so high up, Long Chen felt like he could touch them with his hand.


    All the demonic beasts above Heavenly Wood City had probably been chased away by Bai Lan already, so he did not need to worry about them. Long Chen could probably fly up to this altitude outside Heavenly Wood City, but he would be torn to pieces by demonic beasts.


    <em>Next, I shall cultivate Seven Star Essence.</em>


    Long Chen had learned the Big Dipper Step from the Seven Star Manual, but it wasn¡¯t easy to use without Seven Star Essence. Furthermore, Seven Star Essence was the foundation for cultivating the Seven Star Body.


    In order to cultivate the Seven Star Body, he had to cultivate the foundation first.


    While cultivating the foundation did not require absorbing celestial Qi, he still needed to be under starlight to cultivate Seven Star Essence sessfully.


    Long Chen sat cross-legged on a hard branch beneath the stars.


    <em>The foundation of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is the Seven Star Manual. The Seven Star Body, the Big Dipper Step, and the Three Thousand Star Clusters are all part of it.</em>


    Long Chen had already looked through the foundation chapter of the Seven Star Manual and understood it in depth. He never had an issue with understanding cultivation concepts, so what he needed next was actual practice.


    The Seven Star Manual taught a cultivator to merge the power of the stars with their own essence instead of changing their essence into the Seven Star Essence. Long Chen¡¯s dragon soul essence¡¯s special characteristics came from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, so nothing in the world couldpletely change his essence. The Seven Star Manual could only help merge starlight into his dragon soul essence and add the Seven Star Constetion¡¯s properties into it. The dragon soul essence could be used as Seven Star Essence, but Seven Star Essence could not be used as dragon soul essence.


    The Seven Star Manual described a technique that absorbed starlight into Long Chen¡¯s essence. Absorbing starlight was different from absorbing celestial Qi. Celestial Qi was something that contained powerful attacking abilities like the Metal Devouring Wind, while starlight was the power that came from the stars. The power he absorbed when he was at the Heavenly River Realm was actually just the surface-level energy of the Star Rivers. This time, he was absorbing energy from a deeper level.


    The Seven Star Manual was not difficult, because it was only the foundation. That was why Long Chen only had to follow the standard procedures. The Big Dipper Step and the Seven Star Body were much more troublesome.


    He sat cross-legged with his ¡°five hearts¡± facing the sky, then he guided his Qi through his body using the Seven Star Manual¡¯s methods to absorb the energy of the endless stars in the sky. There were nine star rivers[1] in the sky, and they formed lines as star power aggregated in the air then descended into Long Chen.


    The ¡°five hearts¡± referred to the top of his head, his palms, and his feet. There were two martial meridian points on the top of his head, namely the Earth Yang and Earth Yin, while each palm and foot also had a martial meridian. Five streams of starlight had formed, and they flowed into his five meridian points, supplying starlight to them.


    Endless starlight flowed. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, continuous streams of starlight merged with the five streams and poured into his body.


    Under the Seven Star Manual¡¯s guidance, the starlight slowly merged with his spinning meridian cores. Rays of blue starlight started to appear in his essence and dots of starlight gradually added a blue glow to his red essence, making it shine beautifully. The essence flowing in his eighteen meridian veins was like the beautiful star rivers in the sky.


    An hourter, the Seven Star Essence was beginning to take shape. There was already a small portion of Seven Star Essence in Long Chen¡¯s essence. If he continued this process, he would fullyplete the Seven Star Manual¡¯s cultivation by the end of the night.


    Afterwards, he could absorb celestial Qi the next day and start cultivating the Seven Star Body.


    More time passed. Everything was within Long Chen¡¯s control.


    Long Chen had not expected things to progress so smoothly after his arrival at Heavenly Wood City.


    While he was focused on cultivating, two shadows wove through the clouds and the mist. They were still about six hundred meters away, and Long Chen could not use the Soul Swallowing Gaze while cultivating. That was why he did not notice these two.


    The duo had secretly followed Long Chen here, and they were Situ Yu and Chen Xu. Since they did not know Long Chen¡¯s specific location, they had taken many wrong paths and were currently very frustrated. Finally, after finding some traces Long Chen had left behind, they identified their target¡¯s location.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Chen Xu looked up at the streams of bright starlight. It looked like the stars were falling from the sky.


    Chen Xu was a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, while Situ Yu was at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Both of them were at higher cultivation levels than Long Chen. Chen Xu was considered a talented disciple in the Demon n and usually received a lot of resources. He had received far more mentorship than Long Chen, who had to grow on his own.


    Since Situ Yu was stronger, he had more powerful senses. He halted and studied the starlight for a while. Suddenly, he said doubtfully, ¡°There¡¯s ¡­ There¡¯s someone in the starlight.¡±


    His eyes lit up. ¡°That must be Long Chen. He is probably immersed in cultivation right now. Looks like he came all the way up here to cultivate. Isn¡¯t he just looking for death?¡±


    ¡°Brother Situ, he¡¯s cultivating, but it looks like a very strange technique as he¡¯s filled with starlight. What is he even cultivating?¡± Chen Xu asked in confusion.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Probably something satanic.¡± Although both of them had heard of the Seven Star Lord, they did not quickly connect this with the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Even if they had great imaginations, they would not have guessed that the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was right before their eyes.


    ¡°What do we do now? He¡¯s cultivating. This is a great chance ¡­¡± Chen Xu licked his lips. It was clear that Situ Yu was very annoyed by Long Chen. Not only was Situ Yu powerful, he was also the only alchemist of the Demon n. He was surely going to be one of the most powerful people in the Demon n in the future.


    Chen Xu¡¯s father, Chen Yang, had once told him to form a good rtionship with Situ Yu, hence why Chen Xu was so enthusiastic on this night.


    Chen Xu¡¯s words reminded Situ Yu of their objective.


    Situ Yu¡¯s mind was racing because he wanted to kill Long Chen, but if he did that, Suyan would be finished. While Suyan¡¯s life was technically not rted to him, it would still cause a hugemotion in the Demon n. It would be a serious matter, so he did not want to make decisions recklessly.


    However, the humiliation from earlier was still fresh in his mind.


    <em>This bastard humiliated me, and now he¡¯s cultivating some bizarre technique. If I let him continue staying in Heavenly Wood City, where will I end up? He might also snatch away that woman, Suxue. Suxue is my most important ticket to bing the future Demon n leader, so I must not let Long Chen take her. However, I just had a conflict with Long Chen today. If Long Chen died, people would surely think that it was me ¡­</em>


    Situ Yu was torn.


    ¡°Brother Situ?¡± Chen Xu was waiting for Situ Yu to make his decision.


    When he looked at Chen Xu, Situ Yu¡¯s eyes lit up and he said, ¡°Chen Xu, are you willing to do a favor for your brother?¡±


    1. ÐÇºÓ / Star River refers to a view like the Milky Way in the sky. So in this novel¡¯s universe, there are nine of these ¡®star rivers¡¯ in the night sky. ?

 Chapter 762: Coward

    ¡°Brother Situ, I will do anything you want me to!¡± The word ¡°brother¡± had filled Chen Xu with passion.


    ¡°Good!¡± Situ Yu broke into a smile. He pointed at Long Chen and said, ¡°That brat is only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, but he made me lose face and humiliated me in front of my nsmen. If you see me as your brother, help me kill him. It should be easy for you.¡±


    As long as it was Chen Xu who attacked but not him, Situ Yu could distance himself from this matter.


    Chen Xu froze, then he asked, ¡°Brother Situ Yu, do we really want to kill him? Without him, who will save Princess Yan¡¯er?¡±


    ¡°Idiot, I¡¯ve already got a way to save Princess Yan¡¯er. I was just one step away from it today. Tomorrow, I¡¯ll refine something that will save her for sure,¡± said Situ Yu a little angrily.


    Chen Xu was a little afraid when he saw that Situ Yu was angry. He thought for a while. If he did not agree to it, he would not be Situ Yu¡¯s brother anymore. He clenched his teeth and said, ¡°Alright! But if someone starts investigating, you¡¯ve got to help me keep this a secret.¡±


    ¡°Of course. Other than us, only the heavens will know about this!¡± Situ Yu smiled.


    Chen Xu gritted his teeth and his gaze darkened. He started hiking in Long Chen¡¯s direction. When he was about a hundred meters away, Little Cat, who was in the Primordial Realm, noticed him. Little Cat warned Long Chen gently, ¡°Hey, kid, stop focusing on your cultivation. Someone followed you here and is sneaking over now. If I¡¯m right, that¡¯s going to be Situ Yu.¡±


    Thank goodness for Little Cat. Long Chen was currently cultivating the Seven Star Manual and had to stop in a stable manner, or it would cause chaos to his Qi. After he heard Little Cat, he quickly stopped guiding his Qi. When he opened his eyes and stood up, he saw someone speeding towards himself.¡°That¡¯s not Situ Yu.¡± Long Chen could sense that this person¡¯s aura did not belong to Situ Yu. If it was, it would be troublesome for Long Chen. Bai Lan had already reminded him not to cause conflict with Situ Yu. With Situ Yu being a Demon n member, if Bai Lan protected Long Chen, it would lead to gossip.


    This person was a dark-skinned, muscr teenager, who resembled a ck panther. Long Chen initially thought this person had onlye here out of coincidence, but upon seeing the violent re, Long Chen no longer thought so. This teenager was surelying for him, and based on his expression, he hade here with malicious intent.


    Long Chen was certain he had never met him before, so he was puzzled. He quickly activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze and saw that just five hundred meters away, there was someone speeding off. That person quickly left Long Chen¡¯s range of vision, which was also five hundred meters.


    The second person¡¯s aura was simr to Situ Yu¡¯s. Long Chen was smart, so he roughly figured out what had happened. Before this person could attack, Long Chen said, ¡°Situ Yu sent you to kill me, right?¡±


    Chen Xu froze. Not only did Long Chen not panic, he had also exposed Chen Xu¡¯s secret the moment they met. Chen Xu hurriedly replied, ¡°So what if you know? Since you offended my big brother, you deserve to die!¡±


    Long Chen smiled in exasperation, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen someone as dumb as you. You¡¯ve been used, yet you¡¯re all happy. Situ Yu doesn¡¯t dare kill me, so he sent you. Don¡¯t you know that if you killed me, you¡¯d die too? I¡¯m the only one who can save Princess Yan¡¯er. Don¡¯t you think your n leader will kill you for this?¡±


    Chen Xu had indeed thought about these things, but he did not believe that Brother Situ Yu, who usually treated him very well, would bring him harm. That was why after Long Chen said those things, he huffed coldly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t try to manipte me. Today is the day you¡¯ll die!¡±


    Then the teenager pulled a battle knife out of his Universe Pouch. The knife was ck and over a meter long. It had a long groove with dried blood inside, painting the image of a fierce tiger. The tiger¡¯s fierce re was fixed on Long Chen!


    ¡°Die!¡± After he pulled out the knife, Chen Xu roared and charged at Long Chen! He attacked fiercely and quickly like a powerful tiger, and the glint of the de arrived in front of his eyes instantly.


    <em>To kill or not to kill? </em>This was a problem for Long Chen. He had note to Heavenly Wood City to make enemies. Violence would only be repaid with violence. Long Chen knew that if he killed this teenager, it would lead to more trouble. But if he did not, would this guy ever rest?


    Looking at Chen Xu¡¯s gaze, Long Chen knew that this person would not rest until he was killed.


    Chen Xu immediatelyunched into a flurry of violent attacks,unching one powerful move after the other. He lived up to his reputation as an elite disciple of the Demon n.


    But Long Chen was already at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. He was no longer the weakling whom anyone could bully when he first arrived in the Ancient Graveyard. Long Chen knew that he wouldn¡¯t even have to use the Dragon Soul Transformation; he couldbine the two Emperor Seals and his Blood Devouring Domain to kill this guy.


    However, he most wanted to attempt the Big Dipper Step. Since this guy would never recognize the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, and he already had a bit of Seven Star Essence, it was a good opportunity to try the Big Dipper Step.


    ¡°Seven Killings Tiger Knife Technique¡ªShattered Heart!¡±


    Chen Xu¡¯s knife technique grew increasingly vicious; each move had the pure objective of killing Long Chen. With the support of his exuberant essence, he shed his knife, creating a ray of light that turned into a dark tiger. It shot at Long Chen¡¯s chest with a <em>whoosh</em>.


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got?¡± Long Chen stood in ce, smiling at Chen Xu.


    ¡°You¡¯re not dodging it? Do you want to die?¡± Chen Xu froze. He thought Long Chen would fight him for a while, but to his surprise, Long Chen had chosen to give up.


    <em>How useless. Although he¡¯s one level lower than me, he wouldn¡¯t bepletely stunned by just one casual attack from me, would he? This is so easy, </em>Chen Xu thought excitedly. He had not expected toplete this task so easily.


    ¡°How slow.¡± When the knife light approached Long Chen¡¯s chest, he suddenly vanished. Translucent star tes appeared beneath his feet in the formation of the Big Dipper. Long Chen was standing on the Dubhe star of the Big Dipper, but then he suddenly vanished and appeared on the Merak star!


    Chen Xu¡¯s attack hit nothing.


    When Long Chen appeared in another location, the star te beneath his feet disappeared, so Chen Xu could not anticipate where Long Chen would go next.


    <em>How is that possible? How did he dodge it just now? </em>Chen Xu was stunned, and he even stopped moving the knife in his hand.


    ¡°There are many things you do not understand. Get out of here. You can¡¯t kill me. Go back and tell Situ Yu that if he wants to fight, he shoulde himself. Tell him not to be a coward,¡± Long Chen said with a snicker.


    ¡°What?¡± To Chen Xu, Long Chen was a mere Sixth Earthly Martial Stage weakling who was now speaking in such a brazen manner after just dodging his attack once.


    Long Chen¡¯s contemptuous tone infuriated Chen Xu. Without another word, he pounced on Long Chen again. The ck knife in his hand shot rays of ck light outwards, and each light turned into a roaring tiger flying at Long Chen!


    ¡°I refuse to believe that you can dodge these!¡± Chen Xu sneered as a constant stream of knife lights flew at Long Chen. Very soon, they drowned Long Chen out like a tidal wave!


    But something even more shocking happened!


    A star te appeared beneath Long Chen¡¯s feet again. Using an Emperor-tier bodybat technique against Chen Xu¡¯s attack was a bit of an overkill. Long Chen quickly changed his location between star tes so that despite the many knife lights, none of them hit him. There were seven star tes, but they were changing so quickly that Chen Xu did not know where Long Chen would appear next!


    ¡°How could this be?¡± Chen Xu was stunned. He sensed that Long Chen was using a very high-level technique, but he did not know what it was.


    However, if he could get it, his strength would skyrocket!


    With that thought, Chen Xu started to grow excited. He had been hesitant about killing Long Chen, but now, he had made his decision to fight till the end!


    ¡°You coward! Do you only know how to dodge? Fight me like a man! Only a bitch would do nothing but dodge!¡± Chen Xu roared. His footsteps were gentle on the tree branches. The leaves were shockinglyrge, so when Long Chen stepped on one, Chen Xu came to the same leaf. This leaf was like a fighting arena. Nothing happened to the leaf, despite two people standing on it.


    Chen Xu charged until he was just ten meters away from Long Chen, then a blinding light burst from his ck knife. This time, he was truly going for the kill, and he was using his most powerful killing technique!


    ¡°Dark Knife Shadow!¡± A powerful knife aura flew at Long Chen apanied by knife light. The knife aura was powerful and huge. When it flew, it sliced the gigantic leaf in half!


    The ck knife aura arrived in front of Long Chen!


    ¡°Die!¡± roared Chen Xue.


    ¡°You¡¯re too slow.¡± Long Chenughed and used the Big Dipper Step. His silhouette flickered and appeared behind Chen Xu. Chen Xu was expecting Long Chen to be chopped in half, but an aura that made his hair stand on end appeared behind him, while Long Chen, who was previously in front of him, had disappeared!

 Chapter 763: Killing

    <em>Crack!</em>


    Chen Xu turned and swung his knife, but the moment he raised his arm, Long Chen struck his shoulder with a heavy blow. Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal hit his shoulder heavily and rendered half his arm useless!


    ¡°My hand! My hand!¡± Chen Xu cried and yelled, rolling several times on the leaf. The ck knife fell out of his hand next to him, almost falling off the leaf. Thankfully, he snapped to his senses and used his feet to stop his knife. He cradled his arm pitifully. After being hit by the Deste Divine Seal at the base of his arm, arge chunk of flesh had rotted. If he did not nurse it ,he would probably lose the whole arm.


    Earth-shattering pain tore through Chen Xu¡¯s nerves. The more pain he felt, the deeper his hatred for Long Chen became. Long Chen had waited a long time to attack him, but the moment he did, he had rendered one of his arms useless. Although Long Chen had less essence, his Big Dipper Step was just too powerful and too fast for his opponent to react.


    And this was only because Long Chen did not want to kill Chen Xu. If he did, he would have hit the Deste Divine Seal on his heart or head, which would kill him in one strike.


    ¡°Let¡¯s stop here. You and I have no grudges. You¡¯ve just been used by other people. There¡¯s no need to risk your life fighting me,¡± said Long Chen solemnly as he stood with folded arms.


    ¡°Fuck you! You merely had a slight edge over me because of that strange bodybat technique! It was just a moment of carelessness; how dare you hurt me! Prepare to die!¡± Chen Xu roared!


    Chen Xu flicked his foot and kicked the knife up to his left hand. Then he turned into a shadow, and a ck ray of sword aura flew at Long Chen beneath the starry sky!


    ¡°You¡¯re still not giving up.¡± Long Chen was speechless. He did not want to cause more problems, which was why he had not killed this brat yet. However, Chen Xu was relentless and Long Chen did not have that much patience.Long Chen used the Big Dipper Step and appeared to Chen Xu¡¯s left in a sh. The Deste Divine Seal flew at lightning speed towards Chen Xu¡¯s hand, knocking the ck knife out of his hand. The leaf was tough and could pinch the knife in ce, as if it was solid ground.


    When the Deste Divine Seal hit Chen Xu¡¯s hand, it turned his whole hand into rotten flesh and revealed white bone. Chen Xu screamed and rolled on the ground, screaming in pain. There was a saying that the ten fingers were connected to the heart[1], so the pain he felt was utterly terrifying.


    Long Chen stood before him and red at him coldly. He asked, ¡°Do you still want to continue? If you don¡¯t leave, I will not be entertaining you.¡±


    Long Chen could not be bothered to waste any more time on him. After today¡¯s interruption, he would not be able to continue cultivating here. Only a small part of the night had passed, so he was prepared to find another ce of high altitude to resume. Chen Xu¡¯s attack was merely a small distraction to Long Chen.


    Chen Xu¡¯s injury was just a warning from Long Chen. He had not attacked him in a severe manner, so Chen Xu had not sustained permanent injuries. As long as he cleared the deathly Qi, his flesh would regrow after a period of rest.


    Long Chen was about to leave when the screaming Chen Xu suddenly roared and leaped up. Both his arms were already injured, but Chen Xu still had a vicious expression. His eyes were covered in blood vessels, and a sky-high killing intent radiated from him.


    ¡°Long Chen! Don¡¯t leave if you¡¯re a man!¡±


    Long Chen stopped and turned around. ¡°Do you really think I wouldn¡¯t dare kill you?¡±


    Chen Xu did not answer, and his features were contorted into a sneer. There was some madness mixed with the fury in his eyes, and to him, the fact that Long Chen had shown mercy was a humiliation.


    ¡°You ¡­ You really think I can¡¯t kill you?¡± Chen Xu roared with madness and, bearing the agony in his arms, picked up his ck knife. He pointed it at Long Chen and roared, ¡°Do you know what knife this is? I¡¯ll tell you! This is the knife that will take your life!¡±


    It was clear that this bastard wanted to fight Long Chen till the end.


    Long Chen put up his guard and suddenly felt a hint of anxiety. Then Chen Xu roared and threw his knife at Long Chen!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    There was a loud bang. The two were only thirty meters apart. The ck knife covered fifteen meters in an instant, and at this point, Long Chen saw it explode and sensed a destructive force brewing within. Long Chen had already sensed danger before that, so he abandoned all feelings of mercy. His gaze darkened, and at thest second, he used the Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Blood-red scales instantly covered his whole body, and not only did it raise his essence to Chen Xu¡¯s level, it also increased the toughness of his body!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡± Long Chen used the seal without hesitation, as he sensed that the destructive force and range of the explosion would be quiterge. If he only relied on the Big Dipper Step, he wasn¡¯t guaranteed to dodge it. That was why he chose to use the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    The golden seal appeared in his palm and shone brightly. Under his control, a ray of golden light shot out into the dark night sky. Even the people in Heavenly Wood City below could see the shining light!


    Then there was a brighter light, which came with a huge explosion. That was caused by the knife. After the knife exploded, the immense force brought with it countless knife shards that shot at Long Chen. If he was hit by them, he would be filled with holes!


    The strength of the explosion was close to an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s attack. That was Chen Xu¡¯sst trump card. It was unexpected for him to use his trump card after facing pressure from Long Chen.


    <em>This guy has definitely gone mad. </em>Long Chen could already feel the explosive force, and the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal had faced an opposing force in its path forward. An earth-shattering force flew at Long Chen!


    <em>This is quite difficult to withstand, but die!</em> Under such immense pressure, Long Chen had no time to think. If he did not destroy the exploding force, he would end up taking damage!


    ¡°I refuse to believe that you¡¯ll survive the explosion of my knife, Long Chen. You¡¯re a mere Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. How could you be a match for me?¡± Chen Xuughed when he watched the explosion gradually engulf Long Chen.


    But he was stunned a momentter. Within the endless explosive force, he saw a hint of golden light, which immediately expanded. Then it forced the explosive force back, causing both the seal and the explosion¡¯s energy to fly toward Chen Xu instead!


    Everything happened so quickly that Chen Xu only had time to see that it was a gigantic seal!


    Then his thin body waspletely engulfed by the emperor seal. The power of the seal and explosionbined to turn Chen Xu into dust in an instant.


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible ¡­¡± At thest second, Chen Xu was stunned. He could not have imagined this. Long Chen was merely at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. How could he have such terrifying power?


    Under the terrifying explosion, Chen Xu¡¯s bones shattered and the leaf they were on waspletely destroyed, leaving Long Chen floating in the air.


    Themotion quickly died down and Long Chen furrowed his brows. He knew that the final showdown had caused a hugemotion, and soon, many people would arrive. It was a fact that he had killed Chen Xu. After some thought, he decided not to leave.


    Leaving would just show that he was guilty of doing something bad. He had to stand his ground in front of everyone. Chen Xu was the one who had attacked and tried to kill him. Long Chen was merely preserving his own life. Since he was in the right, he would not be afraid of any usations. If Bai Lan learned of what had happened, he would stand on his side.


    After a while, Long Chen sensed people approaching from below. Soon, many Demon and Thunder nsmen were around. When they saw him and confirmed he was not a foreign enemy, they did not attack. However, they looked at him cautiously because it was undeniably suspicious for him to be herete at night.


    The strongest person who came was an elder. When Long Chen saved Suyuan, this elder was present. He looked around with furrowed brows. There were clear signs of a fight. He was about to ask Long Chen what had happened when the beautiful Suxue appeared from below.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Suxue was ranked highest here in terms of status and strength. She came up to Long Chen¡¯s side, looking around as she spoke.


    Previously, Suxue had not been nice to Long Chen, but ever since he saved her younger sister, her attitude improved greatly. At this moment, she went up to his side before asking him the question in a gentle tone filled with trust.


    She was wearing a long, ck dress, making her look cold and beautiful beneath the starlight. She was Bai Lan¡¯s daughter after all, so naturally, she was regal.


    Long Chen exined in detail, ¡°I came here to cultivate, but then someone with dark skin attacked me. I was unwilling to fight him, but he would not stop bothering me. In the end, he made his knife explode, intending to kill me. I had no choice but to kill him because of that.¡±


    1. an idiom that shows just how sensitive fingers are, thus implying that finger injuries are painful ?

 Chapter 764: Accompanying You At Night

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Suxue froze. She still did not know who the dead person was, but Long Chen was merely at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. The way he so breezily said that he had killed the other person, was he exaggerating?


    Suxue did not know who the culprit was, so she asked, ¡°Do you know who that person was? He isn¡¯t from the Thunder or Demon n, right? You¡¯ve saved Yan¡¯er; the people of the Thunder and Demon ns won¡¯t touch you.¡±


    ¡°Not necessarily.¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly but did not borate.


    Many people surrounded them and started talking.


    ¡°Is this teenager the one who is treating Princess Yan¡¯er¡¯s illness? It¡¯ste; why did hee here?¡±


    ¡°Who knows? There was a hugemotion just now; someone was surely killed. Who was it?¡±


    The crowd did not know who it was either.


    ¡°Xu¡¯er!¡± someone roared furiously. Everyone looked down and saw a red-eyed middle-aged man rushing up. He was tall with dark skin, and he looked simr to Chen Xu. Long Chen furrowed his brows. He had seen this man in Yan¡¯er¡¯s courtyard. He was at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage and was one of the highest-ranked Demon nsmen.


    After the man rushed up, he looked around but did not find his son. He roared in all directions, ¡°Who here has seen Chen Xu? Why did he trigger the explosion of his exploding knife here?¡±His gaze swept around the crowd, but no one answered him, though everyone looked at Long Chen. Long Chen¡¯s face did not change, though Suxue slightly furrowed her brows. She looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°The teenager you killed was Elder Chen Yang¡¯s son? The Seventh Earthly Martial Stage Chen Xu?¡±


    Long Chen had killed Chen Xu, making for a moreplicated case. Long Chen had saved Suyan¡¯s life after all, but Chen Xu was part of the Demon n. Suxue was also confused because Long Chen was only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, while Chen Xu was at the Seventh. How could Long Chen have killed him?


    Chen Yang, whose eyes were blood-red, turned to re at Long Chen. There were signs of a fight on Long Chen, and Chen Yang recognized him, so he said coldly, ¡°Little Long Chen, may I ask if you fought my son? Where is my son, Chen Xu? Has he died in your hands? In a manner where even his body did not remain intact?¡±


    Before Long Chen could reply, Suxue said, ¡°Elder Chen, is that a joke? Long Chen is merely at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. How could he have killed your son? There must be someone else ¡­¡±


    While she was talking, Long Chen cut her off and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. I killed Chen Xu.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s statement triggered a huge wave in the crowd. Most of the people here had seen him after he saved Suyan. Even though he had helped one of them, killing a member of their n was not right!


    Long Chen had spoken in a brazen tone too, which annoyed the others and made them get mad on Chen Yang¡¯s behalf. There had been no rtionship between Long Chen and Chen Xu, so why would Long Chen want to kill someone he didn¡¯t know?


    <em>Stupid ¡­ </em>Suxue was left speechless by the guy¡¯s behavior. She had wanted to cover for Long Chen, but the idiot had admitted to it.


    Of course, she was also surprised that Long Chen had managed to kill Chen Xu. He was at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, so there was one entire stage between them.


    When Elder Chen Yang heard Long Chen, there was a cold sh in his eyes. His breathing grew heavier and his eyes were fixed dead on Long Chen. He growled, ¡°May I ask ¡­ There were no grudges between you and my son, so why did you kill him?


    ¡°Yeah! Chen Xu did not bother you, so why did you kill him?¡±


    The other Demon nsmen started to question him too. As for the Thunder nsmen, they were merely here to watch the show as it was not rted to them.


    Long Chen said directly, ¡°I did not attack him. I was cultivating here, then your son came and attacked me. I tried showing him mercy several times, but he was very stubborn. In the end, he even triggered the explosion of his knife in order to kill me. If I had not done anything, I would be dead.¡±


    He was a high-profile figure in Heavenly Wood City, so he did not want to say too much.


    The crowd fell silent. If Long Chen was telling the truth, then Chen Xu had died by his own fault. The crowd waited to see how Chen Yang would react. The violence in Chen Yang¡¯s eyes did not disperse. This was his son, whom he had raised for many years and had great hopes to be a future Sect Elder!


    ¡°This is just a one-sided statement from you. What proof do you have that you are telling the truth?¡± Chen Yang asked coldly.


    Long Chen did not have any evidence, but even if he did, Chen Yang would insist that he was guilty. Therefore, Long Chen said, ¡°I don¡¯t have any evidence, but I have always been a transparent and truthful person. If there is even a hint of lies in my words, then let the heavens strike me with lightning! Now that I have sworn it, may I ask if you¡¯re satisfied, Elder Chen?¡±


    He had sworn an oath.


    Although the others had no way of knowing if he was telling the truth, it was a useful method. Chen Yang initially wanted to request for a duel against Long Chen, but after Long Chen swore, there was nothing he could say.


    ¡°But my son and you don¡¯t even know each other. Why would hee here to kill you? Why were you here? Don¡¯t you think all of it is suspicious?¡± Chen Yang continued.


    Long Chen smiled. He looked around, then his gaze fell on Suxue and he said, ¡°It has been ten days since I came to Heavenly Wood City. The only time I appeared in public was earlier today when I refined a pill to save Lady Yan¡¯er¡¯s life. I think that matter offended <em>someone</em>. In addition to that, Chen Xu was an idiot who was used by <em>someone</em>. I won¡¯t say anything more; you all know who it is. Goodbye!¡±


    Then Long Chen walked past Suxue and left while everyone mulled over what he had said. No one stopped him from leaving.


    ¡°Everyone, go back. Elder Chen Yang, you may go back too. We can¡¯t me Long Chen for what happened today.¡± After Suxue made some arrangements, she descended with Long Chen. She still had many questions she wanted to ask him.


    The people who remained had many questions of their own. What did Long Chen mean by that? Situ Yu was the only person who had been humiliated today. Did Long Chen mean that Chen Xu had acted under Situ Yu¡¯s instruction? Everyone thought about how Chen Xu was always with Situ Yu. After some thought, it seemed possible.


    If that was the case, then the truth was clear.


    Everyone had a rough idea of Situ Yu¡¯s personality, so it was not that strange if he was behind the attack.


    Chen Xu had been used.


    However, everyone kept this in their hearts. Situ Yu¡¯s grandfather, Situ Yao, was one of the eight Sect Elders and had great power, and Situ Yu was the Demon n¡¯s only alchemist. Most people did not dare offend them due to their statuses.


    ¡°Everyone, go back.¡± The Thunder nsmen headed out first, and after the other Demon nsmen figured it out, they left too. They did notfort Chen Yang because to them, Chen Yang was just an innocent, pitiful person.


    In the end, only Chen Yang remained, standing in a daze.


    He watched Long Chen and the others leave, clenching his fists tightly. Green veins popped up on the back of his hands.


    In a dark spot not far away, Situ Yu punched a branch next to him. The wood exploded and formed a huge hole, throwing wood chips in the air.


    <em>That brat survived! But I¡¯ll make sure he doesn¡¯t escape next time! And that woman Suxue! Why is she so close to him? Is it because he saved Suyan?</em>


    Situ Yu¡¯s fury intensified.


    <em>No, today¡¯s matter has gotten out of hand. I don¡¯t know if Chen Yang wille to me looking for trouble. I need to go discuss this with Grandfather. Hopefully, he¡¯ll be able to help me.</em>


    Then Situ Yu hurried back to Heavenly Wood City.


    Long Chen and Suxue were also heading back to the city. Suxue caught up to him, gazed at him with her beautiful eyes, and asked, ¡°Long Chen, what did you mean by what you said? Are you saying that Chen Xu was instructed by Situ Yu to kill you?¡±


    ¡°Was he not?¡± asked Long Chen, giving her a nce.


    ¡°You can¡¯t just say that. Situ Yu isn¡¯t like that. Then again, why would he ask another person to kill you? There has been no conflict between you and him, plus you still need to save my sister,¡± said Suxue, furrowing her brows.


    Long Chen nced at her in exasperation, then at her chest and remarked, ¡°Do you need me to say you¡¯ve got big breasts but no brains again?¡±


    ¡°You bastard! You have a death wish!¡± Suxue clenched her teeth, wanting to beat him up.


    Before she left, she said, ¡°Let this matter rest. It¡¯s best not to cause any moremotion. If you fight Situ Yu, it won¡¯t benefit Yan¡¯er or the Demon n.¡±


    Long Chen said, ¡°I¡¯m not sick in the head; if no onees looking for trouble, I naturally won¡¯t bother other people.¡±


    ¡°¡­ Alright. Right, why did you go to such a high ce sote at night?¡±


    Long Chen said, ¡°I am cultivating abat technique that requires the power of the stars. That is why I need to go up there every night. Right, how about youe apany me every night?¡±


    There was a saying that people who did not listen to their elders¡¯ words would only suffer losses. Long Chen had just had a taste of it. If he had taken Bai Lan¡¯s suggestion of letting Suxue apany him, this incident would not have happened. Long Chen recalled Bai Lan¡¯s words when Suxue spoke to him, so he made her this offer.


    Long Chen¡¯s direct question made her freeze, and then she asked, ¡°¡­ Y-you¡¯re asking me to apany you every night?¡± As she spoke, she started to blush.


    Long Chen corrected her. ¡°Don¡¯t think too much. I just have a feeling that certain imbeciles will keep interrupting me when I¡¯m cultivating. I don¡¯t mind killing people, but you don¡¯t want me to cause more trouble, so the only thing I can do is get Princess Xue herself to sit with me. Why? Are you unwilling?¡±

 Chapter 765: Dark Plans

    Suxue hesitated for a while. When she heard Long Chen¡¯s exnation, she understood that he didn¡¯t merely want to spend more time with her, so she nodded. ¡°Alright. From tomorrow night onwards, I will apany you. But what strangebat technique are you cultivating anyway? You need to harness starlight from the sky?¡±


    <em>Bai Lan already knows I have the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, so Suxue will also know sooner orter. When she watches me while I cultivate, she will surely figure it out anyway.</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen said directly, ¡°If I told you, would it be alright for you to not tell anyone else?¡±


    ¡°Is it that mysterious?¡± Suxue froze, then she said, ¡°If it¡¯s very important, you don¡¯t need to tell me. If you do, you¡¯re going to me me if I identally tell someone.¡±


    ¡°I have the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord, and I¡¯m cultivating the Seven Star Manual. Do you believe me?¡± Long Chen said in a joking tone.


    ¡°I knew you were just joking with me.¡± Suxue red at him. She initially wanted to punch him, but she thought it would be inappropriate, so she put her hand down. She red and said, ¡°Just be careful.¡±


    Then they parted ways. Long Chen returned to Suyan¡¯s ce, though Suxue¡¯s yard was just next door. Dawn was still quite a few hours away. Due to Chen Xu¡¯s interruption, Long Chen could no longer cultivate the Seven Star Manual today, so he could only study the Martial God Tombstone. Time passed quickly.


    ***


    After Situ Yu returned to Heavenly Wood City, he quickly dashed through the shadows to get to his grandfather without being seen. The eight Sect Elders were at the peak of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and held high positions in the Demon n. They were the most powerful of the Demon n¡¯s masters who hade to the Ancient Graveyard, besides Bai Lan, of course.Situ Yu stopped anxiously in front of a simple but elegant wooden house and said in a soft voice, ¡°Grandfather, your grandson, Xiao Yu, requests to meet you.¡±


    After a short while, a hoarse voice came from inside. Situ Yao said, ¡°Come in.¡±


    Situ Yu opened the door gently. It was a little dark in the wooden house, and Situ Yao was sitting in the center of the room. He had clearly been cultivating, but Situ Yu had interrupted him, so he red at Situ Yu and asked, ¡°What the matter now? Haven¡¯t you embarrassed me enough today? And now you have the guts toe and see me?¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t be mad, Grandfather. I truly did my best earlier today, but those symptoms were too difficult to resolve ¡­¡± Situ Yu said resignedly.


    Looking at his grandson, Situ Yao sighed and said, ¡°If you¡¯re here to see me thiste in the night, you must have caused some sort of trouble. I heard an explosion above just now. It was your doing, right?¡±


    Situ Yu said awkwardly, ¡°It¡¯s notpletely my fault ¡­¡±


    ¡°Fine. I still don¡¯t quite understand you. Tell me what happened today. Let me hear what trouble you got yourself into this time.¡±


    Although Situ Yao was strict, he still loved his grandson.


    Thus, Situ Yu told him about everything starting from the beginning, and finally added angrily, ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Long Chen had such tricks. Chen Xu was one level above him, so I thought he could easily finish Long Chen off. I didn¡¯t expect him to fail!¡±


    After Situ Yao heard the whole story, he remained silent. Then he suddenly looked up with fire in his eyes, enunciating each word slowly. ¡°You idiot! You¡¯ve gotten bolder! Let me ask you this. If you killed that guy and caused Suyan to die, do you think someone with Bai Lan¡¯s personality would let you live?¡±


    Situ Yu was startled, and he quickly exined, ¡°Give me ten more days and I will surely develop a sessful pill. Plus, he has no evidence to say that I killed someone! And don¡¯t I have you to protect me, Grandfather? Long Chen made me lose face earlier today; I can¡¯t just swallow my anger. Of course, I don¡¯t have to kill him, but I must teach him a lesson at least, right? It¡¯s his fault for climbing up to such a high ce in the middle of the night. He seemed to be absorbing starlight, cultivating something ¡­¡±


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Situ Yao red and his breathing became heavier. His eyes were fixed on Situ Yu, as if he wanted to swallow his grandson whole.


    Situ Yu had never seen such a scary expression on his grandfather before, so he trembled with fear as he responded, ¡°I said ¡­ I said Long Chen was cultivating ¡­ starlight ¡­¡±


    ¡°The Seven Star Lord!¡± Situ Yao said decisively.


    There was a strange light in his eyes.


    ¡°Seven Star Lord? What is that ¡­ Ah! Grandfather, are you referring to one of the Seven Lords? The Seven Star Lord, who has the divine weapon known as the Three Thousand Star Clusters?¡± Situ Yu¡¯s eyes almost fell out of his head as he stared at Situ Yao emotionally.


    Situ Yu did not give a direct reply. He was silent for a while, then he said, ¡°There was a rumor that the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance had appeared a while back, but I did not hear who received it. That brat Long Chen did some shocking things at the Metal District and even snatched the Martial God Tombstone from the Wind n¡¯s princess. Then, if he was cultivating and absorbing starlight at such a high ce ¡­ It¡¯s such a dramatic cultivation method ¡­ I am ny percent sure that he has received the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible! Look at him; look at his pitiful cultivation! How could he have gotten the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡± Situ Yu had been outdone in terms of alchemy, so his onlyfort was that his martial abilities far exceeded Long Chen¡¯s. Now Situ Yao was saying that Long Chen had gotten the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?


    The Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance had led to the rise of the Demon n!


    The White Lotus Fairy¡¯s inheritance had led to the rise of the Divine n!


    This showed just how important the inheritances of the Seven Lords were.


    ¡°Inheritance or not, we¡¯ll know when I test him tomorrow night,¡± Situ Yu said mildly, lowering his voice. His initial excitement had turned to calm.


    ¡°Grandfather, if it really is the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, do we snatch it for ourselves?¡± probed Situ Yu. He sensed that this matter had turned serious due to the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    ¡°Snatch it? Hehe, you know nothing, you little brat. If we guessed it, do you think that old fox Bai Lan wouldn¡¯t? He probably knew about it a long time ago and just didn¡¯t tell us,¡± said Situ Yao.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance will go to the n Leader?¡± Situ Yu asked unwillingly.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing that Bai Lan has long known about this. I know why he hasn¡¯t acted yet¡ªhe¡¯s probably thinking of his daughter¡¯s life. Bai Lan is a person who kills decisively and has extraordinary cultivation, making him a good candidate for being the n leader. The only w is that he takes rtionships too seriously. Whether it is his rtionship with Lei Ji or his daughters, he sees them as more important than everything else. Even if he knows that Long Chen has the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, I don¡¯t think he dares to take it.¡±


    ¡°If he¡¯s not taking it, we can.¡± Greed shone in Situ Yu¡¯s eyes. He was waiting for Situ Yao to make the decision, but Situ Yao fell silent. After a while, he looked up coldly at his grandson and said, ¡°Child, do you know? If we killed Long Chen and took the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, we would be Bai Lan¡¯s enemies, even the whole Demon n¡¯s enemies. Do you think it¡¯s worth it?¡±


    Situ Yu froze. He initially did not think it would lead to such a severe oue, but now that he had thought about it, it was very possible.


    ¡°Grandfather, I can¡¯t decide. But if it really is the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, then it¡¯s just too tempting. If you can get the inheritance, you may even break through the Heavenly Martial Wall and reach the Heavenly Martial Realm sessfully. With the addition of the Three Thousand Star Clusters, you would be peerless at the First Heavenly Martial Stage. That would make you the strongest master after Bai Lan and that other master from the Divine n ¡­¡±


    Situ Yu was trying to tempt his grandfather.


    <em>p!</em>


    Situ Yao pped Situ Yu and said angrily, ¡°I understand those things better than you do, brat! Do I need you to teach me? But you are wrong about one thing. Bai Lan and the guy from the Divine n aren¡¯t the only masters in the Ancient Graveyard. Do you think that the Five Elements Alliance has no Second Heavenly Martial Stage masters of their own? Do you think there aren¡¯t any among the regr cultivators? Do you know who organized the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition that will take ce in three months?¡±


    Situ Yu was at a loss for words because he could not answer these questions.


    ¡°So there are that many powerful masters! Grandfather, are we still going to take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, then?¡± Situ Yu asked in a daze.


    Situ Yao fell silent for a while. He looked out at the starry night sky outside the window and said, ¡°Other than Bai Lan, I am the only elder who knows that Long Chen might have gotten the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. It is a very rare chance that we may not get again in our lives. If we miss this, we will regret it forever. I thought I had reached the peak of my cultivation, but if I get the chance to move forward, it doesn¡¯t matter what obstacles I face, or the risk of death and family! I will not give up! Say, am I going to take it? Am I?¡±


    Situ Yu stumbled several steps back in fear.


    For the first time, he realized how terrifying his grandfather was. He was usually an elder who kept a low profile, but there was actually so much unwillingness in his heart.


    ¡°Grandfather, I will stand by your side no matter what!¡± Situ Yu said emotionally.


    ¡°Of course, you¡¯re a smart kid. When I get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, wouldn¡¯t it be the same as you getting it? When I start another empire like the Divine Demon Empire, you will inherit it!¡±


    ¡°Grandfather, it won¡¯t be the Divine Demon Empire, but the Star Empire! In fact, we will rule the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory!¡±


    Situ Yu was overwhelmed with emotion.


    ¡°You¡¯re an ambitious kid. These things take time. Now, let¡¯s n.¡±


    Then Situ Yao suddenly looked towards the outside and said, ¡°Chen Yang, since you¡¯re here, you shoulde in.¡±

 Chapter 766: Cloud Piercer and Troop Destroying Arrow

    Situ Yu was shocked to see that Chen Yang was here. He had been discussing him with Situ Yao prior to this. Chen Yang was smart enough to know that his son¡¯s death was rted to Situ Yu, so why was he here?


    But Situ Yu wasn¡¯t afraid of Chen Yang overhearing their conversation. While both him and Chen Yang were at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, his grandfather was at the peak of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    After hearing Situ Yao¡¯s words, the wooden door opened and Chen Yang walked in. Chen Yang was cloaked in a chilling aura as he stared at Situ Yu with cold eyes before kowtowing to Situ Yao. ¡°Greetings, Elder.¡±


    In the Demon n, Chen Yang was in the same faction as Situ Yao, which was why his son was close to Situ Yu. He thought that rtionship would grant his son a great future, but instead, his son had ended up dead because of Situ Yu.


    ¡°Chen Yang, I¡¯ve heard of what happened today,¡± Situ Yao said frankly.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Chen Yang nodded. He said nothing more, so the atmosphere was tense. Situ Yu looked at the two and wasn¡¯t sure what they were thinking.


    ¡°Xiao Yu here is too naive. He allowed Chen Xu to pick a fight with Long Chen but never thought that things would end up like this. This is all Xiao Yu¡¯s fault. I will let you punish him as you see fit. You can kill or y him if you wish,¡± Situ Yao pped Situ Yu and threw him towards Chen Yang.


    Chen Yang clenched his fists and red at Situ Yu before picking him up. ¡°A grudge should naturally fall in between the victim and the perpetrator. I only want to kill the person who killed my son. No one else. I¡¯m here to ask if there¡¯s a method to kill that brat or not, Elder.¡±


    ¡°I think he will go up there to cultivate again tonight. Since you¡¯re at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, you should be able to kill him easily.¡±¡°Will he go there again tonight? Good. My son died there with his corpsepletely obliterated. I will go there and make sure he suffers the same fate tonight.¡± Chen Yang gritted his teeth as he spat those words out.


    ¡°Since you are one of my followers, let me give you something instead.¡± Situ Yao took something out of his storage ring, and a strong aura reverberated around the room. Chen Yang''s eyes lit up when he saw what it was. ¡°The Troop Destroying Arrow and the Cloud Piercer. To think that you had two advanced King-tier Divine Weapons.¡±


    ¡°Keep them. No one knows that I have them. I will give you both the Troop Destroying Arrow and the Cloud Piercer tonight. They are quite famous in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    Chen Yang nodded when he epted the weapons. ¡°Elder, I will excuse myself. I will leave the Demon n after I¡¯ve seeded, since the patriarch will know that I was the perpetrator. I pray that we can meet again in the future. Thank you for the Divine Weapons!¡±


    ¡°Go.¡± Situ Yao waved his hand.


    Chen Yang left. He sighed after leaving the little wooden room. ¡°Xu¡¯er, I will avenge you, but I fear that I will have to wait until tonight to do so. After I leave the Demon n, I will stake out nearby. Situ Yu, if I find out that you are moving alone, I will kill you!¡±


    He hated Situ Yu, but he didn''t have the power to kill him in front of Situ Yao. Situ Yao was just putting up a front by saying that he could punish Situ Yu. If Chen Yang really did so, Situ Yao would¡¯ve killed him on the spot.


    Situ Yao truly was a sly old fox.


    After Chen Yang left, Situ Yu asked, ¡°Grandfather, why did you give him the precious weapons? I¡¯ve been asking for them for so long. Also, what¡¯s going to happen to the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord after Chen Yang kills Long Chen?¡±


    Situ Yao chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t you know that aged gingers are the spiciest? I¡¯m only lending them to him for a day. Once he¡¯s done with his mission, I can go and collect them along with his life.¡±


    ¡°You want to kill him? Didn¡¯t he just let me go and instead aimed for Long Chen only?¡±


    ¡°Idiot. Those who enter the Ancient Graveyard are all vicious. He didn¡¯t punish you because he couldn¡¯t do so in front of me. He will kill you if he finds you outside without anyone apanying you.¡±


    ¡°Is that so ¡­¡±


    ¡°You have much to learn.¡± Situ Yao paused for a moment. ¡°The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord ¡­ Just you wait. I will have it by tomorrow night. As for Chen Yang, he will be a good scapegoat.¡±


    ¡°Hm? Grandfather, what are you nning to do?¡±


    ¡°Chen Yang will kill Long Chen, then I will kill Chen Yang and take the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. As long as I do it secretly, no one will know that Long Chen had the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, and no one will know that I was the one who killed them. No one, except for you, knows that I have the Cloud Piercer and the Troop Destroying Arrow.¡±


    ¡°Grandfather, you are amazing!¡± Situ Yu was impressed by his grandfather¡¯s cunningness. He felt that he was too naive and that his grandfather was truly monstrous.


    ***


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know that there were a lot of hidden pieces moving around while he was cultivating. He had nine more days until he had to give Su Yan another helping of dragon blood, so he wasn¡¯t in a rush. He had been spending his spare time cultivating. Heavenly Wood City was rich in nature¡¯s spiritual energy and was the perfect ce to cultivate. It was also most likely the reason why both the Demon and Thunder ns upied this ce. One could cultivate with double the efficiency here!


    Time passed quickly, and it was soon the second night. Suxue wasted no time and knocked on Long Chen¡¯s door. She was d in ck tights with a ponytail, looking strong and bewitching at the same time. An alluring smell wafted in front of Long Chen that attracted him a little.


    ¡°It seems you still remember me?¡± Long Chen teased her.


    ¡°Stop wasting time. Go up there to cultivate your ¡®Seven Star Lord inheritance.¡¯ Show me how strong the inheritance of one of the Seven Lords is.¡± Suxue rolled her eyes, still thinking that Long Chen had been bluffingst night.


    Long Chen smiled and tidied up a bit. It was alreadyte at night, so the two said nothing as they scaled up to the highest peak of Heavenly Wood City. Long Chen was very careful this time and used Sight to observe his surroundings. When he found no one within a one Li radius, he rxed and continued scaling upwards.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you afraid that someone will bother you even with me here?¡± Suxue twisted her supple waist and frowned at Long Chen.


    Her jade-white skin was practically glistening like snow under the starlight. Bai Suxue was indeed a good name for her.


    ¡°What are you staring at?¡± Suxue turned her head and scoffed. She felt like Long Chen¡¯s stares were very lecherous.


    Long Chenughed dryly. ¡°You are right. Princess Suxue, you are the strongest youth here, as strong as the elders. I¡¯m sure no one will harm me when you¡¯re around.¡±


    ¡°What a wry mouth you have. You want me to beat you up?¡± Suxue responded with a chuckle. While she detested him before, her attitude towards him changed after he saved her sister. She now thought that Long Chen was an interesting person. At the very least, it was much morefortable to be with him than with Situ Yu.


    They chatted while they scaled up to the top. Halfway there, Suxue suddenly asked seriously, ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s something serious that I need to talk to you about.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen saw how serious she looked. He didn¡¯t hate her, so he listened intently.


    ¡°I think Yan¡¯er is very reliant on you. She talks about you all the time. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s strange? She¡¯s only fourteen.¡±


    Long Chen was stunned before he realized what was going on. ¡°Are you saying that she might be in love with me?¡±


    Suxue nodded. ¡°It¡¯s just something I¡¯ve observed. After all, you were the one who saved her from death. Do you intend to stay in the Demon n and be one of us? Can you guarantee that you will fight for the Demon n? If not, I hope that you won¡¯t be too nice to my sister. Do you understand?¡±


    Long Chen lowered his head as he thought about it. He knew that she was right. He had disappointed a lot of people along his journey, from Murong Yu to Liu Yiyi. Both of them were deeply in love with him, yet he had chosen to walk his own path. He knew that he couldn¡¯t stay in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory for his entire life.


    After thinking it through, he said, ¡°I understand. I will take note of this when I¡¯m with Yan¡¯er. She¡¯s still young after all, right?¡±

 Chapter 767: Someone Precious

    Suxue never thought Long Chen would agree so quickly. She assumed he would get upset at her request since it sounded like she was threatening him. <em>Judging by his words ¡­ It seems that he really doesn¡¯t have any feelings for Suyan.</em>


    Even though Suyan was still young, she had the makings of a beautifuldy already. In just a few years, she would be as good-looking as Suxue. Her cultivation and her standing would be simr to Suxue¡¯s too. A girl like her would be highly sought after by everyone. Suxue thought Long Chen would have some feelings for Suyan since he had saved her life and she had feelings for him too, but it appeared that he didn¡¯t.


    She thought Long Chen was just a lucky guy that would seize any chance he would get to climb up in life, but he she never thought he would give up just like that. Was Long Chen an exception?


    Her curiosity got the better of her, so she asked, ¡°Do you have someone precious to you already?¡±


    Long Chen looked at her speechlessly. ¡°I¡¯m here to cultivate. Do I have to reveal that to you too?¡±


    Suxue was even more interested after seeing his reaction. She continued asking, ¡°So do you have one or not? You could just say yes or no.¡±


    Long Chen ignored her. Even if he told her about Ling Xi right now, he had a feeling that she would still continue her barrage of questions. Long Chen chose to ignore her and continued going upwards.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to tell me?¡± Suxue was puzzled and chased after him, but then she stopped and blushed.


    <em>He doesn''t want to tell me. Maybe that girl is not Yan¡¯er, but ¡­ me? </em>Suxue became nervous. She knew that her sister was infatuated with Long Chen, and it would be bad if Long Chen was actually in love with her instead of Yan¡¯er. Suxue didn¡¯t want to have a fight with her sister over a mere man.<em>I¡¯m thinking too much. There¡¯s no way that¡¯s the case. We barely know each other. </em>Suxue calmed herself before chasing after Long Chen. She caught up to him just as they climbed past the cloudyer. Long Chen sat down on one of therge leaves.


    ¡°So pretty.¡± Suxue sighed when she looked at the starry night. She hade herest night but didn¡¯t have the time to observe the beautiful starry night. This time, she was engrossed with it.


    The wind blew past both of them. Her white skin glittered under the blue, twinkling starlight. She looked like a goddess.


    But Long Chen ignored her. If he had known what she was thinking just now, he would¡¯ve told her about Ling Xi. He had onlypleted part of the Seven Star Manualst night, so he started cultivating the moment he arrived.


    ¡°You are already cultivating?¡± Suxue was speechless. She felt slightly irritated that Long Chen was ignoring her and made a funny face at him before she continued to take in the beautiful scenery. <em>Look at how hard he¡¯s working. I cannot afford to rx. Wu Guangyu will most likely obtain the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance, but I don¡¯t have anything. I can only work hard and try to scale the Heavenly Martial Wall to reach the Heavenly Martial Stage. Only then can I beat him, or else I will lose to him in the Nine n Martial Youth Competition. If that happens, I won¡¯t be qualified to obtain one of the Prismatic Keys ¡­</em>


    She suddenly felt the weight on her shoulders get heavier.


    <em>Father only has two daughters, and girls are indeed slightly weaker when ites to cultivating, but the strongest male in the Demon n is Situ Yu. He¡¯s far too weakpared to Wu Guangyu. There¡¯s also the youths from the Five Element Alliance. I can only ce my hope on the youths from the Thunder n.</em>


    Suxue could do nothing but cultivate hard at this point. She sat down and was going to start cultivating when she saw faint starlight start falling down from the stars above towards Long Chen. The starlight split into five streams and entered Long Chen¡¯s body from five different locations.


    Suxue then recalled why Long Chen needed to cultivate here.


    <em>What is that secret technique? </em>Suxue was curious and forgot to cultivate as she observed Long Chen closely.


    Unlimited starlight flowed into Long Chen¡¯s body.


    Her expression froze when she recalled what he had said.


    <em>Wait ¡­ Did he really obtain the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord? That¡¯s impossible. The inheritance of the Seven Lords are all incredibly difficult to obtain. How did he get his hands on it at his cultivation level? That¡¯s impossible ¡­</em>


    Even though she refused to believe it, she had to admit that Long Chen could¡¯ve been telling the truth. She had doubted him when he said he could save Yan¡¯er, but he had proven himself. Long Chen didn¡¯t seem like someone who would tell a lie, so there was no reason for him to lie about obtaining the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Suxue then thought about how deeply her father, who doted on herself and her sister, trusted Long Chen.


    Didn¡¯t her father¡¯s actions imply that Long Chen was indeed that strong? In that case, it wasn''t all that surprising that he would obtain the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. After all, it was indeed true that Long Chen had managed to steal the Martial God Tombstone. She had sent someone to verify the information.


    She wanted to wake him up and ask if he truly had the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, but she didn¡¯t dare do so since he was in a critical stage of his cultivation.


    <em>That¡¯s strange. If it¡¯s really the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance ¡­ Why would Father be so rxed about it? Father is as mysterious as Long Chen is. Also, he spends all his time with Uncle Lei. I have no idea what they are thinking or doing ¡­ Uncle Lei also asked if I wanted to get married. What bastards ¡­</em>


    She remembered how childish her father could be at times, which left her even more uncertain.


    She chose to not cultivate at all and observed Long Chen instead.


    <em>Legends say that the Seven Star Lord had an incredibly strong Divine Weapon called the Three Thousand Star Clusters. It could utilize the power of the stars and shake the earth. The Seven Star Lord was undefeatable to Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators when he wielded it. I wonder if Long Chen obtained it too?</em>


    The legendary Three Thousand Star Clusters was also an extremely beautiful weapon. Many women coveted such an object.


    Time passed, and the starlight continued to course into Long Chen¡¯s body. The starlight became denser and denser, to the point that he was in a cocoon of starlight. He looked just like a star in the heavens. Suxue even saw several glittering runes forming on Long Chen¡¯s skin. It covered his body like the stars in the sky.


    Those dots of lights were none other than the Seven Star Lord¡¯s Divine Weapon, the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    Once Long Chenpleted the Seven Star Manual, he would obtain the essence of the Seven Stars and would be capable of using the power of the Three Thousand Star Cluster. But he wouldn¡¯t have enough essence to sustain the continued usage of the Three Thousand Star Cluster.


    As long as hepleted the Seven Star Manual and cultivated Seven Star Essence, he would be able to utilize the Big Dipper Step and the Seven Star Body more efficiently. Just then, hepleted the Seven Star Manual and found out that there was blue starlight mixed in with his Dragon Soul Essence. The blue starlight was naturally the Seven Star Essence.


    Afterpleting it, under Long Chen¡¯s control, the blue light around him slowly disappeared. He opened his eyes and found Suxue looking at him excitedly.


    ¡°Long Chen, do you really have the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡±


    Seeing that she finally believed him, he nodded. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you that before? Only the n leaders know about this. You are the third person in Heavenly Wood City to know. This is very important, so I need you to keep it a secret. I fear that a lot of people would hunt me down if this information leaked.¡±


    Suxue was touched by his words.


    <em>We¡¯ve only known each other for a dozen days ¡­ Why does he trust me so much? He never told Yan¡¯er about it, but he told me ¡­</em> Suxue felt like her brain was overloading as she faced a certain emotion for the first time. She wanted to leave now.


    Long Chen was too dense to understand how a woman would interpret this scenario. He had told her to keep it a secret purely because it would reduce the risk of him getting attacked when she wasn¡¯t there to guard him. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± He saw her flustering for some reason.


    ¡°Nothing, nothing ¡­¡± She shook her hands in a panic before she remembered something. ¡°Long Chen, I have a request.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that the Three Thousand Star Clusters is very beautiful. I ¡­ I want to see how pretty it is. Could you satisfy my small request?¡±


    Suxue used her entire arsenal that she usually used on her father to beg for something. Her sweet voice coupled with her look stunned Long Chen. ¡°Please don¡¯t do that again and I will show you.¡±


    ¡°Really!? Yay! You are the greatest!¡± Suxue jumped up happily.


    He never thought a princess like her would have a cute side like this.

 Chapter 768: Assasination

    It was bright under the starlight.


    A pair of bloodshot eyes was watching from one of the dark corners of the ancient tree. He was staring at the brightest star in the sky, but he knew that it was actually Long Chen. In fear of getting found out, he hade here in the middle of the night, but he found that Long Chen was already done cultivating.


    The man was none other than Chen Yang.


    He carefully took out the Cloud Piercer and the Troop Destroying Arrow from his Universe Pouch. The Cloud Piercer was capable of generating a lot of force if he could pull the string backpletely, and the Troop Destroying Arrow was a unique Divine Weapon that had the unique feature of being undetectable and silent. It could slow down rapidly after getting shot out of a bow, making it extremely suitable for assassinations. A regr cultivator would have a hard time detecting an attack from the Troop Destroying Arrow. This was why Situ Yao had given Chen Yang the two Divine Weapons to kill Long Chen.


    Even someone at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage would find it hard to avoid the Troop Destroying Arrow.


    Chen Yang was nervous when he notched the arrow and closed one of his eyes. He aimed at the starlight in the sky and readied himself to attack.


    He was currently one Li away from Long Chen, so it was hard to aim. Thankfully, Long Chen was cultivating the Seven Star Manual, making him an easy target to lock onto.


    Chen Yang was about to release the arrow when Long Chenpleted his cultivation and the light disappeared.


    ¡°He¡¯s done?¡± Chen Yang wasn¡¯t hasty. He had missed his chance today, but he was certain that Long Chen woulde here to cultivate again. However, Chen Yang didn¡¯t know that Suxue was just beside Long Chen.Two hundred meters away from Chen Yang was an old man cloakedpletely in ck. He stood on a leaf, watching patiently. It was none other than Situ Yao. He was waiting for Chen Yang to act before swooping in to take the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. But because of how careful Long Chen and Suxue were when they scaled up, even Situ Yao hadn¡¯t noticed Suxue. He could only see Long Chen¡¯s light from this distance.


    The starlight was extinguished, meaning that Long Chen¡¯s cultivation was sessful.


    <em>What is Chen Yang doing? </em>Situ Yao was speechless. He had been following Chen Yang for quite some time.


    But Situ Yao was not anxious. He knew that cultivating the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance was no easy task and was certain that Long Chen would have toe up here many more times. Knowing that there would be other chances, he had no reason to be impatient.


    After what he had just seen, Situ Yao was even more certain that Long Chen had obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Situ Yao was very excited about taking it. He would wait for Chen Yang to shoot Long Chen, then he would run towards Long Chen at full speed. After collecting the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, he would then chase after Chen Yang and kill him! He had left traces of his aura on the Cloud Piercer and the Troop Destroying Arrow so he could find him no matter where he went.


    With Chen Yang dead, Situ Yao could then cultivate the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance without any worry. If he failed, he could just walk away too. Bai Lan had to protect the entire Demon n, while Situ Yao only needed to bring his grandson to escape.


    It was risky, but it was worth it to take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance for himself.


    Just then, Long Chen¡¯s position lit up again. The light made Situ Yao even more excited.


    ¡°That¡¯s ¡­ That¡¯s the legendary Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡± Situ Yao howled quietly as he swallowed arge wad of saliva.


    The lighting from the Three Thousand Star Cluster was very mellow. It wasn¡¯t bright nor sharp, so Situ Yao recognized it immediately. Chen Yang, on the other hand, didn''t, but he could barely make out Long Chen¡¯s location thanks to the light. More importantly, he saw another person beside him. He wasn¡¯t sure who it was, however.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care who you are, but I can me you for Long Chen¡¯s death!¡± Chen Yang raised the Cloud Piercer and aimed for Long Chen¡¯s heart!


    ***


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t refuse, so he took out the Three Thousand Star Clusters for her. He couldn¡¯t use it yet, so he only waved it around. He had a feeling that he had to cultivate the Seven Star Body before he could utilize it.


    Three thousand stars floated out of Long Chen¡¯s body and arranged themselves in his hands, taking the shape of a beautiful, blue spear. Suxue ced her hands on her mouth in awe and screamed a little.


    She loved beautiful things, even if it was a Divine Weapon. Suxue had fallen in love with how pretty the Three Thousand Star Clusters was and tried touching it in a daze.


    Long Chen felt an unwilling sensationing from the Divine Weapon. It appeared that the Three Thousand Star Clusters refused to let Suxue touch it.


    A gentle wave of energy gently pushed her fingers away.


    Suxue frowned, but she wasn¡¯t mad. ¡°This is the most beautiful Divine Weapon that I¡¯ve ever seen. It¡¯s a shame that it didn¡¯t allow me to touch it. Thankfully, it only gently pushed my fingers away.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because it was taking my position into consideration, or it would¡¯ve cut your fingers off,¡± Long Chen said in an attempt to scare her


    ¡°Alright, I need to start cultivating the Seven Star Body. I will have to gather celestial Qi. It¡¯s a fearsome thing, so I need you to step back a bit.¡±


    Long Chen was quite wary of celestial Qi, but he had no choice but to endure it for the sake of the Seven Star Body.


    ¡°Let me look at it for just a little longer, please. Don¡¯t put it away yet!¡± Suxue pleaded. Long Chen frowned, but he decided toply by letting her look at the Three Thousand Star Clusters for a bit longer.


    Suxue was admiring the Divine Weapon andpletely forgot about what Long Chen had said about celestial Qi.


    Just then, Long Chen was hit with an overwhelming sense of danger!


    ¡°Long Chen! There¡¯s an arrow behind you!¡± Little Cat sensed it too and alerted him out of panic.


    Long Chen understood how dangerous the arrow was if even Little Cat had panicked. Thanks to Little Cat¡¯s warning, Long Chen knew that the arrow was behind him, so he didn¡¯t need to waste any time trying to find where the threat wasing from. He had a chance of surviving once more!


    He suddenly turned around and blocked his heart with the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Suxue was just behind him, so he couldn¡¯t dodge. Although she was strong, she wasn¡¯t as alert as Little Cat. If he had dodged it, the silent arrow would¡¯ve hit her!


    Long Chen was a man with principles. The arrow was aimed at him, not Suxue, so he couldn¡¯t let it harm her. If he did, it would be difficult to exin himself to Bai Lan. After all, it was Long Chen who had requested for her to apany him.


    Long Chen understood that greedy people were everywhere in this world. Even though he hadn¡¯t offended a lot of people, many of them were still hunting him because he had obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. He was destined to fight even more people from now on!


    Just like how someone was trying to assassinate him tonight!


    Long Chen felt the hairs on his body standing up!


    He vaguely saw a ck metal rod flying in the night sky and knew that it was the arrow! The arrow¡¯s speed was far beyond what he had expected, and the only thing he could do was use the Three Thousand Star Clusters to block it.


    He felt suffocated.


    This was the fastest attack that he had ever seen.


    Thankfully, the arrownded on the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    He thought he would be blown backwards by the impact, but that feeling never came. He looked down and saw the arrow slowly disintegrating just half a meter away from the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Long Chen was stunned before he realized that the Three Thousand Star Clusters had saved him. If not, he would¡¯ve been pierced by that arrow.


    He felt cold sweat pouring out from his body.


    At the same time, he looked back and saw that Suxue had noticed what was going on. Her face was pale, but she sighed in relief when she saw that Long Chen was unharmed after blocking the arrow with Three Thousand Star Clusters. Then anger overtook her heart.


    She never thought someone would try to assassinate Long Chen under her protection and inside the territory of the Demon n! The assassins were too daring. If it wasn¡¯t for Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters, he would¡¯ve been dead!


    Shu Xue¡¯s killing intent leaked out.


    She was about to run towards the direction the arrow was shot from, but Long Chen stopped her. He was using Sight and spotted someone running towards him at full speed! The person¡¯s speed far exceeded his expectations. If Suxue left him now, that person would be on top of Long Chen in an instant.

 Chapter 769: Pierced Heart!

    Long Chen realized that there were two assassins! One of them used a bow. Based on the strength of the arrow shooting towards the Three Thousand Star Clusters, he determined that the assassin was at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. While the assassin running towards him was most likely at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage based on their speed!


    ¡°Ninth Earthly Martial Stage ¡­¡± Suxue detected the person running towards them and chose to stand in front of Long Chen rather than pursuing the bow user. She understood how serious this was when there was someone at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stageing after Long Chen.


    Long Chen made a snap decision. ¡°You block the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage one. It¡¯s best if you can figure out who it is. I¡¯m certain that you will know this bastard if he¡¯s in Heavenly Wood City. I will chase after the other one.¡±


    ¡°What? You can¡¯t go! The other person is very strong too ¡­¡± Based on the power of the arrow, she could also tell that the other person was most definitely at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. How could Long Chen defeat someone of that caliber?


    But the other assassin had reached them. The assassin saw Suxue and was shocked before he snarled. It was clear that the person recognized her!


    ¡°What petty thief dares to infiltrate the Demon n¡¯s territory and cause trouble here?¡± Suxue pounced towards the assassin. Because of their disguise, neither Long Chen nor Suxue recognized him.


    They also reckoned that the other assassin was going to escape.


    Suxue was blocking the first assassin, and Long Chen understood that he couldn¡¯t dy this anymore.


    Suxue wanted him to stay quietly beside her, but Long Chen refused. They were in the midst of attacking him, so there was no reason to y it safe. This was different from what Chen Xu had done¡ªthis was assassination! If Long Chen allowed the other party to live, he could get killed for real next time!¡°Blood Warp!¡± Long Chen disappeared and stopped one Li away. The ce was covered in a denseyer of leaves and mist, so he used Sight and found the archer. Long Chen was just a hundred meters away from him!


    The assassin thought he had killed Long Chen and was preparing to escape.


    Chen Yang was currently confused. He thought killing Long Chen was supposed to be a simple task, but who was the person running towards him? <em>That man appeared to be trying to plunder something from Long Chen. </em>Chen Yang had a good idea on who that was, but he didn¡¯t dare make assumptions.


    <em>Unless ¡­ Does Long Chen have some kind of treasure? </em>Chen Yang thought that was most likely the case. He understood that he was being used by someone to kill Long Chen. Now that he had seeded, he needed to escape Heavenly Wood City as fast as possible. He was confident that the Troop Destroying Arrow had killed Long Chen, since a regr Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator would never be able to block an attack of that level.


    As he escaped, he continued to entertain his thoughts on what kind of treasure Long Chen could¡¯ve obtained. He suddenly recalled the star light and had a daring thought. <em>That old coot would never look down on regr treasures. There¡¯s only a few treasures that would attract him. Could it be that Long Chen had obtained the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord? Is that why the n Leader is taking care of him?</em>


    He felt like this was very likely after thinking about the way Long Chen was cultivating so high up in the sky.


    <em>Damn. I¡¯ve been tricked by Situ Yao, that old bastard. I was the one who killed Long Chen, but he went in to take the treasure. I will die if I get caught, but he¡¯s the one who gets the inheritance! </em>Chen Yang sighed in defeat, but at the very least, he had managed to avenge his son by killing Long Chen.


    Just then, he sensed someone chasing after him. He turned around and was shocked to find that it was Long Chen! Chen Yang had seen Long Chen before and would never make the mistake of forgetting his face!


    <em>I thought he was dead! How is he here? Did the arrow fail to kill him? What about Situ Yao? </em>Chen Yang looked at where Long Chen had been up in the tree and saw an intense battle unfolding up there. One of them was the strange man in ck, who was using techniques that didn''t belong to Situ Yao. But Chen Yang knew that Situ Yao had learned a lot of different techniques so it would be easy for him to disguise himself.


    The other person was none other than the oldest princess of the Demon n, Suxue.


    <em>I never thought Princess Suxue would be cultivating together with Long Chen! No wonder I failed just now! But ¡­</em> Chen Yang grew fierce. He thought he had failed, but he was overjoyed when he was presented with a second chance with Long Chen appearing in front of him! He never thought Long Chen would be stupid enough to deliver himself!


    <em>What a rare opportunity. Situ Yao is being held up by Suxue. I can use this chance to kill Long Chen and take the inheritance for myself! Then I will be able to stand proud!</em> Chen Yang was excited. He never thought that the heavens would grant him such a rare chance.


    ¡°Long Chen, I thought you were a smart man! I¡¯m surprised to see that you¡¯re actually aplete fool!¡± Chen Yang put the Cloud Piercer away and ran towards Long Chen.


    ¡°I knew it! So it¡¯s you! I guess it''s to be expected since I killed Chen Xu, but then who¡¯s the other person?¡± Long Chen was certain that the other assassin was Chen Yang, which was why he had chased this assassin.


    Suxue and the other assassin were fighting intensely at the top of the tree. Both of them were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, but Suxue was more talented and the techniques she had cultivated were stronger. She had obtained the true teachings from Bai Lan and could use some of the martial techniques of the Divine Demon Lord with ease. The assassin, however, had a lot of fighting experience. Each of his techniques were vicious to the core, and the two were locked in a stalemate.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried about Suxue, but she was worried about him. While they were fighting, she was distracted by Long Chen¡¯s condition. That was why even though her opponent was holding back to not reveal himself, Suxue failed to defeat him swiftly!


    Long Chen was currently fighting against Chen Yang.


    ¡°You are seeking your own death by chasing after me.¡± Chen Yang chuckled and took out a ck de from his Universe Pouch. It was the same as the de Chen Xu had used!


    ¡°You killed my son! I will kill you with the same de tonight!¡± Chen Yang howled.


    ¡°Who is the other person?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t scared. He had transformed and covered his body in blood-red scales. He was a killing machine right now.


    Thankfully, Suxue was here as a witness to testify that Chen Yang was trying to kill Long Chen. He could go all-out against Chen Yang tonight. Still, Long Chen was wary of the other person. He had a feeling that they were even more deadly.


    Long Chen tried using Control, but it was useless against an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Since Long Chen could not win his trust, he could not control his soul. Little Cat¡¯s techniques would not work either since the Dream Demon¡¯s techniques were only useful on those below the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage.


    The stronger the other person was, the stronger their Martial Soul would be. Simrly, the less Little Cat could do against them.


    Chen Yang didn¡¯t bother answering Long Chen since he was so certain that he would kill Long Chen soon. He was also setting up a path to survive just in case. If he told him that it was Situ Yao right now, he would most certainly die when Situ Yao caught him.


    What he didn¡¯t know was that Situ Yao intended to kill him in the first ce, but the n had be much moreplicated because of the unforeseen circumstances.


    While Suxue was busy fighting against the assassin, Long Chen was fighting against Chen Yang. Chen Yang ignored Long Chen¡¯s questions and attacked directly. He needed to kill Long Chen as quickly as possible and loot his treasures. That way, he could escape immediately.


    ¡°Seven Killings Tiger Knife Technique! Pierced Heart!¡±


    It was the hidden technique of the Chen family. The technique was stronger than his son¡¯s, so numerousrge tigers emerged from his de. Each attack contained the strength of someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen would have to exhaust a lot of energy if he wanted to block it head-on.


    Which was why he used the Big Dipper Step to avoid them. He didn¡¯t want to use it at first, fearing that Chen Yang would recognize it, but he had no choice because an attack from an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator was too strong.


    Death was but a second away. There was no room to think that much during intense battles.


    The Big Dipper Step activated and Long Chen¡¯s body shed on the starte. He dodged all of the attacks, which stunned Chen Yang. Now Chen Yang was even more certain that Long Chen had obtained the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord.


    The Big Dipper Step was a profound technique that allowed Long Chen to dodge all of the attacks from the Seven Killings Tiger Knife Technique.


    <em>That Body Combat Technique ¡­ It must be an Emperor-tier Body Combat Technique ¡­ </em>Chen Yang got even more excited after thinking that it would be his soon!

 Chapter 770: Killing Chen Yang

    Chen Yang had a much deeper understanding of the de than his son; he also had more essence than Chen Xu. It wasn¡¯t easy for Long Chen to fight against him even though the Dragon Soul Transformation had boosted his essence to the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen fought cautiously.


    The two of them used their techniques consecutively. Long Chen kept using the Big Dipper Step to avoid Chen Yang¡¯s attack. Chen Yang noticed that Long Chen was buying time! He was here to assassinate Long Chen, so the more he dyed it, the more perilous his situation would be. He wouldn¡¯t be able to steal the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord if people gathered around them.


    <em>I need to use my ultimate technique, or I won¡¯t be able to kill him! </em>Chen Yang thought to himself as he took nces at the fight between Suxue and the man in ck. The man in ck had already noticed that Long Chen was still alive and was aware that the n had failed, so he was looking for a chance to escape.


    <em>I need to do this quickly, or I¡¯m dead for certain! </em>Chen Yang stopped hesitating and swung his de towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Nine Consecutive Killings!¡± This was an advanced King-tier martial technique for a de. Chen Yang hadn¡¯t taught it to his son because it was too powerful. Nine rays of ck de Qi shot upwards and mmed towards Long Chen. They flew in nine different directions to encircle him!


    ¡°There¡¯s no chance you can escape from this attack!¡± Chen Yangughed and channeled his essence into the technique to kill Long Chen as quickly as possible. Situ Yao was already trying to escape. If he was sessful, Suxue woulde to help Long Chen and Chen Yang would end up dead.


    Chen Yang needed to end this quickly!


    ¡°Die!¡± Chen Yang howled with fury.


    Long Chen was not intimidated by the rays of de Qi surrounding him. They tore through the trees and grind them to dust, but Long Chen closed his eyes and used the Big Dipper Step. This time, however, his speed on the starte had exceeded his previous record. The starte even flew upwards and spun rapidly. Long Chen disappeared!<em>Bam, bam, bam.</em>


    The rays of Qi crashed into each other in the air and canceled each other out, but Long Chen was still unharmed since the attack had missed.


    Chen Yang was dumbfounded when he saw the attack he had poured all his hope into being avoided with such ease.


    While he was caught in a daze, the man in ck escaped Suxue¡¯s encirclement and ran into the darkness. He soon disappeared under the cover of night.


    ¡°Damn! Who is that guy?¡± Suxue could not uncover the identity of the man because her opponent was too sly. Her opponent had made ns to escape the moment he noticed that he was going up against Suxue and Long Chen ran away. Even though he and Suxue were almost equally strong, the man fought in a passive way that allowed him to escape the moment Suxue lost her focus.


    The man in ck was very experienced in battle. Even though Suxue was confident that she was stronger, she had failed to kill him. She watched him escape but didn¡¯t chase after him since she still needed to protect Long Chen.


    The identity of the man in ck remained a mystery.


    Long Chen had an idea of who it could be, but he didn¡¯t want to make assumptions. As for Chen Yang, since he was from the Demon n, Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure if he would be able to kill him if others arrived. This was when Long Chen decided to use his ultimate moves.


    It was a close call for Long Chen to avoid the Nine Consecutive Killings using the Big Dipper Step just now.


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful!¡± Suxue shouted, but then she saw Long Chen avoid that fearsome attackpletely!


    At the same time, she was shocked to see Long Chen charging towards his opponent. A golden light lit up in Long Chen¡¯s palm and turned into a massive, golden seal.


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡± A massive seal covered the skies and crashed down towards Chen Yang. His attack was almost as strong as Chen Yang¡¯s!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    Chen Yang used Nine Consecutive Killings again out of instinct. The rays of Qi crashed into the seal, setting off arge explosion that rocked the entire city. To think their techniques were almost equally strong! Long Chen¡¯s technique was stronger since it was at the Emperor-tier, but Chen Yang had more essence to cover the gap!


    ¡°Long Chen, I will deal with him.¡± Suxue was shocked by Long Chen¡¯s strength. She assumed that he had no issue dealing with someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. However, she was worried about his safety, so she had told him to stop.


    Chen Yang was rmed by those words because he knew he had lost his chance to kill Long Chen. He would be digging his own grave soon if he continued to dally, considering Situ Yao had run away too.


    While he was running, Chen Yang was astonished to find Long Chen chasing him.


    Long Chen ignored Suxue and chased after Chen Yang. Thetter felt chills running down his spine when he saw Long Chen¡¯s blood-red eyes in the darkness.


    <em>I can¡¯t let him catch me, or Suxue will catch up! </em>Chen Yang made the same choice as his son had done during the most critical moment and threw his de towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Die!¡± Chen Yang was confident that he would at least injure, if not outright kill, Long Chen if the de exploded so close to him!


    But what he didn¡¯t notice was that Long Chen had expected this. The two Emperor Seals, the Scarlet Emperor Seal and the Golden Emperor Seal, in his palm lit up at the same time. Within his right palm¡¯s Martial Meridian, the two energies reached an equilibrium as they channeled their power.


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal! Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    The two seals formed rapidly in Long Chen¡¯s palm. Suxue was shocked by the power behind the seal. She was quite close to Long Chen, so she felt the energying from the two seals very clearly. Long Chenbined the two seals and amplified their destructive power. To think that Long Chen, a cultivator at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, could wield so much power!


    Suxue had been worrying about the de thrown towards Long Chen, but she stopped when she saw the twobined Emperor Seals in his palm. She was curious to see if it had enough power to kill Chen Yang!


    The de exploded in the air and let out a massive shockwave, directing its energy and countless pieces of shrapnel towards Long Chen. Chen Yang startedughing when he heard the explosion because he saw that Long Chen hadn¡¯t evaded it. He was certain that the explosion would kill Long Chen!


    But he didn¡¯t know that the tragedy his son had faced would befall him tonight.


    Long Chen was calm as he gently sent thebined Emperor Seals forward. The fused energy from the two seals howled towards Chen Yang, but it was ten times stronger todaypared to yesterday! The massive trees were reduced to dust as the seals plowed through them. The dust flew up into the night sky and floated aimlessly.


    All Chen Yang saw was an entire ocean surging towards him. The horrific energies of metal and firebined together to form an incredibly fast and destructive technique that Chen Yang could never imagine. He knew that the technique would kill him outright.


    He now realized how his son had died in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    <em>Impossible! He¡¯s only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage! How could he wield such explosive power? I refuse to believe it!</em> Chen Yang was still in denial as his eyes were drowned in the fires of spite, but there was nothing he could do. Thebined Emperor Seal caught up to him and turned his body into ashes little by little.


    <em>No! I cannot let Long Chen live!</em>


    That was Chen Yang¡¯s only thought while he was on the threshold of death.


    Long Chen was strong, mysterious, and even had the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. It was as if he had been chosen by the heavens. Chen Yang swore that he would bring him down!


    At his final moments, Chen Yang mustered thest of his strength to shout onest time, ¡°Long Chen has the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord! Long Chen, Seven Star Lord! It¡¯s the truth!¡±


    The voice of someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage could be monstrously loud. He had emphasized Long Chen¡¯s name and the name of the Seven Star Lord so loudly that the entire area rumbled. It was highly likely that almost everyone in the city had heard what he had shouted.


    Chen Yang was consumed by Long Chen¡¯s technique after he shouted his final words. Even though he wasn¡¯t sure how much trouble he would cause for Long Chen, he was satisfied that he could bite Long Chen at the final moment.


    Long Chen was shocked when he heard Chen Yang¡¯s final shout.


    He never thought that Chen Yang would do something like this just before his life ended. Everyone in Heavenly Wood City, including the Demon n, the Thunder n, and even the regr cultivators, would know his secret now. Soon, they would spread the news throughout the entire Ancient Graveyard.


    The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was something that everyone coveted. Long Chen was doomed to encounter a lot of trouble in the future. It was now up to Bai Lan toe up with a n to protect him.

 Chapter 771: Infighting

    If Bai Lan weren¡¯t helping him, Long Chen would¡¯ve been in deep trouble. Thankfully, his safety was guaranteed at least for a little while since Suyan still needed him. As long as Suyan needed him, Bai Lan would never abandon Long Chen and would even go so far as to help him.


    There was nothing he could do now but deal with the problems as they popped up. Long Chen epted this when his secret was leaked.


    On the other hand, Situ Yao was troubled that Long Chen¡¯s secret was leaked. He hadn¡¯t run off but instead was waiting just a couple of Li away. When he heard Chen Yang¡¯s final shout, he smashed a tree out of anger.


    ¡°Chen Yang, you idiot! I can¡¯t believe he did that! Fuck! Now it won¡¯t be easy for me to take the inheritance anymore. Even if the two n leaders don¡¯t want it, the seven Thunder Elders of the Thunder n and the eight Sect Elders of the Demon n will definitely covet it! My n has failed horrendously tonight. I never thought that Suxue would be up there and Long Chen would survive the night! Shit! I never thought I would fail so horribly!¡±


    He had no choice but to change back to his regr attire. He could feel that everyone in the Heavenly Wood City was stirring after the hugemotion and Chen Yang¡¯s shout. Everyone¡¯s goal was undoubtedly Long Chen and the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. The eight Sect Elders and the seven Thunder Elders were the fastest. The seven Thunder Elders of the Thunder n and the eight Sect Elders were equally strong since they were all at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    The only one in the Thunder n who knew about the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord was Lei Ji.


    A thousand people were running up towards Long Chen. It was not at all surprising to him that everyone would be panicking down there.


    ¡°What should we do? Everyone wants the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord, including the Sect Elders. What should we do now that everyone knows about it?¡± Suxue wasn¡¯t sure what to do. She thought that he was only good at alchemy, but she never thought he would be so strong as well. Even Suxue herself had to be wary of Long Chen¡¯s final technique. Unbeknownst to her, she was slowly cing Long Chen at the center of her heart.


    ¡°We should go down now. There¡¯s no need to worry,¡± Long Chen responded with a frown. It was the only thing they could do now. He thought that his time in Heavenly Wood City would be smooth and uneventful. He never would''ve guessed that two separate incidents would take ce on the first two days he hade up to cultivate.They descended swiftly and appeared in the skies of Heavenly Wood City. In the dark of the night, everyone saw Long Chen and stopped.


    Right now, the regr cultivators had surged into the inner circles of Heavenly Wood City. Thousands of them were spurred on by their greed. Even the Demon and Thunder ns could not hold them back. But because the regr cultivators didn¡¯t have anyone exceptionally strong to lead them, they dared not cause trouble and merely spectated.


    Long Chen swept the scene in front of him and saw arge sea of bobbing heads. All of them were looking at Long Chen with greed. Barely any of them paid attention to Suxue.


    Soon, the experts of the Demon and Thunder ns gathered together and formed two teams. They stood on Long Chen¡¯s left and right. The eight Sect Elders of the Demon n as well as the regr elders at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage were gathered here. The Thunder n¡¯s people were present too. The only ones that hadn¡¯t appeared were the two n leaders.


    Even Suyan had appeared to join the Demon n¡¯s ranks. She had rushed over the moment she heard Chen Yang¡¯s shout. She saw Long Chen and her sister standing together in the air. A handsome man and a beautifuldy like them were practically made for each other. Suyan felt jealous and sad, but she still clenched her teeth and approached Long Chen.


    ¡°Big Brother¡­¡±


    Long Chen spotted her the moment he heard her bell-like voice and smiled. ¡°Yan¡¯er, why are you here? I¡¯m having some trouble here, so it¡¯s best if you go back home with Suxue¡±


    He didn¡¯t want to cause trouble for the twodies.


    ¡°No. If I leave now, they will be even more emboldened. Yan¡¯er, you stay here too.¡± Suxue had made her decision. She looked at the people in front of her and knew that they were aiming for the Seven Star Lord inheritance. If she left, they would attack Long Chen. When one entered the Ancient Graveyard, everything was secondary in front of the allure of treasures.


    Suyan nodded and understood what was happening. She shielded Long Chen and stared at everyone warily.


    The Demon n leader''s daughters were shielding Long Chen alone. Everyone was mystified by what was happening because they could tell that they were adamant in protecting him. Some of the younger males were jealous because the two princesses were their idols. Why were they shielding someone like Long Chen?


    The eight Sect Elders looked at each other. Long Chen was their guest, but they couldn¡¯t allow the Thunder n to take the inheritance. They also couldn¡¯t allow the regr cultivators to even touch it. Soon, one of the grand elders stepped forward. ¡°Long Chen, I heard that you¡¯ve obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. As you know, he¡¯s one of the Seven Lords and his inheritance is exceptionally precious. ce it in the hands of someonepetent, and they will be able to form and protect a country. But if it¡¯s left in the hands of someone weak, it will only attract a bloodbath. You are still young and cannot use its power. Since we, the Demon n, are friendly with you, and you have a good rtionship with the two princesses, why don¡¯t you let us guard it? We will return it to you once you have the strength to use it. How does that sound?¡±


    It sounded nice, but it was nothing but a trap. They just want Long Chen to hand over the inheritance.


    Everyone knew what the grand elder wanted and secretly cursed in their hearts, except for the members of the Demon n. The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord could not be held by a singr person¡ªit had to be safeguarded by a n. None of the Sect Elders could take it for themselves unless they were in a situation like Situ Yao was in earlier, where no one knew about the inheritance.


    Long Chen looked past the elders and stared at Situ Yao. Currently, Situ Yao¡¯s attire, actions, and expression were simr to those of the other elders. It was almost impossible for the others to know that he was the man in ck who had tried to take Long Chen¡¯s inheritance.


    But Long Chen had Sight. He had familiarized himself with Situ Yao¡¯s soul, so he was very certain that Situ Yao was the man in ck.


    Unfortunately, Long Chen could not reveal this, since he could not provide proof. Situ Yao was in a foul mood while he watched the other Sect Elders demanding the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord.


    The regr cultivators could only curse in their hearts. They dared not make any rash moves when the situation was still under control. As for the Thunder n, the seven Thunder Elders were abnormally silent. No one knew what they were thinking.


    The Thunder n had be a subsidiary of the Demon n and chose to heed their orders, but it was clear that they had their own thoughts.


    Everyone was looking at Long Chen to see what he would decide.


    ¡°Uncles, please don¡¯t worry. My father and Uncle Lei aren''t here yet. We can wait for them to get here before we decide to do anything! They are the n leaders after all. The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord is a grave matter that only they can decide on!¡± Suxue was smart, so she threw the baton to the two n leaders. No one, not even the Sect Elders and the Thunder Elders, could say anything.


    The elder who had spoken to Long Chen frowned. ¡°The n Leader is busy. We can decide such matters ourselves. In order to prevent any mishaps and make sure no innocent people die, it''s better if Long Chen gives us the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord for safeguarding.¡±


    Everyone knew that Long Chen was the savior of Bai Lan¡¯s daughter, and he needed to continue treating her. Once Bai Lan arrived, it was likely that things wouldn''t go as the Sect Elders had nned, since Bai Lan was an unconventional individual. The eight Sect Elders wanted to deal with this as quickly as possible.


    Suxue was angry and was going to berate them, but Long Chen stopped her. He had sensed Bai Lan and Lei Ji nearby.


    Looking at the elders'' expressions, Long Chen knew that he would be safe today. Bai Lan must¡¯ve thought that something like this would happen since he had allowed Long Chen to cultivate up in the skies. At this point in time, the two n leaders were secretly watching them from a distance away. They did not intend to do anything for now; they merely pointed at Long Chen and chuckled as they discussed something.


    Long Chen realized that they were nearby, but he couldn¡¯t pinpoint their location. He had to admit that cultivators at the Heavenly Martial Realm were indeed different.


    The Sect Elders'' eyes revealed their hostility as they waited for Long Chen to say something. It was clear that if he didn¡¯t want to give them the inheritance, they would just take it anyway.


    Long Chen red at them and finally spoke when he saw they were at the limit of their patience. ¡°Who said I have it? Do you have any idea what happened just now? Someone called Chen Yang tried to kill me, but I killed him instead. This is just a trick pulled by someone on the verge of death. Do you really believe it?¡±


    Long Chen chose to deny it. They didn¡¯t have any proof after all.

 Chapter 772: Unreasonable

    The eight Sect Elders weren¡¯t that easy to fool, especially Situ Yao. He knew the truth about Long Chen. The grand elder that spoke to Long Chen looked back at the other grand elders. All of them came to a silent decision to take it by force, or the situation would be out of their control once Bai Lan made his appearance.


    The eight of them moved in unison. They ignored Suxue and Suyan and encircled them from eight different directions. Each of them was at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, so Long Chen couldn¡¯t defeat even one of them, let alone eight!


    Suxue could only handle one of them, though they naturally dared not harm her.


    ¡°Now!¡± The eight of them moved together at an incredible speed. The regr cultivators spectating from down below saw that they had no chance of obtaining even a sliver of the inheritance.


    Suxue and Suyan panicked. They never thought that the elders would be so shameless. Their faces were red with anger!


    ¡°Big Brother, be careful!¡± Suyan warned Long Chen.


    She wasn¡¯t aware that Long Chen was strong enough to kill someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. She thought Suxue was the one who had killed Chen Yang.


    But Long Chen wasn¡¯t in a hurry, because he sensed that Bai Lan and Lei Ji were finally moving. When the Sect Eldersunched themselves at Long Chen, Bain and Lei Ji appeared spontaneously in front of him. Bai Lan gently waved his arm, and an invisible shockwave spread out to toss the eight Sect Elders back. All of them staggered and almost fell over.


    They were shocked to see that Bai Lan had finally appeared.From their point of view, Bai Lan had disgraced them even though they had spent their lives working hard for the Demon n. It was one thing for Bai Lan to not help them, but he had even stopped them? That was very disgraceful for the eight Sect Elders.


    All of them stood up and red at the nonchnt Bai Lan and Lei Ji. They were frustrated by the n leaders¡¯ actions. One of the elders even stepped forward and said, ¡°What is the meaning of this, Clean Leader? We just wanted to secure the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance for the Demon n to increase our strength further. Why are you stopping us?¡±


    The other people from the Demon n joined in and agreed too. They wanted the Demon n to obtain the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance as they would have a chance to learn it too.


    Situ Yu was one of them. He had actually been waiting for Situ Yao to return with the good news, but he had never expected something like this to happen. When he arrived here, he saw that Situ Yao had already changed back to his normal attire and was standing with the other elders.


    Situ Yu pondered and thought about what Long Chen had said before he pieced the information together. Suxue had been with Long Chen while he cultivated, which caused his grandfather¡¯s n to fail. But he still found it hard to believe that Long Chen had managed to kill Chen Yang. That was a bit too unbelievable.


    Situ Yu assumed Chen Xu would be more than strong enough to deal with Long Chen, so he never would¡¯ve guessed Chen Xu would be the one to die. He then ordered Chen Yang to kill Long Chen. Chen Yang was at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, at the same stage as Situ Yu, but he was dead too. That meant that even Situ Yu himself wouldn¡¯t be able to win against Long Chen.


    <em>Is Long Chen that crazy? He killed Chen Yang, so he might be able to fight with me toe-to-toe. I¡¯m so close to the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. When I do reach it, hehe¡­</em>


    Everyone was looking at Bai Lan with confusion.


    Another grand elder chimed in. ¡°Patriarch, are you thinking of protecting him just because he saved Princess Yan¡¯er? You need to consider which is more important, the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord or the life of a mere girl. We will not agree to your decision if you refuse to see the bigger picture!¡±


    His words were sharp, and everyone supported him. The Demon n had risen to its current strength due to the inheritance of the Divine Demon Lord. The inheritance of the Seven Star Lord would increase the Demon n¡¯s strength to greater heights. No one would be in favor if Bai Lan were to give up the inheritance for the sake of his daughter.


    Suyan cried out of frustration when she heard that. This was the first time she realized that her uncles, who usually treated her well, were venomous snakes! They would sacrifice her for the sake of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Suxue cursed under her breath. She wanted to say something when Long Chen motioned for her to stay quiet. He knew that Bai Lan had a way to deal with this, because he was still smiling even though everyone was objecting.


    Everything appeared to be within his palm.


    Bai Lan looked around him, and his sharp gaze prated everyone. The grand elder who had spoken up got worried when he remembered that Bai Lan was at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. He was also one of the strongest cultivators in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Although Bai Lan was smiling, there was killing intent hidden deep within his smile. Everyone also just remembered that Bai Lan doted on his daughters a lot. He looked young, but he was secretly several hundred years old. He had immersed himself in cultivation for hundreds of years and only married twenty years ago. His wife gave birth to two daughters, and he loved them to the point that they were more important than the Demon n itself.


    And now the eight Sect Elders wanted to sacrifice one of his daughters for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?


    Bai Lan would¡¯ve killed all of them on the spot, but he couldn¡¯t do that, as he was their leader. His duty was to protect the Demon n.


    So when everyone suggested forcing Long Chen to give them the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord, Bai Lanughed out loud and pulled Long Chen close to him. He looked around and announced mysteriously, ¡°Are you kidding me? Don¡¯t you know that the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is already ours?¡±


    No one knew what he was talking about.


    One of the elders asked, ¡°n Leader, what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°You guys are idiots. Can¡¯t you understand such a simple question?¡± Bai Lan then pulled Suxue over and sped her hand over Long Chen¡¯s! Everyone was shocked when they saw what he was doing. ¡°Alright, since we have almost everyone here, let me announce the wonderful news right now. From today onwards, Long Chen will be my son-inw. They are officially engaged and will have their wedding date decided in the near future. Long Chen is now one of us, the Demon n. Since the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord chose him as its owner, it technically also means that it belongs to us, the Demon n.¡±


    Everyone was dumbfounded by his words.


    Long Chen could not fight against Bai Lan¡¯s monstrous strength, so his fingers intertwined with Suxue¡¯s. Suxue was resisting it too, but Bai Lan didn¡¯t allow them to separate. Bai Lan whispered to the both of them, ¡°Stop resisting. This is the only way to solve this without spilling blood. I don¡¯t want any infighting in the Demon n right now, so you have to put up with this farce for the time being.¡±


    Since it was just an act, Long Chen didn¡¯t mind it at all. He could only cultivate the Seven Star Body in Heavenly Wood City. He also needed to stay here for a hundred days to treat Suyan, so there wouldn¡¯t be any changes in his schedule.


    Long Chen also didn¡¯t want to make Bai Lan¡¯s life difficult. He was the patriarch and needed to base his decisions off the prosperity of the Demon n. It would be bad for everyone if there was infighting right now.


    Suxue understood the gravity of the situation, but she still blushed when she was forced to hold a man¡¯s hand in front of so many people.


    The others hadn¡¯t yet digested what they¡¯d heard, but Suyan was heartbroken. Her world came crashing down when she saw her father announce Long Chen¡¯s engagement to her sister.


    ¡°Big Brother¡­ Sister¡­¡±


    Suyan wanted to cry when she saw the two of them together. She didn¡¯t know why, but she was very upset.


    Unfortunately, no one took notice of her.


    ¡°Patriarch, you¡­¡± The grand elders were dumbfounded.


    It was true that they said they were doing it for the sake of the Demon n, so Bai Lan followed their reasoning and announced that Long Chen was now his son-inw. This meant that he was part of the Bai family now. That also meant the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord belonged to the Demon n.


    But everyone knew that the precious Three Thousand Star Clusters had recognized Long Chen as its owner. They would never be able to take possession of it without killing Long Chen, but they couldn¡¯t do that now that he was part of the family.


    Also, even if the Three Thousand Star Clusters was freed from Long Chen, who would take ownership of it? None of the grand elders would yield it to another.


    So Bai Lan stuffed the grand elders'' words right back into their mouths.


    ¡°Oh? What¡¯s this? You want to sacrifice not just my daughter, but also my son-inw. Then let me ask you this. Does the Demon n need the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, or do you need it? Do you think I¡¯m a pushover?¡±


    Bai Lan now had the justification and mortal highground, so he needed to teach them a lesson.

 Chapter 773: Situ Yu’s Plot

    Bai Lan was a Heavenly Martial Realm expert. He now had the moral high ground, so it was time to punish the others. Long Chen felt a strong force exploding off from Bai Lan. It was simr to the Blood Devouring Domain, and Bai Lan¡¯s domain covered everyone in the area.


    It was the first time Long Chen had seen the domain of someone at the Heavenly Martial Realm. Bai Lan was like a god in this domain. Even though it wasn¡¯t exerting any force on himself, Long Chen could tell that the domain was very strong based on the pale faces of the others.


    The eight Sect Elders stepped back when they were hit with the domain. They were all feeling unwell, so they circted their essence wildly tobat Bai Lan¡¯s domain. Unfortunately, they couldn¡¯t resist it even if they allbined their power, and they all spat out blood in the end.


    The eight Sect Elders looked at each other with shock.


    They never expected Bai Lan to be this strong!


    It had been a long time since Bai Lan fought, so many of them had forgotten how strong he was. They felt chills run down their spines when they experienced his power first-hand. Although they were just a step away from the Heavenly Martial Realm, Bai Lan could crush all of them easily. This was the gap between someone at the Earthly Martial Realm and the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    The Earthly Martial Realm focused only on ¡°Martial,¡± while the Heavenly Martial Stage focused on something more advanced.


    It wasn¡¯t something that a cultivator at the Earthly Martial Stage couldprehend.


    After he injured the eight Sect Elders effortlessly, the outsiders took a deep breath and stared at Bai Lan. At the same moment, Bai Lan sweeped his gaze across and warned them in a cold voice, ¡°Remember that I am the patriarch. The decision is in my hands. I¡¯ve dedicated my entire life to the Demon n. I¡¯ve made more contributions to the Demon n than any of you! And yet you dare say you would give up my daughter''s life to satisfy your greed. Hehe¡­ I will give you all a warning. No matter how far you run, and no matter how strong you are, whether you are at the First Earthly Martial Stage or the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, I will kill whoever touches Long Chen from today onwards.¡±Bai Lan¡¯s warning made everyone take a step back.


    Even the grand elders were intimidated. While he usually looked kind, he was incredibly deadly when he was angry. No one questioned his authority when he warned them. He would really kill those that dared to touch Long Chen, whether they were an outsider or one of the elders.


    Bai Lan removed his domain, and everyone slumped down, panting. It was as if a mountain had been lifted off their heads.


    Everyone looked at Bai Lan with fear in their eyes.


    Long Chen was speechless too. He never thought Bai Lan would be so frightening when he was angry, to the point that even the Sect Elders were frightened.


    When no one was paying attention, Suxue had taken her hand off Long Chen¡¯s. She dared not look at him and stared at her father with displeasure. She then noticed that Suyan wasn¡¯t in a good mood and immediately hugged her. ¡°Yan¡¯er, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°Sister, is Big Brother going to be my brother-inw?¡± Suyan asked in a nk tone.


    Suxue was surprised to see that her little sister was in shock, so she quickly responded, ¡°Yan¡¯er, you are thinking too much. This is just our father¡¯s n to protect your big brother. I¡¯ve just met Long Chen, so there¡¯s no way ¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Suyan shook her head. ¡°But you seem to like him ¡­¡±


    ¡°No. That¡¯s impossible. The situation is a bit tense right now, so I will exin it to youter, alright?¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Suyan nodded and pursed her lips as she stared at Long Chen. No one knew what she was thinking.


    Bai Lan was currently ring at the grand elder who had suggested that they sacrifice Suyan for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    ¡°Huang Zhong, what do you think?¡±


    Huang Zhong was surprised. He took a deep breath as he looked at both Long Chen and Suxue. ¡°I have nothing to say, but we will all be waiting for the wedding feast of Long Chen and Princess Suxue. I hope we won¡¯t be disappointed. The addition of someone as excellent as Long Chen into the Demon n is naturally a good thing.¡±


    Huang Zhong¡¯s words were very clear. The engagement between Long Chen and Suxue had been presented so suddenly that they required further proof of their marriage.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The wedding will ur soon enough. I suppose this will be the very first wedding to be held in the Ancient Graveyard. Hahaha ¡­¡± Bai Lanughed and stared at everyone else. ¡°Does anyone have any objections? You can step up and speak. Is anyone else dissatisfied with me, Bai Lan?¡±


    Everyone, from the regr cultivators, to the Demon n and Thunder n, was silent.


    Bai Lan was going to take Long Chen away when someone from the Demon n shouted, ¡°I object!¡±


    Situ Yao¡¯s face fell because he recognized that voice. It belonged to Situ Yu.


    As expected, Situ Yu stormed out from the crowd with blood-red eyes. He was ring at Bai Lan fearlessly, and bloodlust seethed out of his body.


    ¡°Oh? Is there anything that you are dissatisfied with?¡± Situ Yu¡¯s actions made Bai Lan curious. Long Chen was also curious as to why Situ Yu was being so brazen.


    Situ Yu¡¯s mind had been tortured to the point that he was on the brink of copsing. He dared to speak up when even Situ Yao would say nothing in front of Bai Lan.


    But Situ Yu wasn¡¯t an idiot. He had followed Situ Yao for numerous years, so he was quite sly himself. He had decided to take a risk and try out an idea.


    Situ Yu raised his head and looked at Long Chen with a challenging gaze. ¡°Princess Suxue is at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. I am the strongest young male in the Demon n, so I should be the one who¡¯s better suited for her. You are just a weakling at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. I shall not yield to that! Also, Patriarch, I remember hearing you say that I would have Princess Suxue¡¯s hand in marriage once I reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. So why are you going against your promise now and marrying her off to someone else?¡±


    Situ Yu was being too brash.


    Long Chen thought he was merely an idiot, so seeing him do something so crazy and brave was a huge surprise.


    Bai Lan smiled inly because he thought that what Situ Yu had said was interesting. ¡°Then let me answer your questions. One, Long Chen is not weak. Everyone knows that. Two, have you reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage?¡±


    Situ Yu was further emboldened when he heard that Bai Lan wasn¡¯t outright shooing him away. Situ Yu could not stomach the fact that Long Chen would marry Suxue and take his dream spot. He had always wanted to marry Suxue and be Bai Lan¡¯s son-inw. He might even have the chance to cultivate the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s secret techniques. How could he yield his spot to Long Chen?


    He could not tolerate Long Chen having Suxue in bed!


    Situ Yu¡¯s heart was close to exploding from anger, so he stood out bravely. This had been out of everyone¡¯s expectations.


    Situ Yu calmed down and answered, ¡°I can answer the two questions. One, who here witnessed Long Chen killing Chen Yang? Maybe he used a trick? How could someone as despicable as him be the son-inw of the Patriarch? How could he be a match fit for Princess Suxue? Secondly, even though I¡¯m not at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, I¡¯m just a step away. Can¡¯t you give me a bit more time, Patriarch?¡±


    Bai Lan was silent as he stared at the youth and smiled out of exasperation. <em>This guy is quite cunning. So he has indeed inherited Situ Yao¡¯s genes. It seems that the only way I can solidify Long Chen¡¯s reputation and image to everyone is to let them fight each other. I suppose that¡¯s his goal.</em>


    Bai Lan smiled. ¡°Situ Yu, in that case, what can we do to make you feel satisfied?¡±


    Situ Yu had been waiting for Bai Lan to say those words. Unbeknownst to him, Bai Lan had already seen through him.


    Situ Yu became brazen again. ¡°That¡¯s easy enough. Since Long Chen can kill someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, he should fight me. Wouldn¡¯t it prove that he¡¯s suitable to be your son-inw if he defeated me? I¡¯m the strongest amongst the younger males of the Demon n. If he could defeat me, then me and the other guys would be satisfied too.¡±


    Situ Yu had dragged in the interests of all of the other young males, and everyone agreed. Bai Suxue was so pretty that almost every single one of the youths yearned for her. No one would ept that Long Chen would marry her since he hade out of nowhere. Who would let a pig eat the cabbage?


    Everyone agreed to Situ Yu¡¯s suggestion.


    Situ Yu smiled as if he was satisfied with his ¡°ingenuity.¡±

 Chapter 774: Battle in One Month

    Situ Yu thought that this was the most genius thing he had ever done and that it would make him all the more popr. He thought that he had managed to silence Bai Lan, the man everyone feared.


    Bai Lan was still smiling when he looked at the youth. It was only when Situ Yao started to get unnerved that Bai Lan said, ¡°Can someone like you, Situ Yu, decide who bes my son-inw? And who are you?¡±


    Situ Yu regretted everything when he heard Bai Lan¡¯s words.


    Bai Lan could¡¯ve just ignored him, but he feared that everyone would look down on Long Chen if he were to really get married to Bai Suxie. But Bai Lan didn¡¯t know how strong Long Chen was. He had no choice but to leave the matter to the youths to settle amongst themselves. Bai Lan looked at Long Chen and gave a knowing look.


    Long Chen knew that Bai Lan would throw the baton to him.


    However, Long Chen wasn¡¯t certain if it was smart to ept the challenge.


    Situ Yu encouraged himself and continued, ¡°If a certain someone can¡¯t even ept this challenge right now, we could dy it for one month. If you work hard enough, you might get lucky and be stronger in that single month.¡±


    He was naturally referring to Long Chen.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid of the challenge and had always been brash too. He wanted to smack Situ Yu as hard as he could right now, but he had exhausted most of his essence after the fight with Chen Yang. It would be unwise for him to fight against Situ Yu right now.He was certain that he wouldplete the Seven Star Body in the next month, and it wouldn¡¯t be toote to bash that idiot¡¯s skull in. Long Chen made his decision and red at Situ Yu. ¡°Then we shallpete in one month. I ept your challenge. If you wanted to challenge me, you could¡¯ve just said it outright. It¡¯s despicable to pad up your intention with so many words.¡±


    Situ Yu frowned, but thankfully, Long Chen had taken the bait. Situ Yu was ecstatic andughed. ¡°So you agree? Not bad. You are indeed brave. Then let us fight in one month. Let everyone see how strong you are, and whether you have the right to marry Princess Suxue. I doubt that you would marry her if you lost.¡±


    Situ Yu had said that in a way that Long Chen would really have to give up on marrying Suxue if he lost. Everyone would look at him with scornful eyes if he did, to the point that he wouldn¡¯t be able to handle the pressure if he stayed married to her. This was Situ Yu¡¯s goal. Since Bai Lan had said that Long Chen would be his son-inw and the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord would be the shared property of the Demon n, that also meant that everyone could take if by force the moment Long Chen was no longer the son-inw.


    It was a despicable plot.


    The elders were impressed by Situ Yu¡¯s plot. It was indeed only something he could do. The other youths were too weak to do that.


    Even Situ Yao was smiling secretly.


    Everyone looked at Long Chen, waiting for his answer. Would he really marry Suxue if he lost their duel?


    Everyone thought Long Chen would be frustrated, but they were surprised to find that they were wrong. Long Chen seemed calm as he looked at Situ Yu like thetter was a mere side character. ¡°As you wish. I won¡¯t marry her if I lose. I will give you a chance to marry her instead.¡±


    ¡°Good. You¡¯ve made a promise, so you cannot take it back. Everyone here is now a witness.¡± Situ Yu was secretly happy. With everyone here as his witnesses, his n had seeded. Glory would be his in just a month.


    This was between Long Chen and Situ Yu. If Long Chen lost, Bai Lan wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything about it.


    Everyone was looking at Situ Yu with praise.


    ¡°How could Long Chen be stupid enough to fall for Situ Yu¡¯s taunt?¡±


    ¡°The Patriarch wants to protect him. I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s stupid enough to agree to the duel. What an idiot.¡±


    ¡°Just you wait. Long Chen would lose to Big Brother Situ. He will be in shambles when that happens.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Might as well give Big Brother Situ the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord instead since he¡¯s both smart and courageous. He¡¯s also strong, so he should be the one who gets the inheritance. He would be a perfect match for Princess Suxue.¡±


    Everyone started discussing amongst themselves.


    Bai Lan didn¡¯t mind as he inspected Long Chen with interest. ¡°Do you have confidence in winning?¡±


    ¡°Not really, but they are already knocking on our door. I would be sullying my name if I refused to ept it.¡±


    Those words weren¡¯t born out of arrogance. Bai Lan saw the spirit of unyielding willing from Long Chen and was shocked. He was certain that Long Chen would show him a miracle in the near future and that helping Long Chen now would bring him many benefits too.


    ¡°Not bad,¡± Bai Lan said to him. He then addressed everyone. ¡°Alright, everyone can go back now. The incident today will end here.¡±


    It was true that everything had ended after Situ Yu had set up the fight with Long Chen. Everyone left one by one as they discussed what had happened. Practically everyone was talking about the duel that would take ce in one month!


    Everyone was looking forward to it! What would happen?


    Who would obtain the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord?


    <em>Hmph! Let Long Chen hold onto the inheritance for a little while longer. </em>Everyone had the same thought.


    Everyone left, leaving the two patriarchs, Long Chen, Suxue, and Suyan alone.


    Lei Ji had been silent all this time. He finally said to Long Chen, ¡°You need to work hard for the next month. Situ Yu could really advance into the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage at any time. It would be troublesome then.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Why did you agree to it?¡± Suxue was worried.


    Lei Ji shook his head. ¡°Little girl, you don¡¯t understand. This is something a man simply has to ept. I should take my leave now so you guys can spend some time as a family.¡±


    Lei Ji left. The four of them looked at each other, not knowing what to say.


    Bai Lan suddenlyughed. ¡°Alright, no need to be depressed. I was just joking about the engagement. It¡¯s up to you guys if you want to get married or not. You can carry on. I will leave now¡­¡±


    He was about to run away, but he stopped midway and turned around. ¡°You can go up there and cultivate in peace from tomorrow onwards. I will watch over you. Concentrate on cultivating and focus onpleting the Seven Star Body, alright?¡±


    ¡°Alright. Thank you, Patriarch.¡± Long Chen looked at him with gratitude. Bai Lan had indeed treated him right, and Long Chen liked his personality. Straightforward and frank. Long Chen had always treated others the same way they had treated him. He would help Bai Lan in the future if Bai Lan needed help.


    Bai Lan finally left, leaving the two sisters together with Long Chen. In the dark, the three of them stood there in embarrassment. Suyan was the first one to break the silence. ¡°I will leave now.¡±


    She soon left and ran into her own estate.


    Long Chen finally realized that Suyan appeared to be upset. He looked at Suxue and saw that she was ring at him. ¡°I told you to put some distance between you and her. Look, now she¡¯s upset. You have to think of a way to cheer her up right now. I will be upset too if my sister is upset.¡±


    Then she left as well, leaving Long Chen all alone.


    Long Chen felt a headacheing. He wanted to practice using the Seven Star Essence, but he had to deal with Suyan first.


    He entered her house and knocked on her door. ¡°Yan¡¯er, could you open the door for me?¡±


    It was quite some time before Suyan opened the door with her red, puffy eyes. She dared not look at him.


    Long Chen sighed because he didn¡¯t want to hurt her. Love wasn¡¯t something that could be forced onto someone. Suyan would forever be upset if Long Chen didn¡¯t exin himself, so he pulled her back into her room.


    ¡°Big Brother, what are you doing¡­¡± She was stunned. It was slightly frowned upon for a man to enter a woman¡¯s room when they were both alone.


    <em>But ¡­ He¡¯s Big Sister¡¯s ¡­</em>


    ¡°Big Brother, please leave.¡± Suyan tried to stop him.


    Long Chen smiled helplessly when he saw how nervous she was. ¡°Don¡¯t worry and sit down. I will tell you a story. Do you want to hear it?¡±


    Suyan nodded like a chicken when she heard that. ¡°Alright.¡±


    Long Chen pursed his lips and was deep in thought for a moment before he slowly talked about his story with Ling Xi. He took it as a chance to reminisce. He wasn¡¯t sure why he wanted to talk about it to Suyan, since it wasn¡¯t necessary, but it felt nice to tell his story. He had a lot of frustration pent up in his heart, so it felt good to let it out. Even his eyes were getting red by the time he finished spilling.


    Suyan, on the other hand, had been crying nonstop.

 Chapter 775: Ever Changing Spear

    Situ Yu followed Situ Yao closely into his chambers. Situ Yao said nothing along the way, which made Situ Yu nervous. Even though he was satisfied with his own performance today, he wasn¡¯t sure what the elders would think.


    Situ Yao turned back and looked at him. Situ Yu saw a look of approval on his grandfather''s face, so he became much rxed. It appeared that Situ Yao was also satisfied.


    ¡°It¡¯s a shame that we didn¡¯t know that Suxue would follow him up there tonight. The Troop Destroying Arrow failed to kill Long Chen, resulting in his secret about possessing the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance bing known to the public. Now it will be difficult for us to take it for ourselves ¡­¡±


    Situ Yu was also disappointed that the n had failed. Even though he was smart enough toe up with that method to challenge Long Chen in one month, it would be difficult to take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance for his grandfather.


    ¡°Grandfather, do you think the Patriarch will give me the inheritance once I win the fight? I don¡¯t think any of the elders would want the other elders to monopolize it. Since I will be the son-inw of the Patriarch, I don¡¯t think anyone wouldin about me having it, right?¡± Situ Yu asked.


    ¡°That is a good idea, but I think there are too many uncertainties. The Patriarch won¡¯t allow you to kill him outright, but it seems that Long Chen is a rash individual, so you might actually have a chance to take him out. Your performance tonight was excellent and exceeded my expectations. Still, you need to be confident you can kill Long Chen too quickly for the Patriarch to save him.¡± Situ Yao¡¯s eyes were glittering dangerously.


    SItu Yu chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Grandfather. I¡¯ve touched the threshold of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage recently. If you help me, I might be able to advance into the same realm as you in one month!¡±


    Situ Yao sighed and admired his grandson. Reaching the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage at such a young age made him a top-tier genius. The Situ family could have someone at the Heavenly Martial Realm within ten years if he worked hard. It was even possible that Situ Yu would reach the Second Heavenly Martial Stage like the Patriarch.


    ¡°Are you sure that you can reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage within a month?¡± Situ Yao asked happily.¡°Yes. I¡¯m not mistaken about the feeling I had. Long Chen is only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, and I have no idea how he killed Chen Yang. Still, I¡¯m much stronger than Chen Yang. I¡¯m certain that I will be able to kill Long Chen with a single blow once I reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage! But, Grandfather, just to be safe, I need something else too,¡± SItu Yu said with anticipation.


    ¡°You want the Ever Changing Spear?¡± Situ Yao smiled mischievously.


    ¡°The Ever Changing Spear is the strongest Divine Weapon of the Situ family. It¡¯s also the only elementary Emperor-tier Divine Weapon that we have. With it, I can kill Long Chen in one blow. I don¡¯t think the Patriarch would be able to save him in that short period of time. The Ever Changing Spear can split into numerous smaller spears; I doubt that Long Chen will be able to avoid all of them,¡± Situ Yu said with glee. He was also looking at Situ Yao with eyes full of expectation. His n would be perfect if thetter agreed to it.


    ¡°Long Chen is only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, so he doesn¡¯t have enough essence to activate the Three Thousand Star Clusters. I would not give you the Ever Changing Spear if he could use the Three Thousand Star Clusters, since it would never be able to contend with the legendary weapon. But since Long Chen cannot use it, you are free to use the Ever Changing Spear.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Grandfather! I will work hard and kill Long Chen. I will bring back the Three Thousand Star Clusters and let you use it!¡± Situ Yu was excited.


    The two of themughed maniacally.


    ¡°Grandfather, in that case, I don¡¯t want to waste any time. I want to go and cultivate now to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage as soon as possible. I want to give everyone a surprise!¡±


    ***


    In just a single night, Long Chen had told Suyan his entire story and why she wasn¡¯t his goal. His goal was just to find someone he loved. Vocalizing it all allowed him to release all of his pent-up emotions. At the same time, Suyan gained a better understanding of Long Chen. While she couldn¡¯t deny her affection for him, she also knew that her affection was insignificant in front of Long Chen and Ling Xi¡¯s love for each other.


    It was so small that even Suyan knew that she had to bury her affection deep in her heart and couldn''t show it to him.


    She had cried so much that her voice was hoarse, but she couldn¡¯t help trying to console him. ¡°Big Brother, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m sure you will be strong enough to find Sister Ling Xi. I believe you can do it! Don¡¯t give up!¡±


    Long Chen smiled helplessly because he didn¡¯t know why he would tell her everything. ¡°Yan¡¯er, you¡¯re the only one who''s heard my story. You cannot let anyone else know, or they willugh at me.¡±


    ¡°Of course not. This is our secret. Hehe¡­¡± Suyan chuckled. She was happy because Long Chen had only told her and not her sister.


    ¡°I¡¯m telling you all of this to cheer you up. I will eventually leave you, if I can survive, that is,¡± Long Chen told her clearly.


    He didn¡¯t want her to remember him for a very long time after he disappeared.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Suyan nodded obediently.


    Suyan was a kid who knew how to act, and Long Chen was d about that. <em>She shouldn¡¯t be sad anymore if I continue pretending I¡¯m going to marry Suxue.</em>


    But what Long Chen didn¡¯t know was that she was even more sad right now. It was just that she kept it deep in her heart.


    ¡°Alright, Yan¡¯er. I will have to fight Situ Yu in a month, so I need to cultivate. I will feed you some of my blood in a few days.¡±


    ¡°Big Brother, are you sure that you won¡¯t leave me before the hundred days are up?¡± Suyan asked nervously.


    ¡°Of course. This is my promise. I¡¯m pretty certain that Situ Yu wants me dead. I cannot die right now since I have to save you.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Suyan smiled happily.


    They talked for a bit more before Long Chen left. It was already daytime, and the incident fromst night had been circting around the city. It wouldn¡¯t take long for the news to spread out across the Ancient Graveyard. Everyone would know that a certain youth called Logn Chen had obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and became the son-inw of the Demon n¡¯s patriarch.


    Everyone was certain that Bai Lan would be envied by the other patriarchs. To think that he would obtain the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance so easily.


    Because it was daytime, the sun suppressed the light from the stars and moon, so Long Chen could not absorb the celestial Qi to cultivate the Seven Star Body. But it was a good time for him to consolidate his understanding of the Seven Star Body and the celestial Qi. He could also increase his cultivation level by using the Martial God Tombstone.


    For the next month, Long Chen would focus on the Martial God Tombstone and cultivating the Seven Star Body. The best-case scenario was for him to sessfully cultivate the Seven Star Body and advance into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. He was certain that he would win no matter what tricks Situ Yu used.


    After a day of cultivating earnestly, night arrived. The stars appeared in the skies again and bathed the lush, green ground with their starlight. Long Chen was already at the top of the tree. This time, Suxue wasn¡¯t here, because Long Chen knew that Bai Lan was secretly guarding him. Bai Lan was one of the strongest people in the Ancient Graveyard, so it was reassuring to have him here.


    Bai Lan was indeed a good person.


    Long Chen noted down Bai Lan¡¯s kindness in his heart.


    He sat at the top of a leaf and started chanting. Soon, starlight covered his body and Seven Star Essence started circting in his eighteen Martial Veins.


    <em>Celestial Qi is even more terrifying than the Metal Devouring Wind. I need to absorb the celestial Qi into my body to temper myself! It will transform into my strength and reinforce my body permanently to form the Seven Star Body. The Seven Star Body is an extremely strong intermediate Emperor-tier martial technique!</em>


    But the stronger a technique was, the more difficult it was to cultivate. The Seven Star Body was no exception to this rule. Even absorbing a tiny bit of celestial Qi was terrifying for Long Chen. One wrong move and his body would be ground to dust, so he had to be especially careful when he wanted to cultivate the Seven Star Body.


    There was only one way to go, and it was forward!


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid at all!


    But how could his body resist the celestial Qi?


    The answer was in the Seven Star Manual. Seven Star Essence wasn¡¯t useless. He had to use it while chanting the Seven Star Manual to attract the celestial Qi in the night sky.

 Chapter 776: Celestial Qi

    Long Chen would be enveloped by celestial Qi when he started cultivating the Seven Star Body. Since celestial Qi was a terrifying energy, no one would be able to get close to him.


    While the celestial Qi could harm regr cultivators, Long Chen had the Seven Star Manual, which would allow him to channel a minuscule amount of celestial Qi into his body.


    More importantly, Long Chen had obtained the strange, blue rock that resembled a heart. He took it out of the Primordial Realm to inspect it.


    ¡°This is the core of a massive meteor. The core is the most instrumental part of a star. Without the core, I would never be able to cultivate the Seven Star Body. This core is the key to cultivate it. First, I must merge the core with my heart.¡±


    Long Chen looked at the core floating in his palm. It was akin to the heart of a star. He needed to merge it with his heart and transform his body into a small star to ept the power of the stars! He could then use celestial Qi to temper his body. Long Chen was using the core as a catalyst to cultivate the Seven Star Body and control the celestial Qi.


    The other important aspect of cultivating the Seven Star Essencey in his ability to precisely control the celestial Qi.


    Rays of Seven Star Essence surged out of his palm just like water to envelop the blue core. The blue rays of light lit it up and revealed the runes carved into it.


    As the runes shone, Long Chen¡¯s face also reflected the deep, blue color.


    ¡°This should be fine.¡± Since the Seven Star Essence belonged to him, he could absorb it back at any time. The blue core was slowly melted, leaving only the blue runes imprinted on Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Essence. They were floating around the surface of his essence like boats on water.¡°It¡¯s time.¡± Long Chen immersed himself and slowly moved the Seven Star Essence from his palm to his heart. When it touched his heart, the Seven Star Essence would turn into liquid and slowly merge with it.


    Long Chen felt a burning energy entering his body as the blue energy surged towards his heart. Soon, the blue energy enveloped his heartpletely.


    <em>Is the core going to merge with my heart now? </em>Long Chen then saw the runes on the core slowly etch themselves onto his heart. They merged with his beating heart and slowly turned it blue just like the original core was.


    Long Chen started to feel a strong energy entering his body. The burning energy was simr to the energy of the stars.


    Thanks to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, everything inside of Long Chen¡¯s body, including his bones, had long turned blood-red. Now only his heart was blue, as if it was the brightest star in the sky.


    The core and Long Chen¡¯s heart fused together, giving him the new sensation of being able to control the power of the stars. The billions of stars above his head were inexplicably clear in his heart, as if he was one of them.


    The core had turned him into a human-shaped star.


    <em>Now I need to use this power to channel the celestial Qi and use it little by little to temper my body.</em>


    Merging the core wasn¡¯t dangerous, and the process had gone well. The blue runes were now etched onto his heart and provided him with the power of the stars.


    It granted Long Chen slight control over the power of the stars from above.


    He was about to channel some of the celestial Qi, but something changed. As his heart beat, his blood circted through his body endlessly, and blood-red dragon illusions appeared in his veins. There were an infinite number of them, and they all flowed towards his heart!


    It was as if his blood was alive!


    The Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was too strong. The inheritance of a mere mortal like the Seven Star Lord and the minuscule core could never take the ce of the heart, the most important organ for blood.


    As such, the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence was angry. The infinite blood-red dragon illusions surged towards his heart, making Long Chen feel like his blood was boiling.


    He couldn¡¯t react before they reached his heart. They enveloped his blue heart and soon turned it blood-red too.


    The runes of the core were still present, but they werepletely dyed blood-red.


    Long Chen could feel that the power of the core was still present, and it had be stronger thanks to the reinforcement of the blood-red dragon illusions. However, outsiders could not detect the power of the stars radiating off Long Chen this way.


    This reminded him of when he infused the Golden Crow mes into his body. The golden mes turned blood-red as well and were dominated by the blood of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. As long as the Inherited Blood Essence was present, only one color would be allowed in Long Chen¡¯s body: blood-red. Both the Golden Crow mes and the star core had been enveloped by that color.


    But this was just a minor incident. The change didn¡¯t affect Long Chen¡¯s ability to channel the celestial Qi. He didn¡¯t mind it and started channeling celestial Qi using his Seven Star Essence.


    Having full control over the core allowed Long Chen to feel the celestial Qi high up in the skies. It was a deep purple gas that enveloped some of the stars. It was incredibly corrosive, just like the Metal Devouring Wind. It felt like it was made out of countless tiny, metal des. A regr cultivator would die just from touching it, just like how they would from touching the Metal Devouring Wind.


    It would take some time for Long Chen to learn how to channel the celestial Qi. As expected, he didn¡¯t seed on his first try. There were a lot of stars in the sky, and Long Chen could only try again and again.


    As the Seven Star Manual had described, it would take a few days to sessfully channel the celestial Qi from the stars. But Long Chen was different. His Martial Soul was shaped like a dragon, not a human. Hisprehension ability was also off the charts. All of this meant that Long Chen could channel the celestial Qi better than others.


    Four hourster, Long Chen finally managed to channel some of it towards him. It was very little, but it was a good start. He had progressed significantly faster than what the Seven Star Manual had described. There wasn¡¯t enough celestial Qi to envelope him, but he still carefully channeled it down towards him from the sky. He opened his eyes and inspected the wisp of celestial Qi.


    It was a purple gas that could shift its shape freely, like an intelligent being. It was changing constantly, forming shapes depicting various beasts, fish, shrimps, and even humans. Each of its transformations also sported a snarling expression as it red at Long Chen, as if it hated him for taking control of it.


    ¡°What a strange world we live in. To think that the celestial Qi has a mind of its own¡­¡±


    Cultivating the Seven Star Body only required two special conditions. Long Chen had sessfully found a suitably high ce and merged the core with his heart. He only needed toplete the next two steps to sessfully cultivate the Seven Star Body.


    First was control. He needed to control the celestial Qi so precisely that it wouldn¡¯t injure him when he used it to temper his body and organs. The second thing was endurance. Only those with astonishing willpower were capable of cultivating the Seven Star Body. They had to endure the pain of being mutted by the celestial Qi to temper their body. Only by enduring the pain could they seed.


    Many people throughout history had been given the method to cultivate the Seven Star Body. The Seven Star Lord was not the one who had invented it. However, many of them had failed in cultivating it because the pain was too much for them to endure. Even if they did, it would take them a very long time.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t certain he would seed.


    But he knew he was much more stubborn than others. He wasn¡¯t afraid of cultivating it as long as it only needed him to control and endure it.

 Chapter 777: Change

    <em>I can¡¯t afford to waste time when I only have one month to prepare for the fight. I can only stay here for three months, so I need to get as far as I can in that time, or I will never be able to take Xiang back from the Divine n¡¯s young master.</em>


    The pressure also brought about the drive to improve.


    Xiang was still in Wu Guangyu¡¯s clutches. He didn¡¯t know how Xiang was being treated, so he felt pressured.


    When he thought about how much more he still had to do, he grit his teeth. He carefully controlled the celestial Qi to flow towards his left arm. That was where his muscles were densest, and they were more robust than his organs. He wanted to test out how painful it was first. If he wanted toplete the Seven Star Body, Long Chen ultimately had to use the celestial Qi to temper his heart and brain. Those were the most dangerous parts of the cultivation process.


    His left arm was the safest body part to use as a test.


    The Five Emperor Seals were in his right arm. One wrong move and they could be destroyed. It would result in a loss for him if that were to happen.


    The snarling celestial Qi slowly approached his arm. It hadn''t even touched him yet, but a sharp aura cut his arm like he was being shed by innumerable razors. His arm was burning up from that feeling.


    Long Chen paused slightly before he continued to channel the celestial Qi. At the same time, a lot of Seven Star Essence surged out of his Nine Martial meridians to protect his left arm.


    It was a long test. Long Chen was indeed brave, but he knew not to be rash. He proceeded very slowly and his control was very precise. But even though he felt slow, he was actually progressing much faster than others who attempted the same thing.The fastest person to finish the cultivation of the Seven Star Body in history took over forty days. A regr cultivator would take a year or two. Long Chen needed toplete it within a month!


    It was hard, but he had no choice but to fight for it if it meant winning his uing duel.


    <em>I still have a month, though there¡¯s a lot of uncertainty. Situ Yu probably has a trump card, judging by his confidence. Situ Yao will most likely give Situ Yu a lot of good stuff. I cannot be careless. Situ Yu will likely have reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Realm by then.</em>


    Long Chen couldn''t afford to lose.


    So he gritted his teeth.


    The terrifying celestial Qi slowly approached his left arm, which was covered in Seven Star Essence. At thest moment, the tiny amount of celestial Qi suddenly pounced into his left arm like a beast!


    Without the Seven Star Essence, his left arm would¡¯ve been torn to shreds. Long Chen felt an intense paining from his arm. Even so, he did not transform. He needed to temper his original body. The dragon scales would interrupt his cultivation.


    The celestial Qi and the Seven Star Essence merged together to start tempering his body. It wasn¡¯t destroying his body, but the pain was excruciating. Long Chen¡¯s face contorted as he held himself back from crying. The celestial Qi and the Seven Star Essence were now inside his left arm. Countless sharp razors cut through his muscles, and the resulting pain almost made him lose control over the rest of the celestial Qi that was still outside. He almost threw it all back towards the star.


    But Long Chen endured by thinking about the duel that would take ce in just a month. He had no choice but to endure. It was painful, but it wasn¡¯t unbearable. Long Chen understood that the more he endured, the more he would grow.


    He could not dispel the celestial Qi regardless of how intense the pain was. He had to take control of it and slowly channel it into the other parts of his body. The celestial Qi would temper his body and merge into his flesh to form a solid body that emitted the same razor-sharp effect.


    Long Chen was certain that his entire body would be filled with celestial Qi once his cultivation of the Seven Star Body wasplete. By then, he would be a formidable foe.


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was the most famous Divine Weapon owned by the Seven Star Lord. The Seven Star Body was his second most famous possession. Numerous Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators lost to the Seven Star Body in the past.


    The miniscule amount of celestial Qi was only enough for Long Chen to temper a small part of his left arm. But even so, it took him an hour to exhaust it. He endured it for the full hour before finally feeling that a small part of his left arm was emitting a hint of the purple celestial Qi. That particr part of his arm was also numerous times tougher than the other parts of his body.


    Long Chen hadn¡¯t cultivated any Body Tempering Methods ever since he obtained the True Demon Martial Body before he advanced into the Earthly Martial Realm. The first trial of using the celestial Qi had sessfully strengthened the small part of his arm. His body would be unimaginably tough after he finished cultivating the Seven Star Body.


    The weakest technique of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, the Big Dipper Step, was already powerful enough to be Long Chen¡¯s trump card.


    The pain was so monstrous that Long Chen shuddered when he thought back to it, but he could not give up if he wanted to be strong. He tried to convince himself that that degree of pain was normal. He could only call it sessful when he was numb to the pain of that caliber.


    <em>I cannot stop, nor can I think about it. I can only continue working hard!</em>


    There was still some time before dawn, so Long Chen continued cultivating. He expanded his senses towards the stars and felt where the celestial Qi was. It was easier this time since he already had just gained some experience. This time, he channeled down ten times more celestial Qi.


    This was a clear indication of Long Chen¡¯s resolve!


    He could only channel the celestial Qi at night, but that didn¡¯t mean the celestial Qi would disappear during the day. Long Chen was prepared to spend the entire day using up the celestial Qi he had gathered. He was going to merge all of it into his body.


    Therge cloud of purple Qi floated down from the skies. Under his control, it enveloped him in a sphere. Long Chen waspletely covered by it.


    Bain and Lei Ji were standing a distance away as they observed him cultivating. They were in the middle of talking and joking with each other, but they went silent when they saw the shocking amount of celestial Qi that Long Chen had called down.


    ¡°He¡¯s crazy! It took him an hour to use up that little bit of celestial Qi. I thought he would stop tonight due to the excruciating pain and continue tomorrow. Never did I think he would call down even more celestial Qi! Doesn¡¯t he feel pain?¡± Lei Ji was confused.


    Bai Lan was also shocked. He had caught a glimpse of Long Chen¡¯s eyes before the celestial Qi covered him. There was no fear in them, only determination.


    Lei Ji poked Bai Lan and asked excitedly, ¡°Hey, old friend. How much of the celestial Qi do you think Long Chen will use up?¡±


    ¡°What do you think?¡± Bai Lan threw back the question.


    ¡°I think¡­ Maybe a tenth of it? That was the amount he used just now. I think that¡¯s his limit. I don¡¯t think he will be able to endure any more than that,¡± Lei Ji responded confidently.


    Bai Lan smiled. ¡°In that case, I will bet that he can use all of it.¡±


    Lei Ji was shocked. ¡°You old coot. You are thinking too highly of him. Who could achieve that? I doubt even we could do that. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m brave enough to approach the celestial Qi.¡±


    Bai Lan said, ¡°I love challenges that are deemed impossible. Since you think that he will use only a tenth of it, I bet that he will use all of it. Are you brave enough to wager something of value?¡±


    Lei Jiughed. ¡°That¡¯s impossible! Fine, I will bite. You win if Long Chen uses up half of the celestial Qi. I will win if he uses less than half of it. What do you say?¡±


    Bai Lan already knew what he needed to put on the line. ¡°I know what your family has. Unfortunately, the things that I want are the treasures of your family. I doubt that you would give them to me. In that case, the loser will have to shout, ¡®I, Lei Ji, am an idiot¡¯ in the middle of the Heavenly Wood City at noon. What do you think?¡±


    Lei Ji punched Bai Lan. ¡°You bastard. How could you be so childish at your age?¡±


    Bai Lan staggered a bit andughed. ¡°Who said I¡¯m childish? Do you ept the bet or not?¡±


    ¡°Will you call yourself an idiot in front of the Demon n if you lose?¡± Lei Ji chuckled.


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°In that case, the bet is on. Prepare to call yourself an idiot at noon tomorrow. I doubt that he will be able to use half of it by then.¡±

 Chapter 778: Monster

    Long Chen had no idea that the bored old men would make that kind of bet. He waspletely focused on the celestial Qi surrounding his body. The leaf beneath him had long been turned into dust by the celestial Qi. Long Chen had no choice but to use his essence to suspend himself in the air.


    He wasn¡¯t worried about anything going wrong with Bai Lan protecting him.


    When the celestial Qi came into contact with him, Long Chen felt like his skin was being cut by countless des. He had merged the zing Thunder Crystals with his body to cultivate the zing Thunder Combat Body a long time ago. That process was painful, but the pain he was experiencing now was on a whole other level.


    Long Chen had put his life at risk when he endured it for an entire hour.


    But this was how he faced his problems. The harder it was, the more he wanted to challenge it. Even though it was painful, Long Chen channeled a lot of celestial Qi. His goal was to absorb all of it!


    He had decided that he would spend the next seven to eight days cultivating the Seven Star Body exclusively. His willpower far exceeded what the others had thought.


    His best quality was his unyielding willpower.


    Long Chen closed his eyes and tried to ignore the pain that the celestial Qi was causing him.


    He controlled it and split off a small part of it before tossing it into his left arm. He knew it would hurt, but he had gained a lot of experience after he seeded earlier.Soon, the celestial Qi entered his left arm.


    Pain!


    Insurmountable pain!


    des were constantly cutting his left arm, but all Long Chen could do was endure. He even sent more celestial Qi into his arm, steering it through the appropriate pathway to strengthen his flesh, skin, and bone.


    Thanks to the tempering of the celestial Qi, Long Chen¡¯s left arm was slowly being strengthened. He continued to endure.


    <em>I can only seed if I endure it!</em>


    Long Chen could be very stubborn if he wanted to.


    Time slowly passed. It didn¡¯t take long for his face to bepletely pale. His forehead was covered in sweat, but he did not even take a break. His entire left arm was covered in purple celestial Qi. The celestial Qi was like a snarling beast that tore his arm apart again and again.


    Everytime it did, Long Chen¡¯s arm broke down and reconstituted.


    As he persisted, his arm became stronger. Two hourster, a tenth of the celestial Qi had been consumed. Lei Ji was shocked. ¡°His willpower is beyond what I expected! I thought the pain would cause him to stop by now. I never would¡¯ve guessed that he would not only continue, but even consume a tenth of the celestial Qi! Don¡¯t tell me he really intends on using all of it up? He will have to cultivate for an entire day if he wants to use all of it.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s just wait and see what kind of surprise he would show us. As expected, there¡¯s no way he would¡¯ve gotten his hands on so many treasures if his willpower and mind were weak. While I won¡¯t deny that luck is important, being able to grab hold of opportunities is the hallmark of a sessful person.¡±


    Lei Ji nodded in approval too. He thought Long Chen had only been lucky so far, but now he knew that Long Chen was different from the others.


    Time passed, and the amount of celestial Qi surrounding Long Chen slowly reduced. Long Chen had used twenty percent of it by the time dawn broke. Looking at his speed, he was on pace to use up half of the celestial Qi by noon.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were both incredulous. Bai Lan had made the bet on a whim, never expecting Long Chen to actually be able to do it.


    Long Chen was a monstrous genius.


    As the two patriarchs watched, noon arrived. Lei Ji frowned because it was clear that Long Chen had used up at least half of the celestial Qi.


    ¡°Go now. No need to be shy,¡± Bai Lan said.


    ¡°Just you wait. I will pay you back for the humiliation you made me experience today!¡± Lei Ji was frustrated, but he was a man who honored his words. He would hold up his end of the bet since he had lost. He disappeared in front of Bai Lan, then his booming voice could be heard throughout Heavenly Wood City.


    ¡°I, Lei Ji, am a fool!¡±


    Everyone looked up in shock, thinking someone was pranking Lei Ji by scolding him. But they listened closely and realized that Lei Ji himself had shouted it.


    Even though they didn¡¯t know what was going on, many peopleughed.


    Lei Ji was embarrassed, but he was not someone who held petty grudges. He ignored the embarrassment and soon returned to Bai Lan. However, he was pissed when he saw Bai Lanughing at him. He turned to look at Long Chen to find that thetter was still cultivating using the celestial Qi.


    ¡°Does he even feel pain?¡± Lei Ji was speechless.


    ¡°He does, but he¡¯s enduring it. Many youngsters do not have his resiliency and willpower. As far as I know, Situ Yu and Xue¡¯er would take at least more than a year to cultivate the Seven Star Body. Especially Xue¡¯er, since she can¡¯t handle as much pain as the others. I fear that it''s one of her weaker aspects.¡±


    Lei Jiughed. ¡°Of course she¡¯s afraid of pain. Both Xue¡¯er and Yan¡¯er were doted on ever since they were born! They are indeed talented, but they are far too weakpared to other cultivators in realbat. I never thought you would send your daughter to participate in the Nine n Martial Youth Competition. Her chances of winning are very slim, and it will be a very brutal fight.¡±


    Bai Lan smiled mysteriously. ¡°Who said I¡¯m sending my daughter to thepetition? I would never sacrifice my daughter for the sake of some Prismatic Key. I have someone else in mind.¡±


    ¡°Who? Stop putting up the act and just tell me.¡± Lei Ji was confused.


    ¡°He¡¯s right in front of us.¡±


    Lei Ji looked at Bai Lan and Long Chen in shock.


    ¡°There¡¯s still three months. That¡¯s enough time for him to save Yan¡¯er. With his talent and attitude, as well as the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, he will grow to a monstrous level by then.¡±


    ¡°Three months? I would consider him strong if he could win the duel next month. Situ Yu is quite strong and already at the threshold of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    ¡°Everything is uncertain for now,¡± Bai Lan said.


    The two of them continued to observe Long Chen in silence. The more time passed, the more awe and fear appeared on their faces. Long Chen finally finished consuming the massive ball of celestial Qi when night came again.


    He slowly reset his mental state after enduring constant pain. He was as pale as a sheet of paper. The pain hadn¡¯t subsided for even a moment, but instead grew stronger. Thankfully, he had managed to endure it.


    His endurance had led him to sess.


    Long Chen took an entire day to temper his entire left arm with celestial Qi. It was clear that his left arm was ten times stronger than the rest of his body; even his right arm felt very weak inparison.


    Even though his left arm looked the same on the outside, one could see the purple celestial Qi expel outwards intermittently. His flesh, bones, and veins were now reinforced to a monstrous degree. Now Long Chen only needed to use the same method to temper the rest of body before soaking his entire body in arge amount of celestial Qi for a week straight. Only then would the Seven Star Body beplete.


    The Seven Star Body was indeed an extremely hard technique to cultivate.


    Bai Lan was right, Suxue would need at least two years to cultivate it. Even Bai Lan wasn¡¯t certain if he could do it faster than Long Chen.


    Both Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at Long Chen¡¯s left arm with awe.


    ¡°What incredible physical strength. The Seven Star Body is indeed powerful. I fear that it will be even stronger than your Divine Demon Body after he finishes cultivating it.¡±


    Bai Lan nodded. ¡°The Divine Demon Body¡¯s cultivation method is not asplex as his. I think you may be right. Even though both of them are intermediate Emperor-tier Body Tempering Techniques, the difference between them is huge. The Seven Star Lord was also very strong. If I recall, he was either the strongest or the second strongest of the Seven Lords. His Divine Weapon, the Three Thousand Star Clusters, boasted unparalleled sharpness.¡±


    ¡°Was he really that strong?¡± Lei Ji was slightly clueless about the strength of the Seven Star Lord.


    ¡°Of course. Look at Long Chen ¡­ Wait, he¡¯s channeling even more celestial Qi!¡± Bai Lan was speechless when he saw what Long Chen was doing.


    ¡°What?!¡± Lei Ji was shocked too. He turned and verified that Long Chen was indeed calling down even more celestial Qi!


    ¡°My goodness. He barely got to rest and now he¡¯s doing it again? Have you ever met someone as crazy as him? Is his body made out of steel? Or is his heart made out of iron?¡±


    Bai Lan shook his head. ¡°This little monster is ruthless on himself. People like him are the scariest.¡±

 Chapter 779: Minor Success

    Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at Long Chen with amazement when the teenager called down arger amount of celestial Qi than before. Long Chen used it to temper his left arm one more time before moving on to his right arm.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were impressed by Long Chen¡¯s dedication.


    ¡°If he doesn¡¯t sleep and rest, he might actually finish cultivating the Seven Star Body before the month ends. I¡¯m certain that he will find time to study the Martial God Tombstone too¡­¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s just see what kind of surprise he would give us in one more month.¡±


    Bai Lan was grinning.


    Days passed, and Long Chen¡¯s progress far exceeded their expectations. To them, Long Chen was a monster in the making. They knew how painful it was to even touch the celestial Qi, but Long Chen made it seem like the pain didn¡¯t exist.


    But that was false. The pain was still there, but Long Chen had gotten used to it. Even though the pain bore down all the way to his bone marrow, he had grown ustomed to it after cultivating for almost ten days straight. His body was not only growing stronger by the day, his willpower was growing stronger too. At the very least, the pain did not deter Long Chen from continuing his cultivation.


    After ten days, Long Chen had sessfully tempered his limbs and part of his torso. The limbs had been easy to do, but his torso, especially his organs, were much more delicate. He kept his focus razor-sharp as he tempered them over the next several days. He finally felt like he was alive again when he stopped.


    Long Chen knew that the tenth day was approaching. He needed to feed Suyan his blood again, so he prepared in advance. When he was done he quickly returned to the top of the tree. Since he had consumed all the celestial Qi from the previous night and it was still daytime, he chose to spend the day studying the Martial God Tombstone. Advancing from the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage to the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage was not going to be easy since the gap becamerger every three stages. Advancing to the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage meant he was jumping from the intermediate stage to the advanced stage.But with the Martial God Tombstone,bined with his unnatural cement of the Heavenly Meridian and his dragon-shaped Martial Soul, Long Chen¡¯s understanding of the Seventh Earthly Martial Fist expanded rapidly. He still had twenty days or so before the fight. He was certain that he would be able to reach the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage if he continued to study the Martial God Tombstone, but he prioritized cultivating the Seven Star Body.


    He had long grown numb to the pain, so he wanted to use the momentum toplete the Seven Star Body¡¯s cultivation in one go. He had a feeling that he would cry if he cultivated it in the future when he forgot how much it hurt.


    Night came, and Long Chen once again called down the celestial Qi. After doing it so many times, his cultivation speed had increased rapidly. This time, he called down more than ever before. The massive cloud of celestial Qi fell down like a massive beast and pounced towards him.


    ¡°Change!¡± Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the celestial Qi changed and turned into a rotating purple ball that enveloped him. The celestial Qi turned the surrounding wood and leaves into dust as it cut them apart like razor-des.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were already numb to the scene.


    ¡°The tree is going to be bald if he continues cultivating,¡± Lei Ji said.


    ¡°The celestial Qi is so sharp that even we do not dare to approach it. Long Chen called down so much of it this time. I suppose he will be able to temper his entire body at least once within the next few days,¡± said Bai Lan.


    Neither of them had anything to do. Since Long Chen¡¯s inheritance was very important, and because everyone knew that he had it, the two patriarchs only felt rxed when they were personally guarding him.


    There was always the risk of Long Chen being killed while he was cultivating if they weren¡¯t guarding him.


    Such as how Chen Yang had tried assassinating Long Chen in the past.


    Long Chen continued to endure the unending pain. In just three days, Long Chen had tempered his entire body except for his head. It was the most fragile part of the body and the mostplicated, so he would have to be very careful with it. One false move and he would die. Long Chen could not rush it.


    His cultivation of the Seven Star Body would be halfpleted when he finished tempering his head. He would then need to call down a massive amount of celestial Qi to bathe his body in for a week straight to fullyplete his cultivation.


    Long Chen was now aiming for the halfplete state.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were both prepared to save Long Chen at a moment¡¯s notice in case anything happened.


    Long Chen slowed down at the most critical stage. When the celestial Qi entered his head, he almost passed out from the pain, but thankfully, he managed to endure it and remained awake. Time passed slowly as he endured it. His cultivation was nearing itspletion one step at a time.


    The intense pain slowly died down and he slowly got used to it. It took him almost ten days to get used to the pain. He only managed toplete his cultivation on the tenth day. By then, he only had half a day to feed Suyan his blood.


    Long Chen had a firm grasp on time, so he wasn¡¯t in a rush. He observed his halfpleted Seven Star Body as he ran towards Suyan¡¯s room. At the moment, he felt like his body was a star and the core was his heart. His entire body had been tempered by the celestial Qi and was now as tough as a star.


    It wasn¡¯t just his toughness that had grown; the Seven Star Body was also strong in the other departments. Long Chen¡¯s entire body was emitting purple celestial Qi. It was as if he was cloaked in sharp razors! From afar, Long Chen was like a purple star that terrified everyone. There was indeed an untold amount of power radiating from him.


    Thankfully, he could control the celestial Qi and hide it in his body. It was technically a sort of camouge, though on closer inspection, others could tell that his skin was emitting a faint, purple light.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji approached Long Chen after seeing that he hadpleted half of the Seven Star Body¡¯s cultivation.


    Long Chen had actually noticed them since the first night thanks to Sight. No living being within a Li could escape his gaze. He knew that they were there to protect him, so he never bothered talking with them until now.


    ¡°Brat, try punching me with your Seven Star Body. I want to see whether it''s stronger than the Thunder n¡¯s elementary Emperor-tier Body Tempering Technique, the Heavenly Thunder Combat Body.¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡± Long Chen liked how straightforward Lei Ji was. Long Chen instantly charged towards Lei Ji. Lei Ji tensed up his muscles and blue lightning shed across his body.


    The lightning was a sign that Lei Ji was tensing up only his muscles. He did not utilize his full power because he wanted to endure Long Chen¡¯s punch strictly with his Body Tempering Technique.


    Long Chen shouted and punched. The purple celestial Qi burst forth from his fist and took the form of a massive purple beast that crashed into Lei Ji!


    <em>Crack!</em>


    Lei Ji fell backwards.


    Long Chen was also sent reeling from the impact. He felt like he had punched a metal wall and his fist was swollen and red. Even his arm felt numb from the impact.


    He looked at Lei Ji and saw that thetter had crashed into a massive branch. He left a deep hole in the branch, and the lightning scorched the wood ck.


    Long Chen clearly saw where he had punched Lei Ji, as thetter¡¯s chest was smoking. Lei Ji grimaced in pain.


    Long Chen felt even more confident in the Seven Star Body. It was already stronger than the Heavenly Thunder Combat Body even though it was iplete. This was also the result of Long Chen surprising Lei Ji by attacking so abruptly.


    Long Chen was worried that his fist would be bleeding while Lei Ji would be unharmed, but thankfully, that did not happen. The Seven Star Body¡¯s strength had far exceeded their expectations.

 Chapter 780: Shell

    ¡°Not bad, not bad!¡± When Bai Lan saw how sorry his good friend looked, heughed heartily. Lei Ji walked up to him dejectedly and sighed. ¡°He¡¯s halfway through the cultivation process, yet it¡¯s already better than my Heavenly Thunder Combat Body. When he reaches thete stage, then you wouldn¡¯t dare test him even with your Divine Demon Body either, right, Brother Bai?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t try provoking me. I won¡¯t fall for it.¡± Bai Lan chuckled. He knew that Lei Ji was trying to ask him to try taking a punch from Long Chen too. How could he fall for that?


    They were utterly impressed by the toughness of Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body. It could be considered a top-tier body tempering technique across the whole Ancient Graveyard.


    ¡°In that case, I shall excuse myself. There¡¯s only half a day left, and Yan¡¯er needs me.¡± Long Chen bade them farewell and returned to Suyan¡¯s courtyard. Her body had healed significantly, so she spent most of her time cultivating.


    When she saw Long Chen arrive, the girl was overjoyed. However, she knew that there was no chance they would get together, so she chose to wish him well. That was why she always maintained a small distance between them.


    Girls matured earlier than boys, and Suyan was fourteen. She was not a child anymore and was at an age equivalent to a budding flower.


    Long Chen and Suyan chatted for a while in the elegant courtyard. When it was almost time, Long Chen let her consume dragon blood once more, thus prolonging her life by another ten days. She wouldpletely heal after about a hundred days total.


    When it was done, Suyan asked, ¡°Big Brother, I hear that you have been cultivating the Seven Star Body these days. Have you seeded?¡±


    ¡°I have reached the midpoint. In about ten days, I should be able to reach thete stage.¡± There were also only ten days left until the promised duel against Situ Yu.¡°Really? Then you mustplete it as soon as possible. I heard ¡­ I heard ¡­¡± Suyan seemed hesitant, afraid to tell him something.


    ¡°What is it?¡± asked Long Chen.


    Although Suyan was afraid that Long Chen would give up, she told him, ¡°I heard that Situ Yu has already reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. He is definitely much stronger than he was before. If you fight him, I¡¯m afraid ¡­ I¡¯m afraid ¡­¡±


    Long Chen squinted. <em>He has reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage? It looks like Situ Yu is more talented than Feng Zhilin. If he had something like Feng Zhilin¡¯s Shapeless Whip, hisbat abilities would be greater than hers. I wonder if I can defeat him, even if I cultivate the Seven Star Body to thete stage.</em>


    ¡°Big Brother, why don¡¯t we cancel the duel? I have a feeling that those people have malicious intent. I think they¡¯re eying the Seven Star Lord inheritance,¡± Suyan said worriedly.


    She saw Long Chen as one of her own, while the other people, including the Demon nsmen, were only outsiders.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Yan¡¯er, you can¡¯t have so little confidence in your Big Brother! Let me tell you this¡ªI won¡¯t lose no matter what, definitely not to Situ Yu. Don¡¯t worry.¡±


    Suyan did not understand his confidence and asked, ¡°But, Big Brother, there is a huge gap between the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and Sixth Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    ¡°Even though there is arge gap, it is not an uncrossable one,¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    Suyan did not quite understand him.


    Twenty days had passed. Long Chen only needed seven days and seven nights to reach thete stage of the Seven Star Body¡¯s cultivation. He had not seen Suyan for a while, so he was not in a hurry to leave.


    ¡°Big Brother, there¡¯s still a lot of time. Since you can¡¯t harness celestial Qi right now, why don¡¯t you apany me for a stroll? I haven¡¯t gone out since you and I returned. Themon cultivators who gather in the outer city usually sell the items they have found in the Ancient Graveyard. There will be lots to see, and some of them will be good. Shall we go check them out?¡±


    Long Chen could not bear to disappoint the excited girl, so he could only nod. His nerves had been constantly tense for the past twenty days as he endured inhumane torture. Now that only one task was left, it was time to reward himself and rest for a while.


    Heavenly Wood City was divided into two sections, the inner and outer cities. The inner city was taken up by Demon and Thunder ns while the outer city housed themon cultivators. There were more than eight thousandmon cultivators who hade to the Ancient Graveyard, and about a thousand of them stayed in Heavenly Wood City. As news of Long Chen getting the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance spread, more and more mysterious people wereing in every day to look out for opportunities amidst the chaos.


    The number of people in Heavenly Wood City gradually increased.


    However, this ce belonged to the Thunder and Demon ns, so outsiders could only stay for a month.


    About three or four months had passed since the Ancient Graveyard opened. There were treasures everywhere in this ce, so many people had found good items. Since they did not need some things, this led to many trading activities in the cities. There was a special street in the outer city designated for trade.


    This street was colloquially known as Treasure Hunting Street by the Heavenly Wood City folk. After Suyan led Long Chen through the outer city, they finally arrived at Treasure Hunting Street. Long Chen looked down the street at the many stalls. Many cultivators sat around casually, waiting for people toe and trade with them. There were also many cultivators browsing their goods, only talking to the owners when they saw something they needed.


    As the daughter of the Demon n¡¯s leader, Suyan did not need these things. However, she was still a child at heart and was more attracted to the bustling atmosphere. She led Long Chen as they wove through the stalls.


    ¡°Woah! Big Brother! What is this? It¡¯s beautiful!¡± asionally, Suyan would cry out with praise. The Ancient Graveyard had countless treasures left behind by the masters of the Middle Ages, including many almost-extinct rare items. That was why Suyan was amazed by them.


    The teenage girl¡¯s silver-bell-likeughter and beautiful face attracted many nces along the way. Many people recognized her, partly because she often frequented ces like this. However, this was Long Chen¡¯s first time, and this was many people¡¯s first time seeing him up close.


    Long Chen had the ultimate treasure, which was the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    This was enough to be the center of attention.


    Many people hade here for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Most of the outer city folk had changed to a new batch during these past twenty days. The neers were mostly people who hade here because they had heard about the inheritance, and some of them were as high as the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. However, they did not dare attack, because Bai Lan had already made his intentions clear. Whoever dared to touch Long Chen would face his wrath. And who was Bai Lan?


    He was one of the top three masters in the Ancient Graveyard.


    Although a fat goat like Long Chen was sitting right in front of them, no one dared touch him. They could only stare jealously at the lucky teenager who had both a precious treasure and a beautiful girl by his side.


    ¡°Hey, Big Brother, what is this?¡± Suyan picked up a shell from a cultivator¡¯s stall. It was especially beautiful. It was smooth and translucent, as if it was a piece of jade in the shape of a shell.


    ¡°Little princess, do not look down on that small shell. It came from the body of a King-tier demonic beast, which does not exist in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. It can only be found in the great ocean. Although that jade shell looks simple, it has a mind-focusing and soul-nourishing effect. If you wear it on your body, it will offer a great boost to your cultivation!¡± said the stall owner hurriedly when he saw that Suyan had taken an interest in something.


    ¡°Oh, does it really focus the mind?¡± Suyan was curious and flipped the jade shell over, studying it for a long time. She finally nodded and asked, ¡°What can I trade for this jade shell?¡±


    The cultivator said hurriedly, ¡°Nothing much; I just need an advanced King-tierbat technique. You are the Demon King¡¯s daughter, so you surely have manybat techniques. You can give me any random one you have.¡±


    Although the small jade shell was rare, its effects were not very strong. It was a little ridiculous that the cultivator had given such a high price.


    Suyan indeed had manybat techniques, but most of them were exclusive to the Demon n and could not be passed to an outsider. That was why she said hesitantly, ¡°I apologize. My father forbids me from giving away the advanced techniques I have. Is there no other way?¡±


    Long Chen saw that the little girl really liked the shell, so he took out the manual of the Wind God Kick from the Primordial Realm. It was a technique he had previously gotten from the Great Priest of the Wind God Sect. ¡°This is an intermediate King-tierbat technique. Although your jade shell is rare, it is not worth an advancedbat technique. If you think the Wind God Kick is eptable, you may take it.¡±


    The cultivator was a little disappointed. He was only trying his luck when he saw the princess. In reality, he was expecting an intermediate King-tierbat technique. He was only at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage after all, so cultivating an advanced King-tier technique would be difficult.


    ¡°In that case, this jade shell ¡­¡±


    The cultivator knew not to trouble the little princess, and at least Long Chen had taken out an intermediate King-tier technique. It was a kick technique too, which was fairly rare, so he was quite satisfied with the trade. He was ready to ept it when a manual covered in golden brocade cloth suddenlynded in his hand. Then an arrogant voice began speaking.

 Chapter 781: Conflict

    ¡°I¡¯m taking that jade shell. Didn¡¯t you want an advanced King-tier technique? This is the Nine Earthquakes, an advanced King-tierbat technique. It¡¯s much more powerful than that stupid Wind God Kick.¡±


    Long Chen did not need to look to know who it was.


    It was Situ Yu.


    When Suyan heard Situ Yu¡¯s voice, she looked displeased and quickly hid behind Long Chen, clutching the shell tightly. Then Situ Yu, escorted by a group of young elites from the Demon n, walked over to Long Chen. Situ Yu chatted happily with them as if he was the gang''s boss.


    Afterwards, Situ Yu regarded both of them for a while, then he smiled and said, ¡°I was just wondering who it was. So it¡¯s Princess Suyan, and the legendary son-inw of the n leader.¡±


    Long Chen squinted slightly when he sensed Situ Yu¡¯s strength.


    <em>The rumors were true. Situ Yu has indeed reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and is on the same level as Suxue. However, he has only just broken through, so his essence is not stable yet. After a short time, he will be able to fully utilize the power of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.</em>


    He would be fighting a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage expert in ten days. There would be a gap of two levels between them, and Situ Yu surely had many trump cards too. Long Chen knew that this would be troublesome. The oue of the battle was uncertain.


    It was very likely that Blood Sacrifice would be his only solution.But Blood Sacrifice was the technique he least wanted to use, as it weakened him for a long time afterward. Despite healing after he consumed soul-nourishing herbs, his Martial Soul was not invincible. If he kept injuring it, it would break down no matter how much spiritual medicine he had ess to.


    It was best to use that insane technique as little as possible.


    There were universalws, and his Dragon Soul Transformation, which made him ten times stronger than a cultivator of the same level, was extraordinary enough. Blood Sacrifice could raise his cultivation by three levels in its final form, and with the addition of his Dragon Soul Transformation, his cultivation would be raised by four levels in total. If there were no limits to such powerful divine techniques, Long Chen would have long be a peerless existence.


    If he used Blood Sacrifice in this duel, then his cultivation level would decrease significantly once more and his Martial Soul would be injured. Unless he had no other choice, Long Chen would not choose to use Blood Sacrifice.


    The biggest reason he had arrived at this stage was because he had little fear in his heart. Despite knowing that his opponent had reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, he was not afraid.


    Situ Yu did not rein in his aura, but rather let it radiate outwards without care. It was as if he wanted everyone to know that he had reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    The group of people stood in front of Long Chen and Suyan with grins on their faces, and they brazenly eyed Long Chen up and down with greed.


    Long Chen¡¯s Wind God Kick had not reached the cultivator¡¯s hand yet, but Situ Yu had tossed an advanced King-tier technique at him. Humans were naturally greedy, so the cultivator naturally preferred the advanced King-tier technique over the Wind God Kick. However, he was not stupid and knew that he probably wouldn¡¯t be able to make use of it.


    Therefore, he held the advanced King-tier technique in his hands and observed the events unfold quietly.


    Situ Yu clearly implied that he wanted to buy the shell. This was a greatly inappropriate move because Suyan had already discussed it with the cultivator, who had agreed to the trade.


    But Situ Yu had interrupted them.


    In terms of rankings within the Demon n, Situ Yu ranked lower than Suyan. This meant that he was goading them, as he had not given them face at all.


    ¡°Situ Yu, what is the meaning of this? I bought it first ¡­¡± Suyan¡¯s initial reverence for Situ Yu had long turned into disgust and hatred.


    Especially since he was about to fight Long Chen, the person she respected and loved the most.


    After Situ Yu heard her, he chuckled and said, ¡°Little Princess, you have misunderstood me. I would never dare take something that belongs to you. I saw that <em>someone </em>could not even take out an advanced King-tierbat technique and was worried he would embarrass the Demon n. That¡¯s why I bought the jade shell in ce of that <em>someone. </em>Actually, it was so that I could give it to you, Princess Yan¡¯er.¡±


    The other teenagers burst intoughter.


    ¡°Yeah, Princess Yan¡¯er. He is stingy even over an advanced King-tierbat technique. I would be embarrassed to stand next to him. How could a person like that be fit to be Princess Xue¡¯er¡¯s husband?¡±


    ¡°Nonsense! Who said he would be Princess Xue¡¯er¡¯s husband? Don¡¯t you all know that Brother Situ is already a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage expert? He is ranked just below the elders in terms of strength! And Brother Situ is so young, plus he is one of the Demon n¡¯s disciples. Is there anyone more suitable than him for Princess Suxue?¡±


    ¡°Princess Yan¡¯er, keep your jade shell safe. Once Brother Situ bes your brother-inw, he will buy you more stuff, unlike a certain poor guy!¡±


    Their insults grew more and more ridiculous until even the mild-tempered Suyan¡¯s eyes turned red from anger. These people were all looking down on Long Chen, so she looked at him anxiously, worried that he would be sad. However, she saw that he had a mild expression, as if the group of people did not even exist.


    ¡°Big Brother, don¡¯t take their words to heart ¡­¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s taking their words to heart? Silly girl ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled in exasperation. He ruffled her hair and said, ¡°Don¡¯t get angry. There are many little dogs in this world who love to bark and bite for no reason. If they bite us, we can just bite them back! We should just let it go.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words made Suyan smile.


    She nodded and said, ¡°I know what to do.¡± Then she turned to Situ Yu and the others and said, ¡°I was the one who wanted to buy the jade shell. It was not Big Brother who bought it for me. I was actually buying it to give it to my Big Brother!¡±


    After that, she looked at the seller and took out a yellow manual from her Universe Pouch carefully. ¡°This is a reward my father gave to me when I was ten. It is an advanced King-tier technique named the Wind Killing Nine Fingers. This is a technique my father got a long time ago, and I don¡¯t use it anymore. I will trade this for your jade shell; what do you think?¡±


    Suyan was being so sincere that the cultivator could only nod incessantly. He hurriedly took the manual, which held sentimental value to her.


    Then he looked at the other manual in his hand with some panic. It was the manual Situ Yu had tossed at him.


    ¡°Give that to me.¡± Suyan took the manual, then tossed it in Situ Yu¡¯s direction. Situ Yu had no choice but to catch it.


    When the cultivator saw that it was no longer any of his business, he hurriedly bade Suyan farewell and rushed off immediately. He privately had a great impression of the polite girl, but as for Situ Yu, he was just acting like a prodigal son.


    Due to the conflict between Situ Yu and Long Chen, the surrounding people stopped doing business and all turned to watch them, pointing fingers as they discussed.


    Situ Yu was initially very arrogant and intended to humiliate Long Chen with his wealth. However, Suyan had voluntarily taken out an even more preciousbat technique. This was a p to Situ Yu¡¯s face.


    Plus, Suyan had intended to give the jade shell to Long Chen.


    Suyan ignored all their gazes and ced the jade shell on Long Chen¡¯s palm. She beamed a satisfied smile and said, ¡°Big Brother, you¡¯re always cultivating. I hope this will help you. I got this in exchange for a birthday present my father gave to me; you must keep it well.¡±


    Looking at her solemn gaze, Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It will always be by my side, even if I die.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good!¡± Long Chen¡¯s answer satisfied Suyan. She felt like she was but a humble figure, so the fact that a gift from her would forever remain by his side was enough for her.


    The way they conversed as if no one else was around them made Situ Yu and his group¡¯s faces turn sour. They all looked at each other, then at Situ Yu. Situ Yu had humiliated himself greatly again. Long Chen had not even reacted and left him standing there like a clown. He had won effortlessly.


    Situ Yu¡¯s face darkened. Looking at the intimate interaction between Long Chen and Suyan, the fire of jealousy burned brightly in his heart. He chuckled coldly and said, ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t you get confused now. The n Leader said you will be marrying Princess Suxue and not Princess Suyan. With you two acting so intimately, are you not afraid of gossip?¡±


    Long Chen looked up at the annoying Situ Yu, itching to hit him. His gaze darkened and he asked, ¡°You are the great Sect Elder Situ Yao¡¯s grandson, yet you utter such inappropriate words. Aren¡¯t you afraid of making your grandfather lose face?¡±


    Situ Yu hated Long Chen¡¯sck of fear the most. He was supposed to be much stronger than Long Chen, so why wasn¡¯t Long Chen afraid of him? This made Situ Yu very impatient to prove himself to Long Chen.


    He would only feel satisfied when this brat recognized how powerful he was!


    ¡°Long Chen, the duel is in ten days. Do you want to bring it forward to today?¡± Situ Yu smiled coldly.


    Long Chen knew that the brat could not hold himself back any longer and wanted to beat Long Chen up. But was it that easy to beat him?


    He smiled and said, ¡°I don¡¯t intend to.¡±


    Then he turned to Suyan and said, ¡°Yan¡¯er, let¡¯s go. The dogs here are very noisy. I don¡¯t often get a chance to take a peaceful stroll, but what rotten luck it is to encounter these dogs.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Big Brother. I hate them,¡± said Suyan with a giggle.

 Chapter 782: Thunder Clan’s Internal Meeting

    They chatted as they walked off,pletely ignoring Situ Yu.


    Long Chen¡¯s humiliating words had driven Situ Yu mad. A powerful aura erupted from his body, and Situ Yu red at him coldly. He cried furiously, ¡°Long Chen, stop right there! If you are a man, fight me! Don¡¯t just run your mouth!¡±


    Unfortunately, Long Chen did not respond at all and left directly.


    ¡°You trash! Stop right now!¡± roared Situ Yu. A powerful gust of wind flew at Long Chen, causing Long Chen and Suyan¡¯s clothes to p loudly.


    ¡°Big Brother, what now?¡± Suyan asked a little frantically.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze darkened. ¡°Go home. Everything will be revealed in ten days. We know our own strengths. There is no need to fight here just to get thest word.¡±


    Long Chen had matured significantly and would not lose his reason over someone calling him trash.


    Suyan was mesmerized by the teenager. Although Situ Yu was much stronger, she felt like Long Chen could not be defeated.


    This assured her greatly.¡°Alright. We will just treat them as barking dogs, then. Hehe ¡­¡±


    The people around Situ Yu started to scold him.


    ¡°What a piece of trash! After he witnesses Brother Situ¡¯s strength, he¡¯s going to flee like a coward?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! Long Chen is a coward! What talent does he have other than manipting women? People like that cannot be considered men. He is not fit for Princess Suxue, nor does he deserve the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.¡±


    ¡°All of it should belong to Brother Situ. He is a true prodigy. Long Chen is nothing! Look, I¡¯m insulting him, yet he doesn¡¯t even dare turn around! Look at him! Ahahaha ¡­¡±


    The crowd was enjoying themselves as they insulted Long Chen and burst intoughter.


    But Situ Yu¡¯s expression remained cold.


    The barrage of insults had not roused even a slight reaction from Long Chen, as if they had hit nothing. It felt like Situ Yu had missed a punch, and he felt like he was about to vomit blood.


    <em>Long Chen! I have reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and have obtained the Ever Changing Spear. In ten days¡¯ time, I will pulverize you. Everything you own will be mine, including the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance! </em>Situ Yu swore to himself as he gritted his teeth.


    Long Chen had long returned to the inner city by then. Afterforting the little girl Suyan for a while, he prepared to leave so he could resume his cultivation. That was when Suxue walked over to him. She had heard about what happened earlier that day and said worriedly, ¡°You ran into Situ Yu today?¡±


    ¡°Just some minor bickering. It was nothing,¡± said Long Chen.


    Suxue¡¯s elegant brows furrowed slightly as she said, ¡°I heard that Situ Yu has reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Long Chen, what are you going to do about the duel?¡±


    They looked more anxious than Long Chen was, but to him, there was nothing to worry about. Although he knew that he was no match for Situ Yu in terms of essence, he was not worried. This was the attitude he had practiced for a long time. Fear and anxiety were useless; might as well carry on with his cultivation in a stable, honest manner.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go with the flow,¡± said Long Chen, leaving Suxue speechless.


    ¡°I can¡¯t stand you. You never should have agreed to Situ Yu¡¯s challenge. That guy obviously wants to manipte you. Your objective now is to focus on cultivating the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Was there a need to have thest word?¡± Suxue looked at Long Chen usingly. Her tone was like a wifeining to her husband.


    ¡°Men always want the dignity of having thest word. Women wouldn¡¯t understand. If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯m leaving,¡± Long Chen said shamelessly, rolling his eyes.


    ¡°You ¡­ Go, then. I want to see what you¡¯re going to do. Don¡¯t get yourself killed; my sister still needs you.¡± Long Chen¡¯s attitude was driving her mad.


    Had the guy eaten a leopard¡¯s galldder?[1]


    Ten days. It was not a long time, but it was not short either. Although the outside world was bustling over him and Situ Yu¡¯s duel, Long Chen was indifferent.


    He nned to spend the next seven days reaching thete stage of the Seven Star Body and then use the remaining time to study the Martial God Tombstone.


    Before the duel, he would also need to feed Suyan dragon blood once.


    Thanks to the nourishment of his blood, the little girl had grown more energetic and was glowing. A strong life force radiated from her body. Even Bai Lan was astonished by this. He asked her several times what pills Long Chen had fed her, but Suyan refused to tell, infuriating her father so much that he kept rolling his eyes.


    That night, Long Chen returned to the peak of the ancient tree.


    This time, he was prepared to reach thete stage of the Seven Star Body.


    ***


    No one knew that there was a meeting going on in the Thunder n. Within a dark room, the seven Thunder Elders were having a meeting that would determine the fate of their n. This was a meeting held by the highest-level members of the n. All of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage elders were present except for the patriarch, Lei Ji.


    The seven Thunder Elders were actually the elders of the Thunder n. All of them were aged two hundred and fifty and above. They could be considered antiques in the Thunder n. The Great Sect Elder was more than four hundred years old. If he didn¡¯t break into the Heavenly Martial Stage soon, then he would not remain alive for long.


    Despite that, the Great Sect Elder of the Thunder n, a man named Lei Yuan, held a positionparable to that of the current patriarch. Lei Yuan belonged to Lei Ji¡¯s father¡¯s generation. When he was young, he made countless significant contributions to the Thunder n and was considered one of the n¡¯s heroes.


    This meeting was hosted by Lei Yuan, who had summoned the seven Thunder Elders here without Patriarch Lei Ji¡¯s knowledge.


    The group had been silent for fifteen minutes when Lei Yuan gently knocked on the wooden table with his knuckles.


    ¡°Everyone, I called everyone here without informing Patriarch Lei Ji. I¡¯m sure everyone knows what I am thinking. What are your thoughts?¡± asked the old Lei Yuan in his hoarse voice.


    Everyone looked at each other. No one spoke at first, but after Lei Yuan¡¯s gaze swept across the room, a muscr man finally said, ¡°We must admit that this is the chance for the Thunder n to rise, and even the n¡¯s chance to no longer rely on the Demon n.¡±


    ¡°Well said.¡± Lei Yuan pped, then everyone quickly pped too.


    ¡°Since you have mentioned it already, I will speak directly. The Thunder n has been living in the Demon n¡¯s shadow for many years. Every decision was led by the Demon n as if we were their servants. Wherever they go, we follow. We¡¯ve had enough of living like that. I believe everyone other than the Patriarch has had enough too, right?¡±


    Everyone listened to Lei Yuan solemnly.


    ¡°I think everyone knows what I mean,¡± he continued.


    One of the men said, ¡°Great Sect Elder, we indeed understand. I agree with your opinion too. I will raise my hand first. What about the others?¡±


    When this man raised his arm high, the others gritted their teeth and raised their hands too.


    Lei Yuan smiled and said, ¡°Since everyone is in agreement, then I will not waste time on nonsense. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is the most important opportunity for the Thunder n. It does not matter what Lei Ji thinks; we must take it for ourselves. Then we will break free from the Demon n and find our own base in the Ancient Graveyard. As for Lei Ji ¡­ If he still stands on the Demon n¡¯s side after we take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and lead the n away, then we no longer need a patriarch like him.¡±


    Lei Yuan was the only elder who could utter such words.


    ¡°How will the Thunder n survive without a Heavenly Martial Realm master?¡± asked one of the elders.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Lei Ji isn¡¯t that stupid. His roots are in the Thunder n; do you think he could leave it? Most importantly, we must execute this n fast and end all fights quickly. Once we have broken free from the Demon n and retrieved the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, he will pick the correct side. As long as he does, the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance will belong to him,¡± said Lei Yuan with a dark gaze.


    It was true. The Demon n had the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance, while the Divine n had the White Lotus Fairy¡¯s inheritance. If they could get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, they would be on equal footing with the other ns.


    ¡°We, the Thunder Elders, are not betraying the n. I summoned everyone here today only for the good of the Thunder n and Patriarch Lei Ji. He may be talented at cultivation, but he constantly follows Bai Lan and will not amount to anything great. We must do this to force Lei Ji to break the brotherly rtionship between them, so he will be a true Thunder patriarch!¡±


    Lei Yuan¡¯s thoughts were the same as the other Elders.


    ¡°Great Sect Elder, just tell us what to do. Indeed, the Patriarch rarely thinks about the benefit of the n. We will do as you say.¡±


    Lei Yuan shook his head. ¡°I am old. I can no longer hold the whole n up. The Thunder n still needs Lei Ji to lead it. The only thing I want to do before I die is to turn Lei Ji vicious, break free from the Demon n, and make the Thunder n as great as them!


    After a pause, he added, ¡°I have alreadye up with a n.¡±


    ¡°When do we move? Long Chen spends his days cultivating the Seven Star Body. Bai Lan and the Patriarch are both standing guard nearby.¡±


    Lei Yuan said, ¡°I have already nned the date, which will be in ten days. During the duel between Long Chen and Situ Yu, the Thunder n shall give them a surprise.


    The group was surprised and asked, ¡°Won¡¯t there be arge number of people present during that time? The Demon n has many experts; how could we seed?¡±


    Lei Yuan smiled mysteriously and said, ¡°Have you all forgotten about the Thunder n¡¯s ultimate treasure? When all their masters are standing together, our Thunder Prison will give them a surprise!¡±


    1. The terms for galldder and courage have the same Chinese character, µ¨ (dan). ording to traditional Chinese medicine, the galldder has the function of making judgements and determines one¡¯s courage ?

 Chapter 783: Late-Stage Seven Star Body

    The Thunder Elders were the only ones who knew about this meeting. Not even other Thunder n members had any idea. However, the elders were confident about the opinions of the n. The Thunder n loved freedom, and they did not like being dependent on other people.


    Lei Ji and Bai Lan did not know that despite the great rtionship between themselves, the lower ranks of both ns did not get along well, especially the younger generation. The Demon n was much stronger than the Thunder n, and in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, it was a general opinion that the Thunder n was dependent on the Demon n. This made many Demon n youths act arrogantly in front of the Thunder n, even looking down on them. This led to much friction between the ns.


    Of course, Lei Ji and Bai Lan did not take this friction to heart. Lei Ji was slightly oblivious, but everyone else had at least some resentment towards the Demon n. After the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance appeared, the eight Sect Elders of the Demon n were not the only ones who were tempted. Even the seven Thunder Elders and other Thunder n members had grown restless.


    Everyone was oblivious to the storm that was quietly approaching.


    Long Chen did not know about this either, of course. At this moment, he was fully immersed in the cultivation of the Seven Star Body. Once hepleted this step, he would be able to reach thete stage of the Seven Star Body.


    In terms of his ability to control the star core in the heart, Long Chen had already reached thete stage. He exerted control over the core and extended his senses to the horizon far away. The endless starry night contained infinite celestial Qi. Long Chen searched through the sky for the energy, and once he umted enough celestial Qi, he finally guided it down to himself.


    Long Chen was going to attempt a huge maneuver this time.


    Next to him, Bai Lan and Lei Ji were stunned, because Long Chen had guided far more celestial Qi than ever before. This was ten times more than the previous record. The vast amount of celestial Qi turned into a gigantic purple beast in the sky, leading to a loud explosion that sent huge vibrations towards them!


    Long Chen almost lost control of therge amount of celestial Qi. If he did, it would be extremely dangerous because it would result in Heavenly Wood City being destroyed, and the people in it would be killed.Thankfully, he managed to control it.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji sighed in relief. The core power of the Thunder and Demon ns were all here. If they were gone, both of them would cry to their deaths.


    However, they were still terrified by the gigantic beast flying in the sky. Thankfully, it took a long time for Long Chen to umte this amount of celestial Qi, and he had to do it at high altitudes. If he could casually summon this much celestial Qi in battle, even Bai Lan would have to hide.


    The purple celestial Qi shone with a sharp glint as it swirled around Long Chen.


    The vast quantities of celestial Qi had startled everyone in Heavenly Wood City, causing them all to gaze up admiringly. They knew that Long Chen was cultivating the Seven Star Body with Bai Lan and Lei Ji protecting him. Too many people were feeling restless tonight.


    At the Situ n¡¯s residence, Situ Yu stood with his hands behind his back. He looked up at the purple celestial Qi in the sky and smirked. He said, ¡°So what if you seed in cultivating the Seven Star Body? You¡¯re three levels beneath me. That is not a gap that any Divine Weapon orbat technique can fill!¡±


    More than a thousand people were watching Long Chen.


    Those who knew how terrifying the celestial Qi was felt respect for him. They roughly knew that the Seven Star Body was forged using the celestial Qi. Based on how strong the Metal Devouring Wind was, they could imagine how scary celestial Qi was. However, Long Chen was bathing in it.


    They did not believe that Long Chen was not in pain.


    Long Chen was indeed in pain, but he sat with it.


    He used the energy from the star core to catch and control the celestial Qi, which was like a gigantic beast. The celestial Qi slowly condensed into arge sphere around him.


    The spinning ball was ten timesrger than before, and its energy ripples also radiated more than ten times the previous range. All the tree branches and leaves in its area of effect were pulverized. Even Bai Lan and Lei Ji had no choice but to move farther, as they did not want to be injured by it.


    ¡°Brother Bai, the boy has caused such a bigmotion. I know some idiotic people will get restless. The celestial Qi has formed a veryrge ball; it¡¯s better if I go to the other side,¡± said Lei Ji.


    Bai Lan¡¯s eyes were fixed anxiously on Long Chen. He nodded.


    After the news of Long Chen getting the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance got out, they were worried that some fearless people woulde harass him.


    Bai Lan had already issued his warning. If someone decided to be bold, he would not mind killing them.


    However, those who would dare to attack today were merely somemon cultivators who were not very smart. The true masters, who were at least at the Heavenly Martial Realm, did note.


    The Heavenly Martial Realm masters were the true masters of this ce. There were no more than ten such people in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Under Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s protection, Long Chen was able to cultivate safely. Of course, this was still a huge challenge to him as he needed to endure even more pain than before for seven days and seven nights.


    He was surrounded by celestial Qi, and endless amounts of it poured into his body. It was a violent forging process made to bring his Seven Star Body to thete stage. After gritting his teeth and enduring this for seven days and seven nights, he would be fine.


    To be honest, there was no special technique to cultivating the Seven Star Body, and it was unrted to one¡¯sprehension abilities. The only factors were endurance and control. As for theter part of the cultivation, it only needed one thing, which was endurance.


    People who could endure the most pain would be better than the rest.


    The suffering he endured was the most he had ever experienced.


    Endless celestial Qi poured into his body, surrounding him. It tore through and built his body up, re-building whatever was built in the previous stage. This happened two or three times.


    After two rounds of building, the Seven Star Body was finallyplete.


    Time passed slowly. Long Chen almost wanted to give up several times, seeing as enduring seven days and seven nights of pain was not easy. Many people throughout history could only reach the mid-stage of Seven Star Body, not thete stage, because they could not get through this part.


    Whenever thoughts of giving up entered his mind, he thought of Ling Xi and held on.


    He held on again and again, until he finally seeded.


    ¡°Xiao Xi ¡­¡± When he was half-conscious, Long Chen thought about the teenage girl and suddenly felt his body fill with power.


    He had found himself on the brink of death several times, but he survived again and again.


    Below, many people were observing the changes. They could see the amount of celestial Qi around him decreasing.


    ¡°Big Brother, you must seed!¡± Suyan prayed with her eyes closed.


    The sisters had roughly learned about the cultivation process from Bai Lan, so they knew that the celestial Qi caused great pain.


    However, they were impressed that Long Chen could withstand it.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe he managed to endure such a painful ordeal. It¡¯s been seven days, so after the final night, he should be able to seed.¡± Suxue could barely believe her eyes as she watched the celestial Qi shrink in the sky.


    Seven days passed just like that.


    ¡°Yeah. Big Brother is the best! It does not matter how powerful Situ Yu is. In the end, he will be no match for Big Brother.¡± Suyan¡¯s confidence in Long Chen was starting to be blind confidence.


    The final night passed.


    At this moment, they flew up above the clouds and stood beside Bai Lan and Lei Ji. The patriarchs had killed many people over thest few days. The thieves were nowhere near strong enough to be fit for the inheritance.


    However, if Bai Lan and Lei Ji weren¡¯t around, those people would¡¯ve affected Long Chen¡¯s cultivation.


    The gigantic cloud of celestial Qi was now only the size of a human. A thinyer of it covered Long Chen¡¯s body, and he slowly absorbed it until itpletely disappeared.


    Long Chen was gradually revealed.


    Previously, when he reached the mid-stage, his celestial Qi was visible. However, his power was more concentrated this time, as if he had reached his previous state when he had never cultivated anything. This was thete stage of the Seven Star Body, whose power would only appear when Long Chen was truly in battle.


    Long Chen closed his eyes and felt his body. He realized that his body was more than ten times tougher than when he was at the mid-stage. His body was filled with pure physical strength, and he was confident that he was likely in the top few in the whole Ancient Graveyard in terms of body toughness, maybe even top three.


    He hadpleted the Big Dipper Step and the Seven Star Body, two of the three sections of the Seven Star Manual.


    Now only the section on controlling the Three Thousand Star Clusters remained.

 Chapter 784: Final Duel

    ¡°Lei Ji, would you dare let Long Chen test his strength on you?¡± Bai Lan asked with a grin, pointing at Long Chen.


    Lei Ji quickly shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ve already tried that once. It¡¯s your Divine Demon Body¡¯s turn. That¡¯s an intermediate Emperor-tierbat technique, so it¡¯s appropriate for you guys to try it out.¡±


    The two Bai sisters looked at each other andughed when they saw how the two men were pushing each other to do it.


    ¡°Whatever. He¡¯s going to fight Situ Yu in three days. We can just watch then, right? I don¡¯t want to suffer for no reason,¡± said Bai Lan with a smile.


    Then he looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°I was only speaking casually at the time, but I can¡¯t believe you actually seeded inpleting the Seven Star Body in one month. However, Situ Yu has reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, so it will not be easy to beat him. Use the remaining three days to prepare well.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your protection during the past few days, Patriarchs,¡± said Long Chen, nodding.


    ¡°It was nothing. Protecting my son-inw is something I should be doing,¡± said Bai Lan with a smirk.


    This man had always been one to make immature jokes, and Suxue was bing embarrassed. She initially thought her sister would be upset, but to her surprise, Suyan was still looking at Long Chen sweetly.


    <em>Why is this girl in such a good mood now? What did Long Chen say to her? </em>Suxue wondered with puzzlement. After Long Chenpleted the Seven Star Body, Bai Lan and Lei Ji left after giving him a few reminders. Long Chen and the sisters returned to their quarters. He did not want to waste the remaining three days, so he immediately immersed himself in studying the Martial God Tombstone.


    He was going to fight the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage Situ Yu in three days, so the sisters did not dare disturb him.


    ¡°Elder Sister, do you think Big Brother stands a chance?¡± muttered Suyan, standing at the pavilion at the entrance of Long Chen¡¯s quarters.


    Not wanting her younger sister to worry, Suxue said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. That guy is stubborn and resilient. No matter what happens, he will not die. Oh, wait, I should say that there¡¯s no way he will lose.¡±


    ¡°Elder Sister, you¡¯re lying. You think Big Brother will lose,¡± said Suyan, widening her bright eyes.


    Suxueughed dryly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t try to guess what I¡¯m thinking. I don¡¯t think that at all. Look at how hard he¡¯s working. He won¡¯t disappoint you.¡±


    Indeed, Long Chen had not rxed, not even for a moment.


    Three days passed quickly. Long Chen called Suyan into his room, then no one heard anything from them. Once Suyan emerged, everyone asked, ¡°Yan¡¯er, why did Long Chen call you inside?¡±


    ¡°Today is the tenth day. Big Brother gave me pills to eat. He¡¯s still cultivating, but I sensed that he still hasn¡¯t reached the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage yet.¡±


    Everyone was a little disappointed, but it was understandable. It was not that easy to reach the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. The duel was set for noon, and it was still morning, so they were not in a hurry. However, the location of the duel was already filled with people.


    Situ Yu and the eight Sect Elders who backed him were already there. It was arge tform. People used to live in the Heavenly Wood City during ancient times, and this tform was likely like a za. It was currently packed with people.


    This tform was located in the outer city of Heavenly Wood City. This day could be considered an important day of sorts in Heavenly Wood City because every resident was present. News of Long Chen and Situ Yu¡¯s duel had long spread across the whole city. This duel would not only determine whether Long Chen could be Bai Lan¡¯s son-inw, it would also likely decide who the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance would go to.


    Although everyone knew that Long Chen had sessfully cultivated the Big Dipper Step and the Seven Star Body, there was no way he could use the Three Thousand Star Clusters yet, which was the most important part of the inheritance.


    That was why many people were greedy for the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Human greed was endless. Even with a super-master like Bai Lan present, the fire of greed burned in the people¡¯s hearts.


    The Demon n, the Thunder n, and regr cultivators formed three main camps located on three sides of the tform. On the Demon n¡¯s side, Situ Yu was surrounded by the eight Sect Elders. The Sect Elders were all standing, but Situ Yu was sitting. This was a privilege for the duel¡¯s participants, and it showed how much the Sect Elders prioritized this duel.


    If he defeated Long Chen, then the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance would no longer belong to him. It could lead to a fight and end up in the eight Sect Elders¡¯ hands.


    The Sect Elders were speaking to Situ Yu, though most of it was praise. He had reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, meaning he was not very far off from them. Plus, he was still young and had not exhausted his potential yet.


    In a few more years, he would be another Heavenly Martial Realm master in the Demon n.


    Suxue was also at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Both were from the Demon n. To the majority, Suxue and Situ Yu were the rightful couple.


    After Situ Yu grew stronger, Situ Yao¡¯s position among the eight Sect Elders had increased significantly too. Many Sect Elders were already starting to act in an ingratiating manner towards Situ Yao. Situ Yu was a good grandson, and he could be the Patriarch once Bai Lan was gone.


    Of course, Bai Lan could still live for a very long time as he was at the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    The crowd on the Demon n¡¯s side was noisy. Situ Yu was smug, as he was surrounded by countless people. He felt amazing with so many people supporting him. He even had minions behind him who kept showering him with praise.


    ¡°Brother Situ has reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. He will surely reach the Heavenly Martial Realm soon. He is the superstar of the Demon n.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, who is at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, is sullying the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. If it was given to Brother Situ, he would surely be the number one master beneath the Patriarch. None of the other ns have a person like him, who is such a powerful young master!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. Once Brother Situ gets the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and the Three Thousand Star Clusters, even the Divine n¡¯s Wu Guangyu will be no match for him.¡±


    Situ Yu felt amazing when he heard the praise.


    When he reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, he knew that he would win this duel for sure. Also, he had a powerful trump card, which was the Ever Changing Spear!


    An elementary Emperor-tier divine weapon!


    The Demon n¡¯s crowd was bustling, but the Thunder n was quiet. The seven Thunder Elders stood together quietly. Behind them were the higher-ranked members of the n, followed by regr disciples.


    The regr cultivators were also noisy. They stood around in a disorderly manner, and when they met someone they knew, they would chat brazenly. They were even louder than the Demon n¡¯s group.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why hasn¡¯t it started yet? Didn¡¯t they say it would start at noon? Noon ising, but Long Chen isn¡¯t here!¡±


    ¡°What does the guy who received the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance look like? He hasn¡¯t given up because he saw how strong his opponent was, has he? How could a person like that be fit for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡±


    ¡°He only got it because he¡¯s lucky! What right does anyone have to say that I don¡¯t have the same luck too? I wonder if I¡¯ll get lucky today?¡±


    Only themon cultivators wereining at first, but soon, the Demon n joined in too. Only the people of the Thunder n remained calm.


    ¡°What is he doing? Why isn''t he here yet?¡± Situ Yu looked impatient and looked in the direction of Long Chen¡¯s abode.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get impatient. Face him with a calm mind. That kid¡¯s determination is quite terrifying. He has finished cultivating the Seven Star Body, so his body¡¯s toughness will be shocking. You must take this very seriously. That kid is unpredictable,¡± Situ Yao said into Situ Yu¡¯s ear.


    ¡°I understand,¡± Situ Yu said impatiently.


    Situ Yao had already warned him about the Seven Star Body several times, so Situ Yu was getting annoyed. If he had not reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, he would have minded. However, nobat technique could threaten him when he was so much more powerful than his opponent.


    When Situ Yu¡¯s patience was running out, Long Chen and his entourage arrived. Bai Lan and Lei Ji stood together, while Suxue and Suyan followed them.


    Long Chen was behind the girls.


    After studying for three days and three nights, he still had not reached the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. He had managed to reach thest critical step, but due to theck of time, he had no choice but to cut his cultivation short. Long Chen guessed that he would¡¯ve surely reached the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage if he had ten more days.


    If he had made a breakthrough, he would¡¯ve been more rxed.


    Today¡¯s duel was destined to be a difficult battle.


    Those who thought Long Chen would not show up all turned to look at the legendary teenager, who made them feel both admiration and jealousy. They thought this teenager would be panicking, but instead, they saw a calm expression, as if he was not about to enter a fight.


    ¡°Are you guys sure this is Long Chen? He¡¯s only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage, but he doesn¡¯t look afraid at all.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s probably pretending. He¡¯s probably terrified inside.¡±


    ¡°I hear that he was the one who agreed to Situ Yu¡¯s challenge. He must not have expected Situ Yu to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage in one month. He even made the promise of not marrying Princess Suxue if he lost. This kid is going to meet a tragic end if he loses. With all these powerful people around, he probably won¡¯t be able to keep the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.¡±


    Suxue was upset when she heard them. She said with annoyance, ¡°These people are terrible; they don¡¯t know anything, yet they keep spouting nonsense.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, they¡¯re bad people. Big Brother hasn¡¯t offended them, but they say bad things about him,¡± said Suyan, also a little angrily.

 Chapter 785: Yellow River Demon Finger

    To Suyan¡¯sfort, Long Chen did not seem to be angry.


    ¡°It is time. Go on now,¡± said Bai Lan, turning towards Long Chen when they arrived at the bottom of the tform.


    Long Chen nodded and got on the stage before Situ Yu did. He strode towards the center of the stage, not too fast or too slow. It was more than wide enough for a duel.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji stood in the middle between the Thunder and Demon ns, apart from their n members. Suxue and Suyan stood behind them. Therefore, the crowd was divided into four groups.


    When the seven Thunder Elders saw this, they looked at each other and smiled. Everything was going as nned. They had nned for the two n leaders and the Sect Elders of the Demon n to stand in this manner.


    If they stood together, then the Thunder Prison could trap them.


    And if the Thunder Prison trapped them, even Bai Lan would be unable to break free within a short time. Then the Thunder n would have enough time to act.


    No one else knew of the Thunder n¡¯s n.


    Even the Thunder n¡¯s patriarch, Lei Ji, was still in the dark.After Long Chen ascended the stage, Situ Yu could not wait any longer. Heughed loudly, pped his chair, and rushed up the stage. He stopped twenty meters away from Long Chen. This instantly grabbed everyone¡¯s attention.


    The atmosphere turned tense.


    A Ninth Earthly Martial Stage opponent was indeed terrifying to Long Chen. In terms of essence, Situ Yu had ten times more. Long Chen once again considered using Blood Sacrifice, but after he saw the vicious and arrogant expression on Situ Yu¡¯s face, he abandoned that thought and used the Dragon Soul Transformation.


    The Dragon Soul Transformation strengthened his essence by ten times, reaching the level of the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. Although there was still arge gap between his and his opponent¡¯s cultivation levels, this gap was manageable to Long Chen because not many Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators could defeat him in this state.


    The crowd finally saw something extraordinary in Long Chen after they saw the Dragon Soul Transformation, which made him look terrifying, as if he was born for the sole purpose of killing. His bony spines and scaled armor shimmered intimidatingly.


    ¡°You don¡¯t look bad at all. Very animalistic. Indeed, you cannot be considered on the same level as us humans,¡± Situ Yu mocked sarcastically after he took a nce.


    Long Chen ignored him as he felt the power flowing in his body. When he utilized the Dragon Soul Transformation, the power of his Seven Star Body wasbined with his dragon body. Even if he did not activate his essence, he was still filled with explosive power. Long Chen clenched his fists gently. Streaks of celestial Qi spewed out of his arm, forming images of constetions on his hand. It was as if there was a beautiful, awe-inspiring, purple constetion map on his body.


    <em>Is that the Seven Star Body? </em>Situ Yu¡¯s expression turned jealous, but it quickly turned to excitement and greed. He could sense that the Seven Star Body was indeed filled with great power, and he was even apprehensive ofing into contact with Long Chen.


    He was excited because he knew that the Seven Star Body would one day be his.


    Everything would belong to him. He wondered what heights he would achieve after he had the Seven Star Body.


    How could he know the suffering that had to be endured to cultivate the Seven Star Body?


    With Situ Yu¡¯s abilities, even one year of cultivation wouldn¡¯t guarantee sess.


    But before that, he had to snatch it from Long Chen.


    ¡°To be honest, I still cannot believe that you dared to show up today,¡± said Situ Yu.


    His contemptuous words could not cause even a ripple in Long Chen¡¯s emotions, which were as still as water. His cultivation also involved the cultivation of a stable mind. After enduring the torture of cultivating the Seven Star Body, Long Chen suddenly felt like there was nothing to be afraid of in this world. That was why he could face Situ Yu confidently.


    The constetion map made of purple celestial Qi swirled on his body. His mind settled until it was as still as still water. Long Chen had forgotten about their cultivation levels and the gap between them. His opponent was the only person in his sight.


    ¡°What¡¯s the brat doing? Why does he look like he¡¯s daydreaming?¡±


    The crowd saw that Long Chen was unresponsive despite Situ Yu¡¯s insults, so they assumed that the former was paralyzed with fear.


    ¡°What is he doing? If he¡¯s scared, he shouldn¡¯t havee. He hasn¡¯t uttered a single word; what is the meaning of this?¡±


    The crowd thought that Long Chen was too terrified to speak. Only Situ Yu understood that when Long Chen was this calm, he could not seem to find a chance to take advantage of him. He refused to believe this, as he bore endless hatred for this brat. Therefore, he stopped talking, and with a sh, he was already charging at Long Chen!


    The battle erupted instantly!


    <em>I heard from Patriarch Bai that Situ Yu has cultivated the Heavenly Demon Manual, which contains a body tempering technique, a bodybat technique, and three powerful punching techniques. The Heavenly Demon Manual is an elementary Emperor-tierbat technique, and it is likely Situ Yu¡¯s trump card!</em>


    On the way here, Bai Lan had briefed Long Chen about Situ Yu so that Long Chen was mentally prepared. If Feng Zhilin could use the Emperor-tier Thousand Seals, then it would not make sense if Situ Yu did not know a technique of that caliber as well.


    The punching technique in the Heavenly Demon Manual was known as the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist.


    However, Situ Yu did not use an Emperor-tier technique for this first attack. Using an Emperor-tier technique against a mere Sixth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator was just embarrassing to him.


    He neared Long Chen in the blink of an eye, and Situ Yu¡¯s Ninth Earthly Martial Stage strength gave him extraordinary speed. In fact, he was already as fast as his grandfather.


    ¡°Yellow River Demon Finger!¡±


    With a<em> whoosh</em>, a yellow air current spun around Situ Yu¡¯s right index finger, just like the legendary Yellow River. The whirlpool suddenly erged and flew towards Long Chen. The center of the whirlpool was a dot of ck starlight, and an immense attack erupted from it. The power of the Yellow River Demon Finger came from the ck dot!


    That was the true power of the technique, which hade from Situ Yu¡¯s fingertip!


    The Yellow River Demon Finger was an advanced King-tier technique, one as strong as Long Chen¡¯s Deste Divine Seal. Situ Yu was using this technique as a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, so he could disy its full power!


    The choice to use the Yellow River Demon Finger as the opening move clearly showed that he had underestimated his opponent.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze was calm. When his opponent¡¯s attack flew at him, his gaze did not change, nor did he move at all.


    The crowd erupted!


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why isn¡¯t he defending himself? Is he suicidal?¡±


    ¡°He chose not to fight back in the face of a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s attack? His brain must be rusty! Or is he already looking for death?¡±


    There was an eruption of discussions.


    Behind Bai Lan, Suxue and Suyan watched anxiously. They wanted to rush over to help, but Bai Lan stopped them and said, ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate Long Chen. The result of today¡¯s duel is not set yet.¡±


    Bai Lan¡¯s words implied that Long Chen could still win, so the two sisters were relieved.


    Situ Yu, who had a confused look, gently touched Long Chen¡¯s chest with the Yellow River Demon Finger!


    He felt like he had hit his opponent, but to his shock, the constetions on Long Chen¡¯s body flowed to his chest. By the time the attack hit him, a huge amount of celestial Qi had already gathered at his chest. The purple celestial Qi turned into a fierce beast, and when the Yellow River Demon Finger touched Long Chen, the beast roared and bit Situ Yu¡¯s finger!


    ¡°Ah!¡± Situ Yu yelped, then he quickly intensified the essence throughout his whole body to shake the celestial Qi off. Only then was he able to back off, though in an unstable manner. The celestial Qi hade from Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body, and it was stronger than he had expected.


    The momentum of the Yellow River Demon Finger had also sted Long Chen backwards, and he was pushed several steps back before he could stabilize himself. Under the protection of the Seven Star Body, the Yellow River Demon Finger could indeed push him, but not hurt him.


    Long Chen¡¯s body had endured repeated conditioning from the celestial Qi, so it was now far tougher than others¡¯ bodies. If he stood in the Metal District and let the Metal Devouring Winds wrap around him, he would easilye out unscathed. This was one of the best body tempering techniques in the whole Ten Thousand Nation Territory!


    The duel had only just begun, but jaws dropped. The crowd thought Long Chen would be dead from the first strike, so the result of the first sh waspletely unexpected. Situ Yu had used all his energy to attack him and Long Chen hadn¡¯t even fought back, yet Situ Yu was sted backwards and had even sustained a minor injury on his finger.


    How strong was Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body?


    Situ Yu stared at Long Chen in a daze. They all knew that Long Chen had used the Seven Star Body to block his attack, showing how extraordinary it was. This made them even more greedy for it. They thought that they would be peerless masters if they could get the Seven Star Manual. How could they know that cultivating the Seven Star Body required enduring terrifying suffering?


    Without suffering, there would be no sess.

 Chapter 786: Mid-Battle Breakthrough

    Long Chen had taken many risks and suffered endlessly to achieve his current level.


    The crowdughed when they saw Long Chen¡¯s reaction. Long Chen was starting to shine.


    The people on Situ Yu¡¯s side were infuriated.


    Situ Yu was the most embarrassed one. Previously, he had said many brazen and arrogant things. When he recalled the things he had said, it was like a p to his face. Although his finger had a minor injury, his face hurt more.


    <em>You¡¯re looking for death! You¡¯re just relying on the Seven Star Body! The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance will be mine soon! </em>Situ Yu screamed in his heart. Then he roared and charged at Long Chen with fury. Since the advanced King-tierbat technique was useless, he decided to use his Emperor-tier technique. He wanted to give Long Chen a taste of failure and suffering!


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Manual!¡±


    When he charged forward, a ck tornado formed next to him. He was wrapped in the pitch-ck tornado, which roared and turned into a gigantic beast that pounced on Long Chen!


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Dance!¡± The Heavenly Demon Manual contained an Emperor-tier bodybat technique. Situ Yu had turned intoyers of demonic illusions, so even Long Chen could not see where his actual body was!


    An Emperor-tier bodybat technique could never be simple. From the crowd¡¯s perspective, the whole stage was filled with clones of Situ Yu. They could not see Long Chen at all.However, bodybat techniques like that were not effective on Long Chen because he had the Soul Swallowing Gaze. Nothing could escape Long Chen¡¯s eyes when he used this technique!


    The moment he activated Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen saw Situ Yu¡¯s actual body zipping through the air. He was moving in a circr path to attack Long Chen from behind. The corners of Long Chen¡¯s mouth curved up into a smirk. A golden ray appeared in his right palm.


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡± Long Chenunched this attack behind himself. A gigantic golden emperor seal flew towards his back, coincidentally where Situ Yu was.


    <em>Boom, boom!</em>


    There were sounds of explosions. Situ Yu was initially preparing to attack Long Chen, but he never expected Long Chen to find him. Long Chen¡¯s Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal brought with it immense ice-cold power, and such power surely meant it was an Emperor-tierbat technique. Situ Yu did not dare act recklessly in front of an Emperor-tier technique.


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist, First Transformation Wind!¡±


    At thest second, Situ Yu could only use the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist¡¯s first technique on Long Chen. Tens of thousands of demonic shadows came from his fist. Within that small space, groups of demons roared and shot out with one punch, colliding with Long Chen¡¯s Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    Both attacks had their own strengths. Long Chen had good timing, which forced Situ Yu to react quickly and clumsily. However, Situ Yu had more essence!


    The Emperor-tierbat techniques collided, causing Heavenly Wood City to tremble for a moment. There was an explosion, and both parties flew backwards. Long Chen had been hit harder, so he flew more than twenty meters back before finally stabilizing himself after stumbling for a while. He was almost rolling on the ground.


    Although Situ Yu had reacted in panic, he managed to stabilize himself!


    What shocked Situ Yu most from this exchange was the fact that Long Chen knew where he was! He was confident that his Heavenly Demon Dance had been executed perfectly.


    <em>He¡¯s a lucky bastard! He hit me even with a random guess. But you¡¯re not going to be lucky again!</em>


    After the exchange, Situ Yu figured out Long Chen¡¯s true strength. He knew that in a normal battle, Long Chen would never be a match for him, which excited him.


    To be honest, Situ Yu was indeed an opponent who was difficult to beat. Long Chen had sustained minor injuries. His Ninth Earthly Martial Stage opponent¡¯s attack had made his blood and Qi surge unstably, and his whole body felt terrible. He struggled to finally stabilize his vitals, but Situ Yuughed maniacally once more and charged at him!


    Since the beginning of the battle, Situ Yu was the one who attacked first!


    Long Chen sensed that the gap between them was just too big. He had not used his double sealbo yet, but he knew that it wouldn¡¯t be enough to kill Situ Yu.


    Therefore, he needed a breakthrough.


    Or he would lose today.


    With that thought, Long Chen took a deep breath. He sank his mind into the Primordial Realm and studied the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s Seventh Earthly Martial Stage punching routine. He had almostpleted it, but due to theck of time, he had been forced to stop cultivating for the duel.


    <em>Who said I can¡¯t study the Martial God Tombstone in battle?</em>


    If other people knew what he was doing, they would be shocked. This brat was just too talented. Although he was fighting an opponent who was far stronger than himself, he still could devote part of his attention to studying the Martial God Tombstone.


    <em>In my current state, I will only be strong enough to defeat Situ Yu if I use Blood Sacrifice. But I can¡¯t use it, so the Martial God Tombstone is my only chance!</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze darkened. Situ Yu was charging, ready to kill him in one strike and snatch the Three Thousand Star Clusters away immediately. As long as the weapon recognized Situ Yu as its master, even Bai Lan would not be able to say anything, because the eight Sect Masters would protect him.


    Half of Long Chen¡¯s mind was deep in the Primordial Realm, while the other half was watching Situ Yu. In the Martial God Tombstone, the human silhouette¡¯s punching routine slowly mirrored Situ Yu¡¯s punches!


    ¡°Die!¡± Situ Yu used the first move of the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist once more!


    ¡°Big Dipper Step!¡± Arge star te appeared on the stage, glowing with golden runes. When Situ Yu¡¯s powerful Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist caused the whole stage to tremble, Long Chen had already appeared on another star dot on the star te. His sheer speed shocked everyone.


    Even Situ Yu was stunned.


    ¡°That¡¯s the Big Dipper Step?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s the Seven Star Body or the Big Dipper Step. They¡¯re all extraordinary. Long Chen is too lucky to have gotten these.¡±


    ¡°Does he want to continue dodging like that?¡±


    After dodging Situ Yu¡¯s attack for the first time, Long Chen continued doing the same thing. He did not attack even once. The crowd watched as Situ Yu chased after Long Chen angrily, insulting and mocking him. He wanted to punch Long Chen just once to kill him, but to his fury, Long Chen always dodged just in time!


    While he was dodging using the Big Dipper Step, Long Chen was studying the Martial God Tombstone. At the same time, he was observing Situ Yu¡¯s punching routine. Regardless of their conflict, Situ Yu was a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, and the profoundness in his every punch helped Long Chen greatly.


    As time passed, the bit of doubt in his mind quickly cleared.


    If he was studying the Martial God Tombstone under normal circumstances, he would have needed several days. However, due to the urgency of the situation and the help of Situ Yu¡¯s attacks, Long Chen was able toprehend it far more quickly!


    Situ Yu missed Long Chen several consecutive times and was forced to chase him in circles, causing the crowd to burst intoughter. Situ Yu could not stand this any longer. He suddenly halted, then he used the Heavenly Demon Dance in Long Chen¡¯s direction, allowing him to instantly arrive in front of Long Chen!


    ¡°Let¡¯s end this now!¡± Situ Yu roared furiously. A ck tornado wrapped around him, along with a violent, powerful energy. Countless demonic illusions appeared around him, spinning!


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Punch, Tribtion of Three Lifetimes!¡±


    This was the second move of the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist. There were three total moves, but Situ Yu only knew the first two. He had just reached the ninth Earthly Martial Stage, and it was likely that he would only be able toprehend thest move after reaching the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    Situ Yu sent out three Fist Seals, which were condensed with countless demonic shadows. They flew at Long Chen from three directions. Situ Yu¡¯s Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist hadpletely surpassed Feng Zhilin¡¯s Thousand Seals.


    And Long Chen did not have any support from Blood Sacrifice right now!


    When Situ Yu used the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist, the silhouette in Long Chen¡¯s Primordial Realm reached the final point of the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage punching demonstration!


    Then it retracted its fist!


    When the silhouette retracted its fist, Situ Yu punched. When he saw one punch while the other retracted its fist, Long Chen had a sudden bout of realization. He felt like an obstruction in his mind had suddenly been cleared. This refreshing feeling made his Martial Soul strengthen immensely!


    The profoundness of the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s teaching plus the pressure from Situ Yu¡¯s battle had led to Long Chen reaching the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage mid-battle!


    However, at this critical moment, Situ Yu¡¯s Emperor-tierbat technique was already flying at him!


    Long Chen had frozen for a brief moment when he made his breakthrough, so he could n¡¯t dodge the attack using the Big Dipper Step. Long Chen had no choice. He understood that everything came at a price. He had reached the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage mid-battle, but the price was being unable to dodge Situ Yu¡¯s attack.

 Chapter 787: Tribulation of Three Lifetimes

    Long Chen nned to use his strongest attack before using Rewind.


    He wouldn¡¯t die if he used Rewind. His n was to return his body to how it was ten breaths ago. It was risky and annoying, but it was his only choice.


    Long Chen had been relying on the Big Dipper Step to avoid attacks. It had been a dazzling fight, and everyone¡¯s perception of Long Chen had changed. It was an incredible feat for him tost so long despite being at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage.


    His only disadvantage was that his cultivation level was too low.


    However, no one knew that Long Chen was studying the Martial God Tombstone while he was dodging with his Big Dipper Step.


    At the final moment, Long Chen had spaced out and could not dodge thest attack. Everyone stood up anxiously when they saw that the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist was going tond.


    ¡°The winner has been decided! Long Chen is going to die!¡±


    ¡°It was an amazing duel, but he¡¯s too weak. It¡¯s already amazing that he couldst so long¡­¡±


    Su Yan and Su Xue both looked at their father. They wanted to hear him say that Long Chen still had a card up his sleeve, but all they saw was that their father was in confusion.¡°Wait¡­ He¡¯s trying to advance!¡± Bai Lan suddenly shouted when he realized what was going on.


    Lei Ji, Su Xue, and Su Yan were shocked. To think that Long Chen was trying to make a breakthrough during the duel!


    It was a surprising thing to do, but they were uncertain if Long Chen could win even if he advanced. He would still be hit by Situ Yu¡¯s attack.


    It was even more likely that Long Chen would die before he could advance.


    The duel became extremely tense.


    Bai Lan readied himself to save Long Chen. He would not let him die by Situ Yu¡¯s hand.


    The first technique of the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist was indeed frightening. Long Chen frowned as his Martial Soul swiftly solidified. He would only have enough essence to fight against Situ Yu once the breakthrough was done.


    Just then, Little Cat said from within the Primordial Realm, ¡°Brat, you continue your cultivation. I will help you for a moment.¡±


    Long Chen felt much safer with his words. Even with Rewind, Long Chen was still worried that something bad would happen after he took on Situ Yu¡¯s attack. With Little Cat¡¯s help, Long Chen felt much safer and chose to give up on evading, turning his attention to advancing.


    The Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist almostnded on Long Chen.


    At thest moment, Little Cat¡¯s furry body popped out from Long Chen¡¯s chest. Situ Yu was surprised to see the little cat when thetter¡¯s eyes shed ck, causing Situ Yu to get caught in the illusion.


    He saw Long Chen somehow manage to use the Big Dipper Step and appear to his left.


    ¡°You are fast, but can you really dodge?¡± Situ Yuughed and suddenly changed directions. He punched to his left and destroyed Long Chen instantly.


    ¡°Wait, where¡¯s the Three Thousand Star Clusters?¡± Blood and flesh rained down around him, but the Three Thousand Star Clusters did not appear. Situ Yu was confused. He was even more confused when the flesh disappeared.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Situ Yu was still bewildered by the scene in front of him. He shook his head and broke out of the illusion to find that Long Chen was still in his original position. Situ Yu had shifted his own attack and missed!


    Situ Yu didn¡¯t know what was going on. The crowd was confused too. They didn¡¯t know why Situ Yu had suddenly changed the trajectory of his attack and spared Long Chen.


    The Demon n, especially the eight Sect Elders, were confused.


    ¡°Situ Yao, what¡¯s going on with your grandson. He could¡¯ve killed Long Chen. Why did he redirect his attack?¡± Several elders were ring at Situ Yao with anger. They thought that this was Situ Yao¡¯s idea.


    ¡°I have no idea either¡­¡± Situ Yao was clueless too. They had almost seeded, and he was overjoyed right up until Situ Yu wasted that single chance. Why?


    Situ Yao couldn¡¯t figure it out either until he saw the small, ck cat on Long Chen¡¯s chest. The cat suddenly disappeared in front of everyone¡¯s eyes, but Situ Yao remembered what it looked like. He had to recall his knowledge on demonic beasts before he recognized what the ck cat was.


    ¡°It¡¯s a Dream Demon! It can generate illusions to fool its attackers. Little Yu must¡¯ve been caught in the illusion. Thankfully, the Dream Demon is still young, so it probably exhausted its energy with just that single illusion. I suppose Little Yu can kill Long Chen now!¡± Situ Yao eximed boldly.


    Hearing that it was the work of a Dream Demon, the other elders nodded in understanding. That was why Situ Yu had missed just now.


    But then something even more shocking started unfolding.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­ He just advanced into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage!¡±


    ¡°His essence is growing!¡±


    Everyone shouted in shock because no one had expected Long Chen to advance in the middle of the duel!


    Only Bai Lan wasughing. Bai Lan knew Long Chen¡¯s only weakness was in his essence, but by advancing into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, Long Chen would have as much essence as someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. He even had a lot of Emperor-tier Martial Techniques. There was no way Situ Yu could defeat him now.


    A huge amount of spiritual energy surged into Long Chen¡¯s body and transformed into Dragon Soul Essence. His Martial Soul became stronger. In the short amount of time that Situ Yu had missed his attack, Long Chen had advanced into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage.


    ¡°Shit! This is too tiring. I never thought that brat¡¯s Martial Soul would be so strong that I had to spend all of my energy just for that measly illusion. Brat, I leave the rest to you.¡±


    Little Catined from inside the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Of course¡­¡±


    Long Chen smiled.


    The essence of an Eighth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator appeared in his body. With this much essence, Long Chen could finally activate the power of the Seven Star Body.


    An explosive power burst forth from his fist.


    Long Chen had never thought he would be this strong one day.


    <em>Crackle.</em>


    The essence surged throughout his body.


    Situ Yu turned around and saw the bright light shining from Long Chen¡¯s eyes. There was a dazzling, bloody lighting off of him as well as the purple celestial Qi!


    ¡°He advanced?!¡± Situ Yu was shocked.


    But he was not afraid.


    ¡°You are only at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. You are still too weak to beat me! What can you do?¡± Situ Yu chuckled and used the Heavenly Demon Dance to lunge towards Long Chen from different directions.


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist, Tribtions of Three Lifetimes!¡±


    Three fist seals formed and surged towards Long Chen. The demonic illusions howled with a billion voices that interrupted Long Chen¡¯s focus.


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal appeared in Long Chen¡¯s right palm.


    With the Golden Crow mes¡¯ amplifying the power, along with Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body, the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal burst forth with monstrous power. Even though his essence was still a stage lower than Situ Yu¡¯s, there was barely any difference in strength!


    The Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal twisted and crashed into Situ Yu¡¯s attack. This time, with Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body, itpletely overpowered Situ Yu¡¯s Tribtions of Three Lifetimes! The burning fire roared towards Situ Yu without stopping!


    ¡°How could it be this strong?¡± Situ Yu realized toote that Long Chen¡¯s attack had suppressed him. He rotated his body wildly to form arge ck tornado that repelled the fire, but the impact of the Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal still blew him backwards, causing him to roll on the ground and scorching parts of his clothes ck.


    ¡°How could this be?¡±


    Everyone was shocked by Long Chen¡¯s newfound strength. The Demon n was the one who was surprised the most. Except for Bai Lan, almost everyone else had been supporting Situ Yu. Long Chen was an outsider to them and they would rather Situ Yu take both the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and Su Xue.


    Situ Yu had been suppressing Long Chen, but now after advancing into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, Long Chen was the one who¡¯s overpowering Situ Yu.


    ¡°He¡¯s only at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage and could overpower Situ Yu at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage? Is the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord that powerful?¡±


    Everyone was excited.


    ¡°Situ Yao, is your grandson losing?¡± The other grand elders frowned. They had nned for a very long time for the duel today. If Situ Yu lost, all of their prior investment would evaporate.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. My grandson hasn''t brought out the Ever Changing Spear. Long Chen can never overpower it.¡± Situ Yao was still confident in his grandson.


    Indeed. Situ Yu had only been careless. Would Long Chen be able to defeat him if he took out the Ever Changing Spear?


    The difference in Essence couldn¡¯t be ovee easily.


    Everyone was looking at their duel with anticipation as Situ Yu slowly stood back up. He red at Long Chen before he smiled.


    ¡°Not bad. You are indeed my greatest foe. You did not disappoint me.¡± Situ Yu chuckled without a hint of worrying that he would lose.


    ¡°Take out your Ever Changing Spear. I know you have it.¡± Bai Lan already exined to Long Chen about the Ever Changing Spear. It was the treasure of the Situ family so he was certain that Situ Yu had it now.


    ¡°You know that I had the Ever Changing Spear?¡± Situ Yu frowned and brandished his jet ck spear. Illusions of demons wrapped around the spear and traveled up his arms.

 Chapter 788: Outcome

    As expected, Situ Yu indeed had the Ever Changing Spear.


    Ten thousand demon illusions were trapped within the Ever Changing Spear. They howled and wailed in their prison. Long Chen felt the power radiating from the weapon.


    It was a dark and scary energy.


    Situ Yu became confident once more after he took it out. He had embarrassed himself after getting pushed back by Long Chen, so he was getting angry. He gripped the Ever Changing Spear so tightly that his knuckles cracked.


    A ck whirlpool appeared around the Ever Changing Spear that sucked even the light around it. Situ Yu twirled the spear around himself, and all the light within his vicinity was consumed by it.


    Long Chen recalled Feng Zhilin¡¯s Shapeless Whip when he saw the Ever Changing Spear. Both Divine Weapons were equally strong, but the Shapeless Whip was the most treasured Divine Weapon in the Wind n. The Ever Changing Spear, a Divine Weapon of the same caliber, was the treasure of the Situ family, however. Long Chen now saw the difference in strength between the Demon n and the Thunder n versus the Wind n and the Divine n.


    He would¡¯ve been helpless against the Ever Changing Spear if he hadn¡¯t advanced into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. Thankfully, he managed to break through at thest moment.


    ¡°Time to end this.¡±


    Situ Yu held onto the Ever Changing Spear and approached Long Chen. He stopped just ten meters away.Long Chen could feel the cold energying from the Ever Changing Spear even though he wasn¡¯t close enough to touch it.


    Everyone saw Situ Yu pointing the Ever Changing Spear towards Long Chen as the demon illusions howled.


    Long Chen circted his essence and syed open his palm. Both the Golden Emperor Seal and the Scarlet Emperor Seal lit up. Facing the Ever Changing Spear, Long Chen chose to fuse the two seals together. This was the strongest technique he had disyed so far. He could technically use something stronger, but there was no need to use it against Situ Yu.


    The two seals fused together. The crowd saw that Long Chen was preparing an extremely strong Emperor-tier martial technique. But only Bai Lan and Lei Ji noticed the specific nature of the technique. Both of them looked at Long Chen with uncertainty.


    ¡°His technique has both the energies of metal and fire. I think he¡¯s fusing the techniques of the Golden Emperor and the Scarlet Emperor together. The fusion of the two different techniques would be very destructive.¡±


    ¡°I also sense the aura of the Five Emperors from him. It seems that he was chosen by the Five Emperors.¡±


    The two of them were whispering so lightly that no one heard them.


    While they were talking, no one had noticed that two of Lei Ji¡¯s sons had disappeared from the Thunder n¡¯s seats. One of them slowly approached the Demon n while the other stopped just behind Su Xue and the others. The two of them stood still and gave each other knowing gazes. They stood naturally and were still quite far away from their target so no one would suspect anything out of them.


    Long Chen and Situ Yu prepared for their final sh.


    The attack from the Ever Changing Spear was his final hope of killing Long Chen and obtaining the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Situ Yu was circting his essence and injecting it into the Ever Changing Spear. A ck light radiated from it, and the ck whirlpool grewrger as it snaked towards LOng Chen.


    Situ Yu smiled viciously.


    He lunged towards Long Chen, covering the ten meter gap easily. The Ever Changing Spear released a massive burst of energy as he swung it around. The energy formed a myriad of demonic illusions that swept towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen noticed that he was enveloped by theughing demonic illusions. Only a single point of light, one that made him feel suffocated, was lunging towards his forehead.


    He instinctively knew that the light was the tip of the Ever Changing Spear.


    Long Chen finallypleted the fusion of the two Emperor Seals.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± Long Chen had saved this technique until the final moment to surprise Situ Yu. He expanded the Blood Devouring Domain until it covered Situ Yu.


    ¡°Is that a domain? No, it¡¯s a domain-like technique.¡±


    Both Bai Lan and Lei Ji were very sensitive to domains. They could instantly tell that the Blood Devouring Domain indeed contained the essence of a domain.


    <em>To think that Long Chen had a domain-like technique. If he familiarizes himself with the feeling, he should be able to quicklyprehend the domain once he reaches the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. I suppose he will break through the Heavenly Martial Wall easily and advance into the Heavenly Martial Realm faster than the others.</em>


    Both Bai Lan and Lei Ji had the same thought.


    But neither of them said it out loud, because they were focused on the duel. The victor would be decided soon.


    The two powerful techniques were unleashed at the same time!


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal! Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    The seals fused together and exploded, resulting in a world-ending force. The destructive explosion burst forth from the dark space induced by the Ever Changing Spear. After Long Chen the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, the fused seals were capable of outputting more power than they did back when he used Blood Sacrifice to reach the pseudo-Seventh Earthly Martial Stage. Feng Zhilin had only managed to survive because she hadbined both her Emperor-tier martial techniques with the Shapeless Whip. Unlike her, Situ Yu was only using the power of the Ever Changing Spear.


    The seals became much more effective when they werebined with the Blood Devouring Domain¡¯s suppressive effect. A weakened enemy would find it harder to defend against the powerful seals. The resulting explosion resembled a dragon, and it pierced through the darkness of the Ever Changing Spear.


    <em>Crackle!</em>


    The entire arena exploded, and everyone shouted. No one had expected that a duel between two youths would cause such an incredible explosion. Everyone was both shocked and speechless.


    The fused seals continued to explode in front of him. The Ever Changing Spear could only block so much, and Situ Yu was blown back from the impact.


    ¡°Impossible!¡± The massive energy struck Situ Yu like thunder. However, thanks to his Emperor-tier Body Tempering technique and the Ever Changing Spear mitigating some of the damage, Situ Yu did not die immediately. Even then, much of the destructive energy entered his body and dispersed most of his essence.


    Situ Yu was covered in wounds from the explosion, leaving many cuts on his handsome face. He was also severely wounded internally. Even though he wouldn¡¯t die, he wouldn¡¯t be able to recover very easily.


    Situ Yu was both in disbelief and afraid.


    ¡°I lost? I actually lost to a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator?¡± Situ Yu¡¯s mind was nk. He never thought Long Chen¡¯s technique would be powerful enough to dismantle his martial technique even when he used the Ever Changing Spear.


    The attack wouldn¡¯t have hurt him before, but the situation was different once Long Chen advanced into the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage.


    Situ Yu was holding up the hope of the eight elders and trying to maintain his own reputation. He had boasted to his underlings that he would defeat Long Chen with ease. However, he had lost and was feeling embarrassed.


    Situ Yu couldn¡¯t face other people right now. He just wanted to crawl into a hole. At the same time, his anger towards Long Chen red up.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­ Long Chen!¡± Situ Yu¡¯s heart was burning with anger. He gripped the Ever Changing Spear harder. Even now, the explosion from the two fused Emperor Seals hadn¡¯t faded. The Blood Devouring Domain was still in effect, so no one could see what was going on.


    ¡°No, I cannot lose! I was just careless. I still have a chance!¡±


    Even though he was heavily injured and had lost a lot of Essence, he injected all of his strength into the Ever Changing Spear. The Divine Weapon roared in Situ Yu¡¯s hands like a demon.


    Long Chen used Sight to pinpoint Situ Yu¡¯s location.


    ¡°You think you¡¯re going to walk out of here alive?¡±


    Long Chen swore that he would kill Situ Yu today!


    He used the Big Dipper Step and instantly appeared in front of Situ Yu. He was just two meters away. Situ Yu stumbled backwards from surprise. Even though he hated Long Chen, he also feared him deep down.


    ¡°Die, Long Chen!¡± He thrusted the Ever Changing Spear towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Who¡¯s dying today?¡± Long Chen smiled.


    Situ Yu refused to believe that he would lose. Long Chen was too close and didn¡¯t have any countermeasures prepared, so he was certain that the Ever Changing Spear would pierce through Long Chen¡¯s heart!


    But Situ Yu was uneasy when he saw Long Chen¡¯s smile.


    Just then, starlight appeared on Long Chen¡¯s body and swiftly congregated in his palm to form a dazzling, blue spear.


    It was the Three Thousand Star Cluster that everyone was aiming for!


    Situ Yu was stunned by its beauty. The Three Thousand Star Cluster was what he had dreamed of obtaining. He channeled even more strength into the Ever Changing Spear and lunged towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen spared no words as he thrusted the Three Thousand Star Clusters forward. It transformed into a dazzling, blue light and shed with the tip of the Ever Changing Spear!

 Chapter 789: Thunder Prison

    The Blood Devouring Domain was still blocking the view. The sh from the two fused Emperor Seals and the Ever Changing Spear had destroyed the arena and sent arge plume of dust and sand into the air, blocking everyone¡¯s vision temporarily.


    No one knew that Long Chen was currently holding the Three Thousand Star Clusters and used it to pierced the Ever Changing Spear. Situ Yu used thest of his strength in a bid to destroy Long Chen and take the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    <em>Ding!</em>


    A cracking sound made Situ Yu despair, and his face paled. He saw the Ever Changing Spear slowly disintegrating from the tip after being hit by the Three Thousand Star Clusters. The ck speartip broke, then the handle slowly disintegrated. The Emperor-tier Ever Changing Spear was destroyed little by little by the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    ¡°Impossible!¡±


    Situ Yu''s eyes were wide with shock.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing impossible about it. Die.¡± Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters proceeded to pierce Situ Yu¡¯s heart.


    Long Chen put his Divine Weapon away after Situ Yu¡¯s heart was destroyed. Thetter¡¯s other organs were also slowly being destroyed by Long Chen¡¯s essence. Situ Yu was dead.


    Long Chen removed the Blood Devouring Domain, and everything quieted down. The crowd could finally see what had happened in the arena.Long Chen had only brandished the Three Thousand Star Clusters for a brief time, but everyone had felt its terrifying power.


    After the power of the Three Thousand Star Clusters disappeared, Long Chen and Situ Yu were seen standing. Long Chen was unharmed, but the spectators with better eyesight saw a hole in Situ Yu¡¯s chest. Blood flowed out slowly from it.


    Situ Yu¡¯s life quickly dissipated, and everyone soon saw that he was dead.


    Long Chen had always been ruthless and merciless when he needed to be. He had killed Situ Yu with no mercy when he had the chance, not giving his foe any chances to turn things around.


    He had to strike as hard as he could when he had the upper hand!


    Everyone was quiet after they saw the result of the duel. No one expected something like this to happen, because they thought Situ Yu would be the winner. They never thought that Long Chen would not only advance into the next stage, but also kill Situ Yu in front of the Demon n.


    Everyone had expected that someone would die today. Situ Yu would''ve needed to kill Long Chen to take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, but they never thought he would be the one who would die instead.


    The brief silence was reced by an uproar, with the Demon n shouting the loudest. They still didn¡¯t ept Long Chen as one of them and instead ced all of their hope in Situ Yu. No one had expected that Situ Yu would lose.


    ¡°Little Yu!¡± Situ Yao never thought his grandson would die in this short fight.


    He had painstakingly raised his grandson for many years, and now Long Chen had killed him. Situ Yao could not ept the result, and killing intent flowed out of his eyes.


    ¡°Die!¡± He ran towards the arena and appeared beside Situ Yu first. He hugged Situ Yu and confirmed that his grandson was now just a corpse.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­¡±


    Situ Yao¡¯s eyes were bloodshot when he red at Long Chen.


    Lei Ji was the first to move. ¡°Situ Yao clearly wants to attack Long Chen. Should I go?¡±


    He had asked first because he noticed that Bai Lan hadn¡¯t done anything.


    Bai Lan smiled mysteriously. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We can just sit here and wait. Situ Yu lost even with the Ever Changing Spear. I doubt that Long Chen would lose to Situ Yao.¡±


    Lei Ji pondered for a moment and then nodded in agreement.


    That was why he hadn¡¯t moved. But what Lei Ji failed to notice was that Bai Lan was scanning his surroundings carefully, not because of Long Chen, but because of the suspicious movements of certain individuals.


    Situ Yu¡¯s death caused arge ruckus, and a lot of people surged towards the arena. They wanted to inspect what had happened, especially the members of the Demon n. All of them were angry and wanted to tear Long Chen to pieces. If remaining Sect Elders weren¡¯t maintaining the order, the entire ce would¡¯ve delved into chaos.


    Even the people from the Thunder n couldn¡¯t sit still as they approached Long Chen.


    The situation slowly turned chaotic.


    ¡°Sect Elder Situ, kill him!¡±


    ¡°He has broken the rules and killed Big Brother Situ! Kill him!¡±


    Bai Lan said nothing, but the rest of the Demon n started shouting one after another. They wanted to pin down Long Chen to kill him!


    Situ Yao couldn¡¯t control himself when he confirmed his grandson¡¯s death. His anger boiled over, and he red at Long Chen as he carefully stored Situ Yu¡¯s corpse. Situ Yao only made his move when everyone was tense. He tantly ignored Bai Lan and Lei Ji and he attacked Long Chen using his strongest technique, the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist¡¯s Tribtions of Three Lifetimes.


    Everyone mored when they saw Situ Yao attacking Long Chen. Situ Yao was roughly as strong as Situ Yu, but his standing in the Demon n was much higher. There were very few people whomanded as much respect in the Demon n and the Divine Demon Empire.


    But another incident took ce at the same exact moment.


    There were two Thunder Elders stationed near the Demon n and where Bai Lan was. One of them was Lei Yuan, who was standing near Bai Lan. All of a sudden, lightning surged out of their bodies.


    The lightning was so fast that it instantly enveloped Bai Lan and the Sect Elders.


    ¡°What is this?¡± The Thunder n¡¯s treasure packed a lot of destructive power, so the crackling lightning burned many of the weaker disciples. Even though they weren¡¯t killed, the lightning singed their flesh open.


    There were two such attacks. One was aimed at the Demon n¡¯s Sect Elders, while the other was aimed at Bai Lan and Lei Ji. Bai Lan didn¡¯t hesitate to shield his daughters. Lei Ji, on the other hand, immediately recognized what it was. He was livid, but there was nothing he could do, because the lightning cage was so fast that it entrapped him, Bai Lan, Su Xue, and Su Yan.


    ¡°Who used the Thunder Prison? Who used the trump card of our n?¡± Lei Ji was seething as he unleashed a thunderous roar. Everyone around him was pushed back, except for Bai Lan and his daughters.


    The weaker members of the Thunder n spat blood after being hit by the shockwave of Lei Ji¡¯s shout.


    The lightning formed a circr cage and trapped all of them. The lightning was special in that it was a fierce purple. It shed menacingly around them, and the burning energy made everyone wary of touching it.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were trapped. The Sect Elders were trapped too. The disciples around them weren¡¯t protected like Su Yan and Su Xue were, so the purple lightning killed many of the ones who were close to the sources. The Sect Elders recognized what it was and stopped moving.


    They had seen how the Patriarch of the Thunder n was imprisoned by the Thunder Elders!


    <em>What is the Thunder n doing?</em> Everyone had the same question and were shocked by the sudden development. Long Chen¡¯s duel was surprising enough, and now the Thunder n was popping out another surprise?


    ¡°Thunder Elders, what are you doing?¡± Lei Ji calmed down and looked to them for answers. The seven Thunder Elders were standing in front of him, while the rest of the Thunder n was following them. Most of the Thunder n didn¡¯t know what was going on, but they did know that this was an internal conflict between the Thunder Elders and their patriarch. Both sides were the giants of the Thunder n and represented the tworgest factions. Lei Ji was the strongest member, while the seven Thunder Elders¡¯ influence over the Thunder n was deep.


    Situ Yao stopped when he saw what was happening. All of the Sect Elders except for him had been entrapped by the Thunder Prison. Situ Yao carefully considered his options here.


    It was clear that the Thunder n had a significant goal to achieve if they had used two of the five Thunder Prisons. The Thunder Prisons were their final trump card, and they had actually used it to imprison the two patriarchs.


    Their goal was undoubtedly the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    The Thunder Elders stood in front of Lei Ji without fear of their patriarch¡¯s re. One of them stepped forward and stated clearly, ¡°Patriarch, we have endured the suppression of the Demon n for a very long time and yet you have no clue of our struggles. We do not hope for your assistance today, but we hope that you will lead us to freedom once we take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance!¡±

 Chapter 790: Heavenly Demon Meteor

    The sudden incident took everyone by surprise. Everyone was staring at the Thunder Elders as they waited for Lei Ji¡¯s answer.


    Lei Ji was livid; he even gnashed his teeth after he heard them speak. ¡°Remove the Thunder Prison and I won¡¯t kill you! Or else¡­¡±


    Lei Ji clenched his fists tightly, and lightning wrapped around his arms. The purple lightning split up and crackled as a dangerous aura exuded from his body. This was a type of domain, the doman he could use ever since he reached the First Heavenly Martial Stage.


    The powerful aura made the Thunder Elders frown. They understood what he was nning to do even without a verbal answer. Lei Ji¡¯s answer was a definite no.


    ¡°Scatter and don¡¯t get close to his domain!¡±


    The Thunder Elders swiftly retreated when Lei Ji released his domain. They looked at each other before running towards Long Chen, bypassing both patriarchs.


    A domain was mainly used to suppress the target, not to attack. Bai Lan and Lei Ji were trapped in the Thunder Prison, so they couldn¡¯t attack the Thunder Elders.


    Lei Ji shouted loudly, almost exploding with anger. The other Thunder n members did nothing when the Thunder Elders took action because they were right. While the Thunder n was indeed safe under the Demon n¡¯s protection, their safety came at the cost of their freedom, especially since the younger members were frequently bullied by the Demon n.


    ¡°Thunder Elders, you are seeking death. Once the Thunder Prison¡¯s duration is over, I will kill you!¡± Lei Ji¡¯s angry voice never stopped. Everyone felt their hairs rising up when they heard the threats of their Heavenly Martial Realm patriarch.Lei Ji was angry, but Bai Lan was not, even though he was supposed to be even angrier. He remained calm, which made Lei Ji notice that Bai Lan had a n up his sleeve.


    Lei Ji sighed and said helplessly, ¡°Brother Bai, I¡¯m sorry. This is my fault.¡±


    ¡°No, the fault is mine. They are right. The Thunder n and the Demon n are supposed to be sworn brothers. It¡¯s all because I never taught my n members how to act and didn¡¯t set them on the right path. This is a good chance to make the two ns be friendlier ¡­¡±


    Lei Ji was shocked when he saw Bai Lan grinning. He finally understood what Bai Lan was doing. He had a feeling that Bai Lan already knew what was going to happen. The other ns saw Bai Lan not only as strong, but also smart and cunning. It was one of the reasons he was so sessful.


    ¡°Brother Bai, I will listen to what you have to say,¡± Lei Ji said. He had befriended Bai Lan when he was young, but because they had focused only on themselves, they had mistakenly thought that the Demon n and the Thunder n were as friendly as they were. They never thought that there would be minor arguments here and there that would lead to the explosion that was taking ce right now.


    The Thunder Elders wanted to kill Long Chen swiftly, so they surrounded him and Situ Yao from seven different directions. Situ Yao was looking at Long Chen and the Thunder Elders at the same time, trying toe up with a n.


    The Thunder n had used two Thunder Prisons to imprison the Demon n. Only Situ Yao wasn¡¯t imprisoned, so the rest of the Thunder n looked at him and Long Chen.


    ¡°Situ Yao, you may go. Even though our actions today are unforgivable, our ns have fought together for a very long time. We are still technically allies, so we have no intention of killing anyone from the Demon n today. We will leave once we have the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.¡±


    The leader of the Thunder Elders, Lei Yuan, was the one who had spoken.


    The Thunder n was revolting, but they didn¡¯t want to make an enemy out of the Demon n. They just wanted the inheritance so that their n wouldn¡¯t need totch onto the Demon n to survive. Bai Lan would never forgive them if they killed Situ Yao today.


    Situ Yao sighed when he heard that they didn¡¯t n on killing him. He immediately thought of a solution. ¡°Lei Yuan, you¡¯ve temporarily imprisoned the Demon n and there¡¯s no doubt that I am no match for all seven of you. I won¡¯t fight back, as I am not seeking death. You can have the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, but under one condition.¡±


    The prideful Demon n members looked down on Situ Yao¡¯s cowardice. They chatted and ndered him, but they didn¡¯t say it out loud. Situ Yao was doing the right thing to secure his own life. More importantly, Bai Lan hadn''t said anything. Situ Yao was only a Sect Elder, so there was no need for him to sacrifice his life here.


    Bai Lan hasn''t said anything until now. Some of them doubted his strength as a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator and the owner of the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    ¡°Situ Yao, what is your request?¡± Lei Yuan didn¡¯t want to waste any time¡ªhe had to kill Long Chen as soon as possible. Once Long Chen was dead and the inheritance was in their hands, they would then have to deal with the Demon n. If both sides fought, the Thunder n would most likely be destroyed, but the Demon n would be heavily wounded too.


    The Thunder n was betting on the Demon n not fighting them. There were three main factions in the Ancient Graveyard, and the other two factions weren¡¯t easy to deal with. If they fought here, it would most likely result in their decimation. All of them would lose right there and then.


    Situ Yao did not hesitate to state his condition. ¡°Long Chen killed my grandson, so I want to kill him myself, and I won¡¯t take the inheritance after I do. I will say this again. If I don¡¯t get to kill him, I will fight all of you to the death! The entire Demon n will rain their wrath down on the Thunder n!¡±


    Situ Yao had just said that the entire Demon n would make a move to secure his own personal interest. Unfortunately, Bai Lan had said nothing yet, so Situ Yao¡¯s words were as good as nothing. More importantly, everyone was curious as to why Bai Lan was still silent. In fact, he was eerily silent even though his son-inw was about to be killed.


    No one knew what Bai Lan was thinking.


    Even his daughters were panicking, yet Bai Lan remained calm. There was one more person who was still calm, and that was Long Chen. He looked at Situ Yao and the Thunder Elders. All of them were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, but he wasn¡¯t afraid at all.


    The Thunder Elders agreed to Situ Yao¡¯s condition after a short discussion. Lei Yuan red at him. ¡°Situ Yao, end it swiftly. We don¡¯t have time. Also, we will make sure you die if you so much as touch the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Retreat is no longer an option for the Thunder n.¡±


    ¡°Deal! It won¡¯t take more than ten breaths!¡±


    Having received the Thunder n¡¯s permission, Situ Yao was excited. Even though the inheritance would not be his, he would be satisfied with killing Long Chen to avenge his grandson. He could think about the other stuffter.


    Everyone shouted when Situ Yao charged towards Long Chen. He had initially wanted to attack Long Chen when the revolt from the Thunder n sprung.


    ¡°Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist, Heavenly Demon Meteor!¡±


    This was the final move of the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist, an elementary Emperor-tier technique. It was most suited for cultivators at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, but Situ Yao was talented enough to use it even though he was only at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    An explosive shockwave spread everywhere when Situ Yaounched his punches. A ck light appeared and fragmented into a myriad of fist illusions. The illusions were all focused on Long Chen¡¯s forehead. All Long Chen could see was a massive demon illusion flying towards him with its mouth wide open!


    The space around Situ Yao trembled, and the Thunder Elders looked at each other with shock because the technique was too powerful! They had to take a few steps back to mitigate its effect on them.


    ¡°Prepare to take the inheritance! Be wary of Situ Yao fooling us!¡± Lei Yuan warned the other Thunder Elders.


    They were certain that Long Chen would be killed by that attack.


    When the Heavenly Demon Meteor descended on Long Chen, he remained calm as starlight condensed in his grasp and took the shape of a brilliant, blue spear. Long Chen infused all of his essence into the dazzling spear before thrusting it towards Situ Yao.

 Chapter 791: Killing The Sect Elder

    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡± Everyone knew that Long Chen was unable to use it because he was only at the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage. One had to be at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage to utilize its power properly.


    But Long Chen had as much essence as someone at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, and his essence was specialpared to the essence of others, so he was more than capable of wielding the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was formed from the three thousand stars on his body. Each of them contained the power of a real star and existed as celestial Qi, which wasparable to the Metal Devouring Wind. Long Chen used his essence to circte the celestial Qi, and it exploded outwards from the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Even if he didn¡¯t use a technique, a single explosion of celestial Qi was already a horrifying attack.


    Long Chen channeled his essence and merged his Dragon Soul Essence and the celestial Qi together. Arge cloud of purple and blood-red gas flew towards Situ Yao. The Three Thousand Star Clusters¡¯ strength far exceeded Long Chen¡¯s expectations. He didn¡¯t know what tier the Three Thousand Star Clusters was, but now he assumed that it was an advanced Emperor-tier Divine Weapon. It was just one step away from the Divine tier!


    It was definitely considered a treasure even in the Three Emperor Territories.


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡± Situ Yao channeled all of his essence into the Heavenly Demon Meteor!


    Which was stronger? The Three Thousand Star Clusters or the Heavenly Demon Meteor?


    The answer was revealed when Long Chen¡¯s dazzling spear pierced through Situ Yao¡¯s fist with a howl.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Everyone was shocked, especially Situ Yao. He was confident in the technique that he had perfected over the years. But his confidence was shattered by Long Chen when an incredibly sharp force pierced through his fist. Even the Ever-Changing Spear had been destroyed by the Three Thousand Star Clusters, much less SItu Yao¡¯s fist.The Three Thousand Star Clusters was also much stronger than Long Chen had anticipated it to be. The celestial Qi formed a whirlpool that covered the tip of the spear before piercing into Situ Yao¡¯s body!


    ¡°AHHH!¡± Situ Yao cried out in pain because it wasn¡¯t just the tip that had stabbed into his body, but also the celestial Qi. Long Chen could finally share the pain of being ravaged by celestial Qi with someone else. He had the protection of the Seven Star Essence and the control given by the core while he was bathed in celestial Qi, but Situ Yao didn¡¯t. The celestial Qi that was injected into his body was destroying him from the inside out!


    ¡°Why! Why!¡± The Three Thousand Star Clusters that he yearned for was embedded in his body. Situ Yao¡¯s mind nked out as the intense pain burned his spirit.


    ¡°Die! Explode!¡± Situ Yao used all of his strength to forcefully eject the Three Thousand Star Clusters by exploding part of his chest. At the same time, he forced out the celestial Qi at the price of even more flesh.


    ¡°He¡¯s only at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage! He cannot kill me!¡± Situ Yao refused to believe it. After forcing the Three Thousand Star Clusters out, he used the final attack of the Heavenly Demon Transformation Fist to try and kill Long Chen!


    But Long Chen''s eyes glinted and he spun the Three Thousand Star Clusters. He swung the spear into Situ Yao¡¯s arm and smashed it into pieces. Flesh and blood sprayed everywhere, and Situ Yao cried out in pain and flew backwards. He could no longer attack now that his arm was destroyed. He was nothing but a cripple now.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Situ Yao howled as his eyes turned bloodshot.


    His hatred for Long Chen had no bounds.


    ¡°It¡¯s normal for a person to be greedy. I''m greedy too. But there are things that require luck in this world. I am lucky, so I managed to obtain the inheritance. You, however, will never be able to touch it. Those who want to take my things are my enemies. And all of my enemies meet the same end¡ªdeath.¡±


    When Situ Yao was blown away by Long Chen¡¯s attack, everyone saw the Three Thousand Star Clusters emitting a dazzling, blue light that pierced Situ Yao¡¯s heart. It had moved so fast that not even Situ Yao could avoid it. His body fell onto the ground and rolled a few times before it stopped. Blood pooled under his corpse, and he no longer moved.


    But Situ Yao¡¯s eyes were still wide open even in death.


    Everyone was speechless when they saw what had happened. No one dared to speak, especially the regr cultivators who had scurried here hoping that they would get some scraps while the Demon and Thunder ns were fighting.


    As for the Thunder n, each and every one of them was in awe when they witnessed the strength of Long Chen and the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord. They didn¡¯t think of anything else since the Thunder Elders were in charge of the situation.


    The Demon n members were ovee with fear after seeing one of their Sect Elders get killed, especially the other Sect Elders. They had worked with Situ Yao for many years, but now both he and his grandson had been killed by Long Chen. The Situ family was done for.


    Long Chen held onto the Three Thousand Star Clusters and red at everyone.


    He looked at the Demon n and saw that they were ring back.


    ¡°Long Chen, how dare you kill a Sect Elder of the Demon n! You are supposed to be the Patriarch¡¯s son-inw! It¡¯s a grave sin to kill someone from the same n!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! Someone as cruel as you must be punished!¡±


    ¡°Patriarch, you cannot forgive Long Chen! He¡¯s extremely vicious, and we demand justice! The Situ family has contributed a lot to the Demon n, but now the two most important people in their family are dead! We will not tolerate it if you let him go!¡±


    Everyone started shouting, including some of the Sect Elders who were trapped.


    Bai Lan was still calm. No matter how loudly theyined, he never once looked at them. Instead, he was looking at Long Chen with eyes full of approval. He was waiting to see what Long Chen would do to the Seven Thunder Elders.


    Long Chen faced the Demon n and said, ¡°Are you all still clueless as to what¡¯s going on? You are being imprisoned. You should be trying to get out rather than thinking about me.¡±


    After looking around, he continued, ¡°I¡¯m sure everyone here is an adult. Can¡¯t you see what is happening? Situ Yu and Situ Yao wanted to take my life! I merely paid back the favor! The Situ family wanted to steal what is mine, so they were naturally prepared to die if they failed! You guys are the same! If you want to take my stuff,e and fight me. Can you be considered real men if all you do isin to the patriarch? Don¡¯t you know how shameless you¡¯re being?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s taunt was effective, leaving the Demon n members embarrassed. None of them could retort because this was indeed thew of the jungle. Situ Yu and Situ Yao wanted to kill Long Chen, but because they were weaker, they were killed instead. Although Long Chen was ruthless, he was right.


    The other Sect Elders stared at each other, unable toe up with a response.


    Long Chen and Situ Yao¡¯s fight hadsted less than ten breaths. The Thunder Elders didn¡¯t have time on their side. While they were wary of Long Chen, their greed spiked when they saw the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    The stronger Long Chen was, the more they wanted the inheritance. After Long Chen finished talking to the Demon n, the Thunder Elders surrounded him. All seven of them were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, while Long Chen was only at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage.


    Even someone at the First Heavenly Martial Stage would have to be careful in this scenario, much less Long Chen. Seven cultivators at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage was an incredible fighting power anywhere in the Ten Thousand Nation Territories. The Divine Martial Empire did not have even one person of that caliber. In fact, the Divine Martial Empire couldn¡¯t even produce someone at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Long Chen had to face all seven of them at the same time.


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful¡­¡± Both Suxue and Suyan were crying now. While they were shocked by how strong Long Chen was, it was useless now. The Ninth Earthly Martial Stage elders were the strongest members of the Thunder n when Lei Ji wasn¡¯t being counted.


    ¡°Father, can¡¯t you force this Thunder Prison open?¡± Suyan was panicking.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, be calm. What are you worried about? I assure you that Long Chen will be alright.¡± Bai Lan smiled and patted Suyan¡¯s head.


    Suyan nodded.


    Even Lei Ji didn¡¯t know how strong Bai Lan was.


    ¡°Hey, you can open the Thunder Prison, right?¡± Only someone at the Heavenly Martial Realm could understand the strength of their peers. The Thunder Elders had underestimated Bai Lan¡¯s strength, but Lei Ji wouldn¡¯t make the same mistake. He knew how terrifying Bai Lan was.


    ¡°Who said that?¡± Bai Lan chuckled.


    Just then, Long Chen held up the Three Thousand Star Clusters when he saw the Thunder Elders closing in on him. He was calm like Bai Lan. Wisps of celestial Qi emerged from the Three Thousand Star Clusters and wrapped around it, disying its fangs and ws like a beast. The cold air forced the Thunder Elders to step back.

 Chapter 792: Thunder Fox

    ¡°Long Chen, we will give you a chance to disconnect the Three Thousand Star Clusters from your body. Also, tell us the method to cultivate the Big Dipper Step and the Seven Star Body. We will ensure your safety afterward.¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯tply, we will take it from your corpse. You might¡¯ve killed Situ Yu and Situ Yao, but there are seven of us. We can definitely kill you.¡±


    ¡°You have talent, but your cultivation level is low. You do not have anyone protecting you. Bai Lan only approached you for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. If you didn¡¯t have it, he wouldn¡¯t have even nced your way. Stop dreaming and give us the inheritance.¡±


    ¡°We will give you ten breaths. We will attack if you don¡¯t give us an answer by then,¡± Lei Yuan said decisively.


    Lightning wrapped around their bodies as they encircled Long Chen. The lightning linked between all seven of them to form a lightning barrier to prevent Long Chen from escaping.


    This was not the Metal District, where Long Chen could escape with the Profound Golden Soul.


    But everyone was confused when Long Chen gave his answer. ¡°Just fight now and stop wasting time. I have the Three Thousand Star Clusters, and there¡¯s nothing you can do. I just killed Situ Yao and Situ Yu in session. I¡¯m not afraid of anyone at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. I will kill anyone who stands in my way!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words were arrogant!


    He was definitely the most striking person today. Whether it was the Demon n, the Thunder n, or the regr cultivators, all of them were shocked by his words.Who else but Long Chen could utter those words in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory?


    The Thunder Elders wanted to give Long Chen a chance, but they were angered by his words. They looked at each other, then Lei Yuan nodded. ¡°Do it now. Be careful of the Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± All seven of them shouted and moved at the same time. The essence of Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators surged towards Long Chen, sealing him in a zone filled with lightning. The lightning crackled as fists flew towards him.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    Long Chen used the blood-red domain and engulfed the Thunder Elders.


    The intense suction of the Blood Devouring Domain affected even them, so they had to their essence to control their blood. They had to use one-fifth of their essence to be able to move freely in the domain.


    The Golden Crow mes were burning on the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Various energies had gathered on the Three Thousand Star Clusters. When Long Chen used the Blood Devouring Domain, he moved and charged toward the leader of the Thunder Elders, Lei Yuan!


    Lei Yuan was old and held the most authority, but he was undeniably the weakest out of the seven. His body had aged and wasn¡¯t what it used to be. He never managed to earn a new life like Bai Lan, who had ventured into the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    ¡°Protect the Grand Sect Elder!¡±


    The other Thunder Elders acted as one. Because Lei Yuan was their spiritual elder and held a lot of respect, they needed to ensure his safety. But seeing their panic assured Long Chen that Lei Yuan was very important. Long Chen went all out!


    He ignored everyone and thrust the Three Thousand Star Clusters towards Lei Yuan.


    ¡°You are targeting me? Do you think that I¡¯m weak?¡± Lei Yuan turned and suddenly kicked at Long Chen. His leg was wrapped in lightning, and it appeared abruptly in front of Long Chen like real lightning.


    ¡°Lightning Kick!¡±


    Lei Yuan did not stop after a single attack. He continued to use the technique and attacked Long Chen with numerous kicks as swift as lightning. It was clear that the technique was quite strong.


    ¡°Mere tricks.¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid, and his legs moved rapidly. He used the Big Dipper Step and continuously teleported on the star te beneath him. He was so fast that the hundreds of kicks missed him!


    Everyone gasped in shock.


    They had to admit that Long Chen had not relied on treasures to reach his current strength. His cultivation, martial techniques, Body Tempering Methods, and even his usage of the Divine Weapon showcased his talent. The only thing hecked was essence. Thankfully, it was just an issue of time, since he had the Martial God Tombstone to help him increase his cultivation level.


    Long Chen avoided Lei Yuan¡¯s attacks using the Big Dipper Step while also avoiding the attacks from the other Thunder Elders. His body shed rapidly amidst the six of them, and he rapidly approached Lei Yuan!


    ¡°I didn¡¯t hit him?!¡± Lei Yuan was surprised.


    The other Thunder Elders were shocked too because Long Chen had closed in on Lei Yuan. They panicked because it was very likely that Long Chen would kill Lei Yuan if he used the same move he had used against Situ Yao.


    ¡°Quick! Protect the Great Sect Elder!¡± The others ran at Long Chen, but because of his Blood Devouring Domain and how spread out they were, only a few of them could get close to him.


    ¡°Die!¡± Two of them caught up, one to Long Chen¡¯s left and the other to his right.


    ¡°Thunder Fox!¡± one of them howled as his body spun rapidly. A lightning fox appeared out of his hands and pounced on Long Chen! Dangerous electricity crackled on the fox¡¯s body.


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡± Long Chen did not even turn back. A burning, red seal formed on his right hand, and he thrust it into the Thunder Fox. The Thunder Fox shattered into pieces, and Long Chen took advantage of the counter impact and flew forward. He was very close to Lei Yuan now!


    ¡°What a devious trick! He¡¯s incredible!¡± Another Thunder Elder caught up. He closed the gap between him and Long Chen, then he reached into his Universe Pouch and took out tworge Lightning des. He swung them towards Long Chen and shot out two streaks of lightning.


    <em>Ding!</em>


    Long Chen used the Three Thousand Star Clusters to swipe the lightning away.


    ¡°Die!¡± The cultivatorughed because he had one more de to swing at Long Chen. Long Chen¡¯s head would be split in half if it hit him!


    But everyone was surprised when Long Chen grabbed the lightning de with his bare hand.


    Crackling sounds could be heard when Long Chen held onto the de. The shimmering stars of the Seven Star Body and the runes all covered Long Chen¡¯s palm. However, no one knew how Long Chen was able to hold onto an entire de made out of lightning.


    ¡°This de isn¡¯t even at the Emperor-tier. Are you showing it off to embarrass yourself?¡± Long Chen scoffed and snapped the lightning de in half with his bare hand.


    The sound of screeching metal caused everyone to pause in surprise.


    Even though the lightning des weren¡¯t strong, they were still close to the Emperor-tier! To think that Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body was so strong that he could snap a lightning de in half with just his fingers.


    The Thunder Elder who used the des was shocked. He didn¡¯t know what Long Chen''s body was made out of.


    But Long Chen was running out of time, so he didn¡¯t want to talk much. He used the Three Thousand Star Clusters to swat the Thunder Elder away.


    No one was blocking his path to Lei Yuan now. Long Chen actually wanted to hold one of them hostage, but now the situation had changed. Lei Yuan was clearly their leader, so Long Chen decided to deal with him before dealing with the others.


    Long Chen shifted his body rapidly using the Big Dipper Step to reach Lei Yuan. The other six were racing towards them, but it was toote! Theyunched numerous attacks in hopes of stopping Long Chen.


    ¡°Break!¡± Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters rotated wildly. It then exploded and turned into starlight. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, all three thousand stars flew towards Lei Yuan!


    ¡°To think that you can use the Three Thousand Star Cluster like this!¡±


    Lei Yuan was shocked as he retreated, but Long Chen was too fast. Long Chen was using both the Three Thousand Star Clusters and the Big Dipper Step concurrently. He shed and suddenly appeared beside Lei Yuan, using the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal on thetter.


    ¡°Heavenly Thunder Palm!¡±


    Lei Yuan was so surprised that he instinctively used his palm technique. The massive palm wrapped in lightning crashed against Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters. Arge explosion urred, but that wasn¡¯t the important part.

 Chapter 793: Naked

    Long Chen did not even look at the attack and passed through it entirely. The Seven Star Body was unharmed. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the Three Thousand Star Clusters spear that he threw out turned into a blue, starry, ten-meter-long whip. Long Chen gripped one end of the whip, then the other end wrapped tightly around Lei Yuan, who was thrown into the air by the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Come back!¡± Long Chen gripped the whip harder, and the Three Thousand Star Clusters whip wrapped tightly around Lei Yuan so he could not move a single part of his body. He was dragged in front of Long Chen. Compared to the Thunder Prison, the Three Thousand Star Clusters had moreplete control over its victim. Lei Yuan screamed again and again, and although the Three Thousand Star Clusters had turned into a long whip, it was still filled with celestial Qi, which tortured him greatly!


    The Seven Star Lord was famous for his divine weapon, and its awesomeness was on full disy. It was made up of three thousand stars, and Long Chen could rearrange them into a long whip!


    This also meant that the Three Thousand Star Clusters could be turned into any weapon¡ªa sword, knife, whip, or any strange weapon. The Three Thousand Star Clusters¡¯ base state was a spear, so it could only unleash maximum power in its spear state!


    The whip was enough topletely trap Lei Yuan!


    Under the control of the Three Thousand Star Clusters, the elderly Lei Yuan endured the torture of the celestial Qi, unable to move. He red at Long Chen out of the corner of his eye with both despair and fury.


    ¡°Stop that!¡± The other elders all used their best techniques to stop Long Chen, but he was one step ahead of them. Before they came over, he had Lei Yuan under his control.


    If they angered Long Chen, Long Chen could kill Lei Yuan instantly!


    When they saw this, they stopped their attacks and red at him angrily. Lei Yuan was in his hands, so even though they were strong enough to win an all-out battle, they were trapped. They had underestimated Long Chen. If they had used absolute power to kill him at the start, they would not have ended up like this!Had Long Chen just neutralized the seven Thunder Elders¡¯ attacks alone?


    The crowd gasped in disbelief when they saw this.


    This teenager was too talented. The teenagers of the Demon n couldn¡¯t wait to see him dead a few minutes ago, but now, after his extraordinary performance, they were truly impressed. Previously, they had submitted to Situ Yu because of his strength and talent, but now they knew Long Chen was much more talented. Perhaps this brat was more suited for the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance than Situ Yu.


    Many people werepletely impressed by Long Chen.


    ¡°The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is not wasted on him at all!¡±


    The other elders of the Thunder n red at Long Chen as if they wanted to eat him alive. One said, ¡°Long Chen, let our Great Sect Elder go, or we will fight you to our deaths!¡±


    ¡°Let him go! Don¡¯t force our hands! If you do, the Demon n will not end up well!¡±


    They could only threaten Long Chen in hopes of scaring him, but Long Chen was not an easy person to scare. If he was, could he have made Lei Yuan his hostage?


    Of course not.


    ¡°Are you guys joking? I caught this old guy with great difficulty; how could I let him go?¡± Long Chenughed and looked at them with amusement.


    One of the Thunder Elders said, ¡°Long Chen, you must be careful. Release him from the Three Thousand Star Clusters. If the Great Sect Elder is fine, then we are open to negotiations. If anything happens to him, don¡¯t even think of remaining alive. We have already risked everything to reach this point. Even if the rtionship between the Thunder and Demon ns bes irreparable, we will not regret this at all.¡±


    When Long Chen heard him, he retracted the celestial Qi from the Three Thousand Star Clusters and only used it to retrain Lei Yuan. The old man indeed did not have much strength left. If the celestial Qi continued to hurt his body, he would actually die.


    This was a very good hostage; it was not worth it to kill him.


    Long Chen had Lei Yuan, so the Seven Thunder Elders were anxious. The Thunder Prison would notst much longer, and it would be ineffective after a while. They had clearly failed to kill Long Chen as quickly as they had imagined, and they had even lost their chance. This meant that their n was about to fail.


    They felt defeated by this result.


    They had spent such a long time nning this, but it all failed due to Long Chen, who was an unpredictable factor. Who would have thought that this Sixth Earthly Martial Stage brat would break through to the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage mid-battle? Another more terrifying thing was that he had not only killed both Situ Yu and Situ Yao, he had sessfully taken the Great Sect Elder hostage despite being surrounded by the other Thunder Elders!


    Looking at their expressions, Long Chen knew that they had almost given up. It was the perfect moment to give them more psychological pressure.


    Then the old man Lei Yuan screamed, ¡°You useless trash! Don¡¯t listen to him! We have already gotten to this point! If we do not seed, it will be all for nothing! It doesn¡¯t matter if I die! If you don¡¯t act now, we will all die! Listen to me! Ignore me; just attack him!¡±


    <em>p!</em>


    Long Chen pped him on the face when he finished speaking, making him swallow the rest of his words.


    ¡°Great Sect Elder!¡± Everyone red at Long Chen with seething hatred. There were very few people in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory who would dare p the Great Sect Elder¡¯s face.


    However, Great Sect Elder Lei Yuan was still in his hands, so they could not do anything.


    ¡°Old man, if you speak again, I won¡¯t mind pping you a few more times. Let¡¯s see how thick your skin is. Would you believe me if I said I would strip you naked too?¡± Long Chenughed shamelessly.


    <em>Shameless. </em>Many people had the same thought.


    Not just shameless, but in very edgy taste too.


    Long Chen had goosebumps. He wouldn¡¯t dare do that; he was only saying it to scare the old man. However, the crowd now saw him as a person with a strange fetish.


    ¡°Shut your mouths.¡± Long Chen¡¯s tone was cold. His performance today was beyond expectations, and he had a sense of regalness. The moment he spoke, he scared everyone into silence.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze darkened, then his expression calmed once more. He said to the Thunder Elders, ¡°The oue of today is clear. Your n has failed. I think the Thunder and Demon ns should have a good talk. We¡¯re all brothers; we can have a calm conversation and talk about our disagreements. There¡¯s no need to point weapons at each other.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, what are you talking about?¡± Lei Yuan roared. To him, they had already failed, and they would be punished with death. Bai Lan and Lei Ji would never let them off.


    ¡°Did you guys really think that your Thunder Prison could trap the Demon n¡¯s patriarch?¡± Long Chen asked with a smile.


    Everyone was confused. They looked at Bai Lan, who shook his head and smiled. ¡°I really can¡¯t hide anything from you, brat.¡±


    To be honest, Bai Lan could indeed break free, but he really wanted to see how Long Chen would resolve this. Indeed, Long Chen¡¯s performance was shocking. Since Long Chen had given him away, there was no need for him to continue pretending to be trapped. Long Chen had already resolved the matter anyway.


    ¡°Put the Thunder Prison away. If we let Brother Bai break out, the Thunder Prison will be destroyed. We¡¯ve already used two-thirds of its power, so only one-third remains. Don¡¯t waste the Thunder n¡¯s precious treasure,¡± Lei Ji said after a moment of silence.


    The Thunder Elders looked at each other.


    Only a short time had passed since the revolt started, yet two-thirds of the Thunder Prison¡¯s power had been spent. Even if they did not take it down and continued the standoff against Long Chen, they would not be able to get the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Once Bai Lan and Lei Ji came out, the situation would worsen.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Brother Lei and I are also at fault for what happened today. Fortunately, there were no casualties. I think everyone should calm down and have an open discussion. The Demon and Thunder ns are brothers, not enemies,¡± Bai Lan said after some thought.


    Based on what they said, they did not seem to me the Thunder Elders, who were in disbelief. They knew that they had overstepped, so weren¡¯t they going to be punished with death?


    Lei Ji was the Thunder n¡¯s patriarch, and he had always worked for the good of his n. If he lied to the Thunder Elders at a moment like that, and let Bai Lan kill them after he came out, then Lei Ji would no longer be the patriarch.


    ¡°Great Sect Elder, what should we do?¡± Everyone looked at Lei Yuan, hoping he could make a decision.


    Lei Yuan looked at Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s calm expressions, then at their nsmen, who were staring at him in silence, then at the Three Thousand Star Clusters wrapped around him. He was stricken with grief and anger, but he had no choice. ¡°Take down the Thunder Prison. We will end this here. We have lost to Long Chen today!¡±


    He had given up.


    When they heard this, Bai Lan, Lei Ji, and Long Chen smiled in relief.


    Killing was a brutal way of treating one¡¯s enemies, but they were allies and brothers. Although there were disagreements, there was no need to kill each other. Long Chen knew that Bai Lan and Lei Ji would deal with this matter appropriately. After today, perhaps the Thunder and Demon ns would be more united.

 Chapter 794: Without The Lips, The Teeth Are Cold

    After hearing Lei Yuan, the Thunder Elders had no choice but to obey him. The two people controlling the Thunder Prison put it away.


    The Thunder Prison was a very important treasure of the Thunder n, but what made it different from other treasures was that it was a single-use item. It could not be used repeatedly like the Three Thousand Star Clusters or the Ever Changing Spear.


    The two patriarchs and the Demon n¡¯s Sect Elders were freed. Long Chen retracted his Three Thousand Star Clusters, then smiled at Lei Yuan and said, ¡°Great Sect Elder, I apologize for my rudeness just now.¡±


    Lei Yuan was impressed with Long Chen. Although Long Chen had hurt him, he had no hatred for the teenager.


    ¡°Young man, you weren¡¯t bad at all. After what happened today, you indeed have the right to receive the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. You¡¯re fitter for it than us old men.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for the praise, Elder.¡± Long Chen knew that it was genuine praise, so he smiled in relief. Despite the unexpected turn of events, Long Chen had be more confident in himself after using the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Before the duel, he had not expected to have such an excellent performance.


    It was all over now.


    The seven Thunder Elders gathered together in front of the Thunder n¡¯s other experts, and the seven Sect Elders of the Demon n also stood together with the Demon nsmen behind them. Long Chen and Bai Lan greeted each other, then he stood behind Bai Lan.


    ¡°You did well, kid. I am impressed.¡± Lei Ji gave him an approving smile.¡°Yeah, Big Brother has always been the best!¡± Suyan remembered how Long Chen could not even defeat her when he arrived at Heavenly Wood City. After less than a month, he was this powerful.


    In terms ofbat abilities, even Suxue was no match for him now. Within a very short time, Long Chen had be the strongest cultivator of his generation in the Demon n.


    Everyone looked at Long Chen with approval.


    Bai Lan¡¯s calm but serious gaze turned to the other Demon nsmen and swept across the seven Sect Elders. ¡°Let¡¯s first resolve the issue within the Demon n. I don¡¯t need to exin much. Everyone is upset that Long Chen has received the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and wants to snatch it for themselves. As I said earlier, Long Chen is my son-inw. Situ Yu and Situ Yao conspired to snatch the inheritance for their selfish reasons, but in the end, they both died because they were not strong enough.¡±


    ¡°Patriarch, you don¡¯t need to exin any further. As for Situ Yao¡¯s incident, we all have thought it through. Birds die for food, and humans die for fortunes. There¡¯s nothing else to say. Lei Yuan is right. Long Chen was able to kill Situ Yu and Situ Yao today, and even the seven Thunder Elders could not defeat him. We are allpletely impressed by him. Survival of the fittest is thew of the world. From today onwards, the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance belongs to Long Chen, and we bear no resentment regarding this,¡± said Huang Zhong, one of the Sect Elders.


    ¡°What about the others?¡± The Sect Elders were true to their word, and now they were able to ept Long Chen¡¯s presence. Bai Lan sighed in relief. Now he wanted to hear the opinions of the youths. They had protected Situ Yu very much in the beginning. Now that Long Chen had killed Situ Yu, resentment was unavoidable.


    No one answered Bai Lan for the moment.


    ¡°Most of you are young men and women, so it is normal to bebative andpetitive. However, if you do not have enough strength ¡­ Let Situ Yu be an example. I¡¯m not saying that I¡¯m siding with Long Chen merely because he is my son-inw. If anyone here is strong enough to defeat Long Chen, I will also take you seriously!¡±


    Bai Lan had not asked the Demon nsmen to submit to Long Chen¡¯s strength. His tone even implied that he wanted to encourage them to challenge Long Chen. This could be a type of encouragement, and Long Chen would not care if some minor character hated him.


    Few Demon nsmen responded. Most of them did not think they could defeat Long Chen and had already given up. In the beginning, they thought that Long Chen had only made it this far thanks to luck, but after he showed his power, no one dared to say they could beat him in public.


    Most of the people had epted Long Chen¡¯s presence.


    Only the few who used to spend time with Situ Yu were privately disgruntled. They wanted to work hard and surpass Long Chen one day. Of course, the speed of their growth was too slowpared to Long Chen, so he was not afraid of them.


    The affairs of the Demon n were considered resolved. Long Chen would not be challenged again in the Demon n.


    With the Three Thousand Star Clusters, he was now ranked just under the patriarch and above the rest of the n. Who would dare attack him?


    No one.


    The Thunder n was next.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other, then walked up to the seven Thunder Elders. Lei Ji said to the Thunder nsmen, ¡°I regret what happened today. First of all, I am not ming the Thunder Elders. They were merely acting for the good of the n. The intention was right, but it was the wrong method.¡±


    Lei Ji looked at the Thunder Elders and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know if you all have forgotten this, but without the Demon n, the Thunder n would only be a nameless organization pursued by the Five Elements Alliance. Perhaps we would have been extinct a long time ago. We would not be as prosperous as we are now! Perhaps you all think that we are depending on someone else, and feel that we have lost our freedom. However, freedom is fought for with true strength. If we broke free from our Demon n brothers, our freedom wouldn¡¯tst for long! The Five Elements Alliance, the Wind n, and the Divine n would be happy to annihte the Thunder n without the Demon n!¡±


    After a pause, Lei Ji sighed and continued, ¡°Maybe many people think that I, Lei Ji, am a coward who is afraid of death. You may think that I do not think about the good of the Thunder n, and want to be the Demon n¡¯s ve. But I don¡¯t think that way at all. The Demon nsmen and I are brothers who fight alongside each other at war. We live and die together! Many years of battle have proven this point.¡±


    Lei Ji¡¯s words made the Thunder nsmen fall into deep thought. They thought about theck of freedom and the restrictions they felt. They had never thought about it on a deeper level.


    ¡°Let me add something,¡± said Long Chen. ¡°Do you know the saying ¡®without the lips, the teeth are cold?¡¯ There are three main factions in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and they are just about equal in strength. If the Thunder and Demon ns broke their alliance, that¡¯s minus one faction. Without the strength we have together, the Five Elements Alliance or the Divine Wind Faction would attack either the Thunder n or the Demon n. This is a very simple logic, so I think everyone can understand this. The two ns have been united for a long time, and it is because of this unity that you all can continue to live on. If you are no longer united, other people will take this opportunity to squash both ns!¡±


    The lips and the teeth relied on each other. Without the lips, the teeth were cold.[1]


    The crowd fell into deep thought.


    Bai Lan nodded and looked at the Demon nsmen sternly. He said, ¡°Of course, the Demon n is also responsible. You all are getting smug because you think the Demon n is stronger. I do not usually pay attention to the little things happening under my nose, and I did not expect it to be such a huge problem today.¡±


    He sighed, then he continued, ¡°The Thunder and Demon ns havebined forces for hundreds of years. Your ancestors were brothers who fought alongside each other. This is still the case today, but the true battle of the Ancient Graveyard has not begun. It is true that the Demon n is wealthier than the Thunder n, but that is no reason to look down on our brothers. Treating your allies with contempt will only cause the rtionship to fall apart in the end. Everyone has seen what happened today. Thankfully, nothing serious happened, or no one here would have been able to pay for the losses suffered!¡±


    Lei Ji nodded and said, ¡°Everyone, go back and think hard about all of this. Act as if today¡¯s events didn¡¯t happen. In the future, the Thunder and Demon ns will continue being brothers. Remove the boundaries in your minds; don¡¯t dwell too much on the issue of which n tyou belong to.¡±


    Bai Lan continued, ¡°Today¡¯s matters shall end here. If I hear that a Demon nsman is bullying a Thunder nsman or treating them with disrespect, I will act fairly and will punish you ordingly.¡±


    Bai Lan¡¯s words terrified the Demon nsmen.


    Indeed, an arrogant mindset had long formed in the minds of the younger generation. Many of them did not take the Thunder nsmen seriously at all. Today, the seven Thunder Elders had deeply shocked them, and they had learned that the Thunder n was not easy to bully. They were brothers, not ves.


    ¡°We can only defeat our enemies if we are united. I hope you all will understand this. From today onwards, if the Thunder nsmen deliberately look for trouble with the Demon n, I, Lei Ji, will also act fairly. You will be punished severely!¡±


    Both Bai Lan and Lei Ji had made their statements, and their subordinates were frightened. Perhaps this wouldn¡¯t bepletely effective in the beginning, but as time passed, they would at least be more cautious.


    Conflict was unavoidable, but it couldn¡¯t be allowed to turn into hatred.


    ¡°Everyone, go back. Everyone is on house arrest for three days, and without my instruction, you are forbidden from doing anything other than cultivating and reflecting!¡±manded Bai Lan.


    Lei Ji also said, ¡°Same goes for the Thunder n, especially the main culprits. Everyone is to stay home for three days, and the seven Thunder Elders are to stay in for ten days. Reflect on what happened today.¡±


    1. This is a Chinese idiom. It refers to two parties who are closely reliant on each other to survive. Without one side, the other side will die. ?

 Chapter 795: Azure Lotus Lord

    In this brutal society, only unity would allow them to prosper and live on.


    ¡°Long Chen, follow me,¡± said Bai Lan after most of them had left.


    Long Chen initially thought that the events of the day had ended. Only Lei Ji, Suxue, and Suyan remained. He nodded and was prepared to follow Bai Lan, but Bai Lan said to Suyan, ¡°Yan¡¯er, you may go back first. I want to talk to your older sister and Long Chen about the Nine n Martial Youth Competition.¡±


    Suyan asked curiously, ¡°That tournament? You want Big Brother to go?¡±


    Bai Lan smiled and said, ¡°Just go home. Don¡¯t ask too many questions.¡±


    ¡°Oh ¡­¡± Suyan nodded obediently. After bidding Long Chen farewell, she left, and Long Chen followed Suxue, Lei Ji, and Bai Lan to the center of Heavenly Wood City.


    ¡°The Nine n Martial Youth Competition?¡± Long Chen thought about what Suyan had said. His objective foring to Heavenly Wood City was to cultivate the Seven Star Body and cure Suyan of the secret spell. After he heard Suyan, he guessed that Bai Lan wanted him to participate in the tournament and represent the Demon n.


    Bai Lan had helped him a great deal. If he really needed Long Chen, Long Chen was willing to help.


    He followed Bai Lan and the others into the sophisticated room where he first met Bai Lan. Bai Lan and Lei Ji stood in front and turned around, then regarded Long Chen for a long time. Finally, Bai Lan said, ¡°Your performance today exceeded my expectations. I didn¡¯t know you had achieved such heights. I¡¯m not going to dwell on praises though. Today, I called you here because I have a request.¡±¡°Patriarch, please tell me what you need. If it¡¯s within my power, I will do my best,¡± Long Chen said with a smile. Bai Lan and Lei Jipletely respected Long Chen, and vice versa. He mainly respected them because of the brotherhood between them, which was simr to himself and Xiang.


    Bai Lan knew he would agree, so he smiled and said, ¡°Good. You¡¯re indeed a man.¡±


    He paused, then he continued, ¡°We don¡¯t know where you came from, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯re from one of the Nine ns or the Nine Great Empires. So, you don¡¯t know about the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, right?¡±


    ¡°Five Emperors¡¯ treasure?¡± Long Chen was privately surprised. He had long known about it, ever since he obtained the Red Emperor Seal and the Prismatic Key from the Divine Fire Realm.


    However, he did not show it and hid the fact that he knew about this matter. Instead, he said, ¡°I know about the legend of the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, but does it really exist?¡±


    Bai Lan smiled and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know either, but it likely does. Also, the treasure will likely be made avable before we leave the Ancient Graveyard.¡±


    ¡°Why do you say that?¡± asked Long Chen. He had obtained the Prismatic Key and guessed that it was rted to the Five Emperors. However, he did not know the specifics.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other, then Bai Lan said, ¡°If you want to open the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, you must have all five Emperor Keys. Over the years, four of the five Emperor Keys were found. Only the ck Emperor Key remains. The Divine Wind faction, the Thunder Demon faction, and the Five Elements Alliance each have a key. The fourth key is with a Heavenly Martial Realm master known as the Long-Bearded Guest. The one that the Thunder Demon faction has is the Azure Emperor Key.¡±


    Four of the five Emperor Keys had appeared. One had not.


    Long Chen was stunned for a moment. He wondered if the remaining ck Emperor Key was the Prismatic Key he had.


    If that was the case, then the five Emperor Keys wereplete. Then, would they be able to unlock the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure?


    ¡°The four keys have survived many years of battle. Each key can take two people into the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, so a total of ten people can enter. The Azure Emperor Key can bring me and Brother Lei inside.¡±


    Then Bai Lan took out a key that shone with azure light from the storage ring on his finger. Although it was a key, it looked more like a sword because it was half a meter long. It shone with azure light, and Long Chen sensed a life forceing from the azure key. A thick gust of spiritual Qi blew towards him. Long Chen saw shes of an ancient image on the key. It was a battlefield filled with loud war cries. Amidst the endless fighting and killing, there were millions of corpses, whose flowing blood merged with rivers.


    After showing it to Long Chen, Bai Lan put the Azure Emperor Key away.


    <em>So the Prismatic Key is not one of the Five Emperor Keys. It¡¯s not the ck Emperor Key.</em>


    Long Chen guessed that the ck Emperor Key would be the same size as the Azure Emperor Key, but ck. Long Chen¡¯s Prismatic Key had five colors, and it was not asrge.


    <em>In that case, what is the Prismatic Key for? How is it rted to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure? The Five Emperor Keys are meant to open the Five Emperors'' Secret Realm, and the passkey to enter. What is mine, then?</em>


    Long Chen could not figure it out.


    However, he now had a new goal, which was to obtain one of the ten spots. That was the only way to get into the Five Emperors'' Secret Realm. Didn¡¯t that mean Long Chen would need to get his hands on an Emperor Key?


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji needed to share their key and did not have an extra slot for Long Chen.


    Long Chen had already obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. If he went to the Three Royal Territories, it would help him greatly, and he would be able to coast on it for a while. However, he knew that only the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure could be his true trump card. Something that surpassed the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was one of the main reasons he hade to the Ancient Graveyard. He would never give up on this chance!


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at Long Chen, and Bai Lan continued, ¡°Based on your performance today, very few people will be a match for you in two months. And you are within the age range stipted for the Martial Youth Competition. More importantly, you are my son-inw. Every one of the nine ns must send two people to participate. The Demon n initially nned to send Situ Yu and Xue¡¯er, but you killed Situ Yu. That is why you¡¯ll have to rece him.¡±


    Bai Lan had mentioned Long Chen being his son-inw so directly that Suxue grew embarrassed. She gave him an using nce, though her gaze made her look attractive.


    When Bai Lan saw his daughter¡¯s shy expression, heughed and said, ¡°Of course, participating in thispetition can bring great rewards. The champion of the Martial Youth Competition will receive a special prize. The cultivator named Long-Bearded Guest is the one who suggested this reward. He is quite powerful; I think he has reached the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. He has the Yellow Emperor Key with him. It can take two people into the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, and he has always worked alone, so he decided to use the remaining slot as the reward for the champion of thepetition!¡±


    ¡°Another slot?¡± Long Chen¡¯s eyes lit up. If the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm really existed, then he had to go. If Long Chen could take first ce for the Demon n, thest slot would be his.


    When he saw that Long Chen was interested, Bai Lan chuckled and said, ¡°Long Chen, I don¡¯t think you know that the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition is a battleground for the nine ns. Winning first ce is an extremely glorious feat. Although the Demon n is strong, we have not won first ce in many years. We both already have our slots, so we are not eyeing another slot from the Yellow Emperor Key. If you take first ce, then the slot is yours. The Demon ncks one person anyway. If you take it, it is better than having the Five Elements Alliance or the Divine Wind Faction sending another master inside. If that happens, we will be the ones facing huge pressure.¡±


    Long Chen naturally agreed to such a great proposal. In his heart, he had another more important mission. He smiled and asked slowly, ¡°I will go, but I have another question.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Bai Lan asked curiously.


    ¡°I want to know if the Divine n¡¯s Wu Guangyu will be participating in thepetition.¡± Xiang was still with that jerk. Now that Long Chen was stronger, he wanted to take this chance to kill him and take Xiang back. He didn¡¯t know if Xiang was suffering by Wu Guangyu¡¯s side.


    Long Chen med himself for this.


    ¡°Wu Guangyu?¡± Bai Lan froze, then he said, ¡°Wu Guangyu is the strongest cultivator in the Divine n¡¯s younger generation, and also the nine ns¡¯ younger generation. It is troublesome because he has not only reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, but he recently received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. If you want to win, he will be your greatest obstacle. Thankfully, there are two more months until thepetition begins. Although you can defeat an average Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator now, you are no match for Wu Guangyu yet.¡±


    ¡°Wu Guangyu has received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡± Long Chen asked. He was speechless.


    Initially, the Divine n had the White Lotus Fairy¡¯s inheritance. Now Wu Guangyu had the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance too. Wouldn¡¯t that give the Divine n another great boost in strength?

 Chapter 796: Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal

    ¡°Yes, he has!¡± Bai Lan said resignedly. ¡°The White Lotus Fairy and the Azure Lotus Lord were a couple. The Divine n has worked hard for many years to search for the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. The White Lotus Fairy¡¯s inheritance contained information rted to the Azure Lotus Lord, and ording to the information I received, the Divine n actually managed to get their hands on the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. The holder of the inheritance is the young man, Wu Guangyu. Although you have received the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, which is on the same level, your cultivation level and background are inferior to his. If you can achieve another breakthrough before you fight him in two months, you may still stand a chance.¡±


    Long Chen was silent for a while.


    He saw Wu Guangyu as an enemy, and one of the two had to die. The Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance would surely make Wu Guangyu a little bit more difficult to defeat, but there were two more months left, so it was not certain that Long Chen would lose.


    With that thought, Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Patriarchs, just let me know when we are leaving for the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition. I will work hard to achieve another breakthrough during these two months.¡±


    Breaking through to the next level at the Earthly Martial Realm was a very difficult thing to do, but Long Chen spoke of it casually. Both patriarchs were a little speechless. They had to admit that this young expert was just full of surprises. With the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s help, it would be no issue for him to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and catch up to other people soon.


    ¡°In that case, work hard on your cultivation for the remaining time. When you fight Wu Guangyu, do your best to make the Demon n proud. If you have any requests, just let me know. If I can fulfill it, I will not be stingy!¡± Bai Lan said generously with a smile.


    ¡°Thank you, Patriarch. If I need something, I will tell you,¡± Long Chen responded with a smile.


    ¡°You have never been one to be too shy.¡± When Suxue heard Long Chen agree to fight alongside her, her stress decreased and she was even privately delighted. She had personally witnessed Long Chen¡¯s strength, and she wasn¡¯t sure if she would be able to withstand the power that erupted from the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Suxue had been raised by Bai Lan, so she was considered very powerful among Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators.


    Bai Lan looked at the two youths and said teasingly, ¡°Long Chen, you must work hard and protect my daughter well. My daughters are all I have, so I wish I could keep them by my side at all times. If it wasn¡¯t for us being forced to send her to the Martial Youth Competition, I wouldn¡¯t have let her take this risk. Those bastards are always giving me headaches.¡±¡°Don¡¯t worry, Father. I¡¯m no longer a child. I can take care of myself,¡± Suxue said indignantly, blushing.


    ¡°I know,¡± said Bai Lan.


    Long Chen was still thinking about what Bai Lan had previously said to him. He suddenly recalled that this was the Wood District. Thinking of the Five Emperor Seals, he had used the Blue Devil me to cultivate the Red Emperor Burning Heaven Seal, then the Profound Golden Soul to cultivate the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal. Could he ask for more items so he could cultivate more?


    He had just arrived at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, and he was quite far from the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Therefore, it was a good time for him to get an item rted to the element and cultivate the Five Emperor Seals.


    He interrupted their conversation and said, ¡°Patriarchs, may I ask if you know that I took the Gold n¡¯s Profound Golden Soul?¡±


    Bai Lan paused, unsure of why Long Chen had suddenly mentioned this. ¡°I know about that. Because of this, many people in the Gold n started to notice you. Why did you mention it?¡±


    Long Chen continued, ¡°I need treasures on the same level as the Profound Golden Soul, but ones with different elements, namely wood, water, or earth. May I ask if you have something like that?¡±


    When the patriarchs heard him, they looked at each other. Both understood what the other was thinking. Long Chen definitely had something to do with the Five Emperors. His two Emperor Seals had metal and fire elements, and now he was asking for the other three. Whenbined, they were coincidentally metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, which were also the elements of the Five Emperors.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji took Long Chen very seriously and even allowed him to fight for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure mainly because they sensed the Five Emperors¡¯ auraing from him.


    Bai Lan had previously stated that whatever Long Chen requested, he would help in any way he could.


    He answered, ¡°Out of the three elements you ask for, I don¡¯t have water and earth. However, I have something for the wood element. When we first arrived in Heavenly Wood City, we discovered a Wooden Soul Crystal. I think it¡¯ll be useful to you.¡±


    After he spoke, Bai Lan took out a crystal filled with thick, green energy the size of his thumb from his storage ring.


    ¡°This Wooden Soul Crystal is filled with copious amounts of earthly spiritual Qi, and it can boost the growth of spiritual herbs. It is a top-tier treasure that contains wood energy. It even contains more energy than the Profound Golden Soul. Does this work for you?¡±


    Long Chen sensed the crystal for a moment. The tiny Wooden Soul Crystal contained so much wood energy that it shocked him. He nodded and looked at Bai Lan gratefully. ¡°Patriarch Bai, this is exactly what I need. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. You¡¯re helping the Demon n out, so it¡¯s only right I give you a small gift. Take it, then. I will send people to search for the other two things you asked for,¡± Bai Lan said with a faint smile.


    ¡°In that case, please let me excuse myself. If there¡¯s anything I need, I will let you know,¡± said Long Chen, saluting him.


    ¡°Go,¡± Bai Lan said with a smile.


    Long Chen nodded and left. Suxue also quickly excused herself and went with Long Chen. After they left, Lei Ji remarked excitedly, ¡°Since the kid is asking for these things, it seems like he really has a connection with the Five Emperors. Brother Bai, what do you think of this?¡±


    Bai Lan replied, ¡°One¡¯s fate and luck can allow them to receive treasures. If something does not belong to you, you cannot always take it by force. If the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure truly exists, we might not be able to take it for ourselves. This kid has a connection to the Five Emperors, so maybe he will be lucky enough to get their treasure. I gave him a chance to enter the Five Emperors'' Secret Realm. If he seeds, he will surely be grateful to me.¡±


    ¡°But with Wu Guangyu blocking his path, how will Long Chen be champion of the Martial Youth Competition?¡± Lei Ji asked hesitantly.


    ¡°Wu Guangyu has a wealthy background and now he has the inheritance of the Azure Lotus Lord. He has a lot of battle experience and is considered to have reached the peak of the Earthly Martial Realm. If Long Chen can defeat him, it will prove that he is the person whom the Five Emperors have chosen. If he loses, it means that we are probably overthinking it. No matter what happens, he is an excellent young man. If he joins the Demon n in the future and serves the n, it will be a blessing.¡±


    ¡°Does that also mean that if he defeats Wu Guangyu, it means he has a special identity? And he might achieve great sess due to his outstanding abilities? And if he doesn¡¯t, he will choose to stay in the Demon n?¡± remarked Lei Ji.


    ¡°Exactly,¡± said Bai Lan. ¡°We¡¯ll just have to see what the kid is capable of. I¡¯ll help him where I can, but I can¡¯t do much otherwise.¡±


    ***


    ¡°Long Chen,¡± Suxue called out from behind him. When he turned around, she almost did not dare look into his eyes. After walking up to him, she asked, ¡°Have you really decided to participate in the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition with me?¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°If you really have made your decision, work hard. Comprehend the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s teachings as soon as possible and make another breakthrough. You and Wu Guangyu have both received inheritances from the Seven Lords, but you are two cultivation levels below him. You must work hard,¡± Suxue said awkwardly.


    ¡°What''s the matter with you? Why are you acting so shy?¡± asked Long Chen, puzzled.


    ¡°Nothing. Good luck. Do the Demon n proud, but I won¡¯t disappoint my father either. I¡¯m his daughter after all!¡± Suxue said, then she waved her fist at him. Afterwards, she ran off.


    ¡°Is it because I took the attention away from you?¡± Long Chen smiled in exasperation. He returned to the ce where Suyan lived, feeling impatient to cultivate the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal. However, the young Suyan was waiting for him at the entrance.


    <em>These two sisters ¡­ </em>Long Chen was speechless. One had just left, but now there was another.


    Suyan skipped to his side and clutched his arm with a smile as she cried, ¡°Big Brother, you¡¯re finally back!¡±


    ¡°Big Brother, did Father ask you to participate in the Martial Youth Competition?¡± asked Suyan hurriedly.


    He nodded and said, ¡°He did. There are about two more months left, so it is enough time for your condition to healpletely. Then I can leave with a peace of mind.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re leaving?¡± Suyan¡¯s expression soured and tears sparkled in herrge eyes.


    Although Long Chen knew that the girl would miss him, he had no choice. He nodded and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know, but don¡¯t we have two more months together? Be good.¡±


    ¡°Mhm, alright ¡­¡± Suyan bit her pink lips and nodded enthusiastically.


    After they chatted for a while, Long Chen reminded her not to disturb him, then returned to his room to prepare to cultivate the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal.


    Thebination of two Emperor Seals was already powerful. If he couldbine three seals, the power of the resulting attack would be unimaginable.

 Chapter 809: Wind Dagger

    A cold, blinding light erupted from the tip of the spear, along with a threatening aura!


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡± Greed shone in Feng Liu¡¯s eyes. Long Chen¡¯s speed had surpassed his imagination, but he was not afraid!


    ¡°Merging Illusions, Wind Dagger!¡±


    The Three Thousand Illusions aggregated in front of Feng Liu in a very short time. They gathered in a tiny space, then finally condensed into a half-meter-long azure dagger. Terrifying power erupted from the dagger, and the space around it slightly distorted.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The dagger made of all the Three Thousand Illusionsbined flew at Long Chen. This attack was as powerful as Feng Zhilin¡¯s Thousand Seals. Only an Emperor-tierbat technique could be as powerful as this.


    ¡°Wind Dagger?¡± Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned cold. His blood-red legs strode quickly and he elerated. After using the Dragon Soul Transformation, his speed surpassed that of the average Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. He condensed his essence in the Three Thousand Star Clusters, then terrifying power erupted from it. Long Chen thrust the Three Thousand Star Clusters forwards, and the blue ray of light collided with the Wind Dagger!


    The two extremely sharp tips collided. Feng Liu¡¯s Wind Dagger was admittedly very powerful, but since they were equal in essence, it was at a disadvantage as Long Chen had an advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon.


    ¡°Break!¡± Feng Liu cried softly, then the Wind Dagger turned into multiple daggers. Long Chen elerated and turned into a shadow himself. After breaking free from the daggers, his Three Thousand Star Clusters arrived in front of Feng Liu. The spear, which erupted with purple celestial Qi, pierced through the shocked Feng Liu¡¯s eyeball!


    ¡°You won¡¯t die anyway, so I¡¯ll give you a taste of getting your eye pierced.¡± Long Chenughed as he thrust his spear into the guy¡¯s head. He was met with a powerful obstructing force, which came from the Divine Space Talisman. Under his powerful attack, the Divine Space Talisman exploded and immediately transported Feng Liu to outside Confounding City.Long Chen had overwhelmed Feng Liu in seconds!


    Without the Divine Space Talisman, Feng Liu would have surely been killed by Long Chen. This was how strong Long Chen was when he used the Dragon Soul Transformation. To be honest, very few out of the eighteen could put up a fight against him. Suxue and Jin Ling barely qualified. As for Wu Guangyu, he was Long Chen¡¯s final nemesis. Whatever Long Chen had, Wu Guangyu had too, and he had more of it!


    ¡°Brother Liu!¡± Wu Qingrou was stunned for a brief moment after Long Chen¡¯s quick kill.


    Long Chen stuck his spear into the ground and turned around to look at Wu Qingrou with a small smile.


    Wu Qingrou realized the man before him was just like the devil, and everyone had underestimated him. He was very vicious in his attacks, and he was definitely a teenage prodigy who was difficult to defeat.


    ¡°You ¡­ You ¡­¡± Wu Qingrou took a few steps back. She was about as strong as Feng Liu. If Long Chen could beat Feng Liu with such ease, then she was surely not a match for him either. Perhaps they would have stood a chance if they fought him together, but she no longer had the chance to do so.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Wu Qingrou had the idea to run. If the couple was both killed by Long Chen, it would be very embarrassing when they got out.


    ¡°You want to leave? Isn¡¯t it better if I reunite the two of you?¡± Long Chenughed. As he spoke, he suddenly put the Three Thousand Star Clusters away and strode towards her.


    ¡°He¡¯s not using the Three Thousand Star Clusters?¡± Wu Qingrou paused for a moment. She knew that Long Chen was underestimating her, but this gave her a chance to retaliate. Therefore, she did not run and instead gathered her essence. Her essence surged through her body as she prepared to fight him.


    Without the Three Thousand Star Clusters, Long Chen was no match for her.


    But was that really the case?


    Long Chen charged ahead. A star te appeared beneath his feet and a red shadow flew towards her.


    <em>He¡¯s so fast! What a strange bodybat technique! Is this the Big Dipper Step? </em>Wu Qingrou did not dare let her guard down. She had gathered her strength and was prepared to fight, but Long Chen beat her to it!


    He elerated instantly!


    The Azure Emperor Seal lit up in his right palm, then the Golden Emperor Seal did too!


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    Both emperor seals were used at the same time, and two destructive sts flew at Wu Qingrou. This was Long Chen¡¯s strongest attack, and now he also had as much essence as a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator. The result was terrifying. Wu Qingrou had not even started her attack when the gigantic st shattered her Divine Space Talisman, causing her to spit out a mouthful of blood!


    She had sustained a real injury. There was a ray of white light, and Wu Qingrou had been sent out of the city. However, in that brief moment, she had been injured. Long Chen¡¯s attack had surpassed the Divine Space Talisman¡¯s reaction time and caused it to explode instantly!


    Of course, this was no longer relevant. She had been brought out of the city, and it meant she had been eliminated.


    Long Chen¡¯s double emperor seal attack had left her chest in pain and severely injured her internal organs.


    <em>I had a Divine Space Talisman, but I was still injured by Long Chen. How could he be that strong? </em>Wu Qingrou was shocked. When she opened her eyes, she realized the elders of the Divine and Wind ns were surrounding her. When they saw that she was injured, they were even more shocked.


    ¡°Qingrou is injured too. That Long Chen ¡­¡± Everyone looked at each other, and their expressions darkened.


    ¡°Even? What do you mean by ¡®too?¡¯¡± Wu Qingrou was startled. Enduring her pain, she quickly searched for Feng Liu among the crowd, but couldn¡¯t see him.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Brother Liu? Where¡¯s Brother Liu?¡± she asked in a panic.


    The Wind patriarch stood next to her and said with an icy expression, ¡°I have sent people to take Liu¡¯er to Giant Metal City for treatment. His eyeball was pierced through, so he needs Emperor-tier medicine to recover fully. I have already given him some, and he has consumed them. As long as he can rest and cultivate in peace, he will be fine. Qingrou, you¡¯re injured too. Go back to Giant Metal City and take care of him.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Wu Qingrou was stunned. She recalled how Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters had directly pierced Feng Liu¡¯s eye. After Long Chen had transformed, his terrifying strength even surpassed the Divine Space Talisman¡¯s reaction time.


    ¡°I initially thought that Guangyu was the only one whose attacks were strong enough to overwhelm the Divine Space Talismans. I can¡¯t believe Long Chen has reached that level too!¡± When Feng Qing thought about how two participants from his side had been injured, not just eliminated, the fire of fury burned in his chest!


    Next to him, it was unclear how Wu Lian felt due to her face veil, but she was surely unhappy too. She said, ¡°Eight people have emerged. Two left.¡±


    Feng Qing¡¯s gaze turned cold. ¡°Two people? Long Chen doesn¡¯t have a Divine Space Talisman, so Guangyu can kill him. That brat must die, or there will be too many unpredictable factors in the future.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right.¡±


    Two talented disciples of the Divine Wind Faction had been injured, one even needing an Emperor-tier medicine to treat his injuries. They were suppressing a great deal of anger.


    The Five Elements Alliance was the most embarrassed faction. Five of their disciples had been eliminated in the first few hours. Long Chen had sent out two, Wu Guangyu had eliminated two, and Feng Liu and Wu Qingrou had taken down one together.


    One from the Thunder Demon Faction had also been eliminated.


    Previously, the Divine Wind Faction had been the only one with aplete team inside, but to their shock, two were eliminated together and sustained injuries!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    This name filled every heart. Both the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance wanted to kill this unpredictable factor. His rise had been too fast. This made the Divine Wind Faction panic.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were the only ones smiling.


    ***


    Long Chen did not know what was happening outside. All he saw was the blood Wu Qingrou had spat out in the end. Some of it was sttered on his hand.


    ¡°She was injured?¡± Long Chen was puzzled.


    ¡°My attack surpassed the Divine Space Talisman¡¯s limits.¡±


    After some thought, Long Chen had it roughly figured out.


    Lei Wen stared at him in a daze, and his jaw was almost on the ground. He knew that Long Chen was strong, but he didn¡¯t know he was this strong. Beating a ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator was like chopping vegetables to him.


    ¡°Brother ¡­ Brother Long ¡­¡± Lei Wen walked up to him, trembling.


    ¡°Breast Augmentation? I don¡¯t have breasts.¡± Long Chen made a joke that almost made him vomit blood.[1]


    ¡°You ¡­¡±


    Long Chen grinned. He was ready to move base when he sensed someone approaching. He turned and saw someone appear in a sh. That person was staring at him intensely. It was Jin Ling, from the Gold n.


    He was alone, and a thick killing aura radiated from him. His eyes were fixed on Long Chen.


    He walked over until he was twenty meters away from Long Chen. He said coldly, ¡°My brother from the Gold n. You eliminated him?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve only eliminated people from the Divine and Wind ns. As for the person you¡¯re talking about, it was done by that handsome guy from the Wind n,¡± Long Chen said truthfully.


    ¡°Good!¡± After Jin Ling spoke, he was ready to leave.


    ¡°What, you¡¯re not going to fight?¡±


    Jin Ling turned around, squinted, then said, ¡°You are very strong. I want to leave you till the finals and beat you fair and square! You and Wu Guangyu are both my rivals!¡±


    There was a cold auraing from him.


    ¡°As you please,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    1. This is a pun - Brother LongÁúÐÖ (Long2 Xiong1) vs Breast Augmentation ¡ÐØ (Long3 Xiong1) sound very simr. ?

 Chapter 797: Before the Divine Wind Faction Arrives

    Long Chen was stronger than ever in terms of essence, and he was much better at controlling it too. When he first cultivated the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal, he was unfamiliar with it. Now, it was different. He had the full capability to control three types of power.


    That was why he guessed that cultivating the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal would be simpler than cultivating the Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal.


    Long Chen would finally witness the sheer power of fivebined Emperor Seals when he could finally merge the five seals. It was probably more powerful than the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Long Chen could only perform some simple functions of the divine weapon for the moment. He knew that in order to unlock the Emperor-tier secretbat technique within the weapon, he had to increase his cultivation level. Maybe he had to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, or even the Heavenly Martial Realm, before he could unlock it. Then again, it was an advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon after all, so the secretbat technique inside it was surely at least an advanced Emperor-tier one.


    That secretbat technique would likely be more powerful than the fivebined Emperor Seals.


    However, the Five Emperor Seals were not even part of the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure. Just the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance alone was powerful, so the true treasure that once belonged to the Five Emperors was surely much, much more incredible!


    Long Chen was currently focusing on the Wooden Soul Crystal.


    The green Wooden Soul Crystal floated above his right palm. The red and golden seals in his palm had already been activated, while the third seal was still dull.


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the Wooden Soul Crystal started to merge into his palm and appeared in one of his Martial Meridians. Wood energy poured in, and the metallic and fire energy, which had previously achieved equilibrium, erupted once more. The eruption of three types of energy was more intense than before. This caused three lights to appear on his arm, and the three were fighting with each other.However, Long Chen¡¯s essence was stronger.


    The three powers gradually fell under his control. After his first and second experiences, plus his now powerful essence, taming them wasn¡¯t that hard. The three energies gradually reached an equilibrium, forming a triangle that appeared in the meridian point in his right palm.


    Three sources of energy merged harmoniously with his palm.


    The Azure Emperor Seal symbol in his hand also lit up and came to life. Now only the ck and Yellow Emperor Seals remained dull.


    The Five Emperor Seals made Long Chen think of his friends in the Divine Martial Empire.


    <em>I wonder if they¡¯re doing well.</em>


    After cultivating the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal, Long Chen stood up. He counted the days and found that almost ten days had passed. He had to feed the young Suyan his blood every ten days. Every time, Suyan would stare at him with her big eyes as she sucked the blood from his arm.


    ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m full,¡± Suyan said happily.


    ¡°I still need to feed you several more times,¡± Long Chen said in exasperation.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good thing, Big Brother. That way, you¡¯ll be able to stay near me for a longer time. Time passes so fast though. I wish the next tenth day wouldn¡¯te sooner.¡±


    Looking at the somewhat crestfallen girl, Long Chen did not know what to say. He had broken several hearts along his journey, and he did not really know how to deal with this.


    He had met many women, and there were many good ones who treated him well. However, they did not give him the same feeling as Ling Xi did.


    When he thought about the girl, battle spirit burned in his heart.


    <em>Ten days have passed while I was cultivating the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal. This time, I need to work towards the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.</em>


    Reaching the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage was harder than reaching the seventh.


    Every level of the Earthly Martial Realm was moreplicated than the previous, making it much harder to cultivate. If not for the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s guidance, he would never have progressed this quickly.


    Even with the Martial God Tombstone, he could not advance by a rank every ten days or so like he previously did. He could not reach such unrealistic levels yet.


    He counted the days. Almost two years had passed since he and Ling Xi had separated.


    Long Chen had advanced from the Heavenly Passage Realm to the Earthly Martial Realm¡¯s peak.


    It had taken him only two years, which surpassed the speed of the best prodigies in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory!


    However, he was not satisfied!


    Because he waspeting with the prodigies of the Royal Territories!


    The Ten Thousand Nations Territory was just a small ce after all. It was not Long Chen¡¯s endpoint!


    <em>When I rise, I want the whole world to tremble in my presence. To those who looked down on me: I will make you understand who the real prodigy is.</em>


    Looking far away, Long Chen broke into a smile.


    He did not take any time to rest. Long Chen sat cross-legged, and his mind entered the Martial God Tombstone. He started to revise the punching routine of the first seven Earthly Martial Stages. The revision allowed him to fill in previous gaps, and at the same time, he started the process of cultivating the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Within the Martial God Tombstone, the human silhouette¡¯s punching routine became increasinglyplicated, and many parts were difficult for Long Chen to understand.


    However, he did not give up. He studied it again and again, and even asked Bai Lan and the others for teachings. He quickly improved during this time. He had about sixty days to study this punching routine, and he was not disturbed at all. To him, it was rare to get such a peaceful cultivation environment.


    When he wasn¡¯t cultivating, he sparred with Suxue. Of course, he did not use his killer moves, and they only sparred using the punching routines in the Earthly Martial Manual. Suxue was at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, so she couldpletely defeat him.


    During this time, the young Suyan also worked very hard. She actually reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage before him. After her breakthrough, Long Chen started to get guidance from both sisters.


    Just like that, Long Chen started a very happy life of cultivation with the two sisters, much to the admiration of countless people. Under the two sisters¡¯ patient guidance and the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s demonstration, Long Chen improved very quickly.


    At the same time, he familiarized himself with the Three Thousand Star Clusters. He had experienced using the Azure Dragon Halberd, so he could quickly figure out many fighting techniques with it. Most importantly, he learned how to use a spear with his left hand!


    He wielded the spear with his left hand, then used his right hand to make seals. When hebined the Three Thousand Star Clusters and the Five Emperor Seals, Long Chen¡¯sbat abilities were boosted to a terrifying level. Everything depended on his breakthrough to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Time passed quickly when he cultivated. In the blink of an eye, one month had gone by. Only twenty days or so were left until the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition. Thanks to the excellent environment and assistance from others, Long Chen had almost reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.


    In order to help Long Chen improve, even Bai Lan personally guided him. Comprehending concepts was an important step in the Earthly Martial Realm, and if there was someone to give feedback, he could grasp the concepts quicker.


    On this day, Long Chen was sitting in the small room. His mind was fully immersed in the Martial God tombstone in the Primordial Realm. The human silhouette was flying through its movements, moving extremely quickly. It sometimes moved so quickly that he could barely see it. Thankfully, he had a lot of time to slowly savor theplicated movements.


    Even when slowed down, it was difficult to imitate them. The slower the movements, the more profound andplicated they actually were.


    <em>The journey of cultivation is difficult. I have no idea how the people of the Three Royal Territories cultivate. Are there really people who can skip the Four Foundational Realms when they are born?</em>


    <em>Perhaps they can. The Four Foundational Realms do not requireprehension. There is no Martial Soul, just changes to the body and the meridians, as well as the formation of the Eighteen Martial Veins and the Nine Martial Meridians. If they are born with these, then they are fated to be much stronger than us.</em>


    One could even say that the Three Martial Realms were the true beginning of cultivation.


    The three realms were surely not the end of cultivation. Whaty beyond that?


    Long Chen looked forward to seeing it.


    He was tiny and helpless when he was in Baiyang Town. Today, he still felt tiny. Making his way through the journey of cultivation made him feel smaller than ever. He had only started the journey, and there was a lot ahead of him.


    Four Foundational Realms. Three Martial Realms. What was next?


    Were there other, more terrifying ces beyond the Three Royal Territories?


    Long Chen had an even more important question. Where did his father, Long Qinn,e from? Before he died, Long Qinn said that he was once the best in the Dragon Continent. If his words were anything to go by, he had seen much more than Ling Xi. So where did hee from?


    He had many more questions. For example, the mysterious dragon jade could suppress the ancestral dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence. What was it? Also, Long Chen¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. Why would it be inside a mere advanced Yellow-tier Dragon Seal book? And who put the seal on the Dragon Seal book?


    Why was Long Qinn in a lowly ce like Baiyang Town?


    How had he lost his cultivation?


    Long Chen had a rough feeling that Long Qinn knew what the mysterious jade pendant was.


    <em>Father, what is this thing that you gave me? You left so soon; you didn¡¯t tell me anything. Now that I think of it, there are many things that I do not know. If only you were alive ¡­ </em>

 Chapter 798: Category Nine King Tier

    While Long Chen was immersed in his cultivation, he suddenly heard someone approaching quickly outside. He had made it known that he did not want to be disturbed, and if it was not something important, Suyan would not have allowed anyone to disturb him.


    Long Chen knew that something had happened, so he emerged from his cultivation state. His eyes sprang open and he stood up. When he opened the door, a slightly panicking Suyan stood in front of him and said hurriedly, ¡°Big Brother, the people from the Divine Wind Faction are here! They¡¯re looking for you!¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re here?¡± Long Chen gasped. He recalled how he had snatched away Feng Zhilin¡¯s Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. News of this had long spread to other people, so it was only normal that the Divine Wind Faction was here.


    ¡°Father, Uncle Lei, and the others are in a standoff against them. I came to tell you to be careful. They¡¯re here for you, so don¡¯t go there. Father and the others can deal with it,¡± said Suyan, looking at him with concern.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Since they¡¯re looking for me, how could I stay here? Yan¡¯er, stay here and don¡¯t go out. I¡¯ll go meet them.¡±


    Long Chen was not as weak as he once was.


    If the Divine Wind Faction darede here, then their n leaders were likely present too. Feng Zhilin, being the person who was directly involved, was sure to be here too. Wu Guangyu was usually by her side, and if he hade, Mo Xiang was surely with him. Long Chen had a faint sense that Mo Xiang was not far away right now.


    ¡°What?¡± Suyan hade here to tell Long Chen not to go, but to her shock, he intended to go. She quickly stretched her arms out and stood in front of him, saying, ¡°Big Brother, there are many people from the Divine Wind Faction outside! And they¡¯re all aiming for you. I don¡¯t think you should go, or you¡¯ll be in danger ¡­¡±


    ¡°Who can threaten me at my current strength? Also, I have your father protecting me,¡± Long Chen said with a smile, gently pushing her arms away. ¡°Alright, then. I want to go with you too.¡± Suyan clutched his arm, like she was afraid he would run off. He looked at her in exasperation, then nodded.


    He knew their approximate location without needing Suyan to exin. With a sh, he quickly charged towards that ce, and soon, using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he spotted them five hundred meters away. Long Chen sensed that indeed, there were many masters present. Many familiar people were there, and most importantly, Mo Xiang was there too. Wu Guangyu, Feng Zhilin, and the others were present as well.


    Long Chen only needed a second to cover five hundred meters, so he quickly arrived on the Thunder and Demon ns¡¯ side. There were many people gathered there, including the Seven Sect Elders of the Demon n, the Seven Thunder Elders, and many disciples of both ns. There were even many regr cultivators surrounding them, watching from afar. Suxue, Bai Lan, Lei Ji, and the others were standing in front of the crowd.


    In front of them were the people of the Divine and Wind ns, who wore either all-white or light-green clothing. Their outfit choice made it easy to distinguish their identities. The leader of the Divine Wind Faction was ady in a white dress. Her face was veiled, and Long Chen sensed that she was at least as powerful as Bai Lan was. Next to her was a long-bearded old man who looked like a righteous immortal.


    They were the Divine n¡¯s matriarch, Wu Lian, as well as the Wind n¡¯s patriarch, Feng Qing. Behind them were Wu Guangyu, Feng Zhilin, and over ten Eighth and Ninth Earthly Martial Staged cultivators from their ns. Mo Xiang, who had been separated from Long Chen for almost half a year, was standing behind Wu Guangyu.


    Everyone else was looking at Wu Lian and Feng Qing, but Long Chen was looking at Mo Xiang. Mo Xiang also saw Long Chen, and a wave of emotion filled his eyes. However, there were other people present, so the mature Mo Xiang quickly suppressed them.


    Long Chen was the same. He carefully regarded Mo Xiang and found that his aura was much, much stronger than before. Previously, he had only been a Category Four King-tier, but now he was at least a Category Eight or Nine. He was just a step away from bing an Emperor-tier demonic beast.


    Aftering here, Long Chen had not seen any other Emperor-tier beasts.


    However, the gigantic Ancient Graveyard probably had many of them.


    It seemed like Wu Guangyu had fed Mo Xiang a lot of precious treasures during this time. Long Chen felt relieved when he saw that Mo Xiang was getting stronger and was not under Wu Guangyu¡¯s control.


    Mo Xiang and Long Chen were the only ones here who knew how to use thenguage of beasts, so when Long Chen arrived, Mo Xiang said to him, ¡°Big Brother, I heard things about you. You¡¯ve gotten much stronger, and I have reached the Category Nine King-tier. Should I take this chance to break free from Wu Guangyu and return to your side?¡±


    Mo Xiang probably had enough of being by that bastard¡¯s side.


    ¡°How is life on that side? Is your life in danger?¡± Long Chen asked gently.


    ¡°Of course not. That brat treasures me a lot, and feeds me a lot of fire-type treasures. In the beginning, he used a hypnosis technique on me and thought it could tame me. He doesn¡¯t know that I was just pretending.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a while. This was not the time to kill Wu Guangyu. Long Chen had to find a chance to kill him to get Mo Xiang back. The Divine Wind Faction was here to look for trouble today, and if he asked Mo Xiang toe back now, it would only worsen the conflict between the factions.


    ¡°There are around twenty days left until the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition. When I beat Wu Guangyu there, we can reunite,¡± Long Chen said aftering to a decision.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Mo Xiang nodded. He could easily endure twenty days or so. However, he had some doubts. He had stayed by Wu Guangyu¡¯s side all this time and knew how strong he was¡ªespecially after receiving the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. Could Long Chen defeat him at the Martial Youth Competition?


    But he would never voice his doubts.


    He knew that Long Chen would have his ways. This was how much he trusted Long Chen.


    Long Chen and Mo Xiang had only taken a short while tomunicate using thenguage of beasts. He looked at Mo Xiang for a while more, then diverted his gaze to other people. However, after seeing Mo Xiang, his desire to be reunited intensified. He needed to beat Wu Guangyu in the finals so he could snatch Mo Xiang back.


    As for the other people, their gazes were all on Long Chen the moment he appeared. There was curiosity in many of their eyes, but there was one particrly fiery re. Long Chen looked at the source. It was Feng Zhilin. After experiencing the two major incidents involving him, Long Chen was undeniably the person she hated the most in the world. Snatching the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance were minor incidents. Most importantly, Long Chen had stripped her of her clothing and seen her naked body.


    That incident had left an unerasable mark in her mind.


    She would asionally think of that day even now. After suppressing her emotions for such a long time, she could not wait to rip him apart.


    When she saw Long Chen show up with nonchnce on his face, Feng Zhilin¡¯s eyes almost burst into mes. She took two steps forwards, unable to wait any longer, but Wu Guangyu quickly pulled her arm. He whispered in her ear, ¡°Zhilin, do you hate him that much? I¡¯m going to be your husband soon; let me kill him.¡±


    When Wu Guangyu spoke, she felt his hot breath on her ear, which gave her a fuzzy sensation. A red blush appeared on her face, but when she recalled how Long Chen had also given her a simr feeling, the feeling in her heart quickly disappeared.


    ¡°Zhilin, what¡¯s wrong?¡± asked Wu Guangyu.


    ¡°N-nothing ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin said hurriedly. Her eyes were still fixed on Long Chen. She gritted her teeth and said, ¡°I must kill that bastard today! The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is mine!¡±


    ¡°Mhm. Be patient. Your grandfather and my mother are speaking to the Thunder Demon Faction.¡± Wu Guangyu¡¯s handsome face broke into a warm smile. He looked at Long Chen and regarded the teenager who had once escaped him. To his surprise, the teenager had reached the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage.


    <em>He improved so fast! It must be because of the Martial God Tombstone. I can¡¯t believe that the person I let go because he didn¡¯t seem important ended up reaching such a high level. However, when a person without any background gets a valuable treasure in the Ancient Graveyard, isn¡¯t it just a death wish? </em>


    There was a sh of bloodlust in his eyes.


    He suddenly recalled that Mo Xiang once belonged to Long Chen and quickly turned around. When he saw that Mo Xiang was looking at himself with a loyal gaze, without even ncing at Long Chen, he was relieved.


    <em>That beast-taming technique was taught to me by the best beast-taming expert in the n. He has tamed thousands of beasts, so there should not be a problem. The Sun Devouring Wolf is extraordinary, and if I can make him reach the Emperor-tier, it will be a great boost to our n¡¯s might. If he gets strong, I get stronger too. However, finding a treasure that can take him to the Emperor-tier has been difficult. I have already searched through the whole Fire District at this point. </em>


    While Wu Guangyu was thinking about this, the Wind n¡¯s patriarch, Feng Qing, confirmed Long Chen¡¯s identity. He looked at Bai Lan and Lei Ji calmly, then said in a slow, mild, manner, ¡°Since the person we¡¯re looking for is here, everything is much easier. The Wind n secured the Martial God Tombstone at ck Gold City and we were about to collect it. However, this nameless, irrelevant character, Long Chen, used a sly trick to take away something that belonged to the Wind n. Then, within the Seven Star Lord¡¯s tomb, Zhilin had already gone in, but this irrelevant character caused trouble once more. He snatched away my granddaughter¡¯s inheritance ¡­ ¡°


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 799: The Might of the Domain

    Feng Qing paused, then he continued, ¡°We, the Divine Wind Faction, havee here today to take away the brat who snatched away the Wind n¡¯s treasure. Brother Bai and Brother Lei, for the sake of the rtionship between the Divine Wind and Thunder Demon Factions, I hope that will not stop us. I, Feng Qing, thank you two for your cooperation.¡±


    After Feng Qing spoke, he did not intend to seek Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s agreement. He was about to detain Long Chen personally. Being a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator, capturing Long Chen would be an easy feat.


    Feng Qing had not mentioned Long Chen and his rtionship with the Thunder and Demon ns at all, and even said that Long Chen had taken something that belonged to the Divine Wind Faction. If that was the case, Bai Lan and Lei Ji did not have any right to object. There was no need to start a conflict between two major factions over a minor character, and definitely not fight to the death. It was not worth it.


    When the crowd heard what Feng Qing said, they looked at each other and dared not make a sound.


    Long Chen had only just arrived when Feng Qing made his statement. Before Feng Qing acted, Long Chen burst intoughter. He even bent over withughter, not giving Feng Qing any face. The Wind nsmen looked at each other. Was Long Chen not afraid of death?


    Feng Zhilin had told Feng Qing about what had happened with the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Feng Qing was so angry that he almost vomited blood. Feng Zhilin was his most trusted granddaughter, and she was much more talented than themon person. No one had ever heard of Long Chen, yet she lost to him twice during two amazing opportunities to retrieve two crucial treasures. She had lost to a nameless character who was far weaker than she was.


    When he heard this, Feng Qing, who had never scolded Feng Zhilin before, scolded her harshly!


    It was a huge opportunity for their n to rise, yet the idiotic Feng Zhilin had basically given it away to someone else. How could Feng Qing not feel hatred or anger? He summoned the whole n tob through the whole Metal District in search of Long Chen, but in the end, they learned that Long Chen hade to Heavenly Wood City. Heavenly Wood City was the Thunder Demon Faction¡¯s main base, so Feng Qing had to storm the ce together with the Divine n.


    They had spent a lot of time traveling here.¡°Why are youughing, brat?¡± Feng Qing stopped and carefully studied the terrible brat. There was a cold sh in his eyes. He had to admit that this unknown minor character was the most frustrating person he had dealt with in his life, as well as the person he hated most.


    He was only at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, which was nothing to Feng Qing. He could kill Long Chen at any time, so why was the bratughing?


    Long Chen stopped for a breath of air. Everyone watched as he looked at Feng Qing calmly and said, ¡°¡®Finders keepers¡¯ is thew that applies to all treasures in this world. The Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance didn¡¯t have owners before they became mine. I fought with Feng Zhilin for them, and she was weaker than me, so she lost. I won both treasures, so they belong to me. Patriarch of the Wind n, you are a proud, famous figure, and you are also someone I worship. I can¡¯t believe you would say such shameless things, iming my treasures belong to the Wind n. I have seen your true face now, and I can onlyugh. How shameful ¡­ ording to your logic, all the treasures in the Ancient Graveyard belong to the Wind n, and anyone who retrieves them has taken something that belongs to the Wind n, right?¡±


    After Long Chen spoke, he started tough even harder.


    Feng Qing¡¯s expression darkened even more. It was true. Feng Qing¡¯s demands were indeed shameless, but who would dare call him out on this? Did they want to die?


    But Long Chen was just a strange person. He was indeed bold enough to say it out loud. What could Feng Qing do about it?


    After the crowd heard Long Chen, they started to whisper among themselves. Feng Qing¡¯s face darkened. He gently stroked his beard, then he said, ¡°Brat, do not misinterpret my intentions. The Wind n found the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance first. You snatched them away after that. You¡¯re just a nameless character, and yet you dare snatch away something that belongs to the Wind n. If this gets out, won¡¯t the Wind n lose face? If you want to live, hand them over to me now. I will give face to the two patriarchs and leave you with your life. If you still remain misguided, do not me me for taking your life here!¡±


    Feng Qing was clearly bullying Long Chen because thetter did note from a powerful background.


    When he threatened Long Chen, he secretly released his domain, wrapping Long Chen in it. A huge force pressed on Long Chen¡¯s body, and Long Chen had a feeling that if he did not agree, Feng Qing would use the power of his domain to kill him!


    Long Chen could sense that the domain was powerful. Although it was not as powerful as the domain in the Seven Star Tomb, which made it so Long Chen could not even move, it was terrifying enough.


    Feng Qing quietly covered Long Chen with his domain as they spoke, controlling it with his mind. A strong force flowed towards Long Chen, making him feel like he was suffocating, as if countless mountains were pressing on his body. He was thankful for having cultivated the Seven Star Body, or his tendons and muscles would have copsed.


    Long Chen¡¯s expression turned into a grimace.


    Despite the domain¡¯s pressure acting on him from all directions, trying to squash him, he did not back down at all.


    Feng Qing was publicly attacking Long Chen in front of everyone.


    There was a sh of anger in Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s eyes. They saw that negotiations were impossible, so they were about to attack. To their surprise, Long Chen waved at them and said, ¡°Wait.¡±


    Clearly, Long Chen wanted to test out Feng Qing¡¯s domain. Feng Qing and Lei Ji were only at the First Heavenly Martial Stage, so their domains were the weakest types. Although Feng Qing had used all his strength and Long Chen felt an all-epassing pressure squashing his body, the domain did not knock him down, despite it trying to slow him down and hurt him!


    When the crowd saw that Long Chen could stand in a stable manner by just relying on his own strength, everyone was shocked, especially Feng Qing. He knew how much strength he had applied, but he saw that Long Chen was gritting his teeth and enduring it. He was even giving Feng Qing a look of contempt.


    <em>The young ones are usually stubborn. In that case, let me break your femur. </em>Feng Qing smirked to himself. Since Bai Lan and Lei Ji had not intervened, he could act even more brazenly. He increased his force and intensified his domain to its maximum!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The surrounding tree branches were pressed downwards. Although the crowd was not touched by the domain, they could sense its suffocating power. They looked at Long Chen, but to their surprise, he was still standing despite bearing the full force of the domain. Although his veins were popping out of his skin and he was drenched in sweat, he was holding on. His knees were not even bent a little bit!


    ¡°How is that possible? Kneel!¡±


    Feng Qing gasped in surprise and used up thest bit of his energy. The power of a domain wasrgely rted to one¡¯s Martial Soul. Feng Qing let his Martial Soul release its maximum amount of force, trying to make Long Chen kneel. It would be embarrassing if a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator like him could not even make Long Chen bend his knees.


    <em>Crack!</em>


    Long Chen was standing on the ancient tree underneath Heavenly Wood City, and a chunk of the tree had sunken downwards, but it did not affect Long Chen at all. Although all the muscles in his body were taut and he could not move, he was looking at Feng Qing proudly. Forget about kneeling¡ªLong Chen could still speak despite being pressed down by the powerful domain!


    It was not as though Feng Qing¡¯s domain was not powerful. The issue was that Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body was an intermediate Emperor-tier body tempering technique. Even the patriarchs of the Divine and Demon ns did not have body tempering techniques as good as his. The Seven Star Body was unimaginably tough!


    Feng Qing¡¯s failed attempt to squash Long Chen with his domain was like a p to his face!


    ¡°Patriarch of the Wind n, could you add a little more force? This isn¡¯t even enough to even scratch an itch. You¡¯re the great patriarch of the Wind n! How could you be this weak? Have you used up your strength in other ces? I see that you¡¯re not young anymore. You shouldn¡¯t spend too much time on women and alcohol at your age, or you might die on a woman¡¯s belly! Hahaha ¡­¡±


    Long Chen gave a long monologue and then burst intoughter while enduring the immense force.


    He was the only oneughing. Every single member of the Divine Wind Faction had a darkened expression. As for the Thunder Demon Faction, when they understood Long Chen and saw Feng Qing¡¯s face, which had turned purple-ck, they burst intoughter.


    The tsunami ofughter ignited mes of fury in Feng Qing¡¯s heart!


    He was the patriarch of a n, yet he was being mocked publicly. His Heavenly Martial Realm domain, the achievement he was proudest of, was useless on Long Chen. Feng Qing was utterly humiliated today.


    ¡°Long Chen, die!¡±


    At this point, Feng Qing had no choice but to resort to violence to regain some dignity. Long Chen had given him too severe of a blow.


    Long Chen wanted to endure Feng Qing¡¯s domain for a reason. He had a feeling that the suppressing force was the key to his breakthrough to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. He decided that he would let Bai Lan or Lei Ji train his body using their domains after the enemy faction left.


    However, now that Feng Qing was charging, it was time for Bai Lan and Lei Ji to defend him.


    Long Chen was not worried at all.


    As expected, when Feng Qing attacked, Bai Lan and Lei Ji quietly disappeared in a sh and reappeared in front of Long Chen.

 Chapter 800: Don’t Lose Your Purity

    Feng Qing¡¯s domain was quickly expelled after Bai Lan acted. When the elderly Feng Qing saw that Bai Lan and Lei Ji were blocking his way, he was shocked. Despite his fury at Long Chen, he had no choice but to hold it in and stop attacking.


    The tension in the air grew thicker. Everyone had guessed that the Divine Wind and Thunder Demon Factions would fight today, and that guess was about toe true.


    When Feng Qing saw that Bai Lan and Lei Ji had finally acted, he snapped out of his fury. After being the patriarch for so many years, he still knew when he had to remain calm. Bai Lan and Lei Ji clearly intended to protect Long Chen.


    Feng Qing looked at the two patriarchs with a dark gaze. ¡°What is the meaning of this? Long Chen has taken something that belongs to the Wind n. Does this mean that the Thunder and Demon ns are also greedy enough to take my n¡¯s treasures for yourselves?¡±


    Bai Lan gave a small smile and said, ¡°We are not eyeing the Wind n¡¯s treasures. We would never dare go after the Wind n¡¯s treasures, like the Shapeless Whip! However, you must understand something. First of all, this is Heavenly Wood City. We are not idiots¡ªthe treasures in the Ancient Graveyard do not belong to anyone. We may fight over them, but they belong to whoever gets them. If the Wind n were able to snatch away the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance here, then it would naturally belong to you too. However, Brother Feng, you are saying that the Martial God Tombstone and the inheritance already belong to you. Do you think that we are idiots?¡±


    Feng Qing froze. He had said those things only to bully Long Chen, to make it seem like he was in the right. Bai Lan, as a person of equal rank, had just exposed him, giving Feng Qing no face at all. Feng Qing and Wu Lian looked at each other. They knew that Bai Lan was adamant about protecting Long Chen.


    The matriarch of the Divine n, Wu Lian, who had not said a word yet, finally spoke up in a cold voice. ¡°Brother Bai, are you going to ignore the rtionship between the Divine Wind and Thunder Demon Factions and insist on protecting this nobody?¡±


    Bai Lan chuckled, turned around, and then asked the Demon and Thunder nsmen, ¡°Who said he was a nobody? Can someone tell me who Long Chen is to me?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen is the patriarch¡¯s son-inw!¡±¡°Yes! Son-inw!¡±


    ¡°He is Princess Suxue¡¯s husband!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen is part of the Demon n! He is not a nobody!¡±


    ¡°Yes, he is the Prince Consort<em></em>of the Demon n!¡±[1]


    The crowd started to answer Bai Lan cooperatively. After several people shouted out their answers, almost every Thunder and Demon n member raised their hands to utter the words ¡°son-inw¡± and ¡°Prince Consort.¡± This showed that they had epted Long Chen as one of them.


    Not only the Thunder nsmen, even the Demon n members who previously hated Long Chen were speaking up. Long Chen had gained their respect and admiration. It was a dog-eat-dog world, and the strongest ones received the respect they deserved. Right now, Long Chen was undeniably considered strong in the Thunder and Demon ns. After all, he had withstood Feng Qing¡¯s domain despite only having the Seven Star Body to rely on. The Demon n was secretly grateful to Long Chen for this small act of revenge.


    Bai Lan smiled and turned around to say, ¡°I think you two understand what they¡¯re saying, right?¡±


    As he spoke, Bai Lan reached out and rested his hand on Long Chen¡¯s shoulder in a friendly manner. He smiled and said, ¡°The wedding between my daughter, Suxue, and Long Chen was set a long time ago. The whole world knows about it! I can¡¯t believe you guys hadn¡¯t heard about it! This means that Long Chen isn¡¯t just part of the Demon n, he is also my family!¡±


    After he spoke, Bai Lan¡¯s expression changed abruptly to a stern look. A fierce aura radiated from his body as he red coldly at the Divine Wind Faction. He said coldly, ¡°I will answer Brother Feng¡¯s question now. First, Long Chen is right. If a treasure appears in the wild, then whoever gets it can keep it. Before anyone truly gets a hold of the treasure, no one has the right to say that they are its owner. This is something that even a child understands, so don¡¯t you dare try to manipte me, Brother Feng. Second, Long Chen is my son-inw, not a nobody. Brother Feng, you are standing in my territory, and you attacked a family member of mine. Aren¡¯t you the one that¡¯s not giving <em>me</em> face at all? Do you see me as a doormat?¡±


    At this point, a demonic aura emanated from Bai Lan''s body. It was a thick killing intent. Other than the two n leaders, the members of the Divine Wind Faction had to back away in terror.


    Bai Lan did not stop. His gaze fell on his old rival, the Divine n¡¯s matriarch, Wu Lian, and he continued, ¡°As for the part where you used me of ignoring the rtionship between our factions ¡­ You were the one who came to my territory and made wild usations, and you even tried to attack my family! You did not show respect to the Thunder and Demon ns at all. May I ask if it is me or <em>you </em>who are the ones ignoring the rtionship between our factions? That is all I have to say. Everyone knows in their hearts who is right and who is wrong. If you still refuse to leave us alone, then do not me me for treating you poorly! The Demon n only has heroes who die in battle; we do not have cowardly trash. If you want to attack, do it! We will kill as many as it takes!¡±


    When he uttered hisst words, the power of Bai Lan¡¯s domain erupted. Bai Lan¡¯s domain was much stronger than Feng Qing¡¯s, so Matriarch Wu Lian was the only member of the whole Divine Wind Faction who did not back away. However, the strong gust of wind still caused her clothes to p loudly!


    ¡°Yeah! If you want to fight, we¡¯ll fight! The Thunder and Demon nsmen are proud men! Not like some people, who bully the weak just because they¡¯re stronger!¡±


    ¡°Come at us! If the Divine and Wind ns want to fight, we will oblige you! If you want to fight, do it now! If you don¡¯t, get the hell out!¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re weak! The great patriarch of a n isn¡¯t even strong enough to make a teenager under twenty years old kneel before him! I am shocked!¡±


    The Thunder and Demon nsmen werepletely behind Bai Lan, and they started to mock the other party. The expressions of the Divine Wind Faction soured. If not for the fact that their respective patriarchs had not given the order, they would have attacked already.


    Long Chen felt a sense of warmth in his heart upon seeing all the support he was receiving. He looked at the Divine Wind Faction and mocked them loudly as well. ¡°You guys shouldn¡¯t speak too loudly, or you¡¯ll scare them! The Divine Wind Faction is filled with people who are basically women, and even the patriarch is a woman. They¡¯re not brave! They wouldn¡¯t dare attack even if we gave them ten galldders each.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words were especially hurtful at this moment.


    Every person from the Divine Wind Faction was about to explode from rage.


    They looked at him with reddened eyes filled with rage. Long Chen saw the strongest desire to fight in Feng Zhilin and Wu Guangyu¡¯s eyes, who looked as if they wanted to swallow him whole. Wu Guangyu stood next to Feng Zhilin, his eyes fixed on Long Chen. In his memory, Long Chen had been difficult to deal with since the beginning, but at the time, Long Chen¡¯s cultivation level was so low that he had no interest in killing him.


    <em>This brat has a death wish.</em>


    Wu Guangyu had good self-discipline. Despite his anger at the insult, he quickly hid it away.


    This was clearly not a good time to kill Long Chen.


    The Divine Wind Faction did not attack. They were all waiting for Wu Lian and Feng Qing¡¯smand. Wu Lian¡¯s face was hidden beneath a veil, so they could not see her expression. Feng Qing was standing next to her, and he was the main target of the mockery. Therefore, he was in a more humiliating position than anyone else.


    ¡°Sister Wu, look at them ¡­¡±


    ¡°This is not the time to attack. Seeing as Bai Lan has openly stated his intentions and we have formed this grudge, there is no need to say any more. We will all be heading to the Eternal Battlefield. We will make the Thunder and Demon ns pay back the humiliation we suffered today ten times over. With Yu¡¯er present, we will definitely get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance!¡±


    Feng Qing nodded and said, ¡°Yu¡¯er has started to learn how to control the divine sword, the Azure Lotus. The sword will surely be at least as powerful as the Seven Star Lord¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters, and Yu¡¯er is at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. He also has many more treasures ¡­¡±


    With that thought, Feng Qing suppressed his anger and calmed himself down. He smiled and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t think that the Thunder and Demon ns are only capable of bickering. I am shocked. In that case, there is nothing else for us to say. The Nine ns Martial Youth Competition will take ce in twenty-seven days ¡­¡±


    As he spoke, he looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°You have offended the Divine Wind Faction. I hope you actually are strong so that you won¡¯t lose too tragically at the Martial Youth Competition. We can¡¯t intervene during the fight, so if you lose the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, it¡¯ll be gone for good!¡±


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t lose the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. However, you need to remind your granddaughter Feng Zhilin not to lose her virginity.¡±


    Virginity.


    Long Chen¡¯s vulgarity made the Divine Wind Faction¡¯s nsmen¡¯s rage hit the roof.


    As for the Thunder Demon Faction, they admired Long Chen endlessly. To them, he was very talented and very bold. He was probably the only person in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory who would dare say such a thing.


    The ones who were the angriest were Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin. Feng Zhilin was Wu Guangyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e, yet Long Chen had publicly threatened Feng Zhilin¡¯s purity. As a man, who could endure someone else threatening his own betrothed?


    To Feng Zhilin, what happened in the Seven Star Lord¡¯s tomb was still fresh in her mind. All it would¡¯ve taken was a whim from Long Chen, and she would have lost her purity then. Even now, she had already lost a small portion of it to Long Chen.


    1. The author uses the termæâÂíÒ¯ (F¨´m¨£ y¨¦), which is a title for the emperor¡¯s son-inw. Prince Consort seems to be a close trantion. ?

 Chapter 801: Final Breakthrough

    ¡°Die!¡± Feng Zhilin immediately swung the Shapeless Whip at Long Chen.


    Due to her rage, she moved very quickly. Bai Lan and the others could have definitely blocked it, but they did not help because Long Chen could block a minor attack like that himself.


    The Shapeless Whip was something that previously terrified Long Chen, but that was no longer the case. Relying on his Seven Star Body and his own sensing abilities, he reached out and grabbed the Shapeless Whip!


    <em>Snap!</em>


    The power of the Shapeless Whip was not to be underestimated, yet Long Chen managed to catch it. However, he sustained small cuts on his palm, though they were nothing major to him as they would recover quickly.


    At the same time, heughed coldly and pulled abruptly. Feng Zhilin yelled in surprise and was tugged into the air. She could not resist the forceing from Long Chen¡¯s arm at all!


    <em>When did this brat be so strong? </em>Feng Zhilin was stunned. The Shapeless Whip was one of the best treasures of the Wind n, so she had no choice but to grip it with all her might. When she was worried she would lose it, Wu Guangyu grabbed her waist. She felt a strong force pulling on her tiny waist, and she was carried back towards the group.


    ¡°Idiot.¡± When Wu Guangyu exerted all his strength to pull her, Long Chen gently let go. As a result, Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin fell on top of one another. Though they did not truly fall t, they ended up looking very clumsy.


    Feng Zhilin was bad-tempered, and this was the first time he had hugged her like that. Her whole body heated up as she was very embarrassed due to all the people present, and she quickly pushed Wu Guangyu away. ¡°Get off me!¡± Wu Guangyu stood up with a cold gaze without saying anything. However, based on his re, he was quite angry that Feng Zhilin had acted in a manner that did not give him face at all. But he did not express it.


    Long Chen had yed the two prodigies of the Divine and Wind ns just like that.


    His performance today was extraordinary. The youths of the Thunder and Demon ns were filled with admiration for him.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Big Brother, you¡¯re fine, right?¡±


    The sisters, Suxue and Suyan, were both beautiful girls. In contrast to Feng Zhilin¡¯s cold arrogance, Suxue was sexy and seductive, while Suyan was pure and attractive. One on the left and one on the right, the sisters each stood next to Long Chen and showered him with concern. Everyone who saw him was jealous.


    The three of them interacted harmoniously and looked like they were made for each other. Whenpared to Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin, a stark contrast could be felt. This filled Wu Guangyu with rage.


    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t embarrass us anymore. We¡¯ll meet at the Eternal Battlefield.¡± When the Divine patriarch, Wu Lian, saw this, she showed no expression and immediately led the Divine Wind Faction away. Feng Zhilin had not only failed to teach Long Chen a lesson, she didn¡¯t even get her things back from him, so she was naturally unwilling to leave. However, while she dared disobey Feng Qing¡¯smands, she did not dare disobey Wu Lian. She knew how terrifying the woman was.


    That was why she could only re at Long Chen with seething hatred, then leave sulking.


    Very soon, the Divine Wind faction left Heavenly Wood City. Once they were gone, Bai Lan finally asked all the bystanders to leave.


    There had been enmity between the Thunder Demon and Divine Wind Factions for a long time. In the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, the Divine and Wind ns presented themselves as the righteous ones, feeding the citizens of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory lies about how the Thunder Demon Faction was evil and satanic. Today, Long Chen had made them embarrass themselves in a huge way, and most importantly, they had to swallow their anger and leave after the consecutive humiliations. It was an amazing feeling.


    They liked Long Chen even more now.


    They suddenly realized that this youth who had suddenly risen to prominence also had a very cute side to him, though with two princesses by his side, he still made other people look less attractive.


    Under Bai Lan¡¯smands, they slowly departed, leaving behind only the important figures from both ns.


    ¡°That woman Wu Lian left very quickly. This means she was <em>really</em> angry. If she stayed, she probably would have attacked by now. Long Chen, Long Chen, you¡¯re no simple kid. Although Wu Lian and I have been rivals for a long time, you are the only person who could make her angry,¡± Bai Lan said with a chuckle, unaffected by the tense ordeal.


    Everyone else had heavier expressions.


    Lei Ji borated, ¡°Wu Lian is a terrifying woman, and she is truly talented and psychotic. Don¡¯t underestimate her because she is a woman. Few people are as good as she is in terms of technique and discipline. Now that she is targeting you, you shouldn¡¯t stray too far from us, or trouble wille.¡±


    <em>Is that woman really that powerful? </em>Even Lei Ji had such high praise for her. Long Chen made a mental note.


    Of course, even if they could do it all over again, he would do the same.


    Mo Xiang had left him once again. However, Long Chen was much more at ease now that he knew that his brother was safe and received many benefits from Wu Guangyu. The next thing Long Chen had to do was focus on his cultivation and work towards breaking through to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.


    ¡°Father, Wu Guangyu is at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and has the divine sword, the Azure Lotus, which is on the same level as Big Brother¡¯s weapon. Now Big Brother has made him angry, so will he kill Big Brother when you guys go to the Eternal Battlefield?¡± Suyan asked hurriedly, as the problem gued her. Her small eyebrows were furrowed, making her look adorable.


    This was indeed a problem.


    The Sect Elders knew that Long Chen was very strong, but Wu Guangyu was clearly stronger. The grudge had been formed, and with their vengeful personalities, they would never let Long Chen go if they had a chance to kill him at the Eternal Battlefield.


    Bai Lan looked at Long Chen with a smile. Long Chen had to answer this question on his own.


    Long Chen grinned and said, ¡°Yan¡¯er, don¡¯t worry. They¡¯re all stupid, and even though they¡¯re strong, they aren¡¯t a match for me. I¡¯ll catch them all, line them up, and make them arch their backs so that you can spank them all in a row! p, p, p, p, p!¡±


    Suyan burst intoughter, and the worries in her heart disappeared. She then said, ¡°You¡¯re evil!¡±


    It was time for them to head back, but Long Chen had figured out a new cultivation method today, which was to use a domain to condition his body. After he told Lei Ji and Bai Lan about it, they were very willing to help him out.


    Lei Ji smiled and said, ¡°Brother Bai is crazy. If he releases his domain, you¡¯ll be squashed to death. Let me do it. Under my control, you¡¯ll still be able to practice your punching routine at least. There are more than twenty days left. From today onwards, I shall use my domain to support your cultivation.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Patriarch Lei,¡± Long Chen said gratefully.


    ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ Don¡¯t be so formal. Just call me ¡®Uncle Lei.¡¯ You¡¯re marrying Old Bai¡¯s daughter after all,¡± said Lei Ji with a grin.


    Long Chen was a little speechless. He knew that Lei Ji was only joking, so he did not take it to heart.


    ¡°Alright. I was just messing with you. You saw it today; the Divine and Wind ns are bold and arrogant enough toe to our territory demanding things. If we hadn¡¯t intimidated them today, they would think that we are doormats. However, the conflict between our factions must be resolved one day, which will happen at the Eternal Battlefield. You are no match for Wu Guangyu now, so for the glory of the Thunder Demon Faction, you must work hard until then.¡±


    Long Chen nodded and asked, ¡°Where is the Eternal Battlefield?¡±


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard is divided into five main districts. If the Ancient Graveyard was circr, the five districts would be five equal fifths, forming a circr fan shape with the Eternal Battlefield as a circle in the center. It is a destend and has no rtions to the five elements. It is notrge. The Nine ns Martial Youth Competition will be held there,¡± exined Lei Ji.


    Long Chen understood.


    After that, he spent his days with Lei Ji. His domain¡¯s pressure did indeed help Long Chen cultivate faster.


    Over twenty days passed in the blink of an eye.


    Long Chen treated Suyan for thest time. After this day, Suyan would be truly healed.


    However, the identities of those who injured her were still a mystery.


    Who were those six mysterious people? They were so powerful. How had theye to the Ancient Graveyard? What were their objectives?


    What mysterious power controlled the Ancient Graveyard?


    Everything was unknown.


    Long Chen was clear about his goal, which was to get to the Three Royal Territories. However, where was the passageway?


    Half a year had passed since he arrived at the Ancient Graveyard.


    There was half a year left until the closure of the Ancient Graveyard. He would have to head back if he could not find the passageway to the Three Royal Territories within this time.


    Of course, he would not be willing to go back.


    ¡°Big Brother, are you going to leave now that I have recovered.?¡± Suyan tugged at his sleeve with tears in her eyes.


    ¡°Who said that? There are six months left until the Ancient Graveyard closes,¡± said Long Chen with a smile, patting her soft cheek.


    ¡°Mm, I thought you¡¯d leave to search for Sister Ling Xi,¡± Suyan said with a smile.


    Although he was not leaving, he needed to go to the Eternal Battlefield, and it was time to depart. A portion of the masters from the Thunder and Demon ns stayed behind to guard Heavenly Wood City, while the others followed Bai Lan to the Eternal Battlefield.


    Suyan was still young, so it was not appropriate for her to go. Therefore, she was left in Heavenly Wood City. Suxue was going to participate in thepetition, so she left with Long Chen. Traveling with them were three Sect Elders from the Demon n and a few of the Seven Thunder Elders.


    At this time, Long Chen met the two participants from the Thunder n.

 Chapter 802: Eternal Battlefield

    The participants from the Thunder n were a pair of brothers. They were Lei Ji¡¯s sons, and they were slightly older than Long Chen and Suxue. Although they looked like they were in their twenties, they were actually almost forty.


    After reaching the Earthly Martial Realm, due to the increase in strength, lifespans also increased. Once a person reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, they could live up to five hundred years. That was why although they were almost forty, they were still considered the younger generation. The age limit of the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition was forty.


    A person¡¯s best time to cultivate was before the age of fifty. If one failed to break through the Heavenly Martial Wall to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm before fifty, it would be very difficult to progress. For example, the Eight Sect Elders had been at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage for a very long time, but they had long lost the best opportunity to break through.


    People like the Eight Sect Elders had long lifespans, but their potential had already decided their final cultivation levels. The Ninth Earthly Martial Stage was their limit. On the journey of cultivation, not moving forward caused a person to slide backwards. Their usual cultivation was only enough to maintain their current level so they would not deteriorate, but if they wanted to progress, they would need a major opportunity.


    Something like Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Lord inheritance¡ªthat was an opportunity. Situ Yao was willing to risk it all because he saw it as a chance for him to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    Two muscr young men who looked like they were in their twenties stood in front of Long Chen. This was Long Chen¡¯s first time meeting them. They were not twins; they had an age gap of about three or four years, but they were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. As Lei Ji¡¯s sons, it was not at all strange that they had reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    There were also people who reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage before the age of forty in other ns, but even among, there were weak Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators and strong ones. These two young men had undeniably received Lei Ji¡¯s direct teachings, so they had achieved a very deep level of mastery in terms of cultivation andbat abilities.


    Their body types were a bit different. One was slightly taller and thinner; he was the older of the two. He smiled at Long Chen and said, ¡°I am the older brother, Lei Wen. Lei Wu and I were training outside the city for a while and only returned a few days ago. That¡¯s when we heard about your famous deeds. We are quite impressed by your capabilities.¡±


    The other one, who was more muscr, gave an innocent smile and said, ¡°He¡¯s right. You¡¯re only at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, but you were able to kill two Ninth Earthly Martial Stage experts, and even broke free from the Seven Thunder Elders¡¯ trap. After hearing about your legendary story, we both respect you very much.¡±¡°Thank you for the praise.¡± Lei Wen and Lei Wu¡¯s personalities were simr to Lei Ji¡¯s; they were easy to get along with.


    ¡°You guys should stop praising him, or he¡¯ll get arrogant and lose tragically at the Eternal Battlefield,¡± Suxue said with a smile. She was wearing a ck chiffon dress.


    When Lei Wen saw the beautiful Suxue, he looked at Long Chen with admiration and said, ¡°I really admire you for taking a beautiful girl like Suxue as your wife. That was our dream; I can¡¯t believe you got her instead.¡±


    After chatting for a while, Bai Lan and the others led them on the journey to the Eternal Battlefield. Behind Long Chen, the little Suyan watched him leave in a daze, with tears filling up her sparkling eyes.


    It had been three months since he arrived at Heavenly Wood City. During that time, Long Chen had undergone a gigantic transformation. He was the only one who knew exactly how much he had grown. He had arrived as a nameless nobody and emerged as a famous figure whose name was known across the whole Ancient Graveyard. After the conflict with the Divine Wind Faction, talk of Long Chen¡¯s courage and strength had spread far and wide.


    The Eternal Battlefield was the center of the five districts. The group of a dozen or so people was led by Bai Lan and Lei Ji, heading to the Eternal Battlefield. Other than Long Chen, everyone else in the group was at least at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Every single person traveled very quickly. As they passed through the quiet forest, regr cultivators couldn¡¯t even see them clearly. They would only feel shadows flying by.


    The group stopped for nothing, and no beast or spiritual herb could make them stop. People like Bai Lan would not be impressed bymon spiritual herbs, and the true treasures would not appear randomly in this forest. As for powerful beasts, Long Chen had not encountered one so far.


    There were many small demonic beasts along the way, but those with some intelligence fled after smelling the auras of all the masters.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji traveled in front of the group, with Lei Ji¡¯s sons following closely behind their father. Lei Wen went up behind Lei Ji and asked softly, ¡°Father, Brother Long Chen has been training in your domain for over twenty days. Did he break through to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage in the end?¡±


    Lei Wen froze, then he smiled bitterly and said, ¡°How would I know? Breakthroughs be more and more difficult as one proceeds through the Earthly Martial Realm. Even with the Martial God Tombstone, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s easy. Long Chen actually zoomed through several levels in these three short months. Even I have a hard time believing it. It took me three whole years to progress from the Seventh to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    Lei Ji said, ¡°Idiot, something isn¡¯t impossible just because <em>you</em> can¡¯t do it. It¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know the strength of my domain. He endured my full strength for over twenty days and did not even furrow his brows. Do you think a person like that would fail?¡±


    Lei Wen was wistful after hearing that. After thanking his father, he took a few steps back and traveled beside Lei Wu. The brothers looked at each other, both feeling deep admiration for Long Chen.


    Long Chen traveled in the center of the group. Although he was at the lowest cultivation level of all the people present, he had the advantage of the Seven Star Body, so he could travel as fast as them.


    He looked up ahead and had a faint feeling. It was Xiang¡¯s aura, and he was getting nearer. This time, he truly wanted to rescue Xiang from Wu Guangyu. At the same time, he had a precious gift for Wu Guangyu. Death.


    Long Chen had long sentenced Wu Guangyu to death in his heart.


    When they first arrived at the Ancient Graveyard, Wu Guangyu had taken Xiang away and almost killed Long Chen. Long Chen would never forget this grudge. He was not strong enough at the time, but now he was back for revenge.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you confident you can defeat Wu Guangyu?¡± Suxue suddenly asked.


    Long Chen looked at the beautiful girl and smiled. ¡°It¡¯s too early to talk about these things. You just watch. Speaking of that, what is the format of the Martial Youth Competition?¡±


    He had been busy with cultivation, so he had only just thought of asking about thepetition¡¯s format.


    ¡°Each n sends two young experts under the age of forty to thepetition. Since there are nine ns, there will be eighteen people in total. There will only be one champion, and it is the most important position. Even getting second ce will be considered bad. Only the champion will receive the one remaining slot to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm from the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s Yellow Emperor Key. The winner will likely have a huge influence on the final recipient of the true treasure.¡±


    ¡°I see. How will the champion be decided out of the eighteen people? One-on-one duels?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°No. Thepetition is divided into two segments. In the first segment, ten people will be eliminated. Then the remaining eight will duel each other.¡±


    Long Chen asked, ¡°How are the first ten people eliminated? What is the format of the first segment?¡±


    Long Chen had experienced manypetitions on the road of cultivation. It was interesting that many of them were also divided into two rounds.


    ¡°The first round is more like a game than apetition.¡± Suxue had a solemn expression, gently furrowing her willow leaf-like brows.


    ¡°How is it like a game? Is it dangerous?¡± Long Chen asked further.


    ¡°It is indeed very dangerous. To us, we are at a disadvantage in the first round because the first round was set by the Five Elements Alliance. It benefits them the most,¡± Suxue said with a scoff.


    She paused, then continued, ¡°There is an abandoned, nameless city at the center of the Eternal Battlefield. It is a vast ruin, and the eighteen participants will be sent there. The ruins have a natural Confounding Array so that even people who are familiar with the ce will lose their way. We will be scattered in that ce, and we may encounter each other by chance, leading to random skirmishes. If we fight, there will surely be casualties, so this goes on until only eight people remain. Then the first round ends.¡±


    Long Chen gasped and asked, ¡°Hey, girl, are you saying that ten people will die in the first round?¡±


    ¡°Of course not.¡± Suxue shook her head. ¡°Every young expert here is their patriarch¡¯s darling. Who would be willing to let them be killed? When the game begins, they will nt a Divine Space Talisman on each of our bodies. It is a very strange talisman that creates a protective shield around us, so it protects us from every angle. Once we face an attack that surpasses our bodies¡¯ limits, the talisman will be activated immediately, and it will transport us out of the ruins. If everything runs normally, there should be no danger to us.¡±

 Chapter 803: Divine Space Talisman

    ¡°A Divine Space Talisman?¡± Long Chen made a mental note.


    ¡°The good thing about this round is that casualties do not usually happen, but there are also disadvantages. Just think about it. The Five Elements Alliance has five ns, so they will send a total of ten people. Once these ten people meet each other in the ruins, they will be allies and travel together. In the end, they may even gather all ten of their mates and eliminate everyone else together. How could we be a match for that?


    ¡°The Divine Wind Faction has Wu Guangyu, whom they are afraid of. They¡¯re also a bit scared of some of the other Divine Wind Faction people. However, our situation is different. That is why after we reach the ruins, we must first learn how to keep a low profile. The bird who stands out from the flock gets shot. If you keep a low profile, you may even get a chance to enter the top eight.¡±


    Trapping eighteen people in a natural Confounding Array was not a bad idea at all. Long Chen knew how strong he was, so he had some confidence. He was not afraid of the first round in the ruins.


    ¡°You¡¯re stronger than I am, but you must hide it. If I lose to the Five Elements Alliance group or Wu Guangyu, the hopes of the Demon n will be in your hands.¡± There was worry in Suxue¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Alright. It hasn¡¯t even started yet, so don¡¯t worry. Your father said that this mainly depends on me. You just need to go there and get some experience. Let those people admire your beautiful looks, and that will be enough,¡± said Long Chen with a mischievous grin.


    ¡°I hate you!¡± Suxue red at him in exasperation.


    Long Chen retracted his smile and said, ¡°The remaining eight will fight each other, and three rounds of duels will determine who gets first, second, and third ce, right?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. Even if you enter the top eight, you will still need to fight three times. How long you canst depends on your luck and capabilities.¡±Eight to four, four to two, and the final two would determine the champion. Long Chen counted the duels. Even if he was lucky in the ruins and only met one opponent, he would still have to fight four consecutive duels.


    With Bai Lan and Lei Ji protecting them, nothing happened along the way. Long Chen could sense that they were about to leave the Wood District. The Eternal Battlefield was the center of the Five Districts, so theoretically, they could follow any boundary between two districts and reach the Eternal Battlefield as long as they were facing the right way.


    About seven or eight days after setting off, they finally arrived.


    ¡°ording to the legends, the Eternal Battlefield is where the Five Emperors led the masters of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory to fight invaders as a final front. There is a legend of a sea of bones left behind by the corpses, but it is just a legend. The Eternal Battlefield is deste; it has nothing,¡± Lei Wu exined cheerfully to Long Chen, as if he was not anxious about the uing battle at all.


    ¡°Although the sea of bones doesn¡¯t exist, the war during the Middle Ages that killed the Five Emperors is real. We have long known who the mysterious invaders who fought the Five Emperors were¡ªthey were from the Three Royal Territories. To us, the Five Emperors War was a great war where we defended ournd, but it was probably just a minor event to the vast Three Royal Territories.¡±


    Long Chen had not heard this tragic story before. This was his first time learning that such a huge war had happened in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He previously thought that it was internal conflict, but it was actually due to the Royal Territories.


    To the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, the Royal Territories were just too vast. Even now, the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was under the Royal Territories¡¯ control, and the Five Emperors had passed away. This proved that the Ten Thousand Nations Territory had lost the war. Just a few Divine Martial Realm masters were not enough to fight against the masters of the Royal Territories.


    Long Chen was now even more suspicious of the mysterious people who had appeared in the Ancient Graveyard. Who were they? What were their intentions?


    Everything remained a mystery!


    As he learned about these things, Long Chen was suddenly curious about the Eternal Battlefield, and after traveling for many days, they finally arrived. After passing throughyers of forest, a deste region appeared before him. It was deste, but the conditions were not harsh. It was just devoid of any living being.


    Cold gusts of wind blew through the deste region and ayer of gray clouds hung very low in the sky. There were a few almost-wilted patches of grass ahead, and yellow sand was everywhere in the air.


    This was the Eternal Battlefield.


    Long Chen smelled the scent of blood in the air, and the scent of rusted metal. He did not know if the winds had brought the scent here, or perhaps it had been here for countless years.


    Looking far ahead at the deste patch ofnd, Long Chen suddenly felt his hand vibrate. The Five Emperor Seal in his right palm had vibrated once, as if it had arrived in a familiar ce. Through the seal, he felt like a blurry image had appeared in his mind.


    He saw a vast battlefield. The terrain looked exactly like the ce he was looking at, but it was filled with endless killing and a dense crowd of soldiers. Fresh blood, weapons, and pieces of flesh were scattered on the ground. Corpses were everywhere as well, and there was so much blood that it formed rivers.


    Above the crowd were a dozen shining silhouettes. One of them had a long, starry spear in his hand. This was undeniably the Seven Star Lord. The others were likely the Seven Lords. Above them were five silhouettes bathed in lights of different colors. Those were the famous Five Emperors. ????N??B¨§¡ì


    Metal, wood, water, fire, earth. The Five Emperors held the highest ranks in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and they were considered the founders of the human race in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    This image shed in Long Chen¡¯s mind only for a moment. He only managed to catch a glimpse before itpletely disappeared. He had not even confirmed if those were the Five Emperors, but when the image disappeared, he got a brief nce of the Five Emperors¡¯ enemies.


    They were a group of ck-clothed people, and they approached from the horizon far away. They were radiating a terrifying killing intent.


    Long Chen trembled. He remembered that Suyan had been hurt by ck-clothed people like them. Could these ck-clothed people be the ones who appeared in the Middle Ages? Were they the mysterious invaders? Why were they here now?


    Long Chen felt like he had a brief idea of the situation.


    He felt slightly ufortable, especially when he saw the Five Emperors¡¯ enemies and realized they were also ck-clothed people. However, he was helpless, as he was no match for them. The ck-clothed people were at least on Lei Ji¡¯s level.


    Their presence was like a thorn in his flesh.


    <em>They are probably the ones who designed this game in the Ancient Graveyard. Why are they doing this though? What are their true intentions? </em>Long Chen could not figure it out.


    <em>Since they have nned the game, then they will surely appear at the end of the game. The ultimate treasure in the Ancient Graveyard is the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, and we are about to fight hard for the Yellow Emperor Key. Could these people¡¯s true intentions be rted to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure?</em>


    Long Chen was only guessing. He could not confirm if this was true.


    He was only dazed for a moment as many thoughts ran through his mind.


    ¡°Long Chen, what are you thinking about? Let¡¯s go. The gathering point with the other factions will be outside the city ruins. The other two factions are closer to this ce, and tomorrow is the start of the event. They should have arrived by now,¡± Suyan said softly in his ear.


    Long Chen smiled, then he caught up with the group.


    ¡°Right, Long Chen, why haven¡¯t I seen this cat before?¡± Suxue was struck in the heart by the fuzzy little cat, and her eyes shone with maternal love as she looked at the cat on his shoulder.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ I found him next to a road and took him in as a pet. If you want, you can have him,¡± Long Chen said with a chuckle.


    ¡°Really?¡± Suxue¡¯s eyes lit up as she stared at the ck, fuzzy Dream Demon body that Little Cat had possessed. She said gently, ¡°Come to me, darling.¡±


    Women could not resist cute pets like this one.


    Little Cat¡¯s eyes widened. He had no reason to refuse such a tempting offer, so he immediately shot into Suxue¡¯s arms. Then he reached out toward her full chest with his fuzzy ws. But when he almost touched her, Long Chen quickly snatched him back.


    ¡°You smelly bastard! What are you doing? I almost got to touch her boobs! You ruined everything! You deserve a beating.¡±


    Little Cat red at Long Chen, baring his teeth and waving his ws. Unfortunately, the Dream Demon only knew hallucinatory magic and was weaker than the average beast, so he could not break free.


    ¡°You perverted cat! If I don¡¯t discipline you, you¡¯ll just keep embarrassing me.¡± Long Chenughed, then stuffed him in the Primordial Realm. Although Little Cat was unwilling, he was not strong enough to resist.


    ¡°You bastard! You¡¯re jealous of me! I am a handsome, magnificent god, and years ago, I was the number one, most handsome man in the beast world! No beautiful girl could escape from me! It did not matter if they were human or beast, I dly epted them all! This beautiful maiden came to me herself, yet you stopped her! You imbecile! You deserve to be chopped to pieces!¡±


    Suxue looked at Long Chen and Little Cat, stunned. Although it was a little cat, it spoke humannguage. That was shocking enough, but the most shocking thing was that it was a perverted cat ¡­

 Chapter 804: Gathering at the Ruins

    When Suxue processed what had just happened, her face turned red. She looked at Long Chen with embarrassment and changed the topic. ¡°Uh, that cat is a Dream Demon, right? I¡¯ve seen it before, when you were fighting Situ Yu. That demon is indeed scary. Anyone below the Sixth Earthly Martial Stage will find it difficult to resist its magic. That one is still a juvenile, so it will be even more powerful in the future.¡±


    Long Chen pursed his lips and said, ¡°I don¡¯t have high hopes for this perverted cat.¡±


    ¡°Hehe. But normal Heaven-tier beasts can¡¯t speak humannguage. I wonder if that Dream Demon can be a King-tier beast one day. When it takes a human form, it¡¯ll surely be very cute.¡±


    Then she suddenly recalled something and said, ¡°Long Chen, I heard that when you first came to the Ancient Graveyard, you had a demonic wolf, which Wu Guangyu snatched from you. Now that wolf seems to have reached the Category Nine King-tier. Is it all true?¡±


    After Long Chen became famous, people slowly learned about past events. Many people also knew about him swearing that he would kill Wu Guangyu.


    ¡°That is indeed true. That demonic wolf cannot be considered my pet. He¡¯s my brother,¡± said Long Chen with his head hung. His gaze was dark.


    ¡°If it¡¯s staying by Wu Guangyu¡¯s side so obediently, I assume it¡¯s been tamed already. You¡¯ve lost a brother ¡­ I¡¯m sorry for bringing this up,¡± Suxue said hurriedly when she saw Long Chen¡¯s grimace.


    Long Chen smiled, but it was a cold smile, and he said, ¡°No worries. Wu Guangyu will regret it in a few days.¡±


    Suxue panicked a bit when she saw the killing intent hidden in his smile.She did not understand his confidence at all.


    ¡°You must be careful. But I believe in you!¡± she said determinedly with light in her eyes. ¡°But the most important thing is still to survive,¡± she added.


    They were almost at their destination. Long Chen looked ahead and spotted the ruins. Torn walls were everywhere and copsed buildings were scattered across thend. The city was likely gigantic at one point, at least double the size of Heavenly Wood City. At least Heavenly Wood City had been preserved well. Everything here was rotten and corroded, and covered in rust spots.


    Giant Metal City, Heavenly Wood City, Tianyi Water City, and the others were all rted to the elements of the respective districts. However, this city was just a normal city.


    An ancient, rotten aura came from far, far ahead.


    The group quickened their pace and soon arrived. After circling around the city, they saw another patch of nds and sensed two powerful auras. There were two groups of people standing there.


    They were the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance.


    The Nine n Martial Youth Competition was a grand event for the nine ns, and it had always been held in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. This time, because the Ancient Graveyard had been opened and they had some influence from a neutral master, the Long-Bearded Guest, they had chosen to hold it in the Ancient Graveyard.


    In the past, at least a hundred thousand people would gather to watch thepetition, as it was thergest event of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Many people would even be proud to personally attend and watch, much less personally participate in it. There were billions of people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and only eighteen could participate. Each of them was the best of the best!


    The true prodigies of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory could not bepared to the previous Long Chen, who was an ant.


    However, this time, thepetition was rted to a secret treasure, the Yellow Emperor Key. That was why the nine ns not only kept thepetition a secret, they also forbade outsiders from entering the Eternal Battlefield. By now, only the relevant people were present.


    There were ten people from the Thunder Demon Faction and even people from the Divine Wind Faction. Since the Five Elements Alliance consisted of five major ns, they had more than thirty attendees.


    The Demon and Divine ns were the most powerful of the nine ns. Each n that made up the Five Elements Alliance was around as strong as the Wind and Thunder ns. Combined together, they were slightly stronger than the Divine Wind and Thunder Demon Factions.


    Many enemies were reunited again, and the tension in the air was thick.


    Long Chen was calm. He stared ahead and followed Bai Lan and the others toward his assigned position. Many people were already looking at him curiously.


    The Divine Wind Faction, including Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin, were present too. Their hatred for Long Chen was deep, and they were the only ones who were particrly hostile. On the other hand, the Five Elements Alliance was curious about the youth who had defeated Feng Zhilin and taken the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Formally speaking, Long Chen was not considered part of the nine ns yet.


    The youths of the nine ns knew their peers well, and Long Chen¡¯s appearance here was considered an unexpected phenomenon.


    The youths present were the future leaders of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, so every single one of them was considered extraordinarily powerful. Out of these eighteen, only one or two had not reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, though those people had other powerful techniques. For example, Feng Zhilin. When shebined her Shapeless Whip and the Thousand Seals, she was very powerful. ?£Á???B§¦?


    Furthermore, who could guarantee that Feng Zhilin had not achieved a breakthrough since herst public appearance?


    Long Chen was not the only one in the world who was improving.


    His attention was only on Xiang, and they weremunicating in thenguage of beasts.


    ¡°Big Brother ¡­¡±


    ¡°You must be losing your patience already. The time is near. Stay there for the moment. After I clear the obstacles, we will travel the world together once more.¡±


    Xiang, feeling overjoyed, said, ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll wait for you!¡±


    Long Chen was still walking, and no one knew that he and Xiang weremunicating.


    The three factions each went to their assigned locations and waited. The atmosphere was tense. This was all tnd and there were no seats, so everyone stood.


    After the Thunder Demon Faction arrived, there was only one person missing. He was the witness to thepetition, and also the sponsor of the winner¡¯s reward. The Long-Bearded Guest.


    If his name was anything to go by, his beard was sure to be very long.


    Most importantly, he was at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage.


    Long Chen counted over ten Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators in the whole Ancient Graveyard. Two from the Thunder Demon Faction, two from the Divine Wind Faction, a shocking six from the Five Elements Alliance, and the Long-Bearded Guest.


    Only four of them were at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. There was Wu Lian, Bai Lan, the Long-Bearded Guest, and the old guy from the Five Elements Alliance.


    Long Chen searched with his eyes through the Five Elements Alliance and quickly spotted the old man standing in the middle of the group. He had not seen the old man or the Long-Bearded Guest on the star te when they arrived. Long Chen had heard about the old man, that he was a Heavenly Martial Master and could live a very long time. The old man looked sprightly, but he was actually seven or eight hundred years old. He was an old monster who had lived a very long life, famous among outsiders, and ranked very highly. He was the great-grandfather of the Gold n¡¯s patriarch.


    As for the generations in between them, due tocking talent, they had died at around five hundred years of age.


    This old man originally had long, golden hair, but it had long turned white. Even his golden eyes had lost their light and were very cloudy. However, it would be wrong to underestimate him because of this. If the old man could live for such a long time, he must have had many tricks up his sleeve.


    He also surely had a shocking amount of battle experience.


    In theory, Bai Lan and Wu Lian each possessed one of the Seven Lords¡¯ inheritance, making them stronger than other cultivators at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage.


    Of course, that was the theory. Long Chen did not know what would happen if they fought.


    The Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance also had their own fair share of conflicts. Since none of the factions was willing to give up their power, it had led to the current three-faction situation in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Long Chen already had a rough understanding of the Divine Wind Faction. He studied the Five Elements Alliance out of his peripheral vision, and although there were many members, theycked outstanding figures like Bai Lan and Wu Lian. The five n leaders were no longer young and were even starting to show their age. This meant that they had long spent all their potential, unlike Bai Lan, who looked like he still had room to grow.


    Long Chen had seen the five n leaders before. His gaze swept across all the youths. There were two decently strong disciples behind every n leader, and they were under forty years of age. They were mostly at least at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, which meant that Long Chen had the lowest cultivation level of all.


    None of the Nine Great ns were weak. Although the Divine Martial Empire was considered one of the Ten Great Empires, it was nowhere near the level of these nine superpowers.


    <em>The strongest of those ten cultivators are even stronger than Suxue. The weakest is probably just slightly weaker than the Lei brothers. None of them are easy to beat.</em>


    Long Chen quietly mulled over them.


    Many people from the other two factions were looking at him.


    He had recently be famous after all.


    ¡°That¡¯s Long Chen? Based on his aura, he¡¯s weaker than the other participants. Are you sure that he¡¯s the young man who snatched the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and even killed two Ninth Earthly Martial Stage masters?¡±


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 805: Long-Bearded Guest

    ¡°That¡¯s definitely him. As for whether he¡¯s as strong as we¡¯ve heard, we don¡¯t know.¡±


    Long Chen was a fresh and curious topic to the people of the Five Elements Alliance. The ten participants from the Five Elements Alliance red at their opponents like tigers. In terms of numbers, they had already won.


    The Gold n was the leader of the Five Elements Alliance. They were the only n with a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator, though he was an old man. This old man, known as Ancestor Jin, looked in Bai Lan¡¯s direction and said in a low voice, ¡°Brother Bai Lan, we have not met in many years, but you still look good.¡±


    Bai Lan smiled and replied, ¡°It is the same for you, Brother Jin. The older you get, the more carefree you are.¡±


    Ancestor Jin chuckled and nced at Long Chen. ¡°Brother Bai Lan, your luck is excellent, as always. It just looks like the descendants of the Demon n aren¡¯t working as hard as before, seeing as you need to use an outsider to fill the gap. If the Demon ncks people to participate in thepetition, you could ask the Five Elements Alliance. We have many children fighting tooth and nail just to get a spot.¡±


    After Ancestral Jin¡¯s initial small talk, he switched abruptly to an insult andughed mockingly.


    Bai Lan¡¯s expression did not change. He pushed Long Chen forward solemnly and said, ¡°Brother Jin, you are mistaken. This is my son-inw, Long Chen. As for his capabilities ¡­ Brother Jin, you¡¯ll know very soon. When he was at the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage, he took some n¡¯s Profound Golden Soul, you know.¡±


    The Profound Golden Soul was a famous treasure that belonged to the Gold n. When theybined the Profound Golden Soul and their Golden Eye of Annihtion, they could multiply their strength by several times. But that important treasure had been taken by Long Chen. They could not even begin to describe their heartache. After Bai Lan mentioned it so happily, the expressions of the Gold n¡¯s team immediately darkened.


    Ancestor Jin initially wanted to mock Bai Lan, but he had ended up being mocked himself. Having lost face, he huffed angrily and said, ¡°That little thief is only holding on to the Profound Golden Soul for now. In a few days, it will return to the hands of the Gold n. If you don¡¯t believe me, you may ask the two prodigies of the Gold n! One is my direct disciple¡ªJin Ling!¡±After he spoke, a young man appeared to stand next to Ancestor Jin in a sh. His body type was simr to Ancestor Jin¡¯s¡ªboth were thin with bronze skin and one-inch-long hair that stood on their heads like steel needles. His eyes shone brightly like the stars in the sky.


    The Gold n was famed for their body-tempering techniques. Most of the men of their n were more muscr than the Thunder nsmen. However, this young man named Jin Lin was not. His gaze was ice-cold, like a piece of metal. No emotions could be seen in his gaze.


    <em>That brat is at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. As the direct disciple of Ancestor Jin, he surely has many tricks up his sleeve too. He also has a bloody aura, so he probably has killed at least as many people as I have. This makes him slightly scarier than Wu Guangyu. Although Wu Guangyu is very talented, he doesn¡¯t have as much battle experience as I do. In terms of self-discipline, Wu Guangyu is not as resilient as Jin Ling, </em>Long Chen thought to himself.


    Ancestor Jin clearly meant that he wanted Long Chen and Jin Ling to be enemies. However, Jin Ling took one nce at Long Chen, then said to Ancestor Jin, ¡°Master, he is not my rival. My rival is in the Divine n.¡±


    Then he took a few steps back and stood behind Ancestor Jin. He hung his head and did not speak.


    ¡°What do I do now? My disciple doesn¡¯t even see your son-inw as his rival. This child has always been rebellious, and he never liked to lie. I can¡¯t control him at all,¡± the old man said mockingly.


    Long Chen and Bai Lan looked at each other and smiled, ignoring the old idiot.


    It was fine to be old, but he did not have to talk so much. It was as if he was afraid that other people would not see him.


    Jin Ling was indeed a cold-blooded killer. Long Chen did not mind not being taken seriously. He was participating in thepetition to do Bai Lan a favor for his hospitality, to kill Wu Guangyu as revenge, and because he wanted to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    Both he and Jin Ling¡¯s targets were clearly Wu Guangyu, the one who was widely epted as the strongest among them.


    Wu Guangyu was initially on the same level as Jin Ling, but he had received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. With the advanced Emperor-tier superweapon, the Azure Lotus Sword, he was peerless in his generation.


    The three factions merely looked at each other, not exchanging many words. However, the tension in the air was getting thicker. Long Chen retreated to the center of the group and waited for the time to pass. When Lei Wen and Lei Wu saw that Long Chen had closed his eyes and looked calm, they asked hurriedly, ¡°Brother Long Chen, aren¡¯t you nervous?¡±


    They were aware that Long Chen had offended many people here. Not only had he taken the Gold n¡¯s Profound Golden Soul, he had also offended the Divine Wind Faction. Therefore, he should have been very nervous. Even they were nervous when faced with such a grandpetition.


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°The worst thing that could happen is death. What¡¯s there to be afraid of? Even if I die, I¡¯ll drag a few down with me.¡±


    Although he spoke carefreely, the brothers felt chills.


    Lei Wen was stunned, then he smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯re a brave one, brother. You¡¯re a role model for us. If we meet each other in the ruins, we must take care of each other. It would be ideal if the four of us could get together. We would be able to take on anyone who came at us.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure we will be able to do that,¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    They could not kill anyone in the battle tomorrow anyway. Long Chen had the Soul Swallowing Gaze, so other people would not be able to find him. For the first round, all he would need to do was take a casual stroll. Once ten people had been eliminated, he would advance to the next round. However, Suxue and the Thunder n brothers would be there as well, so he naturally could not leave them be. He would need to act ordingly during critical moments.


    ¡°Alright, then it¡¯s a promise between the four of us,¡± said Lei Wen.


    Time passed slowly, but the attendees present were people with extraordinary patience, so they did not think it was inconvenient.


    ¡°The Long-Bearded Guest should be arriving in about two hours. He will distribute the Divine Space Talismans to all of us, and then we¡¯ll be able to enter,¡± said the beautiful Suxue softly by Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Are Divine Space Talismans precious?¡±


    ¡°Of course. Only the Three Royal Territories have specialized talisman masters. Talisman masters are the only ones who can carve the runes on the talisman. The talismans in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory came from the Three Royal Territories, though our people can imitate and re-create some of the simpler ones. The Divine Space Talisman has life-preserving properties that only the people from the Three Royal Territories can reproduce, making it very valuable. If the Nine Great ns hadn¡¯t paid the Long-Bearded Guest a hefty sum, he would not have been willing to use them,¡± exined Suxue.


    ¡°If a person with a Divine Space Talisman gets hurt beyond their body¡¯s limits, the talisman will burn up automatically. How interesting. Can Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators use them?¡±


    Long Chen knew that the stronger the cultivator, the more important their life was. If they could use Divine Space Talismans, wouldn¡¯t all the masters try to get as many talismans as possible so that they could be immortal?


    ¡°Of course not. Only cultivators at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and below can use them. Powerful Heavenly Martial Realm masters can destroy Divine Space Talismans in one strike, then hurt the wearer,¡± said Suxue.


    Bnce was in everything, and the Divine Space Talisman was no exception.


    Long Chen had only encountered one being who was not restricted by anyws¡ªthe Sun Devouring Wolf!


    In theory, Mo Xiang could consume infinite treasures. The more he consumed, the stronger he would get!


    Every time he consumed a new treasure, he would start to level up.


    After chatting with Suxue for a while, a cultivator wearing cotton clothing slowly made his way over from afar. Everyone looked at him expectantly. He was also an old man, and he looked very ordinary. His hair and eyebrows were gray-white, but the most eye-catching part about him was his long, gray beard, which was more than half a meter long. It wasbed so that it was neater than his hair, and it looked shiny and healthy. When paired with his round and reddened face, as well as his bright smile, he looked like a person filled with joy.


    ¡°Haha! I apologize for the long wait. Those women¡¯s hips were just so damn good that they left my back sore, so I had to walk slowly. That¡¯s why my travels were dyed. None of that was my fault! If you want to me someone, me those damn bitches for being sluts,¡± the old man known as the Long-Bearded Guest said.


    Everyone¡¯s faces darkened. The Long-Bearded Guest was well known in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He was a hidden master who loved to enjoy worldly pleasures. He had a straightforward personality, loved wine and women, and he was still as sprightly as a tiger at his age. People admired him for it.


    ¡°Brother Bai, you¡¯re still very handsome! Brother Jin, you¡¯re still as regal as before! And thedy of the Wu family! You¡¯re getting more and more attractive! Does the Divine n need a ve? Can I volunteer? I¡¯d be willing to die just to have a chance to serve Lady Wu.¡±


    The moment he arrived, the Long-Bearded Guest started talking nonstop. In the end, he studied the Divine n¡¯s matriarch, Wu Lian, with a burning gaze.


    ¡°Senior Long-Beard, if you are willing to be an honored guest of the Divine n, I am sure there will be many beautiful girls¡ªother than myself¡ªwaiting to entertain you,¡± Wu Lian said mildly.


    ¡°Really?¡± The Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s eyes lit up. He said, ¡°But I don¡¯t think they¡¯re interesting. Lady Wu, you¡¯re the only one in the world who can mesmerize me.¡±


    Being Wu Lian¡¯s son, Wu Guangyu couldn¡¯t stand listening to this conversation. He yelled, ¡°You old bastard! Watch your mouth! Look at yourself! You¡¯re a toad wanting to eat swan meat!¡±

 Chapter 806: Killing Is Permissible

    The Long-Bearded Guest was not angry at Wu Guangyu¡¯s reprimand. He chuckled, looked around, then said, ¡°Since everyone is here, let¡¯s begin. The eighteen participants are required to step forward. Let me get a good look at you. I want to see how extraordinary the young talents of the Nine Great ns are.¡±


    After the Long-Bearded Guest spoke, the eighteen participants of the Martial Youth Competition acknowledged their patriarchs slightly, then stepped in front of him. Long Chen stood with Suxue, Lei Wen, and Lei Wu. The Divine Wind Faction had a man and a woman representing them aside from Feng Zhilin and Wu Guangyu. The man was a young talent from the Wind n, and based on his looks, he was likely of simr age to the Lei brothers. The girl was a Divine nsman, and she was likely in her thirties too.


    Reaching the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage before thirty was a difficult achievement. The Eight Sect Elders from the Demon n were all at least a hundred years old, and they were in their fifties when they reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin were an unmarried couple, but the other man and woman held hands, so they were likely married already. The Divine n woman had married a Wind n man.


    They were both at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. When Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin were included, this faction¡¯s team was very powerful. As for the Five Elements Alliance, eleven people walked over, led by Jin Ling. Almost every cultivator was at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, making for a magnificent scene.


    ¡°Aiyo! The quality of this year¡¯s participants is very high! Much higher than the past few years, at least.¡± The Long-Bearded Guest looked at the eighteen people with curiosity. His gaze swept across every single one of them, and when he saw Feng Zhilin, his eyes shone. He muttered praises about her in a low voice. Wu Guangyu was about to attack him, but he finally looked at Suxue.


    Suxue had a curvier figure than Feng Zhilin, and the moment he saw her, he could not peel his eyes away. However, Suxue was smart. She chuckled, then stood behind Long Chen so that he could not see anything.


    ¡°Eh? This kid?¡± The Long-Bearded Guest finally looked at Long Chen and said with great interest, ¡°Is this kid Long Chen, the one everyone¡¯s been talking about? The one who took the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s me, Elder.¡± Long Chen saluted him.The Long-Bearded Guest was a master and the host of thispetition. There were no benefits to offending him.


    Wu Guangyu had been rude to the old man, but Long Chen was polite and instantly gained the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s favor. He nodded approvingly and said, ¡°Not bad, not bad. Work hard.¡±


    ¡°Enough of the nonsense, old man. Take out the Divine Space Talismans now,¡± Wu Lian said coldly.


    ¡°About that ¡­¡± The Long-Bearded Guest suddenly turned shy and said, ¡°I did prepare eighteen Divine Space Talismans, but after I came to the Ancient Graveyard, I gave two away to a good friend of mine ¡­¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Bai Lan, Wu Lian, and the rest were furious. The Long-Bearded Guest had always been off his rocker and had never been reliable. They could not believe that he would give away the Divine Space Talismans that were needed for the Martial Youth Competition. It was terrible.


    ¡°Long-Bearded Guest, how could you do that? Eighteen of us are participating in the Martial Youth Competition, but you only have sixteen Divine Space Talismans. Does that mean that two of us cannot participate? We¡¯ve long agreed on the terms, so who would be willing to resign from thepetition?¡± Wu Lian asked angrily.


    ¡°You must be held ountable for this. If not, the three factions will never let you go!¡± said Ancestor Jin from the Five Elements Alliance with annoyance.


    The Five Elements Alliance had ten participants, and there was no way the other factions would be willing to exclude half of their participants. This was a disadvantage to them.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ Uh ¡­ Let¡¯s change the rules, then. Using the Divine Space Talisman for this is such a waste anyway ¡­¡± the Long-Bearded Guest said awkwardly.


    Bai Lan furrowed his brows and said mildly, ¡°Absolutely not. Changing the rules now will affect the results greatly. Who would be willing to be at a disadvantage?¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest had no idea what to do, and the leaders of the three major factions were all mad at him. Usually, the Long-Bearded Guest acted like a pervert and Wu Lian never held him ountable for it; however, his carelessness with this event showed that he never took the three factions seriously at all!


    The three factions would never let anyone else take the Five Emperor Keys, especially not the Long-Bearded Guest, who did note from a powerful background. If he had not been willing to give them one slot from the Yellow Emperor Key, the three factions would have secretly attacked him already.


    Out of the four Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators present, the weakest one was likely the Long-Bearded Guest.


    Everyone was ring at the Long-Bearded Guest furiously. He broke into a grin, then said, ¡°Why don¡¯t we do this? Those who have enough confidence in reaching the top eight, and are confident they will not get hurt or die, will not need a Divine Space Talisman. I¡¯m sure Wu Guangyu from the Divine n doesn''t need it, right? He has the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance, so who among these eighteen people could hurt him fatally?¡±


    ¡°No way!¡± Wu Lian said hurriedly. Although she knew that her son was surely the strongest, she could not allow him to be at a disadvantage. Why would her son not have something that everyone else had?


    Wu Lian objected to it, and naturally, the Divine nsmen did too. However, Wu Guangyu waved and said, ¡°The Divine Space Talisman is useless to me. I don¡¯t need it. It¡¯s fine if I don¡¯t get one, but only on one condition.¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest saw hope and asked happily, ¡°What is your condition?¡±


    Wu Guangyu searched for Long Chen among the group, chuckled lowly, then said, ¡°There are a total of sixteen Divine Space Talismans, so two people will not have one. One of them will be me. As for the other person, I hope it¡¯ll be him. Long Chen!¡±


    The crowd erupted. Wu Guangyu had made it clear that he wanted Long Chen to not have a Divine Space Talisman so he could kill him in the ruins. If Long Chen had a Divine Space Talisman, he would not be able to kill him.


    The Demon Thunder Faction objected, of course. Even Suxue red at Wu Guangyu with hatred. ¡°No way! That¡¯s not fair! You¡¯re basically saying that you¡¯re going to attack Long Chen in the ruins, then take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance! Absolutely not!¡±


    Wu Guangyu smirked coldly and said, ¡°Why not? Killing has always been permissible after the first round of the Martial Youth Competition. The winner is king, and the loser suffers. That is the rule passed down by our seniors. Even the n leaders cannot interfere with this. Weaklings deserve to be killed. Unless ¡­ Does it mean that Long Chen has already admitted defeat?¡±


    Suxue was stunned and cursed, ¡°You lowly bastard!¡±


    When Feng Zhilin heard that her man had been insulted, she raged. Suxue was as beautiful as she was, and she was jealous. Suxue had been secretly her greatest rival, so she rebutted, ¡°Who is lowly? The one who snatched away the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance using maniptive tactics is the lowly one! He doesn¡¯t have true strength and only knows how to use tricks. Only you would like a weakling like that! If it were me, I would have dumped his ass!¡±


    Suxue was angered by Feng Zhilin¡¯s words, but Long Chenughed. Heughed loudly for a while, attracting everyone¡¯s attention, and then he said, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s a funny thing to say? Whatever happened in the hall of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s tomb ¡­ The interesting things that happened between us ¡­ Don¡¯t you think that was a beautiful memory, Feng Zhilin?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s words triggered endless questions in everyone¡¯s minds. They all wondered what had happened between two single people of the opposite sex. The one who suffered most was Wu Guangyu. Feng Zhilin was his fianc¨¦e, and the woman he desired. What did Long Chen mean? He thought back to how her clothes were disheveled when she came out of the Star Tomb ¡­


    ¡°Don¡¯t listen to his nonsense. He¡¯s a piece of trash who only knows how to lie.¡± Feng Zhilin was furious. Whenever she recalled what happened that day, she would have the urge to kill him. However, she knew that the angrier she became, the more they would think that Long Chen was telling the truth.


    That was why she could only reply in a calm tone.


    Wu Guangyu half-believed her, but when he remembered that Long Chen had a low cultivation level at the time, and Feng Zhilin didn¡¯t seem like her purity had been sullied, he felt more assured.


    ¡°Enough of the nonsense. Long Chen, I¡¯m asking you not to use a Divine Space Talisman. Are you up for it or not?¡± Wu Guangyu asked coldly over the crowd¡¯s discussion. He did not want to be seen as the man who got cheated on. That was worse than being killed.


    Everyone¡¯s eyes fell on Long Chen.


    Long Chen was silent for a moment before he said, ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°Then it¡¯s settled! Haha, two brave, talented prodigies! You have gotten me out of a tight spot, so I will naturally treat you well in the future. Next, I will stick the Divine Space Talismans on the other people.¡±


    After Long Chen agreed, the Long-Bearded Guest hurriedly got started. He moved extremely quickly and swept past everyone like a gust of wind. When he returned to his spot, everyone other than Long Chen and Wu Guangyu had a flickering, dull, yellow rune on their foreheads. The runes flickered gently, then protective energy flooded across the surface of their bodies, which gradually faded to be invisible.


    Suxue felt the new changes brought by the talisman and said, ¡°The Divine Space Talisman feels great. It feels like I¡¯m wearing ayer of armor. But, Long Chen, you really didn¡¯t have to take that risk just get thest word in ¡­¡± She looked at him with worry in her eyes.

 Chapter 807: One-Strike Kill

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It is still uncertain who will win.¡± Long Chen gave a nonchnt smile.


    <em>He¡¯s too confident in himself. I don¡¯t even know if this brat has reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage yet. He wouldn¡¯t tell me. He¡¯s always making people worry ¡­ </em>She was speechless at the mysterious fellow¡¯s behavior.


    Among the bystanders, Lei Ji nudged Bai Lan¡¯s arm and said, ¡°Brother Bai, will this be a problem for Long Chen?¡±


    Bai Lan smiled and said, ¡°He knows his limits. We don¡¯t need to worry about him.¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest started separating the participants, then he sent them into the ruins from eighteen different entrances. The ruins had a natural Confounding Array, so even though there was no mist inside, it was very difficult to find one¡¯s bearings. Normal people could not even walk out of there, let alone meet each other at a designated spot.


    Under the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s arrangements, Long Chen entered the ruins from a specific side. He could not see anyone else, and the ruins attracted his attention. Broken walls and structures were everywhere, and the surrounding buildings were very tall. After arriving, he realized there was an energy restricting him from flying.


    If they could fly, the people of the Five Elements Alliance would be able to gather quickly.


    Long Chen temporarily named the ce Confounding City.


    <em>There indeed is a natural Confounding Array in this ce. Even if I walk in a straight line, I end up on a crooked path. And everything seems to look different, yet they could be the same. You can¡¯t use anything as andmark.</em>This meant that people in Confounding City could only travel in random circles and rely on their luck. If they encountered an enemy, then it would be bad luck.


    ¡°This tiny Confounding Array can¡¯t beat me. However, since you can still see everything within five hundred meters using your Soul Swallowing Gaze, I¡¯ll let you do the work on your own. There won¡¯t be a need for a god like me to do anything,¡± Little Cat said haughtily.


    ¡°Little Cat, can you tell what this pile of ruins used to look like?¡± Long Chen asked, studying his surroundings carefully.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ Because I saved youst time, I don¡¯t have much of my powers left. Therefore, I cannot sense that ¡­¡±


    Long Chen knew the brat was only bragging and had never ced high hopes on Little Cat anyway. He continued to make his way through the ruins, studying his surroundings. Thanks to the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he had the offensive advantage here.


    Wu Guangyu was the only one he wanted to kill, so he was not in a hurry.


    <em>If there is anything strange about Confounding City, the people of the nine ns would have found it a long time ago. I¡¯m sure they have searched this whole ce thoroughly. However, I still have a strange feeling. </em>Confounding City was at the center of the Ancient Graveyard. With such a special location, it was likely to be a very important ce.


    Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen could indeed spot the other participants long before they saw him. This was a ce of killing, and the moment anyone met each other, they would likely fight with everything they could. Since they all had Divine Space Talismans, they definitely would not show mercy. Long Chen did not have a Divine Space Talisman, so he was in actual danger.


    Confounding City was muchrger than Heavenly Wood City, and in addition to that, they could not find their bearings. Therefore, meeting someone was not an easy task either. However, with everyone walking around randomly, they would surely encounter each other if given enough time.


    Long Chen did not n to attack anyone voluntarily. Two hours after he entered, he spotted a Water n youth with the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He did not attack but rather avoided him. Although he had already formed a grudge against the Gold n after he took their Profound Golden Soul, it was best to minimize the enemies he made. He would only choose to fight if he had no choice.


    The killing had already begun. Long Chen heard faint sounds of fighting from a vague direction.


    ¡°Whatever. I¡¯ll go help Suxue and the others first so that they won¡¯t get bullied by the participants who have grouped together.¡±


    After making his decision, he walked in one direction. His path kept changing, just like when he was in the Nine Souls Purgatory, so he could not walk in a specific direction. However, he could still find whoever he needed to find with the Soul Swallowing Gaze, even if he was walking randomly.


    After about an hour, he heard the sound of fighting nearby. Using his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he noticed a familiar aura.


    ¡°It¡¯s one of the Thunder n brothers.¡± After realizing that it was either Lei Wen or Lei Wu, he quickly rushed over. When he got closer, he sensed that there were two people attacking Lei Wen. With two Ninth Earthly Martial Stage against one, Lei Wen was surely at a disadvantage.


    Long Chen rushed to the two people from the back. Based on their hair color and outfits, they were from the Five Elements Alliance. One was from the Fire n and the other was from the Wood n. The Fire n cultivator was adept at fire-type attacks, while the Wood n cultivator had powerful life techniques and all sorts of strangebat techniques.


    Lei Wen was in a dangerous situation and had been struck several times. The damage had been blocked by the Divine Space Talisman. However, once the Divine Space Talisman exploded, he would be sent out.


    Lei Wen was facing Long Chen, so he was the first to spot him. The other two cultivators did not see Long Chen. There was a sh of joy in Lei Wen¡¯s eyes, but he quickly hid it away.


    He wanted Long Chen to ambush them.


    Long Chen smirked, then he used the Big Dipper Step and turned into a light gust of wind. In a sh, he arrived behind the Fire and Wood n participants.


    Dots of starlight suddenly shone all over his body, then they flowed and gathered in his palm. Immediately after, the Three Thousand Star Clusters appeared in his hand and he thrust it towards the person¡¯s heart from behind.


    At that moment, the Fire n cultivator finally noticed him. To his endless shock, he looked back and saw Long Chen and the sharp Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    ¡°You ambushed me! Lowly imbecile!¡±


    After he cursed furiously, due to the extremely brief window he had, the Fire n cultivator could only thrust his finger outwards and shoot a beam of fire sword Qi out of his fingertip, colliding with the Three Thousand Star Clusters. He was at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage after all, so he had more essence than Long Chen. That was why he was confident that he could st Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters away!


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got?¡± Long Chen smiled and gathered his essence. The Three Thousand Star Clusters turned into a ray of starlight, then pierced through his opponent¡¯s palm and into his body. The Divine Space Talisman exploded with a blinding light, and by the time Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters stabbed him, that person was already transported out of the city.


    He had defeated his opponent in one strike.


    His performance was just too shocking. The Wood n¡¯s participant and Lei Wen stopped fighting. Lei Wen¡¯s jaw dropped. He asked, ¡°Brother Long, have you really reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage?¡±


    Long Chen smiled but did not answer. He used the Big Dipper Step and pounced on the Wood n participant. The guy was still filled with shock after seeing his mate get killed. He had not expected Long Chen to be this strong either. Now he was alone, while the other side had two people. He had no choice but to run ¡­


    ¡°You lowly imbecile! How dare you ambush us! The Five Elements Alliance will not let you go! You wait and see!¡± The Wood n youth quickly fled.


    ¡°You think you can run?¡± Long Chen did not move until the other person almost disappeared. That was when he used Blood Warp and burned up a small portion of his essence. In a sh, he was right behind the Wood n youth!


    ¡°You¡¯re going to regret not pursuing me now! When I get the chance, I¡¯ll make you regret this!¡± The Wood n youth got excited after he escaped Long Chen. With such arge distance between them, Long Chen would never catch up.


    Suddenly, he felt a strong and sharp auraing towards his back.


    ¡°How is that possible?¡± The Wood n youth hurriedly turned around, and a blue ray of light shot through his forehead. His vision blurred, and when he woke up, he found himself standing outside the Confounding City.


    ¡°Mu Zhong, you¡¯re out too? Did that brat Long Chen and Lei Wen work together to eliminate you?!¡± the Fire n youth from earlier yelled. Behind him were the masters from the Five Elements Alliance, including their patriarchs and Ancestor Jin.


    Not a long time had passed since the start, but four out of ten people from the Five Elements Alliance had already been eliminated. Two had been sent out by Wu Guangyu, while the other two, to their surprise, had been done in by Long Chen.


    The Fire n youth was very unwilling to ept defeat because he had been ambushed by Long Chen of all people. He had quickly rushed to vent to his elders, and they were all cursing Long Chen for using such a lowly tactic when Mu Zhong of the Wood n was eliminated too.


    ¡°I ¡­ I don¡¯t know ¡­¡± Mu Zhong said woodenly, as he was still in shock.


    The Wood patriarch stepped forward from the group and asked, ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who got me. Long Chen and Lei Wen were standing together, and I should have escaped from them. Then I sensed a powerful aura behind me. I looked back, and a blue ray of light pierced through my forehead ¡­¡± Mu Zhong said, still in a daze.


    Everyone looked at each other in shock. The Fire n youth asked in disbelief, ¡°Blue light? Isn¡¯t that the Three Thousand Star Clusters? Long Chen caught up to Mu Zhong and killed him in one strike?¡±


    That was likely exactly what had happened.


    Four people had been eliminated, two by Wu Guangyu and two by Long Chen. Didn¡¯t that mean that Long Chen was on the same level as Wu Guangyu?

 Chapter 808: Wu Qingrou

    The people of the Five Elements Alliance red at the Divine and Demon ns maliciously. The members of the Five Elements Alliance were about equal in terms of rank, with Jin Ling being the exception. They did not have disciples as outstanding as Wu Guangyu, but they were surely stronger than the strongest disciple from the Demon n, Suxue. Did the Demon n now have someone stronger than Suxue¡ªLong Chen?


    Everyone suddenly realized they had underestimated Long Chen.


    ¡°That brat only just reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, yet he is already that strong?¡± Ancestor Jin remarked with surprise.


    On the Demon Thunder Faction¡¯s side, Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other and smiled. Long Chen had indeed not let them down. Lei Wu was standing next to Lei Ji awkwardly. He had been ganged up on by Jin Ling and a Water n youth, then eliminated. This was the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s only victory.


    ¡°Father, I ¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t me yourself. You just got unlucky. Work harder in the future,¡± said Lei Ji, cutting him off.


    ¡°I wonder how Xue¡¯er is doing. We haven¡¯t heard anything yet,¡± said Bai Lan a little worriedly.


    ¡°Brother Bai, she has a Divine Space Talisman. There¡¯s nothing to worry about,¡± said Lei Ji with a smile.


    ¡°Alright ¡­¡±***


    After Long Chen put away the Three Thousand Star Clusters, Lei Wen gulped and said admiringly, ¡°Thank you for your kindness, brother. I thought you were as strong as me, but it seems like the rumors are true. When you were at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage, you were able to kill Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators. So it¡¯s only natural that you can do it now, since you have entered the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    Long Chen was actually even stronger than that if he used his Dragon Soul Transformation.


    That was only one of the tricks up his sleeve.


    Long Chen had sessfullypleted his breakthrough before thepetition, thus raising his cultivation level to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage. Aftering to the Ancient Graveyard, he had progressed from the Third Earthly Martial Stage to his current level, rising by five levels. The speed of his growth had surpassed everyone in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Ten people had to be eliminated from the Confounding City. After about six hours, five people had been eliminated. Five more were needed. Usually, the first round of fighting ended quickly.


    However, participants hid themselves more towards the end of thepetition as no one wanted to waste any more strength, and they did not want to be eliminated just like that.


    The longer they could hold on, the more important thepetition was to them. This was rted to prestige and future resources they would receive.


    ¡°I wonder if Suxue and your younger brother are alright. There are many people from the Five Elements Alliance, and if they work together, they can easily bully anyone. The Divine n has Wu Guangyu, so anyone who meets him will not end up well. We should start searching for them.¡±


    Long Chen led Lei Wen on a search for the others. They were still moving about randomly, trying their luck.


    If other people did not attack him first, he would not make the first move.


    The Soul Swallowing Gaze made the search fairly convenient. Long Chen encountered several people from the Five Elements Alliance, and they were usually alone or in pairs. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he avoided them easily.


    ¡°How strange. We¡¯ve been walking for four hours, but we haven¡¯t encountered a single person.¡± Lei Wen was confused as to why nothing had happened when he was with Long Chen.


    Long Chen smiled without replying to him. Suddenly, he squinted and said, ¡°There¡¯s a fight over there. Let¡¯s go check it out.¡±


    There was a fight ahead. Suxue and Lei Wu might be there. They quickly approached, but after that, they realized that the fight did not involve Suxue. It was between the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance people. Like before, it was two against one. The two from the Divine Wind Faction were not Feng Zhilin and Wu Guangyu, but the older couple. They were attacking a Gold n youth, who was not Jin Ling and was younger. Under the threat of the couple, he was in mortal danger.


    When he was about to be sent out, he roared, ¡°Brother Jin Ling, avenge me!¡±


    That shout was likely going to travel very far.


    Under the couple¡¯s fervent attacks, that youth was eliminated. He turned into a ray of white light, and the Divine Space Talisman took him away.


    The couple sighed in relief, then they looked at each other and smiled. The girl from the Divine n said, ¡°We finally contributed something by eliminating that Gold n brat. Brother Liu, we work very well together.¡±


    The Wind n man, Feng Liu, smiled and said, ¡°Of course. We work together seamlessly. The puny Gold n guy was no match for us.¡±


    ¡°I hate you! Brother Liu, let¡¯s not stay here for too long. If Jin Ling finds us, we¡¯re done for. Only Young Master Guangyu is able to beat that madman.¡±


    Feng Liu nodded. ¡°Alright ¡­¡±


    Then Feng Liu raised an eyebrow. Wind n members could sense changes in the wind, and when the surrounding wind speed changed, it attracted his attention.


    ¡°Who is sneaking around? Get the hell out!¡± Feng Liu roared in Long Chen and Lei Wen¡¯s direction.


    Long Chen did not initially n to attack them, as his grudge against Wu Guangyu had nothing to do with Feng Liu. However, it seemed like they had no choice now.


    ¡°Brother Lei, stay here. Let me try something.¡±


    Lei Wen was enthusiastic to fight, but Long Chen did not let him.


    ¡°You¡¯re going alone?¡± Lei Wen asked, surprised.


    ¡°If I can¡¯t defeat them alone, how will I face Wu Guangyu, who has the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance?¡± Long Chen smiled and stepped out of the dark corner confidently. He appeared in front of Feng Liu and the Divine n girl, Wu Qingrou.


    ¡°You?¡± Feng Liuughed and continued, ¡°My younger sister, Zhilin, cannot wait to rip your skin off, and the Divine n¡¯s young master also wants to kill you. The fact that you¡¯re here means they haven¡¯t found you yet. In that case, let me kill you for them.¡±


    Wu Qingrou smiled and said, ¡°Surely the young master will thank us, right?¡±


    Lei Wen was still hiding, so they thought Long Chen was alone. Long Chen had not reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage yet, and they had eliminated a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator just now. Therefore, they assumed it would take no effort to beat him.


    As for Lei Wen, he was assured enough to let Long Chen deal with it because on the one hand, he was curious as to how strong Long Chen actually was, and on the other hand, Long Chen had eliminated two Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators in a row.


    Feng Liu and Wu Qingrou studied Long Chen up and down for a while. Then Feng Liu said, ¡°Sister Rou¡¯er, let me deal with this brat. He¡¯s much younger than us, so we can¡¯t gang up on him, or other people willugh at us if this gets out.¡±


    ¡°Be careful, Brother Liu,¡± Wu Qingrou said sweetly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry!¡± With a beautiful woman watching him, he knew he had to be heroic. Feng Liu charged at Long Chen!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions!¡± The moment he attacked, he used a move that Long Chen was very familiar with. Feng Liu had several times more essence than Feng Zhilin. Every illusion was as strong as a Seventh Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    A total of three thousand illusions gathered around Feng Liu, and under his control, they swarmed at Long Chen!


    Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters and the Three Thousand Illusions had simr names. There was even a rumor that the Seven Star Lord was the Wind n¡¯s ancestor, but the techniques he cultivated had been lost through the generations. The only connection between them and the Seven Star Lord was the Three Thousand Illusions technique.


    Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters could turn into three thousand stars, each turning into a weapon. If the Three Thousand Star Clusters ended up with the Wind n, they would be able to use it at an even higher level. That was why the Wind n was so greedy for the Three Thousand Star Clusters. When Feng Zhilin found the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, she thought that her ancestors had been guiding her. But she actually ended up helping Long Chen get it.


    Of course, the rumor of the Seven Star Lord being the Wind n¡¯s ancestor came from the Wind n themselves. No one knew if it was true.


    The Three Thousand Illusions belonged solely to the Wind n. Only people with Wind n blood could utilize this divine technique after reaching the Earthly Martial Realm. This was simr to the Gold n¡¯s Golden Eye of Annihtion. If they used it well, it was basically the best technique they had. Feng Liu¡¯s decision to use it now showed how determined he was to kill Long Chen!


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was wrapped around Long Chen. Feng Liu did not believe that Long Chen was strong enough to escape the Three Thousand Illusions.


    Very soon, Feng Liu was left shocked, because he could not figure out where Long Chen was at all. Instead, the Three Thousand Illusions had blocked his own vision!


    ¡°Where did the brat go?¡± Feng Liu was stunned for a moment and instantly retracted the Three Thousand Illusions. A few illusions had been fighting Long Chen, but then he had disappeared all of a sudden.


    ¡°Brother Liu, he¡¯sing at you! Be careful!¡± Wu Qingrou said hurriedly from the sidelines.


    Being outside, she could see that Long Chen had broken free from the Three Thousand Illusions and was charging towards Feng Liu!


    ¡°What?¡± Feng Liu gasped. When he retracted the Three Thousand Illusions, he saw Long Chen and panicked. Long Chen waspletely different from before. He was covered in blood-red scales and had sharp spines protruding from his joints. His ws were as sharp as des!


    These were not the most crucial parts. Most importantly, he was holding a long spear with shining blue light in his left hand. The spear looked like the most beautiful piece of art in the world.

 Chapter 810: Black Fabric

    Jin Ling did not n to fight Long Chen right now. He liked to defeat strong opponents in public, with an audience.


    Lei Wen and Long Chen watched Jin Ling walk off. Then they looked at each other, and Lei Wen said with an exasperated smile, ¡°Jin Ling was raised by Ancestor Jin since young, and rarely shows up in public. However, he¡¯s very famous. I heard that due to some trauma in his childhood, he is very violent but knows how to suppress his emotions. He is a madman.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen nodded.


    In his heart, he was the true madman. If he was not one, he would not have grown from a tiny nobody to his current state. Compared to Baiyang Town, the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was astronomical. Even the Divine Martial Empire had billions of people, and the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was abination of ten thousand kingdoms.


    Long Chen was now one of the most outstanding young cultivators among these billions of people. Not even two years had passed since he started cultivating. The speed of his progression had surpassed even the super prodigies in the Royal Territories.


    His potential surpassed everyone. As long as he had ample time, he would be able to be a truly peerless master.


    He watched Jin Ling leave and did not stop him. Long Chen had eliminated four people and he had watched another get sent out, so he guessed the first round was about to be over.


    After he was very far, Jin Ling suddenly turned around. ¡°Right, I forgot to tell you guys something.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen asked.¡°Just now, I think I saw Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin chasing after a girl. That girl was likely the Demon n¡¯s Suxue. Tsk tsk, she has a nice figure.¡±


    Then Jin Ling left in a sh.


    ¡°Suxue was found? And she¡¯s being pursued?¡± Lei Wen was worried. He looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°Fortunately, she has a Divine Space Talisman. But we still need to save her.¡±


    Long Chen did not say a word. He had already activated Soul Swallowing Gaze and was starting to search his surroundings.


    He was worried because the Divine Space Talisman did not seem effective when faced with his level of strength.


    That was why he had to quickly find Suxue. If she was injured by them, it would be a tragedy.


    Long Chen lived by a rule. He would never allow anyone on his side to get hurt.


    ¡°We¡¯re going that way?¡± Lei Wen froze, then he immediately caught up to Long Chen. Long Chen was quickly weaving through the city. His Soul Swallowing Gaze could cover a five-hundred-meter radius, and the moment he found them, he could quickly run up to them.


    Both of them quickly traveled through Confounding City.


    <em>I know five people are already out, and two of them are from the Divine Wind Faction. If I can find people from the Five Elements Alliance and eliminate them, I can make the first round end faster. If they¡¯re still pursuing Suxue, this will stop them.</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s mind raced.


    However, the longer the gamested, the more people preferred to hide. The city was huge too, so it was difficult to find anyone.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Suddenly, Long Chen saw a piece of ck chiffon fabric on the ground. He picked it up, studied it, and realized something.


    ¡°This is from Suxue¡¯s clothes. Did she tear it off? So that we can save her?¡± Long Chen quickly figured it out. Suxue had been tearing her clothes off bit by bit, scattering the pieces on the ground. She wanted Long Chen or the others to find her when they passed by.


    He continued moving, then he saw another small piece of ck fabric.


    ¡°This way.¡± His gaze turned cold and he quickly charged in that direction. He had a feeling that he was heading towards the center of Confounding City.


    <em>He¡¯s that fast?! </em>Lei Wen saw that Long Chen was running faster and faster. To his dismay, he could not catch up even when he was running at maximum speed.


    Thankfully, Long Chen stopped shortly after. Suxue was not actually far from them, and with her guidance, he quickly spotted her and someone else with the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    Wu Guangyu was attacking her fervently, and Feng Zhilin was standing on the side, asionally helping him with her Shapeless Whip. Suxue had received Bai Lan¡¯s direct teachings, so her techniques were mostly the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance. She and Wu Guangyu were basically equal in strength before thetter received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. Wu Guangyu had not taken out his divine sword yet, so the duel was still at a stalemate.


    If not for Feng Zhilin asionally harassing her with the Shapeless whip, Suxue would have been able to maintain arger distance between them.


    Both women hated each other¡¯s guts. Suxue red angrily at Feng Zhilin while she was dueling with Wu Guangyu.


    Feng Zhilin kept using the Shapeless Whip, and since it was invisible, it was very difficult to guard against it. Feng Zhilin gave an icy smile and suddenlyshed her Shapeless Whip at Suxue, yelling, ¡°You bitch! You¡¯re always going against me! I¡¯m going to whip you into submission today!¡±


    Sheshed her whip out, but the whip¡¯s arc could not be seen at all. Suxue was facing Wu Guangyu¡¯s calm and precise attacks while preventing Feng Zhilin from ambushing her, so she was in a very defensive state.


    ¡°You¡¯re hiding behind a man to ambush me; what¡¯s there to be smug about? Feng Zhilin, if you have the guts, fight me fair and square! even ten of you would be no match for me! You haven¡¯t even reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, so how dare you act so arrogantly in front of me?!¡± Suxue was furious. Despite being pushed back by Wu Guangyu¡¯s attacks, she didn¡¯t stop insulting Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°Who said I haven¡¯t reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage? Guangyu, move aside! Let me deal with this bitch!¡± These two were considered the most outstanding teenage female masters, hence the hatred towards each other. They both knew that they were equal not only in status and strength, but also in looks.


    ¡°Don¡¯t cause trouble. You cannot beat her yet.¡± Wu Guangyu was telling the truth. Suxue had received direct teachings from Bai Lan, and Bai Lan was much stronger than Feng Qing. In terms of strength, there was a significant gap between them.


    ¡°Wu Guangyu, move!¡± Feng Zhilin was so angry that her chest heaved. Wu Guangyu was her fianc¨¦, yet he was taking the enemy¡¯s side. It was maddening.


    There was a cold sh in Wu Guangyu¡¯s eyes, but it disappeared quickly. The marriage between him and Feng Zhilin had been set when they were very young. When Wu Guangyu first met Feng Zhilin, he was stunned by her beauty, butter he slowly realized that her temper was terrible. However, it would be difficult to find a girl more beautiful and more talented than her in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Plus, the more she insulted him, and the more arrogant she was, the more he felt the excitement of possessing her. That was why whenever Feng Zhilin was often rude to him, he actually enjoyed it.


    However, after spending a long time with her in the Ancient Graveyard, he realized that her temper was beyond what he could tolerate.


    Wu Guangyu did not listen to her demands but rather intensified his attacks towards Suxue. Suxue was drenched in sweat, and her damp clothes were sticking to her body, faintly revealing her skin and beautiful curves. Wu Guangyu was filled with lust.


    He slowly realized that Suxue was much better than Feng Zhilin. Unfortunately, Suxue was Long Chen¡¯s woman, and Long Chen was someone both he and Feng Zhilin wanted to kill.


    Looking at Suxue¡¯s body, he slowly slowed down his attacks. He realized he was a little unwilling to send this woman out. Even though she had a Divine Space Talisman, he could not bring himself to deal the final blow.


    Feng Zhilin could tell that Wu Guangyu was not only dismissing her request, he had even started going easy on Suxue. This lit a fire of rage in her.


    ¡°Who said I haven¡¯t reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage? I¡¯ll show you the strength of a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator now! Wu Guangyu! I¡¯ll say it again¡ªget the hell away!¡± After Feng Zhilin spoke, she charged at Suxue.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you said enough?¡± Wu Guangyu turned around and shot her an icy re.


    ¡°How dare you speak to me like that!?¡± Feng Zhilin was stunned. She knew that this man still liked her and therefore usually tolerated her temper. But why was he being so rude now? Was it because of this other woman?


    Wu Guangyu ignored her question and continued to attack Suxue. The more he looked at Suxue, the more he was immersed in her beauty, and he could not pull himself out of it.


    <em>Feng Zhilin is mine! Suxue is also mine! How could a bastard like Long Chen be fit to have a woman like Suxue? Everything is mine ¡­ </em>Ever since he received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance, Wu Guangyu was filled with self-confidence.


    He had grown up under the loving care of the Divine n¡¯s matriarch, Wu Lian. He had always been able to get what he wanted. Feng Zhilin¡¯s rude treatment initially gave him a new experience, and he even enjoyed it. However, after some time, he grew tired of it. He imagined that once he won Suxue¡¯s heart, she would be gentle and seductive, and the idea of that was more attractive to him.


    That was why the seed of possessiveness over her slowly sprouted in his heart. He had decided to take Suxue as his.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s contempt forced Feng Zhilin to swallow her rage. Her eyes started to be covered in blood vessels, and the strength of a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator erupted from her body.


    When Feng Zhilin was about to attack Suxue together with Wu Guangyu, a dangerous feeling came from behind her.

 Chapter 811: Divine Sword Azure Lotus

    ¡°You¡¯re fighting me.¡± Long Chen appeared thirty meters behind Feng Zhilin and gazed at her darkly. He had used Dragon Soul Transformation and radiated a violent, bloody aura. This form turned him into a natural killing machine.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Feng Zhilin hated Long Chen far, far more than she hated Suxue!


    The instant he appeared, Feng Zhilin forgot about Suxue.


    To Suxue, this was the greatest surprise. On the other hand, while Wu Guangyu was surprised, he was also filled with manic excitement. He had been searching for Long Chen for a long time. Everyone knew that Long Chen and Wu Guangyu had no Divine Space Talismans, so if he could kill Long Chen here, he could get the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    The tradition of the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition had been passed down from their ancestors. When they fought, they fought with all they had and killing was permissible. This was the rule of the Martial Youth Competition. Only a true duel could disy the strengths and weaknesses of two people!


    Without Divine Space Talismans, they were the only ones who could truly fight to the death. This was why Wu Guangyu had manipted Long Chen into not taking a Divine Space Talisman too!


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s objective was to kill Long Chen, but he could not find him. Instead, he had encountered Suxue, so he had attacked her.


    When Long Chen appeared, both he and Feng Zhilin looked at each other. They were beyond excited.


    Feng Zhilin abandoned Wu Guangyu and charged at Long Chen without another word. This was going to be their second sh. During theirst fight, Feng Zhilin lost tragically to him and thus lost the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.¡°Keep Long Chen busy! I¡¯ll join you very soon!¡± Defeating Long Chen was directly rted to getting the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, so Wu Guangyu knew that this was not a game. His only choice was to quickly defeat Suxue, then fight Long Chen. Feng Zhilin had to stop Long Chen, or all would be lost if they let him escape.


    ¡°Long Chen, you finally appeared! You finally dared to show your face!¡± Feng Zhilinughed coldly. Her expression was so cold that it was frosty.


    ¡°Nonsense.¡± Long Chen¡¯s priority was Suxue, who was still being attacked by Wu Guangyu. He had no time to talk to this mad woman. After saying the word ¡°nonsense¡±, he immediately charged towards her!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Red Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡±


    Long Chen unleashed two emperor seals at the same time. Now he could use this technique on the same level as a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator, making it tens of times stronger than when he used it at the Seven Star Tomb. He had relied on Blood Sacrifice that time. This time, however, he was using the technique with his own strength.


    The seals merged instantly!


    This attack was Feng Zhilin¡¯s nightmare!


    She never would have thought that Long Chen had be as strong as this.


    However, she had be more powerful as well!


    ¡°I have reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Do you think you can hurt me again with the same attack?¡± screamed Feng Zhilin. She reacted very quickly. When Long Chen used the two-sealbo, she had alreadyunched her Emperor-tier technique, Thousand Seals. She paired it together with her Shapeless Whip, throwing destructiveshes at Long Chen!


    Sheunched five hundredshes at him, and due to her having progressed by one stage, Feng Zhilin¡¯s attacks were much stronger than before.


    ¡°This trick is getting old.¡±


    Long Chen smiled to himself and pushed out the seals from his right hand, which instantly collided with her Thousand Seals and Shapeless Whip. The sudden explosion caused huge tremors. Feng Zhilin and Long Chen¡¯s battle was more intense than the battle between Wu Guangyu and Suxue, causing Wu Guangyu to furrow his brows.


    <em>Long Chen has be that strong?! He can withstand Feng Zhilin¡¯s Thousand Seals and Shapeless Whip?</em>


    Very quickly, he got his answer. Not only could Long Chen withstand them, but with the two-sealbo, he had sted Feng Zhilin backwards. The immense force caused Feng Zhilin to stumble many steps backwards clumsily! ?


    <em>Has he really gotten stronger? </em>The moment Feng Zhilin had this thought, she grew indignant. She knew that Long Chen had only grown stronger so quickly because he had the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and the Martial God Tombstone.


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions, Wind Dagger!¡±


    When Feng Zhilin got sted backwards, she was pushed over the edge. This was the first time she had used her killer move in front of Long Chen. Her Wind Dagger was much more powerful than Feng Liu¡¯s Wind Dagger. Feng Zhilin¡¯s three thousand illusions quickly merged together, then turned into a sharp, azure dagger right in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    As the dagger floated in the air, it formed ripples in the space around it!


    ¡°You don¡¯t have a Divine Space Talisman, so die!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Feng Zhilin had never seen Long Chen as an equal rival. After the seals sted her away, all the starlight on his body gathered in his left hand, then they formed the shining Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    He had the spear in his left hand and the seals in his right!


    After using the two seals, he did not stop for even a second. He injected all the essence in his body into the Three Thousand Star Clusters, then shot straight at Feng Zhilin!


    A scene identical to his battle against Feng Liu yed out!


    Despite reaching the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, Feng Zhilin was not much stronger than Feng Liu. When her Wind Dagger shed with the tip of Long Chen¡¯s spear, it shattered instantly. Long Chen continued to charge ahead as celestial Qi swirled around the powerful Three Thousand Star Clusters. In an extremely brief second, the spear was right in front of Feng Zhilin¡¯s eyes!


    In that brief moment, Feng Zhilin could not even utter a word. She backed away in panic, her face filled with shock. Long Chen was like an ice-cold devil, and the sharp tip of the Three Thousand Star Clusters was blindingly bright.


    ¡°Let me show you the might of my spear!¡± Long Chen gave an evilugh. Feng Zhilin could not defend herself at all when the Three Thousand Star Clusters was stabbed directly into her chest!


    ¡°Long Chen!!¡± Feng Zhilin was so angry that she almost fainted. Fury and embarrassment burned in her heart as she frowned angrily. However, when she thought about how there would be a bunch of people watching her the moment she got out, she had no choice but to rearrange her features back to a neutral expression.


    ¡°If I get a chance, I¡¯m going to y you alive! Long Chen ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin forced herself to suppress her anger. At that point, she realized she had already reached the outside of the city.


    She gently covered the front of her left breast hurriedly. There was a thumb-sized hole in her clothing, and if she did not cover it, she would be exposed.


    There was a sh of white light, and everyone watched nervously to see who it was. When the white light faded and Feng Zhilin appeared, everyone¡¯s reactions differed.


    When the Five Elements Alliance saw that it was not one of theirs, they sighed in relief and gave looks of schadenfreude. Bai Lan and Lei Ji smiled at each other again. Lei Ji said with a smile, ¡°Brother Bai, if the next person who appears isn¡¯t one of ours, wouldn¡¯t that mean the Thunder Demon Faction will take up three of the top eight spots?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious?¡± Bai Lan responded with a smile.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m just saying it out loud to brag,¡± Lei Ji said loudly with augh.


    This was exactly how shameless they were, even admitting it out loud. The expressions on the Divine Wind Faction¡¯s side were terrible.


    Out of the four participants they had sent, three had already been eliminated.


    Ever since Feng Zhilin had reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, Wu Lian estimated that she would at least be in the top four here. She had not expected Feng Zhilin to be eliminated too.


    Who had defeated Feng Zhilin?


    Was it Jin Ling? Or the Demon n princess, Suxue?


    Feng Qing¡¯s expression was the worst. The Divine Wind Faction¡¯s people hurried over to Feng Zhilin¡¯s side. When they saw that she was not hurt, they sighed in relief. The Divine n¡¯s matriarch asked coldly, ¡°Zhilin, who was the one who defeated you?¡±


    Feng Zhilin was a little scared of this woman.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡±


    ¡°Long Chen? Him again!¡± Feng Qing¡¯s expression darkened and killing intent radiated from him.


    ¡°Him again?¡± Wu Lian fell silent for a while, then she said, ¡°It looks like we have underestimated that brat. He is probably strong enough to be in the top three. After this, we must take that brat seriously. Very seriously. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance is with him after all. Feng Zhilin, how is the situation in there?¡±


    Feng Zhilin clenched her teeth, continuing to cover her chest as she exined, ¡°Initially, Guangyu and I were dealing with Suxue together. However, Long Chen suddenly arrived. I broke off to deal with Long Chen, but I lost to him.¡±


    Wu Lian suddenly smiled and said, ¡°After you were eliminated, only nine people remain. One more to go. Long Chen and Guangyu don¡¯t have Divine Space Talismans, so I think they have started fighting.¡±


    When Feng Qing saw Wu Lian smiling, he thought for a moment and also smiled. He said, ¡°The other people have probably gone into hiding. Let Guangyu and Long Chen fight it out. We are absolutely confident in Guangyu. The Seven Star Lord¡¯s-¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say too much. We¡¯ll just wait and see,¡± said Wu Lian.


    ¡°Mhm.¡± Feng Qing nodded.


    That was when Feng Qing suddenly noticed Feng Zhilin¡¯s hand, which was covering her chest. He asked in a panic, ¡°Zhilin, are you hurt?¡±

 Chapter 812: Five-Colored Altar

    ¡°No,¡± Feng Zhilin answered hurriedly. If other people knew that the sensitive spot on her chest had been hurt by Long Chen¡¯s spear, she would be utterly embarrassed, and may even embarrass the Divine Wind Faction.


    When Feng Qing saw that Feng Zhilin did not seem like she was hurt, he was more assured.


    Bai Lan and the others and also heard the conversation between them.


    ¡°Long Chen and Wu Guangyu are fighting inside now?¡± Bai Lan furrowed his brows. They could not see what was happening inside, so they were a little worried.


    ¡°Brother Bai, what now?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll just wait and see.¡± Bai Lan thought for a while, but this was all they could do.


    If they were fighting inside, no one would know the result until the next person with a Divine Space Talisman emerged.


    ***


    Long Chen had just eliminated Feng Zhilin. When he saw a faint drop of blood at the tip of his spear, he knew which part of her body it came from.¡°The scent of blood ¡­¡± He absorbed the drop of blood, and it turned into a wisp of his essence. He had not used Blood Transmutation in a very long time.


    The day he used this divine technique again would be a shocking day.


    Wu Guangyu and Suxue¡¯s battle had stopped. Wu Guangyu had resigned from the fight voluntarily. He backed away, ignored Suxue, and then turned to Long Chen. Long Chen saw a solemn look in Wu Guangyu¡¯s eyes for the first time.


    ¡°Half a year ago, when you first came to the Ancient Graveyard, you were definitely no match for me. Just half a year has passed, but you have already caught up to me ¡­ Long Chen.¡± Upon meeting a true opponent, Wu Guangyu became much calmer.


    Long Chen gave a slight look of acknowledgment. After Suxue circled around Wu Guangyu and reached Long Chen, Lei Wen finally arrived. When he was still very far away, he had seen something that shocked him¡ªLong Chen had eliminated Feng Zhilin at lightning speed.


    ¡°Princess Xue¡¯er, are you alright?¡± Lei Wen inspected her for a while. Although Suxue was very worn out, she was not injured. This meant that Long Chen hade just in time.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright. Long Chen ¡­¡± Long Chen and Wu Guangyu were having a standoff.


    ¡°It looks like they¡¯re going to fight. Neither has a Divine Space Talisman, so this will likely end in death,¡± said Lei Wen in a daze.


    ¡°If they¡¯re fighting to the death, without Father and the others present, it¡¯ll be very troublesome.¡± Suxue¡¯s willow-like eyebrows were slightly furrowed. Suddenly, she asked excitedly, ¡°Lei Wen, do you roughly know how many people have been eliminated already? I know Lei Wu has left, and Wu Guangyu seems to have taken out two people from the Five Elements Alliance. Plus Feng Zhilin, it makes four people!¡±


    ¡°Four?¡± Lei Wen¡¯s eyes lit up. He counted in his heart, then said in a low voice, ¡°Long Chen has eliminated four, and the Divine n¡¯s couple eliminated one from the Gold n. This means that nine people have already ¡­¡±


    ¡°Nine people?¡± Suxue had already formed a n. She whispered to Lei Wen, ¡°Wu Guangyu is extraordinarily talented. We must not let them fight here. Lei Wen, attack me now and activate my Divine Space Talisman. If you send me out, the first round will end!¡±


    Lei Wen also had the same idea, but it was slightly different. He said directly in a low voice, ¡°Princess Xue, you¡¯re kidding. With your strength, you can at least reach the top four and maybe be champion. I¡¯m just here to gain experience. Just attack me. And if Uncle Bai and my father found out that I attacked you, they¡¯d eat me up.¡±


    Suxue thought for a moment, then she made her decision. She and Lei Wen were familiar with each other. On the one hand, she was a girl, and girls had to be protected. On the other hand, she was indeed stronger than he was, so the decision had been made.


    Long Chen was focused on Wu Guangyu, so he did not know about their n. Wu Guangyu and he were archnemeses, so they were ready to fight it out here.


    The two young prodigies of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory were studying each other.


    Ever since Xiang was taken away from him, Long Chen had been waiting. Half a yearter, that day had finallye.


    It was the same for Wu Guangyu. This was a rare opportunity to fight Long Chen.


    After receiving the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance, he was widely epted as the most powerful young prodigy. However, Long Chen¡¯s rise challenged his position. ?


    Long Chen was a major nemesis in every aspect.


    ¡°Is that ¡­ The Three Thousand Star Clusters ¡­¡± Wu Guangyu studied the weapon that Long Chen had used to eliminate Feng Zhilin. Then he slowly raised his hand, revealing the picture of an azure lotus on his palm.


    ¡°I¡¯ll show you the divine sword, the Azure Lotus, from the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance.¡± As Wu Guangyu spoke, the lotus on his palm gradually shone with azure light. In contrast to the Three Thousand Star Clusters'' iciness, the Azure Lotus¡¯ light was very gentle and filled with life force. Azure light flowed like water, and finally, a one-meter-long sword materialized in his hand. The sword was long, slender, and simple. It was not as eye-catching as the Three Thousand Star Clusters, but its jade-like material exuded the same level of energy.


    The Azure Lotus Sword was a weapon on the same level as Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    When it was moved gently, ripples formed on the sword¡¯s surface, making it look both beautiful and very terrifying.


    Suddenly, Wu Guangyu¡¯s expression turned cold, and he pointed the Azure Lotus Sword at Long Chen.


    ¡°Sword Warriors are naturally born with Sword Souls. They have one more soul than other people. Once they reach the Heavenly Martial Realm, their Sword Soul evolves into a Sword Root. I will use the Azure Lotus Sword as a catalyst to form my Sword Root. Other than the few Second Heavenly Martial Staged cultivators, no one in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory will be a match for me then.


    ¡°Sword Warriors are a branch of the Armament Warriors. The Armament Warriors you have previously met were not mature ones. After I have condensed my Sword Root, you will see that Armament Warriors are the most suited people to use weapons. People like you who do not have Armament Souls can only throw punches and kicks. If you want to truly use a weapon, you¡¯re still way far off.¡±


    ¡°Sword Root?¡± Long Chen had heard before that the Armament Warriors in the Three Royal Territories were different from the ones he had met before. He had also heard from Shao Yu that Wu Guangyu was a true Sword Warrior.


    Long Chen was still clueless about the cultivation system of Armament Warriors, but that was not important. The important thing was that it had been easy for him to master the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    ¡°Less of that nonsense. Let¡¯s fight.¡± When Wu Guangyu saw how clueless Long Chen looked, he did not want to talk to him anymore. With the Azure Lotus Sword in hand, he prepared to charge at Long Chen.


    When Wu Guangyu was about to attack, Long Chen suddenly shouted, ¡°Wait!¡±


    ¡°What, are you afraid?¡± Wu Guangyu stopped. With Long Chen¡¯s personality, he should not have said something like that at this moment.


    Long Chen was looking at something behind Wu Guangyu woodenly, so Wu Guangyu hurriedly turned around. However, he saw nothing.


    <em>What is he looking at? </em>Wu Guangyu was confused.


    He did not see anything. But Long Chen was looking at an illusory Five-Colored Altar behind Wu Guangyu amongst the ruins. The Five-Colored Altar was about ten meters wide, and a five-colored light shone from it. It was very faint, so it was difficult to see unless he was very careful.


    <em>What is that? Why did it appear here? Five colors ¡­ Could it be rted to the Five Emperors? </em>Long Chen thought about it calmly. He had not expected something like that to appear before his duel.


    Everyone looked in the same direction, but they did not see anything. Wu Guangyu asked solemnly, ¡°Long Chen, is it really necessary to pull tricks like that?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t see it?¡± Long Chen realized that no one seemed to be reacting to the strange phenomenon.


    ¡°What are you talking about? There¡¯s clearly nothing behind me!¡± Wu Guangyu said curiously. He looked at Long Chen carefully, and then in the end, he concluded that Long Chen was toying with him.


    The Five-Colored Altar continued to sparkle before Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    <em>What is that Five-Colored Altar? Why am I the only one who can see it? </em>Long Chen was stunned for a second. He turned around, ready to ask Suxue and Lei Wen if they could see it. However, he did not know about Suxue¡¯s ns.


    She immediately smashed Lei Wen¡¯s Divine Space Talisman.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Lei Wen left the ruins, bing the tenth person to leave.


    Out of the eighteen participants, ten had been eliminated.


    Wu Guangyu was speechless, but he reacted quickly. He said angrily, ¡°Long Chen, I didn¡¯t know you would be this cowardly, that you would use a trick like that to buy time. Your n worked, but let me tell you this¡ªin the next round, if you really are capable, you will meet me sooner orter. Don¡¯t pull tricks like that then, or I will start looking down on you.¡±


    After that, Wu Guangyu turned and walked out. If he attacked now, it would be against the rules.


    Long Chen was not actually buying time. However, the altar had disappeared.


    He made a mental note of this location.


    ¡°Stay here for a while. Someone will get uster. Father and the others havee here many times, so they are familiar with the ce. With them leading us, we¡¯ll get out quickly,¡± Suxue said in a low voice.


    Long Chen nodded. He did not say much but circled the location of the altar several times. However, he could not spot anything different.


    <em>That¡¯s strange. Why was I the only one who could see the Five-Colored Altar? Is there something different about mepared to the others? Confounding City indeed has a secret.</em>


    While Long Chen mulled over it, Bai Lan and the others had entered to get him.

 Chapter 813: Wu Lian

    By then, the Five-Colored Altar had disappeared from Long Chen¡¯s sight.


    After Long Chen looked around for a while in confusion, Bai Lan and Lei Ji had arrived by his side. Both of them were all smiles. Bai Lan walked up to him and patted his shoulder, saying, ¡°Good one, kid! You did well today. You didn¡¯t get to see Feng Qing and that woman Wu Lian¡¯s faces! It was amazing!¡±


    Long Chen privately made a mental note of the Five-Colored Alter. After chatting a bit with Bai Lan, they left Confounding City. Long Chen memorized the path from that location to the exit. The path was very strange, as it looked like it should have been a straight route, but they had to keep turning to get out of the city.


    ¡°Rest well tonight. Tomorrow, the second round will begin. Four out of eight will advance. As usual, your opponents will be determined by drawing lots. We will do thatter,¡± Bai Lan exined to Long Chen and Suxue.


    Both of them had entered the top eight, along with Wu Guangyu and five participants from the Five Elements Alliance.


    ¡°Most of the contestants from the Five Elements Alliance are regr Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivators. About the same as the Lei brothers. The only outstanding one is Jin Ling. That kid has received harsh training since young and is Ancestor Jin¡¯s greatest masterpiece. Hisbat abilities far surpass his cultivation level, so defeating that kid will not be easy. It would be better if Wu Guangyu and Jin Ling could meet each other first. If any one of you meets one of them first, it will be a sticky situation.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, Wu Guangyu and Jin Ling are both difficult opponents. I used everything I had, but I still was not a match for Wu Guangyu. And he had not even used his Azure Lotus Sword yet,¡± said Suxue, slightly traumatized.


    ¡°Long Chen, what about you?¡± While they chatted, Long Chen had been silent, which attracted their attention. Long Chen was still thinking about the Five-Colored Altar when Bai Lan asked, ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±


    Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Just thinking about some cultivation stuff. I¡¯ve experienced many battles today, so I¡¯ve learned some new things.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a strange one.¡± The Thunder patriarch looked at him in exasperation. Long Chen¡¯s performance today was indeed extraordinary. The Divine Space Talismans had actually failed to block his attacks.


    Very soon, the people of the three factions gathered once more. Long Chen looked ahead and saw that while the Five Elements Alliance was ring angrily at the two other major factions, the Divine Wind and Thunder Demon Factions were ring at each other. The re with the most hatred belonged to Feng Zhilin. Long Chen¡¯s gaze slid down from her cold face, and he saw that she had gently blocked her chest with her sleeve.


    He understood that there was likely a small hole in her clothing, and if she did not block it, she would be exposed.


    ¡°One day, I¡¯ll kill you!¡± she mouthed to Long Chen.


    Long Chen had humiliated this arrogant girl more than once now. The angrier she got, the more he wanted to tease her. He reached out with his hand and wriggled his finger. Her face darkened when she saw him make such a vulgar gesture.


    <em>She¡¯s just some girl. Why act so arrogantly in front of me? If it weren¡¯t for the fact that I already have Ling Xi and other women have be uninteresting to me, I would have fucked you. </em>Long Chen pursed his lips.


    Feng Zhilin would have died from anger if she heard his thoughts.


    The first round had ended. The Long-Bearded Guest walked up to the center of the group and smiled at the eight remaining participants.


    ¡°Eight people with six remaining Divine Space Talisman. Come,e. Return them to me.¡± The Long-Bearded Guest wove through the group and retrieved the Divine Space Talismans stuck on Suxue and the five Five Elements Alliance cultivators¡¯ foreheads.


    If he did not take them back, the duels in the next round would be unfair.


    ¡°The first round has been very sessful. Hehe. Everyone who deserves to stay has stayed. Everyone who doesn¡¯t has gotten the hell out. This is a test of capability, so everything else is useless. Of course, the next round is an even harsher test of capability. One-on-one duels. The duels carry on until one party yields or dies. If someone has theplete upper hand and kills their opponent instantly, we will not care, haha¡­¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest wildly gesticted in front of the crowd like a madman. He was the only master who was not part of the nine ns. He was also the neutral party here; therefore, he handled these procedures.


    When he spoke, the cultivators of the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance all studied the newly risen expert, Long Chen.


    ¡°He¡¯s likely at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, but it is shocking that he has suchbat abilities.¡±


    ¡°He really is not bad at all. He eliminated Feng Zhilin with ease. There are only two other people who are this strong among the young ones¡ªJin Ling and Wu Guangyu. I don¡¯t know if Jin Ling is even that strong.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense, he was personally raised by Ancestor Jin and received his direct teachings. He has already cultivated the Gold n¡¯s techniques to their peak, and he even knows the techniques of the other four ns in the alliance. He is surely stronger than Long Chen. While Long Chen is strong, he is only at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, one level below the other two.¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow will be the finals. We shall wait and see. Discussing now is useless.¡±


    Long Chen sensed a particrly scary reing from the people who were looking at him. He followed its direction and found the source.


    It was the matriarch of the Divine n, Wu Lian.


    Half of her face was covered by a white veil, so only her eyes were exposed. However, based on the exposed section of her face, he assumed she looked younger than Bai Lan. She was surely a very beautiful woman, as she had given birth to a handsome son like Wu Guangyu.


    Long Chen waspletely sucked into her eyes. He saw a snow-white world within them, and white lotuses bloomed before him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look.¡± Suddenly, Bai Lan reached out to cover his eyes. Long Chen snapped back to his senses. He was so scared that his back was drenched in sweat.


    ¡°If you want to fight Wu Guangyu, you must be careful of this woman. She is not a simple character. Even I may not be a match for her. She is likely the number one master of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory,¡± Bai Lan said softly into Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Number one master?¡± This surprised Long Chen. He initially thought all four of the Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators, including Wu Lian and Bai Lan, were simr in strength. Bai Lan and Wu Lian were ranked equally in terms of social status too. However, this meant that she was indeed terrifying. After hearing this, Long Chen quickly looked down and no longer looked at Wu Lian and the others.


    However, he was still determined to kill Wu Guangyu. Long Chen was the kind of person to never back down until his goal was reached. Now that he hade here, he was surely going to the Three Royal Territories!


    The Long-Bearded Guest had already prepared the lots to be drawn for tomorrow¡¯s duels. He took out a box from his Universe Pouch and said with a smile, ¡°Only eight people in total, so it is very simple. There are eight balls inside, and each ball isbeled with one, two, three, or four. There are two of every number, so the people who get the same number will fight each other. The numbers will also determine the sequence of duels. Everyone,e here.¡±


    Long Chen and Suxue looked at each other, then walked forward. At the same time, the five people from the Five Elements Alliance and the Divine n¡¯s Wu Guangyu also surrounded the Long-Bearded Guest.


    Everyone red at their rivals solemnly.


    The people of the Five Elements Alliance were the most smug because they had thergest number of people remaining. Five people. That was five times the Divine Wind Faction¡¯s number of participants.


    From another angle, five of the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s team had been eliminated, which was also thergest number.


    ¡°Alright, children. Draw the lots.¡± The Long-Bearded Guestughed happily. He had a creepy smile on his face and he kept staring at Suxue. However, the tense atmosphere was eased by his smile.


    ¡°Who¡¯s first?¡± asked one of the cultivators from the Five Elements Alliance.


    ¡°Boss Jin Ling, of course!¡±


    Jin Ling did not decline. This was all about luck, so drawing first orst did not matter. He reached into the box and took out a wooden sphere. There was a number carved on the ball.


    This meant that Jin Ling had drawn one, and he would fight first tomorrow.


    ¡°I hope one of you also gets number one.¡± Jin Ling smiled at Long Chen and Wu Guangyu, then he stepped back. The other Five Elements Alliance participants took their turns, and four numbers were drawn. There were two twos, one three, and one four.


    This meant that there would be a pair who would fight their own faction member.


    There were five of them, so this was normal. They were lucky that the other three wouldn¡¯t end up in friendly matches.


    Three wooden balls remained in the wooden box. They were numbers one, three, and four.


    Long Chen and Suxue sighed in relief. This meant that they would not fight each other. It was meaningless for them to fight each other in the beginning.


    Out of the three, the one who got Jin Ling would be in more danger, while the other two had higher hopes. Wu Guangyu did not even nce at Long Chen before he took out a wooden ball. Long Chen hoped he would get number one, but unfortunately, he drew a three.


    This meant that either Long Chen or Suxue would face Jin Ling. That battle would take ce sooner orter, so Long Chen was not too concerned.

 Chapter 814: Belief

    ¡°Let me do it first.¡± Suxue smiled with her pretty, flower-like face. She extended her slender arm and took out a wooden ball from inside the box. A two-in-one chance, and luckily, she picked number four.


    That meant the final ball inside the box was number one.


    Everyone else knew how strong Long Chen was after he injured Feng Liu. All of them had epted that Long Chen was now as strong as Jin Ling and Wu Guangyu. And now Long Chen was going to face Jin Ling. The two fighters with unlimited potential were going to fight each other! Everyone was looking forward to the match tomorrow.


    ¡°Long Chen?¡± Jin Ling was surprised, but he smiled devilishly. ¡°I knew that we would get to fight each other one day. I never thought it would be so soon. Good, I can kill you and then focus on defeating Wu Guangyu on the final day.¡±


    ¡°Dream on. How about you try protecting your life tomorrow?¡± Long Chen scoffed before he returned to Bai Lan¡¯s side with Suxue.


    ¡°We shall wait and see.¡± Jin Ling said nothing else and returned to the Five Element Alliance. Except for Jin Ling and Long Chen¡¯s match, the results for two out of the three matches tomorrow were more or less set in stone. The battle between the Five Elements Alliance was going to be very boring.


    ¡°You¡¯ve always been so lucky. Never thought you would be unlucky today.¡± Lei Ji patted Long Chen¡¯s chest and chuckled.


    ¡°It¡¯s not too bad. It will be easy enough for me to smack that bastard senseless until he calls for his parents tomorrow,¡± Long Chen said.


    Ever since Ling Xi left him, Long Chen had be very silent and mature.He was once a hooligan who prowled the streets, but the more he killed, the more icy his character became. It was only when Long Chen realized this fact recently that he gradually became more optimistic. His mood improved over time.


    Long Chen turned and saw Mo Xiang still standing with the Divine and Wind ns. He revealed a faint smile as a sign of respect and encouragement for Long Chen.


    <em>Defeat them and we can set out towards our next goal, the Three Emperor Territory!</em>


    Mo Xiang was the only person who had apanied Long Chen from the start!


    They had met in Baiyang Town a long time ago.


    For sworn brothers, a single look was more than enough to convey each other¡¯s feelings.


    ¡°When did you learn to boast like that?¡± Suxue looked at Long Chen with confusion.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t learn it, it¡¯s a natural part of my personality. You¡¯ve just been fooled by me this whole time,¡± Long Chen said with a chuckle.


    Why was he in a good mood?


    That was because Long Chen could finally head to the Three Emperor Territory soon after aplishing the next few goals. He was certain that he could finally enter that legendary ce. The day where he could meet Ling Xi was finally approaching.


    He wanted to give her a massive surprise.


    The more he thought about meeting her, the more excited he became.


    His calm heart gradually started to beat faster due to the excitement. His arrogant and haughty personality gradually awakened at this point. It didn¡¯t mean that he had be childish; it was just a personification of his ruthlessness.


    It would be a mistake for the others to think that Long Chen was a rash and shortsighted man.


    After experiencing so much, Long Chen¡¯s personality was not something most people couldprehend.


    ¡°Return here at noon tomorrow. That¡¯s when the official match will start. I know you are tired today, so let¡¯s find a ce to rest. We can rush here tomorrow so maybe it''s good to head back to Heavenly Wood City to rest.¡±


    Bai Lan was very satisfied with the results today, so he smiled happily.


    The people from the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Element Alliance gradually left. No one wanted to stay at the dpidated ruins.


    Long Chen returned to the Heavenly Wood City with Bai Lan and the others. Thankfully, the Eternal Battlefield wasn¡¯trge, so it didn¡¯t take long to arrive. Bai Lan cleared out some space, and night soon fell.


    Everyone raised a bonfire and got some beast meat to eat. It was nothing short of a party for them tonight.


    ¡°You guys can rx tonight. It¡¯s up to you two to fight for the Yellow Emperor Key tomorrow,¡± Bai Lan instructed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Father. I will work hard. I know that I can reach the top four,¡± Suxue said.


    ¡°Four? You are not very ambitious, then. Can you still consider yourself my daughter?¡± Bai Lan raised his eyebrow and feigned anger.


    ¡°Haha, I know. You are cing all of your hopes on me. It¡¯s already good enough to enter the top four spots with Long Chen participating.¡±


    ¡°What a worrisome brat you are,¡± Bai Lan chided in a yful manner.


    After talking for a brief moment, Long Chen went to the edge of the party to start cultivating. He never wasted time, and Suxue was embarrassed by how hard he was working. Cultivation was boring and not everyone could do it like Long Chen. Repeating something again and again without getting bored was something only Long Chen could achieve.


    Even though Suxue was a young genius at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, she felt nauseous whenever she heard the word ¡°cultivation.¡± But Long Chen had never faced that issue before.


    A person¡¯s beliefs were thergest motivators to be strong.


    Long Chen had absorbed a lot of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence, so his potential was not something that could be replicated. But it was because of his belief that he could reach his current stage.


    Because of his stubbornness, he had never felt tired.


    If Ling Xi hadn¡¯t left him and he hadn¡¯t managed to get her the Nine Heaven Immortal Fruit, Long Chen wouldn¡¯t even have reached the Earthly Martial Realm at this point. It was because of his belief that he had endured cultivation.


    Long Chen was not afraid of Jin Ling or Wu Guangyu. He was confident, though not because he was stronger, but because his belief was stronger than theirs! Many fights ended in favor of the person who persevered even though both parties were equally matched.


    ¡°Xue¡¯er, what are you going to do with Long Chen?¡± Both Bai Lan and Suxue were watching Long Chen cultivate.


    ¡°What else can I do? He¡¯s a hard-working, monstrous genius. I¡¯ve never seen anyone that could cultivate nonstop for days. It¡¯s like he¡¯s rushing to get into his next life.¡±


    ¡°No. Not reincarnate into his next life, but to prove himself.¡± Bai Lan nodded with a knowing look.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Suxue didn¡¯t understand.


    Bai Lan gently stroked Suxue¡¯s soft, long hair. His eyes were filled with love as he exined, ¡°I announced to the world that he is your fiance, but that was just to protect him. Even though I wanted to pair you together, it appears that he already has someone in his heart. Those who fall in love always suffer the most. The boy is a wanderer and will one day disappear, so it¡¯s best that you just be yourself and stay as my beloved daughter, alright?¡±


    ¡°Father¡­¡± Bai Lan''s words were indeed a bit deep, but Suxue understood. She nodded and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I don¡¯t have any feelings for that bastard. It¡¯s just that my little sister seems to like him, so I had to get close too.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Bai Lan smiled and went off to do something else.


    The bonfire was still burning, but thedy¡¯s heart cooled down.


    ¡°He¡¯s a wanderer?¡± She looked at Long Chen¡¯s silhouette, mesmerized.


    Long Chen had reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage very recently, so he needed time to solidify his base. He had used a lot of essence today and needed to replenish it before the fight tomorrow.


    He was going to fight Jin Ling at noon.


    But there was one more issue that Long Chen was worried about.


    ¡°Little Cat.¡±


    ¡°What did you call me for?¡± Little Cat sprung out of the Primordial Realm and rolled around with his furry body. He didn¡¯t look very athletic at all.


    ¡°When I was facing off against Wu Guangyu, I saw a Five-Colored Altar. Did you see that too?¡± Long Chen whispered.


    ¡°I did. It was quite a strange thing. I think it''s an invisible seal. I suppose you need to use a special item at a specific time frame to open it. Maybe there¡¯s treasure inside, or maybe there¡¯s a hidden space.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Five-Colored Altar¡­ It must be rted to the Five Emperors. I need to go there and check it out. Wouldn¡¯t it be a waste if we didn¡¯t inspect it? But it¡¯s strange that only I was able to see it.¡±


    Little Cat chuckled. ¡°You think you can go? Bai Lan and Lei Ji are afraid that you will get assassinated, so they are quite literally staring at you right now. If you go there and encounter anyone from the Wind n, Divine n, or the Five Element Alliance, you will be wiped out instantly.¡±


    ¡°How about you go, then?¡± Long Chen chuckled.


    That was his goal.


    ¡°What do I get in return? I don¡¯t do things without a reward,¡± Little Cat said seriously.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Once you can use your ¡®Divine Weapon,¡¯ I will catch a harem of cats. They won¡¯t be strong, but they will definitely be beautiful.¡± Long Chen smiled deviously.

 Chapter 815: Men in Black Robes

    ¡°Oh ho, not bad. I shall go, then.¡± Little Cat chuckled, and his dark body soon disappeared into the night as he headed towards Confounding City. Long Chen was also counting on Little Cat¡¯s experience to figure out what the Five-Colored Altar was.


    However, when Little Cat set off, the Primordial Dragon Talisman detached itself from Long Chen¡¯s chest and stuck onto Little Cat¡¯s body. Everything Long Chen had stored inside the Primordial Realm was now unavable to him as the talisman was gone.


    He just remembered that Little Cat¡¯s soul was trapped in the Primordial Dragon Talisman. Even if Little Cat upied another body, he could not move more than a hundred meters away from the talisman. That was why he had to take it with him to Confounding City.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You are the master of the Primordial Dragon Talisman. The moment you will it, it will fly back to your chest at a moment¡¯s notice! Stick the Primordial Dragon Talisman onto me. I will call for you the moment I¡¯m in danger. I will be safe since I can just hide in the Primordial Realm.¡±


    Long Chen was originally worried, but he sighed in relief when he heard Little Cat¡¯s exnation.


    <em>It¡¯s indeed good news. If there¡¯s anything that I can¡¯t do in the future, I can just send Little Cat out to do it. If he¡¯s in danger, I can just¡­</em>


    Long Chen wished for the Primordial Dragon Talisman to return. It indeed appeared in front of his chest instantly.


    Before he could feel happy, Little Cat hopped out of the Primordial Realm and scolded Long Chen.


    ¡°You bastard! I told you to only recall me if there¡¯s danger, not immediately! I was more than three hundred meters away and now I have to walk all that way again? I don¡¯t want to do it anymore!¡±Long Chenughed when he saw how Little Cat was scolding him. But he really needed Little Cat to do it for him, so he apologized profusely¡­


    Little Cat calmed down after Long Chen apologized. ¡°I will forgive you since it''s your first day. Hmph! I won¡¯t hold grudges against a mere ant!¡±


    Little Cat then left again.


    Long Chen calmed down after verifying that he could control the talisman from afar. He could sense the faint connection between him and the talisman, as well as Little Cat¡¯s location. He could also sense what Little Cat was seeing and hearing.


    <em>This is amazing. This means I¡¯ve got a moving pair of ears and eyes that I can recall at any time! </em>Long Chen was excited.


    It was indeed good news.


    Long Chen was about to start cultivating when Suxue appeared beside him. ¡°Sorry for disturbing you. I just wanted to talk to you about Jin Ling. I take it that you don''t know him, right?¡±


    He indeed knew next to nothing about the people from the Five Element Alliance, especially Jin Ling, so he nodded. ¡°Is there anything special about him?¡±


    Suxue pondered before exining, ¡°Firstly, his Golden Combat Body is at the third and final stage. It¡¯s extremely powerful and has transformed his body considerably. I think it rivals your body. But the Golden Combat Body is not his strongest attack. His Golden Eyes of Destruction is also at the highest stage, so it can turn into another different technique. I suppose that¡¯s one of his ultimate attacks.¡±


    ¡°Is that all?¡±


    ¡°You are underestimating him.¡± Suxue was nervous when she saw that Long Chen wasn¡¯t worried. ¡°That¡¯s not all. Thanks to his connection with the Gold n¡¯s patriarch, he cultivated all five renowned techniques of the Five Element Alliance. I¡¯ve heard that Jin Ling is a genius who can cultivate techniques with ease. He¡¯s a hard opponent to face, so be careful. Your life will be at risk tomorrow. If my father can¡¯t save you in time¡­¡±


    Long Chen understood that she was worried about him, so he smiled. ¡°I¡¯ve noted down what you¡¯ve said. He¡¯s indeed strong, but there¡¯s nothing he can do against me.¡±


    Suxue realized that Long Chen needs a good punch or two sometimes. She rolled her eyes and said seriously, ¡°But there¡¯s something you need to know. The Five Element Alliance has a long history, so they must have a lot of treasures. I¡¯m certain that Jin Ling will use some.¡±


    ¡°Treasures?¡± Long Chen had the Three Thousand Star Clusters, the weapon left behind by the Seven Star Lord. He was certain that it could destroy any treasures that Jin Ling had ess to.


    ¡°Treasures are categorized as Divine Weapons or magical artifacts. I¡¯m certain that Jin Ling has magical artifacts, so you cannot let your guard down tomorrow. I won¡¯t disturb you anymore.¡± Suxue turned to leave. She was actually a bit frustrated because she had taken the time to warn Long Chen, but he didn¡¯t seem to care.


    ¡°Suxue.¡± Long Chen raised his head and called for her.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Suxue turned around. The cold moonlight highlighted her jade-white skin.


    Long Chen felt his breath get caught when he saw how beautiful she was. Suxue was ufortable with how Long Chen was looking at her, and she blushed. ¡°What do you have to say?¡±


    Long Chen shook his head and chuckled. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ve actually remembered everything you said. I will do my best to not let you down tomorrow.¡±


    Suxue¡¯s frustration melted away and she nodded. ¡°Alright, I will be watching. I will do my best tomorrow too.¡±


    Long Chen focused after Suxue left. However, he didn¡¯t cultivate but instead turned his attention to his connection with Little Cat. Long Chen could sense everything around Little Cat, including noises. Currently, the Primordial Dragon Talisman was merged onto Little Cat¡¯s chest. Long Chen had a strange feeling that he became Little Cat, with his eyes and ears sharing the same senses.


    However, he could not control Little Cat¡¯s movements.


    Little Cat was currently walking around in the middle of Confounding City at night. Long Chen memorized the path to the middle of the city and Little Cat seemed to have sensed it too. Though he usually looked like an oaf, Little Cat was actually very meticulous. His small body would not alert anyone as he walked inside the city.


    It was eerily spooky in Confounding City during the night. A cold wind blew past the city, as if a monster was passing through. Long Chen even sensed that Little Cat shivered and sneezed a few times.


    Little Cat reached the center of the city in a few minutes. This was where Long Chen had defeated Feng Zhilin. Little Cat stepped around with his little paws and looked around carefully.


    After ensuring that nobody was nearby, Little Cat moved towards where the Five-Colored Altar had appeared.


    <em>Did you find anything? </em>Long Chen realized that he could speak to Little Cat using the connection to the Primordial Dragon Talisman. Little Cat naturally heard the question in his mind.


    <em>Shoo. Don¡¯t disturb me. I¡¯ve just arrived.</em>


    The Five-Colored Altar puzzled Little Cat too. He circled around the ce to find out what was going on.


    <em>Five colors¡­ It must have been left behind by the Five Emperors. They did say that they left a secret realm. Hey, do you think it could be the entrance?</em> Little Cat hypothesized.


    Long Chen thought about it. <em>Hmm¡­ This is the Eternal Battlefield in the middle of the Ancient Graveyard. You should be standing in the middle of the entire Ancient Graveyard. I think you might be right. The strange phenomena should be the entrance to the supposed secret realm. I think we need five keys to open it, so there¡¯s nothing we can do now.</em>


    Little Cat nodded. <em>The altar isn¡¯t appearing. I don¡¯t know when it will appear again. Maybe I can stay here and observe it for a bit. I wille back at dawn if nothing happens.</em>


    <em>Alright.</em>


    Long Chen nodded and continued to search for clues using Little Cat¡¯s senses. After checking that nothing was wrong, he started cultivating.


    Time passed, and he remained immersed in cultivation until he sensed an rming dread. Long Chen snapped out of his cultivation to check on Little Cat. He hadn¡¯t asked Long Chen to recall the talisman yet, though he was hiding in it nervously.


    <em>What¡¯s wrong?</em> Long Chen used the connection to look using Little Cat¡¯s eyes. He saw six mysterious people wearing ck robes standing where the Five-Colored Altar had appeared. Their robes wererge and their veils were evenrger,pletely obscuring them.


    <em>It¡¯s them!</em>


    Those six people were undeniably the six people that Su Yan had described. Even Long Chen couldn¡¯t tell who they were right now.


    But he could sense the dreadful pressure emanating from them, one that was even stronger than what Bai Lan could release.


    Little Cat was hiding far away, so they hadn¡¯t sensed him yet. Even then, Long Chen could tell that Little Cat was shivering in fear.

 Chapter 816: Secret

    Long Chen¡¯s hair stood up when the people in ck robes appeared. Even though he wasn¡¯t at Confounding City, he held his breath because of the shock he was experiencing. He was afraid that he would affect Little Cat and cause some sort of ident.


    But his worries were unwarranted because he could still control the Primordial Dragon Talisman. He could recall Little Cat back at any time.


    <em>Let¡¯s see who they are and what they are nning to do.</em>


    Little Cat sensed that Long Chen had stopped cultivating and sighed in relief. He carefully hid even though he wasn¡¯t afraid of the outsiders in ck robes. But due to him upying the body of the Dream Demon, who was a demonic beast, the instinct to run from powerful foes couldn¡¯t be switched off. That was why Little Cat¡¯s body was trembling.


    Little Cat used all of his willpower to control the body of the Dream Demon to stop trembling, then he stared at the men in front to see what they were up to.


    There were six of them, and they were standing around where the Five-Colored Altar had appeared. One of them stepped forward and did aplicated seal with their hands. A purple light traced their movements like a ribbon.


    The person stepped back, then Long Chen saw the Five-Colored Altar appear once more. It was still hazy, and it disappeared very quickly after shing.


    The appearance of the Five-Colored Altar was within Long Chen¡¯s expectations. <em>It seems that they already know about the altar.</em>


    Long Chen observed closely and saw that the one who made the seals had an odd appearance. The person¡¯s arm slid out from the ck robes and revealed purple-scaled ws.Rows of neatly arranged purple scales adorned their hand, and their fingertips ended in sharp ws. An eerie, purple light danced in the palms of the person.


    <em>Is he a Beast Warrior? But why is he in his transformed form when he¡¯s not in battle?</em>


    Long Chen was curious.


    After the Five-Colored Altar disappeared, they finally started conversing. Long Chen was excited to hear what they was going to talk about in hopes that he would get more information.


    He was hoping he could overhear something important.


    The man who had made the seals chuckled sinisterly. His voice was horrifying, as if he hade from the depths of the Nine Spirit Purgatory.


    ¡°The secret entrance of the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm¡­ It will open a month before the Ancient Graveyard shuts down. Let¡¯s just wait for them to finish their childish tournament before we give them the final key.¡±


    Another eerie voice came from another person. ¡°Where should we ce the final key?¡±


    ¡°Since it¡¯s the ck Emperor Key, we should toss it at Tianyi Water City.¡±


    ¡°Heh, we can finally get our hands on the treasures of the Five Emperors! We¡¯ve waited for it for so long. Those damned Five Emperors. How dare they set up such a restriction even after they¡¯ve died? I can¡¯t believe they would go to such lengths to prevent us from taking the treasure!¡±


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard has been activated so many times, but we never seeded even once. I think we can finally do it this time ¡­¡±


    The six of them smiled at each other. Through the moonlight, Long Chen finally saw their non-human faces.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡±


    One of them turned to look at Little Cat. Long Chen immediately recalled the Primordial Dragon Talisman. Thanks to their close proximity, the Primordial Dragon Talisman embedded itself in his chest almost instantly. Little Cat was also safe inside the Primordial Realm.


    The six had most likely noticed Little Cat, but Long Chen had a feeling that they would persuade themselves that they were just seeing things. After all, they were certain that they were the strongest in the Ancient Graveyard and believed that no one else would have the capability to spy on them.


    <em>Who are they? Why are they so strong? Each of them is stronger than Bai Lan¡­</em>


    The stronger his opponents, the more terrifying they would be.


    But Long Chen had indeed obtained the information that he needed, and that was their goal. They wanted the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure!


    ¡°So someone was indeed controlling the Ancient Graveyard. They lure us from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory to open up the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure while they themselves have the keys. They can¡¯t enter because of the restriction, and they aren¡¯t strong enough to get inside.¡±


    ¡°You are right.¡± Little Cat popped out of the Primordial Realm and sighed. ¡°Thankfully, you were fast enough, or I would¡¯ve been dismembered by them.¡±


    ¡°Little Cat, if that¡¯s the case, will Bai Lan and the others be in danger if we go and take the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure? Will they all be killed after taking out the treasure?¡±


    Little Cat rolled his eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I do know that the greatest treasures are hidden in danger. No matter what, you need the treasure since you are going to the Three Emperor Territory. Without it, you will sacrifice a lot of opportunitiester on. You must get it no matter what. ording to them, you still have five months to figure it out, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­ You are right.¡± Long Chen''s belief also didn¡¯t let him give up even though he had overheard the conversation.


    ¡°Wait, do you know who they are?¡± Little Cat asked.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t. I¡¯ve been waiting for my dear Eldest Cat to exin to me.¡± Long Chen grinned. Even though there was a lot of pressure, he had endured the worst. This was nothing much to him.


    Little Cat grinned and put on a scary face to frighten Long Chen. ¡°Truth to be told, they are from the Demon Race of the Deste Royal Territory. They are also the descendants who had killed the Five Emperors in the past¡­ All six of them are demonic beasts at the Emperor-tier. They are almost identical to humans when they transform into their human forms ¡­¡±


    Six incredibly powerful demonic beasts¡­ No, they were from the Demon Race.


    ¡°So it¡¯s them¡­¡± Long Chen now understood why they were here. They were the descendants who had killed the Five Emperors, and now they want to take the treasure for themselves. That was why they had set up the game in the Ancient Graveyard, to lure people from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory toe here.


    They needed the humans to take out the treasure so that they could swoop in at thest moment to take it for themselves. If word got out, everyone who was aiming for the treasure would be scared speechless. Long Chen was certain that Bai Lan and the others would never enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm if they found out.


    But Long Chen could not tell them right now.


    ¡°If I were to spread this around, it would cause panic and no one would enter the Secret Realm anymore. I fear that the people from the Demon Race would get angry and kill everyone here after finding out that their n has failed.¡±


    Long Chen knew that he could not be rash since this was an important matter.


    ¡°We cannot let anyone know. We still have five months, so let¡¯s just wait and see for a bit. The Divine n, Wind n, and the Five Element Alliance have nothing to do with me, but Bai Lan and Lei Ji have helped me a lot. I might let them know secretly so that they could prepare themselves.¡±


    Little Cat assured him, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, since your ancestors from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory could set a restriction to prevent the Demon Race from taking their treasure, they probably foresaw this too. I have a feeling that you will be able to leave peacefully after obtaining the treasure. They would never let their inheritance be taken by someone random.¡±


    Long Chen agreed since Little Cat had a point.


    ¡°Just set this aside right now. I¡¯ve heard from Suxue that Jin Ling is very strong. I have to face him tomorrow, and I cannot be careless.¡±


    Long Chen started cultivating again and soon, the next day arrived.


    No one bothered Long Chen until it was almost noon. Bai Lan and the others made sure they were ready to depart before they approached him.


    ¡°Are you ready?¡± Bai Lan asked.


    ¡°We will be victorious today.¡± Long Chen smiled confidently.


    ¡°Good. It¡¯s all up to you now.¡±


    Of all of them, Long Chen was the most confident. Everyone else was worried about him since Jin Ling was famous for being a crazy bastardpletely engrossed in cultivation. Jin Ling had never lost before, not even once.


    Long Chen¡¯s luck wasn¡¯t the best since he would be fighting against Jin Ling first.


    The Nine n Martial Youth Competition was an important matter in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Since it was being held in the Ancient Graveyard this time, there weren¡¯t a lot of spectators, but the three factions took it very seriously and arrived at the venue long before the set meeting time.


    Feng Liu had been sent back to Giant Metal City to be treated, so not a lot of people were left in the Divine Wind Faction. The grudge between Feng Zhilin and Long Chen had deepened after their previous encounter. Feng Zhilin¡¯s face was icy when she saw Long Chen. Her thick bloodlust even leaked out uncontrobly.


    Wu Guangyu was the same. Compared to Feng Zhilin, Wu Guangyu was even more loved by his mother. His mother was at the pinnacle of strength in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory as the matriarch of the Divine n. He had always done what he wanted ever since he was young, and no one could control him. Wu Lian, however, had been strict on his cultivation so Wu Guangyu could be powerful. He had never once tasted defeat.


    But he was wary of Long Chen after he saw how he had defeated Feng Zhilin.


    <em>Make sure to win against Jin Ling so I can teach you a lesson. You are not qualified to fight me if you lose.</em>


    Long Chen could tell what Wu Guangyu was trying to let him know by just looking into his eyes.

 Chapter 817: Path of the Beast Warrior

    The nine ns were gathered. Xiang was currently standing behind Wu Guangyu. Since it wasn¡¯t the time to start fighting against the Divine n yet, Long Chen told Xiang to stay put for now. They nned to escape after the tournament ended. Long Chen was certain that Bai Lan would protect him and Xiang so Wu Lian wouldn¡¯t be able to hurt them.


    Long Chen and Xiang exchanged gazes without saying anything. Long Chen then focused on Jin Ling.


    Jin Ling was standing with the patriarch of the Gold n. His body was covered in a veil of dazzling gold that gave off a sharp aura capable of cutting people who got too close to him.


    Today was the fight between Long Chen and Jin Ling, so the Wind n and the Divine n were set aside for now. The Five Element Alliance was giving the Demon n taunting looks. The Gold n¡¯s patriarch was eyeing Long Chen and trying to estimate how strong Long Chen was. Only when everyone from the Demon n arrived did the Golden n¡¯s patriarch clear his throat. ¡°Little Bai, I can¡¯t believe your eyes are still so sharp. We are impressed that you would be able to retain a genius with just a single daughter of yours.¡±


    He had spoken in a demeaning tone to taunt Bai Lan. He was inferring how the Demon n didn¡¯t have a single genius and so they had to bewitch Long Chen with lust.


    Bai Lan ignored the taunt and retorted, ¡°You can also marry your daughter to Long Chen, but I don¡¯t think it would work since your daughter is most likely five hundred years old by now. I doubt that Long Chen would ept her hand in marriage.¡±


    Heughed along with everyone in the Demon n and the Thunder n. Bai Lan was old, and had his daughters when he was very old. He had immersed himself in his cultivation during his younger days.


    The Gold n patriarch, however, wasn¡¯t angry. Instead, he chuckled. ¡°Of course I can¡¯t do that. Unfortunately, my daughter doesn¡¯t have what it takes to attract him. We from the Five Element Alliance do not condone such methods. We nurture our own talents rather than bewitching them. Of course, we could do so if we wanted to since we have a lot of beauties, but unfortunately, they are reserved for only the youths of the Five Element Alliance.¡±


    Bai Lan smiled and didn¡¯t argue back. He looked around before shouting, ¡°Where is the Long-bearded Guest? Is he here?¡±A figure approached swiftly from afar after Bai Lan shouted.


    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± The Long-bearded Guest left a trail of dust as he ran. He quickly made his way to the center of the crowd. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for arrivingte. I almost died when I had sex yesterday.¡±


    Wu Lian interrupted him. ¡°Can you stop talking nonsense?¡± Even though her face was covered with a veil, her body made it obvious that she was very attractive. She exuded a mature woman¡¯s aura while a hint of bewitchment hid behind her icy re. Her skin was white like jade too. She didn¡¯t look like a womante in her hundreds.


    She was simr to Bai Lan in that she only had a son veryte in her life.


    The patriarchs of the Five Element Alliance, however, had their children early in their lives. Most of the stronger youths representing them right now were their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.


    Cultivation had always been hard, but the reward was massive. Once someone reached the Heavenly Martial Realm, their lifespan would increase to five hundred years. Those who could increase their cultivation level further would be able to live even longer. The experts of the past were all terrifying individuals. Compared to people at the level of the Five Emperors, the experts that Long Chen had seen so far were weaklings.


    The Long-bearded Guest shut his mouth when Wu Lian scolded him. He looked at her with an innocent expression, and she returned an icy re. ¡°Since everyone is here right now, and it¡¯s already noon, I would like everyone to step back a bit. For the first fight, I would like to invite Long Chen and Jin Ling to remain here.¡±


    The tournament was starting, so everyone made room. Suxue reminded Long Chen to be careful before she retreated too. Everyone gave Long Chen and Jin Ling a veryrge space in the middle to fight freely.


    The only one standing beside Long Chen and Jin Ling was the Long-bearded Guest. As the witness, he had more responsibility than everyone else. If either party gave up, he had to protect the loser. Everyone on his level would know if he did his job well even though they were far away.


    Even so, there were incidents in the past where people died despite the witness being there to protect them. That was why it was important to surrender early if the participants realized that they were outmatched or they would really die.


    ¡°Let me be clear here. Surrender early if either one of you thinks that you will lose. Don¡¯t hold on until thest moment. Please do not me me if I can¡¯t save you or you get maimed because you waited too long to surrender. You shouldn¡¯t me your opponent either! These are the rules set by the nine great ns; I didn¡¯t juste up with them on the spot.¡±


    After warning them, the Long-bearded Guest stepped away and gave them ample space to fight. The arena was roughly thirty meters in diameter. It was a distance he could travel instantly to save the contestants, but it wasn¡¯t so small that he would interfere with their fight.


    Everything was ready.


    Long Chen had always been the type to take the initiative. He transformed right after the Long-bearded Guest gave them space.


    Blood-red scales covered his body, making him look dashing.


    Jin Ling was blunt when he saw Long Chen¡¯s transformation.


    ¡°The path of the Beast Warrior leads to nothing but a dead end. Only Martial Warriors and Armament Warriors can flourish. That is why there is a True Martial Territory and a Swordsoul Territory but no Beastsoul Territory. But the final territory, the Deste Royal Territory, is indeed dominated by demonic beasts. A Beast Warrior like you is bound to hit a wall on the path of cultivation. You can only grow if you give up on bing a Beast Warrior.¡± ??


    Long Chen had been curious as to why there were so few Beast Warriors at this stage. Jin Ling''s exnation answered his question. Beast Warriors did not have room to grow and were very rare in higher realms. It was exceedingly rare to find a Beast Warrior in the Three Emperor Territories. For starters, Beast Warriors had to refine beast souls. Using an external strength like that wasn¡¯t considered one¡¯s own strength. Secondly, one of the Three Emperor Territories, the Deste Royal Territory, was ruled by sentient demonic beasts. They would never allow one of their own to be refined by a human.


    Even the people from the True Martial Territory and the Swordsoul Territory wouldn¡¯t dare to refine a high-level beast¡¯s soul. The demonic beasts of the Deste Royal Territory outnumbered the people in the True Martial Territory and the Swordsoul Territorybined.


    Still, numbers weren¡¯t a good indicator of strength since both the True Martial Territory and the Swordsoul Territory had roughly an equal number of high-level expertspared to the Deste Royal Territory.


    To everyone, Long Chen was a Beast Warrior.


    No one had any idea that he was a Dragon Warrior, and one who had the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, an existence that stood at the apex of all dragons.


    Jin Ling¡¯s words gave Long Chen a better understanding of the Three Emperor Territory. Long Chen was unfazed by the talk of Beast Warriors. He wasn¡¯t one to begin with.


    Long Chen smiled inly and ignored Jin Ling¡¯s words. ¡°Let¡¯s fight. There are three more fights after us, and everyone is waiting.¡±


    Even Jin Ling, who was renowned for being cold outside of cultivating, was slightly taken aback by how rxed Long Chen was. He was different from Wu Guangyu. Wu Guangyu was arrogant, domineering, and greedy. Jin Ling, on the other hand, was bloodthirsty and lived for battle. In terms of personality, Jin Ling was worse.


    Jin Ling remained silent for only a moment before he charged towards Long Chen.


    ¡°Die!¡± Jin Ling didn¡¯t use any techniques but instead circted his essence and infused it into his body. His body was powered by the third stage of the Golden Combat Body. This was the ultimate form of the Golden Combat Body. His skin turned copper and became extremely hard, and a golden rune flowed through his body.


    ¡°The third stage of the Golden Combat Body is as strong as the Seven Star Body!¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s test it.¡± Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body was forged from the celestial Qi. It was naturally stronger since it was even more painful to cultivate it!


    But Jin Ling was indeed strong. Long Chen could make out the faint traces of the Metal Devouring Wind on Jin Ling¡¯s fist!


    ¡°Do you understand now? I had to cultivate it in the middle of the Metal Devouring Wind to reach the third stage of the Golden Combat Body! I suffered incredible pain to be as strong as I am today. My master told me that almost no one in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory can match my physical strength.¡±


    Long Chen finally realized that Jin Ling was someone who would suffer incredible pain just to be stronger. He was a crazy bastard just like Long Chen! The Metal Devouring Wind was indeed roughly as strong as the celestial Qi, and Jin Ling¡¯s fist hid an incredibly destructive power.


    But the Seven Star Body had a systematic way to be cultivated. The blue core in his heart and the perfection of the technique meant that the Seven Star Body was one stage stronger than Jin Ling¡¯s Golden Combat Body!


    Long Chen steadied himself and threw a punch. The celestial Qi turned into a purple dragon that wrapped around his fist before colliding with Jin Ling¡¯s fist! A massive explosion urred from the impact.


    <em>Bam!</em>


    Jin Ling¡¯s punch sent the Metal Devouring Wind into Long Chen¡¯s body. Long Chen grit his teeth and used his essence to dissolve the Metal Devouring Wind before he managed to keep himself steady.


    Jin Ling, on the other hand, was in a worse state ¡­

 Chapter 818: Five Clan’s Genius

    Everyone could see that Long Chen was superior in terms of physical power. After obtaining the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, he had fully cultivated the Seven Star Body. This made his body stronger than the infamous Golden Combat Body.


    Jin Ling was blown backwards. He rolled in the air a few times before staggering uponnding. Several minor wounds could be seen on his copper-colored arms.


    Just as the Metal Devouring Wind had entered Long Chen¡¯s body, the celestial Qi had invaded Jin Ling¡¯s body. The celestial Qi boasted a stronger destructive power than the Metal Devouring Wind. As such, the external wounds were considered minor by Jin Ling, but his internal wounds were severe.


    ¡°The Seven Star Body is indeed strong¡­¡± Jin Ling was unhappy after getting pushed back by the first move. He was the strongest youth in the Five Element Alliance, which made him even more jealous of Long Chen. To the Five Element Alliance, Jin Ling was supposed to be the descendant of the Five Emperors, so everything in the Ancient Graveyard was supposed to be his. The Seven Star Emperor used to serve the Five Emperors, so his inheritance was naturally supposed to belong to the Five Element Alliance.


    ¡°Long Chen is relying on the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance, while Big Brother Jin Ling¡¯s Golden Combat Body was cultivated by enduring the pain of being enveloped by the Metal Devouring Wind. Long Chen is only winning slightly, and it barely counts as a victory. He is just relying on his good luck.¡±


    Everyone in the Five Element Alliance imed this while they discussed the battle. The patriarch of the Gold n was carefully watching the battle and shook his head when he saw Jin Ling lose in a sh of physical strength. ¡°Jin Ling has always been hardworking, and his pain tolerance was one of his most excellent features. He can endure far more than Long Chen. Unfortunately, he¡¯s not as lucky as Long Chen. If Jin Ling were lucky, he would be far above Long Chen and Wu Guangyu.¡±


    The only reason they were saying this was because they didn¡¯t know how hard it was to cultivate the Seven Star Body, especially to reach Long Chen¡¯s level. They also didn¡¯t know that Long Chen had wed his way up to his current stage from an extremely tiny vige.


    In terms of hard work, Long Chen far exceeded Jin Ling.


    But since it was only the first bout of the fight, no one could be truly called the victor. Jin Ling and Long Chen were only testing the waters.¡°Excellent! One more time!¡± The stronger his opponent, the more excited Jin Ling would get. His eyes were dazzling with excitement as he charged towards Long Chen like a madman.


    But Jin Ling wasn¡¯t an idiot. He used a proper martial technique this time.


    ¡°I¡¯ve cultivated all of the techniques of the Five Martial Alliance and gained a lot of wisdom. You¡¯ve obtained the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance and obtained the Seven Star Body. I admit that I¡¯m weaker in terms of physical strength, but it¡¯s only a small gap. It¡¯s time to show you the strength of the Five Element Alliance¡¯s martial techniques!¡±


    While Jin Ling came from the Gold n, he had learned all of the techniques of the Five Element Alliance from the Gold n¡¯s patriarch. It was estimated that Jin Ling was just under forty.


    Though all types of experts filled thend, someone in their forties was considered as a youth, at least appearance-wise. Jin Ling looked to be around his twenties, somewhere around Long Chen¡¯s age.


    Long Chen, however, was twenty years old.


    He was even more of a genius than Jin Ling.


    Essence circted wildly through Jin Ling¡¯s body. His eighteen Martial Veins and Nine Martial Meridians were activated as the Essence circted through his hands. Jin Ling¡¯s left palm was boiling and burning up, while his right hand was cold and frigid.


    They were clearly the techniques of the Water n and the Fire n. Jin Ling was talented enough to use both elements at the same time, which was especially difficult, considering that the two elements shed with each other.


    The technique was simr to the Five Emperor Seals. While the former was left behind by the Five Emperors and picked up by Long Chen, Jin Ling had most likely experimented and seeded in using it through trial and error. Jin Ling¡¯s talent in cultivation was indeed strong!


    ¡°Radiant Nine Heaven¡¯s Fist!¡±


    ¡°Frigid Nine Land¡¯s Seal!¡±


    A fist technique and a seal technique were used concurrently. Each technique was roughly at the Emperor-tier, meaning that they were as strong as Feng Zhilin¡¯s Thousand Seals! It was a monstrousbination of techniques!


    Long Chen was initially unfazed by the techniques, but the two techniques miraculously merged together at thest moment!


    <em>Using his ultimate skill right from the get-go?</em>


    Long Chen saw the burning, red fist flying at him like a fireball while the frigid seal appeared like a cier crashing towards him.


    The powers of water and fire merged under Jin Ling¡¯s control. The two techniques were supposed to leave a massive strain on its user, but thanks to Jin Ling¡¯s incredibly tough body, he suffered no bacsh from it!


    Long Chen squinted. He didn¡¯t want to use his strongest technique since Jin Ling was still weaker than him. He wanted to save it for Wu Guangyu as a present. The merging of the fire and water techniques was strong, but Long Chen was an expert in merging different elements!


    Long Chen raised his right hand. On his palm, the Gold Emperor Seal and the Azure Emperor Seal lit up at the same time. The two energies merged together and formed two bright seals. Long Chen thrust his palm andunched the two Emperor Seals out at the same time.


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    These seals were significantly stronger than Jin Ling¡¯s Radiant Nine Heaven¡¯s Fist and the Frigid Nine Land¡¯s Seal. The two Emperor Seals merged together and caused an evenrger explosion than before!


    The various energies caused numerous explosions in the arena.


    ¡°Break it apart!¡± Long Chen was no longer being pushed back. He channeled his Essence to increase the strength of the explosion caused by the two Emperor Seals.


    In the first bout, he had forced back Jin Ling using the physical strength, the feature that thetter was renowned for.


    Now Long Chen had used his talent in merging different elements to force his opponent back. Merging elements was something Jin Ling was known for.


    Jin Ling almost went crazy after he lost in the two aspects that he was most proud of. He knew that Long Chen was not easy to defeat, but he had never thought that Long Chen would win against him in terms of physical strength and elemental merging. He had never faced defeat like this before.


    ¡°Impossible¡­¡±


    It wasn¡¯t just Jin Ling who thought 	hat. Everyone in the crowd was also shocked that Long Chen could still stand unharmed while Jin Ling had rolled on the ground a few times. Jin Ling had been wounded, and blood and dust caked his body.


    Jin Ling lost again in the second bout.


    Even then, he still stood up, allowing his blood to flow freely. He wasn¡¯t afraid, but instead serious and excited.


    ¡°It seems that the little brat is finally getting excited. To think that he would finally meet an opponent that he could go all-out with today.¡± The patriarch of the Gold n wasn¡¯t disappointed; he was just happy after seeing Jin Ling¡¯s appearance.


    The people who heard him say that breathed out a sigh in relief.


    They thought Jin Ling was done for.


    Long Chen stared at Jin Ling. He had a feeling that Suxue was right about Jin Ling having some hidden trump card. Jin Ling was indeed talented when it came to physical strength and elemental merging. Long Chen had barely managed to suppress Jin Ling both times.


    Jin Ling was currently charging towards Long Chen like a beast.


    ¡°You are strong! You have the right to make me turn serious!¡±


    Jin Ling¡¯s eyes turned blood-red. He used his incredible regenerative power to heal his wounds, leaving only some hints of blood on his copper body.


    He wasn¡¯t boasting when he said that he had learned all of the techniques of the Five Element Alliance. He could use them easily and could even merge two different elements together, though that was as much as he could do. He could use any of the Emperor-tier techniques of the Five Element Alliance at any given time.


    A genius of his caliber had not been seen in the Five Element Alliance in a very long time.


    Jin Ling was indeed a one-in-a-lifetime genius. There were cultivators who couldn¡¯t cultivate a single Emperor-tier technique even after they entered the Heavenly Martial Realm. Jin Ling, on the other hand, had every single one avable to the Five Element Alliance, though his specialty was the metal element.


    ¡°Great Earthen Nine-Tile Steps!¡±


    He approached Long Chen rapidly and used the technique of the Earth n. It was a technique that allowed him to burrow and travel freely in the ground, though it restricted him only to the topyer of the soil. He could attack freely from out of sight, which was fairly hard to deal with.


    Long Chen used the Big Dipper Step to avoid Jin Ling¡¯s assault. The Big Dipper Step was faster than the Great Earthen Nine-Tile Steps. The starte beneath Long Chen¡¯s feet appeared rapidly and the stars spun wildly. Long Chen could move freely on it, causing Jin Ling¡¯s attack to miss!

 Chapter 819: Gold Wheel of Annihilation

    ¡°You coward! Long Chen, are you out of tricks? Why are you only dodging?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! Don¡¯t tell me that you¡¯ve lost all of your strength. To think that he¡¯s too cowardly to face Big Brother Jin Ling! He just keeps dodging!¡±


    ¡°Long Chen is a sly one. Using your brain during a battle is a good thing. Only an idiot would fight head-on.¡±


    The crowd chattered and discussed until the patriarch of the Gold n ordered them to be silent and watch the fight closely.


    ¡°Bring out the Three Thousand Star Clusters! You won¡¯t be able to avoid all of my attacks with just your Big Dipper Step!¡± Jin Ling¡¯s hoarse voice came from underground as he continued his assault. The ground and mountain shook as attacks wereunched relentlessly. A cloud of dust obscured both Jin Ling and Long Chen, making it hard for the others to see them.


    Long Chen did not reply.


    ¡°Precursor Light!¡±


    Jin Ling condensed all of his energy onto his fingertips. His copper fingers turned golden when he used the Gold n¡¯s famous Emperor-tier martial technique. The technique was renowned for being very fast. Long Chen had never seen a technique that fast before. The Precursor Light arrived in front of Long Chen an instant after it lit up.


    ¡°Not bad¡­¡±Long Chen used the Big Dipper Step once again, but he increased his speed to the maximum. The Precursor Light was too fast for him, so he had to create some distance between himself and Jin Ling. On top of that, he had to tilt his head. The golden light just barely missed the side of his head before it shot away.


    One false move and Long Chen¡¯s head would¡¯ve been gone.


    It was a terrifying moment that hadsted a few breaths.


    Long Chen was surprised when he found out how much destructive energy the little light contained. Even though it had missed him, it had left a wound on the side of Long Chen¡¯s face.


    But Long Chen controlled his blood so that it wasn¡¯t flowing out. His regeneration healed the wound in no time.


    The Precursor Light that had missed him exploded behind him. The energy swept him forward, directly towards Jin Ling!


    ¡°Die!¡± Jin Ling had been nning for that all along!


    He could control the Precursor Light so well that even if it didn¡¯t hit the target, he could cause it to explode and push Long Chen towards him while disabling Long Chen¡¯s Big Dipper Step for a moment.


    ¡°Golden Eye of Annihtion, Gold Wheel of Annihtion!¡±


    Long Chen had heard that Jin Ling¡¯s Golden Eye of Annihtion had grown to another level. He saw that Jin Ling¡¯s eyes were covered in thick, golden runes of light. The two lights condensed swiftly in front of his eyes before forming a golden wheel. The wheel was made out of the energy of the Golden Eye of Annihtion, and yet it resembled a real wheel with its sharp edges! The sharp knife-like edge glimmered with a dangerous golden light.


    The Gold Wheel of Annihtion flew towards Long Chen!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    As it rolled forward, the Gold Wheel of Annihtion grewrger like a meat grinder. It rolled forward so fast that it threatened to envelop Long Chen. In just a few breaths, the Gold Wheel of Annihtion would turn him into mince meat!


    Both the Golden Combat Body and the Golden Eye of Annihtion were techniques passed down by the Gold n¡¯s patriarch. Only those with his bloodline could use it, just like the Wind n¡¯s Three Thousand Illusion. The Wind Dagger that Feng Zhilin had used was an evolution of the Three Thousand Illusion.


    ¡°Long Chen, be careful!¡± Everyone from the Thunder and Demon ns were worried when they saw Long Chen being pushed forward by the explosion of Precursor Light into the Gold Wheel of Annihtion. Sucue was extremely worried, and her face turned pale.


    Even Bai Lan, who had always been confident in Long Chen¡¯s strength, became worried. He looked at the Long-bearded Guest and was relieved to find that thetter was taking it seriously. The moment Long Chen surrendered, the Long-bearded Guest would be able to save him immediately since he was close by.


    Everyone tensed up the moment the Gold Wheel of Annihtion appeared. It was Jin Ling¡¯s strongest attack, and he had used it at the perfect moment.


    Everyone was anticipating to see how Long Chen would deal with it.


    To the others, the Gold Wheel of Annihtion was an extremely strong technique, but Long Chen didn¡¯t see it as a threat. When the Gold Wheel of Annihtion got close to him, three thousand starlights appeared on his body and condensed in his hands. Everyone gasped when they saw the dazzling spear materialize. ?


    ¡°Gold Wheel of Annihtion?¡± Long Chen scoffed and channeled his essence into the Three Thousand Star Clusters. The celestial Qi exploded out from his body and wrapped around the spear.


    ¡°Scram!¡± Long Chen swung the Three Thousand Star Cluster horizontally and smacked the Gold Wheel of Annihtion. The spear transformed into a dazzling, blue light.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    An explosion urred when the Three Thousand Star Cluster shed with the Gold Wheel of Annihtion. Everyone was shocked to see Long Chen smacking the Gold Wheel of Annihtion away with just the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Long Chen was already strong. Combined with his essence and the Three Thousand Star Clusters, the Gold Wheel of Annihtion was smacked aside and its flight path was changed. It almost hit the Long-bearded Guest, but thankfully, he managed to avoid it.


    Long Chen¡¯s incredibly strong counterattack made everyone gasp in shock. Everyone from the Five Element Alliance was bbergasted because they thought the Gold Wheel of Annihtion would destroy Long Chen. No one had expected something like this to happen!


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters had smacked away the Gold Wheel of Annihtion!


    ¡°He¡¯s just lucky he found the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. He wouldn¡¯t be able to do that with his own strength!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! He¡¯s using the advantage of his Divine Weapon to win against Jin Ling. That doesn¡¯t count!¡± The younger generation of the Five Element Alliance protested.


    ¡°Quiet!¡± Luck was part of a person¡¯s strength. It was embarrassing for them to say that, so the patriarchs of the Five Element Alliance told them to be quiet.


    The Wind n and the Divine n, however, were still discussing what they had seen. Feng Qing frowned. ¡°Long Chen might not be a simple opponent. I think Wu Guangyu will be able to fight him in the end.¡±


    Wu Lian disagreed. ¡°I doubt that. Jin Ling is still standing. The Gold n¡¯s patriarch should¡¯ve given him some treasures, since this is an important tournament for them. Long Chen might be the one who loses here.¡±


    Feng Zhilin interjected, ¡°If Wu Guangyu meets Long Chen in the finals, please kill him and take the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. Long Chen is a despicable man; he doesn¡¯t deserve it.¡±


    Wu Guangyu and the others looked at her. ¡°It seems that your hatred towards him isn¡¯t normal.¡±


    Feng Qing exined, ¡°Of course. The Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance were supposed to be hers, but Long Chen stole them. He even beat her up in the ruins ¡­¡±


    ¡°Zhilin, were you hurt?¡± Wu Guangyu was shocked because he had never heard that before.


    Feng Zhilin touched her chest instinctively. Even though it had healed, it still bothered her every time she looked at it. She kept thinking about Long Chen, and it affected her cultivation. She could only progress peacefully after she killed him.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m not hurt.¡±


    The more concern Wu Guangyu showed her, the colder her replies became. It was her pride. She wasn¡¯t the strongest youth in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, but she could still make the strongest youth bow down to her.


    As they conversed, Long Chen and Jin Ling continued to sh. When Long Chen took out his Three Thousand Star Cluster, the battle became more intense. Jin Ling had seized the initiative at the start, but now it was Long Chen¡¯s turn. Jin Ling was forced back by the incredible force generated by the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    <em>It¡¯s time to reveal it! </em>Facing Long Chen¡¯s incredible strength, Jin Ling had no choice but to admit that Long Chen was a formidable foe. He didn¡¯t want to reveal his trump card, but he was left with no choice now.


    It was something the Gold n¡¯s patriarch had left for him, and also something he had intended to use against Wu Guangyu. However, he had to use it if he wanted to defeat Long Chen. He was certain that he would lose if he didn¡¯t use it now!


    Long Chen was supposed to be at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage, but he somehow had as much essence as someone at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. He also had three different Emperor-tier martial techniques and even the Three Thousand Star Clusters at his disposal!


    ¡°You are indeed strong, but you are out of hidden cards! I still have something up my sleeve that you¡¯ve never seen before ¡­¡±


    Even though he was in danger, Jin Ling showed no hints of panic.

 Chapter 820: Golden Emperor Armor

    Jin Ling used the Golden Eyes of Destruction again to push Long Chen back before using his final trump card.


    A bright, golden light dazzled everyone!


    Long Chen stopped because he saw a suit of armor floating in front of Jin Ling. It was the most extravagant-looking armor that Long Chen had ever seen. It was as if it was made out of gold, but in reality, it was made out of a metal much harder than gold. Dense, golden runes covered the armor, shing from time to time. The armor wasplete with a helmet, breastte, cor te, and boots. It was as if a god had descended onto the armor.


    A powerful force rippled from the armor that far exceeded Jin Ling¡¯s current strength by several times. Long Chen had a feeling that the armor¡¯s strength was very close to the Heavenly Martial Realm!


    If a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator wore the armor, it would most likely double their strength. Unfortunately, Jin Ling was only at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, so he couldn¡¯t use all of the armor¡¯s power. Still, merely putting it on would increase his strength by four to six times!


    Treasures could be differentiated into Divine Weapons and Magic Artifacts. The armor was ssified as thetter and was one of the strongest treasures of the Gold n.


    ¡°It¡¯s the Golden Emperor Armor!¡±


    ¡°The Gold n¡¯s patriarch actually gave him that? That¡¯s the symbol of the patriarch himself! To think he would give it to Jin Ling!¡±


    ¡°I never thought they would actually bring it out. Jin Ling will be several times stronger when he equips it. No matter how much of a weasel Long Chen is, he is done for!¡±¡°Jin Ling might actually have a chance to fight against Wu Guangyu, who has taken the inheritance of the Azure Lotus Lord.¡±


    Even those from the noble lineages, who were usually silent, started discussing loudly as if they were in a market.


    ¡°Father, the Gold n¡¯s patriarch gave the Golden Emperor Armor to Jin Ling. Long Chen ¡­¡±


    Bai Lan consoled his daughter. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Long Chen is still doing fine. He¡¯s not surprised at all. The worst-case scenario is him giving up and losing the battle. I paid him a visit and warned him not to risk his life for the sake of victory.¡±


    ¡°Is that so¡­¡±


    Suxue calmed down a bit, but she was still worried when she saw Jin Ling don the Golden Emperor Armor. His body shone with dazzling, golden light and his cultivation soared to new heights.


    Suxue knew what kind of man Long Chen was, and it was likely that he would risk his life because he would never give up until he reached his goal.


    ¡°Father, please pay attention and save Long Chen the moment he¡¯s losing!¡±


    Bai Lan rolled his eyes and teased her, ¡°You aren¡¯t married to him. Why are you so worried about him?¡±


    Suxue blushed and turned around as she stammered, ¡°Stop trying to distract me. I just think that Yan¡¯er relies on him a lot. We can¡¯t let Long Chen die here. I even promised Yan¡¯er that we will ensure Long Chen¡¯s safety.¡±


    Bai Lan nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He will be safe with me here.¡±


    Suxue had always found her father reliable. She felt slightly relieved after hearing that he would save Long Chen.


    In reality, Long Chen was facing a headache.


    While wearing the armor, Jin Ling¡¯s essence was amplified. More importantly, the armor was extremely sturdy, making it very hard to wound him right now.


    Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have been able to hurt Jin Ling if he didn¡¯t have the Three Thousand Star Cluster.


    <em>Golden Emperor Armor? It should be the Gold n¡¯s most treasured artifact. I suppose the other ns have corresponding armors too. Though I¡¯m not certain if they were passed down by the Five Emperors¡­</em>


    Long Chen was silent while thinking of a way to deal with Jin Ling and the Golden Emperor Armor. Jin Ling had already equipped it and merged its power into his own body. He now looked like a god d in gold as he red at Long Chen excitedly.


    ¡°Even though I¡¯m using an external item to defeat you, you are also using the Three Thousand Star Cluster to overpower me. In that case, don¡¯t me me for using this armor¡­¡±


    There weren¡¯t any substantial grudges between them. It was just a sh of treasures.


    Jin Ling would¡¯ve run at Long Chen without hesitation if they were sworn enemies.


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Let¡¯s just fight¡­¡± This fight had dragged on for quite some time. This was only the first fight of the day, and no one had thought that it would be so spectacr.


    Jin Ling taking out the Golden Emperor Armor appeared to have sealed the fate of the battle.


    But Long Chen didn¡¯t appear to be afraid.


    Jin Ling was wary of Long Chen. <em>Does he have another technique up his sleeve?</em>


    ¡°I, Jin Ling, respect your strength as my opponent today. But we must decide a victor!¡±


    Jin Ling¡¯s techniques were also amplified due to his burgeoning essence.


    They were now several times stronger!


    The two of them sized each other up in the arena.


    <em>I can¡¯t continue like this¡­</em>


    Long Chen was very calm. Even though Jin Ling was stronger, it wasn¡¯t to the point that he was undefeatable. That was due to Jin Ling¡¯s cultivation level being too low. A cultivator at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage wouldn¡¯t be able to use all of the armor¡¯s strength.


    <em>In that case¡­ Blood Devouring Domain¡­</em>


    The horrifying technique was very powerful when used at the right time. The blood-red space covered the two of thempletely. Bai Lan and the others had seen Long Chen using it before, so they weren¡¯t shocked, but the others were stupefied by the sudden appearance of the Blood Devouring Domain.


    Wu Lian frowned while she analyzed the Blood Devouring Domain. ¡°That technique¡­ It has hints of a domain in it. It¡¯s not a simple technique¡­¡±


    Jin Ling was shocked by the sudden appearance of the blood-red space. It was actually sucking his blood out of his body. He was even more shocked when he learned that he had to use arge portion of his essence to keep his blood under control.


    ¡°What is this? What kind of technique is this?¡±


    Long Chen had used the Blood Devouring Domain in almost every battle due to how strong it was.


    Jin Ling had to use his essence to call out the power hidden within the Golden Emperor Armor. The amount of power granted by the armor was dictated by how much essence the user had. Jin Ling was utilizing half of his essence to suppress his blood, so his power had been cut by half.


    Now he was only two to three times stronger than before he had donned the armor.


    Jin Ling also realized that he could ultimately use only twice as much strength in practicality. He then saw Long Chen charging towards him with the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Long Chen still had the power of the Seven Star Body and the speed of the Big Dipper Step.


    This time, Long Chen attacked with all his strength. His Seven Star Body lit up and the Three Thousand Star Cluster shone brilliantly. Long Chen attacked from different directions using the Big Dipper Step, raining down a hurricane of blows.


    ¡°Radiant Nine Heaven¡¯s Fist!


    ¡°Frigid Nine Land¡¯s Seal!¡±


    Jin Ling was so shocked that he used the same techniques again, this time with more power than usual.


    Long Chen still didn¡¯t use his strongest attack, which was merging three Emperor Seals together.


    The Golden Emperor Seal and the Scarlet Emperor Seal lit up in his palm.


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡±


    Long Chen fused both techniques andunched them. However, his technique was the one that was destroyed this time! Thankfully, Jin Ling didn¡¯t have much strength left due to the Blood Devouring Domain, or that attack would¡¯ve killed Long Chen. While the two techniques exploded in the air, Long Chen charged and dodged towards the left, slipping through the gap between the two techniques.


    ¡°Break!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters turned into a whip that extended and smacked Jin Ling. It hit the Golden Emperor Armor, and the sound of screeching metal exploded. Everyone else cupped their ears in pain.


    Jin Ling howled in pain as he retreated. Even though the Three Thousand Star Cluster had hit the armor, he still felt a throbbing pain on his side.


    ¡°Impossible!¡±


    He still had no idea what kind of technique the Blood Devouring Domain was.


    ¡°Surrender!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters reverted back to a spear. He approached Jin Ling while continuously thrusting the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Jin Ling continued to evade and retreat because he didn¡¯t want Long Chen to destroy the Golden Emperor Armor.


    He had to preserve it because the Golden Emperor Armor wasn¡¯t his! If he destroyed it in this battle, he would be branded as a criminal by the Gold n!


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was terrifying!


    ¡°Surrender!¡± Long Chen shouted as he thrust the Three Thousand Star Clusters forward, this time dangerously close to Jin Ling¡¯s face!

 Chapter 821: Divine Demon Spin

    ¡°I surrender!¡±


    At the final moment, when Jin Ling had exhausted all of his techniques and ns, when he knew that he was no longer Long Chen¡¯s opponent even with the Golden Emperor Armor, he gave up. He had lost to Long Chen fair and square.


    Long Chen did not press on after Jin Ling had given up. The Long-bearded Guest didn¡¯t have to do anything, since Long Chen stepped back on his own.


    Long Chen put the Three Thousand Star Clusters away and released his transformation.


    He had used almost all of his techniques in this battle. Thankfully, he didn¡¯t need to use his strongest technique to deal with Jin Ling. That showed how strong Jin Ling was.


    Since Long Chen had stopped, the Long-bearded Guest didn¡¯t need to intervene in the fight. He stood in between them and announced, ¡°The first battle is over. Jin Ling from the Five Element Alliance has surrendered. The victor is Long Chen from the Thunder Demon Faction! Hahaha, this is beyond my expectations!¡±


    He looked at Long Chen in admiration.


    Everyone else had more or less figured out that Long Chen would be the winner the moment Blood Devouring Domain was used. The Golden Emperor Armor was undoubtedly strong, and everyone thought Long Chen was going to lose, but who would¡¯ve thought that he would be able to fight back even more ferociously? To think that he had a technique that could suppress Jin Ling.


    It could¡¯ve been said that Long Chen was stronger than Jin Ling in every aspect. Jin Ling had lost to Long Chen¡¯s Seven Star Body when it came to physical strength. He had also lost to Long Chen¡¯s Five Emperor Seals when it came to merging techniques. Even the Golden Emperor Armor lost to Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters when it came to a match between treasures.Jin Ling¡¯s loss was undoubtedly his own fault, so almost no one from the Five Element Alliance had anyints about the result, seeing how strong Long Chen was. But that didn¡¯t mean that they weren¡¯t angry. Jin Ling was thergest hope for the Five Element Alliance, and also the disciple that the Gold n¡¯s patriarch had trained for the past ten years. This meant that the Five Element Alliance had lost the chance to obtain the Yellow Emperor¡¯s Key.


    The Gold n¡¯s patriarch and the others took a step back. Even though they had expected it, they still couldn¡¯t quite believe it.


    Not even the Golden Emperor Armor was enough to them a win. Their reputation waspletely destroyed this time.


    ¡°My ancestors¡­ Jin Ling has lost. What should we do¡­¡±


    The Gold n¡¯s patriarch was sorrowful. The Five Element Alliance had a lot of members, and six of them were at the Heavenly Martial Realm. Therefore, they had to select their candidates carefully. Even the candidacy held by the Long-bearded Guests was important to them.


    That was why the Gold n¡¯s patriarch had brought out the Golden Emperor Armor for Jin Ling. He was hoping that Jin Ling would be able to use it to defeat Wu Guangyu and bring home a win. No one had expected that someone called Long Chen would appear out of nowhere and snatch their hopes away by defeating Jin Ling in the first battle.


    The Gold n¡¯s patriarch took a deep breath to calm down. He had lived for a long time and knew when to give up. ¡°A loss is a loss. They are lucky to have found someone that strong. We didn¡¯t lose to the Thunder Demon Faction, but to the inheritance of the Seven Star Lord.¡±


    His voice wasn¡¯t loud, but everyone heard it.


    Bai Lan chuckled. ¡°Luck is also a part of one¡¯s strength. To think that someone as old as you would fail toprehend something so simple.¡±


    Bai Lan was beyond happy to see Long Chen win.


    Everyone else, however, wasn¡¯t sure what to expect. Only Long Chen was calm. This was because he knew that while Jin Ling would be a formidable foe, he would surely end up winning. ?


    After Long Chen won against Jin Ling, he looked at Wu Guangyu, the one who he wanted to kill. Long Chen had worked hard to reach this stage so he could defeat Wu Guangyu and take Xiang back. Long Chen had sacrificed a lot, especially when it came to enduring the incredible pain from the Seven Star Body. He had to endure it to finally cultivate the incredibly tough Seven Star Body.


    Long Chen was calm when he said, ¡°Don¡¯t lose to anyone. I will wait for you in the final match.¡±


    Wu Guangyu smirked and waved his hand. ¡°Are you trying to taunt me? Don¡¯t talk about the finals yet. We still haven¡¯t started the semi-finals. Win against your next opponent, then we can talk.¡±


    Long Chen and Wu Guangyu¡¯s conversation made everyone realize that they had a grudge.


    Long Chen said nothing more and returned to where Bai Lan was. There were still three more matches today. ording to the ballot, the next two fighters were from the Five Element Alliance. While both of them were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, their fight wouldn¡¯t be as interesting as the match between Long Chen and Jin Ling.


    The Long-bearded Guest waited until everyone calmed down from the buzz of the first fight and for Jin Ling to return to the Five Element Alliance. Then he chuckled as he announced, ¡°What an incredible battle! The Nine n Martial Youth Competition is off to a great start! Now, for the second match, may the twopetitors from the Five Element Alliance please step up!¡±


    The two youths walked out and started fighting shortly after. Their match wasn¡¯t as incredible as Long Chen¡¯s, but it was still a fierce one. They fought for a very long time before a victor was decided.


    The Five Element Alliance had been happy when they secured five spots for their own, but they had lost two of them in just the first two matches. It was clear that more and more of their contestants would be eliminated as thepetition went on.


    It was Wu Guangyu¡¯s turn to fight next. As expected, he easily won against hispetitor from the Five Element Alliance. Wu Guangyu was the strongest youth recognized by everyone, and also the young master of the Divine n. He literally stood above everyone. If thepetition had been held in its usual ce, tens of thousands of people would¡¯ve cheered for him when he stood on the stage.


    ¡°Win against your next opponent if you want to fight me, but I don¡¯t mind being your next opponent ¡­¡±


    Wu Guangyuughed after defeating his opponent and taunted Long Chen in the end.


    ¡°You must be angry after I¡¯ve stolen your pet, right? It¡¯s too bad that your pet doesn''t recognize you anymore. I don¡¯t think I could return it to you even if I wanted to.¡±


    Wu Guangyu returned to where the Divine n was standing.


    Three matches had beenpleted out of the four, and now only Suxue from the Demon n and ady from the Water n were left. The two of them were of the same sex, and the woman from the Five Element Alliance was the only other female who managed to enter the quarter-finals.


    Unfortunately, the woman wasn¡¯t as popr as Suxue, Su Yan, or Feng Zhilin.


    She walked to the stage and eximed loudly, ¡°I am Shui Luan from the Water n! Please treat me well!¡±


    Her voice was soothing and she looked elegant, just like water. She was indeed one-of-a-kind and was most likely very popr in the Five Element Alliance. She looked meekpared to Suxue¡¯s bewitching air and Feng Zhilin¡¯s coldness.


    Suxue bit her lips in anticipation. ¡°Do you think I can win?¡±


    Long Chen chuckled and teased her, ¡°I think you will lose.¡±


    ¡°Hmph! Just you wait!¡±


    Suxue huffed as she walked into the arena.


    The Long-bearded Guest looked at both of them lustfully until everyone else was irritated by his actions. He chuckled and said, ¡°Um¡­ You can start your match now. Don¡¯t harm each other, because it would hurt me to see you two hurt, hehe¡­¡±


    ¡°Scram!¡±


    Suxue scolded him before she faced the woman from the Five Element Alliance. The two of them started their intense match.


    Suxue was trying to impress Long Chen, so she attacked valiantly. She was using techniques of the Divine Demon Lord, a cultivator simr to the Seven Star Lord. She used an intermediate Emperor-tier martial technique, the Divine Demon Spin.


    The technique consisted of nine different moves, with each of them connecting to the subsequent stronger ones. She used the technique to suppress her opponent from the start of the match.


    ¡°First Spin, Moving the Heavens and Earth!


    ¡°Second Spin, Reverse the Rivers!


    ¡°Third Spin, Shake the Mountains!¡±


    She used the techniques consecutively, forcing her opponent backwards. The intermediate Emperor-tier martial technique increased in strength everytime it was used sessfully, to the point that the ninth attack was nine times stronger than the first attack! The woman from the Water n was pushed back from the torrent of attacks!


    If Suxue continued to use the Divine Demon Spin, it would continue to grow in strength until Shui Luan was injured. To the Five Element Alliance, the loss of Jin Ling had been a devastating blow. They didn¡¯t have much hope for Shui Luan at this point. Even the patriarch of the Water n was urging Shui Luan to give up when they saw how hard Suxue was suppressing her.


    The match ended soon after, when Shui Luan surrendered.


    The four losers from today were all from the Five Element Alliance. Only one of their people was left, and it wasn¡¯t even Jin Ling! It was aughable result, and the Five Element Alliance had been thoroughly humiliated.


    The Five Element Alliance had a lot of people, including experts, but very few of them were as strong as Long Chen, Wu Guangyu, and Jin Ling.


    The patriarchs of the Five Element Alliance were incredibly sour.


    The Water n¡¯s patriarch sighed. ¡°Damn it. It¡¯s because of the inheritance of one of the seven lords. We have lost because of their inheritances ¡­¡±

 Chapter 822: Semi-Finals

    ¡°The Seven Lords were the subordinates of the Five Emperors, so their inheritances were supposed to be ours. This is an insult to us, the descendants of the Five Emperors¡­¡±


    ¡°If we had even one of their inheritances, we never would¡¯ve lost. Their victory is due to their luck ¡­¡±


    The other patriarchs from the Five Element Alliance were dissatisfied.


    ¡°Enough. We should focus on our goal, which is the secret realm that our ancestors left for us. The inheritances of the Seven Lords might be great, but can they rival the treasure inside the secret realm? Prepare yourselves and don¡¯t lose sight of our goal.¡±


    The others nodded at the Gold n patriarch¡¯s words.


    After Long Chen defeated Jin Ling, the results of the remaining fights were very predictable. After all, their match had been the highlight of the day, and everyone had been anticipating their fight.


    Now they were looking forward to the match between Long Chen and Wu Guangyu. As for the disciple of the Five Element Alliance who made it into the semi-finals, no one expected anything from him. Suxue wasn¡¯t a favored candidate either because shecked a Divine Weapon on the level of the Three Thousand Star Cluster and the Azure Lotus Sword.


    Rather than calling it a match between Long Chen and Wu Guangyu, it was more of a match between the Seven Star Lord and the Azure Lotus Lord. Both of them were part of the Seven Lords, and they were considered the strongest ones.


    After the battles concluded, Long-bearded Guest looked around excitedly and smiled. ¡°The matches today were incredible, and it was an honor to serve as the referee! Tomorrow is the day of the semi-finals, and we must now decide the matches for tomorrow. You, the four youths, are you ready? Come over here!¡±Suxue was still gloating to Long Chen when they heard the Long-bearded Guest calling for them. While the two made their way over, she asked, ¡°There¡¯s only four of us now. What if we are chosen to fight against each other?¡±


    ¡°Then we can only fight. What else could we do? Do you think I¡¯m afraid of you?¡±


    Suxue rolled her eyes. ¡°Screw you. Don¡¯t you take pity on women like me? You should let me win and be a gentleman instead.¡±


    Long Chen found that he liked teasing her after getting to know her better.


    Was that a good thing or a bad thing?


    Soon, the two of them reached the Long-bearded Guest. Long Chen and Wu Guangyu were ring at each other, especially since they were only one to two meters apart. Suxue felt a cold bloodlust emanating from both of them.


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough. No need to fight in front of an old man like me. Here, draw your lots. Let¡¯s see how good your luck is.¡±


    The Long-bearded Guest chuckled. He then showed them the wooden box with the numbers in it.


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait. I hope I get to fight you tomorrow.¡±


    Wu Guangyu reached into the wooden box and took out a ball with the number two on it.


    He then smiled coldly. ¡°Your turn.¡±


    There were only three balls left in the box. Long Chen had a one-in-three chance to fight against Wu Guangyu tomorrow. That would merely make their fight sooner rather thanter, so Long Chen didn¡¯t mind. He reached in and grabbed a random ball.


    ¡°What number is it?¡±


    Everyone craned their necks to get a look at the number on the ball with anticipation.


    Long Chen saw the number one on the ball.


    It was the same number that he had takenst time. He would be in the first match tomorrow. Unfortunately, that meant that he would be fighting against either Suxue or the person from the Five Element Alliance.


    Wu Guangyuughed, and he squinted dangerously. ¡°Consider yourself lucky. You get to survive for another day.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I should say to you. Don¡¯t overestimate yourself. I won against Jin Ling today, and the next loser will be you.¡±


    Long Chen rolled his eyes and ushered Suxue to pick a ball.


    Suxue was rxed even though there was a fifty-fifty chance of fighting against Wu Guangyu tomorrow. She reached into the box and took out a wooden ball with the number onebeled on it.


    The matches for tomorrow had been set. Long Chen would face Suxue, while Wu Guangyu would be fighting against the person from the Five Element Alliance.


    ¡°Alright, tomorrow¡¯s matches are set. As per the rules, we will rest for today and start the matches tomorrow afternoon. I won¡¯t keep you around, so go back and rest! There are quite a few women waiting for me. The Ancient Graveyard is so dangerous that a few women will sleep with me just to guarantee their safety. I didn¡¯t want to agree to it, but unfortunately, they are beautiful ¡­ I mean, I have to save their lives out of mercy, so I have no choice but to do it ¡­¡±


    The Long-bearded Guest ran away after he said that.


    The people from the three factions had no reason to waste anymore time here and left without speaking to each other. The Five Element Alliance was ultimately the loser today. None of them were happy when they left.


    ¡°There¡¯s one more key, the ck Emperor Key. It will be ours! We will then have four spots, and we will send in four Heavenly Martial Realm experts. Let¡¯s see how the other four nspete against us! The Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm and the treasures in there belong to us, the descendants of the Five Emperors!¡±


    The Gold n¡¯s patriarch red at everyone before leaving.


    The Thunder n and Demon n returned to their original gathering location. Because Long Chen and Suxue had entered the semi-finals, all of them were celebrating with joy. The tournament wasn¡¯t just a method to decide who would be able topete to get the Yellow Emperor Key, but also a way to showcase the strength of each faction.


    If the tournament had been held in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, the Nine ns would even pitch in a lot of treasures for the different winners. But because of how short they were on time, and due to them being in the Ancient Graveyard, where treasures were considered to be sensitive issues, only the winner would be able to win anything this time.


    Still, those who had participated in the previous tournaments knew how different this one was.


    Even though the Five Element Alliance had managed to send in a lot of candidates, only one of them had made it to the semi-finals. Their performance had been the worst. The Demon n had sent two candidates, and two of them managed to reach the semi-finals. Their performance was the most brilliant. If the Divine n did not win the tournament, the Demon n would undoubtedly be the strongest of the nine ns.


    The rankings of the Nine ns affected a lot of things, such as the allocation of resources andnd. Most of their resources were affected by the Nine n Martial Youth Competition. However,nd and resources paled inparison when the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure was just in front of them.


    Amidst everyone¡¯s congrattions and cheers, Long Chen returned to where the Demon and Thunder ns were.


    The Eight Sect Elders had no more objections in regards to Long Chen. In fact, they admired him now because they knew they were weaker than him. The Eight Sect Elders were almost as strong as the experts from the Five Element Alliance. In fact, even if the Seven Thunder Elders were to attack Long Chen at the same time, they would still fail to defeat him.


    This was the gap between experts.


    An expert at the Heavenly Martial Realm wasparable to an army numbering in the thousands. Even though Long Chen hadn''t reached that realm yet, he was already considered undefeatable in the Earthly Martial Realm, except against Wu Guangyu.


    Jin Ling was strong. He had an intermediate Emperor-tier Body Tempering Method, various Emperor-tier martial techniques, and even the ability to merge different Emperor-tier techniques. He even had the Gold n¡¯s strongest treasure, the Golden Emperor Armor.


    Despite all that, he had lost to Long Chen.


    The members of the Thunder Demon Faction weren¡¯t worried at all since Long Chen was going to fight against Suxue tomorrow. In their eyes, the two of them were already husband and wife. Everyone expected that Suxue would lose to Long Chen and were instead more excited for Long Chen¡¯s fight against Wu Guangyu.


    Bai Lan advised Long Chen, ¡°I won¡¯t talk much about your fight with Suxue tomorrow. You can just y around if you want. But go all-out in your fight with Wu Guangyu the day after tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me that. I¡¯ve been waiting to fight Wu Guangyu for a very long time.¡±


    Long Chen was bullied by Wu Guangyu when he first entered the Ancient Graveyard. He had almost lost his life. This time, he would pay Wu Guangyu back for all of the resentment he had kept bottled up. He was also doing this for Mo Xiang¡¯s sake and also to make Wu Guangyu regret his actions.


    ¡°I won¡¯t say more, then. You and Suxue are still young, so make sure to talk to each other more, hahaha¡­¡±


    Bai Lan and Lei Jiughed as they left. They brought out some good alcohol while the others grilled a lot of delicious beast meat. Bai Lan and Lei Jiughed as they yed chess. Long Chen had indeed improved their reputation greatly today.


    ¡°That ¡­¡± Suxue was awkward when Bai Lan told her to stay with Long Chen tonight. Her father¡¯s whims had always been random and mysterious.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Long Chen found a clean boulder and sat on it. The moonlight gave his skin a light gray hue.


    He then started to cultivate. His battle with Jin Ling had injured him lightly and cost him a lot of essence. He needed time to recover, and he expected to make a full recovery by daybreak tomorrow.


    ¡°Let¡¯s talk a bit.¡±


    Suxue braced herself. She still remembered the first time she met Long Chen, when she had thought that he was lying to Suyan. Suxue had been harsh on him back then even though that wasn¡¯t who she was. But after spending four months with him, she still couldn¡¯t quite figure out who Long Chen was.

 Chapter 823: A Choice With No Regrets

    Long Chen had grown a lot in just four months. Suxue, who was considered a genius ever since she was young, regarded Long Chen as a monster for catching up to her at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    In terms of talent, she had never seen anyone on par with him.


    ¡°Come and sit.¡±


    Long Chen noticed that Suxue appeared to have some reservations, so he let her sit beside him. The two of them looked like a perfect couple when they sat beside each other. The others saw them and admired how perfect they looked for each other.


    Long Chen looked at her, causing her to blush and hold onto her robes tightly.


    ¡°I wanted to ask¡­ Are you leaving after this?¡±


    Long Chen was silent. He needed to find the exit of the Ancient Graveyard with Xiang and find out about the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure. He indeed was going to leave. He could not stay here in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory to live with Suxue. That wasn¡¯t who Long Chen was. He had sacrificed so much to get here, and he would never go back.


    ¡°I ¡­ have to leave.¡±


    Long Chen was adamant when he told Suxue his answer.Suxue paused and hid her feelings. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ Don¡¯t overthink it. I¡¯m asking you for the sake of my sister. But¡­ Will you really leave and never stay with us in the Demon n? I¡­ My father and my sister¡­ They need you¡­¡±


    ¡°You are the one who wants me to stay, right?¡± Long Chen bluntly said as he stared at her. His burning gaze made her blush and look away.


    ¡°Stop saying nonsense. I just need you to give me an answer.¡±


    Long Chen understood her feelings and said, ¡°Then¡­ Why do you need me to stay?¡±


    ¡°My sister and I are girls. We do not meet the expectations of our father when ites tobat. My father loves us a lot, and we are worried that we won¡¯t be able to take on his mantle to lead the Demon n. You are much stronger than the two of us, so¡­¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°Does that mean I get to marry the two of you if I stay here? I can then control the Demon n and be the most influential person in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, right?¡±


    ¡°Bullshit!¡± Suxue pushed him lightly. ¡°You are too greedy. My sister and I are the princesses of the Demon n. We can¡¯t both marry you. I¡­ My sister loves you a lot. If you want, you can marry my sister in a few years¡­¡±


    Suxue made her decision when she said that.


    ¡°Only one of you? But I want both of you. I won¡¯t stay unless both of you marry me.¡±


    Long Chen teased her further.


    ¡°You¡­ How can you be so greedy?¡± Suxue was angry when she said this.


    Long Chen rolled his eyes. ¡°Aren¡¯t all men the same? We want as many beautiful girls as we can get.¡±


    ¡°Bastard¡­¡± Suxue huffed in anger and only spoke after some time. ¡°Give me some time to think. Even if I agreed to it, I don¡¯t think my father would ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was speechless when he saw that Suxue was serious. His eyes became stern when he realized that this was important for Suxue. He had treated her as a friend, just like Long Yue and Lan Xiang¡¯er. They were siblings, but it appeared that it wasn¡¯t the same for Suxue and Suyan.


    From the day Long Chen crashed into Heavenly Wood City, he had been a bright star that had attracted the attention of the two sisters.


    Long Chen saw the same kind of gaze in Suxue¡¯s eyes that he had seen in Liu Yiyi. This made his heart sink.


    He was now faced with a choice that he had never expected to make. If he agreed and returned to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory with Suxue, he would undoubtedly be a lord of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Neither Wu Lian nor Bai Lan would be able to defeat him. ??


    If he chose to stay, he could not only monopolize Suxue and Suyan, he could even go back and find Liu Yiyi, who was waiting for him. These women would bepletely loyal to him. After that, every single woman would long for him and he would be a legend.


    This was the temptation that Suxue was presenting to him.


    His other choice was to continue his journey and go forward, to chase after Ling Xi. It was a far-fetched dream, and also his first love. He would have to fulfill the promise that he had made two years ago!


    It was Long Chen¡¯s obsession, and also his life. He was not only chasing after Ling Xi, but also his cousin, Yang Lingqing. She was most likely in the Three Emperor Territory. Li Xuanji had once told him that he would never make it there, but Long Chen was going to prove that he could!


    Also, if he stayed in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, his strength would undoubtedly be stagnant. Anyone from the Three Emperor Territory would be able to destroy his glory in just a single night, just like how Long Chen had been powerless before Ling Xi¡¯s brother.


    Heading to the Three Emperor Territory was also part of Long Chen¡¯s pursuit for strength.


    What was the Three Emperor Territory like? How strong were the people there?


    How strong were the Ten Dragon Ancestors?


    What was the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant? He knew about the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon and the Primordial Time Dragon, but who were the other Dragon Ancestors?


    What would his dragon-shaped Martial Soul look like at the end of its evolution?


    Would he really be a Dragon Ancestor once he fully absorbed all of the Inherited Blood Essence?


    More importantly, what kind of person was his father? Who was Long Qinn?


    Did Long Chen have any family members other than his father and the Yang family from Baiyang Town?


    Long Qinn wanted Long Chen to walk a path filled with impossibilities. Would he be scorned by Long Qinn if he chosefort right now?


    Everything was spurring Long Chen forward. He couldn¡¯t stop now!


    But at the same time, untold dangers awaited him if he chose this path. How many times had he risked his life in the past two years?


    The Three Emperor Territory was the true stage of the Dragon Continent. Long Chen was almost there, the boundlessnd filled with extremely powerful cultivators. Everyone there could kill him at any time.


    On one end was a cushy life, while on the other was a path filled with thorns.


    On one end was a ce where the spirit could rest in peace, while the other signified the amelioration of the soul and the pursuit of life!


    On one end was the choice of a coward, while on the other was the choice of a man who did not fear death!


    Long Chen made his choice after a brief period of hesitation.


    He had to admit that even he felt tired sometimes. That was why he had hesitated, but even though he was tired, he still chose to chase after what he wanted.


    <em>I hope that one day I will be able to stand at the peak of this world and fulfill all of my dreams. I hope that I won¡¯t regret my choice today.</em>


    Long Chen took a deep breath.


    ¡°Suxue, I¡¯m so sorry.¡±


    Suxue was worrying about a lot of things when Long Chen stopped her thoughts in their tracks.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Suxue was conflicted too. She had no idea what he would say next.


    Long Chen looked at her seriously. ¡°I can¡¯t stay. I cannot go back to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. I don¡¯t know if Yan¡¯er told you about my story, but the reason I entered the Ancient Graveyard is to find a way to go to the Three Emperor Territory. I have a promise to fulfill, and also something that I must find no matter what. I have to pay the price for my previous weakness, and this is my destiny. I¡¯m sorry, I was teasing you just now.¡±


    Suxue was stunned and only lowered her head softly after a long time. ¡°Yan¡¯er told me a bit. You are chasing after someone called Ling Xi, right? Is she pretty?¡±


    Suxue liked gossip. After setting aside her worries, she was now interested in the woman called Ling Xi.


    ¡°Yes, she is the prettiest, kindest, cutest ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was excited to talk about her, but he stopped as soon as he saw Suxue¡¯s face turning sour.


    ¡°Is she prettier than me?¡± Suxue asked in a hushed tone.


    ¡°That ¡­ I can¡¯tpare the two of you. You are very different. But I promise that you are indeed pretty, to the point that a lot of people would seek your affection.¡±


    ¡°Liar.¡±


    Even though she had said that, she was still satisfied with Long Chen¡¯s answer. Suxue wasn¡¯t unreasonable; she knew when to back off, especially since Long Chen had given her an answer. She would never speak of it again.


    She liked people like Long Chen, but if Yan¡¯er had been telling her the truth, then Suxue wouldn¡¯t stop Long Chen here. She would actually support him, and she wouldn¡¯t forgive herself if she made Long Chen stay.


    Making him stay here was nothing but her own desire.


    ¡°Alright, then ¡­ You can cultivate in peace now, for the sake of your future. If you seed, pleasee back and visit us, especially Yan¡¯er. She misses you a lot¡­¡±


    Suxue then leapt down from the boulder to leave.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    ¡°Me? I¡¯m going to cultivate too. I¡¯m fighting you tomorrow after all. I won¡¯t lose nor give up. Don¡¯t worry about us. Even without you, we will be able tomand the Demon n. We won¡¯t let you look down on us!¡±


    Suxue raised her fist yfully and disyed her bravery for Long Chen.


    Long Chenughed. ¡°In that case, I am relieved to see that someone as barbarous as you will lead the Demon n.¡±

 Chapter 824: Suxue is Mad

    Suxue rolled her eyes at what Long Chen called her, making her look more attractive. She then left gracefully, but after a few steps, she turned around and said, ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    She bit her lip, but still pushed through and said, ¡°Many things change with time. If one day, while you¡¯re working very hard, you realize that many things are not as what you imagined, do not feel too dejected. Come back to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. There will still be many people waiting for you ¡­¡±


    Long Chen pursed his lips. After a long time, he finally nodded and said, ¡°Alright.¡±


    Then Suxue left, feeling assured. Her departure was quick.


    ¡°Tsk tsk! Did you break another heart? Brat, when you meet Ling Xi, I will tell her about each and every girl you flirted with! I can¡¯t wait to see her make you kneel for ten days and ten nights! Haha ¡­¡± said Little Cat, clutching his belly withughter after he emerged from the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°Get out!¡± Long Chen red at him, then he started cultivating.


    Initially, he had felt lost.


    But after Suxue gave him a choice to make, he reaffirmed his beliefs and decided that he would continue charging forward! Even though he did not know whaty ahead. Even though there would be death and goodbyes. Even though he could lose everything, including his life. He would do it without regret orint.


    Little Cat stared at the teenager in a daze. After a while, he nodded and said, ¡°From what I can see, this teenager is pure to the bone. He is a prodigy of cultivation, and will surely be something great in the future ¡­¡±


    Far behind Little Cat, Suxue was also standing there, watching Long Chen focus on his cultivation in a daze. After a long time, she finally turned to leave. Not far away, two men were watching her.


    ¡°Xue¡¯er is a good girl! That brat is blind,¡± said Lei Ji, slightly mad.


    Bai Lan gave a small smile. ¡°It was always going to be like this. As I said before, he is a traveler. Her attempt was good, but this is the result I expected.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what secrets that brat holds. I have never met someone who made me feel this nervous about their secrets.¡±


    ***


    The night passed quickly while Long Chen was deeply immersed in cultivation.


    Long Chen had picked the number one, so he was in the first duel, and he was up against Suxue. Her expression was slightly icy today. Perhaps she had been embarrassed by his response yesterday. Even when Long Chen tried to cheer her up, she was cold towards him.


    <em>A woman¡¯s heart is like a needle in the ocean. I shouldn¡¯t spend too much time trying to figure her out, or I¡¯ll just end up nowhere. </em>Long Chen smiled to himself.


    On this day, the Five Elements Alliance was purely here to gain experience. The battles of the day were not very attractive to the audience.


    The only duel whose result was slightly uncertain was the battle between Long Chen and Suxue. As for the duel between Wu Guangyu and the cultivator from the Five Elements Alliance, everyone already knew what the result would be. This was because his strength was very memorable to them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s begin! You brat, don¡¯t you dare hurt my beautiful girl, or I¡¯ll rip you to pieces!¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest, trying to scare Long Chen.


    Of course, he would not dare do anything to Long Chen. With the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s wisdom, he could see that Long Chen would surely be a fearsome master in the future if he was allowed to grow.


    Long Chen ignored him, because Suxue¡¯s ice-cold re worried him.


    <em>What¡¯s going on with her? </em>Long Chen was speechless.


    Had his teasing from yesterday made her angry?


    After the Long-Bearded Guest announced the start of the duel, Suxue did not hold back at all. She immediately started the duel with her killer move ¨C the Divine Demon Nine Spirals!


    Among the younger generation, only Long Chen, Wu Guangyu, and Jin Ling were capable of using intermediate Emperor-tier attacks. Long Chen and Jin Ling had intermediate Emperor-tier body tempering techniques.


    Long Chen could nowbine three Emperor Seals, and the result was an attack as powerful as an intermediate Emperor-tierbat technique.


    When Suxue unleashed the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s bodybat technique, she suddenly turned into a sophisticated, illusory silhouette and charged toward Long Chen. In the blink of an eye, the Divine Demon Nine Spins arrived right in front of him.


    ¡°First Spin, Moving the Heavens and Earth!


    ¡°Second Spin, Reverse the Rivers!¡±


    The Divine Demon Nine Spins arrived one after another like a tidal wave, and they grew increasingly stronger. The second spin was twice the strength of the first, the third spin was thrice the strength of the first, and so on!


    Long Chen did not let his guard down in the face of Suxue¡¯s attacks. She was using an actual intermediate Emperor-tierbat technique after all, and that was probably one of Bai Lan¡¯s strongest techniques too.


    Long Chen took out the Three Thousand Star Clusters and injected his essence into it. When the first spin arrived in front of him, he unleashed the power of his essence, and the Three Thousand Star Clusters turned into a long whip that struck the first spin, therefore neutralizing its power!


    <em>I didn¡¯t know this woman was that strong. </em>


    Long Chen could feel the might of the Divine Demon Nine Spins from the first spin alone. Suxue was personally raised by Bai Lan after all. Despite looking like a fragile girl, she was actually terrifying when she was furious!


    He used the Three Thousand Star Clusters to shatter two consecutive spins. He was now very familiar with the usage of the Three Thousand Star Clusters, and once his cultivation improved, he would be able to discover the Seven Star Lord¡¯s most powerfulbat technique inside the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    Other than the Three Thousand Star Clusters itself, thatbat technique was actually the most powerful part of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance!


    ¡°Third Spin, Moving the Mountains!¡±


    Suxue gave a loud cry. Her beautiful face was frosty and she released an immense amount of essence, which turned into an image of the Divine Demon that charged at Long Chen!


    <em>She¡¯s so fierce! </em>It looked like Suxue was fighting him for real. Long Chen knew that he had genuinely offended the woman now. He gritted his teeth, injected all of his strength into the Three Thousand Star Clusters, and swung it as hard as he could. It blocked Suxue¡¯s third spin!


    After the third spin failed, Suxueunched her fourth spin, which was even stronger. Long Chen squinted. He activated his Dragon Soul Transformation, increasing his capabilities to the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. At this level, he was strong enough to duel Suxue directly.


    Now that he was stronger, he effortlessly shattered her fourth spin with his Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Suxue did not let up. Very soon, the fifth spin arrived. The image of the Divine Demon spun in front of him, and it was much stronger than the previous attack.


    <em>Is she really fighting with all her strength? Women are scary. </em>Having no other choice, Long Chen could only retaliate with an even stronger attack, subsequently destroying the fifth, sixth, and seventh spins. While the Divine Demon Nine Spins was indeed an impressive technique, Suxue still could not use it to its full extent at her current level!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Suxue cried with embarrassment and anger in her eyes. One by one, her attacks had been shattered, and her determination to teach him a lesson intensified. Sheunched her eighth spin, which flew at Long Chen!


    <em>You scary woman ¡­ </em>Long Chen turned and swung the Three Thousand Star Clusters. The purple celestial Qi on it turned into a long dragon. Then it collided with the Divine Demon image!


    ¡°Haargh!¡± The powerful attack sent Suxue flying backwards. Long Chen had limited his strength so he would not bring her any harm. She was a good girl after all, and he could not bear to hurt her. After today, he started to know her on a deeper level. Although she usually seemed bold, she was actually just an inexperienced, innocent young woman.


    Suxue did a flip mid-air, and her essence aggregated at her chest. Her clothes pped loudly in the air. With her expression still icy, she descended from the sky andunched the final spin at Long Chen!


    ¡°Ninth Spin, Divine Demon Spin!¡±


    The Divine Demon image suddenly split into nine, with each section turning into a tornado, each flying at Long Chen from a different direction.


    ¡°Why?¡± Long Chen was puzzled. Why was she still attacking him?


    If Long Chenunched another attack, he could quickly destroy her Divine Demon Spin, but he was just showing mercy.


    ¡°You¡¯re a jerk!¡±


    Suxue¡¯s insult came from above. When Long Chen looked up, he saw that the girl was already crying. His decision yesterday had indeed hurt her, and before that, he had even teased her a little bit ¡­


    <em>Indeed, fooling around has a price ¡­ </em>


    The mighty Divine Demon Spin arrived in front of him immediately. This attack was very powerful, but the crowd was not really worried. If Long Chen used that terrifying technique he had used against Jin Ling, he could surely defeat it.


    But to everyone¡¯s shock, Long Chen put away the Three Thousand Star Clusters at thest moment. Then he opened his arms so the Divine Demon Spin mmed into his chest without obstruction!


    <em>Boom! </em>


    Everyone was stunned, including Bai Lan and Lei Ji. Neither of them had expected this!


    ¡°Oh no!¡± Bai Lan¡¯s face changed.


    He knew that Suxue was throwing a tantrum, but Long Chen was a mature person. Why was he now ying into her tantrum?


    Long Chen was going to face Wu Guangyu tomorrow, so if he was hurt, how would he fight? Let Suxue fight Wu Guangyu?


    That was definitely off the table.


    Bai Lan could not figure it out. To him, Long Chen could have ignored Suxue¡¯s tantrum because she would have recovered soon enough. Was it necessary to get beaten up?


    And why did he have to wait until the ninth spin of the Divine Demon Nine Spins?


    The one in most disbelief was Suxue. When she saw that Long Chen was hurt, tears fell from her eyes ¡­

 Chapter 825: Eve

    Long Chen had always been one to do unexpected things, and although Bai Lan and the other people were used to it, they were still sweating at a moment like this.


    He had taken the full brunt of the intermediate Emperor-tier attack. Who would dare do such a thing? Not even Bai Lan and the others were stupid enough to do something like that.


    After the loud boom, Long Chen was thrown back into the air.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Suxue was frozen with shock. She descended woodenly and stood in her spot in disbelief. However, she was privately resentful too. She was just slightly venting her anger on him; how could she have known that he would do this?


    That waspletely Long Chen¡¯s decision. It had nothing to do with her.


    When she saw Long Chen fly through the air, she rushed over to him.


    Was he dead?


    This was the question that popped into everyone¡¯s minds, but then they saw the flying body suddenly flip, and he stablynded on the ground.


    <em>That bitch! Her attack was definitely very strong! </em>Long Chen was privately regretting his decision ten thousand times over. The pain in his chest was making him grit his teeth. He actually had blocked her attack by gathering all the celestial Qi from the Seven Star Body in his chest. The celestial Qi would also bring harm to Suxue, so in the end, Suxue retracted some of her force. The Three Thousand Star Clusters also helped Long Chen block the attack. It was made out of three thousand stars, so under his control, they formed a circr shield at his chest. Very few people saw this, and even Suxue was not sure what had happened. She had not expected him to not dodge her attack at all!


    She had merely wanted toplete a full set of the Divine Demon Nine Spins. If she still had not defeated Long Chen by then, she would have automatically admitted defeat.


    To her surprise, Long Chen had not dodged her attack, which stunned her, and she frantically tried to retract the final spin.


    She was familiar with exactly how strong it was, and even thought Long Chen would die. But after Long Chen was hit, although his face was pale and there was a little blood on the corner of his mouth, his essence was still strong and his gaze was still sharp.


    When she saw his response, she hurriedly stopped in front of him.


    The whole ce was absolutely silent for a moment.


    ¡°Why ¡­ why didn¡¯t you dodge?¡± she stuttered after she saw that he had survived.


    Long Chen withstood the fiery pain in his chest, gritting his teeth. He looked at her determinedly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it. I¡¯m just trying to see how strong my body is. Since you weren¡¯t able to defeat me, it¡¯ll be my turn to attack you next.¡±


    <em>Is that really the case? </em>Suxue asked in her heart as she stared at him hesitantly. She had a feeling that it was not the only reason.


    ¡°Let¡¯s continue,¡± said Long Chen, raising his hand.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need.¡± Suxue shook her head, took a nce at Bai Lan, then said, ¡°I have already lost. You win.¡±


    Even her most powerful attack had barely damaged Long Chen, so she had lost. She did not say anything else and walked past Long Chen to return to her spot behind Bai Lan. Long Chen¡¯s reaction had made her very emotional.


    <em>Is hepensating for what he said to me yesterday? </em>Suxue bit her lip. She was not sure why, but her vision was getting blurry and tears were about to fall.


    Long Chen had won. He had sessfully entered the finals.


    After Long Chen left, Wu Guangyu and his opponent, a Five Elements Alliance expert, entered the ring. After a quick attack, that person lost to Wu Guangyu. As a result, Wu Guangyu became Long Chen¡¯s final opponent. Everyone had expected this result.


    The final fight no longer had anything to do with the Five Elements Alliance.


    This was a fight between the Divine and the Demon ns. Both factions red at each other, and the tension in the air thickened.


    ¡°If you can, take Long Chen¡¯s life for me,¡± Feng Zhilin said softly into Wu Guangyu¡¯s ear with an icy expression on her face.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Sister Zhilin. I will surely do it.¡± Wu Guangyu nodded with a smile on his face.


    Next to him, Wu Lian shook her head and said, ¡°You will have many chances to kill him in the future. There is no need to take the risk here. Most importantly, you must defeat him and be the champion. Long Chen really is a rare prodigy, proven by how he could withstand Suxue¡¯s final Divine Demon Spin.¡±


    ¡°I understand, Mother,¡± said Wu Guangyu with a respectful nod. Though there was some reverence in his eyes when he looked at his mother, there was not much familial love in his gaze.


    Wu Guangyu had grown up being loved by Wu Lian, and he did everything she told him to. In front of Wu Lian, he was an obedient son through and through. Only when he was away from her did the arrogant Wu Guangyu appear.


    Although Wu Guangyu looked quiet and obedient, his inner heart was filled with insane arrogance and coldness. He was even more arrogant than Feng Zhilin was, having been the second most powerful person in the whole Divine n his whole life.


    After the Long-Bearded Guest announced Wu Guangyu¡¯s victory, the Divine and Demon ns did not talk much. They returned to their original spots. The atmosphere was very strange due to the spat between Long Chen and Suxue.


    Looking at the pair, Bai Lan sighed and decided not to bother with it. Long Chen taking a blow from her was basically paying back what he owed. Now that he had paid her back, he no longer owed Suxue anything.


    But to Suxue, for a short while, this would make her even sadder.


    Long Chen did not know what to do at all. He merely wanted to let the girl vent her anger on him and did not overthink it. However, now Suxue had more misunderstandings and he could not do anything about it.


    ¡°The final duel will be tomorrow. You¡¯re the hope of the Demon n. Do well. It doesn¡¯t matter how difficult your opponent is, just use a hundred percent of your strength. You can do it!¡±


    This was what Bai Lan said to Long Chen before he left.


    <em>I¡¯ve waited six months for this. Now the time has finallye ¡­ </em>Looking at the moon in the sky, Long Chen clenched his fists. It could be said that he had put in all that effort to grow so he could prove his strength tomorrow in front of Wu Guangyu.


    He had already proven a lot during this time, but before he truly defeated Wu Guangyu, the legendary young master of the Divine n and the strongest of the younger generation, his aplishments meant nothing.


    This was about to be the most anticipated duel in the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition.


    Suxue had indeed injured Long Chen today, as the Divine Demon Nine Spins was not a joke. However, after a night of treatment and rest, Long Chen quickly recovered. In the blink of an eye, the next day arrived. It was time for the finals.


    Long Chen suddenly thought about the Five-Colored Altar.


    <em>Those ck-robed people¡ªno, they¡¯re from the demon race. They said they want to give away the ck Emperor Key, but when? Once we receive news about the ck Emperor Key, the patriarchs of the nine ns, the Long-Bearded Guest, Ancestor Jin, and the others will not be able to stand still. </em>


    Long Chen hoped that the news would note too quickly, or it would ruin his n for defeating Wu Guangyu.


    Taking Xiang from him was an unforgivable offense. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Xiang was not affected by Wu Guangyu¡¯s hypnosis, Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s brotherly rtionship would have been broken just like that.


    This was a major offense.


    The most anticipated moment hade. The Martial Youth Competition was about to end, and it was time for the final duel. Everyone was a little anxious. It was noon, and very soon, Bai Lan arrived. He and Long Chen locked eyes. Long Chen did not speak as they made their way to the outside of Confounding City.


    ¡°I won¡¯t say much. For my sake, for Xue¡¯er and Yan¡¯er¡¯s sakes, you must keep yourself alive. Be careful,¡± Bai Lan said calmly.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Long Chen did not have much to say.


    Suxue was behind Bai Lan. Long Chen was about to enter the most important fight, and the results were uncertain. Despite her reservations with him, she let them go and whispered, ¡°Be careful.¡±


    ¡°Just hearing that from you is enough,¡± Long Chen said with a grin.


    He turned around and looked at the Divine n.


    Feng Zhilin, Feng Qing, Wu Guangyu, Wu Lian, and the elders of the Divine Wind Faction were there. They were all experts at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and above. All of them were looking at Long Chen, and a powerful aura swept toward him. This imposing force was enough to make anyone nervous.


    But it did not scare Long Chen.


    The expressions from the Divine Wind Faction were icy, like permafrost that could not melt in ten thousand years. Sky-high killing intent erupted from every one of them. Their objective was to intimidate Long Chen.


    <em>Do you think you can scare me with such cheap tricks? </em>Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned cold. He straightened his back and walked forward. Purple celestial Qi swirled around his body, forming a thin membrane. Killing intent as strong as his opponents¡¯ radiated from him.


    He strode to the center between both factions. He was not intimidated by them at all.


    The Divine Wind Faction immediately felt bored by hisck of reaction. After they retracted their auras, they put on nonchnt expressions.


    ¡°Yu¡¯er, go,¡± Wu Lian said gently in the center of the group.


    Wu Guangyu nodded. Everyone watched with anticipation as he arrived in front of Long Chen in a sh. Sophisticated but terrifying power radiated from his body.


    That was the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    Long Chen¡¯s journey had led him to be one of the two strongest prodigies of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    His starting point was countless times lower than Wu Guangyu, but he had made it anyway. Because he was Long Chen.

 Chapter 826: Natural Sword Root

    Wu Guangyu had a simr quality to Wu Lian; both of them had gazes as deep as the abyss. He studied Long Chen for a while, then he said, ¡°I remember you once swore to kill me. That was when I took your pet beast. Do you remember?¡±


    Long Chen nodded. Of course he did. That goal had led him to his current position today.


    Wu Guangyu smiled and said, ¡°At the time, I did not think that you would actually be standing in front of me like this today ¡­¡±


    ¡°What are you trying to say?¡± asked Long Chen, arching his eyebrow.


    Wu Guangyu paused, then he answered, ¡°I¡¯m saying that it is a pity. You have indeed improved a lot, but when you were improving, I was improving too. Take out your Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡±


    As he spoke, Wu Guangyu pointed his index finger, and a faint, azure light started to glow on his fingertip. An illusory, azure lotus appeared on it.


    ¡°This is the Azure Lotus Sword!¡± Wu Guangyu said gently with a look of admiration.


    They had only just arrived and had not even fought yet, but Wu Guangyu had taken out his killer weapon. This showed how seriously he took Long Chen.


    Long Chen indeed sensed an aura as powerful as the Three Thousand Star Clusters on his fingertip. That was an advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon, and like the Three Thousand Star Clusters, it was very close to the Divine tier. It was the strongest weapon beneath the Divine tier. Under Wu Guangyu¡¯s control, the Azure Lotus Sword slowly emerged from his finger. It was a sword that was fully azure. From afar, it looked like a t piece of bamboo. When studied closely, it was actually a piece of extraordinarily beautiful azure jade.


    Azure lotus patterns appeared on the de, and although it looked beautiful, the sharp glints from the de showed that it was not to be underestimated. It was surely as sharp as the tip of the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    ¡°Four months have passed. After such a long time of study, Yu¡¯er should have been able to master the Azure Lotus Sword already, right?¡± Feng Qing asked the icy Wu Lian teasingly.


    ¡°The Azure Lotus Sword works in a pair with the White Lotus. Even after studying the White Lotus for a long time, I haven¡¯t managed to master itpletely, let alone Yu¡¯er. However, Yu¡¯er has achieved a certain level of breakthrough,¡± Wu Lian said gently, her gaze and expression unchanging.


    ¡°Long Chen only knows how to wave the Three Thousand Star Clusters randomly. Even if Yu¡¯er only understands a small sliver, he¡¯ll be much stronger than Long Chen. He has an eighty percent chance of winning today,¡± said Feng Qing, stroking his beard.


    He had arge swatch of beard, but it was not as long as the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s.


    Wu Lian did not respond to Feng Qing. Above the white veil, her deep eyes watched Long Chen and Wu Guangyu, resembling a deep, ancient well. There was a saying¡ª¡±there are no ripples in an old well.¡± Outsiders found it difficult to know what she was thinking.


    The fight had not started yet. Simr discussions were also happening within the Five Elements Alliance and Thunder Demon Faction.


    Wu Guangyu took out his Azure Lotus Sword and held it gently, pointing its tip to the ground. By then, Long Chen was already holding the colorful, shining Three Thousand Star Clusters in his hand.


    ncing at the Three Thousand Star Clusters, Wu Guangyu shook his head. He did not attack but instead remarked, ¡°You¡¯re not an Armament Warrior, but you hold a divine weapon of this level in your hand. This is an insult to the Three Thousand Star Clusters. It indeed is time for the Three Thousand Star Clusters to change its owner.¡±


    Long Chen remembered that Wu Guangyu once called himself a true Sword Warrior. One of the Three Emperor Territories was named the Swordsoul Territory, which was where Ling Xi was from. There were probably many Sword Warriors there, hence Long Chen became interested in what Wu Guangyu said.


    Beast Warriors were verymon in ces of Yuanling City¡¯s level. However, the stronger Long Chen became, the fewer Beast Warriors he met. Although he had not gone to the Three Emperor Territories, he already knew that there were not many Beast Warriors there, though there were true members of the demon race. While the Ten Thousand Nations Territory did not have many Armament Warriors, there were so many in the Three Emperor Territories that they formed arge faction.  ?


    Wu Guangyu had said before that the Armament Warriors in the Three Emperor Territories were different from the ones Long Chen knew about.


    What was different about them?


    Wu Guangyu was a true Sword Warrior. The feeling he gave Long Chen was like a sharp, unsheathed sword.


    ¡°You¡¯re a Sword Warrior? What is the difference between a Sword Warrior like you and me? Why would you be qualified to use a divine weapon, but not me?¡± Long Chen started to discuss with Wu Guangyu before their duel.


    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll tell you before you die, so that you won¡¯t die without knowing what happened.¡± Wu Guangyu¡¯s gaze was still but distant, as if he was an immortal. A cool breeze blew, making his clothes p loudly. It made him look like a magnificent swordsman.


    ¡°The Armament Warrior inheritance that I received came from the Three Emperor Territories. You probably think that if someone has an Armament Soul in their dantian, they¡¯ll be an Armament Warrior. That¡¯s actually far from the full story. When a cultivator enters the Heavenly Martial Realm, their Armament Soul will condense to form a Sword Root. That is when one bes a true Sword Warrior.¡± Wu Guangyu gently waved the Azure Lotus Sword. He did not even look at Long Chen, but instead gazed at his three-foot-long azure de.


    ¡°Heavenly Martial Realm? Then does that mean you don¡¯t have the Sword Root yourself? You can¡¯t be considered a true Sword Warrior yet, so what right do you have to talk about me?¡± asked Long Chen.


    After Wu Guangyu heard him, heughed softly for a while, then he shook his head. He looked at Long Chen as if he could not be saved, and said with contempt, ¡°A hillbilly will always be a hillbilly. I am just one step away from the Heavenly Martial Realm. Condensing the Sword Root to be a Sword Warrior is just a matter of time. Once I do it, very few people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory will be a match for me. This is also why my mother was able to be the strongest in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory!¡±


    Wu Guangyu thought he was very smart, but to Long Chen, he was just an idiot. The more Long Chen could learn about Sword Warriors, the more he would benefit, so he continued, ¡°What is a Sword Root, then? How could it be that strong?¡±


    ¡°When the Armament Soul absorbs the Martial Soul and the power of essence, another type of Martial Soul forms, called the Sword Root. It is the core of an Armament Warrior. We can merge our Sword Roots with weapons to gain absolute control over them. At the same time, we can let our Sword Roots consume weapons and make it evolve to take control of other more powerful weapons. At the same time, we can use a hundred percent of a divine weapon¡¯s strength. The journey of mastering the Armament Soul, or rather, the journey of the Sword Path, is divided into four levels. Although I have not reached the Heavenly Martial Realm, I have already achieved the first level of Sword Path Comprehension¡ªHeart Comprehension!¡±


    Then he nced smugly at Long Chen and continued, ¡°Heart Comprehension allows for me and the Azure Lotus Sword tomunicate through the heart. While you still struggle with the Three Thousand Star Clusters, I have gained absolute control over my sword. Heartmunication allows the sword and I to function as one, leading to three times the attack power! Of course, these are all minor things ¡­ At the fourth stage, the cultivator can use ten times his original attack power. This is what an Armament Warrior, a Sword Warrior, truly is!¡±


    Wu Guangyu looked at the Three Thousand Star Clusters with amusement as he said, ¡°You are not an Armament Warrior. Forget about the four stages of the Sword Path. You¡¯ll probably spend your whole life trying to control the Three Thousand Star Clusters, and you might not even be able to use fifty percent of its strength. Tell me, aren¡¯t you just sullying a divine weapon like the Three Thousand Star Clusters? As for using your blood for it to recognize you as its master¡ªthat is just an elementary-level contractual rtionship. You can only truly own a divine weapon when your Sword Root devours it! You do not have an Armament Soul, so you cannot form a Sword Root. Therefore, you do not deserve to be the owner of the Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡±


    Long Chen was quiet for a while.


    <em>I see. It looks like I really am not suited for a weapon, then. Although weapons indeed provide a huge boost in battle, the Three Thousand Star Clusters will likely be much more powerful in an Armament Warrior¡¯s hands. </em>


    Long Chen had previously triedmunicating with the Three Thousand Star Clusters, but unfortunately, he still knew nothing about it and could only use it in a simple fashion.


    <em>If a cultivator takes his Sword Path Comprehension to the highest level, his attack power increases by tenfold. Isn¡¯t that simr to my Dragon Soul Transformation? If I had a Sword Root andprehended the Sword Path, wouldn¡¯t my strength be boosted by a hundred times? </em>


    Long Chen gasped at that thought. The power difference between each cultivation level was between five and ten times. If he couldprehend the Sword Path in addition to the boost provided by his Dragon Soul Transformation, then he could fight opponents more levels above himself.


    However, without an Armament Soul, this was all just hypothetical.


    <em>I just need to focus on my own Martial Path. The Sword Path is just a branch of the Martial Path. Evenprehending the Sword Path will take a long time, so I might as well focus on the Martial Path, and I may even achieve greater heights. </em>


    Long Chen had the right mindset.


    The Martial and Sword Paths were both methods to be stronger. Among the Three Emperor Territories, the people of the Swordsoul Territory focused on studying the Sword Path, so their attacking abilities were more powerful than that of others on the same level, surpassing the average cultivator. However, the people of the True Martial Territory were more focused on the Martial Path, so they had a higher average cultivation levelpared to the Swordsoul Territory.


    This meant that all paths eventually converged into the Martial Path.


    Even without the Three Thousand Star Clusters, Long Chen still had ways to win. For example, his Five Emperor Seals and the divine techniques from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s exnation gave Long Chen the first glimpse of the world in the Swordsoul Territory.


    Swordsoul Territory was a heaven for Armament Warriors. It was called Swordsoul because they had far more Sword Warriors than other Armament Warriors. The Swordsoul Pce was thergest faction in the Swordsoul Territory too, so they often used the term ¡°Sword Warriors¡± instead of ¡°Armament Warriors.¡±

 Chapter 827: Sword Qi

    ¡°Yu¡¯er, that¡¯s enough. Start fighting.¡± While Wu Guangyu was being smug, Wu Lian¡¯s voice came from behind him. Wu Guangyu was still looking at the unknowledgeable Long Chen with contempt.


    Indeed, in the eyes of a true Sword Warrior, it really was a waste for a person without an Armament Soul to possess the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    Wu Lian had surely condensed her Sword Root already, thus bing a true Sword Warrior. Since Wu Guangyu had received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance, he would soon be one too.


    ¡°I only need two strikes to defeat you. I don¡¯t even need to use the techniques in the Azure Lotus Manual,¡± Wu Guangyu said solemnly after hearing Wu Lian¡¯s reminder.


    He spoke very slowly, not taking Long Chen seriously at all. Even though Long Chen had withstood the full brunt of Suxue¡¯s Divine Demon Nine Spins, he was still very confident. Wu Guangyu was no idiot, so this meant that he was indeed very powerful.


    From the Divine n¡¯s side, Xiang offered a reminder. ¡°Big Brother, although the technique he¡¯ll use is not from the Azure Lotus Manual, it still is from an intermediate Emperor-tier manual, called the Nine States Sword Manual. Be careful ¡­¡±


    Although Xiang was very worried, he only offered a short reminder as he was afraid of affecting Long Chen¡¯s state of mind. If Long Chen really could not withstand Wu Guangyu¡¯s attack, he would use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire to save him.


    After the conversation, the true start of the duel arrived.


    Long Chen now understood that Wu Guangyu was being all nonchnt because he had a powerful backing. Long Chen sensed immense pressure from the Azure Lotus Sword in Wu Guangyu¡¯s hand. He had a faint feeling that there were countless connections between the sword and Wu Guangyu¡¯s palm. It was like the weapon was a live soul, and it served and relied on Wu Guangyu like a child. Tame and loyal.The rtionship between Long Chen and the Three Thousand Star Clusters was far from this level.


    However, this was not enough to scare Long Chen.


    <em>So what if you have so many things? Can you still defeat me? All of you need to reach the fourth stage of Sword Path Comprehension only to achieve ten times your current power. I was already able to boost my strength by ten times when I achieved the Dragon Realm! Why would I be afraid of you?</em>


    The ten-time boost naturally came from Long Chen¡¯s Dragon Soul Transformation!


    Wu Guangyu was already making his way towards Long Chen, preparing to attack. Long Chen was covered in red dragon scales, and his essence had turned blood-red and surging through his body. His essence was ten times stronger than normal, providing him with ten times the strength!


    Although Wu Guangyu had not reached the Heavenly Martial Realm or condensed his Sword Root, he had alreadyprehended the first stage of the Sword Path, which was Heart Comprehension. Therefore, he was able to boost his power by three times.


    This was simr to the effect of the Golden Emperor Battle Armor.


    However, the Golden Emperor Battle Armor was a rare treasure. As a cultivator¡¯s cultivation level increased, it was uncertain if it would still be useful in the future. However, the boost to a Sword Warrior¡¯s strength would be avable for the cultivator¡¯s whole life!


    It was no wonder Wu Guangyu was so confident.


    He probably never saw Jin Ling as a serious opponent either.


    To other people, the Three Thousand Star Clusters was Long Chen¡¯s greatest win condition. However, to Wu Guangyu, who had the Azure Lotus Sword, this advantage ceased to exist.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s expression was calm. Long Chen¡¯s essence boost was within his expectations. His Beast Soul Transformation was indeed strange, but to Wu Guangyu, it was iparable to his Heart Comprehension.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    When the Azure Lotus Sword moved, several Sword Flowers appeared, which were azure lotuses. Although they were small, they contained huge amounts of energy.


    Although Wu Guangyu was a male, when he waved the azure divine sword, it was a beautiful and elegant movement. The afterimages of the azure lotuses gathered around him, making him look like he was immersed in a sea of lotuses.


    Wu Guangyu closed his eyes, as if he had entered a state of sleepwalking.


    Then his eyes suddenly sprang open. Two azure rays of light shot out at Long Chen!


    He was like a sleeping lotus, but when his eyes opened, he seemed to transform into the emperor of massacre with countless warriors standing behind him. Under his lead, tens of thousands of soldiers and horses charged at Long Chen, and Long Chen felt his whole world tremble!


    Is that the Nine States Sword Manual? Xiang had said that it was an intermediate Emperor-tierbat technique. Although there could be arge gap betweenbat techniques of the same tier, the Nine States Sword Manual seemed to be as strong as the Divine Demon Nine Spins.


    <em>Is he going all-out right from the beginning? </em>Long Chen¡¯s gaze turned cold. He could indeed sense that as an Armament Warrior, Wu Guangyu was more familiar with the Azure Lotus Sword than Long Chen was with the Three Thousand Star Clusters. As if it was very easy to master.


    Everyone watched with great anticipation as two rays of azure light shot out from Wu Guangyu¡¯s eyes. The immense aura of a king rushed towards Long Chen!


    He swept the Azure Lotus Sword sideways, and a bright sword light shot out of the de!


    ¡°Nine States Sword Manual, Far-Reaching Sword Qi!¡±


    If Long Chen had not blocked the sword Qi, it could have spread very far. It was only a sh, but the violent sword Qi was already right in front of him. Even the crowd¡¯s hearts skipped a beat.


    Heart Comprehension boosted Wu Guangyu¡¯s attacks by three times. Just a simple Far-Reaching Sword Qi would¡¯ve been enough to defeat Jin Ling. Jin Ling was also here today, and after seeing Wu Guangyu¡¯s attack, he feltpletely defeated. Wu Guangyu had unleashed this attack using the advanced Emperor-tier Azure Lotus Sword after all!


    How was Long Chen going to deal with it?


    While his opponent used the Azure Lotus Sword, he used the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Although Long Chen was not a Sword Warrior, he had an advantage in physical strength. He had the intermediate Emperor-tier Seven Star Body, making him much tougher than Wu Guangyu. While Wu Guangyu also had body tempering techniques, they were nothingpared to Long Chen¡¯s.


    He held hands together and gathered immense power in his palms. His red scales were pulled taught, and blood-red dragon images even appeared on his scales, as if countless dragons were roaring on his body!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    Long Chen let out a low roar that resembled that of a dragon. Under his control, the Dragon Soul Essence from his nine meridians waspletely injected into the Three Thousand Star Clusters, aggregating into a blood-red dragon on the spear. Purple celestial Qi also appeared and formed a purple dragon. Both dragons spiraled around the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    The Far-Reaching Sword Qi arrived in front of Long Chen now!


    Everyone was on the edge of their metaphorical seats!


    ¡°Haargh!¡±


    In contrast to Wu Guangyu¡¯s sophisticated elegance, Long Chen was more like a wild beast that had been slumbering for many years. With a loud roar, it was born again. The shining Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear was activated, and when he waved it, it turned into a terrifying blue light that collided with the Sword Qi!¡±


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a loud explosion. The Far-Reaching Sword Qi was shattered into pieces after Long Chen hit it with his Three Thousand Star Clusters, boosted by his Seven Star Body and Dragon Soul Essence. However, the force that came with the Far-Reaching Sword Qi mmed into Long Chen¡¯s arm!


    ¡°Ugh!¡±


    Long Chen cried out in pain and immediately stumbled backwards. The Three Thousand Star Clusters almost flew out of his hand. Both of Long Chen¡¯s arms went numb and there were already many cuts on his arms, some even bleeding slightly.


    Long Chen stabilized himself with great difficulty.


    The Azure Lotus Sword, a threefold strength boost offered by the first stage of the Sword Path Comprehension, and an elementary Emperor-tierbat technique. Even a normal Heavenly Martial Realm expert would not dare face thisbination directly.


    Everyone had only heard about how strong Wu Guangyu was, but after witnessing this attack, they knew that he was indeed extraordinary. No one below the Heavenly Martial Realm was a match for him.


    The Demon n was a bit worried for Long Chen. Although Long Chen¡¯s previous performance was beyond their expectations, it seemed he was far weaker than Wu Guangyu. Wu Guangyu was not someone he could beat.


    ¡°Father, what now?¡± Suxue asked anxiously after she saw Long Chen get pushed back by Wu Guangyu¡¯s first attack. Previously, she had only attacked Long Chen over a misunderstanding. No one present was more concerned about him.


    Other than Xiang, of course.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Long Chen was able to neutralize the attack even without using anybat techniques. That¡¯s very difficult to do,¡± Bai Lan said.


    Although that was what he said, he was not actually confident either.


    Many people on the Divine n¡¯s side were already smiling. They had been sweating anxiously just now, but after the exchange, they saw that Long Chen was nothing special.


    <em>The Nine States Sword Manual is the technique of kings. The next move will surely take Long Chen¡¯s life. Even the Long-Bearded Guest would not be able to stop it</em>, thought Feng Zhilin, nodding.


    Looking at Wu Guangyu, who was like a hero in his prime, Feng Zhilin¡¯s heart slowly melted. <em>Wu Guangyu has already reached this level in strength ¡­ A man like that ¡­ After the matters in the Ancient Graveyard are over, I¡¯ll marry him. I must not hesitate any longer. And I¡¯ll need to treat him better in the future. </em>


    Long Chen had a rough understanding of what everyone was thinking.


    <em>This brat really is quite strong. Looks like I need to go all-out, </em>he<em></em>thought while squinting at Wu Guangyu, who was alreadyunching his next attack.

 Chapter 828: Nineteen States of Sword Light

    Long Chen had neutralized the Far-Reaching Sword Light. Wu Guangyu¡¯s next sword technique was surely going to be stronger.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The air exploded, and Wu Guangyu shot at Long Chen!


    ¡°Careful!¡± reminded the Demon n.


    Long Chen did not let his guard down. Wu Guangyu seemed to have taken the offensive position in this battle, but that did not mean that Long Chen would lose. That was the opposite. Taking an offensive position gave one a high possibility of giving away their true capabilities. Long Chen did not have many attacks that could hurt Wu Guangyu, so he could only wait until a w appeared in thetter¡¯s movement and then use his opponent¡¯s oversight to win.


    That was why he had to be the calmest person present!


    Wu Guangyu may have looked calm and arrogant, and he had taken the lead at the very beginning. However, he was not as calm as everyone else. His emotions were surging, just like the power in his body!


    <em>Based on myprehension of the Sword Pathbined with the Azure Lotus Sword, I should have been able to finish Long Chen using the first move of the Nine States Sword Manual. Yet he blocked it. I need to kill him with the next move. This brat was able to catch up to me in just four months; he must not be left alive!</em>


    Wu Guangyu was slightly more anxious than Long Chen in his heart.Under his control, sword Qi surged!


    Sword Qi shone brightly and surged up towards the sky!


    Wu Guangyu charged ahead at top speed, gathering strength for an even stronger attack. He moved so fast that he was like the shadow of a sword. There was a long <em>whoosh</em> as the Azure Lotus Sword moved, turning into multiple illusions of the sword. In the end, power exploded from them!


    A clear voice echoed in the air!


    ¡°Nine States Sword Manual¡ªFar-Reaching Sword Qi, Neen States of Sword Light!¡±


    A ray of sword light brighter than before erupted from the sword!


    Far-Reaching Sword Qi, Neen States of Sword Light!


    It was cool! It was magnificent! It was grand!


    The previous move was called Far-Reaching Sword Qi, and this one was called Neen States of Sword Light!


    Long Chen only saw a sh, and the shining sword light was already in front of his eyes. Unlike the previous move, the sword Qi was extremely bright. It brought with it an even more terrifying destructive force!


    Long Chen was very calm.


    <em>Wu Guangyu only recently obtained the Azure Lotus Sword. As for me, I have not even discovered thebat techniques hidden in the Three Thousand Star Clusters yet. Even if he has discovered the techniques in his sword, it¡¯s impossible for him to have mastered them already ¡­</em>


    After that thought, Long Chen made his decision on how to face Wu Guangyu¡¯s Neen States of Sword Light. Everyone was anxious and thought he would yield, so they were surprised when Long Chen reached out with his palm!


    ¡°Is he going to use that seal attack? The one with double seals?¡±


    Many people had seen him use two Emperor Seals at once in an attack. Although that was impressive, it was not enough when Wu Guangyu had three times his original power, the Azure Lotus Sword, and the Neen States of Sword Light!


    ¡°Long Chen will die today ¡­¡± remarked the people from the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance.


    Long Chen had not admitted defeat yet, and Wu Guangyu had already finishedunching the Neen States of Sword Light attack. If Long Chen yielded now, it would be difficult for the Long-Bearded Guest to save him without paying a price for it.


    ¡°The young man of the Divine n is very strong now. If he reaches the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, he will rule over the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory and be the strongest among the billions of humans. Not only is Wu Lian powerful herself, the son she taught is also extraordinary ¡­¡±


    Although the Five Elements Alliance wasn¡¯t happy to see this, they had no choice but to admit that Wu Guangyu was strong. If Wu Guangyu one day reached the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, he could even unite the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    It was a great achievement at such a young age. More importantly, he had alsoprehended the Sword Path and received the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. Wu Guangyu was clearly going to be a legendary figure. A prodigy like that was hard toe by!


    Neen States of Sword Light!


    The bright, shining light made everyone feel dizzy!


    But Long Chen remained calm. Although the sword light was already shining on his face, his expression did not change!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    On his right palm, one by one, the Emperor Seals lit up. It started from the Golden Emperor Seal, then the Azure Emperor Seal, and finally the Red Emperor Seal. When all three Emperor Seals lit up, the three seal attacks¡ªone golden, one azure, and one redpeted to outshine the others as they gathered on his arm.


    The golden glint of metal, the life force of trees, and the fiery ze of a me appeared on his palm. The three-sealbination was many times stronger than the two-sealbination!


    This was the first time Long Chen had used the triple-sealbination after cultivating the Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal.


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Red Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡±


    Facing Wu Guangyu¡¯s Neen States of Sword Light, the three Emperor Seals exploded when Long Chen pushed his palm forward. The three gigantic seals spun and shot out of his palm. Very quickly, they collided with the shining sword light!


    A look of despair arose in Feng Zhilin¡¯s face.


    She remembered how her Thousand Seals were defeated by Long Chen¡¯s double Emperor Sealbination in the Seven Star Tomb. At the time, she had not expected such a simple attack to defeat her technique. The same thing was happening to Wu Guangyu. No one thought that the triple Emperor Seal could defeat his Neen States of Sword Light, but she had a bad feeling!


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s attack shot forward at full power. It was not something that three consecutive elementary Emperor-tier attacks could stop. However, they did not know that Long Chen was not releasing three identical attacks consecutively, butbining three different Emperor Seals!


    When faced with the destructive force of the Neen States of Sword Light, the Emperor Seals suddenly exploded like a bomb. For a brief moment, the energy from the explosion swallowed the shining sword Qi and turned into streaks of energy currents that flew at Wu Guangyu!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The sword Qi trembled but did not disperse. However, the three Emperor Seals¡¯ explosion had spread far and wide, causing the surrounding space to tremble. The crowd was startled by this. He was only at the Earthly Martial Realm, yet his attack was this powerful. Both of them were extraordinary!


    The powerful sword Qi then shattered in the face of Long Chen¡¯s attack, and the crowd¡¯s expressions turned into shock. Wu Guangyu¡¯s expression changed too. He initially thought that it was enough to kill Long Chen. Who could have guessed that Long Chen would turn the tables and disy this much power?


    ¡°Nine States Sword Manual, Far-Reaching Sword Qi!¡±


    Wu Guangyu was starting to panic now. When his second attack shattered, he swung the Azure Lotus Sword once more. Another de of sword Qi flew out and mmed into Long Chen¡¯s three Emperor Seals. In such a critical moment, Wu Guangyu had to protect himself!


    The three Emperor Seals broke Wu Guangyu¡¯s sword Qi once again, but most of their momentum had been dispersed. Therefore, only a small portion of its force hit Wu Guangyu, throwing him back into the air. Blood sprayed from his mouth. The sophisticated gentleman¡¯s clothing was now tattered, and he was covered in small wounds, his hair was messy, and his internal organs were even injured!


    The crowd erupted when they saw Wu Guangyu struggle to his feet. The Five Elements Alliance was absolutely stunned. They all thought Long Chen would lose, but he had managed to turn the tides and hurt his opponent instead. Wu Guangyu¡¯s injury was much more severe than Long Chen¡¯s injury.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± The Divine and Wind ns had icy expressions. When they saw Wu Guangyu injured, they wanted to rush forward to help him, but Wu Lian stopped them. She huffed coldly and said, ¡°Why are you all panicking? It¡¯s only a small injury. It¡¯s not fatal, and he has not failed. Yet you all want to go intervene. Do you want to embarrass the Divine n?¡±


    She was right. Wu Guangyu had not lost yet.


    He stood up. Although he was looking disheveled, there was blood flowing from the corner of his mouth, and he was even swaying a little, the Azure Lotus Sword was still in his grip.


    It was well-known that Wu Lian loved her son very much. Her son was basically her life. Yet she had stopped them from helping Wu Guangyu and she herself did not help him at all. Although she looked calm, there was thick killing intent in her eyes.


    Long Chen sensed a re that resembled a venomous snake.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t lost yet?¡± Long Chen had to admit that Wu Guangyu was indeed a difficult opponent. He had already used his strongest move, but it hadn¡¯t dealt enough damage. Thebination of three Emperor Seals was supposed to kill Wu Guangyu, but he had underestimated his enemy.


    Xiang noticed the problem too, so he asked hurriedly when he saw that Wu Guangyu had not been defeated yet, ¡°Big Brother, do you want me to help?¡±


    ¡°No. Stay there for now. I¡¯ll need to evaluate the situation before taking you away.¡± Long Chen was not willing to start conflict with the Divine n at a moment like this. He had heard Bai Lan talk about how strong Wu Lian was, so he knew that he could not kill Wu Guangyu in broad daylight. He had to kill Wu Guangyu without anyone seeing him. That was how he would take his revenge.


    ¡°I must admit that you have shocked me ¡­¡± Wu Guangyu quickly stood on his feet again. Although he was covered in blood, his expression had not changed. He moved his arms, and after he could move normally again, he stared at Long Chen and said arrogantly, ¡°You, Long Chen, are the first person to force me to do this ¡­¡±

 Chapter 829: Azure Lotus Sword Manual

    Long Chen initially thought that Wu Guangyu was a weak, spoiled brat who had only gotten to where he was because of his family¡¯s protection and resources. However, to his surprise, this teenager wasn''t a mere puppet, and he knew how to hide his true strength. In short, he was quite frightening too.


    Long Chen only got to see how powerful Wu Guangyu truly was in a real duel. Usually, he was like an obedient child who did not have a temper when dealing with his own people. This showed that he was very good at acting.


    Long Chen squinted. He had lost an opportunity, because he had notunched another attack while his opponent was still down. But even if he had taken advantage of the situation, he did not know what would happen. However, based on the current situation, it looked like Wu Guangyu had another trick up his sleeve.


    The triple Emperor Sealbination could not kill him, so Long Chen was no longer confident.


    ¡°Could it be ¡­¡± Long Chen had a thought. If that really came true, then he would only have one choice¡ªto use Blood Sacrifice.


    Blood Sacrifice was a divine technique, but it may as well be a demonic one too.


    Long Chen could be strong enough to defeat his opponent using Blood Sacrifice, but at the same time, his cultivation level would regress. It would injure his Martial Soul, and the Martial Soul was the root of cultivation. Although it would heal, his cultivation journey would be dyed if it was hurt too many times. Unless there was no other choice, he would not use it.


    The crowd felt suffocated looking at these two youths, who were in a standoff again.


    Then Wu Guangyu startedughing all of a sudden. Heughed loudly with his chin up, then red at Long Chen with his blood-red eyes and said, ¡°It looks like you worked very hard just to beat me. You¡¯re the only opponent that has ever made me feel uncertain after all these years. But unfortunately, you¡¯re just too unlucky ¡­¡±¡°Unlucky?¡± Long Chen understood exactly what Wu Guangyu meant.


    <em>What a difficult bastard. </em>Long Chen smiled and epted it.


    There was nothing Long Chen could not conquer in this world. He had more determination in his heart than anyone else. It did not matter what Wu Guangyu would do next¡ªhe would ept and resolve it!


    ¡°You¡¯re brave!¡± praised Wu Guangyu. He was covered in blood but did not care. Some of the blood was on the Azure Lotus Sword too.


    <em>Whoosh.</em>


    Wu Guangyu charged at Long Chen with the Azure Lotus Sword. Long Chen¡¯s vision suddenly dimmed, and he had a feeling that the azure shadow was the only thing left in the world. All he could see was the Azure Lotus Swording closer!


    <em>What a powerful sword technique! </em>thought Long Chen.


    A voice, which sounded like it came from a dream-like trance, rang in everyone¡¯s ears.


    ¡°The Azure Lotus Sword Manual is an advanced Emperor-tier sword manual. The Azure Lotus Lord reached the peak of swordsmanship with it. You are very lucky to be killed by this technique ¡­ Of course,it would be a different conversation if you could use thebat technique in the Three Thousand Star Clusters ¡­¡±


    But Long Chen had not figured the Three Thousand Star Clusters out yet.


    His whole world was ck, and the only thing he could see was an azure lotus that was flying at his neck. He did not know the name of this technique, but it was ten times scarier than the Neen States of Sword Light from before!


    ¡°Azure Lotus Sword Manual, Living Beings Arise ¡­¡±


    There was a <em>whoosh,</em> and the Azure Lotus Sword was already right before Long Chen¡¯s eyes.


    Long Chen did not hesitate to hold up the Three Thousand Star Clusters, and he swung it as hard as he could. The tip of the spear mmed into the Azure Lotus Sword. His swing was likely strong enough to block the previous Far-Reaching Sword Qi attack!


    However, although the lotus looked gentle, it was an unstoppable force and was strangely fixed to one path. Long Chen¡¯s mad swing only managed to move it by a tiny sliver.


    ¡°Long Chen, yield!¡±


    Long Chen heard Bai Lan¡¯s anxious shout at the final moment.


    When the crowd saw that Wu Guangyu had used the Azure Lotus Sword Manual, they lost hope in Long Chen. They only hoped that Long Chen could survive, and the only way to do that was to yield.


    ¡°Yield?¡± This word did not exist in Long Chen¡¯s vocabry.


    The lotus easily pushed away Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters, despite him using all his strength. Long Chen could not defend himself at all when it flew at his neck. This brat¡¯s attack was indeed terrifying!


    At that moment, Long Chen sensed that he was in mortal danger, and a chill ran down his spine. He was at the edge of death, and although he had experienced this many times, this time was much more intense. It was impossible to dodge the azure light!


    Even Long Chen felt like he could not defend himself at all in front of the Azure Lotus Sword Manual, let alone other people.


    This was the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s truebat technique from years ago.


    Wu Guangyu was only at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, but he was already able to use the technique. This proved that he was extraordinarily talented too. However, Long Chen guessed that Wu Guangyu would reach his limit after using this technique. Considering Wu Guangyu¡¯s essence reserves, he could only use this technique once at most.


    In fact, he would probably be injured after using it.


    However, Wu Guangyu thought that it was worth it if he could kill Long Chen.


    The final moment was upon them. Long Chen could not defend himself¡ªhis Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear had been pushed away easily, while the Azure Lotus Sword¡¯s path had only deviated slightly.


    Long Chen heard many voices. There was mocking, there was a sharp cry, but he could not see anything. There was only azure light in his world.


    In a very, very short time, the azure light reached his throat.


    ¡°Die ¡­¡± A voice that seemed toe from another world traveled into Long Chen¡¯s ear. Long Chen knew that the faraway voice belonged to Wu Guangyu. It was ice-cold.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Long Chen was still calm. He grinned. How exhrating it was to make a gamble like that¡­


    Long Chen was grinning at the face of death. This puzzled Wu Guangyu.


    ¡°No matter what, I will kill you.¡±


    The azure light shed across Long Chen¡¯s throat. When Wu Guangyu felt Long Chen¡¯s throat with his sword, he finally sighed in relief.


    <em>He was only bluffing before he died. I thought he had some other trick ¡­ </em>The azure light shed across Long Chen¡¯s throat, then it appeared over ten meters behind Long Chen along with Wu Guangyu.


    Fresh blood dripped from the sword.


    Everyone knew that it was Long Chen¡¯s blood. The Azure Lotus Sword had shed across his neck, and with Wu Guangyu¡¯s strength, there was no chance Long Chen could''ve survived even with the Seven Star Body.


    After using the Azure Lotus Manual, Wu Guangyu¡¯s previous injuries worsened greatly. He had to squeeze himself dry in order to execute the attack, so he waspletely spent. In fact, he was at his limit, as he was piling injuries on his previous injuries. Wu Guangyu could not stand steadily, and after the attack, he copsed. Thankfully, he had the sword, so he supported himself on it and half-knelt on the ground.


    More blood flowed from his body than from Long Chen.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s face was pale. This was the most injured he had ever been, which showed how brutal the duel was. He had even used his final move, which he had not been willing to use before. He would''ve ended up injured from using this move even in his peak state, let alone now.


    Thankfully, Wu Guangyu confirmed that Long Chen was dead.


    He lifted himself up with great difficulty and turned around. All he saw was Long Chen''s back, unmoving. Wu Guangyu knew that he would copse very quickly.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    A chilling scream came from in front of Wu Guangyu. He looked up and saw the Demon n¡¯s princess, Suxue. She had fallen to her knees, her face pale and covered in tears. Her shoulders trembled as she cried. She was having an emotional breakdown.


    Behind her, every person from the Demon and Thunder ns had a terrible expression, especially Bai Lan, whose eyes had turned a little red. He had known Long Chen for four months and considered him a talented youth who was one of their own. He never would have thought that this extraordinary young man would die because of him ¡­


    For a moment, everything was silent.


    As for the Divine Wind Faction, they looked at Wu Guangyu with pride and admiration.


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s gaze had softenedpletely. His power had conquered her heart. Without witnessing his battle, she would not have known that he was this strong.


    Long Chen, the person she hated more than anything, was likely dead by now because his throat was shed.


    ¡°Wu Guangyu is the strongest prodigy of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. From today onwards, no one will be able to challenge his position. Not even Jin Ling ¡­¡± said the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s Ancestor Jin solemnly with a grimace.


    After his remark, the Five Elements Alliance had no choice but to ept it.


    Sword Warriors were just too powerful.


    He had achieved the first stage of Sword Path Comprehension,bined with the Azure Lotus Lord¡¯s inheritance. After some time, he would be like Wu Lian of the Divine n.


    Azure Lotus Lord, White Lotus Fairy. These two great inheritances would allow the Divine n to be the number one n of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory!


    After today, the power structure of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory would change ¡­


    The Long-Bearded Guest was also staring at both of them in shock. Long Chen had not admitted defeat, so he had not been able to save him. He also felt defeated because he was not able to help Long Chen.


    ¡°Alright ¡­ Long Chen has died due to his oversight. The champion of this year¡¯s Nine ns Martial Youth Competition is Wu Guangyu of the Divine n!¡±

 Chapter 830: Revival From Death

    When the Long-Bearded Guest announced the result, everyone knew that it was official. It had been an exciting duel. In the beginning, Wu Guangyu had an advantage over Long Chen, but then Long Chen used his triple Emperor Sealbination to retaliate, and when everyone thought he would turn the tides, Wu Guangyu used the advanced Emperor-tier Azure Lotus Manual to kill Long Chen instantly!


    Wu Guangyu was still the strongest.


    He had not reached the Heavenly Martial Realm yet, but had alreadyprehended the first stage of the Sword Path and could use an advanced Emperor-tier technique. No one else wasparable in terms of talent. Even many prodigies from the Royal Territories could notpare.


    He had cemented himself as the number one prodigy of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    ¡°Xue¡¯er ¡­¡± Bai Lan felt like something was stuck in his throat, and he could not say a word. He could only silently help his daughter up.


    ¡°Is Long Chen dead?¡± Suxue suddenly felt like her world had crumbled. The healthy and energetic young man had turned into an ice-cold corpse.


    It felt worse than Long Chen leaving her side ¡­


    ¡°Father ¡­¡± When she looked at her father¡¯s moistened eyes, she could not hold back her tears. It was at this moment that she finally realized how much she cared about the young man. Unfortunately, it was toote. He was gone.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± The champion had been decided. The Divine n would receive the Yellow Emperor Key. Although the Five Elements Alliance hadn''t gained anything, they had not lost as badly as the Demon n. Indeed, the tides could turn at any time. They were just admiring how the Demon n had two people in the top four.The Divine Wind Faction were basicallyughing out loud now. Wu Guangyu was still severely injured and had to hold himself upright with great difficulty. Wu Lian did not give any instructions, but people were already preparing to go help him up. The battle was over, and it was time to treat his injuries. Although Long Chen was dead, it was an extraordinary feat to injure Wu Guangyu to this extent.


    The Divine n would forever remember this person.


    This included Feng Zhilin, who was staring woodenly at Long Chen¡¯s corpse. She suddenly thought there was something wrong ¡­


    <em>He¡¯s dead, so his body should be on the ground. But he¡¯s been standing there for a long time ¡­</em>


    Then they heard loudughter, causing everyone to get goosebumps. Everyone looked up in shock in Long Chen¡¯s direction. They sensed that theughter hade from him, and it was indeed Long Chen¡¯s voice.


    Suxue, Bai Lan, and the others were stunned too, and they stared at Long Chen¡¯s standing body. Everyone saw the dead Long Chen suddenly move a little bit, then he turned aroundpletely to face the crowd. Long Chen grinned mischievously and said, ¡°Has everyone gone blind? I¡¯m standing right here! How could you say that I¡¯m dead?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s face had color, and he did not look injured at all. He looked a hundred times better than Wu Guangyu in his pathetic state, as if he had not started the duel yet. He should''ve been dead. Everyone had watched the Azure Lotus Sword sh his throat¡ªit had cut right through. How had Long Chen survived that?


    Everyone had very colorful expressions.


    The members of the Thunder and Demon ns felt like they were reborn. Suxue and the others felt like they were in a dream and stuttered when they tried to speak. They could not believe it at all. They looked at each other, and from the other person¡¯s eyes, they saw that this was not a dream. Long Chen was not dead.


    ¡°How Is that possible? I clearly saw Wu Guangyu¡¯s sword cut his throat. How could his neck not be injured at all?¡± Feng Zhilin was greatly shaken and fell two steps back with shock in her eyes. The other people in the Divine Wind Faction shouted too. Even the terrifying and calm Wu Lian¡¯s eyes were filled with shock and confusion.


    The one who was filled with the most shock was naturally Wu Guangyu.


    He was the one who had attacked Long Chen, and his Azure Lotus Sword had definitely cut Long Chen¡¯s throat. He had killed many people before, and he knew the feeling of a sword shing through flesh. Long Chen had the Seven Star Body, so he had to use a lot of strength to cut his skin.


    He was standing while using the sword as support, so he turned around with great difficulty, only to see Long Chen¡¯s chilling smile.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t died yet, so whatever the Long-Bearded Guest announced just now was nonsense. Therefore ¡­¡± Long Chen turned into a gust of wind and charged at Wu Guangyu!


    This was the perfect chance to go for the kill!


    The reason why Long Chen was alive was simple. He had used the Primordial Dragon Talisman¡¯s Rewind technique. Rewind was the most shocking divine technique he possessed; it could reverse his body¡¯s condition. Within less than a breath after Wu Guangyu¡¯s sword slit his throat, Long Chen returned his body to its condition from ten breaths ago.


    After returning his body to ten breaths ago, he was unscathed. On the other hand, Wu Guangyu had copsed and could barely stand.


    He had used up all his essence and even risked getting injured tounch a fatal strike. But Long Chen had used his only Rewind for the day to deal with his attack. ?


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s pupils dted when Long Chen started charging!


    He had dealt a killing blow to Long Chen, so now, Long Chen dared to do the same. There was nothing else he could say. Plus, they had all agreed that killing was permissible in the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition. Since Wu Guangyu was so vicious a moment ago, Long Chen was equally vicious now!


    Yield?


    To Wu Guangyu, this word was foreign. That was why he did not choose to admit defeat now, but rather, he used all his strength to stumble backwards, with the Azure Lotus Sword still in hand!


    ¡°Yield.¡± At that moment, Wu Lian¡¯s voice rang in Wu Guangyu¡¯s ears. He heard the determination in her tone.


    No matter how humiliating it was, Wu Guangyu had no choice but to yield, now that she had instructed him to.


    Long Chen arrived right before his eyes instantly.


    ¡°I yield!¡± Wu Guangyu stumbled backwards, tripping over himself as he bled. This was a humiliating moment for him. Although he had yielded, he red at Long Chen with seething hatred!


    Long Chen was merely five meters away from him at this point.


    ¡°That¡¯s too bad ¡­¡± Long Chen knew this would happen. Even though Wu Guangyu was stubborn and did not want to yield, the Divine Wind Faction would make him do it. Long Chen probably could have killed him instantly, but Wu Guangyu had yielded before the final blownded!


    The time to kill Wu Guangyu had not arrived yet.


    But he could take Xiang back now. Under such circumstances, it was logical for Long Chen to take Xiang back to his side. Although they also saw Xiang as their pet beast, ording to the rules of society, Long Chen was now stronger than Wu Guangyu, so he naturally could take back what belonged to him.


    ¡°Stop!¡± At that moment, the Long-Bearded Guest finally was able to do his job and appeared between Long Chen and Wu Guangyu to separate them. His main task was to protect Wu Guangyu and prevent Long Chen from taking advantage of the chaos to kill Wu Guangyu. He fully expected Long Chen to do this.


    However, to his surprise, Long Chen did not attack. The moment Wu Guangyu said he yielded, Long Chen stopped moving.


    If Wu Guangyu had not yielded, then it was within the rules for him to kill Wu Guangyu. If he still pressed on after Wu Guangyu yielded, then it was a deration of war against the Divine Wind Faction!


    He was no idiot. His opponent had been defeated, so he was not in a hurry to kill him now. Looking at Wu Guangyu¡¯s current condition, with his internal organs injured from the impact, he probably needed some time to heal.


    <em>If the ck Emperor Key appears soon ¡­ </em>Another n formed in Long Chen¡¯s heart.


    ¡°Big Brother, what now?¡± Previously, everyone thought that Long Chen was dead, but Xiang was the only one who knew about the insane divine technique called Rewind. That was why he did not panic.


    When he saw that Long Chen had won, he quickly spoke to him using thenguage of beasts.


    ¡°I have a n. Let Wu Guangyu live a few more days. Stay with him for now. I¡¯ll let you knowter,¡± said Long Chen.


    ¡°Alright.¡± After Xiang replied, he did not say anything else.


    He had asked Long Chen several times when he could leave, which showed that he did not want to stay with Wu Guangyu any longer. Xiang was furious at how Wu Guangyu had forcefully taken him away.


    Long Chen was also furious about that.


    ¡°What, why aren¡¯t you announcing the result? The remaining slot for the Yellow Emperor Key belongs to the Demon n,¡± said Long Chen mildly after a nce at the Long-Bearded Guest.


    The Long-Bearded Guest studied the shocking teenager for a while, then his gaze swept across the crowd. He said, ¡°Everyone has seen the final result. Wu Guangyu has admitted defeat, so the champion of the Nine ns Martial Youth Competition is not Wu Guangyu of the Divine n, but Long Chen of the Demon n. I was mistaken; apologies, everyone!¡±


    Even the Long-Bearded Guest was serious at a moment like this.


    Everyone was just too shocked by the ending.


    The Martial Youth Competition hade to an end.


    Everyone felt like they were in a dream.


    ¡°Long Chen,e here ¡­¡± Bai Lan had already rubbed the tears away from his eyes, and he waved at Long Chen. Next to him, Suxue, who had been fully crying, was also trying her best to rub her tears away.


    Long Chen walked up to them. The Thunder and Demon nsmen looked at Long Chen¡¯s neck for a long time as they made surprised noises. This was just too strange.

 Chapter 831: Black Emperor Key

    ¡°What just happened ¡­ Didn¡¯t you die ¡­¡± asked Suxue, wiping away her tears.


    ¡°That¡¯s a secret. But why are you crying? You couldn¡¯t bear to see me die? But yesterday you were trying to kill me!¡± Long Chen teased gently.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk to you anymore!¡± Suxue bit her lip and red at him, but her mood was much better after he cracked a joke.


    ¡°Since we¡¯ve won, this trip hase to an end. Let¡¯s return to Heavenly Wood City, then,¡± said Bai Lan. When he saw that they were bickering, he chuckled too.


    There was nothing to say between the three factions. The winner had been determined, and it was a solid fact that the Yellow Emperor Key¡¯s slot would belong to the Demon n. Of course, the Yellow Emperor Key could not be handed over to the Demon n right now.


    ¡°Wait, wait. You can¡¯t leave yet. There will be news arriving very soon ¡­¡± Long Chen said cryptically when everyone was preparing to leave.


    ¡°What? What are you talking about?¡± asked Bai Lan and Lei Ji, who looked at each other with confusion.


    They were just five hundred meters away, so they would arrive very soon. Long Chen could see people quickly approaching the Eternal Battlefield when he used the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    A few days ago, Little Cat had heard the people from the Demon race talking about giving away the ck Emperor Key at the Water District¡¯s Tianyi Water City.He guessed that the news would arrive soon, seeing as they had a fastmunication method that was much faster than traveling on foot.


    Long Chen acted very mysteriously and did not reply to them, so they were all left confused. Then one of the approaching men ran over. Bai Lan and the others looked over and saw that it was a Demon nsman. This person was at the Seventh Earthly Martial Stage and was in charge of intel.


    He rushed over very quickly, but seeing as there were many people present, he quickly whispered something in Bai Lan¡¯s ear. Long Chen faintly heard the words ¡°ck Emperor Key¡± and ¡°Tianyi Water City.¡± It was just as he had guessed.


    After Bai Lan heard him, his face changed. Lei Ji, who was next to him, heard it too.


    Once the Demon n¡¯s messenger arrived, the Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s messengers also arrived. All three factions learned at the same time that the final key, the ck Emperor Key, had appeared in Tianyi Water City.


    ¡°All five Emperor Keys have appeared. Will the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure be unlocked during this trip to the Ancient Graveyard?¡± Bai Lan and the others looked excited.


    The fact that the other factions had received the same news meant that Bai Lan would have to make a decision very quickly.


    The ck Emperor Key¡¯s location had been revealed. Bai Lan quickly gathered all his people and said, ¡°The ck Emperor Key is a crucial item, and it has appeared in Tianyi Water City, in Tianyi Lake. It¡¯s in the whirlpool part of Tianyi Lake, so themon person can¡¯t enter. Only Brother Lei and I are capable of going in there to fight for the key. In order to avoid unnecessary deaths, everyone other than Brother Lei shall return to guard Heavenly Wood City. Go wait for news from us!¡±


    ¡°Brother Bai is right. The people of the Thunder n shall go back too. Instruct our n to return to Heavenly Wood City. Although we havee to the Ancient Graveyard, we must not have too many casualties,¡± Lei Ji instructed decisively.


    The Ninth Earthly Martial Stage experts of the Thunder Demon Faction did not object. Suxue did not object either. Long Chen did not want to return to Heavenly Wood City and initially wanted to voice his thoughts. However, he had an idea and decided not to speak, which made it seem like he was going to follow Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s instructions.


    After giving their orders, Bai Lan looked at Long Chen and said, ¡°While we¡¯re gone, you will be the strongest person on the Thunder and Demon ns¡¯ side. Always think of the overall situation before acting.¡±


    Long Chen felt like Bai Lan had figured out his n, but some things simply had to be done. Therefore, Long Chen said hurriedly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Everything will be fine.¡±


    It was an urgent matter, so Bai Lan and Lei Ji departed immediately. When they were gone, the Divine Wind Faction¡¯s Wu Lian and Feng Qing, as well as the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s Ancestor Jin and the five patriarchs, left their groups at the same time. Without saying a word, all of them traveled in the direction of Tianyi City. ?


    Tianyi City was in the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s territory!


    The Long-Bearded Guest did not know what was going on, but when he saw them move, he knew that all he needed to do was follow them.


    Suddenly, all the Heavenly Martial Realm masters were gone.


    ¡°Princess, Prince Consort. Don¡¯t cause conflict with other people. We should go back now,¡± one of the Sect Elders of the Demon n said hurriedly.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes met Feng Zhilin¡¯s. Looking at the crestfallen young girl, the corner of his lips curled up into a cold smirk.


    The heavily injured Wu Guangyu was lying in her arms.


    ¡°Long Chen, what are you looking at?¡± Suxue asked suspiciously. She felt like there was something between him and Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°Nothing, let¡¯s go.¡± Long Chen smiled.


    ¡°Xiang, just wait. I¡¯ll be back very soon ¡­¡± This was what Long Chen said to Xiang just as he was leaving.


    The members of all three factions returned to their bases. Under Wu Lian¡¯s instructions, the Divine Wind Faction went back to Giant Metal City in the Metal District.


    That ce was closer to Tianyi Water City anyway.


    The Eternal Battlefield suddenly became empty.


    Long Chen followed the Demon n¡¯s party for a short while, then he said suddenly, ¡°Everyone, after some thought, I would like to go to Tianyi Water City. You all may return to Heavenly Wood City.¡±


    Everyone was puzzled by Long Chen¡¯s sudden decision. Of course, he was currently ranked very high in the Thunder and Demon ns, so they would listen to his decision.


    ¡°My father and Uncle Lei will be there. Why are you still going?¡± asked Suxue.


    ¡°The ck Emperor Key is in Tianyi Water City¡¯s whirlpool, and I¡¯m strong enough to enter. The search for the ck Emperor Key will require luck more than anything, and when I go there, I can help out too. Plus, thebat technique I am cultivating requires a treasure of the water element. That is why I would like to search for one at Tianyi Water City. Heavenly Wood City won¡¯t be in any trouble; you all may return.¡±


    ¡°No way, I¡¯m going with you,¡± Suxue said hurriedly, worried about him.


    ¡°Go back.¡± Long Chen red at her, then he bade everyone farewell.


    ¡°Alright ¡­ You didn¡¯t have to be so fierce ¡­¡± The elegant and sophisticated Princess Suxue suddenly became a wronged little girl next to Long Chen, acting almost like Princess Suyan. Everyone was very surprised.


    ¡°Be very careful,¡± she said worriedly when he departed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be fine. Everyone, be careful too.¡± Long Chen walked away, waved, then quickly disappeared into the Wood District¡¯s thick forest.


    ¡°What a strange guy. Even now, I still don¡¯t understand ¡­ How did he survive Wu Guangyu¡¯s attack?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Long Chen has always been a strange one. It¡¯s as if there is nothing he can¡¯t do. There might be a possibility that he¡¯ll actually get the ck Emperor Key too.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± Suxue said proudly.


    ¡°Princess Suxue, you are lucky to have such a good husband. You guys will have a grand wedding when we return to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The billions of citizens across the Ten Thousand Nations Territory wille to know that the Princess¡¯ husband is more talented than the Princess, and more powerful ¡­¡±


    Everyone chipped in with agreement.


    The two brothers, Lei Wen and Lei Wu, also followed suit.


    <em>If only it was as good as what you all say. But that brat¡¯s heart is not with me. Yan¡¯er sticks to him so much too, so it will never be my turn ¡­ </em>Although Suxue looked a bit shy, there was endless bitterness in her heart.


    Amidstughter, they all traveled back to Heavenly Wood City. They did not know that a storm was brewing behind them, and the source of the storm was Long Chen.


    ***


    The Thunder and Demon ns¡¯ party wasn¡¯t far from the Eternal Battlefield when Long Chen turned around, so he easily spotted the Divine Wind Faction¡¯s party with the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He was looking at Feng Zhilin, Wu Guangyu, and Xiang, as well as the other elders of the ns.


    All of them were at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    None of them were weaklings. If he wanted to kill them all at once, he would need to pay a price. And if one of them escaped to inform Wu Lian that Long Chen had attacked them, it was possible that not even Bai Lan would be able to protect him.


    <em>Wu Guangyu is currently under their protection. I can¡¯t go kill him now. Looks like I need to wait for Wu Guangyu¡¯s wounds to heal a little. Then I¡¯ll get Xiang to lure him out.</em>


    Long Chen wanted to get Xiang back, and the other objective was to kill Wu Guangyu.


    Long Chen was not a merciful person. Wu Guangyu had attempted to kill him, and he had almost seeded thanks to the Azure Lotus Manual. There was no way Long Chen was going to let him live after that.


    Wu Guangyu was currently injured, so he wouldn¡¯t go anywhere alone right now. If Long Chen wanted to kill him without anyone knowing, he would have to lure him to a deserted area.


    <em>ording to Bai Lan, that woman Wu Lian is even stronger than he is. I need to be careful about offending her, so I need to act conservatively.</em>


    Long Chen formed a n.


    He had not been able to kill Wu Guangyu in the finals, so at the time, he had thought of using the ck Emperor Key. But since Wu Guangyu was heavily injured, he couldn¡¯t go to Tianyi Water City with Wu Lian.

 Chapter 832: Tailing the Divine Wind Faction

    Long Chen guessed that the other party would take Wu Guangyu to either the Divine or Wind n¡¯s base to treat his injuries. Therefore, he decided to follow Wu Guangyu.


    Out of the five main cities of the five districts, Giant Metal City was the closest to the Eternal Battlefield.


    Long Chen followed their group, maintaining a connection with Xiang. This was how Xiang learned of Long Chen¡¯s n.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Big Brother. When the timees, the bastard will die, and we won¡¯t leave a single trace of him behind.¡± Although Xiang seemed like a peaceful person, he had a wolf-like quality in his heart, especially after he turned into the Sun Devouring Wolf. Wu Guangyu had made them suffer through many hardships, so Xiang would never forgive him for this.


    With Xiang¡¯s affirmation, Long Chen could rest easy.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s condition gradually improved after the nourishment of many spiritual herbs. After a few days, he was mostly healed and hisbat abilities were back to normal.


    Despite that, Long Chen couldn¡¯t find an opening to lure him out. The Divine and Wind ns were constantly traveling day and night. If Wu Guangyu suddenly disappeared, the others would surely be suspicious.


    <em>Looks like I¡¯ve got to wait until they arrive in Giant Metal City. </em>Long Chen was not in a hurry.


    He was like a fierce tiger waiting for his prey to wander into his trap. He could not be impatient during this process, as impatience would only make him lose his chance to kill his prey.Therefore, he continued to follow the party towards Giant Metal City.


    Wu Guangyu had always thought of himself as the number one cultivator beneath the heavens, yet he had lost to Long Chen. Despite having recovered from his injuries, he still looked very depressed. Along the journey, he did not even utter a single sentence and his expression was terrifyingly solemn. Wu Guangyu was stronger than the elders themselves, so those experts did not dare talk to him. They could only hope that Feng Zhilin would make him open up.


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s words would surely be effective since she was his fiancee.


    Under the elders¡¯ persuasion, Feng Zhilin had no other choice. Admittedly, she was starting to fall for the young man, ever since he used the Azure Lotus Manual during the duel. The results did not matter, because in her eyes, he was already an extraordinary master.


    She approached Wu Guangyu, bit her lip gently, and said in a tone filled with heartache, ¡°I don¡¯t know what Long Chen pulled in the end. I can¡¯t believe he wasn¡¯t hurt at all. I clearly saw your sword sh through his neck ¡­¡±


    The young man whose eyes had always been filled with confidence looked beyond gloomy right now, like he had endured a huge blow.


    ¡°Is he ¡­ an undying monster ¡­¡± Wu Guangyu finally said, but his expression was unnatural. It contained some pain, some disbelief, strong unwillingness, and fury.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think he can use techniques like that often. If he really is a monster that cannot die, wouldn¡¯t he be peerless? And if that were the case, you wouldn¡¯t have been able to take away his pet beast,¡± Feng Zhilin said after thinking about their information on Long Chen.


    ¡°Sun Devouring Wolf ¡­¡± When Wu Guangyu heard the words ¡°pet beast,¡± he nced at Xiang behind him. His eyes suddenly lit up and he said fiercely in a low voice, ¡°No way! I cannot admit defeat like that! I am still the number one prodigy of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory! How could I lose to a nameless character?! The Sun Devouring Wolf! This beast used to be his. Today, I will make his own pet kill him!¡±


    He was ready to leave immediately. With a look of insanity on his face, he started to head in the direction of the Wood District while controlling Xiang using a secret technique.


    ¡°No!¡±


    Feng Zhilin and even the elders stood in front of Wu Guangyu, blocking his way.


    A higher-ranked elder said, ¡°Young Master, the Matriarch and the other experts are currently fighting for the ck Emperor Key. This is a major matter rted to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure. It is not the time to cause more problems. Plus, your injuries aren¡¯tpletely healed yet, and Long Chen has many strange tricks. If you attack him, you may fall into his trap! It¡¯s not wise, not wise!¡±


    ¡°Old man, are you saying that I am no match for Long Chen?¡± Wu Guangyu red at the elder viciously.


    Feng Zhilin said hurriedly, ¡°Why are you acting like this? When did you be so impulsive? Everyone experiences failure in life! If you go kill him now, you¡¯ll only be causing more trouble for the Divine and Wind ns. You¡¯re the young master of the Divine n; can a person in your position afford to be rash? Calm down and focus on healing. Once you arepletely healed, you cane up with a way to kill Long Chen. He snatched the Martial God Tombstone and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance from me! My desire to kill him is stronger than yours!¡±


    After hearing what Feng Zhilin said, Wu Guangyu finally calmed down. Impulsiveness was the devil. This was something Wu Lian had told him many times before. He knew that he was being rash. His injuries had notpletely healed yet, and it was indeed not the right time to face Long Chen. Plus, as long as they were still in the Ancient Graveyard or even in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, he would have countless chances to kill Long Chen. He did not need to do it now.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go back to Giant Metal City and wait for news of the ck Emperor Key. After that, we will discuss this again,¡± Wu Guangyu said after he calmed down, looking a little dejected.


    ¡°That¡¯s my husband.¡± Feng Zhilin, who usually had an ice-cold expression, suddenly said something sweet. She smiled and looked as beautiful as a flower.


    Wu Guangyu had always been an arrogant person. Although Feng Zhilin respected his strength, she did not have much feelings for him, seeing as she was also an arrogant person. However, seeing the sorrow and rashness he had disyed after his loss made Feng Zhilin feel like he was a real man.


    Her maternal instincts had been triggered, and she almost wanted to pull him into her arms. Both of them had long been betrothed to each other, but with so many people present, they were too shy to do anything.


    ¡°Sister Zhilin ¡­¡± After Wu Guangyu heard her words, a glow returned to his gloomy face. He stared at the shy Feng Zhilin, then asked in a daze, ¡°I ¡­ I lost to Long Chen ¡­ Don¡¯t you feel like I¡¯m useless?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re able to use the Azure Lotus Manual and you evenprehended the first stage of the Sword Path, Heart Comprehension. That is proof of your strength. Losing to Long Chen is not a problem of your strength. I was much stronger than him before, yet I still lost to him. You just focus on resting. When you return stronger, you may even be stronger than him,¡± Feng Zhilin said with a gentle chuckle, looking at the man whom fate had assigned to her.


    She did not know why she was suddenly feeling like this. However, she quickly figured it out. Her fate had been tied with this man ever since she was young. She wasn¡¯t satisfied with this arrangement before, but now, after a deeper level ofmunication with him, there was indeed no one more suitable for her.


    The other people were happy to see the young couple interacting so harmoniously.


    With the nourishment of a woman¡¯s love, color returned to Wu Guangyu¡¯s face. The previous gloom disappeared and everyone felt a boost of positivity, as if they were the victors. They then resumed their journey to Giant Metal City.


    Mo Xiang nced behind him in a specific direction, then his lips suddenly curled into a cold smirk.


    <em>When we reach Giant Metal City, it will be time. Big Brother, do it quickly. I can¡¯t wait ¡­ </em>


    <em>***</em>


    After hurrying along for a few days, the Divine Wind Faction finally arrived in Giant Metal City. This was the Wind n¡¯s base.


    The results of the Martial Youth Competition had spread across the whole Ancient Graveyard. Everyone now knew about Long Chen¡¯s quick rise to power and how he had turned the tables to kill Wu Guangyu. The people of Giant Metal City naturally received news of this too.


    It was difficult for everyone to ept this.


    It was just way out of their expectations.


    Before Wu Guangyu and the others returned, people had already been discussing the topic for a long time. Worried that it would hurt Wu Guangyu¡¯s feelings, the high-ranked elders had briefed the n that they were forbidden from mentioning the Martial Youth Competition.


    As a result, when Wu Guangyu and the others returned, they were greeted with bright smiles. When Wu Guangyu saw that these people were not in intense discussions about his failure, and that they did not fault him for it, his tight nerves rxed. He suddenly felt like that failure was not so serious after all.


    <em>Next time we meet, it will be the day I take your life ¡­ </em>Amidst the crowd¡¯s cheers, Wu Guangyu clenched his fists slowly. If he could meet Long Chen alone, he would also bring Xiang.


    <em>I will defeat you with your former pet beast by my side. I will show you what it feels like to be killed by something you were once the closest to. </em>


    While he thought about this, Wu Guangyu did not know that Xiang was actually thinking about a method to lure him out.


    Xiang knew that Long Chen was currently outside Giant Metal City, waiting for his chance.


    Wu Guangyu and the others had arrived in the evening. Since Wu Guangyu was severely injured and needed to focus on recovering his essence, he had been left alone. He did not like to be disturbed anyway.


    Night soon arrived.


    Wu Guangyu was cultivating in his quarters, recovering his lost essence. He had replenished most of it during the past few days, but due to the previous failure, he was traumatized and would only be assured once he recovered to his peak state.


    The essence of a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator surged to its peak in his body.


    An azure lotus levitated in the air right before his eyes. It was the advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon, the Azure Lotus Sword!


    Xiang was standing guard outside his quarters.


    ¡°It¡¯s time to lure him out ¡­¡± Having received instructions from Long Chen, Xiang was prepared.


    When Xiang was prepared to act, Feng Zhilin arrived. It had been days since she was able to take a bath, so she had cleaned herself thoroughly as soon as she arrived. She was wearing a long, snow-white dress with a hairpin in her hair, making her look beautiful. A fragrance wafted off her, making her seem like a goddess.


    Since Feng Zhilin was here, Xiang was no longer in a hurry to act.

 Chapter 833: Iron Forest

    Before Feng Zhilin entered Wu Guangyu¡¯s quarters, she nced at Xiang.


    Xiang kept his eyes zed over, as if he was under a spell.


    <em>Was I mistaken? Why did I sense a thick killing intent from this beast just now? </em>Feng Zhilin shook her head and looked at Xiang for a while. After confirming that she was mistaken, she entered.


    She was only willing to disturb Wu Guangyu while he was cultivating because she was not assured about him. If Wu Guangyu could not let go of his obsession and decided to look for Long Chen now, they would have a huge problem.


    To her, Wu Guangyu was a powerful cultivator, but Long Chen was a mysterious nightmare.


    Giant Metal City was basically an iron forest, so it was not as aesthetically pleasing as Heavenly Wood City. However, after the Wind nsmen fixed the ce up, the buildings almost looked like normal houses, equipping them with all the necessities.


    Feng Zhilin heard her when she arrived outside his door, and he smiled warmly and stood up. He could already smell her fragrance.


    <em>I can¡¯t believe Sister Zhilinpletely fell for me after that loss. Should I be thanking Long Chen at this point?</em>


    Wu Guangyu naturally noticed the change in Feng Zhilin.They had been betrothed since they were young, and now they were much older and had reached ages suitable for marriage. The Wind n had followed the Divine n around for many years and had always been somewhat like their servants. The members of the Divine n looked down on the Wind nsmen even more than the Demon n had done with the Thunder n.


    If Feng Zhilin married Wu Guangyu, the situation could change.


    Both of them held special positions in their respective n. Wu Guangyu was also the heir to the Divine n and was an extraordinary prodigy.


    ¡°Sister Zhilin, you¡¯re so pretty ¡­¡± After Feng Zhilin walked in, Wu Guangyu suddenly felt like his world had lit up. Feng Zhilin¡¯s heart fluttered¡ªa rare urrence¡ªwhen she was suddenlyplimented by the tall man, who was looking at her with zing eyes.


    <em>The man before me is my future husband ¡­ </em>she reminded herself. This suddenly felt very normal.


    She then thought about how Wu Guangyu held a high position and was very powerful, yet he always amodated her. This meant that he truly liked her. However, she had always been rude to him, and she was embarrassed when she thought about it. She hung her head and said, ¡°Guangyu ¡­ I ¡­¡±


    ¡°You should call me ¡®Brother Yu,¡¯¡± Wu Guangyu said hurriedly.


    ¡°Brother Yu, I ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin paused, then she looked up and said boldly, ¡°I have been childish and a little rude to you, yet you tolerated me. I came here today to apologize. I¡¯ve thought it through. You¡¯re a talented expert, and you¡¯re so good to me ¡­¡±


    What was she doing?


    This arrogant woman was finally humbling herself in front of him today. Wu Guangyu was very excited, but he knew that he could not overdo it, so he said, ¡°I don¡¯t me you at all. As long as you¡¯re happy, you can treat me however you want. I¡¯m your future husband, and I like you too, so I¡¯m always going to treat you well. It¡¯s rare for us to be on such good terms; why don¡¯t we sit down and have a chat?¡±


    Women loved sweet words, and could even be hypnotized by sweet talk, forgetting themselves. Feng Zhilin was no exception. If anyone else had spoken to her like this, she would have pped them across the face. However, this was the great young master of the Divine n, and he was being so gentle to her. She sank deeper into the feeling of love. When he gazed at her with burning eyes, her heartbeat quickened.


    A few days ago, when she saw her imagined enemy, Suxue, interacting with Long Chen, then saw how Suxue cried so hard over Long Chen¡¯s death, she felt extremely jealous. Now she suddenly realized that she also had an excellent man. And he had not lost to Long Chen¡ªWu Guangyu had only lost because Long Chen had pulled some strange trick in the end!


    Wu Guangyu had evenprehended the first stage of the Sword Path, so his strength would rise quickly. After he reached the Heavenly Martial Realm, he would be peerless among the First Heavenly Stage cultivators and would be one of the masters of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. If Feng Zhilin could tie down a great cultivator like him and make him fall deeply in love with her, then she would surely benefit from it.


    This was what Feng Qing had told her countless times.


    She had ignored him until now, but today, she finally sensed the danger.


    That was why she had put much thought into her looks today.


    The two started to chat, with both parties looking to benefit from it. Feng Zhilin kept giggling.


    ¡°Sister Zhilin, let¡¯s get married when we get out of the Ancient Graveyard. When that happens, I want the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory to know that you are my bride! I will hold the grandest wedding across the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory. You will marry into the Divine n and be my woman!¡± said Wu Guangyu with a burning gaze.


    His burning gaze and heavy breathing made her feel like she was falling.


    <em>Since he really loves me, everything will be fine. I need to marry someone anyway. He has endless potential and will be the strongest person in the territory sooner orter. It¡¯s not a bad thing at all to have a husband like that.</em>


    In reality, there was no love between these two. One side wanted to get his hands on the other as soon as possible, while the other was eyeing his strength and rank.


    They chatted until midnight. Wu Guangyu did not seem to intend on letting Feng Zhilin leave.


    ¡°Who really waits until marriage these days? We¡¯re only going to leave the Ancient Graveyard in half a year. Feng Zhilin, I really like you and I am willing to give up everything for you. Please believe me, will you?¡± Wu Guangyu begged.


    Wu Guangyu was not going to give up easily. Feng Zhilin had not rejected him decisively; she had merely pped him in the face, which proved that he had a huge chance. Therefore, he came up with endless sweet words and made countless promises to her.


    ¡°In the future, I will give you anything and everything you want. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s the Azure Lotus Sword or the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance. I will snatch it for you. Today, I risked my life to kill Long Chen to avenge you. Sister Zhilin, can¡¯t you feel that my heart is true?¡±


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s final words finally moved Feng Zhilin.


    They already were betrothed anyway. Feng Zhilin¡¯s marriage to Wu Guangyu was bing increasingly likely to happen.

 Chapter 834: Bad News

    Wu Guangyu¡¯s eyes seemed aze as he stared at the beautiful body before him. His own body heated up as well, and he could not help but remove his clothes.


    ¡°Brother Yu ¡­ I ¡­¡± Feng Zhilin moaned seductively, her snow-white figure gently moving in bed. The flesh on her buttocks rippled, and she looked beautiful.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Wu Guangyu, amidst tearing off his clothes, suddenly spotted a faint scar on her fair and perfect buttocks.


    ¡°Sister Zhilin, have you been injured here before?¡± Wu Guangyu asked instinctively. He peered at it closer. The faint scar looked like Chinese characters. Feng Zhilin had not told him about the bizarre incident yet.


    ¡°Um ¡­ Brother Yu ¡­ What are you talking about ¡­ ¡± Feng Zhilin closed her eyes, not daring to look at him despite knowing exactly what he was talking about.


    Wu Guangyu grew more curious, and his lust diminished significantly. He gently re-positioned Feng Zhilin to look at the scar. Suddenly, it was as if lightning had struck him.


    The scar was made up of two characters.


    Long Chen.


    <em>Long Chen. </em>Looking at the two words, essence surged through Wu Guangyu¡¯s body and his breathing becamebored. Unable to control the surge of his essence, he injured his internal organs, causing blood to spray out of his mouth and onto Feng Zhilin¡¯s fair body.


    Those two words had struck him like lightning.


    This was Feng Zhilin¡¯s most intimate body part, but Long Chen¡¯s name was carved on it. There was no need to exin; Wu Guangyu knew what it meant. When Feng Zhilin first escaped the Star Tomb, her clothes had been disheveled and her face was red ¡­


    Feng Zhilin hated Long Chen so much ¡­


    Previously, he thought that Long Chen was not powerful enough to make Feng Zhilin submit to him, but after their battle, he had learned the hard way that Long Chen was a monster. If someone told him that Long Chen was already that strong when they left the Star Tomb, Wu Guangyu would believe them.


    Someone else had already taken his fiancee as theirs. And it was Long Chen.


    The sudden hit of reality was a huge blow to Wu Guangyu. This was arger blow than being defeated in the duel. Wu Guangyu¡¯s mind was nk. Rage and insanity flooded his mind, causing him to spiral into madness. His mind kept reying the scene of his woman moaning beneath his enemy¡¯s crotch.


    ¡°Long Chen. Feng Zhilin.¡±


    Wu Guangyu felt like even breathing was getting difficult, and his chest felt like it was about to explode. His essence surged chaotically and he could not control it at all. His uncontroble essence severely injured his recently healed organs once more.


    At this moment, he was on the brink of a mental breakdown. He had seen it clearly, so he did not think that it was a mistake. It was a faint scar and almost invisible, but how could he have made a mistake with his excellent vision?


    It was true. The two characters read ¡°Long Chen.¡±


    That was clearly a man¡¯s handwriting, and Long Chen had definitely carved it there. And when he carved it, Long Chen had done it with the intention to brag to Wu Guangyu.


    With that thought, Wu Guangyu felt the beast in his heart exploding in rage.


    When he coughed blood on her naked body, Feng Zhilin was initially unaware of what had happened. All she knew was that a sudden bout of killing intent and violence had erupted from him, and it snapped her out of the mood. She opened her eyes in shock and then saw Wu Guangyu ring at her like a fierce beast with blood on the corner of his mouth.


    <em>He was fine just now; why did he be like this?</em>


    Feng Zhilin did not know why.


    Feng Zhilin quickly stood up and asked in a low voice, ignoring the fact that she was naked, ¡°Wu Guangyu, what¡¯s the matter with you?¡±


    The Azure Lotus Sword appeared in his hand.


    ¡°Die, you bitch!¡± he roared, then he swung his sword. A ray of sword light shot at Feng Zhilin.


    ¡°Cough!¡±


    The sudden attack agitated his essence and he was injured once more, spitting out a mouthful of blood. But Feng Zhilin was in tip-top condition, so she dodged his attack. She quickly put on her clothes and asked in a panic, ¡°What happened to you?¡±


    ¡°Are you still pretending? Haha. Whatever. It looks like you and Long Chen have long been working together in secret. You want to betray the Wind and the Divine ns, and you want to destroy the Wind n. Is that it? Alright. I will not kill you for now. After I kill Long Chen, I will take his head back, then kill you.¡±


    Wu Guangyuughed coldly, radiating pure violence. Then he ran off like a gust of wind. Feng Zhilin was left behind in a daze, and her expression gradually darkened.


    ¡°What happened? What¡¯s the matter with him?¡± Feng Zhilin started to recall the details. Right at the end, Wu Guangyu had asked if she had been injured there before. Then she recalled that Long Chen had hurt her there previously ¡­


    Feng Zhilin¡¯s face fell.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>She took out a mirror from her Universe Pouch and finally discovered the two characters, ¡°Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen.¡± She finally understood everything.


    <em>That bastard. He carved his name there because he knew this day woulde. </em>Like Wu Guangyu, Feng Zhilin was enraged too. She finally understood why Long Chen had only pricked her bottom. She never bothered to look at it, as she never imagined that it would be something like this ¡­


    She forced herself to calm down.


    <em>If I were a man and saw this on my woman, I would lose my mind too. I can¡¯t me Brother Yu for this. However, he has surely gone off to search for Long Chen ¡­ </em>


    With that thought, Feng Zhilin quickly gave chase, but when she ran out, she realized that he had long disappeared into the night. He had even called the Sun Devouring Wolf to follow him.


    <em>He¡¯s surely heading towards Heavenly Wood City. He¡¯s stronger than Long Chen, plus he has that Category Nine King-tier Sun Devouring Wolf, so he should be able to kill him. But I should hurry over to see what happens.</em>


    With that thought, Feng Zhilin quickly hurried off in that direction.


    This was between the two of them, and it could not spread to other people. Feng Zhilin was in a hurry to exin everything to Wu Guangyu, so she did not tell other people either.


    It was just a misunderstanding, and it would be fine once she exined herself. She knew that she was still a virgin, and once Wu Guangyu verified it, he would know that she was not lying.


    Once he knew the truth, their rtionship could still be saved.


    But where was she going to find Long Chen in the dark of the night?


    ***


    The willow seed nted unintentionally long ago had finally turned into a tree.


    Long Chen and Xiang were just worrying about luring Wu Guangyu out, but suddenly, Wu Guangyu rushed out of Giant Metal City with disheveled clothes like a wild beast. This turn of events fit perfectly into Long Chen¡¯s n.


    If other people found out about this, they would surely stop Wu Guangyu, so he left very quietly. No one besides Feng Zhilin knew he had left Giant Metal City. Even if they did, they would not be able to catch up to him.


    ¡°The heavens are helping me. They want you dead.¡± When Long Chen saw Wu Guangyu charging through the night, Long Chen broke into a grin.


    He immediately gave chase. The moment they arrived in an area with absolutely no one nearby, he could show himself.


    The Ancient Graveyard was gigantic, and there were many areas without people.


    With the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could easily tail Wu Guangyu from five hundred meters away. He also maintained a connection with Xiang, so there was no way he would lose them. A forest in the dead of the night was the best time and ce to act.


    The Iron Forest pierced into the sky.


    Many people¡¯s field of vision was blocked by the Iron Forest.


    Long Chen did not know why Wu Guangyu was suddenly sprinting like a madman. If he knew that this was all because of the ¡°ugly thing¡± he had done in the Star Tomb, he would have copsed because his only intention was to casually punish that woman at the time.


    He had not expected it to be useful at a key moment like this.


    ¡°You¡¯ve made me suffer so much these past four months. Today is the day that I, Long Chen, will make you pay for it.¡±


    Long Chen soon found a location with absolutely no one around and elerated.


    The raging Wu Guangyu sensed the movement behind him.


    He slowed down, then turned around fiercely. The man he wanted to kill even in his dreams was standing twenty meters away!


    For a moment, he thought he was dreaming.


    He even rubbed his eyes, thinking he was mistaken. But after checking several times, he confirmed that the person standing in front of him was indeed Long Chen!


    ¡°Long Chen, why are you here?¡± Fire burned in his eyes, and Wu Guangyu felt like he was going to explode. Although he was suppressing his anger, when he recalled the image of Long Chen sullying Feng Zhilin and even leaving a mark on her bottom, he could not calm down at all.


    During the previous duel, he had thought that he would surely beat Long Chen. However, Long Chen¡¯s Rewind had scared him. He only dared search for Long Chen now because he had a trump card. That trump card was the Sun Devouring Wolf, who could use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    Looking at the raging Wu Guangyu, Long Chen chuckled softly and said, ¡°Why am I here? Simple. It¡¯s because I swore that I would kill you. I didn¡¯t get a chance during the Martial Competition, so I had to wait until today.¡±


    ¡°Hmm.¡± When faced with such bold behavior from Long Chen, Wu Guangyu could only conclude that the former waspletely unaware of Xiang¡¯s strength. Right now, Xiang was a Category Nine King-tier beast, and he was not far away from the Emperor tier.

 Chapter 835: Meeting Wu Guangyu Once Again

    In his rage, Wu Guangyu merely smirked coldly. There was nothing else to say. His objective today was to kill Long Chen, and now was the perfect moment. He waved, gesturing for Xiang to enter his original form!


    ¡°Your former pet beast now belongs to me. Your woman, Suxue, will also one day belong to me. As for you, rest in peace ¡­¡±


    Long Chen had yed with his woman; how would he rest easy without ying with Long Chen¡¯s woman too?


    He had already lost interest in Feng Zhilin.


    <em>This brat ran out in the middle of the night just to kill me. That re in his eyes ¡­ Why is he acting like I yed with his woman? </em>Long Chen thought to himself, puzzled. Then, when he recalled what he did to Feng Zhilin in the Star Tomb, he finally understood.


    That brat must have seen the scar on Feng Zhilin.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s face turned as purple as a pig¡¯s liver.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Wu Guangyu panted heavily.


    Behind him, Xiang gradually transformed from human to Sun Devouring Wolf. He was now a Category Nine King-tier Sun Devouring Wolf and was physically gigantic. However, Xiang stopped himself from growing when was only ten meters tall as that was the most suitable battle size for him.¡°The Category Nine King-tier Sun Devouring Wolf is beyond your imagination. Today, I will turn you into stone. I will take good care of everything you will leave behind. You took my things away, so today, I swear I will take everything back!¡±


    Wu Guangyu was almost shouting by the end.


    He was relying on the Sun Devouring Wolf for this to work.


    Long Chen¡¯s lips curled up ever so slightly.


    ¡°Big Brother, this is the perfect chance.¡± Xiang and Long Chen weremunicating through thenguage of beasts.


    ¡°Time is of the essence. Quickly, finish him off,¡± said Long Chen.


    Wu Guangyu could not wait to chop Long Chen up. He had already taken out his Azure Lotus Sword. He had only just recovered, so he did not dare use a technique above his current level. Thus, he would not dare use the Azure Lotus Manual, which he could not control. However, with the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s support, he was confident that he could kill Long Chen!


    ¡°ckie, let¡¯s work together!¡± Wu Guangyu told Xiang. When the Sun Devouring Wolf nodded, Wu Guangyu felt assured.


    ¡°The Beast Soul Transformation again? Beast Warriors are the lowest tier of cultivators. As a Sword Warrior, I¡¯m countless times stronger than you are. Today, I will show you how glorious it is toprehend the Sword Path!¡±


    Wu Guangyu roared, and his silhouette flickered. He turned into a ray of azure light as he charged at Long Chen. The Sun Devouring Wolf let out a chilling roar and charged at Long Chen with a <em>whoosh,</em> following Wu Guangyu!


    ¡°Nine States Sword Manual! Neen States of Sword Light!¡± Wu Guangyu used an intermediate Emperor-tierbat technique the moment he attacked. This also his strongest technique aside from the Azure Sword Manual. No youth in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory could block this attack!


    Long Chen was the first person to ever block this move using his triple Emperor Sealbination!


    ¡°When I used the Azure Lotus Sword, you were able toe back from the dead. But will you be able to do that again after the Sun Devouring Wolf turns your body into solid ice?¡± Wu Guangyu¡¯s objective was to defeat or at least upy Long Chen. As long as Long Chen was upied, the Sun Devouring Wolf could use its Nine Devils Ancestral Fire on him.


    He was using Long Chen¡¯s own pet beast to kill him. This eased Wu Guangyu¡¯s fury very much!


    He had never hated anyone this much in his life. What Long Chen had done to Feng Zhilin had brought him to the brink of madness!


    As he expected, he saw Long Chen use the triple Emperor Seal in response to the Neen States of Sword Light. This terrifying move had injured Wu Guangyu before. However, he was not here to fight Long Chen to the death today¡ªhe was only trying to upy him. Then the Sun Devouring Wolf couldunch the fatal strike! §²


    Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    A few days after thest duel, the triple Emperor Sealbination collided with the Neen States of Sword Light once more!


    The outlines of the azure, gold, and scarlet Emperor Seals appeared on Long Chen¡¯s blood-red, scaly palms. Then they erupted with power and shot forward!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!¡±


    The three seals merged quickly and collided with Wu Guangyu¡¯s attack! This was ying out exactly like before, and the three Emperor Seals emerged victorious once again. The bright sword light shone in the night sky, but it quickly shattered under Long Chen¡¯s attack!


    ¡°Haargh!¡± Wu Guangyu cried out as he injected more of his essence so that the Neen States of Sword Light could temporarily withstand Long Chen¡¯s attack. At thest moment, Wu Guangyu shouted, ¡°ckie!¡±


    That was what Wu Guangyu had named the Sun Devouring Wolf!


    This was the best time for Xiang to act. Wu Guangyu was filled with excitement; he was already picturing the scene of Long Chen being engulfed in the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    As expected, the Sun Devouring Wolf acted immediately. It opened its jaws and spat out fire. The surrounding temperature fell instantly, and ck mes appeared in the dark night.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    Wu Guangyu could feel the power of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. He knew that his loyal pet was behind him,unching a blow that would be fatal to his greatest enemy.


    Victory would be determined at this moment!


    From Long Chen¡¯s panicked look, Wu Guangyu could tell that the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was directed at him. In the next moment, Wu Guangyu would see Long Chen being turned into ck ice!


    Wu Guangyu never would have thought that Long Chen was only pretending to panic!


    Long Chen was actuallyughing inside. He could see that the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s attack was aimed at Wu Guangyu.


    Arge swath of Nine Devils Ancestral Fire immediatelynded on Wu Guangyu¡¯s back. Initially, Wu Guangyu had a feeling that the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire was going to hit him, but he thought that he was mistaken. Plus, it was very powerful, so it was logical that he would be affected since he was so close!


    Plus, the panic in Long Chen¡¯s eyes made him believe it.


    When he finally realized that the threat was heading toward himself, it was toote. The Sun Devouring Wolf was behind him, so how could he ever dodge it?


    Wu Guangyu waspletely stunned.


    ¡°No! Why?!¡± This emotional blow made him spit out a mouthful of blood, and his arms were no longer strong enough to support the Neen States of Sword Light. Due to the might of the triple sealbination, the Azure Lotus Sword flew high in the air. Then the three seals sted Wu Guangyu toward the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s eyes were filled with panic when he realized he was trapped between Long Chen¡¯s triple seal and Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire!


    Even if a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator were in this situation, they would surely die too!


    ¡°No!¡±


    The super-confident Wu Guangyu never would have thought that he would die here. His bloodshot eyes bulged!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    His disbelief did not help anything. Long Chen was still smiling, and he even strengthened his attack. Wu Guangyu was first turned into ice by Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, then, due to Long Chen¡¯s attack, all the hard ice turned into ck powder that blew away with the breeze!


    Wu Guangyu hadpletely disappeared from the world.


    Before he died, his mind had been filled with Long Chen¡¯s mocking smile.


    He finally understood that he had yed right into Long Chen¡¯s hands. He had never controlled the Sun Devouring Wolf¡ªit had always been under Long Chen¡¯s control.


    Wu Guangyu broke down when faced with reality.


    Long Chen was a nightmare.


    Unfortunately, he had no hopes of taking revenge again.


    The ck powder disappearedpletely. Under the triple seal¡¯s attack, nothing remained.


    Wu Guangyu was dead.


    After he died, Long Chen deactivated the Dragon Soul Transformation and Xiang returned to his human form. He held the Azure Lotus Sword in his hand, then tossed it to Long Chen.


    This was their war spoil, so Long Chen took it without hesitation. He stored it in the Universal Pouch, then embraced Xiang in a hug!


    ¡°Xiang!¡±


    ¡°Big Brother!¡±


    Both of them felt the other¡¯s powerful arms and then burst intoughter.


    ¡°Damn! We finally killed that bastard! Whoever touches my brother will inevitably end up like this!¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    He was very happy to finally fulfill his wish.


    ¡°Big Brother, let¡¯s quickly clean up the evidence here and leave. Feng Zhilin might catch up to us,¡± said Xiang.


    ¡°Her?¡±


    Long Chen smiled. The seed he had nted unintentionally had turned into a tree. His objective at the time was to merely dish out a bit of punishment to the woman; he had not expected it to benefit him today.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to clean up here. No trace of him remains. We should leave,¡± Long Chen said decisively. Then he left with Xiang.

 Chapter 836: Tianyi Water City

    Just like that, Wu Guangyu had been stealthily killed by Long Chen. He initially thought the Sun Devouring Wolf would kill Long Chen; he never would have imagined that it would kill him instead.


    The cycle of karma¡ªthis was a clear example of it.


    After Long Chen and Xiang confirmed that there were no traces of the incident, they left. About fifteen minutes after they were gone, Feng Zhilin, whose clothes were still disheveled, arrived at the same ce.


    ¡°The fighting sounds should havee from this direction. Why isn¡¯t he here?¡± Feng Zhilin looked around. She could only see the Iron Forest everywhere, but there was no trace of Wu Guangyu.


    ¡°Long Chen is a tricky maniptor. Although Wu Guangyu has the help of the Sun Devouring Wolf, it¡¯ll be problematic if he identally falls into Long Chen¡¯s trap ¡­¡±


    Feng Zhilin started to panic. She had a feeling that there was something wrong with this ce, but she could not put a finger on it.


    ¡°What is this?¡± She sensed a chilling from the ground. She bent down and took a look at some ck ice crumbs, but they were merely random chips. Although it was strange that ice would appear here, this was the Ancient Graveyard, and many strange things took ce in thisnd.


    ¡°No, I must quickly follow him!¡± The ice chips did not rouse her suspicion at all. She quickly stood up and traveled towards Heavenly Wood City. Meanwhile, Long Chen was rushing toward Tianyi Water City; therefore, the distance between them gradually increased.


    This resulted in Feng Zhilin beingpletely unable to find him.¡°What is this?¡± Suddenly, Feng Zhilin saw a ck vortex in front of her in the Iron Forest. The vortex was floating in the air, and it distorted both space and light. It emitted a strange light and emanated a cold, deste aura from within.


    Feng Zhilin slowly approached it, then halted ten meters away from the vortex, sensing that it was a terrifying thing. When she was about to leave, the ck vortex suddenly erupted with a sucking force. Feng Zhilin realized she could not resist it at all!


    ¡°Help!¡± Feng Zhilin¡¯s face paled. She never thought this would happen and was using all her strength to fight against the force. Yet, bit by bit, she was being sucked in. After being pulled ten meters closer, she was on the edge of the vortex.


    ¡°No!¡± Feng Zhilin panicked and screamed in agony, but it was useless. The ck vortex was like arge, gaping mouth that swallowed her whole.


    In the blink of an eye, Feng Zhilin disappeared from the Ancient Graveyard. No one knew where she had gone. Even Long Chen had no idea that this had happened to her.


    After the vortex swallowed Feng Zhilin, it quickly shrank until it disappeared. Then the space returned to its original state as if nothing had ever happened.


    ***


    ¡°Big Brother, what are we going to do at Tianyi Water City?¡± asked Xiang as they quickly traveled.


    Long Chen replied, ¡°I told Suxue and the others that I was heading to Tianyi Water City. If I return to Heavenly Wood City now, it will look suspicious. Now that Wu Guangyu is dead, we¡¯ll just pretend that he¡¯s missing. Killing Wu Guangyu dyed my journey significantly, so I must hurry to Tianyi Water City now. Plus, I am able to merge three of the Five Emperor Seals now. I only have the Yellow and ck Emperor Seals left. I think I should be able to find a water-type treasure there.¡±


    Xiang said, ¡°Very few people in the Ancient Graveyard are powerful enough to kill Wu Guangyu, and most of them have gone to Tianyi Water City. What if they deduce that it was you? Plus, I¡¯m with you too.¡±


    If other people saw Xiang with Long Chen, they would easily guess that Long Chen had killed Wu Guangyu.


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°Indeed, we need to be careful about that. Wu Lian is quite scary, and I am not a match for her yet. Therefore, if wee across anyone, I¡¯ll need to keep you in the Primordial Realm. As for the culprit, I think there are more suspects other than myself.¡±


    ¡°Other suspects?¡± Xiang asked curiously. As far as he was aware, the people who had gone to Tianyi Water City and Long Chen were the only ones who could kill Wu Guangyu.


    Long Chen told him about the six individuals from the demon race. Due to having spent some time away from Long Chen, he was not very familiar with the situation in the Royal Territories, so Long Chen told him about the organizations there.


    ¡°Such a group exists? It looks like we aren¡¯t in a very good situation. If those people are eyeing the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, with their strength, we will be defenseless. Big Brother, are you still going to fight for the treasure?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course! Not just that, I need to learn how to get to the Three Royal Territories from them. They came from the Three Royal Territories, so they surely know how to get there.¡±


    Xiang nodded. ¡°Then we must be very careful. Emperor-tier beasts are much stronger than the King-tier ones. Demonic beasts who have achieved that level surely hold high positions in the Deste Royal Territory too. I haven¡¯t reached the Emperor-tier, so I don¡¯t know exactly how strong they are.¡±


    The number of demonic beasts in Deste Royal Territory far surpassed Long Chen and Xiang¡¯s imagination. There were billions of groups there, and they were differentiated between weak and strong ns. The Deste Royal Territory did not only consist of King and Emperor-tier beasts who could take human form; Heaven, Earth, ck, and Yellow-tier beasts were there too. Usually, the generals of certain ns were Demon Kings, whereas Demon Emperors were qualified to be n leaders. There were so many individuals of the demon race that there were hundreds of millions of Demon Emperors alone.


    Demon Emperors were equivalent to Heavenly Martial Realm experts.


    Above the Demon Emperors were Demon Gods, which were equivalent to Divine Martial Realm experts.


    There were many Demon Gods in the Deste Royal Territory too, and they formed the core power of the territory.


    Worry shed in Long Chen¡¯s eyes. ¡°There are countless experts in the Royal Territory. The ones who are here to target the treasure left behind by the Five Emperors are likely not weak either. The fact that we are merely ying their game while they watch from the shadows means that they are at least stronger than the strongest person from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    The Three Royal Territories were vast and boundless; their scale was beyond anything Long Chen could imagine.


    After talking about this, both brothers looked worried, but Long Chen maintained his confidence.


    They continued heading towards Tianyi Water City at full speed. The sooner he arrived, the lower the chance of him being suspected as the killer. Furthermore, if no one saw Wu Guangyu¡¯s body, how could they know that he was dead?


    Little Cat emerged from the Primordial Realm, and Xiang was stunned by the fuzzy creature that appeared on Long Chen¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Uh, what is that?¡±


    ¡°You idiot! Don¡¯t you recognize your Master Cat? I know I look handsome, but can you not look at me like that? I have no interest in male animals!¡± Little Cat eyed him with contempt, then scratched an itch with a fuzzy w.


    ¡°That¡¯s Fat Cat? What¡¯s with that look?¡± Xiang was speechless.


    ¡°This is the body of the demonic beast called the Dream Demon. Little Cat has possessed its body, and as the Dream Demon grows, Little Cat¡¯s hallucinatory magic will strengthen too. It will be very helpful. Your Nine Devils Ancestral Fire may be a sure-kill technique, but it isn¡¯t easy to hit the enemy urately. If you and Little Cat work together in battle, it¡¯ll produce powerful results.¡±


    ¡°No way! I am Master Cat, and I answer only to the heavens! I am peerless! Yet you want me to work with a little ck dog? During ancient times, ten thousand Divine Martial Realm cultivators died with just one breath from me!¡± Little Cat said smugly.


    Long Chen and Xiang chose to ignore the little brat who loved to lie.


    ¡°Hey! Did you guys get scared when you heard about my mighty powers?¡± asked Little Cat haughtily.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    When Little Cat saw the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he trembled and hurriedly hid behind Long Chen¡¯s neck. Terrified, he cried, ¡°You smelly dog! What are you doing? Don¡¯t you daree here ¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t call me a little ck dog again! My soul is human! I am Mo Xiang!¡± said Xiang mildly, baring his teeth.


    ¡°But you¡¯ve be a wolf ¡­ Ah! Mercy! You¡¯re human! You¡¯re a whole human!¡±mented Little Cat when Xiang intimidated him again.


    Now that Xiang was back, Little Cat¡¯s good days hade to an end.


    Xiang was usually an agreeable character, but he loved teasing Little Cat. This was also a quirky part of his personality. He considered Little Cat a brother after spending such a long time together.


    Long Chen chuckled, grabbed Little Cat, and ced him in Xiang¡¯s arms. Then he led them towards the city at top speed. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go! Destination: Tianyi Water City!¡±


    The appearance of the ck Emperor Key had triggered amotionrger than the Martial Youth Competition. Outsiders were forbidden from getting close to thepetition¡¯s location anyway. After everyone heard about the key, they all swarmed toward Tianyi Water City. By the time Long Chen arrived, two-thirds of those still alive in the Ancient Graveyard had gathered.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ treasures were hugely tempting to everyone there. Someone spread the news that those who possessed the ck Emperor Key would receive two slots to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. The legend of the Five Emperors was the most impressive legend of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, so everyone was so tempted by it that they valued it over their own lives.


    Many people had already tossed the matter of their own mortality out of their minds aftering to the Ancient Graveyard. That was why dying was normal to them. They were here risking their lives after all. Getting the ck Emperor Key was the most worthwhile thing to risk their lives for, and no one was willing to give up on this opportunity.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 837: Whirlpool at the Bottom of the Lake

    The n leaders of the nine ns weren¡¯t the only cultivators present; there were many regr people around too.


    When the news of the ck Emperor Key spread, the fact that Long Chen had beaten Wu Guangyu to be the champion of the Martial Youth Competition was not shocking anymore. They were more concerned about the location of the ck Emperor Key.


    Theoretically, anyone could get the key. This was due to the situation at Tianyi Water City.


    Long Chen was currently standing next to Tianyi Lake.


    Tianyi Lake was at the center of the Water District. There was more water thannd in the Water District, as there werekes everywhere. Tianyi Lake was thergest of them. Long Chen could not even see the other side of theke when he stood on the edge, which showed just how gigantic it was.


    It was asrge as the gigantic tree beneath Heavenly Wood City.


    At the center of Tianyi Lake, there was a city built on top of the water. This was the legendary Tianyi Water City. From afar, it looked like a pure white fortress. The miraculousness of its architecture and its elegance put it on the same level as Heavenly Wood City.


    The water within a five-hundred-meter radius of the city was extremely calm. However, it waspletely different beyond that. The rest of theke spun quickly around the city, forming a gigantic whirlpool. While Long Chen stood on the edge of Tianyi Lake, water sshed out constantly, making it feel like it was raining.


    The copious amounts of spinning water resulted in a very strong current. Those who had not reached the Earthly Martial Realm could not even stand in theke; even Long Chen would likely be greatly affected by it. Long Chen knew that it was not going to be easy for Wu Lian and the others to find the ck Emperor Key within the whirlpool.No one knew where the information came from, but someone saw the ck Emperor Key fall from the sky with their own eyes, and it had fallen into the whirlpool. Currently, many cultivators were squeezed within theke in search of it. The nine n leaders actually arrived a littlete. However, most of the cultivators were searching blindly.


    Furthermore, the longer those people stayed in the water, the higher their chances of getting injured from the current, or even death.


    People were willing to die for riches. Although they saw other people dying, no one was discouraged.


    The ck Emperor Key was extremely important to the nine ns, especially the Five Elements Alliance, who only had two people entering the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm despite having so many Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators. They had mobilized everyone avable to search for the key.


    Tianyi Water City was the Water and Wood ns¡¯ base. Therefore, the moment the ck Emperor Key appeared, both ns entered theke. The people of the Five Elements Alliance were very aggressive and had long warned all the other cultivators not to enter. However, there were too many of them to manage, and since the experts of the n were away, they were unable to stop the outsiders.


    By the time the higher-ups returned, the ce had descended into chaos. However, there was still no news of the ck Emperor Key.


    The Five Elements Alliance was worried that outsiders would take away the ck Emperor Key, so they mobilized many experts to kill them or drive them away. This caused an evenrgermotion, and many people died in theke.


    Fights were taking ce on every corner of theke. Initially, the Five Elements Alliance wanted the Divine Wind and Thunder Demon factions to work together with them to drive the regr cultivators away, but Wu Lian and Bai Lan ignored them and went off to search for the ck Emperor Key on their own.


    The Five Elements Alliance was the most desperate for the key.


    Bai Lan and Wu Lian did not want to form major grudges with the regr cultivators, as they made up a majority of the poption in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    As a result, only the Five Elements Alliance dealt with those people. As the killing continued, the gigantic Tianyi Lake was starting to be red from the blood.


    Those cultivators could only leave the Ancient Graveyard once their Ancient Tokens turned golden. Therefore, killing was inevitable in this ce.


    One by one, people started to die.


    If they did not die now, there would be another round of killing in half a year, when the exit out of the Ancient Graveyard opened. There would be so much bloodshed that rivers of blood would form. The people who came to the Ancient Graveyard were ready to die.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyebrows were mildly furrowed as he watched.


    As the Five Elements Alliance continued their aggressive massacre, those who had failed to find the ck Emperor Key no longer dared to enter theke.


    It was not worth it to die without having found anything.


    The Five Elements Alliance took over the wholeke. Bai Lan and Lei Ji were probably in the water already.


    After Long Chen arrived, he put Xiang and Little Cat in the Primordial Realm. He kept a very low profile, and since not many people had met him before, no one recognized him. There were many cultivators like him in theke anyway.


    As he prepared to enter, he suddenly sensed Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s auras. Then both of them emerged from thekebed, and based on their expressions, they had not found the ck Emperor Key.


    Long Chen moved slightly, and they noticed him. When they recognized him, they were stunned for a moment, then approached immediately. Bai Lan asked, ¡°Why did youe? Weren¡¯t you returning to Heavenly Wood City?¡±


    Long Chen said, ¡°I came to help, and also to search for a water-type treasure in the Water District. Nothing much is going on in the Wood District, so after escorting them for a while, I came here. I¡¯ve been searching for two or three days, but I haven¡¯t found anything yet. What about you guys?¡±


    Long Chen had previously asked for a wood-type treasure from them before, so they believed him.


    He mentioned that he had been searching for two or three days so that other people would not suspect that Wu Guangyu¡¯s disappearance had anything to do with him. Long Chen still did not know that Feng Zhilin had also disappeared, nor that the Divine Wind Faction was currently searching for both of them.


    If Feng Zhilin had not gone missing as well, they would have guessed that Long Chen had killed Wu Guangyu.


    Therefore, this was a good thing for Long Chen.


    ¡°Since you¡¯re here already, let¡¯s search together. We will also keep an eye out for water-type treasures. The two of us were initially working separately. Do you want to join us, or ¡­?¡± asked Bai Lan.


    ¡°I¡¯ll work alone. Very few people here know me anyway,¡± said Long Chen with a grin.


    Indeed, most people from the Divine Wind Faction knew him, but they weren¡¯t here. Very few members of the Five Elements Alliance knew who he was, so they treated him as a regr cultivator.


    ¡°Alright. Be careful. If anything happens, just shout. We will hear you.¡± After that, Bai Lan left Long Chen on his own. Since the youth could defeat Wu Guangyu, he was assured enough to leave him on his own.


    After a short chat, Bai Lan and Lei Ji entered Tianyi Lake¡¯s whirlpool. Long Chen did the same.


    Long Chen finally felt its power when he was truly inside it. It was indeed terrifying, and with his current strength, he had to work hard to stabilize himself so he would not be flushed away.


    It was hard enough to stabilize himself, let alone search for something. The current was so swift that he could not see anything.


    Finding the ck Emperor Key would require a lot of luck.


    Maybe someone had already taken it.


    Long Chen¡¯s only advantage was the Five Emperor Seals. When Bai Lan previously took out his Emperor Key, they had a slight reaction, since both the seals and the keys came from the same source.


    Based on the same faint sensation, Long Chen had a feeling that the ck Emperor Key was indeed somewhere in theke. He had a high chance of finding the key; it was just a matter of time.


    <em>Thepetition for ess to the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm is very intense. I¡¯d rather the slots for the ck Emperor Key go to waste than let the Five Elements Alliance bring more people into the secret realm. Even Bai Lan is searching for the key. If I find it, I¡¯ll take it away ¡­</em>


    After forming his n, he started to move blindly within theke, trying to figure out the key¡¯s location through the sensation from the Five Emperor Seals in his hand. The stronger the feeling, the nearer he was to the ck Emperor Key.


    Along the way, he encountered a lot of fights, but he ignored them.


    After he wandered around theke for a long time, he finally felt the sensation growing stronger.


    ¡°This way ¡­¡± He could even roughly sense which direction it was in.


    It was beneath his feet.


    <em>I can¡¯t believe that these people have been searching for days, yet I found it first. Many people have passed by this spot, but they aren¡¯t searching carefully, so how could they ever hope to find it?</em>


    Long Chen continued to dive deeper. Theke was far deeper than he expected, and after descending a few hundred meters, he still did not see the bottom. However, the feeling in his hand was growing much stronger.


    <em>Is there someone down there? </em>After diving for a while, he suddenly noticed someone below. That person was not far away from the location of the ck Emperor Key.


    <em>What a coincidence! I have just arrived, but someone has already taken it away. </em>Long Chen felt disappointed. He had a feeling that this person was an expert.


    However, he could still feel the ck Emperor Key, so it had not been taken away yet.


    Heavenly Martial Realm masters were the only ones in the Ancient Graveyard who could scare Long Chen. There were quite a few of them in theke, and Long Chen was worried he woulde across one of them. That was why he was very careful. Still, he did not give up.

 Chapter 838: Golden-Eyed Water Beast

    With a divine technique like Blood Warp, even if he could not snatch the ck Emperor Key, running would be a simple feat. At this current level, no one in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory could catch up to him when he used Blood Warp.


    He hid his aura and slowed his movements, sneaking forward. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could easily locate the other person.


    This person was fifty meters below Long Chen and was still descending. Long Chen guessed that they were heading towards the ck Emperor Key.


    Looking at them with the Soul Swallowing Gaze, it was likely a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator, though he did not know who.


    But after proceeding for a while, Long Chen suddenly sensed something, and his eyes lit up.


    ¡°The ck Emperor Key is right there, and there seems to be something next to it ¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the aura of a demonic beast. A Category Nine King-tier beast,¡± said Xiang from within the Primordial Realm. Long Chen was not strong enough to face Wu Lian, so he could not let anyone see Xiang for the moment.


    ¡°Demonic beast?¡± Long Chen was a little puzzled. There were so many people in theke; why had it not reacted at all?


    ¡°This is a beast known as the Golden-Eyed Water Beast. It¡¯s a lion-type beast who is usually in a state of deep slumber. It looks like a stone lion and will only wake up when someone else disturbs it. Just like how a person reacts when their sleep is disturbed, the awakened Golden-Eyed Water Beast rages violently. However, its demonic core is valuable and could help youplete your cultivation of the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal!¡±¡°Really?¡± Long Chen thought for a moment and felt like he was actually very lucky. The Golden-Eyed Water Beast was actually much more useful to him than the ck Emperor Key.


    A Category Nine King-tier beast was not easy to defeat. He did not know why the ck Emperor Key would appear here with it, but Long Chen was not in a hurry. If the beast woke up, there was an expert to deal with it nearby. All he had to do was get the timing right.


    <em>Those six demons were the ones who released the ck Emperor Key. Based on their personalities, it¡¯s not surprising that they put the key next to the Golden-Eyed Water Beast once they learned of it.</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen grew more careful.


    Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he saw that the beast was in a deep slumber. Its soul was veryrge, but it was difficult to see through the Soul Swallowing Gaze. Perhaps its soul would appear clearer once it was awake.


    Suddenly, the expert below stopped. Despite being in a whirlpool, they were able to stop in a stable manner. This showed that they were at least stronger than Long Chen.


    Long Chen continued ahead and peered closely. Looking at the person¡¯s back, it was likely the patriarch of the Water n, which was part of the Five Elements Alliance. Long Chen did not know his name. The Water n¡¯s patriarch had been in Tianyi Water City for a long time, so he likely knew about the Golden-Eyed Water Beast. He must havee here to try his luck. Based on his reaction, he must have spotted the ck Emperor Key.


    Long Chen looked towards the depths and spotted a gigantic stone lion statue. It was more than a hundred meters tall and very life-like. It looked magnificent and regal, like a perfect art piece.


    Who would have guessed that it was a slumbering beast?


    The stone lion stood at the bottom of theke, looking upwards.


    Long Chen was shocked to see a blue, glowing key between its eyes. This key was almost identical to Bai Lan¡¯s key. It was the same size, and the only difference was its color.


    That was undeniably the ck Emperor Key.


    The ck Emperor Key was stabbed between its eyes, but this had not woken the lion.


    The Water n patriarch was focused on the beast, so he did not notice Long Chen, who was a hundred meters away.


    The patriarch muttered to himself, ¡°The ck Emperor Key is here. Why didn¡¯t I see it thest time I was here?¡±


    He was puzzled. After studying the beast for a while, he continued, ¡°Half of the key is embedded in the stone lion¡¯s head. If I pull it out, it will wake the lion up. Who did this?¡±


    The ck Emperor Key was the highest priority of the Five Elements Alliance. It was imperative that he retrieved it. The Golden-Eyed Water Beast was only a Category Nine King-tier beast and he was at the First Heavenly Martial Stage, so he was not worried at all.


    There was no time to call for help. What if someone else discovered it?


    With that thought, the patriarch made his decision.


    He was about twenty meters away from the beast and approached it quickly.


    ¡°Let¡¯s give you some fun.¡± Far away, Long Chen grinned. He then dove towards the beast and picked up a hard pebble. He flicked hard enough so that the pebble broke the stone lion¡¯s skin and prated one meter deep.


    In its stone form, the Golden-Eyed Water Beast¡¯s body was not that tough. That was why Long Chen¡¯s minor attackpletely startled it.


    It was not going to be easy for the Water patriarch to retrieve the key.


    Long Chen had already descended far below to the beast¡¯s legs. That was why the Water patriarch did not sense the movement of the pebble in the water.


    However, he sensed that the beast was awakening.


    ¡°Why is it waking up?¡± The Water patriarch did not know what had happened. He gasped when the stone lion¡¯s gray stone exterior turned blue starting from its head, turning into a gigantic, blue lion. It had a dense mane that looked like it was made of steel needles, and it was covered in powerful muscles. At a nce, it looked much stronger than the Sun Devouring Wolf!


    The gray stone quickly turned into blue fur with blue light flowing on its surface.


    A destructive power erupted from its body!


    The beast¡¯s eyes sprang open. Each eye was two whole meters in diameter, and they were golden, of course! They looked like two suns at the bottom of theke!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    An earth-shattering roar sounded, and water churned ferociously. The Golden-Eyed Water Beast spotted the Water patriarch as soon as it opened its eyes, which turned even more golden. It hadn¡¯t been disturbed in many years.


    The more intense the golden color in its eyes, the angrier it was.


    ¡°The damn animal!¡± Although the beast was awake, the Water patriarch did not worry. However, he did not dare get too close and created some distance between them. He studied the beast as it caused the water to churn.


    Due to its size and power, the wholeke was affected when it moved. Even the people on the shore could sense the change. That deafening roar meant that a powerful beast was about to appear.


    Those who were bolder and stronger went towards the source of the roar. The more timid and weaker ones quickly backed away!


    ¡°I can¡¯t let it continue causing thismotion. I need to settle this quickly.¡± The Water patriarch shot toward the beast like an underwater arrow. An intense battle ignited instantly. The beast¡¯s strengths were its powerful body and experience in underwater battles, while the Water patriarch had an advantage due to his higher cultivation level.


    After a brief exchange, the patriarch did not manage to defeat the beast.


    ¡°If this goes on, someone will arrive! I cannot let this drag on!¡± The Water patriarch quickly activated his domain. Although a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s domain was notrge, this was a huge blow to an opponent who had not reached the Heavenly Martial Realm yet, especially demonic beasts!


    A force that came from all directions acted on the beast¡¯s body. The restriction on its movement infuriated the beast even more, and it roared with all its might. The muscles all over its body rippled, causing waves to churn and destroying the natural whirlpool.


    ¡°Clear Water Strike!¡±


    After using his domain to restrict the beast¡¯s movements, the Water patriarch gently pressed his palm on the Golden-Eyed Water Beast¡¯s head. At the same time, he quickly retrieved the ck Emperor Key.


    It had been struck directly with an Emperor-tier attack. The beast cried with pain as the Clear Water Strike shattered its brain. Only Demon Emperors could withstand a strike like that from a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator. The Golden-Eyed Water Beast clearly could not.


    Long Chen sensed its life force quickly disappearing after the Water patriarch¡¯s powerful attack.


    ¡°That¡¯s my chance.¡± Long Chen quickly rushed to the beast¡¯s leg. Being on the brink of death, the beast did not have any strength to fight back. Long Chen directly grabbed the gigantic, boundless beast and ced it in the Primordial Realm.


    The gigantic Golden-Eyed Water Beast disappeared into thin air.


    After getting its demonic core, Long Chen would be able to cultivate the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal.


    But the Water patriarch was one step ahead of him and was able to retrieve the ck Emperor Key.


    After the key and the beast had been taken away, Long Chen and the Water patriarch looked at each other. They were a hundred meters apart. The Water patriarch finally noticed that there had been another person present. More importantly, that person was Long Chen.


    ¡°You were the one who startled the Golden-Eyed Water Beast? Is that why it woke up?¡± asked the Water patriarch through gritted teeth with a dark gaze.


    ¡°What if it was? What if it wasn¡¯t? What can you do?¡± said Long Chen with a smile.

 Chapter 839: Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon

    After the Water n patriarch retrieved the ck Emperor Key, he put it away in the storage ring on his thumb. Long Chen was only at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage and did not have any experience fighting Heavenly Martial Realm opponents, so he did not dare touch the patriarch.


    His main target was the Golden-Eyed Water Beast, so after he snatched it, he was satisfied. Long Chen did not care much about them being able to send additional people to search for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, because having more people from a faction did not guarantee they would find the treasure. It depended on luck and capability.


    The five patriarchs of the Five Elements Alliance were clearly only average Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators.


    ¡°So it was you, Long Chen! I killed the Golden-Eyed Water Beast, so its carcass should belong to me, but you took it for yourself. Bai Lan and I have a cordial rtionship, and I am also an elder to you; have you got no manners? Return the beast carcass to me if you know what¡¯s good for you. If not, I¡¯ll teach you a lesson,¡± said the Water patriarch coldly, arching an eyebrow.


    Long Chen was not afraid at all. He said, ¡°I¡¯m not a little kid. You can¡¯t scare me with threats like that. I managed to take the carcass because I am capable. I didn¡¯t ask you for the ck Emperor Key, yet you asked me for the Golden-Eyed Water Beast. Isn¡¯t that a little too demanding of you?¡±


    The Water patriarch knew that Bai Lan and the others were nearby. If they came here, it would be countless times more difficult to deal with Long Chen. Seeing as Long Chen refused to hand it over, he stretched his arms and darted at him, using his domain to restrict Long Chen¡¯s movements.


    The power of the domain came from all directions. It was invisible and could not be touched. This was the power of the universe harnessed by a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator using his Martial Soul, and it was used to suppress Long Chen¡¯s movements.


    However, a First Heavenly Martial Stage domain was not enough to stop Blood Warp.


    Long Chen immediately used Blood Warp and turned into a ming blood-red ray of light, quickly disappearing from the Water patriarch¡¯s sight. This was his first time using Blood Warp after achieving this cultivation level, and his speed left the Water patriarch stunned.¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll let you leave!¡±


    But before he even finished that sentence, Long Chen was already gone.


    The Water patriarch was left behind in a daze.


    ¡°This brat is slippery. If I get him alone again, I will teach him a lesson. But his warp technique is very fast. Where did Bai Lan find such a mysterious son-inw?¡±


    The ck Emperor Key was the true treasure, and it was the key for the Five Elements Alliance to rule the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory in the future. The Water patriarch was worried about encountering the two super-masters, Bai Lan and Wu Lian, so he had no time to dwell on Long Chen¡¯s matter. He immediately rushed to the surface of Tianyi Lake. Once he left the water, the ck Emperor Key would be truly his.


    The moment the Water patriarch broke out of the water, almost everyone in theke also rushed out and stared at him.


    <em>Does everyone know that I have the ck Emperor Key? </em>The Water patriarch was shocked at first, but then he thought about Long Chen and knew that Long Chen was surely the one who had leaked this information. Of course, that did not matter.


    The ck Emperor Key was with him; other than the Divine and Demon ns, who would dare fight him for it? And if the five main patriarchs and Ancestor Jin were present, even Bai Lan and Wu Lian would not dare attack.


    Several thousand people were levitating above Tianyi Lake, and the regr cultivators were all staring at him intensely with resigned looks. The people of the Five Elements Alliance quickly gathered by the Water patriarch¡¯s side, including the five patriarchs who arrived quickly. The strongest member of the Five Elements Alliance, Ancestor Jin, also arrived quickly.


    Hence, the key was confidently theirs to keep.


    ¡°Is it true you¡¯ve found the ck Emperor Key?¡± Ancestor Jin asked anxiously.


    Excitement was written all over the five patriarchs¡¯ faces.


    The Five Elements Alliance had a total of six Heavenly Martial Realm experts, and they only had one key in their hands. With one more key, they could send four Heavenly Martial Realm experts into the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. They would take up almost half of the ten avable slots. §²


    And if they were as lucky as they were today, then their odds of getting the treasure far surpassed everyone else.


    After the Water patriarch nodded excitedly, Ancestor Jinughed loudly. ¡°This is good news! Great news!¡± He patted the Water patriarch¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°Good work! Your heroic deed today will be recorded in the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s ancestral records so that your name will be remembered for generations toe!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Ancestor Jin!¡± said the Water patriarch hurriedly.


    As for the others ¡­


    Ancestor Jin looked around, and his golden eyes shone like two small suns, radiating startling heat and intimidating power. The aura of a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator scared the regr cultivators into stepping back!


    ¡°Everyone! If you do not wish to die here, get the hell out! We have found the ck Emperor Key, so I advise you to run for your lives. If not, you will upset me, and none of you will get to live!¡±


    His voice rumbled in all directions.


    Ancestor Jin was one of the strongest masters of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, so people shuddered just from hearing his name. Those people had only dared to search for the key because he wasn¡¯t present. Now that the Five Elements Alliance had the ck Emperor Key in their possession, Ancestor Jin took the initiative to intimidate everyone. The regr cultivators looked at each other and gave up.


    Many people had already been killed in secret at the bottom of Tianyi Lake, so quite a few outsiders had already snatchedbat techniques, King Crystals, pills, and even divine weapons.


    Those were the spoils of today¡¯s battle.


    But even more people had lost their lives due to their greed.


    Few people had effective life-saving techniques like Long Chen.


    The regr cultivators gradually left the region. Although they were unwilling, they did not show it.


    Very soon, only the three main factions remained above the vastke. Feng Qing and Wu Lian of the Divine Wind Faction stood together, with Feng Qing clearly levitating behind the woman. As for the Thunder Demon Faction, Bai Lan and Lei Ji stood shoulder to shoulder, while Long Chen stood next to Bai Lan.


    After Long Chen emerged from the water, he went straight to Bai Lan and Lei Ji. He had been the one to leak the news that the ck Emperor Key had been found. Tianyi Lake had descended into chaos, and since the ck Emperor Key had been found, Long Chen used this method to stop the killing.


    Hispassion was effective. After Ancestor Jin¡¯s threat, the regr cultivators all retreated to outside theke.


    The Long-Bearded Guest was the only remaining individual who did not belong to any faction.


    ¡°You all may return too. Search for the location of the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. Whoever finds the entrance, inform the others. When we have all five of the Emperor Keys together, we will open the realm!¡± said Ancestor Jin loudly after looking around. Since he had gotten two keys, he had be the de facto leader.


    All five of the Emperor Keys had been gathered. The next thing to do was search for the secret realm.


    No one other than Long Chen knew where it was.


    Long Chen recalled what he saw at Confounding City.


    <em>The people of the demon race in Confounding City said that the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm will only open in five months, which is also one month before the Ancient Graveyard closes. They were the ones who tossed the keys out so that we could find them. In that case, they should also tell us the location of the entrance, as well as the time!</em>


    Suddenly, a terrifying aura descended upon them. The regr cultivators hadn¡¯t gone far yet, but they were so terrified that they turned around to look.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s expressions turned into panic. Without a word, Bai Lan grabbed Long Chen and flew to the shore of Tianyi Lake. Bai Lan moved extremely quickly, as fast as Long Chen¡¯s Blood Warp. It only took a moment for them to arrive on the shore.


    The Divine Wind Faction and the Five Elements Alliance also anxiously sprinted to theke¡¯s bank.


    This was because they had sensed that the terrifying aura wasing from the bottom of Tianyi Lake!


    ¡°What a terrifying demonic beast aura! I didn¡¯t know that such a terrifying demonic beast would be in the Ancient Graveyard!¡± Bai Lan stabilized himself and looked towards the boundlesske in horror.


    ¡°Demonic beast?¡± Long Chen had a different thought. He felt like the timing of the beast¡¯s appearance, and the fact that Bai Lan was afraid of it, were suspicious.


    The regr cultivators stared in a daze. Under everyone¡¯s shock and confusion, the surface of Tianyi Lake, which was already chaotic enough, shook even more violently. Then the water exploded up into the sky and a gigantic shadow gradually emerged from the bottom of theke.


    The shadow was several hundred meters wide, making it much wider than the length of the Golden-Eyed Water Beast. And this estimate was just based on the size of the shadow.


    Even Long Chen could sense the demonic beast¡¯s aura¡ªit was terrifying. He was sure that it was at least at the Emperor-tier, and seeing as Bai Lan had decided to get away from it, it was likely at the Category Three Emperor-tier or above.


    The problem was, did such powerful demonic beasts exist in the Ancient Graveyard?


    Long Chen already knew the culprits behind the scenes of this game.


    All would be revealed the moment the beast broke out of the water. Everyone watched in shock as Tianyi Lake¡¯s water shot up into the sky, forming tall waves. Then the gigantic silhouette erupted out of theke. A gigantic beast¡¯s head appeared before them.


    ¡°Is that a ¡­ Jiao dragon?¡±


    To Long Chen¡¯s shock, the head was a Jiao dragon¡¯s head. It was a deep purple Jiao with menacing features. It was gigantic, and its ck eyes were like ck holes. Its head was muchrger than Tianyi Water City itself.[TL Note: The Jiao dragon (òÔÁú jiao1 long2), or just Jiao, is an aquatic creature from Chinese mythology. It is not a true dragon, and it is considered ranked below dragons / less evolved / not as intelligent. Jiaos must cultivate for a long time before evolving into true dragons. They are found in water bodies such as rivers.]


    Destructive power radiated from the purple Jiao dragon¡¯s body. Even Long Chen could barely stand in the face of such strong pressure, let alone Xiang, despite being in the Primordial Realm. This powerful demonic beast exerted a powerful pressure on beasts weaker than itself.

 Chapter 840: Category Nine Emperor Tier

    ¡°Fat Cat, what kind of demonic beast is that? It¡¯s gigantic! And terrifying!¡± Long Chen hurriedly asked Little Cat, who was in the Primordial Realm.


    He retreated away from the Jiao along with Bai Lan and the others.


    ¡°What¡¯s there to be afraid of? It¡¯s merely a Category Nine Emperor-tier Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon. It¡¯s not even part of the demon race. In my prime, I could kill countless Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragons with just one breath,¡± said the fuzzy Dream Demon in the Primordial Realm as it opened its eyeszily.


    ¡°Category Nine Emperor-tier?¡±


    Long Chen drew a sharp breath.


    That was too powerful. That was equivalent to a Ninth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator.


    Long Chen had only recently advanced from the First Earthly Martial Stage, and he knew just how big the gap was between the First and Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. It was like heaven and earth. Using the same concept, the gap between Bai Lan and this Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was like heaven and earth too. If the Jiao Dragon decided to attack, it could kill them all with just an effortless swing of its w.


    Long Chen had previously thought that the Jiao Dragon was only at Category Three Emperor-tier at most.


    He had not expected it to be Category Nine Emperor-tier.¡°Little Cat, you¡¯re not lying, are you? Is it really Category Nine Emperor-tier?¡± asked Long Chen while retreating further. He knew that backing off was useless. Even Blood Warp would be useless. But everyone was running, so how could he not run too?


    ¡°Why would I lie? It¡¯s not your first time meeting it anyway; what¡¯s there to be afraid of? This Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon is a demonic beast from the Deste Royal Territory, and it is a Demon Emperor. Since it coulde all the way here, it is not surprising that it is Category Nine Emperor-tier,¡± slurred Little Cat as he stretchedzily.


    Xiang, who was next to him, had the urge to p Little Cat.


    If Little Cat were outside the Primordial Realm, he would have peed himself from terror. As long as he stayed in the Primordial Realm, he could brag easily as he was not in mortal danger.


    ¡°I¡¯ve seen it before?¡± Long Chen thought for a moment, then he recalled the time Little Cat entered Confounding City alone at night. Through the connection of the Primordial Dragon Talisman, Long Chen had spotted purple scales on one of the men¡¯s hands. After he made the connection, Long Chen guessed that this Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was one of the six demons.


    With that thought, Long Chen calmed down because he knew that the Jiao Dragon would not hurt them if that was the case. Instead, it would even tell Bai Lan and the others how to get to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure!


    Just as Long Chen expected, the Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon quickly transformed from its immense size into a ray of purple light. Then the light slowly materialized into a handsome man wearing purple brocade clothing. The man looked exactly like a human, and he did not have any purple scales on his hands. However, Long Chen knew that this was only one of his transformations. Under normal circumstances, his hands would surely be covered in scales.


    ¡°Don¡¯t run! I bear no ill intentions ¡­¡± As Long Chen expected, the man in purple smiled warmly and spoke in a mild tone.


    When they heard his voice, the people who were running in a panic halted as if they were under a mysterious spell. Even Bai Lan and the others stopped. The three of them looked at each other, then suspiciously at the man in purple. Bai Lan whispered, ¡°I don¡¯t know this beast. We will observe first. If something goes wrong, we¡¯ll run in separate directions!¡±


    ¡°Yeah ¡­ No ancestors ever told us that such a terrifying beast lives in Tianyi Lake. And I don¡¯t think this gigantic Jiao Dragon was recorded in the Book of Demonic Beasts.¡± Lei Ji¡¯s voice was filled with difort and terror.


    He postted that if this Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was angered and started to kill, very few of them would escape unharmed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I don¡¯t think he intends to kill anyone, or he would not have taken human form.¡± Long Chen knew the truth but was not sure if he should tell them, so he could only soothe them for the moment.


    Long Chen¡¯s words made sense.


    Lei Ji and Bai Lan gave a small sigh of relief and remained quietly in the crowd, observing the situation.


    The situation with the Five Elements Alliance and the Divine Wind Faction was simr. Faced with such a powerful beast, even Wu Lian stood quietly.


    No one dared to move. All eyes were on the Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon floating in the sky above Tianyi Lake. They did not dare to make a sound and only stared obediently.


    The man in purple was very pleased with the silence. He nodded with a smile, then his sonorous voice boomed in all directions.


    ¡°My name is Zi Xue. I used to be the ck Emperor¡¯s mount. I have lived for more than ten thousand years. During ancient times, when the Five Emperors led the masters of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory to fight against the enemy, there was endless death, and in the end, I was the only one who survived. However, I don¡¯t think any stories of me were ever passed down. Too many people died that year ¡­¡±


    As he spoke, Zi Xue looked sorrowful.


    The others were truly relieved to hear him say that.


    ¡°Indeed, there are no mentions of a beast named Zi Xue in the legends ¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah. And the legends didn¡¯t mention a mount.¡±


    ¡°This Jiao Dragon has lived for more than ten thousand years? Doesn¡¯t that mean that it¡¯s also very powerful among Emperor-tier beasts¡­¡±


    The crowd discussed in whispers, not daring to speak too much.


    Long Chenughed to himself. The Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was shameless for pretending to be the ck Emperor¡¯s mount. They had onlye here for one thing, which was the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure; therefore, everything they did could be tied back to the Five Emperors.


    Long Chen nced at Bai Lan and Lei Ji. Based on their facial expressions, they seemed to believe it. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory didn''t have much information about the Battle of the Five Emperors, and it was not even clear who their enemy was. However, Long Chen knew that the enemy of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was actually a portion of the demonic beasts from the Deste Royal Territory.


    To the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, thr war was a huge massacre, but to the Deste Royal Territory, it was just a minor incident.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ enemies were the demonic beasts, and this Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was beyond powerful, so how could it have been the ck Emperor¡¯s mount?


    This Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was as strong as the Seven Lords too.


    Long Chen had only reached his current level because of the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritance.


    After the regr cultivators heard the Jiao dragon¡¯s self-introduction, they quickly believed him. After the first person fell to his knees, everyone followed suit.


    There were also those who did not believe it, but everyone else was kneeling. What if that beast killed them because they did not kneel?


    Therefore, everyone knelt.


    The only ones who did not kneel were the people of the nine main ns. Without the permission of their n leaders, they did not dare move. But if the n leaders did it, they would surely kneel without hesitation.


    ¡°There is no need to kneel before me,¡± said the man in purple with a smile. His gaze turned towards Long Chen¡¯s direction as he said, ¡°I have remained alive just so that the descendants of the Five Emperors could search for the treasures their ancestors left them. Now that the five Emperor Keys have been found, I appeared today to inform those who have retrieved the Emperor Keys this: exactly five months from today, take your Emperor Keys to the center of the ruined city in the Eternal Battlefield. A five-colored altar will appear there. That is the entrance of the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm ¡­¡±


    This information sent a wave of shock through the crowd.


    The people who had the Emperor Keys looked at each other and believed the man even more. The location they had suspected the most was indeed the Eternal Battlefield, as it was the center of the Ancient Graveyard.


    Finally, the man in purple added, ¡°You are all descendants of the Five Emperors. I hope that after you all obtain the treasures they left behind, you will strengthen the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. If anyone uses the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures for malicious acts, one day, I, Zi Xue, will appear and take away your treasures ¡­¡±


    When he finished, the man in purple dove into Tianyi Lake and disappeared.


    <em>He left so quickly ¡­ </em>Long Chen squinted. Using his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he saw that the man had not gone to the bottom of theke. Instead, he had moved at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye towards another direction. This meant that he was not the ck Emperor¡¯s mount, but someone from the Deste Royal Territory who was eyeing the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.


    This guy was a Category Nine Emperor-tier beast, so the other six were surely not weak either. Long Chen would need to face six terrifying enemies.


    <em>It looks like getting the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure is going to be extremely difficult ¡­</em> Long Chen suddenly felt a small wave of helplessness.


    If he wasn''t determined to reunite with Ling Xi, he might have actually given up.


    After the man in purple left, Long Chen realized the crowd had descended into chaos once more. The regr cultivators were discussing among themselves. To them, this was basically divine intervention.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe that the ck Emperor¡¯s mount is still alive today. It looks like many of the Ancient Graveyard¡¯s rules could have been set by this demonic beast named Zi Xue, including the Ancient Tokens, and not those mysterious visitors from the Royal Territories,¡± said Bai Lan, furrowing his brows.


    He postted that the Five Emperors had created the Ancient Graveyard to train their descendants.


    However, he did not know that the Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon was actually one of the visitors from the Royal Territories.


    Bai Lan believed the manpletely, and it was the same for the other n leaders, especially the Five Elements Alliance. They felt like the Jiao Dragon had handed them the ck Emperor Key, seeing as they were the true blood descendants of the Five Emperors.


    However, more than ten thousand years had passed since then, so no one could ever verify this.

 Chapter 841: Red Fire Tree

    ¡°In that case, we do not need to remain here and disturb Lord Zi Xue. We shall meet at the Eternal Battlefield in five months,¡± said Ancestor Jin with a salute, his face glowing proudly.


    ¡°See you then,¡± said Wu Lian curtly. Then she led Feng Qing away and left without another word.


    Five months of private cultivation could even be enough for them to increase their cultivation levels. Everyone had enough time to prepare as they waited for the final battle.


    Five months. It was not long, but it was not short either.


    ¡°Let¡¯s head back to Heavenly Wood City. Long Chen, the slot I promised you remains yours. You will follow us to the Eternal Battlefield in five months; what do you think?¡± asked Bai Lan.


    Long Chen thought for a moment. He needed to cultivate the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage of the Earthly Fist Manual and the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal, then do his best to break through to the next cultivation level. Heavenly Wood City could offer him a quiet environment, so it was best for him to go.


    Therefore, he nodded in agreement.


    To outsiders, it was logical for him to return to Heavenly Wood City, seeing as his fianc¨¦e was still there. Bai Lan had already told everyone about their wedding, which would take ce after they returned to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, like Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin¡¯s wedding. However, this was obviously fake.


    Long Chen¡¯s target destination was the Royal Territories.The incident at Tianyi Water City was officially over.


    Long Chen followed Bai Lan and Lei Ji back toward Heavenly Wood City, while Wu Lian and Feng Qing went towards Giant Metal City.


    As for the Five Elements Alliance, due to the appearance of the Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon, they shifted out of Tianyi Water City to the Earth District so as to not disturb it.


    At this point, the amount ofnd taken up by a faction was useless anyway.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was the ultimate treasure in the Ancient Graveyard.


    ***


    Heavenly Wood City.


    There were many lush trees in the Wood District. The tree that Heavenly Wood City sat on was gigantic and looked like a gigantic wall standing between heaven and earth.


    Beneath Heavenly Wood City, next to the tree trunk, five ck-robed people levitated in the air. A woman, who was also in a ck robe, was giggling as she said, ¡°The Ancient Graveyard was part of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory in the past. This is supposedly where the Five Emperors lived. Heavenly Wood City was the Azure Emperor¡¯s home.¡±


    ¡°That bastard Zi Xue said he wanted to scare the ants. I wonder if anything funny is going to happen. I wonder if those people who call themselves names like the Divine and Demon ns will pee themselves in fright when they see his gigantic form?¡± said a guy with a smile.


    ¡°Of course they will. The people of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory are ignorant. Despite being as weak as ants, they still dare call themselves the ¡®Divine¡¯ and ¡®Demon¡¯ ns. Even we do not dare speak recklessly about true gods and demons; they are utter fools,¡± said another ck-robed individual.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about the Ten Thousand Nations Territory anymore. Tell me, wouldn¡¯t it be a pity if such arge, ancient tree didn¡¯t be a member of the demon race?¡± purred the woman demurely.


    One of them looked at her and said with a smile, ¡°Are you thinking of turning the tree into one of your Red Fire Trees again?¡±


    ¡°Hehe. I brought quite a few Red Fire Tree Fruits with me. A gigantic ancient tree like this is hard toe by, so of course I must try! There are too many people in the Ancient Graveyard and they¡¯re ruining my view. Let¡¯s kill off some of them first. I think there are a lot of people in the city on top of the tree. Let¡¯s kill them all. Back off; just watch me!¡±


    The other people looked at each other and backed away without a word. The woman took out a fire-red stone from somewhere. It resembled a fruit, so it was no wonder it was called a ¡°Red Fire Tree Fruit.¡± The fruit was alight with red mes and looked very hot, hotter than anything Long Chen could imagine. A tall tree could be faintly seen inside it, and its trunk was waving, letting out beast-like roars.


    ¡°Sweetie, listen to mymand. Be an infant of the Red Fire Trees, and then you may kill as many people as you like, destroy as much as you like. You should be able to burn the whole Wood District at least, right?¡±


    The woman gently ced the Red Fire Tree Fruit into the ancient tree¡¯s trunk, then left in a fit of giggles.


    Based on what she had said, she seemed to be turning the tree into a fire-type demonic beast. Trees were originally of the wood element and naturally were afraid of fire. Therefore, it was shocking that the demon race could turn a tree into a fire-type beast. The Three Royal Territories were indeed filled with mystery. ??


    Behind her, the ancient tree slowly transformed.


    Ayer of red mes quietly appeared on the brown, ancient bark ¡­


    ***


    Thinking about his two daughters, Bai Lan returned to Heavenly Wood City at high speed. They had to first pass through the Eternal Battlefield, which was between the Water and Wood Districts. Previously, the trip had taken them many days because they were not in a hurry. This time, with them traveling at almost Bai Lan¡¯s maximum speed, two or three days were enough.


    ¡°I keep having this bad feeling. I don¡¯t know why,¡± Bai Lan suddenly said as they hurried along.


    Having a bad feeling was difficult to exin. Perhaps this was a sixth sense. When Lei Ji jokingly mocked Bai Lan for overthinking, Long Chen did not say anything.


    The three of them traveled at top speed until they entered the Wood District. Suddenly, they sensed that something was wrong. The first thing they noticed was the ground trembling. It was happening over a vast area, not localized.


    ¡°Why is the ground trembling? Is it an earthquake?¡± The three of them looked at each other.


    ¡°Head back quickly. Heavenly Wood City might be in danger!¡± Bai Lan¡¯s eyes widened; he was ready to abandon Long Chen and Lei Ji to head towards the city first. Even Long Chen noticed that something was wrong. He activated his Dragon Soul Transformation so that he could travel faster. Although he could not catch up to Bai Lan, he could tail him from far away.


    As time passed, Long Chen had an increasingly strong feeling that something was wrong ahead. The Wood District had always been cool, so why did he feel heat?


    ¡°Xiang, Fat Cat, do you guys know what happened?¡± asked Long Chen with furrowed brows.


    ¡°What? Something happened?¡± Little Cat asked, surprised.


    Not far from Little Cat, Xiang had the same expression as Long Chen. Xiang was the natural predator of fire, and it could even be said that he could swallow all the fire in the world. He had reached the Category Nine King-tier because Wu Guangyu had fed him a lot of fire treasures. Furthermore, Xiang had gained a shameless side after spending a long time with Long Chen, so he would never refuse these things.


    ¡°There seems to be something burning ahead. The Wood District is on fire ¡­¡± Xiang¡¯s eyes suddenly sprang open.


    ¡°No way ¡­¡± Long Chen was stunned. Almost all his friends in the Ancient Graveyard were in the Wood District, and now it was on fire?


    Long Chen did not hesitate anymore and charged as fast as he could so that he would not be a burden to Bai Lan and Lei Ji in terms of speed.


    He quickly arrived after traveling at maximum speed. Many people staying in Heavenly Wood City had already shifted to Tianyi Water City, so the people who stayed behind were all from the Thunder Demon Faction. After half a day of moving at maximum speed, Bai Lan encountered a man from the Demon n. The man was running for his life in panic.


    ¡°Patriarch!¡± After Bai Lan stopped him, the man looked overjoyed, though the panic on his face did not fade. He fell to his knees before Bai Lan and stuttered, ¡°H-heavenly Wood City ¡­ No, the tree underneath Heavenly Wood City ¡­¡±


    ¡°Calm down. Speak slowly.¡± Bai Lan¡¯s gaze was dark. His mind was a mess, but he controlled himself.


    ¡°The whole tree is aze, and it seems to have be sentient. Countless ming branches have started to attack their surroundings. I think the two princesses are still in Heavenly Wood City and are unable to get out. The mes have already spread to them!¡±


    Hearing the man''s unbelievable story stunned the three of them.


    ¡°The whole tree is aze? What happened? I know there are nt-type demonic beasts. Did the tree became a nt-type demonic beast?¡± Long Chen asked, shocked.


    Little Cat exined, ¡°That is indeed the case. There are millions of demonic beast ns in the Deste Royal Territory, too many to count. Many of them are nt-type beasts who can turn normal ancient trees into members of their species through a fruit that forms after their elders die, effectively turning normal trees into nt demons. Do not underestimate them, for they are even more terrifying than demonic beasts. I remember that one of the six demons is from the Red Fire Tree n. She is likely the one who ced a Red Fire Tree Fruit in the ancient tree¡¯s trunk.¡±


    During such a critical moment, Little Cat did not beat around the bush and exined everything he knew about this strange type of beast.


    Only Long Chen and Xiang could hear him.


    Unlike Long Chen, Bai Lan had almost lost his mind because the only thing he heard was that the two princesses were still in Heavenly Wood City.


    Without a word, Bai Lan charged as fast he could in that direction!


    ¡°Brother Bai, stay calm!¡± Lei Ji knew that Bai Lan loved his daughters more than anything and that he was surely going mad from this. Long Chen had no time to think either. He ran as fast as he could, hoping that he could catch up to Bai Lan.


    ¡°Big Brother, let me do it!¡± Xiang turned into the Sun Devouring Wolf, emerging from the Primordial Realm.


    Being Category Nine King-tier, he could run much faster than Long Chen in the forest.


    The three of them, plus one wolf, charged ahead as fast as they could!

 Chapter 842: Eight Hundred Wolf Clans

    As Long Chen approached, themotion increased and the heat intensified. He looked up and saw plumes of ck smoke among the clouds ahead. Beneath the ck smoke was a gigantic fire wall connecting heaven and earth. Long Chen knew that this was surely the gigantic tree that had transformed into part of the Red Fire Tree n.


    ¡°This tree is just like a newborn baby, and it is not a pure-bred Red Fire Tree. When the energy in the Red Fire Tree Fruit has been exhausted, it will turn back into an ancient tree. However, it will take a very long time to spend all its energy,¡± exined Little Cat.


    ¡°Is there any way to control a Red Fire Tree? How strong is this tree right now?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly. Lei Ji and Bai Lan were traveling ahead, and he could not even see Bai Lan anymore. Long Chen sat on Xiang¡¯s back as they charged at full speed!


    The Sun Devouring Wolf wove through the forest at top speed!


    ¡°Big Brother, I think I have a way. The Red Fire Tree Fruit is a fire-element treasure, so I can swallow it. It might even be effective enough to help me advance and turn into a true Emperor-tier beast.¡± Before Little Cat replied, Xiang was already a little excited.


    ¡°Are you able to pinpoint where the Red Fire Tree Fruit is?¡± asked Long Chen.


    If he could pinpoint the location, then finding the fruit would be much easier. If not, with the gigantic size of the tree, it would be difficult to find it.


    After the fruit was removed, the tree would likely return to its original state.


    ¡°Of course. I am very sensitive towards fire-type treasures. Even now, I know where it is. However, Big Brother, you killed Wu Guangyu and he is now considered missing. If I¡¯m seen, won¡¯t others know that you killed him?¡± Xiang thought of another issue.Indeed, if he was exposed, it would trigger new problems for Long Chen.


    Would Wu Lian let anyone kill her son just like that?


    Long Chen had returned to Heavenly Wood City, while Wu Lian had gone back to Giant Metal City. They likely knew about Wu Guangyu¡¯s disappearance by now, and Long Chen was surely one of the suspects.


    Long Chen thought for a moment and felt like the lives of the Thunder and Demon ns were more important, so he said, ¡°That shouldn''t be a problem. If we can save them and even get the Red Fire Tree Fruit, we can just find a hidden ce to cultivate. After we cultivate for five months, we will return when the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm is opened. If we improve further and Xiang reaches the Emperor-tier, we should be able to face a Heavenly Martial Realm expert if we work together. As for Wu Lian, maybe we¡¯ll be strong enough to face her directly. And if that fails, I can still use Blood Warp.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s n was airtight.


    He initially thought that he could stay in Heavenly Wood City until the secret realm opened, but now, it looked like he had no choice.


    Since Xiang had the solution, they sprinted after the Heavenly Wood Tree even more desperately. Bai Lan had likely arrived, seeing as he was traveling at a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s maximum speed.


    They could already see the gigantic ming tree. The green tree was nowpletely covered in red mes. The tree was so big that humans like Long Chen, or even Xiang in his true form, looked like ants next to it.


    Xiang had already turned into hisrgest form, making him a hundred meters tall and a hundred and fifty meters long. His gigantic body was still tinypared to the tree that pierced through the clouds. Even some of the thicker branches wererger than the Sun Devouring Wolf.


    This showed that the demonic beasts of the Royal Territories were likely unimaginably huge too. However, the Royal Territories were beyond vast, so it did not seem crowded even though the beasts were this huge.


    The tree was still asrge as before, but the difference was that it could move now. It had turned into a Red Fire Tree.


    The mass of ming branches and leaves waved constantly. All the trees, beasts, and humans who collided with it either sttered or also became alight with red mes. The mes burned fiercely and reduced everything to ashes. The lush Wood District slowly disappeared and turned into patches of charcoal under the destructive force of the Red Fire Tree.


    The Wood District had descended into chaos.


    Bright red mes were everywhere. Every time the Red Fire Tree moved, it caused the ground to tremble. The ground shook greatly, and although Long Chen was still far from the Red Fire Tree, the ground surrounding him had already started to crack. An endless abyss was revealed in the ces where the ground had broken apart.


    This was Long Chen¡¯s first time witnessing something that could cause such widespread destruction. Cultivation level was irrelevant for gigantic demons like that. Just its physical strength was enough to kill the average Heavenly Martial Realm expert!


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji had already arrived within a thousand meters of the Red Fire Tree. Above them was the tree¡¯s crown!


    ¡°Save them first!¡± Bai Lan roared towards Lei Ji, then they immediately shot up into the air, towards Heavenly Wood City. The city was located beneath the tree¡¯s crown and was more than a thousand meters from the ground. This meant that the Red Fire Tree was almost two thousand meters tall. When such arge tree was turned into a demon, it wielded terrifying power!


    The area where Heavenly Wood City used to be was covered in red mes. The people trapped in the mes likely could not get out either. The Red Fire Tree had only just been awakened, so it surely wanted to kill all the annoying humans on its head first, then destroy the Wood District.


    Two silhouettes, one ck and one covered in purple lightning, rushed towards the city. The strange thing was that the Red Fire Tree seemed to see them, because countless ming branches as thick as the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s body suddenlyshed in Bai Lan and Lei Ji¡¯s direction!


    <em>Crack crack crack crack crack!</em>


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji showed no mercy as they unleashed their strongest attacks to break the branches around them. However, there were countless branches. If they continued fighting like this, they would die of exhaustion!


    ¡°Xue¡¯er! Yan¡¯er!¡± Bai Lan¡¯s daughters were trapped inside, so he was filled with rage. Humans had a disadvantagepared to demons in terms of size. In the face of this all-epassing attack from a demon, the humans were easily surrounded and found it difficult to break free!


    ¡°Divine Demon Nine Spins!¡±


    Bai Lan used an intermediate Emperor-tierbat technique. His attack was countless times stronger than Suxue¡¯s previous attack. Afraid that he would affect those who were still alive in Heavenly Wood City, Bai Lan unleashed this attack at the surrounding branches. The lines of ming branches shattered into chips that fell from the sky like rain, turning the ground pock-marked!


    ¡°Hundred Thousand Heavenly Thunder Punches!¡±


    Rays of lightning fist seals formed around Lei Ji, which shot forward and shattered the dense crowd of branches in front, simrly reducing them to shreds!


    As they attacked, they were also heading towards Heavenly Wood City. Their main objective was to save people, not to kill the Red Fire Tree.


    No one knew why the tree had be like this. Long Chen and crew were likely the only ones who did.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji flew ahead at top speed!


    Their attacks had shattered many branches, but there were countless more in Heavenly Wood City. After they shattered the branches, even more ming branches snaked towards them, and they were a huge threat. If the duo did not dodge the branches or block with all their strength, they would not be able to withstand the attacks!


    By this time, Long Chen and Xiang had already arrived. The gigantic Sun Devouring Wolf quickly attracted the Red Fire Tree¡¯s attention, but it was not the only one who noticed him. Far above the clouds, five ck-robed people were casually observing the Red Fire Tree¡¯s changes.


    ¡°Everyone,e watch! It looks like a Category Nine King-tier fellow nsman has appeared ¡­¡± the ck-robed woman said with great interest.


    ¡°Tian Kun, take a look at that demonic wolf. It must be from one of the wolf ns, right? Can you identify which one?¡± Everyone looked at one of the individuals.


    He took a nce and said, ¡°That wolf is not part of the top eight hundred wolf ns, as I can recognize all of them. He has reached the adult stage, but it has not even achieved a Demon Emperor rank. There is no need to pay any attention.¡±


    ¡°I find it strange though. It seems the demonic wolf has an extremely cold me in its body. Why do I feel like I¡¯ve seen this me before?¡± asked one of them.


    ¡°When it uses the me, we will see it. The cultivator sitting on the demonic wolf must be a Beast Warrior from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He used a soul of our race for his own gain; such a shameless person must be killed. Who would dare to do that?¡± asked the woman demurely.


    This woman was part of the Red Fire Tree n.


    After she asked, the person who said Xiang had a cold me in him suddenly looked shocked. ¡°That¡¯s not right!¡±

 Chapter 843: Taboo Wolf

    He stared at the Sun Devouring Wolf, then said, ¡°Tian Kun, you¡¯re part of the wolf n; how could you not have heard of the Taboo Wolf before? The Taboo Wolf isn¡¯t in the top eight hundred wolf ns, but they used to be as famous as thunder in the Ancient Ages. Legend has it that the Taboo Wolf consumes items to strengthen itself, and there is a type that can even swallow the sun. It is called the Sun Devouring Wolf. Doesn¡¯t this wolf look like one?¡±


    The man from the wolf n named Tian Kun was stunned. He said, ¡°Are you saying that this ck demonic wolf is the most terrifying type of the Taboo Wolf, the Sun Devouring Wolf? The kind that could almost swallow the sun? But ¡­ he¡¯s only a Category Nine King-tier. If he was a Sun Devouring Wolf, he would be unimaginably powerful from birth, so wouldn¡¯t he be at least a Demon God?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Let¡¯s observe to see if this demonic wolf has any fire-swallowing abilities. If he does, he might even be a legendary Taboo Wolf. We will take him back to the Deste Royal Territory and let the elders confirm it. If he really is a Sun Devouring Wolf, we will be very rich.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense. We¡¯d rather be wrong than let this opportunity go.¡±


    Their version of the legend of the Sun Devouring Wolf was clearly different from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory¡¯s version stated that the Sun Devouring Wolf started off as a Category One Earth-tier demonic beast, but in the Royal Territories, the Sun Devouring Wolf was at least a Demon God from birth.


    Demon Gods were equivalent to Divine Martial Realm experts.


    That was why these experts of the demon race struggled to confirm if Xiang was a Taboo Wolf from the legends. If he was, it was a significant matter. Even they did not fully understand what the Sun Devouring Wolf represented.


    Previously, they were thinking of killing Long Chen after they saw that he was a Beast Warrior. However, when they recognized Xiang, the experts of the demon racepletely disregarded Long Chen.


    ¡°I let this tree swallow my Red Fire Tree Fruit, which is an important fire-type treasure. Let¡¯s see if the wolf consumes it. If yes, even if he isn¡¯t the Sun Devouring Wolf, he should be rted to one, and we should take him back to the Royal Territory.¡±¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± said Tian Kun, trying to calm his excitement.


    The woman had only turned the tree into a Red Fire Tree out of boredom. However, they had not expected to lure a mysterious beast like Xiang out. Of course, to Long Chen, Xiang was not a beast, but his brother.


    Long Chen and Xiang had arrived while Bai Lan and Lei Ji were surrounded by branches. There was still some distance between them and Heavenly Wood City.


    ¡°Xiang, help them,¡± said Long Chen, looking down.


    Xiang knew what to do without needing any instructions. He leaped powerfully towards the densest part of the branches and roared. ck mes appeared in his mouth and shot out at Heavenly Wood City. All the branches in its path were immediately covered in Xiang¡¯s fire.


    When Bai Lan and Lei Ji sensed the presence of this fire, they dodged.


    After the ck fire passed, all the thick branches had turned into ck ice, then they suddenly crashed down like hail, creating countless craters and holes in the ground below, along with constant rumbles.


    When Xiang¡¯s Nine Devils Ancestral Fire turned most of the ming branches into ck ice, many also disappeared into thin-air. All the branches in the path between Bai Lan and Heavenly Wood City had shattered, forming arge hole!


    ¡°Go!¡± roared Long Chen.


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji took this chance to shoot through the hole into Heavenly Wood City, passing through the fireball. Long Chen was much more assured with them saving Suxue and the others. Next, the brothers had to figure out how to eat the Red Fire Tree Fruit.


    The five demons in the sky erupted in conversation after witnessing the Sun Devouring Wolf¡¯s performance. They looked at each other, stunned. One of the men muttered, ¡°If I saw it right, the demonic wolf spat out something that resembles one of the legendary ancestral fires ¡­ Was it simr to the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire?¡± ?


    ¡°It¡¯s not the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. The true Nine Devils Ancestral Fire can swallow all heat and freeze heaven and earth. If we were this close to the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, we would be reduced to nothing. I think it was just a fraction of the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. This demonic wolf may not be able to fully utilize the fraction¡¯s full strength yet, so his attack isn¡¯t powerful. However, a demonic beast that can swallow and utilize a fraction of an ancestral fire ¡­¡±


    Everyone knew just how significant this was.


    Tian Kun said, ¡°Average demons like us cannot wield a portion of the ancestral fire, but he can, and that is a miracle. We must bring him back to the Royal Territory and let the elders see him.¡±


    He was part of the wolf n, and Xiang was a wolf. Naturally, he would be brought back to the wolf n.


    The rtionship between all the different ns was considered friendly, so the others did not object.


    ¡°Next, let¡¯s see if this little demonic wolf can swallow the Red Fire Tree Fruit. If he can, hehe ¡­ We will take him to see what the real world looks like. Even the smallest of the Three Royal Territories isrger than the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory, let alone the Deste Royal Territory. It¡¯s almost three times the size of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Out of the Three Territories and Nine Worlds, even the smallest of the Nine Worlds, the Supreme Yin World, is almost half of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    Three Territories and Nine Worlds. Long Chen knew of the Three Royal Territories, but he did not know that there were nine miniverses within them known as the Nine Worlds. Some of the miniverses were even asrge as the Ten Thousand Nations Territory itself.


    That was the true Dragon Continent.


    If the area of the countless miniverses was included, the Dragon Continent¡¯s size would increase by at least five times.


    The ninergest miniversesbined were already more than two times the size of the Three Royal Territories.


    While Long Chen was working hard to fight the Red Fire Tree, he did not have time to think that the five demons were watching him.


    After Bai Lan and Lei Ji entered the city, Long Chen and Xiang had sessfully annoyed the Red Fire Tree, causing it to focus on the duo.


    ¡°Xiang, point out the location of the Red Fire Tree Fruit! I¡¯ll go get it!¡±


    This artificially formed Red Fire Tree had a fatal weakness¡ªonce the Red Fire Tree Fruit was taken away, it would enter a death-like state.


    This tree was unimaginably huge, and Xiang was the only one who could urately sense where the fruit was.


    Long Chen was much smaller than Xiang, so he could slip into the Red Fire Tree¡¯s body.


    Xiang, who had activated the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire once more, nodded. Under his control, his body was aze with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire. When the branchesshed on his body and the mes on the branches met with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, they extinguished immediately like water had been poured. The branches protected by red mes quickly turned into ck ice after they were burned by the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    All the branches that touched Xiang¡¯s body turned into powder!


    Xiang shielded Long Chen close to his chest as the wolf and man shot towards the fruit. The tree seemed to sense Long Chen¡¯s intentions, leaving it terrified. Almost all the branches nowshed at the Sun Devouring Wolf!


    One or two was not a problem, but when all the branches attacked them, it was not easy for the Sun Devouring Wolf to endure so many hits.


    If it wasn¡¯t for the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, Xiang would have been torn to shreds.


    The world was fair. Although the Sun Devouring Wolf had the ultimate transformative ability, its strength and body toughness were only average.


    However, with the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire, he could hold on!


    ¡°Enter here! It¡¯s in the center!¡± Under Xiang¡¯s protection, Long Chen quickly approached the Heavenly Wood Tree. The tree backed away in panic, but it moved extremely slowly.


    ¡°Be careful!¡± After Long Chen spoke, he pulled out the Three Thousand Star Clusters!


    Xiang spat the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire on the Red Fire Tree, and the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire burned arge hole in the wall-like trunk. With the Three Thousand Star Clusters in hand, which shone with endless starlight, Long Chen shot into the tree trunk!


    Then they heard a scream!


    Long Chen knew that time was of the essence. Within the Red Fire Tree¡¯s body, the nearer they got to the fruit, the hotter it became, until it was too hot for Long Chen to endure. Fierce mes burned all around him. Fortunately, he had cultivated the Seven Star Body, so he was not burned to a crisp.


    <em>Sizzle! Sizzle!</em>


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Long Chen used the Three Thousand Star Clusters to shatter all the wood around him with rays of starlight. He traveled very quickly inside the tree trunk, and after about seven minutes, he finally found the Red Fire Tree Fruit!


    This was the source of the Red Fire Tree¡¯s powers.


    ¡°That¡¯s the damn thing!¡± Long Chen acted quickly. There were countless blood vessel-like structures connected to the fruit. Long Chen immediately cut all them, then he swiftly put the Red Fire Tree Fruit in the Primordial Realm.

 Chapter 844: Northern Ocean Snake Clan

    The Primordial Realm contained great power. Despite the Red Fire Tree Fruit being so powerful, it was useless inside.


    After the fruit was put away, Long Chen sensed that the raging tree had stopped moving. The surrounding temperatures were also quickly lowering and everything soon returned to its original state. However, the ground below was filled with craters.


    ¡°It¡¯s finally done ¡­¡± Long Chen sighed in relief. He put the Three Thousand Star Clusters away, then headed outside. It was difficult to enter the trunk, but easy to exit, so he soon emerged. In front of him was Xiang, who had taken human form. Like Long Chen, he was also panting and his forehead was covered in sweat.


    To be honest, this attempt had indeed been treacherous. If Xiang had not been able to urately pinpoint the fruit¡¯s location, it would have been very troublesome.


    ¡°This thing finally stopped moving! I think it¡¯s back to a tree again,¡± said Xiang with a smile when he saw that Long Chen had sessfully emerged.


    Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°I have retrieved the Red Fire Tree Fruit. I wonder how Yan¡¯er and the others are doing. I¡¯ll go check in Heavenly Wood City, then leave to search for a ce where you can consume the fruit in peace. The Red Fire Tree Fruit contains powerful heat; it¡¯s much more powerful than the other fire-type treasures you have consumed until now. I think it could even take you to the Emperor-tier.¡±


    Xiang nodded.


    They did not chat anymore. After Long Chen exited from the hole that Xiang had made, they went towards Heavenly Wood City. The ancient tree had moved a lot, so it had deviated from its original location. Beneath the tree, the ground was an utter mess. If there had been many people beneath the tree, this could have been a terrible tragedy.


    Due to the mes, burnt wood was scattered everywhere, and many ancient trees were still burning. Arge portion of the Wood District had been destroyed in such a short time.Thankfully, there were few people around the ancient tree; most were in Heavenly Wood City.


    As for the city, it contained many experts, including more than ten people at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. With their defenses, the fire would take a while to kill them.


    The mes that were wrapped around Heavenly Wood City were gone, and a burnt smell filled the air. Without the Red Fire Tree¡¯s obstruction, Long Chen could quickly rush into the ruined city. He quickly found the residents using the Soul Swallowing Gaze¡¯s third stage, Sight.


    The remaining people had all gathered in the center of Heavenly Wood City. Bai Lan and Lei Ji were also there. When Long Chen saw that many people were still alive, his tightened nerves finally rxed a little.


    He was currently thinking about something else, and before he ascended to Heavenly Wood City, he had Xiang enter the Primordial Realm. Xiang¡¯s mind waspletely upied by the Red Fire Tree Fruit anyway. However, Long Chen was wondering if anyone had seen him, as the Sun Devouring Wolf was gigantic.


    The people in Heavenly Wood City should not have seen him, but there may have been people hiding in the shadows outside of the tree. If they saw Xiang and the news got out, they would connect Long Chen and the death or disappearance of Wu Guangyu.


    Therefore, whether anyone knew or not, Long Chen decided to leave.


    The Soul Swallowing Gaze allowed him to see that the two people he cared about, Suxue and Suyan, were unharmed. He sighed again in relief. However, the number of cultivators in Heavenly Wood City had decreased. The Thunder and Demon ns had likely suffered great losses.


    They likely didn''t even know what had happened.


    After Bai Lan¡¯s exnation, they finally did.


    Long Chen approached. When they saw him, Bai Lan and Lei Ji hurriedly called him over. Their original n was to save the survivors, but then the tree had stopped moving and even returned to normal. They did not know why.


    Suxue and Suyan¡¯s eyes were filled with tears.


    ¡°Long Chen, you and the demonic wolf ¡­¡± Bai Lan started.


    But Long Chen gave him a look and said, ¡°I dealt with the problem alone. However, in case of other unforeseen circumstances, I advise you not to remain in Heavenly Wood City.¡±


    When Bai Lan saw Long Chen¡¯splicated expression, he knew that Long Chen had more to say. Understanding the look, and seeing as the threat was removed, he nodded and said, ¡°Then there¡¯s no need to talk about anything else. We shall leave this ce. The Thunder and Demon ns have incurred great losses from this tragedy; we cannot afford to have another incident.¡±


    Under Bai Lan¡¯smand, everyone left Heavenly Wood City. They were stunned to see the craters below the city.


    ¡°The tree actually started moving, and it was aze too. If the patriarchs had note to save us, we would have been trapped in the fire and reduced to ashes ¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah. What the hell happened? How could such a bizarre thing happen?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how scary the Ancient Graveyard is. Even the legendary Heavenly Wood City was destroyed just like that ¡­¡±


    Everyone discussed as they left.


    Long Chen, Bai Lan, and the others stood together.


    ¡°Long Chen, do you know what happened to the tree? Not even we had any idea how to deal with it; how did you do it?¡±


    If Long Chen attempted to exin the truth of the Red Fire Tree n, it would trigger too many other issues. Therefore, he briefly answered, ¡°It¡¯s like this. I¡¯ve told you guys about the demonic wolf who travels with me¡ªhe¡¯s also my brother. Wu Guangyu snatched him away, but after the Martial Youth Competition, I snatched him back. He¡¯s more sensitive towards fire-type treasures, and some object caused this tree to transform this way. The demonic wolf found the object¡¯s location, and after I retrieved it, the tree stopped moving.¡±


    Long Chen did not say what it was and disyed no intention of showing them the item. Bai Lan and Lei Ji trusted him, so they did not ask further. They were smart and knew that Long Chen had retrieved it with his own effort. If they pestered him more, it would make them look desperate.


    Most of the time, they saw Long Chen as a friend too.


    ¡°That demonic wolf¡ªI saw it when the Divine n came. When did you ¡­¡±


    Long Chen said in a low voice to Bai Lan and Lei Ji, ¡°I didn¡¯t let you guys mention my wolf brother just now for a reason. Wait until we settle down in a safe ce, then I will exin in detail.¡±


    Long Chen was not in a hurry. Even if the Divine n found out that Xiang had been spotted here, they would need time to get here. This was enough time for Long Chen to exin.


    After Long Chen left, the five demons appeared in the original location of the tree. The five of them looked at each other.


    ¡°That brat took away the Red Fire Tree Fruit and even stored the demonic wolf. It¡¯s probably some Beast Soul Crystal, the kind humans use to temporarily keep their demonic beasts. That evil human! How dare he treat my fellow nsman as a pet!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I can tell that they have a great rtionship. They called themselves brothers, and the wolf voluntarily entered the fire. However, what shall we do now?¡±


    ¡°Should we go over and ask that human to hand the wolf over directly?¡± asked the Red Fire Tree n woman.


    ¡°Of course not. We can¡¯t show ourselves recklessly. Our objective is for these people to search for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure. If we appear prematurely, they will panic and won¡¯t dare enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm to take the stuff we want! If it wasn¡¯t for the Five Emperors setting those restrictions, we would have entered on our own a long time ago!¡± said Tian Kun from the wolf n.


    ¡°In that case, we shall observe for now and wait until the wolf emerges again. If it has reached the Emperor-tier, then it is rted to the Sun Devouring Wolf. The Ancient Graveyard is our livestock farm; how can anything escape us if they are in ournd?¡±


    The groupughed, and for a moment, the heavens shook from theirughter.


    The woman from the Red Fire Tree n did notugh.


    Next to her was a solemn man with a chilling, snake-like aura.


    ¡°Hong Ying, what are you looking at?¡± asked the man.


    Hong Ying was the woman from the Red Fire Tree n.


    ¡°I am looking at the teenage girl over there. I think we¡¯ve met before. Didn¡¯t we meet a teenage girl next to the ancient tree before? You said she was good-looking, then I pressed your Northern Ocean Talisman into her body ¡­ Doesn¡¯t the Northern Ocean Snake n¡¯s Northern Ocean Talisman increase the speed of aging?¡±


    The man¡¯s eyes lit up. His voice was filled with suppressed excitement as he cried, ¡°Are you saying that the girl was hit with the Northern Ocean Talisman but didn¡¯t die? That she is likely to have an immortal body type? And can be the Northern Ocean Snake n¡¯s Lady Saint?¡±


    ¡°I was thinking the same, but this is the tiny Ten Thousand Nations Territory. How could there be a person with an immortal body type here? We encountered a wolf resembling the Sun Devouring Wolf and a person with an immortal body type on the same day. We aren¡¯t that lucky, are we?¡± Hong Ying asked, puzzled.


    The man chuckled lowly and said, ¡°No matter what, I must take her back for observation. If that really is the Sun Devouring Wolf, Tian Kun will surely be very rich. And if I can find the Northern Ocean Snake n a human Lady Saint, I will be rich too!¡±


    ¡°In your dreams, hehe,¡± chuckled Hong Ying.


    But she did not intend to stop him.


    ¡°Since we can¡¯t expose ourselves, I¡¯ll take the girl away when the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure is about to be unlocked. There are still five more months before we leave; I don¡¯t want to serve a human for that long.¡±

 Chapter 845: Demon Emperor Zi Xue

    The Demon and Thunder ns found a rtively t patch of forest in the Wood District. After clearing thend a bit, they gradually built a temporary shelter. There were a total of several hundred people from two ns, and this was where they would live for five months. Heavenly Wood City had been destroyed, so they had no choice but toe here.


    With Bai Lan and Lei Ji guarding this ce, nothing was expected to happen. Setting up camp had taken quite some time, and Long Chen estimated that if someone had seen Xiang on that day, the news had likely traveled to Wu Lian and the other Divine n experts.


    Therefore, he decided to leave for a while and reappear in five months. This was meant to not only keep him safe, but also to avoid causing trouble for the Demon n. If he stayed here and Wu Lian decided to be aggressive, innocent people could get hurt. Bai Lan would surely protect him, but two masters fighting here was a lose-lose situation for everyone present.


    Once Bai Lan and everyone else settled down, Long Chen called Bai Lan and Lei Ji into an elegantly built wooden house. He told them what happened before he went to Tianyi Water City.


    ¡°What?!¡± Bai Lan and Lei Ji were shocked. Although Wu Guangyu had lost to Long Chen once, he still had a famous reputation. Anything that happened to a figure like that would surely rock the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He was a powerful cultivator of the younger generation who controlled the future of the Divine n and was a taboo topic amongst the other ns. Yet Long Chen had killed Wu Guangyu just like that. This was shocking news to them.


    Long Chen had be powerful enough to kill a strong foe like Wu Guangyu and remain unharmed. Bai Lan and Lei Ji had no choice but to stare at him in shock.


    ¡°When I killed him, there was no one around who witnessed it. However, Xiang came out when we were dealing with the ancient tree, so it is possible that someone saw him. That is why I want to move. I¡¯lle meet you guys when the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm opens.¡±


    Bai Lan furrowed his brows and said, ¡°With the way you''re taking, you¡¯ve already made your decision, right?¡±


    Long Chen replied, ¡°If I don¡¯t ¡­ The Divine n, especially their matriarch, Wu Lian, mighte here. If they see me here, they¡¯ll likely cause a lot of trouble for you guys. I want to find a ce to cultivate in private. It¡¯ll be the same.¡±Bai Lan and Lei Ji saw that Long Chen had made his decision, and they understood his point. Long Chen was right. Wu Lian had lost her son, and if there was a slight possibility that it was Long Chen¡¯s doing, she would not let him go easily.


    And so, Bai Lan said, ¡°It¡¯s time, then. Before you leave, say your goodbyes to Yan¡¯er. She¡¯s been very distracted these past few days. I don¡¯t know what she¡¯s thinking about.¡±


    <em>Suyan?</em>


    Long Chen nodded. There was nothing much to say between the men anyway, so Long Chen bade them farewell and searched for Suyan¡¯s room. He knew that she was inside, and after he knocked gently, the beautiful young girl quickly opened the door. When she saw that it was Long Chen, she looked pleasantly surprised, but it quickly withered into sorrow when she asked, ¡°Big Brother, why are you here?¡±


    ¡°Let me in first,¡± said Long Chen with a smile.


    The girl looked like she had something on her mind.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Suyan gently opened the door. The small room had just been prepared for her. It was very neatly arranged and suitable for cultivation.


    After entering, Long Chen looked down at her and said, ¡°Your father said you seemed to be unhappy these days, like you¡¯re thinking about something. Is it rted to me?¡±


    Suyan wanted to say something, but she stopped herself. She then shook her head with a bitter expression.


    ¡°Tell me what it is. Don¡¯t be like this. Just tell me what¡¯s on your mind, or I¡¯m not talking to you again,¡± threatened Long Chen. This was the most effective method when dealing with this young girl.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Suyan¡¯s eyes widened, and she said hurriedly, ¡°Don¡¯t say that, Big Brother.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s on your mind, then?¡±


    ¡°I ¡­¡± Suyan hung her head and said, ¡°For the past few days, I keep feeling as if someone is secretly watching me. I don¡¯t know why. Maybe I¡¯m mistaken.¡±


    ¡°Someone is watching you?¡± Long Chen froze. He used his Soul Swallowing Gaze to scan the area within five hundred meters. There were no suspicious life forms within his range.


    Long Chen was here to bid her farewell, and as for what she had said, she was likely overthinking. Long Chen smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it, Yan¡¯er. I came here today to tell you something.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Suyan asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to be leaving for five months to cultivate in secret. I will only emerge after five months,¡± said Long Chen solemnly.


    ¡°What?!¡± Suyan looked sad. ¡°So, I won¡¯t see you again?¡± she asked anxiously.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll be back in five months. When I¡¯m back, I will surelye meet you.¡± Long Chen knew that his shadow was still in the young girl¡¯s heart. She was still young. Once she was a little older and had her own, new life, she would likely forget about him.


    He would do his best to see her in five months, but he was not sure if they would meet again after that.


    ¡°Alright, pinkie promise!¡± Suyan said, stretching her little finger.


    ¡°Mhm.¡± Long Chen chuckled and made a pinkie promise cooperatively.


    ¡°Alright! Don¡¯t you lie to me!¡± After the promise, Suyan bit her lip and finally smiled.


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Looking at the girl, Long Chen was reminded of his younger cousin, Yang Lingqing. But Yang Lingqing was much older now.


    <em>I wonder how she¡¯s doing since she went to the Royal Territories. Li Xuanji said she had the Supreme Yin Devil Body. I wonder how strong it is.</em>


    With these questions on his mind, Long Chen bade Suyan farewell and left quietly. As for Suxue, Long Chen did not bid her farewell. It was not forever anyway. Once he reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and used the Golden-Eyed Water Beast¡¯s demonic core to sessfully cultivate the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal, he would return.


    This time, he was heading to the Metal District.


    The Metal District was both the most dangerous and the safest ce to Long Chen. That was the Divine and Wind ns¡¯ territory, and they were likely actively searching for Wu Guangyu now. However, Long Chen was not afraid of them. He had the Seven Star Body, so he was not afraid of the Metal Devouring Winds. He had the Profound Golden Soul, which allowed him to burrow deep into the metal ground. With such deep ground and a vast area, how could Wu Lian and the others find him?


    With Xiang and Little Cat by his side, Long Chen quietly arrived in the Metal District. He found a ce, then burrowed deep underground.


    What he did not know was that three ck-robed people were watching him from above. They could clearly see him through theyers of ground.


    ¡°The Ancient Graveyard is also part of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory¡¯s ground is so terribly weak that even someone as weak as him can directly burrow underground. Even we can¡¯t burrow the hard ground of the Royal Territories, right?¡± One of the men scoffed.


    ¡°The Ten Thousand Nations Territory and the Royal Territories are different worlds. The humans of the Royal Territories are several levels superior to the humans of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Humans have always been divided into first-ss and second-ss humans. The humans of the Swordsoul Territory and True Martial Territory are first-ss humans. The humans outside of the Royal Territories in regions simr to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory are also on the same level as the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. They¡¯re all second-ss humans. It isughable that after tens of thousands of years, the Ten Thousand Nations Territory has only produced five Divine Martial Realm cultivators.¡±


    ¡°Stop mocking them. We have been here for all these years because of the damned Five Emperors¡¯ treasure. We searched through all sources of evidence to postte that there was an eighty-percent chance that the Five Emperors had something like that. If it wasn¡¯t for this conclusion, would we have abandoned the exciting world of the Deste Royal Territory to stay in this damn ce?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about these things. If we identally lured some Demon God or human Divine Martial Realm master out, all of this would have been for naught. Keep a low profile. Even after we get this thing, it¡¯s best we don¡¯t show ourselves for five hundred years.¡±


    After this reminder, the three of them nodded. The legendary treasure was very important to them.


    If not, they would not have orchestrated these games so many times.


    The man from the wolf n named Tian Kun was there too. He said, ¡°Hong Ying and Xuan Feng have gone to observe whether that girl has an immortal body type. With their tempers, if they discover that the girl isn¡¯t immortal, they¡¯ll probably kill her.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. They know their limits. Although the Northern Ocean Snake n requires a human girl with the immortal body type, they haven¡¯t found one after so many years. That man who calls himself the Demon n¡¯s patriarch is a key person in our n. We must not disturb him for the moment. Once he enters the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, we can take that girl away.¡±


    The other two nodded.


    Then they turned around. One of them smiled knowingly and said, ¡°That brat Zi Xue is finally back. He got the attention he wanted this time, pretending to be the Five Emperors¡¯ mount.¡±


    ¡°Damn it!¡± A ck-robed man appeared near them, cursing profusely. ¡°The space here is too weak! I only tried to travel at top speed, but the space warped!¡±


    Then he looked at the other three and said, ¡°It was all nonsense. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that the thing might be with them, I, Demon Emperor Zi Xue, would not be here in this obscure ce! Screw the Five Emperors. Right, where are Hong Ying and Xuan Feng? What are you guys doing?¡±


    One of them told him what had happened.


    ¡°The Taboo Wolf? You must be kidding. I¡¯ll go see for myself.¡±

 Chapter 846: Ninth Earthly Martial Stage

    ¡°Don¡¯t. That brat can also enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. I think he has something in his palm that allows him to fuse the five energies. He might be rted to the Five Emperors, so don¡¯t be hasty for now. Everything here belongs to us. We can just wait until they dig out the treasure of the Five Emperors ¡­¡±


    Long Chen never would¡¯ve guessed that he was being targeted by them.


    Among the three of them, Little Cat had already lost his strength and was now in spirit form. He couldn¡¯t exhibit his strength even with the Dream Demon¡¯s body.


    Mo Xiang was sensitive to fire energy, but his sensitivity towards everything else was worse than Long Chen''s.


    The Demons that came from the Three Royal Territories were monstrously strong. Even the Purple-Blooded Jiao was a the Category Nine Emperor-tier. The other six were roughly equal in strength.


    ¡°That Purple-Blooded Jiao¡­ It should be at the Category Nine Emperor-tier. I wonder if it''s as strong as Xiao Xi in the past once it transforms into its human form?¡±


    Long Chen had almost zero knowledge about the Three Royal Territories.


    He was only certain that there were a lot of experts at the Heavenly Martial Realm, and maybe quite a few at the Divine Martial Realm. The Swordsoul Territory was one of the threergest territories. Ling Xi, who was part of the Swordsoul Pce, likely had a lot of Divine Martial Realm experts around her.


    ¡°The Divine Martial Realm is so far away. I¡¯m only at the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage and can¡¯t even reach the Heavenly Martial Realm yet. I have to work hard over the next five months to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. I¡¯m really curious as to what the Heavenly Martial Wall is.¡±Long Chen heard Bai Lan mention it once before. The Heavenly Martial Wall was the gap between the Earthly Martial Realm and the Heavenly Martial Realm. Only those who surpassed it could arrive at the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    Countless cultivators had been blocked by it before.


    But Long Chen was confident in himself because he had the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon. More importantly, he had the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant given to him by his father, Long Qinn.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant had only activated a few times, but every time it did, it had given Long Chen a lot of assistance.


    But Long Chen set these things aside for the moment because bing strong one step at a time was the most important factor. He set aside the Martial God Tombstone for now too. Even though the Martial God Tombstone could only help him get as far as the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, that was more than enough.


    Long Chen decided to focus on the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal first. Merging three different seals resulted in incredible destructive power. In order to increase said power further, he needed to add water energy into the mix as well. It would undoubtedly increase his strength further.


    In the Primordial Realm, Xiang had returned to his demonic beast form and consumed the Red Fire Tree Fruit. Since it came from the Three Royal Territories, Xiang was certain that it was much more valuable than the fire treasures that he had consumed thus far. He started refining it as soon as possible, but it would take him quite some time to fully refine it since the Red Fire Tree Fruit contained enough energy to sustain the ancient tree.


    It would take him a long time indeed ¡­


    Long Chen, on the other hand, took out the demonic core from the Golden-Eyed Water Beast. Long Chen had never seen the demonic core of a Category Nine King-tier demonic beast. It was roughly the size of a person¡¯s head. The half-translucent blue orb was surrounded by blue mist and looked ethereal.


    The blue mist created illusions of a blue lion shaped just like the Golden-Eyed Water Beast. Right now, it was roughly the size of a pet as it howled angrily. This was merely the imprint it had left on the demonic core.


    Long Chen needed it to guide the ck Emperor Seal to cultivate the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal.


    The energy contained in the demonic core was indeed sufficient for Long Chen to cultivate the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal. With the experience in cultivating the previous three seals and the assistance of his Seven Star body, Long Chen had no issues with cultivating the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal. Even though the energy generated from his palm was terrifying, he did it sessfully by merging the demonic core into his Martial Meridian. ?


    The ck Emperor Seal was the first seal that Long Chen had collected.


    ¡°The Five Emperor Seal is already very powerful. I wonder what kind of treasure the Five Emperors left behind?¡±


    It could be said that the treasure left behind by the Five Emperors was very important.


    The Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon had given Long Chen a lot of different techniques, but it had not granted him immediate strength. Long Chen still had to earn it on his own.


    ¡°My body is already quite strong, and I think I will get even more Inherited Blood essence soon. I¡¯ve already merged with a hundredth of it¡­ Will I get a tenth of it next time?¡±


    Long Chen was very excited for the day when he couldpletely merge the Inherited Blood Essence with his body.


    The full strength granted by the Inherited Blood Essence was undoubtedly much greater than what he had right now.


    A few dayster, hepleted his cultivation of the ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal. He suspected that the energy from merging four seals together wasparable to the strength of an intermediate Emperor-tier martial technique.


    If he could merge five seals together, the explosive energy would be equivalent to an advanced Emperor-tier martial technique.


    <em>My next goal is to find something filled with rich earth energy to cultivate the final seal. Then I need to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage and ess the advanced Emperor-tier martial techniques hidden in the Three Thousand Star Clusters.</em>


    Long Chen was certain that the techniques hidden within the Three Thousand Star Clusters were at the advanced Emperor-tier, simr to the Azure Lotus Sword Manual.


    He was currently holding onto both the Azure Lotus Sword and the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    But Long Chen paid no attention to the Azure Lotus Sword as he was satisfied with cultivating one of the techniques at the same rank. Since the Azure Lotus Sword was weaker than the Three Thousand Star Clusters, hepletely ignored it.


    <em>The Azure Lotus Sword is useless to me. I might as well give it to Suxue or Suyan since they have helped me a lot.</em>


    After making that decision, Long Chen set it aside and started looking into how he could reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Inside the Primordial Realm, Mo Xiang was still refining the Red Fire Tree Fruit. A profound transformation was urring. By the time he woke up, he would likely be an Emperor-tier demonic beast.


    Long Chen took out the Martial God Tombstone and ced it in the underground chamber. He looked at the ck light shimmering across the surface of the Martial God Tombstone. He was already very familiar with it and focused on the drawing of the Martial God Tombstone once he took it out. In his vision, everything else disappeared except for the shadow on the Martial God Tombstone.


    The shadowy figure started from the first stage of the Earthly Martial Fist and proceeded to the ninth stage, repeating every movement. Long Chen stared and copied everything it did.


    <em>The Three Martial Realms and the path of martial arts¡­</em> It was time for Long Chen toplete the Earthly Martial Realm. He was one step away from aplishing that.


    But it was also the hardest step.


    Long Chen had more or lesspleted the Earthly Martial Fist. Beyond it was the rare Heavenly Martial Fist. The Heavenly Martial Fist wasn¡¯t as widespread as the Earthly Martial Fist, but Long Chen knew that the manual for the Heavenly Martial Fist was seen as a treasure for each n that had been left behind by their ancestors. Many cultivators failed to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm because they didn¡¯t have the manual.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t have one at the moment, but he was certain that Bai Lan would give it to him if he asked.


    However, the Heavenly Martial Fist could be easily found in the Three Royal Territories.


    Since Long Chen was still a ways off from needing it, he focused on the final stage of the Earthly Martial Fist.


    Cultivating in the depths of the underground chamber, Long Chen focused on perfecting his senses to feel the power and pulse of the earth. He would use it to reinforce his body.


    A few dayster, Long Chen started to copy the shadow on the Martial God Tombstone to start his cultivation of the final stage of the Earthly Martial Fist.


    There were plenty of problems at first, but with Long Chen¡¯s continuous improvement and the Martial God Tombstone¡¯s guidance, he slowly perfected it. All he needed was time.


    And time did indeed pass. Long Chen immersed himself in cultivation. Little Cat did not bother him, and Xiang was in the middle of his own transformation. In Long Chen¡¯s world, there was only the shadowy figure that continued to show him the moves of the final stage of the Earthly Martial Fist.


    Two monthster, Long Chen finally seeded in crossing the gap and reaching the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. The dragon-shaped Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness started to be very solid and life-like. Long Chen was certain that it would undergo another round of transformation once he reached the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    The dragon-shaped Martial Soul appeared to be sentient as it floated above the Dragon Jade Pendant.


    The spiritual Qiing from the earth surged into Long Chen¡¯s body. He had finally reached the same cultivation level as Wu Guangyu¡ªthe Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    Long Chen stood up in the underground chamber.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 847: Three Thousand Star Cluster Spear Manual

    <em>I can now merge four Emperor Seals, and I¡¯m finally at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. Combined with my transformation that grants me ten times the amount of essence, my strength is currently on par with those at the First Heavenly Martial Stage like Feng Qing and Lei Ji. But the Heavenly Martial Realm is aplete transformation of the cultivator, and they have ess to domains. I might be able to fend off against them, but I doubt that I could defeat them, especially someone like Wu Lian, who¡¯s a Second Heavenly Martial Stage Sword Warrior.</em>


    Wu Lian was cold and distant. Except for her son, she cared about nothing else. Wu Guangyu was her most prided son, and Long Chen had killed him. Long Chen assumed that the entire Ancient Graveyard was in an uproar right now, and he dared not imagine what would happen if Wu Lian learned that the death of her son was rted to him.


    <em>She¡¯s still the strongest person in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory after all ¡­</em>


    There were billions of people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. She was indeed a frightening individual if she could be called the strongest.


    But Long Chen¡¯s achievement was also nothing to be scoffed at.


    He was able to reach his current level in just three years.


    Even the geniuses in the Three Royal Territories couldn¡¯t replicate that.


    After reaching the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, Long Chen decided to not go out just yet. Xiang was still sleeping, and Long Chen had a feeling that he would remain asleep for a very long time.


    ¡°I need to figure out how to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm. Also, I need to figure out the Three Thousand Star Clusters too!¡±Long Chen believed that he could crack the mystery of the Three Thousand Star Clusters if even Wu Guangyu could do so for the Azure Lotus Sword.


    He took out the Three Thousand Star Clusters and ced it in front of him.


    ¡°Swordsoul Territory ¡­ Sword Warriors ¡­ ording to Wu Guangyu, Sword Warriors are very sought-after in the Three Royal Territories. Then what is the Sword Path? How is it rted to the Martial Path?¡±


    Long Chen had been cultivating the Martial Path.


    ¡°If I¡¯m not a Sword Warrior and don¡¯t have an Armament Soul when I¡¯m born, how weak am Ipared to those that have always had it and can change it into a Sword Root when they reach the Heavenly Martial Realm?¡±


    Long Chen knew that Divine Weapons were the hallmark of a person¡¯s strength. His Three Thousand Star Clusters was proof of it since using it increased hisbat strength.


    He frowned when he thought that he could be at a disadvantage just because he didn¡¯t have an Armament Soul.


    Especially since Ling Xi was from the Swordsoul Pce. He was certain that everyone there used a Divine Weapon. How could Long Chen be weak in that aspect if he wanted to take her back?


    ¡°Little Cat, is there a way to grant me a Sword Root and then learn the Sword Path?¡±


    Little Cat was like an encyclopedia for Long Chen.


    Little Cat was taking azy nap in the Primordial Realm. Ever since he took over the Dream Demon¡¯s body, he needed a set amount of time to sleep every day. Whenever Long Chen wasn¡¯t talking to him, he was sleeping.


    He was woken up by Long Chen right now.


    ¡°Bastard! How dare you disturb my dreams! I will castrate you and let Ling Xi cry about it!¡±


    ¡°Try me.¡±


    Little Cat shuddered and said, ¡°Haha, I was just joking to lighten up the mood a bit. What do you need to know? I¡¯m feeling generous, so I will answer any question for you.¡±


    Long Chen rolled his eyes and asked, ¡°I¡¯m asking if there¡¯s a way for me to obtain a Sword Root so I can learn the Sword Path?¡±


    ¡°Sword Path? It would be beneficial if you followed that path, since you learn things fast. If you could reach the final stage of the Sword Path, you could multiply your strength by fifteen times! Combined with the techniques of your Dragon Soul Transformation, it would be easy for you to kill someone two stages above you!¡±


    ¡°Fifteen times?¡±


    Long Chen had only heard that his strength would increase by ten times, not fifteen. It seemed that Little Cat knew more about it than Wu Guangyu.


    ¡°So you¡¯re saying that I can get a Sword Root?¡±


    An Armament Soul was obtained the moment someone was born. They either had it or they didn''t, and Long Chen didn¡¯t have one.


    Little Cat rubbed his eyes sleepily. ¡°You could, but it¡¯s quite convoluted to get one. First, someone needs to find a rare Sword Soul Stone. Then, before they die, they need to peel off their own Sword Root and seal it in the Sword Soul Stone. That way, you can take that person¡¯s Sword Root by being given the Sword Soul Stone. But where are you going to find a Sword Soul Stone with a Sword Root sealed in it?¡±


    It was indeed veryplicated.


    But Long Chen took note of it.


    ¡°Still, it would be extremely beneficial if you could get one,¡± Little Cat said mysteriously.


    ¡°What kinds of benefits?¡±


    ¡°For example, if you inherited a Sword Root from someone else, their understanding of the Sword Path would be retained in it. When you use it, you could inherit their understanding and save a lot of time in cultivating the Sword Path!¡±


    Long Chen was shocked! If that was the case, a Sword Soul Stone was indeed valuable!


    He noted it down but didn¡¯t waste any time on it. Instead, he observed the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    ¡°If you had an Armament Soul, you could move it into the Three Thousand Star Clusters and use it to learn the secret techniques hidden inside of it. But since you don¡¯t, your only choice is to do it the old-fashioned way. You have to slowlyprehend it and imagine that there¡¯s nothing in your world but the Three Thousand Star Clusters. You might be able to learn the secret technique now since you are at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Long Chen decided to spend his days learning about the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    ¡°No need to thank me. I will go back to sleep now.¡±


    Little Cat stretched and slept promptly. He changed his surroundings into afortable, soft bed.


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Cluster¡­¡±


    It was regrettable that he didn¡¯t have an Armament Soul.


    But he did not give up. He followed his method of cultivating and immersed himself in the Three Thousand Star Clusters. He recalled how the Azure Lotus Sword looked like a child in Wu Guangyu¡¯s hands.


    That meant that the Divine Weapon had some sort of sentience to it. As long as Long Chen treated it right, it would treat him well too. While Long Chen had used his blood to make it recognize that he was the owner, he was not acknowledged by the weapon yet.


    So Long Chen had to earn its trust gradually.


    It was a big project. As Long Chen slowly built his link with the Three Thousand Star Clusters, time slowly passed. Several months flew by just like that, but Long Chen wasn¡¯t rmed by it. The stronger a cultivator was, the more time they had to spend cultivating. In the Three Royal Territories, it wasmon for everyone to shut themselves away to cultivate for a very long time.


    It was not umon for someone to spend a whole ten years or so in istion.


    Since Long Chen had reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, his understanding of the Three Thousand Star Clusters was showing good progress. He could now see the world inside the Three Thousand Star Clusters. It was a beautiful night sky filled with blue stars, and there was a figure wielding the Three Thousand Star Cluster, killing its enemies from every direction. The figure radiated intense power with every movement.


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was an unruly spear!


    The image shifted and the figure started spinning the Three Thousand Star Clusters, revealing a hypnotizing pattern.


    ¡°The Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual!¡±


    Long Chen finally learned the name of the Emperor-tier martial technique.


    The figure in the Three Thousand Star Clusters continued to cultivate without any breaks. Sometimes it moved fast, at other times it moved slowly. The changes drastically increased the difficulty ofprehending it.


    ¡°The Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual is an advanced Emperor-tier martial technique. Those who managed to cultivate it were mostly at the Heavenly Martial Stage, because they needed to understand Domains. The Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual cooperates well with domains to utilize the true strength of the weapon. I don¡¯t have any understanding of domains, so it will be hard for me to learn them!¡±


    But Long Chen had to admit that if he could learn it, his battle strength would increase drastically! In fact, the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual was much stronger than the fusion of the Five Emperor Seals.


    Long Chen did not give up, since he was already at this step. He could¡¯ve chosen the simpler Azure Lotus Sword Manual, but he refused to give up like that.


    ¡°But what is a domain?¡± Long Chen was confused.


    It was important for him to learn what a domain was, because only then could he cultivate the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual.


    He could learn about the Heavenly Martial Realm and the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual at the same time since they were rted in some way. That way, he could get stronger faster.


    Five months shed by.


    Since he didn¡¯t have the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual, Long Chen had not reached the Heavenly Martial Realm. He also didn¡¯t make much progress on the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual. But he knew that he only needed a chance to progress his cultivation on both fronts.


    He had a feeling that his chance woulde from the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.


    Long Chen calcted that it was almost time for the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm to open. He stopped cultivating and returned to the surface.


    At the same time, Xiang had reached the Emperor-tier.


    He had woken up a month ago.


    Demonic beasts don¡¯t have to cultivate to be stronger; he relied solely on his physical body and Demonic Qi.


    ¡°I can finally use all of the Nine Demon Ancestral Fire within my body after! Big Brother, no one in the Ancient Graveyard can beat us now.¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    Long Chen knew that the demon race members from the Three Royal Territories were exceedingly strong.

 Chapter 848: Return

    Long Chen clearly remembered the location of the Thunder and Demon ns. Unless something unexpected had happened, they would still be there.


    However, Long Chen used Sight the moment he came out to avoid encountering others. He had no idea whether the Divine n was searching for him or not.


    Still, he wasn¡¯t that worried.


    Except for Wu Lian, no one in this ce could threaten him.


    Even Feng Qing couldn¡¯t beat him now.


    He followed the path and soon reached where the Demon and Thunder ns were staying. They were living in the forest beside where Heavenly Wood City once was. They had turned it into a safe space, and many martial artists were asking for protection there. It wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to say that they had turned it into a city.


    The order that was once present in Heavenly Wood City had returned.


    This time, Long Chen realized that a lot of people had died in the Ancient Graveyard. There were very few people left.


    Except for the Nine ns, most of the other cultivators had died for various treasures. Four of the Seven Lords¡¯ Inheritances had been taken: the White Lotus Fairy, the Azure Lotus Lord, the Divine Demon Lord, and the Seven Star Lord¡¯s inheritances. Only three more remained unopened. The Ancient Graveyard was a battlefield left behind tens of thousands of years ago, so there were many treasures to be found here. Many people killed each other for spiritual herbs, Divine Weapons, and martial techniques.Not everyone was like Long Chen, who could ignore the color of the Ancient Token. Many of them killed each other to turn their Ancient Tokens golden.


    That was why a lot of people had lost their lives.


    ¡°This must be the trick of the demon race. They want us to kill each other. Every time the Ancient Graveyard opens up, many of the talented people from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory kill each other.¡±


    Long Chen revealed a hateful gaze when he thought about this.


    He hated the thought of other people controlling his life. His hatred for the six mysterious demons grew after knowing that they controlled the lives of everyone in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    ¡°Big Brother, does it mean that their goal is the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure? Did they release the Five Emperor Keys because they want to use us to obtain it?¡±


    ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Long Chen answered Xiang¡¯s question as they made their way back.


    Xiang¡¯s body radiated an incredible pressure, giving off the impression that he was an ice-cold vortex.


    After reaching the Emperor-tier, he could finally disy some of his strength even when he was in human form. Xiang was happy that he could fight in his human form right now, even though it was still significantly weaker than fighting in his demonic beast form.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid?¡± Xiang was nervous.


    Long Chen chuckled and shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s already a miracle that I managed to reach this point. I can only continue walking forward now. They are just stronger cultivators; there¡¯s nothing to be afraid of.¡± ?


    Even though he had spoken lightly, Xiang noticed that Long Chen was actually very wary of them.


    Soon, they arrived at the settlement of the Thunder and Demon ns. Thankfully, everyone was still there and nothing had happened, thanks to Bai Lan and Lei Ji guarding the ce.


    Long Chen still couldn¡¯t believe that no one had suspected him of killing Wu Guangyu even though five months had passed.


    He made no effort to hide it since the opening of the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm was right around the corner. Bai Lan and the others were waiting for him.


    As he had expected, Long Chen had just appeared near the perimeter when someone ran into the settlement to make a report. One of the Sect Elders greeted Long Chen. ¡°Long Chen, you are finally back. The Patriarch and the Thunder n¡¯s Patriarch have been waiting for you.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and followed him until they reached the temporary hall constructed by Bai Lan and the others. It was simple but still usable. There was only a month left before the Ancient Graveyard closed. Once the time arrived, they would all be able to return to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory and live peacefully.


    Long Chen saw many familiar faces in the hall. Bai Lan, Lei Ji, Suxue, and Suyan were all waiting for him.


    ¡°Big Brother!¡±


    Suyan ignored everyone else and pounced into Long Chen¡¯s chest when she saw him. Long Chen looked down at her. It had only been several months, but she had grown even further. She was starting to look more mature.


    Suyan was excited because she hadn¡¯t seen Long Chen in a long time. She rubbed her face into his chest as she cried.


    Long Chen had previously saved her life, so she liked him a lot.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, your father is right here. Why don¡¯t you hold back a bit?¡± Bai Lan smiled while he enjoyed the scene.


    Even though everyone thought Suxue was Long Chen¡¯s future wife, their engagement was actually fake. Bai Lan had orchestrated everything, so he only needed to provide a brief exnation once they were out of this ce. He had learned a bit about Long Chen¡¯s n from Suxue.


    The Three Royal Territories.


    That was thend that every youth from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory wished to go to.


    Suyan stepped away and looked at Long Chen shyly. ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯ve missed you!¡±


    It was almost impossible to think that someone as shy as her would say something like that.


    She had indeed missed Long Chen a lot.


    Long Chen gently patted her head. ¡°Yan¡¯er, be nice. I missed you too. I didn¡¯t break my promise, did I? I¡¯m here right now.¡±


    ¡°But you will be leaving soon.¡±


    Suyan was disappointed because she didn¡¯t want him to leave.


    Now it was time for Long Chen to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm with Bai Lan and the others.


    Bai Lan had no choice but to ask Suyan to return to her seat. ¡°The candidacy to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm is something your big brother earned after a huge ordeal. He must go at all costs. You cannot just think about ying. You reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage long before Long Chen, but now he¡¯s already at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, while you haven¡¯t improved yet.¡±


    Suyan had indeed reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage before Long Chen did.


    ¡°I know ¡­¡±


    She felt wronged and her eyes turned red. She looked to Long Chen for help.


    ¡°Father.¡±


    Just then, a beautifuldy exuding a bewitching fragrance interrupted them. It was Suxue. ¡°Ten people are entering the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. Everyone except for Long Chen will be at the Heavenly Martial Realm. Also, the Wind n and the Divine n are aiming to kill Long Chen. It will be dangerous for him ¡­¡±


    She was a cautious person and had already considered all the possible dangers.


    Long Chen knew what she wanted to say. ¡°So, did they find out that I killed Wu Guangyu?¡±


    Bai Lan nodded. ¡°Yes. When the Ancient Tree transformed into that monster, someone saw you with your pet. I suppose that the person standing beside you is that wolf?¡±


    Mo Xiang was indeed standing beside Long Chen.


    ¡°This is my sworn brother, Mo Xiang.¡±


    Long Chen did not me them for calling Xiang his pet, since they didn¡¯t know better, but it was ufortable for Xiang to be seen as Long Chen¡¯s pet, so he had to correct them.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Bai Lan saw how serious Long Chen was and apologized.


    Even though he didn¡¯t know why Long Chen would treat a demonic beast so well, he still etched it into his heart that the demonic beast was Long Chen¡¯s sworn brother.


    He then continued, ¡°Just a few days after you left, Wu Lian and Feng Qing came here with their troops to look for you.¡±


    Long Chen frowned. It was exactly as he had feared. ¡°And then what happened?¡±


    ¡°Nothing much. I fought against her, but there was nothing she could do when she learned that you weren¡¯t here. She left, but before she did, she spread her people out like a web. Thankfully, you hid well. We were worried because we thought you were caught by them. But it seems that our worries were unwarranted.¡±


    Bai Lan made it sound easy, but Long Chen knew how difficult it must¡¯ve been. He was the one to apologize this time. ¡°Thank you, Patriarch Bai. I will be sure to repay the favor.¡±


    Bai Lan chuckled. ¡°No need. You made the Demon n the winner of the Nine n Martial Youth Competition, which was an incredible feat to begin with. But I do need to ask you something. I know you¡¯ve killed Wu Guangyu, but what about Feng Zhilin? She disappeared too. Did you kill her too? They told me that both of them disappeared on the same night and left no traces behind.¡±


    ¡°Feng Zhilin?¡± Long Chen frowned and recalled the arrogant woman. ¡°I didn¡¯t kill her. Did she go missing?¡±


    Bai Lan nodded. ¡°Then that¡¯s strange. You didn¡¯t kill her, so why is she missing?¡±


    Both Long Chen and Bai Lan thought about the people who hade from the Three Royal Territories. The only difference was that Bai Lan still thought that they were benevolent beings that wanted to protect them.


    ¡°Father, I¡¯m talking about Long Chen¡¯s safety. What are you talking about?¡± Suxue interrupted them again.


    She was worried that Long Chen would die in the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm with so many strong people inside.


    Long Chen looked at her and exined, ¡°I¡¯ve reached the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. I can deal with someone at the First Heavenly Martial Stage, so I will be fine.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Lei Ji was interested this time. Long Chen had reached the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage by training in Lei Ji¡¯s domain in the past.

 Chapter 849: Heavenly Master Fist Manual

    Lei Ji chuckled. ¡°I can testify and say that Long Chen is indeed very strong. I still don¡¯t know how he avoided Wu Guangyu¡¯s Azure Lotus Sword Manual when they fought.¡±


    Suxue rxed a little when even Lei Ji said that. She was just worried that Long Chen would be in danger.


    ¡°I will protect him if Wu Lian attacks him.¡±


    Bai Lan''s words were as good as gold since he always kept his promises.


    Long Chen never had much to do with the Demon n and the Thunder n to begin with, but because he had saved Suyan, Bai Lan had treated him well to the point that he fought against the Divine n for Long Chen¡¯s sake. Long Chen would never forget to repay Bai Lan for all he had done.


    With Bai Lan¡¯s help, Long Chen and the rest would depart tomorrow to the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    That night, Long Chen was sitting on a tree with Xiang by his side when Bai Lan approached them.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, young man? What are you thinking of?¡±


    Long Chen had been thinking about his time with Ling Xi.He usually thought of her when he cultivated.


    ¡°Nothing. I was just thinking about how to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm.¡±


    Long Chen chose to change the subject to cultivation.


    ¡°Then you¡¯ve asked the right person. Something very important is required to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm. That is ¡­¡±


    Bai Lan took out a scroll from his Storage Ring. He opened the scroll, and it was filled with pictures. Every picture had a lot of text written beneath it.


    ¡°This is the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual, but it¡¯s an iplete one that only has the first three stages. I fear that this is the mostplete version of the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. If you want to be stronger beyond that, then there¡¯s only one ce left to go.¡±


    Long Chen finished Bai Lan¡¯s sentence. ¡°The Three Royal Territories.¡±


    Bai Lan smiled. ¡°Looks like you are smart. This is yours now. Unfortunately, I don¡¯t know how to get there, so you have to find out on your own.¡±


    Long Chen did not reject the gift, because he needed the manual.


    He took the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual and gave something back in return. He had no use for it and had long decided to give it to the Demon n.


    It was the Azure Lotus Sword.


    Bai Lan knew what Long Chen meant and was conflicted. ¡°The Azure Lotus Sword is too precious. I¡¯ve only helped you on a whim a couple of times. I cannot keep it.¡±


    Long Chen smiled. ¡°I didn¡¯t reject you, yet you are rejecting me? I have the Three Thousand Star Clusters. To me, the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual is more important than the Azure Lotus Sword. We will most likely part ways soon, so I wanted to give the Azure Lotus Sword to the Demon n as a show of gratitude. You can give it to either Suxue or Suyan. It¡¯s your choice.¡±


    Long Chen ced the sword firmly into Bai Lan¡¯s hands.


    Bai Lan was embarrassed. He never thought Long Chen would give him something so precious in exchange for the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual. Back in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, because of his position, he had always been the one who rewarded others. It was never the other way around. He didn¡¯t feelfortable with this ¡­


    ¡°Damn. I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re making me feel embarrassed here.¡±


    Bai Lan smiled as he looked at the Azure Lotus Sword. ¡°I should give it to Xue¡¯er for now since Yan¡¯er is still too young. Yan¡¯er isn¡¯t very ambitious, and her older sister is more responsible when ites to the matters of family and the n. I doubt either of them would object to me giving the sword to Xue¡¯er.¡±


    Long Chen had the same thought too.


    He was certain that Suyan wouldn¡¯t mind not having the Azure Lotus Sword.


    After he put the Azure Lotus Sword away, Bai Lan said, ¡°We will depart tomorrow. Go ahead and try to research the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual on your own for now.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. When Bai Lan left, he started reading the manual.


    It waspletely different from the Earthly Martial Fist Manual.


    The two of them worked in two different ways. The Earthly Martial Fist Manual channeled the power of the earth, while the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual channeled the power of the world itself. A cultivator¡¯s strength was limited. In order to be stronger, they had to control the power of the world to form a domain.


    Those below the Heavenly Martial Realm were easy to suppress with a domain. It was a force stronger than the Blood Devouring Domain, but that was because Long Chen wasn¡¯t strong enough yet.


    Though the domain of someone at the First Heavenly Martial Stage had limited effects on him.


    After studying it for a single night, Long Chen had improved a lot.


    Long Chen had been cultivating and studying the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual for the past three months. With the help of the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual, he started to learn even more on both sides.


    He only needed to spend time cultivating them now.


    But Long Chen didn¡¯t have time.


    When daybreak came, he would have to follow Bai Lan and the others to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm! There would be nothing but ughter in there.


    Long Chen stood up the moment he saw the light of dawn the next day.


    ¡°Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure! Here Ie!¡±


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji were already waiting for them.


    ¡°Big Brother, let me follow you into the Secret Realm.¡±


    Mo Xiang was excited to enter the ce.


    ¡°No.¡±


    Long Chen shook his head after giving it some thought.


    Mo Xiang was confused. ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Everyone there is too strong, and Wu Lian really wants to kill me. You can¡¯t do anything there, but you can, however, stay here and protect the Thunder and Demon ns.¡±


    ¡°Must I do that?¡±


    He had always listened to Long Chen.


    Long Chen was actually worried about something else, and that was the demon race. They were constantly hiding in the dark. He didn¡¯t know what they would do, but he was certain that their goal was the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure. It would be safer for Xiang to stay here instead.


    He and the others were far too weak to fight back if the demon race attacked them for the treasure.


    That would be the worst oue.


    ¡°Stay here. I will be back soon. There¡¯s only one month left. By then, we can find the method to enter the Three Royal Territories. I do not believe that we will fail!¡±


    But before they could, they had to obtain the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure!


    Little Cat had already told him that the treasure would be his greatest gift before entering the Three Royal Territories.


    Mo Xiang could only agree to Long Chen¡¯s demands this time.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t much stronger than the others in the secret realm, so he would have to rely on his luck.


    ¡°Sorry about this, Xiang. Last time when both me and Bai Lan were absent, something terrible happened to the Demon n and Thunder n. They are all my friends and I don¡¯t want them to die.¡±


    ¡°Alright then. Don¡¯t worry about me. I will protect all of them!¡± Mo Xiang smiled.


    Long Chen was stubborn and rarely changed his decision. Perhaps that was a good thing or he wouldn¡¯t have reached his current stage.


    The journey to the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm would be hisrgest test so far. Long Chen had prepared himself for death.


    He will fight to the death!


    Everyone from the Thunder n and Demon n bid the three of them farewell. Mo Xiang did not join them but instead stood beneath a tree while he sent them off.


    Suddenly, Mo Xiang felt someone was watching him.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡±


    He turned around but saw no one.


    ***


    After saying goodbye to the others, Bai Lan did not stop to rest. He quick;y brought them towards the Eternal Battlefield with one of the Five Emperor¡¯s Key in his possession.


    Except for the individuals with the highest authority, no one else knew how to open the Five Emperor¡¯s Treasure.


    Even the regr people from the Demon n didn¡¯t know Bai Lan was heading out to obtain the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure, except for the few Sect Elders.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure was only something that the Nine Great ns couldpete for. Long bearded guest wouldn¡¯t have the chance topete for it too if he wasn¡¯t at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. Even so, after he obtained the Yellow Emperor Key, he still had to relinquish one of the positions to enter the secret realm and let the Nine Great ns decide through the tournament.


    Long Chen wasted no time as he traveled. With Bai Lan and Lei Ji by his side, it was the best chance he had to research how to advance into the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    The path of cultivation had always been difficult.


    Long Chen wouldn¡¯t have grown so fast if it wasn¡¯t because of the Martial God Tombstone. He wouldn¡¯t have reached his stage so rapidly without it even with his elevatedprehension.


    He reached the peak of the Earthly Martial Realm from the Third Earthly Martial Stage within just a single year.


    This was something that took others tens of years.


    With the guidance of the two, Long Chen had an initial understanding of the Heavenly Martial Realm. He had once felt the strength of their Domains and learned something from it.


    While he was researching into the Heavenly Martial Realm, the three were closing in on the Eternal Battlefield. It had only been five months since Long Chen killed Wu Guangyu, and now everyone was still searching for him.


    Bai Lan warned him, ¡°Long Chen, be careful when you reach there. Wu Lian must¡¯ve gone crazy after she failed to find you for so many months. She knows that you will being to the Eternal Battlefield so be careful.¡±


    ¡°No worries.¡±


    Those two words showed how strong Long Chen¡¯s inner strength was.


    He wasn¡¯t insolent, but he had already expected it. It would be a thorny path for him but he would not give up yet.


    ¡°Good.¡±


    Bai Lan nodded with satisfaction when he looked at Long Chen approvingly. They soon reached the ruins in the Eternal Battlefield. Everyone else had been waiting there. Long Chen looked around and saw that both Feng Qing and Wu Lian were already waiting there.


    The Five Element Alliance held two keys so they could bring in four people. Except for the Gold n¡¯s patriarch, the Fire n, Water n, and Wood n¡¯s patriarch was already here. Only the Earth n¡¯s patriarch was absent.

 Chapter 850: White Lotus Sword

    With the addition of the Long-Bearded Guest, who was talking to Wu Lian, all ten of them were gathered.


    They were still far away when Long Chen felt Wu Lian¡¯s gaze. As expected of someone who was born a Sword Warrior and had a Sword Root, her gaze was like a sharp sword threatening to cut Long Chen.


    She was wearing a white dress and a white face veil. She had her hair tied in a ponytail and looked just like a sword-wielding fairy.


    Bai Lan and the others had justnded when the bloodlust and murderous aura surrounded them. Feng Qing and Wu Lian said nothing as they silently approached Long Chen. They had been waiting for this for a very long time.


    The four from the Five Elements Alliance were snickering. Bai Lan and Wu Lian were the two strongest individuals here, so the Five Element Alliance was more than happy to let them fight each other while they themselves reaped the reward.


    ¡°Careful,¡± whispered Bai Lan.


    Wu Lian''s icy re was a clear sign that there would be blood spilled today.


    They were just twenty meters away from each other when the wind blew past them. Wu Lian¡¯s long skirt floated slightly, revealing a hint of her jade-like legs. It was a wonder that she had maintained her youth even though she was hundreds of years old.


    Feng Qing, on the other hand, was visibly angry.¡°Long Chen, how dare you show your face here. You shall pay for taking Zhilin and Guangyu¡¯s lives.¡±


    His voice was trembling from anger.


    But to Bai Lan, Feng Qing was merely Wu Lian¡¯s dog. He ignored him and instead stared at Wulian. ¡°You bitch. You are using Long Chen of killing Wu Guangyu. Do you have proof?¡±


    Indeed. It was hard to pin the me on Long Chen based merely on the fact that he had been spotted with Mo Xiang.


    Feng Zhilin wasn¡¯t killed by Long Chen, and he didn¡¯t even know where she was. ¡°The wolf is my sworn brother, and Wu Guangyu was the one who took him away from me. Since I finally became strong enough to beat him, I took my brother back on my own ord, but Wu Guangyu¡¯s death is unrted to me. The Ancient Graveyard is a strange ce with powerful beasts, like the one hiding in Tianyi Lake. Who knows if beasts like those are hidden in other ces too?¡±


    Long Chen never once shied away from a challenge.


    But Wu Lian visibly didn¡¯t trust their words.


    She remained silent for a very long time before a white lotus appeared in her eyes. Sharp rays shone from her eyes, causing Long Chen to tremble a little. He felt his scalp going numb and his heart beating rapidly.


    He knew that Wu Lian wouldn¡¯t believe a single word he said.


    It was one thing if she said anything, but now she was so mad that she couldn¡¯t utter a single word.


    No matter how much Long Chen exined himself, it would be useless because Wu Lian was convinced that Long Chen had killed her son.


    In that case, there was no reason for Long Chen to hide it. Bai Lan was trying to think of a way out of this when Long Chen stood up against Wu Lian¡¯s pressure. He was using his essence to push back.


    ¡°I did kill Wu Guangyu, but I don¡¯t know where Feng Zhilin is.¡±


    Long Chen stared at them both before continuing, ¡°He¡¯s weaker than me, so he died by my hand. The strong eats the weak. This is a simple rule that everyone obeyed ever since they came to the Ancient Graveyard. He almost killed me when I first entered this ce, and I took revenge. This is a simple matter; you can only me his weakness. The Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm is opening soon. Will the two of you fight to the death here?¡± ??


    Long Chen was much younger than them, but he had actually managed to withstand their pressure and talked back.


    His eyes never wavered even once. He could talk to them with such conviction even though he was the one who killed Wu Guangyu. Long Chen was indeed very brave.


    He was the strongest youth in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and Wu Guangyu had lost to him.


    Wu Lian had always been proud of her son.


    But Long Chen had destroyed everything.


    If the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm wasn¡¯t about to open, she would¡¯ve attacked Bai Lan and Long Chen immediately. She wouldn¡¯t have stood still and said nothing.


    Bai Lan was impressed by Long Chen¡¯s performance. He and Wu Lian were even in strength, so he stopped ying chicken and said, ¡°In that case, all I will say is that you will have to go through me to get to Long Chen. I will protect him no matter what. You better think carefully, since the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure is going to be up for grabs soon. Don¡¯t let someone else pick it up for free. You should understand how important the treasure is.¡±


    Feng Qing frowned when he heard Bai Lan¡¯s words.


    He had also been thinking about that problem.


    If they fought now, Bai Lan and Lei Ji would be tough foes to defeat. If they fought here just because of Long Chen and were severely injured, the Five Elements Alliance would swoop in and attack all of them.


    ¡°Sister Wu, let¡¯s wait until the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm is open. I doubt that Bai Lan and the others will protect Long Chen when the treasure is right in front of their eyes.¡±


    Wu Lian remained silent.


    Everyone was still waiting for her decision, but she stood still like a statue. The longer she stood silently, the more unsure everyone was.


    <em>Ding!</em>


    A clear sound echoed in the air, and a snow-white sword appeared in Wu Lian¡¯s arms.


    It was the White Lotus Sword, the counterpart of the Azure Lotus Sword!


    Bai Lan and the others frowned when they saw it appear.


    ¡°You crazy woman.¡± Bai Lan and Lei Ji looked at each other. They knew that it was serious this time. It was very likely that Wu Lian would forfeit the treasure for the sake of killing Long Chen.


    Long Chen, on the other hand, looked at her sword.


    The snow-white sword appeared to have been absorbed into Wu Lian¡¯s hand. The way she held her sword was more scary than Wu Guangyu because the sword looked like an extension of her body. In fact, there was even essence exuding from the White Lotus Sword, as if it was connected to her veins. Her essence was circting inside the sword and formed its own cirction cycle.


    In a sense, she could unleash even more power from the White Lotus Sword.


    ¡°Sister Wu, the treasure is more important ¡­¡±


    When Feng Qing said that, the icy aura exuding from her body made him nervous.


    Bai Lan knew that there was nothing more to be said after seeing Wu Lian preparing to fight them. He told Long Chen to be careful before he walked forward. ¡°In that case, let¡¯s fight here and now. I think it will be interesting to decide the victor here.¡±


    Bai Lan had always been arrogant, and Wu Lian was the only person he was wary of. Still, that didn¡¯t mean he was afraid of her.


    To fight or not to fight?


    Everyone was looking at Wu Lian.


    Everyone would be talking about how emotional Wu Lian was if she fought here right now.


    While everyone was looking at them, Wu Lian suddenlyughed. Her voice somehow sounded like it came from the clouds.


    ¡°Who said I was going to fight?¡±


    She put the White Lotus Sword away.


    No one could tell what she was thinking. Everyone looked at each other in confusion.


    Long Chen was confused too. Even he did not know what Wu Lian was trying to do.


    Bai Lan said, ¡°In that case, let¡¯s enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm now.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Wu Lian stopped him. ¡°Everyone here is at the Heavenly Martial Realm. Long Chen is too weak, so how can he enter?¡±


    She was clearly targeting Long Chen.


    Long Chen was also arrogant, so heughed and said, ¡°What¡¯s your goal? Stop ying games and tell me what do you want me to do so I can enter the Secret Realm.¡±


    ¡°Easy. Fight against someone at the First Heavenly Martial Stage. You win, you get to enter. If you lose, that means you are not qualified to join us.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, there¡¯s no need to do this. Those with the keys can enter regardless.¡±


    Bai Lan knew that Wu Lian was trying to provoke Long Chen to destroy him once and for all. If Long Chen wasn¡¯t killed, he would at least be severely injured.


    Wu Lian would never stop hounding after Long Chen if she didn¡¯t do this.


    Long Chen shook his head. He couldn¡¯t embarrass himself here. He was a man, and he refused to take disrespect from anyone. Heughed and pointed at Feng Qing. ¡°Do you want that old bastard to test me, then? He isn¡¯t qualified to do so!¡±


    ¡°What did you say?!¡±


    Feng Qing was angered. It was clear that Long Chen looked down on him. He was a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator and also the patriarch of the Wind n, an individual who stood at the top of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. How could someone as young as Long Chen be this disrespectful to him?


    ¡°I said, you are just an old bastard. Do you have something toin about, old man?¡±


    ¡°You seek death!¡± Feng Qing waspletely enraged.


    Long Chen had not only called him an old bastard, but also an old man. Feng Qing was already fuming because Long Chen had killed both Wu Guangyu and Feng Zhilin. Now Long Chen was provoking him further.


    ¡°Fine, in that case, let us see if you have the strength to back it up. Feng Qing, attack!¡±


    Wu Lian stepped back, her voice filled with undefiable authority.


    ¡°Long Chen¡­¡± Bai Lan was worried.


    ¡°Wu Lian will not stop until she¡¯s convinced. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s just Feng Qing. I will win no matter what. He¡¯s far weaker than me!¡±


    Long Chen sounded arrogant as he taunted Feng Qing.


    Bai Lan saw that there was no way to stop this, so he just stepped back and gave them space.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 851: Three Thousand Seals

    ¡°The Wind n has thousands of years of history; they have very deep pockets too. Be careful. If you can¡¯t handle him, I will ignore everything else to save you. Go ahead with peace of mind. For Yan¡¯er and Xue¡¯er¡¯s sake, I won¡¯t let anything happen to you,¡± reminded Bai Lan.


    Long Chen took it to heart.


    He took a few steps forward, told Bai Lan and the others to stand back, then said to Feng Qing directly, ¡°Old man, get the hell over here and show me how much strength you have left. You haven¡¯t used up all your energy on women now, have you? Someone as old as you should just lie in bed!¡±


    There was nothing Feng Qing hated more than being called old.


    He did look quite old, but in terms of age, he was much younger than Bai Lan and Wu Lian.


    There was just a huge gap because he was one stage below them.


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death!¡±


    Previously, Feng Qing wanted to kill Long Chen in the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, but the annoying brat had humiliated him! This person had to die.


    A strong gust of wind blew around Feng Qing. Being part of the Wind n, they were able to control the wind.The manic wind howled.


    Under Long Chen and Feng Qing¡¯s instruction, the people on Wu Lian and Bai Lan¡¯s sides all backed some distance away. To prevent Wu Lian from attacking, Bai Lan constantly kept an eye on her.


    This was Long Chen¡¯s own idea.


    He did not utter any nonsense. Instead, he quickly showcased his might bypleting the Dragon Soul Transformation. Of course, to outsiders, that was just a Beast Soul Transformation.


    But no one had seen a Beast Soul Transformation that offered such an impressive power boost.


    Using the Dragon Soul Transformation, blood-red dragon scales covered his whole body, not leaving a single gap. A natural killing intent erupted from his body, creating a strong contrast against to Feng Qing¡¯s immortal elegance.


    Long Chen¡¯s aura was extremely cold.


    Feng Qing looked like an elegant immortal, but his anger had beenpletely triggered.


    ¡°Feng Qing, how can someone your age get triggered by a little brat? Don¡¯t let him affect your performance and don¡¯t you dare embarrass us,¡± Wu Lian said coldly behind Feng Qing.


    Her words snapped Feng Qingpletely awake!


    <em>This brat is so difficult to deal with! </em>Feng Qing was startled and calmed himself down. Emotional fluctuations were the devil. At his great age, he was surely familiar with this concept.


    His rage slowly disappeared and was reced with coldness.


    Feng Qing slowly levitated right in front of Long Chen¡¯s eyes. To Long Chen, it looked as if Feng Qing had merged with the space around him.


    <em>Is this the power of the Heavenly Martial Realm?</em>


    Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators were more suited for mid-air battles.


    This was especially true for Feng Qing. The endless sky was where he could soar.


    Long Chen was clearly inexperienced with aerial battles.


    ¡°Die!¡± Feng Qingughed and turned into a strong gust of wind, charging at Long Chen!


    The speed of a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator was terrifying!


    It was likely that Feng Qing was faster than cultivators on the same level, seeing as controlling the wind was his strength. He could travel faster than Long Chen¡¯s maximum speed, unless Blood Warp was used!


    ¡°Shifting Winds!¡±


    This was the Emperor-tier technique that Feng Qing used the moment the battle started. It was a bodybat technique, and just like the wind, Feng Qing shifted right before Long Chen¡¯s eyes at extreme speeds. He could not even see Feng Qing clearly!


    ¡°Thousand Seals!¡± <em>Whoosh! </em>Feng Qing rushed behind Long Chen and mmed him with the Thousand Seals!


    He had used two Emperor-tier techniques at the very beginning of the duel. This showed that he waspletely determined to kill Long Chen, and he would not waste even a second!


    If he slowed down, it could lead to many more problems!


    Long Chen was under a lot of pressure in the face of a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator¡¯s power. His eyes glinted coldly, then he sprang into action!


    He thrust the Three Thousand Star Clusters out, and rays of starlight shot out of the spear. A hundred rays of starlight collided with Feng Qing¡¯s Thousand Seals like swords!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was like a river of stars in the sky with shining lights flowing on its surface. The Thousand Seals were shapeless and invisible, making them very powerful!


    In terms of essence, Long Chen was almost equal to Feng Qing. The difference between them was that Long Chen was at the Earthly Martial Realm, while Feng Qing was at the Heavenly Martial Realm. This difference was asrge as the gap between heaven and earth.


    The biggest advantage of the Heavenly Martial Realm was the cultivator¡¯s control over his surrounding space, so he could exert great pressure on his opponent using his domain. When faced with a low-level cultivator, the pressure of a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator¡¯s domain was no small matter!


    Long Chen had previously used a spear technique from the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual. He had onlyprehended a bit of it, so he could only unleash a small attack. If he could use the whole advanced Emperor-tierbat techniquepletely, Feng Qing would surely be dead!


    The exchange between the Thousand Seals and Long Chen¡¯s half-formed Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual resulted in a draw!


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got?¡±


    Feng Qing chuckled coldly!


    ¡°Domain!¡±


    He had used his domain on Long Chen before. Long Chen was familiar with a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s domain, as he had experienced Lei Ji¡¯s domain countless times!


    Under the pressure of the domain, the movement of essence in his body and his physical movements were greatly affected!


    As expected, while Long Chen and Feng Qing fought, he felt the domain pressing on him!


    Long Chen could feel that the effectiveness of hisbat techniques had been greatly reduced. The movement of his hands slowed down, and Feng Qing¡¯s attack was about to swallow him whole!


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one with a domain?¡±


    Long Chen had something simr, which was the Blood Devouring Domain!


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the Blood Devouring Domain expanded instantly and enveloped both him and Feng Qing. Feng Qing¡¯s essence was immediately restricted, and the strength at his disposal decreased significantly!


    One domain slowed the foe¡¯s essence, the other suppressed the other party¡¯s essence!


    In conclusion, Long Chen¡¯s Blood Devouring Domain was slightly superior to a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s domain!


    Feng Qing¡¯s advantage had turned into a disadvantage!


    ¡°Is this the limit of your domain?¡± Feng Qing had long known about this move from Long Chen, so he had a defense ready.


    Manic winds churned and howled!


    Yellow sand blew everywhere!


    ¡°Reverse Flow!¡±


    Under Feng Qing¡¯s control, the domain exerting pressure on Long Chen from all directions suddenly became violently turbulent. Long Chen was like a small boat caught in ferocious waves!


    <em>I have indeed underestimated a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator¡¯s strength. It looks like when Lei Ji previously used his domain on me, he was not using his full strength.</em>


    Long Chen fell into deep thought. His expression was cold.


    Lei Ji saw him as family, so when he used his domain on Long Chen, he did it in a controlled manner. Obviously, he would never attack Long Chen as Feng Qing did!


    The violent domain disrupted Long Chen¡¯s attacks. Not only did it affect the movement of his essence, it also affected the paths and strength of Long Chen¡¯s starlight attack!


    ¡°Three Thousand Hand Seals!¡±


    While the Thousand Seals kept Long Chen upied, Feng Qingunched his fatal strike to press his advantage further. The Three Thousand Hand Seals technique was a more powerful version of the Thousand Seals!


    The Thousand Seals was an elementary Emperor-tier technique, while the Three Thousand Hand Seals was an intermediate Emperor-tier technique. This was also Feng Qing¡¯s most powerful move!


    In fact, this was the most powerful technique the Wind n had ess to!


    Feng Qing had used the turbulence of his domain to disrupt Long Chen. This was the perfect opportunity. Although Long Chen had imed that he wasn¡¯t behind Feng Zhilin¡¯s death, would Feng Qing ever believe it?


    The Three Thousand Hand Seals technique was not just three times stronger than the Thousand Seals.


    Behind Feng Qing, images of hand seals vibrated!


    ¡°Break!¡± He pushed the Three Thousand Hand Seals forward, and the attack ten times stronger than the Thousand Seals shot out!


    The space around them shook. Long Chen¡¯s vision was densely packed with terrifying hand seals, which trapped him as they flew in from all directions!


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Feng Qing grew excited at thest moment, like when a child received something he liked.


    The seals were about topletely drown Long Chen!


    Bai Lan and Lei Ji immediately lunged forward. They could not let Long Chen die. However, while Bai Lan was keeping an eye on Wu Lian, she was doing the same.


    ¡°Think you can intervene?¡± Wu Lian chuckled softly. Her clothes billowed as she lunged with her sword. A bright ray of white sword light shot in front of Bai Lan, blocking his path!


    Bai Lan¡¯s face fell because he had been slowed down significantly due to the white sword light. Long Chen was already bearing the brunt of the attack. Due to the pressure of Feng Qing¡¯s domain, he seemed to have reached his limit!


    But Bai Lan did not see any signs of a person facing defeat in Long Chen¡¯s gaze.


    So his worry lessened. Plus, Lei Ji was also there to save him!


    The Three Thousand Hand Seals were indeed powerful!


    This reminded Long Chen of his Emperor Seals. The Thousand Seals had lost to his Emperor Seals multiple times, the Three Thousand Hand Seals would be the same!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    He pushed his palms out, and radiated light with for different colors.


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!


    ¡°ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal!¡±


    Four Emperor Seals shot out at once, causing a loud explosion!


    The scarlet, golden, azure, and ck Emperor Sealsbined and continued flying towards the Three Thousand Hand Seals!


    This was Long Chen¡¯s first timebining four Emperor Seals, and he felt like he could hardly control it. Thebined power of the four seals surpassed the Three Thousand Hand Seals, reaching the peak of the intermediate Emperor-tier!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Emperor Seals collided with the Three Thousand Hand Seals!


    This was Long Chen¡¯s first time attempting such a powerful attack.


    Long Chen, despite being at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, was already strong enough to fight a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator.


    This meant that he had entered the highest level of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. There were no more than twenty Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators in the whole territory, and very few of them would refuse an important opportunity like going to the Ancient Graveyard!

 Chapter 852: Five Emperors’ Secret Realm

    No one expected Long Chen to erupt with this much power at the brink of defeat!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    He was thrown back by the gigantic st. The force of the quadruple Emperor Seals sessfully held Feng Qing¡¯s Three Thousand Hand Seals back, allowing Long Chen to retreat unharmed!


    Feng Qing did not manage to gain any advantage after this exchange. He had used his best technique too!


    By then, Long Chen had already retreated to Bai Lan¡¯s side, while Feng Qing had also been pushed back by the Emperor Seals to Wu Lian¡¯s side.


    This signified the end of the duel. It was a draw.


    This was shocking to everyone.


    ¡°How could this young man have improved so quickly?! He¡¯s only at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, yet he can fend off a Heavenly Martial Realm expert!¡±


    ¡°What an inhuman prodigy. I now understand why Wu Guangyu was defeated, even killed, by him ¡­¡±The Heavenly Martial Realm experts watching them started hushed discussions.


    This was a huge blow to Feng Qing. He had tried his best to suppress Long Chen using his domain, and he initially thought that the Three Thousand Hand Seals would at least heavily injure Long Chen, if not outright kill him. He had not expected the brat toe out unharmed.


    ¡°Again!¡± Feng Qing roared from humiliation and rage, charging forward once more.


    Behind him, Wu Lian said curtly, ¡°Leave it.¡± She had only uttered one sentence softly, but Feng Qing had no choice but to stop and stand respectfully behind the woman. No one knew what Wu Lian was thinking right now. Her white-lotus-like eyes were fixed on Long Chen. After a long time, she said, ¡°This teenager¡¯sbat abilities areparable to a Heavenly Martial Realm expert. He has the right to enter the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. I, Wu Lian, have noints about him entering.¡±


    Letting Feng Qing fight again would be aplete waste of time. If Long Chen could retreat unharmed once, then he could do it countless times. Therefore, Wu Lian did not drag this on any longer to try killing Long Chen here. However, she hadn¡¯t vented her anger yet and still wanted to kill him as soon as possible.


    Although she could not kill him now, she would have many chances after they entered the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    The Five Elements Alliance and the Long-Bearded Guest were all eyeing them to take advantage of this matter too. Fighting Bai Lan here would yield no benefits.


    After she spoke, Wu Lian walked towards Confounding City, passing the other people. The Five Elements Alliance members looked at each other, then huffed coldly and followed her. The Long-Bearded Guest, who worked alone, walked over to Long Chen and snickered. ¡°You¡¯re quite strong, brat. You even fended off Feng Qing. Look at that old man¡¯s face, tsk tsk ¡­¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, let¡¯s go.¡± Bai Lan did not seem to like the nosy Long-Bearded Guest very much. Then, he and Lei Ji went toward Confounding City together, leaving the Long-Bearded Guest behind. There was a sh of coldness in the old man¡¯s mischievous gaze.


    ¡°The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure is mine. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory is also mine ¡­¡± The Long-Bearded Guestughed coldly, then he followed them.


    The group of ten people went toward the center of Confounding City.


    Previously, the Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon had said that the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm would open on this day. There were five Emperor Keys, and each allowed two people to enter.


    Long Chen was relying on the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s extra slot.


    ¡°Long Chen, you will share a key with your Uncle Leiter. I will share with the Long-Bearded Guest, just in case he decides to pull something,¡± whispered Bai Lan as they approached the center of Confounding City.


    ¡°Is the Long-Bearded Guest a bad person?¡± asked Long Chen.


    To be honest, he had quite a good impression of the Long-Bearded Guest.


    ¡°There¡¯s no such thing as a good or bad person here. In front of the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, the only ones you can trust are Lei Ji and I. We¡¯ve been brothers for more than a hundred years,¡± Bai Lan said solemnly.


    Long Chen nodded.


    Indeed. Sometimes, there was a need to put your guard up against the people around you, or a tragedy could happen. The Bai family of Baiyang Town had taught him this memorable lesson. If it wasn¡¯t for the Bai family, he would not be here today.


    As the group moved along, Long Chen was back to the previous ce where he first saw the five-colored altar appear. That ce was still empty and the altar was not there. Perhaps it was not time yet.


    Other people did not know what was going on, so they stood separately around this ce, looking around.


    ¡°Lord Zi Xue said it would be today, and this ce. He said we would be able to unlock the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm using the Five Emperor Keys. So where is the entrance?¡±


    Bai Lan looked down, searching for the entrance.


    ¡°Yeah, where is it? Is it possible that we¡¯ve been tricked?¡± Lei Ji looked around in all directions.


    Everyone mulled over this issue, and after searching for some time, Bai Lan turned to ask, ¡°Long Chen, what do you think?¡±


    ¡°Maybe it isn¡¯t time yet. We shall see in two hours, at noon,¡± said Long Chen with a smile.


    He was thinking about the Prismatic Key.


    How were the Five Emperor Keys rted to the Prismatic Key? How was his Prismatic Key rted to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure?


    He could not figure out the answer.


    The Five Emperor Keys were all monochromatic, but the Prismatic Key had five colors. Did it contain some secret?


    <em>Would it be possible for me to unlock the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm with just one Prismatic Key?</em>


    Long Chen quickly denied this possibility, and he could not try it anyway. With everyone else present, who would let Long Chen enter alone?


    ¡°Makes sense.¡± Bai Lan nodded, then he waited patiently like Long Chen.


    Time passed quickly.


    As the group waited, the tension in the air grew thicker.


    The three major factions were present, with the addition of the Long-Bearded Guest. In front of the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, they were as friendly as fire and water.


    They wondered what treasure the Divine Martial Realm masters from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory¡¯s legends would leave behind.


    It did not matter what it was. Once they retrieved the treasure, they would be able to build the strongest faction in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory with time, uniting the whole territory. Maybe bing the next Divine Martial Realm master would no longer be a dream.


    Everyone yearned for the treasure.


    Very soon, noon arrived.


    Everyone¡¯s gazes were on the empty piece ofnd. The five-colored altar appeared once again. It was shining with five colors rotating around a core like a fan, each color taking up one-fifth. All five colors spun with a dream-like glow.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± said Bai Lan. Then he approached the five-colored altar. Very quickly, the ten of them stopped next to the altar.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°Take out your keys,¡± said Wu Lian. She took out an Emperor Key from her storage ring. Feng Qing quickly stood next to her, as if afraid she would abandon him.


    The other people all took out their Emperor Keys.


    Bai Lan ced his key in Lei Ji¡¯s hands, told him to be careful, then stood next to the Long-Bearded Guest. He then said with a smile, ¡°Brother Long-Beard, I¡¯ll be using the Yellow Emperor Key¡¯s slot.¡±


    ¡°Sure, sure. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s you or little Long Chen. It¡¯s all the same, all the same,¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest with a smile. His smile was strangely bright.


    All five Emperor Keys were gathered.


    ¡°Next, I guess we need to enter our respective sections. Step into the color matching the key in your hand,¡± someone said.


    Everyone understood.


    This was a critical moment, and no one knew what was going to happen. Therefore, it was unlikely for anyone to harm the others. None of them dared pull any tricks either, as it would be a death wish.


    After hearing the suggestion, they all looked at each other and then went up the altar. Long Chen followed Lei Ji and stepped into the azure section.


    Everyone stepped on the altar at almost the same time.


    Long Chen sensed two gentle rays of light enveloping him and Lei Jiing from the Azure Emperor Key. It was the same for the others. They were bathed in the Five Emperor Keys¡¯ light. Then he started to spin along with the altar until very soon, the five-colored light covered them all and the whole altar erupted with light. It spun faster and faster, then suddenly, it was as if it had flung them into another world.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    Long Chen heard wind howling in his ears, then his mind went momentarily nk. When he woke up, a chilling, deathly aura surrounded him.


    He sensed that he had already left the Dragon Continent in just a short moment, arriving in a new world. This was a small miniverse, the legendary Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    Before he even opened his eyes, he was sure that this was the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    Two people quickly flew to Long Chen¡¯s side. They were Bai Lan and Lei Ji. After arriving in the secret realm, they hurriedly huddled together with Long Chen to prevent idents.


    ¡°This is ¡­¡± Bai Lan and Lei Ji, as well as the others, all looked around them and drew in sharp breaths.


    The deathly Qi raised goosebumps all over Long Chen. He opened his eyes and looked around him, also drawing in a sharp breath.


    First, the sky. The sky waspletely gray, and the gray-ck cloudyer hung very low. It felt like it was just above their heads. The air was heavy, and there was not a single sound to be heard. Everything was so quiet that it was terrifying. Other than the sound of each other breathing, no one could hear a thing.


    Gray shadows twirled across thend.


    Gray gusts of howling wind blew past them, bringing with them the scent of bones and rotten flesh. When a chilling gust swept past them, they felt chills run up their spines.


    Suddenly, all eyes turned from the dark skies to thend before them!

 Chapter 853: Black Bone Tower

    Thend before them was vast and gray-white, just like the ocean. The grayness filled their eyes, but when they peered closer, they drew in a sharp breath. The vast patch of gray before them was a sea of white bones.


    Countless white bones formed the chilling sea before them.


    There were all types of bones, and many of them had rotted away; some even turned to powder with a gentle touch. Most of them were human bones, but many were also gigantic bones from demonic beasts.


    The vast sea of bones was just like a sea of blood. It brought them an unbelievable shock.


    ¡°This is an endless sea of bones! How could there be so many bones? How many people died ¡­¡±


    ¡°Is this really the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm? How did these people die? Who has the ability to kill them?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps these are the people who died during the war in the Middle Ages? There are so many demonic beasts too ¡­¡±


    Looking at this scene, even the famous figures of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory werepletely shocked. There were just so many bones! Even if there were this many helpless people for them to kill, they would die of exhaustion before they killed them all.


    They were surrounded by the vast sea of bones. Whenever they ced slightly more weight on the ground, the bones beneath their feet would turn to powder.<em>Crackle. Crackle.</em>


    It had been a long time since a human had been here. With just minor movements, many bones turned to powder that flew into the air.


    Everyone quickly levitated, swatting away the bone ashes.


    Long Chen, Bai Lan, and Lei Ji gathered. The atmosphere was strange. Perhaps because the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was within their reach, they quickly made themselves forget about the sea of bones and focused on searching for the treasure.


    The sea of bones was boundless.


    ¡°What do we do? Where do we go?¡± Lei Ji whispered to Bai Lan. Someone asked the same thing in the other factions.


    ¡°Look that way!¡± someone suddenly said, and everyone looked where he pointed. A ck shadow that stood tall between the sky and the ground appeared in front of them. It was quite far away, so they could not see what it was.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    It was possible that the ck shadow was the center of the sea of bones, and the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure would likely be there.


    After Bai Lan said that, everyone ran chaotically toward the ck shadow. They did not know if there were other dangers in the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm yet, so they did not run too fast. The people of the three main factions remained grouped together and did not spread out.


    If everyone ran as fast as they could, then the Second Heavenly Martial Stage people would quickly leave everyone behind.


    The Demon n¡¯s squad separated from the others, though they still traveled toward the shadow. This was to prevent other people from ambushing them.


    ¡°From now on, you must be very careful.¡±


    The three of them looked at each other without saying much.


    The endless sea of bones passed beneath their feet, and asionally, a gigantic skeleton would appear. Those belonged to the demon race, and some of them wererger than Xiang, meaning that they were Emperor-tier beasts.


    All eyes were fixed on the shadow.


    As they approached, the ck shadow grew clearer. From far, it looked like a ck bone connecting the sky and the ground. When they got close, they realized that it was a tower that waspletely made of bones. However, the bones were ck instead of white.


    It was a ck Bone Tower standing at the center of the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    <em>This bone tower seems to have been built by stacking countless bones, though it was modified to be a true tower.</em>


    Long Chen studied the ck Bone Tower carefully.


    This was clearly the center of the secret realm, and it was very likely that the items the emperors had left behind were there.


    Nothing rted to the Five Emperors had appeared so far.


    A strange aura radiated from the ck Bone Tower. Even Wu Lian and the others didn¡¯t dare to charge ahead recklessly. That was a good thing for everyone. However, as long as one person hurried forward, surely no one would be willing to be left behind.


    Suddenly, Long Chen sensed a thick earthly Qiing from the sea of bones ahead. This aura was also present in all four directions, but they were weak.


    The moment Long Chen sensed it, someone gasped, ¡°Earthly Spiritual Essence!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Earthly Spiritual Essence! Grab it!¡±


    That was the Five Elements Alliance members speaking. They were in the middle of the group, and they hurriedly lunged forward.


    The two from the Divine Wind Faction were on the left, while Long Chen and the others were on the right. There was also a thick auraing from their side.


    When the Five Elements Alliance moved to grab them, Long Chen and the others reacted quickly too. All three of them lunged to the right. Long Chen lunged towards a spot nearest to himself, where a piece of the mentioned Earthly Spiritual Essencey. His direction was not in conflict with any Five Elements Alliance members.


    After rushing over, Long Chen noticed a glowing yellow object deep beneath the bones. He quickly grabbed the Earthly Spiritual Essence, which looked like it had formed by condensing very powerful earthly spiritual Qi.


    If it was something the Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators from the major factions wanted, it was surely not a simple item.


    After getting a piece of the Earthly Spiritual Essence, no more aura could be detected around himself. As for the other pieces far away, if he ran to grab them, it would surely lead to a fight with the Five Elements Alliance. There was no need to fight right now, so he quickly reunited with Bai Lan and Lei Ji again. Bai Lan had also retrieved one, while Lei Ji had picked up two as he was in a better position.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen asked hurriedly.


    ¡°Earthly Spiritual Essence contains over ten times more earthly spiritual Qi than Emperor Crystals. However, they are rare. They are very easy to absorb, and theymonly contain earthly spiritual Qi of the earth element. Keep it well and it will benefit you when you are at the Heavenly Martial Realm,¡± whispered Bai Lan.


    ¡°Right, Long Chen,¡± Lei Ji added. ¡°You previously asked for a Wood-type treasure. The Earthly Spiritual Essence is considered an Earth-type treasure, and we have four of them in total. Is this useful to you?¡±


    That was exactly what Long Chen was thinking.


    Within the Primordial Realm, Little Cat saidzily, ¡°Since you have it, you can try. Once you gather all the five elements of the Five Emperor Seals, you will be able to unleash their full potential. That would be great. Before you can fully utilize the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual, it will be a powerfulbat technique.¡±


    If Little Cat the encyclopedia had such high praise for it, Long Chen immediately put Lei Ji and Bai Lan¡¯s Earthly Spiritual Essence in the Primordial Realm without thought. Now was not a suitable time for him to cultivate the Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal. The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was more important. He would have to wait until he had time afterward.


    After they all finished collecting the Earthly Spiritual Essence around them, the other people stopped too.


    They had also likely gathered many pieces.


    Compared to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, the Earthly Spiritual Essence was a minor matter. They were not going to fight with all their might over something small like that. Therefore, they all did their best to avoid fighting, and after everyone was done collecting, they looked at each other and continued heading to the tower together.


    The ck Bone Tower drew nearer and nearer.


    Long Chen sensed a dangerous aura. There was surely something blocking them from reaching the tower. The Five Emperors would never let anyone casually enter.


    As he approached, Long Chen counted and realized that the tower had seven floors. Every floor was gigantic, and the final floor pierced into the clouds. There was only arge, ck door on the first floor. This door was creepy, looking both like a ck hole and arge, ck mouth.


    The chilling feeling of death radiated from the ck Bone Tower, as if it feared no one. Although the group had extraordinary strength, they did not dare get closer.


    Thest hope for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was ced on the shoulders of the Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators.


    Wu Lian was considered the strongest of them. Even the Five Elements Alliance avoided this woman who had not talked since they arrived. This showed how wary Ancestor Jin was of her.


    If she hadprehended the first stage of the Sword Path and it boosted herbat abilities by three times, she would likely be almost peerless among her cultivation level.


    Very soon, everyone was only approximately a hundred meters from the ck Bone Tower. Long Chen studied the tower. It was built using individual ck bones stacked together, and it radiated great power and sharpness. It gave off a sense that it was very sturdy.


    Long Chen was not confident that he could break through the walls to enter.


    The entrance was the only way.


    There were no white bones within a one-hundred-meter radius of the ck Bone Tower, only emptynd. Long Chen and the others stopped above the tnd and slowly descended.


    As soon as they touched down, a violent aura spread through the air.


    They looked towards the pitch-ck door and saw a row of ck skeletons. They all stood neatly in two rows. They woreplete suits of ck armor, though the armor looked ancient, like it had countless years of history.


    Although countless years had passed, the ck armor still looked tough.


    The ck armor on the skeletons suddenly shone brightly. Beneath the helmets, green mes lit up in their ck, empty eye sockets.

 Chapter 854: Killing Bone Demons

    ¡°Bone Demons,¡± said Bai Lan, shielding Long Chen and Lei Ji while he took a step back.


    ¡°These Bone Demons may reach the Heavenly Martial Realm level in terms of speed and strength. Long Chen, Lei Ji, be careful. Don¡¯t let them surround you, and watch out for other people ambushing you.¡±


    ¡°First Heavenly Martial Stage?¡± Long Chen was shocked.


    He could indeed sense a powerful but dark and cold energying from ck-armored skeletons. They were definitely strong, and Long Chen knew that if more than two targeted him, he would surely be threatened.


    ¡°There are over twenty Bone Demons. The three of us will stay together. Don¡¯t panic, and at the same time, stop other people from ambushing us.¡±


    At this point, ambushes were possible at any moment. They all wanted the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure after all, and their biggestpetitors were the people next to them.


    Once they killed the people around them, they would have a much better chance of getting the treasure.


    Therefore, even though they had not entered the ck Bone Tower yet, they had to be very careful.


    Long Chen, Bai Lan, and Lei Ji moved to the right, putting some distance between them and the group.Long Chen looked at the entrance of the tower. It was a ck abyss and nothing could be seen inside. No one knew what would happen if they entered.


    ¡°We will need to get closer to the entrance while we fight. We must not be the first to enter, but we must not let other people get too far ahead of us either. There are seven floors in this tower, and the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure is likely on the top floor. Therefore, we do not need to stand out just yet,¡± Long Chen said.


    In this ce, the three of them stood on equal ground and did not differentiate themselves as elders and juniors. Although Bai Lan was the strongest, the other two agreed with what Long Chen had said.


    There was no need to take risks until the final moment.


    Green mes were alight in the Bone Demons¡¯ eye sockets. An energy that had slumbered for countless years started to wake up within them. In terms of strength, they had reached the First Heavenly Martial Stage. If powerful entities like them were released into the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, they would surely be a formidable force.


    They could only be defeated if the peak-level masters of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, like them, gathered and fought them together.


    The awakened Bone Demons all turned to the side. Those bones had not moved for countless years, so even a slight movement caused crackling sounds, along with the nging of their ck armor. These sounds made their scalps go numb.


    When those green eyes stared at him, Long Chen felt his scalp go numb.


    Those Bone Demons looked at the three different groups. The Long-Bearded Guest was standing with the Five Elements Alliance, so he was lumped with them.


    Suddenly, the Bone Demons dispersed and charged madly in three directions!


    About five charged at Feng Qing and Wu Lian, six charged at Long Chen, and over ten Bone Demons went to the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s side.


    There were a total of two Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators on the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s side, one being the Long-Bearded Guest.


    Long Chen had no time to think about other people. Six Bone Demons were charging towards them. After the initial awkwardness of unfamiliarity, the Bone Demons quickly entered their battle state. They were as agile as swallows and had extraordinary speed. There was no flesh on their bodies, so they were purely supported by some bizarre energy, making them terrifying!


    Beneath the armor were balls of green fire sitting within the bones. The fires burned brightly, releasing a chill simr to the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire.


    The six Bone Demons charged at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye.


    ¡°I¡¯ll stop four of them. Come help me immediately after you have dealt with your opponents!¡± Bai Lan made a decision immediately!


    Four was the maximum number of Bone Demons he could deal with, hence why he had given those instructions. As for Long Chen and Lei Ji, it would be difficult for them to hold up against two Bone Demons alone, seeing as the Bone Demons were at the First Heavenly Martial Stage!


    Long Chen and Lei Ji immediately nodded at his instructions!


    This was not the time to be stubborn, but to pick the best strategy!


    ¡°Domain!¡±


    Bai Lan unleashed his Second Heavenly Martial Stage domain. A powerful domain instantly surrounded Long Chen. Although it did not affect Long Chen and Lei Ji, the Bone Demons were immediately faced with strong resistance that reduced their speed by half!


    ¡°Now!¡± instructed Bai Lan immediately after his domain expanded.


    The six Bone Demons growled menacingly with damaged knives and spears in their hands, and charged at the trio. They injected some strange energy into their knives, allowing them to shoot out terrifying rays of green light when they swung!


    It was a critical moment. Long Chen directly activated the Dragon Soul Transformation and the strength of his essence was boosted by ten times! Blood-red essence surged within his body. Bai Lan sessfully stopped four Bone Demons, only letting two past him. The two split up and charged at Long Chen and Lei Ji separately!


    The one attacking Long Chen was a Bone Demon holding a long spear!


    It thrust the spear at Long Chen, summoning a green light on the tip!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    Green mes burned brightly in its eye sockets beneath its helmet. It had been dead for many years, so it was expressionless!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    The stars of the Three Thousand Star Clusters quickly aggregated in front of Long Chen to form a spear!


    Long Chen ran and swung the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Countless glints of starlight shone as he exchanged blows with the Bone Demon¡¯s spear!


    <em>Ding!</em>


    When the Three Thousand Star Clusters¡¯ tip collided with the Bone Demon¡¯s spear, it made an ear-piercing sound!


    Long Chen was using a spear technique from the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual. He was able to use the manual in an iplete manner. In reality, he already had most of the sections down, except hecked the power of a domain!


    If he had the power of a domain, the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual¡¯s techniques would be several times stronger, maybe even ten times stronger.


    It was an advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon after all; even its material was countless times harder than the Bone Demon¡¯s spear! When the weapons collided with equal force, Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters shattered the Bone Demon¡¯s spear!


    <em>ng!</em>


    Another ear-piercing sound. The Bone Demon¡¯s spear shattered and tiny bits shot in all directions!


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Long Chen thrust the Three Thousand Star Clusters into the Bone Demon¡¯s body! But he quickly realized that while the tip of his spear had pierced through the armor, it did not touch the Bone Demon at all!


    <em>This thing only has bones; the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear is useless against it!</em>


    Long Chen finally recalled something.


    Not only was the Three Thousand Star Clusters useless, the Blood Devouring Domain was useless too because this enemy had no blood.


    However, Long Chen was prepared for this. After his Three Thousand Star Clusters failed, the three Emperor Seals were already merged on his right palm. He pressed his palm on the Bone Demon¡¯s chest!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was a dull explosion. The Bone Demon broke down when faced with the Three Thousand Star Clusters and the final strike of the triple Emperor Seals! The green energy dissipated into the air, showing that the Bone Demon was dead!


    On the other side, Lei Ji was also almost done with his opponent. Bai Lan was facing four Bone Demons alone, but he showed no signs of losing, even having the upper hand against them. Of course, it would take time for him to kill all four.


    ¡°Uncle Bai, send me one more!¡±


    With Long Chen taking another, Bai Lan¡¯s burden lessened. With his Second Heavenly Martial Stagebat abilities, he could surely defeat the three remaining Bone Demons!


    Although the Bone Demons were both fast and strong, they stood no chance. Long Chen used the same method to kill the other Bone Demon!


    Lei Ji had also long killed his opponent. After Long Chen killed his opponent, he saw that Bai Lan could kill the remaining three in a short time, so he shifted his attention to the other fights!


    Twelve Bone Demons had gone to the Five Elements Alliance¡¯s side. The First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators of the Five Elements Alliance also dealt with one Bone Demon at a time, as they were simr in strength.


    As a result, Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest had a muchrger burden. After Long Chen finished his opponent, they were still very upied.


    The Five Elements Alliance was not doing as well as Long Chen¡¯s squad. However, the situation in the final group shocked Long Chen. Five Bone Demons had gone to their side. Feng Qing was fighting one, and it was no match for him because other than physical strength, it was wed in all aspects. Wu Lian, with the White Lotus Sword in hand, was fighting four!


    The Bone Demons were not strong enough to handle a single strike from her sword, so their heads were chopped off after two shes!


    After their heads were chopped off, the green fire in their bodies also disappeared. The green fires quickly dissipated, showing that they werepletely dead.


    Wu Lian¡¯s duo finished their opponents faster than Long Chen¡¯s trio did. After Bai Lan killed his opponents, Wu Lian immediately rushed toward the dark entrance of the ck Bone Tower.


    Feng Qing mbered to follow her like ackey!


    The ck whirlpool stood in front of them. Long Chen, Bai Lan, and Lei Ji looked at each other, then quickly followed her! No one knew what the whirlpool was, but Wu Lian was very bold. She shed the ck whirlpool with her white sword, which emitted white light!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>

 Chapter 855: Number One Beauty

    The mist in the entrance swirled and absorbed the sword light. Nothing happened, not even a ripple.


    <em>The Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm already had the Bone Demons as guards. The Five Emperors wouldn¡¯t prepare other tests of this nature. </em>Long Chen had a feeling that if he charged inside directly, he would enter the tower.


    Just as this thought popped into his head, Wu Lian, who was standing in front of the whirlpool with her billowing dress and magnificent sword, ran in. The snow-white figure was immediately swallowed by the ck whirlpool.


    ¡°Wu Lian, it¡¯s dangerous ¡­¡± cried Feng Qing, but when he spoke, Wu Lian had already entered. He gritted his teeth. If he did not go in now, the Demon n and the Five Elements Alliance would not hesitate to kill him. Therefore, he followed her.


    ¡°That woman is bold.¡± Bai Lan chuckled, then he waved and the trio entered the mist. The dark and creepy-looking mist was actually as soft as clouds. It was gentle andfortable, taking Long Chen into a warm and gentle atmosphere.


    Suddenly, his surroundings turned ice-cold.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes sprang open, then the trio quickly stood together to prevent other people from ambushing them. However, it was clear that Wu Lian was not attacking them.


    After confirming that there was no threat, Long Chen looked around him. They were in a vast, empty space. This was likely the first floor of the ck Bone Tower. The first floor was vast, and there were green mes on the walls. The green lights opposite them were so far away that they seemed to be on the horizon.


    More than a hundred green mes surrounded Long Chen.They were not bright enough to light up the whole area, but they could see that the tower was empty. Wu Lian and Feng Qing were around ten meters away from Long Chen. They had also just arrived and only just came to their senses!


    ¡°There¡¯s something there!¡± cried Bai Lan. The trio immediately looked toward where he had pointed. The thing that appeared was likely at the center of the first floor. It was identical to the five-colored altar outside, and there were five colors arranged in a fan spinning around a center point. They shone brightly, which was why Bai Lan had spotted it.


    The five-colored altar here looked more real than the illusory altar they saw outside.


    When Long Chen¡¯s trio moved, Wu Lian and Feng Qing followed. Two factions, a total of five people, quickly arrived by the five-colored altar, though no one did anything.


    The altar was spinning, and they could not figure it out.


    ¡°Look!¡± someone said.


    Long Chen peered carefully and saw that the light from the altar had risen to form several small, colorful characters in the air.


    This was their first time seeing something rted to the Five Emperors sinceing to the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm.


    ¡°Out of ten, five advance?¡±


    ¡°Does it mean that out of the ten participants, only five can enter?¡± Everyone thought of this quickly.


    There were five sections on the five-colored altar. Did it mean that only one person could enter per section? Could they advance to the next floor once they stepped on the altar?


    And had the Five Elements Alliance and the Long-Bearded Guest lost their rights to enter because they had taken more time defeating the Bone Demons?


    After reading the small characters, all five quickly stepped on the nearest color!


    As far as they understood, they would enter the next floor!


    There were a total of five people here, and there were five sections. It was the perfect fit. Long Chen stood between Bai Lan and Lei Ji, trying to avoid an ambush from Wu Lian and Feng Qing.


    All of them stood very close to each other, so they stepped on the altar at the same time. They initially thought that they could advance, but suddenly, a strong resisting force came from the altar, throwing them back!


    However, this energy likely came from the Five Emperors, so it was gentle and did not hurt them.


    ¡°What happened?¡± The five of them looked at each other. It said that five would advance, so why hadn¡¯t anything happened after they stepped on the altar?


    ¡°Could it mean that we need to wait for everyone to enter, then kill each other until only five remain?¡± said Long Chen after some thought.


    ¡°It¡¯s very likely!¡± Bai Lan¡¯s brows were furrowed.


    If that was the case, it was a very brutal process.


    Only five could survive. Long Chen¡¯s side had three people. Four out of the ten were Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators. If Long Chen wanted the best scenario where he, Bai Lan, and Lei Ji could survive, then one of the Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators would have to die.


    Killing a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator was extremely difficult.


    The Five Elements Alliance had thergest group and Wu Lian was the strongest person present. As a result, it was difficult even for Bai Lan to keep himself alive, let alone protect Long Chen.


    ¡°This is going to be troublesome ¡­¡± The trio looked at each other, then they quickly distanced themselves from Wu Lian.


    If a massacre was going to take ce, then Long Chen would surely be the target of Wu Lian and Feng Qing. Violence was unavoidable between enemies, and this was the perfect chance to kill him!


    When the two sides quickly parted, the Five Elements Alliance members and the Long-Bearded Guest arrived. They had fallen behind and were panicking when they entered. However, when they saw that Long Chen and the others were there, they sighed in relief.


    They did not even bother to look around; they just immediately made their way to the side of the altar. Even the Long-Bearded Guest did not dare stand with the Five Elements Alliance now.


    It was likely that there had been a conflict between them just now.


    The Long-Bearded Guest was not part of the nine ns and was working alone, so he was vulnerable. This was the reason why the nine major ns had forced him to hand over one slot from the Yellow Emperor Key.


    When the Long-Bearded Guest first retrieved the Yellow Emperor Key, he was surrounded by the nine major ns. Knowing that he was in a dangerous situation, he presented the idea to share his key, and the nine ns were finally willing to let him go. The nine ns were unimaginably powerful in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory after all. Even though the wandering cultivator was powerful, it was difficult for him to do anything without a wealthy background.


    ¡°Out of ten, five advance?¡± They all saw the row of characters.


    ¡°Only five people can enter out of the ten?¡± They quickly understood. This was undeniably a brutal and bloody process.


    They could trust the people in their own faction, but they definitely could not trust the others.


    The Five Elements Alliance and the Long-Bearded Guest instantly separated from the other people. Everyone looked at each other. No one moved first.


    Suddenly, the space quietened down. They could even hear the sounds of their own breathing.


    After a long silence, there was bound to be someone who could not hold back any longer. Feng Qing had been eyeing Long Chen for a long time, and everyone could tell that he wanted this chance to kill him.


    When they saw that the Divine Wind Faction was eyeing the Thunder Demon Faction, the Five Elements Alliance and the Long-Bearded Guest smartly chose not to speak.


    Feng Qing made the first move by saying, ¡°Long-Bearded Guest, haven¡¯t you always wanted the Wind n¡¯s Shifting Winds technique? If you join us and help us kill Long Chen, it will be yours.¡±


    Next to him, Wu Lian¡¯s expression did not change. However, her eyes, which were not covered by her veil, were fixed on the Long-Bearded Guest, waiting to see what he would say.


    If the Long-Bearded Guest was willing to join them, then Wu Lian could upy Bai Lan, Feng Qing could fight Lei Ji, and the Long-Bearded Guest could easily kill Long Chen as he was at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage.


    ¡°It¡¯s best if you can capture the brat,¡± Feng Qing added.


    Everyone looked at the Long-Bearded Guest for his decision.


    When they saw that they were not involved, the Five Elements Alliance naturally acted haughtily. <em>Just let them fight to their deaths. </em>That way, the Five Elements Alliance would not need to fight to enter the next level.


    The atmosphere turned strange.


    The Long-Bearded Guest did not speak and merely smiled. However, based on the look deep in his eyes, he seemed to be hesitating.


    ¡°Long-Beard, you do not have a strong background, so it¡¯s best you don¡¯t wade into muddy waters like that, or you¡¯ll get yourself killed,¡± said Bai Lan, also worried that the Long-Bearded Guest would attack Long Chen.


    He had said exactly what the Long-Bearded Guest was thinking.


    He was working alone, and the worst thing he could do was make the first move and stand out. Once Long Chen and the Thunder Demon faction were killed, he would be next.


    ¡°Brother Feng, the Shifting Winds technique is merely an Emperor-tierbat technique. That brat Long Chen is strong, so I am not confident I can kill him. You should get someone stronger to do that!¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest decisively.


    It was best he stayed away from this drama.


    ¡°Tell me what you want. We will surely satisfy you,¡± said Feng Qing with a low voice, not giving up.


    The Long-Bearded Guestughed and said, ¡°If Lady Wu takes off her veil and shows me her face, I may consider it. I heard that Lady Wu is not just number one in terms of strength, she is also the number one beauty in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. I am very curious. How beautiful could the number one beauty be?¡±


    At the top level, it was difficult topare beautiful people.


    However, even two women who looked identical could be differentiated based on their elegance, culture, outfits, and other factors.

 Chapter 856: Sneaky Plans

    Although they could not see her face, Wu Lian was undeniably perfect in all other aspects.


    Unlike Ling Xi, this woman was a mother, and she was filled with the elegance of a mature woman. Her movements exuded endless grace, despite her looking so cold. However, coldness could be considered a kind of fire that men would fly towards like moths to a me.


    But Long Chen had killed her child.


    After the Long-Bearded Guest spoke, everyone was waiting for Wu Lian¡¯s response!


    ¡°How dare you!¡± Feng Qing scolded angrily, raising his eyebrow.


    Wu Lian was known as the White Lotus Fairy in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and she was like a saint. Although she had a son, she was still seen as a saint, and her husband¡¯s identity was a mystery. There was a rumor that Wu Guangyu¡¯s father was both a lucky and unlucky man. The rumors told of a famous and beautiful man who appeared in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He was not strong, but he couldpose poems and songs, and was a yer among women. He was lucky because he became Wu Lian¡¯s man, but he was unlucky because after she became pregnant, she killed him.


    Her objective was to raise an extraordinary offspring to inherit her skills.


    But Wu Guangyu had been killed by Long Chen!


    Beneath Wu Lian¡¯s calm and cold exteriory a hidden, volcano-like force!After she heard the Long-Bearded Guest, she immediately swung her White Lotus Sword, shooting a ray of snow-white sword light at him!


    ¡°If I hear another word like that, you will die!¡±


    Her ice-cold voice filled every ear!


    The Long-Bearded Guest dodged the snow-white sword light clumsily. At the same time, he diffused his threat because there was no chance Feng Qing would ask him for help again.


    This showed how haughty this woman was.


    She had not taken off her face veil even once since the beginning.


    Long Chen, Lei Ji, and Bai Lan looked at each other and gave small sighs of relief. The issue that Feng Qing was trying to cause had been resolved.


    No one dared to make the first move.


    Suddenly, Ancestor Jin from the Five Elements Alliance said, ¡°Lady Wu, the Five Elements Alliance will work with you to kill everyone else. What do you think?¡±


    The Five Elements Alliance had four people, so with them, it would make six people!


    Ancestor Jin had volunteered to coborate with Wu Lian. This was extremely dangerous to Long Chen and the others!


    There were many dangerous scenarios that couldn¡¯t be avoided. Long Chen and the others remained calm when the Five Elements Alliance suggested working with Wu Lian.


    But the Long-Bearded Guest was not calm. Wasn¡¯t Ancestor Jin implying that he was going to be shunned? If they targeted Bai Lan, the Long-Bearded Guest would be next.


    The Long-Bearded Guest had refused Wu Lian¡¯s request, so she would surely not let him join their team.


    In the face of absolute power, scheming was the way to win.


    The Long-Bearded Guest immediately made his decision. He stood next to Bai Lan and said coldly, ¡°If you guys want to work together to bully someone, I cannot stand by and watch. If we¡¯re going to fight, I¡¯m standing with Brother Bai Lan.¡±


    With the addition of the Long-Bearded Guest, they were equal in terms of Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators butcked two First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators.


    Bai Lan¡¯s side, which initially looked like they were certain to lose, could suddenly fend for themselves. True victory would be determined by the battle between the Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators! ?


    Last-minute allies like these were, in reality, very fragile. The moment they achieved their goals, they would surely turn the other wayter.


    ¡°If two First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators attacked you guys, are you guys confident you can hold on?¡± Bai Lan asked in a low voice.


    Lei Ji furrowed his brows and replied, ¡°I¡¯m not very confident, but I can hold on. If I die, I will surely drag one down with me.¡±


    Long Chen thought for a moment, then nodded. He had many trump cards that could help him survive. If he still could not do it, then he would use the first stage of Blood Sacrifice. That way, he could even turn the tables and kill his opponents.


    Of course, the psychotic Blood Sacrifice could not be used recklessly, especially since Long Chen was about to break through to the Heavenly Martial Realm. After his cultivation level regressed, it would be difficult for him to fully recover, and he would miss the chance to reach the Heavenly Martial Realm.


    The Five Elements Alliance¡¯s sudden decision escted the threat to its peak.


    The two teams stared at each other.


    ¡°Leave Bai Lan to me.¡± Wu Lian¡¯s words triggered the battle.


    ¡°In that case, I, Jin, shall experience the skills of the famous Long-Bearded Guest for myself.¡± Ancestor Jin¡¯s wrinkly face broke into a grin, making him look terrifying.


    Only the First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators remained.


    Wu Lian nced at Long Chen and said, ¡°Feng Qing, Lei Ji is your old rival. You¡¯re in charge of keeping him upied. As for the other three of the Five Elements Alliance, I sincerely request that you work together to capture Long Chen, then let me have thest blow. What do you think of that?¡±


    It was the request of the great Divine n¡¯s matriarch, so how could they not agree? Based on her cold words, they could tell how much this haughty woman hated Long Chen.


    ¡°We will not stop until we have fulfilled the request of the Divine n¡¯s matriarch!¡± said the Fire n¡¯s patriarch.


    Everyone was quickly assigned their opponents.


    Three people would attack Long Chen alone. They were indeed strong enough to capture him!


    ¡°Long Chen, you ¡­¡± Bai Lan was startled, knowing that this was a great disadvantage to Long Chen.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have methods to keep myself alive. They can¡¯t kill me, nor can they catch me. If these are the pairings, this situation will only end in a stalemate. We¡¯ll see what happens,¡± Long Chen said calmly in a low voice.


    There was nothing Bai Lan and Lei Ji could say. Although they thought Long Chen was decent, could he really survive three Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators attacking him at once?


    Wu Lian did not give them time at all.


    The six of them were divided into four groups, each searching for their opponent!


    Wu Lian was smart. The first swing of her sword was directed at Long Chen. Long Chen was unable to block her sword light at all, so Bai Lan would have to protect him. Then the Wind n¡¯s Feng Qing worked at top speed to separate Lei Ji and Long Chen!


    The Long-Bearded Guest was not standing close to the trio. Ancestor Jin immediately came up to him, but then neither moved. Ancestor Jin was strong enough to engage the Long-Bearded Guest in a standoff!


    The three patriarchs of the Five Elements Alliance took this chance to charge at Long Chen!


    The patriarchs of the Fire, Water, and Wood ns were wearing long red, blue, and green robes respectively. They looked old, and they were easily distinguishable. Three distinct types of auras from the three elements radiated from them.


    Long Chen remained in his Dragon Soul Transformation form, as this was his most powerful form!


    The three patriarchs surrounded him from three directions!


    ¡°Everyone, use your domains!¡±


    Thebination of three First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators¡¯ domains was almost as strong as the domain of a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. If Long Chen was trapped inside, he would easily be captured!


    ¡°You think you can trap me? In your dreams.¡± Long Chen chuckled and used Blood Warp. He used one-twentieth of his essence and immediately broke free from their trap, instantly getting to the other side of the tower. He disappeared from sight in the blink of an eye.


    ¡°Try catching me! Whoever catches me will receive a gift, which is a p from me.¡± Long Chen¡¯sughter echoed ahead.


    ¡°That damn brat!¡± cursed the three patriarchs as they gave chase. Three arcs formed in the darkness as they shot off.


    Their long robes pped as their essence surged through their bodies.


    When Bai Lan and Lei Ji saw that Long Chen was not trapped, they sighed in relief. Wu Lian ced her hopes on the three patriarchs. Whether her goal could be achieved depended on them.


    Out of the four Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators, Bai Lan and Wu Lian were the only ones who had received inheritances from the Seven Lords. Although it was fully possible for Wu Lian to beat Bai Lan, it would still take a very long time. In short, if Wu Lian was number one, then Bai Lan was number two!


    The Divine Demon Lord was a formidable presence among the Seven Lords!


    On the other side, Lei Ji would never lose to Feng Qing, no matter what. They had fought countless times and both knew the other person¡¯s tricks. Both of them fought cautiously.


    Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest did not even move, but if one of them did, the other could never remain still.


    ¡°It¡¯s best if you don¡¯t move, or you will die here,¡± said Ancestor Jin arrogantly, raising his eyebrows.


    ¡°Hehe. I knew you¡¯d ce your hopes on the three patriarchs catching Long Chen. However, I doubt they¡¯ll even be able to touch a hair on his head,¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest with augh.


    ¡°A coward who only runs cannot be considered a hero.¡± Ancestor Jin gave Long Chen a quick, contemptuous nce.


    But running away wasn¡¯t the only thing Long Chen did.


    After using Blood Warp to increase the distance between him and them, Long Chen elerated and ran as fast as he could. With the Seven Star Body¡¯s help, he was slightly faster than the three of them. The first floor of the ck Bone Tower was so vast that they could not even catch him.


    Long Chen and the three patriarchs started their cat-and-mouse game.


    <em>I need to separate them, </em>thought Long Chen.


    ¡°Let me try.¡± Little Cat was very energetic. He peeked his little head out of the Primordial Realm. The closest person to Long Chen was the Water patriarch.


    Little Cat cast the Dream Demon¡¯s spell on him.


    The Water patriarch saw Long Chen suddenly change directions.


    ¡°This way! Chase him!¡±


    The Water patriarch quickly separated from the other two, but the two other patriarchs continued to run after Long Chen. They were very puzzled by the Water patriarch¡¯s behavior.


    ¡°You¡¯re next.¡± Little Cat chuckled and sessfully made the next patriarch change directions, thus isting them!


    ¡°Good one, Little Cat.¡± There was a cold sh in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, then he suddenly turned around!


    ¡°Die!¡±


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 857: Who Is Your Opponent

    The three people from the Five Elements Alliance were all experts at the First Heavenly Martial Stage, so they were extremely fast. Just a short moment after Little Cat casted his spell, they all ran in drastically directions.


    Long Chen was good at catching the right timing. The moment they separated, he turned around and charged at one of them!


    It was the Fire n¡¯s patriarch!


    He still was not sure why his two mates had changed directions, but Long Chen wasing in hot. They weren¡¯t that far apart to begin with, so they immediately bumped into each other!


    Long Chen was prepared to fight, but the Fire patriarch needed a moment to react!


    When Long Chen turned around, the four Emperor Seals were already prepared in his palm.


    He pushed his palm out, and the four Emperor Seals ovepped with each other. A violent, powerful energy shot at the Fire patriarch. After the four different-colored Emperor Seals merged, they exploded and released a powerful force!


    ¡°ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!¡±


    The four Emperor Seals exploded in unison!


    Long Chen had caught the perfect timing. Amidst the Fire patriarch¡¯s panic, he threw out a punch, so his fist collided with Long Chen¡¯s Emperor Seals. He also activated his domain, which provided some defense against Long Chen¡¯s attack. It was as if he controlled all the space around them!


    Despite that, because Long Chen was prepared and he was not, Long Chen¡¯s four Emperor Seals sent him flying!


    ¡°Break!¡±


    A gigantic current erupted from Long Chen¡¯s body and shot at the Fire patriarch, causing him to fly fifty meters backwards!


    Long Chen saw himnd on the five-colored altar. The Emperor Seals¡¯ power was just too strong, so the Fire patriarch found it difficult to stabilize himself mid-air. He knew that he was about tond on the altar, but he could not do anything about it.


    He was flying too quickly.


    Long Chen¡¯s sudden attack had caused a certain level of internal injury. The patriarch¡¯s blood boiled and he almost spat out blood.


    Long Chen¡¯s attack had been too fast and too strong!


    ¡°Huo Luan, look down!¡± Ancestor Jin was shocked when he saw what had happened. He thought the three patriarchs would surely capture Long Chen. He never would have imagined that Long Chen would retaliate and even hurt the Fire patriarch like that. ??


    The five-colored altar was an unpredictable factor, so Ancestor Jin wanted him to be careful. Unfortunately, the Fire patriarch could not control himself and crashed onto the altar!


    Long Chen did not think much of it, as he knew that the altar would surely push him off.


    However, something shocking happened. When the Fire patriarch collided with the altar, there was a bright light, then he disappeared.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°Did he go inside?¡±


    After a brief moment of hesitation, everyone moved. Long Chen was closest to the altar, so he used Blood Warp to get into the altar¡¯s red section. The Fire patriarch had entered via the golden section.


    Like before, Long Chen ran straight inside and disappeared.


    When only five of them were present, the altar did not allow them to enter. They had not expected it to let them in after the Five Elements Alliance and the Long-Bearded Guest arrived.


    Suddenly, they realized that they had understood the instructions wrongly.


    ¡°Out of ten, only five advance. It did not ask us to kill each other until five people remain. Instead, after everyone arrives, the first five people who enter the altar are allowed to go in.¡±


    Everyone finally understood.


    There had been five spots, but only three remained. Long Chen and the Fire patriarch had each taken one spot.


    There was no time for them to worry about their opponents now. Wu Lian and Bai Lan, who were still fighting, as well as Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest, who were in a stand-off, immediately charged as fast as they could to the altar!


    A terrifying battle erupted in that brief moment. Four Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators were engaged in a crazed fight above the altar. The four of them were fighting for three spots, and it was a close fight. All of them used up all their tricks, worried that they would not get to enter!


    It was difficult for the remaining First Earthly Martial Stage cultivators to even enter the fight.


    All sorts of tricks and attacks flew everywhere, throwing the ce into chaos.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    While they fought, they continued to rush to the altar. There were several <em>whooshes</em> as they were stillpeting for speed. The four of them had turned into four rays of light shooting towards the altar. While they charged, they defended themselves from the others whileunching attacks of their own!


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    There were countless explosions!


    There were a total of five zones on the altar, and the zones were spinning. It was uncertain who would enter which zone, but they knew which zones Long Chen and the Fire patriarch had entered. The four people were fighting for the three remaining zones.


    Bai Lan and Wu Lian shot into one zone each, while Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest unfortunately bumped into each other. Both of themunched strong attacks and struggled to stabilize themselves. Amidst the explosion, the Long-Bearded Guest rushed into the remaining zone. However, Ancestor Jin identally fell into the golden section of the altar.


    That was where the Fire patriarch had entered.


    Out of the ten of them, five had already entered.


    The people who had not entered yet were Ancestor Jin, two from the Five Elements Alliance, Lei Ji, and Feng Qin.


    The people who remained were initially crestfallen, but to their shock, they saw Ancestor Jin get swallowed by the golden section of the altar!


    Four people remained.


    ¡°Can we still enter?¡±


    The remaining four were stunned for a moment, then they immediately took action!


    Had they misinterpreted the instructions again? Out of ten, only five advance. If that did not mean only five out of ten could enter, what else could it mean?


    No one could figure it out.


    As long as it still allowed entry, all they could think about was to enter immediately.


    Feng Qing had a sudden idea.


    <em>Out of ten, only five will advance. Could it mean that we will be paired up? Could it mean that only two are allowed per color? And those two people will fight, and only the victor can progress to the next round?</em>


    <em>I think Long Chen entered the red section.</em>


    Then Feng Qing immediately rushed to the red section. He was closest to this color and he moved fast, so he soon entered the altar.


    The other people did not think as far as he did, and only rushed into a random color. Lei Ji was unlucky because hended in the golden section but was pushed out. Only Lei Ji remained on the first floor.


    He was stunned for a moment, then realized that two people had already entered the golden section. The only color without two people was the section that Bai Lan had entered.


    He immediately dove into that section, and as expected, he entered the altar.


    The ce finally returned to silence.


    ***


    After diving into the altar, Long Chen did not know what was happening, except that very soon, hot fire enveloped him. Startled, he quickly used his essence to st it away, forming a sphere around himself within the endless red mes.


    The sphere was notrge, but it kept Long Chen isted from the heat. The fire was so hot that even though Long Chen had the Seven Star Body, he would likely be injured if he was exposed to it for a little while.


    ¡°Where is this ce?¡± Long Chen looked around.


    Endless fire surrounded him. If Xiang was here, he would probably be able to swallow the fire so Long Chen could see what was around him. However, Mo Xiang was outside.


    Long Chen had told him to guard the Demon n. Although nothing serious was expected to happen to the n, it was better than letting him risk his life along with Long Chen.


    The endless fire was indeed bizarre.


    Long Chen recalled that he might have entered the red section of the five-colored altar. Could that mean that the other sections would present different environments? For example, water?


    Why was he here?


    Very soon, Long Chen received an answer. A disembodied voice rang in his ear.


    ¡°Out of ten, five advance. Every person has one opponent. Finish or defeat your opponent, and you will enter the second floor of the ck Bone Tower.¡±


    The disembodied voice seemed toe from a faraway ce, but Long Chen could hear it clearly.


    <em>Everyone has their own opponent? If I finish or defeat them, I will advance. Who will be my opponent? Is it something from the ck Bone Tower? Or is it one of the other Heavenly Martial Realm cultivators from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory?</em>


    As the questions popped into his mind, he hurriedly activated the Soul Swallowing Gaze to survey his surroundings. His pupils constricted because he saw that not far from his side, there was someone familiar charging right at him!

 Chapter 858: Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal

    That person was also surrounded by the endless fire.


    It was Feng Qing of the Wind n, also Long Chen¡¯s old rival.


    <em>He¡¯s my opponent?</em>


    The corners of Long Chen¡¯s lips curled up into a cold smirk.


    It was likely that Feng Qing had also heard the disembodied voice and was charging excitedly in Long Chen¡¯s direction. He arrived In the blink of an eye! While Long Chen used his essence to clear the mes within a two-meter-radius of himself, Feng Qing used his domain to clear tens of meters around him. His domainpletely enveloped Long Chen.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Feng Qing¡¯s eyes were filled with excitement.


    ¡°Defeat or finish you. Hehe. We¡¯re so fortunate to meet again. Previously, we did not manage to determine the victor, but the two of us are the only ones here, and we must determine a victor. You took Zhilin¡¯s life, so I will take yours!¡±


    Then he charged at Long Chen!The domain suppressed Long Chen, so it was difficult for him to run!


    This was an amazing opportunity!


    If he could not kill Long Chen here, with the speed that Long Chen was improving, he would have even fewer opportunities in the future.


    ¡°Thousand Seals!¡±


    A thousand hand seals flew at Long Chen, and they merged into arge palm. The powerful, rippling energy sted the surrounding mes away!


    Despite facing Feng Qing¡¯s attack, Long Chen was thinking about something else.


    <em>That disembodied voice did not mention a deadline. In that case, I can y a cat-and-mouse game with Feng Qing. My quadruple Emperor Sealbination isn¡¯t strong enough to kill him.</em>


    Long Chen did not want a close call, but a sure-win fatal strike.


    The quadruple Emperor Seal could not kill the man instantly, so he needed to strengthen himself until he could execute the five-Emperor Sealbination.


    There was no time limit, and he had only one opponent. This was a very good opportunity to cultivate the Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal. He had obtained four Earthly Spiritual Essences, and if he did not cultivate now, he would surely not have timeter.


    ¡°If you want to kill me, you¡¯ll have to catch me first, Old Man Feng.¡±


    Feng Qing kept attacking, trying to squash Long Chen, but Long Chenughed instead.


    He activated Blood Warp, instantly traveling more than a thousand meters through the fiercely burning mes. It was difficult to find a person in all these mes without Long Chen¡¯s Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    That was the reason why Long Chen was confident that Feng Qing would be able to find him no matter what he did. In this environment filled with fire, Feng Qing was at a disadvantage without the Soul Swallowing Gaze. He would have to wait until Long Chen came for him after he became stronger.


    ¡°Long Chen! Do not run if you are a man! Fight me directly if you dare!¡±


    Feng Qing¡¯s furious voice came from the mass of mes!


    ¡°That idiot.¡± Long Chenughed and continued to increase the distance between them.


    Feng Qing was the leader of the Heavenly Wind Empire, and he ruled over millions of people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He was also a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator and was a powerful opponent who was difficult to defeat.


    However, Long Chen was strong enough to fight opponents of this level.


    Opponents who could control themselves in spite of their emotions were the most terrifying people. Feng Qing was in a rage, but Long Chen insisted on avoiding him, letting the old man suffer on his own.


    <em>I wonder what happened to Feng Zhilin? How did a perfectly fine person suddenly disappear?</em>


    Long Chen mulled over his questions.


    ¡°Little Cat, how far does your range of detection extend?¡± asked Long Chen.


    ¡°Are you asking me for help again? Let me tell you this¡ªI am a god far above you. I can help, but you must first ¡­¡±


    Long Chen cut him off and asked in a low voice, ¡°Tell me. How far?¡±


    Little Cat had always been the type to brag, and it was a bad habit he could not shed.


    ¡°Uh ¡­ One hundred meters is alright for me ¡­¡±


    ¡°How useless. Just keep an eye out for that old man. I will cultivate the Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal. The moment he gets close, alert me.¡±


    Long Chen had created a lot of distance between them, so Feng Qing would need to be very lucky to find him within the mes. It would be hard unless Long Chen deliberately made a sound to attract him.


    Long Chen could not use the Soul Swallowing Gaze during cultivation, so he had to get Little Cat¡¯s help to keep an eye out. This was a precaution. Although Little Cat was annoying, he was quite reliable, so he would surely report immediately if he noticed anything.


    He traveled some more until he confirmed that it would be very hard for Feng Qing to find him. Then he sat down cross-legged in the infinite fire.


    The Earthly Spiritual Essence would be his ticket to cultivating the Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal.


    They were simr to Emperor Crystals, but they could store much more energy. They contained pure Earth-type energy, and it took many years for the energy to condense into such arge piece.


    Only a ce without humans would form so many pieces of Earthly Spiritual Essence.


    Long Chen sat cross-legged and maintained the sphere of safety around himself using his essence. He looked like a ball floating on water, except that he was flowing ording to the current of the fire, constantly changing his location. That way, it would be even harder for Feng Qing to find him.


    He slowly merged all four pieces of Earthly Spiritual Essence together.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    A piece with a ten-centimeter radius appeared in his hand. He already had experience cultivating the other Emperor Seals. While it was tough to cultivate the Yellow Emperor Seal and even harder to merge five seals together, Long Chen was a lot stronger than he used to be. With his Seven Star Body and Ninth Earthly Martial Stage essence, he managed to control the surging of the five energies.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    Time passed gradually. Long Chen was immersed in his cultivation. During this time, Little Cat alerted him once of the approaching Feng Qing, and he hurriedly changed his direction. At the time, he saw that the old man was a hundred meters to his left via the Soul Swallowing Gaze.


    With his speed, he could arrive within just a second.


    Unfortunately, he did not know which direction Long Chen was in.


    <em>Old man, the time for me to finish you is approaching.</em>


    Long Chen huffed coldly and changed his location, but he did not stop cultivating the Yellow Emperor Seal. He was attempting toplete the full merging of all five seals, so it was more difficult than before. Once hepleted the Yellow Emperor Seal, his five-Emperor Sealbination would beplete.


    Five Emperor Seals merged into one. These five types of energies formed a perfect contradiction, and the explosion after they merged would be even stronger.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    There was a gust of wind, and Long Chen stood up slowly. He opened his eyes and smiled with satisfaction.


    He opened his hand and saw that all five Emperor Seals had lit up in his right palm.


    <em>Cultivating the Five Emperor Seals was a sess. It¡¯s time to kill Feng Qing. </em>There was a cold sh in his eyes.


    There was no need for Feng Qing to search for Long Chen, as he woulde on his own.


    About one and a half kilometers away from Long Chen, Feng Qing was pushing away the surrounding mes using gusts of wind generated from his hand. He was furious, and his eyes were filled with violence as he roared, ¡°Long Chen! Show yourself!


    ¡°You coward! Where are you hiding!?¡±


    The raging Feng Qing was almost going insane.


    Long Chen was as slippery as an eel, and due to the limited visibility of the sea of fire, he could not find Long Chen at all.


    He had been in here for a long time but hadn¡¯t defeated his opponent yet. Even if he seeded in killing Long Chen, he would likely be mocked after he emerged.


    Feng Qing suddenly sensed a hugemotion ahead. There was a rumbling noise heading towards him!


    ¡°Come here to your death, old man!¡±


    It was Long Chen¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Death? Hehe, have you finally lost your patience and decided to fight me? The Heavenly Martial Realm isn''t to be underestimated. It is absolutely superior to the Earthly Martial Realm. Previously, you only managed to fend me off because I was not careful. And you have gotten arrogant because of that?¡±


    Feng Qing was excited. He had been waiting for his moment. He blew a strong, violent gust of wind in Long Chen¡¯s direction!


    The domain of a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator swirled violently!


    It was just a short journey because soon, Feng Qing spotted the teenager standing calmly among the mes.


    His face was so calm that it was scary.


    Feng Qing was privately startled. <em>Did this kid gain some new trick?</em>


    Then he smiled.


    <em>Feng Qing, O Feng Qing. You¡¯re regressing with age. You¡¯ve lived for hundreds of years, yet you¡¯re scared of a teenager. If this gets out, people are going tough until their teeth fall out.</em>


    His gaze turned cold.


    Long Chen knew that the old man was next to him, it was just that thetter could not find Long Chen. With just a casual sentence, he could lure the man over.


    Feng Qing was getting impatient. He used his domain to clear tens of meters of space around him. Anywhere without fire was where his domain was.


    He was at the First Heavenly Martial Stage, which was also the strength of his domain.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you can run this time.¡±


    He used his Martial Soul to exert the maximum force within his domain, making Long Chen feel like he was stuck in mud. It restricted his movements so that it was difficult to move, let alone fight.


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got?¡¯


    Long Chen was never a merciful person. He would have to use the Dragon Soul Transformation to kill Feng Qing, so his body was already covered in scales. Within a short time, he turned into a red killing machine.


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±

 Chapter 859: Killing Feng Qing

    Long Chen used his Blood Devouring Domain to fill the space that Feng Qing had cleared using his domain. The blood-red mist filled Feng Qing¡¯s vision, even blocking some of it.


    Close the door to beat the dog! That was Long Chen¡¯s tactic!


    ¡°It¡¯s that bizarre space technique again! But it won¡¯t stop me!¡±


    Feng Qing had no choice but to use his essence to suppress his blood, so less essence was avable for use. However, he also believed that Long Chen was greatly affected.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Feng Qing¡¯s Three Thousand Hand Seals shot at Long Chen once more. The whole domain was filled with his attack!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    Countless hand seals shot at Long Chen, and with the boost provided by the domain, they brought with them great strength!


    ¡°That trick again?¡±Long Chen had faced the Thousand Seals and the Three Thousand Hand Seals countless times before, so he was very familiar with them.


    ¡°It indeed is the Three Thousand Hand Seals, but can you block it?¡± Feng Qingughed off Long Chen¡¯s doubt.


    Within the tight space, the three thousand seals merged to unleash an even greater force!


    ¡°Three Thousand Illusions, Wind Dagger!¡±


    While using the Three Thousand Hand Seals, he even used his n¡¯s divine technique. The Three Thousand Illusions aggregated into a single sharp Wind Dagger. A sharp but powerful energy radiated from the Wind Dagger.


    <em>The old man¡¯s Wind Dagger is indeed stronger than the others.</em>


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze was calm, as if he was not the one facing the attack.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see how you¡¯re going to withstand this! Will you use that quadruplebination attack again?¡± Feng Qing chuckled coldly, then the destructive attack shot at Long Chen!


    There was a cold sh in Long Chen¡¯s eyes!


    Layer byyer, the Emperor Seals appeared in his right palm.


    Every Emperor Seal was only a regr elementary Emperor-tierbat technique, but whenbined, they would create a formidable force.


    ¡°You¡¯re really going to use that move?¡± There was a sh of joy in Feng Qing¡¯s face.


    He knew that if Long Chen was using that move, he was a hundred percent sure that he could kill him!


    ¡°Die!¡±


    He struck using the full force of a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator!


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Long Chen smirked coldly!


    ¡°Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal!¡±


    The final seal appeared on top of the four previous seals. All five colors from the respective seals merged, then turned into a gigantic, five-colored palm oveying Long Chen¡¯s hand! ?


    ¡°Five Emperors Combination!¡±


    Long Chen let out a loud cry, then waved his right hand. The gigantic, colorful palm flew at Feng Qing, as if it was God¡¯s hand!


    Countless seals from the Three Thousand Hand Seals smashed into the colorful palm on the way, but they all shattered. It contained endless power!


    Thebination of five seals was much more powerful than the previous quadruple sealbination. This was indeed the final level of the Five Emperor Seals!


    ¡°What?!¡±


    When Feng Qing saw the heaven-epassing palm approaching, his face paled!


    <em>He¡¯s only at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage. How could he possess such great power?</em>


    The gigantic palm shone brightly, and instantly arrived in front of Feng Qing. His Three Thousand Hand Seals technique had been destroyed just like that!


    ¡°Wind Dagger!¡±


    The Wind Dagger was hisst hope!


    The sharp Wind Dagger pierced into the five-colored palm. Although it was small, it had a strong piercing ability, allowing it to pierce through the palm and fly toward Long Chen!


    Long Chen shed with his Three Thousand Star Clusters, causing the Wind Dagger, which had little remaining strength, to shatter!


    The five-colored palm shook and directly grabbed Feng Qing!


    ¡°No!¡±


    The palm containedrge amounts of destructive energy. Being enveloped by energy like that meant certain death.


    ¡°Remember this. I did not kill Feng Zhilin, but I did kill you, Feng Qing. Turn into a ghost and find me again, if you dare.¡±


    Long Chenughed, then retreated far away.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    There was the sound of an explosion. The power of the Five Emperor Seals reduced the enraged Feng Qing into bits of flesh.


    Feng Qing was dead!


    The great patriarch of the Wind n had been killed by Long Chen, the rising star.


    The gigantic Heavenly Wind Empire would be greatly shaken by Feng Qing¡¯s death. If Wu Lian did not die during this expedition, she would surely absorb the Heavenly Wind Empire into her territory after she emerged.


    That woman had mesmerized many people for hundreds of years, and she was still a beauty. To many people, she was a lofty woman who could not be touched.


    However, she had a terrifying mind.


    Long Chen felt like the most difficult person to deal with in the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm was her.


    <em>Now that I¡¯ve killed Feng Qing, I should be able to advance to the next stage.</em>n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    This thought had just popped into his mind when he realized his body was moving.


    ***


    It was pitch-ck. They could only see a dim, yellow path leading straight ahead, but there was only endless darkness in front of them.


    <em>Where is this ce?</em>


    When Bai Lan and the others appeared here, this was their first question.


    They stood at the beginning of the path, surrounded by endless darkness. Even with their enhanced vision, they could not see anything else.


    The dim path was the only thing present, and it seemed to lead to some ce.


    ¡°Is this the second floor of the ck Bone Tower?¡±


    Everyone looked around to see the other people who had appeared.


    As time gradually passed, the people who appeared were Wu Lian, Bai Lan, Ancestor Jin, and the Long-Bearded Guest. These people had not entered the same colors, and with their Second Heavenly Martial Stage strength, they had easily defeated their opponents to arrive on the second floor.


    Bai Lan and Ancestor Jin had been paired with members of their own factions, so it had been even easier for them. Lei Ji had encountered Bai Lan, so he was not hurt and remained in the world filled with water while Bai Lan came here. Bai Lan guessed that they would all be sent out after the ordeal in the secret realm ended.


    Only the strongest ones had the right to stay behind.


    Four people had arrived, meaning four had been defeated. Out of the four who were disqualified, three were from the Five Elements Alliance, so Ancestor Jin was sulking.


    Thankfully, they had not killed anyone.


    ¡°The final pair should be Long Chen and Feng Qing,¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest with a chuckle. ¡°Violence cannot be avoided when two enemies meet, so one of them will surely die. Who will live?¡± Since it was unrted to him, he spoke about it very nonchntly.


    Bai Lan and Wu Lian nced at each other.


    This was a war between them.


    Neither was a chatterbox, so they did not speak and only waited patiently.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be troublesome, now that Long Chen has encountered Feng Qing. If it were anyone else, they may not kill him. But Feng Qing ¡­¡±


    Time passed slowly. No one expected their duel tost this long.


    ¡°It looks like the brat isn¡¯t too bad at all. He was the one who sted the Fire patriarch into the five-colored altar.


    ¡°Who knew that ¡®out of ten, five advance¡¯ meant this?¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest kept talking.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s here!¡±


    Ripples suddenly started forming behind them, and they quickly turned around. A tall, handsome teenager appeared.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Bai Lan was overjoyed.


    The four of them were shocked.


    This teenager had defeated a Heavenly Martial Realm expert in a fair fight.


    There was supposed to be a gigantic canyon separating the Earthly and Heavenly Martial Realms.


    If Long Chen could defeat Feng Qing, he surely had extraordinary techniques!


    To prevent Wu Lian from attacking him, Bai Lan quickly shielded Long Chen.


    The five other First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators had been defeated, but this teenager at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage had entered the second floor of the ck Bone Tower along with all the Second Heavenly Martial Stage people. From this, they could see how extraordinary he was.


    Wu Lian moved her lips only slightly to ask, ¡°Long Chen, where is Feng Qing?¡± Her voice freezing, as if she had no emotions.


    ¡°I killed him,¡± said Long Chen, neither fast nor slow and without any emotion on his face.


    ¡°Gasp!¡±


    They all drew in sharp breaths!


    Out of the ten of them, Feng Qing was the first to die.


    Someone had died, signifying how serious this had be. After the first death, there would surely be more.


    Thankfully, the First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators were no longer present. Other than Long Chen, they were all the strongest experts of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Wu Lian did not seem shocked at all to hear that Feng Qing was dead.


    Her face was hidden beneath a white veil, so they could not see her expression.


    She had a feminine figure with bright eyes, as well as a fairy-like aura. Indeed, she was like a fairy. However, she also radiated a cold, eerie aura. Ling Xi was much cuter inparison.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Let¡¯s see what¡¯s at the end of this path.¡± Ancestor Jin was also in a bad mood. After a cold huff, he quickly strode ahead.


    Previously, they werecking one person, so they had not been able to leave.


    After Ancestor Jin, the Long-Bearded Guest quickly followed him, and the others started to move too. To prevent Wu Lian¡¯s ambush, Bai Lan stayed by Long Chen¡¯s side, walkingst.


    ¡°You really killed Feng Qing?¡± Bai Lan whispered.


    ¡°It was time to kill him,¡± said Long Chen.


    Long Chen was different from before.


    ¡°I wonder how extraordinary you¡¯ll be when you reach the Heavenly Martial Realm¡­¡± said Bai Lan, speechless.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be soon.¡±


    Long Chen felt like he was almost there.


    Then, something happened in front of them.

 Chapter 860: The Old Cow Eats Young Grass

    ¡°Bone Demons?¡±


    Long Chen and Bai Lan looked up and saw that many green mes had lit up on the dim, yellow path. A Bone Demon stood every ten meters along the long path, looking menacing and creepy.


    When Wu Lian approached, the Bone Demons within a hundred-meter radius woke up. An aura of violence arose.


    ¡°Why are there so many Bone Demons?¡±


    Long Chen was slightly startled.


    Every Bone Demon was almost as strong as a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. When Long Chen looked up, he saw that at least ten Bone Demons had awakened. They did not know how long this path was. Did they need to kill all the Bone Demons along the path?


    ¡°Everyone, don¡¯t move yet!¡±


    Ancestor Jin¡¯s gaze darkened and swept past everyone. He said, ¡°I¡¯ll speak frankly. There are a lot of Bone Demons here, and while we can dodge them by running quickly, that is a very risky decision that will result in all of the Bone Demons awakening. If we do that, everyone will have a muchrger burden. Since we are not in a hurry and the treasure has not appeared yet, why don¡¯t we advance slowly? The four of us will work together to slowly work our way forward until we kill off all the Bone Demons. What do you think?¡±


    Ancestor Jin was asking them to work together.¡°Indeed, there is no need for us to fight before the treasure appears,¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest, stroking his bear with a slow nod.


    He had only mentioned four people, clearly not taking Long Chen seriously. To them, Long Chen was just a lucky youth who had recently risen to fame. If a true threat appeared, Bai Lan would find it difficult to keep himself alive and Long Chen would just be a burden.


    Both of them were seeking Bai Lan and Wu Lian¡¯s agreement.


    Bai Lan was calm as always, and he nodded with a smile. Wu Lian huffed coldly and charged towards the Bone Demon in front of her.


    She did not break from the group, but rather killed the Bone Demons who wereing towards them. This indirectly meant that she was agreeing with Ancestor Jin¡¯s request.


    Everyone looked at each other, then followed her.


    ¡°Be careful of Wu Lian. Although she¡¯s trying to hide her desire to kill you, it¡¯s still showing. Since I¡¯m here, she¡¯s unwilling to make a move, as doing so would create an opening for the others to take advantage of. That¡¯s the only reason why she hasn¡¯t touched you yet. However, if there¡¯s even a slight chance, we will not show mercy! You must stay by my side at all times.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. She can¡¯t touch me.¡± Long Chen smirked and looked at Wu Lian, who was gracefully killing Bone Demons.


    Her luscious bottom truly had some beautiful curves.


    As if sensing that he was looking at her, Wu Lian turned around. At that moment, Long Chen saw rays of snow-white sword light in her eyes.


    Whoosh! The White Lotus Sword shed across the Bone Demon¡¯s neck, and its head flew into the air. The Bone Demon, which was wearing ck armor, crashed to the ground and its bones scattered. ?


    <em>That woman is indeed constantly thinking about killing me. Despite her high rank, she is still able to hold herself back like this. It is indeed unbelievable, and it indirectly says that she is terrifying.</em>


    While Wu Lian was constantly keeping an eye on Long Chen, he was also boldly eying her. Hatred and disgust gradually ignited in Wu Lian¡¯s heart because he did not even try to avoid her gaze. When Long Chen¡¯s eyes swept across her, he even tutted with praise. Wu Lian was no longer a young teenage girl, but a high-rankeddy saint. No one ever dared to cross her, yet Long Chen stared at her like that! He had a death wish!


    Wu Lian was so mad that she started tough.


    She knew that Long Chen was trying to provoke her.


    To Long Chen, a killer hiding in the darkness was scarier than a direct battle. That was why he was constantly on guard for Wu Lian¡¯s attack!


    ¡°Are you interested in me?¡±


    While Wu Lian was killing the Bone Demons, she brushed past Long Chen and Bai Lan. Her fragrance wafted past Long Chen¡¯s nose. Although Wu Lian was not a young woman, her scent was like that of a young woman. Even her gaze was as seductive as a young woman¡¯s gaze.


    ¡°Actually, I think you¡¯re the one who is interested in me. Are you an old cow trying to eat young grass?¡± [1] said Long Chen with a cold smirk, not mincing his words.


    To be honest, the more powerful a cultivator was, the less important age was. Wu Lian was already at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage and had a lifespan of more than a thousand years. If she was not killed by someone else, she could be considered to be in her prime years. And even if her cultivation did not progress, she would only show signs of aging at seven hundred years old.


    This was an expert.


    Of course, Long Chen had an unbelievably powerful life force too. He did not want to estimate his own lifespan, but with the ancestral dragon blood, he surely had a stronger life force than other people.


    ¡°Hmph!¡±


    Wu Lian huffed coldly, and her White Lotus Sword shot past Long Chen and pierced through a Bone Demon not far behind him.


    This made Bai Lan jump in fright. He thought Wu Lian was going to kill Long Chen out of embarrassment.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let me catch you, or I will make you regret evering into this world,¡± she said airily, then she left.


    Long Chen squinted.


    <em>She¡¯s one of the four great Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators. I can only survive by relying on Bai Lan¡¯s protection, but I am holding Bai Lan back and reducing his chances of getting the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure ¡­</em>


    There were surely going to be a lot more problems down the road. All of this was a headache for him.


    That woman Wu Lian was like a ticking time bomb, and he did not know when she would be set off.


    <em>Although that woman has a very cold temper, she has a top-tier figure. Even Suxue looks innocentpared to her.</em>


    Although Suxue had a seductive figure, she was still a young, inexperienced girl. She was not like Wu Lian, who was someone¡¯s wife. Although he could not see her face, the woman had a seductive aura that radiated from her very bones. Every move she made was enough to make a man¡¯s mouth run dry.


    Long Chen had been a yer since young and had seen many women before. Before Long Qinn died, he had slept with all the girls in the brothels, as well as all types of girls from other wealthy ns. However, ever since he stepped into the world of cultivation, he realized that those mortal womencked the vor that cultivator women carried.


    However, his heart had been captured by Ling Xi. It did not matter how beautiful other girls were¡ªthey were not as pretty and attractive as Ling Xi was. That was why he had lost interest in other people.


    There were countless Bone Demons along the dim path.


    There was one every ten meters, and once they came within a hundred meters of it, it would awaken.


    If they traveled slowly, they would not need to fight too many at once. However, if they took the risk and ran as fast as they could, they would awaken all the Bone Demons and be surrounded by them.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Even Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators could only face a maximum of four Bone Demons. The problem was that they were consuming a bit of essence with each battle. After about two-hundred meters, they were starting to breathe heavily.


    This path was designed to test their determination.


    However, these people had no choice but to work together now because of ovepping interests. If the true treasure appeared, they would kill each other in the blink of an eye.


    ¡°Let¡¯s carry on ¡­¡±


    They all looked at each other and stubbornly held on.


    They had long known that the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was not going to be easy to retrieve. This was only the second floor of the ck Bone Tower. When would they arrive at the seventh floor?


    ¡°There¡¯s only a month left until the Ancient Graveyard closes. This means we only have one month to try,¡± said Bai Lan while killing a Bone Demon.


    During this time, Long Chen truly witnessed their strength, and they were indeed all very strong.


    It would probably be difficult to hurt them at all, even with the five-Emperor Sealbination. Especially Wu Lian and Bai Lan, who both had inheritances from the Seven Lords.


    ¡°What¡¯s that up ahead?¡±


    After they had traveled five hundred meters, they spotted a simple wooden house at the end of the dim, yellow path!


    The path led into the simple house. What did that mean?


    This meant that what they wanted was likely inside. Although it was not the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, it was likely to be an important treasure!


    There were another hundred meters left, with approximately ten Bone Demons.


    When he spotted the wooden house, Long Chen had an idea and quickly said to Bai Lan, ¡°You go! I can temporarily protect myself!¡±


    He was worried that Bai Lan would not take the initiative to go out of concern for Long Chen¡¯s safety.


    If that happened, Long Chen would feel guilty. Bai Lan had helped him a lot, so how could he be a burden to him at a moment like this?


    When he heard Long Chen, Bai Lan did not hesitate. All four Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators rushed to the wooden house at almost the same time!


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    When the ck Bone Demons sensed their presence, they all raised their spears and knives and charged at them! They seemed to be guarding the item in the wooden house, so they were extremely aggressive!


    The mes in these Bone Demons¡¯ eyes were much brighter than the others, and their attacks were much fiercer too. If Long Chen did not use the Five Emperor Seals¡¯bination, he would not be able to fend off three Bone Demons at a time!


    He was indeed the weakest out of the five.


    The four cultivators unleashed their best techniques to dash to the wooden house. Long Chen watched anxiously. He did not dare act recklessly at a key moment like this, but he was ready to use Blood Warp.


    The Bone Demons blocked their way!


    1. Old Cow Eating Young Grass - an idiom referring to older people who date much younger people ?

 Chapter 861: Sword Soul Stone

    If Wu Lian and the others wanted to rush into the wooden house, they had to either shake off the Bone Demons or kill them. Everyone smartly chose to shake them off by running faster than the Bone Demons. All of them ran in a frenzied manner, using every dodging technique they had. All four arrived in front of the small wooden house at the same time!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The surge of air sted the wooden house away. It also threw all the rotten tables and chairs in the house into the air. Long Chen focused his gaze and saw that only two objects remained in front of them. One was a one-meter-long ck ruler. ck light flowed on its surface, and it radiated a cold aura like a de.


    The ck ruler instantly attracted everyone¡¯s attention, and they all looked at it with fiery gazes. Long Chen sensed an energy as strong as the Three Thousand Star Clustersing from the ruler!


    This ck ruler was clearly an advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon!


    There used to be only one advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, which was the White Lotus Sword.


    Subsequently, the Azure Lotus Sword and the Three Thousand Star Clusters were discovered.


    Now the ck ruler had appeared. Although they did not know what it was called, the ck ruler was surely an advanced Emperor-tier weapon. An item like this was even considered a rare treasure in the Royal Territories. Even Sixth or Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage experts would fight to their deaths over a divine weapon like this.


    Divine weapons were suited for humans but not demons, so the six demons had not stolen any of them. If they did, how could these mere First and Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators hold on to such precious weapons?Even Wu Lian could not fully utilize the full power of the White Lotus Sword.


    The ck ruler quickly attracted everyone¡¯s attention.


    There were also two people in the wooden house. Using the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen could see that they were actually corpses.


    They were sitting cross-legged together, and due to the darkness and distance, he could not see their faces. Countless years had passed, yet the corpses¡¯ flesh was still preserved. This showed just how powerful they were when they were alive.


    They were experts who were at least as strong as the Purple-Blooded Jiao Dragon.


    They were likely a man and a woman, and they were wearing long, light-blue robes. There were several images of the eight trigrams on their sleeves and chests.


    <em>Who are these people? Why would they be here?</em>


    While Long Chen was mulling over these questions, the others ignored the corpses and started to fight for the advanced Emperor-tier ck ruler.


    Two corpses and nothing else. Perhaps the ck ruler was the weapon they had left behind.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Perhaps because Long Chen had the Three Thousand Star Clusters, he was not interested in the ck ruler. He just felt like there was something strange about the corpses. He could sense an aura simr to Wu Lian¡¯s on them.


    A very strong and sharp sword Qi!


    <em>That¡¯s right! That¡¯s sword Qi!</em>


    Long Chen suddenly came to a realization!


    He focused his gaze and saw that there was a sword piercing through the eight trigram diagrams!


    An image of a sword piercing through the eight trigrams!


    This meant that these two people were likely the same as Wu Lian¡ªthey were also Sword Warriors who were born with Sword Roots!


    <em>They¡¯re Sword Warriors, and their corpses have been preserved ¡­</em>


    They were dead and did not seem to contain any secrets. Long Chen merely felt like there was something strange about them. Then he realized that Wu Lian, who was the strongestpetitor for the weapon, suddenly resigned from the fight!


    She suddenly retreated, then stared at the corpses in shock!


    <em>What did she discover? </em>Long Chen was privately startled!


    The ck ruler was very valuable to Wu Lian. If she took it back to the Divine n, it would make the n more prosperous. But why had she abandoned the ck ruler to look at the corpses?


    After Wu Lian backed off, only Bai Lan, the Long-Bearded Guest, and Ancestor Jin remained. The three of them fought vigorously in the narrow area. Everything happened in a short time, and luck yed a huge role in whoever would end up with the ck ruler.


    Bai Lan was superior in terms of both strength and luckpared to the other two!


    Out of the three, he was the only one with an advanced Emperor-tier technique!


    It came from the Divine Demon Lord, of course!


    The Divine Demon Lord was not a Sword Warrior, and although he had not left a weapon behind, he had a super-strong advanced Emperor-tier technique. The Divine Demon Nine Spins was just one of his normalbat techniques, while his most powerful attack was actually the Divine Demon Lord Punch!


    Bai Lan retracted his fist, then punched hard, and the Divine Demon Lord Punch exploded out of his fist. A gust of air flew out like a tidal wave of death. ck, demonic Qi condensed around his fist, forming a powerful, rippling Fist Seal!


    ¡°Haargh!¡± The punch flew and pushed back both the Long-Bearded Guest and Ancestor Jin. Neither of them could block an Emperor-tier technique, so it would be difficult to protect themselves from injury.


    Of course, their attacks were also powerful whenbined, and they sted Bai Lan back too. However, it ended up helping Bai Lan because he only needed to stretch out his hand to grab the ck ruler. After taking it, he quickly stashed it in his storage ring!


    ¡°Guys, I¡¯ll be taking this divine weapon. There are still five more floors to go, and there will surely be countless weaponster. I hope you guys will only be jealous of me in secret.¡± Bai Lan smiled and shot off quickly, maintaining some distance between himself and others.


    By now, the Bone Demons had turned around to chase after them. Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest were immediately immersed in killing them. After they finally finished killing all the Bone Demons, they were left panting. The Long-Bearded Guest said, ¡°Brother Bai, there is no need for formalities. You were able to grab it with your own ability, so we fully ept this oue. However, we¡¯re going to get the subsequent treasurester.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± said Bai Lan with a smile.


    They were simr in strength, so they were most anxious about being targeted by groups. Bai Lan did not want them to hate and target him over such a small item. It would not be worth it.


    However, why had Wu Lian dropped out of the fight? Was she not interested in it at all?


    Long Chen watched the two corpses and approached them too. After Bai Lan had retrieved the ruler and they had killed all the Bone Demons, Long Chen suddenly sensed some changes in the corpses!


    Starting from their heads, the two corpses turned into ashes that flew and dispersed in the air until nothing was left of them.


    First the heads, then the bodies, then the legs.


    Up until now, Long Chen and Wu Lian were the only ones who had paid them any attention. Now the rest realized that there was also something special about the corpses.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    After the corpses dissolved, two stones appeared where their dantians once were.[1]


    One was golden, and it was filled with Yang masculine energy and heat!


    The other was ck, and it was filled with Yin feminine energy and chill!


    There was a faint image of a sword on both stones. Although they were stones, they radiated sword Qi that forced everyone several steps back, including Wu Lian, who was the closest!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    The most overwhelmed person present was Little Cat in the Primordial Realm!


    From Little Cat¡¯s excited tone, he knew that these were extremely precious treasures!


    ¡°Sword Soul Stone! Grab it!¡±


    Sword Soul Stone?


    Little Cat had told him about this before. Previously, Long Chen had asked how to be a Sword Warrior, and Little Cat had told him that he could if he could get a Sword Soul Stone someone else left behind.


    It was very difficult to get one, and not even one in ten thousand cultivators left one behind. Being at a high cultivation level did not guarantee a cultivator could get their hands on one.


    Plus, who would leave behind their life¡¯s work for someone else?


    Inheriting a Sword Soul Stone was also very risky. If the person was not careful and let the sword Qi leak out, they would be cut to pieces if they weren¡¯t strong enough to suppress it!


    Most importantly, who knew when they would die?


    Only people who were severely injured and almost dead would even attempt to leave their Sword Soul Stone behind.


    Therefore, very few people, even in the Royal Territories, received and inherited a natural Sword Root.


    Passing down a Sword Root was very rare.


    Long Chen¡¯s nerves were tensed to their limit!


    He wanted to be a Sword Warrior so he couldprehend the Sword Path to increase hisbat abilities. The golden and ck Sword Soul Stones were the keys to bing one!


    When the abilities of a Sword Warrior were added to those of a Dragon Warrior, how strong would he be?


    ¡°The Sword Roots in those Sword Soul Stones haveprehended three whole stages of the Sword Path! They can multiply a cultivator¡¯s strength by seven times!¡± Little Cat cried excitedly as Long Chen charged.


    It was no wonder he was so emotional.


    If they were Sword Roots left behind by cultivators on Wu Guangyu and Wu Lian¡¯s levels, Little Cat might not have reacted like this.


    Long Chen did not hesitate to use Blood Warp immediately!


    Bai Lan and the others did not know what they were. Wu Lian was also slightly obstructed by the sword Qi emanating from the stones. However, Long Chen turned into blood-colored light and instantly appeared in front of them!


    He grabbed the golden Sword Soul Stone with his scaled hand!


    ¡°Get out!¡± Wu Lian, who was already very close, turned into a ray of white light and charged at him. She immediately reached out to grab the ck Sword Soul Stone, and at the same time, a ray of white sword light flew at Long Chen!


    It was the White Lotus Sword. If Long Chen were hit, he would not survive.


    Therefore, Long Chen was forced to dodge using Blood Warp!


    1. TL Note: The dantian is located about two inches below the navel. It is considered the energy center of the body in traditional Chinese medicine ?

 Chapter 862: Trapped Beast

    There were two Sword Soul Stones, and Long Chen could only use one anyway. Both he and Wu Lian moved away at the same time, and grabbing one was enough.


    Both of them had one Sword Soul Stone each.


    Long Chen was about to stash it in the Primordial Realm when it suddenly erupted with a powerful sucking force. Both Sword Soul Stones suddenly collided to form a gigantic ck hole, instantly swallowing Long Chen and Wu Lian.


    ¡°Long Chen!¡± Bai Lan gasped and shot towards him. However, to his despair, he did not arrive in time. In the blink of an eye, both Long Chen and Wu Lian had disappeared!


    ¡°What just happened?¡±


    The three remaining people looked at each other.


    Long Chen and Wu Lian had disappeared. What was going on?


    Where had they gone?


    The Long-Bearded Guest and Ancestor Jin were privately feeling smug. This meant that the woman had likely resigned from the fight for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.Bai Lan saw Long Chen as a close family member at this point, so he had wanted to protect him. However, Long Chen had disappeared together with Wu Lian in an unexpected turn of events. Even if they had been moved to a safe ce, Long Chen would be killed by Wu Lian.


    <em>Is the kid still going to sumb to the fate of death? </em>Bai Lan sighed in his heart.


    When he thought about how sad his daughters would be when they heard of the child¡¯s death, his mind became a mess. He remembered that Long Chen dreamt of going to the Royal Territories, and he had a feeling that the young man had a lot of responsibilities. Yet he was met with tragedy at this juncture.


    They realized that the wooden house was not the end of the path, and the dim road extended far ahead. Not far away, Bone Demons were gradually waking up due to themotion.


    ¡°Where have they gone?¡± asked Ancestor Jin.


    ¡°Who knows? The Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm is a strange ce. We should carry on. We don¡¯t know when they¡¯lle out,¡± the Long-Bearded Guest responded, shrugging.


    ¡°You guys go first. I¡¯ll wait here.¡± Bai Lan waved.


    He was unwilling to give up.


    Perhaps some miracle would happen.


    Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest nced at each other. From their point of view, Bai Lan was a fool for prioritizing Long Chen over a chance to take the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure for himself.


    However, with only the two of them, they were not sure if they could survive the various dangers ahead.


    And they did not know how long it would take to kill the countless Bone Demons that were awaiting them.


    Therefore, they did not leave.


    ¡°In that case, we will wait here for a while too,¡± said Ancestor Jin.


    They did not want to let Bai Lan reap the rewards of their hard work.


    Bai Lan knew exactly what they were thinking. He chuckled coldly, then sat cross-legged to recover his essence.


    Time passed gradually.


    One dayter, Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest were running out of patience. The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was waiting for them. But before they could say something, Bai Lan stood up. ?


    They had not emerged after a full day, so there was not much hope.


    After living for so many years, Bai Lan had grown ustomed to death.


    <em>It¡¯s truly a pity. He was such a talented, resilient young man. </em>Bai Lan sighed, then he looked at the other two and said, ¡°I apologize for making you two wait.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡± They were finally leaving. Both sighed in relief.


    They did not want Bai Lan to benefit after they had killed off all the Bone Demons; that was why they had remained. They did not genuinely want to wait for Bai Lan.


    Looking at the dim, yellow path, Bai Lan¡¯s eyes filled with determination, and he embarked on the journey once more.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was everyone¡¯s goal.


    ***


    ¡°Where is this ce?¡± Long Chen rubbed his head and struggled to stand up. He looked around. Both the sky and the ground were gray, as if he had returned to the outside of the ck Bone Tower. However, it differed from before, because there was no thick sea of bones here. This space was not very huge, and gray mist lingered far away.


    After a while, he recalled that he had grabbed the golden Sword Soul Stone, then he arrived here. The same thing had happened to Wu Lian!


    But where had the Sword Soul Stone gone?


    The moment he remembered this, he felt a de of terrifying sword Qi flying at him!


    ¡°Who is it?!¡± Long Chen quickly turned around and used the Big Dipper Step. The snow-white sword Qi <em>swooshed</em> behind him, leaving a deep, red gash on his scaly back!


    Long Chen drew in a sharp breath. His back burned with pain. He had not been hurt by a sword like this in a long time!


    Although the wound hurt, it was not fatal.


    The cut was quite, but it was not bleeding. The muscles on his back wriggled quickly. It would soon healpletely.


    Long Chen¡¯s body had merged with one-hundredth of the ancestral dragon blood, so his life force was no joke.


    People who could use life techniques to heal were not as powerful as he was.


    He quickly turned and saw Wu Lian standing in front of him. A gentle breeze blew through the gray world, and her white robes pped loudly. Her face veil lifted slightly, revealing half of her cheek.


    <em>I¡¯m done for! I don¡¯t know where the Sword Soul Stone has gone, but I have been brought here. Do I need to defeat Wu Lian in order to keep the Sword Soul Stone or get out of this ce?</em>


    Long Chen cursed that person who had brought him here countless times, but that was useless. The most important thing now was to stay alive!


    This woman had been waiting for a chance like this one. Would she ever show mercy?


    That first attack was vicious. If he had not dodged her, he would have been cut in half.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Wu Lian approached him slowly. A Second Heavenly Martial Stage expert¡¯s domain exerted pressure on Long Chen. It was much stronger than the domain of a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator, and it exerted much greater force on him!


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe that the heavens have decided to help. You are fated to die. I will not hold back.¡± She raised the White Lotus Sword gently, gazing at him with contempt. The gentle breeze exposed the skin around her sleeve.


    ¡°You must have many secrets, to be able to achieve your current level. If it was just the Martial God Tombstone, you would not have improved so quickly. However, from today onwards, everything you own will be mine ¡­¡±


    ¡°Have you been eyeing my stuff?¡± Long Chen thought she merely wanted to avenge her son.


    ¡°Less of that nonsense. We are trapped here. Killing you is probably the only way I can get out. If I take too long, someone else will get the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures, and that will not be worth it.¡±


    He could not see her face, as it was covered by her veil, but her voice was emotionless.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pity. You are a talented youth of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. However, not only did you not join my n, you also killed my son. What a pity.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s your son¡¯s fault for offending me. If he hadn¡¯t, I would¡¯ve had no reason to kill him,¡± said Long Chen with a cold smirk.


    His mind was racing for ideas.


    <em>How can I get out of this ce? I don¡¯t think it¡¯s as simple as killing Wu Lian. Besides, how would I kill her when there¡¯s an insurmountable gap between us?</em>


    <em>Blood Sacrifice?</em>


    He was just one step away from the Heavenly Martial Realm. Unless he had no other solution, he did not want to use Blood Sacrifice. As for Blood Warp, that was not possible. This ce was narrow, and he could not run anywhere.


    <em>This is troublesome!</em>


    <em>I refuse to believe that Wu Lian is that strong! Let me try and see how strong a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator truly is!</em>


    With that thought, Long Chen¡¯s eyes turned blood-red.


    Ever since he came to the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, he had not deactivated his Dragon Soul Transformation because he was constantly in battle!


    ¡°My son, I will now kill your enemy and send him to hell!¡±


    Wu Lianughed at the sky, then her body flickered and she immediately pounced on Long Chen!


    What a quick and vicious attack!


    Long Chen gasped!


    ¡°Five Seals Combination!¡±


    Long Chen unleashed the five Emperor Seals consecutively in an instant, and arge, five-colored palm appeared. Under Long Chen¡¯s control, it flew menacingly at her!


    The wind blew violently and space trembled. Pebbles and sand flew into the air!


    ¡°Domain!¡±


    There was a sh of shock in Wu Lian¡¯s eyes, but it quickly turned into endless iciness and endless sword Qi churned around her.


    The moment Wu Lian released her domain, the surge of energy exerted a huge force on Long Chen. Long Chen¡¯sbat technique was weakened significantly, and he estimated that his Five Seals Combination was at least weakened by a quarter!


    The domain of a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator was just that powerful!


    ¡°Far-Reaching Sword Qi!¡±


    Wu Lian swung her White Lotus Sword horizontally. A de of shining sword Qi flew towards Long Chen¡¯s Five Seals Combination!


    The shining sword Qi lit up the whole world!


    The blinding light filled Long Chen¡¯s field of vision.


    <em>I¡¯m finished!</em>


    Long Chen injected more essence into his Five Seals Combination, and it collided with the Far-Reaching Sword Qi. A destructive blow hit him!


    <em>What a powerful woman!</em>


    The unforgiving sword technique directly forced Long Chen back. Countless rays of sword Qi split off from the initial attack, passed through the Emperor Seals, then cut Long Chen¡¯s body. In just a short time, he waspletely drenched in blood! n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om

 Chapter 863: Final Battle Against the Divine Clan’s Matriarch

    The violent sword Qi brushed past Long Chen, cutting his scales open!


    Fresh blood appeared in his wounds. Blood was the most important resource to Long Chen, so he could not lose even a single drop.


    Long Chen let out a loud cry from the burning pain all over his body and gritted his teeth. The wounds from the sword Qi looked terrifying, but they were mostly surface injuries and did not cause true harm. The flesh around his tiny cuts wriggled and, encouraged by his powerful life force, healed gradually.


    But his speed of healing was no match for the speed of Wu Lian¡¯s attacks!


    ¡°Can you continue to dodge?¡± The woman smirked mockingly as she looked at him coldly.


    ¡°Such pathetic behavior fit for a weakling. Despite your talent, you¡¯re going to die by my hand.¡±


    She did not stop moving when she spoke. des of snow-white sword Qi shed at Long Chen. She was countless times stronger than Feng Qing, so while Long Chen could kill Feng Qing, he could not defend himself against her at all!


    <em>This won¡¯t work. If this continues, she¡¯s going to maim me!</em>


    His flesh wriggled, healing his wounds.<em>Blood Warp!</em>


    Long Chen remained silent. That was his only option. Although he did not know where Blood Warp would take him, it was more important to get away from the woman.


    ¡°Think you can run?¡± She huffed and spun her hand. He instantly felt the surrounding domain swirl.


    ¡°Reverse!¡±


    Wu Lian gave a soft cry, and although Long Chen had turned into a ray of blood-colored light, he was still under the domain¡¯s control. Long Chen used up all his strength to attempt Blood Warp, yet he was unable to escape!


    The gap between them was just too huge!


    This was the first time someone had broken his Blood Warp. Every time he used it before, it allowed him to escape danger!


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s domain tossed him out. He tumbled several times on the ground. If he had not been controlling himself, his blood would have been smeared on the ground.


    <em>This is bad! </em>Long Chen hurriedly leaped to his feet. This was one of the rare times when he could not defeat an opponent!


    Although the situation was terrible, Long Chen maintained his cool. A powerful killing intent erupted from his blood-red body. His eyes were fixed on Wu Lian, and they were filled with violence. Wu Lian was impressed that he still felt no fear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that you¡¯re about to die?¡±


    Wu Lian chuckled, and her curvy, voluptuous body trembled slightly. Her clothing billowed, revealing her snow-white leg. Her skin was as smooth as perfect, white jade, and there was not a single w.


    With the pping of her clothing, no one would be able to stop themselves from imagining the view at the base of her thighs.


    Long Chen continued to back away, and the killing intent in his eyes did not fade. To be honest, this was the first time Wu Lian had met a young man who dared to be this arrogant in front of her.


    ¡°Who says I¡¯m about to die? Don¡¯t make such derations until you¡¯re certain. Who knows if this won¡¯t end with you begging for mercy beneath my crotch?¡± he said with a small smile.


    Since Blood Warp had failed, he had to use another solution.


    ¡°How dare you!¡± Wu Lian raged and charged at him like a violent storm. Her seductive fragrance hit him in his face.


    ¡°Neen States of Sword Light,¡± she called out gently.


    When she was near him, she waved the White Lotus Sword, and the terrifying sword Qi condensed into a small de of sword light that flew straight at him!


    At that moment, he had the same feeling as when he faced Wu Guangyu¡¯s Azure Lotus Sword Manual. It was as if the whole world had disappeared. The only thing that remained was the cold, vicious sword light!


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    The unstoppable ray of sword light instantly arrived right in front of his eyes.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ¡°In your next life, remember to read people clearly. Some people are not to be touched.¡± Wu Lian¡¯s low voice floated to his ears, as if she was next to him.


    Her tone was very mild, as if she was talking about something unimportant. The sword light shed across his body, and he could not stop it at all!


    He was hit with the Neen States of Sword Light. With Wu Lian¡¯s great strength, the White Lotus Sword cut across his waist!


    This meant that he was surely going to die!


    Who could survive being cut in half at the waist?


    ¡°Everything hase to an end.¡±


    Wu Lian quickly stepped away. There was no emotion on her face.


    ¡°Weaklings will die. It doesn¡¯t matter if you have great potential. Long Chen, you appeared out of nowhere and created a legend. But in the end, you ended up dying by my hand.¡±


    With a cold expression, she gazed at the corpse, which slowly separated. She saw pain and shock on his face, and also the fear of death!


    Although he had the intermediate Emperor-tier Seven Star Body, the White Lotus Sword had cut his body in half!


    The top and bottom halves of his body separated!


    Once the two halves separated, he would bepletely dead!


    This teenager who had recently risen to fame was a huge threat to her standing in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. With his speed of growth, who could say that he would not suppress Wu Lian one day to be the strongest person in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory?


    Therefore, Wu Lian sighed in relief.


    Such an extraordinary teenager could not be allowed to grow.


    To Wu Lian, this was the end.


    Suddenly, a gray halo appeared on his chest. Wu Lian sawplicated runes on his chest, and they radiated an ancient aura. It was regal and immense, and she could not help but tremble when she saw it.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Wu Lian¡¯s bright eyes lit up.


    That was when a miraculous thing happened to his body. Long Chen¡¯s top half, which had fallen off, and his blood, traveled back to his body. His top and bottom halves connected perfectly, and his spraying blood also returned into his body.


    It was as if time was flowing backwards. Long Chen¡¯s body returned to its state before he was struck. His dull eyes were once again filled with blood-red energy!


    Wu Lian waspletely stunned.


    She had always been famous for her coldness, but now, her mouth was open as she cried in disbelief, ¡°How is that possible?!¡±


    Rewind, the divine technique from the Primordial Dragon Talisman, was beyond themon person¡¯s understanding. It was even more unbelievable than the Blood Devouring Domain and Blood Transmutation.


    This was impossible, yet it was happening right in front of her.


    The revived teenager had a cold but mocking smile on his face. Wu Lian fell several steps backwards and stared at him.


    To her, he was shrouded in mystery.


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. You were dead ¡­¡± Wu Lian muttered, her eyshes trembling. She instinctively held the White Lotus Sword in front of herself.


    In contrast to the bloodthirst and coldness from before, when she was slightly panicking like this, she emanated an indescribable, mature beauty.


    Of course, this meant nothing to Long Chen.


    All he knew was that this was the person who had almost killed him.


    When he saw her shock, he smiled and opened his arms. He then said nonchntly, ¡°Since you didn¡¯t kill me and gave me this chance, I wouldn¡¯t be Long Chen if I didn¡¯t get my revenge.¡±


    But without any improvement to his strength, how could he take revenge?


    Long Chen hadn¡¯t managed toprehend the Heavenly Martial Realm yet. He had truly felt the pressure from her Second Heavenly Martial Stage domain, and he could match the techniques of the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual and Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual. He had a slight understanding of the usage of the domain, but it was like there was a heavy cloth draped in front of his path. Perhaps this was the Heavenly Martial Wall people spoke of.


    Many people were blocked by this wall.


    Long Chen was currently in the same situation.


    Blood Warp had failed, and his single chance at Rewind had been used up. He had no other choice.


    Under Wu Lian¡¯s cold but shocked gaze, his entire body burst into blood-red mes. These mes were like fresh blood, and they radiated both heat and violence. The blood-red mes shot up to the sky, enveloping him, and angry roars sounded from his body. An image of a dragon appeared on every scale, and as they moved, all his injuries healed!


    Two blood-red, fiery dragons shot out of his eyes and wrapped around his body. The menacing red dragon heads rushed at Wu Lian, spitting fierce mes.


    An immense, ancient aura pressed on Wu Lian¡¯s body, causing her to back away.


    The terrifying aura made her panic.

 Chapter 864: White Lotus Sword Song

    Long Chen¡¯s essence quickly multiplied. He was originally at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, but he had advanced by one level to match a Heavenly Martial Realm cultivator¡¯s essence reserves. In addition to his Dragon Soul Transformation¡¯s ten-time essence boost, the explosive essence in his body almost matched Wu Lian¡¯s reserves!


    ¡°Blood Sacrifice, First Stage!¡±


    After it waspleted, Long Chen sensed that the menacing power was beyond the limits of his control. If he had not used his Seven Star Body to suppress the energy, he would have exploded and died.


    Facing a foe like Wu Lian, he had no choice but to abandon pursuing the Heavenly Martial Realm, which was extremely close. He had chosen to use Blood Sacrifice because he would die if he did not.


    The two people had a stand-off in the gray world.


    Long Chen, who was burning with blood-red mes, looked extra terrifying.


    On the other hand, after Wu Lian¡¯s brief shock, a newyer of frost covered her face. The White Lotus Sword in her hand had an ice-cold glint.


    ¡°Eh?¡± A cry of surprise came from a corner that neither of them was aware of. The being was startled after it saw Long Chen¡¯s Blood Sacrifice and the dragon images on his scales.


    Both Long Chen and Wu Lian were anxious and still mid-duel, so they did not hear it.Since he had used Blood Sacrifice, he had to end the fight quickly.


    ¡°Unbelievable!¡± Wu Lian had no choice but to erupt with her maximum strength so that she did not panic. She had already dialed her domain up to the maximum. It pressed on his body, not only restricting his movement, but also the flow of his essence!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain ¡­¡±


    After advancing by one level, the Blood Devouring Domain was also much stronger. Wu Lian finally had a taste of how strong it was. Blood Transmutation wasn¡¯t on the table for now, but Blood Devouring Domain was still one of his strongest trump cards!


    The Blood Devouring Domain suppressed half of her essence!


    After the effects of both their domains, Long Chen temporarily had the advantage in this duel!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    A dragon¡¯s roar erupted from his body!


    ¡°Five Seals Combination!¡±


    Since he was using Blood Sacrifice, he had to end it quickly andunch a fatal strike as soon as possible.


    It did not matter if she was the number one beauty across the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory. She had angered Long Chen, so she had to die!


    ¡°Scarlet Emperor Burning Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Golden Emperor Veiled Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Azure Emperor Rising Heaven Seal!


    ¡°ck Emperor Churning Heaven Seal!


    ¡°Yellow Emperor Quaking Heaven Seal!¡±


    He pushed all five seals out, and they all merged into a gigantic, five-colored palm!


    This was an advanced Emperor-tierbat technique. Although he could not use it to its full potential, it was still strong!


    ¡°Haargh!¡±


    He let out a loud cry, and the heaven-epassing five-colored palm flew at the white-robed Wu Lian.


    She was faced with a destructive attack!


    Long Chen was violent and vicious in this state. There was no mercy to be spoken of, and Wu Lian was secretly afraid of him.


    She never would have imagined that he could be this strong all of a sudden. Although she did not know what he had done, even she could not release such a strong attack!


    However, as a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator who had alsoprehended the first stage of the Sword Path, how could she not have more tricks up her sleeve?


    ¡°White Lotus Sword Manual!¡±


    The White Lotus Sword had its very own powerful Sword Manual!


    Wu Guangyu had onlyprehended a small fraction of the Azure Lotus Sword Manual, while Bai Lan had studied hers for decades and had achieved deep mastery. If she had used this on Long Chen since the beginning, he would not have survived!


    Ayer of white light glowed in her eyes.


    Ling Xi was also good at using the sword. Every time she did, she looked beautiful, like a fairy from the heavens. When Wu Lian used the White Lotus Sword Manual, he had the same feeling.


    But this was just a mistaken feeling!


    Long Chen was mesmerized for a short moment, but it did not hinder his intention to kill!


    ¡°Die!¡± The five-colored palm struck down!


    Sword light shot out of her sword. This attack contained all the strength she could muster!


    ¡°White Lotus Sword Song!¡±


    A white lotus emerged from the White Lotus Sword. It spun and looked dreamy. It was made of sword light, and it was going to face Long Chen¡¯s five-sealbination!


    Long Chen¡¯s Five Emperor Seals were stronger than her White Lotus Sword Manual, and it put him at an advantage as it flew at her. Even the gray ground trembled.


    Sand and dust flew into the air!


    Long Chen used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to pinpoint her location!


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    There were explosions!


    The sword Qi rippled. Her White Lotus Sword Song was not weak by any means, but in the end, it could not hold on any longer and was dispersed by Long Chen¡¯s attack. The remaining energy, which was not much, mmed into Wu Lian!


    Wu Lian had cultivated an intermediate Emperor-tier body tempering technique, which was superior to his Seven Star Body. This was why she could withstand his attack!


    Wu Lian was thrown back with blood spraying out of her mouth!


    Despite having her body tempering technique, he had injured her severely. Her energies were messed up and her internal organs had shifted ce, so her insides were a mess.


    To be honest, her body and face did not look hundreds of years old. She looked just like a beautiful woman in her twenties.


    Being severely injured, she fell to the ground and tumbled several times before clumsily getting on her feet with a look of shock on her face. To Long Chen, none of this mattered.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Despite a woman¡¯s beauty, if she was holding a knife, then she was not one he could touch easily.


    One attack was not enough to kill the woman. There was a cold sh in his eyes, then he dashed to her and swung his fist at her head!


    ¡°Ah!¡± she cried out in shock.


    Then he pulled out the Three Thousand Star Clusters and used the Big Dipper Step to attack her!


    He thrusted his spear aggressively at her most fatal body part!


    Not much of the power from the Blood Sacrifice was left, and he could not release another attack of that level. Therefore, he could only use his iplete Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual to strike her again and again!


    She was injured and had no chance to fight back. When faced with his crazed attacks and his spear, she could only dodge in a panic!


    Would he exhaust his strength before he killed her?

 Chapter 865: Yin-Yang Sea of Swords

    While they spoke, Long Chen¡¯s eyes shed coldly!


    Wu Lian stumbled from the attack and almost fell!


    Long Chen took advantage and stabbed the Three Thousand Star Clusters upwards through her jaw!


    ¡°What an idiot. She¡¯s so beautiful, but you don¡¯t know how to appreciate beauty. How nice it would have been if you had left her to me!¡± Little Cat sighed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave the corpse for you!¡± Long Chen chuckled coldly. The Three Thousand Star Clusters faced no obstruction when it pierced through the bottom of her jaw!


    Wu Lian finally had a look of terror on her face!


    She had always known that she would die one day, but not this tragically!


    At the same time, Long Chen felt a wave of weakness wash over him.


    <em>Oh no, the Blood Sacrifice is fading. I will return to the Eighth Earthly Martial Stage!</em>This was a critical moment, and whether or not he would survive depended on whether he could kill her. After Blood Sacrifice, there would be a wave of weakness. If he could not kill her before that, he would be vulnerable to her abuse.


    ¡°Die!¡± he roared angrily.


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters had already pierced through her skin!


    ¡°Hehe.¡±


    The sound of a chuckle came from heaven and earth. He felt his body freeze in ce.


    At the same time, Wu Lian could not move even a millimeter either. His Three Thousand Star Clusters had already pierced into her body. A drop of blood trickled slowly down his spear.


    The gentle chuckle sounded terrifying.


    Long Chen was stunned, and could only ept his fate. He knew that there was someone else in this space, and he was sure that this person was rted to the Sword Soul Stone.


    In the end, he could not kill Wu Lian.


    He felt his strength fade, and he was ovee with weakness. He suddenly felt very tired, but Wu Lian was not dead, so he could not rest, or he would die.


    Wu Lian¡¯s face was also filled with terror. Her ck eyes filled with tears, showing an unprecedented, pitiful look, making her as pretty as a young woman. However, after she saw Long Chen¡¯s condition, she had a look of vicious killing intent.


    ¡°Long Chen, you did not manage to kill me. Now you will die.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡±


    Long Chen knew that if that person had prevented him from killing her, then they would not let her kill him either. There had to be a reason why they were put here, and the third party¡¯s intentions were about to be revealed.


    After they spoke, Long Chen felt his body move without his control. Under the control of a strange force, they both flew in the same direction.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± Long Chen looked around quizzically, and Wu Lian was simrly confused next to him.


    Other than speaking, they could not do anything.


    ¡°Shut your mouth! Don¡¯t you force me! I will make you die a horrible death!¡± Wu Lian was infuriated.


    ¡°Hehe, you¡¯re an old woman. No matter how good you look, don¡¯t assume I¡¯m actually attracted to you. You¡¯re too old to be my granny!¡±


    When Wu Lian¡¯s temper hit the roof, Long Chen hit her with another blow.


    She still had five hundred years left in her lifespan and was in her prime years, and she was infuriated by what he said despite her mind¡¯s resilience. She bit her lip, and her eyes shone with violence. Even her red lip bled.


    ¡°What? You don¡¯t agree?¡± Long Chenughed and no longer looked at her.


    It was best not to touch such a dangerous woman.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to die.¡±


    Wu Lian took a deep breath. After her extreme rage, her expression turned cold. Extremely cold. Just like her usual expression.


    <em>Whoosh.</em>


    They seemed to have arrived at their destination, because they suddenly stopped. Long Chen¡¯s eyes sprang open and looked around. He was shocked by what he saw.


    des of sharp sword Qi shot towards him!


    There was a gust of hot, masculine Yin Qi, and a gust of cold, feminine Yin Qi!


    There was a giganticke in front of Long Chen, but there was no water. Instead, it was made up of countless tiny des of sword Qi. It was a magnificent sight.


    Every single de was filled with shocking destructive force. The space trembled.


    Theke was divided into two halves.


    On the left, the sword Qi was a thick golden color and was filled with hot, masculine Yang Qi. On the right, the sword Qi was a creepy ck, and it was filled with a bone-chilling, feminine Yin Qi. One hot, one cold. One Yin, one Yang. They formed a sharp contrast.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The Yin and Yang sword Qi emitted immense power. Long Chen was standing far away, yet he still felt pain all over. The power he had gained from Blood Sacrifice was long gone. If it was not for the strange power restricting their movements, Wu Lian would have killed him!


    Long Chen had deactivated the Dragon Soul Transformation because didn¡¯t have enough essence to maintain it, plus his Martial Soul was injured.


    ¡°Where is this ce? What is this?¡± Long Chen looked at the magnificent sight, astonished.


    des of sword Qi danced around. The golden and ck sword Qi were from different camps, but they constantly collided and exploded with powerful ripples.


    When this question popped into his mind, a voice suddenly came from far away in the sky to answer them.


    ¡°This is the Yin-Yang Sea of Swords!¡±


    Long Chen was sure that the disembodied voice hade from the same person as the chuckle he heard before.


    <em>Yin-Yang Sea of Swords? How is this ce rted to the two Sword Soul Stones? One of them was golden and the other was ck. Are they rted to the Yin-Yang Sea of Swords?</em>


    He spected cautiously.


    At the same time, he wondered who the voice belonged to.


    This was the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, and it contained the treasures left behind by them. So who were the two corpses with eight trigram robes? Who did the Sword Soul Stonese from?


    He could not figure it out at all.


    While he was thinking, he realized his body was being moved again.


    ¡°Go into the Yin-Yang Sea of Swords. Show me how much you two haveprehended the Sword Path,¡± the disembodied voice said.


    Long Chen and Wu Lian were separated. Long Chen was taken to the golden sea of sword Qi on the left, while Wu Lian was moved to the ck sea on the right.


    The voice that seemed toe from the horizon continued, ¡°Two people is just enough. As for whether you¡¯ll receive the inheritance belonging to me, Feng Yangzi, and my junior sister ¡­ That depends on your talent ¡­¡±


    ¡°Feng Yangzi?¡± Long Chen had never heard of him before.


    However, this person must have been a super-strong master when he was alive.


    ¡°The male corpse must be Feng Yangzi. He must have left the golden Sword Soul Stone. And that ck Sword Soul Stone should be from his junior sister.¡±


    The two had died together. They likely had more than a tonic rtionship.


    Long Chen arrived above the golden sea, and Wu Lian the same. She was no idiot, so she knew that both of them had been given the chance to inherit the Sword Soul Stones.


    A person could only inherit one Sword Soul Stone at most. Wu Lian was born a Sword Warrior and had a natural Sword Root in her dantian. If she inherited the Sword Soul Stone, the Sword Root in the Sword Soul Stone would swallow her original Sword Root and merge into one.

 Chapter 866: Studying The Sword Path

    Both Sword Roots were of the same level. If one person received both, the Sword Roots would sh in their bodies, resulting in injury. One Sword Root was of the Yang masculine type, while the other was the Yin feminine type, so they were directly opposite in nature. If they were both consumed by one cultivator, there would be unimaginable consequences.


    No one had ever possessed two Sword Roots before.


    When they shed, they would either merge or explode.


    Wu Guangyu was dead, and Wu Lian did not have any use for two Sword Soul Stones. Therefore, she quietened her mind and focused on the test ahead. If the ck sea of swords was the ck Sword Soul Stone itself, she was not confident that she could pass the test at her currentprehension level of the Sword Path.


    Long Chen was even less confident because he was not a Sword Warrior himself. He knew nothing about the Sword Path.


    Fortunately, he was being protected by the mysterious person. There was a transparent halo around him that separated him from the violent sword Qi around him, protecting him from the attacks of the golden sword Qi.


    Under the mysterious person¡¯s control, Long Chen gradually sank into the golden sword Qi. It was a golden sea of swords, and he felt like he was being submerged in the ocean.


    <em>Sword Path?</em>


    Long Chen was mulling over this phrase.Perhaps it was like the Martial Path, something abstract.


    The Martial Path of cultivation was very long. The Four Foundational Realms were just preparing the cultivator to embark on the Martial Path, while the Three Martial Realms were only for strengthening one¡¯s foundation. Beyond the Martial Realms, Long Chen once heard Little Cat mention the Tribtion Realm.


    What was beyond the Tribtion Realm, then?


    These were all uncertainties. The only thing that was certain was that the Martial Path was very long. Long Chen was still at the bottommost level of the Three Martial Realms, so there was a very, very long road ahead of him.


    Although Long Chen had not entered the Sword Path, it was surely not as long as the Martial Path, seeing as it was just the mastery of a type of weapon. It was a branch of the Martial Path.


    The path also signified rules. They were the rules of this world.


    Just like a drowned man, Long Chen sank in the golden sword sea. Perhaps due to the mysterious person, those des of the violent, golden sword Qi treated him in a friendly manner, as if he were family. Long Chen quickly merged with them and was not hurt at all.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    <em>As for whether you¡¯ll receive the inheritance belonging to me, Feng Yangzi, and my Junior Sister ¡­ That depends on your talent ¡­</em>


    That was what the mysterious voice had said.


    Long Chen was feeling faint. He did not know a thing about the Sword Path, so how could he know how to control the golden sword sea?


    ¡°You humans are troublesome. Your cultivation emphasizesprehension. It¡¯s different for us demons. We only need to strengthen our muscles, demonic Qi, and divine techniques. These three things determine ourbat abilities. You humans are just naturally weak. You have no choice but to rely on constant learning to strengthen your weak soul and body, using all sorts ofbat techniques to increase yourbat abilities. In terms of natural talent, humans are no match for the demon race,¡± Little Cat said smugly when he saw Long Chen thinking.


    ¡°Although you have the ancestral dragon blood and your Martial Soul is the ancestral dragon, you still have a human soul. Therefore, you need to follow the humans¡¯ rules. Despite how strong your body and divine techniques are, you still need to constantly increase yourprehension. Then again, dragons are not part of the demon race. They are perfect beings with not only perfect bodies, divine techniques, and strength, but also far greater control over these rulespared to human beings. Of course, that is just a legend. I also think that it¡¯s a lie. Back in my day, I was far stronger than many dragons.¡± ?


    ¡°What are you trying to say here?¡± Long Chen red at him.


    ¡°Uh. What I mean is ¡­ I can¡¯t help you inprehending the Sword Path. Just feel it on your own. I am going to sleep!¡±


    ¡°Screw you!¡±


    Long Chen ignored him. Just as Little Cat had said, everything was up to him toprehend.


    The golden sword sea and the hot Yang energy were like boiling water. The golden sword Qi constantly rolled along, and there were gusts of wind that brought with ityers of waves crashing towards the ck side.


    Long Chen felt a battle spirit within it.


    ¡°Yin and Yang neutralize each other. Both sides are in a constant fight. But what does that mean?¡±


    Wrapped within the thick sea of swords, his mind was constantly racing.


    Wu Lian was a Sword Warrior who had alreadyprehended the first stage of the Sword Path. Therefore, she would have an easier time receiving the inheritance than him. However, he also knew that impatience would not help. All he could do was quieten his mind and focus. Only by doing that would he stand a chance of getting it.


    If Wu Lian received the inheritance and he did not, she would inherit whatever the mysterious person had, and Long Chen would be useless. Would he even stand a chance to live then?


    It was a precarious situation.


    The golden sword Qi des were like fish swimming by his side. They constantly touched his body. He closed his eyes, trying to feel the aura of the golden sword Qi. When he closed his eyes, he felt like the things around him were not sword Qi, but ¡­ life?


    <em>How could that be? </em>Long Chen thought he was mistaken. Upon closer inspection, it was true. The des of golden sword Qi were like fish, and the ones around him were swimming obediently. However, the fish in the outer circle revealed their violent and crazed sides. They whooshed and glinted fiercely, rolling constantly in the sea. Their target was the ck sea on the opposite side!


    <em>Is this a joke? The sword Qi has emotions. </em>Long Chen froze, thinking that he was imagining things.


    Sword Qi was released by humans from their swords, and it was under human control. How could it have its own emotions?


    He was still utterly confused.


    On the other side, the ck sea was swirling around Wu Lian gently. About two hours had passed, and this phenomenon meant that Wu Lian had gained slight control over the ck sea of swords. The golden sea on Long Chen¡¯s side was still chaotic.


    Far above, the mysterious personughed approvingly towards the ck sea.


    ¡°This woman is a Sword Warrior and hasprehended the first stage of the Sword Path. Indeed, it was easy for her to start. If this goes on, she will surely receive Junior Sister¡¯s inheritance.¡±


    When he mentioned ¡°Junior Sister,¡± his tone was filled with gentleness.


    ¡°However, this woman has used up her potential. Even with the help of my Sword Soul Stone, she will not be able to reach the Divine Martial Realm. Even if she receives the inheritance, it will not be of great help, and she will not be able to avenge Junior Sister and I.¡±


    His gaze turned to Long Chen.


    ¡°This teenager is naturally smart, but knows nothing about the Sword Path. He does not have a Sword Root, but he actually has started to notice the true meaning of the First Stage of the Sword Path. Furthermore, even I cannot see the end of his potential. Just now, faint dragon images appeared when he used that technique to strengthen his essence. Could this teenager be one of the legendary Dragon Warriors?¡±


    Although those were his posttions, he did not dare confirm it.


    Regardless, Long Chen could depend on no one but himself. If he couldn''t get the Sword Soul Stone, then he would not achieve much on the Sword Path either.


    The man watched quietly.


    Wu Lian was making great progress. Sooner orter, she would control the whole sea of swords and gain the ck Sword Soul Stone. However, there was a lot of hope for Long Chen too. Therefore, the mysterious man watched him more.


    Bathed in the golden sea, Long Chen kept touching the golden sword Qi, developing and debunking theories in his head.


    As he slowly studied the possibilities, he started to embark on the right path.


    In the beginning, he treated himself as part of the golden sea, thinking like a fish. Surrounded by countless fish, he attacked again and again. The fish were friendly to their own, but violent to the enemy!


    ¡°These des of sword Qi really have emotions!¡±


    Just like himself. He was part of them, and he also had emotions. The des of sword Qi were like tens of thousands of him.


    As they rushed ahead again and again, he suddenly saw countless des of ck sword Qi spinning around Wu Lian.


    ¡°That woman¡¯sprehension is surely deeper than mine.¡±


    That image of a whirlpool constantly reyed in his mind. He was a smart person, so he slowly realized what sess looked like here.


    He had to control this whole golden sea.


    ¡°First, I need to get to know the sword Qi. They are all alive. I need to think of myself as one of them. As I follow the path forward, I slowly strengthen myself and gradually convert others into bing me. In the end, I will be like an emperor, controlling this whole golden sea. Once that happens, I should get the golden Sword Soul Stone!¡±


    Long Chen knew that he had finally found the light at the end of the tunnel, and it was bright!


    What happened next was an endlessprehension process.


    Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul found the right method to control the sword Qi. He turned himself into a de of golden sword Qi, or a fish, in his mind. He imagined himself bing stronger. Gradually, the golden sword Qi started to circle around him too.


    ¡°Indeed, this teenager is a prodigy.¡± The mysterious man in the sky smiled proudly.


    The golden sea of swords started to circle around him. In the beginning, only the sword Qi around him did it, but very soon, the region of sword Qi spinning around him expanded.


    Very soon, he controlled three-fifths of the golden sea.


    With enough time, he was sure to seed.

 Chapter 867: Clashing of Yin and Yang

    On the other side, the ck sword sea waspletely circling Wu Lian. Due to her priorprehension of the Sword Path, Wu Lian had progressed faster than Long Chen.


    But Long Chen had no intention ofpeting with her. He waspletely immersed in the golden sword sea and had forgotten about everything else. More and more golden sword Qi circled around him. Circling was the easiest way to control them. Controlling them to do other things would be the next step.


    Once Wu Lian could control the whole ck sea, she would proceed to the next step.


    Sitting amidst the countless des of sword Qi, the woman¡¯s eyes were shut tight. Her reddened face glowed, and her beautiful figure appeared asionally with the breeze from the gentle sword Qi.


    All of the des of ck sword Qi were under her control.


    <em>Several days have passed. Only thest step remains. I wonder if Long Chen will receive the inheritance. He knows nothing about the Sword Path, and even embarking on the journey is difficult.</em>


    After she had full control over the ck sea, Wu Lian¡¯s eyshes trembled, then her bright eyes opened slowly. There was a hint of shock in her eyes when she saw the condition on Long Chen¡¯s side.


    Most of the golden sword sea was under his control. He had progressed quickly after a slow start and had almost caught up to her.


    <em>No way! That brat is far too talented. I cannot let him seed!</em>There was a cold sh in her eyes. Then she urged the ck Qi to execute an immense task¡ªattack Long Chen¡¯s golden sea repeatedly!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The ck sword sea started to turn violent under her control. Although she was not familiar with it, she could roughly do this. Slowly, they entered the fight against the golden sea, and she became more and more familiar with it. Very quickly, the roaring ck sea crashed towards Long Chen like arge tidal wave!


    ¡°Die.¡±


    At this moment, Long Chen was in a critical juncture.


    His Martial Soul¡¯s power was gradually flowing into the sword sea, catching the swimming ¡°fish¡± and incorporating them into his team. Under his control, very few of the des of golden sword Qi attacked the ck sea on their own. However, the ck sea started to be agitated and countless des of ck sword Qi charged at him!


    <em>Is she trying to kill me?! </em>Long Chen gasped.


    The mysterious man watching from above was also shocked.


    ¡°Junior Sister and I loved each other very much, and our Yin and Yang Sword Soul Stones were prepared for a pair of lovers because we wished they would avenge us. However, this man and woman do not match in age, and they¡¯re even enemies trying to kill each other. What do I do now?


    ¡°The woman is too impatient. She has only just started to control the ck sword sea, yet she¡¯s already wanting to attack him. I cannot let her destroy all the work I¡¯ve done over countless years.¡±


    Long Chen and Wu Lian did not hear him. Long Chen was in great shock because he was at a critical moment trying to recruit the whole golden sea. Wu Lian had interrupted his process.


    ¡°You¡¯re evil.¡±


    Long Chen scrambled to control his golden sea, forming a defensive line.


    ¡°But am I as evil as you are?¡± Wu Lian smiled coldly, and countless des of ck sword Qi shot out from her side. Every de contained unimaginable power. If he was hit, he would be filled with holes.


    <em>Hiss!</em>


    The quiet Yin-Yang Sea of Swords suddenly grew agitated. Wu Lian grew more and more familiar with controlling the sea. She levitated above the ck sea, and countless des of ck sword Qi circled around her, then returned to the sea. Her robes pped in the wind and she removed her veil, revealing her mature and seductive face. Despite the hatred and coldness in her eyes, she was still very attractive.


    ¡°You bitch!¡± cursed Long Chen in a rage. He had almost seeded, but Wu Lian¡¯s attack had halted his progress. Long Chen had no choice but to fight her clumsily with the portion of the golden sword Qi he could control!


    One side had boiling Yang energy, while the other had menacing Yin energy!


    Under Wu Lian¡¯s control, the ck sword sea extended towards the golden sea. It crashed like a gigantic mountain, forcing Long Chen back!


    The golden sea¡¯s territory shrank as she attacked!


    If this continued, Long Chen would eventually be swallowed by the ck sword Qi!


    The only advantage was that it was getting much easier to control the des of sword Qi when they were threatened by Wu Lian. It was as if every single de of golden sword Qi possessed natural hatred towards the ck sword Qi. Long Chen was also desperate to defeat her, and since both parties had the same emotions, he gained a lot more control over the golden sea!


    However, when he finally had control of the whole golden sea, she was already overpowering him. He had no way to revive himself if he lost.


    <em>What now?</em>


    Blood Warp, Blood Sacrifice, and Rewind were his trump cards. He had been forced to use them all, yet he had failed to escape danger. This was his first time meeting such a difficult opponent.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Wu Lian had been repeating this word over and over. Her beautiful eyes were filled with hatred and evil. The grudge of killing someone¡¯s son could never dissolve. This was an amazing opportunity for her. She had to use all the tricks up her sleeve to kill him, or she would be the dead one if she lost this chance.


    This teenager terrified her to the depths of her heart.


    His cultivation level was far beneath hers, so how could he threaten her life again and again?


    With that thought, Wu Lian felt goosebumps all over.


    This made her increase the intensity of her attacks. She could control the countless des of ck sword Qi perfectly now, and they crashed toward Long Chen like crashing waves and mountains!


    <em>Oh no!</em>


    The golden sea shrank more and more until it took up only one-tenth of the sword sea. The ck sea took up nine-tenths, and with her crazed attacks, the golden sea would likely bepletely swallowed!


    Long Chen was very unwilling to be defeated!


    All of the des of golden sword Qi were unwilling too!


    ¡°Haargh!¡±


    When his emotions and the sword Qi¡¯s emotions merged, he sessfully merged with all the golden sword Qi. He reached the same level ofprehension as Wu Lian!


    On one side, the user and the sword Qi were united against themon enemy. On the other, Wu Lian was the one controlling the whole ck sea. Inparison, Long Chen¡¯s merging with the golden sword Qi was even more perfect!


    After the loud cry, Long Chen activated a gigantic defensive technique. All of the golden sword Qi merged into one gigantic sword and shed through the ck sea. Then it started to retaliate!


    At the brink of death, Long Chen sessfully finished thest step and started to turn the tides!


    ¡°What?!¡± Shock was written all over Wu Lian¡¯s beautiful face. She sensed that the golden sea had gone insane and started attacking her side fervently. The initially withering des of golden sword Qi were suddenly filled with spirit, radiating Yang energy as they forced the ck sword Qi back!


    The golden sea gradually expanded!


    Wu Lian was constantly being beaten back clumsily.


    She was filled with disbelief, and there was even a hint of fear. To her, Long Chen seemed to be able to do anything.


    He knew nothing about the Sword Path before, yet he had managed to reach this level ofprehension. Was he a monster?


    The mysterious man in the sky was observing.


    He stroked his long beard and his eyes were fixed on Long Chen, impressed.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°What an intelligent teenager. He has extraordinaryprehension abilities and is already stronger than many of the prodigies in the Royal Territories. If he is a Dragon Warrior, then he will surely be much stronger. He is an excellent heir. As for the woman, she has exhausted her potential. Although she is talented, she seems rougher on the edges and far inferior to the teenager. It seems like a waste to let her inherit my Junior Sister¡¯s ck Yin Sword Soul.¡±


    The mysterious man seemed hesitant.


    Suddenly, as if he had an idea, he looked emotional.


    ¡°One is an excellent candidate, while the other is not. Why don¡¯t I take a risk to create an unprecedented Sword Path legend? Although this is risky, I must try. Our enemy is beyond powerful; how could this young man defeat them if I do not take this risk?¡±


    With that thought, the mysterious man fell into deep thought for a while, then he made a crazy decision.


    ¡°As for the woman ¡­ You are also a lucky candidate for inheriting my skills. I cannot be biased towards the teenager. If you want to seed, we shall see if the Yin energy in your body can defeat the teenager¡¯s Yang energy.¡±


    He chuckled.


    ¡°Yin energy. Yang energy. When they collide, who will win?¡±


    He waved gently, and a ray of golden Qi and another ray of ck Yin Qi flew to the left and right, arriving above Long Chen¡¯s and Wu Lian¡¯s heads.


    As of this moment, Long Chen had regained all of the lost ground. The golden sea was now slightlyrger than the ck sea.


    Neither Wu Lian nor Long Chen had time to react to the rays of Qi. The golden Qi poured into Long Chen¡¯s head and entered his body. It flowed into all of his limbs, then even more of the Yang energy poured into his genitals!

 Chapter 868: Dragon Sword Soul

    When the Supreme Yang Qi entered his body, it muddled Long Chen¡¯s consciousness.


    ¡°Little Cat, what is this?¡± Long Chen sensed the changes in his body. He felt hot all over, and his blood vessels expanded.


    Little Cat was stunned for a moment, then when he saw Wu Lian¡¯s reaction, heughed and said, ¡°Oh, I see! Supreme Yang Qi and ck Yin Qi. Since you can¡¯t fight it, then you should enjoy it!¡±


    Then Little Cat quickly dove into a corner of the Primordial Realm and snickered.


    Opposite him, Wu Lian was floating above the ck sword sea, and she was under the influence of the ck Qi.


    ¡°Damn!¡±


    Long Chen was stunned.


    ¡°What¡¯s that? Supreme Yang Qi? ck Yin Qi? Where the fuck is iting from? Why is it on me?¡±


    His golden sword sea had almost been able to kill her. Who was ying this prank on him? The mysterious person controlling this ce?A huge quantity of Supreme Yang Qi had entered his body, and itpletely muddled his mind in no time at all.


    If he was alone, he could slowly guide the Supreme Yang Qi out of himself. The problem was that opposite him was a fatal ck hole, which was Wu Lian, who was being filled with ck Yin Qi!


    He realized that he waspletely filled with violent energy. Even his breath was hot, as if he was exhaling fire.


    The golden Supreme Yang and the ck Yinpletely merged together to form arge sphere of ck and golden colors with Long Chen and Wu Lian inside.


    <em>Boom, boom, boom!</em>


    The attacks continued!


    The golden and ck sword sea beneath him suddenly gathered and started to circle the gigantic ball of Supreme Yang and ck Yin, forming arge golden-and-ck sword ball. Countless des of ck and golden sword Qi mixed together, but they did not fight this time. They now merged together harmoniously just like their owners.


    In the space above, the mysterious man watched with a smile.


    ¡°This is not a merger, but a battle to see if the boy¡¯s Yang energy is stronger than the woman¡¯s Yin energy. The winner will receive the merged Yin Yang Sword Root, even receiving all of the other person¡¯s learnings along their Martial Path. It took me a lot of effort to get the Supreme Yang Qi and the ck Yin Qi, yet you are the one benefiting from it.


    ¡°Young man, I am helping you.¡±


    ¡°Although this woman does not meet my requirements, the Yin Yang Sword Root will revive her potential, and she will get everything you have. She could be a legendary cultivator too.


    ¡°It¡¯s up to you to seed!¡±


    Time passed as he muttered to himself.


    When the mysterious man thought everything had failed, he suddenly heard a violent dragon roar that even stunned him. A blood-red dragon image appeared above therge ball made of golden and ck sword Qi. It was a gigantic blood-red dragon, and it was very blurry. However, when it appeared, the Yang energy in Long Chen¡¯s body reached its peak!


    <em>Roar!</em>


    As the Yin and Yang energies collided, blood-red scales appeared on his body and endless energy gathered inside him.


    ¡°He is indeed a Dragon Warrior! But what dragon? The lowest-ranked Red Dragon? That¡¯s not right. Considering that bloody aura, could it be the Ghost Blood Dragon?¡± ?


    The mysterious man was shocked.


    And emotional.


    ¡°The teenager is going to win thanks to his dragon body. Even a hundred of that woman would not be a match for him.¡±


    Not only did Long Chen receive all of Wu Lian¡¯s cultivation learnings, but the Yin Yang Sword Soul also belonged to him.


    When the Yin and Yang energies merged, the two Sword Soul Stones werebined into one and merged with Long Chen¡¯s body.


    The Sword Soul Stone was just the container; it was the merged Sword Roots that directly entered Long Chen¡¯s body.


    A Sword Warrior condensed their Sword Root by evolving their Sword Soul. However, instead of the Sword Soul¡¯s abstract form, the Sword Root Long Chen received was already condensed.


    Half of it was ck, radiating a cold Yin aura. The other half was golden, radiating a hot Yang aura. The small human of ck and gold was Long Chen¡¯s Sword Root.


    When the small human entered Long Chen¡¯s body, it stayed in his dantian.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    In an instant, the small human started to change into a small, ck-and-golden-striped dragon.


    A Dragon Sword Soul!


    He also had a Dragon Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness!


    This meant that he had not only received the Yin Yang Sword Root, he had also transformed it into his own.


    That was why the Sword Root had transformed.


    His Dragon Martial Soul quickly changed in his sea of consciousness.


    Wu Lian¡¯sprehension of the Martial Path waspletely copied into Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul. Afterwards, hisprehension of the Martial Path rose quickly, and the Heavenly Martial Wall shattered in front of him.


    Long Chen was able to learn everything in the Martial Soul after the Yin and Yang merging. The Supreme Yang and ck Yin Qi were indeed good things.


    Long Chen was initially worried about how he would break through to the Heavenly Martial Realm. This incident was like receiving charcoal in a blizzard. [1] Although the method was a little shameless, it was tremendously helpful to him.


    The endless sword sea in the sky vanished. All the sword Qi had gathered together in his dantian, forming the ck-and-golden-striped Sword Root, and also his Dragon Sword Soul.


    Within his dantian, he had the Dragon Sword Soul. Within his sea of consciousness, he had the Dragon Martial Soul.


    Since Long Chen had absorbed all of Wu Lian¡¯s martial knowledge, his Martial Soul was rapidly evolving. The injuries he had sustained due to Blood Sacrifice recovered very quickly, and he reached the peak of the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage.


    The result of Wu Lian¡¯s hard work over hundreds of years all entered Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul in the blink of an eye. His Martial Soul quickly strengthened. What was unique about him was that he did not have a Heavenly Martial Soul.


    Long Chen skipped one level to reach the Second Heavenly Martial Stage, equal to Wu Lian¡¯s level.


    Such growth was unbelievable.


    It was likely that Long Chen would never experience such an event again in his life.


    The Dragon Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness finished condensing. While he progressed from the First Earthly Martial Stage to the First Heavenly Martial Stage, the Dragon Martial Soul had condensed more and more until it took on aplete, solid form, like a hyper-realistic dragon made of white jade. The dragon¡¯s eyes, beard, teeth, ws, and body all looked like a real dragon.


    This was the Martial Soul formed afterpleting the Earthly Martial Realm.


    From the Heavenly Martial Realm onwards, Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul would start changing in the direction of a dragon. Due to Wu Lian, his cultivation level leapfrogged to the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. As a result, his Martial Soul started to turn blood-red.


    Perhaps his Martial Soul would truly be a blood-red dragon when he finishedprehending the Heavenly Martial Realm.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    1. Receiving charcoal in a blizzard: an idiom describing something of tremendous help during a problematic time ?

 Chapter 869: Feng Yangzi

    The Martial Soul and essence did not strengthen in tandem. Although Long Chen now had a Second Heavenly Martial Stage Martial Soul, he only had as much essence as a Ninth Earthly Martial Stage cultivator.


    A Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s essence was extremely powerful. If Long Chen wanted a huge amount of essence, he only had two solutions¡ªone was to consume the blood of demonic beasts using Blood Transmutation, or to slowly refine Emperor Crystals.


    Emperor Crystals and King Crystals were the same. They were filled withrge amounts of Martial Essence, and Emperor Crystals had many times more Martial Essence than king crystals. Long Chen did not have any Emperor Crystals or Martial Essence.


    He could only be considered a true Heavenly Martial Realm expert once his essence reached the Heavenly Martial Realm. Right now, he only had the Heavenly Martial Realm¡¯s powerful Martial Soul.


    ¡°Let me help you out.¡±


    The mysterious man in the sky above looked at Long Chen like a masterpiece he was absolutely delighted with. He chuckled and waved his hand. A powerful wave of energy crashed towards Long Chen. To the starving Long Chen, the energy came at the right time.


    <em>Is he giving me this?</em>


    Looking at the swift flow of energy in the sky, Long Chen was delighted. He quickly absorbed the energy into his body and cultivated it, turning it into his own blood-red dragon essence.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>Arge whirlpool appeared on the top of Long Chen¡¯s head as he absorbed the earthly spiritual Qi. The spiritual Qi was very nourishing, even more so than the spiritual Qi in Emperor Crystals. Therefore, within a short time, Long Chen had enough essence to truly be a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator.


    <em>Am I a true Second Heavenly Martial Stage expert now?</em>N?v(el)B\\jnn


    He was in disbelief when he examined the power in his body.


    <em>Second Heavenly Martial Stage. If I use the Dragon Soul Transformation, I¡¯ll be at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage. And if I use this Yin-Yangbined Sword Root, I¡¯ll be ¡­¡±</em>


    The Sword Roots from both the Sword Soul Stones had reached the third stage of the Sword Path, multiplying hisbat abilities by seven times!


    <em>The Sword Roots offer a seven-time multiplier, and the Yin and Yang aspectsplement each other. I think it will offer a ten-time multiplier as a result, and that seems to be equivalent to the fourth stage of the Sword Path. Little Cat said that at the Sword Path¡¯s highest stage multiplies a cultivator¡¯s power by fifteen times. Doesn¡¯t that mean that because I inherited a Sword Warrior¡¯s Sword Root, I¡¯ve almost reached the top of the Sword Path?</em>


    <em>Theter the stage, the fewer the number of people. Many people may have reached the first stage, and the second stage is quitemon too. However, only masters couldprehend the third stage and enjoy a ten-time multiplier. There are probably very few of them in the Three Royal Territories!</em>


    He could confirm this because Long Chen was a Dragon Warrior and had a ten-time power multiplier thanks to the Dragon Soul Transformation. If other people could do the same, they would naturally be powerful. Of course, that was also because Long Chen couldn¡¯t use his Inherited Blood Essence to its full potential.


    If he could, he would enjoy far more benefits.


    Thergest gains of the day for Long Chen were the improvements in both the Martial Path and the Sword Path.


    All his knowledge of the Martial Path hade from Wu Lian. Due to the duplication process, Long Chen easilyprehended all of it, as if all the knowledge in his mind hade from himself. As for his understanding of the Sword Path, it came from the two Sword Soul Stones. It was also stored in his Sword Root. He would gradually familiarize himself with it after using it several times.


    However, this did not affect his use of the Sword Root.


    Once hepletely advanced to the Second Heavenly Martial Stage, he could start to study the Yin Yang Sword Soul.


    Considering how much power he could put out with thebination of the Five Emperor Seals, Long Chen wondered if the Yin Yang Sword Soul would also provide astonishing effects.


    To use a weapon, he needed to first inject his Sword Root into it, therefore forming a connection simr to a blood connection with his own weapon.


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters was an advanced Emperor-tier divine weapon, and it would be immensely useful to him for a very long time.


    The shining blue Three Thousand Star Clusters appeared in his hand.


    The terms Sword Warrior, Sword Soul, and Sword Root were just generalized terms and did not mean he had to use a sword. They were initially known as Armament Warriors, but since the vast majority used swords, the term ¡°Sword Warrior¡± reced it.


    Long Chen saw in his mind¡¯s eye that the Dragon Sword Soul that formed in his dantian looked like the ck and golden sword sea from before.


    Under Long Chen¡¯s control, the perfectly merged Sword Soul flowed towards the Three Thousand Star Clusters in his hand.


    The Sword Soul was like an extension of Long Chen himself, and it entered the Three Thousand Star Clusters¡¯ world.


    An endless, shining sky of stars opened up in front of him.


    The Sword Root made it easier for him tomunicate with the Three Thousand Star Clusters. Long Chen and the Three Thousand Star Clusters were already very familiar with each other. Thanks to his Sword Soul, the Three Thousand Star Clusters was like a child who quickly submitted to him. At this moment, he felt like the Three Thousand Star Clusters spear was just a part of arm.


    <em>The Sword Path can activate even the tiniest hint of energy through the most intimate connection with the weapon, controlling the energy within the weapon most delicately. It¡¯s no wonder the user can wield so much power through the Sword Path.</em>


    Long Chen mulled over the topic and finally understood the reason.


    When his Dragon Sword Soul entered the Three Thousand Star Clusters, the shining blue spear underwent a strange transformation. The spear slowly changed colors from its initial blue until it was half gold and half ck. Its left half was golden and covered in ayer of hot mes. Its right side was ck and wrapped in a cold, ck mist.


    Under the strong influence of the Sword Soul, the internal parts of the Three Thousand Star Clusters transformed too.


    <em>With the guidance of the Yin Yang Sword Root, mybat abilities have indeed be ten times stronger! And with the Dragon Soul Transformation ¡­</em>


    Long Chen estimated that he was as powerful as a Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator!


    <em>I¡¯ve truly be much stronger this time. Should I be thanking that woman? Or the mysterious person?</em>


    When Long Chen thought of that person, he looked up at the sky. There was no one in the endless space.


    ¡°You can¡¯t see me because I¡¯ve been dead for a long time,¡± a disembodied voice said from very far away.


    ¡°Thank you for your generosity, Senior! I will never forget this for the rest of my life! May I ask if there is anything I can do for you?¡± Long Chen guessed that this person was the man from the two corpses.


    ¡°I gave you the Yin Yang Sword Soul and created you, a cultivator who is at the third stage but equivalent to the fourth stage of the Sword Path. Indeed, I do need your help with one thing,¡± the voice in the sky said.


    ¡°My name is Feng Yangzi. The golden Sword Soul in you came from me, and the ck Sword Soul came from my Junior Sister.¡± He paused, then continued, ¡°I won¡¯t waste time on frivolous talk. Since you have gotten my powers, go to the True Martial Territory and help me kill a person named Jiang Qing. There may be many people there named Jiang Qing, but only one knows Feng Yangzi.¡±


    ¡°Jiang Qing? The Three Royal Territories are huge; how will I find this person?¡± Long Chen froze.


    ¡°Many years have passed. Considering his techniques and talent, he should have be a famous figure in the Royal Territories. If you spend some time asking around, you¡¯ll know. I think you should be able to find him at the True Martial Pce.¡±


    The True Martial Pce was the core of the True Martial Territory. Long Chen knew this much.


    After hearing the man¡¯s request, Long Chen nodded and said, ¡°You have given me these two Sword Souls and made me a Sword Warrior. You also helped me raise my cultivation level and avoid the fate of getting killed. I will surely repay you even if I die.¡±

 Chapter 870: Jiang Qing

    Long Chen had always been a man of his word. Thisplete stranger had indeed given him massive help, so he had to kill Jiang Qing in return.


    ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± said the man in the sky excitedly.


    ¡°Years ago, Junior Sister and I were betrayed and escaped to this ce. We hid in the secret realm to avoid being caught. However, we were severely injured and did not live for long. Only I, with a hint of my Divine Martial Soul¡¯s energy left, managed to survive until today. Now that I have raised you to be strong, it is time for me to follow in my Junior Sister¡¯s footsteps. Child, I will send you off to the top level of the ck Bone Tower. There will be many valuable items there.¡±


    <em>The top floor of ck Bone Tower? </em>Long Chen was privately delighted.


    He was initially worried about missing his chance to get the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure because he had been in here for so long. He had not expected Feng Yangzi to send him to the top floor of the ck Bone Tower.


    ¡°After today, I, Feng Yangzi, will cease to exist. We will not meet again. Child, our Sword Souls are the only things Junior Sister and I have left behind in this world. I hope you take good care of them.¡±


    The Yin Yang Sword Root now belonged to Long Chen, so of course he would guard it well. He smiled and said, ¡°Senior, do not worry. Your Sword Soul will live on forever, and if I be one of the strongest people in the Three Royal Territories, I will surely avenge you!¡±


    ¡°Hehe ¡­¡± Long Chen¡¯s words made the old man very happy.


    ¡°What do you n to do with this woman? Kill her, or let her go?¡±He was talking about Wu Lian, the woman whom Long Chen had tortured for a long time.


    Long Chen looked down. The woman was lying face down on the ground without any strength left in her body. She could only look up at Long Chen in the sky through her blurry eyes. Her clear eyes were now turbid and filled with fear.


    Long Chen had defeated her both physically and mentally. The arrogant woman felt like she was in a nightmare.


    He thought for a while and decided not to kill her. Long Chen did not intend to make her his woman. This was not his first time, and he was not young anymore. He had to treat this with an open mind, and it was merely a battle.


    Everything had happened under circumstances he could not control. Long Chen did not treat this experience as trauma, but Wu Lian likely saw this as a grudge.


    There was still a killing intent hiding within the depths of her fearful gaze. It was not that she did not want to kill Long Chen anymore, she was merely paralyzed with fear.


    However, Long Chen wanted to go to the Royal Territories and would never have anything to do with her ever again. He had already killed her son, and she had been punished enough today. There was no need to kill her.


    Today¡¯s events were not a perfect, joyous celebration. It was just another type of massacre. If Long Chen had lost, the person lying on the ground and filled with fear would be him.


    ¡°Let her go and send her back.¡±


    Long Chen spoke curtly and did not look at Wu Lian again.


    He had advanced by several levels in a row, and he was far ahead of this woman. After today¡¯s miracles, he had be the true number one master of the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory. ?


    It had been a long time since a person with Fourth Heavenly Martial Stagebat abilities had appeared in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    <em>With myprehension of the Sword Path, the Three Thousand Star Clusters in my hand, and the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual, I wonder how strong I¡¯ll be?</em>


    Long Chen looked forward to this.


    No one in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was a match for him.


    The former strongest cultivator, Wu Lian, was now free for him to abuse as he liked. However, the six demons were Category Nine Emperor-tier demons, so Long Chen was still far from their levels.


    For the sake of Ling Xi, Long Chen guarded himself like a piece of valuable jade. He had encountered many good women along his journey, yet he never touched them because he did not want to hurt those good people.


    To Long Chen, what happened today was a massacre, just that it was in a different form.


    If he had not been careful, he would have lost tragically.


    It was already merciful of him not to kill the woman.


    Wasn¡¯t there also killing intent in her eyes?


    ¡°Alright. I will send her out of the ck Bone Tower, then I will send you to the seventh floor.¡± The elder worked efficiently. He sent Wu Lian, who red venomously at Long Chen, straight out of ck Bone Tower, and she disappeared right before his eyes.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    <em>Feng Yangzi will send me to the seventh floor. I don¡¯t think Uncle Bai and the others have reached the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure yet. However, there are probably many valuable items along the way like that ck ruler. If Uncle Bai can get those items, it¡¯ll make the Demon n even stronger once he returns to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. I can then rest assured. After this, I can focus on searching for the path to the Royal Territories.</em>


    However, there was still one thing that worried him.


    <em>Those six demons want the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure. If I retrieve the treasures and leave this ce, what will happen to me? </em>This bothered Long Chen very much.


    <em>We¡¯ll cross that bridge when we get to it. I don¡¯t want to think about this yet. We¡¯ll see when I get the treasure.</em>


    Long Chen suddenly felt Feng Yangzi¡¯s energy surround him.


    ¡°Go to the seventh floor of the ck Bone Tower.¡±


    With a gentlemand, Long Chen realized he lost control over his body once more. Even though he had grown stronger, he was helpless in Feng Yangzi¡¯s hands.


    Space started to warp, and he felt like he had been pulled out of the miniverse.


    The Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm was a miniverse, and this ce was a miniverse inside it.


    After a brief moment of chaos, Long Chen heard Feng Yangzi¡¯s voice once more.


    ¡°Let me tell you onest thing. The Five Emperors¡¯ treasure you all want is not in the Prismatic Door. You¡¯d better not take the thing behind the Prismatic Door.¡±


    ¡°I understand, Senior.¡± Long Chenmitted what he said to memory.


    Very soon, he realized that he had reached his destination.


    ¡°See you again, child. No, I should say ¡­ Farewell forever.¡± Then his voice slowly grew further.


    ¡°Remember! True Martial Pce! Jiang Qing!¡±


    When he spoke, he ced great emphasis on the two final words. It was clear how much he hated that person named Jiang Qing!


    Long Chen had achieved this current state all because of him, so he was filled with gratitude.


    ¡°As the saying goes, if you take someone¡¯s money, you should help them solve their problem. I must kill Jiang Qing.¡±


    This was not a task he couldplete any time soon, so he buried this matter in his heart and then turned his attention to the top floor of the ck Bone Tower.


    This was the highest point of the tower.


    When he arrived, he sensed that there was a duel taking ce. He peered closer and realized that the Long-Bearded Guest and Ancestor Jin were attacking Bai Lan together!


    Based on the condition they were in, they looked like they had paid a huge price to reach the seventh floor. Everyone was severely injured, but they were still fighting. This was thest fight!


    Behind them was a Prismatic Door!


    That was the door that Feng Yangzi had mentioned. Feng Yangzi had said not to touch the item behind it recklessly.


    Long Chen had memorized Feng Yangzi¡¯s warning.


    All three of them were fighting over entry to the Prismatic Door. Perhaps Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest felt like Bai Lan was the biggest threat, so they had chosen to attack Bai Lan together.


    Faced with the attacks of two Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators, Bai Lan looked like he was in terrible condition. He looked like he was struggling very much, and he was already severely injured.


    ¡°Bai Lan, didn¡¯t you hear what I said? You¡¯ve already gotten many excellent items along the way. Advanced Emperor-tierbat techniques, divine weapons, and spiritual herbs ¡­ You got them all. Isn¡¯t it time for you to stop?¡± Ancestor Jin said jealously.


    ¡°Yeah. You¡¯ve already gotten most of the items. It¡¯s time for you to stop,¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest viciously. With the most valuable treasure right in front of him, his usual, jovial self had long disappeared.


    ¡°If you do not stop now, we do not mind killing you to take everything you previously took. At the same time, your Demon n and the Divine Demon Empire will belong to the Long-Bearded Guest.¡± This was what Ancestor Jin had offered the Long-Bearded Guest in order to join forces.


    If he could kill Bai Lan, he would give the Divine Demon Empire to the Long-Bearded Guest, who did not belong to a faction!


    If that happened, the Long-Bearded Guest would no longer be in such an awkward position.


    But Bai Lan was not intimidated. He huffed coldly and said, ¡°That¡¯s enough of your lies. The items I picked up thus far are nothingpared to the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure! Indeed, you two could kill me if you work together, but I will make you pay a heavy price! Do not underestimate the Divine Demon Lord¡¯s inheritance! Also, even if you kill me, you still need to kill each other, haha! I¡¯m warning you to be careful of the person next to you. Don¡¯t get yourself ambushed while you¡¯re focused on me. That would be a tragedy!¡±


    Bai Lan¡¯s final words made them create some distance between themselves while fighting. They started to stay on guard even while dealing with Bai Lan¡¯s attacks, worried that they could be hurt by the other person.


    Bai Lan was left with a much smaller threat.


    ¡°Divine Demon Punch!¡±


    He threw a strong punch, sting both of them back. Bai Lan had a vicious look on his face, and he roared like a wild beast, ¡°Since you two have made your decision, do not me me for doing this! I may die, but I will drag one of you down with me! Who shall it be?¡±


    His gaze swept back and forth between the Long-Bearded Guest and Ancestor Jin.

 Chapter 871: The King of Ten Thousand Nations

    That ice-cold re worried both the Long-Bearded Guest and Ancestor Jin, and they quickly took a few steps back. They initially thought that they could kill Bai Lan quickly, but to their surprise, he had proven difficult to kill.


    When they backed off, the duel paused for a moment.


    When Long Chen saw Bai Lan¡¯s injuries, rage rose in his heart.


    That was when he strode towards the dueling trio. The floor was made of ck crystal, and colorful light bounced off it, making it look dazzlingly beautiful. There were also many ancient carvings on the surrounding walls, such as bloodthirsty humans, violent beasts, and more.


    When the trio heard his footsteps, they were startled.


    There should have only been three of them on the seventh floor. When they heard another set of footsteps, they were shaken.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± someone shouted.


    A handsome teenager with an evil sneer slowly emerged from the darkness. When they looked closer, they realized that it was Long Chen!


    ¡°Long Chen!¡±The three of them cried at the same time. The happiest person was Bai Lan, as he thought Long Chen had died. He had returned, and he was unharmed too.


    This was an unexpected twist to Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest. They recalled another person and started to grow cautious.


    ¡°Long Chen, where is Wu Lian? Wasn¡¯t she with you? Is she behind you?¡±


    They assumed that if Long Chen had escaped his predicament unharmed, then Wu Lian had done the same. All three of them were almostpletely exhausted after climbing to the seventh floor. If Wu Lian appeared now, she could surely suppress them all and take the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure for herself!


    They had worked very hard to get here. Who would be willing to see the treasure get taken away when they were so close?


    Ancestor Jin looked past Long Chen. ¡°Wu Lian, since you are here, you might as welle out. A person of your rank should not be hiding.¡±


    The three of them stood in a triangle, and no one went to the Prismatic Door first. They were on guard against Wu Lian, as well as everyone else.


    Although Ancestor Jin had shouted for her, nothing happened behind Long Chen.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough. She¡¯s not here,¡± said Long Chen, chuckling.


    ¡°She¡¯s not here? Where did she go? If you coulde here, why isn¡¯t she here?¡± Ancestor Jin asked angrily.


    ¡°If I said I killed her, would you believe me?¡± Long Chen squinted, looking at Ancestor Jin fiercely.


    ¡°Killed her? Haha, is that a joke?¡± Ancestor Jinughed.


    ¡°There must be a problem with your brain,¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest, annoyed. How could a junior like Long Chen speak to them with that kind of tone?


    Bai Lan¡¯s face slowly changed. He sensed that Long Chen¡¯s aura was different.


    <em>Is that the aura of the Heavenly Martial Realm? </em>Bai Lan was overjoyed.


    He knew that when Long Chen was at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage, he could kill a First Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. Now that he had reached the Heavenly Martial Realm, maybe he could take on one of the enemies.


    However, he was still worried about one thing¡ªwhere was Wu Lian?


    ¡°Long Chen, can you deal with the Long-Bearded Guest?¡± Bai Lan asked in a low voice.


    When they heard this, both Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s faces changed. Long Chen and Bai Lan had a solid rtionship. It was going to be difficult to deal with both of them. Their onlyfort was that Long Chen had not reached their level yet.


    Long Chen walked over, and his gaze swept across them. He directly said, ¡°Uncle Bai, take a rest. I¡¯ll finish these two off for you.¡±


    Bai Lan was privately shocked. He stared at Long Chen. Knowing that Long Chen never lied, he wondered if the teenager really was strong enough.


    He recalled that Long Chen had mysteriously disappeared, then mysteriously appeared again. Something must have happened during that time that allowed his cultivation to advance greatly!


    ¡°Go ahead!¡±


    Bai Lan agreed directly. If Long Chen couldn¡¯t do it, he could still enter the fight!


    With Long Chen¡¯s help, the results would be much better. At the very least, he would lessen Bai Lan¡¯s burden for a short while.


    Listening to the conversation between them, Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest looked at each other, thenughed. Ancestor Jin said, ¡°In that case, let me deal with this kid. Brother Long-Beard, just wait here, it¡¯ll be quick. Then we¡¯ll finish Bai Lan together. Neither of us can fully digest the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, so when the timees, let¡¯s divide the treasure equally. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Ancestor Jin, do what you need to do! I¡¯ll keep an eye on Bai Lan while you do that!¡± said the Long-Bearded Guest with a smile.


    This was a critical moment, and every decision would influence the final owner of the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.


    ¡°Long Chen, death awaits you!¡± Ancestor Jin did not dare stray too far away from his current position, or it would be too troublesome to get to the Prismatic Door.


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s aura transformed greatly. The quiet teenager erupted with an aura as strong as a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. The thickness of his aura even surpassed everyone present, and he had not even used the Dragon Soul Transformation yet.


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters!¡±


    <em>Whoosh! </em>The spear, which was half gold and half ck now, appeared in Long Chen¡¯s hand. A burning heat erupted from half of it, while the other half was extremely cold!


    ¡°Heavenly Martial Realm!¡±


    Both Ancestor Jin and the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s faces changed!


    ¡°Have you only just realized it?¡± Long Chen yed with the Three Thousand Star Clusters in his hand, looking at Ancestor Jin with a smile.


    ¡°So what if you¡¯ve reached the Heavenly Martial Realm at a young age? You will still die. Hurry up and use your Beast Soul Transformation. Don¡¯t waste my time,¡± said Ancestor Jin with a menacingugh.


    ¡°I don¡¯t need to transform to deal with you,¡± Long Chen said softly. Then he flickered!


    ¡°He¡¯s so fast!¡±


    Long Chen moved so quickly that it stunned Ancestor Jin. Even he could not move that fast!


    The Yin Yang Sword Root multiplied his attack power by ten times!


    ¡°Sr Golden Ancestor Punch!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s great speed scared Ancestor Jin, so he hurriedly used his most powerful technique. His attack shot out menacingly and condensed into a gigantic, solid fist. It was golden and dazzling, and it flew at Long Chen with a loud <em>rumble</em>!


    ¡°Break!¡± Long Chen cried.


    He activated all the power in the Three Thousand Star Clusters. One casual thrust of the spear from Long Chen was equivalent to a Third Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator¡¯s strongest attack. The tip of the spear pierced through Ancestor Jin¡¯s fist and prated his shoulder like an invisible needle!


    ¡°Ah!¡±


    Ancestor Jin screamed in agony!


    Long Chen turned his spear with great strength, pinning the old man to the floor. Large cracks appeared on the floor where the Three Thousand Star Clusters pierced through.


    Ancestor Jin¡¯s face was pale as he cried out in pain.


    Long Chen stood next to him with a smile.


    The other two were shocked.


    <em>He finished Ancestor Jin in just one move? Has Long Chen far surpassed Ancestor Jin and us? </em>Bai Lan and the Long-Bearded Guest were stunned.


    Long Chen did not kill Ancestor Jin. If he wanted to, he would have thrust the spear into his head instead of his shoulder.


    ¡°This is ¡­¡± The Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s face turned green. He pointed at Long Chen weakly, unsure of what to say.


    Bai Lan knew that Long Chen would be very strong, but not this strong!


    <em>With this current strength, he could easily kill me. Am I hallucinating?</em>


    <em>He has reached the Second Heavenly Martial Stage after going missing for a very short time, and he hasbat abilities far beyond his current level. What happened?</em>


    His mind was a mess.


    However, this was an amazing thing to him. Although Bai Lan also wanted the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, he would be satisfied if it ended up in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    The one in most disbelief was Ancestor Jin. He was the one who had directly faced Long Chen¡¯s attack, and he knew how terrifying Long Chen was. Long Chen had casually defeated his most powerful attack, even giving him a near-fatal injury. His shoulder was burning, and it had been pierced cleanly through. He would not be able to use anybat techniques for at least a month.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to kill anyone today, so I will leave you alive. Therefore, you¡¯d better be good. You may be my senior, but in this world, the strongest one wins. Right now, my strength far surpasses yours, so you shouldn¡¯t talk about rank now. If you move, I will send you to hell in just one breath,¡± Long Chen said mildly, looking down at Ancestor Jin.


    Ancestor Jin nodded. Hepletely submitted to this unstoppable force.


    ¡°I have lost. I, Ancestor Jin, shall resign from the fight for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure! The Five Elements Alliance resigns!¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± Long Chen chuckled, then he turned to the Long-Bearded Guest and asked, ¡°What about you? What¡¯s your decision?¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest took two steps back and looked at him in a panic, then at Ancestor Jin¡¯s tragic state. He gave a weak smile and said, ¡°You are peerless in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory now. Once we return home, you can even be the King of Ten Thousand Nations. I, Long-Beard,pletely submit to you!¡±


    The King of Ten Thousand Nations.


    If he returned to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, he would be fit for a title like that.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    However, he was still young, and the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was not where he wanted to be.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡± Bai Lan looked at the young man, unsure of what to say.


    ¡°Go take the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, then.¡±


    After Long Chen¡¯s casual disy of strength, the trio did not dare move.


    Long Chen looked at the Prismatic Door. Feng Yangzi once warned him not to touch the things inside.


    <em>Therefore, the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure must be somewhere else.</em>


    He said to Bai Lan, ¡°Sure. You should tend to your injuries first.¡±


    When Long Chen helped Bai Lan tend to his injuries, there was a sudden sh of determination in the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s eyes, then the Long-Bearded Guest charged towards the Prismatic Door!

 Chapter 872: The True Treasure

    Bai Lan shouted, ¡°Long Chen!¡±


    Long Chen could¡¯ve easily blocked the Long-Bearded Guest with his speed, so Bai Lan chose to just warn him.


    The Long-Bearded Guest had surrendered earlier. Who would¡¯ve guessed that he would risk his life to charge into the Prismatic Door?


    But Long Chen ignored Bai Lan¡¯s warning. He watched as the Long-Bearded Guest ran into the doorway instead of stopping him.


    ¡°Long Chen! What are you doing?¡±


    Both Bai Lan and the Ancestor Jin were shocked to see that Long Chen was not going to stop the Long-Bearded Guest. Long Chen had allowed the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, the most important treasure of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, to be taken by the Long-Bearded Guest. Had Long Chen gone mad?


    Long Chen looked at them, feigning an expression of helplessness. ¡°I was distracted. I will chase after him now. The door is still open after all.¡±


    Long Chen took a few steps before he stopped and red at Ancestor Jin.


    ¡°Don¡¯t try anything funny while I¡¯m in there.¡±Even though the Long-Bearded Guest was already inside the door, Long Chen still took the time to warn Ancestor Jin. His smile made Ancestor Jin shiver.


    ¡°You¡¯ve already crippled one of my arms. What can I possibly do?¡± Ancestor Jin smiled bitterly. ¡°Just go. I will not forgive you if you let the Long-Bearded Guest take the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.¡±


    ¡°Long Chen, don¡¯t worry. He won¡¯t be able to do anything with me guarding him.¡±


    Long Chen actually preferred to kill him, but if he did, the Ten Thousand Nations Territory would be in chaos. Even more people would end up dying, so Long Chen decided not to.


    Bai Lan was stating the truth, since he could actually guard over Ancestor Jin. Long Chen said nothing as he ran into the Prismatic Door. The door had not closed just because someone had entered it. This meant that there was still a chance for Long Chen to obtain the treasure.


    <em>Feng Yangzi warned me to not touch the thing inside the door. Why? What else could be in here except for the treasure?</em>


    Feng Yangzi had given Long Chen strength. He had asked Long Chen to exact revenge for him, so there was no way he would harm Long Chen. That meant he had a good reason for telling him not to touch the thing inside the Prismatic Door.


    Was it really a treasure?


    If it really was the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, would Long Chen really not touch it?


    Long Chen was confused.


    He entered the door and saw a long and dark corridor. The Long-Bearded Guest must¡¯ve been worried about Long Chen chasing after him, so he ran as fast as he could through the tunnel.


    Long Chen ran as fast as he could too.


    Inside the tunnels were various murals simr to the ones outside. They depicted ancient humans, and also strong demons. It was clear that the two sides were fighting against each other.


    Within the crowd of humans were five dazzling figures. They floated in the air and each gave off a different light. The lights were of varying brightness, and it appeared that they once had color. Long Chen was certain that the five figures were the Five Emperors.


    While Long Chen made his way through the tunnel, he touched the murals. He had a faint, familiar feeling when he came into contact with the ice-cold murals. ???


    With his speed, he soon caught up with the Long-Bearded Guest. Thetter was shocked when he sensed Long Chen¡¯s presence and began to sprint even faster. He was trying to struggle to the bitter end.


    Soon, a faint light appeared at the end of the tunnel. The Long-Bearded Guest saw the light and found that there was a room at the end of the corridor. The treasure was most likely inside. The Long-Bearded Guest got excited when he thought of the treasure.


    <em>Once I get it, I will hide and cultivate in silence. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory will be mine. After all these years, I finally found the chance to turn my life around! The risk I¡¯ve taken is finally going to pay off!</em>


    The Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s speed exploded as he dashed into the dimly lit room. Long Chen quickly followed, but he had no intention of touching the thing inside the room. He just wanted to see what was going to happen.


    When the Long-Bearded Guest ran into the room, a prismatic film of light appeared and blocked Long Chen from entering. He could only peek through the translucent barrier to see what was happening inside.


    The Long-Bearded Guestughed maniacally when he realized he was safe!


    ¡°I¡¯m very sorry, young man, but I will be taking the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.¡± He looked around and found that there was nothing in the room except for an old treasure chest.


    The chest was notrge, but it could fit a single person inside. It looked normal, but because of how abnormal it was to look normal, it gave off a dangerous allure that would tempt just about anyone to open it.


    From the design of the chest, it appeared that it had originated from tens of thousands of years ago.


    ¡°Is that the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure?¡± The Long-Bearded Guest ignored Long Chen and touched the treasure chest lightly. He used all of his strength and realized that he could not open it at all. There was a small, glimmering light in the keyhole. The light was made fromplicated runes. The Long-Bearded Guest had no idea what to do here.


    ¡°I can¡¯t open it!¡± The Long-Bearded Guest was shocked to find that the chest was so sturdy that he was unable to open it despite using all his strength.


    ¡°That light¡­ Is it a seal? It looks extremelyplicated.¡± The Long-Bearded Guest sighed in despair because he never thought something like this would happen.


    Thankfully, the light barrier was preventing Long Chen from entering the room, so he could take his time to figure out how to open the chest.


    Long Chen, on the other hand, was watching everything unfolding in the room,


    <em>The treasure shouldn¡¯t be in the chest. </em>Feng Yangzi had warned him to not touch the thing inside the Prismatic Door. He was most likely referring to the chest.


    <em>Then where is the real treasure?</em>


    Long Chen turned around and ignored the Long-Bearded Guest. To him, the Long-Bearded Guest was just a pitiful cultivator who had fallen for Long Chen¡¯s trap. He never would¡¯ve had the chance to reach the small room if Long Chen was serious.


    Thankfully, Long Chen wasn¡¯t the one who had been trapped in the small room by the strange light barrier.


    <em>Where is the real treasure?</em>


    The Long-Bearded Guest was surprised to find that Long Chen had left him alone without a word.


    <em>Did he leave because he knew that he didn¡¯t have a chance? </em>The Long-Bearded Guest chuckled as he continued to inspect the chest. He had a lot of time to slowly figure it out. Of course, it would be best if he could open it now. If not, he didn¡¯t mind escaping into the dense woods and spending the next ten years or so opening it.


    He still had one of the Five Emperor Keys even though they had entered the Secret Realm. This meant that the Five Emperors intended to send the people out after they¡¯d obtained the treasure.


    <em>Still, why wasn¡¯t I sent out even though I¡¯ve obtained the treasure? </em>The Long-Bearded Guest was confused. He ignored this question and continued to focus on the lock.


    <em>Maybe it''s because I haven¡¯t unlocked the seal yet? I¡¯m not sure how long that barrier of light willst, so I better pick up the pace.</em>


    In the tunnel outside, Long Chen was staring at the murals in confusion.


    He touched the uneven murals to check them.


    ¡°This is the topmost floor. Feng Yangzi wanted me to get the treasure, which is why he sent me here. But where is it?¡±


    Long Chen was still trying to figure out what was going on when he reached a mural that depicted the Five Emperors in their prime.


    ¡°Hey, idiot. Have you forgotten the Prismatic Key in the Primordial Realm?¡±


    Little Cat took the chance to remind Long Chen about the key.


    Long Chen was ted when he heard that. ¡°Is that how we should use it? Maybe the Prismatic Key isn¡¯t used to open the Secret Realm, but instead used to obtain the real treasure?¡±


    He quickly took out the Prismatic Key. The glimmering key shone in five different colors and illuminated the murals in the dark tunnel.


    ¡°What is ¡­?¡±


    When Long Chen took it out, he felt a strange presence.


    It felt familiar, and it wrapped around him. The feeling was akin to when he saw an elder he respected when he was very young.


    The Prismatic Key changed slightly. The five colors on the key separated and transformed into five different-colored orbs of light: gold, azure, ck, red, and yellow. The five lights floated towards the mural on the wall like fireflies.


    The lights embedded themselves in the mural, lighting the Five Emperors up in their respective colors. Long Chen felt like he had returned to the war that urred tens of thousands of years ago.


    Soldiers were shouting and crying. Standing within the army of humans were the five incredibly strong figures that sacrificed themselves to chase the massive demonic beast out of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. That was how the Ancient Graveyard was formed.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The five lights on the mural suddenly expanded and absorbed Long Chen into it. It happened rapidly, and no one noticed what had happened to him inside the tunnel.

 Chapter 873: Emperor’s Manual

    The Long-Bearded Guest was still experimenting with the treasure chest. Outside of the Prismatic Door, Bai Lan was already standing up to guard Ancestor Jin. But because no one had exited from the door yet, they slowly became impatient.


    ¡°This is ¡­¡±


    When the light faded from his eyes, Long Chen found himself in an expansive field of grass. The sky was blue and the sun was bright. There were shepherds guiding their sheep in the distance and horses ran freely on the horizon.


    ¡°Child.¡±


    Long Chen looked towards where the voice came from and saw four different balls of light. The four lights turned into four elders wearing the colors gold, azure, ck, and yellow.


    To think that they would each hold their respective colors even now.


    ¡°Seniors¡­ Are you the Five Emperors from tens of thousands of years ago? I am your junior, Long Chen. Greetings!¡±


    Long Chen respected them, so he had no qualms about being respectful.


    But weren''t there supposed to be five of them? Where was thest one?As if sensing his confusion, the Golden Emperor exined, ¡°Our fourth brother was the one who sent the Prismatic Key to you. He has long left us in order to send the key out of here. I suppose his Divine Martial Soul¡¯s power has long been exhausted.¡±


    Those at the Divine Martial Realm had fused their Martial Soul and their Divine Soul into one. Due to the additional support, a Divine Martial Soul could live for a very long time. If the cultivator¡¯s body was wounded, they could eventually recover as long as their Divine Martial Soul was still intact.


    To think that the person inside the Divine Fire Realm was none other than the Scarlet Emperor!


    ¡°Does that mean you knew that I woulde here from the very beginning?¡±


    Long Chen had never thought that the Prismatic Key would quite literally be the key to obtaining the treasure. They had chosen to give Long Chen the Prismatic Key because they wanted him to take their inheritance.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The ck Emperor replied, ¡°You are correct. The moment you stepped into the Divine Martial Empire, our fourth brother detected the presence of a Dragon Warrior. That was why he gave the key to you, so that you could find your way here one day. We¡¯ve been alive for a very long time, and our Divine Martial Souls are on the brink of disappearing even though we don¡¯t move or speak. Thankfully, you¡¯ve arrived at our final moments.¡±


    ¡°I see. So everything was decided from the very beginning.¡±


    Long Chen was secretly happy because that meant that they had chosen to give him their inheritance because they had seen his potential.


    To think that they knew about Dragon Warriors.


    The Yellow Emperor responded, ¡°We¡¯ve waited here for years, but no one has met our expectations to inherit our legacy. Back then, members of the demon race were eyeing our treasure. Our fourth brother had no choice but to go to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory to find someone suitable to receive the Prismatic Key. Of course, being able to get here proves that you are indeed special.


    ¡°Our fourth brother hasn''t returned even though it has been so long. It seems that his power has indeed been depleted. We will all leave in peace once we finish passing everything to you.


    ¡°Dragon Warriors¡­ They are the most talented cultivators in the world. They inherited the blood of the dragons. Even the weakest dragons, the red or green dragons, were incredibly strongpared to humans. Even the weakest among them were somewhere in the Divine Martial Realm.


    ¡°You have the blood of a dragon, but we have no idea what kind of dragon it is. But at the very least, it must be a high-ranking species. You were born in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, so you are one of our people. More importantly, your heart is pure and yet you do not hesitate to kill. This is the disposition of an emperor. Long Chen, you are the only candidate worthy of inheriting our legacy after tens of thousands of years of searching!¡±


    The Golden Emperor was excited when he said all of that.


    It seemed they knew a lot of things about Long Chen.


    <em>Does that mean they want to turn me into a leader of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory and protect it?</em>


    Long Chen was worried about that part.


    He needed to go to the Three Royal Territories, so he couldn¡¯t just stay here and protect the Ten Thousand Nations Territory if he inherited their treasure.


    Long Chen revealed a bitter smile. ¡°Seniors¡­ Does that mean that I have to stay here to protect the Ten Thousand Nations Territory if I ept your inheritance? I need to go to the Three Royal Territories¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± The Golden Emperor smiled.


    ¡°Your potential far exceeds ours, which means you will be far stronger than us. Your potential would be wasted if you stayed here. You must go to the Three Royal Territories.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that I won¡¯t return?¡±


    ¡°The blood flowing in your veins is the blood of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. You can leave this ce since it''s very peaceful right now. But we hope that you will return and protect this ce when it experiences a disaster that cannot be prevented.¡±


    Indeed. This ce was Long Chen¡¯s home; all of his friends and families were here. So he had to protect it.


    Long Chen was d and touched by the gesture of the Five Emperors. Even though they had passed on, they had left behind their Divine Martial Souls to guard their home. They were also very lenient towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen said, ¡°I swear that I will be stronger ande back the moment our home is in danger. I will protect this ce!¡±


    ¡°Good. Good!¡±


    The four of them looked pleased as they stroked their beards. Their smiles revealed their satisfaction, and Long Chen was happy that they had epted him.


    ¡°We¡¯ve watched over you for quite some time. You are a good child, though sometimes you are bloodthirsty. But then again, always being kind is not the way a good emperor should act. Being able to kill someone without hesitation is the mark of a true ruler. You have what it takes to inherit our treasure.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much time left. The demon race members are still waiting for everyone outside. We will leave everything here to you.¡±


    The Golden Emperor smiled and looked at the other Emperors for their approval.


    ¡°The demon race¡­ Are they already outside?¡± Long Chen knew that they would appear, but he wasn¡¯t worried because the Five Emperors weren¡¯t worried.


    The Five Emperors were passing him their treasure.


    The elegant Azure Emperor said, ¡°All five of us became famous and strong because of a certain man. He was the oldest of us, roughly a thousand years older. His legacy has most likely disappeared into nothing. He was our master, and also the greatest being in the history of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. We call him the Emperor of Man.


    ¡°Master passed on long ago. All five of us were stuck at the First Divine Martial Stage, while Master was the only person who reached the Second Divine Martial Stage in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The stronger a cultivator is, the longer it takes to progress. All five of us were stuck at the First Divine Martial Stage until the very end of our lives. Master, on the other hand, was stuck at the Second Divine Martial Stage and never once stepped foot into the Third Divine Martial Stage even in his final moments. He died of old age.


    ¡°We were all raised on the shoulders of a giant. Master was a truly strong cultivator. He was the one who gave us martial techniques befitting of cultivators at the Divine Martial Realm when we reached it. Divine-tier martial techniques are treasures, and we only have one here in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The five of us used this technique in the past, and now we give it to you.¡±


    The Golden Emperor waved his arm, and an ancient parchment appeared in front of Long Chen.


    The parchment was old. It looked like it would disintegrate at the slightest touch.


    ¡°A Divine-tier martial technique?¡±


    Long Chen was excited when he saw the parchment. Even though it looked normal, he was frightened by the aura hidden inside of it. It was as if the parchment stood at the pinnacle of life and looked down on others.


    <em>The Emperor of Man must¡¯ve been exceedingly strong if this parchment is anything to go by. He stood at the peak of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. He¡¯s the real trailzer ¡­</em>


    Long Chen was excited when he thought of that.


    To think that the vastnd of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory had only produced a single person who reached the Second Divine Martial Stage. It could¡¯ve been said that he was practically unbeatable.


    Only someone like him was befitting of owning such a technique.


    ¡°The name of this Divine-tier martial technique is the Emperor¡¯s Manual! From today onwards, it belongs to you. You can use it or pass it down. Long Chen, catch!¡±


    The Golden Emperor waved his arm, and the Emperor¡¯s Manual flew towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen grabbed it gingerly with his heart racing. This was the only Divine-tier martial technique in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. The Emperor of Man and the Five Emperors had used it to kill numerous others, so there was no chance it was a simple technique.


    The difference between a Divine-tier martial technique and an Emperor-tier martial technique was massive.


    Even in the Three Royal Territories, very few people had Divine-tier martial techniques. Long Chen already had one despite only being at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage.


    ¡°Thank you, Seniors! I will work hard and cultivate it as soon as I can!¡±


    The Yellow Emperor chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t be rash. Divine-tier martial techniques use up a lot of essence, so you can¡¯t use it yet. I suppose you can use a small part of it when you reach the Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage.¡±


    The four of them were very kind and pleasant to talk to. They didn''t rush their words, as if they had lived through a lot of things. This made Long Chen feel like he was their grandchild.


    Just then, the Golden Emperor interrupted, ¡°Now that you¡¯ve obtained the Emperor¡¯s Manual, you¡¯ve epted the inheritance of our master. From today onwards, you are his disciple, and also our junior. We all shoulder the responsibility of protecting our home. Do you agree?¡±

 Chapter 874: Emperor Vanquisher

    The Golden Emperor¡¯s tone was strict when he talked about it.


    Guarding the Ten Thousand Nations Territory was something Long Chen would¡¯ve done anyway, so it did not interfere with him obtaining the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure. He kneeled on the ground and said seriously, ¡°I greet my seniors!¡±


    ¡°Hoho.¡±


    The four of them chuckled at the same time. It was clear that they were satisfied with Long Chen¡¯s actions.


    ¡°Alright then, Junior. You can stand up now. You can put the Emperor¡¯s Manual away now, because we have other things to say.¡±


    Long Chen knew that the Emperor¡¯s Manual wasn¡¯t the only treasure.


    ¡°Yes.¡± He stood up and put the parchment away while he looked at the remaining Emperors expectantly.


    ¡°The Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm has attracted two Sword Warriors from the Three Royal Territory, and they were at the Divine Martial Realm. You should know them more than us because you¡¯ve obtained their Sword Souls, and it¡¯s also the very rare kind in which two Sword Souls arebined together. We have something that should be useful to you. It¡¯s also something that our master left behind.¡±


    The Golden Emperor then produced something else from thin air.Long Chen saw a pair of regr-looking ck gloves in the Golden Emperor¡¯s hands. They looked thin and were not different from the gloves he had seen in Baiyang Town. Women always wore them to wash their clothes to prevent their hands from getting hurt. Long Chen also sensed nothinging from the ck gloves.


    But there was indeed something strange about them. There was a dark ck rune that let out a dim light on the back of each glove.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°This is a Divine Weapon.¡±


    The Emperors chuckled.


    ¡°A DIvine Weapon? Is it¡­ a glove?¡±


    Long Chen was confused. He knew that there were indeed Divine Weapons in the shape of gloves or gauntlets, but most of them had des on the joints. At the very least, they were designed to kill or increase the strength of the user. The gloves in front of him looked like an ordinary pair of gloves! How were they a Divine Weapon?


    The ck Emperor, currently shrouded in a dark mist, answered Long Chen¡¯s question. ¡°This is the only Divine-tier Divine Weapon in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Do you believe me?¡±


    ¡°I believe you.¡± Long Chen smiled and epted the gloves graciously. He was even more confused when he held them, because they merely felt likemon gloves. The only difference was that they gave off a feeling of being untearable.


    ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate them. Those gloves are called the Emperor Vanquishers. It was the Divine Weapon our master used. None of us could unleash their full potential, but I¡¯m certain that you, as a Sword Warrior, canmunicate with them better than us. But I suppose you need to be stronger before you can use them. R?


    ¡°The good news is that you can benefit from using the gloves. Fist techniques don¡¯t receive any benefits from your Sword Root, but wearing the Emperor Vanquishers will allow your Sword Root to amplify your fist techniques. And keep in mind, fists and swords are the most popr weapons in the Three Royal Territory.¡±


    Long Chen finally learned that the Emperor Vanquishers were indeed strong and precious.


    ¡°So gauntlets and gloves are popr Divine Weapons in the Three Royal Territory? I didn¡¯t know that at all.¡±


    The two treasures given by the Five Emperors, the Emperor¡¯s Manual and the Emperor Vanquishers, were both incredible treasures that anyone would be happy to receive. Divine-tier treasures had only appeared a few times in the entire history of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Long Chen never realized how precious the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure was. He had expected only a single Divine-tier treasure, but he never expected to obtain two. And both of them suited him!


    Once he became stronger, he could cultivate the Emperor¡¯s Manual and then use Emperor Vanquishers to utilize the amplification effects of his Sword Root to increase the Emperor¡¯s Manual¡¯s strength. The destructive effect would be unimaginable!


    Long Chen had no clue how to thank them. He wasn¡¯t good ating up with words of gratitude, so he usually relied on taking action to repay the favor, such as helping Feng Yangzi fulfill his final wish.


    ¡°Long Chen, be stronger when you reach the Three Royal Territory. You should be able to use them if you be slightly stronger. Our treasures will help you fend off your enemies and survive there. Cultivate hard, because you are our hope.¡±


    ¡°Also, you have to be careful in the Three Royal Territory. Divine-tier items are still highly sought-after over there. One wrong move and you will die. The Three Royal Territory¡­ It¡¯s a scary ce that¡¯s on an entirely different levelpared to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. We went there once, and everyone there called us lower lifeforms. None of them looked highly on us.¡±


    ¡°Make sure to make us proud when you get there.¡±


    ¡°But prioritize your safety.¡±


    The four of them each gave a warning and a piece of advice to Long Chen. The time to depart soon approached.


    Even though Long Chen had only known them for a short while, he was reluctant to part ways.


    He memorized all of their words and would follow their advice.


    Long Chen then asked tentatively, ¡°Seniors¡­ Are you sending me out now?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be in a rush. We have onest thing.¡±


    The four of them looked at each other before they all stared at Long Chen in unison. This time, they were very serious. Long Chen hadn¡¯t seen them this serious before.


    ¡°There¡¯s more?¡± Long Chen was stunned. He thought the Emperor¡¯s Manual and the Emperor Vanquishers were already the best treasures.


    The four remaining Emperors made their final decision. The Golden Emperor¡¯s hand shed with a golden light, and a small, gray ball appeared.


    ¡°What is that?¡±


    There was nothing but gray mist inside it. It contained a strange and eerie demonic power that Long Chen could not take his eyes off.


    ¡°This is something we¡¯ve kept for a very long time, and also something the demon race wants. Keep it safe. You will naturally know what it is when you be stronger. We only know its name right now.¡±


    ¡°What is it called?¡± Long Chen carefully epted the strange little ball. From the way they were acting, it was clear that the strange ball was their most prized possession. If not, the demon race wouldn¡¯t have waited for so many years for the chance to obtain it.


    The four of them answered in unison, ¡°It¡¯s called the True Martial Overlord Soul. This is something that we obtained by chance when all five of us were in the Three Royal Territory. We didn¡¯t know how to use it, but it seems that it¡¯s rted to the strongest person in the True Martial Territory, the True Martial Overlord that has led the True Martial Pce for tens of thousands of years!¡±


    ¡°True Martial Overlord? True Martial Overlord Soul?¡±


    Long Chen memorized those words.


    It was natural for him to not know what the True Martial Overlord Soul was, especially when even the Five Emperors didn¡¯t know about it.


    ¡°Keep it safe. Do not let anyone know about it when you are in the Three Royal Territory, or you will die. You can only reveal it once you have the strength to stand at the peak of the Three Royal Territory. Understand?¡±


    Long Chen nodded and quickly put it inside his Primordial Realm. This was the third treasure, and also the most valuable one.


    ¡°Alright, we¡¯ve given you everything. We will send you out now.¡±


    The Golden Emperor smiled kindly. He seemed very relieved after giving everything to Long Chen.


    ¡°Seniors¡­ The six demons from the demon race will know that I have the treasure when I get out¡­¡± He was worried about the six demons guarding the exit. How could he get out? They would just kill him to seize the treasure!


    ¡°Who said you obtained the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure? It¡¯s with the poor guy who¡¯s still figuring out how to open the chest. There¡¯s a seal on the chest that our master learned from the Three Royal Territory. It¡¯s called the Nine Layered Seal. Even the demons will take some time to open it up.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled because of how devious the Five Emperors were.


    With the Long-Bearded Guest as bait, they would seize him and take the treasure chest. Who else but Long Chen would know that he himself was the one who had taken the treasure?


    ¡°Time is running out. We will send you off now. Junior, this is thest and only time you will see us, but we will leave behind our power and meld them with the Five Emperor Seal in your palm and turn it into the Five Emperor Palm. It will travel with you on your journey for a very long time. It will also temporarily allow you to use our power and grant you the same effect of having ten times more essence. I suppose this is the final gift that your seniors can give you. The Emperor¡¯s Manual and the Emperor Vanquishers are gifts from our master.¡±


    The Golden Emperor was the one who said that.


    Before Long Chen could react, they surrounded him. A burning, red energy flew into Long Chen¡¯s Scarlet Emperor Seal from the Golden Emperor¡¯s hands.


    The Golden Emperor chuckled. ¡°This is our fourth brother¡¯s power. He left it behind so that we could pass it to you today.¡±


    Long Chen knew that they were trying to give up thest of their powers so that they could disappear quietly. All of those powers would fuse with his Five Emperor Seals and turn them into the Five Emperor Palm, to give him one final strong technique.


    ¡°Our powers are limited. You can only use the Five Emperor Palm during the Heavenly Martial Realm to increase your essence by ten times, but I suppose you won¡¯t need us anymore when you reach the Divine Martial Realm. Hohoho¡­¡±


    The four elders turned into balls of light matching their respective colors and fused into Long Chen¡¯s Five Emperor Seals.


    All five seals in his palm lit up.


    The presence of the four Emperors disappearedpletely from this world.

 Chapter 875: Demon Race’s Appearance

    ¡°Are they all dead?¡±


    Long Chen was stunned when he saw the traces of the Five Emperors disappearing in front of him. Then the scene in front of him slowly disappeared until he was standing in the lonely, dark corridor again.


    The Five Emperor Seals in his palm were glittering brilliantly like gems. Long Chen saw the image of the Five Emperors inside the seals.


    Those images were the Five Emperors themselves. As they¡¯d said, they would apany Long Chen on his journey for a long time. The Five Emperors were gone from this world, but their powers remained inside the Five Emperor Seals. It was the only way for them to leave their mark on this world.


    ¡°So every time I use the Five Emperor Palm, I will be able to use their powers and increase my essence by ten times ¡­¡±


    Long Chen was sad that the Five Emperors were gone. Even though he had only spoken with them for a short time, he was touched by their passion and mission. Those who were willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of others were always the one that had to be treasured.


    ¡°Never mind. I will have to stop thinking about them now. They¡¯ve given me a mission, and I must aplish it to repay them.¡±


    Long Chen checked his body as well as the Five Emperor Palm.


    ¡°I can fight someone one stage above me with my Dragon Soul Transformation. The Sword Root increases my power further by one stage. The Five Emperor Palm will raise it by another stage. That means that right now, I can defeat someone at the Fifth Heavenly Martial Realm. This is an incredible increase to my strength. I¡¯m certain that I will feel much safer in the Three Royal Territory now.¡±It was already difficult for regr people to fight someone one stage above them in the Heavenly Martial Realm. Long Chen was a monster that could fight someone three stages above him. No one else in history could achieve his feats.


    Even the Sword Warriors at the apex could only increase their strength by fifteen times at most.


    Long Chen had obtained a tremendous boon from this adventure.


    He was the final winner this time. Not only had his strength increased greatly, he had even obtained all of the treasures. He had reached the Second Heavenly Martial Stage and obtained the Yin Yang Sword Root from Feng Yangzi. He then obtained the Emperor¡¯s Manual, the Emperor Vanquishers, the Five Emperor Palm, and even the mysterious True Martial Overlord Soul from the Five Emperors.


    These would be his greatest sources of strength in the Three Royal Territory.


    ¡°As long as I can pass the next obstacle, I will be able to find the method to reach the Three Royal Territory in peace.¡±


    The next obstacle was naturally the six demons. Long Chen needed to feign ignorance and let the Long-Bearded Guest be the bait.


    Just then, footsteps came down from the tunnel. It was Bai Lan and Ancestor Jin. They noticed that Long Chen hadn''t returned and decided to check what was going on. Bai Lan originally left Ancestor Jin alone, but thetter didn¡¯t want to be alone. And because he had been crippled by Long Chen, Bai Lan could easily control him.


    ¡°Long Chen, why are you here?¡± Bai Lan was surprised.


    Long Chen smiled bitterly. ¡°The Long-Bearded Guest was too cunning. He now has the treasure and I can¡¯t break through the barrier.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Bai Lan was in disbelief. He was certain that Long Chen could chase after the Long-Bearded Guest. He never thought thetter would end up taking the treasure. He and Ancestor Jin couldn¡¯t just let this go.


    They weren¡¯t far from the room, so Long Chen led them there. Looking through the barrier, they saw that the Long-Bearded Guest was indeed trying to open the chest. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    He chuckled when he saw Long Chen and the others. ¡°You three ¡­ How about youe in here and help me unseal this? Hahaha ¡­¡±


    ¡°Long Beard! Don¡¯t you dare get cocky. You have the treasure, but you can¡¯t open it right now. Do you think you can escape us?¡± Bai Lan threatened him.


    Bai Lan didn¡¯t mind giving the treasure to Long Chen, but he refused to let the Long-Bearded Guest take it.


    Ancestor Jin refused to let the Long-Bearded Guest take it too. Long Chen was young, but he was the strongest individual in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, so Ancestor Jin had to treat him well right now.


    Ancestor Jin huffed, ¡°Long Beard, give us the chest or we will kill you.¡±


    The Long-Bearded Guest looked up fearlessly since the barrier was still in ce. ¡°Why? Does the leader of the Five Elements Alliance want me to hand it over for nothing? Just you wait.¡±


    ¡°You!¡± Ancestor Jin was furious.


    ¡°Once I open it and inherit the strength of the Five Emperors, I will be the strongest in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Hehehe ¡­ Just you wait.¡±


    The ground shook right when the Long-Bearded Guest said that.


    Since the Five Emperors had disappeared, theirst remaining energy would be used to send everyone out. As expected, an azure light enveloped Long Chen. This was the energy of the Azure Emperor Key.


    Long Chen had previously used it to enter the Secret Realm.


    But now its goal had been achieved.


    As long as Bai Lan and Ancestor Jin thought that the Long-Bearded Guest had obtained the treasure, then everything would work in his favor.


    The light barrier shed rapidly. Long Chen felt himself flying away from the secret realm rapidly and soon found himself back in the center of Confounding City.


    There were only nine people left. The only one missing was Feng Qing, who Long Chen had killed. The others were still alive. The Five Emperors had been very lenient towards them.


    ¡°Long-Bearded Guest!¡±


    Bai Lan and Ancestor Jin needed to catch the Long-Bearded Guest the moment they exited, but he ced the chest inside his storage ring the moment he exited and escaped. Since they were all at the same stage, none of them could actually catch up to him.


    The Long-Bearded Guest was a very careful man, so he had nned out exactly where to go once he got his hands on the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure.


    ¡°Catch the Long-Bearded Guest!¡± Ancestor Jin shouted.


    Everyone chased after him. But at that moment, a terrifying pressure fell from the sky. Even Long Chen was barely able to handle it. He knew that the six demons were here, so he quickly pulled Bai Lan down. ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡±


    Everyone looked up at the sky.


    High up there were six people in ck cloaks. They stood still in the air, while their robes whipped around in the wind.


    They didn¡¯t look special, but the auras they emitted were simr to the aura they had felt from the Purple-Blooded Jiao. All six of them flew down at the same time. Their pressure was strong enough to stop someone at the peak of the Heavenly Martial Realm, much less the Long-Bearded Guest.


    Everyone was shocked and surprised by the sudden appearance of the six people. Even Long Chen dared not leave.


    He had expected them, but he feigned surprise. He couldn¡¯t let them know that he knew they would show up.


    <em>So they finally appeared.</em>


    No one else knew what was happening.


    ¡°Who are they?¡± Lei Ji was shocked as he quickly regrouped with Long Chen and the others. The Five Elements Alliance quickly stood side by side. Only Wu Lian and the Long-Bearded Guest stood alone.


    Long Chen took a nce at Wu Lian. Her head was lowered and her veil was back on. She had tidied herself up to make it seem like nothing had happened to her. But only Long Chen felt the deep grudge hidden deep inside her eyes.


    She was looking at no one right now, as if nothing mattered to her.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t care about what was going through her mind right now. They were enemies to begin with, and being forced to do all those things inside the Secret Realm was nothingpared to her grudge against Long Chen for killing her son.


    But unfortunately, Long Chen was much stronger than her now, so she could no longer take revenge.


    Wu Guangyu¡¯s death had been his own folly.


    Long Chen found that almost everyone in the Ancient Graveyard was here. They stood side by side, with the people from the Nine Great ns standing at the forefront. Long Chen was with the Demon and Thunder ns, and he was relieved to find that Suxue and the others were still alive. However, the pressureing from the six demons frightened them a lot.


    <em>Wait, where are Xiang and Yan¡¯er?</em> Long Chen had a bad feeling.


    Only a fraction of the people who had entered the Ancient Graveyard were still alive, as killing each other was a requirement for exiting. Ten thousand had entered, but now there were only three thousand, and this wasn¡¯t even the final result. Long Chen was certain that everyone would kill each other in order to turn their Ancient Tokens golden.


    Only then would they be able to leave this ce.


    Long Chen clearly knew that everything was within the grasp of the six demons, so even he had to bow down for now.


    ¡°Friends from the human race, I know that you don¡¯t recognize us. Let us introduce ourselves. We are the demons from the Deste Royal Territory. It¡¯s also the strongest territory in the Three Royal Territory! I¡¯m certain that you know what demons are. We are the very same demon race that fought against the Five Emperors in the past! Of course, we are the few that have some spare time on our hands.¡±

 Chapter 876: Nine Layered Seal

    As they spoke, one of their robes floated in the air to reveal their purple scales.


    The demon who spoke had a familiar voice that everyone recognized. But where had hee from?


    ¡°I am Zi Xue. You should know me by now.¡± Heughed, and a massive illusion appeared behind him. It was a massive Purple Jiao, but the head was iparablyrge!


    Almost everyone here knew about the Purple-blooded Jiao. It was the same one who had told them that he was the ck Emperor¡¯s mount!


    Everyone realized that they had been tricked!


    ¡°You bunch of idiots actually thought that I was a mount for the ck Emperor? The Five Emperors are our enemies, how could I serve him? Idiots.¡±


    While he was speaking, a cold aura enveloped the area. Everyone was so surprised and afraid that they dared not utter a word. the Long-Bearded Guest, who had obtained the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, dared not move at all. He was already sweating bullets and regretting taking the treasure.


    It was clear that the demons were here for it!


    ¡°Zi Xue, you talk too much. Let me handle it!¡±Tian Kun, the man from the wolf tribe, stepped forward and asked, ¡°Who has the treasure?¡±


    Everyone, including Long Chen, looked at the Long-Bearded Guest. It was clear that he was the one who had taken it, and he dared not deny it. He quickly said, ¡°Dear experts from the demon race, I will willingly give you the treasure ¡­ Ack!¡±


    Everyone was shocked when they heard him shout in pain. They all took a step back when they saw that Tian Kun had punched through the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s chest with his ws and destroyed his heart in an instant.


    He then took the storage ring on the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s finger and tossed the corpse aside. Even in death, the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s eyes were still wide with shock.


    Everyone was intimidated by the cruelty of the demon race. They all stepped back because they knew that the demon race was making an example out of the Long-Bearded Guest. If they didn¡¯tply, they would die too. The demon race weren¡¯t very kind to begin with.


    Tian Kun took out the treasure chest, and the five other demons surrounded him.


    ¡°Yes, this is it! I can¡¯t believe that those five ghosts hid it so well and even restricted us from obtaining it. We never would¡¯ve been able to get it without their help.¡±


    ¡°We finally got it after all these years.¡±


    ¡°Let me see if that thing is inside.¡±


    They were looking at the chest with anticipation and ignored the three thousand people below them.


    They tried opening the chest, but they were barred by the seal.


    ¡°It¡¯s a Nine Layer Seal! Those damned bastards!¡±


    All six demons became angry.


    ¡°Shit. To think they used the Nine Layer Seal! Can we open it?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t. Can anyone else? If not, we might need to find someone to help us open it. We cannot spread word about us obtaining the treasure right now. Once someone opens up the seal, we can just kill that person.¡±


    ¡°I suppose that¡¯s the only thing we can do.¡±


    The six demons decided to leave after they discussed amongst themselves.


    Thankfully, they did nothing else.


    Long Chen looked at them. Everything had been out of his control so far. Even though he had be stronger, he couldn¡¯t defeat the six demons.


    ¡°Long Chen, are you going to let them take it?¡± Bai Lan whispered.


    ¡°We can¡¯t fight them, so I have no choice.¡±


    Just then, two of the demons floated down from the sky. One was Tian Kun, the man from the wolf tribe, and the other was skinny like a snake. He was none other than Xuan Feng from the Northern Snake Tribe. ?


    ¡°Where are Long Chen and Bai Lan?¡± both of them said at the same time.


    Both Long Chen and Bai Lan were taken by surprise. How did they know them?


    Long Chen and Bai Lan had no choice but to step forward. They remained calm as they approached the demons.


    ¡°Are you Bai Lan and Long Chen?¡± Tian Kun observed them while Xuan Feng waved his arm. Two figures flew over from the horizon. Long Chen was shocked to find that they were Xiang and Suyan!


    Mo Xiang appeared to be fine, but Suyan was crying out of fear. She looked so pitiful. Both Long Chen and Bai Lan felt their hearts twitch. Mo Xiang was one of Long Chen¡¯s closest friends, so he would fight to the death if something happened to him.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Xiang was as important to him as Ling Xi, while Suyan was like a sister to him.


    Thankfully, the demons had not harmed either of them.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er!¡± Bai Lan¡¯s eyes were red. If Long Chen weren¡¯t holding him back, he would¡¯ve attacked the demons. It was indeed bad news for Suyan to fall into their hands.


    The demon called Xuan Feng looked at Bai Lan. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I am giving your daughter the opportunity of a lifetime! To think that her body has the rare Immortal body constitution. It would be a waste to leave something so precious in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, so I will take her back to my tribe. There, she will be our Saintess. As her father, you should be proud that she will be the Saintess of the Northern Snake Tribe. Even I will have to bow down to her in the future.¡±


    Bai Lan and Long Chen were utterly surprised.


    ¡°Little Cat, what¡¯s the Immortal body constitution?¡±


    Little Cat exined seriously, ¡°It¡¯s a type of body constitution that grants the wielder a physical body that will never rot away. She shouldn¡¯t have it, but I think maybe your dragon blood changed her bodypletely from the inside out since she consumed a lot of it. I think her body constitution quite literally upgraded to the Immortal body constitution. Don¡¯t be confused. You have the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, so this is natural.¡±


    Long Chen understood what was happening now.


    He knew he had done the right thing in saving Yan¡¯er. If not, she would¡¯ve been dead a long time ago.


    Sometimes, life would find a twisted way to continue on.


    Bai Lan was indignant, but Xuan Feng said, ¡°Bai Lan, you are not an idiot. I am giving your daughter a grand future and a chance to be stronger. You should be proud of her.¡±


    Bai Lan knew that it was indeed good for Suyan, but how could he let his daughter live with the demon race? Suyan was still young and timid! He couldn¡¯t let her live so far away all by herself.


    He felt his heart aching.


    ¡°Bai Lan ¡­¡± Long Chen patted his shoulder. ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do. Let¡¯s just hope that this is good news for Yan¡¯er.¡±


    Long Chen knew that Bai Lan valued his daughters more than his own life, but there was nothing he could do against absolute power.


    ¡°Father ¡­¡± Suyan started crying in the air.


    Mo Xiang stood beside her and consoled her. He was alsomunicating with Long Chen using his gaze.


    Xuan Feng said, ¡°I will give you fifteen minutes to say goodbye. Afterwards, we will send all of you back to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, but there¡¯s one more person that has to stay behind.¡±


    He then gestured at Tian Kun.


    Tian Kun looked at Long Chen and asked, ¡°I¡¯ve heard from your brother. You wish to go to the Three Royal Territory?¡±


    ¡°Xiang?¡± Long Chen assumed that Xiang had told them that.


    Tian Kun had no ill intentions for Long Chen so he smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ve heard about you from Xiang. You¡¯ve indeed helped him grow a lot during his journey. I suppose you¡¯ve done a good deed for us, the Wolf Tribe. Even though I¡¯m not certain if he¡¯s a Sun Devouring Wolf, I do know that someone as talented as him will reach a very high rank in our tribe. He will be given a lot of resources to cultivate, and will be the strongest person in our tribe.¡±


    Long Chen had learned a lot from Tian Kun¡¯s words, and he smiled helplessly. Xiang was helpless too.


    It was clear that the six demons knew about Xiang¡¯s talent, and since he was a wolf-type demonic beast, it was natural for him to go to the Wolf Tribe. But to Long Chen and Xiang, this was going to be another separation for them.

 Chapter 877: Journey

    Long Chen had just rescued Xiang from Wu Guangyu¡¯s hands, and now they had to be separated again.


    ¡°Long Chen, where do you want to go in the Three Royal Territory? We from the Deste Royal Territory do not wee humans.¡±


    Because of Mo Xiang, they were quite friendly towards Long Chen.


    ¡°I need to go to the Swordsoul Territory.¡±


    Long Chen was certain that they would take him there because of his rtionship with Xiang. That way, he wouldn¡¯t have to explore the entirety of Three Royal Territory to find his way.


    It was just that he was unwilling to separate from Xiang so soon.


    <em>It¡¯s all because I¡¯m still too weak! They wouldn¡¯t do that if I was stronger!</em>


    ¡°Swordsoul Territory? Sorry, but we are returning to the Deste Royal Territory. We won¡¯t be passing there, and it¡¯s too far away. We will only be passing by the True Martial Territory. We will take you there, then you can find your own way to the Swordsoul Territory.¡±


    ¡°You two can take the time to talk now. We will bring you to the Three Royal Territory once we send everyone else away.¡± Xuan Feng pointed, and both Xiang and Suyan floated downwards. They quickly approached Bai Lan and Long Chen. On the other side, Suxue was crying as she ran over to them.All of them were helpless in this situation.


    ¡°Father, Sister! I don¡¯t want to go!¡± Suyan was crying as she held onto her father and sister. Suxue¡¯s heart ached when she heard her younger sister¡¯s cries, but there was nothing she could do. Even Bai Lan was helpless, and he was crying too. He regretted bringing Suyan here, but he had thought that it would be unsafe to leave Suyan back in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    ¡°It¡¯s all my fault ¡­¡± Bai Lan med himself.


    ¡°Father, it¡¯s not your fault.¡±


    Suyan wiped her tears away before looking at Long Chen. ¡°I won¡¯t let anyone down. Father, Sister, I will work hard ande back once I¡¯ve be stronger. No one will be able to take me away then.¡±


    Difficulties in life were often the fastest way to grow and mature.


    Long Chen was d to see that Suyan was determined to be stronger.


    Bai Lan smiled a bit too.


    ¡°Big Brother.¡± Standing beside Long Chen, Mo Xiang forced a bitter smile and said, ¡°I didn''t expect something like this to happen. They are just too strong, at the Category Nine Emperor-tier. I cannot win against them. I suppose I will have to go to the Deste Royal Territory now.¡± ?


    ¡°Find a way to escape once you are there.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to fight against someone so strong. If possible, he would prefer to escape once they reached the Three Royal Territory. But he would admit defeat if he failed.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Xiang nodded. ¡°Sorry, Big Brother. I wanted to travel with you to find Ling Xi, but I doubt that can happen right now. Once I¡¯m strong enough, I will go find you in the Swordsoul Territory or the True Martial Territory.¡±


    Long Chen patted Xiang¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s already lucky that we found a way to enter the Three Royal Territory.¡±


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    Indeed. They might not have found the entrance to the Three Royal Territory on their own.


    It was time to depart. Suxue and Suyan were hugging each other when Bai Lan approached Long Chen. He looked at them and said, ¡°Long Chen, and your brother, I know that Suyan will be going somewhere different from you two, but I still want to say that she will be in your care. Please look after her if you can.¡±


    Long Chen nodded because he had expected that. ¡°Bai Lan, don¡¯t worry. I will do everything in my power to fight for Suyan. You know how strong I am. Once I¡¯m there, I will still do my best even though I won¡¯t be the strongest anymore.¡±


    Mo Xiang interrupted, ¡°If I¡¯m closer to her, I will look after her. She¡¯s my big brother¡¯s friend, so she¡¯s also my friend.¡±


    Bai Lan was slightly relieved when they swore to protect Yan¡¯er. Even though they wouldn¡¯t be together, Bai Lan believed that Long Chen would not disappoint him.


    ¡°It¡¯s time to go. Bai Lan, take care!¡± said Long Chen.


    Bai Lan had truly earned Long Chen¡¯s respect, and he also saw him as a father figure.


    ¡°Take care. Prioritize your life above all else! Don¡¯t fight too hard!¡±


    Long Chen remembered something just before he left¡ªthe Divine Martial Empire. ¡°Bai Lan, I need your help.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s about the Divine Martial Empire. Even though it¡¯s weakening, there¡¯s still a leader there, and she¡¯s also my friend. I hope that you can take care of them when you return. Also, I will give the Martial God Tombstone to you. Pass it on to the Long Yue from the Divine Martial Empire for me. Please?¡±n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Bai Lan nodded. ¡°I will take care of them. Don¡¯t worry. With me here and the Martial God Tombstone, the Divine Martial Empire would soon revive again.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m d.¡±


    Bai Lan had obtained a lot of treasures from the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm. It was certain that the Demon n would grow stronger again.


    ¡°Long Chen.¡± Suxue was still holding Suyan when she called for him hesitantly.


    The two of them looked at each other with embarrassment.


    ¡°Please be safe, and I hope you seed. Please take care of my sister too.¡±


    Suxue naturally wished that Long Chen would meet up with Ling Xi again.


    ¡°I will.¡±


    Suxue cried, but she quickly wiped off her tears. ¡°Remember what I said. I will wait for you forever in the Demon n of the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.¡±


    She had once told him that he could return if he failed or if things didn¡¯t go his way.


    ¡°I will never get married, because I need to inherit my father¡¯s position.¡±


    Suxue¡¯s intention was very clear.


    But Long Chen knew that he could never cross the line with her. She was a good girl, and Long Chen couldn¡¯t disappoint the people around her. He nodded and said two final words to her. ¡°Take care.¡±


    ¡°Take care.¡±


    They had nothing else to say.


    Time passed quickly. The six demons had been surprisingly patient and sent everyone back. From today onwards, the Ancient Graveyard would not be activated anymore.


    Bai Lan and Suxue never stopped bidding goodbye to Long Chen, but ultimately, they were sent back too.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t sure if this was thest time he would meet them or not.


    They were the ones who had shaped Long Chen into what he was today.


    ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m scared.¡± Suyan started crying when Bai Lan was gone. She held onto Long Chen¡¯s arm firmly.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, don¡¯t be afraid.¡± Long Chen forced a smile while he consoled her.


    ¡°Yeah. Yan¡¯er, I¡¯m here too.¡± Mo Xiang sounded like he was very close to her for some reason.


    ¡°Thank you, Brother Xiang.¡± Suyan nodded obediently.


    The six demons were staring at them from above.


    ¡°I have a strange feeling about that young man. Something is making me very wary of him, as if I¡¯ve encountered a natural enemy,¡± Xuan Feng hissed.


    ¡°Idiot. Do you think he¡¯s some kind of weasel?¡± Hong Ying chuckled.


    ¡°We¡¯ve gained a lot today. Not only did we obtain the Five Emperors¡¯ Treasure, we¡¯ve found a Saintess with the Immortal body constitution, and also a demonic wolf that resembles the Sun Devouring Wolf.¡±


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯ve truly profited greatly. I won¡¯t being back here ever again.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. The treasure chest and the seal take precedence. We will be rich once we break it open!¡±


    ¡°Remember to take the three of them too. The more I look at them, the more I think that they are cute.¡±


    ¡°Hong Ying, you pervert. You are a tree demonic beast; stop trying to court someone from the wolf tribe,¡± Tian Kun said with a chuckle.


    It appeared that they were in a good mood.


    Under their control, Long Chen and the others flew quickly through the Ancient Graveyard. They were the only ones left here now.


    They soon arrived at Heavenly Water City and dove into an abnormally deepke in a dark corner. They kept diving downwards until everything was dark.


    ¡°There¡¯s a passage that leads to the True Martial Territory at the bottom of thiske. We can use it to reach the Three Royal Territory. Children, that ce is veryrge. You might¡¯ve beencent in your little well, so don¡¯t let your jaws drop when you arrive.¡± Hong Ying chuckled.


    They dove past theyers of mud until they broke through a barrier of light. They then found themselves in an underground chamber with an old, wooden door in the wall.


    Hong Ying opened the old door, and Long Chen saw nothing but a very long and dark narrow corridor behind it. It was simr to the corridor in the Five Emperors¡¯ Secret Realm, but this one had no end and was even longer.


    He took a deep breath and took his first step.


    ¡°Three Royal Territory, here Ie.¡±


    There was no chance of returning once he stepped into that ce.


    What kind of world awaited him there?

 Chapter 878: Underworld Estate

    Long Chen walked through the long, narrow corridor. Everything waspletely dark in front of him and he couldn¡¯t see the exit. It made him feel like he was talking through a time tunnel.


    The six demons walked at the front while Long Chen and the other two were at the back. Suyan was holding onto Long Chen¡¯s arm tightly and hiding behind him. She was afraid and lost, and she only felt safe when she was beside Long Chen.


    ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m afraid¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Yan¡¯er. We will soon leave this ce and find a solution,¡± Long Chen whispered to her. Then he looked at Mo Xiang.


    He refused to let the two of them get taken away like that. He was preparing to make an escape the moment they arrived in the Three Royal Territory. He would immediately put the two of them in the Primordial Realm and escape using Blood Warp.


    It was very risky, and he didn¡¯t know if it would work.


    ¡°We might not reach the end if we walk at this pace. Let¡¯s have three of us take the three younglings and run as fast as we can. We can exchange people if we get tired,¡± Hong Ying suddenly suggested after a while.


    Everyone agreed. Three of the demons came to the back. Each of them grabbed onto either Long Chen, Mo Xiang, or Suyan¡¯s arms and ran forward at full speed. Wind blew past them violently as they ran through the dark corridor.


    The demons¡¯ speed far exceeded Long Chen¡¯s expectations. He could not keep up!Long Chen realized that he had be blind at this speed.


    Everything was dark around him, and he could only hear the wind blowing past thim.


    It was a gruesome experience.


    Long Chen decided to cultivate while he was being carried, and he did so for a long time. He estimated that half a month had passed before he sensed that he was close to the exit.


    The six demons that were escorting them were panting.


    ¡°We are almost there. We don¡¯t have to carry them anymore. Let¡¯s just walk there and recover our strength along the way. It would be bad if we were spotted by the humans from the Underworld Estate here, especially by the soldiers. They are ridiculously hard to shake off.¡±


    Tian Kun was the one who had suggested that.


    ¡°The soldiers? You mean the Underworld Soldiers? I will kill any of them that dares to stop us.¡± Xuan Feng chuckled.


    ¡°Those are just the regr soldiers. None of us could win against the generals, especially the ones at the Divine Martial Realm,¡± Tian Kun said cautiously.


    Tian Kun was the calmest of the six demons.


    Long Chen noted down several key pieces of information. He decided to find the Underworld Estate and the Underworld Soldiers the moment he exited this ce. He also learned that the Underworld Soldiers were extremely strong.


    ¡°Big Brother.¡± Suyan had just separated from Hong Ying and quickly approached Long Chen¡¯s side. The girl looked at the demons in awe because she was shocked by their speed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry I¡¯m here.¡± Long Chen patted her head and calmed her down.


    ¡°Big Brother, we are almost outside now.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡±


    Long Chen had to take the gamble once they were outside.


    Even though Mo Xiang and Suyan would have better futures at the Deste Royal Territory, Long Chen didn¡¯t want to be separated from them. Who would want demons to govern their lives? Still, Mo Xiang would benefit greatly from going to the Deste Royal Territory. He would be given a lot of resources and would grow much stronger than Long Chen.


    Still, Long Chen decided to bring Mo Xiang and Suyan with him. If he failed, he would admit defeat. He only hoped that Xiang would be incredibly strong next time they met.


    Long Chen suddenly saw a small light at the end of the tunnel.


    ¡°We are finally here.¡± Hong Ying raised her arms to stretch, revealing her curves. The other demons looked at her with lust because she was the only woman demon here.


    It was time to test his newfound strength. Long Chen¡¯s heart was calm as he held onto Mo Xiang and Suyan with his hands. He was waiting for the moment he stepped into the Three Royal Territory to use Blood Warp.


    The light slowly grew brighter in the distance.


    ¡°Damn the Underworld Estate. This ce is like the underworld itself with the green skies. It¡¯s worse than the Deste Royal Territory.¡± Hong Yingined at the front.


    The closer they got to the light, the more Long Chen could see. The ce in front of him was where he dreamed of reaching. It was where he would fulfill his promise.


    Long Chen ignored everything Hong Ying said from the front.


    ¡°We are finally out!¡± Even though they were demons, they were still ufortable with being in a tunnel for so long. All of them felt refreshed after exiting.


    Long Chen was thest one out.


    ¡°Now!¡± The moment he stepped out, he hid Xiang and Suyan in the Primordial Realm.


    He then chose a direction and used Blood Warp immediately. He vanished into one of the directions in front of the demons. Blood Warp was indeed extremely fast and useful for him to escape.


    It was Long Chen¡¯s final hope.


    ¡°So he really was nning to run.¡± The six demons chuckled and ran after Long Chen with their own techniques. As Category Nine Divine-tier demonic beasts, they were only slightly slower than him!


    Unfortunately, Blood Warp onlysted ten Li.


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know that they had been eyeing him. If they weren¡¯t, they would¡¯ve been confused by the sudden disappearance of Long Chen and might not have caught up to him.


    Unfortunately¡­


    The six demons were extremely fast, especially Tian Kun. He moved like lightning and caught up to Long Chen. The ten Li limit was up, and Tian Kun blocked Long Chen¡¯s escape path.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°Trying to run? That won¡¯t be easy.¡± Tian Kunid down a purple lightning web that trapped Long Chen.


    Blood Warp had been intercepted, and it had only taken them an instant.


    Long Chen¡¯s n had failed.


    He knew that if his n failed, it would be up to fate to decide if he lived afterwards. He was still too weak to be the master of his own life right now.


    To prevent them from discovering the Primordial Realm, he took Mo Xiang and Suyan out of it. They were already standing beside him when the lightning web trapped them.


    The other demons caught up to them in the next instant.


    ¡°What a fool you are for trying to run away from a Lightning Soul Hounding Wolf.¡± Hong Ying tore off the lightning web and chuckled at Long Chen.


    ¡°Xiang, Suyan, I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t change our fates. We will meet again one day.¡± Long Chen sighed.


    He was very angry.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make it seem like we are going to kill them. We are just bringing them to a ce more suited for them to develop,¡± Tian Kun said in a cold voice as if he had seen through Long Chen¡¯s heart.


    ¡°He¡¯s right. Xiang, Yan¡¯er, there¡¯s no future for you if you follow me to the True Martial Territory. I have my own things to do, and it¡¯s much more riskier than you think. Go with them for now. At the very least, you will be safe. I wille find you once I¡¯ve be stronger.¡±


    Long Chen patted both of their shoulders.


    Mo Xiang sighed. ¡°Big Brother, I know how you are feeling. I swear that you will always be my sworn brother. We will go on our own adventure one day, where we shall live and die together. I will work hard so I won¡¯t fall behind you in terms of cultivation!¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± Long Chen patted XIang¡¯s chest.


    ¡°Big Brother ¡­¡± Suyan whimpered.


    ¡°Yan¡¯er, grow up and be stronger. I wille visit you one day.¡± Long Chen really didn¡¯t want to leave Suyan alone, but there was nothing he could do.


    ¡°Xiang, I leave Yan¡¯er to you.¡±


    The three of them looked at each other.


    Under the watchful gazes of the six demons, Long Chen red back and said, ¡°I know you want to kill me and be done with it, but you can¡¯t because of them. You don¡¯t want to sour your rtionship with them just because of me. But I will warn you to not underestimate me. If I find out that something happened to my brother or sister, I will destroy your tribes! Goodbye!¡±


    Long Chen decided to leave immediately because there was no reason for him to stay. He turned and left without another word.


    Staring at his back, Suyan cried in Mo Xiang¡¯s chest. Even Mo Xiang had tears streaming down his cheeks. This time, it was different than when Wu Guangyu separated them, because he didn¡¯t know if he would meet Long Chen again.


    But for some reason, Xiang believed that he would meet with his brother again. He was certain that Long Chen would be even stronger and shine even more brilliantly on the day they reunited.

 Chapter 879: Alpha

    The six demons looked at each other.


    ¡°Did we mishear that? He said he wants to destroy our tribes?¡± Hong Ying chuckled. Herughter echoed in the empty space.


    ¡°He''s the first person who has said that and walked away alive.¡± Zi Xueughed too.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t I kill him so he won¡¯t destroy our tribes right now?¡± Xuan Feng chuckled coldly.


    ¡°Enough. That person is weird. I think he will be able to do something here. Let¡¯s just head back and watch over him. This isn¡¯t our territory, so we need to head back soon.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Su Yan stared at the six demons and Long Chen¡¯s back before she said in a daze, ¡°Brother Xiang, will Big Brother reallye and take us back?¡±


    Mo Xiang nodded.


    ¡°Why? I thought the demons were strong?¡±¡°That¡¯s because Long Chen has never gone back on his word. He will crawl to the Deste Royal Territory if he has to.¡±


    Mo Xiangughed.


    Maybe Long Chen would grow a lot by being alone this time.


    ***


    Long Chen took a deep breath.


    While he looked calm, his heart was in pain. This was like the pain he felt when Ling Xi was taken away from him.


    ¡°Ling Xi was taken away, and now Xiang! I am too weak!¡±


    Long Chen clenched his fists tightly, and power concentrated in them.


    ¡°I must work ten times harder to be stronger and kill whoever gets in my way! How can others be wary of me if I don¡¯t turn into a demon?¡±


    Long Chen shouted and punched a tree in front of him. The tree wasrge and roughly half a meter in diameter. The bark waspletely ck and its leaves were inky green. It looked solemn and eerie.


    He punched it as hard as he could, but the tree did not fall! It just shook violently while leaves floated down.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Long Chen had put a lot of strength in his punch out of frustration, guilt, and me.


    He wanted to cast his frustrations away with that punch before he focused on his cultivation.


    His punch, which should have destroyed trees several timesrger than this one, waspletely useless against this tree! He had only left a mark in the bark.


    ¡°Why are regr trees so hard here?¡±


    Long Chen was stumped before he remembered that he was in the Three Royal Territories. This was the True Martial Territory!


    He temporarily ced his worries in the back of his mind.


    Long Chen looked up and around him. He saw that he was in a dark forest, and everything looked eerie to him. Inky ck trees surrounded him and the roots tangled in the ground. A denseyer of leaves covered the ground. Several shrubs were lying around, revealing the equally ck soil underneath them.


    Even the sky was dark and inky green. The clouds, which were the same color, were very low in the sky, as if they could fall at any time.


    ¡°Is this the True Martial Territory and also where the Underworld Estate is? How big is this ce?¡±


    Long Chen was lost.


    He snapped out of his grief for losing Xiang and focused on his goals.


    He needed to find Ling Xi.


    He punched again and found that the tree was still fine. He had to use all of his strength to break a tree around half a meter in diameter.


    This was ridiculous!


    Not only was the tree hard, the soil was equally hard too! Long Chen could easily tunnel underground in the Metal District, but he couldn¡¯t do anything here! The ground was too tough.


    ¡°Is this how the Three Royal Territories are? To think that evenmon objects far exceed what we can find in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. Even the strongest person in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory can barely break a tree. No wonder the people and demons of this ce look down on us.¡±


    Long Chen felt so powerless in this environment where everything was tough beyond his wildest dreams.


    ¡°Brat, don¡¯t be sad. He might be gone, but I¡¯m still here with you!¡±


    Little Cat came out of the Primordial Realm and took a deep breath. ¡°Aaah. The air of the Three Royal Territories is dense with nature¡¯s spiritual energy. The spiritual energy here is called overlord spiritual energy. It¡¯s a thousand times denser than the energy in the Ancient Graveyard. The Three Royal Territories are indeed a higher world. The energy is very dense even in the fringes of it.¡±


    ¡°Overlord spiritual energy?¡± Long Chen sensed that there was indeed a thick air of spiritual energy around him. He only took a single breath and felt much better. He could recover all of the essence that he had used for Blood Warp in just a single day.


    It would¡¯ve taken him tens of days and even several other items like spiritual herbs or Royal Crystals to recover back in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    ¡°It¡¯s exactly because of it that everything in the Three Royal Territories is this hardy. The rivers, sand, and leaves are all much harder here. You will feel like you¡¯ve returned back to Baiyang Town. So¡­ are you giving up?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Long Chen looked at the challenging world around him and said, ¡°This is where I belong. The Ten Thousand Nations Territory was just a ce for me to solidify my basics. This is where I get to grow stronger.¡±


    Little Cat paused in awe when he saw Long Chen¡¯s confidence. He smiled after some time. ¡°Not bad for someone with the Ancestral Dragon¡¯s Inherited Blood Essence.¡±


    ¡°Stop trying to butter me up.¡±


    Little Cat hopped onto Long Chen¡¯s shoulder and saidzily, ¡°Bullshit. I¡¯m not trying to butter you up, but there is one thing that I must tell you.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Because the overlord spiritual energy is very dense here, especially up in the sky, it suppresses everyone. Those below the Divine Martial Realm cannot fly here. With your strength, I think you can only hover around ten meters above the ground. You can jump, but I doubt that you can fly.¡±


    ¡°Is that so ¡­¡± The Three Royal Territories were indeed a challenging world where even flying had been restricted. This was truly a ce for the strong.


    To Long Chen, there was no difference between fighting on the ground or in the air. He didn¡¯t really care about it.


    ¡°What the? Why aren¡¯t you feeling dejected?¡±


    He thought Long Chen would be down.


    ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate me.¡± Long Chen prepared himself and walked around in the dark forest. There was not a single sound to be heard, not even the chirps of the insects and bees.


    ¡°Wait, where are you going?¡± Little Cat followed Long Chen as he stumbled in the Dream Demon¡¯s body.


    Long Chen thought for a moment. ¡°I don¡¯t know where I am. I need to ask someone the way to reach the Swordsoul Pce.¡±


    Since he didn¡¯t know where he was, Long Chen just chose a random direction.


    He continued to make his way forward, watching his surroundings. As Little Cat had told him, everything here was harder than he had thought. Even the soil was harder than the metallic soil of the Metal District. Long Chen thought that merely tripping and falling would result in an injury.


    He started to be more and more excited as he walked.


    ¡°I have to live in a challenging world like this and be an alpha!¡±N?v(el)B\\jnn


    No matter how dangerous it was, no matter how much he had to struggle, Long Chen would forever trudge forward. He had to reach the peak!


    ¡°I need to find Ling Xi first to let her know I¡¯m fulfilling my promise.¡±


    He became excited when he thought that he was close to Ling Xi!


    He walked for three days and nights as he studied the items he was given by the Five Emperors. The Five Emperor Palm was easy to use to begin with, so he decided to focus on the other things, the Emperor¡¯s Manual and the Emperor Vanquishers.


    The Emperor Vanquishers were stronger than the Three Thousand Star Clusters. He tried using the Yin and Yang Sword Root to form a link with them, but he saw nothing but a ck world inside of them. Long Chen¡¯s Yin and Yang Sword Root almost disappeared for good inside the empty space.


    He needed time to slowly cultivate them.


    ¡°It took me several months to reach the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage from the Eighth Stage. Someone at the Heavenly Martial Realm can live for a very long time. Will it take me several months or even a year to reach the Third Heavenly Martial Stage?¡±


    It took a lot of effort to enter the next stage. Long Chen had only improved as quickly as he had because of the Martial God Tombstone guiding him through the Earthly Martial Realm. Now he was alone here in the True Martial Territory, so progressing through the Heavenly Martial Realm was destined to be slow.


    Reaching the next stage within just a year was not something a regr genius could do.


    But Long Chen stillined that it was too slow.

 Chapter 880: Barbaric Bear Tribe

    <em>The Heavenly Martial Fist Manual is very difficult, so I will need to spend a lot of time on it. Cultivation is very hard right now. I had Blood Transmutation and the Martial God Tombstone in the past, but now I can¡¯t use them. I can only y it nice and push forward slowly.</em>


    Long Chen was still one of the fastest cultivators in the world, but it would still be difficult for him to reach the next stage.


    Also, while other people could take hundreds of years to cultivate, Long Chen had no time to do so because Ling Xi was waiting for him.


    <em>I cannot be too rash now. I¡¯m still faster than the others, so I can take it easy a bit.</em>


    Long Chen adjusted himself and continued walking. He had a feeling that he would reach some kind of settlement soon.


    He could then ask them about everything in this world.


    It took him two hours before he spotted people using Sight. They were approaching him, so Long Chen stopped and waited for them.


    ¡°They are here.¡±


    He was surrounded immediately. That was when Long Chen noticed something different about them. The youths were staring at him with excited eyes, as if they were wolves.¡°Hm?¡± While they were looking at Long Chen, Long Chen was also studying them.


    They were tall and muscr with tan skin. They looked young, but their bodies were abnormally buff, like those of beasts. It was clear that they were very powerful too. Based on their gazes, Long Chen determined that they had probably killed their fair share of people.


    These were the people from the Three Royal Territory.


    One of the better-looking men was the leader of the group. The others from his group asked him, ¡°Xiong Jun, should we kill him?¡±


    The others looked happy as they stared at Long Chen with greedy eyes.


    They had just met, so Long Chen was certain if they were bandits. Still, they were nning on killing him! It was clear that the Royal Territories was a violent ce.


    The Three Royal Territories was home to a lot of experts that fought each other violently. It was only when others died that the remainder could live better.


    Xiong Jun approached and said to Long Chen, ¡°You¡¯re only at the Heavenly Martial Realm and yet you dare to walk alone here. You can die now. Everyone, cut him up and take his treasures and Emperor Crystals.¡±


    The youths pounced as soon as he said that. Strange, gray runes appeared on their skin and muscles, a clear indication of a type of Body Tempering technique.


    <em>They are only youngsters, but they are all at the Heavenly Martial Realm already. Their leader is at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage!</em>


    Long Chen was shocked!


    He never thought the Royal Territories would be this crazy. To think that the regr youths were already at the Heavenly Martial Realm here! They could destroy everyone in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory! ?


    This was scary.


    ¡°Thanks to the dense overlord spiritual energy, their bodies are pretty muchpleted the moment they are born. They form the eighteen Martial Veins and nine Martial Meridians as babies. Most people reach the Heavenly Martial Realm at this age. Since the people in the Three Royal Territory live for two hundred years on average, the youths in front of us are most likely in their forties. Still, in terms of their culture, they are barely adults,¡± Little Cat exined casually.


    ¡°Forty years old and still underage? Ridiculous.¡±


    They had Long Chen surrounded, and they charged towards him.


    Long Chen looked the same as them, but he was only half their age. He wasn¡¯t calling them old, but it was true that the youths were still underage in the eyes of those in the Three Royal Territories.


    There was a reason why they called those from the Ten Thousand Nations Territory lower beings.


    ¡°Stop!¡± a woman suddenly shouted.


    The youths stopped and turned to see who it was. In the end, they stopped the attack but still surrounded Long Chen.


    The girl walked out of the forest. She appeared to be with them and looked roughly the same age as Long Chen. She was almost as tall as him too, and her wheat-colored skin was surprisingly supple.


    She was a beauty, but for some reason, she also exuded the same wildness as the other youths. She was like a jaguar that could pounce at any time.


    ¡°Jun¡¯er, why are you killing people for no reason?¡± Her movements were swift, but her voice was light.


    ¡°Big Sister, stop meddling with us. He¡¯s the stupid one. He¡¯s only at the Heavenly Martial Stage and yet he¡¯s walking around alone. Isn¡¯t he asking to die? Rather than dying in the hands of others, I would rather have him die in mine. At least his stuff won¡¯t go to waste.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say such nonsense, and don¡¯t kill the innocent! Bullying the meek while fearing the strong is not what a man should do. You will never be the hero of the Barbaric Bear Tribe like this.¡±


    She told the others to step back before she apologized to Long Chen.


    ¡°Sorry about my brother. He¡¯s too rash and he might¡¯ve startled you, brother. I¡¯m Xiong Wan¡¯er.¡±


    Long Chen was sweating. She was visibly older than him, yet she referred to him as if he was older.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Long Chen had a lot of questions, and he thought that Xiong Wan¡¯er was someone he could talk to. ¡°I¡¯m Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°Nobody wants to know your name. Are you trying to court my sister? I will smash you into minced meat.¡± Xiong Jun raised his meaty fist and red at Long Chen.


    ¡°Silence,¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er said. ¡°My brother has been rash ever since he was young, so I¡¯m sorry. Brother Long Chen, you are indeed a brave one. You are only at the First Heavenly Martial Stage and yet you dare to walk around here alone. Are you from Scarlet Water City? Judging from your clothes, it looks like you came from there. It¡¯s dangerous to be alone. Why don¡¯t you follow us so we can take you back?¡±N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Even though Long Chen didn¡¯t know where it was, he was certain that there would be more information in a city, including the way to the Swordsoul Pce. Long Chen was about to agree when Xiong Jun frowned.


    ¡°Sister, you are too careless. How could you ask a stranger to join us? Even if he doesn¡¯t want to harm us, he will get in the way if we encounter an enemy! I won¡¯t do it!¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t do it either!¡±


    ¡°Me neither!¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er was at a loss at what to do.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright, I can go back on my own. Goodbye.¡± Long Chen didn¡¯t want to cause trouble for Xiong Wan¡¯er, so he chose a random direction and walked off.


    ¡°What a strange guy,¡± mumbled Xiong Wan¡¯er.


    ¡°Hmph! He¡¯s just looking to die. Sister, ignore him for now. We need to go to Scarlet Water City as soon as possible. If the Underworld Soldier leaves before I get there, I will lose my only chance,¡± Xiong Jun said.


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    They tidied themselves up and then headed towards Scarlet Water City. When they were gone, Long Chen appeared from the darkness. He chuckled as he tailed them. ¡°I can reach Scarlet Water City by following them.¡±


    With Sight, he could follow their trail without any worries of being discovered.


    The weakest in the group was at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. As long as Long Chen maintained his distance, he would be able to follow them without much issue.


    ¡°To think that those youths are all at the Heavenly Martial Realm. The Three Royal Territories is truly a fearsome ce ¡­¡±


    He was very surprised by the youths.


    But he also knew that thews of the Three Royal Territories were much harsherpared to the Ancient Graveyard.


    After following them for a while, he had a feeling that he was slowly leaving the jungle.


    Several hourster, Long Chen stopped and smiled helplessly. There was a group of people blocking the Barbaric Bear Tribe.


    The two groups fought madly.


    The other group appeared to be slightly stronger than the Barbaric Bear Tribe. If things went on like this, everyone would die and Long Chen won¡¯t be able to reach Scarlet Water City.


    Also, Xiong Wan¡¯er was a good person, so Long Chen didn¡¯t want her to die. Therefore, he ran towards the fight. It was a brutal scene. The fight had barely started, but two youths were already dead with their organs crushed internally.


    Blood sprayed everywhere.


    ¡°Sister, run!¡±


    Xiong Jun roared indignantly at his sister.


    ¡°I wille and rescue you!¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er shouted.


    ¡°What a nice youngdy. Serve us well and we will let your brother go. How does that sound?¡±


    ¡°Be obedient. The more obedient you are, the fewer people we will kill.¡±


    Sinisterughter reached Long Chen¡¯s ears.

 Chapter 881: Amateur

    There were seven men in ck in the other group. They looked much older. Long Chen estimated that they were in their thirties, which meant that their true age was somewhere in the hundreds. At their current age, they were seen as young adults in the Three Royal Territories.


    They were not people who the Barbaric Bear Tribe could deal with right now. Each of them was at the Third and Fourth Stages of the Heavenly Martial Realm; they were also exuding dense killing intent and bloodlust, meaning that they had murdered even more people than the average cultivator. The youths could never win against them.


    Even though they were fewer in number, their cultivation levels were higher and their techniques were stronger. They showed no mercy when they killed, and they took their victims¡¯ storage rings with ease.


    Three youths had died by the time Long Chen arrived. The ones who were dead were at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. To think that people who could¡¯ve ruled the Ten Thousand Nations Territory would die just like that.


    Even though the youths and the men in ck were roughly the same strength, the gap in battle experience was vast. That was why the youths had died.


    Jun Xiong was very brave, because he was fighting an opponent at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage and was even pushing the man back! Every time Jun Xiong punched, his fist unleashed a profound destructive power. It looked simple, but it was powerful. Long Chen was certain that someone at the Long-Bearded Guest¡¯s level would die with just one hit.


    Everyone except for Jun Xiong was losing their battle, including the girl called Xiong Wan¡¯er.


    She was at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, but two men at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage were suppressing her. Theypletely overpowered her and started tearing off her clothes without mercy.


    ¡°Littledy, stop moving or I will kill you!¡±The men pushed her down and smiled deviously.


    ¡°Sister!¡± Xiong Jun''s eyes were red from anger. He tried to break away from his fight to save his sister, but this only gave his enemy a chance to attack him!


    ¡°Ground Splitting Seal!¡±


    Arge seal appeared in the man¡¯s palm as he ran towards Xiong Jun¡¯s back. The golden seal in his palm radiated a lot of power.


    ¡°Xiong Jun, behind you!¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er cried.


    Xiong Jun was almost hit by the man when Long Chen stepped in. He broke off a branch and threw it towards the man¡¯s face. The branch turned into a ck streak and reached the man instantly!


    The branch would never be able to block the man¡¯s intermediate Emperor-tier martial technique, but Long Chen¡¯s goal was to scare him. As expected, the man was shocked by the branch and jumped backwards.


    <em>Crack! </em>


    The branch stabbed into a tree, causing it to shake violently. Long Chen had thrown it with a lot of force.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡±


    They were almost done killing the youths when someone stopped them. The men weren¡¯t afraid, because they were used to killing. They stopped and charged towards Long Chen instead.


    Using this chance, everyone except for Xiong Wan¡¯er, who was still being held down, gathered together. They were now injured and weren''t looking as great as before.


    They were confused too. Who had just saved them?


    They saw a calm man walking out of the woods. He was tall and strong. It was none other than Long Chen!


    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± Both Xiong Jun and Xiong Wan¡¯er were shocked, but soon, their surprise turned into sadness. They thought their elders were here to save them; they never thought it would be Long Chen.


    It seemed they would all die here today.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± Xiong Jun red at Long Chen.


    The others were speechless too. They had just bullied Long Chen and didn¡¯t want him to see how disheveled they were.


    After seeing their reactions and examining Long Chen¡¯s aura, the menughed. ¡°So it¡¯s just another amateur. You are indeed fearless for interrupting our hunt! You even scared our brother! We will torture and kill you for that!¡±


    ¡°Just do it. I can¡¯t believe that you would get surprised by a chick. What a joke.¡±


    ¡°We will deal with the rest of them. You two can take your time, but don¡¯t break her. We want to have our fun with her too. She¡¯s too pretty to die right now; we have to keep her alive for a few days at least.¡±


    The two men that were pinning Xiong Wan¡¯er assured the rest that everything was fine. ¡°Don¡¯t worry and go crazy. Stop wasting time now. I can¡¯t hold back anymore when I see her face like this.¡±


    ¡°Ha! You might be strong, but you will certainly lose to her in bed.¡±


    ¡°Hahaha!¡±


    The menughed and ignored Long Chen while Jun Xiong red at them angrily.


    ¡°Leader, what should we do?¡±


    ¡°What else? Fight to the death!¡± Jun Xiong howled and was about to attack when someone stopped them.


    ¡°Go back.¡± Long Chen had his back to them as he took out the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    ¡°What?¡± Xiong Jun thought he had misheard him. He grew angry at Long Chen and snapped back, ¡°You better scram! I will skin you if something happens to my sister! I¡¯ve actually skinned someone before!¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    With a <em>whoosh</em>, the tip of the Three Thousand Star Cluster was positioned just in front of Xiong Jun¡¯s nose. One more centimeter and it would¡¯ve stabbed into his nose.


    ¡°So fast ¡­¡± Everyone was shocked because they couldn¡¯t see Long Chen¡¯s movement at all. Wasn¡¯t he only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage?


    ¡°How did he do that?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t see it.¡±


    Xiong Jun was the most surprised. He hadn¡¯t even seen the spear move before it was right in front of his nose.


    Long Chen could stab him at any time.


    Long Chen wasn¡¯t the most patient person. Xiong Jun was boastful and arrogant, the type that wouldn¡¯t learn until he was given a warning.


    ¡°One more peep from you and I will stab your eye. Don¡¯t doubt me¡ªI actually did that before.¡±N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Bloodlust seeped out of Long Chen. It was the dense kind of bloodlust that only someone who had killed a lot of people could emanate. His bloodlust was stronger than that of everyone here. Xiong Jun thought he wasn¡¯t looking at a man, but a massive beast.


    So he stepped back silently.


    ¡°Boss, what¡¯s wrong?¡± the others asked.


    ¡°He dares to point his spear towards us! We must kill him!¡±


    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t move and don¡¯t talk. Let him die. It doesn¡¯t concern us,¡± Xiong Jun told them.


    He didn¡¯t know why, but he wanted to see Long Chen in action. He knew that Long Chen was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. Could he really defeat all of the men?


    The men wereughing at what Long Chen was doing. The two men who had been pinning down Xiong Wan¡¯er couldn¡¯t resist and tried to help themselves, but Xiong Wan¡¯er wasn¡¯t going to take it like that. She resisted wildly and used her essence to stop them.


    She was also staring at Long Chen.


    ¡°It¡¯s him again? Is he an Armament Warrior? His spear looks strong ¡­¡±


    She was worried because Long Chen was weak; he was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. How could he win against these men?


    ¡°Long Chen, run away! This doesn¡¯t concern you at all!¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er shouted amidst her sobbing.


    ¡°Stop talking and kill him now,¡± one of the men said. The others followed his order. They sent one of them to fight Long Chen while the others attacked the rest of the Barbaric Bear Tribe.


    <em>There are so many experts here even though I¡¯ve just reached this ce. It might be a bad idea to go into this without picking my fights carefully. I need to find more support here.</em>


    Long Chen was silent.


    He only transformed into his dragon form. The blood-red scales covered his body in an instant.


    ¡°Is that a Beast Warrior? Interesting. A Beast Warrior and a Sword Warrior at the same time. But unfortunately, you are only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage, so I can just kill you with my domain.¡±


    The person facing Long Chen was at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage!


    He unleashed his domain and covered Long Chen with it. Long Chen also had a domain, but since he was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage, it was useless against a Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage opponent.

 Chapter 882: Nine Spinning Star Cluster

    It was indeed difficult to face off against a Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage foe, especially since the domain was difficult to resist. But Long Chen wanted to test the strength of the Yin and Yang Sword Root, so he channeled the Yin and Yang energy into the Three Thousand Star Clusters.


    While he was ignored by pretty much everyone, he suddenly released a blinding light. Even the men who were supposed to attack the rest of the Barbaric Bear Tribe decided to surround him instead.


    ¡°Hey, why does this Sword Warrior look strong?¡±


    Their focus turned to Long Chen.


    ¡°Who cares? I will just test how strong he is!¡± The man who had used his domainughed, then ck mist wrapped around his body,


    The man fashioned the ck mist into something sharp before shooting it towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡±


    The red space covered everyone. Long Chen had trapped five of the men inside of his Blood Devouring Domain!


    Long Chen didn¡¯t underestimate them, because he knew how strong they were. He used his Dragon Soul Transformation and the power of the Yin and Yang Sword Root. His body exploded in power as he roared. His Blood Devouring Domain and regr domain expanded outwards at the same time to destroy the other party¡¯s domain.¡°What is this?¡±


    All five men shouted in fear.


    ¡°He¡¯s too mysterious! He¡¯s actually affecting our blood! Kill him quick!¡±


    The men were experienced and immediately worked together to kill him. Killing their opponents had always been the most reliable way to survive a fight.


    ¡°River de!¡±


    ¡°Heavy Dragon Elephant Fist!¡±


    ¡°Sky Shaking Seal!¡±


    ¡°Earth Splitting Seal!¡±


    Various attacks wereunched towards Long Chen.


    Back in the Ancient Graveyard, the Seven Lords had left a lot of treasures. That was how many of the cultivators obtained their advanced Emperor-tier martial techniques. But advanced Emperor-tier martial techniques weren¡¯tmon. If the demons were interested in them, they would¡¯ve long taken them away.


    That was why the experts in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory all had advanced Emperor-tier martial technique even though they were only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage at most. The people in the Three Royal Territories mostly had elementary Emperor-tier martial techniques even though they were at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage. At most, they would have an intermediate Emperor-tier martial technique as their ultimate move.


    But Long Chen had two advanced Emperor-tier martial techniques. One was the fusion of the Five Emperor Seals, and the other was the Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual.


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were serious as he swung the Three Thousand Star Clusters around him. The Blood Devouring Domain had not only drained the attackers¡¯ strength, but also clouded their vision.


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual, Nine Spinning Star Clusters!¡±


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manualplemented Long Chen¡¯s domain and was performed perfectly. Now that Long Chen was at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage, he could use the Three Thousand Star Clusters more easily. A radiant starlight transformed into a sharp edge that swung around Long Chen like a whirlpool before it flew towards the men!


    The Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual was one of the strongest advanced Emperor-tier martial techniques!


    When he used it, the numerous spears pierced through the men¡¯s techniques. Long Chen had roughly the same amount of essence as they did. Thanks to the Blood Devouring Domain¡¯s suppressive effect and the Yin and Yang Sword Root¡¯s incredible power, along with the advanced Emperor-tier martial technique and Divine Weapon, Long Chen was capable of suppressing all five of them at the same time! ?


    ¡°Ah!¡±


    The men cried in pain when Long Chen thrust the spear. The starlight pierced through three men at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage and killed them instantly. To think that Long Chen was capable of killing someone at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage so easily!


    The other two were at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage, but they were severely injured. Long Chen smacked and tossed them towards where Xiong Jun was. The two men coughed up blood as they flew through the air.


    ¡°Tie them up and hold them tight.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s voice was cold.


    Xiong Jun and the others were shocked. It wasn¡¯t until the two injured mennded in front of them that they tied them down. Xiong Jun¡¯s broad palm grabbed an injured man¡¯s neck. When he exerted a little force, the man¡¯s neck started bleeding and he coughed up blood. The man¡¯s face was pale as he stared at Long Chen. It was as if thetter was a demon.


    To think that someone at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage could kill them so easily and so fast. They would¡¯ve all been dead if Long Chen hadn¡¯t shown them mercy.


    ¡°How¡­ How is he that strong?¡±


    Xiong Jun and the others felt their scalps go numb when they looked at Long Chen and the ice-cold spear. Long Chen looked weak, but he was terrifying when he was serious! Xiong Jun had a feeling that the amount of people he had killed would not even amount to a tenth of Long Chen¡¯s body count.


    Long Chen¡¯s bloodlust was definitely something he had umted by killing a lot of people.


    ¡°Come here!¡±


    Xiong Jun and the others brought their hostages to Long Chen after hearing hismand. They knew that Long Chen was going to exchange hostages for Xiong Wan¡¯er. Xiong Jun changed the way he viewed Long Chen. Rather than underestimating him, he was now very grateful.


    ¡°Big Brother, I¡¯m sorry for offending you just now. I will kneel down if you save my sister.¡±


    Xiong Jun wasn¡¯t that bad after all. At the very least he was honest.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Long Chen ignored him and instead looked at the two remaining men. ¡°I won¡¯t say much. Give her back to me in one piece and I won¡¯t kill you. I can rescue her if I use my full strength, but I can¡¯t guarantee your lives if I do.¡±


    His cold voice, icy stare, and bloodlust were very oppressive. The men holding onto Xiong Wan¡¯er were scared even though they regrly killed people for fun.


    The hands holding onto Xiong Wan¡¯er loosened a little.


    Xiong Wan¡¯er was at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, so she wasn¡¯t weak at all. While the two men were stunned, she gathered her essence and punched backwards. She used the impact to run towards Long Chen.


    Long Chen was very satisfied with her reaction. He ran to her to secure her safety.


    Without a hostage, the two men looked at each other and said, ¡°We¡¯ve returned the girl. Please keep your word and return our brothers to us.¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. He let Xiong Wan¡¯er get behind him and then swung the Three Thousand Star Clusters. ¡°Unfortunately, she came back on her own ord!¡±


    Long Chen charged towards the two men. He had already defeated five of them, so the remaining two were a piece of cake. Xiong Jun and the others watched in awe as Long Chen stabbed their limbs and crippled thempletely. The fight ended swiftly.


    The two men red at Long Chen and cursed, ¡°You brat! How dare you go back on your word! You said you wouldn¡¯t kill us! How dare you go back on your word as a warrior!¡±


    Long Chen put the Three Thousand Star Clusters away and undid his transformation. He then smiled at them inly. ¡°First, I¡¯m not a warrior. Second, I won¡¯t kill you. But that doesn¡¯t mean the others will let you live. Xiong Jun, attack!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s brutality and slyness had won Xiong Jun overpletely. Heughed and snapped the hostages¡¯ necks before he ran towards the two men on the ground.


    ¡°You brat! You must die!¡± the two men shouted in despair.


    ¡°You have to pay the price one way or another. You should¡¯ve prepared for a day like this. If I wasn¡¯t here, they would¡¯ve been the ones to die instead. Unfortunately, you won¡¯t see me die.¡±


    Right after Long Chen said that, Xiong Jun snapped their necks too. All seven of them had died by Long Chen¡¯s hand just like that.


    The Barbaric Bear Tribe looked at Long Chen with awe and respect.


    They followed Xiong Jun and Xiong Wan¡¯er to kneel down in front of Long Chen, saying, ¡°Thank you for saving our lives!¡±


    Xiong Jun said, ¡°It was wrong of me to offend youst time, but you did not take it to heart and even rescued us! I wish to be your servant and work for you!¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. ¡°There¡¯s no need to be my servant. I just want to ask if I¡¯m qualified to join your journey to Scarlet Water City?¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er chuckled. ¡°Of course. It¡¯s our honor to have you protecting us, Big Brother Long Chen.¡±


    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s go. The stench of blood is very heavy here. We need to leave now if we don¡¯t want to die!¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡± With Long Chen guarding them, they were all smiling happily. Long Chen¡¯s performance had won them over.


    Long Chen smiled bitterly when they called him ¡°big brother.¡± He was definitely younger than them, but they all thought he was older.


    It was normal for someone to look like Long Chen in their twenties. Unfortunately, everyone grew up slower here in the Three Royal Territories.

 Chapter 883: Eastern Royal District

    Long Chen could finally ask them the questions he had when he officially joined them. Because Xiong Wan¡¯er was older and more mature, she knew more about the world. She was also reliable, so Long Chen chose to stay by her side to talk to her.


    The others started teasing her when they saw Long Chen giving her preferential treatment. Xiong Wan¡¯er blushed and didn''t know what to do.


    But Long Chen was used to it. They were only staying together for a little while, so he didn¡¯t mind. He said to Xiong Wan¡¯er, ¡°I¡¯m not from Scarlet Water City. I want to go there, but I don¡¯t know the way. I can¡¯t tell you where I¡¯m from. Wan¡¯er, can you tell me about this ce?¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er was surprised because she was right! Long Chen was indeed mysterious. She was curious about his origin, but she exined everything as best as she could. ¡°It seems that you can control and hide your presence very well. Are you not from the Eastern Royal District?¡±


    ¡°Eastern Royal District?¡± Another new name. Long Chen smiled bitterly and shook his head. ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Not even from the Eastern Royal District?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er was surprised. ¡°If you are not from there, then it''s a miracle you could get here. It seems that you¡¯ve traveled through a lot of ces.¡±


    Long Chenughed dryly and chose to admit it.


    Xiong Wan¡¯er exined, ¡°There are four districts in the True Martial Territory. The Eastern Royal District is where we are at. It¡¯s extremelyrge, taking up roughly a fifth of the True Martial Territory. There are one hundred and eight estates, ten thousand main cities, a million medium-sized cities, and a hundred million small cities. We are now in the range of one of the estates called the Underworld Estate. We from the Barbaric Bear Tribe live along the edges of Scarlet Water City, which is one of the hundred million small cities. We are now in the forest between Scarlet Water City and the Barbaric Bear Tribe. Do you understand?¡±


    Long Chen understood, and he was thoroughly frightened by the numbers.Now he knew that the True Martial Territory was divided into five areas, with the central area being the most likely location of the True Martial Overlord Pce. There were also four districts corresponding with each cardinal direction. The Eastern Royal District had one hundred and eight estates. Long Chen was currently in the territory of the Underworld Estate. He made a rough calction and estimated that the Underworld Estate was in charge of a hundred main cities, with each main city governing a hundred medium cities, and each medium city governing a hundred small cities.


    Was the True Martial Territory this massive?


    ¡°So right now we are in the True Martial Territory, Eastern Royal District, Underworld Estate, Underworld City, Scarlet Sun Medium City, and Scarlet Water City. Big Brother Long Chen, am I being clear enough?¡±


    But she was surprised to find Long Chen deep in thought.


    ¡°Big Brother Long Chen, what¡¯s going on?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er was worried.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nothing.¡± Long Chen smiled.


    He was actually secretly scolding the six demons from before. They had never told him how far away the Swordsoul Territory was. Long Chen asked gingerly, ¡°Wan¡¯er, do you know where the Swordsoul Territory is? Which direction is it in?¡±


    ording to her, there were four Royal Districts, one in each cardinal direction. He had a feeling that he was at the easternmost part of the Eastern Royal District.


    ¡°I know. It¡¯s to the west.¡±


    ¡°West ¡­?¡±


    Long Chen took a deep breath. He was all the way to the east, but his destination was all the way to the west. It would take tens of years for Long Chen to get there!


    He made a rough calction based on the size of Scarlet Water City. If the Underworld Estate controlled a hundred million of such cities, it would take Long Chen a lot of time to pass through all of them ¡­


    ¡°Big Brother, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er noticed that something was wrong with Long Chen.


    He calmed down and asked, ¡°Wan¡¯er, how can I reach the Swordsoul Territory as soon as possible?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± For someone born here, it was almost impossible for them to travel to the Swordsoul Territory from where they had lived their whole lives. That was why she was shocked.


    It took some time before she thought of an answer. ¡°The space here is very stable, so it¡¯s very difficult to make a Universal Teleporter. But I heard that they have one in the Underworld Estate. It¡¯s connected to the other estates and even the center of the Eastern Royal District. But there¡¯s no Universal Teleporter that connects to the other territories even in the True Martial Overlord Pce. To reach the Swordsoul Territory, you must pass through the Fragmented Starfield. A lot of natural disasters ur there though, so I doubt you can pass through it unless you¡¯re at the Divine Martial Realm.¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er¡¯s exnation was like a hammer that deterred Long Chen. Her final words dealt a massive blow to him.


    ¡°The Universal Teleporter is inside the Underworld Estate. To use it, you must first get the approval of the master and prepare something like Emperor Crystals to activate it. Big Brother Long Chen, I hope I¡¯m not being rude, but I fear that it will be impossible for you to use it now. You¡¯re not even qualified to talk to the master if you¡¯re not at the Divine Martial Realm.¡±


    Long Chen sighed after a very long time. He needed time to sort out his thoughts.


    ¡°Oh ho, are you quitting now? You should just go back to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, then. There are many beautifuldies waiting for you there. That said, Wu Lian was really sexy. Her body was second to none. To think that I had the chance to watch it live for several hours. What an amazing time it was!¡±


    Little Cat took the chance to tease Long Chen.


    ¡°I know it won¡¯t be easy to meet Ling Xi, but at least I have a goal. This is good. Now I just need to reach the Divine Martial Realm! And then I must go to the Underworld City! It should be the center of the Underworld Estate.¡±


    Outlining each step was an important part of the process of reaching a goal.


    Long Chen was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. It would be a long journey to reach the Divine Martial Realm. Even with his talent and potential, it would still take him five to six years! Although that was considered ridiculously fast, it was too slow for Long Chen!


    Long Chen had learned what he needed. He was initially shocked by the numbers, but then he got excited because of the challenge. This was the life he wanted.


    But would he be able to meet Ling Xi sooner than that?


    That might not be the case.


    But for some reason, Long Chen had a feeling that he would meet her soon enough. It was just a gut feeling.


    <em>Xiao Xi, are you near me?</em>


    Long Chen looked around but saw nothing.


    ¡°Big Brother, do you want to go to the Swordsoul Territory?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er looked at him curiously.


    ¡°I was just asking out of curiosity. As you know, I¡¯m a Sword Warrior. I¡¯ve heard that the Swordsoul Territory is where Sword Warriors are from. I just want to go there and see the ce.¡±


    Long Chen came up with a random excuse.


    ¡°Is that so ¡­¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er nodded.


    ¡°Oh, then why are you heading to Scarlet Water City?¡±


    Long Chen recalled that they were heading there because of the Underworld Soldiers.


    ¡°Us?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er looked at her brother, who had been sneaking nces at them, before exining, ¡°My brother¡¯s dream is to join the Underworld Soldiers. The Underworld Soldiers are the personification of rank and status. If he became one, our tribe would naturally get better resources. Even the mayor of Scarlet Water City would have to treat my brother with respect. Of course, this is just his dream.


    ¡°The test to join the Underworld Soldiers is strict. They must first inspect your family. More importantly, the applicants must be at least at the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage. My brother doesn¡¯t even meet the basic requirements ¡­¡±


    ¡°At least at the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage? And it¡¯s just an army?¡± Long Chena asked tentatively because it sounded horrifying to have an army full of soldiers at the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°Yes. Bing an Underworld Soldier is everyone¡¯s dream. My brother shares that dream with many. We heard that an Underworld Soldier was in Scarlet Water City, so my brother wanted to go there urgently. He is hoping that the Underworld Soldier will ept him as a disciple. There¡¯s a good chance that the disciple of an Underworld Soldier will join them in the future. But my brother is just there to test his luck.¡±


    Long Chen saw how much Xiong Wan¡¯er pampered her brother based on the gentle look in her eyes.


    ¡°How many people are in the Underworld Soldiers?¡±


    Long Chen had heard the demons mention them. It appeared that they were very wary of them even though they were at the Category Nine Emperor-tier. Still, the Underworld Soldiers were all at least at the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage, so they had good reason to be wary.


    Based on their numbers, Long Chen could estimate how strong the Underworld Estate was and calcte how many experts they had.


    ¡°The Underworld Soldiers? I think there are ny million of them throughout the entirety of the Underworld Estate. I¡¯m fairly certain the number is close to a hundred million.¡±


    ¡°Nine¡­ Ny million?!¡± Long Chen stopped walking out of surprise.


    He would¡¯ve cursed like crazy if no one was beside him. How strong was the True Martial Territory?! The Underworld Estate of the Eastern Royal District had close to a hundred million Underworld Soldiers! Long Chen was certain that there were countless experts who didn¡¯t join the Underworld Soldiers. Didn¡¯t that mean that there were at least five hundred million experts beyond the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage?


    With a rough calction of ten million small cities in the Underworld Estate, and with each city having tens of thousands of people, that meant that there were tens of billions of people here in the Underworld Estate alone!


    <em>Shit! How monstrouslyrge is this ce?</em>


    Long Chen was now in an unending sea of humans. He couldn¡¯t even be considered a grain of sand here.

 Chapter 884: True Martial Overlord Soul

    "Joining the Underworld Soldiers elevates one¡¯s status and earns the respect of others. More importantly, Underworld Soldiers have ess to Divine-tier martial techniques. If you join them and your performance is excellent for a year, you are given a Divine-tier martial technique.¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er was visibly excited when she talked about the Divine-tier martial technique.


    There was only one Divine-tier martial technique in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, and that was the Emperor¡¯s Manual. But now Long Chen learned that almost all ny-million Underworld Soldiers would be given one.


    He felt numb after hearing the shocking information.


    Long Chen and Xiong Wan¡¯er discussed more as they traveled to Scarlet Water City. After some time, they exited the forest and reached arge in. The soil was a rusty red and incredibly coarse. It gave off an air of destion.


    They spotted a small city on the horizon. It looked rusty from afar, and it was most likely the destination of Xiong Jun and the others, Scarlet Water City.


    ¡°Sister, we are almost there. I really hope that I will get to meet the Underworld Soldier and be his disciple!¡±


    ¡°Silly brother, you are too rash. The Underworld Soldier is very highly ranked. Don¡¯t cause any trouble for them, or they will kill you and our tribe.¡±


    ¡°I know, I know. You are nagging me too much. Also, what have you been talking about with Big Brother Long Chen?¡±¡°Nothing. We spoke about nothing! Stop trying to embarrass me!¡± She punched and chased after her naughty brother.


    They were much safer now that they had exited the forest, so they rxed a bit. They talked and joked as they made their way to the city.


    Soon, they found themselves in front of the city. It had been built beside a scarlet river. It was called the Scarlet Water River due to its rusty color, and the city was named after it.


    It wasn¡¯t arge city, and there were numerous cities of this size in the Divine Martial Empire. It would fit at most tens of thousands of people, but Long Chen felt an unseen pressure in his heart whenever he thought that there were a hundred million of such cities in just the Eastern Royal District.


    ¡°The city is managed by the mayor, and it has its own army. Some of our tribe''s people are soldiers. Still, we shouldn¡¯t cause any trouble when we enter the city.¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er warned everyone, including Long Chen, before they entered the city.


    Compared to the others, Long Chen¡¯s body was more slender and his aura wasn¡¯t strong, so he wasn¡¯t that attention-grabbing.


    Long Chen never stopped observing the people and his surroundings when he was outside the city. Most of the city¡¯s soldiers were at least at the Heavenly Martial Realm. There were groups of them, each as strong as Lei Ji, but all of them were working low-ranking jobs.


    Naturally, there were civilians below the Heavenly Martial Realm here. There were even children who had yet to reach the Three Martial Realms. It was just a small and normal city, but everyone here was a cultivator. It was an unnatural sight.


    Because the Barbaric Bear Tribe had people working in the city, they were more familiar with the area. Xiong Jun was also quite famous in the tribe because he had reached the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage at such a young age. It was very likely that he hade to Scarlet Water City numerous times before since he had connections with some of the people there. He only needed to talk with the army for a while before they let everyone, including Long Chen, into the city.


    Long Chen followed them in and looked around.


    <em>There are a lot of experts in the Three Royal Territories, and almost everyone is a cultivator. To think that a tenth of the people here in this small city are already at the Heavenly Martial Realm. But the livelihood and culture of the people here are simr to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.</em>


    <em>Also¡­ To think that the city walls are so tough. Can I even put a dent on them if I use my full strength at the Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage?</em>


    This was an important question.


    Long Chen had to admit that he felt that he was back in Baiyang Town. Scarlet Water City¡¯s situation resembled Baiyang Town a lot.


    ¡°Sister, I want to stay in the inn that we stayed atst time. After we book our rooms, we can head to the mayor¡¯s estate to see if we can get any information on the Underworld Soldier.¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er nodded. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do that.¡±


    Long Chen didn¡¯t know theyout of Scarlet Water City, so he decided to stay with them for now. He also wanted to use this chance to see an Underworld Soldier up close.


    Someone at the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage was far too strong for him to fight.


    Xiong Jun was somehow loaded, so he booked the most luxurious inn in the city. He even booked an extra separate room for Long Chen alone.


    ¡°Such toughness!¡± Long Chen was sweating when he touched the materials of the room. A single punch from him could¡¯ve demolished the entire inn in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory. But due to the overlord spiritual energy, the materials here were extremely tough, to the point that a single punch from him only lightly shook the room.


    Long Chen had to reconsider his n after being left alone in the room.


    <em>I¡¯m too weak to go to the Underworld Estate right now. I need to be stronger, at least up to the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage. Only then can I go there. I have to do it while I¡¯m traveling.</em>


    <em>But first, I need to find a map of the Underworld Estate.</em>


    Long Chen nned to stay here for a bit longer to observe the situation. He didn¡¯t know his way around yet, so it would be unwise to act impulsively.


    Thankfully, he had Sight, so he would notice the moment anyone entered his range.


    He took out the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual and started looking at it again.


    Suddenly, he had a daring thought.


    <em>Do I really need the manual to cultivate the Heavenly Martial Realm? Are there any other methods?</em>


    To him, the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual was profound, so it would take him a long time to study it. Even the people in the Three Royal Territories followed the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual step by step. Both the Earthly Martial Fist Manual and the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual had been left behind by the ancestors of mankind and were widely spread.


    If the manuals didn¡¯t exist, then the Dragon Continent would¡¯ve been much weaker than it was right now.


    After studying the manual for a bit, Long Chen started to study the Emperor¡¯s Manual and the Emperor Vanquishers.


    While looking at them, he suddenly recalled that he had the True Martial Overlord Soul. The Five Emperors had told him that it was an important object that even the Demon Tribe had tried to steal.


    He took the little gray ball out of the Primordial Realm and twirled it around his fingers. There was a faint, gray shadow inside the ball, but he had no idea what it was.


    ¡°Hm?¡± Long Chen suddenly realized that the True Martial Overlord Soul was shaking lightly in his palm.


    ¡°What is this? Is it afraid?¡± Long Chen thought he had misunderstood it, because the little gray ball appeared to be afraid of him.


    What was it afraid of?


    Long Chen paid closer attention to it before realizing that the Dragon Jade Pendant inside his sea of consciousness was reacting slightly.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant was shaped like a dragon, and its eyes were lit up and it was staring at the True Martial Overlord Soul! That was most likely the reason why the True Martial Overlord Soul was shaking.


    Long Chen finally understood what was happening.


    <em>So it¡¯s the Dragon Jade Pendant that¡¯s spooking the True Martial Overlord Soul. I suppose that¡¯s normal if the Dragon Jade Pendant can even suppress the Inherited Blood Essence of an Ancestor Dragon.</em>


    Long Chen had a profound feeling because he could sense the oppressive auraing from the eyes from the Dragon Jade Pendant. The oppressive feeling was even stronger than what the Inherited Blood Essence of the Ancestor Dragon gave off. He quickly retreated from his own sea of consciousness.


    ¡°Big Brother Long Chen!¡±


    Just then, he heard someone calling his name in a panic.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    He quickly put the True Martial Overlord Soul away and stood up. The strange eyes of the Dragon Jade Pendant died down when Long Chen put the True Martial Overlord Soul back in the Primordial Realm.


    Long Chen sighed in relief when he saw that everything was back to normal.


    At that moment, Xiong Wan¡¯er charged into the room, her face pale. ¡°Big Brother! Jun¡­ Jun¡¯er is fighting with someone below! That person is very strong!¡±


    Xiong Jun was fighting someone?


    Long Chen didn¡¯t want to fight anyone, but because he was traveling with Xiong Jun and the rest, he thought that it was only right to y his part in helping them. Long Chen trusted in fate, so he ran down without any hesitation to help him.


    He could see the situation on the ground floor from the corridor above. Everyone in the main hall had retreated to the sides and watched the fight in the middle.


    Xiong Jun and the other youths from the Barbaric Bear Tribe were fighting against a youngdy. Or rather, the youngdy was dominating them. She was ruthless and injured two of the youths within seconds.


    ¡°You guys, stand back! I will hold her off!¡±


    Xiong Jun roared because he could not afford to see any more of his friends get injured. He ran to the front and punched the youngdy numerous times.


    His body was bulky and rippling with muscles. Every time he punched, his muscles contracted explosively as the air echoed with dull <em>thuds</em>.


    It was clear that Xiong Jun was strong, seeing as he could disturb even the dense overlord spiritual energy in the air.


    But the youngdy was even stronger!

 Chapter 885: Conflict in Scarlet Water City

    The youngdy appeared to havee from a well-to-do family. She was wearing red robes with a fox-fur cape. Her hair was tied up and she had a toned body, which was surprisingly strong yet nimble. Her face was pretty, but unfortunately, her eyes exuded a venomous re and ruthlessness.


    ¡°How dare you look at me? I will gouge out your eyes!¡± the girl shouted as she punched at Xiong Jun. Her fist was filled with the profoundness of the Heavenly Martial Realm, and she pushed Xiong Jun back!


    ¡°Domain!¡±


    She released her domain andpletely suppressed Xiong Jun. Her domain was evenrger than Xiong Jun¡¯s at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage. Long Chen was surprised to find that she was at the Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage!


    It was no surprise that she could fight all of them at the same time. It was due to her superior cultivation level!


    Based on her clothes, she appeared to be one of the nobles here in Scarlet Water City.


    ¡°True Divine Fire Scripture, Nine-Winged zing Bird!¡±


    She did not hold back at all. Fire covered her body and the clear cry of a bird sounded. She then threw out a punch that manifested a burning bird that threatened to consume Xiong Jun!


    ¡°Xiong Jun!¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er, who had just exited Long Chen¡¯s room, was surprised to see such a scene.Everyone else in the main hall was surprised too. They were certain that Xiong Jun would die at the hands of thedy. Additionally, the others from the Barbaric Bear Tribe standing behind Xiong Jun would be injured too!


    It was just a small altercation and yet thedy was beingpletely ruthless in public. No one could do anything at this point.


    ¡°Sigh. Those guys have no one but themselves to me. To think that they would even nce at the little princess of the Liu family. Everyone here knows that she¡¯s a little tyrant. Even though her family isn¡¯trge, they are still influential here because of their connections to the mayor.¡±


    ¡°That young man is dead for sure.¡±


    ¡°Everyone who catches her ire is sure to die.¡±


    The intense mes broke through Xiong Jun¡¯s techniques and threatened to swallow him whole!


    <em>Shit! I didn¡¯t even get to meet the Underworld Soldier yet, and now I¡¯m going to die by her hand! Dammit! She¡¯s so ruthless! I only looked at her a couple of times and now she wants to kill me!</em>


    Xiong Jun¡¯s eyes were bloodshot from anger.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    At thest moment, a strong wind blew past them. Xiong Jun and the others were shoved away by someone. The attack from Liu Qing''er missed and the fiery bird crashed into the wall of the inn. A massive hole formed on the wall, and smoke billowed everywhere.


    ¡°Who are you? Who dares to interfere with me killing someone? Get out here!¡±


    Thedy was angry, and her frosty killing intent spread out. She was ring at everyone.


    No one actually dared to stop Liu Qing''er when she was angry.


    Everyone remained motionless, but they were also looking around to see who had helped Xiong Jun.


    Everyone almost immediately looked at Long Chen, who was currently standing in front of him.


    ¡°Big Brother Long Chen ¡­¡± Xiong Jun had been saved once again. He was looking at Long Chen like a savior.


    ¡°Go and treat them.¡± Long Chen had silently be their backbone. Liu Qing''er red at him. She knew instantly that Long Chen wasn¡¯t from the Barbaric Bear Tribe.


    She didn¡¯t want to identally kill someone from an influential family, so she asked tentatively, ¡°Who are you?¡± Long Chen gave her a very weird feeling.


    ¡°That¡¯s not important, littledy. You should stop now. I know you have some kind of fight with them, but you¡¯ve already injured them enough. I think we can stop here for today. This is Scarlet Water City, and this is an inn. Everyone is having their meals and resting here, yet you want to murder someone? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s appropriate. Let¡¯s stop here; there is no need to escte things further, alright?¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s tone was very courteous.


    He had seen girls like her before. It was because of their family¡¯s influence that they became arrogant and didn¡¯t even think twice about killing someone. Long Chen had just arrived here and didn¡¯t want to offend anyone.


    Under normal circumstances, he would¡¯ve pped her already.


    Liu Qing''er observed Long Chen. She could easily tell that he was only between the First and Third Heavenly Martial Stage.


    <em>He doesn¡¯t have a background, and he¡¯s weak. He¡¯s just an idiot.</em>


    After making a brief assessment, Liu Qing''er knew what to do.


    She covered her mouth and chuckled. ¡°You are right, but they¡¯ve offended me, so they need to pay the price. Why don¡¯t you take their punishment for them? Give me your life, and I will spare them. Wouldn¡¯t it be kind of me to let them all go for the price of just one life?¡±


    She proceeded tough at her own joke.


    She was young and yet her heart was as cruel as a demon¡¯s. Xiong Wan¡¯er was already biting her lip and was on the verge of crying when she heard that.


    ¡°No! I must pay for my own mistake! Big Brother Long Chen, let me die!¡±


    Xiong Jun was angry and tried to step forward, but Long Chen pushed him back.


    Long Chen said calmly, ¡°Let¡¯s make a bet instead. We can fight for one round. You will scram if you lose, but if you win, you can take my life.¡±


    ¡°Hm?¡±


    Liu Qing¡¯er thought Long Chen was joking.


    ¡°You are interesting. Alright, then, as you wish.¡±


    mes covered Liu Qing¡¯er¡¯s body again.


    ¡°Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage?¡±


    Long Chen had to admit that she was his strongest opponent so far. He was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. Everyone else was certain that Long Chen would lose.


    Liu Qing¡¯er was interested in seeing why Long Chen was brave enough to fight her.


    ¡°He must be stupid. He¡¯s only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage¡ªhe¡¯s going to die for sure.¡±


    ¡°I think he¡¯s doing it to save them. People like him are rare nowadays.¡±


    ¡°Liu Qing¡¯er is really crossing the line right now. She¡¯s pretty, so it¡¯s normal for people to look at her¡­¡±


    ¡°Shh, be quiet or she will kill you next.¡±


    The customers talked amongst themselves about the fight.


    ¡°Ready to die?¡± Liu Qing¡¯er chuckled.


    Long Chen ignored her. He would go all-out since she had already agreed to the fight in front of everyone.


    ¡°Domain!¡±


    At her cultivation level, her domain was more than strong enough to suppress someone three stages lower than her like Long Chen. The oppressive feeling enveloped Long Chen and almost made him kneel. His knees slowly bend downwards from the pressure.


    ¡°Kneel down to me.¡± Liu Qing¡¯erughed as she used her domain to test Long Chen. She was certain now that he was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage and was weaker than the youths she had beaten up just now.


    ¡°You dare to shield them despite being weaker? What a joke. Time to die!¡±


    Liu Qing¡¯er had no patience for someone so weak, so she tried to use her domain to crush Long Chen directly!


    ¡°Churn and rip!¡±


    Liu Qing¡¯er¡¯s Domain became exceedingly chaotic, and the wild energy inside of it mmed on Long Chen¡¯s body repeatedly. He would die if he did nothing.


    ¡°Is this as strong as your domain can get?¡±


    Long Chen chuckled. His knees, which had been bending slowly, gradually straightened. He then transformed, blood-red scales covering his body. He turned into a bloodthirsty war machine, and the primordial bloodlust covered the entire ce.


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters, Yin and Yang Sword Root, and the Five Emperor Palm!¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s strength increased explosively to a terrifying degree. He held onto the Three Thousand Star Clusters and channeled the power of the Yin and Yang Sword Root into it. His strength was multiplied by ten times.


    He also used the Five Emperor Palm for the first time.


    The familiar power circted from his palm into his body. The five-colored essence fused with his own harmoniously and became a terrifying force. For every one unit of his Dragon Soul Essence, he could control nine units of the five-colored essence.


    Long Chen was now stronger than a regr Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator!


    It took him just a moment to grow explosively and be a being capable of destroying Liu Qing¡¯er! Everyone was shocked by the sudden rise in strength, but before anyone could react, Long Chen turned into the wind and charged at Liu Qing¡¯er!


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual, Nine Spinning Star Clusters!¡±


    Long Chen expanded his domain, and the stars turned wildly inside it. He transformed into a spear of starlight while Liu Qing¡¯er thought the entire gxy was crashing down on her!


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?!¡± She was surprised by Long Chen¡¯s sudden growth!


    A weakling that she could kill at any time had suddenly be someone that could kill her! How could someone grow so strong?


    Liu Qing¡¯er realized that Long Chen had been hiding his strength all this time!


    That was why he had rescued Xiong Jun and the others just now!


    ¡°Damn!¡±


    Liu Qing¡¯er punched, and the fiery bird appeared again. This time, she used her full power and directed it at Long Chen.


    ¡°Die!¡±

 Chapter 886: Heavenly Fortune Pill

    The attack was too weak for Long Chen. With the reinforcement of the Five Emperor Palm, Long Chen pierced through her technique. The glittering Three Thousand Star Clusters was ced against her throat in an instant. The sharp tip made a tiny wound on her neck, drawing a single drop of blood.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It wasn¡¯t lethal, but everyone was still shocked because Long Chen would¡¯ve killed her if he pushed the Three Thousand Star Cluster with just a bit more force.


    Liu Qing¡¯er would¡¯ve been dead if Long Chen had not shown her mercy.


    Everyone was shocked by this oue.


    The result had been determined in just a single instant.


    ¡°Youngdy, the winner has been decided. Please honor your words.¡±


    Long Chen smiled and put the Three Thousand Star Clusters away.


    He hadn¡¯t killed her because they were in Scarlet Water City. He would¡¯ve ended her life without hesitation if they were outside.


    Liu Qing¡¯er was still dazed because she couldn¡¯t believe the oue of the battle, but the pain on her neck was a clear sign that she had lost. She would¡¯ve died if Long Chen hadn¡¯t shown mercy.But she grew angry because she had never tasted what it was like to be granted mercy by someone else!


    Her eyes were wide as she looked at Long Chen with undeniable killing intent.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You aren¡¯t satisfied with the result?¡± Long Chen wasn¡¯t afraid of her, so he looked at her with a grin.


    Liu Qing¡¯er had no choice but to hold back her killing intent right now. She needed to maintain her reputation, so she could not embarrass herself here.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Long Chen.¡±


    Long Chen undid his transformation.


    ¡°Long Chen? Hehe.¡±


    She chuckled and left without saying anything. Even though she was the one who had wrecked the inn, the owner dared not ask her for any payments. It was clear that Liu Qing¡¯er was slightly influential here in Scarlet Water City.


    She was halfway outside when she turned and looked at him. ¡°You will be staying here for some time, right? You don¡¯t look like you are from here.¡±


    ¡°Who said that I¡¯m not from Scarlet Water City?¡±


    ¡°Haha!¡± Liu Qing¡¯erughed. She was just about to leave when argemotion came from afar.


    At the same time, Long Chen was checking on Xiong Jun and the others. Thankfully, he had intervened right on time, so most of them weren¡¯t seriously injured. They would recover soon if they rested for a bit.


    Xiong Jun lowered his head, ¡°Big Brother Long Chen, I¡¯m sorry for causing trouble for you.¡±


    Long Chen smiled because he knew that this was indeed going to be troublesome for him. Liu Qing¡¯er was a vicious person, so there was no chance she would let the matter go, but there was nothing Long Chen could do but smile helplessly. ¡°It seems that your n is done for. You should head back to your tribe as soon as possible. She¡¯s aiming for my head, so I can just stay here until all of you have gone back.¡±


    ¡°No! We can¡¯t just leave you behind!¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er refused to let Long Chen stay here alone. Xiong Jun was the one who had incurred the wrath of Liu Qing¡¯er, so there was no way he could leave Long Chen alone here to fight.


    ¡°No, you guys will be dragging me down by staying here.¡±


    They were indeed holding Long Chen back. If he was alone, he could offend anyone and just escape using Blood Warp. He wouldn¡¯t have to make any extra effort to save anyone. ??


    Xiong Jun and the others nodded only after he said that.


    But thergemotion outside soon reached the entrance of the inn. Long Chen raised his head and saw several people dressed in exquisite outfits enter. Liu Qing¡¯er was smiling and holding onto the arm of one of them. Her moody and vicious face hadpletely changed into a kind smile.


    The man she was holding onto wasrge and burly, not dissimr to Xiong Jun. But while Xiong Jun looked barbaric, the man looked more refined, like a noble. He wore a blue robe, had short hair, and his eyes were sharp. He looked like a bear that had learned etiquette and kept all of its bloodthirst deep in its eyes.


    Beside the man was a middle-aged man. He had ck hair and a beard and he maintained a constant smile. He looked very approachable, but Long Chen knew that people like him were very strong.


    Long Chen couldn¡¯t detect how strong the man was, but it was most likely above the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage, or at least very close to the demons from before.


    The demons were indeed weak here in the Three Royal Territory. There were already several individuals who were as strong as them even though Long Chen was only in a small ce like Scarlet Water City.


    But the man wasn¡¯t the center of everyone¡¯s attention.


    The man was passionately escorting someone else. A man jumped down from an entirely ck war horse. When Long Chen saw the horse, he had a strange feeling, so he used Sight. To his surprise, the horse didn¡¯t have a soul! Rather, there was a massive lump of energy inside it. Long Chen noted that the horse itself was almost as strong as the man riding it.


    More importantly, rather than a living being, the horse was made from some unknown metal. Its blood-red eyes were lifeless, but they still glittered with light as if they were papernterns.


    <em>What is that? A puppet? How is it that strong?</em>


    Back in Yuanling City, Long Chen had seen the steel puppets. They were simple and weak, but the puppet in front of him now was terrifying. There were various blood-red runes on the war horse, and every time it moved, the runes swirled and consumed overlord spiritual Qi to transform it into energy. The blood-red runes wereplex, to the point that Long Chen couldn¡¯t memorize a single symbol even though he had been staring at it for a long time.


    ¡°Sis¡­ Sister! He¡¯s the Underworld Soldier!¡±


    Xiong Jun looked at the man dismounting from the horse in awe.


    Long Chen looked at the so-called Underworld Soldier. He was a tall man wearing full-body armor. The armor was ck and had inky green runes surfacing it from time to time. A strange force flowed in the armor.


    Back in the Ancient Graveyard, Long Chen had seen Jin Ling using the Golden Emperor¡¯s Armor. The armor in front of him right now was simr, but because this was the special armor fashioned for the Underworld Soldiers specifically, its runes were veryplicated. It was also very strong. Those wearing it would have their power greatly amplified!


    ¡°That¡¯s the Underworld Armor! It can increase your essence by three times!¡±


    ¡°He looks so cool!¡±


    ¡°If only I could touch the armor once!¡±


    The youths from the barbaric tribe were moring and looking at the Underworld Soldier with awe.


    The Underworld Soldier looked serious, and he had an air to him that warned others that he would kill without hesitation. When Long Chen saw the Underworld Soldier¡¯s eyes, he knew that the person had taken many, many lives. The aura he emitted was stronger than that of the man Liu Qing¡¯er was holding onto.


    The young man, the middle-aged man, and the Underworld Soldier walked into the inn. They ignored everyone as they spoke amongst themselves.


    ¡°Mayor, I will stay in this inn for now. There¡¯s no need to spread news about me around. You should know how strict ourws are. I will head back to Scarlet Sun Medium City once the auction for the Heavenly Fortune Pill has beenpleted.¡±


    The Underworld Soldier¡¯s voice was deep and maic. Those who heard him were attracted to how it sounded.


    The middle-aged man he was talking to was none other than the mayor.


    ¡°I shall heed your words, Master Zhao, since you wish to stay here. I do understand that you have a lot of rules to obey. But if you need the Heavenly Fortune Pill, I can always tell the auction to give it to you directly,¡± said the mayor.


    He then looked at Liu Qing¡¯er, who was currently holding the arm of his son. ¡°Qing¡¯er, go ask your father to give the Heavenly Fortune Pill to Master Zhao.¡±


    Liu Qing¡¯er beamed. ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± The Underworld Soldier¡¯s expression was serious. ¡°Since it¡¯s an auction, I will obey its rules and purchase it using Emperor Crystals. It¡¯s a Heavenly Fortune Pill, so it shouldn¡¯t cost too much. I don¡¯t want the others to gossip about it when I get back.


    ¡°I¡¯m only passing here because of my duty, but I caught wind of the Heavenly Fortune Pill and wanted to see it. Thank you very much for your hospitality. If you don¡¯t mind, I would like to consider us brothers. You are the mayor, and I¡¯m just a single Underworld Soldier. I fear that it¡¯s not appropriate for you to call me ¡®master.¡¯¡±


    The mayorughed. ¡°No, no. There¡¯s no need to worry. It¡¯s just an oversight on my part. We have no objections to you following the rules. But I fear that no one will bid on the Heavenly Fortune Pill after hearing that you are interested in it.¡±


    The Underworld Soldierughed when he heard that.


    Soon, the Underworld Soldier was given the best room under the arrangement of Scarlet Water City.


    The woman called Liu Qing¡¯er whispered to the son of the mayor. Soon, the burly youth turned to Long Chen, and killing intent spilled from him.


    <em>Herees trouble. </em>Long Chen knew that trouble had arrived.


    As expected, the youth approached Long Chen when the mayor was escorting the Underworld Soldier up to the second floor.


    ¡°You dare bully Qian Canglong¡¯s woman? Do you want to die?¡±


    The youth stood in front of Long Chen and red at him.

 Chapter 887: Barbaric Body

    ¡°Canglong, what are you doing?¡±


    The mayor was just about to head upstairs, but then he lowered his head and looked in Long Chen¡¯s direction. With his sharp senses, he knew that his son was about to cause trouble.


    Long Chen sighed. The only people he was wary of were the mayor and the Underworld Soldier. He could¡¯ve escaped on his own if they wanted to fight him, but now he had to protect Xiong Wan¡¯er and the others. If he angered them, he would have no way of escaping safely if he had to bring along the youth of the Barbaric Bear Tribe.


    Canglong exined profusely, ¡°Father, that person was bold enough to bully Qing¡¯er. I-¡±


    ¡°Idiot! Are you disturbing the peace of the Underworld Soldier just because of this? How can you call yourself his disciple if you act like this? Just toss them out!¡±


    The mayor¡¯s words left no room for objection.


    He took one look at Long Chen and scoffed. ¡°Also, he¡¯s only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. How could he bully Qing¡¯er? Are you stupid?¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    Canglong deted like a ball after getting scolded, but when he turned around, he poured out his anger on Long Chen.¡°Come outside with me, brat!¡± he said.


    Long Chen crossed his arms and ignored Qian Canglong. He wasn¡¯t an idiot, and now was not the time to get out. He had alreadye up with a n.


    Xiong Jun and the others hid behind Long Chen. They were now looking at him as their leader. Xiong Jun hadpletely abandoned all thoughts of bing the Underworld Soldier¡¯s disciple after seeing how thetter hadn¡¯t even looked at him even though their lives were at stake.


    Also, Qian Canglong clearly had the same objective as Xiong Jun. He wanted to be the Underworld Soldier¡¯s disciple and would be an Underworld Soldier himself once he had enough power.


    ¡°Do you think you will be safe staying here? I will wait for you outside. I do not believe that you can stay here forever.¡±


    Qian Canglong allowed Liu Qing¡¯er to hold his arm before both of them turned and left.


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    The Underworld Soldier looked past Long Chen and saw Xiong Jun. A strange thought flickered behind his eyes.


    He immediately went down to the ground floor and stood in front of Xiong Jun. The Underworld Soldier looked menacing with his cold, glinting armor.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe there¡¯s a youth with a Barbaric Body here in this small city. Little child, what is your name?¡±


    ¡°Barbaric Body?¡± Xiong Jun scratched his head in confusion, but since the person in front of him was the Underworld Soldier that he yearned to meet, he excitedly answered, ¡°I am Xiong Jun!¡±


    The Underworld Soldier stared at Xiong Jun for a bit longer and then broke out into a smile. ¡°Xiong Jun, are you interested in bing my disciple? My name is Zhao Kongming.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Everyone, except for the mayor, was shocked. Qian Canglong was the most surprised because he had always wanted to be Zhao Kongming¡¯s disciple, but the man himself had not agreed verbally. To think that he would ask someone from a barbarian tribe to be his disciple!


    ¡°What¡¯s a Barbaric Body?¡±


    Almost everyone was confused.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°The Barbaric Body is a type of body constitution that has a high chance of reaching the Divine Martial Realm. That is why I would like to have you as my disciple, in hopes that I can rmend you to join the Underworld Soldier in the future. Do you agree?¡± ??¦­§à??§¦S


    ¡°I ¡­ I agree! Greetings, Master!¡±


    Xiong Jun was so ecstatic that he felt like he was dreaming. He kneeled down on the ground with pleasure. To think that his dream was finallying true, and he even had a chance of reaching the Divine Martial Realm!


    If he could be a Divine Martial Realm cultivator, he would be a legendary figure within this entire region.


    ¡°Good! From today onwards, you are a disciple of Zhao Kongming.¡±


    Zhao Kongming helped Xiong Jun up before he looked at Qian Canglong. ¡°Long¡¯er, it seems you had some kind of disagreement with him before. Would you mind letting it go for my sake?¡±


    Qian Canglong was clearly displeased, but he had no choice but to ept since his father was watching him. ¡°Naturally. Now that Xiong Jun is your disciple, he is one of us too. How could I fight against my own family? But, Uncle Zhao, when will you ept me as your disciple?¡±


    Qian Canglong could only ask like this in hopes that Zhao Kongming would take pity on him.


    Zhao Kongming smiled. ¡°Long¡¯er, you have great potential. Also, Brother Qian is already teaching you, so I don¡¯t want to butt in and point you down the wrong path. When you are strong enough one day, you cane find me and I will give you a rmendation letter to join the Underworld Soldiers.¡±


    Qian Canglong wanted to be Zhao Kongming¡¯s disciple so that he could join the Underworld Soldiers one day. Zhao Kongming¡¯s rmendation was all that he needed. He hadpletely forgotten about bing Zhao Kongming¡¯s disciple after he heard that proposal.


    Everything had been resolved perfectly today, except for Liu Qing¡¯er¡¯s situation. She was ring daggers at Long Chen as she left. It appeared that she had other ns ¡­


    Xiong Jun had achieved his dream of bing Zhao Kongming¡¯s disciple. After the mayor left, Zhao Kongming brought Xiong Jun into his room. Not only had the Barbaric Bear Tribe avoided danger today, they had also gotten something amazing. The youths were happy, and even Xiong Wan¡¯er drank a lot, to the point that her face was red.


    Long Chen spent some time with them before he returned to his room.


    <em>Is Zhao Kongming a good person?</em>


    Long Chen had a feeling that something was off. Zhao Kongming had been so cold initially; he only smiled and warmed up after seeing Xiong Jun¡¯s Barbaric Body.


    But Long Chen couldn¡¯t figure out what Zhao Kongming¡¯s true goal was. He hoped that he was actually a decent individual.


    ¡°That puppet horse ¡­ And also the Heavenly Fortune Pill ¡­ What are those?¡±


    Someone suddenly knocked on his door.


    ¡°Enter.¡±


    The door creaked open, and in walked a blushing Xiong Wan¡¯er. It was alreadyte at night.


    Under the soft light of the moon, her wheat-colored skin, tall body, long legs, and bewitching eyes were extremely deadly for men.


    ¡°Big Brother Long Chen, am I interrupting your cultivation?¡±


    Even though she had drunk some wine, she was coherent enough to be careful.


    ¡°No. Is something wrong?¡±


    ¡°Hehe. It¡¯s nothing much. I just got a letter from the Mech Bird. The people from my tribe want me to bring everyone back tomorrow, so I came to say goodbye.¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er looked at Long Chen with longing eyes.


    ¡°So Xiong Jun will follow Zhao Kongming?¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er nodded. ¡°That is Xiong Jun¡¯s blessing. I hope that he can achieve something and bring honor to our tribe.¡±


    ¡°Wait, did you say something about a Mech Bird?¡± Long Chen recalled Zhao Kongming¡¯s ck warhorse.


    ¡°Mech Bird? Don¡¯t you know them? Those are birds made by Mech Spirits, which are a special category of Scribes. Mech Birds fly extremely fast thanks to the special runes inscribed on them. They can also absorb the Royal Qi in the air and turn it into energy. There are many different types of Mech Birds, and their speed differs based on their model. They are very useful.¡±


    Xiong Wan¡¯er looked at Long Chen as if he was the isted tribesman instead for not knowing something so basic.


    ¡°Scribe? Mech Priests? Wan¡¯er, can you tell me more?¡±


    Long Chen trusted her more than the others. The others would¡¯ve been suspicious of him if he asked them those questions, but because Xiong Wan¡¯er trusted him blindly, the risk of someone suspecting him would be lower.


    Xiong Wan¡¯er was happy to be useful to him. ¡°In the Three Royal Territory, there are types of cultivators like Armament Warriors, regr warriors, and the obsolete Beast Warriors. There are also numerous positions and jobs.


    ¡°Some of them are nonbat professions, with two of them being very special: the Scribes and the Alchemists. Scribes learn different runes and inscribe them onto Divine Weapons, Magical Artifacts, or other special materials to bring out special properties. They can also produce talismans for various uses. Some of the talismans they make boast incredible offensive properties.¡±


    Long Chen knew about talismans. Even people in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory used those. He had once been targeted by a Firestorm Talisman.


    ¡°Then there is a special branch of Scribes called Tech Priests. They can inscribe peculiar runes onto special materials to produce different kinds of Mechs. The Mech Bird is one of them.


    ¡°Jun¡¯er¡¯s Master, who¡¯s an Underworld Soldier, rode one today. You saw the Underworld Warhorse, right? It was made by a high-grade Tech Priest. It¡¯s extremely fast and doesn¡¯t get tired. More importantly, it¡¯s also very strong! Every Underworld Soldier has one.¡±


    Long Chen could understand that too. People in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory often used demonic beasts as transport since a human¡¯s essence was limited. Traveling over a long distance would exhaust the cultivator¡¯s essencepletely. They would be vulnerable if they found themselves in a situation where they needed to fight during a long journey.


    Here in the Three Royal Territories, because of the demon race and the Deste Royal Territory, it was almost unheard of for people to use demonic beasts as transport. That was why the Tech Priests were born.


    Xiong Wan¡¯er continued, ¡°It¡¯s said that some legendary Tech Priests can inscribe runes that grant Divine Weapons the power of a cultivator at the Divine Martial Realm. Those legendary Tech Priests have to be at the Divine Martial Realm themselves, so there aren¡¯t any in Scarlet Water City.¡±

 Chapter 888: Underworld Warhorse

    Both Scribes and Tech Priests would¡¯ve been considered rare and almost useless professions in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, but here, they were controlled and had structure.


    Long Chen did know a little about Alchemists as Situ Yi was one. Alchemists couldbine spiritual herbs, refine them with core fire, and then follow a recipe to make various pills. Some of the pills required onlymon ingredients but granted the user incredible power.


    ¡°Alchemists are almost as popr as Tech Priests. In Scarlet Water City alone, there are dozens of Alchemists and Scribes. The stronger ones are treated as guests by the mayor. He gives them a lot of Emperor Crystals every year for them to stay here. However, the Heavenly Fortune Pill is not something they could make here. Rumor has it that the Scarlet Water Association obtained it from someone who was unaware of its true value.¡±


    Long Chen¡¯s eyes were glimmering with curiosity because he wanted to know what the Heavenly Fortune Pill did when even Zhao Kongming was interested in it.


    ¡°Wan¡¯er, what is a Heavenly Fortune Pill?¡±


    ¡°The Heavenly Fortune Pill is a medicine that¡¯s extremely hard to manufacture. Only Alchemists at the Ninth Heavenly Martial Stage can make it, and even then, they can only produce lower-quality ones.


    ¡°The lower-quality ones contain a little bit of the Alchemist¡¯s understanding of the Heavenly Martial Realm. Someone at the Ninth Earthly Martial Stage can advance into the Heavenly Martial Realm with ease after consuming it, and someone at the First Heavenly Martial Stage can reach the Second Heavenly Martial Stage. Beyond that, those at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage would only find themselves understanding the Heavenly Martial Realm a bit more after eating it.


    ¡°I think Jun¡¯er¡¯s master intends to give it to someone else. It might be valuable, but it''s useless for us at this point.¡±


    Long Chen nodded. ¡°Then how much is a single Heavenly Fortune Pill?¡±¡°I¡­ I¡¯m not sure. Probably a few thousand Emperor Crystals? But no one would dare to bid against an Underworld Soldier. I¡¯m certain that he will buy it for just a couple hundred Emperor Crystals.¡±


    Long Chen nodded.


    It waste into the night by the time she finished her exnation. Even though she didn¡¯t want to leave, she had no choice. She needed to head back to her tribe tomorrow.


    Long Chen reassured her. ¡°I will send you back to your tribe tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Big Brother Long Chen.¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er was touched.


    Long Chen slowly sorted out the information in his mind after she left.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°A Heavenly Fortune Pill can save me a year¡¯s worth of cultivation time, but I only have Royal Crystals. Where can I find Emperor Crystals?¡±


    Long Chen felt the pain of not having money.


    Xiong Wan¡¯er told him that the auction would be held in ten days. Where would he find a thousand Emperor Crystals within that time frame?


    He needed to grow strong as fast as he possibly could. He had readied himself to purchase the Heavenly Fortune Pill after learning about it.


    Zhao Kongming had already said that he would follow the rules of the auction. Since his intention was to give it to someone else, he would probably give up on it if the price exceeded his expectations. Long Chen would then outbid Zhao Kongming. The others dared not do it, but he did. ???¨¯?§¦??


    Also, Long Chen was never reluctant to spend a lot of money when it was needed.


    <em>I don¡¯t have much time. I need to reach the Divine Martial Realm and get to the Swordsoul Territory as soon as I can. I need to advance through the Heavenly Martial Realm as fast as possible.</em>


    Long Chen opened the window and stared at the starry night.


    ¡°Hold on. Little Cat, the six demons were only at the Category Nine Emperor-tier. How can they pass through the Fragmented Starfield?¡±


    Maybe the demon race had their own way of traversing it without needing to be at the Divine Martial Realm!


    In that case, Long Chen would have more time for himself.


    He had swore to Ling Xi that he would find her in ten years, and two years had passed. He didn¡¯t have enough time.


    ¡°Demons at the Category Nine Emperor-tier have incredibly strong physical bodies, so they are barely strong enough to pass through the Fragmented Starfield. The Divine Martial Realm is the minimum requirement for humans.¡±


    Little Cat¡¯s words made Long Chen sad.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even think about doing it at the Ninth Heavenly Martial Stage. There are no shortcuts in this world. Also, if you go before you enter the Divine Martial Realm, you will only embarrass yourself in the Swordsoul Territory.¡±


    ¡°Little Cat, I never thought you would give me such good advice even though you look so flippant at times.¡±


    Little Cat was right. Long Chen was trying to rush it too much.


    ¡°Scram. I have my own dignity. How dare you call me flippant!¡±


    Little Cat''s furry body slipped out of the Primordial Realm. Even though his voice was horrible, his body was still cute.


    Suddenly, Long Chen noticed that the Dream Demon¡¯s body had undergone some changes.


    He wasn¡¯t certain what it was, but something had indeed changed. The Dream Demon was no longer the same.


    ¡°Did you notice?¡± Little Cat chuckled with pleasure.


    ¡°That you¡¯ve changed?¡±


    ¡°Hehe. Thanks to my hard work, I¡¯ve finally changed this body into one that has potential. I shall show you!¡±


    Little Cat disappeared like a popped bubble the moment he finished his sentence.


    There was absolutely no trace of his aura at all.


    Long Chen had to use Sight to finally see that Little Cat was still in front of him.


    With a <em>whoosh</em>, Little Cat appeared again.


    ¡°How is it? Incredible, right? Why don¡¯t you start worshiping me?¡±


    Long Chen was confused. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°That is a special technique called the Hidden Turtle Aura. It allows me to mask my aurapletely. I can then use the Dream Demon¡¯s innate technique to fool your eyes and make it seem like I¡¯m invisible. That way, I am impossible to detect! Haha, with this modification, I can finally peep at the beautifuldies taking a bath! Hahaha!¡±


    ¡°You lecherous cat ¡­¡± Long Chen smiled helplessly.


    But Long Chen was happy because this meant that Little Cat could help him learn a lot of information. And if Little Cat encountered danger, Long Chen could summon him back immediately using the Primordial Dragon Talisman.


    The Hidden Turtle Aura and the Dream Demon¡¯s illusion techniques could indeed be used synergistically.


    ¡°Also, there¡¯s bad news.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen was worried.


    ¡°After my modification, I can finally fight against stronger opponents with the Dream Demon¡¯s illusion techniques, but there¡¯s a price. From today onwards, I need to consume a lot of spiritual herbs. Pills would be best, but I can ept Emperor Crystals at worst. I don¡¯t mind as long as I can eat it.¡±


    ¡°You little rascal. You are just adding more work for me.¡± Long Chen punched Little Cat yfully.


    Long Chen was extremely poor right now, and Little Cat was just adding an extra financial burden for him.


    Little Cat suddenly said something strange. ¡°Hey! We were just talking about spiritual herbs and Emperor Crystals. To think that someone is actually giving them to us for free.¡±


    He then disappeared into the Primordial Realm. Long Chen¡¯s eyes lit up because he saw a palm-sized bird flying towards him from outside the window.


    Long Chen grabbed the bird to find that it was a Mech Bird. There were simple runes inscribed on it, and they glowed hazily under the moonlight.


    In the middle of the Mech Bird¡¯s chest was a warm ball of energy. Long Chen had a feeling that it was the energy source of the Mech Bird.


    He crushed it into dust and let itpletely disperse in the wind.


    In Long Chen¡¯s hand was a small piece of paper. <em>Come out of Scarlet Water City alone if you dare. Five hundred meters away from the city gates.</em>


    It was clearly Liu Qing¡¯er calling out Long Chen.


    After Zhao Kongming¡¯s request to not trouble Long Chen and the others, Liu Qing¡¯er did not continue harassing them in public. But deep in her heart, she still resented Long Chen. She couldn¡¯t believe that Long Chen would dare to point a spear at her neck!


    ¡°Liu Qing¡¯er is from the Scarlet Water Association. I think they are the ones auctioning off the Heavenly Fortune Pill and organizing the auction. She must have a lot of money on her.¡±


    That was why Little Cat had said that someone was sending them moneyte at night.


    ¡°Does Liu Qing¡¯er really think that I would go out there?¡±


    He would¡¯ve ignored her if it wasn¡¯t for the Heavenly Fortune Pill. She was probably just testing him and never thought that Long Chen would really go out.


    In reality, after failing to kill Long Chen, Liu Qing¡¯er had started to go mad. Qian Canglong chased her all the way out of Scarlet Water City. After calming her down and reassuring her, he finally appeased her anger.


    They then messed around in the wilderness outside before Liu Qing¡¯er remembered Long Chen again. She was still resentful and thought of using this method to try and lure him out.


    ¡°He¡¯s not an idiot. Will he reallye out here?¡± Qian Canglong was uncertain.


    Liu Qing¡¯er said, ¡°You didn¡¯t fight him, so you don¡¯t know. He¡¯s very arrogant. He was wary of your father and Zhao Kongming during the day, so he didn¡¯t fight you. There¡¯s no one here at night, so he wille here after I taunt him with the letter. Also, he doesn¡¯t know that you are here!¡±

 Chapter 889: Coldness

    ¡°You¡¯re right. If he knew that I was here, he wouldn¡¯t dare toe! Qing¡¯er, don¡¯t you think so?¡± As he spoke, Qian Canglong started to massage her chest.


    Liu Qing¡¯er swatted his muscr arm away and said, ¡°Didn¡¯t I satisfy you enough just now? Keep your hands to yourself, or I¡¯m chopping them off.¡±


    Heughed drily and moved his hands away obediently.


    <em>This bitch. She was hotter than anyone else just a minute ago, but now she¡¯s pretending to be some pure virgin in front of me. </em>Qian Cang long cursed her in his heart.


    He was the son of Scarlet Water City¡¯s mayor. There were many gentle and beautiful girls he could get together with in the city. If it was not for his father¡¯s desire to improve the ties between him and the Scarlet Water Association, he wouldn¡¯t be here dealing with this bitch¡¯s terrible temper.


    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. If that brat isn¡¯t here yet, I don¡¯t think he¡¯sing,¡± he said as he patted his bottom after standing up from the blue grass.


    ¡°I have overestimated him. No, he dared to hurt me, so I must find a way to kill him. Qian Canglong, I forbid you from touching me before he dies!¡± Liu Qing¡¯er red.


    ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯ll think of a way to kill him tomorrow,¡± said Qian Canglong in a resigned manner. Although Liu Qing¡¯er had a bad temper, she had an amazing body. To him, not being able to touch her was worse than being killed.


    Both of them were prepared to return to Scarlet Water City, but then they heard rhythmic footsteps in the dark. They looked at each other, then peered ahead in excitement. A teenager covered in red scales appeared. With a sharp, half-gold, half-ck spear in hand, he emerged from the darkness.¡°Who is that?!¡± Qian Canglong had never seen Long Chen post-Dragon Soul Transformation.


    ¡°That¡¯s him! Hurry up and kill him! You¡¯re at the Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage, so if you don¡¯t kill him in ten breaths, don¡¯t even bothering back!¡± When she saw that it was Long Chen, Liu Qing¡¯er¡¯s eyes gleamed with bloodthirst.


    She hated the way Long Chen looked at her without any emotion at all.


    <em>Damn! Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage! I need to fight with all I have. </em>Long Chen had expected Qian Canglong to be with her, but someone at the Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage was quite strong ¡­


    When they saw Long Chen, Liu Qing¡¯er and Qian Canglong¡¯s eyes shed coldly.


    ¡°Attack!¡± Liu Qing¡¯er did not waste any time.


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Qian Canglong clenched his fists, and his long, blue robes ripped because his muscles suddenly swelled. Power surged through his body, and a destructive aura swept toward Long Chen.


    <em>Boom! Boom! Boom!</em>


    Loud booms sounded as Qian Canglong stepped on the ground with his huge feet. The unimaginably hard ground trembled, showing how strong he was.


    Qian Canglong was a cultivator who specialized in physical strength.


    Long Chen did not make a sound. He sprinted forward like a ray of blood-red light, instantly arriving in front of Qian Canglong with the Three Thousand Star Clusters in hand.


    <em>He¡¯s so fast!</em>


    Qian Canglong was privately shocked.


    Long Chen was even using the Five Emperor Palm. The boost it provided increased hisbat abilities to the Fifth Earthly Martial Stage. Previously, he would have had to use the second stage of Blood Sacrifice in order to achieve this!


    ¡°Tyrannosaurus Punch!¡±


    Speed was not like strength¡ªit could determine the oue of a duel. Qian Canglong roared furiously, and dragon patterns appeared all over his body, finally merging on his fist. He punched with his golden fist, and a violent dragon image shot out. Itsrge and menacing head shot at Long Chen!


    The dragon image had evolved from the energy of his punch!N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The Tyrannosaurus was not a dragon. Like the Jiao Dragon, it was a descendant of the ancient dragons and therefore had some dragon features.


    The earth-shaking punch erupted with the essence of a Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. It was indeed able to suppress Long Chen, as the Tyrannosaurus Punch was an advanced Emperor-tierbat technique!


    ¡°Big Dipper Step!¡± At the most critical moment, Long Chen took a huge risk by using the Big Dipper Step. The illusory star tes appeared beneath his feet, and he flickered out of the way. It was a treacherous situation as he dodged the immense Tyrannosaurus Punch by just a few centimeters, then charged at Qian Canglong!


    ¡°You¡¯re even bold enough to engage in meleebat with me? You¡¯re looking for death!¡±


    Qian Canglong had been tortured by Liu Qing¡¯er for a long time because of Long Chen, so he had privately been furious for a long time. They were in an empty ce in the middle of the night, so this was a great chance to kill him.


    He punched at Long Chen again.


    <em>Whoosh! </em>Long Chen turned into a shadow and ran around Qian Canglong in a semicircle, arriving behind him.


    Qian Canglong was not as fast as Long Chen because he was physicallyrge.


    ¡°Are you trying to get behind me by relying on your speed?¡± Qian Canglong chuckled coldly and turned his head, then chased after Long Chen!


    However, he saw something that startled him when he turned around. Long Chen hadpletely abandoned him. Like a red gust of wind, he charged at Liu Qing¡¯er, who was watching the fight!


    She wasn¡¯t far, so he arrived instantly.


    ¡°You think you can target me? Do you think I¡¯m weak?¡± Liu Qing¡¯er clenched her teeth and was about to attack. Long Chen released his Blood Devouring Domain, enveloping her.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?!¡± cried Liu Qing¡¯er. Her essence was suppressed and her vision was obstructed in the red space. Long Chen¡¯s shining spear tip looked like a star that was quickly approaching her!


    Both the Blood Devouring Domain and his actual domain were suppressing her.


    ¡°No! Qian Canglong, save me!¡± Liu Qing¡¯er screamed in agony. Long Chen¡¯s face had turned unbelievably cold in front of her, and he radiated a cold killing intent.


    ¡°What is that?¡± She saw a faint image of a blood-red dragon behind h im. It was an immense creature, as if it ruled over all other beings. She had only taken a nce, but she was already trembling.


    Liu Qing¡¯er was filled with endless regret for provoking Long Chen.


    But it was toote.


    ¡°Three Thousand Star Clusters Spear Manual!¡±


    Countless starlight aggregated into one dot at the tip of the spear, and it pierced through Liu Qing¡¯er¡¯s neck.


    Bright, red blood flowed from the tip of the Three Thousand Star Clusters, then to the ground.


    Liu Qing¡¯er was not dead yet, but her consciousness was fading quickly. Her eyes widened, looking at the youth holding the spear that had pierced through her body. The red-scaled teenager was like a devil from hell! His gaze was terrifying!


    Long Chen pulled out the Three Thousand Star Clusters and flung it. All the blood droplets were shaken off.


    At the same time, he turned around and did not even nce at Liu Qing¡¯er, instead facing the furious Qian Canglong.


    ¡°Long ¡­ Long Chen ¡­¡± Liu Qing¡¯er clutched her neck. Blood kept pouring out, dyeing her neck and hands red.


    The final thing she saw was the terrifying silhouette of the teenager¡¯s back.


    Then she copsed weakly.


    Liu Qing¡¯er had been killed merely moments after Long Chen¡¯s arrival. Everything had happened far too quickly.


    Long Chen¡¯s decisiveness in killing enraged Qian Canglong.


    He had just witnessed his woman dying in Long Chen¡¯s hands. Although he did not have strong feelings for her, she was still his woman! And who was Qian Canglong? He was the mayor¡¯s son!


    His heavy footsteps stopped. He breathed heavily like arge beast and exhaled white mist. Looking at the woman who had copsed at Long Chen¡¯s feet, he clenched his fists, and a thick, green vein popped from his skin.


    ¡°I apologize, but you were too slow. You couldn¡¯t even protect a woman. I think you should just kill yourself. My spear is not used to killing soft men.¡± Long Chen held his Three Thousand Star Clusters diagonally. This was the first time he had spoken, his tone waspletely nonchnt despite having just killed Liu Qing¡¯er.


    It was as if he had done something insignificant.


    <em>Boom!</em>


    Qian Canglong was enraged. He roared, then charged at Long Chen. His eyes had turnedpletely blood-red.


    ¡°Domain!¡±


    His Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage domain expanded!


    A faintly visible domain appeared in a twenty-meter radius around Qian Canglong. While he charged, the domain surrounded Long Chen. An all-epassing force as heavy as a mountain pressed on Long Chen.


    <em>Crack!</em>


    Long Chen had not stabilized his knees, so his legs bent downwards. If not for his stubbornness, he would have knelt on the ground.


    ¡°Bastard! Die!¡± Qian Canglong roared as he charged at Long Chen while controlling his domain. With his Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage domain, he was confident that he could trap Long Chen.


    He had already restricted Long Chen¡¯s movements, so his Tyrannosaurus Punch would surely squash him to a pulp!


    While he was charging ahead, Long Chen resisted the immense domain and stood up. All the muscles in his body were taught, and there was a sh of blood-red light in his eyes!


    Long Chen¡¯s Three Thousand Star Clusters disappeared from his hands, reced by a pair of ck gloves. Then his Yin Yang Sword Soul separated into golden and ck sections, each entering one glove. One of the ck gloves started radiating an ice-cold light, while the other shone with hot, golden light. One was filled with hot Yang energy, the other with cold Yin energy.


    ¡°I¡¯ll test my Emperor Vanquishers on you!¡±


    Golden and ck light condensed in his palms!

 Chapter 890: Tyrannosaurus Punch

    The Emperor Vanquishers were Divine-tier weapons, and Long Chen could onlymunicate with them on a surface level through his Yin Yang Sword Soul. Therefore, he could only control a portion of the energy in the Emperor Vanquishers.


    The power of this weapon did not belong to any element. It was only after the transformation process by his Yin Yang Sword Soul that they became hot and cold.


    ¡°Are those punching gloves? They¡¯re of a high level too ¡­¡±


    Qian Canglong¡¯s eyes shone with greed when he saw the gloves.


    Although he was not a Sword Warrior, he would be able to utilize a portion of their strength. Just based on their exterior, he knew that they were no simple gloves. However, he never would have thought that the gloves were Divine-tier.


    Even in Scarlet Water City, Divine-tier weapons were very rare. His father, the mayor, did not have a Divine-tier weapon either.


    However, it was not known if Zhao Kongming had one. It was easier for Underworld Soldiers to obtain Divine-tier items.


    Qian Canglong¡¯s attention turned from Liu Qing¡¯er¡¯s death to Long Chen¡¯s gloves.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    His domain suppressed Long Chen greatly!¡°Tyrannosaurus Punch!¡±


    The advanced Emperor-tierbat technique was his best technique. He used it once again, along with his Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage domain. An earth-shaking Tyrannosaurus image shot towards Long Chen!


    ¡°Little Cat, it¡¯s your turn.¡±


    Long Chen clenched his fists. Although it was very hard for him to move in the domain, his lips were still curled into a small smile.


    ¡°Let me say this first! I want half of his Emperor Crystals¡ªno, wait, three-quarters!¡± said Little Cat hurriedly. A fuzzy head popped out of Long Chen¡¯s chest. The Dream Demon¡¯s eyes shone with a strange light. After Little Cat¡¯s modifications, the Dream Demon¡¯s hallucinatory magic had reached a mature stage.


    <em>Whoosh ¡­</em>


    Confusing Qian Canglong¡¯s Martial Soul and making him think that Long Chen had quickly fled in another direction was an easy task for Little Cat!


    <em>How is that possible?! He managed to run away despite being trapped by my domain! </em>Qian Canglong gasped. At this critical moment, he quickly changed the direction of his Tyrannosaurus Punch towards the Long Chen illusion that Little Cat had created!


    <em>Boom!</em>


    The Tyrannosaurus Punch brushed past Long Chen!


    ¡°That¡¯s not right!¡±


    Qian Canglong suddenly realized that Long Chen had not changed his location in the domain. He was still in the same spot¡ªQian Canglong had made a mistake.


    ¡°What satanic technique was that?!¡± cursed Qian Canglong. His Tyrannosaurus Punch had hit something else, and it did not hurt Long Chen. He backed away in panic!


    This was a rare chance for Long Chen, so how could he let him go?


    Just as the Tyrannosaurus Punch shot off in the wrong direction, Long Chen turned into a ray of blood-red light within Qian Canglong¡¯s domain and shot toward him!


    ¡°You think you can engage in melee-¡± Qian Canglong couldn¡¯t finish his sentence, because Long Chen threw a lightning-fast punch at him. The golden punch contained so much heat that it was like a volcano was flying at him!


    Qian Canglong quickly held up both hands to block.


    <em>m!</em>


    The fierce mes left ck burn marks on his arms, and the immense force made Qian Canglong cry out in pain as he stumbled backward. Long Chen followed him closely like his own shadow andnded a punch on his arm once more. He had started with a right jab, so he followed it up with his left hand. The chilling, corrosive Qi collided with the wound on Qian Canglong¡¯s arm.


    ¡°How could this be?!¡± Qian Canglong waspletely stunned. He shook his head and checked, but the person before him was still Long Chen.


    But it was toote.


    Long Chen¡¯s punch had broken through his defenses andnded on his head. There was a crack, and his skull shattered. Under the immense force of the Emperor Vanquishers, blood flowed out of his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Long Chen reached out with his left hand like a flying dragon and grabbed Qian Canglong¡¯s neck. With a crack, his neck was bent at an extreme angle.


    ¡°Long Chen ¡­¡±


    Qian Canglong¡¯s eyes widened as he red at Long Chen, then he died.


    ¡°Damn it, I¡¯m exhausted! I spent all my energy casting my spell twice on this guy. Don¡¯t take risks like that again. You¡¯re not strong enough to beat a Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator yet,¡± said Little Cat, who was now lying in the Primordial Realm. Although he was tired, he still spoke smugly.


    Indeed, without Little Cat, Long Chen would be in danger.


    After killing these people, it was best to flee the scene quickly. Long Chen found both their storage rings and took all the items they carried. Then he burned their bodies and left.


    He tidied up the scene so that it looked like nothing had happened.


    He had snuck out of the city, so no one had spotted him. Simrly, he snuck back in. No one noticed.


    <em>In public, I am only a Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. If those two disappear for a few days, people will merely assume that they¡¯ve gone out to have fun. Who would suspect me? This is an airtight n.</em>


    After returning to the inn, Long Chen inspected his war spoils excitedly.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe this brat carried his n¡¯s specialty technique, the Tyrannosaurus Punch, around with him. I guess he hadn¡¯t mastered itpletely yet and was still studying it.¡±


    Out of all the things he had taken, the advanced Emperor-tier Tyrannosaurus Punch was the most attention-grabbing. That was Scarlet Water City¡¯s mayor¡¯s specialty technique, yet it was with Long Chen.


    Long Chen already had two advanced Emperor-tierbat techniques, but the Tyrannosaurus Punch was more suited to be used with the Emperor Vanquishers than the Five Seals Combination.


    If he had time, it would be good to practice the Tyrannosaurus Punch.


    After he put it away, Long Chen counted the Emperor Crystals. After arriving in the Three Royal Territories, he realized that currencies like the Emperor Crystals were important. Not only did he need the power contained in them to advance his cultivation, he also needed them to purchase items. At the same time, Little Cat needed them to sustain his power.


    He did not know what the Dream Demon had be after Little Cat had modified it.


    After counting, he discovered that he had more than six thousand Emperor Crystals.


    <em>Qian Canglong had more than two thousand Emperor Crystals. That¡¯s a normal amount. As for Liu Qing¡¯er, although her cultivation level was not as high, she had more than four thousand. Indeed, the people of the Scarlet Water Association are rich.</em>


    He put the Emperor Crystals in the Primordial Realm, and Little Cat pounced on them as if they were precious treasures. Long Chen still wanted to use them as money to buy the Heavenly Fortune Pill, so he only took some out for Little Cat to attempt to absorb essence from them. The brat was still a young Dream Demon, so the number of Emperor Crystals he needed was still within an eptable range to Long Chen.


    The other belongings were not important to Long Chen. He had the Five Emperors¡¯ treasure, so they had no value to him.


    <em>There are still ten days left. These six thousand Emperor Crystals should be enough for me to bid for the Heavenly Fortune Pill at the auction. I¡¯ll be able to see Zhao Kongming¡¯s true character then. Will he beat me in the auction using Emperor Crystals, or will he suppress his desire for it? After that, will he murder me in secret after I get the pill, or choose to give up on it?</em>


    Long Chen was unfamiliar with this person, so he could not make any assumptions.


    <em>If they discover that Qian Canglong and Liu Qing¡¯er are dead, there will be a hugemotion in this city. I initially came with Wan¡¯er and the others, so when Wan¡¯er leaves tomorrow, I¡¯ll leave with her. I¡¯ll return to Scarlet Water City during the auction, although I¡¯ll need to hide my identity then.</em>


    The stronger Long Chen became, the better he could hide his true strength.


    When he first arrived at the Divine Martial Empire, he had used the dragon¡¯s divine techniques several times. That allowed the Scarlet Emperor¡¯s Divine Martial Soul to discover that he was a legendary Dragon Warrior. Here, he needed to use them carefully, as it was not wise to reveal his Dragon Warrior identity to Divine Martial Realm experts.


    Dragon Warriors held great significance, so a weakling like Long Chen would surely be dissected and studied.


    After making his decision, Long Chen skimmed through the manual for the Tyrannosaurus Punch and memorized the profound concepts of the technique. Thanks to the experience he had umted by studying other advanced Emperor-tier techniques, the Tyrannosaurus Punch was not too difficult to him.


    It would be dawn soon. There was too much killing in the wilderness at night, so Xiong Wan¡¯er did not dare travel in the dark. Even during the day, due to the previous incident and the fact that Long Chen and Xiong Jun were not with her, they were still afraid.


    When they gathered outside, Long Chen arrived with his hands behind his back. They all thought he hade to bid them farewell, but to their surprise, he said, ¡°The journey isn¡¯t safe. Let me escort you.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er was overjoyed. She had thought about asking but was too embarrassed to, as she did not want to trouble Long Chen.


    ¡°Mhm. Let¡¯s go,¡± Long Chen said with a smile.


    The youths of the Barbaric Bear Tribe were ecstatic. Xiong Jun descended the steps noisily, then looked at Long Chen and asked, ¡°Brother Long Chen, are you going to escort my sister back?¡±


    ¡°Yes. What¡¯s your n?¡± Long Chen asked.


    ¡°My master is leaving in ten days. I¡¯m going to follow him to Scarlet Sun Medium City. That¡¯s a city a hundred timesrger than Scarlet Water City. In the future, I must work hard and do my best to join the Underworld Soldiers, and make the Barbaric Bear Tribe proud,¡± Xiong Jun said emotionally.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 891: Confusion

    ¡°That¡¯s very good.¡±


    Long Chen smiled as he looked at the passionate teenager. It was as if he had met his younger self.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ¡°Brother Long Chen, it¡¯d be great if you could stay with the Barbaric Bear Tribe and protect my older sister forever,¡± Xiong Jun said teasingly. When he saw that Long Chen wanted to escort Xiong Wan¡¯er back, he thought Long Chen had fallen for her.


    ¡°Yeah. There¡¯s no expert in the Barbaric Bear Tribe fit for Sister Wan¡¯er.¡±


    ¡°I think you are made for each other!¡±


    The others cried out in agreement.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t utter such nonsense. Brother Long Chen is only escorting us back out of the kindness of his heart. If you guys continue to be like this and upset him, I¡¯m not talking to you again,¡± scolded Xiong Wan¡¯er with embarrassment.


    When they saw that she was upset, they stopped talking, though they whispered among themselves and giggled.


    After bidding Xiong Jun goodbye, Long Chen and the others left the city. They did not face any obstructions, and they headed in the direction of the Barbaric Bear Tribe. Along the way, he either chatted with Xiong Wan¡¯er or cultivated, and time passed quickly.They passed through the quiet but deadly forest and would soon arrive at the tribe. When they could see the tribe from far, Long Chen stopped and said, ¡°I¡¯ll only be escorting you to this point. Go back on your own. Goodbyes are inevitable, no matter how long the journey. Farewell!¡±


    ¡°Brother Long Chen, aren¡¯t you going to the tribe to y with us for a little while?¡± Xiong Wan¡¯er said, a little crestfallen.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡±


    Long Chen waved at her and smiled. With a quick tap of his foot, he quietly disappeared into the forest.


    ¡°Wow. Sister Wan¡¯er, why didn¡¯t he stay behind?¡± asked the teenagers who swarmed next to Xiong Wan¡¯er with curiosity. Xiong Wan¡¯er was a very beautiful girl, and she was a goddess to many people in the tribe.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. It feels like he holds many secrets. Let¡¯s go back. Long Chen and us aren¡¯t meant to be on the same path,¡± said Xiong Wan¡¯er with a smile. She treated this with an open mind.


    After escorting them safely to their destination, there were eight days left until the start of the auction. Long Chen nned to only return during thest few days, so he started cultivating the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual and the other techniques. There was just too much he had to study.


    <em>The Emperor¡¯s Manual is an elementary Divine-tierbat technique. The first punch is known as the King¡¯s Arrival! Right now, mybat abilities are at the Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage at maximum. However, thanks to the tripleyered boost offered by the Dragon Soul Transformation, the Five Emperor Palm, and the Yin-Yang Sword Soul, my essence is still only at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage. This is insufficient to support the King¡¯s Arrival. I likely need to get the Heavenly Fortune Pill to cultivate this technique.</em>


    In spite of this, Long Chen studied the King¡¯s Arrival thoroughly. He just needed to advance to the Third Heavenly Martial Stage. Then he could start to use the Emperor Vanquishers and the Emperor¡¯s Manual.


    <em>The Emperor Vanquishers live up to their rank as Divine-tier weapons. When I put them on, I can already beat a Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator like Qian Canglong using a simple punching technique.</em>


    Long Chen looked at the gloves approvingly.


    He spent the next few days in cultivation.


    When only two days were left until the auction, Long Chen started to head towards Scarlet Water City. However, he covered his head with a cloak to hide his identity this time.


    He entered the city by climbing over the walls and used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to avoid being seen. He was able to directly head to the Scarlet Water Association¡¯s location.


    Due to the auction, the entrance of the association was bustling with people. Many people who participated in the auction did not want to announce their identities, seeing as they did not want people to know of their wealth. Therefore, many were dressed like Long Chen. Many people wearing cloaks entered the Scarlet Water Association directly.


    Long Chen took several steps forward calmly and blended into the crowd. Identity verification was not necessary to enter, but they had to show a certain amount of money to prove that they had purchasing power. The Scarlet Water Association had set the minimum at a hundred Emperor Crystals, so Long Chen casually disyed it to them, then he followed the crowd to enter the auction hall under the association¡¯s warm wee.


    The auction hall was vast. Thanks to the nourishment of Royal Qi, the stones and bricks were unbelievably hard. It was very difficult to build a structure asrge as this one.


    To prevent conflict between guests, every guest had their own private cubicle. Long Chen was assigned one, but when he was about to enter, everyone in the hall directed their gazes to the same spot. Two of the highest-ranked people in Scarlet Water City were at the entrance. One was the mayor, while the other was the Underworld Soldier, Zhao Kongming!


    Zhao Kongming had a wide smile on his face, but the mayor was in a gloomy mood. Under the warm wee of the association, both of them were directed to the most luxurious cubicle. A man in luxurious clothing with shiny hair walked up to them. He was not strong, but several muscr men stood next to him. They were likely his bodyguards.


    ¡°Chairman, any news of your daughter?¡± asked the mayor when he saw the shiny-haired middle-aged man.


    That middle-aged man, who was Chairman Liu Guang of the Scarlet Water Association, shook his head in a resigned manner and said, ¡°I have no idea where that brat Qing¡¯er went. She didn¡¯t even tell me beforehand. Could Qian Canglong have kidnapped her? Why isn¡¯t there any news?¡±


    ¡°No way. She¡¯s going to be the wife of my son. Why would my son need to kidnap her? That boy is getting rebellious. How could he go out gallivanting without telling us beforehand? And he didn¡¯t even send a message! When he gets back, I¡¯m going to whip him!¡± raged the mayor.


    ¡°Say, do you think something bad has happened to them?¡± asked Chairman Liu Guang worriedly.


    ¡°It¡¯s not productive for the two of you to discuss this here. After the auction ends, send more people to search for them in the area,¡± Zhao Kongming said. This was none of his business, so he was very calm.


    ¡°I hope they are fine. If anyone dares to touch my son within fifty kilometers of the city, hehe ¡­¡± There was a cold sh in the mayor¡¯s eyes.


    After Long Chen heard them, heughed. They would never figure out that the culprit who killed their children was actually at the auction.


    <em>That¡¯s strange. Didn¡¯t Zhao Kongming really like Xiong Jun? This is such a grand event, so why didn¡¯t he bring Xiong Jun here to widen his horizons?</em>


    This thought suddenly popped into Long Chen¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Hey, brat. I think there¡¯s something wrong with Zhao Kongming.¡± Little Cat¡¯s fuzzy head popped out of the Primordial Realm.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Long Chen asked, surprised.


    ¡°I feel like he has some of that kid Xiong Jun¡¯s aura on him, or more specifically, it¡¯s the Barbaric Body¡¯s aura. He couldn¡¯t have done something to Xiong Jun, could he?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Long Chen¡¯s heart dropped.


    Previously, he had not been able to determine if Zhao Kongming was a good or bad person. Thinking back, the way Zhao Kongming recruited Xiong Jun as his disciple was indeed a little too hasty. Was there really something suspicious going on?


    If something happened, it would have happened a long time ago while Long Chen was gone.


    Long Chen¡¯s gaze darkened. Watching Zhao Kongming and the others disappear into the darkness, he clenched his jaw and whispered, ¡°If anything has happened to Xiong Jun, I¡¯m not letting you go for this.¡±


    Long Chen liked people who had a dream and were willing to chase after it. Xiong Jun was one of them. Although he was forty, he was still a younger brother to Long Chen.


    Very soon, with the support of the Scarlet Water Association, the auction started, and Long Chen quietened his mind. It was just a bad feeling he had about Xiong Jun. Since he was here, he needed to obtain the Heavenly Fortune Pill.


    All the auctioned items were disyed in front of everyone. If he could not get the Heavenly Fortune Pill, he was ready to snatch it away. They probably wouldn¡¯t be able to catch him if he used Blood Warp, since Zhao Kongming and the mayor were not on Tian Kun¡¯s level.


    The higher the cultivation level, the more superior the demon race¡¯s overall characteristics were whenpared to humans of the same level. If it were not for the fact that humans had all sorts ofbat techniques and divine weapons, humans of the same cultivation level would be no match for the demon race. The demons were naturally gifted with powerful bodies after all.


    The Heavenly Fortune Pill was a lower-grade pill only effective for First and Second Heavenly Martial Stage cultivators. Despite that, its price far surpassed the average elementary Emperor-tier item. That was why the Heavenly Fortune Pill was seen as the main draw of this auction.


    Long Chen had many treasures on him, so he was not interested in the items that were for sale. There were hundreds of people in the hall, so the dozens of items were all auctioned off in the end. Very soon, the final Heavenly Fortune Pill was brought out. It was ced in a white box forged from Emperor Crystals, and it was disyed to the audience.


    The host held the pill up and sniffed its fragrance. With a relishing smile, he said, ¡°Everyone, this item in my hand is the final item for today¡¯s auction, and also the item that everyone has been waiting for. It is the Heavenly Fortune Pill! I believe many people came here for it today, including the respected Lord Zhao from the Underworld Soldiers!¡±


    As he spoke, he gave Zhao Kongming a respectful look.


    This item had put the Scarlet Water Association in a difficult position too. Initially, they wanted to use the pill to make a lot of money, but Zhao Kongming had expressed interest in it. With him here, the price was not likely to go very high.


    ¡°The base price is five hundred Emperor Crystals, and every increment must be at least fifty Emperor Crystals. Let¡¯s begin!¡±


    Nothing happened for a long time.


    The average Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator only had a personal fortune of about three hundred Emperor Crystals.

 Chapter 892: Third Heavenly Martial Stage

    Elementary Emperor-tier divine weapons and pills there were usually priced around a hundred Emperor Crystals, but the Heavenly Fortune Pill started at a base price of five hundred. This showed how precious it was.


    Pills that allowed cultivators to directly progress in cultivation were very precious. Even powerful alchemists had to spend great effort to refine a pill like this, and there was a very high chance of failure.


    ¡°It looks like everyone is letting me take it. Then I shall oblige. One thousand Emperor Crystals.¡± Zhao Kongming¡¯s maic voice came from the darkness.


    The people of the Scarlet Water Association sighed in relief. Zhao Kongming was not going to take advantage of them, seeing as how low-grade Heavenly Fortune Pills were worth approximately a thousand Emperor Crystals. If they sold it below this price, they would have suffered a loss. If they sold it at a price higher than this, it would not have been worth it to Zhao Kongming.


    The Underworld Soldiers were paid in Emperor Crystals every month, and if they executed tasks sessfully, they would receive a handsome amount on top of that. Therefore, Zhao Kongming had at least ten thousand Emperor Crystals on him, maybe even twenty or thirty thousand. Although it was painful to pay a thousand Emperor Crystals, it was worth it when he thought about how his romantic interest would be happy if he gave the pill to her younger brother.


    When the other people heard the price of a thousand Emperor Crystals, they were even more unwilling to bid higher.


    The host looked around and said loudly, ¡°If there are no more bids, then the Heavenly Fortune Pill ¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll pay one thousand and five hundred Emperor Crystals,¡± Long Chen said loudly. He controlled his voice to make himself sound older, like a middle-aged man.


    <em>Huh?</em>Many people were shocked to hear him.


    ¡°Who is he? Is he not going to give the Underworld Soldier face?¡±


    ¡°He must have a death wish to interfere with something Lord Zhao wants.¡±


    ¡°Whose voice is that? Why haven¡¯t I heard of him before?¡±


    Everyone looked at each other.


    Zhao Kongming, Chairman Liu, and the mayor were sitting together. All three of them looked at each other. The mayor was already in a bad mood, so when a problem came up, he mmed the table and raged. ¡°Who the hell is being so ignorant? Show yourself!¡±


    His furious voice echoed across the auction hall. When everyone saw that the mayor was enraged, they trembled with fear.


    ¡°What is it? Isn¡¯t this an auction? The person who bids the highest price will get the item. Has the mayor not attended an auction before? Don¡¯t you know the most basic rule of an auction?¡± Long Chen said slowly.


    He was sitting in a cubicle, so no one knew who he was.


    However, based on his tone, they guessed that he was an expert. This person showed no respect for the mayor at all and dared toe alone. How could he do this without some strength to back him up? And he easily bid more than a thousand Emperor Crystals, so this person had to be at least at the Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage.


    The mayor did not think too much of it because he was the highest-ranked person present.


    While he was about to rage, Zhao Kongming held him back and said, ¡°Brother Qian, he is right. The auction rules state that the person with the highest bid gets the item. This brother has a lot of money and has bid one thousand and five hundred Emperor Crystals. He must be very insistent on buying the Heavenly Fortune Pill. That is far above the usual price of the pill, so I do not intend to bid higher. Based on the rules, he should be the one to get the Heavenly Fortune Pill.¡±


    This didn¡¯t affect the mayor directly, but Zhao Kongming was his esteemed guest. How dare this person not give him face? He was furious.


    ¡°You¡¯d better not let me find out who you are. I¡¯ll be watching you.¡± The mayor chuckled coldly, then he sat down. He said to Zhao Kongming, ¡°I apologize for the inconvenience, Brother Zhao.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s just a Heavenly Fortune Pill, and I only wanted to buy it in passing. Being able to make a good friend like you has made my trip to Scarlet Water City more than worth my while,¡± said Zhao Kongming with a smile.


    Zhao Kongming had no intention of bidding again, so the chairman of the Scarlet Water Association, Liu Guang, gave the host a look. The host nodded and struck the gavel. Very soon, someone took the Heavenly Fortune Pill to Long Chen. The person who delivered it was Chairman Liu.


    Long Chen ced fifteen hundred Emperor Crystals on the table and pushed it to him.


    Liu Guang could not see Long Chen¡¯s face. However, Long Chen had an unfamiliar aura, and it was clear that his cultivation level wasn¡¯t high; it was even lower than Liu Guang''s.


    ¡°May I ask for your name, brother? Are you from Scarlet Water City?¡± Liu Guang asked cautiously when he passed the Heavenly Fortune Pill to Long Chen.


    ¡°Why do you need to know? Don¡¯t ask unnecessary questions.¡± Long Chen took the pill, and after confirming that it was real, he walked past Liu Guang and exited the auction hall.


    In a dark corner, Zhao Kongming said, ¡°Brother Qian, please allow me to excuse myself for a moment. I¡¯ll see you again another day.¡±


    The mayor gave a look of understanding. He knew that Zhao Kongming was going to tail Long Chen. Long Chen had sessfully upset him, and that was why Zhao Kongming had given up on bidding. He had decided to kill Long Chen and take the Heavenly Fortune Pill from him. And Long Chen seemed to be carrying a lot of money on him too.


    With Zhao Kongming¡¯s abilities, he was able to follow Long Chen out of the auction hall in a sh. No one noticed him.


    However, Long Chen knew that Zhao Kongming was not the kind to let this go easily.


    Even though he was an Underworld Soldier, Long Chen did not feel pressured at all.


    <em>Xiong Jun may not be safe following a person like that around. Once I have absorbed the energy in the Heavenly Fortune Pill and break through to the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, I¡¯ll return to Scarlet Water City. Then I¡¯ll see if I can take Xiong Jun away.</em>


    Based on what had happened today, Zhao Kongming¡¯s character was not what he previously showed.


    Long Chen strolled casually out of Scarlet Water City with Zhao Kongming sneaking behind him. When he was about five hundred meters away from the city, Long Chen entered a valley, then he suddenly used Blood Warp and shot off in a ray of blood-red light.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Due to the hills around the valley, Zhao Kongming did not see Long Chen leave. This was a good ce to kill someone, so Zhao Kongming elerated toward the valley. When he arrived, he was stunned because there was no one there.


    ¡°Where is he? Where did he go?¡±


    He circled the ce multiple times but was unable to find Long Chen.


    ¡°Damn it!¡± Zhao Kongming punched the ground, causing it to tremble.


    ¡°What a strange guy! If I had known, I would have attacked him earlier. A Heavenly Fortune Pill was wasted just like that!¡±


    Zhao Kongming felt indescribable frustration.


    ¡°But ¡­¡± When he recalled a particr matter, he smiled.


    ¡°Even without the Heavenly Fortune Pill, I¡¯ve been extremely lucky with this trip. Once I havepletely consumed the mark on the Barbaric Body, I will basically have half a Barbaric Body. When that happens, it will be possible for me to enter the Divine Martial Realm! Then I shall be a general who can lead an army of thousands!¡±


    Zhao Kongming chuckled, then he turned and shot off towards Scarlet Water City. He disappeared into the city in the blink of an eye.


    Long Chen did not know about the final part of his muttering.


    After leaving with the Heavenly Fortune Pill, Long Chen entered a dark patch of forest. The forest was boundless, and the Barbaric Bear Tribe only took up a small section of it. Long Chen found an empty area and decided to stop there.


    This forest had treacherous terrain, and he finally found a treerge enough for several people to hold hands around its circumference. It was an old tree with all sorts of lichen growing on it. It was hollow in the middle, and the entrance was five meters tall.


    This deep-blue tree was harder than the iron buildings in the Ancient Graveyard, so he was not worried about his safety.


    It was very dark inside the tree, but when he took the Heavenly Fortune Pill out, it lit up the entire hole. The pill was pure white and emitted a faint, strange fragrance.


    ¡°An alchemist at the peak of the Heavenly Martial Realm refined this pill. The alchemistbined his understanding of the Martial Path with spiritual herbs, forming a pill that can advance a person¡¯s cultivation by one level. How miraculous.¡±


    Long Chen understood the magic of alchemists from this. Talisman masters were amazing too.


    He studied the Heavenly Fortune Pill for a while, then he swallowed it. Using his essence, he quickly digested it.


    Long Chen did not quite understand how the Heavenly Fortune Pill worked. After he cultivated the pill, a strange energy nourished his body. Something was even provoking his mind so that after two days, he realized that his Martial Soul had reached the Third Heavenly Martial Stage.


    He needed some time to absorb enough essence to truly reach the Third Heavenly Martial Stage though. He also had almost five thousand Emperor Crystals now, and they could help increase his essence quickly. Although it was not as quick as his Blood Transmutation technique, it was still an effective method.


    After using up more than a hundred Emperor Crystals, Long Chen¡¯s essence reached the Third Heavenly Martial Stage.


    With the boost provided by his Yin Yang Sword Soul, the Dragon Soul Transformation, and the Five Emperor Palm, Long Chen could now confidently defeat a Sixth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator, and even fight a Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage opponent!


    The Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage was the minimum requirement to enter the Underworld Soldiers. Zhao Kongming was likely at that stage.


    However, to Long Chen, thergest benefit was that he could start using the Emperor¡¯s Manual. He hadpleted his study of the technique a long time ago; he onlycked the essence reserves to use it. After studying for a while in the tree, he finally stood up.


    <em>There¡¯s no hurry to head to the Underworld Estate. I should check on Xiong Jun first. </em>


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 893: Lure

    <h4>Chapter 893 ¨C Lure</h4>


    After making his decision, Long Chen headed towards Scarlet Water City.


    Initially, he wanted to go directly to the Underworld Estate. However, he was unsure about Xiong Jun¡¯s situation and decided to check on him.


    Logically speaking, Zhao Kongming should have left because he had failed to get the Heavenly Fortune Pill. Long Chen was only returning to Scarlet Water City to confirm his thoughts.


    If he was right, Zhao Kongming was likely the mostmon kind of Underworld Soldier, one at the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage. Long Chen had now reached the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, so he could barely fight a Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator.


    Of course, it was only barely.


    If he wanted to defeat one, it would be quite difficult.


    He snuck into Scarlet Water City once again. This time, he hurried directly to the inn where he had previously stayed. It was not a huge city, so it didn¡¯t take long to arrive. He remembered which room Zhao Kongming was in, and using his Soul Swallowing Gaze, he could easily look inside it. As expected, Zhao Kongming had not left yet, and Xiong Jun was there too.


    Zhao Kongming had said that he would leave Scarlet Water City immediately after he got the Heavenly Fortune Pill, so why was he still here? Something was wrong. Also, Long Chen sensed that Xiong Jun¡¯s consciousness was withering, and he was barely breathing.


    Long Chen was immediately on guard.


    He¡¯s doing something to harm Xiong Jun. That guy¡¯s a bastard. Fuck ...


    If that was the case, not only did Long Chen need to rescue Xiong Jun, he also had to kill Zhao Kongming. Zhao Kongming knew that Xiong Jun was from the Barbaric Bear Tribe, so if Long Chen did not kill him, he could bring disaster to the rest of the tribe as well.


    At this point, Long Chen could not back out of this. There was some friendship between him and Xiong Jun after all. Therefore, Long Chen charged directly into the room, and in the blink of an eye, he sted the door open and looked inside.


    What he saw was simr to what Feng Xuan had done to Huangfu Qi. There was a wooden tub filled with green liquid. Various herbs floated in the liquid, and it emitted a pungent smell, though Zhao Kongming kept the scent isted in this room.


    There were two people in the wooden tub with their eyes closed, and they were Xiong Jun and Zhao Kongming. Xiong Jun had a fatigued expression and his eyes were closed. His tanned skin had turned extremely pale, as if he could die at any moment.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    ¡°So this is what he¡¯s been doing. This is a method to forcefully take another person¡¯s Natural Body. While this method is useless to peak-level Natural Bodies, he can extract some of the Barbaric Body¡¯s essence. Of course, the price will be Xiong Jun¡¯s life,¡± said Little Cat between curses, clearly very upset.


    Long Chen did not care how strong the other party was at this point. After barging into the room, he punched the wooden tub. It exploded with a loud boom, and the liquid sprayed in all directions. Long Chen was prepared, so when the tub exploded, he immediately pulled Xiong Jun and ced him in the Primordial Realm.


    The medicinal liquid rained down and ricocheted off Long Chen¡¯s body. Zhao Kongming had been focused on absorbing the Barbaric Body, so he did not notice Long Chen until Xiong Jun was snatched away.


    ¡°You?¡± Zhao Kongming looked at Long Chen with surprise. He had a faint memory that Long Chen and Xiong Jun knew each other. But Long Chen was only at the Second Heavenly Martial Stage, so how dare hee to interrupt his business?


    ¡°Hey, brat, hand Xiong Jun back if you know what¡¯s good for you. Or else ...¡± Zhao Kongming knew that this matter couldn¡¯t spread, so he threatened Long Chen. He had only taken a bit of what Xiong Jun had to offer, so how could he be willing to let Long Chen take him away?


    ¡°Zhao Kongming, I¡¯ll wait for you outside Scarlet Water City. Come if you dare.¡± Long Chen took one cold nce at him, then turned to leave.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Zhao Kongming was stunned. What was Long Chen up to? He was just some nosy kid, so what right did he have to talk to an Underworld Soldier like that?


    ¡°Right, I¡¯ve forgotten to tell you one more thing. I was the one who bought the Heavenly Fortune Pill,¡± Long Chen said when he was at the door. Then he turned into a blood-red ray of light and disappeared from Zhao Kongming¡¯s sight.


    If news of this spread throughout Scarlet Water City, it would not benefit Zhao Kongming at all.


    Long Chen¡¯s final sentence sessfully made Zhao Kongming take him more seriously.


    ¡°It was you?¡± Zhao Kongming finally understood that this brat that he had overlooked seemed to be someone with some capability.


    ¡°How dare you interrupt my business! It doesn¡¯t matter how capable you are. I¡¯m going to chop you into ten thousand pieces!¡± He snickered darkly, then gave chase in the direction Long Chen had gone. Since Long Chen had challenged him, he was sure to be there.


    Along the way, Long Chen hurriedly asked Little Cat about Xiong Jun¡¯s condition.


    ¡°There¡¯s not much we can do. His life is not in danger, but the guy has taken one-third of his potential. This will greatly impact his future achievements, and it could be a problem for him to reach the Divine Martial Realm. As for his current state, he will fully recover after resting for some time.¡±


    Long Chen pursed his lips without a word.


    Xiong Jun was a teenager filled with ambition. He was passionate and sincere about wanting Zhao Kongming as his teacher. Yet he had been hurt severely by the very same person.


    The fire of rage burned in Long Chen when he looked at Xiong Jun¡¯s pale face.


    Looks like the scheming, massacres, and fighting are all much more intense in the Royal Territoriespared to the Ten Thousand Nations Territory.


    Long Chen finally understood this.


    The only way one could live well was by killing. They could only rely on themselves.


    After exiting Scarlet Water City, Long Chen continued heading in the same direction asst time. He sensed that Zhao Kongming was catching up, considering he had only used Blood Warp for a brief moment. The Scarlet Water River, the river that flowed through Scarlet Water City, was in front of him. Long Chen followed the river upstream.


    Very quickly, Scarlet Water City disappeared behind him. There was no one around, and only the dark grasnd surrounded him. When he sensed that Zhao Kongming had caught up, he turned around.


    Zhao Kongming had to die, or Long Chen wouldn¡¯t be able to extinguish the hatred in his heart. Furthermore, if he did not kill Zhao Kongming, the Barbaric Bear Tribe could end up in trouble.


    However, Long Chen did not know exactly how strong this Underworld Soldier was.


    Zhao Kongming strode over and looked at him with a smile. When he was ten meters away from Long Chen, he stopped walking and eyed Long Chen with great interest. ¡°What is your name?¡±


    ¡°Is there a point in asking?¡± Long Chen knew that Zhao Kongming was absolutely confident that he would emerge victorious. With a cold huff, he activated the Dragon Soul Transformation and charged ahead!


    That was who Long Chen was¡ªa person who killed decisively!


    At the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, he could use the Emperor Vanquishers and the Emperor¡¯s Manual!


    As he charged forward, red armor covered his whole body, painting him as the vicious king of massacre. The gloves appeared on his hands too!


    The glove on the right was golden. It shone and radiated heat. On the left, the glove was pitch-ck with a cold and terrifying aura.


    Two small domains with a radius of half a meter appeared around his hands, one golden and one ck. This was the power of the Emperor Vanquishers.


    ¡°Five Emperor Palm!¡±


    Finally, Long Chen activated the power from the Five Emperors¡¯ inheritance.


    He was going to use three out of the four items the Five Emperors left behind for him. The fighting in the Royal Territories was just too intense; Long Chen had previously thought that it would be a long time before he needed to use these life-saving items.


    If he did not have the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures, hisbat abilities would only be at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage at maximum here. He would not even be able to beat Xiong Jun. This showed that he had made the right decision to work hard for the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures.


    ¡°What are those gloves? They¡¯re Divine-tier!¡±


    When Long Chen took out the Emperor Vanquishers, Zhao Kongming¡¯s eyes shone with greed. The powerful aura that erupted from Long Chen¡¯s body was getting very close to Zhao Kongming, and this was also unbelievable to him!


    Of course, the thing that attracted Zhao Kongming most was Long Chen¡¯s eye-catching Divine-tier weapons¡ªthe Emperor Vanquishers!


    Initially, he only wanted to chase after Long Chen and snatch Xiong Jun back, then kill this troublesome brat. He had not expected such an amazing opportunity to present itself before him.


    Thank you so much for bringing me such amazing luck! First it was the Barbaric Body, now Divine-tier gloves. This is my ticket to fame and fortune! Seeing as you¡¯re treating me so well, I¡¯ll give you a swift death.


    Zhao Kongming had always been the type to hide his ambitions. He had been an Underworld Soldier for a long time, but was always ranked low. This was his chance to rise up.


    He was usually a calm man, but he was starting to go crazy from the temptation in front of him.


    How many people could remain sane in front of a Divine-tier weapon? This weapon was in the hands of a teenager he could easily kill, so how could it not drive him crazy?


    If the mayor were here, he would also be like this.


    Zhao Kongming¡¯s emotions were in Long Chen¡¯s hands.


    ¡°You¡¯re looking for death.¡± Long Chenughed coldly. His energy had surged to its peak and his essence was equivalent to that of a peak Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator. With the Yin Yang Sword Soul and a weapon like the Emperor Vanquishers, it was actually possible for him to kill his opponent!


    ¡°Tyrannosaurus Punch!¡±

 Chapter 894: Nine Hells Finger

    <h4>Chapter 894 ¨C Nine Hells Finger</h4>


    Long Chen¡¯s astonishing talent enabled him to sessfully use the Tyrannosaurus Punch after just a few days of studying it. A hot, golden Tyrannosaurus fist seal shot out of his right glove at Zhao Kongming!


    This is powerful! Zhao Kongming gasped and quickly retreated. The Underworld Armor materialized on his body and wrapped around him tightly. This suit of armor greatly strengthened his defensive abilities and even boosted his attacking power.


    ¡°Nine Hells Finger!¡± While he retreated, a ck whirlpool appeared on Zhao Kongming¡¯s finger. Nine rays of finger attacks sted out of the ck whirlpool, withstanding the force of the Tyrannosaurus Punch!


    Why is his punching technique so familiar? Isn¡¯t this the mayor¡¯s signature technique? But why does it feel different, like it¡¯s stronger? It should be because of the gloves!


    Zhao Kongming drooled over the Emperor Vanquishers even more.


    What a waste for such an excellent weapon to be in this brat¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Break!¡± The Nine Hells Finger was the first finger technique he received after joining the Underworld Soldiers, and it was famous for its sharp and prative properties. Zhao Kongming had only reached the peak level of mastery after studying it for many years. Every finger attack that shot out turned into ck air currents that collided with Long Chen¡¯s Tyrannosaurus Punch!


    Every gust was a huge blow to the Tyrannosaurus Punch!


    Think you can defeat the Tyrannosaurus Punch with just that? There was a cold sh in Long Chen¡¯s eyes, and he continued to charge ahead. He swung his other arm and punched, then another Tyrannosaurus Punch of the same magnitude flew out. However, this time, it was a pitch-ck fist seal with a chilling aura!


    Yin and Yang were contradictory forces. When both Tyrannosaurus Punches collided, they generated a powerful explosion that shot at Zhao Kongming. Dust and sand flew around Long Chen!


    Boom!


    Zhao Kongming was sted into the air. The explosion frombining the two Tyrannosaurus Punches was not as simple as one-plus-one-equals-two.


    ¡°Interesting.¡±


    After stumbling tens of meters backwards, Long Chen was shocked to find that the man had relied on the Underworld Armor to absorb the force of the attack. Despite that, he was still stumbling clumsily. He had lost to Long Chen in this exchange, a kid who looked like he was only at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage.


    How could he have such powerfulbat abilities with such a low cultivation level?


    ¡°Is it my turn to attack yet?¡± Long Chen had made the first move in this exchange. To Zhao Kongming, this was just a joke. For the sake of the Emperor Vanquishers, Zhao Kongming wanted to end this fight quickly, so he used the strongest attack he had.


    Within the Heavenly Martial Realm, the most effective strategy to deal with a weaker cultivator was to use a domain. With his Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage domain, he could exert an absolutely suppressive force on Long Chen!


    Zhao Kongmingughed like a madman as he charged at Long Chen, releasing his immense domain. Zhao Kongming was king in his domain; he could even inject the Royal Qi from the domain into his attack. Using his essence, he would then guide the Royal Qi within his domain to unleash an even stronger attack.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    At the same time, the domain would be strong enough to suppress Long Chenpletely!


    Rumble!


    After Zhao Kongming released his domain, a destructive force that felt like a giant mountain pressed on Long Chen¡¯s body. It was not an attack from the front¡ªit came from all directions!


    It looks like Zhao Kongming is about to break through to the Eighth Heavenly Martial Stage ...


    Long Chen had a deep realization of the strength of his opponent.


    If he had reached the Eighth Heavenly Martial Stage, Long Chen would be no match for him, just like the six demons from before. However, Zhao Kongming had not broken through yet, and Long Chen was much stronger than when he first arrived in the Three Royal Territories!


    ¡°Blood Devouring Domain!¡± Long Chen had no time to think. The only way was to fight with everything he had!


    ¡°Fat Cat, could you use your magic to help me out?¡± Long Chen asked in a low voice.


    ¡°You¡¯re overestimating me. I haven¡¯t finished absorbing the Emperor Crystals, and he¡¯s much stronger than Qian Canglong. How am I going to hypnotize him with my current strength?¡± Little Catmented resignedly.


    Since Little Cat could not help him, Long Chen had no choice but to rely on himself.


    Using his domain to suppress Long Chen, Zhao Kongming saw hope.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Zhao Kongming was fascinated by the Blood Devouring Domain. Long Chen was controlling the Blood Devouring Domain with his Fifth-Earthly Martial Stage essence, so it did not have much effect on an expert on Zhao Kongming¡¯s level. Although the Yin Yang Sword Soul¡¯sprehension of the Sword Path could boost Long Chen¡¯sbat abilities by ten times, this was not enough to increase his Blood Devouring Domain by one level.


    However, the divine technique of the ancestral dragon was not this simple. Long Chen could sense that he had not mastered the entirety of this technique yet.


    With a surge of passion, Long Chen gritted his teeth and stood up in Zhao Kongming¡¯s domain. Essence surged within his whole body. He unleashed a roar, then charged at the man. Under the insurmountable pressure, he unleashed the Emperor¡¯s Manual technique.


    Zhao Kongming wanted to kill Long Chen as quickly as possible.


    ¡°You can still fight back while inside my domain. Not bad.¡± Zhao Kongming smiled now that he had the upper hand.


    He put a hand on the Underworld Armor.


    ¡°With you, I don¡¯t need to worry about being injured.¡± Heughed, and emerald-green runes lit up on the armor. An immense energy swirled in the runes, then flowed into Zhao Kongming¡¯s body.


    Rumble, rumble.


    The surge of energy in Zhao Kongming¡¯s body made Long Chen furrow his brows.


    Divine-tierbat technique?


    The odds were not in his favor.


    Even the worst Underworld Soldier could get a Divine-tierbat technique.


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky! You will be able to experience the Underworld Soldiers¡¯ most famousbat technique, the Killing God Sutra! Eighty percent of Underworld Soldiers know how to use this technique! Countless people have died to it ... You¡¯re just the tiniest, most insignificant one.


    ¡°Die!¡±


    Zhao Kongming did not show any mercy. An ice-cold killing intent erupted from him, and it seemed to aggregate the wretched souls of countless victims who wailed by Zhao Kongming¡¯s side. The sky-high energy of resentment and anger turned into a powerful killing Qi that loomed over Long Chen.


    Long Chen felt goosebumps all over.


    Whoosh ...


    An ice-cold gust of wind swept past. Zhao Kongming charged at him from the darkness, just like death itself. He swiped at Long Chen¡¯s neck, and Long Chen¡¯s whole world turned dark. The only things that remained were the violent swipe and the domain pressing on his body!


    Zhao Kongming and Qian Canglong were only one cultivation level apart, but this was a huge gap. Long Chen had easily gained the upper hand against Qian Canglong with Little Cat¡¯s help. However, he could not do the same in front of Zhao Kongming!


    This swipe was likely an attack from the Killing God Sutra.


    ¡°Massacre w!¡±


    A cold voice rang out, as if it hade from right next to Long Chen¡¯s ear.


    ¡°The Killing God Sutra is nothingpared to the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon¡¯s killing Qi!¡± Under this great pressure, not only was Long Chen not afraid, but he started tough loudly.


    What¡¯s the matter with him? Zhao Kongming was puzzled. The most important part of the Killing God Sutra was the intimidating effect. The killing intent was meant to scare his opponents. Based on the battles he had fought throughout the years, Zhao Kongming knew that the killing intent radiating from his body was enough to scare the average opponent into wetting their pants. Then, he would kill them very casually. However, Long Chen was not affected by the killing intent at all.


    That was because Long Chen was the king in terms of killing intent.


    Heughed wildly, then aggregated all his strength in his right first. Long Chen activated the Emperor''s Manual, and then all the dragon essence in his body was converted into emperor essence!


    The regal aura of an emperor who ruled thend and the seas erupted from Long Chen. As if he was facing his natural predator, Zhao Kongming¡¯s aura was forced back when it was met with the emperor¡¯s aura!


    The Emperor of Man was the strongest person who ever lived in the whole Ten Thousand Nations Territory¡¯s history, and he was also the Five Emperors¡¯ master!


    The Emperor¡¯s Manual contained all his learnings of the Emperor¡¯s Path in his lifetime. It contained an innate arrogance that looked down on all other beings. Amon elementary Divine-tierbat technique was nothing in front of Long Chen¡¯s Emperor¡¯s Manual!


    ¡°Emperor¡¯s Manual¡ªEmperor¡¯s Arrival!¡±


    With a roar, Long Chen¡¯s simmering aura reached its peak and exploded. A golden fist seal flew out of his hand. Zhao Kongming only saw Long Chen looking regal, and it was as if countless beings were worshiping him. Long Chen¡¯s courageous, magnificent aura of an emperor suppressed his Killing God Sutra!


    This is also a Divine-tier technique!


    With just a brief look, Zhao Kongming confirmed it.


    ¡°Kill!¡± So what if his opponent could use a Divine-tier technique? Long Chen was weaker than himself, and Zhao Kongming had a domain that could suppress him!


    The strength of the domain wasbined with the strength of the Killing God Sutra!


    The exchange between the Massacre w and Long Chen¡¯s punch was Long Chen¡¯s highest-level duel to date. After using the Emperor¡¯s Manual just once, he felt like he had used up all the strength in his body. His opponent¡¯s domain was just too powerful!


    Long Chen had a stronger determination than his opponent, but Zhao Kongming had a better foundation. Zhao Kongming¡¯s domain was a huge obstacle for Long Chen¡¯s Emperor¡¯s Manual.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 895: Emperor’s Soul

    There was an explosion. This time, both Long Chen and Zhao Kongming were thrown back. With a dull <em>thud</em>, both of themnded and retreated ten steps, forming craters beneath their feet.


    If this were in the Ten Thousand Nations Territory, they would not have just formed craters¡ªthe whole piece ofnd would have been destroyed!


    This exchange had ended in a draw.


    <em>Oh no! </em>This was not a good thing for Long Chen. He had less essence than his opponent, and the Emperor¡¯s Arrival technique had almost exhausted all of it. But his opponent still could use his trump car again!


    Long Chen stabilized his feet with slightly furrowed brows. Not even ten breaths of time had passed yet, but he would not let himself be at a disadvantage. Therefore, he chose to use Rewind to restore his strength to the way it was before he used the Emperor¡¯s Manual.


    Under the ancestral dragon¡¯s control over thew of time, huge amounts of essence appeared in his body, as if out of thin air.


    Long Chen once had a curious idea. He wondered if he could use Rewind on Blood Sacrifice. The activation of that technique required about three to four breaths of time. Then he would use the remaining six breaths¡¯ time to unleash at least one attack. With the help of Blood Sacrifice, his attack would be boosted. Not caring if his attack injured his opponent, he could use Rewind to return his body to its state ten breaths ago. Could he avoid the regression in cultivation level and prevent injuring his Martial Soul that way?


    He had asked Little Cat before, to which he replied, ¡°In your dreams! You cannot break universalws. The ancestral dragon may control certainws, but it is also bound by even higher-levelws, which is the boundless universe itself. The ancestral dragon¡¯s powers have a ceiling too. For example, Blood Sacrifice is a very powerful technique. The more powerful the user is, the more impressive the technique will be. If the user didn¡¯t end up injured afterwards, wouldn¡¯t the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon far surpass the other ancestral dragons? Therefore, the world had to ce limits on the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon so that it could not use Blood Sacrifice so casually. This is thew of the world. No being can break it, not even the other ancestral dragons. That includes the dragon of time, the Primordial Time Dragon!


    ¡°If your logic was correct, you could recover from anything using Rewind. However, even the Primordial Time Dragon was unable to break thews of this world, so you will need to ept the regression of your cultivation level.¡±¡°The world?¡± Long Chen started to understand. This world, or this universe, was like a boundless cage. Everyone, including the ancestral dragons, was trapped in it.


    <em>In that case, the ancestral dragons were also looked down upon by the owner of the cage.</em>


    This was just a revtion on Long Chen¡¯s part. He was still very, very far from that level. When Long Chen touched that level, he would be very close to the peak.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    By relying on Rewind, Long Chen¡¯s essence returned to its almost-peak state once more.


    <em>Whoosh!</em>


    He stabilized himself and he felt his opponent¡¯s immense killing intent once more.


    The Killing God Sutra was fired at him once again.


    He looked up and saw Zhao Kongming charging.


    Zhao Kongming was actually even more shocked. He never thought that such a young kid could withstand his Divine-tierbat technique. This was extraordinary.


    What cultivation level is he at? The Third Heavenly Martial Stage or the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage? Zhao Kongming realized he could not tell at all. ??????¨¨S?


    <em>Whether it is the Third or Seventh, all I need to do is test him and I will know. If he is at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage, his essence should be used up by now!</em>


    With that thought, Zhao Kongming clenched his jaw once more and used the Killing God Sutra!


    ¡°Massacre w!¡±


    The w that seemed to tear through the heavens swiped at Long Chen once more!


    ¡°Emperor¡¯s Manual, Emperor¡¯s Arrival!¡±


    He threw a punch!


    This time, Long Chen used his left fist. It carried earth-shattering power and radiated a chilling aura. A ck fist seal as regal as the king of the world shot out at Zhao Kongming!


    This attack emptied Long Chen¡¯s essence once more!


    However, after his first attack, he was much more familiar with the technique. He managed to force Zhao Kongming back with this attack!


    Zhao Kongming tumbled through the air several times, and then hended.


    Almost all of Long Chen¡¯s essence was exhausted, and it was the same for Zhao Kongming. He never thought that this duel would be this difficult. Long Chen really was an expert who was on the same level as himself.


    Both of them were almostpletely spent. They both stood up, panting heavily as they looked at each other.


    <em>This guy is about as strong as I am. </em>Long Chen was clear that if neither had any better techniques, then they would continue tiring each other out. Then, if another expert came along, they would reap the benefits of this duel.


    After using the same attack twice in a row, Long Chen felt dehydrated and weakened. However, fighting at the brink of death also filled him with energy. Strong battle spirit surged in his weakened body, and the world in front of his eyes turned blood-red!


    ¡°Kill!¡±


    A dragon-like roar was unleashed from Long Chen¡¯s mouth!


    This duel had made his scalp go numb from anxiety. It had been a long time since he had met such an equal opponent. This triggered all his potential. A blood-red dragon appeared on every muscle, tendon, and bone in his body.


    ¡°I will not end this fucking fight until either you or I die!¡±


    Zhao Kongming knew that this fight would only result in a stalemate, but with such great temptations before him, he chose to fight to the end. Both cultivators with almost-exhausted essence continued to fight for a while until they separated once more, more tired than before. However, the blood-red desire to fight in Long Chen¡¯s eyes did not diminish at all.


    Long Chen¡¯s understanding of the Heavenly Martial Realm deepened greatly through this fight against Zhao Kongming.


    <em>I can¡¯t use Heavenly Fortune Pills over and over. Plus, high-quality Heavenly Fortune Pills are worth at least a hundred thousand Emperor Crystals. I can¡¯t afford that. If I study the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual slowly, it''ll probably take me at least thirty years to reach the Divine Martial Realm!</em>


    <em>No! I cannot wait thirty years! I must be stronger!</em>


    A scream directed at the heavens erupted from his body.


    During this intense fight against Zhao Kongming, Long Chen realized that something was happening to the mysterious dragon jade in his sea of consciousness.


    The Dragon Jade Pendant¡¯s eye lit up for a very brief moment, as if it had opened like a real eye, and Long Chen felt a tremble in the depths of his soul. That drop of ancestral dragon blood also trembled, but it only calmed down after a long time.


    This momentary distraction almost made Long Chen get hit by Zhao Kongming¡¯s attack!


    <em>What happened? </em>After the dragon jade¡¯s eyes closed, the gray ball in the Primordial Realm, the True Martial Overlord Soul, started moving too. The small, gray ball flew out of the Primordial Realm on its own, and a huge force sted Zhao Kongming back.


    ¡°What¡¯s that...¡±


    The ball floated in front of Long Chen, then approached the spot between Long Chen¡¯s eyebrows. Long Chen sensed that he could not move his body at all, and Zhao Kongming could not approach either.


    ¡°What is that thing?¡± Zhao Kongming was stunned. If it was so powerful, then it was surely some extraordinary treasure too.


    Long Chen did not know what was going on either.


    He could not move, so all he could do was watch the True Martial Overlord Soul in stunned silence. It was just like the Primordial Dragon Talisman before¡ªLong Chen could not fight back at all as it entered his head. Once it hadpletely merged with him, Long Chen felt like he had an extra eye.


    The gray ball turned into a gray eyeball between his brows. It connected with his tendons, veins, bones, and muscles, thus bing part of his body. He even felt like the gray eyeball couldmunicate with his Martial Soul, as if there was an invisible thread between them.


    <em>What is ¡­</em>


    When Long Chen did not activate the gray eyeball, there would only be a gray, vertical line between his brows. But when he opened his third eye, the vertical line would split open to reveal a third eye. Within the third eye was a faint gray human-shaped silhouette.


    When it waspletely merged with him, Long Chen felt himself change.


    When he looked through the new eye, it was as if the whole world had be clearer. He could now see many things that were previously too tiny to see.


    Most importantly, Zhao Kongming, who was charging at him, became slower and slower until Long Chen could analyze his every action. He could even see the flow of his essence inside his body.


    <em>What¡¯s going on? What are the functions of the True Martial Overlord Soul?</em>


    While Long Chen was asking himself these questions, his opponent approached him. He was forced to fight again after a brief respite.


    Very soon, he understood what extraordinary functions the True Martial Overlord Soul had.


    While he fought, he could analyze every movement and essence flow of his opponent. It was just like having a mentor while he studied the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual, and this mentor was teaching him how to cultivate through dueling.


    While he fought his opponent, he had a feeling like he was quickly cultivating the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual!


    He smiled.


    <em>Is my cultivation speed going to increase quickly now? </em>

 Chapter 896: Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage

    The True Martial Overlord Soul was the most mysterious of the Five Emperors¡¯ treasures. The Five Emperors had unintentionally gotten this item when they were in the True Martial Territory during ancient times. The six demons had learned about this, and they had waited in the Ancient Graveyard for many years because they wanted it!


    It was rumored that the True Martial Overlord Soul was rted to the most powerful person in the True Martial Pce¡ªthe True Martial Overlord. He was also one of the three main leaders of the Three Royal Territories.


    Long Chen only understood how terrifying the Royal Territories were when he arrived. He was already facing difficulties with the Underworld Estate in the Eastern Royal District, and it would be much worse when he faced the core power of the whole Royal Territory, the True Martial Pce!


    The True Martial Overlord had lived for more than ten thousand years, and he was the ultimate master who ruled over the territory and was famous across the whole world. He was someone who could control the lives and deaths of billions with just a wave of his hand.


    In the past, he did not believe that the True Martial Overlord Soul was rted to the True Martial Overlord, but he did now. After the True Martial Overlord Soul had merged into his forehead, his Martial Soul could sense everything it saw. He could now replicate his opponent¡¯s understanding of the Martial Path during a duel!


    In this manner, Long Chen could progress extremely quickly in his cultivation. If he cultivated at normal speed, he would need almost a year to reach the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage. Now, he could quickly learn the method to achieve a breakthrough and kill Zhao Kongming during the same duel!


    <em>With the True Martial Overlord Soul, I will probably progress through the Heavenly Martial Realm and even Divine Martial Realm much more quickly than the best prodigies of the Royal Territories! My five senior brothers have truly given me massive assistance in this aspect.</em>


    The average person couldn¡¯t even use the True Martial Overlord Soul. Long Chen could use it only because of the Dragon Jade Pendant¡¯s control over the True Martial Overlord Soul. Without it, there was no way he could activate such an impressive item when he was merely at the Third Heavenly Martial Stage.


    The True Martial Overlord Soul was extraordinary, but it was not ridiculously unbelievable.Long Chen had absorbed one-hundredth of the Inherited Blood Essence, so his speed of cultivation wasparable to that of the best prodigies of the Eastern Royal District. It was like he was riding a rocket. In just a few years, he was able to catch up to many people in terms of cultivation level, so pursuing Ling Xi was no longer a dream.


    When he arrived in the Royal Territories and met all those experts, he felt a little dejected about meeting Ling Xi. The Royal Territories were toorge and there were too many experts around. Meanwhile, he was just a tiny person. Rising through the ranks to be the ultimate master and get Ling Xi felt like a very difficult task.


    Even though he was a Dragon Warrior, it could¡¯ve taken him decades, or even a century!


    How could one be the ultimate master without spending hundreds or even thousands of years in the Royal Territories? Long Chen¡¯s cultivation speed was not slow, but he was still not satisfied.


    Therefore, the True Martial Overlord Soul offered him great help.


    This tiny treasure had determined the future path that Long Chen would take¡ªit would not be a path of cultivation, but a path of battles!


    Cultivating the Heavenly Martial Fist Manual could no longer help him progress in cultivation. He only needed to fight other people, and through countless battles, he could replicate the fruits of other people¡¯sbor, thus improving his own cultivation quickly!


    <em>I can¡¯t believe that from today onwards, I¡¯m going to be a fighting machine.</em>


    Long Chen smiled bitterly.


    <em>Since I need to fight, let¡¯s fight! I, Long Chen, am not afraid of anyone. You¡¯ll find me in any ce where there is a fight!</em>


    The passion within him was ignited by the arrival of the True Martial Overlord Soul. He felt like his blood was boiling.


    Through the eyeball-like True Martial Overlord Soul, he saw apletely different world. It caused him to look past everything to focus on only one thing: the Martial Path!


    Long Chen did not know what was waiting beyond the Three Martial Realms, but he knew that the Three Martial Realms relied onprehension for a cultivator to advance to the next level!


    At the very least, he would not need to worry about progressing through the Heavenly and Divine Martial Realms now.


    As long as he could hold on through countless battles, he would be stronger as he encountered stronger opponents!


    Zhao Kongming was shocked to see how passionate Long Chen was. After that bizarre phenomenon, Long Chen seemed to have be a different person.


    ¡°What was that thing that melted between your brows?¡± asked Zhao Kongming whileunching a crazed attack.


    They had exhausted almost all of their essence, so they fought mostly with punches and kicks. Both of them had tough bodies, so the fight was intense.


    ¡°Just wait and you shall see,¡± Long Chen said mildly with a small smile. The coldness in his eyes contrasted with the calm smile, confusing Zhao Kongming even further. ?????§à?¦¥?


    ¡°What changed?¡±


    Zhao Kongming had the idea to retreat, but when he thought about the Emperor Vanquishers, he did not want to give up.


    ¡°Die!¡± He shot the Nine Hells Finger at Long Chen.


    Zhao Kongming was a Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator who had mastered the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage over ten years ago. To Long Chen, he was a huge source of knowledge, and he absorbed it like a starving man. He improved quickly as the fight pushed him to his limit.


    After a while, Long Chen smiled.


    This was his first time using the True Martial Overlord Soul after the transformation it brought him, but he was already able to reap a huge benefit. He had sessfullyprehended the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage from Zhao Kongming.


    The analysis done by the True Martial Overlord Soul was sent to the Martial Soul.


    Within his sea of consciousness, his Martial Soul underwent a major change once more. The pure-white Martial Soul turned redder as his cultivation advanced, and now that he was advancing from the Third to the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage, it became redder once more.


    This meant that Long Chen¡¯s Martial Soul had progressed by one level.


    ¡°Goodbye, old man.¡± Long Chenughed and quickly retreated. Many Emperor Crystals appeared in his hand. As he fled, he absorbed their energy. When he replenished his spent essence, his cultivation level would surge once more to reach the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage.


    ¡°Think you can run?¡± Zhao Kongming thought that Long Chen had be afraid and quickly gave chase. When he saw that Long Chen was absorbing Emperor Crystals, he was worried that Long Chen was replenishing his essence and also took out his own.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Both of them ran and replenished their strength at the same time. They ran for a while with Long Chen in the lead, running in circles in the forest. Half a dayter, Long Chen had spent a huge quantity of Emperor Crystals topletely elevate his essence to the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage. Due to the superior amount of essence, he needed vast quantities of Emperor Crystals to progress. Other people needed about a hundred to get to the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage, but he used more than a thousand. That was equivalent to the price of a Heavenly Fortune Pill.


    By the time his strength had mostly recovered, Zhao Kongming had nearly recovered as well. Naturally, Zhao Kongming¡¯s confidence also reached its peak.


    ¡°Stop!¡±


    Zhao Kongming elerated to his maximum speed and instantly caught up to Long Chen. He used his Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage domain to suppress him, so that Long Chen could not move at all.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been running for a long time. That¡¯s enough. Die, brat.¡± After chasing Long Chen for such a long time, Zhao Kongming had run out of patience.


    Once his strength recovered, he immediately expanded his domain and trapped Long Chen. At the same time, he unleashed the Killing God Sutra once more. The Divine-tier technique erupted with an aggressive aura filled with killing intent that surrounded Long Chen.


    As far as Zhao Kongming could tell, Long Chen was absolutely trapped. However, he did not see the smile on Long Chen¡¯s face because Long Chen was facing the other way.


    Long Chen was now at the Fourth Heavenly Martial Stage, and it was supplemented by various boosts. Now he could even fight an Eighth Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator!


    The Emperor¡¯s Manual gathered in his palm once more, but it was more powerful than his previous usage. The space around his hand even started to tremble.


    ¡°Roar!¡±


    When the Killing God Sutra neared Long Chen, he roared furiously. He turned around quickly, then shot a golden fist seal at Zhao Kongming!


    ¡°What?!¡± Zhao Kongming sensed a suffocating aura falling on him. At that moment, it was as if Long Chen was a ruler who looked down on all beings. Even Zhao Kongming himself felt like a lowly creature before him. Although he was attacking with all his might, he wasughably weak.


    ¡°Emperor¡¯s Manual, Emperor¡¯s Arrival!¡±


    When he threw the punch, it was as if he was a ruler. A ruler who was worshiped by countless beings. The Killing God Sutra waspletely destroyed, and the rippling forcended on Zhao Kongming¡¯s body. The powerful punch shattered Zhao Kongming¡¯s heart!


    Zhao Kongming was instantly killed by the force.


    His eyes went wide, but they quickly lost their light.


    Even in hisst moments, he did not know why Long Chen had suddenly gotten stronger. If he was really that strong, why hadn¡¯t Long Chen killed him at the beginning?


    He did not understand why, even in death.


    <em>Thud! </em>Zhao Kongming¡¯s body copsed. Long Chen removed Zhao Kongming¡¯s storage ring and put it away.


    ¡°It¡¯s too bad I destroyed the Underworld Armor. If not, I could have used it,¡± said Long Chen, looking at the broken armor on his foe¡¯s body.


    He only had about two or three thousand Emperor Crystals left from the initial six thousand. In thisnd without demonic beasts, he consumed Emperor Crystals very quickly. However, he managed to obtain about twenty thousand from Zhao Kongming. This was enough for him and Little Cat to use for a long time.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!